Walnut Creek City Council Regular Meeting - March 18, 2025
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Walnut Creek City Council Regular Meeting - March 18, 2025
The Walnut Creek City Council held its regular meeting on March 18, 2025, at City Hall, 1666 N. Main Street, Council Chamber. The meeting began at 6:00 p.m. and adjourned at 9:18 p.m. All councilmembers were present: Mayor Cindy Darling, Mayor Pro Tem Kevin Wilk, Councilmembers Craig DeVinney, Matt Francois, and Cindy Silva. The agenda included a proclamation, a communications update, consent calendar items, public communications, council reports, and two significant consideration items: the Business Improvement District (BID) assessments and the Pension Trust and Reserve Use Policy.
Opening and Proclamations
- Pledge of Allegiance and roll call.
- Proclamation declaring March 31 as International Transgender Day of Visibility. The Mayor presented the proclamation to Alex Bicaro, a proud transgender man, who accepted on behalf of the Rossmoor LGBTQ+ communityholistic wellness.
City Communications Update
- Liz Payne, Digital Services Manager, presented the city's digital services accomplishments, including the redesign of four city websites in 2024. Key stats: website traffic increased 26% year-over-year, total reach averages 2.7 million views annually, over 24,000 email subscribers opening over 126,000 emails annually, and Instagram/YouTube growing 17% annually. Housing division saw a 38% increase in visitors after SEO improvements. Future initiatives include enhanced mobile experience, expanded online forms, accessibility improvements, and a chatbot.
Consent Calendar
- Items 2a (minutes), 2b (warrant registers), 2d (freeway maintenance agreement), 2h (Commissioner term continuation), and 2i (Microsoft licenses) were approved unanimously (5-0). Resolution No. 25-06 adopted. Microsoft license agreement with Insight Public Sector SLED authorized up to $240,000 annually, $720,000 total over three years.
- Item 2c (Stormwater Utility Area fee) was pulled by Councilmember DeVinney for comment. He requested a future agenda item to delve into the complex subject. Resolution No. 25-07 adopted unanimously, requesting the Contra Costa County Flood Control District maintain the SUA fee at $35 per Equivalent Runoff Unit for FY 2026.
- Items 2e (fiber optic network completion) and 2f (slurry seal completion) were pulled by Councilmember Silva to thank Public Works. Approved unanimously, including acceptance of work, transfer of balances ($73,888 for fiber; $92,096 for slurry seal), and authorization to file Notices of Completion.
- Item 2g (Library Commission appointment) was pulled by Mayor Darling to recognize Heather Lurvey and thank Jasun Molinelli. Approved unanimously, appointing Lurvey as primary representative through June 30, 2026, and directing recruitment for an alternate.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mary Rose (Rossmoor): Raised concerns about a recorded deed changing open space boundaries in Rossmoor related to a $4 million pickleball proposal. Claimed lack of public hearing and Brown Act notice; requested public hearing.
- Ellen Osmundson (Walnut Creek): Announced rebranding of a senior village project to Mount Diablo Village, a nonprofit supporting seniors to stay in their homes. Noted nationwide movement of 260+ villages.
- Keith Feiring (Walnut Creek): Supported the Mount Diablo Village initiative, emphasizing desire to remain at home and community volunteer support.
- Jack Dudum (property owner, 1515 North Main Street): Objected to city letter requesting $3,600/year for patio use. Stated the patio is the only access to his restaurant's front door, and he spent over $200,000 on improvements under a prior 10-year lease that expired 8 years ago.
Council and Staff Announcements
- Mayor Pro Tem Wilk: Reported on TransPAC meeting, Contra Costa Animal Services tour, East Bay leadership program with AG Rob Bonta, employee recognition event (Vanessa Sendehas named Employee of the Year; Building Maintenance team named Team of the Year).
- Councilmember DeVinney: Reported on National League of Cities conference in Washington, D.C., highlighting housing, workforce, municipal bonds, and Medicaid concerns. Also attended a film on anti-Semitism and met with a new business (Behavioral Fitness).
- Councilmember Silva: Reported on RecycleSmart legislative committee (bills AB 337 and SB 45), waste characterization study, Cal Cities webinar on wildfires, housing, and short-term rental bills.
- Councilmember Francois: Reported on spring break activities.
- Mayor Darling: Reported on Read Across America at a TK class and community cleanup event.
