AGENDA
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2022 – 9:00 a.m.
Members:
Mayor Gabe Quinto
Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Motoyama · Councilmember Janet Abelson Councilmember Paul Fadelli · Councilmember Tessa Rudnick Join Via Zoom:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89324100569?pwd=Q041SStpYkhqVlVWVWhGU005T0I3QT09 Meeting ID: 893 2410 0569 Password: 423580
or Dial in: 1-408-638-0968
Pursuant to Executive Order N-29-20, teleconference restrictions of the Brown Act have been suspended, as well as the requirement to provide a physical location for members of the public to participate in the meeting.
Members of the public can watch or listen to City Council meetings as follows:
1. Cable T.V. Broadcast on KCRT Channel 28
2. Radio Broadcast on FM 88.1 Or 97.7
3. Livestream Online at www.el-cerrito.org/CouncilMeetingMaterials
4. Via Zoom using the meeting information listed above.
Each period for public comment will be announced. Public Comments may be submitted one of two ways and are limited to items on the special meeting agenda only:
Via Zoom using the “Raise Hand” icon to request to speak. If joining by phone, dial *9 to "raise your hand", and when prompted by the host, *6 to unmute/mute. Via email to [email protected]. Email must contain in the subject line Public Comments – agenda item #.
To ensure City Council receives your written comments prior to taking action, they must be received by 3:00 p.m. Friday, February 4, 2022. All written comments received by this deadline will be provided to the City Council and posted online in advance of the meeting.
Comments received after the deadline will be provided to the City Council and included with supplemental materials after the meeting. No written comments will be read into the record.
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9:00 A.M. ROLL CALL - CONVENE SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
1. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OR OBSERVATION OF A
MOMENT OF SILENCE
2. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE PUBLIC
All persons wishing to speak should sign up with the City Clerk. Remarks are typically limited to 3 minutes per person and to items on the special meeting agenda only.
3. STUDY SESSION - CITY COUNCIL PRIORITIES AND GOAL SETTING Action Proposed: Conduct a study session and provide staff direction on City Council's goals and priorities for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-23. Review updated 10-year Forecast including FY 2020-21 year-end actuals Review and update on City staffing
Discuss City Council Priorities for 2022
o Review previous City Council direction
o Review required tasks and projects for FY 2022-23 staff workplan o Short-term and long-term priorities and strategic goals Contact: Karen Pinkos, City Manager, City Management
4. ADJOURN SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
The City of El Cerrito serves, leads and supports our diverse community by providing exemplary and innovative services, public places and infrastructure, ensuring public safety and creating an economically and environmentally sustainable future.
Copies of the agenda bills and other written documentation relating to items of business referred to on the agenda are on file and available for public inspection in the Office of the City Clerk, at the El Cerrito Library and posted on the City’s website at www.el-cerrito.org prior to the meeting. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the City Clerk, 510-215-4305. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting. (28 CFR
35.102-35.104 ADA Title I).
The Deadline for agenda items and communications is eight days prior to the next meeting by 12 noon, City Clerk’s Office, 10890 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito, CA. Tel: 510-215–4305, email [email protected]
IF YOU CHALLENGE A DECISION OF THE CITY COUNCIL IN COURT, YOU MAY BE LIMITED TO RAISING ONLY THOSE ISSUES YOU OR SOMEONE ELSE RAISED AT THE COUNCIL MEETING.
ACTIONS CHALLENGING CITY COUNCIL DECISIONS SHALL BE SUBJECT TO THE TIME LIMITATIONS CONTAINED IN CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE SECTION 1094.6. The City Council believes that late night meetings deter public participation, can affect the Council’s decision-making ability, and can be a burden to staff. City Council Meetings shall be adjourned by 11:00 p.m., unless extended to a specific time determined by a majority of the Council.
