CITY OF SAN MATEO
City Council Special Meeting
March 17, 2025
5:30 PM
City Hall Council Chamber
Entrance is on O’Farrell Street
COUNCIL MEMBERS
Robert Newsom Jr.
Adam Loraine
Nicole Fernandez
Danielle Cwirko-Godycki
Lisa Diaz Nash
AMENDED AGENDA
THIS MEETING CAN BE ATTENDED IN PERSON OR REMOTE BY JOINING ZOOM – SEE CODES BELOW.
PUBLIC COMMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED BOTH IN PERSON AND REMOTEL Y.
SEE END OF AGENDA FOR OPTIONS AND INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MEETING.
To join via Zoom – click here:
M
arch 17, 2025
To join via telephone: (408) 638-0968
Webinar ID: 859 1460 5962 Passcode: 614114
Agenda Amended on March 14, 2025
CALL TO ORDER
Roll Call
AB 2449 Requests and Consideration for Meeting Participation by Teleconference due to Just Cause or Emergency Circumstances
CLOSED SESSION
The public will have an opportunity to comment before the consideration of these items. Following the meeting a report of action from Closed Session will be provided if required.
1. Conference with Legal Counsel - Anticipated Litigation Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 5495.9 One case (Claim of Alicia Petrakis)
2. Conference with Legal Counsel - Anticipated Litigation Initiation of litigation pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (d) of Section 54956.9: ( Three cases
)
3. Conference with Legal Counsel - Anticipated Litigation Significant exposure to litigation pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 54956.9: (One case)
4. Conference with Labor Negotiators (Government Code Section 54957.6) City designated representatives: Aracelia Esparza, Abby Veeser, Stacey Cue, IEDA, and Employee Organization:
San Mateo Management Employees’ Association
NEW BUSINESS
The public will have an opportunity to comment during the consideration of this item.
5. Letter to California Office of Historic Preservation – Approval
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Consider and take action on a proposed letter drafted by Council Members Fernandez and Cwirko-Godycki requesting a deferral of further review of the Baywood District historic nomination.
CEQA: This draft letter is not a project subject to CEQA, because it is an organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b) (5).)
ADJOURNMENT
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AGENDAS:
Agendas and material are posted on the City’s website on the Friday preceding each Council Meeting and can be viewed on the City's website at
www.cityofsanmateo.org
. Any supplemental material distributed to the Council after the posting of the agenda will be made part of the official record.
WATCHING A MEETING ON TV:
City Council meetings are broadcast live on Comcast/channel 27, Wave/channel 26, or AT&T/channel 99.
For transmission problems during the broadcast, please call (650) 522-7099. For all other broadcast comments, call (650) 522-7040, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
WATCHING A MEETING ON A COMPUTER:
There are three ways to stream.
1) Public Meeting Portal
www.cityofsanmateo.org/publicmeetings
2) City YouTube channel and stream it on YouTube:
http://youtube.com/CityofSanMateo
3) Watch TV live stream:
https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/193/Channel-San-Mateo-Live-Stream
PUBLIC COMMENTS/REQUEST TO SPEAK
Prior to the Meeting
Send comments to:
[email protected]
until 4 p.m. the day of the meeting.
During the meeting
By Zoom:
Click the link at the top of the agenda and you’ll be added to the meeting. All attendees are muted by default. When the item of interest is open for consideration, select the “Raise Your Hand” icon and you will be called on at the appropriate time.
By telephone:
Call (408) 638-0968 and enter the conference ID found at the top of the meeting agenda. When the item of interest is open for consideration, select *9 to raise your hand. When called upon, press *6 to unmute, state your name and provide your comments.
In Person:
At the meeting complete a “Request to Speak” form, submit a request at the speaker kiosk or scan the QR code.
ACCESSIBILITY:
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, those with disabilities requiring special accommodations to participate in this meeting may contact the City Clerk’s Office at (650) 522-7040 or [email protected]
. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will
enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting.
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CITY OF SAN MATEO
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3 CITY OF SAN MATEO
Agenda Report
City Hall
330 W. 20th Avenue
San Mateo CA 94403
www.cityofsanmateo.org
Agenda Number: 5 Section Name: NEW BUSINESS Account Number: 10-1511 File ID: 25-9767 TO: City Council
FROM: Alex Khojikian, City Manager
PREPARED BY: Alex Khojikian on behalf of Council Members Nicole Fernandez and Cwirko-Godycki MEETING DATE: March 17, 2025
SUBJECT:
Letter to California Office of Historic Preservation – Approval RECOMMENDATION:
Consider and take action on a proposed letter drafted by Council Members Fernandez and Cwirko-Godycki requesting a deferral of further review of the Baywood District historic nomination.
