Residents urge San Leandro City Council to move toward district elections and housing protections

During the public comment period, a string of residents urged the San Leandro City Council to pursue district elections and also pressed the council to prioritize housing protections.

Douglas Spalding, who said he works for the San Lorenzo Unified School District, urged the council to move “ASAP” to district elections and to study whether existing district boundaries are aligned. “When you have citywide elections… it costs more money,” Spalding said, arguing district elections can reduce campaign cost barriers and increase diversity of candidates.

Several other residents echoed that view. Melissa Titano said the city’s size makes citywide campaigns time‑ and resource‑intensive and that district elections would improve access for grassroots candidates. Craig Williams and another commenter tied at‑large systems to historical exclusion and argued district elections improve face‑to‑face campaigning and representation.

Public commenters also called for more action on housing and homelessness. Douglas Spalding and another resident urged the council to return to housing‑related agenda items, citing rising rents and winter shelter needs. A resident speaker said the city’s agenda that night lacked housing protections despite ongoing affordability and unhoused‑ness concerns.

Council members did not take immediate legislative action on district elections during the meeting, though council member Bowen thanked commenters and council members said the topic could proceed through staff study or future agenda referrals.