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CITY HALL 10890 San Pablo Avenue, El Cerrito, CA 94530
Telephone (510) 215-4305 Fax (510) 215-4379 http://www.el-cerrito.org
SUPPLEMENTAL AGENDA MATERIALS AND
PUBLIC COMMENT INDEX
(Revised 2/5/2022)
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
February 5, 2022
The following Public Comments were received by 3:00 p.m. 2/4/2022, were provided directly to City Councilmembers in advance of the meeting, and were posted online as supplemental materials at www.el-cerrito.org/CouncilMeetingMaterials Agenda Item 3 – Study Session on City Council Priorities and Goal Setting
1. Public Comments
a. Sue Duncan
b. Gary Prost
c. Jim Dolgonas
d. Nick Zamorano
e. Michael Fischer
f. Al Miller
2. Presentation
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From: Sue Duncan
To: City Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 3
Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 1:13:13 PM
City Council Members,
As you consider your short-term and long-term priorities and strategic goals for this year, please remember the resolution that the council adopted at the July 20, 2021, council meeting stating that wildfire prevention and safety is a top priority for the city. The resolution encourages a variety of strategies to prevent and abate fire hazards.
With this in mind as you create your goals and priorities to provide direction for staff, we encourage you to include:
* after surveying and identifying narrow streets within El Cerrito, adopt a code that restricts parking on these roads on Red Flag Days in order for there to be room for residents to evacuate while fire and police enter * create and enforce vegetation management setbacks from roads in order to facilitate safe evacuation during a fire
* from the survey and identification of narrow streets, prohibit the creation of ADUs on these streets in order to maintain a safer evacuation of residents * a strengthened vegetation management code with strong enforcement and the simplification of the Fire Department website in order to more easily read and understand the code
* create and fill a city position for Emergency Services Coordinator * find funds through grants to create an updated, thorough vegetation management plan for Hillside Natural Area and adopt it.
* maintain Fire Department budget including keeping Station 72 always open * plan and implement public education and outreach on home hardening and best vegetation practices on private land.
* bring city property up to the standards set for private property Thank you for your consideration of these vital topics.
Sue and Paul Duncan
Make El Cerrito Fire Safe
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From: Gary Prost
To: City Clerk
Subject: Public Comments - On The Agenda - City Priorities - Special Meeting 5 February 2022 Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 2:11:30 PM
Honorable Mayor Quinto, City Council, City Manager Pinkos, Two priorities should be foremost in El Cerrito planning for 2022 and beyond: 1) live within our budget (match spending to income with enough for a rainy day fund), and 2) fire safety.
As you are well aware, the City passed a resolution last year making fire safety a top priority in all city departments for all future plans. I would like to take this opportunity to restate this in the most emphatic terms. We are counting on you.
Sincerely,
Gary Prost, Make El Cerrito Fire Safe
https://www.makeelcerritofiresafe.com/about
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From: Jim Dolgonas
To: City Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 3
Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 2:29:22 PM
City Council Members,
As you consider short-term and long-term priorities and strategic goals for this year, please put public safety as a top priority. This needs to include replacement of the engine which the chief reported during the budget discussions last year was past its useful service life and had broken down after being driven to a location where the FD was called. This is clearly an unacceptable situation and replacement of the engine needs to be planned for. And while an even larger major capital expenditure, the public safety building is need of replacement or major upgrade and should be considered in your planning.
I would also ask that you put as a high priority replacement of our aging, obsolete library. The BART housing project at the Plaza provides the least cost solution for obtaining a new library. City staff must engage in discussions with the developer to enable this project to become a reality, at a cost that is affordable. Please don't let this opportunity pass by.
Thank you for your consideration.
Jim Dolgonas
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From: nick zamorano
To: City Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item #3
Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 3:37:24 PM
Mayor Quinto and City Council Members,
As you discuss the goals and priorities for the city of El Cerrito FY 2022-23, let me remind you of the wildfire prevention and safety resolution that council adopted in July 2021. Issues to be considered regarding wildfire prevention and safety were submitted to council in a letter from Sue and Paul Duncan of Make El Cerrito Fire Safe. I strongly urge council to consider these topics when planning short term and long term goals and priorities. It is also imperative that council continue to stay the course of fiscal responsibility and not fall back into the cycle of city over spending and debt.
