City Council - Regular Meeting

Motion to excuse Councilmember Ternes. Councilmember Ternes.

Moved to excuse Councilmember Ternes. Second.

It's been moved and seconded. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes. All right. Now we move on to citizen participation. The purpose of the public comment period at this meeting is for those wishing to address the council on any matter. It is not intended for debate and discussion with the public. Please state your name and city for the record. Lastly, we kindly remind you to limit your comments to three minutes.

Did we get the sign up sheet?

Dustin, is there a sign up sheet?

All right, we have one person signed up this evening, Charlotte Watson. Come forward, please. Welcome. Of course.

So my name is Charlotte Walden. I have been a resident and property owner in Milton for the last 30 years.

That's okay. I've been, sorry.

That's close enough. The reason I'm here today is to discuss codes and code enforcement, okay? You have a packet just being handed down here today. In there, you'll find photographs of what I'm referring to, codes. The Milton Municipal Code, which was made current in 2024. signed by the previous mayor, the Pierce County code, and I have the full copies of all the codes with me that I'll leave. I just printed out the pertinent pages. And emails between myself and Ms. Stallmecker. All of these are highlighted in the pertinent areas. Background, last spring, my neighbor built a fence in my front yard, her backyard, the way our property's cut, which is 10 feet high in some areas, as you can see with the photographs that are taken. I'm standing there, I'm clearly about five foot two, and I'm reaching up as high as I can and get to the top. It's in a creek, what we always call the creek, I guess they deem it now a waterway, but anyway, that's where it's placed. I worked with Ms. Stallnecker via email and one or two phone conversations. Each time, as you can see in the emails, it was referred to as an open code violation. The phone conversation I had with Ms. Stallnecker was right after Memorial Day of last year, 2025, when my neighbor had her property vandalized right near the fence. Lo and behold, it was the neighbor who built the fence. Anyway, when I spoke to Ms. Stallmaker, she said to me that there was a lot of tension in our little corner and that the lady who built the fence was a really nice lady, which that will become pertinent later. Anyway, we emailed a little bit. All the emails are there. February of this year, I checked back in to see where we were with this fence. The email that was written to me was, it is within the city's authority and to decide when and how to enforce the code. Due to the unique nature of the fence, we have decided no further action will be taken at this time. I asked what the unique nature of the fence was that would allow a fence four feet over state, county, and city code to be built and maintained there. I did not receive an answer. It clearly states in the codes, a measurement six feet high, measure from the ground, the earth, and it'll tell you as you read through the different codes between Pierce County and Milton, topography doesn't matter. It's measured from the ground to the top of the fence. Again, what is unique? Then I have to question, why do we bother to write codes? This code was updated in 2024. We spent property tax dollars for the mayor, the council, an attorney to file it, and everything else. Are codes arbitrary? Can we just pick and choose what codes are enforced and what codes will not be enforced? May I build a 10-foot fence? May other people? And it appears it's who you know and good old boys club in the city whether or not you can get away with breaking codes. Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from you all. I left you my contact information. I hope to hear from each of you hopefully this week. Thank you.

Thank you. All the people that signed up this evening, is there anyone else that would like to address the council? Who's here? Yes, please come forward.

Jacqueline Whalen, Milton Washington. This is an upcoming topic on your agenda relative to the contract amendment for framework on our comprehensive plan, the climate element. And I don't know if it'll actually take action tonight. So I just wanted to get my thoughts in ahead of time. and just ask for more detailed information. Anyone new to the idea of a climate element would be sort of thrown off about what it is and what's to be accomplished by it. And what was presented in the packet just was so mean you really had to do some homework to make some good sense of it. And I had a series of questions that ultimately some of them were answered by a fellow researcher saying, well, you know, the study session in May, the council approved a grant. And that isn't even noted in tonight's packet. So the theme is please, more information would be such a benefit. And when you try to track what's written up in the grant approval contract at the May special meeting, I should say, not study session, versus what's in tonight's packet, things just don't line up really in a way that you can figure out what happened in between. And so if we could just get more information when you all are discussing it, it would be really appreciated. It's an important topic. I'm stunned at how expensive it is to fulfill the issue and look forward to the discussion. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Is there anyone else in the audience that would like to address the Council this evening? All right, seeing none, we'll move on to our next item, additions and deletions. There are five separate walk-on agenda items that have been handed out to everyone today, each dealing with acquiring right-of-way easements on 23rd Avenue for future road and sidewalk construction. We'll add them between 10D and 10E. And we'll... The last item will be the council appointment today. Are there any other requested additions or deletions to the agenda this evening? Hearing none, we will move on to the consent agenda. There will be no separate discussion on these items unless a council member requests. In which event, the item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered immediately following the consent agenda. All items listed are considered routine by the Milton City Council and will be enacted in one motion. May I get a motion to approve the consent agenda? Yes, Council Member Ramos.

I move to approve the consent agenda as written.

Second. Second. It's been moved by Councilmember Mounts and seconded by Councilmember Poore to approve the consent agenda. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes. All right. Next item on the agenda is a presentation for the employee of the month. Unfortunately, that employee was unable to come this evening, but we will recognize him nonetheless. I'm excited to share that Mike Thatcher from Public Works has been named the City of Milton's Employee of the Month for June 2026. This award goes to the colleague who truly lives out our core values of excellence, integrity, teamwork, and dedicated public service. Mike's coworkers had some wonderful things to say about him. The first is, Mike is always just around the corner ready to help. He brings such a great upbeat attitude and always has interesting stories and knowledge to share. And a second commenter had to say, for all his hard work, especially the tremendous job prepping and painting Building D, we will be forever grateful. His work ethic and commitment to doing things the right way are unmatched. He's truly an asset to the city and we're lucky to work with him and learn from him. Mike's reliability, positive energy, and genuine care for getting the job done right has made a noticeable difference in his department and for everyone who lives and works in Milton. He raises the bar for all of us. On behalf of the city council, city leadership, and our residents, congratulations on a very well-deserved honor. As part of this recognition, he will receive a framed employee of the month certificate, feature on the city's website, newsletter, and social media channels, a reserved parking space for the month, and lunch with the mayor, which all of you already know is a $2,000 value. We're incredibly proud of everything Mike does and are grateful for his continued dedication to the city of Milton. Please join me in congratulating Mike Thatcher on the outstanding achievement Let's all take a moment to celebrate his contributions and strive to follow the strong example he sets every day. Congratulations again, Mike. And Dustin, I'll give you his certificate so you can give it to him. All right, moving on to item seven, which is a proclamation. Whereas 250 years ago, a spark was lit in the darkness, fragile, defiant, and full of promise, and whereas that spark was carried by men and women who believed that freedom was not granted by men, but endowed by God, and that a self-governing nation was worth building, defending, and preserving, and whereas That single spark grew into a blazing light seen around the world as a symbol of hope, liberty, opportunity, and prosperity. And whereas the light of America is not only a record of the past, but a living flame renewed by each generation that chooses to carry forward the promise of liberty. And whereas, as our nation prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, The city of Milton recognizes this historic milestone as both a celebration of what has been and a declaration of what still will be. And whereas from Flag Day, June 14th, 2026, through Independence Day, July 4th, 2026, the people of the city of Milton are encouraged to fly the flag of the United States of America and to join together in a community-wide celebration of America's founding. its enduring promise, and the responsibility we share to light the way for the next 250 years. And whereas every resident carries a spark, and when we come together in unity, gratitude, and purpose, we do not merely remember the flame of freedom, we become part of it. Now therefore, I, Bruce White, Mayor of the City of Milton, Washington, do hereby proclaim July 4th, 2026, as America 250, light it up. Accordingly, I encourage our citizens, businesses, schools, civic organizations, and community partners to participate in this historic celebration to honor the legacy of American freedom and to carry its light forward for generations to come. All right. Moving on to item eight, appointments to boards and commissions. The first item on... OK, the first one in that item is an appointment to the park board. And I believe Joe. Hi. Come forward, please. Joe Sheehan recently moved to Milton about a year ago. Mr. Sheehan and his family are frequent park users and want to ingrain themselves in their community. He feels this is a good contribution of his time. He's here. Would you like to say a word or two?

You hit the nail on the head. I appreciate the opportunity to volunteer for the community and looking forward to helping out the team, get some things done.

All right. Any questions from the council? I'd accept the motion. Yes, Council Member Cedar.

I move to approve the Mayor's appointment of Joe Sheehan to the Park Board for a term to expire December 31, 2028.

Okay, it's been moved by Councilmember Cedar and seconded by Councilmember Mount. Is there any discussion? Councilmember Cedar, would you like to speak to your motion?

Just to say thank you. Appreciate you wanting to step forward for the community.

Thank you all. Councilmember Miles, would you like to speak to your second?

Thank you.

All right. Any further discussion?

All right.

It's been moved by Council Member Cedar and seconded by Council Member Mounts to approve the mayor's appointment of Joe Sheehan to the park board for a term to expire December 31, 2028. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion carries. Welcome aboard. Thank you. OK, moving on to Item 8B, which is a reappointment to the Events Committee for Rachel Shin. Rachel Shin was just approved earlier in 2026 for a short term, and she has enjoyed being on the Events Committee and would like to stay on for a full four-year term. I recommend Rachel continue to serve on the committee. Rachel, would you like to say anything to the council?

I just appreciate the opportunity to be involved in our great community and look forward to events coming.

All right, thank you. I'd accept the motion. Yes, Council Member Roberts. Thank you, Mayor.

I move to approve Mayor's appointment of Rachel Shin, the Events Committee, for adjourn to expire May 31, 2030. Second. Second.

Okay, it's been moved and seconded. Council Member Roberts, would you like to speak to your motion?

Sure, I know Rachel a little bit, but what I do know of her, she's very involved with the community and has a history with the school board as well. So I know you've been here for quite a while and worked with the kids quite a bit and enjoy our community and whatnot, and those are values we definitely hold dear in Milton, so thank you.

