City Council Meeting Minutes Page 1 of 22 March 24, 2025 City of Lafayette
City Council Minutes
Lafayette Library and Learning Center – Don Tatzin Community Hall March 24, 2025 3491 Mount Diablo Boulevard, Lafayette, California 7:00 p.m.
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City Council Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 22 March 24, 2025
1. CALL TO ORDER –7:00 P.M.
Mayor Candell called the Regular City Council meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2. ROLL CALL
Present: City Council: Mayor Candell, Vice Mayor Anduri; Councilmembers Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick
Absent: None
Staff Present: Niroop Srivatsa, City Manager; Tracy Robinson, Administrative Services Director; Greg Wolff, Planning and Building Director; Mala Subramanian, City Attorney; Joanne Robbins, City Clerk
3. Disclosure and/or Take Action on Remote Participation due to Just Cause or Emergency Circumstances Pursuant to AB 2449 (Gov. Code section 54953(f).)
4. ADOPTION OF AGENDA
Mayor Candell asked to move Item 15.B up to be heard after Item 8.B.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Dawson/McCormick) to adopt the agenda, as amended. Roll Call Vote: 5-0 (Ayes:
Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, McCormick, and Candell; Noes: None).
5. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – 7:00 p.m. – Mayor Candell led in the Pledge of Allegiance.
6. PUBLIC COMMENTS (For Items not on the Agenda)
JEAN FOLLMER reiterated her previous request regarding the use of the Nixle service for public safety alerts. She highlighted a recent incident since the March 10th meeting, where a felony arrest occurred during dinnertime at the McDonald’s drive-thru. Additionally, she noted that the upcoming Crime Prevention Commission meeting had been canceled and requested a future report on the implementation and effectiveness of Nixle.
NICOLA PLOWMAN voiced concerns about the amount of glass windows in buildings and its effect on local bird life and collisions.
City Manager Srivatsa stated she will let the speaker know if the City has authority to do anything about it.
7. CITY MANAGER’S UPDATE
A. Introduction of Lafayette’s new Code Enforcement Officer Gerardo Jimenez Recommendation: Receive and file.
Administrative Services Director Tracy Robinson introduced the City’s new Code Enforcement Officer Gerardo Jimenez, and she provided a background of his experience and interests.
Mayor Candell and Councilmembers welcomed Officer Jimenez to the City.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 22 March 24, 2025 City Manager Srivatsa then provided updates from Departments:
From the Engineering Department:
• The City successfully secured two grants from MTC, thanks to the efforts of Transportation Program Manager Patrick Golier. The first grant, totaling $350,000, comes from the TransitOriented Communities program and will be used to enhance multi-modal access around the BART Station area. The second grant, amounting to $300,000, is from the Climate Program Implementation Grant and will fund the design plans for the EBMUD Aqueduct Pathway between Dolores Drive and Brown Avenue. Notably, both grants do not require a local match, making them especially beneficial for the City’s transportation and sustainability initiatives.
From Parks, Trails, and Recreation Commission:
• Summer registration has opened this weekend, and the programs grossed nearly $500,000 in revenue in the first 24 hours. Most popular programs are archery, carpentry, Camp Awesome, and Skyhawks.
From Emergency Preparedness:
• Every City staff member is designated as a Disaster Service Worker in emergencies and is expected to assist in disaster response and recovery efforts. The City's newly appointed Emergency Services Coordinator, Andy Comly, will be conducting mandatory training for all staff this week on the Incident Command System (ICS). ICS is a nationwide standard for managing emergency response operations, ranging from small planned local events to large-scale disasters. All City staff will complete this training within the next few weeks to ensure preparedness and coordination in emergency situations.
From the Planning Department:
• Since 2024, 55 applications to build new housing units were approved proposing a total of 108 units which includes single-family, ADUs, and multi-family. 56 new housing units were issued permits, 53 new housing units were completed with Certificates of Occupancy. In 2025 to date, the City has received 9 applications for ADUs and this tracks with similar data as last year. The City has also received 5 applications for SB 9 lot splits, which is a slight increase.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
8. PRESENTATIONS
A. Fire Marshal Chris Bachman
Update from the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District Recommendation: Receive and file.
Fire Marshal Chris Bachman gave a PowerPoint presentation and overview of the Con Fire District, its stations, personnel, apparatus, administration, training, goals and accomplishments, number and breakdown of calls, wildfire preparedness, noting that a hybrid and public meeting will be held on April 1 ST at 6PM at the Board of Supervisors’ Chambers in Martinez. He then presented the proposed 2025 fire severity zones map and the recommended Cal Fire map from 2009 and an explanation on changes and data sets on updated zones.
Councilmember McCormick asked if Con Fire has done analysis on the Palisades Fire and whether they are using lessons learned to increase readiness for Lafayette. Fire Marshal Bachman said they are awaiting the after-action reports to come out and then can report on lessons learned.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 4 of 22 March 24, 2025 Councilmember McCormick asked where Con Fire’s responsibilities end and where residents begin to make sure they work together and not overlap efforts.
Fire Marshal Bachman explained that much of the fire mitigation work completed in recent years is initiated at the community level, with Cal Fire grading the efforts. He then spoke about law enforcement responsibilities with evacuation route and alternate route cleanup.
Councilmember Cervantes asked if Zone Zero is something that may apply only to very high fire severity zones or high fire severity zones.
Fire Marshal Bachman reported that the Board of Forestry is in the process of developing recommended fire safety standards, which have not yet been officially adopted. The second workshop is scheduled for April 7
th, and he agreed to forward an email containing these draft regulations which he received on Friday to the City Council. He then described topics and focus on the workshop and topics discussed at the first workshop.
Councilmember Cervantes asked for the distinction between State Responsibility Areas (SROs) and Local Responsibility Areas (LROs).
Fire Marshall Bachman explained the SRO is the area of responsibility by Cal Fire and LROs are the responsibility of Con Fire’s, MOFD, and San Ramon’s jurisdictions.
Mayor Candell asked and confirmed comments are being taken at the workshops which are put on by the Board of Forestry by all attendees as well as from fire officials and agreed to send the workshop link to the Council and staff.
Councilmember Dawson asked and confirmed that Con Fire is still assisting with evacuation route work.
City Manager Srivatsa said staff will be working with Andy Comly and report back. Fire Marshal Bachman added that they literally do evacuation route cleanup year-round, which he described.
Mayor Candell asked what is the fire season these days and for the helicopter. Fire Marshal Bachman said their hand crew is on 4, 10-hour days right now and are doing mitigation work. He was not sure about the helicopter start, stating it depends on how much rain they get, they transition from April to mid-May and then they move to shifts, depending on factors relating to fire risks.
