[5:45] That's probably probably err on
[5:46] the side of being able to. Just
[5:49] yell at me if it's out of
[5:50] whack. Yeah. Okay, great.
[6:07] Thank you.
[8:41] Good evening everyone. I called
[8:43] it word of the regular meeting
[8:44] of the Lakewood City Council on
[8:46] August 24th, 2026 at 7:04 p.m.
[8:50] to connect with the council
[8:51] meeting online, please use one
[8:53] of the following links at.
[8:54] Either Lakewood Speaks or
[8:56] Lakewood, Co. Gov videos. If
[9:01] you are tuning in tonight and
[9:02] would like to address, the city
[9:03] will be given the opportunity
[9:05] to do so at multiple points
[9:06] throughout tonight's meeting.
[9:08] That also includes general
[9:10] public comment for comments
[9:11] that are not relating to
[9:12] anything on tonight's agenda.
[9:15] For those who prefer to leave
[9:16] comments online, you may also
[9:18] post comments of any length
[9:20] that Lakewood speaks. That is
[9:21] our online online forum that
[9:24] includes the ability to submit
[9:26] comments and also supporting
[9:28] information on any of the items
[9:30] that we're discussing and
[9:32] talking about this evening.
[9:33] Lakewood Speaks is. I just said
[9:36] that. So back up to find that
[9:39] information or make a public
[9:40] comment online. Once you land
[9:42] on the website, select
[9:43] tonight's meeting and you'll
[9:44] then be able to select the
[9:46] agenda item that you're looking
[9:47] to learn more about or comment
[9:48] on. Public comment will be left
[9:51] open on Lakewood speaks through
[9:54] 10 a.m. tomorrow morning. Will
[9:56] the clerk please start us off
[9:57] calling the roll?
[9:58] Councilors black. hear crews,
[10:01] I. hear crews K hear Furman
[10:04] here live your here. Hello.
[10:08] Here.
[10:08] Nystrom here.
[10:09] Ryan is absent. Sinks here.
[10:12] Sure as I hear. And Strom here.
[10:15] Great. You have a quorum.
[10:17] Thank you. And this is the
[10:19] point that if you are able to
[10:21] stand, I would ask you to
[10:22] please do so. To join us for
[10:24] the Pledge of Allegiance. And
[10:25] afterwards remain standing for
[10:27] a moment of silent prayer or
[10:29] reflection.
[10:31] Jesus to the flag of the United
[10:34] States of America and to the
[10:36] Republic for which it stands.
[10:39] One nation under God,
[10:41] indivisible, with liberty and
[10:43] justice for all.
[10:57] members of the City Council
[10:59] have the responsibility to
[11:00] comply with the terms of
[11:02] charter 7.2 B, and excuse
[11:04] themselves from voting on any
[11:05] matter in which they determine
[11:07] they have a personal,
[11:08] financial, or business
[11:10] interest. The City Council is
[11:12] empowered by charter 7.2 B to
[11:14] agree by unanimous vote,
[11:16] excluding the member issue, to
[11:18] excuse themselves of the
[11:19] council from voting on a
[11:21] matter. Um, I'm sorry to excuse
[11:23] any member of the council from
[11:25] voting on a matter in which
[11:26] they determine such member has
[11:28] a personal, financial, or
[11:30] business interest. Before we
[11:32] move on to the business portion
[11:34] of this evening. Um, one of our
[11:36] favorite traditions here is
[11:38] proclamations. And we've got a
[11:40] very special proclamation that
[11:42] we'll be reading tonight.
[11:43] Coming up next month. We have
[11:45] Love Lakewood Day. So Lakewood
[11:48] being a great city is not just
[11:49] something that is the task of
[11:52] the people that are sitting up
[11:53] here in front of you, or the
[11:54] task of the staff that operate
[11:56] the city every single day of
[11:58] the year. But it all is part of
[12:00] all of us showing up to do the
[12:01] good work across our city, for
[12:03] our neighbors and our other
[12:04] residents. Love. Lakewood Day
[12:06] is a way for us to do that, so
[12:07] we are very excited to have
[12:09] this proclamation this evening
[12:11] to increase awareness and also
[12:13] let you guys know that the time
[12:15] is is now to start looking into
[12:17] saving the date and signing up.
[12:19] So with that, we have, uh,
[12:23] well, I don't have the copy
[12:24] here.
[12:25] Let's see.
[12:27] Ah, we have the copy down here.
[12:28] We'll just read that. So, um,
[12:30] we'll meet you up front and
[12:33] we'll get started. Whereas the
[12:54] city of Lakewood values the
[12:55] strength of its community,
[12:56] which is rooted in compassion,
[12:58] service and civic engagement.
[13:00] And whereas Love Lakewood Day,
[13:03] held annually in September,
[13:05] brings together volunteers from
[13:06] all walks of life to serve
[13:08] neighbors, improve
[13:09] neighborhoods and uplift the
[13:11] entire city through acts of
[13:12] kindness and generosity. And
[13:15] Whereas, a coalition of civic,
[13:17] faith based, nonprofit and
[13:19] service organizations leads
[13:21] this effort by organizing
[13:23] meaningful projects that
[13:24] connect people through shared
[13:27] action. And Whereas, on
[13:29] September 19th, 2026,
[13:31] individuals and groups from
[13:33] across the city will come
[13:35] together to complete service
[13:36] projects such as beautifying
[13:38] local schools, cleaning public
[13:40] spaces, and assisting local
[13:42] nonprofits. And Whereas, Love
[13:45] Lakewood Day exemplifies the
[13:47] spirit of unity and the
[13:48] importance of giving back,
[13:50] making the city a more
[13:51] inclusive, supportive and
[13:53] thriving place to live for all.
[13:55] And whereas the city commends
[13:57] all volunteers, organizers and
[13:59] supporters of Love Lakewood Day
[14:01] for their commitment to making
[14:03] a lasting difference through
[14:05] collective action. Now,
[14:06] therefore, on behalf of the
[14:08] City Council and the people of
[14:10] the City of Lakewood, I. Wendy
[14:12] Strom, mayor of the City of
[14:13] Lakewood, Colorado, by virtue
[14:15] of the authority vested in me,
[14:17] do hereby proclaim September
[14:20] 19th, 2026, as love. Lakewood
[14:23] Day.
[14:31] Sure, sure. Yeah, like.
[14:35] Super excited. Thank you for
[14:36] all of this. Lake was a great
[14:38] city to live in and a great
[14:40] city to serve. And this is just
[14:42] a great way to come together.
[14:43] And, um. Yeah, make a
[14:45] difference together. It's
[14:46] beautiful. Thanks for letting
[14:47] us do this.
[14:49] Thank you guys. Thank you. Part
[14:50] of that. So we'll do a quick
[14:52] picture. Okay.
[15:26] All right. And that brings us
[15:28] to our presentation this
[15:30] evening from the Lakewood
[15:31] Advisory Commission on Tenant
[15:34] Support. And for that we have
[15:36] Robert Adams of the Lake
[15:38] Diversity Chair that will be
[15:39] giving a brief presentation.
[15:42] Welcome.
[15:43] Thank you. All right. So hello
[15:50] everyone. As was said, I'm
[15:52] Robert Adams, chair of the
[15:52] diversity committee of the
[15:53] Lakewood Advisory Commission,
[15:55] here to talk to you about our
[15:56] work on supporting tenants and
[15:58] mobile home residents. First, a
[16:00] quick thanks to the many LSC
[16:01] members who contributed to this
[16:02] work, a detailed presentation
[16:04] and the written report are on
[16:06] Lakewood Speaks already. So for
[16:08] now, I'll just give a very
[16:09] quick recap. This project was
[16:12] assigned by councillors I,
[16:13] Kruse and Ryan, who essentially
[16:15] asked us to research ways to
[16:17] strengthen protections for
[16:18] renters and ensure that they
[16:21] are treated fairly by
[16:22] landlords. For context, around
[16:24] 42% of households in Lakewood
[16:27] are renters. About 13,000 of
[16:31] them are both low income and
[16:33] cost burdened by their rent,
[16:35] and over 40% of renters are
[16:38] dissatisfied with their housing
[16:40] arrangement. Mobile home
[16:42] residents are in a unique
[16:43] position and that they own
[16:45] their homes, but rent the land
[16:47] underneath. That creates
[16:48] challenges that the report
[16:50] explores in detail. Slides.
[16:56] Eviction was a big theme. There
[16:57] are several thousand sorry,
[17:02] eviction was a big theme. There
[17:03] are several thousand evictions
[17:05] filed in Lakewood each year,
[17:06] and landlords have access to a
[17:08] lawyer, and around 77% of them,
[17:10] compared to 1% for tenants.
[17:13] This can lead to very skewed
[17:14] outcomes, and eviction is a
[17:16] major driver of homelessness.
[17:21] In theory, there are many
[17:22] protections legal protections
[17:24] for renters, most notably the
[17:26] warranty of habitability, but
[17:27] is up to tenants to advocate
[17:29] for themselves. And when
[17:30] landlords fall short on their
[17:31] obligations, um tenants are
[17:34] often on their own. Often,
[17:36] tenants lack money and
[17:37] resources to do that. Advocacy,
[17:39] so that can lead to poor
[17:41] outcomes. From our research, we
[17:45] outlined seven recommendations,
[17:47] which I will run through very
[17:48] quickly. Recommendation A is
[17:52] centralized housing support.
[17:53] Resources exist, but they're
[17:55] scattered across many entities
[17:57] having a single point of
[17:58] contact can close gaps between
[18:00] need and help. B is create a
[18:04] rental licensing program. It
[18:06] can help attract rental stock
[18:08] and ensure landlords operate
[18:09] legally. And it can be
[18:10] self-funded through fees
[18:11] without running into Tabor
[18:13] restrictions. C is establish an
[18:17] emergency Rental Assistance
[18:19] Fund. Short term help delivered
[18:21] quickly is a proven way to
[18:23] prevent displacement and
[18:24] homelessness. D is fund legal
[18:28] assistance and mediation.
[18:30] Representation dramatically
[18:31] increases the fairness of
[18:32] outcomes and reduces evictions.
[18:35] While mediation can resolve
[18:36] disputes before they reach
[18:37] court. E foster tenant
[18:40] associations comparable to
[18:42] neighborhood associations. They
[18:44] can give tenants a collective
[18:45] voice to better advocate for
[18:46] themselves with landlords as
[18:48] well as with policymakers. F
[18:52] prepare f prepare rent
[18:55] stabilization framework. State
[18:57] law currently prevents
[18:59] implementation. Uh, it's it's a
[19:03] band, but there is an ongoing
[19:04] chance that the ban will be
[19:05] repealed. And Lakewood can
[19:08] position itself to be ready for
[19:09] that possibility. G the final
[19:13] recommendation facilitate
[19:14] ownership pathways. Mobile home
[19:16] residents already have the
[19:17] right of first refusal when a
[19:18] park is sold, but need help
[19:20] exercising that right. Uh,
[19:24] detailed cost analysis was
[19:26] outside the scope of the work
[19:27] we did, but we did note some
[19:29] important points worth
[19:31] considering. One is that costs
[19:33] of some of these programs are
[19:34] often more than offset by
[19:36] overall downstream savings. So
[19:39] aside from the human impact,
[19:41] homelessness creates a lot of
[19:42] costs in terms of medical care,
[19:44] emergency medical care,
[19:45] shelters, and so forth. And so
[19:48] that's often much cheaper to
[19:49] help people before they reach
[19:51] that level of crisis. And there
[19:52] are a lot of studies in the
[19:53] report about that. And although
[19:54] it's not part of our work, I
[19:55] was encouraged to see that the
[19:56] Housing Policy Commission
[19:57] recently voted unanimously to
[19:59] move forward with a plan to
[20:01] fund housing solutions, and
[20:03] much of what was discussed
[20:04] overlaps with our
[20:04] recommendations. And of course,
[20:07] in the report, there are many, more details and
[20:10] references and so forth.
[20:12] Lastly, I'll just note that the
[20:15] report details connections
[20:17] between our recommendations and
[20:18] the envisioned Lakewood 2040
[20:20] Comprehensive Plan. So thank
[20:22] you for your attention, and
[20:23] we're happy to answer any
[20:25] questions we can.
[20:27] At.
[20:28] The end. Thank you, Mr. Adams.
[20:30] And the lake team that is here
[20:32] with you this evening. Council,
[20:33] do we have any questions?
[20:41] Councilor Lowe.
[20:44] I was waiting for Councilor
[20:45] Akers. Since this is her her
[20:46] request. Um, huge shout out to
[20:49] Councilor Cruz and Councilor
[20:50] Ryan for getting this off the
[20:51] ground. And Mr. Adams and your team. Fantastic work.
[20:57] Truly fantastic work. This
[21:00] report is so good. There is so
[21:03] much, you know, actionable,
[21:05] good recommendations. It's well
[21:06] presented. It's thoughtfully
[21:07] done. Um, I can't recommend it
[21:11] enough as a resource to the
[21:12] community for folks. And I've,
[21:14] we've heard a lot from folks in
[21:15] the community that want to see
[21:16] more done. Um, for our renters,
[21:18] for our tenants, for folks that
[21:20] you know, who who frankly
[21:22] struggle in the city. I've
[21:23] heard from constituents who are
[21:26] very frustrated in some cases
[21:27] by what their landlords are
[21:29] doing, um, and want to know
[21:30] what their recourses are, and
[21:32] there aren't enough good
[21:32] options. And, um, Mr. Adams,
[21:35] you and your team at the lake
[21:37] have. And the diversity
[21:38] committee at the LEC have given
[21:39] us some really actionable, uh,
[21:41] next steps here. So, um, I'm so
[21:44] enthusiastic about it. I know,
[21:46] council, I know we get a lot,
[21:47] and it's busy and everything.
[21:49] I, I'm sure many of you have read this in full, but if
[21:52] perchance you haven't had a
[21:52] chance to read the full report,
[21:54] please carve out 30 minutes to
[21:56] do it, because there's some
[21:57] really good stuff in here. And
[21:58] it's like, what is it, Mr.
[22:00] Adams? It's like 12 pages, huh?
[22:01] About 20.
[22:02] pages. But it it's a page
[22:04] turner. Didn't even feel like
[22:05] 20 pages. It goes right by. So do read this and I'm going
[22:09] to double down on what Mr.
[22:10] Adams said. A number of the
[22:11] there are, I think, some basis
[22:13] for action that could be taken
[22:14] right away. Like for instance,
[22:15] doing more to sort of combine
[22:16] these resources in a way that
[22:18] so that everything is sort of
[22:19] accessible in one place. But a
[22:21] number of the things that are
[22:22] discussed here, including
[22:23] funding, rental assistance and
[22:25] eviction prevention and legal
[22:26] assistance, um, and critically,
[22:29] also, you know, looking at sort
[22:31] of a rental, licensing
[22:32] registration program, all of
[22:34] which I really think we should
[22:35] do, all of that will be greatly
[22:37] enabled by the creation of an
[22:38] affordable housing fund. And as
[22:40] Mr. Adams mentioned, this is
[22:42] fortuitous timing because the
[22:43] affordable housing, the, um,
[22:44] the Housing Policy Commission
[22:46] just voted by 6 to 0 to move an
[22:48] ordinance forward that create
[22:49] the structure. To do that, we
[22:50] needed to fund the rental
[22:51] assistance. If we're going to
[22:53] do anything around, um, a
[22:55] rental registry and sort of
[22:57] rental licensing. And clearly
[22:58] that's going to take some staff
[23:00] infrastructure and some
[23:00] support. That's not going to
[23:01] happen overnight. I think
[23:02] having sort of a base of
[23:04] support and a funding mechanism
[23:05] and the plumbing that the
[23:06] housing ordinance would provide
[23:08] would be, would be essential.
[23:09] So, um, the timing of this,
[23:10] from my perspective, couldn't
[23:11] be better. I think that there's
[23:13] action we can take. I hope
[23:14] we'll have a chance to do that
[23:15] action. I really think we need
[23:17] to not let this thing sit on a
[23:19] shelf for the next year. Um,
[23:20] let's let's pass an affordable
[23:22] housing ordinance. Um, let's
[23:24] get a fund stood up, and then
[23:25] let's figure out how we can put
[23:26] that fun to work, actually
[23:28] funding and supporting some of
[23:29] these recommendations. And I
[23:30] want to do it by next year. So
[23:32] let's do it. Um, and boy, I
[23:35] you've you've said you've set a
[23:36] new bar for for excellence on
[23:38] lake work and, uh, it's it's
[23:40] really, really exciting.
[23:42] I guess on behalf of the many
[23:43] people who contributed, thank
[23:44] you.
[23:46] Mayor Pro Tem Qazi. Yes.
[23:49] Thank you. I would echo the
[23:51] enthusiasm from Councilor Lowe.
