City Council - Regular Meeting

Please stay allegiance and standing for a moment You

The first question is if there's there's changes and staff

You have to the agendas.

Yes, sir. We'd like to make a correction. The name should read Samantha, not Susanna. And staff requests a discussion item seven.

Removal. Got it. Is working on a present that they would hide at the fall meeting Change I would love change Mission then Little League to see so many of them here and that the entire team is give them time to arrive to after the public and will be a brief presentation at 5 a.m. The comments are open to one in the like I And it is for you to provide at the mic. Two minutes in English. Four minutes need . It is a comment. It's not a public comment. So with that, are there any comments from public?

I didn't see the speaker. So first speaker was David Camacho.

And we will ask for that if we could slow down meeting needed in time and we want or it's all mine Because I have the honor and city With that being said I'm just going to hear that there is to in city of arvin employees these workers are back here they were born contribute to the local very room as the ceo of alaska i thought maybe a new chapter is turning over a new leaf this is a good moment so no city council and mayor it's not detrimental I feel with just X medic let's go taking a lot there's good reason for optimism let's go with all the animal all the animal control officer and increasing the amount calls you would tell public works employees on track early morning he would say needs all the workers Give chief to be successful. Fair chance. Give Arvin what it deserves. Return to the table with Arvin, please. Please don't take one step. Thank you.

Comment? Any other comments?

everybody. There's this thing on the agenda called Three Seas, Inc., okay, where the council or Jeff, somebody approved it. We're in a hole right now, and I think it's nonsense money being spent to the Three Seas Inc., which if you look online, you'll find nothing about them. But Three Seas is run by the lady that used to have the Labor of Harvest. I don't know if they're non-profit or what, but $500 was paid to them for a food collection or something, and then $1,800 for the SB 1383 whatever consultant. If we're in the hole right now, why all this nonsense spending? Thank you.

Any other comments?

Good afternoon, Mayor and Council Members, Mayor Pro Tem. I just have an observation. This Sunday, we experience a community event of giveaway backpacks and haircuts, which is a great event. I think that any time residents stand in line for a couple hours, just paraphrasing, that just tells you the need of the community, that they're willing to wait in the sun that long to have their service or their needs met but in observation due to that is veterans how it is a public building for the city it was very warm to the point that I had to step outside just to get some catch some air so my observation is that if we are going to be hosting community events or any type of event that we make sure as a city that our buildings are working fully to as a potential just because it could be a liability to the city just my observation that's it thank you for your time comment any other comments seeing none we're going to move on to

The consent agenda.

Are there any comments on the consent agenda?

I have a comment. May I? Are there comments from the council on the consent agenda?

I have a comment. I also have a little bit of concerns regarding the vendor 3Cs because I don't recall the council approving that agreement. And I believe it's important for the council to approve that agreement as a whole.

Okay. Okay. So this is, again, comments on the agenda, the consent agenda?

Correct.

Okay, all right. Are there any other comments from the Council? Seeing none, do we have a motion to approve the consent agenda? Do we have a motion to approve the consent agenda?

I would make a motion however I would like staff to come back to us and present us with the agreement so we could have that opportunity to review the agreement and I think the residents have that opportunity to know the reason why we went ahead with this agreement with this company the cost and what funding stream are we utilizing

Okay, again, that agreement is not on the consent agenda. So we're looking at the consent agenda items. That agreement is not on this consent agenda.

Just so that we're clear. It's on the payment register.

You're saying that you don't want to approve the payment for a vendor 3C. That is what you're asking about.

Yes.

Okay, so council is asking for there to be a discussion on the vendor 3C. And so staff, they want to have a presentation or a discussion on the agreement for 3C, which it sounds from that public comment is relating to SB 1383, which is a state mandate for us to have the food recovery program and so forth. So that's what staff, I mean, council is requesting for there to be an item on discussion at a meeting of the council to discuss or be presented with the 3C agreement. Council, are there any issues or questions with that for an agreement that has been reviewed and approved on previous agenda or if the authority is of the city manager? Or is that something that should be brought into, since there's a contract existing, into a different type of format?

So I have not had a chance to review any contract for 3Cs Inc. So I don't know if to clarify the motion. It's just to approve the register but remove that specific vendor payment.

I think 3C is, is that the service? Is there a service agreement with 3C?

I do not know.

Okay, so I think that you want to remove that item from the vendor list. Okay, I think it's to remove that item from the vendor list and then have an opportunity to review the service agreement with RISI. Okay, great. Roll call, please.

So for the record, it's approval of items 4A through 4E with the demand register 4A, removal of the payment for 3C, correct? Yeah. Okay. Motion from Reyes and second Horton. Roll call. Council Member Tarver?

Yes.

Council Member Horton?

Yes.

Council Member Reyes? Yes. Mayor Pro Temperez?

Yes.

Mayor Calderon? Yes. Motion carries, 5-0.

Okay, we're moving on now to item 5A. This is a continuing of the public hearing, which is a presentation that I imagine we're going to get from the city manager. Steph, you're prepared for that presentation? Or will it be from Isaiah?

If you'll give me a minute to pull up the agenda.

