GRVNC Board Meeting
7:00PM, March 22, 2004
AGENDA
There is a 2-minute time limit per member of the public
per agenda item. After the public has
spoken, the Board will discuss the item, make any appropriate amendments to the
motion and vote. Public comment on
agendized items may be limited to 3 people in favor and 3 against followed by a
show of hands of members in the audience in favor or against an item in order
to complete the public comment within 12 minutes.
1.
Call to Order:
2.
Introductions/Roll Call:
3.
Welcome:
4. General Public
Comment about non-agendized items - 20 minutes
5.
Approval of Minutes of Previous Board Meeting - 5
minutes
6. Action Items - Consent Calendar - 5 minutes
Explanation of the Consent
Calendar: The Chair shall open this item by requesting members of the
audience wishing to speak on any item on the consent calendar to identify
themselves and the item they want to address.
The Board shall then vote on the entire consent calendar at once. If a Board member wishes to have further
discussion on a specific item, that Board member can ask that the item be
removed from the consent calendar. The
Board will vote on the items that remain and then take up the item(s) that were
pulled.
No consent calendar items.
7.
Action Items
7a. Procedure on expenditures of $500 or more (Jim Smith): Motion: “On all budgeted items of $500 or more, Board approval is required. At least two bids will be secured, when feasible.”
7b. Place holder: Approval of $600 expenditure (Jim Smith): JIM TO SUBMIT FINAL MOTION LANGUAGE AND AN AMENDED AGENDA WILL BE POSTED.
7c. Approval of Second Quarter Budget (Jim Smith): Motion to approve the second quarter Budget.
7d. Liaison to Laura Chick’s office (City Controller): Motion to confirm that Paul Ryan, Government Relations Officer should be the GRVNC liaison to Laura Chick’s office.
7e. Participation of LAPD Officers at GRVNC meeting: Motion to communicate to appropriate persons at the LAPD, that police officers attending GRVNC meetings as members of the public and/or stakeholders should refrain from any attempts to influence our process or in any way interfere with the spirited debate that sometimes takes place at our meetings.
Background: At our last meeting, one of the police officers present, rose to her feet and moved her hand in the direction of her gun various times during spirited public comment. On one occasion she moved toward a speaker who was not respecting our time limits. Unless there is a threat to public safety, that behavior is not necessary and will stifle debate.
7f. Election of District 7 Representative: Motion to take nominations for
District 7 representative and to take a
vote to fill the position.
7g. Continued Funding for the Cultural Affairs Department (Laura
Burns): Motion to support
continued funding of the Cultural Affairs Department of the City of Los
Angeles.
7h.
Brown Act (Dennis Hathaway and Greg Fitchitt)
Draft
motion of GRVNC on the Brown Act:
“Whereas
the Brown Act is a California state law created to enable and encourage public
participation in governmental decision making, and
Whereas
the Brown Act, as currently interpreted and applied by DONE and the City
Attorney’s office, is having the effect of discouraging public participation in
GRVNC and other Neighborhood Councils citywide, by limiting discussion of
issues even in publicly-visible forums such as open discussion websites, and
Whereas
the Brown Act, as currently interpreted and applied by DONE and the City
Attorney’s office, is having the effect of discouraging public participation in
GRVNC and other Neighborhood Councils citywide, by imposing overly-restrictive
and burdensome requirements on Neighborhood Council committees and
sub-committees, whose only purpose is to recommend actions or policy positions
to an advisory Neighborhood Council,
Therefore
be it resolved that GRVNC requests Councilmember Miscikowski’s office to work
with the City Council, DONE and the City Attorney’s office to investigate ways
to change this counter-productive application of the Brown Act to Neighborhood
Councils, including but not limited to pursuing the following possibilities:
1.
Amending the Brown Act so that its application to advisory-only bodies such as
Neighborhood Councils is less restrictive and allows dialogue and debate to
flourish on forums such as open public websites, and allows volunteers to meet
more informally to develop recommendations to Neighborhood Councils.
2.
Developing a local Los Angeles Sunshine Law to apply directly to Neighborhood
Councils, which would require all Neighborhood Council decisions to be made in
an open and public forum but would exempt Neighborhood Council committees from
some of the more restrictive elements of the Brown Act, such as requiring 72
hour notice of meetings and ADA compliant venues.
3.
