Item 391/2026
Final
City of Garden Grove
INTER-DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM
To: Lisa L. Kim From: Omar Sandoval
Dept: City Manager Dept: City Attorney
Date: 9/22/2026
Subject: Adoption of a Resolution accepting the certification by the Registrar of Voters of the verification of signatures for the referendum against Ordinance No. 2977. (Action Item)
OBJECTIVE
For the City Council to adopt a resolution accepting the certification of the Registrar of Voters of the verification of signatures for the referendum against Ordinance No. 2977.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
On June 25, 2026, proponents submitted a petition to the City Clerk of a referendum petition protesting the adoption of Ordinance No. 2977, which reapproved PUD-141-01(A) for the Site B2 Project for a Nickelodeon Hotel resort project. The City Clerk contacted the Orange County Registrar of Voters to determine the number of registered voters in the City of Garden Grove as of its last report to the Secretary of State pursuant to Elections Code 9237, which the Registrar of Voters reported as of May 18, 2026, and the City Clerk determined that the number of registered voters in the City was 96,746. Based on this information, the City Clerk determined that the referendum petition would require at least 9,674 (10%) valid signatures to be sufficient to qualify the referendum for a regular or special election pursuant to Elections Code 9237.
On August 5, 2026, the City Clerk accepted the signed petitions on the referendum and then submitted them to the Orange County Registrar of Voters on August 11, 2026, for verification of the signatures. The results of the signature verification conducted by the Orange County Registrar of Voters determined that 13,738 of the 14,775 signatures on the petition were verified, of which 9,700 were found to be valid. The Registrar of Voters prepared a “Certificate as to the Verification of Signatures on Petition” with the signature verification results, which is attached as Exhibit “A” of the attached Resolution accepting the certification of the Registrar of Voters.
Item 391/2026
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The cost of verifying signatures by the Registrar of Voters was $46,709.20. In accordance with the agreement, the developer will reimburse the City for 50% of this cost, or $23,354.60.
To process payment to the County Registrar of Voters, an additional appropriation in the amount of $ 46,709.20 is required. Staff will invoice the developer for $23,354.60 to recover its share of the cost.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council:
Adopt the Resolution accepting the certification of the Registrar of Voters of the verification of signatures for the referendum against Ordinance No. 2977; and
Approve additional appropriation in the General Fund in the amount of $46,709.20.
ATTACHMENT(S)
1. Resolution