Berkeley City Council Meeting – January 21, 2026
Berkeley City Council Meeting – January 21, 2026
The Berkeley City Council met on January 21, 2026, at 6:30 PM for its first regular meeting after the winter recess. The meeting included ceremonial recognition of the city's poet laureates, public comment on non-agenda matters, approval of a consent calendar, and action on four items: separate sale of ADUs, vital records fees, recreation and camp fees, and zoning amendments for by-right housing and design review. The meeting adjourned at approximately 9:56 PM.
Ceremonial Items
- The council recognized outgoing Poet Laureate Aya de Leon (2024–2025) and welcomed incoming Poet Laureate Hanan Mazri. Aya de Leon passed a laurel of olive branches to Hanan Mazri, who recited a poem titled "Green." The city's first poet laureate, Rafael Jesus Gonzalez, was also acknowledged.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Non-agenda public comments (in-person and remote):
- Betsy Morris (East Bay Gray Panthers) reported on a Sacramento trip supporting AB 1157 to lower the cap and reduce homelessness among seniors and disabled individuals.
- Steve Tracy asked about the city's budget status, noting a $27 million deficit and questioning repayment to pension and workers' compensation funds.
- Kelly and Diana, Telegraph Avenue vendors, requested reinstatement of the code limiting vending to handmade goods, arguing that new business licenses allow vendors to compete unfairly with merchants.
- Andre Special (Cannabis Buyers Club of Berkeley) urged the council to bring back the cannabis commission, eliminate the city cannabis tax, allow consumption at dispensaries, and restrict deliveries to licensed Berkeley entities.
- Cheryl Davila (former council member) criticized the council for not addressing the genocide in Palestine and urged keeping the tear gas ban in place.
- Mariah Yates (District 1) thanked the council for removing a proposal to repeal the tear gas ban and noted her email on the topic was missing from the agenda correspondence.
- Madeline Roberts Rich called for reviving the downtown Berkeley cinema on Shattuck Avenue.
- Public comment on consent items:
- Several speakers supported the KPFA building's landmark designation (Carol Wolfley, Candace Schott, Colleen Mast, Antonio Ortiz).
- Karen spoke in favor of item 13 (emerging nonprofit affordable housing developers) and item 19 (tiny homes on wheels), but raised concerns about the throne bathroom's 10-minute warning for people with disabilities.
- Betsy Morrison and others supported tiny homes on wheels, emphasizing cost-effectiveness and the need for clear guidelines.
- Ben Gerhardstein (Walk Bike Berkeley) supported the transportation design standards item (item 18).
- Della Luna urged more oversight for emerging nonprofit affordable housing developers.
- A caller opposed item 8 (alcohol sales on Telegraph), citing student safety.
- Public comment on action items:
- Item 21 (ADU separate sale): Multiple speakers supported the supplemental tenant protections proposed by Vice Mayor Lunapara, including rent board commissioners, Cal Berkeley Democrats, and Cal Habitat for Humanity members. Some property owner representatives opposed the supplemental, arguing it would disincentivize ADU production and contradict Measure Q.
- Item 22 (vital records fees): Carol Wolfley linked the fees to leptospirosis concerns and sanitation.
- Item 23 (recreation fees): Alan Abchez (Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Commission chair) requested the council not approve the fee schedule, arguing Berkeley undercharges compared to surrounding jurisdictions and needs more park funding.
- Item 24 (zoning amendments): Cleo noted that one opportunity site (1049 Gilman Street) is a Dollar Tree, an affordable store for low-income residents. Kelly Hammergren supported retaining design review for program 32 projects. Brianna Morales (Housing Action Coalition) supported the ordinance as a balanced approach.
- Public comment on non-agenda matters (end of meeting):
- Carol Wolfley praised Officer Edwin Jakala for his compassionate response to a cognitively impaired man in a wheelchair.
- A caller urged the city to fix issues with a business lease and criticized the current administration.
- Alfred Twu invited attendees to the Connect Bay Area ballot measure kickoff.
- Daniel Brownson urged Berkeley to terminate its contract with Flock Safety, citing ties to the Trump administration and risks to immigrant communities.
- Janice Ching and Jeff Lomax criticized the practice of introducing supplementals after public comment is closed, as occurred on item 24.
Consent Calendar
- The consent calendar was approved unanimously (8-0, with Councilmember Bartlett absent but later recorded a yes vote). Key items included:
- Item 6: Expansion of the Throne Lab portable toilet pilot program.
- Item 8: Second reading allowing retail sale of alcohol in the Telegraph Avenue Commercial District.
- Item 9: Removal of unnecessary bicycle licensing requirements.
- Item 13: City engagement with emerging nonprofit affordable housing developers.
- Item 17: $150–$250 donations from council discretionary accounts to Caminos al Éxito, a bilingual conference for students and parents.
- Item 18: Referral to develop comprehensive transportation design standards.
- Item 19: Referral to allow tiny homes on wheels as permissible ADUs.
- Item 20: Establishment of a city council employee recognition program.
- Several council members expressed support for specific items, including the KPFA building landmark designation (noted during public comment).
Discussion Items
- Item 21 – Amendments to Title 21 to allow separate sale of ADUs (AB 1033):
- Staff presented the ordinance to allow ADU condominium conversions on eligible lots, with a ministerial process, safety inspections, and tenant protections for covered rentals.
