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either. But, and I also would like you to remember the roles here; the Council is the final
<br />enacting body and the Planning Commission is a group that makes a recommendation on a Plan
<br />that has had a great deal of community input up until this point. So I understand what you are
<br />saying. And it is a lot to deal with; they are an important group of items to deal with. But at the
<br />same time, we can’t, you know, to bring in four Plans three months apart means a year at the
<br />Planning Commission for the last one, which is really too much of a delay, given the amount of
<br />work and effort that’s been put into them so far.
<br />ALAMEDA: Actually, I was worried about the County Council. We can handle.
<br />WATANABE: Okay. Mr. Domingo, it looks like you have some comments.
<br />DOMINGO: What’s the procedure for the Commission? Do we have to take it on a
<br />public hearing?
<br />YUEN: It’s just the same procedure here. I mean, if you want it, it’s not formally
<br />a public hearing, but the public is welcome -.
<br />DOMINGO: The same procedure. What about -?
<br />YUEN: To come and give public testimony -.
<br />DOMINGO: What about the County Council? They have to go in a public hearing,
<br />huh?
<br />YUEN: Only if three members request a public hearing. So, but again, the Council
<br />is the same as the Planning Commission in that every meeting they have everybody can come
<br />and testify. So when they, there is this thing in the Charter about calling for a public hearing,
<br />and three members can call for a public hearing; and what that means is that then they have to
<br />schedule a separate meeting called a public hearing. Normally, the minimum timeframe for the
<br />Council to pass something would be -, say like, and you guys don’t normally – Taka, you’ve
<br />been on the Council seat, so you know this, but most Commissioners have not seen directly what
<br />happens, once say a rezoning bill comes through here, and what happens at the Council –
<br />physically what happens is that we write up what the Commission’s recommendation was, so put
<br />it in a letter form, the Chair comes and signs it, it goes via the Mayor’s office to the Council; and
<br />that all happens pretty fast.And the Council has to hit their, the Council first goes to their
<br />Planning Committee agenda, and then if it passes out of the Planning Committee, it goes to two
<br />readings at separate Council meetings; and all these are scheduled two weeks apart.
<br />And the Council, if they want to spend more time, they don’t have an overall timeframe to pass
<br />something. So, say if three members are uncomfortable -, say if you’re actually playing even a
<br />delaying tactic at the Council, well, if you have three members, they can call for a public hearing
<br />and they can cause a delay in a final vote on something, or just by, more typically by consensus
<br />if the Council is not comfortable with something, they will, you know, they will spend more time
<br />on it. But that’s, you know, if you’re talking about the overall timeframe, and I don’t want, you
<br />know, it’s obviously, it’s not absolutely essential that these things go through the Council in the
<br />current, by December 2008. I think you do understand, though, that just like yourselves have
<br />been briefed on certain things, we’ve briefed the current Council on these Plans, they are familiar
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