City Council - Regular Meeting

Recording in progress.

I love that one. The balancing. Yes, I actually, I live in Spanaway, but I go to Fudge. Yeah. And...

Thank you.

Good evening. I will call the Auburn City Council meeting for June 1st, 2026 to order, and we will begin with a land acknowledgement. We would like to acknowledge the federally recognized Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, the ancestral keepers of the land we are gathered on today. We thank them for their immense contributions to our state and local history, culture, economy, and identity as Washingtonians. Tonight's meeting will be held both in person and virtually. And I would like to call forward Brooklyn Proc and Zoe Tomlin from troop number 46808 to come forward to do the Pledge of Allegiance for us tonight. And if everyone in the room would please rise. And we are going to follow Brooklyn and Zoe's lead. to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you. You may be seated. Brooklyn and Zoe, thank you so much for coming forward. And did you say, is it Hunt Elementary School? in Puyallup. Thank you so much for being here tonight to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance. We really appreciate it.

All right. Sean, will you please call roll? Deputy Mayor Tracy Taylor? Here. Council Member Ammer? Here. Council Member Baldwin? Council Member Baldwin? Council Member Lott? Here. Council Member Rakes? Here. Council Member Sturgis? Here. Council Member Clinton Taylor?

Here.

I know that we are expecting Councilmember Baldwin to call in.

She hopefully will be on soon.

All right. I am going to go over to the podium. We have one proclamation this evening. And I am going to ask Vice Chair of the Washington State LGBTQ Commission, I'm going to say Jake and Washington State LGBTQ Commissioner Stephanie Taylors to come forward. Welcome.

We have a mayor's proclamation.

Whereas the city of Auburn is an inclusive community and recognize the importance of equity and freedom. The month of June was designated Pride Month to honor the Stonewall uprising on June 28th, 1969 in New York City. And is generally recognized as the catalyst of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, LGBTQIA plus movement. And whereas in 2016, the site of the uprising, the Stonewall Inn, Christopher Park, and the surrounding area was designated as a national monument. And whereas Washington State has led the nation in advancing the civil rights of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer neighbors, coworkers, friends, and family members. And whereas in 2008, the city of Auburn passed resolution number 4345 that joined Auburn with the National League of Cities partnership for working towards inclusive communities. A program affirming that Auburn is committed to inclusion as a fundamental aspect of our community and that local elected officials can and should lead the way forward in making inclusiveness a priority in their cities. And whereas the City of Auburn in 2008 also began offering domestic partner benefits to its employees and further affirming that all employees regardless of sexual orientation will be treated equally in the eyes of their employer. Whereas in 2017, the City of Auburn added resolution number 5284 that reaffirms its commitment to making inclusiveness and diversity fundamental aspects of our community and affirming the value of all Auburn residents. And whereas we honor the history of the fight for equality and we celebrate and take pride in our commitment to being a community that is safe and welcoming. where all people can feel safe and live without fear of prejudice, discrimination, violence, or hatred based on race, religion, gender identity, or sexual orientation. And now, therefore, I, Nancy Backus, Mayor of the City of Auburn, do hereby proclaim June 2026 as LGBTQIA Plus Pride Month in the City of Auburn. and urge all residents to recognize the contributions made by members of the LGBTQIA plus community and to actively promote the principles of equality, constitutional and civil rights for all people. Dated this first day of June, 2026. And Commissioner Jake, I will hand that to you. And if either of you have comments that you would like to make. No? Well, thank you both for being here tonight. Thank you for your service to our state and specifically to the city of Auburn. Thank you for being here tonight for the flag raising. And we look forward to hearing more great work coming from you and your commission.

Thank you for welcoming us.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Right, Sean, do we have any agenda modifications? No, Your Honor. All right, public hearings. We do have a public hearing this evening. It's a public hearing for Lake Meridian Water District franchise agreement number FRN 25-0003. City Council to hold a public hearing in consideration of franchise agreement number FRN 25-003 for Lake Meridian Water District for a water franchise. Ingrid, is there any staff report?

No staff report this evening. This was discussed at the May 26th study session with Council, but if there's any questions, I'd be happy to answer.

Council, any questions before I open the public hearing?

All right. I will open the public hearing for Lake Meridian Water District Franchise Agreement number FRN25-0003. Is there anyone that would like to speak to this issue in the public hearing? Please come forward, give your name, city of residence for the record, and please limit comments to three minutes.

I knew about this because I was at the last study session. I have not had a chance to really study it. Hope it works out fairly well. Thank you. Thank you.

