* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:02] FIVE SECONDS. [ CALL TO ORDER: Council Chamber INVOCATION: City Attorney/Legal Counsel Collins PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Councilmember/Director Lampkin ROLL CALL: Mayor/Chair Medrano Mayor Pro Tem/Vice Chair Gomez Councilmember/Director Espinoza Councilmember/Director Nigsarian Councilmember/Director Lampkin] I WILL NOW CALL THE ORDER OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAHABRA AND REGULAR JOINT MEETING WITH THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY OF THE CITY OF LAHABRA OF MARCH 2ND, 2026, THAT THE RECORD REFLECT THAT IT IS 6:00 PM AND THAT ALL COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE PRESENT. THE INVOCATION WILL BE GIVEN BY OUR CITY ATTORNEY COLLINS, FOLLOWED BY THE FLAG SALUTE BY OUR TWO STUDENT ATHLETES, KAYLA HO AND MADELINE KAMARA. ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA HAVE OUR CITY ATTORNEY DO THE INVOCATION FIRST, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE YOU BOTH GO TO THE, UH, PODIUM. CAN YOU PLEASE YOUR EYES? DEAR GOD, WE HUMBLY PRAY THAT YOU'LL GRANT WISDOM TO THE CITY COUNCIL AS IT CONSIDERS CITY BUSINESS SET FORTH AND THE MEETING AGENDA TONIGHT. WE ASK THAT YOU PROVIDE THE CITY COUNCIL WITH INSIGHT AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE RESPONSIBILITIES AND CHALLENGES CONFRONTING OUR COUNCIL, STAFF, AND CITIZENS, SO THAT TOGETHER WE CAN STRIVE TO SOLVE THESE ISSUES WITH COMMUNITY, SPIRIT AND PARTNERSHIP IN MIND. PLEASE BLESS THE COUNCIL IN ITS DECISION MAKING TONIGHT SO THAT WE MAY ACT PRUDENTLY AND RESPONSIBLY FOR THE GOOD OF THE LA HABER COMMUNITY. AMEN. AMEN. YOU DON'T HAVE TO PLEASE FACE THE AMERICAN FLAG. PUT YOUR RIGHT HAND OVER YOUR HEART. READY? BEGIN. BEGIN. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. AND TWO REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD IN THE VISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE RAW. THANK YOU LADIES, WILL THE CITY CLERK PLEASE CALL? ROLE? THANK YOU, MAYOR. YES. COUNCIL MEMBER DIRECTOR LAMBKIN HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER DIRECTOR NIAN HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER DIRECTOR ESPINOZA HERE, MAYOR PRO TEM, VICE CHAIR GOMEZ HERE. AND MAYOR CHAIR MADANO HERE. ALL IN ATTENDANCE. UH, THERE WAS NO CLOSED SESSION HELD TODAY, AND WE'LL MOVE ON TO PROCLAMATIONS [1. RECOGNITION OF THE SONORA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS' WRESTLING TEAM ON WINNING THE 2026 CIF SOUTHERN SECTION - DIVISION 4 CHAMPIONSHIP] AND PRESENTATIONS. UH, THE, UH, FIRST AND ONLY IS THE, UH, RECOGNITION OF THE SONORA HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS WRESTLING TEAM ON WINNING THE 2026 CF SOUTHERN SECTION DIVISION FOUR CHAMPIONSHIP. WILL MY COLLEAGUES PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE WELL, I'M NOT THE ONLY COUNT. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. HOW YOU GIRLS DOING? WE NERVOUS? NO. WHY ARE YOU NERVOUS? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THIS IS LIKE A GREAT DAY FOR YOU GIRLS, ASIDE FROM THE DAY YOU WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP. ALL RIGHT. ALRIGHT. SO ABOUT THREE OR FOUR WEEKS AGO, WE HAD THE, UH, LA HABER BOYS, UH, FOOTBALL TEAM IN HERE, RIGHT? THEY'RE DONE. THEY'RE GONE. THIS IS ABOUT YOU GIRLS. ALL RIGHT. GIRL POWER, RIGHT? ABSOLUTELY. AS A FATHER OF THREE DAUGHTERS, THIS IS GREAT, RIGHT? EVERYBODY. LET'S GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE. YES, ABSOLUTELY. YES. SO WE ARE VERY, VERY PROUD OF YOU HERE ON THE CITY COUNCIL. NOT ONLY THE CITY COUNCIL, BUT THE CITY OF LAHABRA, BECAUSE TO MY UNDERSTANDING, THIS HASN'T BEEN DONE BEFORE. RIGHT? SO YOU'VE BROUGHT RAIDER NATION TO A HIGHER LEVEL NOW, SO NOW NEXT YEAR'S JUNIORS ARE GONNA HAVE TO COMPETE AND WIN IT AGAIN, I'M JUST SAYING. RIGHT? ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. SO WE'LL GET STARTED REAL QUICK. UH, WE'RE GONNA PASS OUT SOME CERTIFICATES. WE'LL THANK SOME PEOPLE, AND WE'RE GONNA TAKE SOME PICTURES UP HERE. SO WHEN WE PASS OUT THE CERTIFICATES, IF YOU CAN PLEASE REMAIN UP HERE. WE'RE GONNA TAKE PHOTOS WITH EVERYONE, ALL RIGHT? AND THEN WE'LL GET, UH, WHO IS, WHO IS THE COACH? ALRIGHT, SIR, YOU WANNA COME UP? LEMME TAKE A LOOK AT THAT. OH, WOW. LOOK AT THAT. ALL RIGHT, CONGRAT, CONGRATULATIONS. WE ALL RIGHT, LADIES? YOU GUYS READY? YES. ALRIGHT. FIRST UP IS AALIYAH NUNEZ. CONGRATULATIONS. CAN YOU STAND RIGHT HERE? I YOU LIKE. NEXT IS A GONZALEZ. THANK YOU. CONGRATULATIONS. NEXT IS ARIANA LOPEZ. CONGRATULATIONS. YOU GOT THE SAME THING AS MY COUSIN. KAYLA [00:05:01] HO. THANK YOU. CONGRATULATIONS. CHLOE HO. EMMA RODRIGUEZ. CONGRATULATIONS. ESTELLE RODRIGUEZ. CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRAT. CONGRATS. FAITH DE LOS SANTOS. SHE'S NOT HERE TO, OKAY, WE'LL HOLD ON TO THAT, COACH. THANK YOU, SIR. ILEA CASAS. DID I PRONOUNCE THAT RIGHT? OH, EYLEA, MY APOLOGIES. EYLEA CAAS, GET IN THERE. CONGRATULATIONS. GOOD JOB. GOOD JOB. CATHERINE DAMASCUS. CONGRATULATIONS. CAN YOU GET TO COME BACK TWO MORE YEARS, RIGHT? LEXIE KERRIGAN CAN MAKE IT EITHER. LINDA CROSKEY, CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU, MADELINE KIMURA. CONGRATULATIONS. MALIA KIMURA. CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS. SHE'S NOT HERE. CONGRATULATIONS. SHE'S NOT. OKAY, WE'LL, HOLD ON. MINUTE. WELL, WE'LL, WE'LL ANNOUNCE ANYWAY. MARGARITA LECHUGA, WHO COULDN'T BE HERE EITHER. MAYA URA. GOOD JOB, GIRL. CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS. RUBY RODRIGUEZ. COULD NOT BE HERE EITHER, BUT CONGRATULATIONS, RUBY, SABRINA CARRANZA. CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATULATIONS. SEE YOU. YOU GIRLS ARE TRYING TO TRIP ME UP WITH THE DOUBLE S AND STUFF. , RIGHT? HERE WE GO. YEAH, SPANISH WAS MY FIRST LANGUAGE. THANK YOU. AND THE, THE, THE BOYS FOOTBALL TEAM TRIED TO DO THAT TOO. . I LOVE IT THOUGH, VALERIE GILL. WOO. SOME DO YOU WANT GO ON TOP? STEP UP HERE. SO EVERYBODY, OR SHOULD WE GO ON TOP? ACTUALLY, YEAH, WE SHOULD GO ON TOP. SO THE, THEY'RE IMPORTANT. YEAH. WE'LL SAY A FEW WORDS AS WE GO. YOU GOT IT. STAND RIGHT THERE, MAN. ALRIGHT, WE'LL STAY RIGHT HERE THAT WAY. THERE WE GO. AND DON'T GO ANYWHERE. OKAY, GIRLS, WHEN WE TAKE THESE PICTURES, TAKE HAVE MORE OF YOU GIRLS COME, YOU COME OVER HERE IF YOU'D LIKE. THERE WE GO. YEAH. PERFECT. OKAY. YOU READY? 1, 2, 3. PERFECT. PARENTS, FEEL FREE TO COME UP IF YOU WANT TO COME UP. YEAH. TAKE PHOTOS, PLEASE. YES. ALL RIGHT, ONE MORE. ONE MORE, ONE MORE IN THE BACK. ALRIGHT, COOL. ALRIGHT. GOOD JOB GIRLS. DON'T GO ANYWHERE YET. WE GOT, UH, WE GOT SOME THINGS TO SAY HERE. SO AGAIN, A FEAT THAT HAS NOT BEEN ACCOMPLISHED BEFORE. RIGHT? ALRIGHT, SO I'M LOOKING AT ALL YOU GIRLS RIGHT NOW, AND I'M GONNA TELL YOU ON CITY COUNCIL, THERE IS ONE RESIDENT WRESTLER, ACTUALLY ONE, UH, JIUJITSU EXPERT. AND HE'S, YOU'RE STANDING RIGHT BEHIND HIM. SO IF YOU WANNA LEAVE CITY COUNCIL HERE IN ONE PIECE, YOU GOTTA WRESTLE DEL LAMPKIN . OBVIOUSLY I CAN MAKE IT. I DON'T KNOW. THEY'RE PRETTY TOUGH. UH, THEY WILL. AND, AND, AND IT'S GONNA BE ONE THAT'LL TAKE YOU DOWN TWO. YEAH, I SAY THAT JOKINGLY. BUT LOOK, LADIES, CONGRATULATIONS. THIS IS AN AWESOME FEAT. AND AS I SAID BEFORE, AS A FATHER OF THREE DAUGHTERS, THIS IS AWESOME FOR YOU GIRLS. [00:10:01] CONTINUE DOING THIS. ALL RIGHT? SERIOUSLY, DON'T STOP, SHOOT FOR THE MOON, ALL RIGHT? YOU HAVE TO. ABSOLUTELY. THIS IS NOTHING. YOU COME BACK NEXT YEAR AND TO THE FIVE OR SIX SENIORS THAT ARE LEAVING, CONTINUE ON. ALL RIGHT? IT'S NOT A MAN'S WORLD, IT'S A GIRL'S WORLD. THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT, RIGHT? ALL RIGHT, SO A SHOW OF HANDS, I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA SHOW YOU HOW COOL OR UNCOOL I AM. HOW MANY SWIFTIES DO WE HAVE HERE? NO, NO. . I'M DONE. UNCOOL. I'M DONE. I AM DONE. ALRIGHT, SO WHO DO WE LIKE HERE? WHO'S WHO, WHO'S, WHO DO WE LIKE HERE? IF IT'S NOT A SWIFTY, WHAT DO WE GOT? THEY'RE TOO BUSY PROTECTING THEIR CRAFT. THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. YOU DO. WELL, YOU GOTTA LISTEN TO SOMETHING WHEN YOU'RE TRAINING, RIGHT? NO, YOUR COACH. ALL RIGHT. WELL, OKAY. WELL, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HE DOESN'T KNOW I WAS GONNA DO WITH THIS, BUT MR. CASAREZ, IF YOU DON'T MIND COMING UP, PLEASE, PRINCIPAL OF SONORA HIGH SCHOOL. YOU'D LIKE TO SAY A FEW WORDS. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR THE RECOGNITION, UH, BUT JUST WANTED TO SAY HOW PROUD, PROUD I AM AS, AS A MEMBER OF THIS COMMUNITY FOR THE ALL THE THINGS THAT YOU'VE ACCOMPLISHED. IT'S A BIG DEAL, AS WAS MENTIONED. UH, ALL THE HARD WORK, UH, WALKING BY THE WRESTLING ROOM EVERY DAY, WATCHING THE BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS LITERALLY EVERY SINGLE DAY. UM, THANK YOU TO OUR COACHES. BIG DAVE IS AN AMAZING COACH AND AMAZING PERSON IN OUR COMMUNITY. JUST SO, SO THANKFUL TO HIM, UH, FOR ALL OF HIS TIME AND EFFORT AND ENERGY ALL THESE YEARS. AND THANK YOU TO THE COACHING STAFF THAT'S HERE WITH US AS WELL. JUST WANT TO THANK, UH, THE RAIDER COMMUNITY FOR, FOR ALL THE SUPPORT THAT WE'VE GIVEN THESE, THESE LADIES THIS YEAR. UH, JUST COULDN'T BE MORE PROUD OF YOU AND, AND, UH, REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT, WHAT'S TO COME IN, IN THE FUTURE AS WELL. SO, THANK YOU AGAIN. THANK YOU, MR. CASAR. AND, UH, I WILL, UH, HAND THE MIC OVER. I WILL HAND THE MIC OVER TO OUR COACH, COACH, IF YOU JUST DON'T MIND SAYING A FEW WORDS, , I KNOW YOU KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE TO, AND IF YOU WOULD, PLEASE DO ME A FAVOR ALSO, PLEASE HAVE YOUR COACHING STACK COME UP, AND IF YOU PLEASE INTRODUCE THEM AS WELL, BECAUSE I WANT THEM TO BE RECOGNIZED AS WELL. OKAY? UM, HOW YOU DOING GUYS? UM, YOU KNOW WHAT, UM, I HONESTLY COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT THEM. UM, AND SO I APPRECIATE EVERYBODY'S GOT A LITTLE PART IN IT. UM, BESIDES THEM, THE PARENTS AND THE BOOSTERS AND EVERYBODY'S HERE THAT'S HELPED OUT, UH, FUNDRAISE AND HELPED OUT FOR THESE GIRLS THROUGH THE TOURNAMENTS AND THROUGH