[0:01] All right.
[0:06] good evening everyone. Uh, welcome to our february 3rd, 2026
[0:10] city council meeting. It is 7:00 pm meeting's now in session. Any
[0:14] person wishing to address the city council during oral communication must
[0:18] complete a speaker card that is provided at the entrance of the council chamber
[0:23] and submit the card to assistant city clerk, uh, prior to the commencement of
[0:27] oral communication. Speaker cards will not be accepted after oral communication has
[0:31] started. Tonight's invocation will be led by ray zed,
[0:35] president universal society of hinduism and south hills high school student,
[0:39] lizette dondo will lead us in the pledge of allegiance. All rise. Oh,
[0:43] and we have announcement. Mayor, if I may, uh, we need to change for
[0:47] the invocation, we have pastor samuel martinez from amazing love ministries, who's going to do our
[0:51] invocation this evening. All right, perfect. We welcome, pastor.
[1:04] thank you. Thank you, mayor. Well, we remember the words of
[1:10] a young man who said once that sometimes the best prayers are the most simple.
[1:15] so, heavenly father, we just remember the words of king solomon who said that wisdom
[1:19] is a principle thing. Give us all wisdom, father
[1:23] parents, wisdom in bringing up their children.
[1:27] father, give wisdom to father our first responders.
[1:32] give wisdom to police officers, our soldiers. Father,
[1:36] give wisdom above all this evening to those that
[1:41] manage the affairs of the city. Give wisdom to our mayor. Give wisdom, father
[1:45] to our our city council, our chief of police, city manager,
[1:49] heavenly father, fire chief, all our school teachers, heavenly
[1:53] father. And we pray that you direct our steps
[1:57] and that you direct the steps of our leaders. We thank you for
[2:02] west covina. God bless america, and god bless our beloved
[2:06] city of west covina. In jesus' name, amen. Amen.
[2:10] and we'd like to invite south hills high school student lizette to lead us in the pledge
[2:14] of allegiance. Good evening, gentlemen. Remove your hats.
[2:20] place your right hand over your heart. Ready? Begin. I pledge
[2:24] allegiance to the flag of the united states of america,
[2:29] and to the republic for which it stands, one nation
[2:33] under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for
[2:37] all. Thank you. Thank you.
[2:43] roll call please. Good evening, mayor. Council member gutierrez.
[2:47] here. Councilman wu? Here. Councilwoman diaz. Here.
[2:52] mayor pro contos. Here. Mayor lopez. Vito, present
[2:56] city attorney. Is there anything to be reported out of closed session? There is no
[3:00] reportable action. Thank you, madam mayor. Okay. Onto presentations.
[3:04] I'd like to invite shelby williams from the n-a-a-c-p
[3:08] president to the front.
[3:25] so they are here. Um, 2026 marks a century of
[3:29] national com, uh, commemorations of black history. In 1925, when
[3:33] dr. Carter g woodson planned inaugural week long observance of black history,
[3:37] he could hardly have anticipated the imprint he would leave on this world.
[3:42] the association for the study of african life and history has carried forth the tradition
[3:46] and the observance have become part of the warp and left, left of american culture. And
[3:50] increasingly, the global community for our hundredth theme, the founders
[3:54] of black history month urge us to explore the impact and meaning of black history and
[3:58] the life comm, uh, commemorations in transforming the status of black peoples in
[4:02] the modern world. Uh, for those who might not know, I've actually led
[4:07] the largest black history festival and,
[4:11] uh, history paraded festival in southern california. So I do
[4:15] a part of this and I'd like to thank, um, shelby for, we just
[4:19] had our martin luther king day, and she ran a fabulous event with our partner
[4:24] san gabriel valley, n-w-a-c-p. And I wanted to thank you a few a you wanted to
[4:28] say a few words? Okay. Yes. Thank you so much for
[4:32] recognizing the 100th anniversary of the commemoration
[4:36] of black history. To understand the
[4:40] modern world, especially nations where black peoples from
[4:44] a significant population one must grapple with the impact
[4:49] that the public observance have had for the past and
[4:53] the present. This year, when we are also commemorating
[4:57] the 250th anniversary of united states independence,
[5:02] it is important to tell not only an inclusive history, but
[5:06] an accurate one. We have never had more
[5:10] need to examine the role of black history month than
[5:14] we do when forces weary of democracy seek
[5:18] to use legislative means and book bans to erase
[5:23] black history from america's schools and from public culture.
[5:28] black history's value is not its contribution to mainstream
[5:32] historical narratives, but it is its resonance in the
[5:36] lives of black people. We, the san gabriel valley, n-a-a-c-p
[5:40] branch, would like to thank the city of west covinas mayor and
[5:45] city council for recognizing black history month for 2026.
[5:49] thank you. And on behalf of city of west covina, we'd like to give a proclamation
[5:53] for the black history month. So thank you for being here and, uh, accepting this, uh, proclamation.
[6:29] I had like to, uh, invite lieutenant weatherman to front
[6:33] to the front. Is he here? Yes. Okay. And this is
[6:37] in regards to the, uh, we like have west covina police explorer
[6:41] posts come down as well. So on january 17 and 18,
[6:45] the west covina police explorer post 4 9 9, completed at
[6:50] tac comp in chandler, arizona. Eight explorers represented our
[6:54] department and competed in several events against police explorer posts from
[6:58] across the nation. I am proud to announce that our explorers receive the following
[7:02] awards.
[7:07] first place, high risk stop. Third place
[7:11] cnt. I'd like to congratulate all of the explorers who participated in
[7:15] this event and extend a sincere thank you to the advisors and the department members who have
[7:19] assisted in the development and training. Can you tell us a little bit about those awards?
[7:24] yeah. So, uh, I'll talk a little bit about, uh, what we did out there. So, um,
[7:28] mayor, members of city council, I'm, uh, if you don't know who
[7:32] I am, my name's lieutenant mike weatherman. I'm honored to take a few moments to, uh, this evening to
[7:36] recognize the outstanding accomplishments of the west police explorer program and the explorers who proudly
[7:41] represented our city at the 2026 chandler tactical competition
[7:45] tac com in chandler, arizona, the chandler tcom is a nationally
[7:50] recognized competition that brings together police explorer posts from across the country.
[7:54] the event is designed to challenge participants through realistic law enforcement based
[7:58] scenarios that test teamwork, communication, leadership, and
[8:02] tactical decision making. Under pressure. This year, eight of our west camino police
[8:07] explorers competed again, completed against explore posts from
[8:11] agencies nationwide. I'm proud to recognize the following explorers who represented our city
[8:16] explorer, blas explorer, ve rivera explorer, daniel
[8:20] renteria explorer, damian renteria, explorer joshua joshua ortega,
[8:25] explorer, pena explorer, mubarak
[8:30] explorer garcia. Their hard work and dedication resulted in
[8:34] the exceptional achievements of first place in high risk stop.
[8:39] and third place in the counter narcotics team, or cnt. It's actually crisis
[8:43] negotiation team. Sorry about that. Uh, these events require pre
[8:47] precise coordination, sound judgment, effective communication,
[8:52] and a strong focus on officer safety, earning first place in the high risk stop
[8:56] event. And placing third in cnt reflects the discipline, the professionalism,
[9:01] and the teamwork demonstrated by our explorers. These accomplishments would not
[9:05] be possible without the commitment, mentorship of their dedicated advisors, the support
[9:09] of the department, and especially the support of the city council. I would like to recognize and
[9:13] thank the following individuals for their leadership and support. Cso jose,
[9:17] jose fuentes, officer daniel gonzalez, officer michael chang, officer
[9:22] alex dte, officer destiny martinez,
[9:26] officer steven de la fuente, officer alex illa, officer
[9:32] jennifer ledesma, officer zamar sal,
[9:38] and the sergeants that oversee the unit. Sergeant steve spa,
[9:42] sergeant jose marquez and corporal ian papapa assisted with us from the, our, uh,
[9:46] swat and swat team. Their guidance, training, and continued
[9:50] investment in our youth play a critical role in the success of our explorer program.
[9:55] the wesco police explorer program continues to be a tremendous asset to our community,
[9:59] developing future leaders, promoting positive police community relationships,
[10:04] and preparing young men and women for careers in law enforcement and public service.
[10:08] on behalf of the west camino police department, I would like to congratulate our explorers and advisors
[10:13] for representing our city with professionalism and pride. And thank the city council for
[10:17] its continued support of programs. Done a vest in the future of west camino.
[10:25] that's truly amazing. These are our future officers, and we
[10:29] just wanted to thank you especially about the crisis negotiation. So, on behalf of
[10:33] city of west covina, we'd like to present a certificate, first place,
[10:38] and third place on one up picture. Congratulations.
[11:09] thank
[11:20] up. Next, we'd like to honor teacher of the year, renee romero from south hills
[11:24] high school. If I could have mr. Renee romero to the front, along with
[11:29] dr. Josie per perez, assistant superintendent of educational
[11:33] services. So covina valley
[11:37] takes great pride in recognizing mr. Renee romero, the 2026
[11:42] california teacher of the year, for his extraordinary service to students
[11:46] and public education. Mr. Romero is an 11th and 12th grade international
[11:50] bachelorette language and literature teacher at south hills high school in the covina valley
[11:54] unified school district, where he has made a lasting impact through his dedication,
[11:59] professionalism, and commitment to student success. As an
[12:03] international bachelorette teacher, mr. Romero helps students make meaning from
[12:07] advance complex texts while developing their voices, confidence
[12:12] and critical thinking skills. Drawing on his own background as an english learner
[12:16] from east los angeles, he creates an inclusive and supportive classroom where every
[12:20] student feels welcomed, challenged, and encouraged to thrive. His
[12:25] students consistently achieve outstanding results, including a 90%
[12:29] pass rate on inter on the international
[12:34] baccalaureate english examinations. This prestigious award is one
[12:38] of the profession's highest honors. This recognition reflects
[12:42] his strong instructional practice, his dedication to equity and inclusion,
[12:47] and his ability to create a classroom where every student feels supported to think deeply
[12:51] and succeed. So we always love our teachers. Uh,
[12:55] any wise words from teacher of the year?
[13:03] uh, thank you. Um, it's, uh, really something to be recognized
[13:07] for the work that, uh, that all teachers do. Um, I'd like to thank the
[13:12] district, uh, for their support, my wife, for her endless support. Um,
[13:16] but most importantly, like the students, you know, they make my job easy. Um,
[13:20] and it's no, they, they really do know. Um, they, they really would impress
[13:24] you if you like, sit down and get to know them. Um, they're game changers, you know,
[13:29] and it's important to create a curriculum that's meaningful to them.
[13:33] um, and yeah, it's, I love what I do.
[13:38] thank you. Would you like to say something? Sure.
[13:43] renee's very humble. He's probably one of the most humble persons that
[13:47] teachers that we have around, and he doesn't realize what a big thing this
[13:51] is. He is teacher of the year for california. And so we're so excited,
[13:56] yes. To have one of our own teachers,
[14:00] uh, for covina valley. And just as he was getting the word, we
[14:04] have asked a lot of students. What do you think about, you know, mr. Romero? And
[14:08] this is by far one of their favorite teachers. Um, he really does love
[14:12] the students. He really is patient. He wants to make sure that they're
[14:17] passing their classes, and he's a teacher in the international baccalaureate
[14:21] classes, which is a very difficult class to
[14:26] pass and a test to pass, and he gets 90% of
[14:30] his students passing the test. So we just wanna recognize how amazing he
[14:34] is, and we're so excited for him to go out through this year. He'll be speaking at several
[14:38] places, and he'll be recognized all over the state of california.
[14:43] so let's give him a big hand.
[14:48] that's a, that's a full year, 365 days. So we just wanted
[14:52] to say thank you. We love teachers. They make a big impact, and I'm sure the students appreciate
[14:56] and, you know, bring the students up. And so on behalf of city of west covina, we'd
[15:00] like to present a certificate honoring teacher of the year. Congratulations. Thank you.
[15:21] thank you. Congratulations. Good. Great job, mayor.
[15:29] oh, his wife and family's here. Would you wanna stand up so they can recognize that's a
[15:33] big support team, so please recognize the award. Thank you.
[15:41] so, up next, I'd like to recognize lizette
[15:45] dondo, the student board member, and the member of the mock trial team from south hills high
[15:49] school. May you please come up to the front.
[15:54] so, ms. Lizette dondo led us in the pledge of allegiance today. She's a student
[15:58] board member and a member of the mock trial team. May you let us know what is your role on
[16:02] the student student board and what the mock trial team is,
[16:06] uh, on the student on the board of education for covina valley, I serve as a student board
[16:10] member, meaning I represent the voices of all the students in my
[16:15] district. Um, mock trial, we compete, we get a case packet, and
[16:19] we compete it, uh, as different roles like lawyers, uh, witness, we
[16:23] have bailiffs, like all that. Personally, I am, uh, my last role is a prosecution attorney,
[16:27] and I've also played witness and a defense attorney. Wow.
[16:32] great job. Thank you. And thank you again for leading us in the pledge of
[16:36] allegiance. So we'd like to recognize you, uh, as a certificate from the city of west
[16:40] covina. Thank you. Thank you,
[16:51] thank you, thank you.
[16:57] so the new initiative that I implemented is the taste of west covina that we're highlighting
[17:01] businesses. And today we'd like to bring up, uh,
[17:06] invite melissa rojas from heavenly flowers to up to the front.
[17:11] is she here? Oh, there, she's nestled in
[17:15] the heart of west covina, heavenly flowers has grown into more than just a florist. It's
[17:19] a community staple where flowers and heartfelt moments intertwine. Locals
[17:23] know it as a place to go when they want flowers that speak from the heart, and arrangements
[17:27] that feel personal and thoughtful. Its designers blend, classic craftsmanship
[17:32] with ever-changing floral trends, whether crafting arrangements for wedding anniversaries,
[17:37] birthdays, or just because moments the team dedicates technical skill
[17:42] and personal warmth to each creation. Heavenly flowers is
[17:46] more than a place to buy flowers. It's part of the west covina community, helping people
[17:50] celebrate milestones, comfort loved ones, and share beauty through all of life
[17:54] seasons. For the month of february, heavenly flowers will offer a community
[17:59] discount of 15% of all in-store purchases to west covina residents.
[18:03] to receive the discount, residents must present valid, valid identification
[18:07] confirming west covina residency. So we'd like to present a certificate,
[18:12] and, um, many might not know. Uh, I remember we partnered
[18:16] a few years ago, uh, honoring one of our first high revenue generating
[18:21] chick-fil-a, and they donated flowers to all the,
[18:25] uh, drive through, uh, community. And that was for
[18:30] the christmas, christmas eve. And it was really nice. And one of the resident
[18:34] actually was visiting a family at the funeral, uh, the cemetery. And she called,
[18:38] and there was another person that called, um, because his wife
[18:42] had passed away and during the holidays, but receiving this meant
[18:47] a lot. So they, like they said, bring warmth, and they're right here in our community
[18:51] located, oh, they can give you more information, but go ahead, . Here you go.
[18:55] we're located in west camino parkway. Glendora, right in the corner. You must have known it with
[18:59] mario deonte. For many years. He was the owner, but luckily
[19:03] we had the privilege to take ownership over nine years now. So
[19:07] we've been in the, I grew up my entire life in west covina, so I'm happy to be
[19:11] here. Happy to serve you guys, and happy to be part of this city. Thank
[19:15] you. Thank you.
[19:20] they do have their flyer up in the front, so if you entered, or if you're leaving, make
[19:24] sure to pick one up, but of course, you don't have to have the flyer. If you're a west covina resident,
[19:28] come in and stop by and shop some flowers. Flowers make
[19:32] everyone brings joy to everyone. So on behalf of west covina, thank you for your business here.
[19:50] oh, wait, actually, oh, I didn't
[19:54] realize they had something shown up earlier about their flowers. So all their information is on the,
[19:59] on the online that you could see. And I believe everything will be posted on
[20:03] the website as well. And now lastly,
[20:07] I'd like to recognize cafe 86 and bring grace reyes
[20:11] to the front.
[20:16] cafe 86 offers a thoughtfully crafted menu that blends cherish
[20:20] tra cherish traditional recipes with modern culinary techniques. The
[20:24] cafe is best known for its signature purple yam ube desserts like ube le chilan
[20:28] cupcakes, and its unique halo hollow drinks. Inspired by classic comfort foods,
[20:33] each item delivers bold, unforgettable flavor flavors more than
[20:37] just a cafe. Cafe 86 is a welcoming space where food brings people
[20:41] together, bridges culture sparks conversation and creates lasting
[20:45] memories. Guests are invited to experience a vibrant world of flavors, colors, and
[20:49] aromas on a culinary journey where tradition meets innovation. And the unmistakable
[20:54] taste of ish shines in every bite. This february cafe 86 is
[20:58] proud to offer a community discount to our west covina neighbors. West covina residents
[21:02] will receive 10% off on all items with some restrictions applying.
[21:07] simply present a valid id confirming residency to enjoy the discount. And
[21:11] just like heavenly flowers, they do have a flyer out on the lobby that you're
[21:15] more than welcome to pick up and along there's more information. So
[21:19] on behalf of west covina, thank you. Everybody else try their uber,
[21:24] all their favorites. Um, yep, thank you.
[21:31] here you could say something. So, I, I just wanna say, um, so my
[21:35] family's lived in westcon for, uh, for, oh, for 40 years. And so when
[21:39] we were looking to open, um, our shop, this was the first city that
[21:44] we kind of looked at. And so we are actually gonna, we just opened
[21:48] last march, so we're actually celebrating our one year anniversary
[21:52] this march. And I just wanna say like, beyond the menu, our
[21:57] location has been like a community hub. We've been really trying
[22:01] to bring in a lot of people from outside of the city. And so
[22:05] we, we actively support like local artists, um, neighboring
[22:10] neighboring, um, small businesses, and then creators of events that, so we
[22:14] spotlight music, um, art and culture. Um, so
[22:18] in march, actually, like lucid motors is coming over to do some,
[22:23] um, some like drive testing for, for residents. And so we,
[22:27] we really are trying to, um, bring in as many, um,
[22:31] events that we can in that little strip of, we are in west
[22:35] covina, downtown west covina, see bun street here.
[22:39] so it, you know, we're trying to revive that area. Um, and
[22:44] so please come. Um, I've, I've tried to, um,
[22:48] um, also partner with a lot of the other shops around the area. And
[22:52] so I just feel like, you know, um, being a community and, um, we all
[22:56] kind of help each other out. And so please, please come. And then, you
[23:00] know, we, we partner with the sticker store across the mexican store across. And so,
[23:05] um, hopefully we'll get to see you this month of february.
[23:12] do have karaoke nights, so you're all more than welcome to come and
[23:16] sing. They host that. Um, they have different variety of events. They have many things.
[23:20] so come enjoy. And just like with all businesses that we are bringing up
[23:24] here and everyone else, please like them on social media. Follow sometimes they
[23:28] offer best deals, special things, and, you know, take advantage of it. And,
[23:33] uh, enjoy each shop play in west covina. So on behalf of city of
[23:37] west covina, we'd just like to thank you for taste of west covina.
[24:09] okay, now for our city manager's report, which will be given by our acting city
[24:14] manager, milan. Um, thank you madam mayor. Um, first
[24:18] our city electrician staff replaced field lighting at walmart auto park. These
[24:22] updates ensure appropriate lighting of the sports fields and park during park hours
[24:26] for users of the park. On friday, january 30th,
[24:31] uh, the west vena police department, in conjunction with public safety conducted a coordinated
[24:35] enforcement operation addressing rv camping along badillo street, east
[24:39] of north vincent avenue. Over the past month in individuals had been parking
[24:44] rvs in this area in a fixed long-term manner. In violation of california
[24:48] vehicle code. Um, staff observed activity included drug use and
[24:52] illegal dumping, creating ongoing public health and quality of life concerns, as well
[24:56] as a visual blight to the surrounding community. As a result, the operation west covena pd
[25:01] impounded two r two rvs and three vehicles. All occupants had
[25:05] previously been advised and probably noticed prior to the enforcement action. This
[25:09] location remains a priority and staff will continue to closely monitor the area
[25:13] to ensure continued compliance on tonight's
[25:18] agenda. Uh, as item number 11, the public works department is requesting approval
[25:22] of the city council to order the following number of picnic tables and water
[25:26] fountains to distribute across 16 of the city parks.
[25:30] 65 8 foot pvc traditional picnic tables 38 8
[25:35] foot pvc, traditional a da one side ended picnic
[25:39] tables four, um, lk outdoor pedestal
[25:43] fountains with, uh, with a pet station. Seven lk
[25:47] outdoor upper bottle water filling stations, and six lk outdoor
[25:52] pede pedestal fountains.
[25:56] um, this past week, city crew has been updated several red
[26:00] curbs throughout the city, which you'll see this looks like a, uh, on francis
[26:05] and surrounding streets, including sunset. Um, audit
[26:09] committee update on wednesday, january 28th. I, along with our finance director,
[26:13] met with the community members who have served on the audit committee, discuss next steps, future
[26:18] direction, and continued transparency and financial oversight. The discussion
[26:22] included the, the evolving role of the audit committee will, will play
[26:26] in the coming years. Moving forward, the audit committee will meet on a quarterly basis
[26:31] with the city manager, attending the committee meetings to support, coordination, accountability,
[26:35] and open communication. On saturday,
[26:39] january 24th, the community services division held its annual in-service training
[26:43] from 8:30 am 8:30 am to 3:00 pm at the cortez park
[26:48] community and senior center. This year's focus was customer service and featured
[26:52] keynote speaker sonya jimenez, young superintendent of the city of los angeles.
[26:56] opening remarks were provided by mayor letti, um, via lopez,
[27:01] vito, and myself, along with assistant city manager roxanne lerma. Closing
[27:05] the training with a talk on what each individual brings to the table and
[27:09] the value they bring to this organization. A special thank you to community services
[27:13] team suzie perez, vanessa ibanez, leslie ez, mha
[27:18] kuta, leslie bravo, clarissa romero, and korea. Korea,
[27:22] albert for ongoing and delivering a comprehensive and engaging
[27:26] training for staff. Um, athens update commercial deployments.
[27:31] uh, commercial deployments will started last week on monday and will be fully
[27:35] deployed by wednesday of this week. Commercial accounts will continue
[27:39] waste assessments until accounts are right sized. If
[27:43] you need athens to provide a waste assessment and the right size of size containers,
[27:48] please call, um, their toll free number, 8 8 8 3 3 6 6 1 0 0.
[27:54] and in addition to the deployment of the commercial, uh,
[27:59] bins, staff and athens continue to meet with, um, our local
[28:03] business community as we implement, um, state mandated 1383
[28:08] and working with individual businesses and, um, groups of businesses
[28:13] to find the right fit and the the right package, uh, for their
[28:17] trash service. Um, update on the residential
[28:21] deployments. Residence residential will be receiving blue carts throughout
[28:25] this week and next week. Your blue recycled carts are for recycling
[28:29] materials only, which include cardboard, aluminum, cans, and glass. Please
[28:33] refer to athens what goes where, guide at the cal
[28:37] recycle mike.com. If you are unsure how to properly dispose of your
[28:42] any item, um, any dispose of any item,
[28:47] um, green waste, food waste, and fiber based food soil paper will be stowed
[28:51] disposed in the green container. Only residents receive newsletters
[28:55] in january and will continue to receive newsletters quarterly. Athens services
[28:59] has issued a robocall to inform residents to leave carts
[29:04] curbside the entire service day for the next three weeks. Um, during the initial service
[29:08] adjustment period, please make sure your calendars are also marked
[29:13] for the 2026 compost, um, giveaways, um,
[29:17] on may 2nd, and also on november 7th, 2026.
[29:21] if you'd like to adjust your athens services or container size, please
[29:26] contact athens again at 8 8 8 3 3 6 6 1 0 0.
[29:38] the of west covina will shortly welcome two new businesses to our community.
[29:43] sunday car wash will celebrate grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony. Um,
[29:47] this saturday, february 7th, uh, the community is invited to tour the new
[29:52] facility. Enjoy a car wash sunday. Car wash is located at 3 0 1 south vincent
[29:56] um, avenue, uh, at the former site of the west covina car wash.
[30:01] home goods will celebrate its grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony on thursday, march 19th.
[30:06] the new loca, the new location will open at the eastland center at the former
[30:10] site of burlington coat factory on january 30th
[30:15] and 31st west covina firefighters association, 3, 2, 2 6 and
[30:19] west covina. Beautiful teamed up for a property cleanup on alaska to remove overgrown
[30:24] vegetation on the property. Last week, the
[30:28] fire department used the sportsplex for driver's training skills, included diminishing
[30:32] lane serpentine and backing drills. Banks do engineer bland
[30:36] for facilitating this very important training. Uh, micro
[30:40] uh, budget workshops. We every friday march, uh, in march of 2026,
[30:45] we've dedicated each friday for this. Um, we have morning, afternoon,
[30:49] and evening appointments available. Uh, please rsvp to decompose@west.org.
[30:55] if you'd like to set up an appointment, uh, limited seats available, we'll
[30:59] be meeting with, uh, groups of four to six residents at a time to
[31:03] spend, you know, two to four hours, um, going in detail to
[31:07] the budget process, different funding sources, expense and income
[31:11] for the city. If anybody is interested,
[31:16] couples connect a workshop for couples, reconnect, communicate and
[31:20] strengthen your relationship. At couples connect, a free and engaging workshop
[31:24] designed to help couples build healthier, more fulfilling partnerships. Join mayor
[31:28] lopez yato and relationship ship coach, uh, kelly
[31:32] dpu for a dynamic evening focused on overcoming common relationship
[31:36] challenges and learning practical tools you can use immediately, whether you are newlyweds
[31:41] or have been together for decades. Date
[31:45] is thursday, february 12th, 2026, 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm
[31:49] community center at cortez park. It's absolutely free. And dinner
[31:54] will be provided, sponsored by athens trash service.
[31:58] um, upcoming events, uh, again, uh, couples
[32:02] connect, uh, on thursday the 12th. And, um,
[32:09] and that's all I have tonight, madam mayor. Okay, thank you. Now we'll move on to
[32:13] oral communications. Comments are limited to three minutes per speaker, unless
[32:17] modified by the presiding officer or the city council. Requests to speak on agenda items will
[32:21] be heard prior to request to speak on non agenda items. Members of the public
[32:25] may not engage behavior that is disruptive to the orderly conduct of the
[32:29] meeting, including but not limited to speaking off topic, speaking beyond the speaker's
[32:33] allotted time limit making slanderous or profane remarks or using loud
[32:38] threatening or abusive language, which disrupts, disturbs, impedes or renders
[32:42] infeasible the orderly conduct of the meeting. Members of the public may not
[32:46] threaten any person with physical harm or act in a manner that may reasonably be interpreted
[32:51] as imminent threat or of physical harm. When you hear, hear your name being called,
[32:55] you may sit in the front row designated for public speakers. The timer will start when
[32:59] your name is called assistant city clerk. How many speakers do we have tonight?
[33:03] mayor? We have 19 speakers this evening. Okay, go ahead and proceed. Our
[33:07] first speaker is john shoemaker, followed by marsha solorio, followed by josh murray.
[33:16] good evening everyone. I just have a quick one. Uh,
[33:20] I've requested, uh, you know, some accommodations and I understand
[33:25] they may be coming through, but I haven't seen them. But what I found
[33:29] absolutely amazing is we have a member of this console
[33:33] who is constantly requesting accommodations,
[33:37] demanding accommodations, taking us,
[33:42] threatening lawsuits for accommodations. When I got up here and asked for one,
[33:46] what did he, what did he do? He was silent. Seems
[33:50] like somebody who wants accommodations in his behind people who have disabilities.
[33:55] he'd been the first one to say, you know, we gotta help this man.
[33:59] but he sits there silently, he doesn't care.
[34:03] it's about him, not about, uh, helping the public. Prime example
[34:08] is he's walked in on a couple occasions with stacks of documents
[34:12] and everything else. And my understanding is he didn't give a preview
[34:16] copy to a member of our city council, our mayor pro tem,
[34:21] who was blind. So he'd have a heads up on what's
[34:25] going on. How can you, how can you
[34:29] be so concerned about yourself and not anybody
[34:33] else? I remember about 25 years ago, or
[34:38] probably 30 years ago now, meeting kami polis. She was on the school board for
[34:42] a number of years. She had a son who was disabled
[34:47] even when her son was no longer in school. She was a champion
[34:51] for children with disabilities. So they got good educations
[34:56] and got what was needed. That was a person who was concerned about the
[35:00] issue, not themselves, you know. And what
[35:04] also gets me is I have no problem getting up here and saying I need an accommodation because of
[35:09] two strokes that I had. But some
[35:14] are trying to hide. Why would you hide if you're open? You want
[35:18] transparency, wouldn't you want to brag and show,
[35:22] even with all these issues, I can still serve, I'm still
[35:26] helping the public, you know, but maybe when some of those accommodations
[35:30] are things like, I don't know,
[35:35] the free meal that I'm given is I need it to come from jersey mike's and not portos.
[35:41] uh, you mean they don't have anything that you can eat?
[35:45] it just doesn't make any sense of what's there,
[35:50] you know? So again, you know, hopefully I'll see the documents and it'll be satisfactory,
[35:55] but I'm still waiting for, you know, somebody you know, who
[35:59] says, you know, we need to help this man instead of just complete and utter silence.
[36:04] thank you. Thank you. Next speaker, marsha solorio, followed
[36:08] by josh murray, followed by steve bennett.
[36:17] good evening. Sorry, it's been a long day. So I'm just gonna read, uh, good evening mayor,
[36:21] city council, city staff and residents. My name is marsha solorio.
[36:26] I'm a 25 plus year resident, and until recently chair of the audit
[36:30] committee, I am here tonight, as some may know on
[36:34] my birthday to comment on item number 12. First, I want
[36:38] to thank our new finance director for promptly addressing our questions regarding
[36:43] the rules and regulations attachment. I truly appreciate the timely response.
[36:48] second and more importantly, I'm here to respectfully urge
[36:52] the council members who will be serving on the audit committee to ensure that
[36:56] the appointments are approved this evening. As mr. Gritch has noted in prior
[37:00] council meetings, the audit committee has not met since april of 2025
[37:05] in whatever form the council ultimately deems appropriate. The audit committee
[37:09] needs to resume performing its duties. Our residents deserve that
[37:14] level of oversight and accountability. Do I hope
[37:18] the committee is approved as recommended by city staff? Absolutely.