Council Member Ford, would you like to speak to your second?

Nope, thank you for your service.

All right, any further discussion from the Council?

Seeing none, it's been moved by Councilmember Roberts and seconded by Councilmember Poore to approve the Mayor's reappointment of Rachel Shin to the Events Committee for a term to expire May 31st, 2030. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion carries. Welcome back aboard. OK, moving to Item Number 9, Public Hearing. And our Public Works Director will present this item.

Yes, thank you, Mayor. Council, the item before you tonight was discussed at last week's study session in depth. But this is an annual update to the six-year TIP plan. That is the Transportation Improvement Program. and the city's TIP will list all of our major infrastructure projects throughout the city and some ongoing efforts akin to ADA access and sidewalks. This document then rolls up to the state TIP and allows Milton to be eligible for certain grant opportunities. So this is an important document to keep updated. We've presented during the study session projects in depth. Were there any questions? Or is this a good opportunity for question? Or do you open it for public comment?

We'll open it for public comment and take questions when we have the item on the table.

Wonderful. OK. So to summarize, Milton's total objective over the next six years, if it was fully funded, would be $36 million. And so those $36 million roll up into a variety of projects. And we do have a rather large $9 million sidewalk project that will essentially connect a sidewalk from the King County line, where Federal Way is, all the way down to Porter Avenue. the southern city limits, which would be wonderful for anybody utilizing 99 as a corridor. Good news there is once Sound Transit breaks ground, we're finalizing a deal with them right now where they're going to put in that 10-foot walkway as part of their restoration and community support. So we will have a multimodal corridor going down 99, that is going to continue all the way to Federal Way. So it's a wonderful asset for the city. It almost creates another trail corridor akin to the inner urban. So that's a larger project on there. And it's once Sound Transit moves forward, we could then pull that off of our list. So it's open for public comment.

Yes. I open the public hearing at 7.20 p.m. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to address the Council on this issue? Yes, please come forward. Please state your name and city for the record.

Jacqueline Whalen, Milton, Washington. It's more of a general sort of a question regarding the Transportation Improvement Program. My understanding is that the city has standards in the Public Works Department that if you did a cross section, it would tell you how wide the sidewalks are, the bike lane, et cetera. And I would appreciate it if part of tonight's discussion would include where someone could learn where those things are and offer some input. Because just to hear there's going to be a sidewalk, we have our hopes, but we don't know what it's really going to look like. So if there's a place for plans or to really see what these things are envisioned to become, I think it would be a real benefit for the community. And I applaud our efforts to increase the ability for non-motorized vehicles travel in the city, walking, riding a bicycle. These are wonderful, good things for our community, so thank you.

Thank you. Is there anyone else that would like to address the Council on this issue? Seeing none, I will close the public hearing at 7.22 p.m. All right, moving on to the regular agenda. which is first item A is on page 37 of your packet, which deals with the TIP again, and Public Works Director Madden will be presenting.

Thank you, Mayor and Council. At this time, you've heard me talk about this multiple times, so I would just like to open it up for a motion and then discussion if there is any.

All right. Yes, Councilmember Hall.

Move to approve Resolution 26-1997, adopting the 2027 through the 2032 Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program, TIP.

Second.

All right, it's been moved by Councilmember Hall and seconded by Councilmember Cedar to approve the proposed 2027 to 2032 Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program. Council Member Hall, would you like to speak to your motion?

Thank you for all the work you've done on this. Thank you for the study session. This is absolutely essential for us to receive grants. They've gotta be on here. I also appreciate all the work you've done coming from outside of the city. Tremendous amount of work.

Thank you. Council Member Cedar, would you like to speak to your second?

Yeah, thank you. I just had a couple questions following up on the study session and then actually I think to the public comment question as well. Last year on the fiscal year 26 plan, we had development guidelines that's no longer on the TIP. Can you just tell me what happened with that and where we could find those? Because I think that's what was commented on essentially.

It is. Yes, thank you for that. The development guidelines were brought, so as Mrs. Whalen stated, there are development guidelines. They are posted on the city website under the Public Works documents. They currently are being updated, and so we've gone through a heavy lift that has been in the process for about 15 years. We just completed it, and with all of the cross-sections. So those are now all of the cross-sections will be updated. And there is, they can continually be updated if we receive public comment that would like to take a standard further. In general, WSDOT standards were adopted across the board, just to make it efficient. And we also updated all the text on all of these cross sections and graphics, so now they're searchable. And we're working on the language attached to the development standards. That should be done in three months is the timeline that we'd set. That's going to be done by internal staff.

One of the points that I think is kind of a sub... I always thought of it as a sub of development standards, but it's something that I think we should probably flag for getting onto our TIP in the near future, is gonna be updating our Complete Streets guidelines. Right now we have kind of a placeholder that was adopted early when Complete Streets was a new idea. We've now lagged pretty far behind in that. I'd love to see that get somewhere worked into the next TIP. I don't think there's room on what we have near. I think it's an ambitious project what we have, but just flagging that for you, maybe for a future discussion. And then the only specific item I had a question about was the Taylor Street, which is 1.8. What's the feasibility of that happening in 27 of us? Because I think we're design, right? There's been design steps on that.

There have not been design steps taken there. But we do have right-of-way. And so one of the challenges for our 23rd project that we'll be talking about later, you know, was acquiring all of the right-of-way to build that. Taylor, we don't have that issue. And we do have some previous designs that were implemented that show what that cross-section looks like. And what it is, is it's a five-foot sidewalk, a planter bed that may need to flex five to three, and then a bike lane. So that's what that corridor will look like going down Taylor. So the likelihood of it being completed all across the board, zero. But the likelihood of getting design completed and out to bid in 27 with a decent chunk of that is very likely. We're meeting with TIB next week, the Transportation Improvement Board at funding that project.

That's great. I think that's a high priority for the city.

Agreed. Thank you. We will be submitting a grant on Taylor this year, and it'll be for a block. And we'll maybe.

I'm so sorry. Go ahead. I just asked one follow-up there. While that's ongoing, can we still, I think we could still implement our traffic calming program on Taylor as that's proceeding, right?

Correct.

Thanks.

Council Member Ramones.

Again, thank you for all the hard work that went into this. I just want to restate the concern I had last week that when the public doesn't know how to find the information prior to a public hearing, if the website is being updated and the information is not available, we can't expect the public to provide meaningful comments if they don't know what it is that they're commenting on or where to find the information. And then for us to vote on it right after public comments, the timing is just not transparent, I guess maybe is the word. And then I did have a follow-up on a particular project, the one that we talked about last week that is putting a sidewalk alongside the park on Porter Way. Right now the sidewalk goes into the park and one of the items is to extend it down the full length of the park.

On Milton Way?

On Milton Way. Yes. I drove by there after the meeting last week and there's like 40 trees or more in that section. How many of those would have to be removed in order to complete that project or let me say in general overall I know there's a hot topic right now on protecting the canopy in Milton without knowing what a standard canopy is for however many acres we have and the city of Milton is exempt from what's being brought forward and so the burden to preserve the canopy is trying to be placed onto the individual property owners. So in the information that is being updated on the website, or maybe you know off the top of your head, is there room there to put the sidewalk without taking out those 40 trees? Or how many of the trees would have to come down? Or on any of these improvement projects, how much of the canopy is Milton going to lose? What is the impact? And what is... Yeah, the impact, I guess, to the canopy or to the private property owners whose properties might be infringed on to make up the difference. If the city cuts down a lot of trees, then the private residents aren't allowed to.

Yes. So just to answer the first one, the transparency, that's very important. And I did take your comment to heart. This is the way the city's always done this TIP plan, but that doesn't mean that's the way we need to move forward. From a transparency standpoint, the TIP document is online, and it was in the study session notes for any of the public that wanted to find that information. Regarding that particular project, it is problematic, which is the reason that, you know, it's not complete already. And so, that is something that, you know, as we continue to discuss our canopy conversation, we'll have to discuss that, you know. And I would say that our replacement schedule would beat any, you know, type of other replanting. We have significant plans to bring trees into the city. And so, but yes, I can't really speak to the canopy conversation overall, but we would lose a few trees out of the 42. You know, I don't know. Off the top of my head, unfortunately. There's also a large embankment there, which is the expensive part.

Any additional questions or discussion? Seeing none, it's been moved by Council Member Hall. I'm sorry, this is an action item. Is there any comments from the audience? All right, seeing none. It's been moved by Council Member Hall and seconded by Council Member Seder. to approve resolution 26-1997, adopting the 2027 to 2032 six-year transportation improvement program. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion carries. All right, moving on to item B, which is on page 53 of your packet. It's the Hilltower Park construction plan phase one. and this will be presented by Public Works Director Madden.

Wonderful, thank you, Mayor. The item before you tonight is the first phase in Hilltower Park's redevelopment. This project has adequate funds in Fund 310 to move it forward. It will be a mix of funding. And what that funding will look, when I say mix, it will be a mix of park improvement, park beautification, playground money, and the sidewalk, missing link sidewalk project. There is a few storm components also. But what this project will do, this first phase, it takes all of the existing parking that is inside Hilltower Park, moves it to the street diagonal parking. That allows us to maximize the flat area and the use of the park. And so this first phase would move all the parking out. As stated, it brings in 15 spots for parking to ADA. And it will continue the sidewalk from past improvements down to the border of Hilltower Park, which there is a development planning to go in there, which would then wrap sidewalk all the way up Emerald. And it will start our sidewalk connection on Emerald. So this, the item before you, as stated, it's a mix of funding And what it will provide above is restoration of the lawn area. This first phase will not have any playground equipment per se. The playground contribution comes from the sport court that will be built. There'll be a half court basketball and a full pickleball court added. And it'll be similar to the one that we have up at Milton Community Park. So the item before you tonight is to authorize the city to execute a contract with Clean Hydrovac for the sum of $477,625.76. There were four bidders on this public bid opening, and Clean Hydrovac out of Enumclaw came back with what great references and the best price value to the city.

