* 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. [Call to Order] [00:00:11] GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. WELCOME TO OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING. TODAY IS MAY 16TH. CAN'T HEAR ME. 20. CAN'T HEAR ME. NOW YOU CAN. WELCOME TO OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING. TODAY IS MAY 16TH, 2023. I AM ROSARI O DIAZ, AND I AM JUST CENTENNIAL MAYOR. TONIGHT'S IN VOCATION WILL BE LED BY FIREFIGHTER AND PARAMEDIC, JOE SI, GTO AND COUNCIL MEMBER CANTOS WILL LEAD US IN THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. PLEASE RISE. GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. LET'S BOW OUR HEADS TO INVITE THE SPIRIT OF THE LIVING GOD TO BE WITH US IN THIS MEETING THIS NIGHT. FATHER AND JESUS NAME, I ASK THAT YOU THAT YOU WOULD BLESS THIS MEETING TONIGHT, THAT YOU WOULD BLESSED THE CO CITY COUNCIL THAT ARE ENTRUSTED WITH RESPONSIBILITY TO SERVE THIS COMMUNITY. I ASK FOR YOUR GUIDANCE AND YOUR WISDOM, LORD, TO HELP THIS COUNCIL MAKE THE DECISIONS THAT WILL SHAPE THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY. I THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENCE. WE WELCOME YOU HERE IN OUR MIDST. IN JESUS' NAME, AMEN. AND PUT YOUR, PLEASE PUT YOUR RIGHT HAND ON YOUR HEART. PLEASE PUT YOUR RIGHT HAND ON YOUR HEART AND FOLLOW MY LEAD. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE. STRAW. YES. THIS IS STEADY CLERK ROLL CALL, PLEASE. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR. COUNCILMAN CONTOS HERE. COUNCILMAN WU? YEP. MAYOR PRO. TIM TABBA, PRESIDENT MAYOR DIAZ. HERE WE HAVE COUNCILWOMAN LETTI LOPEZ. VITO OUT THIS EVENING. MAYOR, PEACE KEEPER. IN YOUR PRAYERS, PLEASE. SHE'S STILL RECOVERING. UM, CITY ATTORNEY, IS THERE ANYTHING TO REPORT OUTTA CLOSED SESSION? NOTHING TO REPORT. MADAM MAYOR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY, WE HAVE, [PRESENTATIONS] UH, SEVERAL PRESENTATIONS, TESTING, TESTING. I'D LIKE TO INVITE, UM, CYNTHIA PARK, MISS GINA DGA, I MEAN ALGO. AND MR. ANDREW ALGO TO THE FRONT, PLEASE. THIS, THIS. THANK YOU, HERMAN. THANK YOU. ON FEBRUARY 6TH, 2023, MR. DELGADO WAS WALKING HIS DOG AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE HE LIVES WHEN HE COLLAPSED AND WAS FOUND BY THREE GOOD SAMARITANS. THE THREE INDIVIDUALS IMMEDIATELY STARTED C P R AND CALLED 9 1 1. MR. DELGADO IS ALIVE AND RECOVERING BECAUSE THESE NEIGHBORS CARED AND TOOK ACTION. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY A FEW WORDS? I HAVE A FEW WORDS TO SAY. JUST, UH, I'M HERE STANDING HERE TODAY BECAUSE THESE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE HERE, YOU KNOW, THEY WENT OUT OF THEIR WAY, SEE ME ON THE GROUND AND TOOK IMMEDIATE, IMMEDIATE ACTION. AND I CAN'T THANK HIM ENOUGH FOR, FOR STANDING UP AND JUST TAKING CARE OF ME. THANK YOU. MY WIFE HAS SOMETHING TO SAY. I DID HAVE A SPEECH, BUT I LOST IT. BUT ANYWAY, UM, I ASKED FOR THIS BECAUSE SO MANY TIMES WE ALWAYS HEAR THE UGLY AND THE BAD IN THE NEWS AND STORIES COMING OUT OF OUR COMMUNITY, RIGHT? MM-HMM. . SO I JUST THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT THAT OUR COMMUNITY ACKNOWLEDGE AND RECOGNIZE PEOPLE WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY WHO STEP UP WHEN THEY, WHEN IT'S NECESSARY AND DO THE RIGHT THING BECAUSE OF THEIR DECISIVE THINKING. MY FAMILY, I'M GONNA START CRYING AS MY HUSBAND. WE CAN CELEBRATE HIM EVERY DAY BECAUSE THEY STOPPED, THEY CARED, AND THEY DID SOMETHING ABOUT IT. [00:05:01] SO, I ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY TO SHARE YOUR GOOD STORIES, NOT ONLY THE BAD ONES, SHARE THE GOOD ONES BECAUSE THIS COMMUNITY IS A GOOD COMMUNITY OF GOOD PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT EACH OTHER. BUT UNLESS WE SHARE IT, WE DON'T KNOW IT. SO, LET'S KNOW IT. SEE SOMETHING GOOD. SAY SOMETHING. OKAY. THANK YOU TO THE MAYOR AND TO THE COUNCIL FOR PUTTING THIS OUT FOR ERIC, OR GOING THROUGH THIS AND, AND HONORING MY REQUEST BECAUSE I REALLY THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT. AND TO YOU GUYS, OUR, OUR FAMILY'S INDEBTED TO YOU GUYS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIVES. SO, TOO BAD YOU GOT US NOW, . OKAY. THANK YOU. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY A FEW WORDS? IT WAS DEFINITELY A BLUR, BUT I CAN'T BELIEVE WE'RE STANDING NEXT TO HIM CUZ WE WEREN'T THAT CONFIDENT ON THAT DAY. IT WAS A BIG SCARY MOMENT. BUT I'M SO GRATEFUL FOR HER TO EVEN CREATE THIS, UM, HONORARY, YOU KNOW, LIKE, UM, CELEBRATION OF JUST DOING THE RIGHT THING. AND SO WE'RE REALLY GRATEFUL THAT HE'S HERE AND GRATEFUL FOR YOUR APPRECIATION. UM, I GUESS THIS IS YOUR CHANCES TO LEARN CPR AND AND GO GET A DOCTOR'S CHECKUP. , UH, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANYWAYS, , I JUST, I JUST, I ALSO, I ALSO WANTED TO, UM, THANK THE FIREFIGHTERS AND THE PARAMEDICS THAT RESPONDED. THEY RESPONDED QUICKLY AND AGAIN, DECISIVELY. AND ALSO OUR HEARTS GO OUT TO ALL THE MEDICAL STAFF AT INNER COMMUNITY CUZ THEY ARE JUST, I MEAN, JUST EVERYBODY. IT'S, IT'S, WE LIVE IN SUCH A GOOD WORLD WITH SO MANY GOOD PEOPLE. , THANK YOU. WELL, I'M REALLY HAPPY THAT YOU'RE HERE WITH US TO CELEBRATE AND CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE. NOW YOU HAVE YOUR NEW FAMILY? YES. WOW. I'M REALLY HAPPY. LET ME GET THIS RECOGNITION. SO I HAVE A COUPLE OF CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION FOR CYNTHIA CHARK APPRECIATION FOR YOUR GOOD SAMARITAN. ANDREW ALGO. THANK YOU. AND GINA VALK SO MUCH. I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE YES. OH, CAN YOU COME THIS WAY? COME THIS WAY. OKAY. GONNA DO THAT ONE PROCLAMATION PARTY. OKAY. I HAVE A PROCLAMATION CELEBRATING MAY AS ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER HERITAGE MONTH. I'D LIKE TO INVITE KAREN, KAREN COLE, OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR TO THE FRONT. OKAY. WEST COVINA IS THRILLED TO ANNOUNCE MAY IS ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH, A CELEBRATION OF ASIANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS IN THE UNITED STATES. ASIAN PACIFIC ENCOMPASSES ALL THE ASIAN CONTINENT AND THE PACIFIC ISLANDS IN MALAYSIA, MICRO MI, MICRONESIA, AND POLYNESIA. THE MONTH OF MAY WAS CHOSEN TO COMMEMORATE THE IMMIGRATION OF THE FIRST JAPANESE TO THE UNITED STATES ON MAY 7TH, 1843. AND TO MARK THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE COMPLETION OF THE TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD ON MAY 10TH, 1869, THE MAJORITY OF THE WORKERS WHO LAID THE TRACKS WERE CHINESE IMMIGRANTS. WEST COVINA IS A DIVERSE COMMUNITY WITH POPULATION OF 30% ASIAN. I THOUGHT IT WAS MORE. AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE JOANNE. JOANNE, UH, KAREN, KAREN COLE. ACCEPT THE PROCLAMATION. WOULD LIKE TO STAY WITH YOU. WELL, THANK YOU, MAYOR. UM, IT IS AN HONOR TO ACCEPT THIS PROCLAMATION. AS SHE HAD MENTIONED, UM, ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS MAKE UP ABOUT 30% OF WEST COVINA POPULATION. SO THIS PROCLAMATION SHOWS THAT WE'RE BEING RECOGNIZED AS A VALUABLE CONTRIBUTING MEMBER TO THE SOCIETY. SO THANK YOU FOR EMBRACING OUR CULTURE, AND I'M VERY PROUD TO BE A PART OF THIS DIVERSE COMMUNITY. THANK YOU. THANK. [00:10:21] OKAY. NOW I HAVE A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING MAY 21ST THROUGH MAY 27TH. AS NATIONAL PUBLIC WORKS WEEK, I'D LIKE TO INVITE THE MAINTENANCE CREW TO COME UP TO THE FRONT. A P W A IS PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE THEME CONNECTING THE WORLD THROUGH PUBLIC WORKS FOR THE 2023 NATIONAL PUBLIC WORKS WEEK POSTER PUBLIC WORKS IS THE THREAD THAT CONNECTS US ALL, NO MATTER WHERE WE LIVE IN THE WORLD, EVERY PUBLIC WORKS PROFESSIONAL STRIVES TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR THE COMMUNITY THEY SERVE. LEADING TO HEALTHIER, HAPPIER COMMUNITIES. THE CONNECTING THE WORLD THROUGH PUBLIC WORKS THEME HIGHLIGHTS THE WAY PUBLIC WORKS PROFESSIONALS CONNECT US PHYSICALLY THROUGH INFRASTRUCTURE AND INSPIRATIONALLY THROUGH TO SERVE TO THEIR COMMUNITIES. WHETHER AS FIRST RESPONDERS OR DAILY WORKERS CARRYING THEIR DUTIES WITH PRIDE. PUBLIC WORKS CONNECTORS HELPS KEEP COMMUNITIES STRONG AND PROVIDING AN INFRASTRUCTURAL SERVICES AND TRANSPORTATION, WATER WASTE, WASTEWATER AND STORMWATER TREATMENT, PUBLIC BUILDINGS AND SPACE SPACES, PARKS AND GROUNDS, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND FIRST RESPOND SOLID WASTE AND RIGHT AWAY MANAGEMENT. THEY ARE WHAT MAKE OUR COMMUNITIES GREAT PLACES TO LIVE AND WORK. JOIN US IN CELEBRATING THE QUIET WORK THESE PROFESSIONALS DO THAT MAKES LIFE BETTER FOR ALL OF US. MM-HMM. . ALL RIGHT. IF YOU GUYS CAN SQUISH TOGETHER ISH. YOU PLEASE. TIGHT. GET CLOSE AND PLEASE WE LIKE EACH OTHER. YES. WE'RE ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY. ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE ON THE COUNT OF THREE. LOOK. OKAY. 1, 2, 3. ONE MORE PLEASE. ONE, TWO, AND THREE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IS FRANCOIS OR MARIE THOMAS HERE? OH, MARIE, YES. GO. THANK YOU. NOW I HAVE A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY. THANK YOU MARIE FOR COMING UP HERE. EVERY DAY MORE THAN 120 AMERICANS ARE KILLED BY GUN VIOLENCE. AND MORE THAN 200 ARE SHOT AND WOUNDED WITH AN AVERAGE OF MORE THAN 17,000 GUN HOMICIDES EVERY YEAR. THIS PROCLAMATION DECLARES THE FIRST FRIDAY IN JUNE TO BE NATIONAL GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY, THE CITY OF WEST COVINA TO HONOR AND REMEMBER ALL VICTIMS AND SURVIVORS OF GUN VIOLENCE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, I'M FILLING IN FOR FRANCOIS TODAY. SHE IS AT ANOTHER CITY COUNCIL MEETING ACCEPTING THIS SAME PROCLAMATION, AND I HAVE, UM, A FEW WORDS TO SHARE FROM HER WITH YOU. UH, THANK YOU FOR PROCLAIMING THE FIRST FRIDAY IN JUNE, WHICH WILL BE JUNE THE SECOND THIS YEAR AS THE GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY. FRANCO IS A VOLUNTEER FOR MOM'S DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA. IT IS A NON-PARTISAN GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATION MADE UP OF BOTH NON-GUN OWNERS AND GUN OWNERS WITH A GOAL OF REDUCING GUN VIOLENCE AND IMPROVING GUN SAFETY FOR EVERYONE. WE BELIEVE THE SECOND AMENDMENT CAN BE RESPECTED WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY BETTER PROTECTING PEOPLE THROUGH COMMON SENSE GUN LEGISLATION. GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY IS OBSERVED AT THE SAME TIME AS WEAR ORANGE, [00:15:02] WHERE ORANGE WAS CREATED AFTER THE TRAGIC KILLING OF A DIA PENDLETON BY A STRANGE T STRAY BULLET AT THE AGE OF 15. AFTER PERFORMING IN OBAMA'S SECOND INAUGURAL PARADE IN JANUARY OF 2013, THE IDEA OF WHERE ORANGE WAS INSPIRED BY A GROUP OF HADI'S FRIENDS WHO ASKED THEIR CLASSMATES TO COMMEMORATE HADI'S LIFE BY WEARING ORANGE. THEY CHOSE THIS COLOR BECAUSE SHE LIKED ORANGE, AND BECAUSE HUNTERS WEAR ORANGE TO ANNOUNCE THEMSELVES TO OTHER HUNTERS WENT OUT IN THE WOODS. AND ORANGE IS A COLOR THAT SYMBOLIZES THE VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE. A IDEA WOULD'VE BEEN 25 YEARS OLD THIS PAST JUNE THE SECOND. NOW, PEOPLE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES RECOGNIZE NATIONAL GUN VIOLENCE AWARENESS DAY AND WEAR ORANGE CONTRIBUTE TO A DIA PENDLETON AND TO THE MANY OTHER VICTIMS OF GUN VIOLENCE. THOSE KILLED THE SURVIVORS AND THE LOVED ONES OF ALL THOSE VICTIMS. AND IT'S ALSO TO EDUCATE OTHERS ABOUT SENSELESS GUN VIOLENCE IN THIS COUNTRY. LAST YEAR I WAS SHOCKED THAT THE NUMBER ONE CAUSE OF DEATH OF CHILDREN IN THE UNITED STATES WAS GUNS. BUT IT CONTINUES TODAY. DO YOU KNOW THAT COVINA HIGH SCHOOL EVACUATED THEIR BUILDING DUE TO A THREAT YESTERDAY? ALTHOUGH THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE IT WAS CREDIBLE, THEY EVACUATED THE SCHOOL AND IT'S THE SECOND TIME THEY HAVE DONE SO. THIS YEAR, EVERY DAY, EIGHT CHILDREN AND TEENS WILL BE SHOT UNINTENTIONALLY BY FAMILY FIRE. THESE ARE OFTEN PREVENTABLE INCIDENTS. LOCKING AND STORING GUNS AND BULLETS WILL SAVE CHILDREN WHO USE GUNS AS A TOY, AND TEENAGERS WHO USE GUN TO HURT THEMSELVES AND POSSIBLY OTHERS. CHILDREN WILL FIND HIDDEN AND UNSECURED GUNS. SO IF YOU HAVE A GUN, PLEASE LOCK IT AND LOCK THE BULLETS SEPARATELY. EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT GUN OWNERS STILL HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO USE THEIR GUN IF IT IS LOCKED, OUR CHILDREN DESERVE THE BEST. THANKS FOR HONORING THOSE KILLED BY GUN VIOLENCE THIS JUNE 2ND, 2023. WEAR ORANGE AS WE HONOR THOSE KILLED BY GUNS AND EDUCATE OUR COMMUNITIES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. LET'S MOVE ON. YES. I'D LIKE TO INVITE CHI CAPELLI TO THE FRONT. TONIGHT WE ARE RECOGNIZING GREATER WEST COVINA BUSINESS ASSOCIATION AND BLACK WI BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATIONS FOR THE DONATIONS OF CHAIRS AND BEDS AT THE FIRE STATIONS. 