Suisun City City Council
March 17, 2026

CITY OF SUISUN CITY
Organ
izational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan
Building the Foundation for Sustained Excellence
Bret
Prebula, City Manager
To the Suisun City Council
March 2026
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Over the past 24 months, Suisun City has experienced a period of remarkable operational progress — from accelerating capital projects and securing new grant funding, to advancing long-stalled policy initiatives and strengthening the public's trust in local government. This momentum is real, measurable, and fragile. It did not happen by accident; it is the direct product of focused leadership, a committed workforce, and a city organization stretched to, and in many areas beyond, its operational capacity.

T
he organizational changes presented are not aspirational additions to an already-comfortable organization. They are structural necessities required to sustain the gains already achieved, fulfill commitments already made to the community, and build the administrative foundation that any thoughtful future, whether growth-oriented or stability-focused will demand. Cities that fail to invest in their own organizational infrastructure find themselves in reactive, crisis-driven management when the next challenge arrives.

T
his paper presents proposed changes across seven functional areas: the City Manager's Office, Finance Department, Human Resources Department, Police Department, Development Services / Housing, and Public Works. For each area, the paper documents the current gap, the risk of inaction, and the specific organizational change proposed. A benchmark analysis of comparable California general law cities in the 30,000– 50,000 population range is provided to establish professional context and demonstrate that Suisun City is not asking for more than peer communities already maintain.

Why Fire and IT are not Being Restructured Today
I
n 2024, Fire did a reorg to strengthen operations working towards 3/0 firefighter staffing on one engine.
• Removal of the Division Chief position enabled Fire to divert funding to one Firefighter P
aramedic while in 2025-26 FY Council approved two additional positions. We are recruiting for two remaining vacancies.
• Management and oversight of department Operations and Training was bridged to the Deputy Chief level providing for overall efficiency and while Suisun explores future expansion positions Fire Chief better to dedicate energy and focus on expansion goals while Deputy Chief wi ll
c
ontinue to maintain day-to-day operations for continuity.

In Information Technology we are continuing to evaluate the overall needs. The Apex Technology contract was a great step forward. Additional resources may be required but it will not be a FY 2026/27 discussion, most likely a discussion in FY 2027/28 or later.

THE CORE CHALLENGE: Every day that passes without adequate staffing is a day that the City Manager, department directors, and frontline staff are making painful triage decisions about which community priorities receive attention and which do not. That is not a sustainable management model.

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SECTION 1 — THE STAKES: PROTECTING TWO YEARS OF

MOMENTUM
We are situated at the intersection of Solano County's growth corridor. The city faces a distinctive set of pressures that make organizational capacity not a luxury but a prerequisite for responsible governance:
rising sea levels threaten significant portions of the community, a regional housing crisis demands local policy leadership, economic development opportunities along the waterfront and commercial corridors require active municipal stewardship, and a community that has experienced periods of fiscal stress expects, rightly, that its city government is well-managed and forward-looking.

The past 24 months have demonstrated what is possible when city leadership is focused and the organization is aligned. Key advances include accelerated project delivery, improved community communication, new economic development partnerships, and a more cohesive interdepartmental approach to shared challenges.

1.1 Why Momentum Is the City's Most Valuable Asset
Organizational momentum in local government is hard to build and easy to lose. It depends on more than leadership; it depends on a staffing structure that can translate vision into action across all departments simultaneously. When city staff are operating above capacity, the consequences are not immediately obvious, but they compound overtime:

⚠ Talented employees leave, taking institutional knowledge with them, when workloads are chronically unmanageable.
⚠ Projects stall, grant deadlines are missed, and compliance failures emerge when no one has capacity to own the details.
⚠ The community perceives a decline in service quality and responsiveness, eroding the trust that has been carefully rebuilt.
⚠ Department directors become consumed by operational firefighting, leaving no capacity for the strategic thinking that sustained improvement requires. ⚠ The City Manager's attention is diverted from coordination, policy, and external relationships to internal triage, the opposite of what an effective city management model calls for.

MOMENTUM AT RISK: Two years of hard-won progress can erode in six months if the organization is not structured to sustain it. The question before the Council is not whether to invest in city staffing it is whether to protect the investment the community has already made.

1.2 The Cost of Not Acting
Council members may reasonably ask: what is the fiscal cost of these positions? The more important question is: what is the cost of NOT making these changes? Research on municipal organizational performance consistently demonstrates that understaffed city governments face compounding costs that far exceed the cost of adequate staffing:

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Cost of Adequate Staffing Cost of Chronic Understaffing Defined, predictable salary and benefits expenses Overtime costs, burnout, and elevated turnover (replacement costs average 50%, depending on
timing of filling the vacant roles.

Proactive grant management with timely
reimbursements
Missed grant deadlines and audit findings,
resulting in forfeited revenue and compliance
penalties
Consistent project delivery on schedule and on
budget
Project delays, contractor claims, and change
orders that cost multiples of early investment
Sustained business and community confidence Reputational damage requiring years and significant investment to repair
A stable, experienced workforce Perpetual recruitment cycles, reduced institutional memory, and degraded service
quality
Capital investments protected by adequate
oversight
Capital assets that fail prematurely due to
inadequate maintenance management

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SECTION 2 — BENCHMARKING: WHAT COMPARABLE

CALIFORNIA CITIES DO
To establish professional context for the proposed staffing changes, the City Manager's Office reviewed the organizational structures of comparable California general law cities with populations between 30,000 and 50,000 residents. This peer group is appropriate because these cities share Suisun City's legal framework (general law, not charter), operate in similar fiscal environments, and face comparable service delivery challenges. Representative cities examined include Martinez (pop. ~36,000, Contra Costa County), San Pablo (pop. ~32,000, Contra Costa County), Morgan Hill (pop. ~45,000, Santa Clara County), Benicia (prop. -30,000, Solano County) and Lathrop (pop. ~26,000, San Joaquin County).

The findings are instructive: across virtually every functional area where we are proposing to add capacity, comparable cities already maintain that capacity, often with more staff than what is requested here. The following table summarizes key benchmark findings:

Functional Area Suisun City
(Current)
Peer City Range
(Comparable CA
Cities)
Suisun City (Proposed)
City Manager's Office
(professional staff)
4 (CM, Deputy
CC, Admin
Assistant (2
FTE))
5-7 (CM + Asst CM or
Deputy + PIO +
Analyst, Deputy CC,
Executive Assistant)
Same number of staff but
different roles.

CM, Special Assistant to the
CM (2 FTE), Deputy City
Clerk
Finance Dept. senior mgmt. Finance Director
and Finance
Manager
Director + 1– 2
Managers (Benicia
has FD and 2
Finance Managers)

Delete Accountant
+ Add 1 FTE Senior
Accountant
Director + Finance Manager
for Accounting and Financial
Reporting/Finance Manager
for Budget Management, Fees,
Business Licenses, Cannabis,
Grant Management
Human Resources Rigid staff
structure HR and
Payroll position
separate
Reclass to HR Payroll
Technician
Provides flexibility in staffing
and staff development
Police Flat Structure Most peers have
captain and Lieutenant
Reorganized command
structure/Add 1 FTE Police
Officer for downtown
Police Dispatch New laws
requiring
greater
staffing needs
10-15
Dispatchers/Records
staff separate from
Dispatch Staff
Add 2 FTE Record Clerk I/II

Add 1 FTE Dispatcher (for
EMD State Requirement)
Development Services. /
Housing integration Separate Most peers integrate
housing within CDD
Housing integrated into CDD
PW Supervisor tier Senior MW
(working level)
Supervisor tier in each
division standard
Restore PW Supervisor (3)
PW Senior Civil Engineer None dedicated
to Capital
Standard in 30K+ peers 1 (Capital Project Fund and
Expansion Project)
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Key Finding: In every proposal we are asking for position changes that is structurally complete enough to do its job, but are still below comparable standards, but reduces stress and allows the current successful pace to be maintained.

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SECTION 3 — CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE REALIGNMENT
The City Manager's Office is the nerve center of city government. It is responsible for coordinating all departments, managing the Council's policy agenda, representing the City in intergovernmental and regional forums, overseeing economic development, responding to community concerns, managing external communications, and dozens of other functions that do not fit neatly into a single department.

In a general law city of Suisun City's size, the office of the City Manager should be supported by a small but capable professional team that amplifies the reach and effectiveness of executive leadership.

The City Manager is operating with the level of intelligent, quality staff but not the correct position type.

Critical functions including public communications, economic development, special project management, strategic planning, long range operational planning, homeless outreach coordination, Business Improvement District support, and sea level rise planning are either unassigned, being absorbed by an already-overwhelmed City Manager staff, not in the correct roles, , or distributed to department directors who lack the capacity and, in some cases, the authority to fully own them. The proposed City Manager structure change would solve for these issues.

Additionally, to assist the Deputy City Clerk, although it is not a part of the proposed changes today, staff is working to cross departmentally shift certain permanent functions to a position in Parks and Recreation. This shift will most likely result in a needed reclassification of the individual but this would be significantly cheaper than adding another FTE.

OPERATIONAL REALITY: There are simply not enough hours in the day. Critical city priorities from sea level rise planning to business district support are receiving inconsistent attention not because leadership lacks commitment, but because no single person can be everywhere at once. The City Council's priorities require many sets of hands.

3.1 Public Information Officer (PIO)-City Managers Office Modern local government depends on consistent, accurate, and timely communication with the public.

Residents expect to be informed about city decisions, projects, and emergencies in real time, through social media, press releases, community meetings, the City's website, and direct outreach. When there is no dedicated professional managing these functions, communication becomes reactive, inconsistent, and chronically deprioritized in favor of more urgent operational demands. The City has had great success with our contracted firm Tripeppi Smith, and will continue this contract, but someone needs to manage this group and do the more local PIO functions. This falls to the City Manager right now and this needs to be with one of the proposed Special Assistants.

WITH A PIO: A PIO transforms city communication, building public trust and reducing misinformation — at a cost far lower than the damage that poor or absent communication causes to community confidence.

We have made great progress in this area but need a dedicated on the ground person to own this moving forward.

3.2 Special Projects / Economic Development Support
The City Manager's Office is the appropriate home for cross-departmental special projects that span multiple functions or carry significant policy weight. These include coordination of the Business Improvement District (BID), support for economic development, management of intergovernmental relationships, and coordination of emerging policy areas such as homeless outreach and response.

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Currently, these responsibilities are absorbed by the City Manager or delegated to department directors as secondary duties. This arrangement has several critical weaknesses:

⚠ Department directors are hired and compensated to lead their own departments — assigning special projects to them diverts attention from their primary responsibilities and creates accountability gaps.
⚠ Cross-departmental projects without a dedicated manager tend to drift, lose momentum, and fall into coordination gaps between departments. ⚠ The Business Improvement District requires consistent liaison and support that cannot be reliably provided when that function has no dedicated owner. ⚠ Homeless outreach and housing-related project management — areas of increasing community concern and state compliance requirement — require consistent coordination capacity.

Sea Level Rise Planning: Suisun City faces one of the most significant sea level rise exposure profiles of any city in the North Bay. State compliance obligations, grant opportunities through the California Coastal Conservancy and other agencies, and long-range capital planning all require a coordinated planning and project management capacity within the City Manager's Office — the level of leadership required for this work cannot be fully housed in a single department.

Homeless Outreach Coordination: Regional homelessness continues to be a significant community concern and a source of service demands across multiple departments — Police, Public Works, Parks, and Community Development. Coordinating the City's response — including outreach programs, regional partnerships, and encampment management protocols — requires a staff member with the authority and bandwidth to act as the City's lead coordinator. Without this capacity, the response remains fragmented and inconsistent.

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SECTION 4 — FINANCE DEPARTMENT: ADDING A FINANCE

MANAGER AND RECLASSIFYING ACCOUNTANT POSITION
The Finance Department is the fiscal backbone of Suisun City's government. It is responsible for accounting, budgeting, grant management, financial reporting, audit coordination, and compliance across all city funds. When the Finance Department is understaffed, the consequences are not confined to that department, they ripple across every city operation that depends on accurate, timely financial information.

The Finance Department is proposing the addition of a Finance Manager position, a mid-level management classification that will provide critical supervisory, analytical, and operational support to the Finance Director and the department's staff. The case for this position rests on four distinct and independently compelling grounds.

4.1 The Four Pillars of the Finance Manager Case
Pillar 1: Increased Project and Grant Complexity
Over the past two years, Suisun City has successfully pursued and secured a variety of grants and capital project funding — a direct result of improved organizational performance. Each of these grants comes with its own compliance requirements, draw schedules, reporting deadlines, and audit obligations. The current Finance Department does not have sufficient management capacity to oversee this expanded portfolio without risk of error, delay, or audit finding.

The Finance Department is also emphasizing the importance of adding senior-level finance staff. This addition would significantly enhance the timeliness and accuracy of financial reporting across all areas of accounting. While succession planning remains important, the primary focus is on improving real- time accounting and reporting capabilities. Strengthening senior-level capacity will allow the Department to provide accurate, timely information to City leadership and stakeholders, which is essential for informed decision-making and maintaining public trust.

FISCAL RISK: A single missed grant reimbursement deadline or audit finding can result in the forfeiture of funds that dwarf the annual cost of the Finance Manager position. This is a fiscal risk management decision, not merely a staffing comfort request.

Pillar 2: Imminent Succession Risk
The existing Finance Manager position is expected to become vacant due to retirement within the foreseeable future. The Finance Director, currently the sole senior manager in the department, faces an untenable succession gap if a Finance Manager is not in place before that transition occurs. Establishing this position now provides an overlap period for institutional knowledge transfer that is impossible to recreate after the fact. The cost of an unmanaged leadership transition in Finance, including potential audit findings, delayed financial reporting, and staff turnover, far exceeds the cost of proactive succession planning.

Pillar 3: Loss of Senior Accounting Capacity
An experienced Accountant position is scheduled to vacate by the end of April 2026. This departure compounds the department's capacity challenge, removing not just a position but years of institutional knowledge about the City's accounts, funds, and reporting systems. A Finance Manager would provide ATTACHMENT 3
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the supervisory capacity to mentor remaining staff and absorb some of the analytical and oversight duties that would otherwise fall to the Finance Director.

Pillar 4: Budget Development Support
The annual budget process is among the most consequential and time-intensive activities in city government. Currently, the Finance Director leads this process without dedicated management support, relying on department directors and accounting staff who have their own primary responsibilities. The result is a process that is more stressful, slower, and more error-prone than it needs to be. A Finance Manager would provide dedicated support for budget development, mid-year report, and the Council presentations that accompany bot as well and what may be most important enhanced budget management processes and checks with departments throughout the year.

OUTCOME WITH FINANCE MANAGER: Adding a Finance Manager stabilizes the City's fiscal management infrastructure, protects grant revenue, ensures audit readiness, and provides the budget development support that informed Council decision-making requires, at a cost that is a fraction of the risk it eliminates.

SECTION 5 — HUMAN RESOURCES: RECLASSYING FOR

FLEXIBILITY/TRANSFER PAYROLL TO HUMAN RESOURCES
The Huiman Resources Department continues to work on bringing the operations and policies up to date. This process started four (4) years ago. To provide context, the majority of city personnel policies, operational functions were 30 years old or non-existent, thus this will be another 24 months to reach a level where we are close to modern levels of policy and operations. Unfortunately, this is common in many mid to small size cities. We have made great momentum in the past few years but it is a large lift, and the reclassification and payroll transition is the next step.

The transition of the blended role of HR/Payroll will allow for better cross training and operational integration. Although the Payroll function has a financial component, it truly is fueled by the information on time cards, benefits, workmen’s comp, FMLA etc. Since these are HR functions both department heads got together and decided that it makes the most operational sense to be housed in Human Resources. Additionally, this will allow the staff more growth and development in their careers with the greater breadth of administrative awareness.

FISCAL RISK: The Payroll function is vital to our employees. Having a singular point of failure for this function is not prudent, but the proposed change will solve for this issue. As the payroll ERP module is implemented in the coming 12 months it will also put the city in a better place for the future.

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SECTION 6 — POLICE DEPARTMENT REORGANIZATION
The Suisun City Police Department serves a community with complex public safety needs. Like many California cities of its size, Suisun City has seen an evolution in the nature of policing demands, rising calls for service related to mental health, housing instability, and community disorder; heightened expectations for transparency and community engagement; growing administrative compliance obligations under state law; and the need to recruit and retain qualified officers in a highly competitive regional labor market. Meeting these demands requires not just adequate staffing at the patrol level, but a command and administrative structure capable of planning, supervising, and continuously improving department operations.

6.1 Foundation for Operations and Community Trust
A reorganized command structure, with clearly defined span of control, supervisory accountability at each operational tier, and designated responsibility for administrative compliance and community engagement produces measurable benefits:

● Clearer chains of command reduce response delays, confusion, and accountability gaps during critical incidents.
● Supervisors with appropriate span of control can provide the mentorship and oversight that field officers need, improving officer performance and reducing misconduct risk. ● Administrative and planning functions — including use-of-force review, grant management, training compliance, and statistics reporting — receive the attention they require when command structure is properly resourced.
● Community-facing programs (neighborhood liaison, school resource, and outreach partnerships) are more sustainably delivered when they have organizational homes with dedicated command accountability.
● Recruitment and retention improve when the department can offer a clear career progression path — from officer to sergeant to command — that motivated professionals can plan their careers around.

STRUCTURAL RISK: Police departments that operate without adequate supervisory and command infrastructure are not simply less efficient, they are higher-risk. The human, financial, and reputational costs of a critical incident in an under-supervised department can permanently alter a community's relationship with its police force.

6.2 Planning for Growth Without Getting Ahead of It
The proposed reorganization is structured to provide the organizational foundation that both current operations and any future growth will require, without committing to positions that are not yet needed.

As the City's population grows, as community policing programs expand, and as state compliance obligations intensify, the reorganized structure will be able to absorb additional staff without requiring another wholesale restructuring. Building this foundation now, while the department is operating with manageable momentum, is the responsible and cost-effective choice.

Beginning January 1, 2027, Assembly Bill 645 will require the Department to implement Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD), mandating that dispatchers provide structured, pre-arrival medical instructions while remaining fully dedicated to those calls. Because EMD protocols prohibit dispatchers from handling radio traffic or additional calls during these incidents, implementation will effectively remove a dispatcher from normal police and fire operations whenever a medical call is in progress. To maintain service levels, ensure officer and firefighter safety, and comply with state law, the Department ATTACHMENT 3
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is proposing the addition of one Public Safety Dispatcher to preserve operational coverage by adjusting minimum staffing during periods the communications center sees a higher call volume. The department is also adding two Records Technicians to absorb front counter duties, district attorney case filings, and other administrative and documentation responsibilities that dispatch staff will no longer have the capacity to manage under the EMD model. This reorganization is necessary to maintain continuity of emergency services and both community and staff safety while meeting the new statutory mandate.