I'll go ahead and read the item then. But before I do, counsel, are there any ex parte communications to report? And ex parte communications refers to receiving information from a party outside of the official public hearing process. Does anyone have anything to report on this item? Seeing none, okay. This item is a public hearing for the closeout of the state funding CDBG activities for FY22 CDBG HA 10029 owner occupied housing rehabilitation program. Staff recommends we open the hearing, allow for public testimony and close the hearing and approve the closeout of the 2022 CDBG owner occupied rehabilitation for 22-CDBG-HA-10029 housing rehabilitation program. So are there any comments from the public? Seeing none, staff, we are going, are there any comments from the council? No. Okay. So then we've opened the hearing, have closed it. Staff, do you have any comments?

Yes, I'd like to go ahead, for the record, read the staff report so those of us that are listening online, seeing this online, can understand the item a little bit better.

The CDBG is a block grant funding that we received by the state, and this is for 2022, correct? Okay, go ahead.

Yep. City of Arvin was awarded $500,000 in community development block grant funding in June 2023 in response to the 2022 CDBG application. Program clearance was received on June 23, 2023. to begin accepting applications and providing services. The owner-occupied rehabilitation program provided deferred, zero-interest, three-year forgivable loans to income-eligible owner-occupants, which is defined as households at or below 80% of the area medium income, within the city of Arvin to complete emergency, minor, and substantial rehabilitation activities that addressed health and safety hazards, housing code deficiencies, and essential repairs including roofing, plumbing, electrical, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning, windows, and flooring. The program was originally designed and we anticipated to assist five beneficiaries. However, only one owner occupied rehabilitation loan was completed during the grant period. The reduction was due to limited eligible applicants, program demand, and projects that could not be completed within program requirement times and funding limits. Reasonable efforts were made to identify and assist eligible households. So we did, and I was aware that we did a lot of outreach on this. We had a lot of interest, but unfortunately, because of qualifications and the conditions of what could be approved, we only had one successful applicant, which unfortunately means that we're giving back $387,000. We did not get this money in cash, so I'm not having to write a check for 387 back, but unfortunately, we were only able to do one grant on this program.

Okay.

Staff recommends that we open and close the public hearing. The public hearing is now closed and that we approve closing out of the 2022 CDBG state-funded activities. Is there a motion? Motion. Is there a second?

Second.

Roll call.

Council Member Tarver?

Yes.

Council Member Horton? Yes. Council Member Reyes? Yes. Mayor Pro Temperez?

Yes.

Mayor Calderon? Yes. Motion carries 5-0.

Okay, now we get to the VIPs who are here today. Today is a very special day because with us in the room are some of the strongest, bravest, most hardworking and dedicated athletes that we have here in the city of Arvin. And this year, these young men made history. The Arvin little, little, little league all-star team in the intermediary level worked so hard that they represented our city at the state level. They went all the way to state. And we are so very proud of them. And that's why we see them here sitting in their bright red And we are so excited to honor each and every one of them today with certificates of recognition. And we want to call them up one at a time so that everyone could hear their names and see their beautiful, bright smiles as they receive these certificates of recognition. And we are allowed to applaud for them and then also their coaches because we know that you were so amazing today because you have the support of dedicated coaches who volunteer their time. After working full-time jobs, they volunteer to mentor you, to pour into you, to inspire you so you play your hearts out. So we're going to also recognize your amazing coaches here today. And we know that this also wouldn't be possible without your dedicated board and the leadership of your board that also volunteers their time. And here we have the president of the Arvin Little League. So before we begin the presentations, I'll invite the Little League president to come up and say a few words. Welcome, Rebecca.

Hello, Council. City. My name is Rebecca. Thank you to the Arvin City Council on behalf of the players, families, volunteers, and supporters of Arvin Little League. I want to extend our sincerest gratitude to the Arvin City Council, city staff, and Public Works for your continued support of youth sports in our community. Your commitment to our city and its family does not go unnoticed, and we truly appreciate the time, resources, and effort you invest into making Arvin a better place for our kids. As another exciting baseball season comes to a close, we're reminded that our young athletes are capable of incredible things. They represent Arvin with pride, determination, and heart every time they step onto the field. Their success is a reflection of the community that stands behind them, the community that really came together quickly, I might add. With that in mind, we'd like to ask for your partnership in taking the next step for youth baseball and softball in Arvin. Our children deserve safe, well-maintained places to practice and develop their skills. Improvements to DiGiorgio Park would provide another valuable space where teams can train and grow. We also ask you to consider whether unused city property, such as the vacant lot on A Street, could be transformed into batting cages or practice areas that would benefit hundreds of local youth throughout the year. And while it may seem like a big dream, we believe Arvin has always been a community built on big dreams. Imagine an indoor training facility where our young athletes could practice year-round, regardless of the weather or daylight. a place that could serve not only baseball and softball players, but other youth sports and community programs as well. A facility that keeps our kids active, gives them a safe place to grow and learn, and provides opportunities that many neighboring communities already enjoy right now. We often tell our children that hard work and dedication can take them anywhere. Let's give them the facilities that match their ambition. Our goal isn't simply to win baseball games. It's to build confident young leaders, strengthen our community, and give our kids every opportunity to succeed. And who knows, maybe one of those opportunities will help bring a California state championship right here to the city of Arvin. We know projects like these require planning, funding, and collaboration, but we also know that they start with the conversation that we just started today. Thank you for everything that you've done for the youth of Arvin. We hope you'll continue to partner with us as we work to create more opportunities for the next generation. Together, we can build something that will benefit our children for years to come and make Arvin a community where young athletes can dream big, work hard, and achieve great things. Thank you.