Respectfully Submitted,
Nick Zamorano
El Cerrito Resident
Sent from Mail for Windows
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From: Michael Fischer
To: City Clerk; Gabe Quinto; Lisa Motoyama; Janet Abelson; Paul Fadelli; Tessa Rudnick Cc: Karen Pinkos; Alexandra Orologas
Subject: Public Comment - Agenda Item 3
Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 4:11:19 PM
Attachments: Library Priority.pdf
Dear Mayor Quinto, Mayor Pro Tem Motoyama, and Councilmembers Abelson, Fadelli, and Rudnick:
The Council will be considering short-term and long-term priorities and strategic goals for this year at its February 5 meeting. As your Library Commissioner, I urge you to put the replacement of our aging, absolute library as part of the BART Transit Oriented Development at El Cerrito Plaza as one of the topmost priorities. As note in this comment, THIS IS AN EQUITY ISSUE.
(At the beginning I would note that much of the arguments and documents I’m submitting to you have, in large part, been provided to you before in previous issues involving our library. I believe they bear just as much relevance and importance today on the issue of a new library as they have in the past.)
Libraries are more than just books. There are one of the most important parts of our democratic civilization. The late Senator Clairborne Pell, after whom the educational Pell Grants are named, called libraries “a symbol of the vital connection between knowledge and democracy.” While he was speaking specifically of the Library of Congress, our library should serve no less a vital function at the local level.
In a 2018 opinion piece in the Washington Post, Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher of the Nation Magazine, noted the importance of libraries in an article titled, “Want to Defend Democracy? Start with the Public Library.” (See attachment 1.) At the start she quotes, only somewhat tongue-in-cheek, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, “When in doubt, go to the library,” explaining that “public libraries provide information in an era of misinformation.
They offer facts and nuance. And this is apparently something on which different generations can agree. 87% of millennials and 74% of boomers say that libraries help them find information that is trustworthy and reliable.”
Author, historian, and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient David McCullough, who wrote Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning biographies of Presidents John Adams, Theodore Roosevelt, and Harry Truman, put it perhaps most eloquently yet simply when he said, “Freedom is found through the portals of our nation’s libraries.” The importance our city shows to this freedom is, in part, shown by the library in our community. It is clear that our library is aging, obsolete, too small, and totally inadequate. It is approaching 75 years of age, long past its useful age. It is well past time to replace it.
The origin of libraries is not lost in history but, rather, constitutes the transition from prehistory to history. Libraries date back some 5,000 years to the Fertile Crescent.
Classification schemes were developed shortly thereafter and by the time of the Royal Library of Ashurbanipal, dating from the7th century BCE, libraries contained important information about the arts, culture, and history of their civilization.
But the greatest of the ancient libraries, in terms of what a library could encompass, was the library of Alexandria, Egypt, probably founded by Ptolemy II in the 3rd century BCE. The Agenda Packet Page 8 of 34
library was meant to be a collection of all knowledge, including art, literature, science, culture, and history. Together with the Musaeum of which it was part and parcel, it constituted a universal learning center. We see the results of this heritage today in such forms as the many programs presented at our library and the display of art and culture. Indeed, one of the branches of the countywide system refers to itself as “Library and Learning Center.” The size and condition of our library makes it inadequate for the many programs (post pandemic) that our library staff will want to provide, some of which will be made impossible or impractical by the size and condition of our library. The same is true about the display of art and culture.
In 2016 Measure B lost despite being supported by over 63% of our voters. Now, 6 years later, our library has shown even more its age and its inability to function as a real library and “second responder” for our community. And, unlike in 2016, there can be a plan that provides a place for the proposed new library and a manageable budget for its construction.
