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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-05-11 City Council Summary MinutesCITY COUNCIL SUMMARY MINUTES Page 1 of 25 Special Meeting May 11, 2026 The City Council of the City of Palo Alto met on this date in the Council Chambers and by virtual teleconference at 4:30 p.m. Present In Person: Burt, Lauing, Lu, Lythcott-Haims, Reckdahl, Stone, Veenker Councilmember Reckdahl Arrived at 5:08 p.m. Present Remotely: None Absent: None Special Orders of the Day 1. City Employee Years of Service Awards and Proclamation acknowledging Public Service Recognition Week Mayor Veenker called the meeting to order and welcomed all City employees and their families. Councilmember Lauing read a proclamation recognizing all the years of service by City employees and celebrating the various ongoing services they have provided to residents. Mayor Veenker added that Palo Alto is reputed for being well run and offering terrific services to its residents and thanked City employees for making that possible. Ed Shikada, City Manager, echoed thanks to City employees and described the Employee Appreciation Event that took place last week in Mitchell Park. Manager Shikada read the names of those who have served for 20 years or more. NO ACTION 2. Recognizing May as Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month and May 10, 2026 as AANHPI Mental Health Awareness Day Item Removed Off Agenda AA1. Proclamation Recognizing National Police Week as May 10-16, 2026 and National Peace Officers' Memorial Day as May 15, 2026 New Item Added SUMMARY MINUTES Page 2 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Vice Mayor Stone read a proclamation recognizing national police week and asking all Palo Alto citizens to observe Friday, May 15, 2026, as Peace Officer's Memorial Day in honor of peace officers who lost their lives or have become disabled in the performance of duty. James Reifschneider, Police Chief, expressed gratitude and pride for this proclamation and thanked Council for recognizing National Police Week and National Peace Officers' Memorial Day and acknowledging the important work done by the men and women of the Palo Alto Police Department. Chief Reifschneider expressed gratitude for the service of fallen officers Lester Cole, Gene Clifton, and Theodore Brassinga. Chief Reifschneider invited the Council and community to join the PAPD for their annual Grove event in Cogswell Plaza at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 15, to remember Palo Alto's fallen officers. Mayor Veenker thanked Chief Reifschneider and all PAPD officers who serve the City every day. NO ACTION Agenda Changes, Additions and Deletions Mayor Veenker stated that Item 3, the closed session that was notified for 4:45, will be last on the agenda this evening so the public and commenters do not have to wait while the Council meets outside of public view. The added advantage is all other items should start about 30 minutes earlier, depending on public comments and the length of discussions. Mayor Veenker thanked the Council for arriving an hour early. Closed Session 3. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL—EXISTING LITIGATION Subject: Anne Kramer vs City of Palo Alto, Santa Clara County Superior Court Case No. 25CV461517 Authority: Government Code Section 54956.9(d)(1) Agenda Item Number 3 Heard Out of Order MOTION: Councilmember Reckdahl moved, seconded by Councilmember Lu to go into Closed Session. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 Council went into Closed Session at 9:01 p.m. Council returned from Closed Session at 9:18 p.m. Mayor Veenker announced that the City Council authorized the City Attorney by vote of 7-0 to enter into a settlement agreement to pay $85,000 to resolve the claims against the city in Anne Kramer vs City of Palo Alto, Santa Clara County Superior Court Case No. 25CV461517. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 3 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Mayor Veenker announced that on May 4, 2026, the City Council authorized the City Attorney by a vote of 7-0 to enter into a settlement agreement to establish a process of consideration of an alternative to the proposed Builder's Remedy development project at 156 North California Avenue. The settlement agreement was finalized on May 7, 2026. Public Comment 1. Justine B. shared a few highlights of the informational report Council received from the Office of Transportation (OOT), including the Palo Alto Transportation Management Association (PATMA) annual report, 3-year strategic plan, and commute survey findings. PATMA's work in 2025 resulted in freeing up 482 parking spaces, 2.9 million fewer vehicle miles traveled, and 1,152 tons of greenhouse gas emissions reduced. Justine B. shared the story of Javier, who received a bike from Silicon Valley Bike Exchange, which allows him to get to work before trains and buses are running without using a rideshare service. Justine B. read a comment from Alejandra Mier of Coupa Café, who stated PATMA has helped reduce parking stress, lower commute costs, and improve work-life balance for her team members. Justine B. concluded with the program's opportunities for growth. 2. Herb B. opined that the public notice agenda for this meeting was unusual and the first he saw for any agency subject to the Brown Act to say the agenda may change. Herb B. commented on the Roth Building's occupant applying for a conditional use permit to change the use from a history museum to an event center, stated the building should be dedicated as park land, and noted the Museum of American History was dedicated as park land under Ordinance 4423 because it, like the Roth Building, received funds from the County subject to park purposes. Herb B. expressed concerns about Roth Building event attendees displacing current park users and creating problems with parking and traffic. Herb B. spoke about complaints regarding the Opportunity Center at 33 Encina, which happened first in October. Nothing came of it until comments came to City Council to enforce the law and now some letters online make claims of retaliatory eviction. Herb B. expressed concerns around entities tied to the building, which are Abode Services, LifeMoves, and Community Working Group. 3. Reina U. shared an experience she had at Stanford Hospital, which she wanted the Council and community to know about so it doesn't happen to anyone else. Reina U. stated she was admitted to Stanford for heart problems and decided to leave when she saw another patient peeking through her curtain but 7 security guards stopped her and said her IV needed to be removed first. Reina U. stated she had to humiliate herself by lifting her shirt to access the IV and remove it. Reina U. said she did not get her heart medication and was told she must readmit herself in order to receive it. When returning to the ER, Reina U. learned she had been misdiagnosed and given the wrong medication. 4. Shani Kleinhaus, Environmental Advocate for the Santa Clara Valley Bird Alliance (SCVBA), shared that the previous weekend, May 9 and 10, was a celebration of World SUMMARY MINUTES Page 4 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Migratory Bird Day. The theme was Every Bird Counts - Your Observations Matter. Shani Kleinhaus expressed thanks to City Council for the Bird Friendly Design and Dark Skies Ordinances. Shani Kleinhaus shared an image of a bird migration alert from BirdCast showing bird movements the previous evening and suggested BirdCast alerts be shared with the community in some way in the future. Mayor Veenker commented that Mr. Theisen is aware of the timing and intends to come next week. Council Member Questions, Comments and Announcements Mayor Veenker shared that the City will be hosting its first Palo Alto Pride celebration on Sunday, June 7, 2026, from 2 to 5 p.m., in front of City Hall. The event will feature the City's new pride flag and attendees will hear from speakers and performers before celebrating with a festival on the closed block of Hamilton Avenue adjacent to City Hall and the pedestrian access part of Ramona and Ramona Plaza. Sponsors include the Palo Alto Recreation Foundation, Stanford University, Stanford Medicine, Embarcadero Media, Jennifer DiBrienza, Jesse Dorogusker, Grocery Outlet, Palo Alto University Rotary, Youth Community Service, and more still being discussed. The Council is contributing $10,000 from their contingency fund to the celebration. Mayor Veenker thanked all people serving on the coordination committee, including City staff, for planning and raising money for the event. Mayor Veenker highlighted Cinco de Mayo, Affordable Housing Month, and a celebration with Alta Housing and Canopy where they planted trees at Alta's first Palo Alto project, Colorado Park. The Youth Art Exhibition and Awards were done in conjunction with the school district at the Art Center and Emily Benatar's parents were there for awards made in her memory to 2 students who will study art after high school. Mayor Veenker thanked Councilmember Lythcott- Haims for attending that event. There was a celebration Friday for the grand opening of Mitchell Park Place, which houses AbilityPath and provides affordable housing to intellectually and developmentally disabled adults. Councilmember Lauing attended Stanford GUP, also called StanfordNext, in Sunnyvale with a group from all over the county. The focus was affordable housing and they workshopped the best places for housing. Councilmember Lauing stated it was very constructive and one "aha" moment for him was realizing there is much more agreement than disagreement among the cities on where housing should go. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims stated she will not seek re-election this fall and is announcing this now to give community members time to consider stepping up for that empty seat. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims shared that her choice to not seek re-election is based on 3 big learnings: 1) how much work it takes to be prepared in all the ways required to serve the city well; 2) how it is a positive, fulfilling experience, honor, and privilege; and 3) how little time is left over to do the work that pays the bills, namely writing books and public speaking. The City SUMMARY MINUTES Page 5 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Clerk plans to post the 2026 candidate guide by the end of May and anyone interested in being a councilmember is encouraged to reach out to the City Clerk to learn more. Study Session 4. FY 2027 Proposed Operating and Capital Budget – Finance Committee Update and Council Budget Discussion. CEQA Status – Not a project Lauren Lai, Chief Financial Officer, provided a slide presentation on the proposed FY 2027 budget. Lauren Lai noted this study session's goals are to summarize the Finance Committee's initial recommendations and hear feedback from Council. The budget will go back to Finance Committee on May 19 and return to City Council on June 15 for final adoption. Due to financial challenges, the budget has reductions in it with a focus on preserving valued, high-quality services and initiatives and reducing impacts to the community. The operating budget totals about $1.05 billion across all city funds and about $311 million of that is the General Fund. The capital budget has a 5-year plan and a 1-year budget. The 5-year plan has a budget of $1.2 billion and the 1-year/2027 budget is about $314 million. The City has a multi-year strategy to solve the projected General Fund deficit of $17.1 million. The strategy includes continuing FY 2026 budget reductions and projects a Budget Stabilization Reserve between 17.4 and 18 percent. Slide 5 of the presentation showed the projections for budget stabilization and deficit reduction. This projection does not yet take into account any suggestions or feedback from the recent Finance Committee workshop. The City looks at rates every year because of the 5 utilities Palo Alto governs for businesses and residents. Slide 6 showed the rate increases that were adopted for FY 2026 and rate increases proposed for FY 2027. Regarding electric, the Finance Committee unanimously recommended moving forward with an electric rate increase of 4.5 percent. Regarding gas, the Committee voted 2-1 to recommend the 9 percent rate increase with an alternative of 7 percent. At the Finance Committee workshop on May 5-6, some items were put on an adjustment table, which is recommendations for the Council to review, and other items were put on a "parking lot" for further discussion, most for staff to come back with additional information. Finance Committee Adjustments (recommendations to Council): • Explore using existing programs to fulfill AZA requirements while reducing hourly positions, reducing the budget by $64,000. • Restore school crossing guard positions that were proposed for elimination, increasing the budget by $51,250. This is contingent on 50/50 cost sharing with PAUSD. • Extend the Track Watch crossing monitor contract through June, which increases the budget by $307,715. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 6 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 • Regarding the Oversized Vehicle (OSV) Program, recommend $200,000 for Geng Road parking site and $184,000 for additional towing capacity, a total budget increase of $384,000. • Finance Committee received 4 options related to the Nonprofit Work Plan and voted for Option C, which adds $124,000 to the proposed budget. Regarding the Council Contingency Fund, Council may consider piloting a Council Executive Assistant position, which would run 6 months and straddle 2 fiscal years. It would be carried into FY 2027 and add $30,000 to Council's Contingency Fund, bringing the fund's total balance to $155,000. Finance Committee "Parking Lot" (Items to return to Finance Committee on May 19): • Committee wants to accelerate the Quiet Zones project and directed staff to add it to the 2027 CIP with funding coming from Measure K. • Staff was directed to add the Chimalus Right-of-Way (ROW) to the 2027 CIP. • Committee asked staff to review marginal benefits of restoring the Office of Transportation (OOT) staffing and how that may impact Council priorities and projects. • The Finance Committee had concerns about Police Department staffing, vacancies, recruitments, and overtime, so staff will come back for deeper discussion on using lateral hiring bonuses for police hires. • Finance Committee recommended to the Council that any potential appropriations for grant funding go through the HSRAP process. • For balancing the additional appropriation of $803,000 per Finance Committee adjustments, the Committee recommended considering reductions to CIP by delaying or deferring less urgent projects. Finance Committee referred staff to: return with a summary of the City's AI strategy, return with a consultant best practices narrative, present the Palo Alto Golf Course P&L in a more complete way, explore increase for outdoor recreation programs at Cubberley, evaluate acceleration of certain capital improvements at Cubberley, return with refined overtime budgeting for the Police Department for FY28, and evaluate efficiency opportunities for the Fire Department for FY28. Finance Committee recommended including the Employee Childcare Pilot Program in the Long Range Financial Forecast and tracking Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for CIP, including delays, cost increases, and deferred spending. Regarding Roth Building Maintenance, there is available funding in the Heritage Park Site Project should the City incur costs to remediate the park's drainage issue. CFO Lai noted the agenda package has an attachment related to tree trimming objectives. The Nonprofit Funding Option recommended unanimously by Finance Committee was Option C, which adds specific additional direct allocations and creates a funding gap of $124,000. Funds will be allocated to Magical Bridge, Cal Ave Music and Special Events, and UNAFF. For SUMMARY MINUTES Page 7 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 additional award or grant funding, the Finance Committee recommends it go through the HSRAP process. A full list of technical adjustments will be provided to Finance Committee on May 19. Adjustments include removing a duplicate entry in the utility budget, FY26 reductions made ongoing, and realigning revenue and expenses based on Committee feedback. The budget will go back to Finance Committee on May 19 with Council feedback. Councilmember Lauing underscored that funding for the school crossing guards and Track Watch assumes 50/50 cost sharing between the City and PAUSD and discussion is needed on those valuable items. Councilmember Lauing noted the OSV recommendation is modest and covers maintenance only because feedback has not yet been heard from the OSV Committee. Public Comment 1. Shani Kleinhaus expressed concerns about the water at Foothills Park, which has almost 300,000 annual visitors. Shani Kleinhaus commented that 37 percent of water allocation to the park was cut a few years ago and cutting more could be problematic if areas are too dry. Shani Kleinhaus stated that fixing problems with the lake or lawns will be expensive and recommended caution and further information. 2. Maria Chai, Mountain View resident and chair of Canopy's board, expressed admiraton for Palo Alto's conviction that resident health is non-negotiable and trees are a crucial part of public health infrastucture. Maria Chai stated she was disheartened to hear about the funding cut to the contract with Canopy, which has been a long-time partner in executing the City's vision for a vibrant urban forest. Maria Chai said the funding cut will directly impact Canopy's ability to survey and care for the young trees that have been planted and urged the Council to restore Canopy's contract in full. 3. Becky B., Palo Alto resident, got involved with Canopy through the South Palo Alto Tree Project and took part in plantings, the Great Oak Project, and the Young Tree Care Project and became a Canopy donor. Becky B. highlighted how the partnership between Palo Alto and Canopy gives residents a reason to feel great about the City government and urged the Council to fully fund the big work that Canopy does. 4. Luke Lu, senior at Paly High, thanked the Council for their support of climate and sustainability initiatives in the city and noted how Canopy has played a critical role in restoring Palo Alto's natural beauty. Luke Lu got involved with Canopy 3 years ago by attending planting sessions and said it was fulfilling to help build a system that benefits people and nature, connect with community members, and share collective hope for an improved society and future. Luke Lu urged the Council to restore Canopy's contract. 