[00:00:06] AND THAT'S HOW WE'RE GOING TO START THIS JOINT STUDY SESSION WITH PLANNING COMMISSION AT 5:30 P.M.. [CALL TO ORDER] GOOD EVENING, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. I WOULD LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE JOINT CITY COUNCIL PLANNING COMMISSION STUDY SESSION MEETING FOR MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16TH, 2024, AT. 5:33. MR.. DOMER, OR ACTUALLY, J.R., WILL YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL CALL? I'LL BE ABLE TO DO THAT. THANK YOU MAYOR. AND THEN WE'LL GO ON TO CITY COUNCIL. THANK YOU. MAYOR. TURN IT OVER TO YOU. IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE SURROUNDED BY EVERYBODY. THIS IS. I THINK THIS IS THE FIRST. THIS IS THE FIRST WE'VE EVER DONE THIS. THIS IS FANTASTIC. IT'S ALWAYS NICE TO SEE ALL OF YOU APPRECIATE ALL THE HARD WORK YOU GUYS DO. I KNOW YOU'RE IN THAT OTHER CORNER THERE. AND AS FOR BEING A PLANNING COMMISSIONER, IT'S LIKE THEN YOU JUMP UP TO CITY COUNCIL AND IT'S LIKE, OKAY, HERE WE GO, WE GOT ANOTHER ONE. BUT YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO SAY. OH. WELL, MR. ALLISON, THIS ISN'T WATER. GOT HIM, GOT HIM, GOT HIM, GOT HIM. WELL, IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE WITH YOU GUYS. THANK YOU FOR COMING. TONIGHT. THE DE NOVO PLANNING GROUP, THE CITY'S GENERAL PLAN CONSULTANT, WILL PROVIDE A PRESENTATION ON THE CITY'S GENERAL PLAN UPDATE. [STUDY SESSION TOPIC - GENERAL PLAN UPDATE ] ERIC SHEAR IS OUR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR. AND AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK HIM TO COME TO THE PODIUM TO GIVE A QUICK INTRO. AND THEN WE WILL INTRODUCE THE DE NOVO REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE PRESENTATION. DIRECTOR SHEAR. GOOD EVENING, MR. MAYOR. COUNCIL MEMBERS AND PLANNING COMMISSIONERS. AS YOU MOSTLY KNOW, THE CITY BEGAN THIS PROCESS OF UPDATING OUR GENERAL PLAN IN 2017, AND SO WE'RE HAPPY TO PROVIDE YOU WITH AN UPDATE JUST IN ADVANCE OF THE SCHEDULED PUBLIC HEARINGS, TO FINALLY ADOPT THIS UPDATED GENERAL PLAN FOR THE COMMUNITY. TONIGHT, AS YOU MENTIONED, DE NOVO PLANNING GROUP, AND SPECIFICALLY AMANDA TROPIANO HAS BEEN OUR PLANNER THAT HAS WORKED ON THIS SINCE 2017. AND SO SHE'LL GIVE YOU AN UPDATE OF WHERE WE'VE BEEN, WHERE WE ARE NOW, AND THE NEXT STEPS. I'D LIKE TO JUST PREFACE THIS MEETING WITH ACKNOWLEDGING THAT CANDACE BOWCOCK, SENIOR PLANNER, HAS DONE A LOT OF WORK ON THIS PROJECT. SHE'S CURRENTLY BRINGING YOU HARD COPIES OF THE PRESENTATION YOU'RE GOING TO SEE. BUT ALSO THAT THIS IS REALLY INTENDED AS A LEARNING AND LISTENING SESSION FOR BOTH GROUPS, AS WE DO HAVE THE UPCOMING PUBLIC HEARINGS BEFORE YOU. THAT WOULD BE THE TIME FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND TO DIRECT STAFF TO RESPOND TO PUBLIC COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS DURING THAT PROCESS. NOT TRYING TO NEGATE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT TONIGHT, JUST THAT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION WOULD JUST BE TO TAKE THOSE AND WE'LL FILE THEM. AND IF THERE'S SOME FOLLOW UP THAT WE NEED TO DO AS STAFF, WE CAN DO THAT. BUT REALLY JUST A PRECURSOR TO ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR THE COMMUNITY TO LEARN A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHERE, WHAT WE'VE DONE TO GET HERE WITH THE GENERAL PLAN IN ADVANCE OF THE PUBLIC HEARINGS BEFORE THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THE CITY COUNCIL. YOU DID RECEIVE A COMMENT THIS MORNING FROM SHERRY BEST, REPRESENTING THE LA VERNE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. IN THAT COMMENT LETTER, WHICH WILL BE AS PART OF THE OFFICIAL RESPONSE TO COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, IT DOES MAKE REFERENCE TO THE LUTHERAN HIGH SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL. I JUST WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT WHAT'S BEFORE YOU TONIGHT AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND THE GENERAL PLAN ITSELF HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT PROJECT. SO NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT. THAT PROJECT WILL BE SUBJECT TO ANY OF THE PROVISIONS OF THE ADOPTED GENERAL PLAN UPDATE, BUT THIS ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT WOULD NOT BE THE APPROPRIATE PLACE TO HAVE COMMENTS REGARDING THE LUTHERAN HIGH SCHOOL PROPOSAL, WHICH IS STILL IN ITS EARLY STAGES OF STAFF REVIEW. AND WITH THAT, IF THERE'S NO QUESTIONS OF STAFF, I'D LIKE TO TURN IT OVER TO AMANDA TO PROVIDE HER PRESENTATION. ALL RIGHT. GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE WARM INTRODUCTION AND FOR THE FAMILIAR FACES AND SOME NEW FACES AS WELL. DEFINITELY EXCITED TO BE HERE TONIGHT FOR THIS JOINT MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL AND LA VERNE. THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN GOING ON, AS ERIC HAD MENTIONED, FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS, BUT WE ARE AT THE FINISH LINE HERE, SO WE ARE EXCITED TO PROVIDE YOU AN UPDATE AS TO THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN ONGOING FOR THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS, AND AGAIN, ALLOW AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO EXPLORE THE PROJECT, EXPLAIN THE STATUS OF THE WORK, AND THEN INVITE THE PUBLIC TO PROVIDE THEIR COMMENTS ACCORDING TO A SPECIFIC PROCESS THAT WE NEED THEM TO BE IN WRITTEN FORM. SO WITH THAT, WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH A TIMELINE OF THE HISTORY OF THE PROJECT. FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE UNFAMILIAR WITH IT, KIND OF IDENTIFYING SOME OF THE KEY MILESTONES AND DELIVERABLES THAT HAVE BEEN PREPARED OVER THE YEARS. OUR APPROACH TO WORKING WITH THE CITY AND THE COMMUNITY TO DEVELOP THE GENERAL PLAN, SPECIFICALLY THE POLICY DOCUMENT, AS WELL AS THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, AND THEN HOW [00:05:09] THE PUBLIC CAN PROVIDE COMMENTS ON THOSE DOCUMENTS. SO, AS ERIC HAD MENTIONED, THIS EFFORT STARTED IN EARNEST IN LATE 2017. IN THE EARLY STAGES, WE WORKED FOR THE FIRST 12 MONTHS OR SO TO PREPARE A SERIES OF BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS. THIS INCLUDED AN ANALYSIS OF EXISTING CONDITIONS, COLLECTION OF EXISTING DATA, UNDERSTANDING WHERE THE CITY WAS AT AT THAT POINT IN TIME, AND PREPARING AN EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT. MOVING ON. AFTER THAT, WE REALLY FOCUSED ON SHARING THAT EXISTING INFORMATION, VALIDATING IT, AND SOLICITING SOME PUBLIC INPUT THROUGH A SERIES OF VISIONING WORKSHOPS AND NUMEROUS MEETINGS WITH THE GENERAL PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE. THROUGH THAT PROCESS, OVER A 12 MONTH PERIOD, WE WERE ABLE TO DEVELOP A PROPOSED LAND USE MAP, WHICH I'LL EXPLAIN MORE AS THE PRESENTATION GOES ON, AS WELL AS A DRAFT OF THE GENERAL PLAN POLICY DOCUMENT THAT WAS REVIEWED AND COMMENTED ON BY YOUR GENERAL PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE. AND WE HAVE AT LEAST ONE OF THOSE MEMBERS HERE WITH US TONIGHT. SO, MR. ALLISON, THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO BE A FAMILIAR FACE ON THIS IN 2021. YOU MAY REMEMBER ME MOST RECENTLY AS A RESULT OF THE CITY'S EFFORT TO UPDATE ITS HOUSING ELEMENT. SO DURING THE COURSE OF PREPARING THE OVERALL GENERAL PLAN, LA VERNE HAD RECEIVED SOME SPECIFIC DIRECTION FROM THE STATE REGARDING HOW TO PLAN FOR CURRENT AND FUTURE HOUSING NEEDS AS PART OF YOUR HOUSING ELEMENT. AS YOU REMEMBER, THAT ELEMENT HAS TO BE UPDATED ON A SPECIFIC SCHEDULE DICTATED BY THE STATE, SO WE NEEDED TO REALLY FOCUS OUR EFFORTS ON THAT FOR THE BETTER PART OF TWO YEARS TO GET THROUGH THAT ADOPTION AND CERTIFICATION PROCESS, WHICH WE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED WITH THE CITY COUNCIL'S APPROVAL OF THAT HOUSING ELEMENT. THAT ALLOWED US TO MOVE FORWARD TO CONCLUDE THE OVERALL COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE, REALLY STARTING IN 2023 WITH PREPARING THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW DOCUMENT OR THE EIR, AND THEN CIRCULATING THAT FOR A PERIOD OF PUBLIC REVIEW, WHICH IS ONGOING AT THIS TIME. AND THEN, OF COURSE, TONIGHT'S JOINT STUDY SESSION AND SUBSEQUENT PUBLIC HEARINGS. SO WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE GENERAL PLAN, WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT THE CHAPTERS OR ELEMENTS THAT GO INTO DECIDING HOW THE CITY IS GOING TO GROW AND DEVELOP AND BE SUSTAINED OVER TIME. YOUR CURRENT GENERAL PLAN WAS LAST COMPREHENSIVELY UPDATED IN 1998, SO IT'S TIME TO BE THINKING ABOUT THEM FROM A FRESH PERSPECTIVE, WHICH IS FINE. THIS IS A TYPICAL TIMELINE IN HORIZON FOR A CITY TO BE UNDERTAKING THIS TYPE OF PROJECT. BUT IT IS TIMELY REALLY. THE GENERAL PLAN ARTICULATES A VISION FOR THE COMMUNITY OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS REGARDING HOW THE CITY WANTS TO, WHAT THE CITY WANTS TO BE IN THE FUTURE. SO IT'S FORWARD LOOKING AND IT'S CUSTOMIZED TO YOUR UNIQUE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES. SO IT'S SPECIFIC TO LA VERNE. IT IN PARTICULAR ESTABLISHES LONG RANGE LAND USE PLANNING GOALS. SO THAT'S YOUR LAND USE PLAN. MAP THE COLORS ON THE MAP THAT DECIDE YOU KNOW WHERE YOU WANT TO SEE DIFFERENT TYPES OF HOUSING, WHERE YOU WANT TO SEE MIXED USES, WHERE YOU WANT TO SEE SPECIFIC PLANS OR COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT. THOSE COLORS ON THE MAP INCLUDED ON THE LAND USE MAP. WE ALSO KNOW THAT IT'S A BASIS FOR HOW ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIALS MAKE DECISIONS OVER TIME. SO YOU SHOULD BE REFERRING TO THE GENERAL PLAN AND UNDERSTANDING WHAT THAT VISION AND VALUE SYSTEM IS SO THAT AS FUTURE PROJECTS, DEVELOPMENT AND OPPORTUNITIES COME BEFORE YOU, YOU REFER BACK TO THE GENERAL PLAN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THOSE CORNERSTONES WERE AS PART OF THIS UPDATE PROCESS. IN DEVELOPING THE GENERAL PLAN. THERE'S KIND OF THREE ITEMS THAT WE PUT TOGETHER INTO, YOU KNOW, CONSIDERING AS PART OF THAT POLICY DOCUMENT. THE FIRST IS FIRST AND FOREMOST IS THE PUBLIC FEEDBACK. SO AS I HAD MENTIONED, EVERY CITY AND COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA HAS A GENERAL PLAN, BUT THEY'RE ALL DIFFERENT. SO LA VERNE'S GENERAL PLAN IS SPECIFIC TO YOUR COMMUNITY. THE ISSUES ADDRESSED WITHIN IT ARE BORN OUT OF THE INPUT THAT WE HEARD FROM YOUR RESIDENTS AND YOUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND WE'LL GO THROUGH THAT EFFORT AS WELL. THEN THERE'S A WHOLE BUNCH OF STATE REQUIREMENTS SINCE 1998. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF TOPICS THAT HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED AS PART OF YOUR GENERAL PLAN TO MAKE IT VALID, LEGALLY DEFENSIBLE. SO WE NEED TO CONSIDER THOSE AS PART OF THIS. AND THEN YOUR EXISTING CONDITIONS AND WHERE YOU WANT TO GO. SO WHAT'S WORKED WELL IN LA VERNE. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO MAINTAIN, PRESERVE AND PROTECT INTO THE FUTURE? AND WHAT OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE TO ENHANCE THE CITY EVEN FURTHER IN THE COMING DECADES? FOCUSING A LITTLE ON THE PUBLIC FEEDBACK. WE DO HAVE A DEDICATED PROJECT WEBSITE. IT STILL CONTINUES TO BE THE BEST RESOURCE AVAILABLE TO THE COMMUNITY TO LEARN ABOUT UPCOMING OPPORTUNITIES. TO PROVIDE COMMENT, THERE'S INFORMATION ON TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON HOW TO PROVIDE COMMENTS ON THE WEBSITE. THAT'S LAVERNE.GENERALPLAN.ORG. [00:10:03] WE ALSO HAVE BEEN POSTING REGULARLY UPDATES TO NEXTDOOR, DIRECT EMAILS TO AH LISTSERV. WE HOSTED THREE VISIONING WORKSHOPS AT THE ONSET OF THE PROJECT HERE IN PERSON, AND COLLECTED INFORMATION REGARDING THE COMMUNITY'S VISION AND VALUES, ITS LAND USE PRIORITIES AND PRIORITIES AROUND MOBILITY. HOW PEOPLE GET AROUND. HOSTED A SERIES OF POP UP EVENTS AT THINGS LIKE CONCERTS IN THE PARK OR PARADES. WE FACILITATED AN ONLINE VISION AND VALUE SURVEY, WHERE WE COLLECTED ALMOST A THOUSAND RESPONSES TO THAT. AND ALL OF THAT MATERIAL WAS SUMMARIZED IN A REPORT AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE. WE ALSO FACILITATED A GENERAL PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE, OR A PAC, WHICH MET 11 TIMES TO DISCUSS SPECIFIC TOPICS OF THE GENERAL PLAN, AS WELL AS ULTIMATELY REVIEW AND PROVIDE SPECIFIC COMMENTS ON THE TEXT OF THE GENERAL PLAN. SO ALL OF THE GOALS, POLICIES AND ACTIONS THAT ARE PART OF THE PROPOSED DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REVIEWED AND COMMENTED ON BY THE GENERAL PLAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE. WE'VE BEEN CONDUCTING BRIEFINGS WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS, THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, AS REQUESTED THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS TO UPDATE THEM ON THE WORK EFFORT. THE CITY MANAGER HAS BEEN KIND ENOUGH TO INCLUDE UPDATES ON THE PROJECT AS PART OF THE NEWSLETTER, AS WELL AS PERIODIC UPDATES AND BRIEFINGS WITH THE PLANNING COMMISSION, THE CITY COUNCIL. MOST RECENTLY, WE HELD A SCOPING MEETING RELATED TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT. AND JUST LAST MONDAY, A COMMUNITY OPEN HOUSE INVITING ALL COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO HEAR KIND OF A SIMILAR SET OF INFORMATION AT DIFFERENT STATIONS HERE IN THIS ROOM. IN REGARDS TO SOME OF THE STATE REQUIREMENTS, THERE ARE NUMEROUS PARTS OF THE GOVERNMENT CODE THAT DICTATE THE TYPES OF TOPICS THAT ARE INCLUDED IN A GENERAL PLAN. WE CAN CUSTOMIZE OUR APPROACH, BUT WE DO HAVE TO COVER SPECIFIC TOPICS AS PART OF OUR WORK. THERE ARE OBVIOUSLY A NUMBER OF RECENT BILLS THAT INFLUENCED OUR APPROACH TO THE HOUSING ELEMENT. SO THOSE WERE COVERED KIND OF AS PART OF THAT WORK EFFORT. THERE ARE ALSO NUMEROUS UPDATES TO HOW WE TALK ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE, RESILIENCY, PLANNING HAZARDS, FIRE HAZARDS, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, AND OTHER REQUIRED TOPICS THAT ARE REFLECTED AS PART OF THIS DOCUMENT. AND IN PARTICULAR, AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, FAILURE TO ADDRESS THOSE TOPICS ADEQUATELY OR TO HAVE A MODERN OR CURRENT GENERAL PLAN COULD IMPACT THE CITY'S ABILITY TO ACCESS DIFFERENT FUNDING SOURCES, GRANT FUNDS AT THE STATE, FEDERAL AND LOCAL LEVEL, AND THERE COULD BE A WHOLE SLEW OF OTHER THINGS THAT COULD OCCUR. BUT NONE OF THOSE WILL HAPPEN BECAUSE YOU'RE UPDATING YOUR GENERAL PLAN. AND WE'VE COVERED ALL THESE TOPICS. SO SPECIFICALLY THINKING ABOUT THE EXISTING CONDITIONS, WE PREPARED A SERIES OF DOCUMENTS, ALL AVAILABLE ON THE WEBSITE, THAT ADDRESS THE VARIETY OF TOPICS THAT ARE COVERED AS PART OF YOUR GENERAL PLAN. THERE'S A COMMUNITY PROFILE, AN EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT, AS WELL AS AN ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES REPORT. IT ALSO IDENTIFIES THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK, DESCRIBES EXISTING CONDITIONS INCLUDING TECHNICAL INFORMATION, TECHNICAL INFORMATION ON TRAFFIC NOISE, AIR QUALITY, GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS. ALL OF THOSE ARE INCLUDED AS PART OF THE REPORT AS WELL. IT'S A SERIES OF NARRATION, TEXT MAPS, CHARTS, EXHIBITS ALL KIND OF SETTING THE STAGE FOR WHERE THE FUTURE POLICY DIRECTION IS HEADED. IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT YOUR EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT IS NOT PART OF YOUR ACTUAL PHYSICAL GENERAL PLAN ELEMENT. IF A PIECE OF INFORMATION IN THERE CHANGES OVER TIME, YOU DON'T NEED A GENERAL PLAN AMENDMENT TO UPDATE IT OR THINK ABOUT IT DIFFERENTLY. IT REALLY HELPS STREAMLINE YOUR POLICY DOCUMENT SO THAT YOUR GOALS, POLICIES AND ACTIONS OF YOUR GENERAL PLAN. REALLY, THE MEAT AND POTATOES OF HOW YOU MAKE DECISIONS ARE PART OF THAT ACTUAL GENERAL PLAN POLICY DOCUMENT. YOUR EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT IS A COMPANION DOCUMENT. IT ONLY SERVES AS A POINT IN TIME PIECE OF INFORMATION IN TEN YEARS. THE POLICY DOCUMENTS ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO RESONATE. YOUR GOALS, POLICY AND ACTIONS ARE VALID. THE EXISTING CONDITIONS INFORMATION WILL OBVIOUSLY BECOME UPDATED, AND THERE MAY BE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR UPDATES TO THE TECHNICAL DATA WITHOUT HAVING TO CHANGE THE POLICY DOCUMENT. WHICH BRINGS ME TO THE OVERALL GENERAL PLAN DOCUMENT ITSELF. IT'S REALLY FUNDAMENTALLY FOUNDED AS A CORNERSTONE OF YOUR COMMUNITY VISION STATEMENT. THIS IS INCLUDED IN YOUR INTRODUCTION AND WAS PRESENTED TO THE CITY COUNCIL IN 2019 AS PART OF OUR WORK TO CONCLUDE THE DRAFT OF THAT POLICY WORK. THE VISION STATEMENT REALLY ARTICULATES LA VERNE AS A THRIVING PLACE TO LIVE, WORK, LEARN AND ENJOY LIFE. RECOGNIZING ITS SMALL TOWN CHARM AND THE VIBRANT OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE IN OLD TOWN LA VERNE AN INTERESTING FOCUS ON PRIDE OF YOUR YOUTH IN A FAMILY FRIENDLY ATMOSPHERE, CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR NEIGHBORHOODS TO EXIST AND THRIVE. [00:15:02] SAFE, QUIET AND CLEAN IN NEIGHBORHOODS WAS A THEME THAT WE HAD HEARD FROM A LOT OF YOUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND THE PROVISION OF HIGH QUALITY COMMUNITY SERVICES TO YOUR PARKS. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS. PROTECTION SERVICES. MAKING SURE THERE ARE SAFE AND EFFICIENT MOBILITY OPTIONS. SO HOW PEOPLE GET AROUND THE COMMUNITY NOT JUST IN THEIR CAR, BUT ALSO CYCLING, WALKING AND TAKING TRANSIT. AND LOOKING AT OPPORTUNITIES TO CREATE A STRONG AND RESILIENT ECONOMY AND PROBLEM SOLVING FOR THE FUTURE. SO WE DON'T HAVE A CRYSTAL BALL. THE GENERAL PLAN DOES ITS BEST TO PLAN FOR WHAT MIGHT BE HEADED YOUR WAY OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS, BUT CERTAINLY WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT'S GOING TO COME, YOU KNOW, 10 OR 12 YEARS FROM NOW. IF YOU HAD ASKED US, YOU KNOW, WHAT TYPES OF MOBILITY OPTIONS THE CITY SHOULD BE PLANNING FOR 20 YEARS AGO, WE WOULDN'T HAVE KNOWN EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE. BUT WE TRY TO BUILD IN A PROACTIVE FLEXIBILITY TO PLAN FOR NEW TECHNOLOGIES, PLAN FOR NEW OPPORTUNITIES, AND MAKE SURE THE CITY IS IN A POSITION TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THOSE ITEMS. THE STRUCTURE ITSELF OF THE GENERAL PLAN IS ESSENTIALLY A SERIES OF SHORT CHAPTERS, OR ELEMENTS. WE NEED TO COVER A NUMBER OF TOPICS MANDATED BY THE STATE. THOSE INCLUDE YOUR LAND USE ELEMENT, CIRCULATION, OR MOBILITY. THOSE WORDS CAN BE USED INTERCHANGEABLY. CONSERVATION, OPEN SPACE, NOISE SAFETY, HOUSING THOSE ARE ALL YOUR REQUIRED TOPICS. AND THEN CITIES CAN INCLUDE OPTIONAL TOPICS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THEM. AND THAT'S WHERE WE GET TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE CREATIVE AND RESPOND TO THE NEEDS OF YOUR COMMUNITY. SO WE'VE COVERED ALL OF THE MANDATED ELEMENTS, AS WELL AS LOOKING AT DEVELOPING A DEDICATED ELEMENT ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, DEDICATED ELEMENT ON COMMUNITY SERVICES, COMMUNITY DESIGN, FISCAL SUSTAINABILITY, AND COMMUNITY HEALTH AND WELLNESS. SO THOSE WERE ALL ADDITIONAL CHAPTERS ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT'S MANDATED BY THE STATE, REALLY, IN RECOGNITION OF THE INPUT THAT WE HAD HEARD FROM YOUR COMMUNITY. I WON'T GO THROUGH ALL OF THE GENERAL PLAN GOALS AND POLICIES. OF COURSE, THE DOCUMENT, RELATIVELY SPEAKING, IS SHORT. IT'S STILL 100 PAGES OR SO, BUT I ASSURE YOU THAT'S A SIXTH OF THE SIZE OF YOUR CURRENT GENERAL PLAN AND SIGNIFICANTLY SMALLER AND SHORTER, MORE EASY TO UNDERSTAND AND CONCISE THAN OTHER SIMILAR DOCUMENTS. SO OUR GOALS, AGAIN, ARE REALLY TO FOCUS ON PROVIDING VERY CLEAR AND EFFICIENT POLICY DIRECTION, AND ALLOW ALL OF THAT KIND OF CONTEMPORARY INFORMATION ABOUT EXISTING CONDITIONS TO BE IN A SEPARATE REPORT. SO WITHIN EACH CHAPTER OR TOPIC OF THE GENERAL PLAN, YOU'LL SEE A SERIES OF GOALS, POLICIES AND ACTIONS. SO YOUR GOALS ARE A STATEMENT OF YOUR FUTURE CONDITION. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE 20 YEARS FROM NOW. SO IT'S STATED IN THE AFFIRMATIVE. IT'S A IT'S A VISION. IT'S A GOAL OF WHERE YOU WANT TO GO. IT'S POSSIBLE THAT GOAL MAY ALREADY BE TRUE RIGHT NOW, IN WHICH CASE IT'S RECOGNITION THAT THIS IS IMPORTANT TO THE COMMUNITY, AND YOU WANT TO CONTINUE TO STRIVE TO MAINTAIN THAT GOAL IN THE FUTURE. POLICIES ARE STATEMENTS, USUALLY STARTING WITH A VERB THAT GUIDE HOW DECISIONS ARE MADE. SO IT'S GOING TO START WITH AN ACTION. WHAT IS THE CITY'S ROLE IN IMPLEMENTING SOME COMPONENT TO SUPPORT THE GOAL. ARE YOU COLLABORATING WITH ANOTHER AGENCY? ARE YOU REQUIRING SOMETHING OF THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY? ARE YOU PROMOTING A SPECIFIC PLAN OR PROGRAM? THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF POLICIES THAT SUPPORT IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GOAL. AND THEN FINALLY THERE'S A SERIES OF ACTIONS. THIS IS YOUR TO DO LIST. IT'S SPECIFIC TO EACH OF THOSE GOAL TOPICS. AND IT REALLY SETS THE STAGE FOR THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF WHAT THE CITY IS GOING TO PHYSICALLY DO OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS. IS IT DEVELOPING A SPECIFIC IMPLEMENTATION PLAN? IS IT A WAY THAT YOU'RE GOING TO MODERNIZE YOUR DEVELOPMENT CODE OR PROCESSES TO BETTER IMPLEMENT ONE OF YOUR GOALS? IT ALLOWS STAFF TO ESSENTIALLY HAVE A WORK PLAN TO IMPLEMENT THE GENERAL PLAN OVER TIME. THE LAND USE ELEMENT INCLUDES YOUR LAND USE MAP AGAIN, SOMETHING YOU'RE PROBABLY THE MOST FAMILIAR WITH OF YOUR GENERAL PLAN. WE'VE PRESENTED THIS TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL SINCE 2019. THAT HAS NOT CHANGED. THE MAP IS CONSISTENT WITH THOSE PRESENTED TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL AT THAT TIME, WHERE WE RECEIVED DIRECTION TO MOVE FORWARD WITH PREPARATION OF THE DOCUMENT. BUT JUST TO REITERATE, THE GOALS OF THE LAND USE MAP CONTINUE TO BE TO PRESERVE AND PROTECT YOUR EXISTING RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS AND YOUR OPEN SPACE AREAS. LA VERNE HAS A VERY SPECIAL, UNIQUE, FAMILY FRIENDLY, FRIENDLY QUALITY. THOSE ARE THE DEFINING FEATURES OF WHY PEOPLE CHOOSE TO CALL LA VERNE HOME. IN RECOGNITION THAT PLACES DO CHANGE AND GROW OVER TIME, THE RESPONSE TO PROTECTING AND, YOU KNOW, PRESERVING YOUR EXISTING RESIDENTIAL AND OPEN SPACE [00:20:04] AREAS IS TO LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO ACCOMMODATE FUTURE GROWTH ALONG YOUR KEY CORRIDORS AND AROUND YOUR TRANSIT STATIONS. SO OBVIOUSLY AROUND THE GOLD LINE STATION, IN RESPONSE TO WORK ALREADY SET FORWARD IN THE OLD TOWN LA VERNE SPECIFIC PLAN, THE LAND USE MAP ALSO CREATED TWO NEW SPECIFIC PLAN CATEGORIES. THIS COMES AS NO SURPRISE TO YOU. LA VERNE HAS A LOT OF SPECIFIC PLANS, SO A LOT OF YOUR LAND USE PLANNING DECISIONS ARE MADE AT THE SPECIFIC PLAN LEVEL, WHICH IS FINE, BUT WE WANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT AS PART OF THE LAND USE MAP, THAT THE GENERAL PLAN ISN'T MAKING CHANGES TO THOSE. YOUR SPECIFIC PLANS THAT ARE APPROVED AND ADOPTED THROUGH THEIR OWN MECHANISMS CONTINUE TO BE VALID, AND THOSE ARE RECOGNIZED ON THE MAP AS WELL. WE'VE ALSO INTRODUCED SOME NEW POTENTIAL RESIDENTIAL LAND USE DESIGNATIONS. WE LEARNED SOME LESSONS THROUGH OUR HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE PROCESS OVER THE PAST NUMBER OF YEARS. ONE OF THOSE IS TO BE PROACTIVE AND PLAN AHEAD. THERE WILL BE ANOTHER UPDATE TO YOUR HOUSING ELEMENT THIS DECADE, AND BY CREATING SOME OPPORTUNITIES FOR CATEGORIES THAT MEET SOME SPECIFIC STATE DEFINITIONS, WE'VE HOPEFULLY PROVIDED YOU SOME ADDITIONAL TOOLS IN YOUR TOOLBOX TO MEET THOSE EFFICIENTLY WHEN THAT NEXT UPDATE COMES. AND THEN WE'VE MADE A NUMBER OF MINOR ADMINISTRATIVE EDITS TO JUST CLEAN UP CONSISTENCY WITH ZONING CODE ISSUES. A PROJECT THAT WAS MAYBE BUILT OVER THE YEARS AND NEEDED TO JUST BE RECOGNIZED CORRECTLY ON THE MAP. SO WE WERE ABLE TO USE THIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE CARE OF THOSE EDITS AS WELL. ALONG WITH THE LAND USE MAP, THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWTH IN LA VERNE. IT'S FOCUSED AGAIN IN YOUR CORRIDOR AREAS, SO ALL OF YOUR EXISTING SPECIFIC PLAN AREAS, ALL OF YOUR EXISTING RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD AND OPEN SPACE AREAS HAVE BEEN ENTIRELY PRESERVED AND PROTECTED AS PART OF THIS ASSIGNMENT. BUT PLACES DO CHANGE OVER TIME. YOU HAVE SOME SPECIFIC PLANS THAT ALLOW FOR GROWTH IN OLD TOWN LA VERNE ALONG ARROW CORRIDOR. SO WE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE UNDERSTAND THAT AS NEW DEVELOPMENT OCCURS, THE CITY WANTS TO BE IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT FOR WHERE THAT HAPPENS AND HOW THAT HAPPENS OVER TIME. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THOSE BUILD OUT FACTORS THAT ARE ANALYZED IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND PRESENTED IN THE GENERAL PLAN. I WANT TO STRESS THAT WE'RE REQUIRED TO CONSIDER THAT AS PART OF THE LEGAL OBLIGATION UNDER THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT OR UNDER SEQUA, WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THE BUILD OUT POTENTIAL OF THE LAND USE MAP SO THAT WE KNOW HOW TO PLAN FOR PUBLIC SERVICES, PROVISION OF YOUR OPEN SPACE AREAS, YOUR INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS, IMPACTS TO YOUR HOUSING AND POPULATIONS TO YOUR SCHOOLS. WE NEED TO HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THAT POTENTIAL COULD BE. HOWEVER, GROWTH HAPPENS BASED ON A NUMBER OF OTHER FACTORS, NOT JUST THE COLOR ON THE MAP OR WHAT IT'S LAND USE DESIGNATION IS. BASED ON THE PARCEL, SHAPE, OR SIZE, THE DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS IN YOUR ZONING CODE, THE FINANCIAL FEASIBILITY OF YOUR PROJECT. ALL OF THOSE WILL DEFINE A DEVELOPABLE PROJECT ON ANY SPECIFIC SITE. SO JUST BECAUSE A SITE COULD ALLOW FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF 50 UNITS DOESN'T MEAN THAT ALL OF THOSE PARAMETERS WILL ALLOW IT TO DEVELOP AT ITS MAXIMUM CAPACITY. BASED ON HISTORICAL EVIDENCE HERE IN LA VERNE AND IN EVERY OTHER COMMUNITY. YOU DON'T TYPICALLY DEVELOP TO YOUR MAXIMUM POTENTIAL. ALL OF THOSE OTHER FACTORS ARE LIMITING ON THE ACTUAL DEVELOPMENT THAT IS PRESENTED BEFORE YOU. FUTURE PROJECTS CONTINUE TO BE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT PROJECT SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS. THERE IS NO SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT CONSIDERED, APPROVED, OR VALIDATED AS PART OF THIS GENERAL PLAN WORK. AS A FUTURE APPLICATION COMES IN, THEY HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE STANDARD REQUIREMENTS, SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE CITY FOR REVIEW FOR STAFF'S INPUT, FOR PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL IF WARRANTED. THIS IS NOT A FREE PASS TO BUILD ANYTHING YOU WANT IN LA VERNE. YOU STILL HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT APPROVAL PROCESS JUST AS YOU WOULD HAVE TO TODAY. NEW DEVELOPMENT WILL OCCUR OVER TIME, GRADUALLY AS MARKET CONDITIONS CHANGE AND AGAIN OVER 20 YEARS. WE DO OUR BEST TO PLAN FOR WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. THERE COULD BE A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT WILL INFLUENCE THE EXACT DEVELOPMENT POTENTIAL. AS THE GENERAL PLAN EVOLVES AND FINALLY, THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, THE EIR, THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, FOR EVERYONE THAT'S UNFAMILIAR WITH ONE, IT'S AN INFORMATIONAL DOCUMENT. IT BASICALLY IDENTIFIES AND DISCLOSES POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO THE ENVIRONMENT AS A RESULT OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT. SO THE PROJECT HERE IS YOUR GENERAL PLAN POLICY DOCUMENT, INCLUDING DEVELOPMENT OF YOUR LAND USE MAP. BUT ALL OF THE GOALS, POLICIES AND ACTIONS INCLUDED IN THE DOCUMENT. IT'S A FORUM FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN THE PROCESS AND IT DOES NOT ADVOCATE FOR THE PROJECT. AN EIR IS NEUTRAL. IT'S AN ANALYSIS OF FACTS AND PROVIDES INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC AND TO DECISION MAKERS REGARDING THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS OF THE PROJECT. [00:25:08] IT DOES NOT ADVOCATE FOR OR AGAINST IT. AGAIN, THERE ARE NO SPECIFIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS THAT ARE CONSIDERED AS PART OF THIS WORK, NOR DID THE EIR ANALYZE THEM. IT'S SOMETHING CALLED A PROGRAM LEVEL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT, WHICH LOOKS HOLISTICALLY AT THE BIG PICTURE ACROSS THE ENTIRE CITY. FUTURE PROJECTS WILL CONTINUE TO BE REQUIRED TO CONSIDER SPECIFIC PROJECT IMPACTS AS NEEDED UNDER THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT. THE PROCESS IS DICTATED IN PART BY THE CEQA LAW, WHICH ESSENTIALLY OUTLINES HOW MATERIALS PREPARED AND RELEASED FOR PUBLIC REVIEW. AS YOU CAN SEE ON THE SCREEN, WE START WITH PREPARING A NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF AN EIR, WHERE WE ESSENTIALLY ALERT THE PUBLIC AND TO DECISION MAKERS AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS AND LOCAL AGENCIES THAT THE CITY IS UNDERTAKING THIS PROCESS, AND THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO HELP PROVIDE COMMENT. WE PREPARE THE DRAFT EIR IN RESPONSE TO THOSE COMMENTS RECEIVED, AND IT'S CIRCULATED FOR 45 DAYS FOR A PERIOD OF PUBLIC REVIEW, BOTH FROM MEMBERS OF YOUR COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO ALL OF THOSE OTHER AGENCIES AND STAKEHOLDERS. CALTRANS, DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME, SCAG ALL OF THOSE AGENCIES ARE MADE AWARE OF YOUR PROJECT, AND THEY'RE ALLOWED THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT ON IT. BASED ON THE COMMENTS RECEIVED, THE TEAM PROVIDES A RESPONSE TO COMMENTS. SO WE REVIEW ALL OF THOSE COMMENTS WE RESPOND TO THOSE PROVIDE A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF ANY ISSUES OR CHALLENGES THAT NEED TO BE CLARIFIED. AND THEN ALL OF THAT INFORMATION IS PACKAGED AND PRESENTED ALONGSIDE THE GENERAL PLAN, THE PLANNING COMMISSION, AND TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION. SO RIGHT NOW, WE'RE ABOUT A WEEK OUT FROM THE END OF THE PUBLIC REVIEW PROCESS. SO WE DO WANT TO ENCOURAGE THE PUBLIC TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE DOCUMENTS AND PROVIDE THEIR COMMENTS. COMMENTS ARE DUE IN WRITING BECAUSE WE NEED TO SEE EXACTLY WHAT THE COMMENT IS, SO THAT WE CAN RESPOND TO IT MOST APPROPRIATELY BY NEXT MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 23RD AT 5:00. THEY SHOULD BE DELIVERED HERE TO CITY HALL DIRECTLY TO MISS BOCOCK, OR THEY CAN BE EMAILED TO PLANNING AT CITYOFLAVERNE.ORG AND TO JUST MAKE IT CRYSTAL CLEAR THAT WE KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT PUBLIC COMMENT IS REGARDING, PLEASE INCLUDE IN THE SUBJECT LINE GENERAL PLAN UPDATE PROJECT DEIR COMMENT. WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S RECORDED AS PART OF THE OFFICIAL RECORD AND RESPONDED TO AS PART OF THE DOCUMENT. BASED ON THE INFORMATION COLLECTED THROUGHOUT THE PUBLIC REVIEW PROCESS, WE WILL RESPOND TO COMMENTS RECEIVED ON THE DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT AND PREPARE THE FINAL DOCUMENT AND PRESENT THOSE ALONGSIDE THE POLICY DOCUMENT TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION, SCHEDULED FOR MEETING ON OCTOBER 9TH AND HOPEFULLY TO THE CITY COUNCIL WITH PLANNING COMMISSION'S RECOMMENDATION ON NOVEMBER 18TH. THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. AND IF IT WASN'T CLEAR, I WILL LIKELY NOT BE JOINING YOU AT EITHER OF THOSE FUTURE MEETINGS. BUT I DID WANT TO STRESS THAT TWO OF MY COLLEAGUES WHO ARE ON THE LINE, BUT THEY'RE THERE IN THE WAITING ROOM OVER THERE, ASHLEY BRODKIN AND STARLA BARKER HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH ME ON THIS PROJECT AS WELL, INTIMATELY ON ALL ASPECTS OF THE POLICY DOCUMENT AND THE EIR. THEY'LL BE HERE REPRESENTING THE TEAM AT THOSE PUBLIC HEARINGS. THANK YOU, CONSULTANT PAPIANO. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COUNCIL? ANY QUESTIONS FOR PAPIANO? IT'S INVISIBLE. IT'S UP HERE IN MY BRAIN. HE'S BRILLIANT. THERE YOU GO. PLANNING COMMISSIONERS. OH. I'M SORRY. THANK YOU. ON YOUR LITTLE ONE SECOND, WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS OF GOING WITH A MORE TRUNCATED, EFFICIENT GENERAL PLAN THIS TIME AROUND AS COMPARED TO PREVIOUS ITERATIONS. SURE. SO ESSENTIALLY ALL OF THE INFORMATION INCLUDED IN A TYPICAL GENERAL PLAN IS STILL PROVIDED IN LA VERNE. IT JUST IS IN TWO SEPARATE DOCUMENTS. SO WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU WERE TO READ YOUR DOCUMENT FROM 1998? YOU'LL READ THE INTRODUCTION TO THE MOBILITY ELEMENT, THE CIRCULATION ELEMENT, AND IT'S GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE 210 JUST FALLING OFF INTO A CLIFF IN LA VERNE. RIGHT. LIKE WHAT THE CONTEXT IS AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN SOMEDAY IN THE FUTURE. AS SOON AS THAT FREEWAY CONNECTION WAS COMPLETED, THAT TYPE OF BACKGROUND INFORMATION BECAME. IT MADE THE ELEMENT FEEL VERY STALE AND DATED, EVEN THOUGH THE POLICY MATERIAL WAS STILL VERY RELEVANT. SO WE JUST TOOK THAT CONTEXTUAL WORK, SEPARATED IT INTO THE EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT SO THAT YOU DON'T GET BOGGED DOWN IN MATERIAL THAT CHANGES OVER TIME, AND YOU FOCUS ON THE POLICY DIRECTION. THAT SHOULD STAND THE TEST OF TIME. IT'S NOT TO SAY THAT SOME OF THOSE MAY NOT BE MODIFIED OVER 20 YEARS. [00:30:05] CONDITIONS CHANGE, BUT IT'S JUST MORE CLEAR AND CONCISE. SO YOU'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT INFORMATION BECOMING DATED? PLANNING COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR MISS TROPIANO? ANY. AARON. NO. MR. CROSBY YEAH, I JUST. SORRY. I KNOW IT'S A LISTENING SESSION, BUT THE VISIONARY WORKSHOPS WERE DONE SEVEN YEARS AGO, AND THERE'S THREE OF THEM. HOW ARE THEY RELEVANT TODAY? BECAUSE OUR WORLD IS A LOT DIFFERENT THAN IT WAS IN 2017. AND SO IS IT NORMAL FOR THE GENERAL PLAN TO TAKE SEVEN YEARS AND HAVE EVERYTHING THAT'S BEEN WHEN WE TALK TO THE COMMUNITY THAT FAR ADVANCED. SO I WOULD POINT YOU TO THE VISION STATEMENT THAT WAS BASED ON THE INPUT FROM THE PUBLIC, AND I WOULD FIND THAT THAT'S STILL RELEVANT, THAT THOSE TYPES OF TIMELESS IDEALS THAT DEFINE THE HISTORY OF LA VERNE AND WHERE YOU WANT TO HEAD 20 YEARS FROM NOW. CONTINUE TO BE VALID. WE DID CHECK IN WITH THE COMMUNITY IN DETAILED WAYS THROUGH THE HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE AS WELL ADDITIONAL SURVEYS, OPEN HOUSES AND OTHER MECHANISMS. AND WE CONTINUE TO HEAR VALIDATION OF THOSE SAME IDEAS THAT WE HAD HEARD IN THE BEGINNING. SO I DO RECOGNIZE THAT THERE HAS BEEN SOME PERIOD OF TIME BETWEEN THOSE TWO. A GENERAL PLAN PROCESS IS NOT FAST. FIVE YEARS IS NOT UNHEARD OF GIVEN THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE HOUSING ELEMENT HERE. LA VERNE WAS NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT NEEDED TO TAKE AN OPPORTUNITY TO KIND OF REORGANIZE ITSELF IN THE MIDST OF A COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE IN TERMS OF OTHER TECHNICAL DATA THAT WAS REFRESHED PRIOR TO PREPARING THE EIR. SO WE MODERNIZED OUR TRAFFIC COUNTS, OUR NOISE INFORMATION, AND WE DID WE DID REDO THAT. SO ALL OF THE TECHNICAL DATA THAT WENT INTO THAT ANALYSIS IS MORE CURRENT THAN THE ORIGINAL WORK. WE DID CONTINUE TO ALLOW FOR OPPORTUNITIES FOR PUBLIC FEEDBACK THROUGHOUT THAT TIME, AND WE HAVEN'T HEARD ANYTHING THAT'S REALLY MOVED THE NEEDLE. AFTER SYNTHESIZING THAT INITIAL WORK AND RECOGNIZING THAT VISION STATEMENT, I WOULD SUGGEST THAT THOSE BIG PICTURE IDEAS CONTINUE TO BE CONTINUE TO BE GOOD CORNERSTONES. WE WERE PREPARED WITH SOME FLEXIBILITY IN THE POLICY DOCUMENT BACK IN 2019 AND 2020, AND IT SHOULD LAST 20 YEARS FROM NOW. SO IF IT GETS DATED THAT FAST, SOMETHING'S PROBABLY AMISS. SO WE HOPE THAT IT'S CONTINUED TO PROVIDE THAT GUIDANCE. EVEN THOUGH SOME OF THAT INITIAL FEEDBACK WAS COLLECTED A LITTLE WHILE AGO. AND WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THE GPAC MET? IN LATE 2019. THAT'S WHEN THEY REVIEWED THE POLICY DOCUMENT LARGELY IN THE FORMAT YOU WILL BE PRESENTED WITH. SO AGAIN, THERE HAS BEEN SOME ADDITIONAL STATE REQUIREMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED SINCE THAT TIME, AND WE'VE MADE SURE TO UPDATE THE POLICY DOCUMENT ACCORDINGLY. BUT OTHERWISE THE FEEDBACK WE RECEIVED FROM THE GPAC IS BASED ON LARGELY THE SAME DOCUMENTS PRESENTED TO YOU TODAY, AND IT MIGHT NOT BE FOR YOU. IT COULD BE FOR ERIC, AS THIS IS THE LAST FIVE DAYS OR SEVEN DAYS FOR THE 45 DAY OUT. HOW HAVE WE REACHED OUT TO MAKE SURE THAT RESIDENTS KNOW THAT IT'S BEEN OUT THERE AND THAT THIS IS THE LAST SEVEN DAYS FOR INPUT. SO WE HAVE AN EMAIL DISTRIBUTION LIST OF INTERESTED PARTIES THAT WE'VE BEEN COLLECTING FOR THE PAST 6 OR 7 YEARS. THEY WERE ALL NOTIFIED DIRECTLY. WE ALSO POSTED IN THE LOCAL PAPER AS WELL AS SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AS WELL. I BELIEVE THERE'S ALSO BEEN NOTES OR MEETING PRESENTATIONS AT OTHER PLANNING COMMISSION OR PERHAPS, YOU KNOW, NOTICES AS PART OF THE CITY MANAGER'S NEWSLETTER AS WELL. WE'LL BE SENDING OUT AN ADDITIONAL EMAIL BLAST AS A REMINDER THAT THAT PERIOD IS CLOSING AND THEN SOME ADDITIONAL SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AS WELL, WHICH HAVE CONNECTED WELL WITH THE COMMUNITY. WE DID HOST AN OPEN HOUSE LAST WEEK, AND WE DID HAVE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ATTEND THAT AS WELL TO PROVIDE THEIR COMMENTS. THANK YOU. DID I MISS ANYTHING? ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FOR MISS TROPIANO? SO TO FOLLOW UP ON COUNCIL MEMBER CROSBY'S COMMENTS, THIS IS, I THINK, DIRECTED MORE TOWARDS STAFF. I'VE SEEN THE SOCIAL MEDIA THAT HAS GONE OUT FOR IT. IT'S NOT MAYBE OUR SEXIEST CALL TO ARMS. SO, I, YOU KNOW, I THINK IF THERE'S A WAY TO ENGAGE PEOPLE BECAUSE I THINK IT IS A SIGNIFICANT DOCUMENT. YOU KNOW, MAYBE IT'S A VIDEO OR SOMETHING ELSE, BECAUSE IF YOU JUST LOOK AT IT, IT'S JUST A QUICK LITTLE, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE GOT IT. AND IF YOU'RE ON INSTAGRAM, YOU'VE GOT TO CLICK ON MULTIPLE THINGS TO GET TO IT. SO IF THERE IS A WAY TO MAYBE AS A LAST PUSH TO PUT SOMETHING OUT THAT MIGHT BE A LITTLE BIT MORE ENGAGING. SO IF WE COULD LOOK INTO THAT, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT. MR. ALLISON, IS THERE A WAY FOR US TO QUANTIFY THE DIFFERENCE IN, OR THE SIMILARITIES IN PUBLIC OPINION COMPARED TO THE WORK [00:35:02] THAT WAS DONE BY THE GPAC. I DO THINK THAT THAT PROBABLY IS GOOD DATA. IF WE CAN SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE VARIABLES AND THE VISION STATEMENT REMAIN CONSISTENT OVER FIVE YEARS, I THINK THAT GIVES A PRETTY ELEVATED LEVEL OF CONFIDENCE COMPARED TO THE FACT THAT 33% OF THE PEOPLE STILL SUPPORT THIS, THEN THAT'S PROBABLY AN INDICATION THAT WE, YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T HIT THE MARK THAT FIRST TIME AROUND. YEAH, WE'LL DEFINITELY LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO CREATE THAT COMPARISON BASED ON ANY FEEDBACK WE RECEIVED. YOU'RE WELCOME. ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT WITH ACTUALLY, IT'S A GOOD TIME RIGHT NOW FOR THIS SIMPLE FACT THAT THE SACRAMENTO HAS CHANGED SO MANY LAWS, ESPECIALLY THE HOUSING ELEMENT HAS GOTTEN, I'LL JUST SAY CRAZY. IT'S GOTTEN CRAZY. RULES, REGULATIONS, ARENA NUMBERS, SCAG AND PUSHING THESE NUMBERS DOWN AND TRYING TO COMPILE ALL THIS INFORMATION TO MAKE A DOCUMENT THAT'S ACTUALLY IT'S A GOOD DOCUMENT THAT WE CAN CHANGE AND MODIFY. AND I THINK THAT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. AND I KNOW IT'S A LONG TIME FRAME AND THINGS DO CHANGE. BUT THEY HAVEN'T CHANGED LIKE THIS SINCE COVID. BOY I'LL TELL YOU THE CHANGES THAT COME DOWN FROM SACRAMENTO. AND DOLLARS ATTACHED TO THAT, YOU KNOW, HAS BEEN TREMENDOUS. SO I APPRECIATE THE HARD WORK FOR YOU, THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND BUT I DO AGREE WITH COUNCIL THAT OUTREACH IS IMPORTANT. I DON'T WANT TO HAVE SOMEBODY SAY, I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT IT. BUT AGAIN, AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE HAVE TO PUSH IT OUT A LITTLE BETTER ON SOCIAL MEDIA. I'M A SOCIAL MEDIA PERSON, AS MOST OF THESE PEOPLE KNOW HERE, PUSH IT OUT LIKE OUR FIRE SITUATION. GET IT OUT THERE TO THE PEOPLE SAY, OH, I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THAT HAVE THEM MAKE A COMMENT. BUT IF WE COULD PUSH THAT OUT IN A MORE ATTRACTIVE WAY, MORE SOCIAL MEDIA WISE, TO ENGAGE THE PUBLIC. DIRECTOR SCHEER, I THINK IT WOULD BE A VERY GOOD IDEA, BECAUSE WE'RE COMING DOWN TO THE END AND, YOU KNOW, THIS 2017 TO 2024 EVAPORATED FOR ALL OF US. I THINK IT'S BEEN A CRAZY FOUR YEARS SINCE COVID AND WHAT WE'VE HAD TO GO THROUGH. BUT I THINK THE DOCUMENTS GREAT. I AGAIN YOU'RE NEVER GOING TO COVER EVERYTHING. BUT I THINK IF WE GET THE NUTS AND BOLTS IN THERE, THEN WE CAN MODIFY IT. IT'S VERY GOOD FOR ALL OF US. SO AND I LIKE THE PART ABOUT THE CITY AND WHAT OUR, WHAT OUR MANTRA IS AS A CITY AND WHY WE'RE DOING WHAT WE'RE DOING TO MAKE SURE WE KEEP THE BONES OF THIS COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, THE CHILDREN AND THE LIVING CONDITIONS AND THE HOUSING CONDITIONS. WE DON'T WANT TO DO TOO MUCH MODIFICATIONS, BUT WE HAVE TO FOLLOW THE RULES TO A CERTAIN EXTENT. AND I LIKE THE FACT THAT WE'RE MODIFYING THESE WITH THE WORDING THAT WE HAVE SOME FLEXIBILITY WITH WHAT THE RULES ARE COMING DOWN, BECAUSE AS THE RULES COME DOWN, THEY WILL CHANGE AGAIN AND THEY MAY CHANGE THE OTHER WAY AROUND. SO WE'RE DOING ALL THIS TO HAVE A FLUID DOCUMENT. SO WITH THAT PUBLIC COMMENT I'D LIKE TO OPEN UP. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE'RE GOING TO OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT. ANYBODY WISH TO SPEAK? YES. PUBLIC COMMENT. MISS BEST. SHERRY BEST, 3949 BRADFORD STREET. MAYOR HEPBURN. MEMBERS OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL AND CITY STAFF WHO HAVE WORKED SO HARD ON THIS. SHERRY, CAN I STOP YOU ONE SECOND? I JUST WANT TO MAKE IT REALLY CLEAR THAT AS THERE ARE NO PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS MATTER PLEASE REMEMBER THIS WAS A STUDY SESSION TO PRESENT INFORMATION ONLY. I KNOW. OKAY. TO FORMALLY SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THE GENERAL PLAN UPDATE. PLEASE SEND YOUR COMMENTS TO AND WE'LL GO OVER THAT I HAVE. GOOD. WELL, HAVE YOU SEEN THEM? WE'VE SEEN THEM. I'M JUST MAKING SURE. I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AT TODAY'S JOINT STUDY SESSION MEETING. I UNDERSTAND THAT TONIGHT PROVIDES ME WITH INPUT IN ADVANCE OF FUTURE PUBLIC HEARINGS. I KNOW THAT THIS PLAN INVOLVED A HUGE AMOUNT OF WORK ON THE PART OF STAFF, AND APPRECIATE THEIR TIME AND EFFORT. IT'S BEEN A LONG HAUL. I ASK THE DISTINGUISHED MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION REVIEW MY WRITTEN INPUT, AND SERIOUSLY CONSIDER MY SUGGESTIONS FOR CHANGES THAT MORE FULLY AND COLLABORATIVELY INVOLVE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH THE GOAL OF ENHANCED QUALITY OF LIFE. I LOOK FORWARD TO FUTURE COMMENTS FOR THE PLANNING COMMISSION ON THE 9TH OF OCTOBER AND THE CITY COUNCIL ON NOVEMBER THE 18TH. IS THAT CORRECT? OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU, MISS BEST. APPRECIATE IT. PERFECT. THANK YOU. OTHER PUBLIC COMMENT. MISS GABALDON. GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. SO CYNTHIA GABALDON, YOU GUYS KNOW WHERE I LIVE ON AMHERST, SO IT'S PROBABLY THE ONLY PERSON OTHER THAN THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE IT, AND MAYBE CANDACE, WHO ACTUALLY READ ALL 893 PAGES OR MAYBE SHERRY'S NOW HAS TWO NOW. THERE ARE SOME THINGS, AND I'M GLAD WE'RE ASKING FOR MORE PUBLIC COMMENT, BECAUSE I CAN TELL YOU WHAT THE PUBLIC'S BEEN SAYING. [00:40:06] NOBODY UNDERSTANDS IT. I'M GETTING, I PROBABLY HAVE GOTTEN 40 PHONE CALLS BECAUSE THESE ARE [INAUDIBLE] DOCUMENTS. THEY'RE BIG. THEY'RE BIG DOCUMENTS. AND SOME OF THE OTHER CITIES THAT I DO WORK, WORK IN, ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE'S BEEN SUCH A TIME FRAME AND THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE GOING THROUGH THEIR GENERAL PLANS RIGHT NOW, TOO. WE'VE ACTUALLY DONE A SECOND MEETING OR A A FOLLOW UP. NOT SO MUCH A VISIONARY MEETING, BUT MAYBE JUST A PROJECT SUMMARY MEETING IN ORDER TO EXPLAIN WHAT'S GOING ON. WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THE OPEN HOUSE, THERE'S ONLY 8 OR 10 OF US THAT SHOWED UP, WHICH WAS KIND OF DISAPPOINTING AGAIN. AND SO I JUST WANTED TO POINT THAT OUT. YOU CAN AS THE SEATED MEMBERS HERE, YOU CAN DIRECT STAFF TO ADD ANOTHER MEETING. AND IF YOU HAD TO POSTPONE YOUR PLAN ADOPTION MEETING OR WHATEVER, COMING FOR IT AND PUSH IT OFF INTO JANUARY, THAT WOULD BE OKAY. I JUST WANT EVERYBODY TO KNOW THAT WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THE ACTUAL DOCUMENT, THOUGH, THERE ARE SOME AND I'M GOING TO HAVE THIS IN MY WRITTEN DOCUMENTS, BUT THERE'S SOME ISSUES WITH THE NUMBERS. AND I ACTUALLY SPENT TWO HOURS TODAY AGAIN GOING THROUGH THEM JUST TO MAKE SURE I DIDN'T MISS SOMETHING. BUT OUR FOUNDATIONAL 2023 NUMBERS ARE DIFFERENT IN DIFFERENT TABLES, AND WE'VE GOT TO REALLY BE CAREFUL WITH THAT. AND I THINK THAT AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE ARENA NUMBERS AND THEN YOU LOOK AT ALL OF A SUDDEN IN THE TEXT, THERE'S NEW, THERE'S THIS NEW HOUSING UNIT NUMBER THAT'S NOWHERE IN ANY OF THE OTHER ANY OF THE OTHER TABLES. THAT SHOULD BE TOGETHER IN ONE TABLE, LIKE WE SHOULD HAVE EXISTING ACRES HOUSING UNITS, POPULATION AND THEN 2045 ACRES. HOUSING OR ACRES. YEAH. ACRES. HOUSING UNITS AND POPULATION. AND THEN I'VE ALSO GOT QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SCHOOL ENROLLMENT. THE NUMBERS ARE VERY OLD, AND THAT PROBABLY NEEDS TO BE UPDATED BECAUSE THEY'RE ALMOST FOUR AND A HALF YEARS OLD. AND I KNOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED AT BUSD. AND THEN THERE IS SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SCAG NUMBERS AND ALSO THE RHNA NUMBERS, BECAUSE THERE IS SOMETHING COMING THAT'S GOING TO BE GOING ON HERE PRETTY SOON. RHNA MIGHT BE GETTING STOPPED. SO WHICH WOULD BE WONDERFUL FOR ALL OF US TO TAKE A BIG PAUSE ON THAT. AND IT'S HIGHLY LIKELY THAT THE AUDIT REPORT FROM THE STATE MIGHT ACTUALLY GET IMPLEMENTED, AND THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE PERCENTAGE AND THE NUMBERS, BECAUSE OUR NUMBERS WERE OVERINFLATED SIGNIFICANTLY BETWEEN 30 AND 40%, DEPENDING ON WHICH CITY YOU GO TO. SO THAT'S A LOT. THAT MEANS FOR US, WE'RE TECHNICALLY DONE HERE IN THE CITY. JUST SO YOU GUYS KNOW, WE ACTUALLY COULD NOT HAVE TO DO ANYTHING ELSE JUST BASED OFF ARENA. SO AND I KNOW THERE'S ALWAYS GROWTH AND THERE'S PEOPLE WANT TO BUILD MORE BECAUSE BUILDING MEANS MONEY. BUT FROM A FUNDAMENTAL ESTATE REQUIREMENT PERSPECTIVE, WE COULD BE DONE. AND THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE IN TOWN THAT WOULD REALLY LIKE THAT. THAT ARROW HIGHWAY AND WHITE PROJECT HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE UPSET IN TOWN, AND IT'S THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT IT. THERE'S STILL PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT THE ONE OVER HERE ON FRUIT. BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY'RE NOT SELLING AND EVERYBODY'S HEARD BECAUSE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN CONFIRMING IT. THERE'S ONE PERSON BUYING MOST OF THE UNITS, SO THEY'RE NOT GOING TO PEOPLE WHO ARE BUYING, THEY'RE GOING TO PEOPLE WHO ARE RENTING. AGAIN. AND I THOUGHT THE GOAL, WE ALL THOUGHT THE GOAL OF THIS WAS TO GET PEOPLE TO OWN HOUSES, NOT PEOPLE TO BE IN THIS NEVER ENDING RENTAL CYCLE, WHICH IS WHAT WE HAVE. EVEN THE HOUSES OVER BY MY HOUSE, THERE'S STILL WE HAVE SEVEN EMPTY HOUSES ACROSS THE STREET FROM LUTHERAN HIGH SCHOOL. THEY'VE BEEN EMPTY FOR SEVEN YEARS, AND THEY'RE ALL OWNED BY THE SAME GUY. SO, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO TELL YOU. AND ONE OF THEM'S BOARDED UP NOW BECAUSE IT WAS THE MARIJUANA HOUSE. WHICH I DON'T KNOW IF YOU GUYS KNOW THAT, BUT IT'S STILL BOARDED UP. WE HAVE TO DRIVE PAST THAT EVERY DAY, BUT I DON'T KNOW. IT'S JUST TIME. IT WOULD BE GREAT TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A PAUSE AND MAYBE DO ANOTHER. JUST A PUBLIC SUMMARY, AND MAYBE WE CAN GET SOME MORE ENERGY IN THIS AGAIN, BECAUSE AS SOMEBODY WHO SAID, WHO DOES THIS ALL THE TIME, WE SHOULD ACTUALLY HAVE ABOUT 40 PEOPLE HERE FOR A CITY THIS SIZE. AND IN THE OPEN HOUSE, I WAS REALLY SURPRISED BECAUSE WE USUALLY HAVE A COUPLE HUNDRED SHOW UP. SO I WAS VERY, VERY SURPRISED BY THAT. SO ANYWAYS, PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR COMMENTS IF YOU'RE GOING TO SUBMIT THOSE BY EMAIL. YEAH. OKAY. GREAT. YEAH I'LL BE DOING IT BY EMAIL. AND I DROPPED THE PEN. THAT'S OKAY. WE'LL GRAB IT FOR YOU LATER. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS? OKAY. WE'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR STAFF. I KNOW THIS HAS BEEN A LONG HAUL. THE NOVO GROUP, AS YOU KNOW, WE'VE SEEN YOU FOR MANY, MANY YEARS NOW AND WE APPRECIATE THE HARD WORK. OBVIOUSLY IT'S A DOCUMENT. IT CAN BE CHANGED. THERE'S MODIFICATIONS AND OBVIOUSLY WE'RE GOING THROUGH A VERY ODD TIME RIGHT NOW, AS MISS GABALDON HAD STATED. AND THEN WE GOT INFORMATION FROM HIS BEST. BUT I THINK WE'RE ON THE RIGHT PATH. GET THIS THING DONE. SO WITH THAT YOU CAN GO TO THE PLANNING AT CITY OF LA VERNE DOT ORG WITH THE SUBJECT LINE GENERAL PLAN [00:45:05] UPDATE PROJECT EEIR COMMENT PRIOR TO 5:00 PM ON SEPTEMBER 23RD, 2024. WITH THAT, ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? I THINK WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND WE ARE GOING TO RECESS AT 6:18 P.M.. I WANT TO THANK THE PLANNING COMMISSIONERS. THIS IS WONDERFUL TO BE TOGETHER. IT'S THE FIRST. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU TO ALL THE STAFF AND COUNCIL AND WE WILL AND GOOD LUCK WITH YOU. GOOD LUCK. EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE GREAT. IT'S GOING TO BE GREAT. CONGRATULATIONS BY THE WAY. WITH THAT, WE ARE RECESSED TO 6:18 AND WE WILL RECONVENE AT OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETING. YES, SIR. THIS IS ONLY RECEIVE AND FILE. YES, JOE. REALLY GOT QUIET IN HERE. GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. HOW'S EVERYBODY DOING TONIGHT? THAT'S GOOD, THAT'S GOOD. WELL, WE ARE GOING TO START THIS MEETING AT 6:32 P.M., AND I WANT TO REMIND EVERYONE, PER THE CITY'S RULES OF DECORUM FOR SPEAKERS, MEMBERS OF THE AUDIENCE AND COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE TO CONDUCT THEMSELVES WITH DECORUM AND NOT TO ENGAGE IN CONDUCT THAT INTERRUPTS THE ORDERLY CONDUCT OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING. ALSO, PUBLIC COMMENT THROUGH ZOOM WILL ONLY BE ACCEPTED FOR THE AGENDA ITEMS LISTED WITHIN THE GENERAL CONSENT CALENDAR, PUBLIC HEARING AND OTHER MATTERS SECTION OF THE AGENDA. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED AT THE MEETING BY THOSE PHYSICALLY IN ATTENDANCE AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME. TONIGHT, WE ARE VERY PLEASED TO HAVE VETERAN JOSEPH MAGALLANES SSGE6 ARMY TO CONDUCT THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE FOR US. MR. MAGALLANES, PLEASE STEP FORWARD. THANK YOU. ONE MORE PUSH BUTTON. BEFORE I START. MAGALLANES. THANK YOU. OF ALLEGIANCE] IF YOU COULD, PLEASE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YOU CAN STAY THERE FOR A SECOND, SIR. I'M SORRY. AS ALWAYS, WE APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU. WE'RE PROUD OF YOU AS A CITY SERVING THE CITY OF LA VERNE, SERVING THE UNITED STATES. FOR SEVERAL YEARS NOW. JUST AN AMAZING. I'VE SEEN YOU OUT THERE IN OUR COMMUNITY. EVERYWHERE YOU GO, YOU BRING THIS GREAT PRIDE TO THE ARMY. WELL, I KNOW THE MARINES IN THIS HOUSE. GOD BLESS YOU, TOO. AND FOR ALL THE AIR FORCE VETERANS AND THE NAVY, THE COAST GUARD, AND NOW OUR SPACE FORCE. BUT WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE YOU WANT TO GIVE YOU THIS CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION. BUT BEFORE I DO THAT, WE'D LIKE TO KNOW, YOU KNOW, THE LAST TIME YOU GOT TO SPEND A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, YOU SEE THE AMAZING AWARDS YOU HAVE ON YOU. VERY PROUD OF THAT. A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOU. IS THAT OKAY? YEAH. OH, YOU GOT THREE. WELL, I WENT IN THE ARMY IN 1959. AND I KICK MYSELF FOR STAYING LONGER. BUT I THINK 24 YEARS WAS IT. [00:51:24] WELL SIR CITY OF LA VERNE CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION PRESENTED TO JOSEPH MAGALLANES. THIS CERTIFICATE IS PRESENTED ON BEHALF OF LA VERNE CITY COUNCIL. US ARMY E-6. STAFF SERGEANT VETERAN JOSEPH MAGALLANES SINCERE GRATITUDE AND APPRECIATION FOR YOUR DEDICATED SERVICE. MR. DOMER ROLL CALL, PLEASE. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. THANK YOU. TONIGHT, THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS WILL PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THEIR LATEST PROGRAMS AND MILESTONES, AND PROVIDE A SNEAK PEEK OF WHAT'S [PRESENTATION - SGVCOG UPDATE ] ON THE HORIZON FOR NEXT YEAR. THE PRESENTATION WILL BE LED BY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MARISSA KRIEDER. COME ON UP. OKAY. I GET A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR YOU GUYS. SO, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT. WE'RE SO EXCITED. WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON AND WHAT'S GOING TO BE COMING IN THIS YEAR. BEFORE I START, JOHN BASHE IS MY CO-PRESENTER. HE'S A SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER AND YOU'RE GOING TO REALLY LOVE HIM WHEN YOU HEAR WHAT HE'S WORKING ON FOR THE CITY. SNEAK PEEK. SNEAK PEEK. BUT I ALSO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE OTHER STAFF THAT ARE WITH ME. AND THIS IS JUST PART OF WHAT MAKES THE COG SO FANTASTIC IS HOW MUCH WE SUPPORT EACH OTHER. SO I HAVE VICTORIA, OUR DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENT. WOO HOO. STEPHANIE, WHO'S MY EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT WHO SCHEDULES EVERYTHING. AND THEN SHE'S OUR ONE OF OUR AUDITORS AND SHE'S AWESOME. OH, WE LIKE AUDITORS. SO WITH THAT, I'M JUST GOING TO. I DON'T KNOW IF I DID THAT OR. OKAY. BUT I WANTED TO START I THINK ANOTHER PART OF WHAT MAKES THE COG SO FANTASTIC IS OUR LEADERSHIP. AND AS YOU ALL KNOW, THE WONDERFUL MAYOR HEPBURN IS IN HER SECOND YEAR AS OUR COG PRESIDENT. IT'S BEEN ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL. AGAIN, PART OF WHAT MAKES IT SO GREAT TO COME TO THE COG EVERY DAY AND WORK IN THE SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT THAT WE HAVE. AND MAYOR HEPBURN HAS JUST DONE SUCH AN INCREDIBLE JOB, AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO SO MUCH OVER THE PAST YEAR. OUR FIRST VICE PRESIDENT IS FROM THE CITY OF CLAREMONT. OUR SECOND VICE PRESIDENT IS APRIL VILARDO FROM THE CITY OF ARCADIA. AND OUR THIRD VICE PRESIDENT IS COREY MOSS FROM THE CITY OF INDUSTRY. OKAY. SO I'M GOING TO GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW. AND JOHN AND I ARE GOING TO TRADE OFF A LITTLE BIT, BUT JUST TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON. IF YOU TAKE NOTHING ELSE OUT OF THIS, WE ARE WORKING ON A LOT OF DIFFERENT ISSUE AREAS. AND IF THERE'S EVER SOMETHING WHERE YOU FEEL LIKE THERE MIGHT BE A BENEFIT OF WORKING ON IT ON A REGIONAL SCALE, THAT'S REALLY WHERE WE STEP IN TO HELP. SO THIS IS JUST A SUMMARY OF ALL THE DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON. [00:55:04] SO WE'RE WORKING ON FIRE PREPAREDNESS. FRESH SGV IS OUR FOOD RECOVERY PROGRAM THAT HELPS PEOPLE HELP CITIES COMPLY WITH STATE MANDATES RELATED TO ORGANICS RECOVERY. OUR NEIGHBORHOOD COYOTE PROGRAM IS ANOTHER ONE THAT EDUCATES AND ASSISTS RESIDENTS IN ADDRESSING COYOTES IN COMMUNITIES. REGIONAL BROADBAND. WE HAVE OUR SOCALREN, WHICH IS OUR ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM, WHERE WE HELP CITIES OBTAIN REBATES FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY UPGRADES, AND THEN WE DO A LOT OF WORK RELATED TO MS FOR STORM WATER PERMIT. WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO SWITCH IT OVER TO JOHN, AND HE'S GOING TO TALK ABOUT OUR TRANSPORTATION. THANKS, MARISSA. GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL. I WILL HIGHLIGHT SOME OF OUR ONGOING AND NEW PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS THAT MOVING US FORWARD TO ENHANCE TRANSPORTATION SAFETY AND ACCESSIBILITY ACROSS THE REGION. FIRST, I'LL START WITH THE 57 60 