Thank you very much, President. Okay. With that, we know we have the certificates. I'm going to call you up so you can come up here and you can line up for your certificate, okay? Then we'll take a group picture. So we'll start with the athletes and then we'll call up the coaches. If they are not here today to receive it, we're going to give it to your president so your president can also receive those and make sure that they are handed over. So I'm going to come on down so I can read those names, okay? Okay.

Juan Garcia. Jamal Gomez. Matthew Guerra. Andrew Higallo. William Lopez.

Eliberto Pantoja.

Eric Duran.

Okay, we are now gonna get to our coaches, right?

Eric was one of the coaches.

Okay, we recognize Christina Duran.

Andres Garcia. Rebecca Fuller.

Oh my gosh, can you see everybody? Yes?

Okay, here we go. One more time? Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Do you guys have any?

Do you have any? We've got one more.

I have an extra one, Rebecca. Oh, my goodness. Come on. Who is that? Andrew. Andrew. Andrew. Andrew. Andrew. Thank you. Congratulations. Keep playing, Marcus. Did I take all the certificates back?

Okay. We are now, oh, before we do, would the council like to say any words? We'll start with Mr. Tarver to the Little League.

Well, how old are you guys? 13? Well, all right. Well, congratulations. That's a great task. I'd love to hear anytime Arvin's doing something good, and this is a good opportunity. But just to share with you, and I'd like you not to forget this, if you're an athlete like you boys are, the dream is real. I played with, well, one of them was my brother, I had an older brother. I didn't play with my older brother, Junior Kennedy or Mr. Hallam, but all of those individuals that I mentioned to you were pro baseball players. My brother Joe signed a pro baseball contract right out of Arvin High School as a senior, played for the Minnesota Twins. My brother Larry had an opportunity to play for the Red Sox, he turned it down because he felt like he'd make more money by getting his education. And that's exactly what he did. Mr. Hallam and Junior Kennedy, Junior Kennedy signed right out of Arvin High and played for the Red Sox. So, you know, I say the dream is real because it started in a sandbox down there at DiGiorgio Park. That's where it started. And the school ran the programs. And all of us kids, that's what we had to do. We didn't have Nintendo. We didn't have cell phones. If we wanted to run faster or jump higher, we had to physically do it ourselves. We couldn't give them a toy and put our name on it and flip it around and jump around. You see? But again, if that is your dream, you need to remember it's not... What you do when the coach is there is what you do when the coach isn't there. That's how you make those dreams come true. It only works that way. Remember that. And that's how life is too. But great job, kids. I'm very proud of you. Okay, go get it.

Thank you.

It's only if you'd like to say a few words. Oh, Ms. Reyes.

I echo Mr. Tarver's comments. I congratulate you guys. You guys did an awesome job. And just remember, the sky is the limit. I'm trying to see you guys. I don't have my glasses on, but I sit here as a grandmother of my grandson that plays basketball. Doesn't play baseball, but he plays basketball and track. And one thing is that honestly, I'm sitting here and you guys, you guys are making me proud and I'm not even related to you. So I just want to tell you guys that you guys are doing a great job. And remember, the sky is the limit and put Arvin on the map. But don't forget education as well. Thank you.

I just wanted to say congratulations on your accomplishment, and I'm so proud to have you guys represent us, the City of Arvin, and a special thanks to the coaches and board members. I know it's tough out there, you know, getting the practices after work and your families and everything, but yeah, thank you so much for everything you do.

Mr. Perez.

I just want to say thank you guys. Thank you for representing Arvin. And it's something that you're going to do all your life because we're all born here. Like myself, everybody else, I recognize you guys as parents. No. And so just thank you and congratulations, guys.

Thank you all. As part of the consent agenda, we did approve a proclamation. And I'm going to read the proclamation, because I do believe that it is this moment where, since we have our students here, it could be a teachable moment. July 2026 is Disability Awareness Month, whereas the City of Arvin is committed to fostering a community where all people are treated with dignity, respect, and equal opportunity, and whereas Disability Awareness Month recognizes the contributions, achievements, and talents of individuals with disabilities and promotes a greater understanding inclusion and accessibility. And whereas the City of Arvin recognizes the importance of removing barriers and ensuring that all residents have the opportunity to fully participate in community, educational, civic and economic life. And whereas Disability Awareness Month encourages all residents of all ages businesses, schools, and organizations to promote awareness, challenge misconceptions, and support a more inclusive community for everyone. Now, therefore, we, the Mayor and the City Council of the City of Arvin, California, hereby proclaim July 2026 as Disability Awareness Month and encourages all residents to recognize the many contributions of individuals with disabilities and to reaffirm a shared commitment to equality, accessibility, and inclusion throughout our community. In witness whereof, I have here on to set my hand and cause the seal of the city of Arvin, California on this 28th day of July, 2026. So with that, everyone, as we enjoy the final days of July, let us remember that, that this is a community that's inclusive. We treat everybody with respect. We don't like bullies. We stand up to them and we go out there and we make sure that everyone feels included. So. Thank you all again for joining us today. You're welcome to stay for the rest of the agenda items. But if you need to go to leave the chambers, we understand fully and completely. And thank you again so much for everything you did. And we just appreciate you so very much. So with that, we are now going to move on to our next action item. This is consideration and approval of a task authorization between the City of Arvin and the Veolia Water West Operations Service for the Arvin Wastewater Treatment Plant Lift Station Power Protection New Generator Project and authorize the City Manager to execute any related documents necessary to implement the task authorization and the project to make any non-substantive amendments consistent with Council's direction. So with that, do we have the staff report?

