Monterey County reports $20M-plus Pajaro recovery progress, pledges final closeout by Dec. 2025

Monterey County staff presented an update Oct. 21 on the county’s implementation of Assembly Bill 102 (AB 102) recovery projects for the Pajaro community, reporting broad progress across household assistance, small-business recovery, community grants and infrastructure repairs.

Kelsey Scanlon, senior staff with the county’s Department of Emergency Management (DEM), and project lead Laura (last name not specified) summarized obligations and expenditures across the program. County materials showed roughly $20 million was allocated under AB 102 to Pajaro recovery projects covering direct household assistance, small-business aid, a community grants program, road and pedestrian safety improvements, library and park repairs, and flood-response equipment and training.

On individual and household assistance, county staff said Catholic Charities and Community Bridges have distributed the bulk of the funding in phases: evacuation support, direct flood-loss repairs and resilience assistance. Staff reported nearly $5.4 million of the $6 million obligated for direct household relief has been expended; the remainder is expected to be distributed by mid-November.

The county allocated about $4.0 million to a small-business assistance and beautification program; DEM reported the program had expended approximately $4.11 million and that staff reallocated an additional $350,000 from contingency to fully meet the demonstrated small-business needs.

A $2.0 million Pajaro Community Grant Program run with the Community Foundation of Monterey County awarded approximately $1.8 million to 22 nonprofit and neighborhood projects to bolster resilience and services. Examples in closing or wrap-up included a new outdoor classroom at Pajaro Middle School, tree plantings, legal clinics that secured monetary benefits for residents, opening of a reimagined resource center with health services and a food pantry at Pajaro Middle School, art workshops and a mural, and community leadership and arts-cohort programs.

Infrastructure projects included curb ramps, school warning beacons, new solar streetlights, radar speed signs and planned crosswalk and signal work near Pajaro Middle School, with final construction expected in November 2025. Park repairs at Pajaro Park — playground repairs and field turf replacement — were set to begin the week following the presentation, with completion anticipated in December 2025. Library flood repairs were in progress; county staff noted some construction-related security and structural costs could push the project over initial estimates and asked the board to consider availability of additional funds if needed.

Emergency-response upgrades executed with North County Fire Protection District included boats, trailers, high-water rescue vehicles, flood-rescue gear, a tractor and debris-removal equipment and training; final delivery and training were expected in coming weeks.

DEM said it has distributed 1,000 “go bags” for residents, convened community emergency-response training (about 25 residents completed CERT training), tested alert systems and coordinated with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on emergency action and communication plans. DEM staff announced a Proudly Pajaro Preparedness Fair planned for Nov. 8, 2025, with community resources and giveaways.

County staff described next steps as completing project obligation and liquidation by the performance-period deadline (Dec. 2025), closing AB 102 grants in January 2026 and providing a final report to the board and the community in early 2026. Staff also said they would produce a final public report and an interactive map documenting where projects were completed.

Ending: County officials said the AB 102 implementation in Pajaro combined immediate relief with long-term resilience investments and that county and nonprofit partners expected to finish the program and deliver a final report in early 2026.