Rosewood Neighborhood Contact Team Bylaws (Passed) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sections 1-5 were reviewed and voted on at the 20 October 2005 meeting; Section 6 passed at the 17 November 2005 meeting. Section 5 was again reviewed at the 15 June 2007 meeting and amended at the 17 July 2007 meeting. Section 1 - Name ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) This organization shall be known as the Rosewood Neighborhood Contact Team (RNCT). Section 2 - Statement of Purpose ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The purposes of the Rosewood NCT shall be to: a) Review and make recommendations to the City of Austin and/or any other regulatory bodies on all proposed amendments to the Rosewood Neighborhood Plan; b) Develop a Community Housing Development Corporation arm to preserve and foster predominantly single family housing within the Rosewood Neighborhood Plan Area; c) Serve as a clearinghouse of information on housing and community development for all active Neighborhood Association presidents and other Rosewood Plan Area residents; and d) Track the ongoing implementation of the recommendations/action items in the Rosewood Neighborhood Plan. Section 3 - Boundaries ---------------------------------------------------------------------- North: Manor Road East: Airport Boulevard South: Oak Springs to Webberville Road West: Northwestern to Rosewood to Chicon to 12th Street, north along Austin & NW Railroad to Martin Luther King Boulevard, to Stafford, to Rogers, to Walnut Section 4 - Membership ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) Membership of the Rosewood NPCT shall include, but is not limited to, at least one representative from the following groups: 1. Property owners 2. Non-property owner residents (i.e. renters) 3. Business owners 4. Neighborhood associations b) Representation from other entities located within the neighborhood (e.g. churches and non-profit organizations) are permitted and encouraged, but not required. c) There shall be no limit to the number of RNCT members. d) Voting Membership shall be open to the following: 1. Anyone over age 18 who lives within the boundaries of the neighborhood planning area. 2. Non-resident property owners, with no more than one non-resident property owner per property. If a non-resident property owner or entity owns multiple properties, voting membership is limited to one representative for all of the properties. 3. One representative from each entity or business within the boundaries of the neighborhood planning area. e) Voting membership shall be granted to any individual who meets the criteria in Section 4(d) and who attends a total of two RNCT meetings. Voting membership shall become effective at the third meeting and the new member's name shall be noted in the minutes. f) Voting membership shall become effective at the 20 October 2005 meeting upon approval of the by-laws and shall be extended immediately to all in attendance who meet the critera in Section 4(d) so that initial business can be conducted. After the date of adoption of the by-laws, the voting membership criteria listed in Section 4(e) shall apply. g) Each voting member is allowed only one vote. h) If a representative from one of the groups in 4(a) quits or is removed from the contact team AND no other representative from that group is represented on the contact team, THEN Section 4(e) is waived so a representative from that group may serve on the contact team and vote. i) The RNCT membership list (including each members affilitation) shall be updated monthly by the RNCT secretary and the list made available at monthly meetings for the purpose of validating voting memberships. Additionally, a copy shall reach the City of Austin Neighborhood Planning and Zoning Department by December 31 of each calendar year. j) Upon request, each member shall receive a copy of the adopted Rosewood NCT bylaws. k) Upon missing six consecutive monthly meetings, voting membership shall be suspended until the requirements of Section 4(e) are fulfilled again. Section 5 - Meetings ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) Unless otherwise specifically defined in these bylaws, Robert's Rules of Order, current edition, shall govern all affairs of the RNCT. b) The Rosewood NCT shall meet on the third Thursday in October every year to elect officers. c) Meetings shall be held at the discretion of the executive committee, typically monthly, but no less than six times a year. The RNCT chair may reschedule a regular meeting for significant reasons with seven days notice. All changes to regular meeting date will be publicized to all active Neighborhood Association presidents and others in the neighborhood using whatever reasonable means are available, for example, but not limited to: flyers, phone calls, mailings, newsletters, and email. d) The RNCT Chair may call, or give authority to call, special meetings of the RNCT as needed when an application to amend the Rosewood Neighborhood Plan has been submitted to the City of Austin or other critical business must be considered. e) RNCT meetings shall be open to the public. Visitors shall be invited to participate in the discussion of the matters at hand, but only qualified voting members of the RNCT will be eligible to vote. f) The minimum number of RNCT members necessary to establish a quorum for a vote is one representative each from the majority of active neighborhood associations within the RNCT boundaries. g) Approved minutes of meetings and sign-in sheets, as a record of attendance, must be kept for all meetings of the RNCT and shall be forwarded to the Neighborhood Planning and Zoning Department upon request. h) Agendas will be posted on the RNCT website at least 3 days before a scheduled meeting. Section 6 - Officers and Duties ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) The officers of the Rosewood NCT shall be elected as described in Section 7, and shall be, at minimum: Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary. b) The executive committee shall be composed of the officers and the chair of any standing committee of the RNCT. c) In compliance with Section 6 d) 1., the executive committee shall be responsible for the management of the affairs