THE PAST YEARS, UH, TO ALLOW THEM JUST TO CONCENTRATE ON WRESTLING AND NOT WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING. SO, THANK YOU TO THE PARENTS AND THE BOOSTERS THAT ARE HERE IN THE AUDIENCE. I APPRECIATE IT. UM, I'D ALSO LIKE TO THANK OUR, UH, UM, INTERIM, UH, PRINCIPAL, MR. ALLEN WYNN. HE'S OVER THERE, OUR ATHLETIC DIRECTOR RIGHT OVER HERE. ROB ALEXANDER, JOSH KAWAGUCHI, OUR ASSISTANT COACH. WALK OVER HERE. JOSH, CHRIS BROWN, CHARLES CHAVEZ, GEORGE CARA, ADAM JOHNSON, TONY OSA, MARLENE CHAVEZ, RUSSELL ROLFING, I KNOW KEN UCCI. AND ALSO OUT OF THE CORNER OF MY EYE, OUR ASSISTANT AD MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ OVER THERE, UM, SIERRA GARCIA, OUR STACK KEEPER TO THE STARS. THEY'RE GONNA WAIT, SIERRA, RIGHT HERE. UM, UH, OH, YOU KNOW WHAT, I'D LIKE TO THANK MY WIFE WHO PUTS UP WITH EVERYTHING RIGHT THERE. SHE'S IN THE FRONT ROW. UH, SHE'S VERY UNDERSTANDING OF THE TIME I SPEND AWAY, UM, AND AT TOURNAMENTS. AND I'M BASICALLY GONE EVERY WEEKEND, ALL DAY, SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. AND SOMEHOW SHE'S STILL HERE AFTER 25 YEARS, SO I APPRECIATE IT. AND THAT'S MY DAD NEXT TO HER. MARIO. THANK YOU. HI, WENDY. ANY OF MY COLLEAGUES WISH TO COMMENT? MAYOR PRO TEM. START WITH YOU, SIR. UH, [00:15:01] AGAIN, UH, THE MAYOR HAS SAID ALL BUT CONGRATULATIONS, THIS HAS NEVER BEEN ACCOMPLISHED IN THE HISTORY OF SONORA HIGH SCHOOL. WE'RE SO PROUD OF YOU. YOU GIRLS HAVE SET THE BAR HIGH AND WE'LL SEE YOU HERE NEXT YEAR, RIGHT? WOO. HEY, JUST WANNA SAY YOU GUYS ARE MAKING US LOOK GOOD OUT THERE. I'M TELLING YOU. YOU KNOW, AND IT'S, AND IT'S SO COOL THAT WE JUST CAME OFF OF THIS CENTENNIAL AND THE RESIDENTS, THE STUDENTS, THE PARENTS, THE COACHES, THE THE ADMINISTRATORS OF OUR SCHOOL ARE STILL OUT THERE, YOU KNOW, REALLY MAKING US LOOK GOOD. I MEAN, IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHERE LA HABER WAS LIKE LAST WEEK, YOU NOW KNOW WHERE THE CITY OF LAHABRA IS, AND EVERYBODY'S LOOKING AT US. EVERYBODY'S LOOKING AT US FROM ALL OF OUR SCHOOLS, AND YOU GUYS ARE HELPING DO THAT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REPRESENTING US, REPRESENTING US. WELL, HI. I JUST WANTED TO SAY, AS A COUNCILWOMAN, I'M EXTREMELY PROUD OF THESE YOUNG LADIES BECAUSE I KNOW THAT LADIES, UH, CAN DO EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING THAT MOST MEN CAN DO, AND THIS HAS PROVEN THE FACT THAT YOU GUYS ARE AWESOME, OUR SMALL CITY, EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT. THEY SAID OUR SMALL CITY, AND THEY'RE PROBABLY WONDERING, WHAT ARE THEY DRINKING OVER THERE, ? WHAT ARE THEY GIVING THEM OVER THERE? IT'S IN THE WATER. SOMETHING ABOUT IT. BUT, YOU KNOW, BUT, UH, WE ARE VERY, VERY PROUD OF YOU. YOU'VE, YOU'VE BROUGHT ANOTHER LEVEL OF THE CITY OF LAHABRA. UM, YOU ARE LEADING BY EXAMPLE, AND I'M VERY, VERY PROUD OF ALL OF YOU YOUNG LADIES AND THE COACHES THAT SUPPORTED THEM AND JUST INSPIRED THEM AS WELL. SO, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU. I CAN NEVER THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR, FOR WHAT YOU HAVE SAID AS FAR AS THE FOUNDATION FOR THESE YOUNG LADIES BECAUSE THE SKY'S THE LIMIT FOR THEM. NOW, THANK YOU. I JUST WANNA SAY IT'S A HUGE UNPRECEDENTED ACHIEVEMENT TODAY. BUT WHAT I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS THE FUTURE, BECAUSE THE SKILLS YOU'VE LEARNED ACHIEVING THIS DISTINCTION, COLLABORATION, COMMUNICATION, COOPERATION, TEAMWORK, ALL THESE THINGS ARE GONNA SERVE YOU EXTREMELY WELL FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIVES, INCLUDING THAT VERY IMPORTANT KILLER INSTINCT, WHICH I KNOW YOU GUYS LEARNED. SO ALL THESE THINGS COMBINED ARE GONNA GIVE YOU A VERY BRIGHT FUTURE. I'M VERY EXCITED FOR ALL OF YOU. AND AGAIN, CONGRATULATIONS. ALRIGHT LADIES, I FORGET WHAT THE NUMBER IS, BUT I JUST READ IT AGAIN LAST WEEK. WHERE THEY SAY THAT WOMEN THAT PARTICIPATE IN SPORTS THAT ARE, UH, REP, WELL REPRESENTED IN THE HIGHER RANKS OF, UH, OF CORPORATE AMERICA, THOSE LADIES THAT ARE IN THE UPPER ECHE OF CORPORATE AMERICA HAVE PLAYED HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS AT SOME, AT SOME POINT OR ANOTHER. OKAY? SO IT'S VERY, VERY IMPORTANT AND FOR ARE LONE ONE THAT IS GOING TO RIO HONDO NEXT YEAR. ALRIGHT? I DO KNOW THIS, SIX TO 7% OF ALL HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETES GO ON TO PLAY HIGHER EDUCATION, SPORTS OR SPORTS AT A, AT A, UH, INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION. SO, CONGRATULATIONS. THAT'S AWESOME. AND LADIES, WE HAVE TO THANK THE PARENTS, OKAY? 'CAUSE I'M SURE THIS JUST DIDN'T START YESTERDAY. ALL RIGHT? THEY'VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR THE LONGEST TIME FOR YOU, RIGHT? SINCE YOU WERE KIDS, WHETHER IT WAS WRESTLING OR WHATEVER, THEIR SPORTS PARENTS, HOW IMPORTANT IT IS FOR US TO DEVELOP OUR KIDS, MOST IMPORTANTLY, ESPECIALLY OUR YOUNG LADIES. ALRIGHT? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR WHAT YOU DO, BECAUSE IT'S NOT ONLY THE WHAT YOU'VE DONE FOR YOUR, FOR YOUR DAUGHTERS, YOUR NIECES, UH, WHAT YOU'VE DONE HERE IS WHAT YOU ARE DOING FOR WHAT MY COLLEAGUE DARREN EXPERIENCED SAID FOR THE FUTURE, OKAY? NOT JUST OF THE SONORA WRESTLING PROGRAM, BUT FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY, FOR THE FUTURE OF THIS COUNTRY, BECAUSE YOU HAVE SOME FUTURE LEADERS HERE. AND I'M HOPING THAT ONE OF YOU, AT LEAST ONE OF YOU WILL TAKE OVER ON CITY COUNCIL SOMEDAY. SERIOUSLY. ALL RIGHT? WHETHER IT BE HERE OR SOMEWHERE ELSE, DOESN'T MATTER, DO IT. YOU SHOULD. AND COACHES THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO AND FOR THE ENDLESS AMOUNT OF TIME THAT YOU HAVE, UH, UH, GIVEN TO THESE YOUNG LADIES, IT'S VERY, VERY IMPORTANT. I'M SURE 20, 30 YEARS DOWN THE LINE, THEY'RE GONNA LOOK BACK AND THEY'RE GONNA THANK YOU EVEN MORE FOR PAVING THE PATH FOR THEM AND GIVING THEM THIS SKILL. ALL RIGHT? AND ONE LAST THING. ALL RIGHT? ON A MORE SERIOUS NOTE, YOU'VE GOT THREE COPS HERE THAT ARE ON COUNCIL . ONE ABOUT TO BE RETIRED, ONE RETIRED, AND ONE CURRENT. ALL RIGHT? THIS SKILL YOU HAVE IS GONNA, IS GOING TO TURN OUT VERY WELL IF THAT MAN EVER TRIES TO DO ANYTHING TO YOU IN A PARKING LOT, OH GOD, THAT'S GONNA BE, HE WILL. AND I WANNA SEE THE VIDEO OF THAT, BY THE WAY, JUST SAYING PARENTS, THAT'S, THAT'S THE, THE ICING ON TOP OF THE CAKE IS ALL I'M SAYING. BUT ANYWAY, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, YOUR CHAMPION 2026, DIVISION FOUR CIF CHAMPION WRESTLERS. ALRIGHT? CONGRATULATIONS. CONGRATS LADIES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR COMING LADIES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YOU AN IDEA. GIVE [00:20:01] IT TO LILO. LILO CAN LILO, LILO, COME ON. COME ON. BOUNCE. TAKE A PICTURE. THANK YOU. WHERE'S MY OH, OH NO, I DON'T HAVE THIS. HERE. LEMME GIVE ONE. WE MISS YOU. WE MISS YOU. ENTERTAINMENT CAPITAL. CONGRATULATIONS. WOW. WHERE'S MAYA? MAYA, WHERE IS SHE? MAYA, GO OVER THERE. YOU GONNA HOLD IT UP AFTER YOU DO IT? YOU'RE DONE. HERE THE BACK, SABRINA. WAIT, WAIT FOR SABRINA. WAIT. HI. THANK YOU. I'M SURPRISED. YEAH. CERTIFICATE. THAT CERTIFICATE. SO I WAS THE WAY TO GET A PICTURE. YOU TAKE A PICTURE OF US. YEAH. NEXT YEAR. WE'RE ALL GONNA BE ON STATES NEXT YEAR. ME, MAYA, ALL OF US ARE ON STATES, RIGHT? MAKING IT STATE. WE ARE. OH, SHE, SHE LEFT. CONGRATULATIONS. EVERYBODY GOT ONE? CAN I GET ONE? THANK YOU. EVERYBODY GOT ONE? THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. UH, WE'RE GONNA ME AND MAY JUST TOOK ONE RIGHT NOW. OH, YOU GUYS JUST TOOK ONE? YEAH. NO, LI AND OSCAR NEED TO DO ONE. OH, TURN RIGHT HERE. MAYOR, WOULD YOU LIKE ME [ PUBLIC COMMENTS: When addressing the La Habra City Council, please complete a Speaker’s Card before leaving the Council Chamber. General Public Comments shall be received at the beginning of the governing body meeting and limited to three (3) minutes per individual, with a total time limit of 30 minutes for all public comments, unless otherwise modified by the Mayor or Chair. Speaking time may not be granted and/or loaned to another individual for purposes of extending available speaking time, and comments must be kept brief, non-repetitive, and professional in nature. The general Public Comment portion of the meeting allows the public to address any item of City business not appearing on the scheduled agenda. Per Government Code Section 54954.3(a), such comments shall not be responded to by the governing body during the meeting.] TO READ OUT PUBLIC COMMENTS SECTION OF THE AGENDA? YES, PLEASE. THANK YOU. NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS PUBLIC COMMENTS. WHEN ADDRESSING THE LAHABRA CITY COUNCIL, PLEASE COMPLETE A SPEAKER'S CARD BEFORE LEAVING THE COUNCIL CHAMBER. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENTS SHALL BE RECEIVED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE GOVERNING BODY MEETING AND LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER INDIVIDUAL WITH A TOTAL TIME LIMIT OF 30 MINUTES FOR ALL PUBLIC COMMENTS. UNLESS OTHERWISE, MODIFIED BY THE MAYOR OR CHAIR, SPEAKING TIME MAY NOT BE GRANTED AND OR LOANED [00:25:01] TO ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL FOR PURPOSES OF EXTENDING AVAILABLE SPEAKING TIME AND COMMENTS MUST BE KEPT BRIEF, NON-REPETITIVE, AND PROFESSIONAL IN NATURE. THE GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT PORTION OF THE MEETING ALLOWS THE PUBLIC TO ADDRESS ANY ITEM OF CITY BUSINESS NOT APPEARING ON THE SCHEDULED AGENDA PER GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 5 4 9 5 4 0.3 A SUCH COMMENT, SUCH COMMENTS SHALL NOT BE RESPONDED TO BY THE GOVERNING BODY DURING THE MEETING. AND WE DO HAVE TWO SPEAKER CARDS. OKAY. UH, PUBLIC COMMENT, UH, WHO DO WE HAVE UP TO THE PODIUM IF YOU LIKE? GOOD EVENING. GOOD EVENING. THIS WAS SO EXCITING. I'M SO GLAD THAT I CAME. GREAT. RIGHT? JUST TO SEE THIS SONORA. I MEAN, MY DAUGHTER GRADUATED FROM SONORA. SHE WASN'T ON THE WRESTLING TEAM, BUT THIS, THIS WAS JUST GREAT. IT, IT'S AWESOME. IT'S A GREAT FEELING. MY HEART IS JUST WILD. OKAY. UM, MY NAME IS BECKY LOBBY AND I LIVE IN BREA, NOT LAHABRA, BUT RIGHT THERE ON THE EDGE. A PORTION OF MY PROPERTY TAX DOES COME TO LAHABRA CITY SCHOOLS. YOU WANT US TO ANN YOU INTO LAHABRA? BEG YOUR PARDON? YOU WANT US TO ANNEX YOU INTO LAHABRA? YEAH. NO, I'M DIGGING RIGHT. NO, THAT'S OKAY. THAT'S OKAY. THAT'D BE FINE WITH ME. I HAVE 43 YEARS OF HISTORY WITH LAHABRA. OKAY. I MOVED HERE FROM TENNESSEE AND LAHABRA IS WHERE I CAME AND I HAVE, UH, TWO DAUGHTERS. I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT YOU ARE ALSO A FATHER OF A DAUGHTER. ONCE A FATHER OR A MOTHER OF A DAUGHTER, YOU'RE ALWAYS A FATHER OR A MOTHER OF A DAUGHTER. OKAY. SO BOTH OF MY DAUGHTERS WENT TO LA HABRA SCHOOLS. WE LIVED, UH, BEHIND FASHION SQUARE AT THAT TIME. THEY WENT TO LAS LOMAS, LAS POSITAS, IMPERIAL, AND THEN ON TO SONORA. I TAUGHT, I TAUGHT IN LAHABRA CITY SCHOOLS FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, AND I AM HERE BECAUSE I LOVE LAHABRA. UM, MY DAUGHTER THAT WENT TO SONORA WENT AWAY TO COLLEGE. SHE CAME BACK AND GRADUATED WITH HER TEACHING CREDENTIAL. AND I SAID, OKAY, YOU NEED TO BUY A HOUSE IN EL HABRA. AND SHE DID IN THE YEAR 2000. HOPEFULLY A LOT OF THESE GIRLS WILL DO THAT TOO. SHE HAS LIVED IN HER HOUSE FOR 26 YEARS. IT IS ON ALPINE STREET THAT HER BACKYARD BACKS UP TO HARBOR. AND THIS IS THE ISSUE THAT I'M ADDRESSING TONIGHT. SHE HAD A STROKE IN SEPTEMBER, A MILD ONE, AND SHE WAS OFF WORK FOR THREE MONTHS. SHE HAS RETURNED NOW BACK TO TEACHING, BUT SHE'S SUPPOSED TO BE LIMITED STRESS. WELL, TEACHING IS ENOUGH STRESS. SO I TOLD HER THAT I WOULD COME SPEAK TONIGHT BECAUSE FINANCIALLY I'M HELPING HER OUT WITH A LOT OF HER ISSUES. UM, CODE ENFORCEMENT CAME BY AND, UH, LEFT NOTICES LAST WEEK ON SEVERAL HOUSES THAT THE, UM, THE VEGETATION BETWEEN THE HOMEOWNER'S FENCE AND THE CITY FENCE HAS TO BE CUT. SO HERE'S WHERE I NEED TO GIVE YOU SOME HISTORY. 16 OR 17 YEARS AGO, WAHA CITY CAME IN AND PUT A CHAIN LEAN FENCE, FENCE ON HARBOR BACK BEHIND ALL OF THOSE BACKYARDS. MY DAUGHTER ASKED, SHE WAS TOLD, AND ALSO THERE WAS A LETTER SAYING THAT THE CITY WAS GONNA MAINTAIN THE VEGETATION BETWEEN HER FENCE AND THE CITY FENCE. OKAY. THAT HAPPENED FOR A WHILE, AND NOW THERE'S A CODE ENFORCEMENT VIOLATION THAT WENT OUT SAYING THAT THE HOMEOWNER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT. IT'S ABOUT THREE FEET BETWEEN THE FENCES. UM, AND ANTONIO MENDOZA, I SPOKE WITH HIM, AND WE CAN'T COME UP WITH A SOLUTION OTHER THAN THE FACT THAT HOMEOWNERS ARE HAVING TO SOMEHOW GET TO THIS CAPTURED AREA. THERE'S NO GATE. IT'S A FENCE AND A FENCE. THERE'S NO WAY TO GET INTO IT. AND I'M AT, AT THE RISK OF BEING RUDE, I'M SORRY, YOUR TIME IS UP. BUT WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS THIS. OH, I'M SORRY. THAT'S OKAY. WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO IS THIS, IF I CAN, UH, UH, IF I MAY, MR. MAYOR, UH, OUR PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR, ELIA S IN THE AUDIENCE, IF YOU'D LIKE TO GIVE HIM YOUR NAME AND NUMBER, I I WOULD, I WOULD LIKE TO. AND YOU GUYS CAN TRADE INFORMATION. WE CAN LOOK INTO IT AND FIND OUT WHAT THE SITUATION IS. I REALLY DO APPRECIATE IT. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME SPEAK AND BE HERE. I REALLY ENJOYED MY NIGHT. THANK YOU, MA'AM. AND, AND GIVE, UH, GIVE YOUR DAUGHTER OUR BEST WISHES, PLEASE. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MA'AM. THANK YOU. DID YOU LEAVE YOUR NAME AND PHONE NUMBER WITH THE CITY CLERK? THAT'D BE PERFECT. THANK YOU, ELIA. I COS RIGHT THERE. THANK YOU. WELL, WE HAVE SOMEONE ELSE WISHING TO SPEAK. HOW LONG DO I HAVE? UH, THREE MINUTES SIR. THREE MINUTES? [00:30:01] YES SIR. MY NAME IS MICHAEL HAW. I HOPE YOU UNDERSTAND MY SCOTTISH ACCENT. YES, SIR. YOU UNDERSTAND IT? YES, SIR. I'VE BEEN IN THE COUNTRY FOR 62 YEARS. I'VE LIVED IN THE SAME HOUSE IN LAAB FOR 50, 48 YEARS. I HAVE A PA A HEDGE BETWEEN MY PROPERTY AND MY NEIGHBOR'S PROPERTY. IT'S BEEN THERE SINCE THE DAY I BOUGHT THE HOUSE FOUR, EIGHT YEARS AGO. SO ALL OF A SUDDEN I HAVE THREE MOTOR HOMES PARKED IN NORTH STREET. THEY'VE BEEN THERE FOREVER. THEY'RE UP, ONE'S UP ON, ON BLOCKS. MY NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR BOUGHT A BOUGHT ONE IN, UH, THANKSGIVING. HE COVERED UP AND PARKED IT RIGHT THERE AND IT COVERS UP MY, UH, HEDGE. SO I CALLED THE, THE INSPECTOR ON IT. HE SAYS, YOUR HEDGE IS TOO HIGH, YOU'RE BLOCKING THE SIDEWALK. I SAID, WELL WHAT ABOUT THE, THE 30 FOOT BY 14 FOOT HIGH MOTOR HOME? DOESN'T, DOESN'T THAT ACCOUNT? HE SAID, WELL, WE'RE WORKING AT IT. SO THAT'S BEEN, UH, BACK IN THANKSGIVING. SO I GOT A LETTER THIS WEEK SAYING I HAD TO CUT THE HEADS DOWN TO THREE FEET BY 25 FEET. RIGHT NOW IT'S EIGHT FEET AND THE FOOT, THE FRONT OF IT IS 14 FEET BY FIVE. SO THE THING IS, WHEN IS HE GOING TO MOVE HIS MOTOR HOME SO I CAN SEE THE SIDEWALK AND SEE THE STREET. HE WANTS, YOU WANT US TO CUT DOWN THE, THE, THE HEDGE? WHO OWNS THE HEDGE? IT WAS THERE SINCE I BOUGHT THE HOUSE. NO, THAT'S HARASSMENT AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED. I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT'S GONNA BE DONE ABOUT IT. THEY GIVE ME UP TO THE 12TH OF MARKS TO CUT THAT, CUT THAT HEDGE DOWN TO THREE FEET. THAT'S NOT GONNA MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE BECAUSE OF THE 14 FOOT BY 30 FOOT MOTOR HOMES IN FRONT OF IT. SO WHAT'S, WHAT'S THE PROBLEM HERE? I CALLED YOU THIS ON EL CAMINO. EL CAMINO. I CALLED YOU BACK IN THANKSGIVING. YEAH, YOU CAME TO MY HOUSE WHEN YOU WERE CANVASING FOR MAYOR. I TOLD YOU ABOUT IT THEN. HOW LONG AGO WAS THAT? HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN MAYOR? HOW LONG, WHEN DID YOU GET INTO THE COUNCIL? UH, SIR, IF YOU WE'RE NOT HERE TO CREATE DIALOGUE, YOU, YOU'RE HERE TO SPEAK, SIR. ACCIDENT. WHEN I GOT EXCITED, I GOT A LITTLE SICK. YOU CAME TO MY HOUSE, WERE CANVASSING TO BE WONDERFUL COUNCIL. I DON'T WANT MAYBE A FEW YEARS BACK. I TOLD YOU ABOUT THAT. THEN ABOUT THE MOTOR HOMES. THERE BEEN, THERE'S FOUR OF THEM NOW IN THE STREET. FOUR. I'VE WENT AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND I'VE SEEN, UH, HEDGES MUCH HIGHER THAN MINE AND NOTHING'S BEEN DONE ABOUT THEM, BUT THEY PICK ON ME BECAUSE I COMPLAINED ABOUT THE MOTOR HALL. I HAVE PICTURES HERE IF YOU'D LIKE TO LOOK AT THEM, IF YOU WILL, SIR, IF YOU'D LEAVE ANY, UH, ANY OF THAT WITH OUR CITY CLERK HERE TO YOUR UH, TO YOUR RIGHT, RIGHT HERE. DO YOU, DO YOU MOVE BACK AT ALL? SHE'LL MAKE A COPY. I THOUGHT I WAS WRONG WITH THE CITY BEFORE, BUT THIS IS THE DAY. SO I'M AN 84-YEAR-OLD MAN. MY WIFE WAS 82. THIS IS NON SENIOR. THE GUY WHO WAS TALKING WAS A SENIOR. HE HAD TO CUT HIS HEADS DOWN. SIR, RESPECTFULLY, UH, YOUR TIME IS NOW UP, BUT WHAT I'M GONNA SUGGEST IS THIS. THAT'S FINE IF YOU DON'T MIND. MY SON SAYS, DON'T MAKE AN AS OF YOURSELF. NO SIR. SPEAK PLAINLY. SO WHAT I'M SPEAKING AS PLAIN AS I CAN. WHAT I WANTED TO SUGGEST, SIR, IF YOU WILL PLEASE, YOU'VE LEFT THE, UH, THE PHOTOS. I'M GONNA HAVE YOU SPEAK TO ELIA ALI. OUR, UH, OUR PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR WHO JUST STEPPED OUT, UH, WITH THE, UH, THE LADY THAT WAS JUST HERE. HE'S OUT FRONT. WE HAVE YOUR INFORMATION HERE AND WE WILL LOOK INTO IT. YEAH, ACTUALLY, APPRECIATE THAT VERY MUCH. I HOPE I DON'T HAVE TO COME BACK. YEAH. , DO YOU? THANK YOU. AND YOU LEFT YOUR CONTACT INFORMATION WITH THE CITY CLERK. WELL, I LEFT MY NAME AND ADDRESS. PERFECT. AND AND PHONE NUMBER. AND THE PHONE NUMBER. YES. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU, SIR. UH, THAT'S FINE. ANYONE ELSE WISHING TO SPEAK, UH, FOR A PUBLIC COMMENT? ALRIGHT, SCENE NONE. WE'LL MOVE ON [ CONSENT CALENDAR: Senate Bill 1439 ("SB 1439") amended Government Code Section 84308 to expand the regulation of campaign contributions in excess of $500 from donors involved in certain matters before the legislative body. If the donor has a matter pending before the agency, and the official received a campaign contribution from the donor in excess of $500 in the prior 12 months, the official must publicly disclose the contribution and cannot in any way participate in the decision of the matter. The donor also has a duty to disclose the contribution on the record. In the 12 months following the decision, a local official cannot receive campaign contributions in excess of $500 from a donor with an economic interest in the governmental decision. Public officials are encouraged to closely track all campaign contributions which collectively exceed $500 in any 12-month period from any single source. All matters on Consent Calendar are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion unless a Councilmember or City staff member requests separate action or removal of an item. Removed items will be considered following the Consent Calendar portion of this agenda. Public comment shall be limited to three (3) minutes per individual, with a total time limit of 30 minutes per item that has been removed for separate discussion, unless otherwise modified by the Mayor. Speaking time may not be granted and/or loaned to another individual for purposes of extending available speaking time, and comments must be kept brief, non-repetitive, and professional in nature. CITY COUNCIL:] TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR. THANK YOU, MAYOR. ALL MATTERS ON CONSENT CALENDAR ARE CONSIDERED TO BE ROUTINE AND WILL BE ENACTED BY ONE MOTION UNLESS A COUNCIL MEMBER OR CITY STAFF MEMBER REQUEST SEPARATE ACTION OR REMOVAL OF AN ITEM REMOVED. ITEMS WILL BE CONSIDERED FOLLOWING THE CONSENT CALENDAR PORTION OF THIS AGENDA. PUBLIC COMMENTS SHALL BE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER INDIVIDUAL WITH A TOTAL TIME LIMIT OF 30 MINUTES PER ITEM THAT HAS BEEN REMOVED FOR SEPARATE DISCUSSION. UNLESS OTHERWISE, MODIFIED BY THE MAYOR. SPEAKING TIME MAY NOT BE GRANTED AND OR LOANED TO ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL FOR PURPOSES OF EXTENDING AVAILABLE SPEAKING TIME AND COMMENTS MUST BE KEPT BRIEF, [00:35:01] NON-REPETITIVE, AND PROFESSIONAL IN NATURE. THE CONSENT CALENDAR INCLUDES CITY COUNCIL ITEMS ONE THROUGH 12. THANK YOU MADAM CLERK. UH, CALL FOR, UH, PUBLIC COMMENTS COIN ONCE, COIN TWICE. SEEING NONE, CALL