Is there anyone else that would like to speak during the public hearing? Final time, is there anyone else that would like to speak for the public hearing? All right. We will close the public hearing for Lake Meridian Water District Franchise Agreement number FRN25-0003. And we will move to public comment. This is a place on the agenda where the public is invited to speak to the City Council on any issue. The public can participate in person or submit written comments in advance. Sean, did anyone provide written comment or ask for the ability to speak remotely?

Your Honor, Angela Peterson provided written comment, and those were forwarded to the council and mayor prior to the meeting. There was nobody who asked for a special accommodation.

Thank you. We will open public comment up to those in the room. Is there anyone in the audience tonight that would like to provide public comment?

Yes, please come forward, sir.

Go ahead, sir. Name and city of residence for the record, and please limit comments to three minutes. And Sean has a handy dandy little Wind down clock there. That will help you with the time.

I appreciate that. Thank you, counsel. And other members and officials and public. I'm Stuart Anderson. I'm with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA. I'm the Intergovernmental Affairs Specialist assigned for this area. That's a big word for I'm liaison to local officials for FEMA in reference to the individual assistance side from the recent disaster in December that impacted homes, businesses, and infrastructure. I'm just here to give a quick report. for both zip codes that affect the Auburn area. There's been 63 households, not individuals, but households that have registered for FEMA assistance and a total of $173,988 has been distributed or Almost 100% of that has been distributed. If not, it will be. The remainder will be shortly. The other number I'd like to discuss is a date, and that would be June 10th. That is the deadline for folks to apply. Even if they've repaired their damages and have moved on, which is what we want to see and what everybody wants to see, we want to make sure they know that if they had some out-of-pocket, non-insured expenses, they can still apply. especially if they've kept receipts, pictures, et cetera, we encourage them to apply and hopefully maybe get some of that back into their pockets, especially if they had to dip into their savings accounts. And that's all I have for tonight, and I thank you for your time and your time also. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Anderson. Thank you for the work that FEMA has been doing in our community. Is there anyone else that would like to speak? Please come forward, give your name and city of residence for the record, and please limit comments to three minutes.

I apologize for not giving my name the first time. Virginia Haugen, Auburn. I was at the study session and I do not have the resolution number, but there was an executive session and of course we don't always know what the executive session is going to be about. Actually, I guess we never know unless we're on the city council or the mayor or the city attorney. I assume it's about a lease agreement we had with a helicopter company. I believe they do training out at the airport, and I'm thinking that's probably what your executive session was about. If I'm wrong, thank you.

Thank you. And you are correct. Typically, the executive session is just that. It's a closed session. The only time that there is any inference perhaps to what was in the executive session is if there is action that is required after the executive session. Is there anyone else that would like to speak this evening? Yes, please come forward.

Hello. Rocky, resident of Auburn. Hi, council and mayor. Back to continue my ask that the city of Auburn reevaluate its contract with ALPR technology. I've talked with some people in Auburn about ALPRs, and it's clear that they do not want this technology in our city. The people I've spoken with are concerned about government overreach. They're concerned about the capability of the technology to track their driving habits, sharing this data with unknown agencies, and that the data is kept on private servers. Just last week, the Daily Herald reported that Edmonds became the third city in Snohomish County to cancel their flock contract, joining Linwood and Mount Lake Terrace. In King County, Redmond and Renton have both paused their use of ALPR cameras pending further internal investigation into data security, and I suggest that Auburn do the same. I understand the general consensus on the dais is that this technology is okay, even potentially good. But what I've learned from my research shows that the system Flock and Axon have designed and patented is built with one purpose. to create one massive database that allows our travel patterns to be accessed and searched by law enforcement agencies across the country without a warrant. Even if we turn off outside access, reporting has shown that in some cases, Flock has allowed access to continue without notice to end users. Another reason to consider canceling the contract is that ALPRs are driven by AI, and this technology is cataloging everything within the frame of the image it captures. People, pets, children, hair color, skin color, body weight, height, who you're with, who you're close to, aside from just the car, the car make, the car color, identifying features of your vehicle, and also the license plate. This is all documented. It's all cataloged and stored on private servers where who knows will have access. Additionally, While we've not had a specific ALPR incident here in Auburn, why should we wait? There are plenty of stories from across the country showing that all it takes is one person to make a poor decision, as we know from the recent event within the Auburn PD. I'm asking again that the city reconsider surveillance technology in Auburn and places strict guidelines on any future use of AI or surveillance. Thank you.