6.3 Structure Changes Outlined
The proposed changes will also add a 4th beat to the current Suisun City policing model. This beat will have a focus on our downtown/waterfront area. As we continue to make great progress in managing the unhoused, and crime in this area, the Chief and I agree that a dedicated beat will enhance the service delivery to the community. This also continue to move the city towards its goal of 30 FTE sworn officers. The additions and restructuring are as follows:

• Add 1 FTE Police Officer
• Delete 1 FTE Commander/add 1 FTE Captain
• Delete 1 FTE Commander/add 1 FTE Lieutenant
• Delete 1 FTE Sgt/Add 1 FTE Lieutenant
• Add 1 FTE Dispatcher
• Add 2 FTE Records Clerk I/II

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SECTION 7 — HOUSING INTEGRATION INTO COMMUNITY

DEVELOPMENT
Housing policy and development planning are not merely adjacent functions — they are deeply interdependent disciplines that, when separated into siloed organizational structures, create duplication, coordination friction, and policy gaps. In California, this is especially true: the state's Housing Element Law, Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) obligations, Seante Bill (SB) 9, SB 10, density bonus law, inclusionary housing requirements, and a host of other mandates require seamless integration of housing planning and land use authority.

7.1 Why Housing Belongs in CDD
The proposed integration of the Housing function into the Development Services Department (CDD) reflects a widely adopted best practice among California general law cities of comparable size. The overlap between housing program administration, affordable housing project review, General Plan housing element implementation, and the day-to-day work of planning and building is not coincidental, it is structural. These functions share the same legal framework, the same applicants, the same data systems, and the same community stakeholders.

● Housing element compliance requires planning expertise having housing staff embedded in CDD ensures that compliance work is integrated into the full planning function rather than treated as a separate administrative obligation.
● Development project review which is central to CDD's mission is incomplete without housing staff who can evaluate affordability requirements, density bonus applications, and inclusionary obligations in real time.
● Grant funding for housing increasingly a significant source of city revenue — is better managed by staff who are integrated into the department responsible for the projects those grants fund. ● Applicants and developers benefit from a one-stop interface with the city on all aspects of their projects, including planning, building, and housing program compliance.

COORDINATION RISK: Maintaining housing as a standalone function separate from CDD creates a coordination burden that costs staff time and creates project delays every time a housing question requires routing between departments. Integration eliminates that friction and impro ves service delivery.

7.2 The Summer Reclassification: Building Toward Joint Planning/Housing The integration proposed now sets the stage for a more comprehensive reclassification planned for the budget cycle, in which Housing staff roles will be reclassified to reflect joint planning and housing responsibilities. This approach, phased, deliberate, and fiscally responsible — allows the City to achieve the skill set diversity and funding flexibility that joint roles provide without undertaking a disruptive wholesale reorganization on an accelerated timeline.

Funding Advantages: Housing staff in a joint classification can charge a portion of their time to Housing funds including HOME, CDBG, and state housing grant programs while also supporting general fund CDD functions. This blended funding model, used by peer cities throughout California, reduces general fund costs while increasing the City's overall staff capacity in planning and housing.

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Skill Set Diversity: The current separation of Housing from CDD creates a risk of narrow specialization staff who know housing programs but not planning, or planners who lack housing program expertise. The joint classification model produces staff who are competent across both disciplines, making the organization more resilient, more flexible, and better able to serve the community's evolving needs.

OUTCOME: Integrating Housing into CDD now and completing the reclassification in summer produces a more capable, cost-efficient, and legally compliant community development function and positions Suisun City ahead of the curve on California housing mandate complian ce.

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SECTION 8 — PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT

REORGANIZATION
The Public Works Department is responsible for maintaining and improving the physical infrastructure that defines residents' daily experience of their city streets, storm drains, parks, facilities, and the capital projects that build Suisun City's future. It is also the department most directly affected by deferred maintenance, staffing gaps, and the compounding consequences of organizational misalignment. The proposed changes to Public Works are among the most operationally critical in this position paper.

8.1 Re-Establishing Three Public Works Supervisors
The Public Works Department operates through three distinct operational divisions. Each division — in a properly functioning public works organization should be led by a Supervisor who is responsible for work planning, crew coordination, quality control, and day-to-day operational decisions. The elimination or downgrading of these supervisory roles — replaced in practice by Senior Maintenance Workers who carry field responsibilities rather than supervisory authority — has created a structural gap that affects every aspect of departmental performance.

The Span-of-Control Problem
Without a supervisor tier in each division, crew members lack a clear day-to-day authority figure who is accountable for their work, their safety, and their professional development. The Public Works Director or their designate is required to fill supervisory gaps across all three divisions simultaneously — an impossible span of control that results in inconsistent oversight, delayed decisions, and missed opportunities for proactive maintenance planning.

⚠ Infrastructure maintenance deferred due to inadequate work planning costs exponentially more to address reactively than proactively. ⚠ Safety incidents in field operations increase when crew supervisory oversight is inadequate — with both human and fiscal consequences.
⚠ Workers' compensation and liability exposure rises without proper supervisory presence on job sites.
⚠ Staff morale suffers when career advancement opportunities (the Supervisor tier) are structurally absent, contributing to recruitment and retention challenges.

Freezing the Senior Maintenance Worker Positions
The three Senior Maintenance Worker positions that currently exist would be frozen as part of the reorganization not eliminated. This approach: (1) generates the salary savings that partially offset the cost of re-establishing the Supervisor positions; (2) preserves the positions for potential future reactivation if operational needs change; and (3) reflects the organizational reality that the Senior MW classification, while valuable for working-level technical expertise, does not provide the supervisory accountability that each division requires.

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OUTCOME: Restoring the Supervisor tier in each Public Works division creates the supervisory accountability, work planning capability, and career pathway that efficient, safe, and sustainable public works operations require. At approximately $10,000 per position ab ove the frozen Senior MW classification, this is among the highest-value organizational investments in this package.

8.2 Adding a Senior Civil Engineer (Capital Facilities-Funded) Suisun City maintains a Capital Facilities program that drives the city's long-range infrastructure investment from transportation improvements to park upgrades to facilities maintenance and renewal.

Managing this program which involves grant compliance, design oversight, contractor management, inspection, and reporting requires dedicated professional engineering capacity. Currently, that capacity does not exist at the level the program demands.

Proposed Position: One Senior Civil Engineer, funded through the Capital Facilities fund (not the General Fund), dedicated to the management and oversight of Capital Facilities projects. Estimated annual cost: approximately $190,000 in total compensation. This position would be fully offset by Capital Facilities revenues, making its General Fund impact neutral and in the short to mid term can be supported by the expansion EIR and related work besides the funding already mentioned.

⚠ Without dedicated engineering oversight, capital projects rely on contract management by staff who may lack the technical depth to identify design errors, contractor performance issues, or scope creep early enough to prevent costly corrections.
⚠ Grant-funded projects with engineering deliverable requirements are at heightened audit and compliance risk without a licensed professional engineer overseeing compliance documentation.
⚠ The absence of in-house engineering capacity means the City pays consultant rates for routine technical functions that could be managed internally at lower cost — with better institutional continuity.

Without Senior Civil Engineer With Senior Civil Engineer Routine engineering functions outsourced at
consultant rates ($150– $250/hr)
In-house oversight at fully-loaded rate (~$95/hr
equivalent) with institutional continuity
Capital project technical oversight fragmented
across staff without engineering credentials
Licensed professional oversight of design,
construction, and inspection on all CF projects
Grant compliance documentation prepared by
non-specialists, increasing audit risk
Engineer-prepared compliance documentation
meeting federal and state grant standards
No institutional memory of project history,
decisions, or field conditions
Cumulative institutional knowledge of city
infrastructure that improves over time
Difficulty attracting and retaining contractors
who expect responsive, knowledgeable city
counterparts.

Professional city counterpart improves contractor
relationships and project performance

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SECTION 9 — FISCAL IMPACT AND RETURN ON INVESTMENT
The proposed organizational changes represent an investment in the City's operational infrastructure.

Understanding the full fiscal picture requires examining not just the cost of new or restructured positions, but the cost avoidances, revenue protections, and operational efficiencies that these changes generate. The following summary provides a high-level fiscal analysis.

Proposed Change Est. Net Cost
(Salary and
Benefits)
Funding Source Key Fiscal Benefit
Finance Manager (1 FTE)

Delete 1 FTE Accountant +
Add 1 FTE Senior
Accountant
Finance
Manager~$160K–
$180K

Senior
Accountant-
net increase
$10K
General
Fund/SSWA/Other
Funds
Protects grant revenue, ensure
audit compliance, budget
development support, budget
management, fee
updates/review, business
license management (work
with HDL)
Human Resources
(Reclassifications)/Transfer to
HR from Finance
Net Neutral to
less than $10K
total increase
Various Funds This provides flexibility to
allow the payroll and HR
Functions to be cross trained
throughout the Department
City Mgr Office — Special
Assistant to CM (2 FTE)
Less than $40K in
total
General Fund /
Grant/Other Funding
Homeless coordination, BID
support, sea level rise
planning, project delivery,
strategic initiatives, economic
development, public
information officer
PW Supervisor Restore (3 FTE)
+ Freeze Sr. MW (3 FTE)
$30K net add General Fund Supervisory accountability,
infrastructure protection,
retention
Senior Civil Engineer (1 FTE) ~$160k to $190K Capital Facilities Fund Zero GF impact; protects $M+ in capital investments
Housing to Dev. Services
Integration
Cost-neutral to
slightly favorable
Blended GF/Housing
Funds
Funding flexibility, compliance
improvement, service quality
Police Reorganization Management
Structure Change
largely cost
neutral due to
change in
overtime for
managers.

1-FTE Police
Officer- $195
to $210K

1 FTE
Dispatcher

2 FTE Records
Clerk I/II
General Fund Risk reduction, command
accountability, community
trust

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General Fund Net Impact Summary: The General Fund impact of the proposed changes is estimated at zero impact or the remainder of the fiscal year due to the timing of hiring and recruiting these roles. Any increase if hired before Juine can be addressed with current appropriation levels.

The estimated impact on FY 2026/27 is approximately $655,000–$720 ,000 in total annual compensation costs for the new City Manager's Office and Finance positions (prorated for mid-year implementation). Staff is confident the value of integrating these costs into our budget planning will provide significant ROI as outlined throughout the document.

T
he City needs to continue its Resiliency Plan approach, laying the train tracks while the train is moving. We have done this for two years with success and continuing this plan at this stage in our plan is logical from staff’s perspective. Additionally, our reserves are over $7 million and this is before the sale of the 34-acre property. Continuing to bridge our way to our 15 in fill projects and possible expansion is a prudent way to slowly grow into our future without creating the negative impacts we outlined from doing nothing or standing still.

FISCAL CONTEXT: For context: a single missed grant reimbursement of $200,000, a capital project delay of 90 days, or a police-related liability claim can individually cost the City more than the annual combined cost of all proposed restructuring. This is sound risk management, not discretionary spending.

SECTION 10 — CONCLUSION: THE CHOICE BEFORE THE

COUNCIL
Two years of focused leadership have positioned Suisun City for a period of sustained success. The community is beginning to see the difference in communication, in project delivery, in economic activity, and in the quality of its interactions with city government. This is exactly the moment when organizations face a critical decision: invest in the infrastructure of success, or allow momentum to erode as the gap between organizational capacity and community expectations widens.

T
he positions and reorganizations proposed are not speculative investments in an uncertain future.

They are responses to documented, current operational gaps, gaps that are costing the City efficiency, creating fiscal risk, limiting service quality, and constraining the City Manager's ability to lead the organization as effectively as the community deserves.

E
nhanced Fiscal Oversight
The department heads and I know that each step taken on this path has to be managed. To ensure continued strong financial oversight, starting in July 2026, we will be implementing additional budget review processes that, in short, require enhanced oversight to my office of the ongoing expenses throughout the year, including official reviews and sign off to me from the department heads on a monthly basis focusing on key areas such as revenue (fees and areas they have oversight and/or control), salary expenses (is OT and salaries on a per pay period basis meeting projections), and our the service and supply cost matching the expected work plan. This happens right now informally but to ensure the City Council has comfort on the ongoing Resiliency Plan, we will implement this in a more formal way (would be enhanced even further with the second Finance Manager/Budget Officer).

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City of Suisun City | Organizational Realignment & Strategic Staffing Plan | March 2026

The City Council is asked to:

● Authorize the organizational changes and new position additions described in this paper for mid- year FY 2025– 26 implementation;
● Receive an October 2026 progress report on organizational performance, recruitment timelines, and fiscal impact.

Suisun City has earned its momentum. The City Council's approval of this organizational realignment is the single most important action it can take to ensure that momentum carries the community forward not just through the next budget cycle, but into the future that Suisun City's residents deserve.

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City of Suisun City | Organizational Realignment & Strategic Staffing Plan | March 2026

APPENDIX — POSITION -BY-POSITION SUMMARY TABLE
The following table provides a consolidated reference for all proposed organizational changes discussed in this position paper.

Department Change Type Position / Action General Fund Impact City Manager's Office Add/Delete
(no net add)
Delete current limited
term roles and add 2
FTE Management
Analyst II (Working
Title Special Assistant
to City Manager)
Less than $40K per annum; no
mid-year impact
Finance New Position
Add/Delete
Finance Manager (1
FTE)
Delete Accountant +
Add 1 FTE Senior
Accountant
Finance Manager ~$160K–
$180K
Add/Delete Senior Accountant-
Less than $10K per year
Police Restructure Command
reorganization; Add 1
FTE Police Officer for
downtown patrol
-$195K to $210K
Community Development Integration Housing function
integrated into CDD
Cost-neutral to favorable
Development Services Future (Summer) Housing staff
reclassified to joint
planning/housing roles
Favorable (blended funding)
Public Works Restructure Re-establish 3 PW
Supervisors; freeze 3 Sr.

MW positions
~$30K net add/yr
Public Works New Position Senior Civil Engineer (1
FTE)
ZERO GF impact
Al
l figures are estimates subject to formal job offers based on experience. You are seeing the maximum range but costs could be lower. Mid-year costs will be prorated based on actual hire dates.

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City of Suisun City

FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN
FY 2024-25 through FY 2029-30
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A Message from the City Manager
The Strategic Plan sets the path for the City of Suisun City for the next five years, covering the period from FY2024-25 through FY2029-30. It contains the City Council’s guidance regarding top policy priorities and establishes a framework for allocating resources to achieve important goals.

The Plan contains four
goals, which are public safety, community appeal,
sustainability and stewardship, and community vibrancy. You will see in the forthcoming pages that the City's revised mission statement highlights resilience.

For Suisun City, resilience is the ability to adapt to change, cope and recover from setbacks, and to thrive in the face of adversity.

Our strategic planning process included input from many participants including the community, City Council, the City’s executive team, and staff. We began by seeking early input from City Councilmembers through individual interviews conducted by our facilitators. The executive team provided their input through a questionnaire about departmental projects and initiatives. An employee survey gathered information from the City staff. Community input was gathered through a series of community meetings, as well as an electronic survey. An environmental scan of internal and external factors that may affect the City and overarching goals was prepared by City staff.

Finally, the City Council and executive team conducted a workshop on October 26, 2024, to provide their review and comments on the various elements of the strategic plan.

As we implement our Strategic Plan, we will continue to strengthen the relationship between the City

of Suisun City and our many community members and partners.

Success of the City of Suisun City will always be a team effort.

Respectfully,
Bret Prebula
City Manager
Alma Hernandez
Mayor
Princess Washington
Mayor Pro Tem
Jenalee Dawson
Councilmember
Marlon L. Osum
Councilmember
Amit Pal
Councilmember
Executive Summary
City Manager
Bret Prebula
A Message from the Mayor
and City Council
Suisun City is a community we are all proud to call home. This strategic plan articulates the City Council's vision, mission and priorities to balance the needs of the community to retain a safe and healthy environment, preserve our small-town charm and provide inclusive access to high-quality public services. Our City Council, along with our dedicated City staff, is committed to carrying out these strategies over the next five years to achieve our vision of a thriving community where everyone feels at home.

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A Message from the Mayor
and City Council
Suisun City operates under the
Council/Manager form of
government. The Mayor and
Councilmembers are elected
independently in non-partisan
elections to serve four-year terms
in office. The Mayor Pro-Tem is
selected by the City Council from
among its members.

Councilmembers hire the City
Manager to implement
Responsible City Council policy
and run day-to-day operations of
the City.

About Suisun City
ATTACHMENT 4
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Roles of Community
Stakeholders

COUNCIL
The City Council plays a critical role in the City’s strategic planning process. Council’s responsibilities include reflecting on past community trends, ongoing needs, interests, hopes and aspirations of the community to set the vision for the future. The vision guides the development of goals, strategies and the related Council policies, along with the programs and services delivered by the City staff team.

Council has legislative oversight to review and approve key strategic projects, ordinances, and resolutions that align with the City’s strategic plan. Council’s challenge in strategic planning is exercising the discipline to remain focused on the strategic plan vision and goals. Discipline and focus are critical to the City of Suisun City’s ability to deliver meaningful progress and measurable results on the goals and strategies over time.

CITY MANAGER AND STAFF
The City Manager plays a central operational role in the strategic planning process. The City Manager is responsible for implementing the strategies that drive the strategic plan goals, through day-to-day management and coordination of City staff, departments and operations. The City Manager is tasked with operationalizing the Council’s vision and goals into practical programs, services, and projects. The City Manager may also provide professional advice and analysis to Council regarding opportunities and impediments tied to the strategic plan goals, including assessing feasibility of initiatives, recommending alternatives, and helping Council understand the potential impacts of various decisions.

BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
The City’s Boards and Commissions play an advisory role to the City Council and provide expertise, input, and community perspectives that help to shape policies and initiatives. The advisory work of the City’s Boards and Commissions informs the Council’s policy decision-making process. Their involvement ensures that the strategic plan reflects and represents diverse viewpoints and addresses the community’s interests.

COMMUNITY MEMBERS
Community members’ involvement ensures that the City of Suisun City’s vision, mission, goals and strategies reflect the culture, true interests, aspirations, and values of the people who live there. It is important that community members share their perspectives, priorities, and concerns and remain involved by receiving progress reports and continuing to contribute and provide input as the Council and City Manager make progress on the strategic plan. This feedback helps City leaders to continuously identify emerging issues that matter to residents and community stakeholders and to celebrate strategic plan successes.

ATTACHMENT 4
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Background and
Overview

STRATEGIC PLAN FRAMEWORK
The Strategic Plan is a living document, featuring a framework that balances the needs of the community and the City’s resource capacity.

A citywide Strategic Plan is fundamental to successful work planning. It is a policy document that reflects the policy priorities of the City Council. It informs budgeting and annual staff work plans. After adoption, staff integrates the policy focus areas into its operations and workplans. Staff also reports back regularly to Council on progress.

STRATEGY STRATEGY
GOALS
VISION
The vision sets the focus for the future. It is an aspirational statement of where the organization wants to be.

MISSION
The City’s mission is a statement of purpose of the organization. It fundamentally describes what that organization stands for and what it will do.

VALUES
Organizational values provide the basis for how the organization and its members will work to achieve the vision and drive how identified goals will be implemented.

GOAL AREAS
Goal areas will guide the direction and focus of the organization for the next several years. They are closely aligned with the vision and state the desired outcomes to be achieved. They help City leaders decide which of the many worthy projects should be done and when, within available resources.

