West Sacramento City Council, Redevelopment Agency, and Finance Authority Meeting - August 6, 2026
West Sacramento City Council Meeting - August 6, 2026
The West Sacramento City Council, Redevelopment Agency, and Finance Authority met on August 6, 2026 (the mayor opened the meeting as the August 5th meeting; the official timestamp for this record is August 6, 2026, 02:04 UTC). This was the first meeting to offer both in-person and Zoom participation for public comment. The council unanimously approved the consent calendar, a delinquent utility charges resolution, and two future agenda item requests, and heard public testimony on peace initiatives, carport enforcement, and retail cannabis.
Consent Calendar
- The consent calendar (items 2 through 13) was approved unanimously by a 5-0 roll-call vote, with no items removed and no public comment.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Susan Ruppel, a volunteer with the Peace Pole Gardens Project, reported on a recent peace pole dedication at the Southport community garden. She proposed two peace strategies: installing an eight-foot peace pole in City Hall lobby (with "may peace prevail on earth" in eight languages, donated by her) and passing a resolution declaring West Sacramento a City of Peace, aligned with a 2021 City of Compassion resolution. She requested action by International Day of Peace, September 21, 2026.
- Bill Lara (spelling uncertain) expressed frustration that his open-sided carport was forced down and said more than 40 carports have come down, representing roughly $80,000 in lost home improvements. He argued safety/visibility concerns are unfounded for open carports and formally requested the council direct the planning commission to allow pole-only carports and eliminate the 20-foot setback.
- Matt Weaver said he would continue raising the city's unfulfilled strategic priority for retail cannabis. He asserted the city has not moved forward despite an RFP, while the federal government has reclassified marijuana as medicine. He argued the item is either low priority or no priority and called on the council to either act or remove it from the priority list. He also noted the council is all-female and includes black and brown members.
Public Hearing: Delinquent Utility Charges and Liens
- Finance supervisor Angie Familia presented Resolution 26-70, which would certify delinquent water, sewer, and refuse charges for placement on the secured property tax roll and authorize liens.
- Staff reported that delinquency notices were mailed in mid-June to 1,132 accounts; by the hearing date, the number had fallen to 753, with an additional $10,000 collected in recent days. The final list was to be submitted to Yolo County the next day for the 2026-27 tax roll.
- Councilmembers asked about affordability trends (staff said the numbers are comparable to prior years and the total dollar amount is lower than last year), payment plans (available with a good faith upfront payment), and the city's water shutoff policy (the city does not currently shut off water; it uses the lien/tax roll process instead).
- The West Sacramento Hospitality LLC (associated with the Ramada) was noted as the largest delinquent account this year; it had been on the list for several years, but utilities were shut off in May, so this is expected to be the final lien. A previous year's amount for the same property was close to $150,000.
- Staff clarified that the Teeter Plan guarantees the city will be reimbursed by the county, and the recorded liens cloud title so prospective buyers are aware of outstanding obligations.
General Administration and Reports
- Mayor Guerrero gave a shout-out to Boston Roberts, son of West Sacramento resident Robert Roberts, who was promoted to the Round Rock Express (Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers) and is pitching against the River Cats during the week.
- City staff noted upcoming events: Bright Park groundbreaking on August 20 at 11 a.m., a community forum on August 8 at 10 a.m., and a traffic study meeting that Thursday.
- City manager highlighted two emails regarding the waste hauler contract and the Bar Farms project, and introduced Mona Ibrahimi from KMTG, an attorney with 20 years of experience assisting West Sacramento, who will be sitting in for Jeff.
- The council also acknowledged National Night Out, Junior Giants, and the US Conference of Mayors Playball event.
Future Agenda Item Requests
- Councilmember Roscoe requested a future agenda item to honor a 14-year-old West Sacramento student who saved a classmate from severe burns; the council unanimously approved the request.