BACKGROUND:
At the February 18, 2025, Regular City Council Meeting, Council Member Nicole Fernandez requested and received Council approval to draft a letter in coordination with Council Member Cwirko-Godycki to be sent to the California Office of Historic Preservation requesting a deferral of further review of the Baywood District nomination. The draft letter (Attachment 1) will be presented for discussion and approval at the Special Meeting on March 17, 2025.
BUDGET IMPACT:
There is no budgetary impact associated with the adoption of this proposed Resolution.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION:
This draft letter is not a project subject to CEQA, because it is an organizational or administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. (CEQA Guidelines Section 15378(b)(5).)
NOTICE PROVIDED
All meeting noticing requirements were met.
ATTACHMENTS
Att 1 - Draft Letter
CONTACT
Alex Khojikian, City Manager
[email protected]
(650) 522-7002
Christina Horrisberger, Assistant City Manager
[email protected]
(650) 522-7210
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4 March 18, 2025
State Historic Preservation Officer Julianne Polanco Julianne Polanco Office of Historic Preservation
1725 23rd Street, Suite 100
Sacramento, CA 95816
Re: Request to Defer Further Review of Baywood Nomination Dear State Historic Preservation Officer Julianne Polanco:
The City of San Mateo (City) understands that the Baywood District nomination submitted by the San Mateo Heritage Alliance (SMHA) was recently reactivated. Considering the significant community concerns this nomination has raised, we, the San Mateo City Council respectfully request the following:
•Notification: Please promptly inform the City when (date) the nomination was reactivated. •Correspondence: Kindly copy the City on all correspondence between SMHA and the OHP regarding this nomination.
•Deferral: We ask that further OHP review be deferred for at least 18 months, as we work through a local process.
By way of context, the City recently allocated funds to develop a local process for evaluating and designating historic resources, including updates to related ordinances. This initiative is intended to foster broader community engagement and build consensus around our historic preservation efforts. Should the nomination advance at the state level before our local process is fully developed, it could inadvertently undermine these efforts—not only in Baywood but across the entire City of San Mateo.
Although we understand that the City Council will have a 60-day period to comment once the nomination is agendized by the OHP, we may not be in a position to offer comprehensive feedback until our local process is complete, which we anticipate will take approximately 18 months. Moreover, we are concerned that additional investments of resources by both the OHP and SMHA might limit receptiveness to alternative perspectives.
In light of the fact that several Baywood residents have expressed their concerns through letters of objection, as outlined in California State Public Resources Code 5024.1(f).4, it seems unlikely that the district will be listed on the National Register. Pursuing the nomination amidst noticeable local opposition may draw unfavorable attention at both the local and state levels, which could affect broader historic preservation efforts in San Mateo. The Council believes that taking additional time for local discussions and community engagement could lead to a more positive and constructive outcome for everyone involved.
Since Baywood is not in imminent danger of losing its historic character, we trust that you will agree there is no urgent need to proceed at this time. We appreciate your thoughtful consideration of our request to maintain the current pause on the nomination until the City is in a better position to participate.
CITY OF SAN MATEO
CITY COUNCIL
330 W. 20th Avenue
San Mateo, CA 94403-1338
www.cityofsanmateo.org
(650) 522-7040
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4 We welcome the opportunity to discuss this matter further at your convenience. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Rob Newsom, Jr., Mayor
City of San Mateo
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City of San Mateo
City Council Meeting
POST PACKET
PUBLIC COMMENT
As of March 17, 2025, at 4:00 PM
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From: Michael
To: City Council (San Mateo)
Cc: Clerk
Subject: Council Special Meeting 3/17/25 Item #5 - please reject sending letter to COHP Date: Monday, March 17, 2025 2:34:40 PM
Dear Mayor and Councilmembers:
I'm writing to discourage you from interfering with the State Historical Preservation Committee's evaluation of Baywood as a historic district.
I'm at a loss as to why councilmembers Fernandez and Cwirko-Godicki are attempting to interfere with something that is clearly a Baywood-specific issue. How would you feel if Baywood, who does not understand your neighborhood as you do, was attempting to restrict you from something important to your residents?
