City Council - Regular Meeting

Oh gosh. I guess I'm the one I need to start, don't I? Usually on somebody to start, right? All right. Okay. We'll call this study session to order. Welcome everyone. And um we're here today for the legislative update. So I'll go ahead and pass it over to these gentlemen, Micah and Rob. So excited.

Awesome. Thank you, Mayor and Council. We are here to give you guys the legislative update for the 2026 legislative session. Uh some quick facts before we get into it. We are about almost 40 days into the legislative session. We've had almost 2,000 bills introduced, 150 resolutions, two bills that have been signed by Governor Hobbs and two that have been vetoed, as well as three resolutions and memorials that have been passed by our legislature. And currently as staff, we are tracking 142 bills. But way of a bit of a snapshot about where we are exactly in this session. Each of these boxes you see on this slide are some key cheat uh excuse me key checkpoints per se. And you see by the check marks that we've passed the start of session. We've passed the deadline to introduce bills which was about a week two weeks ago. We're nearing the committee deadline or the deadline to put bills through committee within the chamber of origin. That's later this week. Then about a month, five weeks from now, is when the deadline to have bills go through the other committee. So, House bills in the Senate and vice versa. The 100th day of session is kind of a big mark. That's when the session supposed to end, but we know from previous years that that is very unlikely to actually take place. Every week, the president of the Senate and Speaker of the House can extend the session just by virtue of their position. And really, the big thing that causes the session to extend is the budget process. There's a lot of negotiation involved, a lot of discussion, but once that's complete, then the legislature can adjourn, siny, die, they call it, and close for the year. Couple things regarding this uh presentation is the caveat that legislation can change at any point. As you all know, things that could be the case today might be very different on Thursday after amendments and strike everything amendments and whatnot. Uh this in this uh update is intended to be a very high

level update just to kind of put a feel out for what's going on in this session and so if there are any questions that any of you have, we can follow up on those and answer those. So please don't hesitate to ask questions throughout or feel free to stop us in the middle of a a bill or we can also answer questions at the end as well. For our legislative categories tonight that we'll be covering, we have our housing development section. Then moving into public safety, elections, then finance, and then finishing off with administration. Starting off in housing and development, we have House Bill 2452. Uh this has to do with data centers. It would require counties with populations over 125,000 residents and sufficient land for data centers. Um and for thermal and non-therrmal electrical generating units including small modulars with nuclear reactors. This could have a potential impact on the city if uh the county say would put a data center or power generation within city limits. These um reactors are underground. They're small. They're not big ones like the Palivvery one. Mostly there to power the data center. And then on that subject of data centers, um we have House Bill 2795 that would regulate these and it would put all of the um burden potentially on the federal level and submit the required documents to the board of supervisor removing the county's authority to regulate where these modules would be located and the potential for these small module reactors to be constructed within the county near a residential development within the near the city limits. And now for a good bill uh potentially this bill HB 2793 essentially would really create efficiencies in the annexation process. Now it's very limited in scope into where it could apply in order to only really apply if there's a single land

owner that wants to be annexed and the like, but it would be a benefit to certain specific annexations and developments. Now for Senate Bill 1241. This bill allows property owners and contractors for uh has a single trade residential projects. And by single trade by definition meaning you have a plumber or a electrician but like one trade present on the project rather than say multiple trades working together for some kind of a project. But for a single trade project that land or property owners can be able to do private permitting, private building plan review, private inspections with a third party rather than going through the building department, say here with the city. And so and then on top of that, the city also has to track all those permits that are being reviewed by third parties as well. And so the concern with this is that the third party review process, that's something that the city would not have much control over where that could be something that uh the city can't go inspect and ensure that everything's being done up to code, so to speak. And there also could be a hit to permitting revenues as well, which would be a decrease in the revenues that the city generates. And then it also be an adjustment to the uh administrative process that the building department has. And now for a set of mirror bills, House Bill 2588 and Senate Bill 1431 are essentially identical as mirror bills. So if they pass their respective houses, then they don't switch chambers. They just go straight to the governor for signature. But essentially, these bills would prohibit cities from really setting any kind of design standard with the developments in the area that involving specifically aesthetics and layouts, colors, and the like and

building codes, fire codes, all of that stuff will still be required as part of a life safety type issue. Um, but a lot of the other things, the levers that cities could pull per se to be able to create a nice development will be limited. And so the concern with that is that local control we've talked about so much over the last few months will really be stripped away if this bill were to pass. And really the the uh strength I guess you could say or the control will be put in the developer's hands where the developer can choose what the development looks like more so than the city who's looking to create a cohesive community across developments and not just within a single development. So those are some of the concerns with that bill. And now moving on to our public safety section, we have House Concurrent Resolution 20004 and Senate Concurrent Resolution 100004. I'd like to remind the mayor and council that with um concurrent resolutions, they do not go to the governor. If passed, they go straight to the voters and that would be for the um election in November and the fall. Um this would prohibit um police departments and municipalities from using photo enforcement systems for things like traffic stops, red lights, rolling through stop signs. Um currently the city does not utilize this type of technology, but it would remove our ability to utilize in the future if that was something the city would like to do. And now for Senate Bill um 1111. Uh this would um this gives us some guardrails to do with the flock technology and similar things like it. It would allow law enforcement to continue to use this technology but only for criminal investigations as well as loc local missing or endangered persons. And it would prohibit it from any non-law enforcement purposes and require some accountability as far as what to do with the captured data and provide mandatory training to those using the technology as well. And it would exempt all of the data from ever being a part of a public records request.

Before we move on to elections, wanted to check briefly are there any questions so far with any of the bills from anybody? All right. So, for elections, House Bill 2022, this bill has actually been signed by the governor already, as I'm sure you're all aware, and essentially just moves the primary election date up forward two weeks. And so, along with that new primary date of July 21st, the deadline to submit petitions is now March 23rd. And also, the deadline for new voter registration is on June 22nd. Now for Senate Bill 1054, this bill, I guess for a little bit of background, currently there there is no ability for an action taken by the council such as a resolution or ordinance with an emergency measure to really be challenged by referendum because the idea is it's an emergency, needs to happen, needs to take place. This bill would essentially strip that protection away so that if there was any kind of measure that had an emergency measure associated with it, it would be open for an challenge by referendum just like anything else. And so the concern with that is that if there's some kind of action that needs to be taken and the council goes to take action, then any citizen, any entity can be able to essentially pause that and really bog down the action while the whole referendum process is playing out. and has a potential for that to be overturned depending on the situation. And now for Senate Bill 1134, this has to do with a change in political signs. This would change the period in which they would be allow they would be protected from any removal, alteration, or defacement. um it would begin 71 days before the first day that early ballots can be mailed instead of previously what's on the books now which is 71 days before the election. So we would just be

dealing with political signs a lot earlier than previously allowed if this bill were to pass.

Um moving to the financial section with House Bill 216. Um this would require any undistributed revenues from the county transportation exercise tax. um to be transferred to the Arizona Department of Transportation for a project within the county. Due to lawsuits, the revenue that's been collected from the PT PRTA halfsent transportation sales tax has not been being distributed to cities for their transportation projects. So, this legislation would free up that funding and allow for a portion of that revenue to be used on projects within the city limits here in Casaran. So for Senate or House Bill 2400, this bill would in essence create a motor vehicle tax holiday between May 1st and September 30th each year. The reason for that being uh don't ask me the specifics. I have to get back to you on it, but as far as the prices of vehicle or fuel costs go, there's a bit of a spike during that time based on the fuel blend or whatever is required. And so the intent of this bill is to have the taxes reduced so that it's more of an even cost of fuel every single month throughout the year. And the bill does contemplate the fact that that would be a reduction to state shared revenues by having fewer taxes generated. And so there are deposits allocated to the state shared revenue funds in order to help stop gap that that decrease. There are two main concerns with this bill. First is that while the initial deposits to help ensure that the state revenues aren't decreased for cities and towns, while the first year or two might be fine, there are concerns based on the formula and based on the deposits and everything that the pot of money so to speak would actually begin to shrink over time and such that there will be less allocated in future years. And then second, the other concern is that if

there are fewer, I guess you could say local dollars generated in Panell County for transportation projects that Panel County cities might be going to the state transportation board to try to challenge for or not challenge but to request additional state funding and to compete for that. It'll be harder if there's fewer Panal County local dollars on the table that they can go then take to kind of show their local match. So, those are the two main concerns with that bill. Yeah. So, I'm pretty sure what they're saying is take the revenue away from ADOT, but yet have them fund us, but isn't ADOT's revenue mainly from gas tax? Yes. Okay, that's correct.