FOR REMOVAL OF ITEMS BY STAFF. UH, NONE. MR. MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL? NO. AND I HAVE A MOTION, TAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR AS LISTED. MR. MAYOR. SECOND. WILL THE COUNCIL PLEASE VOTE? MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. ALRIGHT, MOVING ON. UH, NO PUBLIC HEARINGS AT THIS TIME. MOVING ON TO CONSIDERATION ITEMS. [1. FISCAL YEAR 2025-2026 MID-YEAR BUDGET REVIEW That the City Council and Successor Agency: A. Receive and file the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Mid-Year Budget Update; B. Approve an appropriation in the amount of $195,000 from available General Fund revenues to the Community Development Department's professional services budget account 100402-52500; C. Approve a $260,000 appropriation from the Successor Agency Low/Mod Income Housing Assets Fund for use toward the North Service Planning Area Navigation Centers; and, D. Approve a $137,000 appropriation from Opioid Settlement Funds for use toward the North Service Planning Area Navigation Centers.] THANK YOU. ANY MEMBER OF THE AUDIENCE MAY REQUEST TO ADDRESS THE LAHABRA CITY COUNCIL ON ANY CONSIDERATION ITEM PRIOR TO THE LAHABRA CITY COUNCIL TAKING A FINAL VOTE ON THE ITEM, PUBLIC COMMENT SHALL BE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER INDIVIDUAL WITH A TOTAL TIME LIMIT OF 30 MINUTES PER CONSIDERATION ITEM, UNLESS OTHERWISE MODIFIED BY THE MAYOR OR CHAIR. SPEAKING TIME MAY NOT BE GRANTED AND OR LOAN TO ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL FOR PURPOSES OF EXTENDING AVAILABLE SPEAKING TIME AND COMMENTS MUST BE KEPT BRIEF, NON-REPETITIVE, AND PROFESSIONAL IN NATURE. AND THE ONLY CONSIDERATION ITEM ON TONIGHT'S AGENDA IS FISCAL YEAR 20 25, 20 26 MIDYEAR BUDGET REVIEW. CAN WE GET A STAFF REPORT, PLEASE? GOOD EVENING, MAYOR. MEMBERS OF THE SEA COUNCIL. TONIGHT WE'RE PRESENTING THE FISCAL YEAR 2025 2026 MIDYEAR BUDGET. THE PROJECTIONS WE PREPARED ARE BASED ON OUR ACTUAL FIGURES FROM JULY, 2025 THROUGH DECEMBER, 2025, ALONG WITH DEPARTMENT REVENUE PROJECTIONS. IN ADDITION, STAFF IS BRINGING FORTH RECOMMENDED APP APPRO APPROPRIATION ADJUSTMENTS FOR COUNCIL CONSIDERATION. OUR FOCUS TONIGHT IS THE GENERAL FUND, WHICH SUPPORTS MOST OF THE SEA'S CORE PUBLIC SERVICES LIKE PUBLIC SAFETY, PUBLIC WORKS, AND COMMUNITY SERVICES AND PROGRAMS. UM, AND WE WILL TOUCH BRIEFLY ON THE OTHER MAJOR FUNDS. ON THE SCREEN IS AN OVERVIEW OF OUR PROJECTED GENERAL FUND REVENUE OVER EXPENDITURES. FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR, GENERAL FUND REVENUE IS EXPECTED TO END THE YEAR AT $70.3 MILLION, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY IN LINE WITH OUR ADOPTED BUDGET. GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES ARE PROJECTED TO BE 68.9 MILLION AT THE END OF THE YEAR, OR ALMOST 1.5 MILLION BELOW BUDGET. THIS IS PRIMARILY, PRIMARILY DUE TO SALARY SAVINGS. OVERALL, THE GENERAL FUND IS ANTICIPATED TO END THE FISCAL YEAR IN A POSITIVE FINANCIAL POSITION WITH 1.43 MILLION IN REVENUE OVER EXPENDITURES. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE PIE CHART ON THE RIGHT, OVER 77% OF THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND REVENUE COMES FROM THREE SOURCES. PROPERTY TAX IS THE LARGEST SOURCE AT 26 MILLION OR 37%. THE MEASURE V TRANSACTION AND TRANSACTIONS AND USE TAX PASSED IN 2024 HAS BECOME THE CITY'S SECOND LARGEST SOURCE AT $14.6 MILLION OR 20.8%. SALES TAX COMES IN SLIGHTLY BEHIND MEASURE V AT $13.6 MILLION OR 19.3%. THE OTHER MAJOR RE REVENUE CATEGORIES, WHICH INCLUDE FRANCHISE FEE, FRANCHISE FEES, USE OF MONEY, AND PROPERTY, WHICH IS BASICALLY INTEREST FINES AND LICENSES, VEHICLE LICENSE FEES AND FEES AND CHARGES COMBINED TOLL $16 MILLION IN GENERAL FUND REVENUE, OR 22.8%, WHICH IS LESS THAN A QUARTER OF ALL GENERAL FUND REVENUES. MOVING ON TO GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES, UH, BY DEPARTMENT, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IS THE LARGEST DEPARTMENTAL EXPENSE IN THE CITY AND NEARLY 41% OF THE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURE BUDGET. THE SECOND LARGEST DEPARTMENTAL BUDGET IS THE CEASE CONTRACT FIRE AND AMBULANCE SERVICES PROVIDED BY LOS, THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT IN FALK AMBULANCE RESPECTIVELY, TOTALING NEARLY 27% OF THE BUDGET TOGETHER, TOGETHER, THE PUBLIC, THE POLICE, FIRE AND AMBULANCE, PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENTAL EXPENSES ARE APPROXIMATELY 68% OF THE GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES OR OVER TWO THIRDS OF THE ENTIRE EXPENDITURE BUDGET FOR THE GENERAL FUND. AN ADDITIONAL WAY TO LOOK AT GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES IS BY CATEGORY. IN THE PIE CHART YOU CAN SEE WE'VE BROKEN THE EXPENSES BY SALARIES AND BENEFITS OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE, THE FIRE AND AMBULANCE SERVICES AGREEMENT, AND THE PERS FUNDED LIABILITY AND PENSION OBLIGATION BONDS. 77% OF TOLL GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES ARE RELATED TO PERSONNEL COSTS AND FIRE AND AMBULANCE CONTRACT SERVICES FOR PUBLIC SAFETY PERSONNEL IN THOSE AREAS. [00:40:02] NEXT, WE MOVE ON TO CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, WHICH INCLUDES FUNDING FROM MULTIPLE SOURCES SUCH AS THE GENERAL FUND, SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS AND ENTERPRISE FUNDS. THERE'S APPROXIMATELY $51 MILLION IN PROJECTS FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR. I'M GOING TO ONLY HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THESE FOR THIS PRESENTATION. ONE OF THE MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS IS VINCE SCULLY CENTENNIAL PARK. YOU CAN SEE THE VAST DIFFERENCE IN THE BEFORE AND AFTER PICTURES. THIS IS PROBABLY THE CITY'S LAST MAJOR PARK PROJECT THAT WILL BE DEVELOPED AND WAS FUNDED BY STRATEGICALLY ASSEMBLING A VARIETY OF FUNDING SOURCES, INCLUDING, UH, THE STATE PARK'S PROP 68 GRANT. THE REFUSE SETTLEMENT FUNDS, UH, CALVARY CYCLE LEGACY GRANT, A ST. JUDE HOSPITAL GRANT AMONGST OTHER FUNDING SOURCES. THE PARK NOW INCLUDES A NEW ACCESSIBLE PLAYGROUND, PICKLEBALL, COURTS, BASKETBALL COURT, VOLLEYBALL, COURT PICNIC AREAS, AMPHITHEATER, EXERCISE STATIONS, AND THE CITY'S FIRST DOG PARK. AMONG ITS MANY AMENITIES FOR RESIDENTS, STAFF HAS ALSO COMPLETED THE COMMUNITY CENTER PARKING LOT LOT PROJECT. THIS PROJECT CONSISTED OF EXCAVATION AND DISPOSAL OF THE OLD CONCRETE, CONSTRUCTING A NEW ASPHALT CONCRETE PARKING LOT PAVEMENT, REMOVING AND RECONSTRUCTING SIDEWALKS, A DA CURB, RAMPS, CURBS AND INSTALLATION OF PARKING LOT STRIPING SIGNAGE IN ALL INCIDENTAL WORK. THE PROJECT WAS INCLUDED IN THE FISCAL YEAR 25 26 CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AND COMPLETED IN NOVEMBER, ALONG WITH OTHER UPDATES TO THE COMMUNITY CENTER AT THE SAME TIME TO PROVIDE THE LEAST AMOUNT OF DISRUPTION TO THE RESIDENTS AND CLIENTS OF THE COMMUNITY CENTER. THE THIRD HIGHLIGHT WAS THE REHABILITATION OF MACY STREET FROM WHITTIER BOULEVARD TO THE NORTH CITY LIMITS. THE WORK CONSISTED OF PAVEMENT RECONSTRUCTION, INSTALLATION OF NEW ASPHALT RUBBER, HOT MIXED PAVEMENT CAP, NEW TRAFFIC STRIPING AND MARKING RECONSTRUCTION OF DRIVEWAY APPROACHES, GUTTERS AND SIDEWALKS. THIS PROJECT WAS COMPLETED OVER THE SUMMER IN COORDINATION WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO PREVENT DISRUPTION TO MACI ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. THIS NEXT SLIDE LISTS THE VERY EXTENSIVE LIST OF COMPLETED PROJECTS AND THOSE IN PROGRESS. DO NOT WORRY, I'M NOT GOING TO READ THROUGH THE ENTIRE SLIDE , BUT I DID WANT YOU TO SEE HOW MUCH WORK THAT OUR, UM, STAFF, ESPECIALLY OUR PUBLIC WORK STAFF AND ENGINEERS, HAVE COMPLETED THIS YEAR AND ARE, UH, CURRENTLY MOVING FORWARD, BOTH IN TERMS OF NEW PROJECTS AND ALSO ANNUAL STREETS, ALLEYS, AND SIDEWALK PROJECTS. I ALSO WANT TO NOTE THAT THE ART ASSOCIATION, WOMEN'S CLUB, HISTORIC SOCIETY AND SEA OFFICES AT 1 0 6 EAST FIRST STREET AND 2 0 5 SOUTH EUCLID STREET ARE NEAR COMPLETION AND YOU CAN EXPECT A RIBBON CUTTING IN THE NEAR FUTURE. THIS NEXT SLIDE TOUCHES ON OUR OTHER MAJOR NON-GENERAL FUND BUDGETS AND INCLUDES OUR AGENCY AND AUTHORITY ENTERPRISE AND INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS. THE AGENCY AND AUTHORITY FUNDS ARE OUR WATER AND SEWER FUNDS AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY ENTERPRISE FUNDS INCLUDE THE REFUSE FUND, CHILDREN'S MUSEUM FUND, AND THE MOBILE HOME FUND. WHILE INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS INCLUDE THE RISK MANAGEMENT FUND, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY REPLACEMENT FUND, FLEET REPLACEMENT FUND, AND FLEET MAINTENANCE FUND, THERE ARE NO, NO NOBLE CHANGE, NO NOTABLE CHANGES FROM THE FISCAL YEAR 20 25, 20 26 ADOPTED BUDGET FOR THESE FUNDS. AND THEY'RE EXPECTED TO COME IN ON TARGET AT THE YEAR END. SO, MOVING ON TO FUTURE BUDGET CHALLENGES. OVERALL, THE CITY IS IN A POSITIVE, UH, FINANCIAL POSITION FOR FISCAL YEAR 25 26. HOWEVER, UNCERTAINTY IN THE ECONOMY REMAINS A BUDGETARY CHALLENGE FOR US. THERE'S POTENTIAL FOR ECONOMIC SHIFTS RELATED TO INTEREST RATE LEVELS, WHICH HAVE BEEN RELAT RELATIVELY HIGH, UM, IN RECENT YEARS. INFLATIONARY PRESSURE AND TARIFF AND TRADE POLICIES. TRENDS WE ARE SEEING ARE CONSUMERS ARE MORE COST CONSCIOUS AND PRIORITIZING VALUE, BOTH IN GOODS AND SERVICES, INCLUDING RESTAURANT VISITS AND ORDERS. OUR SALES TAX CONSULTANT CONSULTANT, HDL, IS FORECASTING SLUGGISH BUT STABLE ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE. MAJOR RETAIL VACANCIES ALSO EXIST, ESPECIALLY AS THE GOODS BECOME INCREASINGLY ACCESSIBLE THROUGH E-COMMERCE PLATFORMS. A PRIME EXAMPLE IS THE AVAILABILITY OF PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION BY MAIL, WHICH REDUCES DRUG STORE FOOT TRAFFIC AND SALES. THE SEA HAS ALSO SEEN THE CLOSURE OF MAJOR RETAILERS WHO SHUTTERED ALL THEIR LOCATIONS, SUCH AS JOANNE FABRICS, HOWARD'S APPLIANCES, AND AMAZON FRESH LEAVING LARGE RETAIL SPACES VACANT. LASTLY, AN OPERATIONAL CHALLENGE THE CITY FACES IN ITS ABILITY TO CONTINUE PROVIDING QUALITY SERVICE IS THE NUMBER OF STAFF VACANCIES. THE