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Item 10C v AGENDA ITEMS # 10 C nCTnRER 23. 200(, wa CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH CITY COMMISSION MEETING STAFF REPORT AGENDA ITEM: Creation of Committee to consider a Referendum establishing District Elections in Atlantic Beach SUBMITTED BY: Jim Hanson, ~~r~-~ DATE: October 16, 2006 BACKGROUND: At the last city commission meeting on October 9, 2006, you requested information on two subjects related to the possibility of creating a committee to consider a referendum on district elections. Those included an evaluation of staff time available in the next few months to begin new legislative initiatives and about items to include in the enabling legislation creating such a committee. . During the strategic planning sessions earlier this year, you set out ~„ priorities to be addressed. On the top of the list was completion of the community character zoning standards. The discussion and public input on community character has taken considerably longer than originally ~, anticipated and is still ongoing. After the community character work was to be completed, the Commission agreed to take up three other major legislative subjects, although not necessarily at the same time. These ~, included consideration of a referendum concerning district elections in Atlantic Beach, major amendments to the tree ordinance and a Town Center Overlay Zoning District. With the completion of the community ~, character discussions, it is anticipated that some staff and legislative time will be available to consider one of these legislative initiatives. However, given the amount of time that was taken for the community character discussions as well as the anticipated time it would take for each of these three items, I do not believe that either staff or legislative time would be available to take on more than one at a time. Therefore, it would be ~• appropriate for the city commission to choose which of the three you want to move ahead with, and then agree to postpone consideration of the other two, at least until priorities are reconsidered in connection with the next ~* strategic planning meetings in 2007. If you choose to pursue the district election referendum, then some group should be created and then educated on the pros and cons of various district election alternatives so as to make an informed recommendation about which would be best for Atlantic Beach. During the strategic AGENDA ITEMS # ]0 C OCTOBER 23, 2006 e~ planning discussions, the Mayor and Commission reached a consensus that a committee of citizens should be appointed to study these issues and ~* make a recommendation in time to be included on the ballot for the election in October of 2007. The creation of this committee should be done through a resolution that would set forth a number of provisions ~"" including membership, terms, a sunset provision, purpose and other items. Attached for your review is a summary of items recommended. If it is your desire to move ahead on this subject, it would be appropriate for the ~"' Mayor and Commission to provide direction on how to prepare such a resolution for your consideration. Most of the items on this draft come out of the recent strategic planning discussions. One final recommendation deals with membership. While district representation may appear to be a simple question on the surface, like many of the other legislative initiatives, the details can be very complicated and extremely important. Understanding the details thoroughly before making a recommendation will be essential. For this reason, it would be best if all appointees to this committee have open minds going into the discussion. They should have no preconceived preferences for district elections or for staying with the current system. BUDGET: While the creation of a committee to consider district representation is expected to take quite a bit of staff time and several months of meetings, very little cost is anticipated. There may be travel costs either on the part of the committee members or to bring people to Atlantic Beach to address the committee. RECOMMENDATION: It would be appropriate for the Mayor and Commission to first determine ~. which of the legislative priorities they would like to pursue next and, if that is the district representation issue, then provide feedback on an enabling resolution and the appointment of members. ATTACHMENT: Items to include in resolution creating district election committee. ~. AGENDA ITEMS # 10 C OCTOBER 23, 2006 0 Items to Include in Resolution Creating District Election Committee October 16, 2006 Name; District Election Committee Purpose: The committee is created solely for the purpose of considering whether the citizens of Atlantic Beach should vote in a referendum to change the method of electing city commissioners, and possibly the number of commissioners, from the present at-large basis for all members of the Mayor and Commission to a different form where some or all commissioners are elected to represent individual districts. If the committee's recommendation is to place such a referendum on the ballot, then a recommendation should be made as to the specifics of a district election plan. The committee's recommendation should be made to the Mayor and Commission of the City of Atlantic Beach in time for an item to be included in the Fa112007 ballot for the City of Atlantic Beach election. Membership - Number of members/who to appoint; A committee of 25 was discussed at the Planning workshops, but a smaller group of 11-19 may be easier to work with. - Geographic basis of membership; if members from each area of Atlantic Beach is desired, it would be appropriate to include - Chairman/who to appoint (Mayor was the consensus at the Strategic Planning workshops) - Terms of committee members; to continue until recommendation is made to the Mayor and Commission in summer of 2007 Responsibilities and Assignments to Committee - Work in conjunction with city staff to set a series of meetings to become familiar with the ~, pros and cons of various forms of district representation. For example, these may include, but not be limited to, all Commissioners except the Mayor being elected from single member districts (Mayor and four or more district-elected members) to a combination of ~,. single member and at-large districts (for example Mayor, 2 or 4 district-based commissioners and 2 at-large commissioners), whether the district representatives would be required to live in the districts, whether they would be voted on only by citizens of ~. those districts or on a city wide basis or whether the existing, at-large form of electing the Mayor and Commissioners should be retained. - The committee members should meet as a group to utilize resources available from several sources to educate themselves about the various district options including the Florida League of Cities, the National Urban League and representatives from other cities or counties that have various forms of district elections. 0 AGENDA ITEMS # 10 C OCTOBER 23, 2006 Timetable; The primary election for the City of Atlantic Beach Commissioners is scheduled for October 2, 2007. To be able to place an item on the ballot for consideration in that election, a recommendation must be made to the Mayor and Commission in final form and in writing no later than June 30, 2007. Other Provisions; - Sunset; this committee will cease to exist upon the presentation of the final recommendations to the Mayor and Commission. - This committee will operate under the .Florida Sunshine and Open Records Acts. This should be a subject on one of the earliest committee agendas to educate members as to the ~"' requirements of state law. - Expense reimbursement; committee members can be reimbursed for expenses, but only ~"' with prior approval from the City Manager.