Just being clear on their thought process here. I don't know how they're going to give us the money if they're not

collecting it, but Okay, just making sure I understood. Thank you. And then for a doozy of a bill, probably the worst bill on the whole list is HCR 2052. And so this is a concurrent resolution. Like Micah said, it would have to go to the voters if it's passed by the legislature. But essentially, excuse me, this bill would prohibit cities and towns from adjusting, increasing taxes, fees, rates, or creating new taxes, fees, or rates for a 4-year moratorum. and that basically locks it in with fiscal year 26. So the current budget that we have, it would lock every single fee rate tax as it currently is for four years. And so the only way that that could be changed is if the voters approve by a 60% uh threshold that there could be any kind of a new tax or fee or rate or anything like that or an adjustment to an existing one. And so the concern with that is twofold. first that the city won't be able to adjust for any kind of operational demands that there might be if maybe the way of doing business changes that the income will be fixed. Also the fact that inflation increases from year to year to year but that's something that the city won't be able to keep pace with. So then the buying power will go down over time. Then the concern for more of a political side is if after four years a lot of cities and towns will likely feel the need to significantly increase fees and rates and taxes in order to compensate for what hasn't been adjusted in years past. But that's always a tough cell to then increase fees and rates considerably at one specific point rather than doing it over time. And so this is a bill that the League of Cities and Towns that ourselves and other cities are really focusing on to try to persuade legislators to not continue or to see substantial amendments to. Um but this is definitely a bill to watch out for on

this list. And then one for the administration bills, Senate Bill 1167. This bill would allow municipalities the option to fulfill the statutory requirement for public notices to instead of having to post in the paper to be able to post on the website instead under public notices section. And the benefits of this is that it's it's easier uh it's more efficient per se. Uh but then this language will not require cities to do that. So cities could still elect to put it in the web in on the newspaper for more public engagement, for reaching different demographics to ensure that all residents are aware of whatever the public notice may be. And then we have House Bill 218. This has to do with mobile food vendors. This would stop any city or town from and county from requiring a license from a for a mobile food vendor. Currently here in the city of Cascran, we require all mobile food vendors to receive a business license. This bill would reduces the city's ability to regulate it, which could lead to a lack of ability to address any complaints from residents about specific food vendors. Um, thank you. That is all all for our very first legislative session for 2026. Any questions from the mayor or council?

Any questions? Go ahead. I of course have something to say. Um I wish that we didn't oppose so many of these bills. You know, it's I'm not sure who they're representing. I did um invite all three of our legislators to come tonight. In their defense, they are working on these bills late into the evening right now, which is fine. Um you didn't have anything about the food tax on there. Did that one die? Yeah, Council Member Herman, that is correct. It made There were bills introduced. It made a resurgence when there was a striker bill introduced, but that was basically pulled down by leadership and so it's okay for now dead. It could come back on Thursday. It could come back on Thursday. We're we're all hoping not.

Um well, that's good to hear that. But I just hope that um I know that all of us especially Lisa I know and you guys are in contact with them a lot and I hope that you take everyone and you know lets them know uh about usurping our local control. um if the food t so the rental tax as an example last year one of my personal things they took away the rental tax which in Cassagrand would have been a nice amount of money this year and and the bond that we voted for um that's going forward that that rental tax revenue would have almost made the payments on the bond for us. So I mean that's the kind of stuff the state takes that revenue away from the city but it doesn't hurt their budget at all. It's only our budget and does it help the residents? Yeah. You know nothing against people that live in rentals. it's fine. Um, but it's just that was a revenue source that we have been counting on and now we're filling holes in our budget for the next forever. You know, as we get more and more rentals online. So, it's just you got to pay attention to these things because it sounds great. Oh, no rental tax, but you know, that's general fund type money. So, it pays for everything that we do. So, it's just our jobs to keep an eye on them and make make ourselves heard. So, thanks.

Any other comments? No. And I and I appreciate it. I know Rob um has been pretty active this legislative session so far keeping up to date. We have um weekly um legislative um updates, you know, with um the League of Cities and Towns and so Rob sits on that. Mike, I think you are in on in those meetings, too. So, we are um you know, definitely on top of different bills, you know, with the League of Cities. is, you know, I know, you know, some people thinks it's a think it's a political organization and, you know, the league, the city, the state of Arizona has 92 cities and um about 55% of them are run by Republican mayors and 45 are Democrat mayors and no one really cares. You know, we're all trying to focus on what's important for cities. And so, um, the league has done a really good job, um, addressing some of these concerns that we have and getting input from the the, um, cities. And so Rob has I know we've signed a few letters in support, some against things. I haven't had I haven't gone to testify yet, but I believe you're go aren't you going um to is it tomorrow? Are you going

public works will be taking that? Okay. Testimony tomorrow. Okay. So we're you know when when they think we need to be there. We're going to definitely try to be there to represent the city. Um so um but yeah, it's going to probably be a long few weeks. I would imagine things change every day. So but thank you. Thank you for everything both of you. Thank you.

And mayor and members of the council, if I can just add one item. Um, and the public will see this in more detail with our strategic plan that we'll be bringing to council in March. Uh, when the council went through their strategic agenda sessions, uh, having more of advocacy related to legisl legislative items were were one of the goals. And so, um, again, we are we're this is a work in progress. It obviously takes a fair amount of time to to stay on top of this. Fortunately, we were able to get Micah from ASU and the MPA program to assist us on that front. So, thank uh thanks to Micah and Rob. But as we continue to move this forward, we're always looking for any feedback that the mayor and council may have uh from an advocacy perspective in in areas that you'd like to see more information or andor any changes. We do plan on having two uh updates in study session format. This is your first one towards the end of the session that ultimately will kind of capture the what what bills were passed and and signed into into law. That'll give the council a better perspective. Very likely that will be followed by uh a document that the League of Arizona Cities puts out each year called the new laws report. So you we'll track that as well for for the mayor and council. But any any additional information you need, don't hesitate to give us a shout. Okay, thank you. Okay, next item. That's you, right, Larry?

