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Morgan Hill, California
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Zucker Systems
In reviewing the PC Minutes that have been posted online, it appears that Minute
preparation is fairly up-to-date and posted online and available to the public under the
“Commission and Boards” tab on the City’s Website.
The PC meeting schedule appears to be adequate to meet the caseload, in that
meetings are occasionally cancelled when caseloads wane and special meetings can
be held when activity peaks or special projects need to be heard.
Agenda Packets
Interviews with Commission members and staff indicated that electronic agenda
packets are downloaded into Drop Box, typically 4 calendar days prior to the Tuesday
hearing, so that they are immediately accessible to members. However, some PC
members feel that 4 days is insufficient time to review multiple packets for larger
agendas, where several complex projects are scheduled to be heard. We agree. Best
practice communities typically provide a minimum of 7 calendar days for review.
120.
Recommendation:
The Community Development Director should establish
a formal policy and include it in a policy and procedures manual to require
agenda packets to be distributed one week (7 calendar days) prior to the
scheduled PC meeting/hearing.
According to interviewees, the PC members have been using I Pads for about 3 years
to review agenda materials, which is good.
However, some PC members still receive paper plan copies as they prefer to review
paper copies of plans because they are difficult to read electronically. We understand
this perspective, however, the City prides itself in being sustainable and needs to
move away from preparing and distributing paper copies in order to further its goal of
becoming less paper dependent. It may also be useful to have commissioner training
on reading electronic plans.
121.
Recommendation:
The Planning Commission should work towards
receiving only electronic agenda materials and receive training to read electronic
plans, if needed.
Joint Study Sessions with the City Council
Interviewees stated that the PC has been having on going Joint Study Session
Meetings with the CC as part of the Morgan Hill 2035 project, which is good.
However, some of our interviewees believe that Bi-annual Joint Meetings should also