All right, I'd entertain a motion. Yes, Council Member Cedar.

I move to authorize the mayor to execute Public Works Contract 010G with Clean Hydrovac Incorporated for Hilltower Park Phase 1 project in an amount not to exceed $477,625.76. Second. Second.

Council Member Cedar, would you like to speak to your motion?

Briefly, thanks. It's obviously been a long time coming. We've been talking about it for a few years, gotten great public input. I'm excited to see this starting to move forward. I have some questions that are just kind of ancillary to this, but it's probably the best time to ask them.

Sure.

So as we talk about that sidewalk connection that's going to wrap around Emerald, I know that's not what we're talking about right here, but what is the vision, the long-term vision of how the sidewalk connects there? So it's coming off of Milton Way from where it's built currently, and it kind of darts in and has some parallel street parking. And then in front of the park, it will jog in again for angled parking, correct? Correct. And then will it jog back out, or will there be additional street parking along 19th there? Any thought on how that's going to look further down the road?

You know, we've had a lot of discussion lately about on-street parking adjacent to parks, and, you know, how far do we want to carry that? The plan currently is to have the sidewalk wrap back out with a bike lane, and that is what would take you to Emerald. So from where the park stops to Emerald would be bike lane and sidewalk only.

Understood.

Yeah. There is an opportunity for parallel parking there for overflow. is interested in that, and planning manager and I could discuss that with the developer.

Yeah, I don't like parking. I think I've made that very clear. I think you can get a lot more bikes in one parking spot. But I do foresee that that park is going to become popular as we improve it, and 15 slots are going to fill up quick. That's 15 families or maybe fewer. So I'm concerned about how that development looks as we go forward. You know, let's track the issue, please. Let's continue to talk about it, especially as we rebuild Emerald with that parking as well. Yeah. The second question I have about that park, again, just kind of an ancillary point, but it's the sport court. I wouldn't be doing service to the people who play pickleball on our court in Triangle Park or Community Park. Can we please ensure the fences aren't too close in on the sides? Yes, absolutely. That's all I got.

Thank you. Thanks. Councilmember Roberts, would you like to speak to your second?

Sure, I'm just glad there'll be another basketball hoop we could use in the town. And please put a Sonics logo on the backboard. I'll see what I can do.

Additional discussion. Yes, Councilmember Raul.

Could we get a little better breakdown of where the money's coming from? I mean, it says 310, but it is, you know, and... I have the original budget that was given to us. I know things have juggled a little bit. So if you could speak to that.

Absolutely. So 170 of it come from a mix of sidewalk money. And if you look at the bid breakout, you can kind of see where everything is. So as soon as you see the some of the shoring money, that shoring is required for the sidewalk. And then erosion control, irrigation sleeve, traffic curb and gutter. So 170, approximately 120 will come from there. And then there's a small contribution about 20,000 from stormwater. And then we've got our asphalt contract. that we've used, we'll look at ways to cut down costs. When, yes, so that the current funding is $300 from the park. A lot of that comes from playground and park beautification. Yeah.

All right, thank you. Appreciate it.

Does that work? We can provide a full breakdown afterwards.

Ms. I think it would have been helpful if we'd received that. Mr. Sure. Ms. Since we did not go through study session on this, the more information the better.

Mr. Yeah. And I would like to point out that this is the first phase of the project. The next phase is already in design but that'll bring in a large playground structure, workout equipment, and Phase 2.A would be a dog park at the top with a separate entrance. because of the grade. So we do have big plans for that park. Those future phases, because the city has made this investment and is showing the state that it's willing to put in funding and effort, it increases our likelihood of grant funding.

Councillor Osanic.

Any additional discussion? Yes, Council Member Roberts.

Quick question. Are we still planning on putting zip lines or slides from the top of the hill you were talking about? Yeah. Yeah?

Yeah, there's slides on grade. And I believe there's three of them. Yeah. That utilize the slope of the hill.

Yeah. Additional discussion? All right, seeing none, it's been moved by Council Member Seder and second, oh, I'm sorry. This is an action item. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to speak to the Council on this issue? Yes, please come forward.

Hi, my name is Sunshine Glynn and I have a question for you. Yes. What is happening with the original remains that are at the top of Hilltop before the dog park comes in?

Yeah, we have an inadvertent discovery plan that we've established with the tribe and we'll be following Do Not Disturb in that upper section. Yes, thank you.

Any additional discussion from the audience? All right, now seeing none, it's been moved by Councilmember Cedar and seconded by Councilmember Roberts to authorize the Mayor to execute Public Works Contract Number 010G with Clean Hydrovac Incorporated for Hilltower Park Phase 1 project in the amount not to exceed $477,625.76. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Moving on to item 10C, which is on page 73 of your packet. It's the Framework Contract Amendment, and this will be presented by Planning Manager Stalnaker.

Thank you, Mayor and Council. So before you is, so we currently have an on-call contract for planning services with framework. Since this is a much larger amount for this amendment, specifically for this project, which is $280,000 per our personnel policies, Anything over 40,000 for services must be authorized by the department director, the mayor, and city council. So it's before you tonight. So the specific amendment is $280,000 for the completion of the climate element of the comprehensive plan. I do apologize and take responsibility. There is, appears to be, a paragraph missing from this that does tie it into the grant. So this is being funded by the, Department of Commerce grant we received for the two sub-elements, climate resilience and greenhouse gas emissions. The grant was for $334,431.89. This is going to take $280,000 of that. The remaining 54 plus covers the city's expenses as well as some of the beginning steps of the urban forest plan. Yes, so at that point, I would be happy to entertain questions or comments or as we go.

Okay, I would entertain a motion at this point. Yes, Council Member Roberts.

Oh, I'm sorry, I was gonna ask questions before I made a motion. I move to authorize the mayor to execute amendment number one to the agreement with framework and an amount not to exceed $280,000. Second.

It's been moved by Councilmember Roberts and seconded by Councilmember Cedar. Councilmember Roberts, would you like to speak to your motion?

Yeah, so based on also public comment and Exhibit B compensation, et cetera, so all the deliverables, obviously they have a value attached to them. Could you better assess the breakdown for each of those proposals for Exhibit B?

Yeah, so Department of Commerce, the way they establish their grants is it's not based on invoices, it's based on deliverables. And so back when we did the grant proposal, it outlined how much was authorized for each section. So like it talks about engagement and it goes through on the attachment.

Let's see, is it all of it or is it all of it? It's multiple sections.

So yeah, it goes through, and so this pretty much matches the budget that was given from the Department of Commerce to the city for this. Like I said, other than that last remaining, which is the city portion of our work. So it will basically, they will cover, framework will cover all of the public engagement, impact. Some of it may, again, this is the audit plan, policies and city code, vulnerability risk. So it's outreach, it's back study, and it's development of the code works through all of those things. And then it integrates also goals and policies. We have to also work with vulnerable populations, overburdened communities. We need to attach to the tribes. And again, it's both the resiliency part as well as the gas emissions part. And Framework did do our original comp plan as well, so for them to do this meshes real nicely. It's possible that some of this work will also be able to be used with some of the sub-area plans that were future work, so some of that information will carry over, but it will cover the deliverables that the state has requested.

Thank you. Council Member Cedar, would you like to speak to your second?

No, thank you.

All right. Any further discussion from council? Yes, Council Member Miles.

So I'm really concerned about the jump from $39,000 on an existing contract to an amendment for $280,000 in the contracting world, that's considered a cardinal change and it equates to a sole source. Did the city discuss putting this all out for new bid for competition purposes with a well-defined scope of work for each tasks that mirror what was in the grant?

No, I mean we discussed if that was an option we wanted to take, but instead we chose to because it is a service. It, we're, in essence, it doesn't have to go through a bidding outreach process. We felt that since Framework had already done our full comprehensive plan, they were our on-call planning services, that they were best equipped to work for the city, and we chose to move forward with Framework with that.

So to follow up on that, in my opinion, profession as a contract auditor. That would open the city up for disputes and risks from any other companies that bid for the $39,000 contract and limited the competition on that contract because the scope was so small, it would not have garnished the attention of larger companies that would bid on something over 200,000. So unfortunately, I can't support this.

We didn't go out for bid for the smaller contract either. We did them as an on-call, again, because they're providing services. We had done originally, had done out for the original comp plan since they had worked through us through the comp plan and they had supported us, we signed them to an on-call support based on that. And again, as our purchasing policies stipulate, as it is for services, that is within our authority to do so.

Any additional comments or discussion? This is an action item. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to speak to this item before the vote? Yes. Please come forward, giving your name and city for the record.

I'm glad it's a short walk to the podium, Jacqueline Whalen, Milton Washington. It was once I was educated on needing to have to go back to when council approved the grant project to really get details, I just stumbled on things like a rule in the contract that says if you're gonna use subcontractors, you gotta get approval from Department of Commerce. there's no approval letters in the packet. Did Commerce already give approval on that? And maybe they did. And the other thing is, in the contract, you've got 15 deliverables. But in today's packet, you've only got eight. So that's what I mean about how the numbers correlate. And because it's just, It's just so non-specific. I just wonder what's really going to be done. When they bid for the comprehensive plan, there was much more detail that was given. And maybe the process is different because this is an extension. But I'd sure like to have seen who the competition could have been. what their product was and what we could have gotten. This is a very important topic to get addressed. The grant seems to impose a deadline of June, 2027, but it seemed like at Department of Commerce, this project would be due by 2029, I think. So if there could be a little discussion on deadlines, that would be helpful also, thank you.

Any other audience member that would like to speak on this issue? Yes, please come forward.

Jackie Strader, Milton. I just had a question because if Exhibit A is the scope, is it that the... grant, all the details in the grant also get attached to it so that they know exactly what the state is expecting us to do. And then exhibit B in tonight's packet, there's a footnote under deliverable five that there's no footnote on the paper. So it's like, what does that footnote say? Just a thought. Thank you.

