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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPark Commission Bylaws (Adopted February 2023)CITY OF TUKWILA PARK COMMISSION Bylaws Article I Purpose Per Tukwila Municipal Code ("TMC") 2.32.010, the Park Commission ("Commission") is hereby established to serve in an advisory capacity to the Mayor and City Council for the City of Tukwila. The objectives of the Commission shall be: 1. To submit recommendations to the City Council on the acquisition, development, expansion and operation of Parks and Recreation facilities and programs in the City. 2. To explore ways and methods of obtaining private, local, state and federal funds for special projects with the parks, trails and open space system. 3. To advocate for healthy and active lifestyles and promote the quality of life that is provided through the programs and actions of the City's Parks and Recreation Department. 4. To recommend policy and standards for the construction, development, maintenance and operations of parks, playfields and recreation grounds belonging to or leased by the City. This includes community buildings as designated by the Tukwila City Council and improvements of such buildings. 5. To make recommendations on ornamentation of all parks and designated community buildings, and to control seasonal and other temporary decoration or ornamentation of street lights and standards. 6. To recommend to the City Council for adoption by ordinance rules and regulations for the use and management of any municipally -owned or controlled park or recreation facility. Publication of rules or changes in rules shall be in such manner as the City Council shall direct. Rules and regulations so adopted shall be enforced bythe Police Department of the City. 7. To recommend names for parks in the City to the City Council for consideration, as per City of Tukwila resolution. Article II Membership Per TMC 2.32.020, the Commission shall be composed of not less than five and not more than seven members. At least one of the commissioners shall be a senior citizen. In addition to the appointed positions, the Commission shall seek to recruit one student representative to participate on the Commission. A. Length of Appointment The term of membership for the voting members of the Tukwila Park Commission shall be three years. The student representative shall be a high school student who City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 1 of 8 resides in the City of Tukwila. The term of this position will be a minimum of one year and may not exceed four years or when the student graduates from high school, whichever comes first. B. Resignation If a Commission member is unable to complete their term of service a letter of resignation should be sent to the Mayor indicating the effective date of the resignation. C. Removal A Commission members may be removed from the position if absent without being excused for three consecutive meetings or six meetings in a calendar year. D. Compensation Members will receive no monetary compensation for serving on the Commission. Article III Duties of the Commission. Officers. Commissioners and Support Staff A. Duties of Commission The Commission shall undertake the duties and responsibilities defined in TMC 2.32.010. B. Officers Officers shall be a Chair and a Vice -Chair; both appointed members of the Commission and voted into office by the Commission. In absence of both the Chair and the Vice - Chair members shall elect a Chair pro tern. C. Duties of the Officers Chair The Chair shall preside at all meetings and adhere to the duties of the presiding officer prescribed in Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised. When necessary, the Chair shall call for special meetings. The Chair shall be a full voting member of the Commission. The Chair may delegate duties to other Commissioners with the consent of the Commission. The Chair shall speak on behalf of the Commission before City Council, the public and City staff. The Chair will serve as a member on the City's Board of Ethics. In the event the Chair is unable or unwilling to serve on the Board of Ethics, the Commission shall select a member to serve on the Board. The responsibilities of the chair include: • Providing group direction and options for setting goals; • Setting meeting agendas; • Coordinating meeting preparation with City staff; and • Representing the Commission in the community. City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 2 of 8 The term of office shall be one year. A Commissioner may serve as Chair for no more than two consecutive terms. Vice -Chair The Vice -Chair shall perform the duties of the Chair in absence of the Chair. The Vice - Chair may also speak on behalf of the Commission before City Council, the public and City staff when the Chair is not available to speak. The term of office shall be one year. A Commissioner may serve as Vice -Chair for no more than two consecutive terms. D. Duties of Commissioners It is the responsibility of all Commission members to: • Arrange adequate time to carry out responsibility as a Commission member; • Come to meetings prepared: Read all reports, proposals and documents distributed prior to meetings; • Listen to other Commission members and communicate with respect and courtesy; and • Participate in group discussion and decision making. I. Ethics Training Every Commission member must complete Ethics Training and sign an Ethics Training Certification Form within 90 days of appointment and must complete the training within 90 days of reappointment or every