Honorable Mayor and Members of the Hermosa Beach City Council Regular Meeting of May 29, 2019
Title
INTRODUCTION OF ORDINANCE MODIFYING THE
HERMOSA BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE TO RETIRE THE
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS ADVISORY COMMISSION
(City Manager Suja Lowenthal)
Body
Recommended Action:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce on first reading an ordinance repealing Chapter 2.38 of the Hermosa Beach Municipal Code in its entirety.
Body
Executive Summary:
The Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission (EPAC) was established in 2007 to help with disaster preparedness and response activities of the City (Attachment 1 Chapter 2.38 EPAC Ordinance). Recognizing the need to improve and formalize the preparedness, response and recovery capabilities of the City while addressing the evolving nature of emergency management, the City hired a professional fulltime Emergency Services Coordinator and began looking at additional opportunities for enhancing current operations. In March 2018, the City Council initiated conversations on the current and future role of EPAC. After several public meetings on the subject, at its April 23, 2019 meeting, the City Council voted to retire the Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission and supported the City Manager’s goal of reformatting the structure of the group to an appointed advisory board. A City Manager-appointed advisory body structure would allow for and encourage a broader group of stakeholders to become engaged in the emergency preparedness efforts of the City. Council directed staff to return with an ordinance reflecting these changes within the Hermosa Beach Municipal Code.
Background:
City Council initiated the review of EPAC on March 13, 2018. A timeline of the process is provided below.
• March 13, 2018: City Council requested a review of the roles and responsibilities of the Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission and declined filling expiring terms until the review was complete (Attachment 2: City Council Meeting March 13, 2018).
• July 19, 2018: City Council hosted a Joint City Council and Commission meeting to discuss the responsibilities, goals, achievements and challenges of each City Commission (Attachment 3: Joint City Council and Commission Meeting July 19, 2018).
• November 13, 2018: Staff recommended and City Council approved a joint study session between the City Council and the Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission to discuss current roles and responsibilities, the evolving nature of emergency management, and the future direction of the Commission and provide an opportunity for Council to receive feedback from commissioners (Attachment 4: City Council Meeting November 13, 2018).
• January 14, 2019: A joint study session was held between City Council and the Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission to discuss the roles and responsibilities of the Commission (Attachment 5: Joint City Council and Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission Study Session).
• April 23, 2019: City Council approved staff recommendation to retire the Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission, directed staff to prepare the relevant municipal code changes to reflect this decision and return to Council with an ordinance repealing Chapter 2.38 for Council adoption (Attachment 6: City Council Meeting April 23, 2019)
Discussion:
EPAC served the City of Hermosa Beach for 11 years in a variety of emergency preparedness functions. As the field of emergency management has evolved, a review of the role and responsibilities of the Commission in the context of the City’s broader efforts was deemed necessary in order to ensure the effectiveness of City operations while addressing the needs of the community. A study session was held in January of 2019 which highlighted the accomplishments of the Commission and determined that changes were essential to ensure greater community engagement and public participation in the preparedness of the City. At the April 23, 2019 meeting, the City Council directed staff to bring back proposed changes to the Municipal Code repealing Chapter 2.38 and retiring EPAC. At the same meeting, the City Manager presented possible alternatives to the existing Commission structure in an effort to enhance emergency preparedness efforts throughout the City-one such alternative is the establishment of an Emergency Preparedness Advisory Board.
As directed by City Council, the attached ordinance repeals Chapter 2.38 Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission of the Hermosa Beach Municipal Code in its entirety to reflect City Council’s direction at its April 23, 2019 meeting (Attachment 7: Amended Ordinance of Chapter 2.38).
Staff recommends City Council introduce the ordinance repealing Chapter 2.38 of the Hermosa Beach Municipal Code from the code in its entirety.
General Plan Consistency:
This report and associated recommendation have been evaluated for their consistency with the City’s General Plan. Relevant Policies are listed below:
• Governance Policy 1.2 Strategic planning. Regularly discuss and set priorities at the City Council and management level to prioritize work programs and staffing needs.
• Governance Policy 1.7 Diversity of representation. Strive to reflect a comprehensive cross-section of the community in appointments to Commissions and Advisory Committees.
Fiscal Impact:
There are no fiscal impacts associated with the recommended action.
Attachments:
1. Link to Hermosa Beach Municipal Code Chapter 2.38 Emergency Preparedness Advisory Commission Ordinance
2. Link to March 13, 2018 City Council Meeting
3. Link to July 19, 2018 Joint City Council and Commission Meeting EPAC Report
4. Link to November 13, 2018 City Council Meeting
5. Link to January 14, 2019 Joint City Council and EPAC Study Session
6. Link to April 23, 2019 City Council Meeting
7. Ordinance Amending Chapter 2.38 of the Hermosa Beach Municipal Code
Respectfully Submitted by: Brandy Villanueva, Emergency Services Coordinator
Noted for Fiscal Impact: Viki Copeland, Finance Director
Legal Review: Mike Jenkins, City Attorney
Approved: Suja Lowenthal, City Manager