Salinas council refines strategic plan and proposes environmental sustainability as a seventh goal

SALINAS — June 4, 2026 — The Salinas City Council and staff spent a June 4 special session reviewing proposed revisions to the city's strategic plan, including a proposal to add a seventh goal on environmental sustainability and climate resiliency and edits to economic development, housing, infrastructure and customer-service priorities.

The consultant leading the review said the existing plan's six goals remain the framework but that council feedback had prompted suggested wording changes and the potential addition of a standalone environmental goal. "The green boxes are the six goals that are in your adopted plan. And on the right in the yellow color is a proposed seventh goal that has come up as a priority to include," the facilitator said.

Why it matters: The strategic plan guides the city manager's work plan and budget recommendations. Councilmembers emphasized that revisions should remain high-level strategic priorities while staff translate them into specific projects and funding requests during the budget process.

Key changes and discussion

- Economic development: Councilmembers questioned removing a previously listed agriculture-technology plan; staff replied the work would continue but be folded into broader workforce and economic initiatives rather than remain a standalone strategic goal. Members suggested wording edits to balance support for established businesses and analysis of "new and emerging districts" (for example near the intermodal transportation center, Chinatown and the Alisal Marketplace) and recommended adding "initiatives" alongside businesses in relevant bullets.

- Housing: Councilmembers heard public interest in cooperative housing models and recommended capturing co-op possibilities and other innovative construction approaches (including prefab) as strategies to address affordability. Staff noted financing challenges for some models and recommended exploring pilot programs and grant opportunities. The facilitator said staff would capture co-op exploration as a tactic in the housing goal; specific funding for co-op startup was not specified.

- Infrastructure and lighting: Members supported adding a goal to leverage public-private partnerships and development agreements to advance infrastructure projects, with the caveat that staff bring back specific financing options. Several councilmembers urged elevating street, sidewalk and facility lighting as a priority to address safety and perception of dark retail areas.

- Customer service: Councilmembers emphasized responsiveness and reducing multi-department handoffs. Suggestions included reviving a volunteer coordinator role and highlighting successes in staff reports.

- Public safety: Council agreed to consolidate staffing, operations and preparedness into a single public-safety priority and to increase collaboration with nonprofit partners for emergency response and community preparedness.

- Proposed environmental sustainability goal: Staff proposed several bullets (flood risk and stormwater modernization; green infrastructure and urban-tree canopy; water-supply reliability and drought resilience; stormwater pollution reduction and debris cleanup; low-carbon energy and clean mobility; and waste-diversion efforts). Councilmembers supported separating flood risk and green-infrastructure bullets, requested that seawater intrusion and sea-level-rise considerations be woven into water planning, and asked staff to craft language that respects limits of city authority on private-property pesticide regulation.

What comes next: Staff will incorporate the council's edits into the work plan and the 2026-27 budget materials and return with more detailed language, legal analysis where needed, and the water master plan information later this month. Councilmembers reiterated they expect annual reporting on progress against each strategic goal.

Sources and attributions: Quotes and attributions come from the June 4, 2026 Salinas special strategic planning session transcript. The facilitator (identified in the transcript as Reva) led the review and staff (city manager and other staff) responded to council questions. Councilmembers who contributed to the discussion included members identified by the transcript (first-name references retained where full names were not recorded).