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Montclair City Council approves six-month pilot to give members up to 11 days' notice on agendas
Summary
The Montclair City Council voted 4–1 on Sept. 2, 2025, to pilot a change to its agenda schedule that advances packet production so members generally receive materials up to 11 days before meetings; council will review the pilot in February and staff will cancel the Oct. 6 meeting to begin the new cycle.
The Montclair City Council voted 4–1 on Sept. 2, 2025, to start a six-month pilot that advances agenda production so council members generally receive meeting packets up to 11 days before the first-and-third-Monday meetings. The council directed staff to implement the revised timetable and return with a review at the second meeting in February; the Oct. 6 meeting will be canceled to allow the new process to begin.
City Manager Ed Star presented three options: (1) keep the current schedule; (2) change the meeting weekday (Tuesday or Wednesday) or switch to alternate weeks (which would require an ordinance change and public hearings); and (3) keep meeting dates the same but alter internal staff deadlines so packets are produced earlier, providing up to 11 days of advance notice. Star told the council that changing meeting days would force earlier internal deadlines and "has a very significant impact on staff," while scenario three would deliver more advance time without altering longstanding council meeting dates.
"I'm okay with moving the day, if everybody else is okay, to either Tuesday or Wednesday," Council Member Xavier Mendes said during the discussion, citing the difficulty of Monday-night schedules for working members. Several colleagues, however, pointed to conflicts (the city attorney cannot attend on Tuesdays) and to committee meeting schedules that would be disrupted by weekday changes.
Council Member Tim Martinez moved for a pilot of scenario three, including a staff authorization to add urgent or perishable items into a packet if time allows and a review of the pilot in February. The motion, which included canceling the Oct. 6 meeting to allow the new timetable to start, was seconded and adopted 4–1.
Staff and several council members framed the motion as a compromise meant to give members more time to review packets without requiring staff to rework core processes. "Scenario three gives it to you 11 days in advance," a staff presentation noted; Star added that if truly emergency items arise there remain statutory and procedural options to add items between regular meetings.
The council also spent time earlier in the meeting on routine business: the fire chief and emergency services coordinator presented a proclamation recognizing September as National Preparedness Month; Tenise Johnson of the Montlair Chamber of Commerce (identified in public comment) previewed upcoming community events including a Sept. 11 networking breakfast with code enforcement, a Sept. 25 Taste of Montclair at the Montclair Community Center, and a free e-waste collection on Sept. 27–28 at Alma Hoffman Park.
The council closed the meeting after additional communications from staff and brief comments urging support for a regional transit vote at the San Bernardino Council of Governments meeting the following day.
What happens next: Staff will begin producing agenda packets on the new timeline, will handle perishable items as described in the staff report, and will return to the council at the second meeting in February to evaluate whether to continue or revise the change.