It is, Madame Mayor. So, tonight uh uh we are going to finalize what I consider to be the technical components of our effluent allocation strategy. And we've got a a number of slides uh that will ultimately culminate to a a slide that asked that has four questions for the mayor and council. And uh but I thought that given the fact that we spent a couple of months getting to this point, it would be good to give the council a bit of an overview uh of uh at least the particular section that I'm going to be looking for direction uh from you this evening. And many of the first slides that I'm going to show came from uh from Katherine Sorenson with ASU. Uh it's it's a recap of what she introduced that night. Obviously, you've had a chance to get an update from Arizona Water Company on the ADAS that continues to advance. Uh, and so really, you'll see some some of the similar slides, but more importantly, uh, we'll focus on beginning to get council's perspective, uh, from an allocation, uh, an allocation model or, uh, allocate allocation methodology. And from here, what we will be doing is as a team, we'll be working on crafting a a narrative document that can come back to the council for your consideration. But I start with the slide that Katherine had had shown that evening related to considerations uh in the identification of pri uh priorities, the fairness and transparency. And again, we break that down specifically in Cast Cas Grand for public health, the need for uh tap water or offsetting the use of groundwater. Again, that's a that it it leads into con conservation. It leads into recharge. It leads it lead leads into uh the pumping of our current groundwater. Environmental protection. Obviously, we are running uh our effluent down the Santa Cruz wash. And while there is a significant benefit uh through our recharged system that we have there, uh

there there is uh n we have neighboring entities that will be very involved in this process. uh public amen amenities uh municipal golf courses and parks. We know that effluent can be used for this housing development. Again, um you you heard you had an opportunity to hear from the Arizona Water Company folks of the importance of effluence of effluent in context of the news a new program. And then finally in industrial commercial uses uh which is typically direct delivery and I'll talk a little more about that here in a second. But you you may recall that Katherine was able to provide the Maron Council with some methodologies that I think would be good that that I felt would be good to remind you of first come first serve. I think you as we go through additional slides here you'll see that really has been our strategy from a city for a number of years. You've got the first come first serve with within u uh that should be sector allocations not section. Um we'll talk a little more about that. I think again it's it's happening naturally in in our within our current uh processing of effluent and use of effluent today. Uh you also have the opportunity to allocate to the highest economic benefit. There are some advantages to that uh as there are with cons and then allocation of effluent over time. Um so really those are the methodologies that that we have focused on as we've put the information together for the council. Uh, I do want to I've added a new bullet to Katherine's slide which basically is account for current volumes separately from new volumes produced under the program. Again, that is a um I I guess I would call it a policy decision that the mayor and council can elect to make. Uh certainly it's one that I think we uh I would encourage the mayor and council to consider is separating what we're processing today and allocating today versus what will be what will be generated in the future under this new program.

uh a a couple of additional considerations that I wanted to put top of mind for the mayor and council this evening and and it really starts with the discussion about maximizing the use both the direct delivery and recharge of effluent and when we begin to get into our current allocation I think this will make a little more sense but essentially at least from the team's perspective we want to begin to allocate effluent in a manner that will utilize all of the effluent instead of having any excess run down the wash. Um I I personally believe that we have to give serious consideration to recharging to our permit levels at our which is approximately 3,500 acre feet because we generate long-term storage credits for that. And u and in fact um uh there I'll lead some discussion tonight that will that will get some direction from the mayor and council on whether or not we want to set aside a reserve much like we do with our general fund fund balance. And we we set aside a reserve that we allocate so much of this effluent that gets generated and turned into long-term storage credits before we before we allocate any to any specific industry. Um we want to limit the volume of uncommitted effluent. Again, that goes very closely with item number one, but again part of the strategy uh that I think we ought to be establishing as a goal. And finally, we want to develop a plan for additional recharge opportunities. And I think this really the city has worked very diligently the last five to seven years on establishing reuse um infrastructure our our recharge uh of uh uh facility at the Santa Cruz Wash as well as the reuse line that we built through our industrial corridor. All of those are valuable pieces of infrastructure as we look to efficiently allocate uh all all of our treated effluent. But I do think that we are faced with a day particularly with the ADAS that we are going to have to begin

to evaluate identifying recharge basins in other locations of the community and uh certainly not a topic for today. We probably won't talk about it much when we even bring the allocation strategy to the mayor and council, but something that we need to get on our radar and begin to give some discussion to uh about either partnering with development to build recharge facilities other locations and pumping the effluent, the treated effluent into those before recharge. uh because of the requirement of the recovery requirement of drawing those long-term storage credits from within a mile circumference of that recharge basin. And so I thought I would uh provide the mayor and council with a little context of what we're doing today with our effluent. And I know all of you recognize that we're processing and treating roughly uh 6,31 acre feet. That's a 2024 number. um which just to give everybody a context uh equates to 5.6 million gallons uh of effluent that's being treated on on typically a daily basis. The um the we have been allocating I don't necessarily know that we ever thought of the strategy first come first serve. We essentially have been looking for customers to allocate this to uh allocate the effluent to along with the maximizing the recharge that we that we uh could take advantage of. There is a caveat with the recharge and that is and I know the mayor and council is aware of this that there is a factor of of um recharge that takes place should any type of a storm activity andor any other water is running through that wash. We are not we are not able to earn or generate any credits. And so the idea of just simply saying we're going to um attempt to recharge 3500 acre feet is not as straightforward. It's it because

you because we it's unpredictable and so we are very likely always going to send more effluent to the wash for recharge knowing that there's going to be some that gets deducted because of the because of the uh exceptions that ADWR has to generating long-term storage credits. Today we are we are um direct delivering uh 21 uh8 acre feet of effluent directly to the Dave White golf course and to the SRP uh generating uh power generation plant. And uh as the council is aware this last as of 2024 we were essentially finding that about 1352 acre feet were uh were considered uncommitted meaning they were running through the wash. We weren't getting any credit for it. they weren't being used under a reuse. But given some of the direction with the cactus mine and the interest of other industrial users, we believe that we'll be able to to allocate that particular uh uncommitted uh here very very shortly. So as you can see it's without an allocation policy. I guess the message that I'm trying to send is that we have we have we we've kind of shaped the existing use of our effluent today. This is just a uh a a a chart that outlines kind of the percentage and and again I'm I'm sorry for the font size on the percentages. I'll read them to everybody here if you can't see them. But ultimately what is transpiring today is that we are recharging roughly 47% of our of our effluent that's being treated. we are direct delivering um roughly um 32% and we have roughly 21% that is currently uncommitted effluent. And so when we begin to talk about specifically about proposed strategies, uh I thought I would start with some goals uh that I think that I'd like the

council to keep front of mind as we go through this exercise. And I want to apply that to the current um uh allocation that we use today. And so ultimately we I believe we ought to be creating an allocation strategy that separates the current volumes generated after the DAWs is implemented. and and we hear that we're coming very very close to to receiving word that Arizona uh water company has received that um that we ought to be prioritizing recharge until we reach a permitted threshold of 3500 acre feet. And again, I wish I could sit here today and tell you that's going to take 4,500 acre feet in order to generate 3500. We're I you will see uh in the in the proposed strategy that we begin to attempt to quantify that. So you have a better perspective. uh we believe that the existing volumes should be utilized on a first come first serve within a sector allocation model and I I suggest that to the mayor and council simply because that's what we've been doing to some extent today and uh and if you these next series of bullets really tie back to that uh to that uh chart that I just showed 47% of our effluent is being uh used to generate long-term storage credits of which 1370 acre feet have been allocated to Copper Mountain Ranch when they begin uh to when they begin their construction efforts there which obviously has to come after we receive the decision order on our designation of assured water supply. 32% is going to direct deliveries for commercial and industrial use and 21% today is uncommitted as I said but I believe that those will be converted to direct deliveries to commercial and industrial users within the next year. So ultimately what we have today is a 53 47% allocation. 53%

for industrial commercial and 47 for long-term storage credit and for um residential. Any questions on that front yet? I I got a just a quick question on 3500 acre feet threshold. So is that set up by the state by the ADOT by the ADAS program that that's our threshold for our area or is that for the entire state or municipalities or for our population? How's that threshold?

It is it is established by the Arizona Department of of uh environmental quality and Arizona department of water resources and it is a permit amount that uh can be hydraologically proven that you reach that particular threshold of of recharge. So, and is that is on uh the area of of our city like our square mileage like or it really it really is based on the size of the recharge basin that you're going to build. Okay.