Mayor Candell referred to the 1330 medical responses in Lafayette which she thought were very high.
Fire Marshal Bachman said they run around 100,000 calls a year and roughly 80% are medical.
Mayor Candell referred to the news of the Palisades fire and alarming were the poor alerts to residents.
She knows the CWS system had a bad report from the auditors and asked when the City would get a report on improvements for the system. Fire Marshal Bachman responded a committee is evaluating that and making recommendations for improvement.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 5 of 22 March 24, 2025 DAVID CLARK voiced confusion regarding use of the chart with the bar on reclassifications of very high fire severity zone versus high and moderate. In adding up the acreage in the new report, which is approximately 7,000 acres, whereas the old one was 4,400 acres, and said it looks like the very high fire severity zone went way up.
NICOLA PLOWMAN said she was living in Los Angeles and now is living in Lafayette. In all mitigation and defensible space information there is a big emphasis on clearing vegetation. She is concerned about the fact there are still lawn machines that run on gas everywhere and asked who regulates the trees that get cut and trimmed.
MARY ANN HOISINGTON said the State told the City it had to build very high buildings and now Con Fire is ordering two more ladder trucks. She suggested determining if Con Fire could charge the State for the two extra trucks and asked where the closest ladder truck is to Lafayette.
ROB LAVOIE asked to display the last page of the presentation. He asked if there is any new technologies for spotting fires quickly from satellites or a reaction team to put the fire out before it turns out to one too big to handle.
Fire Marshal Bachman referred to numbers provided and said these were the same from the State.
Hopefully, the Swipe tool allows one to see the boundaries of what areas that have gotten larger and smaller, but the State did not provide the breakdown. There is a breakdown for every city in the county along with the unincorporated area that shows the acres and what the change was. He clarified that they do not have what the numbers were between the moderate and high but can request it from Cal Fire.
Vice Mayor Anduri asked and confirmed Fire Marshal Bachman, or their GIS Analyst can provide the numbers between the moderate and high and send it onto the City.
Regarding trees and shrub, they are allowed on properties, but this is being evaluated as far as specie and the zero to 5-foot space. In the 5-feet to 30-feet areas and 30-feet to 100-feet, all regulations and spacing and limbing is currently available today on their website’s defensible space brochure. Regarding the question about charging the State for ladder trucks, Con Fire looks as whether the code allows for it to be built. If it does, they have to identify how they will protect it. The closest ladder truck for Lafayette is out of Station 1 in downtown Walnut Creek, and they continue to monitor total call volume for structure fires.
They determined a lack of resources in East County, and this is where they are building two stations.
Lastly, regarding technology, they are looking at fire models, ember cast models, and he will be speaking and giving a presentation on this subject, how the County uses technology to combat wildfires, which he described as spot on.
Councilmembers thanked Fire Marshall Bachman for his presentation, recognized Con Fire for their work and the growing Firewise neighborhoods, and for their advocacy.
B. Rob Tygett, Senior Community Library Manager and Carol Varney, Executive Director, Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation
Update from the Lafayette Public Library and Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation
Recommendation: Receive and file.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 6 of 22 March 24, 2025 Rob Tygett, Senior Community Library Manager, said he is here to celebrate National Library Week from April 6-12th, spoke about the Contra Costa County Library at large and specifically about Lafayette Library.
He described increases in circulation, E-book circulation, visits, described popular books, celebration of the Rolling Reader, an all-electric outreach and literacy van, technology and E-books, audio books, courses and videos, Mango Language which can be accessed with 70 world languages, and Consumer Reports through Flipster that offers magazine as well as the magazines on-line.
Mr. Tygett then described the Library’s offering of Lunch at the Library with over 13,000 meals provided, 6,000+ summer meals, and over 6,000 after-school snacks at various library locations. They had over 7,000 participants for summer reading for a 21% increase. He then described Project Second Chance, their adult literacy program, Self Service Sundays pilot program, and North Richmond Library Lockers for seniors.
He described statistics for Lafayette Library of 204,000 for the year. They received new people counters this year which are more accurate, but they have five months of data reveals an average figure last year of 177,000 and the 204,000 is much more accurate. He described programming and outreach serving 10,000+ patrons, year-round programs, and the Day at the Library events which served 300+ patrons visiting the Lafayette Library campus.
Lafayette ranks 5th in E-book and E-audio book circulation, which is the highest in the entire county. He acknowledged the Friends of the Library, who donated $58,000 in the past year for the purchase of Ebooks and physical books, are seeing large circulation numbers in Lafayette, so the money goes towards supporting this in addition to other funding they provide for programming and equipment purchases throughout the year.
He then displayed a variety of photos of staff at the Lafayette Library, the Red Envelope program to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year, rock painting, reading recommendation tools, Wild Things which was a Nor Cal Bats presentation held on the Children’s Deck at the library here.
Mayor Candell and Councilmembers thanked Mr. Tygett for his presentation.
Carol Varney, Executive Director, Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation, said they are celebrating 15 years of the Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation which was developed as a collaborative project with the State, the City, and Contra Costa County, and is now supported by the Foundation, the Friends, the County, and the City.
She reported on various Measures passed in Orinda, Belmont, and Los Altos and Los Altos Hills contributing to their libraries. She described how the Lafayette Library is funded and what is included in the budget, current diverse programming at the Library, special events, and upcoming programs.
She reported that the March 14th Executive Order calling for the elimination of all IMLS funding is the only federal source of funding for libraries. Without the support from community members who believe libraries are important, they will be facing the closing of libraries which is already happening. National Library Week is April 6-12, and the Foundation will be doing a significant fundraising push during that time hoping to raise $50,000 with the theme of Empowering Minds-Preserving Democracy and thanked the Council and staff for their support.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 7 of 22 March 24, 2025 Mayor Candell asked if the County Library receives money directly from the federal government. Ms. Varney said they do not, but she applied for a grant from the State which comes down from IMLS to the State and this is where California will feel that. Mr. Tygett added that small amounts come from the federal level, but the County is not largely dependent on federal funding.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period.
MARY ANN HOISINGTON voice support of staff at the County Library and said she is the City’s representative to the County Library Commission. They met last Thursday, and the County Librarian is sending out letters to each of the City Councils to ask how many hours they wish to pay for the library to be open. The County pays for 40 hours, and the City could have 46, 52, or 56 hours. In the past, the Council has supported them with 56 hours and asked that the Council do it again. Their only complaint is Sunday because it is the busiest time, and they can no longer have Sunday because the County cannot require its employees to work on Sunday, which she hopes will change.
