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Following are a few "lessons learned"
I've picked up as the result of hanging around City Council and Planning & Zoning Commission meetings for several months. Every time I go, I learn something new and the learning is not over yet, so this primer is far from complete. I have learned that there are often more twists and turns in the process than the average citizen can easily track. Citizen participation can be effective, but in some respects the system is not user friendly. If you are new to the process, this will, hopefully, help you get a good start.

1. Check the meeting agenda to see what is coming up next. This will often be your first notice of an issue. Meeting agendas for City Council and the Planning & Zoning Commission appear on the city web site, www.ci.rowlett.tx.us, under City Hall. Typically, the agenda will be there on the Friday afternoon before the meeting. Sometimes it is not. If not, call and ask. They will gladly fax or email it to you.

2. The agenda lists items in a manner that can best be described as a legal description. If you don't know the code, you may not be able to figure out exactly what is happening. In many cases, particularly when there is an ordinance involved, you will need additional material. There is a full briefing packet supplied to each council member/commissioner on the Friday evening before the meeting. A copy of that packet is also sent to the library. Go and look at it. That is where you will find the details, e.g., drawings, plans, copies of ordinances, reports, etc. (Note: Sometimes the packets don't make it to the library. If you ask, the library will run the packet down, but that will be on Mon or Tue during business hours.)

3. Research, research, research. If you have a strong interest in an item, learn all you can before you go. Reading the briefing packets is necessary, but sometimes not enough. Feel free to go to city departments and look at more drawings, plans, proposals, whatever. The folks at city hall are great to work with. I haven't had a bad experience there yet (although I'm sure there must be a grouch there somewhere).

Be skeptical of information submitted by the developer. Developers may not volunteer adverse information. Developers may misrepresent. More than once I have seen citizens discover and bring up things the developer had simply forgotten to mention or had tried to keep out. As a practical matter, this is almost an adversarial process. The developer will attempt to get as much as he can, for as little as he can. After all, this is just good business sense. (It could even be argued that he owes it to his investors.) Remember, the developer does not live in your neighborhood. Council and P&Z will generally attempt to insure that project conforms to the minimum legal requirements, but also remember, they probably don't live in your neighborhood either.

Don't expect anyone to have the same vested interest as you. A development that meets the letter of the law may still keep you awake at night or destroy your property value. Another reason to be prepared is that the approval process often involves bartering. For example, the developer will throw in some additional landscaping or improvement of an adjacent road in exchange for a variance on some other requirement, say minimum lot size. You sometimes need to understand the nature of the development (and of the surrounding neighborhoods) to grasp the implication of some of these proposals. These often come out of nowhere, are presented, countered, revised and decided, all in the space of half an hour. All too often, after time for reflection, it becomes clear that the proposed benefit(s) obtained for the variance are illusory or that there is an adverse impact somewhere else.

4. If this seems like a lot to learn between Friday night, when the agenda comes out, and Tuesday night, when the meeting takes place - it is! Often, before an item becomes the subject of a formal proposal, it will be discussed informally, with no action proposed, during a work session, weeks before it comes up for action. There is a work session before every regular meeting of Council or P&Z. The agenda for the work session is also published on the City web site. The public may attend the work session. No decision can be made at a work session or a special session. Decisions can only be made at a regular session that provides for pubic input - your guarantee that you will be able to get your two cents worth in somewhere.

Bottom line, don't ignore these more informal work sessions. There is a lot of information available there.

5. One way to get a head start on this process is to communicate with city staff. They will probably be the first to know something is coming. Developers will work with staff before they make actual presentations to P&Z. So, when you see that "sold" sign on the commercial lot next door, it may be time to start talking to the folks at Planning and Community Development.

6. Communicate with your Council and/or Commissioners. This is not a substitute for being there, but you need to alert them to the fact that a citizen has an interest or issues. Some items appear on what is called the consent agenda. (I still do not have a clear understanding of what issues are on the consent agenda vs. items for individual consideration.) By the time the meeting begins, the consent agenda is pretty much a done deal. Even though it may contain multiple items, the consent agenda is often considered and approved with little or no discussion as block, as a single unit. So get your thoughts out there early.

7. Development items usually begin with the Planning & Zoning Commission. In most matters, the Commission merely makes a recommendation to the Council. Final action is by Council. You must make your input at both levels. After P&Z has made its recommendation, Council can do something entirely different, so you cannot relax your guard if you are pleased with what happened at P&Z. Remember also, that the decision at the Council level is a political decision. P&Z works with guidelines, standards and ordinances. Council does too, but can ignore them if they choose.

You will also find developers that "sandbag" the P&Z. Knowing that the real decision-maker is Council, they will make their stronger presentation there. With the current make-up at Council and P&Z, developers appear to consider Council to be a softer touch than P&Z. However, input at P&Z is very important. The commissioners are responsive to citizen input and if there is an issue that arises, they may be able to fashion or propose an acceptable alternative. Collectively, there is a substantial amount of technical expertise and experience on P&Z. Let it work for you. The system only works if you participate. In some instances, bad decisions are made simply because the Council or P&Z did not know there was such an issue, or because no one made the point or raised an objection. If you do your homework and if you participate, you may avoid that result. And in the case of decisions beyond your control or influence (including political ones), you may at least learn how or why they happened.

Finally, I gratefully acknowledge the kind guidance of Cindy Rushing, without which I would undoubtedly still be asking "what's going on here."

NUMBERS FOR REFERENCE AND FURTHER INFORMATION
Planning & Community Development: 972.412.6285
Public Works (City Projects): 972.412.6287
P&Z Agenda: 972.463.3934
Council Agenda : 972.412.6116