GOAL STATEMENTS
Goal statements elaborate what is to be achieved
in each goal area.

STRATEGIES
Strategies express how the City plans to
accomplish its goals. They articulate the means to
achieve desired outcomes for each strategic focus
area. Strategies generally include broad areas to pursue, rather than individual projects.

IMPLEMENTATION ACTION PLAN
The implementation action plan is the blueprint for carrying out the strategic plan. It contains the detailed steps that must be taken to assure that the goals and strategies are achieved. Workplans provide a framework for determining specific timelines, assignments, and resource allocations. They are designed to be a management tool to help the organization assure that goals are attained and are well suited to periodic check-in about progress, changes or challenges.

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The Strategic Plan sets the plan for the City of Suisun for the next five years, covering the period from FY2023-24 through FY2027-28. It contains the City Council’s guidance regarding top policy priorities and establishes a framework for allocating resources to achieve important goals.

The Plan contains X goals, which are:
• Fiscal Sustainability
• Infrastructure, Public Facilities, and Environmental Quality • Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
• Community and Economic Development
• Quality of Life and Organizational Effectiveness
Our strategic planning process included input from many participants including the community, City Council, the City’s executive team, and staff. We began by seeking early input from City Councilmembers through individual interviews conducted by our facilitators. The executive team provided their input through an in-person meeting held on June 28, 2023. An all-employee survey gathered information from the entire City staff. An environmental scan of existing conditions in the city was prepared by City staff.

Finally, the City Council conducted a workshop on July 24, 2023, to provide their review and comments on the draft strategic plan.

As we implement our Strategic Plan, we will continue to strengthen the relationship between the City of Suisun City and our many community members and partners.

Success of the City of Suisun City will always be a team effort.

Respectfully,
Greg Folsom
City Manager
Strategic Planning Process
A broad base of input was gathered during the strategic planning process.
• Council Interviews. The process began with individual interviews with each member of the Council conducted by the strategic planning facilitators. These interviews provided critical early information about challenges facing Suisun City and priorities for the future which were incorporated into this Strategic Plan document.
• Community Engagement. Community engagement was an
important part of the process and input was gathered through an electronic community survey. This survey provided valuable insights about community priorities and interests.
• City Employee Input. Suisun City employees were invited to provide feedback about the needs of the City and priorities for the future.

Additionally, employees were asked about the City’s mission, vision, and values. This input was provided through an online survey of all employees.
• Environmental Scan. Factors that are important in planning for the future of Suisun City were identified in an environmental scan prepared by City staff and presented at the strategic planning workshop.
• Strategic Planning Workshop. A strategic planning workshop was held as part of the process of providing and synthesizing information and developing the Strategic Plan. The workshop was held with the City Council and executive team members on October 26, to establish goals and strategies in the Strategic Plan, and update the City’s vision, mission, and values.
• Implementation Action Plan. The Implementation Action Plan accompanies this Strategic Plan. It can be used by the executive team to identify implementation steps, timelines, lead assignments, and milestones for each goal and strategy.

OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS
City Council
Interviews
Community
Engagement
Employee
Input
Environmental
Scan
Strategic
Planning
Workshop
Implementation
Action Plan
5 COUNCIL

INTERVIEWS
412

RESPONSES
TO THE

COMMUNITY
SURVEY
3 COMMUNITY MEETINGS
9 DEPARTMENTAL

QUESTIONNAIRES
34 RESPONSES TO THE

EMPLOYEE

QUESTIONNAIRE
ATTACHMENT 4
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Strengths, Limitations,
Opportunities, a nd
Threats
Proposed strategic goal areas were informed by the strengths, limitations , opportunities
and threats identified through engagement activities. The major themes are presented below.

STRENGTHS

OPPORTUNITIES

LIMITATIONS

THREATS
• Waterfront access
• Access to rail and
transportation
• Proximity to Bay Area, Napa,
Travis AFB
• Cultural diversity
• Community events
• Competent and dedicated
City staff
• Recreational opportunities
and proximity to nature
• Revitalization of downtown
• Development of underutilized
parcels
• Improve image by addressing
social issues
• Strategic location and Highway
12 visibility can attract
businesses
• Collaborate for strategic
regional growth
• Enhance public safety
• Increase use of the marina
• Lack of funding for fire services
and road maintenance
• Increase in homeless
population
• Population growth outpacing
public safety services
• Leadership disconnect
• Water quality
• Staffing recruitment/retention
• Lack of funding for City
departments
• Lack of sales-tax-generating
businesses
• Crime rate
• Lack of succession planning
for staff
• Lack of public safety
resources
• City staffing levels
• Lack of code enforcement
• Homelessness and vacant
buildings
• Slow development
• Lack of public education and
engagement
ATTACHMENT 4
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Vision, Mission, a nd Values
Values
• Adaptability
• Humility
Vision
The City provides a resilient, safe, inclusive
community to enhance the quality of life for
community members and visitors.
• Integrity
• Inclusivity
Discover the gem by the Bay.

Mission
ATTACHMENT 4
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Multi-year Goals
Four multi-year goals have been established. These identify intended outcomes to be achieved through an associated set of strategies.

GOAL A - Public Safety
GOAL B - Community Appeal
GOAL C - Sustainability and Stewardship
GOAL D - Community Vibrancy
ATTACHMENT 4
481
Strategies

1. Explore options for public safety service provision

2. Natural disaster Emergency Operations Plan and public communication

3. Establish a plan to collaborate regionally to pursue this goal GOAL A
Public Safety
Suisun City is thriving,
resilient, and safe.

ATTACHMENT 4
482
GOAL B
Community Appeal
Suisun City is
sustainable, appealing
and future-focused.

Strategies

1. Garbage contract

2. Illegal Dumping Cleanup Program

3. Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) including Council Chambers updates, public safety equipment, computer replacements and plan

4. CIP/roads annual workplan and advanced planning

5. Implementation of new human resources, financial, and enterprise resource planning technologies

6. Humphrey Canal Project

7. Cartograph implementation

8. Establish a plan to collaborate regionally to pursue this goal ATTACHMENT 4
483
GOAL C
Sustainability and
Stewardship
Develop strategic policies,
programs and financial
opportunities that result in
long-term social, economic,
operational and financial
sustainability supported by
our community.

Strategies

1. Financial plan development through 2028

2. Finance policies update including budget transfer policy

3. Update Impact and Master Fee Study

4. Outsource business license program and related
implementation

5. Climate and Adaptation Plans (sea level rise and ongoing analysis)

6. Legislative platform

7. Explore outsourcing options for city services (public safety services, waste management, maintenance services)

8. Citywide restructuring of the business improvement special assessment districts

9. Establish a plan to collaborate regionally to pursue this goal

10. Update Human Resources policies and procedures to align with current legal requirements and industry best practices.

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GOAL D
Community Vibrancy
Suisun City will become
resilient by utilizing its
abundance of natural
resources to improve the
vitality of the community
through sustainable
development for all
residents.

Strategies

1. Economic development strategy and implementation plan a. North Bay Clinic
b. Redevelopment of opportunity sites (Sunset building
feasibility review, postage stamp lot)
c. Establish Economic Development Board
d. Implement highest and best use of 34 acre site

2. Communication plan

3. Marina development plan

4. Logistics annexation (Highway 12 and Suisun logistics)

5. Downtown Specific Plan (50% development at downtown/ waterfront)

6. Parking study

7. Cannabis saturation analysis

8. Unhoused Master Plan
a. Unhoused staffing unit
b. New policies including citation program

9. Establish a plan to collaborate regionally to pursue this goal ATTACHMENT 4
485
Implementation,
Reporting, and Updating
Implementation Action Plan
The
Implementation Action plan accompanies the Strategic Plan, and includes action steps, a timeline, and lead responsibility for each strategy.

Timelines may be adjusted based on changing priorities and resources.

Reporting and Updating
Progress reports will be prepared on a regular basis. An annual status report on the full Strategic Plan will be prepared.

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STAYING INFORMED
This Strategic Plan is designed to guide the work and future of the City of Suisun City.

The plan articulates the vision and mission for the City and establishes a set of goals and strategies to guide the work of the City of Suisun City over the next several years.

An accompanying Implementation Action Plan sets forth timelines and assignments for implementing the Strategic Plan.

Links and Resources
• City Councilmembers: https://www.suisun.com/Government/City-Council • Strategic Plan Updates: Link placeholder
• Environmental Scan: Link placeholder
Thank you to everyone who contributed
to this important initiative and everyone who
will help make the vision a reality.

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Strategic Planning Participants
City Council
• Mayor Alma Hernandez
• Mayor Pro Tem Princess Washington
• Councilmember Jenalee Dawson
• Councilmember Marlon Osum
• Councilmember Amit Pal
Executive Team
• City Manager Bret Prebula
• Development Services Director Jim Bermudez
• Finance Director Lakhwinder Deol
• Acting Recreation, Parks, and Marina Director Janet Hull • Fire Chief Brad Lopez
• Information Technology Manager Rowland Roberts
• Police Chief Aaron Roth
• Public Works Director/City Engineer Nouae Vue
Acknowledgements
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3/12/2026
1 Suisun City Realignment & Strategic Staffing PlanCity Council | March 17, 2026 RequestContinuation of March 3, 2026, item requesting:•Council adoption of a resolution approving an Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan and Amending the Citywide Classification Plan Supporting the Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan. •Council adoption approving amendments to the Citywide Salary Schedule Supporting the Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan. 1 2
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2 Introduction•The proposed realignment is the result of close collaboration from department heads understanding the needs and wants of staff, limited resources, and budgetary constraints.•Realignment would directly implement several goals and strategies and address many of the Strengths, Limitations, Opportunities, and Threats identified in the Council-adopted Five-Year Strategic Plan (2025-2030)•Realignment allows for slight modifications to existing positions, addition of new positions (some limited-term), reclassifications, and elimination (or freezing) of positions to better reflect the needs of staff, and department heads to achieve maximum efficiency•Increases efficiency of organization with relatively nominal impact to budget, which in turn maximizes output⚬Employee retention⚬Reduces attrition⚬Boosts organizational morale⚬Increases efficiency through more effective cross-collaboration•Realignment positions City departments towards the Best Practices (previously referred to as “Silver Option”) staffing scenario presented to Council in 2025 accounting for limited resources and budgetary constraints Summary of ChangesCity Manager’s Office (Fiscal Impact: Less than $40,000)•Add two (2) Management Analyst positions (Limited-Term through June 30, 2028)⚬1 for Special Initiatives and Economic Development⚬1 for Communications and Unhoused Services•Delete one (1) Administrative Assistant II (Limited-Term)•Delete one (1) Administrative Technician (Limited-Term)Finance Department (Fiscal Impact: $160,000 to $180,000)•Add one (1) Finance Manager (Full-Time)•Add one (1) Senior Accountant (Full-Time)•Delete one (1) Accountant position (Full-Time)Development Services Department (Fiscal Impact: Neutral to Cost Savings)•No position changes•Integrate Housing Division within Development Services DepartmentHuman Resources Department (Fiscal Impact: Neutral to $10,000)•Reclass one (1) HR Technician to one (1) HR & Payroll Technician (Full-Time)•Reclass one (1) HR Technician to one (1) HR & Payroll Technician (Limited Term)•Reclass one (1) Account Technicians to one (1) HR & Payroll Technician (Full-Time)•Reclass one (1) Account Technician to one (1) HR & Payroll Technician (Limited Term) Public Works (Fiscal Impact: $190,000 to $220,000)•Restore three (3) Public Works Supervisors (Full-Time)•Freeze three (3) Senior Maintenance Workers (Full-Time)•Add one (1) Senior Civil Engineer (Full-Time)Police Department (Fiscal Impact: Approximately $500,000)•Reclass one (1) Police Commander to one (1) Police Captain (Full-Time)•Reclass one (1) Police Commander to one (1) Police Lieutenant (Full-Time)•Add one (1) Police Lieutenant (Full-Time)•Add one (1) Police Officer (Full-Time)•Add one (1) Dispatcher (Full-Time)•Add two (2) Records Clerk I/II (Full-Time)•Freeze one (1) Police Sergeant - Detective (Full-Time)Fiscal Impact for FY2026/27 $655,000 to $720,0003 4 490
3/12/2026
3 Strategic Plan (2025-2030)•Adopted by Council February 18, 2025•Purpose is to “…directly guide City policy, budgeting, and resource allocation in alignment with public safety, infrastructure, sustainability, and community development priorities.” [Feb. 18, 2025 Council Report]•The Strategic Plan “…informs budgeting and annual staff work plans.” [2025-2030 Strategic Plan]•Key Components:⚬Strengths, Limitations, Opportunities, Threats⚬Mission, Vision, Values⚬Goals (A, B, C, D) & Strategies Strategic Plan: Goals & Strategies•Goal A – Public Safety: Suisun City is thriving, resilient, and safe. •Goal B – Community Appeal: Suisun City is sustainable, appealing, and future-focused.•Goal C – Sustainability and Stewardship: Develop strategic policies, programs and financial opportunities that result in long-term social, economic, operational and financial sustainability supported by our community.•Goal D – Community Vibrancy: Suisun City will become resilient by utilizing its abundance of natural resources to improve the vitality of the community through sustainable development for residents. 5 6
491
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4 Strategic Plan: Strengths, Limitations, Opportunities, ThreatsStrengths•Competent and Dedicated City StaffLimitations•Lack of Succession Planning for Staff•Lack of Public Safety Resources•City Staffing Levels•Homelessness and Vacant Buildings•Slow Development Opportunities•Improve Image by Addressing Social Issues•Enhance Public SafetyThreats•Increase in Homeless Population•Population Growth Outpacing Public Safety Services•Leadership Disconnect•Staffing Recruitment and Retention•Lack of Funding for City Departments Summary•Realignment better positions staff to continue, and more effectively, achieve the Goals and Strategies adopted as part of the Strategic Plan•Realignment directly (and indirectly) serves as the cornerstone to addressing many of the SLOT’s, especially the capitalizing on “strengths,” minimizing “limitations,” expanding on “opportunities,” and reducing “threats”•Realignment IS implementation of the Strategic Plan 7 8
492
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5 Development Services
Development ServicesProposed Organizational Chart 2026
9 10
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3/12/2026
6 Development Services
Development ServicesSupporting Analysis1. Aligns related functions under one department•Housing policy and development review are closely connected.•Integration improves coordination between planning, housing policy, and development approvals.2. Improves compliance with state housing mandates•California housing requirements are increasingly complex.•A unified structure improves the City’s ability to monitor compliance and meet reporting obligations.3. Reduces reliance on outside consultants•Strengthening internal capacity allows the City to handle more housing and development policy work in-house.4. Improves development coordination•Developers and applicants benefit from more streamlined communication and project management.

Development ServicesBest Practice Staffing
11 12
494
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7 Finance Department
Finance DepartmentProposed Organizational Chart13
14 495
3/12/2026
8 Finance Department
Finance DepartmentSupporting Analysis1. Strengthens financial oversight•Adding a Finance Manager improves internal oversight, financial reporting, and strategic financial planning.2. Reduces operational risk•Financial functions are complex and heavily regulated. The new structure provides appropriate supervision and internal controls.3. Improves budgeting and financial forecasting•Enhanced leadership capacity allows the City to better manage long-term financial planning and fiscal sustainability.4. Supports the scale of city operations•As the City grows and financial reporting requirements increase, additional financial management capacity is necessary to maintain compliance and transparency.

Finance
Finance DepartmentBest Practice Staffing15
16 496
3/12/2026
9 Human Resources
Human Resources DepartmentProposed Organizational Chart17 18 497
3/12/2026
10 Human Resources
Human Resources DepartmentSupporting Analysis1. Aligns payroll with the functions that drive it•Payroll transactions originate from HR actions such as hiring, promotions, compensation changes, and benefits enrollment.•Aligning payroll within HR improves accuracy and coordination.2. Reduces operational risk•Historically, payroll functions were concentrated in one position, creating a single point of failure.•Cross-training staff ensures continuity for this mission-critical function.3. Supports labor relations and compliance•Payroll staff play a key role in FLSA compliance, labor agreement implementation, and compensation analysis.4. Improves internal controls•Multiple trained staff improve oversight and audit controls over payroll operations.

Human Resources DepartmentBest Practice Staffing19
20 498
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11 City Manager’s Office
City ManagerProposed Organizational Chart 202621
22 499
3/12/2026
12 City Manager
City ManagerSupporting Analysis1. Expands the City’s capacity to manage priority initiatives•These positions allow the City to actively manage complex policy initiatives, including homelessness coordination, economic development, and communications.2. Strengthens regional partnerships and grant opportunities•Dedicated analyst support allows the City to coordinate with regional agencies, track funding opportunities, and manage strategic initiatives more effectively.3. Improves transparency and communication•A communications-focused analyst helps improve public information, community engagement, and transparency, which supports public trust in City government.4. Aligns directly with the Strategic Plan•Supports Council priorities related to:•homelessness response•economic development•community engagement•strategic project management.

City ManagerBest Practice Staffing23
24 500
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13 Public Works
Public Works DepartmentProposed Organization Chart25
26 501
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14 Public Works Department
Public Works DepartmentSupporting Analysis1. Restores essential field supervision•Supervisors provide day-to-day leadership, safety oversight, and operational coordination for maintenance crews.2. Improves project delivery•Adding a Senior Civil Engineer strengthens the City’s ability to manage capital improvement projects and infrastructure planning.3. Reduces reliance on consultants•Expanding internal engineering capacity allows the City to handle more project review and oversight internally.4. Supports infrastructure investment•The City continues to invest in infrastructure, and technical leadership is needed to manage those projects effectively.5. Funding•Senior Civil Engineer will be fully funded by the California Forever project.

Finance
Public Works DepartmentBest Practice Staffing27
28 502
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15 Police Department
Police DepartmentProposed Organization Chart29
30 503
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16 Police Department
Police DepartmentSupporting Analysis1. Establishes a clear command structure and improves operational oversight•The new structure creates a clear chain of command, with a Police Captain serving as second-in-command.•Two Lieutenants allow the department to oversee:⚬Operations⚬Investigations and Support Services2. Strengthens public safety capacity and moves us closer to a best practices model•1 per 1000 not including upper management•29 sworn is 4 fewer than best practices model of 30 front line staff (total of 33)•Currently 23 deployable officers due to vacancies, training and medical leave - includes command staff (higher than 10% national vacancy rate average)•AB 645 Emergency Services Mandate requires total three dispatchers by January 2027•Adding an officer and dispatcher directly supports front-line public safety services.3. Supports succession planning•The structure creates clearer leadership development pathways within the department.

