• 167.01 - Establishment; Membership; Term; Vacancy.
• 167.02 - Officers; Meetings; Procedures; Records.
• 167.03 - Powers and Duties.

167.01   ESTABLISHMENT; MEMBERSHIP; TERM; VACANCY.

(a) A Mediation Board is hereby established. The Board shall consist of eight members. Each member shall serve for a period of three years and shall be confirmed by the City Commission. The Board shall consist of one City Commissioner, who shall be a non-voting liaison; two representatives from the community; one City of Springfield Police Officer; one member from the Board of Human Relations; and three volunteer mediators. City Commission shall accept recommendations for board members from each of the representative organizations and the Human Relations Director. No member shall serve more than two consecutive terms. After a member has served during two consecutive terms, he shall be ineligible for reappointment to the Mediation Board until one year has expired since his last date of service on the Mediation Board.

(b) Any vacancy on the Mediation Board shall be filled as in the case of the original appintment, as set forth herein, for the unexpired term of the member whose vacancy is so filled.

(c) All members of the Mediation Board shall serve without compensation and shall be subject to removal from office by a majority vote of the City Commission.

(d) Persons eligible for service on the Mediation Board shall meet the following qualifications.
(1) Persons serving on another City board or commission shall not be eligible to serve on the Mediation Board, with the exception of the one member appointed from the Human Relations Board and the one member from the City Commission, who shall be a non-voting liaison.
(2) Persons serving on the Mediation Board shall be electors of the City and shall have completed a mediation training program within three months of appointment.
(3) Elected public officials shall not be eligible to serve on the Mediation Board, except the member appointed from the City Commission, who shall be a non-voting liaison.
(4) Except as otherwise provided in this section, if any member of the Mediation Board shall fail to meet any of the qualifications stated in subsection (d)(1) through (3) hereof, his office shall immediately become vacant.
(5) The City Commission, by ordinance and upon finding that the particular expertise of a potential appointee or member is needed on the Mediation Board, may waive any or all of the requirements of subsections (d)(1) and (2) hereof for such member.

(e) If any Mediation Board member is absent from two of any four consecutive regular, quarterly meetings of the Mediation Board, or if such member is unwilling or unable to attend a regularly scheduled prearranged discussion of the public business of his board which fails to qualify as a "meeting" for lack of quorum, is [sic] office shall immediately become vacant. Such member shall have the opportunity to explain his absence to the City Commission and may be reappointed by a majority vote of the City Commission to complete the balance of his term.
(Ord. 95-96. Passed 3-14-96.)

165.02   OFFICERS; MEETINGS; PROCEDURES; RECORDS.

(a) The Mediation Board shall elect from its membership a Chairperson and such other officers as it may deem necessary. No Chairperson shall serve more than two years during a period of six consecutive years. The term "year" means twelve consecutive months. The Mediation Board shall adopt rules and regulations consistent with law and ordinance. Meetings of the Mediation Board shall be held once each quarter, during the second week of January, April, July, and October, and at such additional times as the Board may determine. The time of regular meetings shall be specified in the rules and regulations of the Mediation Board. Special meetings shall be held within the City limits of Springfield.

(b) The Mediation Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the action of the Mediation Board and the vote of each member upon each question or, if absent or failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall keep records of all of its official action, all of which shall be filed promptly in the office of the Mediation Board and shall be a public record. The presence of four members shall consitute a quorum. The Mediation Board shall act by resolution and a copy of each resolution duly adopted shall be filed in the office of the Clerk of the City Commission.

165.03   POWERS AND DUTIES

(a) The duties of the Mediation Board shall be to adopt policies and procedures for the conduct of mediation sessions to evaluate volunteer mediators, to evaluate the City's mediation program and to report to and advise the City Commission concerning activities of the Mediation Board and the operation of the City's mediation program.

(b) The Mediation Board shall conduct mediation proceedings to resolve disputes between Springfield residents involving the following circumstances:
Neighbor-to-neighbor disputes, neighborhood parking and boundaries, animal nuisances, disturbing the peace and other services as determined by the Mediation Board to be appropriate for its services. Mediation services will be provided on a non-discriminatory basis to all City residents regardless of age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, handicap, or gender.
(Ord. 91-401, Passed 10-1-91.)

Ordinances Index