San Rafael Municipal Code Ch. 2.16 Boards and Commissions

A board of fire commissioners is created.

(Ord. 889 § 2, 1967: Ord. 825 § 1, 1965: Ord. 422).

* Fire commission—See San Rafael Charter, Art. VIII § 10.

The board of fire commissioners shall consist of five (5) members appointed by the city council, one (1) of whom may be a councilmember. The chief of the fire department shall be an ex officio member of the commission, but shall not be entitled to vote as a member of the commission. The city council may establish compensation for members of the board of fire commissioners by resolution.

(Ord. 889 § 3 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. , div. 1, 10-3-2022)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2019, div. 1, adopted Oct. 3, 2022, repealed § 2.16.012, which pertained to board term of office and removal and derived from Ord. 889, adopted 1967.

Subject to the direction and control of the city council, as provided in Section 2.04.030 of this Code, the powers and duties of the board of fire commissioners shall be:

To review and recommend concerning the future needs of the fire department in respect to long-range capital needs, including buildings, training facilities, and water mains and hydrant replacements;

To review the relationship of the fire department with other governmental agencies and private entities concerning topics which the commission feels present a true and pressing need for the city's fire service, i.e., mutual aid and the fire rating system of the Independent Insurance Office;

To recommend to the fire chief and the city council action concerning initial adoption and future amendments to the fire prevention code, the building code, and other such ordinances which pertain to the prevention of fires within the community;

To receive monthly reports from the department head concerning the general operations and functions of the department;

To perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the city council.

(Ord. 1131 § 1, 1974: Ord. 889 § 3 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. 2019, div. 1, 10-3-2022)

A park and recreation commission is created.

(Ord. 511; Ord. 889 § 4, 1967; Ord. No. 2010, § 1, 6-21-2022)

* Park commission—See San Rafael Charter, Art. III § 52 and Art. VIII § 11.

The park and recreation commission shall consist of five (5) members appointed by the city council, one (1) of whom may be a councilmember. The city council may establish compensation for members of the park and recreation commission by resolution.

(Ord. 1141 § 1, 1974: Ord. 889 § 5 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. 2010, § 1, 6-21-2022)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2010, § 1, adopted June 21, 2022, repealed § 2.16.022 which pertained to commission term of office and removal and derived from Ord. 889 § 5(part), adopted 1967.

Subject to the direction and control of the city council, as provided in Section 2.04.030 of this Code, the powers and duties of the parks and recreation commissioners shall be:

To assist in the preparation and adoption of a review annually and revise as necessary a long-range plan for parks including neighborhood parks, community-wide parks, special use facilities and open space lands;

To focus public attention upon the need for adequate parks and healthful and creative year-round supervised recreation for all age groups;

To assist in promoting the public recreation programs;

To solicit to the fullest extent possible the cooperation of school authorities and other public and private agencies interested therein;

To assist the parks and recreation director in establishing general policies and procedures in respect to park usage;

To receive periodic reports from the department head concerning the general operations and functions of the department; and

To perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the council.

(Ord. 1131 § 2, 1974: Ord. 889 § 5 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. 2010, § 1, 6-21-2022)

A board of library trustees is created.

(Ord. 889 § 6, 1967).

(Ord. No. 2019, div. 1, 10-3-2022)

* Board of library trustees —See San Rafael Charter, Art. IX, § 1.

The board of library trustees shall consist of five (5) members appointed by the city council, one (1) of whom may be a councilmember. The city council may establish compensation for members of the board of library trustees by resolution.

(Ord. 889 § 7 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. 2017, div. 1, 10-3-2022)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2017, div. 1, adopted Oct. 3, 2022, repealed § 2.16.032, which pertained to trustee term of office and removal and derived from Ord. 889, adopted 1967.

Subject to the direction and control of the city council, as provided in Section 2.04.030 of this code, the powers and duties of the board of library trustees shall be:

To assess and evaluate current and long-range needs of the library; to formulate and adopt policies, rules and regulations with respect to programs and facilities to meet such needs of the community, including recommendations for sites and design of facilities. Such formulations and adoptions shall be made in conjunction with recommendations of the librarian;

To receive, and review periodic reports from the librarian concerning the general operations and functions of the library;

To recommend ways to inform the San Rafael community as to the various programs, services and assistance which the library affords all its patrons;

To promote intergovernmental cooperation in the development of library services, patronage and usage;

To perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the city council.

