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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Belmont City Council Meeting - June 10, 2025: Budget Adoption, Juneteenth Proclamation, and Consent Calendar Approvals

City Council — Tuesday, June 10, 2025

BodyBelmont, California

SessionCity Council

DateTuesday, June 10, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:00:00

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

4:11

Good evening, everyone.

4:12

We are here for a city council meeting at Twin Pines Lane at City Hall today on June 10th, 2025.

4:22

We're opening this meeting early at 630 for a closed session.

4:26

And then we will come back at seven o'clock for our regularly agendized meeting.

4:35

She will be here shortly.

4:37

But for the time being, we are officially opening the meeting.

4:55

And absent currently is Mayor Mates.

4:58

Correct.

5:00

She will be back.

5:05

So at this time, we will close this meeting and head off to close session in the ELC.

5:17

Are there any participants online?

5:23

Beautiful.

5:24

Then off we go.

10:33

Good evening.

10:34

This is the City of Belmont City Council regular meeting, June 10th, 2025.

10:39

We are currently in the county and the council chambers.

10:44

And we have just come back from our closed session at 6 30 p.m.

10:50

We are now on item three, which is the Pledge of Allegiance.

10:53

Please rise if you're able.

11:13

Okay, thank you.

11:14

Item four, report from closed session.

11:17

Do we have any reports today?

11:19

Good evening, Madam Mayor.

11:20

We did have a closed session tonight, however, at this time we do not have reportable action.

11:25

Okay, thank you.

11:26

Moving on to item five, special presentations.

11:29

5A is a proclamation on Juneteenth, day of a day of observance observance, which is June 19th, 2025.

11:38

Uh we have a proclamation.

11:39

I'll just read a little bit of it here.

11:41

Uh observing Juneteenth Independence Day commemorating the end of slavery in the United States.

11:46

Whereas President Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation on January 1st, 1863, declaring all enslaved people in Confederate states to be free.

11:55

And whereas despite this proclamation, enforcement in many parts of the country, particularly in the Southwest, was delayed, and freedom did not reach all enslaved African Americans until much later.

12:07

And whereas on June 19th, 1865, more than two years later, Union troops led by Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and formally announced the end of the war and the emancipation of all enslaved people in the region, marking the date that would come to be known as Juneteenth.

12:24

And whereas Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, and Emancipation Day has long been recognized and celebrated within the African American community as a symbol of liberation, resilience, and cultural pride.

12:36

Whereas in 2021, Juneteenth, National Independence Day was officially designated a federal holiday, reinforcing its significance in American history and the ongoing pursuit of equity, inclusion, and justice.

12:47

And whereas the City of Belmont encourages all residents to join in reflection, education, and celebration in honor of Juneteenth, acknowledging the pain of the past, the progress that has been made, and the work that still lies ahead.

13:01

Now, therefore, be it resolved that I, Julia Mates, Mayor of the City of Belmont, on behalf of the Belmont City Council, resolved that June 19th, 2025 is recognized as Juneteenth Independence Day, and urges the Belmont community to actively raise awareness of the significance of this celebration in African American history and in the heritage of our nation and city.

13:22

So June 19th.

14:32

Thank you for this opportunity to introduce myself to you.

14:34

I am your PGE local government affairs representative for the 21 jurisdictions on the peninsula.

14:40

This means that I am your single day-to-day single point of contact.

14:44

This includes department heads, city managers, senior staff.

14:48

I've already met some of them.

14:49

We've been in contact.

15:00

But I do not do this by myself, thankfully.

15:01

I am part of a whole PG ⁇ E team based out of the San Carlos Service Center.

15:05

And this includes gas and electric crews, emergency response, service planning, vegetation management, everyone responsible for the customer experience, promoting anything and everything that goes into serving the hometown.

15:17

I've left my contact cards with your city manager, with your city clerk.

15:21

Please feel free to reach out.

15:22

I look forward to meeting each and every single one of you individually for coffee, on a walk, on a call.

15:28

Please reach out.

15:29

I'm here.

15:31

Thank you.

15:32

Thank you so much.

15:33

It's a pleasure meeting you.