I have talked at some length in the past about the appropriate role of the library as a second responder. We all know about First Responders – our vitally important police, firefighters, and paramedics who keep us safe and help us when there are problems. Libraries serve an important function as a second responder – providing not quite emergency response but still important and vital services or places of refuge to our community when the need is important.
An article by Deborah Fallows in the Atlantic in May, 2019, notes the important role libraries across the nation play. (See attachment 2.)
* A real second responder library is available for providing a cooling respite for high heat days which will only get more numerous as climate change worsens. Our library must close in those conditions and cannot provide respite from the heat when open. * A real second responder library is available for providing a clean air respite when fires, again caused by climate change, make the air in our city smokey and dangerous to the health of many. Our library must close in those conditions and cannot provide respite from the smoke when open.
These are only two of many ways our library cannot serve as a real second responder.
The inadequacy of our library also prevents it serving as a robust center to help overcome the digital divide faced by our most needy. The digital divide prevents those without computers and internet connection from getting many sources of information and access to services. For example, many people have lost jobs during the current pandemic. The internet, through libraries, can provide access to information and services to help those looking for employment. Most libraries, including ours, have some computers available for patron use at no cost and ensure that everyone needing access is given some time. Library staff also can help people get onto the internet and help those who are having problems finding what they need – in much the same way they have for years helped people find the printed materials they were looking for. Libraries present programs that help people learn how to use computers and the internet. However, at present the number of computers available for public use at our library is less than ideal, a problem caused by the inadequate size and design of our preinternet library.
These are only a small number of the very real losses to our community caused by our inadequate library. And make no mistake — THIS IS AN EQUITY ISSUE. The losses resulting from our inadequate library fall most heavily on the most needy and underserved.
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The Council and the City Manager have talked for years, since before Measure B, of the extremely high priority a new library has for our community, and rightly so. I believe you meant what you said. I trust you will make these statements a reality in your setting of priorities and goals for the city.
Kind regards,
Michael
Michael Fischer (he him)
[email protected]
El Cerrito City Designated Library Commissioner
Chair, Contra Costa County Library Commission
El Cerrito Needs an Appropriate 21st Century Library
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Want to defend democracy?
Start with your public library.
Katrina vanden Heuvel
Benning Neighborhood Library in Washington in 2011. (Astrid Riecken/FOR THE
WASHINGTON POST)
In “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” the character Ron — channeling his friend Hermione — says to Harry
Potter: “When in doubt, go to the library.” In the United States today, there is plenty to doubt.
Complex arguments are being whittled down to 280
characters. And of course, the president has made more
Attachment 1
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than 5,000 false or misleading statements in about 600
days. Just last week, he falsely claimed that 3,000 Puerto Ricans “did not die in the two hurricanes.”
Lies have become too commonplace in the United States,
so the American people need a place where they can go to get the truth. Ron is right. Go to your public library.
Public libraries provide information in an era of
misinformation. They offer facts and nuance. They offer the opportunity for enlightenment. They offer every visitor the resources they need to find answers. The American Library Association reports that many public libraries are, for instance, “developing programs to help community
members spot ‘fake news’ and evaluate information online.” It’s not surprising, then, that in a time such as this, people are turning to their local library for information. Pew Research Center recently found that 87 percent of
millennials say the library “helps them find information that is trustworthy and reliable.” Seventy-four percent of baby boomers say the same.
It’s also not surprising that the Trump administration doesn’t seem to like libraries. Earlier this year, the administration moved to cut funding for the Institute of Museum and
Library Services. In late August, the Senate, rebuffing the administration, approved a funding increase for the institute.
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As Sue Halpern, a scholar in residence at Middlebury
College, explained in the Nation, the institute has been “crucial for sustaining libraries, especially those in
struggling urban neighborhoods and rural areas.”
