HomeMy WebLinkAbout27. 18-270MAY 8, 2018 18-270 ORDINANCE
FIRST READING
(CARRIED LOST LAID OVER WITHDRAWN )
PURPOSE: CONSOLIDATION OF GRAND OPERA HOUSE ADVISORY
BOARD & LANDMARKS COMMISSION
INITIATED BY: CITY ADMINISTRATION
A GENERAL ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OSHKOSH DELETING SECTION 2-45 OF
THE OSHKOSH MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO THE ADVISORY GRAND
OPERA HOUSE BOARD AND REPEALING AND RECREATING SECTION 2-48
PERTAINING TO THE LANDMARKS COMMISSION
WHEREAS, the Council directed a study of city boards and commissions; and
WHEREAS, one of the recommendations from that study was the combining on the
Grand Opera House Advisory Board with the Landmarks Commission.
The Common Council of the City of Oshkosh do ordain as follows:
SECTION 1. That Section 2-45 of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to the
Advisory Grand Opera House Board is hereby deleted.
SECTION 2. That Section 2-48 of the Oshkosh Municipal Code pertaining to the
Landmarks Commission is hereby repealed and recreated as follows:
(See attached Exhibit — Section 2-48 Landmarks Commission)
SECTION 3. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its
passage, and publication.
MAY 8, 2018 18-270 ORDINANCE
FIRST READING CONT'D
SECTION 5. Publication Notice
Please take notice that the City of Oshkosh enacted ordinance #18 -XXX CONSOLIDATION
OF GRAND OPERA HOUSE ADVISORY BOARD & LANDMARKS COMMISSION (A
GENERAL ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OSHKOSH DELETING SECTION 2-45 OF
THE OSHKOSH MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO THE ADVISORY GRAND
OPERA HOUSE BOARD AND REPEALING AND RECREATING SECTION 2-48
PERTAINING TO THE LANDMARKS COMMISSION) on May 22, 2018. The ordinance
repeals provisions creating a separate advisory board for the Grand Opera House and
combines their duties with the Landmarks Commission for the City of Oshkosh.
The full text of the ordinance may be obtained at the Office of the City Clerk, 215 Church
Avenue and through the City's website at www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us. Clerk's phone:
920/236-5011.
Exhibit
Section 2-48 Landmarks Commission
(A) Membership and Terms
The Landmarks Commission shall be composed of no more than seven (7) voting members
consisting of: six (6) citizen members, and one (1) Council Member. The Director of Community
Development or designee shall serve as coordinator and recording secretary for the Commission.
There shall also be appointed up to three (3) alternate members, who shall be authorized to act in
the place of a Commissioner who is unable to attend a meeting. The first alternate appointed
shall act first and the second alternate appointed shall act second, and the third alternate shall
act third, etc. Citizen Members shall serve three (3) year terms. In addition to these voting
members, the Director or his/her designee of the Paine Art Center and Gardens and the Director
or his/her designee of the Oshkosh Public Museum shall be non-voting members of the
Commission.
(B) Duties, Purposes, and Functions
The Landmarks Commission:
(1) Shall recommend to the City Council those historic sites, structures, and districts which
are of sufficient significance to be classified as landmarks and the criteria under which
these were developed.
(2) May receive and expend funds for the benefit of protecting, supporting or promoting the
City's historic, architectural and cultural heritage.
(3) Shall report to the Oshkosh City Council as requested to review its work program and
expenditures.
(4) Shall foster the protection, enhancement, and perpetuation of historic improvements and
of districts which represent or reflect elements of the City's cultural, social, economic,
political and architectural history.
(5) Shall safeguard and foster civic pride in the City's historic and cultural heritage as
embodied and reflected in landmarks and historic districts.
(6) Shall cooperate with the City administration to provide information on historic resources
to be used to comply with relevant State laws.
(7) Shall implement and regulate the provisions of Article 18, of Chapter 30 of this Code,
Historic Preservation. [Statutory Reference §62.23(7) (me) Wis. Stats.]
(8) Advise and assist the City Administration and Common Council concerning capital
improvements proposed for the Grand Opera House that may impact the historical
significance of the facility.
(9) Provide recommendations to the Common Council on the use of proceeds from donations
made to the City and deposited with the City Treasurer into a special fund for purposes of
supporting, adding to, or improving the Grand Opera House. All expenditures from said
fund shall be solely for the purpose of adding to or improving the Grand Opera House,
and shall be spent solely with the approval of the Oshkosh City Council.
Oshkosh
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the Common Council
FROM: Mark Rohloff, City Manager
DATE: May 3, 2018
RE: Ordinance Consolidating Grand Opera House Advisory Board Into the
Landmarks Commission
BACKGROUND
In 2017, the Common Council directed me to make recommendations regarding the number of
our boards and commissions. As a result of a study of the Boards and Commissions, as well as
a survey of members of the Boards and Commissions, a series of recommendations were
presented to Council. Among these recommendations was to incorporate the duties of the Grand
Opera House Advisory Board into the Landmarks Commission. The reasoning behind this
recommendation was that the Grand Opera House Board is a cornerstone landmark of the City
of Oshkosh, and the Landmarks Commission is committed to the preservation of such facilities.
Meanwhile, since the Grand Opera House (GOH) was restored in the 1980s, most of the duties
of operating the GOH have been transferred to the Oshkosh Opera House Foundation. As a
result, the advisory board was limited in its duties and typically reviewed capital improvements
for the Grand, which did not result in a heavy workload for this board.
ANALYSIS
Following the completion of the boards and commissions study,'I consulted with Mayor
Cummings and the Chair of the Landmarks Commission on how the Grand Opera House
Advisory Board could be incorporated into the Landmarks Commission. The functions of the
Landmarks Commission are different from that of the Grand Opera House Advisory Board, in
that members of the Landmarks Commission often take on individual projects related to an area
of landmark preservation. While turnover is encouraged for all boards and commissions to
develop fresh ideas, continuity in the board helps over time so that information and knowledge
may be passed on to new generations of commission members. It was felt that the best approach
for incorporating the Grand Opera House Advisory Board and the Landmarks Commission
would be to create additional alternate members on the Landmarks Commission so that the
newly incorporated members could gradually learn their duties and become more valued
contributors to the commission.
City Hall, 215 Church Avenue P.O. Box 1130 Oshkosh, WI 54903-1130 http://www.ci.oshkosh.wi.us
The draft ordinance proposes to increase the voting members on the Landmarks Commission to
seven, which would include one Council liaison. Additionally, it is proposed that up to three
alternate members be added to the commission to give additional opportunities for members of
the Grand Opera House Advisory Board to learn these positions. Following the adoption of the
ordinance, Mayor Cummings will make recommendations on which positions will be filled by
which former members of the Grand Opera House Advisory Board. Staff has already surveyed
members of the Grand Opera House Advisory Board to determine their continued interest in
serving, and we will be able to accommodate most, if not all, of former Grand Opera House
Advisory Board members who wish to continue to serve. For those members who will not
continue to serve on the commission, there will be the opportunity to serve on other city boards
and commissions.
Respectfully submitted,
a,tr. �• X:0 -4w
Mark A. Rohloff
City Manager
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