The Municipality is advised by a number of appointed boards and commissions. Membership is voluntary. Attendance at meetings is expected. Opinions are welcomed and then considered at a later date.
| Body | Officious Purpose | Actual Purpose | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Planning Commission | Land use decisions | Deciding where things can be built, then reconsidering | Monthly, 6:00 PM (runs long) |
| Board of Zoning Appeals | Variance requests | Hearing from people who want an exception to the rules the Planning Commission just made | As needed (constantly needed) |
| Parking Aesthetics Subcommittee | Parking lot design review | Ensuring that parking lots are not visually offensive, a goal that has proven elusive | Quarterly, or whenever someone submits a parking lot |
| Ethics Commission | Ethical matters | Convening when something has gone sufficiently wrong that a committee is required | Rarely (frequency is increasing) |
| Traffic Commission | Traffic concerns | Discussing traffic, which is bad, and will get worse | Monthly (agenda is always full) |
| Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee | Non-motorized transit advocacy | Advocating for sidewalks and bike lanes in a city designed around cars | Bi-monthly (optimism is renewable) |
| Board of Equalization | Property assessment appeals | Listening to property owners explain why their property is worth less than the city thinks it is | Annually (everyone shows up) |
| Senior Citizens Center Board | Senior services oversight | Overseeing the Senior Center, which is air-conditioned and therefore very popular | Monthly |
| Special Events Committee | Event coordination | Determining which events are special enough to be called special events, and which are merely events | As needed (definition of "special" is disputed) |
| Signage Consistency Task Force | Municipal signage standards | Ensuring all city signs use the same font, a project now in its fourth year | Whenever the font issue resurfaces |
| Railroad Authority | Railroad-related matters | Maintaining institutional awareness that a railroad exists | Quarterly (agenda is brief) |
| Ad Hoc Committee on Ad Hoc Committees | Reviewing the proliferation of temporary committees | A temporary committee formed to address the number of temporary committees; has been meeting for six years | Monthly (irony noted by all members) |
Interested in serving? Volunteer applications are accepted year-round. Compensation is the satisfaction of public service, a certificate suitable for framing, and the knowledge that your opinions will be recorded in the officious minutes and then filed.