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Yorba Linda council approves intent to levy landscape assessments despite engineer's objection
Summary
The council unanimously adopted a resolution of intention to approve the FY 2026–27 Landscape Maintenance Assessment District (LMAD) Engineer’s Report and declare intent to levy assessments after a public engineer urged the city to add fuel-modification work and funding for the Chicago Avenue Slope before the public hearing.
The Yorba Linda City Council voted unanimously to adopt a resolution of intention to approve the fiscal year 2026–27 Landscape Maintenance Assessment District (LMAD) Engineer’s Report and declare intent to levy assessments following staff presentations and public comment.
Council heard a legal overview of conflict-of-interest rules and the “legislative necessity” exception from City Attorney Todd Litvin, who explained the council would conduct a random draw to select three members eligible to participate in the LMAD process. Litvin announced that Councilmember Lim, Mayor Rodriguez, and Councilmember Campbell were the members selected to continue with the assessment item.
Public Works Director Jamie Lai presented the LMAD background, described five assessment zones and recent zone changes, and said the report includes about $1,145,000 budgeted for improvement projects such as irrigation upgrades, turf removal and water-efficiency measures. Lai recommended adoption of the engineer’s report and the declaration of intent to levy assessments.
During public comment, Peter Ming, a California licensed professional engineer, urged the council not to approve the resolution in its current form. Ming said the preliminary written engineer’s report “is technically deficient and legally noncompliant” because it omits remediation and a budget allocation for a hazardous, overgrown fuel load on the Chicago Avenue Slope, which he said encroaches on a federally regulated fuel corridor and threatens older homes. Ming asked councilmembers to amend the resolution to instruct the city engineer and Willdan to revise the report before the public hearing and to include a mandatory fuel-modification and remediation plan with funding in the FY 26–27 budget.
Mayor Rodriguez thanked the commenter and the council then moved to adopt staff’s recommendation. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. No amendment to the resolution was made on the floor.
The council’s action establishes a schedule toward the public hearing required under the assessment process. Staff indicated the item will return for the noticed public hearing on the date cited in the public materials (the council set the public hearing date in subsequent steps of the LMAD process).