2, 3, 4, AND FIVE. YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU MADAM MAYOR. COUNCIL, STAFF, CITIZENS, I'D LIKE TO CALL DOWN, UH, GREATER WESTCO ASSOCIATION TEAM AND THE BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATION TEAM. SO, UH, ROUGHLY ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, UH, MONICA AND GREATER, OH, SORRY, MONICA AND THE GREATER ESCA BUSINESS ASSOCIATION CAME TO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND, AND THE FIREFIGHTER ASSOCIATION SAID, WHAT CAN WE DO? WHAT CAN, WHO CAN REACH OUT TO, AND WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP YOU GUYS? WE WANNA, WHAT ARE YOU GUYS IN NEED OF? AND MONICA PUT TOGETHER SOME PLANS TO TRY TO GET SOME DONATIONS. WE IDENTIFIED A NEED IN THE CHAIRS THAT THE FIREFIGHTERS USE WHEN THEY'RE IN THEIR STATIONS, WHEN THEY RELAX BETWEEN CALLS TO TRY TO RECRUIT AND GET SOME, YOU KNOW, SOME NEEDED REST BEFORE THE NEXT CALL COMES OUT. AND SOME PLANS WERE DONE. SHE REACHED OUT TO THE BUSINESSES OUT HERE AND GOT SOME DONATIONS, DID A FUNDRAISER, A GOLF TOURNAMENT, UH, A VIRTUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT, AND REALIZED THAT WE NEEDED SOME MORE FUNDS. AND THEN, UH, REACHED OUT TO BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATION TEAM AND THEN GOT INVOLVED A LITTLE FURTHER WITH MORE NEEDS. WE CAME, WE CAME UP WITH MORE NEEDS THAT WAS NEEDED. AND, UH, THE FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION AND GREATER WESTCO, BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATION, EXCUSE ME, GREAT. GREATER WESTCO BUSINESS ASSOCIATION AND BLACK WIDOW [00:20:01] INVESTIGATION CAME UP THAT, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE CAN USE BRAND NEW BEDS AND BRAND NEW CHAIRS AND ALL THE STATIONS, WELL ACTUALLY WE'RE 2, 3, 4, AND FIVE. SO THIS GREAT DONATION CAME UP FROM BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATIONS TEAM. AND WE CAN'T THANK OF ENOUGH WHERE THEY OUTFITTED BRAND NEW BEDS AND BRAND NEW CHAIRS FOR STATION 2, 3, 4, AND FIVE. SO NOW ALL FIVE STATIONS HAVE BRAND NEW BEDS AND BRAND NEW CHAIRS. UH, AND IT'S JUST A GREAT, WE REALLY WANNA THANK YOU FOR THE HARD WORK. UH, I'D LIKE TO ALSO CALL DOWN, UH, ENGINEER GIBBS. ENGINEER GIBBS HAS, UH, HERE ON BEHALF OF THE FIREFIGHTER ASSOCIATION, WHO IS A BIG PART OF WORKING WITH BUS GREATER WEST COVINA AND WITH BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATIONS TO MAKE THIS ALL HAPPEN. IT WAS A LONG TIME COMING AND A LOT OF HARD WORK, AND WE'RE REALLY, REALLY LUCKY TO HAVE, UH, BUSINESSES THAT WANNA HELP OUT OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT AND ENGINEER GIBBS HAS A GIFT FOR THE TWO, THE TWO ORGANIZATIONS. UM, WELL, HOW ABOUT WE GIVE, YOU WANNA GIVE THE THOSE? SURE, SURE. OKAY. THE CITY OF WEST COVINA WOULD LIKE TO, UM, GIVE YOU THE CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION TO THE GREATER WEST COVINA BUSINESS FOR YOUR GENEROUS DONATIONS. THANK YOU FOR MAKING WORK. I JUST WANNA SAY THAT THIS FOR THE GREATER WEST COA, THIS WAS A GREAT PLEASURE. I MEAN, WE'RE VERY FOND OF YOU GUYS. WE'VE BEEN FOR SO MANY YEARS. AND, UM, WHEN THE REQUEST WAS MADE, I MEAN, BLACKWOOD INVESTIGATIONS JUST STEPPED IN AND SAID, YOU KNOW WHAT, WE'RE GONNA FILL THAT NEED. AND IT WAS JUST SUCH A GREAT PARTNERSHIP. I MEAN, WE'RE VERY, VERY, VERY BLESSED TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, GREAT PARTNERSHIPS ESTABLISHED HERE IN THIS COMMUNITY FOR THE PAST 15 YEARS. AND WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL AND WE WANT MORE THINGS TO COME BECAUSE YOU GUYS DESERVE IT. DURING COVID. IT WAS HARD. AND YOU GUYS HAVE DONE BEYOND WHAT, UM, WHAT ANYBODY EXPECTED FOR THE CITY OF WEST COVINA. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK GUYS. WE'RE VERY HAPPY. THE THE NEXT CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION GOES TO BLACK WIDOW INVESTIGATIONS FOR THEIR GENEROUS DONATIONS. THANK YOU. WHAT CAN I SAY? OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT AND OUR EMTS WERE HUMBLED FOR ALL THE SERVICES YOU GUYS DO. THANK YOU. THAT WAS THE LEAST WE COULD DO. UM, CHIEF SAID EVERYTHING, AND YOU GUYS KNOW HOW THANKFUL, THANKFUL WE ARE OF WHAT YOU GUYS DID FOR US. WE COULDN'T SAY MUCH. I MEAN, EVEN THIS DOESN'T, YOU KNOW, SHOW HOW MUCH WE THINK AND RECOGNIZE YOU GUYS. IT'S, IT IS AMAZING. AND, YOU KNOW, THE DAY SHE CALLED ME AND SAID, HEY, UH, ARE YOU SITTING DOWN? WE HAVE SOME NEWS FOR YOU. SHE GOES, WE'RE GONNA, UH, BUY YOU GUYS NEW CHAIRS AND NEW BEDS. AND MY FIRST REACTION WAS, YEAH, SHUT UP. THAT'S, THERE'S NO WAY . AND, UH, SO AFTER I, YOU KNOW, GOT MY COMPOSURE AND FOUND OUT THIS WAS TRUE, SHE GOES, JUST PICK OUT WHAT YOU GUYS NEED. WE'RE PARTNERING UP WITH BLACK WIDOW AND WE'RE GONNA BUY YOU GUYS EVERYTHING YOU GUYS NEED. AND WHEN I SAY THIS MEANS MORE TO US THAN YOU GUYS KNOW, I HAVE GUYS THAT ARE COMING UP TO ME TODAY. THEY'RE SAYING THEIR BACK FEELS BETTER BECAUSE WE HAVE NEW BEDS. IT'S, IT'S SUCH A SMALL GESTURE, BUT AGAIN, A HEARTFELT AND BIG GESTURE FOR US. SO, UH, WITHOUT ANYTHING ELSE, UM, WE DECIDED TO GIVE THEM THE PROBATIONARY FIREFIGHTER HELMETS SIGNED BY OUR DEPARTMENTS , UM, WITH THEIR LOGO AND THEIR INITIALS ON IT. WE TRY TO GET AS MANY GUYS TO SIGN AS POSSIBLE. SO, THANK YOU GUYS. . OKAY. WAS IT A HELMET? OH, THE YELLOW. I CAN DO THIS. OH MY GOSH. [ORAL COMMUNICATIONS] OKAY, WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO ORAL COMMUNICATIONS. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK BEFORE THE COUNCIL, PLEASE FILL OUT YOUR YELLOW CARD AND TURN IT INTO OUR ASSISTANT CITY CLERK PLEASE. HOW MANY SPEAKERS DO WE HAVE? I HAVE 11 SPEAKER CARDS. MAYOR. [00:25:01] OKAY. ANGIE GILLINGHAM, FOLLOWED BY ARMIT, UH, ARMANDO, FOLLOWED BY JOHN SHOEMAKER. GOOD EVENING. I'M HERE TO DENY TONIGHT TO DISCUSS THE INVESTIGATION THAT NOW IS COMPLETED ON WHAT TOOK PLACE BETWEEN THE COUNCIL AND THE MAYOR ON FEBRUARY 18TH, THE SECOND EVENING OF THE CELEBRATION. YES. THE CITY, UM, STAFF HAS THE AB HAD THE ABILITY TO APPROVE THE SECOND NIGHT OF THE HUNDREDTH CELEBRATION ON THE 18TH. AND THEY DID NOT HAVE TO INFORM THE COUNCIL FOUR FOR APPROVAL. BUT WHAT THE ATTORNEYS FAILED TO REQUEST WAS THE PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST, WHICH WOULD'VE PROVIDED MORE IN-DEPTH AND DISTURBING CONVERSATION THAT TOOK PLACE AT 10:00 PM BETWEEN TWO COUNCILMEN WU AND MR. CONTOS. THAT MAY HAVE CONCLUDED A MORE NEGATIVE OPINION TOWARDS THE GALINO TOVA PEOPLE. AS A RESIDENT, I WANTED TO KNOW WHY COUNCILMAN CONTOS CALLED FOR THE MAYOR PRO TEM TO BE CONSIDERED FOR REMOVAL. COUNCILMAN CANTO HAD OPENLY DISCUSSED BEING APPROACHED BY THE COUNCIL IN EARLY DECEMBER OF 22 FOR THE VERY SAME REASON TO REMOVE MR. TABBA TOBI FROM THE ROTATION AT A PRIOR COUNCIL MEETING. SO, LIKE MANY OTHERS, I REQUESTED A PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST. MANY PEOPLE HAVE STATED THAT COUNCILMAN CANTOS HAD TO PLACE A MOTHER MAY I ON, ON THE, ON THE AGENDA BEFORE DISCUSSING OPENLY THE REMOVAL OF MAYOR PRO TEM, THE PUBLIC RECORDS SHOWS THAT HE DISCUSSED AT LENGTH WITH COUNCILMAN WU ON FEBRUARY 18TH, THE SECOND NIGHT OF THE CELEBRATION. AND IN DECEMBER 22, IS THAT A BROWN ACT VIOLATION? POTENTIALLY THE TWO COUNCILMEN WENT ON BLAMING PRO TEM FOR ALL THE FAILURES OF OUR CITY THAT FAILED FROM THE FAILED SALE AT THE CHURCH SITE ON AMAZON, WHICH CONSIDERING COMING FROM, UH, WHICH WAS CONSIDERING COMING TO OUR CITY WHERE NONE OF THE RESIDENTS SURROUND THAT AREA WANTED. W GOES ON TO COUNCILMAN WGO ON TO BLAME THE PRO TEM FOR A FAILED SALE AT WHAT IS KNOWN AS THE YARD. NO, THE FAILURE HAD TO DO WITH THE CITY NOT CORRECTLY ADVERTISING TO THE INTER INTERESTED PARTY THE CORRECT ACREAGE ON THAT SITE. THE STATE REVIEWED THE PROPOSAL SALE TO THE LAND BEING DESIGNATED UNDER THE SURPLUS LAND ACT TO ENVISION AND STOP THE SALE. BUT MOST DISTURBING IS COUNCILMAN CON'S. NEWLY TWO MONTHS, BARELY THREE MONTHS AFTER BEING IN OFFICE, IS HIS SUGGESTION TO COUNCILMAN WU TO INQUIRE USING THE APP CALLED PDI, WHICH IS THE ELECTRONIC, UH, SYSTEM THAT EXTRACTS REGISTERED VOTERS INFO VIA, VIA OR VIA OR NOT USING THE PAPER COPIES FROM NORWALK. HE WANTED TO KNOW THE IDEOLOGY OF THE RESIDENTS IN DISTRICT ONE, WHICH IS PRO TEM TABATA'S DISTRICT FOR THE UPCOMING ELECTION IN 2024. WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO THE RESIDENTS? BECAUSE OUR CITY IS IN DESPERATE NEED FOR FUNCTIONING CITY COUNCIL AND MAYOR TO ADDRESS THE MANY PROBLEMS THE RESIDENTS ARE CONCERNED WITH, SUCH AS THE BUDGET, THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, THE BIG LEAGUE DREAMS DEVELOP, B K K LITIGATIONS, LOOKS LIKE WE WILL STILL HAVE THE NOT SAME NON-FUNCTIONING CITY COUNCIL AND POSSIBLY A NEW MAJORITY. THANK YOU HERMAN. FOLLOWED BY JOHN SHOEMAKER, FOLLOWED BY R ROBINSON. SO WHAT IS THE PROCEEDING HERE? WELL, LET'S TAKE THE PROPER ACTION ON THE CALIFORNIA COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT IN CASE NUMBER 23 P S R O DOUBLE OH 6 7 9 FOR THE RECORD, NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING, ELDERLY ADULT ABUSE. NOW, FOR SOME PEOPLE WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN ELDERLY ABUSE, IT DOES EXIST. AND IT'S A SHAME THAT A PARTICULAR INDIVIDUAL BY THE NAME OF MARIO LEWIS SOBEL VARO, THE RESPONDENT IN THIS CASE, HAPPENS TO HAVE A HISTORY OF PROBLEMS. AND UNFORTUNATELY, THE WHITTIER JUDGE DECIDED TO DISMISS ONE OF THESE PARTICULAR PROBLEMS, BUT THE PROBLEM HASN'T GONE AWAY. AS WE ALREADY KNOW THAT MR AS I SAID ON THE RECORD, HAS A PRIOR FELONY PROBATION ISSUE. A 2 61 0.52 COUNTS DATED 2 3 20 20. WOW. WHAT [00:30:01] ABOUT THE CIVIL HARASSMENT AND ELDER ABUSE UNDER THE CASE OF K 1 2 205? OR WHAT ABOUT THE CASE OF 20 23 3 B L OH 6 2 87 OF THE SHUBER MACHINE SHOP INCORPORATION MACHINE AND ENGINEERING EVENT? WELL COUNT 1 1 66 A PARENTHESES FOR PENAL CODE UNDER CASE TWO WC 0 3 1 52 IS A VERY INTERESTING CASE. MATTER OF FACT, THESE WHOLE CASES ARE VERY INTERESTING AND I FIGURED OUT WHY WE ALLOW OTHER PERSONS IN THIS CHAMBER TO ASSAULT OTHER INDIVIDUALS THAT THEY FIND OFFENSIVE. AND I FIND THE JUDGE IN WHITTIER A B***H OFFENSIVE BECAUSE THESE TYPE OF TRESPASSING, VANDALISM, HARASSMENT AND INJURY TO A PUBLIC IN A PUBLIC ARENA IS UNFAIR AND UNCONSTITUTIONAL. AND WE HAVE TO CONSIDER THAT IN THE MATTER OF WHY THE MAYOR CONTINUES TO CALL THIS HATE SPEECH. THIS IS NOT HATE SPEECH. SIMPLY A SIGN. THE SAME SIGN THAT COSTED NATIVE AMERICANS THEIR LIVES OVER THOSE 13 COLONIES THAT PUSHED 'EM TO THE EDGE OF DEATH AND THEIR CONCENTRATION CAPS AND NEARLY DESTROYED THE NATIVE AMERICANS OF GREAT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. IN ADDITION TO THAT, CUZ I'M GOING BACKWARDS NOW. THIS HATE SPEECH THAT WE KEEP TALKING ABOUT, WHY IS IT HATE? WELL, THE ONLY WHY ENDS HATE BECAUSE SOME OF YOU DON'T HAVE AN EDUCATION TO UNDERSTAND WHAT REALLY IS HATE SPEECH. LINSKY VERSUS NEW HAMPSHIRE. OH YEAH. CITY OF LOS ANGELES VERSUS MICHAEL HUNT. OH YEAH, CALIFORNIA VERSUS WHITNEY. OH YEAH. AND WHAT ABOUT COHEN VERSUS CALIFORNIA? THIS IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF WHAT I'M WEARING. CALIFORNIA VERSUS COHEN. UNFORTUNATELY, F THE DRAFT WAS THE COMMENT ON THE GENTLEMAN'S SHIRT. AND AND MADAM MAYOR, SOME OF YOUR AUDIENCE CONTINUE