She personally is resigning as the City’s representative to the Commission in June given she has been doing it for 20 years. The person who is applying for the position will do a great job and she feels comfortable that the City will be well-represented on the Commission and noted their alternate Dorothy Walker will still serve as Alternate.
Councilmember Dawson asked and confirmed with Mr. Tygett that the Self-Service Sunday program is working well in Concord Library, and one must go through an orientation program first before they are able to use the library on Sundays. Once they are, they can swipe their library card to get into the building and use limited services to drop off materials and retrieve materials.
Mayor Candell asked and confirmed the Lafayette Library has been closed on Sundays since before the pandemic, and the pilot program in place at Concord Library is the attempt right now to look at expanding Sunday hours, however, they have not seen incremental use. It has been steady but not overly used.
Vice Mayor Anduri thanked Mary Ann Hoisington for her 20 years of service as Lafayette’s representative on the Library Commission. He thanked both Mr. Tygett and Ms. Varney for their presentation and they look forward to working with them to increase programming, work on Sunday hours, and bring more people to the library.
Mayor Candell also thanked Ms. Hoisington, said she was unaware of measures posed by the three cities, and voiced appreciation for the library work being done for the community.
Councilmember Cervantes said the Library and Learning Center is such an asset and the programming adds to the vibrancy and intellectual life of the community.
Move up of Item 15.B on the Agenda:
B. Request from Rob Tygett, Senior Community Library Manager, requesting a proclamation recognizing April 6-12 2025 as National Library Week in Lafayette.
Recommendation: Approve the proclamation recognizing April 6-12, 2025, as National Library Week in Lafayette.
Mayor Candell presented the proclamation recognizing April 6-12, 2025, as National Library Week to Mr.
Tygett and Ms. Varney.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 8 of 22 March 24, 2025 Mayor Candell opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Dawson/McCormick) to approve the proclamation recognizing April 6-12, 2025, as National Library Week in Lafayette. Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
9. CONSENT CALENDAR
Councilmember Cervantes requested removal of Item C. Mayor Candell confirmed there were no other requests for removal of items or public comments.
A. Minutes
1. March 7, 2025
Recommendation: Approve.
2. March 10, 2025
Recommendation: Approve.
B. Resolution 2025-18 Authorizing Execution of Program Supplemental Agreement for Federal Funding to construct a multi-use pedestrian and cyclist facility on School Street and pedestrian facility on Topper Lane
Recommendation: Adopt Resolution 2025-18.
D. Award of Construction Contract for 2025 Pathway Project EBRPD Parking Lot to Springhill School, Project – No. 014-9743
Recommendation: 1) Award a construction contract to EE Gilbert Construction in the amount of $218,296 for the 2025 Pathway Project, No. 014-9743. 2) Utilize the $100,000 from the TDA Article-3 Grant, and transfer $135,685 from the Safety Improvements Near Schools Project No. 014-9735 and transfer $20,315 from Fund 14 Fund Balance to this project, No. 014-9743.
E. Award of Construction Contract for the 2025 Road Paving Project – No. 014-9742 Recommendation: 1) Authorize the transfer of $292,000 from the Fund 014 Fund Balance to the 2025 Road Paving Project, No. 014-9742. 2) Award a construction contract to Rapid Grading Services, in the amount of $2,539,677.60 for the 2025 Road Paving Project, No. 014-9742.
F. Capital Assessment Budget Request
Recommendation: 1) Authorized a budget increase of $41,000 in 16-640-861 (Public Facilities) for FY24-25 for a Capital Assessment Report. 2) Authorized the City Manager to engage Bureau Veritas as a consultant for the project.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Dawson/Anduri) to approve the Consent Calendar Items A.1, A.2, B, D, E and F.
Roll Call Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
10. OLD BUSINESS
A. Niroop Srivatsa, City Manager
Discussion on the EBMUD Reservoir Tower Retrofit: Proposal to shorten the Reservoir Tower by Forty Feet
Recommendation: Discuss and direct.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 9 of 22 March 24, 2025 City Manager Srivatsa provided background on resident committee who worked countless hours reviewing technical documents, meeting with EBMUD, and consultants relating to the shortening of the EBMUD Reservoir Tower Retrofit project by 40 feet. The staff report lists a chronology of efforts made which sought to retain the tower at its current height. The City also met with the Department of Safety of Dams to see if they could intervene and assist. At the end of last year, there was no progress being made and it was clear EBMUD wished to proceed with design plans and construction drawings, and construction in 2025.
The Council directed her to send a letter to the EBMUD Board asking if they would hold a public meeting to solicit public input because the concern is that not too many people are aware of the proposal to shorten the tower. In January, the City received a response stating it would not be helpful to hold an additional meeting and EBMUD has spent time on the project and has decided to proceed with the project. Therefore, EBMUD has made its decision, and construction will begin this year, and she is seeking the Council’s directions on next steps.
Vice Mayor Anduri said to focus discussion, he provided what alternatives may be so questions can be addressed to those, as well, and also so the public can address the Council. He said there are six possibilities, as follows:
1. Encouraging the Citizen Advisory Committee to attempt to continue discussions with EBMUD engineers and their consultants. This is a non-starter as EBMUD has made it clear that they are not open to further discussion.
2. For representatives from the City of Lafayette to attempt to continue discussions with EBMUD Board and management. EBMUD has made it clear they are not open to further discussion.
3. The City could inform residents of the situation and inform residents how to make their views known to EBMUD Board Members and management if they wish to do so. He commented that the City has made efforts all along to keep residents informed and should continue to do so and he recommended discussing specific steps to take to inform the public.
4. To seek out entities or officials that have authority over EBMUD and enlist their support in this effort. They could discuss this, but he pointed out that their own Board Member will not help them.
5. Litigation; one brought by the City and in that case, the main factor is deciding whether to litigate on the likelihood of success and the cost; however, they do not see a path to success. The other litigation is private litigation brought by either residents or a preservation society or an environmental society. The Council could encourage the formation of a citizens legal advisory committee to take the baton from the technical advisory committee and work with EBMUD or litigate with them to consider legal paths to preservation of the tower.
6. For the City to work with EBMUD to ensure that the final design is as favorable as possible. This could involve: a) a final design as described in the letter from the head of the Board, noting that “The tower will feature a light-weight metal operating house inspired by the community and designed by a professional architect.”