Thank you. Is there anyone else that would like to speak this evening? All right, we will move forward. Sean, do we have any correspondence? No, Your Honor. Thank you. Moving to the consent agenda, all matters listed on the consent agenda are considered by the City Council to be routine and will be enacted by one motion in the form listed. Is there a motion? Deputy Mayor Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. I move to approve the consent agenda, please. Thank you. Is there a second? Council Member Amherst. I second, ma'am.

Thank you. Deputy Mayor Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. This in the consent agenda is setting the date for the public hearing of the 27 to 2032 Transportation Improvement Program claims vouchers and payroll vouchers as listed in your agenda.

Thank you. Council, are there any questions or any items that you wish to have removed for separate consideration?

All those in favor of the consent agenda, please say aye.

Aye. All opposed, please say no. The consent agenda passes. We have no unfinished business, but I believe we do have new business. Council Member Lott?

Yes, thank you, Mayor. And the new business that I'm proposing is that the city study the use of motorized, unlicensed, non-street legal vehicles by youths 15 and under. And I've heard from several constituents in the area about use riding these vehicles around on curbs, in the street, in the parks. And it's become a hazard. And it's really a safety hazard. There's no safety equipment. They're not street legal vehicles. These are kids that are driving these out in traffic. And it only takes one instance for one of them to get seriously injured. And it's becoming, to me, it's an elevated problem. And just last... Meeting we had the last council meeting we have a young gentleman in here that was talking about it and Saying that they're riding around the parks tearing up parks. And so I've heard about it enough times that I thought I'll bring this forward with new business and ask the city To study this to see if we can have some type of a parental, you know, and I think I termed it is is a Parental accountability ordinance to say that if you're going to do this and that the parents are going to give the kids free will to do this and buy these vehicles, that there ought to be some responsibility on them. And responsibility on them would be if you're going to buy your children these types of vehicles, then you need to find the appropriate place to allow them to drive them. And that's not on the city streets. It's not in the city parks. It's not on the curbs. And I'd like the city to study this and come back with some solutions on what we can do about this to make it a safer community for everybody.

First of all, Council Member Lott, I was also, even though I wasn't physically at the meeting, the last council meeting, I did listen to the young man and his mother speak, and I have reached out to them to ask them to be part of the conversation for solutions. As a young person, since this is basically a young person driven conversation, opportunity, I will say. We also, the Auburn Junior City Council is, will take that up this fall when they come back into session. They've, they will have their last Junior City Council meeting for this school year, I believe this week. And we'll be on their agenda this fall, just so you know that we are working on some of those issues. But council, Do I need a motion in order for this to have discussion? To have discussion, Mary, yes. Okay. So, Council Member Lott, are you making a motion on this?

Yes. Yes, I am. I'm making a motion to move for the staff, the mayor and the staff, to coordinate a future study session in consideration of a parental accountability ordinance and related code amendments addressing the illegal operation of non-street legal motorized vehicles by minors on public streets, sidewalks, parks, trails within the city of Auburn.

Is there a second? Council Member Rakes. I'll second that. Okay, is there any discussion? First of all, Council Member Lott, would you like to speak to your motion?

Yeah, I felt like in brief here I just did, but really this is to study to see. I feel that this is a safety issue. It's a safety issue for the children that are out driving these, and it's a safety issue for the general public. And I have constituents telling me that they are walking down the sidewalk and almost get hit by these vehicles, and these are constituents that are elderly. And they have real concerns that they, quite frankly, they don't know what to do. And it's just gotten to a point where I think that there needs to be some accountability in looking at what we have in place for rules and regulations. And if we don't have the framework in place, then we need to put it in place If we do have framework, then it needs to be tightened because it's not addressing the issue. And I've looked at this as an ongoing problem in other cities as well. And I see that other cities in Washington State, Iwako in particular, enacted the same type of ordinance. You know, the other thing that I, you know, this kind of boiled out of the last study session, is I was interested in seeing a separate reporting for these vehicles in accidents. You know, I think everything was blended when the when the accidents came up in the previous study session. I'd like to see a breakout of that to say because we need some measurement. We need some baseline to say, what is it currently? And if we enact this, then we can track it and see if it's improving the situation.

Deputy Mayor Taylor and then Council Member Ammer.

