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Council declares City Operations Building surplus, includes project‑labor language in NOA
Summary
Council voted to declare the City Operations Building (the "Cobb") surplus and directed staff to issue a Notice of Availability that includes the city's Project Labor Agreement language; the council and city attorney noted the PLA requires approval by the State Department of Housing and Community Development before issuance.
Councilmember Whitburn moved, and Councilmember Ilo Rivera seconded, a motion to adopt staff’s recommendation to declare the City Operations Building (commonly called Cobb) surplus land under the California Surplus Land Act and to waive certain internal department circulation under Council Policy CP‑700‑10. The motion as adopted also directed staff to include the terms of the City’s Project Labor Agreement (PLA) in the Notice of Availability (NOA) — a condition staff noted will need review and approval by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) before the NOA is issued.
Economic Development staff described prior studies showing the building’s condition and deferred maintenance, summarized earlier committee direction to include PLA language and noted the parcel’s location (entire block bounded by A Street, B Street, First Avenue and Front Street). Staff emphasized that declaring the site surplus does not by itself authorize sale or lease and that any future transaction would return to Council for approval.
Public commenters were divided: some opposed declaring surplus land or questioned the Mayor’s handling of city assets, while others urged moving forward to enable downtown revitalization. Several speakers raised concerns about potential loss of public ownership and the need to protect civic uses. Councilmembers pressed staff about Fire Station 1 (the station located in the building’s southwest corner); staff and the City Attorney’s office explained the NOA can express a strong interest in accommodating the fire station but that any development conditions beyond the PLA will require HCD review and approval and must be demonstrated reasonable under the Surplus Land Act.
Councilmembers also discussed whether to require a developer to fund a replacement Fire Station 1; that requirement was not added to the motion. The motion passed in the public record as approved during the meeting. City Attorney staff advised that HCD approval is required for the PLA language in the NOA and that the City must show the PLA protects its economic interests as a market participant; a fuller legal analysis will follow when proposals emerge.
