[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6522787,"mediaKeyId","5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c","parentId",5067077,"title","At a glance: Cotati council approves minutes and consent calendar unanimously","audioSeconds",1879,"startMs",1032000,"endMs",2911000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c&start=1032&end=2911","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c/thumbnail_1032000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6522787/Cotati-City/Sonoma-County/California/At-a-glance-Cotati-council-approves-minutes-and-consent-calendar-unanimously","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6522787-408a6f4b465b0852a4aec4f0784926fb/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174993&Signature=DilfVH1Ih4GjD7nZjgXGIb4YTY-gJaVOYI0dw6ak4cJRSKQJhasJAB2auv-BOhciUJKqz6VvZmEaz~rDB17Nt5Oiwp4FaHonIA4D2etRmZpUAas79ZL7DKKz7kci~2cWbtb3uaYHXACn0EBiX0ysUweZZh~oTUSlrHSfWf~eVu5YzBjK1n~-DkAucQmSSuCDnQvRq174WpaOTz7fxEjgwadeCSM~9e2TSaBC3vLfA2Z1xSWkxrpc7GJrNJiiKpIgBx1rw~EAV0a6PGQPQCwKxUD5UyRh1ZhLpj5zJjTNjtvS2KY-lIb3tgHjcsYr5WmrtzYNhuorDp29-cEdiEzPuw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Cotati, CA","date","2025-06-25T02:55:42.827Z","article","The Cotati City Council approved two routine items without dissent: the minutes of the June 10 regular meeting and the meeting’s consent calendar.

A motion to approve the June 10 minutes was moved and seconded and carried unanimously. Later in the meeting, a motion to approve the consent calendar was moved and seconded; the council voted 5-0 to approve the consent calendar.

The meeting record shows the council present and voting in the affirmative as: Councilmember Savage, Councilmember Sparks, Councilmember Harvey, Vice Mayor Lemus and Mayor Ford. The motions were routine procedural actions; no substantive items were removed from the consent calendar during the meeting.

No contested ordinance, resolution or appointment votes were taken during the meeting’s regular agenda; the substantive regular agenda item (council rules update) was discussed and staff were directed to return a redlined version for a future formal vote.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","June 24, 2025 City Council Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","The Cotati City Council approved the June 10 meeting minutes and the meeting consent calendar by unanimous vote; no contested items were removed from consent. Both motions carried 5-0.","taxTitle","Cotati City, Sonoma County, California","taxId",72376,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6522792,"Recology Sonoma Marin highlights lower landfill tons, new local recycling facility and community programs",379,1296000,1675000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c&start=1296&end=1675","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c/thumbnail_1296000.jpg","/articles/6522792/Cotati-City/Sonoma-County/California/Recology-Sonoma-Marin-highlights-lower-landfill-tons-new-local-recycling-facility-and-community-programs","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6522792-4bcfcb9aa7ed426cdb6c82ea573c1d9b/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174993&Signature=ewy8evUt~wPzfXS21eZWYH5BzO3ueGPXmL0c7WA2Wgj0nwFGLNgruzxXDKS2Ja0h45jgjRNpDb8Xt5~l8XZZEeN3-OXr7Q485jPoxYH1crgPMdddbXrmy449G3LyUugI6qioSLaKEdCMaKl6EJpnMvxdbzp7D9eMSlxideEKoss92gelIv-dC1sIVoEQp2MGLq5Hh7mVr0DC6dKxilxu0RJLsJ1mj4xPvvRjq4hscPSD4F21XLKvsrsY9BnRva77cSNW1lup8WmxduAy8TBSY2d9Tvmqd6ckNGjXA8061nYlQRiMQJIzFvjW5b18kR5hdyivzJHv9-laJw~AWv1yPQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Representatives from Recology Sonoma Marin presented service and program updates to the Cotati City Council, reporting lower landfill tonnage, a new materials recovery facility and several community-focused diversion initiatives.

Celia Ferber, Recology’s community relations and sustainability manager, told the council Recology has served Cotati since late 2017 and serves roughly 2,200 customers in the city. She said landfill tonnage for Cotati fell from 5,101 tons in 2018 to 4,245 tons in 2024 — a 17% reduction — while recyclable and composted tons rose from about 2,800 tons in 2018 to over 3,600 tons in 2024 (a roughly 29% increase).

Ferber said 54% of Cotati customers use 20- or 32-gallon garbage carts, a sign she said of customer embrace of waste reduction. She also noted that 98% of Cotati multifamily and commercial customers comply with SB 1383 (organics collection) and 100% comply with AB 341 (recycling service).

Logan Harvey, Recology Sonoma Marin’s senior general manager, described operational investments and service improvements: a new driver safety and yard-training program that extended hands-on training to about eight weeks, additional customer-service staffing, plans to add residential-facing cameras for service verification, and next-phase analysis at the company’s Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) using AI-enabled cameras and possible robotic sorting to reduce residuals.

Recology opened a new local MRF in late 2023 that company presenters described as a $35,000,000 facility with seven optical sorters, a processing capacity of about 400 tons per day and an average recovery rate of about 85 percent. Ferber said the MRF lets Recology process recyclables locally rather than outsource sorting to distant facilities and that Recology estimates the facility avoids over 3,000,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions annually compared with prior hauling and outsourcing arrangements.