The quantity the volume that it will hold and the permeability of the of the ground the soils under that and what is and what is actually under that uh as far as the aquifer is concerned. So there is a there is a hydraological study that is a key component to any recharge basin and establishing the the uh the permitted thresholds that uh that the state is going to allow and that's going to that's going to vary from project to project location. I was going to ask you that's exactly what I was going to ask you. Okay. Thank you. But in this particular case and and I don't have the exact date that we we're permitted at the Santa Cruz Wash on that on the managed facility for 3500 acre foot a year.

Okay. So that's a max we can actually we could generate there for now. Is that is that is that formula can it change? I mean anything can change in the future I guess but

yeah the the um the permit uh we we we would have to apply for it when we when it comes up to the expiration date. would have to apply for a new permit. Intuitively, I would assume that they're not going because of the hydraological um situation there, we're probably not going to be able to see an increase in the 3500 acre foot level. Uh today, we are only generating roughly three 2 to 3,000 acre feet of credits today. Um, so you c we could see some increase to what we're generating today based on the volumes, meaning putting more effluent into the wash would generate a higher uh long-term storage credit,

right? And that that should in like help us with future development for their water in the like the Copper Mountain base or whatever all that. So as we continue to develop these programs and stuff and put more into the ground, we should be able to pull more out. Absolutely. Absolutely. I I as I said I think recharge become needs to become a key component of the dialogue that we're having and not only our water but our effluent dialogue uh with our partners Arizona Water Company. Thank you Larry.

Yeah. And so just a couple of other items that I want to keep uh I want to make the mayor and council aware of is number one um new volumes under the program will uh need to be to to be max we will need to maximize and expand our recharge capabilities. It's it really aligns with the dialogue that we just had. It's highly likely that we will not have recharge basins just in one location of this community. It's very likely that they will be spread throughout throughout um our community. The second is that um today ADWR uh uh will actually allow for a 33% credit of of effluent in in regards to the water that's been the volume of water that has been generated through a meter. ADWR will give roughly a 33% credit for effluent to be returned for replenishment andor physical supply. And then lastly, uh at least I believe today and I know that this landscape uh with the new program is changing and will likely continue to change for the next year or so. Uh staff has at least at this point in our discussions with these developers that would like to utilize effluent as a mean of supply or replenishment, we have been having discussions about having uh in an individual development agreement with each residential uh developer, if you will. In this case, uh there it it there is another alternative that we ultimately are in entering into an agreement with Arizona Water Company and essentially transferring those credits to Arizona Water directly versus going through the development and then having the development transfer those back to Arizona Water. I only bring that to the mayor and council's attention because I do think in the future it may be more efficient to enter into one agreement than doing multiple agreements with multiple developers. But I do believe that that given the structure of this

ADOT program and and even more so the water resources fee that's going to be tied to this, practically every development that occurs in the city will be asking for their effluent back due to some level of cost savings that they can recognize. That's that that that's just intuition that I have at this point. But given the format of the program, it looks like uh it's it's very likely that more and more of these developments while while today they essentially will just expect that we're going to process it and treat it and they haven't really given much thought about the useful uh usefulness of effluent. Um I think that this new program is going to change that mindset very very quickly with the development community.

And David's here. I don't know if he agrees with that one.

Yes. So, with that being said, um really what I'm looking for tonight, uh is some feedback from the mayor and council, some input to a couple of questions that we've got that will really will help us shape the narrative document that will come to council for your consideration on on an effluent strategy. And Jod and I were talking before the meeting. Obviously, this is a very complex topic. I recognize that there's no right or wrong answers tonight. We ultimately are wanting just to kind of get a sense of the direction. I I attempted to use the what I would consider to be the unofficial allocation model that we used today just to give the mayor and council a flavor of what something might look like. But the reality of it is is a couple of things. Number one, you can you can set whatever percentage to whatever sector of industry that you would like or you can say no, we're going to save it all. Right? So so really what I'm looking for is just a little bit little direction and uh but I want to start with prioritizing recharge over direct use. And I I think it's an important element that if we want to if we want to ensure that we maximize that 3500 acre foot of long-term storage credit, then we very likely are going to want to ensure that we're putting a volume into that wash that can achieve that. I will tell you that from the modeling that we've done, it's probably another five, six years before we come close to that just based on our volumes and our current allocation that we have to the industrial uses uses. But in I I think it's important because the last thing that staff would want to do is begin to go out and try to continue to sell effluent to a direct delivery if we're wanting to maximize that 3500 acre foot. Let's stop there and or let's start there and uh and get some feedback from the council on that.

But I've got one question first. You had mentioned something earlier about having a reserve. Yes. Which I like the idea. We do it in our budget. We should do it here. Where would you see that reserve being held? I I think and and thank you for that segue because I think it goes right here in this particular discussion. At least in my mind, the reserve, we're going to want to recharge it and we're going to want to generate a long-term storage credit that can be used in the future. It's not a direct delivery today. So, we reserve some of our credits.

Some some of the some of the uh discussions that we've had as as Miss Sorenson pointed out, we can't find another city that has an effluent allocation strategy uh in at least in Arizona. Um, some of the discussions we've had as a staff and both internal and external team members is somewhere in the vicinity of 15 to 20% reserve that ultimately gets set aside annually through a recharge. Um, it would be part of that 3500, but we would account for it and attempt to generate that annually as our number one priority. So, so it's to me they work very closely together, but but any any direction would be good on that.

And I'm in agreement as well. with uh rent, you know, we got to recharge that. We have to make money off of that and let that that grow instead of of going and just re really giving away everything and not making nothing from it, right? Then that puts us in a hole. And then when we talk about, okay, we got these parks coming up, we got some more building coming up, then that puts us in a hole. So I think the recharge is is the right right way to go with it as well.

Yeah. And I I agree with Anthony. Um it's it's nice to get something out of our wasted water that we're just throwing down the Santa Cruz wash right now. It's nice to get something today, but we really got to prepare for the future. I just goes down to common sense for I mean it'll be such an asset for a city in the future to have that that we've banked away right for future development and all that. it. I get we should proportion a small percentage of that to um today that we we can actually use some of those assets today, but I think banking that away for for future city use is highly advisable, you know.

Yeah, just wisdom. Been smart, just been smart about it, you know, to the best of our ability with uh things that we have coming up, you know, we're really thinking about down the water problem ain't going to go away. I mean that we're always going to have this water issue, you know, and it's going to get worse in the future. So, I mean, they might they might change things in the future and it would be thankful that we banked that away in our Go ahead, M. I wanted to agree. Yeah. But they might change they're they're going to change things in the future. I mean, we didn't know this three years ago, right, about what's going on today. We've been working on it for a long time, but I I don't want to harp on it, but but the future

storage credits, that's the key right there because we don't know. Um, and we're not getting credit for all of them. We've discussed that of selling off what we not getting credit for. So, that's my opinion. Yes. Prioritize get the recharge, you know, because we don't we don't know what we don't know yet. That's right. Is the So, I'm hearing I'm hearing prioritizing recharge. Yeah. Um, 15 to 20%, we can run some models just to give the council a better perspective as we look to finalize that. Is that is that a range that 15 to 20% for recharge or 15 20% for sale? 15 to 20% for reserve of of the recharge. Okay. 15 to 20% for recharge to reserve recharge and setting aside for reserve. Okay.

Okay. Yeah. Is that that seems like a reasonable number. I was thinking and then once we put the numbers together then we Yeah, I was I was thinking the same about 15 to 20%. I was thinking 20 to 25. 20 25 and we and we can run it out to 25 just to give everybody a context. And and today today the only allocation we have under long-term storage credits is the commitment to Copper Mountain Ranch today. So you'll have a chance to take a look at the at the volumes. And that's what I was going to ask. So if we do 20 25% is that 75% if we're gonna um divide it or you know separate it into the different you know um buckets. Yeah. Categories or not categories what is it? Um you said buckets.