Thank you. Anyone else in the audience like to address the Council on this issue? Okay, Council Member Poer, did I see your hand?

Yeah, thank you, Mayor. I move to table this issue to a future meeting.

Second.

All right, it's been moved by Council Member Poore and seconded by Council Member Mounts to table this item to a future meeting. Council Member Poore, would you like to speak to your motion?

Yeah, it sounds like a really good issue for us to just do a little bit more research on. I think there's enough concerns and just enough gaps maybe in our knowledge to try and pursue that either through a study session that we can kind of ask a little bit more questions and then hopefully support it and approve it in the future.

Is there any further discussion? Council Member Miles, would you like to speak to your second?

Yeah, I think tabling it's a good idea and maybe further discuss the possibility of doing a separate contract for the items that were in the grant approval.

Is there any further discussion from other council members? All right, the motion on the, yes, Council Member Cedar. Thank you.

Yeah, I agree. I think we need to just make sure that we're following the right procedures here if there is some concern. I know we have a very long history with Framework If if we're above board here, let's make sure we are so that everybody's confident in it Doesn't seem to be a problem in the substance. But if we're screwing up the process then we're shooting ourselves in the foot. So Just that I'm gonna support The motion which was to table it. My understanding is that we need to postpone it to a specific date That we can't just table it We can either withdraw it completely. So as a point of order, I would say we should probably set a date for when it'll be postponed to if the motion's gonna stay active, otherwise the motion needs to be withdrawn, because the motion is currently pending to pass this item. I apologize for the procedural hoops to jump through, but let's get it right.

Planning Manager Stahlnecker. would bringing this to the first meeting of July be enough time for you to address the issues?

Yes.

Okay, would you like to? Yes, Council Member Hall.

Do we need a study session or? Do we need it to come to council again?

That's up to council. I mean, finance director can verify that we follow procedures, but if council is not comfortable with it and would like to bring it back, it's their call whether it's a study session or if I'm just bringing it back with additional information for action.

Council Member Poer. I have a suggestion, maybe the third meeting in July, that way we could discuss it at the study session and then.

The study session won't work in July.

Oh, okay. Oh, yeah, our our study session is unique this year. Yeah, it's, it's, it's full.

Okay, it's what we're having a joint meeting with the planning committee for my motion to table, then I'll suggest the first meeting in July.

Is that approved by the second? Do you? Okay. All right. Yes, Council Member Holland.

One more thing. I think we need to give you a good direction on what we're asking for. So when you come back, we come back, we know. We can get it ahead of time. We can get it in the package.

So I think the main thing is just kind of whether we want to open it up to a bidding process and then kind of some of the issues process-wise that were raised, if we could get more information on those.

Planning Manager Stallnicker, do you have enough direction to be able to bring this back?

I mean, if you want verification of the process, that would be me. If Council chooses to reject the contract and direct staff to do elsewhere, that is up to the Council. There's nothing I don't think I would bring back from my aspect for that.

Okay.

I don't know what information I would bring back. That's a choice by Council.

Council Member Porter, could you maybe give Planning Manager Stalnaker a little more direction in terms of what you hope to get back?

Terry, could you speak to that a little bit?

Council Member Miles.

I would like to see a sole source justification that can justify a cardinal change, even if it is a service contract. I think actually what I would like to see, and this is me personally and we can vote on it, but I would like to see this go out for bid with a new contract and not piggyback on a previous sole source award.

Then my understanding of process would be council would need to, I assume, deny this contract and maybe, I don't know how the process would be for that. but there would have to be then, I guess, maybe a motion for that or something to that effect. And I don't know how that works. We'd have to check with where the roles are. We can check with legal how that works of who gets to make that.

So perhaps a better idea would be to just withdraw this item from the agenda this evening and so that you have the opportunity to.

Sure, we will discuss it with legal and see what those options are and where that plays.

Okay. Councillor Poore, would you be willing to withdraw your motion?

Yeah.

Okay. So we would need a new motion to remove this item from the agenda.

Wouldn't we just vote to deny whether to approve or deny?

If you vote to deny it and you deny it, it can't be brought back unless somebody on the negative party brings it back.

So I would entertain a motion to remove the item from tonight's agenda.

Move to remove the item from tonight's agenda.

I second that.

OK. It's been moved and seconded. Councilmember Porter, would you like to speak to your motion?

No, thank you.

Councilmember Miles?

Thank you for this discussion. It's very helpful.

OK. Any discussion on the motion on the floor? Okay, it's been moved by, this is an action item. Anybody from the audience like to speak to the motion on the table? All right, it's been moved by Councilmember Poor and seconded by Councilmember Mounts to remove this item from tonight's agenda. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes, okay. We now move on to item D, a budget amendment ordinance. And this item will be presented by our finance director, Roebuck.

Thank you, Mayor and Council. The proposed ordinance was presented at the study session on June 8th for first reading and provides adjustments to the 2026 budget as adopted by City Council in December of 25. This is the first ordinance amended in the 2026 budget and includes changes to the wage scale only. In 2024, the public works project manager position was added to the wage scale as a three year limited term position to assist the public works department with various projects throughout the city. This role has proven to be a benefit to the city and staff is requesting approval to convert it to a permanent position. The public works project manager performed many functions previously performed by the city engineer, so staff is also requesting to defund the city engineer position which has been vacant for several years. These changes are intended to better align staffing resources with the operational needs of the city.

All right, I'd entertain a motion at this time. Yes, Council Member Roberts.

Yes, ma'am, I move to adopt ordinance 2142-26 amending the 2026 budget as detailed in exhibit A.

It's been moved by Council Member Roberts and seconded by Council Member Cedar. Council Member Roberts, would you like to speak to your motion?

Sure. So this is a nice cost savings for the city based on this ordinance here. So thank you for doing that. It's much appreciated.

Council Member Cedar, would you like to speak to your second?

I mean, I think this is something we have seen coming for a few years and it's nice to see it finally take action. I guess, I mean, I feel like we reassess the staffing constantly. And I would just note that should our director change, we'll probably wanna revisit this decision, but hopefully our directorate never changes. That's the goal. So, thanks.

Any additional discussion? Yes, Council Member Mounts.

I'd like to second that our director never changes. And I just had a question just for the record, and I know we've discussed this already, but on page 83 under fiscal impact, we've put in writing that this staffing adjustment is budget neutral. In effect, it's a budget savings. And I don't want to lose the bookkeeping on that savings. So how much do you think approximate savings that would be for the city?

Oh wow, that's a really good question because as we've discussed before in the budget, and what is appearing in the agenda item, those are the wages and benefits, the wages are at the top of the scale and benefits assume full family. The city engineer position has been vacant for several years, so if we were hypothetically to fill it, I'm not sure where that would land and the project manager position currently is not at top step. So I guess I, my best guess would be the roughly $40,000 that's appearing in the agenda item based on the facts that we have.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Any additional discussion? This is an action item. Is there any comments from the audience this evening? Seeing none, it's been moved by Councilmember Roberts and seconded by Councilmember Cedar to adopt Ordinance 2142-26, amending the 2026 budget as detailed in Exhibit A. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right. Now moving on to the walk-on agenda item one, which is the resolution and purchase sale agreement between the City of Milton and five different property owners. And our Public Works Director Madden will present this item.

Yes, thank you, Mayor. So that in before you tonight is for 23rd. This would be a road widening project. It would essentially create two 12-foot travel lanes. Right now it is subpar in this particular area, which is just south of Alder Street on 23rd. There will be a new park going into this area in 2030, and so we've taken that into account, and the access point is being built out now as part of this and a development that is going in behind the existing houses. So what this project will do is it will create two 12-foot travel lanes, as I stated. It will provide a curb gutter, stormwater facility. Right now it is open ditch in many places and it will most importantly create a sidewalk for users and it will connect Alder to some of our amenities in the city. This project right here requires right-of-way acquisition, which we have talked about in the past, but what we have here in front of you today is the authority to make those offers to those five residents and individuals. As stated earlier in a previous discussion on this, we went through a strict appraisal process and what that came out to is there was some variation in the costs. And to make this project because of its necessity to just our infrastructure, we chose after discussing with legal to make those offers to the highest value across the board. So we took the highest square footage and we offered everybody the same per square foot price. And that's how we got the numbers in front of you today. Would you like me to read each one of them, or how would you like to approve these?

Well, they're all, I mean, they're with five different individuals, but they're all for the same project. So unless there's additional questions from Council, I would say we just handle them one at a time. I'd entertain a motion on the first one. Yes, Councilmember Ford.

Move to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Joanne C. Segarra as trustee of the Joanne C. Segarra Living Trust for the purchase of right-of-way at 108 23rd Avenue, Pierce County parcel number 0420045011 in the amount of $30,130.78. Second.

It's been moved by Council Member Poore and seconded by Council Member Mounts. Council Member Poore, would you like to speak to your motion?

Thank you for your work on this. I'm looking forward to seeing our sidewalks expanded, hopefully bike lanes and better, safer streets for our families.

Thank you.

Council Member Mounts, would you like to speak to your second?

Yeah, I'd like to thank the Segarra family for allowing the city to move forward.

Yes. Any additional discussion? Yes, Council Member Seder.

Yeah, it's half of a point of order and half of a question, first one and the other. The point of order, we have to adopt the resolution, so, right, I mean, there's a resolution here as well, and the motion is not to adopt it. So I'm just noting that we will need to adopt the resolution if we want to, or... approve the resolution, I suppose. The question I have is later down the line. I don't see 206 23rd in here. I think there's six houses between I think 310 or 302 is where it starts. And then there's three houses in the 100 block, which are 108, 110. and 112, and there's 208, obviously 210, but I don't see 206. I think 206, 23rd is there as well. It's kind of a single- New home. Is it a new home right now?