- Councilmember Orozco requested a proclamation honoring the West Sac 10U and 14U girls' softball teams for qualifying for national tournaments; the council unanimously approved the request.
Key Outcomes
- Consent calendar (items 2-13) approved 5-0.
- Resolution 26-70 for delinquent utility charges and liens approved 5-0.
- Both future agenda item requests (youth hero recognition and girls' softball proclamation) approved 5-0.
- The meeting adjourned by unanimous vote.
Meeting Transcript
I got my hot team that's how matters. Madame Clerk, I'd like to confirm that the live stream and Zoom has started. So I can call the meeting to order. Yes, Madam Mayor. Everything is ready. Everything's ready? All right. It's a new day in our West Sacramento city and community with some community meetings, hearing process. We now have a Zoom component where members of the public can call in and participate via Zoom as a state law change. I just wanted you all to be aware as you start hearing opportunities for the public to be more involved, and we are now set and ready to go. I'd like to thank the city staff and our clerk who's going to be managing that process for us. So now that all the council members are present, I call to order the August 5th meeting of the City of West Sacramento City Council, the West Sacramento Redevelopment Agency and Finance Authority. We will begin with a land acknowledgement. We would like to acknowledge that the land on which we live, work, learn, and commune is the original homelands of the indigenous people of West Sacramento who have stewarded this land throughout the generations. We acknowledge and we thank the original inhabitants who have occupied, maintained, and secured this place, and who still exist on this land. We respect and celebrate the many diverse indigenous people still connected to this land on which we gather. One nation. Furthermore, so that we may maintain a civil discourse here in the chambers, we ask that those in attendance and those who address the city council abide by the code of conduct posted and not speak in loud, threatening, offensive, abusive, or other disrespectful language that disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the meeting. And Madame Clerk, I'd like to ask for you to provide any further clarification that I may need to, we may need to provide for public participation. Certainly. Starting today, the public may take part in the city council meeting in person or remotely using Zoom. Information on how to join the meeting on Zoom is listed on the meeting agenda, and it's also available on the city's website. If you're attending the meeting in person and want to speak, please fill out a request to speak card and give it to either myself or Katie, the clerks. You must turn in your request to speak card as the mayor stated before the staff finishes presenting the agenda item you want to speak on. No additional in-person comments for an item will be heard following the conclusion of the in-person comment period. If you're attending the meeting on Zoom and want to speak, please raise your hand, your virtual hand, or use the QA feature when prompted by the clerk. Members of the public participating via phone may raise their hand by pressing star nine. No additional remote comments for an item will be heard following the conclusion of the remote comment period. Each speaker, as the mayor said, both in-person and remote will have three minutes to address the council in front of me. There is a timer, and you will be muted at the three minute mark. As the mayor stated, we are on item one. So remote attendees wishing to make a public comment, you may raise your hand at this time. If you're participating via telephone, please press please press star nine. Thank you, Madame Clerk. And for clarification, if the Zoom does not work. If any of our technology goes down, we will take a recess. The city staff is required to take an hour to try to resume our remote, our remote uh capacity for public participation. If we are unable to resume the city council will either decide to recess the meeting and continue at a future time, or if it is decided that the business of the city is very important and needs to proceed, the city council will decide to proceed without remote participation. Thank you, Madame Clerk. Appreciate all of your work and all of your planning for this. This is our first go at this, so I asked we ask for your patience, and we look forward to refining the process as we proceed with this meeting and future meetings. So now this brings us to item one to presentations by the public on matters not on the agenda within the jurisdiction of the council, and each person has three minutes to speak. Madam Clerk, are there any requests to speak? Yes, we'll begin with our in-person speakers. Our first speaker is Susan Rappel. Thank you. Thank you. Hello, my name is Susan Ruppel. I'm a volunteer peaceful activist and steward of the Peace Pole Gardens Project. Our friends, family, and neighbors recently gathered for a dedication ceremony for the peace poll we installed at the main drain community garden in the Southport area of West Sacramento.
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