(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 representative 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 Community Development 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 appointment, 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) A person who is either a member of a City employee’s families, as defined in Section 111.04, or an 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.
(Ord. 12-110. Passed 4-10-12.)
(4) Except as otherwise provided herein, if any member of the Mediation Board shall fail to meet any of the qualifications stated in subsections (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 member is needed on the Mediation Board, may waive any or all of the requirements of subsection (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 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 3-14-95.)