Design Advisory Board

Legal basis

• BRC 2-3-18 · creates · Design Advisory Board source
• Ordinance No. 5963 (1998) (1998) · governs · Earliest ordinance in the 2-3-18 history note (whether it first created the board is not established) source
• Ordinance No. 7788 (2011) (2011-05-03) · amends · Amending the requirements related to urban and architectural design review (intro Apr 5, 2011; adopted May 3, 2011, per its Laserfiche index entry) source
• Charter Sec. 130 · governs · General provisions concerning advisory commissions source

Appointed by

City Council. City Council appoints all five members (BRC 2-3-18(a)). source source as of 2026-10-29

How

Annual city recruitment run by the City Clerk (2026 cycle: applications Dec 8, 2025 to Jan 25, 2026), 15-minute Zoom interviews with one council member and the board's staff, then nominations and a vote by City Council at a regular meeting before April (Council Procedure IX), with terms starting April 1. Vacancies after partial terms are filled for the rest of the term (BRC 2-3-1(a)(3)). · annual; applications December-January, interviews February, council vote by March, seats effective April 1 · city-council (majority vote on each seat) source source source source source as of 2026-03-05

Seats

5 source as of 2026-10-29

Seat types

• Design professional (e.g. architect or urban designer) ×2 qualified
• Member chosen without limitation (at large) ×3 at-large

source source as of 2026-10-29

Term

5 years source as of 2026-10-29

Term limit

none set in BRC 2-3-18 or 2-3-1 (or Charter Sec. 130); members may be reappointed. source source as of 2026-10-29

Staggering

Staggered, one seat a year: terms end 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030 and 2031 (Rory Bilocerkowycz's listed term is 2023-2027, a four-year span, which suggests a seat taken mid-term; not confirmed). source as of 2026-10-23

Powers

advisory. Decides: Nothing binding: it reviews downtown projects (valuation $25,000 or more, new buildings or exterior work, and projects needing discretionary review) against the Downtown Urban Design Plan and comments to the people designing and approving them; projects reviewed by the Landmarks Board are exempt. Review is mandatory for projects in its jurisdiction. Outside downtown it reviews only when the city manager, Planning Board or City Council asks.. To council: Recommends approval or disapproval of amendments to the Downtown Urban Design Plan to the Planning Board, the city manager and City Council, after a public hearing. source source source as of 2026-10-29

Council liaison

not applicable: City Council assigns no council liaison to the Design Advisory Board: council's approved 2026 committee and board assignments (Jan 22, 2026, Attachment A) list council members only for intergovernmental bodies, internal council committees, local outside boards and sister cities, and name none for any city board or commission. A council-liaison program for boards was proposed in January 2023; no assignment under it appears in the 2026 list. source source

Staff liaison

Planning & Development Services · Amelia Harvey, Kalani Pahoa source as of 2026-09-09

Relations

• City Council appoints Design Advisory Board source
• Design Advisory Board recommends to City Council · Downtown Urban Design Plan amendments source
• Design Advisory Board recommends to City Manager · Downtown Urban Design Plan amendments; comments on projects under discretionary review source
• Design Advisory Board recommends to Planning Board · Downtown Urban Design Plan amendments; project comments when Planning Board requests source
• Planning & Development Services staffs Design Advisory Board · Board secretary and urban design staff source source