Davis City Council Meeting – September 1, 2026: Shelter Beds, Outdoor Dining, Tree Maintenance, and Waste Hauling Contract
Davis City Council Meeting – September 1, 2026
The Davis City Council met on September 1, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. in Community Chambers. The meeting included a consent calendar (with item 4J pulled for separate discussion), a continued public hearing on the Downtown Outdoor Dining Program, discussion on urban forestry maintenance and potential policy changes, and a decision on the solid waste hauling contract process. Key outcomes included approval of a reserved shelter bed agreement with Fourth & Hope, adoption of the outdoor dining program amendments, formation of a subcommittee to study tree maintenance options, and a direction to issue a request for proposals for waste hauling services.
Consent Calendar
- Items A through I were approved unanimously without discussion, including: emergency traffic signal repair at Wright and East Covell, sewer lift station re-design, transit safety plans and Title VI program, federal transit funding program, right-of-way vacation at 1121 Mesquite Drive, Varsity Theater lease amendment, accessory dwelling unit ordinance (second reading), Social Services Commission workplan task, and agreement with Fourth & Hope (item 4J was pulled for separate discussion).
Public Comments & Testimony
- General Public Comment: Valerie Durbin raised concerns about e-bikes on greenbelt paths. A speaker identifying as the granddaughter of Los Chinese Empire discussed AI and robots in schools, and expressed views on gender and women’s rights. Beth Warren spoke against the Hate Free Together campaign, citing concerns about transgender policies. Sharon Montooth advocated for more spay/neuter services at the animal shelter.
- Item 4J (Fourth & Hope): Zachariah Oquenda requested adding return transportation language to the agreement and more frequent public reporting. Several speakers (including representatives from Heart of Davis and unhoused individuals) urged investing in local shelter infrastructure instead of contracting with Woodland, questioned costs, and asked for more inclusive community engagement.
- Item 7 (Trees): Multiple speakers from Tree Davis, Lois Wolk, Mark Horschowski, Richard McCann, and others urged caution against shifting tree responsibility to homeowners, emphasized the value of the urban canopy, and recommended forming a working group. Some speakers asked for more flexibility for homeowners to remove or prune city trees on their property.
- Item 6 (Solid Waste): Recology representatives and employees spoke in favor of renegotiating the contract, citing community involvement and service quality. William Schoen argued Recology’s rates are excessive and urged an RFP. WM (Waste Management) expressed interest in competing. Food Secure Davis advocates requested inclusion of an edible food recovery fee in any new contract.
Discussion Items
- Item 4J – Agreement with Fourth & Hope: Staff explained the proposed contract for five reserved emergency shelter beds at Fourth & Hope in Woodland, including wraparound services and transportation. Council asked about transportation back to Davis, utilization reporting, and whether the contract would displace existing services. Staff clarified it is a pilot project funded from existing general fund savings, not a reduction of local services. Council approved the agreement with a directive to add return transportation language and provide quarterly utilization updates.
- Item 5 – Downtown Outdoor Dining Program (continued): Assistant Planner Samantha Bailey presented a color-coded table showing which requirements are mandated by state/federal law versus council discretion. Council made the following decisions: (1) Conform to the California Electric Code’s 10-foot clearance over sidewalks instead of the proposed 25-foot city standard. (2) Keep the existing sign permit process (no waiver of fees due to gift of public funds concerns). (3) Approve the extended conversion deadline to December 15, 2026. (4) Accept staff recommendations on non-advertising signage and other administrative amendments. The ordinance and resolution were approved unanimously.
- Item 7 (reordered) – Unmet Maintenance Needs for City Trees: Assistant City Manager Stan Gryczko and Assistant PW Director Adrienne Heinig presented options: updating fees, reducing city ownership of trees on private property through attrition, and making it easier for homeowners to remove trees. Councilmember Vaitla expressed need for more data on tree inventory and maintenance costs. Councilmember Deos supported more homeowner flexibility. Councilmember Chapman suggested forming a subcommittee. Mayor Neville and others favored a deliberative process. Council voted to: (1) Form a council subcommittee (Councilmembers Chapman and Vaitla) and request the Climate and Environmental Justice Commission to create a two-person subcommittee to study options, with input from Tree Davis. (2) Direct staff not to plant city-owned trees on private property during the interim. (3) Receive a progress update in approximately four weeks.