Another alternative in terms of the design would be to encourage EBMUD to shorten the tower by 30 feet rather than 40 feet and maintain the water level at its current level, which is an elevation of 440 feet. If they kept it there rather than raising it to the prior water level which is 10 feet higher it would result in a 30-foot tower rather than a 10-foot stub of a tower.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 10 of 22 March 24, 2025 Lastly would be to encourage EBMUD to replace the operating house instead of with the lightweight metal with a concrete operating house with the original door and windows from the current one so it is a better aesthetic match to the existing tower.
Recusal: Mayor Candell said she must recuse herself, as she has a personal litigation and conflict of interest with EBMUD, and she left the dais.
Councilmember Cervantes thanked Vice Mayor Anduri for the thorough summary and sought clarification on the litigation aspect. He noted that CEQA is often the basis for challenging projects like this but pointed out that EBMUD filed its Notice of Exemption approximately two and a half years ago. He inquired whether there were any remaining CEQA grounds on which the City could pursue a challenge, even if it wished to do so.
City Attorney Mala Subramanian explained that once a Notice of Exemption is filed, there is a 35-day window for challenges. While the standard statute of limitations for contesting a CEQA exemption is 180 days, filing a Notice of Exemption reduces that period to 35 days. Since EBMUD completed this process in August 2022, the deadline for any legal challenge has long since passed.
Vice Mayor Anduri said when EBMUD filed the Notice of Exemption, he asked if they provided notice to the City in any form. Ms. Subramanian said she is not sure if that had occurred from staff but could followup.
Vice Mayor Anduri said in going through past materials from EBMUD, they say in a 2019 press release that was on their website, they stated they would include outreach to Lafayette as part of their environmental review process, but he is not aware they did this. In fact, they provided no notice to the City when they made their environmental filing.
Councilmember McCormick said in reading the options, it sounded like several were canceled out. Given this, Items 5 and 6 were something the City could consider.
Vice Mayor Anduri said if Councilmembers want, either the advisory committee or the City itself to go back to EBMUD one more time to try to discuss this, it would be something they could talk about, but they just do not think it will be fruitful, as they have no interest in talking to the City. He therefore thinks they should talk about how they inform residents because they know that if they begin construction this building season, the Council will hear from residents who said they had no idea this was going to happen.
He also thinks they should talk about whether there are other approaches they make to other public officials to try and enlist them.
Vice Mayor Anduri opened the public comment period.
DAVID CLARK said he did not hear in the list a political option, and Vice Mayor Anduri said this was Number 4 to seek out officials that have authority over EBMUD.
Mr. Clark suggested Senator Mark DeSaulnier’s office and Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan to expand the scope and while he was not sure what they would bring to the table it might be worth approaching one or the other of them, and perhaps the County Board of Supervisors.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 11 of 22 March 24, 2025 Vice Mayor Anduri asked Mr. Clark if he had any reason to think that either of those approaches would have any possibility of success. Mr. Clark said he does not know, but it would seem straight-forward to reach out to them.
JEAN FOLLMER said she appreciates the lengthy back and forth the Council has had with EBMUD on the design and retrofit of the tower. She asked about the article that came out in the Bay Area Telegraph on November 22nd that was discussing the potential impacts of a dam breach. She asked if the Council is also discussing retrofitting the dam. If that modeling occurred it would be catastrophic, noting they cited up to 1,000 deaths.
Vice Mayor Anduri asked Councilmember Cervantes to respond.
Councilmember Cervantes said the inundation of a failure of the Lafayette Reservoir Dam was something identified in the Safety Element through GPAC. It would be very severe if that happened. During the process of the Safety Element there was reach out to EBMUD. They represented that the dam itself was in good enough shape,so they did not deem that to be a risk. He is newer to this with respect to the tower and implications of a failure of the tower in the event of a 6.5 rupture of the Hayward fault. They represented there could be significant problems if the tower failed and water cascaded into the tubes.
This is the point EBMUD has kept coming back to—that they are concerned about seismic risk with respect to the tower and a potential failure during or after an earthquake.
Vice Mayor Anduri said the Division of Safety of Dams has two separate evaluation criteria for dams. One of them relates to, irrespective of the condition of the dam, what would happen if it were to fail. The City is very high risk, only because there is a community in the path of the dam. It has nothing to do with the quality of the dam. The second rating is for the status of the dam. They have four categories and Lafayette is rated fair, which is the second category. The reason is because of the seismic concern of the tower and how that would impact the conduits.
He would note that until they started these discussions, EBMUD was fairly consistent in posting on their websites and in other materials that the City was perfectly safe. There was nothing that could happen because they are a small reservoir with a small catchment area. And, if there were any problems with overflow they could bring in pumps and they could pump it out.
One of the comments received from one of the technical advisory committee members recently said, which captures the whole essence of EBMUD: “All along they have done nothing but refute our comments and suggestions with misinformation and conflicting statements all while using fear tactics to garner public support.”
Vice Mayor Anduri emphasized that the City does not expect there to be 30 feet of water coming through downtown Lafayette. Councilmember Cervantes agreed and said he did not want to create an impression they should be in fear of 30 feet of water.
Vice Mayor Anduri recommended taking each alternative and discuss them, as follows:
1. Encouraging the Citizen Advisory Committee to attempt to continue discussions with EBMUD engineers and their consultants. This is a non-starter as EBMUD has made it clear that they are not open to further discussion.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 12 of 22 March 24, 2025
2. For representatives from the City of Lafayette to attempt to continue discussions with EBMUD Board and management. EBMUD has made it clear they are not open to further discussion.
Councilmembers agreed to rule out Items 1 and 2. Vice Mayor Anduri added EBMUD’s unified approach through their correspondence, but there are mis-statements in the letter and Councilmembers voiced agreement to inform the public of these.
3. The City could inform residents of the situation and inform residents how to make their views known to EBMUD Board Members and management if they wish to do so. He commented that the City has made efforts all along to keep residents informed and should continue to do so and he recommended discussing specific steps to take to inform the public.
4. To seek out entities or officials that have authority over EBMUD and enlist their support in this effort. They could discuss this, but he pointed out that their own Board Member will not help them.
Councilmember Cervantes referred to Item 4 and commented that EBMUD has no one else above them and is on their own and are moving forward with their plan. Councilmembers therefore agreed to move past Item 4.
5. Litigation; 1) one being brought by the City and in that case, the main factor is deciding whether to litigate on the likelihood of success and the cost; however, they do not see a path to success. 2) The other litigation is private litigation brought by either residents or a preservation society or an environmental society. The Council could encourage the formation of a citizens legal advisory committee to take the baton from the technical advisory committee and work with EBMUD or litigate with them to consider legal paths to preservation of the tower.