In communities across the country, local libraries are
struggling to stay open, and funding for local libraries is on the chopping block. Right now, in Mobile, Ala., a budget proposal is on the table that could lead to shorter hours or fewer programs within the library system there. If passed, the impact of such a cut would be significant. Scott Kinney, the director of the Mobile Public Library, stated, “We are probably the most widely used city and county resource.” Where communities have come together to defend this
valuable resource, in places such as Fort Wayne, Ind., and Columbus, Miss., there has been some success. Boulder,
Colo., is currently grappling with proposed budget cuts that would drop the Carnegie Library for Local History’s hours from 25 to four each week. A coalition of local historians and researchers is pushing back, with activists peppering the library commission with emails and protesting at one of their meetings. Now, policymakers and staff in Boulder are working to rearrange the budget to keep the same library hours. “We heard loud and clear from community that
Carnegie was too important to cut,” Boulder Mayor Suzanne Jones said.
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Public libraries are essential for communities. While the powers that be attack the humanities (and sometimes, it seems, humanity itself), libraries provide research materials and books that can foster awareness and understanding.
They provide the underserved a chance to be served and a shared space for community members.
Teenagers head to the library after school to study. Seniors visit the library to socialize. And millions of Americans who may not have a quality Internet connection at home go to the library to get online. After all, almost every public library in the United States provides access to the Internet. Some libraries even provide career training and job preparation.
In his new book “Palaces for the People,” recently reviewed by South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, sociologist Eric Klinenberg describes libraries as “the textbook example of social infrastructure in action.” They are also a textbook example of democracy in action: Public libraries strive to be places where everyone is welcome and offer resources that everyone can access. They bring people together.
That is true in Joplin, Mo. In 2011, a tornado destroyed up to a quarter of Joplin. The local library was spared. Still, when the town rebuilt, it decided to build a new library in a section that was among the worst hit. The new library is about
23,000 square feet larger than the old one and has indoor and outdoor spaces for the community to gather. It’s a
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symbol of rebirth for Joplin. Its slogan? “At the center of it all.”
Public libraries are at the center of our communities and our democracy. At the same time, they are, as Klinenberg wrote in an op-ed for the New York Times, “out of sync with the market logic that dominates our world.” That’s a good thing.
With so much inequality and balkanization, public libraries are critical within the public sphere and, when fully
supported, represent the best of government at work. They uphold the virtues of equality and community. If your library is under threat, it’s worth defending.
Text
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When Libraries Are ‘Second
Respondersʼ
Deborah Fallows 2.50 PM / May 23, 2019
Above the doorway of the Columbus Metropolitan Library are the words Open to All. Deborah Fallows Everyone knows about first responders. Iʼve come to think of libraries as playing a crucial role as “second responders.”
In Ferguson, Missouri, the public library stayed open when the schools were closed after the riots, to offer the kids a safe place and even classes taught by volunteers. After the hurricanes in Houston, some library websites were immediately up and running, announcing that they were open for business.
After Hurricane Sandy, some libraries in New Jersey became places of refuge. And in the Queens Libraryʼs Far Rockaway branch, which didnʼt have heat or light, the librarians set up shop in the parking lot to continue childrenʼs story hours “to give them a sense of normalcy,” says Christian Zabriskie, who was a Queens librarian then. “Story time at the end of the Attachment 2
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world” he called it. In Orlando, after the nightclub shootings, the library hosted an art gallery for those who made art as a way to express and share their reactions. After the Thomas Fire, the Santa Barbara Public Library invited the public to share their stories and lessons, to help heal and prepare for the future.
Libraries step in to fill gaps and offer help when normal channels are inaccessible. Pima County, Arizona, pays for a team of nurses to come to the library to help with medical questions for those who canʼt or wonʼt go to a hospital, clinic, or doctor. In Charleston, West Virginia, librarians told me that they have launched searches for people to research health issues or concerns. In some libraries, librarians have Narcan training. In Bend, Oregon, a social worker has helped prepare the librarians to work with people who came in with sensitive, personal questions, such as how to meet their rent and mortgage payments.