15:35

And I know we'll be in contact.

15:37

I know our residents are going to be eager to know that we've got a new contact at PGD, so hopefully we won't be in contact too often.

15:46

No, it would be great.

15:47

I've already been in contact with a few of you, but I wanted to come and put a face to the name and to the email address and to the phone number so that you know who I am.

15:55

But I also look forward to engaging with you at community events, all of the things that go on in the peninsula.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Fiscal Sustainability█████████████████████████████████33%

Procedural███████████████████████23%

Public Engagement██████████10%

Community Engagement█████████9%

Land Use Planning████████8%

Water And Wastewater Management██████6%

Parks and Recreation████4%

Budget Equity Analysis███3%

Racial Equity██2%

Summary of Proceedings

Belmont City Council Meeting - June 10, 2025

The Belmont City Council held a regular meeting on June 10, 2025, at City Hall, beginning with a closed session at 6:30 PM and the public session at 7:00 PM. The council approved a proclamation recognizing Juneteenth, adopted the Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget and related fees, and unanimously approved consent calendar items and three annual sewer/storm fee reports. Public comment focused on concerns about city staff handling of planning and certificate of compliance applications.

Special Presentations

Juneteenth Proclamation: Mayor Julia Mates read and presented a proclamation designating June 19, 2025, as Juneteenth Independence Day, urging the community to raise awareness of African American history and heritage.
PG&E Representative Introduction: A new PG&E local government affairs representative introduced themselves as the single point of contact for Belmont and surrounding jurisdictions.
Summer Concert Series Announcement: Chuck, representing the Belmont Park Boosters, announced the 2025 summer concert series in Twin Pines Park, running Sundays from 1–4 PM starting June 15. The series has been reduced from seven to five concerts due to volunteer shortages. Sponsors include Stanford, Davino, and Recology. A wine and beer upgrade was noted.

Public Comments & Testimony

Gerard (property owner in San Juan Hills area): Appealed to the council to investigate what he described as arbitrary and inconsistent decisions by city planning staff regarding improved road frontage determinations and certificate of compliance requirements. He stated that staff refused to explain inconsistencies and lacked transparency.
Max (property owner and representative for a client): Voiced concerns over prolonged delays in processing certificate of compliance applications submitted in August 2024 (client) and December 2024 (own). He noted both applications had not progressed, and communication from planners was deficient. He stated his client's property entered escrow that day, and delays could jeopardize the sale.

Consent Calendar

8A. Three-Year Microsoft Enterprise Agreement: Authorized the City Manager to execute a $311,550 agreement ($103,850/year) with Crayon Software Experts, LLC. Vice Mayor Pang-Maganaris asked if the city had considered migrating to Google Suites for cost savings. Councilmember McCune criticized Microsoft as inferior but did not vote against the item. Approved 5-0.
8B. Permanent Encroachment Agreement: Authorized a retaining wall encroachment at 716 Alameda de las Pulgas. Approved 5-0.

Discussion Items

9A. Sewer Service Fees FY 2025-26: Public Works Director Nisha Patel presented the annual report for collection on the tax roll. No majority protest was received. Approved 5-0.
9B. Sewer Treatment Facility Charges FY 2025-26: Same process for Silicon Valley Clean Water charges. No protests. Approved 5-0.
9C. Storm Drainage Fees FY 2025-26: Same process for NPDES Storm Water Compliance Program fees. No protests. Approved 5-0.
9D. Adopt Budget and Related Items for FY 2025-26: Finance Director Grace Castaneda presented the budget. Highlights:
- Total operating budget: $80.8 million (city + fire district).
- Capital improvement: $13.5 million; five-year CIP plan: $61.9 million.
- General fund revenues are budgeted $1.4 million below expenditures, covered by reserves. A potential $1.7 million Vehicle License Fee (VLF) reimbursement from the state (included in the legislative budget but not yet signed by the governor) could restore the gap.
- City Manager Afshin Oskoui noted the city’s state delegation successfully advocated for VLF restoration, but a permanent solution is needed.
- A worst-case scenario showed fund balance declines over 10 years if VLF is not backfilled.
- Resolutions adopted: operating budget for city and fire district (144.75 FTEs), GANN appropriations limit (based on Prop 13 formula), special library tax (unchanged), and revisions to the Master Revenue Schedule (fee adjustments: CPI 1.3%, building fees 6%, and a planned comprehensive fee study).
Councilmembers expressed appreciation for state delegation efforts and emphasized the need for a permanent VLF fix. The mayor noted that Belmont receives only 7% of each property tax dollar for the general fund. The council moved to adopt the three resolutions; the transcript ends before the vote is recorded, but no opposition was voiced and the agenda recommended adoption.

