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Let the youth vote.
That was the message from the Pleasanton City Council last week as its majority endorsed a proposal to allow the youth member on four city commissions to receive a full voting position, just like the adult commissioners.
“If they’re there and they’re on the commission, they should be voting,” Councilwoman Julie Testa, a former Human Services Commission member, said during the Dec. 17 meeting. “I believe that they will work as hard as I did those first couple of years to understand it and make thoughtful decisions.”
Four city commissions currently have one youth member each (Parks and Recreation, Library, Civic Arts and Human Services), but the student member holds only an advisory position and doesn’t cast votes in commission business as the adult members do.
The city’s Youth Commission — a separate body comprised primarily of youth members, who all vote — set out earlier this year to change the situation for their peers on the other commissions.
The Youth Commission’s Public Policy Subcommittee presented the proposal to the four commissions. The Library, Civic Arts, and Parks and Recreation commissions all endorsed, but the Human Services Commission did not.
In a 5-2 decision among the adult members, the Human Services Commission voted to oppose the proposal for its body, with the majority reasoning the youth member who serves only one or two years would lack the experience to vote on the city’s complex housing and human services grant program — perhaps the commission’s most important task.
After that, the Youth Commission still opted to advance its original recommendation to the City Council, for the city to grant voting power to the youth member on all four commissions.
“We believe that the youth provide valuable points to the discussion and they can help the adult members consider different things,” Youth Commission member Keshav Patel told the council. “They are capable of learning on the go.”
“Our youth commissioners are some of the best and brightest in the city … They’re responsible. they’re actively engaged; they want to serve,” added Michaela Hertle, an adult member of the Library Commission. “I trust them. Our Library Commission trusts them … The question tonight is: Do you trust our youth commissioners to make good decisions on behalf of their community?”
Human Services Commissioner Mike Sedlak said he recognizes the hard work of the commission’s youth members, but the nonprofit grant process requires “a commissioner’s seasoned judgment to make a determination as to the level of funding, if funded at all.”
“Their request undercuts the need to become familiar with the complexity of the special needs of the agencies that the Human Services Commission considers funding for through the grant process,” he told the council. “Two years and out is not the long-term commitment that the human services commissioners sign up for.”
The council majority supported the recommendation to give the youth member a vote on all four commissions.
“The comment was made that some of the youth commissioners, they only serve a year or two. But if you’re an adult and you become a member of this commission, do you vote the first year even though you’ve only served a partial year? And you also vote the second year?” Councilwoman Karla Brown asked, rhetorically.
Mayor Jerry Thorne added, “Commissions aren’t final decision-makers. The commissions recommend to the City Council, and (we) make that final decision. So if there was a problem with a vote … then the commissions could come talk to the council itself.”
Councilman Jerry Pentin dissented, saying he thought the council should respect the Human Services Commission’s recommendation. “I think when you take a commission that has asked not to give voting power to the (youth) commissioner, we have to listen. We’re not listening.”
The council voted 4-1 to approve the introduction and first reading of the ordinance to implement the youth vote. The second reading and final adoption is scheduled for the Jan. 21 council meeting.
As part of their support, the council majority asked that the four commissions report back in one year about the impact of the youth member voting. The proposal does not change the commissions’ quorum requirements, but that could be reconsidered in a year.
In other business
* The council gave unanimous support to an ordinance creating strict penalties for unauthorized demolition or alterations of buildings designated as historic in Pleasanton.
The new regulations include a maximum fine for unpermitted work based on the replacement value or the appraised value — whichever amount is greater — of the affected part of the historic building, before demolition or alteration, as determined by a licensed appraiser selected by the city.
In practice, the ultimate fine amount in each case would be determined by the city’s community development director, based on the range from $0 up to the maximum.
The other key penalty would be restrictions on future redevelopment at the site, meaning the owner could not reconstruct with a new building that exceeds the square footage, floor-area ratio, height or placement onsite as the demolished original structure for 20 years. Any new work would have to be in an approved historic architectural style as well.
In an associated resolution, the council approved an update to the city’s purchasing procedures and manual to allow the city to cancel contracts with businesses that violate the Pleasanton Municipal Code, including the new rules for historic buildings.
The new regulations were inspired by the case of an historic house on Second Street being fully demolished this summer — when the owner only had permits to tear down the back portion. While investigating that incident, officials realized the city code had no provisions specifically about unpermitted work on historic buildings.
