I am writing to express my frustration with the frequent cancellations of Morgan Hill City Council meetings due to a purported lack of council business.
This is deeply concerning, especially given the numerous pressing challenges our city currently faces, including an escalating budget deficit that threatens our financial stability. In addition to the budget crisis, other critical issues remain unresolved:
• Affordable housing and homelessness: Many residents face housing insecurity, with nearly half of renter households spending more than 30% of their income on rent.
• Transportation and traffic: Key projects like Highway 101 expansion and commuter rail electrification remain stalled.
• Public health: The Healthy Morgan Hill initiative has yet to deliver tangible results despite alarming health statistics in our community.
• Public safety: Delays in adding patrol beats and upgrading emergency response systems continue to leave gaps in safety infrastructure.
Given these challenges, it is baffling that council meetings are canceled for lack of business. How can there be “no business” when so many urgent issues demand attention? These cancellations not only delay progress but also erode public trust in local governance.
I urge the city council to recommit to regular meetings, improve transparency around cancellations and prioritize addressing these critical issues—particularly the city’s budget deficit—before it spirals into a full-blown crisis.
Morgan Hill residents deserve proactive leadership that is responsive to the needs of our community.
Jennifer Blalack
Morgan Hill
to: MHTimes Editor
date: Apr 16, 2025, 10:01AM
subject: Letter: City Council Goes Dark
Once again, an anonymous “we” tells us that “they” want to be
“respectful of everyone’s time – yours, the Council’s, and the staff’s”
by combining Council meetings to one per month for April and May.
I don’t know if Council Members agreed or if this was decided only
by the City Manager (and Mayor?). It is well known that the City Manager
has a forecast of topics for upcoming meetings, but continuing a practice
of her predecessors, refuses to publish that rolling list. So I cannot
judge what cancelling meetings when “only a few items to discuss” might
mean for public education and engagement.
Given the likely extreme stresses on our City budget resulting from
reductions in County and State budgets due to Federal and economic
impacts, this is exactly the wrong time to not engage with our residents
on what is important to us and what we can do as a community to lessen
the impact from outside forces. The City has a two-year budget cycle and
this May and June is the time to consider funding priorities for year two.
Please ask your Council Member for real transparency and public engagement
for this critical time. [re: 411 Week of April 11, 2025] [submitted 4/16]
Because of bad decisions and skyrocketing wage, benefits and pension increases, the City is facing a projected budget deficit of ~$5M per year which doesn’t even involve so-called “unfunded needs” for critical things like adequate public safety !
Whenever there is a budget discussion and ANYONE ( a council member or a resident) TRIES to get real answers or asks for more details the ‘answer’ is we’ll have to get back to you or we don’t need those details we can “figure it out later”.
When the City comes asking YOU to approve new TAXES so the same people can keep doing whatever they want, which is what they are assuming, tell them THERE’S NOTHING TO TALK ABOUT!