[23:53] Maybe not to that degree, but I
[23:54] am excited to see this and I
[23:57] appreciate the. This has been a
[23:58] long time coming and clearly
[24:00] some thoughtfulness. Um, I, I
[24:02] do think the recommendations
[24:04] like appreciate that there's
[24:05] some actionable stuff. There's
[24:06] some things that are going to
[24:07] take time to prop up. But I
[24:09] think option A is something
[24:10] that we could do pretty quickly
[24:12] and wanted just to flag that. I
[24:14] know that those aren't
[24:15] decisions that we make this
[24:16] evening, but I think that there
[24:17] is some, um, clear path to some
[24:20] easy solutions that are being
[24:21] presented here. The question I
[24:23] really have is for staff, um,
[24:26] one of the suggestions talks
[24:28] about mediation services. And,
[24:31] um, there was a number in the
[24:32] presentation of outside
[24:33] partners that were listed, but
[24:35] also there was some discussion
[24:36] about the mediation services
[24:38] that Lakewood does. And I
[24:40] wanted to understand, because
[24:41] I've heard that maybe we are
[24:42] backing off of that. And so is
[24:43] that still something that's
[24:44] going on in our community?
[24:47] I don't know the answer to that
[24:49] right now, but I can get back
[24:50] to you.
[24:51] Okay. Thank you. Thanks for
[24:53] this work. This is great. I'm
[24:55] excited to see this continue to
[24:56] move forward.
[24:57] Thanks.
[24:59] Councilor Cruz.
[25:02] Thank you. I just want to echo
[25:03] the enthusiasm, um, double down
[25:06] on Councilor Lowe and Mayor Pro
[25:08] Tem enthusiasm for this. And
[25:09] thank you and the committee for
[25:11] your work on this. Um, I know
[25:14] Councilor Ryan was sad not to
[25:16] be here. I think it's like the
[25:17] first meeting he's missed.
[25:19] Maybe ever. I'm not sure. Um,
[25:21] but I know he was really
[25:22] excited to see the report and
[25:23] really thrilled to see the work
[25:25] coming forward for, you know,
[25:26] the 42% of households in our
[25:28] community that often don't get
[25:29] 42% of our attention. Um, and
[25:32] are, as you really pointed to,
[25:34] some harrowing statistics about
[25:35] the struggles facing many
[25:37] renters in our community. And I
[25:39] think it's very timely, both
[25:40] with the work that the Housing
[25:41] Policy Commission is doing. But
[25:43] then also, you know, the two
[25:45] mobile home park communities
[25:46] and our neck of the woods are
[25:48] up for sale right now. And so I
[25:49] think that, um, there's there's
[25:51] a lot of work to be done on
[25:52] this. So I'm really grateful
[25:53] for for all of your work. So
[25:55] thank you. Um, an invaluable
[25:56] resource, I guess. Just a
[25:58] question for you, and maybe
[26:00] this is a bit of what the mayor
[26:02] pro tem brought up. And I know
[26:04] these aren't numbered
[26:05] recommendations, likely on
[26:07] purpose, but, um, from the
[26:09] discussions in the committee,
[26:10] would you say there are any
[26:12] things that you all would
[26:13] recommend us keeping top of
[26:15] mind? As you know, HPC does
[26:17] some of their planning and as
[26:18] we approach kind of our next
[26:20] phase of planning, uh, next
[26:21] year.
[26:22] Yeah. Like you said, they
[26:23] weren't exactly in order of
[26:25] priority or something like
[26:26] that, but there was something
[26:27] of an order, particularly that
[26:28] A is meant to be like a
[26:30] foundation for some of the
[26:32] others, because if you were to
[26:33] implement certain programs, um,
[26:36] it would it would make more
[26:37] sense if you could embed them
[26:38] directly in something
[26:39] centralized from the beginning.
[26:41] So, um, speaking just for
[26:43] myself, I mean, I think it a is a is a foundational step.
[26:48] And then that leads directly, I
[26:50] think, into a rental licensing
[26:51] program because, um, that's
[26:53] really a lens into rental
[26:57] conditions on a building by
[26:58] building basis that currently
[26:59] doesn't exist. And it also
[27:01] feeds, as noted in the report,
[27:02] like having just data on we
[27:04] don't know how many rental
[27:05] units exist in the city so far
[27:07] beyond even renter protections.
[27:09] Just having that kind of
[27:09] information for housing policy
[27:11] in general is is lacking. So I
[27:14] would say those two, from my
[27:15] personal perspective, would be,
[27:17] uh, two of the most important.
[27:19] Great. That's super helpful.
[27:20] And I think even just speaking
[27:22] to the importance and the
[27:23] urgency of maybe what might
[27:25] seem like low hanging fruit,
[27:26] maybe if the mayor pro tem
[27:28] said, but important is right,
[27:29] thinking about what do we have
[27:31] and how do we communicate that
[27:32] to the public? Because I know I
[27:33] get, um, constituents, probably
[27:35] all of us get constituents who
[27:36] are in a situation where
[27:37] there's a warranty of
[27:38] habitability issue, and there's
[27:39] a question about who's supposed
[27:41] to come check out the mold in
[27:42] their building or the roof
[27:44] that's falling in. Right. And
[27:45] so I think that that will be
[27:47] super helpful as we put this
[27:49] policy together. So I'm really
[27:50] grateful to you all for doing
[27:52] this work. And also grateful to
[27:54] Councilor Ryan for putting this
[27:56] question forward with me.
[28:00] All right. That's it. Thank
[28:02] you. Thank you so much again
[28:03] for your work on this topic.
[28:10] And that brings us to the first
[28:12] point in tonight's meeting,
[28:13] where the public is invited to
[28:14] address the City Council on
[28:16] items that are not on this
[28:18] evening's agenda. This initial
[28:20] period of public comment allows
[28:21] for up to ten speakers to
[28:22] provide comment on any matter
[28:24] other than an agenda item, and
[28:26] will prioritize those with
[28:28] special needs. Signing up to
[28:30] speak during this initial
[28:32] period of public comment does
[28:33] require signing up prior to
[28:36] this evening's meeting. There
[28:38] is no pool time during this
[28:39] initial public comment period.
[28:42] The goal of public comment is
[28:45] to create an environment that
[28:46] welcomes all stakeholders to
[28:48] share their thoughts and
[28:49] concerns. Whether your comments
[28:51] are left on Lakewood speak or
[28:54] here in chambers, I ask that
[28:56] all comments be directed up
[28:58] here to the City Council that
[29:00] anyone in attendance or online
[29:02] respect the decorum of council
[29:04] chambers and practice civility,
[29:06] and so that every speaker may
[29:08] be heard. I ask that everyone
[29:09] here in chambers refrain from
[29:11] audible or applause or audible
[29:13] support or discord with the
[29:15] speaker for anyone who in the
[29:18] audience may be uncomfortable
[29:20] speaking in front of the room
[29:21] again, you two are welcome to
[29:23] leave a comment online on
[29:24] Lakewood Speaker. Instead,
[29:26] anyone will be able to leave
[29:28] those comments until 10 a.m.
[29:29] tomorrow morning. And please
[29:32] note that in public comment, it
[29:34] is almost campaign season, so
[29:36] I'm going to say it. No
[29:37] campaigning is allowed during
[29:39] public comment per our campaign
[29:41] finance law, city resources are
[29:42] not able to be used for
[29:43] campaigning and that includes
[29:46] our meetings. If you are
[29:48] speaking and have any handouts,
[29:50] would ask that you share any
[29:52] handouts to share with the city
[29:53] Council would ask that you
[29:54] please provide them to the city
[29:56] clerk up here and and they will
[29:58] be distributed to city
[30:00] councils. After the meeting.
[30:02] The purpose of this time
[30:04] tonight is for us to hear from
[30:07] you. This is a listen only
[30:08] session. If you'd like to
[30:10] engage in a conversation with
[30:11] your councilors or with staff
[30:13] or myself, would encourage you
[30:15] to do so via phone, scheduled
[30:17] office visits, or email. Today
[30:19] is for us specifically to
[30:21] listen. For those planning to
[30:23] speak tonight. When you arrive
[30:24] up here up front, we'd ask that
[30:26] you start off by giving your
[30:28] name and your address, or your
[30:30] name, or your name and your
[30:32] ward, and the city clerk will
[30:33] get your clock started for
[30:35] three minutes. And that's where
[30:37] we are. I do have two folks
[30:39] that are signed up for this
[30:40] initial public comment period.
[30:43] Um, first one is Amanda
[30:45] Phillips. I don't believe I see
[30:47] her in the room. Amanda
[30:49] Phillips nope. Okay. Um, Beth
[30:54] Collins. Welcome.
[31:04] Thank you.
[31:06] Hello. My name is Beth Collins,
[31:08] and I'm a resident of Ward
[31:09] five. I know that you have
[31:12] heard at previous meetings from
[31:14] other members of our Lakewood
[31:15] Cultural Center dance
[31:16] community. I am here tonight to
[31:19] encourage you to consider
[31:20] supporting the expansion of the
[31:22] studio space for dance program
[31:24] programming at LCC. My friend
[31:28] Marlene Marlene Gordon, who I
[31:30] talk with, spoke about the
[31:32] importance of community
[31:33] connection and combating
[31:35] loneliness through our
[31:37] connections with dance. Joan
[31:39] spoke about the potential
[31:41] additional income through
[31:42] rentals for rehearsal and
[31:44] performance space that this
[31:46] expanded studio could also
[31:48] provide. I'm here to tell you
[31:51] how expanding the studio space
[31:53] can support resident engagement
[31:55] with the city. Like many young
[31:58] girls, I danced from a young
[32:00] age through my high school
[32:02] years. I started at Ethel
[32:04] Frills School of Dance. Ethel
[32:06] taught in her basement, um, at
[32:08] 10th and Kipling during those
[32:11] formative years, instead of
[32:13] large recitals in public halls,
[32:16] we performed at nursing homes
[32:17] across Lakewood. This included
[32:20] Villa manor and what's now
[32:22] known as Lakewood Villa. I
[32:24] enjoyed getting to connect with
[32:26] the older generation through
[32:28] dance. After Ethel finally
[32:31] retired at the age of 84, I did
[32:35] join a traditional dance studio
[32:36] for one year. It was not the
[32:39] same. I was not performing to
[32:41] benefit others. I continued to
[32:44] dance through high school
[32:45] musicals in Jeffco public
[32:47] schools. Like many dancers, I
[32:50] took much of my 20s and early
[32:52] 30s 30s away from performance
[32:54] dance. But after becoming a
[32:57] mother, I was yearning for
[32:59] something that was just for me
[33:01] again. My mother at the time
[33:04] had just joined the Rocky
[33:05] Mountain Ukulele Orchestra,
[33:07] which also performs at Lakewood
[33:09] Cultural Center, and she
[33:10] mentioned she saw a dance
[33:12] studio there when my youngest
[33:15] was six months old, I
[33:17] registered for my first adult
[33:19] tap class. In the nearly nine
[33:22] years since that day, I have
[33:25] watched that class grow from a
[33:27] class of one to regular
[33:30] attendance of 12 to 13 grown
[33:32] women. We have become close
[33:35] friends, confidants, and
[33:37] cheerleaders for each other. We
[33:40] have seen each other through
[33:41] career changes, marriages,
[33:43] divorces and that challenge
[33:46] called parenting. We have
[33:48] become Tap Lakewood as Tap
[33:52] Lakewood. We were one of the
[33:54] first adult groups to perform
[33:56] at the spring recital. With all
[33:58] those little bitties in tutus.
[34:01] We have had the opportunity to
[34:02] model for parents and the youth
[34:04] of Lakewood that you can indeed
[34:07] dance like a silly person
[34:09] through middle age and at any
[34:11] age. We've also gotten to cheer
[34:14] on as the dance community has
[34:16] grown to include performance
[34:18] troupes of youth and adults
[34:20] alike.
[34:20] Miss Collins, your time is
[34:22] expired. Dang it.
[34:23] Okay, we perform a lot. Please
[34:25] support.
[34:26] Us.
[34:27] We're back in two weeks.
[34:31] Alrighty. Thank you so much.
[34:32] And that is it for our initial
[34:34] public comment this evening.
[34:36] And we will start with or move
[34:38] on next to our consent agenda.
[34:40] Counsel, do we have any items
[34:42] that we wish to pull from this
[34:43] evening's consent agenda? All
[34:48] right. Seeing none, will the
[34:49] clerk please read the consent
[34:50] agenda into the record?
[34:51] The consent agenda is comprised
[34:53] of the following items.
[34:54] First reading on ordinance 2020
[34:56] 631. Enacting chapter 14.31 of
[34:58] title 14 of the Lakewood
[34:59] Municipal Code to adopt by
[35:00] reference the Colorado Wildfire
[35:02] Resiliency Code 2025 edition,
[35:04] with deletions and amendments
[35:06] and further adopting the
[35:07] corresponding 2025 Colorado
[35:08] Wildfire Resiliency Code Map
[35:11] item five, approving minutes of
[35:12] City Council meetings. Special
[35:13] meeting minutes from August
[35:14] 7th, 2026. Special meeting
[35:16] minutes from August 10th, 2026.
[35:18] Regular meeting minutes. August
[35:19] 10th, 2026.
[35:22] Thank you. And I have no one
[35:24] signed up to speak on tonight's
[35:26] consent agenda. Um, do we have
[35:30] any initial questions from the
[35:32] City Council? Seeing none.
[35:35] Please. May I have a motion?
[35:37] Mayor, I move for the approval
[35:39] of City Council minutes. Order.
[35:40] All ordinances introduced on
[35:42] first reading to be published
[35:43] in the Denver Post, with public
[35:45] hearings set for the date
[35:46] included in the ordinance, all
[35:48] of which are included in the
[35:49] consent agenda. Items
[35:50] introduced into the record by
[35:51] the City Clerk.
[35:52] Second.
[35:55] All right. We have a motion on
[35:56] the floor and a second. Any
[35:58] questions? All right. Please go
[36:02] ahead and cast your vote. And
[36:10] that passes ten yeses and zero
[36:13] nos. Will the clerk please read
[36:20] item seven A into the record.
[36:22] Item seven eight are 20, 26, 57
[36:24] approving a contract for City
[36:25] Manager services for the City
[36:27] of Lakewood with Jonathan Cain.
[36:30] Thank you. And I will now open
[36:33] the public hearing on our
[36:34] 202657. Um, do we have any
[36:38] initial questions from the city
[36:40] Council on this evening's topic?
[36:45] Nope. Okay. I do have one
[36:48] signed up for comment on this
[36:51] item. Uh, Natalie Minton.
[36:58] Good evening. Natalie Minton.
[37:01] Um, first of all, when I was on
[37:03] the RTD board for two terms,
[37:05] eight years went through three
[37:07] general manager hiring process.
[37:09] So do you have some experience?
[37:12] I'm going to speak about two
[37:13] things that I do not agree with
[37:15] in this contract. That would
[37:17] be, first of all, the term as
[37:19] far too long. Basically, we
[37:21] have a um, an employee going to
[37:24] be in a probationary period,
[37:25] but we've got a three year
[37:27] contract. Um, with out a lot to
[37:31] back that up. So I disagree
[37:33] with that. Uh, it's pushing it
[37:34] into future terms. Future
[37:36] council members, um, and should
[37:38] be a shorter term. Secondly,
[37:40] the dollar amount. I don't know
[37:42] how we got to these salaries.
[37:43] And I realize city council
[37:45] thought that was like on the
[37:46] low end of the range. But for
[37:48] what the average citizen is,
[37:50] um, getting for this and for
[37:54] the amount of the salary and
[37:56] considering comparable other
[37:57] salaries that are far larger
[37:59] jurisdictions, uh, this amount
[38:02] is is far too much, um,
[38:04] especially for somebody that,
[38:06] uh, is now we're committing to
[38:08] a three year term. So I posed
[38:09] this for both those reasons.
[38:11] And I did attend, um, the event
[38:14] at the Heritage Center. Um,
[38:16] thank you for putting that on.
[38:18] Wasn't required. So I
[38:20] appreciate that. It was a
[38:21] little bit challenging just
[38:23] with the volume in the room and
[38:24] so forth. Um, and did try to
[38:26] reach out. So I have been
[38:27] engaged citizen on this and I
[38:28] have the history far too long
[38:30] of a contract term, far too
[38:32] much money. Thank you.
[38:33] And that is it for
[38:37] public comment on this issue.
[38:40] May I please have a motion?
[38:42] Mayor, I move for the adoption
[38:43] of resolution 2020 657.
[38:47] Second.
[38:48] All right. We have a motion and
[38:49] a second. Any conversation now?
[38:54] Mayor Pro Tem..
[38:57] Yes. Thank you. Um, appreciate
[38:59] everybody that got engaged in
[39:00] this process. I'm really
[39:02] excited about our candidate. I
[39:03] know that we have a special
[39:05] guest tonight joining us to get
[39:06] a sneak preview of what's to
[39:08] come in this role. And I'm
[39:10] looking forward to having an
[39:11] intentional process to get Mr.
[39:13] Kane acclimated and situated in
[39:16] Lakewood. And just looking
[39:17] forward to working with him.
[39:20] Councilor Lowe.
