OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Berkeley City Council Meeting – February 10, 2026: Housing Appeal, Proclamations, and Consent Calendar

City Council — Tuesday, February 10, 2026
BodyBerkeley, California
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, February 10, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 3:10:05
Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

Hello, everyone, good evening.

0:03

All right.

0:04

Hello.

0:06

I am going to call to order the Berkeley City Council meeting.

0:09

Today is Tuesday, February 10th, 2026.

0:13

Clerk, could you please take the roll?

0:15

Okay, Councilmember Kessarwani.

0:17

Here.

0:18

Kaplan.

0:20

Bartlett.

0:21

Here.

0:22

Tregu, I.

0:23

O'Keefe.

0:24

Present.

0:25

Here.

0:26

Lackaby.

0:27

Here.

0:27

Lunapara.

0:28

Here.

0:29

Humbert present and Mayor Ishi.

0:31

Here.

0:32

Okay.

0:32

Quorum is present.

0:33

All right.

0:34

So it is the first meeting of February, so we will have Councilmember O'Keefe read the land acknowledgement statement.

0:40

For those of you that don't know, we've been taking turns reading the land acknowledgement.

0:44

And so, Councilmember O'Keefe, if you could take it away, please.

0:47

Okay.

0:51

The City of Berkeley recognizes that the community we live in was built on the territory of the Huchun, the ancestral and unceded land of the Tucheno speaking Alone people, the ancestors and descendants of the sovereign Verona Band of Alameda County.

1:08

This land was and continues to be of great importance to all of the Alone tribes and descendants of the Verona Band.

1:15

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.

1:33

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.

1:44

I was stewards of the laws regulating the city of Berkeley, it is not only vital that we recognize the history of this land, but also recognize that the Alone people are present members of Berkeley and other East Bay communities today.

1:59

The City of Berkeley will continue to build relationships with the Lijan tribe and to create meaningful actions that uphold the intention of this land acknowledgement.

2:10

Thank you very much, Councilmember.

2:12

We will now move on to ceremonial items.

2:15

So we have a proclamation that was brought by Councilmember Humbert.

2:20

So, Councilmember, you're welcome to read the proclamation, and I know you have some remarks as well.

2:25

And actually, if the awardees would like to come forward, go ahead.

2:31

Yeah, I'll the whole troupe could come up if you'd like.

2:39

The entourage, thank you.

2:59

I want to thank the mayor and her staff for helping create a proclamation recognizing the work of Tom Broham and Barry Warren, who were instrumental in advocating for the City of Berkeley to establish first in the nation recognition of same-sex domestic partnerships.

3:17

I'm proud that these brave and persistent men are Berkeleyans.

3:32

Whereas Tom Broham and Barry Warren have shared their lives together since 1975, and through their tireless advocacy, fundamentally changed the landscape of civil rights for the LGBTQIA plus community in Berkeley, the United States, and across the world.

3:54

And whereas in 1979, while working for this city, the city of Berkeley, Tom Brough discovered that he could not enroll his partner Barry Warren in city health and dental benefits because those programs were strictly limited to married spouses.

4:12

And whereas Tom Broham recognized a critical contradiction between Berkeley's 1978 non-discrimination ordinance and its exclusionary marriage-based benefits, leading him to author two historic letters in August 1979, proposing the first domestic partnership policy.

4:32

And whereas Tom and Barry spent years persistently lobbying the City of Berkeley, the University of California, and local unions to adopt this new legal protection, providing a path for equity rooted in basic fairness and recognizing shared humanity.

4:50

And whereas their work inspired the formation of the East Bay Lesbian Gay Democratic Club, which organized a methodical community-led campaign that successfully made domestic partnerships a central issue in the 1984 Berkeley municipal elections.

5:08

And whereas in December 1984, the City of Berkeley enacted the first policy of its kind in California, and I think the nation, and Tom Brom and Barry Warren became the first couple to file for employee domestic partnership benefits under this landmark legislation.

