City Council - Regular Meeting

Thank you. Thank you.

Yes, Councilmember Carr is absent. Councilmember Panduro?

Here.

Councilmember Sandhu? Here. Councilmember Tonneson? Here. Councilmember Williams? Here. Vice Mayor Bertani? Here. And Mayor Vaccaro?

Here.

Thank you.

The invocation will be provided by Pastor Andre Davis. Come on up, Andre.

I'm loud enough, you ain't even got a hat on, you know what I'm saying? I'm just blessed to be here today, you know. Tell you a little bit about me real quick before I do this invocation is that I've been here for 65 years. My name is Andre Wendell Davis, Sr. They call me Dre for Christ. Been with my wife for 52 years. Been here, raised here for 65 years. Always wanted. I never been on really always been on this side of Fairfield doing what we do here. I was on the other side doing the wrong thing, but I'm doing the right thing now. Amen. And I'll say you hear me say amen a lot because that's what I'm not. I'm not talking about no religion. I ain't talking about I'm talking about relationship, y'all. Like everybody here tonight has an agenda. But the Lord knows our agenda. And we have to really be focused on what we're about to do in our town right now. Because if you can look around in here right now, we have to get this out there. Because that's the relationship out there. I always say, no unity, no community. We cannot have a community without no unity. And that is so important. I got a foundation called We Are Never Alone. That's what I do. I bring people together, band of believers, as you can see this right now. I got a fire out there. We go out every two weeks and we pray for places. We pray for the fire department. We pray for the police department. We pray for the families. We go because what the Lord has called us to do is to go out and pray that ground and it is done. I'm not preaching at you. That's what it is. I almost lost my son to these streets. I had to go out there and get my son. I couldn't wait for nobody to get my son. And now my son's doing well. He's 49 years old and he's doing well. But I'm telling you guys right now, we have to come. I don't care what we do. We talk, we do this, but we have to come together. You know, we shouldn't be afraid of you. You shouldn't be afraid of us. But the disconnection is terrible. 65 years. I'm speaking for the youth. That's why you don't see that many youth here because they don't trust us. I was raised on don't do what I do, do what I say. That don't work no more. So we have to come together, y'all, in prayer. We don't have to wait for another 9-1-1. We should be getting together and listening to the 4-1-1 with each other before another 9-1-1 pop up. We get together and it's just a bunch of talk. So I'm speaking for the young people. I'm not young. I'm 65 years old. I'm not young. But I'm speaking for them because we want to get them in here to see what you're doing to make a difference. Because we talk too much. We talk too much. That's just what it is. We don't want to hear it. So I'm going to pray for us right now. And that's what I'm doing. I'm not just praying for you. I'm praying for us. Because we all need to be heard. I got a shirt I just made up for us. And it's called slap. Stop, listen, and pray. Before it's too late. I got a black hand and I got a white hand. Stay together. Because when I'm trying to listen to you, you talking. When I'm trying to talk, you listen. Nobody's hearing nobody. So we just have to do that. So can we put our heads down? I want to pray for us right now. And I'm going to pray for our council, our city council. I wrote this prayer. Heavenly Father, we lift up our mayors, our city council members, county commission, police chiefs, judges, fire department, all who serve in local government. Thank you for the service that they give to our communities. Grant them wisdom to discern the needs of our people, make decisions that promote justice, equality, and the common good. Help them to balance budgets wisely, invest in fractions, education, and public safety, and protect the valuable. Bless them with integrity so that they may resist corruption, uphold truth, and serve as moral examples to all others. Keep them from undue influences and special interests, and give them courage to represent the needs of our representation and our residents, especially the most in our country right now. May they govern with transparency and accessibility, listening to their Constitution voices and working together in unity. Strengthen them with emotional stability, mental clarity, and physical endurance to carry out the heavy responsibilities that they carry. Lord, help them to defend the oppressed, protect the virtuous, and discipline the wrongdoers. May their laws and regulations foster an environment where every citizen should flourish spiritually, socially, and physically. May what we say influence our next generation who will carry on what we do. We pray for their common grace to flow through them, bringing peace, tranquility, and prosperity to our communities. Draw those who do not know you to Jesus and deepen the faith of those who do. Heal the divisions that hinder progress and foster a spirit of reconciliation among them. Give them the courage to make difficult decisions that favor the common good rather than political gain. We pray for collaboration, an atmosphere where dialogue brings understanding and solutions and healing. Help our leaders to listen to one another and to the residents that serve building trust in our local institutions. Bless their families, protect them from selfish ambitions, and guide them in all their ways. That not only our city of Fairfield, but Solano County and the whole world. Father God, in your words, you said that the battle is not between flesh and blood. So help them to come into an agreement about what you say. You say that your kingdom come and that your will be done. I consistently tell you, Lord, we love you. We thank you. We praise you in the mighty, magnificent, magnificent name of Jesus Christ. We pray. Amen. Y'all be blessed.

Councilman Williams, would you lead us in the pledge? indivisible with liberty and justice for all okay we'll turn to council reports and we'll start with councilwoman williams thank you mayor

I wanted to report on a few events starting out in my district. Cordelia Green Valley Seize Candies had a really amazing event at 5081 Business Center Drive. It was a ribbon cutting. And there were hundreds of people out there. So they got off to a really wonderful start. And I looked to see them super successful in the district. Also, I wanted to talk a little bit about two children's events. One is Popsicles in the Park, and that is done by Park and Rec. I attended Allenwood Park, but I believe there are upcoming Popsicles in the Parks coming up. Please drop by and have a cool treat. Also, I wanted to make a quick report on 707 Kids Day. This is the first year that 707 Kids Day has come to Fairfield. It was organized by Nate Thompson. He's simply just a dad that wanted to do an event, and with that spark, with that idea, He had 331 kids at the park. It was Laura Creek Park a few weeks ago. And I tell you, to pull up on a Saturday, and I came a little late. I was just going to stop in and see how I could help. Well, I couldn't even find a park. And these kids were laughing and running. And just to hear the sounds of kids, 331 kids laughing and running just because a dad just wanted to get kids together and laugh and have games, that was just his vision. And people just took off with it. People came and they volunteered. It was just completely amazing. I'm in with him, with Nate Thompson. I told him any year that he does that, I am full in. And I'll help him find sponsors and whatever he needs to do to make sure our kids have that type of fun. And then finally, even though i missed it this time i want to talk about a teeny bit about lunch mob so the economic development department they they love our businesses and they want them to thrive and secretly we're all foodies so they pick a different place every month to go to and we all we all bring our lunch money And we're there for a few hours. We get to talk about anything we want. But we're insurging this business. And so I want you to join us. It's usually during, it's always during lunchtime. It's the lunch mob. But that happens every month. And I know, Little Birdie told me, that next month it's going to be at the Dumpling House right here downtown. So anyway, that's the end of my reports, Mayor.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. It was a busy couple of weeks. On August 22nd, we're going to have a little event called Let's Play Catch. And it's going to be held at Alan Witt Park. And it's just raising awareness for baseball and for the kids and stuff. There's going to be prizes. They're raffling off a free full custom glove. It's supposed to be a good event ages 5 to 18. That's going to be at Allen Witt Park on the 22nd. We have had, there was three ribbon cuttings this week and there's another one coming Thursday. Thursday, Archer's Den downtown is opening up, and it's with the foam arrows, and they play tag, and they play targets, and they have it set for office events or parties. It's a really, really interesting spot. It's right in the middle of downtown, 700 block. It was at the See's Candy event with Kay. People started lining up at 4.30 in the morning, we were told, so they must have got a pretty cool bag. The Pickler had its grand opening. It was very well attended. The Pickler is the new pickleball courts that are indoor at the old Party City. So if you haven't been there or you want to try out pickleball, give them a try. And then we had the ribbon cutting that trained for life, another new business downtown. It was really well attended. PROBABLY 100 PLUS PEOPLE THERE, BUT REALLY, REALLY GOOD EVENT. AND THEN WE HAVE THE NEW EVENT CENTER DOWNTOWN. IF YOU WANT TO HOLD EVENTS, IT'S RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF 700 BLOCK AGAIN NEXT TO EVELYN'S PIZZA. IF YOU WANT TO HOLD EVENTS THERE OR MEETINGS, YOU CAN CONTACT But it's been a very popular spot. The downtown is just really, really busy right now. It's getting a lot of businesses. So if you haven't been there in a while, come visit downtown. Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

