City Council

City Council — January 22, 2024

This was a regular meeting of the Petaluma City Council and Petaluma Community Development Successor Agency (PCDSA), called to order at 6:30 p.m. Vice Mayor John Shribbs was absent. The meeting included a notable workshop on the potential extension of Petaluma's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), which drew significant public participation.

Consent Calendar

The Council approved all six consent items unanimously without substantive discussion. One member of the public, Ben Peters, commented before the vote.

Items approved included: minutes from the January 8 meeting; the tentative agenda for February 5 and the Jan–Mar 2024 significant agenda items calendar; authorization to purchase four battery-electric buses from New Flyer Industries (Resolution 2024-006); authorization to purchase ChargePoint Express Plus charging equipment through the Sourcewell cooperative purchasing program (Resolution 2024-007); consent to appoint Jessie Gooch as City Treasurer, Assessor, and Tax and License Collector for FY 2023–2024 with delegated investment authority (Resolution 2024-008); and the second reading and final adoption of Ordinance No. 2878, which establishes a formal inspection and abatement process for hazardous vegetation and rubbish to improve wildfire safety.

Vote: Carried 6–0 (Shribbs absent). Moved by Councilmember Healy, seconded by Councilmember Barnacle.

FY 2023 Annual Development Impact Fee Report (Public Hearing)

Finance Director Jessie Gooch presented the annual report on development impact fees, as required by the Mitigation Fee Act. This state law requires cities to periodically account for fee revenues, expenditures, and balances, and to make findings every five years justifying the continued need for any unexpended funds. No members of the public commented. The Council adopted the resolution accepting the report and approving the required five-year findings with no discussion beyond staff's presentation.

Vote: Carried 6–0 (Shribbs absent). Moved by Councilmember Barnacle, seconded by Councilmember Cader Thompson.

Urban Growth Boundary Extension — Workshop and Direction

This was the most substantive item of the evening. Director of Community Development Brian Oh and Special Projects Manager Heather Hines presented staff's work on developing a ballot measure to extend Petaluma's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), with the goal of placing it before voters in November 2024. Petaluma's existing UGB, which limits the geographic area where urban development can occur, is set to expire, and the City is exploring what a renewed or expanded boundary should look like.

Councilmembers asked questions of staff about the scope, timeline, and parameters of the proposed measure. Because this was a workshop, no binding vote was taken; the purpose was to receive Council feedback and give staff direction to continue developing the measure.

Seven members of the public spoke: Nickola Frye, Blake Hooper, Jake MacKenzie (a former regional elected official with long experience on open space and planning issues), Calum Weeks, Teri Shore, Duane Bellinger, and Ben Peters. The minutes do not record the substance of individual comments, but the volume of speakers reflects community interest in how the UGB is drawn and what protections it affords to open space and agricultural land around Petaluma.

No vote was taken. Staff received direction from Council to continue developing the ballot measure for the November 2024 election.

General Public Comment

Seventeen residents addressed the Council on matters not on the agenda, including Eric Leland, Mary Beth Leland, Alex Kamages, Sandra Shand, Jamie Bloom, Hinda Blas, Ed Winston, Tom Isaak, Ifti Ahmed, Shalom Bochnes, David Sall, Marsha Harris, Dru West, Stuart Nissenbaum, Joe West, Sela Nissenbaum, and Robert Goodman. The minutes do not capture the content of these comments.

The meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.

Key Takeaways