four years, whichever comes first. II. Open Public Meetings Act Training Pursuant to RCW 42.30.205, every Commission member must complete training on the Open Public Meetings Act and sign an OPMA Training Certification Form within 90 days of appointment and must complete the training within 90 days of reappointment or every four years, whichever comes first. III. Public Records Training Every Commission member must complete training on the Public Records Act and sign a Public Records Training Certification Form within 90 days of appointment and must complete the training within 90 days of reappointment or every four years, whichever comes first. IV. Conflict of Interest Washington's ethics laws prohibit public officials from gaining financially as a result of his or her position. Public officials must declare any conflicts of interest at a public meeting. A conflict exists if a recommendation potentially City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 3 of 8 could affect the finances of the group member or the finances of a family member. If a conflict exists, the member must declare this fact at a meeting where the issue is being discussed and refrain from discussing or voting on the recommendation. Every Commission member must sign a Conflict of Interest Disclosure Form within 90 days of appointment and must sign a new Disclosure Form within 90 days of reappointment or every four years, whichever comes first. V. Equity Policy Training Every Commission member must complete training on the City's Equity Policy, Resolution 1921 (or as subsequently amended), within 90 days of appointment and within 90 days of reappointment or every four years, whichever comes first. VI. Resignations If a Commission member is unable to complete their term of service, a letter of resignation shall be sent to the Mayor indicating the effective date of the resignation. E. Duties of Support Staff A City staff person is assigned to support the Commission. The primary role of staff is to represent the City and facilitate communication between the Commission, City Administration, the City Council and other City departments. Staff responsibilities include: • Ensuring compliance with applicable laws, such as the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) and the Public Records Act (PRA); • Providing professional guidance, issue analysis and recommendations; • Assisting with research, report preparation and correspondence; and • Compiling agendas, maintaining minutes, forwarding recommendations and/or implementing actions. Article IV Elections The Commission shall elect a Chair and a Vice Chair each year. Generally officers shall be elected and take office annually at the first regular public meeting of the Commission in January. The election will take place as the first item of new business and the elected officers will assume their duties at the close of elections. The election of the Chair will be conducted by the Administrative City support staff (Admin). No one Commissioner shall nominate more than one person for an office. Nominations do not require a second. The Admin will repeat each nomination, ask for further nominations, and when there are none the Admin will declare the nominations closed. A motion to close nominations is not necessary. City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 4 of 8 After nominations have been closed, voting for the Chair takes place in the order nominations were made. Commissioners will be asked to vote by a raise of hands. As soon as one of the nominees receives a majority vote of the seated members the Admin will declare that Commissioner elected as the Chair. No votes will be taken on any remaining nominees. A tie vote results in a failed nomination. If none of the nominees receive a majority vote the Admin will call for nominations again and repeat the process until a single candidate receives a majority vote. Upon election the Chair will conduct the election for Vice -Chair following the same process. Should the Chair be vacated prior to the completion of the Term, the Vice -Chair will assume the duties and responsibilities of the Chair for the remainder of the Term. The Chair will then conduct elections for a new Vice -Chair. Should the Vice -Chair be vacated prior to the completion of the Term, the Chair will conduct elections for a new Vice -Chair to serve out the remainder of the Term. Time spent fulfilling a vacated Term shall not count towards the two consecutive Term limit for Chair and Vice -Chair. Article V Meetings All Commission meetings shall comply with the requirements of the Open Public Meetings Act RCW 42.30. All meetings shall be noticed and open to the public. A. Schedule The Commission shall hold regular meetings according to the following schedule: The second Wednesday of each month. The meetings shall begin at 5:30 p.m. unless modified. Should a regular meeting day be a legal holiday, the scheduled meeting shall be postponed to the succeeding Wednesday, unless a majority of the Commission votes to select another day or to cancel the meeting. Any Commission meeting may be canceled by a majority vote or consensus of the Commission. The Chair or Vice -Chair may cancel a meeting for lack of agenda items or lack of a quorum. B. Special Meetings Special meetings may be held by the Commission subject to notice requirements prescribed by State law. Special meetings may be called by the Chair, the City Council, or the Mayor, or by the written request of any three (3) Commissioners by written notice emailed or delivered to each member of the Commission at least 24 hours