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Santa Monica City Council placed two school-funding and tenant-protection measures on the November ballot, directed staff to negotiate a Civic Auditorium deal with concert giant Golden Voice, and adopted emergency regulations for autonomous vehicle fleet operations at a marathon meeting that also advanced significant downtown zoning changes. Watch it here. Council agenda here.
Key Votes and Decisions
School Parcel Tax (Item 11A) The council voted 7-0 to place a citizen-initiative parcel tax on the November 3 general election ballot. The measure would establish a $495 annual parcel tax — automatically adjusted for inflation with no sunset date — to fund the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District. City Clerk Denise Anderson-Warren confirmed the initiative qualified after petitioners submitted signatures exceeding the 7,038 minimum required; the council had no legal discretion to block placement.
Proponents argued the measure is needed to replace $12 million in annual unrestricted general-fund transfers the city currently makes to SMUSD, transfers they said are unsustainable given the city’s low reserves and unfunded liabilities. Opponents called the tax regressive and said the district, as a basic-aid district, already receives substantial local property-tax revenue above the state formula.
The City Council’s role in approving this parcel tax measure is ministerial as proponents of the measure had already submitted an adequate amount of signatures to qualify for the ballot. The only reason the Council could have rejected the measure is if members, or city staff, felt the measure would run counter to state or federal law.
No council member filed an argument against the measure. The parcel tax needs a majority of votes during this November’s election.
Tenant Protections — Rent Control Charter Amendments (Item 11B) The council voted to place three proposed charter amendments on the November ballot, though it split the vote on the third.
Resolutions 1, 2, and 3 (CEQA finding, administrative rent-control board updates, and a prohibition on evictions for nonpayment of rent below roughly one month’s small-area fair market rent) passed 6-1. Council Member Lana Negrete voted no.
Resolution 4 (limiting evictions when tenants add new occupants to a household) passed 5-2, with Council Members Barry Snell and Negrete voting no. Council Member Snell had sought to separate that resolution for an individual vote; a substitute motion to bifurcate passed 7-0, allowing the split outcome. Councilmember Jesse Zwick recused himself due to his employment as Southern California Director of the Housing Action Coalition.
The council then approved, 7-0 (Zwick still absent), authorization for individual members to write ballot arguments: Council Member Hall for the administrative updates, Mayor Caroline Torosis for the nonpayment-of-rent protection, and Council Member Raskin for the new-occupant protection. No council member filed arguments against any measure.
Chief Deputy City Attorney Romy Ganshaw presented the measures, which originated from a January 27 council directive to develop additional tenant-stability tools following a period of ICE enforcement activity. The Rent Control Board held at least two public meetings, including a public hearing, before recommending the proposals.
Autonomous Vehicle Fleet Operations — (Item 12C) The council voted 7-0 to adopt an emergency interim zoning ordinance establishing a new land-use classification — “light fleet-based service for autonomous vehicles” — and creating a tiered permit framework for AV fleet facilities. Planning Director Jing You said the ordinance was needed immediately because of a pending building permit application and multiple inquiries, with no existing zoning standards to address the use.
The ordinance restricts AV fleet operations to existing commercial corridors (Auto Row, Santa Monica Boulevard, Lincoln Boulevard south of I-10, Olympic Boulevard corridor, and Bergamot/airport area). Facilities within 100 feet of residential zoning face augmented conditions including no maintenance, cleaning, or servicing of vehicles between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., though EV charging and vehicle ingress and egress for charging purposes remain permitted overnight. Red-line clarifications published the day of the meeting resolved concerns about a prior draft that would have effectively prohibited overnight charging.
Downtown Zoning Amendments — Gateway Sites and City-Owned Sites (Item 12A) The council voted 5-0 (Zwick recused; Hall recused due to proximity of residence to a Gateway parcel) to introduce on first reading an ordinance amending the Downtown Community Plan. Key changes: upzoning three Gateway sites including the Sears building and the Pierside Hotel from a maximum of 84 feet to 130 feet and increasing FAR; and exempting city-owned downtown sites from standard zoning constraints, with any development still subject to a public Disposition and Development Agreement process before the council.
On policy questions, the council directed staff to: use a tiered FAR-based entitlement system (rather than a flat 30,000-square-foot threshold) for Gateway site projects; exclude hotel, motel, and transient-occupancy uses from administrative ministerial approval; and maintain a tiered community-benefit structure proportionate to project size. Council members also called for a future community-benefits policy specific to economic-development projects on city-owned land.
SB 79 Transit-Oriented Development Exclusion Ordinance (Item 12B) The council voted 6-1 (Negrete no; Zwick recused) to introduce on first reading an ordinance temporarily excluding five of Santa Monica’s six transit-oriented development zones from SB 79 upzoning requirements until adoption of the city’s seventh-cycle housing element or 2030. The sixth zone — Expo Bundy Station — could not qualify for exclusion because its large commercial parcels leave too few individual sites to meet the state’s 33-percent threshold.
The council directed staff to return with options for upzoning R1 parcels (rather than the Planning Commission-recommended R2/R3 parcels) in the Expo Bundy area to qualify that zone for exclusion, citing lower involuntary-displacement risk in predominantly owner-occupied single-family properties. Staff was also directed to consult the Rent Control Board on which R1 parcels may have rent-controlled units, and to consider a geographically limited universe of R1 parcels rather than all 212. Council Member Negrete voted no, expressing concern that R1 upzoning could attract speculative corporate buyers.
Civic Auditorium / Golden Voice (Closed Session Item 5E) Torosis reported out of closed session that the council directed City Manager Oliver Chi to negotiate with AEG Presents/Golden Voice on price and terms for a potential Civic Auditorium deal. Staff anticipates returning with an exclusive negotiating agreement within the next two council meetings. The city owns the auditorium.
Settlement — Mastroberti v. City (Closed Session Item 5D) The city attorney reported the council approved a $160,000 settlement in a personal-injury case involving an alleged dangerous condition of public property. The city denied liability and fault.
Transient Occupancy Tax — Olympic Corporate Blocks (Special Meeting) The council voted 7-0 to direct staff to prepare ballot measure language that would close a TOT gap: under current code, corporate room blocks exceeding 30 days pay no hotel tax. Staff presented a scenario in which a 100-room block at $500 per night for 45 days generates $337,000 in TOT that currently goes uncollected. The measure would target corporate bulk bookings, particularly in advance of the 2028 Olympics. Staff will return with draft language at the July 28 meeting.
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