Proposal to Streamline Council Meetings Forthcoming

By C. Jayden Smith

San Clemente residents may soon see some changes in the way the city and its elected officials conduct City Council meetings, as well as present items for discussion to the public.

Following a proposal by Mayor Pro Tem Chris Duncan, the council is expected to consider changes meant to streamline meetings, making attendance, especially for hot-button subjects, easier for all involved.

“I think we can do things to streamline our meetings, by reorganizing a little bit, maybe even getting an agenda with time frames, so people know when their issues are going to come up,” he said, adding: “Maybe we even start earlier and move the closed session back.”

During the council’s Dec. 21, 2021, meeting, Duncan proposed that he and Mayor Gene James work with the city manager and city clerk to brainstorm ideas on making meetings more efficient and possibly shorter, and to present their findings to the rest of the members on the dais.

Councilmember Steven Knoblock supported Duncan’s motion.

While speaking with San Clemente Times this week, Duncan said that he believes a concern within the San Clemente community is that people do not know when items “of great interest” will be discussed.

He added that the city’s goals with the initiative would be to ensure “good predictability” regarding such matters, and to structure meetings so that discussion of the more benign topics can occur before the public has to come and when people have availability.

“The idea really is to streamline the meetings, make them more efficient, make them faster, but also make them more accessible to the largest number of people in the community,” Duncan said.

There will be a staff proposal presented to the council in the near future, according to Duncan, but there is no official timeline for when that report will happen.

C. Jayden Smith graduated from Dana Hills High in 2018 before pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in digital and broadcast journalism from the University of North Texas. After graduating in December 2020, he reported for the Salina Journal in Salina, Kansas. Jayden loves college football and bothering his black lab named Shadow.