Got a beef about the removal of parking on Gardner? You might want to take your case to the Transportation Commission and ask for an item to be placed on a future agenda for discussion.
Are you a disabled resident who has lost access to the public right of way in what once was one of the most walkable cities in California? Then rally the troops on the Disability Advisory Board.
Concerned about your rights or facing discrimination? Then you might ask the LGBTQ+ Commission to look into the problem and perhaps make a recommendation to the City Council.
If you are a resident and need attention to a pressing matter of interest, you may bring your concerns to any commission or board and ask the chair to call a vote for the item to be placed on a future agenda.
You see, commissions and boards are supposed to be the resident liaisons to the City Council. They are supposed to listen to the residents and make recommendations to the City Council. But in case after case, on many commissions and boards, the main complaint is the city staff who resist placing items on the agenda for discussion.
All commissions and boards may ask the chair to request a vote of the full commission to place an item on a future agenda. City staff does not have the authority to reject the will of the majority of commission or board members.
Per West Hollywood City Clerk Melissa Crowder, the proper procedure to bring an item forward for discussion is as follows:
Adding items of business to a future agenda. Any member of the board may, during items from board members, request that an item of business within the board’s subject matter jurisdiction be added to a future agenda. Such requests are subject to approval of the board.
The mayor and vice mayor then review board and commission recommendations to see which items they choose to have the full council deliberate and implement or reject.
very good post. figuring out how to agendize something is the most critical step.
When I was on the DAB, we board members were allowed to propose “a work plan” with items that we wanted to be agendized for the year’s meetings. However, we were not the ones who made the final decision on what actually would be discussed and worked on. That decision was made by the staff. Also, we were never told if the various things we did advise on were discussed by or taken into consideration by the council.
Which Board or Commission would a person go to for adding an item(s) concerning city hall management and civil rights?
The City Staff does not let us place something on the agenda without council approval. So the system is backwards. We don’t get to advise them, they set the agenda what we can talk about.
When I served on the public safety commission we could not speak about specific issues unless Kristen Cook approved..