San Luis Obispo City Council
April 7, 2026

City Council
AGENDA

Tuesday, April 7, 2026, 5:30 p.m.

Council Chambers, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo
Council meetings may be viewed remotely on Channel 20, the City’s YouTube Channel, and on the City’s website under the Public Meeting Agendas web page. Attendees of City Council or Advisory Body meetings are eligible to receive one hour of complimentary parking; restrictions apply, visit Parking for Public Meetings for more details.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:

Public Comment prior to the meeting (must be received 3 hours in advance of the meeting):

Mail - Delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. Address letters to the City Clerk's Office at 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, California, 93401.

Email - Submit Public Comments via email to [email protected]. In the body of your email, please include the date of the meeting and the item number (if applicable). Emails will not be read aloud during the meeting.

Voicemail - Call (805) 781-7164 and leave a voicemail. Please state and spell your name, the agenda item number you are calling about, and leave your comment. Verbal comments must be limited to 3 minutes. Voicemails will not be played during the meeting. *All correspondence will be archived and distributed to councilmembers, however, submissions received after the deadline may not be processed until the following day.

Public Comment during the meeting:

Meetings are held in-person. To provide public comment during the meeting, you must be present at the meeting location.

Electronic Visual Aid Presentation. To conform with the City's Network Access and Use Policy, Chapter 1.3.8 of the Council Policies & Procedures Manual, members of the public who desire to utilize electronic visual aids to supplement their oral presentation must provide display-ready material to the City Clerk by 12:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. Contact the City Clerk's Office at [email protected] or (805) 781-7114.

Pages

1. CLOSED SESSION (4:00 PM START)

1.a CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Erica A. Stewart will call the Closed Session of the San Luis Obispo City Council to order at 4:00 PM in the Council Hearing Room at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

1.b CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATORS
Pursuant to Government Code § 54956.8
Property: Assessor Parcel Number 002-412-010
Agency Negotiators: Robert Hill, Natalie Harnett,
Greg Hermann, Christine Dietrick,
Whitney McDonald
Negotiating Parties: Mello Lucille Trust
Under Negotiation: Price and terms of payment.

1.c CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL - EXISTING LITIGATION Authorization for defense of litigation pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of California Government Code Section 54956.9.

Name of case: John Ruda, Shahriar Zarnegar, Jordan Knauer, and 3160 Johnson, LLC v. City of San Luis Obispo, United States Central District Court Civil Action No. 2:26-cv-02283-SSC

1.d ADJOURNMENT
The Council will hold a Regular Meeting of the San Luis Obispo City Council in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

2. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Erica A. Stewart will call the Regular Meeting of the San Luis Obispo City Council to order.

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Council Member Michelle Shoresman will lead the Council in the Pledge of Allegiance.

4. PRESENTATIONS

4.a MONTH OF THE CHILD
Mayor Stewart will present a proclamation declaring April 2026 as Month of the Child.

4.b NATIONAL ARAB AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH
Mayor Stewart will present a proclamation declaring April 2026 as National Arab American Heritage Month.

4.c EARTH MONTH
Mayor Stewart will present a proclamation declaring April as Earth Month and Honoring SLO Earthfest 2026.

4.d SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH
Mayor Stewart will present a proclamation declaring April 2026 as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

4.e CITY MANAGER REPORT
Receive a brief report from City Manager Whitney McDonald.

5. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA
Not to exceed 15 minutes. The Council welcomes your input. State law does not allow the Council to discuss or take action on issues not on the agenda, except that members of the Council or staff may briefly respond to statements made or questions posed by persons exercising their public testimony rights (Gov. Code sec. 54954.2). Staff may be asked to follow up on such items.

6. CONSENT AGENDA
Matters appearing on the Consent Calendar are expected to be noncontroversial and will be acted upon at one time. A member of the public may request the Council to pull an item for discussion. Pulled items shall be heard at the close of the Consent Agenda unless a majority of the Council chooses another time. The public may comment on any and all items on the Consent Agenda within the three-minute time limit.

Recommendation:

To approve Consent Calendar Items 6a to 6d.

6.a WAIVE READING IN FULL OF ALL RESOLUTIONS AND

ORDINANCES
Recommendation:

Waive reading of all resolutions and ordinances as appropriate.

6.b MINUTES REVIEW - MARCH 17, 2026 COUNCIL MINUTES 9
Recommendation:

Approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held on March 17, 2026.

6.c 2026 LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM 15
Recommendation:

As recommended by Vice Mayor Francis and Council Member Boswell, adopt a Draft Resolution entitled, “A Resolution of the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo, California, establishing a City Legislative Action Platform for 2026 and appointing a Council Member and Staff Persons to act as a liaison between the City of San Luis Obispo and the League of California Cities”; and

1. Appoint the Mayor, City Manager, and the City Attorney to act as the primary legislative liaisons between the League of California Cities and the City of San Luis Obispo.

2. 6.d AUTHORIZATION TO AWARD 879 MORRO ROOF REPLACEMENT, SPECIFICATION NO. 2000075-10
77 Recommendation:

Approve the project plans and special provisions for the 879 Morro Roof Replacement, Specification No. 2000075-10; and

1. Award a construction contract (Attachment A) to Ranger Roofing and Solar in the amount of $189,074.96 for the 879 Morro Roof Replacement, Specification No. 2000075-10; and,

2. Authorize staff to issue a Purchase Order to Brezden Pest Control Inc., following completion of the roofing project, at an amount within the remaining available project budget; and,

3. Authorize a transfer of $24,948.21 from Sewer Fund Completed Projects to support the roofing project and pest control work; and,

4. Authorize the City Engineer to approve Contract Change Orders, provided they remain within the approved project budget or any amended budget subsequently authorized by the City Manager.

5. 7. PUBLIC HEARING AND BUSINESS ITEMS

7.a 2025 GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REPORT (30 MINUTES) 99
Recommendation:

As recommended by the Planning Commission, receive and file the 2025 General Plan Annual Report.

8. STUDY SESSION

8.a COMMUNITY CLIMATE ACTION PLAN PROGRESS REPORT AND
2027 PLAN UPDATE STUDY SESSION (60 MINUTES)
191
Recommendation:

1. Receive and file the 2026 Climate Action Plan Progress Report.

Provide strategic direction on the 2027 Climate Action Plan update.

2. Direct staff to join the Local Government Climate Alliance to advocate for pre-approved positions via the City’s adopted Legislative Action Platform to advance Council goals related to the Climate Action Plan, and delegate City participation in the organization to the City Manager or their designee.

3. 9. LIAISON REPORTS AND COMMUNICATIONS
Not to exceed 15 minutes. Council Members report on subcommittee assignments, listed below, and other City activities. At this time, any Council Member or the City Manager may ask a question for clarification, make an announcement, or report briefly on their activities. In addition, subject to Council Policies and Procedures, they may provide a reference to staff or other resources for factual information, request staff to report back to the Council at a subsequent meeting concerning any matter or take action to direct staff to place a matter of business on a future agenda. (Gov. Code Sec. 54954.2) Mayor
Stewart
Vice Mayor
Francis
Council Member
Boswell
Council Member
Marx
Council Member
Shoresman
SLO Council of
Governments
Airport Land Use Community
Action
Partnership
Air Pollution
Control District
CP Campus
Planning
Committee
Regional
Economic Action
Coalition
Nacimiento Water
Project
SLO Climate
Coalition
County Water
Resources
Advisory
Committee
Downtown
Association
Board
CA Men’s
Colony Advisory
Committee
Zone 9 Advisory
Committee
Local Agency
Formation
Commission
Homeless
Services
Oversight
Committee
Performing Arts
Center
Commission
Integrated Waste
Management
Authority
SLO Regional
Transit Authority
Visit SLO
County Advisory
Committee
Central Coast
Clean Energy

10. ADJOURNMENT
The next Regular Meeting of the City Council will be held on April 21, 2026 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

LISTENING ASSISTIVE DEVICES for the hearing impaired - see the Clerk.

The City of San Luis Obispo wishes to make all of its public meetings accessible to the public. Upon request, this agenda will be made available in appropriate alternative formats to persons with disabilities. Any person with a disability who requires a modification or accommodation in order to participate in a meeting should direct such request to the City Clerk’s Office at (805) 781-7114 at least 48 hours before the meeting, if possible. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (805) 781-7410.

City Council meetings are televised live on Charter Channel 20 and the City's YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/CityofSanLuisObispo. Agenda related writings or documents provided to the City Council are available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s Office located at 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, California during normal business hours, and on the City’s website https://www.slocity.org/government/mayor-and-city-council/agendas-andminutes. Persons with questions concerning any agenda item may call the City Clerk’s Office at (805) 781-7114.
1 Council Minutes
March 17, 2026, 5:30 p.m.

Council Chambers, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo
Council Members

Present:

Council Member Mike Boswell, Council Member Jan Marx,
Council Member Michelle Shoresman, Vice Mayor Emily
Francis, Mayor Erica A. Stewart
City Staff Present: City Manager Whitney McDonald, Christine Dietrick, City Attorney, Teresa Purrington, City Clerk
_____________________________________________________________________

1. CLOSED SESSION (4:30 PM START)

1.a CALL TO ORDER

1.b CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL—EXISTING LITIGATION
Action: City Attorney Christine Dietrick indicated that the Council met in closed session and there was no reportable action taken.

1.c ADJOURNMENT

2. CALL TO ORDER
A Regular Meeting of the San Luis Obispo City Council was called to order on March 17, 2026 at 5:41 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, by Mayor Stewart.

3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Mayor Stewart led the Council in the Pledge of Allegiance.

4. PRESENTATIONS

4.a CITY MANAGER REPORT
City Manager Whitney McDonald provided a report on upcoming projects.

5. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA
Public Comment:

Shawn Harris
Garrett Philbin

2 --End of Public Comment--

6. CONSENT AGENDA
Public Comment:

None
--End of Public Comment--
Motion By Council Member Marx
Second By Council Member Shoresman
To approve Consent Calendar Items 6a to 6e.

Ayes (5): Council Member Boswell, Council Member Marx, Council Member Shoresman, Vice Mayor Francis, and Mayor Stewart
CARRIED (5 to 0)

6.a WAIVE READING IN FULL OF ALL RESOLUTIONS AND ORDINANCES Waive reading of all resolutions and ordinances as appropriate.

6.b MINUTES REVIEW - FEBRUARY 24, 2026 SPECIAL COUNCIL
MEETING AND MARCH 3, 2026 COUNCIL MINUTES
Approve the minutes of the City Council meeting held on February 24, 2026 and March 3, 2026.

6.c CONSIDERATION AND APPROVAL OF THE 2025-26 HUMAN

SERVICES GRANT REALLOCATION RECOMMENDATION

1. As recommended by the Human Relations Commission, approve the reallocation of $15,000 in grants funds from the 2025-26 Human Services Grant program to specified recipients; and

2. Authorize the City Manager to execute agreements with each grant recipient.

6.d CONSIDERATION OF THE 2025-26 DEI HIGH IMPACT GRANT

FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS

1. As recommended by the Human Relations Commission, approve the revised 2025-26 Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) High Impact Grant funding allocations in the amount of $150,000; and

2. Authorize the City Manager to execute agreements with each grant recipient.

3 6.e AUTHORIZATION TO EXTEND SUBLEASE AGREEMENT FOR SOUTH

HILLS RADIO SITE
Approve and authorize the City Manager to execute an amendment to sublease agreement for South Hills Radio Site, between the City of San Luis Obispo and Higuera Hill, LLC (Katherine L Foster, Trustee of the Katherine L Foster Family Trust dated October 21, 2024, and Heather A Spangler, Trustee of the Michael R Spangler revocable trust dated May 27, 2016).

7. PUBLIC HEARING AND BUSINESS ITEMS

7.a LOCAL ROADS FIRST PROPOSED BALLOT MEASURE – CONSIDER

RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT
Public Works Deputy Director of Mobility Services Jennifer Rice and Annie Bowsky, SLCOG provided an in-depth staff report and responded to Council questions.

Public Comments:

Rachel Whalen
Brad Brechwald
---End of Public Comment---
Motion By Mayor Stewart
Second By Council Member Boswell
To adopt Resolution No. 11636 (2026 Series) entitled, “A Resolution of the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo, California, supporting the San Luis Obispo County Transportation Expenditure Plan and in support of the proposed countywide 0.5% transportation sales tax measure being placed on the November 3, 2026 ballot.”

7.b UPDATES ON CAPSLO HOMELESS SERVICES DIVISION 2025-2028

STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT PLAN AND CAPSLO GOOD NEIGHBOR

POLICY UPDATE FOR HOMELESS SERVICES
Homelessness Response Manager Daisy Wiberg and Lawren Ramos Community Services Program Director provided an in-depth staff report and responded to Council questions.

Public Comments:

None
---End of Public Comment---

4 Action: No formal action taken on this item. Council directed staff to receive and file CAPSLO's 2025-28 Strategic Alignment Plan and 2025 Good Neighbor Policy Update for Homeless Services.

7.c SLO COUNTY REGIONAL HOMELESSNESS AND AFFORDABLE

HOUSING COMPACT AND REGIONAL HOMELESS SERVICES

INVENTORY
Homeless Services Manager Daisy Wiberg and Linda Belch, Deputy Director of Adult and Homeless Services Division for County of San Luis Obispo provided an in-depth staff report and responded to Council questions.

Public Comments:

Geraldine Clemons
---End of Public Comment---
Motion By Council Member Shoresman
Second By Vice Mayor Francis

1. Adopt Resolution No. 11637 (2026 Series) entitled, “Approving the San Luis Obispo County Regional Homelessness and Affordable Housing Compact,” and

2. Receive and comment on a report and presentation from the County of San Luis Obispo’s Homeless Services Division on the Regional Compact and a Regional Homeless Services Inventory.

Ayes (5): Council Member Boswell, Council Member Marx, Council Member Shoresman, Vice Mayor Francis, and Mayor Stewart CARRIED (5 to 0)

8. LIAISON REPORTS AND COMMUNICATIONS
Mayor Stewart
 Attended Regional Economic Action Coalition (REACH) Summit March 10  SLO Regional Transit Authority (SLORTA) - March 4
 Interview with the Solestiss Consulting firm regarding Diablo  Participated in the painting event at CL Smith
 Threw out the first pitch for the SLO Girls Softball League  Attended the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure Ribbon Cutting

5  Met with Victor Reyes-Morales, Regional Deputy Director from the Governor's Office
Vice Mayor Francis
 Attended News and Brews
 Attended the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure Ribbon Cutting Council Member Boswell
 Attended the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure Ribbon Cutting  Met with SLO Climate Coalition
 Attended the Civic Well Policy Makers Conference
Council Member Marx
 Indicated that the Air Pollution Control District is looking for a public member for its Hearing Board
 Addressed the Community Academy on March 9th
 Attended the Prado Interchange Community Meeting at San Luis Ranch on March 11th
Council Member Shoresman
 Attended SCLC meeting
 Interview with the Solestiss Consulting firm regarding Diablo  Attended the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure Ribbon Cutting  Homeless Services Oversight Committee Meeting tomorrow 1:00 PM to 3:00 is a public listening session

9. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 8:44 PM p.m. The next Regular City Council Meeting is scheduled for April 7, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.

APPROVED BY COUNCIL: XX/XX/202X

City of San Luis Obispo, Council Memorandum
City of San Luis Obispo
Council Agenda Correspondence
DATE: April 7, 2026
TO: Mayor and Council
FROM: Greg Hermann, Deputy City Manager
Prepared By: Natalie Harnett, Policy & Project Manager
VIA: Whitney McDonald, City Manager
SUBJECT: ITEM #6c – 2026 LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM
Staff have received several questions from Council and recommend making several small clarifying changes to the proposed 2026 Legislative Action Platform language as noted below.

1. Update the Community Development Plank #18 (Attachment B, Page 13) to clarify that support for any reforms to single-stair mid-rise apartment buildings need to consider the findings and recommendations as presented in the March 3, 2026, Cal Fire - Office of the State Fire Marshal Report to the Legislature pursuant to Assembly Bill 835. The updated language is included below:

Support building code reforms to enable single-stair mid-rise apartment buildings, consistent with the findings of the March 2026 Cal Fire – Office of the State Fire Marshal report to the Legislature pursuant to Assembly Bill 835 and that incorporate modern fire and life safety standards.

2. Update the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Plank #14 (Attachment B, Page 9) to clarify that this includes support for reforms across the health insurance industry and not just Medicare. The updated language is included below:

Medicare and other health insurance program reforms, including updates to geographic designation criteria, that promote equity, expand access to care, enhance regional collaboration, and ensure healthcare sustainability on the Central Coast.

Staff also received a public comment regarding several legislative items, and Council has asked whether these bills fit under the City’s existing Legislative Platform. Additional information on each is provided below:

ITEM #6c – 2026 LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM Page 2
E-Bikes: E‑ bike legislation continues to be top of mind as e‑ bikes become an increasingly popular mode of transportation. Cal Cities is currently updating a formal e‑ bike policy, expected to be completed this month. Staff recommends using that framework to guide the City’s legislative advocacy. Lawmakers have introduced at least ten e‑ bike bills this session, and Cal Cities is currently supporting three: AB 1569, AB 1614, and AB 2346. The remaining, including SB 1167, AB 1942, AB 1557, SB 956, AB 2284, AB 2595, are still under policy committee review.

As specified in the City’s Legislative Platform, the City of San Luis Obispo may take positions consistent with Cal Cities’ adopted stances. The City has existing language1in its Legislative Platform that supports the City’s authority to regulate activities with adverse health and safety impacts on local streets, sidewalks, and rights‑ of‑ way, which aligns with many of the e‑ bike safety proposals.

If Council chooses to add an e‑ bike specific plank to the Legislative Platform, staff recommends the following language:
“Support legislation that strengthens e‑ bike safety through rider education, improved equipment regulations, and visibility standards, provides cities with local authority to set operating and speed rules on bike paths and multi‑ use trails and that also support the City’s mobility and climate goals.” Housing Leadership Designation: As referenced in the Public Agenda Correspondence, SB 1216 would create a new “housing leadership designation” allowing qualifying cities to exempt themselves from certain provisions of SB 9, along with providing additional flexibility regarding other state housing mandates.

If the City were to qualify, this legislation could increase local authority and would be consistent with the City’s existing Legislative Platform2 which supports local control of land use planning and zoning matters.

Driving Under the Influence (DUI): Cal Cities is also advocating for updates to DUI and impaired‑ driving laws and has issued letters of support for a handful of bills, including AB 1546, AB 1662, AB 1874, and SB 907. The City’s existing Legislative Platform already includes a broadly relevant plank3that supports legislation to help curb drug and alcohol‑ related criminal behavior. If Council would like to include a more specific plank in the Public Safety section, staff propose the following:

1 Public Safety Plank #8 (Pg 16): The City's right to regulate activities with adverse health and safety impacts on local streets, sidewalks, public spaces, and rights‐of‐way, including illegal street parties.
2 Community Development #1 (Pg 11): Support - Local control of land use planning and zoning matters.
3 Public Safety Plank #4 (Pg 15): Support - Legislation to help curb drug and alcohol‐related criminal behavior and underage consumption.

ITEM #6c – 2026 LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM Page 3
“Support legislation that strengthens and modernizes distracted‑ driving and impaired‑ driving laws to improve roadway safety through education, technology, and statewide standards.”
Remote Work: The City’s Legislative Platform does not currently include language that would support a position on requiring State telework options. Council could direct staff to develop a new legislative plank on this topic or take positions on specific bills, such as AB 1729, referenced in public comment, on a case‑ by‑ case basis.

Item 6c
Department: Administration
Cost Center: 1001
For Agenda of: 4/7/2026
Placement: Consent
Estimated Time: N/A
FROM: Greg Hermann, Deputy City Manager
Prepared By: Natalie Harnett, Policy and Project Manager SUBJECT: 2026 LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

RECOMMENDATION

1. As recommended by Vice Mayor Francis and Council Member Boswell, adopt a Draft Resolution entitled, “A Resolution of the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo, California, establishing a City Legislative Action Platform for 2026 and appointing a Council Member and Staff Persons to act as a liaison between the City of San Luis Obispo and the League of California Cities”; and

2. Appoint the Mayor, City Manager, and the City Attorney to act as the primary legislative liaisons between the League of California Cities and the City of San Luis Obispo.

POLICY CONTEXT
The legislative platform is a tool to promote the efficient use of staff and the Council time while also ensuring the City is actively engaged on relevant legislative issues. City Council approval is required for any modifications to the platform and is updated through an annual review process. The City will be providing a copy of the City’s Legislative Platform to Federal and State legislators and will also be sharing a copy with the County Board of Supervisors.

DISCUSSION
Attached for Council’s consideration is a Resolution (Attachment A) establishing the City’s 2026 Legislative Action Platform. Similar resolutions have been adopted by the Council since 1993. The City Administration and IT Department coordinates the Legislative Action Program with assistance from the Attorney’s Office and other City departments, as appropriate. The proposed Resolution authorizes staff to respond to legislative issues affecting the City (via letters signed by the Mayor, City Manager and occasionally, Department Heads), provided that the positions taken in the letters are consistent with the priorities identified in Exhibit A to the Resolution (Attachment B) and League of California Cities (Cal Cities) advocacy efforts.

Item 6c
By establishing a broad legislative platform and delegating responsibility to the Mayor and staff to respond to proposed legislation and recommendations from Cal Cities, the City is better able to react quickly to changing circumstances and urgent requests than it would be if each item were brought to the Council at its regular meetings. The process is considered a best practice, has been efficient given the limited City resources available, and the City continues to be very active in communicating its positions on Federal and State legislation.

During the January 20, 2026 City Council meeting, the Council appointed Vice Mayor Francis and Council Member Boswell to an Ad Hoc Committee to review the 2026 Legislative Platform. Staff reviewed the Legislative Platform and suggested edits to the Ad Hoc Committee based on their subject matter expertise. After reviewing the platform, the Ad Hoc Committee met on February 20, 2026, and recommended several updates to the Legislative Platform, including both their own edits and those recommended by staff.

All changes, including language clean-ups, are shown in the redlined draft of the 2026 Platform included as Attachment C, with new language underlined and removed sections shown with a strikethrough.

Previous Council or Advisory Body Action
The City Council discussed this item at the January 20, 2026 meeting and appointed the Ad Hoc Committee. The most recent Legislative Action Platform was approved on April 15, 2025.

Legislative Liaison Appointments
The League of California Cities encourages cities to appoint a Council Member and a staff person to act as legislative liaisons between the League and the City. As has been past practice, staff recommends that Mayor Erica A. Stewart act as the Council Legislative Liaison and the City Manager and the City Attorney serve as the Staff Liaisons.

PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
Public comment on the item can be provided to the City Council through written correspondence prior to the meeting and through public testimony at the meeting.

CONCURRENCE
In preparing this year’s draft platform, input was solicited from all City departments and several additions and clarifications were recommended.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) does not apply to the recommended action in this report, because the action does not constitute a “Project” under CEQA Guidelines Sec. 15378.

Item 6c

FISCAL IMPACT
Budgeted: Yes Budget Year: 2025-26
Funding Identified: Yes
Fiscal Analysis:

Funding
Sources
Total Budget
Available
Current
Funding
Request
Remaining
Balance
Annual
Ongoing
Cost
General Fund $ $ $ $
State
Federal
Fees
Other:

Total N/A N/A N/A N/A
Because no additional staff work is anticipated as a result of this ongoing program, no new fiscal impact will be incurred that was not already included in the current budget appropriation.

ALTERNATIVES
The Council may wish to modify the proposed 2026 Legislative Platform or include other issues not included in the current draft. The Legislative Platform allows the City to take action on any bills and other measures formally supported by the League of California Cities. Any additions or modifications to the Platform should generally be crafted to be flexible to allow for quick responses to legislation important to cities.

ATTACHMENTS
A - Draft Resolution adopting the 2026 Legislative Platform B - Exhibit A to the Draft Resolution – 2026 Legislative Action Platform (Final Version) C - 2026 Legislative Action Platform (Marked Version)

R ______
RESOLUTION NO. _____ (2026 SERIES)

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN LUIS

OBISPO, CALIFORNIA, ESTABLISHING THE CITY LEGISLATIVE
ACTION PLATFORM FOR 2026 AND APPOINTING A COUNCIL

MEMBER AND STAFF PERSONS TO ACT AS LIAISON BETWEEN THE

CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO AND THE LEAGUE OF CALIFORNIA CITIES WHEREAS, a major objective of the City Council is to adopt an aggressive legislative action platform which strengthens local government, promotes City goals and defends the City against legislative actions by State and Federal governments that would weaken local government and/or take away traditional revenue sources; and WHEREAS, it is vital to the fiscal health and the self determination of the City to effectively communicate with State Legislators and Federal representatives in order to favorably influence State and Federal legislation, regulations and grant requests; and WHEREAS, the League of California Cities conducts a legislative analysis and advocacy program on behalf of cities for State issues and major Federal issues; and WHEREAS, the City desires to be proactive and involved in the governmental decision-making processes directly affecting the City legislative priorities identified in Exhibit A, and other selected issues as may from time to time be recommended by the League of California Cities; and
WHEREAS, the City Council considered an update to the Legislative Action Platform on January 20, 2026, and formed an Ad-Hoc Subcommittee consisting of Vice Mayor Francis and Councilmember Boswell to provide further review and changes in response to Council and public input; and
WHEREAS, on February 20, 2026, the Ad-Hoc Subcommittee reviewed staff recommended changes and provided additional recommendations in consideration of the Council and public input; and
WHEREAS, a key component of the City’s Legislative Action Platform is face-to face meetings between City representatives and elected officials at the Federal, State, and County levels, and coordination with similar efforts made by other local government entities.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of San Luis Obispo as follows:

Resolution No. _____ (2026 Series) Page 2
R ______
SECTION 1. Establish the Legislative Action Platform for 2026 as set forth in the attached Exhibit “A” and authorize the Mayor, City Manager, and the City Attorney to take positions on legislation generally consistent with the Legislative Action Platform and such other resolutions and recommendations of the League of California Cities as may be from time to time presented to the City.

Upon motion of _______________, seconded by _____________, and on the following roll call vote:

AYES:

NOES:

ABSENT:

The foregoing resolution was adopted this _____ day of _____________________ 2026. ___________________________
Mayor Erica A. Stewart
ATTEST:
________________________
Teresa Purrington,
City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
________________________
J. Christine Dietrick,
City Attorney
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the official seal of the City of San Luis Obispo, California, on ______________________. ___________________________
Teresa Purrington,
City Clerk

Exhibit A - 2026 Legislative Action Platform

2026

CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM
ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. XXXXX (2026 SERIES)

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

About this Legislative Platform
This Legislative Platform, adopted by the City of San Luis Obispo Council, will establish the City’s position on legislative matters of priority and importance to the City. The Legislative Platform is reviewed regularly and updated on an annual basis. The Legislative Platform shall be published and disseminated widely to promote transparency and awareness among the public. The City shares its Legislative Platform with Federal and State legislators, as well as the County Board of Supervisors. This public document serves as a guiding framework for the City's legislative advocacy efforts throughout the year.

