An idea, possibly radical, will be broached at tonight's 7 p.m. meeting of the Town Council at The Sequoias retirement community: Should the council create five volunteer committees from the current 16 that advise the council on various civic matters?

Within a new Environment and Sustainability Committee, a staff report proposes combining the current conservation, sustainability, open space acquisition, and nature & science committees. A new Recreation & Culture Committee would fold in the historic resources, community events, cultural arts, teen, and parks & recreation committees.

The current load of 16 committees represents 133 seats, 117 members for a total of 96 meetings annually and more than 18,000 volunteer hours. An equivalent work load would require nine full-time staff members, the report says. For the town staff, the logistics around coordinating events and meetings and controlling revenues and expenses is a significant challenge.

The committee chairs met with Councilman John Richards in September and aired their concerns, including recruiting and retaining members, arranging quorums, enlisting staff support and complying with state open-meeting laws, the report says.

Options other than consolidation include reducing memberships to five each, having them meet "as needed" instead of regularly, and changing their obligations with respect to open-meeting laws.

The Sequoias is located at 501 Portola Road. The meeting takes place in Hanson Hall.

— Dave Boyce

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