We do. kind of strange to shift from our fantastic RN Riddle League and staff, myself, Cecilia, Dennis, we are so proud of you guys. You guys are amazing. So I want to get that on the record. And now we're going to talk about wastewater.

Wastewater.

Exactly. So as included in the 2026-2028 wastewater treatment plant capital improvement plan and also in the fiscal year 2026-2027 arvin sanitation fund budget we need a new backup generator for our wastewater treatment plant especially at our lift station the especially at the lift station the plant location is subject to rolling blackouts and power outages especially in periods of extreme weather. During these times, if the lift station were to go down without power, there are about only three hours of sewer line storage under peak flow conditions before the lift station will overflow. In addition to the lift station overflowing, there's a possibility we could have Sewage spill overflows in the city, and we don't want that. So we are requesting the purchase of a backup generator, and the cost is, let's see, what is the cost? It's not to exceed $116,000, including the staff report. And I have people from Veolia. Jerry and Michelle can talk more about this.

If they could present, absolutely, that would be helpful if council has questions. Welcome. And again, if we could be mindful of the translation, so pace your comments.

Good evening, Madam Mayor, council members, staff, city of Auburn. Yes, we are bringing this project. It is something that I have been contemplating the last time we had a blackout for almost five hours. It did happen also in two consecutive weeks. At that point, I had to get one guy dedicated. Every half an hour, he goes on and off, on and off the little trash pump that we have. So we have also that trash pump is utilized to transfer water on the ponds as well. So some of the ponds right now, the project is going on. We brought the pump and we co-located over there at the lift station. But the inconvenience is like in the middle of the night, it did happen one day in the middle of the night, like 11 o'clock, and we stayed there until 5 o'clock in the morning, on and off, on and off, on and off. And then later on, we had to continue with regular operations. That is one of the reasons that we think and we believe that it's a crucial, essential equipment needed in the lift station to prevent overflows and prevent fees from the water boards, from the water board.

Thank you. Do you have any other comments?

I can add one last thing. The generator will be purchased with a trailer that can be moved from the lift station to the wastewater treatment plant if it's needed there as well.

Okay. Are there any questions from the council? Seeing none. Okay. One question.

So it's not going to be a permanent fixture?

No, it's not. It can be mobile. The reason we are picking up to be mobile is because it's below, it's an asset below to the city. If the city needs it somewhere else, it can be moved as long as we just have conscience that the main station is to be right there at the leave station.

So it is a mobile generator.

Yes.

The purpose is for the wastewater treatment plant. It's mobile so that in the event that that generator is needed for any other emergency in the city, you have the trailer to move that generator for that purpose. But it is dedicated to the wastewater treatment.

To the wastewater treatment, yes. So what would those other emergencies be in the city that you'd need to move that?

That will be up to the city. I don't know. Maybe you have an emergency in the water treatment that one of the wells runs out of power. You can use it right there or you can use it somewhere else in the city. Let's say one of the main buildings, catastrophically, let's say that it's an earthquake and a lot of people move to the VA building and you have people right there and you have to run. AC or something like that. Anything. Anything that the city can find accommodation. But the main thing, the main thing will be in priority will be the lift station.

Yeah. So the reason why I asked about the mobile part of it is because you said 160,000? Yes. Okay. So you've got a piece of equipment that's a...

$116,000?

Yes. Okay, even at $116,000. You have a $116,000 price tag on that generator that's portable. So that means it can move not only to the city, it can move to Los Angeles City. It can move, meaning if someone stole it, we would be out of it. Correct. See, and that's the scary part, because I know you guys aren't out there 24-7. Correct. And you guys have already had some vandalism out there, correct?

Yes, sir.

So I'm not real comfortable with the portable stuff, and that's why I ask you, in that type of emergency, where would that generator go? be used at in this city. And if it were an emergency like that, I believe that the city would probably rent a generator. Because we have a generator here that powers City Hall, right? So where else would we use that?

I think they're also describing that they needed a different generator. facilities within the wastewater treatment plant. So they talked about two places where they could move the generator to in the event of an emergency. Could you describe those two places where you need a generator in case of an emergency?

Yeah.

So can you describe the two places that your colleague just described where you could possibly, where you would might meet the generator in case of an emergency at the wastewater treatment plant?

Right now, I can use it for the BDP where we do the belt press, and also I can use it right there for the digester pumps.

So perhaps you can elaborate on that, of how that, go ahead, because you had mentioned that right now. That's what you added in your comments.

Just that generally we would store it within the locked gate at the lift station, but if we would need it at the wastewater treatment plant, it would be easily movable there with on the trailers.

The question is, you had mentioned two functions within the wastewater treatment plant where you would use the generator. What are those two places in the wastewater treatment plant that had you all decide on a mobile generator to move around in the wastewater treatment plant?

The BDP, which is the dewatering.

What is that?

It's the dewatering solids. When you guys go over there, remember, it's a big press that gets all the solids in.

That's what takes all the waste out of the water.

I can use it right there for the simple reason that the main generator that runs the whole plant in case of an emergency, the BDP for the digester and the blowers, they left it out, out of the whole package. So right there and then, I can use that generator to power the blowers to power the transfer pumps and the BDP.