Advocacy
The Legislative Platform reflects those legislative matters on which the council majority authorizes the Mayor, City Manager and City Attorney to engage in legislative advocacy on behalf of the City without the need for further council review or authority. The council’s authorization extends only to advocacy for or against generally applicable legislative proposals (including those pertaining to budget, regulations, policies, and programs) being considered by local, regional, state and/or federal policy makers or regulators consistent with Major City Goals and adopted City policy platforms. It does not otherwise extend to advocacy for or against any individual project, program, or entitlement application pending before any decision-making body, unless specifically noted herein.

The League of California Cities (Cal Cities)
The City actively participates in the Cal Cities, a statewide association representing most of California’s 483 cities. Cal Cities advocates for local control through legislative efforts, ballot measures, legal action, and strategic outreach to educate policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public. It also conducts legislative analysis and advocacy on behalf of cities for key State and Federal issues. Through the Council’s adopted Legislative Platform resolution, the City takes positions consistent with Cal Cities’ recommendations. The 2026 Cal Cities advocacy priorities include:

1. Protect and enhance local revenues and expand economic development tools.

2. Strengthen partnerships with the state to improve public safety.

3. Secure investments to prevent and reduce homelessness and increase the supply of affordable housing.

4. Strengthen climate change resiliency and disaster preparedness.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

Consistency with City Goals and Policies
The City of San Luis Obispo’s Legislative Action Platform is designed to align with the City’s and broader strategic priorities. The platform provides a framework for legislative advocacy; however, all positions that the City takes should be consistent with adopted City policies, strategic plans, and/or overarching Major City Goals where feasible. This ensures a cohesive and strategic approach to legislative engagement that reflects the City’s priorities and values. For emerging issues or situations not outlined in the Legislative Platform or recommended through Cal Cities, City staff will work with the City Council for further direction.

Figure 1 - 2025-27 Council Adopted Major City Goals

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

Contents
Climate Action...............................................................................................................................................5 Energy ...........................................................................................................................................................6 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for All ..........................................................................................................8 Homelessness Resources..............................................................................................................................9 Community Development...........................................................................................................................12 Tenant Protections......................................................................................................................................13 Economic Development..............................................................................................................................13 Finance & Governance................................................................................................................................14 Human Resources/Employee Relations......................................................................................................15 Public Safety................................................................................................................................................16 Public Works ...............................................................................................................................................19 Parks and Recreation and Natural Resources.............................................................................................20 Transportation ............................................................................................................................................21 Utilities........................................................................................................................................................23

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

Climate Action
Support:

1. Funding for communities to pay for public infrastructure that meets state greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and adopted City objectives.

2. Funding to implement programs and related action items contained in local and regional Climate Action Plans to quantitatively reduce greenhouse gas emissions and advocate for regulatory reform, including but not limited to clean technologies, micro-grids, all electric/zero-emission buildings, electrified transportation, behind the meter technology, and natural solutions (e.g., tree planting, open space conservation, and contemporary land management and restoration practices).

3. Regulatory reform to facilitate the transition to clean technologies, microgrids, low and zero carbon energy generation, and decarbonized buildings.

4. Legislation and regulation that is aligned with the City’s goals of carbon neutrality by 2035 and subgoals related to municipal operations, clean electricity, building decarbonization, clean mobility, organic waste diversion, and natural solutions.

5. Legislation and regulation that is aligned with the policies and programs set forth by the Climate Adaptation and Safety Element including using future projections for climate hazards in planning decisions, investing in community resilience, and adapting built infrastructure and natural ecosystems to climate change hazards and disturbances.

6. Funding and resources to focus climate investments on programs and projects that support environmental justice, economic and racial equity, and head of household jobs.

7. Legislation, policies, and regulation that extend producer responsibility for packaging and single-use product manufacturing as to encourage source reduction and the manufacturing of reusable and sustainable products.

8. Legislation, policies, and regulation that that make waste diversion and reduction more equitable for our residents and businesses.

9. Legislation that makes recycling organic waste and edible food recovery and distribution more efficient and easily accessible to residents and businesses in need.

Oppose:

10. Legislation and regulation that limits the City’s ability to achieve its goals of carbon neutrality by 2035 and sub-goals related to municipal operations, clean electricity, building decarbonization, clean mobility, organic waste diversion, and natural solutions.

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Energy
Support:

1. Reform of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) structure and policies, state regulation, and state legislation to accelerate equitable building and transportation decarbonization.

2. CPUC reform that ties investor-owned utility compensation to performance consistent with state policy objectives.

3. California Community Choice Associations’ (Cal CCA) Regulatory and Legislative Platform, where consistent with the City’s legislative platform.

4. Reform of CPUC policies and state legislation to ensure investor-owned utilities are able and required to provide timely, accurate, and sufficiently detailed energy data.

5. Reform of CPUC policies and state legislation that supports increased, equitable, and affordable access to distributed energy resources, including rooftop solar.

6. Support legislation and regulatory actions that improve electricity affordability while maintaining consistency with the City’s other platform positions, including preserving access to rooftop solar and protecting ratepayer-funded decarbonization and energy efficiency programs.

7. Reform of CPUC policies, state regulation, and state legislation that support low income zero emission buildings, including support for mobile home parks, low-income households, and other disadvantaged community members.

8. The Central Coast Regional Energy Network at the County Board of Supervisors, the CPUC, and related relevant entities and supporting pilot projects in the City as feasible.

9. Regional and regulatory collaboration to fund and support climate change impact projections and coordinate approaches for increasing regional resilience.

10. Sustainable and resilient energy programs.

11. Legislation in alignment with Central Coast Community Energy Policy Board and Operations Board Positions.
1 1 The City Council approved the City joining Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) in September 2018 and City representatives have been seated on 3CE’s Policy Board, Operations Board, and Community Advisory Council since 2019. This section of the City’s Legislative Platform identifies City of San Luis Obispo policy positions on key topics that may come before the various boards and advisory bodies of 3CE. The policy positions contained herein are

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a. 3CE investment in and support for distributed energy resources (e.g., rooftop solar), virtual power plants, demand response, behind the meter technology and energy efficiency. b. 3CE in evaluating and deploying programs that are climate action force multipliers (e.g., tariffed on-bill financing, virtual power plants, etc.). c. Processes that are transparent, collaborative, visible, accessible, and inclusive. d. Rate, rebate, and revenue structures that create a robust programs budget. e. Regional climate action and a portfolio of programs that are strategically implemented to achieve regional climate targets.
f. Local government access to data, transparent GHG emissions reporting, and sub-annual emissions factors as available.
g. Processes and governance approaches that provide sufficient time for Board members to fully participate and drive decisions, from inception to implementation.

12. Legislation and regulatory efforts that promote the safe deployment, operation, and decommissioning of battery energy storage systems (BESS).

13. Actions and legislation related to Diablo Canyon Power Plant that are consistent with the City’s 2016 adopted guiding principles, including:
a. Ensuring public safety and environmental protection during continued operations or decommissioning.
b. Securing fiscal mitigation measures to offset local economic and infrastructure impacts. c. Investigating opportunities for job creation, economic diversification, and the reuse of facilities or lands in ways that provide long‑term community benefit. d. Advancing open-space and community benefit outcomes for lands associated with the plant. e. Promoting transparent stakeholder engagement and collaboration with local jurisdictions.

Oppose:

14. Legislative and CPUC decisions that negatively impact CCAs or otherwise shift the financial obligations of investor-owned utilities to CCAs.
intended to guide Board member deliberation, and voting and staff review of agenda, but are not an exhaustive list of issues that may arise. These positions are intended to extend only to advocacy for or against generally applicable policy proposals being considered by 3CE and does not extend to advocacy on any individual project or entitlement application pending before any decision-making body, nor does it extend to the larger legislative platform of the City.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION PLATFORM

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for All
Support:

1. Legislation that creates, expands, and/or provides broad authority to jurisdictions to develop and implement diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, policies, or initiatives to address systemic inequities that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized, underserved, and underrepresented communities.

2. Legislation that centers reforms for advancing access for undocumented individuals’ health, wellbeing, and success.

3. Education and employment opportunities and development of upward economic mobility and access to programs such as childcare, after-school activities, school’s family support networks and supportive services for individuals aging out of the foster care system.

4. Increased availability of grant funding for ADA accessibility improvements and connectivity to streets, parks, and other public infrastructure.

5. Amendments to the California Elections Code to expand safe harbor provisions in response to district elections demands under the California Voting Rights Act to include remedies, in addition to district elections, to enhance quantifiable equity gains in participation and representation in local elections, including, but not limited to cumulative voting, limited voting, ranked choice voting and other voting structures that can be demonstrated to advance voter engagement and equity.

6. Legislation that furthers jurisdictions’ abilities to create policies that protect voting rights and work to disrupt voter suppression tactics that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color.

7. Legislation that provides funding sources for appropriate human service agencies that support the mission of the Human Relations Commission.

8. Legislation and funding to increase affordable and equitable childcare services, and activities, and options for working low-income families.

9. Legislation related to implementation of the Racial Equity Framework2 and resources and tools to promote racial equity and address structural racism.
2 Executive Order N-16-22 establishes the State's authority to develop plans and strategies to advance equity and identify disparities. Within the Executive Order, there are specifics for the Governor's Office of Planning & Research to create the Racial Equity Commission (REC). One of the duties of the REC is to produce a Racial Equity Framework, which will contain strategies for state, county, and local governments to implement.

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10. Legislation that creates programs or policies that contribute to family friendly workplace environmentsthat may include, but are not limited to, leave for reproductive loss, paid parental leave, flextime, and job sharing.

11. Legislation that advances access and expands funding for services, programs, and/or projects centered in addressing inequities that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized, underserved, and underrepresented communities.

12. Legislation that subsidizes or provides funding for translation and interpretation services for local governments to ensure all members of a community can be civically engaged and easily access government programs and services.

13. Legislation that strengthens the California Civil Rights Department and its ability to respond to and address hate and discrimination cases appropriately.

14. Medicare reforms, including updates to geographic designation criteria, that promote equity, expand access to care, enhance regional collaboration, and ensure healthcare sustainability on the Central Coast.

15. Legislation that maintains civil rights protections, improves transparency, and builds community trust in Federal immigration enforcement for our City residents.

Oppose:

16. Legislation that limits or preempts local authority to design, implement, or evaluate polices, programs, or initiatives intended to advance access, belonging, or equitable outcomes, particularly where such limitations hinder local government's ability to responds to documented community needs or disparities.

Homelessness Resources
Support:

1. Legislation and funding for the prevention of homelessness and support of families and individuals vulnerable to becoming homeless.

2. Funding for project-based, permanent affordable housing.

3. Funding for the entire housing spectrum (including affordable units, ADUs, Tiny Homes, Temporary Emergency Shelters and family housing, and supportive housing for all unhoused individuals and families including those with mental health needs, the medically fragile, and aging adults.)

4. Increased flexibility in the use of Federal Funds at the local level to address the full spectrum of services and transitional housing for individuals who are unhoused.

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5. Nonprofit eviction prevention services for low-income individuals and families.

6. Programs and funding to encourage private market landlords to provide affordable units, participate in housing voucher programs, and upgrade units for energy efficiency.

7. Funding that encourages unique multi-departmental and inter-governmental collaboration to assist individuals experiencing homelessness, such as the City’s Community Action Team (CAT) and Mobile Crisis Unit (MCU), as well as Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) for public safety personnel.

8. Employment services and job training opportunities for individuals who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless.

9. Funding for federal, state, county and local coordination with non-profit and faith-based organizations to prevent and address homelessness.

10. Funding for the removal and storage of unhoused individual’s belongings and the cleaning of sites used by unhoused residents, in alignment with the City’s Compassionate Assistance, Mitigation & Prevention (CAMP) Standards and Temporary Storage Guidelines.

11. Funding and programs that promote whole person care approaches that include access to expanded medical, mental, and behavioral health services, including substance use disorder treatment services, and new approaches to financing health care access and patient wellness to reduce avoidable emergency room visits, hospital stays and readmissions.

12. Increased funding and statutory authorization for crisis intervention, involuntary assessment and commitment, guardianship control, and health welfare intervention and supervision of those suffering from chronic homelessness, mental health conditions and addiction, and recognition of mental illness and addiction as contributors to chronic homelessness.

13. Streamlined protocols and metrics to be used by homeless service providers, local agencies, and other non-governmental partners to capture and share accurate statistics of individuals experiencing homelessness, including vacancy and capacity rates, in-flow and out-flow information, cost-reporting of services provided and rendered, and individuals successfully housed.

14. Legislation, programs, funding, court intervention, and statutory authorization for a unified crisis response system to enhance the ability of the County Behavioral Health Director, crisis response personnel, family members and social service providers to share information necessary for effective treatment interventions and to compel assisted outpatient treatment for a person exiting a conservatorship and those lacking capacity to provide for their own healthcare, shelter and food needs.

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15. Legislation that would allow the courts and crisis intervention personnel to consider a person’s medical, addiction and mental health conditions, history of adverse impacts on community health and safety, and capacity of individuals to provide for their own health, shelter, and food needs in mandating program participation in connection with criminal justice and other contacts, including or expansion of the definition of “gravely disabled” under code section 5150 et seq. in evaluating whether an individual is a danger to themselves or others.

16. Legislation for Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) to allow for flexibility in funds earmarked for “Innovation” programs that are aimed at finding new and different ways to provide services.

17. Legislation, funding, programs, and policies to help expand capacity in local psychiatric health facilities, delivery of case management, drug, alcohol, and detoxification services and facilities, assisted living beds for medically fragile people, and mental health services for all County residents.

18. Advocation that the County lead in the area of expanding humane shelter and housing opportunities for the unhoused population and expand outreach and case management services specifically tailored to the needs of unhoused individuals in the County to transition out of homelessness.

19. The use of data from public safety, City, and regional Community Action Teams (CAT) and Mobile Crisis Units (MCU) outcomes, to advocate that the County allocate new resources to scale up these programs to match the need.

20. An effective and efficient implementation of San Luis Obispo County’s 5-Year Plan to Address Homelessness.

21. State and federal funding of mandates to provide care and services to vulnerable populations.

22. Legislative efforts to repeal Article 34 of the California Constitution, which requires majority approval by the voters of a city or county for the development, construction, or acquisition of a publicly funded affordable housing project.

23. Assistance for those experiencing physical and mental health impacts of a pandemic or other disaster.

24. Regional efforts to create a spectrum of housing types (including board and care and housing types that include other supportive services) within the County to house the unhoused.

Oppose:

25. Legislation that seeks to circumvent local control and consideration of local circumstances and safety of the general public when addressing homelessness.

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Community Development
Support:

1. Local control of land use planning and zoning matters.

2. State and Federal assistance to prevent the loss of housing for those impacted by local, state, or federal disasters.

3. Reforms of the State mandated HCD Regional Housing Need Allocations process to recognize local resource limitations, regional collaboration and development, and align infrastructure and other funding to help communities meet mandated housing requirements.

4. Planning and funding of on-campus housing at Cal Poly for students, staff and faculty as included in the Cal Poly Master Plan, including an on campus Greek row.

5. Increased and ongoing funding sources for affordable housing and supportive housing services for very low-, low-, and moderate-income individuals and families in all cities and communities and opposing the erosion of local inclusionary housing and in-lieu fee programs.

6. Continued funding of National Housing Trust Fund and streamlined and efficient implementation regulations at the state level.

7. Additional state funding to implement AB 32 (The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006) and SB 375 (The Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008) through local general plan updates that implement the regional sustainable communities plan and alternative planning strategy, if needed.

8. Funding for the identification, acquisition, maintenance and restoration of historic sites and structures.

9. Continued and expanded funding for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.

10. Policies, programs and funding to support opportunities to convert vacant commercial spaces to affordable housing and childcare facilities.

11. State and federal level down-payment assistance programs and the expansion of below-market rate assistance programs.

12. Continued local control over mobile home park rent stabilization and local control over the conversion of mobile home parks to other uses to ensure that low-income mobile home park residents are not involuntarily removed from homes or otherwise subject to involuntary displacement due to economic

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impacts of parks subdivision or conversion.

13. The protection, enhancement, and increased production of mobile home park residency opportunities.

14. The ability to issue parking citations on private property.

15. Responsible review and revision of CEQA to ensure sound environmental determinations with a focus on CEQA reform that specifically addresses housing production and rezoning efforts to facilitate housing.

16. Pragmatic and clarifying actions to implement Proposition 64 Cannabis legalization, including increased funding for health education, the preservation of local land use decision making and reconciliation of conflicts in state and federal law, and systems for legal banking.

17. Funding for seismic retrofitting for buildings that haven't been retrofitted.

18. Building code reforms to enable single-stair mid-rise apartment buildings that meet modern fire and life-safety standards.

19. Legislation that provides reasonable definitions, interpretive guidance, and flexible implementation timelines for transit-oriented housing laws (including SB 79 and related follow-up bills).

Tenant Protections
Support:

1. Increased relocation assistance (AB 1482 2019) when a tenant is evicted due to no-fault of their own.

2. Increases in state and federal approaches to renter protections for rental housing and enforcement of existing renter protections in accordance with the California Civil Codes including but not limited to Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1940-1954.1 (includes Tenant Protection Act).

3. Legislation, policies, and programs that expand tenant affordability and stability.

Economic Development
Support:

1. State and federal assistance for those people and businesses facing severe economic losses due to pandemic or other disasters.

2. Regional economic activities except for those that promote weapons or fossil fuel production or distribution activities.

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3. Direct assistance and/or legislation that supports local agencies with recovering costs related to the pandemic or other disasters and stimulate economic development, resiliency, and recovery.

4. Funding and legislation using tax credits or other incentive programs to encourage research and development by businesses in California.

5. Funding and policies for the promotion of California and the City and County of San Luis Obispo as a place to locate businesses that provide head-of-household jobs.

6. Economic development that is integrated with articulated Major City Goals such as climate action, environmental protection and social justice and diversity objectives.

7. Funding for the state tourism promotion program.

8. The effective and efficient use of all communications technologies including voice, video, data, and information services over wired and wireless transmission technologies and supporting net neutrality.

9. Telecommunications reform legislation and other measures that preserve local control over public rights-of-way, protect local resources, broadband and telecommunications for all residents and guarantee access to, funding for, and local flexibility in utilizing funds for public, educational and government (PEG) access television.

10. Federal and state funding of broadband infrastructure.

11. The expansion of public infrastructure financing tools and funding for infrastructure.

12. Funding, policies, and legislation that support access to childcare, transitional kindergarten (TK), and related services that strengthen the local workforce, reduce barriers to employment, and support economic resilience.

Finance & Governance
Support:

1. Meaningful fiscal reform that allows each level of government to adequately finance its service responsibilities while continuing to support efforts to protect the City from loss of revenues due to State take-aways and unfunded State or Federal mandates.

2. The continuation of California Specialized Training Institute activities within San Luis Obispo County.

3. Legislation to modernize the Ralph M. Brown Act to provide increased flexibility for remote participation in public meetings by elected and appointed officials and provide increased

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opportunities for public engagement.

4. Legislation that furthers SB 1439’s intent to restrict “Pay-to-play” campaign financing but provides clarifications and modifications that reduce the administrative burden associated with the implementation as currently written.

5. The streamlining, clarification, and simplification of conflict-of-interest regulations applicable to local officials.

6. Tools and legislation that help cities fairly collect taxes and revenues owed.

7. Support monitoring and mitigating the impacts of federal FY 2026–27 budget legislation (H.R. 1) that could reduce federal funding to local programs, including Medi-Cal and CalFresh, and other safety-net services.

Oppose:

8. Initiatives that unduly burden and/or prohibit local government ability to support essential services to the community.

9. Removal of the municipal bond tax exemption.

Human Resources/Employee Relations
Support:

1. Additional workers’ compensation reforms that lower employers' costs while still protecting workers and oppose legislation that would restrict appropriate cost controls in the workers’ compensation system.

2. Pension and retiree health benefits reform efforts, policy changes, and permissible administration decisions aimed at reducing unfunded liabilities, reducing costs, and ensuring the long-term viability of the defined benefit pension system in concert with the League of California Cities and the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Board of Directors.

3. Legislation to protect the City's continued ability to administer its Cafeteria Benefit Plan and maintain comprehensive health care coverage for eligible employees, in a financially sustainable manner.

4. Reforms that limit the financial impacts of joint and several liability on public entities.

5. The clarification, modification, or repeal of AB 646 fact finding requirements and oppose measures that reduces local control over public employee disputes.

6. Federal legislation to modify, refine, or eliminate Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requirements on

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public agencies.

7. Reforms that limit the joint and several liability to agencies who have entered into Joint Powers Agreements (JPAs).

8. Meaningful statewide and national efforts to make quality health care more affordable and accessible to residents and reduce costs for cities and employers.

9. Clarification and modification of AB 3393 to reduce unnecessary administrative burden while maintaining the legislative intent, including clarifying that notice requirements apply only when fully contracting out represented positions or functions, and not to minor or ancillary contracts.

Oppose:

10. The expansion of property rights in public employment and procedural requirements that hinder or significantly increase the public costs of effective performance management, including legislation that curtails management rights or obstructs the timely, efficient, and cost-effective implementation of performance management or disciplinary measures.

11. Measures that curtail management rights or impose local government mandated employee benefits that should be directly negotiated between labor groups and employers.

Public Safety
Support:

1. New and continued State and Federal funding for school safety, disaster preparedness, earthquake preparedness, Homeland Security, hazardous material response, State COPS (Citizen’s Options for Public Safety) program, CIT (Crisis Intervention Training) and other public safety activities.

2. Preservation of the City's authority to investigate police misconduct.

3. Local control on issuance of concealed weapons permits.

4. Legislation to help curb drug and alcohol-related criminal behavior and underage consumption.

5. Legislation to limit or end the sale of all nonflavored and flavored electronic smoking device products, including mint and menthol and to increase enforcement and education related to their use. 3 AB 339 (effective Jan 1, 2026) requires public agencies to give at least 45 days’ written notice before issuing RFPs, RFQs, or renewing contracts for services that overlap with represented employee work. Exemptions include public works, architect/engineering services, and emergency contracting.

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6. The fair and efficient allocation of radio spectrum that provides quality frequencies, free from interference, for all local public safety communication needs.

7. Efforts to enhance radio and data system(s)stability and interoperability among public safety agencies and jurisdictions.

8. The City's right to regulate activities with adverse health and safety impacts on local streets, sidewalks, public spaces, and rights-of-way, including illegal street parties.

9. Legislation to improve and enhance the safety of cargo transported via rail, including but not limited to: safety enhancements for rail vessel construction with an emphasis on efforts to rapidly improve the safe transport of volatile crude oil and limit the use of older, “grandfathered” containers and vessels; enhancements in remote monitoring and control of railcar speeds; reduction of railcar speeds in populated areas like San Luis Obispo; enhancements in communications, notifications and information dissemination to local governments, especially public safety agencies.

10. Funding and programs to local jurisdictions to proactively reduce fire risk attributed to heavy vegetative fuels loads, high tree mortality, drought, and climate change to remove diseased, dead and/or down combustible vegetation, thin forests to improve forest health, and create effective defensible space between the undeveloped and developed environments.

11. Streamlining CEQA, including allowing exemptions, for fuel modification and reduction projects to strengthen wildfire prevention efforts while maintaining appropriate environmental safeguards.

12. Funding to support implementation of State-mandated actions within designated Fire Hazard Severity Zones.

13. Grants and aid to land/property owners with propertieslocated within designated fire hazard severity zones (as designated by Cal Fire), which are threatened by wind-driven fire events, to harden structures again fire impingement and create sustainable defensible spaces.

14. Grants and aid to local governments to develop modern evacuation communications systems to effectively reach all residents in a timely fashion via voice, text, email, and other electronic means.

15. Legislation to preserve and enhance local control, at the city level, for the provision of public safety services, including the scope and provision of medical and non-medical emergency services and legislation that would result in the implementation of a statewide modern earthquake notification and evacuation communications system to effectively reach all residents in a timely fashion via voice, text, email, and other electronic means, which is available for use by local governments at the discretion of local governments.

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16. Uniformity of state and federal regulations of drones and the study and adoption of appropriate local airport protections and public safety exemptions.

17. Legislation regarding the safe transport and storage of nuclear and hazardous waste.

18. Legislation to address the education, funding, and treatment of opioid addiction.

19. Legislation that expands funding to manage vegetation and fuel sources in the wildland urban interface.

20. Legislation to provide funding to help communities prepare for response, recovery and be resilient after natural disasters.

21. Funding to remove unwanted firearms from homes and businesses.

22. Responsive intervention programs that promote accountability and divert people away from both crime and prison.

23. Funding and training for emergency response to electrified vehicles and infrastructure.

24. Legislation and policies that protect and support individuals who are targeted by hate crimes and hate biased incidents.

25. Legislation and funding for Electric Vehicle (EV) fire mitigation, including specialized equipment and training for emergency responders, with potential contributions from EV manufacturers.

26. Reforms to improve affordability, availability, and mitigation incentives for fire insurance.

27. The San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District's legislative program, where consistent with the City's adopted policies and platform.

28. Efforts to enhance dangerous animal regulation and enforcement.

29. Tighter retail regulation of nitrous oxide to reduce misuse and access.

30. Targeted controls and public-health response to emerging drug threats such as xylazine.

31. Legislation and funding that provide clear, practical, and locally adaptable guidance for Zone 0 defensible‑space requirements, including financial assistance for homeowners and flexibility to account for different community and property contexts.

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Oppose:

32. New or increased state fees for state-provided law enforcement services.

Public Works
Support:

1. Increased availability of grant funding to create new infrastructure and replace aging infrastructure of all types, e.g., streets, bridges, water, sewer, parks, and storm sewer systems, etc.

2. Any funding opportunities, including grants and infrastructure programs, to support the planning, design, and construction of the Prado Road Interchange.

3. Increased funding for flood protection, clean stormwater, and low impact infrastructure projects.

4. Cooperation and prompt approval from Federal and State regulatory agencies (such as the Department of Fish & Wildlife, Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the Army Corps of Engineers) for necessary projects involving the City's creek system.

5. Monetary incentives or grant funding for electric vehicles for replacement of municipal fleet equipment.

6. Funding and policies that support and enhance active transportation modes such as bicycles, pedestrian, and transit.

7. Continued protection of SB-1 and other funding for transportation infrastructure maintenance.

8. Policies and legislation that maintains local control of parking rules, regulations, rates, and citation fees.

9. Policies and legislation that allow for increased enforcement ability for on and off-street parking with an emphasis on allowing automated parking control devices (e.g. parking space sensors, parking structure cameras, automated citations) for the purpose of issuing parking violations.

10. Permanently allowing local governments to use design-build processes and expand the types of projects that cities can use design build and progressive design-build.

11. Participation by County in providing nearby parking for County employees and clients, and alternate transportation and parking demand reduction.

12. The San Luis Obispo County Zone 9 Flood Control and Water Conservation District efforts to solve City/County flood problems.