Thank you, Mayor. You know, I appreciate Council Member Lotz bringing this forward. I too have my fair share of frustration when it comes to e-bikes, motor scooters, and e-motocycles. You know, I mean, I'm first to go out to our park near my neighborhood and see the destruction firsthand. And then, of course, what's happening on the streets, that's a lot of frustration with a lot of people. I actually looked a little bit more into when we were provided Council Member Lott's information in his motion moving forward. So I did a little research myself and I had reached out to Target Zero and our local agent for Target Zero, Sarah Halstead, asked her specifically what they were doing when it comes to what fatalities look like, if there have been reported. What she has told me and the research that Target Zero has done in our community uh in south king county is that they're not getting reports of fatalities or anything like that they have been uh information coming from emergency rooms excuse me emergency rooms with broken hands broken wrists broken arms broken feet broken legs in that space, but they have not received a fatality report. Again, I'm in agreement with Councilmember Lott. I know that this is a safety issue. I believe it's quite dangerous for these motorbikes to be out on the roadways. But there's one thing that I would like our council to consider and maybe even look into is that the city of Mercer Island also had something similar to this. And they have put together a work group. around this and I think honestly involving our youth in a discussion with this along with the Junior City Council like Mayor had asked or had spoken on I think is a good opportunity for us to come together as a council and the Junior City Council to kind of find some sort of solution moving forward for this issue that we are facing with the e-bikes. Thank you. Thank you. Council Member Ammer.

So, first, I understand the concern and safety issue behind it. A few years ago, before this became, we had one child in my neighborhood who was riding one of these bikes. The neighbor spoke with their parent, but their response was, let him ride. Several people reported to the police. One of the sergeants came, spoke to the parent. However, we agree this is a safety issue. I have concern about the process because technically Auburn is the firm of the government, the mayor direct staff and city operation. So I would have preferred the conversation start with the mayor, with the police department, with the city attorney, with the special focus area before we bring it as a new business Because before we think this is coming under us as a council, and I believe safety is important, but we need to be so careful, consider additional regulation with the fact resident kids. Especially I was attending King County Children Youth Advisory and they have a bill of right. I think will be more effective. have come from the junior council, not from us. So that's why we need to address the community, but we need to think about increasing using new business item while it should not. It should be a conversation, collaboration work.

Thank you.

Council Member Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Council Member Lott, because that was something that I was considering as well. You beat me to it. I think we all have some concerns about the safety of our youth and our community on a lot of different levels, and this one is no different. You know, I've experienced the same thing in my neighborhood. They're jumping off curves and popping wheelies on these things and riding down the middle of the street. So I agree that we need to look at this and something should be done. We should address it. And I also, Deputy Mayors, your comments, I agree that there should be youth voice involved in it because it was actually a youth who brought it forward. and so i think we should honor that and find a way to bridge those two and um definitely give them an opportunity to uh take part in this and i think that the outcomes of whatever comes out of that is going to be really great because anytime you get involved in something and they have some ownership in it i think we do well to include them so um yes i believe that we should be addressing this and the sooner the better because again although there are no fatality data that's a lot of data that just was given about the emergency rooms and broken arms and you know I'm hoping there aren't any fatalities but you know again I'm for and we're not voting but I'm definitely for us taking a look at this and seeing what we can come up with.

So you will be voting. There is a motion on the floor. Not right this moment.

No.

Yes, there is a motion on the floor. Council Member Baldwin.

Thank you, Mayor. Based on what I've heard in this meeting and others from our community.

One moment, Council Member. Let me see if we can boost your mic.

Okay. Any better?

Try it again.

Sure. Is this any better?

A little bit. If you could speak a little bit louder, we would appreciate it.

Mainly, I would say that as the legislative branch, this is a matter that's been brought forward to us, and I think that it's appropriate for us to bring it forward for discussion and study session. Thank you.

Thank you. Council Member Lott. Oh, sorry, Council Member Sturgis first.

Thank you very much. Yes, I'm looking forward to getting to learn more about this space. My ask would be that, you know, just to remind us that the young gentleman who did come share, he was really in favor of us being able to put, you know, it's so great that youth are getting outside and getting away from their video games or their cell phones and that, you know, sometimes we're quick to just put rules to kind of ban things that versus really looking at how do we put the right rules in place to make it safe? And so I would just ask that as we're going through our learning that we really take the time too to look at the cities where they aren't having problems, that they do have the right rules in place, that it is a safe activity and that we you know it's one of our we get tons of feedback from other areas that we've got great predictable rules in place that we can hold people accountable to so that it doesn't ruin it for everybody else and so I'm looking forward to the discussion I got to ride my first e-bike in Washington DC a couple months back and reminded myself I need some lessons I almost hit a planter. But otherwise, no, no issues. But they had, you know, a lot of rules posted everywhere. And I love the parent involvement. But again, I really love hearing from the youth on how we can make this a way that they engage to help us learn how to do it right so that it supports them being out enjoying our parks and our streets and being outside and doing the things that we hope our youth are doing. So I appreciate that. Thank you.

