Title
Review of Candidates for Heritage Commission
Recommended Action
Discuss Commission process to review candidates for vacant positions as requested by City Council’s General Government Committee.
Report
Issue:
What process should the Commission use to review candidates who have applied to fill vacancies on the Commission?
Staff Contact:
Leonard Bauer, Deputy Director, Community Planning & Development, 360.753.8206
Presenter(s):
Leonard Bauer, Deputy Director, Community Planning & Development
Background and Analysis:
The City Council’s General Government Committee (GGC) has revised its annual process for selecting candidates for the city’s advisory commissions (Attachment 1). The revised process includes a review by each commission of the applications the City has received for that commission. The GGC requests that, for each vacancy, the commission recommend three candidates to be interviewed. The Commission’s recommendation is requested by the first week of March. The GGC has also created a list of criteria for the commission to consider as it conducts its review (Attachment 2).
The Heritage Commission could consider the options below as it discusses which process it will use to recommend candidates to GGC to be interviewed. The Heritage Commission shall always include at least four (4) professionals who have experience in identifying, evaluating and protecting historic resources and are selected from among the disciplines of history, architecture, architectural history, historic preservation, planning, cultural anthropology, archeology, cultural geography, American studies, law, and real estate.
The Olympia Municipal Code lists the major responsibilities of the Heritage Commission as:
• to identify and actively encourage the preservation of Olympia’s historic resources by maintaining, updating, and expanding the Olympia Heritage Register and reviewing proposed changes to Heritage Register properties;
• to raise community awareness of Olympia’s history and historic resources; and
• to serve as the City’s primary resource in matters of history, historic planning and preservation.
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
The Heritage Commission is a citizens’ advisory group that advises the City Council on issues related to its major responsibilities described above.
Options:
1. Discussion and recommendation of candidates to forward to the GGC is conducted entirely at the Heritage Commission’s February 27 meeting.
2. The Commission appoints a sub-committee to review applications and bring a recommendation to the Commission’s February 27 meeting.
3. The Commission requests the Chair work with the staff liaison to review applications and bring a recommendation to the Commission’s February 27 meeting.
Financial Impact:
None. Commissioners are volunteers for the City, and staff time is provided in the existing City budget.
Attachments:
Advisory commission annual cycle
Evaluation criteria