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13. Legislation that authorizes and facilitates the use of Community Workforce Agreements (CWAs), enabling local governments to establish project labor agreements that promote local hiring, fair wages, and workforce development while ensuring efficient project delivery.

Parks and Recreation and Natural Resources
Support:

1. State and Federal funding and other measures to promote the acquisition, protection, preservation and restoration of natural resources, open space, coastal resources, signature landforms, wetlands, and park development, including continued funding for the Land and Water Conservation Grant Program and for the California Conservation Corps.

2. The expansion of National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of San Luis Obispo County to further protect this fragile habitat from offshore oil and gas development.

3. State and Federal funding and other measures to conduct research and implement land management measures for the purpose of carbon sequestration.

4. Measures to prohibit discharge of pollutants into the creeks and ocean (e.g., selenium contaminated waters from the San Joaquin valley).

5. State and Federal funding and other measures to take advantage of opportunities for land and easement acquisition and enhancement project contracting.

6. Legislative exemption from property taxes on lands dedicated to open space purposes, which may be outside the boundaries of the jurisdiction owning such lands.

7. Funding to reduce or mitigate negative impacts to vital regional and community services and enhance public access to parks, open space, after school programming, senior services, facilities that promote physical activity, protect natural resources, and strengthen safety and security.

8. Policies that recognize the benefits of parks and recreational facilities in the advancement of "sustainable communities" and curbing greenhouse gas emissions including: strengthening policies that fund parks, open-space, bike lanes and non-motorized trails through the development and implementation of a carbon credit and offset program, and advocating for the strong integration of local and regional park and non-motorized transportation improvements into "Smart Growth Scenarios" pursuant to SB 375 (2008).

9. Access and connectivity to joint use of schools; parks and open space; development of streets and trails that encourage physical activity and healthy living.

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10. The extension or permanent legislation at the federal level of enhanced tax deductions for charitable donations of Conservation Easements.

11. Legislation to limit the opening of protected public lands, e.g., Carrizo Plain, to fossil fuel extraction.

12. County land use policies and practices that are consistent with the Memorandum of Agreement adopted by the City Council and County Board of Supervisors in 2016 regarding development near the edges of the City and opposing inconsistent policies and practices.

13. The protection of our natural resourcesfrom invasive species.

Oppose:

14. Any development under existing or new offshore oil and gas leases off the Coast of San Luis Obispo County.

15. Any development under existing or new oil and gas leases in San Luis Obispo County.

Transportation
Support:

1. Changes in gas tax laws that allow local tax for transportation purposes based on a majority vote of the public, as well as revenue replacement for electric vehicles to support transportation infrastructure.

2. The continuation of, and increased funding sources for street maintenance projects, transportation improvements, mass transportation, transit operations and multimodal facility projects.

3. Funding sources for fleet and transit electrification including full State funding support to enable compliance with zero-emission fleet mandates under the Innovative Clean Transit (ICT) and Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulations.

4. Transportation funding for San Luis Obispo County, in particular funding that provides for alternative modes of transportation with clean air benefits or reductions in Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gases.

5. Transportation funding and policy that promote regional bike and pedestrian connections between cities and other population centers.

6. Actions to: (1) promote cooperation and mutual support between metropolitan planning organization (MPO) agencies and local transit providers, and (2) discourage trends toward MPO agencies/regional "control" of local transit providers.

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7. Support potential changes to the Transportation Development Act to assist local public transportation systems with funding eligibility.

8. Cooperation of private transportation companies (such as Union Pacific Railroad) to reach agreements for sharing of properly secured right of way corridors for other compatible uses such as bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

9. Funding for projects to implement adopted complete street plans demonstrated to improve public health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

10. Provision of Cap-and-Invest funding for active transportation projects.

11. Increased funding for existing Active Transportation Program (ATP) and other sources of bicycle and pedestrian transportation funding.

12. Funding for existing and future transportation needs, including continued implementation of SB 125 transit funding programs and other formula-based State transit funding that supports operations, capital projects, and transition to zero-emission technologies.

13. Funding strategies to reduce the personal cost of transportation, especially cargo and electric-assist bicycles and their supporting infrastructure.

14. Improvements of state and federal standards guiding application of street design and traffic control devices to allow more flexibility for local agencies to prioritize safety, particularly for vulnerable road users, and including locations that interface with the state highway system, consistent with calls to action from groups like the National Transportation Safety Board, NACTO and others.

15. Opportunities for improved coordination between state and local governments to advance common goals and priorities, such as opportunities for partnership projects between the City and Caltrans to advance safety and multimodal improvements to state highway facilities within and in the vicinity of the City.

16. Legislation for a Bike Safety Stop, in alignment with the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), that would authorize a person bicycling to treat a stop sign like a yield sign, giving right-of-way to other traffic at an intersection before proceeding safely through, but without the requirement to come to a full stop.

17. Consideration of increased funding and options for safe bike and pedestrian crossing of railroad tracks, including bridges, underpasses and controlled at-grade crossings.

18. Legislation to improve safety features for new motor vehicles, including requirements for side guards

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on certain trucks and trailers and/or addition of devices that would limit the ability of drivers to unreasonably exceed posted speed limits.

19. The San Luis Obispo Council of Governments' legislative advocacy activities, where consistent with the City's adopted policies, platform, and public policy and project objectives.

20. Advocacy for the County of San Luis Obispo to build complete streets when building new roads, and to upgrade existing roadways to be complete streets.

21. Legislation and regulatory efforts that give cities the option to consider automated speed enforcement as a potential tool for improving traffic safety and reducing speeding-related accidents, especially in high-risk areas such as school zones.

Oppose:

22. Proposed changes to statistical methodologies such as Metropolitan Statistical Areas that have the potential to reduce funding for transportation improvements in small and mid-sized metropolitan areas and/or reduce formula allocations to San Luis Obispo County.

23. Any reallocation or redirection of transportation funding, particularly Cap-and-Invest, SB 125, TIRCP, and State Transit Assistance funds; that would reduce funding available for transit operations or zeroemission fleet transition.

24. Legislation that would modify current restrictions to allow longer or heavier tractor-trailers to use public roadways, which would increase roadway wear and tear and degrade safety for other road users.

Utilities
Support:

1. Clean water and drinking water funding programs.

2. Recycling, waste diversion, and zero waste programs and enhancing local government's ability to comply with solid waste reduction requirements (includes building of recycling infrastructure and organics / biosolids composting facilities).

3. Measures that require the State Water Resources Control Board and Regional Water Quality Control Boards establish a process to evaluate, in advance of adoption, the costs of compliance for pending and future regulatory actions on National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permittees.

4. Legislation that requires the State's environmental agencies to conduct peer review of proposed regulations to ensure that the proposal is based on sound science.

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5. The elimination of mandatory minimum penalties for violations of NPDES Requirements and returning discretionary control to the Regional Water Quality Control Board Executive Officers (i.e., California Water Code Section 13385[h]).

6. Measures to ensure reasonableness in the administration of NPDES permit governing City operations, including pursuing a municipal representative on the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

7. The safe, responsible, and cost-effective reuse of Exceptional Quality or better biosolids.

8. County development of a local ordinance providing additional local oversight and regulation of the land application of Pollutant Concentration (PC) or better biosolids.

9. The Integrated Waste Management Authority’s (IWMA) legislative platform, where consistent with the City’s adopted policies, platforms, and public policy and project objectives.

10. Legislation allowing cities/agencies to establish fees for the costs of operating mandated water quality programs such as, but not limited to, municipal storm water and total maximum daily loading.

11. Federal legislative action and funding to transfer the property ownership of Salinas Reservoir from Army Corps of Engineers Military Project to Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Project.

12. Federal and state funding that would allow for transfer of Salinas Reservoir from the Army Corps of Engineers to the County or City of San Luis Obispo.

13. Water conservation and water use efficiency best management practices.

14. Amendments to the Urban Water Management Planning Act to recognize past investment in water conservation and the City's ability to comply with SBx7-7 (2009) and other water conservation regulations.

15. The expansion of recycled water production and use, including potable reuse.

16. The use of Public Goods Fundsfor the development and installation of energy saving or green energy generating projects to benefit local government.

17. The protection of water resources, including protection of source waters from invasive species.

18. Regional water resiliency initiatives.

19. Requirements that development outside City jurisdiction have adequate water supplies to support development activities and intensities and does not indirectly impose water service obligations to

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adjacent municipal water agencies.

20. Streamlined water rights amendment processes for minor water rights permit changes.

21. Federal and statewide funding of water infrastructure projects.

22. Amendments to stormwater regulatory requirements to reduce mandatory minimum fines and penalties and the recovery of private attorneys’ fees for technical non-compliance issues that do not result in adverse public health impacts or environmental harm.

23. Stormwater requirements that are related to specific issues and include reasonable implementation timeframes and funding.

24. Autonomy for management of individual Sustainable Groundwater Management Act designated basins within the county.

25. Funding for implementation of Groundwater Sustainability Plans including the San Luis Obispo/Edna Valley Basin.

26. Federal and state policies that require per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) source control and labelling by product manufacturers, producers, packagers, importers, suppliers, or distributors, or prohibit manufacturing of goods with PFAS.

27. Federal and state funding to assist with identification and cleanup of per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in public source water supplies and aquifers.

28. Federal or state legislation to protect and limit the liability of passive receivers such as public water and wastewater agencies facing the threat of either USEPA enforcement actions or third-party litigation from the decision to list PFAS as a hazardous substance.

Oppose:

29. Measures reducing the city’s water security.

30. Legislation that requires recycled water to be included in water conservation regulations.

31. Mandatory consolidation of water systems.

32. Legislation that diminishes the City’s existing or potential water rights.

33. Legislation that inhibits the City's ability to collect water and sewer bills either through terminating service for non-payment or other reasonable means absent public health or safety emergencies.

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34. Legislation that restricts water and sewer rates for certain customers to below the cost to provide service based on legitimate public interests such as affordable housing, senior housing, nonprofit public beneficial uses, and/or educational uses.

35. State or local per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulations that are more restrictive than federal regulations, with the exception of regulations that require per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) source control and labelling by product manufacturers, producers, packagers, importers, suppliers, or distributors, or prohibit manufacturing of goods with PFAS.

EXHIBIT A
C - 2026 Legislative
Action Platform (Marked
Version).docx
202
6 CITY OF SAN LUIS

OBISPO LEGISLATIVE

ACTION PLATFORM
ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. XXXXX
(2026 SERIES)

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About this Legislative Platform
This Legislative Platform, adopted by the City of San Luis Obispo Council, will establish the City’s position on legislative matters of priority and importance to the City. The Legislative Platform is reviewed regularly and updated on an annual basis. The Legislative Platform shall be published and disseminated widely to promote transparency and awareness among the public. The City shares its Legislative Platform with Federal and State legislators, as well as the County Board of Supervisors. This public document serves as a guiding framework for the City's legislative advocacy efforts throughout the year.

Advocacy
The Legislative Platform reflects those legislative matters on which the council majority authorizes the Mayor, City Manager and City Attorney to engage in legislative advocacy on behalf of the City without the need for further council review or authority. The council’s authorization extends only to advocacy for or against generally applicable legislative proposals (including those pertaining to budget, regulations, policies, and programs) being considered by local, regional, state and/or federal policy makers or regulators consistent with Major City Goals and adopted City policy platforms. It does not otherwise extend to advocacy for or against any individual project, program, or entitlement application pending before any decision-making body, unless specifically noted herein.

The League of California Cities (Cal Cities)
The City actively participates in the Cal Cities, a statewide association representing most of California’s 483 cities. Cal Cities advocates for local control through legislative efforts, ballot measures, legal action, and strategic outreach to educate policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public. It also conducts legislative analysis and advocacy on behalf of cities for key State and Federal issues. Through the Council’s adopted Legislative Platform resolution, the City takes positions consistent with Cal Cities’ recommendations. The 2026 Cal Cities advocacy priorities include:

1. Protect and enhance local revenues and expand economic development tools.

2. Strengthen partnerships with the state to improve public safety.

3. Secure investments to prevent and reduce homelessness and increase the supply of affordable housing.

4. Strengthen climate change resiliency and disaster preparedness.

Consistency with City Goals and Policies

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The City of San Luis Obispo’s Legislative Action Platform is designed to align with the City’s and broader strategic priorities. The platform provides a framework for legislative advocacy; however, all positions that the City takes should be consistent with adopted City policies, strategic plans, and/or overarching Major City Goals where feasible. This ensures a cohesive and strategic approach to legislative engagement that reflects the City’s priorities and values. For emerging issues or situations not outlined in the Legislative Platform or recommended through Cal Cities, City staff will work with the City Council for further direction.

Figure 1 - 2025-27 Council Adopted Major City Goals

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Contents
Climate Action...............................................................................................................................................5 Energy ...........................................................................................................................................................6 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for All ..........................................................................................................7 Homelessness Resources..............................................................................................................................9 Community Development.......................................................................................................................1211 Tenant Protections......................................................................................................................................13 Economic Development..............................................................................................................................13 Finance & Governance................................................................................................................................14 Human Resources/Employee Relations......................................................................................................15 Public Safety............................................................................................................................................1716 Public Works ...............................................................................................................................................19 Parks and Recreation and Natural Resources.............................................................................................20 Transportation ............................................................................................................................................21 Utilities....................................................................................................................................................2423

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Climate Action
Support:

1. Funding for communities to pay for public infrastructure that meets state greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and adopted City objectives.

2. Funding to implement programs and related action items contained in local and regional Climate Action Plans to quantitatively reduce greenhouse gas emissions and advocate for regulatory reform, including but not limited to clean technologies, micro-grids, all electric/zero-emission buildings, electrified transportation, behind the meter technology, and natural solutions (e.g., tree planting, open space conservation, and contemporary land management and restoration practices).

3. Regulatory reform to facilitate the transition to clean technologies, microgrids, low and zero carbon energy generation, and decarbonized buildings.

4. Legislation and regulation that is aligned with the City’s goals of carbon neutrality by 2035 and subgoals related to municipal operations, clean electricity, building decarbonization, clean mobility, organic waste diversion, and natural solutions.

5. Legislation and regulation that is aligned with the policies and programs set forth by the Climate Adaptation and Safety Element including using future projections for climate hazards in planning decisions, investing in community resilience, and adapting built infrastructure and natural ecosystems to climate change hazards and disturbances.

6. Funding and resources to focus climate investments on programs and projects that support environmental justice, economic and racial equity, and head of household jobs.

7. Legislation, policies, and regulation that extend producer responsibility for packaging and single-use product manufacturing as to encourage source reduction and the manufacturing of reusable and sustainable products.

8. Legislation, policies, and regulation that that make waste diversion and reduction more equitable for our residents and businesses.

9. Legislation that makes recycling organic waste and edible food recovery and distribution more efficient and easily accessible to residents and businesses in need.

Oppose:

10. Legislation and regulation that limits the City’s ability to achieve its goals of carbon neutrality by 2035 and sub-goals related to municipal operations, clean electricity, building decarbonization, clean mobility, organic waste diversion, and natural solutions.

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Energy
Support:

1. Reform of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) structure and policies, state regulation, and state legislation to accelerate equitable building and transportation decarbonization.

2. CPUC reform that ties investor-owned utility compensation to performance consistent with state policy objectives.

3. California Community Choice Associations’ (Cal CCA) Regulatory and Legislative Platform, where consistent with the City’s legislative platform.

4. Reform of CPUC policies and state legislation to ensure investor-owned utilities are able and required to provide timely, accurate, and sufficiently detailed energy data.

5. Reform of CPUC policies and state legislation that supports increased, equitable, and affordable access to distributed energy resources, including rooftop solar.

6. Support legislation and regulatory actions that improve electricity affordability while maintaining consistency with the City’s other platform positions, including preserving access to rooftop solar and protecting ratepayer-funded decarbonization and energy efficiency programs.

7. Reform of CPUC policies, state regulation, and state legislation that support low income zero emission buildings, including support for mobile home parks, low-income households, and other disadvantaged community members.

8. The Central Coast Regional Energy Network at the County Board of Supervisors, the CPUC, and related relevant entities and supporting pilot projects in the City as feasible.

9. Regional and regulatory collaboration to fund and support climate change impact projections and coordinate approaches for increasing regional resilience.

10. Sustainable and resilient energy programs.

11. Legislation in alignment with Central Coast Community Energy Policy Board and Operations Board Positions.
1 1 The City Council approved the City joining Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) in September 2018 and City representatives have been seated on 3CE’s Policy Board, Operations Board, and Community Advisory Council since 2019. This section of the City’s Legislative Platform identifies City of San Luis Obispo policy positions on key topics that may come before the various boards and advisory bodies of 3CE. The policy positions contained herein are

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a. 3CE investment in and support for distributed energy resources (e.g., rooftop solar), virtual power plants, demand response, behind the meter technology and energy efficiency. b. 3CE in evaluating and deploying programs that are climate action force multipliers (e.g., tariffed on-bill financing, virtual power plants, etc.). c. Processes that are transparent, collaborative, visible, accessible, and inclusive. d. Rate, rebate, and revenue structures that create a robust programs budget. e. Regional climate action and a portfolio of programs that are strategically implemented to achieve regional climate targets.
f. Local government access to data, transparent GHG emissions reporting, and sub-annual emissions factors as available.
g. Processes and governance approaches that provide sufficient time for Board members to fully participate and drive decisions, from inception to implementation.

12. Legislation and regulatory efforts that promote the safe deployment, operation, and decommissioning of battery energy storage systems (BESS).

13. Actions and legislation related to Diablo Canyon Power Plant that are consistent with the City’s 2016 adopted guiding principles, including:
 Ensuring public safety and environmental protection during continued operations or decommissioning.
 Securing fiscal mitigation measures to offset local economic and infrastructure impacts.  Investigating opportunities for job creation, economic diversification, and the reuse of facilities or lands in ways that provide long‑ term community benefit.  Advancing open-space and community benefit outcomes for lands associated with the plant.  Promoting transparent stakeholder engagement and collaboration with local jurisdictions.

Oppose:

14. Legislative and CPUC decisions that negatively impact CCAs or otherwise shift the financial obligations of investor-owned utilities to CCAs.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for All
Support:

1. Legislation that creates, expands, and/or provides broad authority to jurisdictions to develop and implement diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, policies, or initiatives to address systemic

intended to guide Board member deliberation, and voting and staff review of agenda, but are not an exhaustive list of issues that may arise. These positions are intended to extend only to advocacy for or against generally applicable policy proposals being considered by 3CE and does not extend to advocacy on any individual project or entitlement application pending before any decision-making body, nor does it extend to the larger legislative platform of the City.

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inequities that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized, underserved, and underrepresented communities.

2. Legislation that centers reforms for advancing access for undocumented individuals’ health, wellbeing, and success.

3. Education and employment opportunities and development of upward economic mobility and access to programs such as childcare, after-school activities,school’s family support networks and supportive services for individuals aging out of the foster care system.

4. Increased availability of grant funding for ADA accessibility improvements and connectivity to streets, parks, and other public infrastructure.

5. Amendments to the California Elections Code to expand safe harbor provisions in response to district elections demands under the California Voting Rights Act to include remedies, in addition to district elections, to enhance quantifiable equity gains in participation and representation in local elections, including, but not limited to cumulative voting, limited voting, ranked choice voting and other voting structures that can be demonstrated to advance voter engagement and equity.

6. Legislation that furthers jurisdictions’ abilities to create policies that protect voting rights and work to disrupt voter suppression tactics that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color.

7. Legislation that provides funding sources for appropriate human service agencies that support the mission of the Human Relations Commission.

8. Legislation and funding to increase affordable and equitable childcare services, and activities, and options for working low-income families.

9. Legislation related to implementation of the Racial Equity Framework2 and resources and tools to promote racial equity and address structural racism.

10. Legislation that creates programs or policies that contribute to family friendly workplace environmentsthat may include, but are not limited to, leave for reproductive loss, paid parental leave, flextime, and job sharing.

11. Legislation that advances access and expands funding for services, programs, and/or projects

2 Executive Order N-16-22 establishes the State's authority to develop plans and strategies to advance equity and identify disparities. Within the Executive Order, there are specifics for the Governor's Office of Planning & Research to create the Racial Equity Commission (REC). One of the duties of the REC is to produce a Racial Equity Framework, which will contain strategies for state, county, and local governments to implement.

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centered in addressing inequities that disproportionately impact Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, and other marginalized, underserved, and underrepresented communities.

12. Legislation that subsidizes or provides funding for translation and interpretation services for local governments to ensure all members of a community can be civically engaged and easily access government programs and services.

13. Legislation that strengthens the California Civil Rights Department and its ability to respond to and address hate and discrimination cases appropriately.

14. Medicare reforms, including updates to geographic designation criteria, that promote equity, expand access to care, enhance regional collaboration, and ensure healthcare sustainability on the Central Coast

15. Legislation that maintains civil rights protections, improves transparency, and builds community trust in Federal immigration enforcement for our City residents.

Oppose:

16. Legislation that limits or preempts local authority to design, implement, or evaluate polices, programs, or initiatives intended to advance access, belonging, or equitable outcomes, particularly where such limitations hinder local government's ability to responds to documented community needs or disparities.

Homelessness Resources
Support:

1. Legislation and funding for the prevention of homelessness and support of families and individuals vulnerable to becoming homeless.

2. Funding for project-based, permanent affordable housing.

3. Funding for the entire housing spectrum (including affordable units, ADUs, Tiny Homes, Temporary Emergency Shelters and family housing, and supportive housing for all unhoused individuals and families including those with mental health needs, the medically fragile, and aging adults.)

4. Increased flexibility in the use of Federal Funds at the local level to address the full spectrum of services and transitional housing for individuals who are unhoused.

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5. Nonprofit eviction prevention services for low-income individuals and families.

6. Programs and funding to encourage private market landlords to provide affordable units, participate in housing voucher programs, and upgrade units for energy efficiency.

7. Funding that encourages unique multi-departmental and inter-governmental collaboration to assist individuals experiencing homelessness, such as the City’s Community Action Team (CAT) and Mobile Crisis Unit (MCU), as well as Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) for public safety personnel.

8. Employment services and job training opportunities for individuals who are homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless.

9. Funding for federal, state, county and local coordination with non-profit and faith-based organizations to prevent and address homelessness.

10. Funding for the removal and storage of unhoused individual’s belongings and the cleaning of sites used by unhoused residents, in alignment with the City’s Compassionate Assistance, Mitigation & Prevention (CAMP) Standards and Temporary Storage Guidelines.

11. Funding and programs that promote whole person care approaches that include access to expanded medical, mental, and behavioral health services, including substance use disorder treatment services, and new approaches to financing health care access and patient wellness to reduce avoidable emergency room visits, hospital stays and readmissions.

12. Increased funding and statutory authorization for crisis intervention, involuntary assessment and commitment, guardianship control, and health welfare intervention and supervision of those suffering from chronic homelessness, mental health conditions and addiction, and recognition of mental illness and addiction as contributors to chronic homelessness.

13. Streamlined protocols and metrics to be used by homeless service providers, local agencies, and other non-governmental partners to capture and share accurate statistics of individuals experiencing homelessness, including vacancy and capacity rates, in-flow and out-flow information, cost-reporting of services provided and rendered, and individuals successfully housed.

14. Legislation, programs, funding, court intervention, and statutory authorization for a unified crisis response system to enhance the ability of the County Behavioral Health Director, crisis response personnel, family members and social service providers to share information necessary for effective treatment interventions and to compel assisted outpatient treatment for a person exiting a conservatorship and those lacking capacity to provide for their own healthcare, shelter and food needs.

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15. Legislation that would allow the courts and crisis intervention personnel to consider a person’s medical, addiction and mental health conditions, history of adverse impacts on community health and safety, and capacity of individuals to provide for their own health, shelter, and food needs in mandating program participation in connection with criminal justice and other contacts, including or expansion of the definition of “gravely disabled” under code section 5150 et seq. in evaluating whether an individual is a danger to themselves or others.

16. Legislation for Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) to allow for flexibility in funds earmarked for “Innovation” programs that are aimed at finding new and different ways to provide services.

17. Legislation, funding, programs, and policies to help expand capacity in local psychiatric health facilities, delivery of case management, drug, alcohol, and detoxification services and facilities, assisted living beds for medically fragile people, and mental health services for all County residents.

18. Advocation that the County lead in the area of expanding humane shelter and housing opportunities for the unhoused population and expand outreach and case management services specifically tailored to the needs of unhoused individuals in the County to transition out of homelessness.

19. The use of data from public safety, City, and regional Community Action Teams (CAT) and Mobile Crisis Units (MCU) outcomes, to advocate that the County allocate new resources to scale up these programs to match the need.

20. An effective and efficient implementation of San Luis Obispo County’s 5-Year Plan to Address Homelessness.

21. State and federal funding of mandates to provide care and services to vulnerable populations.

22. Legislative efforts to repeal Article 34 of the California Constitution, which requires majority approval by the voters of a city or county for the development, construction, or acquisition of a publicly funded affordable housing project.

23. Assistance for those experiencing physical and mental health impacts of a pandemic or other disaster.

24. Regional efforts to create a spectrum of housing types (including board and care and housing types that include other supportive services) within the County to house the unhoused.

Oppose:

25. Legislation that seeks to circumvent local control and consideration of local circumstances and safety of the general public when addressing homelessness.

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Community Development
Support:

1. Local control of land use planning and zoning matters.

2. State and Federal assistance to prevent the loss of housing for those impacted by local, state, or federal disasters.

3. Reforms of the State mandated HCD Regional Housing Need Allocations process to recognize local resource limitations, regional collaboration, and development, and align infrastructure and other funding to help communities meet mandated housing requirements.

4. Planning and funding of on-campus housing at Cal Poly for students, staff and faculty as included in the Cal Poly Master Plan, including an on campus Greek row.

5. Increased and ongoing funding sources for affordable housing and supportive housing services for very low-, low-, and moderate-income individuals and families in all cities and communities and opposing the erosion of local inclusionary housing and in-lieu fee programs.

6. Continued funding of National Housing Trust Fund and streamlined and efficient implementation regulations at the state level.

7. Additional state funding to implement AB 32 (The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006) and SB 375 (The Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008) through local general plan updates that implement the regional sustainable communities plan and alternative planning strategy, if needed.

8. Funding for the identification, acquisition, maintenance and restoration of historic sites and structures.

9. Continued and expanded funding for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.

10. Policies, programs and funding to support opportunities to convert vacant commercial spaces to affordable housing and childcare facilities.

11. State and federal level down-payment assistance programs and the expansion of below-market rate assistance programs.

12. Continued local control over mobile home park rent stabilization and local control over the conversion of mobile home parks to other uses to ensure that low-income mobile home park residents are not involuntarily removed from homes or otherwise subject to involuntary displacement due to economic

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impacts of parks subdivision or conversion.

13. The protection, enhancement, and increased production of mobile home park residency opportunities.

14. The ability to issue parking citations on private property.

15. Responsible review and revision of CEQA to ensure sound environmental determinations with a focus on CEQA reform that specifically addresses housing production and rezoning efforts to facilitate housing.