5:25

And whereas this pioneering policy served as a national model, overcoming the resistance of health care providers, employers, and reactionary opposition, and paving the way for statewide registries, civil unions, and eventually full marriage equality.

5:44

Whereas Tom Broham continued his service to the public as the first openly gay elected official in the East Bay, serving as Peralta College community district trustee from 1986 to 2000, 14 years, where he remained a champion for educational opportunity.

6:01

And whereas since 2000, on a lighter note, Barry and Tom have hosted more than 100 community events, including more than 90 supper and song dinner concerts, bringing together local musicians and music lovers in celebration and community, and whereas Barry Warren, Barry and Warren's steadfast partnership in his own advocacy as a University of California employee were indispensable to the success of this movement, which has since provided immeasurable benefits, security, and dignity to millions of families.

6:38

Now, therefore, it be it resolved that I, Adina Ishii, mayor of the City of Berkeley, do hereby recognize Tom Broham and Barry Warren for their visionary leadership, their decades of activism, and the historic role in securing the first domestic partnership policy, ensuring that the City of Berkeley and the United States remain beacons of equality and justice for all.

7:12

If you'd like to say a few words, you can.

7:14

And I will present this city of the formal City of Berkeley proclamation.

7:19

I'll come out.

7:21

My remarks are going to be very brief, because the proclamation said so much, it was so detailed in recounting the steps that we originally went through.

7:34

So I thank you for the thoughtfulness of the proclamation and for the work that went into it.

7:42

You did your research.

8:00

At the time there was no other place on the face of the earth that would have undertaken the risk of when the city council took seat in 1984, they basically said, do it and we'll pay the bills.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████████████████55%
Environmental Protection█████████11%
Procedural███████8%
Community Engagement██████7%
Public Safety██████7%
Public Engagement██3%
Equity in Transportation██2%
Technology and Innovation█1%
Active Transportation█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Berkeley City Council Meeting – February 10, 2026

The Berkeley City Council met on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at approximately 7:00 PM. The meeting included ceremonial proclamations, a report from the mayor on the U.S. Conference of Mayors, consent calendar approvals, and a public hearing on an appeal of a zoning decision for a mixed-use development at 2109 Virginia Street. The council ultimately voted to deny the appeal and affirm the Zoning Adjustments Board’s approval of the project.

Ceremonial Items

  • Proclamation for Tom Broham and Barry Warren: Recognized for their historic role in establishing Berkeley’s first-in-the-nation same-sex domestic partnership policy in 1984. Both spoke briefly.
  • Adjournment in Memory of Todd Walker: Honored for his work as a community peace ambassador and violence interrupter, including contributing to Berkeley’s 2025 milestone of a 100% reduction in gun violence. His family and colleagues were in attendance.
  • Mayor’s Travel Report: Mayor Ishii reported on her January 2026 trip to the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the Mayor’s Innovation Project in Washington, D.C. Key topics included housing (bipartisan Road to Housing bill), opposition to ICE/CBP enforcement in cities, security concerns for elected officials, wildfire preparedness (Berkeley’s Embers program), and meetings with California congressional delegation staff.

