Youth Advisory Commission votes to adopt sister-city project, schedules meeting March 12

The College Place Youth Advisory Commission voted on Feb. 19 to adopt a Sister City initiative as its 2025 project and scheduled a special meeting to begin work.

After discussing several possible projects — a community art and music pop-up, public murals, environmental cleanups and an international sister-city program — commissioners moved to choose between the two lead options: a Sister City effort and an art-and-music community event. The commission first took a preliminary voice vote to express preference and then Chair Everett made a formal motion to adopt the Sister City project as the commission’s 2025 project.

The motion was seconded and a follow-up vote passed; commissioners set a special meeting to begin work on the project on March 12 at 6 p.m. Commissioners discussed logistics and the Open Public Meetings Act constraint that prevents deliberations outside posted meetings, and staff advised that a Sister City effort would likely be a city-driven, longer-term initiative with opportunities for commission participation (research, outreach and programming) while a local event would be a more near-term, commission-led activity.

Commissioners also discussed forming small planning committees but were reminded that committees must remain below a quorum when meeting outside a posted public meeting. Staff and the mayor indicated the city can support a long-term Sister City effort while the commission pursues a community event later if it chooses; the commission opted to begin with the Sister City project as its primary 2025 initiative and meet on March 12 to start planning.

Procedural items earlier in the meeting included approval of the Feb. 19 agenda and the Nov. 20, 2024 minutes by voice vote at the start of the session.