Presenters also described community programs: a school contract at Thomas Page Elementary, public tours of the MRF (more than 1,200 people had toured at the time of the presentation), event support in La Plaza Park, a reuse bazaar and an artist-in-residence trash-art program. Recology representatives said those programs are intended to increase correct sorting, reduce wish-cycling and divert usable goods from landfill.

Councilmembers thanked Recology for the presentation and for tours; councilmembers asked about event tote/bin options, green-waste bin sizes and the company’s ability to provide seasonal or temporary green-waste service. Recology staff said the company can supply different cart sizes, can provide event stands for bag replacement, and noted that seasonal delivery-and-pickup of green bins would add labor and administrative complexity.

No formal council action was taken on the presentation; the item was presented for information and council comment only.","Recology staff told the Cotati council the company cut landfill tonnage by 17% since 2018, opened a new $35 million materials recovery facility and is running local education, reuse and audit programs to boost diversion.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6522796,"Cotati council directs staff to revise meeting rules after lengthy debate over public comment and land-acknowledgment",1746,2941000,4687000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c&start=2941&end=4687","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5067077-d5c33ecd77e56a4f6b3a7c3164f6985c/thumbnail_2941000.jpg","/articles/6522796/Cotati-City/Sonoma-County/California/Cotati-council-directs-staff-to-revise-meeting-rules-after-lengthy-debate-over-public-comment-and-land-acknowledgment","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6522796-2417cdac8ff1cc2581767b71259f842a/orig.mp4?Expires=1771174993&Signature=YQ6Hwn4OjGV5QJI~mfTZVq5xuj-B59krUbJ05Bq~Yo5yCHSC8Km3~AuO0dg6V9L8D74vZvSqlE5Ce6opvkfsu6g1BsL~vdYpTt8-hxZaw6haBOOvkT7oG3ttQRQDpoKKSp-XD55u7E6dHdRRJ8x0NCMaxNQsf5r4Z8bh0VqaH-ukByeZc~smt0Muk2-1CXTEM5XeuUQFI58triTKt3joFuHYscIIplCWumH42uoaHbNHr7sWaiqGiiScahs7dvfS-mYT5qLOdyajTffM62vkUGNhFhdyuNGcIThx~0XkIQbVel8~50xv8RjX0ATK0ZWwSbfAlck-2W9wVrU1qYDx7w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Cotati City Council and Successor Agency debated changes to its meeting rules and gave staff direction to prepare a redlined revision to return on the consent calendar at the next meeting.

The issue grew from months of public comment and meeting disruptions; staff presented options that would either open public comment for every agenda item or eliminate the action/non-action labeling that currently appears on the agenda. A staff member summarized the principal proposal as “the proposed rule changes before you would create a public comment period with every item on the agenda.”

Councilmembers and members of the public expressed differing views on how to balance meeting efficiency with the public’s right to comment under the Brown Act. Several councilmembers said they favored removing the action/non-action distinction and preserving a three-minute limit for individual commenters. Mayor Ford and multiple councilmembers said they wanted to reduce preamble items at the start of meetings so regular business begins earlier; others said the pledge of allegiance should remain. Vice Mayor Lemus said either keep both the pledge and the land acknowledgment or move both to the printed agenda; one councilmember proposed moving them to just before council reports.

Council direction from the meeting staff report asked city staff and the city attorney to: revise the rules to remove the action/non-action bifurcation; consolidate and move the printed announcements into the agenda preamble (so they are in writing rather than read aloud); and move the land acknowledgment and the pledge of allegiance to a location before the reports. The staff report and council discussion also called for moving the definition of “action” (as drawn from Government Code language) to the action-items section of the rules. Staff said it will return a redlined version of the full rules for approval on the consent calendar at the next meeting.

Members of the public and several councilmembers emphasized procedural clarity for hybrid meetings, urging that the printed agenda and the meeting start instructions tell Zoom attendees how to raise hands to speak when an item begins. A staff member and the city attorney said adding that instruction to the agenda and the pre-meeting materials would be straightforward and recommended.

No formal ordinance or resolution was adopted on the rules at this meeting; council members gave direction to staff and asked that the edited rules be returned at the next meeting for formal action.

The council’s next steps, as recorded in the staff report and repeated in the meeting, are to: produce a redline of the rules implementing the agreed directions; add explicit instructions in the printed agenda for hybrid attendees about how and when to raise hands; and place the redline on the next meeting’s consent calendar for final approval.","After extended public comment and debate among councilmembers, the Cotati City Council gave staff direction to redraft its meeting rules, removing the action/non-action public-comment split and moving the land acknowledgment and pledge to later in the agenda for reconsideration and a redlined return at the next meeting.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

At a glance: Cotati council approves minutes and consent calendar unanimously

Recology Sonoma Marin highlights lower landfill tons, new local recycling facility and community programs

Cotati council directs staff to revise meeting rules after lengthy debate over public comment and land-acknowledgment