Applications for City Boards, Commissions Open

Applications are open for a total of 27 vacancies on city boards, commissions and committees, through which residents can advise and guide the municipal government on various topics.
The application period began on May 3 and will close on Wednesday, June 2, at 5 p.m. Applications are available online at burbankca.gov/bccapplication and at the city clerk’s office in Burbank City Hall. The City Council is scheduled to appoint applicants to each of the bodies during its July 13 meeting.
Vacancies were announced for the Burbank Cultural Arts Commission, which has four vacancies; the Infrastructure Oversight Board, which has three; the Planning Board, which has three; the Police Commission, which has five; the Sustainable Burbank Commission, which has five; the Transportation Commission, which has four; and the Park, Recreation and Community Services Board, which has three.
After the appointments are made, the Police Commission will again have seven members. The City Council voted in April to expand the panel, which acts as its advisory panel on matters related to the Burbank Police Department, reversing a membership reduction the council made in 2019. The City Council also increased the commission’s membership to seven in 2007.
Council members who favored the change said it would allow them to increase the commission’s diversity — a request of some residents amid protests for racial justice last summer. Indeed, Burbank’s municipal code states that the council “should appoint the best qualified candidate(s) and strive for diversity of ethnicities, color, gender, professions, or other characteristics of our Burbank community.”
“Further,” the code continues, “in making appointments the Council should consider the candidate’s experience, interest in, and knowledge of law enforcement practices, social work and care work, re‐entry services, clinical psychology, homelessness advocacy or service, and/or other related expertise.”
Also per Burbank’s municipal code, City Council members are instructed to pay special attention to the expertise of applicants to the Infrastructure Oversight Board. Civil engineers and those with experience in related areas such as transportation, urban planning, budgeting and construction are encouraged to apply.
All terms, with the exception of one two-year term on the Police Commission, are for four years. The frequency of meetings differs for each of the bodies, and members do not receive compensation.
Generally, applicants must live in Burbank, though one non-resident can be included in July’s appointments to the Burbank Cultural Arts Commision, while two non-residents can join the Sustainable Burbank Commission.
On Tuesday, the City Council will also appoint two commissioners to represent the city in the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority, which oversees the Hollywood Burbank Airport.
Those with questions about the vacancies should contact the city clerk’s office at (818) 238-5851 or email cityclerks@burbankca.gov.