Police DepartmentBest Practice Staffing31
32 504
3/12/2026
17 RecommendationCouncil consideration and adoption of the following items related to the proposed organizational realignment and strategic staffing plan:a. Council Adoption of Resolution No. 2026-___: Approving an Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan and Amending the Citywide Classification Plan Supporting the Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan to Eliminate Accounting Technician, Human Resources Technician I/II and Police Commander Classifications, Amend the Management Analyst I/II and Assistant/Associate/Associate Civil/Senior Associate/Senior Associate Civil Engineer Classifications, and Establish Accounting Technician I/II, Human Resources/Payroll Technician I/II/Senior, Senior Civil Engineer, Police Captain and Police Lieutenant Classifications. b. Council Adoption of Resolution No. 2026-___: Approving amendments to the Citywide Salary Schedule Supporting the Organizational Realignment and Strategic Staffing Plan to Eliminate Accounting Technician, Human Resources Technician I/II and Police Commander and Establish Salaries for Accounting Technician I/II, Human Resources/Payroll Technician I/II/Senior, Senior Civil Engineer, Police Captain and Police Lieutenant.33 505

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506
AGENDA ITEM NO. 19.

AGENDA TRANSMITTAL

MEETING DATE:

March 17, 2026

AGENDA ITEM:

Council Adoption of Resolution No. 2025-___: Authorizing the City Manager to Approve a Memorandum of Understanding between the Community Action Partnership Solano, Joint Powers Authority; Solano County; and the Cities of Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo to Partially Fund the Coordinated Entry System of Homeless Services.

FISCAL IMPACT:

Suisun City's contribution would be $61,517 from the general fund over three years.

STRATEGIC PLAN:

Provide Good Governance.

BACKGROUND:

In 1999, Solano County and its cities formed CAP Solano to address homelessness in a coordinated, countywide manner. In March 2017, CAP Solano published a Strategic Plan outlining three primary goals:

Improving system navigation
Increasing affordable and deeply affordable housing stock Strengthening support systems to help residents maintain housing In 2022, the organization was restructured as the Community Action Partnership of Solano, Joint Powers Authority (CAP Solano JPA). The newly formed Board of Directors includes two members from each participating jurisdiction’s elected body. The Board is responsible for establishing policy for the JPA and supporting coordination of countywide policy within each member jurisdiction.

CAP Solano JPA continues to serve as a countywide organization focused on collaboration and coordination of homeless services throughout Solano County. The City of Suisun City is a member of this Joint Powers Authority, along with Solano County and the other cities within the county, working together to address homelessness in a unified and strategic manner.

STAFF REPORT:

CAP Solano JPA is seeking to execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with each participating jurisdiction—Solano County, Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo—to partially fund the Coordinated Entry (CE) system. The proposed MOU continues to address the first goal of improving system navigation by supporting a coordinated entry system to provide a standardized approach of comprehensively assessing the housing and service needs of homeless individuals and families, and to refer them to appropriate available resources help end their homelessness.

The Community Action Partnership of Solano, Joint Powers Authority (CAP Solano JPA), is the countywide collaborative formed by Solano County and its seven cities to coordinate efforts to address homelessness. As part of its strategic goal to improve system navigation and strengthen service coordination, CAP Solano JPA is requesting that each member jurisdiction enter into a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to support the continued operation of the Coordinated Entry 507
(CE) system.

The Coordinated Entry system is a federally required component of local homelessness response efforts and is essential for eligibility for U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding.

Coordinated Entry provides a standardized, equitable process for individuals and families experiencing homelessness—or who are at risk of homelessness—to access services. Through a consistent intake, assessment, and prioritization structure, CE ensures that persons in need are referred to appropriate resources based on vulnerability, need, and available housing or services.

Resource Connect Solano serves as the local Coordinated Entry system Operator. The Coordinated Entry Services Operator is responsible for managing the implementation and on-going administration, development and continuous improvement of Solano County's Coordinated Entry System in alignment with Housing First Solano's Coordinated Entry System Policies and Procedures. The proposed MOU establishes shared funding responsibilities among Solano County and its cities—Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo—to support the continued operation of this system.

By approving the MOU, member jurisdictions reaffirm their commitment to a coordinated regional response to homelessness and ensure the continuity of a system that improves service access, reduces duplication of effort, and strengthens the effectiveness of homeless services throughout Solano County.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:

Council Adoption of Resolution No. 2025-___: Authorizing the City Manager to Approve a Memorandum of Understanding between the Community Action Partnership Solano, Joint Powers Authority; Solano County; and the Cities of Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo to Partially Fund the Coordinated Entry System of Homeless Services.

The Council could choose not to approve the coordinated entry MOU; however, this is not recommended as a regional approach to addressing issues of homelessness is necessary to have a greater impact within the county.

DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
1 .

Council Adoption of Resolution No. 2026-___: Authorizing the City Manager to Approve a Memorandum of Understanding between the Community Action Partnership Solano, Joint Powers Authority; Solano County; and the Cities of Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo to Partially Fund the Coordinated Entry System of Homeless Services 2 .

CAP Solano JPA Coordinated Entry MOU
3 .

Draft PowerPoint Presentation

PREPARED BY:

Bret Prebula, City Manager

ATTACHMENTS:

1. Resolution Authorizing City Manager to Approve CAP Solano JPA MOU Coordinated Entry System of
Homeless Serviices

2. Exhibit A Community Action Partnership MOU

3. Draft CES Presentation.pdf
508
Resolution No. 2026
Adopted March 17, 2026

RESOLUTION NO. 202 6-

RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUISUN CITY

APPROVING A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP OF SOLANO AND THE CITIES OF

BENICIA, FAIRFIELD, RIO VISTA, SUISUN CITY, VACAVILLE, AND VALLEJO

REGARDING THE HOUSING FIRST SOLANO CONTINUUM OF CARE

COORDINATED ENTRY SYSTEM

WHEREAS, the City of Suisun City is a party to the Co mmunity Action Partnership of Solano, Joint Powers Authority (the “CAP Solano JPA”) for the purpose of coordinating the provision of homeless and other safety net services across Solano County; and

WHEREAS, CAP Solano JPA is comprised of the County of Sol ano, and the cities of Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo (each referred to collectively as the “participating jurisdictions,” or “member organizations”); and

WHEREAS, In March 2017, CAP Solano published a five -year strategic plan called “Neighbors Helping Neighbors: Forward Together,” which identified as a priority creation of a “Coordinated Entry” system to enhance navigation for homeless services; and

WHEREAS, this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) continues the mechanism for Coordinated Entry supported by funding from the members of the JPA, including the City of Suisun City; and

WHEREAS, the CAP Solano JPA Board of Directors, comprised of elected officials from each of the member organizations oversees the countywide Coordinated Entry System contract, according to First Solano’s policies and procedures; and

WHEREAS, Coordinated Entry (CE) provides access to services for the unhoused, conducts assessments to determine level of need, prioritize the most vulnerable need based on assessment and has referral ability to emergency shelters, Rapid Rehousing, Permanent Supportive Housing, and other housing and homelessness projects and services; and

WHEREAS, .CE is a requirement of HUD and the State of California to access Continuum of Care funded projects, Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Program, and other federal funding, including funds provided through the U.S. Department of Veterans and state funding, such as homeless Housing Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) and No Place Like Home; and

WHEREAS, CAP Solano JPA seeks to enter a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for partial funding of the Coordin ated Entry System for the term of three years, beginning December 1, 2025 through December 31, 2028.

WHEREAS, Suisun City’s financial responsibility for the three year MOU is $61,517.

509
Resolution No. 2026
Adopted March 17, 2026

NOW, THEREFORE, THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUISUN CITY HEREBY RESOLVES:

Section 1. The above recitals are true and correct.

Section 2. Approves the Memorandum of Understanding provided herein as Attachment A.

Section 3. Authorizes the City Manager, or his designee, to execute the MOU with CAP Solano JPA for partial funding of the Coordinated Entry system for the term of 3 -years, beginning December 1, 2025 thru December 31, 2028.

Section 4. The City Manager, or his designee, is hereby authorized and directed to do all things necessary and proper to effectuate the purpose of this resolution.

Section 5. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption.

PASSED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of said City Council of the City of Suisun City duly held on Tuesday, 17th day of March 2026, by the following vote:

AYES: Councilmembers:

NOES: Councilmembers:

ABSENT: Councilmembers:

ABSTAIN: Councilmembers:

WITNESS my hand and the seal of said City this 17th day of March 2026.

ATTEST:

Alma Hernandez, Mayor Anita Skinner, City Clerk

Attachment A: Memorandum of Understanding
510

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 1 A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN

THE COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP SOLANO,
JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY; SOLANO COUNTY; AND

THE CITIES OF BENICIA, FAIRFIELD, RIO VISTA,

SUISUN CITY, VACAVILLE, AND VALLEJO

REGARDING THE HOUSING FIRST SOLANO

CONTINUUM OF CARE COORDINATED ENTRY
SYSTEM

This Memorandum of Understanding, hereinafter referred to as “MOU,” is made effective December 1, 2025 by and between the Community Action Partnership Solano, Joint Powers Authority, hereinafter referred to as the “JPA”; Solano County, hereinafter referred to as the “County”; and the Cities of Benicia, Fairfield, Rio Vista, Suisun City, Vacaville, and Vallejo, hereinafter referred to as the “Cities”; individually, a “Party”; and collectively, the “Parties.”

RECITALS

WHEREAS, the JPA is charged with providing oversight and coordination of homeless and safety net services to the residents of the County and Cities; serving as the conduit for safety net funding support; administering such funds and making grants available to other non-profit entities that provide services to people experiencing homelessness; and undertaking such other programs as its Board of Directors may authorize, including such duties and tasks required to receive and distribute federal, state, local, and other funding to support the JPA’s mission; and

WHEREAS, the Continuum of Care that coordinates the provision of housing and supportive services addressing homelessness in the County and Cities is known as the Housing First Solano Continuum of Care, hereinafter referred to as the “CoC”; and

WHEREAS, in March 2017, the JPA released “Neighbors Helping Neighbors: Forward Together,” a regional strategic plan to respond to homelessness in Solano County as amended from time to time, hereinafter referred to as the “Regional Strategic Plan.”; and

WHEREAS, Coordinated Entry provides a standardized approach to comprehensively assess the housing and service needs of homeless individuals and families and refer them to appropriate available resources that are needed to end their homelessness; and

WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires recipients of Continuum of Care and Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) Program 511

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 2 funding to use a coordinated assessment system, under the authority of the Continuum of Care Program Interim Rule, 24 CFR § 578; the Emergency Solution Grant Program Interim Rule, 24 CFR § 576; and HUD Notice CPD-17-01; and

WHEREAS, the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development requires recipients of Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention Program funding to use a coordinated entry system under the authority of Welfare and Institutions Code 8256(iii)(IV); and

WHEREAS, Coordinated Entry connects the community’s network of homeless services and housing resources while streamlining, standardizing, and coordinating the current homeless intake, assessment, and referral process; and

WHEREAS, homeless individuals and families, especially highly vulnerable individuals and families who are homeless, are Coordinated Entry’s principal users; and

WHEREAS, the Parties have agreed that an effective Coordinated Entry process is a critical component to improving system navigat ion as recommended by the Regional Strategic Plan; and

WHEREAS, the Coordinated Entry System is governed by Housing First Solano’s Coordinated Entry System Policies and Procedures; and

WHEREAS, the JPA operates Coordinated Entry through a subrecipient Coordinated Entry System Operator pursuant to a separate Subrecipient Agreement, hereinafter known as the “Subrecipient Agreement”; and

WHEREAS, the Parties recognize that additional resources are needed to enable Coordinated Entry to operate an effective and efficient system to address homelessness and implement best practice solutions to leverage the existing housing stock to increase housing opportunities.

512

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 3 NOW, THEREFORE, the Parties agree as follows:

I. The County and Cities agree to provide funds to the JPA over the course of three years from the effective date for Coordinated Entry services provided throughout Solano County as set forth in Exhibit B (Budget).

1. The County and Cities shall transmit annual payments to the JPA for the deliverables specified in Exhibits A and B.

2. This Memorandum of Understanding may be amended upon written agreement signed by all the Parties.

II. Program performance of the JPA

The JPA shall use funding received pursuant to this MOU to deliver the services described in Exhibit A (Scope of Work) to homeless individuals and families from the County and Cities pursuant to the terms of this MOU.

III. Fiscal responsibilities of the JPA

The JPA agrees to:

1. Monitor the activities listed in Exhibits A (Scope of Work), B (Budget), and C (Performance Objectives), and the terms of this MOU.

2. Adhere to its written JPA Continuum of Care Policies and Procedures for financial management.

3. Be liable for repayment of costs incurred for activities not consistent with Exhibits A-C. The JPA shall be afforded the opportunity to respond to any adverse findings regarding such costs before being held subject to repayment.

IV. Records, reports, and audits of the JPA

1. Governance.

a. The JPA shall have available and provide to County and/or Cities upon request:

i. A copy of current JPA Bylaws.

ii. The current roster of the JPA membership.

iii. A copy of the adopted JPA Continuum of Care Policies and Procedures Manual, inclusive of its Conflicts of Interest Policy and 513

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 4 its Financial Management policies and procedures.

b. The JPA shall notify the Parties if it makes any changes to its interpretation of its compliance obligations under the Ralph M. Brown Act, as specified in the JPA Bylaws, on an annual basis.

2. Establishment and maintenance of records. The JPA shall maintain records sufficient to reflect properly all matters covered by the enclosed Exhibits A-C.

3. Preservation of records. The JPA shall preserve and make available its records in accordance with its Bylaws.

4. Examination of records and/or facilities. At any time during normal business hours, and as often as may be deemed necessary, the JPA agrees that the County and/or any City, and/or any duly authorized representatives for those Parties, shall, for a period of five years following the expiration of this MOU, have access to and the right to examine its offices and facilities engaged in performance of this MOU, and audit records and data with respect to matters covered by this MOU; excepting those falling within the attorney-client and attorney- work-product privileges. The County and/or Cities shall provide the JPA with reasonable notice of any such examination.

5. County and City monitoring reviews. The County and/or Cities may conduct monitoring reviews. Such reviews may cover program compliance, as well as fiscal matters. The County and/or Cities shall provide the JPA with reasonable notice that a review will be conducted. The JPA will be afforded a reasonable period of time to respond to any monitoring findings. Cost of such reviews will be borne by the Party(ies) requesting the review. The County and/or Cities may withhold payment and/or terminate this MOU if the JPA fails to respond to or correct finding(s) within a reasonable period of time.

6. Performance reports. Throughout the MOU term, the JPA shall share performance reports prepared pursuant to the oversight of Subrecipient by the JPA.

V. Coordination of program

1. JPA. The Executive Director of the JPA, or his/her designee, shall have overall responsibility for the progress and execution of this MOU.

2. The County. The County Administrator, or his/her designee, shall serve as the point of contact for the County with respect to this MOU.

514

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 5 3. The Cities. The City Managers, or their designees, shall serve as the point of contact with respect to this MOU.

4. Notices. All notices or other correspondence required or contemplated by this MOU shall be sent to the Parties at the following addresses:

JPA: CAP Solano JPA
Attn: DeShawn Waters, Executive Director
675 Texas Street
Fairfield, CA 94533
County: Ian Goldberg
County Administrator
Solano County
675 Texas Street, Suite 6500
Fairfield, CA 94533
City of Benicia:

Mario Giuliani
City Manager
City of Benicia
250 East L Street
Benicia, CA 94510
City of Fairfield:

David Gassaway
City Manager
City of Fairfield
1000 Webster Street
Fairfield, CA 94533
City of Rio Vista:

Kristina Miller
City Manager
City of Rio Vista
One Main Street
Rio Vista, CA 94571
City of Suisun
City:

Bret Prebula
City Manager
City of Suisun City
701 Civic Center Boulevard
Suisun City, CA 94585
City of Vacaville:

Savita Chaudhary
City Manager
City of Vacaville
650 Merchant Street
Vacaville, CA 95688
515

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 6 City of Vallejo: Andrew Murray
City Manager
City of Vallejo
555 Santa Clara Street
Vallejo CA 94590

VI. Compliance with law

The JPA shall become familiar and comply with and cause all its employees and contractors, if any, to become familiar and comply with all applicable Federal, State, and local laws, ordinances, codes, regulations, and decrees. Failure of the JPA to, in any manner, observe and adhere to laws as described herein or as amended, shall in no way relieve the JPA of its responsibility to adhere to same, and the JPA herein acknowledges this responsibility.

VII. Indemnification/insurance

The JPA shall indemnify, defend (with independent counsel jointly approved by the County and Cities), and hold harmless the County and Cities and their officers, officials, directors, employees, agents, volunteers, and affiliates from any and all claims, demands, causes of actions, damages, costs, expenses, actual attorney’s fees, consultant’s fees, expert fees, losses or liability, in law or in equity, of every kind and nature whatsoever arising out of or in connection with the JPA’s operations, or any subcontractor’s operations, to be performed pursuant to this MOU or the current Subrecipient Agreement between the JPA and its Coordinated Entry System Operator, for the fullest extent permitted by law, with the exception of the sole active negligence or willful misconduct of the County and/or any of the Cities.

Per its Subrecipient Agreement with the JPA, the Coordinated Entry System Operator shall procure and maintain for the duration of its Subrecipient Agreement with the JPA insurance against claims for injuries to persons or damages to property which may arise from or in connection with the performance of the work under its Subrecipient Agreement and the results of that work by the Coordinated Entry System Operator, its agents, representatives, employees, or subcontractors. The County and Cities and their officers, officials, employees, agents and volunteers are to be covered by the Coordinated Entry System Operator as additional insureds against claims for injuries to persons or damages to property which may arise from or in connection with the performance of the work under its Subrecipient Agreement and the results of that work 516

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 7 by the Coordinated Entry System Operator, its agents, representatives, employees, or subcontractors.

The provisions of this Section shall survive the expiration or termination of this MOU and are not limited by any provisions relating to insurance in the current Subrecipient Agreement between the JPA and its Coordinated Entry System Operator.

The JPA agrees to enforce all the insurance requirements set forth in the Terms and Conditions exhibit to the current Subrecipient Agreement between the JPA and its Coordinated Entry System Operator.

VIII. Noncompliance with Scope of Work, Budget, and Performance Objectives

1. The JPA shall be afforded the opportunity to respond to any information that suggests a failure or deficiency by the JPA to comply with any provision of this MOU. Examples of noncompliance include:

a. If the JPA (with or without knowledge) makes any material misrepresentation of any nature with respect to any information or data furnished to the Parties in connection with this MOU.

b. If there is pending litigation with respect to the performance by the JPA of any of its duties or obligations under this MOU which may materially jeopardize or adversely affect the undertaking of or the carrying out of its program.

c. If the JPA is in default under the provisions of this MOU.

d. If the JPA makes improper use of funds.

e. If the JPA fails to comply with any of the terms and conditions of this MOU in such a manner as to constitute a material breach thereof.

f. The JPA refuses to accept any additional conditions that may be imposed by the County and/or any City as a result of changes required by law or by the Federal government.

g. If the JPA fails to accomplish the scope of services listed in Exhibits A-C and pursuant to the terms of this MOU in a timely manner. 517

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 8 2. Should the JPA be unable to resolve concerns by a Party about a perceived failure to comply with Exhibits A-C under this MOU within a reasonable period of time, that Party shall have the right to withdraw from this MOU, receive reimbursement for services not yet rendered, and/or require corrective action to enforce compliance with such provision.

