Yakima City Council Regular Meeting – July 14, 2026

The Yakima City Council met in regular session on July 14, 2026, at Yakima City Hall (129 N 2nd Street, Yakima, WA). The meeting was called to order at 5:32 p.m. and adjourned at 8:54 p.m. The scheduled 5:00 p.m. executive session on pending litigation was not held, and no public hearings were conducted. Present were Mayor Matt Brown, Assistant Mayor Reedy Berg, and Councilmembers Patricia Byers, Rick Glenn, Felisa Gonzalez, Juliet Potrykus, and Leo Roy. The Council approved the consent agenda, heard extensive public comment, discussed the Terrace Heights annexation and county homeless-housing grant decisions, received police and fire quarterly updates, and voted on the Yakima Valley Trolley Heritage Capital grant application.

Consent Calendar

• Approved by a 7-0 roll-call vote (motion by Berg, second by Byers) without discussion:
  • Set Aug. 18, 2026, as the date for a closed-record public hearing on a preliminary long plat, 'Plat of the Vine.'
  • Resolution R-2026-109, ratifying a Professional Services Agreement with The Referent Group for Thomas Huntington to serve as interim fire chief.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Flock surveillance cameras: Noemi Sanchez (city resident), Michael Morrison (city resident), Andreina Rangel (county resident), Kyra Smith (county resident), and Michael Nelson (county resident) spoke in opposition to Flock cameras and urged the Council to end the contracts. They argued that residents did not consent to data collection, that Flock's data-sharing terms raised constitutional privacy concerns, that other jurisdictions including LAPD had dropped Flock, and that the money should be redirected to community services such as Camp Hope.
• Camp Hope and homeless services: Mike Kay, director of Camp Hope, said the program placed 107 people into housing in the last year and had more than 352 documented positive exits. He said Camp Hope was not shutting down but might be reduced to about 50 beds if funding was not found, and he disputed the 'warehousing' narrative. Eleanor Valenzuela (city resident), Sarah Valenzuela (county resident), and Pete Bender (non-city resident and person in recovery) expressed support for maintaining funding for homelessness services and programs.
• Habitat for Humanity: Gary Green (city resident) and Fatima Rodriguez Robledo (city resident, Habitat homeowner services coordinator) commented on the need for timely processing of Habitat's affordable housing project, pointing to the delay between a May 14, 2026 public hearing and an Aug. 18, 2026 council date.
• Yakima Valley Trolley: Anne Knapp (city resident) opposed the city's Heritage Capital grant application, saying the application was incomplete and raising concerns about costs, property ownership, and the extension toward Selah. Cindy Reed, vice president of Yakima Valley Trolleys, and David Foster (county resident) encouraged support for the grant, describing the trolley as a historic asset and noting recent board restructuring.
• Healthcare: Amy Laws (city resident, registered nurse) requested the Council publicly call for good-faith negotiations between insurance companies and MultiCare, saying the dispute threatened access to affordable care for thousands of residents.
• Terrace Heights annexation: Ray Lamoureux (county resident) opposed the annexation, saying the city could not afford to take on more service area; Tony Sandoval (city resident) supported it, calling it a needed revenue source and saying it would not affect the historic Terrace Heights area.
• Tony Courcy raised questions about the Fred Redmon Bridge and prior meeting minutes.

Recognition and Council Reports

• Councilmember Byers recognized Cameron Guerin, an A.C. Davis High School graduate, as the first female wrestler to win five national collegiate wrestling championships and only the second athlete overall to do so. Ms. Guerin is a graduate student-athlete at McKendree University in Illinois.
• Councilmember Byers recapped the city's FIFA World Cup Fan Zone events, which were initially planned for three games but expanded to five nights and drew thousands of attendees. She thanked community partners who helped organize the fan zone.

Discussion Items

Terrace Heights Commercial District Annexation (9A)

• Planning Manager Trevor Martin reviewed the proposed annexation of approximately 350 acres near Terrace Heights Drive and University Parkway. The estimated population is 914, with about 31 houses; the senior center and some apartments were excluded. The proposed zoning would include small convenience center, light industrial, and suburban residential districts.
• Martin described a roughly 180-day process: a public meeting, collection of signatures from property owners representing 60% of assessed value, a public hearing and ordinance, council-district re-evaluation, and review by the Yakima County Boundary Review Board. He also noted an existing East Valley Fire District levy and said the city and fire district would need to resolve how that levy would be handled.
• Council voted unanimously to direct staff to draft the official annexation petition and collect signatures from property owners to begin the annexation review procedures. Motion by Potrykus, second by Byers; 7-0.

County Homeless Housing Assistance Grants (9B)

• Yakima County Commissioner Kyle Curtis discussed the county's intent to award 2026 homeless housing assistance grants for the July 1, 2026-June 30, 2028 cycle. He said the county did not intend to create a crisis, that the county was following its 2025-2029 Five-Year Homeless Housing Strategic Plan, and that the focus was long-term solutions.
• Councilmembers expressed concern about the lack of a transition plan and the abrupt reduction in Camp Hope funding. One council member noted that the county had received about $35 million in funding requests but allocated $11 million.
• Mike Kay, Camp Hope director, responded that the county's cited $129,000 would not cover two weeks but was the total annual contract amount. He said Camp Hope applied for $674,000 for 210 beds and contrasted that with about $700,000 for 90 beds at Union Gospel Mission. He criticized the eight-day notice and said a safe downsizing could not be done that quickly.
• Different funding figures surfaced during the discussion: Commissioner Curtis referenced $129,000 available; Assistant City Manager Gary Ballew later referred to $150,000 and noted Camp Hope usually received about $800,000.
• Commissioner Curtis committed to taking the city's concerns back to the Board of County Commissioners, proposed a meeting with the provider and city manager early the following week, and said he wanted to develop a better city-county process for awarding these funds over the next three months. The Council took no formal action.

