Memorandum                    

City of Lawrence

City Manager’s Office

 

TO:

Thomas M. Markus, City Manager

FROM:

Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager

DATE:

February 25, 2019

CC:

Casey Toomay, Assistant City Manager

Danielle Buschkoetter, Budget and Strategic Initiatives Manager

RE:

Advisory Board/Committee Strategic Plan Item Update

 

This memorandum provides a comprehensive update on the action steps identified as part of the priority initiative to inventory and evaluate the role of existing advisory boards and commissions and identify opportunities to consolidate or sunset as appropriate and adopt consistent operating guidelines.  Action steps are divided into accomplishments and items that are ongoing or planned for the future.

Accomplishments:

·         Created a comprehensive inventory of all existing advisory boards and committees.

·         Held an August 2017 work session on the topic of advisory boards and committees.

·         City Commission adopted advisory board policy.

·         City and County eliminated the Joint Economic Development Council and merged its responsibilities into the Public Incentives Review Committee.

·         City Commission eliminated obsolete boards including the Lawrence Advisory Board on University Student Issues, the Downtown Parking Advisory Board, and the ECO2 Commission.

·         Staff developed a tool to measure the existing diversity of City advisory boards and committees.  A survey was sent to advisory board members in the spring of 2018 and a report was provided to the City Commission.  Demographic information is now being requested in a voluntary basis from all applicants for city board and commission vacancies.

·         The City Commission eliminated the Lawrence Alliance and merged its responsibilities into the Human Relations Commission.

·         City Commission dissolved the Sister Cities Advisory Board, allowing it to continue as a not-for-profit with city representation and a link to the city.

·         The City Commission amended the City code extending the Sales Tax Audit Committee into the future.

·         The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee was repealed. 

Ongoing:

·         Engage Women’s Foundation to increase the number of women applicants for board and commission vacancies. 

The Women’s Foundation held a meeting in Lawrence in November and another one the last week of February.  Attached is a staff memo that summarizes progress regarding the diversity goals of the advisory board policy. 

·         Evaluate potential software to assist with the management of advisory board and committee appointments. 

New software has been selected and is in the process of implementation.  Implementation anticipated in late Spring 2019. 

·         Merging of HOME funding responsibilities of Community Development Advisory Committee (CDAC) into the Affordable Housing Advisory Board.  Redirect the CDBG funding responsibilities of the CDAC to staff recommendations as part of the City’s budget process and repeal the Community Development Advisory Committee. 

The City Commission approved first reading of the ordinance merging the HOME funding responsibilities into the Affordable Housing Advisory Board.  Second reading of the ordinance is scheduled for March 5, 2019.  The Commission wished to have further discussion about the Community Development Advisory Committee and that item was deferred for further discussion to the March 5, 2019 meeting. 

·         Draft correspondence from the Mayor to non-City boards urging them to be more open and transparent by publicly posting board rosters, agendas and minutes.  Staff suggests that this be sent to non-City boards that currently do not have one or more of these items posted on the website:  EDC, Jayhawk Area Agency on Aging, Peaslee Tech, Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, BTBC and Community Corrections Advisory Board. 

Staff has drafted correspondence for the Mayor’s consideration. 

Planned:

This item involves a review of bylaws and City code provisions related to the Airport Advisory Board. Staff plans to facilitate discussion on this item with the advisory board at its next meeting scheduled meeting on March 14, 2019. Recommendations will be forwarded to the City Commission at a future date. Work on this is anticipated during 2019. 

 

·         Review Mental Health Board. 

This issue was discussed at the September 2018 City-County-School District meeting.  There was subsequent discussion between former Mayor Boley and former County Commissioner Gaughan.  Staff now needs to follow up with discussions with County staff.  There appears to be a direction to eliminate the joint Mental Health Board and not have the City make any appointments to the Bert Nash board. This would require action by both the City Commission and County Commission.

·         Review Lawrence-Douglas County Advocacy Council on Aging. 

Former Mayor Boley and former Vice Mayor Larsen attended the October meeting of the Lawrence-Douglas County Advocacy Council on Aging.  This Council was also discussed at the September 2018 City-County-School District meeting as it is a joint board of the City and County.  Subsequent to the City-County-School District meeting, former Mayor Boley and former Commissioner Gaughan met and City and County staff are asked to have a meeting to discuss this with Judy Bellome, who is a member of the board, and Megan Poindexter, Executive Director of the Senior Resource Center (SRC) for Douglas County about possibly having the Council be a committee under the auspices of the SRC.  Elimination of the Lawrence-Douglas County Advocacy Council on Aging as a joint City-County committee would require action by both the City Commission and County Commission. 

·         Merging of various Code boards:

The proposal to merge the various codes boards was pending the work leading up to the adoption of the new international building codes.  This work is nearing an end and the code adoption is anticipated to be a 2019 item.  The consolidation of the boards will be considered at that time.  This is anticipated in late Spring 2019 at this point.

·         Review the Transportation Commission membership: 

City Commissioners directed staff to review the membership of the Transportation Commission with the transportation commissioners, particularly the positions dedicated for representatives of the Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department and University of Kansas. Staff facilitated this discussion at the February 15, 2019 Transportation Commission planning retreat and will schedule the item for a regular meeting of the Transportation Commission. The Transportation Commission’s recommendation will then be forwarded to the City Commission for final action at a future meeting.