BYLAWS

COLLEGE AREA COMMUNITY COUNCIL

 

A SAN DIEGO CITY COUNCIL RECOGNIZED COMMUNITY PLANNING

ASSOCIATION ESTABLISHED JUNE 1, 1971

 

ARTICLE I            NAME

 

Section 1.         The name of this organization is the College Area Community Council (CACC), hereafter referred to as the Community Council.

 

Section 2          All activities of the Council shall be conducted in its official name.

 

Section 3.         The community planning area boundaries of the Community Council are as shown on Exhibit A (College Area Community Plan map), attached hereto and by this reference made a part hereof and are on file in the Planning Department of the City of San Diego.

 

Section 4.         The official positions and opinions of the Community Council shall not be established or determined by any organization other than the Executive Board of the College Area Community Council.

 

ARTICLE II          PURPOSE AND GENERAL PROVISIONS

 

Section 1.         The purpose of the Community Council is to work toward the betterment of the College Area community and to advise the City Council, Planning Commission, and other governmental agencies as may be appropriate in the initial preparation of, adoption of, implementation of, or amendment to the General or Community Plan as it pertains to the area or areas of concern to said Community Council (hereafter referred to as the planning process).

 

In reviewing individual development projects the Community Council should focus such review on conformity with the College Area Community Plan and/or the General Plan. Whenever possible, all review shall be completed, and written comments submitted to the City, during the public review period offered by the environmental review process (substantive environmental review process will require further evaluation by the Community Council).  Such review will provide staff and the project proponent the opportunity to respond to the comments or concerns and to potentially resolve possible conflicts before the project is calendared for discretionary action.

 

ARTICLE II          PURPOSE AND GENERAL PROVISIONS

 

Section 2.         Insofar as the efforts of the Community Council are engaged in the diligent pursuit of the above purpose, professional planning staff assistance, if any, shall be provided from the Planning Department, and/or as appropriate by staff under the direction of the City Manager.

 

Section 3.         Insofar as the efforts of the Community Council are engaged in the diligent pursuit of non-planning‑oriented implementation activities, professional staff assistance, if any, shall be provided by the City Manager from appropriate managerial departments.

 

Section 4.         All Community Council activities shall be nonpartisan and nonsectarian and shall not discriminate against any person or persons by reason of race, color, sex, creed, or national origin, sexual orientation or physician handicap nor shall the Community Council take part in, officially or unofficially, or lend its influence to, the election of any candidate for political office. Nothing in this section shall prohibit members, acting in their individual capacity, from partaking in any political activities or to join or promote the activities of any group, so long as such actions are not in violation of any law, and such activity is not represented to be on behalf of the Community Council.

 

Section 5.         Pursuant to the provisions of the City Council Policy 600‑5, failure of the Community Council to diligently pursue the initial preparation, adoption, implementation or amendments to the planning process shall result in the forfeiture of rights to represent its community for these purposes. Such a determination resulting in the forfeiture of rights to represent its community for these purposes shall be made only by the City Council upon the recommendation of the Planning Department.

 

ARTICLE III         ORGANIZATION   MEMBERSHIP

 

Section 1.         The general membership of the Community Council is limited to College Area property owners, residents, and business persons (see Exhibit A, College Area Plan map) and one voting member appointed by the President of San Diego State University and one voting member appointed by the President of the Associated Students of San Diego State University.

 

Section 2.         The affairs of the Community Council shall be administered by an Executive Board consisting of eighteen (18) persons elected from the Community Council general membership, one (l) voting member appointed for an annual term by the President of San Diego State University, and one (1) voting person appointed for an annual term by the Associated Students President of San Diego State University, all of whom shall serve without compensation. The terms of the two appointed designees shall begin on June l of each year. The President of the University and the President of the Associated Students shall submit the names of their designees in writing to the CACC President on official University or Associated Students letterhead; designees are not eligible to vote until such documentation is received.  In the event a designee is unable to continue serving on the Board, the President of the University or the President of the Associated Students may appoint another person to serve out the remainder of the term. In the event an appointed designee of the Associated Students is unable to attend any meeting during semester break, an alternate may be sent to participate in Executive Board discussion, debate and voting. In this instance the President of the Associated Students will notify the President of the College Area Community Council in writing, before the meeting.