And that means, and those are located in different places of the plant, which is why you need to move the generator around?

There's only one. If I have to bring it to move the BDP, the blowers, and the digester, there's only one bucket. There's a whole room full that we call the MCC room. Right there, I can bring a connection to the generator and run the whole section right there. I don't need to be transported, but the transportation will be from the wastewater to the lift station, from the lift station to the wastewater.

So was it going to cost more to find a permanently fixed generator? Was the cost more significant to find a permanently fixed generator versus the mobile one?

I will, if that is the choice, I'd rather be permanent, be quite honest with you. I'd rather be permanent. The simple reason that we were thinking about an alternative is for all those what-ifs in case of an emergency. But if it is a security, I will say probably in 2021, we had a portable generator, the generator that you're referring, Mr. Tarver, from the city. It was placed right there. Unfortunately, that generator can run only one pump at the time, and that's it. And it does not run all the mechanicals, the flow level, start on, start off of the pumps.

For clarity, I'm confused. If your preference, if Veolia's preference is to have a permanently fixed generator, then why did Veolia recommend a mobile generator? Because this didn't come from staff. It came from Veolia's recommendation to staff. So could you explain if that was your preference, why are you presenting a mobile generator then?

Correct, because always thinking about alternatives, running my BDP digesters and the blowers.

I was thinking about that, but... Do you need a mobile generator at the wastewater treatment plant?

I do need a mobile generator, but I think that Mr. Tarver has a concern about the security, ma'am.

I think we all do.

The security, in which I do share that concern as well, but we had one already, and lucky us, nothing happened. The generator stays there. But we can take precautions. If it is a mobile generator, I can take precautions on locking the wheels or do something in order to avoid any mobilization for somebody trying to break in.

You can take extra security measures to secure this mobile generator.

Correct.

It would be locked inside of a building.

Correct. Staff would also like to point out, if I may, Madam Mayor, that we will list this on our property insurance list. To make sure we do have it insured, I do need to point out that if something happens, there's a $5,000 deductible, however. But we can list this on our insurance.

I have a question. Go ahead.

Okay, I will. Mrs. Reyes. How long have you had the current generator?

We don't have no current generator.

Oh, you... You don't? No. I think you just said that you have a generator. I had. You had a generator back in 2021.

Yes.

So how long? So then that 2021, so you've been without a generator for the past five years?

Correct.

So why five years later bring it up?

Well, it's been in the capital improvement plan since 2021.

He described the blockouts.

Every year that I have been submitting my capital plan, for improvement of the wastewater treatment plant, it's been there.

And just for clarity, I'm not opposed to it because what you said about the lift station and if the power goes out, I mean, that all makes sense. But my main concern is I don't want the city to buy a generator and donate it to somebody else because they've taken it. Now, I know that you thought, well, let me throw this in. Maybe this is a little better for them, you know, where they could use this or the places. But that's why I ask you the question. Where else in what emergency would we use that generator for in the city? So it sounds like to me you could put that generator in a stationary place there and run cables, power lines, or power cords to wherever it is you need to go around the plant. Is that correct? Yes. See? So how does...

But then the lift station wouldn't have a generator.

But the main thing is... Then you need two. For everybody to understand... The main house for that generator, it's at the lift station.

Okay.

And the reason is you never know when the blackout comes up, alarm comes on. We already know that automatically the generator will come on and it will start the pumps.

Yeah.

The only thing that we have to do is just come and make sure that everything's working properly as we planned it. And then we can go home.

Yeah. And staff, that money comes out of sewer? That is correct, sanitation fund. So it doesn't bother general fund?

It doesn't come from the general fund.

Correct, zero general fund.

Okay.

I'm good.

All right, great. So seeing no more questions, are there any comments we can, yeah, you can take it. Thank you very much for your presentation.

And by the way, Jerry, you're doing a good job out there. The farm looks great. Everything looks good. So thank you.

Are there any comments from the public? Seeing none, do we have a motion?

Motion.

Do we have a second?

Second.

Roll call, please. Council Member Tarver? Yes. Council Member Horton? Yes. Council Member Reyes? Yes. Mayor Potemperes?

Yes.

Mayor Calderon? Yes. Motion carries, 5-0.

Great. We are now going to move on to... the budget, this is consideration. Oh, that's right. We already approved Veolia, didn't we? 6A, that was the action from Veolia. Yeah, yeah, 6B, that's gonna be the staff report for the budget. Public Works is not gonna provide any more comments. We removed that, didn't we, from the discussion item today when we amended the agenda?

What?

No.

It's 6B here. 6B, consideration of? Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, the policies. Yes. The policies, yes.

We changed the agenda around today. So the discussion is out, but before we go to the budget, we are going to approve the policies today. So this is consideration and approval of the policies for the city. Staff, do you have a report?