Thank you, Mayor. Hi, everyone. So mine is just a quick thank you. So I work for CASA of Solano County. CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates. So we train adult volunteers and pair them with youth going through the foster care system. And so today we had an open house, and a lot of my colleagues and staff were invited. And so I just wanted to say thank you to the police chief, Dan Marshall, and the fire chief, and the deputy chiefs that attended, and Angele, who went and supported And got to learn about CASA and what we do and that we have a waiting room for folks who are going to have court business and don't have anywhere to leave their children. We do have a waiting room on the third floor that is open from 8 to 2 every day. And if you want more information on our program or how to become a CASA, the website is www.casasolano.org. And I am the outreach coordinator there. So you can always also direct questions to me. And that is all. Thank you, Mayor.

thank you mayor and thank you everyone for coming out it's always a better meeting when this chamber your chamber is filled up and i just have a couple of quick announcements number one i just completed the public table town hall meeting series that i conducted in all six districts across the city over the past couple of months and i just wanna Really thank all of the residents who came out on those Saturday mornings To talk about the issues that matter in their communities and solutions I want to thank staff for setting up all of the six town hall meetings and it is just always great to get off this dais and to really have time to have in-depth conversations with with our residents because i probably learn more than i give to them but it was just a really great six meetings and i just want to thank everyone for taking the time to show up and to speak up so thank you for that You just heard Dre for Christ on Saturday, this Saturday the 25th, the Band of Believers of Solano County in partnership with the Fairfield Police Department and the Fairfield Clergy Action Network or Fairfield CAN. We'll be out here on Saturday the 25th from 5 to 7 p.m. right out here in the courtyard for Unity in the Community. And Dre's prefacing comments is what it's all about. It's about inspiring, praying, teaching, fellowshipping, and helping get our young people where they need to be. So please join us. All are welcome. It's a family-friendly event, 5 to 7 Saturday, the 25th of July this month. And I'm sure the weather, that'll be a good time because it'll be cooler by then. So we look forward to seeing you there on Saturday. And finally, the Clergy Action Network meets on every fourth Tuesday of the month, which means we'll be meeting this Tuesday on July 28th. We will be debriefing on the Clergy Action Network's past Juneteenth Festival that happened on June 19th at the County Square. We'll be debriefing on that. We will be discussing our participation in the upcoming block party event at Travis Air Force Base. This year is going to be held in October, so we'll be discussing that. And believe it or not, on the agenda for Tuesday is our annual... Thanksgiving meal. That's how quickly this year is flying by. And you're welcome to attend the Clergy Action Network meeting. It is, again, Tuesday, July 28th from 3 to 4.30 p.m. at the Vista Conference Room over at the Fairfield Community Center right across the way, 1000 Kentucky Street, 3 to 4.30. And that's my report, Mr. Mayor. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman Sandu.

Thank you, Mayor. Just a couple, I think one main one as part of my council duties. I attended our monthly MCE meeting. MCE is the organization that helps provide power for Solano County plus a few other neighboring counties. Probably the biggest updates from the organization would be we're currently conducting a governance review to help kind of update the structure of the organization. It's the first CCA that we have, and because of that, it is the most unique, I will say. And so they are conducting a governance review currently, so that organization may have some Structural changes in the long term, in the next coming maybe six months to a year, you might see some updates to that organization. You'll still get power, don't worry. And on another note, that organization will also be getting a new CEO soon. There's an interim currently. There's an interim CEO currently for that organization. So those are probably the biggest things to keep you guys aware of. Thank you.

First of all, I just want to say it's great to see our council chambers packed, our first responders out here and everybody else who's here. The only thing I wanted, I'm going to keep it real, real brief, okay? I was sworn in at STA last week and I had not been to a Solano Transportation Authority meeting in a long time. So I have a lot to learn over the next couple of months or a few months. But it was exciting actually to learn more about transportation in our county and what we're doing. Another thing is, too, I'd want to say that, you know, it's real hot out there. And everybody who has young kids, and I'm looking at some of the young kids in the audience, keep them cool, because as a young kid myself back in New York, I think that was the only time I ever got heat stroke when the humidity was about 80 degrees back there. So be real, real careful. The only other thing I want to say is, and I said it last week, it's just it's an honor to be up here. It's a pleasure, colleagues, so thank you. Your report.

I have no report this evening, Mr. Mayor.

Okay, Mr. City Attorney. Nothing to report, Mr. Mayor. Madam Clerk.

Thank you, Mayor. I just wanted to let anyone running for election for one of the three open council seats or the mayor's seat, please make your appointment soon to file your paperwork. All candidates thus far have pulled their papers. Make sure your forms are completed and also to email Esther and me your candidate statement the day before you file. We have to count the words to make sure it's 200 or under. And then on another note, I'd like to thank the following Adopt-A-Street groups for continuing to hold regular cleanups. Green Valley Community Landscape Group, Anna Patero, Ruth Claussen and crew. Employees Public Works Engineering and Community Development. Daniel Rodriguez of Casa Audio and Video Solutions. Kiwanis Club, Travis Air Force Base 60th Mission Support Group, the Police Department, along with Councilmember Dries Panduro, who each adopted a section of North Texas Street, and Pastor Jeff Hood of First Baptist Church, and one other, Gold Ridge Neighbors. Thank you so much.

Okay, thank you. And now we turn to presentations.

Yes, presentation, I-80, I-680, SR-12 interchange project, package five, presented by Nick Burton, Director of Projects at Solano Transportation Authority.