 

Section 3.         Executive Board members are the sole voting members of the Community Council for the purposes set forth in Article II, except for the specific powers vested in the general Community Council membership under the Bylaws.

 

Section 4.         Of the eighteen (18) members of the Executive Board elected by the general membership, at least ten (10) shall at all times be resident property owners.

 

Section 5.         Members of the Executive Board shall be elected by and from eligible members of the Council. To be an eligible community member, an individual must (in addition to the requirements of Article V, Section 3) be at least eighteen (18) years of age and shall be affiliated with the College Area Community as a property owner, or resident, or local business person, with a business address in the College Area at which employees or operators of the business are located. Council members shall to, the extent possible, be representative of the various geographic sections of the College Area and diversified community interests.

 

Section 6.         Each elected member of the Executive Board shall serve a term of three (3) years or until a successor is elected, with the terms of six (6) of the elected members expiring each year. A person is eligible for election to the Executive Board even if such person is not eligible to serve the complete term to which elected. No person shall serve on the Executive Board for more than nine (9) consecutive years. After a one‑year break in service as Executive Board member, an individual who had served for nine (9) consecutive years shall again be eligible for election to the Executive Board.  The one year period of absence from the Executive Board, should not be included in the calculation of the length of service.

 

Section 7.        Any current Executive Board member may be recalled by a majority vote of the general membership present at the Annual Meeting, provided that a quorum is present. In order for a recall to be initiated, a recall petition, stating the specific reason for the recall attempt, signed by at least twenty‑five (25) current general members, shall be submitted to the Secretary no later than the February Executive Board meeting. The affected Executive Board member shall be afforded the opportunity to prepare a written statement, and this statement, as well as a copy of the petition, shall be sent out with the notice of the Annual Meeting. At the Annual Meeting, a spokesperson designated by the signers of the recall petition shall be given the opportunity to speak in support of the recall. Afterwards, the affected Executive Board member, or his/her designated spokesperson, shall be given the opportunity to speak in opposition to the recall. Vacancies created by call shall be filled by election by the Executive Board according to the procedures indicated in Article IV, Section 2 in the by-laws.

 

 

ARTICLE IV         VACANCIES

 

Section 1.         The Executive Board shall find a vacancy exists upon: (1) receipt of a resignation, (2) the oral resignation of any member at any regular meeting of the Executive Board, (3) the third consecutive unexcused absence or the sixth absence (whether excused or not) during any fiscal year (March 1 through the last day in February) from regular monthly meetings as established under Article VI, Section 2 below, or (4) the sixth absence (whether excused or not) from special meetings as established under Article VI, Section 5 below.   It shall be the policy of this Executive Board that an excused absence be defined as one where a member is unable to be present due to (1) illness, either of the member or of the member's family which restricts the member from attending the meeting; (2) death in the member's family; (3) business responsibilities prohibiting the member's attendance; (4) vacation; or (5) personal emergency; provided that the member has notified an officer of the Executive Board and stated the reasons. Failing these requirements, any other absence shall be determined as an unexcused absence for the purpose of maintaining attendance records relative to the declaration of a vacancy. The University and Associated Students designee shall be subject to these same attendance requirements, except that the time period shall be the annual term of the designee (June 1 through May 31) rather than the fiscal year. In the event that a designee fails to meet the attendance requirements, the designee shall lose voting privileges for the remainder of his or her annual term; however, the designee shall retain the privilege of participating in Executive Board discussions and debate. In the event a designee sends a non‑voting alternate to attend a meeting in place of the designee (as provided by Article III, Section 2) the designee shall still be recorded as being absent for the purpose of this section.

 

Section 2.         The Executive Board shall fill such vacancies as may occur on the Executive Board by election by the Executive Board not earlier than the first regular meeting nor later than 120 days following the regular meeting at which the vacancy is announced. Vacancies so filled shall be for the remainder of the unexpired terms.

 

When such a vacancy is created, the Nominating Committee shall solicit applications from the general membership. The Nominating Committee shall review the applications received by the announced deadline and shall announce qualified nominees to the Executive Board. The Nominating Committee shall attempt to maintain representation from a broad based cross section of the community as stipulated in Article III, Section 5. No additional nominations will be accepted at the time of the election by the Executive Board.

