The Dec. 6 City Council Study Session invited discussion on four topics, from administrative details to a key pandemic-related program. City Clerk Huma Ahmed provided an update on three upcoming vacancies within the Design Review Commission (DRC). She recapped a meeting held by the DRC’s interview panel three days earlier in which four members, including Councilmembers Friedman and Mirisch, evaluated the discussions they had with each of five applicants. Across the board, panel members felt that the applicants as a whole needed to learn more about the positions they were applying for. As the group could not formally recommend anyone amongst the hopefuls, they requested that the outgoing commissioners have their terms extended until suitable replacements could be found. They also reopened applications until Jan. 13 in the hope of finding better candidates.
Friedman emphasized that it was not a matter of qualifications, but a lack of preparedness that informed the decisions on the applicants.