16. Pragmatic and clarifying actions to implement Proposition 64 Cannabis legalization, including increased funding for health education, the preservation of local land use decision making reconciliation of conflicts in state and federal law, and systems for legal banking.

17. Funding for seismic retrofitting for buildings that haven't been retrofitted.

18. Participation in the study period for AB 835 regarding building standards for single exit, single stairway apartment houses.

18. Building code reforms to enable single-stair mid-rise apartment buildings that meet modern fire and life-safety standards.

19. Legislation that provides reasonable definitions, interpretive guidance, and flexible implementation timelines for transit-oriented housing laws (including SB 79 and related follow-up bills).

Tenant Protections
Support:

1. Increased relocation assistance (AB 1482 2019) when a tenant is evicted due to no-fault of their own.

2. Increases in state and federal approaches to renter protections for rental housing and enforcement of existing renter protections in accordance with the California Civil Codes including but not limited to Cal. Civ. Code §§ 1940-1954.1 (includes Tenant Protection Act).

3. Legislation, policies, and programs that expand tenant affordability and stability.

Economic Development
Support:

1. State and federal assistance for those people and businesses facing severe economic losses due to pandemic or other disasters.

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2. Regional economic activities except for those that promote weapons or fossil fuel production or distribution activities.

3. Direct assistance and/or legislation that supports local agencies with recovering costs related to the pandemic or other disasters and stimulate economic development, resiliency, and recovery.

4. Funding and legislation using tax credits or other incentive programs to encourage research and development by businesses in California.

5. Funding and policies for the promotion of California and the City and County of San Luis Obispo as a place to locate businesses that provide head-of-household jobs.

6. Economic development that is integrated with articulated Major City Goals such as climate action, environmental protection and social justice and diversity objectives.

7. Funding for the state tourism promotion program.

8. The effective and efficient use of all communications technologies including voice, video, data, and information services over wired and wireless transmission technologies and supporting net neutrality.

9. Telecommunications reform legislation and other measures that preserve local control over public rights-of-way, protect local resources, broadband and telecommunications for all residents and guarantee access to, funding for, and local flexibility in utilizing funds for public, educational and government (PEG) access television.

10. Federal and state funding of broadband infrastructure.

11. The expansion of public infrastructure financing tools and funding for infrastructure.

12. Funding, policies, and legislation that support access to childcare, transitional kindergarten (TK), and related services that strengthen the local workforce, reduce barriers to employment, and support economic resilience.

13. Legislation exempting public art projects from contractor licensing requirements to expand artist eligibility and reduce project costs.

Finance & Governance
Support:

1. Meaningful fiscal reform that allows each level of government to adequately finance its service responsibilities while continuing to support efforts to protect the City from loss of revenues due to

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State take-aways and unfunded State or Federal mandates.

2. Collection of the full amount of local transient occupancy tax from online sales of lodging.

2. Tools and legislation that help cities fairly collect taxes and revenues owed.

3. The continuation of California Specialized Training Institute activities within San Luis Obispo County.

4. Legislation to modernize the Ralph M. Brown Act to provide increased flexibility for remote participation in public meetings by elected and appointed officials and provide increased opportunities for public engagement.

5. Legislation that furthers SB 1439’s intent to restrict “Pay-to-play” campaign financing but provides clarifications and modifications that reduce the administrative burden associated with the implementation as currently written.

6. The streamlining, clarification, and simplification of conflict-of-interest regulations applicable to local officials.

7. Support monitoring and mitigating the impacts of federal FY 2026–27 budget legislation (H.R. 1) that could reduce federal funding to local programs, including Medi-Cal and CalFresh, and other safety-net services.

8. Legislation that would provide an exemption from the current Bradley-Burns two percent local sales tax cap for the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG) to pursue a regional sales tax measure for transportation, subject to voter approval.3 Oppose:

8. Initiatives that unduly burden and/or prohibit local government ability to support essential services to the community.

9. Removal of the municipal bond tax exemption.

Human Resources/Employee Relations
Support:

1. Additional workers’ compensation reforms that lower employers' costs while still protecting workers and oppose legislation that would restrict appropriate cost controls in the workers’ compensation system.

3 This was approved by Council on January 21, 2025, as a standalone legislative advocacy item.

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2. Pension and retiree health benefits reform efforts, policy changes, and permissible administration decisions aimed at reducing unfunded liabilities, reducing costs, and ensuring the long-term viability of the defined benefit pension system in concert with the League of California Cities and the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Board of Directors.

3. Legislation to protect the City's continued ability to administer its Cafeteria Benefit Plan and maintain comprehensive health care coverage for eligible employees, in a financially sustainable manner.

4. Reforms that limit the financial impacts of joint and several liability on public entities.

5. The clarification, modification, or repeal of AB 646 fact finding requirements and oppose measures that reduces local control over public employee disputes.

6. Federal legislation to modify, refine, or eliminate Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) requirements on public agencies.

7. Reforms that limit the joint and several liability to agencies who have entered into Joint Powers Agreements (JPAs).

8. Meaningful statewide and national efforts to make quality health care more affordable and accessible to residents and reduce costs for cities and employers.

9. Clarification and modification of AB 3394to reduce unnecessary administrative burden while maintaining the legislative intent, including clarifying that notice requirements apply only when fully contracting out represented positions or functions, and not to minor or ancillary contracts.

Oppose:

10. The expansion of property rights in public employment and procedural requirements that hinder or significantly increase the public costs of effective performance management, including legislation that curtails management rights or obstructs the timely, efficient, and cost-effective implementation of performance management or disciplinary measures.

11. Measures that curtail management rights or impose local government mandated employee benefits that should be directly negotiated between labor groups and employers.

4 AB 339 (effective Jan 1, 2026) requires public agencies to give at least 45 days’ written notice before issuing RFPs, RFQs, or renewing contracts for services that overlap with represented employee work. Exemptions include public works, architect/engineering services, and emergency contracting.

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Public Safety
Support:

1. New and continued State and Federal funding for school safety, disaster preparedness, earthquake preparedness, Homeland Security, hazardous material response, State COPS (Citizen’s Options for Public Safety) program, CIT (Crisis Intervention Training) and other public safety activities.

2. Preservation of the City's authority to investigate police misconduct.

3. Local control on issuance of concealed weapons permits.

4. Legislation to help curb drug and alcohol-related criminal behavior and underage consumption.

5. Legislation to limit or end the sale of all nonflavored and flavored electronic smoking device products, including mint and menthol and to increase enforcement and education related to their use.

6. The fair and efficient allocation of radio spectrum that provides quality frequencies, free from interference, for all local public safety communication needs.

7. Efforts to enhance radio and data system(s)stability and interoperability among public safety agencies and jurisdictions.

8. The City's right to regulate activities with adverse health and safety impacts on local streets, sidewalks, public spaces, and rights-of-way, including illegal street parties.

9. Legislation to improve and enhance the safety of cargo transported via rail, including but not limited to: safety enhancements for rail vessel construction with an emphasis on efforts to rapidly improve the safe transport of volatile crude oil and limit the use of older, “grandfathered” containers and vessels; enhancements in remote monitoring and control of railcar speeds; reduction of railcar speeds in populated areas like San Luis Obispo; enhancements in communications, notifications and information dissemination to local governments, especially public safety agencies.

10. Funding and programs to local jurisdictions to proactively reduce fire risk attributed to heavy vegetative fuels loads, high tree mortality, drought, and climate change to remove diseased, dead and/or down combustible vegetation, thin forests to improve forest health, and create effective defensible space between the undeveloped and developed environments.

11. Streamlining CEQA, including allowing exemptions, for fuel modification and reduction projects to strengthen wildfire prevention efforts while maintaining appropriate environmental safeguards.

12. Funding to support implementation of State-mandated actions within designated Fire Hazard Severity

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Zones.

13. Grants and aid to land/property owners with propertieslocated within designated fire hazard severity zones (as designated by Cal Fire), which are threatened by wind-driven fire events, to harden structures again fire impingement and create sustainable defensible spaces.

14. Grants and aid to local governments to develop modern evacuation communications systems to effectively reach all residents in a timely fashion via voice, text, email, and other electronic means.

15. Legislation to preserve and enhance local control, at the city level, for the provision of public safety services, including the scope and provision of medical and non-medical emergency services and legislation that would result in the implementation of a statewide modern earthquake notification and evacuation communications system to effectively reach all residents in a timely fashion via voice, text, email, and other electronic means, which is available for use by local governments at the discretion of local governments.

16. Uniformity of state and federal regulations of drones and the study and adoption of appropriate local airport protections and public safety exemptions.

17. Legislation regarding the safe transport and storage of nuclear and hazardous waste.

18. Legislation to address the education, funding, and treatment of opioid addiction.

19. Legislation that expands funding to manage vegetation and fuel sources in the wildland urban interface.

20. Legislation to provide funding to help communities prepare for response, recovery and be resilient after natural disasters.

21. Funding to remove unwanted firearms from homes and businesses.

22. Responsive intervention programs that promote accountability and divert people away from both crime and prison.

23. Funding and training for emergency response to electrified vehicles and infrastructure.

24. Legislation and policies that protect and support individuals who are targeted by hate crimes and hate biased incidents.

25. Legislation and funding for Electric Vehicle (EV) fire mitigation, including specialized equipment and training for emergency responders, with potential contributions from EV manufacturers.

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26. Reforms to improve affordability, availability, and mitigation incentives for fire insurance.

27. The San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District's legislative program, where consistent with the City's adopted policies and platform.

28. Efforts to enhance dangerous animal regulation and enforcement.

29. Tighter retail regulation of nitrous oxide to reduce misuse and access.

30. Targeted controls and public-health response to emerging drug threats such as xylazine.

31. Legislation and funding that provide clear, practical, and locally adaptable guidance for Zone Zero defensible‑space requirements, including financial assistance for homeowners and flexibility to account for different community and property contexts.

Oppose:

32. New or increased state fees for state-provided law enforcement services.

Public Works
Support:

1. Increased availability of grant funding to create new infrastructure and replace aging infrastructure of all types, e.g., streets, bridges, water, sewer, parks, and storm sewer systems, etc.

2. Any funding opportunities, including grants and infrastructure programs, to support the planning, design, and construction of the Prado Road Interchange.

3. Increased funding for flood protection, clean stormwater, and low impact infrastructure projects.

4. Cooperation and prompt approval from Federal and State regulatory agencies (such as the Department of Fish & Wildlife, Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the Army Corps of Engineers) for necessary projects involving the City's creek system.

5. Monetary incentives or grant funding for electric vehicles for replacement of municipal fleet equipment.

6. Funding and policies that support and enhance active transportation modes such as bicycles, pedestrian, and transit.

7. Continued protection of SB-1 and other funding for transportation infrastructure maintenance.

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8. Policies and legislation that maintains local control of parking rules, regulations, rates, and citation fees.

9. Policies and legislation that allow for increased enforcement ability for on and off-street parking with an emphasis on allowing automated parking control devices (e.g. parking space sensors, parking structure cameras, automated citations) for the purpose of issuing parking violations.

10. Permanently allowing local governments to use design-build processes and expand the types of projects that cities can use design build and progressive design-build.

11. Participation by County in providing nearby parking for County employees and clients, and alternate transportation and parking demand reduction.

12. The San Luis Obispo County Zone 9 Flood Control and Water Conservation District efforts to solve City/County flood problems.

13. Legislation that authorizes and facilitates the use of Community Workforce Agreements (CWAs), enabling local governments to establish project labor agreements that promote local hiring, fair wages, and workforce development while ensuring efficient project delivery.

Parks and Recreation and Natural Resources
Support:

1. State and Federal funding and other measures to promote the acquisition, protection, preservation and restoration of natural resources, open space, coastal resources, signature landforms, wetlands, and park development, including continued funding for the Land and Water Conservation Grant Program and for the California Conservation Corps.

2. The expansion of National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of San Luis Obispo County to further protect this fragile habitat from offshore oil and gas development.

3. State and Federal funding and other measures to conduct research and implement land management measures for the purpose of carbon sequestration.

4. Measures to prohibit discharge of pollutants into the creeks and ocean (e.g., selenium contaminated waters from the San Joaquin valley).

5. State and Federal funding and other measures to take advantage of opportunities for land and easement acquisition and enhancement project contracting.

6. Legislative exemption from property taxes on lands dedicated to open space purposes, which may be outside the boundaries of the jurisdiction owning such lands.

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7. Funding to reduce or mitigate negative impacts to vital regional and community services and enhance public access to parks, open space, after school programming, senior services, facilities that promote physical activity, protect natural resources, and strengthen safety and security.

8. Policies that recognize the benefits of parks and recreational facilities in the advancement of "sustainable communities" and curbing greenhouse gas emissions including: strengthening policies that fund parks, open-space, bike lanes and non-motorized trails through the development and implementation of a carbon credit and offset program, and advocating for the strong integration of local and regional park and non-motorized transportation improvements into "Smart Growth Scenarios" pursuant to SB 375 (2008).

9. Access and connectivity to joint use of schools; parks and open space; development of streets and trails that encourage physical activity and healthy living.

10. The extension or permanent legislation at the federal level of enhanced tax deductions for charitable donations of Conservation Easements.

11. Legislation to limit the opening of protected public lands, e.g., Carrizo Plain, to fossil fuel extraction.

12. County land use policies and practices that are consistent with the Memorandum of Agreement adopted by the City Council and County Board of Supervisors in 2016 regarding development near the edges of the City and opposing inconsistent policies and practices.

13. The protection of our natural resourcesfrom invasive species.

Oppose:

14. Any development under existing or new offshore oil and gas leases off the Coast of San Luis Obispo County.

15. Any development under existing or new oil and gas leases in San Luis Obispo County.

Transportation
Support:

1. Changes in gas tax laws that allow local tax for transportation purposes based on a majority vote of the public, as well as revenue replacement for electric vehicles to support transportation infrastructure.

2. The continuation of, and increased funding sources for street maintenance projects, transportation improvements, mass transportation, transit operations and multimodal facility projects.

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3. Funding sources for fleet and transit electrification including full State funding support to enable compliance with zero-emission fleet mandates under the Innovative Clean Transit (ICT) and Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulations.

4. Transportation funding for San Luis Obispo County, in particular funding that provides for alternative modes of transportation with clean air benefits or reductions in Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) and greenhouse gases.

5. Transportation funding and policy that promote regional bike and pedestrian connections between cities and other population centers.

6. Actions to: (1) promote cooperation and mutual support between metropolitan planning organization (MPO) agencies and local transit providers, and (2) discourage trends toward MPO agencies/regional "control" of local transit providers.

7. Support potential changes to the Transportation Development Act to assist local public transportation systems with funding eligibility.

8. Cooperation of private transportation companies (such as Union Pacific Railroad) to reach agreements for sharing of properly secured right of way corridors for other compatible uses such as bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

9. Funding for projects to implement adopted complete street plans demonstrated to improve public health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

10. Provision of Cap-and-Trade Invest funding for active transportation projects.

11. Increased funding for existing Active Transportation Program (ATP) and other sources of bicycle and pedestrian transportation funding.

12. Funding for existing and future transportation needs, including continued implementation of SB 125 transit funding programs and other formula-based State transit funding that supports operations, capital projects, and transition to zero-emission technologies.

13. Funding strategies to reduce the personal cost of transportation, especially cargo and electric-assist bicycles and their supporting infrastructure.

14. Improvements of state and federal standards guiding application of street design and traffic control devices to allow more flexibility for local agencies to prioritize safety, particularly for vulnerable road users, and including locations that interface with the state highway system, consistent with calls to action from groups like the National Transportation Safety Board, NACTO and others.

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15. Opportunities for improved coordination between state and local governments to advance common goals and priorities, such as opportunities for partnership projects between the City and Caltrans to advance safety and multimodal improvements to state highway facilities within and in the vicinity of the City.

16. Legislation for a Bike Safety Stop, in alignment with the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO), that would authorize a person bicycling to treat a stop sign like a yield sign, giving right-of-way to other traffic at an intersection before proceeding safely through, but without the requirement to come to a full stop.

17. Consideration of increased funding and options for safe bike and pedestrian crossing of railroad tracks, including bridges, underpasses and controlled at-grade crossings.

18. Legislation to improve safety features for new motor vehicles, including requirements for side guards on certain trucks and trailers and/or addition of devices that would limit the ability of drivers to unreasonably exceed posted speed limits.

19. The San Luis Obispo Council of Governments' legislative advocacy activities, where consistent with the City's adopted policies, platform, and public policy and project objectives.

20. Advocacy for the County of San Luis Obispo to build complete streets when building new roads, and to upgrade existing roadways to be complete streets.

21. Legislation and regulatory efforts that give cities the option to consider automated speed enforcement as a potential tool for improving traffic safety and reducing speeding-related accidents, especially in high-risk areas such as school zones.

Oppose:

22. Proposed changes to statistical methodologies such as Metropolitan Statistical Areas that have the potential to reduce funding for transportation improvements in small and mid-sized metropolitan areas and/or reduce formula allocations to San Luis Obispo County.

23. Any reallocation or redirection of transportation funding, particularly Cap-and-Invest, SB 125, TIRCP, and State Transit Assistance funds; that would reduce funding available for transit operations or zeroemission fleet transition. The proposed diversion of any funding source for transportation that reduces amounts designated for transit operations.

24. Legislation that would modify current restrictions to allow longer or heavier tractor-trailers to use public roadways, which would increase roadway wear and tear and degrade safety for other road users.

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Utilities
Support:

1. Clean water and drinking water funding programs.

2. Recycling, waste diversion, and zero waste programs and enhancing local government's ability to comply with solid waste reduction requirements (includes building of recycling infrastructure and organics / biosolids composting facilities).

3. Measures that require the State Water Resources Control Board and Regional Water Quality Control Boards establish a process to evaluate, in advance of adoption, the costs of compliance for pending and future regulatory actions on National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permittees.

4. Legislation that requires the State's environmental agencies to conduct peer review of proposed regulations to ensure that the proposal is based on sound science.

5. The elimination of mandatory minimum penalties for violations of NPDES Requirements and returning discretionary control to the Regional Water Quality Control Board Executive Officers (i.e., California Water Code Section 13385[h]).

6. Measures to ensure reasonableness in the administration of NPDES permit governing City operations, including pursuing a municipal representative on the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

7. The safe, responsible, and cost-effective reuse of Exceptional Quality or better biosolids.

8. County development of a local ordinance providing additional local oversight and regulation of the land application of Pollutant Concentration (PC) or better biosolids.

9. The Integrated Waste Management Authority’s (IWMA) legislative platform, where consistent with the City’s adopted policies, platforms, and public policy and project objectives.

10. Legislation allowing cities/agencies to establish fees for the costs of operating mandated water quality programs such as, but not limited to, municipal storm water and total maximum daily loading.

11. Federal legislative action and funding to transfer the property ownership of Salinas Reservoir from Army Corps of Engineers Military Project to Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Project.

12. Federal and state funding that would allow for transfer of Salinas Reservoir from the Army Corps of Engineers to the County or City of San Luis Obispo.

13. Water conservation and water use efficiency best management practices.

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14. Amendments to the Urban Water Management Planning Act to recognize past investment in water conservation and the City's ability to comply with SBx7-7 (2009) and other water conservation regulations.

15. The expansion of recycled water production and use, including potable reuse.

16. The use of Public Goods Fundsfor the development and installation of energy saving or green energy generating projects to benefit local government.

17. The protection of water resources, including protection of source waters from invasive species.

18. Regional water resiliency initiatives.

19. Requirements that development outside City jurisdiction have adequate water supplies to support development activities and intensities and does not indirectly impose water service obligations to adjacent municipal water agencies.

20. Streamlined water rights amendment processes for minor water rights permit changes.

21. Federal and statewide funding of water infrastructure projects.

22. Amendments to stormwater regulatory requirements to reduce mandatory minimum fines and penalties and the recovery of private attorneys’ fees for technical non-compliance issues that do not result in adverse public health impacts or environmental harm.

23. Stormwater requirements that are related to specific issues and include reasonable implementation timeframes and funding.

24. Autonomy for management of individual Sustainable Groundwater Management Act designated basins within the county.

25. Funding for implementation of Groundwater Sustainability Plans including the San Luis Obispo/Edna Valley Basin.

26. Federal and state policies that require per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) source control and labelling by product manufacturers, producers, packagers, importers, suppliers, or distributors, or prohibit manufacturing of goods with PFAS.

27. Federal and state funding to assist with identification and cleanup of per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in public source water supplies and aquifers.

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28. Federal or state legislation to protect and limit the liability of passive receivers such as public water and wastewater agencies facing the threat of either USEPA enforcement actions or third-party litigation from the decision to list PFAS as a hazardous substance.

Oppose:

29. Measures reducing the city’s water security.

30. Legislation that requires recycled water to be included in water conservation regulations.

31. Mandatory consolidation of water systems.

32. Legislation that diminishes the City’s existing or potential water rights.

33. Legislation that inhibits the City's ability to collect water and sewer bills either through terminating service for non-payment or other reasonable means absent public health or safety emergencies.

34. Legislation that restricts water and sewer rates for certain customers to below the cost to provide service based on legitimate public interests such as affordable housing, senior housing, nonprofit public beneficial uses, and/or educational uses.

35. State or local per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) regulations that are more restrictive than federal regulations, with the exception of regulations that require per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) source control and labelling by product manufacturers, producers, packagers, importers, suppliers, or distributors, or prohibit manufacturing of goods with PFAS.

Item 6d
Department: Public Works
Cost Center: 9501
For Agenda of: 4/7/2026
Placement: Consent
Estimated Time: N/A
FROM: Aaron Floyd, Public Works & Utilities Director
Prepared By: Allie Genard, Capital Projects Manager I
SUBJECT: AUTHORIZATION TO AWARD 879 MORRO ROOF REPLACEMENT, SPECIFICATION NO. 2000075-10

RECOMMENDATION

1. Approve the project plans and special provisions for the 879 Morro Roof Replacement, Specification No. 2000075-10; and

2. Award a construction contract (Attachment A) to Ranger Roofing and Solar in the amount of $189,074.96 for the 879 Morro Roof Replacement, Specification No. 2000075-10; and,

3. Authorize staff to issue a Purchase Order to Brezden Pest Control Inc., following completion of the roofing project, at an amount within the remaining available project budget; and,

4. Authorize a transfer of $24,948.21 from Sewer Fund Completed Projects to support the roofing project and pest control work; and,

5. Authorize the City Engineer to approve Contract Change Orders, provided they remain within the approved project budget or any amended budget subsequently authorized by the City Manager.

POLICY CONTEXT
On May 17, 2022, Council approved a Purchasing Policy Update to the Financial Management Manual (Resolution No. 11328), requiring Council authorization for Public Works contracts exceeding $200,000.

DISCUSSION
Background
The Utilities Department Administration building roof at 879 Morro Street was last replaced in 2001 as part of a Tenant Improvement (TI) and renovation project. Since then, the roofing system has exceeded its useful life and developed multiple leaks, which have been temporarily addressed through ongoing maintenance. A full roof replacement is now required. Staff have worked with an architectural consultant team to prepare project plans

Item 6d
and specifications for construction. In addition to the roofing system, staff observed termite damage in the rafters supporting the roof. After the roofing project is complete, staff will coordinate a termite remediation project (Attachment B).

The 879 Morro Roof Replacement Project (Project), Specification No. 2000075-10, was previously bid in the summer of 2025, with bids opened on July 17, 2025. Three bids were received and all were deemed non-responsive; therefore, the project was not awarded.

The Project was re-advertised, with bids opened on February 12, 2026. Two bids were received from Ranger Roofing and Solar and Southland Roofing Inc. The bid results are listed below:

Contractor Bid Total
Engineer’s Estimate $ 225,000.00
1 Ranger Roofing and Solar $ 189,074.96
2 Southland Roofing Inc. $ 194,380.00
Ranger Roofing and Solar (Ranger) provided the lowest responsive bid in the amount of $189,074.96. The contractor’s references, license, and registration with the Department of Industrial Relations have been verified.

On February 13, 2026, staff received a bid protest letter from Southland Roofing Inc., the 2 nd low bidder (Attachment C). The letter alleges that Ranger is not certified to install Garland roofing products, which are specified in the project’s special provisions, but may be substituted with an approved equal. Staff forwarded the bid protest letter to the low bidder, Ranger, on February 20, 2026. Ranger responded with a letter on February 23, 2026, stating that the project plans and specifications list Versico products as the basis of design (Attachment D). Additionally, Ranger stated that they are certified to install Versico roofing systems, as required in the project’s special provisions. Staff determined that Southland Roofing Inc.’s bid protest was invalid, because it did not satisfy the procedural requirements for submitting a protest as set forth in the bid package.

Specifically, the protest did not reference the specific portions of the Contract Documents upon which the protest was based. Additionally, staff determined that the bid protest was without merit, as the special provisions do not require the contractor to use Garland roofing products or be a certified Garland installer. On March 5, 2026, staff notified Southland Roofing Inc. that their bid protest had been deemed invalid.

Staff is recommending that the project be awarded to Ranger Roofing and Solar. A 25% construction contingency is recommended due to the potential for concealed conditions commonly encountered during roofing replacements on older buildings. These include dry rot, deteriorated substrate materials, and structural repairs that may not be visible until the existing roof is removed.

Project plans and special provisions are ready for construction, and the agreement with Ranger Roofing and Solar has been drafted (Attachment A).

Item 6d
Previous Council or Advisory Body Action
This project received funding allocations across the 2021-23, 2023-25, and 2025-27 Financial Plans, all of which were adopted by Council.

Public Engagement
Public input was solicited and considered during the development of each respective Financial Plan.

CONCURRENCE
This project has received concurrence from the Utilities Branch of the Public Works and Utilities Department, the Community Development Department, and the City Attorney’s Office.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This project is categorically exempt from environmental review pursuant to sections 15301 (Existing Facilities) and 15302 (Replacement or Reconstruction) of the CEQA Guidelines, as it is a maintenance and rehabilitation project. A Notice of Exemption has been filed through the Community Development Department.