Yeah. Buckets or whatever. Um is is that enough for like the the requests we're getting today because we seem to there's interest. You know people are waiting to see what's going to happen here. So is that a reasonable number to work with? Mayor, I think it's a good number for us to start our allocation. I I truly believe that we will that we will face a day. I don't know when uh but that we will that that we're going to have to be very cautious of our allocation so we don't overcommit as we I'm I'm envisioning from a that we create some type of a model that we're tracking this annually likely with some type of an annual report coming back to the mayor and council. But but uh at the end of the day, I think it's a good start today because we don't have any other commitments besides Copper Mountain Ranch. But I do think that we will find that as as the new program comes about that there will be there'll be more requests for that,

right?

And and as our population grows, is our affluent our fluent should grow with that? Is it going to grow in that same ratio as as what we've experienced? That is uh that is the unique thing about effluent is that typically you're going to see some similar growth patterns with that. Obviously we're finding today that with the low usage uh the conservation you know and and the like u really uh that is we we've seen a bit of a changing pattern if you will but but ultimately I I believe that we will get to a point where many of these new policies related to you know water conservation and the like will be implemented and there will be we will be able to measure it. In fact, uh, one of the one of the one of the bullets I had is that I do believe that in the near term that we will have a better understanding of the amount of water that's being pumped into these and used at these various meters. We will have a much better indication of how much of that is actually coming into our plant. We'll be able to measure side by side with Arizona water in this as we move forward

as we So, do we evaluate it every year where we revisit and then Yeah. Yeah. I I think in these early years it's going to be something that that becomes an annual evaluation very likely a report and evaluation and and again I I I want to stress I had said this early on in our discussions um as we started these sessions one of the reasons we're establishing this as a strategy is that we want a little bit of flexibility in it today because this there's still a lot of things taking shape right um obviously the council can always elect to make it a formal policy and and ultim imately amend it, you know, on an annual basis. But I think to start what we're looking for is really to get a better understanding of the lay of the land

uh of of how water and effluent are going to work together. And and you know, Larry and I just appreciate I know over the last year, you know, and I know all of us have been, you know, you know, we we get requests, you know, interest and you know, how do what do we do? So I just appreciate us going through these exercises and um you know, getting Arizona or Arizona water coming in, giving the information. we had um ASU um and taking some of our current data and trying to you know put together something that so it's going to help us make decisions in the future% right we I I will say and you'll begin to see some of the modeling we have

we have just to just to answer the growth obviously higher population more industry typically you're going to have more volumes of effluent um we have we have elected to take a somewhat conservative approach and modeling our volumes for this for this particular particular initiative at 1.6 to 2% increases. That that seems to match some of the some of the groundwater usage that we've seen, the data that we've seen from Arizona Water and the like. So, that's that's where we start, but I I see us having to refresh that annually as part of the discussion. All right. So, um sounds good.

So, so I've I've made my notes there. Let's go to the second question which is is there a proposed allocation methodology that council would prefer to utilize and and like I said I think that if you if you would have asked us the staff we would have said first come first serve although if you look at the way we have entered into the I shouldn't say our approach but but the usage patterns is what how I would apply that

you'll find that it's it's 53 47% today industry and commercial to to residential. Personally, I feel like finding a balance. I think there's a lot of argument that uh that you try to find a balance for that knowing that the mayor and council can certainly allocate more out of one pot on an annual basis if somebody makes an ask. Um but I think for the for the document, we want to make sure that we're starting with a number. So, uh, we've we we've suggested 50/50, but certainly want to get council's perspective on that tonight.

We're already at that pretty close to if we remain there, I think we will be okay. Yeah, I think the important I think the important message is that that can be that can be considered on a case- by case basis by the mayor council. That can be modified by the mayor council as well. Right. This is just as we're starting to account and we're and as people are approaching, we want to establish establish some justification for how we're approaching it. Sure. Because that could adjust where it be the opposite. It could be residential and industrial drops down, right? But right now with what we have going on within our city, we got a lot of industrial, right? And so that's why that

and and it gives us a baseline so we know where we are now. So, you know, how we came up with that, you know, the 50/50. So, yep. Um, we well I just answered question two and three together. I think we're going to first come first serve with a sector

and 5050. And uh, how's the council how do you feel about us separating the current volumes that we're generating from the volumes that are generated under the new program. Again, from a staff's perspective, I think it's important today because uh of the changing landscape that we're going to see with water and and I honestly believe that as I said before, we're going to have requests from practically any new development that comes to town, both both commercial industrial and or residential because of the importance that it has in the program. And so that would not stop the mayor and council from allocating additional that we have under our current system today. But from an accounting perspective, I'd like to account for them separately as we're providing reports and and trying to keep that allocation um uh of course

representing that allocation to the council and to the community in the future. Yes, sir. Go ahead. Oh, so yeah, to that point I was going to say to separate I I agree with separating it because if you have a residential development, they're going to want 100% of their water back, right? And if we have a bunch of residential on this new program and only a little bit of of industrial or vice versa, but do we build into that to a reserve on that side?

Like do they do they get 100% of it back or do they get 75 and we get 25 to bank? Yeah. Yeah, you know, and that's kind of something I think we need to discuss because they need to chip in on on our total plan because that's the one thing that we talked about is we're not we're looking we have to look at as the whole system even though we're only doing the one mile, but it's the entire Cassagrand system that we're working with in addition to to Arizona water.

I was I was trying to go back to the slide that had the 33% um allocation. I think there's going to be a built-in reserve that starts at the front end. But certainly, it's something that that as we're working through this a bit more, we can we can have dialogue on. But, uh, meaning I think we're going to generate more effluent than just 33% that's being that that's that's going through the meters. But, but if they get 100%, do they get 100% back or do they get a percentage back? Yeah. At at this at this point, the dialogue that we've typically had with the few developers that are primarily residential that have that have expressed the opening through the program to move their projects forward. We have talked specifically about 33%.

Okay. So there's a built-in reserve to that I guess is what I'm trying to explain. Yeah. So yes. So what I was talking about you already got reserve but I I would agree that we need to separate those volumes. Right. Again, the important message is mayor and council has the authority to utilize some of our existing volumes if they'd like to like to pledge that to a project, a specific project. But but separating it, I think, just gives us a better opportunity to account for the change that we're about to deal with. Yeah. Because we don't we don't know what opportunities may come up, right? There might be something big that needs water. That's right.

I think I've got all the answers I needed from council tonight. Is there any other questions that you might have that I could any other questions build? So next steps.

Yeah. So next steps we the team both internal and external staff will be working on this strategy document that we will get out to the mayor and council roughly in probably in draft form in the next couple weeks. we've already started building it uh uh with with more of this detail and uh and and mayor, I anticipate that we uh we ultimately can present to the council if you're wishing to adopt that formally. I I haven't talked to Brett specifically about that because it is just a strategy. I don't know that we want to adopt it, but I I think you have the right to do that. Um but ultimately, I envision that we can have something by by the end of March to for council's uh consumption. All right. Good. Any other questions?

Thank you. Okay. Thank you. Okay, we'll go ahead and adjourn for four minutes. Four minutes. Go to the restroom really fast.

Everyone, thank you for being here. We'll go ahead and start the city council meeting. And the first item of the agenda is the invocation. And that's going to be with Bob Sky from St. Anony's Church. And it'll be followed by the pledge of allegiance from Mayor Prom Bedillan. So, if you can stand if you're willing and able.

26 reads, "But Jesus looked at them and said, "With man, this is impossible. With God, all things are possible." So dear Lord, let us experience the joy of helping the Cassagran residents and watching Cassagran grow by smart planning and with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, help us grow the local economy, enhance community prosperity and sustainability, attract new businesses, and leave a positive impression to visitors to our city. constantly remind us to pray, give thanks, seek your advice about important decisions, and we will let you take care of the rest. Help us always to be humble, especially in our successful ende endeavors, to help us to remember the words of 1 Corinthians chapter 8 verse 7. Neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who causes the growth. Amen. Amen.