- Item 6 (now last) – Solid Waste Hauling Contract Options: Staff presented two paths: renegotiate with current hauler Recology Davis or issue an RFP. Council heard public testimony both for and against Recology. After discussion, a motion to pursue an RFP process passed 4–1 (Councilmember Vaitla opposed, favoring renegotiation with Recology). The RFP will include community input on service levels and evaluation criteria.
Key Outcomes
- Approved the Fourth & Hope shelter bed agreement (item 4J) with added return transportation language and quarterly reporting. (Vote: unanimous)
- Adopted the Downtown Outdoor Dining Program amendments as discussed, including conforming to state clearance standards and extending the conversion deadline. (Vote: unanimous)
- Formed a joint council-commission subcommittee to study urban forestry funding and policy options, with interim direction to stop planting city trees on private property. (Vote: unanimous)
- Directed staff to initiate a request for proposals (RFP) process for a new solid waste hauling contract, with community engagement and scoring criteria to be developed. (Vote: 4–1)
- Recognized the retirement of Assistant City Manager Stan Gryczko after 16 years of service.
- Adjourned the meeting in memory of Ryan McLean, a longtime Davis community member.
Meeting Transcript
All right, very good. Hello, everyone, and welcome to the September one. Oh, excuse me, I I apologize. I need to go back on the record and report out on closed session. My apologies. So first I'm coming back on the record uh to report out on the closed session that we just had for our special meeting. And there is no reportable action, but I need you to make that statement for the record. So with that, we will adjourn the closed session portion of our meeting, which just took place from 5 30 to 6 30. With that said, we'll now move into convening our regular meeting for September 1. Welcome everyone. Um I'll note for the record that all of my colleagues are here in chambers. And the first item of business is to uh approve our agenda for this evening. And I would like to propose that we make a slight reordering of the regular items, which is that we as part of our regular item calendar, the first item five would stay as it is for the downtown dining program, but then we would move the um what is now item seven, unmain unmet maintenance needs for city trees. We would move that to follow immediately after item five. So it would come before item six. So I would propose that we make that change to our agenda and that we approve the agenda with that modification. A second from Councilmember Dios. So all in favor of approval of the um agenda as amended, say aye. Aye. And any no's or abstentions. Hearing none. Very good. So just for clarification, so everyone knows that we'll take up the item related to the trees after item five. It'll appear as it'll happen as item six this evening. Excellent. So with that, I will turn to City Manager Dunstan for any brief announcements. Thank you, Madam Mayor. Bear with me as a pull up our slides. I believe we had four announcements today. Um we will be celebrating Labor Day. Uh Monday, September 7th. City offices will be closed. Uh, but we do want to uh remind the public that all emergency services remain unaffected. Uh the police accountability commission will be hosting its annual outreach meeting. Uh it will be at the Veterans Memorial Center on September 10th from 6 to 7 30 p.m. Um they will be exploring local law enforcement response to uh immigration issues. All are welcome to attend. Um more information will be on the city website. Uh this one's near and dear to me. Um we will be hosting our 9-11 remembrance ceremony on September 11th uh to honor those who give who have who have given the ultimate sacrifice. That ceremony will begin at 8 30 a.m. at the fire station downtown, which is station 31. Um all are welcome to attend. And finally, uh, we're excited to announce the grand opening of the renovated skate park at community park uh on September 18th from 5.30 to 7 p.m. We have merchandise, vendors, food, uh, and we encourage everybody to come out uh and enjoy the evening. And with that, that concludes uh my announcements, Mayor. Thank you very much, City Manager. Um next I'm turning to my colleagues for any brief announcements or liaison reports from our various two by two meetings and commission, please, Councilmember uh Dios. Hi there. I want to report back on the Animal Services Commission just to let folks know that a new nonprofit is coming to our into existence here in Yellow County, the YOLO Animal Adoption and Education Center, that they are going to be focusing on Spain neutering and um they have money, which is something so we're kind of seeing how they're gonna work together with the county moving forward with um the shelter there and what we're gonna do with the that space.
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