IX. Suspension or Termination

1. Suspension or termination for cause. This MOU may be suspended or terminated at any time before the date of completion by the JPA or pursuant to a unanimous agreement among the County and Cities if:

a. Any party fails to comply with the conditions of this MOU as described above; or

b. The Housing First Solano CoC chooses an entity other than the JPA to operate the Coordinated Entry System; or

c. The JPA is not able to secure the resources to perform one or more of the duties described in Exhibit A: Scope of Work; or

d. The JPA no longer has adequate resources to operate the Coordinated Entry System; and

e. The offending Party or Parties is/are afforded a reasonable opportunity to respond to any such concerns, and the offending Party or Parties fail(s) to resolve any such concerns.

2. Upon suspension or termination, the JPA shall:

a. Not incur new obligations and shall cancel as many outstanding obligations as possible.

b. Be paid only for services rendered to the County and each City to the date of such suspension or termination; provided, however, if the MOU is suspended or terminated for fault of the JPA, the County and each City shall be obligated to compensate the JPA only for that portion of the JPA’s services which were of benefit to the County and each City. 518

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 9 X. Rights and remedies not waived

In no event shall payment by the County or any City or acceptance of payment by the JPA hereunder constitute or be construed to be a waiver by any Party of any breach of covenants or conditions of this MOU or any default which may then exist on the part of any Party, and the making of any such payment while any such breach or default shall exist, shall in no way impair or prejudice any right or remedy available to any Party with respect to such breach or default.

XI. Integrated document

No verbal agreements or conversations with any officer, agent or employee of the County and/or Cities prior to execution of this MOU shall affect or modify any of the terms or obligations contained in any documents comprising this MOU. Any such verbal agreement shall be considered as unofficial information and in no way binding upon the Parties.

XII. Severability

In case any one or more of the provisions contained herein shall, for any reason, be held invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any respect, it shall not affect the validity of the other provisions which shall remain in full force and effect.

XIII. Term of MOU

The Term of this MOU is for three years from December 1, 2025 – December 31, 2028.

519

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 10 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto, acting by and through their duly authorized representatives, have executed this MOU in duplicate on the day and year set below each of the parties.

For the JPA:

For Solano County, a municipal
corporation:

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

PRINTED NAME PRINTED NAME

TITLE TITLE

DATE DATE

For the City of Vacaville, a municipal
corporation:

For the City of Rio Vista, a municipal
corporation:

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

PRINTED NAME PRINTED NAME

TITLE TITLE

DATE DATE

520

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 11 For the City of Fairfield, a municipal
corporation:

For the City of Suisun, a municipal
corporation:

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

PRINTED NAME PRINTED NAME

TITLE TITLE

DATE DATE

For the City of Vallejo, a municipal
corporation:

For the City of Benicia, a municipal
corporation:

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE

PRINTED NAME PRINTED NAME

TITLE TITLE

DATE DATE

521

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 12 EXHIBIT A: SCOPE OF WORK

JPA shall be responsible for the following activities:

 Identifying and selecting the Coordinated Entry Services Operator.  Securing the necessary resources to support scope the work.  Providing technical assistance and oversight of the Coordinated Entry Services Operator.
 Providing annual reports to the County and Cities on progress in achieving the milestones.
 Ensuring that resources provided by the County and Cities will be used for the following activities:

I. Resource Connect Solano Coordinated Entry System Management

The JPA will ensure that the Coordinated Entry Services Operator will be responsible managing for the implementation and on-going administration, development, and continuous improvement of Solano County’s Coordinated Entry System in alignment with Housing First Solano’s Coordinated Entry System Policies and Procedures.

Management includes:

1. Conducting Coordinated Entry System analysis, evaluation, monitoring, and review;

2. Maintaining Coordinated Entry System documentation, which includes system performance documents, reporting data, and federal forms;

3. Developing new access and outreach/in-reach points throughout the County to ensure full and equal access;

4. Increasing the number of providers using Housing First Solano’s Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and participating in Resource Connect Solano;

5. Creating tools and resources necessary to manage Resource Connect Solano Entry Points;

6. Ensuring consistent usage of and calibration of the assessment tool throughout the Coordinated Entry System;

7. Ensuring that the adopted prioritization criteria are used so that the most vulnerable individuals and families are prioritized for assistance and matched with the appropriate services for them ensuring the most efficient and cost- effective usage of resources;

8. Ensuring that beds and/or units fund by County or City programs that have specific client criteria are reserved for eligible program clients and input of program staff is sought before placement;
522

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 13 9. Managing the priority lists;

10. Ensuring timely linkage of persons to available housing and services;

11. Providing guidance, training, capacity building support, communication updates, and other project support as needed to Housing First Solano, the County, and the Cities;

12. Ensuring all participating provider agencies have information as necessary to operate and participate in Resource Connect Solano successfully;

13. Providing monthly or quarterly reports to the JPA as requested;

14. Preparing annual assessments of the Coordinated Entry System;

15. Establishing a more robust marketing plan to bring awareness to residents across the county, including those precariously housed and those least likely to receive assistance in the absence of such marketing;

16. Creating and disseminating outreach materials about Resource Connect Solano;

17. Reviewing and analyzing HMIS data, including reports on system- wide performance (e.g., clients receiving diversion assistance, vacancy reporting, completion of assessments); and

18. Maintaining the integrity of consumer data and ensuring up-to-date security protocols for the system.

II. Coordinated Entry System Administration

The JPA will ensure the Coordinated Entry Service Operator Administers System support to the Resource Connect Solano staff as well as the various jurisdictional and non-profit outreach teams. Support services include:

1. Answering and responding to all Coordinated Entry System referral calls;

2. Performing a pre-screen diversion assessment over the phone and full Vulnerability assessment, where appropriate;

3. Referring callers to the most pertinent services, including prevention services for callers at-risk of homelessness;

4. Connecting clients to case management;

5. Scheduling appointments with clients for the Coordinated Entry Specialists;

523

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 14 6. Providing training and technical assistance to local outreach teams to support their data entry in HMIS.

III. Other Coordinated Entry System Services

The Coordinated Entry Services Operator may offer other services such as Housing Location Services to support the staff as well as the various jurisdictional and non- profit outreach teams to identify housing opportunities for individuals experiencing homelessness. Services will be outlined in the subrecipient agreement may include:

1. Developing and managing a comprehensive outreach/ working relationship with community stakeholders, especially landlords;

2. Engaging a landlord recruitment and retention plan. Recruiting landlord, management firm, and leaseholder participation and/or growth of participation in Continuum of Care and Resource Connect Solano housing programs, which may include Permanent Supportive Housing, Rapid Rehousing, Section 8, TBRA, HUD/VASH, and other subsidy programs;

3. Meeting with owners, landlords and property managers to discuss partnering with Resource Connect Solano, including rental assistance, placement programs, and support services;

4. Negotiating with landlords experiencing conflicts with formerly homeless tenants to find solutions to experienced problems, including outside mediation services for more serious conflicts to help avoid eviction;

5. Building long-lasting relationships with property managers, landlords, owners, and firms to expand the scope of their participation in programs that house those experiencing homelessness;

6. Performing initial site visits at all prospective sites to ensure they meet guidelines for habitability standards;

7. Maintaining a database of landlords, management firms, and leaseholders working with those experiencing homelessness;

8. Sending out notices to Resource Connect Solano staff of any new housing availability;

9. Tracking all placements with landlords in HMIS;

10. Maintaining awareness of changes in market and community processes that can impact services; bring forward prospective recommendations to deal with expected changes.

11. Increase focus on systemic County-wide landlord engagement strategies. 524

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 15 IV. Coordinated Entry System Housing Readiness Services and Case Management

The JPA will ensure that the Coordinated Entry Services Operator provides Housing Readiness Services and Case Management. This includes:

1. Counseling individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system as to potential housing options;

2. Coordinating supportive services for individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system;

3. Using the Coordinated Entry System to provide comprehensive assessments of participant need for housing and services;

4. Monitoring and evaluating Resource Connect Solano participant progress;

5. Providing Resource Connect Solano participant information and referrals to providers participating in the Coordinated Entry System;

6. Developing individualized housing and service plans for individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system;

7. Providing tenant counseling to individuals and families placed within the past 30 days into housing through Resource Connect Solano;

8. Assisting individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system or placed within the past 30 days into housing through Resource Connect Solano to understand the leasing process;

9. Assisting individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system or placed within the past 30 days into housing through Resource Connect Solano with securing utilities;

10. Assisting individuals and families at the top of the Resource Connect Solano prioritization system or placed within the past 30 days into housing through Resource Connect Solano with making moving arrangements.

V. Coordinated Entry Systems Operations

The JPA will ensure that resources made available through this MOU for operations are allocated to items such as: the costs of office space; maintenance; office equipment; Internet access; a system website; marketing; office supplies; transportation costs incurred by the Resource Connect Solano staff; public transportation costs for consumers; and essential training and conference attendance about Coordinated Entry.

525

COMMUNITY ACTION PARTNERSHIP
SOLANO

JOINT POWERS AUTHORITY
675 Texas Street Fairfield, CA 94533 – www.capsolanojpa.org 16 EXHIBIT B: BUDGET

I. Funding
In addition to coordinated entry staff supported by HUD CoC, which is $233,589 for FY2025/26, pursuant to this MOU, the Cities and County will provide 2026 funding of $351,638 as follows to support the activities described in Exhibit A.

Funding for calendar years 2027 and 2028 will increase at a fixed rate of three (3) percent per year.

II. Method of Payment

The County and Cities shall transmit annual payments to the JPA. The method of payment was determined by the population of the Cities with the County making a larger amount than its population and is as follows:

The JPA shall invoice the County and Cities within 30 days of the effective date of this MOU and then each year thereafter within 30 days of the same calendar date. The Cities and County shall make payment of the invoice within 30 days of the date of the invoice.

2026 2027 2028 Total

Solano
County $81,966 $84,425 $86,958 $253,350
Benicia $18,816 $19,381 $19,962 $58,158
Fairfield $77,564 $79,891 $82,288 $239,743
Rio Vista $6,127 $6,311 $6,501 $18,939
Suisun
City $19,903 $20,500 $21,115 $61,517
Vacaville $66,895 $68,902 $70,969 $206,767
Vallejo $80,366 $82,777 $85,260 $248,402
Total $351,638 $362,187 $373,053 $1,086,878
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1 CAP Solano JPA - Who We Are
Provides Regional Leadership on Homelessness
Coordinates Planning, Funding, and Compliance Across Jurisdictions Serves as the Backbone Agency for The Continuum of Care Connects Cities, County, and Providers Into One Coordinated System The CAP Solano JPA is the central coordinating entity for homelessness services and strategy in Solano, aligning efforts and resources across jurisdictions and providers.

JPA Staff In Action
Integrating into the System of Care
Aligning CoC, Tripartite Advisory Board, and JPA Into One Structure Building Shared Accountability and Strategic Direction
Establishing New Administrative Backbone to Stabilize The System The JPA's integration, governance, and strong administrative foundation have laid the groundwork for a more coordinated and effective Solano homelessness response system. 1 2
527
12/11/2025
2 Strategic Funding Alignment
Created a Funding Decision Tree
Including Guidance from the TAB and CoC
Focusing on How Dollars Work Together
Layered Priorities Guided by Community Needs Assessment This strategic funding approach ensures resources are allocated effectively and efficiently to address homelessness in Solano.

Strengthen Coordinated Entry (CES)Improve the system that connects people experiencing homelessness to available housing and services Expand housing and supportive service solutionsIncrease the supply of affordable and supportive housing units across the region Advance prevention and diversion programsProvide assistance to help people avoid entering the homeless system in the first place Aligning City Goals with Regional Strategies Tailor services and programs to address the unique needs of young people experiencing homelessnessBy pursuing these regional goals, we can create a more effective and coordinated system to address homelessness in Solano County.

Regional3
4 528
12/11/2025
3 Why Coordinated Entry?
Federal and State Requirement
Access → Assessment →PrioriƟzaƟon → Referral
Matching People and Families to the Proper Resources
Coordinated Entry is a critical system that ensures equitable access to homeless services and resources in the community.

Why Coordinated Entry?
Streamlined Access to Homeless Services Across the Region Faster Housing Placements for Residents
Improved Data and Accountability
By investing in Coordinated Entry, cities strengthen the regional homeless services system, creates better outcomes for its residents, and demonstrates its commitment to addressing homelessness. 5 6
529
12/11/2025
4 Coordinated Entry System Modernization•New HMIS Administrator (BitFocus) •Walk-In Access Sites
•Outreach Teams Adding Real-time Assessments
•Increased Number of Assessors System-wide
Align JPA initiatives with City’s Homeless Action PlanEnsure JPA programs and strategies support city’s local goals and priorities for addressing homelessness Establish a local access point within the cityProvide residents a convenient location to access the regional Coordinated Entry System Train City staff to use HMIS effectivelyEquip local staff with the knowledge and skills to properly utilize the Homeless Management Information System Connect local outreach and housing placement work with regional strategiesAlign city’s on-the-ground efforts with the JPA's coordinated regional approach to amplify resultsBy closely integrating city’s local initiatives with the JPA's regional strategies, we can maximize the impact and effectiveness of our collective homelessness response efforts.

Supporting the City’s Goals7
8 530
AGENDA ITEM NO. 20.

AGENDA TRANSMITTAL

MEETING DATE:

March 17, 2026

AGENDA ITEM:

Council Introduction and Waive Reading of Ordinance No. 2026-__: Repealing and Replacing in its Entirety Chapter 5.34 (Vendors) and Repealing and Replacing in its Entirety Chapter

18.56 (Mobile Food Vendors) of the Suisun City Municipal Code.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The adoption of the proposed Ordinance is not expected to have a significant fiscal impact on the City’s General Fund. The Ordinance establishes a local licensing framework and administrative enforcement process that will require staff time for permit processing, compliance monitoring, and issuance of administrative citations. These administrative costs are anticipated to be offset, in whole or in part, by vendor permit fees and revenue from administrative citations. Overall, the Ordinance is intended to be revenue-neutral, with any incremental administrative costs being covered within existing departmental budgets.

STRATEGIC PLAN:

Public Safety.

BACKGROUND:

The City of Suisun City (“City”) currently regulates vendors under Chapter 5.34 “Vendors” and Chapter

18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors.” Due to significant changes in state law over the past several years, these chapters are now outdated and certain provisions conflict with state law.

On September 17, 2018, the Governor signed Senate Bill 946 (“SB 946”), which substantially limits local agencies’ authority to regulate sidewalk vendors. SB 946 narrows municipal discretion, limiting local sidewalk vending regulations to time, place, and manner restrictions that are directly related to objective health, safety, and welfare concerns. As described in the Legislature’s findings, the bill’s purpose is to promote entrepreneurship, support immigrant and low-income communities, and remove barriers to entrepreneurs’ access to the formal economy.

SB 946 also prohibits the imposition of criminal penalties for violations related to sidewalk vending.

Instead, these violations may be addressed through administrative fines under Government Code Section 51039. If a vendor incurs a fourth violation of local sidewalk vending regulations within a twelve-month period, a local agency may rescind the vendor’s permit for the remainder of its term.

Additionally, the law requires cities to consider an individual’s ability to pay, and provide notice of the right to request an ability-to-pay determination before imposing any fines.

Although SB 946 decriminalized sidewalk vending, it preserved a city’s ability to enforce county health codes adopted through the California Retail Food Code. As a result, cities could continue to pursue criminal enforcement against sidewalk food vendors for failure to obtain required county health permits.

However, in 2022, the legislature enacted Senate Bill 972 (“SB 972”), effective January 1, 2023, which decriminalized sidewalk food vending by eliminating criminal penalties under the California Retail Food Code for sidewalk food vendors. SB 972 also allows certain sidewalk food vendors to be exempt from the requirement to obtain a health permit under the California Retail Food Code. Specifically, 531
sidewalk food vendors operating with 25 square feet or less of display area and selling only prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food are exempt from health permitting requirements.

Cities may still conduct routine inspections of vending carts and food preparation facilities, and vendors are still subject to applicable health and safety standards. However, violations of the California Retail Food Code by sidewalk food vendors are now generally enforced through administrative remedies, rather than criminal prosecution. Nonetheless, cities retain the authority to enforce criminal actions against sidewalk food vendors operating on private property.

Currently, the Suisun City Municipal Code requires all mobile food vendors selling food to obtain a permit under the California Health and Safety Code. It also contains enforcement provisions that do not fully comply with SB 946 and SB 972. Additionally, the existing Chapters 5.34 and 18.56 lack clear definitions, making it unclear which regulations apply to different types of vendors.

Furthermore, Solano County has requested that cities within its jurisdiction adopt consistent mobile food vendor regulations to streamline administration. Several cities within Solano County have adopted or are considering updated ordinances. Recently, the City of Fairfield adopted a Mobile Food Vendor Ordinance in November 2025.

STAFF REPORT:

The proposed Ordinance repeals and replaces Chapters 5.34 and 18.56 of the Municipal Code to ensure that the City’s vendor regulations comply with state law. The proposed Ordinance is modeled after the Mobile Food Vendor Ordinance adopted by the City of Fairfield in November 2025 to promote consistent municipal mobile food vendor regulations across Solano County.

The revised Ordinance clarifies the scope of each vendor chapter. The proposed Chapter 5.34 “Sidewalk Vendors” applies to all vendors who sell goods and food items that do not require a Solano County health permit. In contrast, the proposed Chapter 18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors” applies to all vendors who sell food requiring a Solano County health permit. This structure ensures that vendors exempt from the state health permit requirements (e.g., those selling prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food) are regulated solely under the sidewalk vendor chapter (Chapter 5.34), while food vendors needing health permits are regulated under the mobile food vending chapter (Chapter 18.56).

Certain mobile food vendors, such as those selling food from non-motorized carts on sidewalks, may be classified as “sidewalk vendors” under the definition in Government Code Section 51036.

Consequently, they are subject to the restrictions established by SB 946. The proposed Ordinance includes substantially similar provisions in both Chapter 5.34 “Sidewalk Vendors” and Chapter 18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors.” While some of these provisions may appear redundant, this structure ensures that all sidewalk vendors, including certain mobile food vendors, are subject to the same standards.

Moreover, this alignment allows the City’s mobile food vendor regulations to be more consistent with those of neighboring jurisdictions.

The proposed Ordinance establishes a local licensing process that requires vendors under both Chapter

5.34 and 18.56 to obtain a City-issued permit or license. The licensing framework includes eligibility criteria, application requirements, and defined procedures for when the Director of Development Services may deny, suspend, or revoke a vending permit or license.

Consistent with SB 946, the proposed Ordinance imposes time, place and manner restrictions, including:
532
Limiting vending operations to the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.; Prohibiting vending in a manner that obstructs pedestrian or vehicular traffic; Prohibiting obstruction of emergency vehicle routes, fire hydrants, building entrances and exits, and traffic signals; and
Requiring vendors to maintain clean and sanitary conditions in and around the vending location.

The proposed Ordinance eliminates criminal penalties for sidewalk vending and sidewalk food vending violations. Consistent with SB 946 and SB 972, violations are enforceable solely through administrative citations. The proposed Ordinance also establishes notice and appeal procedures and requires the City to provide sidewalk vendors with the opportunity to request an ability-to-pay determination before fines are imposed.

