At the December 5, 2023, City Council meeting, Ordinance 23-S-29 was approved which amended the UDC granting administrative approval authority to staff in relation to subdivision plats (preliminary, final or replats). With subdivision plats no longer requiring to be heard by the Planning and Zoning Commission, the necessity for two meetings per month was discussed at the December 13, 2023, Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting and the bylaws were proposed to be modified to reduce the regularly scheduled meetings to one (1) meeting per month.

The Planning and Zoning Commissioners also requested to change the bylaw language regarding abstention votes. Currently, the by-law language states: "When a Commission Member has no legal obligation to abstain from voting, the Commission Member is prohibited from casting a vote of abstention and must cast an "aye or yes" vote or "nay or no" vote. This language was discussed as being unclear when, in practice, the abstention vote is counted as a no vote when not legally required. Staff provided language that is consistent with City Council: "When a Commission Member has no legal obligation to abstain from voting, then an abstention shall be recorded in the minutes as an abstention and shall procedurally be treated as a “no” vote."

Finally, Ordinance 22-M-20 changed the expiration date for the terms of the appointed Planning and Zoning Commissioners from May 31st to June 30th.
The proposed bylaw revisions will reflect these changes.

To revise the by-laws for the Planning and Zoning Commission.

The revised Planning and Zoning Commission by-laws will reflect current practice, and be in alignment with City Council's Boards and Commissions Appointment Calander. These changes will help eliminate confusion for the community.

The proposed revisions will help align the city's practices and policies. Therefore, Staff is recommending approval of Resolution 24-R-79

Approval of Resolution 24-R-79