CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING
ACTION MINUTES
ABBREVIATION KEY Page 1 of 4 CMR – City Council Member | VM – Vice Mayor | CT – City Treasurer | CM – City Manager | ACM – Assistant City Manager | CA – City Attorney | CC –City Clerk | CE – City Engineer | CED – Community Economic Development Director | FD – Finance Director
DATE: Wednesday, January 21, 2026
TIME: 7:00 PM – Regular Session
PLACE: Council Chamber, 525 Henrietta Street, Martinez, CA 94553; and, Jay Howard attending virtually from Old Man Creek B, 2-Chrome-5-26 Nisekohirafu, Abuta Gun Kutchan Cho, Hokkaido, 0440080, Japan.
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Zorn called the meeting to order at 7:02 pm.
ROLL CALL (00:00:55)
Present: Mayor Brianne Zorn, Vice Mayor Satinder Malhi, Council member Jay Howard, Greg Young Excused: Debbie McKillop
PRESENTATIONS (00:01:20)
1. New Staff Introductions and Promotions
a. New staff introduced. Public Works: Brody Eglite. Recreation: Amber Curley, Josh Brown. Police Department: April Kelly, Elisa Luhmann, Luis Aguirre, Tyler Woolf, Nicolas Silvani, Jose Fernandez. Community and Economic Development: Luie Montemayor, Michael P. Cass (promotion).
2. Chamber of Commerce January 2026 Business of the Month - Mazzamuto Construction a. Presented by Aaron Alencastre of Martinex Chamber of Commerce, to Gino and Mario Mazzamuto.
3. Bay Area Air District - Community Investment Presentation a. Presented by Seng Saechao, Acting Assistant Staff Specialist II of the Bay Area Air District.
PUBLIC COMMENT (00:33:00)
1. Dale Borgan, resident in Hidden Lakes area, on e-bikes around the Hidden Lakes Park.
2. David Wright, resident in Hidden Lakes area, on e-bikes around the Hidden Lakes Park.
CONSENT CALENDAR (00:37:15)
Items 6 and 10 pulled by Mayor Zorn for discussion.
Consent Calendar Items No. 4-5, 7-9, 11
• Public Comment: None.
• Council Comments: None.
• Motion by CMR Howard, seconded by CMR Young, to approve Consent Calendar Items No. 4- 5, 7-9, and 11. Motion was approved: four ayes (Zorn, Howard, Young, Malhi) , and one absent (McKillop).
City Council Meeting Action Minutes
January 21, 2026
ABBREVIATION KEY Page 2 of 4 CMR – City Council Member | VM – Vice Mayor | CT – City Treasurer | CM – City Manager | ACM – Assistant City Manager | CA – City Attorney | CC –City Clerk | CE – City Engineer | CED – Community Economic Development Director | FD – Finance Director
4. Motion waiving reading text of all Resolutions and Ordinances.
5. Motion to approve Action Minutes for December 10, 2025.
6. Approve the extension of a contract with Los Angeles District Patrol for the downtown security program through June 30, 2026, subject to the discretion of the Chief of Police and City Manager, as outlined in the staff report.
a. Discussion: Chief White gave a summary of the work and impact of the downtown security program. CMR Malhi asked for clarification on why this item was on consent and not General Business. CM Chandler explained that this contract extension amount falls under the operational authority of both the CM and the Chief of Police, but wanted to give Council the opportunity to publicly acknowledge that this program would be continuing with a discrete Council action. Chief White clarified that this extension is subject to discretion, and actual usage of this service would be based on needs. Other comments included support and appreciation from Council members. b. Public Comment: Sarah Baird of Downtown Martinez & Co., Chappy Davyikin, Courtney Ayers,Sarah Augusta, Bernadette Fernandez, Peter, Community member, Mr.
Tucker, Joseph Burton, Corey Katz.
c. Motion: Motion made by VM Malhi, seconded by CMR Young, to approve the extension of a contract with Los Angeles District Patrol for the downtown security program through June 30, 2026, subject to the discretion of the Chief of Police and City Manager. Motion was approved: four ayes (Zorn, Howard, Young, Malhi), and one absent (McKillop).
7. Motion approving Check Reconciliation Register dated November 24th and 26th, 2025.
8. Motion approving Check Reconciliation Registers dated December 1st, 4th, 5th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 18th, 19th, 22nd, and 23rd.
9. Adopt a Resolution of Intent to extend the term of a Franchise Agreement (City Ordinance No. 1324 C.S.) with Shell California Pipeline Company LLC.
10. Adopt a resolution authorizing the request to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for the allocation of Fiscal Year 2026-27 Transportation Development Act Article 3 project funds. a. Discussion: Mayor wanted to highlight this item to show that the intersection of Alhambra Ave and C Street has been prioritized, and this project is not included in the later General Business item 13.
b. Public Comment: None.
c. Motion: Motion made by CMR Young, seconded by CMR Malhi, to adopt a resolution authorizing the request to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for the allocation of Fiscal Year 2026-27 Transportation Development Act Article 3 project funds. Motion was approved: four ayes (Zorn, Howard, Young, Malhi), and one absent (McKillop).
