Fresno City Council Regular and Special Meeting - February 2, 2026

The Fresno City Council held a combined regular and special meeting covering a public health proclamation, council and city manager reports, the 590th amendment to the master fee schedule, La Hacienda veteran housing funding, the dissolution of the Tower District Design Review Committee, creation of an ad hoc policy review committee, amendments to the Transparency Act, a closed session on anticipated litigation, and extensive unscheduled public comment on the animal overpopulation crisis.

Note on dates: The agenda and minutes identify this meeting as Thursday, January 29, 2026 (agenda 11:00 AM; special-meeting roll call 1:51 PM), while the date provided for this summary is February 2, 2026. The transcript shows the regular session called to order at 9:12 AM and the separately noticed special meeting (closed session) called at 1:51 PM.

Consent Calendar

• The agenda was approved 7-0 after Councilmember Arias moved items 2C (master fee schedule) and 2I (construction contract cancellation) to contested consent, Councilmember Perea pulled 2H (Tower District Design Review Committee), and Councilmember Richardson pulled 2E (La Hacienda). Item 2L (Transparency Act amendments) was moved to agenda section 4B with Councilmember Vang added as co-sponsor.
• The remaining consent calendar passed 7-0. Councilmember Arias noted a signature-page error on the 590th master fee schedule amendment (year listed as 2025 instead of 2026).

Proclamation

• Councilmember Perea sponsored a proclamation declaring January 2026 Cervical Health Awareness Month. Stephanie, representing the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC) Fresno chapter, expressed gratitude for the recognition. The proclamation cited approximately 1,485 new cervical cancer cases diagnosed annually in California and an estimated 38 new cases annually in Fresno County, and encouraged screening (Pap and HPV testing starting at age 21) and HPV vaccination.

Councilmember Reports

• Councilmember Arias reported on MLK Boulevard reconstruction and Cesar Chavez Boulevard improvements, and requested a public memo from the police chief clarifying whether the city would decline to enforce state law only as to ICE mask rules or also for crimes such as murder. He said 32 individuals died in ICE custody last year and eight this year, including Alex Predi, an intensive care nurse shot and killed in Minneapolis.
• Councilmember Vang reported on a Boys and Girls Club event, the Bo Hate Center groundbreaking, and an upcoming Southeast Asian business study.
• Councilmember Maxwell highlighted Horn Barbecue's opening, a $50,000 youth sports scholarship pilot program for children from families on SNAP, welfare, or PG&E assistance, and visits to CASA, Focus Forward, and Innovative Minds.
• Councilmember Richardson promoted the Fresno app and local businesses; on animal funding, he said his office is working on training shelter animals for adoption by veterans and encouraged residents to contact the specific entities involved.
• Council Vice President Esparza reported on a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. "I Have a Dream" reading and El Premio Mayor's new location; he also described school-safety improvements including left-turn phasing.
• Councilmember Perea urged residents to enroll in Covered California before the January 31 deadline.

City Manager Report

• City Manager Georgeanne White reported a fire at the Carl's Jr. property at Blackstone and McKinley (part of the grade separation project); one firefighter suffered minor wrist burns. Bids for demolition had been opened January 20, with a contract award planned for February 19, but the fire made the material hazardous. She said she would expedite demolition under emergency health and safety exceptions, potentially via a special council meeting.
• She reported that the League of California Cities Revenue and Taxation Committee recommended modifying sales tax for e-commerce transactions, which she said would cost Fresno $12-15 million annually; the mayor sent a January 7 letter opposing it.
• She read the mayor's response to Councilmember Arias: Fresno PD will follow state law on mask wearing; requiring Fresno PD to arrest ICE agents "is not fair to our officers" because it would force a confrontation between two armed people; officers have a duty to intervene if they see an agent physically abusing a person; and the federal supremacy clause would take effect if an ICE agent shot someone, though the mayor hopes Fresno PD would investigate alongside the federal agency.

Item 2C — 590th Amendment to the Master Fee Schedule

• The item proposed fee increases at the airport, animal center, finance department, solid waste, wastewater, water, and public works, effective July 1, 2026. City Manager White said many increases reflect labor-rate adjustments and that the master fee schedule is brought before the budget annually.
• Animal Center Director Alma Torres said the health certificate fee would rise $2.68 (from $76.41 to $79.09), and new $50 foster-to-adopt and $25 adoption-hold deposits would be reimbursable if the adopter follows through.
• General Services Director Brian Barr said six City Hall rental fees would rise and two would fall because rounding changed from the nearest $5 to the nearest $1.
• Councilmember Arias questioned the timing and resident impact; Councilmember Richardson moved to postpone the item to the February 19, 2026 meeting, seconded by Arias. The motion passed 4-3 (noes: Karbassi, Vang, Maxwell). City Manager White warned that failure to approve the schedule reduces revenue for the FY 2026-27 budget.

Item 2E — La Hacienda HomeKey Plus Funding

• Planning staff explained that the council previously approved $3.7 million in local housing trust funds, plus $500,000 from Self-Help Enterprises, to acquire La Hacienda through bankruptcy. The city and Self-Help jointly applied to the state Department of Housing and Community Development for HomeKey Plus funds, awarded late last year.
• The item authorized accepting the award, appropriating the funds, executing a regulatory agreement and restrictive covenants, and an MOU with Self-Help Enterprises. The project includes 18 units, 17 for veterans experiencing or at risk of homelessness (including those with substance-abuse and mental-health conditions), and also supports couples and small families. Veteran-serving organizations will refer eligible veterans through coordinated entry.
• Approved 7-0.