CITY HAS EXPERIENCED HIGH LEVELS OF ATTRITION OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS DUE TO RETIREMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS. WE CURRENTLY HAVE 16 FULL-TIME VACANCIES. THIS IS AN IMPROVEMENT THOUGH FROM THE SAME TIME LAST YEAR WHEN WE HAD 36 VACANCIES BECAUSE OUR HR HAS REALLY BEEN REDOUBLING THEIR EFFORTS TO WORK ON THESE RECRUITMENTS. THERE ARE ALSO 37 [00:45:01] PART-TIME VACANCIES, WHICH IS UP FROM 29, UH, AT THE SAME TIME LAST YEAR. UM, OFTENTIMES DUE TO PART-TIME EMPLOYEES LOOKING FOR FULL-TIME OPPORTUNITIES. AN AREA WE HAVE FOUND EXCEPTIONALLY CHALLENGE CHALLENGING ARE POSITIONS THAT REQUIRE SPECIALIZED DEGREES IN CERTIFICATIONS, NAMELY OUR ENGINEERS AND BUILDING INSPECTORS. THE DIFFICULTY IN FINDING QUALIFIED APPLICANTS COMBINED WITH THE INCREASED DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY IS CREATE A NEED TO BACKFILL THROUGH CONTRACT CONSULTANTS TO MEET DEADLINES AND KEEP SERVICE LEVELS UP. AN IMPORTANT BUDGETARY NOTE IS AS WE FILL THESE POSITIONS, THIS WILL DECREASE THE SALARY SAVINGS ON THE EXPENDITURE SIDE. THE RECOMMENDATION BEFORE COUNCIL TONIGHT IS TO RECEIVE AND FILE THE FISCAL YEAR 20 25, 20 26 MID-YEAR BUDGET UPDATE STAFF ALSO RECOMMENDS THE COUNCIL APPROV APPROPRIATION IN THE AMOUNT OF $195,000 FROM GENERAL FUND REVENUES FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BUDGET ACCOUNT. THESE CONSULTANT COSTS ARE COMPLETELY OFFSET BY, UH, THE FEES FOR THESE SERVICES. THE LAST RECOMMENDATION IS TO APPROVE A $260,000 APPROPRIATION FROM THE LOW AND MODERATE INCOME HOUSING ASSETS FUND, AS WELL AS A $137,000 APPROPRIATION FROM OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS FOR USE TOWARD THE NORTH SERVICE PLANNING AREA. NAVIGATION CENTERS STAFF RECOMMENDS US UTILIZING THESE SPECIAL REVENUE SOURCES, WHICH HAVE LIMITED ELIGIBLE USES FOR THE NAVIGATION CENTER TO REDUCE THE NEED TO ALLOCATE THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND. THIS CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS FROM, UH, COUNCIL? NO, MR. MAYOR? YEAH, THE QUESTION REALLY IS FOR YOU TO TELL ME THAT I UNDERSTAND THIS CORRECTLY, AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE IT'S INTERESTING AND IT SHOWS THE DYNAMIC OF THE CURRENT ECONOMY. SO OUR TUT, THE, UH, TRANSACTION AND USE TAX IS ACTUALLY REVENUES HAVE DIPPED DOWN A LITTLE BIT. YES. AS HAS, UH, THE BRADLEY BURNS SALES TAX INCREMENT, THAT'S DROPPED DOWN A LITTLE BIT TOO. YES. AND IT'S A GOOD THING WE HAD THAT MEASURE OF ETUT TO BEGIN WITH. AND AT THE SAME TIME, THE PROPERTY TAX INCREMENT HAS TICKED UP A BIT SHOWING ESSENTIALLY, I GUESS, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THE EVER INCREASING REAL ESTATE PRICES IN ORANGE COUNTY, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, A CERTAIN SOFTENING OF CONSUMER SPENDING RESULTING IN LOWER SALES TAX INCOME. CORRECT? YES. SO YES. GO. WELL, I MEAN, THE END RESULT IS WE'RE STABLE AND WE'RE IN GOOD SHAPE, AND THERE'S BEEN OFFSETS IN BOTH THOSE RESPECTS LEAVING US IN, IN A GOOD POSITION. IS THAT A FAIR STATEMENT? YES. FORTUNATELY, THERE HAVE BEEN INCREASES IN PROPERTY TAX, WHICH HAVE HELPED TO OFFSET THE SALES TAX A BIT ALONG WITH OUR SALARY SAVINGS, THE SALES TAX, YOU KNOW, AT THIS TIME, JUST WE ARE BEING VERY CONSERVATIVE IN OUR PROJECTIONS JUST BECAUSE THERE IS A LOT OF UNCERTAINTY IN THE ECONOMY. WE'RE SEEING THAT ALL AROUND US AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HEARING. UM, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY IN THE NEWS, BUT ALSO FROM OUR SALES TAX CONSULTANTS. AND SO THAT MAY AFFECT PEOPLE'S SPENDING PATTERNS, WHICH ULTIMATELY AFFECT OUR SALES TAX REVENUE. SO THIS IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT THE CITY CONSTANTLY MARS, BUT ESPECIALLY AT THIS TIME, WE'LL BE KEEPING A VERY CLOSE EYE ON BOTH THE SALES TAX AND TRANSACTIONS AND USE TAX. GOT IT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. BUT WHAT YOU'RE ALSO DESCRIBING IS, UH, THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING A DIVERSIFIED REVENUE BASE SO THAT YOU HAVE THAT ABILITY. SO IF YOU HAVE ONE REVENUE, UM, CATEGORY THAT'S UNDERPERFORMING, UM, YOU, YOU'RE NOT, YOU DON'T HAVE ALL YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET. RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. LINCOLN. UH, THANK YOU FOR THE REPORT. FOR THE CONSTITUENTS THAT WE SERVE. WHEN YOU MENTIONED UNDER THE OTHER MAJOR NON-GENERAL FUND BUDGET, UH, AND STATING THAT IT'S, UH, IT'S COMING IN ON TARGET BY YEARS IN, CAN YOU EXPLAIN FOR OUR CONSTITUENTS, HOW DO YOU DEFINE YEARS IN? DOES THAT MEAN THAT WE MAY BE SLIGHTLY OVER BY A COUPLE OF HUNDRED, SLIGHTLY UNDER BY A COUPLE OF HUNDRED, OR THAT IS AN EXACT AMOUNT THAT WE'RE GONNA COME IN AT? WELL, WE'LL NEVER BE EXACT EXACT. WELL ACTUALLY A LOT OF 'EM ARE FAIR, ARE PRETTY CLOSE BECAUSE LIKE FOR INSTANCE, OUR, UH, RATE BASED ITEMS, THOSE RATES HAVE ALREADY BEEN ADOPTED AND SET. SO GENERALLY THOSE ARE VERY CLOSE. WE ARE GOING BY WHAT WAS ADOPTED, UM, THE ADOPTED BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 25, 26. WE BELIEVE CONSERVATIVELY THEY WILL MANAGE TO HIT AT LEAST THOSE TAR, THEY WILL MEET THOSE TARGETS AND NOT DEVIATE TOO FAR FROM THEM. BUT AGAIN, WE WILL LET THE COUNCIL KNOW, UM, AND MONITOR THOSE WE CONSTANTLY DO JUST TO MAKE SURE THERE IS NOTHING THAT WOULD CAUSE THEM TO DEVIATE VERY SUDDENLY. SO, BUT THEY ARE EXPECTED TO COME IN RIGHT AROUND THAT AMOUNT. THANK YOU. AND THE REASON WHY I ASK THAT QUESTION IS FOR RESIDENTS WHO DO HAVE AN INTEREST AND, AND, AND, AND OUR FINANCIAL STATUS AND WHAT WE SPEND FUNDS ON, I WANNA MAKE SURE THEY UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS NOT AN EXACT AMOUNT, UM, THAT IT'S A, A, A GOOD ESTIMATE. SO ANYONE THAT MAYBE SAYS, OH, YOU KNOW, THEY WEREN'T ACCURATE IN THEIR SPENDING, OR THEY WEREN'T HONEST WITH THEIR SPENDING, WELL, IT'S NOT AN EXACT SCIENCE. SO, UM, MY NEXT QUESTION IS, IS, UM, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO PUBLIC SAFETY, ON AVERAGE WITH ANY CITY, WHAT IS THE, [00:50:01] WHAT IS THE PERCENTAGE, UH, OF OUR BUDGET THAT GENERALLY GOES TO PUBLIC SAFETY? SO ON AVERAGE WITH ANY CITY, WELL, OURS IS 68%. I HAVE SEEN CITIES VARY ANYWHERE FROM, YOU KNOW, 40%. BUT I'D SAY NOW MORE THAN EVER, THEY'RE EDGING EVEN MORE THAN THAT. LIKE AROUND LIKE 70, 75, YOU'RE SEEING SOME CITIES WHERE IT IS BASICALLY SWALLOW, SWALLOWING UP THEIR ENTIRE GENERAL FUND BUDGET. YEAH. AND YOU KNOW, IT IS A BIG COST. IT'S ALSO, YOU KNOW, ONE OF OUR BIGGER DEPARTMENTS, SO YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT TOO. SO IT'S ALSO, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT ONLY JUST THE AMOUNT, BUT IT'S ALSO THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE TOO. AND YOU KNOW, IT'S A 24 7 OPERATION. YEAH. SO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A REASON ALSO THAT IT IS A LARGE PART OF THE, UM, THE SALARY AND BENEFITS AND, UH, JUST A BIG OPERATION TO HAVE IN A CITY. SO, IS IT SAFE TO SAY THAT WHEN IT COMES TO POLICE, FIRE AND PUBLIC WORKS, THE MAJORITY OF A BUDGET FOR GENERALLY ANY CITY OR ONE LIKE OURS IS PRETTY AROUND 70%, 60%? I DON'T WANNA OVERGENERALIZE BECAUSE, BUT, AND THAT ACTUALLY THAT YOU, YOU CAVEATED IT LIKE THAT. SO WE ARE A FULL SERVICE CITY. MM-HMM . SO THERE ARE MANY CITIES OUT THERE THAT ARE NOT. SO THEY MAY BE, UM, CONTRACT CITIES OR THEY MAY NOT HAVE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR PROVIDING FIRE SERVICE, FOR INSTANCE, BECAUSE THE COUNTY PROVIDES FIRE UNDER STRUCTURAL FIRE FUND IN THAT CITY. SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT PROVIDING FIRE SERVICES OR THAT COST. I WOULD SAY FOR A MID-SIZE CITY LIKE LAHABRA, THAT'S A FULL SERVICE CITY LIKE WE ARE, UM, SEEING A PUBLIC SAFETY OVERALL BUDGET OF 68% OF THE GENERAL FUND IS PROBABLY CLOSE TO AVERAGE OF WHAT YOU'LL SEE. UH, AS GABBY MENTIONED, IT COULD BE AS LOW AS 65%. IN SOME CITIES IT COULD BE AS HIGH AS 72, 70 3%. IT, IT'LL BE IN A RANGE. AND I THINK WE'RE DEFINITELY WITHIN THAT BAND. THANK YOU. AND MY LAST QUESTION IS, IS THIS INFORMATION, CAN THIS INFORMATION BE FOUND ONLINE ON OUR CITY WEBSITE? IS THIS ACCESSIBLE TO OUR RESIDENTS? YES. YOU WILL FIND ALL THE STAFF REPORTS, UM, FROM PROBABLY THE LAST AT LEAST SEVEN YEARS ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE. AND, UM, IF THIS IS ALL PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION ALL THE TIME, YEAH, THE PUBLIC CAN GO ONTO OUR WEBSITE. THERE'S A BUTTON AT THE BOTTOM OF OUR MAIN PAGE ON OUR WEBSITE CALLED TRANSPARENCY, AND IF THEY PRESS THAT BUTTON, THEY WILL GO TO OUR A PAGE THAT SHOWS ALL OF OUR BUDGETS FOR THE LAST, I THINK 10 YEARS AUDITS, UM, CALPERS REPORTS, CONTRACTS, UH, LABOR AGREEMENTS, EVERYTHING'S ON THERE. THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. UH, ONE INTERESTING OBSERVATION IS WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE PIE CHARTS OF WHERE EVERYTHING GETS SPENT, IT LITERALLY LOOKS VERY REMINISCENT TO A PAC-MAN. WHAT GOES TOWARDS PUBLIC SAFETY? IF YOU LOOK AT THAT, IT JUST, UH, A VERY INTERESTING OBSERVATION. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THAT, BY FAR, YOU CAN KNOW THAT WITHIN OUR CITY, PUBLIC SAFETY IS OUR NUMBER ONE AND IT SHOULD BE OUR NUMBER ONE PRIORITY. YOU COULD TELL THAT JUST BASICALLY LOOKING AT THAT PIE CHART, IT. GREAT POINT. GREAT POINT. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UH, NOPE. OH, YES. I NOTICED IN THE REPORT THAT WITH REGARDS TO THE NAVIGATION, THE SPA AREA, NAVIGATION CENTER, OR THE OPERATION, WE, UH, STATE THAT TO REDUCE THE IMPACT OF THE CITIES GENERAL FUND, WE'RE USING THE HOUSING ASSET FUND AND OPIATE SETTLEMENT FUNDS. IS THIS, UH, NORMALLY WHEN WE PAY FOR THE, UH, UH, OBLIGATION FUNDS FOR THE SPA AREA, DOES IT NORMALLY COME OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND OR IS IT COMING OUT OF OTHER AREAS? SO IT WAS MEANT TO COME OUT OF THE PLHA FUNDING OR PERMANENT LOCAL HOUSING ALLOCATION, WHICH IS FUNDED BY REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS. THAT MONEY ONE, BECAUSE THERE HAVE BEEN LESS REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS TURNING OVER, HAS REDUCED, UH, THE AMOUNT THAT THE CITY IS RECEIVING FROM PLHA. ALSO, THERE HAS BEEN A DELAY. WE ARE A FEW YEARS BEHIND IN RECEIVING OUR FUNDING FROM PLHA. SO IN THE MEANTIME, OUR CITY, ALONG WITH THE OTHER NORTH ORANGE COUNTY CITIES WHO HAVE JOINTLY PARTNERED TOGETHER TO CREATE AND FUND THESE NAVIGATION CENTERS ARE HAVING TO FRONT THIS MONEY INITIALLY FIRST. SO IF WE CAN USE THE SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS, WHICH AGAIN, HAVE VERY LIMITED USE, SO REGARDLESS OF, EVEN IF THE PLHA MONEY CAME, IF WE NEEDED TO PAY FOR SOMETHING ELSE FOR THE NAVIGATION CENTER, WE WOULD ABSOLUTELY RECOMMEND USING THE O OPIOID MONEY BECAUSE THAT ONE HAS EXTREMELY LIMITED USES THAT THE CITY COULD USE IT FOR. AND IT IS PROB, WE BELIEVE IT IS A MUCH BETTER USE OF THE FUNDS TO HAVE IT GO TOWARDS THE NAVIGATION CENTERS. AND WE DID RECEIVE APPROVAL FROM THE STATE TO BE ABLE TO USE THAT MONEY FOR THAT PURPOSE. BUT BECAUSE SB TWO AND AND PLHA FUNDING HAS BEEN LESS RELIABLE THAN WE HAD ANTICIPATED, UM, WE HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL AS THE NORTH SPA PETITIONING THE COUNTY FOR AN ALLOCATION OF HOMELESS FUNDING THAT THE, IT GOES, UM, AS ALLOCATED AND CONTROLLED THROUGH THE COUNTY AGENCIES. I BELIEVE WE'RE GETTING JUST UN [00:55:01] UNDER TWO OR JUST OVER $2 MILLION THIS FISCAL YEAR TOWARDS OUR COSTS, UH, FROM THE NORTH SPA. AND WE'RE ALSO PETITIONING, UM, THE STATE FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS TO HELP OFFSET CITIES' COSTS, NOT JUST OUR CITIES, BUT ALL THE NORTH SPA CITIES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UH, COUNCILWOMAN, UH, ESPINOZA TOOK, UH, TOOK MY QUESTION TO A DEGREE, BUT I, I WAS JUST GONNA POINT OUT THE OPIOID FUNDING, IF THERE WAS ANY, UH, LISTEN FOR, FOR WHAT IT IS AND IF THERE'S ANY SILVER LINING IN THERE, UH, IF YOU WANNA CALL IT THAT. UH, THE, UH, THE, THE SCOURGE OF, OF WHAT'S HAPPENED WITH THE OPIOID CRISIS AND THAT, UH, THAT THERE WAS SETTLEMENT MONEY THAT WE'RE ABLE TO PARTAKE IN, AND AS OUR CITY MANAGER HAD STATED, UH, WE, UH, WE WERE ABLE TO ALLOCATE THAT, UH, TO NAVIGATION CENTERS BY PERMISSION FROM THE STATE. SO I, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD FOR OUR RESIDENTS TO, TO UNDERSTAND WHERE SOME OF THAT MONEY DOES GO AND, UH, WHEN, UH, WHEN THESE ENTITIES ARE SUED AND THERE ARE CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS WHEN PUBLIC ENTITIES ARE INVOLVED AND WE ARE, WE'RE ABLE TO, TO PARTAKE AND ACTUALLY BENEFIT FROM THAT. ALBEIT, UH, ANYWAY, I WON'T GET UP IN MY SOAPBOX ON THE OPIOID CRISIS, BUT I'M GLAD WE'RE ABLE TO PARTAKE IN THAT. SO THANK YOU GABBY, FOR THE, UH, FOR THE REPORT. UH, WITH THAT, UH, I'D LIKE TO INVITE THE, UH, PUBLIC TO TESTIFY. PLEASE GIVE THEIR NAME FOR THE RECORD. ALRIGHT. SCENE NONE, UH, COUNCIL OR, UH, DIRECTOR DISCUSSION OR ACTION. IF THERE'S, UH, NO OTHER QUESTIONS, I'D, IF YOU'LL ALLOW ME TO MAKE A MOTION? SURE. ALRIGHT. I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO A RECEIVE AND FILE THE FISCAL YEAR 20 25, 20 26, MID-YEAR BUDGET UPDATE, AND B, APPROVE AN APPROPRIATION IN THE AMOUNT OF 190 90 $5,000 FROM AVAILABLE GENERAL FUND REVENUES TO THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT'S, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BUDGET ACCOUNT ONE DOUBLE 0 4 0 2 5 2 5 0 0 AND C APPROVE A $260,000 APPROPRIATION FROM A SUCCESSOR AGENCY TO LOW MOD INCOME HOUSING ASSETS FUND FOR USE TOWARDS THE NORTH SERVICE PLANNING AREA, NAVIGATION CENTERS. AND FINALLY, D, APPROVE A $137 APP APPRO APPROPRIATION FROM OPIOID SETTLEMENT FUNDS FOR USE TOWARD THE NORTH SERVICE PLANNING AREA NAVIGATION CENTERS. I'LL SECOND. GO AHEAD. FLIP A COIN. JAMES GOMEZ FLIP ROCK SCISSORS, . GO AHEAD. I'LL GO AHEAD AND SECOND THAT. ALRIGHT, WILL THE UH, COUNCIL DIRECTORS PLEASE VOTE? MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. ALRIGHT. OKAY. MOVING ON TO THE MAYOR'S [ MAYOR'S COMMUNITY CALENDAR:] COMMUNITY CALENDAR TRIPS AND TOURS. JOIN THE CITY OF LAHABRA FOR A DAY TRIP TO MORONGO CASINO ON THURSDAY, MARCH 12TH FROM 9:00 AM UNTIL 4:30 PM PICK UP AND DROP OFF AT LAB BONITA PARK AND THE COST IS $60 PER PERSON. LAHABRA RACES FAMILY FUN RUN. DON'T MISS THE CITY'S ANNUAL LAHABRA RACES. NEXT SATURDAY, MARCH 14TH, STARTING AT 7:30 AM THIS YEAR'S THEME IS RACE TO THE GOALS IN HONOR OF THE 2026 FIFA WORLD CUP. THE EVENT FEATURES A 5K WALK RUN, A ONE K KITTY RUN, AND A 50 YARD TODDLER TROT. A HABER SPRING CAMP IN ROYAL CHILD IN THE LA HABER SPRING DAY CAMP AT THE LA HABRA COMMUNITY CENTER. STARTING MARCH 16TH THROUGH MARCH 20TH, CAMPERS WILL ENJOY GAMES, STEM ACTIVITIES, ARTS AND CRAFTS, AND A MUSEUM GALLERY VISIT LUNCH AND TWO SNACKS PROVIDED DAILY SENIOR DANCE. THE ST. PATRICK'S DAY SENIOR DANCE WILL BE HELD ON SUNDAY, MARCH 22ND FROM 2:00 PM UNTIL 4:00 PM AT THE LA HABRA COMMUNITY CENTER. ENJOY LIVE MUSIC, DANCING, DINNER, RAFFLES, AND DESSERT KIDS NIGHT OUT. REGISTER TODAY FOR THE UPCOMING KIDS. NIGHT OUT SPRING FLING NIGHT ON FRIDAY, MARCH 27TH FROM 6:00 PM UNTIL 10:30 PM AT THE LA HABRA COMMUNITY CENTER. KIDS AGES FOUR TO 12 YEARS. WE'LL ENJOY AN EVENING PACK WITH GAMES CRAFTS, A MOVIE, AND PLENTY OF TASTY SNACKS AND DINNER EGG NIGHT. JOIN US FOR THE ANNUAL LATE NIGHT EGG HUNT ON FRIDAY, APRIL 3RD FROM 7:00 PM UNTIL 8:00 PM THE EVENT IS OPEN TO YOUTH AGES SEVEN TO 13 YEARS OLD, AND THE COST IS $15 PER CHILD. PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. THE EXTRAVAGANZA, UH, THE 2026 SPRING FAMILY EXTRAVAGANZA WILL BE HELD ON SATURDAY, APRIL 4TH FROM 8:00 AM UNTIL NOON. AT LA BONITA PARK WRISTBANDS ARE AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE FOR $6 PRESALE AND $8 THE DAY OF THE EVENT. CATERPILLAR ADOPTION, THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF LAHABRA FOR THE ANNUAL, UH, EXCUSE ME. JOIN THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM AT LAHABRA FOR THE ANNUAL CATERPILLAR ADOPTION DAY AND EARTH FESTIVAL. THE EVENT WILL BE HELD ON SATURDAY, APRIL 18TH WITH TIME SESSIONS AT 10:30 AM 11:30 AM AND 12:30 PM TICKETS ARE $20 FOR MEMBERS AND $25 FOR NON-MEMBERS COMMISSION MEETINGS. COMMISSION MEETING. THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETS ON THE SECOND AND FOURTH MONDAY OF EACH MONTH AT 6:30 PM IN THE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER. THE COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMISSION MEETS ON THE SECOND WEDNESDAY OF EACH MONTH AT 6:30 PM IN THE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER. [01:00:01] WATER CONSERVATION, WATER CONSERVATION EFFORTS ARE STILL ENFORCED AND CALIFORNIANS ARE BEING ASKED TO CONSERVE WATER. ALRIGHT, MOVING ON TO COMMENTS FROM STAFF. NONE, MR. MAYOR. COMMENTS FROM COUNCIL MEMBERS? [ COMMENTS FROM COUNCILMEMBERS/DIRECTORS:] WE'LL START OFF WITH, UH, COUNCILWOMAN ESPINOZA . UM, I DID LAST WEEK ATTEND THE OOG ZOOM MEETING, UH, THAT WAS ON A WEDNESDAY. I ALSO ATTENDED THE CITY EMPLOYEES, UH, AWARD, UH, AWARD RECOGNITION DINNER. IT WAS FANTASTIC. I ENJOYED SEEING ALL THE STAFF GET THEIR WELL-DESERVED RECOGNITION. UM, I THINK WE'RE ONE OF THE FEW CITIES THAT DOES ACTUALLY HAVE THIS AWARD RECOGNITION DINNER AND, UH, I'M JUST GLAD THAT WE'RE ABLE TO CONTINUE THAT. ALSO, SATURDAY I ATTENDED THE LITTLE LEAGUE, UH, OPENING FOR THE KIDS. THERE'S 400 KIDS THAT ARE ENROLLED IN LITTLE LEAGUE. IT'S AMAZING TO SEE HOW MANY KIDS AND HOW SUPPORTIVE THE PARENTS ARE OF THEM. BUT, UH, THAT WOULD BE IT FOR MY REPORT. COUNCILMAN ERIAN. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, FIRST OF ALL, I JOINED, UH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER LAMPKIN AND MAYOR, UH, MEDRANO UP IN SANTA BARBARA OVER THIS PAST WEEKEND FOR THE INDEPENDENT CITIES ASSOCIATION WINTER SEMINAR. AND THIS WAS A, A VERY EDUCATIONAL, VERY ENLIGHTENING SEMINAR THAT LASTED TWO DAYS UP IN SANTA BARBARA, WHERE WE COVERED A VARIETY OF TOPICS THAT HAVE A DIRECT IMPACT IN RELATIONSHIP TO THE CITY. SUCH THINGS AS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND, UH, BUDGETARY TIPS AND TRICKS AND DRONE USAGE, THESE SORTS OF THINGS THAT RELATE TO PUBLIC SAFETY. SO IT WAS EXTREMELY INFORMATIVE AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THESE SEMINARS, UH, TWICE A YEAR BECAUSE THEY DO BRING A GREAT DEAL OF VALUE ALONG WITH, UH, GREAT CAMARADERIE AND BONDING EXPERIENCES THAT REALLY, YEP. THERE YOU GO, DUDE. YEAH, BELONGING, PROSPER. WE, WE HAD A CONVERSATION ABOUT STAR TREK, YOU SEE, SO NOW WE'RE LIKE, YOU KNOW, VULCAN BROTHERS FOR LIFE. ANYWAY, A LOT OF VALUE TO THAT. ALSO HAD LUNCH WITH, UH, MAYOR PRO TEM GOMEZ AND COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, ESPINOZA WITH BLANCA PACHECO, OUR ASSEMBLY MEMBER FOR THE 64TH DISTRICT. AND THAT WAS ALSO HELPFUL TOO, BECAUSE WE GOT A CHANCE TO TALK TO OUR ASSEMBLYWOMAN ABOUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO US AND WHAT WE NEED, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO MONEY FOR THAT BIKE LOOP. NOW, I DON'T KNOW IF SHE CAN, YOU KNOW, WAVE A MAGIC WAND AT THAT, BUT IT NEVER HURTS TO ASK. SO THAT WAS HELPFUL. UH, FINALLY, I ALSO JOINED THE LITTLE LEAGUE OPENING AS WELL, AND IT WAS TRULY SO CUTE AND AMAZING TO SEE THESE KIDS FROM THE LITTLE TODDLERS ALL THE WAY UP TO THE MAJORS, UH, 400 KIDS IS REALLY EXTRAORDINARY. AND IT'S SUCH A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THIS TREMENDOUS COMMUNITY SPIRIT WE HAVE IN THIS CITY WHEN, ESPECIALLY AS IT RELATES TO YOUTH SPORTS. SO IT WAS GREAT TO BE THERE. FINAL THING I WANT TO TALK ABOUT TOO IS I WANT, I'D LIKE THE COMMUNITY TO, TO STAY VIGILANT AND ALERT FOR THE IMMEDIATE TIME BEING WITH WHAT'S GOING ON INTERNATIONALLY, BECAUSE NOW WE'RE FACING THE SITUATION WHERE THERE IS THIS UNANTICIPATED, UNEXPECTED, UNDECLARED WAR THAT'S TAKING PLACE OVERSEAS. AND, UH, NOT FOR A SECOND IS THERE ANY REASON TO BELIEVE WE'LL EVER SEE SOMETHING THAT COULD IMPACT THIS COMMUNITY, BUT IT, IT BEARS SAYING FOR EVERYONE TO, IF YOU SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING, STAY VIGILANT, ANYTHING EVEN SLIGHTLY SUSPICIOUS, OUR WONDERFUL POLICE FORCE STANDS AT THE READY TO ADDRESS ANY CONCERNS. SO PLEASE DO THAT. AND OF COURSE, AT THE SAME TOKEN, I'M SURE I SPEAK FOR ALL OF US WHEN I SAY THAT WE PRAY FOR AND SUPPORT ALL OF OUR TROOPS IN HARM'S WAY. AND, UM, THAT'S ALL I GOT. COUNCILMAN LAMKIN. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MAYOR. UH, SO I WANNA FIRST THANK THOSE, UH, THAT, UH, INTERVIEW TODAY FOR OUR COMMISSION POSITIONS. UH, WE HAD QUITE THE LIST THERE AND WE DO HAVE MORE COMING UP IN TWO WEEKS. UH, I TAKE A LOT OF PRIDE IN IT, I'M SURE THE REST OF MY COLLEAGUES DO TO SAY THAT THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST, UH, APPLICANTS WE'VE EVER HAD. AND, UH, IT'S JUST GOOD TO SEE THAT PEOPLE ARE SHOWING, UH, MORE OF AN INTEREST IN WHAT'S GOING ON IN THEIR LOCAL GOVERNMENT. AND ALSO, YOU KNOW, ENGAGING WITH THEIR CITY COUNCIL AND THEIR CITY GOVERNMENT. UH, ON FEBRUARY 20TH AND THROUGH 22ND, AS, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER DARREN MENTIONED, UH, I TOO ATTENDED, ATTENDED THE ICA CONFERENCE. UM, ASIDE FROM THE SEMINARS, I, I JUST THOUGHT IT WAS A GREAT MOMENT FOR US TO FINALLY HAVE A MOMENT TO PUT THE POLITICS DOWN AND JUST FIGURE OUT LIKE, HEY, WHO ARE WE ARE AS INDIVIDUALS. UM, IT'S A, IT WAS A GREAT WAY TO BUILD COMRADERY AS COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, NICKER AND SAID, AND, UH, I THINK THAT THAT'S WHAT STRONG LEADERS DO. AND SO I LIKE TO THANK, UH, MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES FOR, YOU KNOW, JUST MODELING AWAY. AND THIS IS WHY I THINK A LOT OF OTHER, UM, UH, PEOPLE IN THE POLITICAL SPACE, IN THE POLITICAL ARENA SAY, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY LOVE COMING HERE BECAUSE THEY ADMIRE HOW WELL WE GET ALONG WITH ONE ANOTHER. AND I THINK THAT WAS A PERFECT, UH, EXAMPLE OF WHY WE DO, UH, FEBRUARY 27TH. UM, I ALSO ATTEMPT THE EMPLOYEE BANQUET. UH, I, I THINK IT'S, IT, IT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT WE RECOGNIZE THE HARD WORK OF OUR CITY STAFF. AS WITH ANY ORGANIZATION, EMPLOYEES WANNA FEEL VALUED [01:05:01] AND EMPLOYEES WANNA FEEL APPRECIATED. THEY WANNA FEEL LIKE THEY'RE A PART OF A TEAM, AND THESE BANQUETS ARE A GREAT WAY, GREAT WAY TO DO THAT. UH, ON FEBRUARY 28TH, I ATTENDED THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF LA HABER, READ ACROSS AMERICA. UH, I TOOK MY SON ICL WITH ME AND, UH, HE SAT WITH ME AS WE READ TO, UH, OUR CONSTITUENTS. AND, UM, WE, EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT CHRISTMAS, WE READ MY FAVORITE BOOK AND HOPEFULLY MY SON'S FAVORITE BOOK, THE POLAR EXPRESS. AND, UM, IMMEDIATELY AFTER THAT, ME AND, UH, MY SON HIGHTAILED IT OVER TO, UH, LAHABRA LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL AT A STELLI PARK. AND WE, WE WERE THERE FOR A FEW HOURS, GOT TO MINGLE WITH A LOT OF OUR, WITH, UH, FELLOW RESIDENTS AND CONSTITUENTS. AND, UH, I JUST WANNA JUST ALSO TAKE THAT MOMENT TO THANK THE CITY COUNCIL, TO THANK THE RESIDENTS OF LA HABRA AND ALL THOSE WHO WERE PRESENT, UH, FOR JUST SHOWING THAT FAMILY ORIENTED HOSPITALITY GAVE ME AND MY SON, UH, HE REALLY ENJOYED HIMSELF. UH, CONGRATS TO ALL THOSE WHO, UM, AT SONORA HIGH SCHOOL, WHO MADE, UM, UH, ATHLETE OF THE, OF THE WEEK AND, UH, ALSO WANT TO CONGRATULATE, UM, ALL THOSE WHO, UH, FROM, FROM THE HARBOR HIGH SCHOOL WHO MADE, UH, ATHLETE OF THE MONTH. UM, THIS IS SOMETHING I'M LEARNING MORE ABOUT AS FAR AS US REWARDING OUR ATHLETES AT OUR SCHOOLS FOR THEIR HARD WORK, NOT JUST ON THE FIELD, BUT OFF THE FIELD IN EDUCATION. UM, A FEW WEEKS AGO, I SENT OUT A SURVEY TO A FEW THOUSAND RESIDENTS. SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE RECEIVED IT, AND I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I, I DID RECEIVE THEM AND I DID HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO READ OVER THEM. AND, UH, IT WAS GOOD TO KNOW THAT IN THAT FEEDBACK THAT I DID RECEIVE THAT, UH, THE ISSUES THAT ARE ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU ARE THE SAME ONES WE ARE CONSTANTLY CHALLENGED WITH. UH, MANY OF YOU BROUGHT UP THE IDEA OF, YOU KNOW, THE URBAN DEVELOPMENT, YOU KNOW, MORE, UH, UH, HOUSING AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND I THINK WE'VE SAID ENOUGH ABOUT, UH, ABOUT SOME OF THE CHALLENGES WE HAVE WITH THAT STATE LEVEL THAT'S REALLY HINDERING US FROM, FROM BEING ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, MAINTAIN THAT LOCAL CONTROL. UM, SOME OF YOU BROUGHT UP THE HOMELESSNESS, UH, IS, UH, THE HOMELESS ISSUE OR THE PEOPLE THAT ARE UNHOUSED, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE CONSTANTLY, UM, BATTLING. AND ONE OF THE ONES THAT I DO WANNA HIGHLIGHT SPECIFICALLY IS, UM, SOMEONE MENTIONED ABOUT THE BEAUTIFICATION ON BEACH BOULEVARD. JUST RECOGNIZE THAT BEACH BOULEVARD AS A REMINDER, AND I THINK WE'VE SHARED THIS ENOUGH, THAT, UH, IT IS BEACH BOULEVARD IS STATE OWNED. UH, IT'S NOT OURS. IT BELONGS TO, UH, THE MANAGEMENT OF CALTRANS. AND, UH, BUT I WILL TELL YOU THAT IN, UH, SHARING SOME OF THAT FEEDBACK THAT YOU GAVE TO US, I SHARED THAT WITH SOME OF OUR CITY STAFF IN DISCUSSIONS. AND, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS I WAS HAPPY TO HEAR IS THAT THEY'RE ALWAYS CONSTANTLY IN COMMUNICATION WITH CALTRANS TO SEE HOW MAYBE WE CAN GET MAYBE A GRANT OR MAYBE A SYSTEM IN BEAUTIFYING THOSE AREAS. BUT AGAIN, IT'S NOT GONNA, IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE IMMINENT CONTROL OVER, BUT IT'S SOMETHING WE ARE WILLING TO ENGAGE IN DIALOGUE WITH, UH, TO IMPROVE. UM, I KNOW, UM, ONE OF OUR OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS IS GOING TO, UH, ADJOURN TONIGHT'S MEETING, UH, IN HONOR OF ONE OF OUR, THE FATHER OF ONE OF OUR RESIDENTS. BUT I JUST WANNA JUST COMMENT, YOU KNOW, AND EXPRESS CONDOLENCES TO DIMITRI AND, UH, CANDACE GUTIERREZ, UH, THE, UH, UH, GUTIERREZ FAMILY, UH, AND THEIR LOSS, UM, REASON WHY I WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT TO EXPRESS MY CONDOLENCES, BECAUSE THEY WORK HARD TO, UH, DEVELOP ONE OF THE VERY FEW FORMS OF COMMUNICATION WE HAVE IN OUR CITY, OR I, I SHOULD SAY, UH, IMPARTIAL COMMUNICATIONS. AND THAT'S THE, YOU KNOW, YOU GREW UP IN LA HABRA, FACEBOOK GROUP, AND, UM, IN, IN, IN MANAGING THAT, UH, IT TAKES A LOT OF WORK WHEN YOU'RE TRYING TO MANAGE DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES AND DIFFERENT PEOPLE POSTING, BUT THEY'RE ALWAYS MAKING IT WELCOMING AND INVITING TO ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS TO BE ABLE TO ENGAGE IN DIALOGUE WITH EACH OTHER AND SOMETIMES WITH THE CITY COUNCIL. SO I JUST WANNA EXPRESS MY CONDOLENCES TO THEM AND LET THEM KNOW THAT JUST AS MUCH AS THEY'VE BEEN HERE FOR OUR RESIDENTS IN LA HABRA, WE ARE HERE FOR THEM. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. UH, MAYOR PRO TIM, GO AHEAD, SIR. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. UH, I, UH, WANNA MENTION THAT, UH, WHILE YOU GUYS WERE AT LITTLE LEAGUE, I WANTED TO COVER THE OTHER PART OF TOWN AND GIVE SOME REPRESENTATION. SO I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTICIPATE IN READ, UH, OUT LOUD DAY AT, UH, THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM. THAT WAS WONDERFUL. STAFF WAS GREAT OVER THERE, KIM. REALLY APPRECIATE IT. UM, AND I ALSO HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND DEL RIO RECORDS AND WENT OVER THERE. I HAD, I HAD A, HAD A MEETING ALREADY SCHEDULED AT THAT SAME TIME BEFORE I KNEW ABOUT LITTLE LEAGUE. AND WE'RE GONNA BE HAVING A GREAT BIG RIBBON CUTTING THERE. AND THIS IS A VERY INTERESTING, UH, STORE WITH VINYL RECORDS. AND IT TOOK ME TO THE BLAST TO THE PAST. AND THE MOST INTERESTING IS THING, YOU GO IN THIS PLACE, IT ACTUALLY SMELLED REALLY GOOD. YOU GO INTO SOME RECORD TO STORE OLDER PLACES, IT'S KIND OF GOT THAT OLDER SMELL. IT, LEMME JUST TELL YOU, IT IS NICE, CLEAN, SPOTLESS IN THIS PLACE. I WAS TRULY IMPRESSED. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THEIR, UH, GRAND OPENING. I BELIEVE IT'S GONNA BE MARCH 28TH. I'LL PUT THAT OUT ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND GET THAT OUT THERE. AND, UH, LATER ON AFTER THAT, I GOT TO, UH, VISIT WITH, [01:10:01] UH, MISS ANNETTE LIMON AND LAS AMIGA GROUP AND PUT TOGETHER THESE CAKE, UH, DIAPER THINGS ALONG WITH ROSE. OUR, UH, OUR ASSEMBLY WOMAN. LISTEN TO ME NOW. OUR, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ROSA SPINOZA. I'M ALREADY LOOKING FOR THE FUTURE. YOU'RE, YOU GOT, YOU GOT BIG I THAT READY TO GO ANYWAY, AND THESE WERE FANTASTIC. THESE, THESE DIAPER CARE PACKAGES ARE GONNA GO TO VCC, UH, THE GARY CENTER, HILLCREST CENTER OVER THERE. AND IT WAS A LABOR OF LOVE WHAT YOU'RE DOING. AND I HAD, I HAD FUN WITH ALL THE AMIGOS, UH, BUILDING THESE THINGS, AND IT WAS A LOT OF FUN. AND ALSO GOT TO ATTEND WITH, UH, MY COLLEAGUES, UH, THE SENIOR CAMPOS 51ST ANNIVERSARY, UH, WITH ASSEMBLYWOMAN PACHECO. SHE, UH, AWARDED THEM WITH A NICE CERTIFICATE AND CONGRATULATED THEM, AND WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO VOICE SOME OF OUR CONCERNS AND, AND TALKED ABOUT THE BIKE TRAILS, SOME OTHER PLACES WHERE THERE MIGHT BE SOME OPPORTUNITY TO RECEIVE SOME HELP FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. UH, IN ADDITION TO THAT, I GOT TO ATTEND THE EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY OF DITAS HAIR SALON OVER HERE. UH, GLADYS AND HER HUSBAND ON LAHABRA BOULEVARD, THEY HAD A A LITTLE GET TOGETHER THERE, AND I WAS DROPPED BY THERE. AND, UM, ANYWAY, I JUST CRASHED THE PARTY. I SAW SOME BALLOONS OUT THERE AND THOUGHT, WHAT'S GOING ON HERE? SO I DROPPED IN THERE, AND IT TURNS OUT IT WAS THEIR EIGHTH ANNIVERSARY THERE. SO, UH, CONGRATULATIONS TO THEM. UH, CITY EMPLOYEE BANQUET, WHAT A FANTASTIC EVENT. IT'S ALWAYS GREAT JUST TO SEE ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS THAT OUR EMPLOYEE, WE, WE NOTICE THAT DAY IN, DAY OUT. BUT TO GIVE THEM AN OPPORTUNITY TO TELL 'EM WE APPRECIATE THEM. AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE, THE HARD WORK FROM OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, POLICE OFFICER WHO'D GOTTEN, UH, FEDERAL CHARGES ON SOMEBODY WITH, UH, SELLING FENTANYL AND ALL THOSE OTHER HORRIBLE THINGS THAT HE WAS TRYING TO DO, AND GONNA GET THAT GUY LOCKED UP