Please join me in the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you, Bob, and thank you, Brent. Okay, Adriana. The next item is the roll call. if you can please accept for the record that all the council is here. Thank you. And next item are the minutes.

Mayor Fitz Gibbons, I move um we accept the minutes of the city council regular meeting. Consider accepting the council meeting regular meeting of February 2nd, 2026. The city council study session of February 2nd, 2026. The minutes of the part-time firefighters board of trustees meeting of January 28, 26. the minutes for the planning and zoning commission meeting of January 8th, 2026 and the minutes for the police personnel retirement board meeting of November 13, 2025 as presented. Second. Okay, there's been a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Okay, all those in favor, please signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed?

The motion carries. Next item are the claims. May skip. move that we approve the list of claims report for January 28th, 2026 through February the 10th, 2026. Second. Okay, there's been a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion on the claims? Okay, all those in favor, please signify by saying I. I. Any opposed? Okay, motion carries for the claims and the meeting agenda approval. Are there any changes to the meeting agenda? We have no changes, Madame Mayor. Okay. And we don't have an executive session, so we're good there. So, if we can get a motion to approve. So, move. Second.

Okay. A motion. There's been a motion and a second. Any further discussion? All those in favor, please signify by saying I. I.

I. Any opposed? Okay. We have a special presentation today. So, if I can please ask for um Kim and Michael Harper to come up and join me here. Yes. Thank you so much. Nice to meet you. And I'm actually going to call the city council to come down and join me. And we are just extremely grateful for everything you've done in the city. You know, keeping it beautiful and clean know the how many people you've recruited and how much time you dedicated to the city of Pastor. So we proud to read this in your honor and everything that you've done over the years and so we are all extremely grateful for everything that you've done. So I'll go ahead and read the proclamation. So, cleanup caster. Whereas, a clean and welcoming community contributes to public health, civic pride, and quality of life for residents and visitors alike. And whereas cleanup initiatives led led by community members foster civic pride, environmental stewardship, cooperation among residents, enhance the appearance of the community through selfless service and dedication. And whereas Kim and Michael Harper have demonstrated outstanding commitment by volunteering their time, energy, and resources to establish a community-led cleanup initiative to remove litter, clean public spaces, and promote sustainable practices. And whereas they've grown their cleanup initiative through the social media group cleanup caster grand consisting of approximately 400 members who collectively have participated in various community cleanup efforts that

remove litter be beautify the community and promote environmental stewardship. And whereas the city of Casser is grateful for their positive example and recognizes the importance of community-led initiatives that build a stronger, cleaner, and more connected community. So now therefore, I Lisa Fitzgibbons, the mayor of Casran, Arizona, hereby proclaim that the city of Caster Grand recognize and commend Kim and Michael Harper for their dedicated service and contributions through the through their community cleanup initiative and extend sincere appreciation for their commitment to improving improving the quality of life of Caster Graham. So there it is for Thank you. Yes, we want to get a picture. We just want to thank everyone else here. I know many of these people have you know served with you in the community and so just thank all of you for coming and supporting them and for you know just recognizing you know these efforts. It's very much appreciated. Thank you.

Here you go. Here's a city of Cash Grand pin you can put on your hat or whatever, but but thank you again. Yes. Thank you. Thank you for being here and thank you for everything. Okay,

mayors, as the mayor and councel are making their way back, um I'm not sure if Kim and Mike knew that this was going to be more of a tribute to them tonight. It was we we've worked diligently to they are very humble people with a fantastic spirit and certainly a ton of energy. Hundreds of of uh bags of litter regularly. They they always had a little trademark because they had a different color bag. They became very well known to our code enforcement staff. But they both Michael and Kim told me several times that this was not about them. They wanted to lead at a a community initiative, but they certainly uh got behind it. They they got the uh individuals involved. Now you see the ladies in pink sometimes. You see them out there. They've they've picked up. But but Mike and Kim, thank you for all you've done and just an opportunity to say thank you for the for all you have done.

Thank you.

Now we have to get on to other business, I guess. Okay, next item is the consent agenda. All items listed with an asterct are considered routine matters and will be enacted by one motion and one roll call vote of the council. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a council member or member of the public so requests in which event the item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered in its normal sequence of the agenda. Is there anything that anyone would like to pull from the consent agenda? Staff, council, or anyone from the public? Okay. Mayor Fitzgims, I move to approve the consent agenda as presented.

Second. Okay, there's been a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Hey, Adriana, if we can get a roll call vote, please. Council member Rammo, yes. Council member Dugan, yes. Council member Edwards, yes. Council member Hson, yes. Council member Herman, yes. Mayor Prompto, yes. Mayor Fitzgiven, yes. Motion carries.

Thank you. Okay. Public comments. The Cashran City Council values citizen input. So, when called, please, if you if you did fill out a speaker card, if not, you can definitely come up. Please state your name and address speak clearly into the microphone and limit your comments to three minutes or less. In fairness to all speakers, please try not to exceed your time. In accordance with the law, the city council can't respond to or discuss discuss items that are not listed on the agenda, but we may direct you to um staff upon conclusion of the public comments. So, I'll go ahead and start with the speaker cards that I have. And the first one is Barbara Sundust. Hi Barbara.

Hi again. Um my address is 1273 East Cordova Avenue, Cassagrand. I pray that every person sitting here and watching this meeting on TV or whatever stops and reflects on last night. I was sitting comfortably in my TV room eating a heated meal watching the Olympics. I have weather double panes on my window so the wind doesn't come in or rattle my windows. But I was sitting there watching and comfortably in my room and I heard through the I heard the powerful wind blowing outside. Later, I got in my warm, comfortable bed and stretched out to sleep comfortably. Every night, and especially nights like last night, I think of the unhoused people of Cassag Grand who have to sneak to find places to sleep, have to huddle against the wind and the rain or the extreme heat, or sleep in their cars, not able to stretch out your legs. Anyway, there must be a building owned by the city or someone else who has a place that is sitting empty that we could use re regularly for a place for people to sleep, get a good night rest or better yet turn into a shelter where people could sleep, bathe, and get help from various service organizations. And I I've lived here for almost 40 years. And with the exception of that one, there was a men's shelter, I think. But with the exception of that, there's been nothing that shelters the unhoused people. Um, sold on this past and on this past Wednesday, one of the people

from Laundry Love and how many of them live in their cars or don't have a pl. And one gentleman, he's older and he looks all frail and everything and he said he came and he said to me, "I would like a place to stay." I mean, I just want to cry cuz there isn't one. So anyway, I pray that the community hears this plea and can come together to help the unhoused. That's it. And I have 40 seconds left.

Thank you, Barbara. Okay, the next person I have is Michelle Robinson. You're okay, Michelle? Okay, thank you. Thank you for coming, Michelle. Kurt Bower.

Hi, Kurt. Hi. How are you doing? Good. How are you? Good. Okay.