[39:22] I would just echo that, um, you
[39:23] know, this this was an
[39:24] intensive, even exhaustive
[39:26] process for all involved. Uh,
[39:28] many members of this community
[39:29] certainly imagine for the the
[39:30] candidates participating, we
[39:32] had some great candidates, a
[39:33] lot of conversations, talked to
[39:35] so many members of the
[39:35] community that showed up at
[39:37] events, showed up at our joint
[39:38] Ward two, Ward three meeting to
[39:40] give us their feedback. Cared
[39:41] about this, I can speak, I
[39:43] think I feel confident in
[39:44] speaking for all of us. You
[39:45] know, we on council, we took
[39:46] this decision enormously
[39:47] seriously. This is a very
[39:48] consequential decision. We're
[39:50] hiring the CEO of the city.
[39:51] It's a hugely important job.
[39:52] All of us appreciate that. Um,
[39:54] we did a lot of due diligence.
[39:56] We really we really did. We had
[39:57] a chance to do our long
[39:59] interviews. Um, had multiple
[40:01] conversations with folks,
[40:02] checked, references reviewed,
[40:04] written answers, reviewed
[40:06] written materials, um, watched
[40:08] video interviews, talked to
[40:09] members of the community, etc..
[40:11] Um, Mr. Kane, I see you in the
[40:14] audience. Thank you for joining
[40:15] us today. We were just we were
[40:17] blown away by by the energy and
[40:19] the the thoughtfulness and, um,
[40:22] the level of thoughtfulness on
[40:23] multiple different really, tough, thorny issues
[40:27] that I think you're going to
[40:27] bring to this job. Um, this is a tough job. And I feel
[40:32] really good that we found
[40:33] someone that is just going to
[40:34] gonna going to take a really, great city to the next
[40:39] level. Um, and someone with the
[40:41] capacity for change management
[40:43] where changes need to happen.
[40:44] Um, I just couldn't be more
[40:46] excited to write the next
[40:47] chapter over the next couple of
[40:48] years. And I feel really
[40:49] enthusiastic about having found
[40:51] a, um, an energetic, dynamic
[40:53] leader to do it. So, Mr. Kane,
[40:54] we're we're very excited for
[40:56] you to start.
[41:00] And maybe little did you know,
[41:02] he's already started by
[41:04] attending First Friday on
[41:05] Colfax. So, um, I will go ahead
[41:09] and just say a few remarks. I
[41:11] don't have any additional hands
[41:12] up, but I would like to welcome
[41:15] you to the city of Lakewood. I
[41:16] could not likewise be more
[41:18] enthusiastic about you joining
[41:20] us. The coming in with the
[41:22] level of preparedness, the
[41:23] level of detail and just
[41:26] surveying what we have and the
[41:29] knowledge, like the intimate
[41:31] knowledge that you had about
[41:32] Lakewood. And it was obvious
[41:33] that it's a special place for
[41:35] you. And that means a lot for
[41:36] everybody in this room. That's
[41:38] obviously very invested in our
[41:40] community. So very much looking
[41:42] forward to working together.
[41:43] And with that council, we'll go
[41:45] ahead. Please cast your vote.
[41:54] And that passes ten yeses and
[41:56] zero no's. Thank you everybody.
[42:04] Okay. That leads us to our next
[42:07] topic. Sorry I got a little too
[42:14] enthusiastic. Apparently lost
[42:16] my place in my script, but we
[42:18] should be on item seven. Be
[42:20] correct. That's right. Okay,
[42:21] well, the clerk please read
[42:23] seven B into the record item.
[42:24] 7BR202658 to submit to a vote
[42:27] of the registered electors of
[42:28] the City of Lakewood at the
[42:29] state general election on
[42:30] November 3rd, 2026, a ballot
[42:32] issue for the purpose of
[42:33] authorizing an increase in the
[42:34] city of Lakewood sales, sales
[42:36] and use tax rate.
[42:41] All right. We'll go ahead and
[42:43] open the public hearing on this
[42:45] item. Um, oh, actually, we're
[42:47] not going to open public
[42:48] hearing. We do have
[42:49] presentation before we move
[42:52] into our presentation this
[42:53] evening. Um, council will
[42:55] consider a resolution to place
[42:57] a proposed revenue measure on
[42:59] the ballot for this November, 3rd. This follows
[43:02] several years of work by the
[43:04] Budget and Audit Board,
[43:04] examining the city's long term
[43:06] financial outlook and the
[43:07] challenges of maintaining the
[43:09] services that our community
[43:11] values, and is asking for. The
[43:13] Budget and Audit Board has
[43:15] recommended moving forward with
[43:16] a voter approved revenue
[43:18] change. I'd like to invite the
[43:19] chair of the Budget and Audit
[43:21] Board, Councilor Isabel Cruz,
[43:22] to provide some additional
[43:23] background on the board's
[43:25] recommendation.
[43:27] Thank you. Mayor. Um, so, as
[43:29] many of you I know have been
[43:30] following the Budget and Audit
[43:32] Board has spent considerable
[43:33] time reviewing the city's
[43:35] financial outlook and
[43:37] discussing potential options
[43:38] for addressing our long term
[43:39] funding needs and also
[43:41] addressing the priorities that
[43:42] we hear from our constituents,
[43:44] both, um, our citizen members
[43:46] on the board as well as the
[43:48] people that we all hear from
[43:49] every day. Um, and so as part
[43:51] of that work, the board
[43:52] reviewed the community survey
[43:54] that was conducted by Magellan
[43:56] Strategies back in the spring
[43:57] and discussed the results with
[43:59] City council and a joint study
[44:00] session in July. So you can
[44:02] check out that meeting for some
[44:03] in-depth conversation about
[44:04] what the results of. I think
[44:06] over a thousand people in
[44:07] Lakewood. Feedback was there.
[44:09] Um, and so tonight we have the
[44:11] final recommended ballot
[44:12] language for a voter approved
[44:14] revenue change. And I'm excited
[44:15] to talk with it about it. And
[44:16] I'm grateful to the board and
[44:18] to staff for all of the work
[44:20] that has gone on so far.
[44:22] Thank you. And for a very brief
[44:25] presentation on the topic, we
[44:27] have Matthew Wasserburg from
[44:29] our Budget and Financial
[44:31] Strategy Manager, who will
[44:32] summarize the ballot issue that
[44:34] we are discussing this evening.
[44:36] Great.
[44:37] Thank you. Good evening. Uh,
[44:39] I'll my guess my task tonight
[44:41] is to provide a short history
[44:42] on the process. Uh, that was
[44:44] taken to get this proposed
[44:46] resolution, uh, tax language,
[44:48] ballot measure, uh, onto this
[44:50] resolution. Uh, so with that,
[44:54] uh, the process started with
[44:55] city council identifying their
[44:56] needs, uh, at their February
[44:59] uh, council workshop, they
[45:00] asked the Budget and Audit
[45:01] Board to help evaluate, uh, how
[45:04] the city could help move this
[45:05] forward. Uh, the Budget and
[45:07] Audit Board was a natural
[45:08] partner for this because of
[45:09] their mix of, uh, council and
[45:13] resident representation. And it
[45:16] also had experience, uh,
[45:18] evaluating other revenue
[45:19] options, uh, and ballot
[45:21] measures, most recently in 2024
[45:23] with the Tabor extension. Uh,
[45:26] the budget and audit Board, uh,
[45:28] asked to look at the city's
[45:29] financial challenges first,
[45:31] rather than starting with any
[45:33] specific, uh, sales tax
[45:35] proposal. Uh, at their March
[45:38] 3rd meeting, uh, the Budget and
[45:40] Audit Board was presented with
[45:41] the financial picture that the
[45:43] city was facing at the time we
[45:45] presented this slide, uh, that
[45:47] showed that revenue was
[45:48] softening due to economic
[45:49] uncertainty. Um, at the same
[45:52] time, costs across the board
[45:54] were increasing. Um, those are
[45:57] costs for capital projects,
[45:58] supplies and services, as well
[46:00] as, uh, staff salary and
[46:01] benefits. Uh, and we were
[46:03] seeing some uncertainty in the
[46:05] grant world as the federal
[46:07] grant started drying up or
[46:09] changing priorities. Uh, we
[46:12] also experienced a significant
[46:14] one time, uh, impact from the,
[46:18] uh, business tax settlement,
[46:21] uh, that reduced reserves in
[46:22] the general fund and the Tabor
[46:24] fund. Uh, and we also lost
[46:27] about $3.7 million of ongoing
[46:29] revenue from that bank tax each
[46:32] year. At the same time,
[46:34] community, we kept hearing that
[46:35] there are more and more needs
[46:36] within the community. Uh,
[46:38] infrastructure continued to
[46:39] age. Uh, and city council
[46:41] identified numerous priorities
[46:44] around sustainability,
[46:45] homelessness and traffic safety.
[46:49] As the board began looking at
[46:50] potential revenue options, one
[46:52] piece of context was Lakewood.
[46:53] Current sales tax rate. Uh,
[46:56] Lakewood municipal sales tax
[46:57] rate is 3%. Uh, and as you can
[47:00] see, that's on the lower end,
[47:02] um, compared to other cities in
[47:04] the metro area, uh, it's
[47:06] important to note that Lakewood
[47:08] does not charge, uh, sales tax
[47:10] on groceries. And we have those
[47:12] little grocery basket icons on
[47:14] this chart to, uh, highlight
[47:16] some of the neighboring cities
[47:17] that do charge sales tax, uh,
[47:19] on grocery purchases. The
[47:23] Budget and Audit Board, uh,
[47:24] really wanted to understand
[47:25] what the community was telling
[47:26] us about their priorities and
[47:28] the willingness to consider
[47:30] additional investment. Uh, so,
[47:32] as Councilor Kruse mentioned,
[47:33] the board engaged Magellan
[47:35] Strategies to conduct a
[47:37] community survey. Uh, they
[47:39] reached out to 100 registered
[47:40] voters to better understand
[47:42] residents priorities and their
[47:44] views on potential revenue
[47:46] investments. Uh, the results
[47:48] indicated that voters see a
[47:50] need for additional investment
[47:52] in city services, in
[47:54] particular, uh, around public
[47:55] safety and homelessness, as
[47:57] well as traffic safety. Uh,
[48:01] based on the survey, uh, and
[48:02] Magellan's recommendations, the
[48:04] Budget and Audit Board
[48:05] ultimately recommended a ballot
[48:07] measure that would ask voters
[48:09] to increase Lakewood sales tax
[48:11] by one, uh, by one one half of
[48:14] 1%. The increase is estimated
[48:17] to generate $17.6 million each
[48:21] year for city services. Uh, and
[48:23] it is important to note that
[48:24] groceries are not subject to
[48:26] Lakewood, uh, sales tax. Uh, so
[48:28] this increase would also not
[48:31] apply to grocery purchases. And
[48:34] with that, I am here for any
[48:36] questions. Um, before turning
[48:38] it back over to you.
[48:39] Thank you. Council, do we have
[48:40] any questions? Councilor sinks.
[48:46] So not really a question, but
[48:48] just a statement that I'm so
[48:49] excited to put this to the
[48:51] voters. The voters and let the
[48:53] voters decide what kind of, um,
[48:57] sales tax we should have, what
[48:59] kind of benefits, what kind of,
[49:00] um, results we should see from
[49:03] a possible increase. So thank
[49:06] you very much for your work on
[49:07] this. Appreciate. And I'm
[49:09] excited about the possibilities.
[49:14] All right. I have no more hands
[49:16] up. So, Mr. Rosenberg, you may
[49:19] have a seat for now. Um, we'll
[49:22] go ahead and open the public
[49:24] hearing. I have two signed up
[49:26] to speak on this topic. First,
[49:28] James Ginsburg.
[49:37] Good evening. Thanks. I'm James
[49:39] Ginsburg. I'm the executive
[49:40] director of recovery Works in
[49:42] Ward one, and we're a nonprofit
[49:43] organization and just want to,
[49:46] um, speak in strong favor of
[49:49] this measure to increase the
[49:51] sales tax and sort of remind
[49:54] the council it's already been
[49:55] highlighted, but underscore
[49:56] some of the components of this
[49:58] that make it, um, very
[50:00] attractive. Of course, only
[50:02] going from 3% to 3.5%. So half
[50:06] a percent, very reasonable. It
[50:09] still keeps us below the
[50:11] average of other, uh, sister
[50:13] cities in the metro area. Um.
[50:18] And that it, uh, that the focus
[50:21] is fairly narrow and it's
[50:23] focused on initiatives that the
[50:25] public has said that we've
[50:28] wanted, which is public safety
[50:29] and other aging infrastructure.
[50:32] Uh, also wanted to highlight
[50:34] that, um, it doesn't include
[50:38] food, which was mentioned. And
[50:40] then finally, just to highlight
[50:42] with inflation, this is the
[50:44] first sales and use tax
[50:47] increase in 20 years. And so I
[50:50] think it's important that we
[50:52] highlight those issues. If this
[50:53] makes the ballot. And again
[50:55] strongly encourage you to vote
[50:57] for this. Thank you.
[50:58] Natalie Minton.
[51:11] Good evening again. Council
[51:13] Natalie Minton. Um, I'm glad
[51:15] food was mentioned so many
[51:16] times because that opens up the
[51:18] door for what I want to talk
[51:19] about. Um, I helped lead the
[51:23] 2009 2010 citizen push to
[51:26] repeal, um, taxes on food here
[51:30] in Lakewood. So I have a really
[51:31] long history on this. It's very
[51:33] important to me. I think it's a
[51:35] moral to to tax food. Frankly.
[51:38] So it says in this measure it
[51:40] will not tax groceries. I've
[51:42] heard will not tax food. But
[51:43] the reality is it actually
[51:45] increases. This measure will
[51:46] increase the sales tax on food
[51:50] in multiple ways. One, we're
[51:54] talking about when it says
[51:55] groceries. And you can look up
[51:57] code and you'll need to
[51:58] reference state law also to to
[52:00] figure out all the ins and outs
[52:02] of complex tax policy. I'll
[52:04] give you examples of where
[52:06] taxes would increase that hot
[52:09] rotisserie chicken that the
[52:11] parent picks up after work to
[52:13] feed the family. That is not
[52:16] exempt from sales tax. You will
[52:18] be increasing the sales tax.
[52:20] The six inch sub that somebody
[52:22] may grab in between their two
[52:23] jobs. You'd be increasing the
[52:26] sales tax on that food. Even
[52:30] sweetened apple juice at the
[52:32] grocery store. If it doesn't
[52:34] include over 50% content of
[52:38] fruit juice, it's considered
[52:40] pop and it's taxed. You'd have
[52:42] to go to state law to actually
[52:44] read that. So prepared meals
[52:46] and take out food are taxed
[52:49] right now and will be an
[52:52] increase on the taxes on those
[52:54] food products. So I'm just
[52:58] giving you a few examples of
[53:00] the complexity of this taxing
[53:01] policy. And these are not
[53:03] luxury items. These are food
[53:05] purchased by working people who
[53:07] may not have the time, money or
[53:08] ability to prepare every meal
[53:10] from scratch. The legal
[53:12] definition of exempt groceries
[53:13] does not match what ordinary
[53:16] people understand. The word
[53:17] food to mean, and the proposal
[53:20] also comes at the height of
[53:23] cost of living crisis. Let's
[53:26] call it Lakewood. Sales tax is
[53:28] already increased. You've
[53:29] already taken in more revenue
[53:32] off the pain that consumers are
[53:34] facing. And while I understand
[53:37] city will turn around and say,
[53:38] well, cost more to build a
[53:39] street or something, citizens
[53:41] are also right now paying more
[53:43] because food is more expensive
[53:47] and a whole long list of other
[53:48] things. The comparables
[53:52] Englewood. Edgewater was on the
[53:54] comparable list. Edgewater
[53:55] doesn't have a property tax.
[53:57] Lakewood does. So it's very
[54:00] hard. We'll go back to you
[54:02] literally. It's not an apples
[54:04] to apples comparison. Shouldn't
[54:07] be taxing food more. This
[54:09] measure will do it. And the
[54:11] title is, uh, misleading
[54:14] properly. Thank you.
[54:15] All right. I have no
[54:19] one else signed up to speak on
[54:20] this issue. So we'll go ahead
[54:21] and close the public hearing.
[54:24] And may I please have a motion?
[54:27] Mayor, I move for the adoption
[54:28] of resolution 2020 658.
[54:31] Second.
[54:33] All right. We have a motion on
[54:34] the floor and a second, any
[54:37] council questions? Discussions?
[54:40] Mayor Pro tem sure. Is I.
[54:42] Yes. Thank you. Appreciate the
[54:45] work that went into this. I
[54:47] also am a member of the Budget
[54:48] and Audit Board and appreciate
[54:50] the leadership of Councilor
[54:52] Cruz. This was, um, an
[54:55] opportunity for us to move
[54:56] forward, a priority that we
[54:57] found consensus on as a city
[55:00] council. Early in our year.
