Council cuts size of parks board

Nevada Daily Mail

Following a lengthy discussion during Tuesday night's meeting, the Nevada City Council voted 5-0 to pass on first reading an amended bill that will reduce the number of parks board members from the current nine to seven members.

During the last two years Dana Redburn, parks and recreation director, told the council on eight occasions she could remember, the board did not have the necessary five members present for a quorum, and there had only been three board members present at the April, May and June meetings this year.

Warren Schooley, a current parks board member, told the council that he felt reducing the board to five members was too drastic a cut and there needed to be a more diverse board than five members would provide.

Schooley, asking for a more moderate suggested the council should start by "dropping it to seven and see if that works. That gives more public representation on the board."

City Manager JD Kehrman told the council that the city staff had recommended a five-member board, because they felt it would be easier to have a quorum of three.

Council member Jayne Novak said she felt that five members was too small a board and that seven members would be a better number.

Novak said that she was unaware until Tuesday that the parks board was having so much difficulty meeting as well as filling vacancies on the board.

As of July 1 the parks board is short four members due to resignations and board members whose term expired and did not want to serve another term.

The council also voted 5-0 after a lengthy discussion, to pass on second reading a general ordinance updating the city's personnel code.

One of the provisions of the update prohibits hiring closely related people by the city. This would not only apply to being in the same department, but working for the city. It would also require that if two city employees should marry, one of the two people would be required to resign. Current city employees that would be in violation of this measure on July 1 would be grandfathered in.

This provision met some resistance from the council and Lance Christie said he thought this provision was too strict.

City Attorney William McCaffree said that the provisions of this proposal, with a few word changes, is the current city ordinance.

McCaffree suggested that the council could finalize the proposed measure and then at the next council consider amending the ordinance so it is less strict.