11. Adopt a resolution authorizing the City Manager to execute an amendment to the existing agreement for professional services with Gates Studio for the Park System Master Plan Project (C5045) to expand the scope of work to include planning and visioning for the Senior Center and Kiwanis Youth Center and increase the not-to-exceed contract amount from $145,000 to $180,245.
a. Public Comment: Max Godino (written).
GENERAL BUSINESS ITEMS (01:29:50)
12. Receive presentation from Contra Costa County Fire Protection District on proposed 2025 Fire and Wildland Urban-Interface ("WUI") local code amendments and provide direction to staff.
City Council Meeting Action Minutes
January 21, 2026
ABBREVIATION KEY Page 3 of 4 CMR – City Council Member | VM – Vice Mayor | CT – City Treasurer | CM – City Manager | ACM – Assistant City Manager | CA – City Attorney | CC –City Clerk | CE – City Engineer | CED – Community Economic Development Director | FD – Finance Director
a. Presented by Mike Leontiades, Chief Building Official, and Fire Marshal Steve Albert. b. Discussion: Council discussed reasons for the two choices of Council feedback. Council direction was to go forward with codifying this into the Martinez Municipal Code. c. Public Comment: Kathleen Clancy.
13. Receive presentation, hold discussion, provide input to staff on Vulnerable Road User Safety Action Plan.
a. Presented by CE Joe Enke, and Christopher Thay, Advanced Mobility Group. b. Discussion: Council gave feedback on prioritizing safety at identified intersections and wanting to see more around schools. Mayor wants Council and staff to focus on identifying funding for this at a Council meeting in the near future. VM Malhi would like to see community meetings on this item at other locations than City Hall. c. Public Comment: Trevor, Kathleen Clancy, Chris Adair, Natalie Terranova (written).
PUBLIC HEARING ITEMS (2:50:40)
14. Conduct a public hearing, waive the reading, and introduce an Ordinance, amending the Martinez Municipal Code Chapter 8.23 (Carryout Bags) in its entirety, including retitling Chapter 8.23 as “Carryout and Pre-Checkout Bags.”
a. Presented by Kerry Rivers, Management Analyst.
b. Discussion: Staff and Council reviewed how this aligns with State regulations, and the changes to the existing City regulations, and how it would be enforced. In response to Council question, staff confirmed that public outreach was done and no feedback was received from businesses, other than Downtown Martinez & Co wanting to make sure a summary handout is provided to businesses. Section 8.23.060 was discussed and deemed unnecessary.
c. Public Comment: None.
d. Motion: Motion made by VM Malhi, seconded by CMR Howard, to conduct a public hearing, waive the reading, and introduce an Ordinance, amending the Martinez Municipal Code Chapter 8.23 (Carryout Bags) in its entirety, including retitling Chapter
8.23 as “Carryout and Pre-Checkout Bags.”, striking Section 8.23.060 and renumerating the following sections. Motion was approved: four ayes (Zorn, Howard, Young, Malhi), and one absent (McKillop).
CHIEF OF POLICE (03:18:10)
15. Comments/Updates
a. No additional update.
CITY MANAGER (03:18:20)
16. Comments/Updates
a. ACM Lauren Sugayan gave an update on the Park System Master Plan update and community outreach.
17. Amtrak Pedestrian Bridge and Elevator Update
City Council Meeting Action Minutes
January 21, 2026
ABBREVIATION KEY Page 4 of 4 CMR – City Council Member | VM – Vice Mayor | CT – City Treasurer | CM – City Manager | ACM – Assistant City Manager | CA – City Attorney | CC –City Clerk | CE – City Engineer | CED – Community Economic Development Director | FD – Finance Director
a. Joe Enke gave update on elevator, security, and hardening, and expectations around Amtrak’s expected improvements and timeline.
APPOINTMENTS TO COMMISSIONS AND/OR AGENCIES
SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS (03:34:50)
18. Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Council Policies and Procedures a. Mayor Zorn updated on the progress of this subcommittee, and a draft document will be presented at the next meeting.
19. Comments/Updates
a. Mayor Zorn updated on the last MCE Board meeting.
b. CMR Howard updated on the last Franchise and Public Infrastructure Subcommittee, which was the annual Measure D workshop.
CITY COUNCIL (03:40:00)
1. Comments/Updates
a. All Council gave updates on their upcoming Community Session dates, times, and locations.
b. VM Malhi requested a conversation about e-bikes. There was Council concurrence to bring this to a future agenda in the first quarter of 2026. c. Mayor Zorn appreciated community participation in the MLK Day cleanup event. d. Mayor Zorn requested a future agenda item on business license carve out for special events. There was Council concurrence to bring this to a future agenda. e. Mayor Zorn highlighted the completion of the Historic Mayors Wall in the City Hall lobby.
ADJOURNMENT
Mayor Zorn adjourned the meeting at 11:48 pm, to a Regular City Council meeting February 4, 2026, at 7:00 PM.
Prepared by:
Eve Kearney, Acting City Clerk
1/21/2026
Approved by:
Brianne Zorn, Mayor