Yes, and so that particular, that is addressed in part of the city. The city already has that right away. That's why we don't need to acquire it. It was part of a previous development in land plot.

So this is gonna, these five, we're gonna round out that side of 23rd for us? Yes.

And I should have stated also, the project will allow us to put in a new water line in addition.

A new water line? New water line.

Yes. Which is desperately needed in that section.

That's exciting too.

Yes.

Can't see it, but it is exciting. So I move to amend the motion to include approval of resolution 26-1998. Second.

Okay, and then we're gonna need to do that on all the following ones too, and I apologize that that didn't get caught before the meeting, so. All right, this is an action item. Is there any comments from the audience? Okay. It's been moved by Councilmember Poor and seconded by Councilmember Mounts as Mayor Mrakas, amended to adopt resolution 26 dash 1998 and to move to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the city of Milton and Joanne Joanne cigar as trustee of the Joanne see cigar living trust for the purchase of right away at 108. 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420045011, in the amount of $30,130.78. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes. OK, moving on to walk-on item number two. Is there anything you'd like to add to this particular parcel?

No, no. Just that we appreciate the homeowner's willingness to work with the city. And this has been an incredibly dangerous area for walkers for decades. And so it'll be nice to get this fixed. And drivers too. And drivers, yes.

OK. I'd entertain a motion.

I think we'll have to make a motion for each one.

Yeah. Councillor Candon.

I move to author, excuse me, I move to approve resolution 26-1999 authorizing the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the city of Milton and Stephanie Nicole Nesbitt and Samuel Gerhardt Mitchell and Thomas Patrick Nesbitt for the purchase of right-of-way at 110 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420045012 in the amount of $23,949.66. Second.

Council Member Cedar, would you like to speak to your motion?

I thank the homeowners here, the property owners here as well, and apologize for butchering the names.

Council Member Hall, would you like to speak to your second?

This is absolutely a safety item, and I appreciate you bringing it.

Okay, and if I butcher these names, it's your fault. It's your pronunciation. If this is an action item, is there any comments from the audience? And I'm sorry, I should have asked, is there any additional discussion from council? Okay, hearing none. It's been moved by Council Member Cedern, seconded by Council Member Hall to approve resolution 26-1999 and move to approve, or move to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Stephanie Nicole Nesbitt and Samuel, is it Gerhardt? Gerhardt Mitchell and Thomas Patrick Nesbitt for the purchase of right-of-way at 110 23rd Avenue, Pierce County. Parcel number 0420045012 in the amount of $23,949.66. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Moving on to walk on agenda item three. I'D ENTERTAIN A MOTION AT THIS POINT.

I move to approve resolution number 26-2000, authorizing the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Frank Carucci Jr. and Jenny Carucci for the purchase of right-of-way at 112 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420045013 in the amount of $23,707.20. Second. Second.

Council Member Orr, would you like to speak to your motion?

No, thank you again for the family for your sacrifice, and thank you for your work on this. Council Member Roberts, would you like to speak to your second?

Yeah, the same. Thank you to the Carucci family. It's much appreciated. Thank you.

Any additional discussion from council? This also is an action item. Any comments from the audience this evening? Seeing none, it's been moved by Council Member Poore and seconded by Council Member Roberts to approve resolution 26-2000 to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Frank Carucci Jr. and Jeannie Carucci for the purchase of right-of-way at 112 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420045013. in the amount of $23,707.20. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. Moving on to the walk on agenda item four. I accept the motion at this time. Yes, Council Member Miles.

I move to adopt resolution 26-2001 to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Howard Lee Johnson for the purchase of right-of-way at 210 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420041183 in the amount of $26,853.92. Second.

It's been moved by Council Member Mounce and seconded by Council Member Poore. Council Member Mounce, would you like to speak to your motion?

Again, I thank the family for their sacrifice.

Council Member Poore, would you like to speak to your second?

Ditto.

This is also an action item. Anyone in the audience like to speak to this item? Okay, seeing none. It's been moved by Council Member Mounce and seconded by Council Member Poore to adopt Resolution 26-2001 to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Howard Lee Johnson for the purchase of right-of-way at 210 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420041183 in the amount of $26,853.92. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right, one more. I would accept a motion on walk-on agenda item five. Yes, Council Member Poer.

Move to adopt resolution number 26-2002, authorizing the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Susan N. Johnson and Matthew Will. for the purchase of right-of-way at 302 23rd Avenue, Pierce County parcel number 0420041166 in the amount of $43,104.00. Thank you.

It's been moved by Council Member Fore and seconded by Council Member Roberts. Council Member Fore, would you like to speak to your motion? Thank you again for your sacrifice. Council Member Roberts, would you like to speak to your second?

Yes, I am. Thank you to the Johnson family, Susan Johnson and Matthew Will.

Any additional discussion? This is an action item. Yes, please. Please come forward.

Hi, I'm Charity Gibney. I live off High Lobos and I've lived here for 27 years. I've walked all along 23rd, all 27 years, and I'm extremely excited about this project. So I just wanted to say thank you all for making this happen. I'm really looking forward to being able to go up there and not dodge cars. So thank you.

Thank you. Any additional discussion from the audience? OK. Yes, come forward.

You from Almaraz, Milton. I know what street you're talking about and I appreciate it as well. I'd like to make a suggestion maybe. This is something I believe that the whole town can get behind and it should probably be celebrated as a big victory. So when it comes time to ribbon cutting, I suggest that we have a ribbon cutting and spotlight the families that sacrificed their equity for this project. Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Any additional comments from the audience? All right. It's been moved by Councilmember Poehler and seconded by Councilmember Roberts to adopt Resolution 26-2002 to authorize the mayor to execute the purchase and sale agreement between the City of Milton and Susan N. Johnson and Matthew Will for the purchase of right-of-way at 302 23rd Avenue, Pierce County, parcel number 0420041166. in the amount of $43,104 even. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes unanimously. All right, now moving on to the reason why I'm sure most people are here, which is item 10E, which is the council member interviews. So what we're going to do is I have everyone's name in the cup. And so I will pull the first name out, which is going to be Jill McNally Martinez. And everyone else is going to be asked to go to the meeting room outside while the council interviews interviews Jill.

Okay.

Do we take this apart or is it just all one to pass around? It's a cost a lot to print these days. Don't worry.

What you want to do is give it to the...

Hello. Hi. Hey, can I start? When I applied for council, I was a little surprised because it was just a one page. It didn't give me much information. And so I had sent my resume to Tricia and she said, you guys didn't ask for them. So I just printed it out just to give it to you because I kind of felt weird having an interview without a resume and a cover letter.

So I'm just going to pass.

Okay, so I'm here for questions.

So yeah, what we're gonna do is each council member is gonna have a question for you to answer, and we're just gonna go from Council Member Roberts around the dais. And then after you're done, you get to sit and listen to everybody else's answers.

Okay, great.

Thanks. Welcome, by the way, and thank you for applying. Thanks. Council Member Roberts, would you like to ask your question?

Yeah, thank you. Jill, so quick question. Why do you want to be on city council?

That's a good question.

Actually, I had never actually considered city council, to be honest with you. And just as I've gotten older and being here in the city of Puyallup for all my life, excuse me, city of Milton for all my life, I enjoy the community, love the community. This is where I grew up. I obviously am interested in city politics in a little ways. I've worked for the city of Puyallup for 31 years. I have been in different departments, seen different things. Sorry, it's echoing at me. The past couple months, I actually went to a few city council meetings for Puyallup to handle the technology. And so I like realizing there's a whole other side of government that I haven't actually experienced or seen. So I see this kind of as an opportunity to learn the other side of it. As a city employee for 31 years, I've participated with council on numerous activities and things, but seeing the decisions and what you guys go through, it kind of interests me to kind of see. So I was interested in this position because it was, it was appointed. So it gives me kind of a window to look at, is this something I'm interested in doing in the future? And I feel like it would educate me and learn a lot about city government from a different angle, so.

Thank you.

Yeah.

All right. Council Member Mounce.

Thank you for providing your resume and applying for this position. What unique qualifications, interests, or backgrounds do you bring to the city?

Okay. As I said before, I grew up here, went to Fife High School, raised my two daughters here, both graduated Fife High School. I think I bring a love to the community that other people will see. I also have been very involved in other county volunteer programs. Pierce County Fair Foundation participated in Pierce County Fair for 40 years. I have ran the county 4-H program for many years, the horse program there in Pierce County. I love working with kids. I love giving back to the community and being involved. So I gave up the horse program about four years ago. join the Civil Service Commission Board to try to see what else I can do in the community that keeps me a little closer to home. So I think I bring a perspective of community as well as giving back and also just the personal of being, understanding Milton, the city of Milton and what it is and what it's changed, how it's developed through the years being part of it.

And you even get a question for me. Yeah. What, in your view, is the purpose of government at the city level?

The purpose of government at city level. You know, that's interesting because I have been on the other end of it as a municipal worker. And I believe that city government is to support our citizens and to provide a service to our citizens. And that comes at many levels, right? It comes from the council down to the employees doing the front counter work or the background work. You asked me what I see is important. Can you say the question again? I apologize.

Just the purpose of government.

The purpose of it. The purpose of it is to provide a better community for everybody and to keep our community safe, clean, and livable for everybody.

Thank you. Council Member Seder.

Thanks. Have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? And if not, why not?

Oh, I apologize. I have not read the current comprehensive plan. This was kind of new in the last month or so of getting involved at this angle of it. So I started researching a little bit. I got interested with the urban development forestry plan and started reading more stuff. But in the midst of that, I will tell you I've had a couple of vacations. And I just haven't taken the time but if I was part of council that would definitely be something I would want to educate myself on and you know sitting at meetings and seeing the different things like the TIP that you talked about today. There was an energy one at the last council meeting. Those are different aspects of government that I haven't seen and heard about so it was very interesting to me to learn a little more about it.

Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family or community or colleagues, and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

Personal ethics, that's a hard one for me. You know, I have worked in law enforcement from the time I was 19 years old. I worked for the county prosecutor's office, then I worked for the police department. I've always tried to make ethical decisions. I take responsibility if I make a mistake. I get a speeding ticket, I pay it, whether it's a red light or whatever. So that's a hard question. I can't think of something where ethically, as a mom, I'm always going to stand up for my children. But as that, I would also recognize my children could make mistakes. And I could say, I remember working at the police counter many years and having that angry parent come in defending their child and realizing, as a young person that everybody makes mistakes. And I can't think of anything right out as far as ethical or not. I try to make good decisions based on just my upbringing and my background. So I don't know.

Thank you. Council Member Hall.

Have you attended or spoke in a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here?

You know a few years back. I think we spoke at a council meeting before the church on 23rd Avenue my parents live on 23rd That's where I grew up, and so you know we had some interest in that and came to a few council meetings back Then it's been a number of years regarding the traffic and you know understanding the findings of that and laws And you know I don't have any issue with what's happening there now So after that I hadn't been to council meetings, and I'll be honest with you I you know, I kind of shied away a little bit from the politics. At work, I would deal a little bit with, you know, directors and council members. And, you know, so when I get off work, I was like, I'm not really going to go that direction. So I was very, very involved in volunteering with our 4-H program for years. I ran the program for a number of years. So that's kind of where my angle went. And so then just recently, again, I came with my mom on the urban development plan. And it just kind of happened to coincide with me attending some Puyallup council meetings. And then my mom and you know, encouraging me, you know, maybe you should think about it. And I was like, okay, I'm going to think about it. So if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, that's okay. But I will probably be, you know, listening. I know I will be listening more and taking the time to research now that I'm a little free and have time to do it. on city issues and councils. I will also say, you guys do great at your council meetings. I've been to a lot of meetings through my years, and you guys are awesome at the parliamentary procedures and how you run things, and I want to commend you for that. It's very professional. I attended a meeting just recently that I was like, oh, please. So I appreciate how you guys run things, your professionalism here.

All right. Thank you very much. Thank you. I don't know who's next. Well, hold on one second. Sunshine Glynn.

Well, I feel like I need a little stool. I could barely see.

But you can hear me, right? Yeah.

Hi.

I see you.

Awesome.

Okay, we're gonna, each council member is gonna ask a question. We're gonna start with Council Member Roberts down on this end, and we're just gonna go around the dais.

Awesome.

Council Member Roberts.

Hello, Ms. Glynn. Why do you wanna be on City Council?

I want to be on city council because I love Milton and I have recently become a lifer. I was not raised here. I chose to raise my children here. We moved the two miles south from Federal Way to get into the school system here. And we raised our kids and they graduated from Fife High School. So my partner and I are thinking about our next steps in life. So we buy some property. We start talking about building on that property. And our youngest daughter, who is an adult, but she is an adult with disabilities, and is not typically a self-advocate, said in no uncertain terms, I don't want to move. I love my neighbors. And I like being able to walk to the store. And my husband and I took a big step back. And we processed that. And I was like, love, I also love my neighbors. And I also love my proximity to our town. And so we decided that we're not moving, we are staying, we are lifers. And so I wanna give back my time, my energy and my passion to the town that has served my family for the last 10 years.

All right, Council Member Ramones.

Thank you. What unique qualifications, interests or background do you bring to the city?

So I come to you with a lot of leadership experience, governance experience, and a lot of public speaking experience and just interacting with the public. I started very young in high school. I ran, sat on council. College, I ran, sat on a national council. In my 20s, I sat on my church board. In my 30s, I started running the PTA for umpteen years. So I have spent my life finding opportunities to collaborate with other people in order to solve problems and work towards common goals. And I think that that background makes me a very well-rounded person for the job. But there is another qualification that I think sets me apart. And it comes directly from my job as a teacher. I've been teaching for more than a decade. And I have honed the ability to leave my bias and my personal opinions at the door. And I want to give you a little example of that. So we started our meeting with the pledge right and most schools classrooms start with the pledge And if I had really strong feelings Personally that as Americans we should all be standing for the pledge and saying it out loud That's my that was my personal opinion. I could in my classroom I force my students to say the pledge. And I've been in schools where 100% of the kids are asked to stand, put their hand over their heart and say the pledge. I've also been in schools where it's left to the teachers and the teachers don't give the opportunity to say the pledge. The law says I have to give my students the opportunity. I have to invite them. If I chose to say Okay, you're all gonna stand and say it because it's important and this is why it's important. I give my own personal reasoning. I have then removed the rights of my own students and their families to make decisions about saying the pledge for themselves. So if you were to walk into my classroom, you would see me 100% of the time inviting my students to stand and say the pledge and you would see students stand and say the pledge and you would also see students that respectfully do not say the words. And I do not lift up the kids that say the words. I do not put down the kids that don't say the words. I do not put my person into that situation at all or my personal opinion. And that's not an easy thing to do for a person like me. There's people in this room that know me personally, and I am an extremely passionate person. You know, you come at my kids, good luck. I'm not afraid of conflict, right? That's my personal life. And the way that I approach all of my professional positions in my life is one where I do not center my belief system. I make a concerted effort to hear voices that are not from the same vantage point as my own. And I believe that that is a quality that is needed. I see it already in many of the council's meetings that I've watched online. Just recently, Mr. Cedar over here was asking our chief about the policy with the trucks and all the weight and whatnot. And I know for a fact that you're a biker because you showed up at my house once and talked about biking. I'm going to guess that you don't own a truck. Do you own a truck? Do you own a truck? Okay, you can't. I'm sorry. Look at me. Just make a mistake. So sorry to put you on the spot. I'm going to guess that he doesn't own a truck. And in that moment, he was practicing that skill that I practice every day in my classroom. He was thinking about people that have a different experience than him. And I am really good at that. And I look forward to practicing it here and making sure that I am listening to all voices, especially those that do not match my own.

All right, you got a question from the mayor as well. What in your view is the purpose of government at the city level?

Purpose of government, pass the city budget, policy, ordinances, that's the busy work of what you do. I think as a result of what we do here, the residents in Milton are safe and healthy.

Thank you, Council Member Seder.

I own a 95 Ford work truck.

So wait a minute.

Have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? And if not, why not?

Well, yes, I have read the plan. I am solidly behind it. The three words that stand out to me in that plan are that residents want a safe, welcoming, and inclusive place to live. When I come back to that, like leaving my bias at the door, that inclusiveness, right, making sure that I'm listening to all of those people. I also appreciated how many voices were considered in making the plan. So, for example, again, I'm a teacher, so kids are where my heart is. So the fact that we interviewed Columbia students and Fife students to find out what they wanted and where they saw things happening and where they saw holes. That was what really excited me. The fact that we are going to be putting a lot of energy and investment behind communal spaces, you know, trails, parks, etc., any opportunity that we make for our residents to commiserate, make memories, talk, we are building that fabric of our city. And I think the fabric is also then built in our neighborhoods. When you live in a place where you know you are cared for, that is passed down to generations. So I'm most excited about investing in those opportunities to bring residents together in a social way.

Council Member Moore. Thank you, Mayor. Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community, or colleagues and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

Oh boy, say that again. That was a big, heavy one. Am I allowed to ask for you to repeat? Yeah. Okay, good.

Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community, or colleagues, and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

I feel like I might be repeating myself a bit here because I'm dead serious about that. Removing the center of myself in decision-making. So while I cannot think of a very specific example of that in my life right now, and maybe it'll come to me, I can tell you that any time that I have had to make a decision that affects my family, myself, I take a step back. I talk with my partner. I hope you all talk to your partners, too. I'm a verbal processor, so talking with people that I trust, giving them, like, here is what I'm thinking. What do you think? So that I can make a more well-rounded, good decision. I don't typically make really important decisions all on my own. I typically involve the people that I trust and care to work through it with. Does that answer your question?

Thank you. Council Member Hall.

Have you attended or spoken at a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here?

So I am not a person that is normally in these seats, and you all know that because you know who is normally in these seats, and I know who is normally in these seats, at least the people that come to this podium, because I do typically watch our meetings online if I have the time. I do like to stay aware of what is happening in our community. The only time I have spoken at a city council meeting is just today when I asked this fine gentleman about the remains that live in Hilltop.

All right. That's it? Thank you so much.

I appreciate your time.

Now you get to watch. Your competition answers the same questions. And the next person is Rachel Shin. Welcome back to the podium for the second time today.

Thank you.

And for the second time applying for the position here. So you know the process. We're gonna start with Council Member Roberts and we're gonna go around the dais asking questions.

Thank you Ms. Schind for your time. So my question to you is why do you wanna be on City Council?

I've thought about this quite a bit and again, you all know this is my second time applying. I'm passionate about this community. And I've been here 30 years. I've met so many people. And, you know, sometimes I ask people in the grocery store, oh, I introduced myself because they don't look familiar. They need help. And I say, oh, you're new to Milton? And they say, yeah. And I said, well, what brings you to Milton? And they said, that small town. I wanted to raise my kids in a small town. And I was blessed to have that. I moved up here in 95 from Oregon. And I was looking for a place that was that small town feel. And then I specifically looked at the schools and read the pamphlets. I'm a person of integrity. I hold myself to a high standard with my faith and my family and my community. And I'm at the point in my life where I still have a lot of energy. I just, I really want to do more in our community. So that's.

Thank you. Council Member Miles.

Thank you. What unique qualifications, interests, or backgrounds do you bring to the city?

My background is I was a attendance secretary at Surprise Lake Middle School for 18 years. And then the last two years, I was the office manager at Surprise Lake Middle School. I retired eight years ago to be able to have more time to spend with my grandchildren. But also, I have a lot of volunteer background. I was the PIE president, the Music Booster president. I've been on many boards. I enjoy collaborating. I really strive to be a good listener. also be a problem solver, but problem solving with a group of people so that you can look at it from all the angles and how it's going to impact everyone. And so that's, yeah, I've been, I'm on the events committee and I, however this works, I plan on staying in involved at whatever level with them also. Yeah. Yeah. All right, you got a question for me too.

