Capitola Adopts New Emergency Plan as Storm, Beach Closure Hit
City Council • CapitolaNovember 12, 2026
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Capitola's City Council rewrote its emergency playbook on Nov. 12, 2026, and staff said the plan was already guiding the response to an E. coli beach closure and incoming large swells. The council adopted the 2026 Emergency Operations Plan 5-0. It also moved building plan review in-house, set a February deadline on 41st Avenue development fees and started the search for the city's first new city manager in 18 years.
- Emergency Operations Plan adopted 5-0, moving the primary emergency center to the Jade Street Community Center
- Affordable housing nexus study approved 5-0; 41st Avenue corridor fee returns by second February meeting
- Ad hoc panel of Jensen and Clarke to interview top four city manager search firms
- New Building Plan Examiner I and II jobs projected to save about $31,000 a year
- $18,000 patrol car amendment passes after a councilmember warns of rising fleet costs
Emergency Plan Gets a Real-Time Test
The basics: The plan is built on SEMS, NIMS and ICS. Those are California's Standardized Emergency Management System, the federal National Incident Management System and the Incident Command System. Together they create a shared command structure across agencies.
Why it matters: The plan replaces the 2017 version and sets activation levels and succession. It also keeps Capitola eligible for state and federal cost recovery as a storm and a beach closure unfold.
Where things stand: Consultant Jim Frawley, Franklin Frawley Think Tank LLC, presented an all-hazards plan tailored to Capitola. It focuses on earthquake, tsunami, flooding and coastal storms, and economic disruption.
The plan includes:
- Four activation levels and a clear line of succession
- An emergency operations center (EOC) manual and an "EOC in a box"
- A guide for elected officials
The primary EOC moves to the Jade Street Community Center, with New Brighton Middle School as the backup site. Three annexes are due by year-end: severe weather and coastal flooding, tsunami, and earthquake.
Frawley said the city also needed a separate resolution adopting SEMS, NIMS and ICS. He said those standards are required by federal and state mandates, and the city's earlier adoption was not found on record.
"This is not a police department's plan," said Sarah Ryan, Police Chief. She said the city had already used the plan for the E. coli closure and the swell response.
One councilmember asked for three things: a full-scale exercise with council participation, a volunteer structure, and updates on the regional radio system. The radio project lead targeted a go-live in the third quarter of 2028.
The other side: Public commenter Leslie Nielsen, who owns a Cliff Drive property, asked whether the city's sand berm work is permitted. She said the beach section in front of her property is being ignored and urged a holistic coastal approach built on collaboration with neighbors.
"The sand movement that we do on the beach is related to our lagoon management plan that has 7 state and federal permits associated with it," said Jessica Kahn, Public Works Director.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: Both resolutions passed by roll call. For: 5 (Clarke, Orbach, Westman, Jensen, Morgan). Against: 0. Absent: 0.
- Residents: They now have a known emergency hub at Jade Street.
- Council members: They get a defined role through the elected officials guide.
- City budget: The SEMS compliance protects disaster reimbursement.
- Coastal property owners: Nielsen's comments show some want more say in beach management.
What's next: The three annexes are due by year-end. Mayor Margaux Morgan announced an emergency preparedness town hall on Nov. 19 at the Jade Street Community Center.
41st Avenue Fee Fight Gets a February Deadline
The basics: A nexus study documents the link between new development and the costs it creates. Cities use that analysis to justify the fees developers pay.
Why it matters: As development approvals become more streamlined, impact fees may be one of the few ways to pay for offsite improvements. Council members also worried that a mall-site application could avoid new fees if they are not in place before it arrives.
Where things stand: The Willdan Financial Services contract was pulled from the consent calendar by the mayor. The Housing Element requires the study, and the Affordable Housing Trust Fund pays for it.
Staff left out a $27,000 study of a 41st Avenue corridor fee. They wanted to weigh that fee alongside financing districts and other tools with Kaiser Marston.
"As we talk about putting an impact fee on the 41st Avenue corridor, it's really a policy discussion that I think should take place next year," said Katie Herlihy, Community and Economic Development Director. Staff said the corridor fee is not in the budget and that an imminent development application is unlikely.