FISCAL IMPACT
Budgeted: Yes Budget Year: 2025-27
Funding Identified: Yes
Fiscal Analysis:

Funding Sources Total Budget
Available
Current
Funding
Request
Project Balance Annual
Ongoing
Cost
(2000075-10)
Water Fund –
2000075-10, 10.01 $ 197,164.14 $ $ 197,164.14 $ -
Sewer Fund –
2000075-10, 10.01 $ 131,324.14 $ $ 131,324.14 $ -
Sewer Fund
Completed
Projects –
602.9501.71501
$ 1,182,406.95 $ 24,948.21 $ 24,948.21 $ -
Total $ 1,510,895.23 $ 24,948.21 $ 353,436.49 $ -

Item 6d
879 Morro Roof Replacement, Specification No. 2000075-10 879 Morro -
Roof
2000075-10,

10.01 Water
Fund (601)
879 Morro -
Roof
2000075-10,

10.01 Sewer
Fund (602)
Sewer Fund
Completed
Projects –
602.9501.71501
Project Total
Construction $94,537.48 $94,537.48 $0 $189,074.96
Construction
Contingency
(25%) $23,634.37 $23,634.37 $0 $47,268.74
Total for
Construction $118,171.85 $118,171.85 $0 $236,343.70
Construction
Design
Support $3,950.00 $3,950.00 $0 $7,900.00
Printing $500.00 $500.00 $0 $1,000.00
Termite
Remediation $33,650.50 $8,702.29 $24,948.21 $67,301.00
Total Project
Cost $156,272.35 $131,324.14 $24,948.21 $312,544.70
Total
Available $197,164.14 $131,324.14 $24,948.21 $353,436.49 Remainder $40,891.79 $0 $0 $40,891.79
The project was initially identified in the 2021-23 Financial Plan, where $15,000 was allocated for design services, split between the Water and Sewer Funds. The 2023-25 Financial Plan allocated an additional $100,000 for the construction phase. The 2024-25 Supplemental Budget allocated an additional $130,000 to support the construction phase, split between the Water and Sewer Funds. The 2025-27 Financial Plan allocated an additional $75,000 to accommodate construction cost escalation, split between the Water and Sewer Funds. As of February 13, 2026, there is currently a balance of $328,488.28 in the project account.

The total estimated project cost is $312,544.70. Funding for the project will be split evenly between the Water and Sewer Funds, which can be accomplished by transferring $24,948.21 from the Sewer Completed Projects Fund into the project account to contribute toward termite remediation. The project account has sufficient funds among the Water Fund, Sewer Fund, and Sewer Completed Projects Fund to award the lowest responsive bid, complete construction, and hire a pest control company to perform termite remediation with $40,891.79 in remaining budget from the Water Fund.

Item 6d

ALTERNATIVES
Reject all bids and readvertise the project. The estimated project cost is within available project budget. Re-advertising the project would result in cost escalation, which could require the need for additional funding. Additionally, there is a small window during the dry season when Utilities staff can reasonably be relocated during construction (August 10, 2026 – September 11, 2026). Should this window be missed in 2026, construction will not be able to occur until spring of 2027 at the earliest, which would likely result in further cost increases.

ATTACHMENTS
A - Draft Contract, Specification No. 2000075-10
B - Termite Abatement Estimate - Brezden Pest Control Inc C - Bid Protest Letter - Southland Roofing Inc
D - Bid Protest Response Letter - Ranger Roofing and Solar

APPENDIX
0 AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT, made on ______________________, by and between the City of San Luis Obispo, a municipal corporation and charter city, San Luis Obispo County, California (hereinafter called the City) and RANGER ROOFING AND SOLAR (hereinafter called the Contractor).

WITNESSETH:

That the City and the Contractor for the consideration stated herein agree as follows:

ARTICLE 1, SCOPE OF WORK: The Contractor shall perform everything required to be performed, shall provide and furnish all of the labor, materials, necessary tools, expendable equipment, and all utility and transportation services required to complete all the work of construction of
879 MORRO ROOF REPLACEMENT, SPEC NO. 2000075-10
in strict compliance with the plans and specifications therefor, including any and all Addenda, adopted by the City, in strict compliance with the Contract Documents hereinafter enumerated.

It is agreed that said labor, materials, tools, equipment, and services shall be furnished and said work performed and completed under the direction and supervision and subject to the approval of the City or its authorized representatives.

ARTICLE II, CONTRACT PRICE: The City shall pay the Contractor as full consideration for the faithful performance of this Contract, subject to any additions or deductions as provided in the Contract Documents, the contract prices as follows:

Item Item Unit of Estimated Item Price Total
No. SS(1) Description Measure Quantity (in figures) (in figures) 1 14
Comply w/ applicable OSHA
provisions throughout duration of
the project.

LS 1 ----- $2,200.00
2 99
Disconnect / Unmount MEP
conduits, ducts, equipment from
roof surface, store on site for
reinstallation, and dispose of
debris.

LS 1 ----- $2,750.00
3 14
Disconnect, unmount, remove,
and dispose existing photovoltaic
array (48 panels), incl. all
components and substructure.

LS 1 ----- $10,142.72
4 99 Remove and dispose existing
multi-layer bituminous roofing. SQFT 2,000 $4.15 $8,300.00 5* 99
Partially remove, replace, and
dispose water-damaged plywood
per plan S -1 Allowance.

SQFT 200 $14.00 $2,800.00

APPENDIX
1 Item Item Unit of Estimated Item Price Total
No. SS(1) Description Measure Quantity (in figures) (in figures) 6* 99
Partially remove, replace, and
dispose water-damaged roof 2x8
rafters per plan S-1 Allowance.

LF 50 $42.00 $2,100.00
7 99
Remove and dispose existing
polycarbonate glazing and
gaskets, clean and store aluminum
glass stop profiles on site for
reinstall.

SQFT 180 $7.78 $1,400.40
8 99
Prepare surface for, deliver and
install new roofing system incl. all
materials
SQFT 2,000 $39.49 $78,980.00
9 99
Install new polycarbonate glazing
and gaskets in existing skylight
structure.

SQFT 180 $54.44 $9,799.20
10 99
Deliver and install new scuppers
and connect to existing
downspouts
EA 4 $1,567.06 $6,268.24
11 99 Reinstall/attach/connect MEP
conduits, ducts, equipment. LS 1 ----- $3,500.00
12 99 Replace exhaust fan per plan M-1 LS 1 ----- $5,200.00 13 99 Install parapet roof membrane,
flashing, and metal coping detail LF 180 $152.78 $27,500.40 14 99 Deliver and install ladder cage EA 1 ----- $7,434.00 15 14 Health and Safety Plan (HSP) LS 1 ----- $2,000.00 16 14 Asbestos Removal by California
Certified Asbestos Abater LS 1 ----- $18,700.00
(1) refers to section in the Standard Specifications, with modifications in the Special Provisions, that describe required work.
* Bid item exempt from Section 9-1.06B & 9-1.06C of the Standard Specifications. The unit price will not be adjusted regardless of the final bid item quantity.

BID TOTAL: $189,074.96
Payments are to be made to the Contractor in compliance with and subject to the provisions embodied in the documents made a part of this Contract.

If any dispute arises regarding the work or contract price, Contractor must follow the procedures in the contract documents, including the requirements on change order requests and dispute resolution.

ARTICLE III, COMPONENT PARTS OF THIS CONTRACT: The Contract consists of the following documents, all of which are as fully a part thereof as if herein set out in full, and if not attached, as if hereto attached:

1. Notice to Bidders and Information for Bidders

2. Standard Specifications and Engineering Standards

3. Special Provisions, any Addenda, Plans and Contract Change Orders

4. Caltrans Standard Specifications and Standard Plans 2024

5. Accepted Bid and Bid Bond

APPENDIX
2 6. List of Subcontractors

7. Labor Code Section 1725.5 Statements

8. Bidder Acknowledgements

9. Qualifications

10. Non-Collusion Declaration

11. Agreement and Bonds

12. Insurance Requirements and Forms
ARTICLE IV INDEMNIFICATION: The Contractor shall indemnify, defend with legal counsel approved by City, and hold harmless City, its officers, officials, employees and volunteers from and against all liability, loss, damage, expense, cost (including without limitation reasonable legal counsel fees, expert fees and all other costs and fees of litigation) of every nature arising out of or in connection with the acts or omissions of Contractor, its employees, subcontractors, representatives, or agents, in bidding or performing the work or in failing to comply with any obligation of Contractor under this Agreement, except such loss or damage which is caused by the sole or active negligence or willful misconduct of the City. Should conflict of interest principles preclude a single legal counsel from representing both the City and the Contractor, or should the City otherwise find the Contractor’s legal counsel unacceptable, then the Contractor shall reimburse the City its costs of defense, including without limitation reasonable legal counsel fees, expert fees and all other costs and fees of litigation. The Contractor shall promptly pay any final judgment rendered against the City (and its officers, officials, employees and volunteers) with respect to claims determined by a trier of fact to have been the result of the Contractor’s acts or omissions in bidding or performing the work or in failing to comply with any obligation of Contractor under this Agreement. It is expressly understood and agreed that the foregoing provisions are intended to be as broad and inclusive as is permitted by the law of the State of California and will survive termination of this Agreement.

The Contractor obligations under this section apply regardless of whether such claim, charge, damage, demand, action, proceeding, loss, stop notice, cost, expense, judgment, civil fine or penalty, or liability was caused in part or contributed to by an Indemnitee.

However, without affecting the rights of the City under any provision of this agreement, the Contractor shall not be required to indemnify and hold harmless the City for liability attributable to the active negligence of City, provided such active negligence is determined by agreement between the parties or by the findings of a court of competent jurisdiction. In instances where the City is shown to have been actively negligent and where the City’s active negligence accounts for only a percentage of the liability involved, the obligation of the Contractor will be for that entire portion or percentage of liability not attributable to the active negligence of the City.

ARTICLE V: It is further expressly agreed by and between the parties hereto that should there be any conflict between the terms of this instrument and the bid of said Contractor, then this instrument shall control and nothing herein shall be considered as an acceptance of the said terms of said bid conflicting herewith.

APPENDIX
3 ARTICLE VI LABOR CODE COMPLIANCE: This Agreement is subject to all applicable requirements of Chapter 1 of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code, including requirements pertaining to wages, working hours and workers’ compensation insurance, as further specified in the contract documents.

The project is subject to the prevailing wage requirements applicable to the locality in which the work is to be performed for each craft, classification or type of worker needed to perform the work, including employer payments for health and welfare, pension, vacation, apprenticeship and similar purposes. Copies of these prevailing rates are on file with the City and are available online at http://www.dir.ca.gov/DLSR.

City may not enter into the Agreement with a bidder without proof that the bidder and its subcontractors are registered with the DIR to perform public work pursuant to Labor Code section 1725.5, subject to limited legal exceptions.

Pursuant to Labor Code § 1861, by signing this Agreement, Contractor certifies as follows:
“I am aware of the provisions of Labor Code § 3700 which require every employer to be insured against liability for workers’ compensation or to undertake self-insurance in accordance with the provisions of that code, and I will comply with such provisions before commencing the performance of the work on this contract.”

APPENDIX
4 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties to these presents have hereunto set their hands this year and date first above written.

CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO
A Municipal Corporation

__________________________________
Whitney McDonald, City Manager

APPROVED AS TO FORM CONTRACTOR:

Ranger Roofing and Solar
________________________________

By:________________________________
J. Christine Dietrick
City Attorney
Chad A. Kozak
Its: CEO
(2nd signature required if Corporation):

By:________________________________
Levy Benitez
Its: Project Manager

WORK ORDER AGREEMENT
Building No. Street City Zip  Date
879 Morro St  San Luis Obispo  93401-2710  10/11/24
Brezden Pest Control Inc.
3261 S Higuera St
Suite 100, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401-2021
Tel 805-544-9446  Fax 805-544-2807
Registration #: PR30

A LICENSED PEST CONTROL

OPERATOR IS AN EXPERT IN
HIS/HER FIELD.  ANY QUESTIONS

RELATIVE TO THIS REPORT

SHOULD BE REFERRED TO
HIM/HER.

Report #: 13437
Ordered by: Property Owner and Party of Interest: Completion sent to:

Utilities Offices
879 Morro St
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
City of San Luis Obispo
990 Palm St
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
City of San Luis Obispo
990 Palm St
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
COST FOR WORK RECOMMENDED FOR TERMITE REPORT #: 13437

SECTION I SECTION II SECTION NOT DETERMINED OR FURTHER

INSPECTION RECOMMENDED
2A $67,301.00
Total Section I:  $67,301.00
I HEREBY AUTHORIZE BREZDEN PEST CONTROL INC. TO PERFORM THE FOLLOWING ITEMS:

TERMS:

DOES ANY PERSON LIVING OR WORKING AT THIS ADDRESS HAVE ANY KNOWN CHEMICAL SENSITIVITES OR ALLERGIES?      YES / NO

HAVE YOU OR ANYONE ELSE LIVING OR WORKING AT THIS ADDRESS EVER MADE ANY PESTICIDE APPLICATIONS TO THE INTERIOR OR EXTERIOR OF THE STRUCTURE?      YES / NO

AUTHORIZATION
CONDITIONS:

BY OWNER/AGENT/BUYER Brezden Pest Control Inc.

PHONE: 805-781-7371 By:  James Byon
SIGNATURE: Signature:

Lic. #: FR51027
NOTE: WORK WILL NOT COMMENCE UNTIL DELIVERY OF YOUR WOOD DESTROYING PESTS AND ORGANISMS REPORT.  FOR DETAILS REGARDING THE ABOVE RECOMMENDATIONS PLEASE REFER TO YOUR INSPECTION REPORT.

1 Date: 02/13/2026
From: Southland Roofing, Inc.
9127 S Western Avenue,
Los Angeles, CA, 90047
February 13, 2026
To: City of San Luis Obispo
Public Works and Utilities Department
Attn: Project Manager - 919 Palm Street San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 Re: Bid Protest – Apparent Lowest Bidder, Specification No. 2000075-10 (879 Morro Roof Replacement)
Dear Sir or Madam,
Pursuant to the Notice to Bidders and the bid protest procedures set forth in the Contract Documents, this letter serves as a formal protest of the apparent lowest bidder for the abovereferenced project. This protest is submitted timely within the required protest period and is made by an actual bidder on this project, in accordance with the City’s stated protest requirements.

The basis of this protest is that the apparent lowest bidder is not certified or approved to install Garland roofing products, which are specified for this project, and failed to submit any substitution request or “or-equal” request prior to the bid date, as required by the Contract Documents. As a result, the bidder’s proposal does not comply with the specified material and manufacturer requirements and is therefore non-responsive.

The Contract Documents require strict compliance with the specified roofing system and manufacturer requirements. Any proposed deviation or substitution must be formally requested and approved prior to bid submission. Allowing a bidder who is neither certified nor approved by the specified manufacturer, and who did not submit a timely substitution request, would be inconsistent with the bidding requirements and would undermine the integrity of the competitive bidding process.

2 Accordingly, the undersigned respectfully requests that the City determine the apparent lowest bidder to be non-responsive, reject that bid, and proceed with award to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder who fully complies with the Contract Documents, including manufacturer certification and substitution requirements.

Supporting documentation regarding Garland manufacturer’s certification requirements and the absence of a pre-bid substitution request is available upon request and can be provided to the City for review.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please confirm receipt of this protest and advise of the City’s determination in accordance with the protest procedures outlined in the Contract Documents.

Sincerely,
Pier Pjerin Prenga | Principal

February 23, 2026
Allie Genard
Capital Projects Manager
City of San Luis Obispo, Public Works
919 Palm Street San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
RE: Bid Protest Response – 879 Morro Roof Replacement (Spec. No. 2000075-10) Ms. Genard,
Please see responses to the bid protest claims on the 879 Morro roof replacement project in San Luis Obispo CA.

PROTEST CLAIM 1 – Ranger roofing is not an approved applicator with the specified manufacture published by the project architect.

RESPONSE -
Specification section 071354 calls out in the section 1.6 -C that the bidder be certified with Versico Roofing systems. Attached below is a copy of that section and a copy of Ranger Roofings Versico Roofing Systems certified applicator letter. 1 Los Angeles - Inland Empire - SoCal
(619) 748-9663
[email protected]
License #1107898 C-39, C-46

PROTEST CLAIM 2 – Versico was not a specified product in the project specification.

RESPONSE - Specification section 071354 in Appendix B section 2.1 – A specifically calls out Versico Roofing Systems Versiflex 80 mil PVC as the basis of design for this project. This is the product and manufacture Ranger Roofing utilized in its project bid. There are contradicting products listed below that are not manufactured by Versico; however, the published project drawings only show the use of the appropriate versico products as can be seen in the highlighted project drawings below. Ranger Roofing is confident that the submitted bid meets the project criteria published by the city and their architect and is fully compliant with the bid process.
2 Los Angeles - Inland Empire - SoCal
(619) 748-9663
[email protected]
License #1107898 C-39, C-46

3 Los Angeles - Inland Empire - SoCal
(619) 748-9663
[email protected]
License #1107898 C-39, C-46

4 Los Angeles - Inland Empire - SoCal
(619) 748-9663
[email protected]
License #1107898 C-39, C-46

Ranger Roofing and Solar bid this project in strict accordance with the project documents provided by the City. We believe the protest is without merit as our submission fulfills all technical and experience requirements set forth in the Special Provisions.

Thank you for the opportunity to clarify our position.

Sincerely,
Chad A. Kozak
CEO, Ranger Roofing and Solar
5 Los Angeles - Inland Empire - SoCal
(619) 748-9663
[email protected]
License #1107898 C-39, C-46

City of San Luis Obispo, Council Memorandum
City of San Luis Obispo
Council Agenda Correspondence
DATE: April 7, 2026
TO: Mayor and Council
FROM: Timmi Tway, Community Development Director
Prepared By: Ethan Estrada, Assistant Planner and David Amini, Senior Planner VIA: Whitney McDonald, City Manager
SUBJECT: ITEM #7a - 2025 GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REPORT
Staff received the following questions regarding the information presented in the 2025 General Plan Annual Report. The questions are below with staff’s responses shown in italics:
1) It’s noted in the report that CAPSLO received $412,005 in 2025 for homeless services. Is that the full amount annually (at least in that year) that we provided, including hotel voucher funds and any other “pots” (like even including an HRC grants)?
The 2025 funding allocation for CAPSLO included the following operational and programmatic costs for 40 Prado Homeless Services Center, which are outlined in the City’s annual funding agreement:
 40 Prado HSC Operational Support: $186,826
 40 Prado Hotel & Motel Program: $90,000
 40 Prado Safe Parking Program: $26,000
 40 Prado Warming Center: $10,000
 Community Safe Parking Pilot Program: $80,984
 Encampment Resolution Fund Grant – Sub-Contracting Fees for Outreach Services: $18,195
 Total: $412,005
The total funding amount does not include additional grant funds that CAPSLO received from the City in FY 25-26, which are outlined below:
 Human Services Grant: $20,000
 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Funding: $64,357  Childcare Grant: $50,000
 Total: $134,357

ITEM #7a. 2025 GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REPORT Page 2
2) On page 120, we see our RHNA table noting that we need about 500 more units in the very and extremely low category. Have the projects at Bridge Street, Welcome Home Village and Beacon been counted yet, or will those go against the 500 we still need? Also, what about the BMR units in San Luis Ranch…when are those set to begin construction and will those go against our 500 number we still need?
The Bridge Street Family Apartments project (30 units) and Beacon Studios (79 units) had permits issued in 2024 and were counted in the RHNA table for last year’s report. Staff is researching whether the City can count the 54-unit Welcome Home Village project towards its RHNA progress, as the project is located on County-owned land and the County is the permitting authority. Staff reached out to HCD inquiring whether the project can be counted and will revise the RHNA table accordingly once a determination is made. San Luis Ranch has completed construction and occupancy of 577 residential units in the specific plan area. In December 2024, City Council approved initiation of Specific Plan and Development Agreement amendments to allow for the construction of 276 market rate residential units on Lot 7 in place of the initially planned commercial use. A 1.85 acre portion of Lot 7 is planned to be donated to People’s Self-Help Housing to allow for the construction of 69 to 77 below market rate rental units to satisfy the remaining inclusionary housing requirements of the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan and Development Agreement. The project developer for Lot 7 has not yet submitted applications for the necessary amendments to the Specific Plan and Development Agreement. Permits have not yet been issued for the PSHH development and therefore it is not counted in the RHNA progress table. 3) Page 127 mentions the Pratt Property and says that townhomes are under construction. When are those set to be done and are there any BMR in that development?
There are 4 live-work townhomes located at 1192, 1194, 1196, and 1198 Tiburon Way that are under construction. These are the final remaining residential units on the Pratt property. The Righetti sales website for these units projects a Summer 2026 completion date. None of these units are below market rate. The Pratt property contains 68 below market rate rental units all provided in the Tiburon Place development by People’s Self-Help Housing.
4) On page 157, the report talks about code enforcement and neighborhood preservation cases. Can you clarify the difference between those two categories?
Neighborhood Preservation code cases cover violations of property maintenance standards, such as improper storage of waste receptacles, overgrown vegetation, graffiti, and other violations of the standards identified in Municipal Code Chapter

17.76. Code Enforcement cases cover all other violations, such as unpermitted construction, substandard housing, land use violations, and other violations of the municipal code, building code, fire code, and other laws as applicable.

Item 7a
Department: Community Development
Cost Center: 4006
For Agenda of: 4/7/2025
Placement: Public Hearing
Estimated Time: 30 minutes
FROM: Timmi Tway, Community Development Director
Prepared By: Ethan Estrada, Assistant Planner
SUBJECT: 2025 GENERAL PLAN ANNUAL REPORT

RECOMMENDATION
As recommended by the Planning Commission, receive and file the 2025 General Plan Annual Report.

REPORT-IN-BRIEF
The 2025 General Plan Annual Report (Attachment A) is required by state law to be submitted to state agencies in April each year and provides an opportunity to review the status of the City’s implementation of General Plan programs. The report includes highlights of the City’s prioritized programs to support housing production and other building trends, progress in homelessness response, and policy initiatives, as well as public safety services and open space protections.

POLICY CONTEXT
According to the General Plan Land Use Element Policy 11.3, the City shall prepare an annual report on the status of the General Plan, which is to include the following items:

A. A summary of private development activity and a brief analysis of how it helped achieve General Plan goals;
B. A summary of major public projects and a brief analysis of how they contributed to achieving General Plan goals;
C. An overview of programs, and recommendations on any new approaches that may be necessary;
D. A status report for each General Plan program scheduled to be worked on during that year, including discussion of whether that program realization is progressing on schedule, and recommendations for how it could better be kept on schedule if it is falling behind schedule;
E. A status report on how the City is progressing with implementing its open space preservation policies and programs; and

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F. Updated population or other information deemed important for the Plan.

In addition, all jurisdictions are required to provide the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI) and the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) with separate General Plan Annual Reports in April, per Government Code Sections 65400 and 65700. The annual report shall include the progress in meeting the City’s share of regional housing need allocation (RHNA) for above moderate income, moderate income, lower income, very low income and extremely low-income households and local efforts to remove governmental constraints to the provision of housing.

DISCUSSION
Background
California Government Code Section 65400 requires cities to submit an annual report on the status of their General Plan and progress in its implementation to their legislative body (City Council), the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation, and the California Department of Housing and Community Development. Prior to submittal to the state, the annual report must be presented to the City Council for review and acceptance.

Previous General Plan Annual Reports can be found at this website. The Housing Element portion of the annual report shall include the city’s RHNA progress described above and housing production applications, completions, and demolitions, as well as measures the City takes to remove housing barriers.

The General Plan Annual Report (GPAR) is strictly a reporting document and does not create or modify any City goals, policies or programs found within the General Plan.

Report Organization
The General Plan is a comprehensive statement of the City’s goals and guides the use and protection of various resources to achieve them. It consists of numerous policies covering a range of City activities, including the creation and/or maintenance of public programs, guidelines on land use and development standards, and more. The GPAR is an opportunity for the City to review the Plan’s progress in meeting its goals. It also provides an opportunity to review the effectiveness of the programs identified by the Plan, and to determine if they are still relevant to City goals and policies. Additionally, assessment of the implementation of the General Plan informs the City Council about potential new programs and projects that might be initiated as the City develops a new financial plan.

The 2025 GPAR is organized around the following key implementation areas:
 Planning and Building Activity
 Residential Growth
 Non-Residential Growth
 Housing Element Program
Implementation
 Regional Housing Needs
Allocation (RHNA) Progress
 Municipal Code Updates
 Climate Action Plan
 Economic Development
 Policy Initiatives
 Water Supply
 Transportation & Circulation
 Safety Services

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 Homelessness Solutions
 Coordination with Other Agencies
 Area Plan and Specific Plan
Development
 Neighborhood Wellness
 Conservation & Open Space
 Parks & Recreation
Report Highlights
Highlights from the GPAR are identified in this section of the report. More information on these topics, and others, is available in the GPAR (Attachment A).

Development Activity and Trends (Pages 3 – 7)
Residential Development
The 2025 GPAR presents a variety of data collected by the City to give insight into development activity and trends over several years. Based on the Community Development Department’s (CDD’s) residential building permit data, the City issued permits for 83 single-family residences and 11 multifamily units in 2025, for a total of 94 new residential units. This represents a decrease compared to 353 units in 2024 and 284 units in 2023. A total of 104 accessory dwelling units were permitted in 2025, an increase compared to 96 in 2024 and 86 in 2023.

California cities and counties are required to develop and implement programs designed to meet a share of their region’s housing needs for all income groups as part of their Housing Element development and implementation. Each jurisdiction’s Housing Element includes plans, policies, and standards to help meet housing needs within the planning period. The City planned for a total RHNA of 3,354 housing units in the 6th Cycle Housing Element (2019-2028). Table 7 of the GPAR, included below, illustrates the City’s progress towards 6th Cycle Quantified Objectives for RHNA. Of the 3,354 assigned housing units, 2,118 have been accounted for. The remaining 37% of housing units needed consist of 1,229 Below Market Rate units for extremely low, very low, low, and moderate-income levels, as the above-moderate allocation has already been met. These numbers do not represent the total number of housing units that have been added to the City’s housing stock.

Table 7 - Progress Towards 6th Cycle Quantified Objectives, 2019-2028 Income Level
(% of County Median
Income)
6th Cycle
RHNA
Allocation
Building Permitted Units Issued by Affordability Total
Units by
Income
Level
Total Units
Remaining
by Income
Level
Years 1 - 3
(2019-2021)
Year 4
(2022)
Year 5
(2023)
Year 6
(2024)
Year 7 of 10
(2025)
Extremely
Low
Deed
Restricted
825
14 36 0 123 0 173
500 Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 0 0 0 0
Very Low Deed
Restricted 56 14 22 60 0 152

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Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 0 0 0 0
Low
Deed
Restricted
520
42 21 5 15 0 83
211
Non-Deed
Restricted 76 50 0 48 52 226
Moderate
Deed
Restricted
603
22 2 4 13 1 42
518
Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 43 0 0 43
Above
Moderate - 1,406 1,411 439 293 190 145 2,478 0
Total Units 3,354 1,621 562 367 442 198 3,190 1,229
Land Use Element (LUE) Policy 1.11.2, related to residential growth, states that the City’s housing supply shall grow no faster that 1 percent per year, on average, based on established thresholds in Table 3 of the Land Use Element (LUE). Dwellings affordable to residents with extremely low, very low, low or moderate incomes, as defined by the Housing Element, new dwellings in the Downtown Core, and legally established accessory dwelling units are exempt. (SLOMC 17.144.020(D)) Each year, the City calculates a rolling average of housing units produced since 2015 (the year the Land Use and Circulation Element was adopted). In 2025, staff calculated the current average annual growth rate to be 1.00 percent per year since 2015.