Council Member Rakes.

Thank you. Yes, I agree bringing our youth into it would be a good thing. What I'm concerned about is the time frame. This is prime season for those e-bikes being used. I was just up at Lake Taps and went to my grandson's game and they were out there doing wheelies and going in between the cars. So it's a matter of time before someone's going to get seriously hurt. And I don't think waiting months to come up with a solution is the best idea.

Thank you. Director Krueger, I know, sorry, caught you off guard for a moment. I know that you and I have chatted about what it might look like putting something in the parks for e-bikes. And your team was, I don't know if they've even had an opportunity to think about that yet, given that we are in the height of all of the event season. But it is something that you and I chatted about to try and find a good outlet for our youth to be able to utilize the e-bikes.

Yes, and it's making sure you're in the appropriate spaces and have the appropriate elements as part of a park. So where might those exist, current, park spaces might be perhaps too close to a neighborhood. So it would be lots of community conversations to try to maybe identify a spot for that opportunity, maybe not in current spaces, but where else might we be able to look at that could create something.

Thank you. I just wanted to make sure council understood that this is not an issue that has not been talked about. This is an issue that we've had conversations about with legal and with parks. And I know deputy mayor has been able to provide videos of some of the damage and photographs. And so we are in acknowledgment of that, working with police department as well. It's a very fine line to walk at this point because they are juveniles and the laws in the state of Washington do not allow police much interaction, especially if they believe they are part of the incident, right? Once they believe, Chief, is that correct? Once they believe a juvenile is involved in the incident, they can no longer speak to them without an attorney present, right? Am I getting that right?

If they're suspected of a crime, yes.

So riding the e-bikes right now on streets without a license, without a helmet, underage, would that be considered a crime under the state law?

I'm putting you on the spot.

I'm sorry.

Not necessarily. It depends on the classification of whether it's an e-bicycle or an e-motorcycle, and then it comes down to the age of the offender, whether they're considered legally culpable of knowingly that they know what the law is. Okay. So there's several factors that play into that. Great. Thank you.

All that to say it's a very messy subject. Councilmember Lott and then Councilmember Amer.

Yeah, no, and I'm glad we're having this conversation because a piece of it is giving them the opportunity to ride these somewhere, right? And that would be a piece of this that the city would need to explore. The other piece is I don't see why the city can't look at what we can and can't do and come back with options. And in parallel, bring the youth in and have them in parallel work with them to say what would you like to see and then come together and say this is what we can and can't do and let's take that and pair it with what you'd like to see and then identify opportunities where you can ride these legally and work the framework together. And that's kind of the goal here. But I don't think it should be linear. I think because if Cheryl brought up speed, it should be in parallel to speed up the process.

Correct. And all of that to say that nothing happens quickly in government for sometimes for good reason. But it's just to make sure the legalities, you know, we are not doing anything that is outside of what we should be doing. Council Member Ammer.

I just want to add, because Lake Depp, the majority of them, their homeowner association, city, that's the only thing maybe the association can put rules and not allow them to have them in their private property. Because, believe me, I've been seeing this before anybody. It was nine years old. So... So I know everything how that danger, but that's what I'm saying. I know the kids, so we need to be careful. How we want to frame it is not like us. We policing. We will arrest you, right?

Deputy Mayor Taylor and then Councilmember Sturgis.

Thank you, Mayor. I appreciate this conversation amongst the council members. I think this is something that we've all heard, we all acknowledge, and we all would like to find a solution because like you've heard on the dais tonight, let's let kids be kids, but at what cost, right? We are looking out for their safety and their well-being as well. I think Moving forward into this study session discussion, though, I would like to see possibly the inviting in the Traffic Safety Commission part of that conversation and maybe even Target Zero to see and have them bring some of their information forward as well. I know Sarah has been working diligently on this. This is one of her things as well. So I'm looking forward to the conversation, but at the same time, I think that, you know, We really need to get a grasp on it. Thank you.

Council Member Sturgis.

Thank you, Mayor. And I would just add that I came to mind of, you know, we've got such a great partnership with our Auburn School District and our superintendent. And, you know, we have our quarterly cities and schools meeting. It just feels like they could be a great place to collaborate with as well, since they have a dialed in way of getting in front of parents for communications about youth and And then also just the wonderful bike program that the Parks and Rec has done where, or is it, I guess it's a partnership through Parks and Police, is the training where they're teaching the bike safety and then the kids get a bike afterwards, you know, wondering just, they've had so many great learnings and trainings as well. No e-bikes. No e-bikes. No e-bikes, but, you know, there's a lot of safety being taught for regular bikes. And so just those were the two things I thought we already have, you know, well-oiled and working that we could at least pull in through some of these conversations.

