City Council

City Council & PCDSA Regular Meeting — May 20, 2024

This was a regular City Council session that ran well past its standard end time, adjourning at 11:12 p.m. after an extended budget workshop. All seven councilmembers were present. The meeting opened with proclamations honoring National Public Works Week, Emergency Medical Services Week, and Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

*Note: The minutes reference councilmembers "Healy" and "Pocekay" who do not appear in the standard roster of known council members. Their names are recorded as they appear in the official minutes.*

Proclamations

Interim Public Works and Utilities Director Gina Benedetti-Petnic accepted the National Public Works Week proclamation alongside her staff. Fire Chief Jeff Schach and EMS Coordinator Melissa Leonelly accepted the EMS Week proclamation. The AAPI Heritage Month proclamation was received by Grace Cheung-Schulman, founder of the Asian American and Pacific Islanders Coalition of the North Bay, and Lina Lin Hoshino, representing Petalumans and Friends Celebrating AAPI People in Our Town, both of whom made remarks.

General Public Comment

Eight members of the public — Katherine Bobrowski, Phyllis Tajii, Rosalyn Tonai, Grant Din, Lisa Lim, Dennis Jongsomjit, John Sheehy, and Antonia Kao — addressed the Council on items not on the agenda. The minutes do not detail the substance of their comments.

Consent Calendar (Items 1–5)

The Council passed the following items as a block without substantive discussion, though councilmembers did ask staff a few clarifying questions before the vote. No members of the public commented.

Vote: Moved by Cader Thompson, seconded by Barnacle. Carried 7–0.

Workshop: Proposed FY 2024–25 Operating and Capital Budgets and Revised Long-Term General Fund Forecast

The bulk of the evening was devoted to a workshop reviewing the City's proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year. City Manager Peggy Flynn introduced the item; Finance Director Jessie Gooch and CIP Manager Jonathan Sanglerat led the presentation, joined by individual department directors presenting their own budgets.

Mayor McDonnell structured the workshop in two sections — the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) and the Operating Budget — each followed by its own public comment period.

Capital Improvement Program: Four members of the public spoke — Pete Gang, Nathan Spindel, Sandra Shand, and Christopher Stevick. The minutes do not detail the specific concerns raised, though infrastructure investment and project priorities are typical topics at CIP presentations. The Council took a recess from 8:27 p.m. to 8:38 p.m., and subsequently voted 7–0 to extend the meeting past the standard 11:00 p.m. cutoff.

Operating Budget: One member of the public, Nickola Frye, addressed the Council. Council discussion followed, though the minutes do not capture the specifics of that discussion.

Because this was a workshop rather than an action item, no binding votes were taken on the budget itself. The presentation and council input will inform the final budget adoption at a future meeting.

Vote to extend meeting: Moved by Shribbs, seconded by Pocekay. Carried 7–0.

Key Takeaways