Records commission to inventory decades of BZA and planning case files; staff urged to scan before destruction

The Records Commission discussed a plan to inventory and review decades of Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) and planning commission case files that have been stored in the clerk
s office for years and in some cases at Montgomery County storage.

Commission members and staff said many records date back to the 1950s and that custody of those files shifted historically to the clerkor centralized recordkeeping. The clerk said they do not feel equipped to determine which case files should be destroyed and requested guidance on whether custody of the files should return to the planning division within Community Development.

"I do not feel like I have um enough experience to know what files should not be destroyed, what should be kept, what's historical, what isn't," the clerk said, urging a cautious approach rather than wholesale destruction.

Commissioners and staff agreed that a staged, documented process is needed. A commission member recommended beginning with the oldest records and using a two-step workflow: (1) have a designated reviewer go through year-by-year boxes to identify items required to be retained (for example ordinances or resolutions with original signatures) or historically important documents, and (2) scan or otherwise create electronic copies of records that must be kept before final disposal and file RC3s to document destruction.

Participants cautioned against destroying entire boxes without review. One commissioner said ordinances and resolutions often carry permanent retention requirements and must be pulled and retained if originals are present. Staff suggested a review that pulls items with legal permanence and then sends remaining material through an RC3 process to the state auditor as records are destroyed.

Off-site storage at Montgomery County will be inventoried as the next step. Staff volunteered to visit the county storage, produce a list of what is held there, and return the list to the commission for a special meeting focused on how to proceed.

The commission also discussed logistics for scanning. Staff noted the front-desk and Community Development staff could handle letter-size scanning but that large legal-size plans may require specialized equipment. The commission asked staff to bring a recommended workflow and a proposed schedule for staged RC3 submissions when they return with the inventory.

The commission did not approve any transfers or destruction at the meeting; members agreed to reconvene once inventory and targeted review work are complete.