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Shade Tree Commission chair asks CCE to absorb committee amid meeting and staffing gaps
Summary
The chair of the Shade Tree Committee told the CCE the committee has been unable to meet because of staffing turnover and open-meeting concerns; they proposed that the committee be absorbed as a subcommittee of the CCE to preserve tree-review and planting functions and asked the commission to coordinate with planning and the clerk's office.
The chair of the Shade Tree Committee said the group has struggled to convene because of staffing turnover in city offices and open‑meeting questions, and proposed that the shade tree group be treated as a subcommittee within the CCE to maintain review and planting responsibilities.
"I'm the chair of the shade tree committee, and we have been unable to meet for months because I can't get a hold of what a representative in the city would be to," the chair said, describing repeated difficulty coordinating with city staff. The chair added that since the shade tree committee is advisory and not making binding votes, some meeting-formalities may not apply and that absorbing the committee into the CCE could help sustain the work.
Committee members noted the need to coordinate with planning and the clerk's office if the committee's functions are absorbed; the chair said they would reach out to contacts at planning (named in the meeting as Juliet and Shailen) and consult the clerk's office on logistics. Members also referenced a prior legal opinion from the city's legal office about open-meeting applicability for advisory bodies and asked the chair to report back after outreach to staff and potential partners.