[55:01] We've consistently heard from
[55:03] voters that they need to
[55:04] decide, and that's all we're
[55:06] doing. We're sending this to
[55:07] the voters to decide the idea
[55:10] that the city needs to tighten
[55:12] their budget is just
[55:13] fundamentally flawed. When
[55:15] we're asked to do more and
[55:17] respond to an evolving need of
[55:19] a modern community and frankly,
[55:21] a little insulting and sort of
[55:23] feels along the lines of asking
[55:24] us to drink less lattes and eat
[55:26] less avocado toast. And that's
[55:29] going to sort
[55:29] To solve our affordability
[55:31] problems. The reality is things
[55:35] that cost money. And so whether
[55:37] I hope that my peers up here
[55:39] will join in supporting this
[55:40] and sending it to the voters,
[55:41] whether or not you agree with
[55:43] it or, um, or disagree, that's
[55:45] a decision you can make when
[55:47] the ballots are out in your
[55:48] house. Um, let's let Lakewood
[55:50] vote for this and help decide
[55:52] how we meet the community's
[55:53] growing needs and to maintain
[55:54] the quality of life that
[55:55] Lakewood and everyone deserves.
[56:00] Councillor labor.
[56:03] Thanks, mayor. Um, yeah, I was
[56:05] just going to comment. You
[56:06] know, in the ten or so years
[56:07] I've been involved with the
[56:08] council, you know, we've never
[56:10] asked for a tax rate increase.
[56:12] Whether you agree or don't
[56:15] agree with raising the sales
[56:16] tax. You know, I am excited
[56:17] that the Lakewood residents
[56:19] will have the opportunity to
[56:20] make this choice for
[56:21] themselves. Voters will decide
[56:23] on whether they want to invest
[56:24] more in public safety and
[56:26] streets and sidewalks and
[56:28] pedestrian and bicycle
[56:29] infrastructure. I think these
[56:31] are important investments in
[56:33] our community and ultimately,
[56:34] Lakewood residents should
[56:36] decide whether or not they want
[56:37] to make them. I think with
[56:39] this, with the passage of this,
[56:40] November will be their
[56:42] opportunity to weigh in. So I
[56:44] hope it passes. And, uh, hope
[56:46] the residents, you know, look
[56:48] forward to the opportunity to decide.
[56:51] Councilor Ike Cruz.
[56:54] Thank you all and appreciate
[56:56] the the remarks so far. Um, I
[56:59] just wanted to share a that I
[57:01] have really enjoyed the process
[57:03] of this work, both with our
[57:05] budget and audit board, with
[57:06] the great fellow members of
[57:07] council who are on that and
[57:09] with our citizen, our resident
[57:11] members, and really deep diving
[57:13] deep into what is the kind of
[57:16] prognostication of the city's
[57:18] finances. What do people want?
[57:20] How do we dig into delivering
[57:21] on that, and what kind of
[57:22] questions can we ask our
[57:23] community to figure out how we
[57:26] move forward? A shared vision
[57:28] of Lakewood. I think in this
[57:29] process, you know, we figured
[57:30] out it will take probably over
[57:32] 200 years to build all the
[57:33] sidewalks people want. Right?
[57:35] Um, with the current funding
[57:36] that we have, we know that, um,
[57:39] although the city and many of
[57:41] our partners, like those
[57:42] represented in the room, are
[57:43] doing a lot of great work to
[57:45] meet the needs of the on how
[57:47] the unhoused folks, you know,
[57:48] on West Colfax and across the
[57:50] city. Um, that the need is
[57:54] growing and we need to meet
[57:55] this moment and work towards a
[57:57] Lakewood where no one has to
[57:59] sleep outside. Um, and where we
[58:01] meet people's needs. And so I'm
[58:02] really excited with, uh, public
[58:04] safety and then also our
[58:06] traffic calming and pedestrian
[58:09] and bicycle infrastructure
[58:11] improvements that we have
[58:12] gotten so many requests for
[58:14] from people in the community
[58:15] across wards that we get the
[58:17] opportunity to have this
[58:18] conversation as a community.
[58:20] And that's really what this is.
[58:22] As many other folks on council
[58:23] have said, right? This is a
[58:24] question that we're asking
[58:26] folks, and I'm really excited
[58:28] for the opportunity for the
[58:31] democratic process to to work
[58:32] through. And I am hopeful that
[58:35] this can open up some new
[58:36] opportunities to build towards
[58:38] a more thriving Lakewood
[58:39] together. So excited to vote
[58:40] yes on sending this to the
[58:41] people. And and going forward
[58:43] from there.
[58:45] Councilor Lowe.
[58:47] Thank you. And thank you,
[58:48] Councillor Cruse, for for your
[58:50] leadership on this process as
[58:51] on so many other things. Um,
[58:53] also member of the Budget Audit
[58:55] Board, um, voted yes. Plan to
[58:57] vote yes tonight. Um, glad to
[58:59] see this move forward. And glad
[59:00] that we're giving our voters a
[59:01] chance to weigh in on this
[59:02] really important issue. Um, you
[59:05] know, look, if you go to the
[59:07] link, just a couple, I want to
[59:09] just one point, the the
[59:10] question was brought up about
[59:12] food and what qualifies as
[59:13] food. Well, the Lakewood code
[59:14] does define food. It defines
[59:16] food as food for home
[59:17] consumption means food for
[59:19] domestic home consumption as
[59:21] defined. And then they use the
[59:22] exact same definition that we
[59:23] use for the federal
[59:24] Supplemental Nutrition
[59:25] Assistance Program, which
[59:26] covers all groceries. It then
[59:29] stipulates that food does not
[59:30] include carbonated water,
[59:32] marketing containers, chewing
[59:33] gum seeds, and plants to grow
[59:35] food, prepared salads and salad
[59:37] bars, packaged and unpacked
[59:39] cold sandwiches, deli trays,
[59:41] and hot or cold beverages
[59:43] served in containers or cups
[59:44] that are vented by or through
[59:45] machines or non coin operated
[59:48] coin collecting food and snack
[59:49] devices. So there are a couple
[59:50] of exceptions, but they're
[59:51] extremely narrow. Food is
[59:53] carved out and and food the way
[59:56] that anyone conceives of food
[59:57] other than that very, very
[59:59] specific list of exceptions is
[1:00:01] exempt from the sales tax. So I
[1:00:02] did just want to want to speak
[1:00:04] to that since it came up in the
[1:00:05] comments. You know, the if you
[1:00:07] look at just the language of
[1:00:09] what we're referring, it says
[1:00:10] public safety purposes,
[1:00:11] including investing in crime
[1:00:13] prevention and homelessness
[1:00:14] response and traffic safety
[1:00:16] improvements, including
[1:00:17] maintenance and construction of
[1:00:18] streets and sidewalks, road
[1:00:20] improvements to reduce vehicle
[1:00:21] speeds, and pedestrian and
[1:00:23] bicycle safety enhancements.
[1:00:24] And, you know, we really do
[1:00:25] have a need in Lakewood for
[1:00:27] greater investments in both of
[1:00:28] those buckets. I'm really
[1:00:32] excited about the potential and
[1:00:33] the possibility of having a
[1:00:35] really, you know, robust,
[1:00:36] inclusive, community based
[1:00:37] process for how we could invest
[1:00:39] additional resources in
[1:00:40] effective, proven programs that
[1:00:42] actually reduce crime to
[1:00:44] prevent crime rather than
[1:00:45] addressing it. I think these
[1:00:47] funds would open up that
[1:00:48] possibility in a really
[1:00:49] exciting way. Um, we
[1:00:51] desperately do need more
[1:00:52] funding for sidewalks and
[1:00:54] traffic calming, more funding
[1:00:56] for traffic calming, much more.
[1:00:58] And this would really you know,
[1:01:00] I've heard that over and over.
[1:01:01] I can't tell you how many folks
[1:01:02] in Ward three have weighed in
[1:01:04] on their desire for more
[1:01:06] funding for speed bumps and
[1:01:07] speed humps and speed cushions
[1:01:09] and and bump outs and other
[1:01:12] design improvements that would
[1:01:14] reduce speed. And this funding
[1:01:16] would would potentially enable
[1:01:17] that. And final thought I'm
[1:01:21] going to be voting for this.
[1:01:22] And I'm I'm enthusiastic about
[1:01:23] saying this to the voters. I
[1:01:25] also do just want to name and
[1:01:26] acknowledge that, like our
[1:01:27] voters are concerned about
[1:01:30] affordability. And I get that.
[1:01:31] I genuinely get that. And I
[1:01:33] want to name that they are
[1:01:33] going to have a couple of other
[1:01:35] revenue measures on the ballot,
[1:01:36] too. And I think a number of
[1:01:37] those revenue measures are
[1:01:38] actually important. And I don't
[1:01:42] want anyone to read this vote,
[1:01:43] this referral to the voters as
[1:01:45] like us predicting that this is
[1:01:46] a slam dunk. I actually don't
[1:01:48] think it is. I think this is
[1:01:49] going to be a very this has the
[1:01:51] potential to be a very close,
[1:01:52] um, close election. I agree
[1:01:54] with what the mayor pro tem
[1:01:55] said. We're asking our voters a
[1:01:57] question. We're asking them,
[1:01:58] how do you feel about the sales
[1:01:59] tax going from 3 to 3.5%? It
[1:02:02] would still be one of the
[1:02:03] lowest sales tax rates in the
[1:02:04] metro region. And I think we
[1:02:06] should make that point. But
[1:02:07] ultimately, you know, under
[1:02:08] Tabor, the voters get a chance
[1:02:10] to decide. And I think, um, I
[1:02:12] think particularly given given
[1:02:13] everything on the ballot,
[1:02:14] that's that's actually healthy,
[1:02:16] uh, on on this question, um, I
[1:02:19] think it's good that the voters
[1:02:20] have the ultimate say on this.
[1:02:21] I don't know what we're going
[1:02:22] to get back. I genuinely don't,
[1:02:23] but what I'm voting for tonight
[1:02:25] is the chance to sort of not be
[1:02:27] gatekeeper on this present. You
[1:02:29] know, the the case, the, the
[1:02:30] funding opportunity, what it
[1:02:32] would fund to the voters and
[1:02:33] let our voters answer the
[1:02:34] question up or down, and we
[1:02:36] will see what they come back
[1:02:37] with in November.
[1:02:40] Councilor Fuhrman.
[1:02:44] At the risk of sounding.
[1:02:45] Redundant, um, I.
[1:02:47] Wanted.
[1:02:47] To see something.
[1:02:48] Very similar.
[1:02:48] To that which is essentially.
[1:02:50] While I had the same
[1:02:53] reservation because of people
[1:02:54] have expressed concerns about
[1:02:55] affordability, the belief that
[1:02:59] I might have a strong sense of
[1:03:00] what people do and don't want.
[1:03:01] Uh, I think is a bit of hubris.
[1:03:04] So I look forward to this going
[1:03:05] to the ballot, because I do
[1:03:07] think this is and I actually I
[1:03:10] know this has been narrowly
[1:03:11] defined based on the survey
[1:03:12] they've seen. And based on
[1:03:15] that, I think this should be a
[1:03:16] clear decision by the public.
[1:03:18] And so support the support the
[1:03:20] ballot.
[1:03:23] Councilor Kate Cruz yeah.
[1:03:26] So I guess a question I have
[1:03:27] for the budget, budget and
[1:03:29] audit board or staff, um, the
[1:03:32] resolution obviously exempts
[1:03:34] food. Was there any
[1:03:36] consideration to exempting
[1:03:39] anything else? So we know that
[1:03:41] OS Metro Fire District is
[1:03:44] putting something forward
[1:03:45] similar to a sales tax
[1:03:48] increase, but they exempt, um,
[1:03:51] medicine and gas. Was there any
[1:03:54] consideration when this was
[1:03:56] brought up to the board?
[1:03:59] Would you like to respond?
[1:04:01] Thank you and thank you,
[1:04:03] councillor K Cruz. I think that is a really important
[1:04:06] conversation. And so the scope
[1:04:09] of work that we all talked
[1:04:10] about was how are we thinking
[1:04:13] about approaching kind of
[1:04:14] revenue more broadly and less
[1:04:16] like how are we digging into
[1:04:18] the specifics of our sales tax?
[1:04:20] And so we didn't dive further
[1:04:22] with the time that we had to
[1:04:24] think about how to, uh, broaden
[1:04:27] those exemptions, which I do
[1:04:29] think is a conversation that I
[1:04:31] would like to have. And I know
[1:04:32] a lot of other cities have had
[1:04:33] with some of these pieces. And
[1:04:35] so I think that that was a
[1:04:36] missed opportunity. And I think
[1:04:38] that West Metro fire, this is
[1:04:40] the first time they're going to
[1:04:42] be charging sales tax. And so I
[1:04:43] think they had a little bit of
[1:04:44] a different starting position
[1:04:46] from what from the conversation
[1:04:47] that they could have. Um, and
[1:04:49] so I would love to kind of have
[1:04:51] a conversation moving forward
[1:04:53] about thinking broadly about
[1:04:55] the things that people exempt
[1:04:56] from sales tax. I know other
[1:04:59] municipalities look at diapers
[1:05:00] specifically or formula other
[1:05:02] pieces. And so I don't think I
[1:05:05] personally didn't think we had
[1:05:07] the, the time that that
[1:05:09] conversation merited to really
[1:05:11] think about it holistically.
[1:05:12] But I think it's an important
[1:05:13] piece and understand the
[1:05:15] concern around affordability
[1:05:16] for those essential items.
[1:05:19] So I guess the question I have
[1:05:20] is if we wanted to broaden that
[1:05:22] exemption, do we have time to
[1:05:24] do that? Or is tonight the
[1:05:28] final decision on the ballot
[1:05:29] question.
[1:05:29] Yeah. So I think we only have
[1:05:31] and correct me if I'm wrong,
[1:05:32] but I think we only have a
[1:05:33] couple of days before the final
[1:05:35] language would be due to the
[1:05:36] county. Um, and then I think
[1:05:38] that that would also put us in
[1:05:39] a position where our broader
[1:05:42] sales tax is collected in one
[1:05:44] way, and then this portion of
[1:05:45] sales tax is collected in
[1:05:46] another way, in a way that
[1:05:47] might create some, um,
[1:05:49] administrative issues that
[1:05:51] could make this a bit more
[1:05:53] challenging than potentially
[1:05:55] the next couple of days could
[1:05:56] take on. So, um, again, I think
[1:05:59] broader conversation and I, at
[1:06:01] least from my perspective, like
[1:06:02] now is a bit of a challenging
[1:06:03] time to do that.
[1:06:05] Okay. Thank you. You know,
[1:06:06] thinking this through also
[1:06:08] stakeholder with West Metro
[1:06:10] Fire, one of the biggest
[1:06:11] concerns I had was would there
[1:06:13] be competition? After speaking
[1:06:15] with government affairs
[1:06:17] individual with the department,
[1:06:19] they don't feel that that is
[1:06:20] the case, which made me feel a
[1:06:22] lot better. Um, I guess the
[1:06:24] biggest thing is just probing
[1:06:26] and putting to staff. If we
[1:06:27] could have that coordination
[1:06:29] conversation with West Metro
[1:06:31] Fire regarding approach and
[1:06:33] timing. Um, you know, I
[1:06:36] completely am supportive of
[1:06:37] sending this to the voters and
[1:06:39] letting them decide. I just
[1:06:40] want to make sure that the
[1:06:41] right stakeholder is done. Um,
[1:06:43] and that when it comes down to,
[1:06:46] you know, the items that we're
[1:06:48] selecting, uh, to exempt that list potentially gets
[1:06:52] looked at moving forward.
[1:06:55] Councilor Nystrom.
[1:06:58] Thank you. Thank you.
[1:06:59] Um, I just want to say thanks
[1:07:01] for the efforts that went into
[1:07:03] this. I know there was a lot of
[1:07:03] work done on this, and I think
[1:07:06] it is an imperative thing for
[1:07:08] the community at this point.
[1:07:10] Um, my concern remains with,
[1:07:12] um, if you look at the actual
[1:07:15] survey questions, um,
[1:07:18] sustainability initiatives was
[1:07:20] categorized as energy
[1:07:21] efficiency and water
[1:07:22] conservation. And that's great,
[1:07:24] except for the fact that we
[1:07:25] have a serious health crisis
[1:07:28] with our air quality. We've
[1:07:29] already had 42 air quality
[1:07:31] alerts this summer. And if you
[1:07:33] recall, during our winter, that
[1:07:34] wasn't really a winter. We had
[1:07:37] also air quality alerts during
[1:07:39] the winter months. Um, so this
[1:07:42] isn't air quality and
[1:07:45] initiatives that go along with,
[1:07:47] um, reducing our greenhouse gas
[1:07:49] emissions as a city and a
[1:07:51] community. These are not like
[1:07:53] survey questions. These are
[1:07:55] imperatives. Um, we have
[1:07:57] statutory requirements for
[1:07:59] them. And I would really, um,
[1:08:02] like to emphasize the fact that
[1:08:04] not allocating any of this
[1:08:06] money towards that is
[1:08:07] concerning to me. Um, but
[1:08:11] again, I want to thank, thank
[1:08:13] everybody for the work that
[1:08:14] they've done on this and
[1:08:15] appreciate that.
