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All right,

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you guys ready? I feel like I have the voice of god

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from heaven over here, . So, good evening,

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ladies and gentlemen. It's six o'clock, so we'll start my name.

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let me see if I can do this and look at you, or maybe I shouldn't, I don't know. My name is christina fau.

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I am with the league of women voters. I'll be the moderator for this evening. The best part

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about me and why you like me a lot is because I don't live here. So

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, I have no stake in this at all. I don't have any opinions whatsoever, and

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you can absolutely 100% count on me to be non-partisan, um,

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league of women voters. We specialize in voter services because we're the league of women voters.

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so we do our pros and cons, nonpartisan ballot proposition

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presentations, and then we do candidate forums. I'm a candidate forum nerd,

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so this is right at my alley, and I just love it. Um, so we're here to have fun.

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we're here to learn, we're here to be educated about who, who's running for office.

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um, audience, you have the opportunity to write questions on

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cards, and we have people who will come by and collect the cards.

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who's that over here? Sherline and the greeters too.

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so if you have questions, write it on the cards. Just, you know, they'll

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collect it. It will come to the question, sorters the question, sorters, bring it to me

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and mean nasty questions don't get presented. So don't bother.

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and I'm sure nobody in here looks mean or nasty. So it's gonna be great. And just have

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fun. Just relax, you know, I'm trying to keep it low key, friendly, interesting. And,

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um, as informative as possible. Um, all

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of the candidates were invited. So rose espinoza, michelle

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beier, carrie zurich, uh, dale lampkin, darren

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nian, and susan pritchard. The candidates who've chosen to be here this evening are

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darren nian, carrie zurich, and rose espinoza.

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so we'll start with opening statements. Each candidate will have

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two minutes to give an opening statement, and then we will have

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questions and each candidate will have one minute to answer the same questions,

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and then we'll have closing statements at the end. Um,

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I think that about covers it. Oh, and they're sitting in order, and I didn't choose that order. They did. We

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had cards. So this is, this is the lot we joked. 'cause darren said,

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ladies first, and I'm like, really? 'cause you're first. So that was fun. .

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you guys great. Yep. Um, I have to read the statement as well.

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all it's really important, and you'll understand why that when

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an event is being recorded, for example, all of the recording is shown

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in context, so nobody has authorization to cut and paste and show

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what they like, because context is very important. So, I

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have a media statement. I need to read you, the

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league of women voters. Tonight's sponsors have not authorized any video

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or audio recordings of this forum other than repeat television broadcast

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provided by the local government education and public access channel. If any recordings

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are made by any members of the audience, we strongly urge that the forum be

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recorded in its entirety and not be edited in any way. The fcc

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requires that videotape of the debate or forum not be edited and must be broadcast

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in its entirety, either live or reasonably soon after it takes place. Both

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the fcc and the league want to ensure that information is not manipulated to create

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false or misleading impressions. Therefore, no candidate is allowed to use or edit

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footage for campaign purposes. Okay,

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so on that note, we are ready. Um, the candidates have decided to go by

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their first names. So everybody, everybody goes by their first name tonight.

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so, darren, will you please start with your opening statement? You have two minutes. I will. Thank you very

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much. It's great to be here again. I'm the current mayor of the city of la habra mayor darren. And

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when I talk about how I got started in public service, I like to say I ran for president of,

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uh, cleveland elementary school in the fourth grade, and I

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came in second. And I like to say that's only because jim gomez didn't endorse me.

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but I actually began my journey on my own street, which is always the best way to begin my own

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street, my own neighborhood. I wanted a sign at the front of my neighborhood. I got that done. They

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put me on the hoa board of directors, then they drafted me into being president, and

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I served in that role for 20 years. That's how I learned about neighborhood issues. Uh, after that,

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I became vice chair of the la haber fiscal review committee. I joined the lions club at

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that time. In 2006, I was appointed to the la haber planning commission, where I served for

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11 years, three times as chairman of the planning commission. I learned land

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use, zoning, environmental impacts. I wrote a column in the orange county star

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progress called lahabra. Now I served on the police reward fund committee.

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I served, uh, as a, I still serve as a boys and girls club board member.

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I've been doing that for 15 years, including two years as president of boys and girls club.

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I was also appointed to the lahabra city school district personnel commission, and I served as chairman

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there. And of course, I spent 30 years as an la county sheriff's deputy.

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I retired in 2014 and was awarded the distinguished service medal.

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and, uh, finally I got appointed to council. My colleagues, uh, appointed me as mayor pro tem. Shortly

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after that, I got appointed. I ran, eight months later, I won mayor pro

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tem. And then my colleagues were gracious enough to appoint me, mayor of the city in december

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of last year. So, la haber now is a city with outstanding

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public safety, good roads, uh, a great, uh, great

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community resources. Uh, we have fantastic programs and events. We

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are fiscally prudent by always balancing our budget. That gave us a double a rating from standard and

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poors. And I wanna say I'm proud to contribute to a well run, vibrant and

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thriving caring community. And, uh, oh, I meant to add that in my spare time.

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I'll, oh, I forgot. I don't have any spare time . But

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anyway, I wish, uh, those who are making certain allegations about the way the city's being

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run. Now we're here, but they're not. And I'm done. Thank you. Thank you, darren. Okay, carrie, you're

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up. Two minutes please. Good evening, everyone. And thank

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you to the league of women voters for putting, uh, providing this forum for us

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tonight. Um, it's my first time being on the forum,

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and I really appreciate being here. Well, I am a proud

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daughter of a world war ii veteran. My dad was a coastie

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go coast guide, um, and a very proud mother of

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a 27 year army veteran.

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my son joseph, was in the army, and, uh, living in tennessee. Now

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I am married to my husband fred, sitting in the audience. Thank you, honey, for being

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here. Um, two children, six grandchildren,

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one great-granddaughter. We have four generations living

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here in lahabra. We love it and thrive here in lahabra

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for 35 years. Um, we've made

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this our home, like I said, with four generations living

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under one roof, which is an amazing thing in itself.

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um, I believe in giving back to the community, and that is why I volunteer

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when and wherever I can. For the past 20 years,

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I have been involved with our seniors, with our veterans, our youth committee,

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and many organizations. Meals on wheels,

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veterans committee, youth committee, the american legion, post

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2 6 7, the women's club, and a member of the chamber of

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commerce. I've helped bring the vietnam wall,

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um, that heals to our city, um, as the chair.

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and that's really got me all started in volunteering.

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and I believe it's one way to get a project started and ended with

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volunteers. Served on community services for six years,

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planning commission for two years, and applied for city council and

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was appointed this april, 2024, which

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I'm proud to be part of a winning team. Thank you.

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thank you. Carrie rose, your turn. Two minutes please. Thank you very much. Uh, again, I'd like to

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thank, like carrie, the league of women voters for hosting this forum, and I'd like to thank those out

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in the audience for being here, and I'll look forward to answering any of your questions.

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I've served on the city council now 23 years. November will be 24

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years. I've served as mayor pro tem six times. I've been mayor

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five times, and I am presently on different agencies.

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some I sought appointment by the orange county mayors of

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orange county, because I believe la harbor should be at the table and have a

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voice there representing our community. So presently I am on scag,

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southern california association of government, oog orange council of government.

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I am the fourth district league of california city's representative, the league of

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california cities. Recently appointed me as the orange county representative

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for advancing equity advisory committee. I am on hsec hills open

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space education coalition. I am on the bridges of kramers, which

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deals with the homeless. I am also on the orange county sanitation district

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board. And on my own time, I am on, on a board of neighborworks

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orange county, which helps the first time homeowners. And, um, I'm

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also with the providence of st. Jude, which deals with north orange county health issues.

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we were the ones that approved the budget to have all these outdoor exercise

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machines outside in north orange county. And of course, I am founder

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of rosie's garage, which I have been helping low income kids for the last 33

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years, of which by one is volunteering with the league of women voters. Today,

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I, I graduated from fullerton college with an aa degree, and

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I am a recent graduate of cal state fullerton. I graduated in 2020, so

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this brain is still working, uh, with a bachelor's degree in poli sci. That

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would be it. Thank you, rose. Okay, so now we go to the

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questions part. And the first question goes

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to darren. What type of fiscal transparency measures

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are currently in place to reassure residents how money is spent? If there

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are no measures, what do you intend to implement?

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thank you. Yeah, there was this idea there. Somebody said at some meet and greet, uh, one of our

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opponents, uh, running against us said, well, we, we, we demand an audit. We need

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to know where the money's going. There's no transparency, there's no accountability, this kind of

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thing. And this is the way you kind of create issues where

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none exists. If you're dealing with a situation where you wanna be on city council, but you can't

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find anything to hang your hat on, there's simply nothing wrong. So how do

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we ensure, uh, fiscal responsibility and transparency?

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this ladies and gentlemen, is 192 pages. It's called the annual comprehensive

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financial report. This is for the fiscal year ended in 2023. The fiscal

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year for this year just ended in june. There'll be another audit conducted immediately after that. And

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if anybody wants any of this information, it's available to the public. Anytime you can see that

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every penny is accounted for. And every year we've had a balanced budget. We've also

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done a full audit. And this is also, by the way, not by the city. This

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is done by a third party vendor. This is done by clifton larson, allen, llp.

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so the city has no dog in this fight. We simply show them all the books,

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and they tell us that there are absolutely no erroneous figures

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and everything fully account. Thank you very much. Thank you, carrie. Your turn.

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do you need me to repeat the question? No. Okay.

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well, I believe that the city of lahabra

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has transparency and accountability to all of our 63,000

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residents here in la habra. And by doing that, we do

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provide an outside third party, um,

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very fiscal, um, I mean, they, they

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do these, um, audits for many cities, not just

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for the city of la habra, which gives us accountability.

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it's not our word. It's a, um, a company

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that has done this audit and shows that we are keeping within,

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um, all of the regulations and rules that we need to, to provide to our

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residents on how our money is spent. Thank you. Thank you.