Consent Calendar

  • Item 3 – Amendments to Title 21 (separate sale of ADUs): Councilmembers Tragop and Casserwani recused themselves. The item was voted on separately and passed unanimously (7-0).
  • Balance of Consent Calendar: Approved unanimously (9-0). Notable items included:
    • Item 1: Bicycle registration and licensing update (a public commenter requested this be pulled for discussion; council did not do so).
    • Item 9: Application for up to $1.25 million in state Pro-Housing Incentive Program funds to support housing trust fund and homeless services.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Non-Agenda Comments (first half):
    • Steve Tracy argued the city’s health department is redundant and could save $12 million per year.
    • Gina Rieger opposed corridor upzoning (Elmwood, Solano, North Shattuck), calling eight-story buildings a “disgrace.”
    • Dr. Stephen Alpert cited a London School of Economics study arguing inequality, not regulation, drives housing costs.
    • Carol Morosevic supported switching from taxi scripts to GoGoGrandparent but requested optional Lyft/Uber booking due to higher costs.
    • Pam Jacob, a senior resident, said cuts to taxi scripts have severely limited her medical appointments.
    • Zoom speakers raised concerns about city staff responsiveness, police accountability, and proposed changes to public hearing procedures.
  • Comments on Consent/Information Items:
    • A speaker criticized speculation and gentrification from recent housing measures.
    • Irania De La Mora urged council to define “affordable” with specific prices (e.g., $1,900) and to create more jobs.
    • Maria thanked the mayor for the D.C. trip but expressed worry about high development without affordable units, bike safety, and community courtesy.
    • Bryce Nasbit (Zoom) urged pulling the bicycle registration item for discussion, supporting a modern bike-index system.
  • Public Hearing on Item 14 (2109 Virginia Street): Over 20 speakers, including:
    • Appellants and supporters: Vijay Shunikrishnan (North Shattuck Alliance) argued the project is out of character, failed to document concessions/waivers, and sits on a toxic site requiring full environmental review.
    • James Hendry (appellant) detailed that the site’s 1987 remediation was outdated and that new contaminants (benzene, chloroform, lead) require proper remediation, not just a vapor barrier.
    • Many neighbors opposed the building’s height, scale, parking impacts, loss of sunlight, and disruption to the “quaint” North Shattuck character. Several accused the council of favoring developers over residents.
    • A few speakers supported the project, citing the need for housing, especially for families and seniors, and the provision of 110 units including affordable units.
  • Non-Agenda Comments (end of meeting):
    • Tony criticized upzoning corridors, arguing that current zoning already yields 7-8 story buildings with density bonus affordable units, and upzoning would reduce affordability requirements.
    • Others reiterated concerns about corruption, high rents, and lack of community input.

Discussion Items

  • Item 14 – ZAB Appeal for 2109 Virginia Street:
    • Staff presented: The half-acre site (former dry cleaner) is zoned commercial and residential. The project proposes 110 dwelling units (9 very low-income, 9 moderate-income), ground-floor commercial, 109 parking spaces, 64 bicycle spaces, and 7,000 sq ft open space. It qualifies for a 100% density bonus under AB 1287, adding 55 units over the base of 55. Two concessions (waiver of public art fee and underground parking relocation) and several waivers (height, setback, lot coverage, parking) were requested. Staff found the project compliant with all objective standards and the Housing Element EIR. The appeal raised seven issues; staff responded that the city lacked discretion to impose additional conditions under SB 330 and the Housing Accountability Act.
    • Appellant arguments: The project is out of scale; concessions were not properly documented; environmental review was insufficient given the site’s toxic history; parking and traffic impacts are unaddressed; and the city failed to make findings under the Neighborhood Commercial Preservation Ordinance.
    • Applicant arguments: Developer Patrick Kennedy and attorney Mark Loper emphasized the project targets empty-nesters and older Berkeleyans, will generate significant tax revenue, and complies with state density bonus law. They argued the waiver for extra parking is allowed under state law and does not require cost justification. The site’s remediation was overseen by DTSC, and the CEQA analysis is tiered from the Housing Element EIR.
    • Council questions:
      • O’Keefe asked about the value of the public art fee concession (estimated at $800,000–$1 million) and whether the developer would consider a partial contribution (developer declined for now).
      • Blackaby clarified council’s limited discretion: only to deny if there is a “specific adverse impact to health and safety.” He noted the high bar.
      • Casserwani explained that the 100% density bonus is driven by AB 1287, which incentivizes moderate-income units, and that the city has rarely built such units.
      • Tragop asked about findings under the Neighborhood Commercial Preservation Ordinance; staff confirmed non-detriment findings were made.
    • Council deliberation: All members who spoke (Lunapara, Tragop, Humbert, Bartlett, O’Keefe, Blackaby, Casserwani) expressed sympathy for neighbors but concluded they lacked legal grounds to deny the appeal. Several noted the project includes genuinely affordable units (9 very low-income at 30–50% AMI, affordable to minimum wage earners). Bartlett and O’Keefe highlighted that the site is on a transit corridor and that Berkeley must build more housing to address scarcity and equity. Blackaby expressed caution about further upzoning on the same corridor.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Calendar Approved (with Item 3 voted separately 7-0, remainder 9-0).
  • Item 14 (2109 Virginia Street): Council voted 8-0 (one recusal? Actually all present voted? Roll call showed all 9 voted yes to deny the appeal and affirm ZAB decision). The motion to deny the appeal passed unanimously (9-0). The project is approved.
  • Referrals: None directly from this meeting, but the mayor requested a security audit of city buildings and recommended council members do the same at their homes.
  • Next Steps: The developer must meet building permit conditions, including ongoing toxics management review.

