Several residents used the Sept. 2 public-comment period to complain about tickets issued for blocking sidewalks and for overnight street parking. Speakers said citations, some issued late at night, had provoked community anger and suggested police time would be better spent on crimes such as vehicle break-ins and speeding enforcement.

Councilor Kelsey Campos clarified that blocking a sidewalk falls under traffic penal code and said councilors cannot constitutionally prohibit officers from writing such citations. Campos also told the council she had asked staff to pull enforcement numbers: the city reported 22 sidewalk-blocking citations in January and an additional 37 issued after the retreat earlier in the year. Staff also reported overall increases in traffic-enforcement citations — an uptick from about 400 to between 600 and 700 citations in later months — primarily for speeding and failure to stop at signs.

City staff and council discussed neighborhood patrol priorities and the limits of council direction. Dr. Caldera and staff said they would provide the enforcement numbers used in the meeting to the council in writing and suggested the CPAC (Citizen Police Advisory Committee) could be used to gather community feedback about patrol priorities, enforcement practices, and outreach. Several councilors and residents suggested the city could survey residents about enforcement priorities and use scheduled CPAC meetings to continue the discussion.

Ending: The council did not change enforcement policy at the meeting. Councilor Campos emphasized the legal constraints on directing police not to enforce specific penal-code provisions and directed staff to share the citation breakdown with council members for further consideration and public engagement.