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carrie rose, do you need me to repeat the question? No, no, no. I will just add

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on that this is, the audit is done in accordance with the, uh, government

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audit standards, and it's issued by the comptroller general of the united states.

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so it's not anything that we take responsibility of. It's an audit that is an

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outside auditor. And our 20 22, 20 23 20 24

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audit will be done by the end of 2004. That would be it.

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okay, thank you, rose. Next question goes to carrie.

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how do you feel about building more homes and apartments and redevelopment in la habra?

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that's a good question. Um, as a

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resident of la habra for 35 years, um, I believe

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that we need to maintain as much open space as possible.

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um, given that it's not always

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the local control. I mean, the state tells us what we can and cannot

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build, and when we can do that, so with everything

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that we have in our power to say yes or no to a developer

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on redevelopment, that is what we follow. We have

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to stay within our boundaries. And unfortunately, we don't always get

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this the last word on, on how that's going to go. So we

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will do everything that we can to keep as much open space for all

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of our residents. And, you know, we have to,

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we have to comply. Um, our arena numbers are out there,

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the eight oh hundred and four that we had to make due

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for, um, whether it's, um, thank you, carrie.

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your time is up. Thank you, rose. As

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I mentioned, I am on neighbor work orange county. I've been helping with that organization.

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I've been on that board for 35 years. As a matter of fact, I bought

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my home from a nonprofit housing organization, and I'm an advocate for

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affordable housing. We have built the, the housing right across washington

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school. We had habitat for humanity, has built affordable housing. We

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have, uh, neighbor works. Orange county has built housing and duplexes on

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grace avenue. High density, low income neighborhoods is where I want them build.

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but it's a choice of the community itself. It's not like we have to be forced by

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anyone to build these homes. It's more ideal for me to have affordable

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housing and have it respectively where it should be placed instead of, uh, where

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the developers or anyone wants to be placed in placing it at.

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thank you rose, darren. We have 63,000 people and seven square miles.

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we're completely built out. It's a big challenge. The fact is, local

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control is everything, meaning cities need to be able to assess

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a development for its merits or for whatever issues it might present. If you can't

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mitigate traffic impacts, if you can't mitigate all the environmental impacts proposed by any development,

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then the city needs to have the ability to say no. For example, we said no

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to the 400 houses at the westridge golf course. As soon as we did, we were sued

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for $110 million by the developer. We're still fighting that lawsuit right now.

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we keep winning in court one by one. We keep winning the judge's decisions, but nonetheless,

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we spent $700,000 of taxpayer money defending the quality

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of life in this city, because we wanna be able to pick and choose where, when, and how

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we satisfy arena numbers. We've zoned for 804 houses, we're not gonna

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build them, but when a project comes up, we have to be able to ha

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look at that project and see if it's appropriate. We're certified by the state of california.

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now, if they get built, we want to be able to control that development. That's all. But little

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by little sacramento is taking that control away. Thank you. Thank you, darren.

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carrie, do you need me to repeat the question? Should

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you answered I'm ahead. I, we are gonna just go in circles. You see what I said? We're gonna have fun tonight, and

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it's on me . Um, that's, that's why I'm like, we're

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the rest of my exes. Um, okay, so now it's rose's turn.

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okay. Have you taken any campaign contributions from special interests?

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I have taken a mind. You all these years have been 23 years.

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I have paid and put my own money into each campaign. I don't know

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if I'm ever gonna run again. So this time I thought I'm gonna do what other candidates do.

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and yes, I received some money from the fire, uh, the fire, the

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la fire company, or a, a local number. But

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I am no different from other candidates who have taken money, say from the,

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uh, builders association. Other candidates have taken from that, that

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are not here. So, um, I'm, I, and they are a, an

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entity, the firefighters that we support, and they have supported our community.

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so yes, I did take from them. Thank you, rose.

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darren, same thing. Uh, I'm supported by the la county fire association.

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I'm supported by our police officers. These are public safety organizations

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within the city of la habra. What I didn't do and will never do, is take money

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like candidate pritchard from the building industry and from apartment owners, associations

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and this sort of thing. She was bankrolled entirely two years ago by these outside special

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interests. Whereas none of us here, the three of us have done that. And that goes

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to show there's an agenda there and, and that's an inappropriate agenda. So special

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interest money for me. No public safety. Yes. Thank

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you. Thank you, carrie.

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well, I have taken, um, our, the money from

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our la county fire local and from the, uh, police

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association, well, actually I haven't got that. So, um, I have been

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endorsed by them. Checks in the mail. Checks in the mail. Um, but, um,

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I have not taken outside, uh, interest money. I believe

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that, um, working in the city of lahabra,

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and we are, um, our public safety is first and

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foremost, and those of the, um, organizations that I have, uh,

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received donations from, from my campaign. Thank you. Thank you, carrie.

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okay, now we're back to darren. Uh, if the city has

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had a balanced budget for the last 20 years, why did we have to borrow $72 million

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in january of 2022? That is a fantastic question, and it's

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a great opportunity for me to finally clear up what is disinformation or misinformation,

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or even worse, an outright lie, there is no $72 million,

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$75 million loan. This, the $75 million that this person

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is talking about is money that we have as a liability to

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calpers the retirement association up in sacramento. Every city in california has

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a liability. They owe calpers, right? So there was no money received by the city of

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la haber for that. It wasn't a loan, it's a debt. And when we issued the

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pension obligation bond program, what we did is we refinanced that debt from

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7% that we were paying down to 4%, saving 1 million

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taxpayer dollars a year, a total of $22 million over 20 years.

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that's what the pension obligation bond thing did. No, we didn't receive $75 million.

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that's ridiculous. I mean, that, that was our debt to calpers. So if we can clear

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that up once and for all, that'd be great. Thank you. Thank

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you, darren. Kerry. Okay, so the 72,

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uh, million dollar, uh, loan, so to speak, was not

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a loan. It is a pension obligation bond.

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um, the bond proceeds were to pay off a higher interest rate.

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uh, let's just say you're a homeowner and you've got an interest

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rate of 10%, and somebody comes, the lenders say, hey, rates

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are down, let's refinance. That is what the city did. We

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refinanced to get a better rate

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from 7% down to three 4% savings.

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I would do that all day long. Thank you. Thank you, carrie rose.

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and, uh, just to give a little bit of history behind that pension reform, it was adopted,

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uh, with a variety of pension reform measures. In 2010, they negotiated

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with the employers group to lower the pension cost and liabilities. In

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2018, the council approved a pension rate stabilization fund

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to help offset future, uh, pension cost increase, and

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then the 72 point million, uh, pension obligation bond

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that was refinanced, as they said by unfunded, accrued liability

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to lower the interest rate. And that's what happened. It went from 7% to 3%,

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which is, like you said, you know, re re your refinancing your

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home property. It just made sense to be able to do that. And actually

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now we've, uh, we've had what over decrease the cost, as darren said, $22 million

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over 20 year period. So this is, this is a positive

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thing, and there is really no money there. So that would be it.

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thank you, rose. Okay, this next question goes to carrie.

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this past weekend at korn festival events, there was decreased

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attendance and an increase of rowdy behavior. How can you help make

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city events safer and more family friendly and better?

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okay, so making it safer, that would be our

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public safety. And we need

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to keep our police officers

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in, in our in-house. We need to have them trained. We have, we

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need to have them ready to go. We have to be able to provide

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for our police department who protects 63,000

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people here in la habra as a mother, grandmother, a great-grandmother

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and a wife. When I am out and about,

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I wanna know that I'm safe. So if we have to put money into our

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police department to be able to provide that safety,

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I would do it all day long. I would also check with, um, all

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the events that are happening in the city and find out what could we do differently to

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help them in their quest to make more money for

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their events. Thank you. Thank you, carrie. Rose, the

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question, please. This past weekend at the korn festival event,

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there was decreased attendance and an increase of rowdy behavior. How

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can you help make city events safer, more family friendly and

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better? I, you know, I I, we, I spoke to a young man that

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was with me on the, on the parade, and I said, we, he

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thought there was a bigger turnout of people in the parade. And I said, well, you know,

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it could be, if there is a decrease, it could be because of the,

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the, the, the period of time that hey, they had, initially it was in august,

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now it's moved to october, and there's still some that believe it may be, you

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know, in august that still haven't gotten to the message to them that it's in october.

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but it, it's a parade. It's an activity that is going to grow and it's

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going to continue to grow. So I don't really believe that it was, it

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was a matter of, of things, the negative things. I think it's just

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that it has changed from a period of the year to another part of the year,

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and it's going to continue to grow. Thank you rose. Darren?

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well, I question the accuracy of the question. What it's, what it's predicated on, uh,

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the idea that there was rowdy behavior and the idea that, uh, the attendances figures were down.

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I don't know how anybody would know that at this point in time. Uh, carol and I spent a lot of time at the

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corn festival. The crowds were huge. The parade was fantastic. There were people everywhere.

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I talked to the police who were working that event. They said, it's been very quiet, with the exception of a couple

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du wells, which any city event in any city is gonna have on occasion.

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but by all, all my observations were that it was an extremely well run,

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safe and well attended event. Now going forward, if you start to notice trends of this

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sort, then what you do is you bolster the security presence, the number of police

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officers there. Can we do that? Sure. Let's hope our sales tax measure is renewed

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because that is the source from which public safety is funded. So assuming that

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happens, then if we need to fill the ranks, bolster the security, of course we'll

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do that. But I question again, the veracity of the

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questioner, because I think it was a great event this year and a complete success. Thank you.

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thank you, darren. Okay, so now we're to rose, this question's

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for you. Why are so many tobacco shops allowed to be at

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teens and underage people's availability?

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why are what, why are so many tobacco shops allowed

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to be at teen and underage people's availability? I think

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that's been, if it is an issue, I think it's been an issue for, for

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forever. Because when, when I, I had the kids, I had them go

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out to liquor stores and I had them view what was at

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your eye level, and we would talk to the business owners and tell 'em, you know, this is not

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appropriate that you display this kind of product at the level of the kids.