Meeting Transcript

Hello, everyone, good evening. All right. Hello. I am going to call to order the Berkeley City Council meeting. Today is Tuesday, February 10th, 2026. Clerk, could you please take the roll? Okay, Councilmember Kessarwani. Here. Kaplan. Bartlett. Here. Tregu, I. O'Keefe. Present. Here. Lackaby. Here. Lunapara. Here. Humbert present and Mayor Ishi. Here. Okay. Quorum is present. All right. So it is the first meeting of February, so we will have Councilmember O'Keefe read the land acknowledgement statement. For those of you that don't know, we've been taking turns reading the land acknowledgement. And so, Councilmember O'Keefe, if you could take it away, please. Okay. The City of Berkeley recognizes that the community we live in was built on the territory of the Huchun, the ancestral and unceded land of the Tucheno speaking Alone 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 Alone 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. I was stewards of the laws regulating the city of Berkeley, it is not only vital that we recognize the history of this land, but also recognize that the Alone people are present members of Berkeley and other East Bay communities today. The City of Berkeley will continue to build relationships with the Lijan tribe and to create meaningful actions that uphold the intention of this land acknowledgement. Thank you very much, Councilmember. We will now move on to ceremonial items. So we have a proclamation that was brought by Councilmember Humbert. So, Councilmember, you're welcome to read the proclamation, and I know you have some remarks as well. And actually, if the awardees would like to come forward, go ahead. Yeah, I'll the whole troupe could come up if you'd like. The entourage, thank you. I want to thank the mayor and her staff for helping create a proclamation recognizing the work of Tom Broham and Barry Warren, who were instrumental in advocating for the City of Berkeley to establish first in the nation recognition of same-sex domestic partnerships. I'm proud that these brave and persistent men are Berkeleyans. Whereas Tom Broham and Barry Warren have shared their lives together since 1975, and through their tireless advocacy, fundamentally changed the landscape of civil rights for the LGBTQIA plus community in Berkeley, the United States, and across the world. And whereas in 1979, while working for this city, the city of Berkeley, Tom Brough discovered that he could not enroll his partner Barry Warren in city health and dental benefits because those programs were strictly limited to married spouses. And whereas Tom Broham recognized a critical contradiction between Berkeley's 1978 non-discrimination ordinance and its exclusionary marriage-based benefits, leading him to author two historic letters in August 1979, proposing the first domestic partnership policy. And whereas Tom and Barry spent years persistently lobbying the City of Berkeley, the University of California, and local unions to adopt this new legal protection, providing a path for equity rooted in basic fairness and recognizing shared humanity. And whereas their work inspired the formation of the East Bay Lesbian Gay Democratic Club, which organized a methodical community-led campaign that successfully made domestic partnerships a central issue in the 1984 Berkeley municipal elections. And whereas in December 1984, the City of Berkeley enacted the first policy of its kind in California, and I think the nation, and Tom Brom and Barry Warren became the first couple to file for employee domestic partnership benefits under this landmark legislation. And whereas this pioneering policy served as a national model, overcoming the resistance of health care providers, employers, and reactionary opposition, and paving the way for statewide registries, civil unions, and eventually full marriage equality.

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