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Prospective planners now will have more screening
By Gloria I. Wang
Until recently, Los Gatos Planning Commission hopefuls merely had to fill out a one-page questionnaire and spend a few minutes answering questions from the town council to be eligible for a spot on the commission.
That's all changed, however, after the Los Gatos Town Council decided that a more extensive screening process was needed for selecting new commissioners.
As a result, the planning commission interviews, originally scheduled for the Feb. 4 town council meeting, were postponed until March 18. The deadline for submitting applications for the commission is now March 4.
Typically, all town commission appointments consist of applicants filling out a short questionnaire--with questions such as relevant interests and experiences and foreseeable contributions to the commission--followed by a short interview with the town council. In the past, that process was used for the planning commission, the body responsible for granting building and development applications as well as making recommendations to the town council on zone change requests.
Town council members agreed that the short interview at a town council meeting was not enough for them to make an informed decision. "The council expressed an interest in having more than three minutes to meet with somebody," Director of Community Development Bud Lortz said in an interview. "All town commissions and boards are important, but the planning commission's roles and responsibilities are very significant."
According to Lortz, planning commissioners themselves indicated that they wanted to meet with applicants before the appointments so that the potential commissioners could have more of an understanding of their duties and of the town.
Postponing the appointments will allow for two additional steps in the process, Lortz said. First, the town will take applicants through an orientation process that wasn't in place before. That will include a deeper explanation of the planning commission's goals as well as the town's policies relating to planning. Also, instead of a mere one-page application, the planning department will give a supplemental questionnaire to interested citizens. The questionnaire will ask applicants for their views on land use, development and the like. That way, council members will have a better understanding of the applicants and their suitability for the job.
Although potential commissioners are not required to attend and experience a planning commission meeting beforehand, Lortz said, "It would certainly be recommended."
Two of the seven seats on the commission opened at the end of January, when the four-year terms of Chairman Jim Lyon and Commissioner Peggy Marcucci expired. Both decided not to re-apply; however, both agreed to stay on until their replacements were appointed, Lortz said.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