before the time specified for the proposed meeting. Special meeting called shall state the subject(s) to be considered and not subject other than those specified in the notice shall be considered. No special meetings shall be scheduled between November 15th and the end of the year. The agenda for a special City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 5 of 8 meeting need not conform to the Order of Business in Section C of this Article. C. Order of Business The items of business for each regular meeting of the Commission shall include: 1. Call to Order 2. Roll Call 3. Approval of Agenda 4. Approval of Minutes 5. Written Public Comment 6. Unfinished Business 7. New Business 8. Reports of Commissioners/Announcements 9. Agenda for Next Meeting 10. Adjournment D. Notices The public shall be notified of the preliminary agenda for the forthcoming Commission meeting by posting a copy of the agenda in the City's Digital Records Center. Other methods of noticing the public meeting may include published newsletters and flyers, social media posts, and physical signage at the meeting location. Article VI Rules of Meetings The Commission shall hold at least one regular meeting per quarter. A. Absences Absence from more than three (3) consecutive Commission meetings may be cause for removal. Members shall communicate with the Chair, the Vice -Chair or the City Admin staff person with requests for an excused absence in the event they will miss three (3) or more consecutive meetings. Emergency requests may be considered. The Chair may approve the absence. A Commission member may be removed from the position if absent without being excused for three consecutive meetings or six regular meetings in a calendar year. B. Quorum At all Commission meetings, the presence of the majority of the currently seated members constitutes a quorum. A quorum is required for the Commission to take any action. C. Rules of Procedure The current edition of Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised shall provide the basis for meeting structure and official decisions shall be made by motion and vote of the Commission. D. Meeting Decorum To provide a fair and efficient forum for the conduct of business at Commission meetings the following rules of decorum shall be observed: City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 6 of 8 1. No person shall address the Commission without first obtaining recognition from the chair. The Commission may allow comments from members of the public attending Commission meetings by permission of the Chair or majority vote of the Commission members present. 2. If there are a large number of people who wish to speak at a meeting the Chair may limit each speaker to 5 minutes of speaking time. If a speaker is representing an organization, the Chair may grant that speaker an additional 5 minutes of speaking time. 3. Once a member of the public has spoken in regard to a specific matter before the Commission, he/she shall not be recognized to speak again until all persons wishing to speak have first been given the opportunity to do so. 4. To aid in the creation of accurate meeting minutes all speakers should provide their first and last name each time they address the Commission. 5. Commission meetings will generally begin at 5:30 p.m. or as indicated on the public notice. Meetings will continue until the agenda items have been completed or until 7:00 p.m. whichever comes first. Continuation of a meeting beyond 7:00 p.m. requires approval of a motion to extend by a majority vote. If no motion is approved the Chair will continue the meeting to a specific date. E. Voting In instances where a vote is called for or required, the present majority is sufficient to act (provided a quorum is present). With the exception of the Student Representative, each member shall have one vote and no proxies shall be allowed. Present members may abstain. The Chair may vote on any issue and shall vote in the event of a tie. No action is taken if the Chair votes and the tie continues. A majority vote shall carry and minority opinions shall be formally registered in the minutes and report to the City Council. F. Adjournment/Recess/Continuations Meetings shall be adjourned by a majority vote of the Commission or by the chair when it appears that there is no further business. The Commission may, by majority vote or consensus, recess for a short break. The proposal to recess may set a time limit or can be until the Chair calls the meeting back to order. Continuations of meetings shall be to a definite time and place by the majority vote of present Commission members. City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 7 of 8 Article VII Reporting Requirements The Commission shall keep the City of Tukwila apprised of its activities and recommendations by submitting an annual written report by January 31 each year summarizing the activities for the previous year. Article VIII Code of Ethics Members of the Commission shall fully comply with RCW 42.23 Code of Ethics for Municipal Officers and with TMC 2.95 Code of Ethics for Employees and Appointed Officials. Article IX Amendments These Bylaws may be amended or repealed and new Bylaws may be adopted at any regular meeting or special meeting by a majority of the vote of the membership. A copy of the proposed Bylaws or amendments thereto, shall be furnished to each member at least three (3) days prior to the date of the meeting. All amendments to the Bylaws shall be submitted to the Mayor and City Council for their information. City of Tukwila Park Commission Bylaws Page 8 of 8