(Ord. 1131 § 3, 1974: Ord. 889 § 7 (part), 1967).

(Ord. No. 2017, div. 1, 10-3-2022)

There is created a planning commission for the city, consisting of seven (7) members and two (2) alternate members, not officials of the city, appointed by the mayor with the approval of the city council. Eligibility requirements for members of the planning commission are as follows:

The commission shall be composed of seven (7) regular voting members, comprised of one (1) commissioner from each of the city's four (4) city council electoral districts, and three (3) at-large commissioners.

Requirements for eligibility:

1. District representatives: Each district representative must reside in the district they represent.

2. At-large members: Must reside in city limits. At least one (1) at-large member shall be a licensed architect and at least one (1) at-large member shall be a design professional.

"Design professional" means an architect, engineer, landscape architect, building designer, urban designer, urban planner, or other similar design specialist. They may, but are not required to, be licensed or registered in their related field.

In addition, the commission shall include two (2) alternate members who shall be eligible to vote when serving in the absence of any of the commission's regular voting members. Both alternate members shall reside in city limits and be licensed architects.

(Ord. 505; Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022; Ord. No. 2039, § 2(Exh. A), 7-15-2024)

Planning commissioners shall be appointed for terms of four (4) years; if a vacancy occurs otherwise than by expiration of term it shall be filled by appointment for the unexpired portion of the term.

(Ord. 505; Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022)

Advisory members of the commission shall be the city manager, the city attorney, and the city engineer. The advisory members shall not have the power to vote and their terms shall correspond to their respective official tenure.

(Ord. 505; Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022)

Meeting frequency and other operations of the planning commission shall be set by resolution of the council.

(Ord. 505; Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2011, § 1, adopted June 21, 2022, repealed § 2.16.080 which pertained to meetings and quorum of planning commission and derived from Ord. 505; and Ord. 527.

Any appointed member of the commission may be removed by the mayor with the approval of the city council or by a majority vote of the council.

(Ord. 505; Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022)

The city council may establish compensation for members of the planning commission by resolution.

(Ord. 505 (part); Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022)

It shall be the function and duty of the planning commission to act as a decision-making body on matters including, but not limited to:

•

Major subdivisions as delegated to the planning commission under Title 15 of this Code.

•

Conditional use permits delegated to the planning commission.

•

Environmental and design review permits delegated to the planning commission.

•

Appeals made by a lower body and appealed to the planning commission.

•

Other matters including physical improvements, or environmental and design permits referred by the community development direction to the planning commission pursuant to powers and duties set forth in the Municipal Code.

It shall be the function and duty of the planning commission to act as an advisory body to the city council on legislative matters related to but not limited to the following:

•

General plan updates and amendments.

•

Zoning text and zoning map amendments.

•

Other land use matters requiring city council action.

It shall be the duty of the members of the planning commission to inform themselves on matters affecting the functions and duties of the commission and all planning matters, and, to that end, they may attend training and planning conferences and the reasonable traveling expenses incidental to the attendance shall be charged upon the funds allocated to the commission.

The planning commission shall provide professional design analysis, evaluation and judgment as to the appropriateness of development proposals for the use and setting and to recommend approval, approval with conditions, redesign or denial based on design standards and findings of approval adopted by the city council.

The planning commission shall endeavor to promote public interest and understanding of plans developed, and the regulations relating thereto. The commission shall adopt rules for the transaction of business and shall keep a record of its resolutions, transactions, findings, and determinations, which records shall be a public record.

(Ord. 913 (part), 1968: Ord. 505 (part)).

(Ord. No. 2011, § 1, 6-21-2022; Ord. No. 2039, § 2(Exh. A), 7-15-2024)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2039, § 2(Exh. A), adopted July 15, 2024, repealed § 2.16.120, which pertained to design review board—creation and derived from Ord. No. 2018, div. 2, adopted Oct. 3, 2022.

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2039, § 2(Exh. A), adopted July 15, 2024, repealed § 2.16.120, which pertained to design review board membership—compensation and derived from Ord. No. 2018, div. 2, adopted Oct. 3, 2022.

Editor's note— Ord. No. 2039, § 2(Exh. A), adopted July 15, 2024, repealed § 2.16.120, which pertained to design review board powers and duties and derived from Ord. No. 2018, div. 2, adopted Oct. 3, 2022.