 

Section 3.         The Executive Board shall report to the City Council in writing the actions taken in filling vacancies in accordance with Article VI, Section 10, of these Bylaws.

 

ARTICLE V          ANNUAL MEETING AND ELECTION PROCEDURES

 

Section 1.         An Annual Meeting of the general membership of the Community Council shall be held during the month of March each year. The agenda of the Annual Meeting shall include, but not be limited to: 1) Election of members of the Executive Board,2) annual reports from all officers and committees, 3) approval of proposed amendments, if any, to these Bylaws,  4) community input regarding the affairs of the Community Council and 5) business. The general membership of the Community Council shall be notified of the date, time, and location of the Annual Meeting via either the newsletter or other written notice mailed to the general membership at least fifteen (15) days prior to the meeting. The Executive Board shall make a good faith effort to contact community newspapers and utilize other means appropriaate to the College Area to advertise the Annual Meeting.

 

Section 2.         Only those eligible persons (see Article III, Section 1) who have filed an annual application for general membership no later than the date of the regular February meeting of the Executive Board shall be eligible to vote at the Annual Meeting.

 

In the case of resident members, only one person in each household shall be entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting. It shall be the responsibility of the residents of each household to determine which resident may vote on behalf of that household. For the purposes of this section, a "household' shall be defined as all the residents of: 1) a single‑family house, 2) each individual unit of an apartment building, condo-minium complex or multiplex house, or 3) a residence hall (whether on or off campus), boarding house, fraternity/sorority house or other communal residence.

 

In the case of business members, each properly licensed business located within the College Area may designate one owner or employee to vote on behalf of the business.

 

In the case of property‑owner members, the owners of each parcel within the College Area may designate one owner to vote.  In no event may a single individual cast more than one vote. Absentee or proxy voting shall not be permitted.

 

Section 3.         Only those eligible persons who have filed an application and qualify for general membership no later than December 31 of each year are eligible to be nominated for election to the Executive Board at the Annual Meeting the following March.

 

Section 4.         Prior to the Annual Meeting, the Nominating Committee shall prepare a ballot for the election of the Executive Board. In recruiting nominees, the Nominating Committee shall give attention to the requirements of Article III, Sections 4‑5. All qualified members who submit a nomination form to the Nominating Committee no later than the regular February meeting of the Executive Board shall have their names included on the ballot.

 

Section 5.         Nomination of eligible members for the Executive Board may be made from the floor at the Annual Meeting with the consent of the nominee, provided they qualify per Article V, Section 3.

 

Section 6.         Voting for members of the Executive Board shall be by secret ballot. Each eligible voter may vote for no more than as many nominees in each category as there are vacancies. Cumulative voting (casting more than one vote per nominee) shall not be permitted. Those nominees in each category with the highest number of votes shall be considered elected unless the election of all such persons would result in less than the number of resident property owners serving on the Board required by Article III, Section 4, of these Bylaws. In that situation, the resident property owners) receiving the highest number of votes would be elected in the place of the candidates who are not resident property owners receiving the least number of votes.

 

Section 7.         The fiscal year of the Community Council shall be April 1 through March 31 of the subsequent year.

 

ARTICLE VI         EXECUTIVE BOARD DUTIES

 

Section 1.         It shall be the duty of the Executive Board to cooperate with the Planning Department and, as appropriate, the City Manager throughout the planning process, including, but not limited to, the formation of long range community goals, objectives, and proposals of the revision thereto for inclusion in a General or Community Plan.

 

Section 2.         The Executive Board shall hold regular meetings at least once a month, at a time and place set by the Executive Board members. The Executive Board, however, may decide, by a two‑third(s) vote of the Executive Board members present and voting, to cancel no more than one regular monthly meeting per year.

 

Section 3.         A majority of non‑vacant Executive Board positions must be present to constitute a quorum for the transaction of business and/or to vote on projects or actions at a meeting of the Executive Board. A report of attendance and a copy of approved minutes which include the votes taken on each matter acted upon for each meeting shall be available for public distribution and shall be submitted to the Planning Department for each meeting. Executive Board resolutions on specific projects must indicate whether a quorum was present, whether the applicant appeared before the Executive Board, and when and what type of notification the applicant received requesting his or her appearance at the Executive Board meeting.