[1:08:19] All right. Before we move to
[1:08:21] our potential second round of,
[1:08:24] um, hands up, I will give my
[1:08:26] comments. Um, I am wildly
[1:08:30] supportive of putting this
[1:08:31] forward to the voters. My
[1:08:33] preference would be that we
[1:08:35] take a year and learn a little
[1:08:37] bit more about what the very
[1:08:39] detailed needs and desires are
[1:08:41] for our community. Um, you
[1:08:43] know, homeless is a perfect
[1:08:44] example there. We can we can
[1:08:47] look at that one. Um, some of
[1:08:50] our residents honestly might be
[1:08:52] dismissive about putting more
[1:08:53] money in that area. But I want
[1:08:55] to be really, really clear.
[1:08:56] That is the top thing that we
[1:08:59] hear from our community every
[1:09:01] single day of a request to
[1:09:04] solve a problem. This impacts
[1:09:06] our small businesses. This
[1:09:08] impacts our big businesses. It
[1:09:09] impacts all of our businesses.
[1:09:10] It impacts our residents that
[1:09:12] are here and in homes that are
[1:09:13] paying property taxes and sales
[1:09:15] taxes every single day. There's
[1:09:18] very much a need. I would love
[1:09:19] to see us coalesce around more
[1:09:21] specificity for this particular
[1:09:24] ballot measure. So I'll be a no
[1:09:27] tonight as far as just putting
[1:09:28] it forward for 2026. But I am
[1:09:31] very supportive of this
[1:09:33] conversation in general and
[1:09:35] moving forward. So I just
[1:09:36] wanted to be clear about what
[1:09:38] those intentions were. And that
[1:09:40] was all I had to say on that
[1:09:41] topic. Uh, Councilor Labor,
[1:09:43] your hand is back up.
[1:09:46] Oops. Thanks, mayor. Well, I
[1:09:48] was just gonna briefly comment.
[1:09:49] I think the about the exemption
[1:09:51] discussion that was brought up.
[1:09:53] I definitely think there's some
[1:09:54] opportunity in places to
[1:09:56] continue to have that
[1:09:57] conversation. I was trying to
[1:09:58] look up the old ordinance, but
[1:10:00] I also just had PTSD. When you
[1:10:02] mentioned exemptions, because I
[1:10:04] do remember in 2020, we had a
[1:10:05] robust conversation about
[1:10:06] exemptions. And one of the
[1:10:07] major topics, of course, was
[1:10:09] medical supplies, where I
[1:10:10] believe, and I was trying to
[1:10:11] look for the red line, where we
[1:10:12] did extend a number of medical
[1:10:15] exemptions. I also remember
[1:10:16] getting rid of a few as well.
[1:10:17] But anyway, just want to bring
[1:10:19] it up. I, you know, I think
[1:10:20] there's always room to talk
[1:10:21] about, you know, how to carve
[1:10:22] up these things. But, um, it
[1:10:25] did bring back some old
[1:10:26] memories of, of some of those
[1:10:27] discussions. Thanks.
[1:10:30] Thank you. And that is our last
[1:10:32] hand up. So with that, we do
[1:10:34] have a motion. Right. And a
[1:10:36] second already.
[1:10:37] I don't think so.
[1:10:39] Oh we went. okay okay. All
[1:10:42] right. We have a motion on the
[1:10:43] floor. And a second please go
[1:10:45] ahead and cast your votes. All
[1:10:53] right. And that fails or I'm
[1:10:57] sorry that that passes. Eight
[1:10:59] yeses, two nos. The nose being
[1:11:01] strong and Kate Cruz. Will the
[1:11:07] clerk please read item eight
[1:11:12] into the record.?
[1:11:15] Item eight B second reading and
[1:11:17] public hearing on O 2026.
[1:11:20] AA.
[1:11:21] Excuse me. Yeah. Thank you.
[1:11:23] Item eight second reading
[1:11:24] public hearing on O 2020 2629
[1:11:26] authorizing a supplemental
[1:11:27] appropriations to the 2026
[1:11:29] annual budget in the amount of
[1:11:31] $225,000 in general fund to pay
[1:11:33] for the expenses related to the
[1:11:34] general election to be held on
[1:11:36] November 3rd, 2026.
[1:11:39] Okay. Thank you. And we do for
[1:11:42] this topic. Have a staff
[1:11:43] presentation. I understand, Mr.
[1:11:46] Rob.
[1:11:46] Thank you. Mayor. Just quickly,
[1:11:48] um, you know, in response to
[1:11:49] the City Council approving
[1:11:50] three charter amendments that
[1:11:52] your previous meeting and
[1:11:53] tonight's sales tax question,
[1:11:55] um, all four of those questions
[1:11:56] will be on the ballot of the
[1:11:58] November 3rd, 2026 general
[1:11:59] election. Um, staff estimates
[1:12:01] that the cost of the ballot
[1:12:02] sent to Lakewood voters, um,
[1:12:04] could equal an amount not to
[1:12:05] exceed $225,000. Approval of
[1:12:09] tonight's ordinance, 2020 629
[1:12:11] will appropriate these funds
[1:12:12] from the General Fund reserves
[1:12:13] to the General Fund operating
[1:12:15] budget for the election
[1:12:16] administration costs that will
[1:12:18] be incurred by Jefferson County
[1:12:19] Clerk and Recorder's Office.
[1:12:20] Um, who you all know the city
[1:12:22] is coordinating with through
[1:12:23] the IGA that was approved at
[1:12:25] the previous meeting. Um, yeah.
[1:12:28] And I'll just I'll just leave
[1:12:29] it at that and defer to any
[1:12:30] questions you might have.
[1:12:32] Okay. Counsel, do we have any
[1:12:33] questions? All right. Seeing
[1:12:36] none, we'll go ahead and open
[1:12:37] the public hearing. And I don't
[1:12:39] have anyone signed up to speak
[1:12:40] on item eight a anybody any
[1:12:44] late arrivals want to speak on
[1:12:45] item eight? All right. We'll go
[1:12:47] ahead and close public comment
[1:12:49] on that. Um, may I please have
[1:12:52] a motion?
[1:12:54] Mayor, move for the adoption of
[1:12:55] ordinance 2020 629 on second
[1:12:59] and final reading.
[1:13:00] Second.
[1:13:03] All right. We have a motion on
[1:13:04] the floor. And a second. Any
[1:13:05] additional council discussion?
[1:13:08] Councilor Ike Cruz.
[1:13:10] Thank you. I just wanted to
[1:13:12] take this opportunity to just
[1:13:14] extend another thanks to our
[1:13:16] finance team. I know Miss
[1:13:18] Bjorklund and Mr. Whataburger
[1:13:20] and many other people were
[1:13:21] involved in figuring out how to
[1:13:22] make this supplemental
[1:13:23] appropriation possible. Um, and
[1:13:26] so from both the work that you
[1:13:27] and I know, our team at legal
[1:13:29] did on preparing all the things
[1:13:31] that are going to go to the
[1:13:32] ballot, to making sure that we
[1:13:33] can fund it on the ballot. I
[1:13:34] just wanted to say thank you.
[1:13:40] All right. And with that, I'm
[1:13:45] totally losing track.
[1:13:46] Did you do a motions or just a
[1:13:48] vote?
[1:13:49] All right. Um, please go ahead
[1:13:51] and cast your vote. That passes
[1:13:57] ten yeses and zero nos. Oh.
[1:14:02] It's not. Oh. We'll go ahead
[1:14:11] and try voting again. Please,
[1:14:13] everybody. There we go. Passes.
[1:14:22] Ten zero nos. Now moving on to
[1:14:31] item eight. B will the clerk
[1:14:33] please read eight B into the
[1:14:34] record?
[1:14:34] Second reading and public
[1:14:35] hearing for item 8BO202630. An
[1:14:38] Ordinance to Repeal and Replace
[1:14:39] chapter two point excuse me
[1:14:41] 5.29 of the Lakewood Municipal
[1:14:43] Code pertaining to commercial
[1:14:44] waste hauler licensing.
[1:14:48] All right. Thank you very much.
[1:14:49] And for this topic tonight, we
[1:14:51] do have a staff presentation.
[1:14:53] Um, for we're hearing from
[1:14:56] Katie McCain. She'll give a
[1:14:58] presentation. She is our
[1:15:01] sustainability planner manager.
[1:15:08] Will you give us our full
[1:15:09] title? I don't have it in
[1:15:10] writing here. What is your
[1:15:11] title? I am a.
[1:15:12] Sustainability manager.
[1:15:14] Thank you. Very well. And we
[1:15:16] have MJ here as well as our
[1:15:18] sustainability planner to
[1:15:19] answer questions. Thank you.
[1:15:21] And the floor is yours.
[1:15:23] Awesome. Well welcome everyone.
[1:15:26] Thank you so much for having me
[1:15:27] here tonight to explain this
[1:15:28] item that's on the agenda. So,
[1:15:30] uh, as you all know, Lakewood
[1:15:32] has a licensing code where we
[1:15:35] ask our haulers to be licensed.
[1:15:36] We make sure we have them
[1:15:38] licensed just for public safety
[1:15:40] and accountability. And it's
[1:15:41] basically just an
[1:15:41] administrative process and
[1:15:43] procedures. We have about 30
[1:15:45] licensed haulers on average.
[1:15:47] Um, about half of them are roll
[1:15:49] off companies. And then we have
[1:15:50] a whole bunch, um, there's
[1:15:51] about eight that are
[1:15:52] residential waste haulers. So
[1:15:57] this sustainability advisory
[1:15:58] committee started this fall, as
[1:16:00] you know, and they one of the
[1:16:02] big priorities of this
[1:16:03] committee was to help improve
[1:16:05] some of our residential waste
[1:16:06] programming and systems. So one
[1:16:09] of the big things that came out
[1:16:10] was looking at this new
[1:16:12] statewide program called the
[1:16:14] Extender producer, extended
[1:16:15] Producer Responsibility Program
[1:16:17] that was passed a couple of
[1:16:19] years ago and is recently
[1:16:20] coming into effect. So the
[1:16:23] committee actually reviewed
[1:16:24] this, reviewed the code in a
[1:16:26] lot of detail at four public
[1:16:28] meetings. There was a lot of
[1:16:29] opportunity for great public
[1:16:31] comment. And the committee
[1:16:32] ultimately unanimously
[1:16:34] recommended to take these
[1:16:35] changes to City council for
[1:16:37] your consideration. And that's
[1:16:38] where we're here tonight. So
[1:16:41] basically, the main update here
[1:16:42] is because of this EPR program.
[1:16:44] And basically this is just a
[1:16:46] the point is just to pass on
[1:16:48] free recycling to our
[1:16:49] residents. So if you haven't
[1:16:51] heard free recycling is coming
[1:16:53] to Lakewood. I know you've all
[1:16:54] heard this. Um, basically it's
[1:16:57] free because it's shifting that
[1:16:58] cost from residents and local
[1:17:00] governments to those producers
[1:17:02] that are creating the
[1:17:03] packaging. Uh, and that
[1:17:06] ultimately is incentivizing
[1:17:07] them to produce less, uh,
[1:17:09] packaging materials that can't
[1:17:10] be recycled. So waste haulers
[1:17:13] are reimbursed for these
[1:17:14] recycling costs through the
[1:17:15] statewide program. We just want
[1:17:17] them to participate in it. So
[1:17:18] this reimbursement makes it
[1:17:19] possible for the haulers to
[1:17:21] actually provide this recycling
[1:17:22] to residents at no cost. But
[1:17:25] the participation is voluntary,
[1:17:27] so haulers can choose not to
[1:17:28] participate. So without a local
[1:17:30] requirement, they don't
[1:17:32] necessarily have to participate
[1:17:34] in the program. And they could
[1:17:35] continue charging our Lakewood
[1:17:37] residents for recycling. And we
[1:17:38] don't want to see that. So that
[1:17:40] was really the the big purpose
[1:17:42] of updating this code. Uh, just
[1:17:44] requiring all the license
[1:17:45] haulers that already offer
[1:17:46] residential recycling to
[1:17:48] participate in the program and
[1:17:49] give it to our residents for
[1:17:50] free. There were a couple other
[1:17:54] smaller updates, so I just went
[1:17:55] over the first one, um, as the
[1:17:57] committee went through this,
[1:17:58] there were a few sort of
[1:18:00] outdated terms and some items
[1:18:02] that we really felt like we
[1:18:04] could strengthen in the code.
[1:18:05] So the committee made a couple
[1:18:07] other recommendations. So just
[1:18:08] a quick summary of other
[1:18:10] definitions. We adjusted the
[1:18:11] administrative process. So this
[1:18:13] is no longer a rolling
[1:18:14] timeline. When haulers can
[1:18:16] apply we'll do it at the same
[1:18:17] time every year. That's a lot
[1:18:19] easier for staff. It's a lot
[1:18:20] easier for the haulers. It's
[1:18:21] easier for everyone. Uh, and we
[1:18:23] added some enforcement, uh,
[1:18:24] ability into it too. So what do
[1:18:27] these changes mean for our
[1:18:28] residents? They they really
[1:18:30] residents really shouldn't
[1:18:31] notice any any changes. The
[1:18:33] biggest benefit is just
[1:18:34] expanded access to the free
[1:18:36] curbside recycling. Um, and
[1:18:38] another really neat benefit
[1:18:39] that's sort of a side benefit
[1:18:41] is now our online list of
[1:18:42] haulers will actually be very
[1:18:44] updated because we'll be doing
[1:18:46] the licensing process once a
[1:18:48] year instead of every couple of
[1:18:50] weeks when anyone or anyone
[1:18:51] applies. So, uh, we also
[1:18:53] reached out to our local
[1:18:54] haulers and said, hey, we want
[1:18:56] your input on this. We want to
[1:18:57] make sure we don't have any
[1:18:58] unintended consequences. And
[1:19:00] the haulers are actually really
[1:19:01] excited about this. It'll boost
[1:19:02] their business. So we think
[1:19:03] it'll be a really neat, smooth
[1:19:04] transition. There are a couple,
[1:19:08] uh, staff edits that we sort of
[1:19:10] looked at to clean it up a
[1:19:11] little bit after the
[1:19:12] Sustainability Advisory
[1:19:13] Committee move this forward.
[1:19:16] Uh, I'll run through them
[1:19:17] really quickly. And if you all
[1:19:18] would like to take action on
[1:19:19] them tonight, you certainly
[1:19:20] can. Uh, of course, don't have
[1:19:21] to. So these updates are not in
[1:19:23] the code currently. So, uh, a
[1:19:26] residential recycling service
[1:19:27] provider, we just added the
[1:19:29] words including multifamily at
[1:19:30] the end of this because in our
[1:19:33] code, uh, multifamily is
[1:19:35] generally considered commercial.
[1:19:37] Uh, and in EPR, multifamily is
[1:19:39] included in the free recycling.
[1:19:41] So we just want to make sure
[1:19:42] that that was captured. And I
[1:19:44] appreciate the leadership from
[1:19:45] Council Member Cruz for
[1:19:46] bringing that up. Uh, we also
[1:19:48] noticed a capitalization that I
[1:19:51] wouldn't usually correct, but
[1:19:52] because we've made waste with a
[1:19:54] capital W such a big word with
[1:19:56] A as an umbrella term, we felt
[1:19:58] like this was actually a pretty
[1:19:59] important capitalization to
[1:20:00] correct. Um, in that
[1:20:02] definition. Uh, so now we're
[1:20:05] saying waste is the top, and
[1:20:07] then we have recyclables,
[1:20:08] organics, and trash underneath
[1:20:10] those. And then in the waste
[1:20:12] hauler requirements, this
[1:20:14] actually came up with the
[1:20:15] Sustainability Advisory
[1:20:16] Committee. And I, I'm not sure
[1:20:18] how it didn't end up making it
[1:20:20] in the final version. But what
[1:20:21] happens if that program no
[1:20:22] longer exists? We don't want to
[1:20:23] have to go in and edit this
[1:20:24] code again. So we added this
[1:20:26] verbiage just to cover our
[1:20:28] bases there. Um, and then D
[1:20:30] again is just a definition. We
[1:20:32] want to make sure we're using
[1:20:33] the right term. Since waste is
[1:20:34] the umbrella term and trash is
[1:20:36] underneath. So those were the
[1:20:38] recommended changes. And if
[1:20:39] there are any questions I'm
[1:20:40] happy to answer them.
[1:20:42] Thank you Council. Do we have
[1:20:44] any questions. Mayor Pro Tem
[1:20:47] sure is I.
[1:20:50] don't mean to be first. Every
[1:20:52] time. Um, I had a couple
[1:20:55] questions. Thank you. Excited.
