2002CITY OF OTSEGO
PLANNING COMMISSION
BY-LAWS
A. Organization.
1. Membership of the Commission shall consist of seven (7) members
appointed by the City Council, one (1) alternate member appointed by the
City Council, and one (1) non-voting City Council representative.
2. The Commission shall elect officers from its membership at its first meeting
in February.
3. The officers of the Planning Commission shall be:
a. Chair.
b. Vice -Chair.
4. Duties of the officers:
a. Chair.
1. The Chair shall preside at all meetings of the Commission.
2. The Chair shall preserve order and decorum and shall decide
all questions of order.
3. The Chair shall appoint any necessary committees and shall
appoint any committees requested by a majority of the
members.
b. Vice -Chair.
1. The Vice -Chair shall preside at all meetings in the absence of
the Chair and perform such duties as requested by the Chair.
B. Work Rules.
1. There shall be two (2) regularly scheduled meetings the first and third
Monday of each month, unless an alternative is scheduled due to an
unforseen conflict or canceled by the Chair due to a lack of business items.
Notice of the change must be communicated to the members at least four (4)
days prior to the meeting date.
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3. A quorum of the Commission shall consist of four (4) members.
4. All meetings shall be open to the public.
5. A special meeting of the Planning Commission may be called by a motion of
the majority of the members stating the purpose of such meeting with written
notice posted at least twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the meeting.
6. Any site inspection involving four (4) or more members as a group must be
scheduled and noticed as a special Planning Commission Meeting.
7. The alternate member shall sit at the Planning Commission table during any
scheduled meeting, but the alternate shall only vote if a member of the
Commission is absent.
8. A member may be excused from an individual meeting for reasons of illness,
work, or out of town trips. Notice of the member's absence must be
communicated to the City staff before 4:00 PM on the date of the meeting.
9. The order of business shall be as listed in the meeting agenda to be
prepared by the Zoning Administrator before each meeting.
10. The Zoning Administrator shall take minutes of all Commission meetings or
special meetings, which are to be distributed to the members prior to the
next Commission meeting. Approval of the minutes is by a majority of the
members present at the meeting at which the minutes are on the agenda.
Upon approval, the minutes shall be signed by the Chair and attested to by
the Zoning Administrator.
11. Motions shall be made only by persons recognized by the Chair.
12. Any resolution or motion may be withdrawn at any time before action is taken
on it.
13. When a question is under debate, no other motion shall be entertained
except to table or call for the questions, act on the question, postpone, refer
to committee, or amend. Motions shall take precedence in that order and the
first two shall be without debate.
14. All motions shall be carried by a majority vote of the members present,
except a call for the question. Any members or the Chair may call for a roll
call vote on any issue.
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15. A call for the question is not a motion, but an indication to the Chair that the
person making this statement is ready to have the motion or question acted
upon without further discussion.
16. All commission recommendations shall be sent to the City Council in written
meeting minutes and shall include a record of the division of votes on each
recommendation.
17. Any Commission member having a personal interest, a financial interest, or
a family member with a financial interest in any individual action to be
considered by the Commission shall:
a. Notify the Chair of the conflict in advance of the meeting.
b. Allow the Chair to explain the potential conflict to the Commission.
C. At the request of the Chair, the member shall excuse themselves from
the Commission in advance of the discussion and voting on this item.
18. In the event that a member is contacted prior to a Commission meeting by
a person with a concern regarding a pending issue, the member must:
a. Refrain from discussing any Planning Commission business with any
individual outside of a Planning Commission meeting. This includes
their own stand on the pending issue.
b Refrain from speculating on other Commission members' stand on the
pending issue.
19. Any Commission member who conducts themselves in a manner conflicting
with these By -Laws provides grounds for removal by the City Council.
20. Any rule not covered by these By -Laws shall be governed by Robert's Rules
of Order.
21. These By -Laws shall not be repealed or amended except by a five (5)
member vote of the Commission and after notice has been given at a
previous meeting. Changes in these By -Laws become effective upon
approval of the City Council.
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ADOPTED by the Otsego Planning Commission on this 18th day of March
2002.
Richard Nichols, Chair
or/City Clerk
APPROVED by the Otseqo Citv Council on this 25th day of March 2002.
Y:
arty Fo r ier, Mayor
or/City Clerk
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