Bonita Springs council moves to study consolidation, standards for advisory boards and external appointments

Bonita Springs city leaders on Thursday agreed to pursue workshops to review combining several land-use advisory boards and to standardize qualifications, training and terms for city boards and committees.

City Manager Arlene told council members staff had received repeated requests to include a review of boards and committees in strategic planning and urged a focused workshop process to identify which boards to workshop, combine or recommend for elimination.

The council’s discussion centered on four land-use-related bodies—local planning agency (LPA), zoning, historic preservation and the tree advisory board—and whether those roles could be combined into a single “land use” board or handled by alternative models. Staff and council members also flagged several external and internal committees for possible elimination or consolidation, including the Chamber of Commerce (identified in the meeting as Southwest Florida Inc.), the Human Services Advisory Council, the special events committee, and participation with the West Coast Inland Navigation District and Blue Zones initiatives.

Council members noted several recurring problems: some boards meet…