TO SAY THINGS BEHIND MY BACK. WHY DON'T THEY JUST COME UP FRONT AND SAY IT IN OF ME. BESIDES LOOK AT WALTER EDWARD BAGDASARIAN VERSUS THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA IN SHOOT OBAMA. AND THEN TODAY AT THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, THEY WANT TO TAKE OUR SECOND AMENDMENT AWAY FROM US TO NOT DEFEND AGAINST THE CHINESE AND THE RUSSIANS. BUT IN ADDITION TO ALL THAT BS CASE, 19 S T R O 0 0 3 0 3 7 HERMAN VERSUS LOS ANGELES CASE OF STRATON FABUL, JUDGE JENNIFER H COPS, A JUDGE FROM LONG BEACH ALLOWED ME TO USE MY SYMBOL, MY SIGN IN ANY MEETING I GO TO. AND THAT'S CALLED PROTECTIVE FREE SPEECH. SO GATHER YOUR CORRECT INFORMATION AND MAYBE YOU MIGHT WANNA LOOK INTO POOR MARIO LEWIS BEHIND ME TO FIND OUT WHETHER IT'S TRUE OR NOT. JOHN SHOEMAKER, FOLLOWED BY R ROBINSON. FOLLOWED BY MAUREEN HINES. THERE YOU GO, MA'AM, IT'S FOR THE RECORD. EXCUSE ME. I WAS GROWING UP. THERE WAS A RADIO STATION IN THE LATE SIXTIES, EARLY SEVENTIES K HJ THAT ONE OF THEIR TAGLINES WAS, AND THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING. WELL, THIS CONSOLE FIGURES OUT HOW TO DO IT. ONE DAY I HEARD, GOT SOME CALLS AND WAS TOLD THAT COUNCIL MEMBER WU WAS BRAGGING ABOUT THE WONDERFUL JOB HE DID AT THE TRIAL. AND MY FIRST REACTION WAS, OH GOD, HOW MANY ZEROS ARE GONNA BE AFTER THE ONE? BECAUSE HE NEVER GETS ANYTHING. RIGHT? IT'S JUST THE OPPOSITE. YOU KNOW, THE OTHER THING YOU DON'T DO IN A CASE WHEN A PERSON IS CENTRAL TO YOUR CLAIM THAT YOU DID SOMETHING PROPERLY IS FOR A MEMBER OF THE CITY, CITY COUNCIL TO GET UP IN COURT AND SAY HE'S A LIAR. THAT TELLS THE JURY DON'T BELIEVE ANYTHING HE SAYS. EVEN [00:35:01] IF HE IS TELLING THE TRUTH, BECAUSE HE WAS AFRAID THAT THE QUESTION THAT WAS BEING ASKED WOULD HURT HIS DELICATE IMAGE OF HIMSELF. DID HE OR DID HE NOT SAY SOMETHING OR DO SOMETHING TO THE CITY MANAGER WHEN THE SIMPLE ANSWER WOULD'VE BEEN WHETHER IT HAPPENED OR NOT. IT'S PERSONNEL MATTER. AND UNFORTUNATELY I CAN'T DISCUSS IT IN PUBLIC. I'D BE VIOLATING THE LAW, BUT NOT HIM. YOU WANTED TO MAKE SURE HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING AND HELPS SYNC THE CASE. NOW WE GET TO THE OTHER THING. WHERE DO WE START? COUNCILMAN CONTOS? THE GRAND CANYON WAS NOT CAUSED BY AN ASTEROID HITTING THE EARTH . UH, I I THINK YOU WERE PROBABLY A LITTLE UPSET AND EMOTIONAL THAT EVERYTHING WAS GOING ON. CAUSE I REALLY BELIEVE YOU'RE A GOOD MAN WHO WANTS TO DO A GOOD JOB. BUT YOU NEED TO SOMETIMES WITH THAT, UH, MEASURE YOUR WORDS. THINK OF IT AS WHAT WOULD TONY DO? AND THEN DO THE OPPOSITE. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THE FEBRUARY 18TH THING, WE HAVE AGAIN, OUR MAYOR THINKING THIS WAS HER PARTY AND HOW DARE SOMEBODY ELSE GET INVOLVED IN IT? WOW. YOUR JOB IS A BOARD OF DIRECTORS NOT TO GO THROUGH ALL THE DETAILS, PERIOD. YOU KNOW, AND THEN YOU HAVE THE ALMIGHTY, OR AT LEAST THAT'S WHAT HE THINKS HE IS. WELL, YOU TAKE CARE OF IT. I'M LEAVING. DOESN'T HAVE THE, YOU KNOW WHAT, JUST STAND THERE AND DO IT. BUT THEN HE KNEW WHAT THE RESULT WAS GOING TO BE. I HAVE A QUESTION. CERTAIN PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT BEING INCLUSIVE, NOW YOU'RE CELEBRATING THE HUNDREDTH YEAR. WE HAVE REPRESENTATIVES OF THE CHINESE COMMUNITY, FILIPINO COMMUNITY, HISPANIC COMMUNITY, BUT OF ALL THOSE GROUPS WHO'S BEEN HERE THE LONGEST, AND WHAT'S EVEN WORSE ABOUT IGNORING THEM AND NOT INVITING THEM, IS WE DO BUSINESS WITH THEM. THEY HAVE TO SIGN OFF ON C EQUA REPORTS. WOULDN'T YOU GO GET THEM FIRST? HEY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE INVOLVED ? YOU KNOW, I JUST DON'T, I I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND THE LOGIC BEHIND IT. BUT YOU KNOW, WHAT WE SEE IS, YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE OUT OF CONTROL, YOU KNOW, WHO THINK THEY'RE GOING TO, THEY'RE DOING SUCH A GREAT JOB IN THE CITY THAT, UH, THE CITY WILL BUILD STATUES FOR 'EM, BUILD STATUES FORUM, JUST ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE. YOU KNOW, AND NOW YOU'RE TRYING TO START ANOTHER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TO HELP SMALL BUSINESSES. WHAT HAPPENED TO THE 19 MILLION FROM THE CARES ACT? THAT WAS SPECIFICALLY I THINK, POINT NUMBER THREE OF WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO DO WAS HELP SMALL BUSINESSES. HOW MUCH HAVE YOU GIVEN THEM? HOW MUCH HAVE YOU GIVEN THEM? YOU KNOW, YOU WANT A HEALTH DEPARTMENT BECAUSE AS I'VE HEARD, HEARD YOU BEING QUOTED. I'LL HELP YOU GET YOUR PERMITS FASTER. WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT? IF HE CAN GET YOUR PERMITS FASTER, HE CAN ALSO MAKE SURE YOU DON'T GET 'EM. AND WE ALREADY KNOW WHAT HE TRIES TO DO. SUCH SUCCESS. SUCH SUCCESS. IT'S UNBELIEVABLE. YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'LL LET YOU GO TO NEXT YEAR. HE'S THE ONE THAT NEEDS TO GET KICKED OUT OF HERE REALLY FAST. UH, ROBINSON, FOLLOWED BY MAUREEN HINES, FOLLOWED BY ELSIE MESSMAN. ACCORDING TO KAREN JACKSON, UH, KINGSTON'S CK THE N IH CLINICAL TRIAL DATABASE, UH, CHINESE BIOTECH, 44 BILLION GIANT FOSSEN PHARMA CONDUCTED THE INITIAL PFIZER BEYOND TECH PHASE ONE HUMAN SAFETY TRIALS ON 144 CIVILIANS IN CHINA. AFTER FOSSEN, PHARMA COMPLETED THE CLINICAL EVALUATION OF THE SAFETY OF PFIZER'S MESSENGER RNA VACCINES FOR HUMAN USE. CHINA BANNED PFIZER'S MESSENGER RNA LIPID NOMINAL PARTICLE TECHNOLOGY FOR USE BY CHINESE CITIZENS. [00:40:01] HOWEVER, WE ARE ALL AWARE THE FDA AUTHORIZED PFIZER'S MESSENGER RNA AS SAFE FOR US CITIZENS. SO I'LL ONLY BRIEF YOU DISCUSS THE CLOT SHOT TONIGHT, INCLUDING VACCINE IN INCLUDED IN INDUCED DEATH SYNDROME, BIDS THAT COMPROMISES ONE'S IMMUNE SYSTEM WITH GRAPHENE OXIDE, A 5G SOFTWARE INTERFACE, SELF-ASSEMBLY, SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY, BIO WEAPON, AND OR A D O D VACCINE PROTOTYPE COUPLED WITH, UH, PREP, PREP ACT, MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES PASSED BY CONGRESS'S TRANSHUMANISM AGENDA, BIO WEAPON THAT, THAT CAME OUT OF A FEDERAL COURTROOM, BROOKE JACKSON, SEVERAL MONTHS AGO. PEOPLE THINK, YOU KNOW, HE'S CRAZY, CALLING IT A BIO WEAPON. OKAY, UH, NOTE IF YOU, IF YOU WANT TO, UH, TO, TO BE A HUMAN GRAPHINE OXIDE 5G ANTENNA SUITABLE FOR CONNECTION TO THE INTERNET, JUST ASK YOUR DOC FOR A FEW MORE BOOSTERS. UM, THAT WOULDN'T BE MY PREFERENCE. ALSO RELATED ARE THE 15 MINUTE CITY I IDEAS AND INSTALLING BLUE LIGHTING IN CITIES TO, TO CONNECT UP POPULATIONS THAT HAVE BECOME ANTENNAS THROUGH INOCULATIONS, INCREASING THE CONSTANT TRACKING AND SURVEILLANCE WE WILL EXPERIENCE BUILT USING CAPITAL THAT COMES OUT OF A HUGE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE FUNDING STREAM. MILITARY LED BY BIOWEAPONS RESEARCH AND, AND USED ANY TIME ELIMINATING INFORMED CONSENT BY RECLASSIFYING ANYONE, UH, WHO COULD BE CARRYING A DISEASE AS A PRESUMPTIVE NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT. CONSTITUTION, BE DAMNED. UH, DO DO ANYTHING, UH, DO ANYTHING YOU WANT TO ANYONE. ALL THE WAR CRIMES, UH, WERE APPROPRIATE BECAUSE WE WERE ALL ON A WAR FOOTING FOR THREE YEARS. BUT WHO KNEW IT? BUT VACCINE, D O D INOCULATIONS USING, UM, UM, UM, UNNECESSARY TO DE UH, DETERMINE, UM, SAFETY AND EFFECTIVENESS. UH, THE INOCULATION, SINCE THERE WERE D O D SPONSORED SAFETY AND EFFECTIVENESS WASN'T A QUESTION. IT WAS ALL, YOU KNOW, A PENTAGON DEAL. WE EXPERIENCED 100% PROPAGANDA THAT IS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY TO ERADICATE THE HUMAN SPECIES BY SPREADING INFERTILITY. BIOWEAPONS INOCULATIONS DURING WARTIME. I'LL GUARANTEE YOU, IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, THE, UH, BIRTH RATE IS GONNA BE GOING DOWN WORLDWIDE. UH, NOW I TURNED, UH, TO A SPEECH BY DR. ROBERT MAN MALONE, ON FIFTH GENERATION WARFARE. THE COVID CRISIS HAS REVEALED A MODERN BATTLEGROUND IN WHICH MOLDING, CONTROLLING AND CAPTURING YOUR THOUGHTS A MOTION AND BELIEFS ARE THE OBJECTIVE. FIFTH GENERATION WARFARE IS THE NEW BATTLEGROUND, AND IT HAS BEEN DEPLOYED BY MILITARY, LARGELY AN INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY ON THE ENTIRE WESTERN WORLD IN AN AMAZINGLY HARMONIZED FASHION DURING THE COVID ERA. FIFTH GENERATION WARS IS A WAR OF INFORMATION AND PERCEPTION, A STRANGE GAME. THE ONLY WINNING MOVE IS NOT TO PLAY. THE BASIC IDEA IS THAT IN THE MODERN ERA, WARS ARE NOT THOUGHT BY ARMIES OR GORILLA, UH, BUT, BUT IN THE MINDS OF COMMON CITIZENS, YOUR MIND IS THE NEW BATTLEGROUND. THIS IS NOT HYPERBOLE. THIS IS A STANDARD MILITARY STRATEGY. AND UNFORTUNATELY, THE UNITED STATES HAS LED IN THE WEST IN OUR RESPONSE, THE UNI, THE, THE EUROPEAN UNION HAS LARGELY FOLLOWED AMERICAN LEADERSHIP. AND THIS, THIS QUOTE AND UNQUOTE, I'M QUOTING FIRM, THANK YOU, MAUREEN H HINES, FOLLOWED BY ELSIE MESSMAN, FOLLOWED BY MATTHEW SMITH. ANYWAY, YOU CAN JUST FACT CHECK ALL OF THAT, WHAT I DOES, WHAT I JUST SAID. I CHECKED IT. KATHY NAVARRO, GOOD EVENING. THANK YOU FOR LETTING, LETTING US SPEAK TONIGHT. I'M KATHLEEN NAVARRO, AND THIS IS MAUREEN HINES. WE'RE FROM PROJECT 29 11 IN COVINA. WE'RE A FOOD BANK THERE THAT SERVES [00:45:01] COVINA, WEST COVINA, GLENORA, AZUSA, IRWINDALE, AND SURROUNDING CITIES OF SAN GABRIEL VALLEY. I WANNA SAY ONE THING. I'M A RESIDENT OF WEST COVINA, AND I THANK YOU YES, FOR MAKING WEST COVINA AS BEAUTIFUL AS IT IS HERE. I WOULDN'T LIVE IN ANY OTHER CITY, BUT WEST COVINA, AND YOU ARE ALL DOING A FABULOUS JOB. THANK YOU, UH, MAYOR DIAZ, THANK YOU. YOU, YOU DESERVE TO BE COMMENDED, ESPECIALLY WITH ALL THE BATTLE THAT YOU HAVE TO PUT UP WITH IN THESE MEETINGS. THANK YOU. GOD BLESS YOU. ANYWAY, GETTING BACK TO WHY I CAME. WE, UH, ARE PUTTING ON A OPEN HOUSE AND WE, AND I APPRECIATE, UH, COUNCILMAN KENTOS FOR, FOR CONTACTING US THAT YOU'LL BE COMING. I HOPE THAT IF YOU HAVE TIME, YOU'LL COME BY FOR AT LEAST A LITTLE PEAK AT WHAT WE DO. UM, WE SERVE ON FRIDAY A TOTAL, UH, LAST, UM, THIS LAST FRIDAY, 220 CARS, WHICH, UH, ALLOW, WHICH WE ALLOW A BOX OF FOOD TO GO INTO THEIR CAR THAT WOULD SERVE FOUR POSSIBLY MORE IN THEIR FAMILY. THIS FOOD CONSISTS OF BREAD, MEAT, DAIRY, UM, UH, DESSERT, WHATEVER WE CAN, YOU KNOW, A BALANCED MEAL, FRESH VEGETABLES. SO IN ANY EVENT, UM, PLEASE, IF YOU HAVE RESIDENTS HERE THAT NEED HELP, PLEASE DIRECT THEM. OUR WAY. FRIDAY FROM AROUND 1130 IS REGISTRATION, AND THEY, UH, THEY DO LOAD THE BOXES UP IN PEOPLE'S CARS, BUT WE DO, UH, TAKE PEOPLE WHO ARE WALK-INS. SO ANYWAY, UM, WHAT WE HOPE TO DO IS TO PROVIDE FOR PEOPLE NOT ONLY THEIR HEALTH, BUT THEIR EMOTIONAL STATES SO THAT THEY CAN BECOME SELF-SUFFICIENT. SO THIS IS OUR GOAL. AND, UH, I HAVE MANY STORIES THAT I COULD TELL YOU OF PEOPLE WHO ARE SUFFERING. IT IS NOT, IT IS NOT BEEN, UM, UNDONE YET WITH, EVEN WITH C O V I, A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE IN, IN DIRE NEED AND WE'RE SEEING MORE PEOPLE COME. MORE ARE COMING. WE SERVED 40,000 LAST YEAR, SO THAT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE. AND THAT'S A FAMILY OF FOUR. SO YOU MULTIPLY, THAT'S A, UH, WHAT IS THAT, 160,000 , SOMETHING LIKE THAT. SO ANYWAY, I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO MAUREEN. SHE'LL HAVE SOME IN INTERESTING THINGS TO SAY. I JUST WANNA TELL YOU GUYS, THIS IS THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD. I CAME HERE FROM GUYANA, SOUTH AMERICA WITH $27. I MOVED TO NEW YORK, I WENT TO NURSING SCHOOL. I'M A NURSE. I RAISED SIX KIDS. AND I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU GUYS ALL THE NEGATIVE THINGS THAT THEY SAY ABOUT AMERICA, THEY SHOULD LIVE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY AND SEE WHAT PEOPLE GO THROUGH. AND THIS, I JUST WANT SAY ONE THING. THIS GUY THAT SITS HERE IS VERY OFFENSIVE. AND I DO NOT THINK THAT HE SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO COME BACK IN HERE. HE PROBABLY HAVE NEVER EVEN TRAVELED ACROSS THE, THE STREET. BUT IN SOME COUNTRIES THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. AND ESPECIALLY TO BE TALKING LIKE THAT A WOMAN, I, I CANNOT STAND IT. I MADE MYSELF AVAILABLE. I'M A NURSE. I TAKE CARE OF SO MANY PEOPLE AND JUST TO SEE EVERY TIME I COME TO THIS MEETING, THIS