[37:23] we had a strong, well-rounded committee that was just beginning to find its footing
[37:27] and changing course now would be a disservice. That said, the
[37:32] primary objective remains clear to get the audit committee back on
[37:36] a regular quarterly meeting schedule. Lastly, if this
[37:40] is my goodbye, I want to sincerely thank the council members past and present
[37:44] who appointed me and supported my continued service over the years.
[37:49] and of course, a huge thank you to my incredibly smart and passionate
[37:53] fellow committee members who entrusted me with the imaginary gavel
[37:57] for most of my time on this committee. Thank you. Thank you.
[38:02] josh mary, followed by steve bennett, followed by tina freeman.
[38:11] hi, uh, good evening mayor and members of the council. My name is josh murray. I'm here
[38:15] on behalf of west covina library. Um, I want to invite the teens
[38:19] of the community to the teen advisory board meeting, taking place tomorrow, wednesday,
[38:24] february 4th at 4:00 pm teens will collaborate on next month's
[38:28] teen programs, teen library topics, and provide the librarian with
[38:32] insight on what our teams want in their library. Also,
[38:37] children ages five to 12 with their parent or caregiver are invited to
[38:41] celebrate african american and black history month, along with the winter
[38:45] olympic games at our winter sports medal winners program on wednesday,
[38:50] february 11th, from three 30 to 4:30 pm children
[38:54] will learn about some notable african american winter sports
[38:58] athletes, and then they'll make and decorate winning medals from clay registrations
[39:03] available on our website, la county library.org. And I thank you for your time.
[39:07] thank you. Steve bennett, followed by tina freeman, followed by
[39:11] doug four.
[39:18] first off, happy birthday. I think
[39:22] I would lead happy birthday for you, but they're gonna count my time down, so it's okay.
[39:26] um, counsel, good to
[39:30] see you. I know you guys miss me every time I'm here. It's always smiles except for one
[39:34] person. Um, so it's always fun. I I wanna bring up something that I, I think we,
[39:38] we need to talk about. So, a meeting ago,
[39:43] you guys held in closed session, a discussion with real property negotiators
[39:47] located at 1501 del norty. And the person
[39:51] you were meeting with to discuss terms is, I think it's mlc
[39:55] holdings, which is meritage, who's the developer at the del norte school. Here's
[40:00] the problem, um, you're not meeting with real property negotiators 'cause they don't own the
[40:04] property yet. Tony, you know how title deeds work? You have to close escrow before a title deed is
[40:08] switched over. Huh? Tony, you're a real estate guy. Am I correct? So ironically,
[40:13] I pulled the title deed on that through a friend of mine, and it's still the school district.
[40:17] so we don't have as a city, the right to negotiate
[40:21] with a real property that we're not even talking to the owner. They haven't closed
[40:26] escrow. And why haven't they closed escrow? 'cause ironically, that's in front of the planning commission right
[40:30] now for development. They're holding a public hearing that's held open right
[40:34] now. So you guys are openly interfering
[40:40] on a closed session item with an item that's before your own planning
[40:44] commission on a public hearing. There's a lot of question to that.
[40:48] why? Well, could it be a
[40:52] potential quid pro quo that you're asking for, I don't know,
[40:57] an acre or two of them to be donated to the city or
[41:01] renegotiated with the school district, even though they don't technically own the property yet. And their
[41:05] agreement with the district is kind of already been approved by the school district contingent
[41:09] on you guys approving the planning division, huh? So
[41:14] quid pro quo could be that you want this property to be
[41:18] given to the city as something, but
[41:22] the developer wants their development approved. That's the definition
[41:27] of a quid pro quo. They get something, you get something. The problem is,
[41:31] is where does that legally land? It's a brown act violation.
[41:35] that's what it is. It's a brown act violation. And it would probably have been
[41:39] on this week's closed session, but our city attorney leave finally woke up
[41:43] from his nap that he's so commonly in here and decided that it probably wasn't legal
[41:48] to do. I noticed we have a different city attorney and I thank you. And it's by no means
[41:52] an a dig on her because it's the other city attorney who sits in here with an
[41:56] alarm clock every time, you know he's here. So my question to you guys
[42:00] is legally you weren't negotiating with a property owner because
[42:05] tony, as you just said, I'm not untitled. So I have to ask you,
[42:09] why were we negotiating with them? Was it a quid pro quo,
[42:14] huh? I guess we'll find out.
[42:19] tina freeman, followed by doug four, followed by sherry balian,
[42:27] 30 years, and I finally made it here. I'm tina freeman, the owner
[42:31] of tina's tavern in west covina, and I love west covina finest
[42:35] law enforcement. Thank you guys. 'cause you are my champs. Anyway,
[42:40] I'm here. Um, two things actually. Athens trash.
[42:44] uh, I, as you guys know, I never make it to a meeting, but I am now.
[42:48] uh, my understanding was, um, am I allowed to ask a question
[42:52] or no? Uh, when you guys voted, uh, my understanding was
[42:57] the business people all thought, uh, it was gonna be a 17%
[43:01] increase on a athens trash. And, uh, we're all dying
[43:05] out here trying to make a living. I'm a single mom. My daughter's gonna be a veterinarian
[43:10] two years, and it's a rough time for all of us. Sorry.
[43:15] and if any of you owned a business, I just don't see how you could have voted something.
[43:20] it's a 70% increase on everybody.
[43:24] it's it's wrong. It's outrageous. And I feel like maybe no one up
[43:28] here has ever owned their own business because it's tough times right
[43:33] now. And whether it was or wasn't a tough time,
[43:37] that kind of increase is ludicrous. I think it's,
[43:41] um, uncalled for. And the fact it wasn't
[43:45] taken off the agenda to at least get more business people here to
[43:50] defend ourselves and be lied to about the 17%
[43:54] increase that's now over 70 is, is
[43:59] it is unwarranted. It's, it's wrong. And everyone I feel should
[44:03] be ashamed of themselves. That voted five to zero. My is my understanding.
[44:07] and, uh, as a single mom trying to make a living, this was
[44:11] so wrong in every way, shape and form my understanding, I don't know for a fact,
[44:16] could be hearsay. I hear the city of west covina got a one and a half million dollar
[44:20] donation later from aron's. I could be wrong. I'm just saying.
[44:24] so on that note, um, I don't
[44:29] know what I, you know, we're just all sitting ducks out here. There's nothing we could do,
[44:33] but I just feel like this was, um, so wrong in every way,
[44:37] shape and form. Uh, and on that note, I just wanna bring something
[44:41] else. I'll get off athens. I'm just telling you how I feel as a business person.
[44:45] what happened to us out here is wrong. Number one. Number
[44:49] two, the other thing I wanna bring up, actually, g right here, uh,
[44:54] about a year ago told me about this wonderful thing called the trespass letter,
[44:59] okay? For us, 'cause we're always battling homeless, crime,
[45:04] trash stuff being dumped, uh, you know, stabbings, outside
[45:09] shootings, whatever. Okay? And we have to deal with a lot of homeless
[45:13] people, okay? God bless 'em. I, the thing I love is that law enforcement
[45:17] does try and get them help, okay? Uh, but this
[45:21] trespass law or letter I, I have signed, got a
[45:25] sign up, a trespass. And at least it's something I'm gonna tell you right now. Law enforcement
[45:30] has done a great job. I don't know if you guys are here, thanks to every darn one of
[45:34] 'em. Uh, I get graffiti, I send it. Oh, thank you.
[45:38] I get graffiti. I send it to the lieutenant. That's time. And I want, oh, I get, but
[45:42] it's okay. You're more than welcome to email and the city manager will, I'll answer everybody's
[45:47] comments. Thank you. Our next speaker is doug four, followed by sherry
[45:52] barian, followed by matthew. I might be saying this last name starts with a p.
[45:57] no. Hello, my name is doug. Four. I live in district five. I have three
[46:01] businesses in district three. Um, I've been told by people in
[46:06] this room that I'm lying that I am only being charged 17%.
[46:11] um, that I've only been charged 17%. And I have my
[46:15] proof here. I have copies for you guys. Audience, I have copies to pass out.
[46:20] um, they're getting passed out behind me. Um, I did get
[46:24] charged, look at my bills. 71% increase on trash fees.
[46:28] 71% increase on city franchise
[46:33] fee. Another 71% increase on the waste management
[46:37] fee. Numbers don't lie, people lie.
[46:42] let's talk about the lies enclosed. In here also is
[46:46] a letter from neil, our assistant city manager, stating that there's
[46:50] only a 17% increase, which is a lie. He also said
[46:54] that at the 1216 meeting, that he would explain in full detail and
[46:59] in depth, he lied. Again, he never explained anything. Look
[47:03] at the email. It's in this packet. We have had the
[47:07] vice president of athens here, liz, on 1216.
[47:11] tony, you asked her two times at the 58 minute mark and
[47:16] the hour and three minute mark about the 17%
[47:20] increase. She lied to you. Um, ms. Diaz, thank you for attending today's
[47:24] meeting. It was awesome. We appreciate you there. You asked her, and you
[47:28] even included my business. Thank you very much about the 17%
[47:33] increase at the one hour and seven minute mark. She lied to you,
[47:37] ollie. You asked her at the one hour and 11 minute mark about
[47:41] the 17% increase. She lied to you, brian, you asked
[47:46] her several times. Your last time you asked her was at the one minute and 20.
[47:50] at the one minute and 12 second mark, she lied to you. Staff report
[47:54] dated 1216 stated that a 13.5%
[47:59] increase was negotiated in november. What happened between november and december
[48:03] to move it from 17% to sorry, to
[48:07] move it from 13.5% to 17
[48:11] to 301% increase. What happened? Why
[48:15] I have asked this several times. How much money did athens need to raise
[48:20] to comply with this senate bill? No one wants to answer. How much money
[48:24] did these increases make for athens pockets residents? I'm
[48:28] gonna run outta time, but there are fees for you guys. We are all getting rate
[48:32] fees increased again on july 1st. Businesses also,
[48:37] it's in here. I spent 20 hours going through this contract this weekend.
[48:41] I have a lot more to say, but I only have 20 seconds. There is also
[48:45] a fee that's going on your tax roll for 39 13. There's
[48:49] also another bulky item pickup fee. It's in this packet I sent out. There's
[48:54] a fee for that also from here on out. The city did get $1.5 million.
[48:58] they're gonna get it every single year. And I have a lot more to say. But
[49:02] my time's up. Sherry bian, followed
[49:06] by matthew
[49:13] sherry bian, followed by matthew, followed by maurice wilder.
[49:20] my name is sherry bian. I'm a resident here of 60 plus years.
[49:24] and this athens is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of. Ridiculous
[49:29] this council, whether these people know it or not, you are getting, we the city are
[49:33] getting $1.5 million this year from athens. You have said
[49:37] you wanna hire 10 new policemen on the backs of our businesses,
[49:41] which their price is going to increase for us. You're gonna ruin the
[49:46] businesses. No reason you guy, this is a multi-billion
[49:50] dollar contract. Pull the contract back, tell 'em you want changes.
[49:54] don't take the $1.5 million for 'em, use a
[49:58] million dollars of that money to put back into save the businesses.
[50:02] so it doesn't cost all of us to get this done.
[50:07] that's on the athens thing. And and thank you doug, for bringing all this up and
[50:11] publicly. The other thing I wanna bring up is other different things is
[50:15] our health department. I'm tired of council saying we, we,
[50:20] we know the people want the health department. We know that the, that the residents
[50:24] want us to run the sportsplex. We know that the, the city wants us
[50:28] to run a chamber, which we know the chamber running is illegal. And if the attorney had
[50:32] done his job in 5 0 1 c3 or 5 0 1 c six,
[50:36] it's illegal to run a chamber in the city. Now
[50:42] we have an election coming up and three people on this council are up
[50:46] for election. So why leave it to saying to a handful
[50:50] of people, we want the health department added on the ballot. How many people
[50:55] want the health department? Yes or no? How many people want the city running the sportsplex?
[50:59] yes or no? How many people think we des we should have a chamber
[51:03] when we know it's illegal? Yes or no? Give us the
[51:07] opportunity to prove to this council that you guys are
[51:12] doing the wrong thing. It's your job to run the city of
[51:16] west covina. Not to run pothole businesses
[51:20] in the city of west covina down. Thank you.
[51:24] matthew p followed by maurice, followed by gilbert.
[51:30] be good afternoon. We meet again. I was everybody doing
[51:35] the night I, the belly night industries. I saw
[51:39] that in 2008. Um, I was going on the city of sina.
[51:43] I volunteered into the county where I'm currently working right now. I got my
[51:47] associate's degree in kinesiology, recreational sports, fleeting.
[51:53] and I'm here to redo the contract with valley night and the bus crew. It was a great
[51:57] opportunity for me. I didn't know what I wanted to do.
[52:01] but in the mornings I went to work, I did my job. And in the
[52:05] afternoon I volunteered into the county where I'm currently now. And I did over
[52:09] 1600 hours for the county while I was in school.
[52:14] and I got, and I was coaching football.
[52:22] sorry, I have the speech prepaid, but I'm gonna fix from out.
[52:28] and I think we need to bring back the bus. Sina bus crew. Look at these guys.
[52:33] look at jack, look at gilbert. Look at all these bus crews.
[52:37] go around the city, sit with them, watch them.
[52:42] watch the pride that they take in cleaning these bus shelters.
[52:46] they're amazing. And I promise you, I promise
[52:50] you, if you guys take the time, rose,
[52:57] that letti tony vine, I challenge you guys
[53:01] to take one day, watch 'em, clean it.
[53:05] look at the pride that they have. They're angels.
[53:10] they're angels doing the job. And we need to bring it back
[53:15] because they've, because it, it's encouraging,
[53:19] it's inspiring and they love their job.
[53:25] I was a part of that team, I was a part of that
[53:29] and I watched it and I knew they were great people
[53:34] and I sat beside them. So thank you
[53:38] for this moment. And now I'm gonna go coach.
[53:44] I wanna coach. I'm a coach. I fall in love with coaching because of my
[53:48] amazing job. My amazing team give egs, who is an
[53:52] honor man. He loves his job and he trained a lot of
[53:56] other successful clients who work the
[54:00] dolly light. And now they do this, now they do
[54:06] radios, laverne college, ppa and
[54:10] all these agencies. And it started with this community, started with west covina
[54:15] and the bus crew. So let's bring
[54:19] it back. We know what to do. We
[54:23] know where site. Thank you for this moment.
[54:30] maurice wilder, followed by gilbert viegas,
[54:34] followed by johnny knights. Maurice wilder.
[54:43] maurice wilder.
[54:54] the next speaker after maurice is gilbert, followed by johnny.
[55:15] okay, it's okay. Hello council. Oh, can you speak to the speaker
[55:20] without the mic? Hello council members.
[55:25] let's see, where can I start? Uh, what I miss,
[55:29] what I liked working for the bus crew is
[55:34] it felt like I was giving more to the community. I got to know
[55:38] more, um, how you say it. For example,
[55:43] there was one incident that when we were cleaning a bus
[55:47] stop, a homeless guy, like around my age,
[55:52] he was already clean from ugh, . He was clean for
[55:57] us. And
[56:01] uh, what touched me the most
[56:05] was the fact that he said that we inspired him
[56:10] to clean up. Because nowadays
[56:16] the bus stops that I'm seeing, they're filthy
[56:20] right now. That's what I love, loved
[56:24] working for.
[56:37] yeah. Thank you.
[56:45] gilbert. Followed by johnny, followed by maria.
[56:59] hello city. How's going? How's doing this? Hi.
[57:04] how's everybody doing this evening? Yeah, you can bring it down too. Me go down.
[57:08] oh, no, no, not you. No, the mic, the mic can go up and down. . Anyway, just, uh,
[57:13] thank you for letting us be here. I work for the west covina
[57:17] center. Uh, we had the contract with the bus crew. Remember
[57:21] mayor was out there. But, uh, we took pride in what we did. Just like
[57:25] your police department, just like your fire department for west covina.
[57:29] there was a lot of pride in my crew. You heard the guys talking. Um, there
[57:33] was a homeless guy that told us that we impressed him by doing
[57:37] what we're doing. But um, god, I'm sort of a little nervous here,
[57:41] but I'm trying to, you know, but mayor out there,
[57:46] he went out there one time and seen us working and he took a picture of us working
[57:50] and um, we did a lot for you guys. We love working for you guys. We had
[57:54] so much pride work. They had pride what they would talk about working for
[57:59] the city of wis covina. You know, they had their badge
[58:03] on their badge, you know, and they were so, so proud of working for
[58:07] you guys. We did a lot for you guys too. We, uh,
[58:11] summertime we used to deliver water. We used to give water to the elderly,
[58:16] to the children on summertime. And the crew, they decided to do that. They bought it with
[58:20] their own money. They bought the water and we'd pass it out to the people.
[58:25] and when anything was wrong with the bus benches, we would let you guys know. We'd call our supervisors
[58:29] and our supervisor would call you guys graffiti. Everything, anything that
[58:33] was wrong. But, uh, we got a lot of compliments. They would tell us, well,
[58:37] why don't you go to pomona and start cleaning their benches, you know? But, uh, just
[58:41] thank you all of you. Thank you very much. All of you,
[58:46] you know. Um, and my men, I'm proud of them.
[58:50] I'm proud of what they do. Matt , what he did, you know,
[58:55] but just god bless you and thank you for giving us the opportunity for work for
[58:59] you guys now. Bless you. The wish that you want may come true
[59:04] for you and your family. Thank you very much.
[59:11] johnny. Followed by maria, followed by sage. I
[59:21] doing, my name is johnny, uh, castillo
[59:25] nis. And I am speaking on behalf of my son michael, who works
[59:29] for valley light and cleaning the buses. And
[59:34] I don't know how many years he's been there, but I lost count because he's been there so long
[59:38] and he's been working there. And, uh, once I heard about
[59:43] him losing the contract, he, uh, sort of,
[59:48] uh, out of place. He didn't know, well, what am I gonna do now?
[59:52] well, I told him there, there are other places that they have there, I'm pretty sure, you
[59:56] know, but, uh, he hasn't been working since
[1:00:00] the time of the loss of the contract. He hasn't been himself. Um,
[1:00:05] but I do know that it helped him a lot, that he got up every morning,
[1:00:10] would go to work, and he was very proud of himself. And I was very proud
[1:00:14] of him for being involved in a job that was
[1:00:18] paying him and being responsible of putting money in the bank,
[1:00:23] paying his bills and helping around the house. Now he
[1:00:27] has an opportunity to work at a different facility and he's a little
[1:00:31] more happier now. Uh, before that he wasn't really doing very much,
[1:00:36] uh, just waiting to see another opportunity. And now he has
[1:00:40] an opportunity, but he does want to go back to work for the
[1:00:45] bus routes, clean the bus stations at the city of west covina.
[1:00:49] and he took pride in that. A lot of pride. And, you know, I was very proud of him. You
[1:00:53] know, I look forward to see him go back if
[1:00:57] we got contractors, give it back to them, you know. 'cause you know, coach
[1:01:01] gilbert was very good. And he always told
[1:01:05] me that your son is very hardworking and he's, you know, he is a good job.
[1:01:09] he is very good at that, you know, so I also hope that they bring coach gilbert
[1:01:14] back. 'cause you know, it was like a small family, you
[1:01:18] know. And I, uh, appreciate your time for hearing
[1:01:22] this, and I thank you very much. Thank you.
[1:01:28] maria. Followed by s so maria,
[1:01:32] followed by sage, followed by julie.
[1:01:44] um, good evening, council members. Mayor. My name is maria amaya and I'm
[1:01:48] here representing valley light. I am the chairperson
[1:01:52] for the agency. Um, for months I had been
[1:01:57] reading contemplating, um,
[1:02:01] uh, statements that were made by a council member here.
[1:02:05] um, and in that we have been
[1:02:10] rising above that statement or statements made by a
[1:02:14] specific council member. Um, and in my research,
[1:02:19] I read this council member's bio and I thought, wow, this person
[1:02:23] is absolutely amazing. But after the incidents, um,
[1:02:27] I feel that this council member is just
[1:02:31] absolutely amazingly disappointing for the agency and the city.
[1:02:36] um, valley light. Um, we strive to celebrate
[1:02:41] our clients' challenges and triumphs. We
[1:02:45] also, um, advocate for our clients. We also,
[1:02:49] um, inspire that. I mean, hope that our clients' stories inspire
[1:02:53] the, the, the community as a whole.
[1:02:57] we hold, uh, true values for our agency and our clients.
[1:03:02] um, and, and the statement made here in this
[1:03:06] council member's bio, it
[1:03:10] shows that, um, there's a
[1:03:15] testament that what is impossible is always possible. And we feel the same way.
[1:03:19] that valley light, we hope that today our testament will
[1:03:23] show that what is impossible, actually possible. And
[1:03:27] we also feel that. Well, I feel that this council member's
[1:03:32] bio does not reflect, uh, there.
[1:03:36] action. Thank you. Thank you.
[1:03:41] sage newman, followed by julie, followed by nada
[1:03:46] nadi. Nada. Nad. Nada. Okay, sage? Yes.
[1:03:50] can I do mind that that's the order.
[1:03:58] julie, after julie,
[1:04:04] so I'm gonna call ivan, followed by julie, followed by nada.
[1:04:09] thank you.
[1:04:15] hi, my name is ivan. I'm actually the director of operations for valley
[1:04:19] light. I wanted to go and read a letter that was presented or prepared by hunt ortman,
[1:04:23] a law attorney group. Uh, it was directed to brian gutierrez.
[1:04:27] dear sir, our firm represents valley light center for social advancement in
[1:04:31] m. Louder in the mic. Yeah. A firm. Our firm represents valley
[1:04:36] light center for social advancement, a nonprofit organization that has served
[1:04:40] the west covina community for decades and employs adults with developmental disabilities through
[1:04:44] its supported programs. This letter concerns
[1:04:49] the false and defamatory statements you made about valley light during
[1:04:53] a recent public city council meeting of west covina. During your
[1:04:57] public comments, you stated and implied among other things that valley light
[1:05:01] was not performing contracted services, valley light was not cleaning bus shelters.
[1:05:06] valley light may not have engaged or may have engaged in fraudulent
[1:05:11] billing practices. Valley light may not be properly paying
[1:05:15] its workers implying wage law violations,
[1:05:19] and that complaints existed regarding valley light's work. Despite no such complaints
[1:05:23] ever having been submitted to, to the city or communicated to
[1:05:27] valley light, the statements were made without evidence, investigation, or factual
[1:05:32] basis. And were presented as statements of fact not opinion
[1:05:36] to a public body and audience that included city officials and members of the
[1:05:40] public who are involved in public contracting decisions that have economic
[1:05:45] impact on valley light. Your statements are
[1:05:49] demonstrably false as of the date of this letter. Valley light has, doc
[1:05:53] has no documented complaints on record with the city valley. Light
[1:05:57] has performed consistently and continuously under its contract for decades. Valley
[1:06:01] light maintains a timestamp documentation, photographic records of
[1:06:06] its work. Valley light has repeatedly been asked by the city to take on
[1:06:10] additional work, including emergency and sub supplemental services.
[1:06:14] value light has been repeatedly complimented for its excellent provisions of
[1:06:18] services to the city. There is no evidence whatsoever of fraud, wage
[1:06:22] violations, failure to perform, nor any other allegation you
[1:06:27] recklessly raise at the city hall meeting. While publicly
[1:06:31] asserting false claims that impugn value, light's, honesty, and legal compliance,
[1:06:36] you expose value light to reputational harm, loss of economic,
[1:06:40] economic opportunities, including donor goodwill, knowingly
[1:06:45] and recklessly making false statements of fact that harm an organization's reputation
[1:06:49] constitutes defamation under california law. When the state,
[1:06:53] when those statements concern the quality of services business integrity,
[1:06:58] they may also constitute trade liable and intentional
[1:07:02] interference with prospective economic advantage. Your statements
[1:07:06] are particularly harmful given that value employs adults with
[1:07:10] developmental disabilities, individuals who are entitled to dignity
[1:07:15] and protection from discriminatory, stigmatizing public accusations.
[1:07:20] thank you. Okay,
[1:07:24] ju julie, followed by nara, followed by sage.
[1:07:37] hi. Good evening mayor and council members. Thank you for allowing me
[1:07:41] to speak here. My name is julie wallick and I am a certified,
[1:07:46] uh, custom employment specialist for the valley light industries in
[1:07:50] the city of azusa. Um, what I do is I find employment
[1:07:54] for and customize it around the clients that are looking for work. And I'm
[1:07:58] happy and excited to hear that you're getting two new businesses in west covina that I can
[1:08:03] go interfere into and find work for my clients. I am currently working
[1:08:07] with a client at the moment that used to be on the bus crew. Well, I'm trying to find employment
[1:08:11] because there's no longer a bus crew for her to participate in for the
[1:08:15] city of west covina. Um, she has told me,
[1:08:19] actually today I engaged with her and she says, julia, I take the bus to work. And I noticed
[1:08:23] that the buses in the bus stops in the city of west covina aren't
[1:08:27] looking as sparkly as they used to . So, um, I just wanted to, uh,
[1:08:32] show you, share my testimony with you from her and that I, uh,
[1:08:36] try to find these individuals work in the city of west covina. 'cause some of them live
[1:08:40] in the city of west covina. So, um, I appreciate your time.
[1:08:44] that's all I have to say. I do have business cards for anybody who has a
[1:08:48] business. We're trying to find employment for some of my clients.
[1:08:52] so, um, ,
[1:08:57] I'll leave, I'll leave some here on the podium for you and also on
[1:09:01] the table outside, upstairs. Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you for listening. I appreciate your
[1:09:05] time.
[1:09:09] nara followed by sage, followed by brian caldone.
[1:09:15] good evening everyone. My name is nada
[1:09:19] sali. I work with valley light center for social advancement. Is a
[1:09:23] non-profit organization that works with individual with special
[1:09:28] ability. Valley light center is doing really meaningful
[1:09:32] work every day. We support individual in building independence,
[1:09:36] confidence, and life skills that truly improve their quality of life.
[1:09:41] our focus has always been on dignity, choice, and inclusion,
[1:09:46] and that continues to guide everything we do. One
[1:09:50] of the highlights that one of our individual has been invited to
[1:09:54] sacramento to meet with the legislators. Woo.
[1:10:02] we are proud of where we are and excited about
[1:10:06] where we are going. And many of our individual are wests
[1:10:10] covina residents. And I would like also to share during their free time.
[1:10:14] they like to make beanies and scarves, and they like to give
[1:10:18] it to the riverbed outreach and others as well. Thank you very much.
[1:10:22] thank you.
[1:10:27] sage. Followed by brian calderone. Tabba followed by glenn kennedy. Sage newman.
[1:10:48] okay. I need to make sure I'm looking at the right person. Brian.
[1:10:53] oh, he moved. Oh yeah, I finally moved. Oh,
[1:10:57] okay. Good. That's at the very end. Um, brian,
[1:11:01] this is just a fraction of the people that supported
[1:11:06] you when you ran for office. We were so
[1:11:10] excited it brian, to have someone
[1:11:15] with a different ability. I'm sorry. Is
[1:11:19] it right here? Am I the audience can hear you now. You gotta gimme five extra seconds.
[1:11:23] no problem. With the different ability. We were so
[1:11:27] excited. We were your cheerleaders. We
[1:11:32] were behind you. And you know what? You
[1:11:36] attacked us. That's the way you thanked us. By
[1:11:40] attacking our
[1:11:45] agency, attacking the integrity of our
[1:11:49] agency, without even doing your homework, you
[1:11:53] are supposed to represent us better than that, brian. I am so,
[1:11:57] so disappointed. I have a couple of board members
[1:12:02] that don't wanna come here because you have made it a
[1:12:06] practice to retaliate against people that say things that you don't
[1:12:10] like and you do it through ai. May I
[1:12:14] say the cease and desist order
[1:12:18] that brian, uh, I'm sorry. That, um, ivan read. That's
[1:12:22] from a real attorney, brian. Okay. Not ai.
[1:12:27] a real attorney. And you will not come at my people. It's
[1:12:31] a shame that I have board members that don't even wanna show their face because you intimidate
[1:12:35] them. You have taken
[1:12:40] a beautiful different ability and you've made it into something ugly.
[1:12:44] autism is beautiful. I've worked with many clients that
[1:12:49] had autism that in addition to my
[1:12:53] 43-year-old son who is autistic.
[1:12:58] so you've harmed a lot of people. You've harmed my son.
[1:13:02] you, you, no one is gonna wanna take on autism or someone
[1:13:06] with autism because they've seen how you,
[1:13:10] or how you or how you, uh, behave.
[1:13:16] and they don't wanna take that on. It's been ugly. You have taken something. Maya
[1:13:20] angelou said, diversity brings
[1:13:24] beauty and strength. Brian, you've made it into something ugly
[1:13:29] and unappealing. We'll be lucky if julie can place
[1:13:34] some of our clients who have autism
[1:13:38] into gainful employment because you sat up here and
[1:13:42] you have weaponized it. You've taken your different
[1:13:46] ability and you used it not to champion disabilities,
[1:13:51] but to weaponize it, and you also
[1:13:55] exploited it. And you are very dangerous to be
[1:13:59] on that council right now for persons with disabilities. Thank you.
[1:14:03] took time. Thank you. Thank you.
[1:14:12] brian caldron tabba, followed by glenn kennedy, followed by mario
[1:14:16] sono.
[1:14:21] uh, uh, thank you. Just wanna thank, uh, valley light and, and
[1:14:25] all the community members, uh, who've come out and,
[1:14:29] uh, done so many, so much great work over the years. And, and sage,
[1:14:33] thank you for, uh, providing that opportunity. Um,
[1:14:38] I'm, I'm here tonight. Um, a lot's, lot's been going on.
[1:14:42] um, so I did want to get into the record here in the city of west covina,
[1:14:47] uh, and acknowledge, um, those that have been, uh, murdered
[1:14:51] by, by ice and, uh, in detainment,
[1:14:56] uh, and through shootings. Um, renee, nicole, good, alex
[1:15:01] preti, verio, viegas gonzalez, keith porter, jr.
[1:15:05] henry aldo ruiz, guillen
[1:15:11] juan, alexis martinez, brian rao, garon non
[1:15:16] marie, an blaze delgado. Jesus
[1:15:20] molina, johnny ello, wan fan.
