Arlis Reynolds

02/08/2026

RSVP: bit.ly/cmma0218

06/09/2025

Here are ways to support friends and neighbors impacted and/or at risk of separation, detention, and deportation with no due process. I'll continue to share updates on resources, volunteer opportunities, and ways to help keep families and communities together.

03/31/2025

Summary of upcoming council meeting!

City of Costa Mesa City Council has our next meeting on Tuesday, April 1 - no joke! I'm sharing a brief summary of the agenda here.

📄You can find the full agenda with detailed staff reports online (link at bottom of post).
🗣 The public meeting starts at 6pm at City Hall. You can participate in person or on Zoom or watch live on Youtube or Costa Mesa TV.

Presentations:
Introduction of our new Costa Mesa Poet Laureate

👥 Public Comments: 3-minutes to share information, questions, ideas on anything not the agenda (save agenda-specific comments for each agenda item)

🗣 Councilmember, City Manager, and City Attorney Comments: We all share various updates and may request information/action.

Consent Calendar:
👥 CC-5 Designate City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Deputy City Manager, HR Manager, and Finance Director as city negotiators and authorize fiscal analysis for labor negotiations with Costa Mesa Police Management Association (CMPMA), Costa Mesa Police Association (CMPA), and Costa Mesa City Employees Association (CMCEA)
🚗 CC-6 Approve an additional $100k and increase annual purchasing authority from $100k to $200k for vehicle paint and body services.
👩‍✈️ CC-7 Accept Completion of the Police Department Range Remodel and Upgrades Project
🚦 CC-8 Amend Traffic Signal Maintenance Contract to increase annual compensation limit from $500k to $700k
🚒 CC-9 Authorize purchase order for small dollar commodity purchases up to $125k for Personal Protective Equipment and Firefighter Equipment
🏘 CC-10 Amend Tenant Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) contract with Families Forward to increase current contract by $50k (to $200k) and authorize three years of renewals at $200k (pending available funds); and approve appropriation of unspent HOME funds to the TBRA and Single-Family Housing Rehabilitation Programs.

Public Hearings: none

Old Business:
🏡 OB-1 Adopt Ordinance to amend code related to Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). (We discussed this in detail in our March 18 Council Meeting; most updates are required to comply with new state laws.)

New Business
🚒 NB-1 Award $1.8m for Construction Management Services for the Reconstruction of Fire Station #2
🙋‍♀️ NB-2 Appointments to City Committees

📨 Email anytime: [email protected]

Full agenda and staff reports:
https://costamesa.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1283626&GUID=D75087B3-A750-4AB5-B086-93D45C644D05&Options=info|&Search=

09/23/2024

We had a great afternoon supporting Dr. Leah Ersoylu for Newport Mesa Unified School District Area 1! 🗳️ Lots of great support on the westside! 🦅 Visit her webpage to donate/volunteer: https://www.leah4newportmesa.com

09/18/2024

What an amazing turnout for the CD47 Blue Wave Coalition!! 🗳️ 🇺🇸 🌊 I was proud to co-host with event with Natalie Tomich Moser to help mobilize, organize, and train more than 500 volunteers across CD47! We heard from our Congresswoman Katie Porter, State Senator and future Congressmember Dave Min, State Senator Josh Newman and DPOC Chair Ada Briceño; we cheered out future leaders ; and we signed up volunteers to canvass (knock loud and proud!), to phone bank, and to send postcards across the district. HUGE thanks to organizer in chief Cate Hardesty and all the clubs who helped inspire volunteers into action!

Photos by the amazing Matt F**t Photography

09/07/2024

Dem Clubs across Orange County are collaborating to galvanize and organize volunteers to support great candidates up and down the ballot!! Whether you're a newbie to election activities or a canvassing/phone-banking/post-carding veteran, this is THE WORKSHOP to meet other volunteers and find ways to volunteer that meet your comfort level and maximize impact!

Sign up for a workshop, pick up some swag and candidate materials, and join JOYFUL WARRIORS across OC's District 47 with Newport Beach Women's Democratic Club, WAVE, Costa Mesa Democrats, Orange Coast Huddle, Laguna Beach Democratic Club, Democrats of Greater Irvine, Irvine Democratic Club, and Democrats of Orange County Political Action Committee!

Sign up here: https://www.nbwdc.org/

08/10/2023

Costa Mesa is hosting this year’s Political Leadership Awards! 👏🏽 🌲 🌳 ☀️ 🌝
Join me this Sunday afternoon at the Norma Hertzog Community Center to celebrate awardees including HB’s , the team at , and Riverside’s !

