Oakland City Council Meeting January 6, 2026: PFERS Ballot Measure, Consent Calendar, and Contract Award Debate
Oakland City Council Meeting - January 6, 2026
The Oakland City Council met on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at 3:34 PM to consider a special municipal election measure for the Police and Fire Retirement System (PFERS), approve a consent calendar including a disputed construction contract, and hear public comment on various issues. The meeting was adjourned in honor of Assistant Chief John Speakman.
Key Discussion Item: PFERS Ballot Measure (Item 5.1)
- Councilmember Unger presented a resolution to place a charter amendment on the June 2, 2026 special election ballot. The amendment would expand eligibility for the PFERS board (currently limited to PFERS members, many over age 80) to include any retired police/fire personnel, and reduce meeting frequency from monthly to no less than quarterly. The fund is nearly 99% funded with fewer than 600 members; the change is driven by difficulty in obtaining in-person participation from elderly members. The measure has no fiscal impact and is expected to reduce property taxes over time (approximately $750 per million-dollar home already rolled off, with another $750 coming).
- Public speakers opposed: Ms. Asada argued that 80-year-olds remain functional and questioned vague eligibility requirements and the cost of placing the measure on the ballot. Mr. Hazard alleged hidden agendas and noted that 90% of police officers live outside Oakland, questioning the need for the change.
- Councilmember Houston expressed concern about officer residency but noted the city cannot stipulate residency. Celia Warren (City Attorney's office) confirmed the PFERS board itself requested the changes.
- Vote: Motion by Unger, second by Houston. Councilmember Brown excused. Passed 7-0-1 (all present in favor).
Consent Calendar (Item 6)
The consent calendar included 12 items (6.1–6.12), covering approval of December 16 minutes, declarations of local emergencies (AIDS, cannabis, homelessness), salary ordinance amendments, Campaign Reform Act amendments, the 27th Street Complete Streets construction contract (6.7), a settlement (Twombly v. City), and several commission appointments.
Public Comments & Testimony on Consent Calendar
- Item 6.7 (27th Street Complete Streets Contract): Extensive debate. Two local contractors competed: Regwick Construction (low bid by $1 million) and McGuire & Hester (second low). Public testimony split:
- Supporting Regwick: Bob Rahibi (Regwick president) stated his company is a local Oakland business (14 years), was not responsible for the Hayward gas explosion (subcontractor error), and has mentored local subs. Sam Rahibi noted Regwick is the low bidder by $1 million, saving taxpayer money. Subcontractor Eric Castellan (CEO Construction) said he depends on this contract. Kevin Daly (Transport Oakland) urged passing the project for safety.
- Supporting McGuire & Hester: Kevin Hester (employee-owner) highlighted the company's 100-year Oakland history, 100% ESOP ownership, and a mentor-protégé program (successfully grew Jerron Construction from 10 to 50 employees). Isaiah Daniels and Stanley Cooper (Cooper Construction) testified they are local Oakland firms that have worked with McGuire & Hester and would benefit from the contract. Bruce Schoran (NAMCO) urged rewarding good behavior with equity.
- Opposing Regwick: Jennifer Benford Seibert argued Regwick’s bid has less diverse subcontractors and lower local economic return; also raised concerns about the Hayward incident (though Regwick was not at fault).
- Other items: Ms. Asada raised concerns about tree cutting enforcement, homelessness emergency declarations, cannabis vs. fentanyl priorities, and commission meeting frequency. Mr. Hazard alleged the council’s suspension of Rule 29 (tie-breaking) was unlawful and threatened litigation. Blair Beekman praised the Flock ALPR compromise and urged continued transparency. Derek Barnes (EBRHA) spoke on housing, vacancy, and first-responder affordability.
Council Discussion on Item 6.7
- Councilmember Fyfe initially pulled 6.7 due to the Hayward gas explosion investigation; after learning Regwick was not at fault and insurance covers liability, he supported moving forward but echoed equity concerns for minority contractors. Councilmember Houston questioned both contractors’ subcontractors about their workforce and Oakland residency. Director Rowan (DOT) confirmed Regwick was the lowest responsible bidder by $900,000; awarding to McGuire & Hester would require finding additional funding (not available from Measure KK) and likely delay the project a year. He noted both contractors are qualified but the city’s policy is to award to the lowest bid.