Regarding Item 5 with two parts of litigation, Vice Mayor Anduri asked if the Council wished to consider this. Councilmember Cervantes said he is amazed with the amount of litigation the City faces and the potential funds outflowing from that, so he also did not wish to consider this. Remaining Councilmembers concurred.
Vice Mayor Anduri said the next alternative is private litigation. Any group of citizens or any organization can bring suit and once the City informs the residents where they are, they can make it known this is still a possibility for someone to bring an action. A question to be discussed is how active should the committee be in encouraging that if at all. They were fortunate with respect to the committee’s work, but no one has stepped forward to lead a litigation effort. However, once it is known that is one of the last alternatives, it may happen.
Councilmember Cervantes said he is frankly not comfortable with that. If the City has made its call that litigation is not appropriate, he was not sure how they could encourage other people to do that in the City’s stead. Councilmember McCormick agreed. Councilmember Dawson said this is why she would like to correct the record of information should any party decide or come up later when they see this happening.
6. For the City to work with EBMUD to ensure that the final design is as favorable as possible. This could involve: a) a final design as described in the letter from the head of the Board, noting that “The tower will feature a light-weight metal operating house inspired by the community and designed by a professional architect.”
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 13 of 22 March 24, 2025 Councilmember Cervantes expressed his admiration for the expertise of the technical committee and their discussions with EBMUD’s engineering consultant. He acknowledged that engineering debates often occur at a highly technical level beyond what most people engage with. While individuals could take action if they choose, he emphasized that there are knowledgeable experts involved. However, he urged the Council to focus less on past discussions and instead prioritize determining a productive course of action for the record.
Vice Mayor Anduri said this would entail a long list of corrections if they were to go through responding to the letter, as well as information on the website. He then referred to Item 6 and said he listed three alternatives but should have listed a fourth, which would be to do nothing. Therefore, the first is to let them design as they want. For the second one, the City Manager checked with EBMUD to see if they have a final design, and they do not and are still working on it. So, if they like the idea of what is pictured in the materials from the last time and something that looks a little like the existing tower with a light-weight metal, open windows and open structure, rather than the flat platform, they could go back and ask for that. They should consider whether to ask them to leave more of the tower and just cutting off 30 feet instead of 40 feet and the other is leaving the water level where it is now instead of raising it.
Councilmember McCormick said he does not feel comfortable suggesting any water level adjustment one way or the other which is outside of the City’s purview and should be EBMUD’s decision.
Councilmember Dawson said she can see working with as best they can to salvage the relationship with EBMUD no matter. The Reservoir tower is going to be in the community and the City has an important relationship with EBMUD so she would opt to see how they can continue to work with them through this, especially since their plans are finalized.
Councilmember McCormick agreed that if they look at the litigation option, it goes back to reinforcing the idea that it will not engender goodwill. He thinks taking a step back and saying the most important thing is having a good working relationship with EBMUD because they impact the City in so many ways, including the fires, so everything they can do to help them with the project and getting a great looking tower is important.
Councilmember Cervantes agreed with this and does not want to get in a fight with them on this. They are very clear in what they are doing, and he did not see the City gaining anything to fight them, but the City can try to work with them to come up with modifications to the design that retains some of the features of this century-old building if they are open to a dialogue.
Councilmember Dawson wondered how they marry that with informing the residents because the Council is obviously not happy with this. Councilmember McCormick said despite efforts thus far, but he thinks many people do not know this is happening so the City does need to let people know in case they want to direct their comments to EBMUD, but at the same time, the crux of this is that the City has decided to work with EBMUD and make the best of the situation.
Councilmember Cervantes said he was struck by the expert engineers in the community and there are likely architects that can provide input to EBMUD, so he wondered if there is a way to ask if there are any citizens willing to volunteer for that.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 14 of 22 March 24, 2025 Vice Mayor Anduri voiced concern with this, given the Council may recall there were suggestions from the public early on for a fairly elegant design for a light-weight steel tower which was rejected by EBMUD, so he thinks they are working around the margins here. With respect to the possibility of whether the Council wants to ask them to consider replacing the operating house with a concrete operating house which could utilize some of the existing doors and windows if that is possible.
Councilmember Dawson said part of the issue was the weight of the concrete, and Vice Mayor Anduri said he has had input from at least two members of the Technical Advisory Committee who think the weight should not be an issue. Councilmember Dawson then agreed to request they keep it as close as possible to the form factors it is currently in use. Councilmember McCormick said there was a design for a lightweight metal tower that had the homage to the existing one, and Vice Mayor Anduri noted this is their current design.
ACTION: Vice Mayor Anduri proposed to go back to EBMUD in response to the letter on the design to say the City has an interest in what the tower looks like, and the Council would like EBMUD to consider replacing the house with a concrete replica that possibly could use the doors and windows from the existing structure, so they have a better aesthetic match and preserve as much history as possible. They also should ask them to consider lowering it 30 feet instead of 40 feet, but at a minimum, ask EBMUD to do a replica operating house similar to what was shown in the last design the Council saw.
Councilmembers concurred with this proposal.
Regarding informing the public, Councilmember McCormick asked if the City has done a Vistas article on this, suggested a mailer to each household, and asked whether the timing may work for a Vistas article or separate mailer.
Vice Mayor Anduri asked for the cost of a separate mailer, and Ms. Robinson said it depends on the size of the mailer, but it could cost approximately $3,000. She asked the Council to also think about the precedent the Council is setting if they send a mailer out about this particular topic, and she would like to understand the threshold of the things the City sends specifically to residents. She wants to set an expectation about how certain communications are used within the City. In terms of timing, she believes the next issue of Vistas could hit roughly late May or early June, and she confirmed it is done three times a year. If this works out with timing staff could include it in the Vistas and also include it on the website for more complete information. Again, she would tend to ensure the Council is not setting a precedent of when the City sends a mailer to the entire City.
Vice Mayor Anduri asked what other methods of communication are there. Ms. Robinson responded there is the Weekly Round Up and social media.
Councilmember McCormick said if there were something through the City’s social media channels they could direct people back to a page on the City’s website that had a more complete explanation. No matter what the City does, they need to give an update on the website in some form about what to expect and what residents can do about it.
Vice Mayor Anduri said the portion about what people can do about it would be mailing addresses and email addresses for EBMUD Board Members and for management staff.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 15 of 22 March 24, 2025 Ms. Robinson said staff can start the communications and it does not necessarily have to hit at the same time. The Round Up can be done anytime as well as social media and more than once. Also, they can do the Vistas which goes to all households.
City Manager Srivatsa said the EBMUD website at the moment says, “Construction is scheduled to begin in Spring of 2025.”
