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Larkspur council endorses Climate Action Forum’s five priorities, directs staff to report back
Summary
Council endorsed five priority climate actions recommended by the Climate Action Forum — including EV and building electrification — and directed staff to review implementation options and return with progress reports and metrics for fiscal year 2026–27.
Council Member Margalise, the council’s liaison to the Climate Action Forum (CAF), asked the Larkspur City Council on April 15 to endorse five priority areas and to direct staff to review actions and report back with implementation recommendations and metrics for fiscal year 2026–27. The forum’s proposal singled out EV charging, building electrification, equipment electrification, vehicle electrification and public outreach as near‑term priorities.
"What our focus is ... the biggest culprits for greenhouse gas emissions," Margalise said, describing the CAF materials and the attached Word and Excel documents intended to serve as a living plan and staff tracking tool. She said CAF narrowed more than 200 actions in the city’s Climate Action Plan into a shorter list the group believes can produce measurable near‑term gains.
Council Member Kando said he supported most items but objected to provisions he read as mandatory requirements for residents. "I'm not ready to require people to do that unless we are at a place where we are willing to supplement them and to say, 'Hey, you have to do this and we're going to pick up the tab,'" he said, urging caution about measures that could impose substantial costs on homeowners.
City Manager Schwarz and Margalise both told the council that many of the CAF recommendations are intended as priorities for staff study and that some language in CAF materials "strongly encourage" rather than require actions. Schwarz said staff will weigh the priorities against other city goals and resource constraints and will return with achievable options and associated metrics.
Public commenters largely urged endorsement. Larkspur resident and CAF participant David Muller said the forum had produced a useful short list and recommended folding those priorities into the FY2026–27 budget planning process. Katie Stra Hutton, a new resident and CAF member, told the council that a shorter, trackable set of priorities helps the public understand progress. An online caller, James Holmes, asked the council to consider exemptions and legal limits, warning that mandatory electrification could be burdensome for owners of older homes with limited electrical capacity.
Council members then moved to endorse CAF’s priorities and direct staff to review them and report back. The motion passed by voice vote with no recorded opposition. The council recorded members’ reservations that staff should consider equity and legal constraints before proposing requirements.
Next steps: staff will review the CAF materials, return with status updates, recommendations on achievable steps and suggested metrics, and identify any items that would require ordinance changes or additional council debate.