Yes, Madam Mayor, thank you. So we're gonna just quickly go over the contents of the manual. I don't mean to take too much time, but it just kind of outlines what is in there and we'll go over that and then I'm happy to answer any questions. SO FOR CLARIFICATION, THE MANUAL DOCUMENTS ACCEPTED PRACTICES AND CLARIFIES EXPECTATIONS ASSISTING COUNCIL MEMBERS IN THEIR ROLES. IT PROVIDES ESSENTIAL INFORMATION TO PERSPECTIVE COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THE PUBLIC, ENHANCING EFFECTIVENESS ADMINISTRATION, EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION OF CITY COUNCIL AFFAIRS. So the purpose is to document accepted practices and clarify expectations for council members, to provide useful information to prospective council members and interested residents. It will be available with the city clerk, and it's proposed to be maintained every two years as far as reviewing to see if there are any procedures you would like to update. So apart from what we will see in the document, there are three other areas that are governing city operations, including decisions from the council. It includes the California constitution, city California codes, the municipal code, and also the city's general plan. So generally what is involved in the documents, we refer to the general powers and responsibilities of the council. So it is a four member council with a directly elected mayor serving at large. And everybody, this has been the way that we have functioned. You know, city council establishes policy related to city affairs. and council members hold equal authority and decisions are made by majority vote. The document also clarifies that this is a city council, city manager form of government, meaning that elected officials set policy and the city manager is responsible for the administration and implementation of that policy. Some key roles that are in the document. The mayor serves as the presiding officer. The ceremonial spokesperson is also available to vote on all matters and can call special meetings. The mayor pro tem serves as presiding officer and performs mayor's duties in their absence or at the mayor's request. and all council members, including the mayor, participate in meetings, lead with integrity, prepare for agendas, complete required training, and respect staff time. The council also appoints two offices, the office of the city manager and the city attorney, both of those who serve at the will of the city council. The city manager is an employee and has an employment agreement and is responsible for all other personnel appointments within the city. So there are some communication guidelines for council members within the document as well. So when speaking for the council, communication should reflect the body's position and not necessarily individual views official correspondence should reflect the city council's position as a whole. And it designates the mayor as the official spokesperson for the city council on policy with the media. And it does clarify that every council member should assume media interactions are always on the record. The document also lays out different methods for interaction with city staff and access to information. So council members are expected to contact staff through the city manager and any requests for information exceeding two hours will require council approval, a majority approval. Staff should fully cooperate in providing authorized information and will also adhere to any legal restrictions on certain data. Written responses to council member information requests will be shared with the entire council. And staff recommendations must remain nonpartisan. The document also touches on conflicts of interest and liability. It refers to the Political Reform Act, the government code, talks about annual disclosure statements, and expressly indicates that there are violations of certain laws that may result in personal liability that is not covered by the city. The document also goes through city council meeting protocols. The biggest change on this is that instead of following Robert's rules of order, the city councilor is gonna follow and adhere to Rosenberg's rules of order. And this is the general meeting agenda format that the order of business of the city council meetings will be conducted. So very similar call to order, roll call, pledge of allegiance. CEREMONIAL ITEMS. PUBLIC COMMENT ON NON-AGENDA ITEMS. CONSENT CALENDAR AND PUBLIC HEARINGS. ACTION ITEMS AND WORK SLASH STUDY SESSIONS. AND THEN FINALLY COUNCIL COMMENTS AND ADJOURNMENT. It also documents public participation in meetings. Again, it is pretty much the same with speakers having the two minutes and then four minutes if they need translation. Reiterates that Council is not engaging in a Q&A session, but receiving a comment from the public. And lastly, it also outlines council member expectations and procedures for censure. So with that, staff recommends that the city council adopt the resolution approving and adopting the city council policies and procedures manual.

Thank you so much. Are there any questions from the public? Seeing none, are there any questions from the council? Seeing none, thank you very much for such a professional presentation. And I know that in the history of the city, the city has not had a city council manual. So thank you to legal and staff for creating it. And this is every step that we're taking to have a professional council. and now have this guiding document. So thank you so very much for that. So with that, I motion. Is there a second?

Second.

There's a second by Mr. Horton. I motion. Roll call, please.

Council Member Tarver.

Yes.

Council Member Horton. Yes. Council Member Reyes. Yes. Mayor Pro Tempore.

Yes.

Mayor Calderon. Yes. Motion carries 5-0.

Great. Now we're going to move on to the budget. This is going to be presented by our city manager. And as you know, this has been an ongoing conversation that we've been having here in the council. We have been having budget workshops for months now. We have gone through extensively department by department, line item by line item, not only reviewing our general fund, but also our debt obligations and our contractual obligations as well. So with that, are you prepared to present the budget?

