Board Candidate Appointment Criteria

SVANC board seats become available for two reasons:

1. Approximately half of the elected board seats are up for election every two years (odd-year election cycle as of 2017) Next election will be 2025. Go to “Board – Candidate Elections” if you are interested in becoming a Candidate for SVANC Board of Directors during our next election period.
2. Seats are vacated due to the resignation of board members. Please read below if you are interested in being appointed to one of the vacant seats on the Board.

Open Board Seats for Appointment

As of June 2023, the following seats are open for Board Member Applications:

Interim/Yearly Open SVANC Board Seats Availability and Information

• Seats become available upon the resignation of a SVANC Board Member, and yearly for Senior & Youth Representative seats
• At-Large, Business, Resident and Community Interest applicants must be 18 years of age or older at the time of their application.
• Interim terms are for the REMAINDER of the original term, as noted above
• Vacant seats are filled by board appointment through a process determined by EmpowerLA, the SVANC Bylaws, and SVANC Standing Rules
• Senior Representative seats are for age 55+, and Youth Representative seats are for ages 14-17 at the time of appointment). Both seats are for a one year term. Once approved as a Board Member for one of these seats, the person can request another next term with the Board’s approval.
• Senior and Youth Representative seats are usually seated in July of each year. However, an open seat for these two categories may be filled at any time per instructions below.
• Filing for all interim/yearly seats must be made prior to the last Tuesday of the prior month to when the appointment is to be made (generally in March for the yearly Senior/Youth seats). The exact filing date for each available seat will be provided on the notice.
• Senior and Youth Representative seats are not available through the regional/citywide NC elections.
• This is NOT part of the 2 year regional/citywide Neighborhood Council election cycle
• If you have questions or concerns on the appointment process or need assistance after reviewing the application (see application (Candidate Filing Form) download button below), please contact us at or call 818-767-8262 and leave a message.
• Click button below for Candidate Filing Forms in PDF format

General Information and Filing Deadlines

Thank you for considering being a part of Sun Valley Area Neighborhood Council!

The Candidate Filing Form must be received by the SVANC by the LAST Tuesday of the month before the next month’s second-Tuesday board meeting where the application will be considered (Example: For an approved application to be voted on in the February monthly meeting, it must be received by the last Tuesday in January). Completed applications received after the deadline will be considered for the open seat of the same category in the following month if the vacancy is not filled.

Qualifications for Board Seats

The information is for all board seat categories though not all may be open / available at any given time.

Resident (total board: 7 seats): Stakeholder who is 18 years of age or older whose primary residence is within the SVANC boundaries.

Business/Property Owner (total board: 7 seats): Stakeholder who is 18 years of age or older who owns property (other than their primary residence) within the SVANC boundaries, owns or operates a business whose regular base of operation is within the SVANC boundaries, or works within the SVANC boundaries.

At-Large (total board: 6 seats): Stakeholder who is 18 years of age or older, who can show documentation of regular and ongoing participation in, but who is not an employee of, a certified nonprofit organization whose regular base of operation has a physical address within the SVANC boundaries, including but not limited to community-based, faith- based or educational (Please note: Organization must be registered, active, and documentable. Participation with the City or County of Los Angeles or its branches/ departments/ bureaus/ units/ etc. including Neighborhood Councils or their committees does not qualify for this category.)

Community Interest Stakeholder (1 seat): A Community Interest Stakeholder is defined as a member or participant in a Community Organization, which has maintained a physical address within NC boundaries for at least one year, and whose ongoing, verifiable activities or operations confer some benefit to the community served by that NC. Examples include nonprofits, schools, or faith-based institutions. (Note: this seat and its qualifications are defined by LA City Ordinance 182830)

Senior Representative (2 seats): Stakeholder who is 55 years of age or older (at time of seating) who lives, works, or owns property within the SVANC boundaries. These seats are filled only by board appointment.

Youth Representative (1 seat): Stakeholder who is 14-17 years of age (at time of seating) who lives, works, owns property or attends school within the SVANC boundaries. This seat is filled only by board appointment.

To Apply for SVANC Open Seats

1. Review the qualifications to make sure you qualify for the seat for which you wish to apply.
2. Download, print, and fill out the Candidate Filing Form. The 150 word candidate statement is optional but helpful, and can be read to the board and attending public at the meeting before the vote on the seat is to take place.
3. Review the Acceptable Forms of Documentation document (PDF) in the section appropriate to the seat for which you are filing. See Documentation Notes Below. NOTE- Senior and Youth candidates must provide proof required in two sections of the document: A) the section applicable to the type of Sun Valley Stakeholder you are (Residential or Business/Property Owner/Student); and B) the Senior or Youth section as applicable. See Documentation Examples below.

   Acceptable Forms of Documentation – English (PDF)

   Acceptable Forms of Documentation – Spanish (PDF)

   Special note for Senior Rep and Youth Rep (annual term) board members: If you are refiling in the same category, you do not need to resubmit identification documentation that was submitted with a previous application if that documentation is current and nothing has changed.

4. Return this information as noted on the bottom of the form (scan and email, fax, or mail). Email is recommended.
5. Make sure the form is RECEIVED BY US by the LAST Tuesday of the month so it can be placed next month’s meeting agenda if complete and approved. Please submit your application early, and make sure it’s complete, properly signed and dated, with all required documentation included. Last minute applications may not allow for time to correct deficiencies before the deadline.
6. VERY IMPORTANT: Be eligible to vote right away if you’re appointed! To be a board member, per California law, you must take Ethics training. It’s good for two years. And to be eligible to vote on funding (finance) items, you must take Funding Training. Lastly, you have up to 30 days after your appointment to sign the Code of Conduct policy, but it’s good to get it done and it’s fast to do. For Ethics & Funding training, and the Code of Conduct policy, CLICK HERE. You can do these things in advance – you don’t have to be on the board yet to start the process, and you don’t need to do them again (if they have not expired) if you apply for a future opening.
7. If you have any questions, please contact us by email or call 818-767-8262 (if no answer, please leave a voicemail since, as volunteers active in the community, our office hours vary).

Required Documentation – Notes

You may redact (cover up or black out) the ID, Driver’s License, or passport number on your document, or social security number on your Medicare card, etc., before sending it to us.

Required Documentation – Examples

If you are a Senior living in Sun Valley, and you are applying for the Senior Representative seat, you would include documentation to prove your identity and your Senior status, then documentation confirming your Sun Valley residence address. Note that these documents can be a single document if it covers all required aspects of the filing status (such as a California ID or Driver’s License that shows the birth date 55 or more years ago, and a Sun Valley residence address). Consult the Acceptable Forms of Documentation document for acceptable types and combinations of documentation.

If you are a 16 year old Youth who lives in Pacoima and goes to school in Sun Valley, and you are applying for the Youth representative seat, you would include documentation to prove your identity and your Youth status (between 14 and 17 years of age at time of seating), and your student status (due to applying based upon attending a Sun Valley school), usually using a confirmed school ID. Consult the Acceptable Forms of Documentation for acceptable types and combinations of documentation.