City officials rehearsed Monday afternoon for tonight’s City Council meeting, which will be the first at the new $26 million City Hall.

Options to preserve Tracy’s architectural history will be presented to the council during the meeting, along with long-stalled developer agreement proposals that could help pay for local sports facilities.

City Manager Dan Hobbs and other officials are also expected to ask the council to increase expenses next fiscal year by $13 million, which would create a $5.8 million deficit.

A developer-funded group has organized a march on City Hall by a group of parents who will demand the council spend more than the $14.3 million it has already allocated for road work, environmental cleanup and eight sports fields at West Schulte Road.

“Now — Not Later” will be the parents’ slogan, according to Let All Children Play — Now’s Web site.

Souza Realty and the children group’s founder and sponsor, AKT Development, have offered extra money to pay for sports fields in exchange for homebuilding permits at their nearby Tracy Hills project.

The council chamber seats 100 people, while the old community center could hold 150 or more, with plenty of standing room available. There is little standing room available at the new chambers.

Flat-screen televisions outside the chambers and in an upstairs conference room will let anyone who fails to squeeze into the chambers to watch the meeting live.

The run-through gave officials a chance to iron kinks out of the new equipment, including audio-visual equipment, according to city spokesman Matt Robinson.

Deputy Police Chief Rick Golphin sat in the mayor’s seat, flanked by other officials acting as council members.

Their heads barely bobbed above the bullet-proof, wood-paneled dais.

Officials have known for more than a month that the dais is too high for at least one member of council. Robinson said the council would be asked at its June 5 meeting to decide how to solve the problem.

The chambers’ design was copied from Hayward’s City Hall, Robinson said.

It’s unknown what other glitches were discovered because Hobbs asked Robinson to escort three journalists from two newspapers out of the dress rehearsal before it began, describing it as an official staff meeting.

n To reach reporter John Upton, call 830-4274 or e-mail jupton@tracypress.com.