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Planning commission votes to recommend bylaws change to meet once monthly on third Thursday
Summary
The commission voted to recommend that the planning commission bylaws be amended to specify regular meetings on the third Thursday of each month and to add guidance that special meetings be held on the second or fourth Thursday when possible.
The Farmington Hills Planning Commission voted to recommend to city council a resolution amending the commission's bylaws and rules of procedure to make the third Thursday of each month the regular meeting date and to add guidance that special meetings be scheduled, to the extent possible, on the second or fourth Thursday.
City planning staff presented a memo describing the proposed change, noting the commission historically has met only once per month despite bylaws that list the second, third and fourth Thursdays. The change is intended to reduce repeated cancellations and confusion among staff and applicants.
"Right now, our bylaws specify that the planning commission meets three times a month ... We're generally only meeting on the third Thursday of the month," a staff member summarizing the city planner memo said. The memo cited a city planner memo from Eric Peridonic dated 07/10/2025 and recommended updating the bylaws so the printed calendar matches practice; special meetings would still be allowed when necessary.
Commissioners debated whether to designate a specific alternate Thursday for special meetings and whether to preserve agenda categories such as "unfinished business" and "new business" in the bylaws for flexibility. One commissioner suggested adding language that, "to the extent possible, such special meeting should be held on either the second or fourth Thursday of the month." That language was incorporated into the recommended resolution.
A motion to recommend that the city council adopt the draft amended planning commission bylaws and rules of procedure (resolution RPC1-25B) with the added sentence about second or fourth Thursday special meetings carried on the record; commissioners confirmed the bylaws require a two-thirds vote of the full commission (six votes) and that the motion had the necessary support to pass the commission's recommendation.
The recommendation now goes to the city council for final adoption under the city's standard ordinance-change procedures; commission members and staff noted the change will reduce scheduling confusion and allow staff to focus resources on the single regular meeting date while leaving room for special meetings when needed.
Ending: The commission approved minutes and closed the meeting; the bylaws recommendation will be transmitted to city council for final action.