[1:15:27] lorenzo antonio batres vargas, oscar rascon, ismail
[1:15:32] ael, ala delvin, francisco rodriguez,
[1:15:36] geraldo, luna campos, victor manuel diaz, parada
[1:15:41] la luis tran, yez cruz, luis gustavo
[1:15:45] nunez, caes. And, uh, the others, uh, that we don't know
[1:15:50] about. Uh, I'm, I'm here, um, because, uh,
[1:15:54] la county, uh, on january 13th, uh, passed
[1:15:59] an ice free zones in la county. Uh,
[1:16:03] and I provided the, the mayor, the mayor, pro tem, uh, the city,
[1:16:07] uh, manager and the city attorney, a copy of that. Plus, uh,
[1:16:11] I, uh, I also, uh, provided all the council members, including
[1:16:16] the mayor, city attorney, and city manager, um, a
[1:16:20] resolution that west covina can do. Uh, la county. When they
[1:16:24] wrote theirs, they modeled it, hoping that all 88 cities in
[1:16:29] la county would also adopt a similar measure. And what this measure
[1:16:33] does is it is it really protects the community from having our
[1:16:37] public spaces that we pay our tax dollars to, our, our parks, uh,
[1:16:42] our community centers, uh, the areas that we gather as,
[1:16:46] as a community, uh, to keep them safe, uh, from having to
[1:16:50] interact with, with, uh, dhs border patrol and, and ice.
[1:16:54] uh, again, when, when we look to congregate as community,
[1:16:59] um, we look to do it with joy, with love, and to know that we are safe.
[1:17:03] uh, we don't do it, uh, to be around mass men with assault rifles,
[1:17:07] uh, that put our lives in danger. Um, and so I hope that the council
[1:17:11] will take a moment, uh, to look at this resolution, take time with
[1:17:15] it, and hopefully it'll show up on a future agenda. Uh, I appreciate
[1:17:19] all you do, uh, and thank you for your time.
[1:17:23] glenn kennedy, followed by mario, followed by ravens and vargas,
[1:17:28] jr.
[1:17:33] good evening, wes covina. How's everybody doing tonight?
[1:17:38] I'm glenn kennedy. I represent the historical society and it, it's that time
[1:17:42] of the month again. So, uh, this friday we are having our meeting
[1:17:46] greet, uh, seven o'clock 3 33 38,
[1:17:50] uh, glendora avenue. Everybody here is welcome to join,
[1:17:54] uh, this month we will be doing west covina canine. So,
[1:17:58] uh, we also are moving along with our,
[1:18:02] uh, round table. That's every thursday, every the first and third
[1:18:07] thursday of every month at six o'clock, six to eight. Anybody who's
[1:18:11] is interested in history in the city of west covina and the
[1:18:15] surrounding areas. That's all. Thank you very much and have a beautiful evening,
[1:18:20] mario, followed by raven st. Vargas.
[1:18:27] hello, counsel. Uh, let's see here. One quick note.
[1:18:31] item 11. Um, I am biased 'cause I am a pet owner, dog lover.
[1:18:36] I think all the fountains should be with pet stations, not just four.
[1:18:40] alright, so moving on. I am here representing the,
[1:18:44] uh, west covina business district, historic west covina business district.
[1:18:49] uh, and, and it's 26 member businesses, organizations.
[1:18:53] at the december 15 city council meeting, prior to the council's five oh vote,
[1:18:58] approving the athens amendment, we formally requested that the cedar review, the proposed trash
[1:19:02] rate increase impacting businesses. That request remains unanswered.
[1:19:06] what businesses are now experiencing is not a 17% increase in many
[1:19:10] cases. One french one franchise fees, surcharges, and bundled
[1:19:14] services are applied. The real increase ranges from 17% to well over
[1:19:18] a hundred percent, approaching 300% for certain line items. While
[1:19:23] residential rates remain largely unaffected. This is a business only burden, and it's
[1:19:27] creating immediate financial strain across west covina. The historic
[1:19:31] west covina business district is requesting city council action in two specific ways. First,
[1:19:35] we ask that city establish a stakeholder committee to develop a fair and equitable trash
[1:19:39] rate structure. This committee should include local businesses, residents, city staff,
[1:19:43] athens representative hospitals, and civic organizations. So
[1:19:48] that impacts alternatives and mitigation. Strategies can be openly discussed before
[1:19:52] further action is taken. Second, we request immediate financial
[1:19:56] relief for west covina businesses by returning the approximate 1.5 million and
[1:20:00] newly received franchise free revenue back to the business community.
[1:20:05] these funds were not previously budgeted or relied upon and should be used now to,
[1:20:09] to offset the financial hardship this decision has created.
[1:20:13] additionally, we respectfully request that all city impose trash related fees on businesses
[1:20:17] be temporarily waived until a fair and transparent plan is developed and approved.
[1:20:22] the historic west conven business district is not asking to avoid compliance with state law. We
[1:20:26] are asking for collaboration, transparency, and equity. We'll continue to seek a
[1:20:30] revised amendment approved by this council that reflects the business friendly west covina, and
[1:20:34] demonstrates that the city values its local businesses, its partners, not
[1:20:38] revenue sources in closely. I want to talk on a personal observation
[1:20:43] with regards to municipal analogs. When the city
[1:20:47] was looking to justify bringing a health department, we were
[1:20:51] compared to burbank long beach. Um, what was it?
[1:20:55] pasadena, uh, to justify, you know, that, of bringing a health department when
[1:20:59] you wanted to reduce the time. Speaking from five minutes to three minutes, we looked at
[1:21:03] cities like covina, el monte, baldwin park to justify that.
[1:21:08] I'm wondering why, you know, we did not look at that for the athens contract.
[1:21:12] we're not reinventing the wheel here. Athens is implementing this for the last four years across other municipalities.
[1:21:18] a simple request by staff to research how it's being rolled out in other cities,
[1:21:22] I think would've been warranted. Thank you.
[1:21:29] ray vincent vargas, jr.
[1:21:36] good evening. First off, I want to give props
[1:21:40] and appreciation to, uh, doug and, uh, tina's, uh,
[1:21:44] tavern. Um, you guys see
[1:21:48] what you guys are doing. You guys are destroying small businesses here in west
[1:21:52] covina because of the greed that's shameful of you
[1:21:56] guys. Also, I want to give props and recognition
[1:22:01] to, uh, tony corina and his, uh, staff.
[1:22:06] I talked to tony at last meeting about heavy equipment going
[1:22:11] up and down south and north on vincent. He got,
[1:22:15] uh, patrol up there and eliminated that.
[1:22:19] and I also want to give props and recognition to the fire department. They're
[1:22:24] up and down all over west covina. I see them a
[1:22:28] lot at my place. Uh, up and down, uh,
[1:22:32] north on, uh, vincent south on vincent. You know, they're
[1:22:36] doing a fantastic job. The three of you here,
[1:22:41] I hope I, I heard three elections are gonna be coming up pretty soon.
[1:22:45] I hope it's the three that gotta be replaced right away.
[1:22:50] um, tony and the fire department,
[1:22:54] thank you for your services. Um,
[1:23:05] there's a big corruption. We all know it. Tony asked me, uh, last
[1:23:09] meeting, ray, uh, uh, what's the problem? What's
[1:23:13] the problem, mr. Corina? The problem is here.
[1:23:17] the three, the three corrupted, uh, counsel people,
[1:23:23] steve bennetton came up. He said what? He said,
[1:23:27] the guy's to the target and to the point. Some of you guys don't like
[1:23:31] it. Some of you guys sit here with bulldog faces, but he says it the way it
[1:23:35] is. It's the truth. You know,
[1:23:39] brian gutierrez, we elected him. He
[1:23:44] got several and majority of the votes because
[1:23:48] we wanted somebody to do something in our district. We wanted to see change.
[1:23:53] he's digging, he's discovering, and he sees the corruption
[1:23:58] here. He's fighting an uphill battle because he's doing it
[1:24:02] all alone. You know, it's not easy
[1:24:06] when everybody's against you, milan,
[1:24:11] you know what's going on. If you know what's going on, say
[1:24:15] something. Don't get comfortable where
[1:24:19] you're at, and don't secure or try and
[1:24:23] secure your employment. You know,
[1:24:28] make sure the residents, the community, and the city is good.
[1:24:32] you know, I'll have more respect for you when I see that.
[1:24:38] thank you, mayor. I have a late submission of a
[1:24:42] speaker card if you would like to hear it. Go ahead. Yes. Yes.
[1:24:46] colleen rosati.
[1:24:51] sorry. , is that a cry? ?
[1:25:13] thank you, mayor. I appreciate you allowing me to speak. Um,
[1:25:17] I just wanted to take a moment. West covina beautiful. Thank you
[1:25:21] chief brown for acknowledging us with the slideshow this evening. We
[1:25:26] really appreciate it. For those of you that don't know, west covina
[1:25:30] beautiful is the oldest nonprofit here in the city, established 78
[1:25:34] years ago. And I'm the current president, ceo, and proud to
[1:25:38] be. So, um, recently we had a huge project
[1:25:42] past this past weekend, a program that started in 2018,
[1:25:47] hashtag impact. Um, my daughter and I, ashley noticed that
[1:25:51] city of west covina was looking a little tired, and we decided
[1:25:55] to make a difference, as cliche as that sounds.
[1:26:00] so we got together with some important community sponsors
[1:26:05] and partners and decided how can we combat
[1:26:10] the disarray that's going on in west covina? Excuse me.
[1:26:14] so we pulled together some dynamic community partners who are
[1:26:18] still our community partners today, athens suburban water,
[1:26:23] um, royal coaches, mcintyre ecosystems,
[1:26:27] et cetera. There's a tenant foundation. They stepped up and help us with
[1:26:32] a few funds to get the ball rolling. This past weekend,
[1:26:36] we were asked by the city code enforcement to see
[1:26:40] if we could help some senior citizens. A 95-year-old
[1:26:44] woman who has dementia, and her daughter, who is almost 70,
[1:26:49] live in a beautiful home in south hills. It's exquisite.
[1:26:53] it was overgrown. It hadn't been taken care of in probably about five years.
[1:26:58] code enforcement had cited them many, many, many times. And I don't
[1:27:02] know if you're aware, but at some point, if nothing is done, it gets turned
[1:27:06] over to the district attorney and even further receivership
[1:27:11] by the city. And if you know what that means, it means that the city could take the
[1:27:15] property, remodel, fix it up, and then sell it,
[1:27:20] and then those folks would have to be relocated. So we stepped in.
[1:27:24] we called our community partners, the firefighters association.
[1:27:29] 3, 2, 2 6. They came out in force. I'm gonna tell you, those guys are maniacs
[1:27:33] with power tools. Sean weiss was outta control. Anyway,
[1:27:37] we filled up a dumpster, a roll off, which is the size of a semi that
[1:27:42] was donated for free by athens to help the seniors in need.
[1:27:46] we beautified that property, it people have driven by it four times
[1:27:51] and said, I couldn't find the house. Where is the house that you can now see the house
[1:27:55] that you couldn't see two weeks ago? So, we're happy to partner
[1:27:59] again with the fire department, athens services, suburban tenant foundation,
[1:28:04] and all of our community partners. Thank you for coming out. My board
[1:28:08] of directors, my students from west covina high school, gold bulldogs, and
[1:28:12] from mecca, they were there, raking, hoeing, and pulling
[1:28:16] weeds. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you.
[1:28:23] no, mr. Speaker, no further speakers. Mayor. Um, so acting city manager, will you please respond to
[1:28:28] all the public comments, concerns quite a few tonight, madam mayor. Um,
[1:28:32] I'll start working backwards here. Colleen, thank you for your work with west covina.
[1:28:36] beautiful. Identifying your community partners, working with fire department,
[1:28:40] um, local 3, 2, 2, 6. Uh, aware of the property that you,
[1:28:45] uh, and the crew cleaned up, and citations were not issued, but they
[1:28:49] were noticed many times that the property needed to be cleaned. I'm glad that our
[1:28:53] staff was able to work with your group to get this property cleaned. Um,
[1:28:57] ra vargas, thank you for, um, thanking our police department, our fire department for
[1:29:01] the great work they do. They are very responsive. They are out and about doing the best they
[1:29:05] can. And for my position here, as I mentioned to doug ford, one of the
[1:29:09] very first meetings, you know, my focus is on the community first, and I'm
[1:29:13] not married to this position. So if you see me back on the streets, so be it. But it
[1:29:17] is the community first. I'm working on transparent, transparency, making
[1:29:22] the city more accountable and doing the best for this community that I can. While I'm up here,
[1:29:27] um, for mario, um,
[1:29:31] sherry, doug, tina, thank you for speaking on the implementation
[1:29:36] of, um, 1383 and some of the complications
[1:29:40] that's come along with that, I know athens is currently, uh, working with residential
[1:29:45] more specifically, they're also working with the business community, um, trying to address some
[1:29:49] of the con concerns they've brought forward. That being said, the city council has tasked
[1:29:53] me with, um, meeting with athens. Um, as
[1:29:57] soon we are, we're meeting tomorrow, and then we're meeting weekly to address the
[1:30:01] concerns, the ideas, and the things you've brought forward. Um, so I
[1:30:05] just want you to understand that you, you are being heard. The council has heard you, and they have
[1:30:09] asked me to accelerate my work with this project. As you know, this
[1:30:13] project was, uh, going on for multiple years and just recently got
[1:30:18] approved, but it started, um, back six, eight years ago when this first
[1:30:22] started. Um, doug, with your questions and the limited time I have,
[1:30:26] um, I'm gonna send you a detailed email tomorrow to answer. I wrote down all your questions
[1:30:30] with specifics so you have it in print. You can share it with the business community,
[1:30:35] and hopefully that gets some, uh, uh, relevant and correct information out there to everybody.
[1:30:39] from there, we can move forward and work, um, with your business
[1:30:43] community on the glendora district, as well as throughout the city as we implement 1383
[1:30:48] and address some of the hiccups and concerns that have been, um, brought forward.
[1:30:52] um, brian calderon, tabba, thank you for bringing, um,
[1:30:56] the handouts and samples today and speaking on federal activities within
[1:31:00] the city. Uh, glenn kennedy, thank you for your work with the historical
[1:31:05] society, and again, your meeting this friday, 7:00 pm at 3 3 8.
[1:31:09] um, glen dora, um, I have is glen still here?
[1:31:14] glen, I did see you on social media and doing your podcast, some great information
[1:31:18] and historical information about the city for ivan, nada,
[1:31:23] julie, maria, johnny gilbert, maurice, matthew,
[1:31:27] and especially sage. Um, we do appreciate and thank you for the work that you've
[1:31:31] done within our community for, for many years. Um, the people that work
[1:31:36] the streets, our police, fire, public safety, um, they
[1:31:40] recognize the hard work and dedication that you put into, uh, cleaning our bus stops.
[1:31:44] what people may not recognize is that often you would clean a
[1:31:48] bus stop and then unfortunately, unhoused or others would then mess
[1:31:53] it up pretty quick, quickly afterwards. But I, I do understand, I do
[1:31:57] appreciate all the work that you put in, um, to our city.
[1:32:02] um, steve bennett, uh, on the meritage project, meritage project,
[1:32:06] um, that will go be for the planning commission at an
[1:32:10] undetermined date soon. And then we'll come back to the city council, as it should, as
[1:32:15] josh murray from west covina library. Thank you, um, for the updates on
[1:32:19] the library teen advisory board meeting, and your work with black history
[1:32:23] month and much more. Uh, marsha salerio, thank you for your,
[1:32:27] uh, comments on the audit committee. We did have a very good two hour meeting, um,
[1:32:32] a week ago and was very productive. And I think we will be,
[1:32:36] uh, moving forward, being far, far more transparent. And for the c the
[1:32:40] community. Um, as the audit committee meets quarterly, what we're gonna start doing
[1:32:45] after their quarterly meeting, I'm gonna report out, um,
[1:32:49] about the audit committee meeting. So it's not just the five people or the handful that attend
[1:32:53] the audit committee meeting. I want the whole committee, the community to understand what the audit committee's
[1:32:57] bringing forward, their ideas, concerns. So everybody has an idea. Um,
[1:33:02] and happy birthday to marsha, if you're still here. Um, john schumaker,
[1:33:06] um, on your, uh, accommodation request, I understand that risk management will be getting back to
[1:33:10] you this week. Uh, it's been a busy week, uh, but it has been forwarded,
[1:33:14] uh, through risk management and our, our labor council to get you a answer in
[1:33:18] writing, um, no later than this week. And I believe that concludes
[1:33:23] all my responses for tonight. Madam mayor. Okay. Thank you. Onto consent
[1:33:27] calendar. Oh, did you have, yeah. Uh, yes, madam mayor, I just have a question. Pantos, go
[1:33:31] ahead. Thank you. Um, um, I, I was
[1:33:35] just wondering with regard to the valley light contract, I thought that, that the, the
[1:33:40] contract was, was originally going, we were just awaiting a report regarding
[1:33:44] the cleanliness, and then we were going to vote on that contract. What has
[1:33:48] happened since I, I thought that they were on a month to month contract and then, and then
[1:33:52] it would be brought back to us for approval. Did something change? Uh,
[1:33:56] my understanding is that, um, city staff, uh, was notified
[1:34:00] by the company that they would not be providing services at the established
[1:34:05] contract rate that was agreed to, uh, from their staff,
[1:34:09] was to prepare an rfp to go out for services, uh, which they're
[1:34:13] still eligible to, um, submit through the rfp process.
[1:34:19] okay. Uh, thank you. And my, my second question is with regard to the meritage,
[1:34:23] uh, uh, property with regard to proper procedures relating
[1:34:27] to, uh, uh, counsel, um,
[1:34:32] just even communicating with, with, with meritage, what, what is,
[1:34:36] what is it that we should and should not do so as not to, uh, fall
[1:34:40] afoul of whatever applicable rules are with regard to when we are allowed
[1:34:45] to communicate with them and when we are not allowed to communicate with them in light of where they are in
[1:34:49] escrow? Um, great question. Um, mayor prom,
[1:34:53] I'm gonna defer to our, um, city attorney, brittany roberto, to
[1:34:57] answer that question. Um, madam
[1:35:01] mayor, if I may speak, uh, mayor pote, I believe that's
[1:35:05] probably a discussion that's more appropriate behind not an open session
[1:35:10] that we can advise you on the parameters of the brown act and what is and is not appropriate.
[1:35:15] okay. E even if that's advised, uh, will there be a point when that will be
[1:35:19] rev, uh, shared with the public to the extent legally feasible? Feasible?
[1:35:23] because the perception among the community is that we are engaging in
[1:35:27] nefarious activities when, when that is not how we are operating. And so
[1:35:31] in order to ensure that there's public trust, can we make sure that, that
[1:35:35] we prepare, uh, a report or something that can be read or disclosed
[1:35:39] in open session. Um,
[1:35:44] I believe that's something that needs to be discussed internally in the city attorney's office. And we may need
[1:35:49] to have a separate mother may I type item to get direction from
[1:35:53] the council on something like that. Thank you. But we do report out in accordance with the
[1:35:57] law. Thank you. Councilman wu.
[1:36:02] I want to follow up. Okay. Mayor proton regarding the valley light, and
[1:36:06] I, as, as I remember last year, I was the mayor. Okay. And regarding
[1:36:10] the issue come up and I remember our direction basically
[1:36:15] month to months and bring back to us mm-hmm . And then we going to
[1:36:19] approve it or this and that. But during that time, and I remember improve it
[1:36:23] and uh, in august 23rd, I saw them in couple bus stops. So I stopped
[1:36:27] and, uh, take it. I took a picture with them and, uh, it's really clean. So
[1:36:31] that's why I posted my facebook in august 23rd. So, so the point
[1:36:35] is they didn't lose the contract. Okay. My understanding, this
[1:36:40] year's services month to months, okay. And, uh,
[1:36:44] with a five year contract or not, the long term contract will come back to us.
[1:36:48] so we are going to, based on their performance, and then we will make
[1:36:53] decision to approve or dec or disapprove the contract. So this
[1:36:57] supposedly still with us, and councilman you, you are correct.
[1:37:01] uh, we were going to a month to month and to come back to the council
[1:37:05] somewhere while doing the month to month, they advised staff that they no longer
[1:37:10] wanted to honor the agreement and contract we had for the dollar amount
[1:37:14] per month, per year. And they wanted to renegotiate, um,
[1:37:18] that contract. So it was on them to withdrawing service. It
[1:37:22] wasn't us terminating a contract. Uh, we are getting
[1:37:26] prepared to come out with the rfp for bus shelter service and cleaning
[1:37:31] and get somebody on board shortly. I I, I don't think our direction
[1:37:35] is go to rfp. I think our direction is bring them back about their performance.
[1:37:40] am I right? That's what I remember. That was the last discussion.
[1:37:44] yeah. I, I didn't, I didn't remember the city council request ip,
[1:37:49] but I, I, I wasn't aware of that. I know, um, the letter that they've
[1:37:53] provided, the demand to cease and desist for defamatory statement, and this is a
[1:37:57] personal issue between valley light and councilman gutierrez, um, with
[1:38:01] the whole letter that they provided. So there was an just other internal
[1:38:06] disputes, but my point is the council didn't request ip,
[1:38:10] the council requests okay. Month to month and then bring
[1:38:14] back to this council regarding the finding the performance
[1:38:18] and see, okay. And how this okay. Was and
[1:38:22] the contract, and then it should be couple months bring back, but you never
[1:38:26] bring back to us okay. To today. So, so, and then
[1:38:30] you say you go to rp. So I kind of confused. And then I don't think last,
[1:38:35] last, when that meeting, I don't think we asked for ip. We asked
[1:38:39] for month to month and bring them back. So
[1:38:44] during that time, um, value light industries contacted the city
[1:38:48] and advised they were cease providing services to us
[1:38:52] under the existing contract. They wanted to renegotiate the
[1:38:57] contract or come back for a, a higher amount. Um, since they
[1:39:01] willfully decided not to continue working for the city, we were
[1:39:06] now in search of a provider to clean our, our bus shelters. Just
[1:39:10] a question. If they had communicated with lead
[1:39:14] and different than what we request, should you bring back to
[1:39:18] us, tell us what happened between you and ct and the
[1:39:22] very light so we understand what's going on. But because my understanding is
[1:39:26] month to month, so I don't understand why they say they don't have a contract. So
[1:39:30] I'm kind of confused about that. Supposedly we never request ip
[1:39:35] my understanding okay. That there is supposedly, supposedly should
[1:39:39] be bringing back, but okay. If they want to renegotiate contract, it can discuss
[1:39:43] with us, bring through the agenda, uh, due to this, they request additional
[1:39:48] okay, this and that, then we can approve or send ip. Am I right? Is
[1:39:52] that the procedure? That is correct. So, so I think okay. You
[1:39:56] should communicate with, uh, with a very light and tell them,
[1:40:01] okay, because we never asked for ip, I don't think we, we vote on anything
[1:40:05] about late ip. So certainly city center ip for, for
[1:40:09] no reason. Okay. So, so this is one thing I think about,
[1:40:13] uh, the very light thing and regarding ethan, and I think when
[1:40:18] I read this, this is pretty shocking, about 70% increase.
[1:40:22] so I, I think there's really, uh, need to discuss
[1:40:26] with ethan. Ethan, okay. If, and we have to check all the business, if
[1:40:30] they all have, uh, increase like this, then we might have to
[1:40:35] see what other way to, to, to work with them. Meaning even we
[1:40:39] seen the contract with them. I think that the point is they need to own
[1:40:43] what they promised to us. And, uh, we are second
[1:40:47] largest business. Okay? And the community next to
[1:40:52] pasadena, yeah, about three, 4,000 business, we need to make sure
[1:40:56] they can survive, especially mountain park business. So we wanna make sure,
[1:41:00] okay. And, uh, they not misleading us about what they
[1:41:04] promised and then to come out the bill is different. Understood. So
[1:41:08] two things, uh, I will discuss with the staff that was working with valley light, get a
[1:41:12] more detailed answer, move forward with either working on their
[1:41:16] contract or going out to rfp. We can go either way. And also with the athens,
[1:41:21] again, I am meeting with athens again tomorrow that work through these items and address
[1:41:25] the community and business concerns. Uh, I think they need to clarify. Okay, I don't know how many business
[1:41:30] receive a shocking okay. New bill to them. So we
[1:41:34] need to maybe check with our, okay. And the community development
[1:41:38] manager to check with coding up and, uh, have them provide the, so
[1:41:42] we need to blankly check all the businesses, what kind of bill they have, how many, how many
[1:41:46] percentage they can increase. So not only okay, the
[1:41:51] the people at, uh, our downtown, but also entire
[1:41:55] city. Okay. So we can pick all the area and uh, okay. Ask
[1:41:59] them about their trash bill and they have them to provide so we can have information
[1:42:03] to see, okay, uh, are they really deceiving us? Okay.
[1:42:08] so we, we look into all the business about their bail. So, so I think
[1:42:12] in that way, you have much, you have more bullet to de negotiate with them
[1:42:16] rather than only couple, couple, couple business like, uh,
[1:42:20] bond street, like, uh, okay. And uh, uh, portal. Okay.
[1:42:24] I think they have issue too. They increase like almost 70% too. So,
[1:42:28] and plus, I don't know, some other office, I haven't received any other
[1:42:33] complaint yet. But, um, my point is this, why don't we wait
[1:42:37] for the business to complain it's too late. I think we should maybe call them
[1:42:41] and to have them see how did, how's the bail? What is the percentage? So
[1:42:45] we can check. So in that way, in that way, we have more information to
[1:42:49] negotiate, uh, to bring them to say, what the heck is this?
[1:42:53] okay. Understood. One of the, uh, topics for tomorrow, or agenda items that
[1:42:57] we're gonna be discussing with, I'm gonna be discussing with athens is identifying,
[1:43:02] quantifying how many businesses are affected by a 17%, how many
[1:43:06] businesses are affected by a 50 or a 70 or more. And then
[1:43:10] be able to capture those businesses and reach out to them. Uh, I think
[1:43:14] any about what they agree upon, they will be unacceptable.
[1:43:19] okay. Like they, even 70% is already pretty high,
[1:43:23] but anything about that, that will be pretty shocking because we need
[1:43:27] to compare with other city. Okay. What is the percentage and this on that.
[1:43:31] so, so anyway, this is my suggestion to, to check with all the business
[1:43:36] with their building the code up. Okay. Have your staff to request
[1:43:41] those trash bill. Okay. I think all everybody received a new bill.
[1:43:45] I received a new bill too, so, so possible. Okay. And we can collect
[1:43:50] all those information. Supermarket, okay. Check the super, our
[1:43:54] supermarket, have them provide a bill. Okay? How much is they increase? So
[1:43:58] with that, you have more information to describe. Plus we want to
[1:44:02] know too. Okay? Okay. Is that they have an owner what they promised to us.
[1:44:06] and, and, and then, so I think this is, uh, this is much easier
[1:44:11] to understand what we get into it. Okay. In that way
[1:44:15] we know the fact, okay. What the business get hit on it.
[1:44:20] okay. And regarding the value view, I think we never asked for ip.
[1:44:24] my suggestion is if our council agree, we should go back to
[1:44:28] what we originally bring, bring back to us. If they want to renegotiate,
[1:44:32] you can still bring back to us they wanna increase this, okay. And bring the contract. See, we
[1:44:36] want to approve or not, rather than go to ip and they, right now we need
[1:44:41] somebody to clean the bus and then let those, so those people need job. So
[1:44:45] what we delayed, okay, so I think we never asked for ip, my
[1:44:49] understanding. Okay. I think okay, we can talk to them.
[1:44:53] okay. And if it's too much we bring to us, then if we all agree, we
[1:44:58] send ip, otherwise let's continue to use this service month to month. That's what we agree
[1:45:02] upon. Okay. When the last meeting that what we, our decision is,
[1:45:06] was, am I right? Yes. Okay. I'm done. Um, thank you. And I have something, sorry,
[1:45:10] and I'll, I'll get to you in a bit. Um, I, in regards
[1:45:15] to their letter, I know that they had a few demands, um, with valley light.
[1:45:19] so I, I I think they wanna see those demands being met. Um, that is
[1:45:23] in regards to valley light. As for athens, thank
[1:45:27] you for providing the breakdown of the sheet.
[1:45:31] I know in the past we had told athens previously to compare it with
[1:45:35] other cities that it wasn't gonna hurt our businesses. I mean, we were told.
[1:45:40] so of course, I mean obviously this affects all businesses and we
[1:45:44] wanna make sure that that is being corrected. Um, and then I'd like to
[1:45:48] give, uh, councilwoman diaz, she wanted to speak. Oh, you
[1:45:52] got it. Okay. Thank you. Now you can go, uh, council, oh, uh,
[1:45:56] mayor pro, oli contos. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Uh, milan, just for,
[1:46:01] just to make sure that I understand, you said that they, are, they asked for
[1:46:05] a negotiated rate. Is the negotiated rate that they wanted or with an increase,
[1:46:09] was it different from the original amount of what we originally would've approved
[1:46:13] on that night when their contract was up? Or was it a different rate? Just, I just wanted to make sure
[1:46:17] to have apple's to apple's comparison. Um, I don't
[1:46:21] know the exact right. I believe it was more, I don't know the difference, uh,
[1:46:25] how much more they were asking for. Um, I had staff, a staff member
[1:46:29] working with them on that. Um, but again, essentially they, they abandoned the
[1:46:34] contract and decided they were not gonna do our bus shelters anymore.
[1:46:38] um, so with that, that's why the idea to go rfp 'cause we do need
[1:46:42] somebody to clean our bus shelters. And if they weren't gonna be the service provider, I
[1:46:46] needed to have other sources to draw from. Thank you.
[1:46:50] yeah. Please make, make sure you speak to , uh, councilman gutierrez.
[1:46:55] yes. Uh, maybe kelly, do you remember, I think kelly knows
[1:46:59] the, the exact words of the matter. May I? 'cause I believe, uh, do
[1:47:03] you remember roughly what happened that night? What the council request was?
[1:47:12] evening? It's on. It's on. Okay, great.
[1:47:16] um, no, I'm sorry. I don't remember exactly what it was, but, uh,
[1:47:21] the acting city manager is correct. We, we, we were working with them on a, on a
[1:47:25] month to month contract, and at some point they gave us a very
[1:47:29] short deadline with a increased the, uh, rate was, um,
[1:47:33] higher than, uh, what we were working off of. And
[1:47:37] so, um, when we weren't able to meet that deadline, they had ceased
[1:47:42] service. Great. And, um,
[1:47:48] let's see.