Good evening. Nick Burton, Director of Projects, STA. Happy to present on this interchange, what we refer to in the county as the interchange project. That's the I-80-680-12 interchange. It's been going on for about 20 years. And so this is an update on Package 5. And then afterwards, I'll give an update on the express lines as well. First, a little project background. Here is the location of the interchange, which you're all well aware of. You've got 680 tying in just north of 12 on 80 there. Here, a closer look here just at package five. Well, actually, sorry, this is the whole interchange. You see 680 bending off of its original alignment, moving closer to 12, does a number of things. That's packages three and four. Packages one and two were already completed, and that provided braided ramps and connection from 12 onto 80, and really did improve and relieve congestion and then we're talking about package five tonight, which is the connection from Red Top Road up to Business Center Drive, creating a partial interchange with 12. So here, this is package one, as I said, was already completed in the pink there, the braided ramp, and then package two, which was completed only a few years back, maybe about four years now, and that's providing braided ramps and better access from 12 onto 80 eastbound. So here highlighted in purple is package 12, providing that connection for business center drive to the partial interchange on 12. Now it's partial because it's only providing off-ramp in the eastbound direction and on-ramp in the westbound direction. But then it continues around and ties into Red Top Road. So what are the proposed improvements associated with the alignment? Here's just a list. You see a long list of structures, bridges, walls, quite tall, new bicycle ped facilities and landscaping. And you'll see as well utilities and gonna be a significant amount of right-of-way acquisition associated with this as it is a new alignment. Here, just a little bit of a closer look at the project. There's a proposed roundabout associated with it, and right now there's going to be some upgrades to the ramps at Red Top on 80, in addition to the new alignment that we've been discussing. There's just a picture of rendering of what that bridge will look like, 60-foot columns at the tallest location. So it's going to be a sizable structure, significant in cost as well. So when the STA first started package five, there was a request from the city of Fairfield to look at two things. One was widening of Red Top Road underneath 80 to provide better access for that community south of 80. The other was to look at better connection at Sassoon Valley Road on ramp there. The reason why we have this this slide here showing a night so connection is when we analyzed That Sassoon Valley Road connection on-ramp given the fact that packages three and four have not moved forward and we don't have funding for that estimates range probably around million so we looked at alternatives to how to create better access for people on Sassoon Valley Road seeking to go westbound yeah that was 700 million for both packages So this project is about 25 million, much smaller, bite-sized, and the work can be fit within the final alignment, complete alignment of the full interchange. So none of the work's lost or wasted if the full interchange ever gets built. But what it does do is creates a direct connection from Nitzel to Green Valley intersection there, Green Valley Road, and you pass through that intersection there at the end of the green on the left side of the page, and you get right onto the freeway. So it does save a significant amount of time, especially during congested periods. So we're continuing to look at this and seeking to move this forward. PROVIDED WE HAVE FUNDING, SO THAT'S ANOTHER DISCUSSION. BUT NOW ON TO THE PROJECT COST OF, AND THIS IS JUST PACKAGE FIVE, NOT NYTSIL, SO I DISCUSSED THAT AS 25 MILLION. SO HERE YOU SEE THE COSTS, 173 MILLION, THIS IS JUST PACKAGE FIVE. THIS DOES INCLUDE THE IMPROVEMENTS TO RED TOP ROAD, THE WIDENING, THAT IS CONTAINED INSIDE THIS COST ESTIMATE. NOW PROJECT SCHEDULE. YOU SEE WE'RE AT THAT RED YOU SEE WE'RE AT THAT RED DASHED LINE, JULY 2026, AND DASHED LINE, JULY 2026, AND WE'RE HOPING TO COMPLETE DESIGN WE'RE HOPING TO COMPLETE DESIGN AND RIGHT AWAY ACQUISITION BY AND RIGHT AWAY ACQUISITION BY THE END OF 2028 WHICH WOULD THEN THE END OF 2028 WHICH WOULD THEN PUT US INTO CONSTRUCTION IN PUT US INTO CONSTRUCTION IN JANUARY OF 2029 IF ALL THINGS JANUARY OF 2029 IF ALL THINGS GO PERFECTLY, WHICH THEY GO PERFECTLY, WHICH THEY NEVER DO. NEVER DO. SO WITH THAT, HAPPY TO TAKE ANY SO WITH THAT, HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.

QUESTIONS. ANY QUESTIONS, COUNCIL? ANY QUESTIONS, Johnson Williams.

Well, thank you. Thank you for coming, Nick. One of the advantages of being an alternate at SDA is I get to see you and I get to sit with SDA and learn about all the transportation. that's going on, and I was able to talk to you about angst in my district, District 1, Cordelia Green Valley, and you've touched on these items beautifully, but I do have some questions. So you spoke about Nixle Road. That is probably one of the top questions I get in my district. and that being a $25 million project, it sounded like if you found funding, you could break some of these, package five, into smaller projects. And so my question surrounding this area of Nixle Road, that's $25 million. Well, let me back up. What I know about you all is you're really good at finding money and being ready to you get those packages ready to go and you look for money. So what are the chances of you finding money specifically for Nixle Road and Can those dollars be tied to other grants that tie into beautification or tie into health and social services dollars? Because I believe because Nixle Road runs on top of a creek, And that creek, I've seen, you know, that's an encampment area, and I've seen all types of muck, nook, and goo, and all types of things pulled out that creek. In my mind, it seemed like there was a tie-in to grant dollars that possibly we could get.

That is a great suggestion, something that we'll look into. All the grant sources that I'm aware of are much more, that I was thinking of, are much more transportation focused. Local partnership program through the state, SB1 grant. And that's the primary one, but also hoping to land a grant for package five that might free up some RM three dollars that would help us along the way. But we're also, I think we've secured and executed, I believe we've executed the agreement for 300,000, excuse me, 500,000 with the city of Fairfield already. We've cobbled together about three different funding sources and we're getting a design for the project kicked off. But we'll continue with that to look at if we get the rest of the funding for design, We'll continue to look at different opportunities that are not transportation directly related to help with the funding. And so happy to follow up with you on that and see what we can do.

No, thank you. So would you consider the Nikes Road portion? Is it is it called design ready?

It's it's we're starting design on it. OK. Yeah. Just just started design.

Awesome. And then part two, were you going to be talking about the express?

Yes. After we finish questions here, I'm going to queue up the express lanes presentation.

Any other questions? Okay. We'll move on to the next.