- Vice Mayor Lunapara presented a supplemental adding tenant protections: 90-day right of first refusal for all ADU tenants, a five-year prohibition on conversion after no-fault evictions, and an option to pay an affordable housing mitigation fee or agree to rent control.
- Councilmember Humbert moved the staff version with an amendment reducing the right of first refusal from one year to 90 days for covered tenants only.
- After debate, Vice Mayor Lunapara's substitute motion (staff version plus 90-day right of first refusal for all tenants) failed 4-4? Actually vote: Taplin no, Bartlett yes, O'Keefe yes, Blackaby no, Lunapara yes, Humbert no, Mayor Ishii yes. That's 4 yes, 3 no? Wait, count: yes: Bartlett, O'Keefe, Lunapara, Mayor Ishii (4); no: Taplin, Blackaby, Humbert (3). So motion failed 4-3. Then the main motion by Humbert (staff version with 90-day right of first refusal for covered tenants) passed 6-1 (Lunapara opposed; Kessarwani and Trago recused).
- Councilmember Kessarwani and Trago recused due to conflicts of interest.
- Item 22 – Public Health Vital Statistics Vital Records Fees:
- Approved unanimously after a brief public hearing. Councilmember Humbert noted the fee increases are minimal over a lifetime.
- Item 23 – Changes to Selected Recreation and Camps Facilities and Program Fees:
- Approved unanimously. Councilmembers acknowledged the need for fee increases due to budget constraints but emphasized affordability and accessibility. Councilmember Taplin requested staff bring options for fee levels during budget deliberations.
- Item 24 – Amendments to Title 23 Zoning for By-Right Approval of Qualifying Housing Projects and Design Review Revisions:
- Staff presented the ordinance to implement Housing Element Program 32, allowing by-right approval for projects with at least 20% affordable units on 14 identified opportunity sites, and to revise design review for program 32 and middle housing projects in the MUR district.
- Councilmember Kessarwani proposed an amendment to exempt middle housing projects in the MUR district from design review, treating them like other middle housing projects. The amendment passed unanimously.
- The amended ordinance was approved unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar: Approved 8-0 (with one absent member later recorded as yes).
- Item 21 (ADU separate sale): Approved 6-1 (Lunapara opposed; Kessarwani and Trago recused) with Councilmember Humbert's motion: staff version plus 90-day right of first refusal for covered tenants only. The supplemental tenant protections were not adopted.
- Item 22 (vital records fees): Approved unanimously.
- Item 23 (recreation fees): Approved unanimously. Staff will bring fee level options during budget deliberations.
- Item 24 (zoning amendments): Approved unanimously with Councilmember Kessarwani's amendment to exempt MUR middle housing projects from design review.
- Next steps: The city manager will relay commendation to Officer Edwin Jakala. The council will consider surveillance issues at a future meeting.
Meeting Transcript
Good to go. Yes, we are ready. All right, very good. I'm going to call to order the Berkeley City Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, January, excuse me, January 20th, 2026. And I'd like to start off with a roll, please. Okay. Calling the role, Councilmember Kessarwani. Here. Taplin. Bartlett. Trago. O'Keefe. Here. Blackaby. Here. Lunapara. Here. Humbert. Present. And Mayor Ishii. Here. Okay, all present. Thank you very much. So it is the first meeting backed after our uh winter council recess. And we have been taking turns saying the land acknowledgement statement. So I'm beginning the year. I'm going to start us off. So the City of Berkeley recognizes that the community we live in was built on the territory of Huchun, the ancestral and unceded lands of the Chochenyo speaking Ohlone people, the ancestors and descendants of the sovereign Verona Band of Alameda County. This land was and continues to be of great importance to all of the Ohlone tribes and descendants of the Verona Band. As we begin our meeting tonight, we acknowledge and honor the original inhabitants of Berkeley, the documented 5,000 year history of a vibrant community at the West Berkeley Shell Mound and the Alone people who continue to reside in the East Bay. We recognize that Berkeley's residents have and continue to benefit from the use and occupation of this unceded stolen land since the City of Berkeley's incorporation in 1878. As stewards of the law regulating the city of Berkeley, it is not only vital that we recognize the history of this land, but also recognize that the Aloney people are present members of Berkeley and other East Bay communities today. The City of Berkeley will continue to build relationships with the Lishan tribe and to create meaningful actions that uphold the intention of this land acknowledgement. Thank you. Now moving on to our ceremonial items. So for our ceremonial items this evening, we have the presentation of Berkeley's uh poet laureates. So tonight we recognize Aya de Leon, Berkeley's 2024 to 2025 Poet Laureate, and thank her for her. Where are you? Oh, there you are. There we go. And thank her for her extraordinary service to the city. Aya's work has powerfully uplifted poetry as a tool for justice, storytelling, and community connection. I had the honor of having her present a poem at my inauguration ceremony a little over a year ago. I thank her for her leadership, generosity, and vision, which have strengthened the Berkeley's literary arts community in lasting ways. And we are deeply grateful for her contributions to our community. We are also honored to welcome Hanan Mazri. Ah. As Berkeley's next poet laureate, Hanana is a long-time Berkeley educator, poet, and cultural worker whose practice centers land, ancestry, and intergenerational learning. Her work reflects a deep commitment to youth, community, and creative stewardship.
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