Lodi City Council Agenda - June 17, 2026

Lodi City Council Agenda Summary

Tuesday, June 17, 2026 — Closed Session 6:30 PM · Regular Meeting 7:00 PM

Carnegie Forum, 305 West Pine Street, Lodi, CA 95240

A LodiEye plain-language summary of every item on the agenda, with charts drawn from the staff reports and budget materials.

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Summary

The June 17 meeting is dominated by one marquee action — adoption of the FY 2026/27 Financial Plan and Budget — set against a backdrop of tightening General Fund reserves. The all-funds budget totals $302,351,060, with a General Fund of $96,208,300 that plans a second consecutive deficit year, drawing unreserved reserves down from 39% to 27% of revenue over three years.

The closed session continues the high-profile City Manager matters that have been before the Council since 2025. The consent calendar runs 18 items, the only genuinely contested one being the tree-maintenance award (a bid protest). Public hearings cover a routine landscape-district levy, a capped 2.6% wastewater rate increase, and the annual vacancy report (7.6% citywide). The regular calendar adds a five-year homeless-shelter operator agreement with OMI and a Council-requested discussion on preventing data centers in Lodi.

Money at a Glance

$302.4M

All-funds budget (FY 2026/27)

$96.2M

General Fund revenues & expenditures

$164.0M

Gann appropriations limit

$10.07M

Capital Improvement Program

27%

GF reserve, down from 39% two years ago

7.6%

Citywide vacancy (36 of 474 positions)

The Fiscal Picture in Five Charts

Electric Utility leads a $302.4M all-funds budget

Largest funds in the FY 2026/27 Financial Plan (Item G.2)

Figure 1 — The General Fund ($96.2M) and Electric Utility ($104.7M) together make up the bulk of the budget; "All other funds" aggregates the remaining smaller funds.

Police and Fire consume 59% of the General Fund

Largest General Fund departments (Item G.2)

Figure 2 — Police ($35.6M) and Fire ($21.6M) together account for roughly 59% of General Fund spending.

The City plans two consecutive deficit years

General Fund revenues, expenditures, and ending unreserved balance

Figure 3 — After a $9.1M surplus in FY 2024-25, planned draw-downs cut the unreserved balance from 39% to 27% of revenue over three years.

Measure L FY27 proposed at $9.2M, led by Fire and Police

Measure L (transactions & use tax) allocation by category

Figure 4 — Of the $9,204,280 proposed Measure L spending, Fire ($4.36M) and Police ($3.52M) dominate.

A $10.07M capital program spread across funds

Largest Capital Improvement Program projects (Item G.2)

Figure 5 — The Electric 230kV Interconnection ($2.5M) is the single largest CIP line; "All other" aggregates the remaining smaller projects.

A. Closed Session

The closed session (6:30 PM) continues the City Manager personnel and litigation matters that have been before the Council through 2025-2026. Public reporting has documented an investigation into alleged misuse of City funds¹, a potential lawsuit and retaliation allegations^2,3, and the appointment of an acting City Manager during the inquiry^4,5. Closed-session content itself is confidential and is not contained in the public packet; the City reports any reportable action after the session.

Officials

Mayor Ramon Yepez · Mayor Pro Tempore Mikey Hothi · Council Members Cameron Bregman, Lisa Craig-Hensley, and Alan Nakanishi · City Clerk Olivia Nashed · outgoing Interim City Manager Aaron Busch.

B. Presentations

Standard opening presentations, proclamations, and recognitions. These items are ceremonial and carry no fiscal action.

C. Consent Calendar

Eighteen items adopted in a single vote unless an item is pulled for discussion. The only genuinely contested item is the tree-maintenance award (C.15), which carries a bid protest.

C.1–C.3 — Routine approvalsConsent

Standard opening consent items: minutes approval, register of demands, and routine acknowledgements. C.3 addresses Annual Progress Report (APR) corrections — adjustments to previously reported housing-element data, visualized below.

