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Council votes to agendaize Decaloris Park review as city wrestles with budget shortfall
Summary
Vacaville City Council agreed April 28 to bring back a discussion of the Decaloris Park project amid an ongoing budget shortfall; staff outlined roughly $17 million in project funding but cautioned some grants are pending and could be lost if not used.
The Vacaville City Council voted April 28 to put a follow-up discussion of the Decaloris Park project back on a future agenda after Council Member Freeman asked the council to reconsider the project while the city is running a structural deficit.
Freeman said the city is "struggling" with deficit spending and asked whether the council wanted to re-evaluate whether to proceed on the large park project. The council approved a motion to agendaize a high-level conversation about Decaloris Park; the vote was 4-3 in favor of bringing the item back for discussion.
City staff provided a budget summary in response to questions about funding sources. Housing and Community Services Director Tamara Golden said the project currently includes roughly $6.7 million in Measure M funds, $6.7 million in a State Parks grant, a pending $2.6 million Section 108 application, about $800,000 in downtown bond funding, approximately $800,000 in annual CDBG allocations listed in the project application, and roughly $400,000 already spent in CDBG toward the project. The city manager warned, "Yes, we would lose the funding" if grants are not used within required timeframes.
Council members debated whether the discussion should be limited to Decaloris Park or broadened to consider other planned projects with encumbered funding that could be unencumbered. One council member said the appropriate venue for detailed funding breakdowns is a future agenda item to avoid Brown Act concerns during this meeting.
The approved motion calls only for a discussion; no policy change or reallocation of funds was made. Staff told the council it will return with a high-level summary, and if the council directs further action, staff will present options to pause or re-prioritize projects.
What happens next: The council will receive the Decaloris Park briefing at a future public meeting where the public can comment and the council can vote on whether to alter the project timeline or funding commitments.