okay uh here is the uh this is the i-80 solano express lanes operations weekend and pilot update so the state has authorized 550 miles of express lanes in the nine barrier county the map here shows these lanes with different colors mtc is in blue and operates the lanes in solano county as well as 880 and in 680 in contra costa An express lane is an HOV lane that allows carpools and transit users to use at no charge, and others basically are allowed to use if they pay the fee. And a tool to manage the congestion, this really is a tool to help manage congestion in the corridor. Four operators work together within this nine barrier county along with Caltrans and Highway Patrol to collaborate and provide consistent operations. With that is providing consistent signage as well as operation Operating hours that is 5 AM to or excuse me 5 AM to 8 PM and all users that use these lanes are required to have fast track sign up and. And participate in that. There is a payment plan available for income eligible customers as well, and at the end they'll go into Express Lane Start, which is a program discount program for them. This map shows the lanes that have been built so far. MTCs in blue and reflects the success the Bay Area has had in bringing funds for express lanes to the region and to Solano County in particular. So for Solano County, our 17 million in STIP funding leveraged 123 million in an SB1 grant, which was TCEP, as well as 85 million in regional measure three funds from BAFA. So this map shows the lanes in operation with the blue being the ones operated by MTC. Excuse me now while I turn the page. Okay, the Solano County I-80 project has been a partnership between MTC, Caltrans, and the STA. We've added a new lane in the east segment, which is the Fairfield segment, or excuse me, the Vacaville segment, and converted the HOV lanes into express lanes, the west segment, which is Fairfield. It really does relieve the bottleneck at Airbase Parkway that caused congestion along the whole corridor. The express lane opened December 16th of last year. There was a grace period for penalties and such through February, but now we're in full operation, normal operation. So slide six here. The weekend operation pilot, and this was an additional thing beyond just the normal weekday, was this weekend operation. And it is a pilot project. It's a three-year pilot. So the weekend operations pilot will follow the same policies as weekdays. So HOV-3s are free. HOV-2 is discounted. the operating hours are consistent and it is as i said earlier three year period for the for the trial the weekend pilot was recommended on 80 since weekend congestion is similar to weekdays and will offer reliable options it really does offer reliable options to drivers in that corridor there's a potential to generate additional revenue that can be reinvested in the corridor and that is important It was preferred to set the weekend operations at the same time as opening weekday operations to simplify the message and avoid policy changes in a few years. So tried to roll a bunch of changes all at once up front so people don't have subsequent changes that they have to keep up with. The recommendation for a weekend pilot was made with Caltrans and the STA, and the STA support was contingent on several items. Expanding express lane start, the low income discount to the 80 corridor, which occurred at opening. providing regular updates on the pilot's performance and providing funding for the project initiation document for the expansion of these express lanes through Dixon, making connection to Yolo County's express lanes currently under construction. A board outreach plan which occurred before opening and continues to be a part of the messaging and developing the remaining revenue policy which will be done in the coming months. So you see these are the things and I'm happy to report actually that the project initiation document, which is the third bullet point there, we've actually partnered and laid out a vision between Caltrans, STA, and MTC that people have latched onto. Caltrans has actually committed, headquarters has committed to actually performing the work for the project initiation document in-house, which means it will cost us nothing. Hopefully we'll be able to use the funding that was set aside from by MTC to further the project in environment environmental phase but this will save us time and money and shows that you know our efforts in advancing the weekend pilot really trying to understand how to operate these successfully and and also economically right so that they're sustainable is being well received at the state and the regional level. As a part of the pilot, there is an evaluation plan that was developed with Caltrans and the STA. It will measure conditions before the project and after the start of weekend operations. Areas that will be measured include traffic volume, throughput, congestion, travel time, and incidents. There will also be an evaluation of express lane start and the revenues and costs from weekend operations. The pilot is for a three-year term, but there will be reporting throughout. BAFA publishes a quarterly express lane report that will now also include 80 as well as the weekend operations. And that report was recently produced and it is linked on the STA website as well. So you can go and look at I-80 managed lanes on the STA website or express lanes, and you'll be able to find many updates on the website. this presentation to the STA board as well as that report. The final evaluation report will be before the three-year period ends and will have a recommendation to make operations permanent, extend the pilot, or terminate the pilot. And this recommendation will be brought to the STA board prior to the end of the pilot. So the pilot has only been in operation for less than a year, and there's only a few months of data that we have to base some early observations off of. But that's what everybody wants to know. How's it performing? What's it doing? The operations did start around the holidays and which likely means there were probably lower volumes. Drivers are still familiarizing themselves with the express lane rules. However, we are seeing there are higher average speeds than prior to the express lanes for both directions for weekdays and weekends. And the table here shows the 2023 average speeds and the higher 2026 speeds in the general purpose lanes. So not only are people in the express lane traveling faster, people in the general purpose lane because of the relief congestion are also traveling faster. Should be noted that the speeds in the express lanes are typically 10 miles an hour faster than the general purpose lanes, which is oftentimes incentive enough for people to jump in the lane. We also have some early data on traffic volume in the express lane. There are more daily trips on weekends than weekdays, which is interesting. However, they are spread out throughout the day. This is also reflected in the average hourly tolls and the peak toll paid is higher on the weekday than on the weekend. So we're getting more people in the express lane on the weekends, but they're paying less because congestion is a bit more spread out through the day, not as concentrated. But the total number of users is still higher than the weekday. So these next few slides really kind of just pictorially reflect how there's been a significant improvement in the corridor after opening the express lane. So you see a relief of congestion. Red, you see red is like stopped zero, the dark red, all the way to the green, which is free flowing. And then the orange and yellow is slower traffic. And so you can see that bottleneck in the eastbound direction and through Fairfield is now green. And so this is just reflecting. This is January, February of 2026 compared to winter of 2023. So as soon as the lane opened, there was an improvement and that was observed. Same in the opposite direction weekday in in the westbound direction through Vacaville and it was massively improved as there was an additional lane. But also two weekend congestion has been relieved as well, and that's what we're seeing in both directions. So overall a good story there for for the public. Even if you're not using the lane, you're still seeing some benefit. So finally, we have some information about the breakdown of the trip types and on the weekday and the weekend showing almost half of the trips are single occupants. Those are the paying customers and a quarter of the trips are HOV 3, so they receive a free trip. Around 20% have no fast track accounts, so we expect this number to go down as folks continue to sign up for fast track and the outreach is continuing to be made. This also shows that the average daily number of incidents on the weekends and weekdays for the first two months there is some initial data and future reports will have more data around travel time savings diversion stats which we have not really observed much of and revenue cost information as well on the weekend operations so i'm going to move on to the express lane start this is really just kind of an overview of the outreach this was a comment really in resp or this is really in response to a comment that the sta board provided which is make sure our community knows how to use this lane and knows how to sign up for the for express lane start the the discount program So MTC has been very busy with getting the word out. There's history here on the express lanes, and here's kind of some information on what it takes to qualify. But billboards have been utilized as well as paid digital ads. There's been some TV, Amazon lockers, and just pop-ups been out in the community. CBOs will act as in-person hubs and so there's some connections that they've been making. You see them listed there on the slide and there's a website here for more information. I do have a very brief very brief video to show you this is part of the outreach efforts and I felt like after MTC produced this this was very helpful for getting the word out and this is a YouTube video I get an early start every day people count on me to show up on time

My job is hard, but I like knowing I make a difference. Thursdays, I take the express lanes to get home in time for dinner with my kids. With Express Lanes Start, I get a big discount on the tolls, so I can afford to skip the traffic. My job is important. My family is important. With Express Lanes Start, I don't have to choose.

There we go. Happy to take any questions.

Councilman Sandu.

There is nothing I hate more in this life than toll, I will say. That's a strong opener, but man, does it frustrate me. I'm so glad you're here, sir. When that toll lane was implemented, I wanted to comment aggressively, immediately, how much I did not like it. I did not do that. But this is the best opportunity to state just the following. I understand the need for it through Monday to Friday. Don't get me wrong. I would, I think as much as I can to go on the record to say I would not like it to see on the weekend. And I don't know, hypothetically, if one city did take a vote in that effect, would that change STA policy or not? Could a city dictate when that lane is activated or not if it's through our geographic bounds? That is one thing I'm curious about.

I think it would definitely have influence on what the SDA Board does. So, yeah.

Okay. I don't know where the rest of my colleagues sit. I'm just talking to you at the moment, but just as one person, as we're hearing the implementation of this pilot potentially going into the weekend, I would very much like STA not to do that and for it to just remain open on the weekend. I was looking at one of your graphics, and the weekend traffic in Fairfield on the weekend did not seem that much. It was up in Vacaville anyway. It wasn't in this neck of the woods. So I understand the need during the week. I get it. I don't like it, but I get it. But I would strongly want to just convey not wanting to see it on the weekend. But I really appreciate being here, and I love what you guys are doing. I mean, it's going to help a lot overall. SO, YEAH, SORRY, MY OPENING WAS STRONG, BUT MY APOLOGIES.

ANY OTHER COMMENTS? COUNCILMAN WILLIAMS.

