Library Tax Measure Advances
- Livable El Cerrito
- 4 days ago
- 7 min read
The City Council moved the library tax initiative forward at its regular meeting Tuesday, asking city staff to report on the measure’s impacts and setting a follow-up meeting at 9 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 19.
The council also certified the tax initiative as qualified for a future city ballot – an action that was mandatory under state law after supporters collected signatures from more than 10% of the registered voters in El Cerrito.
There was a lively discussion of whether to put the measure on the ballot on June 2, 2026 or November 3, 2026. Although four of five council members expressed support for June, no decision was made.
A Library Task Force
The council also asked for more information about creating a library task force with participation by community members. It was not clear whether a task force might gather and share public information before a likely June election.
Council member Rebecca Saltzman said there would be little point in having such a task force meet unless funding for a new library is first approved. Without library funding, serving on a library task force would just be “busywork,” she said.
Council member William Ktsanes disagreed, saying the task force should help gather and share information about possible sites before residents vote on the measure.
Special Meeting Set for 9 a.m. on Feb. 19
City Manager Karen Pinkos said city staff could bring information about how such a task force might include representation of different people to the special meeting at 9 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 19.
A decision will also be made then on whether to place the measure on the June 2 ballot.
Relative Costs of June or November Ballot
City Clerk Holly Charlety told the council it would cost $80,000 more to hold the election in June rather than November. The city would need to pay that amount for the issue on the June ballot, and another $80,000 for the November 2026 City Council election that will be held in any case, Charlety said.
Council member William Ktsanes said he favors putting the measure on the November ballot.
“Having it in November saves $80,000,” Ktsanes said. “To say if you delay it five months from June to November costs are going to escalate implies it’s actually going to break ground sometime near then. I think we know that’s not going to happen. It will be several years before it gets hashed out.”
Council member Lisa Motoyama said she favors a June vote.
“I don’t want us to delay,” she said “I know there’s an $80,000 additional cost for June but looking at the cost escalation -- which is not the fault of the city or the initiative bringers – the combination of economic uncertainty and tariffs is raising the cost for building anything.”
Motoyama continued, “I think this is really important to lock down the fact that we would have funding. Or if people vote that we don’t. So that we can all move on to something else.”
Mayor Gabe Quinto, Mayor Pro Tem Rebecca Saltzman, and council member Carolyn Wysinger also said they favor the June option.
Supporters Urge June Date
About a dozen supporters of the measure spoke during public comment and requested the June election date.
“Please put the library tax on the ballot in June so we can move quickly to build a new library,” said El Cerrito resident Suzanne Balmaceda.
She said a new library will generate economic benefits and be an “activity hub” for social interaction and learning. Economic benefits would include increased revenue for local businesses, increased home values, realized savings for individuals in health care costs, and more, she said.
Michael Fischer, who represents El Cerrito on the Contra Costa Library Commission and is a leader in the library tax initiative campaign, said he has been frustrated by years of delay in building a new library. Now that the initiative has qualified for the ballot, he said, the council should move it forward as soon as possible.
“Any solution – even updating the existing library – needs more funds than what’s available in the city’s operating budget,” Fischer said. “This measure is the only way we can support a continued library in El Cerrito.”
El Cerrito resident Tom Parks said, “Please move it forward as expeditiously as possible…We very much need to replace the existing facility. It’s fallen into disrepair.”
Others Urge November Election
Other speakers opposed spending more to go with the June 2, 2026 special election instead of the November 3, 2026 general election.
“I like libraries too, but I don’t know where libraries could be in 15 years,” said El Cerrito resident Denise Sangster. “I’m opposed to $80,000 to put it on the June ballot. There’s no need to hurry it along. Let’s get a better plan.”
Another resident, Dianne Brenner, said she supports libraries and reads mostly library books.
“I don’t think this issue should be framed as for or against libraries,” she said. “It’s for or against this text and the way it’s written.”
She said there is no rush to vote on a measure that is “vague” about location and fiscal impacts. Her questions included: How much will it cost taxpayers over the 30-year term of the tax? What is the location? What happens to our tax revenue if that building (where the Plaza Station library is planned) never gets built?
“We need that (impact) report,” Brenner said.
Requests to Amend Tax Initiative
Brenner added that she would like to see the library tax initiative be amended or even withdrawn.