[1:47:57] mind you, this is, uh, a public comment and I'll, that's off for you, kelly,
[1:48:01] but, um, okay, great. Um, so if
[1:48:05] I, if, and that was on that day, um, city manager
[1:48:10] on that day, that was the day where we were presented, uh,
[1:48:15] rfps to approve that night, right? I think that
[1:48:19] was a, a a, their new contract was brought to us that night, right? I think,
[1:48:24] um, I don't recall if they brought their contract that night or if this was
[1:48:29] just a, based on a mother may, may I, uh, status report on observations
[1:48:33] in the field. Yeah, I, yeah, I think it, I think it was an agenda item,
[1:48:37] and it's either, it's either we requested
[1:48:41] an rp or we rejected the rrp, um,
[1:48:46] but there was clear direction that they were to continue on a month-to-month
[1:48:50] basis. Uh, that is clear. So at no point did I
[1:48:54] say I wanted to, uh, permanently or, or, or any way fire
[1:48:59] them. I think that's misleading. Uh, I think, uh, the council
[1:49:03] as a whole voted to, uh, give them a month to month, uh,
[1:49:07] services, uh, when it comes to, also on a separate note, when it comes
[1:49:12] to people with disabilities, uh, all people with disabilities,
[1:49:16] regardless of your disability, but if you do have a disability, you can become anything you wish
[1:49:21] to become, because only you have the power to make change and, and make
[1:49:25] and determine your future with determination and aspirations. Anything can
[1:49:29] be achieved. Um, and so at no point, uh, did
[1:49:33] I judge their contract based upon the people or individuals
[1:49:38] who work for that company. Uh, that's not in my, uh,
[1:49:42] values as a person. And, uh, and they were not judged, uh,
[1:49:46] based upon who works for their company. But rather what I've heard,
[1:49:51] uh, from community residents, uh, from our community, and, and again,
[1:49:55] uh, those who have disabilities, the impossible is always possible when you believe in
[1:49:59] yourself. Um, when it comes to athens trash services,
[1:50:03] um, this is just one business bill.
[1:50:07] but when you look at the contract like I have after the fact,
[1:50:12] uh, there is, it's the first, it's different than what was
[1:50:16] presented to us, um, at the time we voted.
[1:50:21] so, um, city staff will look into it, but eventually
[1:50:25] it's gonna come to a point where this council has to make a determination and
[1:50:29] an and, and a decision if we're gonna ask to officially ask
[1:50:34] that that contract be presented to this council again, to make sure that, we'll,
[1:50:38] we voted on what we were verbally towed matches what was on paper.
[1:50:42] and I think we owe that to our businesses in our community. And
[1:50:47] that's one of the requests I did, uh, at the last meeting. But,
[1:50:51] um, and so, so yeah,
[1:50:55] I, I think that's, uh, very important, uh, in that aspect. And again,
[1:51:00] uh, yeah. And, and, and, and the, I guess a, a legal
[1:51:04] question for our city attorney, if, if, let's just say, uh,
[1:51:09] and I know, man, and you've been, uh, very passionate in, in, in, in making sure this co
[1:51:13] this company had an opportunity. And, and it's unfortunate that they chose not to
[1:51:17] proceed, uh, with, with the, with the opportunity. But just to clarify
[1:51:21] on the legal aspects of stuff, if a business wanted
[1:51:26] more money than what was on their original contract, uh, then
[1:51:30] what the consul approved originally and what was awarded due to rfp process,
[1:51:35] will the city legally have to go for an rp then if they wanted
[1:51:39] more money? Um,
[1:51:43] brittany, I'm not, can you please clarify your
[1:51:47] question? I didn't. Yeah, so I think there was a, I think, um, that, uh, our acting
[1:51:51] city manager stated that they wanted more money, and that's why I they not wanna
[1:51:57] continue to be paid or on a month to month services. Uh,
[1:52:01] maybe minor. You could let clarify. Yeah. So I do remember that meeting.
[1:52:05] it was actually to extend their contract. That was the agenda is item at the time,
[1:52:09] uh, that, that item came up. There were some concerns about the, the quality of work, the
[1:52:14] maintenance of the shelters, those type things. The council then determined that we will go
[1:52:18] on a month to month and we will, uh, have public safety
[1:52:22] following and monitor their activities, which matt and
[1:52:26] his staff were doing during that time period. Um,
[1:52:31] the, uh, the belly light decided that they were gonna discontinue service
[1:52:36] with the city at that point until a new contract
[1:52:40] is brought forward. Staff was working, uh, and discussing with them,
[1:52:44] uh, their terms and what they were looking for. And again, when they said they did not
[1:52:48] want to provide service anymore, that's why we decided we, we would start preparing
[1:52:53] an rfp. 'cause eventually we do have to have somebody, whether it's them or anybody else,
[1:52:57] uh, we need to have a provider. So the intent the whole time was to
[1:53:01] continue them on a month to month, whether it was one month or six months,
[1:53:05] um, until we come back within a, a revised contract if needed.
[1:53:09] okay. Thank you. That answers my question. And valley light has sent other
[1:53:13] emails, um, previously. Uh, so please take that into factor
[1:53:18] on two consent calendar. Uh, counsel, is there anything you'd like to pull from the
[1:53:22] consent calendar? Uh, uh, mayor pro contos, uh,
[1:53:26] item number four, please. Four. Anybody
[1:53:30] else? I'll do one.
[1:53:37] just one. Uh, no, I'm, I'm looking, let's see, um,
[1:53:42] number five,
[1:53:49] number nine, and
[1:53:53] number 10. 1, 5, 9, 10.
[1:53:57] anyone else? Okay. Uh,
[1:54:01] do I have a motion to approve the consent calendar items one through 11,
[1:54:05] with the exception of number 1, 4, 5, 9, and 10? I'll
[1:54:09] move to approve. Second. Okay. Roll call.
[1:54:15] thank you, mayor. I have a motion by councilwoman diaz
[1:54:19] and a second by councilman wu to approve consent calendar items
[1:54:23] one through 11, with the exception of items 1, 4, 5, 9,
[1:54:28] and 10. Council member gutierrez aye. Councilman
[1:54:32] wu? Aye. Councilwoman diaz? Aye. Mayor, approach him contos. Aye.
[1:54:36] mayor lopez. Vito aye. Motion passes, uh, onto item number
[1:54:41] one. Go ahead. Councilman gutierrez? Yes. So, um, yeah,
[1:54:45] so I, I think there is concerns regarding obviously what
[1:54:49] the residents have spoken about, about, uh, meritage mlc holdings
[1:54:53] being put on closed session on that when we were not the
[1:54:57] property owners. And, and so, uh, with that being said, uh,
[1:55:02] I will, um, uh,
[1:55:07] I will, uh, I will vote no on the, on the minutes for,
[1:55:11] uh, closed session and yes, on the minutes for open session,
[1:55:17] um, number one, I move the motion to approve.
[1:55:22] I second. All right, I'll second. I'm
[1:55:26] sorry, who gave the second? I, I'll second. Nobody else. Thank you. I
[1:55:30] have a motion by councilman wu, a second by mayor lopez viro to approve,
[1:55:35] uh, consent calendar item number one, which is the approval of the january 20th, 2026
[1:55:40] city council closed session and regular session minutes. Councilman gutierrez?
[1:55:45] yeah. Oh, no, no. Sorry. . Councilman wu? Sorry. Yes.
[1:55:50] aye. Councilwoman diaz. Aye. Mayor
[1:55:54] pro. Tim contos. Aye. Mayor lopez. Vito aye.
[1:55:58] motion passes and I'll make a motion to approve, uh, attachment number two,
[1:56:03] open session. What? That's not, or not which one?
[1:56:08] recommendation. Oh, okay. It's one. Okay. Sign. This is one. Okay,
[1:56:12] no problem. Okay. Uh, onto item number
[1:56:16] four, em contos. Thank
[1:56:20] you, madam mayor. Uh, this is regarding the, uh, code of co, uh, conduct.
[1:56:25] uh, I, I, I wanted to, uh, I, first of all, I've
[1:56:30] gotta apologize to my colleagues. I sent a dear colleague letter this afternoon. Uh,
[1:56:34] I've been sick for most of two weeks, and so I did the best I could to get it to everybody.
[1:56:38] um, and I don't, I, I don't know if that's going to affect things, but basically, just to give a summary,
[1:56:43] I'm proposing a series of small language changes just to ensure,
[1:56:48] uh, appropriate first amendment, uh, safeguards, uh, with regard
[1:56:52] to the, uh, code of conduct. And I laid out in that dear colleague, uh, letter, just
[1:56:56] a few small, uh, changes that would, uh, in principle essentially
[1:57:01] allow people to have their freedom of speech, but not, uh, bring us
[1:57:05] into a situation where, uh, terms are so vague as to as
[1:57:09] to cause conflict and potential litigation and, and, and other situations
[1:57:13] relating to, uh, allegations of, of, of
[1:57:17] constitutional violations of the first amendment. And so, I, I laid that out,
[1:57:21] but the other thing I wanted to say is that, uh, over the past two weeks and going
[1:57:26] over it, uh, the entire code of conduct, again, uh, it's just, it's,
[1:57:30] it's really, really long. And I can understand why, because there meant to address
[1:57:34] a, a number of problems, but it's just really unwieldy for, for the average person
[1:57:38] to really understand. Um, and the, the thing that, um,
[1:57:42] I think I pointed out, and I think I'm gonna need some help in, in reading a section just
[1:57:47] to sort of, to illustrate, um, this, but, um, there's
[1:57:51] several various sections that, that just have vague language. And so what I'm, what I'm
[1:57:55] asking is that, first, if, if, um, just to illustrate first,
[1:57:59] I don't know if, if of the, the assistant city clerk can read from, from
[1:58:03] that, from that letter. There's a section where I, I think it's 2 7 0 9
[1:58:09] ci think, um, if, if she, if, if that's the
[1:58:13] right section, and if you could just double check it's, it's right in the, in the letter, um, toward the
[1:58:17] beginning of the dear colleague letter. And it's just to illustrate a point. And then, and, and I'm
[1:58:21] going to then make a point order. Okay. But my suggestion have, uh,
[1:58:25] uh, the attorney tom tom mcconnell to maybe address your concern,
[1:58:29] uh, since he's the person, address all this court conduct. Okay.
[1:58:33] I think maybe the answer would be much more precise. So, uh, okay. So
[1:58:38] I guess in, in light of the, the recommendations, and, and, and I,
[1:58:42] again, I'm, I'm openly and transparently admitting I, I only provided this to
[1:58:46] everyone this afternoon. Um, but if there's a way that we, we could look at this code
[1:58:50] of conduct, uh, with these possible amendments and have, have it reviewed and just,
[1:58:54] just put it to the next meeting so we could be reviewed properly rather than pushing
[1:58:59] this through, I just would be appreciative. And again, literally
[1:59:03] it's just to address first amendment considerations that are laid out there.
[1:59:07] and, and I, um, copies were also made available to the public to see what they are. But,
[1:59:11] but if, if that could be done, I would really be, uh, appreciative. Uh, so that
[1:59:15] way we can make sure to still have a code of conduct, but yet, uh, uh,
[1:59:20] do this in a way that that, uh, addresses first amendment considerations and also
[1:59:24] tries to find a way to make this more streamlined within not being so
[1:59:28] onerous with the document being so darn long and hard to understand in different places.
[1:59:33] uh, council member, uh, contos, if you don't mind, I wanna address a
[1:59:37] couple of things from your, uh, letter, but just generally sure. If we could discuss that,
[1:59:42] um, if it is not passed tonight, if there's changes made, it would come
[1:59:46] back for a second reading. Again, I think that's what you're asking is, is for us
[1:59:50] tonight to discuss what changes you would want to have, uh, made and then
[1:59:54] to have those changes made and brought back to the council. Is that accurate?
[1:59:58] yes, exactly. And, and out of respect for recognizing that I,
[2:00:02] I provided this so late, I also wanted to, to, in the same way that I
[2:00:06] don't want to rush through, I, I wanted to, to at least give my colleagues an opportunity to
[2:00:11] read, read what I gave them so they could, they can have some thoughts on that as
[2:00:15] opposed to our just getting it through tonight. And so that's why I'm just requesting a delay.
[2:00:19] I mean, we can talk about it now too, which we should, but I just wanted to let you know where I was coming from.
[2:00:23] yeah. And, and if, if I could make a recommendation to the council, um, council
[2:00:27] member s's uh, email was approximately
[2:00:31] six pages. Um, there are a number of suggestions in here
[2:00:36] that I think would be worthwhile having a discussion with the council so that the
[2:00:40] language that's brought back to the council, if, if the council wants to make these changes,
[2:00:44] would be something that you'd be ready to vote on next time if you're not ready to vote on at this time.
[2:00:48] is that fair? Yes. Okay. Um, and, and that paragraph, did you
[2:00:52] want me to read that paragraph for you? Yes, please. Yes, please, tom. Thank you. Yeah, no problem. And and don't
[2:00:57] worry, I don't take any writer's insult to it. Oh, I understand. . Um,
[2:01:01] the, the paragraph that you're referring to is material interference with truth finding,
[2:01:06] and it says, an elected or appointed official shall
[2:01:10] not engage or attempt to engage in conduct intended to materially
[2:01:14] interfere with the city's ability to ascertain the truth or reach lawful
[2:01:19] informed outcomes in connection with city business or city governance.
[2:01:23] material interference with truth finding includes, but is not limited to
[2:01:27] providing materially incomplete, misleading, or deceptive
[2:01:32] information directing, encouraging or knowingly permitting
[2:01:36] others to provide materially false or misleading information,
[2:01:41] intentionally delaying proceedings, disclosures, cooperation
[2:01:45] or responses where such delay is material to obstructing review,
[2:01:50] investigation, or decision making, attempting to influence, disrupt,
[2:01:55] or affect the scope, timing process, or outcomes of administrative
[2:02:00] investigatory, regulatory enforcement or advisory matters
[2:02:04] through the misuse of authority, access, or influence,
[2:02:09] using authority or influence to pressure, discourage or manipulate
[2:02:13] participants, witnesses, investigators, or advisory fact
[2:02:17] finders. Were attempting to influence the material content scope,
[2:02:22] timing, or outcome of investigatory advisory
[2:02:26] review findings through misrepresentation, concealment,
[2:02:30] delay, or other obstructive conduct. Thank you, tom.
[2:02:34] I really appreciate it. And attorney to attorney you. You, I really love
[2:02:39] your ability to write . I, but I, I, the thing that I was worried about
[2:02:43] with regard to this and why, why put this in the dear colleague letter is it's an illustration
[2:02:47] of how it's, it's hard, at least, at least for me, I, I, I don't
[2:02:51] know exactly what that means contextually. And that's, that's just an example
[2:02:55] of why I was supportive of efforts to
[2:03:00] slim down the code of conduct, to just have a, just to have it
[2:03:04] more workable. Because this is really, it's just, it's long and it's unwieldy. And a lot of residents have
[2:03:08] frankly told me they don't understand what it says. And so I realized that
[2:03:12] maybe we can, maybe we could, uh, revise it for more plain
[2:03:16] language if we can find a way to, to put summaries in to, so it's more
[2:03:20] easy to understand. But whatever the case may be, uh, those sorts of
[2:03:24] tweaks along with, um, my suggested recommendations to,
[2:03:28] to, to strengthen first amendment protections is what I'm asking for. Understood.
[2:03:33] and, and so I, I, I could go through obviously and, and
[2:03:37] provide context for what this particular paragraph means. Let me just on a
[2:03:41] a whole give a little bit more context. Uh, my concern with,
[2:03:45] um, generally narrowing the code of context or, or
[2:03:49] oh my god, code of conduct. Uh, my concern with narrowing
[2:03:53] it is that much of this code of conduct is based on case law and
[2:03:58] recognized phrases or, or usage by california superior court and federal
[2:04:02] court. And so to the extent that we were going to make this, um,
[2:04:06] ultra plain language, let's just say hypothetically that we, we made this as plain
[2:04:10] languages as possible, uh, we by doing so, might actually make the
[2:04:15] code of conduct longer, which would be ironic, . But secondly,
[2:04:19] it, it could actually lose some of the force and effect that you would have in trying
[2:04:23] to protect first amendment rights. So, uh, what we're trying to
[2:04:27] balance here, I I completely understand. You're trying to balance, you know, something that
[2:04:31] is easy to explain with something that is going to be law. And laws
[2:04:36] are oftentimes as an attorney to an attorney, oftentimes quite hard to
[2:04:40] explain to a lay person. The, the most important thing is to
[2:04:44] have something for the counsel to be able to use if necessary.
[2:04:48] and, and so I, I would defer to the counsel on what their priority is or their preferences
[2:04:52] with regards to any language. Um, I'm happy to go through any language
[2:04:57] in the code of conduct to make it so that it is usable and it will have the force
[2:05:01] and effect that the council wants it to have. Thank you, tom. So process wise,
[2:05:05] uh, would it be possible for, for, uh, you to go through,
[2:05:10] uh, the recommended amendments, uh, I mean the recommended
[2:05:14] amended language as, as outlined, and then come back with the report so the council can
[2:05:18] see, see, um, what will, they'll, they'll have time, but
[2:05:22] they'll also see your, your recommendations with regard to incorporation of, of,
[2:05:27] of those land language changes. So that way everyone will have more time to germinate
[2:05:31] over this appropriately. It's, it's to the council's discretion. I can
[2:05:35] go through your recommendations right now orally, uh, with the council, or
[2:05:39] I can provide something in writing regarding the, your recommendations. The
[2:05:43] only, um, the only issue with that would be if you provide me
[2:05:47] with direction now, it would make it so that I could provide a draft for
[2:05:51] the next council meeting for consideration. If it was, um,
[2:05:55] I provide you with a response to your code of conduct recommendations,
[2:06:00] that would mean during the next meeting, the council would approve those recommendations or disapprove
[2:06:04] mm-hmm . And that would mean that would be another meeting before the code of conduct would pass. Uh,
[2:06:08] again, there's no pressure on this whatsoever. Uh, I wanna make sure this is
[2:06:12] right. I just wanna make sure that, um, you're aware of what the, the procedure would
[2:06:16] be going forward. Thank you, tom. So for the benefit of the council, can you please just go
[2:06:20] over, I'm not able to read it, uh, live in real time the way you guys can, but
[2:06:25] can you just go over generally what, what it just for,
[2:06:29] for the benefit of others, just read there and then I'll, I'm happy to answer any questions after that
[2:06:33] or is that possible? Not a problem at all. Do you want me to go by the headings that you have? Would
[2:06:37] that be yes. You know, just a different, you know, uh, just to go over what, what, yeah.
[2:06:41] the basic headings of what it says. So, so it's to give the public also who may not have seen the dear colleague
[2:06:46] letter yet, uh, what we're all referring to. Sure. Um,
[2:06:50] do you want me just to give the, the recommendations or you want me to go by headings?
[2:06:54] 'cause some of the headings are pre recommendation. If you could do headings and recommendations, please,
[2:06:59] that'd be great. And then, and then just read off the principles as to why, because I also bulleted
[2:07:03] there different principles that I chose to try to uphold in doing all of this.
[2:07:08] absolutely. Thank you, tom. So, uh, number one, why as applied matters
[2:07:12] in plain language, um, and the principles that you, you
[2:07:16] had bolded here was courts routinely uphold ethics codes on their face,
[2:07:20] but strike them down or impose liability when they are enforced in ways
[2:07:25] that chill political speech, punish, dissent or criticism, regulate
[2:07:29] tone, style or viewpoint, rather than conduct and substitute discipline for
[2:07:33] democratic debate. Do you want me to continue? Yes, please. This is helpful.
[2:07:37] yeah, no problem. Thank you. Um, number two, shared values underlying these
[2:07:42] clarifications. Um, I believe we all agree on these core principles.
[2:07:46] uh, one disagreement, even sharp, uncomfortable disagreement is not misconduct.
[2:07:50] two, ethical rules should target abuse of power, not unpopular viewpoints.
[2:07:55] three, governance processes must not become a tool to suppress criticism.
[2:08:00] and four, elections and public debate not discipline are the primary
[2:08:04] remedies for political conflict. Um, the third heading, key clarifications
[2:08:09] and why they are good for the city, uh, sub would be,
[2:08:13] uh, a related to improper conduct towards participants. Uh, the clarification
[2:08:18] was regarding terms of demeaning or hostile, um, saying that those
[2:08:22] are potentially subjective. Mm-hmm . Um, and the clarifying
[2:08:26] language was, improper conduct must objectively and
[2:08:31] materially interfere with a person's lawful participation in city
[2:08:35] governance or operations. Lawful political disagreement, criticism
[2:08:39] of policy advocacy or constitutionally protected expression
[2:08:43] cannot be punished even when sharp, uncomfortable or unpopular.
[2:08:48] um, is it possible for, uh, when we're going through each of the recommendations,
[2:08:53] if I have some response? Yes, please. Yes. It just might make it easier for people to
[2:08:57] remember what we're talking about. Yes. Because we'll, probably their eyes are glazing over or they're zoning out
[2:09:01] probably. 'cause this is, this is dense, but I really would appreciate that. Again, I was an english teacher in sixth grade,
[2:09:05] I dealt with that a lot. , um, with the improper
[2:09:09] conduct must objectively and materially interfere with a person's lawful
[2:09:14] participation in city governance or operations. And then the second
[2:09:18] sentence there, um, regarding political disagreement, um, let me
[2:09:22] state what my concern is and then, uh, an option here, um,
[2:09:27] the objectively and materially interfere. Um, it is funny because
[2:09:31] we're now adding legal terms to it, so that is kind of in our
[2:09:35] need for, for us to actually add something for that. But the second
[2:09:39] sentence, the lawful political disagreement, criticism of policy
[2:09:43] advocacy, um, that's actually something that's already part of the code
[2:09:47] in two other sections. Um, there is a lain phrase, I don't
[2:09:51] wanna bore everyone here. Um, it's expresso unia exclusion,
[2:09:56] ter, which means to express one thing is to basically to exclude
[2:10:00] another. If we have a sentence like that
[2:10:04] in one section, it starts to actually make the court question, why
[2:10:08] didn't you have a sentence like that in all of the sections? And so if
[2:10:12] you have an overall guiding principle, which is in the construction section, I think you pointed
[2:10:17] out, um, the construction section says just that essentially.
[2:10:21] and so that means that governs every single section that comes thereafter.
[2:10:26] so my, uh, my recommendation would be objectively and
[2:10:30] materially interfere is, is a wonderful addition. I, I think that,
[2:10:34] um, if there is a phrasing for lawful political
[2:10:39] disagreement, criticism of policy, I would have that as part of the general construction agreed
[2:10:43] paragraph and, and have whatever framing, whatever phrasing that
[2:10:47] you want to have it in, that sent that one section since it'll govern everything
[2:10:51] else. That, that makes sense. I, I, I would agree to that as a friendly amendment to the, to what
[2:10:56] I'm suggesting. Okay. Um, the residual catchall
[2:11:00] provision, uh, the y clarification is needed. Catchall provisions are
[2:11:04] historically the most vulnerable to abuse because they rely on, uh,
[2:11:08] rely heavily on discretion. Um, this again, you,
[2:11:13] you had, uh, clarifying language. This section may not be used to
[2:11:17] regulate or sanction protected political speech criticism, advocacy, or
[2:11:21] participation in public debate that would fall within the same, uh, construction. Because if
[2:11:25] you put that in that, then there's a question, well, can this other section
[2:11:30] be used to regulate or sanction, uh, or, or basically cut
[2:11:34] off first amendment rights? Good point. I'd agree to that change too. Okay. So, so I think
[2:11:38] we're both talking about, um, so far just the construction
[2:11:42] paragraph and, and making sure that that fits exactly what you're looking for. Yes. Okay.
[2:11:46] so we'll re we'll return to that one, uh, in a minute here. Uh, interim governance
[2:11:51] based measures, uh, you have interim measures through, uh,
[2:11:55] though labeled non-punitive confunction as punishment in practice
[2:11:59] if imposed too quickly or too broadly, and you had four bullet
[2:12:03] points. Clarifying language, uh, measures require specific
[2:12:07] articulable facts showing immediate and ongoing risk.
[2:12:12] they must be the least restrictive means available. They must not
[2:12:16] restrict participation or speech based on viewpoint or tone. They must be viewed
[2:12:21] at, uh, they must be reviewed at defined intervals. Um,
[2:12:25] the first bullet point measures require specific articulable facts showing
[2:12:29] immediate and ongoing risk is actually in the, uh, immediate,
[2:12:33] the introduction to that particular section that's already covered. So there might
[2:12:37] be some language that you wanted to add in, um, but I, I'd have to look at the
[2:12:42] language. Sure. Definitively, um, they must be the least restrictive
[2:12:46] means available. I, I think that's a fantastic addition. Um, because
[2:12:50] you're saying everything else in this says progressive. Yes. So
[2:12:54] this is a clarification of progressive. Exactly. Tom. Um, the third,
[2:12:59] they may not restrict participation or speech based on viewpoint or tone.
[2:13:03] same thing that we're talking about with the construction. So, uh, I,
[2:13:08] I think that that's gonna be covered by a different paragraph. Uh, and then they
[2:13:12] must be reviewed at defined intervals. Right now it says that it must be
[2:13:16] reviewed, but it doesn't say the interval. So I think that you're adding in, uh,
[2:13:20] no more than 60 days. Yes. That would be an addition that you'd want yes. To be more concrete.
[2:13:25] yes. Okay. Um, construction rule favoring
[2:13:29] constitutional protection, we're, we're hammering that construction paragraph.
[2:13:34] um, you have in a clarifying language, in
[2:13:38] close or ambiguous cases, applications shall favor protection of
[2:13:42] constitutional expression and the electoral process over governance based restriction.
[2:13:47] um, I had said that we were gonna return to that.
[2:13:51] I think that that's the addition that you're looking for in the construction that solves
[2:13:55] yes. Everything going up. Yes. So, uh, the construction paragraph
[2:13:59] right now, I believe it's q or something. I'd have to find
[2:14:04] it here quickly. You could give me one
[2:14:08] second. Sure.
[2:14:15] construction, I flipped
[2:14:19] too far. Oh, thank you.
[2:14:24] so the construction paragraph right now, this is what says in full, and I think what
[2:14:28] you'd be saying is that if this one sentence was added, it would solve
[2:14:32] many of the things that you had above. Yes. Um, legislative discretion and
[2:14:36] protected activity, this is d of 7 0 4. Nothing in
[2:14:40] this article shall be construed to regulate or prohibit lawful political
[2:14:45] disagreement, criticism of policy positions, robust debate during
[2:14:49] public meetings, lawful political speech campaign
[2:14:54] activity conducted in a personal capacity or other expression
[2:14:58] protected by the united states or california constitutions. Mm-hmm . Nothing
[2:15:02] in this article shall be construed to prohibit lawful legislative
[2:15:06] inquiry, oversight, policy advocacy or
[2:15:10] participation in authorized city governance activities, provided such activities
[2:15:14] are conducted through appropriate channels and do not involve misuse of city authority,
[2:15:19] resources, or access or interference with the lawful functioning of
[2:15:23] city operations. Um, if we made that addition to the
[2:15:27] construction, would it solve the yes. The other issues that you were identifying then
[2:15:31] yes. Because it would, it would cover the whole, the whole document. Exactly. Yeah. So
[2:15:35] I think that that's what you're looking for. Yes. Is is in addition to that section that would cover the
[2:15:39] whole document. Yes. I'm sorry, attorney, non-attorney people. It's, sorry.
[2:15:43] this is what happens when we nerd out. I'm so confused. Sorry, .
[2:15:47] I am often because of the, so, so, okay.
[2:15:52] so, um, going back to your email, um, what this means
[2:15:56] in practice, uh, with these clarifications, ethics enforcement
[2:16:00] remains strong and credible. Abuse of power, intimidation, corruption
[2:16:04] and safety threats are still fully addressable. Political speech criticism,
[2:16:09] criticism, advocacy and dissent are clearly protected. The city
[2:16:13] reduces litigation risk and increases public trust, and future councils
[2:16:17] will inherit a principle constitution, constitutionally sound framework.
[2:16:22] and, and then you had said very nice words about a shared commitment towards
[2:16:26] essentially an ethical and code compliant. Thank you for going through
[2:16:30] this. So in light of all of that, I'd like to ask for, for council
[2:16:35] approval to move forward with the spirit of this. And maybe tom, would it be, uh, if
[2:16:39] the, this council so gives that direction, uh, well, what's possible now,
[2:16:43] could, could they agree to all of this in principle and then pass it? Or does it
[2:16:47] need to come back again? In light of this discussion, we are having, uh, in, uh, in
[2:16:51] the open here, I, I defer to city attorney on that one.
[2:16:55] I just write things. Madam mayor, if I may answer, it would need to come back.
[2:16:59] you can't make any changes to an ordinance at second rating and adoption. So you would have to
[2:17:04] specifically identify the changes you want mr. O'connell to make, and
[2:17:08] then it could come back at a, the next council meeting with those changes
[2:17:12] for adoption. So in light of that, I would therefore request
[2:17:16] my co my colleagues to allow those changes. Because doing this now,
[2:17:20] even though it's boring and tedious and we nerd out about this kind of stuff, it
[2:17:24] actually will help protect us, um, against, uh, allegations of, of,
[2:17:29] of constitutional violations, uh, would relate with regard to the first amendment.
[2:17:33] so I like to make that request and make that motion. Great question.
[2:17:38] uh, councilman wu? Yeah. Uh, and, uh, okay. I
[2:17:42] think that's why I hate to talk to my attorney because ,
[2:17:46] my goodness. Okay. My wife hates to talk to her attorney. Also. You is logic here. Definition
[2:17:50] is, is, okay, so understand, you got, try to find
[2:17:54] the right wording. Okay. But my questions over here is the,
[2:17:59] our attorney, outside attorney tono, and, uh, what is your suggestion?
[2:18:04] you see, it's a, it is a valid point, okay. To do this
[2:18:08] amended. Okay. Or it's, it's all about the
[2:18:12] same thing. So I think that will be dependent on your professional
[2:18:16] subjection and, uh, your point of view.