5. Michael Clawson, Palo Alto resident, first moved here in 1972 and was impressed with the city's tree canopy, which has improved dramatically since then. Michael Clawson is a former director of Acterra, where he worked closely with Canopy and saw firsthand the SUMMARY MINUTES Page 8 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 work they do in planting and caring for trees and involving young people. Michael Clawson stated trees are essential infrastructure, managing energy demand and stormwater, improving air quality, and protecting public health, and encouraged Council not to cut Canopy's budget. 6. Jon Gifford, resident and Canopy volunteer, spoke in support of the Digital Tree Health Survey because the system is smart and cost effective and needed to maintain the canopy. Jon Gifford stated the Digital Tree Health Survey is preventive infrastructure for urban forests that allows foresters to identify risks early and noted prevention is always less expensive than reaction. Jon Gifford asserted that the program saves the City money, reduces long-term liabilities, and ensures trees planted today become the mature canopy of tomorrow. 7. Sue Krumbein shared that a number of the Women's Club of Palo Alto joined Canopy in a tree planting event at a local park because their foremothers planted and watered trees throughout Professorville. Sue Krumbein was amazed at the number of volunteers involved and excited to participate in the process. Sue Krumbein shared she still waves to the trees they planted when she passes, amazed at how they've grown, and urged Council to support Canopy's budget and amazing work. 8. Ash P., resident of Palo Alto and volunteer with Canopy, stated that what makes Canopy special is how it brings young people into the process of planting and caring for urban forest, inviting them to help build solutions with their own hands alongside community members from all generations. Ash P. emphasized that reducing investment in this work would not only affect the urban forest but reduce opportunity for young people to feel agency, connection, and hope. 9. Reyansh M., resident of Palo Alto and volunteer with Canopy, shared the experience of their first tree planting and shared the work that goes into planting, watering, caring, and collecting data like logging tree size, species, and condition for the Great Oak Project. Reyansh M. urged Council to support Canopy in the upcoming budget. 10. Holly Pearson, resident of Stanford and past co-chair of Canopy's board, shared she was part of a group that updated Palo Alto's Tree Ordinance in 2022. Council meetings at that time looked at neighboring cities' tree ordinances and sought to keep Palo Alto as a leader in urban forestry. Holly Pearson asked Council to support Canopy's contract in full and stated that when one city invests or disinvests, there is a ripple effect. 11. Rob O'Connor, Canopy board member, stated neighborhoods with a great feel almost always have large trees and shade and without them, there is only asphalt, concrete, grass, shrubs, and punishing summer heat. Rob O'Connor said that when someone plants a tree they will not be alive to enjoy at maturity, it is an act of love and commitment to the community. Rob O'Connor noted that Canopy partners trees with people, bringing together local volunteers of all ages and creating a neighborhood with SUMMARY MINUTES Page 9 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 cleaner air, shade, and a better environment for all. Rob O'Connor noted the need for hope in a time of relentless policy changes and asked Council to fully support Canopy. 12. JP Renaud, executive director of Canopy, described a recent post on Canopy's Instagram account, which celebrated nearly each Councilmember planting a tree, an act of love to the community and a powerful legacy. JP Renaud stated that all the photos in the post show pride, joy, faith, and hope. JP Renaud noted that South Palo Alto has half the tree cover of the rest of the city and Canopy has planted more than 1,500 trees to address that inequity. JP Renaud emphasized that the movement is not only about planting trees but about planting a sense of community belonging and unity. 13. Nicole Chiu-Wang, Palo Alto resident and executive director of Pathwise, thanked the Council and City staff for their hard work on the budget and acknowledged the hard decisions involved. Nicole Chiu-Wang acknowledged the great work Canopy is doing and highlighted the youth who spoke earlier, stating how great it is that youth have a voice here. Regarding HSRAP and the Nonprofit Partnership Work Plan, Nicole Chiu-Wang hoped Council would acknowledge the amazing breadth of nonprofit services available to Palo Alto residents who are less resourced and often marginalized and think about adequately funding HSRAP so nonprofits, including Pathwise, can provide the services Palo Altoans need. 14. Sheryl B. Marymount, Founder and CEO of the Musical Memories Foundation, which is one of the City's Phase 1 nonprofit grant recipients, stated the nonprofit addresses the epidemic of loneliness and isolation among seniors by providing music-based programming to underserved active seniors and those in assisted living and memory care. Sheryl B. Marymount highlighted the impact of Musical Memories, which has served 635 seniors, provided 11 programs, and delivered their first free community concert for seniors. Sheryl B. Marymount acknowledged budget decisions are difficult and expressed hope for continued funding for the Musical Memories Foundation. Councilmember Burt added a few follow-ups to the budget presentation. On electric utility increase, the recommendation to increase it by 4.5 percent instead of 6 came from earlier meetings, not the most recent workshop. Staff had originally recommended increasing the hydro reserve fund within a single year but Finance Committee recommended it be spread over 2 years to reduce the rate increase. On the JMZ, the Committee asked staff to pursue whether additional conservation funding in the proposed budget would be covered by other existing conservation programs and staff confirmed that, which is how that reduction was possible. Regarding nonprofit funding, Councilmember Burt pointed out the report's mention of $6.8 million in nonprofit funding by the City and stated that is not a relevant point of comparison because nonprofit is a tax status. Councilmember Burt added that some nonprofits have ongoing contracts that perform outsourcing for the City. Councilmember Burt shared that Finance Committee discussed the 4 Nonprofit Work Plan options and thought that if the Council wants to address the needs identified or met with the Phase 1 process, that should preferably SUMMARY MINUTES Page 10 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 be done through the HSRAP process, though not all Phase 1 grant recipients would qualify under current HSRAP criteria. Councilmember Burt asked if they want to have funding this year or next year and whether there needs to be modifications to the criteria if the intention of Council is to capture nonprofits that don't fit current HSRAP criteria. Councilmember Burt clarified that Cal Ave Music is really Cal Ave Special Events because it goes beyond music. On Canopy funding, Councilmember Burt stated that no comments related to it were made to the Finance Committee in person or through emails, which is the way to get community voices heard, and no emails spoke of proposed staff cuts. Councilmember Burt emphasized that everyone values the city canopy and trees and Council needs a better understanding of the proposed cuts, which they thought impacted outreach areas and the digital tree survey. Councilmember Burt welcomed any thoughts from colleagues on whether Finance Committee should dig deeper on one or both of those at the next meeting. Councilmember Burt clarified that an item in the CIP covers Heritage Park improvements but it is not adequate to cover what may come forward to address flooding into the Roth Building. Councilmember Lu acknowledged that the budget is tough and gave kudos to staff because the deficit was originally projected to be $83 million through 2032 and is now around $4 million over 2029, which is a huge improvement. Councilmember Lu expressed concern about deferring some maintenance for the Bol Park Bike Route and wanted to look at how to avoid limiting capital projects. Councilmember Lu shared that Finance Committee discussed nonprofits with notable disagreement. Council direction from April was to move forward with the Nonprofit Phase 1 Work Plan for this year but Finance Committee discussed moving the process to HSRAP. Councilmember Lu noted this went against consensus from the study session and wanted to flag that. Councilmember Lu shared that a number not included today was potential funding for OSV, from a permit program to another safe parking lot, which totals around $1 million to $2 million, depending on the combination of programs chosen. Regarding Canopy, staff previously confirmed