Thank you. And Director Galb reminded me, we also have e-bike and e-motorcycle information and rules on our website currently. So there were some state laws passed, I believe, in this last legislative session. uh, that, uh, that will apply statewide in the absence of city ordinances. And, uh, yes, deputy mayor Taylor.

Sorry, mayor. I was just going to say, yeah, it was, uh, in those last legislative session, it was a Senate bill 61 one zero, uh, which takes effect on June 11th. I really dove into this because it's been such a hot topic for my HOA as well. I guess more along the lines of helping understand what our authority already has today and whether or not there are some enforcement gaps that a local ordinance could or would address. Thank you.

Thank you. Any other comments? And our team is already looking into it. Our city attorney is already looking at MRSC and finding data that's on there as well. Council Member Lott, may I borrow your motion so I can read it?

Yes. It's kind of small print. Oh, I can read it. Yes.

All those in favor of the motion to have the mayor work with staff to coordinate a future study session for council consideration of a parental accountability ordinance and related code amendments addressing the illegal operation of non-street legal motorized vehicles by minors on public streets, sidewalks, parks, and trails within the city of Auburn, please say aye.

Aye.

All opposed, please say no.

Motion passes.

All right. And Sean, did you get the motion? Yes, Your Honor, I did. Thank you. All right. Moving on to ordinances, ordinance number 7015, an ordinance relating to downtown urban center design standards and zoning regulations amending sections 18.02.070, 18.29.010, 18.29.020, 18.29.040, 18.29.050, 18.29.053, 18.29.055, 18.29.060, and 18.29.070, amending section 18.29.057 and recodifying as 18.29.045 and creating new sections 18.29.054 and 18.29.080 of the Auburn City Code. And no, I'm not going to reread that. Is there a motion? Council Member Rakes.

Thank you, Mayor. I move to approve ordinance number 7015. Thank you. Is there a second? Council Member Taylor. I second that motion. Thank you. Council Member Rakes. Ordinance number 7015 would implement the vision of the 2024 Auburn Downtown Suburban Plan and provide clear, objective, and measurable standards ensuring Auburn's consistency with House Bill 1293. Thank you.

Any questions or comments from Council? All those in favor of ordinance number 7015, please say aye. Aye. All opposed, please say no. Ordinance number 7015 passes. Ordinance number 7016, an ordinance relating to updates to the citywide design standards and amending sections 18.31.200, 18.07.030, and 18.23.040 of the Auburn City Code. Is there a motion? Council Member Sturgis.

Thank you, Mayor. I move to approve Ordinance Number 7016. Thank you.

Is there a second? Deputy Mayor Taylor. Second. Thank you. Thank you. Council Member Sturgis.

Thank you. Ordinance Number 7016 will streamline Auburn's development regulations related to design review and provide clear, objective, and measurable standards, ensuring Auburn's consistency with House Bill 1293. Thank you.

Questions or comments from Council? All those in favor of ordinance number 7016, please say aye. Aye. All opposed, please say no. Ordinance number 7016 passes. Ordinance number 7021, an ordinance relating to planning, expanding the density bonus allowance to the RC R1 and R2 residential zones, and amending section 18.02.067, units allowed per lot of the Auburn City Code. Is there a motion? Council Member Rakes.

Thank you, Mayor. I move to approve ordinance number 7021.

Thank you. Is there a second?

Council Member Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. I second that motion.

Thank you. Council Member Rakes. Ordinance number 7021 would update the city code to be consistent with the requirements of the state to expand the existing density bonus allowed of up to 50% within existing buildings within all residential zones. Thank you.

Do any questions or comments? All those in favor of ordinance number 7021, please say aye. Aye. All opposed, please say no. Ordinance number 7021 passes. Resolution number 5903, a resolution approving the South King Housing and Homeless Partners 2027 work plan and 2027 operating budget. Is there a motion? Councilmember Taylor.

Thank you. I move to adopt resolution.

Your microphone.

I move to adopt resolution 5903. Thank you.

Is there a second? Council Member Ammer. I second. Thank you, Council Member Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. Adoption of Resolution 5903 would approve and endorse the 2027 South King County Housing and Homelessness Partners Work Plan and Budget in accordance with Auburn's interlocal agreement with SCIP as a partner jurisdiction.