[2:18:20] if you say, yeah, that's good point, and I will support, okay. And
[2:18:25] our male potent, but if you say it's almost the same, it's just the
[2:18:29] wording different then why we need to, okay, since we haven't
[2:18:33] done this for 25 years. But another thing is this, again, we are not in
[2:18:37] a hurry, okay? We not, we not rush this and that. We wanna make sure everything,
[2:18:42] the, the guideline or ordinance or rule
[2:18:47] is people have to follow, obey, uh, if people,
[2:18:51] you have a, no matter how nice the law and this the ordinance, but
[2:18:55] if people don't follow, it's still just a paper, a
[2:18:59] warning. So, but the point is, okay, is this
[2:19:03] waring this, you, I know you spend a lot of time go to all cases and go to other
[2:19:07] city, and then you compute put this together. Okay? And
[2:19:12] then, and our male protein, since he attorney, he,
[2:19:16] he has his integrity and his point of view. So he want to read it and
[2:19:20] make sure everything's covered. So my point is, since I'm not an attorney,
[2:19:24] so I'm just asking your suggestion is that our
[2:19:28] mayor portal has a valid point. Okay. That we should go back. Okay. Change
[2:19:32] some wording to protect, okay. The ct and the council member.
[2:19:37] yeah, so it's an interesting question. Um, any changes
[2:19:42] that are gonna add value to the code of conduct to make it so that the code of conduct
[2:19:46] is not something that you have to revisit weekly, monthly, yearly.
[2:19:50] that is something that I take as valuable. What I would emphasize here is
[2:19:54] the code of conduct is, is not meant to create new law. In
[2:19:58] fact, it, it is meant to essentially give everyone
[2:20:02] on the council something that is more finite, more procedural
[2:20:07] than having to come up with things ad hoc based on case law, having to talk to
[2:20:11] your attorney, which is, I know a pain. Um, having to talk to people, uh,
[2:20:15] and try to figure out what to do with these situations. There's nothing in this code
[2:20:19] of conduct, and I do mean nothing. Um, as far as
[2:20:24] investigations or, uh, discipline, whatever you might
[2:20:28] call it that is not already available to the city of west covina. And so
[2:20:32] to the extent that there's any question regarding, you know, timing
[2:20:36] or speed or anything like that, this is not a timing of the essence type of,
[2:20:40] of passage. So if there was some situation that required an
[2:20:45] investigation as an example, which is two seven, uh, that's section
[2:20:49] 2 7 18 investigation. It's not like we've just made
[2:20:54] up that now the city can conduct investigations. Obviously we're
[2:20:58] aware the city is in the middle of an investigation right now. These are powers the city has
[2:21:02] already had. It is just codifying it so that this council and future
[2:21:06] councils know how to deal with these problems in a more procedural
[2:21:10] manner. So now, regarding the actual questions of,
[2:21:15] you know, did uh, councilman contos add value to
[2:21:19] this? Uh, I would say, um, the, uh,
[2:21:23] objectively and materially interfere.
[2:21:27] I'm sure there's a lot of attorneys that could say that language is, uh,
[2:21:32] additional legalese and it's helpful or it's not helpful. Um,
[2:21:36] and I even see councilman contos smiling here too. I,
[2:21:40] I would say, if you're gonna make these other changes, I, I would say that that change is worthwhile.
[2:21:44] um, the changes that I, I think are frankly wonderful,
[2:21:49] they must be the least restrictive means available. Uh, change I think is, is a
[2:21:53] really valuable addition. Just it goes with the rest of the code.
[2:21:58] um, would that be something that would be incorporated in the, in the code already?
[2:22:02] it, it is already in there. Um, it's just something that clarifies for
[2:22:07] whoever it is that's going through this. 'cause it says very clearly it's progressive, uh, that the
[2:22:11] entire code is meant to be progressive and what is happening with governance based measures.
[2:22:15] for instance, you wouldn't go directly to an impeachment or something along those
[2:22:19] lines if a council member was speaking hostilely to a
[2:22:23] member of the public. See, yeah, I, I know, understand your answers create
[2:22:27] a smile from the . Only our
[2:22:31] attorney contos. Okay. Face is put, my face is
[2:22:35] like, I'm more confused. Okay. So, so the point is I only need yes or no
[2:22:40] question, but it's a good, it's a good addition. It wouldn't, it wouldn't be
[2:22:44] absolutely necessary for it to be a lawful, uh, code of conduct,
[2:22:48] huh? It's, it's a yes or no is a, is a, is add value,
[2:22:52] then I will support it. Adds value. Yes. Okay, then I will second.
[2:22:59] so, um, I would definitely say that before we,
[2:23:03] well, I mean, if, if you wanna take a vote on what councilman contos, I, I would
[2:23:08] strongly advise that. All comments. I was gonna say this
[2:23:12] are heard because I, I want, this is the opportunity for each council to hash out everything.
[2:23:17] um, uh, I know, uh, councilman
[2:23:22] gutierrez had sent us an email in regards to this. Um, so yes,
[2:23:26] we'd like to go ahead and, uh, answer your questions.
[2:23:30] I mean, ask your questions because we don't want a lawsuit.
[2:23:35] yes, thank you, mayor. Um,
[2:23:39] mr. O'connell, does the code of conduct, say a council member has to go through the city
[2:23:43] manager before talking to staff?
[2:23:48] are, are you asking about the council manager,
[2:23:52] uh, form of government in the code of conduct, or are you talking about actually the municipal ordinance
[2:23:57] that's already part of the law for, um, state of west covina? Yeah, it's
[2:24:01] both, but okay. Uh, I think the, the city has that code and then,
[2:24:05] um, uh, I can leave the co this new code of
[2:24:09] conduct also has it, right? Not exactly as you stated. That would be
[2:24:13] a misstatement of how it is that the code of conduct states it. Well, I'm asking you.
[2:24:18] I'm telling you. Okay. It's a misstatement . Okay. Tell me what it says .
[2:24:22] that's what I'm asking you. Tell me what it says. Do you want me to say what the municipal code
[2:24:26] is first? I'll do that. So the municipal code, which is section two dash
[2:24:30] 1 51 powers and, and duties of the city manager. Um, it
[2:24:34] says council manager relations, this is section q,
[2:24:39] the city council and its members shall deal with the administrative services of the
[2:24:43] city only through the city manager, except for purpose of inquiry.
[2:24:48] and neither the city council, nor any member thereof, shall give orders
[2:24:52] to any subordinates of the city manager. The city manager shall take
[2:24:56] his or her orders and instructions from the city council only when sitting
[2:25:00] in a duly held meeting of the city council. And no individual council member
[2:25:05] shall give any orders or instruction to the city manager. The city council
[2:25:09] shall instruct the city manager in matters of policy. No
[2:25:13] council member shall in any manner, directly or indirectly by suggestion
[2:25:17] or otherwise attempt to influence or coerce the city manager or any
[2:25:21] candidate for the position of city manager on matters relaying to the appointment, promotion
[2:25:26] or demotion or removal of any employee or award of any purchase order,
[2:25:30] order or contract. That answer your question. And what does
[2:25:34] the, the new code have?
[2:25:38] I believe it has a new adding it has a new ruling,
[2:25:43] a new rule, saying that you can no longer do inquiries
[2:25:47] with department head. That's not accurate. Okay. What does it say? I'm asking you, can you please answer the
[2:25:51] question, ? Oh, I, I am answering your question. . I continue to answer your question. I don't
[2:25:55] wanna read my e long email in front of everyone. I mean, I don't want to aboard board them,
[2:26:00] I mean board them with all this email. So I make, I could look for it in here,
[2:26:04] but, okay. So which particular
[2:26:08] part would you like me to point out regarding the inquiry? Which one would you like me to
[2:26:13] go through? So if I'm, if I'm not mistaken, without
[2:26:17] me having to read this email, 'cause I don't think, uh, councilman diaz wants me to read it
[2:26:21] all, but, um, um, or my colleagues,
[2:26:25] but there is a section in general phrases that,
[2:26:29] in other words, you could no longer do. If I had a question,
[2:26:33] for example, for to our finance director, I'm not allowed
[2:26:37] to go, uh, inquire with her about a financial, financial
[2:26:42] status of, of, of, of something that's not accurate. There was a
[2:26:46] mu tell me the section. I believe there was a mother may I that was passed that
[2:26:51] required, uh, that not to occur anymore. That's not true.
[2:26:55] can you show me the section, tell me the section and I'll, I'll be happy to answer questions
[2:26:59] regarding, so I, if I'm not mistaken,
[2:27:03] I think the mayor passed a motor, may I, that said that you have to go through the city manager
[2:27:07] if you wanna speak to department. Is this related to the code of conduct or something different? Please go directly.
[2:27:12] I believe you added based upon what she asked for, you added it to it.
[2:27:16] that's not true. Take a look at the red line. There's literally the only thing that's been added is
[2:27:20] in the red line. And the only thing that's been changed, for instance, is elected
[2:27:24] and appointed officials. Um, as opposed to saying that it
[2:27:28] is just an elected official that's a council member, you'd have to
[2:27:32] look at, uh, the attachment number two. So that's, that's not accurate. What does it say?
[2:27:38] uh, look at attachment two. Do you have a copy?
[2:27:42] it has red lines. There's no addition like you're referring to whatsoever.
[2:27:46] so are you say, okay, so, okay. And okay, let's just, okay. In, in
[2:27:51] a regular question, can a council member contact a department head to inquire
[2:27:55] to do an inquiry? So are you asking
[2:28:00] under the municipal code or the code of conduct? I'm asking
[2:28:04] you based upon case law. Okay. We're here talking about the code of conduct
[2:28:08] and if you wanna talk about case law, we can talk about that. You've a whole bunch
[2:28:13] of emails. You, you have a municipal code and you have a code of
[2:28:17] conduct that backs each other. Yes. Okay. So I'm asking
[2:28:21] you can a council member contact a department head to
[2:28:25] in do inquiry? So an inquiry
[2:28:29] that you're talking about right now, are you talking about levy versus santa monica? C of santa
[2:28:34] monica you cited? Yes. Okay. Can we talk about
[2:28:38] that a little bit more? 'cause you're citing it for something that doesn't actually say
[2:28:42] it says in levy, the court said you can, do you have levy? I can give it to you. Yes, I have
[2:28:47] a copy for you. It says in levy, the court said you cannot block elected officials
[2:28:51] from talking to city staff because that stops them from doing their job and
[2:28:55] violates free speech. Not actually what the case says.
[2:29:00] it's not, it, it's not the words. What is the words here?
[2:29:05] lemme give you a copy.
[2:29:12] adam, clerk, do you mind if I alright. You got hand that to him
[2:29:16] to the, yeah. Council member gutierrez, that's actually been a perfect time. Sure. I'm talking about
[2:29:20] the same case. So it says,
[2:29:26] tell me where you're looking. I'm I'm gonna read you the email I sent you
[2:29:30] here since you're asking so many questions. Lets, so here, so levy versus santa monica,
[2:29:34] the very first sentence of the opinion. Santa
[2:29:38] monica city charter section 6.10 states,
[2:29:43] except for the purpose of inquiry, the city council and
[2:29:47] its members shall deal with the administrative service under the city manager solely
[2:29:51] through the city manager. And neither the city council nor any member
[2:29:55] shall give orders to any subordinates of the sea manager either publicly or privately.
[2:30:00] first sentence of the opinion. What's
[2:30:05] your question? Where is it at? Where is that at? First sentence of the opinion?
[2:30:11] turn of page five where it says opinion. Did you read this?
[2:30:15] uh, mr. Con, are you mad about something right now or just what I know you don't want to ask, ask
[2:30:19] answer questions. Well, it sounds like you're very argumentative right now, so I
[2:30:24] I would agree. I would like to ask my questions. Where are you being argumentative? So, um,
[2:30:29] okay. Okay. I'm on page five. And where, where is that at? Okay.
[2:30:34] under gilbert, pj yes.
[2:30:38] except, except for the purpose of inquiry, the city council and its members shall deal.
[2:30:43] exactly. So ex except for purpose of inquiry, so mm-hmm. Council
[2:30:47] members can inquire with city staff according to this case, council
[2:30:51] members can inquire and it's just inquiry. Okay, thank you.
[2:30:55] you, you, we, we saw that question. Okay, so
[2:31:00] what I'm reading in case law, I may be saying it, I purposely,
[2:31:04] uh, put it in words more understandable to the public. So
[2:31:08] I'm not reading you verbatim what the law specifically says. So I don't
[2:31:12] lose the public's understanding what the questions I'm asking.
[2:31:18] and so we can move on, um,
[2:31:22] under the code, the consul can so on, under the code, the consul
[2:31:27] can punish another council member for things they say. Isn't that
[2:31:31] punishing political speech? Your, your hypothetical is
[2:31:36] wildly I'm asking you yes or no. If, if it's no, it's no, I don't
[2:31:40] need commentary. Commentary. I'm answering your question. Your question doesn't
[2:31:44] actually ask a total question. Okay. So, and, and, okay.
[2:31:48] and if we move on then, then in the us supreme court say
[2:31:52] that once you start limiting someone's duties, that becomes a first amendment
[2:31:56] problem in houston community colleges versus wilsons of the us supreme
[2:32:00] court. Nope, it did not. Okay. You want a copy of the case? If
[2:32:04] we're gonna read the same thing, go ahead. Gimme a no, you're saying it says one thing and
[2:32:09] then when I read it, you acknowledge it does say it. See, the problem I have always said it was
[2:32:13] inquiry and you kept on changing my words. So the
[2:32:17] problem that we have is that every single time you
[2:32:21] send an email like this that has case law, it's never actually
[2:32:25] the case law. It's not what it says. And so we spend
[2:32:29] hours going back and forth and doing research. So that's that
[2:32:34] the taxpayer's dollars on this, and I wanna make sure that we're actually talking about,
[2:32:38] but you don't, you don't tell us how much you're getting paid by hour, but, but we move on. I talk about that email,
[2:32:42] but we move on and, and you're talking about
[2:32:47] the problem is, is that you're a labor law lawyer, you're not a constitutional law lawyer, you're not
[2:32:51] a brown act lawyer. And, and so you keep on, you keep refer
[2:32:55] referencing to my email. I don't wanna stall time and, and
[2:32:59] my colleagues, I don't think want me to read this email, but if you're asking me to, I I will,
[2:33:03] but okay,
[2:33:08] so, okay. Houston, houston college, tell me, tell me in houston what
[2:33:12] you're looking at. Did you read houston?
[2:33:17] I'm gonna read you portions of this email and then you could, because you, you're being argumentative
[2:33:22] and saying says one thing and it does. So, um,
[2:33:28] you know, I will allow you to go ahead and read your entire email.
[2:33:32] I mean, it was a demanding and threatening email to the city attorneys
[2:33:36] and you, and it was to us as well, demanding what we do with this code of conduct. You
[2:33:40] freely give tons of copies of all proof of email. You should have done that. The same
[2:33:44] today giving oh, I'll read it. Your emails to all the public that is here today.
[2:33:49] yeah. So be with the clerk been a perfect opportunity, but go ahead. That's why I'm giving you the floor and giving you all
[2:33:53] the time for this to be discussed. Great. So continue on and if you wanna read your
[2:33:57] email, read it fully clearly. Okay. What you just commanded and told us. Yes. Dear mayor
[2:34:01] lopez vido, council member ru, council member diaz, mr. Doherty, mr.
[2:34:05] o'connell and mr. Jones. I write to you in my
[2:34:10] capacity as an elected council member for the city of west covea, to formally demand
[2:34:14] that ordinance number 2 5 3 7, the proposed city cons
[2:34:18] code of conduct be immediately withdrawn from consideration. This
[2:34:22] ordinance scheduled for its second reading on february 3rd, 2026,
[2:34:26] contains multiple provisions or unconstitutional on
[2:34:30] retaliatory and unlawful. Its adoption and enforcement
[2:34:35] will violate my rights and the rights of others under the first amendment,
[2:34:39] the due process clause, the americans with disability act, a da
[2:34:43] and the ralph van brown act, among other laws. If the city council does
[2:34:47] not put this ordinance from the agenda or fundaments to revise it to comply
[2:34:51] with constitutional requirements, I attend to initially litigation
[2:34:56] against the city and, uh, and the officials involved. And there are the
[2:35:00] individual capacities without further notice, this letter
[2:35:04] outlines the most, a rigorous legal defects of the ordinance
[2:35:08] with reference to the specific sections of the red line draft attachment number
[2:35:13] two, ordinance 2 5 3 7, and the january 6th and
[2:35:17] february 3rd, 2026 agenda reports. It also provides
[2:35:21] notice of evidence of retaliatory motive behind this ordinance and
[2:35:25] cites controlling legal authority confirming that ordinances of the,
[2:35:29] the legality in light of the serious consequences, I urge you
[2:35:34] to reconsider and abandon this unlawful ordinance before further damage
[2:35:38] is done. The first amendment violations of retaliation and
[2:35:42] speech restrictions, ordinance number 2 5 3 7 flanking
[2:35:46] infringes on free speech rights protected by the us and
[2:35:50] california constitutions as an elected official, I retained rob's
[2:35:54] first amendment rights to speak out on matters of public concern and
[2:35:58] to perform my oversight duties on behalf of my residents. Courts have
[2:36:03] repeatedly howled that local governments may not punish or retaliate
[2:36:07] against elected legislators for their speech in levy versus the city
[2:36:11] of santa monica. The santa monica rent control board case. The california
[2:36:15] court of appeal emphasized that legislators are given the widest latitude
[2:36:19] to express their views with no s stricter free speech standards on their
[2:36:24] on them than the general public council members are entitled
[2:36:28] to speak as a please on matters of vital to them. Errors
[2:36:32] or in judgment may be exposed of course, but not through punishment
[2:36:37] for the expression quoting word versus georgia three 70
[2:36:41] s3 75 19 62. The proposed code of conduct
[2:36:45] defies three. These principles, its vague mandates and
[2:36:49] punitive mechanisms are fully aimed at chilling and punishing protected political
[2:36:54] speech. In particular, my speech and advocacy. Several provisions
[2:36:59] demonstrate this unconstitutional over breath, vague and overbroad speech
[2:37:03] restrictions. Section two dash 7 0 7, a improper
[2:37:07] conduct toward participants forbids a cons member from engaging in
[2:37:11] threatening and intimidating abusive, demeaning hostile
[2:37:15] sive behavior toward a person involving city governance.
[2:37:20] while true threats, while true, while true threats
[2:37:24] and coercion are not protected, this ordinance goes much further.
[2:37:28] it uses undefined subjective terms like abusive, demeaning,
[2:37:33] or hostile. These elastic labels could en
[2:37:37] encompass virtually any sharp or critical remark. For example,
[2:37:42] if I criticize a staff report as misleading
[2:37:46] or question a contractor's performance, could that be deem hostile or
[2:37:50] demeaning? The ordinance gives no objective
[2:37:55] standard, inviting the majority to punish dissenting speech on a whim.
[2:38:00] this sort of vagueness and viewpoint targeting is unconstitutional.
[2:38:05] a law divests officials with unfettered discretion to punish
[2:38:10] speech they dislike violates the first amendment and due process
[2:38:15] its void. For vagueness doctrine restrictions on communications
[2:38:19] and inquiry, the ordinance will empower the council by majority vote
[2:38:23] to impose communication or co our contact perimeters
[2:38:28] on council members as a governance measure. In plain
[2:38:32] terms, the majority could gig a member by restricting who,
[2:38:36] who they can talk to and what information they can seek.
[2:38:41] indeed. Section two dash 7 26 b explicitly
[2:38:45] contempts temporary restrictions on
[2:38:49] direct contact with specific five persons or entities as a sanction.
[2:38:53] this is a direct attack on my right and duty to gather information
[2:38:58] and speak with city staff, contractors and members of the public in
[2:39:02] a course of oversight, nobody, the first amendment coalition's
[2:39:06] legal director has already worn the best kind of staff contact
[2:39:11] restrictions, apparently contemp here, likely imposed first
[2:39:15] amendment and or, or other problems preventing an elected
[2:39:19] pre representative from talking to staff or cons or cons
[2:39:23] or constituents, ants, except through a man
[2:39:27] managerial gatekeeper, impedes core political speech and
[2:39:31] the right to petition. The right to petition. Such restrictions
[2:39:37] re retaliate against me for asking hard questions and effectively sentencing
[2:39:41] my oversight efforts, which is planing unlawful
[2:39:46] punitive measures for protective expression. The ordinance
[2:39:50] manual penalties goes well beyond a symbolic sensor. It authorizes
[2:39:55] concrete punitive actions such as re as removal from committees
[2:39:59] blocking an agenda, participation mandatory training, and other restrictions
[2:40:04] on official duties. These are
[2:40:08] not me intentional at guidelines, there are retaliatory
[2:40:13] sanctions that hinder an elected official's ability to do their job.
[2:40:17] they were elected to do the us supreme court's decision in houston community
[2:40:21] college system versus wilsons 5 9 5 us 1 42
[2:40:26] draws a critical constitutional line in this regard.
[2:40:30] in wilson, the court held that per verbal censor of an elected board
[2:40:35] member did not by itself give rise to first amendment claim. However,
[2:40:40] the court took care to note that the case did not involve
[2:40:44] expulsion, exclusion or any form of punishment
[2:40:48] and more than severe, and, and that more severe penalties against
[2:40:53] an elected official could present problems under the first amendment.
[2:40:58] here the city is venturing far beyond a censor.
[2:41:02] it seeks to exclude a cons. Member from committees, limit his
[2:41:07] participatory rights and even potentially
[2:41:11] bar him from accessing information or attending meetings as discussed
[2:41:15] below. Such preliminary measures secretly implicates the
[2:41:19] first amendment under wilson and and classic cases like
[2:41:24] bond versus floyd 3 85 us 1 16 19 66.
[2:41:29] the state register violated first amendment by refuses to seat a duly
[2:41:33] elected representative due to his political statements. In
[2:41:37] short, punishing an elected official speech or political
[2:41:42] activity is unconstitutional. And this ordinance attempts to do exactly
[2:41:46] that in some ordinance, 2, 5 3 seven's. Speech restrictions
[2:41:51] and retaliation mechanisms cannot withstand first amendment scrutiny.
[2:41:56] they are designed to retaliate against protected speech, specifically
[2:42:00] by outspoken oversight concerning city governance
[2:42:04] spending and transparency as I described in my outreach to the first
[2:42:08] amendment coalition. After I engaged in oversight public
[2:42:12] criti and public criticism, certain city leaders responded with threats,
[2:42:18] heavy handed rules to route all my communications to the
[2:42:22] city manager and other tactics designed to isolate me from
[2:42:26] information channels, discourage further inquiry and punish protected
[2:42:30] speech. This code of conduct is a communication of an
[2:42:35] all that, of that unlawful campaign to muzzle
[2:42:39] a dissenting council member, the first amendment forbids the
[2:42:43] city from enacting or enforcing such retaliatory rules,
[2:42:48] the due process and vagueness the lack of fair procedure.
[2:42:52] the proposed ordinance also tramples on due process guarantees
[2:42:56] by authorizing putative action without a fair or neutral
[2:43:01] process. And by employing vague standards that fail to give
[2:43:05] notice of what is prohibited if adopted, the ordinance will effectively
[2:43:09] allow a cons, majority or city staff acting at
[2:43:14] their behest to play prosecutor, judge, and jury against
[2:43:18] fellow elected officials without the basic procedural safeguards that due
[2:43:22] process requires the key due process deficiencies include
[2:43:26] no neutral gen, ator, and impartial process. The ordinance
[2:43:30] invest, invest the city council itself with the power to determine violations
[2:43:35] and impose sanctions by a mer majority vote with the accused
[2:43:39] member per personally recused. In other words, my political
[2:43:43] opponents on the council, the very individuals who have been the most vocal in attacking
[2:43:47] me will act as a sole de decision makers on the charges that
[2:43:53] on the charges on the counsel, the vari dis individuals who have
[2:43:57] sorry, will act as a sole decision makers on the charges,
[2:44:01] the verdict and the permit punishment. There is no provision for any independent
[2:44:06] or neutral fact finder or gen care dispute allegations.
[2:44:10] all those section two dash seven 15 and section 7 1 2
[2:44:15] dash seven 16 allow the city manager to conduct
[2:44:19] a preliminary review and outside investigator to compile a report.
[2:44:24] the ultimate decisions rhetoric to sanction and how to rest
[2:44:28] entirely with the cons majority. And this is a
[2:44:32] textbook denial of due process. It violates the fundamental principle, then
[2:44:36] no one should be judged in their own ca cause. Yet here
[2:44:40] the cons majority will be judging a colleague. For, for conduct
[2:44:45] that often involves political disputes between us,
[2:44:49] the potential for bias and unfairness is enormous. Indeed, the
[2:44:53] process outlined not
[2:44:57] meaningful, distinguishable from the unconstitutional expulsion and
[2:45:02] bond versus floyd, where legislators opposed to bond views
[2:45:06] simply voted to exclude him just as bond required courts
[2:45:10] to intervene. When legislative abuse its power to sign into a
[2:45:14] member, a similar abuse here would trigger a judicial intervention.
[2:45:19] simply put a process that allows a bare majority
[2:45:23] to strip an elected official of duties or privileges. Effectively
[2:45:27] notifying, notifying the voter's choice without neutral
[2:45:32] due process is unconstitutional, undefined, and
[2:45:36] the vague standards as noted
[2:45:40] above the ordinance, substative standards for misconduct
[2:45:44] are exceedingly vague and malleable terms
[2:45:49] like abusive, demean, hostile, et cetera, are
[2:45:53] not defined. The ordinance also uses broad phrases
[2:45:57] such as misuse of the platform of office
[2:46:01] to single out or pressure any person and conduct that undermines
[2:46:06] their integrity, fairness, and lawful functioning of city governance.
[2:46:10] these sweeping provisions fail to give fair notice of what is
[2:46:14] prohibited and invite arbitrary enforcement.
[2:46:18] a council member has no way to know, for instance, rather,
[2:46:23] rather fiercely criticizing a city. Wasteful
[2:46:27] spending might later be deemed abusive or undermining fairness.
[2:46:32] such elastic provisions can easily be twisted to punish
[2:46:36] legitimate political expression or minority
[2:46:41] viewpoints, which is why vagueness in this context is
[2:46:45] a serious due process problem. The void for vagueness
[2:46:49] doctrine exists to prevent exactly this scenario where officials
[2:46:53] are chilled from exercising their rights because a law is so unclear
[2:46:58] that it could be used against them unpredictably. Here the vagueness
[2:47:02] is not accidental. It appears crafted to
[2:47:07] maximize the cons, majority's discretion in targeting this favor
[2:47:11] behavior or people, this is unconstitutional. If this ordinance
[2:47:15] were adopted, I will be forced to self, self-censor and limit my
[2:47:20] advocacy out of fear. Then any assert oversight may violate
[2:47:24] some unfor civility requirement. The law does not permit
[2:47:29] such a sword of demons to hang over an
[2:47:33] elected official's head. The lack of notice and opportunity to defend
[2:47:37] the ordinance sets up a rapid path from ac accusation to
[2:47:41] penalty with insufficient safeguards. For example, a
[2:47:46] complaint can be received and filtered by the city manager in a preliminary
[2:47:50] review conducted in secret, then forwarded to the council
[2:47:54] for action at the secondary review. By cons, the
[2:47:59] council can decide to impose corrective measures or launch
[2:48:03] a formal investigation while the ordinance does
[2:48:07] not. While the ordinance does allow an accused member to respond
[2:48:12] during consult considerations and later, before any sanctions are finalized,
[2:48:16] the combination of political decision makers and
[2:48:20] eo define offenses undermines any meaningful opportunity to defend
[2:48:24] oneself. Basic due process will demand a neutral
[2:48:29] hearing officer clear charges the right to rep to present
[2:48:33] evidence and cross examine witnesses for any proceeding that may result
[2:48:37] in deprivation of rights and privileges. None of those features are
[2:48:42] present. The
[2:48:47] an ad hoc in political and non adjunct. This raises
[2:48:51] serious t amendment concerns, compel commitments,
[2:48:55] and prior restraint. The ordinance of acknowledgement requirements section two dash
[2:48:59] 7 0 3, adds another due process and first amendment wrinkle.
[2:49:03] it mandates that every council member sign a written pledge confirming
[2:49:08] receipt of fity wr an agreement to comply
[2:49:12] with the code of conduct and related policies. This acknowledgement must
[2:49:17] be ex executed without modification. Not only involuntarily without this
[2:49:21] arrest and ero condition is since it
[2:49:25] is clearly co co by the ordinance itself.
[2:49:29] if a member refuses to sign the ordinance or ministry states
[2:49:34] that such failure may be considered in determining appropriate governance
[2:49:38] based measures ie punishment under division
[2:49:43] four, he even suggests that that signing the form
[2:49:47] may be required as a condition of participation in city council meetings and
[2:49:51] other city governance activities. In other words, a council member
[2:49:55] who does not immediately swerve feel to this new code
[2:49:59] could be barred from participating in meetings or conducting city
[2:50:04] business, effectively silencing the official and
[2:50:09] dis franchising his or her votes. This is extraordinary and
[2:50:13] unconstitutional prior restraint on an elected official's rights. For
[2:50:17] one, it conditions my ability to perform my elected duties on signing
[2:50:21] a document that I believe in parts to be unlawful for another. It
[2:50:25] provides no due process at all. The meir act of not signing or even on
[2:50:29] the grounds of principle or conscience, is enough to trigger adverse consequences
[2:50:34] without any hearing. This deo approach is riley
[2:50:38] out of step with due process. The
[2:50:42] constitution does not allow the government to demand that someone waive their
[2:50:46] rights or surrender their free speech as a precondition
[2:50:50] to holding office or to accessing a public form.
[2:50:55] imagine if a city required council members to sign a
[2:50:59] pledge not to criticize the city. It will be laughed out of, it'll
[2:51:03] be laughed out of court. This acknowledgement mandate
[2:51:07] is in the same vein. I have a right to voice objections to
[2:51:11] certain policies and to refuse to endorse them punishing me
[2:51:15] for not signing the form or using that refusal as a basis
[2:51:19] to curtail my row would violate both free speech
[2:51:23] and due process. In summary, the ordinance procedural structure
[2:51:28] lacks the ordinary elements of fair play requiring by due process
[2:51:33] the combination of bias, decision making, body vague rules and put
[2:51:37] in with preconditions like the acknowledgement creates an unconstitutional shame.
[2:51:42] the a da disability rights, privacy, and accommodation concerns.