- Councilmembers Fyfe, Wong, and Houston expressed commitment to reforming the SLBE program to prioritize local and minority contractors, but acknowledged the project’s safety importance (near two senior centers and an elementary school) and the risk of further delay. Councilmember Fyfe moved the consent calendar; second by Unger.
- Votes on 6.7: No votes from councilmembers Guyo and Wong. Councilmember Gallo also voted no on 6.7 via electronic participation.
Other Consent Items
- Item 6.12 (JPA appointment): Councilmember Houston praised appointee David Newton, a lifelong Oaklander. Newton expressed gratitude.
- No other items were pulled or discussed in detail.
Key Outcomes
- Approved: Resolution for PFERS ballot measure (pass 7-0-1).
- Approved: Consent calendar as a whole (7-0-1), with no votes on item 6.7 from Guyo, Wong, and Gallo. Item 6.7 (27th Street contract awarded to Regwick Construction) moves forward with a spring 2026 start.
- Directives: Councilmembers called for a comprehensive review of the city’s SLBE/LBE contracting program and equity in procurement; Councilmember Wong announced this as a 2026 priority. The city administrator was asked to provide updates from the Department of Workforce and Employment.
- Appointments: David Newton to Oakland Alameda County JPA; Rudy Gonzalez and another appointee to the Civil Service Board; and other commission appointments as listed on the consent calendar.
- Adjournment: In memory of Assistant Chief John Speakman (firefighter, 42 years, PFERS board member who passed last week).
Open Forum
Speakers addressed topics including ALPR vendor procurement transparency (Blair Beekman), lead remediation at McClymonds and lack of projects in West Oakland (Ms. Olabala), the legality of suspending Rule 29 (Mr. Hazard), and the unhoused crisis at Wood Street (Mavis Carter-Griffin).
Meeting Transcript
Thank you. Welcome back. Bye Houston. Bye Houston. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. good afternoon good afternoon and welcome to the city council meeting of Tuesday January 6 2026 happy new year everybody before I take roll I will go over speaker card instructions if you'd like to submit a speaker's card on any agenda item please fill out a speaker's card before the item is called or two hours after the start of this meeting this meeting was called at five I'm sorry 3 34 p.m. the last opportunity to submit a speaker's card will be at 5 34 p.m. or before the item is called for discussion to submit a speaker's card you can grab a card at the front table and submit it to one of the two ladies at the front table before the item is called or before 5 34 p.m. if you were looking to submit an online speaker card that time has passed as it was at it was 24 hours before the start of this meeting on roll our council members Brown excuse councilmember Fythe president councilmember Gallo is participating under the assembly bill 2449 participation rules so i would defer to the council president for that council member guyo are there any adults in the room with you 18 or over no no there isn't thank you okay and a reminder your camera has to be on thank you it is can you hear me it's on okay okay thank you councilmember thank you councilmember guyo councilmember houston president councilmember ramachandran president also member hunger president councilmember wong president and chair jenkins president showing seven members present at this time do you have any announcements before we begin no announcements no announcements moving to item three which is modifications to the agenda and procedural items any modifications CNN boys going to item for consideration of items with statutory public hearing requirements there are none on this agenda moving to item 5 which is action on the non-consent calendar starting with item 5.1 adopt a resolution calling giving notice for the holding of a special municipal election on june 2nd 2026 for the purpose of submitting to the voters a measure that would amend the city charter section 2601 to among other things expand the eligibility for members of the police and fire retirement systems board and change the board meeting frequency from monthly to no less than quarterly requesting consolidation of the special municipal election with the statewide direct primary election to be held in the city of oakland on june 2nd 2026 directing the city clerk to take any and all actions necessary under law to submit these met this measure to voters at the june 2nd 2026 election and making appropriate sequel findings you do have two speakers on this item council member you presented this before how many minutes will you need three minutes All right. This is the PFERS ballot measure, which we have presented a few times. PFERS is a closed-end pension fund for police and fire that has been closed for many, many years. We have fewer than 600 members in that account now. It is almost 99% funded, I believe. so that the the money is there but what's happening is that because the members are elderly we are having trouble getting them to regular meetings
openpublica.com