San Bruno to prioritize litter cleanup, residential parking program

“We’re hard at work to present a balanced budget,” Financial Director Nick Pegueros said. 

A plan to enhance the city’s communication and engagement could cost around $100,000 for the year, with an estimated ongoing cost of $150,000 per year, Special Projects Manager Pam Antil said. Another priority for the city will be an assessment of city properties — like City Hall, the library, the CityNet building and fire stations — that has a one-time cost of $100,000. 

Those goals were brought to the City Council by City Manager Alex McIntyre, who said staff needed clarification on the remaining three priorities: cleanup of the city, an assessment of a residential parking program and streetlight replacements. 

“Only two of five [priorities] are from staff,” McIntyre said. “The other three came from the dais. We want to make sure we understand what you’re asking us to do.” 

Interim Police Chief Susan Manheimer presented an ambitious plan to stifle the city’s continued issues with illegal dumping and litter. The first year of aggressive cleanup could cost San Bruno around $1.46 million, which would be funded through the city’s Measure G sales tax, she said. 

Manheimer suggested a municipal code update that would give the city “a bit more teeth” when enforcing anti-dumping laws, working with other property owners like Caltrain to establish those enforcement responsibilities and increased resources that would allow implementation of technology like motion-sensor cameras in hot spot areas. 

When that’s established, San Bruno can work to get the word out, she said. 

“Once we get a city that has a level of cleanliness and a level of ability to be able to enforce and police dumping, litter, medians etc., we want to do a public education campaign,” Manheimer said. 

While councilmembers were in agreement that cleaning up the city is a priority across the board, some expressed concern around the fiscal year 2026 price tag, as well as continuing yearly costs of $825,000 to $1 million from Measure G. 

“I also have sticker shock,” Vice Mayor Marty Medina said.  

Streetlights are also a continuing problem in San Bruno. The city recently completed the first phase of a streetlight replacement in the Rollingwood and Crestmoor neighborhoods, where lights had been out for months. Now, 143 of 150 solar streetlights have been successfully installed, and 20 remain in reserve. 

Non-solar streetlights in other neighborhoods will also eventually need to be replaced, an initiative that will cost the city roughly $1.8 million and left councilmembers divided on how to best proceed. Some, like Councilmember Michael Salazar, maintained the city shouldn’t lose steam on the project. 

“We can delay it slightly if it can get us a better price, [but] I don't want to see this slip,” he said. 

Staff will bring a compromise plan — where some streetlights are replaced more slowly — back to the City Council. 

Councilmembers were in agreement, however, that an assessment of a potential residential parking permit program, which will cost around $300,000, should move forward for the 2026 fiscal year.