Council member Lisa Motoyama said she had received emails from other residents asking for changes to the initiative. She asked Charlety whether that would be legal.
Charlety said no.
No Discretion to Modify
“The council does not have the discretion to modify it,” she said. “The only thing we can do is put it on the ballot.”
The council also heard a report on library estimates from consultant Griffin Structures and a presentation on other library facilities in the county from Contra Costa County Librarian Alison McKee and El Cerrito Library Manager Heidi Goldstein.
A chart summarizing the estimates by Griffin Structures for a Plaza Station Library and four other alternative library options is posted here. The full presentation can be found among materials prepared for the Jan. 20 council meeting on the city’s website.
The consultant’s estimate that construction of a Plaza Station Library would cost $37 million was a 75% increase over the $21 million estimate given by the city in 2023. An August “guesstimate” posted on the website of Committee for a Plaza Station Library was $28 million.
Estimates of other library options were about $10 million to renovate the existing 6,500 square foot library, $29 million to rebuild and expand the existing library to 13,000 square feet, $43 million to build a new standalone library on a new site, and $29 million to renovate an existing building into a library. The last two options assume a library size of 20,000 square feet.
Parking Costs and Plans
One key factor in the library cost estimates is parking. The estimated cost of adding a parking structure is $6.4 million at the current library site and $4.7 million on a new site.
The Plaza library location would have no dedicated parking. Community Development Melanie Mintz said there will instead be nearby street parking spaces limited to two hours. Will Provost, assistant to the city manager, said Tuesday that an earlier study done by the city and BART showed there would be “free and easy parking for library users.”
Provost said the city is developing a parking management plan for on-street parking that will become public either in spring or early summer.
Asked why the cost of a parking structure is assumed for the current library site and any site other than the Plaza, Provost said it could be desirable to add parking at the sites and so the cost of doing so is listed. Whether to add parking at sites other than the Plaza would be up to the council, he added.
7 of 10 in Survey Supported A New Library
When results of a recent community survey were introduced, many library supporters including Georgina Edwards went to the podium to emphasize that 7 of 10 residents polled said they support a new library. No library were included in the survey.
“Everyone that wants a new library should vote yes (on this measure),” Edwards said.
The community survey also asked residents about their priorities for the city in the coming years. Top priorities were 1) Fire Safety and Wildfire Prevention, 2) A Fiscally Responsible City Budget, 3) Parks and Facilities Management, and 4) Public Safety and Crime Prevention.
Request to Examine More Locations
Resident Jim Dolgonas said that none of the five options other than a Plaza Station library seemed desirable to him. Renovating the current library or rebuilding at the current site would not be enough to meet needs, he argued, while options that involve buying privately owned land seem unwise because they mean those properties will not generate sales tax or property tax for the city.
“I am very much in favor of looking at other options,” Dolgonas said. These include the former Portola Middle School site on Moeser next to the Community Center, which is owned by the school district, and city-owned properties that are currently used for other things.
Request to Look at a Smaller Library
Resident Tom Schrey said he supports a new library but questioned why the size is assumed to be 20,000 square feet. He said the State of California Library standard is 0.05 sq. ft. per capita. Multiplying that by 25,000 residents means a 12,500 s.f. library is required. That is the amount of space that would be achieved with the rebuilding option for the current site.
Gary Chubb of Griffin Structures said the library size was based partly on a survey of peer libraries in Contra Costa County, which usually are close to 20,000 square feet.
Loves the Idea, Questions Affordability
Resident Linda Cain said she came to the meeting thinking “no tax” but the slide show of Contra Costa libraries made her “fall in love with the pictures and the ideas.”
However, Cain said she does not see how El Cerrito can afford this type of library.
“I bought a house in El Cerrito 30 years ago. I had to look for a house I could afford, not the house of my dreams,” Cain said. “Realistically it wasn’t the biggest house or the best house, but it was sufficient for my needs.”
More Debate to Come
Resident Michelle Fadelli said she supports a new modern library and wants the city to move forward with a task force.
“I’m happy to pay the tax. If we do have a tax, I would like it to be a library proposal that everyone can feel good about. I look forward to the task force and the process that we’re all going to work on to get the new modern library that we all deserve.”
Excellent reporting, on a difficult topic. Thank you!