With respect to mobile food vendors, the proposed Ordinance incudes specific requirements for mobile food vendors whose operations require a Solano County health permit. These requirements include compliance with the California Retail Food Code, possession of required county health permits, adherence to inspection requirements, and food handling certifications.

In sum, the proposed Ordinance provides new vendor regulations to ensure consistency and clarity among the City’s vending provisions across the City’s Municipal Code and align the City’s mobile food vendor provisions with those of neighboring jurisdictions.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:

Council Introduction and Waive Reading of
Ordinance No. 2026-__: Repealing and Replacing in its
Entirety Chapter 5.34 (Vendors) and Repealing and Replacing in its Entirety Chapter 18.56 (Mobile Food Vendors) of the Suisun City Municipal Code.

DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
1 .

Council Introduction and Waive Reading of
Ordinance No. 2026-__: Repealing and Replacing in
its Entirety Chapter 5.34 (Vendors) and Repealing and Replacing in its Entirety Chapter 18.56 (Mobile Food Vendors) of the Suisun City Municipal Code. 2 .

Current Suisun City Municipal Code, Chapter 5.34
3 .

Current Suisun City Municipal Code, Chapter 18.56
4 .

PowerPoint Presentation

PREPARED BY:

Patrick Enright, City Attorney
REVIEWED BY:

Patrick Enright, City Attorney
APPROVED BY:

Bret Prebula, City Manager

ATTACHMENTS:

1. Ordinance Mobile Food Vendor

2. Chapter 5.34 Vendors.pdf

3. Chapter 18.56 Mobile Food Vendors.pdf

4. Presentation
533

1 ORDINANCE NO.

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUISUN CITY REPEALING AND REPLACING IN ITS ENTIRETY CHAPTER 5.34 (VENDORS) AND REPEALING AND REPLACING IN ITS ENTIRETY CHAPTER 18.56 (MOBILE FOOD VENDORS) OF THE SUISUN CITY MUNICIPAL CODE.

WHEREAS, California Constitution, Article XI, Section 7, authorizes the City of Suisun City (“City”) to adopt and enforce local police, sanitary, and other ordinances and regulations that are not in conflict with the general laws; and
WHEREAS, Government Code Section 51036 to 51039 (originally adopted as “SB 946” in 2018) authorize the City to regulate sidewalk vendors upon a public sidewalk or pedestrian path for health, safety or welfare concerns; and
WHEREAS, the current language of Chapter 5.34 is outdated; and WHEREAS, the City desires to amend the Suisun Municipal Code to ensure compliance with SB 946 while protecting public health, safety and welfare; and WHEREAS, the act of looking for prospective buyers while operating a mobile vending vehicle may reduce the operator’s attentiveness to surrounding pedestrian and vehicular traffic, thereby increasing traffic and public safety risks on public roadways; and WHEREAS, unregulated vending operating in close proximity to school buildings may create additional traffic and pedestrian safety hazards by attracting young people who may be inattentive to vehicular traffic or may enter roadways unexpectedly to purchase merchandise or food; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds that allowing multiple vendors to operate in close proximity to one another may obstruct pedestrian travel, impede access for individuals with disabilities, interfere with emergency access, create obstacles and contribute to congestion for pedestrians, vehicles, and bicycle traffic; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds that regulating the location, hours of operation, and permitting requirements for vendors on public rights-of-way is necessary to protect pedestrian access, maintain emergency response routes, and ensure the orderly use of City rights-of-way; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds the presence of mobile vending operations can cause an increase in garbage and litter in surrounding areas, which can be unsanitary and potentially hazardous to public health; and
WHEREAS, the City Council further finds that regulating mobile food vendors is necessary to protect public health by ensuring vendors comply with Solano County Department of Public Health regulations and applicable California health laws.

NOW THEREFORE THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SUISUN CITY DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
534

2 SECTION 1. Chapter 5.34 of the Suisun City Municipal Code is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
“Chapter 5.34 - SIDEWALK VENDORS

5.34.010 - Purpose.

This Chapter regulates the sale of merchandise or food on the public sidewalks within the city for the purpose of promoting the free and safe flow of vehicular and pedestrian traffic and is directly related to the objective health, safety, and welfare of the public. It is hereby found that the use of such rights-of-way for such purposes in violation of the prohibitions of this Chapter would constitute an interruption of the free flow of traffic and a serious and dangerous hazard to the public.

5.34.020 - Applicability of Chapter.

The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to a mobile food vendor regulated under Chapter

18.56 of this Code. Any person or entity engaged in food vending, as defined in Section

18.56.020, shall be subject to the regulations in Chapter 18.56.

5.34.030 - Definitions.

As used in this chapter the following meanings shall apply:
“Applicant” means the individual, group, company, partnership, or other recognized legal entity seeking a sidewalk vendor permit from the City of Suisun City. “City” means City of Suisun City, California.
“Director” means the director of development services of the City of Suisun City, or his or her designee(s).
“School” means any public, charter, or private school serving children between kindergarten and high school.
“Sidewalk” means the area of the public right-of-way which is designated or ordinarily used for pedestrian travel, and including also any paved or unpaved land within the right of way adjacent to any public street or highway. Sidewalk also includes other pedestrian paths located on public property.
“Sidewalk vendor” means a person who sells food or merchandise from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other nonmotorized conveyance, or from one’s person, upon a public sidewalk or other pedestrian path. A sidewalk vendor includes a compact mobile food operation that has 25 square feet or less of display area and sells only prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous foods or whole produce. 535

3 “Sidewalk vending unit” means a facility for the sale of food and/or merchandise that operates from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other non- motorized conveyance.
“Roaming sidewalk vendor” means a sidewalk vendor who moves from place to place and stops only to complete a transaction.
“Stationary sidewalk vendor” means a sidewalk vendor who remains in a single location for the purpose of vending for more than six (6) consecutive hours within a 24-hour period. "Vend" or "vending" means to sell, offer for sale, expose or display for sale, solicit offers to purchase, or to barter food or merchandise, or to require someone to negotiate, establish or pay a fee before providing food or merchandise, even if characterized as a donation. “Vendor” means a person, individual, firm, co-partnership, joint venture, association, corporation, or any other group or combination acting as an entity, that sells, offers for sale, solicits for purchase, or exposes or displays for sale, any food, beverage or merchandise, or to require someone to negotiate or establish to pay a fee before providing food, beverages or merchandise, even if characterized as a donation.

5.34.040 - Sidewalk Vendor Permit Required.

A. Except as may be allowed by a previously granted license or by any ordinance or resolution establishing and regulating a street market or farmer's market in the city, or as permitted for a limited period by a special event permit, it shall be unlawful for any vendor to operate as a sidewalk vendor in the city jurisdiction without first obtaining a sidewalk vending permit as specified in this chapter.

B. A vendor desiring to engage in sidewalk vending in the city shall first file an application for a sidewalk vendor permit pursuant to procedures established in this chapter.

C. A separate sidewalk vendor permit shall be required for each sidewalk vendor.

D. The individual, group, or legal entity desiring to engage in sidewalk vending shall obtain and maintain all required permits from the City of Suisun City, Solano County Health Department, and other regulatory agencies, including, but not limited to the city’s building division, planning division, and/or fire department permits.

E. A violation of this chapter may result in the suspension or revocation of a sidewalk vendor permit and civil penalties.

5.34.050 - Application Requirements.

Application for a sidewalk vendor permit shall be made by the sidewalk vendor, or his or her authorized agent, on a form prescribed by the director.

Each application for a sidewalk vending permit shall include:
536

4 A. Name, current address, telephone number, and copy of a photo ID of the applicant.

B. If applicant is an agent of an individual, company, partnership, corporation, or other entity, the name and business address of the principle.

C. A description of the food or merchandise offered for sale.

D. A non-refundable application fee.

E. If the proposed location is on private property, written consent in a form approved by the city from the property owner (if other than self) permitting the sidewalk vendor to locate on the property.

F. Whether the sidewalk vendor intends to operate as a stationary sidewalk vendor or a roaming sidewalk vendor.

G. If the sidewalk vendor is stationary:

1. A map or illustration, showing:
a. The proposed location(s);
b. The address and assessor's parcel number of the subject or nearest parcel, and/or specific section of the public right-of-way; and
c. The two (2) nearest street intersections.

2. A site plan for each proposed location, containing:
a. If on a parcel, the location and dimensions of all proposed sidewalk vending units, any public seating or other site amenities (including chairs and tables), buildings or other structures on site, paved areas, driveways, trash receptacles, garages, parking spaces, maneuvering aisles, and pavement striping. b. If in the public right-of-way, location and dimensions of the proposed sidewalk vending unit, sidewalks, curb cuts, trash receptacles, and obstructions such as parking meters, telecommunication boxes, street trees, and light poles.

3. The proposed schedule for the sidewalk vending operation, including dates, and starting and ending times of the vending period.

H. Photographs of the site(s) and sidewalk vendor unit.

I. A description of the sidewalk vending unit, including the square footage of any display area for food or merchandise.

J. A copy of applicant’s valid and current City of Suisun City business license. 537

5 K. A California seller's permit number pursuant to Section 6067 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, if any.

L. Proof of liability insurance in the amount and subject to the terms on file with the city’s risk manager. The city’s risk manager shall promulgate provisions regarding insurance requirements for sidewalk vendors and shall be in an amount which is determined to be sufficient to adequately protect the city, persons, and property for injuries or damages which may be caused by activity under this chapter. Such insurance shall name as additional insured the City of Suisun City, its officers, agents, and employees, and shall further provide that the policy shall not terminate or be canceled without 30 calendar days’ advance written notice to the City of Suisun City.

M. Any other reasonable information regarding time, place, and manner of the sidewalk vendor permit that the director requires to evaluate the proposal.

N. Certification by the applicant that the information contained in the application is true to his or her knowledge and belief.

5.34.060 - Expiration and Renewal of Sidewalk Vending Permit.

A. Initial sidewalk vendor permits shall be valid until December 31 of the current year.

B. Permits shall be renewed on an annual basis. The city shall send notice to the permittee.

The permittee shall submit the renewal annually, prior to the permit’s expiration date. A permittee may continue operations while an application for renewal is pending with the city. All renewal applications shall be filed with the finance department.

C. Applications for renewals shall include all submittal materials as required at initial application, updated as necessary, proof of continuing compliance with applicable regulations, and payment of the non-refundable renewal fee. Renewal permits shall be valid for a one-year period beginning January 1.

5.34.070 - Operational Permit Standards.

A. A sidewalk vendor permit cannot be transferred or conveyed from the permittee of record or otherwise assigned to another person.

B. If a sidewalk vendor transfers its sidewalk vending business assets, the recipient of the assets shall, before operating, apply for and obtain a new sidewalk vendor permit from the city.

5.34.080 - Operational Standards.

Sidewalk vendors shall comply with the following standards and conditions:

A. Appearance and condition of the sidewalk vending unit. 538

6 1. All sidewalk vending units shall clearly display a current city business license, and city sidewalk vending permit in plain view and at all times.

2. Aside from the signage required by subsection (a), no more than three (3) signs shall be attached to any sidewalk vending unit, with a maximum aggregate display surface of thirty (30) square feet of signage per sidewalk vending unit.

3. The regular permitted hours of operation for all sidewalk vendors are 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily.

B. Utilities. Sidewalk vending units shall either be entirely self-sufficient in regard to gas, electricity, water, and telecommunications, or shall be required to apply for appropriate permits for any utility hook-ups or connections to on-site utilities to ensure building and public safety and consistency with applicable building codes.

C. Refuse, trash, and litter maintenance.

1. The sidewalk vendor shall not throw, deposit, discharge, leave, or permit to be thrown, deposited, discharged, or left, any fat, oil, grease, refuse, garbage, or other discarded or abandoned objects, articles, and accumulations, in or upon any street, alley, sidewalk, gutter, storm drain, inlet, catch basin, conduit or other drainage structure, or upon any public or private lot of land in the city.

2. Stationary sidewalk vendors shall maintain the subject site and adjacent public right- of-way free of litter on and within one hundred (100) feet radius of their site.

3. Sidewalk vendors shall carry a waste disposal bag or container to permit the disposal of trash.

4. At a minimum, all refuse from a sidewalk vending operation shall be removed and properly disposed of after each vending period.

5. Failure to adequately clean up after a sidewalk vending operation date shall be grounds for denying an applicant's request for permit renewal.

D. Performance standards.

1. Noise levels from the sidewalk vending units shall not exceed the city's noise ordinance standards. Vendors should use low-noise emission generators, if applicable.

2. Noise and odors from sidewalk vending units shall be contained within the immediate area of the permitted sidewalk vending location.

3. The sidewalk vending unit shall not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

4. The sidewalk vendor shall maintain site circulation for pedestrians and access consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). 539

7 E. Security.

1. The site shall be maintained in a safe and clean manner at all times.

2. Sidewalk vending units shall have adequate lighting to ensure customer safety.

Lighting shall be directed downwards and away from public streets and adjacent properties.

F. Seating, chairs and tables for stationary sidewalk vendors. Depending on site size, configuration and location, a plan for site amenities, including but not limited to tables and chairs, portable restroom facilities, and/or temporary shade structures, may be permitted in conjunction with the operation of a sidewalk vending site. A site plan depicting the proposed location of any site amenities shall be submitted for review and approval in conjunction with a sidewalk vendor permit application.

G. Other requirements.

1. Sidewalk vending units shall be maintained in operating condition at all times and shall be movable at all times.

2. No sidewalk vending unit shall become a permanent fixture on the site or be considered an improvement to real property.

3. Proof of liability insurance in the amount required by the city shall be maintained by the sidewalk vendor.

4. The posting of the sidewalk vending permit at the site is required at all times.

5. The sidewalk vendor shall have a working telephone where the sidewalk vendor can be reached directly at all times during vending.

6. The sale or soliciting the sale of any alcoholic beverages or controlled substances from any sidewalk vending unit is strictly prohibited.

7. The sidewalk vendor shall comply with all applicable state and local laws, including, without limitation, all traffic and parking laws.

5.34.090 - Location-Specific Regulations.

Sidewalk vendors shall be subject to the following location requirements:

A. Vending in the street portion of a public right-of-way is restricted. The director is authorized to adopt a sidewalk vending permitted area map and make amendments or correct administrative errors to such map. The director is also authorized to adopt any additional location requirements in addition to the requirements described in this chapter.

B. A location for a sidewalk vendor shall not be permitted:
540

8 1. One hundred (100) feet from another sidewalk vendor, unless permitted to operate at designated street public right-of-way, or are permitted to operate on different days of the week from the same location.

2. Within one thousand (1000) feet from the parcel boundary of a school serving children between kindergarten and high school between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

C. Sidewalk vendors shall not block or impede access to:

1. Required parking or driveways;

2. Bicycle racks;

3. Signal crossings;

4. Required off-street parking;

5. Parking meters;

6. Pedestrian or bicycle routes;

7. Emergency vehicle routes;

8. Building entrances and exits;

9. Required accessibility routes and curb cuts;

10. Easements;

11. Trash enclosure areas or access to trash bins/trash enclosures; or

12. Other city facilities, as determined by the director.

D. Sidewalk vendors shall maintain site circulation and access consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

5.34.100 - Permit Approval, Denial, Suspension, Revocation, and Appeals.

A. The director shall approve, approve with conditions, or deny a sidewalk vendor permit application based on the standards and criteria set forth in this chapter and/or, if any, in the administrative guidelines. The director may impose conditions of approval on a sidewalk vendor permit in the exercise of his or her reasonable discretion. The applicant shall be notified of any conditions of approval in writing.

B. The director may deny, suspend or revoke a permit issued under this chapter. A permit may be denied, suspended or revoked for any of the following reasons:

1. Fraud, misrepresentation or a false statement contained in the application for a permit. 541

9 2. Fraud, misrepresentation or a false statement made in connection with the selling of food or merchandise.

3. Repeated failure to address pollutant discharge(s), including but not limited to, wash water discharge, fuel, detergents, tire dressings, foams, or any other chemicals.

4. Violating any of the operating standards required under this chapter.

5. Violating any of the permit conditions imposed by this chapter.

6. Causing a public nuisance or causing an unlawful or criminal activity to occur during a sidewalk vending operation; or any other violation of this chapter.

C. Any person who has been notified regarding the denial of their sidewalk vendor permit application or the possible suspension or revocation of their sidewalk vendor permit may appeal the decision pursuant to Section 5.34.120 of this Code.

D. When circumstances demonstrate that continued operation by a sidewalk vendor poses an imminent threat to the public’s health and safety, the city may immediately suspend or revoke a sidewalk vendor permit. The sidewalk vendor may request a hearing pursuant to Section 5.34.120 of this Code.

E. It is unlawful for a sidewalk vendor whose permit has been suspended or revoked to continue to operate. If the city suspends or revokes a permit, the sidewalk vendor shall immediately cease all vending operations.

F. A sidewalk vendor aggrieved by an order issued by the director may appeal the order to state district court.

5.34.110 - Enforcement.

A. A sidewalk vendor who is issued a citation in violation of this section shall be subject to the following fines:

1. Vending which violates a requirement of this section, other than failure to possess a valid sidewalk vendor permit;

2. Vending without a valid sidewalk vendor permit;

3. A violation occurring after twelve (12) consecutive months with no violation shall be considered a first violation.

4. The administrative fines listed in this Section 5.34.110(A)(2) shall be reduced from two hundred fifty dollars ($250) to one hundred dollars ($100), five hundred dollars ($500) to one hundred fifty dollars ($150), and one thousand dollars ($1,000) to two hundred dollars ($200) upon obtaining a sidewalk vendor permit from the director within ten (10) calendar days of the citation issuance. 542

10 B. Additional fines, fees, assessments, or any other financial conditions beyond those authorized by this section shall not be assessed. A violation of this chapter shall not be punishable as an infraction or misdemeanor.

C. When assessing an administrative fine pursuant to this chapter, the director shall take into consideration the person’s ability to pay the fine. The director shall provide the person with notice of their right to request an ability-to-pay determination. The person may request an ability-to-pay determination at adjudication or while the judgement remains unpaid, including when a case is delinquent or has been referred to a comprehensive collection program.

1. If the person meets the criteria described in subdivision (a) or (b) of Section 68632 of the California Government Code, the director shall accept, in full satisfaction, twenty (20) percent of the administrative fine imposed pursuant to this chapter.

2. The director may allow the person to complete community service in lieu of paying the total administrative fine, may waive the administrative fine, or may offer an alternative disposition.

3. The director may request adequate documentation, including but not limited to a sworn statement from the sidewalk vendor, when an ability-to-pay determination is requested. If the requested documents are not provided to the director, the director may make a finding that the person does not qualify for an ability-to-pay determination.

4. The director shall provide written notice of their determination to the individual. Such notice must include a statement advising the individual of their right to request an appeal hearing pursuant to Section 5.34.120.

5.34.120 - Appeals.

