Dublin Projects $10.2M Surplus but Warns of Rising Costs and Property Tax Hit

Dublin's City Council got its first look at a two-year budget that projects healthy surpluses on paper — but council members weren't buying the optimism, warning that contract costs are outpacing revenue growth and urging staff to act as if the city is already in deficit. The council also reviewed a $79.5M capital improvement plan, heard residents plead for a dangerous gravel path to be paved, and approved a fiber optic master plan to future-proof city technology.

• Council previews two-year budget projecting $10.2M surplus in Year 1, but Prop 8 property tax reductions and 6% contract cost growth threaten to close the gap fast

• $79.5M capital plan reviewed with council pressing staff on which projects can be deferred; Village Parkway reconstruction ($40M) and Dublin Boulevard extension ($126M) loom large

• Summerglen residents and a 10-year-old describe injuries on an unsafe gravel path connecting their neighborhood to Emerald Glen Park; staff confirms meeting being scheduled

• Business owner warns smash-and-grab crimes are back, with one shop hit 14 times; pushes council for citizen patrols

• Fiber optic master plan approved to design a citywide high-speed internet ring and replace AT&T cloud reliance

• Strategic plan milestones highlighted, including Dublin Boulevard extension agreement with Livermore and mobile crime camera deployment

Dublin's preliminary two-year general fund budget landed with a headline number that would make most cities envious: a $10.2 million surplus in FY 2026-27 and $6.4 million in FY 2027-28. But the four council members present (with Vice Mayor Kashef Qaadri absent) spent far more time interrogating the risks than celebrating the cushion.