What in your view is the purpose of government at the city level?

What is my view?

What in your view is the purpose of government at the city level?

I'm sorry, I'm having trouble hearing you.

I'll do it. What in your view is the purpose of government at the city level?

Okay, thank you, I'm sorry.

Not a problem.

You know, the government at the city level has to be that rock for the city. It just can't happen and improve without some structure. What I would love to see, and I'm learning more now too, is more communication, and I'm not sure where it needs to come from, but more of the community members knowing what's going on at city council level When I first started coming to council meetings, I was kind of surprised that there wasn't a lot of people in attendance. And so I feel like it's the structure that's going to not only maintain, well, handle funds in a proper manner, handle, you know, codes and rules, but like how, you know, it's exciting to hear about the sidewalk proposals and the bike lanes and things, but just that structure, that rock that keeps Milton what it is and what it can be or what it can continue to be.

Have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? And if not, why not?

I haven't. I mean, I visit the website quite a bit lately and I've been starting to come to meetings and things, but yeah, I haven't really read that. That's something that I'm definitely going to do.

Council Member Ford.

Thank you, Mayor. Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community, or colleagues, and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

There have been, this is recent, there have been a couple of recent things in the last probably six months. Not that I like social media as an avenue for communication, But the reality is it sometimes is. And in our EMF cooler, our group, sometimes things can just go and all of a sudden it's taken to the point where, you know, this council person is a bad person or this person is. And there's been many times where I've done a post. I've thought long and hard about it. And basically it's reminded us all, you know, that these are some hard times. And I know a lot of people have many different opinions, but let's give people grace. And before we say something cruel or that's a bad person because he did this, you know, put ourselves in their shoes. And then, I always wrap it up, and this is whether it be conversations, because I've handled, you know, conversations, difficult situations at the school, too, where teacher, arguing with teacher or, you know, students, and it always comes back to the same thing of step back, and not one of us is, has never made a mistake, you know. But I guess that's where I say when I hold myself to the highest level I can for my faith and integrity and always treat people with kindness. And so when I see some of this stuff on social media, it's literally divisive for the community. And so I have, you know, in saying, you know, we can all do better. Every one of us can do better working together. And I've had people personally message me and thank you for that reminder. But just that's, I've always gone back to any difficult situations. I step back too and look, okay, am I seeing things clearly? Am I reacting or am I responding? And then, but then just getting back to working together And except, you know, Milton has changed a lot. I mean, I moved here in 95. We've got, you know, we're blessed with people from all sorts of different backgrounds, all sorts of different walks of life. You know, we have a Ukrainian family from the straight from the Ukraine during this war. renting the apartment at the front of my house. And they're very shy and very timid about leaving their property. So we just started going and greeting them and welcoming them to the community. And they said, you know, they still don't really come too far away from their home, but they're warming up and they're like, you treat us with kindness. And I said, well, that's what Milton's about.

Council Member Hall.

Hi.

Hi.

Have you attended or spoke in a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here?

I'm sorry, the first part?

Have you attended or spoke in a city council meeting?

Well, I have, I, let's see, just the events committee probably. And I've done a lot of listening and I've, you know, really enjoying listening learning and being part of the events committee. Um, but, uh, I've never, um, now I have, you know, there's been a couple of times where I had a question for chief Hernandez or I had a question for Mr. White, mayor white, and I would just contact them, you know, to say, Hey, you know, this is my thought. And, you know, but, uh, but yeah, I have not spoke at a council meeting other than in an interview.

Thank you. All right.

Thank you so much. Thank you for your time, and I appreciate all of you.

Please have a seat, and you get to listen to three of your competition coming up. And the next person is Olav Gertz.

Mayor.

Yeah.

I'd like to make a motion to extend the council meeting until 9.30. Oh.

Second. We do? Okay.

Do I hear a second?

Second.

It's been moved and seconded to extend the council meeting to 9.30. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Okay. We will do so. Hello, sir. Good evening. Welcome. You've done this once before, but we're gonna start with Council Member Roberts and go around the dais and ask you one question each. Hello, Mr. Goods.

Question for you. Why do you wanna be on City Council?

I lived in Milton my entire life. I went to Milton Elementary, went to Pipe High School, and I still live here. My daughter's going to start kindergarten this year. I love what Milton's been my whole life. I like where it's going. Last time I was up here, I didn't even read the comprehensive plan before, but I did, and the plan kind of steals any idea I could try to sell you on, on improvements, because they're all pretty much great, like adding sidewalks, bike lanes, park, dog park. I thought that was a rumor, putting slides in the parks, like the long ones. I've seen a lot of changes over the years. try to protect our tree canopy, but do it wisely and not be too negative on our residents, like financially. I think we need to have a smart growth, but keep the small town charm of Milton. I'm mostly neutral. I don't have a political agenda. And a lot of people in town I talk to say I should try to run for council at some point in my life. And I always thought it might be when I'm older, I'm throwing my hat in the ring because there's seems to be an opening.

So that's about it. Say that again? Kidding. Council Member Mounts.

Thank you. What unique qualifications, interests or backgrounds do you bring to the city?

I'm a proponent of open government and public safety. Like eight years ago, I made an app called Pierce County Scanner. It's pretty popular. I think over the past eight years, it's had just under 50,000 downloads. The average cost of a scanner that can listen to current police technology is about $400 or more. Not a lot of people can afford that. I made the app. There's a lot of scanner apps, but nobody has a mountain. I don't think anybody has Lakewood still. I don't think Puyallup. But, yeah, I've worked on it for eight years. It's free, and I spent time on it, and it's so people can know what's going on in their local community. Just recently, I think it was 2023, I started saving everything. So you can go back and listen to anything that was said since then. I think I keep records longer than 911 does. So yeah, I think just I could help with keeping things open, the decisions, making wise decisions. So yeah.

Thank you. And you got a question for me as well. What, in your view, is the purpose of government at the city level?

to keep residents safe, manage growth, resources, disasters, maintain utilities, pass ordinances. Good ones. Don't ban fireworks.

Okay.

Council Member Cedar.

You can kind of answer this already, but have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? And if not, why not?

The comprehensive plan does mention that, you know, I'm pretty sure it's like Pierce County, you know, they mandate things like the ADUs and we want to do it where it's wise, where we're not doing it too fast. We're not losing the small town charm, you know? Cramming too many ADUs in a small place doesn't really fit the multi-generational thing, I don't believe. Because normally they're going to sell it to other people. They're not going to be related. And it's going to cram stuff together. Make traffic worse, less parking. Yeah. Yeah. I was hoping for your bike lane question. I did do some research and talk to people and I think we should have bike lanes going all the way down Taylor. We should continue down 23rd all the way to the north side of Milton. I don't think we should have one by the school and between the school and 16th where it's really the S curve. I think that can be really dangerous. but maybe cut some side streets to get to that same place. I think I'm comfortable with straightaways and places or stop signs where people will make turns. So just to add to that.

Councillor Kiley. Thank you, Mayor. Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community or colleagues and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

I believe you said it was like I made a decision I necessarily don't like, but I had to go with it, right? Well, I just recently joined the Planning Commission and there's the tree ordinance. I was telling people stories of how I had to take down a few trees recently because half of one fell. I can only afford to take down a couple of them. I can't afford to take down the rest right now, and I'm definitely not going to be able to afford it if that passes. But even though it's a hard pill to swallow, I've seen a lot of changes over the years in Milton of lots being destroyed, like wooded areas we used to play in that somebody didn't complain, like I own that, get out of my yard. It was, we didn't know who owned it. Nobody cared because we weren't damaging it. We were enjoying it. I would like that to continue for my daughter when she gets older. And I don't think we can just take a bunch, enough property and plant trees and call them parks and accomplish that. So, but that's one decision where like, And the reason I say it was a decision is because I voted to send it to council and I could have just said no. So I wanted to put it in your guys' hands and I did have a suspicion it would come back to the planning commission.

Thank you. Council Member Hall.

Aye. Have you attended or spoke in a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here?

I haven't spoke on a topic. I don't recall the exact times. The most recent ones were just involvement and getting to know people and learn stuff. But I usually watch them online. I've watched them for years, ever since Melton started streaming them. I helped set up the streaming, so. Yeah. Thank you.

All right, thank you. Have a seat. There are two more people. You can listen with the rest of us. Next. The next person is Susan Ulau. Welcome. We're going to, each council member is going to ask you one question. We're going to start with Council Member Roberts and we're going to work our way around the dais. Council Member Roberts. How do you pronounce your name, your last name?

Susan, oh, last name? Fuola'au. Fuola'au. Fuola'au. Fuola'au.

All right, I'll let you say it. I'm just going to mess your name up. Thank you for being here. Thank you. So why do you want to be on city council?

So I've lived in Milton for 36 years and I've seen it grow and develop in different ways. And now my older children are out of the house, graduated, moving on with their adult lives. And so I feel like I just have more time to be able to get connected and be able to be a part of something that was a big part of my life growing up.

Thank you. Council Member Miles.

Thank you. Qualifications, interests, or backgrounds do you bring to the city?

I think not just being here for a long time, a big part of my life, also being Pacific Islander, I know that when I was younger, there was nobody else like me. And now that I see Milton growing, I see so much more of my people all around. And so I think that gives a good bridge and connection to the growing community. I have coached sports with my husband alongside my husband with my kids. So just a lot of community involvement and just who I am.

You get a question for me, and that is, what, in your view, is the purpose of government at the city level?

I think for the city level, the purpose of government is to be able to not just educate people but giving them the ability to get connected with how to have a voice in their community and not just sit around and complain about everything. being able to jump in and get involved. And it doesn't have to take like years of schooling or whatever. You can just do it right here and being able to move our community forward.