[1:20:58] In 2017 and I was at many a
[1:21:01] community table talking about
[1:21:02] the same topic. So excited to
[1:21:04] see the leadership coming out
[1:21:05] of the Sustainability Committee
[1:21:06] to bring this back. Um, you
[1:21:09] mentioned that haulers were
[1:21:11] talked to and there was no
[1:21:12] concern. So I just wanted like
[1:21:14] really double down on that
[1:21:15] point. We don't think that this
[1:21:17] is going to dissuade haulers
[1:21:18] from wanting to work in
[1:21:19] Lakewood.
[1:21:20] Correct.
[1:21:21] What what's the reasoning for
[1:21:23] limited? Um, EPR participation
[1:21:27] now, like, is it mandated now
[1:21:29] because you mentioned that they
[1:21:30] hadn't, um, registered to
[1:21:32] participate in the program?
[1:21:34] Haulers have the choice of
[1:21:36] participating. So that's why in
[1:21:38] this code, we're saying if you
[1:21:39] are doing residential
[1:21:40] recycling, we want you to
[1:21:41] participate.
[1:21:42] Got it. And then I so
[1:21:45] colleagues who maybe have a
[1:21:47] better understanding of the EPR
[1:21:50] code, I went back and looked at
[1:21:51] the 2022 legislation, and I was
[1:21:54] having a tough time. How do
[1:21:55] what's the insurance that the
[1:21:57] savings are passed on to the
[1:21:58] consumers and they don't remain
[1:22:01] with the hauler? I don't know
[1:22:02] if that's a question for staff
[1:22:04] or if someone on council can
[1:22:05] answer that.
[1:22:07] When the hauler signs up to be
[1:22:09] part of the program, they have
[1:22:11] a process. They get approved to
[1:22:12] be an approved hauler in the
[1:22:13] program, and then they have a
[1:22:15] reimbursement process where
[1:22:16] they show their receipts, and
[1:22:18] then the state reimburses them.
[1:22:19] So they there is proof needed
[1:22:21] to show that they're providing
[1:22:22] that benefit back to the
[1:22:23] consumer. Correct. Okay. Thank
[1:22:25] you.
[1:22:28] Councilor sinks.
[1:22:31] Yeah.
[1:22:32] Thank you for your work on
[1:22:33] this. Um, I'm excited to see
[1:22:37] this come about. Um, just a
[1:22:40] point of clarification. The
[1:22:42] other amendments, um, .020 and
[1:22:47] 060, is that also covered? So
[1:22:48] as we we vote on the commercial
[1:22:52] waste, taller licensing, do we
[1:22:54] need a is that are those
[1:22:57] definitions. And the small W is that covered or do we need
[1:23:02] an amendment to add that I'm
[1:23:04] getting a thumbs up.
[1:23:06] There would be amendments.
[1:23:07] That'll be an amendment.
[1:23:08] Yeah. Yes okay. Is it
[1:23:10] appropriate now to make an
[1:23:12] amendment. Or is somebody doing
[1:23:13] that.
[1:23:14] Councilor Nystrom, were you
[1:23:16] planning?
[1:23:17] Yeah.
[1:23:18] We got it covered.
[1:23:19] They got it covered, of course.
[1:23:20] Thank you very much. Thanks for
[1:23:23] your work on this. And, um,
[1:23:25] it's quite amazing. It's going
[1:23:27] to be a wonderful neighbor.
[1:23:29] Said thank you for free
[1:23:30] recycling. Well, I'm not the
[1:23:33] one, but, um, it's a team
[1:23:35] effort, and it's going to be
[1:23:37] really great to see that. Thank
[1:23:38] you.
[1:23:40] Councillor Lowe.
[1:23:43] Thank you, miss McCain. Um, you
[1:23:45] know, you and your team are
[1:23:47] just just awesome. And I've
[1:23:50] gotten such good feedback for
[1:23:51] the the work that the
[1:23:52] sustainability team is doing
[1:23:54] from many of my constituents.
[1:23:55] Folks are over the moon about
[1:23:57] the composting and how well
[1:23:58] that's been rolling out. I've
[1:23:59] gotten great feedback on that,
[1:24:01] gotten great feedback on a
[1:24:02] number of different programs.
[1:24:03] So kudos. Were just so grateful
[1:24:05] to you. It's I it's definitely
[1:24:07] an area of the city where I
[1:24:08] feel like the feedback is is
[1:24:09] overwhelmingly positive, which
[1:24:10] is quite a trick to pull off
[1:24:11] when it comes to local
[1:24:12] government. So, um, kudos and
[1:24:14] Councilor Nystrom congratulate.
[1:24:15] I know that a lot of work went
[1:24:16] into this. Thank you for for
[1:24:19] getting this to us and all your
[1:24:20] work on this. I'm really
[1:24:21] excited to vote yes on this.
[1:24:23] Um, I think this is great. 1 or
[1:24:25] 2 questions, miss McGee. I
[1:24:27] definitely don't wanna put you
[1:24:28] on the spot. I usually try to
[1:24:29] not do that. So if I if I do
[1:24:31] that inadvertently, apologies.
[1:24:32] Feel free to get back to me
[1:24:33] later. It's fine. Um, do do we
[1:24:37] very roughly know of the
[1:24:39] current Lakewood residents who
[1:24:41] utilize recycling? Like about
[1:24:43] how many of them currently have
[1:24:44] free recycling versus pay or
[1:24:46] pay through their HOA? Is it
[1:24:47] like, is it like. I mean, it
[1:24:49] sounds like there is a
[1:24:50] substantial chunk of the city
[1:24:51] that doesn't yet have access to the, you know, the the cost
[1:24:55] free recycling that this I, I'm
[1:24:57] just curious, like how many
[1:24:59] people are we talking about
[1:25:00] that will be able to to change?
[1:25:02] There are not many people
[1:25:03] recycling to begin with because
[1:25:05] it's a fee right now, and the
[1:25:06] program is starting to roll out
[1:25:08] this fall. But I don't imagine
[1:25:10] the free recycling will
[1:25:11] actually start. It all depends
[1:25:13] on when each residents hauler
[1:25:15] actually signs up and starts
[1:25:16] participating in the program.
[1:25:18] So that's going to start
[1:25:19] happening this fall through the
[1:25:20] winter. And it will all the
[1:25:22] rollout will all depend on your
[1:25:23] individual hauler.
[1:25:25] Got it. Um, what I mean, if
[1:25:27] it's if it's easy and feasible,
[1:25:29] it'd be is we communicate, you
[1:25:31] know, sort of the impact of
[1:25:32] this to constituents, I think
[1:25:33] would be helpful to just be
[1:25:34] able to say, you know, this is how many folks over
[1:25:38] overtime have sort of we can
[1:25:40] confidently say we've been able
[1:25:41] to, you know, help them access
[1:25:43] these free recycling services.
[1:25:45] It would certainly be
[1:25:46] interested in getting that some
[1:25:47] statistics like that, if those
[1:25:49] are gettable after this goes
[1:25:50] into effect.
[1:25:51] Absolutely.
[1:25:51] Um, you know, I, I totally
[1:25:54] understand that this is not the
[1:25:56] point of what we're doing
[1:25:57] tonight, but just while we're
[1:25:58] talking about sort of hauler
[1:25:59] licensing, um, you know, the, extended producer
[1:26:04] responsibility of the licensing
[1:26:05] changes we're doing, these are
[1:26:06] thoughtful. These are these are
[1:26:07] very well tailored. I mean, I
[1:26:09] know in parallel, not this
[1:26:12] ordinance, but in parallel,
[1:26:13] there has been a sort of a
[1:26:15] running conversation like, what
[1:26:16] about, gosh, we've got a lot of
[1:26:17] different, um, you know, there
[1:26:20] certainly are a lot of
[1:26:21] different large trucks that run
[1:26:22] through our roads and add to
[1:26:24] our missions and add to the air
[1:26:26] quality problem that Councilor
[1:26:27] Nystrom has. Um, has has zeroed
[1:26:31] in on, um, from this dais over
[1:26:34] the last couple of years. Um, I
[1:26:36] mean, I'm just I'm just
[1:26:36] interested generally in what
[1:26:38] we're talking about in curbside
[1:26:39] residential waste in, like my
[1:26:41] understanding is, is, is you
[1:26:43] all maybe have gotten some
[1:26:44] grants late lately and to sort
[1:26:46] of build on the this ordinance
[1:26:47] that there might be
[1:26:48] opportunities to sort of pursue
[1:26:50] a slightly more streamlined
[1:26:51] approach so that we don't have
[1:26:52] quite as many large trucks
[1:26:54] rumbling through our streets,
[1:26:55] adding to our emissions over
[1:26:56] time. Although I understand we
[1:26:57] want to do that extremely
[1:26:59] thoughtfully, intentionally,
[1:27:00] and in the right way. Could you
[1:27:02] just update us on, like, the
[1:27:04] your team's current thinking on
[1:27:05] that front?
[1:27:06] Sure. It's a great question. As
[1:27:08] staff, we hear that all the
[1:27:09] time too. So it's interesting
[1:27:11] that council hears the same
[1:27:13] concerns. We, uh, we because we
[1:27:16] hear it from so many people. We
[1:27:19] had applied for a grant to do
[1:27:20] some public outreach and
[1:27:21] engagement to try to understand
[1:27:24] what what does the community
[1:27:25] want? Would they like to see
[1:27:26] and how should we be improving
[1:27:28] residential waste collection?
[1:27:29] So, uh, we're in the process of
[1:27:32] contracting with that grant
[1:27:33] now, and we hope that process
[1:27:35] will start real soon and would
[1:27:36] love to keep you all engaged in
[1:27:38] that.
[1:27:38] Well, sometimes I feel like we
[1:27:40] use the word signal up here way
[1:27:41] too often. I want to I want to
[1:27:44] use the word signal a little
[1:27:45] bit less and use the word do
[1:27:47] and pass and and act a little
[1:27:48] bit more. But for tonight, I'm
[1:27:50] going to signal that I am very
[1:27:52] pro, uh, you know, having a
[1:27:54] chance to sort of continue to
[1:27:55] build on this work by, um,
[1:27:57] doing what we can to kind of
[1:27:58] streamline this process. It
[1:28:00] does feel to me like there's an
[1:28:01] awful lot of different large
[1:28:03] trucks run by many different
[1:28:05] vendors. It feels like a real
[1:28:06] opportunity for us to sort of
[1:28:07] make some progress toward our
[1:28:08] carbon reduction goals. That I know you are, are laser
[1:28:12] focused on, Councillor Nystrom.
[1:28:13] So I'm hoping that maybe as
[1:28:14] your team, does that work? Um,
[1:28:16] and funded by that grant over
[1:28:18] the next year, that it'll, tee up opportunities for
[1:28:20] further action on this front.
[1:28:26] Councillor Labour and then
[1:28:28] councillor Nystrom.
[1:28:30] Thanks, mayor. Yeah I just want
[1:28:32] to comment. Really, I don't
[1:28:33] have a question, but I just
[1:28:34] want to say I'm excited about
[1:28:35] this. I think updating our our
[1:28:38] hauler license is a is a big
[1:28:39] win for Lakewood. I think many
[1:28:41] people in the city and councils
[1:28:43] now and past have fought years
[1:28:45] to expand our recycling, um,
[1:28:47] and make it more accessible and
[1:28:49] move Lakewood towards a real
[1:28:51] zero waste future. So, you
[1:28:53] know, I think with this, we'll
[1:28:54] get, you know, more recycling,
[1:28:55] stronger accountability and
[1:28:56] lower costs for residents. So I
[1:28:58] think it's a big win. I'm
[1:28:59] excited to see it and looking
[1:29:00] forward to voting yes.
[1:29:04] Councillor Nystrom.
[1:29:05] Thank you, mayor. I just want
[1:29:07] to say thank you. Um, as
[1:29:09] passionate as Councillor Lowe
[1:29:11] is on many topics, I think MJ
[1:29:13] could probably match you on
[1:29:14] this topic. Um, and she came
[1:29:16] into this discussion. You know,
[1:29:19] she had it wired and was very
[1:29:21] passionate about it and really
[1:29:22] helped us through all the
[1:29:23] hoops. Um, we had a lot of
[1:29:25] support from staff and in the
[1:29:27] legal team as well. So I just
[1:29:29] want to express my appreciation
[1:29:31] for that and being able to pull
[1:29:33] this together in the limited
[1:29:34] time that we had to do it. So
[1:29:35] thank you.
[1:29:38] Councillor Singh's.
[1:29:40] , thank you. To follow up on
[1:29:43] something you said, like, when
[1:29:45] would residents see the
[1:29:48] savings? And you said something
[1:29:50] like, it depends on, uh, when
[1:29:53] the hauler implements it, is it
[1:29:57] uh, and I read through the
[1:29:59] ordinance and wondered, excuse
[1:30:02] me, is there a time frame? How
[1:30:05] long? Sorry. How long do they
[1:30:07] have?
[1:30:09] Yeah, it's a good question. Um,
[1:30:11] because of the program isn't in
[1:30:13] its final stage yet, it's hard
[1:30:15] to put a timeline to it,
[1:30:16] especially in the ordinance.
[1:30:19] But I hear your point.
[1:30:22] As soon as feasibly possible.
[1:30:24] Yes. How's that? I mean,
[1:30:26] technically, once they get
[1:30:27] their new license, they would
[1:30:28] have to follow the regulation.
[1:30:29] And I believe we put in, like a
[1:30:32] year of grace period. So
[1:30:33] everyone starts in January. So
[1:30:35] that's the timeline. Okay.
[1:30:39] All right. I have no additional
[1:30:41] hands up. So may I please have
[1:30:43] a motion?
[1:30:52] Um.
[1:30:56] First, we shall open the public
[1:30:58] hearing. I have no one signed
[1:31:00] up to speak on this item. Would
[1:31:01] anyone like to speak on this
[1:31:03] issue this evening? All right.
[1:31:07] Seeing none, we'll go ahead and
[1:31:08] close the public hearing. May I
[1:31:09] now please have a motion?
[1:31:11] Mayor, I move for the adoption
[1:31:12] of ordinance. Oh, dash 20 2630
[1:31:15] on second and final reading.
[1:31:17] Second.
[1:31:19] All we have, we have a motion
[1:31:21] on the floor in a second. Uh,
[1:31:22] Councilor Nystrom, the floor is
[1:31:24] yours for your First Amendment.
[1:31:27] Or if you wanted to bulk them
[1:31:29] together, that.
[1:31:30] Yeah, that was exactly what I
[1:31:31] was going to ask. Can we, um,
[1:31:34] make the changes in 020 and 060
[1:31:38] as one amendment, or does that
[1:31:40] need to be separately voted on?
[1:31:47] It's easier if you do it as
[1:31:49] separate amendments to track
[1:31:50] through the city clerk's record
[1:31:53] keeping. If we tie it all
[1:31:54] together, it just gets jumbled.
[1:31:57] So I think we could legally do
[1:31:59] it as one. But we we request
[1:32:02] that you do them. Each one.
[1:32:04] Okay. Thanks. All right. Um,
[1:32:06] mayor, I'd like to move that we
[1:32:08] accept the, um, changes to. We
[1:32:15] should we accept the changes to
[1:32:18] 5.29020 to include multifamily,
[1:32:22] and also to move waste to a
[1:32:26] lower case.
[1:32:28] Second.
[1:32:30] All right. We have a motion on
[1:32:31] the floor. And a second, any
[1:32:32] discussion on that? See? No.
[1:32:35] Hands up. Please go ahead and
[1:32:37] cast your vote. That passes ten
[1:32:43] yeses and zero no's.
[1:32:47] Okay. Um, I also am moving that
[1:32:51] we accept, uh, 5.29.060. Um,
[1:32:56] adding the sentence, as long as
[1:32:58] the program is in effect. So
[1:33:00] any residential recycling
[1:33:02] service provider shall
[1:33:03] participate in Colorado's
[1:33:05] extended responsibility
[1:33:06] Producer Responsibility program
[1:33:08] as long as the program is in
[1:33:10] effect and in item D, change
[1:33:15] waste to trash and same thing
[1:33:18] at the last line. Change waste
[1:33:20] to trash.
[1:33:22] Second.
[1:33:23] All right, we have a motion on
[1:33:25] the floor. And a second any
[1:33:26] discussion on that one. Please
[1:33:29] go ahead and cast your vote.
[1:33:35] That passes ten yeses zero noes.
[1:33:44] Is that the final one you had,
[1:33:46] Councilor Nystrom. Okay, um.
[1:33:49] All right, so the next vote
[1:33:50] would be the ordinance as
[1:33:53] amended. Any additional
[1:33:55] discussion on that? Seeing
[1:33:59] none. Please go ahead and cast
[1:34:00] your votes. That passes ten
[1:34:08] yeses and zero nos. Thank you
[1:34:12] to all of our staff and our
[1:34:14] sustainability committee for
[1:34:16] the work and a legal and
[1:34:18] planning and and counsel for
[1:34:21] all of your work on this issue.
[1:34:24] I remember years and years ago
[1:34:26] moving into Lakewood from
[1:34:27] Denver and being like, what I
[1:34:30] have to pay for recycling now.
