Salinas committee reviews Measure E Q1 finances, discusses library hours and $10.3M in CIP carryover

City of Salinas staff reported to the Measure E Oversight Committee on Oct. 16 that the city projects $17.2 million in Measure E revenue for fiscal year 2025–26 and has $10.3 million already appropriated to capital projects, largely carried over from prior years.

Abe Pedroza, the city’s assistant finance director, presented the Measure E first-quarter financial report, saying the numbers were unaudited and that transaction-and-use-tax receipts are timed by the state. "Measure E is projected to generate 17,200,000.0 in revenue for fiscal year 25 26," Pedroza said, noting that the 8% of expected revenue shown in the report reflects one month of receipts and that investment earnings show no activity yet because of posting timing.

Committee members pressed staff for more detail about how Measure E funds are allocated. "Is city facility improvements specifically identifying city hall?" asked Committee Member Shekinstein. Pedroza replied, "I believe city hall is included in that amount," and offered to provide a more specific breakdown. The committee was told the capital-improvement-program (CIP) reimbursement allocation has not been completed for the new fiscal year because of the year-end close and accounts-payable accrual process; updated CIP figures will be provided at the next meeting in January.

The committee heard that Measure E currently funds 90.5 full-time positions across police, fire, recreation and library operations and that a number of operating costs are charged to the Measure E fund, including fleet maintenance, insurance premiums, debt service related to the El Gabilan Library, emergency 911 and animal-services contracts. Pedroza said CIP spending for Measure E shows 0% transferred to capital projects for the quarter because the reimbursement allocation is pending.

The presentation included a detailed CIP list showing 14 projects totaling $10,300,000.0, of which $1,000,000 is new appropriations for FY2025–26 and the remaining $9,300,000 was carried forward from prior years. Pedroza and committee members read Measure E’s portion amounts for individual projects during the meeting: tennis court improvements ($112,691), District 5 Recreation Center ($6,900,000), El Gabilan Library ($72,283), Monterey Garage improvements (approximately $100,000), fire station repairs ($350,000), restroom replacements in city parks ($40,000), striping and signing improvements ($313,006.62), Closter Park improvements ($137,005.55), EV charging infrastructure ($200,000), Steinbeck Library upgrades ($73,007.07), César Chávez Park drive/basin repair ($100,000) and city facility improvements ($250,000). Pedroza confirmed the $10.3 million figure when asked.

Committee members also discussed the role of Measure E in funding libraries. Committee Member Ish noted that "when we first put Measure E in place... the sole purpose was to fund our public libraries," and asked whether the measure still fully funds them. City Manager Renee Mendez clarified that Measure E is a general-purpose transaction-and-use tax and that while the libraries are fully funded by Measure E today, the tax is not an exclusive library tax (which would have required a two-thirds voter threshold). "It was the library was one of the services that supported passing this tax measure," Mendez said.

Kristen Lundquist, library and community services director, told the committee that staff has a survey under way to gauge community interest in expanded library hours and that "it is our intent to look at expanding hours," but that staff needs community input and must follow required processes before changing schedules.

The committee repeatedly requested clearer, more transparent line-item reporting on carryover balances and the timing of transfers. Pedroza said updates on CIP allocations will be available at the committee’s January meeting, which committee members noted as the next scheduled meeting window.

Votes at a glance

The committee approved the two consent-agenda items by roll-call vote: the 2026 Measure E Oversight Committee meeting calendar and the minutes of the July 24, 2025 meeting. The roll call recorded unanimous "yes" votes from Committee Members Alvarado, Agamal, Fragozo, Ish and Chair Hobby; the motion passed.

What’s next

Staff will provide a more detailed breakdown of the $250,000 listed for city facility improvements and will present updated CIP spending figures covering quarter 2 at the committee’s next meeting in mid-January.