A. Any person aggrieved by any determination of the director with respect to a permit or license, administrative fine, violation alleged, condition imposed, suspension or revocation, or the director’s determination on ability-to-pay pursuant to this chapter, may appeal to the city manager by filing a written appeal with the city manager within fifteen (15) calendar days of issuance of the citation or notice of the action or decision. Failure to timely request a hearing constitutes a waiver of the right to appeal and a failure to exhaust administrative remedies.

B. Upon receipt of such appeal by the city manager, the city manager shall set a date for hearing. A hearing shall be set for a date that is not less than 15 days and not more than 60 days from the date of the filing of the request for hearing.

C. At the hearing, the appellant and the city shall be entitled to legal representation and may present relevant evidence, testify under oath, and call witnesses who shall testify under oath. The city manager shall not be bound by the traditional rules of evidence in a hearing, except that hearsay evidence may not be the sole basis for the decision of the city manager. The city manager may continue the hearing as deemed necessary. 543

11 D. After the hearing, the city manager shall affirm, modify, or revise the original decision or administrative fine, and shall notify the appellant of such decision. The decision of the city manager shall be final.

E. All fines owed after the city manager's decision are due within thirty (30) days of issuance of the decision. The city may use all remedies available to collect any unpaid fee.

5.34.130 - Liability and Indemnification.

A. To the fullest extent permitted by law, any actions taken by a public officer or employee under the provisions of this chapter shall not become the personal liability of any public officer or employee of the city.

B. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the licensee under this chapter shall defend (with counsel acceptable to the city), indemnify and hold harmless the city, the city council, the city planning commission, and their respective officials, officers, employees, representatives, agents and volunteers (hereafter collectively called "city") from any liability, damages, actions, claims, demands, litigation, loss (direct or indirect), causes of action, proceedings or judgment (including legal costs, attorneys' fees, expert witness or consultant fees, city attorney or staff time, expenses or costs) (collectively called "action") against the city to attack, set aside, void or annul, any food vending-related approvals and actions or implementation of such approvals and actions, including conditions of approval, if any. The city may elect, in its sole discretion, to participate in the defense of said action and the licensee shall reimburse the city for its reasonable legal costs and attorneys' fees.

C. Within ten (10) calendar days of the service of the pleadings upon the city of any action as specified in Subsection B above, the licensee shall execute a Letter of Agreement with the city, acceptable to the city attorney, which memorializes the above obligations. These obligations and the Letter of Agreement shall survive termination, extinguishment or invalidation of the vending-related approval. Failure to timely execute the Letter of Agreement does not relieve the licensee of any of the obligations contained in this section or any other requirements or performance or operating standards that may be imposed by the city.”
SECTION 2. Chapter 18.56 (Mobile Food Vendors) of the Suisun City Municipal Code is hereby repealed and replaced in its entirety to read as follows:
“Chapter 18.56 - MOBILE FOOD VENDORS

18.56.010 - Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to regulate the vending of food and food products of mobile food vendor operations on public and private property within the City of Suisun City. These regulations aim to ensure the safety, cleanliness, and convenience of mobile food vending operations while promoting business in the city.
544

12 18.56.020 - Definitions.
“Applicant” means the individual, group, company, partnership, or other recognized legal entity seeking a mobile food vendor license from the City of Suisun City. “City” means City of Suisun City, California.
“Director” means the director of development services of the City of Suisun City, or his or her designee(s).
“Food vending” means the business of selling raw or cut fruit, produce, prepared foods and non- alcoholic beverages, and/or prepackaged foods and beverages, where:

1. Food is prepared off-site in a commercial commissary and/or prepared on-site within the mobile food vending vehicle, per Solano County Health Regulations.

2. Food is ordered and served from a truck, trailer, or other equipment or vehicle as permitted by Solano County Health Department.

3. Fruit and produce are sold to customers without preparation or cooking by a vendor.

4. Food is served to-go or outdoors as part of a sanctioned event.

5. Food is paid for prior to consumption.
“Group site” or “group site food vending” means the stationary operation of two (2) or more mobile food vendors clustered together on a single site and operating at the same time. “Group site organizer” or “responsible party” means the individual or legal entity who is directly responsible for organizing and/or conducting the group site and/or the facility manager, and his or her respective designees.
“Mobile food vendor license” means the city’s annual or temporary permit required to place, operate, maintain, or allow mobile food vending within the city limits. “Mobile food vendor permitted area” means the areas and public rights-of-way that are permitted for a mobile food vendor license.
“Mobile food vendor vehicle” means any motorized vehicle such as a truck, trailer or non- motorized carts from which food vending services are provided, as permitted by Solano County Health Department. Not included in this definition is the preparation of food and serving of food outside of a vehicle, typically under a tent, canopy, or from a booth. “Mobile food vendor” means any person who is food vending from a mobile food vendor vehicle for immediate service and/or consumption. A mobile food vendor does not include compact mobile food operations that have 25 square feet or less of display area and sell only prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food, which are regulated under Chapter 5.34. 545

13 “Property owner” means the holder of the fee title to property, whether a person, partnership, corporation, or other entity recognized by the law, and his/her/its lessees, permittees, assignees, or successors in interest.
“Public right-of-way” means any public street, road, avenue, highway, named or unnamed alley, lane, court, place, trial, parkway, sidewalk, or other public way operated and/or controlled by the city, or subject to an easement owned by or dedicated to the city. “School” means any public, charter, or private school serving children between kindergarten and high school.
“Site” means the specific public or private property location, including any public right-of-way, for which an applicant or responsible party has been issued a mobile food vendor license. “Solano County Health Department” means the Solano County Department of Resource Management, Environmental Health Division or such other departments of the County of Solano that are responsible for the licensing of food and enforcement of food health laws. “Stationary” means a mobile food vendor vehicle that remains in a single location for the purpose of food vending for more than six (6) consecutive hours within a 24-hour period.

18.56.030 - Licenses Required.

A. Except as may be allowed by a previously granted license or by any ordinance or resolution establishing and regulating a street market or farmer's market in the city, or as permitted for a limited period by a special event permit, it shall be unlawful for any individual, group, or legal entity to operate a mobile food vendor vehicle in the city jurisdiction without first obtaining a mobile food vendor license as specified in this chapter.

B. Any individual, group, or legal entity desiring to engage in food vending in the city shall first file an application for a mobile food vendor license pursuant to procedures established in this chapter.

C. A separate mobile food vendor license shall be required for each mobile food vendor vehicle.

D. The individual, group, or legal entity desiring to engage in food vending shall obtain and maintain all required permits from the City of Suisun City, Solano County Health Department, and other regulatory agencies, including, but not limited to the city’s building division, planning division, and/or fire department permits.

E. A violation of this chapter may result in the suspension or revocation of a mobile food vendor license and civil penalties.

18.56.040 - Application Requirements.
546

14 Application for a mobile food vending license shall be made by the owner of the affected mobile food vendor vehicle, or his or her authorized agent, on a form prescribed by the director.

Each application for a mobile food vending license shall include:

A. Name, current address, telephone number, and copy of a photo ID of the applicant.

B. If applicant is an agent of an individual, company, partnership, corporation, or other entity, the name and business address of the principle.

C. A description of the food or merchandise offered for sale.

D. A non-refundable application fee.

E. If the proposed location is on private property, written consent in a form approved by the city from the property owner (if other than self) permitting the mobile food vendor or group site to locate on the property.

F. If the mobile food vendor is stationary or a group site:

1. A map or illustration, showing:
a. The proposed location(s);
b. The address and assessor's parcel number of the subject or nearest parcel, and/or specific section of the public right-of-way in a designated parking space; and c. The two (2) nearest street intersections.

2. A site plan for each proposed location, containing:
a. If on a parcel, the location and dimensions of all proposed mobile food vending vehicles, any public seating or other site amenities (including chairs and tables), buildings or other structures on site, paved areas, driveways, trash receptacles, garages, parking spaces, maneuvering aisles, and pavement striping. b. If in the public right-of-way, location and dimensions of the proposed mobile food vending vehicle, sidewalks, curb cuts, trash receptacles, and obstructions such as parking meters, telecommunication boxes, street trees, and light poles.

3. The proposed schedule for the individual food vending site or group site, including dates, and starting and ending times of the vending period.

G. Photographs of the site(s) and mobile food vendor vehicle(s); H. A description of the mobile food vendor vehicle;
I. If the mobile food vendor vehicle is a motorized vehicle, the applicant shall provide:
547

15 1. The vehicle’s registration and license number, and

2. The applicant’s California driver’s license number.

J. A copy of applicant’s valid and current Solano County Health Department mobile food permit.

K. A copy of applicant’s valid and current City of Suisun City business license.

L. A California seller's permit number pursuant to Section 6067 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.

M. Certification of a food handler course and proof of all required approvals from the Solano County Health Department.

N. A maintenance plan and list of Best Management Practices for cleaning, spill prevention, and waste handling. The maintenance plan must include litter pickup in the vicinity of the proposed vending location or the proposed vending route, as well as the lawful disposal of any liquid or solid waste resulting from the vending operation (including, but not limited to, fats, oil, juice, cooking material, scraps, etc.). The maintenance plan shall also include a description of how any equipment used (including, but not limited to, utensils, containers, grills, etc.) will be cleaned and sanitized.

O. The commercial address where the mobile food vendor vehicles will be stored and serviced during non-operating hours.

P. The following information shall be provided regarding the commercial kitchen or commissary to be used by the applicant, if any:

1. Proof of all required approvals from Solano County Health Department; and

2. A valid lease between the mobile food vendor and a commercial kitchen or commissary.

Q. Proof of liability insurance in the amount and subject to the terms on file with the city’s risk manager. The city’s risk manager shall promulgate provisions regarding insurance requirements for mobile food vendors and shall be in an amount which is determined to be sufficient to adequately protect the city, persons, and property for injuries or damages which may be caused by activity under this chapter. Such insurance shall name as additional insured the City of Suisun City, its officers, agents, and employees, and shall further provide that the policy shall not terminate or be canceled without 30 calendar days’ advance written notice to the City of Suisun City.

R. Any other reasonable information regarding time, place, and manner of the mobile food vendor license that the director requires to evaluate the proposal.

S. Certification by the applicant that the information contained in the application is true to his or her knowledge and belief.
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16 18.56.050 - Expiration and Renewal of Mobile Food Vendor Licenses.

A. Initial mobile food vendor licenses shall be valid until December 31 of the current year.

B. Licenses shall be renewed on an annual basis. The city shall send notice to the licensee.

The licensee shall submit the renewal annually, prior to the license’s expiration date. A licensee may continue operations while an application for renewal is pending with the city. All renewal applications shall be filed with the finance department.

C. Applications for renewals shall include all submittal materials as required at initial application, updated as necessary, proof of continuing compliance with health and safety regulations, and payment of the non-refundable renewal fee. Renewal licenses shall be valid for a one-year period beginning January 1.

18.56.060 - Operational License Standards.

A. A mobile food vendor license cannot be transferred or conveyed from the licensee of record or otherwise assigned to another person.

B. If a mobile food vendor transfers its mobile food vending business assets, the recipient of the assets shall, before operating, apply for and obtain a new mobile food vendor license from the city.

18.56.070 - Operational Standards.

Mobile food vendors shall comply with the following standards and conditions:

A. Appearance and condition of the mobile food vending vehicle.

1. All mobile food vending vehicles shall clearly display a current city business license, Solano County Health Department permit (and decal), and city mobile food vending license (and decal) in plain view and at all times.

2. Aside from the signage required by subsection (a), no more than three (3) signs shall be attached to any mobile food vending vehicle, with a maximum aggregate display surface of thirty (30) square feet of signage per mobile food vending vehicle.

3. The regular permitted hours of operation for all individual mobile food vending vehicles are 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily.

B. Utilities. Mobile food vending vehicles shall either be entirely self-sufficient in regard to gas, electricity, water, and telecommunications, or shall be required to apply for appropriate permits for any utility hook-ups or connections to on-site utilities to ensure building and public safety and consistency with applicable building codes.

C. Refuse, trash, and litter maintenance.
549

17 1. The mobile food vendor or group site organizer shall not throw, deposit, discharge, leave, or permit to be thrown, deposited, discharged, or left, any fat, oil, grease, refuse, garbage, or other discarded or abandoned objects, articles, and accumulations, in or upon any street, alley, sidewalk, gutter, storm drain, inlet, catch basin, conduit or other drainage structure, or upon any public or private lot of land in the city.

2. A minimum of one thirty-two (32)-gallon liter receptacle shall be within fifteen (15) feet of each mobile food vending vehicle for customers and employees.

3. Mobile food vendors and group site organizers shall maintain the subject site and adjacent public right-of-way free of litter on and within one hundred (100) feet radius of their site.

4. At a minimum, all refuse shall be removed from the mobile food vending location or group site and properly disposed of after each vending period.

5. Failure to adequately clean up after a mobile food vending operation date shall be grounds for denying an applicant's request for license renewal.

D. Performance standards.

1. Noise levels from food vending facilities shall not exceed the city's noise ordinance standards. Vendors should use low-noise emission generators.

2. Noise and odors from food vending facilities shall be contained within the immediate area of the permitted mobile food vending location.

3. The mobile food vending vehicle shall not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

4. The mobile food vendor shall maintain site circulation for pedestrians and access consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

E. Security.

1. The site shall be maintained in a safe and clean manner at all times.

2. Mobile food vending vehicles and group sites shall have adequate lighting to ensure customer safety. Lighting shall be directed downwards and away from public streets and adjacent properties.

F. Seating, chairs and tables for stationary mobile food vending. Depending on site size, configuration and location, a plan for site amenities, including but not limited to tables and chairs, portable restroom facilities, and/or temporary shade structures, may be permitted in conjunction with the operation of a food vending site. A site plan depicting the proposed location of any site amenities shall be submitted for review and approval in conjunction with a mobile food vending license application.

G. Other requirements.
550

18 1. Mobile food vending vehicles shall be maintained in operating condition at all times and shall be movable at all times.

2. No mobile food vending vehicle shall become a permanent fixture on the site or be considered an improvement to real property.

3. The mobile food vendor shall always maintain a valid Solano County Health Department permit. If the permit expires, or is suspended or revoked, then all food sales shall cease until the permit is reinstated.

4. The group site organizer or their representative shall be personally present at all times during group site operations.

5. Proof of liability insurance in the amount required by the city shall be maintained by the mobile food vendor or group site organizer.

6. The posting of the mobile food vending license at the site is required at all times.

7. The mobile food vendor or group site organizer shall have a working telephone where he/she can be reached directly at all times during food vending.

8. The mobile food vendor shall park so that its service window faces the sidewalk and serve customers through its service window.

9. The sale or soliciting the sale of any alcoholic beverages or controlled substances from any mobile food vending vehicle is strictly prohibited.

10. The mobile food vendor shall comply with all applicable state and local laws, including, without limitation, all traffic and parking laws.

18.56.080 - Permitted Area.

Mobile food vending vehicles and group sites shall be subject to the following location requirements:

A. Mobile food vending shall only be located in the mobile food vending permitted area, if any, and may be located on private property, on publicly owned property, or on the public right-of-way. Food vending in the street portion of a public right-of-way is restricted. The director is authorized to adopt a mobile food vending permitted area map and make amendments or correct administrative errors to such map. The director is also authorized to adopt any additional location requirements in addition to the requirements described in this chapter.

B. A location for a mobile food vending vehicle or group site shall not be permitted:

1. One hundred (100) feet from another mobile food vending vehicle or group site, unless permitted to operate at designated street public right-of-way, or are permitted to operate on different days of the week from the same location. 551

19 2. Within one thousand (1000) feet from the parcel boundary of a school serving children between kindergarten and high school between the hours of 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

C. Mobile food vending vehicle or group sites also cannot block or impede access to:

1. Required parking or driveways;

2. Bicycle racks;

3. Signal crossings;

4. Required off-street parking;

5. Parking meters;

6. Pedestrian or bicycle routes;

7. Emergency vehicle routes;

8. Building entrances and exits;

9. Required accessibility routes and curb cuts;

10. Easements;

11. Trash enclosure areas or access to trash bins/trash enclosures; or

12. Other city facilities, as determined by the director.

D. Mobile food vending vehicles and group sites shall maintain site circulation and access consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

E. In accordance with Section 114315 of the California Retail Food Code, mobile food vending vehicles stopped to conduct business for more than one hour, shall operate within two hundred (200) feet of an approved, readily available and functioning restroom facility. Executive portable toilet facilities with handwashing stations may satisfy this requirement.

F. Each mobile food vending vehicle and group site shall be located within two hundred (200) feet of a restroom facility that employees can legally access.

18.56.090 - License Approval, Denial, Suspension, Revocation, and Appeals.

A. The director shall approve, approve with conditions, or deny a mobile food vendor license application based on the standards and criteria set forth in this chapter and/or, if any, in the administrative guidelines. The director may impose conditions of approval on a mobile food vendor license in the exercise of his or her reasonable discretion. The applicant shall be notified of any conditions of approval in writing. 552

20 B. The director may deny, suspend or revoke a license issued under this chapter. A license may be denied, suspended or revoked for any of the following reasons:

1. Fraud, misrepresentation or a false statement contained in the application for a license.

2. Fraud, misrepresentation or a false statement made in connection with the selling of food.

3. The receipt of an “F” grade during an inspection or an investigation in response to a complaint from the Solano County Health Department.

4. Repeated failure to address pollutant discharge(s), including but not limited to, wash water discharge, fuel, detergents, tire dressings, foams, or any other chemicals.

5. Violating any of the operating standards required under this chapter.

6. Violating any of the license conditions imposed by this chapter.

7. Causing a public nuisance or causing an unlawful or criminal activity to occur during the operation of a mobile food vending activity or group site; or any other violation of this chapter.

C. Any person who has been notified regarding the denial of their mobile food vendor license application or the possible suspension or revocation of their mobile food vendor license may appeal the decision pursuant to Section 18.84.020 of this Code.

D. When circumstances demonstrate that continued operation by a mobile food vendor poses an imminent threat to the public’s health and safety, the city may immediately suspend or revoke a mobile food vendor license. The mobile food vendor may request a hearing pursuant to Section 18.84.020 of this Code.

E. It is unlawful for a mobile food vendor whose license has been suspended or revoked to continue to operate. If the city suspends or revokes a license, the mobile food vendor shall immediately cease all food vending operations.

F. A mobile food vendor aggrieved by an order issued by the director may appeal the order to state district court.

18.56.100 Food Safety; Health Inspections and Certificates.

A. Food hygiene standards. Mobile food vendors shall comply with all Solano County Health Department regulations.

B. Food safety certification. At all times, at least one person working in a mobile food vending vehicle must hold a current food safety certification. 553

21 C. Health inspections. For the purpose of protecting public health and safety, Solano County shall ensure that mobile food vending vehicles are inspected on an ongoing, randomized basis, based on their classification and inspection grade.

D. Recordkeeping. The city shall establish and maintain a database to record the names of licensees, inspections, inspection reports and public complaints. The database shall also allow mobile food vendors to provide documentation to Solano County as needed.

