Santa Ana council: votes at a glance — general plan report, vehicle purchases, bonds and continuance of public hearing

At its May 6 meeting the Santa Ana City Council approved several administrative and land‑use items, including the city’s annual general‑plan progress report and a number of procurement and finance measures. Council also continued a public hearing to June 3 after two members recused themselves for alleged campaign‑contribution conflicts.

Here are the formal outcomes and key details from the meeting:

General plan annual progress report (Item 7) - Action: Council approved the City of Santa Ana 2024 General Plan Annual Progress Report as required by state law. - Highlights in staff presentation included: same‑day express permit service (PBX), completion of a stakeholder round for a comprehensive zoning code update, formation of an Environmental Justice Action Committee, and reported housing production progress against the RHNA allocation (city stated approximately 94% overall met for one element and 57% for low/very‑low income housing in the current cycle). - Vote: Motion carried (roll call recorded as 6 ayes, no nays; one councilmember recorded absent).

Vehicle purchases and contingency debate (Item 8) - Action: Council approved purchase orders and contracts with local dealerships for replacement fleet vehicles (Chevrolet Equinox and Colorado models) for multiple city departments. - Controversy: Councilmember Becerra pressed staff about a 12% contingency included in the recommended purchase amounts, asking why dealerships would be allowed to increase price after submitting bids. Public works and fleet staff said contingencies are used rarely when a model year becomes unavailable and a later model must be purchased; staff said they would provide past contingency usage data and were asked to proceed if necessary. - Vote: Motion carried 5 ayes, 1 nay (Councilmember Becerra voted no); one recusal noted for Councilmember Phan on related items.

Exempt facility bonds for Estrella Springs (Item 22) - Action: Council approved a resolution supporting issuance by the California Municipal Finance Authority of exempt facility bonds for the Estrella Springs project. - Vote: Motion carried 6 ayes, no nays; one councilmember recused.

Public hearing continuance and recusals (Item 21) - Action: The council opened a public hearing briefly, then voted to continue item 21 to the June 3, 2025 council meeting to allow time for two councilmembers to resolve conflicts raised via FPPC correspondence. - Vote/Outcome: Motion to continue carried with five ayes and two noted recusals (Councilmembers Phan and Lopez were recorded as recused for the item). The city clerk recorded the continuance and the item will return with the full hearing on June 3.

Consent calendar and other housekeeping - The balance of the consent calendar was approved as presented with several items pulled for separate discussion; Councilmember Hernandez recorded a no vote on one consent item (item 14).

What happens next: Staff agreed to provide additional details requested by council — specifically, a report on how often vehicle‑purchase contingencies have been used and documentation related to the bond issuance and continued public hearing. Several items pulled for discussion will return on future agendas with requested follow‑up information.

Ending: The meeting combined routine approvals with a handful of contested issues that generated follow‑up assignments for staff, notably contingency reporting for vehicle procurement and scheduling a new public‑hearing date for the item continued to June 3.