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um, so it, I think it's gonna be advocating for that would be

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the high school students. If they're the ones that are the ones that are being, um, you

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know, uh, attracted by this stuff. I think the high school and the,

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and the students there should take the initiative to, uh, do a study on it and

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go out there and, you know, because when you hear it from the, the, the youth themselves,

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it makes a difference for these business owners. So I would say let the high schools do a study

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and go out there to the, to these businesses and tell 'em if they approve or not

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approve and why. Okay, thank you rose,

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darren. A lot of folks say, why are you even allowing bait stores or

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tobacco stores or any of that in la habra? And we have to remind folks again that it

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is a free market economy, and we can't pick and choose what types of businesses locate here.

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certainly our preference is for high quality retail, not necessarily a store that

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sells vapes and tobacco, but nonetheless, if they fulfill all the requirements, uh,

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imposed by city codes, they're allowed to do business here. In terms of selling to underage kids,

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that's illegal. Our police department will make occasional spot checks going in there to see if they can witness

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somebody underage trying to buy these products. Also, I think it's a state board of equalization that

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also goes in and does checks. If we receive a report that a, a business owner is

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routinely selling to kids, uh, we will definitely pounce on that owner

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and cite and prosecute as need be. But again, it goes back to this idea why

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are they even here? Well, we ask ourselves that question too. Sometimes. It's not our, our

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our, our premier type of retail we wanna encourage in la habra. But again, you

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know, this is a market based economy and you know, that's why you'll sometimes see

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one donut shop pretty close to another. We can't say, no, we don't want you competing with that

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donut shop. You've got a right to do business. Thank you. Thank you darren. Carrie,

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well, it would be nice if we can say who can and cannot go here or there,

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but that is not the way the world is. We have to be

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able to say they submit their application,

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the type of business that they are, and as long as they fit

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all the necessary requirements, we cannot say

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how many donut shops or, or smoke shops are gonna be in

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a certain location. Um, what we can do is we

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can, I know that there's a group, uh, a coalition out there in la habra

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that goes around and tries to discourage young

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kids from smoking. They go to the schools, they're at all the events.

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so more events like that to let

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everyone know that this is not right. Um, darren did say that, you

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know, if, uh, if we get noticed that there are,

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uh, shops that are selling to underage children, then they'll, that's

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where we, we call in our police department to say, look, we've had

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disturbance. Thank you. Sorry. Thank you, carrie.

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okay, so new question. We're back to darren. What

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is your opinion on what the relationship between

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city council city and the chamber of commerce should be? Well, that's

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a hot button topic, and uh, I think a lot of folks understand

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that it's a dysfunctional relationship right now between the city of lahabra

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and the lahabra chamber of commerce. And folks say, well, why did this happen? I think part of it

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is emotional, uh, and it's based upon hurt feelings. Uh,

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you know, historically the city always provided a, uh, a fairly large

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subsidy to the chamber of commerce. And it was a subsidy of, of general intent,

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general purpose. They could do whatever they wanted to with the money. But when

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we started asking for accountability and transparency from the chamber board of directors, we

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were stonewalled. We really didn't get information about the, the budget was never put on their website.

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we never really understood exactly where this money was going, just as one person's

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salary or, you know, what rabbit hole might it fall into. Then there

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is the anaheim chamber's problem with, uh, the city of anaheim where, you know, it was criminal

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activity there, collusion, and it was a gift of public money is what took place

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there. And we were aware the fact that without that level of transparency, this could

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be a gift of public money too. So we stopped providing that subsidy. I think the chamber was very upset

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about that. And there's the answer, sorry. Thank you. Thank you darren. Carrie,

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chamber versus city. Of course, there,

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there should be, um, good relationships between both the city

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and the chamber of commerce, um, and not have

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personal conflicts. Uh, rather be based on economic development,

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which is what the chamber's all about, and what the city's all about, bringing

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businesses into our city for our residents.

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um, I represent all of our 63,000

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residents here in la habra. And, um, that's where my focus is keeping

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all the needs of our communities in hand. Thank you. Thank

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you, carrie. Rose, transparency is a big, a big, uh, issue

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right there. You need as much transparency as the, the city, uh, city

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hall does. Everything is posted. Most everything is posted on our city

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website and they can see our salaries, anyone's salaries, what's

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going on the budget. Um, that's not to at, when

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I last looked at the website, there wasn't that transparency of where is

426
00:30:47,765 --> 00:30:50,975
the money that the city is giving to the chamber going,

427
00:30:51,785 --> 00:30:55,685
how is it being used? I mean, this is taxpayer's money. This is not

428
00:30:56,035 --> 00:30:59,985
ours. This is taxpayers money, and the taxpayers need to know where this money is

429
00:31:00,205 --> 00:31:02,805
going. And another thing is, um, I,

430
00:31:04,245 --> 00:31:08,075
I want all businesses supported. I mean, it just seems like those that

431
00:31:08,465 --> 00:31:12,285
pay, um, the fee that they are required will get the ribbon

432
00:31:12,595 --> 00:31:16,285
cutting, but how about the business owner that it's just opening and doesn't

433
00:31:16,725 --> 00:31:20,465
have the budget to be able to pay that 1300 or

434
00:31:20,845 --> 00:31:24,835
whatever it is, but still wants a ribbon cutting. You know, I mean, I think they should support

435
00:31:25,425 --> 00:31:28,645
all businesses, not just those that are, thank you, rose, are signed up with a chamber.

436
00:31:29,515 --> 00:31:32,585
okay, thank you very much. The next question goes to carrie,

437
00:31:33,785 --> 00:31:36,975
how do you plan to ensure that budget money is properly spent?

438
00:31:42,995 --> 00:31:46,765
well, that is a question, um, where you could find all the answers

439
00:31:47,985 --> 00:31:51,945
on our city website. Our budget spells out line item by

440
00:31:52,165 --> 00:31:55,665
line item on what all the money is, um,

441
00:31:56,515 --> 00:32:00,445
used for the money that comes in, the money that is paid out, the money that

442
00:32:00,815 --> 00:32:04,545
stays in, um, different types of accounts, your public safety.

443
00:32:05,625 --> 00:32:09,405
uh, in that budget, we've got 70% going to public safety,

444
00:32:10,505 --> 00:32:14,445
and the other 30% goes to pay everything else.

445
00:32:14,865 --> 00:32:18,605
so if someone really wants to know where all this money is going,

446
00:32:19,475 --> 00:32:23,265
that comes into the city of la habra, our budget, uh, is

447
00:32:23,745 --> 00:32:27,345
always in plain sight and everyone is

448
00:32:27,795 --> 00:32:31,605
able to see, find it. Thank you. Thank you carrie

449
00:32:32,475 --> 00:32:36,285
rose. I know that when I had my mayor's round table or a mayor's

450
00:32:36,645 --> 00:32:40,565
community hour, I would go out in front of a stater brothers or a

451
00:32:40,685 --> 00:32:44,435
the post office or any business, and I would put out my table mayor's

452
00:32:44,925 --> 00:32:48,825
community hour, and I would have these laminated, uh, uh, uh,

453
00:32:49,345 --> 00:32:53,325
uh, figures of a dollar bill and I would show the community how it was

454
00:32:53,445 --> 00:32:56,825
broken down, how much is coming to the city, which was 6 cents

455
00:32:57,485 --> 00:33:01,445
from measure t. And the bradley one was 12 cents, which was 18 cents

456
00:33:01,985 --> 00:33:05,765
for us, and the rest of the 82 cents was going to any other

457
00:33:06,045 --> 00:33:09,965
state entities. So it was just bringing it down to the residents and

458
00:33:10,085 --> 00:33:13,895
explaining to them that we're not getting all this money that you think we're getting. And again,

459
00:33:14,565 --> 00:33:18,365
I mean, this is where they should be looking. And it's online. I even have

460
00:33:18,605 --> 00:33:22,325
a little free library in my neighborhood and I have put this a book like this

461
00:33:22,665 --> 00:33:26,125
in the little free library for anyone to get whenever they choose.

462
00:33:26,785 --> 00:33:30,565
that's how transparent, I'm trying to encourage residents to see that we are being

463
00:33:30,805 --> 00:33:34,225
transparent. Alright, thank you rose. Darren,

464
00:33:35,365 --> 00:33:39,285
a lot of folks know I've been walking doors in la haber since january. I've knocked on thousands of

465
00:33:39,405 --> 00:33:43,245
doors, and one thing I never really get hit with is, well, we give you all this money,

466
00:33:43,835 --> 00:33:47,645
where's it going? And I don't get hit with that question because all I have to do is spread

467
00:33:47,845 --> 00:33:51,835
out my arms and say, look around you, look at your road. That gets repaid every three years. Look

468
00:33:52,125 --> 00:33:55,965
at the quality of our public safety, look at our infrastructure,

469
00:33:56,715 --> 00:34:00,685
look at the programs and events that we're providing the community. Look at public works and

470
00:34:00,885 --> 00:34:04,685
all the stuff they do. Folks feel generally that they know what they're paying for.

471
00:34:05,345 --> 00:34:09,145
and as rose and carrie said, of course, when it does come to actual accountability, yeah, the answers are

472
00:34:09,365 --> 00:34:13,205
all here. And this city is spectacular in the way that it constantly transmits

473
00:34:13,715 --> 00:34:17,525
this information. People don't even mind paying taxes so long as they feel their

474
00:34:17,725 --> 00:34:21,685
money's not being wasted. That's the number one criteria. I don't think there's hardly

475
00:34:21,805 --> 00:34:25,725
anybody in the harbor who thinks that what they get out of this city

476
00:34:26,775 --> 00:34:30,605
there is, is not, is not worth it, is what I'm saying. I mean, we have

477
00:34:30,925 --> 00:34:34,805
property tax increment, we've got sales tax. That's the lifeblood of this community, and it's put

478
00:34:34,965 --> 00:34:38,765
to good use and to good work and people know it. Thank you. Thank you, darren.