Again, Nick, I'm thrilled that you're here. I had a few, a number of meet and greets in my district and the number of people that came from outside of my district to see, to talk about the express lanes was, surprised me. One was surrounding the weekends concern. There was also a lot of misinformation surrounding or a misunderstanding surrounding seems like there's segments so where to come on and off the segments to see if you're being built correctly and that's a part two If you're being billed incorrectly on Fast Track, what that's like to try to push that back and to have monies taken off as credits because Fast Track is a little difficult to work with. And then my third, to just tell you the third, is there was confusion as to how all of this was initiated. Was this pilot put forward through the STA board? And then the final one is why was this pilot so long?

So one David Mann is here with MTC and he can help answer some questions as well. But a three-year pilot is, I can answer your last question first. A three-year pilot is pretty standard. Anything shorter, I can also say that's usually what we need to kind of analyze it fully and understand it and make a good decision. It doesn't mean that the pilot though has to go three years. That's why there's regular reporting and updates. uh that if at some point in time in the middle of that pilot it's it's showing as as not providing benefit not valuable it can it can be done away with so I think that was the answer to your last question. So anyway, we can continue that conversation. MTC will be providing updates to the STA board regularly, and that's when we can have those conversations with them about continuation of the pilot and frequency of reporting.

Thank you. One quick question. And it's about outreach. So there's an evaluation going on. Is it toward the end of the three years? Or this information, the questions that are coming forward to me, Can I push them toward you all so people can log in their concerns? Because I'm wondering if there can be some tweaks done today that make it more clear. Maybe you're saying, you know what? These segments aren't clear. Let me add more signs. Or let me push out more videos. Let me add dollars to it. Let me have all of the cities that are along the corridor. Push it out as well. So I'm just thinking maybe you'll get great feedback that will allow for some tweaks now versus in three years? And that's my last question.

It's good. Good evening. I'm David Mann from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. Just appreciate just having us here to talk about the express lanes. And thank you for your questions. You know, certainly when we open the new facility, there is that learning curve. And I think certainly the feedback that you've given is something that we've heard. And we're going to continue our marketing efforts and education efforts to have our customers better understand how to use a lane, number one. As far as the specifics about your pilot as Nick has said that it is a three-year pilot It will allow us to collect enough information The pilot we will do annual reporting as he mentioned and is that as we continue to learn more about it there are opportunities for us to work with Caltrans and STA to look at how we want to operate these lanes and I do want to report that just based on that preliminary information, we have seen some significant congestion relief in the corridor, which is very beneficial seven days a week. And just to your question, I think you mentioned that there were some questions about what we call cross-lane reads. I think at the very opening, we do acknowledge that there were a handful of accidental reads of the toll tags of folks that were driving the adjacent lane. We've considered actually over the last three months, we've conducted an audit actually to ensure that that will not continue to happen. We believe that we've resolved the issue, but we do encourage anybody that has, they do believe that they've been correctly charged, they can visit the Barrier Fast Track website or call the customer service hotline. We will address those mischarges if they were in fact not using the lane.

Councilman Tonneson.

Yes. Where do the funds go? How are they dispersed?

so there is a remaining revenue policy so that will define how remaining funds are dispersed and that's we're actually going to be in conversation with mtc staff over the next few months to discuss that but the the first kind of off the top those funds go for operation of the lane as well as maintenance of the lane so caltrans has has put into the agreement that the basically the lane pays for its own maintenance instead of it using other funding. So I mean that that you know can be debated, but that's the way that the the the current agreements set up with those 2 costs though that really does chew up a significant amount of the revenue. So the remaining revenue is what we have to discuss how that gets used we're hoping that we see an uptick in seven days that would allow us to provide transit in the corridor it becomes a a funding source for operations of local transit that was part of our vision as well as funding seed money to help further the expansion of the lane through Dixon. Dixon has a segment that's only got three lanes. Congestion is terrible. That's why we want to move that PID forward and we're so excited that Caltrans is doing that. So in the state of California, given the current laws, you can't just add a lane unless you have a huge pile of your own private cash. If you're going to get transportation funding, that funding cannot increase VMT. so we have to do it creatively which is why we see these express lanes making their way into the system so and then for the pilot program what what would the reasons be to extend it and or discontinue it yeah so there's there's a variety of see if I can There's a variety of I recall four different issues that generally that are going to be taken into consideration as to whether or not we extend the pilot. And, you know, congestion, congestion relief, right, all the statistics that we're reporting on, the difference in speeds between the general purpose lanes. So how is it performing? The evaluation is going to look at those criteria, right, and say, is this really providing a benefit on the weekends or is it not? And so that's you know, I think that's where that report the annual reporting will give us an idea early and then at the end, you know, that's when If it continues to the full three years, that's when the full report will be given and decision we've made Okay. Thank you, sir.

Yep any other comments? Councilman Pandora.

Thank you. I have a question and so I understand that the the toll changes with congestion so can you speak to a I GUESS IS THERE A CAP OR WHAT IS THE HIGHEST AMOUNT THAT SOMEONE CAN BE CHARGED AND IS THERE A CAP TO THAT AND THEN DOES THAT CHANGE LIKE IF YOU START OFF REALLY DOES IT CHANGE FROM I GUESS WHEN YOU ARE GETTING CHECKED AS YOU ARE DRIVING THROUGH THE LANE.

Yeah, so from what I've heard from MTC and how they report, there's kind of no theoretical cap, although there is a practical cap. What we're seeing, the cap in our corridor is $5.50. Typically, it's around $2. to move your way through the corridor in the express lane and then during these peak times and it happens to be uh i-80 eastbound um has uh during the weekday has the the largest peak and that's when it hits uh you know uh 550 uh at the evening peak hour so it it is dynamically priced there's a reason for that it's not income based it's actually operationally based this lane provides a benefit if it's free flowing and so the congestion pricing is designed to keep the lane flowing at around 45 miles per hour that's a benefit to your hovs and your transit so if you keep the price low then people will who pay will jump into that lane and then it might get just as jammed up as the general purpose lanes So that congestion pricing is it increases still provides a faster route for for HOVs as well as transit And and then keeps the traffic flowing around 45 miles per hour. That's kind of the target Yep, any other questions?

Okay Thank you for a great report.

Appreciate it.

Okay Moving on we're going to turn to public comments madam clerk.

I

Yes, persons wishing to address the City Council on subjects not on the agenda but within the jurisdiction of the Council may do so at this time. The Council cannot discuss or take action on matters not on the agenda for this meeting, but Council members may briefly respond to statements made or questions raised by the public. ASK FOR CLARIFICATION FROM STAFF, REFER THE MATTER TO STAFF, REQUEST STAFF TO REPORT BACK TO THE COUNCIL AT A SUBSEQUENT MEETING OR PLACE THE MATTER ON A FUTURE AGENDA. IF YOU'RE ONLINE TO SPEAK ON AN AGENDA ITEM, PLEASE USE THE RAISE YOUR HAND FEATURE OR PRESS STAR 9 ON YOUR PHONE. SPEAKERS ARE LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER ITEM AS DETERMINED BY THE MAYOR. OUR FIRST SPEAKER IS RYAN MISANO TO BE FOLLOWED BY GIL HANDY.

Good evening. Let's talk about money and media. Nearly every wise person knows that we have evil and good inside ourselves.

When we look at the worst people, a wise person knows that there but for the grace of God go I.