Others report that they have helped people figure out how to have a dignified funeral when they have no money for one. In Las Vegas and surrounding Clark County, among the hardest-hit areas of the entire country during the 2008–2009 financial collapse, the leaders of the publiclibrary system found ways to stretch and reprogram their budget to ensure that their system would stay open seven days a week during the crisis, because they knew their citizens would need its resources to cope with job loss, house foreclosures, and more.
Carved in the granite above the doorway of the imposing flagship Carnegie Library in Columbus, Ohio, are the words Open to All. I have seen homeless people line up waiting for the doors to open so they can spend the day inside comfortably and safely.
In my hometown of Washington, D.C., I trudged to our local library during an extreme cold-weather episode a year or two ago and read a handwritten sign saying that the library was closed because of the cold, and pointing to the emergency shelters that were open instead. Librarians have told me Agenda Packet Page 17 of 34
that theyʼve heard from homeless people about one of the important reasons they go to libraries: These are the only places where they are treated with respect. Librarians also told me about the various rules and regulations they impose about noise, sleeping, eating, “bathing” in restrooms, disruptive behavior, and storage of belongings. They say that occasionally people are placed on “sabbatical” from the libraries for infringements and are sometimes referred to public places where they can take showers. None have reported serious incidents to me, which suggests that respect is mutual.
The most serious of these examples are testament to the trust that citizens place in their libraries and librarians. The Pew Research Center reports that 78 percent of people say libraries help them to find information they can trust. Librarians are nothing if not discreet. I have asked librarians about their users looking at pornography on the public computers. They demur, kind of, and say that they donʼt look at what people are doing on the computers, and others say that they only step in when someone complains.
Zabriskie, who now works in Yonkers, points to the complexity of being a librarian these days. “Amidst glory days of librarianship,” he says, “there can be trauma. If every dayʼs work were just reading to toddlers, great. But sometimes those kids are homeless.”
“Sometimes librarians are Batman,” Zabriskie says. “Sometimes they are ghosts in the machine. We have to resist hardening the space.” If these are the libraries acting as second responders, there are also plenty of cases where they respond as providers of second chances.
The Los Angeles Public Library offers a chance to earn a high-school degree for those who missed out the first time around. Mayor Eric Garcetti and City Librarian John Szabo hand out diplomas. The most popular volunteer opportunity at the Smiley Library in Redlands, California, is for Agenda Packet Page 18 of 34
adults to teach other adults how to read and write. Public libraries across the country offer a variety of paths to help people find new economic opportunity, with job and interview support and digital skills training.
And listen for how often you hear adults credit the public library as the place that spirited them away in their youth from anger or sadness or boredom at home. Many libraries make themselves appealing to schoolchildren of any age as a safe, warm place to do homework or just hang out when they canʼt or wonʼt go home. I have seen and heard variations on this theme that range from the library being the only place the kids could go, to the library being the cool place where teenagers would hang out. I heard these comments from the desert communities of Arizona to the small towns of California to the urban centers of the Midwest and East Coast.
There are libraries in prisons, for those who canʼt go out, and books delivered to prisons when inmates request them. Library books are delivered to remote schools in Kanawha County, West Virginia, for teachers who donʼt have access to materials. Extending that metaphor of the library coming to the people, I have seen pop-up libraries in parks in Wichita, Kansas. There is a summer program around Minneapolis lakes to lend books in watertight containers from a library raft to boaters. And there is a library in the big shopping mall in Ontario, California, opportunistically placed for presumably reluctant shoppers who accompany enthusiastic shoppers.
Welcome to the new realities of public libraries and librarians.
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From: Al Miller
To: City Clerk
Subject: Public Comment Agenda Item# 3
Date: Friday, February 4, 2022 5:23:07 PM
Dear Mayor Quinto, Mayor Pro Tem Motoyama, and Councilmembers Abelson, Fadelli, and Rudnick:
While you are considering short-term and long-term priorities and strategic goals for this year at your February 5 meeting, as President of the El Cerrito Library Foundation, I urge you to put the replacement of our aging, obsolete library as part of the BART TOD project at El Cerrito Plaza as one of your top priorities.