APR corrections adjust previously reported housing figures

Original vs. corrected Annual Progress Report values (Item C.3)

Figure 6 — Corrections reconcile the City's reported housing-element progress with the underlying permit records.

C.4 — Amendment No. 1 to the Industrial Waste Connection MOU with Klinker Brick WineryNo fiscal impact

Updates an industrial-waste connection MOU to reflect the new Downtown Specific Plan boundary. Both Klinker Brick and Michael David historically shared the "Cellardoor" tasting room at 21 N. School Street — context that explains why two near-identical MOU fixes appear on the same agenda.

C.5 — Amendment No. 2 to the Industrial Waste Connection MOU with Michael David WineryNo fiscal impact

Parallel action to C.4. The original MOU dates to October 18, 2006 (Amendment No. 1 in 2014 removed a time/year restriction). The winery cites the wine-industry downturn and a rent increase as reasons for relocating its tasting room to 21 E. Elm St.; the amendment updates the "Downtown Lodi" boundary to the new Downtown Specific Plan. Requested by Jacob Woodworth, Michael David Winery.

C.6 — Adopt the Lodi Electric Utility (LEU) 2026 Wildfire Mitigation PlanWithin budget

Required under SB 901 (2018). Key facts extracted via OCR from the plan: LEU sits entirely in the CPUC's lowest fire-threat tier (Tier 1) with no service territory in a High Fire Threat District; it serves a dense ~13.7-square-mile urban footprint with ~28,500 active accounts; its grid is ~55% underground; and it reported zero utility-caused ignitions in FY 2025/26. A 2025 DUDEK third-party review found LEU's WMP and Public Safety Power Shutoff procedures compliant. Under SB 254 (effective Sept 2025), low-risk publicly owned utilities now update WMPs every four years, so LEU's next update is due 2030.

C.7 — Dell computer refresh≤ $537,000

Annual replacement of end-of-life servers, switches, desktops, and laptops, purchased via CMAS contract 3-22-06-1045 (Master Agreement 23026). Replacement cycles: switches 6-8 years, servers/desktops ≤5 years, laptops ≤4 years. Staff explicitly flag significant hardware-market price volatility as the reason for the not-to-exceed structure. Funded from the FY26 IT Replacement Fund.

C.8 — Placer.ai analytics amendment≤ $72,500

A one-year extension through April 30, 2027 of the visitor-analytics platform used by Economic Development, PRCS, and Community Development. Renewal scopes data to California only, lowering the annual cost from $25,000 to $22,500. Staff compared Datafy ($19,500, but city-boundary-limited) and Zartico ($25,000), and chose Placer.ai for data quality and statewide comparative capability. Split funding: $5,000 Community Development, $5,000 PRCS, $12,500 Economic Development.

C.9 — Patrol vehicle replacements$338,788.82

Three Ford Police Interceptor SUVs from Folsom Lake Ford ($175,696.32), one patrol truck from Winner Chevrolet ($68,219.86), and emergency equipment/installation from LEHR Upfitters ($94,872.64), purchased under Statewide Contract 1-22-23-14C. The buy replaces budgeted FY25/26 units — for example, a 2019 Interceptor with roughly 90,757 miles and $29,678 in accumulated repairs. Funded from the PD Vehicle Replacement Fund.

C.10 — Five-year police safety-equipment agreement with LC Action Police Supply≤ $500,000

Establishes a pre-approved purchasing mechanism for body armor, duty belts, holsters, flashlights, batons, and weapons over five years, avoiding repeated individual Council approvals. The agreement is non-exclusive, and LPD has used this vendor for 15-plus years. This is one of the multi-year procurement vehicles Council Member Craig-Hensley has questioned on re-bid grounds.