[1:34:33] And now that gets to start
[1:34:34] changing. So thank you very
[1:34:36] much for being part of that
[1:34:37] change. All right. That brings
[1:34:39] us to our next portion of
[1:34:43] public comment on items not
[1:34:45] related to this evening's
[1:34:48] agenda. And first up, I have
[1:34:50] Celia Greenman and then Sal Jr.
[1:34:55] I apologize for the
[1:34:56] pronunciation.
[1:35:09] Good evening. Hi, I'm Celia
[1:35:11] Greenman from Ward two. In the
[1:35:14] fall of 2025, when the rezoning
[1:35:17] ordinances were being
[1:35:19] considered, concern was raised
[1:35:21] that there was not sufficient
[1:35:23] parkland protection and
[1:35:25] protection for trees. And
[1:35:27] Councillor Lowe stated that
[1:35:29] there would be time in the
[1:35:31] future to address these issues
[1:35:33] and indeed these were included
[1:35:36] in the eight items identified
[1:35:38] in the June 15th study session.
[1:35:41] So thank you for that. Based on
[1:35:44] the July 8th Planning
[1:35:45] Commission meeting, a majority
[1:35:47] of the commissioners were
[1:35:49] baffled by the question of
[1:35:51] parkland protection as there
[1:35:53] was no chance that parks would
[1:35:56] be developed. But parks do need
[1:35:59] protection from adjacent
[1:36:01] development and to be ignorant
[1:36:04] of the consequences indicates
[1:36:06] that only people are being
[1:36:09] considered in the equation.
[1:36:11] Even the smallest parks are
[1:36:13] sanctuaries for wildlife, maybe
[1:36:15] even bears. In August 2024,
[1:36:19] Planning Commission chair Kip
[1:36:21] Colt Meyer proposed a
[1:36:22] resolution that said the
[1:36:24] Lakewood zoning ordinance
[1:36:25] should be amended to add a
[1:36:27] specific criterion to be
[1:36:29] evaluated on developments
[1:36:31] adjacent to city parks. The
[1:36:34] Planning Commission recommends
[1:36:35] that in reviewing a major site
[1:36:38] plan application, the ordinance
[1:36:41] require the evaluation of the
[1:36:44] potential effects of a park
[1:36:46] adjacent development on the
[1:36:48] habitats within the park,
[1:36:49] including any demonstrable, effects on park
[1:36:54] flora and fauna. However, this
[1:36:58] resolution ultimately failed. 4
[1:37:01] to 1. No surprise there.
[1:37:04] Specifics such as bulk plane
[1:37:06] design and bird friendly glass
[1:37:08] are important to construction
[1:37:10] adjacent to parks because
[1:37:12] habitat does not end at a park
[1:37:15] boundary, it is. It would
[1:37:19] ideally just transition to
[1:37:21] people habitat. Now, on tree
[1:37:25] protection regarding tree
[1:37:27] preservation, yes, there is
[1:37:28] already an ordinance in the
[1:37:30] Lakewood Municipal Code, but
[1:37:32] this could better be labeled
[1:37:34] Tree Replacement Ordinance.
[1:37:36] When was the last time a
[1:37:37] developer presented plans to
[1:37:39] city staff that took into
[1:37:41] account mature trees? No.
[1:37:44] They're measured. They're sawed
[1:37:45] down. They're replaced with
[1:37:47] saplings in appropriate areas.
[1:37:50] These new trees do not provide
[1:37:52] habitat, shade, climate
[1:37:55] moderation and CO2 storage of
[1:38:00] their mature counterparts. And
[1:38:02] again at the July 8th Planning
[1:38:04] Commission meeting, a
[1:38:05] commissioner stated that tree
[1:38:07] should not be used to prevent
[1:38:09] housing supply. But why are
[1:38:12] there no creative designs that
[1:38:14] make use of these mature trees?
[1:38:17] It also should be forbidden.
[1:38:21] There's your time is expired.
[1:38:23] Thank you.
[1:38:24] Sal Giovinco.
[1:38:42] Hello, my name is Sal Giovinco
[1:38:44] I am a resident here of
[1:38:46] Lakewood and I have been for 20
[1:38:48] years. I came here today
[1:38:51] because there's been an ongoing
[1:38:52] problem in my neighborhood with
[1:38:54] homelessness, which I'm sure
[1:38:56] you guys are aware of. Um,
[1:38:58] basically it's just become so
[1:39:00] overwhelming. In the last
[1:39:02] couple of years, I've had to
[1:39:03] call the police over 50 times
[1:39:06] without any action really being
[1:39:08] taken. There's groups that are
[1:39:10] taking over our sidewalks, our
[1:39:11] bus stops, leaving my daughter
[1:39:13] no way to walk to school, no
[1:39:15] way for her to go to the store
[1:39:18] without drugs being blown in
[1:39:19] her face, or for fear of her
[1:39:22] being assaulted sexually or
[1:39:23] physically. Uh, she's 12 years
[1:39:26] old and she should have the
[1:39:27] right to grow up in an area
[1:39:29] that is actually safe for her
[1:39:31] to walk the streets. In the
[1:39:35] last two years, I've seen this
[1:39:36] town transformed into basically
[1:39:38] an embarrassment. I've had to
[1:39:40] call 911. As I mentioned over
[1:39:42] 50 times in the previous 18
[1:39:44] years that I've lived here,
[1:39:45] I've probably had to call the
[1:39:47] police maybe once or twice. My
[1:39:49] corner of Lakewood has been
[1:39:50] overwhelmed and overrun by some
[1:39:53] of the lowest level human
[1:39:54] beings imaginable. They are
[1:39:56] urinating and defecating
[1:39:58] anywhere they like, without
[1:39:59] consequence. When I have called
[1:40:02] the police on this matter, they
[1:40:03] consistently tell me there's
[1:40:05] nothing they should they can do
[1:40:06] and I should talk to the city
[1:40:07] council about it. I've had to
[1:40:10] be. I've had to call because
[1:40:12] I've witnessed too many people
[1:40:13] doing drugs to count. This
[1:40:15] includes people with needles in
[1:40:16] their arms and people that are
[1:40:18] passed out dying. I've had a
[1:40:22] man a couple of times passed
[1:40:23] out less than 100 yards from my
[1:40:25] daughter's window with a needle
[1:40:26] in his arm. He was treated and
[1:40:28] released into our neighborhood
[1:40:29] with no charges. I've witnessed
[1:40:32] people assaulting each other.
[1:40:34] I've been assaulted, and when
[1:40:36] police were called, nothing was
[1:40:37] done. Uh, this is just become
[1:40:40] such a huge problem. I feel
[1:40:41] like we're in a crisis right
[1:40:43] now. And I would hope that we
[1:40:45] would treat it as such. I've
[1:40:48] come here today as a long time
[1:40:49] coach, father, business owner
[1:40:51] and homeowner in Lakewood, and
[1:40:54] I would just like to really get
[1:40:56] some questions answered. Not
[1:40:58] obviously here, but eventually
[1:41:00] maybe they'll be taken up with
[1:41:01] you guys. Uh, just what is the
[1:41:04] plan to take our streets back?
[1:41:06] How are we supposed to be able
[1:41:07] to walk down our sidewalks
[1:41:08] again? What are the home or
[1:41:10] what are the elderly people
[1:41:12] supposed to do? The handicapped
[1:41:13] people, the children of our
[1:41:14] community that we're supposed
[1:41:15] to be protecting? I would like
[1:41:19] to make it a priority. I would
[1:41:20] like to see this council make
[1:41:22] it a priority to protect our
[1:41:23] greatest resource in this
[1:41:24] community, which is our
[1:41:25] children. And I would also like
[1:41:28] that this council consider
[1:41:30] protecting elderly and
[1:41:32] handicapped just as highly.
[1:41:35] Please let the very frustrated
[1:41:36] police department enforce our
[1:41:38] laws again. Please let them
[1:41:40] protect us. Please save our
[1:41:42] community. This is an emergency.
[1:41:47] Thank you.
[1:41:50] And that concludes our second
[1:41:52] portion of non-agenda. General
[1:41:54] public comment. And we move on
[1:41:57] to general business counselor
[1:41:59] Furman, you've got the floor.
[1:42:04] So with the.
[1:42:05] Request for council.
[1:42:06] Action, are the requests for
[1:42:07] information on these.
[1:42:09] I, you have to bear with me. Do
[1:42:12] I need to make a motion first
[1:42:14] or I describe it first?
[1:42:15] You can describe it first and
[1:42:17] then.
[1:42:17] Move it.
[1:42:18] So essentially.
[1:42:20] The request is for both a staff
[1:42:23] presentation and a study
[1:42:24] session around the use of.
[1:42:27] drone delivery within the city.
[1:42:28] Um, now that we've had
[1:42:30] businesses that have been
[1:42:32] seeking, uh, the use of drone
[1:42:36] delivery, uh, it is a topic
[1:42:39] that I think will become a
[1:42:41] concern if we don't take an
[1:42:43] opportunity to look at both the impacts, the benefits and
[1:42:47] drawbacks of, of allowing that
[1:42:48] and, and what it looks like to,
[1:42:51] uh, address the requirements,
[1:42:53] whether it's existing FAA or
[1:42:55] legal requirements and
[1:42:56] regulations around this. And
[1:42:59] it's strikes me as one of the
[1:43:01] areas in which, if it simply
[1:43:03] appears in our neighborhood
[1:43:04] without addressing it publicly,
[1:43:06] it will be something our
[1:43:08] community comes to us and asks
[1:43:09] the question of why we haven't
[1:43:12] addressed regulations around it
[1:43:13] sooner. And so essentially, my
[1:43:16] request is both a staff
[1:43:17] presentation and a study
[1:43:18] session around this topic. Now
[1:43:20] that it is being an open
[1:43:22] question from the businesses.
[1:43:23] So, um, is it simply a motion
[1:43:27] to request this? All right. So
[1:43:30] I move to request a staff
[1:43:32] presentation and study session
[1:43:33] around the use of drone
[1:43:35] delivery by retailers in the
[1:43:37] city of Lakewood.
[1:43:38] Second. Thank you.
[1:43:39] All right. We have a motion on
[1:43:41] floor. And a second, any
[1:43:42] council discussion before we
[1:43:43] vote? Counselor, I cruise.
[1:43:50] Thank you. And thanks,
[1:43:51] Councillor Furman, for thinking
[1:43:53] about this. I must admit that
[1:43:54] this is not something that has
[1:43:56] been on the radar for me. Um,
[1:43:57] so I would just love to
[1:43:58] understand, like, what do you
[1:44:00] think the timeline, um, for
[1:44:03] sort of some of these
[1:44:04] technologies rolling out in our
[1:44:05] communities or like timeline
[1:44:07] for this kind of conversation
[1:44:09] should be.
[1:44:11] I didn't turn my microphone
[1:44:12] off, so I'll just roll right
[1:44:13] into it. Uh, my understanding
[1:44:14] is they're open requests to be
[1:44:16] able to do drone delivery now.
[1:44:17] And so, um, and recognizing
[1:44:20] that it is something in a beta
[1:44:23] stage and a number of other
[1:44:24] communities, I think it is
[1:44:25] more, perhaps more imminent
[1:44:27] than we would like, uh, as it
[1:44:29] will take some time to address
[1:44:31] those concerns. I did a little
[1:44:33] research on my own regarding
[1:44:35] what it looks like around, uh,
[1:44:37] FAA regulations, and there are
[1:44:38] some that govern and create
[1:44:40] some protections. But obviously
[1:44:42] I am not knowledgeable enough,
[1:44:43] nor do I have the the time to
[1:44:45] get as knowledgeable as I need
[1:44:46] to. So that's a little bit of
[1:44:48] the reason for this request, is
[1:44:49] to make sure we understand what
[1:44:51] protections there are, what
[1:44:52] benefits or drawbacks there may
[1:44:54] be. So I think it's, um, good
[1:44:56] or bad, it is relatively
[1:44:58] imminent.
[1:45:00] Thanks.
[1:45:00] I'll add to that that over the
[1:45:02] last year, year and a half, um,
[1:45:05] many municipalities across the
[1:45:07] Denver metro area have had
[1:45:08] requests from a particularly, I
[1:45:11] know, at least one large
[1:45:12] retailer. And so as we see that
[1:45:15] move forward with one
[1:45:16] particular large retailer, I
[1:45:17] think we can all probably count
[1:45:20] on a full hand how many others
[1:45:21] will soon follow. So the
[1:45:23] question becomes, do we want
[1:45:24] little armies of drones driving
[1:45:26] around and dropping packages in
[1:45:28] our backyard? We need to have a
[1:45:31] discussion before that starts
[1:45:33] happening without us actually
[1:45:35] having it. So thank you.
[1:45:36] Councillor Freeman. Did that
[1:45:38] answer your question?
[1:45:39] One more. Okay.
[1:45:40] Um. Thank you. That's very
[1:45:41] helpful and enlightening for me
[1:45:43] as well. Thank you. Mayor and
[1:45:44] Councillor Freeman. I guess my
[1:45:45] second question is, are you
[1:45:47] aware or are other
[1:45:48] municipalities that are dealing
[1:45:50] with this? Um, these requests
[1:45:52] dealing similarly with like the
[1:45:54] autonomous vehicle
[1:45:55] conversation, or are those
[1:45:57] distinct conversations like a, like driverless
[1:46:02] autonomous.
[1:46:03] Vehicles?
[1:46:05] I will admit that's one of the
[1:46:06] things I hope to hear addressed
[1:46:08] with the staff presentation,
[1:46:09] because I don't know, obviously
[1:46:10] they have different regulations
[1:46:12] around them in general. So I
[1:46:14] would think it appears a little
[1:46:15] bit differently because of ones
[1:46:17] carrying packages versus
[1:46:18] people. So I think it's sort of
[1:46:20] a different family of
[1:46:21] regulations.
[1:46:24] Councillor Lowe, then
[1:46:25] councillor, Labour.
[1:46:28] Thank you and thanks for
[1:46:29] bringing this, Councillor
[1:46:30] Freeman. I'm going to support
[1:46:31] it. I think this is a good
[1:46:33] example of sort of thoughtfully
[1:46:34] trying to get get out in front
[1:46:37] of something rather than be
[1:46:37] reactive to it. So, so think
[1:46:39] it's smart to bring this in.
[1:46:41] Can I, can I ask a, a question
[1:46:44] that I, that usually other
[1:46:45] smart people on council ask,
[1:46:46] which is I do think we need to
[1:46:48] have a discussion about this.
[1:46:49] Can I ask the the interim city
[1:46:51] manager? It's not clear to me
[1:46:53] who on staff would be the
[1:46:55] person to help organize this,
[1:46:57] or would be the person that
[1:46:58] would pull together the
[1:46:58] presentation. But maybe that's
[1:47:00] clear to you. Or maybe that
[1:47:01] requires some internal
[1:47:02] discussion. First.
[1:47:05] I think whether he wants you or
[1:47:07] not, it's probably Travis
[1:47:08] Parker, and he's here, but
[1:47:12] we're not doing a presentation
[1:47:13] tonight, but it will probably
[1:47:15] be in Travis shop with support
[1:47:16] from, uh, Maria as well.
[1:47:20] Excellent. Well, already so
[1:47:23] many important things on on
[1:47:24] their plates. Why not add one
[1:47:26] more thing? Um, I, I think I
[1:47:28] saw him not nodding along when Councillor Fuhrman was,
[1:47:31] uh, was, was talking. So
[1:47:32] hopefully, hopefully it's not too out of left field. Um,
[1:47:35] well, as long as I while
[1:47:36] recognizing that there's a lot, on staff's plate, I do.
[1:47:40] And we want to be sensitive to
[1:47:41] that, as always, I do think
[1:47:42] that like having a discussion
[1:47:43] on this before we we get to the
[1:47:45] point where we're actively
[1:47:46] hearing from our constituents
[1:47:48] on this makes sense to me. So I
[1:47:50] think that would be useful.
[1:47:52] Councillor, the beer.
[1:47:55] I just want to comment that
[1:47:57] I've recently been watching a
[1:47:58] lot of TikTok videos of drones
[1:48:00] dropping packages in people's
[1:48:01] pools, so this does seem timely
[1:48:03] and, uh, looking forward to
[1:48:04] supporting.
[1:48:05] It. Yes.
[1:48:07] And dogs just saw one of those.
[1:48:11] I'll say it. Um, I have no more.
[1:48:14] Hands up. We have a motion and
[1:48:16] a second, so please go ahead
[1:48:17] and cast your vote. All right.
[1:48:24] That passes ten yeses. And
[1:48:26] serranos. We look forward to
[1:48:30] hearing a presentation on this
[1:48:31] topic. Thank you, Councillor
[1:48:33] Forman, for bringing that
[1:48:34] forward. Um, with that, that
[1:48:36] moves us into this evening's
[1:48:38] executive report.