the budget reduction would create no practical reduction or slowdown in South Palo Alto tree planting or canopy goals and the understanding was the cuts would be related to tools like the digital tree plotter. Councilmember Lu acknowledged public comment and wanted to further understand details of whether there would be a practical impact to the city canopy. Vice Mayor Stone thanked Finance Committee and staff for their work on the budget and asked what happens if PAUSD does not agree to 50/50 cost sharing for the crossing guards and Track Watch. Vice Mayor Stone stated City and PAUSD cost sharing would be ideal but acknowledged that if the parcel tax passes in June, it could make a difference. Ed Shikada, City Manager, responded that the City would need to find the funds to provide those services without PAUSD support or make cuts elsewhere. Vice Mayor Stone was glad Canopy spoke up to express concerns and noted he was unaware of an issue until recent emails and the public comments tonight. Vice Mayor Stone wanted details SUMMARY MINUTES Page 11 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 about what the $43,000 cost reduction might do to Canopy's ability to serve the community and sought insight from Canopy on what that reduction affects. JP Renaud, Canopy Executive Director, stated that in nonprofit budgeting, every dollar is pre- appropriated by law to a certain cause and the $43,000 reduction from the $400,000 budget means a 10 percent reduction in their partnership with the City. It could mean eliminating a full-time position and less ability to deliver to the community. JP Renaud underscored that as a nonprofit, they do a lot with very little and 10 percent for Canopy represents only 0.003 percent of the City's deficit. Vice Mayor Stone thanked JP Renaud for the response and noted that Council identifies that reduction as 2 different positions or services and wanted to understand that better. Brad Eggleston, Public Works Director, expressed appreciation for everyone who came to speak on behalf of Canopy and emphasized that making this budget proposal in no way discounts Canopy's important work and it is not meant to suggest the City thinks cuts to Canopy will have no impact. Brad Eggleston highlighted this was a difficult decision in the budget process and noted the proposed budget for the Urban Forestry Division includes a cut to the tree-trimming contract, permanently eliminating 7 tree trimmer positions and 1 administrative position. With respect to the services themselves, the budget document suggested the Canopy budget reduction could affect the Digital Tree Survey Tool and reduce corporate outreach and service sign-ups. Brad Eggleston stated that Urban Forester Peter Gollinger had a conversation with JP Renaud from Canopy last week and had heard concerns about those items. If the 10 percent reduction is adopted for the FY27 budget, the City would need to discuss with Canopy, work out an amendment to the contract that would make the reduction, and come to some agreement about what scopes of work could be reduced to have the least possible impact. Vice Mayor Stone reiterated concerns, applauded the testimonies on behalf of Canopy, and opined that Ash P.'s comments were especially moving and persuasive in highlighting how Canopy involves youth in the community. Vice Mayor Stone asked if the additional direct allocations of $235,000 is a continuation of what Palo Alto has done over the last few years, which CFO Lai confirmed. Councilmember Reckdahl acknowledged this is a tough budget year with many hard decisions and asked if Canopy was involved in the decision on what to cut. City Manager Shikada noted that what is before Council is the staff recommendation and initial proposal on where to make reductions based on the service agreements in place. City Manager Shikada acknowledged Canopy may have a different perspective on what services would be better options for reduction, which is a needed conversation between Canopy and the City. Councilmember Reckdahl said it will be useful for Finance to hear the discussion around the impact of that $43,000 and if there are better cuts to be made in forestry to have less impact. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 12 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Councilmember Reckdahl noted the nonprofit funding is tricky and became especially complicated last year. Councilmember Reckdahl believed Finance Committee made a good decision to simplify the process by having human services go through HSRAP and programming go through Council. Councilmember Reckdahl stated some Phase 1 groups that did not get funding are great nonprofits and hoped Council could right-size HSRAP next year and run that through. Councilmember Reckdahl referenced Packet Page 208, which shows unused FY26 budget money being moved to the FY27 budget, and asked how that works when the usual policy for budget excess is to split it between groups. Councilmember Reckdahl wondered if this movement means they are packing more projects into FY27 than can be accomplished. CFO Lai explained that the capital budget is a 5-year plan with $1.2 billion and 200 projects. Due to the complexity of projects, it is typical for timelines and costs to vary and unspent budget at the end of the fiscal year is carried over into the next year. Staff reviews how many projects can be closed or have used less funding because of better pricing or reduction in scope. Robert Valentukonis, Budget Manager, explained that part of the reappropriation process is to analyze the projects, understand available resources, and schedule when contracts are likely to be awarded. Part of that process is reallocating funds to next year and sometimes beyond, so it is a cascade of tasks pushing forward. City Manager Shikada clarified that the 30 percent of funds reappropriated does not mean 30 percent of projects were not completed. City Manager Shikada explained that large capital projects take more than a year to construct but they need to budget for the entire construction contract from the beginning in order to pay the contractor, so the dollars are shown and carried forward into the following year not because the project is delayed but because it is the nature of budgeting versus cash flow. Regarding Foothills Park, Councilmember Reckdahl shared he was in the group that worked to reduce watering by 37 percent and was nervous that another 10 percent could unintentionally damage the environment. Kristen O'Kane, Community Services Director, stated she confirmed with Open Space staff that the drought-related watering reduction is no longer being done, so this 10 percent reduction would apply to the normal watering schedule followed outside of drought conditions. The 10 percent reduction brings the watering to a Level 1 drought conservation level. Councilmember Reckdahl asked how much of the 37 percent reduction was permanent versus temporary. Director O'Kane did not know but noted that the team that worked on this with Daren Anderson is still with the City and has that knowledge and information, so she is confident in the team that will be handling and monitoring the reduction and adjusting as needed. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 13 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Councilmember Reckdahl suggested a short summary would be valuable to give the Finance Committee next week, which Director O'Kane agreed to do. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims thanked Finance Committee colleagues and staff for their hard work and asked for clarification on a statement in the City Manager's Supplemental Memo that said accelerating Quiet Zones would require funding for a limited term position or hourly ongoing project manager. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims wanted to know what the FY27 appropriation would be for that and whether Finance Committee discussed it. City Manager Shikada confirmed that Finance Committee discussed this and the recommendation is advancing the funds to FY27 for design and FY28 for construction, so it represents moving funds forward for that purpose. City Manager Shikada confirmed this is reflected in Finance Committee's recommendation; there are no exact figures yet but the advancing of the funds provides the capacity to do that. Regarding Track Watch monitors, Councilmember Lythcott-Haims agreed with much of what had been said and acknowledged the uncertainty around the 50/50 cost sharing with PAUSD. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims offered that track monitors have been effective in the past and wanted to see Track Watch monitor funding baked into the budget going forward beyond FY27, not ending until grade separation occurs. Regarding Canopy, Councilmember Lythcott-Haims expressed appreciation for the community support. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims commented that South Palo Alto, which has half the canopy presence of the rest of the city, is where new neighborhoods are being planned, particularly the San Antonio Area Plan, which contemplates a coherent approach to resident experience with trees, open space, and parks being a huge facet. Councilmember Lythcott- Haims opined this is the time to double down on the partnership with Canopy and echoed concerns about looking at the 10 percent cut. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims stated OSV is a pressing concern and serves some of the most vulnerable members of the community. The funds that might go toward addressing enhanced enforcement and efforts to provide safe parking are TBD items not yet in this budget. The OSV Ad Hoc Committee is actively talking about both sides of this and the potential for a new lot, and Councilmember Lythcott-Haims disliked the thought of not budgeting for it. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims stated nonprofit funding is a big issue and stated the need for more clarity around which nonprofits go in which bucket and why, whether HSRAP, operating services, direct allocations, or additional direct allocations. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims asked what is meant under Option D when it says $193,366 (remainder of $317K). CFO Lai believed that number was to get to the current year funding level but it does not appropriate those dollars to specific nonprofits. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims commented that Palo Alto Recreation Foundation has taken over management of Cal Ave Entertainment activation, which used to be called Third Thursday, SUMMARY MINUTES Page 14 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 and expressed concerns about PARF having to ask annually for support when they are doing a great service by filling that gap. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims wanted to see it in the operating services budget. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims supported Finance Committee's recommendation of Option C for the Nonprofit Work Plan, stating that given budget challenges, this is not a year to increase funding for anything without a very compelling reason. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims noted the nonprofit Phase 1 has been complicated, confusing, and burdensome for staff and nonprofits and recommended the City take the proper time sorting it out and getting ready to fund it in FY28, which would put it on the same schedule as HSRAP. Mayor Veenker thanked Finance Committee colleagues and staff for their work and asked why the electric rates chart shows a 6 percent increase when Finance Committee recommended 4.5 percent. CFO Lai explained that the chart represents what is in the proposed budget and staff have not fully calculated the impact of Finance Committee's recommendations. At a high level, the approximate general fund impact on the electric fund is about $150,000 on the utilities user tax. Reducing the rate increase to 4.5 percent would spread the revenue going toward hydro reserves over 2 years and the impact to the utility funds would be about $2.5 million. Mayor Veenker spoke about nonprofit partnerships, noting that not everybody qualifies for HSRAP but HSRAP should sort out any that are eligible. Mayor Veenker noted any nonprofits with ongoing City contracts need some certainty and can be dealt with in their own course but need to be evaluated regularly. Mayor Veenker said the important question for nonprofit partnerships is who, how, and where the City looks at new and additional programs, which could be from the same or new groups among those that don't fall under HSRAP. Mayor Veenker noted it is hard to evaluate new programs because the City needs to understand what the service is, what other services like it are out there, and what need or citizen expectation it is meeting. Mayor Veenker trusted Finance Committee to look carefully at those considerations. Councilmember Lauing agreed with Mayor Veenker and noted that some of the nonprofit partnerships are contracts while some are a contract plus something else. Councilmember Lauing noticed that this recommendation assumes each has the same financial need as last year, without any context for whether last year's amount was an increase or the same as previous years. Councilmember Lauing wondered how to sort that out and whether it should be referred to P&S or Finance Committee to explore how to assess it because some groups need more or less funding from one year to the next. Regarding the bucket of ongoing and sizeable contracts, Mayor Veenker stated she would like the Finance Committee looking into how to assess those from year to year. Mayor Veenker noted that the new and additional programs need to be part of the simplified nonprofit process, which is too burdensome for Finance Committee to grapple with in detail. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 15 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Regarding Canopy, Mayor Veenker hoped Finance Committee would receive more emails, look at what staff is saying and the more specific things heard from the Canopy director, more carefully assess the cuts, and get some clarity on how and where. Mayor Veenker wanted the communication around this to happen more directly. Mayor Veenker noted that a community member recently asked why the City stopped funding Track Guards and Mayor Veenker did not recall a decision around them because they just expired. Mayor Veenker wanted to prevent against that, discuss it as a Council, and put the burden on Council to end it when it becomes appropriate. Mayor Veenker expressed nervousness around the OSV plug number and stated the City will have to see what happens to needs around that and carefully consider. Mayor Veenker asked why the $200,000 for the Geng Road September through June financing picks up two months after the start of the fiscal year and what that funding is for. Chantal Cotton Gaines, Deputy City Manager, explained that the funding is for ongoing services for operation at the Geng Road site for the spaces the City is responsible for paying for versus those the County pays for. The funding is for maintaining what the City has at Geng Road with no expansion of spaces. The funding is covered through September 15, 2026, which is why the proposed FY27 OSV budget picks up in September. Mayor Veenker expressed support for that funding and wanted to understand more about the Council contingency funds for the Council assistant. CFO Lai explained the funds for the Council assistant are $30,000 for the 6-month period and will use FY26 funding carried over into FY27. Mayor Veenker noted the clerk's office said they will manage this person and suggested the Council and clerk's office do a modest evaluation in month 5 to see if a reallocation is needed to fund the position during the January-February gap so that person is not in limbo for 2 months. CFO Lai explained that because it is a pilot, it is a limited-term duration hire with the set appropriation, so Council would need to decide at some point whether to extend it. CFO Lai confirmed there is a gap because the process for that is typically February, so Council would need to create an agenda item related to it. CFO Lai offered to bring it back to Finance Committee and figure out how to incorporate it into Council's agenda. City Manager Shikada stated this should be a referral back to Finance Committee for consideration of Mayor Veenker's recommendation. The funding reflects the position ending it in December, so it may be appropriate to extend funding through February. Councilmember Lythcott-Haimes recalled that the Policies and Services (P&S) meeting the following evening has an agenda item to look at Nonprofit Work Plan Phase 1 process refinements and it would be very helpful to get direction from Council about what is headed back to Finance on this and if any is headed to P&S. Councilmember Lythcott-Haimes was SUMMARY MINUTES Page 16 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 unsure if P&S would be well equipped to have a meaty conversation about that within such a short timeframe and added that if Option C passes, they need to take time figuring out what this looks like in FY28. Mayor Veenker concluded by thanking everyone and wishing Finance Committee good luck at their next meeting. NO ACTION Consent Calendar There were no requests for public comment on Agenda Items 5 and 6. MOTION: Councilmember Lauing moved, seconded by Councilmember Reckdahl, to approve Agenda Item Numbers 5-6. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 5. Approval of Issuing Purchase Order C27197248 with Solutions Simplified, Utilizing a State of California Department of General Services Software Licensing Program Contract SLP-25-70-0181H, to Procure Zscaler Software Maintenance and Support for a Three- Year Term for a Total Not-To-Exceed Amount of $329,886; CEQA Status - Not a Project. 6. Approval of Contract Amendment No. 4 to Contract C19174648A with VERTEXONE SOFTWARE, LLC for the WaterSmart Utilities Customer Portal, to Extend the Term for Three Additional Years ending August 12, 2029 and Increase Compensation by $140,000, for a Revised Total Not to Exceed of $677,763; CEQA Status – Exempt under CEQA Guidelines Section 15308. City Manager Comments Ed Shikada, City Manager, provided some brief announcements. May 14 is Bike to Work Day. The Homkey Celebration is on May 14 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. This week is National Police Week and the annual memorial will occur at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 15, at Memorial Grove. City Manager Shikada concluded with an overview of notable upcoming Council meeting items. The Council took a break. Action Items 7. PUBLIC HEARING / QUASI-JUDICIAL. 