My name is Kurt Bar. I live at 228 East Pebble Court, Kasa Grande. I'm here about the resolution about the pickle ball courts. I am here today to express my unwavering support for the proposed extension of the pickle ball courts at Dave White Park. The initiative represents a critical step in addressing the burdening demands for this increasingly impoverish sport within our community and further solify Kasa Ground's reputation as a city dedicated to the residents recreational needs. The city proactive investment in improving the existing courts at Dave White Park has already yielded remarkable results. What became as three permanent courts and nine temporary line spaces were rapidly evolved into fantastic 12court complex. This incredible transportation has enabled an unprecedented surge in local participation making pickle ball one of the Kas Grand's most vibrant and inclusive activities. However, with various success, we've cultivated what has led to an urgent need for further expansion. Our current courts are consistently at maximum capacity with players often facing significant weight times during peak hours and even being turned away. The intense demand for a clear indicator indicator that the existing infrastructure, while except excellent, can no longer adequately accommodate all of our rapidly growing pickle ball community. As Kasagrron continues accommodate growth trajectory to will the demand of highquality recreational opportunities. Pickle ball within its broad appeal across demographics from youth to seniors serves as a cornerstone program exp managed by our dedicated community director and staff. Stands out to be one of the

best in the region. Fostering a welcoming and enjoyable environment that continues to attract new participants. Approving the current expansion design at Dave White Park would not only alleviate immediate capacity issues but also elevate Kasa Grande to a premier pickle ball destination. Imagine a facilities that not only serves our local players but also draws regional tournaments and enthusiasts, boosting local commerce and instilling profound community pride. This investment would transform Dave White Park into the envy of other M test other cities, a testament to our forwardthinking vision. Thank you for the considering the vital investment to our city recreational infrastructure and well-being of its residents. I'm confident that approving this expansion will yield immense dividends for Kasa ground for years to come.

Thank you, Kurt. Thank you for being here. Thank you. Okay. Is there anyone else in public comments? Sawyer. Sure. And so if you can give us your name and address, please.

Of course. Well, my name is Sawyer Bar and I live on 505 East Wolf Hollow Drive. And uh so originally I was supposed to be here today with uh Superintendent Lavender from the Cass Grand Union High School District. Um but I'm just here today to share with you a speech that I gave at the CG wins rally remark and um I just want to share it with you guys because I think you share the vision that I have for this city and I think that it would mean a lot to give it to people who care so much about our Cassagrand community. So good evening mayor and council and members of the public. My name is Sawyer Bar and I'm the proud product of a Cass of Cassagrand and Cassagrand Union High School. Tonight we celebrate victory. We celebrate youth. We celebrate community. But most of all, we celebrate hope. For what is the point in living today without hope for tomorrow? As we honor achievement in our city, we must take a moment to understand that pride is fleeting while hope is everlasting. I'm reminded of the words from Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "Darkness cannot drive out darkness. Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can do that. Light is the byproduct of achievement within our community. Light is derived from the heart of our city as we move toward a better united future. But sometimes Cassagran needs a reminder of where our heart rests. Our community is built upon genuine care for one another. A community that uplifts the broken, that comforts the grieving, that cares for the sick, that treats each other like family. I stand in front of this deis tonight not simply because of what I've done but because I've been supported, loved, prayed, and cared for by the city of Cassagrand. In my time as a student at Casag Grand Union High School, I've had the opportunity to serve as the student body president for the 2025 2026 school year, a year that has encapsulated numerous personal and schoolwide victories that show the success and potential for our community. Whether it's something as grand as

shifting culture in a positive direction, impactful manner that's something to something as incredible as our Cougar spirit line, winning the state championship just this past weekend, bringing back another state title to Cassag Grand Union High School. I can proudly say that the youth of Cassag Grand are on the move, pursuing ambitions, hopes, and dreams with little evidence to suggest that they are out of reach. On a personal note, in this past year, I've celebrated two great victories. One claiming victory over cancer and the other being the proud recipient of the QuestBridge National College Match Scholarship, offering a full ride to Duke University. This serves as our reminder that we can overcome obstacles, that we can surpass difficulty. This is our evidence that Cassagrand is not to be underestimated. Innovation Innovation rests within the youth who are determined to make Cassagrand better. Tonight marks the start of a new zeal for what's next. We celebrate this victory and we have hope for tomorrow. Tonight we realize that the hope, prosperity, and a future are no longer an unaffordable luxury, but our everyday essentials motivating the students of our community to spur forward with expectancy, positivity, and joy for what's next. Thank you.

Wow, good timing then. Thank you, Sawyer. Thank you for being here. Thanks for coming today. Is there anyone else that would like to speak?

Hi there, Marge. If you can give your name and address, okay, I'm ready. Um 901 North Morrison. Um good evening, mayor, council, staff. Um, I have two praises this evening. The first one is preservation, uh, which you all know is my middle name. Um, so preservation for the Evergreen Historic District. After 20 years, we now have new Evergreen Historic District Street signs. And thanks to Dan Coxworth and Steve Miller. It was a wonderful city and county partnership. So this is the first step towards MEBA and that means making Evergreen beautiful again. So the second um praise is uh for community safety with the uh flock system. So, thanks to Chief McCroy for promoting and the council for adopting the flock package. Our community serves have always uh our community surveys have always placed uh safety as a key issue and this system I feel will provide a safer environment for the community uh for the police and firefighters who put their lives on the line every day and the added protection that we deserve. Um, a big shout out for flock cameras in Carmagnet Park, uh, which is often vandalized and also for the gunshot sensors that are going up. So, it is my belief that,

um, this is a benefit to the community that will far exceed first time doubters. Um, thanks to the chief and for the council's approval. Thank you, Marge. Is there anyone else? Okay, go ahead and close the public comments. And next item is I1. Hi Erin.

Hi. Good evening. Um, this is a resolution of the council of the city of Cas Grand, Arizona, accepting a proposal from General Acrylics Incorporated for the construction of 12 pickle ball courts, authorizing the expenditure of public funds, authorizing execution of a contract with or with or purchase order to General Acrylics Incorporated, and to authorize the transfer of budget authority. Staff recommends that the mayor and city council authorize the city manager to award a contract with General Acrylics Incorporated not to exceed 1,339,117.93 and to authorize funds in the total amount of 1.4 4 million to include a city contingency of 60,882,7 for the construction of 12 additional pickleball courts at Dave White Regional Park utilizing pricing established through the Mohave Cooperative Services contract number 25 L-G AI3-0203. On February 18th, 2025, city council approved resolution number 5753 authorizing the design and engineering services for 12 additional pickleball courts at Dave White Park. With the design phase complete, staff is requesting authorization to proceed with construction of the council approved capital improvement project. City staff evaluated three potential locations for the new pickleball courts. Vago Park, Ed Hooper Park, and Dave White Regional Park. After extensive re review, Dave White Dave White Park was selected for its parking capacity and ability to host recreational tournaments with 24 courts at one site. In addition, the court location exceeded the latest USA pickle ball recommendation of a 600 ft noise abatement from nearby housing with a 910 ft buffer.

With the location selected, staff reviewed multiple multiple court layout options with the goal of remaining within the existing park. Construction of the 12 additional courts is anticipated to begin approximately 14 days after the notice to proceed or in early March. The time for construction should take approximately 185 days to complete. The additional pickle ball courts will be constructed west of the existing pickleball courts. The project will begin with the demolition of the existing raball courts and two sand volleyball courts. The sand volleyball courts will be re relocated to the south end of the park near the other two existing volleyball courts. And the outdoor raball court demand is minimal today, but future court reconstruction remains an option should demand return. Public outreach was a key component of this project. Um engagement began with a public survey focused on raetball court usage and continued throughout community input gatherings at community services advisory community presentations and on-site meetings with a variety of pickleball player groups. Feedback from this discussion helped inform several design elements of the courts including gate sizing, court dimensions, court color, and overall amenity prioritization. While we were not able to meet all the requested needs were were not able to be accommodated within the current project budget, the community services department plans to pursue future capital improvement projects to enhance the new pickle ball courts that will be um at Dave White Park. From a community enhancement perspective, this project expands access to an active recreational opportunities that promote health, wellness, and social engagement engagement by increasing capacity for one of the city's most in demand recreational activities. The project strengthens Dave White Regional Park as a community gathering destination for residents of all ages and supports strategic plan objectives by expanding community