Thank you. Questions or comments from Council? All those in favor of Resolution 5903, please say aye. Aye. All opposed, please say no. Resolution number 5903 passes. Resolution number 5911, a resolution authorizing the mayor to execute and administer an agreement accepting a grant. We always love that. From the Fora Culture relating to project number CP2414, Downtown Auburn Theater. Is there a motion? Deputy Mayor Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. I move to adopt resolution number 5911. Thank you.

Is there a second? Council Member Sturgis. Thank you, Mayor. I'll second. Thank you. Deputy Mayor Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. Resolution 5911 allows the acceptance and utilization of grant funds from 4Culture in the amount of $625,000 for the Auburn Downtown Theater Project, which will build a replacement for the Auburn Avenue Theater, which was demolished in October of 2024. Thank you.

Questions or comments from Council?

Council Member Sturgis.

Thank you. I just want to make a brief comment saying thank you so much to our amazing parks team and all of our city staff. We just do such an incredible job finding grants and getting grants. And I've just, you know, the last two years have had to learn a lot about the grant world. And so I just thank you so much for constantly putting in the hard work because it's not easy to try to find these types of funds. Thank you.

All right. All those in favor of resolution number 5911, please say aye. Aye. All opposed, please say no. Resolution number 5911 passes. All right, we will move to mayor and council member reports. At this time, the mayor and city council may report on significant items associated with their appointed positions on federal, state, regional, and local organizations. And we will begin with Deputy Mayor Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. I am super thrilled. I've had an opportunity to meet with most of my council members on a little touch base. So that's been fun to learn about what's happening in SFAs and whatnot. So again, thank you to our several of my fellow council members who've made the time to do meetings. Since our last meeting, I attended the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish County's reception where there was discussion around the middle housing and how cities across the region are approaching housing choices and affordability. Great opportunity here, different perspectives learned from communities that are implementing a lot of these policies. Over Memorial Day weekend, I joined fellow council members at several remembrance events throughout our community. I also attended the Auburn Rotary fundraiser this last weekend with Council Member Sergis, raising scholarship funds for local students. I'm so touched by the generosity in that room. And former Parks Director Darrell Faber at the microphone was fabulous. But walking away that night with the motto just embedded service above self is something that I strive for and I just love what the Rotary continues to do. There was no Regional Transit Committee meeting this month. Many members were in DC for advocacy meetings. Prior to that, we did have a pretty robust conversation around FIFA, public safety planning, regional transportation. I will be sharing some additional information about FIFA and our transit options. I know Director Gallup sent that out to council members, but I'll do a little bit more about that. With my report out in our next study session. And finally, I'm really excited about this because several of my fellow council members have participated in this. But I'm excited to, since I've been selected to participate in the third cohort of Wasselli, I'm very excited to get started in that leadership program at the end of this month. Thank you.

Wonderful. Thank you. Council Member Ammer. Microphone. Sorry. So we can hear your list.

Oh, I'm louder without microphone. I'm a Girl Scout leader. I attend Good Eggs Breakfast and listen to Pierce County Executive Ronnie Ryan. Molly, it's his name? Miller. Miller, I was impressed. Now every one of us want to go to the park to look for the glasses. He said we'll start today, June 1st. So I may go to Lakewood. He really, his theme was connect. I'm really impressed with him. I also attended the Forensic Investigation Council meeting and will receive update on forensic lab service and public safety efforts across the state of Washington. Saturday, I attend King County youth advisory meeting, summit, it was in the Museum of Light in Seattle. I had the opportunity, I was in the registration, then after that I had the opportunity to be part facilitate for tables with the youth from South King County from District 7 and 9. I enjoyed hearing their idea and their perspective. One of my favorite moments when Facebook came and several youths quickly said, nobody use Facebook anymore. We are using Instagram. Only older people use Facebook. That was hard. And at the same time, after I had to run, drive to Bellevue to attend the Muslim Association Bajet Sound Eid celebration, I had to give my speech, and they put me after the magician. He went to America and get talent, and really you can see the disappointed of people, but I tried. And when I spoke up, I told them he can make things get taller and things disappear, and they can do that by making my speech go a speech going longer, so everybody will disappear.

Council Member Sturgis.