C.11 — Telstar Instruments SCADA Amendment No. 2$175,000

Extends the supervisory control & data acquisition / instrumentation / integration contract two years through June 30, 2028 (raising the total not-to-exceed to $580,000). It covers the Surface Water Treatment Facility, the White Slough Water Pollution Control Facility, 28 wells, 17 storm pump stations, 10 sewer lift stations, plus a new 1.5-MG tank at Well 28. Split across five water/wastewater/storm funds; no General Fund impact.

C.12 — United Cerebral Palsy FY 2026/27 service contracts$248,290.25

Three contracts: Downtown Cleaning ($125,139.25), Transit Facility Cleaning ($97,123.00), and Hutchins Street Square Landscape Maintenance ($26,028.00), all at $120.50 per crew-hour. UCP (serving the City since 2000) is cited as the only known non-profit paying its disabled crew members the State minimum wage; the ~1.3% average increase is primarily minimum-wage-driven. The competitive bid process is waived under LMC 3.20.070.

C.13 — 2026/2027 Pavement Resurfacing Project (SB1)SB1 list

Approves the SB1 project list, a prerequisite to receiving the roughly $1,800,830 FY allocation. Streets in scope: Mills Ave, Tokay St, Cabrillo Circle, Shady Acres Dr, La Vida Dr, Krismont St, Bella Vista Dr, Del Mont St, La Seffa Dr, and Wood Dr. Construction is anticipated in Spring/Summer 2027.

C.14 — Hutchins Street Resurfacing appropriation adjustment$129,165

A bookkeeping move: it recognizes additional Caltrans federal reimbursement and shifts $129,165 of expenditures from the Local Gas Tax Fund (302) to the federal grant project account (307), freeing local gas-tax dollars for other eligible projects.

C.15 — Tree maintenance award to Elite Maintenance & Tree Service$616,700 · Protest

The one genuinely contested consent item. Of six bids (four responsive), Elite was low at $616,700 — $168,000 under the $784,700 engineer's estimate. The second-low bidder, West Coast Arborists, protested on May 8, 2026, claiming Elite lacked the required municipal tree-inventory / GIS-database experience. Staff investigated (reference checks with California public agencies and a software demonstration) and concluded Elite does meet the minimum qualifications, recommending the protest be rejected. The award carries $100,000 in change-order authority and a two-year term plus two optional one-year extensions.

Elite's $616,700 bid comes in $168,000 under the engineer's estimate

Tree maintenance contract bids (Item C.15) — recommended award to Elite

Figure 7 — Elite (Ceres) is the lowest of the four responsive bids and well under the engineer's estimate; the protest came from West Coast Arborists, the second-lowest bidder.

C.16 — Authorize bids for Citywide On-Call HVAC Services≤ $700,000

Two-year initial term (ending June 30, 2028) with three optional one-year extensions; roughly $300,000/year estimate; bid opening July 15, 2026. The item pre-authorizes the City Manager to award to the lowest responsive bidder.

C.17 — Authorize bids for Citywide Fire Alarm Monitoring≤ $200,000

Three-year initial term (ending June 30, 2029) with two optional one-year extensions; roughly $20,000/year estimate, though a new vendor would require up-front panel replacements; bid opening July 15, 2026.

C.18 — Library Board of Trustees appointmentsAppointments

Per the Mayor's interviews and recommendation: Eve Melton (reappointment, term to July 1, 2029) and Nancy Gonzalez St. Claire (filling a vacancy, term to July 1, 2027). The appointments bring the Board to full capacity.

D / E. Public & Council Comment

Standard sections for comment on non-agenda items. Public comment is limited to five minutes per item, restricted to matters within Council jurisdiction, with one appearance per person.

F. Public Hearings

F.1 — Landscape Maintenance Assessment District No. 2003-1, FY 2026/27 levyLevy

Adopts the Final Engineer's Annual Levy Report and orders the levy. The District (16 zones formed over roughly 20 years) funds landscape and irrigation, masonry block walls, and street parkway trees. Assessments stay flat versus FY 2025/26 by drawing on accumulated reserves. Per-zone assessments range $18–$55 per Dwelling Unit Equivalent (DUE), averaging $44/DUE. The General Fund contributes $858.16 for general (non-District) benefit.

