Seaside council appoints new members and begins overhaul of boards and commissions

The Seaside City Council on July 7 appointed Kevin Hyder and Patrick Ansbro to the Community Center Commission and Sandy Ward to the Parks Advisory Committee, and directed a broader review of how city advisory bodies are structured and what powers they should hold.

Council members said the appointments followed interviews earlier in the council’s work session and that staff will continue collecting committee-level recommendations on powers, membership and bylaws. The council also agreed to ask committees to submit annual work plans and reports so council and staff can better coordinate priorities and budgets.

The appointment votes were taken after interviews with applicants. Kevin Hyder, who said he has been involved in local nonprofits and community programs and helps organize after‑school recreation, told the council he could meet a monthly meeting schedule. Patty (last name not specified in the transcript) likewise described local volunteer and project‑management experience and said she could accommodate the Community Center Commission’s meeting time. The council moved, seconded and approved both appointments; the minutes record the motions as carried. Sandy Ward was appointed to the Parks Advisory Committee by similar motion and vote.

Council discussion then turned to a multi‑month effort to update the city’s overarching policy on advisory bodies. Councilors and staff said they want clearer definitions for committees, commissions and boards, tighter alignment between bylaws and the general policy, and clearer guidance about where decision authority properly rests — with staff, elected officials or appointed bodies. Several members said committees currently operate inconsistently, with some exercising informal decisionmaking around subjects such as airport safety or tourism while other groups act purely in an advisory role. Staff told council members that bylaws adopted by ordinance should be the vehicle to document any exceptions to the citywide policy.

Councilors asked committees to focus their review on two things: (1) a concrete list of duties and powers the committee recommends, and (2) a one‑year work plan the committee would expect to carry out if the council approves those duties. Those committee submissions, plus a staff assessment, will be returned to the council for consideration. Council members also agreed to preserve flexibility: where individual committees need special membership rules (for example, seats for nearby jurisdictions or particular business representatives) those details can be captured in each committee’s bylaws.

Staff noted several cross‑cutting items the committees raised already: term limits for chairs (a proposed two‑term exception if the committee approves), an allowance for audio‑only participation in meetings when video is not available, and clarifications about whether members may serve on more than one committee. A draft city policy currently limits appointees to a single committee unless the assignment is ad hoc or budget‑related; one councilor said they will advocate amending that limit to allow two concurrent committee seats in most cases.

Council President Morrissey (identified on the roll call) and City Manager Spencer (staff) said the process will aim to be collaborative: staff will provide legal and operational checks and each committee will return recommendations that the council can adopt, amend or reject. The council did not adopt new citywide rules at this meeting; it gave direction to continue the review and to expect committee‑level proposals to be submitted to the council and staff in coming weeks.

Ending: The council’s next step is to receive committee work plans and bylaws language, and staff said it will coordinate meetings and return a recommended ordinance or policy language once review is complete. In the meantime the newly appointed commissioners will be seated and begin committee work under current rules.