Thank you so much. Just to tag off of the Memorial Day celebrations last Monday were just so special. It's such a the ceremonial piece of the three events that we get to attend each Memorial Day. It's such a reminder just to honor and show gratitude for the heroes of our military that have given their life so that we can live in a free country. And, you know, there's, it was just so special. So I appreciate getting to be a part of that. And I appreciate the learning that I've had the last two years and getting to, you know, really hone in on knowing that it's so much more than celebrations of barbecues and, and family and a a day off from work. I feel I've always known the meaning, but now to be able to really share that and remind folks of how lucky we are to live in a free country and the people who risk their lives for us for that. And then just, um, although this isn't, was it in my formal capacity as a city council member, but as a Rotarian, I just want to say thank you so much to, uh, mayor Bacchus and to deputy mayor, uh, Tracy Taylor for attending our second annual, uh, Rotary Gala at Junior Achievement. It was huge. We raised about 86,000 is the original count so far. And of course, Darryl Faber was a wonderful MC of the night. But our superintendent, Dr. Spichotti, shared just some incredible comments. And one of our wonderful leaders, Wendy, from Green River College, the partnership there. We had a Green River College student stand up and just share the impact that these types of scholarships make. And so the Rotary each year gives away $8,500 scholarships, and they have a huge lunch, and all the students, it's all Auburn High School students who receive these funds. And the message that really stuck with me was that that $500, it is huge for them, but reality right now, it's like five tanks of gas. But truly, the certificate that they frame, that the parents frame, that it shows that we have belief in them and their dreams and their goals. And so it was just a super special evening. I'm just so grateful for the city's support and the local business community that shows up in that room. The energy was contagious and it was just an incredible evening.

Thank you. Council Member Taylor.

Thank you, Mayor. I had an opportunity to attend the PSRC meeting that was held at the Seattle Convention Center this year again. Interesting. Just hearing about the climate in terms of public and private sector, there was a lot of talk about we need to work better together. But a lot of good data, if you haven't had a chance to look at the recording, I would encourage you, and if you want to skip past the entire meeting and get to what I thought was, it's a good meeting, but the highlight of the meeting when they had three of our area's top CEOs from Microsoft, Nordstrom's, and JPMorgan Chase on the panel, I think that would be really great. Also, Christ Community Free Clinic had their fundraiser, so there was a couple that was happening at the same time. And so I was privileged to be there with a couple other council members, as well as the mayor who showed up. I don't know how much they raised, but there was good energy in the room. It was for a good cause. And just hearing about all the people who, not just folks that we commonly think about, people that are homeless or people that are in dire need, but just even everyday working people that can't afford medical. and for them to be there and be providing this service, I was pleased to be a part of that. And I know it's a little late, but I forgot to mention, so I wanted to do that a couple of weeks ago. I did participate in the National Prayer Day, and it was awesome here out on the— I want to say front lawn, but in front of City Hall, and it was great to be with a bunch of other, because I am a pastor too, so it was good to be with a bunch of other pastors and members from various churches around the city who came together, not just as for prayer, but also to talk about how we can start as a faith-based community working better together in our community as well.

Thank you. Council Member Lott.

Nothing to report.

Thank you. Council Member Baldwin.

Yes, I participated in the Growth Management Planning Council's meeting that we had last week. We were working to approve our work plan for the year, and we also heard updates as far as federal and state changes coming out of the respective Congress and legislative sessions. We had that session. And I would like to wish a happy Pride Month to everybody going forward this June and look forward to being back next week. Thanks.

Thank you, Council Member Baldwin. Council Member Rakes?

I'm not going to have a report tonight because most of my council members have reported on stuff I was at.

all right thank you i will report on a few of the activities in the last couple of weeks i was absent from the last city council meeting i was in washington dc with a delegation from Tacoma Pierce County because Auburn is in two counties and so we do try and work collaboratively with both. This was a Washington to Washington trip that I have attended before. Several meetings talking about relevant issues but we did have, we had meetings with Senators Murray and Cantwell. Also with Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland and with Congressman Rick Larson. Great opportunities for working together on issues surrounding power, technology, just a lot of opportunities for us to be working more collaboratively in the future. And I look forward to that, working on homelessness issues as well. Kudos to our cemetery team for how beautiful the cemetery looked on Memorial Day. It was absolutely beautiful. And always appreciate the great work that's done by the team up there, the pride that they take in. in making sure that people can go and visit their loved ones and feel safe and in a beautiful space. And also have been going through council judge interviews for our second judge. We are getting very close to having a second judge that I will appoint that will be brought forward for council for confirmation. So very excited by that. As well as we will be doing interviews for our new human services director. Our equity engagement and outreach program manager, those interviews have been going on. And I believe most of you are aware, but just to make it public for everyone, we will have a city or a chief administrative officer beginning for the city of Auburn on July 13th. His name is Scott McCall. And he has many years of experience being a city manager. He's currently in the city of Sammamish. I believe he's been there for roughly five years. And we will be very excited to welcome him as part of the team. With that, we have no need for a closed or executive session. We are adjourned.