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Ell <br />Approved 12/3/14 <br />431 <br />432 Bryant Warren: You said if the Planning Board wanted to be at the informational meeting and they had questions <br />433 about it and they wanted staff to bring it to the BOCC during the quasi - judicial hearing, would that be a <br />434 recommendation? As long as it is presented to the BOCC. <br />435 <br />436 James Bryan: There is a difference between hearing it and using it as a basis for the decision. <br />437 <br />438 Lisa Stuckey: Do we clarify things or muddy the waters? They can hear it but not base anything on it. <br />439 <br />440 James Bryan: Attorneys will do that. Give you background information, sort of context for it. <br />441 <br />442 Tony Blake: Even presenting new facts that are not in evidence, that is not sufficient? <br />443 <br />444 James Bryan: Right. <br />445 <br />446 Lydia Wegman: A recommendation could be considered by the BOCC if I understand correctly. <br />447 <br />448 Paul Guthrie: Are staff communications directly to the BOCC privileged? <br />449 <br />450 James Bryan: No. <br />451 <br />452 Paul Guthrie: So they are considered just another testifier? <br />453 <br />454 James Bryan: Anytime that staff sends anything to the BOCC it is called a work product and under the public records <br />455 of law that is available. If it is quasi judicial, staff isn't supposed to be talking to the Board about the particular <br />456 question at hand. You deal with it by divulging the communication at the hearing so everyone knows. <br />457 <br />458 Paul Guthrie: The recommendation of staff to the BOCC has to be done as a witness format? <br />459 <br />460 James Bryan: Yes. Again, the statutes aren't the best in the world. The conventional thinking is that you have a <br />461 board that acts as judges and anyone there has to be a party to it. <br />462 <br />463 Maxecine Mitchell: My understanding from what I've heard, legally we really have no say but we can put information <br />464 out that would make the BOCC look more in depth at what they are presented. I am ok to say if the Planning Board <br />465 makes the recommendation. I guess I would go with before. If the Planning Board continues to make <br />466 recommendations, we don't really need to be at the public hearing meeting. <br />467 <br />468 Bryant Warren: If we get the information from the informational meeting, we make recommendations to staff and <br />469 they can give it to them. I don't see the need for us to be at the public hearing. <br />470 <br />471 Andrea Rohrbacher: For question one, I would say, yes, we still should make a recommendation and for question <br />472 two it should be before the public hearing and attendance at the official meeting where all the testimony is being <br />473 presented would be optional for the Planning Board. <br />474 <br />475 Paul Guthrie: On one hand, I think one of the positive roles of this Board is that it can begin to articulate the <br />476 sentiment of both itself and people it deals with on issues of public concern. On the other hand, the way this system <br />477 is set up the way we have been talking about, the only way we can do it is at a very early stages of the process or <br />478 outside the confines of this Board and this Board's responsibility. I don't think that helps the public decision process <br />479 at all. I have great problems with the recommendation but I am not sure there is anything else to do. <br />480 <br />481 Buddy Hartley: In the process where we haven't got to the public hearing yet, we would have seen the application, <br />482 correct? <br />483 <br />I <br />