ACTION:
____________________________
Clerk/Secretary
Department: City Manager Item No: D3
Prepared by: Jonathan Lung, Homeless Services Program Mgr Meeting Date: May 13, 2025 Imelda Huerta, Assistant City Manager
John Conley, City Manager Agenda Location: Discussion
SUBJECT: STANDING COMMITTEE ON HOMELESSNESS’ RECOMMENDATION ON A
HOMELESSNESS COMMISSION COMPOSITION AND ORDINANCE
RECOMMENDATION: Receive and discuss recommendations from the Standing Committee on Homelessness establishing a Homelessness Commission by ordinance.
CORRELATION TO CITY COUNCIL GOALS: Homelessness & Housing.
PRIOR ACTION: March 25, 2025, directed staff to draft an ordinance to establish a seven member Homelessness Commission after the City Council reviews the Standing Committee’s recommendation for the composition of the Commission and the goals of the Commission; schedule five Standing Committee meetings during even months, five Commission meetings during odd months, and two Strategic Plan Workshop meetings; reschedule the Standing Committee meeting to the fourth Thursday of even months; and appointed Councilmember Jeff Fox as Ex-Officio member to the Standing Committee (Vote: 5-0).
January 14, 2025, directed staff to provide options for a community centered group to advise on the Strategic Plan to Address Homelessness (Vote: 5-0).
On January 23, 2024, created a Brown Act Standing Committee made up of Mayor Franklin and Deputy Mayor Melendez with remaining councilmembers as ex-officio members (Vote: 4-0-1, Green Abstained).
STATEMENT ON THE SUBJECT: On January 23, 2024, the Standing Committee on Homelessness (SCoH) was created by the City Council to meet on the third Thursday of each month at 8:30 a.m. The purpose of the SCoH was to dedicate additional time to receiving thorough updates from staff regarding the implementation of the Strategic Plan to Address Homelessness (Strategic Plan) and allow more in- depth discussion between the Committee Members to report back to the City Council.
On January 14, 2025, the City Council directed staff to provide options for a community centered group to advise on the Strategic Plan, and at the February 20, 2025, SCoH meeting, various options were provided to and discussed by the SCoH Committee members.
After a discussion of the options presented, the SCoH members agreed to recommend 12 total homelessness meetings per year to the City Council. Five SCoH meetings would be held during even months with a start time of 8:30 a.m. The recommendation also included the formation of a seven-member AGENDA
REPORT
CITY COUNCIL
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
SUCCESSOR AGENCY
BUENA SANITATION DISTRICT
JOINT POWERS FINANCING AUTHORITY
Directed staff to draft ordinance amending the Vista Municipal Code to add Section 2.54 establishing a Homelessness Commission, and to schedule a Public Hearing for June 10, 2025, to consider adoption of the ordinance. Vote: 5-0
MEETING DATE: May 13, 2025 PAGE 2
SUBJECT: STANDING COMMITTEE ON HOMELESSNESS’ RECOMMENDATION ON A
HOMELESSNESS COMMISSION COMPOSITION AND ORDINANCE
Homelessness Commission which would meet five times during odd months with a start time to be determined. The remaining two meetings would be reserved for the continuation of the semi-annual workshop updates on the Implementation of the Strategic Plan to Address Homelessness, with one providing updates between January and June, and the other providing updates between July and December.
On March 25, 2025, the City Council received and approved the above recommendations and directed staff to discuss the composition of the Homelessness Commission, which was held during the April 24, 2025, SCoH.
The SCoH recommend establishing the Homelessness Commission in accordance with the City’s existing process, including:
•That the Commission is an advisory agent only and actions are not binding upon the City •Commissioners are:
o Bona fide resident of the City of Vista,
o At least 18 years of age, and
o Not employed by the City of Vista.
o Exceptions:
Must be finding that exception is in best interest of the City; City Council 3/5 vote to waive;
City Council 3/5 vote to designate a seat for an outside agency representative •Bona fide representative of the respective outside organization, or •Owns a business in Vista.
•Standard terms for appointments.
o Unless otherwise established in ordinance:
Four-year terms,
Terminates March 31 of the term expiration year, and
Staggering terms.
•Robert’s Rules of Order and Brown Act apply
A special provision recommended by the SCoH is that following the allocation of one appointment per City Councilmember, the two remaining appointments will be designated to the Chair and Vice Chair of the SCoH, with each granted one appointment. In addition, each appointment allocated to the Chair and Vice Chair of the SCoH would be reserved for individuals with lived experience with homelessness.
Staff recommend approving the SCoH’s recommendations and directing staff to draft an ordinance amending the Vista Municipal Code to add Section 2.54 establishing a Homelessness Commission, and to schedule a Public Hearing for June 10, 2025, to consider adoption of the ordinance. If adopted on June 10, 2025, the ordinance would take effect 30 days later, on July 10, 2025.
FISCAL IMPACT: There is no fiscal impact associated with this item.
EXHIBITS:
None
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