Now, if we all understand we have the propensity for good and evil, does it not make sense that humans of all races and religions have this in themselves as well? Certainly. And does it make sense that there are groups of every race and religion who ally in pursuing evil agendas? Absolutely. So who owns the media? Well, it can't be white people, because if whites owned the media, they wouldn't be constantly criticizing racism and white people while ignoring loxism, which is the hatred of white people in rapes, murders, and violent crimes committed against whites by other races. It's not blacks, Asians, Latinos, Native Americans, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, or Buddhists. So who is it? Before we answer that, let's consider who controls the money. Again, we know the Federal Reserve is owned by private owners, that they aren't of any of the races or religions I just named. So who is it? Why does Google lie to us when we ask this question and say the Federal Reserve System is not owned by any single person, corporation, or government entity? That's lying by omission, which Google and the media are skilled at doing. Because the Federal Reserve is owned by private investors, and we don't know their names. But if we study the history of the Federal Reserve and go back to 1913, the worst year in American history, when the Federal Reserve was set up and the 16th Amendment, which is the income tax, and the 17th Amendment, which is direct election of senators, were all set up to gain control of America's money in our Senate by the group of people who already owned our media, the picture becomes clear. So who is it? Well, my website is misanonews.com, and it has thousands of books that will reveal the answer to you. The media and the money are both owned by one group that will holler about anti-Semitism and the Holocaust if you identify who they are. They are very powerful. They control all organized crime groups in America and probably in the world, and any police officer or member of the military who publicly says who controls America's money and media will be fired from their job tomorrow. So in effect, the world's greatest criminals, since the owners of our Federal Reserve were behind communism and the murder of 100 million, control our police and our military. You've seen some of the media and money owner agents right here in Fairfield in the past few months where they hijacked a few meetings claiming they were so concerned about justice over an alleged police brutality incident. Let's not be naive and think some of these organizers are doing this for free. No, some are paid and their employers want chaos and disorder and cleverly use controversial issues to create mass disorder. The Pharisees, the Talmudic Jews own our money and media.

Next is Gil Handy to be followed by JT Hoyle.

Come on folks, I think we need to lighten up a little here. My name is Gil Handy. I live on the West Side. I am a spokesman for the West Side Homeowners Association. My topic tonight is the Octo Soccer Inn. We need to do something there. Us homeowners are at the point of complete chaos. This form right here, I stood right here 25 years ago And this is the original agreement for the soccer field. This was a Billy Yarborough and Dan Russo started it. This is all of the, we spent three months of our time going through this, making sure everybody was fine. What has happened after 22 years, we had no problems. If anybody's been with the planning commission for any period of time that we had no problems for 22 years. All of a sudden, one morning, we had 1,800 kids in our backyard playing soccer. 1,800. Now, it got to be to the point that us homeowners had to complain. We went to Christina from the Park and Recreations, We handed her this form. I waited two weeks. Never heard an answer. I finally called her and I asked her, what are we going to do? I said, did you read the form? She said, I read some of it. Some of it. And we're going like, well, why didn't you read all of it? And why don't you work with us? I went into the first day with them and I said, listen, we're adults. We should be able to still settle any problem like this as adults. We don't need to get to the point. I don't need to be here. You don't need to be listening to me. I should be able to walk any apartment into Fairfield and get an answer from any manager. But when I get stonewalled from my own people, thank you, just all those homeowners are just saying, we need help. And if you keep sitting on your hands and trying to keep putting people into Ocktail Inn, there's 115 teams we heard last. If you keep trying to put those people in there, you're going to have nothing but chaos. And starting next week, all of us homeowners are digging our heels in because we know what's coming. We know what's coming.

Thank you, sir. Time's up.

Thank you. Thank you. And if anything you can do, we appreciate it. And we don't want to threaten anybody. Thank you.

Next is J.T. Hoyle to be followed by Chase Diaz.

Good evening, Mayor, Vice Mayor. Council members, city manager, and members of the community. My name is JT Hoyle, and I'm the newly appointed Fairfield Professional Firefighter Association president and the vice president of the Fairfield Firefighters Local 11 E6, which is the unified voice for all professional firefighters in Solano County. Tonight, I stand before you with a simple message. The days of the Fairfield firefighters being ignored are over. For too long, the men and women who protect this city have shown up every day, answered every call, continued serving with professionalism while waiting for the city to recognize their value with a fair contract. We have been patient, we have been respectful, we have negotiated in good faith. But patience should never be mistaken for weakness. The Fairfield Professional Firefighters Association and the local 1186 stand together as one united voice. There is no divide between us. There is no uncertainty about what we stand for. We are united in our commitment to every firefighter, every family they go home to, and every resident who depends on us. We are not asking for special treatment. We are demanding the respect We are demanding the respect that comes with the responsibility of protecting this community. Respect is demonstrated through action, not words. Look around this room. The firefighters wearing red are here because they believe in one another. They're here because they believe in their profession. They're here because they believe that their profession deserves respect. And they're here because they refuse to stand silently while their voices are ignored. This is not the end of the conversation, it is a beginning to a new chapter. Our leadership has changed, our resolve has strengthened, we will continue to show up for this community every single day, and we will also show up for our members. We will advocate, we will engage, we will hold the city accountable, and we will not stop until Fairfield firefighters receive the fair contract and respect they earned. To city council, we extend our hand in partnership, but make no mistake, we stand united and we will fight for firefighters of the city with the same dedication they show Fairfield residents every single day. Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Next is Chase Diaz to be followed by Luke Garcia.

Good evening, mayor, vice mayor, city council members, city clerk, city manager, attorney, and community. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Chase Diaz. I'm from Fairfield. I grew up here. I call this place home. I'm proud to serve as a firefighter in the city of Fairfield. More importantly, I'm proud to be a part of this community and have the opportunity to serve the residents who call Fairfield home as well. I'm here tonight to introduce myself in my new role as the government and labor relations chair for the Fairfield Professional Firefighters Association. I'm honored to take on this responsibility and excited about the opportunity to help strengthen the relationships that are so important to our city's success. I believe that the best outcomes come from open communication, mutual respect, and the willingness to work together. In this role, I look forward to building positive relationships with our city council, city manager, city mayor, amongst all other city employees and other city labor union groups. I believe we can, while I may not always agree on every issue, we believe we can approach these issues with conversations, with professionalism and shared commitment to serving the people of Fairfield. firefighters are proud to protect this community and i look forward to representing our membership while working collaboratively to support a strong city strong workforce bright future for everyone who lives and works here please don't hesitate to reach out to me anytime i look forward to getting to know each and every one of you and for those of you who already know i'm easy to talk to so don't be shy Looking forward to building strong working relationships in the months and years ahead. Thank you for your time. I appreciate this opportunity. Be a part of this evening. Thank you.

Next is Luke Garcia and Daniel Villa. And I think you wanted to speak together, right? Yes. Yes, thank you.

Good evening, mayor, council members, city staff, and members of the community. My name is Daniel Villa. I'm a local artist here in Fairfield, California, and I and my friend here, Luke Garcia, are here to speak on our involvement in downtown theater and their current production of School of Rock. that has opened last weekend on a Saturday. And on this Saturday and this Sunday of last weekend, we have gotten 200 members of the community, around 200 members of the community here into the downtown theater here in Fairfield, in downtown Fairfield. And I want to speak on the downtown theater as a performer and how their ambition to give us young artists a platform to perform has been incredible and also speak on their their service as a community effort. Here, we're performing 10 more performances here in July. We have a promo code for everyone here. It's HEART, H-E-A-R-T, all capitalized. If you go on the Downtown Theater website, www.downtowntheater.com, you'll get $5 off your tickets. And we are thankful for anyone who comes and who has come. And not only that, we're coming all the way to August 1st. After that, we'll have much more performances and concerts that Luke Garcia is here to talk about.

