MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING
CITY OF MONTEREY
Tuesday, August 4, 2026
4:00 PM
COUNCIL CHAMBER, 580 PACIFIC ST., MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA
AND TELECONFERENCE LOCATION: 775 SNOWBERRY LN., COUPEVILLE, WA 98239 Councilmembers
Present: Barber, Garcia, Rasch, Smith* (left at 7:05 p.m.), Williamson
Absent: None
* Attended remotely by teleconference at the duly noticed teleconference location listed above
City Staff
Present:
City Manager, City Attorney, Assistant City Manager, Community Development Director, Finance Director, Human Resources Director, Public Works Director, City Clerk, Property Manager, Police Lieutenant, Planning Manager, Deputy Public Works Director/City Engineer, Associate Planner, Recreation Manager
Teleconference Notice
This meeting was held with a combination of in-person and teleconference attendance, pursuant to the Ralph M. Brown Act, Calif. Gov. Code sec. 54953(b).
Call to Order
AFTERNOON SESSION
Mayor Williamson called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. City Clerk Klein called the roll with the Council present as indicated above. Mayor Williamson prompted Councilmember Smith to confirm that he could hear the meeting proceedings, had posted the agenda 72 hours prior to the meeting at the teleconference location, and was providing public access from the same location, pursuant to GC 54953(b)(3).
Presentations (Afternoon)
1. Recognition of Defense Language Institute Quarterly Joint Service Awards Third Quarter FY26 (Not a Project Under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378, and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061)
Action: Recognized awardees
The Council recognized Staff Sergeant Tayler E. Aarness and Private First Class Grant Kazi, both from the U.S. Army, and Airman First Class Lisandro Shanchez-Rosas, from the U.S. Air Force.
Private First Class Kazi made brief remarks. Public comment was received from Nina Beety, who spoke against the recognition.
General Public Comments
Public comment on non-agendized matters was solicited but not received.
City Council Minutes August 4, 2026
2 Consent Agenda
On a motion by Councilmember Rasch, seconded by Councilmember Barber, and carried by the following roll-call vote, the City Council approved the Consent Agenda:
AYES: 5 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Garcia, Rasch, Smith, Williamson NOES: 0 COUNCILMEMBERS: (None)
Consent: Approval of Minutes
2. July 21, 2026 Regular Meeting (Not a Project Under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378, and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061)
Action: Approved
Consent: Resolutions
3. Award Five Professional Services Agreements in the Amount of $1,000,000 Each for OnCall Architectural Professional Services Within the City of Monterey and Intergovernmental Services Agreement (IGSA) Projects to: (1) Wald, Ruhnke & Dost Architects, LLP; (2) TEF Architecture and Interior Design, Inc.; (3) Architectural Resources Group, Inc.; (4) HGHB; and (5) DES Architects + Engineers, Inc. (Not a Project Under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378 and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061)
Action: Adopted Resolutions 26-104, 26-105, 26-106, 26-107, and 26-108 C.S.
Consent: Other
4. Appoint Agency Negotiators for Conference with Real Property Negotiators Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8; Property: A portion of land north of 731 Dry Creek Road (Assessor's Parcel No. 014-031-003-000); Agency Negotiators: Kim Cole, Janna Aldrete, Andrea Renny and Andrew Easterling; Negotiating Parties: Shad Thielman (CalAm Client Services Manager); Under Negotiation: Price and Terms of Payment for granting an easement (Not a Project Under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378 and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061)
Action: Pulled from Consent; Appointed agency negotiators Cole, Aldrete, Renny, and Easterling
Public comment was received from Nina Beety, who requested that the easement be strictly for water and that California American Water ("Cal-Am") not install any antennas of any sort; and Josh Stratton of Cal-Am, who spoke in favor of granting the easement and confirmed that Cal-Am did not plan to install any telecommunication infrastructure at the site.
