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RICHMOND, CALIFORNIA,
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MINUTES
April 29, 2025, 3:30 p.m.
Community Services Building
440 Civic Center Plaza
Richmond, CA 94804
_____________________________________________________________________
A. SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING OF THE RICHMOND CITY COUNCIL The meeting was called to order at 3:33 p.m. by Mayor Eduardo Martinez.
B. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mayor Eduardo Martinez led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.
C. ROLL CALL
Present: Councilmembers Soheila Bana, Jamelia Brown, Claudia Jimenez, Doria Robinson, Sue Wilson, Vice Mayor Cesar Zepeda, and Mayor Eduardo Martinez.
Absent: None.
D. STATEMENT OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
None.
E. AGENDA REVIEW
Item F .2 - Design and Implementation of a Ciclovia project was continued to the May 6, 2025, City Council meeting.
F. NEW BUSINESS
F.1 Capital Improvement Program Update and Criteria Discussion RECEIVE a presentation and PROVIDE DIRECTION to staff on the status of the Capital Improvement Program (CIP), Budget Requests, new CIP requests, proposed city-wide prioritization factors and weighing system – Public Works Department (Daniel Chavarria 510-620-5478/ Robert Armijo 510-620-5477).
This item was continued from the April 22, 2025, meeting. (PUBLIC COMMENT SESSION CLOSED. THIS ITEM IS FOR COUNCIL
DELIBERATION AND VOTING ONLY)
Public Works Director Daniel Chavarria and Assistant Deputy Public Works Director Josef Munoz gave an overview.
Link to presentation: CIP Program Update
Link to chart: Citywide Prioritization Factors and Weighing System The city council requested the following: how equity was defined; use SB 535, GARE work, and Environmental Equity; include deferred maintenance as criteria and split with readiness; if a project received resources or grants, it should be expedited.
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A motion was made by Councilmember Robinson, seconded by Councilmember Jimenez to approve the amended weighing system criteria with edits by Mayor Martinez, with the Equity element guided by Senate Bill 535, Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE), and Environmental Equity.
Councilmember Bana offered a friendly amendment to add a community building category that was added on its own. The friendly amendment was not accepted by Councilmember Robinson and instead, added the category under Collaborations criterion.
The Citywide Prioritization Factors and Weighing System were amended as follows: Plan Implementation: 4 points; Collaborations: 4 points, with the addition of "community building"; Environment: 6 points; Economic: 6 points Quality of Life & Health: 6; Safety: 6 points: Housing: 6 points; Project Readiness: 12 points; Deferred Maintenance: 12 points; Strength and Internal Services: 6 points; Equity: 16 points; Required Work: 16 points, for a total of 100 points. .
Ayes (7): Councilmember Soheila Bana, Councilmember Jamelia Brown, Councilmember Claudia Jimenez, Councilmember Doria Robinson, Councilmember Sue Wilson, Vice Mayor Cesar Zepeda, and Mayor Eduardo Martinez
Passed (7 to 0)
F.2 Design and implementation of a Ciclovia project
DIRECT staff to work on the design and implementation of the Ciclovia project and come back to the council in early May with the proposed design, budget, and implementation plan to launch the first Ciclovia during the Summer of 2025 – Councilmember Claudia Jimenez (510-620-6565). This item was continued from the April 22, 2025, meeting.
Item was continued to the May 6, 2025, City Council meeting.
F.3 Increasing Fines for Fireworks in High and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (VHFHSZ) areas
DIRECT the City Attorney’s Office to draft an ordinance amending the Richmond Municipal Code Chapter 11.05 Fireworks to triple fines for fireworks-related violations specifically in high-risk zones to mitigate wildfire risks and enhance public safety - Councilmember Soheila Bana (510-672-3490). This item was continued from the April 22, 2025, meeting.
Councilmember Bana gave an overview.
Cordell Hindler, Nancy Powell, Don Gosney, Janice Haugan, Jamin Pursell, Julie Freestone, Terri Hinte, Emily Ross, and Arto Rentilla gave comments.
Discussion ensued.
The city council suggested the following: to triple fines for high fire severity zones; distinguish between safe and sane and dangerous fireworks; revision of Richmond Municipal Code 2.62 with the use of the existing tiered fine structures; and curbing influx of fireworks into Richmond.
(Vice Mayor Zepeda left the meeting at 5:59 p.m.)
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Further discussion ensued.
A motion was made by Councilmember Bana, seconded by Councilmember Brown that city administration, along with the fire, police, public works, and legal departments, work with residents and after discussions return to the city council with specific policy suggestions.
Ayes (6): Councilmember Soheila Bana, Councilmember Jamelia Brown, Councilmember Claudia Jimenez, Councilmember Doria Robinson, Councilmember Sue Wilson, and Mayor Eduardo Martinez
Absent (1): Vice Mayor Cesar Zepeda
Passed (6 to 0)
G. ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 5:00 p.m. to meet again on Tuesday, May 6, 2025.
Clerk of the City of Richmond Mayor
From: Pamela Christian
To: Sabrina Lundy
Subject: Fwd: Strong Objection to Proposed CIP Prioritization Criteria Date: Friday, April 25, 2025 11:13:39 AM
From: Charlie Huang <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, April 25, 2025 8:44 AM
To: Daniel Chavarria <[email protected]> Subject: Strong Objection to Proposed CIP Prioritization Criteria
This email originated from outside of the City's email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.
Hi,
I’m writing to express serious concern and strong opposition to the proposed methodology for prioritizing Capital Improvement Projects (CIPs), scheduled for discussion at the April 29 Special City Council meeting.
The criteria outlined in Item F.1 appear to completely exclude District 4 from future infrastructure funding. This isn’t about a flawed attempt at equitable planning—it’s about a framework that assigns us little to no value simply because we don’t score equity points under the current system. The message is clear: District 4 doesn’t qualify, and therefore, doesn’t count.
Underserved communities receive 19 points, and by that metric alone, District 4 is effectively disqualified before the conversation even starts. This is a dangerous precedent and signals that the city is fine with continuing to invest tens of millions of dollars while ignoring an entire district that pays taxes and participates in civic life.
If Richmond is not going to be there for District 4, we will have to start having conversations about how District 4 shows up—or doesn’t—for Richmond.
We need a fairer, broader, and more representative approach to capital improvement prioritization. One that doesn’t erase whole communities through a scoring formula.
Charlie Huang
From: Janice Haugan
To: City Clerk Dept User
Subject: Public Comment 4/29/25 City Council meeting: support agenda item F.3 Date: Monday, April 28, 2025 10:09:45 PM
This email originated from outside of the City's email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.
This email originated from outside of the City's email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.
Dear Mayor and Members of the City Council,
Subject: Please vote in favor of F.3, tripling fines for firework related violations in fire prone areas.
I'm grateful that Council Member Bana is keeping the Council aware of the fire danger caused by the illegal use of fireworks.
I would like to see the city ordinance conform to the state codes, 12700 and 12702, that were updated via AB1403, signed into law by Gov.
Newsom in 2023 and went into effect 1/1/2024. Doing so would not only triple Richmond's fine amount for possessing 25 pounds of fireworks, it would quadruple it. All of Richmond would be covered by the quadrupled fine increase, not just the fire prone areas. Since the state ordinance supersedes the city ordinance, it is technically already in effect. Having the city's ordinance conform with the state's would reduce confusion about the fines for violations.
Thank you for considering my request.
____________________
J a n i c e H a u g a n
Richmond resident