GUY IS GETTING WORSE AND WORSE AND NOTHING IS BEING DONE ABOUT IT. AND I THINK AFTER A WHILE, SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE THAT HE SHOULD NOT COME BACK IN HERE BECAUSE HE'S OFFENSIVE TO WOMEN, TO OFFENSIVE TO AMERICA. I KNOW I HAVE TRAVELED ALL OVER AND, AND, AND THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH. I KNOW THERE'S FREEDOM OF SPEECH HERE, BUT STILL CURB YOURSELF. OKAY? AND ANOTHER THING THAT I, I HAD TO GET THAT OUT BECAUSE IF I DIDN'T GET IT OUT, I BUST. AND THERE'S ANOTHER, UM, THING THAT I WANT TO SAY. I LIVE ON NEWCREST AND AUTUMN, AND THERE'S A GUY THAT LIVES ON NEWCREST. WHEN YOU COME FROM AUTUMN TO NEWCREST, HE HAS EIGHT CARS AND HE ALSO HAS A CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS. I'M SORRY. SO I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT THE NEXT TIME. THANK YOU. UH, MAY I JUST SAY, THIS IS OUR [00:50:01] OPEN HOUSE IS JUNE 7TH, WEDNESDAY. THANK YOU. UH, 16TH. THANK YOU. ELSIE MESSMAN, FOLLOWED BY MATTHEW SMITH, FOLLOWED BY ROSIE SAN JUAN. OOPS. MY NAME IS ELSIE MESSMAN, A RESIDENT OF WEST COVINA. ITEM TWO EXCHANGE WITH FOOTHILL TRANSIT. THE CITY HAS 25 2 0.5 MILLION FROM PROPOSITION A. THEY WANT TO SELL 2.5 MILLION TO FOOTHILL FOR 1,000,800 AND $875. IS IT POSSIBLE TO HAVE SEATINGS AT THE BUS STOPS FOR FOOTHILL TRANSIT PASSENGERS, WE SEE STUDENTS, RESIDENTS HIDING FROM THE SUN UNDER A TREE OR SITTING ON THE SIDEWALK. WEST COVINA, YOU CAN DO BETTER. TAKE A LOOK AT WALNUT AND SEE WHAT THEY HAVE DONE. MY SECOND ITEM IS, IS ANYONE PAYING AT ANY ATTENTION TO THE WEST COVINA CREDIT CARDS STAFF IN FEBRUARY SPENT SEVENTY SIX THOUSAND SEVENTY ONE THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY DOLLARS. IN MARCH, THEY SPENT $91,612 FOR A TOTAL OF $162,782. SOMETHING SHOULD BE DONE ON THAT. OKAY, WHERE ARE WE GOING ON THESE LAWSUITS? IS IT NECESSARY OR IS IT A PERSONALITY CONFLICT? WE SPENT, WE'RE BEING LAUGHED AT. OUR CITY MANAGER IS, OUR CITY MANAGER IS GONE, THE FIRE CHIEF IS GONE, THE POLICE CHIEF IS GONE, THE ASSISTANT CITY CLERK IS GONE. FIRED IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME OF IS UNHEARD OF. I'VE BLAMED THE CITY COUNCIL FOR NOT LOOKING INTO THIS, THESE TERMINATIONS FURTHER, BUT BELIEVING IN ONE PERSON. WHEN YOU POINT A FINGER AT ONE INDIVIDUAL, REMEMBER THERE'S THREE FINGERS POINTING BACK AT YOU. HOW MUCH MONEY HAS THIS SPENT? IS CITY SPENT, UH, SPENT ON STUPID DECISIONS? THIS COUNCIL IS NOT, IS NOT LISTENING TO THE RESIDENTS IS ONE OF THE PROBLEMS. FIRST, WE ARE PAYING FOR A HEALTHCARE SERVICE THAT A LOT OF RESIDENTS DON'T WANT. IN APRIL, WE PAID $7,000 TO TRANSTEC FOR JANUARY 2ND. THE CITY SPENT A LOT OF TIME AND MONEY ON ST. PAULI AND NOTHING AGAIN. RESIDENTS DIDN'T WANT HORSES OR A HOTEL. THIRD, THE SPORTSPLEX IS COSTING THE CITY A LOT OF MONEY WITH LITTLE OR NO RETURN. FOURTH, THE EVENTS ARE OUT OF CONTROL. THE CITY IS SPENDING WAY TOO MUCH MONEY THEY NEED TO BUDGET THESE EVENTS IN THE FUTURE. OUR PROBLEM FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS IS THAT WE HAVE UNQUALIFIED CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS. MOST OF THE PROBLEM WAS CAUSED BY ONE PERSON. AND WE WOULD LIKE COUNCILMAN WU TO RESIGN. UH, IS HE IS DESTROYING THE CITY. AND BY THE WAY, YOU'RE SAYING OUR CITY MANAGER IS INCOMPETENT. I THINK YOU ARE THE REALLY, THE ONE THAT'S INCOMPETENT. YOU CAN HIDE YOUR THUMB NOW AND DO WHAT'S BEST FOR WEST COVINA. AND DO US A FAVOR AND RESIGN. THANK YOU MATTHEW. MATTHEW SMITH, FOLLOWED BY ROSIE SAN JUAN, FOLLOWED BY DAVID SCHWARTZ. GOOD EVENING CITY COUNCIL. UH, COUPLE HATS I'M WEARING TONIGHT. FIRST OF ALL FOR SAN UH, SAN GABRIEL VALLEY SENIOR SOFTBALL. AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU FOR THE ASSISTANCE AND THE ACCESSIBILITY TO THE FIELDS. UM, I'VE SAID IT BEFORE, BUT WE'VE GOT SIX TEAMS THAT PLAY UP THERE ON THURSDAYS. OVER 80 GUYS, 80 TO A HUNDRED GUYS COME IN, UH, FOR THREE DIFFERENT GAMES EVERY THURSDAY. AND AND WE APPRECIATE THAT. WE ALSO HAVE TEAMS THAT PLAY, UH, MONDAY AND FRIDAYS OVER AT CAMERON PARK AS WELL. AND WE APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT FOR THAT GROUP. UH, ALSO, UH, REGARDING THE A HUNDRED YEAR ANNIVERSARY, UM, I THINK PEOPLE WERE PLACED IN REALLY AWKWARD POSITIONS, YOU KNOW, THE DAY OF THE EVENT THAT HAPPENED. AND SPEAKING OF THE, THE FESTIVAL, I I, I DON'T WANT TO BELITTLE ALL THE THINGS THAT WENT RIGHT AND I THINK THERE'S SOME RECOGNITION THAT SHOULD BE DONE AND SAID FOR THE THINGS THAT WENT RIGHT THAT WEEKEND. UM, FROM A COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE, UM, MY EMPLOYEES AT THE, THE THREE DIFFERENT RESTAURANTS IN FRONT OF THE FESTIVAL, PLUS THE GENTLEMAN FROM SOFTBALL ASSOCIATION, HAD GREAT WORDS OF PRAISE FOR THE EVENTS THROUGHOUT THE WEEKEND. UM, FROM A BUSINESS OWNER'S STANDPOINT, I SAID IT BEFORE, IT WAS OUR BEST WEEKEND BY FAR FOR ALL [00:55:01] THREE ESTABLISHMENTS. HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE GOING THROUGH THERE FOR TWO DAYS. YOU KNOW, IT WAS REALLY A FANTASTIC EVENT. MY EMPLOYEES WERE, WERE UP. THE VIBE OF THE, OF THE CITY, OF THE STREET OF WHAT WAS GOING ON WAS EVIDENT THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE COMPLEX AND THE WHOLE AREA. UH, AND LASTLY, I WANT TO THANK THE EMPLOYEES WHO SPENT MONTHS AND THEIR ENTIRE WEEKEND THERE. I PLAY BASKETBALL AT CAMERON CENTER SATURDAY MORNINGS AND WE'RE CLOSED THAT DAY. WE'RE CLOSED THAT DAY BECAUSE THE EMPLOYEES WERE EXPECTED TO BE AT THE FESTIVAL WORKING THE WEEKEND AND SUPPORTING THE EVENT. AND THERE WAS NO PROBLEM ON THE BASKETBALL SIDE OF THINGS. WE, WE UNDERSTOOD. BUT I I, I DON'T THINK ANYBODY HAS STOOD UP HERE IN THE LAST THREE MONTHS AND GIVEN PRAISE FOR THE EMPLOYEES FROM THE ONES WHO OPENED THE COUNTER AT CAMERON CENTER TO THE CITY MANAGERS, THE COUNCIL FOR PUTTING ON AN EVENT THAT THAT I'M SURE TOOK A WALL OVER A YEAR TO DO. GRANTED, THE, THE CITY HAS TAKEN A LOOK AT THE EVENTS, PROCEDURES AND COMMUNICATIONS THAT HAPPENED AT THE OPENING OF THE EVENT, BUT OVERALL, I, I DON'T THINK THAT SHOULD TARNISH WHAT WAS REALLY A GREAT WEEKEND AND A LOT OF EFFORT AND, AND A LOT OF COMMUNITY BUILDING THAT TOOK PLACE. SO THANK YOU GUYS FOR THAT. UM, APPRECIATE THE TIME. THANK YOU. ROSIE SAN JUAN, FOLLOWED BY DAVID SCHWARTZ, FOLLOWED BY ERIC ORTIZ. GOOD EVENING. UH, I'M A WEST COVINA RESIDENT. I LIVE IN DISTRICT THREE, UH, RESIDENT OF 33 YEARS. UM, AND I'M SPEAKING, I GUESS ON ITEM NUMBER SEVEN. UM, I'D LIKE TO REQUEST A COUPLE OF MODIFICATIONS TO THE MOVE WEST COVINA PROGRAM. IF YOU VOTE TO APPROVE OR EXTEND IT FOR ANOTHER YEAR, I ASK THAT YOU CONSIDER MATCHING DIAL RIGHTS POLICY BY LOWERING THE MINIMUM AGE TO 55 AND ALLOW DISABLED PERSONS TO PARTICIPATE REGARDLESS OF THEIR AGE. UM, IF DIAL AIDE CAN HAVE IT THAT WAY, MOVE WESTCO SHOULD BE THIS, UH, FOLLOW WITH THE SAME REQUIREMENTS. I ASK FOR THESE CHANGES BECAUSE I THINK THERE'S A NEED FOR THIS ON DEMAND AL ALTERNATIVE. BUT ACCORDING TO THE PILOT PROGRAM, SIX MONTH STATS USAGE WAS VERY LOW, WHERE ONLY 3% OF THE ALLOCATED SIX MONTH BUDGET WAS USED. UM, THIS MAKES A PROGRAM LOOK AS IF THERE ISN'T ENOUGH INTEREST OR THAT IT'S NOT EVEN NEEDED. HOWEVER, I THINK THAT THE LOW USAGE IS DUE TO THE AGE REQUIREMENT REQUIREMENT BEING SET AT 65 AND OLDER. I ATTENDED THE PRESENTATION GIVEN BY MR. MCDONALD AT THE SENIOR CENTER ON APRIL 12TH AND THERE WAS A NICE TURNOUT OF RES RESIDENTS THAT HAVE A NEED FOR SUCH A PROGRAM. AND SEVERAL OF US THAT ATTENDED, UM, ARE NOT, ARE UNDER 65, 1 OF WHICH IS MY HUSBAND. UM, HE HAD, HE HAD A MEDICAL INCIDENT A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO THAT NOW PREVENTS HIM FROM DRIVING AND FOR THE MOST PART I'M ABLE TO TRANSPORT HIM. BUT BECAUSE I'VE BEEN MY ELDERLY PARENTS' MAIN SOURCE OF TRANSPORTATION THE LAST FEW YEARS, UM, AND THEY LIVE OVER 30 MILES AWAY, I'M NOT ALWAYS IN THE AREA AND SOMETIMES IT'S HARD TO JUGGLE MY TIME WITH EACH OF THEM. MY HUSBAND IS JUST ONE OF THE EXAMPLES, UH, OF WHAT WE HEARD AT THE PRESENTATION AND I'M SURE THERE ARE MANY OTHERS WITH SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCES CUZ DRIVING IS A NECESSITY THAT WE DON'T REALIZE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS UNTIL, FOR WHATEVER REASON WE CAN'T DO IT ANYMORE. AND, UH, AT LEAST FOR MY HUSBAND, HE FEELS HE'S LOST, UH, HIS INDEPENDENCE, WHICH IS PRETTY DEPRESSING. THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING TRANSPORTED TO WHERE WE NEED IS A TOPIC THAT'S IN MY RIGHT RADAR RIGHT NOW BECAUSE OF WHAT HAPPENED TO US. BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING I WILL ADVOCATE TO FROM NOW ON, ESPECIALLY FOR SENIORS AND PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES THAT CAN NO LONGER DRIVE. UH, ANOTHER GENTLEMAN, I THOUGHT HE'D BE HERE, BUT I DON'T SEE HIM THAT ATTENDED. THE PRESENTATION IS LEGALLY BLIND. HE DEPENDS ON ACCESS AND DIAL AIDE. HOWEVER, FROM HIS EXPERIENCE AND ALSO FROM MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH MY PARENTS, ACCESS ISN'T RELIABLE, UH, TO GET TO A MEDICAL APPOINTMENT ON TIME BECAUSE IT'S, IT'S A SHARED RIDE AND IT USUALLY MAKES SEVERAL STOPS. UM, BUT THIS GENTLEMAN SAID HE PREFERS TO USE UBER FOR MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS DUE TO BEING, UH, MUCH MORE RELIABLE TO GET YOU THERE ON TIME. BUT UBER COSTS UP, UH, ARE UP. AND SO THIS SUBSIDIZED PROGRAM MOVE WEST COVINA WOULD BE A GREAT BENEFIT [01:00:01] TO HIM. SO LOWERING THE ELIGIBILITY AGE AS WELL AS TAKING DISABILITIES INTO ACCOUNT WOULD INCREASE THE PARTICIPATION AND WOULD MAKE WEST COVINA A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM. UM, JUST, AND THAT'S IT FOR THAT. UM, ALSO I JUST WANNA, UH, SAY THAT THE CURRENT, UH, THE LOT OR PROPERTY THAT'S CURRENTLY BEING CLEARED ON MARK ALLEN AT CAMERON PARK, I, I DON'T KNOW IF THE CITY PLANNERS HAVE DECIDED WHAT WILL BE DONE AT THAT SPOT, BUT, UH, MY SUGGESTION IS TO ADD PICKLEBALL COURTS, AS I'M SURE YOU'VE ALL HEARD, UH, HAS BECOME A VERY, A VERY POPULAR SPORT OR ACTIVITY FOR PEOPLE OF ALL AGES. AND I KNOW WE HAVE INDOOR PICKLEBALL AT CAMERON PARK. I WENT BY ONE DAY AND IT WAS REALLY CROWDED, SO IT, YOU KNOW, IT'S DOING REALLY WELL. UM, BUT, UH, AND I'VE BEEN PLAYING AT THE SENIOR CENTER AND ALTHOUGH IT'S A LITTLE CONFINED THERE, IT'S STILL A LOT OF FUN FOR BEGINNERS LIKE ME. SO, MY THANKS TO THE STAFF, MS. ROXANNE, UH, ESPECIALLY, UH, VANESSA AND JOSEPH, UH, FOR ALL THEY DO IN SETTING UP THE COURTS AND JUST EVERY, ALL THE EVENTS AT THE SENIOR CENTER SPECIFICALLY, CUZ THAT'S WHERE I GO. UH, BUT I THINK AN OUTDOOR COURT AT CAMERON PARK WOULD BE A NICE AND LOW COST ADDITION TO OUR CITY WITH HOPEFULLY MINIMAL MAINTENANCE AND SHOULD BE CONS AND, AND IT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FOR THAT SPOT. ALTHOUGH JD WANTS BASKETBALL COURTS, BUT MAYBE BOTH IF IT'S POSSIBLE. THANK YOU. DAVID SCHWARTZ, FOLLOWED BY ERIC ORTIZ, FOLLOWED BY CINDY MITCHELL. GOOD EVENING, UH, MAYOR AND, UH, BRIAN, MAYOR AND COUNCILMAN ON BEHALF OF MY NEIGHBOR WHO IS A MEMBER OF THE LOS ANGELES, UH, LOS ANGELES COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT AND COULDN'T BE HERE BECAUSE HE'S, UH, HE'S STILL WORKING OVERTIME TODAY I WANT TO ADDRESS MY COMMENTS TO MAYOR DIAZ BECAUSE YOU'RE IN OUR DISTRICT AND ALSO TO, UH, CITY ATTORNEY THOMAS DTE AND CITY MANAGER DAVID CARNEY. SINCE I'VE LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES, I'M GOING TO BRIEFLY OUTLINE MY NEIGHBOR'S CASE, WHICH HE ATTEMPTED TO FOLLOW WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AROUND THREE MONTHS AGO. MY NEIGHBOR, I'M SAYING, UH, THIS IS THE PLAINTIFF HIRED MR. RAY OAA, DEFENDANT NUMBER ONE, TO DO SOME UPGRADES TO HIS HOME CONSISTING OF CEMENT WORK, WINDOW REPLACEMENTS, AND EXTERIOR PAINTING. THE WRITTEN AND ORAL CONTRACT WAS FOR $12,000. DEFENDANT ONE TOLD MY PLAINTIFF HE NEEDED TO OPEN A PAYMENT. HE NEEDED AN OPENING PAYMENT OF $7,000 SUPPOSEDLY TO PURCHASE THE MATERIALS. AS A RESULT, THE PLAINTIFF PAID MR. OCHOA $5,000 CASH PLUS TRANSFERRED $2,000 VIA ZEL TO MR. OCHOA'S GIRLFRIEND SLASH WIFE WHO'S