Table 5 – Residential Growth Rates, 2015-2025
Calendar Year Period New Units Average Annual
Growth Rate
Total Units in the
City in 2025
LUE Estimated Units
in 2025 (1% Growth)
2025 174*

1.00% 23,292* 23,560
2015 - 2025 3,588
*These totals exclude deed-restricted affordable units, ADUs, and new dwellings in the C-D Zone. The allencompassing unit total in 2025 was 24,399 units It was reported in the 2024 General Plan Annual Report that the average annual growth rate had reached 1.03 percent per year since 2015, exceeding this threshold. Staff assessed the implications of exceeding this threshold and found that the General Plan only called for the phasing of residential projects subject to these regulations, which is already done for current projects and future projects in annexation areas. Therefore, no action was required of the Council. Staff expects this growth rate to continue to decrease based on the decreasing number of residential permits being issued. For more information on the City’s growth management policies, please see Attachment B (City’s Growth Management Regulations – Status Update).

Item 7a
Non-Residential Development
LUE Policy 1.11.4 states that the City Council shall evaluate the increase in nonresidential floor area over a five-year period and consider establishing limits on the rate of non-residential development if it exceeds five percent. In 2025, 176,673 square feet of non-residential floor area was added the City (120,000 square feet is attributed to the completion of the Marriot hotel project in the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan area), resulting in a net annual growth rate of 1.47 percent and a five-year growth rate of 3.15 percent.

The City remains below the threshold to establish a non-residential growth limit.

Homelessness Solutions (Pages 12 – 15)
The City's 6th Cycle Housing Element includes policies and programs to reduce homelessness under Goal 1, Safety and Goal 8, Special Housing Needs. Homelessness Response remains a Major City Goal as part of the 2025-27 Financial Plan.

In 2025, the City responded to 104 encampment fires and 941 medical incidents, removed 47 tons of trash, and posted, conducted outreach, and cleaned up 247 illegal encampments, with a total of $49,879 in funds spent on related cleanup and maintenance.

Homelessness response activities in 2025 included regional collaboration to pursue state funding opportunities for the development of interim and permanent supportive housing, as well as partnerships with community and faith-based organizations to implement a Community Safe Parking Pilot Program model.

Additionally, construction continued for the Beacon Studios project, which received approximately $400,000 in financial support from the City, and the Welcome Home Village project, in collaboration with the county, began construction in 2025. Other programs, including the Human Services Grant Program that awarded $150,000 in grants to qualifying non-profit organizations, Community Action Team, Mobile Crisis Unit, and collaborative efforts with Downtown SLO and CAPSLO who received $412,005 in funding for programs and operations at the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center, continued throughout 2025. For more up-to-date information on the various strategies implemented to address the needs of those at risk or experiencing homelessness, refer to the County’s Regional Homeless Services Inventory Report recently presented to the City Council (pending minor updates).

Safety Services (Pages 34 – 46)
Climate Adaptation and Safety Element (CASE) Policy OP-7.1 requires adequate planning, organization, and resources for emergency preparedness and emergency response. The City achieved several accomplishments in 2025 to implement this policy.

Fire Department
The San Luis Obispo Fire Department (SLOFD) responded to 7,344 incidents from four strategically placed fire stations throughout the City in 2025. SLOFD’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Team continued to play a vital role in protecting the lives of both visitors

Item 7a
and residents, responding to 13 technical rescues and medical emergencies in open space areas in and around the City.

SLOFD’s Mobile Crisis Unit (MCU) continued to respond to behavioral health incidents, handling 151 calls for service and conducting 2,234 field contacts, which resulted in 46 transports to alternate facilities. Working with stakeholders, the MCU Team also facilitated the reunification of 25 individuals with family, friends, or other out-of-area support networks.

A draft update to the City’s Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP) was completed in 2025 as part of the Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan update led by San Luis Obispo County.

The HMP provides guidance on reducing the community’s vulnerability to natural hazards.

Maintaining an updated HMP, as required by law, allows the City to apply for state and federal funding for proactive mitigation projects and to seek reimbursement in the event of a disaster. The updated HMP will be presented to the City Council for adoption in June 2026.

In 2025, the state released updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps identifying areas of elevated wildfire risk within the City. These maps serve as the regulatory basis for wildfirerelated planning, development standards, and community risk-reduction efforts, including defensible space requirements for existing properties in the City. The updated state maps identified more than 2,800 parcels within the City as being in the Very-High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, whereas fewer than 50 parcels were identified within that zone under the previous maps. In addition, the 2025 CA Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) Code was issued at the state level for adoption by local jurisdictions. The City Council formally adopted the WUI code on December 2, 2025. City staff is dedicated to proactive outreach regarding the new WUI code, including providing information at public counters, hosting community events and neighborhood meetings regarding wildfire preparedness, and creating dedicated webpages and outreach materials. Additionally, Fire and Community Development Department staff have been trained on the new regulations and are ensuring compliance with said regulations through the permitting process.

Police Department
In 2025, the San Luis Obispo Police Department (SLOPD) completed the second year of its five-year strategic plan. Accomplishments included completion of a department-wide staffing study; implementation of data-driven policing tools to reduce crime; establishment of an online recruitment portal; improvements to the Department’s physical fitness facility; development of a centralized resource guide for employee wellness information; updates to body-worn and in-car camera systems; enhancement of community communication strategies; and improvements to the Department’s training program.

SLOPD’s Community Action Team (CAT) continued to identify problems and crime trends negatively impacting residents, business owners, and visitors. In 2025, CAT engaged with 798 individuals and made 164 treatment referrals to mental health and substance abuse

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services. Additionally, CAT facilitated two family reunifications for individuals experiencing homelessness.

SLOPD’s Community Service Officer (CSO) program continued to deliver personalized services to residents, business owners, and visitors. In 2025, CSOs issued 443 citations for offenses such as public alcohol consumption, littering, smoking, and unregistered vehicles, along with 189 cite-and-release arrests related to alcohol, drugs, theft, vehicle tows, and trespassing. Although not finalized, staff have observed a 22% decrease in Part 1 crime rates based on data from January 2025 to November 2025.

Conservation and Open Space (Pages 48 – 51)
The General Plan contains many goals, policies, and programs focused on open space protection. The policies apply to sensitive lands within the City’s urban reserve as well as land in the San Luis Obispo Greenbelt area that is protected for its biological, agricultural, aesthetic, and/or watershed protection value. These policies are further detailed in the Land Use and Circulation Element and the Conservation and Open Space Elements of the General Plan. Some highlights for 2025 include:
 In May 2025, the City hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Righetti Hill Open Space, officially opening the 51-acre property to the public. The site features more than two miles of sustainably built trails.
 In December 2025, the City hosted a cultural burn at the Johnson Ranch Open Space conducted by the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribe (ytt) with support from CalFIRE.
 City staff began cataloging potential sites for new oak trees planting and initiated installation of oaks to expand the existing oak forest on several City open space properties, including Terrace Hill, Bowden Ranch, and Cerro San Luis. As of 2025, over 6,000 new trees have been planted in collaboration with various community partners, volunteers, and community members in both private and public spaces in support of the City’s 2035 goal of planting 10,000 new trees.  City staff partnered with the California Conservation Corps through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund program to implement the Wildland-Urban Interface and Integrated Vegetation Management Plan for the Open Space Land of San Luis Obispo. This work included activities in Bowden Ranch, as well as major fuel reduction and cleanup efforts along the WUI.

Previous Council or Advisory Body Action
The Planning Commission reviewed the 2025 General Plan Annual Report on March 11, 2026. Staff responded to Planning Commission questions regarding housing production, homelessness response, and safety services. Staff received direction from the Planning Commission to verify the activity of the Neighborhood Officer Program operated by SLOPD following public comment received at the hearing. In review of this section of the annual report, it was found that information pertaining to activities conducted in 2025 was

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not provided and that any such activities, if conducted, could not be verified. Therefore, staff has removed this section from the annual report with plans to revisit this topic in the 2026 General Plan Annual Report if appropriate. The report was unanimously recommended to be forwarded to the City Council.

Public Engagement
The General Plan Annual Report is strictly a reporting document and does not create nor modify any goals or policies found within the General Plan. Once accepted by the City Council, the report will be available on the City’s website for public review and will be submitted to LCI and HCD as required. In addition, opportunity was provided for public comment before and during the Planning Commission meeting on March 11, 2026, and the public will have the opportunity to provide public comment before and during the City Council meeting.

CONCURRENCE
The Community Development Department prepared the General Plan Annual Report with significant input from other City departments. Administration (including Natural Resources, Economic Development, and Office of Sustainability divisions), Public Works and Utilities, Police, Fire, and Parks and Recreation Departments collaborated with the Community Development Department to complete the report.

ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) does not apply because the General Plan Annual Report does not constitute a “Project” under CEQA Guidelines Section 15378.

FISCAL IMPACT
Budgeted: N/A Budget Year: N/A
Funding Identified: N/A
Fiscal Analysis:

Funding
Sources
Total Budget
Available
Current
Funding
Request
Remaining
Balance
Annual
Ongoing
Cost
General Fund $N/A $ $ $
State
Federal
Fees
Other:

Total $ $ $ $

Item 7a
The acceptance of the 2025 General Plan Annual Report does not have a direct fiscal impact. However, it should be noted that it is estimated that the City’s population will grow to 57,200 at full build out of the General Plan, by 2035. This may precipitate the need for additional staff, capital projects and maintenance, and other resources to support a larger population and respond to an increasing diversity of needs.

ALTERNATIVES

1. Council could decide not to accept and file the 2025 General Plan Annual Report. The report is required to be submitted to LCI and HCD by April 1, 2026, in accordance with Government Code Sections 65400 and 65700. Enforcement provisions per state law allow for a court to compel jurisdictions to comply with the requirement.

2. Council could decide to continue consideration of or direct modifications to the 2025 General Plan Annual Report. The report is required to be submitted to LCI and HCD by April 1, 2026, in accordance with Government Code Sections 65400 and 65700. Enforcement provisions per state law allow for a court to compel jurisdictions to comply with the requirement.

ATTACHMENTS
A – 2025 General Plan Annual Report
B – City’s Growth Management Regulations – Status Update

cannshel
growt
ann
City of San Luis Obispo
2025 General Plan Annual Report

General Plan Annual Report 2025
ii
Community Development Department
Our Mission Statement
Our mission is to serve all persons in a positive and courteous manner while helping ensure that San Luis Obispo continues to be a healthy, safe, attractive, and enjoyable place to live, work, or visit. We help plan the City’s form and character, support community values, preserve the environment, promote wise use of resources, and protect public health and safety.

Our Service Philosophy
The City of San Luis Obispo Community Development Department (CDD) staff provides high quality service when you need it. We will:
• Listen to understand your needs;
• Give clear, accurate and prompt answers to your questions; • Explain how you can achieve your goals under the City’s rules; • Help resolve problems in an open, objective manner;
• Maintain high ethical standards; and
• Work to improve our service.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
iii
Acknowledgements
City Council
Erica A. Stewart, Mayor
Emily Francis, Vice Mayor
Michael R. Boswell
Jan Marx
Michelle Shoresman
Planning Commission
David Houghton, Chair
Eric Tolle, Vice Chair
Justin Cooley
Sheryl Flores
Robert Jorgensen
Steven Kahn
Juan Munoz-Morris
City Manager
Whitney McDonald, City Manager
Project Management Team
Project Lead: Ethan Estrada, Assistant Planner
Delaney Ginn, Intern IV
The 2025 General Plan Annual
Report was prepared by the
Community Development
Department for review by the
Planning Commission and
acceptance by City Council.

The Community Development
Department’s Planning
Division often takes the lead
on staff work related to the
General Plan. However, all
City departments and advisory
bodies are involved in General
Plan implementation and have
contributed to the 2025
General Plan Annual Report.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
iv
Staff Contributors
Aaron Floyd, Public Works and Utilities Director
Adam Fukushima, Active Transportation Manager
Alexander Fuchs, Mobility Services Business Manager
Brian Amoroso, Deputy Chief - Administration
Bryan Wheeler, Transportation Planner/Engineer III
Chris Read, Sustainability Manager
Christine Wallace, Neighborhood Outreach Manager
Daisy Wiberg, Homelessness Response Manager
David Amini, Senior Planner
Devin Hyfield, Recreation Manager
Donna King, Parking Program Manager
Doug Carscaden, Recreation Supervisor
Freddy Otte, City Biologist
Greg Avakian, Parks and Recreation Director
Ivana Gomez, Cannabis Business Coordinator
Jennifer Rice, Public Works Deputy Director of Mobility Services Joe Little, Emergency Manager
John Mezzapesa, Code Enforcement Supervisor
Joshua Daniel, Fire Marshal
Luke Schwartz, Transportation Manager
Lucia Baesemann, Sustainability and Natural Resources Analyst Matt Horn, Major City Projects Manager
Matheson Bliss, Hazardous Materials Coordinator
Meghan Tolley, Recreation Manager
Laura Fiedler, Economic Development & Tourism Manager
Nicole Vert, Business Analyst
Rick Scott, Police Chief
Robert Hill, Sustainability & Natural Resources Official Sammy Fox, Deputy Fire Chief
Sarah Cooper, Administrative Specialist – Homelessness Response Shawna Scott, Assistant Director of Utilities
Timmi Tway, Community Development Director
Randy Harris, Interim Fire Chief
Tyler Corey, Deputy Community Development Director
Vanessa Nichols, Permit Services Supervisor

General Plan Annual Report 2025
v
Table of Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................1 Background ...................................................................................................................................2 Planning and Building Activity.......................................................................................................3 Residential Growth .......................................................................................................................5 Non-Residential Growth................................................................................................................6 Housing Element Program Implementation..................................................................................7 Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Progress .................................................................10 Homelessness Solutions..............................................................................................................12 Coordination with Other Agencies..............................................................................................15 Area Plan and Specific Plan Development...................................................................................16 Municipal Code Updates.............................................................................................................23 Climate Action Plan.....................................................................................................................24 Economic Development..............................................................................................................25 Policy Initiatives..........................................................................................................................26 Water Supply ..............................................................................................................................27 Transportation and Circulation ...................................................................................................29 Safety Services............................................................................................................................34 Neighborhood Wellness..............................................................................................................46 Conservation and Open Space ....................................................................................................48 Parks & Recreation......................................................................................................................51 Conclusion...................................................................................................................................64

General Plan Annual Report 2025
vi
List of Figures
Figure 1 - Total Planning Applications Received per Calendar Year, 2023-2025............................3 Figure 2 - Net Annual Growth Rates of Non-Residential Sectors, 2021-2025................................6 Figure 3 - Monthly Noise Party Calls for Service, 2025................................................................48 List of Tables
Table 1 – Plan Check Applications Submitted, 2023-2025 ............................................................ 3 Table 2 – Building Permits Issued, 2023-2025............................................................................... 4 Table 3 – Valuation of Construction, 2023-2025........................................................................... 4 Table 4 – LUE Table 3, One Percent City Population Growth Projection ...................................... 5 Table 5 – Residential Growth Rates, 2015-2025 ........................................................................... 5 Table 6 – Highlights of Housing Element Program Implementation Progress, 2025 ..................... 7 Table 7 – Progress Towards 6th Cycle Quantified Objectives, 2019-2028.................................... 10 Table 8 – Active BMR Housing Projects in the Pipeline .............................................................. 11 Table 9 – Margarita Area Development Status, 2025 ................................................................. 16 Table 10 – Orcutt Area Development Status, 2025..................................................................... 17 Table 11 – Airport Area Development Status, 2025.................................................................... 18 Table 12 – Avila Area Development Status, 2025........................................................................ 20 Table 13 – San Luis Ranch Area Development Status, 2025........................................................ 23 Table 14 – City Water Resource Availability, 2025...................................................................... 27 Table 15 – Code Enforcement Statistics, 2021-2025................................................................... 47

General Plan Annual Report 2025
1 Introduction
General Plan Annual Report
The General Plan is a comprehensive statement of the City’s goals and guides the use and protection of various resourcesto achieve them. It consists of numerous policies covering a range of activities, including the creation and/or maintenance of public programs, guidelines for land use and development standards, and more. The General Plan is adopted and amended by the City Council after considering recommendations from citizens, appointed advisory bodies, other agencies, and City staff.

As required by California Government Code Section 65400 and Land Use Element Policy 11.3 of the General Plan, the City publishes an annual report on the status of its General Plan and efforts to implement its policies. This report provides an opportunity to gauge the efficacy of both the actions taken to implement these policies and the policies themselves. Land Use Element Policy

11.3 stipulates that the annual report shall include the following:

A) A summary of private development activity and a brief analysis of how it helped achieve General Plan goals;
B) A summary of major public projects and a brief analysis of how they contributed to achieving General Plan goals;
C) An overview of programs, and recommendations on any new approaches that may be necessary;
D) A status report for each General Plan program scheduled to be worked on during that year, including discussion of whether that program's realization is progressing on schedule, and recommendations for how it could better be kept on schedule if it is lagging;
E) A status report on how the City is progressing with implementing its open space preservation policies and programs;
F) Updated population or other information deemed important for the plan.

Housing Element Annual Report
The City completes a separate Housing Element Annual Report that is submitted concurrently with the General Plan Annual Report as required under Government Code Sections 65400 and 65700. The Housing Element Annual Report contains detailed information on issued and/or completed residential building permits from the previous year. This information can be accessed on the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) website.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
2 Background
State law requires each city and county to adopt a general plan that addresses seven topics, typically referred to as “elements.” Additional topics, or general plan elements, may be included. The law also requires general plans to be comprehensive, internally consistent, and provide a long-term perspective. The California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) publishes General Plan Guidelines, which include the following basics:
• Geographic Comprehensiveness: The general plan must cover all territory in the jurisdiction’s boundaries.
• Regional Context: The general plan must consider regional plans for transportation, air quality and water quality, and must spell out measures needed to meet federal or state standards for the region.
• Issue Comprehensiveness: General plans must address the jurisdiction’s physical development over the long term, but because the general plan is the most comprehensive expression of the general welfare, it should also recognize social and economic concerns.
• Internal Consistency: All general plan elements must be internally consistent. Each element’s data, analyses, goals, policies, and programs must be consistent and complement one another. This includes consistency with area and specific plans. • Long-Term Perspective: The general plan must address the welfare of current & future generations, although the
timeframes may vary between elements. The Housing Element, for instance, must be updated every five to eight years.

State law requires that a city’s general plan be kept current. The City of San Luis Obispo does so through this annual review process, comprehensive updates, and amendments. Updates to entire elements are done as needed and include an evaluation of underlying conditions and community preferences. Amendments are typically smaller in scope and involve changing one part in a way that fits within the overall framework. Consideration of amendments is triggered by private applications or by direction from the City Council.

Changes to the City of San Luis Obispo General Plan require hearings by the Planning Commission and by the City Council. The type of notice provided for the hearings depends on the type of proposed change but always includes a descriptive item on the meeting agenda, which is published in the newspaper. The City’s website and public access television channel provide additional information.

City of
San Luis Obispo
General Plan
Elements
Land Use
Update Adopted 2014
Circulation
Update Adopted 2014
Housing
6 th Cycle Adopted
2020, certified 2021
Conservation and
Open Space
Revised 2014
Climate Adaptation
and Safety
Revised 2023
Parks and
Recreation
Adopted 2021
Water and
Wastewater
Revised 2025
Noise
Adopted 1996

General Plan Annual Report 2025
3 Planning and Building Activity
Application totals are tracked in real-time via Community Development’s EnerGov permitting system. This data can serve as an indicator of development trends in the City, assist with budget forecasting, and provide insight into how this development has contributed to achieving General Plan goals.

Yearly Planning Applications Received
Figure 1 indicates all planning applications
received in 2023, 2024, and 2025. This may
include use permits, development reviews,
subdivisions, zoning amendments,
environmental reviews, and administrative
actions. In 2025, the total number of
planning applications received was 222, a
decrease of approximately 16% from the
previous year.

Building Permits and Plan Reviews
Building permits are issued for various projects, ranging from the relatively simple projects (e.g., water heaters, window change-outs, reroofing) to more complex projects (e.g., additions and new buildings). Plan reviews are typically required for the more complex projects, as it is necessary to examine submitted plans for code compliance.

Table 1 shows the number of plan check applications conducted by the Building Division over the past three years. In 2025, plan check applications were roughly the same as in 2024, with no major increase or decrease.

Table 1 - Plan Check Applications Submitted, 2023-2025
2023 2024 2025
Plan Check Applications Submitted 1,479 1,049 1,079
Source: Community Development Department, 2025
Figure 1 – Total Planning Applications Received per Calendar Year, 2023-2025 (Community Development, 2025)

General Plan Annual Report 2025
4 Table 2 shows the number of building permits issued for residential and commercial projects, as well as the number of expected residential units associated with these permits, over the past three years. In 2025, the City continued to see a gradual decline in the number of permits issued and a significant decrease in the total number of residential units. This decline is primarily due to a reduction in new multifamily and mixed-use permit issuances compared to the previous two years, while a steady decline in single-family permits continues as well.

Table 2 - Building Permits Issued, 2023-2025

BUILDING PERMITS ISSUED
2023 2024 2025
Permits Units Permits Units Permits Units
New Single-Family 136 136 119 119 83 83
New Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs)1 73 86 88 96 99 104 New Multifamily & New Mixed-Use 7 148 13 234 6 11
Demolitions2 20 -3 25 -7 16 -6
New Commercial 6 - 5 - 6 -
Residential Additions / Alterations 236 - 216 - 257 -
Commercial Additions / Alterations 122 - 108 - 83 -
TOTAL 600 367 574 442 525 192
Source: Community Development Department, 2025
1ADU unit totals come from ADU permits and new single-family permits, 2 includes units lost from demolitions
Valuation of Construction
Construction valuation is a useful indicator of the level of private investment in building construction in the City. Table 3 shows the annual construction valuation over the past three years and indicates that total valuation has declined compared to last year. This decline is largely due to a reduction in permits issued. However, valuation for single-family and commercial addition/alterations increased, despite fewer permits issued, likely reflecting rising construction costs.

Table 3 - Valuation of Construction, 2023-2025
VALUATION OF CONSTRUCTION 2023 2024 2025
Single-Family $31,956,590 $16,693,300 $22,705,700
Multi-Family $26,914,510 $57,011,615 $1,400,000
Commercial $41,871,000 $27,075,000 $12,140,000
Residential Additions / Alterations $11,494,439 $23,631,968 $12,531,181 Commercial Additions /
Alterations $26,659,996 $30,689,344 $48,720,537
Total Valuation $138,896,535 $155,101,227 $97,497,418
Source: Community Development Department, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
5 Residential Growth
The Land Use Element policy related to residential growth (LUE . . ) states that the City’s housing supply shall grow no faster than one percent per year, on average, based on the thresholds shown in Table 4 (Table 3 in the Land Use Element). Affordable dwellings restricted to residents with extremely low, very low, low, or moderate-incomes, new dwellings in the Downtown Core (including the C-D zone), and legally established accessory dwelling units are exempt from these regulations (M.C. 17.144.020.D).

Table 4 – LUE Table 3, One Percent City Population Growth Projection Year Approximate Maximum
Number of Dwellings*
Anticipated Number of People
2013 20,697 45,541
2015 21,113 46,456
2020 22,190 48,826
2025 23,322 51,317
2030 24,512 53,934
2035 25,762 56,686
Estimated urban reserve capacity: 57,200
Source: Land Use Element, City of San Luis Obispo General Plan, Table 3, page 1-37. *2013 population based on CA Department of Finance data. Projected numbers are based on a one percent annual growth rate.

As shown in Table 5, the City has maintained an average annual residential growth rate of 1.00 percent in dwellings since 2015. In 2024, the average annual residential growth rate exceeded the one-percent threshold by 0.03 percent. Staff attributed this to the near completion of several specific plan areas and anticipated that, once completed, the City would see a decline in the number of residential units produced, resulting in the average residential growth rate falling back below the one-percent threshold within the next few years. As shown in Table 2 (Building Permits Issued, 2023-2025), residential permits have continued to decline and are expected to continue this trend.

Table 5 – Residential Growth Rates, 2015-2025
Calendar Year
Period New Units Average Annual Growth Rate
Total Units in the
City in 2025
LUE Estimated Units
in 2025 (1% Growth)
2025 174*

1.00% 23,292* 23,560
2015 - 2025 3,588
Source: 2025 Building Permits Finaled, Community Development Department *These totals exclude deed-restricted affordable units, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and new dwellings in the Downtown Commercial (C-D) Zone. The all-encompassing unit total in 2025 was 24,399 units.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
6 From 2015 to 2025, the City granted occupancy to 3,588 newly constructed residential units, accounting for the 47 units demolished during that period. Of the 3,588 units constructed between 2015 and 2025, 2,522 were subject to growth management limitations. Of the units exempt from the Growth Management Ordinance, 589 units were deed-restricted affordable housing units, 497 were accessory dwelling units or junior accessory dwelling units, and 60 were located within the Downtown Commercial (C-D) zone. As of 2025, there are 23,292 residential units subject to the Growth Management Ordinance within the City (as shown in Table 5), compared to the 23,322 units projected for 2025 in the 2015 LUE.

The City updated the General Plan Land Use and Circulation Elements in 2015; however, some of the housing construction occurring today within the Orcutt Area and the Margarita Area was planned for in the previous General Plan. Due to a variety of factors, some of the development originally planned in the 1994 General Plan is only now under construction. LUE Policy 1.11.2 (Residential Growth Rate) states that approved specific plan areas may develop in accordance with the phasing schedule adopted by each specific plan, provided that the thresholds established by LUE Table 3 are not exceeded. Of the 3,588 units granted occupancy from 2015 to 2025, 1,971 were located within Specific Plan areas.

Non-Residential Growth
Based on final building permits, 176,673 square feet of net new non-residential floor area were added to the City in 2025, resulting in an annual growth rate of 1.47 percent. Most of this increase is due to the completion of the Marriott hotel project in the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan area, which contains just over 120,000 square feet of non-residential floor area. Figure 2 illustrates the net annual non-residential growth rate from 2019 to 2025. Non-residential growth includes office, services and manufacturing, retail, hotel, and institutional uses.

Figure 2 - Net Annual Growth Rates of Non-Residential Sectors, 2019-2025 Source: Building Permits Finaled, Community Development Department, 2025 Note: Demolition of nonresidential square footage included in calculations.

0.44%

0.29%

0.56%

0.71%

0.35%

0.60%

1.47%

0.00%

0.20%

0.40%

0.60%

0.80%

1.00%

1.20%

1.40%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Growth Rate

General Plan Annual Report 2025
7 Land Use Element Policy 1.11.4 states that each year the Council will evaluate the actual increase in non-residential floor area over the preceding five years. The Council shall consider establishing limits on the rate of non-residential development if the increase in non-residential floor area for any five-year period exceeds five percent. The five-year net non-residential growth rate from 2021 through 2025 was 3.15 percent.

Each year, the City Council has considered implementing limits on new non-residential floor area and has decided against establishing such limits. If limits are established, they would apply only to certain types of new commercial floor area, such as new offices or new retail establishments outside the downtown core. Since the five-year growth rate is less than five percent (3.15 percent), establishing limits on new non-residential floor area is not necessary at this time.

Housing Element Program Implementation
Since adopting the Housing Element in November 2020, City staff has implemented numerous Housing Element Programs in alignment with the Housing and Homelessness Major City Goals.