Item 2H — Tower District Design Review Committee

• Councilmember Perea explained that the updated Tower District Specific Plan created a new implementation committee that will take over design-compliance duties, making the existing Design Review Committee redundant; dissolving it is a cleanup item. Approved 7-0.
• Public comment: Aaron Hightower opposed dissolution (Resolution 2681), arguing the 1991-era committee provides independent aesthetic review and that the city should enhance civil discussion rather than dissolve it.

Item 2I — Old Print Shop (President B) Building

• Councilmember Arias asked about security given the Carl's Jr. fire. City Manager White said the building has 24/7 security (one guard patrolling every 30 minutes), monthly fire-system inspections, and police use of the parking lot; the city is proceeding with environmental review and demolition bid documents. Arias expressed concern about fire risk and said he would support additional security if needed. Approved 7-0.

Item 4A — Ad Hoc Policy Review Committee

• Council President Karbassi proposed a temporary, advisory committee (members: Karbassi, Vang, Richardson) to review policies including the Transparency Act and the San Joaquin River Bluff Protection Act; recommendations would come back to the full council in public meetings. City Attorney Andrew Janz said Brown Act compliance requires public meetings; City Manager White suggested workshops. Approved 7-0.
• Public comment: Des Martinez proposed amendments (majority council appointment of committee members, adding community advisors, election of chair, a sunset date of January 29, 2027, and clearly non-binding recommendations); Brunette (Southwest Fresno) demanded community involvement from all seven districts.

Item 4B — Transparency Act Amendments

• Councilmember Arias said that from July to December 2025 the city received 4,692 public records requests and reviewed more than 630,000 documents; about six city attorney positions handle the requests. The amendments: (1) clarify that the $100,000 contract threshold includes pass-through services; (2) define "year" as fiscal year; (3) create a single online transparency hub for contracts, campaign filings, behest payments, financial disclosures, and lobbyist registrations.
• Councilmember Vang noted the Fresno Land article took eight months to obtain records; Councilmember Perea questioned the 30-day implementation timeline; Councilmember Esparza expressed concern about administration capacity and timelines. City Clerk Amy Aller said the clerk's office could initiate the project.
• The council approved an amendment directing the City Clerk to lead implementation, with 30 days as a target for a single web page of links plus a subsequent plan for a searchable database. Approved 7-0.
• Public comment: Christina Holmes McIntyre criticized the council for passing a wage-hour ordinance criminalizing violations via the consent agenda and said transparency is "traceability, not trust"; Des Martinez raised Brown Act concerns and alleged unequal treatment of public speakers; another speaker added that Keith Porter Jr., a Black man killed by ICE, had been omitted from earlier remarks about ICE deaths.

Closed Session (Special Meeting)

• The separately noticed special meeting (agenda 11:00 AM) was called to order at 1:51 PM. Roll call: 4 present (Karbassi, Arias, Vang, Richardson); 3 absent (Esparza, Perea, Maxwell). Agenda approved 4-0.
• Closed session: conference with legal counsel — anticipated litigation (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(4)), 1 potential case. The item was discussed; there were no open-session announcements. Note: the transcript also refers to "item 5A conference with labor negotiators" and "item 5B existing litigation gray versus city of Fresno," which are not listed on the provided special-meeting agenda; the minutes state only the anticipated-litigation item was discussed.

Unscheduled Communication

• Multiple speakers urged immediate funding for spay/neuter. Mel (California Spay co-founder) said the contract was supposed to be $100,000 but the group received "not even $70,000" over two years and has fixed over 2,000 dogs. Larie Holt said the shelter operates on an approximately $9 million annual budget with zero line-item dollars for spay/neuter prevention. Lisa Alvarado said 800 people are on the Spay California waitlist. Others (Jennifer, Wendy Walker, Caroline Harris, Kim Bryant, Sharia Newton, Lisa, Elena, Des Martinez) described stray packs, dead dogs, dumping, the Lao Buddhist temple, a $176-per-day fine for exceeding the four-dog limit, and a pit bull killing an elderly man's dog.
• Kristen Monroe and other speakers addressed ICE enforcement, referencing a five-year-old child detained in Dilley, Texas, and the killing of an ICU nurse; they asked what proactive measures the city will take to protect community members. Gabriel Lozano raised road safety (12 deaths in Southeast Fresno), potholes, and burned buildings.
• Council President Karbassi responded that the city shelter serviced nearly 10,000 animals last year, that millions had been allocated, and that he is open to "reasonable requests" as the budget is prepared in June.

Key Outcomes

• Agenda approved 7-0; consent calendar approved 7-0.
• January 2026 proclaimed Cervical Health Awareness Month.
• Master fee schedule (2C) postponed to February 19, 2026, by a 4-3 vote.
• La Hacienda HomeKey Plus funding (2E) approved 7-0.
• Tower District Design Review Committee dissolution (2H) approved 7-0.
• Old Print Shop building item (2I) approved 7-0.
• Ad Hoc Policy Review Committee created (4A) 7-0, with members Karbassi, Vang, and Richardson.
• Transparency Act amendments (4B) approved 7-0, directing the City Clerk to lead implementation.
• Closed session held with no reportable action. Meeting adjourned at 3:39 PM.