DEPARTMENT: Government and Public Affairs
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Jeff Coyle, Director
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: All
SUBJECT:
Briefing and review of public participation practices, including selection of a facilitator to work with the City of San Antonio to solicit input from residents.
SUMMARY:
The Government and Public Affairs Department will provide the Community Health and Equity Committee with an update on the proposed process to review public engagement practices by the City of San Antonio to allow for meaningful participation by residents in the policymaking process.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
In February of 2018, Councilwoman Ana Sandoval initiated a Council Consideration Request (CCR) entitled “Advancing City Public Participation,” which called for a review of City of San Antonio public participation practices. This CCR led to the creation of a set of Guiding Principles for Public Participation, which were approved by Resolution of the City Council. The City Manager subsequently signed an Administrative Directive establishing minimum standards for public participation to be followed by all City Departments.
In November 2018, Mayor Nirenberg and Councilwoman Sandoval distributed a memo intended to serve as an addendum to the Advancing City Public Participation CCR. The memo requested several additional actions by staff, including the hiring of a facilitator to manage a process to secure feedback from a group of residents who are “leaders in the field of public participation and community members with experience with City-led public participation processes.”
The Fiscal Year 2020 budget included $25,000 for the facilitator contract, and in July of 2020, City staff solicited proposals from several local firms. An evaluation committee consisting of members of the City Manager’s Office, Government and Public Affairs Department, Office of Equity and an external public participation practitioner reviewed four proposals, conducted interviews with two teams and selected SA2020 as the facilitator. City staff has executed a contract and conducted a kickoff meeting on September 15, 2020 with SA2020. This briefing will include a discussion of the scope of work and proposed timeline from GPA staff and SA2020.
ISSUE:
The Community Health and Equity Committee has requested periodic updates from staff regarding the ongoing review and continuous improvements of public participation with City of San Antonio policies, programs and initiatives.
ALTERNATIVES:
This item is for briefing purposes only.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact at this time.
RECOMMENDATION:
This item is for briefing purposes only.