I am. Thank you, Madam Mayor, members of the council, members of the public. Again, I'll read from the staff report slowly because I believe this should be translated correctly for our audience. So on June 23rd, 2026... The City Council adopted fiscal year 2026-27 budget and directed staff to develop a budget amendment that would restore two police officer positions that had been identified for elimination as part of the adopted budget. During budget deliberations, council members expressed a desire to preserve public safety staffing to the greatest extent possible and direct staff to identify alternative expenditure reductions or other cost-saving measures in the budget. Okay, let's see here. The council subsequently approved the budget with direction to return with a budget amendment, which is tonight, restoring the two police officer positions and identifying alternative expenditure reductions sufficient to offset the cost of those positions. Additionally, council expressed concern regarding projected revenues and the city's continued use of general fund reserves. reserves to balance operations. Staff was directed to review and revise revenue projections where appropriate and return with more conservative estimates. Again, as a comment, this budget was adopted without touching our reserves. Consistent with council direction, staff evaluated a variety of expenditure reduction options and operational adjustments to offset the cost of restoring the two police officers. And I estimate that we have to come up with $250,000 in reduced expenditures. I believe staff at the budget hearing quoted $300,000 to $320,000, depending on the mix of reductions for two police officers. That's a little high. I'm sticking with my $250,000 number. And that's what I've come up with with my proposed adjustments this round. The city manager recommends implementing the following expense reductions. In other words, cutting the budget. Item one, do not fill the vacant community services officer position. This is a non-sworn position within the police department. Non-sworn, not a police officer. Cost savings, $96,000. And then eliminate proposed market adjustments for the police chief recruitment. $40,000. ELIMINATE PROPOSED MARKET ADJUSTMENTS FOR THE FINANCE DIRECTIVE RECRUITMENT, $40,000. THE REASON THOSE WERE THERE IN THE BUDGET IN THE FIRST PLACE IS BECAUSE WE WERE OFFERING 2016 WAGES, AND AT THAT TIME THE CITY MANAGER AND STAFF BELIEVED THAT IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO RECRUIT PEOPLE WITH 2016 WAGES. THE NEXT ITEM IS TO DISCONTINUE TEMPORARY HELP SUPPORT AT CITY HALL, $54,000. Discontinue non-mandated flood insurance coverage at the Adobe complex. Many, many, many years ago, the city acquired the Veterans Hall using CDBG funds back in the day. One of those requirements was that the city had to maintain flood insurance to adhere to the terms of the CDBG grant. That grant period has expired. There's no need for the city to maintain flood insurance on that grant for that property. And I will note that the city currently does not have flood insurance on any other properties within the city. So eliminating that saves $12,000. Reducing the city council conference and travel budget by 50% saves $3,500. Eliminate police department community Event expenses, example, National Night Out, $6,500. Reduce other community event budgets by 50% or $7,000. Basically, what we're going to be left with is probably the Christmas parade as the only community event for fiscal year 26, 27. Reduce employee education reimbursement budget. In the past, employees, if they could prove that obtaining a bachelor's degree or a master's degree would benefit the city, the city said, okay, we'll reimburse those expenses if you pass your classes. I'm suggesting we remove that from the budget at a savings of $7,000. And the last thing is reduce outside consultant expenditures by $30,000 for a total of $296,000 in cost reductions. Excuse me. Now, staff will continue monitoring reserves, expenditures, and reserve balances throughout fiscal year 26-27 and will return to the City Council with additional budget amendments as needed. What this means, we've addressed the issue of the two police officers and I've identified another $46,000 in additional cuts. However, the Measure L sales tax numbers were, we asked to revise that. I am revising that. However, some of the items that would be additional items to offset, cut the budget, would require formal council action before I could do the budget amendment. For example, The council, you will see at an upcoming meeting that the council has graciously decided to forego their stipend for the entire year at a savings of $31,000. However, because it is not a formal action, I cannot include it in tonight's presentation. So the bottom line is there's more to come on this, and as council approves items, I bring them, they'll be added. I'm open for questions at this point.

Thank you. Are there any questions from the public at this point?

Hello again. Since we have a police chief now, it will save the city $50,000 if we no longer need a police chief assistant. This is a comment. I'm sorry.

You can make your comments. Your comments? Was that a comment?

That's a comment. That would save us $50,000 a year if we don't need an advisor or more since we have a chief already.

Okay, thank you. Are there any other comments? Seeing no, are there any questions from the council or any comments from the council?

I do.

Ms. Reyes, go ahead. Mm-hmm.

I just want to thank Jeff, the council, the mayor. We all collaborated together to try to identify cost savings for the city. It's not an easy task, but we were able to try to find solutions and try to continue moving the city forward. Hopefully these are just temporary cuts. and hopefully we could just come out of this and just move the city forward. I do, you did say, you know, be mindful of spending and track the spending. That's all I ask for, to make sure that you are mindful of what we're spending now, what is a want versus what is a need, you know? But I do, thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Reyes. Are there any other comments from the council? Seeing none, I do also want to recognize this city council for stepping up and unanimously agreeing to forego our stipend. We know this is a painful time for everyone in our city. And like our city staff, like everyone out there who we know is also hurting, we also know we could do our part. And so we are here. This stipend, if you heard what the city manager said, he said $30,000 a year. And if you divide that between the five of us, every month it equates to, for the five of us, $500 a month, right? if you calculate that out to $30,000 a year. So I think that's important because often folks, you know, we're sitting up here as your council members, we're not paid, we don't have a salary, we don't get benefits, we have a stipend. We get a stipend when we show up here and we... and we vote and we do our work of making sure that we are making informed decisions up here in voting. So I want to recognize the council for doing that. I know that's going to come at another meeting where we're going to take action to pass that formally. I also know that we have been working hard to address spending, spending, and we've heard again, loud and clear, when we've analyzed our budget that we need to cut spending significantly because we don't have the same amount of money coming in. And in a city, our spending is city services. So the money that comes in, all of the money that comes in are taxes. sales taxes, all the other taxes, that's the income that a city receives. And the money we spent are the city services that the city provides to every resident that lives here in Arvin. And so with these significant cuts that are incredibly painful, as Ms. Reyes alluded to, we know that city services will be impacted. And so to the community out there, We ask for your patience. We ask that if you have any questions or concerns that you reach out. We are going to be here to try our best to answer those questions, but know that you will see delays in response times. When we eliminate spending, it means we are laying off city workers who are essential to delivering these services, absolutely essential. But we know that we've gone through and said, what cuts can happen now temporarily, our intention is that this is temporary, and that soon we can bring everybody back again is our goal. Which is why we've left it up to you, Arvin residents, as a council, we voted unanimously to put a 1% sales tax on the measure for this November. We know that Arvin residents get to choose. And so all we did unanimously is give voters the option, just give Arvin residents the option of approving a 1 cent sales tax increase. Let voters decide. But we know that our intention is that it's temporary, that as soon as our finances stabilize, we will work to bring back those employees and that we can start to rebuild our reserves that have also been depleted and move forward to do the good work that the community has requested of us, which they've said loud and clear, prioritize the roads, fix the streets and bring our parks back to life. Today we heard from the president of the Arvin Little League. We've been hearing this not only from the president, but from parents across the city, that the parks are all our kids have in our families for recreation in the city. And our infrastructure is old, and that's going to mean significant investment. So with that, I just want to say an echo, a thank you to staff, a thank you to the council. This is painful and, God willing, temporary. So with that, seeing no other questions or comments, do we have a motion to approve the budget?