 

Section 4.         Every act or decision taken by a majority of the Executive Board present at a meeting duly called and held, at which a quorum is present, shall be considered as the act or the decision of the Community Council.

 

Section 5.         Special meetings of the Executive Board, for a purpose or purposes, may be called by the President or; if the President is absent, by the Vice‑President; or by the Secretary upon the written request of any five (5) or more Executive Board members. Written notice of the time and place of any special Executive Board meeting, shall be given each Executive Board member, either personally or by mail, at least three (3) days prior to such meeting. The notice shall state the purpose of such meeting, and no other business shall be transacted at such meeting.   (Exception: In the absence of written notice, the Secretary shall affirm that all Executive Board members have been contacted or that all reasonable efforts have been made to do so; in such event any action shall require a majority vote of the entire Executive Board.)

 

Section 6.         All meetings of the Executive Board and its committees shall be open to the public. Executive sessions are prohibited. All regular and special Executive Board meetings and committee meetings must be adequately noticed and held within the College Area at a time and place where members and the public may attend.

 

Section 7.         At appropriate periods in the planning process, the Executive Board shall meet with the Planning Department at a mutually agreed‑upon time and location.

 

Section 8.         It shall be the duty of the Executive Board to periodically seek community‑wide understanding of and participation in the planning process, as specified in Article II, Section 1. The Executive Board shall give due consideration to all responsible community attitudes, insofar as these are deemed to be in the best long range interests of the community at large. It shall be the duty of the Executive Board, when reviewing development projects to allow participation of affected property owners, residents and business establishments within proximity to the proposed development. The Executive Board shall inform the project applicant or representative each time that such review will take place and provide the applicant with the opportunity to present the project. Any interested member of the public shall be given an opportunity to comment on projects during Executive Board meetings.

 

Section 9.         Minutes of all Executive Board meetings shall be submitted to the Planning Department upon approval by the Executive Board.

 

Section 10.       It shall be the duty of the Executive Board to maintain a current roster of the names of Executive Board members on file in the offices of the San Diego City Clerk and the San Diego Planning Department, to submit by  March 31 of each year, a written summary accomplishments for the past fiscal year and anticipated objectives for the upcoming fiscal year related to Article V, Section 7.

 

Section 11.       It shall be the duty of each Executive Board member to attend an orientation training session administered by the Planning Department.

 

Section 12.       It shall be the duty of each Executive Board member to abstain from voting on privately initiated projects in which they have a direct financial interest.

 

 

ARTICLE VII       OFFICERS

 

Section 1.         The officers of the Community Council shall be selected from and by the members of the Executive Board. Said officers shall consist of a President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer, and, by policy, may include such other officers as the Executive Board may deem necessary.

 

Section 2.         President. The President shall be the principal officer of the Community Council and shall preside over all Executive Board and Community Council meetings. The President shall be the ex‑officio member of all committees.

 

The President shall be the Community Council representative to the Community Planners Committee ("CPC"). However, by specific action, some other member may be selected as the official representative to CPC with the same voting rights and privileges as the President. The Executive Board may select an alternate CPC representative.

 

The President shall make committee appointments, pursuant to Article VIII, Section 1 of these Bylaws.

 

The President shall submit an annual report to the City, pursuant to Article VI, Section 10 of these Bylaws.

 

Section 3.         Vice‑President. In the absence of the President, the Vice‑President shall exercise all the powers of the President. The Vice‑President shall perform additional duties as delegated by the President.

 

Section 4.         Secretary. The Secretary shall prepare all correspondence, and record and maintain minutes of the actions of Executive Board meetings, and provide said information to the Executive Board as required. The Secretary shall maintain an attendance record and provide a report of same at each Executive Board meeting. The Secretary shall submit minutes, Executive Board rosters, attendance reports, Bylaw changes, and other documents to the appropriate City offices as required by these Bylaws, by City Council Policy, or by direction of the Executive Board.