Thank you. Council Member Seder.

Have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? And if not, why not?

I didn't fully read it. I just kind of skimped it. I enjoy knowing that there's a, like a growth plan to develop our Milton. I keep saying community, I'm sorry, but just like our city to be more geared towards walking and getting through town without, you know, narrowly missing your life and having sidewalks and parks and things where people can gather and just really be together.

Council Member Ford.

Thank you, Mayor. Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community, or colleagues, and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

I feel like There's a large part of my life where I have to make those types of decisions based off of things that I believe, the way that I've lived my life before versus the way I live my life now. Probably the biggest one is I pulled my kids out of public school and homeschooled them. And I think that was really hard just because it was so new to my family and to people around me. I didn't have a big... support group to do that, but I felt like it was really important. I valued being able to control what my kids learned and how they learned it. And so I had to answer for that all the time. So I Other things, you know, changing my life, a lifestyle of addiction in the past and having to live life differently and have those types of conversations why I can't be around family and friends and things like that. I think it's hard to do that, but you have to be able to have a strong why while you're having your discussions and reasons. Thank you.

Hi. Have you attended or spoke in a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here?

The first city council meeting I attended was when there was that big thing to pass when they didn't want the churches to expand. And so I came in favor for my church and just knowing how much our church, Faith Family Church, impacts the Milton, Fife, Edgewood community. And so I was exposed to that, and then I started coming to the parks planning meetings. And I tried to get involved then, but my kids are a lot younger, so it took away a lot more of my time than now.

All right. Thank you so much. Thank you. Have a seat. We have one more person to interview. Awesome.

Thank you, guys.

Where'd he go? I don't know. He's coming. Never mind. Yeah, come on up. Congratulations, you're last. You're gonna get a question from each Councilmember. We're gonna start at this end of the dais and work our way around. Councilmember Roberts.

Thanks for being here. Question for you. Why do you want to be on city council?

I want to help. I want to use my expertise to help this community. I want to leave it a little bit better than when I got here. When I got here, at least I perceived that I was welcomed with open arms. And I kind of see us moving away from that. We all like this small town feel, but it kind of feels like we're adopting big town policies, and I want to be able to bridge those two.

Thank you. Council Member Miles.

Thank you. What unique qualifications, interests, or background do you bring to the city?

Well, I'm a crew chief for a high voltage line crew. So I have to plan my work and work my plan. And I have to do it safely. I have to lead from the back, from the rear, and take in all of the qualifications of my crew. I have to give them the space to be able to work through their own problems, but still simultaneously keep an eye on them and interject some of my knowledge. And that's leading from the rear. And I think being in those stressful situations and working amongst people who you grow a kinship to would probably be beneficial to this kinship here.

Thank you. My question is, what, in your view, is the purpose of government at the city level? I'm sorry? What, in your view, is the purpose of government at the city level?

Well, government is for service, and that's something that I want to stress if given the opportunity. And service serves us, right? I want to move away from the business, running government as a business, and more back to as a service. in a city level or in any level, it mirrors the community. Especially in something as small as here where this is a knob hill that we can die on. These are policies that come across our desk, things that we work through is attainable goals. This isn't Seattle or King County where it's a giant hill and most of the time things won't get done. This is a small community Little ideas, small ideas, small sparks can make a big impact here. And it can keep our standard of living the way that we enjoy it here, where it's a small town feel. So I would like to get back to that idea that the city serves its people and this people serves its city, and we take currency into a backseat.

Thank you. Council Member Seder.

Have you read Milton's current comprehensive plan? And if so, what part of the plan do you think is most important? If not, why not? I have not.

All right, Council Member Ford. Thank you, Mayor.

Describe a time when you had to make a dissenting decision based on personal ethics that would affect your family, community, or colleagues and explain your thought process as you came to your conclusion.

Well, if we rewind the tape to a couple of weeks ago, I had dissenting opinion on our dog or animal ordinance. I believe that taking away response time is short-sighted for $90,000 or $11 per person per year, and that's That's mostly what kind of got me into this situation. Whereas that specific day, just serendipitously, I had to call 911 for my neighbor who was having a seizure. And the thought that if I needed policing service at that time, and policing were outside of the city, where every moment counts, doing something as not remedial, but as not as important to human life as delivering a dog to somewhere else, that I would feel so small when it came to that and so helpless. And so I am at a minority when it comes to this. I understand that, especially with the six to zero vote, that I am a complete minority when it comes to this, when it comes to treating Milton We're hoping that Milton be more of a service than a business. That thinking about the lives of the people before we think about the business transactions and how much we're going to save. I feel like the barometer here is how much we can save and get an A on the test because of that. And I think that my back is against the wall when it comes to we need to kind of turn that thinking back around to small town feel to where the service is our main goal. And the service is allowing the police, allowing the fire, allowing everyone to do their job with as much tools that they possibly can.

Thank you. Council Member Hall.

I know you've already answered this one, but have you attended or spoken at a city council meeting? If so, what issues brought you here? And you basically answered that.

Yes, multiple times. The issues of first was the Easy Fiber, and that was just because I'm a lineman and I know what I'm seeing when it came to the Easy Fiber situation and how they're taking advantage of this small town, and this not being the only town that they took advantage of it. Other issues was this heavy truck ordinance coupled with the dog situation where I kind of see Milton as turning into a pirate ship. And I don't want to do that. We don't want to toll people. I was welcomed so much coming here to Milton. And to think that I can cross this bridge and then destroy the bridge behind me for no one else to be able to join me on this side is against my beliefs. I think we should be way more inclusive. I think by policing with people instead of technologies is what a small town is, right? Being able to really get to know your community, to be able to respond to, especially when the child got hit by a car in front of the school, having that kind of mindset where the people come first and it's almost like a one-on-one relationship with the police. I really want to see us get back to that. I feel like when I first moved here, that was without a doubt the way that this town was going. And I know that with budget cuts and maybe pressures from outside, we're somewhat forced to move in a different direction. But I think on this small Knob Hill that we can make a stand and we should make a stand.

Thank you.

Thank you, sir. Please have a seat. We probably should vote to extend our meeting once more by at least 15 minutes, I'd say. Would you like to make a motion?

Move to extend the city council meeting for extra 15 minutes to 9.45. Second.

It's been moved and seconded to extend the meeting to 9.45. All in favor?

Aye.

Any opposed? Motion passes. Okay, we are now, the time is now 9.14. And we will convene to executive session for 15 minutes, I would say, 20 maybe. Let's just say 20. And return at 9.35.

stepped away, it's like a burden's lifted. So it's making me think about the future.

Do we really have to think about downsizing?

Could I have your attention, please? I'm just letting you know that we're going to extend our executive session by another 10 minutes. So we will be back at 55. Yeah, well. 945, I'm sorry, I had a... Yeah, 945. All right.

That's what you extended to before, 945.

Thank you again, everybody who applied. It was a very hard decision. There are a lot of really good candidates. I hope that you consider reapplying in the future.

Councilmember Cedar.

I just want to give a shout out, as the chief has recognized before, for the stellar work of our police department, some heroic efforts recently, and I really appreciate what you're doing, chief.

Thanks.

Councilmember Miles.

Yeah, I want to piggyback on that heroic efforts of our police department. Thank you so much. And also to reiterate what a tough decision it was for the council position. So many great applicants, and I hope to see a lot of volunteering, and I hope to see you all actively engaged in council meetings. Thank you.

Council Member Roberts.

Want to congratulate Council Member Martinez on the new position. And to everybody else, yes, it was a difficult decision, and thank you to all that applied. Again, it was extremely difficult, hence the long time we were deliberating, so thank you.

All right, moving on to Director Reports. Planning Manager Stallnicker.

You can.

Just a heads up for the City Council July study session. The staff has requested and the mayor has okayed us to do a joint meeting with the Planning Commission to discuss the proposed tree ordinance. We've also invited the Department of Natural Resources from the state. They have their experts in urban forestry preservation, so they're gonna be there as well.

Finest Director Robay.

No additional comments.

Chief Fernandez.

Just wanted to reiterate that we did have a fire and I had let Council know that we had had a fire and the email that I sent out said that I wanted to personally recognize and commend everyone involved in yesterday's residential fire response. Special recognition will be given to Officer Mosa and Officer Jacobo for their extraordinary actions. As police officers, we are called upon every day to protect our community, serve those in need, and at times save lives. While acts of service and life-saving efforts occur more often than the public realizes, there are certain instances that stand apart because of courage, judgment, and selflessness demonstrated under extreme circumstances. Yesterday, and this was dated on June 11th, The officers, they had faced a home fully engulfed in flames, and with the knowledge that there was an elderly resident remained inside the home while flames were coming out of the home, which was fully engulfed when the officers arrived. The husband had told the officers that his wife was still inside, and the officers, without hesitation, they acted decisively, courageously, disregard for their own safety as they entered a highly dangerous environment. They successfully located the elderly resident and were able to escort her outside before she had some come to smoke inhalation. And the officers, to accomplish that, went in and they said they couldn't see anything and they crawled around in their hands and knees until they were able to find an elderly female and successfully rescue her. And then I also received an email from the fire chief who showered the officers with accolades for their heroic actions. And so in the near future, we'll be honouring those officers with Medal of Bravery. And lastly, if you've seen me here and heard me or over the years, because I'm going on about 13 years now, if you see something, say something, it takes a village. And tonight was an example of that and all the applicants that applied to take the vacant Council seat. And just remember, together we are stronger. And take time to get your neighbors and the other residents in the city. And thank you.

And I'll just reiterate again, thank you again to all of our applicants. I think this pool was probably the best that I've seen since I've been paying attention, since I've lived here, to politics in the city, so.

Other than that, is there anything else this evening?

Seeing that all agenda items have been concluded, I adjourn this meeting at 9.54 p.m.