CITY OF CARMEL.BY-THE.SEA
CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETI NG II'IINUTES
ttay 12,2026
CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL
Mayor Byrne called the meeting to order in the Council Chambers at 4:00 p.m.
Roll ca!!: Councilmembers Jeff Baron, Hans Buder, Mayor Pro Tem Robert Delves, Councilmember Alissandra Dramov, and Mayor Dale Byrne were present.
ORDERS OF BUSINESS
Item 1 - Conduct a Workshop to receive a presentation on the Fiscal Year 2026-2027 Recommended Budget and provide direction.
Finance Manager Jayme Fields presented an overview of the Fisca! Year 2026-2027 Recommended Budget, including revenue sources, performance and historical trends, and proposed expenditures. Acting City Administrator Brandon Swanson stated that staff seeks Council direction before returning in June with the final budget for adoption.
Council asked when the City would expect to begin receiving revenue from a potentia! sales tax orTransient Occupancy Tax (TOT) increase if either measure is approved by voters in November.
Acting City Administrator Swanson said staff would research the timing and provide the information at a future meeting.
Public Comment:
Beth Bowman
Ken White
Graeme Robertson
Nancy Twomey
Cindy Lloyd
NoelCarr
Tasha \Mtt
MarkWatson
Carrie Theis
Andi Carr
Joe DiNucci
Amy Hezog
Pam Shepherd
Linda Califiore
Sygale Lomas
Kelly Brezoczky
Janine Chiccorat
Rob O'Keefe
Tamara Michie
Shirley Moon
Ellen Martin
Jerry Floyd.
Gity CouncilSpecial Meeting Minutes - May 12,2026
Council discussed beach access and public safety needs. Councilmember Baron asked about funding for the 8th Avenue sand ramp, including prior-year carryover and current-year funding.
Acting City Administrator Swanson explained that staff was also evaluating purchase of a specialized beach-access vehicle recommended by the Fire Chief for first responder use and potentia! Public Works use. He noted that the vehicle may reduce the need for a more extensive sand ramp, but Councilmembers stated that the sand ramp remains important for pedestrian access. Council consensus supported purchasing the specialized beach-access vehicle and continuing work on the 8th Avenue sand ramp.
Council discussed proposed budget reductions. Councilmembers Baron, Buder, and Dramov expressed concern with proposed reductions to forestry-related items, including fuel mitigation, landscaping, and tree maintenance, and supported restoring those items. Councilmember Baron also supported restoring funding for records digitization and employee/Council training. Mayor Pro Tem Delves agreed with the concerns but noted that Counci! still needs to identify reductions to address the City's deferred maintenance needs. Councilmember Buder suggested staff also review the lT intern budget and annual mail delivery costs for potential savings.
RECESS
Counciltook a recess from 6:38 p.m. to 7:06 p.m
Council resumed discussion and reviewed economic development and marketing funding.
Councilmember Buder supported maintaining the See Monterey marketing budget for the upcoming year while requesting more targeted, data-driven marketing information.
Councilmember Baron expressed concern with the structure and use of Visit Carmel funding, including funds paid through Visit Carmel to the Carmel Chamber of Commerce, and suggested considering a direct allocation to the Chamber. Councilmember Dramov said the overall marketing allocation was significant and should be evaluated for possible reductions. Mayor Pro Tem Delves requested additional visitor and travel data before making a final decision and expressed interest in seeing continued progress by Sunset Center on its endowment efforts. Mayor Byrne supported maintaining the current marketing budget and encouraged greater coordination between Visit Carmel and See Monterey.
Council discussed the City's overall budget approach. Mayor Pro Tem Delves noted that prior budgets were conservative in estimating revenues and expenditures, while the cunent budget is intended to more accurately reflect actual revenue and spending and place greater emphasis on capital improvements. Councilmember Buder said Council has already pursued cost reductions and revenue opportunities, but the City still faces a funding gap. Councilmember Baron supported continued public discussion of a potentialTOT increase and said he believed residents appeared more supportive of a TOT increase than a sales tax increase. Councilmember Dramov requested information on potential revenue from fulltime parking enforcement and increased parking citation amounts. Mayor Byrne agreed this information should be included when the paid parking discussion returns in June.
Mayor Pro Tem Delves acknowledged the City's limited workforce and requested a future discussion on customer service and how the City demonstrates value to residents, businesses, and visitors. Mayor Byrne said the Acting City Administrator's customer service program should be funded.
Councilmember Buder requested that the budget book reflect the City's long-term street maintenance strategy and questioned whetherthe Sunset Center parking lot paving and Piccadilly restroom projects should remain priorities given other needs. Mayor Byrne said Library restoration Ci$ Council Special Meeting Minutes - May 12,2026
improvements should be reflected in the CIP and noted that street paving improvements completed by CalAm and CAWD have reduced some City paving costs.
Council gave consensus direction to bring back the following capital improvement items for additional discussion: Sunset Center parking lot paving, Piccadilly restroom project, and North Dunes habitat restoration.
Council also authorized the City Administrator to use his discretion on what to restore from the budget cuts that were made, and return with his recommendations at the June meeting. Council gave consensus direction to discuss changing the budget policy to spending 85o/o of revenue on operating expenses and 15%
Item 2 - Receive a presentation on the updated Council Strategic Priorities list following the January 22nd workshop, and provide direction to staff - Continued from March 24,2026 Council gave consensus direction to continue this item to July.
ADJOURNMENT
Council adjourned the meeting at 8:21 p.m
APPROVED:
Dale Byrne, Mayor