Development Services Review. Final Report. Zucker July 2016

be considered to discuss issues, receive mentoring, align the vision, goals and objectives and build trust and rapport, which is a typical best practice.

122. Recommendation: The Community Development Director should schedule bi-annual joint study session meetings between the PC and the City Council.

Meeting Efficiency

We did receive feedback from focus groups and others that Planning Commission meetings sometimes run very late, which can be challenging for all participants and attendees. A few interviewees expressed concern that the meetings are lengthy because PC members debate issues that are beyond their scope of review (i.e. Design review issues), and public testimony should be managed more effectively. The members interviewed stated that they have begun to proactively manage agendas to ensure that simpler projects are moved to the beginning of the agenda, so that these applicants are not waiting around for hours for their project to be considered, which is a good practice. In addition, the Commission strives to complete meetings by 11:00 pm, when possible. Interviewees stated that there are 3 new Members on the Commission, including 1 added in the last year and 2 added in the last six months. New members attended an orientation meeting and training was provided. In addition, Members attend League of California Cities Planning Commissioner training and are coached and mentored by tenured members. We received some negative feedback from focus group members that some newer members may need additional training so that they gain a more comprehensive understanding of their scope of review and city policies and regulations, which impacts meeting efficiency. We were told that CDD staff has been scheduling subject matter workshops with the PC to help raise newer Member skill levels, including a recent Design Review workshop with the American Institute of Architects, which is good. 123. Recommendation: The Community Development Director should work with the Planning Commission Chair to identify additional training needs for the Commission and provide training as soon as practicable. Orientation/Training for PC New Members

Staff Presentations/Management Attendance at PC Staff members present their own cases to the PC via PowerPoint, which is a current best practice. Staff indicated that they strive to provide a comprehensive review of

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