Key Outcomes

Juneteenth Proclamation was read and formally presented.
Consent Calendar (Microsoft agreement and encroachment) approved 5-0.
Sewer service fees, treatment facility charges, and storm drainage fees all approved 5-0 with no public protests.
Fiscal Year 2025-26 Budget and related resolutions were discussed and moved for adoption; the final vote is presumed unanimous based on the discussion and agenda recommendation (transcript cut).
The council directed staff to continue pursuing a permanent solution to the VLF shortfall and to conduct a comprehensive fee study.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone. We are here for a city council meeting at Twin Pines Lane at City Hall today on June 10th, 2025. We're opening this meeting early at 630 for a closed session. And then we will come back at seven o'clock for our regularly agendized meeting. She will be here shortly. But for the time being, we are officially opening the meeting. And absent currently is Mayor Mates. Correct. She will be back. So at this time, we will close this meeting and head off to close session in the ELC. Are there any participants online? Beautiful. Then off we go. Good evening. This is the City of Belmont City Council regular meeting, June 10th, 2025. We are currently in the county and the council chambers. And we have just come back from our closed session at 6 30 p.m. We are now on item three, which is the Pledge of Allegiance. Please rise if you're able. Okay, thank you. Item four, report from closed session. Do we have any reports today? Good evening, Madam Mayor. We did have a closed session tonight, however, at this time we do not have reportable action. Okay, thank you. Moving on to item five, special presentations. 5A is a proclamation on Juneteenth, day of a day of observance observance, which is June 19th, 2025. Uh we have a proclamation. I'll just read a little bit of it here. Uh observing Juneteenth Independence Day commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. Whereas President Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipation proclamation on January 1st, 1863, declaring all enslaved people in Confederate states to be free. And whereas despite this proclamation, enforcement in many parts of the country, particularly in the Southwest, was delayed, and freedom did not reach all enslaved African Americans until much later. And whereas on June 19th, 1865, more than two years later, Union troops led by Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and formally announced the end of the war and the emancipation of all enslaved people in the region, marking the date that would come to be known as Juneteenth. And whereas Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, and Emancipation Day has long been recognized and celebrated within the African American community as a symbol of liberation, resilience, and cultural pride. Whereas in 2021, Juneteenth, National Independence Day was officially designated a federal holiday, reinforcing its significance in American history and the ongoing pursuit of equity, inclusion, and justice. And whereas the City of Belmont encourages all residents to join in reflection, education, and celebration in honor of Juneteenth, acknowledging the pain of the past, the progress that has been made, and the work that still lies ahead. Now, therefore, be it resolved that I, Julia Mates, Mayor of the City of Belmont, on behalf of the Belmont City Council, resolved that June 19th, 2025 is recognized as Juneteenth Independence Day, and urges the Belmont community to actively raise awareness of the significance of this celebration in African American history and in the heritage of our nation and city. So June 19th. Thank you for this opportunity to introduce myself to you. I am your PGE local government affairs representative for the 21 jurisdictions on the peninsula. This means that I am your single day-to-day single point of contact. This includes department heads, city managers, senior staff. I've already met some of them. We've been in contact. But I do not do this by myself, thankfully. I am part of a whole PG ⁇ E team based out of the San Carlos Service Center. And this includes gas and electric crews, emergency response, service planning, vegetation management, everyone responsible for the customer experience, promoting anything and everything that goes into serving the hometown. I've left my contact cards with your city manager, with your city clerk. Please feel free to reach out. I look forward to meeting each and every single one of you individually for coffee, on a walk, on a call.

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