Title
Ordinance adding Chapter 2.81 to the City of South San Francisco Municipal Code establishing a Traffic Safety Commission.
Body
WHEREAS, the City desires to establish by ordinance a Traffic Safety Commission (“TSC”) to advise and make recommendations to City staff on topics such as traffic and safety of motor vehicles, generally, and on the design and improvement of, including lighting of, traffic flow on any public streets; and
WHEREAS, the City desires that the TSC be comprised of the three members of the Parking Place Commission and two members at large; and
WHEREAS, the two additional members of the TSC shall be residents and qualified electors of the City, whose business experience and ability reasonably assure that the affairs of the City will be administered in the interests of the City; and
WHEREAS, the TSC Commissioners shall be appointed by the City Council; and
WHEREAS, the Parking Place Commissioners serve a term of three years with a four consecutive term limit and a term is defined as three years plus one day; and
WHEREAS, the members of the TSC shall be subject to the same limitation of terms, and definition of a complete term for efficient administration of appointments and consistency with the Parking Place Commission; and
WHEREAS, the TSC shall serve as an advisory commission and make recommendations to City staff on policy, programming, improvements, operation, maintenance, accessibility, and usage of the City’s streets and roadways as it pertains to traffic; and
WHEREAS, based on all of the information presented at the August 28, 2019 City Council meeting, both written and oral, including without limitation the public comment, staff reports, minutes, and other relevant materials (hereafter the “Record”), the City Council finds that under CEQA Guidelines Sections 15378 and 15061(b)(3), this Ordinance amendment does not constitute a project under CEQA as it is an organizational structure change that will not result in any direct or indirect physical change in the environment and therefore review under CEQA is not required pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15060.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED that based on the entirety of the record before it, as described below, the City Council of the City of South San Francisco does hereby ORDAIN as follows:
SECTION 1. Incorporation of Recitals
The City Council of South San Francisco finds that all Recitals are true and correct and are incorporated herein by this reference.
SECTION 2. Amendments
The City Council hereby makes the findings contained in this Ordinance and adds Chapter 2.81 to the Municipal Code to read as follows.
Chapter 2.81 Traffic Safety Commission
Section 2.81.010 Established-Member appointments
Section 2.81.020 Terms
Section 2.81.030 Limitation of terms; Vacancies
Section 2.81.040 Chairperson, chairperson pro tem, and secretary
Section 2.81.050 Meetings
Section 2.81.060 Compensation
Section 2.81.070 Commission role and responsibilities
Section 2.81.080 Clerk’s duties
Section 2.81.010 Established-Member appointments
The Traffic Safety Commission is established. The City Council shall appoint the Commission members. The Commission shall consist of five (5) members who, at the time of their appointment and continuously through their incumbency, must reside within the City of South San Francisco. Three (3) of the members shall be comprised of members of the Parking Place Commission as appointed by the City Council and two (2) of the members shall be at-large. The at-large members shall have a demonstrated interest in traffic facilities and planning. In selecting the at-large members, the City Council shall strive to maintain geographic representation of South San Francisco’s neighborhoods.
Section 2.81.020 Terms
Except as provided in Section 2.81.030 below, the term of each member of the Commission shall be three years and until a successor is appointed and qualified. Terms shall be staggered and shall expire in even-numbered years.
Section 2.81.030 Limitation of terms; Vacancies
Commission members shall be limited to four consecutive terms. For purposes of calculating consecutive terms, service of eighteen months plus one day during a term shall be counted as a complete term; all prior continuous service of existing Commission members shall be counted. Upon serving the maximum number of consecutive terms, a Commission member shall not be eligible for re-appointment to the Traffic Safety Commission for a period of two years. If a vacancy occurs on the Commission, the City Council shall appoint an individual to serve the remaining unexpired term of the former incumbent.
Section 2.81.040 Chairperson, chairperson pro tem, and secretary
(a) At the first meeting of each calendar year, the Commission shall elect a chairperson and a chairperson pro tem. The term of said offices shall be one year. The chairperson pro tem shall serve in the absence of the chairperson.
(b) The person serving as the Public Works Deputy Director or their designee shall serve as the secretary of the Commission. The secretary shall keep a correct record of all proceedings and meetings.