Asking the City Attorney to review its advice about the applicability of the
law to Neighborhood Councils, as the City Attorney’s current interpretations
are effectively more restrictive upon Neighborhood Councils, which are
volunteer organizations with limited resources and available time to meet and
discuss issues, than on governmental bodies with far greater authority, which
have paid staffs to collect and disseminate information, arrange meeting times
and space, and formulate policy proposals.
4.
Asking the City Council to make a policy decision regarding the applicability
of the Brown Act to Neighborhood Councils.”
7i. Liaison to Los Angeles Alliance of
Neighborhood Councils (Greg Fitchitt): The Los Angeles Alliance of Neighborhood Councils
has requested that GRVNC designate a liaison to their organization. Motion to appoint Greg Fitchitt to be this
liaison, with an alternate to be determined at the board meeting.
7j. Proposed Bylaws Changes: The bylaws committee has not submitted its report as of the posting of this agenda. If the proposed bylaws changes are ready by tomorrow, the agenda will be re-posted. If they are not, the item will be tabled.
7k. LUPC Action
Items (Laura Burns and Sabrina Venskus)
Motion language and supporting material to be submitted by the LUPC. March 2.
7.g.i Lincoln Place (relative to purported new demolitions)
7.g.ii Methane Ordinance: Motion to submit a request to Councilmember
Miscikowski that all neighborhood councils affected by oil field areas be
invited to be on the Task Force and assign one representative of their
choice. This representative can be someone
on the NC, but is not required to be on the NC, as long as the NC has duly
appointed that person as their representative.
In addition, the Task Force would include two members representing the building industry, two
representatives with oil field gas expertise, and one representative from each
Los Angeles-based non-profit organization whose specific focus and/or mission
addresses toxics associated with oilfields.
7l. Joe Shields
Grievance: Motion to adopt the report of the Grievance
Committee
regarding the Joe Shields Grievance.
The report concludes that the Ocean Front Walk Committee should not be
dissolved. the OFWC has complied with
the Brown Act in the noticing and holding of public meetings, and the grievant
himself states that he was allowed to speak publicly at the initial meeting he
attended. If a person or persons was
met with such hostility that they feared for their safety, the committee and/or
the GRVNC Board needs to take steps to insure that members of the public feel
free to speak their mind without any sort of threat from the public or
committee members. In the absence of
further details, or a complaint from the specific person mentioned in the
grievance, it is difficult if not impossible to address the matter further,
other than to admonish the committee chair to do everything in his power to
maintain a respectful environment for all public speakers and attendees. In any event, this is not relevant to the
question of whether establishment of the committee violated GRVNC bylaws.
7m. Discussion of Town Hall (Jim Smith)
8. Officer Reports: All Officers
must submit their written reports 80 hours prior to the scheduled meeting. Once the web site is re-established, the
Communications Officer shall post the Board Agenda with a link to each report. The Communications Officer shall also
distribute the agenda and the reports to the Geographical Representatives or
shall otherwise ensure that the agenda and reports are posted at each required
public location. Written reports should
not diverge from what has been posted.
8.a. Treasurer’s Report - 5 minutes
8.b. Communications Officer’s Report
- 5 minutes
9. Committee Reports: All Committee Chairs must submit their
written reports no later than 10PM the night before the Executive Committee
where the agenda is planned OR at the Executive Committee meeting. The report must specifically state if they
need time to speak at the Board meeting and how much. The report must specifically identify motions that require a vote
from the Board. Once the web site is
re-established, the Communications Officer shall post the Board Agenda with a
link to each report. The Communications
Officer shall also distribute the agenda and the reports to the Geographical
Representatives or shall otherwise ensure that the agenda and reports are
posted at each required public location.
Written reports should not diverge from what has been posted.
9.a. Land Use and Planning –
9.b. Parking -
9.c. Conservation -
9.d. Outreach -
9.e. Voting Methods -
9.f. Government Relations Committee -
9.g. Rules and Elections -
9.h. Budget Committee -See Treasurer’s report -
9.i. Traffic Committee -
9.j. Event Planning -
9.k. Poverty and Homelessness
Committee -
9.l. Other Committees –
10. Public Comment - 20
minutes
11.
Adjournment: Motion to adjourn the meeting.
As per the Bylaws, Grass Roots Venice meetings follow Robert's Rules of Order
Newly Revised (RONR 10th edition by General Henry M. Robert).