Discussion Item: BID and SBID Assessments
- Staff and Walnut Creek Downtown (WCD) Executive Director Kathy Hemenway presented the annual assessment reports. The BID and SBID cover nearly 700 businesses across 29 blocks. Proposed assessments include a 3% annual increase. WCD activities included summer arts program, painted pianos, holiday decorations, ice rink (1.9 million TikTok views), and expanded events. An addendum noted revisions to Measure O funds. Council approved resolutions 25-08, 25-09, 25-10, and 25-11 unanimously, setting public hearings for April 1, 2025. The city charges a 10% administrative fee, which staff explained as cost recovery.
Discussion Item: Pension Trust and Reserve Use Policy
- Administrative Services Director Kirsten LaCasse and NHA Advisors (Mike Meyer) presented. Key points: City has $155 million unfunded accrued liability with CalPERS (safety: $73M; miscellaneous: $82M). Projected pension costs will increase through 2033, decline after 2034. The city holds $28.7 million in a Section 115 trust, originally funded with $19.9 million.
- Scenarios showed trust could stabilize payments at $12.1 million (status quo) or $13.7 million (if discount rate drops to 6.5). A moderate recession scenario showed trust could cover projected deficits through 2034.
- Council discussed policy provisions emphasizing use only during deficit years to maintain existing service levels, withdrawals based on actual year-end needs, and ensuring trust lasts to at least FY 2034. Some councilmembers voiced concerns about using funds to maintain services and the need to coordinate with investment advisors.
- Resolution No. 25-12 adopted unanimously, establishing the policy.
Key Outcomes
- Approved all consent calendar items as noted, with resolution numbers 25-06, 25-07.
- Adopted resolutions 25-08 through 25-11 for BID/SBID assessments and set public hearings for April 1, 2025.
- Adopted Resolution No. 25-12 establishing the Pension Trust and Reserve Use Policy.
- Directed staff to bring back a future discussion on the stormwater utility area fee (item 2c).
- Staff to follow up on public comment concerns regarding Rossmoor open space deed.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 9:18 p.m.
Meeting Transcript
All right. Hello, everyone. Good evening. I'm Cindy Darling, Mayor of Walnut Creek, and welcome to the Tuesday, March 18th, 2025 regular meeting of the Walnut Creek City Council. The City Council is conducting the meeting for the from the City Council chambers. And this meeting is being video streamed and can be viewed later or live. I am. You guys not hearing this? I'll just glare over the A V guy. The meeting is being streamed and can be viewed late live or later on the city's websites. As some attendees may be participating in their first Walnut Creek City Council meeting, I wanted to welcome everyone and talk briefly about the agenda and the public comment process. For each agenda item, there will be an opportunity for public comment on the item. Thus, if you desire to speak on an item that is on the agenda this evening, please hold your comments until the council considers that item. Additionally, we have a section on the agenda titled Public Communication, which is for public comments on items not on the agenda. Any comments during public communications should not relate to an item that's on the agenda this evening and consistent with section 9.5 of the city council handbook. 30 minutes will be initially allocated for public communication for items not on the agenda. Additional time for public communications for items not on the agenda will be provided at the end of the meeting if necessary. And if you do sorry, I just got back from vacation. My brain is still functional. If you desire to provide a public comment, please compete us complete a speaker identification card and line up behind the lectern at the appropriate time. Wait your turn, and then when you approach the lectern, state your name and city of residence, and you'll have two minutes to address the council. Now please keep in mind that this is a city business meeting. The city council has adopted rules of decorum to ensure that the meetings are conducted efficiently and effectively, and that all members of the public have a full, fair and equal opportunity to be heard. The City Council handbook outlines decorum expected in the council chambers and can be found on our website. All remarks should be addressed to the city council. Please do not use threatening, profane, or abusive language which disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the council meeting. Again, everybody's gonna have their two minutes to make their remarks and written comments have been submitted that were submitted and received up to two hours before the meeting, have been posted to the city's website for public review and are included in the meeting record. Well but will not be read separately into the record. So that's the disclaimer part. And with that, please join me in the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you. City Clerk Martinez, could you please call the roll? Councilmember DeVini. Councilmember Francois. My micro. There you go. Here. Councilmember Francois. Here. Councilmember Silva. Here. Mayor Pro Temwell. Here. Mayor Darling. Here. Okay. Next on the agenda is a proclamation declaring March 31st as International Transgender Day of Visibility. And this is a one that I wanted to make sure we had this year. And it's celebrated as a way to celebrate the accomplishments and the victories of transgender and gender non-conforming people while raising awareness of the work that is still needed to address the discrimination they face. And this safe basically save transgender lives.
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