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City Comissions Merger Proposals are Ill Conceived – Testify Tuesday!

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The City Council is hearing proposals to consolidate commissions on Tuesday night. These changes have serious implications. Here are the proposals:

  1. Create a Circulation and Active Mobility Commission by merging the Unitrans Advisory Committee and the Bicycle, Transportation, and Street Safety Commission.
  2. Create a Fiscal Commission by merging the Finance and Budget Commission and the Utilities Commission.
  3. Create a Climate and Environmental Justice Commission by merging the Natural Resources Commission and the Tree Commission.
  4. Create an Equity and Culture Commission by merging the Human Relations Commission and the Civic Arts Commission.
  5. Take initial steps to incorporate the Historic Resource Management Commission into the Planning Commission.

 

Issues I have with this:

  • Consolidation further dilutes or eliminates functions.
  • Names are becoming increasingly less clear – commission names should immediately reflect the function of the commission.
  • Proposed names use 'woke' and/or vague terms that have different meaning to different people:  equity, justice circulation, culture, climate.
  • Bicycle was already merged into too many other committees and now with another and getting another vague name.  These transportation functions are too important to be all merged together and the name is stupid.  Better to un-merge the BTTSSCC or whatever it's called into its previous component commissions.  Commissions recommend to the council – so commissions having different opinions on an issue is not an issue in itself- they are looking out for their subject matter.
  • Historical should NOT be merged into Planning.  These are completely separate missions and at odds at times, as they should be.  Issues of preserving historical structures/neighborhoods is already getting overrun by social issues, and this seems a blatant attempt to complete the process.

I'm sure others could add more in comments.  Contact the Council with your thoughts by email and/or show up on Tuesday night.  Item 5 is at 7:20pm.

Posted by

Alan C. Miller

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Comments

5 responses to “City Comissions Merger Proposals are Ill Conceived – Testify Tuesday!”

  1. Colin Walsh

    this “consolidation” will remove opportunities for members of the community to directly participate in our local government. that has a multiplying effect. By removing so many community member positions, it makes it far less likely that people will know anyone involved.
    The City of Davis Commission handbook calls the commissions “the eyes and ears” of the City Council. This proposal to consolidate cuts off ears and pokes out eyes.

    Reply
  2. Roberta L. Millstein

    Fewer participants + less time = less democracy
    As threatened last year (https://www.davisite.org/2023/02/those-pesky-city-commissions.html), the City Council seems poised to reduce the number of citizens involved in the volunteer City Commissions.  And since commission meetings already often go late into the evening, with fewer commissions they won’t be able to take up as many items, or will have to devote less time to a larger number of items.  All of that adds up to less citizen participation and thus less democracy.
    This follows an effort by a number of commissioners to improve the City’s Commission process (https://www.davisite.org/2020/07/improving-city-of-davis-decision-making-an-open-letter.html).  At the time of the letter, I was Chair of the Open Space and Habitat Commission, and I was one of the signers. Yet here we find the City Council poised to go 180 degrees in the other direction.
    I hope people turn out for this, especially current/former commissioners. If you cannot make public comment in person, in accordance with current Council policy, you may:
    Submit written public comments to CityCouncilMembers@cityofdavis.org. Emails are distributed to City Council and staff. To ensure the City Council has the opportunity to review information prior to the meeting, send emails by 3:00 p.m. on the meeting date.
     
    Submit comments by voicemail prior to the meeting: Call the city’s dedicated phone line (530) 757-5693 to leave a voicemail message for public comment. Staff will play comments during the appropriate agenda item. Comments will be accepted from 12:00 noon until 4:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. Voicemail public comments will not be accepted after 4:00 p.m. Speakers will be limited to no more than two minutes.

    Reply
  3. South of Davis

    I agree with Alan that no committee should have “‘woke’ and/or vague terms” (since “climate change” = “the weather is not the same every day” to some people and = “we will all dead in 5 years if we don’t ban SUVs” to others.
    It would be nice to have more specifics on “why” we need more committees. Is the Unitrans Advisory Committee and the Bicycle, Transportation, and Street Safety Commission all we need or do we need even more (like a different committee for “double” decker busses, “single” speed bikes and “crosswalk” safety)?

    Reply
  4. Alan C. Miller

    “to have more specifics on “why” we need more committees.”
    I’m not saying we need more committees. I’m saying that, for example, bicycling is extremely important in Davis and has its own needs. I have not been impressed with BTSSC as far as clearly focusing on bicycle issues and safety, which are so numerous IMO we need a committee just for that. Most especially, with all the issues surrounding scooters, e-bikes, parking, etc., certainly one committee to focus on just that is warranted.
    Committees should be about citizens who care and have knowledge bringing their recommendations to council. Let’s say the BTSSC got a pro-car majority that killed most bicycle initiatives. This does no good for the bicycle community in Davis, which is huge, and complete streets are law. Bicycle issues shouldn’t ‘die in committee’, they should be brought forth by those who advocate, and council can decide.
    Similarly, historical preservation will almost certainly simply die if merged into the planning commission. The city council already decides against committee recommendations, but at least those who have interest and passion in these important issues should be able to bring their best to council, not be overwhelmed by a too-broad merged committee and have the ideas quashed at the committee level.
    These are committees I know about and have interest in the subjects — but I’m sure the same applies to other committee merge proposals.

    Reply
  5. Roberta L. Millstein

    Aside from my objections to all of the proposed mergers, I am confused about the proposal to merge Planning Commission and Historical in particular. Isn’t PC legally mandated? How can it take on all of all these other topics? (Hint: it probably can’t, so the historical issues will just die because the planning issues have to be dealt with, as ACM suggests).

    Reply

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