of the RNCT. The duties shall include: carrying out the purposes of the RNCT set forth in Section 2, updating the annual membership list, holding RNCT meetings, conducting elections as called for in the bylaws, and representing the RNCT in communications with the City of Austin and other entities. It shall also act for the RNCT in matters specifically delegated to it. It may act for the RNCT between regular meetings on any matter determined urgent. Any such action shall be reported at the next regular meeting of the RNCT and none of its actions shall conflict with actions taken or polices formulated by the RNCT. d) Duties of the officers are as follows: 1. The chair shall be responsible for the operation of the RNCT and its officers pursuant to these bylaws. This shall include conducting meetings, representing the team at official functions, appointing subcommittees, and generally overseeing the business of the RNCT. The Chair shall have the primary responsibility for leading the long-term and short-term planning efforts of the neighborhood and shall also have specific duties as spelled out elsewhere in these bylaws and as delegated by the RNCT. 2. The vice-chair shall, at the request of the Chair, assist the Chair in preparing meeting agendas and conducting meetings and shall assume all duties of the Chair when required. 3. The secretary shall maintain all written records as required by the bylaws, including the current membership roster, and produce all written communications as directed by the officers and the executive committee. Section 7 - Nomination, Election, and Term of Officers ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) The membership of the RNCT shall nominate one or more eligible voting candidates from the RNCT for each office for the coming year. All candidates must be qualified voting members of the RNCT. b) Officers will be elected by the RNCT voting members; by a majority vote if there are two or fewer candidates; or a plurality vote if there are three or more candidates. c) The terms shall be for one year. d) The secretary will notify the Neighborhood Planning and Zoning Department in writing of the names of the newly elected officers, their contact information, and the date they are due to take office. e) No member shall serve more than two consecutive years in the same office unless a vote passes by a 2/3 majority to waive this clause. Section 8 - Removal and Vacancies of Officers ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) Should vacancies occur outside the normal election process, candidates for the unfilled term shall be nominated from the floor and elected at the next scheduled meeting following the vacancy. The person elected to the vacated office will serve for the remainder of the term. b) An officer's voting membership on the RNCT shall lapse on the 3rd successive unexcused absence unless there are extenuating circumstances that shall be approved by a majority of the officers. c) Any officer can be removed by a 2/3 majority of the voting members at a regularly scheduled meeting. Section 9 - Committees ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) The RNCT Chair, with the approval of the executive committee, may appoint standing committees to help conduct the business of the RNCT. The chair of a standing committee will serve as a voting member of the executive committee. b) The Chair and/or Executive Committee may appoint special committees or subcommittees to help conduct specialized business of the RNCT. c) Committees shall report to the RNCT and these reports shall be entered into the minutes. Section 10 - Amendments ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds majority vote of those present at a regular RNCT meeting, providing that the proceedure below is followed: 1. A resolution to propose an amendment is passed (by straight majority) at a regular meeting. 2. A vote on the proposed amendment is held at the next regular meeting. 3. The upcoming vote is announced in the call to meeting, 4. Which is publicized as in Section 5 c. Section 11 - Effective Date ---------------------------------------------------------------------- a) These bylaws of the Rosewood Neighborhood Plan Team shall become effective on 20 October 2005. Section 12 - Conflict of Interest ---------------------------------------------------------------------- If a member of the RNCT has an interest in a development that requires a plan amendment, the member must follow these rules: 1. If a member has a substantial interest (see below) in a project, the member cannot participate in any decision or voting concerning the project, including the decision of the RNCT to recommend an application for a plan amendment or the decision to support or not support the project. 2. If a member has a substantial interest in a proposed project, the member must disclose this interest at the time a plan amendment application is discussed and at the time the recommendation letter for the project is submitted. 3. Note that a member with a substantial interest in a project may participate in the discussion regarding the proposed change. However, participating in the voting or decision regarding that change is disallowed. Substantial interest occurs when: * A person owns at least a part of or is invested in the property, or business developing the property, or * A person has worked for someone involved in the project over the past year, or * A person has a business that would directly benefit from the project, or * A person serves on the board of directors, corporate officer, or any other board overseeing the project, or * A person owes money to anyone involved in the project. Conflict of Interest as it relates to the Plan Amendment Process is also specifically addressed in Ordinance 030320-23 of the City Code. Section 13 - Liability ---------------------------------------------------------------------- RNCT incurs no liability in making recommendations to the Planning Commission and the City Council since a recommendation is not a legally enforceable decision. The RNCT has certain rights to initiate plan amendment cases; however, there are no liability issues with respect to such an action. ----------------------------------------------------------------------