San José City Council Meeting – October 27, 2026

The San José City Council met in hybrid session on October 27, 2026, beginning with a 9:30 a.m. closed session and convening the regular 1:30 p.m. open session in Council Chambers. The agenda included ceremonial proclamations, a consent calendar, labor agreements, a vehicle abatement audit, solid waste and nonfunctional turf ordinances, renaming of Plaza de César Chávez Park, and the Parkmoor Community Apartments financing conversion. No meeting minutes were available; this summary is drawn from the agenda and the meeting transcript.

Ceremonial Items

• Vice Mayor Foley recognized District 9 Stars as her final invocation, honoring Marcy Khan, Scott Hughes, and Jeannie and Rich Sanders for neighborhood leadership and community service.
• Digital Inclusion Month: The Mayor and City Librarian Jill Bourne highlighted that over 38,000 San José households are unserved or underserved by broadband; 1 in 8 households lacks home internet and 1 in 19 relies solely on a smartphone. Since 2020, the city has awarded more than $4.7 million in digital inclusion grants, six community tech hubs supported nearly 5,000 residents in the past year, and a partnership with East Side Union High School District provides free Wi-Fi to about 200,000 residents, with an average of 77,000 monthly users.
• National Cat Day: Councilmember Ortiz and Jamie Allen of Humane Society Silicon Valley highlighted a community pet clinic on McKee Road that provided 1,000 spay/neuter surgeries and basic services for about 550 pets over the past year.
• Domestic Violence Awareness Month: Councilmember Campos, Assistant District Attorney James Shapiro Gibbons, and Sabina Singh of MyTree spoke. Statistics cited included 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men experiencing severe intimate partner violence, 135 domestic violence killings in California last year, domestic violence as the third leading cause of family homelessness, and MyTree serving 770 survivors among more than 57,000 served statewide.
• Commendation for Andrea Mackenzie: Councilmember Campos honored Mackenzie for 15 years leading the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority, protecting more than 15,000 acres, helping pass Measure T generating $46 million for North Coyote Valley, and partnering with the city to invest over $7.5 million in green neighborhood grants.

Consent Calendar

• The Council approved the consent calendar unanimously after Councilmember Doan pulled item 2.10 for comment.
• Item 2.7: Sixth Amendment to the ALCLEAR concession agreement to add CLEAR Concierge services at Mineta San José International Airport.
• Item 2.8: Amendment with Universal Protection Security Systems, LP for Internet Protocol Television support and maintenance, extending options through October 31, 2028.
• Item 2.9: Ratification of final 2025-2026 expenditures and associated appropriation and funding source amendments.
• Item 2.10: Agreement with the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services to accept three additional fire apparatus and equipment valued at approximately $1,062,000. Councilmember Doan thanked Cal OES and the San José Fire Department.
• Item 2.11: Grant agreement with HomeFirst Services of Santa Clara County for Overnight Warming Locations, not to exceed $1,200,000, retroactive to October 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, at Roosevelt Community Center and Cambrian Branch Library.
• Item 2.12: Acceptance of a $3,959,448 Proposition 64 Public Health and Safety Grant for the Accountability, Resilience, and Connection Program.
• Item 2.13: Award of the Elia Park construction contract to QLM, Inc. for $2,767,903, plus a 10% contingency of $276,790.
• During consent discussion, Councilmember Cohen asked about warming location selection; Housing Director Eric Sullivan said OWL sites rotate annually, are referral-based, and transportation is arranged for referred residents.

Public Comments & Testimony

• James Whiteman urged the Council to support a transit sales tax measure, warning that VTA would otherwise cut service on the 500 line.
• A speaker named Gail supported the Roosevelt Community Center warming location but opposed the Cambrian Branch Library location, saying there are no unhoused residents in District 9 and questioning transportation.
• During the vehicle abatement item, a caller warned that leaves and debris from street recycling can block storm drains and cause flooding, and Jordan Moldow of District 3 asked that the group memo recommendations be applied broadly across 311 services.
• During the solid waste item, Michael Gross of Gross Garbage Group supported the amendments, and Caroline Nemetz of Premier Cycle strongly supported the construction and demolition diversion changes, praising independent verification of recovery rates.
• During the turf ordinance item, Blair Beekman discussed San Diego's Pure Water program, Jordan Moldow asked whether the city can exceed state law and whether dog-relief areas count as recreation turf, and Kim Gupdal also commented.
• During the plaza renaming item, Dan Paul Crano supported the name Plaza de San José, while many speakers from Amigos de Guadalupe, Friends of Guadalupe, and community members urged the Council to choose Plaza de los Inmigrantes or Immigrant Plaza. Other speakers suggested Ohlone, Guadalupe, or hotel-related names.
• During Open Forum, eighth-grader Akshar Rachnayani proposed green roofs on bus shelters funded by VTA advertising contracts; a resident complained about chronic nightclub noise on East San Fernando Street; Blair Beekman urged San José to take a more cautious approach to data centers and surveillance technology; and Francisco requested a coordinated task force for safety concerns along Almaden Road and San Jose Avenue, citing debris, equipment storage, intimidating behavior, and a vehicle fire.