On a motion by Mayor Williamson, seconded by Councilmember Barber, and carried by the following roll-call vote, the Council appointed agency negotiators Cole, Aldrete, Renny, and Easterling:
AYES: 5 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Garcia, Rasch, Smith, Williamson NOES: 0 COUNCILMEMBERS: (None)
5. Appoint Councilmember Barber as the Voting Delegate for the 2026 League of California Cities Annual Conference -- September 23-25, 2026 in Anaheim (Not a project under CEQA Article 20, Section 15378 and under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061) Action: Appointed Councilmember Barber as the Voting Delegate End of Consent Agenda
City Council Minutes August 4, 2026
3 Afternoon Session Items
Public Hearing (Afternoon)
6. Adopt the Planning Commission Recommendation to Adopt 1st Reading of Ordinance to Amend Chapter 38 of the Monterey City Code to Establish Minimum Density Requirements in the Multifamily Residential Overlay District (CEQA: Certified Environmental Impact Report (SCH No. 2023080034), Article 11, Section 15168(c)) Action: Passed ordinance to a second reading
Planning Manager Hill gave the staff presentation and answered Councilmembers' questions.
Public comment was received from Nina Beety, who asked a question, to which the Council explained that the amendment would set the minimum residential density at 20 dwelling units per acre, and the maximum at 60 dwelling units per acre.
On a motion by Mayor Williamson, seconded by Councilmember Rasch, and carried by the following roll-call vote, the City Council passed the ordinance to a second reading:
AYES: 5 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Garcia, Rasch, Smith, Williamson NOES: 0 COUNCILMEMBERS: (None)
Public Appearance (Afternoon)
7. Receive Feedback and Provide Direction to Staff to Halt or Continue the Madison/Herrmann/Larkin Intersection Safety Improvement Project ***CIP*** (Exempt from CEQA Article 19, Section 15303, Class 3)
Action: Adopted Resolution No. 26-109 C.S. and directed the City Manager to meet with Monterey Peninsula Unified School District (MPUSD) and Monterey High School staff and the community to find a different solution (3-2, Councilmember Garcia and Mayor Williamson voting no)
Engineering Assistant II Garcia gave the staff presentation and answered Councilmembers' questions together with City Engineer/Deputy Public Works Director Easterling.
Based on the number of people interested in speaking, Mayor Williamson limited the time for public comment to one and one-half minutes per person. Public comment in opposition to the project was received from: Nancy Soule, William Merry, Marta Kraftzeck, an unidentified man, Vicki Nohrden, Joe Sweeney, Mark Coor, Pat Venza, Lee Whitney, Tim Eckert, Gari Soule, Jeff Whitmoyer, Tom Reeves, Peter Boysen, Judy Zappacosta, Jeff Galfin, and Nina Beety. Public comment in favor of continuing the project was received from Gabriel Sanders of Monterey Peninsula Unified School District (MPUSD) Board of Education. Bob Bluth suggested some alternative traffic control options and said that the roundabout concept could be worthwhile. Esther Malkin said that it would be helpful to hear the voices of more members of the school community on the matter. Mayor Williamson left the Chamber from 5:28 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The Council discussed the matter. It was stated that more collaboration with the school district and high school was needed to evaluate the issues and find other opportunities to resolve issues with the intersection.
In favor of halting the project, it was stated that insufficient outreach had been conducted in the community and with the school. It was noted that there had been significant opposition expressed by residents and it was asserted that there was a lack of trust in the community as a result of the project. Concern was expressed that safety issues had been exaggerated and were not supported by data. It was stated that there was no urgency for the project and that rejecting bids would allow City Council Minutes August 4, 2026
4 staff to spend appropriate time to address concerns about the intersection by collecting detailed data on collisions, conducting traffic studies, and working with the school district to explore alternative solutions.
In favor of continuing with the project, it was noted that Councilmembers had personal experience navigating the intersection and found there to be risks, that children's safety was important, and that even one accident would be too many. It was stressed that the City had control over and responsibility for the right-of-way in City intersections and that it would be better to be proactive than to wait for more data, i.e. injuries. It was highlighted that the project had not been pushed in secrecy but had gone through multiple stages of public input and approvals. It was stated that this project represented staff's securing of external grant funding sources and trying innovative solutions. Councilmember Barber left the Chamber from 6:07 p.m. to 6:09 p.m.
A motion was introduced by Councilmember Garcia, and seconded by Mayor Williamson, to direct staff to continue the Madison/Herrmann/Larkin Intersection Safety Improvement Project.