479
00:34:42,155 --> 00:34:45,875
okay, so next question. Thank goodness I'm keeping track. I'm like, huh? Okay, next

480
00:34:46,405 --> 00:34:50,045
question goes to rose. What is your plan for

481
00:34:50,485 --> 00:34:54,085
maintaining quality police and fire service in la habra if we don't pass measure

482
00:34:55,085 --> 00:34:58,725
v? Well, it's simply said, I mean, if we're going to have to

483
00:34:59,145 --> 00:35:02,925
do something, we're gonna have to cut across all departments in some way or another.

484
00:35:03,425 --> 00:35:07,245
if this measure, um, doesn't pass, I mean, it's up to the voters,

485
00:35:07,445 --> 00:35:11,205
whether they decide what kind of quality of life do they want in the city of la harbor,

486
00:35:11,715 --> 00:35:15,525
they've gotten so used to the quality of life, of having a top la fire department

487
00:35:16,105 --> 00:35:19,885
to their service. And, uh, the police department as well. Um, the community,

488
00:35:20,425 --> 00:35:23,925
uh, the, the police department especially has a relationship with the

489
00:35:24,605 --> 00:35:28,525
hispanic community that had never had before. It's a stronger one because they have a

490
00:35:28,925 --> 00:35:32,925
citizens emergency or a citizens academy, police academy, all these

491
00:35:33,125 --> 00:35:36,845
things, if it depends on, on what kind of budget we have, if we're

492
00:35:37,165 --> 00:35:41,165
going to have to cut and where we're going to cut. So I'm hoping that this measure

493
00:35:41,435 --> 00:35:43,685
will pass and we can keep that quality, if not better.

494
00:35:45,655 --> 00:35:49,525
thank you rose. Darren, I think everybody does need to ask

495
00:35:49,685 --> 00:35:53,605
themselves what kind of city they want to live in. It's really that simple when it comes

496
00:35:53,725 --> 00:35:57,685
to that sales tax measure with the updated rate. Oh, well, why is it being updated a

497
00:35:57,805 --> 00:36:01,805
half a penny? Well, three and a half million dollars folks is what the la county

498
00:36:01,965 --> 00:36:05,805
fire department did to us this year. That's how much they increased our contract. We had to cut all

499
00:36:06,005 --> 00:36:10,005
departments by 6% right there. Plus the fire department can continue

500
00:36:10,165 --> 00:36:13,805
to increase that price by up to $600,000 a year.

501
00:36:14,625 --> 00:36:18,585
so like any household budget, like any of you out there watching or listening, the

502
00:36:18,805 --> 00:36:22,725
city is one big household. And so when things like that happen, we have a choice.

503
00:36:22,905 --> 00:36:26,875
we either try to keep up with revenue generation or we cut, make

504
00:36:27,165 --> 00:36:31,045
no mistake, we put this before the voters to let them decide whether they want their city to

505
00:36:31,205 --> 00:36:34,925
look basically like it does now or to see an altered version of that city.

506
00:36:35,465 --> 00:36:38,935
and if we have to cut 13% of our budget, if v fails, $8 million

507
00:36:39,885 --> 00:36:43,805
a year, we're gonna do it because we're elected representatives. That's our job. We will cut to

508
00:36:43,965 --> 00:36:47,955
fit. We will not do this. We will not dip into reserves. We will not use our credit card,

509
00:36:48,745 --> 00:36:52,605
we won't play any games with that. We'll simply cut to fit. Thank you. Thank you darren.

510
00:36:53,425 --> 00:36:53,425
carrie,

511
00:36:58,795 --> 00:37:02,745
measure vi do support measure vi believe it is

512
00:37:03,085 --> 00:37:06,825
a necessary, um, avenue

513
00:37:07,355 --> 00:37:11,265
that we, this the city council is taking to put

514
00:37:11,485 --> 00:37:15,325
it out to the voters, let them decide on, on what kind of city

515
00:37:15,565 --> 00:37:19,205
that they they would like. What kind of events do they wanna keep?

516
00:37:19,955 --> 00:37:23,805
what kind of services would they like to, to continue with

517
00:37:24,585 --> 00:37:27,945
our police, our fire, our paramedics. Um,

518
00:37:29,995 --> 00:37:33,725
when we make a 9 1 1 call, we wanna know that that

519
00:37:34,365 --> 00:37:37,635
response time is immediate.

520
00:37:38,905 --> 00:37:42,485
we don't wanna have to rely on wondering, you know,

521
00:37:43,025 --> 00:37:47,025
how many fire, um, personnel do

522
00:37:47,285 --> 00:37:51,245
we have on file that's gonna be able to get to us when we need to.

523
00:37:51,705 --> 00:37:55,485
so, um, I hope the voters see that measure

524
00:37:56,085 --> 00:37:59,765
v is gonna be a way that's gonna continue with all the

525
00:38:00,125 --> 00:38:03,405
services that we all deserve. Thank you, carrie. Thank you.

526
00:38:04,825 --> 00:38:08,785
okay, we're back to darren. In light of recent budget cuts,

527
00:38:09,075 --> 00:38:12,785
some have expressed a desire for further cuts. What specific jobs

528
00:38:13,575 --> 00:38:15,875
and or services do you support? Cutting?

529
00:38:18,325 --> 00:38:22,295
let's look at la haber's job number one. That would be public safety.

530
00:38:22,895 --> 00:38:26,375
that's the first and foremost responsibility of any city entity.

531
00:38:27,335 --> 00:38:31,265
so that would be the very last to suffer from the effects of massive budget cuts.

532
00:38:31,725 --> 00:38:35,705
would it eventually come down to changes with our public safety budget? Yes, of

533
00:38:35,925 --> 00:38:39,525
course it would. Some people would consider fluff to be things like community services.

534
00:38:40,025 --> 00:38:43,805
oh, the senior dances, the tamali festival, uh, programs that,

535
00:38:44,195 --> 00:38:47,875
that help people who are in need. Now if you consider that fluff, then

536
00:38:48,305 --> 00:38:52,165
you can look at it that way. Is that more likely to be cut than police officers and firefighting

537
00:38:53,005 --> 00:38:56,925
services? Yes, of course. So do we wanna change the inherent character

538
00:38:57,705 --> 00:39:01,485
of this city to that extent? We've got candidates running like candidate pritchard and even candidate

539
00:39:01,915 --> 00:39:05,865
lakin's, not sure about this, but who say we don't need it. Let it go. All

540
00:39:06,085 --> 00:39:09,845
we have to do is be more resilient, more efficient, which is utter complete nonsense.

541
00:39:10,585 --> 00:39:14,485
it takes money to run a city, and ultimately if we have to make 13%

542
00:39:15,075 --> 00:39:19,045
cuts in our general budget, we're gonna do it. And we'll cut the stuff that is not as important

543
00:39:19,425 --> 00:39:21,985
as public safety. Thank you. Thank you darren. Carrie,

544
00:39:25,875 --> 00:39:29,485
cutting the budget, cutting out services that all of our

545
00:39:29,925 --> 00:39:33,465
residents have come to know and, um, appreciate and

546
00:39:34,425 --> 00:39:38,225
expect. Um, we've already cut 6 million across the

547
00:39:38,445 --> 00:39:42,185
board with all of our different staff, uh, police,

548
00:39:43,965 --> 00:39:47,385
finances, all those other departments. Everyone had to look at

549
00:39:48,235 --> 00:39:51,945
what we were paying out and figure out

550
00:39:53,185 --> 00:39:56,985
how much 6% out of their department is

551
00:39:57,205 --> 00:40:01,125
gonna be cut. Now, la habra, with all the events

552
00:40:01,365 --> 00:40:04,825
that we put on the seniors, I mean the

553
00:40:05,375 --> 00:40:08,955
lions club providing all these senior dances for our seniors

554
00:40:09,945 --> 00:40:13,845
and all the events, the tamale festival, the, you know, corn festivals,

555
00:40:14,225 --> 00:40:17,215
all those things that the city does on a annual basis.

556
00:40:18,265 --> 00:40:22,165
we don't want those to go away, but we have to stay within a budget as well.

557
00:40:22,625 --> 00:40:26,525
and if that means having to cut the services, our uh, public

558
00:40:26,905 --> 00:40:30,565
safety is one of the thank you carrie

559
00:40:33,165 --> 00:40:36,945
. Well, um,

560
00:40:37,395 --> 00:40:40,915
rose? Yes? Do you wanna turn yours off? Oh, okay.

561
00:40:41,715 --> 00:40:45,315
well, well, I mean, let's look at that because we already had budget cuts.

562
00:40:45,905 --> 00:40:49,205
uh, the city manager had asked every department, you have to cut a certain percentage

563
00:40:50,025 --> 00:40:53,465
in each of your departments. That was tough. I mean, even the council, we

564
00:40:54,185 --> 00:40:58,085
cut our conferences or any kind of trips that we're gonna take, we just cut it

565
00:40:58,205 --> 00:41:01,935
down to nil. But let's look at, I mean, let's look at the homeless issue.

566
00:41:02,905 --> 00:41:05,675
and over the last five years, the city has spent 4.6 million

567
00:41:07,255 --> 00:41:11,125
addressing homelessness in lahabra. We have a community outreach

568
00:41:11,365 --> 00:41:15,245
person that is helping, uh, to, uh, help the homeless

569
00:41:15,405 --> 00:41:19,225
and find them the agencies that they need to go to, to assist them. Is

570
00:41:19,445 --> 00:41:23,165
that where we're going to cut? Is that going to create more homelessness here in our community?

571
00:41:24,125 --> 00:41:28,065
I mean, we, we, we have to make sure that we can help them as

572
00:41:28,285 --> 00:41:32,005
well, as well as the other, other resident members in our community, especially the seniors.

573
00:41:32,445 --> 00:41:36,285
I mean, my god, if you've ever gone to the senior dances, you know, they're having

574
00:41:36,565 --> 00:41:40,485
a time of their life. I mean, you would think that they were 28 instead

575
00:41:40,925 --> 00:41:44,765
of 78 or 88, you know, but it's just not something that

576
00:41:44,965 --> 00:41:48,035
I would like to see. Thank you, rose.

