Cupertino Matters
- NEW Grand Jury Report
- UPCOMING – City Council, Tues., May 5, 2026, 6:45 p.m., Study Session, 5:45; Closed Session, 5:30 p.m.
- RECAP – Planning Commission, Tues., April 28, 2026, 6:45 p.m.
In breaking news, the Santa Clara County Grand Jury has released its first 2025-26 report: Convenience vs. Compliance: Brown Act risks in Cupertino’s meeting practices, focusing on Councilmember R “Ray” Wang’s abuse of remote conferencing for city council meetings. Almost all of the teleconferencing is due to his regular travel on personal business. The report reviews the requirements of the Brown Act concluding that the city of Cupertino has failed to comply with the letter of the law, and should revise their procedures, explicitly stating:
“The Brown Act does not state that teleconferencing is required when a council member is unable to attend due to personal business. Government Code section 54953(b)(1) provides that a legislative body “may use teleconferencing” in connection with a meeting. Cupertino could choose not to allow teleconferencing to accommodate council members’ personal travel.”
…
“Cupertino’s interpretation and implementation of the Brown Act’s teleconferencing rules prioritize the convenience of the council member above the rights of the public.”
The report goes on to detail other changes that the city should undertake in order to meet Brown Act open meeting requirements in order to avoid its “weaponization” such as ensuring that all teleconference locations are in truly accessible public places where the councilmember isn’t in sole control of the means of connection to the meeting, such as hotel conference rooms set up for such meetings. Councilmember Wang’s ongoing virtual appearances are unprecedented in Cupertino. This year, Councilmember Wang has attended only ONE regular city council meeting in-person.
Note that the Grand Jury also investigated Cupertino in 2022 in a report entitled A HOUSE DIVIDED: CUPERTINO CITY COUNCIL AND CITY STAFF. Multiple investigations leading to final reports by a county Grand Jury is very unusual.
In happier news, this week features the Live Well Age Well Health Expo, the annual Health Fair at on Friday, May 8, 2026, from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Cupertino Senior Center at 21251 Stevens Creek Boulevard next to Memorial Park. The event will include valuable health and wellness resources, informative presentations, and interactive activity demonstrations to support a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle for our age 50+ community.
Fittingly, readers are also invited to the kickoff of the Mobile Health Center at De Anza College on Friday, May 8, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., at 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino, at Staff Parking Lot J. RSVP to SCVHCommunications@hhs.sccgov.org. It is a small celebration for the mobile health van that will be on the De Anza Community College campus every Wednesday for one year. The mobile clinic serves all community members, regardless of insurance.
This week is also the last chance for readers to provide comment on the Health and Safety Element of the General Plan has been extended to May 8. Readers are encouraged to review the draft at cupertino.gov/healthandsafetyelement. Questions and comments can be sent to planning@cupertino.gov.
UPCOMING – City Council, Tues., May 5, 2026, 6:45 p.m.; Special Meeting, 5:45 p.m.; Closed meeting 5:30 p.m., Council Chamber and Renaissance Cincinnati Downtown, Hotel Lobby, 36 E 4th St, Cincinnati, OH 45202
Closed Session
Item No. 1: Conference with Real Property Negotiators; California Government Code section 54954.5 1. Property: 10480 Finch Avenue, Cupertino, CA (APN 375-40-067) 2. Agency Negotiators: Tina Kapoor, City Manager, and Floy Andrews, Interim City Attorney 3. Negotiating parties: City of Cupertino and Cupertino Union School District 4. Under negotiation: Price and terms of payment. This is a small property adjacent to Sedgwick Elementary School that CUSD no longer needs for school purposes.
Study Session
Item No. 1: Silicon Valley Hopper: A program overview and proposed strategy for future grant funding. This popular microtransit service heavily used by students and seniors receives funding through a combination of different sources and grants. Cupertino piloted the program, which has since grown to include Santa Clara and key destinations outside Cupertino. Staff has identified additional funding possibilities to continue the service.
Regular meeting
Ceremonial Items are (1) Recognition of Sanyasi Chetty Mummidivarapu on the occasion of their 100th birthday, (2) Recognition of National Public Service Recognition Week of May 3-9, 2026 and the Dedication of Public Servants, (3) Recognition of May 2026 as National Physical Fitness Month, and (4) Recognition of May as National Foster Care Month. Oral Communications from the public on off-agenda items precede the Consent Calendar, which contains fourteen routine items.