Our show closes August 1st, but the thing is, August is usually a slower time for the arts because we're doing rehearsals for new shows, but we have some shows lined up for you guys. Nate Owens' Old School Extravaganza, James Garner's Tribute to Johnny Cash, Jack Wright's Tribute to Neil Diamond, and backed by popular demand, Adrian's Draguation. We hope you'll continue to support live entertainment in downtown Fairfield. And finally, we'd like to invite everyone to make Thursday, July 30th, a full downtown experience. Start your evening at the city's Taste of Downtown event from 4 to 7 o'clock, from PM. Enjoy some great food and support our local restaurants and businesses. Then come over to Downtown Theater at 7.30 PM for our School of Rock performance.

It's exciting to see so much happening here at the Downtown Fairfield and to be part of that through our involvement in the Downtown Theater. We hope that you spend some time with us and just at Downtown, the Fairfield in general. Thank you.

Next is Michael Jefferson to be followed by Adrian La Cielo.

Hi, Council. So I think this weekend had some great news. Soronic chose taxes over California Forever because California Forever would be a disaster for this entire region. California Forever is a bad deal for Solano County, a very, very bad deal. It's the same Silicon Valley model that already crushed middle class people with insane costs. Now they want to bring it here. Land goes up, housing goes up, rents go up, everything goes up in cost. It's the inflationary spillover rate. Number one would be housing. Housing would jump $200,000 if they were permitted to get here. And so what occurs is displacement of hundreds of thousands of people from jobs, middle class, everything. It's the same thing that happened with Silicon Valley. So, in an economic sense, what occurs is an hourglass model where the middle class begins to shrink, and what we see is the continuation of the California that does not work for everybody, but a California that works only for the elite, for the top earner. And so we have people like the director of California Alliance for Jobs, Arce, he's going to lament and grovel and claim that, oh, this was a loss, this was horrible, when in reality he's clamoring for further capital for the higher classes, for something of the elites and the political class. The people who are tied to California Forever are lured to it by money. Their enduring faith is in money and not in people. And so as we stand right now, we're at a turning point for Solano County, where we have to have our elected stand for the people of California instead of corporate interests and creation of oligarchy that would just enslave, just... Enslave is a little bit of a harsh word, but it's something that crushes the middle class. It creates only a bottom... And no middle class, so it's only just what you could call peasantry and then the elites at the top. And all this is going to do, it's going to decimate the people who already live and work in Fairfield. Solano County gets decimated. The big players can handle it. The ordinary shops, the small businesses, the workers who are already here, they can't. Most will close. Some will have to leave. That's what happens. Cost rises and the middle class gets hit hardest. They'll talk about jobs and new homes. That's fine. It's for millionaires, but that's fine. But look at what that does to the jobs and businesses we already have here. It damages more than it creates for the people who are actually here right now. And that's the real story. The damage that it actually happens. There's a lot of marketing involved right now. There's a lot of, you know, trying to grab influence from the Travis Consortium to... it's even small businesses and institutional capture in this entire region and i have to say don't be fooled by the allure of money of big pockets and bottomless pit of just money these guys are billionaires that only care about oligarchy they don't care about the people of california they've influenced gavin newsom's office of economic development to give them some cronyist deals to try to fish for special legislation they fooled over herzberg they fooled over steinberg which is a horrible betrayal to the people of california and i highly recommend you guys Just be wise. Say no to California forever. Thank you.

Next is Adrian LaCiello to be followed by Nora Dizon.

Good evening, City Council members, Mayor, Vice Mayor Bertani. My name is Adrian Lasiello. You know me as Antonio underneath all of the drag, but I am the producer of Adrian's Draguation, an event that we just mentioned earlier backed by popular demand at the Downtown Theater. So a little bit about this event. We're returning on August 15th, 7 p.m. And this event is really just a celebration of the arts, education and our community. It started back in 2022, inspired by my graduation from Los Angeles Harbor College. I wanted to do something to celebrate my graduation, but I was also starting to perform in drag at the time and wanted an opportunity, wasn't getting a lot of opportunities, so I created the opportunity. And so with that first event, we wanted to also give back to the community, because as somebody that grew up performing in theater, the Missouri Street Youth Theater, since the age of 10 years old, I saw the importance of giving back. I saw community come together to support us. And so I knew it was only right to do that when I had the opportunity. And so now we're reaching our third annual event. This is Adrian's Draguation Homecoming. And we're very excited about it because One, it's a celebration of my now graduation from UC Irvine. I studied music and vocal performance there, and I also studied business. And so now I'm blending all of these worlds, continuing to give back and supporting local youth theaters, Missouri Street Youth Theater, my old high school theater. And we're also launching the Draguation Scholarship Fund. And I'm really excited about this because we're creating cash grants to give back to students pursuing higher education. And as I mentioned before, as somebody that's been in theater since 10 years old, getting scholarships as well throughout that entire journey and into college and university. And so I invite everybody to come out to this event. It's going to be fun for all ages. Be mindful, I mean, if you want your kids watching drag, VMAs are your style, MTV, kind of keep that in mind. But at the end of the day, our community is so diverse. There's so much love in this community. There's so much going on in this community and we need more. Access to the arts and we need more opportunities to support our communities to support our constituents and I'd love to see you all there August 15th again at the downtown theater 7 p.m. And we're going to be fundraising giving back and celebrating.

Thank you Next is Nora Dizon to be followed by Fernando Carnero

Good evening, city council members, mayor, vice mayor. This is really more about the presentation by the STA. And I did catch Nick before he left and asked him to allow the community to look at the plans before they finalize things and build because i've seen so many times when there's a glaring error that could have been easily fixed but when changes get built it's still the wrong design we still have parents who are lining up because they can't get off 80 to bring the, you know, because of the stops. And so we just want to make very sure that all the problems that that project is supposed to solve really solves it. And it's really important that we get to see the design and give our input before it's finalized. Like I said, I didn't tell him, but I'm letting you know so you make sure we are allowed to give that kind of input. Thank you.

Next is Fernando Carnero to be followed by George Kennedy.

GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND VICE MAYOR. MY NAME IS FERNANDO CARNERO. I'VE BEEN IN FAIRFIELD OVER 40 YEARS. I RECEIVED THIS IN THE MAIL SATURDAY, THE VIOLATION OF FIREWORKS. THERE'S FIREWORKS GOING ON ACROSS THE STREET, BOMBS, NOT FIREWORKS, BOMBS. Me as a homeowner, I received this. So I looked at it. I was upset. I came to the police station Monday morning, spoke to the clerk. The clerk said, he'll be here tomorrow, the officer. I says, if I'm guilty as charged, I'm willing to pay the fine. I says, She says, the officer will be here tomorrow. So after work today, I went to the police. He's in, but he's busy. Sit down. So I sat down and waited. Then I got tired of waiting. I got up and told the clerk again. I said, well, where's the officer? I'm going to have lunch with my wife here. She's waiting for me at home. And she said, well, he left. He had something else important to do. And I says, well, my time's worth money, not only his. And so she says, try again tomorrow. So here I am. I went to the mayor's office right afterwards to, to make a complaint, you know, service and no, nobody willing to listen to me. They just put me off passing the buck. And so I felt I was upset. I want to solve this problem. And it's just getting more difficult and difficult to even do it. So I'm just letting you know how I feel as a citizen of Fairfield for over 40 years. And I did not get a notice in the mail saying fireworks were against the law. I don't go on social media. I don't play on the phone. I'm old, from the 70s. I'm from old school. I don't believe in driving and playing with the phone and going on the computer, wasting my time. I'd rather be in the backyard doing tomatoes or picking fruit from my trees.