Vice Mayor Anduri said this is surprising since they do not have a final design. Councilmember McCormick said it could be that the Spring is simply a placeholder.
Ms. Srivatsa said she had asked them for the most updated visual of the tower from the final design and was told that the final design plans have not been completed.
Vice Mayor Anduri said they could proceed with demolition. Councilmember Cervantes said he thinks it is critical to get a real timeline from them because this drives the City’s outreach. Also, he recommended getting a sense from the General Manager from EBMUD as to whether they are open to reducing the height to 30 feet, the concrete top, etc.
Councilmember McCormick asked if it was worth convening with the Board Member. Councilmember Cervantes said he reached out to her and she is away right now. But, if he indicates the City will not fight or litigate but instead, work together to make this as appealing a project as they can for people who enjoy the Reservoir. Councilmember McCormick suggested having staff work with EBMUD staff, which is one path, and having the Council at the political level trying to establish the relationship as well would be terrific. Councilmembers agreed.
Vice Mayor Anduri said in terms of timing of the message, he does not see any reason to wait for the first message that goes out. He thinks it is important to get a message out because he does not think the City has widely publicized the January 9th letter, and City Manager Srivatsa agreed. Vice Mayor Anduri suggested asking the public whether they wish to make their feelings known and to provide where to comment and indicate that the City will continue to work with EBMUD on the design of the shortened tower. If they come back and say they do not want to hear from the City anymore about what the tower looks like, in an updated communication, the City can state they do not want to pursue the look of the tower, and let residents know where to contact them.
In the communication that goes to EBMUD about the design, they could indicate the City received their January 9th letter, are sorry EBMUD is taking this position, indicate the City believes there are some misrepresentations and mis-statements in the letter, but they do not have much choice and wants to work with EBMUD on the design to make it as good as possible for people who use the Reservoir. This can be on the website so anyone who goes to the link can see it. Councilmember discussion ensued regarding the idea of a small postcard mailer, to include a piece in the Round Up, social media, and include links to the City’s website and from the City’s website provide a link to EBMUD. Councilmembers agreed and provided this direction to staff to allocate funds for the mailer.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 16 of 22 March 24, 2025 Ms. Srivatsa recommended identifying the timeline because she was not sure when they will break ground, as spring is already here. Staff needs to go back and work with Suzanne Iarla on a postcard and if the Council gives staff direction, they will do it and thinks staff can work with the subcommittee to get the details on what the postcard should say. One point she wanted to make is that in 2023 when the Council began having those discussions, EBMUD was going to have a public meeting and the Council asked them to hold that public meeting so they could obtain more information. EBMUD has not had a public meeting since then on this project and this strikes her that it is not part of their schedule. Vice Mayor Anduri suggested indicating that the City invited them to hold a public meeting in the letter and state they declined. Councilmembers agreed.
ACTION: City Manager Srivatsa confirmed direction from the Council for staff which is to: 1) Create the web page and determine what the schedule is; 2) for Council liaisons to meet with the Board Member; 3) For staff to send a letter to EBMUD outlining Council’s points discussed; and 4) To create and send a postcard mailer after the web page has been set up informing residents about the shortening of the tower, and also use social media and other forms of communication to get the word out.
Noted as Present:
Mayor Candell returned to the dais and was noted as present.
BREAK
Mayor Candell called for a 5-minute break at 9:30 p.m. and, thereafter, reconvened the regular meeting at 9:8p.m.
11. STAFF REPORTS
A. Niroop Srivatsa, City Manager and Tracy Robinson, Administrative Services Director City Council Priorities for FY2025-26
Recommendation: Confirm the priorities for the next fiscal year.
City Manager Srivatsa stated on March 7th the Council held a special workshop to discuss establishing priorities for the next fiscal year. It was a good discussion where the Council reviewed current priorities, staff provided an update, and the Council identified three priorities focused on: 1) fiscal sustainability; 2) wildfire prevention, preparedness, responsiveness, and utility safety; and 3) the Mt. Diablo Corridor Plan.
In addition to establishing the priorities, the Council identified specific tasks for staff to undertake during the upcoming fiscal year and beyond. The staff report identifies the priorities and desired outcomes, and staff asked that the Council confirm them for the next fiscal year. Staff is meeting on March 28th to develop Work Plans which will help them develop the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.
Councilmember Cervantes said he thought wildfire prevention was their top priority. Ms. Srivatsa said she would be happy to list it as first. She knows there was a brief discussion, and her notes began with fiscal sustainability, but can switch them.
Vice Mayor Anduri said where they ended up was that they are all equal but in terms of listing them, they would put wildfire at the top, next the Mt. Diablo Corridor, and then fiscal sustainability as third. Mayor Candell and Councilmembers agreed.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 17 of 22 March 24, 2025 DAVID CLARK expressed his appreciation that the parks, creeks, and pathways plan remains part of the document. He sought clarification on the Mt. Diablo Corridor Plan’s reference to “multi-year,” noting that it encompasses various initiatives, including the Two Parks Collaborative and efforts to acquire the Sterling Cleaners property. He pointed out that East Reach III, a significant component of the Downtown Creeks Plan, includes multiple opportunities for development alongside other projects like the Campana Building and 949 Moraga Road. He highlighted ongoing efforts, such as the Creeks Committee’s re-vegetation project at Leigh Creekside Park and EBRPD’s planned trail restoration and bridge replacement in the area.
He expressed enthusiasm for the continued focus on these projects and looks forward to further development.
ROB LAVOIE noted the City's priority of adjusting sales tax allocation to be based on the point of sale rather than statewide shipping hubs. He suggested identifying other large cities facing similar revenue losses and forming a coalition to advocate for change. Lavoie pointed out that the number of cities without hubs far outweighs those with them, making it feasible to rally support. He speculated that the current system was initially a compromise when California first mandated online retailers to collect sales tax, but with modern software, proper allocation should now be possible. He urged the City to take action, form a coalition, and push for legislative change.
Grace Dixon expressed her gratitude to the Council for including the Mt. Diablo Corridor Plan and the Two Parks Collaborative project. While acknowledging that this was not a time for questions, she inquired about the possibility of a citizen task force to help advance the plans. She voiced her enthusiasm and support for moving forward with these initiatives.
Mayor Candell commented that the Council used to talk about the Downtown Corridor Plan as the DSP and they specifically changed it to be the corridor plan, so it is much more expansive and inclusive of the entire corridor, which is exciting and thanked those for their support. Regarding getting the sales tax back, she remembers it was the City Manager that said the League of California Cities was working together with lots of cities and there is a possible plan where it might be they get to split it. So, cities with the distribution center get half and the rest of the cities split the rest of the half. The Council will follow this closely and try to support it as best they can, but she thinks it is a good idea to include the larger cities, especially Oakland, because they do not particularly get involved with the League of Cities much.
