0308
ORDINANCE NO. 308
An ordinance establishing rules and regulations
for the conducting of City Council meetings,
establishing time limits for Agenda filings,
containing a savings clause, and providing for an
effective date.
Whereas, the City Council for the City of Southlake has
determined that a need exists to formulate and adopt rules to govern
the procedures, conduct and manner of holding City Council Meetings:
and
Whereas the Mayor and the City Council have established and
developed certain fundamental rules and guidelines to be used to
insure that City Council meetings are conducted in a fair and
equitable manner so as to afford all members of the public an
opportunity to be heard while allowing the Council meetings to
progress in an orderly manner:
THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SOUTHLAKE, TEXAS:
Section 1. Agenda
a. Consent Agenda - In preparing the agenda, the Mayor shall
give consideration to the number and degree of complexity of items to
be considered by the City Council for the purpose of conserving the
Council's time in meetings. Items which are anticipated to be
routine and required little or no consideration by the Council shall
be designated by an asterisk, and shall be considered as a part of
"Consent Agenda." Prior to taking up the Consent Agenda, the Mayor
shall determine if there are any items thereon which should be
removed from the Consent Agenda for discussion. Any Council member
may, upon request, remove any item form the consent Agenda for
discussion and individual action. Thereafter, all remaining Consent
Agenda items may be acted upon by a single motion approving the
Consent Agenda.
b. Agenda Order - The order of business of each meeting shall
be as contained in the City Council agenda prepared by the Mayor.
The agenda shall be a listing by topic of subjects to be considered
by the City Council, and shall be delivered to members of the City
Council each Friday immediately following the deadline for agenda
matters to be placed on an agenda for regular council meetings.
C. Agenda -
(1) No item of business shall be placed on an agenda of a
regular City Council meeting less than 14 days prior to such meeting
except by approval of the Mayor or the Mayor Pro-Tem in the absence
of the Mayor after a determination by the Mayor or Mayor Pro-Tem that
an urgency exists for such item to be placed upon the agenda for
discussion or consideration by the City Council.
(2) No item of business shall be placed on the agenda for any
council meeting unless and until all required documents,
applications, fees, plats, and other written documents and papers
have been provided to the City Secretary and all necessary staff
approvals of such items have occurred.
(3) No platting or zoning matter shall be placed on any council
agenda until all necessary considerations have been made by the
Planning & Zoning Commission or any other appropriate board or
commission of the City of Southlake and until all staff approvals
have been obtained and all staff or other changes and modifications
to documents have been made and corrected copies of such documents
furnished to the City Secretary.
(4) The Agenda for regular City Council Meetings shall be
posted by the City Secretary by 5:00 o'clock P.M. on the Wednesday
immediately proceeding such City Council meeting for which such
agenda applies.
(5) Packets, including copies of City Council agendas, shall be
furnished to the Mayor, all council persons, the City Engineer and
the City Attorney no later than 5:00 o'clock P.M. on the Friday
following the 14 day deadline for placing items on the Council
agenda. This is anticipated to be approximately 10 full days prior
to the day of the City Council meeting for which the Agenda and
packet are prepared.
(6) No plats shall be allowed to be filed for consideration by
the City of Southlake until all appropriate zoning for the tract
affected has been approved.
(7) Nothing contained herein shall, in any way, prevent or
prohibit the Mayor from calling a Special or an Emergency meeting of
the City Council upon appropriate legal notice and other requirements
having been complied with.
d. Subdivision and Re-Plats -
(1) No platting or replatting matter shall be placed on any
City Council agenda until all requested modifications and amendments
to Plats, which are requested by the Planning & Zoning Commission,
have been made on the Plat and corrected or modified copies, as
required, have been furnished to the City Secretary.
Section 2. Council Meetings.
(1) No public comments will be allowed or accepted for any non-
public hearing matter on a council agenda unless such comments are
the result of specific questions or inquiries of the Mayor or Council
to such person.
(2) Any person desiring to present a subject for City Council
consideration shall advise the City Secretary of the fact no later
than 5:00 o'clock P.M., on Tuesday, fourteen days proceeding the
meeting at which he wishes to have the subject to be considered.
Said person shall make himself available for a conference with the
Mayor at the Mayor's request at some time prior to said Council
meeting.
(3) All applicants for agenda items shall be allowed five
minutes to provide a presentation to the City Council for their
particular matter.
(4) All proponents and opponents of agenda items for which a
public hearing has been opened shall be allowed 3 minutes for
comment. Such persons shall make all comments from the public podium
and shall state their name and address prior to speaking. Informal
comments from the public shall not be allowed nor shall questions be
allowed which are not made from the public podium. No member of the
public shall be allowed to address any item of business, for which
public hearing is provided, more than once. Any member of the public
desiring to speak for or against any particular agenda item shall
immediately prior to the Council meeting complete the form provided
by the City stating such intent. Any time spent by the person in
responding to direct questions by the City Council members will not
be counted against the person's time allotment.
(5) Anyone appearing at a Council meeting in response to a
public notice shall be allowed five (5) minutes to present any
comments for or against the particular agenda item, nor shall such
person be required to complete the form referred to in sub-paragraph
(4) above.
(6) Prior to closing the public hearing on any particular
agenda item, the Applicant on such matter shall be allowed a five (5)
minute rebuttal if any person has spoken in opposition to that
particular agenda item.
(7) At the end of each agenda any person who has not been
listed on the agenda as provided hereinabove, but who desires to
speak at a Council meeting will be recognized by the Mayor and
allowed to speak provided said person completes a form furnished
inquiring as to name, address and topic.
(8) The City Secretary or City Staff shall prepare an easel
with all zoning and platting matters appropriately displayed and
ready for consideration as each agenda item is heard.
(9) The City Council shall meet in an open work session
commencing at 6:45 o'clock P.M. immediately prior to each regular
Council meeting to review all zoning and platting matters to be heard
on that Council agenda. All applicants are invited to attend to
answer questions by the council. No presentations are to be made at
such work session.
(10) Any person may express their comments in writing regarding
a particular agenda item by providing a legibly written letter,
petition or writing to the City Secretary no later than 5:00 P.M. on
the Friday prior to the City Council Meeting addressed to the Mayor
and City Council. Such letter, petition or writing shall be provided
to the Mayor and each Council Member prior to the City Council
meeting at which such agenda matter is to be considered.
Section 3. Effective Date of Ordinances.
Unless otherwise provided by applicable law, all ordinances,
except those prescribing a fine or penalty, shall be effective from
and after the date of passage, which may be upon one reading only;
any ordinance prescribing a fine or penalty shall be effective from
and after the publication thereof, in the officially designated
newspaper of the City.
Section 4. Effective Date of This Ordinance.
This ordinance shall become effective immediately upon passage
by the City Council for the City of Southlake and shall be effective
as to any item presently pending at the stage to which such matter
has progressed as of the date of passage.
Section 5. Savings Clause.
If any section, clause or provision of this ordinance should be
declared by a Court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, or
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity of this
ordinance as a whole or any part thereof, other than the part so
declared to be invalid or unconstitutional.
C Passed this 7 day of May, 1985, by a vote of ayes,
nayes, and abstain. i
v d a Jr
Mayor;
Attest: j~
andrML Grand,
City Secretary
Approved as to Form: 4am Wi H. Smith,
City Attorney