Westbrook Committee Backs Replacing Recreation and Conservation Commission

The Westbrook Committee of the Whole voted 6-0 to refer a repeal and replacement of the Recreation and Conservation Commission ordinance to the City Council. The new body would be called the Recreation and Sustainability Committee, with seven members and an advisory role, resolving conflicts between the current ordinance and the city charter.

Key points

• The committee voted 6-0 to refer the ordinance changes to the City Council, with Councilor McCambridge, Vice President Shaughnessy, President Monroe, Councilor Chau, Councilor Falkingham, and Chair Reardon in favor.
• Councilor Shaughnessy proposed three amendments, all adopted in one motion: renaming the body the Recreation and Sustainability Committee, revising the purpose statement, and giving the chair and vice chair a role in facilitating meetings.
• City Administrator Angela Holmes said the current ordinance conflicts with the charter by assigning executive and legislative authority to an advisory body, and that staff met with the commission four times to gather feedback.
• Staff recommended eliminating the three alternate positions, removing the citizenship requirement while keeping Westbrook residency, and dropping the annual report obligation.
• Resident Ken Fawcett asked during public comment whether non-citizens could serve; staff confirmed the proposal requires only Westbrook residency, not citizenship.
• No members of the Recreation and Conservation Commission spoke during the meeting.

Next steps

• The ordinance review and amendments were referred to the City Council for consideration.
• Staff said they plan to return to the City Council with a one-year report on how the new body is working if the change is approved.
• Chair Radin said a Committee of the Whole meeting on the Public Safety Committee is still to come.

Read the full transcript