Meeting Overview

The Berkeley City Council met on July 7, 2026. At roll call, Councilmembers Bartlett and Tregub were initially absent, though both later participated in votes. The meeting began with a land acknowledgment, an adjournment in memory of Carl Anthony, and a presentation from AC Transit.

Councilmember Tregub and family members honored Carl Anthony, a longtime Berkeley planner, educator, author, and environmental justice leader.

AC Transit staff described the agency’s role in Berkeley and the East Bay, noting current budget problems and warning that, without new long-term funding, the agency may have to adopt service cuts by the end of 2026 for implementation in June 2027. The Mayor asked AC Transit to share its public survey with councilmembers and Berkeley colleges.

Public comment on non-agenda items included concerns about garbage cart placement and fees, calls for a Gaza ceasefire and for action regarding a detained Palestinian doctor, criticism of market-rate housing policy, and complaints about a downtown coffee shop owner and public-comment rules.

Main Agenda Items

Several items were approved on the consent calendar, including the annual police equipment report, police grant revenue agreements, and the Waterfront Specific Plan item, which had been moved onto consent.

A separate public hearing was held on the annual police memorandum of understanding compendium, which lists agreements with other law enforcement agencies and private organizations. Public speakers raised concerns about federal information-sharing, surveillance, and whether Police Accountability Board materials were made available early enough. The police chief said department policies, not the MOUs themselves, govern what data can be shared, including limits related to immigration and reproductive health, and said mutual-aid agencies must follow Berkeley-specific rules when operating in the city.

Council then took up a proposal on large vehicle parking in the public right-of-way. Councilmember Taplin said the item was meant to address long-term RV parking, abandoned vehicles, public health hazards, conflicts in commercial and industrial areas, and impacts near waterways. Public speakers largely opposed the item, arguing it would punish unhoused residents living in vehicles without providing adequate housing alternatives. Speakers urged the city to fund housing, services, and sanitation instead of enforcement. The transcript does not include the full council debate on this item, but it records a non-unanimous final vote.

The council also heard a detailed staff presentation on the five-year street rehabilitation plan and the Measure FF spending plan for fiscal years 2027-2031. Staff said the city’s overall pavement condition remains “at risk,” with a large deferred maintenance backlog. The plan combines the regular paving program with Measure FF funds, while coordinating with safety, disability access, stormwater, utility work, and “dig once” rules, meaning streets should not be repaved right before another agency tears them up. Councilmembers discussed equity, district-by-district distribution, major corridor delays, and how Measure FF streets were chosen.

Finally, the council considered placing updates to the Rent Stabilization Ordinance on the November ballot. The changes were described as mostly administrative and clarifying, including paperless billing, updating deadlines, changes affecting nonprofit affordable housing providers, and clarifying how “replacement units” are treated under state housing law. Councilmembers said earlier concerns about “golden duplexes” had been addressed in a supplemental revision.

Decisions Made

• Approved on consent: annual police equipment report.
• Approved on consent: police revenue agreements for grants and related public-safety funding.

• Approved on consent: Waterfront Specific Plan item, after being moved to the consent calendar.

• Approved: Memorandum of Understanding Compendium 2026 with other law enforcement agencies and private organizations.
  Vote: 9-0.

• Approved: Large vehicle parking regulations item, including referrals to revise code language and address enforcement tools.
  Vote: 7-2.
  No: Councilmember Lunaparra and Mayor Ishii.

• Approved: Five-year street rehabilitation plan and Measure FF plan for fiscal years 2027-2031, with an amendment noting several proposed Measure FF safety projects remain preliminary and will return for further review by the Safe Streets Citizen Oversight Committee and City Council.

• Approved: Ballot measure to place Rent Stabilization Ordinance amendments before Berkeley voters in November, including revisions presented on the dais.