Vice Mayor Anduri said on the focus on fiscal sustainability, the first one is to establish the Measure H Citizens Oversight Committee which stands on its own, and the remaining things the Council discussed were under the rubric of preparing for next year.
Therefore, he would like to make Number 2 as putting the City in position to consider its next financial steps by….a, b, c, d, and e, as follows:
“A” would be the existing 2, but he would shorten it to say, “A. Carrying out a capital assessment study.” “B. Asking the City Manager to explore additional sources of revenue, including working with other entities to advocate for changing the Bradley Burns sales tax allocation.” “C. Asking the City Manager to explore additional efficiency measures.” “D. Determining the amount of revenue from the new half-cent sales tax.” “E. Determining the impact of federal cut-backs.”
These five things are items the Council needs to look at, so they have the information to take those next fiscal steps. Councilmembers agreed and had no comments.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 18 of 22 March 24, 2025 Vice Mayor Anduri then referred to wildfire prevention, they want to hold Town Hall Meetings, so he asked for the following:
“1. Hold Town Hall meetings. Involve utilities to present what they are doing for emergency preparedness. “2. Take steps to ensure that wildfire risk is considered during the 2031-2038 RHNA allocation process.
Explore collaboration with Orinda and Moraga.”
“3. (Stays the same).
“4. Add “and Firewise neighborhoods.”
Regarding 5, he feels strongly about continuing to call out looking for methods for early detection of ignition and rapid response. He suggested it state, “5. Work with Con Fire and other partner agencies to find ways to reduce or suppress the risk of wildfires, including fuel reduction and shaded fire breaks, methods for detection of early ignition, and rapid response to ignition.” For 8, he asked to insert “after the CCTA Evacuation Study is completed.” Regarding the Mt. Diablo Corridor Plan, Mayor Candell said she got concerned when she saw the pending lawsuit. She asked if this will impact Planning staff and starting off with preparing the objective design standards. The Planning Director nodded and confirmed. Mayor Candell asked staff to keep the Council informed of that.
Vice Mayor Anduri said for number 1, he recommended it state, “Prepare and adopt objective design standards for downtown buildings.” He did not mean this as a response to Mr. Clark and Ms. Dixon, but he asked to move Item 6 ahead of Item 5 and asked to change that to “multi-modal mobility plan” as he sees this as critical. He is happy they have the start date set for January 2026, as well.
Mayor Candell confirmed there were no comments from Councilmembers. She confirmed the City Manager will reach out to Vice Mayor Anduri to obtain his notes and edits.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Dawson/Cervantes) to confirm the City Council Priorities for FY2025-26, as modified.
Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
12. PUBLIC HEARINGS – None.
13. ITEMS REMOVED FROM CONSENT
C. Annual Progress Report on Housing Applications, Production, and Programs for the State Department of Housing and Community Development
Recommendation: Approve and direct staff to submit the Annual Progress Report (APR) to the California Department of Housing & Community Development (HCD) and the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI), formerly known as the Office Planning and Research (OPR).
Councilmember Cervantes requested this item be pulled to express his appreciation for staff’s work in updating both the Council and the State on the Housing Element. He acknowledged the challenge of addressing 2,114 units in the City's RHNA plan, alongside implementing over 60 programs—some being relatively simple while others require extensive effort. Noting the City's limited planning staff, he inquired about a strategy for tackling these programs. While recognizing that factors like financial markets, construction costs, and tariffs are beyond the City’s control, he emphasized the importance of demonstrating good faith efforts to HCD in the future.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 19 of 22 March 24, 2025 Planning and Building Services Director Greg Wolff acknowledged Councilmember Cervantes’ concerns and confirmed that staff has been actively strategizing to implement the 60 programs outlined in the Housing Element. Although the State has not yet responded to the City’s submission—despite the 60-day review period nearing completion—staff had anticipated a quicker turnaround given that the only remaining tasks were re-adopting the Housing Element and completing the necessary zoning updates, both of which have been addressed.
Staff recently followed up and learned that their review was delayed due to turnover within the State’s review team. However, they expect to receive feedback by Friday. In the meantime, planning staff has already been prioritizing programs, recognizing that HCD and other stakeholders are closely monitoring the City’s implementation progress. To stay proactive, staff has divided the programs into four tranches, grouping them by priority and work type.
The first tranche, covering approximately eight programs, is scheduled for Planning Commission review next month. The report has already been drafted, with room for minor adjustments if necessary. Due to public notification and ordinance procedures, additional lead time is required before bringing items to the Council. Once tranche one is completed, staff will proceed with tranche two.
The biggest challenge, Mr. Wolff emphasized, is the City’s current staffing shortage, which could slow down the implementation process despite having a clear plan in place.
Councilmember Cervantes thanked Mr. Wolff for his explanation, noting they want to show good faith performance with respect to what the City said it would do.
Councilmember Dawson asked for the status for hiring planning staff or consultants. Mr. Wolff stated they have been soliciting resumes from consulting firms that offer contract planning help. To date, those have not proven fruitful, but they are continuing to pursue that diligently, and he will ask for assistance in doing that, as well.
Mayor Candell thanked Mr. Wolff. She opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Cervantes/Dawson) to Approve and direct staff to submit the Annual Progress Report (APR) to the California Department of Housing & Community Development (HCD) and the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI), formerly known as the Office Planning and Research (OPR).
Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
14. COUNCIL / COMMISSION REPORTS
A. Councilmembers report on activities and consideration of matters a Councilmember wishes to initiate for placement on a future agenda.
Councilmember McCormick recognized Patric Golier and City staff for continuing work on the parking study. He hosted two meetings which he attended focusing on business owners and those interested in downtown parking; one in person and one on Zoom. There was a tremendous amount of outreach by the City and Chamber, but unfortunately it was not extremely well-attended, but those who attended provided great comments, with great presentations from consultants.
Councilmember McCormick said he enjoyed the Con Fire training he attended last week with Councilmember Cervantes and City Manager Srivatsa.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 20 of 22 March 24, 2025 Councilmember Cervantes shared his appreciation for the training session hosted by Con Fire, which he, Councilmember McCormick, and a staff member attended along with representatives from Concord and Walnut Creek. Con Fire provided an in-depth overview of their crew training, highlighting the focus on technical skills, teamwork, and physical endurance. The training involved wearing over 80 lbs. of fire safety gear, carrying tools like a halogen and hatchet, and handling a hose with 90 lbs. of pressure while maneuvering through a building. He praised Con Fire for reaching out and encouraged other Councilmembers to participate in future sessions. Additionally, he noted that the program is now including MOFD firefighters, which reflects positive collaboration. Cervantes emphasized that Con Fire seems to have the City on their radar, and he believes it's important to nurture and strengthen this partnership.
