Monterey City Council Meeting - May 19, 2026
Monterey City Council Meeting - May 19, 2026
The Monterey City Council met on May 19, 2026, in afternoon and evening sessions. The agenda included recognition of Public Works Week, a presentation from Montage Health, adoption of a new city fee schedule, a report on city vacancies, refinements to the residential parking permit program, and several ordinance adoptions. Key decisions included approving a traffic signal removal, banning roosters, prohibiting vehicle storage in a specific overlay zone, and setting an appeal fee at $3,500. The meeting also featured a proclamation for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and a request to agendize an air quality study for the Casanova Oaknole neighborhood.
Consent Calendar
- Items 3 through 12 were approved collectively, except items 9 and 11 which were pulled for separate discussion and later approved unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Steve Wilson (retired civil engineer, resident since 1966) urged council not to approve the removal of the traffic signal at Prescott and Taylor, arguing stop signs are not speed control devices and the change would inconvenience many drivers.
- Wendy Brickman (President, Fisherman's Wharf Association) expressed strong support for the proposed public trash receptacle art project, calling it creative and culturally appropriate.
- Esther (Laguna Grande Neighborhood Association) asked Montage Health to partner on a senior workout area at Laguna Grande Park using their foundation funds.
- Lorrie questioned why Monterey's largest nonprofit tax-exempt landowners are not contributing to relieve taxpayer burdens, and asked if the city has explored voluntary contributions or infrastructure partnerships.
- Nina Beattie criticized Montage Health for installing microwave cellular antennas at the hospital, alleging they create an unsafe environment and violate the Hippocratic Oath; also alleged understaffing and dangerous conditions.
- Shay Balasteri (Chairman, General Employees Monterey) cited numerous long-vacant positions not recognized as frozen, and urged the city to fill non-general fund positions and increase recruitment.
- Chris Dwight (President, Management Employees Association) noted MEA has a 20% vacancy rate and that proposed staff reductions disproportionately affect management; warned of burnout and service sustainability.
- Karen O'Neill (Van Buren resident) expressed concern that removing one-hour parking signs would create problems for deliveries, emergency services, and residents on her short street.
- Later speaker criticized the requalification process for existing permit zones, arguing neighborhoods should have the option to keep the old system.
- Another speaker said the 600 block of Larkin Street has been waiting over a year for approval of a parking permit zone, and asked the council to requalify previously approved blocks.
- Liline Chu (Watson Street resident) opposed the new parking program due to privacy concerns and said most of her block did not register.
- Richard Marcello (President, Casanova Oaknole Neighborhood Association) requested an air quality study near the airport, citing black soot on solar panels and strong jet fumes.
- Esther (public comment on proclamations) questioned the criteria for selecting which heritage months are recognized by the council.
Discussion Items
- Public Works Week Recognition: City Manager Dante and Public Works Director Andrea Rennie presented on the department's work, highlighting the theme "Rooted in Service, Powered by Community." Multiple team members described their divisions. Council praised the team and noted a mix of tenures.
- Montage Health Update: CEO Mike reviewed Montage's access to care, including community hospital, urgent care (nearly 50,000 visits in 2025), a new thrombectomy program for stroke care (first in Monterey County), workforce investments (e.g., $15 million for nursing school at CSUMB), and community partnerships. Council thanked him and discussed affordability and collaboration.
- Traffic Signal Removal (Item 9): Staff recommended an all-way stop at Prescott and Taylor as a natural step down from the current signal, with future option to switch to a side-street stop. After public comment from Steve Wilson, council approved the all-way stop recommendation unanimously.
- Trash Receptacle Art Project (Item 11): Staff presented a plan to wrap nine trash cans on Fisherman's Wharf with historic sardine label artwork, funded by Tidelands Trust. Council approved unanimously.
- Fee Schedule Adoption (Item 13): A comprehensive user fee study (first since 2013) was presented. Council debated the appeal fee for a planning commission decision to city council, which was proposed to rise from $2,977 (29% recovery) to $4,180 (100% recovery). Councilmember Rash expressed concern about access and moved to set the fee at $3,500, which was approved with a September 1 effective date after a code amendment. The rest of the fee schedule was approved unanimously.
- Vacancy Report (Item 14): HR Director Brett Nell reported 65.5 vacant FTEs out of 476 budgeted, with 27 active recruitments. The management group (MEA) vacancy rate was 20.58%. Council discussed retention strategies and the impact of budget constraints.
- Residential Parking Permit Refinements (Item 15): Staff recommended five refinements: removing requalification for existing zones, reducing opt-out threshold from 80% to 70%, simplifying guest pass fees (first 25 free, then flat $25 per set up to 100 annually), separating owner/landlord permits from the four-per-address limit, and removing private parking spaces from Cannery Row eligibility. Council approved unanimously after public comment.