577
00:41:49,075 --> 00:41:53,005
okay, so before I go on to the next question by carrie, here's where I tell you, we

578
00:41:53,205 --> 00:41:57,065
just have two more questions and we have three candidates. So if you want to

579
00:41:57,385 --> 00:42:01,325
ask a question, now's your chance. Submit them to the question sorters. And if

580
00:42:01,485 --> 00:42:04,725
I don't have more questions when these two are done, well closing statements.

581
00:42:06,025 --> 00:42:09,965
so, okay. Um, carrie, if you are

582
00:42:10,125 --> 00:42:12,525
elected, what will be your priority while on the council

583
00:42:14,705 --> 00:42:18,585
and clearly define the role of city council and can you stay focused on

584
00:42:18,805 --> 00:42:18,965
your role?

585
00:42:23,745 --> 00:42:27,635
I'm sorry, can you repeat the beginning of that one? Yep. If you are elected, what

586
00:42:27,925 --> 00:42:31,765
will be your priority while on city council and clearly

587
00:42:32,305 --> 00:42:36,085
define the role of city council, and can you stay focused on your role?

588
00:42:38,115 --> 00:42:42,065
okay. So the priorities of

589
00:42:42,415 --> 00:42:46,325
being a city council member, uh, you know what it, it's, it's a

590
00:42:46,885 --> 00:42:50,345
big responsibility. It's one that I took, um,

591
00:42:50,905 --> 00:42:54,715
not lightly when I decided to run for city

592
00:42:55,005 --> 00:42:58,945
council, um, to get interviewed, first of all, before the

593
00:42:59,165 --> 00:43:02,825
appointment. Um, I did that two years ago, and

594
00:43:03,195 --> 00:43:05,565
when I did not get appointed,

595
00:43:07,825 --> 00:43:11,805
it was on the, um, advice of all of the council members at that time

596
00:43:13,025 --> 00:43:16,325
to have more, um, more experience.

597
00:43:17,425 --> 00:43:21,405
so what did I do? I applied for the planning commission. I received

598
00:43:21,555 --> 00:43:24,685
more, um, training and, and understanding

599
00:43:25,585 --> 00:43:29,125
of how the city works. So yes, I can stay focused.

600
00:43:29,865 --> 00:43:33,745
um, I've been a realtor for 35 years. Um,

601
00:43:34,385 --> 00:43:38,365
and I gotta tell you, the ups, the downs, you have to put it all in perspective.

602
00:43:38,945 --> 00:43:42,765
and with that in mind, that is what I will do on city council.

603
00:43:43,335 --> 00:43:47,125
thank you. Carrie rose. My focus

604
00:43:47,505 --> 00:43:51,405
has always been on the community of lower income. It has

605
00:43:51,565 --> 00:43:55,165
always been to try to raise them up, uh, to get them involved in the community.

606
00:43:55,745 --> 00:43:59,635
that's why, um, we started the spanish citizens, uh, police academy

607
00:44:00,125 --> 00:44:04,005
because I wanted a stronger relationship with the police department. These resident

608
00:44:04,205 --> 00:44:08,045
members know these police officers on a first name basis, and it elates me to

609
00:44:08,245 --> 00:44:11,605
know that they are, there's a, there's less crime in the, in the, in the community

610
00:44:12,505 --> 00:44:15,875
for me. It is, if I can make them succeed, then we all succeed.

611
00:44:16,745 --> 00:44:20,355
and that has been what I've been involved in in the centennial committee. I've

612
00:44:20,805 --> 00:44:24,585
involved them in other activities. I mean, it, they, once you

613
00:44:24,995 --> 00:44:28,205
involve a person into your, your circle of activities,

614
00:44:29,235 --> 00:44:32,925
they feel like they have ownership. And that's what I want for the lower income

615
00:44:33,325 --> 00:44:37,185
communities, addressing what we can possibly do to make them rise up

616
00:44:37,405 --> 00:44:40,925
and well as well and be part of our city. That's what I would do.

617
00:44:42,415 --> 00:44:46,365
thank you rose. Darren, I'll answer by saying, what are the priorities of all five of

618
00:44:46,525 --> 00:44:50,525
us on city council now and what would I like to work on in the future? One big thing

619
00:44:50,725 --> 00:44:54,585
that's a priority for all of our city council members is an expansion of

620
00:44:54,805 --> 00:44:58,655
open space, which is unheard of in a built out city like lahabra of only seven

621
00:44:59,005 --> 00:45:02,795
square miles. We are building actively a brand new 16 acre

622
00:45:03,085 --> 00:45:07,045
park called the scully centennial park, which is gonna have magnificent resources

623
00:45:07,585 --> 00:45:11,405
and, and amenities, and we're so looking forward to that. The old women's club now is

624
00:45:11,725 --> 00:45:15,685
actually gonna be a new pocket park called los rains women's club park. How many

625
00:45:15,805 --> 00:45:19,725
cities get the opportunity to actually build two new parks? We'll do more of that if we can. I made

626
00:45:19,925 --> 00:45:23,285
a motion before to explore revising conditional use permits, which charge

627
00:45:24,045 --> 00:45:27,565
existing businesses and new businesses. A lot of money to locate in la habra. Sometimes

628
00:45:28,085 --> 00:45:32,005
these businesses can't afford that. I want to cut some of those fees in half. I wanna remove the

629
00:45:32,165 --> 00:45:35,925
requirement for cs entirely for some of these categories. We're also working

630
00:45:36,265 --> 00:45:40,185
on synchronizing traffic lights and we're expanding our, uh, our, uh,

631
00:45:40,505 --> 00:45:44,045
our traffic calming program. We got, that's something so critically important. Everybody

632
00:45:44,805 --> 00:45:48,725
complains about speeding cars and bad traffic. And now I have to stop. There's so much more I wanna talk

633
00:45:48,885 --> 00:45:51,005
about though. Okay, thank you. Darren .

634
00:45:52,915 --> 00:45:56,645
okay, so this one goes to rose. What are your thoughts regarding

635
00:45:57,205 --> 00:46:01,125
diversity, equity, and inclusion? Oh, well, this is what I'm excited about

636
00:46:01,325 --> 00:46:05,165
because as I said, orange county, uh, league of california cities, that

637
00:46:05,405 --> 00:46:09,325
appointed me to a specific group committee like that. And I wanna learn how to be able

638
00:46:09,485 --> 00:46:13,365
to do more. I can see what I have done as far as including the community that

639
00:46:13,525 --> 00:46:16,805
I have. I've worked with resident members addressing their issues in their neighborhoods.

640
00:46:17,545 --> 00:46:21,525
one particular neighborhood wanted lighting, and I, I got the former city manager

641
00:46:21,945 --> 00:46:25,925
out there. It was drizzling. He had a department out there and we were able to get

642
00:46:26,325 --> 00:46:30,285
lighting for that neighborhood on st. Jude. I was able to budget and approve the

643
00:46:30,485 --> 00:46:34,405
budget to get these outdoor exercise, uh, equipment for them so they don't

644
00:46:34,645 --> 00:46:38,485
have to pay for a gym to have to go into and get exercise. For me, it's

645
00:46:38,765 --> 00:46:42,565
like, what can I do to help you? What can I do to raise your level

646
00:46:42,845 --> 00:46:46,805
of quality of life? Because once you do that, then they have an

647
00:46:47,005 --> 00:46:50,485
investment in the community. So for me, it's like all inclusive,

648
00:46:51,335 --> 00:46:54,845
bring you in, teach you that you're a part of our community.

649
00:46:55,545 --> 00:46:58,375
you we are investing in you, and we will become successful

650
00:46:59,685 --> 00:47:02,705
neighbor by neighbor. Thank you, darren.

651
00:47:03,945 --> 00:47:07,925
you know, subsidies in southern california or the state itself send messages of

652
00:47:08,125 --> 00:47:11,825
intolerance with some of their actions and policy decisions. That is so the act

653
00:47:12,565 --> 00:47:16,355
absolute opposite of our caring community. You can tell the importance of inclusiveness

654
00:47:17,205 --> 00:47:20,765
just by looking at our governing body, so to speak, the makeup of our city council,

655
00:47:21,225 --> 00:47:24,965
the, the, the makeup of our, uh, commissions, which are very broad

656
00:47:25,245 --> 00:47:29,065
based and representative entirely of this community, which is one reason why la

657
00:47:29,315 --> 00:47:33,245
haba remains an at large city and not a city broken into districts because

658
00:47:33,445 --> 00:47:37,345
there's disenfranchised chunks of voters in the city that aren't represented on

659
00:47:37,565 --> 00:47:41,325
city council. It's our ethos and our core belief that everybody

660
00:47:41,825 --> 00:47:45,485
is welcome included, encouraged to participate, and we like the representation

661
00:47:46,305 --> 00:47:50,145
we see at all levels of local government that reflect the diversity of

662
00:47:50,365 --> 00:47:53,105
our entire community. Thank you. Thank you darren. Carrie,

663
00:47:57,205 --> 00:48:00,925
I believe in keeping all of us

664
00:48:01,925 --> 00:48:05,635
included, not excluded. If someone

665
00:48:06,295 --> 00:48:09,985
wants to join a group, I think they should. Um,

666
00:48:10,435 --> 00:48:13,825
it's what we teach our kids to be able to

667
00:48:14,575 --> 00:48:18,425
share, to be able to involve other kids, not

668
00:48:18,645 --> 00:48:22,565
just a one-on-one, unless they were raised in a home with just

669
00:48:22,765 --> 00:48:26,725
one person, but to be able to share, to be able

670
00:48:26,945 --> 00:48:30,645
to include everyone in every situation.

671
00:48:32,105 --> 00:48:35,185
and by doing that, we're we're saying that we are,

672
00:48:36,345 --> 00:48:40,305
we are open, we are caring, we want everyone involved. If

673
00:48:40,525 --> 00:48:44,205
you wanna be involved, great. If you don't wanna be involved,

674
00:48:44,755 --> 00:48:48,565
there's that too. So we're not gonna tell you you have to join

675
00:48:49,065 --> 00:48:53,045
or you have to be, but if you want to, we are all here together.