3781 El Camino Real [24PLN-00161]: Request for Approval of Major Architectural Review Application to Merge Four Existing Parcels to Create a 63,025 Square-Foot Parcel and to Construct a Seven-Story, Multi-Family Residential Housing Development Project with 183 Units. Thirteen Percent of The Base Units Would be Provided at a Rate Affordable to Low Income. The Project is Proposed in Accordance with Builder's Remedy (California Government Code Section 65589.5(d)(5)). SUMMARY MINUTES Page 17 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 A Senate Bill 330 Pre-Application was Filed on February 15, 2024. CEQA Status: Exempt Pursuant to Assembly Bill 130 (Public Resources Code Section 21080.66). Steven Switzer, Senior Planner, provided a slide presentation on the project, which involves demolition of existing commercial and residential space across 4 parcels and construction of a 7-story building with 183 units, including 23 below-market-rate (BMR) units. There are 215 parking spaces and 144 long-term bike spaces. There is a Lot Merger associated with this development. The Architectural Review Board (ARB) recommended approval of this development at their meeting on January 15, 2026, and recommended City Council consider several conditions of approval, which were presented on Slide 4 and included in Staff Report Attachment F. Senior Planner Switzer covered state law constraints around this project, which is considered a "Builder's Remedy" project per Assembly Bill (AB) 1893 and is compliant with the standards of the El Camino Real Focus Area where it is located. The State Density Bonus Law applies to this project and AB 130 exempts it from CEQA and sets strict timelines for City review and decision. Relevant standards were provided in Attachments C and D. Peter Giovanoto, Applicant, thanked Council and staff for the opportunity to present the project. Peter Giovanoto noted he was at Council earlier this year with another project at 3606 El Camino and shared that his family is a long-time, local family committed to providing housing to Palo Alto. Marissa Reilly, Project Development Manager at Sares Regis, noted how great it was to work with City staff on this project. Marissa Reilly highlighted how this project supports Palo Alto's RHNA housing commitments, includes a range of unit types, and provides a safer, more walkable El Camino Real frontage. Marissa Reilly briefly described the El Camino Real vision established by the City and outlined the project's alignment with those goals. Marissa Reilly noted that the location is transit rich with an adjacent bus stop, Class 4 protected bike line, and 1-mile distance to the Cal Ave Caltrain Station. Marissa Reilly shared how the design has evolved since the initial application in February of 2024. Marissa Reilly highlighted how ARB feedback influenced the final design, including expanding patios at the podium level, improving bike circulation, relocating the trash staging area, and updating the Curtner Frontage garage entry materials and parking screening strategy. Marissa Reilly added that ensuring 150-foot sight lines at the garage entry was a focus of the design. Mayor Veenker noted that disclosures are needed because the matter is quasi-judicial, which was confirmed by City Attorney Chris Jensen. Councilmember Burt and Councilmember Lythcott-Haims disclosed they each met with the applicant and did not receive any information that has not been in the record. Public Comment: None Councilmember Lauing stated this type of project is why the El Camino Focus Area was created and is being expanded and expressed support for the project. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 18 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Councilmember Burt echoed Lauing's comments and expressed appreciation that the applicant only used the Builder's Remedy elements for fairly minor and reasonable allowances and has worked within El Camino guidelines and existing zoning and taken to heart ARB and staff recommendations. Councilmember Burt opined there will be some shock when long buildings like this are built along El Camino and noted that it is a good design and thoughtful about alternative transportation approaches. Councilmember Burt wanted to push for all these projects to look at Zipcar-type programs that cut down on parking demand. Councilmember Burt concluded by expressing support for the project. Councilmember Lu expressed appreciation for the housing on El Camino, thoughtful design of the bike room and bike access onto the El Camino bike path, and the process with ARB. Councilmember Lu stated the aesthetics of the building have made a lot of progress and regretted that some retail replacement couldn't be required on this site. Councilmember Lu highlighted public comment asking about renter protections and implying things like relocation bonus payments. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims expressed satisfaction with this project and appreciated that it was mentioned to Council how positive the working relationship with staff has been. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims added that she lives near this part of the city and has noticed how blighted this portion of El Camino looks, so she is very excited by the notion of the El Camino Focus Area. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims thanked the Giovanoto family for partnering with the City to bring 2 housing developments and a forest proposal forward. Councilmember Reckdahl stated gratitude for this project, which will be a big building, provide a lot of housing, and change the neighborhood. Councilmember Reckdahl felt the designers broke up the façade nicely. Councilmember Reckdahl said his Biggest complaint was bike parking, with half a parking spot per bedroom. He recommended taking a look at that and asked if there are electric outlets in the bike room for e-bikes. Marissa Reilly appreciated the feedback and offered to look into the potential for more bike parking. Regarding electrical outlets in the bike room, Marissa Reilly stated that has not been determined and will be considered in the next phase of design. Councilmember Reckdahl asked about the Pet Spa, co-working spaces, Floor 2 storage room, and the Uber/Door Dash parking spot on the plan. Marissa Reilly clarified that the Pet Spa is an amenity Sares Regis has incorporated at a number of properties in recent years and it is a dog-washing station for residents. Marissa Reilly confirmed the co-working spaces are free for residents to use at will and include a combination of shared tables and conference rooms. Marissa Reilly did not have the plan in front of her but imagined the Floor 2 storage room is for-rent storage for residents. Marissa Reilly explained that there is a designated loading space internal to the garage entry, which is imagined as a place for Uber and delivery services to come in. They have a move-in parking space near the transformer to accommodate move-in vans, which goes straight to a move-in lobby. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 19 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Councilmember Reckdahl asked about the garbage room, collection room, and staging room and wondered why they weren't able to be co-located. Marissa Reilly responded they originally had it co-located with the trash staging room next to the termination point in the middle of the building but after hearing from City trash experts and ARB, they moved the trash staging out to Curtner so it would be easier on hauling days for folks to come into that room. They would otherwise have had to gather the trash and stage it on Curtner, so this was a better solution. Councilmember Reckdahl agreed this is better but wondered why the room where the chutes come down couldn't come into the staging room. Marissa Reilly noted there will be some staging where the chutes come down but a certain amount of square footage is needed to accommodate the scale of the building. Building staff will take care of bins that need hauling. Councilmember Reckdahl noted the extra wide corners in the move-in lobby for maneuvering furniture, stated the overall design is very thoughtful, and asked about timeline for breaking ground and starting to rent. Marissa Reilly responded that if the project is approved tonight, they need to go through the design, do financing, and get a contractor. They intend to work on 3606 El Camino first and once that has momentum, they will follow with 3781. Mayor Veenker gave staff extra kudos, noting this is the second applicant that has mentioned how staff has been a pleasure to work with. Mayor Veenker stated it only took 91 days to approval with only 61 of them being on the City, which is further evidence of the Palo Alto process being redefined. Mayor Veenker appreciated the efforts around building aesthetics and all the revisions that comply with ARB's suggestions. Mayor Veenker pointed out that the 23 affordable units are 12.56 percent of the building, not quite the 13 percent noted; Mayor Veenker appreciated the developers trying to maximize the affordable units. MOTION: Mayor Veenker moved, seconded by Councilmember Lythcott-Haims to: 1. Consider the project exempt from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in accordance with Assembly Bill (AB) 130 (Public Resources Code Section 21080.66); and 2. Approve the Major Architectural Review application based on findings and subject to conditions of approval in the Draft Record of Land Use Action (RLUA) in Attachment B. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 8. Expedited Evaluation of the Potential Temporary Closure of the Churchill Avenue Rail Crossing, Determination of Next Steps, and CEQA Status – Statutorily and Categorically SUMMARY MINUTES Page 20 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Exempt. (Continued Item from 4/15/2026 – On April 15, 2026, the City Council Received Presentations and Public Testimony; The Item is Continued to May 11, 2026 for further Council Discussion, Deliberation, and Potential Action – No Additional Public Testimony Will be Heard on May 11, 2026.) Alex Andrade, Assistant to the City Manager, stated that tonight's agenda is a continuation of last month's Expedited Churchill Avenue Rail Crossing evaluation. The supplemental report addressed some of the questions City Council had on the Churchill Avenue Quiet Zone and the JED Foundation collaboration. Assistant Andrade acknowledged a few key components to this body of work and stated the Quiet Zone implementation along the Caltrain corridor is a City Council Priority. Last week, the Finance Committee discussed a strategy for the acceleration of the Churchill Quiet Zone; if the expedited plan is approved, Measure K funds would be used in FY27 for design and construction would take place in 2028. Finance Committee discussed adding funding for the monitoring guards through the end of the current fiscal year, which means additional funding would cover March-June of 2027, contingent on 50/50 cost sharing by the school district. The JED Foundation completed their final listening sessions virtually in April and is compiling findings to complete their assessment report, which should be made public at the end of next month. Kurt Michael, JED Foundation, read a statement. Data from the publicly available Santa Clara Medical Examiner Data Dashboard were reviewed and found to be generally consistent with broader CDC WONDER trends described in the report to be released next month, so consistent with CDC reporting guidance, which includes avoiding presentation publicly or in reports of death rates based on counts of 9 or fewer. The researchers leaned on the widely available CDC WONDER data system to report findings but the dashboard itself from the Santa Clara Medical Examiners boards was used to confirm that multiple locations along the railway corridor in Palo Alto meet criteria for "frequently used locations or suicide hotspots". The research has shown that once a location is known as a "hotspot", priority should be given to sustain prevention efforts because of their self-perpetuating nature and impact on those who work, live, or travel nearby. Recommended strategies include reducing access to lethal means via barriers and deterrents, enhanced promotion of help seeking, increased opportunities for third-party intervention through surveillance, rapid emergency response, and adhering more closely to responsible suicide reporting guidelines. Although restricting access along railway systems can be operationally challenging and costly short term, including grade separation and/or closure, such interventions may prove cost effective over time. This finding has been shown in the literature multiple times. The ad hoc committee had not met since the special meeting on April 15 and had no input to provide at this time. Councilmember Burt recalled the discussion at the last meeting and said what Council and the school district are trying to address is the community's teen suicide crisis and the broader youth mental health issues that contribute to it. Councilmember Burt shared that even in the budget SUMMARY MINUTES Page 21 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 discussion, there are multiple areas where youth mental health is addressed. Councilmember Burt noted the value of a closer collaboration between PAUSD, the City, and community partners through Project Safety Net. Councilmember Burt stated that while everyone is aware of how traumatic these recent events were, the big picture focus is the discussion around means restriction. Though no measure is fail-safe, data indicates there are no suicides at rail crossings when security guards are present. There was a large petition by students and parents asking for 24/7 guards at all 4 crossings, which Council and PAUSD are doing. Councilmember Burt noticed that over 17+ years, the overwhelming majority of suicides have occurred at night at Charleston and Meadow. Councilmember Burt questioned if a closure at Churchill would have a discernable benefit over 24/7 guards and emphasized the negative public health and safety impacts that may occur from a closure, including diverting high volumes of bikes and motor vehicles to the same locations and additional delays of emergency vehicles. Councilmember Burt pointed out that Embarcadero Road is an ambulance road for the city and 2 counties and that every 1 minute of delay for a cardiac arrest victim means a 6 to 10 percent increase in mortality. Councilmember Burt added that acceleration of the Quiet Zone effort could be inhibited or delayed by a temporary closure. Councilmember Burt stated all these reasons led him to not support the trial closure of Churchill, though he will continue to support the 24/7 guards. Councilmember Lauing thanked all the residents who have brought their views forward in public comments and emails and thanked the staff and ad hoc committee who researched this issue. Councilmember Lauing said the community and Council continue to mourn recent student deaths at Churchill and other prior deaths at Palo Alto grade crossings. The idea of closing Churchill was suggested for preventing more suicides and it was initiated formally by the ex-superintendent of PAUSD. Councilmember Lauing noticed comments from the public and listening sessions framed the issue as a choice between saving lives or having inconvenient delays for residents moving around the city. Councilmember Lauing disagreed with this and opined that the issue Council is tasked to decide upon is how to optimize public safety in the area under discussion for all people who pass through it. City and PAUSD acted immediately after the recent suicide and together funded 24-hour crossing guards. The staff report pointed out an additional 8,000 vehicle trips per day would result from the Churchill closure and those cars would siphon off Embarcadero, Oregon, and other streets. There are at least 714 Paly bikers who would need to find a new route to school, Embarcadero is not certified as a safe route to school, and the 2020 traffic study predicted the nearest 6 intersections to the blocked off Churchill would all be Grade F or jammed conditions. Councilmember Lauing stated alarm at the impatient and reckless driving he observes around the city and concluded that the area under study will become less safe if Churchill is closed. Councilmember Lauing noted the other safety measures are being accelerated with Quiet Zones, no train horns, and the 24/7 guards at all Palo Alto crossings, which he believed provide a high probability deterrent to more tragedy at Churchill and other crossings. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims stated her heart goes out to the loved ones and friends of those who have died by suicide at the tracks and shared that she remembers dates and names and thinks about specific people every time she crosses the tracks. Councilmember Lythcott- SUMMARY MINUTES Page 22 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Haims described this as a true health and safety crisis and one of the largest a community can face: the suicide of youth. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims stated the entire Council and community care deeply about this and are striving to do what is right to support youth and anyone experiencing mental health crisis, which includes looking at means restriction, ensuring resources are in place to support mental wellness, and changing the culture. Regarding means restriction, Councilmember Lythcott-Haims pointed out that the data shows track monitors work as deterrents and stated funding should continue for track monitors, hopefully with 50/50 partnership from PAUSD, and should continue until there is grade separation. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims shared that once Quiet Zones are in place, likely FY28, everyone will be free from the haunting sound of the train horn, which is a continual reminder of the community's tremendous loss. Regarding upstream measures, Councilmember Lythcott-Haims highlighted resources like Palo Alto Unified, the JED Foundation, and allcove. Councilmember Lythcott- Haims shared that she became familiar with Expanded Community Advisory Panel (XCAP) work through the ad hoc committee. XCAP looked at whether Churchill should be closed as a grade separation option and concluded it could be closed if the City does about 10 or 12 things costing tens of millions of dollars over a decade to first make the roads safer where that traffic would be diverted. