After meeting on Monday nights for 76 years, it took the El Cerrito City Council less than 10 minutes Monday night to decide to switch to Tuesday nights.

The council voted 4-1 to ask city staff to return with an amendment to the Municipal Code that would move the meeting date to the first and third Tuesdays of the month, from the current first and third Mondays.

The council voted also to change the meeting time from the current 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

City Manager Scott Hanin said Councilwoman Rebecca Benassini asked that the council consider the switch, which could provide an extra day of review and preparation after the council packets are released. The packets are usually released late Thursday and would continue to be issued then when the council begins meeting on Tuesday.

The opportunity to consult with city staff after packets are released and before a Monday night council meeting is further constrained by the fact that City Hall is closed every other Friday, Hanin noted.

Benassini said, "That was my primary purpose — an extra day and more interaction with staff members."

The dissenting vote came from Janet Abelson, who said moving to Tuesday would make it more difficult for her to prepare for her meetings as a commissioner for the Contra Costa Transportation Authority.

The decision was made quickly because the council had spent more than two hours listening to presentations on San Pablo Avenue planning options for parking and development regulations and was already past the normal time for ending meetings.

A survey of meeting days for councils in 20 surrounding cities showed 13 meet on Tuesday, five meet on Monday and two meet on Wednesday, according to a staff report, which is attached to this article.

Councilmember Greg Lyman said he favored the switch also because it would be more convenient for city staff and not cause them to waste as much personal time between end of the work day and the council meeting. City Hall closes at 4 p.m. on Mondays but is open until 6 p.m. on Tuesdays.

"Meetings on Tuesdays would actually reduce us eating into the personal time of staff," he said.

The change in the meeting time also will bring the city closer to the norm for surrounding cities. The survey in the staff report found that 13 of the 20 cities meet at 7 p.m., three at 7:30 p.m., three at 6:30 p.m., and one at 6 p.m.

"I don't know why we meet at 7:30," said Councilman Bill Jones.

City staff plans to bring the Municipal Code amendment to council on Dec. 19 with a second reading on Jan. 17. According to the staff report, it would go into effect Feb. 15, with the first regularly scheduled Tuesday night meeting set for Feb. 21.