City Council - November 17, 2025

Council postpones El Camino Park turf decision

The City Council voted 7-0 to postpone its decision on replacing the end-of-life synthetic field at El Camino Park and form a council ad hoc group to work with staff on additional options and information. The item was continued to an unspecified date in 2025, with staff cautioning that a return before year-end would be difficult but potentially feasible.

The unanimous action followed the 3-4 defeat of a substitute motion that would have proceeded with the staff-recommended synthetic replacement, added risk-mitigation measures and selected the Cubberley synthetic field for a natural-grass pilot. Because the motion failed, those elements were not adopted.

Staff reported that the El Camino field receives about 2,700 hours of use annually. A synthetic replacement was estimated to cost $1 million to $1.4 million and take six to seven months, while conversion to natural grass was estimated at $1.5 million to $2 million and about 18 months. Staff said synthetic turf provides greater year-round capacity, particularly during wet weather.

Most public commenters opposing another synthetic field cited concerns about PFAS, microplastics, heat, runoff and disposal. Sports users and coaches argued that a prompt synthetic replacement was needed to preserve rain-resilient field access. The ad hoc group and staff will now develop alternatives for the council; if a synthetic project later moves forward, staff is expected to prepare procurement requirements addressing product testing and risk mitigation.

Final map is approved as Portage housing RFP takes shape

The council voted 7-0 through its consent calendar to approve the Phase 1 final map for the 3200 Park and 340 Portage site. The action covers the merger and subdivision of 11 parcels totaling about 14.65 acres into five parcels, approves private-street names and the renaming of Portage Avenue to Thomas Foon Chew Avenue, and authorizes the city to acquire a 3.25-acre below-market-rate housing and parkland parcel by grant deed.

In a separate discussion, the council reviewed three conceptual affordable-housing scenarios for city-dedicated land at 340 Portage Avenue. No motion, vote or formal direction to release a request for proposals was recorded. Staff nevertheless said it had enough feedback to prepare a draft RFP offering a range of options, particularly between Scenarios 2 and 3, and return it to the council for review.

Scenario 2 was described as a 65-foot, 109-unit project, while Scenario 3 was discussed as a 75-foot option with an approximately $50 million funding gap. Across all three scenarios, projected development costs ranged from about $88.8 million to $153.4 million, with estimated gaps of $24.1 million to $50.2 million. Council members differed over whether to maximize the number of homes or pursue a more financially conservative scale, and they discussed parking, transit passes, shared cars and preserving enough space along Matadero Creek for possible future naturalization.

Staff said the grant-funded work requires the consultant to complete the draft RFP by the end of 2025. At least a $5 million city contribution in addition to the land was recommended; potential resources discussed included approximately $7.5 million in unallocated affordable-housing funds, $2.35 million in Measure K funding and a future $5 million Development Agreement payment that staff estimated could become available in 2027. The council did not select a project scale or target resident population.

New public safety building marks its opening

Palo Alto marked the opening of its New Public Safety Building with a November 16 ribbon-cutting after more than two decades of work, the city manager reported. In-person Police Department services remained at City Hall despite the opening celebration.

Council approves EV, HVAC and electric-grid work

The council approved design guidelines for a successor multifamily electric-vehicle charger program supported by $3.1 million in fiscal 2026 Low Carbon Fuel Standard funding. The program is estimated to support 200 to 500 chargers. It also approved guidelines for an advanced packaged heating, ventilation and air-conditioning pilot with a $1.1 million fiscal 2026 budget.

In the same consent calendar, the council approved a three-year contract with Soudi Consultants Inc. for as-needed electric engineering services. The contract, capped at $1.5 million, covers system-protection work related to Palo Alto’s electric sub-transmission, substations and distribution system.

Palo Alto Link funding passes with unclear recusal record

The council approved agreements for up to $600,000 from Stanford University and a VTA grant of roughly $456,000 to help fund Palo Alto Link through June 2026, along with related General Fund budget amendments. The record lists a $1.1 million Palo Alto Link contract and $250,000 in fiscal 2026 General Fund support.

Two councilmembers announced that they would recuse themselves from the Palo Alto Link item because of Stanford funding. The subsequent consolidated consent-calendar roll call recorded seven affirmative responses, and the source record does not establish how the recusals were applied to the item-specific action. The approval is recorded, but individual participation cannot be determined.

A similar uncertainty applies to the 2025 Williamson Act contract renewals approved on the same consent calendar. Two councilmembers announced recusals from that item, but the consolidated roll call again does not establish item-specific participation. The city estimated that the renewals would result in approximately $18,579 in foregone 2025 tax revenue.

Council sets January 24 retreat and 2026 calendar

The council unanimously adopted its 2026 meeting calendar and selected January 24 for its annual retreat and priority-setting meeting. In setting the schedule, members favored holding special meetings on fourth Mondays rather than third Wednesdays. The council also directed staff to explore avoiding dates of significance when scheduling committee meetings, with conflicts to be addressed case by case.

Primary sources

Watch the meeting on YouTube · Read the official meeting packet