Item No.19: Introduction and first reading of an ordinance amending Cupertino Municipal Code Sections 1.10, 2.20, 2.24, 2.48, 2.88, 3.12, and 3.38 to reflect organizational changes related to departmental structure and responsibilities. This is a change in the municipal code to reflect an organizational change moving Human Resources from the Department of Administrative Services to the City Manager’s Office, and renames the department to the Department of Finance responsible for Accounting, Budgeting, and Purchasing. The department head will hold the title of Director of Finance.
Item No. 20: Introduction of an ordinance to make minor revisions to the Municipal Code amending Chapter 2.04 (Chapter 2.04: City Council-Election and Meetings): Section 2.04.020 Special Meetings; Chapter 3.23 (Public Works Contract and Bidding Procedures): Section 3.23.020 (Definitions) to align with AB 2192; Chapter 5.04 (Business Licenses Generally): Section 5.04.480 (Appeal Procedure); Chapter 5.32 (BINGO): Section 5.32.130 (Total Value of Prizes); Chapter 11.28 (Abandoned, Wrecked, Inoperative Vehicles): Sections 11.28.010 (Definitions) and 11.28.050 (Sale of Merchandise); Chapter 13.04 (Parks): Sections 13.04.130 (Behavior of Persons in Parks) and 13.04.180 (Advertising and Sale Restrictions); and Chapter 16.52 (Prevention of Flood Damage): Sections 16.52.011 (Lands to Which this Chapter Applies) and 16.52.053 (Standards for Manufactured Homes). These are housekeeping changes to comply with state law, and to clean up parts of the municipal code.
Item No. 21: Revisions to City of Cupertino City Council Procedures Manual. These are clarifications to the roles and processes for city council, adding more explicit language. Council members must refrain from undue influence on Commissioners. Formal action is not permitted in a study session, though the council can vote to bring an agenda item back to a future council meeting. The Attendance and Remote Attendance section has been strengthened, though it predates the Civil Grand Jury Report issued yesterday and does not reflect the various changes the Grand Jury recommends. Given that, it would make sense if this item were postponed for additional responsive updates.
Item No.22: City Manager Report, (now submitted in written form).
Item No. 23: Council Reports (now submitted in written form) are provided by Mayor Moore, Vice-MayorChao, Councilmembers Fruen (corrected via Supplemental Report) and Mohan. Councilmember Wang failed (again) to submit a report.
Item No. 24: Upcoming Draft Agenda Items Report
RECAP – Planning Commission, Tues., April 28, 6:45 p.m.
YouTube: 1 hr. 8 min. Commissioner Rao was remote, and Commissioner Lindskog absent to care for a sick parent.
Item No. 2: Review of the Fiscal Year 2026 – 2027 Capital Improvement Program proposal for consistency with the City of Cupertino’s General Plan. This should have been a short pro forma review of the council-approved Capital Improvement Program. These are the proposed projects for this year:
- Blesch Property Improvements
- Memorial Park Pickleball Sound Attenuation
- Blackberry Farm Golf Course Pro Shop Renovation
- Sports Center Courts Resurfacing.
- Stevens Creek Boulevard/SR 85 (NB) ramp intersection improvements (funded by developer in-lieu fees)
However, Commissioner Rao arrived late and proceeded with a barrage of questions outside the scope of the agenda, focusing on the particulars of pickleball sound attenuation. Protracted discussion outside of agendized topics–here the question of the CIP’s consistency with the General Plan–is unlawful under the Brown Act. The meeting featured a testy exchange between the Assistant City Attorney, who kept trying to bring Commissioner Rao back within the confines of the lawful meeting agenda, and Commissioner Rao who kept speaking off-topic. The Commission ultimately voted to find the CIP consistent with the General Plan on a vote of 3-1-0 with Rao voting nay, and LIndskog absent.
CUPERTINO COURIER: May 1, 2026
The front page photo and article on page 5 are entitled Take a closer look: Local artist invites public into her work space for Open Studios: May Shei brings the history of her native Taiwan to her work, using Asian methods to modern style. Community briefs on page 5 are (1) Band concert for the Cupertino Symphonic Band, (2) Polynesioan dance and (3) Voter chat. Page 8 is a previously published Mercury News article entitled How Jobs gave Cupertino an offer it couldn’t refuse: When the ‘spaceship’ landed, local coffers swelled.Page 9is a previously published Mercury News article entitled Cupertino spa robbed by man posing as police officer. The sole legal notice is a Public Hearing before the Planning Commission on May 12 for a Summerhill Homes project at 10268 Bandley Drive.
Warm regards,
Jean Bedord
Cupertino Matters
Publisher and Editor