Councilmember Smith called the question, and by the following roll-call vote, the Council determined to move forward with voting on Councilmember Garcia’s motion:
AYES: 3 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Garcia, Smith
NOES: 2 COUNCILMEMBERS: Rasch, Williamson
Councilmember Garcia’s motion failed by the following roll-call vote:
AYES: 2 COUNCILMEMBERS: Garcia, Williamson
NOES: 3 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Rasch, Smith
On a motion by Councilmember Barber, seconded by Councilmember Smith, and carried by the following roll-call vote, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 26-109 C.S. amending the previous resolution, rejecting all bids, halting the project, and rejecting the funding; and directed the City Manager to meet with Monterey Peninsula Unified School District (MPUSD) and Monterey High School staff and the community to find a different solution:
AYES: 3 COUNCILMEMBERS: Barber, Rasch, Smith
NOES: 2 COUNCILMEMBERS: Garcia, Williamson
Adjourn to Closed Session
Public comment on the closed session was received from Nina Beety, who spoke regarding closed session Item 9, asking the City to revoke a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for employees.
Closed Session (Afternoon)
8. Conference with Agency Labor Negotiators Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6 for Labor Negotiations; Agency Negotiators: Brette Neal, Gina Russo; Employee Organization: Monterey Police Association (MPA) (Not a Project under CEQA Article 20, Section 15378 and under General Rule Article 4, Section 15061) Action: On a unanimous roll-call vote, the City Council gave confidential direction to its labor negotiators
9. Closed Session Conference with Real Property Negotiators Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8 Property: A Portion of Land North of 731 Dry Creek Road (Assessor’s Parcel No. 014-031-003-000)
Agency Negotiators: Kim Cole, Janna Aldrete, Andrea Renny, and Andrew Easterling City Council Minutes August 4, 2026
5 Negotiating Parties: Shad Thielman (California-American Water Company) Under Negotiation: Price and Terms of Payment for Granting an Easement (Not a project as defined by the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (CCR, Title 14, Chapter 3 CEQA Guidelines Article 20, Section 15378)
Action: Tabled by unanimous consensus
The Council recessed at 7:05 p.m. and reconvened at 7:11 p.m. with Councilmember Smith absent.
EVENING SESSION AGENDA
Pledge of Allegiance
Councilmember Rasch led the Pledge.
General Public Comments, Continued
Public comment on non-agendized matters was received from Tom Reeves.
Announcements from Closed Session
Assistant City Manager Rojanasathira reported out from the closed session as indicated in the actions recorded for the afternoon portion of the meeting on closed session items 8 and 9, above.
Evening Session Items
Public Appearance (Evening)
10. Receive Update on Draft Economic Development Strategy (EDS) Stakeholder Engagement Plan (Not a Project Under CEQA per Article 20, Section 15378 and Under General Rule Article 5, Section 15061)
Action: Received update and provided feedback
Assistant City Manager Rojanasathira gave the staff presentation and answered Councilmembers' questions. Public comment was received from: Nina Beety, who said that the City needed to identify its problems before hiring an Economic Development Director; Esther Malkin, who said the City should prioritize affordability, housing, revitalization, and recreational amenities; and Tom Reeves, who highlighted that healthcare is an economic driver in the area and spoke about the need to find ways to fund revitalization efforts.
The Council discussed the matter and provided feedback. It was stressed that the City should reaffirm its communication strategy and engagement, including with non-profit partners that could provide collaborative support, and it was stressed that an Economic Development Manager would need to be able to sell the City to outside businesses or potential partners. It was stated that revitalization of Alvarado Street was an important, but expensive, priority, and that developing musical offerings, and potentially making the street pedestrian-only, could improve the Alvarado Street experience. The economic impact of retirees living in the City was discussed, and it was suggested that targeting this demographic could be part of the City's economic strategy. It was stated that an Economic Development Manager should be a strong project manager and communicator. It was stressed that the City should still look for ways to achieve small wins while strategizing for long-term, big-picture economic development.
City Council Minutes August 4, 2026
6 Council Comments
Councilmember Rasch reported on her attendance at a Monterey Vista Neighborhood Association meeting.
City Manager Reports
None made
Adjournment
The Council adjourned at 8:06 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted, Approved,
Clementine Bonner Klein Tyller Williamson
City Clerk Mayor