Police Department Quarterly Update (9C)

• Chief Shawn Boyle presented the second-quarter (April-June 2026) update. He reported two vacant police officer positions, three corrections officer vacancies, and overtime at about half of the budgeted amount. He noted 3,500 overtime hours in patrol, 981 in corrections, and 333 homeless-related contacts by neighborhood resource officers.
• Traffic and enforcement statistics included one fatal collision in Q2 2026 compared with three fatal incidents and four deaths in Q2 2025, and more than 600 DUI arrests in the past year. The Pro-Act unit had a drug/firearm stop with about $22,000 in drugs and multiple guns seized. The DEA task force conducted 14 operations, seizing about 12 ounces of cocaine, 18 pounds of methamphetamine, and $217,000 in currency.
• The special assault unit handled about 200 cases per month. Gang incidents totaled 17 excluding graffiti, with zero gang-related assault-with-weapon injuries. No homicides occurred in the city during the quarter; one homicide was recorded for the year so far. Flock/ALPR technology was used in 256 cases and led to 85 arrests. Two tracking dogs graduated, and 10 officers were certified in bike patrol.

Fire Department Quarterly Update (9D)

• Interim Fire Chief Tom Huntington, seven business days into the role, presented the second-quarter update. Call volume was slightly down from Q1. The department participated in regional mutual aid, hosted a two-day airport drill with IFSAC certification, and completed 248 fire-marshal inspections.
• Major personnel changes included the promotion of Mike Wagner to shift commander and retirements of Chief Markham, Deputy Chief Hudzel, and several firefighters and lieutenants. For the Fourth of July, dispatch call volume doubled; the department added staffing and sent mutual aid out of the city three times while maintaining city protection.

Heritage Capital Projects Grant for Yakima Valley Trolley (9E)

• Community Development Director Bill Preston said the Yakima Valley Trolleys were eligible for the Heritage Capital Projects grant and that the application was for $400,000. The grant required a two-to-one match; the city used $795,000 in previously spent federal bridge funds as the match. He said no city or TBD funds had been used or committed as a match and that the city owns the tracks and right-of-way within the Sixth Avenue project area.
• Preston said the trolley organization had not yet raised capital funds, but that the grant application was a fundraising tool and the deadline was that week; if not submitted, the grant would not reopen for two years. Councilmembers disagreed about whether to wait until the trolley raised at least $100,000 or to approve the application as promised under the 18-month fundraising period.
• A public speaker disputed the 'no future city funding' characterization, alleging the application included about $500,000 in city cash funds for future construction. Staff maintained that no city funds had been used or committed as match.
• Motion to postpone the grant application until the trolley raised at least $100,000 in donations failed 5-2, with Glenn and Potrykus voting yes and Berg, Brown, Byers, Gonzalez, and Roy voting no.
• Motion to adopt Resolution R-2026-110, authorizing approval of the Heritage Capital Projects grant application and committing to required matching funds, carried 5-2, with Glenn and Potrykus voting no.

Council Open Discussion and City Manager Update

• Council reached consensus to invite MultiCare officials and healthcare workers to a future discussion about the community's healthcare needs. Councilmembers said they would not become involved in union negotiations but wanted to hear visions for healthcare in Yakima.
• Assistant City Manager Gary Ballew presented the City Manager update: he invited council members to participate in the Yakima Agenda podcast, offered an educational session with Comprehensive Health about its Opioid Treatment Program, and reported that the Department of Ecology had published a de minimis consent decree for the County's East-West Corridor project related to the Millsite property cleanup, with public comment open until July 31, 2026.
• Mayor Brown asked for an update on keeping Franklin Pool open for four extra days. Councilmember Potrykus asked about using unspent pool funds for Camp Hope; Ballew said about $35,000 of pool-project funds remained and a one-time amount of about $50,000 could potentially be identified, but recommended waiting for the Monday meeting between the city, county, and provider.

Key Outcomes

• Consent agenda approved 7-0; plat hearing set for Aug. 18, 2026; interim fire chief agreement ratified.
• Council directed staff to begin the Terrace Heights annexation process by drafting a petition and collecting signatures; motion carried 7-0.
• No formal action was taken on county homeless-housing grant decisions; Commissioner Curtis agreed to further meetings and a new allocation process.
• Police and fire quarterly updates were received for information only.
• The motion to postpone the trolley Heritage grant failed 5-2, and Resolution R-2026-110 was adopted 5-2.
• Council agreed by consensus to invite MultiCare officials and healthcare workers to a future discussion.
• The meeting adjourned at 8:54 p.m. to the next regular meeting on July 21, 2026, beginning with a 5:00 p.m. executive session in City Hall Council Chambers.