Discussion Items

Vehicle Abatement Audit (Item 3.3)

• City Auditor Joe Royce presented the audit. Between July 2025 and March 2026, there were about 10,000 vehicle abatement cases; 98% were closed within 14 days and 80% were resolved through voluntary compliance. Proactive patrols covered an average of 57% of city streets within the 14-day patrol goal. The audit recommended aligning resources with service demand, expediting towing for vehicles with multiple conditions, strengthening documentation and supervisory review, and improving customer communications, including full translation of warning notices.
• DOT Director John Ristow said the administration accepted all eight audit recommendations and the additional recommendations in the memo from the Mayor and Councilmembers Tordillos, Ortiz, Mulcahy, and Doan.
• Assistant City Manager Lee Wilcox said the new 311 app will go live in March 2027 and that about 89% of negative survey responses involved cases closed with no enforcement.
• Councilmembers described resident frustration with closed cases and repeat reports. Councilmember Doan moved acceptance of the memo. Councilmember Mulcahy raised auto body and repair shops using streets for storage; staff said this is both a DOT and code enforcement issue. Councilmember Kamei asked about the three-visit towing process; staff explained that a lower-cost contract officer performs the second visit, saving enforcement resources. The Council voted unanimously to accept the audit and the memo.

Labor Agreements (Items 3.4 and 3.5)

• Item 3.4 approved a collective bargaining agreement with the Municipal Employees' Federation, AFSCME Local 101, for July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029. Terms include 3% pensionable pay increases each year, a 1% lump sum cash payment, artificial intelligence safeguards, and improvements to the qualifying promotion process.
• Under Orders of the Day, the AMSP portion of Item 3.5 was dropped because that tentative agreement was not ratified by the union's membership; the administration said it would discuss next steps in closed session.
• The Council then approved Item 3.5 for the Association of Engineers and Architects (AEA) and the City Association of Management Personnel (CAMP), both IFPTE Local 21, for the same three-year term.
• Councilmembers expressed appreciation for the city and union bargaining teams and emphasized the importance of supporting city workers.

Solid Waste Ordinance (Item 6.1)

• The Council approved amendments to Chapter 9.10, including standardized solid waste requirements, Senate Bill 1053 recycled carry-out bag provisions, and construction and demolition diversion updates.
• Councilmember Campos moved approval with additional direction to the City Manager to evaluate the administrative fine schedule and return in the next budget cycle with recommendations to potentially increase fines for improper solid waste disposal.

Nonfunctional Turf Ordinance (Item 6.2)

• The Council approved an ordinance implementing California Water Code Section 10608.14 and Assembly Bill 1572, adding a phased prohibition on using potable water to irrigate nonfunctional turf.
• Staff said enforcement would be education-first and generally handled by water retailers in their service areas, with Valley Water also able to enforce during conservation periods. Staff noted ongoing discussions with San Jose Water and limited coordination with Great Oaks Water.
• Councilmember Campos moved approval. The vote passed unanimously with all present; Councilmember Doan was temporarily absent during the vote but later confirmed his yes vote.

Renaming Plaza de César Chávez Park (Item 7.1)

• Staff presented the community engagement process triggered by Council direction after serious concerns about César Chávez came to light in March 2026. The park is the oldest public space in Northern California, about 230 years old, and was renamed Plaza de César Chávez in 1993.
• The first survey produced 610 name suggestions; 432 met policy criteria and were consolidated to 88 eligible names. The second ranked-choice survey received 10,506 responses, with 86% from San José zip codes and 96% from Santa Clara County.
• Staff recommended Plaza de San José, citing alignment with community themes of belonging, history, and inclusivity. The Parks and Recreation Commission unanimously recommended Plaza del Pueblo de San José, but staff noted that recommendation also conformed with policy.
• Councilmember Tordillos moved the staff recommendation, noting Plaza de San José was the most suggested name by more than a two-to-one margin and received more first-choice rankings than the second and third options combined. The Council voted unanimously to rename the park Plaza de San José.

Parkmoor Community Apartments (Item 8.1)

• Housing staff explained that the City had approved construction financing for the Parkmoor Community Apartments in 2023, a permanent supportive housing project for transition-age foster youth developed by Abode and heavily funded by Santa Clara County.
• The developer used only about 4% of the City construction loan during construction and later requested the full amount to pay down the Capital One senior loan so the property could cash flow. The revised operating budget was 8.3% higher than originally projected.
• Staff acknowledged an error in the original sources-and-uses calculation that was not caught until after construction. Destination Home agreed to provide $950,000 in bridge funding to help the project through its 15-year tax credit compliance period.
• Several Councilmembers expressed frustration with the financing situation and the use of taxpayer funds to pay down another lender's loan. Staff said rejecting the conversion would leave the property with negative cash flow by 2027, potentially creating a zombie building. Staff also said Abode remains the property manager and no other Abode projects are known to have similar problems.
• The Council approved the conversion to permanent financing unanimously, with Councilmember Ortiz absent.

Key Outcomes

• Orders of the Day: The AMSP portion of Item 3.5 was dropped; motion passed unanimously with Foley and Campos absent.
• Consent Calendar approved unanimously.
• Vehicle abatement audit and group memo accepted unanimously.
• MEF, AEA, and CAMP labor agreements approved unanimously.
• Solid waste amendments approved unanimously, with additional direction to evaluate fines in the next budget cycle.
• Nonfunctional turf ordinance approved unanimously with all present.
• Plaza de César Chávez was renamed Plaza de San José unanimously.
• Parkmoor Community Apartments conversion to permanent financing approved unanimously with Ortiz absent.
• Closed session report: nothing to report.
• Next steps: new 311 app in March 2027; vehicle abatement update expected at the Transportation and Environment Committee in April 2027; Plaza conservancy RFQ planned for late 2026 and contract in spring 2027; labor discussions on the unratified AMSP agreement will continue in closed session.