30 seconds, sir.

So I just want to leave you with that little thought. And I'm still struggling with this. So I will give it a try again. And I did not receive a notice saying fireworks was against the law. They should have let or should have came in the mail letting us homeowners know what's going on in the community. And that didn't happen. So that's why I'm here today.

sir i i believe uh chief marshall's in the back and he'll hurt you or captain uh well captain collins is back there too so he'll talk he'll talk to you okay all right next is george kennedy good evening mr mayor and council members

You'll be shocked, this is probably the shortest I'll ever read the dais. But I'm asking about the pit counts. The pit counts were done in January of 2026, and we're about six months later, 25% of the time before the next pit count. The feds have released their reports. I know the city can release preliminary reports, but where are our pit counts? It's absolutely ridiculous. If you took the 150 working days since January and our last pit count was like 590, it's like four people a day. I mean, we can't get... This is the time when government should not work at the speed of government. We've got to start thinking differently. We've got to think like a business and get things done. So please release a pit count so this city knows what the heck is going on with our homeless. Thank you.

Next is Robert Myers.

Hello there, City Council. My name is Robert Myers. I'm a student of Fairfield High, and I've lived in Fairfield for the past nine years. I'm here because I want Officer Bianca Camacho to be taken off the force. her badge taken away, and also not to serve in Fairfield or any city in California. I want this city to be a safe place, not just for my future, but for everybody's future. I want to thank the Fairfield Police Department for the arrest of the suspect in the Jamario Baker murder. Knowing this, I feel safer going back to school this fall. So again, I ask the...

Sorry.

ITTY COUNCIL TO REMOVE BIANCA CAMACHO FROM THE POLICE FORCE SO THAT WE CAN FEEL SAFER IN SCHOOL AND IN THE COMMUNITY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.

NEXT IS RAMESHA AND SACOYA.

Hi, we're the parents of Maurice Williams, dad, mom, stepmom, grandma. Can you say something? Justice for Maurice.

Thank you. As the grandmother, I want to say thank you, and I appreciate Fairfield for what you did for Jamario Baker and his family. And y'all working on that. So I would like and appreciate if y'all do the same, put the same energy towards my grandson, getting justice for him because he's a human being. And y'all did go the extra mile for the bakers because I was there. And I seen some of y'all faces at the news thing that they had for Baker. And y'all did a lot of promises to the Baker family, because I was standing right there. And I wish y'all can do the same thing for my grandson, because he deserved justice. you know, just like I did for the Baker's family, please go the extra mile because he has good parents. He has good parents. He's not a riff rat. He's not one of those kids that run the streets at night. He has good solid foundation. He does. And so I appreciate if y'all could consider going the extra mile like he did for the Baker's. Please go the extra mile for the William family.

Yeah, I just wanted to say it's been three months as of yesterday, and we know it can take time, but we just kind of want some closure. The most important thing is we just really want her fired. We don't want her working, especially not around kids, and just some accountability. That's it. Just, you know, that's it.

Next is Dave Harrison.

City Council, City Staff, Dave Harrison, District 3. I wasn't going to speak tonight, but I'm going to be real brief. First, I want to say that I'm not only a Fairfield resident, I'm a member of the Operating Engineers Local 3. And so I would like to say publicly that I support my brothers and sisters at the Fairfield Fire Department and their fight for a fair contract. I would also like to say that I'm looking forward to continuing Phase 5 on the 8680 Highway 12 project. That's going to put a bunch of folks to work. With that, on both accounts, and I know it's not directly related, but I'm going to ask everyone again in November to vote yes on Measure P, funding that the city much needs to continue with our much needed resources. Finally, I want to talk about the First Amendment. It's the reason I'm speaking tonight. First Amendment gives everyone that came up here tonight the right to say what they wanted to say, whatever it was. What the First Amendment doesn't do is give you the right to speak hate speech without consequence. The gentleman who spoke first, this is the second meeting in a row that I've heard him deliver extreme hate speech with no consequence. So I'm going to ask the city council if we could condemn that sort of hate speech publicly and disallow folks like whatever his name was, there's women and children here, so I won't tell you what I really think, but to condemn the words that he uses on this microphone. It is inappropriate in a city that I love. I've lived in my entire life, and I would really like the city council to do something about that. That's all I had to say. Thanks for letting me speak tonight.

Thank you, Dave, and I tend to agree with you, and I'm not sure if our city attorney, if we could, what legally could we do with something like that? I know First Amendment's strong, but...

There's going to be violence because of it.

No, I agree, Dave. I mean, I've heard him speak before, I know. Yeah, it's, no, he... Is there... Or maybe we can discuss it another time. Yeah, First Amendment is, you know, there's a whole body of case law on that.

And, you know, it isn't like a total black and white issue. So we have to discuss that.

OK, yeah and I and I I mean I hear you. I hear what you're saying now because I'm afraid too that there probably is going to be something to happen one of these days in the Chamber because of this person. But you know, we'll see. We'll just have to monitor it, but appreciate it.

Next is Locke Harris.

Good evening. I'm here to request an update on May 20th, 2026 incident involving Maurice Williams at Fairfield High. The community is still awaiting answers about the investigation. And now that... Former Mayor Moy is no longer in chair. I'm just wondering what will be different moving forward when we finally receive transparency and accountability.

Ask my questions.

Thank you.

Did anyone else wish to speak on public comment? OK. There are no hands raised on line, Mayor. sorry Thank You madam clerk so now we turn to the consent calendar do you have any public speakers on these ideas all matters listed on the consent calendar are to be approved with one motion unless a member of the City Council or the public requests that separate action be taken on a specific item I don't have any speaker cards did anyone wish to speak on any of the items on consent

Is anyone to speak on consent?

I don't have any speaker cards.

Okay, so we, there is one online, yeah.

A hand just was raised. Okay, Jake, can you bring that person online?

Yes.

Thank you.

Dana, you have three minutes.

Thank you so much. This is Dana Dean speaking. And actually, I had my hand up for public comment, and somehow that didn't get through. Oh, I'm sorry.

I didn't see that there was a hand raised. Sorry. Go ahead, Dana.

Well, I want to be sure that I'm allowed to speak on a public comment matter.

Go ahead, Dana.

Thank you. Regarding the comments made about certain statements being made that are offensive in public comments, and I would add to that list the list of personal attacks on elected members. As I think you all know, I sit on the Solano County Board of Education. I represent a large swath of Fairfield and also Travis, Vacaville, and so on. But I'm also a land use attorney. I appear before governing bodies all across the state all the time. And I want to mention that while there are great constraints on constraining land Public speech. Almost every jurisdiction that I appear before has what one might call a voluntary code of conduct, which oftentimes is articulated at the beginning of every meeting by the mayor. And I know no one can speak to this at all tonight, but if you are preparing to agendize this topic generally at some other time, I would ask or suggest that folks take a look at that. Those are my comments.

Okay, thank you.

You're welcome.

no other speakers um actually right now we have to entertain a motion to approve the consent calendar so moved do I have a second second by Councilman Tonneson all those in favor aye okay motion passes uh so we have no other business before this council the next city council meeting is on July 21st 2026.