Title
City Council Appointed Advisory Bodies Recommendations Discussion
Recommended Action
The Community Livability and Public Safety Committee recommends discussing recommendations related to City Council appointed advisory bodies.
City Manager or Committee Recommendation:
Discuss recommendations related to City Council appointed advisory bodies.
Report
Issue:
Whether to discuss recommendations related to City Council appointed advisory bodies.
Staff Contact:
Stacey Ray, Assistant City Manager, 360.753.8150
Presenter(s):
Stacey Ray, Assistant City Manager
Background and Analysis:
On May 14, 2025, the Community Livability and Public Safety Committee (CLPS) discussed the effectiveness of City Council appointed advisory bodies in meeting the communication and community engagement goals for which they were created.
Assistant City Manager Debbie Sullivan presented an extensive evaluation of the existing bodies that included analysis of advisory body works plans, referrals from Council, attendance and member survey results (Attachment A). Following discussion, CLPS directed staff to continue the evaluation process, and to bring back recommendations on possible changes for the Committee's consideration.
In September 2025, the City contracted with Genevieve Canceko Chan to build upon the evaluation work previously completed by Assistant City Manager Sullivan. Her work supplemented the existing analysis with additional stakeholder engagement, further examination of systemic issues and barriers to participation, and identification of common challenges experienced by both staff and community members involved with advisory bodies. The evaluation also included outreach to other cities undertaking similar evaluations of their advisory bodies, as well as meetings with City staff liaisons to Council-appointed advisory bodies to gather feedback on draft recommendations.
On February 25, 2026, CLPS received a briefing on this work, including recommendations ce...
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