[1:48:40] Thank you, Madam Mayor. Uh,
[1:48:42] just a few items for you all
[1:48:44] this evening. Um, one, I wanted
[1:48:46] to let you know that we have
[1:48:48] speed cushions being installed
[1:48:50] on Alker Street. Uh, may have
[1:48:53] started in the end of last week
[1:48:55] and into this week, so that's
[1:48:57] exciting. Also, for those of
[1:48:59] you who saw the Friday report,
[1:49:01] uh, that came out last Friday,
[1:49:03] we had a great video that staff
[1:49:05] put together on speed cushions
[1:49:07] and shows them being installed.
[1:49:10] Um, so if you haven't haven't
[1:49:11] seen it yet, it was the number
[1:49:13] one clicked video for the
[1:49:15] Friday report. So join the
[1:49:16] crowd. It's pretty cool. Uh,
[1:49:19] and then also wanted to let you
[1:49:20] know that, uh, we received
[1:49:23] notice that, uh, we're getting
[1:49:25] a grant, uh, Florida Department
[1:49:29] of Public Health and
[1:49:30] Environment for seven new
[1:49:32] electric vehicles. Uh, five of
[1:49:34] those will be light duty
[1:49:35] vehicles, and then two will be
[1:49:38] electric street sweepers, which
[1:49:39] we're really excited about. Um,
[1:49:42] the electric street sweepers do
[1:49:44] require much higher voltage
[1:49:45] chargers than we have installed
[1:49:47] for other electric vehicles. So
[1:49:49] that requires a retrofit to the
[1:49:51] bays that those are kept in.
[1:49:53] Um, so staff is working on that
[1:49:55] as well, but pretty cool. Um,
[1:49:57] and then finally, uh, I think
[1:50:00] many of you saw this report,
[1:50:02] uh, the digital version is more
[1:50:04] interactive, but I just wanted
[1:50:06] to check in and see if council
[1:50:08] feels like the quarterly
[1:50:10] reports are more helpful in
[1:50:12] this format rather than, um,
[1:50:15] kind of the more spreadsheet
[1:50:17] format that we used to do. I've
[1:50:18] heard from a couple of you, but
[1:50:20] not now. Feel free to let me
[1:50:21] know if you feel like we're
[1:50:23] hitting the mark with these.
[1:50:25] We're certainly open to
[1:50:26] tweaking it, but, uh, we we're
[1:50:29] just curious. Um, they are more
[1:50:31] labor intensive, so hopefully
[1:50:33] it's working. Um, for you all.
[1:50:35] If not, we we can tweak it,
[1:50:37] though, that's all.
[1:50:40] right. Thank you. That
[1:50:42] brings us to our council
[1:50:44] reports, and we'll start this
[1:50:46] evening with Ward five.
[1:50:51] Um, yeah. So I'll jump in. Uh.
[1:50:54] Well.
[1:50:54] The main thing we just want to
[1:50:55] mention is our Ward five
[1:50:56] meeting is going to be, um,
[1:50:58] this Saturday, August 29th from
[1:51:01] 9 a.m. to 1030 in the morning
[1:51:03] at Westwood Community Church in
[1:51:06] Lakewood, of course. Um, so
[1:51:08] we're looking. Not really. All
[1:51:09] I have to share is that. And
[1:51:11] we're looking forward, of
[1:51:11] course, to having our, our
[1:51:13] regular sort of open
[1:51:14] discussion. We don't have a
[1:51:15] specific, uh, speaker this
[1:51:18] week, but that just means more
[1:51:19] labor for for Councillor
[1:51:21] Nystrom and I to put on a good
[1:51:23] show. So we'll do our best.
[1:51:24] Thanks.
[1:51:26] Ward, for.
[1:51:32] I feel like I'm.
[1:51:32] Jumping ahead, but, um, so.
[1:51:35] We have.
[1:51:35] Our Ward four meeting. Uh,
[1:51:37] before I jump into that, I did
[1:51:39] want to say, uh, the, um, I
[1:51:42] know the the people in our
[1:51:43] shire had been pushing for a
[1:51:45] long time for the traffic
[1:51:46] calming, the speed cushions. I
[1:51:48] also acknowledge I've gotten a
[1:51:49] lot of calls and emails from
[1:51:51] people who had their own
[1:51:54] concerns around it, and I
[1:51:55] appreciate, uh, the, the, uh,
[1:51:58] staff within traffic
[1:51:59] engineering who have been
[1:52:00] talking to a number of those
[1:52:02] people in Ward four, uh,
[1:52:04] explaining to them, you know,
[1:52:05] how how these came about for
[1:52:07] those people who were affected
[1:52:09] by because they live further up
[1:52:10] into Green Mountain, but
[1:52:11] perhaps we're unaware it was
[1:52:13] coming. And so I appreciate the
[1:52:14] work that staff is doing to
[1:52:15] talk to the community about
[1:52:16] that. And, and also recognize
[1:52:18] that it is obviously a change
[1:52:20] for a lot of them. And, and
[1:52:22] while I know the people in Alki
[1:52:23] are excited about it, others
[1:52:25] are impacted differently. So,
[1:52:27] uh, our Ward four meeting is on
[1:52:29] September 12th. Uh, 1232 and
[1:52:32] this is going to be with, uh,
[1:52:34] Commander Alden and Chief
[1:52:35] Smith, um, talking about
[1:52:37] policing issues, community
[1:52:38] safety. Um, so please come out
[1:52:41] and see this as an opportunity
[1:52:43] to talk to the police and find
[1:52:44] out about what, uh, what we're
[1:52:46] doing in the community to
[1:52:47] address those things.
[1:52:48] Thank you.
[1:52:50] Ward three.
[1:52:55] I don't have much of a report
[1:52:56] tonight other than that
[1:52:57] Saturday tickets have gone on
[1:52:59] sale. So, uh, it's my my my
[1:53:02] husband takes Saturdays
[1:53:03] extraordinarily seriously. He
[1:53:04] would. He would be pleased when
[1:53:06] I report back to him that I've
[1:53:07] invited all of council to
[1:53:08] Saturdays, although I know many
[1:53:10] of you will be there. So please
[1:53:12] join us on Saturdays. We'll be
[1:53:13] there both days. It's sort of
[1:53:15] one of one of my husband's
[1:53:16] highlights and mine too. It's a
[1:53:17] great, great event. So join us
[1:53:19] tonight, Saturday, as I'm sure
[1:53:20] we'll be talking more about
[1:53:21] that. We don't have a date for
[1:53:22] our Ward three meeting yet for
[1:53:24] September, but we will get on
[1:53:26] that and report back to you and
[1:53:27] get a date locked down for
[1:53:28] September. Um, I will just
[1:53:31] mention since council from I
[1:53:32] brought it up that I continue
[1:53:33] to hear a lot, I. I have lost
[1:53:36] track of how many Ward three
[1:53:37] residents um, have have raised
[1:53:40] concerns with me about speed.
[1:53:41] Um, and, uh, just really are
[1:53:45] looking for as energetic a
[1:53:46] strategy as possible to get
[1:53:48] folks to slow down. So
[1:53:49] continues to come up. Um, glad.
[1:53:52] I'm really glad to see that we
[1:53:53] have a study session on Avis on
[1:53:55] the books in September. I am
[1:53:57] looking forward to discussion
[1:53:58] about that. I did get a an
[1:54:00] inquiry from a constituent just
[1:54:02] today. Um, who asked about, um,
[1:54:04] speed cameras on Kipling and I, think it is very good that got calendar. So I will
[1:54:09] just mention that as something
[1:54:11] that's top of mind. No other
[1:54:12] updates.
[1:54:15] One little plug I'll do there
[1:54:17] when you since bringing up
[1:54:18] speed. Um, you know, uh, our
[1:54:21] students are back to school, so
[1:54:22] just being mindful, uh, in the
[1:54:24] school zones and neighborhoods,
[1:54:26] uh, keep an eye out and
[1:54:27] remember the speed limit.
[1:54:30] Word two.
[1:54:33] Um, just a couple of things.
[1:54:35] First, we have our September
[1:54:37] ward meeting coming up.
[1:54:38] Wednesday, September 23rd, from
[1:54:40] 430 to 6. We're excited about
[1:54:42] this one because we really want
[1:54:43] to encourage our families and
[1:54:45] our kiddos to come out to this
[1:54:47] ward meeting. So we're hosting
[1:54:48] it at Oken Park in Shelter two.
[1:54:52] And also we have the wonderful
[1:54:54] Henley, my daughter, my 11 year
[1:54:56] old daughter, who is not
[1:54:57] qualified to watch your child
[1:54:59] but will be leading a DIY craft
[1:55:01] project. So we really hope all
[1:55:04] of our families will come out.
[1:55:05] It's sort of a weave in and out
[1:55:07] of the meeting. Excuse me. Come
[1:55:09] and go as you please. Um, let
[1:55:11] your kids play at the park, at
[1:55:13] the playground and then come
[1:55:14] meet us, and, um, we welcome
[1:55:15] you to ask any questions that
[1:55:17] you have and just say hello.
[1:55:19] And then in that vein, I just
[1:55:20] wanted to extend a huge thank
[1:55:21] you to Jefferson County School
[1:55:23] System for taking my daughter
[1:55:25] back to school last week. And I
[1:55:29] really, though in all serious,
[1:55:30] want to say I wish that we
[1:55:34] lived in a society where we
[1:55:35] valued the education of our
[1:55:37] youth more than we do,
[1:55:39] seemingly in the United States,
[1:55:41] both in the ways that we fund
[1:55:43] our school systems and the ways
[1:55:44] that we pay our teachers, and
[1:55:46] also in the ways that we
[1:55:47] support the education of young
[1:55:49] people in our society. It is
[1:55:51] such a critical component of
[1:55:53] the ways that we grow in our
[1:55:54] humanity, and we grow in our
[1:55:57] culture, and we grow as a
[1:55:59] species. And so to undervalue
[1:56:00] or devalue, that continues to
[1:56:02] be so disheartening and
[1:56:03] heartbreaking to me. Our
[1:56:05] teachers are a critical
[1:56:07] importance and a critical need
[1:56:09] in this society and in any
[1:56:10] society. And I am incredibly
[1:56:12] grateful for the work that they
[1:56:14] do. Often underpaid, often
[1:56:17] unseen. And to finalize kind of
[1:56:20] the statement, it is deeply
[1:56:22] thoughtful, executive
[1:56:24] functioning, critical work that
[1:56:26] teachers do in the classroom
[1:56:27] every single day, and they do
[1:56:29] it in an environment where they
[1:56:30] are constantly needed by young
[1:56:33] people who are asking of their
[1:56:35] time and attention and energy,
[1:56:37] and they have to give that
[1:56:38] while also teaching young
[1:56:40] people how to learn, how to
[1:56:41] grow, how to be emotionally
[1:56:43] resilient and cognitive. And so
[1:56:46] just a huge, huge thank you to
[1:56:49] Jefferson County School and
[1:56:50] excited for the 2026 2027
[1:56:52] school year to start.
[1:56:55] Thank you. Um, appreciate the
[1:56:58] enthusiasm for our education
[1:57:00] system. And I think it speaks
[1:57:02] to why we're really excited to
[1:57:03] hopefully have some folks who I
[1:57:05] know it's challenging to make
[1:57:06] it out to meetings when you
[1:57:07] have younger kids, school age
[1:57:08] kids. So hopefully we'll we'll
[1:57:10] have some fun with our local
[1:57:11] tween led activities. So thanks
[1:57:13] to Henley for coming out with
[1:57:15] us. I just also wanted to
[1:57:17] highlight, um, there is yet
[1:57:19] another new neighborhood
[1:57:20] association in Ward two. Morse
[1:57:23] Park has restarted their
[1:57:24] neighborhood association, so
[1:57:25] they're going to be having
[1:57:25] another meeting, um, on
[1:57:27] September 1st. Um, I believe
[1:57:29] that they're going to be having
[1:57:30] staff to talk about sidewalks
[1:57:32] and some other important things
[1:57:33] in the community. So, uh, check
[1:57:35] out their meeting if you're in
[1:57:36] Morse Park. It's at 6:30 p.m.
[1:57:38] on September 1st at the Clemens
[1:57:39] Center. Uh, September 4th. Come
[1:57:43] comes back to first Friday. So
[1:57:45] always excited for all the
[1:57:47] great things that 40 West does
[1:57:48] for us. And just on a point of
[1:57:50] personal privilege, as I was
[1:57:52] working out in the last couple
[1:57:54] of weeks at the Charles
[1:57:55] Whitlock Recreation Center,
[1:57:56] there's been some construction
[1:57:57] there. The therapy pool is
[1:57:59] under construction. And so that
[1:58:01] has been a huge community
[1:58:02] effort, and I'm grateful that
[1:58:04] we were able to fund that in
[1:58:05] the budget last year, and that resource will be coming
[1:58:08] back online in the not too
[1:58:09] distant future. So we've just
[1:58:10] got to celebrate some of the
[1:58:11] little wins. And thanks to the
[1:58:13] staff who I know at Whitlock,
[1:58:14] who I know have been navigating
[1:58:16] some, some, some noise and
[1:58:18] other things with the
[1:58:18] construction. So really excited
[1:58:20] for that to come online.
[1:58:26] Ward one.
[1:58:28] Thank you. In keeping with our
[1:58:30] common practice, we're going to
[1:58:31] have our ward meeting the first
[1:58:34] Saturday in September. Yes,
[1:58:37] that is Labor Day weekend. When
[1:58:39] we checked about delaying it a
[1:58:40] week, the facility was not
[1:58:42] available that weekend. And so
[1:58:45] we we talked and yes, what
[1:58:47] better way could we spend Labor
[1:58:49] Day than to have a ward
[1:58:51] meeting. So, um, something else
[1:58:54] came up. Um, so right across
[1:58:57] from where we have the ward
[1:58:58] meeting on ninth and Kipling,
[1:59:01] there's been a vacant gas
[1:59:04] station, and we've looked at it
[1:59:07] this whole time and tried to
[1:59:09] find the the owner, etc. it's
[1:59:12] been quite a process. And so
[1:59:14] on. Lakewood Speaks, we saw a
[1:59:16] comment and um, the latest news
[1:59:18] that I have on that is this out
[1:59:21] of state owner is coordinating
[1:59:24] with Colorado Public Health and
[1:59:26] Environment's CDF to address
[1:59:29] the brownfield that's been
[1:59:31] created by this gas station. So
[1:59:33] it so it is quite a process and
[1:59:36] it's it's very sad that it's
[1:59:38] taken this long, but it is
[1:59:40] being worked on. And then one
[1:59:42] last thing. And that is this
[1:59:44] Sunday. Um, August 30th there
[1:59:48] will be the Meadow lark. Um,
[1:59:50] Community Association picnic in
[1:59:53] Meadowlark Park, of course. So,
[1:59:56] um, that's that'll be a fun
[1:59:58] event. Hopefully the weather
[2:00:00] will cooperate. Last year I
[2:00:01] think it was rained out. So
[2:00:03] anyway, that's all I have.
[2:00:04] Thank you.
[2:00:08] Councillor Nystrom, did you
[2:00:09] have your hand up?
[2:00:11] I just wanted to add two
[2:00:12] things. One is we do have a
[2:00:14] sustainability advisory
[2:00:15] committee meeting. Always
[2:00:17] action packed. 1230 on Friday
[2:00:19] the 28th. And also Southern
[2:00:22] Gables National Night Out is on
[2:00:24] Friday 28th at 5 p.m.. I
[2:00:27] believe Bruce McDonald sent
[2:00:29] invites to all of you, but, um,
[2:00:31] I want to encourage people to
[2:00:33] show up. It's it's especially great location for
[2:00:39] it at the elementary school.
[2:00:40] And they have a fantastic
[2:00:41] community garden. So it's a
[2:00:43] great opportunity to take a
[2:00:45] look at what can be done in a
[2:00:47] neighborhood with with the
[2:00:49] effort that they've put into
[2:00:50] it. Thank you.
[2:00:53] All right. I just briefly want
[2:00:56] to welcome all of our young
[2:00:57] people, all of the future of
[2:00:59] Lakewood back to school as that
[2:01:02] has just gotten underway. This
[2:01:05] week. We've got many tiers of
[2:01:07] parents. We've got, you know,
[2:01:09] probably tears of little people
[2:01:10] too, that would rather be at
[2:01:11] home still in front of their
[2:01:13] iPad or on a, um, something to
[2:01:16] some kind of fun play structure
[2:01:17] out in our park. So welcome
[2:01:19] everybody back to school. And
[2:01:22] just a last plug or another
[2:01:23] plug, and you'll hear it at
[2:01:24] least one more time for me
[2:01:26] about love Lakewood Day. For
[2:01:27] those that are not available on
[2:01:29] September 19th, remember we do
[2:01:31] also have Team Love Lakewood
[2:01:32] that provides opportunities to
[2:01:34] get involved and share with
[2:01:35] your community throughout the
[2:01:37] year. So with that, um, seeing
[2:01:39] no further business to come
[2:01:41] before the City Council at this
[2:01:42] time, I will go ahead and
[2:01:43] adjourn our meeting tonight at
[2:01:45] 857.