FOR A LONG TIME. AND WE COMMEND HIM, YOU KNOW, OTHER PEOPLE LIKE, UH, MARTHA MONTOYA, WHO JUST COMMUNITY SERVICES, JUST OUTSTANDING CUSTOMER SERVICE. SUCH A LOVING INDIVIDUAL WITH ALL OUR, OUR RESIDENTS WHO GO BEYOND, UH, WHAT, WHAT THE JOB ENTAILS TO DO. AND I CAN GO ON AND ON WITH, WITH ALL THE WONDERFUL EMPLOYEES. SO, UH, ON BEHALF FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, I WANNA THANK ALL OUR EMPLOYEES. AND RHONDA WAS ESPECIALLY NICE TO MEET YOUR DAUGHTERS AND YOUR FAMILY. AND, UH, IT'S JUST GREAT TO, TO, TO GET IN THAT KIND OF ATMOSPHERE WHEN YOU'RE AWAY FROM CITY HALL AND JUST SEE EVERYBODY, AND JUST A TIME TO CELEBRATE AND CONGRATULATE THEM FOR ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS. AND MR. MAYOR, FINALLY, AGAIN, AS, UH, MY COLLEAGUE ADELE LAMPKINS SAID, UH, WE WANNA, UH, EXTEND OUR DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO THE GUTIERREZ FAMILY, CANDACE AND DMITRI ON THE LOSS OF HER FATHER, MICHAEL KEITH, WHO PASSED AWAY UNEXPECTEDLY ON FEBRUARY 20, UH, 26. HE, OF COURSE, LIVED IN AUGUSTA, MAINE. HE'S ALSO SURVIVED BY HIS OTHER DAUGHTER, UH, KRISTEN BO, UH, STEPSON'S NA, NATHANIEL MERCHANT, ELIJAH MERCHANT AND HIS WIFE, UH, CANDACE, WHICH IS ALSO NAMED AFTER THE DAUGHTER. AND JUST A WONDERFUL MAN WITH A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR, VERY KIND, VERY LOVING. SO YOU CAN TELL THAT THE FRUIT DIDN'T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE WITH CANDACE. A LOT OF THOSE TRAITS THAT HER FATHER HAD, UH, SHE HAS THOSE TRAITS AS WELL. SO, WITH THAT, MR. MAYOR, I'M DONE. ALRIGHT. UH, A FEW THINGS FOR ME. UH, ALSO ATTENDED THE, UH, INDEPENDENT CITIES ASSOCIATION, UH, UH, SEMINAR AS WELL, UH, CONFERENCE, I SHOULD SAY. THE WINTER CONFERENCE. UH, THE WINTER CONFERENCE FOCUSES ON, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY ISSUES AND ITEMS. AND, UH, NOT ONLY WAS IT A GREAT, UH, UH, TEAM BUILDING, UH, FOR THE THREE OF US THAT, THAT WE'RE ABLE TO ATTEND, UH, BUT IT'S ALSO COLLABORATIVE, UH, EVENT, UH, WHERE WE GET TO SPEAK WITH OTHER ELECTEDS, CITY ELECTEDS, STATE ELECTEDS IN SOME INSTANCES, AND, UH, UH, COUNTY ELECTEDS FROM, FROM VARIOUS, UH, CITIES AND, AND, UH, AND COUNTIES NOT ONLY THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA, BUT MAINLY FROM LOS ANGELES, ORANGE COUNTY. UH, THE, UH, THE BENEFIT FOR US, UH, IS, UH, ANYTIME, UH, ON ONE OF THESE, UH, BREAKS, WE HAVE A, A NUMBER OF CLASSES THAT WE ATTEND, UH, FOR INSTANCE, UH, YOU KNOW, SPEAKING TO THE MAYOR OF, UH, OF NEIGHBORING CITIES, UH, OF, UH, NORWALK AND, UH, COUNCIL, UH, MEMBERS, UH, FROM, UH, SANTA MONICA, AND SO ON AND SO FORTH. WE SHARE, WE COLLABORATE, UH, WE, UH, WE PRETTY MUCH, UH, UH, THROW THINGS OUT, YOU KNOW, OF WHAT, OF THINGS THAT ARE GOING IN OUR CITY AND HOW WE HANDLE CERTAIN AND DIFFERENT VARIOUS ISSUES, UH, IN OUR CITY, OR HOW THEY HANDLE VARIOUS ISSUES THAT ARE HELPFUL TO US AS WELL. SO IT IS VERY, VERY NICE, UH, TO COLLABORATE WITH THESE INDIVIDUALS, UH, AND, AND GET A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE, UH, BECAUSE, UH, WHERE WE DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER TO SOMETHING SOMEONE ELSE WILL, AND IT'S ALSO, IT'S, UH, IT'S VERY NICE. SOME OF THE CLASSES THAT THEY'VE HAD. UH, ONE OF THEM, UH, WHICH I I WASN'T SURE HOW [01:15:01] IT WAS GONNA, UH, TAKE TO IT WAS, UH, ONE ON THE, UH, CALIFORNIA COASTAL COMMISSION. UH, BUT LO AND BEHOLD, THERE'S A, UH, A NEXUS TO THE, UH, COASTAL COMMISSION TO OUR INLAND CITIES, BELIEVE IT OR NOT. AND, UH, PART OF THAT IS, UH, ACCESSIBILITY, UH, TO THE COAST AND, UH, HAVING FREE ACCESS TO THE COAST AND HOW MUCH OF THE PLANNING GOES INTO THESE BEACH CITIES, AND HOW, UH, THE COASTAL COMMISSION ACTUALLY MAKES IT SO THAT, UH, THERE IS AMPLE AMOUNT OF PARKING, UH, FOR US TO BE ABLE TO VISIT THE BEACH AND TO DO THINGS AT THESE, UH, AT THESE, UH, CALIFORNIA BEACHES. BECAUSE FOR SOME OF US THAT DON'T KNOW, THE, THE BEACHES IN CALIFORNIA ARE FREE. THEY'RE, THEY, THEY BELONG TO US, THE RESIDENTS OF CALIFORNIA. WE'RE IN SOME OTHER STATES, UH, THAT, UH, BUTT UP AGAINST A, A COAST, FOR INSTANCE, IN FLORIDA, AS I CAME TO LEARN, UH, THOSE BEACHES ARE NOT THE, UH, THE HOMEOWNER, UH, THAT OWNS A, A HOME IN FRONT OF A BEACH, MAY BE THE OWNER OF THAT PIECE OF BEACHFRONT PROPERTY AND SAND AS WELL. WE DON'T HAVE THAT ISSUE HERE IN CALIFORNIA. BUT THESE ARE THE LITTLE THINGS THAT YOU LEARN AT THESE CONFERENCES. AND, UH, YOU ALSO LEARN THAT, UH, UH, THEY'RE GONNA HAVE A, A FEW OF THEIR, UH, COASTAL COMMISSION MEETINGS, UH, INLAND, UH, IN, MAYBE NOT HERE IN LAHABRA, BUT, UH, IN OTHER INLAND CITIES THROUGHOUT THE, UH, THE STATE, WHICH IS NICE TO KNOW AND NICE TO HEAR. AND IT GIVES YOU A REAL, HIS HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE, BECAUSE THIS IS THE 50TH YEAR OF THE, UH, I BELIEVE IT'S THE COASTAL ACT, CALIFORNIA COASTAL ACT. IF I, AND I MAY BE BUTCHERING THAT AND I APOLOGIZE, BUT, UH, A, UH, A VERY SIGNIFICANT MOMENT IN CALIFORNIA HISTORY, WHICH HAS ALLOWED US, UH, BEACH ACCESS, UH, AND, UH, WHERE BEACH ACCESS DOESN'T COST YOU, UH, MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO OWN A HOME. YOU CAN GO AND PUT UP A CHAIR IN FRONT OF THAT MILLION DOLLAR HOME AND KNOW THAT, UH, YEAH, YOU LOOK BACK, THE HOME MAY NOT BELONG TO YOU, BUT THE BEACH DOES. SO KUDOS TO THEM FOR PUTTING THAT ON. ANOTHER ONE THAT REALLY CAUGHT MY EYE WAS, UH, A, UH, ACTUALLY, UH, ONE OF THE, UH, VENDORS, UH, NET WATCH. THESE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT THEY HAVE VENDORS THERE. WE WALK AROUND AND, UH, I'M BIG ON PUBLIC SAFETY, OF COURSE. AND, YOU KNOW, THIS GOES OVER THEIR VARIOUS, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY OFFERINGS FROM THIS VENDOR. IT JUST CAUGHT MY EYE. AND, UH, I'M, I'M LOOKING THROUGH THIS A LITTLE MORE, AND MAYBE IN THE FUTURE, UH, WE'RE ABLE TO BRING SOMETHING TO THE CITY, UH, THAT, UH, THAT BENEFITS FROM, UH, FROM SOME OF THESE, UH, VENDORS THAT WE, UH, THAT WE SPEAK WITH. UH, THIS IS THE WAY THINGS GET DONE, UH, PART OF IT, UH, THIS COLLABORATION AND THAT WE'RE ABLE TO, TO ATTEND, UH, SOME OF THESE SEMINARS. THEY'RE VERY IMPORTANT. I WILL TELL YOU THAT, UH, UH, TRADER JOE'S THAT, UH, KOHL'S, THAT, UH, LOWE'S AND HOME DEPOT DIDN'T JUST ARRIVE ONE DAY IN OUR CITY. UH, IT TOOK, UH, MANY OF, UH, COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS FROM FORMER COUNCIL PEOPLE OVER THE COURSE OF TIME AND OVER THE COURSE OF THE AGE OF OUR, OUR CITY, MOST RECENTLY, MAYBE WITHIN THE LAST 50 YEARS, WHERE THEY'VE ATTENDED CONFERENCES, BOTH, UH, IN AND OUTTA THE STATE AND, UH, AND NETWORKED, UH, WITH PEOPLE. AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT EFFORT, FOR INSTANCE, UH, UH, THE GENTLEMAN HERE TO MY LEFT, UH, COUNCILMAN GOMEZ, WRITING LETTERS TO, UH, TRADER JOE'S AND, AND GETTING TO KNOW PEOPLE AT THESE CONFERENCES AND BEING ABLE TO, UH, TO, UH, TO GET IN TOUCH WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE, TO GET TRADER JOE'S HERE, THINGS LIKE THAT. THAT'S WHAT WE DO THERE. UH, SO, UH, I'M, I'M VERY PROUD OF THE FACT THAT WE'RE ABLE TO MAKE, UH, MAKE AND MAINTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND NEW RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER ELECTEDS, WITH VENDORS, AND WITH PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE THAT, UH, REALLY DO BENEFIT OUR CITY. SO, UH, ALSO ATTENDED, UH, OPENING DAY, UH, LITTLE LEAGUE, UH, THIS PAST SATURDAY, HAD A BLAST, UH, AND, UH, 400, UH, 400 KIDS OUT THERE LOVING LIFE. IT'S SO NICE TO SEE THESE KIDS OUT THERE, WEAR THEIR UNIFORMS AND, AND WALK THROUGH THAT PARADE. UH, VERY PROUD. UH, IT, UH, IT BRINGS BACK MEMORIES OF, UH, OF, OF A TIME LONG AGO WHEN I PLAYED, UH, LITTLE LEAGUE OUTSIDE OF, UH, LA HABRA. BUT, UH, GOOD TIMES. ALSO, UH, LAST WEEK, UH, PART OF MY MAYOR, PART OF MY MAYORAL DUTIES ARE TO, UH, UH, MEET WITH OTHER ELECTED OFFICIALS, OF COURSE. UH, I WAS ABLE TO MEET WITH, UH, FIELD REPRESENTATIVE FROM, UH, UH, UNITED STATES SENATOR ADAM SCHIFF'S OFFICE, UH, THIS PAST WEEK. UH, TOMMY LAWTON IS THE, UH, FIELD REPRESENTATIVE. AND FOR THE, THOSE OF YOU THAT MAY RECOGNIZE THE NAME, HE HAS A SON OF MARK LAWTON, ONE OF OUR RESIDENTS, AND, UH, A LONGTIME RESIDENT AND A VOLUNTEER HERE IN THE CITY. UH, HAD A GREAT CONVERSATION WITH TOMMY. HE'S A, UH, A 2017 GRADUATE OF SONORA HIGH SCHOOL. AND, UH, HE'S NOW, UH, ONE OF THE, UH, UNITED STATES SENATORS, UH, FIELD REPS. REGARDLESS OF WHICH, UH, UH, POLITICAL PARTY YOU ARE A PART OF, IT DOES NOT MATTER. THESE ARE THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT, UH, THAT THESE UH, UH, POSITIONS THAT THESE, UH, UH, UNITED STATES SENATORS, STATE ASSEMBLY PEOPLE, AND, UH, AND, UH, STATE SENATORS PROVIDE FOR OUR YOUTH. UH, AND, UH, I, I LOVED IT. IT WAS A GREAT CONVERSATION. TOMMY'S GOT A LOT OF ENERGY, UH, AND, UH, WE, UH, WE SPOKE ABOUT, UH, THE VARIOUS NEEDS THAT LAB HAS, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY NEEDS, UH, WITH OUR PARKS AND, UH, WITH OTHER, UH, IMPORTANT, UH, UH, ITEMS. UH, SO I WAS PROUD TO DO THAT AND, UH, AND ACTUALLY, UH, UH, MAKE A PITCH, UH, FOR, [01:20:01] YOU KNOW, FOR SOME OF THE MONIES THAT, UH, COULD BE COMING OUR WAY AND TO, TO FUND VARIOUS PROGRAMS. SO I HAD, UH, OUR ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER THERE WITH ME, UH, UH, GABBY YAPP, UH, WHO, UH, WHO WAS HELPING ME ALONG WITH, UH, WITH THE FIELD REPRESENTATIVE FROM ADAM SCHIFF'S OFFICE. SO THAT'S WHAT WE DO AS COUNCIL MEMBERS. THAT'S WHAT I DO AS MAYOR, AND THAT'S WHAT THE NEXT MAYOR WILL DO. AND THE MAYOR AFTER THAT, AND AFTER THAT, AND AFTER THAT. SO, UH, THAT'S IT FOR ME. I WILL, UH, NOW ADJOURN THE MEETING IN MEMORY OF MICHAEL KEEFE, OUR CONDOLENCES TO, UH, UH, DIMITRI AND TO CANDACE, THE GUTIERREZ FAMILY ON THEIR LOSS. UH, THE MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED TO MONDAY, APRIL 6TH, 2026 AT 5:30 PM IN THE CITY COUNCIL. CLOSED SESSION ROOM ONE 12 C 100 EAST LA HABER BOULEVARD, FOLLOWED BY THE REGULAR MEETING AT, AT 6:30 PM IN THE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER. EVERYONE HAVE A GOOD EVENING. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.