Salinas council receives strategic plan update, adds broader housing production language

The Salinas City Council on May 6 received a citywide strategic plan update and approved a last‑minute change to clarify the council’s housing goal, adding explicit direction to pursue the overall production of housing across market‑rate, workforce, farmworker and low‑income categories.

City Manager Renee Mendez introduced the facilitator’s draft and said staff had consolidated council feedback into a shorter set of “buckets” — economic development, housing, infrastructure, city services, public safety and youth & seniors — intended to guide the city’s budget and work plan. Facilitator Bridal Perman told the council, “what the strategic plan does is set forth a path for the council and the city as they develop next year’s budget and the work plan,” and described the draft goals and how staff would tie work plan items and dashboards to those goals.

The plan as presented included specific housing goals such as pursuing transit‑oriented development, supporting workforce/low‑income/farmworker housing and streamlining entitlement and permitting. Councilmember Andrew Sandoval offered the substitute motion the council adopted to receive the report “with the inclusion of the overall production of” housing so the goal would not be read as limited to accessory dwelling units, ADUs, or only a subset of housing types. The substitute passed unanimously.

Council members emphasized implementation details and accountability. Mendez said staff would create work plans and public dashboards tied to the strategic goals and recommended a six‑month check‑in once dashboards are available. Councilmembers asked staff to clarify terminology (for example, whether an “agricultural technology plan” would be a facilitated stakeholder engagement rather than a formal city plan), to consider adding market‑rate housing in the “streamline permitting” language, and to include prevention and community‑based services as part of youth/senior investments.

Public speakers raised enforcement and service concerns the council asked staff to follow up on, including requests for increased code enforcement in neighborhoods, questions about whether the plan had measurable benchmarks, and multiple presentations from students and community groups recommending safety and maintenance improvements at local parks. Several residents urged clearer public communication about how Measure G funds will be used. The council also directed staff to return the plan with a timeline for dashboards and a proposed schedule of regular progress reports.

What happens next: councilmembers said the strategic plan will be the foundation for the FY 2025‑26 budget and the city manager will bring implementation steps, dashboards and metrics back to the council for review. The council agreed on a six‑month check‑in cadence and annual reporting tied to the budget process.

Votes at a glance: The council approved the substitute motion to receive the strategic plan update with the housing language change; the substitute motion passed by unanimous vote.