Historic Landmarks Commission delays vote on updated policies and procedures

Salt Lake City's Historic Landmarks Commission on Thursday postponed consideration of a package of updated policies and procedures until its next meeting so commissioners could have time to review the draft and submit questions in advance.

The draft included changes staff said were intended to clarify how the commission calculates quorum when commissioners are on an approved leave of absence and to add explicit deadlines for public submissions so late, lengthy materials are put into the official record but not necessarily distributed to commissioners within staff capacity.

At the meeting, staff noted the rules would state that submissions made the day of a meeting before noon would be forwarded to commissioners; submissions received between noon and the start of the meeting would be part of the official record but might not be forwarded in time for staff to prepare. A staff presenter said the change was intended to "level the playing field" and ensure commissioners and staff can reasonably review voluminous late submissions.

Several commissioners said they had only recently received the draft and needed additional time. One commissioner explicitly moved to table the item until the next meeting so commissioners could read the materials and compile questions. The motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.

The commission chair urged members to send questions or suggested edits to staff in the interim so the presenter could address them at the subsequent meeting. Staff also noted minor numbering errors in the draft that would be corrected before formal adoption.

The postponement does not change any existing rules; rather, it delays final action so the commission can review details including work-session protocols and notification fee language. Staff said the next meeting would include a refined draft with cleaned numbering and written responses to commissioner questions where possible.