- AAPI Heritage Month Proclamation (Item 18): Assistant City Manager Nat presented on the history of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in Monterey, including the Japanese American Civic League Hall's 100th anniversary. Council adopted the proclamation.
- Prohibit Roosters Ordinance (Item 19): First reading to amend city code to explicitly prohibit roosters while allowing hens. Council approved unanimously.
- Reasonable Accommodation Regulations (Item 20): First reading to establish an appeal process to the Disabled Access Appeals Board and eliminate mandatory review by planning commission or city council for accommodation requests. Council approved unanimously.
- Vehicle Storage Prohibition in IRMF Overlay (Item 21): Ordinance to prohibit vehicle storage as a primary use on properties zoned IR with a multifamily overlay (Garden Road area). A property owner requested exclusion, but council voted 4-1 to approve staff recommendation (Councilmember Smith opposed).
- Council Request to Agendize Air Quality Study (Item 22): Councilmember Garcia requested agendizing a discussion on supporting the Casanova Oaknole neighborhood's request for an air quality study. Council unanimously approved agendizing the item for a future meeting.
Key Outcomes
- Approved consent calendar (items 3-12) with items 9 and 11 separately approved unanimously.
- Approved traffic signal removal and all-way stop at Prescott and Taylor (unanimous).
- Approved trash receptacle art project on Fisherman's Wharf (unanimous).
- Adopted master fee schedule with amended appeal fee to city council set at $3,500 (83.7% cost recovery), effective September 1, 2026 pending code amendment; rest of schedule approved (unanimous).
- Received vacancy report; council noted ongoing retention efforts.
- Adopted residential parking permit program refinements (unanimous).
- Issued proclamation for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May 2026).
- Adopted first reading of ordinance prohibiting roosters (unanimous).
- Adopted first reading of ordinance clarifying reasonable accommodation regulations (unanimous).
- Adopted first reading of ordinance prohibiting vehicle storage in IRMF overlay (4-1 vote; Councilmember Smith opposed).
- Agreed to agendize discussion on supporting air quality study for Casanova Oaknole neighborhood (unanimous).
- Closed session: Confidential direction given on two litigation matters (Frank Russo workers' compensation and Stronghold Engineering versus city).
Meeting Transcript
How do we give us a hug Yeah, yeah, yeah. All right. Christy, could you please try unmuting and saying something so we know our sound is working with Doom? Hi, testing, testing. Yes, we can hear you. Thank you so much. If we can you're welcome. Council meeting for May 19th, 2026, our afternoon session. Um, I can call the meeting to order at four o two, and we'll pass it to Clementine for roll call and to share announcements with the public. Councilmember Barber. Councilmember Garcia. Council Member Rash here. Councilmember Smith. And Mayor Williamson. Here. And public comment and participation information is provided on this meeting's agenda, which is online at Monterey.gov slash agendas. In-person attendees, please keep your electronic devices and phones muted to prevent audio interference with our meeting. Consistent with the First Amendment and the Brown Act, individuals have the right to speak at public meetings, which includes the right to criticize or support city policies or actions. With that, we would go right into our agenda. So with that, I will pass it to City Manager Dante for a staff introduction. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. Uh, this is always one that's good for me too. Um, it's it's celebrated sort of our public works week. Um, and it's important because our public works staff, they maintain our critical infrastructure, and they almost do work invisible, and you don't notice until some something goes wrong. Uh so we have a number of men and women uh in our city that are working on your behalf. Um I'm gonna turn it over to director Rennie uh to provide the presentation tonight. Thank you. I think City Manager Dante did a great job in describing what we do, but I think that this year's theme, which is rooted in service powered by community. It can describe our public works team more perfectly. What I see every day is a team that cares, people who show up before the sun rises, we solve problems, and we take so much pride in our work. Work that most may not even notice because they flushed the toilet and it went down, not up. They didn't hit the pothole because it was repaired. So this is what dedication looks like. What you do matters and you make a difference in this community. I am grateful every day to be part of this exceptional team. And to the council, I want to thank you for the trust you place in us, and please know that we will never stop earning it. And with that, I would like to introduce our team that is going to do a short presentation. So we have Miles Etchnik from General Services. We have Courtney Gaskins, also from General Services, Isabella Munghear from parking, and I'm Tony Hernandez from Engineering, and I'll uh pass it on to them for a presentation. I was expecting a flash mob based off of last year's presentation. Next time, next time. Good afternoon, Mayor Williamson and Council members. My name is Miles Echenick, management analyst two for the General Services Division. Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of our department as we recognize National Public Works Week in 2026. I think we're on the next slide already. So this year's theme is rooted in service and powered by community. This acknowledges that the roots of service run deep in public works. It's been what's propelled public works innovations that have helped our community evolve into places where people can lead lives of purpose and possibility. Some work is highly visible, while other public works contributions are sometimes hidden from view.
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