I believe our library is the Number one public agency in El Cerrito providing services in an equitable manner, but it could be doing so much more for so many more if it was replaced with an appropriate sized and equipped 21st century modern library.
In his excellent comments, our Library Commissioner Michael Fischer, makes a compelling argument for a modern library to be considered as one of your topmost priorities. I support his entire Public Comment submission, as well as those submitted by Jim Dolgonas.
The El Cerrito Library Foundation is willing to discuss with you and the City Manager, or any other city staff, any way you think we might help in bringing a new library as part of the BART TOD project at the proposed Plaza Station location.
Thank you
Al Miller
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City of El Cerrito
CITY COUNCIL WORKSHOP
GOAL AND PRIORITY SETTING – FEBRUARY 5, 2022
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Today’s Agenda and Objectives
Review FY 2020-21 Year End and updated 10 Year Forecast Review and update on City staffing
Discuss City Council Priorities for 2022
Previous Council actions and direction to staff
City staff “Must Do” tasks for 2022
Current City Council priorities and goals
Summary of Proposed 2022 Workplan
Next Steps
City Council Discussion/Questions
Public Comments
Direction to Staff
2 Agenda Packet Page 22 of 34
Current Strategic Goals and
FY 2021-22 Adopted Budget Focus
3 Achieve Long-term
Financial Sustainability
General Fund Reserve
Fiscal Response Plan
Constant Monitoring of
Financial Position
Fiscal Discipline
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Year-End FY 2020-21
4 Revenues ($000s)
FY 2020-21
Year End
FY 2021-22
Adopted
Budget
Property Taxes $28,623 $26,032
Licenses & Permits 657 636
Fines and Forfeitures 178 140
Use of Money and Property 334 354
Intergovernmental Revenues 8,165 7,313
Charges for Services 4,181 4,800
Other Revenues 234 175
Interfund Transfers 3,995 953
Total $46,366 $40,402
Expenditures ($000s)
FY 2020-21
Year End
FY 2021-22
Adopted
Budget
Personnel $29,728 $30,009
Professional Services 2,906 3,637
Purchased Property Services 1,600 1,840
Other Services 1,641 2,348
Supplies 409 632
Property & Capital 252 323
Financing Costs 586 528
Other Financing Uses 1,991 666
Total $39,112 $39,983
Net Change ($000s) $7,253 $419
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10-Year General Fund Forecast –
General Assumptions
▪ FY 2020-21 actuals and continued COVID-19 projections for FY 2021- 22 form the baseline for projections
▪ COVID-19 ceases to be a significant threat, no recession ▪ Includes $6.1 million in ARPA funds
▪ 3% annual growth; conservative increases for RPTT, cannabis revenues
▪ 3% COLA in FY 2022-23 for all staff, including Management and Confidential
▪ City will meet all its debt obligations without default and no TRAN ▪ Redevelopment Agency bonds repaid and Successor Agency dissolved in FY 2026
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10 -Year Forecast
(end of FY 2020-21)
6 Agenda Packet Page 26 of 34
Staffing Review
Eliminated 14 positions -161.2 FTE
Current Vacancies (13.4):
(2) CD Permit Technician
Human Resources Specialist
Custodian
Fire Captain/Engineer
Internal promotions; hire at
Firefighter/EMT classification
Police Sergeant
Police Corporal
(4) Police Officer
(1.4) Community Service Officer
Vacancies in process of being
filled (9):
Battalion Chief
Police Captain
Finance Director/City Treasurer
PW Management Analyst III
Senior Planner
(4) Police Officer Recruits
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Proposed 2022 Workplan:
Previous City Council Action
and Direction
General Fund Balance to 10% in FY 2020-21
ARPA funds to be used to maximize General Fund Reserve 1
st tranche of ARPA funds were allocated to FY 2021 for General Government funding, increasing General Fund Balance to 17% Assume 2nd tranche allocated same way for FY 2022