F.2 — Wastewater rate adjustment: 2.6% ENR-index increaseEffective July 1, 2026

Implements the pre-approved Engineering News-Record (ENR) adjustment under the five-year, Prop 218-validated rate plan approved January 17, 2024 (Reso 2024-09), which caps annual increases at the ENR change or 5%, whichever is lower. The 2026 ENR change was 2.6%. The wastewater fund currently exceeds its operating-reserve target, and the surplus will fund more than $27 million in capital over five years without borrowing. Sample new monthly rates: 3-bedroom flat $54.04 → $55.44; usage charge $3.23 → $3.31/CCF.

Lodi adopts a 2.6% wastewater increase, below the 5% cap

Annual rate cap vs. ENR construction index vs. Council-approved increase

Figure 8 — Lodi's adopted wastewater increases have tracked below the 5% cap in every year; the FY 2026-27 adjustment of 2.6% matches the ENR index.

F.3 — Vacancies and recruitment/retention report (Gov. Code §3502.3)No fiscal impact

An annual hearing that must precede budget adoption. As of June 10, 2026, the citywide vacancy rate is 7.6% (36 of 474 budgeted positions), with every bargaining unit below the 20% threshold that would trigger additional disclosure. The City reports no proposed citywide policy changes, noting it addresses obstacles year-round.

Police Dispatchers and unrepresented staff carry the highest vacancy rates

Vacancy rate by bargaining unit — citywide 7.6% (36 of 474 positions), as of 06/10/2026

Figure 9 — Police Dispatchers (16.7%) and unrepresented staff (13.8%) carry the highest vacancy rates; Fire and Police mid-management are fully staffed.

G. Regular Calendar

G.1 — Access Center / Emergency Shelter update + permanent operator agreement with OMIYear 1: $1,620,000

The item has three parts: a quarterly performance update, a construction update, and the action itself — a five-year operator agreement.

Quarterly update (Feb 1–Apr 30, 2026)

Over three months, the shelter delivered 3,474 overnight services to 124 clients and 6,668 day-services to 287 clients, with 41 new overnight enrollees; meals (3,255 breakfasts, 3,992 lunches) and 3,892 showers; 404 transports to 79 clients; and 293 case-management services. Outcomes: 13 clients obtained employment, 22 transitioned into housing, and 10 into treatment/sobriety programs; plus 183 outreach contacts.

The shelter delivered ~6,700 day services over three months

Shelter service volumes, Feb 1 – Apr 30, 2026 (Item G.1)

Figure 10 — Day services (6,668) and meals dominate throughput; the program reports 22 clients housed and 13 employed over the quarter.

Operator agreement (the action)

Authorizes a five-year agreement with Outreach Ministries International (OMI), selected via competitive RFP, with a first-year amount of $1,620,000. Terms include a 24/7 low-barrier shelter model; stabilization, coordinated entry, housing navigation, workforce development, and case management; a County-approved CalAIM reimbursement framework; a 60-day ramp-down clause if funding lapses; and quarterly reporting. Funding comes from HHAP, SLFRF/ARPA, PLHA, CalAIM reimbursements, and donations — with no immediate General Fund impact for year one. OMI assumed temporary-site operations November 1, 2024, and its letter estimates $5–6 million in City savings over the past year.