676
00:48:53,775 --> 00:48:57,685
thank you. Thank you carrie. Okay, so the next question goes

677
00:48:57,965 --> 00:49:01,645
to darren, by the way, are we so proud of our audience? They came up with more questions for us,

678
00:49:03,105 --> 00:49:06,945
so, okay, darius. Thanks guys. , this one's for you. The la

679
00:49:07,165 --> 00:49:11,035
county fire increase should have been anticipated. The city knew

680
00:49:11,325 --> 00:49:14,965
that the contract was temporary. Why did you not plan for the price

681
00:49:15,445 --> 00:49:19,365
increase years ago? That is another great, great question posed by the

682
00:49:19,485 --> 00:49:23,445
one person who didn't show up to actually speak to that candidate lampkin, who made

683
00:49:23,605 --> 00:49:27,505
that accusation that we should have known somehow, that at the end of this 10

684
00:49:27,725 --> 00:49:31,705
year contract with la county fire, which was the inception was back in 2008, we

685
00:49:31,925 --> 00:49:35,725
should have been well aware of the fact read the la county board of supervisors

686
00:49:36,285 --> 00:49:40,115
minds that there's gonna be a new fire chief with an entirely different approach to servicing

687
00:49:41,005 --> 00:49:44,965
contract cities like us. It was chief moroney who said that the sweetheart deal we had

688
00:49:45,085 --> 00:49:49,045
with la county fire was over after 20 years. Now you have to bear a hundred percent of your costs,

689
00:49:49,395 --> 00:49:53,105
your price is going up 3.5 million. Oh, and by the way, if you want that fire station 1 93,

690
00:49:53,645 --> 00:49:57,305
that's another $5 million. Now, his attitude was,

691
00:49:57,865 --> 00:50:01,705
we need to know really soon because we have the right to terminate this contract now. So

692
00:50:01,955 --> 00:50:05,725
make up your minds and if you want us to go, we'll go right now. What's the council gonna do?

693
00:50:06,345 --> 00:50:10,325
we negotiated as hard as we could. We got the best deal we could in the future. Do we

694
00:50:10,445 --> 00:50:14,325
look at options? Yes, of course we do. There's no way we could have anticipated what la county fire did.

695
00:50:14,485 --> 00:50:18,295
that's a ridiculous assertion. I reject it completely. Thank

696
00:50:18,645 --> 00:50:22,275
you. Thank you darren. Carrie. Okay,

697
00:50:22,665 --> 00:50:26,545
so the la county fire, um, agreement that we had

698
00:50:26,765 --> 00:50:30,665
in 2005 and 2014 for those, um,

699
00:50:31,545 --> 00:50:35,315
10 year increments was a shared agreement with

700
00:50:35,785 --> 00:50:38,845
county fire with 50%, or actually it was 49 51,

701
00:50:39,905 --> 00:50:42,815
but whose county and with the city with the other share.

702
00:50:44,025 --> 00:50:47,245
um, in 2023, the contract negotiations

703
00:50:48,295 --> 00:50:51,945
began and the city had budgeted the 10, 10,000,

704
00:50:53,065 --> 00:50:56,755
um, $10,000 per year that it would cost

705
00:50:57,345 --> 00:51:01,165
10 million. Sorry, uh, per year. That would be pretty, pretty sweet deal, right?

706
00:51:01,865 --> 00:51:05,405
um, for all four fire stations,

707
00:51:06,315 --> 00:51:09,825
however, um, la county fire having their own fiscal,

708
00:51:11,025 --> 00:51:14,925
uh, budget challenges, um, they were no longer to be able

709
00:51:15,165 --> 00:51:18,235
to support that cost sharing, um, arrangement.

710
00:51:19,425 --> 00:51:23,125
so what did we do? We had to figure out how we're gonna make this happen

711
00:51:24,305 --> 00:51:27,325
by, you know, having to close one of our fire stations.

712
00:51:28,645 --> 00:51:32,515
thank you carrie rose, closing one of our fire stations, but still costing

713
00:51:32,995 --> 00:51:36,755
us the same, you know, or more, you know, I mean, we're paying 50% more per year

714
00:51:37,015 --> 00:51:40,745
for 25 or less service. Uh, but nonetheless, as carrie said,

715
00:51:41,185 --> 00:51:45,155
with a fiscal budget challenge for la as well. I mean, so they had to pass

716
00:51:45,335 --> 00:51:49,075
the buck down. And of course, you know, if you want the quality of service that you have,

717
00:51:49,485 --> 00:51:52,835
which we now had with the la fire department, I,

718
00:51:53,575 --> 00:51:57,435
it wasn't, it wasn't anything that we expected to be coming up the pipeline.

719
00:51:57,975 --> 00:52:01,815
it was a complete surprise to us. And now we know, I would say

720
00:52:02,055 --> 00:52:05,785
in the coming years that we look at, uh, periodically look

721
00:52:06,075 --> 00:52:10,055
at see what, uh, what the cost is for other services throughout orange county.

722
00:52:10,655 --> 00:52:14,555
but, uh, for now, it was just a, a complete surprise to us that this would be coming up

723
00:52:14,755 --> 00:52:18,715
the pipeline. Uh, we had no ex I, at least I did not have an expectation

724
00:52:19,195 --> 00:52:22,975
of that, but I wouldn't blame him. I mean, we had

725
00:52:23,545 --> 00:52:26,915
such a great deal that, uh, we were happy and of course

726
00:52:27,895 --> 00:52:31,675
it is what it is. But I would ask that we look at the services, review it,

727
00:52:31,905 --> 00:52:34,275
it's, see the contract that we have down the road. Thank you, rose.

728
00:52:36,145 --> 00:52:38,615
okay, so carrie,

729
00:52:41,335 --> 00:52:45,315
I'm a long time resident, so pleased with your work. What can you do for

730
00:52:45,475 --> 00:52:45,715
rent control

731
00:52:52,015 --> 00:52:56,005
as a realtor? For 35 years? I've seen rents

732
00:52:56,415 --> 00:53:00,275
go up and up and up. And the only thing

733
00:53:00,575 --> 00:53:04,275
you can do, I mean, you can't tell a landlord that they

734
00:53:04,605 --> 00:53:08,115
can't charge. It's whatever the market will bear.

735
00:53:09,055 --> 00:53:13,035
so if the market is, you know, let's just say

736
00:53:13,225 --> 00:53:16,515
it's 2000, if you could find something for $2,000

737
00:53:17,475 --> 00:53:21,385
a month, um, then that's what it'll be. So it's, it's, it's

738
00:53:21,675 --> 00:53:23,095
a matter of, um,

739
00:53:26,065 --> 00:53:30,045
two heads coming together to agree every time I

740
00:53:30,165 --> 00:53:33,725
see that. Um, anyway, so on, on rent control, there's

741
00:53:34,225 --> 00:53:38,185
not, there's not a lot that we can do to, to keep those, um, prices

742
00:53:38,755 --> 00:53:42,525
down. Unfortunately, it's wherever that market is going to be.

743
00:53:42,945 --> 00:53:46,645
so if we can, um, you know, talk to our

744
00:53:47,125 --> 00:53:51,045
landlords, talk to the homeowners and see that we're having

745
00:53:51,325 --> 00:53:53,095
a lot of homeowners that are building eight.

746
00:53:55,495 --> 00:53:59,445
thank you carrie rose. Well, we have, we have in the

747
00:53:59,525 --> 00:54:03,445
city of la harbor, two mobile parks that are very low income

748
00:54:03,985 --> 00:54:07,405
for the resident members. We have as well a section eight housing

749
00:54:08,195 --> 00:54:12,125
over here in la harbor. We have the senior citizens one. We have around four or five

750
00:54:12,565 --> 00:54:16,465
locations where they can have a afford at least a decent, uh, living there in, in

751
00:54:16,685 --> 00:54:20,645
those areas. Rent control. I'm not, I mean, I, I think as carrie

752
00:54:20,845 --> 00:54:24,785
said, it's up to the individuals that are negotiating. I, I personally, and,

753
00:54:25,025 --> 00:54:28,845
and I don't want anybody to stand in line in my house, but I, I only

754
00:54:29,125 --> 00:54:32,965
charge $1,500 for a four bedroom house because all I need

755
00:54:33,265 --> 00:54:37,005
is to cover the mortgage. That's it. I don't need to be rich, I don't need to get wealthy.

756
00:54:37,985 --> 00:54:41,835
but I think it's just the persons that are renting these places that

757
00:54:42,195 --> 00:54:46,145
they have to assess how much, how much is do I need for what the

758
00:54:46,365 --> 00:54:50,125
quality of life that I have. I mean, I'm not looking to be rich, I just want

759
00:54:50,385 --> 00:54:54,325
to help the community. And I think that's the way that it should go around to resident members

760
00:54:54,525 --> 00:54:58,225
helping each other. Thank you rose, darren.

761
00:54:59,225 --> 00:55:03,045
and that's an interesting point that rose brings up, is that there is not a huge

762
00:55:03,325 --> 00:55:07,285
problem with the landlords gouging renters in lahabra. It's a very

763
00:55:07,445 --> 00:55:11,165
city specific problem. There's certain areas of socal, well, these landlords are just

764
00:55:11,505 --> 00:55:15,195
greedy as all get out and they're just gouging the renters like crazy. Lahabra

765
00:55:15,785 --> 00:55:19,685
has not had that issue. Now we've got state rent control now, I believe it's capped at

766
00:55:19,805 --> 00:55:23,785
10% a year, which is still a lot of money. Or I believe it's 5% plus the cost of living for

767
00:55:24,005 --> 00:55:27,525
that giving year. So that's there, and there's a ballot measure that talks about rent control

768
00:55:28,145 --> 00:55:31,945
on the november ballot. But do I think rent control is right for la

769
00:55:32,235 --> 00:55:36,005
hara now? No. Do I think rent control is correct for some cities

770
00:55:36,255 --> 00:55:40,085
where they have an issue with that and we've got folks who simply cannot find affordable

771
00:55:40,525 --> 00:55:44,345
housing anywhere? Yes. But again, everything is very city specific. We

772
00:55:44,565 --> 00:55:48,465
have a unique character here in la habra. We have a whole set of, of, of

773
00:55:48,685 --> 00:55:52,435
factors at play and rent control and the gouging

774
00:55:52,925 --> 00:55:56,445
sometimes it takes place is not happening in la harbor at this time. Thank you.