Table 6 displays a list of programs that were implemented or started in 2025.

Table 6 – Housing Element Program Implementation Progress, 2025 Safe Housing and Renter Protections
Renter Protections Study Session: On October 28, 2025, City Council held a Study Session on Renter Protections. Staff presented Council with an overview of the various tenant protections in state law, as well as a variety of potential tools to improve conditions and protections for City renters, including a potential rental registry program.

Healthy Housing and Innovation Cohort: In August 2024, the City was selected to join the National League of Cities Healthy Housing and Innovation Cohort to advance health outcomes and equity through improving healthy housing programs. The City’s team competed with other cities across the country, and won the second place prize of $20,000 in October of 2025 for the Green and Healthy Homes pilot program, which focused on creating a concierge service to provide energy upgrades to manufactured housing residents in the City.

Program 1.6
Continue code enforcement to expedite the removal of illegal or unsafe dwellings, to eliminate hazardous site or property conditions, and resolve chronic building safety problems. Code Enforcement staff shall continue to provide property owners and tenants with information on how to rectify violations, who to contact in Code Enforcement for assistance, and other resources that may be pertinent to the citation.

Policy 9.1
Residential developments should promote sustainability consistent with the Climate Action Plan (CAP) and California Building Energy Efficiency Standards (Title 24) in their design, placement, and functionality.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
8 Support Housing Solutions
Maxine Lewis Apartments: In December 2025, the Maxine Lewis Grove Apartments opened, providing 40 new permanent supportive residential units.

Tiburon Place: In July 2025, the Tiburon Place Apartments opened, providing 68 new permanent supportive housing units.

Waterman Village: On December 11, 2024, the City Planning Commission approved the 20-unit below market rate tiny manufactured unit project on the site of the City-owned Rosa Butron historic adobe known as the Waterman Village. City Council upheld the Planning Commission’s approval of the project on March 5, 2025. The project is currently in the building permit submittal process.

Housing Trust Fund Support: The City continues to provide $40,000 in operational support for the SLO County Housing Trust Fund’s efforts to provide below-market financing and technical assistance.

Program 2.5
Continue to manage the Affordable Housing Fund so that the fund serves as a sustainable resource for supporting, at a minimum, 4 new affordable housing developments during the planning period. The fund shall serve as a source of both grant funding and below-market financing for affordable housing projects; and funds shall be used to support a wide variety of housing types at the following income levels: extremely low, very low, low, and moderate, but with a focus on production efficiency to maximize housing benefits for the City’s financial investment, and to support high-quality housing projects that would not be feasible without Affordable Housing Fund support
Program 2.9
Assist with the issuance of tax-exempt bonds, tax credit financing, loan underwriting or other financial tools to help develop or preserve at least 20 affordable units annually through various programs.

Program 2.11
In conjunction with the Housing Authority and other local housing agencies, continue to provide on-going technical assistance and education to tenants, property owners and the community at large on the need to preserve at-risk units as well as the available tools to help them do so.

Program 2.14
Continue to support density bonuses for residential projects above the state density bonus allowance of 35% to promote the development of units for extremely low, very low, and lowincome households.

Policy 3.3 Encourage the construction, preservation, rehabilitation or expansion of residential hotels, group homes, integrated community apartments, and single-room occupancy dwellings.

Policy 3.9
Work annually with non-profit organizations, faith-based organizations, or the Housing Authority of the City of San Luis Obispo to encourage rehabilitation of residential, commercial, or industrial buildings to expand extremely low, very-low, low-, or moderate income rental housing opportunities.

Program 6.14
Continue to provide City resources, including $40,000 annually for operational support, to support the SLO County Housing Trust Fund’s efforts to provide below-market financing and technical assistance to affordable housing developers to construct or preserve five affordable housing units per year in the City of San Luis Obispo.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
9 Homelessness Response
Assisting the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless: The City’s Homelessness Response Team continued to implement the 2024-2026 Homelessness Response Strategic Plan, which was adopted by the City Council on June 18, 2024. The Strategic Plan outlines objectives and key tasks to prevent and address homelessness in alignment with the Countywide Plan to Address Homelessness. More details are included in the following section.

Community Safe Parking Pilot Program: On January 22, 2025, the Planning Commission approved Director’s Action applications for five sites as part of the Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo’s (CAPSLO) Community Safe Parking Pilot Program. CAPSLO implemented the pilot program in September 2025, utilizing three City-owned sites and three sites operated by faith-based organizations, including one faith-based site that is located outside of City limits. The program provides overnight safe parking for registered participants from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. The long-term objective of the pilot program is to develop a safe parking model that can be replicated countywide to expand safe parking services throughout the County.

Transitional and supportive tiny-unit housing: The City, as a California Encampment Resolution Grant subrecipient, continued to work closely with the County of San Luis Obispo on the Welcome Home Village project. The project will provide 14 interim and 40 permanent supportive manufactured housing unitslocated within the City at the County Health Agency campus. On July 1, 2025, the City’s subrecipient agreement went into effect, and the City’s outreach teams began collaborating with the County and the project’s service provider, Good Samaritan Shelter, on encampment outreach and engagement efforts. The Welcome Home Village is projected to open in early May 2026.

Permanent supportive housing motel conversion: The City and People’s Self-Help Housing (PSHH) continued to implement the Beacon Studios project, which will provide 75 permanent supportive housing units. The project is funded through the California Department of Housing and Community Development, which awarded the City and PSHH a $19.4 million Homekey Round 3 grant to convert the Motel 6 North into permanent supportive housing. The Beacon Studios project is projected to open in July 2027.

Program 1.7 Continue to support local and regional solutions to homelessness by funding supportive program services and housing solutions.

Policy 8.10
Assist the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless by supporting 40 Prado Homeless Services Center and other local service providers, as well as advocating for additional safe parking, interim housing, and permanent supportive housing opportunities Countywide.

Source: Community Development Department, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
10 Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Progress
Quantified Objectives
California cities and counties must develop programs to meet their share of regional housing needs across all income groups. The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) determines each region’s housing need, and councils of governments allocate those units among their member jurisdictions through the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) process. RHNA ensures that each jurisdiction plans for housing consistent with its physical and financial capacity. State housing law clarifies that these allocations are planning goals, not production quotas. The allocations are incorporated into each jurisdiction’s Housing Element to guide policies and standards during the planning period.

The City’s 6th Cycle RHNA allocation is 3,354 housing units, with 10 years to meet the requirement. The City counts building permits issued between January 1, 2019, and December 31, 2028, toward this allocation. Beginning in 2020, HCD also authorized the City to count half of all newly issued accessory dwelling unit (ADU) permits toward the low-income category, based on a market study conducted by the County of San Luis Obispo. Table 7 summarizes the City’s progress toward meeting its RHNA allocation.

Table 7 - Progress Towards 6th Cycle Quantified Objectives, 2019-2028 Income Level
(% of County Median
Income)
6th Cycle
RHNA
Allocation
Building Permitted Units Issued by Affordability Total
Units by
Income
Level
Total Units
Remaining
by Income
Level
Years 1 - 3
(2019-2021)
Year 4
(2022)
Year 5
(2023)
Year 6
(2024)
Year 7 of 10
(2025)
Extremely
Low
Deed
Restricted
825
14 36 0 123 0 173
500
Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 0 0 0 0
Very Low
Deed
Restricted 56 14 22 60 0 152
Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 0 0 0 0
Low
Deed
Restricted
520
42 21 5 15 0 83
211
Non-Deed
Restricted 76 50 0 48 52 226
Moderate
Deed
Restricted
603
22 2 4 13 1 42
518
Non-Deed
Restricted 0 0 43 0 0 43
Above
Moderate - 1,406 1,411 439 293 190 145 2,478 0
Total Units 3,354 1,621 562 367 442 198 3,190 1,229
Source: Community Development Department, Building Permits Issued, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
11 The City has met its total allocation for above moderate housing units. This leaves 1,229 affordable units needed to meet the 6th Cycle RHNA allocation by the end of the 2028 calendar year. Of the remaining allocation, 39 percent of the units must be reserved for very low and extremely low incomes, 21 percent for low incomes, and 40 percent for moderate incomes.

Below Market Rate (BMR) Housing (Commonly Known as Affordable Housing) In , the City followed the State’s lead in rebranding the often misunderstood term "affordable housing" as “Below Market Rate Housing.” Below Market Rate (BMR) means that the affordability level of a dwelling unit is below the cost of a comparable market-rate unit and includes a deed restriction to ensure the unit remains affordable to extremely low, very low, low, or moderateincome households.

The City continues to implement its Inclusionary Housing Ordinance and promote opportunities to collaborate with non-profit partners to develop BMR housing projects. In 2025, two 100 percent BMR housing projects were completed (Maxine Lewis and Tiburon Place), resulting in 108 new units reserved for lower-income households. The City continues to assist in completing the three BMR projects currently under construction (Bridge Street, Beacon Studios, and Monterey Senior/Family), which will result in 275 units for lower-income households. Staff is also working on several new projects to ensure more BMR housing is provided in the City. These projects are listed in Table 8 below and show that, as of 2025, 357 new BMR units are planned for lower-income households.

Table 8 – Active BMR Housing Projects in the Pipeline
Projects Address Dwellings Status
Bridge Street MixedUse 279 Bridge Street 94 Phase 1 – Under Construction Phase 2 and 3 – Seeking Financing
Monterey MixedUse (Senior Phase
and Family Phase)
1422 and 1424
Monterey Streets
106
Senior Phase – Under Construction
Family Phase – Permitted, beginning
construction March 2026
Avila Ranch –
Sendero Apartments 165 Cessna Court 60 Planning Entitlements – Approved Building Permits – Awaiting Submittal Waterman Village 466 Dana Street 22 Planning Entitlements – Approved Building Permits – Under Review
Beacon Studios 1433 Calle Joaquin 75
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Building Permit – Issued,
Under Construction
Total 357
Source: Community Development Department, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
12 Third Party Below Market Rate Administrator
The City of San Luis Obispo’s BMR housing programs are expanding, and oversight and enforcement are increasing to ensure that local affordable housing programs comply with State law. In 2021, the City contracted with HouseKeys to serve as the City’s BMR Housing Administrator and to manage its growing Affordable Homeownership and Rental Programs. This work ensuresthat units are marketed to the community in a fair and equitable manner and occupied by eligible households. HouseKeys also provides community members with the knowledge and support needed to successfully access homeownership and rental housing opportunities.

Through HouseKeys, the City has conducted 58 Opportunity Drawings for inclusionary housing units across the City, including 24 drawings for homeownership opportunities and 34 drawings for rental opportunities.

Funding and Grant Programs for Housing

1. Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG): The CDBG program provides annual funding for eligible affordable housing projects and support for the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center. Over the past decade, the CDBG Program has allocated over $3,710,000 towards affordable housing and $1,160,000 towards homeless services.

Projects funded for the upcoming 2025 Program Year include funding for CAPSLO and People’s Self-Help Housing for homeless services and homelessness prevention, funding toward the Monterey Family Housing project by the Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo, and funds to further implement the 6th Cycle Housing Element.

2. Prohousing Incentive Program Funding: In 2024, the City received designation as a Prohousing jurisdiction, which provides incentives to cities and counties in the form of additional points or other preferences in the scoring of competitive housing, community development, and infrastructure programs. Subsequently, the City applied for and was awarded $750,000 from the Prohousing Incentive Program. In 2025, the City successfully disbursed $400,000 of Prohousing Incentive Program funds to affordable housing projects, with additional disbursements anticipated in 2026.

Homelessness Solutions
The City’s 6th Cycle Housing Element includes policies and programs to reduce homelessness under Goal 1, Safety, and Goal 8, Special Housing Needs. Additionally, Homelessness Response remains a Major City Goal as part of the 2025-2027 Financial Plan. With the continued rise in homelessness across California, the City Council prioritized funding programs and resources to prevent and address homelessness in collaboration with the County of San Luis Obispo and local service providers. In local government, counties are primarily responsible for leading efforts to address homelessness; however, the impacts often are borne directly by cities.

In 2025, the City responded to 104 encampment fires and 941 medical incidents involving people experiencing homelessness, removed 47 tons of trash, and posted, conducted outreach, and cleaned up 247 illegal encampments, with $49,879.20 in City funds spent on related cleanup and maintenance activities. The City also provided $412,005 to CAPSLO for programs and operations

General Plan Annual Report 2025
13 at the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center, including the 40 Prado Safe Parking Program, a hotel and motel program, the 40 Prado Warming Center, and the Community Safe Parking Pilot Program.

Strategic Planning for Homelessness
In June 2024, the City Council approved an updated version of the City’s Homelessness Response Strategic Plan for 2024-2026. The plan outlines objectives and key tasks to prevent and address homelessness in the City of San Luis Obispo. The Strategic Plan aligns with the San Luis Obispo Countywide Plan to Address Homelessness, which outlines key lines of effort to reduce homelessness by 50 percent between 2022 and 2027. Key components of the City’s plan include Regional Collaboration & Engagement, Communications, Data, Pilot Programs, and Funding Opportunities.

Homelessness response activities in 2025 included regional collaboration on state funding opportunities to develop interim and permanent supportive housing; partnerships with community and faith-based organizations to implement a Community Safe Parking Pilot Program model; and distribution of the City’s Homeless Resources Pocket Guide, updated in English and Spanish, which contains critical information on how to access community resources for individuals experiencing homelessness. Staff also received and responded to 244 AskSLO requests from community members regarding transient activity on City property and general homelessness-related concerns. These requests were addressed through encampment cleanups, enforcement actions, and/or field outreach, and outcomes were communicated back to the reporting parties.

Human Services Grant Program
The City’s Human Services Grant (HSG) Program, overseen by the Human Relations Commission, provides financial support to non-profit organizations that promote the economic and social wellbeing of the community. The program’s funding criteria focus on homelessness prevention, including affordable and alternative housing, supportive services, and transitional housing. Other funding priority areas include hunger and malnutrition prevention; supportive physical and mental health services; services for seniors, veterans and/or people with disabilities; supportive, developmental, and care services for children and youth; and services that encourage diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, including access to language services. The Human Services Grant Program is highly competitive and received total funding requests of $419,942, which was $269,942 more than funds available to the program.

The Human Relations Commission reviewed 27 applications and recommended full or partial funding for 12 different organizations. The City has issued $150,000 in grants to those organizations since the approval of these funding recommendations.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
14 Community Action Team
The San Luis Obispo Police Department’s Community Action Team (CAT) consists of one CAT officer, one Community Services Officer, one Licensed Psychiatric Technician from County Behavioral Health, and one Community Resources and Services Specialist. The team works to identify problems and crime trends that negatively impact the quality of life for residents, business owners, and visitors to the City of San Luis Obispo.

In 2025, the CAT team engaged with 798 individuals, with 164 individuals electing to receive referrals to mental health and/or substance abuse services. Additionally, CAT facilitates family reunifications, and in 2025 reunited two individuals with family members across the United States. CAT works in collaboration with County Behavioral Health, social services agencies, local nonprofit organizations, and other City departments, utilizing a trauma-informed care approach to connect the City’s most vulnerable residents to resources and services.

Partnerships with Downtown SLO and CAPSLO
The City provides funding for the Downtown
Clean & Safe Program, which is administered
by Downtown SLO. The Downtown SLO Clean
Team worksto ensure that downtown is clean,
safe, and welcoming to visitors — whether
they’re living, working, shopping, or exploring
downtown.

The Clean Team provides cleaning services for
sidewalks and alleys within the boundaries of the 24-block service area. This includes, but is not limited to, the removal of trash, graffiti, stickers, and human waste.

In 2024, the Downtown SLO Board of Directors explored alternative options to further enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the Downtown Ambassador and Clean & Safe Programs.

Downtown SLO transitioned to a dedicated contractor cleaning service with CityWide Solutions to oversee cleaning duties. This shift allowed Downtown SLO to focus on maintaining a cleaner and more welcoming environment while ensuring consistent, high-quality service without the need to manage the day-to-day operations, hiring, and training of the Clean Team. By leveraging professional cleaning expertise, Downtown SLO can better meet the needs of the community and uphold the standards of cleanliness and safety essential to our shared spaces.

In 2025, the Clean Team operated for a total of 1,672 hours and removed 7,741 pounds of trash; removed 693 graffiti tags; responded to and cleaned 1,394 cases of urine, vomit, and feces; cleaned public trash cans a total of 8,445 times; removed 2,744 pieces of gum; removed 18,696 cigarette butts; removed 1,658 stickers and flyers; and cleaned tree grates and wells a total of 2,277 times.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
15 The City also provides funding to CAPSLO for the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center, which provides overnight shelter and day services for unhoused community members, including housing navigation and case management. The Homeless Services Center also offers access to meals, showers, laundry facilities, healthcare, internet, and other supportive services. The City provides funding for the 40 Prado Safe Parking, Community Safe Parking, Warming Center, and Hotel & Motel Programs, which offer overflow capacity, services, and shelter for unhoused community members.

Mobile Crisis Unit
Embedded within the City’s Fire Department, the Mobile Crisis Unit (MCU) pairs a Community Resource and Services Specialist with a Licensed Psychiatric Technician (LPT) contracted through County Behavioral Health, as well as a part time Fire Department intern. The team responds to calls for service within the City and provides crisis support services to individuals experiencing non-emergency mental health challenges, drug and alcohol addiction, and chronic homelessness.

In 2025, the MCU established 2,234 contacts with individuals experiencing homelessness; reunified 25 homeless individuals with agencies or family; provided 69 transports to services or alternate facilities; and responded to a total of 143 mental health crisis intervention calls for service.

Inspection of Homeless Shelters (AB 362)
Under AB 362, the City must follow up upon receiving a complaint from an occupant of a homeless shelter alleging that the shelter is substandard pursuant to California Health & Safety Code Section 17920.3. Code Enforcement received one complaint regarding the 40 Prado Homeless Services Center in June 2025. An inspection was conducted, and the complaint was determined to be unfounded.

In June 2025, state legislature passed AB 130, which requires cities and counties to perform an annual inspection of every homeless shelter in their jurisdiction, even if no complaints have been filed by occupants. Code Enforcement conducted an inspection in December 2025 and found no violations. The Housing Team will file these inspection findings to HCD before the April 2026 reporting deadline.

Coordination with Other Agencies
City staff has continued to engage with other agencies and jurisdictions to foster collaboration aimed toward implementing General Plan policy:

Regional Housing Action Team
Representatives from San Luis Obispo County and its cities, including the City of San Luis Obispo, continue to implement the county’s first regional housing action team, as outlined in their respective Housing Elements. This collaboration has helped housing professionals in each jurisdiction navigate evolving housing issues and new state legislation aimed at removing housing barriers. Coordination through SLOCOG also facilitates the sharing of housing and transportation

General Plan Annual Report 2025
16 infrastructure data in preparation for the Regional Transportation Plan and future Regional Housing Needs Assessment allocations.

Area Plan and Specific Plan Development
The General Plan requires the approval of specific plans as a precursor to development of the City’s major expansion areas. Specific plans typically contain more detailed land-use and design standards than the General Plan and address the timing and financing of public facilities. Specific plans can supersede the Zoning Regulations or lead to amendments to the Municipal Code. The process of adopting a specific plan is similar to the process of adopting or amending a section of the General Plan.

Margarita Area Specific Plan
The Margarita Area Specific Plan (MASP) is
located in southern San Luis Obispo, bounded
by South Higuera Street, Broad Street, Tank
Farm Road, and the South Hills ridge. Under
Land Use Element (LUE) Policy 8.1.3, the MASP
provides for residential units, a business park,
a neighborhood park, sports fields, and open
space. Over 40 percent of the land area is
designated as open space, including 56 acres of
parks. The policy also states that the City may
consider the area appropriate for additional
housing, but revisions to the MASP are
required if development exceeds the plan’s
current residential capacity
The Airport Land Use Plan (ALUP) was amended in 2021. In response, City staff selected a consultant in 2024 to prepare amendments to the MASP to evaluate increased residential densities on already zoned land, encourage “Missing Middle” housing types, and allow mixeduse development on commercially zoned land. In 2025, staff continued working with the consultant on potential MASP amendments. Table 9 summarizes the status of current development projects within the MASP.

Table 9 - Margarita Area Development Status, 2025
Projects Address Commercial Dwellings Status
Prado Business
Park 301 Prado 159,663 -
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Public Improvements - Under Review
Building Permits – Expired
365 Prado Rd.

Mixed-Use Project 365 Prado 100,000 222 GP and SP Amendments – In ProcessPlanning Entitlements – In Process Total 259,663 222
Source: Community Development Department, 2025
Coversheet of Margarita Area Specific Plan

General Plan Annual Report 2025
17 Orcutt Area Specific Plan
Nestled at the base of the Santa Lucia foothills, the Orcutt Area offers a variety of scenic resources for both residents of the area and travelers along Orcutt Road and Tank Farm Road, including views of Righetti Hill, Islay Hill, and the Santa Lucia foothills.

Located along the southwestern edge of the city limits and bounded by Orcutt Road, the railroad, and Tank Farm Road, the area encompasses 230 acres at the base of Righetti Hill. The Orcutt Area Specific Plan calls for a residential
neighborhood with up to 979 homes,
a variety of housing types, parks,
hiking trails, and recreational
opportunities. These opportunities
include bicycle and pedestrian paths,
as well as protection of natural
habitats and visual resources in
nearby open space areas. Table 10
below shows the status of
development in the Orcutt Area.

Table 10 - Orcutt Area Development Status, 2025
Projects Address Dwellings Commercial
Sq. Ft. Status
Bullock Ranch 3580 Bullock 192 585
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Public Improvements - Under Review
Building Permits – Awaiting Submittal
Pratt Property 3750 Bullock 35 3,400
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Townhome Construction - Complete
Live / Work units – Under Construction
Building Permits for Commercial – Awaiting
Submittal
Enclave at Righetti 3805 Orcutt 34
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Public Improvements – Substantially
Complete
Building Permits Issued – Under Construction
Jones Mixed-Use 3806 Ranch
House 15 7,600
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Building Permits Issued – Under
Construction; Three (3) affordable for-sale
units construction complete
Total 276 11,585
Source: Community Development Department, 2025
Linear Park Detail from Orcutt Area Specific Plan

General Plan Annual Report 2025
18 Airport Area Specific Plan
Located approximately . miles south of Downtown San Luis Obispo, within the City’s Urban Reserve, the Airport Area Specific Plan (AASP) encompasses 1,500 acres adjacent to the San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport and is bordered by the Margarita Area, South Higuera Street, South Broad Street, and Buckley Road.

The AASP envisions a mixture of open space, agriculture, business parks, and industrial development, as well as limited residential development. Plans for the Airport Area include the reuse and regeneration of the natural and built environment; enhancement of public, private, and environmental value; and smart, sustainable growth that benefit the community economically, aesthetically, and environmentally. Table 11 shows the status of development within the AASP in 2025.

In 2025, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1747 (2025 Series), amending the AASP to allow mixed-use development in the Service Commercial (C-S) and Manufacturing (M) zones with a minor or conditional use permit where appropriate and consistent with the 2021 updated San Luis Obispo County Airport Land Use Plan (ALUP). The adoption of these amendments fulfilled Major City Goal of Housing and Homelessness work program 3.1.c. of the 2023-25 Financial Plan, which states: “Initiate an update to the Airport Area Specific Plan to allow mixed-use residential development, where appropriate and consistent with the County Airport Land Use Plan.” Table 11 – Airport Area Development Status, 2025
Projects Address Dwellings Commercial
Sq. Ft. Status
Tank Farm
Commerce Park 179 Cross - 29,280
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Under Construction
650 Tank Farm
Mixed-Use
650 Tank Farm 239 18,600
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Building Permits – Awaiting Submittal
Public Improvements - Under Review
600 Tank Farm
Mixed-Use
600 Tank Farm 280 12,500
Planning Entitlements – Approved,
Modification in Process
Public Improvements - Under Review
SLO Airport Hotel 950 Aero 204 Rooms -
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Building Permits – Under Review
Conserv Fuel
Station 4600 Broad - 4,800
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Under Construction
U-Haul Personal
Storage and
Warehouse
1109 Kendall;
4805 Morabito -
114,368;
24,498
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Under Construction
Aerovista Medical
Services and Offices
832 Aerovista - 41,007
Planning Entitlements – Approved
Building Permits – Pending Submittal
Earthwood Lane –
Lots 16 and 17
4185 and 4195
Earthwood -
3,694;
3,764 Planning Entitlements – Under Review
Total 519 252,511
Source: Community Development Department, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
19 Avila Ranch Development Plan
In 2017, the City Council approved
the Avila Ranch Development Plan to
allow the development of 720
residential units and 15,000 square
feet of neighborhood commercial
uses on a 150-acre site located north
of Buckley Road and within the
boundaries of the Airport Area
Specific Plan (AASP).

Major Development review of the R2 portion of Phases 1-3 and the R-1 portion of Phase 5 were approved by
the Planning Commission in 2021.

The R-2 area includes up to 297 detached for-sale dwelling units. Building permits for this part of the project have been issued, and construction of the residential units and public improvements is underway. Approximately 200 residential units in Phases 1 and 2 have been completed and occupied to date. The R-1 portion includes 101 detached for-sale dwelling units, which have received entitlements but have not yet been constructed.

An application for Major Development Review for the multifamily R-4 portion of Phase 3 was approved by the Planning Commission on February 14, 2024. The application included a density bonus request to add 20 affordable units to the site, bringing the total R-4 unit count to 85 market-rate rental units and 60 affordable rental units. Applications for Major Development Review and a Tentative Tract Map for condominium purposes for the multifamily R-3 portion of Phase 4 were approved by the Planning Commission on December 10, 2025. A total of 194 townhome-style residential units are included in Phase 4. With the approval of the R-4 density bonus, the total number of residential units entitled at Avila Ranch is currently 737. Phases 3 and 4 are fully entitled but have not yet begun construction.

Conceptual Residential Street Scene from Avila Ranch Dev. Plan Phasing Map from the Avila Ranch
Development Plan

General Plan Annual Report 2025
20 Mass grading for Phases 2-6 has been completed. Public improvements, including certain onsite improvements such as internal roads, utilities, and park and landscape areas, as well as certain offsite improvements, including the Buckley Road extension, have been substantially completed.

Construction of the interim fire station at Avila Ranch is required to be completed by the developer prior to final occupancy of the 361st residential unit, which is currently anticipated in 2028. Table 12 shows the status on development in the Avila Ranch area.