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims said she was desperately worried that the Churchill closure would create a whole new disaster endangering children on bikes just trying to get to school. Councilmember Lythcott-Haims concluded that, based on all the data received, the best way to keep kids and the broader community safest is Track Watch and Quiet Zones, not a temporary closure. Councilmember Lu noted the many challenges and uncertainties in evaluating Churchill. Councilmember Lu stated that as Council looked at data on emergency vehicles, safe routes to school, and the potential for Track Watch to reduce suicides, he had communicated that the decision would be based on reasonably foreseeable impact on life and public health and not at all on convenience. Councilmember Lu noted that elements of this are the risks of youth suicide and risk of increased traffic collisions and delayed ambulances. Given the current information, Councilmember Lu concluded that pursuing a temporary closure is not the right option for overall public health. Councilmember Reckdahl recalled the awful experience of losing a good friend to suicide and stated that while closing Churchill would provide comfort to grieving people in the community, he shared the same safety concerns mentioned by others on the Council. Councilmember Reckdahl noted that the closure would divert cars to other neighborhoods that are not built to handle it, increasing the risk of vehicle and pedestrian accidents. Councilmember Reckdahl recalled one commenter who said, "If we close Churchill, that will tell our youth we care about them," but questioned what putting thousands of cars through a residential area tells the youth trying to bike through that neighborhood. Councilmember Reckdahl referenced a JED infographic that summarizes 7 aspects to pursue in reducing suicide and stated that the community cannot get so focused on means safety that they ignore the other 6 aspects. Councilmember Reckdahl emphasized that means safety is being addressed and the other 6 areas need attention and concluded that he will not support closing Churchill. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 23 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Vice Mayor Stone said this is the most challenging item that has come to Council in his 6 years and shared that addressing teen suicide is why he entered public service in the first place. He lost a close friend to suicide and that fundamentally changed his own life trajectory; he wondered what more he could have done to make a difference, which led him to seek appointment to the Palo Alto Human Relations Commission, become the liaison to Project Safety Net, run for Council, switch careers from attorney to teacher, and form the Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing Task Force. Vice Mayor Stone stated that doing this work for so long has revealed to him the hard truth when it comes to mental health, that successes are invisible because you never know how many lives have been saved. Vice Mayor Stone stated that far too many young lives have been lost in this city and expressed appreciation for the mayor's quick response in forming the Rail Safety Ad Hoc Committee. Vice Mayor Stone admitted he had prided himself on objectively hearing all sides, facts, and data but as they started to look into whether the closure was the right thing, he found himself trying to argue for closure even though the information disagreed. Vice Mayor Stone commented that there is no single reason for mental health issues and no single solution and feared that closing Churchill would create an even greater public health risk. Vice Mayor Stone noted that JED is working on a more comprehensive, community-wide evaluation of suicide prevention and postvention efforts and will share that at the end of June and policy recommendations later this year. Vice Mayor Stone read a line from the 1-page JED memo: "It would be most prudent for prevention efforts to be comprehensive, addressing the leading methods while implementing targeted strategies at pedestrian rail crossings." Vice Mayor Stone wanted to understand what those targeted strategies are and internalize those into a holistic approach. Vice Mayor Stone expressed confidence that the 24/7 crossing guards are sufficient to prevent further deaths at the tracks, which is supported by data. Mayor Veenker echoed that everyone has been affected by suicide one way or another and all care deeply about preventing them in the city and community. Mayor Veenker shared her own experience with losing a church friend to suicide, how the clusters affected her children when they were in school, and acknowledged how that pain pales in comparison to what the families feel who have lost loved ones. Mayor Veenker agreed that the Council's obligation is to optimize for public safety and balance the risks to all in the community. Mayor Veenker worried that decisions like closing the Churchill crossing could exacerbate the unsafe driving behavior and safety risks in the city by changing routes and crowding bikes and pedestrians. Mayor Veenker highlighted that the JED report called certain spots along the railway "suicide hotspots", a status that makes restricting access an appropriate response that will pay for itself in the long run. Mayor Veenker expressed concern for the city and community after this decision and how to repair the rifts or difficult feelings that may result from this decision to leave the tracks open and take other preventive means that have proven effective in the past. Mayor Veenker offered a friendly amendment that the City explore the option of rolling gates in addition to quad gates. Councilmember Lythcott-Haimes acknowledged the colleagues from Caltrain who were present and expressed gratitude for their partnership in addressing this crisis and for them attending the meetings. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 24 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 Mayor Veenker added thanks to the first responders who deal with this in a very challenging and personal way. Councilmember Burt noted appreciation for the friendly amendment and suggested it be left more open by saying "enhanced security" rather than "enhanced enclosure". Regarding Mayor Veenker's amendment, Ed Shikada, City Manager, noted exploring options can take away from accelerating implementation of a Quiet Zone and asked if it is appropriate to say the Council does not want any exploration to interfere with the timeframe for Quiet Zone implementation. Mayor Veenker asked if Caltrain had any general sense of how exploration of rolling gates or other options might affect the Quiet Zone implementation timeline. Jerry Guaracino, Caltrain Chief Safety Officer, applauded the City's efforts on this matter and shared that before he cam to Caltrain this year, he worked for SEPTA in Philadelphia for over 20 years and oversaw their bus and rail system. Jerry Guaracino said it is tough to estimate a timeframe and noted adding something to FAR coordination and CPUC could delay things. Jerry Guaracino added that Caltrain adopted a strategy in February 2026 that has different initiatives on every rail crossing in the corridor to make it safer and look at other opportunities. Caltrain is speaking with JED Foundation and looking at CCTV systems for enhancements. Mayor Veenker wondered if they could continue to accelerate Churchill Quiet Zone while separately exploring gates or other enhanced enclosure options on another crossing. Councilmember Reckdahl opined that each neighborhood will want their own crossing accelerated as quickly as possible and suggested accelerating them all while separately exploring other options in the background. City Manager Shikada noted this is similar to work Caltrain has been doing for the last several years and especially in recent months in cooperation with the City. Mayor Veenker agreed against analysis paralysis and urged for optimizing solutions as much as possible. The Council further discussed adjustments to the motion's wording. MOTION: Vice Mayor Stone moved, seconded by Mayor Veenker to: A) Direct staff to explore options for a long-term rail crossing guard contract and engage PAUSD through the City School Liaison Committee regarding a potential long-term cost- sharing agreement; B) Direct the Jed Foundation, as part of its 2026 deliverables, to return to the Rail Committee with targeted recommendations and evidence-based strategies to address SUMMARY MINUTES Page 25 of 25 Sp. City Council Meeting Summary Minutes: 05/11/2026 safety risks at all four rail crossings, and authorize any budget adjustments necessary to achieve those deliverables; C) Direct staff and Rail Committee to prioritize and expedite implementation of Quiet Zones at all four rail crossings, with particular emphasis on accelerating the Churchill Avenue crossing Quiet Zone; and D) Explore gate(s) or other options in collaboration with Caltrain for enhanced enclosure or safety measures in addition to the quad gates. MOTION PASSED: 7-0 Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:19 p.m.