Goal of $1 million surplus each fiscal year
Section 115 Trust to address pre-funding pension obligations Create Equity Workplan
Develop Project Labor Agreement
Overall focus: balanced, equity-focused, sustainable budget All these actions will apply to FY 2022-23
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Proposed 2022 Workplan:
Tasks and Projects In Progress
Complete State Auditor response
and recommendations
Classification and Compensation
Study
Financial Sustainability Plan
BART Plaza Development
Library
Parking/Transportation Demand
Management Program
Implement SB 1383
Housing Element
Environmental Justice and Safety
Elements
SPASP Update
July 4 Festival
Labor Negotiations – Fire 1230,
SEIU, PSMA
Fill Key vacant positions
Various CIP and Maintenance
Projects
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Proposed 2022 Workplan:
Current City Council Priorities and
Strategic Goals
Strategic Goals – Still in place
Day to day operations, services, programs
Equipment and maintenance needs
Climate Emergency
Climate Action Plan Update
Wildfire Prevention and Safety
Vegetation Management
Updating Emergency and Evacuation Plans
Community benefit contributions from cannabis businesses Plans adopted by Council (SPASP, Affordable Housing, Economic Development, Park and Recreation Master Plan, Complete Streets, Transportation, Urban Greening, etc.)
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Proposed 2022 Workplan:
Tasks and Staffing Overview
Task Staff Budgeted/Funded?
State Auditor Response City Manager (1) Yes
Class/Comp Study HR (1) No (Cost expected ~$100K)
BART Development Activities CM/PW/CD (5+) Yes
Library CM/CD (2+) No (Cost unknown)
Parking/Transportation CD (1) No (Cost unknown)
SB 1383 PW (2+) Yes
Housing Element CD (3+) Yes
EnvJust/Safety Element CD (3+) No (Cost expected ~$150K) SPASP Update CD (3+) Yes
July 4 Festival Recreation (5+) Partial (seeking fundraising) Labor Negotiations HR (2) Yes
Fill Vacancies HR (2) Yes
CIP/Maintenance PW (5+) Yes
Climate Action Plan and
Environmental Activities
PW (2+) No (Cost expected $75K ongoing, $130K
one-time)
Wildfire Prevention Fire/PW (5+) Partial (seeking grants/budget increase) Previously adopted Plans Various (5+) Partial (seeking grants/budget increase) 11 Agenda Packet Page 31 of 34
Summary of Proposed 2022 Workplan
Implement City Council Direction with focus on financial sustainability
Implement workplan of “Must Do” tasks and projects in progress Continue current priorities and strategic goals
Strategically restore services and staffing
Maintain fiscal discipline with a budget focus of financial sustainability
Staff recommendation: that City Council consider the priorities and goals that are currently in place for the next fiscal year, and to be cautious about adding new goals or desired projects for at least another fiscal year.
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Next Steps
Complete ACFR and present to City Council (February-March) FY 2021-22 Midyear Budget Adjustments
(March 1, 2022)
FY 2022-23 Budget Process begins (March)
City Council FY 2022-23 Budget Study Session/Community Budget Workshop
(date TBD)
Update 10-year General Fund Forecast with Midyear adjustments Work with FAB on budget and financial policies
FY 2022-23 Proposed Budget (May/June)
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City Council Discussion
Does the City Council seek to continue the previous direction to staff?
Does the City Council agree with workplan that includes current priorities, required tasks, and staffing needs? Are there any parts of the workplan that need clarification? Are there additional priorities desired?
If so, how would this impact current workplan?
Does this require re-adjusting current priorities?
Will need to analyze funding and staffing required for new priorities Can any projects/priorities be moved to future?
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