Thomas MacMillan Photo
Chairman Smart.
In its first official act, the city’s Charter Revision Commission elected Alderman Michael Smart as its new chair.
The unanimous vote came Tuesday night at the commission’s first meeting, in City Hall.
Last month, aldermen formed the 15-member Charter Revision Commission as part of the decennial process of considering changes to the city’s foundational legal document: the New Haven charter.
The charter establishes a number of basic elements of city government, including the length of mayoral terms, the number of members of the Board of Aldermen, and the city’s code of ethics. At least every 10 years, the city is required to examine the document and determine if any changes ought to be made.
In November, the Board of Aldermen established a commission to do just that, and set out a list of possible changes the commission is required to consider. The commission comprises 15 people, including several aldermen.
Fourteen of those members showed up in City Hall’s Meeting Room 2 Tuesday evening, where Board of Aldermen President Jorge Perez laid out their duties. First order of business: Elect a chair.
Wooster Square’s Alderman Smart was the only nominee. Commissioner Will Ginsberg — head of the Community Foundation For Greater New Haven — asked Smart to describe his vision for the commission.
“My vision is to carry out the wishes of the community,” Smart said. He said it will be a “transparent process.”
Smart was elected unanimously as chair.
Ginsberg asked later about how votes will be taken: A simple majority?
“I think simple majority is the best,” Smart said. He said the commission will try to build consensus, to present the Board of Aldermen with a unified front.
The commission is required to hold at least two public hearings and must complete its work by May, 2013. The commission will present a set of proposed charter changes — if it deems any necessary — to the Board of Aldermen. The board will then approve or deny the proposals for inclusion on a citywide ballot referendum in November, 2013.
The commission set a date of Jan. 10 for its next meeting, where it will be briefed by local attorney and former Alderman Steve Mednick, who has been contracted to assist the commission in its duties. Mednick’s practice has specialized in municipal law.