[2:51:47] the code of conduct ordinance also raises red flags under the america's disability
[2:51:51] act and related state laws. As you are all aware, I am
[2:51:55] a person with autism and have certain accommodations that in enable me to serve effectively
[2:52:00] as a council member. Over the past year, I have been subjected to ongoing
[2:52:04] patterns of, of disability abuse and harassment. Uh,
[2:52:08] I don't wanna offend my, uh, colleagues, you want me to read this or not?
[2:52:13] uh, pretty much it goes on and the list goes on and on and on.
[2:52:17] but at the very end, um, pretty much he tells us he's demanding
[2:52:21] that we would draw this ordinance or it'll trigger a illegal battle in his
[2:52:25] own words. Um, and the city will lose. So again, I
[2:52:29] wanted to make sure this is all out there. I gave you the opportunity
[2:52:33] to speak, so, okay. Well, may, may you, you changed my words now. So you want me to finish? Uh,
[2:52:38] I mean, I'll read exactly what you said at the very end. Okay, I'll finish it. The code of
[2:52:42] conduct ordinance also raises red flags under the american's disability act.
[2:52:46] as you are aware, I'm a person. Okay. It goes on. Over the past year, I have been subjected
[2:52:50] to ongoing patterns of disability based harassment and discrimination by some city officials,
[2:52:55] including unfortunately, mayor lopez viro and council member vu, who have
[2:52:59] made repeated public comments questioning the legitimacy of my autism
[2:53:03] diagnosis and ing the removal of my approve accommodations.
[2:53:08] this behavior is not only ible on a human level,
[2:53:12] but it also violates the ada's guarantee of equal access and non-discrimination
[2:53:16] in public services. Title two of the ada a in the california government code
[2:53:20] 11 1 35, among others. When an elected official
[2:53:24] with a disability is publicly targeted and then administratively
[2:53:29] isolated after exercising his rights and amplifies the constitutional harm,
[2:53:33] creating a disability based chilling and democratic com parti
[2:53:37] participation speak up and you will be punished, isolate,
[2:53:42] and publicly undermine the purpose. Ordinance appears to be yet
[2:53:46] another two in this discriminatory campaign, nor does the
[2:53:50] code accommodate or even acknowledge the rights of officials with disabilities.
[2:53:55] to the contrary, imposes rigged conduct requirements and mechanisms
[2:53:59] that ignore the need for reasonable modifications. For example,
[2:54:03] the ordinance will potentially authorized the consult to restrict the matter or
[2:54:08] means a member's participation due temporary limitations on participation
[2:54:12] in specific assignments or temporary adjustments to access
[2:54:16] and to non-public information. If such measures were applied to
[2:54:21] me, they could effectively undo accommodations that have been granted
[2:54:25] for my disability. For instance, if I require information in a
[2:54:29] certain format or advance access due to processing needs, a
[2:54:33] restrict a restriction or information access could conflict with accommodations.
[2:54:38] there's no provisions ensuring that any governance measure will respect
[2:54:42] an official's disability, accommodation, or rights. The mandatory acknowledgement
[2:54:47] section two dash 7 0 3 makes no exception or
[2:54:51] allowance for disability. It requires me to personally affirm understanding
[2:54:55] and agreement to all rules, even do some of those rules as
[2:54:59] written might not account for not for how my disability affects accommodations.
[2:55:04] by forcing an unconditional agreement, the city could later claim
[2:55:09] I waive my a da related objections, which is improper
[2:55:13] ineffective under the law and one cannot waive the public's
[2:55:18] interest in non-discrimination. Moreover, if
[2:55:22] I decline to sign because I need an accommodation related clarification,
[2:55:26] I could be punished immediately. This is cohesive and at odds with the
[2:55:30] ada's interactive process ideals. Notably, one provision
[2:55:35] in the definition section specifically includes automated systems
[2:55:39] or digital assistance, including prompts, inquiries, responses,
[2:55:44] outputs as part of the document and information
[2:55:48] that a customer must preserve and potentially disclose. This unusual
[2:55:53] focus is on digital assistance, which presumably refers to generative
[2:55:58] ai twos and other modern tech strongly suggests
[2:56:02] a target intent. I have in fact utilized supportive
[2:56:07] ai disability assistance and other digital tools as part of my
[2:56:11] work for research drafting assistance and to help manage the heavy information
[2:56:15] load. Something particularly useful given to my colleague. Your
[2:56:19] profile. There is no legitimate reason to single out ai twos in a
[2:56:24] code of conduct except to constrain my ability to use them
[2:56:28] or to intrude upon my workload by casting a white dent over
[2:56:32] in ai generated content related to city business. The ordinance
[2:56:36] seems designed to either chill my use of assisted technology or
[2:56:40] create a pretext to accuse me of some violation if I use such
[2:56:44] twos without later surrendering every prompt output as city record
[2:56:49] record. This raises posts privacy concerns and a da concerns
[2:56:53] privacy because it seeks potential access to my personal
[2:56:57] device outputs and cloud cloud data
[2:57:02] and a da because it effectively in discourages me from using those
[2:57:06] tools that mitigate my disability. The, the city
[2:57:10] should be encouraging the use of adaptive and effective tools
[2:57:14] to, to help any official perform their job, not outlaw,
[2:57:19] outlawing, or stigmatizing them. This provision is a glaring
[2:57:23] red flag of the ordinances crafted to micromanage and target me personally,
[2:57:27] rather than address any generalized city governance issue in
[2:57:32] ever. Great. The ordinance, when viewed in context of city's pattern
[2:57:36] of hostility toward my disability, it is very likely to be found discriminatory.
[2:57:41] it appears to be part of an ongoing pattern of retaliation. Reha harassment
[2:57:46] and public disability based discrimination against me led by mayor
[2:57:50] lopez viro and councilman vu. Their fingerprints are all over this ordinance.
[2:57:55] and indeed the ordinance most concerning provisions align with past grievances.
[2:57:59] they have voiced about me, my communication style, my use of technology,
[2:58:04] my persistence in oversight using a city law to formalize
[2:58:09] discrimination only compounds an illegality. I remind
[2:58:13] you that disability discrimination by a public entity can result
[2:58:17] not only in ju okay, we're, we're gonna, I I'm sorry. I think that I see the public falling
[2:58:21] asleep there and yeah, I'm sorry. Just, I mean, so anyways, um, I mean
[2:58:25] you can, you're more than welcome. You can forward them the copy I letting him
[2:58:29] speak. Uh, there's a lot that could go on now that I know you keep
[2:58:33] referencing your email to our attorney, tom o'connell.
[2:58:38] now you've read that. Now can you ask specific questions? Um,
[2:58:42] and again, I have a question. Oh, okay. Let
[2:58:47] me, uh, councilman wu and then I'll go with d and
[2:58:51] the co conduct is not talking one person or the single or any
[2:58:55] person. The co conduct that is for 25 years. Okay?
[2:59:00] we haven't have an update and it complied to five verse
[2:59:04] including myself. And, uh, you've been accused. I have
[2:59:08] my fingerprint. I haven't talked to, uh, okay.
[2:59:12] uh, attorney o'connor at all. Okay? And, uh,
[2:59:17] okay, this is, uh, what their integrity to check everything about all
[2:59:21] other city about what this and that and a lot of, uh, okay.
[2:59:25] detail. I think our male potent canto know much more than me.
[2:59:29] okay? But again, this is basically is, uh, try to
[2:59:33] have a common sense, try to have a courtesy to each other
[2:59:38] and to the staff. It's not retaliate or anybody.
[2:59:42] last time when this coordinate, okay. Come out and we
[2:59:46] discuss and file verse or agree that we might, this is not only
[2:59:51] for us. We're not going to sit over here forever, okay? This is for
[2:59:55] now and the future. And it is a basic guideline between
[3:00:00] the elected and the staff, how we treat each other.
[3:00:04] okay? We get elected, doesn't mean we have a superpower, and that will become
[3:00:09] their supreme boss. Anything we can just budge in,
[3:00:13] I think the common courtesy and, uh, okay, the common sense.
[3:00:18] okay? Any, everything goes through the city manager channel command. He's
[3:00:22] a ceo. We hire him. He in charge of everything. That's why
[3:00:26] we only talking to him. And then anything he need,
[3:00:30] okay, we need, then he will go to his, uh, okay director and get
[3:00:34] back to us. And this is always what practice
[3:00:38] for 10 years. This is how I deal with the city manager because city manager
[3:00:43] know and he run the city. He must know what's going on.
[3:00:47] and that is what the, always the common practice, I think all, all the
[3:00:51] council and barely go directly to, okay, a
[3:00:55] director, okay? To asking for some document, this and that. I will ask for city manager
[3:01:00] to provide a document of what the issue this. And then you will bring, okay,
[3:01:04] finance director this and in the meeting and explain to the dean and
[3:01:08] this and that. I think there's a proper procedure. And this guideline
[3:01:12] is just want to give people some guideline so we have something, the city have
[3:01:16] something to base on it, okay? Attorney has something to base on it, okay? Otherwise,
[3:01:21] okay, somebody will say, hey, we never have this on the court counter,
[3:01:25] so I can do this, do this. But before now, city council
[3:01:30] will do this. But certainly, okay, some people want to do something extra.
[3:01:34] and regarding the a da speaking, true, okay, this lie is
[3:01:38] really hurting my eye. I tried to bear with that because
[3:01:43] a common day and to one council member and I, with this lie,
[3:01:47] I might have a, I doted to check about the contract and this, it's really
[3:01:51] shocking into my eye. So to comment day you doesn't mean it's going to
[3:01:55] hurt all neighbor or other city council. And maybe I will
[3:01:59] apply the a da too because of my eyesight get hurt, but by damage by this,
[3:02:04] okay? Because this is really, really strong lines over here. Another thing
[3:02:08] you're talking about a common day, a da this elect, when you were the appointed
[3:02:12] okay? Planning commissioner, he never requests anything a point of order.
[3:02:16] you never request any why you get elected. Sir. You I have a point of order, okay? Everything,
[3:02:21] I have a point of order. No, I haven't finished. Let me finish. I I have a point of order city attorney interrupt
[3:02:25] you. I have a point of order, don't interrupt me. City attorney, I have a point of order. The chair,
[3:02:29] the chair should recognize you and allow you to state your point of order and then make a ation state your
[3:02:33] point of order. So, um, you should ask the, the of your order attorney
[3:02:37] for legal advice because now he's going into reasonable accommodations
[3:02:41] that he does not have the legal right to talk about my dis about reasonable accommodations
[3:02:46] that the, that he's not entitled to talk about. I want you open, you
[3:02:50] should talk to the city attorney, get her his, her legal councilman gutter. You already have
[3:02:54] opened that up. So I'm no, I did not talk about I'm gonna allow,
[3:02:58] I did not talk how the law works. This is all true. And that's how the law
[3:03:02] works. If you don't want people notified, you're violating my a da rights, my privacy rights
[3:03:07] sue you for violating my rights, right? That's enough. That's enough. So anyway,
[3:03:12] that's what's gonna happen. Why after you got elected as long as, uh, uh, councilman w as long
[3:03:16] as attorney you're gonna speak up about, hold on of a d accommodations discuss on this floor.
[3:03:20] councilman gutierrez. Councilman wu, as long as you do not go into the details, I'm
[3:03:24] going into details. I'm talking about why shirley not going to the details of the,
[3:03:28] I'm talking about why certainly he want this one lead and he want the extra
[3:03:32] fuel, this and that, and create a burden to the staff.
[3:03:36] the a da is about, okay, we have another, okay, male protein,
[3:03:40] okay? He never requests anything that's illegal. Stop comparing disabilities.
[3:03:44] so no one, no matter what you using a da to protect you. But how about
[3:03:49] the rest of our council? About our right? How about my right over
[3:03:53] sitting here, the lights shouting point of my eye. Do
[3:03:57] I have a war? Come walk you, you could tell the eoca federal judge why you can. So, so anyway,
[3:04:01] what I'm saying is this, certainly you have all this accusation, okay?
[3:04:06] regarding all this are left. But the truth is this, this core conduct is the guideline
[3:04:10] is led. What now in the future, ocd council should, based on
[3:04:14] that as a common courtesy, a common sense, like you go to
[3:04:18] people's home, you just not baring you need to make appointment. Okay? Now just come
[3:04:22] in and want to talk to city attorney, a city manager and take
[3:04:27] all his time, this and that, all five us. We have to make appointment
[3:04:31] a common courtesy. I I think this is what court conduct is about,
[3:04:35] but we just kind of detailed wording. So I waited
[3:04:40] second, okay. From male pur regarding okay, her,
[3:04:44] his okay regarding the amended some of the wording to make it
[3:04:48] more wrong and protected. Um, I just, I, you know, the code
[3:04:52] of conduct is not only stem as you alleged or put all the blame
[3:04:57] on me and, and attack me on a lot of other issues. This code
[3:05:01] of conduct is a consensus of just everything that's already included. I
[3:05:05] know you mentioned about like trainings. Well, we do get trainings, we get mandated
[3:05:09] trainings, ethics training. I, I know I'm still doing it halfway. It's a two and a
[3:05:13] half hour training that I need to complete. But we all need to complete. We, there are already
[3:05:17] guidelines and rules that is already in place that this code of conduct
[3:05:22] is now just showcasing. Um, this is also the protection of the staff.
[3:05:26] we've had issues and complaints from the staff. We had issues and complaints with
[3:05:30] the public. And so this encompasses for all of the protection
[3:05:34] of the public, the staff, the colleagues. It's
[3:05:39] a protection for everybody. And this is, uh, setting a, a standard for
[3:05:43] just those that are current and then those that are gonna be, um, in,
[3:05:47] in future offices. This is not targeted at one. We'd like to make
[3:05:52] sure that we, it, we prevent abuse of power. I mean,
[3:05:56] we hear it from the residents in regards when they're, they're talking about us. Well, this prevents,
[3:06:00] that prevents abuse of power, prevents the, you know, abuse of a da abuse of
[3:06:04] anything. And you know, here, as I mentioned, sometimes in public
[3:06:08] we say things and there's a lot of things that are done behind the scenes that, you know, can't
[3:06:13] be said or can't be talked. And I wish we could, but these, all
[3:06:17] this needs to stop the pettiness, the drama, all that needs to stop. This is just
[3:06:21] a standard. And now I bring this for, to you, to allow you and give you the opportunity.
[3:06:26] I mean, I know you sent this email cc'd the world, cc'd the news media, the
[3:06:30] tv stations, the newspaper, I, every time you send all these emails you
[3:06:34] love to bring out and showcase to the world, all this. And they only hear
[3:06:39] one side. I don't hear, I don't speak and say all these different things that
[3:06:43] you've done. And these a da stuff. There's,
[3:06:47] I'm, there's a lot of adas that, that was not mentioned before.
[3:06:51] I know like the lighting we have closed session. That lighting is not even,
[3:06:56] you know, that's not even touched. But we're not gonna go further in details on
[3:07:00] those. The, and I'm giving you the opportunity to ask specific questions because
[3:07:04] if you are hiding behind the, the rules here, these are common
[3:07:08] courtesy, these are also respect, these are things that everybody agrees on.
[3:07:13] and it's that, uh, management from city manager to
[3:07:17] the council thing. I know that, that they mentioned earlier, these, these are already
[3:07:21] in place. And so if there's an issue, I wanna make
[3:07:25] sure that there's no legality issues because I mean, you threaten to sue us, here we
[3:07:29] go again, another lawsuit. And so I wanna make sure it's all hashed
[3:07:33] out right now. Make sure it's covered. Let the public know. 'cause things are always
[3:07:38] done behind and it's like mm-hmm. Nobody really knows. So this is your opportunity council
[3:07:42] gu gutierrez to ask questions. I haven't finished my my time yet. Okay?
[3:07:46] I wanna conclude what I'm just say. So basically, okay, and uh,
[3:07:51] what I'm saying is this, this is core conduct, again, is for
[3:07:55] us, for everybody, not, or any person, including myself.
[3:07:59] I have to comply too and see when we debate over here,
[3:08:03] and this is clearly, uh, evidence example, when I say something
[3:08:07] he doesn't like, I'm gonna sue you. So that's what the,
[3:08:12] the so-called, uh, retaliation, this and that. It's not from us.
[3:08:16] I never say I'm gonna sue you. If I listen to something like I, I I don't
[3:08:20] like, but right away, just okay, say I'm gonna sue you, I'm gonna sue this and that.
[3:08:24] so this is the intimidation. And that's why we try to use a court counter.
[3:08:29] we have a freedom speech. We hear the debating about what is good or
[3:08:33] bad, if any change, should we change. I, I agree with, uh, okay,
[3:08:37] male potent, okay, counter regarding some of the okay,
[3:08:41] he want to change as attorney, attorney say, yes, let's add value.
[3:08:45] so in that way, let's make it better for the future. Not, not
[3:08:50] just you. Nobody will take nobody, okay? And target you or target
[3:08:54] myself or target anybody. It's something we want to make. This is something
[3:08:58] that good for the future. So, so any add on this and
[3:09:02] that, it would be perfect and welcome, see, to
[3:09:06] discuss about this right away you go into the confrontation. I'm
[3:09:10] gonna sue you because you say this and that. How can we debating over here
[3:09:15] can be freely without worry about, we're gonna sue each other. We
[3:09:19] not getting let to come over here to try to fight and try to sue each other.
[3:09:23] I think we here and try to find something competitive for our council,
[3:09:27] our future, and our city. And that's what we're sitting here for. So it's
[3:09:31] not for the you, for me, for any council, for their individuality
[3:09:36] or for their personal, right? It's more about, it's a public. We get elected
[3:09:40] for public betterments. Okay? And that's why we here spend time
[3:09:44] and now see we only item number four is already past 10 o'clock.
[3:09:48] I think this like, we are going to go to midnight for something that can be
[3:09:52] easily to agree upon and change some word that you don't like,
[3:09:57] but comply for everybody and the future. So thank you mayor, to let
[3:10:01] me finish. And, um, I know, uh, councilwoman diaz wanted
[3:10:05] to say something. Thank you madam mayor. Um, I just find
[3:10:09] this very interesting, or I guess I'm a little confused
[3:10:14] that the last city council meeting, this
[3:10:18] code of conduct was revised to accommodate,
[3:10:23] um, councilman gutierrez's liking and he agreed to it and we
[3:10:27] all, I think it was five one. And today
[3:10:32] we received this email that he was reading and
[3:10:36] at the end threatening to sue only the three of us. Though
[3:10:40] he doesn't threaten councilman contos, which I have no idea why he agreed
[3:10:44] to the code of conduct. So I, I'm confused about that.
[3:10:49] but, um, isn't that a threat?
[3:10:53] I mean, you're telling us that if we do not
[3:10:57] withdraw from this code of conduct, that you're gonna sue me and
[3:11:01] the city. I, I don't understand that and I'm sure,
[3:11:05] um, we'll have to deal with that. 'cause I'm sure there's gonna be many
[3:11:09] more issues that we'll have to address. But, um,
[3:11:14] I just think it's unfortunate that we spend so much time on things like
[3:11:18] this that are meaningless.
[3:11:22] we have a code of conduct. Every government agency has a code of conduct
[3:11:27] and we all have to sign the acknowledgement. I thought we
[3:11:31] satisfied that at the last city council meeting, and I guess we didn't.
[3:11:37] so that was just a comment I wanted to make. Thank you. Thank you. And
[3:11:41] again, when we discuss the code of conduct, councilman gutierrez, this protects
[3:11:45] you as well. This helps prevent others from bullying you or anything.
[3:11:49] so it actually helps you. Um, in here, uh, mayor
[3:11:53] pro tim contos offered some solutions
[3:11:57] and changes. Now again, I'm going to ask you, what is
[3:12:01] it in this code of conduct that you disagree with that, I
[3:12:05] mean, I know they've heard this, you know, the story and everything else, but
[3:12:10] can you ask specific, we have our attorneys here, we have the code of conduct here.
[3:12:14] the attorneys read your email, and so please, if there's
[3:12:18] specific questions or things you disagree in here that you want
[3:12:22] to see changed or anything, offer those solutions. So by all means, this is your
[3:12:26] opportunity to ask those questions. Yes.
[3:12:31] so, uh, you you wanted me to read it, so that's why I read it. So, um, in regards
[3:12:35] to councilwoman di she asked a great question, why am I bringing up these new
[3:12:39] concerns now? And so the, I had, I had the, I had the opportunity
[3:12:44] to email civil rights groups and the first amendment coalition, and
[3:12:48] they raised these, some of these red flags to me. And so when they raised
[3:12:52] them, when other lawyers raised these red flags to me, I responded
[3:12:56] by sending this email, uh, to mr. O'connell and,
[3:13:00] and the city council. Now, when it comes to the law, there's
[3:13:05] case law that specifically states that if you violate another
[3:13:09] council member's constitutional rights, he can bring claims
[3:13:13] against a council member. And when my disability rights continue
[3:13:17] to be discussed and violated, I have a right to defend myself
[3:13:21] under the law. Um, and so
[3:13:25] council member contos has mentioned some great changes, and I support
[3:13:30] that. And all I'm asking mr. O'connell to do really,
[3:13:34] is to review this again, maybe speak to a constitutional
[3:13:38] lawyer, maybe speak to a brown act lawyer. Uh, you, you, you have a large
[3:13:42] firm. I'm sure it's not hard to get some advice, uh, some extra advice
[3:13:47] and, and just make sure that you're writing this code in a way
[3:13:51] that doesn't violate anyone's constitutional rights. I don't think the overall picture
[3:13:55] is wrong. I think in you have some areas where it's contradicting
[3:13:59] itself. And I think you, you stated that earlier, that one area says one thing,
[3:14:04] but then you cover it on a different section and you kind of contradict
[3:14:08] you. You can't. Why, why do we have of that? Just so they can, I
[3:14:12] can look at what you're talking about. So, no, don't, we're not gonna play this game. What I'm
[3:14:16] I talking about? I don't have it in front of me. I'm trying, I'm trying to tell you something in general terms.
[3:14:20] you're trying to make me look like, I'm like, I don't know what I'm talking about here. So
[3:14:25] I'm telling you, all I'm asking for is, is not wanting to incorporate
[3:14:29] council member contos concerns, but also get a second opinion.
[3:14:34] make sure that what you are telling us to approve, uh, like the mayor said,
[3:14:38] that it, it, it could protect my rights too at, but the problem is
[3:14:42] you need to make sure that it does not violate people's
[3:14:46] rights because you have case law where some of these
[3:14:50] areas are contradictory. And all I'm asking for
[3:14:55] is to go back and take what council member mayor
[3:14:59] pro contos has indicated and also get, get while
[3:15:03] you're at it, get a second opinion. Make sure that cons a constitutional lawyer or,
[3:15:07] or a brown act lawyer. Councilman gutierrez, uh, when this has been brought
[3:15:11] up, they took a lot of time and brought it to different attorneys.
[3:15:16] now I ask you again what specific questions. No, no,
[3:15:20] no, no, it's not. Here we go again. , I'm, I'm making this, your honor, and I wish yeah, please
[3:15:24] share that other long email that you sent to the city attorneys
[3:15:28] threatening the attorneys and the attorney did ask what lawyer complain about
[3:15:33] a brown act violation, or which one are you talking about? Just, no, I mean, I'm just saying
[3:15:37] you want, we want specifics. You wanna bring in a lawyer, you apparently
[3:15:41] use a lot of ai, and then you said you get free legal advice. Well ask
[3:15:45] specific questions. And here, what is the first to mimic violation?
[3:15:49] okay, here we are. We're gonna ask you a specific question. In this code of conduct,
[3:15:53] what rights have been violated on your first amendment and what
[3:15:57] rights, disability rights does this violate? There's no provisions in
[3:16:01] the code leti that addresses protections or, or, or vice versa.
[3:16:06] there's language in the code that contradicts case law.
[3:16:10] can you please explain which one? Well, you're gonna gimme an hour to do that, and there's
[3:16:14] no time for that. All I'm asking for is let's incorporate what council member contos said and have
[3:16:18] him double check the work. Okay. Uh, 0.0, the, I already second. Okay.
[3:16:23] canto, would you please? Okay. Roll call so we can move on. I just wanna make sure
[3:16:27] that, oh, I, I know with, um, I want, I want the opportunity of
[3:16:31] the attorneys to address, make sure that
[3:16:36] this, the concerns of all this is there is no violation, there is no legality issues.
[3:16:40] I, I would like to give you the floor an opportunity. I just wanna make sure
[3:16:45] procedurally we're on the same page here about what would happen next, because it sounds like we have two different
[3:16:49] proposals of what would occur. Uh, council member, uh, contos
[3:16:53] has proposed certain very finite specific changes,
[3:16:57] uh, to the code of conduct. Um, I believe that we discussed some of
[3:17:02] those, uh, changes. And I believe that council, uh, member wu would
[3:17:06] like to move, essentially for those changes to be made and to bring back the code
[3:17:10] of conduct to the next council meeting to be, uh, voted on.
[3:17:14] and essentially that would be a second. Well, I will defer to them on this, but that would
[3:17:18] be the equivalent of a second reading since we're making those finite changes. So the code of conduct
[3:17:22] would be approved. Uh, the converse of that is council member gutierrez
[3:17:27] is asking for a total review or re-review
[3:17:31] of the code of conduct without, um, I, I, I don't have specific direction
[3:17:36] of what it is that he would like to change, if you have specific my email,
[3:17:41] but, but I'm not, that's not my request. Just to clarify it, uh,
[3:17:45] I'm agreeing with council member contos motion, uh, and I'm
[3:17:49] asking you uh huh. It's okay. Sorry. Mayor proton. Sorry, mayor. Proton
[3:17:53] contos motion. Uh, sorry. Uh, and, and what I'm asking you
[3:17:58] to do as a lawyer licensed in the state of california with the, and part
[3:18:02] of your ethics as a, as a lawyer with the state bar of california to do your, do some
[3:18:06] extra diligence, I'm asking you to make sure all the wordings there is constitutionally.
[3:18:11] okay. But I'm, I'm gonna go ahead and support council member contos
[3:18:15] motion. Can I, can I ask, are, are there finite things that we
[3:18:19] can make as a change? Because what would happen with what you're saying is, um,
[3:18:23] the next council meeting, we would not be able to vote mm-hmm . On the code of conduct.
[3:18:27] exactly. And so if you have something that's finite, um, so for instance, so I
[3:18:32] I, you brought up, you brought up the ai tools, um, and you said,
[3:18:36] uh, I think that was the, I think that was the last thing that you had just talked about. Is that right? Council member?
[3:18:41] yes. Okay. So you had said notably one provision definition
[3:18:45] section specifically includes automated systems or digital assistance.
[3:18:49] uh, you go on to say, I have in fact utilized generative ai
[3:18:53] and other digital tools as part of my work for research drafting assistance,
[3:18:58] and to help manage the heavy information load, something particularly useful
[3:19:02] given my cognitive profile. There is no legitimate reason to single out
[3:19:06] ai tools in the code of conduct except to constrain my ability to
[3:19:10] use them or intrude upon my workflow. So, is, is your request
[3:19:15] that the preservation or document definition
[3:19:20] related to ai be taken out of the code of conduct?
[3:19:24] 'cause that would violate, uh, I believe it's government code 6 2 5 2
[3:19:29] for the definition under a-c-p-r-a of what is a document that's supposed to
[3:19:33] be withheld, uh, withheld by a government entity when
[3:19:37] something's used within official business or official duties. So you don't clarify
[3:19:42] that. You're, you're, if you're syncing medical exempt, uh,
[3:19:46] it actually does. Um, that's why I wanna make sure that we're on the same page here, just like, uh,
[3:19:51] just like we did with council member contos. If, if we're on a completely different
[3:19:55] page, I'm happy, happy to do that. But documents means
[3:19:59] all writings and recorded information. This is page three. Uh,
[3:20:03] under section 7 0 1, um, documents means all writings
[3:20:08] and recorded information, whether tangible or intangible, regardless of
[3:20:12] form or medium, including paper, electronic, digital, audio, visual
[3:20:16] or database materials. Documents includes letters, memoranda,
[3:20:20] notes, reports, drafts, photographs, recordings, spreadsheets, presentations,
[3:20:25] calendars, logs, databases, electronically stored information, metadata
[3:20:30] and versions thereof. Documents also, uh,
[3:20:34] include content generated, stored, transmitted,
[3:20:39] or relied upon through artificial intelligence tools, automated systems
[3:20:43] or digital assistance, including prompts, queries, responses,
[3:20:47] outputs, drafts, summaries or analysis to the extent such content
[3:20:52] relates to city business or city governance.
[3:20:57] yeah. So if, if you're gonna say, if, if it's relates to the, the california
[3:21:01] public records act, why don't you define that in there? To make
[3:21:05] sure you're not going overroad? Well, that's, that's what we did. That's
[3:21:09] why I'm trying to make sure that we're, that I'm, did you put that is in, you're saying that it's what? The california public
[3:21:14] records act? I don't wanna, I don't wanna, uh, he has let, allow him to finish,
[3:21:18] please. He's asking me no, go ahead. He's, he's speaking. So
[3:21:22] you were saying that there was no reason for it to include
[3:21:26] ai and that, um, it could potentially, oh, let me try to find your
[3:21:31] email again. I apologize. Um, it could potentially make it so that someone
[3:21:35] is going to look at personal devices. I believe you had said, well, well, why, why would you
[3:21:39] put an ai thing in code of conduct? I don't understand. The nexus is you just, well,
[3:21:43] it's a definition of the term document, and there's a, uh, preservation,
[3:21:47] uh, section of the code of conduct that says that if during a review
[3:21:52] of some kind of accusation, this would be 2 7, 1 7,
[3:21:56] um, that they could send you a, or any other council member, a preservation
[3:22:00] of documents, communications, and records, which again, is just codifying california
[3:22:05] law. Yeah. If it's, if it's, if it's a preservation notice, that's
[3:22:09] fine. But also you're saying it, it relates to the california public records
[3:22:13] act requests, and there's some exemptions under that act. So
[3:22:18] I'm ask you for is be more, if you could clarify it more clearer.
[3:22:22] so, like you said earlier today, you wanna create a code of conduct where
[3:22:27] absolutely, an attorney doesn't have to repeat himself every other month reminding us what certain
[3:22:31] aspects mean to us. So all I'm asking for is some, some more clarity.
