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About The Citizen Initiative Process
The proposed measure was placed on the ballot through a Citizens’ Initiative, a process allowed under California election law. This process lets residents put an issue on the ballot if at least 10 percent of the city’s registered voters support it. In this case, nearly 13 percent of registered voters signed on to propose the library measure. Under California law, a measure placed on the ballot through a Citizens’ Initiative becomes law if it receives a simple majority of votes.
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This parcel tax is initially capped at 17 cents-per-square-foot habitable space on a parcel. Money raised from this special parcel tax shall be used solely to fund the planning, construction, and furnishing of a modern library in El Cerrito and to fund the City’s library operating costs of the new library for up to ten years. The tax ends 30 years after initial issuance of bonds for planning and construction. The tax rate can only be set at a rate needed to extinguish any indebtedness and pay the City’s library operating costs during the first ten full years. If less money is needed, less money will be collected. Eligible homeowners age 62 or older may apply for an exemption. Ballot Language
Shall the measure to fund planning/construction/furnishing a new El Cerrito library, including a new building, and the City’s library operating costs for ten years after completing construction, by authorizing an annual parcel tax of up to $0.17 per square foot of improvements ($100 per vacant parcel), subject to annual inflation adjustments, generating approximately $3,100,000 annually, expiring 30 years after the initial issuance of bonds, with independent audits/citizen oversight and senior exemptions, be adopted? Yes or No?
Proposed Ordinance
Click here for the full language (9 pages)
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Exemption for Low Income Seniors In April 2026, the City Council instructed staff to return with an expanded exemption. The City Council subsequently adopted a resolution that applies to the prior tax measure, Measure H, and would apply to Measure C if it passes. The prior criteria required the property owner to have a disability, be older than 62 and earn less than $55,000 per year. The adopted criteria removed the disability requirement. Therefore, property owners older than 62 years old earning less than $55,000 per year are eligible to have the tax waived, both the prior tax, Measure H, and if Measure C passes, the new tax. The prior language relied on a State program to compensate the City for the tax the disabled, low-income senior was unable to pay. The City’s Resolution waives low-income seniors from paying the tax. The City will do without the income the low-income senior is unable to pay. To read the resolution, click here. |
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About El Cerrito's Library (From City of El Cerrito Website, www.el-cerrito.org/library)
Since 2002, El Cerrito residents have identified a new library as a top priority. The city’s current library—built in 1948 and measuring just 6,500 square feet—is outdated and too small to meet community needs. According to the 2025 community survey, released in January 2026 about 70% of El Cerrito voters support building a new library as the city’s top project (link to data, here).
In 2019, the City Council asked BART to include a 20,000-square-foot library as part of the El Cerrito Plaza Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) project. Incorporating the library into BART’s TOD would save the City approximately $10 million compared to constructing a stand-alone building. BART, which owns the land where the project will be built, would lease the library site to the City for $1 per year for 99 years.
(For more information about the El Cerrito Plaza Transit Oriented Development, click here. For diagrams of Plaza Station Library search for G0.24 and G0.25.) Library Impact Report On February 19, 2026 the City Council received an impact report on our Citizen's Initiative Petition and placed the measure on the June 2, 2026 ballot for consideration by El Cerrito Voters. Read the Impact Report and view or listen to the executive summary for information including conceptual costs of potential options for a new library facility. |
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El Cerrito Plaza Potential Library Drawings
Library Renderings, C-West Building (2 pages from the full packet)
Planning Commission and Design Review Board
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Library Update Presentation (From January 20, 2026 City Council Meeting)
Analysis shared by the Griffin Group, City staff, and Contra Costa County Library leaders show that only a new or much larger library would fully meet the community’s needs. Based on these findings, a library of about 20,000 square feet is considered the right size for El Cerrito. Three of the options studied by the Griffin Group would provide a library of that size.
Replacing the existing library with a two-story building would also fall short and it’s also very possible to be expensive and not to be a good value. After changing the foundations, installing safety features, ventilation, treating leaks and aging plumbing, accounting for required elevators, stairways, and accessibility features, and being sure that the library could serve as a safe space for the community in an emergency, the new library would STILL be less than 12,850 square feet — a small library per capital for our city—well below what most Contra Costa cities have invested in, and still relatively small, and not really offering the hoped-for spaces for gathering, culture, books and to serve our diverse community. (To review the presentation materials, click here.)
Presentation Materials include: |