CONFLUENCE PROJECT, LOCATED AT TWO OF THE BUSIEST HIGHWAYS. THIS PROJECT IS AIMED AT EASING CONGESTION AND REDUCING ACCIDENTS AND REDEFINING THE DRIVING EXPERIENCE. CURRENTLY, IT'S IN THE SECOND YEAR OF A FIVE YEAR CONSTRUCTION PLAN. THE CONSTRUCTION HAD HAD MINIMAL IMPACTS ON TRAFFIC AND COMMUTERS. THE SECOND PROGRAMS THAT WE HAVE IS THE ALAMEDA CORRIDOR EAST ACE. THE PROGRAM FOCUSES ON IMPROVING RAILROAD CROSSINGS BY CONSTRUCTING GRADE SEPARATIONS WHERE NEARLY NEAR THE COMPLETION OF THE FINAL THREE GRADE SEPARATION PROJECTS FOR PHASE TWO. AND WE'RE ACTIVELY APPLYING FOR NEW GRANTS TO LAUNCH THE NEW PHASE OF THE RAILROAD CROSSING SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS. ANOTHER GREAT TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM THAT WE HAVE IS THE EAST SAN GABRIEL VALLEY SUSTAINABLE MULTIMODAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT. THIS PROJECT IS WITHIN SEVEN CITIES, INCLUDING THE CITY OF LA VERNE. FOR THE NEW PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE. ALSO MEASURE M SUBREGIONAL PROGRAM. THE PRE-APPLICATION FOR THE 2024 CALL FOR PROJECTS FOR FISCAL YEARS 26 TO 29 WAS SENT OUT LAST FRIDAY. THE PRE-APPLICATION IS DUE ON OCTOBER 1ST. THIS IS TO HELP STAFF TO IDENTIFY AND ANTICIPATE THE VOLUME OF PROJECTS. OTHER GREAT PROJECTS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON IS THE OPEN STREET PROGRAM, SGV, REGIONAL BIKE, BIKE SHARE PROGRAM, SGV BUS CORRIDOR, TRANSIT IMPROVEMENT PROJECT AND VEHICLE MILES TRAVEL MODEL AND TOOLS. AND I KNOW WE TALK ABOUT THIS A LOT AT OUR GOVERNING BOARD, BUT ONE OF THE INCREDIBLE THINGS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO DO WITH THE COG IS HELP SO MANY RESIDENTS, PARTICULARLY THOSE WHO ARE HOMELESS. FOR THOSE THAT ARE HOUSING INSECURE. SO WE HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENT PROGRAMS TO PROVIDE INTERIM SHELTER SERVICES TO PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS OR MENTAL ILLNESS, AND THEN PROGRAMS TO DEVELOP PERMANENT AFFORDABLE HOUSING OPTIONS. THIS IS JUST A WHOLE LIST OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING THAT STRETCH THE GAMUT FROM EMERGENCY FIRST STREET THROUGH LAKOTA THAT YOU'RE ALL VERY FAMILIAR WITH, TO OUR REGIONAL HOUSING TRUST, WHICH ACTUALLY BUILDS OR FUNDS UNITS. FOR PEOPLE TO LIVE IN PERMANENTLY. SO WE'VE THROUGH THE HOUSING TRUST, FINANCED OVER 800 UNITS ACROSS THE VALLEY. AND I THINK THAT WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE DIFFERENT THINGS WE'RE DOING ON INTERIM SHELTER. WE HAVE FOUR DIFFERENT INTERIM SHELTERS THAT WE'VE HELPED DEVELOP, THESE OF BALDWIN PARK, MONTEBELLO, AND WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON A REALLY EXCITING PROGRAM AND THE CITY OF POMONA PARTNERING WITH GOD'S PANTRY FOR THAT NONPROFIT WHERE WE'VE PURCHASED A CHURCH, AND WE'RE GOING TO ADAPTIVE REUSE TO MAKE THAT BOTH INTERIM SHELTER AND PERMANENT HOUSING FOR TRANSITIONAL ISSUES THAT ARE EXPERIENCING. AND WE TRY TO MAKE IT A CONNECTION TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR COMMUNITIES ARE ENGAGED AND ARE ABLE TO HELP. A LOT OF TIMES PEOPLE WANT TO HELP, BUT THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO HELP. SO WE HAVE OUR VILLAGE 143 PROGRAM, WHICH WE DO VARIOUS DONATION DRIVES. SO WE'VE DONE THERE'S A PICTURE THERE WHERE WE WERE DOING CLEANING SUPPLIES. WE'VE DONE WATER DRIVES, SOCK DRIVES, ALL DIFFERENT KINDS OF THINGS TO HELP AGAIN, PEOPLE EXPERIENCING THOSE. AND WE HAVE OUR SGV WORKS PROGRAM, WHICH I LOVE SO VERY MUCH. WE'VE HAD TWO DIFFERENT GRADUATIONS AT OUR GOVERNING BOARD, BUT THAT PROGRAM ASSISTS TRANSITION AGE YOUTH. AGAIN, WE WORK WITH GOD'S PANTRY THERE YET IMPORTANT WORKFORCE TRAINING SKILLS AND HELP THEM FIND LONG TERM EMPLOYMENT. WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO BACK OVER TO JOHN TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF OUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS. SO FOR HERE ARE SOME OF OUR GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2324. WE BROKE GROUND AND START CONSTRUCTION FOR TWO GRADE SEPARATION PROJECTS. MONTEBELLO CORRIDOR IN THE CITY OF MONTEBELLO AND TURNBULL CANYON IN THE CITY OF INDUSTRY. WE ALSO OPENED THREE SUBREGIONAL FOOD RECOVERY HUBS THROUGH ALSO THROUGH OUR CITY HOMELESSNESS PROGRAM, WE WERE ABLE TO REACH OUT OVER 1900 OF VULNERABLE RESIDENTS THROUGHOUT THE CADA SERVICE PROVIDER. [01:00:02] AND WE'RE PROUD TO CONNECT 88 CLIENTS WITH HOUSING. AND FINALLY, THROUGH OUR SAN GABRIEL VALLEY REGIONAL HOUSING TRUST. OUR REVOLVING LOAN FUND SUPPORTED 242 UNITS OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND ALSO CREATED 16 AFFORDABLE HOME OWNER OPPORTUNITIES. I'M GOING TO HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE OF THINGS AND THEN TURN IT OVER TO JOHN TO TALK ABOUT THE MOST EXCITING PROJECT I THINK WE HAVE IN LA VERNE, BUT JUST A FEW PROGRAMS THAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY INVOLVED IN. I SAW YOUR WONDERFUL FIRE CHIEF BEFORE THE MEETING, BUT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN REAL LEADERS IN OUR FIRE PREP AND OUR CWPP PROGRAMS, WHICH AGAIN, ARE AIMED TO MITIGATE THE IMPACTS OF WILDFIRES AND HELP RESIDENTS PREPARED IN THE EVENT OF A WILDFIRE. SO IT'S BOTH A COMBINATION OF PLANNING WORK AND OUTREACH TO RESIDENTS. SO YOU ALL HAVE BEEN FANTASTIC LEADERS AND PARTNERS IN THAT. ADDITIONALLY, YOU'RE ONE OF OUR VERY ACTIVE CITIES IN OUR CARE PROGRAM, WHICH IS OUR MOBILE CRISIS PROGRAM THAT WORKS WITH TWO INDIVIDUALS. WE COORDINATE WITH POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMUNITY SERVICES TO HELP BOTH HOUSED AND UNHOUSED INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE EXPERIENCING ACUTE MENTAL HEALTH CRISES, PROVIDE THEM SERVICES WHERE THEY ARE, AND THEN GET THEM CONNECTED TO LONG-TERM CARE. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE. I'M GOING TO HAVE JOHN TALK ABOUT THAT. PERFECT. WE'RE EXCITED TO PROVIDE THE LATEST DEVELOPMENT ON THE NEW PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE. THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE WILL BE 1500 FEET LONG AND WILL CONNECT THE METRO A LINE STATION, TO THE POMONA FAIRPLEX. THIS PROJECT, THIS BRIDGE WILL ELIMINATE THE NEED OF THE AT GRADE CROSSINGS AT ARROW HIGHWAY AND ENSURING SAFETY AND CONVENIENCE FOR THE COMMUNITY. HERE ARE SOME OF THE UNIQUE ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES DESIGNED TO ENHANCE BOTH LOOKS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE BRIDGE, AND CREATE VISUAL POINTS OF INTEREST. DECORATIVE RAIL WITH WAVE ELEMENTS TO ADD A MODERN AND FLUENT ESTHETIC. DECORATIVE LIGHTING TO CREATE A VISUALLY APPEALING LANDMARK. CITY NAME SIGNAGE SERVING AS A WELCOME OR WELCOMING GATEWAY FOR VISITORS. DOABLE CONCRETE FINISH WITH GRAFFITI PROTECTION, ENHANCED SAFETY FEATURES EQUIPPED WITH SECURITY CAMERAS AND EMERGENCY CALL BUTTONS. AND THEN FUNCTIONAL DESIGN FOR MAINTENANCE. SO WE HAVE MAINTENANCE, STORAGE AS WELL AS ACCESS TO WATER AND POWER FOR EASY MAINTENANCE. THESE UNIQUE FEATURES WILL DISTINGUISH THE CITY'S HISTORICAL IDENTITY IN A MODERN INTERPRETATION THAT WILL PROMOTE CITY PRIDE. THE PROJECT IS NOW FULLY FUNDED AND READY TO MOVE FORWARD. FOLLOWING AWARD OF 60 MILLION OF FEDERAL GRANT SECURED THROUGH SCAG. WE ARE ON TRACK TO COMPLETE THE DESIGN AND RIGHT OF WAY PHASES BY SPRING 2025 AND CONSTRUCTION SET TO BEGIN IN FALL 2025. WE'RE FULLY FUNDED. YES. AND I HAVE TO SAY, JOHN IS BEING REALLY HUMBLE. JOHN. HIS ANALYST VANESSA AND TURNER, WHO WORKS IN OUR PLANNING PROGRAMS DEPARTMENT, JUMPED ON THIS OPPORTUNITY TO GET FUNDING. AND JUST LIKE REALLY WENT FOR IT. AND WE HAD AN EXTREMELY SMALL WINDOW OF TIME. THIS IS ONE OF THE LARGEST AWARDS THAT WENT TO A SPECIFIC PROJECT. SO IT WAS LIKE CHRISTMAS DAY WHEN WE GOT THE LETTER THAT WE GOT THE FUNDING. BUT IT WAS LIKE, AGAIN, THEIR INGENUITY AND REALLY HARD WORK THAT GOT THAT $16 MILLION GRANT. SO IT WAS SO EXCITING AND I'M PROUD OF THEM AND THANKFUL FOR ALL OF THEIR HARD WORK. SO I'M JUST GOING TO MENTION A FEW THINGS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE STARTING ON NEXT YEAR. SO I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT JUST THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING THE REGIONAL HOUSING THE ROAD PROGRAM THAT I MENTIONED. SO THAT'S SOMETHING ELSE REALLY INTERESTING AND UNIQUE THAT WE'RE DOING. WE'RE PARTNERING WITH CITIES AND SERVICE PROVIDERS FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO HOUSE INDIVIDUALS ON A SMALL SCALE. SO AN EXAMPLE IS IN THE CITY OF PASADENA. WE'RE RENTING A HOME. AND WE'RE ABLE TO HOUSE SIX SENIORS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS THERE. AND THEN WE'RE LOOKING TO ACTUALLY TRANSITION THAT TO ALSO SERVICING VETERANS. BUT THAT'S AN OPPORTUNITY WHERE WE'RE WORKING WITHIN THE MARKET RATE MARKET RENTALS TO BE ABLE TO GET UNITS FOR PEOPLE AND GET THEM PLACED, WHETHER IT'S THROUGH AN ADDITIONAL SUBSIDY OR RENTING OF AN ENTIRE HOUSE OR SOMETHING TO DO A SHARED HOUSING PROGRAM. WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO LET JOHN FINISH UP THE OTHER ITEMS ON THAT SLIDE, AND WE'RE WORKING ON COMPLETING THE SGV BROADBAND STRATEGIC PLAN AND THE SGV REGIONAL COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN. WE BEGIN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE JUMPSTART BUS CORRIDOR IMPROVEMENTS AHEAD OF THE 2028 OLYMPICS. AND THIS IS OUR WALL OF FAME OF ALL THE DIFFERENT PEOPLE FROM ALL OF OUR CITIES THAT PARTICIPATE IN VARIOUS DIFFERENT PROJECTS. AND I DO HAVE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT MAYOR HEPBURN NOT ONLY SERVES AS PRESIDENT OF THE COG, BUT HE IS ALSO THE CHAIR OF OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS SECTION. SO ALL OF THE STUFF THAT WE TALKED ABOUT, ABOUT THE ACE PROJECT AND THE LA VERNE BRIDGE AND THE 5760. [01:05:04] THAT'S ALL UNDER THE PURVIEW OF MAYOR HEPBURN. WE WANT SAM. COME ON SAM. APPRECIATE THEIR LEADERSHIP. IT'S A $100 MILLION BUDGET. SO WE'RE, YOU KNOW, VERY, VERY BUSY THERE. SO WE REALLY APPRECIATE HIS LEADERSHIP THERE. AND WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT KEN IS THE NEWEST MEMBER OF OUR CITY MANAGER STEERING COMMITTEE, SO HE'S STRONG HERE. AND WITH THAT, I WANT TO CLOSE. WE ALSO HAVE A PHOTOGRAPHER IN THE HOUSE. SO THIS IS A PICTURE THAT MAYOR HEPBURN TOOK OF ME AND HIM. AND THAT'S OUR ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICE, OUR BABY KATIE, ONE OF OUR BABIES. HER SON. HE'S OUR BABY. AND I JUST I LIKE THIS PICTURE A LOT BECAUSE I THINK IT SPEAKS TO WHAT THE COG IS ABOUT, WHICH IS JUST KIND OF LIKE WE'RE A BIG FAMILY AND WE ALL REALLY SUPPORT EACH OTHER. SO WITH THAT, WE'RE ALL DONE. IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCIL. WELL, YOU KNOW THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN WITHOUT COLLABORATION AND BETWEEN OUR DIRECTOR OF GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS AND KEVIN LIE, THE DIRECTOR OF THE CONSTRUCTION, AND ALL OF YOU, EVERYONE AT THE COG. IT'S A HAPPY PLACE, BUT IT'S ALSO AN EXTREMELY PRODUCTIVE PLACE. AND IT'S BECAUSE OF THE COLLABORATION FROM THE 33 CITIES, THE THREE MUNICIPALITIES AND THE TWO SUPERVISORIAL DISTRICTS. WE HAVE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN D.C. AND SACRAMENTO UNDER DIRECTOR KRIEGER'S DIRECTION, THAT IT'S A POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT. GO IN WITH ARMS OPEN. LET THEM KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING. AND NOT ONLY THAT, WITH MEASURE H FUNDS AND ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN THE CITY OF L.A., THE COG IS ABLE TO DO THINGS QUICKLY, EFFICIENTLY AND RAPID REHOUSING, BUT ALSO WITH LAKOTA AND ALL OF THE OUTREACH FOR OUR HOMELESS SITUATION WITH OUR STAFF. OUR STAFF WORKS EXTREMELY WELL WITH. AND THAT'S ALL OF OUR STAFF WITH THE COG. BUT IT'S A TESTAMENT TO YOUR LEADERSHIP. DIRECTOR CREATOR, THAT THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN JUST BECAUSE IT HAPPENS. IT HAPPENS BECAUSE WE ALL COLLABORATE. WE HAVE RELATIONSHIPS. WE HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR HIGHER ELECTEDS AND IT WORKS WELL. AND THEY KNOW WE DO SUCH A GOOD JOB, AND THE MONEY GOES WHERE IT'S SUPPOSED TO GO AND IT'S ALL ACCOUNTABLE. AND SO KUDOS TO YOU GUYS FOR DOING SUCH AN AMAZING JOB. SO ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR YOU GUYS. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO MORE AND MORE AND MORE. WELL THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NOW YOU GUYS DO NOT HAVE TO STAY FOR THIS MEETING. SO I WOULD SUGGEST THAT YOU JUST SNEAK ALONG AND GO HOME. YOU KNOW, STEPHANIE, YOU HAVE TO STAY. YOU'RE THE CLOSEST ONE. SORRY. THANK YOU GUYS VERY MUCH. IT'S VERY MUCH AN HONOR TO WORK WITH THEM. WE HAVE STAFF THAT ARE JUST INCREDIBLE AND THEY MAKE THINGS HAPPEN WHERE MOST COMMUNITIES HAVE TO DISCUSS IT FOR 3 OR 4 YEARS, THEY MAKE IT HAPPEN, AND IT SEEMS LIKE OURS, LIKE THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE. THAT WAS A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT, WHICH WE WEREN'T GOING TO BE ABLE TO BUILD THAT BRIDGE. WE HAD SOME FUNDS, BUT BETWEEN OUR COLLABORATIONS WITH PEOPLE ON SCAG, WHICH HAPPEN TO BE MAYORS OF OTHER COMMUNITIES AND THE RELATIONSHIPS WE HAVE, AND OUR CITY DOES A GREAT JOB, AND IT'S THE RELATIONSHIPS WE HAVE WITH OUR CITY MANAGER AND ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT DIRECTORS THAT AND OUR COUNCIL THAT THIS HAPPENS. IT JUST DOESN'T HAPPEN BY ITSELF. IT HAPPENS BECAUSE OF OUR COLLABORATION AND ALL THE EFFORTS THAT WE MAKE HERE IN THE CITY, ALONG WITH OUR OTHER RELATIONSHIPS. SO THANK YOU TO COUNCIL. THANK YOU TO OUR CITY MANAGER. ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR YOU GUYS. WITH THAT, WE MOVE ON TO ANNOUNCEMENTS. [ANNOUNCEMENTS OF UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS] BEFORE WE DO THAT, I WANT TO CALL FORWARD FOR CHIEF, OUR FIRE CHIEF TO PROVIDE US A QUICK UPDATE ABOUT THE BRIDGE FIRE. NOT QUITE. ALL RIGHT. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE UPDATES AND ADDRESS A LITTLE A LITTLE BIT OF ACTION THAT WE HAD IN THE LAST WEEK. KIND OF A KIND OF A BUSY WEEK. I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT WE ARE PRETTY MUCH PAST ALL OF IT, FOR THE MOST PART, BUT WE'LL GET INTO THAT HERE IN A LITTLE BIT. ULTIMATELY, IT'LL BE A VERY, VERY BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT HAPPENED. AN UPDATE AS TO WHERE WE'RE AT NOW. WHAT THE CITY'S RESPONSE WAS COLLECTIVELY. AND THEN KIND OF THE RECOVERY PHASE THAT WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW. ONE THING I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT HERE ON THIS FIRST SLIDE, ONE OF FOUR THAT WE HAVE, AND I'LL GET INTO A LITTLE BIT LATER, IS THE MULTITUDE OF AGENCIES THAT ARE REPRESENTED ON [01:10:06] HERE. OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE OUR THREE CITY SEALS, BUT THE OTHER ONES THERE TO THE RIGHT, THE FOREST SERVICE, COUNTY OF LA FIRE DEPARTMENT, SEMINOLE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT, LA COUNTY SHERIFF, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY SHERIFF, AND ULTIMATELY CAL FIRE WERE A PART OF THE UNIFIED COMMAND. AND I'LL TALK TO THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE HERE IN A SECOND. ALL RIGHT. SO THE FIRE STARTED. IT WAS ON A SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8TH, AT 14, 12 HOURS OR 212 IN THE AFTERNOON IN THE AREA OF GLENDORA MOUNTAIN ROAD AND EAST FORK ROAD. IT WAS PRIMARILY ULTIMATELY IN TOTALITY, WIND AND TOPOGRAPHY DRIVEN. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, THERE'S A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN ELEVATION, AS YOU CAN SEE, IN THE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL THAT THE FIRE WENT. AND THEN WE HAD OUR TYPICAL DIURNAL WINDS THAT HELP PUSH THAT RIGHT. THAT ONSHORE PUSH IN THE EVENINGS, THAT WAS STRONGER ON SOME DAYS THAN OTHERS. BUT WE HAD THAT BIG DRAMATIC PUSH THROUGH IN THE AFTERNOON ON THE 10TH, WHICH I'LL TALK ABOUT HERE IN A SECOND UNIFIED COMMAND VERSUS THE INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM, WHO'S ULTIMATELY RUNNING IT NOW. SO AS THE FIRE DRAMATICALLY GREW, ULTIMATELY IT WAS PRIMARILY IN THE ANGELES NATIONAL FOREST. NOW, THERE WAS PARTS OF LA COUNTY THAT GOT INVOLVED, ESPECIALLY THERE TOWARDS THE END. AND TYPICALLY WITHIN THE ICS SYSTEM, YOUR UNIFIED COMMAND WILL BE THE AGENCIES THAT ARE CURRENTLY INVOLVED OR THEIR JURISDICTION IS CURRENTLY INVOLVED OR CURRENTLY BEING THREATENED OR HAVE AN IMMINENT THREAT TO IT. AND THAT'S WHEN YOU UNIFY COMMAND. WE NEVER UNIFIED COMMAND BECAUSE IT WAS NEVER DIRECTLY TOUCHING OUR JURISDICTION OR WAS EVEN DIRECTLY HEADED TOWARDS OUR JURISDICTION. HOWEVER, FROM THE VERY BEGINNING OF LA VERNE, FIRE WAS REPRESENTED WITHIN THE INCIDENT COMMAND STRUCTURE AS AN AGENCY REPRESENTATIVE ONCE IT MADE THAT BIG RUN. ULTIMATELY, THE FIRE WAS HANDED OVER TO A REQUESTED INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM, WHICH IS PERSONNEL FROM ALL OVER THE STATE, SOMETIMES EVEN THE COUNTRY WHO COME IN AND STAND UP A BROADER, WELL EXPERIENCED INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM TO RUN THE INCIDENT. AND THEN JUST TO TALK ABOUT THE ULTIMATE STATS OF THE FIRE. SO CURRENTLY THE FIRE AS OF THIS MORNING WAS AT 54,690 ACRES. IT STANDS AT 11% CONTAINMENT. AND ULTIMATELY, IN THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE FIRE, WE SAW A LITTLE BIT OF GROWTH, UPWARDS OF A THOUSAND ACRES. BUT IT WASN'T UNTIL THAT THAT SECOND DAY, BETWEEN THAT SECOND AND THIRD DAY ON THE 10TH, WHEN WE SAW UPWARDS OF A 40,000 ACRE RUN. AND INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH, THOSE OF YOU WHO DID KEEP UP WITH OUR SOCIAL MEDIA AND SAW, I THINK IT WAS MY THIRD VIDEO WHEN I WAS STANDING UP THERE ON THE FIRE LINE. IN THAT VERY MOMENT. AND I TALKED TO MY DEPUTY CHIEF AT THE TIME, WE FELT THE WIND SHIFT AND WE FELT IT COME AROUND AND ALMOST IMMEDIATELY, AS I WAS SHOWING THE COMMUNITY THE FIRE BREAK AND THE COLD LINE VERSUS THE HOT LINE SAW THAT THAT NORTH END WAS ACTIVELY TAKING OFF AND THEN MADE ITS RUN. SO IT WAS PRETTY, PRETTY INTERESTING BEING THERE IN THAT MOMENT. JUST SOME MORE STATS HERE. SO 11% CONTAINED, THERE'S JUST SHY OF 2800 FIREFIGHTING PERSONNEL ASSIGNED TO IT. THERE'S BEEN THREE INJURIES THUS FAR. 54 STRUCTURES DESTROYED AND 13 DAMAGED. THOSE STRUCTURES THAT WERE DESTROYED WERE PRIMARILY IN THE BALDY AND WRIGHTWOOD AREAS. THE CAUSE IS STILL UNDER INVESTIGATION. HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO FURTHER INTEL ON THAT. ALL RIGHT, SO THE CITY'S RESPONSE SO RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE, LIKE I MENTIONED, LVFD ENGAGED ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. SO AS THAT FIRE BEGAN AND RAMPED UP SUNDAY AFTERNOON, I SENT ONE OF OUR BATTALION CHIEFS UP TO UP TO THE COMMAND POST OR WHERE THE INCIDENT WAS BEING MANAGED SO THAT WE HAD IMMEDIATE REPRESENTATION, NOT KNOWING ULTIMATELY WHERE THE FIRE WAS GOING TO GO AT THAT POINT. PRETTY QUICKLY THEREAFTER. WELL, ULTIMATELY, WE WERE KEEPING AN EYE ON THAT, ON THE FIRE AND MAKING SURE THAT WE DIDN'T NEED TO BE REPRESENTED. HAD A BACKUP BATTALION CHIEF COME IN AND COVER THE CITY. SO THE CITY WAS COVERED AT ALL AT ALL POINTS. THAT NEXT MONDAY MORNING WHEN WE STARTED TO SEE A REAL PICKUP IN FIRE ACTIVITY WAS ULTIMATELY WHEN CITY MANAGER KEN DOMER AND I AND POLICE CHIEF SAM GONZALEZ GOT TOGETHER AND DISCUSSED ACTIVATING OUR EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER AND ULTIMATELY DECIDED TO DO SO AT NOON BECAUSE OF THE THREAT AND BECAUSE OF THE EXPONENTIAL FIRE GROWTH. AT THAT POINT, COLLECTIVELY, WE DECIDED TO BE AT A LEVEL THREE ACTIVATION, WHICH WAS A MONITORING STANCE ONLY. HOWEVER, DOING SO SET US UP TO PROVIDE FOR ALL. THE DOCUMENTATION ULTIMATELY LED TO OUR LOCAL DECLARATION EMERGENCY DECLARATION, AND THEN WOULD SET US UP FOR THE RECOVERY EFFORTS OR THE COST RECOVERY ON THE BACKSIDE. MOVING FORWARD WITH THE EMERGENCY CENTER OPERATIONS AND THAT COLLABORATION, LIKE I SAID, WE HAD TWICE A DAY MEETINGS MOVING FORWARD UP UNTIL THE LAST ONE WHERE OUR GROUP GOT TOGETHER AND TALKED ABOUT, OKAY, IF WE'RE GOING TO MOVE, MOVE FORWARD TO EVACUATION ORDERS, THIS IS WHAT IT'S GOING TO LOOK LIKE FROM A TRAFFIC CONTROL STANDPOINT. FROM YVONNE WAS MANAGING THE EVACUATION FOR THE EVACUATION CENTER WOULD BE WHERE WE WOULD FUNNEL PEOPLE TO AND, AND ALL THE SUPPORT OF ALL OF THOSE THAT WOULD BE EVACUATED [01:15:02] ULTIMATELY. ANYWAY, AS YOU KNOW, COMMUNITY INFORMATION WAS KEY AS A FIRE DRIVEN INCIDENT. WE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ULTIMATELY TOOK THE LEAD ON THOSE EFFORTS, HOWEVER, WERE HEAVILY ASSISTED BY THE CHIEF GONZALEZ AND HIS STAFF WITH GETTING THAT INFORMATION OUT. FOR ME PERSONALLY, I FELT THAT IT WAS IMPERATIVE TO ULTIMATELY GET IN FRONT OF A CAMERA AND, YOU KNOW, PROVIDE A REAL INTIMATE UPDATES TO OUR COMMUNITY, TO THE CITY OF LA VERNE, AS OPPOSED TO KIND OF JUST THE PERIODIC UPDATES THAT WOULD THAT COME OUT EVERY 12 HOURS OR SO FROM THE INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM, ALTHOUGH DO THEY DO A VERY GOOD JOB AT THAT? IT'S NOT AS FREQUENT AS I WOULD LIKE, AND CERTAINLY AS I KNOW OUR CITIZENS WOULD LIKE TO HEAR, RIGHT? ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU HAVE A HUGE PLUME OF SMOKE THAT'S VERY APOCALYPTIC TO THE NORTH OF US. AND SO AFTER PUTTING OUT THAT FIRST VIDEO, IT WAS VERY, VERY WELL RECEIVED. AND THAT'S HOW WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD IN THAT RESPECT. IN FACT, IT SEEMED TO BE A MODEL THAT MANY CITIES AROUND US MOVED TO ULTIMATELY AS WELL. THE EVACUATION WARNINGS AND ORDERS, SO MANY OF OUR RESIDENTS IN THE NORTH END OF THE CITY, AND THERE WAS SOME BLEED OVER IN DIFFERENT AREAS, DID RECEIVE WHAT WAS A WEE ALERT OR A WIRELESS EMERGENCY ALERT, WHICH ULTIMATELY COMES IN THE FORM OF LIKE AN AMBER ALERT ON YOUR PHONE. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A PART OF AN APP. YOU DON'T HAVE TO SIGN UP. IT'S THAT VERY, VERY URGENT, KIND OF PANIC INDUCING ALERT. I WANT EVERYBODY TO UNDERSTAND, BECAUSE I KNOW THERE WAS SOME CONFUSION, THAT IT WAS US THAT PUT THOSE IN PLACE. AND ULTIMATELY, AS THE FIRE CHIEF FOR LA VERNE, I HAVE THAT ABILITY. IF WE HAVE AN ISOLATED INCIDENT WITHIN THE CITY, HOWEVER, THESE TYPE OF EVACUATIONS, WARNINGS AND ORDERS ARE A VERY, VERY COLLABORATIVE DECISION THAT'S MADE AND ULTIMATELY IS DRIVEN BY THE INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM OR THE COMMAND STRUCTURE OF THE FIRE. AND SO, AS YOU CAN SEE IN THIS PARTICULAR PICTURE THAT WE HAVE UP HERE, ALL OF L.A. COUNTY AND EVEN BEYOND SAN DIEGO COUNTY, ORANGE COUNTY IS BROKEN UP INTO THESE ZONES. AND THAT'S HOW WE INITIATE NOT ONLY THE EVACUATION WARNINGS OR ORDERS, BUT ALSO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION FOR THOSE VERY SPECIFIC AREAS. SO ULTIMATELY, IT WAS LA VERNE 001 AND 002 THAT RECEIVED THOSE ALERTS AND THEN ULTIMATELY HAD AN EVACUATION WARNING DIFFERENT FROM AN ORDER. SO THE WARNING WAS ESSENTIALLY BE PREPARED, ALTHOUGH THE MESSAGE WAS VERY, VERY URGENT, A LITTLE BIT MORE SO THAN I WOULD HAVE LIKED. MOVING FORWARD AND THERE WILL BE THIS, THIS NEW SYSTEM THAT WE'VE GONE TO. IT'S THE GENESIS PROTECT SYSTEM. THERE IS AN APP OUT THERE FOR THAT WHERE YOU CAN GET THAT INFORMATION. THAT SYSTEM IS SOMEWHAT NEW AS IT RELATES TO THE COUNTY. IT WAS A GRANT FUNDED PROGRAM THAT THE COUNTY PUT INTO PLACE NOT TOO LONG AGO. WE WERE JUST REAL TIME IN THE PROCESS OF INSTITUTING IT, STANDING IT UP FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND THEN DOING A PUBLIC EDUCATION COMPONENT TO IT. THE FIRE JUST BEAT US BY ABOUT TWO WEEKS. SO THAT BEING SAID THERE'S A LOT OF LEARNING THAT IS COMING OUT OF THIS FROM THE COUNTY LEVEL ALL THE WAY DOWN TO OUR CITY LEVEL. THERE WILL BE A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY TO OFFER LOCAL PERSPECTIVE AND TAKE SOME LEARNING POINTS MOVING FORWARD. SO SOME OF THAT WILL BE SOME OF THE MESSAGING THAT WAS COMING OUT IN THE URGENT OR URGENT KIND OF PANIC INDUCING LANGUAGE THAT WAS IN THERE. SO I KNOW THAT THERE WAS THERE SOME CONFUSION OVER THAT. I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. HOWEVER, IT IS STILL BETTER TO BE PREPARED THAN TO BE CAUGHT OFF GUARD. SO WHERE WE'RE AT NOW IN MY LAST SLIDE LEADS US TO OUR RECOVERY EFFORTS. SO WE ARE IN THE PROCESS NOW. AS OF 2 P.M. YESTERDAY, THE EVACUATION WARNINGS WERE LIFTED. AND THE REASON THOSE REMAIN FOR SO LONG IS BECAUSE WE DO STILL HAVE AN ACTIVE FIRE TO THE NORTH OF OUR CITY. THERE'S NO DENYING THAT THE FIRE IS STILL IS STILL ACTIVELY BURNING IN SOME OF THE VERY, VERY TOUGH TERRAIN THAT SOME OF THE FIREFIGHTERS ARE HAVING TROUBLE GETTING CONTROL LINE AROUND IT. AND JUST FOR CLARIFICATION CONTAINMENT DOESN'T MEAN THE FIRES. WELL, IT DOES MEAN THE FIRE IS OUT. BUT WHEN YOU SEE THAT THEY SAY THERE'S 11% CONTAINMENT VERSUS 100% CONTAINMENT YOU CAN HAVE ALMOST NO FORWARD RATE OF SPREAD WITH THE FIRE, BUT IT'S NOT CONTAINED UNTIL WE HAVE ACTUAL COLD LINE IN THOSE AREAS AND A FIRE BREAK CONSTRUCTED BETWEEN THE BURNED AND THE UNBURNED. SO, AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, IN THE AREAS WHERE THERE'S VERY TOUGH TERRAIN, IT'S VERY HARD TO DO THAT. AND EVEN AS RECENT AS LAST NIGHT, THERE WAS SOME PRETTY AGGRESSIVE COLD FRONT WINDS THAT KEPT THE AIRCRAFT ON THE GROUND. SO FOR QUITE SOME TIME, IT'S GOING TO BE QUITE SOME TIME UNTIL WE SEE FULL 100% CONTAINMENT. AS IT RELATES TO LA VERNE AND OUR FOOTHILL COMMUNITIES THE THREAT HAS ALL BUT VANISHED. BUT WE DO STILL ASK OUR RESIDENTS TO PAY ATTENTION TO OUR SOCIAL MEDIA. BE AWARE, UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS STILL FIRE ACTIVITY TO THE NORTH OF US. WE WILL HAVE AIRCRAFT AND HEAVY EQUIPMENT TRAVELING THROUGH OUR CITY, BECAUSE THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST PLACES TO ACCESS THAT. AND THEN, OF COURSE, ALTHOUGH IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE IT RIGHT NOW, WE ARE GOING TO WARM BACK UP THIS WEEKEND AND WE WILL HAVE SOME HUMIDITY DROPS AND ALL THAT AS WELL. SO FINGERS CROSSED WE DON'T HAVE ANY NEW IGNITIONS INTERNALLY. STAFF ACROSS THE BOARD, FINANCE, LITERALLY EVERY DEPARTMENT THAT'S INVOLVED IN OUR EOC, WE'RE WORKING ON ALL THE BACK PAPERWORK. THE COUNTY DID DECLARE IT WELL FROM THE STATE ALL THE WAY DOWN. [01:20:02] SO GOVERNOR NEWSOM DID DECLARE A STATE OF EMERGENCY FOR THE STATE RELATIVE TO THE LINE FIRE AND THE BRIDGE FIRE, AS WELL AS THE COUNTY AND ULTIMATELY US AS A CITY. THERE WAS A AN FMAG, A FIRE MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE GRANT APPLICATION THAT WAS APPROVED. SO ALL OF THE FUNDING MECHANISMS ARE IN PLACE FOR US TO POTENTIALLY RECEIVE REIMBURSEMENT FOR ALL OF THE ACTIVITIES, PERSONNEL AND OTHER EXPENDITURES THAT WOULD HAVE THAT WE WOULD HAVE ACQUIRED THROUGH THIS PROCESS. SO WITH ALL THAT SAID, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO FINISH AND RECOGNIZE EVERYBODY'S EFFORTS IN THIS. ALTHOUGH THE FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS THAT FACE OUT IN FRONT OF EVERYTHING. THERE WAS SO MUCH GOING ON BEHIND THE SCENES, AND THERE'S NO WAY THAT WE COULD DO IT ON OUR OWN. IN ADDITION TO OUR FIRE PERSONNEL WHO ARE OUT THERE, WE STILL HAVE OUR TYPE THREE FIRE ENGINE UP HERE WITH BATTALION CHIEF ROBERT RUSSELL WORKING AS A DIVISION SUPERVISOR. AND WE ALSO HAVE A TYPE ONE FIRE ENGINE OVER ON THE LINE FIRE AS WELL. BOTH OF THOSE COMPANIES HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY FIREFIGHTING AND SAVING HOMES. AND I'M NOT TALKING JUST IN THE PERIPHERY, AGGRESSIVELY FIREFIGHTING. SO THEY'VE BEEN WORKING VERY, VERY HARD AND I SUSPECT WILL BE OUT THERE THROUGH THE FOR THE FULL TWO WEEKS. SO IT'S BEEN A BUSY TIME. SO WITH ALL THAT. ANY QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION? QUESTIONS. COUNCIL. MR. CROSBY WITH THOSE ON BOTH THOSE FIRES, THOUGH, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I KNOW I KNOW THE ANSWER, BUT WE'RE FULLY STAFFED IN IN THE CITY OF LA VERNE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S TAKEN PLACE AS WELL. CORRECT. SO WE ARE ALWAYS FULLY STAFFED. IF AT ANY POINT THERE IS A STATION THAT IS CLOSED OR BROWNED OUT. IT'S FOR A VERY TEMPORARY TIME AS THIS SO PERFECT EXAMPLE, THE LINE FIRE. THAT FIRE EXPLODED ESSENTIALLY, AND THEY NEEDED RESOURCES. I REMEMBER I THINK IT WAS LAST WEEKEND AND WITHIN A MINUTE THEY WANTED 20 STRIKE TEAMS AND ALL OF THE AGENCIES AROUND ORANGE COUNTY, LA COUNTY WERE FRANTICALLY TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. SO WE SENT AN ENGINE AS PART OF THOSE REQUESTS AND IMMEDIATELY WE START BACKFILLING. WE SENT, WE SEND OUT MASS MESSAGES TO ALL OF OUR PERSONNEL. BE PREPARED. YOU'RE ON STANDBY EFFECTIVELY. AND IF ULTIMATELY IF WE HAVE TO, WE'LL CANCEL VACATIONS. BUT THIS IS PART OF WHAT WE DO FOR THE ENTIRE TIME THAT WE WEAR THIS BADGE. AND EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THAT. AND IT SAYS FIRE ON OUR PATCH DOESN'T MATTER WHERE IT'S AT. SO WE'RE PART OF THE BIGGER PICTURE. AND TO THAT END, IT'S NOT JUST THE PERSONNEL THAT ARE ON THE FIRE ENGINES, BUT IT'S ALSO THE PERSONNEL THAT ARE AWAY FROM THEIR FAMILIES CONSISTENTLY FOR TWO WEEKS AT A TIME, BACKFILLING THE CITY, MAKING SURE THAT OUR CITIZENS ARE COVERED 24 OVER SEVEN NO MATTER WHAT. COUNCIL. I PERSONALLY WANT TO THANK YOU. THE INFORMATION CAME QUICK. AND IT WAS IT WAS WELL RECEIVED. AND I THINK ALL OF OUR STAFF HOW QUICKLY WE, WE GOT INTO THE COMMAND CENTER, HOW QUICKLY WE WERE OUT OF RESOURCES AND JUST THE INFORMATION TO THE RESIDENTS, BECAUSE THIS IS THE THIS WILL BE THE THIRD, MAYBE FOURTH TIME THAT WE'VE HAD THIS FIRE SITUATION. AND THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO FOR OUR RESIDENTS, EVEN THOUGH THAT THAT ONE THAT WE SIGNAL THAT WENT OUT, EVERYBODY WAS KIND OF CALMING DOWN A LITTLE BIT AND IT JUST WAS WENT JUST BALLISTIC. AND EVERYBODY WAS LIKE FREAKING OUT, WHICH I UNDERSTAND BECAUSE WE'VE ALL BEEN THROUGH THIS. BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WE HAVE TO REALIZE IS WE ARE IN A FIRE. HIGH FIRE ZONE, THAT WHEN THESE THINGS DO COME OUT, OUR RESIDENTS NEED TO GET THEIR STUFF TOGETHER AND GET PREPARED. ALWAYS BE PREPARED FOR THOSE THINGS YOU NEED TO GO WITH. IF YOU'VE GOT BIG ANIMALS, YOU'VE GOT VEHICLES. GET THEM OUT OF THERE. GET THEM OUT OF THERE. GET THEM DOWN TO YOUR FRIEND'S HOUSE. BUT YOU GUYS YOURSELF ARE FIRE. ALL OF OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS DID AN EXCEPTIONAL JOB NOTIFYING OUR COMMUNITY, BUT I JUST DON'T WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SAY THAT YOU'RE GOING TO GO AS A STAR ON 911 ON THE FIRE SHOW, CHIEF. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE EVERY ONE OF YOUR VIDEOS GOT BETTER AND BETTER. YOU'RE LIKE STANDING THERE GOING, HEY, YOU KNOW. NO, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW WHAT PEOPLE THE SOCIAL MEDIA ASPECT OF THIS IS SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE YOU GET OUT TO THE EVERY ONE OF THOSE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS WITHIN SECONDS. BUT YOU DID LOOK GOOD. YOU GOT THE MESSAGE OUT. YOU LITERALLY SAID WHAT WAS GOING ON AND YOU WERE AND YOU WERE THERE AT THE COMMAND POST WITH ALL OF OUR COUNTY SUPERVISORS. YOU WERE THERE WITH THE FIRE CHIEF OF LA COUNTY. THOSE ARE THE RELATIONSHIPS THAT WE HAVE, THAT WE ARE A TINY, SMALL AGENCY, BUT WE HAVE VAST RESOURCES AND WE CAN MOVE SO QUICKLY MORE THAN MOST. SO KUDOS TO YOU AND ALL OF THE STAFF CITY MANAGER DOMER YOU GUYS DID A GREAT JOB. OUR RESIDENTS HAVE HAD NOTHING BUT POSITIVE FEEDBACK AND COMMENTS. YEAH, AND I APPRECIATE THAT. MR. MAYOR AND COUNCIL AND YES, THERE'S A LOT THAT PEOPLE DON'T SEE. AND I WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR DEPARTMENTS, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC WORKS, COMMUNITY SERVICES FOR ALL THOSE THINGS THAT WE WERE PREPARING JUST IN CASE THAT NEVER CAME TO FRUITION. BUT WE WERE PREPARED FROM, YOU KNOW, EVACUATING DIFFERENT ANIMALS AND ARRANGING TRAILERS TO, YOU KNOW, ROADBLOCKS AND EVERYTHING. SO. AND CHIEF NIGG ON HIS SOCIAL MEDIA APPEARANCES. [01:25:05] DON'T GET ME WRONG, HE WAS JUST A TOOL OF POLLY SAVAGE, JENNIFER BROWN AND AARON BEILSTEIN. I WANT TO SAY, YEAH, THAT THE THREE VIDEO QUEENS THAT ABSOLUTELY PUT HIM OUT AND LITERALLY DID IT THE RIGHT WAY AND I AND THAT IS A TESTAMENT. OH, ABSOLUTELY. IT WAS GREAT. WE WERE OUT UNTIL 9:30, 10:00 THE ONE NIGHT AND TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, COMPREHEND. AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT. IT WASN'T FIRE MANAGEMENT ON OUR PART. IT WAS KIND OF PEOPLE MANAGEMENT AND TAKING WHAT WAS COMING DOWN FROM THE UNIFIED COMMAND TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS UNDERSTOOD IT AND COULD BE RECEPTIVE OF THE INFORMATION. AND THEN ONCE THAT WE A SIGNAL WENT OUT, ONCE THE WARNING, IT FLOODED OUR 911 LINES, OUR WATCH COMMANDER LINES AND THE BATTALION CHIEF LINE. AND I WANT TO CALL OUT AARON BECAUSE SHE WAS ABLE TO ON HER COMPUTER RIGHT THERE, TAKE OUR COMPUTER SYSTEM. AND THANKFULLY, THE COUNCIL HAS ALLOWED US TO UPDATE OUR TECHNOLOGY AND THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY, CHANGE MESSAGES, CREATE A PHONE TREE, AND SIPHON OFF A LOT OF CALLS THAT REALLY DOWNGRADED THE NON-EMERGENCY CALLS GOING TO THE EMERGENCY 911. SO IT TRULY WAS A TEAM EFFORT AND I APPRECIATE EVERYBODY'S WORK ON THAT. A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR THE CITY STAFF, PLEASE. AGAIN TOOK THE WIND RIGHT OUT OF MY SAILS. OUR MEDIA TEAM IS INCREDIBLE AND UNBELIEVABLE. BEHIND THE SCENES ARE AMAZING. AND I VERY 37 SECONDS. THIS IS WHAT IT'S GOT TO BE. IT'S STRAIGHT FORWARD, SO IT'S AMAZING. BUT I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO TOUCH ON ONE LAST PIECE. PREPAREDNESS IS HUGE. ACROSS THE BOARD, NOT ONLY WE OUR DEPARTMENT WITHIN THE LAST MONTH, THEY COMPLETED ALL OF OUR WILDLAND INSPECTIONS. THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS THAT ARE UP THERE IN OUR WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE FOR BEING PATIENT WITH US AND LETTING US WORK THROUGH THAT TO ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE THE DEFENSIBLE SPACE BEHIND YOUR HOMES. BUT THEN ALSO EVERYTHING THAT WE THAT WE THAT THE COG JUST TALKED ABOUT. RIGHT. THE REGIONAL SWEEP THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON IN PUBLIC WORKS AND ALL THEIR EFFORTS AT REDUCING THE FUELS AND EVERYTHING. PREPAREDNESS IS HUGE. EVACUATION WARNINGS, UNDERSTANDING THE READY SET, GO THROUGH CAL FIRE AND BASICALLY EVERYTHING THAT COMMUNITY RISK REDUCTION SPECIALIST LANI IS OUT THERE UNDER THE TENT AT EVERY SINGLE CITY EVENT HANDING OUT PAMPHLETS ABOUT SO, MR. MAYOR, ON THAT I WANT TO CALL OUT PUBLIC WORKS BECAUSE WE GOT INTO A LITTLE BIT OF TROUBLE EARLY ON WITH SOME OF OUR PARK MAINTENANCE AND PEOPLE SAYING, HEY, YOU'RE NOT ON IT AND ALL THAT STUFF, BUT IT WAS BECAUSE THEY HAD REALLOCATED EVERYTHING TO THAT CLEARANCE OF TRAILS AND OTHER ISSUES LIKE THAT. SO THAT'S WHERE THE PARK CREWS WERE KIND OF REALLOCATED AND IT WORKED. SO, YOU KNOW, WE ARE DEFENSIBLE SPACE. IT'S GREAT. AND I APPRECIATE THEIR EFFORT FOR GETTING OUT THERE WEEKS IN ADVANCE OF, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS GOING TO BE STILL A DIFFICULT YEAR. YOU CAN SEE IT, I'VE SEEN IT. A LOT OF THE AREAS HAVE BEEN CLEARED. AND AGAIN, THIS WAS A LOT OF COMMUNICATION, A LOT OF OUR STAFF RESOURCES, INCLUDING ALL OF US. COUNCIL, WE WERE UPDATED BASICALLY ALMOST EVERY COUPLE HOURS. AND IT WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE MINUTE IT WAS SOMETHING IMPORTANT, WE WOULD CLEAR IT THROUGH. THE CHIEF AND THE CITY MANAGER SAY, CAN WE PUSH THIS OUT? CAN WE PUSH THIS OUT? LET'S GET THIS TO OUR RESIDENTS. AND I THINK WE'RE ONE OF THE COMMUNITIES THAT OUR RESIDENTS GET INFORMATION. HOT OFF THE PRESS. BUT AGAIN, BE PREPARED FOR THESE EMERGENCY SITUATIONS NOW. DON'T WAIT TILL THEY HAPPEN. ALWAYS BE PREPARED. HAVE EXTRA WATER. HAVE YOUR EXTRA STUFF. BE PREPARED TO LEAVE. I MEAN, HONESTLY, BE PREPARED TO LEAVE. MY WIFE PUT ALL THIS STUFF IN ORDER. WE PACKED IT AWAY, THEN UNPACKED IT. BUT THE POINT IS, IS WE WERE READY WITH THE THINGS WE NEEDED TO. AND I TOOK MY RV AND TOOK IT DOWN TO STEVE JOHNSON'S HOUSE BECAUSE IT WAS DOWN THE HILL. YEAH, I PARKED IT THERE, BUT, I MEAN, PEOPLE WERE MOVING CARS, THEY WERE MOVING VEHICLES AND THEY WERE GETTING READY TO, YOU KNOW, PUT THEIR ANIMALS. I MEAN, HE WASN'T HOME. I WAS GOING TO MOVE INTO HIS HOUSE. ACTUALLY WE DID, LORI. BUT ANYWAY, CHIEF, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, STAFF. CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH. THIS. IT WORKED. NO ONE WAS HURT. NO ONE WAS INJURED. AND OUR STAFF IS SAFE. SO THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. THANK YOU AGAIN. AT THIS TIME, I'D ALSO LIKE TO RECOGNIZE THAT NATIONAL HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH STARTED YESTERDAY, SEPTEMBER 15TH, AND GOES THROUGH OCTOBER 15TH. THIS YEAR'S THEME, PIONEERS OF CHANGE SHAPING THE FUTURE TOGETHER, IS TIMELY CONSIDERING THE UNIVERSITY OF LA VERNE LATINO COLLEGE EXPO THAT OCCURRED THIS PAST SATURDAY. SCHOLARSHIPS WERE PROVIDED TO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS OF HISPANIC DESCENT INVESTING IN THEIR FUTURE. IT WAS A GREAT EVENT AND HIGHLIGHTS, YOU KNOW, PROBABLY TALK ABOUT THAT, AREN'T YOU? THE IMPORTANCE BEHIND CELEBRATING THE RICH CULTURAL CONTRIBUTIONS AND ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY, AND THAT. ANY OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS? COUNCIL. OKAY. MANY ANNOUNCEMENTS, UPCOMING COMMUNITY EVENTS FROM ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE. MARY, I THINK YOU HAVE ONE CARD FOR ANNOUNCEMENTS. I DO. I'M SORRY. HERE WE GO. [01:30:02] ADRIAN ROMERO AND IT'S CRYSTAL. YOU TELL ME. COME ON UP. WE ARE THE LIBRARIAN. AND YOU ARE? YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELF, PLEASE. I SURE AM. SO GOOD EVENING, MAYOR HEPBURN, MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON, ESTEEMED COUNCIL MEMBERS AND CITY STAFF. MY NAME IS CRYSTAL CHUMNEY. I'M THE REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR WITH LA COUNTY LIBRARY. I OVERSEE ALL THE COUNTY LIBRARIES AND THE EAST SAN GABRIEL VALLEY. SO I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR WELCOMING US TO THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING AND TO SHARE AN EXCITING LIBRARY UPDATE. IT GIVES ME GREAT PLEASURE TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE HAVE MADE THE APPOINTMENT OF A NEW PERMANENT COMMUNITY LIBRARY MANAGER FOR LA VERNE LIBRARY. ADRIAN ROMERO. ADRIAN HAS BEEN SERVING AS THE INTERIM COMMUNITY LIBRARY MANAGER SINCE AUGUST OF THIS YEAR. PRIOR TO HIS TIME AT LA VERNE LIBRARY, HE WAS THE LEAD ADULT SERVICES AND TEEN LIBRARIAN AT ROWLAND HEIGHTS LIBRARY FOR 17 YEARS. BEFORE JOINING LA COUNTY LIBRARY, ADRIAN WORKED AS A MEDICAL CASEWORKER FOR THE LA COUNTY UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MEDICAL CENTER, AND HE IS ALSO A MILITARY VETERAN. ADRIAN. ADRIAN BRINGS A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE, DEDICATION AND PASSION TO THIS ROLE. I KNOW HE WILL WORK HARD TO CONTINUE PROVIDING EXCELLENT LIBRARY SERVICE AND PARTNERSHIP TO THE RESIDENTS AND CITY OF LA VERNE. WE ENJOY A VERY FRUITFUL RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU, SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND I HOPE YOU WILL JOIN ME IN CONGRATULATING ADRIAN ON HIS APPOINTMENT TO THIS POSITION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. WELL, WE'RE GOING TO GET YOU IN A PICTURE FIRST OKAY. OKAY. YEAH. I JUST WANT TO. OH. OH. YOU'RE READY? GO. WELCOME LIBRARIAN. RIGHT, RIGHT. THANK YOU. YEAH. I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING IN LA VERNE AND I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT I DO HAVE SOME TIES TO LA VERNE. MY FAMILY MOVED HERE IN 1985. I LEFT IN 88 TO JOIN THE ARMY, BUT RETURNED AFTER MY ENLISTMENT AND SPENT MY 20S IN LA VERNE. SO I HAVE A LOT OF FOND MEMORIES OF LA VERNE, SO IT'S GREAT TO BE BACK. WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME. THANKS. AND I WAS HOPING I COULD INTRODUCE TWO EVENTS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE HAVING THIS MONTH. ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. ONE IS FOR ADULTS AND IS TO CELEBRATE CONSTITUTION CITIZENSHIP DAY AND WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW FROM 6 TO 7. DURING THIS PROGRAM, PEOPLE CAN SHARE WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A US CITIZEN AND MAKE A PATRIOTIC WOODEN COASTER THAT TAKES PLACE AT OUR LIBRARY TOMORROW AND TO CELEBRATE HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH. LA VERNE LIBRARY WILL BE HOLDING AN ART ACTIVITY FOR AGES 6 TO 12 ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25TH AT 5 P.M.. DURING THE SESSION, CHILDREN CAN LEARN ABOUT MONTE PAPER ART, WHICH IS AN INDIGENOUS MEXICAN ART FORM, AND CREATE THEIR OWN WORK OF ART. AND TO FIND OUT ABOUT MORE ACTIVITIES, YOU CAN ALWAYS VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT LACOUNTYLIBRARY.ORG. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU AND WELCOME. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. WE WILL MOVE ON TO CONSENT CALENDAR. MR. DOMER, DO YOU WANT TO TALK ANYTHING ABOUT THE CLASSIFICATION CHANGES TO THE UPDATE ON OUR. WE NEED TO MAKE ANY ANNOUNCEMENT ON THAT. WE CHANGED NOTHING. WE'RE GOOD. OKAY. WE WERE ON BEFORE THE TIME OF THE. OKAY. WE'RE GOOD. WITH THAT THANK YOU ALL FOR SHARING YOUR ANNOUNCEMENTS. NOW WE MOVE ON TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR. [CONSENT CALENDAR] ALL ITEMS ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR ARE ROUTINE AND WILL BE ENACTED BY ONE MOTION. UNLESS A MEMBER OF THE CITY COUNCIL OR A MEMBER OF THE AUDIENCE REQUESTS SEPARATE DISCUSSION. COUNCIL ARE THERE ANY REQUESTS? PULL AN ITEM FROM THE CONSENT CALENDAR. I WANT TO SAY THAT THERE'S THESE CONTRACTS ARE VERY INVOLVED AND I APPRECIATE STAFF'S TIME. THESE ARE VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE FOLLOW THE RULES OF ALL THESE CONTRACTS THAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW. AND I DO APPRECIATE I KNOW IT'S A LOT OF WORK FOR PUBLIC WORKS. AND I KNOW IT'S A LOT OF WORK FOR CITY MANAGEMENT. BUT IT'S IMPORTANT WE FOLLOW THE FEDERAL GUIDELINES, STATE GUIDELINES AND ALL THE GUIDELINES THAT WE DO FOR THIS. AND I DO APPRECIATE ALL THE TIME AND EFFORT FOR THIS. SO WITH THAT, DO I HAVE A MOTION? SO, MOVE. SECOND. OH, PLEASE. [01:35:02] THE CONSENT CALENDAR WAS APPROVED FIVE ZERO. I GOT IT. OKAY WITH THAT. NOW WE MOVE ON TO OTHER MATTERS. [OTHER MATTERS] THERE ARE FOUR ITEMS TONIGHT. THE FIRST MATTER IS THE RESOLUTION APPROVING A CLASS SPECIFICATION AND SALARY FOR POLICE CAPTAIN. MR. DOMER, WHO WILL BE STAFF? WHAT STAFF WILL BE WORKING ON. THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, I'D LIKE TO BRING FORWARD LIZETTE RODRIGUEZ. SHE IS OUR NEW MANAGEMENT ANALYST WITHIN THE HR DIVISION OF THE ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT. THAT'S A LONG TITLE. WELCOME, WELCOME. WELCOME AGAIN. GOOD EVENING. HONORABLE MAYOR AND COUNCIL AND CITY STAFF. I AM HERE TO PRESENT A RESOLUTION APPROVING A CLASS SPECIFICATION AND SALARY CHANGE FOR POLICE CAPTAIN. WITH THE RECENT RETIREMENT OF THE CITY'S POLICE CAPTAIN, JASON PROWSE, A COMPENSATION AND JOB ANALYSIS HAS BEEN COMPLETED IN WHICH SHOWED THE CAPTAIN'S SALARY RANGE WAS BELOW THE MARKET OF COMPARABLE AGENCIES AND HAD AN INTERNAL EQUITIES IN COORDINATION WITH POLICE, MIDDLE MANAGEMENT, HUMAN RESOURCE STAFF AND CHIEF GONZALEZ. THE RECOMMENDATION FOR THE POLICE CAPTAIN CLASSIFICATION TO BE MOVED INTO THE LA VERNE POLICE MIDDLE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION, AS WELL AS THE JOB CLASSIFICATION CHANGES TO UPDATE THE QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE. THIS RECOMMENDATION ACTION WILL CORRECT THESE ISSUES AND PROVIDE GREATER APPEAL TO HIGHER CALIBER AND EXPERIENCE APPLICANTS. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS BEYOND THE STAFF REPORT, BOTH MYSELF AND CHIEF GONZALEZ WILL BE AVAILABLE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR STAFF? NO. THEN WE'LL MOVE TO WE'LL MOVE TO PUBLIC COMMENT. WE'LL OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT. IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM? THAT WOULD BE NO. SO WE CLOSE PUBLIC. THANK YOU VERY MUCH WITH THAT. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE RESOLUTION APPROVING A CLASS SPECIFICATION SALARY FOR POLICE CAPTAIN. SECOND. SECOND. VOTE, PLEASE. THAT ITEM WAS APPROVED FIVE ZERO. EXCELLENT JOB. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. NOW MOVE TO THE SECOND MATTER. THE MODIFICATION OF THE CITY'S PURCHASING POLICY FOR FEDERAL PROCUREMENT STANDARDS AND PUBLIC PROJECTS. I THINK THAT THAT'S GOING TO BE CHRISTY LOPEZ, OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR, TO BRING FORWARD CHRISTY LOPEZ, THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT. SHE IS THE DIRECTOR. SORRY, I HAD TO JUMP AHEAD. WE KNOW WHO SHE IS. THANK YOU. HI. I RUINED THE SURPRISE, I APOLOGIZE. YEAH. SO GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. I'M HERE TO PRESENT PROPOSED UPDATES TO THE CITY'S PURCHASING POLICY. THESE CHANGES WILL ALIGN OUR APPROVAL THRESHOLDS WITH FEDERAL PROCUREMENT STANDARDS UNDER THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS AND UPDATE PUBLIC PROJECT THRESHOLDS IN LINE WITH THE CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UNIFORM PUBLIC CONSTRUCTION COST ACCOUNTING. ONE THING I DO WANT TO COVER IS THIS ISN'T A REQUIREMENT OF THE FEDERAL REGULATIONS OR THE PUBLIC CONTRACT CODE. ALL WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS ALIGN OUR THRESHOLDS. SO FOR APPROVALS WITH THEIR LIMITS THAT THEY HAVE. SO FOR FEDERAL PROCUREMENT UPDATES, THE FEDERALLY FUNDED PURCHASES, WE ARE PROPOSING THRESHOLDS BASED ON CFR 200 WHICH OVERVIEWS THE GRANT REQUIREMENTS. SO PURCHASES UP TO $75,000. WE ARE PROPOSING WOULD BE APPROVED BY DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS. AND UNDER FEDERAL PROCUREMENT, THAT IS A MICRO PURCHASE. SO IT'S A VERY SMALL PURCHASE UNDER FEDERAL GUIDELINES. THE PURCHASE BETWEEN 75,001 AND $250,000 WOULD REQUIRE CITY MANAGER APPROVAL, AND AGAIN, UNDER FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS, THAT IS A SMALL PURCHASE. AND THEN ANYTHING OVER $250,000 WOULD NEED CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL. THAT ALSO UNDER FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS, REQUIRES THAT WE GO THROUGH THE FORMAL PURCHASING POLICY OR PROCUREMENT. THIS ADJUSTMENT WILL HELP US STREAMLINE FEDERALLY FUNDED PROJECTS, PARTICULARLY GIVEN THE CITY'S FIDUCIARY ROLES WITH BOTH LA IMPACT AND LA HIDTA, WHILE ENSURING STRONG FISCAL OVERSIGHT. FOR THE PUBLIC PROJECT UPDATES, WE ARE PROPOSING THE FOLLOWING FOUR PROJECTS BETWEEN 25,000 AND 1 THROUGH $200,000, IT WILL REQUIRE CITY MANAGER APPROVAL, AND THEN ANY PROJECTS EXCEEDING $200,000 WILL NEED CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL. THESE POLICY UPDATES WILL HELP US RESPOND TO THE REALITIES OF INCREASING COSTS IN BOTH FEDERAL AND PUBLIC PROJECTS, WHILE STILL ADHERING TO ALL THE NECESSARY BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS. IMPORTANTLY, ANY PURCHASE THAT EXCEEDS THE AVAILABLE BUDGET WILL STILL REQUIRE COUNCIL APPROVAL. THIS ENSURES WE MAINTAIN FULL BUDGETARY CONTROL WHILE SIMPLIFYING PROCESSES FOR PROJECTS THAT FALL WITHIN APPROVED LIMITS, ALLOWING FOR EFFICIENT HANDLING OF SMALLER [01:40:03] PROJECTS WITHOUT SACRIFICING TRANSPARENCY. SO I RECOMMEND THE COUNCIL APPROVE THESE MODIFICATIONS TO ENSURE WE CONTINUE MANAGING PUBLIC FUNDS RESPONSIBLY WHILE IMPROVING EFFICIENCY. AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR LOPEZ. ANY QUESTIONS FOR STAFF? MR. MAYOR, JUST TO REITERATE THAT OTHER PURCHASES STILL HAVE THAT CAP OF $75,000 FOR THE CITY MANAGER. SO IF IT'S NOT A PUBLIC COST ACCOUNTING ACT, WHICH IS A PUBLIC PROJECT, CHRIS, YOU CAN ALWAYS EXPLAIN IT BETTER. BUT YES, THIS IS JUST FOR. SO THIS IS PROJECTS THAT EITHER ARE EXPENDED WITH FEDERAL FUNDS. SO FEDERAL DOLLARS OR THEY ARE PROJECTS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AS A PUBLIC PROJECT. SO THAT IS ANY IMPROVEMENT REPAIR ON PUBLIC PROPERTY WHICH WOULD BE STREETS, BUILDINGS, PARKS, ANYTHING THAT'S PUBLIC. IS WHAT WOULD FALL UNDER THAT PUBLIC PROJECT. THANK YOU. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT. ANYONE WISH TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM? YOU CAN COME UP. JUST COME ON UP TO THE MIC. JUST INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND HEAR? OH, YEAH. OKAY. JUST A QUESTION. WAS WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME IT WAS UPDATED OR REALIGNED? YES. OKAY. THAT'S IT. OKAY. YEAH, SHE'LL ANSWER THAT ONCE WE CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. ANYONE ELSE ON PUBLIC COMMENT? OKAY, WE'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. DIRECTOR LOPEZ, YOU'RE UP. YES, I'M LOOKING FOR THAT DATE. I WANT TO SAY IT'S BEEN A WHILE. 2020. BUT ACTUALLY PRINT THAT PAGE. THE LAST TIME IT WAS ACTUALLY APPROVED, IT DID COME TO COUNCIL, WHICH FOR A ADMIN REGULATION IS ACTUALLY NOT A REQUIREMENT. HOWEVER, MAYOR, AS YOU'LL REMEMBER, WE DID BRING IT BACK TO COUNCIL BECAUSE WE WANTED BOTH YOU AND THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBER THAT WAS ON THE COMMITTEE AT THE TIME TO REVIEW IT. AND. DON'T A LOT HAPPENED BETWEEN NOW AND THEN. I THINK YOU'RE CLOSE. IT WOULD. IT SAYS CURRENT PURCHASING POLICY WAS LAST UPDATED IN NOVEMBER 2020. OKAY, I GOT IT RIGHT. PERFECT. THERE YOU GO. 2020. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY QUESTIONS FOR DIRECTOR LOPEZ, PLEASE? NO. JUST COMMENT. OKAY. KNOWING THAT THOSE AMOUNTS SEEM VERY LARGE, BUT THE FEDERAL IS FOR LARGE PROJECTS THAT WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED. AND I THINK THAT'S ONE THING THAT NEEDS TO BE NOTED, THAT IF IT'S OVER BUDGET THAT WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED, THEN IT COMES BACK TO US ANYWAYS. SO WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED THESE THINGS TO HAPPEN. SO IT'S NOT JUST MORE STREAMLINED SO IT DOESN'T HAVE TO COME BACK TO US. CORRECT. YOU DO HAVE TO HAVE THE APPROPRIATIONS IN PLACE IN ORDER FOR US TO BE ABLE TO PROCEED WITH SPENDING THE FUNDS. THAT IS A REQUIREMENT. BUT IT WOULD HELP TO STREAMLINE THE PROCESS FOR THE CITY, BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF PROJECTS THAT OVER THE YEARS HAVE INCREASED IN COST YOU KNOW, A ROOF. I THINK THEY JUST REPLACED THE ROOF AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER, AND THAT WAS $98,000. AND SO THAT THOSE PROJECTS REQUIRE US TO COME BACK TO COUNCIL WHEN IF WE DO HAVE THOSE APPROPRIATIONS, IT'S WITHIN OUR CIP. IF IT'S UNDER THAT $250,000 LIMIT, IT WOULD NOT REQUIRE US TO COME BACK TO COUNCIL. AND SO IT JUST MAKES IT A LITTLE BIT QUICKER FOR US TO GET AND COMPLETE THE PROJECTS. YES. BEFORE THE RAIN COMES. YES. ANYONE ELSE WISH TO COMMENT? I THINK THAT THIS IS IMPORTANT. AS COUNCIL MEMBER CROSBY SAID, IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE PROCESS IN PLACE. WE FOLLOW WHETHER IT'S FOLLOWING THEM OR NOT. IT'S THE POINT IS WE HAVE LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY BEING SPENT AND IT'S THE TRANSPARENCY PART OF IT, BUT ALSO HAVE A PROCESS THAT WE HAVE CERTAIN STEPS AND LIMITS THAT WE HAVE TO COMES TO COUNCIL OR IT GOES TO CITY MANAGER, IT GOES TO YOU. AND I THINK IT'S GREAT. SO THERE WE GO WITH THAT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I'LL ASK FOR A MOTION. SECOND. SECOND VOTE PLEASE. THAT ITEM WAS APPROVED FIVE ZERO. VERY GOOD. NEXT ITEM IS THE PURCHASE AGREEMENT FOR PROPERTY LOCATED AT 1816 AND 1822 FIRST STREET. UTILIZING AFFORDABLE HOUSING FUNDS. MR. DOMER, PLEASE CALL FOR THE STAFF MEMBER WHO WILL BE REPORTING. [01:45:02] THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR. I'M GOING TO DO IT. WOULD YOU LIKE A COOKIE? IF IT COMES FROM COUNCIL MEMBER, MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON. ABSOLUTELY. SO THAT IS THE ONE CRITERIA? YES. MAYOR, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL IS DESCRIBED IN THE STAFF REPORT. THERE ARE TWO ADJACENT PROPERTIES THAT ARE OWNED BY THE SAME OWNER, LOCATED AT 18, 16 AND 1822 FIRST STREET. THESE HOMES WERE SUBJECT TO REPETITIVE CODE ENFORCEMENT AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTION, AT WHICH TIME IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE PROPERTY OWNERS WERE DECEASED AND THE PERSON RESIDING ON THE PROPERTY HAD NO LEGAL INTEREST IN THE PROPERTY DUE TO CODE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ISSUES. THE CITY FILED AN ACTION IN COURT FOR RECEIVERSHIP AFTER THE PROPERTIES WERE RED TAGGED FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES. IN A PREVIOUS CLOSED SESSION, CITY COUNCIL PROVIDED AUTHORITY TO SUBMIT AN OFFER TO THE COURT TO PURCHASE THE PROPERTIES AND TO ULTIMATELY DEVELOP. WE TALKED ABOUT TWO SINGLE FAMILY HOMES AS A MEANS TO BOTH PROVIDE AFFORDABLE HOME OWNERSHIP AND HELP IMPROVE THE OVERALL NEIGHBORHOOD. THE CITY WILL UTILIZE AVAILABLE LOW AND MODERATE INCOME HOUSING FUNDS. WE HAVE APPROXIMATELY $2.8 MILLION IN THOSE FUNDS FOR THAT EFFORT, AND THE GOAL IS TO WORK WITH THE DEVELOPER, MUCH LIKE WE DID ON WALNUT, TO DO AND DEVELOP THE HOUSING ON SITE. SO THE REQUEST BEFORE YOU IS TO APPROVE THE PURCHASE AGREEMENT AND APPROPRIATE $440,000 FROM FUND 226, THAT IS OUR LOW AND MODERATE HOUSING INCOME FUND FOR THE PURCHASE PRICE, WHICH IS 400,000 TO THE COURT. THAT'S WHAT IS WHAT WAS ACCEPTED AND APPROXIMATELY $40,000 FOR SOME OF THOSE ANCILLARY COSTS, CLOSING COSTS AND ALL THAT STUFF. SO IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, I'M AVAILABLE AND THE CITY ATTORNEY IS TO I THINK WE'LL OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT FIRST. ANYBODY WISH TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM? NO. WE'RE GOING TO CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. COUNCIL. MR. JOHNSON. MR. DOMER WHO ARE THOSE FUNDS ACTUALLY GOING TO IF THE OWNER COULD NOT BE IDENTIFIED? SO THE FUNDS WILL BE THERE ARE STILL MORTGAGES ON THE PROPERTY. SO THE FIRST IS GOING THERE. SO YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, YOUR FIRST HOLDERS AND SECOND HOLDERS PAY THE COURT COSTS. THERE'S ACTUALLY SOME OF THOSE COSTS ARE GOING BACK TO THE CITY FOR SOME OF OUR COSTS DURING THESE PROCEEDINGS. AND THEN OTHER RELEVANT COSTS, THERE'S THE SITES ARE DEMOLISHED AT THIS POINT. SO PAYING FOR THE DEMOLITION, REMOVAL BASICALLY THE ENVIRONMENTAL ABATEMENT OF THE PROPERTIES. SO AND ALL THAT TOGETHER ADDED UP TO THE $400,000. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT THERE'S A LITTLE BIT EXTRA THAT IS GOING TO HEIRS THAT HAS BEEN APPROVED AND BUT NOT MUCH. MOST OF IT IS GOING TO ALL THOSE ABOVE MENTIONED COSTS. MR. CROSBY. I JUST HAVE HEARD FROM THE RESIDENTS THANKING THE CITY FOR THEIR HELP IN THAT AREA AND THOSE TWO RESIDENTS THAT THE AREA IS A LOT SAFER NOW. AND THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE EVENTUALLY PLANNED TO BE THERE IS THEY'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT AND WANTED TO THANK THE POLICE AND THE DEVELOPMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT GETTING THIS WHOLE PROCESS DONE. ANYBODY ELSE? COUNCIL MEMBER LAU, COUNCIL MEMBER KASH. I'M JUST GOING TO ECHO THOSE TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S DONE PROPERLY AS FAR AS I KNOW THAT THERE WAS A FEW PEOPLE INVOLVED WITH THIS, BUT THIS PIECE OF PROPERTY WAS AN ISSUE. AND I THANK THE POLICE DEPARTMENT ALSO. WE HAD ANOTHER WE HAD AN ATTORNEY THAT WAS INVOLVED WITH THIS TOO, THAT BROUGHT THIS FORWARD, THAT DID A VERY GOOD JOB WORKING, AND THAT WAS HER SPECIALTY ON THIS PARTICULAR PIECE OF PROPERTY, BECAUSE IT WAS A PROBLEM FOR THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY. AND IT STOPPED THAT SITUATION. YES. I JUST WANTED TO SAY HER NAME IS AMANDA POPE AND SHE WORKS FOR ME. OH, I FORGOT SHE WORKED FOR YOU. WE REALLY LIKE AMANDA POPE. YEAH, SHE DID A GREAT JOB. THIS IS HER SPECIALTY. AND SHE WAS EXCEPTIONAL. AND I THANK OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR GOING THROUGH THIS. AND I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE A BENEFIT TO THE COMMUNITY. IT'S GOING TO BE GREAT FOR THAT COMMUNITY THERE. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A COUPLE HOMES THAT WE CAN SELL AT AN AFFORDABLE RATE. AND SO, YEAH, AND JUST SO THE PUBLIC KNOWS THAT ONE OF THE PROPOSALS THROUGH THE RECEIVERSHIP PROCESS WAS ACTUALLY TO DEVELOP SIX HOMES ON THAT PARCEL. AND IT WAS THE COUNCIL THAT SAID, LET'S GO TWO HOMES. LET'S MAKE SURE WE IMPROVE THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND NOT OVERBURDEN IT. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT DIRECTION. WE'RE ABLE TO DO IT. THANK GOODNESS. YOU KNOW. BUT ANYWAY IT WAS A GREAT JOB BY ALL. AND WE'RE IN A MUCH BETTER PLACE. AND NOW WE CAN SEE CLOSURE TO THAT AND THEN CLEAN THAT PROPERTY UP AND BUILD SOME GREAT HOMES IN THE COMMUNITY WILL BE WHOLE AGAIN. THANK YOU FOR ALL INVOLVED WITH THAT. IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PURCHASE AGREEMENT FOR THE PROPERTIES LOCATED AT 18, 16 AND 1822 FIRST STREET, TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS AND [01:50:04] APPROVE A RESOLUTION OF APPROPRIATING $440,000 FROM THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING FUND ACT. FUND 22 SIX. SO MOVED. SECOND. SECOND. VOTE, PLEASE. SO. THAT WAS MOTIONED BY COUNCIL OR MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON AND SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER LAU. THE VOTE WAS APPROVED FIVE ZERO. THANK YOU ALL. THE FINAL ITEM RESOLUTION RATIFYING A PROCLAMATION DECLARING THE EXISTENCE OF LOCAL EMERGENCY. CITY MANAGER DOMER, PLEASE CALL FOR THE STAFF MEMBER WHO WILL BE REPORTING ON THIS. ONCE AGAIN, I'M GOING TO DO IT. I KNOW, I KNOW, SOMETIMES I STAY BEHIND THE CURTAIN. SOMETIMES I COME OUT. OH, YEAH, THAT THAT'S I DON'T THINK THAT. BECAUSE IT WAS MY PROCLAMATION, I FIGURED I'D DO IT. BUT BASED ON THE RECENT BRIDGE FIRE AND THE EXPENDITURES INCURRED ON MANY LEVELS RESPONDING TO THE INCIDENT IN MY POWERS, UNDER THE LA VERNE MUNICIPAL CODE, SECTION 2.56.050, I ISSUED A PROCLAMATION OF LOCAL DISASTER. THE ACTION TONIGHT IS TO RATIFY THAT WHICH WILL ALLOW THE CITY TO RECOUP ELIGIBLE COSTS BASED ON THE COUNTIES, THE STATES AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S LOCAL EMERGENCY DECLARATIONS, AS YOU HEARD FIRE CHIEF NIGG SAY EARLIER. SO PER OUR MUNICIPAL CODE, THE CITY COUNCIL HAS SEVEN DAYS IN WHICH TO RATIFY MY PROCLAMATION. SO THAT IS THE REQUEST. AND THE CITY ATTORNEY AND I ARE HERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. CITY MANAGER DOMER. WE'RE GOING TO GO TO PUBLIC COMMENT. ANY PUBLIC CAN OPEN UP PUBLIC COMMENT, ANY PUBLIC COMMENT ON THIS ITEM. WITH THAT, WE'LL CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENT. COMMENTS. WHAT WOULD HAPPEN? YOU SAID THAT SEVEN DAY REQUIREMENT. WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF WE DID NOT HAVE A MEETING? WOULD WE HAVE TO HOLD A SPECIAL MEETING FOR THAT SO WE COULD RATIFY IT? YES. MR. CROSBY. COUNCIL MEMBER. CROSBY. YES. WE WOULD HAVE TO DO THAT. IT'S PART OF THE EMERGENCY STATE EMERGENCY LAW. I THINK THE LAST TIME THAT THIS COUNCIL RATIFIED A LOCAL PROCLAMATION WAS FOR COVID, AND MOST CITIES DID THAT. I JUST THINK THAT THANK YOU CITY MANAGER DELMAR, FOR DOING THIS. AND BECAUSE OF THE EFFORTS OF CHIEF NIGG AND ALL OF OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS, AND THAT NOW WE CAN HELP RECOUP SOME OF THE FUNDS THAT. WHERE WE WERE MAKING SURE THAT ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS WERE SAFE. SO APPRECIATE YOUR GUIDANCE AND QUICKLY ENACTING THAT SO THAT WE CAN HELP RECOUP SOME OF THAT MONEY BACK. I'M GOING TO TRAILER UPON THAT WITH MR. CROSBY STATEMENT. RECOUP OF FUNDS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. I KNOW THAT IT WAS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF EFFORT, TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF TIME. AND I KNOW OUR STAFF DOES A GREAT JOB, SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING THE RECOUPING OF THAT. I KNOW IT WILL TAKE SOME TIME TO GET IT BACK, BUT AGAIN, WITH THAT AND WE'RE NOT ALONE. AS FAR AS DECLARING THIS AREA A DISASTER YOU KNOW, THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA HAS AND COUNTY HAS AND IN MY BUSINESS THAT CREATES A SPECIAL ENROLLMENT PERIOD FOR INDIVIDUALS BY FOR HEALTH INSURANCE OUTSIDE OF NORMAL OPEN ENROLLMENT. THERE YOU GO. SO WITH THAT, IS THERE A MOTION TO ACCEPT AND ADOPT THE ATTACHED RESOLUTION TITLE A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL. THE CITY OF LA VERNE, CALIFORNIA, RATIFYING PROCLAMATION NUMBER 20 4-101, DECLARING THE EXISTENCE OF A LOCAL EMERGENCY. SO MOVED. SECOND. SECOND VOTE PLEASE. SO WE HAD A MOTION FROM COUNCIL MEMBER LAU AND A SECOND FROM COUNCIL MEMBER CASTILLO TO THE VOTE WAS FIVE ZERO. HAVE YOU GOT THE CARDS? CHAIR CARDS. WE NOW MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENT. [PUBLIC COMMENTS] ORAL COMMUNICATIONS. THIS IS THE TIME SET ASIDE FOR ANYONE WISHING TO ADDRESS THE CITY COUNCIL ON ITEMS NOT LISTED ON THE AGENDA, BUT WITHIN THE SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL. I WILL REMIND EVERYONE THAT THE BROWN ACT PROHIBITS THE CITY COUNCIL FROM ENGAGING IN DISCUSSION ON ANY ITEM NOT APPEARING ON THE PROPOSED AGENDA. HOWEVER, YOUR CONCERNS MAY BE REFERRED TO STAFF OR PLACED FOR DISCUSSION AT A LATER DATE. WE WILL TRY TO KEEP A THREE MINUTE TIME LIMIT FOR PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME. THOSE WISHING TO MAKE COMMENTS AND ARE PRESENT HERE IN THE CHAMBER CAN COME UP. I DO HAVE CARDS ALREADY. WE'RE GOING TO ASK JUDITH TENENBAUM TO PLEASE COME FORWARD. LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS, MOUNT BALDY AREA. WELCOME. GOOD EVENING. [01:55:01] MAYOR. COUNCIL MEMBERS. STAFF. MY NAME IS JUDITH TANNENBAUM. I'M REPRESENTING THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF THE MOUNT BALDY AREA, WHICH INCLUDES LA VERNE TEN OTHER CITIES, FIVE OF WHICH ARE IN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY. AS THE OBSERVER DIRECTOR, I'M HAPPY TO INTRODUCE CAROL LEE MARSHALL AS THE OBSERVER FOR THE LA VERNE CITY COUNCIL. CAROL LEE BEGINS HER DUTIES TONIGHT. YOU HAVE NOT BEEN SINGLED OUT FOR THIS DISTINCTION TO HAVE AN OBSERVER. WE HAVE OBSERVERS AT BONITA UNIFIED. CLAREMONT UNIFIED. CHINO VALLEY UNIFIED. SCHOOL DISTRICTS. OTHER CITY COUNCILS. TRI-CITY MENTAL HEALTH CENTER AND THE WATER DISTRICT AND A FEW CITY COMMISSIONS. THE LEAGUE OBSERVER CORPS HELPS ENSURE CITIZENS ARE AWARE OF THE DECISIONS THAT IMPACT THEIR LIVES. THEY PROMOTE GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY. OBSERVERS ARE THERE TO OBSERVE, NOT TO VOICE AN OPINION. OBSERVERS MAY ASK QUESTIONS FOR CLARIFICATION, INFORMATION OR KNOWLEDGE WITH AN IMPARTIAL ATTITUDE. IDEALLY, OBSERVERS MONITOR BOTH THE ISSUES BEING DISCUSSED AS WELL AS THE PROCESS BY WHICH THEY'RE BEING DISCUSSED. IT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE THAT MOST OBSERVERS GAIN A GREAT APPRECIATION FOR THE SERVICE PERFORMED BY THE INDIVIDUALS OF THE VARIOUS AGENCIES, SO THANK YOU FOR WELCOMING OUR SERVICE. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, WE'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER THEM. BUT I'D LIKE TO LET CAROL LEE SHARE HER BACKGROUND WITH YOU, AND THIS MAY BE THE LAST TIME YOU HEAR HER VOICE IN THIS CHAMBER. WE HOPE NOT. SO I'M JUST MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND STAFF. I'VE LIVED IN LA VERNE FOR 22 YEARS. WHEN I FIRST ARRIVED, I HAD A FIRST GRADER AT OAK MESA AND I WASN'T ABLE TO WORK BECAUSE I'M CANADIAN AND I'M USED TO WORKING. SO I GOT VERY INVOLVED AT OAK MESA IN THE PTA. I INTRODUCED THE DIRECT DONATION FUNDRAISER THAT CONTINUES TO BE USED TO THIS DAY BECAUSE IT WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL. I WENT ON TO RAMONA AND WAS, WELL, MY CHILD WENT TO RAMONA, AND THEN I WAS THE PTA PRESIDENT AT RAMONA. WHEN I DID HAVE A GREEN CARD, I STARTED TO WORK AT WEIGHT WATCHERS AND RAN MEETINGS AT THE CENTER HERE AND ALSO IN CORPORATIONS IN THE AREA. AND ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO, I BECAME A LIBRARIAN AT CLAREMONT UNIFIED IN THE CLAREMONT UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. I WAS AT VISTA DEL VALLE, AND I RETIRED FROM THAT JOB A YEAR AGO, AND I TOOK ON BEING THE OBSERVER AT BECAUSE JUDITH DID SUCH A GREAT JOB AT THE CLAREMONT UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT. I TOOK ON BENITA AND I FOUND IT REALLY, REALLY INTERESTING AND I KNEW THERE WASN'T AN OBSERVER HERE. SO I VOLUNTEERED BECAUSE I'D LIKE TO LEARN MORE. I'VE BEEN GETTING THE NEW NEWSLETTERS FROM THE CITY MANAGER. THOSE ARE REALLY WELL DONE. I APPRECIATE THE UPDATES ON SOCIAL MEDIA. I DO LIVE IN NORTH LA VERNE, SO LAST WEEK WAS EVERYTHING YOU'VE TALKED ABOUT HERE. I CERTAINLY DID APPRECIATE IN TERMS OF WHAT HAPPENED. SO I'M VERY INTERESTED IN COMING TWICE A MONTH TO YOUR MEETINGS AND. WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME. THANK YOU, ELI TIRADO. ALL RIGHT. GOOD EVENING. MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL STAFF. MY NAME IS ELI TIRADO, AND I JUST WANTED TO ANNOUNCE MY CANDIDACY FOR BONITA UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT AS A MEMBER FOR TRUSTEE DISTRICT FOUR. SO. AND I'M LOOKING FORWARD FOR THIS. THIS IS MY FIRST TIME DOING ANYTHING LIKE THIS. BUT I'M EXCITED ABOUT IT. ACTUALLY, IT'S WORKING OUT PRETTY GOOD SO FAR. AND I I THANK THE TEAM THAT'S BEHIND ME, AND JUST LOOKING FORWARD. AND I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN OBSERVER FROM CANADA. SO I'M NOT WELL. BUT SO. AND PRETTY MUCH, THOUGH I'M EXCITED ABOUT DOING IT AND WORKING WITH THE UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT AND HOPING TO MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT WITH THE BOARD. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE YOU COMING. MARK ARVIDSON. DID I SAY THAT RIGHT? SON OF ARVID. ARVID, SON? YES. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MY NAME IS DOCTOR MARK ARVIDSON, AND I'M RUNNING FOR THE SCHOOL BOARD AREA FIVE. AND SO GREETINGS TO YOU, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. APPRECIATE THE TIME. JUST TO HAVE A FEW MINUTES TO INTRODUCE MYSELF. WANTED TO GIVE A FEW DETAILS. OTHER THAN JUST HAVING MY NAME ON A SIGN. I'M A LONGTIME MATH TEACHER. [02:00:01] DID ABOUT A DECADE IN BALDWIN PARK. RAN THE GATE PROGRAM THERE FOR GIFTED AND TALENTED AND HAD A GREAT, GREAT RIDE. I WAS TEACHER OF THE YEAR THERE AND ALSO GOT A COMMENDATION BY THE MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES FOR EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING. AND I HAD A HANDFUL OF STUDENTS GO TO HARVARD, TO STANFORD, TO THE BERKELEY AND EVEN OUR LOCAL JUNIOR COLLEGES. SO VERY PLEASED WITH THAT RESULT AND THE PROCESS OF ALL THAT. I GOT RECRUITED TO WORK AT APU WHEN I FINISHED MY PHD IN MATH STUFF. THEY WANTED A STEM PROFESSOR TO RUN AND TRAIN TEACHERS, AND SO THAT'S KIND OF WHAT I'M DOING NOW. I'VE BEEN THERE ALMOST 30 YEARS, AND MY MAIN JOB IS TRAINING MATH TEACHERS FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, FOR HIGH SCHOOL, AND ALSO FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE. SO THAT'S KIND OF THE MAIN LANE I RUN IN. I'M ALSO DEVELOPED A MATH PROGRAM FOR DEVELOPMENTAL STUDENTS, MATH CENTER, AND I ALSO DO THE DIRECTOR OF THE MATH FELLOWS PROGRAM, WHICH IS LIKE GATE FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS. SO I'VE KIND OF RUN THE SPECTRUM ON ALL THAT. ON A PERSONAL NOTE, I'VE LIVED IN LA VERNE FOR OVER TWO DECADES, AND MY WIFE IS A KINDERGARTEN TEACHER, AND OUR KIDS HAVE TRANSITIONED THROUGH BONITA SCHOOLS. MY YOUNGEST IS AT BONITA HIGH SCHOOL AT PRESENT, AND THE OTHER KIDS HAVE MATRICULATED THROUGH. I HAD ONE STUDENT, ACTUALLY, ONE CHILD, ACTUALLY GO THROUGH SAN DIMAS HIGH SCHOOL, AND HE'S OUR SPECIAL NEEDS SON. HE'S GOT DOWN SYNDROME. SO IN TERMS OF WHAT I HAVE TO OFFER, OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF EXPERIENCE ON THE EDUCATIONAL END OF THINGS AND THEN ON THE PERSONAL END OF THINGS TO RUN THE SPECTRUM FROM BEING VERY CONCERNED ABOUT MEETING THE NEEDS OF SPECIAL NEEDS STUDENTS IN OUR SCHOOLS, AS WELL AS HIGH ACHIEVING STUDENTS, GIVEN THAT SOME OF MY KIDS ARE IN GATE AND HAVE, YOU KNOW, GONE ALONG TO UNIVERSITY. SO THAT'S KIND OF IT FOR MARK ARVIDSON. AND ARE ANY OF YOU GUYS LIVING IN AREA FIVE? NOBODY. STEVE. STEVE. AREA FIVE. I NEED TO SEE A MAP. OH, OKAY. WELL, APPARENTLY WHAT THEY TELL ME. IT'S LIKE EAST OF WHEELER AND SOUTH OF GOLDEN HILLS AND ALL THE WAY DOWN TO BONITA HIGH SCHOOL. KIND OF EAST OF FRUIT. YEAH, PROBABLY. YES. YES. CAN I GIVE YOU A CARD? PERFECT. THANK YOU. THE SHAMELESS PLUG. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. I'M AT DOCTORMARKFORBONITA.COM. THERE YOU GO. SO APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. LADIES, GENTLEMEN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. SO MUCH. PLEASURE TO MEET YOU. YEP. ANYONE ELSE ON PUBLIC COMMENT? PLEASE. COME ON UP. MISS TYNER. MAYOR AND COUNCIL. I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY, ESPECIALLY YOU, MAYOR, CHIEF NIGG, CHIEF GONZALEZ, FOR ALL THEIR EFFORTS, FOR THEIR SLEEPLESS NIGHTS. I GOT TO SLEEP AT NIGHT. I'M SURE A LOT OF YOU DIDN'T. BECAUSE OF ALL THE EFFORTS FOR THE EFFORTS IN FIGHTING THE FIRES AND KEEPING EVERYONE AWARE. IT HELPED ME SLEEP WELL AT NIGHT, AND I'M SURE IT HELPED A LOT OF PEOPLE. EXCUSE MY VOICE, I WAS CHOKING WATER. THAT'S WHAT I WAS CHOKING ON. MAYBE. MAYBE IT'S MAYBE. MAYBE IT'S NOT WATER. YOU'RE TRYING TO DO IT. NO, I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. I THANK YOU IS SO SMALL, CONSIDERING WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED. SO THAT'S ALL I CAN DO IS SAY THANK YOU AND CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR THOSE THAT CONTINUE TO FIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I KNOW WE'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO COMMENT ON IT, BUT THIS IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT IT TAKES A VILLAGE AND WE REALLY HAVE A GOOD VILLAGE. OH OBVIOUSLY. YEAH, OBVIOUSLY. AND THEY REALLY APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS. AND SO DO WE. EVERYBODY WAS WORKING VERY DILIGENTLY, BUT IT WAS A ROUGH SPOT FOR A FEW WEEKS HERE AND ROUGH. I'M SURE THAT IT WAS. BUT THANK YOU. AND FOR ALL THE EFFORTS OF THINGS THAT WE DON'T EVEN KNOW GO ON, LIKE YOU WERE SAYING, PLANNING THE GETTING TRAILERS READY FOR ANIMALS AND THINGS LIKE THAT THAT WE DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT WE'RE GOING INTO PLAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS. THEY REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND SO DO WE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND CLOSE PUBLIC COMMENTS. WE NOW MOVE TO COUNCIL COMMENTS AND CONFERENCE AND MEETING REPORTS. [COUNCIL COMMENTS AND CONFERENCE/MEETING REPORTS] COUNCIL MEMBER LAU. THANK YOU. SO FIRST AND FOREMOST, I KNOW IT'S BEEN SAID, BUT I THINK IT BEARS REPEATING. YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH TO CHIEF NIGG, TO CHIEF GONZALEZ, TO CITY MANAGER DOMER. I THINK THEY WORKED SO QUICKLY TO MOBILIZE. NORMALLY WE GET OUR INFORMATION VIA EMAIL, BUT GIVEN THE VIRULENCE OF THE FIRE AND HOW QUICKLY IT WAS SPREADING, WE SWITCHED TO TEXT. [02:05:08] SO WE WERE GETTING REGULAR UPDATES ON EVERYTHING AND THAT WAS HELPFUL TO ASSUAGE, I THINK, CONCERNS OF CITIZENS WHEN THEY ASKED THE REPEATED SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE WAS REALLY EASY FOR US TO REPOST AND SHARE TO FOLKS, AND I THINK THAT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE. AND I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I DID WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, AND I KNOW CHIEF NIGG MENTIONED IT, BUT I WANT TO REINFORCE THIS. MY SISTER LIVES WITH MY NEPHEWS OVER BY WHERE THE LINE FIRE WAS, OVER BY UPLAND, AND TRYING TO KEEP TRACK OF HER AND KEEP TRACK OF WHATEVER WAS HAPPENING IN THE LA VERNE, THERE WAS A MARKED DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE INFORMATION THAT WAS BEING DISSEMINATED TO HER COMMUNITY VERSUS WHAT WAS HAPPENING HERE. AND I, YOU KNOW, I DON'T WANT TO TAKE THAT FOR GRANTED BECAUSE IT DOES TAKE AN ENTIRE VILLAGE TO MAKE IT HAPPEN. AND I KNOW THAT AS SCARY AS IT WAS, AND IT CONTINUES TO BE FOR FOLKS THAT ARE STILL CLOSE TO THE FIRE, I THINK IT WAS VERY HELPFUL FOR THAT INFORMATION TO BE DISSEMINATED IN REAL TIME. AND I KNOW THAT AND POOR CHIEF NIGG, I HAD SOMEONE COMMENT TO ME ON A SOCIAL MEDIA ABOUT A SOCIAL MEDIA AND SAID, YOU KNOW, THIS IS SO GREAT THAT HE'S SHARING THIS, BUT I THINK HIS BAGS UNDER HIS EYES ARE GETTING WORSE. LIKE, IS THIS IS THE POOR MAN GOING TO BE ABLE TO REST? AND I DON'T SAY THAT TO BE MEAN. I SAY THAT LIKE HE THINK OF ALL THE HOURS. WHAT ABOUT THE THREE QUEENS? THEY OBVIOUSLY DIDN'T MAKE UP HIM. COME ON MAN. BUT I THINK THAT SHOWS YOU HOW HARD, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY CHIEF NIGG WAS WORKING, BUT CHIEF GONZALEZ, OUR DEPARTMENT HEADS, EVERYBODY, YOU KNOW, OUR PUBLIC WORKS, YOU KNOW, BEHIND THE SCENES. AND SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK THE CITY'S BEEN REALLY GOOD ABOUT IT, BUT, YOU KNOW, LET'S ALL GIVE A LITTLE GRACE. IF THINGS AREN'T THE REGULAR THINGS AREN'T HAPPENING MAYBE AS QUICKLY AS WE WOULD LIKE. THEY HAVE BEEN SO DEDICATED TO DOING THE WORK BEHIND THE SCENES TO KEEP US APPRIZED OF WHAT'S GOING ON. AND SO THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. IT'S BEEN INCREDIBLE. AND IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU GIVING OUT ALL THAT INFORMATION, I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO HELP SHARE THAT WITH MY SISTER BECAUSE SHE CLEARLY WASN'T GETTING IT, UNFORTUNATELY, FROM WHERE SHE LIVES. SO YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN HIS HAIR BY THE END OF THAT NIGHT. OH, IT'S A CHEAP SHOT AT SAM. SO IN THE CROWD. BOOM, BOOM. SO THANK YOU. I'M SORRY. THE HAIR IS REFERRED TO AS WEEKEND HAIR, BY THE WAY BY MY ANALYSTS. BUT NO, ON A SERIOUS NOTE, IT'S A VERY DELICATE BALANCE BETWEEN WHAT INFORMATION CAN BE GIVEN OUT. WHAT IS A LOT OF STUFF WE HAVE TO GET APPROVED BY THE INCIDENT, FRANKLY. AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S IT WAS MY INTENT TO TRY AND GET AS MUCH OUT AS I COULD WHILE ALSO ENSURING THAT THERE WASN'T INFORMATION THAT CAN'T BE OUT THERE YET AT THE SAME TIME. SO THAT'S ALWAYS A BALANCE. THAT CITY'S WALK AS A FULL SERVICE CITY, LA VERNE IS VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE ITS OWN FIRE DEPARTMENT, TO BE ABLE TO WADE THROUGH THAT AND GET THAT INFO TO YOU SOONER, WHEREAS I BELIEVE UPLAND IS A CONTRACT DEPARTMENT. SO A LOT OF DYNAMICS. SO BUT ON THAT I WANT TO MENTION THAT IT TAKES SOMEBODY TO ASK TO GET THAT INFORMATION AND TO PUT THEMSELVES INTO PLACE. AND CHIEF NIGG AND HIS CREW WERE EMBEDDED WERE ASKING WERE, YOU KNOW, ON THE SPOT THE WHOLE TIME. AND WE WERE ACTUALLY SHARING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO THE EAST AND WEST TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAD THE SAME INFORMATION. SO AND I NEED A MAKEUP TEAM. APPARENTLY NOT ALL IT MEANS IS YOU NEED TO. WE JUST NEED TO MAKE SURE YOU GET SOME REST. THAT'S ALL. PUT IN THERE REQUEST. A MAKEUP. OH, OKAY. BACK TO SQUARE. SORRY. SO THE OTHER THING I DID WANT TO REPORT BACK ON. I KNOW THE MAYOR DID MENTION THIS EARLIER IN HIS OPENING REMARKS ABOUT IT BEING HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH. IT DID JUST START YESTERDAY AND IT WILL GO THROUGH OCTOBER 15TH, WHICH IS BOTH MY BIRTHDAY AND YOUR SON'S BIRTHDAY. RIGHT. OR. YES. YEAH. SEE OH MY. OH MY GOSH. LOOK AT THAT. THAT IS LIKE YES IT'S YOUR KID. SORRY, BUT YOU'RE JUST GETTING US ALL IN TROUBLE. MY BAD. MY BAD, GUYS. MY BAD. ANYTHING ELSE? NO. WELL, HOLD ON, I GOT A WHOLE LIST. HOLD ON. NO. BUT IT IS A GREAT MONTH TO REMEMBER SOME OF THE ROOTS OF OUR CITY. FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT DON'T KNOW, WE STILL HAVE RESIDENTS IN OUR CITY WHO LIVED THROUGH SEGREGATION IN OUR SCHOOLS, WHO CAME, WHOSE FAMILIES CAME HERE AS MIGRANTS TO HELP WORK IN THE AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY, WHICH HAS REALLY SHAPED OUR CITY AND OUR SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES. SO I THINK IT'S A GREAT TIME TO HONOR THEM AND TO RECOGNIZE THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS AND THEIR ACCOMPLISHMENTS THAT THEY'VE SHARED WITH OUR COMMUNITY. ON THAT NOTE, THE LATINO COLLEGE EXPO WAS HELD ON SATURDAY, WHICH WAS THE DAY BEFORE HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH. AND SO IF ANY OF YOU LIVE BY THE UNIVERSITY, I KNOW THEY DID A BIG PUSH TO GET INFORMATION OUT TO THE RESIDENTS. WHILE IT WAS CALLED THE LATINO COLLEGE EXPO, IT WAS OPEN TO ANY STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES THAT WISH TO ATTEND. SO LOTS OF STUDENTS WERE BEING BUSSED IN FROM DIFFERENT SCHOOL DISTRICTS CONEJO VALLEY, COMPTON, YOU KNOW, LA EVERYWHERE. [02:10:06] AND WHAT WAS REALLY AMAZING WAS THERE WERE 75 DIFFERENT UNIVERSITIES, COLLEGES, VOCATIONAL SCHOOLS, TRAINING MILITARY COUNTY FIRE WAS THERE. AND SO IT PRESENTED DIFFERENT PATHWAYS TO STUDENTS TO THINK ABOUT THEIR CAREER TRAJECTORIES, WHAT THEY WANT TO DO AFTER THEY LEAVE HIGH SCHOOL. SO IT WAS A REALLY EXCITING TIME. IT WAS FREE. PEOPLE JUST HAD TO COME REGISTER. SO THERE WERE ON THE SPOT APPLICATIONS FOR SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES. SO REALLY GREAT EVENT. WHAT I WAS TOLD WAS 5400 PEOPLE REGISTERED. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE ACTUALLY MADE IT THROUGH, BUT IT WAS A FOUR HOUR EVENT. I HAVE TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO THE POLICE FOR HAVING A PRESENCE AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT EVERYTHING WAS RUNNING SMOOTHLY. SO YES. SO TO RALPH AND TO OFFICER WELLER, I THINK THAT WERE OUT THERE THEY DID A GREAT JOB, BUT THIS IS HOPEFULLY ONE OF MANY EVENTS THAT WE CAN LOOK FORWARD TO THAT REALLY BRING SOME NOTORIETY TO THE TO OUR COMMUNITY TO SAY, HEY, THIS IS WHERE WE CAN SHARE RESOURCES, AND THIS IS WHERE WE CAN SHARE INFORMATION WITH OUR FAMILIES. AND NOT JUST IN THE LA VERNE COMMUNITY, BUT THROUGHOUT SAN GABRIEL VALLEY AND FURTHER. SO IT WAS REALLY EXCITING, REALLY INTERESTING. AND I WILL DO A SHAMELESS PLUG FOR A LITTLE GIRL NAMED ELLIE. SHE'S NINE YEARS OLD. SHE HAD A BOOTH AT THE LATIN LATINO COLLEGE EXPO. SHE IS NINE YEARS OLD AND DOES A GUMMIES IN CHAMOY. SO SHE, YOU KNOW, SHE MAKES CANDY AND SHE SELLS IT, AND SHE'S RAISING MONEY FOR HER COLLEGE FUND. AND SO IF YOU WANT TO FOLLOW HER, IT'S ELLIE'S. I THINK IT'S ELLIE'S YUMMY GUMMIES ON INSTAGRAM. BUT SHE WANTS TO BE A HOMICIDE DETECTIVE. I TOLD RALPH, AND, YOU KNOW, OFFICER WALLER THAT. AND SO I HOPE THEY GOT A CHANCE TO MEET HER. BUT JUST A REALLY ENTREPRENEURIAL YOUNG LADY DOING AMAZING THINGS I'M SURE MY PARENTS WISH THAT I HAD, YOU KNOW, STARTED A BUSINESS AT NINE AND PAID FOR MY OWN TUITION BY COSTING HIM SO MUCH. I KNOW, YOU KNOW, YOU TRY, BUT REALLY GREAT EVENT. I ALSO WANTED TO ANNOUNCE THAT TOMORROW IS NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DAY, AND THE UNIVERSITY OF LA VERNE IS PARTNERING WITH THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS. THEN ACP CASSIE AND A NUMBER OF OTHER LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS TO HOST A NONPARTISAN VOTER SIGN UP. SO IF YOU ARE BY THE UNIVERSITY OF LA VERNE CAMPUS, THERE WILL BE A BOOTH OUT SO YOU CAN CHECK YOUR REGISTRATION. YOU CAN ASK HOW TO REGISTER IF YOU DON'T KNOW HOW TO REGISTER TO VOTE, AND IT WILL HAVE INFORMATION AVAILABLE THERE TO YOU. SO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, THAT IS HAPPENING TOMORROW. AND THEN JUST AS A REMINDER FOR ANYONE WHO MIGHT NOT KNOW, THE UNIVERSITY IS A VOTE CENTER, SO THEY WILL BE OPEN, I BELIEVE FOUR DAYS BEFORE ELECTION DAY. SO YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO ON CAMPUS AND VOTE IF THAT IS THE CLOSEST VOTE CENTER TO YOU. YES. AND THEN ONE OTHER REMINDER IS I MENTIONED AT THE LAST MEETING THAT TRI-CITY MENTAL HEALTH AUTHORITY IS SEARCHING FOR AN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. SO IF YOU KNOW OF ANYBODY WHO IS INTERESTED IN APPLYING FOR THAT POSITION, THAT POSITION WILL REMAIN OPEN UNTIL FILLED. AND SO YOU CAN LOOK ON THE TRI-CITY MENTAL HEALTH WEBSITE FOR INFORMATION. SO IF YOU HAVE ANY FRIENDS WHO WORK IN HEALTHCARE OR ARE INTERESTED IN PUBLIC HEALTH, MENTAL HEALTH, THAT IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO BE ENGAGED. AND UNFORTUNATELY, TO END SORT OF ON A A LITTLE BIT OF A SAD NOTE, I DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF YOU HAVE HEARD ABOUT EMILY GOULD, WHO PASSED AWAY. I KNOW A LOT OF OUR STUDENTS IN THE AREA ARE AWARE OF WHO SHE IS, BUT SHE WAS A SENIOR AT LOS OSOS AND UNFORTUNATELY COMMITTED SUICIDE ON FRIDAY NIGHT. SO I MENTIONED THAT BECAUSE BY ALL ACCOUNTS, IF YOU WERE TO LOOK AT HER PICTURES OR TO LOOK AT ANY OF THE THINGS THAT SHE POSTED, SHE LOOKED LIKE A HAPPY KID. AND IT'S JUST REALLY SAD. AND SO I SAY THAT BECAUSE SEPTEMBER IS ALSO SUICIDE PREVENTION MONTH. AND SO, YOU KNOW, I WOULD ENCOURAGE FOLKS THAT, YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ASK HOW SOMEONE IS, LISTEN, YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT COULD BE AFFECTING SOMEONE. IT'S JUST SUCH A SHAME. AND SO, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY DOES THIS AFFECT OBVIOUSLY HER FAMILY, BUT A LOT OF HER FRIENDS AND A LOT OF HER PEERS. AND SO IT'S REALLY HEARTBREAKING. SO I ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY TO, YOU KNOW, REMAIN KIND AND COMPASSIONATE AND TO, YOU KNOW, JUST CONTINUE TO BE THE GOOD HUMANS THAT YOU ARE. SO HAVE A GREAT WEEK. AND THAT IS IT FOR ME. THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER LOWELL, MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON. MY WIFE AND I WERE OUT OF TOWN LAST WEEK ON A PLANNED TRIP. AND WE WERE FOLLOWING EVERYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON HERE FOR BOTH THE LION FIRE, THE BRIDGE FIRE AND THE LAKE FIRE. IT LOOKED SCARY, AND I SO APPRECIATED THE UPDATES, THE TEXTS THAT WE WERE RECEIVING. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE AN AMAZING DEPARTMENT OR DEPARTMENTS, BOTH FIRE AND POLICE. [02:15:09] AND I OWE YOU GUYS, I OWE YOU GUYS COOKIES. OH, YES. YES. PUT IT OUT THERE, MR. JOHNSON. HE'S NOT GETTING ANY. IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE IN THE DEPARTMENT WHEN THEY HAD THEM, YOU MIGHT SNAG ONE. BUT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WORK HARDER ON THAT. BUT. OH, HE DOESN'T MIND. HE'S. HE'S THE KING. THE UPDATES WERE AMAZING TO KEEP US INFORMED. I SO APPRECIATE IT. AND I APPRECIATE EVERYTHING YOU GUYS DO. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON COUNCIL MEMBER CROSBY HAVE QUITE A BIT OF ANNOUNCEMENTS. ON SEPTEMBER 28TH. SENATOR RUBIO IS DOING THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY GIRLS SUMMIT. IT'S GOING TO BE IN THE DOUGHERTY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER. SO IF YOU HAVE ANY FEMALE STUDENTS WANT TO GO, IT IS FREE. AND IT'S A GREAT EVENT THAT SHE DOES EVERY YEAR. I WANT TO WELCOME ADRIAN. THANK YOU. HIS. TODAY IS DAY ONE. INTERIM TAG IS OFF. YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB FOR OUR LIBRARY. APPRECIATE YOU. NOT ONLY THANKING OUR FIRST RESPONDERS. I JUST WANT TO REALLY MAKE SURE. WHEN INFORMATION IS GOING OUT, I ALWAYS SEND PEOPLE TO THE MAYOR'S SOCIAL MEDIA. BECAUSE THE MAYOR REALLY DOES A GREAT JOB IN PUTTING THINGS OUT, AND IT'S NOT ACKNOWLEDGED ENOUGH OF THE INFORMATION THAT YOU REALLY PUT OUT. SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE AND ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AS WELL. EVERYONE ELSE HAS TOUCHED THEM. BUT YOU REALLY SPREADING THE WORD OUT THERE TO, WHEN PEOPLE ASK ME, I SAID, REALLY GOING THROUGH ONE VOICE RATHER THAN EVERYONE ELSE'S. IT'S REALLY THAT WE'RE ALL ONE. AND SO POINTING THEM TO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA AND YOU'RE DOING YOUR MINUTE OF THE MAYOR AND REALLY KEEPING PEOPLE ACTIVE, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE HELICOPTERS START COMING OVER, YOU KNOW, THE CALLS ARE COMING AND HAPPENING AND REALLY APPRECIATE THAT WHEN YOU GET YOUR WIFE SAYING, HONEY, THERE'S HELICOPTERS AND PEOPLE ARE CALLING ME, WHAT'S GOING ON? IT'S LIKE, OKAY, TIME FOR A MINUTE WITH THE MAYOR. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK FOR THE STUDY SESSION DONE TODAY ON THE GENERAL PLAN. I KNOW I'M NOT ALWAYS THE MOST ADVOCATE FOR STUDY SESSIONS, BUT IT IS A PLAN THAT WE'VE BEEN IN PROCESS. AND MY QUESTIONS THERE, I KNOW IT'S BEEN TAKEN A LONG TIME, AND WE'VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR SEVEN YEARS AND FINALLY GETTING IT COMPLETED. BUT THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS BEEN HAPPENING THROUGHOUT THAT. BUT SO PLEASE NOTE IF YOU HAVE COMMENTS ON OUR GENERAL PLAN ON THOSE PUBLIC COMMENTS CAN BE MADE UP TO NEXT MONDAY AT 5 P.M. AND THEY NEED TO BE WRITTEN COMMENTS. AND YOU COULD FIND THAT ON OUR CITY WEBSITE AS WELL UNDER GENERAL PLAN. SO THAT WE HAD THAT THIS MORNING AND THE VIDEO WILL BE UP ABOUT THE STUDY SESSION AS WELL. YESTERDAY WAS OUR AUTISM SPECTRUM ATHLETICS. IT WASN'T OPENING DAY WAS FOR OUR SKILLS ASSESSMENT THAT THEY HAD UP THERE. IT'S A NEW YOUTH SPORTS FOR PEOPLE ON THE SPECTRUM AND OTHER DISABILITIES THERE UP AT OAK MESA ON SUNDAYS. OPENING THIS WEEK WILL THEY'LL HAVE PRACTICE AND OPENING DAY WILL HAPPEN ON OCTOBER 6TH AT 2 P.M. FOR SOCCER AND 3 P.M. FOR FLAG FOOTBALL. FOR THOSE WHO CAN ATTEND, PLEASE DO. UNFORTUNATELY IT IS PARENTS WEEKEND AT SONOMA STATE, WHICH I WILL BE AT THAT BECAUSE I HAVEN'T SEEN MY DAUGHTER IN OVER A MONTH AND I WILL BE MISSING. BUT HAS SHE CALLED YOU TWICE TODAY? OKAY. OR MAYBE ME CALLING HER. YOU KNOW WHO'S COUNTING? YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A TENDENCY TO SAY I HAVE PARENTS. YEAH. YEAH. SO THOUGH I WILL NOT BE PRESENT ON THE OCTOBER 7TH MEETING BECAUSE SHE'LL BE PLAYING GOLF THAT DAY. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO SEE THE FIRST ROUND AND THEN DRIVE HOME. AND THEN I ALSO WILL NOT BE PRESENT ON THE OCTOBER 21ST MEETING BECAUSE SHE'LL BE PLAYING IN HAWAII. AND THERE'S, I MEAN, AND WE'RE SUPPOSED TO FEEL REALLY BAD. MOM AND I NEED TO REALLY GO OH, SO SAD, SO BAD. BUT IF ANYBODY ELSE WANTS TO SUPPORT, WE CAN GO TO THAT. BUT I WILL BE ATTENDING ON OCTOBER 9TH THROUGH THE 12TH. THE JPIA CONFERENCE AND RISK MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE FOR THE CITY WITH SOME CITY STAFF AS WELL. SO ALTHOUGH I WILL NOT BE AT THOSE TWO COUNCIL MEETINGS, I WILL STILL BE PRESENT AND MAKING SURE TO FOLLOW IT UP. SO THANK YOU AND THAT'S IT. THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER CROSBY. [02:20:02] COUNCIL MEMBER KASH. NICE HAIRCUT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I HAD A COUPLE OF WEEKS OF ARMY DUTY THAT, YOU KNOW, ONE TWO WEEKS OUT OF THE YEAR TURNS TO THREE FOUR. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. A YEAR AND A HALF. GOD BLESS YOU. APPRECIATE YOU AND BLESS EVERYBODY. AGAIN, THANKS TO OUR AMAZING FIRST RESPONDERS AND OUR CITY STAFF THAT WERE OUT THERE DILIGENTLY AND WORKING HARD TO KEEP EVERYBODY SAFE AS THEY CAN. I APPRECIATE GETTING THE MESSAGE OUT THERE. MAYOR, I KNOW YOU. YOU'RE OUT THERE INSTRUMENTAL GIVING OUT INFORMATION TO EVERYBODY. I WAS TRYING TO FEED YOU INFORMATION AS THE HELICOPTERS WERE FLYING OVERHEAD. JUST KIND OF REMINDED ME OF IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN. AS THEY KEPT FLYING OVER, I WAS LIKE, OH, MAN, HERE WE GO. IT WAS IT WAS A GOOD TIME TO SEE THAT. JUST KIND OF SEEING EVERYBODY WORKING TOGETHER, SEEING THE HELICOPTERS, HOW THEY'RE COORDINATED ALWAYS FASCINATES ME HOW THEY'RE ABLE TO. I THINK THEY CALL IT THE AIR BOSS THAT'S OUT THERE ON THE TOP, NAVIGATING ALL THE. SCOOPER ONE AND THEN. NAVIGATING ALL THE DIFFERENT HELICOPTERS. REALLY AMAZING SIGHT TO SEE HOW THAT GETS DONE. AND AGAIN IN HONOR OF OUR HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH, WHICH IS SPECIAL, SHOUT OUT TO EVERYBODY THAT'S THERE. AND ONE LAST THING. I AM PART OF THE MOSQUITO VECTOR CONTROL BOARD. SO IF YOU HAVE A NEED FOR MOSQUITO FISH, WHICH I LEARNED IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US. THE VECTOR CONTROL BOARD WOULD LOVE TO GIVE YOU SOME AND SHARE THAT WITH YOU. SO LET US KNOW AND I'LL GET YOU THAT CONTACT INFORMATION. IF YOU HAVE A POND OR SOMETHING THAT YOU NEED A MOSQUITO FISH. WE GOT THAT THERE. AND YOU KNOW WHAT? I'D BE REMISS WITHOUT SAYING ONE LAST THING, MAYOR, IF I MAY. YOU'VE GOT THE MIC. THANK YOU. I WANTED TO WISH. OKAY, NOW YOU'RE DONE A HAPPY BIRTHDAY. OH, YOU TOOK MY THUNDER. I KNOW, MAN, I'M SORRY I HAD TO, BECAUSE I GOTTA EARN THESE COOKIES, BUT I WANT. HE JUST SAID THAT I WANTED TO WISH AN AMAZING COLLEAGUE AND A GREAT MENTOR AND SOMEBODY WHO SERVED THIS CITY A LOT LONGER THAN PROBABLY I'VE LIVED IN THE CITY, WHICH IS A LONG TIME, BUT THAT'S OKAY. WE WON'T TALK ABOUT IT. YOU'RE JUST TRYING TO GET THOSE COOKIES. I'M TRYING TO GET THOSE COOKIES. A HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SO IF YOU GUYS WOULD JOIN ME AND WISH STEVE JOHNSON A HAPPY 35TH BIRTHDAY. THERE WE GO. ALL RIGHT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. READY? READY. ONE. TWO. THREE. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR PRO TEM STEVE JOHNSON. AND HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU. OH YEAH. LOOK HOW RED HE TURNS. GOTTA LOVE HIM. THAT IS ALL, MAYOR. THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU SURE? YEAH. I'M POSITIVE. WELL, I'M NOT GOING TO REPEAT EVERYTHING, BUT KUDOS. AND I APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS ON BEING THE MINUTE WITH THE MAYOR, BUT IT'S THE COMBINED EFFORT OF OUR CHIEF AND OUR POLICE CHIEF GIVING US INFORMATION THAT WE CAN DO OUT. AND I WAS SHARING IT WITH THE COUNCIL AT THE TIME. WE'RE DOING IT SO EVERYBODY'S IN THE SAME LOOP. SO WE HAVE A VERY COLLABORATIVE COUNCIL, GREAT CITY MANAGEMENT, GREAT DIRECTORS AND CHIEFS. AND I CAN'T THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH. IT PROTECTED OUR COMMUNITY TREMENDOUSLY. AND IF I DIDN'T HEAR IT ONCE, I HEARD IT A HUNDRED TIMES. HOW APPRECIATE THE INFORMATION THAT GOES OUT. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU. KUDOS TO ALL OF YOU. AND YES, IT'S GOING TO BE COUNCIL MEMBER LAU'S BIRTHDAY ON THE 15TH ALONG WITH MY SON'S. WOW. REMIND THAT. I WANT TO WELCOME YOU TO THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS. I WANT TO ALSO THANK YOU. AND, ADRIAN, WELCOME TO OUR CITY PERMANENTLY. AND IT'S CLOSER A DRIVE FOR YOU, FOR HOME. AND I WAS GOING TO SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO COUNCIL MEMBER OR MAYOR PRO TEM JOHNSON. AND AGAIN, I'LL SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY. BUT IT'S BEEN A CRAZY COUPLE OF WEEKS. I THINK WE'RE ALL JUST KIND OF, LIKE ACCELERATING OFF OF THIS. AND BUT REMEMBER, STAY DILIGENT, STAY PREPARED. IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO HAVE YOUR IMPORTANT STUFF. GET YOURSELF A FIRE SAFE, OR PUT YOUR STUFF IN A SAFETY DEPOSIT BOX WHERE YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT IF IT'S GOING TO GET. IF WE DO HAVE A CATASTROPHIC SITUATION AND I'M TALKING ABOUT EARTHQUAKES, WE'VE BEEN HAVING A LOT OF EARTHQUAKES LATELY. SO, I MEAN, I HATE TO SAY IT, BUT YOU'VE HAD THE FIRES AND EARTHQUAKES. THERE'S A LOT OF MOVEMENT AND YOU'VE GOT THESE POOR PEOPLE IN THE ROLLING HILLS ESTATES, PORTUGUESE BEND THAT ARE LOSING EVERYTHING BECAUSE OF THE EARTH MOVEMENT. SO YOU CAN NEVER BE TOO PREPARED FOR A SITUATION IN AN EMERGENCY. SO WE GIVE YOU ALL THE TOOLS. BUT IF YOU DON'T FOLLOW THOSE, THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS, IT DOESN'T DO US ANY GOOD TO BE SAFE. AND WE ARE A VERY TIGHT COMMUNITY. SO I JUST ASK YOU TO PLEASE GET THE STUFF PREPARED. NOW, DON'T FORGET ABOUT IT. THIS IS THE TIME TO PUT YOUR STUFF AWAY. GET IN A SAFE DEPOSIT BOX. THOSE THINGS YOU DON'T NEED. JUST BE PREPARED. WITH THAT. AND AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOU. AND THANK YOU FOR THE RESIDENTS, ALL THE SUPPORT. WE GOT A WONDERFUL COMMUNITY HERE, WONDERFUL SERVICES. AND I'M JUST BLESSED TO BE PART OF THAT. WITH THAT. AND REMEMBER, AT THE BACK OF THE AGENDA FOR THE MEETING IS ALL OF THE STUFF THAT'S GOING ON IN THE CITY OF LA VERNE. WE GOT TRUNK OR TREAT. WE GOT A LOT OF THINGS COMING UP THAT ARE WONDERFUL EVENTS HERE. PAY ATTENTION TO THIS ON OUR CITY WEBSITE. AND WE'LL BE UPDATING AS WE HAVE OUR COUNCIL MEETINGS WITH THAT CITY ATTORNEY, HOWARD BARLOW. [CLOSED SESSION - EXISTING LITIGATION] PLEASE READ THE CLOSED SESSION ITEMS FOR THE RECORD AND LET US KNOW. [02:25:01] THERE WILL BE ANY REPORT AFTERWARDS. WE WILL BE RECESSING INTO CLOSED SESSION. WILL WE BE REPORTING OUT? I DO NOT EXPECT TO REPORT OUT, MR. MAYOR. WE HAVE EXISTING LITIGATION PURSUANT TO CALIFORNIA GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54956. 9D1. WE ACTUALLY HAVE FOUR CASES CALIFORNIA RIFLE AND PISTOL ASSOCIATION VERSUS LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT CASE NUMBER 223 CV 10169SPGADS. WE HAVE TWO CASES CAPTIONED SCE VERSUS CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION, BOTH IN ORANGE COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT CASE NUMBERS 30 2024 01403215 CUMCCXC AND 30 2023 01328 239 CUMCCXC, AND FINALLY CITY OF WHITTIER VERSUS LOS ANGELES SUPERIOR COURT. LOS ANGELES SUPERIOR COURT CASE NUMBER 23, STCP 03579. THANK YOU. AND WE WILL NOT BE REPORTING OUT. THE NEXT REGULAR SCHEDULED MEETING OF THE LA VERNE. CITY COUNCIL WILL BE ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 7TH, 2024 AT 5:30 P.M.. REMINDER UPCOMING EVENTS, THE BACK OF THE THING. BACK TO YOUR PAGES. AND I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYBODY COMING TONIGHT. WE ARE ADJOURNING OR WE ARE RECESSING INTO CLOSED SESSION AT 8:13 P.M.. THANK YOU ALL FOR COMING. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.