DEFENDED. NUMBER TWO, FANNY SILVA PROTO. IN SHORT, MR. OCHOA HADN'T DONE THE WORK NOR PURCHASE ANY SUPPLIES FOR THE PLAINTIFF'S JOB. HENCE, ON APRIL 29TH, 20, UH, 2023, PLAINTIFF OFFICIALLY FIRED MR. OCHOA AND REQUESTED ALL HIS MONEY BACK ON. I'M JUST PAST SUNDAY, PLAINTIFF AND I WENT TO THE WEST COVINA POLICE DEPARTMENT TO FILE A FELONY EMBEZZLEMENT REPORT. WE SPOKE WITH SERGEANT, UH, WEATHERMAN, WHO FELT PLAINTIFF HAD A CIVIL CASE BUT NOT A CRIMINAL CASE. AS A FORMER POLICE OFFICER MYSELF, I DISAGREE WITH SERGEANT WEATHERMAN AND I AND LAID OUT THE EVIDENCE. IN FACT, I BELIEVE THIS CASE, UH, DEFENDANT NUMBER ONE, NUMBER TWO, SHOULD ALSO BE CHARGED WITH CONSPIRACY. AS OF NOW, SERGEANT WEATHERMAN HAD OFFICER SALAS FILL OUT AN EVENT REPORT ONLY AS OF NOW, SERGEANT WEATHERMAN. WHOOPS, I'M SORRY. UM, THEREFORE THE PLAINTIFF IS ASKING YOU, PLEASE INTERVENE AND HAVE THE WEST COVINA POLICE DEPARTMENT FILE A CRIMINAL CASE AND LET THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY MAKE THE JUDGMENT. AND I STILL HAVE A COUPLE MINUTES, SO I WANT TO TALK ABOUT ALSO THAT THERE'S A BIGGER, UH, GRAFFITI PROBLEM OVER AT, UH, BELINDA AND SERVICE AT THE SHOPPING CENTER NEARLY EVERY SINGLE DAY THEY'RE GETTING BOMBARDED WITH GRAFFITI AND ALSO, UM, PROBLEMS WITH INCREASED HOMELESSNESS, UH, AT THE MCDONALD'S AND EL PALO, UH, AREA TOO. IT'S GETTING WORSE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. ERIC ORTIZ, FOLLOWED BY CINDY MITCHELL. [01:05:07] HELLO MAYOR. CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND STAFF. MY NAME IS ERIC ORTIZ AND I'M WITH THE HEALING AND JUSTICE CENTER. HJC IS A COMMUNITY BASED IPOC LED NONPROFIT SERVING LOS ANGELES COUNTY WITH A FOCUS IN SAN GABRIEL VALLEY. OUR MISSION IS TO SUPPORTED BIPO COMMUNITIES AND ORGANIZATIONS BY CREATING SAFE, HEALING AND CONNECTED SPACES. WE BELIEVE WE ARE GOING TO BUILD STRONG AND LONG-LASTING SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENTS. HEALING BASE AND RELATIONSHIP STRENGTHENING APPROACHES MUST BE AT THE CENTER OF OUR ADVOCACY AND ORGANIZING. OUR SERVICES INCLUDE A FREE TENANT HO, UH, A FREE TENANT COUNSELING HOTLINE, NON-VIOLENT PARENT EDUCATION CLASSES, AND REGENERATIVE CONFLICT RESOLUTION TRAINING. OUR ADVOCACY EFFORTS ARE IN TENANT RIGHTS AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING AS WELL AS DIGITAL EQUITY, WHICH I'M HERE TO DISCUSS WITH YOU TODAY. THE COVID PANDEMIC HIGHLIGHTED SEVERAL VERY STRONG COMMUNITY NEEDS AND INJUSTICES, ESPECIALLY AS IT SURROUNDS INTERNET OR BROADBAND ACCESS. I THINK WE ALL SAW, OR AT LEAST HEARD OF THE VIRAL PHOTOGRAPH OF THE TWO SMALL CHILDREN SITTING OUTSIDE OF A FAST FOOD RESTAURANT TRYING TO CONNECT TO THE WIFI JUST SO THEY COULD COMPLETE THEIR SCHOOLWORK. IT IS SHAMEFUL THAT THESE CHILDREN AND THOUSANDS OF FAMILIES LIKE THEM HAD A RESORT TO THESE MEASURES. ADDITIONALLY, IF YOU HAD WANTED TO FIND RESOURCES FOR FOOD, EMPLOYMENT, COVID INFORMATION AND VACCINES TO GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR TO GO TO WORK, TO PASS THE TIME ON NETFLIX AT HOME OR EVEN ATTEND CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS, YOU HAD NEEDED ACCESS TO BROADBAND. AND IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT ACCESS, BUT ALSO ABOUT HAVING THE EQUIPMENT AND LITERACY TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS AND NAVIGATE THE INTERNET EFFECTIVELY, WHICH IS WHY WE JOINED DIGITAL EQUITY LOS ANGELES, A COALITION OF OVER 50 ORGANIZATIONS FROM ALL ACROSS DIFFERENT FIELDS SUCH AS EDUCATION, HEALTH, HOUSING, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND MORE. WE RESEARCHED AND HIGHLIGHTED DISCRIMINATORY PRICING PRACTICES OF CHARTER SPECTRUM, WHICH SERVES OVER 80% OF LA COUNTY. WE FOUND THAT THEY WERE OFFERING MUCH LOWER PROMOTIONAL PRICING IN AREAS LIKE MALIBU AND RANCHO PARE RATHER THAN IN LOWER INCOME AREAS WITH DENSER POPULATIONS OF PEOPLE OF COLOR. WE PUBLISHED THIS IN OUR PRICING DISPARITIES REPORT AND BEGAN TO URGE THE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS TO INVESTIGATE AND CORRECT THESE, THESE DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES. WE ARE ASKING CITY COUNCILS ALL ACROSS THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY LIKE YOURS TO HELP US CLOSE THE DIGITAL DIVIDE AND WRITE A SUPPORTIVE LETTER TO THE LA COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ASKING THEM TO INVESTIGATE AND STOP THE DISCRIMINATORY PRACTICES OF THESE INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS AND TO TAKE STEPS TO ENSURE ALL OF LA COUNTY HAS EQUITABLE AND AFFORDABLE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET. WE PROVIDED YOU WITH DATA AND FACT SHEETS OUTLINING THESE DISPARITIES AS WELL AS SAMPLE LETTERS TO DRAFT TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS. AND WE ARE OPEN TO MEETING WITH YOU AND DISCUSSING FURTHER. WE HOPE WE CAN HAVE YOUR SUPPORT TO ENSURE ALL YOUR CONSTITUENTS ARE CONNECTED EQUITABLY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. CINDY MITCHELL, FOLLOWED BY MR. G. HI, SWEAR, I'M SHORT. MM-HMM . UH, MY NAME IS CINDY MITCHELL. I'M A RESIDENT OVER 50 YEARS IN WEST COA. I'M USUALLY HERE WITH MY SON, BUT HE COULDN'T MAKE IT TONIGHT. UM, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I'M GONNA SAY TONIGHT, BUT I WANTED TO ADDRESS YOU. UH, SO THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME, MAYOR, COUNSEL AND THE STAFF IN RESIDENCE. UM, I READ THE INVESTIGATION THAT CAME OUT FROM THE CENTENNIAL AND UM, I WAS KIND OF BLOWN AWAY ACTUALLY. UM, THE THINGS THAT WERE ALREADY COVERED BY JOHN SHOEMAKER AND UM, ANGIE GILLINGHAM, THEY'RE MUCH MORE, UM, PRECISE AND BETTER COMMUNICATORS THAN I AM, BUT I WOULD SECOND THE THINGS THAT THEY SAID. UM, JOHN ALSO SAID, I'M NOT SURE LOGICALLY, UM, WHAT YOU GUYS WERE THINKING WHEN YOU DIDN'T REACH OUT AND INCLUDE THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE BEFORE JAMIE HAD TO INVITE HERSELF. UM, IN READING THIS INVESTIGATIVE REPORT, IT KIND OF LOOKS TO ME LIKE THE ISSUE WAS MORE THE POLITICS THAT IS HAPPENING WITHIN THE COUNCIL AND THE STAFF RATHER THAN ANYTHING THAT JAMIE WOULD'VE SAID. UM, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS LABELED AS BEING TOO POLITICAL, A LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT IS NOT POLITICAL. SO I HOPE THAT YOU GUYS ARE EDUCATING YOURSELF AS A RESIDENT. I FEEL LIKE, UM, I FEEL REALLY DISAPPOINTED. I FEEL LIKE WE REALLY MISSED OUT ON HER PARTICIPATION IN THAT EVENT. I FEEL LIKE THE COMMUNITY THAT WAS A LOSS FOR OUR COMMUNITY. IT EXPLODED INTO A BIGGER LOSS FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND I HOPE THAT YOU GUYS MAKE IT RIGHT. THAT'S BASICALLY WHAT I WANNA SAY ON THAT, BUT I STILL HAVE SOME MORE TIME. SO I WANTED TO UM, JUST CALL OUT AND MENTION THE WEST COVINA LETTER CARRIERS FOR THEIR STAMP OUT, UM, HUNGER DRIVE THIS WEEKEND. UH, I THOUGHT THAT WAS PRETTY AWESOME THAT THEY WERE, THEY HAD A LARGE, A LOT THAT THEY HAD TO PICK UP AND DRIVE AND PICK UP AT MY HOUSE, BUT WE HAVE A [01:10:01] GREAT LETTER CARRIER, SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THEM RECOGNITION HERE TONIGHT. UM, AND ALSO TO THE, TO THE RECOGNITION OF THE PEOPLE THAT WE SAW, UM, EARLIER PRIOR TO THE, AT THE BEGINNING OF THE COUNCIL MEETING. UM, AGAIN, I'M GONNA BRING UP JAMIE AND I THINK SHE'S DOING REALLY GOOD THINGS IN OUR COMMUNITY AND AND EDUCATING AND UM, I JUST HOPE HOPE YOU GUYS OPEN UP AND SEE WHAT SHE'S DOING TOO, CUZ SHE SHOULD BE UP HERE BEING RECOGNIZED INSTEAD OF BEING SHUT DOWN, UM, IN THE SUMMERTIME. I JUST WANTED TO SAY MY SON COULDN'T BE HERE. WE HAVE A FULL ON, UM, NATIVE PLANT HABITAT IN OUR YARD IN WEST COA AND UH, IT'S MY SON'S FAVORITE THING. UH, AS YOU KNOW, HE'S DISABLED AND HE HAS VERY FREQUENT TONIC-CLONIC SEIZURES, SO HE CAN'T ALWAYS GET OUT. WE DON'T GET TO GO HIKE IN THE HILLSIDES LIKE HE WOULD LIKE TO DO. UM, AND THE HEAT GETS TO HIM. SO WE KIND OF JUST RESTORED OUR AREA TO HOW IT'S ORIGINALLY SUPPOSED TO BE. AND WE HAVE ALL KINDS OF, UM, POLLINATORS AND HUMMINGBIRD MOSS AND CARPENTER BEES AND NATIVE BEES AND PLANTS AND PLANTS YOU CAN LEARN FROM THAT WERE EDIBLE PLANTS THAT INDIGENOUS PEOPLE HAVE USED FOR FOOD FOR YEARS. AND IN THE SUMMERTIME WE WILL HAVE A GARDEN GATHERING THERE. SO IF ANYBODY'S INTERESTED, PLEASE REACH OUT TO ME CUZ I KNOW HE WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOME OF YOU THERE. AND I HOPE THAT JAMIE AND AND HER FAMILY CAN MAKE IT. OKAY. THAT'S ALL. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU MR. G. GOOD EVENING MADDEN MAYOR, MAYOR PRO TEM COUNCILMAN. WE TALK ABOUT PROTOCOL HERE AND BEHAVIOR. WE SAY THE PRESS ALLEGIANCE BUT WE RUSH INTO THINGS. I NOTICED THAT WE HAD A LARGE STAFF OF CITY WORKERS, MEN WITH HATS ON. MOST OF THEM DID NOT REMOVE 'EM. SO PEOPLE ARE LOOKING AND WATCHING AND SEEING WHICH HOW YOU ACT. I HAVE TO COMMEND THIS GUY. HE WAS PRETTY GOOD TODAY. HE BEHAVED, I DON'T LIKE WHAT HE SAYS, BUT I APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT HE DID SOMETHING DECENT. HE DIDN'T CUSS AS MUCH AS HE USED TO. FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS NOT UNDERSTOOD BY PEOPLE WHO KNOW WERE BORN HERE OR GREW UP HERE. SO THEY HAVE A HARD TIME DEALING WITH THAT. BUT AS COUNCILMEN, AS A LEGAL STAFF, YOU HAVE TO ALLOW IT. WE MAY NOT HAVE TO DO IT, BUT MY FAMILY DIED. I HAVE FAMILY MEMBERS BUT A BURIED IN THE OCEAN IN HAWAII WHO DIED ON DECEMBER 7TH. I HAVE RELATIVES WHO DIED ON D-DAY FOR THAT MAN TO ACT THE WAY HE WANTS TO. AND I'M SAD AND I AGREE WITH THE WOMAN THAT IF HE HAS PROPER, BUT YOU HAVE TO ALLOW IT. SO IF WE STOP FOR A SECOND, SAY THE PRESIDENT, ASK GENTLEMEN TO MOVE THEIR HATS. HOW MUCH MORE RESPECT CAN WE GIVE? PEOPLE DON'T FEEL RESPECTED CUZ THEY WON'T ACKNOWLEDGED. I'M PROBABLY THE ONLY PRESIDENT HERE CURRENTLY THAT GREW UP WITH RED LINES. I GREW UP BEHIND THE RED LINES. DISCRIMINATION. NOW ARE YOU KIDDING ME? IT'S A JOKE WHEN SOMEBODY USES IT. AND I MEAN THAT CUZ I LIVED IT. BUT I GREW UP WITH PARENTS THAT TAUGHT ME TO RESPECT MYSELF AND TO RESPECT OTHERS. AND THROUGH THAT, NO MATTER WHAT SOMEBODY THREW AT ME, A NAME, A SIMPLE MAXIM, STICKS AND STONES WILL BREAK MY BONES, BUT NAMES WILL NEVER HURT ME. THEY THREW STICKS, THEY THREW STONES. BUT IF THEY CALLED ME A NAME, I JUST IGNORED IT. MY PARENTS TAUGHT ME THAT IF I HAVE TO HA TELL SOMEBODY WHO I AM OR WHAT I'M AM ABOUT, NO, YOU LIVE IT WITH YOUR ACTIONS. YOU STAND TALL AND YOU STAND STRONG AND NOBODY CAN MOVE YOU. MAYBE IT'S THE GIFT THAT I HAD FOR GREAT PARENTS WHO RAISED ME IN A BEDROOM COMMUNITY OF WEST CAVINA. WHEN THE POPULATION WAS ONE OTHER LATIN FAMILY. THAT'S WHAT I WENT BY. OR SPANISH SURNAME. THAT WAS DR. MALINDO. [01:15:01] THAT'S A BIG SPANISH HOUSE ON THE CORNER OF CAMERON AND CITRUS, WHICH THE FORMER ACTOR ROBERT BLAKE LIVED IN. I SWAM IN THAT POOL. MY BROTHERS WENT TO SCHOOL WITH HIS KIDS. I PLAYED BASEBALL WITH HIS KIDS. SO YOU TALK ABOUT UNDERSTANDING THE RED LINE, IT WOULDN'T ALLOW MY FATHER TO JOIN THE GOLF COURSE, THE CULTURE CLUB, BUT MY UNCLE WAS THE FIRST ONE TO JOIN. THAT WASN'T QUOTE UNQUOTE THE STANDARD ISSUE OF WEST COVINA. BUT WE GREW UP HERE BECAUSE WE HAD SELF CONTAINMENT, SELF ABILITY. PEOPLE NEED TO SIMPLY RESPECT THE FLAG, THE COUNCIL AND YOU RESPECT IT. AND THAT'S WHAT'S GONNA MAKE THIS CITY GREAT AGAIN AND ALWAYS GOOD AND ALWAYS WHERE SOMEBODY WANTS TO MOVE IN. MY NEPHEW JUST CALLED ME, HE'S TRYING TO GET A PLACE HERE IN WESTMAN. OKAY, SO IT'S, PEOPLE WANT TO MOVE HERE FOR ALL THE RIGHT REASON. IT'S NOT ABOUT DIVERSITY AND INTERROGATION AND SEGREGATION OR INTEGRATION, IT'S ABOUT FAMILY VALUES. BUILDING THE COMMUNITY BY RESPECT AND HOW DO YOU RESPECT YOU START WITH FLAG CUZ THAT'S WHAT WE DO HERE. SO PLEASE ASK THE GENTLEMEN TO REMOVE THEIR HATS AT THE BEGINNING. THAT'S ALL I ASK. THANK YOU. NO FURTHER SPEAKERS. GOOD EVENING MAYOR. MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, UM, I'LL TRY TO BRIEFLY RESPOND TO THE COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE. ANGIE GILLINGHAM, JOHN SCHUMACHER, CINDY MITCHELL, ALL TALKED ABOUT THE INVESTIGATIVE REPORT, FOR INSTANCE, OF FEBRUARY 18TH. THAT'S ON YOUR AGENDA TONIGHT, AND WE'LL HAVE AVAILABLE FOR YOUR, UM, QUESTIONS PRESENTATION IF YOU WANT ONE, ABOUT THEIR SUMMER REPORT, WHICH IS INCLUDED IN IN YOUR AGENDA PACKET. UM, ARMANDO HERMAN TALKED ABOUT, UM, SOME PRIVATE, UM, CASES, UM, LEGAL MATTERS, WHICH AREN'T WITHIN OUR PURVIEW, BUT I, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT HAVING A SAFE AND FUNCTIONING CITY HALL AND EVENTS IS CERTAINLY WITHIN OUR PURVIEW. AND, AND WE TRY AND DO THAT HERE IN THESE CHAMBERS. WE DO, SIR, UM, HONOR PEOPLE'S FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS AND GIVE THEM THEIR FIVE MINUTES WHEN THEY COME UP. AND, AND I WOULD HOPE THESE CHAMBERS WOULD BE A SAFE SPACE FOR EVERYONE THAT WE WOULDN'T HAVE VIOLENCE HERE. I'VE BEEN WORKING ON A, UM, MEETING PROTOCOLS AND CIVILITY POLICY, WHICH IS BEING REVIEWED BY THE STAFF AND THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, AND I'LL BRING THAT FORWARD PUBLICLY FOR THE PUBLIC TO LOOK AT AND THE COUNCIL TO REVIEW. CAUSE I THINK IN THIS AREA WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO DO BETTER. I'M, I'M SURE WE WILL. UH, MR. ROBERTSON TALKED ABOUT COVID AGAIN, I DON'T THINK I'VE GOT ANYTHING TO SAY IN RESPONSE. UM, MAUREEN AND, UM, ALSO KATHY NAVARRO FROM 29 11. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THE INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR, UM, OPEN HOUSE. WE'LL GET THAT ON THE CITY COUNCIL CALENDAR AND, AND SEE HOW MANY WE CAN HAVE THERE. LC INVESTMENT RAISED THREE OR FOUR QUESTIONS I'D LIKE TO TRY AND BRIEFLY RESPOND TO. THERE'S A PROP, A EXCHANGE. THIS IS THE TRANSIT DOLLARS TONIGHT WHERE WE'RE TRADING THE RATE OF 75 CENTS ON THE DOLLAR FOR GENERAL FUND MONEY. THESE PROP A MONIES, UM, IT'S SOMETHING THE CITY HAS DONE FOR YEARS BECAUSE GENERAL FUND MONEY IS PRECIOUS TO US, AND WE'RE TRYING TO, UH, RUN GENERAL FUND ACTIVITIES. ELSIE, YOU MENTIONED BUS SHELTERS. I AGREE WITH YOU. THE ONES THAT ARE HERE ARE, ARE IN SAD SHAPE, AND ANYBODY WHO'S EVER WAITED A HALF HOUR IN THE RAIN FOR A BUS KNOWS THAT THOSE ARE NEEDED. I AGREE WITH YOU. WE'VE GOT IT ON OUR C I P. UM, I'LL CHECK AND GET BACK TO, UM, TO YOU, TO THE COMMUNITY AS THE STATUS OF WHERE THAT FALLS ON THE C I P BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. BUT LET ME, LET ME GET YOU STATUS ON THAT. YOU ASKED ABOUT THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. THERE'S NO MONEY IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT IN THE COMING YEAR. WE'RE STILL WAITING TO HEAR FROM CD P H, THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH ABOUT WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS WOULD BE. WOULD WE DO IT? AND, AND THERE'S NO REASON FOR MONEY TO BE ALLOCATED AT THIS TIME UNTIL THOSE REQUIREMENTS ARE ARE KNOWN AND CONSIDERED BY THE COUNCIL. UM, THE COST OF COMMUNITY EVENTS BEING TOO HIGH, IT'S REALLY A QUESTION OF, OF PRIORITIES AT BUDGET TIME. EVERY CITY THAT RUNS PARKS AND REC EVENTS WILL TELL YOU THAT, THAT IT'S A SUBSIDY AND ALL WE REALLY EVER, UM, DISCUSS OR ARGUE ABOUT IS THE EXTENT OF THE SUBSIDY. WE HAD OTHER SPEAKERS TONIGHT TALK ABOUT HOW MUCH THEY LOVE SOFTBALL. AND, AND FOR THOSE FACILITIES TO EXIST, THE CITY HAS TO SUBSIDIZE THEM FOR THOSE PROGRAMS. UM, ROSIE SAN JUAN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUGGESTION ABOUT PICKLEBALL COURTS. WE DON'T HAVE A PLAN YET FOR THAT SPACE IN CAMERON PARK, BUT, UH, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT PICKLEBALL AT SOME OTHER LOCATIONS. THAT MIGHT ALSO BE A GOOD ONE. UM, DAVID SCHWARTZ ASKED ABOUT, UH, A PRIVATE MATTER THAT WAS TAKEN UP WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, A A DISPUTE [01:20:01] OVER SOME CONTRACTOR STUFF I'LL ASK OF THE PD ABOUT IT. UM, IT'S WITHIN THEIR PURVIEW, AND I WILL FOLLOW UP ON THE CONCERNS ABOUT THE GRAFFITI AT VA BELINDA AND SERVICE. UM, MR. ORTIZ, THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE, UM, HEALING AND JUSTICE CENTER. YOU ASKED FOR A LEGISLATIVE LETTER OF SUPPORT. OUR TRADITION FOR HANDLING THOSE IS BECAUSE OFTEN THE DEADLINES ON THESE IS FAST APPROACHING. IT TAKES THREE OR FOUR WEEKS TO GET ON A COUNSEL AGENDA OF THE SYSTEM WE HAVE IN PLACE, WHICH IS INFORMAL, IS, IS WHEN THERE IS A NEED FOR A LETTER OF SUPPORT. I USUALLY WRITE IT, I GO OVER IT WITH THE MAYOR, AND, AND IF SHE AGREES WITH IT, UM, WE GO FORWARD. AND IF NOT, THEN IT COULD COME TO FULL COUNSEL. BUT IN THIS ONE, I'LL GIVE YOUR MATERIAL A CLOSE LOOK. I HADN'T SEEN THAT, SO THANK YOU FOR SHARING IT TONIGHT. UM, CINDY MITCHELL. UM, MY NOTES ARE TERRIBLE. UM, IT'S MY HANDWRITING. THAT'S TERRIBLE. I KNOW WHAT SHE SAID. UM, SHE MENTIONED A STAMP OUT LETTER, CARRIER DRIVE. I'D LIKE TO GET SOME MORE INFORMATION FROM CINDY ABOUT THAT. I HADN'T HEARD OF IT. AND, UM, AS REGARDING THE NATIVE PLANT GARDEN YOU HAVE AT YOUR HOME, UM, KUDOS FOR THAT. I KNOW COUNCIL MEMBER CONTOS AND THE MARIN AND I, UH, WENT ON A SUBURBAN WATER TOUR RECENTLY, AND THOUGH THE RESERVOIRS MAY BE FULL, UH, THE DROUGHT IS, YOU KNOW, NEXT UP. AND THE WEATHER CYCLE SEEMED TO BE, UM, INCREASING WITH FREQUENCY. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK IN LANDSCAPING WITH NATIVE PLANTS. UM, MR. G TALKED ABOUT PROTOCOLS AT MEETINGS, AND AS MENTIONED, I'M GONNA BRING FORWARD IN THE PRETTY NEAR FUTURE, SOME, SOME PROTOCOLS ABOUT OUR MEETINGS. UM, HADN'T THOUGHT ABOUT THE HATS, BUT I'LL SEE WHAT I CAN DO. AND THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT THIS EVENING. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU, SIR. YOU READY FOR THE MANAGER'S [CITY MANAGER'S REPORT] REPORT? YES. THANK YOU. UH, JUST A COUPLE OF ITEMS, COUNSEL. I KNOW YOU'VE GOT OTHER BUSINESS TO GET TO, SO I'LL TRY AND BE QUICK. I FIRST WANTED TO MENTION OUR SMALL BUSINESS WEEK. WE HAD A COUPLE OF EVENTS HERE AT CITY HALL WITH THE SBA AND A, UM, SOCIAL MIXTURE, WHICH HAD A PRETTY GOOD TURNOUT AND FEELING TO IT. UM, NOT ONLY DO SMALL BUSINESSES DRIVE THE ECONOMY, THEY THEY HELPED KEEP THE AMERICAN DREAM ALIVE. AND, AND I WAS HEARTENED TO SEE ALL THE PARTICIPATION IN THAT. THAT WAS, UM, A, A WORTHWHILE EFFORT. WANTED TO JUST GIVE KUDOS TO THE COVINO VALLEY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. THEY DID THEIR STATE OF THE DISTRICT THIS MORNING. AND IN THESE PICTURES WE'VE GOT, UM, THE BOARD PRESIDENT, UM, UM, MARIA CERAS TOGETHER WITH THE SUPERINTENDENT, DR. EMIN HEISER. THEY, THEY REALLY DID A NICE JOB WITH THAT TODAY. I WANTED TO COMPLIMENT THEM IN THAT NEW BUILDING ABOVE THEIR, UH, COVINA FIELD. WOW. I HADN'T BEEN IN THERE. AND THAT BUILDING IS, IS FRUSTRATED. IT'S WHERE THEY HOLD THEIR, THEIR BOARD MEETINGS NOW. AND MULTIPURPOSE SEEMS TO BE THE NAME OF THE GAME FOR THOSE KIND OF SPACES. AND THE NEW FIELDS LOOK GORGEOUS AS WELL. SO A LOT OF GOOD THINGS HAPPENING IN THE DISTRICT, AND I'M GLAD THEY HIGHLIGHTED THEM. WANTED TO MAKE MENTION OF OUR, UM, HOME BUYER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. THERE IS MONEY AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE, UM, THAT, THAT WANT SOME HELP, UM, TO BECOME FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS. AND WE'VE GOT, UM, THREE DEVELOPMENTS IN TOWN RIGHT NOW IN THE PRICE RANGE IN THE VICINITY OF $600,000. AND SOME MONEY'S AVAILABLE TO HELP PEOPLE GET THAT DOOR OPEN. I WOULD ENCOURAGE ANYONE THAT'S INTERESTED, WE'VE MENTIONED THIS A FEW TIMES AND THE MANAGER REPORTS, BUT PLEASE CONTACT US AT CITY HALL AND LET US SEE IF WE CAN HELP GUIDE INTO THOSE, UM, CRITERIA FOR THE PROGRAMS. AND, AND HOME OWNERSHIP IS A TERRIFIC WAY IN, IN TERMS OF, UM, ECONOMIC SUCCESS. I WANT PEOPLE TO, TO KNOW ABOUT THAT AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IF THEY CAN. UM, THIS SLIDE TALKS ABOUT, UM, HAVE YOU SEEN A FALLEN TREE? DO YOU HAVE SOME GRAFFITI TO, TO REPORT? DO YOU HAVE STREETLIGHT ISSUES? UM, STAFF AND I, UM, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER AND STAFF ATTENDED COUNCIL MEMBER CONTOS HIS, UM, LISTENING POST HIS OPEN HOUSE AT GINGRICH PARK THIS WEEK. AND EVERY TIME WE TAKE OUR CITY STORY ON THE ROAD, I'M SURPRISED THAT NOT EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT IT, BUT WE HAVE AN APP FOR THOSE THAT HAVE SMARTPHONES. YOU CAN REPORT PROBLEMS. IT'S QUICK, IT'S EASY. WE'LL GET BACK TO YOU WITH THE STATUS OF THE CONCERN AND, UH, THE DISPOSITION ABOUT IT, HOPEFULLY TO RESOLVE IT PROMPTLY. SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE APP IF THEY CAN, OR ALSO AVAILABLE IS TO, UM, GO ON OUR WEBSITE TO REPORT AN ISSUE. VISIT WEST COVINA.ORG/REPORT ISSUE. UM, THIS IS JUST A PICTURE OF ONE MORE OF OUR BRAND NEW MONUMENT SIGNS. THIS ONE HAPPENS TO BE ON, UM, AMMAR. THE MEDIAN THERE NEAR BELINDA MAYOR KNOWS WE'VE BEEN SPRINKLING THOSE AROUND AS THE PUBLIC WORKS CREWS CAN FIND THE TIME TO DO IT AT ENTRY POINTS. THIS ONE HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN KNOCKED DOWN BY A, A DRIVER WE BELIEVE WAS DRUNK. BUT THIS IS A NICE, UM, NICE LOOK. AND I THINK, UM, IT, IT'S A, IT'S A NICE WAY TO ANNOUNCE THE ENTRANCES TO THE CITY. [01:25:01] WANTED TO GIVE AN UPDATE ABOUT THE SHOPPING CART ORDINANCE. UM, THIS ORDINANCE EFFECTIVE DATE OF IT WAS APRIL 21ST. IT'S NOW EFFECTIVE THE, UM, EFFECTIVE BUSINESSES. THOSE THAT OFFER SHOPPING CARTS HAVE UNTIL MARCH 21ST OF NEXT YEAR. THEY GET A SHOPPING CART, CONTAIN IT AND MEASURE AT THEIR SITES, AND IT WILL REQUIRE THOSE BUSINESSES TO CONTAIN THEIR CARTS ONSITE. HAD A FEW QUESTIONS ABOUT CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS. I WANTED TO MENTION OUR STREET PAVING PROJECT. WE ARE WORKING WITH THE, UM, CONTRACTOR TO WORK AROUND THE SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHEDULE. LAST TIME WE PAVED, WE, UM, WERE PAVING STREETS WHEN SCHOOL WAS GOING ON. IT GOT TO BE A LITTLE INTERESTING. SO THIS YEAR WE'RE GONNA TRY AND DO A LITTLE BETTER WITH THAT. CONSTRUCTION IS SUPPOSED TO KICK OFF IN JUNE OF THIS YEAR TO BE COMPLETED BY THIS FALL, NOVEMBER OF, UH, 2023. UM, THE PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN IS A, A GUIDE TO WHAT STREETS WE PAVE. UM, THIS IS, UM, GONNA BE PRESENTED TO THE COUNCIL THIS FALL, BUT IT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS IN, IN HIS UNDERWAY RIGHT NOW. UM, THERE'S SOME PARKS AND REC EVENTS I WANTED TO MENTION. THE UNLEASH YOUR CREATIVITY PROGRAM, UM, IS A CALIFORNIA ARTS COUNCIL GRANT THAT'S FUNDED A MUSIC PROGRAM AT SHADOW OAK COMMUNITY CENTER. BEGINNING IN JUNE. THERE'LL BE AN INFORMATIONAL OPEN HOUSE ABOUT IT, AND REGISTRATIONS BEGIN IN MAY, UH, 26TH. THE CLASSES ARE FREE TO PARTICIPANTS, SO I HOPE PEOPLE TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT. WE'VE PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED THE PALM VIEW ADAPTIVE RECREATION PROGRAM. THE MOUNT SAC CLASSES FOR THE SPECIAL NEEDS POPULATION BEGAN TODAY WITH THE SAFETY SKILLS CLASSES. WE HAD A TOTAL OF 26 REGISTER PARTICIPANTS, AND I THINK THIS IS A BRIGHT SPOT. I'M PROUD OF THAT ONE. WANTED TO MENTION, MARK YOUR CALENDAR. MEMORIAL DAY, UH, MONDAY, MAY THE 29TH, 10:00 AM HERE AT THE CIVIC CENTER. AND, UH, 4TH OF JULY, WE'RE PLANNING ON SOME FIREWORKS. THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT THIS EVENING. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. COUNCIL. NO, NO, NO, NO. OH, UH, CONSENT CALENDAR. YEAH, [CONSENT CALENDAR] WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR. ANYONE WANNA PULL? YEAH. NUMBER SEVEN, PLEASE. OKAY. COUNCILMAN COMPOST? NO. OKAY. UH, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT? CAL CALENDAR, UH, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF NUMBER SEVEN, SHALL MOVE SECOND. OKAY. I HAVE A MOTION BY COUNCILMAN CONTOS WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILMAN WU TO APPROVE CONSENT ITEMS ONE THROUGH SIX. UM, PULLING ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, CONSIDERATION OF A TO AGREEMENTS WITH UBER TECHNOLOGIES. COUNCILMAN CONTOS. AYE. COUNCILMAN WU? AYE. MAY I, IK? AYE. MAYOR DIAZ? AYE. ITEM ITEMS PASS FOUR ZERO. MAYOR [7) CONSIDERATION OF AMENDMENTS TO AGREEMENTS WITH UBER TECHNOLOGIES, INC.] COUNCILMAN WOLF? YEAH. OKAY. UM, THE, OKAY. UM, THE REASON I PULLED, OKAY, I THINK WE APPROVED THIS LAST YEAR, AND ANDLER IS THE PREVIOUS MAYOR, DARIA CAS, HIS AGENDA, HOW TO USE THE UBER TO HELP OUR RESIDENT. SO TO UTILIZE MOVED OUR RESIDENT OKAY. UH, ALONE AROUND, SO, BUT THAT TIME, I THINK WE ONLY HAVE, WHAT, $50,000. SO WE TRY TO, DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL USE, WE JUST TRY TO TRY OUT, SO, AND THEN WE STAY WITH 65 SENIOR, AND THEN THEY SEE HOW YOU WORK. OKAY. AND WE DON'T WANNA RUN THE MONEY RIGHT AWAY, BUT LOOK LIKE IT'S LIKE A UNDERUSE. SO I THINK I AGREE WITH THE RESIDENT TO LOWER TO 55 AND THEN ALLOW, OKAY, NO AGE RESTRICTION OKAY. FOR THE DISABILITY PEOPLE TO UTILIZE SO THEY CAN GO TO DOCTOR APPOINTMENT, ET CETERA, ET CETERA. SO, BUT THE ONLY ANOTHER ISSUE I HAVE, SO MAYBE KELLY CAN HELP ME, IS BECAUSE A LOT OF SENIOR, THEY'RE NOT USED TO IT USING THE APP. SO HOW, HOW CAN WE HELP THEM? CAN WE HAVE A PHONE CALL THEY USED, THEY USED TO JUST DIAL A PHONE AND SAY, HELLO, I WANT TO HAVE A TAXI COME TO MY HOME. SO, BUT NOW IS EVERYTHING'S APP AND UM, OKAY. SO HOW CAN WE HELP THOSE RESIDENT OKAY. TO, WHEN I WAS CANVASING, I TALKED TO A LOT OF RESIDENT, A LOT OF SENIOR, A LOT OF DISABILITY PEOPLE, AND MOST OF THEM, THEY DON'T USE INTERNET. THEY DON'T USE APP. RIGHT. OR THEY USE PHONE. RIGHT. REMEMBER, OKAY. THE RESIDENT LIVE IN THE FAR HOUSE AND THAT IN, SHE TALKED TO YOU MANY TIMES ABOUT UBER, RIGHT? I HOPE SHE SHE GOT HELP ON YOU. SHE, SHE DID, YEAH. WE WERE ABLE TO WORK SOMETHING OUT AND HAVE, HAVE HER, UH, SON BE, YOU KNOW, TIED TO HIS ACCOUNT AND HE, HIM, UH, BOOK THE TRIPS FOR HER AND, UH, APPLY THE VOUCHER TO THAT. UH, WE, WE ARE WORK, UH, UBER IS WORKING TO ESTABLISH A, UH, THEY, THEY DO HAVE A LINE THAT'S OPERATIONAL CURRENTLY, UM, THAT YOU CAN CALL IN, [01:30:01] BUT THEY HAVE, UH, HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO TIE OUR VOUCHER TO THAT YET. WE'RE, WE'RE ONE OF MANY DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT ARE OUT THERE THAT WOULD BENEFIT FROM, FROM BEING ABLE TO DO THAT. BUT THE, THE ENGINEERING JUST HASN'T OCCURRED. I'VE BEEN TOLD THAT THAT WOULD, UH, OCCUR SOMETIME THIS YEAR. BUT, UH, FOLKS WOULD BE ABLE TO CALL IN, SET UP AN ACCOUNT, BE ABLE TO SCHEDULE THE RIDE WITH AN UBER, UH, EMPLOYEE OVER THE PHONE. I, I THINK THAT'S GREAT. OKAY. I, I THINK THE POINT IS HOW OUR ASSISTANT CITY TO HELP THOSE PEOPLE AND, UH, TO SEND THE PROMOTION OUT TO LET MORE PEOPLE KNOW WE HAVE A MOVE WEST COVINA PROGRAM SO THEY CAN UTILIZE THE SUBSIDIZED OKAY. UBER TO HELP THEM TO MOVE AROUND. AND, UH, SO IN THAT WAY, THAT IS THE PURPOSE WE USING RATHER THAN LIKE A PREVIOUS MAIL. UH, TALKING ABOUT EMPTY BUS DRIVING, RUNNING AROUND THE PLACE IS KIND OF WASTE THE RESOURCE. NOW WE LET PEOPLE CAN UTILIZE AND THEY CALL THE UBER USING THE SAME FUNDING TO HELP THEM TO, TO GET AROUND. OKAY. ESPECIALLY DOCTOR APPOINTMENT. SO ESPECIALLY A LOT OF, UH, SENIORS, THEY LIVE ALONE. SO HOW CAN WE HELP THEM? SO WOULD YOU PLEASE, CAN WE SHARE OKAY. AND, UH, THE LIGHT AND THEN ARE GOING TO PROPOSE OKAY. REGARDING THE LAW, THE AGE, AND THEN TO LOW LIMIT AGE RESTRICTION FOR ANY PEOPLE HAVE DISABILITY CAN UTILIZE, AND THEN WE SEE HOW IT GOES. YEAH, GO AHEAD. OKAY. UM, YEAH, WE, WE CONTINUE TO PROMOTE IT. IT'S A DIFFICULT, THAT'S A DIFFICULT POPULATION TO HIT WITH SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ABLE TO DO. IT'S A WORD OF MOUTH AND REACHING OUT AS A, UH, GOING OUT TO, TO CENTERS. I MADE A PRESENTATION AT, UH, MERRILL GARDENS AND, UH, THE SENIOR CENTER AS WAS BROUGHT UP EARLIER. AND SO, UM, WE'RE, WE'RE, UH, SLOWLY GROWING IT AS WORD OF MOUTH IS IS OCCURRING. WE'VE HAD IN IT, IN THE DISCOVER THE PAST COUPLE OF ISSUES, AND WE KNOW MIGHT JUST BUY A PAGE TO, TO REALLY PROMOTE IT AND HAVE IT STAND OUT. BUT AS THE, UM, HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE CALL IN TO, UH, TO IN INQUIRE AS TO, TO DIAL DIALING IN, THOUGH I, I'M SURE THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. WE WE'RE UP TO 48 PARTICIPANTS CURRENTLY. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A HANDFUL OF POWER USERS AND, UH, OTHERS WHO AREN'T USING IT AS MUCH. AND I WAS GONNA, UH, FOLLOW UP WITH THOSE FOLKS. BUT, UM, WE'RE SLOWLY RAMPING UP AND, AND DO WHAT WE CAN. AND, UH, I FOLLOW UP WITH EACH, EACH PERSON WHO SENDS IN AN APPLICATION, TRY TO WALK THEM THROUGH IT, MAKE SURE THAT EITHER THEY HAVE A, HAVE A CHILD OR, OR SOMEBODY WHO CAN SET THEM UP, OR I HAVE SOMEONE HAVE, UH, COME INTO THE OFFICE TO WALK 'EM THROUGH IT AS WELL. SO, DOING WHAT WE CAN. OKAY. VERY GOOD. OKAY. SO, SO, OKAY. I THINK SINCE THE PEOPLE, THEY'RE NOW SAVVY WITH INTERNET POSSIBLE, THEY DON'T USE THE, THIS KIND OF TAG. SO MAYBE OUR DISCOVERY WEST COVINA CAN, WHEN THEY SEND OUT TO THEIR HOME, THEN WE CAN PROMOTE ON OUR ARTICLE, SAY, HEY, THIS, UH, THIS, AND HERE'S THE OKAY. INFORMATION IF WE NEW UBER, AND THIS IS, UH, OKAY. UH, ANYTHING, UH, ABOUT 55 DISABILITY, NO RESTRICTIONS. SO WE CAN SEND OUT INFORMATION TO THAT AND WHERE THE PHONE NUMBER THEY CAN CALL AND, AND MAYBE CALL THE CITY TO REGISTER THEIR NAME. SO, SO MORE PEOPLE CAN UTILIZE, IF ONLY WE HAVE A HUNDRED, 1,000, 20,000 POPULATION, WE ONLY HAVE A 48 PEOPLE TO USE. IT'S LIKE REALLY UNDER, UNDER YOU. SO HOPEFULLY, HOPEFULLY WE CAN PROMOTE THIS TO HELP PEOPLE. YEAH. GO AHEAD. UM, COUNCIL MEMBER, I UNDERSTAND THROUGH THE CHAIR THAT UBER PROGRAM IS ADVERTISED IN THE CURRENT DISCOVER, AND WE WILL CONTINUE THOSE MARKETING, UH, OUTREACH EFFORTS THAT YOU'VE REQUESTED. THANK YOU. CITY MANAGER. OKAY. I'M DONE. OKAY. MADAM MAYOR. UH, COUNCILMAN CANTOS, UH, AS A SUGGESTION FOR EASY PUBLICITY, IF THERE COULD BE SIGNS POSTED ON, ON LITERALLY ON LAMPPOSTS, UH, A FEW WEEKS AGO, WE HAD A, UM, IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD, WE HAD A NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH. WE LITERALLY PUT SIGNS IN THREE DIFFERENT PLACES. WE HAD 70 PEOPLE SHOW UP, AND MANY OF THEM DIDN'T SEE IT BECAUSE OF THE INTERNET. THEY LITERALLY SAW A SIGN ON A STREET, ON A LAMP POST, AND THEN THAT'S WHY THEY CAME. UH, IT'S A REAL SIMPLE LOW-TECH WAY TO DO IT, BUT IF WE COULD, UM, IF A, A PUBLICITY FLYER COULD BE DESIGNED IN POST AND STRATEGIC HIGH TRAFFIC AREAS, THEN THAT COULD BE A WAY TO REALLY INCREASE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THIS. UH, EVEN A AMONG PEOPLE WHO DON'T EVEN HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET OR, OR, OR WHO OTHERWISE, MAY NOT BE TIED INTO THE, TO THE COMMUNICATION CHA CHANNELS THAT WE ALREADY HAVE THROUGH THE CHAIR. IF I MAY, I WILL ALSO LOOK INTO THAT ASPECT, THAT QUESTION. OKAY. I WANNA, UM, I WANNA GO BACK TO THE MAYBE A PHONE CALL FOR UBER. HOW SOON DO YOU THINK WE CAN GET THAT FIXED? WELL, THEY, THEY WERE VERY ENTHUSIASTIC INITIALLY, AND, UH, THAT ENTHUSIASM PETERED OFF. I, UH, [01:35:01] SOMETIME THIS YEAR IS WHAT I WAS TOLD, AND IT'S AN UBER ENGINEERING FUNCTION, AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE AWARE OUR, OUR PROGRAM AND A NUMBER OF OTHER PROGRAMS THAT OPERATE LIKE OURS WOULD, WOULD BENEFIT FROM THAT. OKAY. UM, THE, THE, UM, THAT PROGRAM IS LIVE THAT PEOPLE CAN, YOU KNOW, IF THEY CHOSE TO DO IT OF, OF THEIR OWN ACCORD, THAT WE JUST CAN'T SUBSIDIZE IT. WE'RE NOT ABLE TO, TO TIE OUR PROGRAM INTO THAT YET. MM-HMM. . UM, AND SO WE HAD A, A BUDGET OF 50,000. CORRECT. HOW MUCH HAVE WE SPENT? UH, JUST UNDER, JUST A LITTLE OVER TWO AS OF THIS AFTERNOON. WOW. 2000. WOW. OKAY. WE HAVE A LOT OF MONEY TO SPEND. YEAH. . UM, DO WE WANNA MAKE A MOVE? OKAY. I'M GOING TO, UH, MOVE THE MOTION. OKAY. AND TO LOWER, OKAY. THE EDGE AGE TO 55. AND, UH, NO AGE LIMITATION FOR ANY DISABILITY RESIDENT, UH, TO UTILIZE THE UBER. OKAY. AND, UH, HOPEFULLY THE CITY CAN CONTINUE TO PROMOTE, UH, FOR PERSON DON'T HAVE INTERNET ACCESS AS MY MOTION. SECOND, IF I, IF I MAY, UH, I BELIEVE THAT THERE IS AN AGE RESTRICTION FOR UBER FOR RIDING ALONE, SO, UH, IT WOULD BE AT LEAST THE PERSON WOULD HAVE TO BE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OLD, I BELIEVE. O OF COURSE. OKAY. OKAY. 18 AND ABOVE, RIGHT? NOT THE 55 AGE IF THEY'RE DISABILITY. OKAY. OKAY. SECOND, I HAVE A MOTION BY COUNCILMAN WU, UM, TO LOWER THE AGE TO 55 AND NO AGE RESTRICTION FOR DISABLED RESIDENTS, UH, IN KEEPING WITH UBER POLICY OF 18 AND OVER AND A SECOND BY COUNCIL MEMBER CONTOS TO APPROVE. ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, CONSIDERATION OF AMENDMENTS TO AGREEMENTS WITH UBER TECHNOLOGIES INC. COUNCILMAN CONTOS? AYE. COUNCILMAN WILL AYE. MAY I APPROACH HIM? TOK AYE. MAYOR DIAZ? AYE. ITEM PASSES. FOUR ZERO, MAYOR. OKAY, NOW WE'RE [8) FISCAL YEAR (FY) 2023-2024 COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT (CDBG) ACTION PLAN] GONNA MOVE ON TO . UH, WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO THE PUBLIC HEARING. THE MATTER SET FOR THE PUBLIC HEARING IS THE CONSIDERATION OF PROPOSED FISCAL YEAR 20 23, 20 24, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT ACTION PLAN. DID WE MAKE ALL THE PROPER LEGAL NOTICES? NOTICES HAVE BEEN GIVEN? OKAY. OKAY. UH, AT THIS TIME, UM, I WILL SHOW OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING. AND THE FIRST, UH, WHO'S GONNA GIVE THE PRESENTATION? WELL BEFORE, UM, YOU GONNA CALL FOR SPEAKERS? WE DON'T HAVE ANY. SHE HAS IT IN THIS. NO, I'M NOT THERE YET. SHE'S NOT THERE YET. MR. KELLY MCDONALD'S. WE'LL, WE'LL GIVE THE PRESENTATION. OKAY. OKAY. UH, GOOD EVENING. UH, THIS HEARING CONCERNS THE, UH, FISCAL YEAR 2324 COMMUNITY DE DEVELOPMENT BLOCK. GRANT CDBG ACTION PLAN. THE CITY RECEIVES AN ANNUAL GRANT OF CDBG FUNDS FROM THE US DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT. THE, UH, PROGRAM WORKS TO ENSURE DECENT, AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO, UH, PROVIDE SERVICES TO THE MOST VULNERABLE IN OUR COMMUNITIES, AND TO CREATE JOBS THROUGH THE EXPANSION AND RETENTION OF BUSINESSES. AS A, UH, RECIPIENT OF THESE FUNDS, THE CITY IS REQUIRED TO PREPARE AN ANNUAL ACTION PLAN THAT GUIDES THE INTENDED USE OF THE GRANT FUNDS OVER THE PROGRAM YEAR. UH, THIS IS THE SECOND OF TWO REQUIRED PUBLIC HEARINGS ON, UH, MARCH 7TH. THE CITY COUNCIL AFFIRMED THE PRIORITIZATION OF COMMUNITY NEEDS SHOWN IN TABLE ONE, UH, PRIORITIZING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, HOMELESSNESS, INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS, RENTAL HOUSING, OWNER-OCCUPIED HOUSING AND PUBLIC FACILITIES AS HIGH AND NON-HOMELESS SPECIAL NEEDS AND PUBLIC SERVICES AS A MEDIUM PRIORITY LEVEL. THE CATEGORIES ARE MORE FULLY DESCRIBED IN ATTACHMENT ONE, AND THE PROPOSED ACTION PLAN IS INCLUDED AS ATTACHMENT TWO. TABLE TWO SHOWS THE PROPOSED ACTION PLAN BUDGET, WHICH WAS DEVELOPED, BEARING IN MIND THE STATUTORY CAPS FOR ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC SERVICE, PUBLIC SERVICES, WHICH THE CITY HAS HISTORICALLY MAXIMIZED. UM, THE PROPOSED BUDGET INCLUDES $694,486 FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM. THAT'S CAPITAL PROJECTS, UM, 1 64, 836 FOR PLANNING ADMINISTRATION. AND, UH, 1 23 627 FOR PUBLIC SERVICES FOR A TOTAL BUDGET OF 9 82. 