Motion.

Do we have a second?

Second.

Roll call, please. Council Member Tarver?

Yes.

Council Member Horton? Council Member Reyes? Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Perez?

Yes.

Mayor Calderon? Yes. Motion carries 5-0.

We're going to now move on to council comments before we go into closed session. Are there any comments from any of the members of the council? We'll start with Mr. Tarver.

Just thanks for coming out and participating in the council meetings. I appreciate that.

And that's it. Mr. Horton?

Yeah, just thanks to everyone. We appreciate your time. We know it's invaluable, but your opinion means a lot. So you can't do this without you. So thanks for coming out.

Mrs. Reyes? I too would like to thank everyone for being here and taking the time to be here with us till the end. I also do want to make a comment in regards to the event on Sunday. I do want to thank everyone that volunteered and everybody that gave their services for free, the backpacks, the haircuts, and so forth. But I think moving forward, we're going to be holding these type of events to make sure that it's an environment that's that prioritizes the health and the safety of everyone that attends that event moving forward.

Mr. Perez. And thank you guys for coming.

Yes, thank you everyone for being here. And I do, I want to say a special thank you to the incredible youth Leaders of Avanza Arvin, a local coalition that's spearheaded by our incredible youth who go out and lead through community service. And to the Arvin High School National Honor Society for their third annual backpack giveaway event. It keeps getting bigger and bigger every year. And the... Turnout this year was extraordinary. Families came from Arvin, Lamont, and Wheat Patch. A thousand backpacks were given away in an array of colors. A hundred haircuts were also given away. made possible by 223 Barbershop and Fresh Stop Barbershop. 13 local barbers showed up to cut little girl and little boy's hair. And the joy on everyone's faces, it just moves my heart. We know times are hard and things are super expensive. And for a family to be able to save on that backpack, And also on haircut, when you're talking about two or three kids, we're talking about nearly $400 in savings for that family. And that's money that they could put to use for other needs. Also for all of the nonprofits that showed up, dozens of nonprofits, a special thank you to the Arvin Library. Our public library gave away hundreds of books so that our kids could build their own personal home libraries. And thank you to all of the organizations, BC Arvin Community College, the school district, the Family Resource Center. We're so very grateful. the blood drive, we were able to collect donation from 19 donors, 19 donors that we know every donation saves approximately three lives. And I want to say a special thank you because many of them were the very parents that brought their kids to give backpacks. They too donated blood. They understood that we carry blood O blood type, which is a universal blood. So when we give blood, we save more lives. So a special thank you to everyone that made that possible. And I just want to also say thank you for that quick pickup call. I understand that folks might be alluding to tonight one of the donors who donated blood, who had an incident for donating blood. This was a donor who believed that donating blood meant you show up fasting. And so thinking that it's like lab work. When you go do lab work at the hospital, you don't eat that day. So she assumed that because she's donating blood, that she was not supposed to eat to be a donor. So for everyone out there who wants to donate blood, please know that you need to eat a full meal, drink plenty of water before you donate blood, or you can also have that incident where you feel really faint. But I will say this. I attended the entire event and also work with these young people to organize it. And it is our third year working together organizing this event. And we're grateful this year that the Dolores Huerta Foundation partnered with us to secure the Veterans Hall because Last year's Arvin High Library was too small. The event keeps getting bigger and bigger. So we're so grateful for the Dolores Huerta Foundation and their support and for securing that photo booth and the radio, the music, and the raffles. It was a joyful celebration. And I know that the thousands of kids And siblings that showed up could feel the love and support of this community, that we're proud of them, and they're going to have a magical school year. So with that, thank you very much for the feedback from Ms. Reyes. I appreciate that so much. We're going to have to find a bigger venue next year because clearly this is getting bigger and bigger, and I'm sure the fourth annual is going to be... It's going to be even a bigger turnout. So thank you for that comment. We'll find a larger venue for a more successful event in 2027. With that, we are now going to move to closed session items. Madam Council, please read the closed session item.

Thank you, Madam Mayor. For closed session, there's only one item, conference with legal counsel for a liability claim. And again, the claimant is Samantha Ryan Vasquez.

Thank you. Thank you, everyone. We are going to go into closed session. The meeting will continue to stay open. You will only hear silence and we'll come out if there's anything to report out. Thank you and have a good night.