The future of Claremont's Commissions

One thing I forgot to mention in my budget report from last Wednesday's paper was the council's discussion on the city commissions. Claremont has 6 commissions that review projects, policies and programs before they get to the city council level.

Together they look at everything under the sun from architectural design of a new development to the Police Department's video surveillance policy, a new sidewalk or traffic light and removing city trees.

The 6 Commissions include Community Services, Police, Human Services, Traffic and Transportation, Planning and Architectural. The commissions usually meet once a month, with exception to the Architectural and Planning Commissions, which meet twice a month.

When commissions meet, at least two city staff members have to be there to make presentations, take minutes and answer questions. Sometimes the meetings run late into the night, eating away at staff time.

At the recent budget workshop, the council talked generally about reigning in spending on the commissions. Without much specifics, they directed staff to come up with ideas to find ways to save with the commissions. This could mean anything from less frequent meetings, combining commissions or even cutting some altogether.

The council will hear a report about the commissions sometime after the city's August break.

On a side note, the council just confirmed several new city commissioners at Tuesday night's meeting. There was one bit of controversy over the appointment of James Manifold to the Architectural Commission.

Manifold is an assistant Professor of Accounting and Vice President of Financial Aid and Business Affairs at Scripps College. He also worked on the citizens committee for the City's revision of the General Plan a couple years back.

But Manifold is technically not a Claremont resident. He lives on the county side of Via Padova. The council confirmed him anyways despite discovering the night before that Manifold does not live in the city.

The confusion came from the actual application for commissions, which does not clearly state that one has to be a Claremont resident to apply. According to City Clerk Lynne Fryman, the application does ask: "How long have you been a resident of the city?" Manifold answered "29 years."

The applications will be changed to say that only Claremont residents can apply for commission spots, Fryman said.