 

Section 5.         Treasurer. The Treasurer shall receive all monies and deposit same in the bank in the name of the Community Council. The Treasurer shall pay all bills as directed by the Executive Board. The Treasurer shall keep an account of all transactions and of the financial condition of the Community Council, shall prepare a monthly financial report for the Executive Board, and shall prepare the books for an audit in March of each year. All checks or orders for the payment of money over $250.00 shall be signed by the Treasurer and the President or Vice‑President.  All checks or orders for the payment of money under $250.00 may be signed by the Treasurer only.

 

Section 6.         Officers shall be elected at an Executive Board meeting held immediately after the Annual Meeting and shall serve a term of one year or until their successors are elected. An officer is eligible for reelection provided that the officer has not served more than three (3) consecutive years in the same office. No person may serve as an officer in more than one officer capacity for more than nine consecutive years.  After a period of one year in which the person did not serve as an officer, that person shall again be eligible to serve as an officer.

 

Section 7.         In the event of a vacancy in the office of President, the Vice‑President shall assume the office of President for the remainder of the term, and a new Vice‑President will be elected by and from the Executive Board at the next regular Executive Board meeting. In the event of a vacancy in any office except that of the President, the vacancy shall be filled by and from the Executive Board at the next regular meeting of the Executive Board. If necessary, the President may appoint an interim officer to serve until the vacancy is filled.

 

ARTICLE VIII      COMMITTEES

 

Section 1.         Specific committees shall be appointed and disbanded as necessary by a majority vote of the Executive Board in order to perform their specified functions. The Chairperson of each committee shall be an Executive Board member.

 

Section 2.         All committee meetings shall be announced in advance and open to the public.  No committee will issue any report in the name of the College Area Community Council without approval of the Executive Board.

 

ARTICLE IX         FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS

 

Section 1.         No membership dues are required from members of the Community Council in order to vote or participate in Community Council affairs.

 

Section 2.         The Executive Board may from time to time call for voluntary contributions from the general members for a particular purpose, but there shall be no legal liability on the part of the members to pay such sums.

 

ARTICLE X          STANDING RULES

 

Section 1.         In addition to these Bylaws, the Executive Board shall establish a set of Standing Rules. All Standing Rules shall be consistent with these Bylaws and City Council policies.

 

Section 2.         Standing Rules can be amended by a two‑thirds (2/3) vote of the Executive Board present at any regular meeting, provided the quorum is present.

Section 3.         Standing Rules can be suspended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Executive Board present at any regular or special meeting in which a quorum is present, provided that such action shall not be in conflict with these Bylaws or City Council Policy.

 

ARTICLE XI         PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

 

The rules contained in the most recent edition of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall govern all meetings of the Executive Board, the Annual Meeting, Committee meetings and other business meetings of the Community Council, unless such rules are inconsistent with these Bylaws, the Standing Rules, or City Council policies. Rules of parliamentary procedure may be suspended by a two‑thirds (2/3) vote of the members present. The President may appoint a Parliamentarian to advise the President on matters of parliamentary procedure.

 

ARTICLE XII       AMENDMENTS

 

Any Community Council general member may submit a proposed amendment to these Bylaws, which shall be referred to the Bylaws Committee for timely review. After such review, the Executive Board, by majority vote, shall decide no later than the regular January Executive Board meeting whether to submit the proposed amendment for a vote of the Community Council membership at the next Annual meeting. In the event the Executive Board declines to submit the proposed amendment, upon presentation of a petition signed by twenty‑five (25) Community Council general members, received no later than the regular February Executive Board meeting, the proposed amendment shall be submitted for a vote of the Community Council membership at the next Annual Meeting. A two­thirds (2/3) vote of those present and voting shall be required to amend these Bylaws, provided a quorum (25 members) is present. All amendments to these Bylaws shall be submitted to the Planning Department for approval by the Planning Director.

 

In addition, the Executive Board shall have the limited authority to amend these Bylaws between Annual General Membership Meetings when such revisions are necessary in order to comply with revisions to City Council policies governing community planning committees. The Bylaws committee shall prepare such amendments and distribute them to the Executive Board at least fourteen (14) days prior to the meeting at which the amendments will be voted upon. A two‑thirds (2/3) vote of the Executive Board present and voting at the regular Executive board meeting at which a quorum is present shall be required to adopt such amendments.