Town of Lyons Boards and Commissions Guide

UPDATED Members & Vacancies: June 1 / September 1 / December 1, 2020 /April 2021 / April 2022 / July 2022 / March 2023

This is a guide to the town’s boards and commissions. Board and commission members study the needs of the town government and its people, and present their recommendations to the Board of Trustees for use in making decisions. Those decisions include changing ordinances, creating sales taxes, adjusting utility charges, and more.

Consider becoming a volunteer member of one of these boards or commissions. In most cases, half of the members live in town, and half live outside of town. All have a strong interest in making Lyons a great town to be a part of.

Joining a board or commission is an excellent way to become involved and help shape the decisions made in your community. You can either contact the Chair for more information -or- you can just apply online for an advisory board or commission position, complete the online application. Your application will be sent to the mayor, who will follow up with you directly. Contact the Chair if you have concerns or questions and ask for more clarification on how its goals meet your goals –or ask them how you can attend their meetings as an observer.

NOTE 4/1/22 – Annual Report – Now that the Town has published a booklet of all the Commissions & Boards annually, the public can refer to that for the latest accomplishments & goals of the Commissions. – 2nd edition 4/23

NOTE: In most cases we have not updated the “descriptive” part of each Board and Commission’s duties, accomplishments, and goals, as the report is 138 pages long. There are a few spots that were important to update and we wrote the words UPDATE in all caps, and in bold, for easy reference.

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TOWN BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Click through below to learn what each board and commission does, their accomplishments, and their goals. These reports are prepared by the Chairs.

What a Board or Commission does, as stated by Town Administrator Victoria Simonsen, on 3/22: In addition to paid staff, the town has a sophisticated Boards and Commissions
structure that supports the Board of Trustees in their research and recommendations,
with both a Board liaison and staff liaison assigned to each group. These committees
are advisory in nature (except for Planning and Community Development and the Board
of Adjustments) and are made up of resident and non-resident volunteers. Most groups
are made of seven members. The agendas and minutes of each of these boards and
commissions are available online at the Town of Lyons home page.

Go to the Town of Lyons’ Commissions and Boards page to view agendas and minutes.

Board of Adjustments
Ecology Advisory Board
Economic Vitality Commission
Historic Preservation Commission
Housing & Human Services Commission
Library District Board
Arts & Humanities Commission
Parks & Recreation Commission
Planning & Community Development Commission
Student Advisory Commission
Sustainable Futures Commission
Utilities & Engineering Board

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Boards and commissions open seats – (updated April 2023)
Audit Committee – 0 vacancy
Board of Adjustments – 2 vacancies == up by 1 (7/22) down by 1 (4/23)
* Citizen Budget Advisory Committee – 2 filled; 3 vacancies == 4/22
Ecology Advisory Board – 0 vacancies == 4/22 and 4/23
Economic Vitality Commission – 0 vacancies == up by 1 (7/22) down by 1, full (4/23)
** Historic Preservation Commission – 1 vacancies== (4/22) (4/23)
Housing & Human Services – 2 vacancies== (4/22), (4/23) 1 vacancy 8/23
Lyons Arts and Humanities Commission – 0 vacancy== 3/21 (4/23)
Parks and Recreation Commission – 0 vacancy== 4/22 (4/23)
Planning & Community Development Commission – 4/21 – 4/23 possible 3? vacancy
Student Advisory Commission – 0 vacancy== (4/23)
Sustainable Futures Commission – 0 vacancy== up by 1 (7/22) down by 1, full (4/23)
Utilities & Engineering Board – 0 vacancy== 2 filled (4/23)
Library District Board – 0 vacancy== 4/22

NOTES (1/21): Two new commissions were activated in 2020:
** 1. Historic Preservation Commission (as of fall of 2021, it lost it’s active chair and has had no meetings) === 7/22 UPDATE: It has an active Chair; and a staff Planner as liaison (hired 6/22). === 4/23 In 2022, the commission did not meet in the first part of the year, but became active again for the later part of the year.
* 2. Citizen’s Budget Advisory Committee. = The CBAC serves to provide independent review and recommendations of the annual budgets, both operating and capital, to the Board of Trustees. It has two members and three more are sought. It is a committee and, therefore, does not have a page in this report. == 4/22 There are currently three vacancies on the 5-member committee == 4/23 NOTE: The committee did not meet in 2022, however the Finance Director plans to get this committee re-established in 2023.
Current 2020 members are:
Charles Olson
Ann Oberchain
Mark Browning, BoT liaison
Cassie Eyestone, Finance Director
3. Audit Committee (2022)
This is an independent committee of Lyons residents who ensures that the Town follows
generally accepted accounting principles and provides an independent review of financial
reports, internal controls, and independent auditor findings. == 4/23 NOTE: The committee did not meet in 2022, however the Finance Director plans to get this committee re-established in 2023.

Town municipal code
To see the exact wording of what each commission and board has been charged to do, go to the Town Municipal Code page. Some of the commissions and boards have the exact code number on their Town web page for easy reference.

Town code on filling vacancies
A citizen may serve and participate on up to two (2) boards or commissions at the same time. A board or commission member can serve up to six (6) consecutive years on one (1) board or commission. After six (6) consecutive years on one (1) board or commission, the member may reapply to serve additional terms at the discretion of the Mayor.
 
Selecting chairs and vice chairs
Chairperson, vice chair, and second vice chair. The members of each board or commission shall select a chairperson and vice chair from among the board or commission’s voting membership annually to serve for one (1) year with a maximum of three (3) terms as chair. No chairperson shall be elected who has not completed at least one (1) year as a member of the board or commission, unless no other person is eligible or otherwise willing to serve as chair.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES
The Town of Lyons has a council-manager form of government, wherein six
trustees and one mayor are elected by voters and set policies for operating the Town government. The administrative implementation and management of policies are executed by the town administrator, who is appointed by the Board of Trustees.
= subcommittees/task forces =
Staff / Board Relations Committee and
Planet Bluegrass Keynotes Task Force.
Revolving Loan Committee

The Board of Trustees also serves as the Lyons Urban Renewal Authority, along with
representatives from Boulder County, St. Vrain Valley School District, Lyons Fire Protection
District and a member at large. They meet on a regular basis to consider the business of the
URA. Minutes of all the Town’s board and commissions can be found online or at town hall.)

The mayor may serve up to four two-year terms consecutively, for a total of eight years. Trustee members may serve up to three two-year terms consecutively, for a total of six years.

Board of Trustees meetings
Agendas are available prior to the meetings. Minutes are available following
approval. The Board of Trustees meets on the first and third Mondays of each month.

Board members and their liaison positions
New Board Members as of 4/18/22
Hollie Rogin, Major
Glen Delman
Greg Oetting
Jocelyn Farrell, Mayor Pro Tem
Paula Williams
Tanya Mercer-Daty
Ted Elson
See their STATEMENTS as to their credentials and goals. 4/22