Table 12 - Avila Area Development Status, 2024
Projects Address Dwellings Commercial
Sq. Ft. Status
Avila Ranch SFR
Phases 1, 2, & 3 (R-2)
175 Venture 297 -
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Public Improvements – Under Construction
Building Permits Issued – Under
Construction
Avila Ranch
Phase 3 (R-4)
175 Venture 145 -
Planning Entitlements – Approved with 20-
Unit Density Bonus
Public Improvements – Pending Submittal
Building Permits – Pending Submittal
Avila Ranch
Phases 4 (R-3) 175 Venture 194
-
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Public Improvements – Pending Submittal
Building Permits - Pending Submittal
Avila Ranch
Phase 5 (R-1) 175 Venture 101 -
Planning Entitlements - Approved
Public Improvements – Under Construction
Building Permits – Under Review
Avila Ranch Phase 6
(Neighborhood
Commercial)
175 Venture - 15,000 Future Phase
Total 737 15,000
Source: Community Development Department, 2025

General Plan Annual Report 2025
21 Froom Ranch Specific Plan
A major component of the Froom Ranch Specific Plan is a Life Plan Community (LPC) known as Villaggio, which would provide 366 independent senior units, 38 assisted living units, 51 care facility beds, and a wellness center with ancillary services. In addition to the LPC, the Specific Plan includes approximately 174 multi-family units; 100,000 square feet of commercial retail uses; a 3.6-acre trailhead park that would incorporate onsite historic structures; and over 60 acres of land designated for conservation/open space. Consideration of the project included preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR).

The City Council certified the Final EIR and
approved the Specific Plan, General Plan
Amendment, pre-zoning of the property,
and the Vesting Tentative Tract Map. The
City Council authorized submittal of an
annexation application to LAFCO in
September 2020. An annexation
application was filed in February 2021 and
was approved by LAFCO in October 2021.

The LAFCO conditions of annexation were
completed, and the site was annexed into
the City of San Luis Obispo in November
2023. Public improvement plans for onand offsite roadway and utility improvements were submitted to the City
for initial plan check in June 2023.

The Froom Ranch project has been on hold
for the past several years due to
ownership changes and potential requests for modifications to the approved project entitlements. An application to initiate a Specific Plan amendment wasrecently submitted by the property owner, and City staff is currently evaluating the proposed changes. The City Council’s consideration of initiation of the proposed Specific Plan and General Plan amendments is expected to be scheduled for a public meeting late 2026 to determine whether the proposed legislative amendments should be accepted for processing.

Froom Ranch Site Plan

General Plan Annual Report 2025
22 San Luis Ranch Specific Plan
The San Luis Ranch Specific Plan project includes a mix of 654 residential units, 145,500 square feet of commercial, retail, and restaurant space; 100,000 square feet of office development; and a 200-room hotel. The public improvements have been completed, including utilities, landscaping, and the extension of Dalidio Drive and Froom Ranch Way. Building permits were issued in 2022 for the hotel, and
construction was completed in
2025. The Agricultural Heritage
and Learning Center (now known
as SLO Ranch Farms and
Marketplace) is open to the
public and includes several new
commercial buildings with
restaurants, retail, and
agricultural processing uses,
along with the rehabilitation of
historic structures.

A total of 577 residential units have been completed and occupied within the San Luis Ranch Specific Plan area, including 296 multifamily units and 281 single-family units. Construction has not yet begun on the 64 to 77 affordable
housing units required as part of the Specific
Plan.

In December 2024, the City Council
authorized initiation of the processing of
General Plan and Specific Plan amendments
for San Luis Ranch to modify the uses
planned for “Lot 7,” a vacant .44-acre
commercial parcel. The developer has
proposed replacing approximately 100,000
square feet of planned commercial uses
with an additional 276 market-rate
multifamily units. The project developer has
not yet submitted applications for these
amendments. Table 13 below displays the
status of development in the San Luis Ranch
Area. San Luis Ranch Site Plan
Conceptual Rendering of the Agricultural Heritage and Learning Center (now known as SLO Ranch Farms and Marketplace)

General Plan Annual Report 2025
23 Table 13 – San Luis Ranch Area Development Status, 2025 Projects Address Dwellings Commercial
Sq. Ft.

Hotel
Rooms
Office
Sq. Ft. Status
Commercial
Center
1035
Madonna
77 114,300 - -
Planning Entitlements –
Amendments in Process
Public Improvements – Partially
Complete
SpringHill
Suites
Hotel
- - 200 - Construction - Complete
NG-10
Single-Unit
Residences
198 - - - Construction - Complete
NG-23
Single-Unit
Residences
83 - - - Construction - Complete
NG-30, The
Orchard
Multifamily
Residential
296 - - - Construction - Complete
Agricultural
Heritage
and
Learning
Center
- 31,200 - - Construction - Complete
Office - - -
100,000 Future phase, no building
permits issued
Total 654 145,500 200 100,000
Source: Community Development Department, 2025
Municipal Code Updates
Energy Code & Reach Code Updates (Clean Energy Program for New Buildings) The City has a long history of local requirements for new construction that cost-effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. On October 3, 2023, the City Council adopted an energy reach code for new buildings, which began enforcement on January 1, 2024, and is expected to result in lower building emissions. The reach code will remain in effect through December 31, 2025, when a new state energy code will be adopted. In 2024, the City Council adopted an energy reach code for major additions and alterations to single-family homes, which went into effect in early 2025 and also expired on December 31, 2025. Staff adopted an update to the additions and alterations reach code for enforcement in 2026 and will be working on updated new building reach codes throughout 2026.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
24 Amendments to Titles 16 & 17 Regarding ADUs and Urban Lot Splits On April 1, 2025, the City Council adopted a series of updates to the City’s accessory and junior accessory dwelling unit regulations, along with other miscellaneous items in the Zoning Regulations. These changes were made to maintain compliance with state law, provide clarifications, and identify and remove obvious barriers to housing development. This update also included revisions to the City’s Urban Lot Split regulations in Title 6 of the Municipal Code, implementing recent changes to state law.

Climate Action Plan
The General Plan includes climate action initiatives in the Land Use, Circulation, Conservation and Open Space, and Water and Wastewater Elements, including:
• Land Use Policy 9.4 - Climate Action Plan: The City shall maintain and implement its Climate Action Plan to reduce community and municipal GHG emissions consistent with state laws and objectives.
• Conservation and Open Space Policy 2.2.1 - Atmospheric Change: City actions shall seek to minimize undesirable climate changes and deterioration of the atmosphere’s protective functions that result from the release of carbon dioxide and other substances. • Conservation and Open Space Policy 2.2.5 - Model City: The City will be a model of pollution control efforts. It will manage its own operations to be as pollution free as possible. The City will work with other agencies and organizations to help educate citizens in ways to prevent air pollution.

In 2020, the City Council adopted the Climate Action Plan for Community Recovery (CAP) and set the goal of achieving community carbon neutrality by 2035 (Resolution No. 11159,2020 Series).

The City Council also adopted the Lead by Example Plan for Carbon Neutral City Operations in the summer of 2021 (Resolution No. 11263, 2021 Series), which established the goal of carbonneutral municipal operations by 2030. As part of the 2023-25 Financial Plan, climate action was also identified as a Major City Goal (Climate Action, Open Space, and Sustainable Transportation), as well as in the new 2025-27 Financial Plan (Open Space, Climate Action, and Resilience).

On December 13, 2022, the City Council adopted the Climate Action Plan 2023-27 Work Program (CAP Volume 3). In late 2025, staff initiated an update to the Climate Action Plan, which is expected to be completed in early 2027.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
25 Economic Development
The City’s Economic Development Strategic Plan (EDSP) was adopted by the City Council in 2012, revised in 2015, and fully updated in 2023. The overarching goal of the plan is to advance the economic vitality of the City of San Luis Obispo and develop strategies that strengthen the City's economic development efforts while integrating the principles of sustainability, diversity, equity, and inclusion. Additionally, the EDSP emphasizes the retention of current businesses, the continued expansion of the arts and culture scene, and ongoing efforts to enhance the vibrancy of the Downtown area. The City has also recognized the need to expand the traditional scope of economic development to include practices that incorporate sustainability and social equity to maximize the community’s economic vitality. The EDSP establishes broad themes encompassing three key pillars and their associated action plans: Business & Entrepreneurship Vitality, Placemaking & Promotion, and Talent Development & Attraction. These pillars are intended to reflect the City’s priorities, as appropriate, while responding to its ever-evolving economic landscape. Careful consideration was given to ensure that the recommendations that follow fall within the scale and scope of the City’s economic development function.

Many of the strategies in the EDSP are aligned with the policies in the Land Use Element. Progress on the implementation of the EDSP is published quarterly on the City’s website: Economic Development Strategic Plan | City of San Luis Obispo, CA.

Tourism and Community Promotions
The importance of the City’s Tourism and Community
Promotions activities as an economic development
function continued to be evident in Fiscal Year 2025
(FY25). As a result, the City collected a record-breaking $11.4 million in transient occupancy tax (TOT). This
represents a 4.6 percent increase in revenue compared to Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24), which had previously been the
best performing year in the City’s history. FY25 produced five $1 million revenue months – April, May, June, July, and August. This contribution of TOT revenue to the City’s General Fund is a direct benefit of tourism, as the full collection of TOT revenue is retained by the City. The FY25 occupancy level in the City was 2.9 percent higher than FY24, with an average occupancy rate of 70.05 percent for the year.

During this same period, the Promotional Coordinating Committee (PCC) continued its commitment to enhancing the San Luis Obispo experience for residents and visitors. In October 2025, the PCC celebrated the third annual ARTober, a celebration of National Arts & Humanities Month. The events highlighted various arts, culture, and humanities experiences in San Luis Obispo. The PCC also continued the City’s Cultural Arts & Community Promotions (CACP) program, which provided $100,000 in vital promotional grants to local nonprofit organizations Visit San Luis Obispo Logo

General Plan Annual Report 2025
26 for programs that enrich the social, cultural, and diverse community events and activities available during this time.

Also in FY25, the PCC directed the “Support Local” campaign through the Economic Development program, which included a multi-channel paid advertising plan, local public relations, a social media content strategy, and business support. In addition to implementing the sixth year of the Buy Local Bonus promotion, the City supported SLO Restaurant Month in January 2025.

Policy Initiatives
Cannabis Business Program
Tax Revenue: The revenue generated from the City’s Cannabis Program helps support a variety of the City’s core services. This revenue is collected through taxes, licensing fees, and other financial mechanisms associated with the legal cannabis market. The City collected roughly $815,000 in tax revenue in Fiscal Year 2024-25 and is budgeting approximately $1 million in revenue for Fiscal Year 2025-26.

Program Updates: Since the adoption of the Cannabis Program, staff has provided annual updates to the City Council, including policy recommendations to improve commercial cannabis administrative and operational processes. In 2025, staff presented the Annual Cannabis Business Program Update to the Council, including a review of operator permit changes, updates to cannabis tax and permit fee revenue forecasts, and recommended amendments to the cannabis zoning code to improve clarity in the Municipal Code and ensure consistency with state law.

Historic Preservation
An update to the Historic Resources Inventory was included as an implementation task under the City’s Major City Goal for Cultural Vitality, Economic Resilience, and Fiscal Sustainability in the 2023-25 Financial Plan. In 2025, Phase 1 of the project was completed. Phase 1 included updates to the City’s Historic Preservation Ordinance and Historic Context Statement. The City’s Historic Resources Inventory includes over 760 properties, the majority of which were added more than 30 years ago.

The Historic Preservation Ordinance and Historic Context Statement provide the framework and regulatory guidance for determining which properties qualify as historically significant. Major updates to the Historic Preservation Ordinance included revisions to historic resource designations and evaluation criteria for historic significance to ensure greater consistency with guidance from the National Park Service and the State of California Office of Historic Preservation regarding the definition and evaluation of historic resources.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
27 The Historic Context Statement was revised to provide a more inclusive approach to preservation of the City’s resources and to align with updates to the Historic Preservation Ordinance. The updates expanded the discussion of themes related to minority and ethnic communities and integrated the contributions of San Luis Obispo’s Chinese, Japanese, African American, Filipino, and other communities into the relevant temporal and thematic contexts. These changes recognize members of these groups as
significant contributors to the City’s
development whose social, economic,
and cultural experiences are relevant to
and reflective of broader themes.

With the update of these documents,
the City now has an updated framework
and guidance for the next phase of the
project (Phase 2), including review of
the current Historic Resources
Inventory, future surveys, and
continued effective implementation of the City’s Historic Preservation Program. Staff will initiate Phase 2 of the project in mid-2026, and the project is expected to take 12-18 months to complete.

The Historic Resource Inventory (HRI) Update project is consistent with various policies in the Cultural Heritage (Chapter 3) section of the Conservation and Open Space Element, including those related to the identification and preservation of historic resources. The project directly implements COSE Goal 3.2, which calls for the City to expand community understanding, appreciation, and support for historic and architectural resource preservation to ensure longterm protection of cultural resources.

Water Supply
In 2025, the City obtained water from four sources: the Salinas Reservoir (Santa Margarita Lake), the Whale Rock Reservoir, the Nacimiento Reservoir, and recycled water from the City’s Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF).

Table 14 - City Water Resource Availability, 2025
Water Resource 2025 Annual Availability
Salinas Reservoir (Santa Margarita Lake) and
Whale Rock Reservoir 4,910 AF Safe Annual Yield1
Nacimiento Reservoir 5,482 AF Dependable Yield2
Recycled Water 354 AF 2024 Annual Usage3
Siltation to 2060 (500 AF) WWME Policy4 A4.2.24
TOTAL 10,246 AF
Source: Public Works and Utilities Department, 2025
View of San Luis Obispo, Looking West

General Plan Annual Report 2025
28 1
Safe Annual Yield is the quantity of water which can be withdrawn every year while operating both reservoirs in coordinated operations under critical drought conditions. The City’s Safe Annual Yield Model was updated in 8 to reflect drought conditions that ended in 7. 2Dependable Yield is the contractual amount of water the City has right to from Nacimiento Reservoir. During the 2025 calendar year, the Nacimiento Pipeline was offline for a portion of the year, during those periods the City did not receive source water from the Nacimiento Reservoir. City water supply was provided from the Whale Rock and Salinas Reservoirs, which provided sufficient supply for the City. 3 The quantity of recycled water included is the actual prior year’s recycled water usage ( 243) per WWE A7.2.2. 4Reservoir siltation is a natural occurrence that reduces storage capacity over long periods, resulting in the reduction of safe annual yield.

For 2025, availability from the
City’s water sources totaled
10,246 acre-feet, as shown in
Table 14. This supply meets the
projected primary water supply
need at General Plan buildout of
7,496 acre-feet, plus an
additional 1,298.35 acre-feet
for a reliability reserve and a
secondary water supply of
1,452 acre-feet.

The primary water supply was calculated using the City’s buildout population ( 7, people)1 and a water use rate of 117 gallons per capita, pursuant to Water and Wastewater Element Policy A 5.2.1 (Water Use Rate). The reliability reserve was calculated using the City’s estimated 2025 population (49,534) and 20 percent of the aforementioned water use rate. The secondary water supply includes the remaining water resources. Additional information is available in the City’s annual Water Supply and Demand Assessment.
1 The City’s population projection of 7, persons, from the General Plan Land Use Element, is based on 1 percent growth annually between 2014 and 2035. By policy, certain housing types and areas are excluded from this growth rate and projection (affordable housing, etc.). The City’s estimated Primary Water Supply need is based on projected population but encompasses all water demand in the City (residential, nonresidential, and irrigation).

Whale Rock Reservoir

General Plan Annual Report 2025
29 Transportation & Circulation
Sustainable Transportation was identified as a Major City Goal (Climate Action, Open Space, and Sustainable Transportation) as part of the Fiscal Year 2022-23 Financial Plan and again in the 2023-25 Financial Plan. The following transportation planning and engineering projects and programs were implemented in 2025 as part of the City’s Sustainable Transportation Major City Goal, consistent with the Circulation Element of the General Plan.

Vehicular
Numerous traffic safety improvements were
implemented as part of the City’s Traffic Safety
Program to address collision trends and resident
safety concerns. These improvements included
striping modifications, sign replacements, and
sight distance improvements at several
intersections. Additionally, the City’s first Vision
Zero Action Plan was released in draft form for
public review in 2025. The Action Plan provides a comprehensive summary of current safety trends and a blueprint to guide priorities in engineering, enforcement, education, and post-crash care to improve traffic safety citywide. The final Action Plan is scheduled for City Council review in the spring of 2026.

Additional vehicular projects and programs implemented in 2025 include:
• Numerous traffic signal and intersection optimization improvements were completed as part of the City’s ongoing traffic signal management responsibilities. Traffic signal timings were adjusted at all City signals, and optimized signal coordination plans were implemented on the Johnson, Broad, Madonna, and Los Osos Valley Road corridors. • “Daylighting” improvements were
implemented at intersections across the
City. Daylighting prohibits vehicles from
parking within 20 feet of marked and
unmarked crosswalks, per State
Assembly Bill 413. This improves safety at
intersections by creating a clearer line of
sight between drivers and pedestrians in
crosswalks.
• Traffic signal modifications were
completed or are in progress at several
intersections to address collision trends
and improve pedestrian accessibility.

These modifications include the addition of lead pedestrian crossing intervals and ADAcompliant audible pedestrian push buttons at multiple intersections.

Striping and flex-post parking restriction to allow for pedestrian “Daylighting”
Vision Zero Traffic Safety Program

General Plan Annual Report 2025
30 • Design for the roundabout at California and Taft Streets is complete, and acquisition of the remaining right-of-way is in progress, with construction expected to begin in 2026. • Prepared 38 Engineering and Traffic Studies to maintain enforceable speed limits and implemented speed limit reductions and/or speed limit visibility enhancements on 30 street segments, where permitted under California Vehicle Code requirements. • Issued 28 permits allowing residents to paint red curbs at their driveway entrancesto improve sight distance.
• Progress continues with preliminary engineering and environmental review for the Prado Road/US 101 Interchange Project, with a targeted construction start in 2029. • Final design, permitting, and right-of-way work continues for the Prado Road Bridge Replacement over San Luis Obispo Creek Project. Construction of the Prado Bridge Project is anticipated to begin in 2027 and is expected to be completed before the start of construction for the Prado Interchange Project.

Bicycle/Pedestrian
The 2024 Paving Project was completed in early
2025. The project included numerous traffic
safety elements to improve mobility for all
roadway users on Grand Avenue, Johnson
Avenue, and various neighborhood streets,
consistent with the Circulation Element, Active
Transportation Plan, and Vision Zero Policy. It
included the installation of a pilot road diet with
new protected and buffered bike lanes and
pedestrian/bicycle crossing enhancements on
Grand Avenue; permanent improvements to
retain a previous pilot road diet on Johnson
Avenue; installation of an uphill bike lane on
Highland Drive approaching Santa Rosa Street;
Protected bicycle lanes and beacon crossings added to Grand Avenue
Rendering of the Prado Road / Highway 101 Overpass

General Plan Annual Report 2025
31 and other minor complete street and safety improvements.

Public outreach and design work continued through 2025 for the Higuera Complete Street Project. The project includes multimodal transportation and safety improvements along the Higuera Street corridor from Marsh Street south to the City limits. These improvements include several miles of protected bike lanes, more than 70 ADA curb ramp upgrades, enhanced pedestrian crosswalks at 40 locations, pavement repairs, traffic signal upgrades, and updated pavement surfaces and roadway markings. The project issupported by over $9 million in external grant funding. Environmental review and design are complete, and the project will be brought to the City Council for approval to advertise for construction in early 2026.

Annual transportation safety educational activities continued in 2025, particularly with the development of the “Roll and Stroll” Bike and Pedestrian Resource Hub, which shares maps, information, tips, and how-to videos on biking and walking in San Luis Obispo. The Hub covers safety basics, understanding new facilities, and where to find additional education resources, including in-person classes. Activities in 2025 included Walk & Bike to School Days, Bike Month, Walktober, reflective Halloween bag distribution, Bike Light Education Pop-Up events, and other educational programs coordinated with Bike SLO County. Additionally, the City released a series of educational videos on bike and pedestrian safety topics, which will continue into 2026 and cover subjects such as safe riding and how to use new bikeway and pedestrian facilities.

The City’s supply of short- and long-term bicycle
parking continued to expand. Six new BikeLink lockers
were installed at the parking lot at 1166 Higuera
Street, providing secure and affordable long-term
parking options in the downtown area. This brings the
total to twelve such lockers in the downtown, in
addition to the Marsh Street Parking Lot location.

Bike valet parking service continued to be offered at
the Farmer’s Market, Concerts in the Plaza, and other
events, with a total of over 2,500 bikes parked in 2025.

BikeLink Lockers at 1166 Higuera
Rendering of the Planned Higuera Complete Streets Project

General Plan Annual Report 2025
32 SLO Transit
SLO Transit operations in 2025 included the following:
• In April 2025, the City Council adopted SLO
Transit’s FY 6-30 Short-Range Transit Plan.

The plan outlines service, program, and fare
change recommendations aimed at meeting the
City’s current and future public transit needs.

Notable service change recommendations
include the reinstatement of services suspended
during the pandemic, more frequent service on
Routes 2A/B, implementation of a new direct
service to the Avila Ranch Specific Plan area, and
a two-year microtransit pilot program.
• In May 2025, the City took delivery of six new
battery-electric buses to replace older dieselpowered buses. This purchase positions the City ahead of the state’s zero-emission mandates and
advances its goal of achieving carbon neutrality
by 2035.
• Ridership continues to recover post-pandemic.

SLO Transit reported over 660,000 passenger
trips in Fiscal Year 2024-25, representing a
seventeen percent increase compared to the
previous fiscal year.
• In August and September 2025, staff attended events at Laguna Middle School and Cal Poly to promote SLO Transit’s services, including the Laguna Tripper, which provides service to the middle school, and the 6 Express, which provides direct service between the campus and downtown on Farmers’ Market nights.
• In November 2025, the City Council approved the release of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for transit operation and maintenance services. The RFP’s scope of services includes the service changes recommended by the Short-Range Transit Plan. Staff anticipate returning to the Council in April 2026 to award the contract, with service beginning July 1, 2026. • In December 2025, the City partnered with Rideshare’s Know How to Go campaign to offer free rides on the Holiday Trolley. During the 30-day holiday service period, more than 1,000 trips were provided at no cost to riders.

New Battery-Electric Bus

General Plan Annual Report 2025
33 Parking Services Program
Parking Services Program’s major focus areas in 2025 included:
• Completion of the Technology Roadmap implementation, updating the parking technology used downtown to improve the customer experience. Improvements included digitizing garage permits, adopting a single mobile payment app for on-street parking, installing a consistent gated system in all public parking garages, adding new parking pay stations downtown, and enhancing security and customer service at all public parking garages. • In conjunction with the Technology Roadmap implementation, signage, equipment wraps, and public educational materials were standardized to improve communication and provide a consistent, easily recognizable downtown parking experience. • The final lighting, landscape, and striping improvements, as well as the demolition of the building and installation of six new BikeLink lockers, were completed at Lot 11, located at 1166 Higuera Street. This public parking lot provides long-term paid parking spaces on the eastern side of downtown.
• The City continued construction of the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure, located at the corner of Palm and Nipomo Streets. This will be the City’s fourth parking garage and is expected to be completed in spring 2026.
• Parking Services and the Mobility Services Communication Coordinator continue to collaborate with organizations such as Downtown SLO, the SLO Chamber, the Parking Steering Committee, and local business owners to keep them informed on all aspects of

General Plan Annual Report 2025
34 parking. This collaboration included the creation of informational flyers, business toolkits, and presentations. Staff have also provided ongoing public outreach through press releases, media campaigns, social media posts, flyers, updated signage, and in-person events.

Safety Services
Fire Department
Climate Adaptation and Safety Element Policy OP-7.1 states that there should be adequate planning, organization, and resources for emergency preparedness and emergency response.

Staff made several accomplishments in 2025 to meet this policy and has highlighted some of them below.

Administration
Public Information: In 2025, the San Luis Obispo Fire Department (SLOFD) continued to expand its Public Information services by increasing the Department’s communications capacity and public outreach efforts. This included an expanded social media presence, supported by a comprehensive social media calendar integrated into the City’s master communications calendar. The Department’s Administrative Specialist was responsible for social media content creation and external written communications, while the Emergency Manager conducted inperson television and radio interviews and served as the primary public-facing spokesperson. The Department also continued preparedness and safety interviews on KVEC and KNEWS radio. Since the Public Information Officer (PIO) role was formalized in late 2019, SLOFD has steadily improved its ability to deliver accurate, timely, and reliable information to the media and the public.

Effective public information plays a critical role in reducing the severity of emergencies by educating the community in advance and enabling informed decision-making during incidents.

Department social media analytics indicate that nearly percent of SLOFD’s followers are residents of the City of San Luis Obispo, demonstrating strong local reach and engagement.

Operations
Emergency Response: In 2025, SLOFD responded to 7,344 incidents from fourstrategically placed fire stations throughout the City. This number is 4.85 percent higher than in 2024. Emergency response was accomplished with a daily minimum staffing of fourteen sworn personnel. To help maintain this daily minimum, the City continued its investment in two important programs: a functional movement program to reduce the occurrence and severity of physical injuries, and a Peer Support Team Program to maintain the mental health and well-being of department personnel.

General Plan Annual Report 2025
35 Open Space Rescue Operations: In 2025, the
Fire Department’s Urban Search and Rescue
(USAR) Team continued to play a vital role in
protecting the lives of both visitors and
residents. Members of the USAR Team receive
specialized training in complex and technical
rescue operations and participate in the San
Luis Obispo County Regional USAR Team. The
team consists of nine members, which
increases the likelihood that multiple USAR
specialists will be on duty on any given day,
thereby increasing the Fire Department’s
operational readiness. The Fire Department, along with its USAR Team members, responded to thirteen technical rescues and medical emergencies in open space areas in and around the City during 2025. Significant incidents included rescues on Cerro San Luis (Madonna Mountain), Bishop Peak, Irish Hills, Cal Poly, and Reservoir Canyon.

The Fire Department’s open space rescue programs continue to evolve. Many of these rescues, particularly around Bishop Peak, require the use of a helicopter to locate, access, and transport victims. The Fire Department works closely with, and trains frequently alongside, the California Highway Patrol, which operates the rescue helicopter in the county. In addition to this collaboration with CHP for air resources, two key contributors to the continued success of the Fire Department’s open space rescue program have been the E-Bike Program and the Utility Terrain Vehicle (UTV) program. Both pieces of equipment have been invaluable in locating, transporting, and caring for people in open space in a timely manner. The UTV program is also utilized through Mutual Aid to assist neighboring fire departments.

Mobile Crisis Unit: The Mobile Crisis Unit
(MCU) responds to behavioral health
incidents both proactively and reactively.

Law Enforcement (LE) and Fire Service (FS)
resources are often called to assist
individuals in crisis, serving as a one-sizefits-all solution for issues ranging from homelessness to mental illness and
addiction. As a result, many individuals are
not connected to the most appropriate
resources available. To provide more
tailored support, the MCU pairs a
Community Resources Services Specialist
with a Fire Department intern and, as of October 2024, a Licensed Psychiatric Technician from County Behavioral Health. This model enhances service for those in need while reducing reliance on LE and FS resources, which have limited tools to address individuals in crisis.

The MCU is staffed during peak activity hours, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, based on current SLOPD and SLOFD response data. Implementation of a 24/7 service may Open Space Rescue and Expanded Technical Rescue Team
Mobile Crisis Unit