Tickets and sponsorships: https://angeles.sierraclub.org/conservation/2023_sierra_club_political_leadership_awards

07/13/2023

Know a woman who should run for office? (Look in the mirror, ladies!) Councilmember Andrea Marr and I are hosting an info & recruitment event for the next class of Emerge California , a super-successful program to encourage and train Democratic women to run for office. We are both graduates 🙋🏽‍♀️🙋🏽‍♀️along with many women electeds in OC and across the state & country. Sign up if you’re even remotely interested. If in doubt, there will also be sangria.

RSVP: https://secure.everyaction.com/4Ha9_MbuzkOEYRzeXk25Eg2

02/19/2023

Agenda summary for the 2/1 Costa Mesa City Council meeting.

We have only one Public Hearing for our upcoming City of Costa Mesa City Council meeting on Tuesday, February 21 - though several other items will very likely be pulled for discussion. Here are the agenda highlights:

🧡 Proclamation for Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month (partnership with Human Options)
🚗 Presentation celebrating Theodore Robins Ford 100-Year Anniversary

Consent Calendar:
🧹 CC-5 4-month extension of contract for citywide street sweeping services (while staff works on received proposals)
🌳 CC-6 Additional $150k in funding for tree maintenance services contract (to plant an additional 100 trees by June)
🚴‍♀️ CC-7 Second reading of ordinance to repeal Bicycle License requirements in our city code (discussed in detail at 2/7 council meeting)
👮‍♀️ CC-8 Reinstate Costa Mesa Police Department membership with the CA Board of State and Community Corrections and accept $10k in training funds for our custody officers (related to our recent insourcing of jail management)
🏠 CC-9 Second reading of ordinance to update city code related to ADU standards (discussed in detail at 2/7 council meeting)
💰 CC-10 Authorization to issue refunds of cannabis application fees for applicants who want to withdraw their applications (this item will certainly be pulled for discussion)

Public Hearings
🟢 PH-1 Appeal of planning application for storefront retail cannabis business at 2001 Harbor Blvd (previously denied by Planning Commission)

Old Business: none

New Business: none

📨 Email anytime [email protected]
Here is a link to the agenda information and staff reports:
https://costamesa.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1056482&GUID=7339E47D-C48A-451B-947A-53E76704BFB8&Options=info|&Search=

02/05/2023

Reminder to stay plugged in even after elections are over! Follow Councilmember Arlis Reynolds for City Council updates and other official city news!

City of Costa Mesa City Council meeting is back in action on Tuesday, February 7.

Here are the highlights:
👊🏽 Proclamation for Black History Month

Consent Calendar:
🚗 CC-5 Authorization of agreement to purchase new/replacement city vehicles
📑 CC-6 Second reading of code amendment to send appeals related to special animal permits to the City Manager instead of the City Council

Public Hearings
🚴‍♀️ PH-1 Ordinance to repeal Bicycle License requirements in our city code (to comply with current California law).
🏠 PH-2 First reading of ordinance to update city code related to ADU standards (to comply with state law and improve permit processing)

Old Business:
👩‍⚖️ OB-1 Approve retainer agreements with Complex Appellate Litigation Group, LLP for legal services (related to our sober living home ordinance)

New Business:
🫂 NB-1 Reallocate $344,000 in Community Development Block Grant - Coronavirus (CDBG-CV) funds as follows: for street outreach, workforce development, senior meals, and homeless youth programs:
$70,000 for Trellis International (workforce development)
$189,000 for City Net (street outreach)
$35,000 for Project Hope Alliance (homeless youth programs)
$50,000 to provide meals for Costa Mesa senior citizens

📨 Email anytime [email protected]

Here is a link to the agenda information and staff reports:
https://costamesa.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1056481&GUID=BEAF8463-033F-4F2A-93F9-41807FE028F1&Options=info|&Search=

12/07/2022

12/6/2022 - I took the oath of office for my second term as a city council member. I’m so proud and honored to have my big brother, a Deputy Attorney General with the State of CA, come down to swear me in. We are two Costa Mesa kids, Pomona/Victoria/TeWinkle/Estancia graduates, who grew up with public servant role models as parents, and who have now each committed our lives to public service and working for the next generation. It was very special to share this moment together in front of our family and our community. Thanks, Mike!

11/30/2022

Although the Registrar is still counting ballots, we are calling it a WIN! With today’s tally, we have reached 64% of the vote and earned more votes than in 2018! 🙌🏽 I’m calling this affirmation of four years of hard work and support for a continued focus on housing, safe streets, parks, and people! I’m excited to continue serving Costa Mesa for another four years!