E. Inspection criteria and grading. Health inspections shall be conducted by Solano County using inspection criteria based on the state food code and a score-based grading system established by Solano County based on objective factors. The inspection criteria shall provide a letter-grade format that rates the vendor with an “A,” “B,” “C,” or “F” grade, based on the score received during the inspection. If a vendor receives two consecutive “A” grades, it shall be given a certificate of excellence. If a vendor receives an “F” grade, the city may suspend the vendor’s license until the vendor corrects the violations, is re- inspected and receives a grade of “A,” “B,” or “C.”
F. Health certificate. Upon completion of an inspection, the Solano County shall issue a health certificate to the mobile food vendor displaying the vendor’s letter grade or achievement of excellence and record the grade in the database.

G. Mobile food vendor license decal. Once all required County inspections and permits are approved, and the vendor has both a valid city business license and an approved mobile food vendor license, the mobile food vending vehicle may legally operate in the city. The operation must comply with all applicable requirements set by the county, city, and other relevant agencies. The mobile food vendor must place the official City of Suisun City mobile food vendor license decal in a clearly visible spot on the mobile food vendor vehicle. This decal confirms that the vehicle is fully approved and authorized to operate within the city.

18.56.110 - Enforcement.

The director shall be responsible for enforcing this chapter. If periodic inspections are necessary to monitor compliance, reinspection fees shall be assessed against the party responsible.

A. Violation. Failure to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter is declared to be prima facie evidence of an existing violation, a continuing blight and a declared public nuisance and may be abated by the city, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter

8.12 of this Code. Any person in violation will be subject to administrative penalties, citations, civil action and/or other legal remedies that may be available to the city.

B. Responsibility. If a mobile food vending vehicle is on a privately owned parcel, the parcel owner and the mobile food vending vehicle or group site organizer have joint and several liability for compliance with this chapter, including fees, administrative citations, civil actions, and/or legal remedies relating to a mobile food vending vehicle or group site. The parcel owner remains liable for any violation of duties imposed by this chapter even if the parcel owner has, by agreement, imposed on the mobile food vending vehicle or group site organizer the duty of complying with the provisions of this chapter. 554

22 C. Revocation. The city reserves the right to revoke any mobile food vending license at any time for any of the reasons stated in Section 18.56.090 of this chapter or if it is found that the approved activity is violating any of the provisions of the Suisun City Municipal Code.

Revocation shall be immediately effective upon written notice of the revocation by the city. Should a mobile food vendor license be revoked, the vendor shall be required to cease operation immediately.

D. Penalties.

1. Any violation of this chapter is punishable by an administrative citation in accordance with Chapter 1.20 of this Code.

2. Appeals of administrative citations shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures and requirements Chapter 1.20 of this Code.

3. Notwithstanding paragraphs 1 and 2, enforcement action specifically authorized by this section may be utilized in conjunction with, or in addition to, any other statutory, code, administrative or regulatory procedure applicable to this chapter, including charges of an infraction or misdemeanor, as permitted under applicable law. In addition, nothing in this section shall be interpreted to preclude or limit the city from seeking injunctive or other judicial relief.

4. Notwithstanding the above, mobile food vendors who vend from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other nonmotorized conveyance, or from one’s person, upon a public sidewalk or other pedestrian path, shall be subject to enforcement in accordance with Section 5.34.110, and appeals in accordance with Section 5.34.120.

18.56.120 - Liability and Indemnification.

A. To the fullest extent permitted by law, any actions taken by a public officer or employee under the provisions of this chapter shall not become the personal liability of any public officer or employee of the city.

B. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the licensee under this chapter shall defend (with counsel acceptable to the city), indemnify and hold harmless the city, the city council, the city planning commission, and their respective officials, officers, employees, representatives, agents and volunteers (hereafter collectively called "city") from any liability, damages, actions, claims, demands, litigation, loss (direct or indirect), causes of action, proceedings or judgment (including legal costs, attorneys' fees, expert witness or consultant fees, city attorney or staff time, expenses or costs) (collectively called "action") against the city to attack, set aside, void or annul, any food vending-related approvals and actions or implementation of such approvals and actions, including conditions of approval, if any. The city may elect, in its sole discretion, to participate in the defense of said action and the licensee shall reimburse the city for its reasonable legal costs and attorneys' fees.
555

23 C. Within ten (10) calendar days of the service of the pleadings upon the city of any action as specified in Subsection B above, the licensee shall execute a Letter of Agreement with the city, acceptable to the city attorney, which memorializes the above obligations. These obligations and the Letter of Agreement shall survive termination, extinguishment or invalidation of the food vending-related approval. Failure to timely execute the Letter of Agreement does not relieve the licensee of any of the obligations contained in this section or any other requirements or performance or operating standards that may be imposed by the city.”
SECTION 3. CEQA. The City Council finds that the adoption of this Ordinance is exempt from environmental review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the adoption of this Ordinance may have a significant effect on the environment.

SECTION 4. SEVERABILITY. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance, or any part thereof, is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity or effectiveness of the remaining portions or applications of the chapter. The City Council hereby declares that it would have adopted each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsection, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid or unconstitutional.

SECTION 5. ADOPTION AND EFFECTIVE DATE. This Ordinance shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days after its second reading and adoption.

SECTION 6. CERTIFICATION. The City Clerk shall certify the adoption of this Ordinance and shall cause the same to be posted and codified in the manner required by law.

INTRODUCED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Suisun City, California on the 17th day of March, 2026.

PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Suisun City, California on the ____ day of _____________, 2026.

____________________________________
Alma Hernandez, Mayor

ATTEST:
____________________________________________
Anita Skinner, City Clerk

APPROVED AS TO FORM:
556

24 ___________________________________________
Patrick Enright, City Attorney

CERTIFICATION
I, Anita Skinner, City Clerk of the City of Suisun City and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of said City, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing ordinance was introduced at a regular meeting of the said City Council held on March 17th, 2026, and regularly passed and adopted at a regular meeting of said City Council held on____________ ____, 2026, by the following vote:

AYES: Councilmembers:

NOES: Councilmembers:

ABSENT: Councilmembers:

ABSTAIN: Councilmembers:

WITNESS my hand and the seal of said City this ___ day of _____________ 2026.

________________________________
Anita Skinner, City Clerk
557
A.

B.

C.

D.
i.
ii.

Chapter 5.34 - VENDORS

5.34.010 - Business license.

Every vendor or peddler shall obtain a city business license in accordance with Title 5 of this code.

This provision shall apply even if the operation is an accessory to another licensed business. (Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.020 - Vending—General requirements.

Vendors or peddlers shall not sell alcoholic beverages.

The city council shall by resolution establish vendor and peddler cart operation, design and location guidelines. These guidelines shall set forth specific criteria that operators of vendor and peddler carts must comply with.

Within the downtown specific plan area, vendors and peddlers, shall be allowed only on the public property identified in the vendor and peddler operation, design and location guidelines and subject to the issuance of a city licensing agreement.

In areas of the city not within the downtown specific plan area, vendor and peddler carts, shall be allowed:

On city property subject to the issuance of a city licensing agreement; or On private property, subject to the underlying zoning requirements. (Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.030 - Architectural review.

Vendor or peddler carts shall be reviewed and approved by the planning division staff consistent with the provisions of the vendor and peddler cart operation, design and location guidelines. A decision by the planning division staff may be appealed to the architectural review board by the applicant, upon payment of the appeal fee, and submittal of a written letter of appeal. (Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.040 - License and permit display.

At all times while vending, a valid business license or other valid city permit shall be displayed at the vending site.
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(Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.050 - Hours.

Vending merchandise shall be restricted to the hours between five a.m. and ten p.m. in commercial zones, and nine a.m. to sunset in residential zones.
(Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.060 - Location.

In no case shall a vendor or peddler operate:

Within 500 feet of any school grounds, prior to four p.m. on any days school is in session; Within 25 feet of any street intersection;
At a location where space for pedestrian passage will be reduced to less than six feet; Within 12 feet of the outer edge of any entrance way to any building or facility used by the public, including but not limited to doors, driveways and emergency exits measured in each direction parallel to the building; excepting therefrom a vending cart located directly in front of an entrance to a building space in which the vendor is the owner or lease holder and is the sole occupant of that space;
On any sidewalk or street adjacent to a curb which has been designated as a white, yellow, blue or red zone or any portion of private property within 15 feet of a curb which has been designated as a white, yellow, blue or red zone;
Within 15 feet of any crosswalk or fire hydrant;
In a marked parking space necessary to meet the minimum parking requirements of the adjacent use(s) during the hours in which vending occurs; At any location where such operation may create a safety or traffic hazard. For purposes of this chapter, the judgement of a police officer or fire officer, or other city employee, exercised in good faith, shall be deemed conclusive as to whether the operation is creating a traffic hazard; or
Within a city-owned public park, plaza, parking lot or recreation area, except when licensed by the city as a concessionaire or when authorized by the city. (Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.070 - Performance criteria.

Vendor and peddler carts shall be removed from the site or stored in a closed building out of the public view at the end of each business day.
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The vendor or peddler must have written permission to operate from the owner or owner's agent responsible for management of the property on which the cart is to operate.

The vendor or peddler must provide adequate receptacles for litter associated with the cart.

The vendor shall keep the area clean throughout the day and leave the site in a clean state at the end of each day or vending period. If necessary, the vendor or peddler shall also provide or arrange for increased pick up at public receptacles.

The cart shall not be located in or so as to damage landscaped areas.

All other necessary permits and licenses must be obtained and inspections made as required by the city of Suisan City, Solano County and/or the state of California. Unless otherwise required, copies of all required permits and licenses must be kept with the vendor or peddler.

Applicability. The provisions of this section shall apply to any and all vendors and peddlers operating on the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter and thereafter.

Noise. No vendor shall use amplified sound of any sort to attract customers. Radios for personal use by vendors or any other noise generator shall not be audible 20 feet from vendor's location.
(Ord. 621 § 2 (part), 1995)

5.34.080 - Exemptions.

The following activities shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter:

Sales of items at events for which a valid temporary use permit has been issued; pursuant to Section 18.66.075 of the city code or Section 8.6.3 of the downtown/waterfront specific plan;
Special events held at city-owned facilities as may be authorized by the city; Events held at public or private schools, which are sponsored or co-sponsored by the school, provided that all licenses required by state law or county ordinance are obtained; Sales from peddler vehicles on noncommercial property or on or adjacent to projects that are under construction, provided that the vehicle is lawfully parked on a public street and may stop at such site for no more than fifteen minutes without moving to a new location at least 500 feet removed therefrom and may not return to a location where the same or similar vehicle stopped to vend within the previous three hours; Persons who are engaged in a business conducted from a building or structure constructed on a permanent foundation that involves outdoor display or storage of goods or merchandise (e.g., nurseries, lumber yards) shall not be considered vendors under this chapter;
Sales conducted totally within an enclosed permanent building. 560
(Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)

5.34.090 - Liability insurance.

All vendors and peddlers, excepting those that operate solely on private property, shall be covered by an unconditional public general liability insurance policy that includes products and/or completed operations for not less than the minimum amount specified by the city. Such policies shall contain a provision which includes the city as also named insured and holding the city, its officers and employees harmless from any and all claims, including negligence by reason of granting permission to use such public property. Such insurance policies shall contain an endorsement that the company issuing such policy or policies will not allow the same to be canceled without serving, by first class mail, 30 days advance notice of cancellation upon the city. The form of said insurance, including endorsements, shall be subject to the review and approval of the city.
(Ord. 621 § 2(part), 1995)
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Chapter 18.56 - MOBILE FOOD VENDORS

18.56.010 - Purpose.

The purpose of this chapter is to allow for the provision of food and beverages from mobile vending carts and mobile food trucks, while also ensuring public health and safety through appropriate sanitation, parking, and operation.
(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.020 - Applicability.

This chapter is applicable in all zoning districts in the city, and all mobile food vendors shall conform to the applicable provisions. Where these regulations are silent, the county regulations shall apply (for example, as regards food sanitation). Mobile food vendors may include mobile food and beverage carts (e.g., hot dog or espresso carts) or mobile food trucks that serve ready-made foods (e.g., cold trucks or hot trucks).
(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.030 - Definitions.
"Cold truck." A mobile food truck that sells pre-packaged food, such as cold sandwiches and drinks (e.g., industrial catering vehicle).
"Commissary." A wholesale supermarket where mobile food truck drivers purchase food in bulk. "Fleet operator." A person who owns more than one truck and leases these trucks and/or hires individuals to drive them.
"Hot truck." A mobile food truck that sells hot prepared food such as hamburgers, burritos, or tacos. "Mobile food cart." A mobile food cart facilitates the selling of street food to pedestrians. A food cart may be towed or pushed by a vehicle or towed or pushed by a person (a hand-cart). (Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.040 - Licensing and inspection.

Mobile food vendors must apply for a business license through the city administrative services department and pay all applicable licensing fees. The license must be conspicuously displayed on the vehicle.
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Mobile food carts and trucks and any appurtenances thereto must meet the health and safety standards found in California Health and Safety Code, Sections 113700 et seq. These standards are administered and monitored by the county department of resource management, environmental health services division. A valid health permit must be acquired from the county department of resource management, environmental health services division and displayed on the mobile food cart or truck.

Mobile food trucks must be registered with the state department of motor vehicles. Drivers must maintain a valid California driver's license.

Mobile food carts and mobile food trucks may apply for a special event food vendor permit through the county.
(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.050 - Hours of operation.

Hours of operation must be between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., except during special events, which are permitted separately and may have hours associated with the event. Hours of operation should be consistent with the type of product sold, seasonal constraints (e.g., ice cream during warmer months), and the location of the vehicle (e.g., in a commercial area that closes at 5:00 p.m.). (Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.060 - Parking.

Mobile food vendors must obtain a city permit that identifies location(s) of operation. The permit may specify a single location, multiple locations, or in the case of mobile food trucks, areas of operation.

Service parking for mobile food carts may be at a pre-approved public venue (such as a park, waterfront, or downtown plaza) or at a private location (such as a medical facility, or pedestrian plaza at an office, mall or large commercial establishment).

If parked in a pedestrian right-of-way, mobile food carts must keep a minimum five feet of clear space for pedestrian passage.

Service parking for mobile food trucks may be at a pre-approved public or private venue where the vehicle does not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular traffic (such as parking lots near sports fields, commercial centers, and parks) or at a private venue (a factory parking lot or mall).

For multiple vehicles, overnight parking must be at a commissary, restaurant, fleet yard, or other approved location. Overnight parking may not be on a public street, unless it is a single mobile food cart or truck located at the vendor's residence. 563
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(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.070 - Operation on public roadways.

When traveling on a public roadway, mobile food vendors shall observe and obey all traffic regulations and parking restrictions.

When stopped on a public roadway, mobile food trucks may not block, impede traffic or motorist sight distance.

Mobile food trucks must dispense food from the sidewalk side of the vehicle (not the street side).
(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.080 - Sanitation.

An approved restroom with hand washing facilities are to be located within 200 feet of the mobile food truck or food cart, if the cart or vehicle is parked in a single location for over an hour. The restroom must be readily available for use by the operator. Hand washing facilities must include a clean and reliable supply of hot and cold water, soap dispensers, and towel dispensers. Approved restroom facilities may also be located on the mobile food truck.

Liquid waste from the mobile food cart or mobile food truck shall be disposed of at a commissary, restaurant, or other approved facility. Waste shall not be disposed of in the sanitary sewer/storm drainage, or in public waste receptacles, such as those intended for pedestrians.

Mobile food trucks and food carts must provide an external trash receptacle available for customer use. Trash from customers shall be removed and disposed of daily at the commissary, restaurant, or fleet center.
(Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)

18.56.090 - Food operations.

Refer to the county mobile food vendor regulations regarding food operations and sanitation. (Ord. No. 743, § 3, 3-21-2017)
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1 Presented by:

Proposed Mobile Food Vendor and Sidewalk Vendor OrdinancesMarch 17, 2026Patrick Enright, City Attorney BackgroundSenate Bill 946 (2018)•Sought to encourage sidewalk vending•Decriminalized sidewalk vending and limited enforcement to administrative citationsSenate Bill 972 (2022)•Health permit no longer required for sidewalk vendors and other compact mobile food operations with 25 square feet or less of display area that sell only prepackaged or non-hazardous foodsSolano County•Requested all cities adopt similar mobile food vending provisions 1 2
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2 Current CodeChapter 5.34 “Vendors”•Last updated in 1995•Applies to all vendors, including mobile food vendors •Conflicts with Chapter 18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors”•Conflicts with state lawsChapter 18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors”•Last updated in 2017•Applies to vendors selling food from mobile vending carts and beverage carts and food trucks•Generally refers to Solano County for operational requirements•Conflicts with state laws Proposed CodeRepeals and replaces Chapters 5.34 “Vendors” and Chapter 18.56 “Mobile Food Vendors”New Mobile Food Vendors Chapter mirrors City of Fairfield’s Mobile Food Vendors ordinance adopted in Nov. 2025Clarifies which regulations apply to which vendor typeAligns regulations with state lawClarifies vending requirementsStandardizes permitting and operational requirements for sidewalk and mobile food vendors 3 4
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3 Mobile Food Vendors and Sidewalk VendorsSidewalk Vendors•Applies to vendors who sell goods or food items on a public sidewalk from a non-motorized conveyance and do not require a Solano County Health Department permit– Includes compact mobile food operations with 25 square feet or less of display area and only sell prepackaged and non-hazardous foods, which are exempt from health permitting requirementsMobile Food Vendors•Applies to vendors selling food from any motorized vehicle such as a truck, trailer, or non-motorized cart and require a Solano County Health Department permit Standards: Mobile Food and Sidewalk VendorsObtain business license from City•Submit application with required licenses, permits, vendor information, type of vending, etc. •If Mobile Food Vendor, submit applicable Solano County Health permitsOperational Standards•Vending permitted daily between 7:00 am and 10:00 pm•Prohibits obstructing pedestrian or vehicular traffic•Requires maintaining access consistent with ADA•Requires vendors to maintain clean and sanitary conditions in and around the vending location 5 6
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4 Standards: Mobile Food and Sidewalk VendorsProhibits from blocking or impeding access to building entrances or exits, trash enclosures, parking meters, emergency vehicle routes, pedestrian or bicycle routes, and other City facilitiesProhibits vending within 100 feet of another sidewalk vendor or mobile food vendorProhibits vending within 1000 feet of a school serving children between kindergarten and high school between the hours of 7 am and 6 pm Monday through Friday Sidewalk VendorsSidewalk Vendors ordinance is substantially similar to Mobile Food Vendor ordinance for consistencyEnforcement – Limited by SB 946•No criminal penalties•Administrative fines only– Amount set by statute– City Code enforcement staff may immediately abate any public nuisance which creates an immediate threat to public safety•Director shall provide person with notice of right to request ability-to-pay determination – May reduce amount of fine owed 7 8
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5 Mobile Food VendorsAdditional Requirements•Must provide two 32-gallon trashcans within fifteen feet of the unitFood Safety•Must comply with all Solano County Health Department requirements– Food handlers certification; health permitEnforcement•Depends on type of mobile food vendor– If selling from motorized vehicle – generally no enforcement restrictions– If selling on a sidewalk from a non-motorized conveyance (e.g., pushcarts), enforcement limited to administrative fines under SB 946 Any questions?Thank you for your participation!
Patrick [email protected]
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