775
00:55:57,595 --> 00:56:01,485
okay, thank you. So now we're to rose. I ask you

776
00:56:01,705 --> 00:56:05,505
to take a look at the secondhand smoke in condos and apartments. Can

777
00:56:05,725 --> 00:56:09,725
you do anything about the secondhand smoke in condos and apartments? Again, if

778
00:56:09,925 --> 00:56:13,805
we talk to the managers, then we can meet up with the managers and find out what the issue is there

779
00:56:14,265 --> 00:56:17,885
and how we can resolve it. Yes, I mean, uh, there's a, there's always an answer

780
00:56:18,865 --> 00:56:22,745
in some way that we can do to limit that, but, uh, uh, it

781
00:56:23,045 --> 00:56:26,925
has to be with the, the managers and the company, whoever owns these apartments, to be able

782
00:56:27,085 --> 00:56:30,905
to talk with them about the secondhand smoke if there are units that are separately for

783
00:56:31,395 --> 00:56:35,325
smokers. I don't know. I have been very fortunate not to have to live in

784
00:56:35,485 --> 00:56:39,485
apartments, but I would, uh, investigate and find out by going to the, uh, developers

785
00:56:40,045 --> 00:56:42,845
or the managers of these apartment complexes as well.

786
00:56:44,615 --> 00:56:48,275
thank you rose, darren, no denying

787
00:56:48,765 --> 00:56:52,685
that secondhand smoke is a chronic health issue for a lot of folks. And it is true

788
00:56:52,905 --> 00:56:56,765
too, that cigarette smoke permeates these units to a great extent. You're looking at kids

789
00:56:56,925 --> 00:57:00,745
there, uh, inhaling this secondhand smoke, which is a distinct public

790
00:57:01,165 --> 00:57:04,925
health problem. Uh, by the same token, we also

791
00:57:05,175 --> 00:57:08,605
don't want to be overly regulatory and overly restrictive in telling

792
00:57:09,225 --> 00:57:12,365
owners and landlords how to run their businesses. I think there's ways of incentivizing

793
00:57:13,695 --> 00:57:17,465
smoke-free apartment buildings and ways of encouraging landlords to

794
00:57:17,925 --> 00:57:21,825
create non-smoking living accommodations. And

795
00:57:22,045 --> 00:57:25,675
that's something the city can do without actually creating a law that forbids,

796
00:57:26,905 --> 00:57:30,685
uh, a landlord from owning a property where some smoking is allowed in certain locations.

797
00:57:31,265 --> 00:57:35,105
so again, and it's not, doesn't appear to be a huge issue in the harbor, but, uh, can

798
00:57:35,325 --> 00:57:38,925
there be progress on that point? Absolutely. Do I acknowledge it as a major health concern?

799
00:57:39,565 --> 00:57:41,625
I do. Thank you. Thank you, carrie.

800
00:57:45,375 --> 00:57:49,285
secondhand smoke, um, our kids are the ones

801
00:57:49,525 --> 00:57:53,405
that suffer for all the secondhand smoke, um, and our

802
00:57:53,635 --> 00:57:56,865
seniors, our older population. Um,

803
00:57:58,705 --> 00:58:02,265
and it is difficult to be able to impose

804
00:58:02,735 --> 00:58:06,695
these restrictions on homeowners that own, um, apartments

805
00:58:07,545 --> 00:58:11,185
or condo complexes. Um, the only thing that we can do, as

806
00:58:11,635 --> 00:58:15,485
rose and darren did say, is to meet with them.

807
00:58:16,245 --> 00:58:20,195
I know that we have a group in la habra, again, a coalition

808
00:58:20,875 --> 00:58:24,355
that is, you know, seeking out to find out ways

809
00:58:25,105 --> 00:58:28,485
to prevent secondhand smoke, um, going to the schools,

810
00:58:29,235 --> 00:58:33,025
letting them, um, be aware of all these things that can

811
00:58:33,245 --> 00:58:37,115
happen, um, with secondhand smoke. And so with

812
00:58:37,425 --> 00:58:41,205
the knowledge and passing that on to the homeowners, you can't

813
00:58:41,485 --> 00:58:44,765
impose someone to say you have to

814
00:58:45,645 --> 00:58:48,725
restrict smoking, but we can alert them.

815
00:58:49,895 --> 00:58:53,395
thank you carrie. Okay, so this next

816
00:58:54,005 --> 00:58:57,945
question goes to darren and we have after this, just one

817
00:58:58,165 --> 00:59:01,595
more question after this, so second time around last chance. Okay.

818
00:59:03,685 --> 00:59:07,085
I think our city can do more to celebrate the diversity in our community.

819
00:59:07,755 --> 00:59:11,545
what ideas do you have to celebrate cultures across our

820
00:59:11,765 --> 00:59:15,645
city? I think you're gonna see some of that coming up next year. We've got a massive

821
00:59:16,365 --> 00:59:20,065
birthday party that we're planning for right now, and that is for the city's centennial, 100

822
00:59:20,445 --> 00:59:23,685
years of the caring community. We were incorporated in 1925.

823
00:59:24,705 --> 00:59:28,595
you know, the thing is that question again is an odd question for lahabra

824
00:59:29,085 --> 00:59:32,555
because that's all you see are these massive inclusive

825
00:59:33,225 --> 00:59:37,205
events throughout the city where you've got this tremendous diversity. Because we're a

826
00:59:37,325 --> 00:59:41,305
diverse community, we we're slightly majority hispanic. We've got every ethnic

827
00:59:41,725 --> 00:59:45,705
and racial group represented in la habra, and they are there as

828
00:59:46,105 --> 00:59:50,085
one large family at all these events and all. And you see them participating in all these programs.

829
00:59:50,985 --> 00:59:54,225
so is there a group where we have to say, if you're afraid,

830
00:59:55,105 --> 00:59:58,815
or do you feel out of place you shouldn't and come join? Nobody feels

831
00:59:59,165 --> 01:00:03,155
that way. Everybody feels welcomed. Everybody feels included. That

832
01:00:03,655 --> 01:00:07,445
again, is what is unique about la habra. That's my answer. Thank

833
01:00:07,765 --> 01:00:11,725
you. Thank you. Carrie, can you just repeat

834
01:00:12,085 --> 01:00:16,005
the the question for me please? Yes. I think our city can do more

835
01:00:16,405 --> 01:00:20,165
to celebrate the diversity in our community. What ideas do you have to celebrate

836
01:00:20,645 --> 01:00:24,485
cultures across our city is just letting them

837
01:00:24,725 --> 01:00:28,685
know they're all welcome. Um, with our new centennial coming

838
01:00:29,025 --> 01:00:32,985
up next year, 20 25, 100 years in existence for

839
01:00:33,205 --> 01:00:36,465
the city of lahabra, there are going to be events

840
01:00:37,705 --> 01:00:41,555
for every culture, for every type

841
01:00:42,105 --> 01:00:45,565
of celebration. I mean, we're gonna have a whole year of celebrating.

842
01:00:46,385 --> 01:00:50,365
so I mean, if we wanted to, we can take one , one different

843
01:00:50,765 --> 01:00:54,495
group and and celebrate them and bring

844
01:00:54,845 --> 01:00:58,685
them all into, um, togetherness. So that, that is really,

845
01:00:59,885 --> 01:01:03,705
I I don't see this as a problem. I see this as of

846
01:01:04,755 --> 01:01:08,645
working with our community and saying, what do you need? What would

847
01:01:08,805 --> 01:01:12,165
you like to see for your culture? 'cause we can sure

848
01:01:13,155 --> 01:01:16,815
take, uh, take on any new challenges that they have. Thank

849
01:01:17,165 --> 01:01:21,085
you. Thank you carrie rose. Well, I, I've seen that happening

850
01:01:22,425 --> 01:01:25,965
before my eyes now. Uh, we don't have to wait for the centennial.

851
01:01:26,485 --> 01:01:30,325
I, I attend the bunco and there are so many women of different cultures

852
01:01:31,045 --> 01:01:34,925
there that are participating. I, I've never, I had never played bunco, but with this group of

853
01:01:35,085 --> 01:01:38,205
ladies, it's just been awesome to attend it. The lions parade,

854
01:01:39,125 --> 01:01:42,945
I mean, you saw such a diverse culture there and it was so

855
01:01:43,435 --> 01:01:46,885
enriching to be able to see that, that they are coming in and celebrating

856
01:01:47,805 --> 01:01:51,715
together. And I am on the centennial, so we are having persons,

857
01:01:52,305 --> 01:01:56,265
uh, bring in their photos so they can be scanned. And it's amazing to see the

858
01:01:56,485 --> 01:02:00,365
photos of the past. Uh, I talked to them about when my

859
01:02:00,725 --> 01:02:04,515
siblings were segregated, they were segregated and went to mexican schools. And my sister says,

860
01:02:05,145 --> 01:02:08,685
why am I going to mexican school to learn english if I already speak english?

861
01:02:09,385 --> 01:02:13,345
why is this black kid going to a mexican school if he's not mexican? You

862
01:02:13,565 --> 01:02:17,555
know? And it was all these stories that are being shared in the centennial that

863
01:02:17,995 --> 01:02:21,965
make you realize that we are all one population, we are all one community,

864
01:02:22,825 --> 01:02:26,625
and it's enriching. Thank you, rose. Okay, so it seems to

865
01:02:26,845 --> 01:02:30,045
me we have come to our last question. This one's for carrie.

