AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Item Number:
To: Honorable Mayor & City Council
From: Keith Sterling, Deputy City Manager
Huma Ahmed, City Clerk
Subject: REQUESTS TO USE THE COUNCIL CHAMBER TO CONDUCT
CANDIDATE FORUMS FROM THE MUNICIPAL LEAGUE OF
BEVERLY HILLS AND THE SOUTHWEST BEVERLY HILLS
HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION AND TO WAIVE THE FEES FOR
USE OF CITY FACILITIES, WAIVE STAFF COSTS, AND
TELEVISE THE FORUMS
Attachments: 1. Request from the Municipal League of Beverly Hills
2. Request from the Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Assoc.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff seeks City Council direction on these two pending requests from the Municipal League of Beverly Hills and the Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Association, and a request to waive fees for use of city facilities, staff costs, and televising the proposed events.
INTRODUCTION
Representatives from the Municipal League of Beverly Hills and the Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Association have submitted requests to host two separate City Council candidate forums at City Hall. This report seeks Council direction related to the two requests.
DISCUSSION
The City of Beverly Hills will hold a municipal election on June 2, 2026 to fill three City Council seats. Traditionally, a number of community groups hold candidate forums to educate voters on the candidates. Similar to years past, the two organizations have submitted requests to use the Council Chamber for their public candidate forums. Both have requested that the forums be livestreamed and rebroadcast on local Beverly Hills Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Television (BHTV 10). Based on chamber availability, the following dates have been proposed:
-Municipal League of Beverly Hills: Thursday, April 30, 2026 -Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Association: Wednesday, May 6, 2026 The Council Chamber and adjacent meeting rooms are available to accommodate these dates. The organizations have requested that fees and charges associated with their events be waived, including room rental fees, and staff costs, which include cable TV, park rangers and facilities workers. The City Council has granted similar requests for previous elections.
FORUM GUIDELINES
The goal of the forums is to help educate the community about the candidates who are seeking a position on the City Council. The City Council may approve of a forum to be held at City Hall with the expectation that forum organizers conduct their events with professionalism and respect to all those in attendance.
Forums that are held in the Council Chambers are subject to the following guidelines:
- Sponsoring organization is responsible for the format and content of the event. - Sponsoring organizations will provide participating candidates a substantially equal opportunity to participate in the forum.
- No campaign signage (includes banners, buttons, t-shirts and other materials) is permitted inside Council Chambers.
- The City will provide tea, coffee, and water. All other refreshments are the responsibility of the sponsoring organization.
- Sponsoring organizations must ensure that the forum is conducted in an orderly manner. The City and sponsoring organizations may take reasonable steps to address conduct that materially disrupts the event.
FISCAL IMPACT
If approved by the Council, City staff would manage the facility and the re-broadcasting of the candidate forums. In the past, the City has absorbed all staff and facility costs for these events. The cost is approximately $3,000 per forum, inclusive of cable, park rangers and facilities staff.
Keith Sterling,
Deputy City Manager
Approved By
Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Attachment 1
Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Dear Keith -
The Municipal League of Beverly Hills requests the use of the Council Chamber for its Candidates Forum in preparation for the Municipal election on June 2nd, 2026. The two adjacent conference rooms would also be needed on event night, with the City providing all staff and services sufficient to ensure a high quality, successful Forum, including staging, live sound reinforcement, live televising, videotaping for later cablecasting, and other customary elements, etc.
The proposed target date for the Forum would be on an evening immediately preceding the commencement of ballot mailing by Los Angeles County to Beverly Hills voter addresses. This is estimated to be about 30 days prior to Election Day - at the end of April 2026 or very beginning of May 2026. We would coordinate with you on the preferred date.
At this time, 12 candidates (11 of which seek Council seats) have qualified through the Nomination process. Ideally, we would hope to present all 11 such candidates on a single evening for voter education and evaluation, to assist them in making an informed voting decision on or before Election Day,
The Forum will be moderated by two Municipal League board members and myself, and conducted in a fair and professional manner.
I’m happy to answer any questions you, staff or the City Council may have.
Thanks very much for your anticipated courtesy and assistance.
Thomas White
Chairman
The Municipal League of Beverly Hills
Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Attachment 2
Meeting Date: March 24, 2026
Hello Keith—
Comes that time again Our Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Association would again like to have our election-year televised Candidates Forum. Looks like either Wednesday May 13 or Thursday May 14 would be good.
As for many years, we would plan to invite all the Council candidates; give them equal time for each of their opening statements; and offer equal time to respond to each of our questions. If time allows, we would take questions from the audience for the candidates. Our panelists will be Andrea Grossman, David Gottlieb and myself.
Please let me know asap which of those dates would work.
Thanks, as always, Keith.
Ken
Ken Goldman