Vice Mayor Anduri said about this time of year, Meals on Wheels reaches out and invites Mayors and Vice Mayors to join them with volunteers who distribute meals, and he did this last week. It is just a reminder about the diversity of the community, their needs, and it brings home in terms of what the City needs to do in terms of helping its older adults remain in their home. It is also a reminder of what a great organization Meals on Wheels is, and he voiced support of their organization.
He attended the March 12th presentation on Public Art in Lafayette in the Library. There was a full house and a great presentation by Janice Peacock on the Lafayette public art collection. Last week he also attended the first Coffee with the Cops, which was a great idea and well-attended by members of the police department and the public. He also attended, but arrived late to the Transgender Day of Visibility Observance at the Plaza which will also be held today from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. Lastly, he congratulated the St. Mary’s basketball team on an incredible season for being one of the top 20 teams in the country.
Mayor Candell reported on presenting to the Rotary Club last week. It is a terrific group of people in the community who do a lot. It was nice to hear what they are doing and answer questions on how the City is doing.
B. Councilmember Cervantes and Mayor Candell – Legislation Committee Bills of local importance
1. AB 1 (Connolly): Residential property insurance: wildfire risk Recommendation: Support.
2. AB 259 (Rubio): Open meetings: local agencies: teleconference Recommendation: Support.
3. AB 1456 (Bryan): California Environmental Quality Act: vegetation fuel management project exemption
Recommendation: Support if amended.
4. SB 456 (Ashby): Contractors: exemptions: muralists
Recommendation: Support.
Legislative Update
Recommendation: Receive and file.
Councilmember Cervantes said they held their second meeting of the Legislative Committee and Casey Elliott from Townsend Public Affairs was present along with the City Manager. He would say there are 50+ bills that Townsend is monitoring, all of which are moving through committee at different points. One of the themes is that they are working with the League of Cities and other entities to amplify their voice.
They are aware of the bills the League is supporting and as referenced earlier regarding the sales tax methodology, it is a League initiative where the City is working with them on that.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 21 of 22 March 24, 2025 He provided an outline and description of AB 1, AB 259, AB 1456, and SB 456 and their proposed recommendations.
Mayor Candell asked if Casey Elliott had anything to add.
Casey Elliott, Townsend Public Affairs, said he did not have much to add and was happy to take any questions relating to bills. They will be communicating the City’s positions once adopted to the members of the legislature as well as the City’s representatives.
Mayor Candell noted there were comments from the public and she referred to SB 79 and SB 607 were bills mentioned during the Legislative Committee meeting and Mr. Elliott said once he got the City’s draft agenda out, they had been changed, which is why they were not considered at their meeting. She asked if there were any updates on them and asked whether they will come to their next April meeting.
Mr. Elliott commented at the beginning of session, measures are being introduced and amended at rapid fire pace given the timing of the need to post and prepare materials for the committee. More time was needed to do some due-diligence and research on some of the measures that had been recently amended.
He anticipates bringing those before the Legislative Committee at the next meeting.
Mr. Elliott noted that the State legislature is beginning their bill process, starting to move through the first policy committee on the first house. The legislative process will continue through to the fall as they start moving through committees. On the State budget perspective, the legislature is starting to look at various priorities that they want to incorporate into the State budget which will start being reflected in informational hearings over the next couple of weeks, culminating with the May revision from the Governor which is out in early May. Early signs are that State revenues are running a bit above projections but given variables in spending due to wildfires and other issues, as well as the moving goals and impacts on the State budget coming out of Washington, D.C., it will be interesting to see what the May revise looks like. The legislature and administration will continue to practice caution in their budgeting this year.
And, coming out of D.C. there are lots of executive orders, various changes from the Administration, lots of work to make and re-imagine the federal workforce to reflect the priorities of the new Administration.
Congress just wrapped up FY25’s appropriation bills and are in the process of starting work on their FY26 budget, which is where one will start to see the priorities of the new Administration take shape from an official budgetary capacity.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Cervantes/Candell) to support the position of the four bills. Vote: 5-0 (Ayes:
Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
15. WRITTEN COMMUNICATIONS
A. Request from the Acalanes Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, requesting a proclamation recognizing the contributions and legacy of the Marquis de Lafayette on the occasion of the Bicentennial of his Farewell Tour of America 1824 and 1825.
City Council Meeting Minutes Page 22 of 22 March 24, 2025 Recommendation: Approve the proclamation as amended recognizing the contributions and legacy of the Marquis de Lafayette on the occasion of the Bicentennial of his Farewell Tour of America 1824 and 1825.
Vice Mayor Anduri asked if the wording in the Library proclamation can be the same for this proclamation and asked that it be amended at the end of the proclamation. Councilmembers agreed.
Mayor Candell said there are events coming up, noting next Thursday will be an event at the Library and, thereafter on Saturday, there will be a presentation and some wreaths downtown. She confirmed staff will provide an amended proclamation for the event.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Dawson/Cervantes) to approve the proclamation, as amended, recognizing the contributions and legacy of the Marquis de Lafayette on the occasion of the Bicentennial of his Farewell Tour of America 1824 and 1825. Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes:
None).
C. E-mail from Senior Services Commissioner Ruth McCahan tendering her resignation from the Senior Services Commission.
Recommendation: Accept Ruth McCahan’s resignation and thank her for 19+ years of volunteer service on the Senior Service Commission.
Vice Mayor Anduri said the Council recognized Ms. McCahan’s service last year when she was given the Don Jenkins Service Award by Lamorinda Village. Her record of service is incredible to the City, not just on the Senior Service Commission but what she has done to make things better for senior adults. He and Councilmembers thanked her for 19+ years of volunteer services.
Mayor Candell opened the public comment period, and there were no speakers.
ACTION: It was M/S/C (Anduri/Cervantes) to accept Ruth McCahan’s resignation and thank her for 19+ years of volunteer service on the Senior Service Commission. Roll Call Vote: 5-0 (Ayes: Candell, Anduri, Cervantes, Dawson, and McCormick; Noes: None).
16. ADJOURNMENT – 10:20 p.m.
APPROVED:
__________________________________
Susan Candell, Mayor
ATTEST:
_________________________
Joanne Robbins, City Clerk