The other side: "I feel like $27,000 is a small price to pay to develop an impact fee that could bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars to make that vision a reality," said Melinda Orbach, Councilmember. Another councilmember asked that police and fire impacts be reviewed together with other fees.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The council approved a compromise: move ahead with the nexus contract now and bring back the corridor question later. Roll call: For: 5 (Clarke, Orbach, Westman, Jensen, Morgan). Against: 0. Absent: 0.
Developers may face updated affordable housing fees. Anyone eyeing the mall site or 41st Avenue now has a firm date for the corridor decision.
What's next: Staff must return with options, including the corridor study, no later than the council's second meeting in February.
Council Takes Control of City Manager Search
Why it matters: The interim city manager's CalPERS retiree hours run out around March. The choice of search firm drives the timeline for a permanent hire.
Where things stand: Staff said the longtime manager retired Oct. 1. A request for proposals drew 10 bids, with a median of about $29,000. Staff said recruitments typically take three to six months.
Staff offered two options: pick a firm on the spot or form an ad hoc committee. Members chose the committee and backed staff's four top-ranked firms. Council members said incoming members should help choose Capitola's first new manager in 18 years.
The other side: Nielsen urged the council to review the June 2024 employee benefit agreement and salary ranges before hiring a new city manager and finance director, citing the city's fiscal challenges.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The council gave direction by consensus, without a formal vote. Vice Mayor Gerry Jensen and Councilmember Joe Clarke will interview the top four firms.
What's next: The committee reports back Dec. 10.
Plan Review Moves In-House
Why it matters: Capitola sends nearly all building plan review to contractor CSG, which keeps 65% of the revenue. Staff estimated that arrangement costs the city about $82,000.
Where things stand: The new Building Plan Examiner I and II jobs would bring about 75% of reviews in-house. "The annual savings would be about $31,000 a year," said Jim Malberg, Administrative Services Director.
A development services technician who is finishing coursework would be promoted into the role. Staff said no new full-time positions are planned.
Members asked what happens if the employee does not finish certification. A probationary period and a one-year review were suggested. Members also asked about turnaround times, step increases and backfilling the technician's job.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The measure passed on a voice vote declared unanimous. Permit applicants could see faster reviews of simple plans. The savings depend on the employee completing certification.
Patrol Car Overrun Sparks Fleet Warning
Where things stand: The budget set aside $75,000 for a new patrol vehicle. Staff said the vehicle was ordered from a Salinas dealer for about $63,000. Outfitting is estimated at $30,000, based on the cost for a grant-funded vehicle.
The $18,000 amendment, drawn from the Equipment Replacement Fund balance, raises the total to $93,000.
Councilmember Susan Westman asked why the city stopped outfitting vehicles in-house. Members also learned the outfitting work is effectively sole-sourced and asked about partnering with other agencies.
The other side: The councilmember who pulled the item said such overruns should not move through the consent calendar. "I'm pulling it to make sure that we have that tough conversation to understand that we are at the breaking point," said the Councilmember.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The amendment passed on a voice vote declared unanimous. Members warned that vehicle replacement obligations and tighter budgets will require accurate figures in next year's capital improvement plan.
- Consent calendar: Seven items went to a single voice vote, but no result was announced. They were the Oct. 22 minutes, the 2027 City Hall holidays, the FY 2025-26 donations report, a Tyler Technologies budget software amendment, CalOES disaster-aid agents, a Noble Gulch culvert agreement extension and the rejection of Tiffany Hsu's liability claim.
- Block grant closeout: The CDBG projects closeout was continued to the Dec. 10 meeting.
- Closed session: The Hsu claim and two anticipated litigation matters produced direction but no reportable action.
- Beach and roads: Staff reported positive E. coli O157 samples near the Flume Jetty. Jensen said the State Park Drive closure was pushed to Nov. 30 and a defective RTC fence will be replaced before Thanksgiving.
- J Street Park: Public commenter Goran Kovic, a former security guard, said kids can now play safely at the park.
Looking ahead: Emergency preparedness town hall Nov. 19 at Jade Street. City manager search firm report and CDBG closeout Dec. 10. Emergency plan annexes by year-end. 41st Avenue fee options by the second February meeting.