866
01:02:31,875 --> 01:02:35,805
have any of your colleagues endorsed your candidacy and have they donated

867
01:02:36,245 --> 01:02:37,085
to your campaign?

868
01:02:41,505 --> 01:02:45,365
not the candidates themselves. Um, I've had

869
01:02:45,605 --> 01:02:48,705
a spouse that donated to my campaign. Um,

870
01:02:49,865 --> 01:02:53,595
but other than that I have not. Okay.

871
01:02:53,885 --> 01:02:57,765
thank you. Thank you rose. Question again.

872
01:02:59,275 --> 01:03:03,145
have any of your colleagues endorsed your candidacy and have they donated to

873
01:03:03,365 --> 01:03:06,165
your campaign? Well, I, I don't normally seek endorsements.

874
01:03:07,605 --> 01:03:10,925
I am, uh, probably a lone horse out there that I just run my campaign.

875
01:03:11,965 --> 01:03:15,185
I just raise my own money. I'll put my own money. Um,

876
01:03:16,025 --> 01:03:19,985
and um, it's never been an issue with me before, you know, and,

877
01:03:20,225 --> 01:03:24,085
and we, it's like there's no reason for for me to do that, you know, because

878
01:03:24,325 --> 01:03:27,885
they're in the same bind I am. They're trying to raise money as well for their

879
01:03:28,365 --> 01:03:32,325
campaigns. So I'm being respectful of that. So I usually end up raising my own, uh, putting

880
01:03:32,745 --> 01:03:36,465
in my own money. This was, like I said, the first time I have ever done this, accept

881
01:03:36,885 --> 01:03:40,445
endorsements and, uh, raise money. Okay. Thank you rose.

882
01:03:41,185 --> 01:03:45,005
darren, carrie, do you endorse me? Yes. Rose, do you endorse

883
01:03:45,245 --> 01:03:49,125
me? I will. Alright. So I've been endorsed by all my council member colleagues and in fact,

884
01:03:49,615 --> 01:03:52,945
maybe carrie wasn't clear on this, but I gave her 250 bucks myself.

885
01:03:53,945 --> 01:03:57,805
so, and I can do that too because I've raised a lot of money in this campaign. 'cause I've been working really

886
01:03:58,125 --> 01:04:01,975
hard. I've been endorsed by every planning commission member, despite the fact that commissioner brene

887
01:04:02,345 --> 01:04:06,085
was a planning commissioner. I've been endorsed by every community services commissioner and I've been endorsed

888
01:04:06,405 --> 01:04:10,185
by everybody on the la haber city school district board of trustees except

889
01:04:10,625 --> 01:04:14,435
for candidate pritchard. So riddle me that. Um, so I've

890
01:04:14,725 --> 01:04:18,385
been roundly endorsed and supported by people in this community, and I've had numerous, uh,

891
01:04:18,965 --> 01:04:22,365
contributions. I haven't given rose money, but I've been putting up a lot of her science. Is that good enough?

892
01:04:23,015 --> 01:04:26,835
there we go. That's my answer. Thank you. Sweat equity. Sweat equity. Okay,

893
01:04:27,195 --> 01:04:30,965
well that was fun. Um, we are now at closing

894
01:04:31,285 --> 01:04:35,005
statements unless we have any last minute questions. Nope, we're

895
01:04:35,325 --> 01:04:39,285
good. Okay, let's wrap it up. We have each candidate in the same order that

896
01:04:39,525 --> 01:04:43,005
they started. They have a chance to have closing statements. Closing statements are one minute.

897
01:04:44,105 --> 01:04:47,565
so, um, darren, you got one minute.

898
01:04:48,225 --> 01:04:52,125
I'm on wrapping up. All right. Let me address the elephant in the room. Why are there only three of us here?

899
01:04:52,475 --> 01:04:56,445
where's everybody else running for city council? That's a great question. What we've got right now are

900
01:04:56,645 --> 01:05:00,415
five long-term stakeholders on city council with enormous experience,

901
01:05:01,085 --> 01:05:04,865
knowledge and insight. I think that benet prichard and

902
01:05:05,345 --> 01:05:09,285
what's his name, lampkin, didn't wanna sit here and have to deal with

903
01:05:09,525 --> 01:05:13,055
that. And their answers are completely vague

904
01:05:13,625 --> 01:05:16,865
and non-existent. Um, you know, we are

905
01:05:17,645 --> 01:05:21,365
impacted by outside forces that challenge us in various ways, whether it's greedy developers,

906
01:05:21,875 --> 01:05:25,365
whether it's the la county fire contract, whether it's disgruntled former council members.

907
01:05:26,225 --> 01:05:29,965
but we always meet these challenges with wisdom and a commitment to the welfare

908
01:05:30,345 --> 01:05:34,325
of lahabra. So I just wanna say that, uh, in short, protecting and defending

909
01:05:34,905 --> 01:05:38,685
the safety quality of life and the very character of this wonderful, caring

910
01:05:38,925 --> 01:05:42,925
community is first and foremost on my mind. I'm so proud

911
01:05:43,265 --> 01:05:47,165
of this city that we have built together. And I wanna finally say that I would

912
01:05:47,285 --> 01:05:51,275
not be sitting here, I would not be involved at all if not for carol serian sitting right back there and jose

913
01:05:51,565 --> 01:05:55,425
too. Jose raise his hand. But is carol, she's why I'm here. So I'm

914
01:05:55,645 --> 01:05:59,445
asking you to please, I'm willing to do it for another four years. Your time is up. Thank you very much.

915
01:05:59,875 --> 01:06:03,665
okay, carrie. Well, again, I wanted to thank the

916
01:06:03,885 --> 01:06:07,515
league of women voters for being, um, putting on our forum tonight.

917
01:06:08,305 --> 01:06:09,105
um, and

918
01:06:12,465 --> 01:06:16,405
to my re non-response to that last question, I just

919
01:06:16,605 --> 01:06:20,145
wanted to say, I have been endorsed by all of my

920
01:06:20,695 --> 01:06:24,665
colleagues on city council. I have been endorsed by

921
01:06:24,945 --> 01:06:28,645
the, um, the school board, um, except for prichard

922
01:06:29,585 --> 01:06:33,465
and then, um, with the la county fire and our

923
01:06:33,745 --> 01:06:37,445
police association. And I just wanted to say thank you.

924
01:06:37,795 --> 01:06:41,495
this being able to give back to la habra

925
01:06:41,945 --> 01:06:45,725
is what it's all about. That's what I am about here. I wanna

926
01:06:46,405 --> 01:06:50,125
continue this run. I'd like to be your city council

927
01:06:50,505 --> 01:06:53,345
member for the next four years and

928
01:06:55,305 --> 01:06:58,395
so much. Thank you. Carrie rose.

929
01:06:59,665 --> 01:07:03,125
um, my family, my grandfather came to la harbor in 1919

930
01:07:03,865 --> 01:07:07,485
before the city was incorporated. We have so many generations of

931
01:07:07,925 --> 01:07:11,805
families living here. Uh, lived in a migrant camp. Um, I never

932
01:07:11,965 --> 01:07:15,705
planned on running for city hou, uh, council until an organization maldif

933
01:07:16,125 --> 01:07:20,005
mexican american legal defense and educational fund called me up and asked if

934
01:07:20,205 --> 01:07:23,885
I would run because, uh, supposedly I was making a difference through rosie's garage.

935
01:07:24,745 --> 01:07:28,425
no, no, no. I go, the only thing I know about city hall is that I pay my water bill there. That's

936
01:07:28,845 --> 01:07:32,705
it. . Um, I passed her on to someone else and, and they, she

937
01:07:32,925 --> 01:07:36,845
called the other person that I passed her on to called me and she said, you know, we can run together,

938
01:07:36,985 --> 01:07:40,725
we can run on a slate. And I go, what the heck? Let's try it. I never knew there

939
01:07:41,005 --> 01:07:44,525
was this world beyond my neighborhood and I thought,

940
01:07:45,115 --> 01:07:48,845
holy cow, I wanna make a difference. And so I ran, lost four times

941
01:07:49,265 --> 01:07:52,595
and finally won again. Finally won. And I love,

942
01:07:53,445 --> 01:07:56,965
I love serving the community, I love connecting with the resident members.

943
01:07:57,625 --> 01:08:01,495
and I hope to do it in, uh, 2024 again after the election. Thank

944
01:08:01,845 --> 01:08:04,245
you. Okay, thank you rose.

945
01:08:06,825 --> 01:08:10,805
so on behalf of the league of women voters of north orange

946
01:08:11,145 --> 01:08:15,065
county, I want to thank all the candidates here this evening for running and

947
01:08:15,305 --> 01:08:19,285
for participating. Um, participating in candidate forums is really

948
01:08:19,445 --> 01:08:23,075
important for making our democracy work. And questions from

949
01:08:23,585 --> 01:08:27,525
the audience are really important for making sure you have a chance to interact with them as well.

950
01:08:28,465 --> 01:08:32,355
so thank you once again for our timekeepers and our questions sorters.

951
01:08:33,665 --> 01:08:37,445
and I also, rumor has it that we have assemblywoman pacheco in the

952
01:08:37,725 --> 01:08:38,145
audience. Yes.

953
01:08:43,745 --> 01:08:47,715
so on that happy note, I will wrap it up. I'd like to remind you to vote,

954
01:08:48,195 --> 01:08:52,125
vote, vote, vote. And you have, um, ballotpedia is

955
01:08:52,365 --> 01:08:56,245
a great resource as well. And vote 4 1 1 are also great resources for finding

956
01:08:56,485 --> 01:09:00,405
more information in your ballot. And thank you very much for coming and have a great evening.

957
01:09:00,605 --> 01:09:04,365
christina. Thank you so much. And thank you ladies for the league so much, for all the hard work. Thank

958
01:09:04,685 --> 01:09:07,645
you. Greatly appreciated. All right.

959
01:09:11,985 --> 01:09:13,345
how are you? Was I embarrassed all night? No.