Redwood City Council Meeting - May 12, 2025: Taser Upgrade Approved, Fire Hazard Zones Adopted
Redwood City Council Meeting - May 12, 2025
The Redwood City Council met on Monday, May 12, 2025, at 6:00 PM. The meeting covered approval of consent calendar items (with one item pulled for discussion), public testimony on multiple issues, a detailed discussion and vote on upgrading police tasers, adoption of updated fire hazard severity zone maps, and a study session on water, sewer, and stormwater utility master planning. No formal action was taken on the study session.
Consent Calendar
- The consent calendar was approved unanimously with the exception of Item 6B (Agreement with Axon Enterprise Inc. to upgrade TASER X2 devices to TASER 10 devices), which was pulled by Councilmember Surkin for separate discussion.
- Approved consent items included: 6A (PG&E gas/electric agreement invoice), 6C (development agreement for 901 El Camino Real), 6D (ordinance amending Police Advisory Committee membership), 6E (April 28, 2025 minutes), and 6F (claims and checks through May 19, 2025).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jefferson Avenue Traffic Safety Project: Multiple residents (Ingrid Falk, Ann Cano, Philip Luna) expressed concerns about insufficient notification, the proposed reduction to one lane per direction, parking impacts, and safety at crosswalks. They requested additional public meetings and better data on traffic volumes, speeds, and collisions.
- Taser Upgrade (Item 6B): Eight in-person speakers and several written comments addressed this item. Opponents (Raymond Goins, Nancy Goodband, Bill Newell, Becca Keeler (written), Beverly Morgan (written), Ron Sussex (written), Rob Verse Luis (written), Clara Jekyll (written)) urged the council to remove the item from consent and schedule a study session, citing risks of tasers causing deaths, disproportionate use on people of color, and cost ($1.58 million over 10 years). They referenced specific incidents: the death of Ramsey Saad (2018) and Chinedu Okobi (2018). One speaker, Aaron Sussman (Redwood City police officer), supported the upgrade, stating tasers provide a less-lethal force option and enhance de-escalation.
- Other: Written comments addressed lack of code enforcement for noise/barking dogs, a pedestrian struck at El Camino Real and Dumbarton Avenue, and opposition to bike lane projects and speed humps.
Discussion Items
- Item 6B - Taser 10 Upgrade: Councilmember Surkin proposed agendizing the item for a future regular meeting to allow more public input and data review. Chief Bell and Axon representatives presented: the Taser 10 has a 45-foot range (vs. 25 feet for X2), audible/visual warning, automatic body-worn camera activation, and virtual reality training capabilities. The department reported 156 taser deployments out of 108,915 enforcement contacts (0.63% use of force) from 2011-2024. The X2 model is obsolete, with parts and training no longer supported. Council debated the need for a study session vs. immediate approval, with some members emphasizing cost-effectiveness, increased safety, and accountability features. The motion to approve passed 6-1, with Councilmember Surkin dissenting.
- Item 8A - Fire Hazard Severity Zones: Fire Marshal Janice Chung presented updated maps from CalFire, which redesignated previous Very High hazard areas (1,266 parcels in 2007) to zero Very High, 60 High, and 6 Moderate in 2025. The change is attributed to improved modeling (e.g., local wind data, ember cast modeling). The ordinance was introduced (first reading) and unanimously approved. Council discussed the importance of regular updates and noted that hazard maps do not reflect mitigation efforts.
- Item 9A - Utility Master Planning Study Session: Engineering Director Tanisha Werner reviewed the city's water (potable and recycled), sanitary sewer, and stormwater systems. Key points: 85% of water comes from Hetch Hetchy; recycled water use reduces potable demand by ~200 million gallons/year; sewer system includes 184 miles of pipe (many from 1940s); stormwater infrastructure is aging (built 1960s) with no dedicated funding source. Council members expressed support for increased investment, particularly in stormwater, and requested that the Finance and Audit Committee explore funding options (e.g., enterprise funds, fees). No formal action was taken.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar: Approved unanimously (items 6A, 6C, 6D, 6E, 6F).
- Item 6B - Taser 10 Upgrade: Approved on a 6-1 vote (Councilmember Surkin opposed). The agreement with Axon Enterprise Inc. covers upgrade of X2 devices to Taser 10, including support, training, and software integration, at a cost of approximately $1.58 million over 10 years.
- Item 8A - Fire Hazard Severity Zones: Ordinance introduced and approved unanimously (first reading); second reading scheduled for a future meeting.
- Study Session: No formal action; staff directed to return with a stormwater roadmap and consider funding recommendations via the Finance and Audit Committee.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everybody. The city welcomes public comment on topics within the city subject matter jurisdiction. And members of the public may provide comments in person during the meeting or by email to public comment at redwood city.org as outlined on the agenda. In-person speakers must turn in a speaker card to the city clerk at the dais to be recognized to speak. Please be sure to indicate the agenda item number which you wish to address. And in-person speakers will be called in the order in which their speaker cards were turned in. Comments that were received via email after agenda publication through 5 p.m. today may be read aloud, time permitting, and in any case will be made part of the final meeting record. I will now turn it over to our city clerk to call the roll. Good evening. Councilmember Chu. Here. Councilmember G. Present. Councilmember Howard. Here. Councilmember Padilla. Present. Councilmember Sturkin. Here. Vice Mayor Aiken. Here. And Mayor Martinez Sabayos. Here. Thank you. Thank you. And we'll move on to the Pledge of Allegiance. Councilmember Jeek. Thank you. You would rise and join me in a saluting the flag of our country. Thank you, Councilmember G. Next is presentations and acknowledgments, which we do not have any tonight. So we'll move on to public comment on the consent calendar, matters of council interest and items that are not on tonight's agenda. We will now take public comment on the consent calendar, matters of council interest and items that aren't listed on tonight's agenda. And I'll turn it over to the city clerk to facilitate public comment. Thank you, Mayor. At this time we have seven in-person speakers and a total of 11 emailed comments. So totaling 18. Last call to the audience for any additional in-person speakers this evening on the consent calendar, matters of council interest, and items that are not on the agenda. Okay, we will begin with our in-person speakers. I'll call two at a time. There is a timer on the top of the podium. The yellow blinking light is the 30-second warning, and the red light with the beep means your time is up. You'll get two minutes to speak, and the timer will begin when you start speaking. Our first speaker is Ingrid Falk. And Ingrid will be followed by Ann Cano. Welcome. Okay. And do I need to speak from here or do I stand up email? Thank you.
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