Tuesday’s meeting of the Santa Monica City Council may lack some of the heated items driving recent meetings to near record length but the cluster of administrative items and lawsuit updates may still take the meeting into the wee hours of the morning.
The Council's consent calender contains items expected to pass with little to no discussion but the second reading for a right to recall ordinance could become a focal point. The proposal requires businesses on the Pier and City owned property to offer jobs to individuals who formerly worked in the City before looking for other candidates and while it was passed by a majority of the council at their last meeting, it wasn’t without debate. Any changes that might be proposed this week would require the measure to return for at least a third hearing.
Other consent items include renewals of emergency declarations for homelessness and wildfire recovery, along with an extension of streamlined outdoor dining regulations as part of the regular calendar.
The council will consider adopting a resolution ratifying the 2025 Proclamation of the City Council of the City of Santa Monica Declaring a Local Emergency on Homelessness.
Heidi Von Tongeln, interim city attorney, is recommending the council adopt the resolution to maintain the emergency declaration, which allows the city to expeditiously increase services and programs to address and prevent homelessness.
Government Code Section 8630 requires local governmental authorities to renew a local emergency every 60 days until the governing body terminates it. The city has ratified the 2025 proclamation six times since it was first adopted in March 2025.
The city first declared a homelessness emergency on Feb. 14, 2023, in response to the growing regional crisis leading to deplorable living conditions and illness and deaths of unhoused and unsheltered persons. On March 11, 2025, the council adopted the current 2025 proclamation, which extends the local emergency on homelessness through Dec. 31, 2026.
The emergency declaration provides several benefits to the city's homelessness response efforts. It allows Santa Monica to receive additional county, state and federal resources to address the crisis. The proclamation also enables the city to prevent rental price gouging and streamline certain city processes.
According to a staff report, the proclamation has facilitated rapid progress on several priority initiatives during fiscal year 2025-26 aimed directly at addressing homelessness. These include expansion of the city's C3 outreach teams, expansion of Right to Counsel services, and a new housing retention and bridge financial assistance program.
Staff anticipates ongoing near-term use of the proclamation to implement additional activities contemplated in the city's Realignment Plan and to efficiently operationalize Measure A funds.
The council will also vote on ratifying the latest supplement to the local emergency declaration issued in response to the devastating January 2025 wildfires that swept through Los Angeles County.
The emergency declaration was first issued Jan. 8, 2025, by the city manager, as director of emergency services, in response to extreme weather conditions and widespread fires that ignited in nearby Pacific Palisades and elsewhere in Los Angeles County. The Palisades Fire and other major blazes, including the Eaton Fire in Altadena, burned more than 40,000 acres.
Von Tongeln is recommending the council adopt the resolution to maintain emergency measures that have been put in place to support businesses, residents and organizations affected by the fires.
The most recent supplement, issued Dec. 19, 2025, makes two key changes. It revises residential leasing requirements to resume enforcement for new lease agreements or tenancies entered into on or after Jan. 1, 2026. It also extends provisions allowing restaurants additional flexibility in alcohol sales and service through Feb. 28, 2026.
The city has issued nine supplements to the original executive order over the past year, each addressing evolving needs as the community responds to and recovers from the fires.
According to a staff report, the city is now evaluating which emergency provisions remain necessary.
The council will also vote on extending temporary regulations that streamline outdoor dining on city sidewalks, giving staff more time to make the changes permanent.
The council will consider extending Interim Zoning Ordinance Number 2837 for an additional 180 days beyond its original 60-day term.
City staff is recommending the extension to allow the proposed amendments to complete the standard zoning amendment and codification process. The Planning Commission reviewed the proposed changes at its Jan. 21 meeting, and the amendments are expected to return to the City Council on Feb. 24.
The interim ordinance, first adopted Nov. 18, 2025, amended Section 9.31.200 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code governing outdoor dining and seating on sidewalks. The changes are designed to promote economic recovery by simplifying the city's outdoor dining program.
The ordinance removes redundant design standards from the municipal code and consolidates them within the city's Sidewalk Dining Guidelines. According to a staff report prepared by Ross Fehrman, acting planning manager, the streamlining improves clarity and allows design standards to be updated administratively while maintaining safety, accessibility and consistency in the public right-of-way.
During Council’s closed session, they will hear updates on seven different lawsuits and negotiations over the purchase and/or sale of several pieces of property.
Several councilmembers are asking for items to be discussed including a proposal to realign the work of the city’s landmarking efforts and develop a new plan to address traffic accidents as the city’s decade old “vision zero” policy has failed to make a meaningful impact.
Council will meet at 5:30 p.m. in City Hall, 1685 Main Street.