Section 2.81.050 Meetings
(a) The Commission shall meet on the second Tuesday of each month, immediately following completion of the Parking Place Commission meeting, which begins at 5:00 p.m., in the Corporation Yard Conference Room, 550 North Canal Street, South San Francisco, California, 94080. A majority of the Commission members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. All meetings shall be open to the public. Legal notice of an emergency meeting shall be given at least twenty-four hours prior to the time of the meeting. If a meeting is set for the regular meeting place of the Commission, or duly noticed for an alternate meeting place, and because of necessity or emergency, the Commission is required to meet in another place within the corporate limits of the City, then the secretary shall appear at the regular or alternate meeting place, whichever is the case, at the time set for the meeting, and publicly announce the new meeting place and post a notice of same on the door of the regular meeting place. Notices of all meetings, except regular meetings, shall be served on each commission member and to each person who has requested notice in writing of such meetings, at least twenty-four hours prior to the time specified for the proposed meeting. Notices shall comply with Government Code Section 54950 et seq., also referred to as the Ralph M. Brown Act.
(b) If the day designated as a regular, adjourned regular, special or study meeting falls upon a legal holiday, the Commission shall meet upon the next succeeding day which is not a holiday, unless otherwise ordered by the Commission.
Section 2.81.060 Compensation
Commission members shall receive for their services compensation in the amount of fifty dollars for each regular meeting actually attended. Members of the Parking Place Commission shall receive fifty dollars total for attending either a Parking Place Commission or a Traffic Safety Commission meeting or for attending both meetings consecutively on the same day and shall not receive one hundred dollars for attending both the Parking Place Commission and the Traffic Safety Commission meetings consecutively on the same day.
Section 2.81.070 Commission role and responsibilities
The Traffic Safety Commission shall be an advisory body to City staff on matters relating to traffic facilities and planning. The fundamental responsibility of the Traffic Safety Commission shall be to advise and make recommendations to City staff on policy, programming, improvements, operation, and maintenance of traffic facilities throughout the City. The Commission’s role is to advise and make recommendations to City staff on traffic safety of motor vehicles generally. These duties include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) Providing a venue for the public to bring traffic related concerns, questions, or suggestions to the City.
(b) Suggesting the most practicable means for coordinating the activities of all officers and agencies of the City responsible for the administration or enforcement of traffic regulations.
(c) Suggesting design and improvement of, including lighting of, or traffic flow on any public streets.
(d) Receiving complaints regarding traffic matters.
(e) Recommending to relevant City staff for further review methods of improvement of traffic conditions.
(f) Recommending to relevant City staff for further review the designation, establishments, or enactment of any of the following:
a. One-way streets,
b. Main arterial highway through streets,
c. Intersections at which vehicles are required to stop at one or more entrances thereto,
d. Railroad grade crossings at which vehicles are required to stop,
e. Areas in which parking or stopping is prohibited or restricted on streets or portions thereof, or on parking lots,
f. Streets as to which commercial vehicles with gross weight of 6,000 pounds or more are restricted,
g. Streets or portions thereof where the maximum speed limit shall be in excess of or less than the speed limit which would otherwise be established by state law, based upon engineering and traffic investigations,
h. The enactment of any other necessary traffic control deemed appropriate.
Section 2.81.080 Clerk’s duties
(a) The City Clerk shall establish and maintain a record of the names, addresses, telephone numbers, dates of appointment and dates of termination of each commissioner, and the names of the chairperson, chairperson pro tem, and the dates of their election and termination of service in those offices.
(b) The Clerk shall give the council written notice of the expiration of a commissioner’s term sixty days prior thereto.
SECTION 3. Severability
If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance and the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
SECTION 4. Publication and Effective Date
Pursuant to the provisions of Government Code Section 36933, a summary of this Ordinance shall be prepared by the City Attorney. At least five (5) days prior to the Council meeting at which this Ordinance is scheduled to be adopted, the City Clerk shall (1) publish the Summary, and (2) post in the City Clerk’s Office a certified copy of this Ordinance. Within fifteen (15) days after the adoption of this Ordinance, the City Clerk shall (1) publish the summary, and (2) post in the City Clerk’s Office a certified copy of the full text of this Ordinance along with the names of those City Council members voting for and against this Ordinance or otherwise voting.
This Ordinance shall become effective thirty (30) days from and after its adoption.
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Introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of South San Francisco held the 28th day of August 2019.