Furthermore, the city is not acting in good faith with regards to the San Mateo Historic Alliance. SMHA agreed to a pause for a set period of time. That time has elapsed. At the same time, the city has moved the timelines for execution of the ordinance update significantly, and seems to have introduced a "do nothing" option that was rejected twice already.
At the same time, you have a small group (Less Red Tape) working hard behind the scenes with legal representation and some deep pockets, to influence councilmembers and derail the historic preservation process. LRT are a.) raising funds questionably as they are not a registered political entity or non-profit, b.) engaging in influencing the State Historical Board by speaking out against the Baywood submission directly in their meetings, and c.) engaging in ethically questionable and possibly illegal usage of AI and data captured from residents to submit emails to council against the submission and the ordinance update. I would seriously
question both the credibility of any assertions made by LRT, as well as the validity of any correspondence in support of this letter or against the historical ordinance to the extent it appears to be form or AI generated.
The Baywood Historical nomination does not impact the city's process in any way, and there are substantial benefits in the way of funding sources for rehabilitation of historically significant assets accrued by Baywood becoming a historic district.
I ask the council to drop this submission,
to focus instead on the much bigger issues faced by
our city, and for councilmembers Fernandez and Cwirko-Godycki specifically to respect the desires of other districts and stay out of their way.
Thanks for listening - Michael Weinhauer
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March 17, 2025
RE: Proposed SHPO Letter – Vote NO!
Dear Mayor Newsom and City Council Members,
As you had previously agreed, please allow the State Historic Preservation Office to continue its process in determining whether or not Baywood is eligible for the prestigious listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the sea of destruction and adversity on the national level, it is crucial for San Mateo to stand as a beacon of rationality—committed to protecting our environment, preserving the quality of life in our neighborhoods, and supporting the diverse members of our community.
I urge you not to align with the agenda of a small, manipulative group whose actions threaten to dismantle our beautiful neighborhoods for the financial gain of a select few developers and brokers. Their motives are clear, yet their methods raise serious questions. Why do they invest so heavily in opposing the San Mateo Heritage Alliance—a cause as wholesome and unifying as apple pie? San Mateo has the opportunity to lead with integrity and vision. I implore you to prioritize the values that make our city a place we are proud to call home.
Sincerely,
Shirley Melnicoe
30-year San Mateo Resident
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From: Michael
To: City Council (San Mateo)
Cc: Clerk
Subject: Council Special Meeting 3/17/25 Item #5 - please reject sending letter to COHP Date: Monday, March 17, 2025 2:34:40 PM
Dear Mayor and Councilmembers:
I'm writing to discourage you from interfering with the State Historical Preservation Committee's evaluation of Baywood as a historic district.
I'm at a loss as to why councilmembers Fernandez and Cwirko-Godicki are attempting to interfere with something that is clearly a Baywood-specific issue. How would you feel if Baywood, who does not understand your neighborhood as you do, was attempting to restrict you from something important to your residents?
Furthermore, the city is not acting in good faith with regards to the San Mateo Historic Alliance. SMHA agreed to a pause for a set period of time. That time has elapsed. At the same time, the city has moved the timelines for execution of the ordinance update significantly, and seems to have introduced a "do nothing" option that was rejected twice already.
At the same time, you have a small group (Less Red Tape) working hard behind the scenes with legal representation and some deep pockets, to influence councilmembers and derail the historic preservation process. LRT are a.) raising funds questionably as they are not a registered political entity or non-profit, b.) engaging in influencing the State Historical Board by speaking out against the Baywood submission directly in their meetings, and c.) engaging in ethically questionable and possibly illegal usage of AI and data captured from residents to submit emails to council against the submission and the ordinance update. I would seriously
question both the credibility of any assertions made by LRT, as well as the validity of any correspondence in support of this letter or against the historical ordinance to the extent it appears to be form or AI generated.
The Baywood Historical nomination does not impact the city's process in any way, and there are substantial benefits in the way of funding sources for rehabilitation of historically significant assets accrued by Baywood becoming a historic district.
I ask the council to drop this submission,
to focus instead on the much bigger issues faced by
our city, and for councilmembers Fernandez and Cwirko-Godycki specifically to respect the desires of other districts and stay out of their way.
Thanks for listening - Michael Weinhauer
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From: jeanne bosschart
To: Clerk
Subject: State consideration of Baywood Historic nomination Date: Monday, March 17, 2025 4:00:00 PM
Many of us Baywood residents support an historic designation for our neighborhood.
Please allow the State’s process to continue without further delays.
Thank you.
Jeanne Bosschart
San Mateo
Sent from my iPad
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