* The council endorsed a property owner’s proposal to tear down the former Denny’s restaurant building at 6455 Owens Drive and replace it with a larger commercial building with multiple tenants.
The project parcel, with the rundown restaurant building left vacant since Denny’s moved out about four years ago, is situated between Johnson Court and the Larkspur Landing hotel, next to the oft-crowded driveway to Chick-fil-A and a short block from the busy Owens Drive-Hopyard Road intersection.
Owner Abbas Mash plans to demolish the old restaurant and construct a single rectangular building at 10,980 square feet with five commercial tenant suites, with one intended to be a restaurant and the others some form of retail or commercial business.
The planned-unit development (PUD) project also requires the city to rezone the property from freeway commercial to PUD-commercial.
* The council approved of the city loaning $732,548 to the Hacienda Business Park Owners Association to renovate certain landscaped areas in street medians and other public right-of-way in Hacienda that the association is required to maintain.
The landscaping has fallen into very poor condition from drought impacts, deferred maintenance and other reasons, and with Hacienda lacking the reserve funds to pay for the entire project upfront, city staff sees the loan as the most efficient and expedient way to get the needed improvements completed, assistant city manager Brian Dolan said.
The work will involve replacing plants, increasing plant density, replacing lost trees and installing landscaping that complies with the city’s water efficient landscape ordinance.
A 10-year loan with 2.72% annual interest, the $732,548 agreement will be paid out of the city’s Downtown and North Pleasanton Reserve Fund, which is comprised of unused bond proceeds from the North Pleasanton Improvement District.
The council’s vote was 3-2. Brown dissented in opposition to using public funds for a large loan to a private entity that could pursue a bank loan or a special assessment. Testa said she couldn’t support without provisions to allow the city to impose penalties if Hacienda’s public landscaping deteriorates again in the future.
* Council members signed off on the mayor’s recommendations for assigning his colleagues to various committees, boards and liaison positions for 2020. Among them was Councilwoman Kathy Narum being named vice mayor for the year.
* They postponed a resolution to impose a lien on a property owner on Fondry Court near Foothill Road for costs of weed abatement work by the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department after owner Nick Jones asked the council in person to reconsider the matter.
* The council approved a nine-item consent calendar, which included a $249,985 contract with Cascadia Consulting Group for services related to updating the city’s Climate Action Plan, and two contracts with Jeff Katz Architecture — $42,000 for construction support for the library office and storage remodel and $12,500 for a privacy needs assessment at Fire Station No. 2.
* All votes were unanimous, except Brown dissented for the item that renominated former councilman Arne Olson to serve as Pleasanton’s representative on the Alameda County Housing Commission’s Housing Authority. She argued the position should have been more visibly recruited in the public.
New retail, dining options coming to Stoneridge Shopping Center later this yearApril 19, 2026 9:24 pm
Are pigs flying now too? As I read your article, the City of Pleasanton has become a bank lending money to the financially strapped Hacienda Business Park? Who gave the city authority to lend our tax payer money to a business park for bushes and trees? Foolish leadership.
We need new leaders on this council. Three of them need to go because they forgot their own jobs. Let me remind you, you were NOT elected to hand out money at a low interest rates to failing businesses. I didn’t see that option on your campaign fliers. Any good CEO knows to raise rates for businesses that are in the park.
Who is next, a bail out of the outdated Mall?
I tend to agree with James Michael regarding youth and experience.
There should be a credential check in regards to academic success, and is the candidate a scout, eagle scout, did the candidate fulfill high school volunteer program during high school years?
Having worked with a few of the city’s commissions, I was always incredibly impressed with the youth members. They tended to ask insightful questions and have a better grasp of the topics being discussed than many of the adult commissioners. I strongly support giving these incredibly promising youth a voice in their own future.
Youth vote NO. Grow and mature, pay your taxes, serve your county on jury duty, serve God and country and then you can vote. Enough!
Another not so bright decision by the City Council! Go Trump 2020!
Bah humbug Jerry Pentin and all naysayers to giving the youth a vote. Today’s youth will live longer with the impact of city decisions than adult representatives. As such, one could argue that their vote matters more. Plus, the youth on these commissions have applied for, interviewed and been appointed to the various commissions on which they serve and for that fact alone, are civic-minded leaders among their peers whose voice — and vote — deserve to be heard.