9 49. UH, TABLE THREE SHOWS THE PROPOSED C DBG FUNDING FOR FISCAL YEAR 2324. THE, UH, BUSINESS ASSISTANCE AND HOUSING, HOUSING PRESERVATION, UH, PROGRAMS ARE PROPOSED TO BE FUNDED FROM OR WITH, UH, CARRYOVER BALANCES OF PRIOR FISCAL YEARS, UM, BECAUSE THERE'S NO [01:40:01] NEW MONEY, THEY'RE NOT SHOWN IN THE TABLE REGARDING IMPROVEMENTS. UH, THE NEIGHBORHOOD IMPROVEMENTS, THERE'S NOT A SPECIFIC ONE, UM, IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME. WE'RE CURRENTLY, UH, SCOPING AND COSTING, UH, SEVERAL, INCLUDING IN, UH, SECOND PHASE OF IMPROVEMENTS AT FRIENDSHIP WITH THE, UH, IMPROVEMENTS TO THE RESTROOM AND PARK LIGHTING, UH, POTENTIALLY A, UH, REPLACEMENT OF THE ROOF AT THE SENIOR CENTER, AS WELL AS, UH, REHABILITATION OF ELIGIBLE, UM, RESIDENTIAL STREETS. THE, UH, IN REGARD TO PUBLIC SERVICES, THE CITY PUBLISHED A NOTICE OF FUNDING AVAILABILITY IN FEBRUARY AND RECEIVED 10 FUNDING REQUESTS. ATTACHMENT THREE DESCRIBES THE APPLICANTS IN THE SERVICES STAFF EARMARKED STATUS QUO FUNDING FOR CITY ADMINISTERED PROJECTS, WHICH ARE DESIGNATED WITH A DOUBLE ASTERISK. THE DE DECREASE IN THE C D B G FUNDING FOR THESE PROGRAMS WOULD RESULT IN AN INCREASED BURDEN ON THE GENERAL FUND TO MAINTAIN THE CURRENT SERVICE LEVELS. STAFF ALSO RECOMMEND STATUS QUO FUNDING FOR THE HOUSING RIGHT CENTER. UH, MARKED THERE WITH A DOUBLE ASTERISK, BUT THAT'S NOT A CITY ADMINISTERED PROGRAM. UH, FUNDING THIS, UH, ACTIVITY HELPS ADDRESS A HUD REQUIREMENT, SO THAT'S WHY WE CONTINUE TO FUND THIS PROJECT. SO STAFF IS RECOMMENDING, UM, FUNDING FOR PROJECTS THREE THROUGH SIX AS SHOWN IN TABLE THREE. THE BALANCE OF THE PUBLIC SERVICES WERE EVALUATED BY THE C D B G AD HOC COMMITTEE OF THE COMMUNITY AND SENIOR SERVICES COMMISSION. AND BASED ON A REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS AS WELL AS, UH, HEARING APPLICANT PRESENTATIONS ON APRIL 26TH, THEY'VE, UM, FORWARDED THE FUNDING RECOMMENDATION SHOWN IN TABLE THREE, FOUR ACTIVITIES, SEVEN THROUGH 12. IT'S, UH, SENIOR CITIZENS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, UH, THAT'S RUN BY THE Y W C A AT $4,127, UH, $5,000 EACH FOR THE ACTION FOOD PANTRY, THE SHEPHERD'S PANTRY, UH, PROJECT 29 11, AND THE ASSISTANCE LEAGUE, UH, OPERATIONS SCHOOL BELL PROGRAM, AND, UH, $4,500 FOR THE EAST SAN GABRIEL VALLEY COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS. UH, NOTICE FOR THE HEARING WAS PUBLISHED ON APRIL 14TH, AND THE DRAFT WAS AVAILABLE FOR A 30 DAY REVIEW. NO COMMENTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED. AND, UH, THAT CONCLUDES MY REPORT AND HAPPY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS. DOES COUNCIL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? MADAM MAYOR, COUNCIL AND CONTOS, I'M JUST WONDERING, WHAT ARE THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE WORK OF THE EAST SAN GABRIEL VALLEY COALITION ON HOMELESSNESS? AND WHAT IS THE FUNDING TO BE USED FOR AT LEAST SO FAR IN MY WORK TO, TO, UH, SUPPORT HOMELESSNESS. I HAVEN'T WORKED WITH THEM OR THEY, THAT'S NEVER COME UP. SO CAN FURTHER INFORMATION BE PROVIDED AS TO WHAT THE FUNDING WOULD BE FOR AND HOW THEY WORK WITH US? SURE. THAT'S AN EMERGENCY DROP-IN CENTER. THEY PRO PROVIDE A VARIETY OF SERVICES. THEY HAVE A VOUCHER PROGRAM, UH, MOTEL VOUCHER PROGRAM FOR FAMILIES, AND THEY WORK CLOSELY WITH, UH, OUR TEAM, OUR HOPE TEAM, AS WELL AS LAKOTA. THEY RECENTLY MOVED THEIR OPERATION FROM, UH, ST. JOHN VIENNA'S, UM, DOWN IN INDUSTRY, UP TO A, A CLOSER LOCATION IN LA PUENTE. SO THEY'RE, UH, EVEN MORE INVOLVED IN, IN THE COMMUNITY. SO THEY, THEY DO A WIDE, WIDE RANGE OF THINGS. AND DOES THAT ALSO INCLUDE, UH, PLACEMENT OF PEOPLE IN TRANSITIONAL HOUSING? WELL, THEY, THEY HAVE THEM, UH, IN, IN EMERGENCY HOUSING. AND I GUESS, UH, REFERRING THEM TO, TO OTHER PROGRAMS AND, AND NETWORKING WITH, UH, WITH GROUPS WOULD, WOULD DO THAT. YES. SO DO THEY WORK ACTIVELY TO, TO PLACE PEOPLE IN? UH, WHAT DOES THEIR EFFORTS DO THOSE EFFORTS SUPPORT OUR, OUR ACTIONS TO TRY TO LOWER THE HOMELESSNESS COUNT? YES, THEY DO. OKAY. THANK, THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE? NOPE. OKAY. I HAVE NO SPEAKER SLIPS, MAYOR. SO WE'RE GONNA CLOSE THE HEARING NOW, AND, UH, WE NEED A MOTION. MOVE THE MOTION TO APPROVE, PLEASE. SECOND. THERE YOU HAVE IT. THE MOTION TO APPROVE BY COUNCILMAN WU AND IS SECOND BY COUNCILMAN CONTOS. ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, PUBLIC HEARING. COUNCILMAN CONTOS. AYE. COUNCILMAN AYE. MAY APPROACH HIM ABOUT TOBI AYE. MAYOR DIAZ? AYE. ITEM PASSES FOUR, MAYOR. OKAY, NOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO THE [9) CONSIDERATION OF SUMMARY OF INVESTIGATION AS REQUESTED BY THE CITY OF WEST COVINA IN THE MATTER OF: LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT INCIDENT AT CENTENNIAL EVENT] CONSIDERATION OF THE SUMMARY FOR INVESTIGATION AS REQUESTED BY THE CITY WEST COVINA IN THE MATTER OF THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT INCIDENT AT THE CENTENNIAL EVENT. WHO WILL GIVE THAT PRESENTATION? UM, MADAM MAYOR, UM, JASON KRAVITZ AND JEFF LR FROM JL GROUP THAT WERE HERE. AS YOU RECALL, COUNCIL DIRECTED A UNANIMOUSLY [01:45:01] DIRECTED CITY ATTORNEY TO CONTRACT WITH A THIRD PARTY. I CONTRACTED WITH THE J L GROUP AND THEY PRESENTED, UH, A FACT FINDING INVESTIGATION, WHICH IS ATTACHED TO YOUR STAFF REPORT. THEY'RE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. OKAY. IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, DOES COUNCILMAN WILL? YEAH. OKAY. UH, SINCE WE HAVE THE REPORT, WE DON'T NEED A PRESENTATION, RIGHT? WE NEED A PRESENTATION THERE. NO, I, I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW IT'S ATTACHED. THEY'RE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. UM, AND THAT'S IT. SINCE WE HAVE THE REPORT, UM, MY SUGGESTION WILL BE, WE GOT A REPORT. OKAY. AND, UH, THEY HAVE SOME MISCOMMUNICATION. OKAY. MY SUGGESTION, JUST, WE SHOULD MOVE ON. OKAY. AND THEN WE SEE ON FILE, YEAH, WE SEE IT ON FILE AND I WANT TO INVITE, OKAY. OR, OKAY. AND TO HAVE A CHANCE TO, WE SHOULD BE EDUCATED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT INDIGENOUS HISTORY AND THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. I THINK THAT WILL BE, UH, MY SUGGESTION. OKAY. AND, BUT THERE IS NO POINT CONTINUE TO DRAG ON THIS THING SINCE THE REPORT HAS DONE, AND, UH, I MOVE THE MOTION TO WE SEE ON FIRE. DO YOU HAVE A SECOND OR DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS? UH, YEAH, I ACTUALLY, I JUST, UH, HAD A COUPLE QUESTIONS THAT, UH, I FEEL NEEDED TO BE ANSWERED. THANK YOU. UM, SO I, I GUESS MY, MY FIRST QUESTION IS, WE, WE DID RECEIVE A, A SUMMARY OF THE INVESTIGATION. SO WHEN WILL THE PUBLIC, UH, RECEIVE THE, THE ENTIRE, UH, COMPLETED, UH, REPORT? I BELIEVE THAT REPORT HAS BEEN TURNED IN. I'LL LET THE, UH, CITY ATTORNEY ADDRESS IT, NOT MADAM MAYOR. AND THAT'S THE REPORT THAT'S ATTACHED. THAT IS THE REPORT. SO, SO THE, IN THE INVESTIGATION WITH, WITH, UM, THE, THE ENTIRE NOTES THAT, THAT, THAT WOULDN'T BE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC. THAT'S IN JUST THE SUMMARY. NOTHING, YEAH, THAT'S IN DRAFT FORM. UM, YOU, THE COUNCIL GAVE US A STRICT SCOPE THAT IS WHAT IS ATTACHED HERE. AND AS WITH ALL INVESTIGATIONS, JASON MIGHT SAY THAT IT LEADS TO OTHER, UH, QUESTIONS AND BEYOND. SO WHAT ALL THIS INFORMATION MIGHT HAVE WENT BEYOND THAT. BUT WHAT IS PRESENTED TO YOU IS THE SCOPE THAT THE COUNCIL REQUESTED, AND THAT'S THE REPORT FOR THE, FOR PUBLIC. OKAY. UM, AND, AND SO I GOT, I GUESS THE OTHER OTHER QUESTION. SO, UM, SO ALL THE ITEMS, SO WHAT YOU WERE TASKED TO INVESTIGATE BY THE, UH, CITY COUNCIL IS THAT THAT WAS ALL PART OF THIS SUMMARY REPORT. EVERY ITEM THAT YOU WERE TASKED TO INVESTIGATE, UH, CORRECT. MAYOR PRO. JUST, UM, SO FROM YOUR INVESTIGATION, UM, YOU, YOU USED INTERVIEWS IN EMAIL. DID YOU SECURE ANY, UH, TEXT MESSAGES, WHATSAPP COMMUNICATIONS OR, UH, OTHER ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS, UM, TO USE IN THE INVESTIGATION? I DID MAYOR PRO. OKAY. COULD, COULD YOU, COULD YOU SHARE WH WHICH, UM, TYPE OF ELECTRONIC MESSAGES YOU USED? ABSOLUTELY. UH, ALL THE TEXT MESSAGES THAT I RECEIVED, UH, WERE FROM THE CITY MANAGER TO EACH OF THE FIVE COUNCIL MEMBERS. AND IT WAS A NOTIFICATION THAT HE WAS AUTHORIZING THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO TAKE PLACE ON FEBRUARY 18TH. UH, AND JUST, UH, FINAL, FINAL QUESTION, UM, UH, THROUGH YOUR INVESTIGATION, UM, WAS THERE ANY EVIDENCE OF A POSSIBLE BROWN ACT VIOLATION? I CAN ADDRESS THAT. UM, THERE WERE CONVERSATIONS AMONGST ELECTED OFFICIALS, BUT THE TOPIC OF THE CONVERSATION RELATED TO THIS EVENT, WHICH WAS A STAFF DECISION, SO WOULD LI NOT LIKELY BE A BROWN ACT VIOLATION OF THE, OKAY. UH, THANK YOU MADAM MAYOR, I MOVE TO RECEIVE AND FILE. UH, YOU WANNA SECOND? OH, I'M SORRY, SECOND. A SECOND. SORRY. SECOND. OKAY. I HAVE A MOTION BY COUNCILMAN WU, EXCUSE ME, A SECOND BY COUNCILMAN CONTOS TO RECEIVE AND FILE ITEM NUMBER NINE, UH, CONSIDERATION OF SUMMARY OF INVESTIGATION AS REQUESTED BY THE CITY OF WEST COVINA IN THE MATTER OF LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT INCIDENT AT CENTENNIAL EVENT. COUNCILMAN CONTOS. AYE. COUNCILMAN BOO? AYE. MAYOR PRO ATTEMPT TABATA AYE. MAYOR DIAZ? AYE. ITEM PASSES. FOUR ZERO, MAYOR. OKAY. [CITY COUNCIL REQUESTS FOR REPORTS, STUDIES OR INVESTIGATION] DOES COUNCIL HAVE ANY, UM, REQUESTS? MADAM MAYOR, COUNCILMAN CONTOS? I JUST WANTED TO ASK THE CITY MANAGER ANY FURTHER. UH, UH, WE, I I [01:50:01] WAS JUST WONDERING ANY FURTHER UPDATES ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CALTRANS? I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT IT LAST TIME, BUT I, I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT'S THE LATEST, AND I'VE HEARD THAT THERE'S STILL, UH, ISSUES RE UM, RELATING TO THE, THE AREAS ALONG THE FREEWAY. SO CAN YOU JUST PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE? I, I COULD THROUGH THE CHAIR. I CAN TELL YOU TONIGHT WHAT I KNOW AND I CAN REPORT FURTHER WHEN I, I LEARN IT AND SHARE WITH YOU. UM, WHEN, WHEN MY EXPENSE WAS MAYOR, THERE WAS AN AGREEMENT SIGNED BETWEEN THE CITY AND CALTRANS DEFINING, UM, MAINTENANCE RESPONSIBILITIES WHEN THEY HAD REDONE SOME FREEWAY IMPROVEMENTS. UM, THE, THE FREEZES ALONG THE WALLS OF THE DEPICTING THE ORANGES AND, AND THAT TYPE OF ARTWORK THAT WAS BUILT IN AT THE TIME IN THAT AGREEMENT, THE CITY HAD, UM, SIGNED ON TO MAINTAIN CERTAIN PIECES OF THOSE, THOSE RIGHT OF WAYS AND, AND TO DO, UM, MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES. AND, AND THAT WORK IS NOW BEING DISCUSSED WITH THE CITY'S DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS AND THE CALTRANS PEOPLE TOGETHER WITH THE CITY'S CONTRACTOR, SO THAT WE CAN HAVE THE CONTRACTOR TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THOSE PORTIONS, WHICH THE CITY SIGNED ON TO MAINTAIN AS PART OF THAT AGREEMENT. I CAN GET YOU A FURTHER UPDATE. UM, I'LL HAVE TO TALK TO THE, THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR AND WHEN, IF YOU DO THAT, PLEASE SIR, IF YOU COULD ALSO INCLUDE A TIMELINE SO IT ISN'T JUST INDEFINITE FOR, FOR THESE ACTIONS TO PROCEED FORWARD WITH DISPATCH. I, I CERTAINLY, WELL, I KNOW THEY'RE WORKING ON IT NOW, UM, BUT I'LL, I'LL REPORT THAT ASPECT TO YOU AS WELL. THANK YOU. UM, MADAM MAYOR, I HAVE A, ANOTHER QUESTION ON SEPARATE MATTER. GO AHEAD. UM, WHAT, WITH REGARD TO THE PAVEMENT MA MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, YOU HAD DESCRIBED IN THE PAST HOW THERE WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR RESIDENTS TO SEE BY PUTTING IN THEIR ADDRESS, UH, WHAT IS GOING, UH, WHETHER THEIR AREA IS GOING TO BE PAVED OR WHATEVER, THAT HOW, JUST FOR PEOPLE TO KNOW WHERE THE WORK HAS BEEN DONE WITHIN THE 13 ZONES, IS THAT, UM, UM, WOULD I BE CORRECT IN ASSUMING THAT AS THIS IS DONE, WE ARE GOING TO SEE THAT LIVE DURING THIS PROCESS, UM, THROUGH THE CHAIR? THE ANSWER IS, IS YES. THE PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN IS REALLY WHAT DRIVES THE DECISIONS ABOUT WHICH STREETS GET PAVED. SO IT'S, IT'S PRETTY INTERESTING. IT'S A, I GUESS THE ULTIMATE DEFINITION OF, OF POLITICS IS THE ALLOCATION OF SCARCE RESOURCES. AND THOSE RESOURCES ARE ALWAYS SCARCE, BUT WE LIKE TO DO IT ACCORDING TO THE SCIENCE OF THE PAYMENT MANAGEMENT PLAN. ONE PIECE, AND WE'VE MODELED A COUPLE OTHER CITIES THAT HAVE, UM, AVAILED THEMSELVES OF IT, IS THAT WHEN THAT THING GETS PUT UP ON THE CITY WEBSITE AND IS LIVE, YOU OR, OR ANY RESIDENT COULD PUT IN THEIR ADDRESS AND THEY'D LEARN, UM, STATUS AND WHERE THEY FALL INTO THAT SEQUENCE OF ANTICIPATED PAVINGS. SO THAT, THAT'S THE INTENTION AS PART OF THAT WORK THAT'S UNDERWAY NOW. AND I BELIEVE IN THE MANAGER'S REPORT TONIGHT, I'VE FORGOTTEN ALREADY. I THINK I SAID THAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE BACK TO YOU BY, UM, SEPTEMBER BY THIS FALL. THANK YOU. THAT'S ALL. OKAY. THAT SAID, THIS, THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED. * 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.