Belmont City Council Regular Meeting - June 19, 2025
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Belmont City Council Regular Meeting - June 19, 2025
The City of Belmont City Council held a regular meeting on June 19, 2025, at 6:30 PM following a closed session. The meeting included a Juneteenth proclamation, public comments, approval of consent items, three public hearings on sewer and storm drainage fees, and adoption of the fiscal year 2025-2026 budget. The council voted unanimously on all items.
Consent Calendar
- The council approved the consent calendar, which included routine items, by a 5-0 vote. Vice Mayor Pang Meganaris asked if the city had considered moving from Microsoft to Google Suites for cost savings. City Manager responded that after evaluation, staying with Microsoft through a state purchasing agreement was the most cost-effective option for the next three years. Councilmember McEwen expressed dissatisfaction with Microsoft but voted in favor, urging continued exploration of alternatives.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Marjorie Ruisy Dalgo (PG&E local government affairs representative) introduced herself as the new single point of contact for 21 peninsula jurisdictions, committing to serve constituents and leaving contact cards.
- Chuck (Belmont Park Boosters representative) announced the start of the summer concert series in Twin Pines Park (Sundays, 1-4 PM, five concerts this year due to volunteer shortages). He thanked sponsors and noted improved wine and beer offerings, as well as raffle prizes.
- Gerard (San Juan Hills area property owner) appealed to the council to investigate what he described as arbitrary and inconsistent decisions by city staff on land use issues, specifically regarding road improvement determinations and certificate of compliance requirements. He stated that staff had not provided explanations for differing treatment of his property versus others, and urged the council to hold staff accountable.
- Max (property owner and attorney for a client) voiced concerns about delays in obtaining certificates of compliance for vacant parcels. He noted that his client's application (submitted August 2024, planning number 2025-003) and his own (submitted December 2024, number 2025-004) experienced similar delays in communication and processing. He stated that his client's property entered escrow that day and expressed concern that the city's slow processing could jeopardize the sale.
Discussion Items
- Budget Adoption for Fiscal Year 2025-2026: Finance Director Casaneda presented the proposed budget. Total operating budget (city and fire district): $80.8 million; total capital improvement: $13.5 million; citywide total: $94.3 million. Headcount remains at 144.75 FTE, with proposed reallocations. General fund revenues are budgeted $1.4 million lower than expenditures, covered by reserves. The city manager noted that the state legislature's budget version includes restoration of the $1.7 million VLF shortfall, but the governor must still sign. If restored, the reserve use would be reversed at mid-year review. The council discussed the Gann limit (spending cap from Prop 13), property tax sharing (Belmont receives only 7% of property tax dollars), and the need for a permanent VLF solution. The council also approved a comprehensive fee study for the next fiscal year.
- Public Hearings on Sewer and Storm Drainage Fees: Three separate public hearings were held for the annual reports on collection of sewer service fees, sewer treatment facility charges, and storm drainage fees for FY 2025-26. All were duly noticed, no protests were received. The council approved each by 5-0 votes, authorizing the city clerk to file reports with the San Mateo County Tax Collector.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar: Approved 5-0 (Councilmembers Jordan, McEwen, Latimerlow, Vice Mayor Pang Meganaris, Mayor Mates voting yes).
- Public Hearing 9A (Sewer Service Fees): Resolution approved 5-0.
- Public Hearing 9B (Sewer Treatment Facility Charges): Resolution approved 5-0.
- Public Hearing 9C (Storm Drainage Fees): Resolution approved 5-0.
- Item 9D (Budget Adoption): The council adopted four resolutions: approving the FY 2025-2026 budget, approving the appropriations limit (Gann limit), reauthorizing the special library tax, and approving revisions to the master fee schedule. All passed 5-0.
Meeting Transcript
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 day of observance observance, which is June 19th, 2025. We have a proclamation. I'll just read a little bit of it here. 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 in 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, resolve 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 will be we will be commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. That is all for our special presentations. We will move on to public comments on items not on the agenda. This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons wishing to address the body on Eddie City matter not on the agenda. The period for public comment is limited to 15 minutes with a maximum of three minutes per speaker. And uh I'll um remind the um council and the public of our protocols and policies regarding um comment period and public comment, uh, which is all on our published agenda. Um Madam Clerk, uh do we have any public comments on items not on the agenda for item six? Um yes, we do have a few public speaker slips here. Um first up we have Marjorie. Um you'll have three minutes whenever you're ready. Madam Mayor, Mayor, Madam Vice Mayor, Council members, good evening. My name is Marjorie Ruisy Dalgo. Thank you for this opportunity to introduce myself to you. I am your PG ⁇ E 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. And this includes department heads, city managers, senior staff. I've already met some of them. We've been in contact. I started in late April and I've come tonight just to say hello and commit to you here publicly that I will do my utmost to help serve your constituents. But I do not do this by myself, thankfully. 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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