(a) 
There is hereby established an Arts Commission consisting of seven members, or such lesser number as may be appointed by the City Council.
(b) 
Commissioners shall be nominated and appointed through the following process:
(1) 
A nominating committee comprised of the following three members shall nominate each Commissioner for confirmation by the City Council: the Mayor; a rotating City Councilmember, as determined by the City Clerk; and the Commission Chair, or the Vice-Chair if the Chair's office is under consideration within two months of the nomination.
(2) 
If any member of the nominating committee affirmatively declines to participate in the nomination process, then their seat shall be forfeit and the next person, as appropriate and as determined by the City Clerk shall participate on the nominating committee instead: the next rotating Councilmember, as determined by the City Clerk; the Chair, Vice-Chair, or Commission member; or the Mayor Pro Tem for the Mayor.
(3) 
The nominating committee shall interview each applicant under consideration together, virtually or in person, before selecting a nominee for City Council confirmation.
(4) 
The nominating committee must unanimously decide each nominee for confirmation by a majority vote of all members of the City Council. No nominee shall be submitted to the City Council for confirmation without unanimous support of the nominating committee.
(5) 
If a nominee fails to garner a majority vote of the full City Council, then the applicable nominating committee shall meet again to consider and propose a new nominee for confirmation by the City Council in accordance with the process in this section. This process shall repeat until a nominee is confirmed by a majority vote of the full City Council.
(6) 
If a mid-term vacancy occurs, the nominating committee may nominate their replacement to fill the remainder of the original term in accordance with the process in this section, which must be confirmed by a majority of the full Council. Where feasible, the members of the nominating committee used to nominate the member whose seat is vacated shall be used to nominate their replacement. Where members of such nominating committee are no longer in office or otherwise unavailable to serve on the nominating committee to fill the vacant seat, the seat shall be filled by the following, as appropriate: the next rotating Councilmember, as determined by the City Clerk; the Mayor Pro Tem if the Mayor is unable to serve on the nominating committee; or the sitting Chair, or the Vice-Chair if the Chair's office is under consideration within two months of the nomination.
(c) 
All Commission appointments are non-political appointments. The members selected need not be residents of the City, but shall be selected from the community who have a special knowledge of and a demonstrated interest in the arts and who are interested in promoting such activity. In selecting nominees and making appointments, the nominating committee and the City Council may consider representation on the Commission from a number of arts-related disciplines and activities, including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) 
Performing arts, such as drama, music and dance;
(2) 
Visual arts, such as painting, sculpture, photography, graphics, video art and applied art;
(3) 
Literary arts, such as literature, poetry and journalism;
(4) 
Communications arts involving film, television and radio;
(5) 
Arts education, such as schools, libraries and community education; and
(6) 
Funding, such as fund raisers, representatives of public and private funding agencies and art patrons.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022, and § 1, Ord. 948, eff. December 28, 2023; Ord. 955, eff. 7/11/2024)
Members of the Commission shall be appointed to terms of four years. The terms of all members of the Commission shall expire at the second regular City Council meeting of May. Members shall hold office upon the expiration of their terms until their successors have been nominated and confirmed. A person who has been appointed to fill a vacancy shall hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 3, Ord. 843, eff. August 22, 2014, § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022, and § 2, Ord. 948, eff. December 28, 2023)
A Commissioner may be removed from office by the following process: two City Councilmembers must advise the City Manager of their intent to place an item on an upcoming City Council agenda to consider the removal of a Commissioner. The City Manager must then contact the Commissioner to advise him/her of that notification, and to provide the Commissioner with at least seven days' advance notice of any agendized City Council discussion regarding the possible Commissioner removal. The Commissioner may choose to resign or object to the proposed action. Commissioners serve "at will" and may be removed for any reason. The Commissioner shall be given an opportunity to speak to the full City Council at the agendized public meeting if they wish to do so, before consideration of their removal. After completing this process, any Commissioner may be removed by majority City Council vote at a regular City Council meeting. Vacancies for the remainder of unexpired terms as a result of removal, resignation or any other cause shall be filled in the same manner in which original appointments were made.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022, and § 3, Ord. 948, eff. December 28, 2023)
The Commission shall annually elect a chairperson, vice-chairperson and such other officers deemed necessary, including a secretary who need not be a member of the Commission. In the absence or disability of either the chairperson or vice-chairperson, the Commission may designate a chairperson pro tempore. Regular meetings of the Commission shall be public and shall be held at least quarterly at such times and places as the Commission may fix.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022)
Minutes of meetings of the Commission shall be kept of all meetings, and copies thereof shall be delivered by the secretary of the Commission to the City Clerk for filing and distribution to the members of the Council within 15 days after the Commission's approval. No member of the Commission shall receive compensation for his or her services as such a member, but the Council may fix the amount of compensation, if any, to be paid to the secretary.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022)
Except as provided in this chapter, the Commission shall have the power to prescribe its own rules of order and procedure. Three members of the Commission if there are five Commissioners, or four members of the Commission if there are six or seven Commissioners, shall constitute a quorum, without regard to residency, and a simple majority of the votes of a quorum as present shall be required to pass a motion. In the absence of specific rules of order and procedure, the conduct of such meetings shall be governed by the latest revised edition of Rosenberg's Rules of Order.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022, and § 4, Ord. 948, eff. December 28, 2023)
The Commission shall exercise the powers reasonably necessary to perform and carry out its delegated responsibilities. The duties of the Commission include the following:
(a) 
Advise the Council on all matters pertaining to the arts in the community;
(b) 
Make recommendations to the Council concerning the resources and needs of the community on the subject of the arts, opportunities for participation of artists and performers in City-sponsored activities, and ways to encourage community involvement;
(c) 
Work cooperatively with City boards and commissions and other public and private organizations in promoting art and cultural activities within the City;
(d) 
Encourage public and private partnerships to assure the survival of the arts and artists in the City;
(e) 
Encourage the flow of art into the City and stimulate art and cultural activities among residents of the City;
(f) 
Review and evaluate submitted City art grant proposals and submit funding recommendations to the Council;
(g) 
Carry out the duties necessary to oversee the Ojai Public Arts Program as specified in Article 2 of this chapter; and
(h) 
Prepare and submit to the Council at least every two years a five year arts project plan. Prior to submission, the Arts Commission shall review all ongoing and future capital improvement and development projects for public art opportunities.
(§ 1, Ord. 765, eff. May 22, 2003, as renumbered by § 2, Ord. 800, eff. August 8, 2008, as amended by § 2, Ord. 929, eff. May 12, 2022)