In her first State of the City Address, Mayor Adena Ishii spoke powerfully to both the urgency of the moment and the enduring strength of Berkeley’s community. Responding to reports of heightened ICE activity across the Bay Area, she reaffirmed Berkeley’s role as the nation’s first Sanctuary City and outlined the city’s ongoing work to defend immigrant residents and uphold democratic values. Mayor Ishii highlighted the creation of the Mayor’s Sanctuary City Task Force, which partners with local organizations and institutions to protect immigrant families through “Know Your Rights” trainings, legal services, and advocacy. The task force’s work led to the unanimous passage of a Sanctuary City Ordinance and $200,000 in new funding for immigrant defense services.
Mayor Ishii emphasized that Berkeley’s success is built by its people, the city workers maintaining infrastructure, nonprofit partners providing shelter and food, small business owners driving local prosperity, and residents organizing for fire safety and civic engagement. She spotlighted major progress on housing and homelessness, noting that over 700 permanent supportive housing units have been built citywide and that two new projects have been funded through Measure O. The Mayor also celebrated the groundbreaking of new educator workforce housing and the City Council’s passage of a Middle Housing ordinance to expand development opportunities across Berkeley neighborhoods.
Turning to public safety, Mayor Ishii commended Berkeley Police Chief Jen Louis and Fire Chief David Sprague for their leadership, noting decreases in property and violent crime, expanded data transparency, and the EMBER fire mitigation initiative designed to prevent loss of life and property in the Berkeley Hills. She credited community partnerships such as the Creston Firewise Community for mobilizing volunteers to clear debris and strengthen wildfire preparedness. Mayor Ishii also highlighted voter approval of Measure FF, which provides $15 million annually to improve streets and sidewalks, including pedestrian paths and other environmental improvements.
Despite facing a $28 million deficit, the Mayor reported that the city passed a balanced budget without layoffs, prioritizing essential services and transparency. She also launched new bi-monthly office hours to connect directly with residents, and announced BerkeleyCorps, a new volunteer program to coordinate community service projects across the city.
Watch the Mayor’s full remarks here.
At a time when our rights, freedoms, and futures are under threat, Democratic Mayors are showing the nation what real leadership looks like.