[3:22:36] uh, if it makes it longer, it makes it longer, but at least there's clarity. So
[3:22:40] we don't have to, uh, continue to debate what something means in, in the
[3:22:44] code. Sometimes the more writing, the better to understand
[3:22:48] something. So what else would you want us to take a look at? Because this
[3:22:52] is one that you identified as being illegal in, in your email, and it
[3:22:56] appears you're now satisfied that well, what, what I'm saying is
[3:23:01] there's been comments made, uh, by the city attorney, uh, not,
[3:23:06] not, not brittany, but the other city attorney. Uh, okay. Uh,
[3:23:10] and so we're not gonna go that well, uh, down, down that route. So I'm, I'm only going off based upon
[3:23:14] what I've been told, uh, what I've been criticized about. Uh, and,
[3:23:18] and if, if, uh, if a code has specific terms
[3:23:23] and aspects of the code that are, are intended to
[3:23:27] somehow retaliate or chill, then we have a problem.
[3:23:31] but if you're saying that this is in relation to a, a court
[3:23:35] preservation notice or the california public records act
[3:23:40] request, why don't you put that in there? Why don't we make it more clearer?
[3:23:45] you would want us to state in, in the code something along
[3:23:49] the lines of, this is following current law. Yes.
[3:23:53] it says that in there no call following the california public records act. So
[3:23:57] you want to, so that way you're not expanding its definition, uh, 0.0.
[3:24:02] okay. I think otherwise you guy will be yeah. Debating all nine.
[3:24:06] so I really don't wanna listen to the attorney to attorney, please. Okay.
[3:24:11] I, I think we already have a motion. I have a second. I've been waiting for two hours
[3:24:15] ago. Uh, can we roll code please? Um, madam
[3:24:19] mayor, I believe we just need to clarify on the record whether you
[3:24:23] guys are identifying specific changes, the specific and
[3:24:27] what those are. We are waiting specific you changes. I can, we just have mr.
[3:24:32] o'connell identified those specific changes. So there's, so this is from, this is
[3:24:36] from council member contos changes, is that correct? Correct. And I seconded.
[3:24:40] okay. And war call, please. Okay. Calling world call. I have a,
[3:24:44] uh, first from mayor pro tem contos, second from councilman wu. Um, council member
[3:24:48] guttier. Councilman g member gutierrez. Uh,
[3:24:53] aye. . Councilman wu. Aye. Sorry. Councilman
[3:24:57] diaz. Aye. Oh my god. Mayor pro tem contos. Aye.
[3:25:01] mayor lopez, vido, you're laughing at me, mayor. I, I making that's okay. I can laugh.
[3:25:06] I can get angry. I'm saying, yes, mayor, mayor, mayor. Mayor. Let's, uh, point
[3:25:10] of order. Let's continue on. Let's move on. Please move on. All right. Disrespectful. That
[3:25:14] is item par four. Uh, all
[3:25:18] right. Now to item five, councilman gutierrez.
[3:25:23] and, and I still stack, yeah. Item five, please. Can I talk no. Item five? Yes, you
[3:25:27] can. On item five. Thank you. Yeah, you made me read the email. You're the one who wanted me to read it.
[3:25:32] item five. Any complaint? And, uh, actually in
[3:25:36] reference to that email, I could like to the public if they can post it so
[3:25:40] that I already gave it to the card. Move on, please. Please. Let's move on. Already has it item five.
[3:25:44] item number five. Yes.
[3:25:48] so, um, ropes, rop stands for recognized obligation payment
[3:25:52] schedule, but that just means it lists of old bills. The city is asking the city of california
[3:25:57] to pay. Is it five?
[3:26:01] it's item five is request for proposals for assessment engineering service. And,
[3:26:05] uh, which one is that one? Okay, item, item five, that one. Um,
[3:26:10] how much, uh, so we're, we're in increasing the, we're doing a
[3:26:14] budget amendment to it? Yes, that's correct. Okay.
[3:26:18] we're asking for, and, and where are we getting that money? Are we, is that money coming from the,
[3:26:22] maybe that's a caring question, but is this coming from the, the reserve funds?
[3:26:29] is reserve funds being transferred to the general fund?
[3:26:35] oh, oh. The, the items that are listed to fund
[3:26:39] the engineering, sorry, I'm short. The items, uh, to pay for
[3:26:43] the engineering assessment, it's not gonna be coming from general fund. I think we listed here
[3:26:47] in the budget amendment, the proposal's amendment is outta special revenue. So
[3:26:51] your maintenance districts to sewer, not general fund. So that one, no,
[3:26:56] no reserve funds have been transferred over for this not general fund.
[3:27:01] okay. Okay. So no reserve funds have been transferred for, for this specific item.
[3:27:05] okay. Let me just pull the slide really quick. If you look at the budget amendment
[3:27:09] attached, I believe that's located in the second to last page.
[3:27:15] and I'm referring to exhibit a. And it's budget memo number 2 0 2 6
[3:27:20] dash 17. Mm-hmm . On your far left hand column,
[3:27:24] we list all the different fund numbers where these monies would be coming from.
[3:27:29] and in edina, in identifying all these special revenues, I
[3:27:33] confirmed that there are reserve funds to cover these costs.
[3:27:37] so again, no general fund monies will be used for the proposed engineering
[3:27:42] assessment to reserve funds. Okay. And, uh, are, are
[3:27:46] the currently, does our reserve funds meet the state? The state
[3:27:50] auditor's requirement of the percentage that was required in our reserves.
[3:27:54] if you're referring to the general fund, the reserve requirements that we are recommending
[3:27:58] and that we abiding by is 18%. Uh, we currently are there. However,
[3:28:03] the request for staff agenda item number five,
[3:28:08] no funds are gonna be coming from the general fund. Again, these funds are non-general
[3:28:12] fund monies and they are special revenues. Okay.
[3:28:16] thank you. That's all my questions.
[3:28:22] madam mayor, move approval. Second roll call.
[3:28:27] roll call vote. Councilman gutierrez? Aye. Councilman,
[3:28:31] councilman wu? Aye. Councilwoman diaz? Aye. Mayor prom, contos.
[3:28:35] aye. Mayor lopez. Hi on pam. Motion
[3:28:40] passes. I, um, item number nine, uh, councilman
[3:28:44] gutierrez
[3:28:48] some time so I can come back. . Let's see.
[3:28:57] so this is our, uh, first quarter financial report, or yes.
[3:29:18] did you have his question? Yes, I'm looking at it. Good
[3:29:22] evening, everyone. , if you could just tell the community what, what this item is.
[3:29:26] absolutely. I'll give you a brief overview of the staff report. So tonight for your consideration
[3:29:31] is to receive and file the very first quarter financial
[3:29:35] report. And this covers the period of july through september of 2025.
[3:29:39] so the purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the city's general fund condition.
[3:29:44] and as you know, the information presented in this report is preliminary. So in
[3:29:48] the first quarter, our 25% over the peer, uh, excuse me, 20%
[3:29:53] completed, the general fund revenues are approximately 4.8%,
[3:29:57] and the expenditures are at 24.7% of the budget
[3:30:01] in dollars. Revenues are 4.7 million, and expenditures are at 24.2 million,
[3:30:06] which is a net negative of 19.5 million.
[3:30:11] compare that to last year, same period of time, um, we were
[3:30:15] at a negative 18 million. So as you can see, we're chain, we are training similarly
[3:30:19] to that other prior year. The reason for the negative net
[3:30:23] difference is primarily due to lag in the property
[3:30:27] and sales tax revenues. Our very first property tax in
[3:30:31] the fiscal year was not received until december, and that was in the tune of 6.9 million.
[3:30:36] and the sales tax was received in september of 2 million.
[3:30:41] so the general fund revenues is approximately 4.7 million. And again,
[3:30:45] this is typical in the prior periods. As for the general fund expenditures,
[3:30:50] we're at 24.7%, or 24.2 million
[3:30:54] of the budget, same period. Last year we were at 24.3.
[3:30:59] as you can see, again, we are training similar to, we have in the past prior year,
[3:31:03] we're requesting approval of additional general fund
[3:31:07] revenues of $200,000. And this is for the mutual aid reimbursements
[3:31:13] and an additional expenditure appropriations of $281,940.
[3:31:20] these expenditure appropriations are for mutual aid over
[3:31:25] time of 225,000. And lead pouts payouts amounted
[3:31:29] to approximately 57,000. So the net impact
[3:31:33] on general fund is $81,940,
[3:31:38] and that will be coming from the general fund reserves.
[3:31:42] now, as you know, the sportsplex is a recreation facility, which
[3:31:46] has amenities including the softball, play fields, the playgrounds,
[3:31:51] restaurants, and a pavilion. Well, earlier in the fiscal year, we had emergency
[3:31:55] repairs to our sports plex tent. That was approximately $400,000.
[3:32:01] insurance covered approximately 268,000 resulting
[3:32:06] in the city bearing the remaining cost of approximately 132,000.
[3:32:11] so this evening, we're requesting a budget amendment for this emergency repair
[3:32:15] to the tent. Now lastly, we're fortunate to have
[3:32:19] received additional state homeland security program grant funds,
[3:32:23] and we're requesting a budget amendment of $17,140
[3:32:28] to reflect the additional grant funds. With that being said, I'll
[3:32:32] cut it short. It's late available to answer any questions that you may have. And, and
[3:32:36] did, uh, did we ever get cal, uh, fema money for the, the
[3:32:40] sportsplex? I mean for the, what's it called? Sports sportsplex. Right? Plex. The sportsplex.
[3:32:44] we, we received the funding from the insurance claim. I of fema
[3:32:50] I have not seen the female needs come in. As you know, they may take some time. I
[3:32:54] should have been here by now. A question. Go ahead. And I, I want to follow
[3:32:58] up. Okay. As I remember, I think, um, my krisa
[3:33:02] uh, waiting the roof could blow away. And, uh, we called, I,
[3:33:06] at the time I was the mayor, so I called for the okay. And the
[3:33:10] state of, city of emergency. So we called fema to pay for that
[3:33:15] big loss. And, uh, I remember you let time, you work for fema, you say we
[3:33:19] should get a grant. So we should have the money from fema. And I
[3:33:23] remember, um, my, chris told me at the waiting for fema approval
[3:33:27] because there's a big hole on the top of, uh, enclosement of,
[3:33:31] uh, soccer field. I can double check to see if so maybe mike, chris,
[3:33:35] I can answer the question. We, we, we went through the fema and we, the
[3:33:40] fema should pay us good evening, mayor and council.
[3:33:44] everything was submitted to fema. Um, everything from the windstorm, from
[3:33:48] not only the sportsplex, but throughout the city, city has been submitted as far as,
[3:33:52] um, you know, fires time and all those things. I
[3:33:56] do not know if there's been anything paid from cal oes. But everything has been submitted.
[3:34:01] the only thing I'm aware of is the insurance claim that we made currently. And cal, uh,
[3:34:06] c-j-p-I-a paid us back for the repairs. My understanding, not only the,
[3:34:10] the plex. Okay. The, the, the, the, the roof
[3:34:14] blow away and the, the female, we, we went through the female for the,
[3:34:18] the lost. Okay. Also, I think our cortes park.
[3:34:23] okay. The roof something too. Okay. And that, I think the fema,
[3:34:27] we've been waiting and we told the people, say we waiting for female approval.
[3:34:31] that was during the windstorm? That is correct. I, we call for the city of
[3:34:35] emergency. Yeah. A couple things I wanna clarify. We did submit both roofs. We submitted
[3:34:39] everything from the sports plex, and we also submitted, um, cortez park
[3:34:43] as well. The, the repairs of cortez park, all fema was covering was the
[3:34:47] damage. 'cause there was only about 600 square feet of damage. And the roof is 15 to
[3:34:52] 1800 square feet, if I remember correctly. So, um,
[3:34:56] the 600 feet, we, the six, 600 square feet that we could report was
[3:35:00] submitted to fema or to calloway, or I'm sorry to fema.
[3:35:04] and then the entire sportsplex was submitted as well. Like I said, I don't
[3:35:08] think we've gotten any return on that, on top of the, the tree damage and the staffing.
[3:35:12] so all those things have been submitted, but I do not believe back que question. Okay. When
[3:35:16] you submit to them, okay, they should tell you the approval
[3:35:21] or decline or this and that, do we have any communication? Are they
[3:35:25] going to pay for it? Just, um, check in the mail or they're not going to
[3:35:29] pay at all? I, I do not wanna defer. I don't have the answer.
[3:35:33] um, we, we go through that process and go through the call oes process with the fire department.
[3:35:37] so we work, we work together with the fire department, get all financials, and then submit it
[3:35:41] all at the same time. But at that point, the, you know, I am not aware of any
[3:35:46] communication. I cannot confirm, deny that. Um, I remember again, because
[3:35:50] that is the, the very expensive repair. And we've
[3:35:54] been waiting for fema adjusters to show up. And finally
[3:35:58] you told me it show up and then we've been waiting for a while. So we should have something
[3:36:02] if they show up, but, okay. And inspect. And they should
[3:36:07] basically, they will pay for the difference. Am I right?
[3:36:13] absolutely. Uh, just please understand that reimbursement from any federal agency
[3:36:19] some time, and I do apologize for that. But any assistance anybody
[3:36:23] can give us to expedite reimbursement, it'd be greatly appreciated. But please
[3:36:27] do understand that reimbursement from federal and some state agencies, it does
[3:36:31] take some time. So, so meaning they didn't decline it, just
[3:36:35] slow. So money will still come to you, I hope,
[3:36:40] slow the processes they must go through. So it does take some time and
[3:36:44] the, the government shut down too. Okay. So, absolutely. Okay. Thank you so much. Appreciate that.
[3:36:48] thank you. Any additional questions? Yeah, I, I think, uh, if I recall,
[3:36:53] I think we, the city advanced money to fix the repairs, but fema
[3:36:57] or the federal agency should still reimburse the city. So, um,
[3:37:01] maybe, um, our kelly s um,
[3:37:06] regional, uh, contact person could contact, uh, uh,
[3:37:10] if forgot her name, but she could, he could contact her and, and find out what the status of
[3:37:14] that is. It's a great suggestion. We will do so. Thank you. Great. Any
[3:37:18] other questions? That's it. We just don't want the money come back.
[3:37:23] so put a smile on your face. Move the motion to approve, please. Second
[3:37:27] roll call.
[3:37:35] roll call vote. Council member gutierrez aye.
[3:37:39] councilman wu? Aye. Councilwoman diaz? Aye.
[3:37:44] mayor pro tem contos. Aye. Mayor lopez vido aye. Motion passes.
[3:37:48] last consent item number 10. Councilman gutierrez.
[3:37:54] now that's the, hello again. Rops. .
[3:37:58] okay. So the rops, which stands for recognize obligation
[3:38:02] payment schedule, that just means a list of mobiles. The city is asking the state,
[3:38:07] the state of california to pay. Um, so would you
[3:38:11] like to gimme a brief? Uh, I can give you a very brief report. Uh, yeah, if
[3:38:15] you want explain. Is that okay? Yes. Thank you very much.
[3:38:20] as, uh, council member gutierrez stated that the roths does
[3:38:24] stand for the recognized obligation payment schedule. I'd like to
[3:38:28] just further, further explain that it was pursuant to ab one,
[3:38:32] abx 1 26 and also the subsequent amendments. Thereafter,
[3:38:37] we refer to those as the dissolution act and required the dissolution
[3:38:41] of the redevelopment agency. So on february 1st, 2012,
[3:38:46] the city elected to serve as the successor agency
[3:38:50] to the former west covina redevelopment agency. Now then,
[3:38:54] pursuant to the health and safety code section 34 1 7 7
[3:38:58] subsection of subsection one, the successor agency is required to
[3:39:03] file the roths. Again, that is the recognized obligation payment
[3:39:07] schedule annually and is to receive funds to pay for
[3:39:11] the former redevelopment agency's obligations. What
[3:39:15] are eligible obligations while they include bonded debt services,
[3:39:20] uh, reimbursement of the housing fund that was used for state mandated
[3:39:25] property tax shifts, loans from the city, legal services, administrative
[3:39:29] costs for winding down the successor agency. So
[3:39:33] with our request this evening, we're asking for fiscal year 26 27
[3:39:38] in the amount of 14.9 million on the roths. However,
[3:39:42] please note that the department of finance has previously denied
[3:39:46] 12.6 million. More specifically,
[3:39:51] we were funding for successor agency legal expenses,
[3:39:56] repayment for the city, administrative overhead and construction
[3:40:00] costs, the sales tax reimbursement agreement,
[3:40:04] unfunded pension liabilities, and retirement benefits of which
[3:40:08] totals approximately 12.6 million. So
[3:40:13] overall, that being said, I do anticipate,
[3:40:17] and I do hope that department of finance approves our remaining portion,
[3:40:21] which is 2.3 million. And that is what is for consideration tonight.
[3:40:25] theros, I listed all the obligations there are outstanding, even though
[3:40:31] the successor agency has been previously denied the department of finance,
[3:40:35] we're placing it back on to see or not we get approved. If not,
[3:40:39] we're looking at approximately 2.3 million. Councilman gutierrez,
[3:40:44] I hope I answers some of your questions. Yes. And then, um, is that,
[3:40:48] is that the one that the state continues to deny? You're absolutely correct.
[3:40:53] and are we paying legal fees for that? We are not. Um, if you look
[3:40:57] at the administrative budget, which is included in one of the attachments,
[3:41:01] legal expenses as it relates to the successor agency,
[3:41:05] the former redevelopment agency is very minimal.
[3:41:15] yeah. 'cause um, if you're still thinking on
[3:41:19] your question, uh oh, I'm sorry. You finish. Are you, uh,
[3:41:23] you know, I, I, I, 'cause I got, I got a, I got an email from this, the california department of
[3:41:27] finance. And, um, again, they, they assert that we're not
[3:41:31] entitled to this. And I think one of my concerns, I just wanna make sure we're not continuing
[3:41:36] to pay this amount of money, but I see line item number 76.
[3:41:40] it says 1.2 1,000,226
[3:41:47] $1,226,000, um, paid to
[3:41:51] reimbursement in advance sa expenses, legal expenses. And then
[3:41:55] our successor agency console is jones and meyer. Correct.
[3:42:00] uh, for the reimbursement of line item 76
[3:42:04] is for reimbursement of an advancement of successor agency expenses.
[3:42:08] and it does his legal expenses. If we were to look
[3:42:12] at the agreement execution date on this item, it was september 16th, 2014.
[3:42:19] um, unfortunately I do not have that information available to tell you who incurred those
[3:42:23] expenses, but I can state that we are requesting a reimbursement of 1.2 million
[3:42:28] and this is for legal expenses that were incurred prior to. Can
[3:42:32] I ask you a question? Councilman gutierrez, you said you got an email from california state finance.
[3:42:36] when did you get that? And did you share that with our own finance and city staff? Yes,
[3:42:40] I did. Oh, when did you get the email? 'cause I, I don't know, we would like to know as
[3:42:44] well. Yeah. Um, if, let's see. Um,
[3:42:51] uh, I get it. Let's see. I think, yes, I think on monday, yesterday, I think. Okay.
[3:42:55] alright, go ahead. Uh, councilman yesterday. I wanna say something.
[3:42:59] okay. Um, I kind of know history about this because
[3:43:03] I got elected 2015 this, uh, november. Okay. And it's
[3:43:07] started in 2016. The previous city manager, chris freeland,
[3:43:12] and the man and development manager, community development
[3:43:16] manager, paulina morales, they've been asking
[3:43:20] me to help ct to get this $2 million back
[3:43:24] since 2016. And, uh, 1718, they even
[3:43:28] want me to talk to okay. And, uh, our senator and,
[3:43:32] uh, our, okay. Even last year, okay,
[3:43:36] I think last year, uh, um, the time former city manager become
[3:43:41] city manager, paulina morales still asking and
[3:43:45] chasing this $2 million back to the city. So it look like
[3:43:50] this is back in 2014 or 13 hotel before my
[3:43:54] time. So look like state of finance or
[3:43:58] state really owes this money $2 million. So, so otherwise
[3:44:03] why? For so many, okay. Continuity of the
[3:44:07] city managers or community service manager chasing
[3:44:11] this money back to the city. So can you check into
[3:44:16] it? I know it's easy to say. Okay. They say, no, no, no. But
[3:44:21] do they really owe us money? And you know, that they may be the de debt, they
[3:44:25] don't want to pay us. Okay. But, uh, are we entitled to this $12 million? We
[3:44:29] just wanna make sure we don't get short change by the state.
[3:44:33] well, obviously, um, we do believe we're entitled to these
[3:44:38] reimbursements. We entitled to have this termin million dollar, the, the city or the, excuse
[3:44:42] me, the successor agency. It's successor agency. Correct. We placed it on our wraps
[3:44:46] and we believe that we are entitled to it. However, the department of finance
[3:44:51] disagrees with the successor agency. Um, and councilman
[3:44:56] gutierrez provide us a letter that was sent to the former finance director,
[3:45:00] and it's dated back in april. And it outlines the
[3:45:04] position of the department of finance. And their basically
[3:45:08] position is saying that we are not, these are not eligible
[3:45:12] obligations that are gonna be reimbursed. So it's
[3:45:16] truly up to the city council and successor agency's decision
[3:45:21] if we want to continue to pursue this by placing these outstanding
[3:45:25] obligations, outstanding unreimbursable expenditures
[3:45:29] on our wraps, or should we just remove it from the future
[3:45:33] wraps? I have not had that opportunity to discuss this
[3:45:38] matter with a successor agency, and therefore we continue to place this
[3:45:42] on for the fiscal year 26, 27 wraps.
[3:45:46] uh, I understand, but it's easy to just wave
[3:45:50] it, delete it, tell million dollar gun. But I, I just feel like,
[3:45:54] okay, if they really owe us, we just have to chase,
[3:45:58] they pay us back. And we're not the only agency in a similar
[3:46:03] situation where we don't agree what is considered to
[3:46:07] be a recognized obligation. Mm-hmm . I just wanna make
[3:46:11] that very clear and a statement to be made understand, I think this is very important
[3:46:16] is possible rather than we just say, okay. Okay. Take it away. Take
[3:46:20] out the book. Is that, do you need more time to search
[3:46:24] this $12 million before you request to remove
[3:46:28] this out of, uh, okay. On, on the book, meaning
[3:46:32] if we still have a chance or we really okay. Have a, because
[3:46:37] I I've been helping, okay. And, uh, the previous city managers,
[3:46:41] the previous, the staff, they want me to talk to the, our
[3:46:46] sacramento and this on that, and I've been talking to okay, then
[3:46:50] hey to $12 million and this on that. So if we just give
[3:46:54] up then, meaning we won't see this money coming back to us at all.
[3:46:58] correct. If we do not place these, what we believe eligible
[3:47:02] obligations on the wraps, we will not be refunded.
[3:47:07] so basically you solid. This is just a dream
[3:47:12] that we will never get a dream. I'm I'm optimistic individual.
[3:47:17] I know you told. Yeah. However, uh, do I believe that the department
[3:47:21] of finance will ever approve those 12.6 million that they've
[3:47:25] been denied denying since day one? Um, minimal chance. Minimal
[3:47:30] chance. Just I'm an optimistic individual. Negative one. Uh,
[3:47:34] I wanna give the floor to mayor pro tem contos, please.
[3:47:40] thank you. Uh, karen, especially since other,
[3:47:45] since other cities have had similar disagreements, has,
[3:47:49] uh, is there a way that staff can look into the extent to which we can ban
[3:47:53] together with other cities? Because if we can do that, let's say to
[3:47:58] in, in a, in a possible, uh, class action, uh, lawsuit
[3:48:02] against the state, uh, for us, because if, if we were to band
[3:48:06] together with other cities who are being denied their, their fund of, uh,
[3:48:10] reimbursements for similar, uh, reasons, then, then would that be a
[3:48:14] possibility for us to per to, uh, to facilitate
[3:48:18] a receipt of these funds that we believe we're entitled to? Uh, so
[3:48:22] successor agencies, other successor agencies have attempted
[3:48:28] to litigate with against the department of finance in regards
[3:48:32] to what the department of finance considers to be ineligible obligation.
[3:48:36] I, for one, was at a city that we did try to litigate unsuccessfully.
[3:48:42] uh, I can defer this to our deputy city attorney
[3:48:47] and she can speak upon other successor agencies, whether another, this is a prob a probability
[3:48:51] or not if the deputy city attorney has any perspective
[3:48:55] or can get to us on that because, uh, this could be a, a
[3:48:59] possible way for, uh, present an opportunity for us to band together with others who
[3:49:03] still are, may not have pursued their, their
[3:49:08] full legal recourse the way we have not yet done in, in that type of adversarial
[3:49:12] context, but in light of their continually denying us, simply
[3:49:16] just allowing them to say no to us without our stepping up or fight. That's a lot of money
[3:49:20] at stake. 12.5, $12.2 million is a lot. It's a lot of money. It's a lot.
[3:49:25] and if we, and, and we already know that whenever suits happen,
[3:49:29] there can be settlements. So even if we get 6 million or whatever, I mean, I'm just saying
[3:49:33] that from a strategic standpoint, to what extent may you be aware
[3:49:37] or might you be aware, uh, is it possible for us
[3:49:42] to band together, band it together with other cities who are similarly situated
[3:49:46] so that we can, we can move forward with a unified potential class action,
[3:49:51] uh, lawsuit against, against the state for this money,
[3:49:55] for our, for the money that we all are collectively owed? Madam
[3:49:59] mayor, if I may, I don't have the historical information on these issues,
[3:50:03] however, I vaguely recall that cities have tried unsuccessfully
[3:50:08] to sue the state over these funds, but my office can look
[3:50:12] into that issue and get back to you. Thank you. Uh,
[3:50:17] one thing, do we have urgency to approve this? We approve. Are
[3:50:21] we going to just delete the $2 million off our book, or we still have a chance
[3:50:25] to come back to address this issue? Just very difficult. I've been
[3:50:29] fighting this for so long and now we just say goodbye. Okay. Well actually for your
[3:50:33] consideration for this success report's consideration tonight is
[3:50:37] to keep the, what we consider to be eligible obligations
[3:50:42] on the robs and submit it to the department of finance.
[3:50:46] so again, our request is to keep these obligations
[3:50:51] on the robs and to submit it. I understand, but you are only asking for 2.1 million. No,
[3:50:55] no, I'm, what I was stating is that the total roths,
[3:50:59] um, the net effect of what I believe we're gonna receive. So let me just restate this.
[3:51:04] the total rocks we request, karen, hold on. The point is that if
[3:51:08] we ask for tell some million dollar, $2 million, we might get couple million dollars.
[3:51:13] if we only ask for $2 million, we maybe get only $2,000 back.
[3:51:17] absolutely. Understood. And that's why we're not asking for 2 million. We are asking for almost 15 million.
[3:51:22] oh, yes. And I like it. Okay. Yeah, yeah. Okay. I'm sorry. I did state that
[3:51:26] very clearly. My apologies. Oh, just gimme a heart attack. $2 million. I don't want just $2 million.
[3:51:30] I'm sorry. It's a little late tonight, so I'm a little blurry. You plan on apologies.
[3:51:35] okay. I think it's $50 million we asking for give $50 million then I'm
[3:51:39] okay. Yes, we are. I don't wanna give up. Let's your million dollars. Understood.
[3:51:44] yeah. And, and I think, uh, how we get to that large number is it, there's
[3:51:48] different accounts and different categories, so when you add all those
[3:51:52] accounts up, it, it creates to that a number, right, karen? Absolutely
[3:51:56] correct. Yeah. And, and I know in, uh, in, in 2024
[3:52:00] in december, uh, I know tony told mayor, uh, council
[3:52:05] member ru told me about this, and then I know paulina has me mentioned it as well. So,
[3:52:09] uh, the governor's office had set up a meeting, uh, with
[3:52:13] the city attorney's office. Uh, I think paulina was part of that meeting.
[3:52:17] city staff was part of that meeting. I joined the meeting and,
[3:52:22] uh, the conversation even went as far as what happens if
[3:52:27] one of the legislators were to pass an, uh, legislation that gives westfield
[3:52:31] that portion of money. And their response, in other words, was,
[3:52:35] uh, the governor would never sign it because open bankrupt the state
[3:52:39] because there's so many other cities in this problem.
[3:52:44] so, and plus they kind of broke too. So yeah. Kind of,
[3:52:48] did anybody else have questions? I'll make a motion to approve anybody. Second?
[3:52:53] uh, I have a question. So when we approve,
[3:52:57] we not wire the $12 million. Why? No, sir. We are,
[3:53:02] I am requesting to submit the wraps for almost $15 million.
[3:53:06] got it. And there was a second already.
[3:53:10] all right. Roll call. Thank you. Thank you. Just to clarify for
[3:53:15] the record, the second was from mayor pro tem contos. Correct. Thank you. Um,
[3:53:20] will call vote council member gutierrez aye. Councilman wu aye. Councilwoman
[3:53:24] diaz aye. Mayor pro tem contos aye. Mayor lopez. Vito
[3:53:29] aye. Motion passes on to department regular matters. Item 12, consideration of appointments
[3:53:33] to the audit committee and resolution, revising audit committee rules
[3:53:38] and regulations. City manager who will present the staff report.
[3:53:42] uh, roxanne lerma, assistant city manager. Good
[3:53:46] evening, mayor lopez. Vito, members of the city council. Um, before
[3:53:50] you tonight, item number 12, consideration appointments. The audit committee and
[3:53:54] resolution revising audit committee rules and regulation. So tonight, the city's council is being
[3:53:58] asked to take two actions. The first is to adopt resolution 20 26 16,
[3:54:04] which amends the audit committee rules and regulations. And the second is to appoint
[3:54:08] the five members to fill current vacancies on the audit committee with
[3:54:12] terms running through december 31st, 2027.
[3:54:16] the audit committee was originally established in 2015 and has been modified several
[3:54:21] times to adjust memberships and duties. Over the years, staff
[3:54:25] members were removed to preserve independence. Committee representation was expanded
[3:54:29] and the committee was renamed and restructured. As of today, the committee consists
[3:54:33] of five public members with the city treasurer and two council members serving as
[3:54:37] ex officio non-voting members. There are currently five vacancies on the audit
[3:54:41] committee. The city accepted applications as required by law and staffer
[3:54:45] commends appointing the five most recent serving members, raphael
[3:54:50] cast castillian, james gritch, david lynn, marsha solorio,
[3:54:54] and deanna stanley. Their proposed terms would begin in february, 2026
[3:55:00] and end december 31st, 2027. In addition to the
[3:55:04] proposed resolution, the proposed resolution updates, the audit committee rules and regulations
[3:55:08] that were last amended in 2021. These revisions clarify that the
[3:55:13] committee will meet quarterly on the fourth wednesday of january,
[3:55:17] april, july, and october. The amendments also clarify
[3:55:21] term lengths and add provisions regarding the selection of a chair and vice chair member
[3:55:25] absences, removal members and procedures for filling vacancies.