G.2 — Adopt the FY 2026/27 Financial Plan & BudgetMarquee action

Presented at the May 6, May 20, and June 3 meetings; the full budget is posted at city-lodi-ca-cleardoc.cleargov.com/20014. A single resolution approves the budget, the Gann appropriations limit, new job classifications, the Budget & Fiscal Policies, and the Investment Policy. Figures 1–5 above visualize the fund structure, departmental split, reserve trend, Measure L history, and capital program. Key numbers:

• All-funds budget: $302,351,060. General Fund revenues and expenditures: $96,208,300.
• Largest funds: Electric Utility $104.71M; Wastewater $21.97M; Water $15.45M; Employee Benefits $12.85M; PRCS $10.32M; Streets $8.77M; Self Insurance $8.44M; Transit $7.29M; Community Development $5.66M.
• Largest General Fund departments: Police $35.60M; Fire $21.62M; Non-Departmental $19.19M; Administrative Services $9.31M; Public Works $5.29M.
• Staffing: net +3 positions → 481 FTE (Senior Storekeeper, Transportation Coordinator, Administrative Assistant), plus three reclass studies.
• Gann limit: $164,049,380 (up $7,518,297). FY 26/27 appropriations subject to limitation are $66,080,780 — roughly $97.97M under the limit.
• GF balance trend: beginning balance $53.89M; revenues $92.23M vs. expenditures $96.21M = a planned $3.98M draw-down; unreserved ending balance ~$24.7M (27% of revenue, down from 39% and 32% in the two prior years).
• Transit swings positive: a $6.15M net surplus in FY26-27 after two deficit years.
• Measure L FY27: proposed total $9,204,280, predominantly Fire ($4.36M) and Police ($3.52M).
• CIP: $10,065,000 — Electric 230kV Interconnection $2.5M; Wastewater blower upgrades $750K and plant pavement $650K; Civic Center roof $300K; Hutchins St Square pool repair $300K; Hamilton/Turner signal $290K.

G.3 — Discussion: data centers in LodiDirection-setting

Council Member Bregman requested this item to discuss preventing data centers from locating in Lodi and to direct whether staff should dedicate research resources to the issue. No staff recommendation or fiscal analysis is attached — it is a direction-setting discussion. The local stakes are unusually concrete: data-center siting raises land-use, electric-load, and water-cooling questions that directly implicate the City's municipal Electric Utility (a hyperscale load could dwarf the utility's ~28,500 accounts) and its water system. Any policy direction here would interact with the budget's electric and water enterprise assumptions and the 230kV interconnection capital project in G.2.

H. Ordinances / I. Adjournment

No ordinances are scheduled. The agenda was posted at least 72 hours in advance per Gov. Code §54954.2(a). Adjournment follows the regular calendar.

Notes on sourcing and method

This summary was built from the full 658-page packet. Machine-readable staff-report text was extracted directly; image-only attachments — including the winery MOUs (C.4/C.5), the Wildfire Mitigation Plan (C.6), scanned police fleet forms (C.9), and budget tables — were processed with OCR to capture their substantive terms. All charts were generated from figures in the packet's budget materials, staff reports, and the vacancy and shelter reports. Closed-session background was corroborated against public reporting (see References); closed-session content itself is confidential and not contained in the public packet.

References

• 1. City of Lodi — Civic Alert on the City Manager matter: lodi.gov/CivicAlerts.asp?AID=394
• 2. CBS News Sacramento — Lodi acting city manager, misuse of city funds investigation: cbsnews.com/sacramento/...
• 3. Stocktonia — Lodi faces potential lawsuit as city manager alleges retaliation: stocktonia.org/news/...
• 4. Lodi411 (Lodi Eye) — City Manager investigation, July update: lodi411.com/lodi-eye/...
• 5. Yahoo News — Moving forward, Council votes...: yahoo.com/news/...
• FY 2026/27 Financial Plan & Budget (full document): city-lodi-ca-cleardoc.cleargov.com/20014
• City of Lodi official website: lodi.gov

Prepared by LodiEye / Lodi411 — local civic journalism and data. Questions or corrections: editor@lodi411.com.

This is an independent plain-language summary. For official agenda language and the complete staff reports, always consult the City of Lodi's posted agenda packet.