The Stockton City Council is gearing up for a vote Tuesday on whether to use city property to back a youth project proposal by Hollywood Cares, a nonprofit founded in 2022 by Vice Mayor Jason Lee.
The council is also scheduled to vote on whether to put a new vacant property tax on the 2026 ballot, and on several other significant items.
City could use teen center for Hollywood Cares project
Stockton City Council could vote to partner with a nonprofit founded by Vice Mayor Jason Lee in seeking state money to transform the city-owned Teen Impact Center on Park and North El Dorado streets into youth housing.
Lee plans to recuse himself from the vote, he told Stocktonia.
California is offering more than $800 million to community organizations statewide to build or revamp buildings for new behavioral health centers. Nonprofits must get their cities to agree to fund 10% of their project idea to qualify for the state money.
Over the summer, Stockton rejected four local nonprofits, including Community Medical Centers and Service First of Northern California, for partnership after a competitive application process. Stockton rejected all the proposals because the city doesn’t have the money to cover 10% of their projects, according to a report included in Tuesday’s City Council agenda.
After the application process, Hollywood Cares, a nonprofit founded by Lee, approached the city with its own proposal. Now, Stockton’s Economic Development Department is proposing partnering with Hollywood Cares to seek the state money.
According to the report, the city would contribute the Teen Impact Center property — which city staff values at about $6.4 million — to Hollywood Cares’ proposal. The nonprofit would then transform it into transition-aged youth housing.
A “yes” vote by City Council would allow Stockton to partner with Hollywood Cares in seeking the state money, using the Teen Impact Center property as the required 10% down payment on the project.
It’s unclear why the old teen center property could not be used as a way to help fund one of the other four proposals rejected by the city.
City manager search
On Tuesday, City Council is also scheduled to hold another confidential meeting as they work to recruit a new city manager.
The council gathered for a special closed session on city manager recruitment last week. Tuesday’s council meeting will include two closed session items relating to the hiring. Further closed sessions on the topic are scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday, council agendas show.
For now, where City Council is in the hiring process is a mystery. A schedule prepared by Stockton’s executive search firm, obtained by Stocktonia under public records laws, set final interviews to start Oct. 6, but it’s unclear if the city has stuck to that timeline. No names of candidates have been released publicly.
Vacant property tax
City Council will also vote Tuesday on whether to create a ballot measure proposing a new tax on vacant properties.
The tax could push owners of empty buildings in Stockton to develop their properties, possibly reducing fire risk and improving public safety, according to a report attached to Tuesday’s agenda.
“Because many property owners live outside Stockton, they may not feel the direct impacts of vacancy, which can make voluntary compliance less effective,” the report stated.
A “yes” vote by City Council means city staff would prepare the ballot measure for the November 2026 election. Preparing the measure would cost an estimated $1 million, while administering the tax would cost $1 million a year, the report stated. It would reportedly bring an estimated $2.5 to $4.5 million to the city each year.
The agenda report doesn’t say how much landowners will be taxed for their vacant lots.
Also coming up at City Council:
- Confidential negotiations between city leaders and Stockton’s police union are expected to continue, as the Stockton Police Department’s rank-and-file continue into their fourth month without a new contract.
- The council may approve contracts for three park improvement projects: roughly $2.3 million for the second phase of renovations for the master-planned Equinoa Park in northeast Stockton; about $300,000 for new play equipment at Anderson Park near North El Dorado Street and East Swain Road; and about $293,000 for new play equipment at Loch Lomond Park near North El Dorado Street and White Slough.
- City Council may add the 120-unit Hunter House project, near North Hunter and East Oak streets, to an application Stockton submitted for $36 million in state funds.
- The council will hold a hearing on the possible continuation of a special tax district for downtown Stockton property owners, aimed at maintaining the neighborhood.