[3:55:29] um, we are open to questions. Thank you. Questions from the council?
[3:55:33] move the motion to approve. Second roll call. Okay.
[3:55:38] I have a motion from councilman wu, a second from mayor pro tem
[3:55:42] contos, roll call, vote aye. Council member gutierrez
[3:55:47] aye. Councilman wu aye. Councilwoman diaz? Aye.
[3:55:51] mayor pro tem contos. Aye. Mayor lopez. Vito aye. Motion
[3:55:55] I pass. Uh, item 13, now, consideration of a draft request for
[3:55:59] proposal for federal lobbyist.
[3:56:03] good evening. Um, just looking at these, uh, both
[3:56:07] together, it was similar, uh, draft, uh, rfps to be
[3:56:12] considered, uh, draft lobbyists and grant writing services. We'd
[3:56:16] previously, uh, um, published rfps for both
[3:56:20] in, uh, 24. And, uh, brought those proposals to council in january
[3:56:24] 25. Bids were rejected. We, uh, took input
[3:56:28] from the council, uh, republished those rfps in october,
[3:56:33] and, uh, we're directed to, uh, pull, pull those out of publication, which
[3:56:37] we did. And so we're bringing these drafts forward for consideration
[3:56:41] and direction. And, um, if there's approval to move forward,
[3:56:46] we will do so. Publish these. We need, we will
[3:56:50] need to identify funding. These, uh, services are not funded
[3:56:54] in the current budget. And, uh, we'd anticipate a, uh,
[3:56:58] an amendment, uh, to allocate money from the general fund for these services.
[3:57:03] any questions from the council? Madam mayor? Uh, mayor proam? Uh, I have a contest.
[3:57:08] go, go. Please go ahead. Oh, can you, can you go over the
[3:57:12] specific changes that were made as a result of council input?
[3:57:18] uh, I'm sorry, I don't have the, the
[3:57:23] list of those changes. They were just built into the rfp
[3:57:29] didn't have the specific changes. Thanks. Okay. Uh, into the scope of work primarily.
[3:57:34] okay. Uh, I have a question. Okay. Um, do currently, do we
[3:57:38] have a federal lobbyist? Do we have one or not?
[3:57:42] no. No, we don't have, so how long we don't have this lobbyist
[3:57:46] in the federal this first question. Second, do we need the lobbyist?
[3:57:50] okay. Number three, how much it will cost the city, what kind of
[3:57:54] result they can bring anything back to us. Because currently,
[3:57:59] I don't think the federal government or state government or anybody want to give us a dime.
[3:58:04] we have an infrastructure issue. We have a fire station issue, we have a,
[3:58:08] all this issue, but I don't think they will give any funding.
[3:58:12] so in that way, any lobbyist will really create to
[3:58:16] bring, if they can provide the funding or
[3:58:20] the grant okay. Offset the charge that we pay
[3:58:24] them rather than, I worry that we pay the lobbyist annual fee. It
[3:58:29] is like, I pay for service for some it guy, but they never
[3:58:33] show up. I still have paid them, but I worry about one day I need it.
[3:58:37] so, so the same token, we, we hire these lobbyists,
[3:58:41] it's really functional for city to pay their money. Right. Uh, to my
[3:58:45] recollection, we've never had a federal, um, federal, uh, government
[3:58:49] lobbyists. Um, based on the information
[3:58:53] that we got, the feedback from the last, uh, last go is about, uh,
[3:58:58] 32 4 3, uh, 32,400 to
[3:59:02] 102,000 a year. Just for, for the retainer. That was
[3:59:06] an annual cost. So, so roughly a hundred thousand dollars a year potentially?
[3:59:10] yes. Okay. But what kind of benefit the city can get
[3:59:14] from these lobbyists just over there talking about this and never
[3:59:18] bring a grant to us. And then why is the benefit to the
[3:59:23] city if we spend this a hundred thousand dollars and the,
[3:59:27] any lobbyist, the guarantee you pay me a hundred thousand, I give you a million
[3:59:31] dollars. Right? No, they don't. Funding. There were guarantee, forget it. Just give us $200,000
[3:59:35] funding. Any possibility a year?
[3:59:39] uh, no. There was no guarantee of funding in the proposals. And as you mentioned,
[3:59:43] the climate is such that, uh, the fund, the climates right now is not really
[3:59:47] friendly to the city. We, we recently submitted an application for the,
[3:59:52] uh, community project funding, uh, requesting $10 million
[3:59:56] for, uh, fight. So for a fire station. And, uh, got it.
[4:00:00] I know they don't give us a dollar. $250,000 is going through the congressional,
[4:00:04] or was approved by the house. I mean, in dollar project it give us a hundred
[4:00:09] thousand dollars. 250,000. 50 50,000 for the, we haven't seen the
[4:00:13] money yet. Well, no, but we, it really maybe, maybe from
[4:00:17] the female, it's something to checking in the mail. Mail it never come. That is from a congress. So,
[4:00:21] so, so my point is over here, I I really don't wanna spend a hundred
[4:00:25] thousand dollars. Okay. And it doesn't have any benefit to the city
[4:00:29] unless, okay. Some kind of credibility lobbyists. Okay. And let's
[4:00:33] say, hey, we done this. We have do this. We help with the city, give this funding. Otherwise
[4:00:38] why we need this lobbyist. If he cannot bring any resolve funding or
[4:00:42] benefit to the city, why we need a lobbyist. What the benefit for
[4:00:46] this person that cities give them a hundred thousand dollars while they
[4:00:50] to work to, to, to us kelly? And you can
[4:00:54] answer. Uh, no, I, yeah. I, I, uh,
[4:00:59] don't have a position on this. I, this, this was a direction from the council.
[4:01:03] so basically you're not sure why we need that. Okay.
[4:01:07] so I I'm the reserved we can get benefit. Okay. Maybe all the
[4:01:11] city council can share some light. Well, I, I just, I mean, if there was a different formula
[4:01:16] of payment, such as like a commission or percentage, if they get
[4:01:20] that, then you know, they get paid versus just wishing
[4:01:24] and if they produce nothing, we just wasted money. Is
[4:01:28] there other options like that? This is the standard for, for this line of work.
[4:01:33] all the proposals were we received were retainers. Okay.
[4:01:37] madam mayor, go ahead. Mayor. Pro conscience. Um, kelly, do, do you happen to know with the, the
[4:01:41] latest, uh, appropriation bill that was just signed, uh, earlier,
[4:01:46] uh, if there were earmarks that, that were authorized in that bill, I, I know that there was a debate
[4:01:50] with regard to whether or not earmarks were included at all. So, so
[4:01:55] an answer to the councilman's question with regard to even the,
[4:01:59] the government even giving money out. Do you have, or maybe anyone else on the staff
[4:02:03] can, can they check to see if there are, if the congressional bill that just went
[4:02:07] through included earmarks or did not include earmarks, if they did include
[4:02:11] earmarks, that means that somebody's getting the money with a lobbyist. If they did not include earmarks,
[4:02:15] then, then the councilman's. Right. About how it would not be the, the
[4:02:20] best use of money. But it, it literally hinges on that question as to whether
[4:02:24] congress as a matter of policy, uh, allowed earmarks or if it did not allow
[4:02:28] earmarks, which are currently called con congressionally, congressionally
[4:02:33] appropriated programs. Right. Uh, we did receive notification from,
[4:02:37] uh, the congressman's office that the, uh, the request
[4:02:41] that we had made for the fire station did clear the house. I, I don't know what the status
[4:02:45] is of the senate. Bill, any other questions?
[4:02:52] uh, councilman gutierrez? Yeah, I think, um,
[4:02:56] I think the, the congressional member had stated before
[4:03:01] when I asked him if there was a, a benefit to having a lobbyist. I think he said,
[4:03:05] if you have a project and you know what you want for your
[4:03:10] project, then it can be beneficial if it requires, like, uh,
[4:03:14] multiple people, multiple agencies being involved in, in allocation of funding. So
[4:03:18] it, um, it, it, it could be beneficial.
[4:03:23] um, but, but again, if we do our, it's, there's
[4:03:27] no cost to do an rp. So maybe we could hear whoever presents,
[4:03:31] uh, proposes. Okay. Uh, follow up. Okay. What
[4:03:35] council members stated. Okay. Um,
[4:03:39] we have a project. We, we wanna build a fire station and, uh, our
[4:03:44] congressman okay. And we told them we needed more than $20 million. So he said,
[4:03:48] okay, we can going to give you what, $250,000? Yeah.
[4:03:52] . So it's like 1 10, 1 10th. Okay.
[4:03:57] maybe not even build a bathroom. Okay. So of the fire station. Okay.
[4:04:01] grass. So, so yeah. Grass something. So, so the, the point is this
[4:04:05] maybe ip you send out okay. And checks what we have, uh,
[4:04:10] project. Okay. And what can you provide
[4:04:15] grant for us? What kind of guarantee? I don't know if they can guarantee or this or
[4:04:19] that, but, but again, just don't wanna waste the money, you know, get a lobbyist.
[4:04:23] okay. All this over there, they die wine, this and that. But we, we,
[4:04:27] we just don't get result. We have no control in dc and over there,
[4:04:31] but at the same time, we have somebody over there and they may represent
[4:04:35] so many city, a hundred thousand here, a hundred thousand, 180,000 there.
[4:04:40] so, uh, they really will fight for us to get a grant because a hundred
[4:04:44] thousand dollars, maybe 2000 lobbies is not really a lot of money. So, but
[4:04:48] for us, every dying come, so, so, so my point is
[4:04:52] this, I don't know how the city council do we need this ip.
[4:04:56] okay. Or we can research for those people, but
[4:05:01] okay. What they can offer to us, I, I don't even know this ip will have any
[4:05:05] benefit to search it to a lobbyist maybe can
[4:05:09] create money to us and plus kinda waste of step
[4:05:13] time to search something that may be potentially
[4:05:18] not in this environment, current environment in the federal government right now, it's very
[4:05:22] difficult to get any money out of them. Okay. And so, so
[4:05:26] this is a current, maybe we should wait maybe next year,
[4:05:30] maybe change of environment after midterm elections
[4:05:34] over, they may be changing a little bit more friendlier to the local government
[4:05:38] for say, some funding to fix this and that. I don't know. This is, uh, my
[4:05:42] suggestion. I just don't wanna waste a hundred thousand dollars to doing, like you throw
[4:05:47] the, the rock into the lake. You don't see nothing.
[4:05:51] I mean, I agree. I mean, if we hold, because I know the fiscal impacts as a funding source
[4:05:55] will need to be identified for the service if approved to proceed.
[4:05:59] so with everything that's going on and with funding and so forth,
[4:06:03] I, I don't mind holding back, but I'll go ahead and let other mayor
[4:06:07] pro tim contos. Thank you madam mayor. Uh, from, from my time in
[4:06:11] dc I can tell you that lobbyists do a lot of good work with securing funding in
[4:06:16] this current environment. I can understand the concerns though. So I'm wondering
[4:06:20] what my colleagues would think about our are are still keeping
[4:06:24] this under consideration, uh, uh, uh, un until we,
[4:06:28] we, we see that the environment is such that we can reasonably
[4:06:32] expect that there are possible congressionally appropriated
[4:06:36] programs get that, that can be secured. But that way we keep the door open, but
[4:06:40] then wait, uh, for a proper, proper time when we're more sure about that.
[4:06:44] but it does take time to build these relationships with, with, with different stakeholders, which
[4:06:49] is what lobbyists do. And I can tell you that lobbyists do, do move things
[4:06:53] in dc and that's why we should still find a way to, to
[4:06:57] consider that if, if we can, can councilman gutter?
[4:07:02] oh, sorry. Um, can maybe, can we get like a, like a,
[4:07:06] is it possible to get like an educational course from
[4:07:10] a lobbyist group, just see what they do or something without, without committing
[4:07:15] to hiring them or anything like that? I mean, city attorney, that's a city attorney
[4:07:19] question, or that's tough. A lot of people, people don't wanna give their for you for
[4:07:23] free. Okay. Especially lobbyists. Right? Well, we do have a,
[4:07:27] you know, I'm just, we do have a state advocate. A state
[4:07:32] advocate. I don't know if that would oh, maybe he could come talk. No, no, no. I, I I think
[4:07:36] I mayor go ahead. Yeah, I, I think okay. I agree with,
[4:07:40] um, okay. Male protein can tell. I think we keep the door open.
[4:07:44] okay. And, uh, let's see how the time change, because when that's very
[4:07:48] tough, we might have a war going on and we have mid election,
[4:07:52] so this year I don't think anything will happen from the dc so,
[4:07:56] so, so, but we keep the door open if we see any potential.
[4:08:01] maybe kelly, you, you, you have your eye while open to see any
[4:08:05] potential. Good thing you brought a good one. I mean, after the midterms,
[4:08:09] yeah. That's a meeting this next year. Yeah. So that's why I just say next
[4:08:14] year after midterm, do we have a motion, um, to motion
[4:08:18] to open and we will motion what, uh, mayor proto
[4:08:22] contos has mentioned, or he can motion that if you like, but
[4:08:26] thank you. Thank you. I'd like to move to keep, to keep this matter open
[4:08:30] and to bring this back at, at a, at a point when we, uh,
[4:08:34] we feel that the environment has changed enough to enable us to consider,
[4:08:39] uh, the possibility of securing congressionally pro. I, I seconded. Hey, roll
[4:08:43] call. Get the door open. Okay. I have a motion from mayor
[4:08:47] pro tem contos. And a second from councilman wu. Roll call vote.
[4:08:51] council member gutierrez aye. Councilman wu? Aye.
[4:08:55] councilwoman diaz. Aye. Mayor pro tem contos. Aye. Mayor lopez.
[4:09:00] vito aye. Motion passes now to item number 14, consideration of a draft request
[4:09:04] for proposals for grant writing services. City manager who will present the report.
[4:09:09] kelly mcdonald. Go ahead. Proceed. Okay. Uh, similarly, this
[4:09:13] was, this was an rfp that was published in 24 and bids were rejected
[4:09:17] in 25. We attempted to publish again in october 25,
[4:09:22] and, um, pulled that back. So this is a draft, uh, rfp
[4:09:26] for consideration and direction. Again, that's not a funded service. And we had
[4:09:30] be looking at a general fund allocation, if we decide to proceed
[4:09:36] any questions, uh, councilman wolf, uh, rather than
[4:09:40] hire additional person to impose another
[4:09:44] of, uh, six figure salary. Okay. And, uh, because a
[4:09:49] grant writer, so we have a, a assistant city manager
[4:09:53] is that he capable to help us to,
[4:09:57] to, to look into the grant design that, so in
[4:10:01] that way, uh, we can save a rather than a higher grant
[4:10:06] writers, we, we have a, he has a lot of, uh, finance
[4:10:10] background, this and that. So possible, uh, he
[4:10:15] can help us. This is my question. So
[4:10:19] how do you think the city manager or kelly, does he keep we, can we
[4:10:23] do that first? Okay. Well then just go to a higher
[4:10:27] additional. It costs another six figure. In
[4:10:32] speaking with, um, some of the firms that have, uh, contacted us,
[4:10:36] um, it appears that the scope of work and the detail
[4:10:40] that would need to go into it, uh, would need to be, would be best to
[4:10:44] contract out to have this service provided. Um, with that, some of
[4:10:48] the people, they have submitted inquiries about doing grant writing services for
[4:10:52] the city. They have different menus, everything from a retainer, a monthly
[4:10:56] retainer to a per project or per grant, uh, writing
[4:11:00] service. So they had a full menu of how it could be, um, funded.
[4:11:05] but, uh, currently we don't have the capabilities in-house, uh, to
[4:11:09] research all the existing grants that are out there and to properly facilitate
[4:11:14] the writing of grants. And I know currently that the city in different
[4:11:18] departments, and I do think that each department for writing their own grants,
[4:11:22] um, but sometimes the purview might be limited or they're still missing out on other grants
[4:11:26] that they might not be aware of. Uh, with changes of staff, it just makes
[4:11:30] it a little bit more difficult when you can have a specialty. And I know I've mentioned this in
[4:11:35] the past of like, grants to maximize the use, and they usually have
[4:11:39] their own databases of all the grants that we are limited to.
[4:11:43] and I do, um, agree with per project, uh, and this
[4:11:47] is more flexibility than the lobbyists. So, I mean, I'd like to see this move forward.
[4:11:52] uh, kain gutierrez, yes. I, I think there's, uh, a lot of state money that the
[4:11:57] city's not applying for. And, um, I think a,
[4:12:01] uh, a firm, uh, or I think, I think one, I think part
[4:12:05] of the consult request back then was also to see what, what would be more cheaper and
[4:12:09] more efficient if, if it's a hiring a, uh, a grant writing,
[4:12:13] writing, uh, firm, or potentially hiring in-house grant
[4:12:18] writers. Again, um,
[4:12:22] speaking with some of the, uh, perspective, um, vendors
[4:12:26] for this type work. Um, they have people in specialized fields.
[4:12:31] so with one firm they say they may ask, you know, what's your focus?
[4:12:35] do you want funding for fire, police, landscape
[4:12:39] maintenance, um, fire mitigation hazards, those type things.
[4:12:43] um, one person wouldn't be well equipped in-house
[4:12:48] to have that subject matter expertise on all the different type grants
[4:12:53] that are out there. Um, some of the firms we've talked to, you know, they may have
[4:12:57] 20 people and everybody focuses on a specific type grant, and they're subject matter
[4:13:01] experts in writing that type grant. So as the city says, we're
[4:13:05] looking for a grant for something specific, they would have somebody earmarked
[4:13:10] specifically to write that type grant and would have the expertise and knowledge of what grants that
[4:13:14] are available and the timing for those. So I'll make a motion. Madam
[4:13:18] mayor. Oh, we have, uh, councilman woman diaz.
[4:13:22] thank you, madam mayor. So my question is, what's
[4:13:26] the difference between this agenda 13 that
[4:13:31] talks about this federal, um, law, I'm sorry, I'm the wrong one.
[4:13:36] the grant writing proposal versus the number six that,
[4:13:41] uh, we're requesting an rfp for the engineering, the traffic
[4:13:46] engineering, the grant writing, administrative services and all that. What's the difference
[4:13:50] between that? I believe on item number
[4:13:54] six for the engineering proposal, we left in the
[4:13:58] part of grant writing, not knowing if the council would approve or
[4:14:02] move forward with a grant writing service. Currently, we rely on our
[4:14:07] engineering, um, department to research and write grants
[4:14:11] specifically to engineering and do public works to the best of their ability.
[4:14:15] okay. But if the city were to move away from relying on
[4:14:19] individual departments and went to a, a larger firm to search out these grants,
[4:14:24] it would just enhance our ability to garner grants. Okay. Great
[4:14:28] question. Uh, mayor pro, I mean, well, mayor proti contos, I, I was
[4:14:32] just going to, uh, echo support for, for, for you with regard to this item.
[4:14:36] and I'd like to move, uh, approval, uh, to proceed forward. Thank you. And I'm gonna second
[4:14:40] that. Okay. So, so the question would be,
[4:14:44] okay, I, I, based on the acting city manager okay. Suggestion
[4:14:49] would be the firm. So I agree. Okay. Because the firm has
[4:14:53] more people. Okay. Just like our also seeing engineer, they have
[4:14:57] more people. So you hire one person, they only maybe good for one thing,
[4:15:01] not okay. Because the grant, not only for the public safety, they
[4:15:06] have a lot of grant for community service. When I was the ena
[4:15:10] of, uh, okay. Council of government. Okay. Then, uh, they
[4:15:14] basically talking about state has a lot of ground for hiking trail.
[4:15:19] okay. And, uh, I think I sent it to the city manager okay.
[4:15:23] to say, hey, maybe we can apply lake grant. So because we have a lot of
[4:15:27] trail, okay. And, uh, maybe we can help to connect to other trail. And
[4:15:31] I mentioned about that. So, so this is a specialty. Okay. Not public
[4:15:35] safety, it's a state. They want the open space, they want the hiking trail, this
[4:15:39] and that, and that. They have, they told me they have tons of money reserve,
[4:15:44] even states broke because they're misusing the fund. But,
[4:15:48] but the hiking trail is design that there's another trust fund
[4:15:52] for the, for the, because they wanna emphasize open space, hiking, trail
[4:15:56] nature and stuff. And we have less. So maybe that, that we can have them
[4:16:00] to look into. So second thing is how
[4:16:04] we pay them. If we hire the firm, are they going to
[4:16:09] a grand percentage or are we higher monthly charge? How
[4:16:13] much is that? Do, do we, can we go into this? Are we going to
[4:16:18] be okay, just ip to, so you bring back to us about
[4:16:22] their charge? Or are you paying, you can basically go through the company
[4:16:26] and then tell us later about how much you're going to city going to pay.
[4:16:32] my expectation is we would get the proposals from the different, um,
[4:16:36] providers and come back to the council, seek direction on, do you want to go with a,
[4:16:40] a monthly all cart? Uh, they just apply for everything
[4:16:44] or do specific, um, grants one at a time. And
[4:16:48] some of 'em are matching. Some of 'em, the firm may take
[4:16:53] a percentage of the grant received, uh, which wouldn't be out of pocket. So
[4:16:57] costs, basically we are going to approve tonight is approve the
[4:17:01] proposal for ip, and then you will send back to us and we can decide
[4:17:06] which company, what kind, what kind of charge, and then we can decide
[4:17:10] the time e exactly. And just decide what type
[4:17:14] program we want to have, uh, per grant, a per month.
[4:17:18] um, and, and again, it would capture everything from covering all
[4:17:22] of our departments, uh, uh, things outside of our city resources. Yeah.
[4:17:26] I, I think the one is more motivated. Is I okay. Based on the
[4:17:30] grant, more grant, they get paid more. Okay. Otherwise, if we get a fixed income,
[4:17:34] they never get a grant for us. Well, they'll be, go ahead and bring that back. We already have a motion
[4:17:38] and a second. So roll call. A roll call vote. Um,
[4:17:43] councilman berg gutierrez. Yes. I was just gonna say, um, if you
[4:17:47] could also, I think we, we, um, passed the council request to show us whoever
[4:17:51] you picked, but also show us the top three, I think the record.
[4:17:56] yeah. Record, yeah. Understood. Yeah. And then, yes,
[4:18:00] we'll try this again. So let's back up a little bit, um, just to make sure that the record
[4:18:04] reflects accurately. So I have a motion for mayor pro tem contos. A second
[4:18:09] for mayor lopez. Vito, roll call. Vote. Council member gutierrez?
[4:18:13] yes. Councilman wu. Aye. Councilman diaz? Aye. Mayor pro tem
[4:18:17] contos. Aye. Mayor lopez. Vito aye. Motion passes. Now on to
[4:18:21] city council reports. Ab 1, 2, 3, 4. Conference and meeting report.
[4:18:25] any, seeing none, city council request? Any, uh,
[4:18:29] councilwoman diaz? Thank you, madam mayor. Um,
[4:18:36] I know that some time ago, um, we had, um, conditional use permit
[4:18:40] issued to our, um, spotless burger. And, um,
[4:18:45] I would like to have staff look into this issue, this
[4:18:49] permanent and see if they're complying, because my understanding
[4:18:53] is well, everybody has seen that place and it's, it's been a mess.
[4:18:57] and so I want to find out if, um, they're complying with
[4:19:02] that. Um, I know that we had granted them this, uh,
[4:19:06] what is it? Um, drive through grandfather, grandfather, their,
[4:19:10] their, um, their drive through. And so if they're not
[4:19:14] complying, then I, maybe we will take that away. So
[4:19:18] I'd like staff to look into that. Please. I'm, I will second let. Okay.
[4:19:23] um, mayor proam contos. Oh, I, I,
[4:19:28] I'm in full agreement with what? I thought you had an, uh, oh, I do. I do. But I
[4:19:32] didn't know if there was a vote for that or not. Oh, yeah. No, I mean, she, there was no other disagreement. Oh, okay. Okay.
[4:19:36] great. Unless anybody had any well, I, I'd like to, to, uh, echo
[4:19:40] the concerns that were expressed by matt smith and doug four about
[4:19:44] the ways that the businesses have been really fake. And, uh, I think there was another person
[4:19:49] here, gosh, I don't remember her name, uh, but, but the, the tina
[4:19:53] . Well, uh, she penalized me by saying, I don't, she'll, she'll deny me a beer
[4:19:57] now, but I don't drink. So . But, uh, I,
[4:20:01] I wanted to, uh, echo those, the, the, the sentiments
[4:20:05] that they have expressed regarding the concerns relating to the, the, the
[4:20:09] higher athens bill. And I know that, that, uh, myelin is already working on this,
[4:20:13] but, but, um, borrowing from what was also brought up during oral communications,
[4:20:18] if there'd be a way that, uh, staff could convene, uh, and, and give notice
[4:20:22] to the various businesses all around town, to to have them all convene and, and discuss
[4:20:26] these various issues about how to, how athens can work with them, uh, uh,
[4:20:31] to, to address these issues. But not just do doing it piecemeal, but giving notice
[4:20:35] to all of the businesses so that way we can get the aggregate of what is happening with
[4:20:39] everyone and how, how, how these issues can be addressed and, and, and how
[4:20:43] their, their, the issues relating to their costs can, can be, uh,
[4:20:47] lowered or, or, or whatever collaboration that could result from,
[4:20:51] from figuring this out together. But I, I really worry about the things
[4:20:56] that are happening to the businesses here. And, and it's, we, we just, we've gotta do something about
[4:21:00] it in a way that really matters to these businesses. Bottom lines. So, I agree. And I second that.
[4:21:04] I don't wanna see highway robbery and, you know, we do care for our businesses,
[4:21:08] and so I'd like to see that move forward. Any other con concerns with that? Right.
[4:21:12] that one's good. Uh, um, the next one is with regard to our beautification.
[4:21:17] again, I've gotten word that there are dead trees along the median side on azusa avenue,
[4:21:21] along several blocks. Um, and that there are also people who have driven
[4:21:26] in, in, um, cortez park. And there, there are tire marks all over the
[4:21:30] place, and there are other signs around of an absence of attention to
[4:21:34] beautification. And it's, and it's on the rise. I'm, I'm hearing from multiple people.
[4:21:38] and, um, so I'm just like to ask that staff not only redouble
[4:21:42] their efforts, but but when these things are visible, please to address
[4:21:47] them. Uh, and not, I mean, I know that they, they address our concerns when they're
[4:21:51] brought to attention, but some of these things are really obvious that, you know, with regard to like dead trees
[4:21:55] and so forth. So please redouble efforts to, to get these things fixed. Second, second
[4:21:59] left. Any questions or anything? I mean, concern. All right. That
[4:22:03] passes. Uh, next council request. Anybody else? That's it. Okay. Thank you. Uh,
[4:22:07] councilman gutierrez never can look up the trees on sunset, too,
[4:22:12] by don norte.
[4:22:16] okay. Uh, now city council comments council,
[4:22:20] uh, let's go ahead with, uh, councilwoman diaz. Thank you, madam mayor. I just want
[4:22:24] to congratulate our latest moee. We have some
[4:22:28] officers that were promoted. We have some management in dispatch that were promoted, some jailers,
[4:22:33] some, some new, um, cadets. And I just, I just wanna congratulate them
[4:22:37] again and, um, welcome councilman gutierrez.
[4:22:42] yes, I I'll join, um, councilwoman diaz and
[4:22:46] also congratulating, uh, the men and women who were promoted and, and the
[4:22:50] success they continue to do in our community that our police officers and our firefighters.
[4:22:55] um, also, um, I want, I wanted to also, uh,
[4:23:00] acknowledge and celebrate, uh, african american history month.
[4:23:04] I think it's a special a month that honors the
[4:23:08] legacy of, of, of very important people like dr. King.
[4:23:13] and I remember doc one of growing up, I think one of my,
[4:23:17] uh, inspirations growing up was, uh, dr. King. And I think his,
[4:23:21] his speech went, uh, you know, he, he had a dream
[4:23:25] that one day his four little children will one day, uh, grow up in a society
[4:23:30] where they would not be judged by the color of their skin, but rather by the content of their character.
[4:23:34] and those are words that, uh, uh, have always inspired me. And, and so
[4:23:38] I just wanted to honor his legacy. And also, uh, and that's
[4:23:43] it. Thank you. Uh, councilman ru. Yeah. Uh, and I wanna follow, um,
[4:23:47] councilwoman diaz regarding the monday, the promotion
[4:23:52] ceremony. Okay. The, okay. Um, the event that
[4:23:57] we have, our, I want to thank our pre chief okay. And
[4:24:01] have a leadership. Now we hire additional five police officer,
[4:24:05] they wo in that day. And then we see the five young person
[4:24:10] and plus, okay, we have a jailer, okay? We have a big
[4:24:14] strong jailer, okay? Promoted supervisor. We have a dispatchers
[4:24:19] promotion and that new hire and we fill it up, okay?
[4:24:23] and, uh, this is something so important for public safety. I think this is something,
[4:24:27] uh, represent the city. We continue, okay. To improve our city.
[4:24:32] and I want to thank our chief, okay? With a strong leadership. Continue
[4:24:36] to add. Okay? We know we have some retiree, but continue to
[4:24:40] get this. Okay? And he told me we have another five
[4:24:44] or six okay. Under in the academy. So they will come out
[4:24:48] and serve our cd two. So just like we can see, okay.
[4:24:52] continue to improve our public safety agency. And another thing is,
[4:24:56] okay, fire department, I think they're doing the excellent job and,
[4:25:01] uh, we promised them we are going to build their station. We are going to build their station.
[4:25:05] okay, thank you. Um, thank you. If you did register
[4:25:09] for couples connect, I will see you there. Uh, next week. I know it's
[4:25:13] halfway full. Uh, even though it's a couple, each individual
[4:25:17] needs to register, um, dinners provided we need, we capped it
[4:25:22] at a certain amount, but that would be fun, engaging, and there's hands-on activities
[4:25:26] and, um, you'll get something out of that. Consider it a date night if you like. Um,
[4:25:30] but you know, it's gonna strengthen the relationship in the community. So I look forward to seeing those
[4:25:35] there next week. Other than that, um, I know it's a late night
[4:25:39] at your bedtime story today, so we'll meeting adjourn.