Lemon Grove holds goal‑setting workshop; residents push to reopen rec center, fix downtown and prioritize streets

Lemon Grove City Council convened a special goal‑setting workshop on April 14, 2026, drawing dozens of residents to a facilitated session to identify and prioritize projects for the 2026–27 fiscal year.

Interim City Manager Tony Winnie said the session is the official kickoff to the city’s budget season and framed the work as a step toward the operating and capital improvement budgets. "This is the first step in a multi‑step process, which will bring us through the adoption of the operating budget and the CIP budget," Winnie said, adding that the city projects roughly 3 percent revenue growth through the end of the fiscal year and that about 77 percent of general‑fund revenue comes from sales tax, in‑lieu vehicle license fee replacement and property taxes.

Facilitator Richard Marks led a visioning exercise and a dot‑vote prioritization in which residents and councilors placed stickers on flip‑chart lists. Residents’ top vote getters included reopening and activating the recreation center (26 resident votes), an economic development study (13), a vacant‑property upkeep ordinance (16) and continued investment in streets and storm drains (12). The council’s internal tallies generally showed lower counts but similar areas of interest.

Residents and community advocates pressed council to move quickly on several fronts. "We have the proof of concept to show that when local groups lead, the community responds," said Brianna Beers, who introduced herself as president of Lemon Grove Community Activities and urged a public‑private partnership to operate the recreation center during weekday evenings and weekends. Beers said the group runs programs that draw more than 500 attendees per month and offered to partner with the city to deliver programming without adding full‑time city staff.

Community organizer Chelsea Gastelum encouraged the city to lean on local volunteer groups and existing partnerships: "There are people who are already out there running this stuff and we can tap into that knowledge right here in our city," she said.

Staff provided project updates that will inform budget decisions. Winnie said lighting upgrades are under way (22 lights on Bridal Avenue and 13 solar lights on Main Street) and described a multiyear lighting assessment staff will seek funding for. Staff also noted sidewalk projects have been delayed in some locations because construction would require adjacent property owners to dedicate right of way.

Winnie highlighted Measure T revenues as a major funding source, saying Measure T is producing additional revenue (staff cited approximately $4,900,000 in new revenue this year) that is being used to prioritize street repairs, storm‑drain work, parks upkeep and public safety staffing. He said the city has repaved 61 street segments this year and completed six storm‑drain projects.

Public commenters recommended several additional priorities. Sean Elwood asked why the Lemon Grove Residential Traffic Management Program (Resolution 2019‑3653) has not produced more visible results and urged renewed outreach on traffic calming. Manola Clark Manson asked the council to adopt a longer‑range, five‑year framework so annual workshops can build on a stable foundation. Several speakers urged an expanded grant‑seeking effort and the hiring of a grant writer to pursue available state funding.

City staff told attendees they will compile the workshop results into a readable format and present the input and council tallies at the regular City Council meeting on May 5. Winnie said the priorities identified in the workshop will be used to develop a realistic work plan and to program projects into the FY 2026–27 budget and the five‑year capital improvement plan.

The meeting concluded with an invitation for the public to attend the May 5 meeting, where council will formally consider goals and budget next steps.