activities. This project is utilizing established cooperative purchasing contract which ensures competitive pricing, fiscal accountability, and continuity between design and construction, supporting the city's commitment to sound financial stewardship and efficient project delivery. The total construction cost for 12 pickleball courts is1,339,00339,117.93 with funding available through approved 4-year 2026 capital improvement plan number 25122 and can the contingency of $60,882.7 is from CIP project 25121 which is unused funds from the Car Mcnatfield improvement project and And before I open it up for questions, I do want to kind of expand on, you know, a little bit about the growth that was kind of talked about tonight already with play at at Dave White pickball court in the early 2000s. You know, it started with players setting up portable nets and portable or temporary lines at the existing tennis and basketball courts. Um, in about 2010, that changed to where there was three permanent pickle ball courts added in at Dave White Park. And then ultimately in 2019 when Car McNat Park was renovated, new basketball and tennis courts were put into were put in at Carmagnet Park which allowed for the courts at Dave White Park to get reconverted to nine additional pickle ball courts. So which currently gives our current inventory of 12. Um ultimately with these 12 additional courts, it'll put our inventory up to 24. Um with also keeping in mind that in the 2023 community services master plan in the level of service table index it kind of indicated the ultimate you know by 2037 it indicated the opportunity the you know the the possibility of a need for up to 40 pickle ball courts at that time. Um and again that's just a planning number. So it helps it did help us kind of lead

us in our decisions on you know where do we want to put these courts the site the site layout the site plan as as not only we look to build for today but also as we look for opportunities and how that will fit into future expansion out at Dave White also. So um I'll certainly open up to any questions. Okay. Thank you Erin. questions comments. Man,

I thank you for um bring up the raetball court because I've had a couple people ask me, but I I know you did your work and it's not used as much as pickle ball, which is obviously the sport of the of the decade, I think. I don't know, but it's grown a lot. And you've seen uh and you know, you guys track that and things change over the years. But I I do appreciate the fact that we have dedicated pickle ball now because I remember the meeting with the tennis and pickle ball people here. It was one of the most heated me meetings I remember and there was an fbomb dropped even. It was very very serious. So the need to have separate tennis and pickle ball was very noted and I'm glad that we keep continuing on this path. So thank you.

Questions? No. And and again I just um over the years this has grown so much. So, appreciate you being in tune to what the community is asking for and I think this is a great location. I mean, it's good to evaluate the three areas, but it's going to be a great location. Um, there it it has been over the years, we've been getting a a lot a lot of comments and and Danny, I commend you also for dealing with the the growing pickle ball population. there's been challenges and I appreciate those people that are so passionate um and play pickle ball because they've been patient with us and and with our staff as we try to work through schedules and try to make sure it's fair um and give everyone the opportunity to play. So, we've been, you know, trying to work through those challenges and I appreciate the staff and the the public um patience. It's hard to believe it's been a year, you know, I mean, think times time goes so fast. So 185 days, that's a long time, but um hopefully you stick to that and that's not going to be much longer because I'm sure we have some people that are going to be ready to ready to go and and counting those days. But um but really look forward to growing this this, you know, sport in the in the city. So um with that, is there anything else?

Okay. So if we can get a resolution number, please. Resolution number 5886, a resolution of the council of the city of Cagran, Arizona, accepting a proposal from General Acrylics, Inc. for the construction of additional pickable courts at Dave White Park authorizing the expenditure of public funds and authorizing the execution of a contract with or purch purchase order to General Acrylics, Inc. May Skgiven, I move that we approve resolution number 5886 as presented. Second. Second. Okay. Okay, there's been a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Hey, Adrianne, if we can get a roll call vote, please. Council member Rammo, yes. Council member Dugan,

yes. Council member Edwards, yes. Council member Henson, yes. Council member Herman, yes. Mayor Perth Tempillan, yes. Mayor Fitzgiven, yes. Motion carries. Great. Thank you. All right, we're getting our pickle ball paddles ready, guys. We're gonna get out there. Okay, next item. I two.

Thank you. Staff recommends that the mayor and city council approve a change order with Allison Mills Contracting. Uh this is for contract 0725-18 in an amount not to exceed $748,195. This is for the Peters Road widening project. That project is from Thornon Road to Burus Road um in our industrial area. So, Peter's Road is currently under construction. Uh we're well down the road of uh hopefully getting that project completed this spring. Um, at at the initial time of design, the city worked with all the utility companies to identify any conflicts and we worked diligently to try and get to a resolve with the San Carlos irrigation uh drainage and uh irrigation and drainage district. And uh towards the end of our uh efforts, we finally got a decision uh by the district uh what was going to be required and we finished that design. So this is the this will take that uh project to completion so we can finish our widening in that area which is on the north side of Peters Road uh the irrigation ditch that runs uh east to west there. Uh the funds are available for this project um uh within this year's budget. This is um excuse me this is a change order to the existing project. Um this will give us additional uh contingency funds to finish this portion of the project. However, we do have a contingency allowance remaining for the remainder of the the widening project. Um if this is approved, we should be able to finish this up uh by April of this year. So with that, I'd be happy to answer any questions. Any questions, comments?

I don't think so. Kevin, sure. What was what was the original contract amount for this for the without the change order? I I do not have that in front of me. I I apologize.

Okay. Any other questions? comments. Okay. So, we'll get if we can get a resolution number, please.

Resolution number 5793.1, a resolution of the council of the city of Cassagrant, Arizona, approving approving amendment number one to the city's contract with Ellison Mills Contracting LLC to provide construction manager at risk services for the construction of the Peters Road widening project from Burus Road to Thornon Road project. Authorize an expenditure of additional public funds in an amount not to exceed um seven 748,194.13 and authorizing the execution of an amendment to the agreement. May Evans, I would move to approve resolution number 5793.1 as presented.

Second. Okay, there's been a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Okay, if we can get a roll call vote, please. Council member Romo, yes. Council member Dugan, yes. Council member Edwards, yes. Council member Hules, yes. Council member Herman, yes. Mayor Prom Dylan, yes. Mayor Fitzgiven, yes. Motion carries.

Thank you. Okay, next item, the reappoint of the part-time firefighters. um of Byron Mays and Doug Curry. I don't know if any of them are here. I don't think I see them. Nope. Chief. Okay. And also Brad Johnson. So, we just need a motion to approve the reappoints. So moved. Second. Okay. There's been a motion and a second. All those in favor, please signify by saying I. I. I. Any opposed? Okay. Thank you to Byron, Doug, and Brad. and item K1. Adriana,

mayor and council, tonight I'm bringing the call of election as a report. While it's not required by statute that it be approved by council, it usually it is brought um to council for transparency. However, due to HB 2022, we had to move really quickly to move u meet statutory requirements because there is state statue that requires the call to election to be published at least twice uh in a newspaper of general circulation at least one week apart 150 days before the election. um in Rough presented in the study session um House Bill 2022 amended the date of the primary election from the second Tuesday in August which was initially August 4th um to the second to last Tuesday in July which is now July 21st. Um originally the bill proposed moving up the election only by one week. So that would have given enough chance to um bring it bring the call to election have you vote on it. However, that last amendment happened really quick to where I moved it to to the second to last July and that wouldn't have given us enough time to get it published by the deadline of um February 21st. So to meet that requirement um with city manager's approval, we I ensured that the notices were published in the Cassag Grand Dispatch on February 12 and February 19 and 2026. The call of election states that the primary election will be held on July 21st to nominate candidates for mayor and three council seats. Under charter and ordinances, if a candidate receives the majority of the votes cast for office in the primary, that candidate is declared elected and will not move on to the general election. Uh in case of a runoff, the general election is scheduled for November 3rd. That was not affected. Uh but uh only it would only be necessary if um no candidate earns the majority of the primary. Um the offices to be filled

are the office of the mayor in three council seats. Mayor Fitzgiven has served one term and is ellegible for reelection and the council seats of u may um council member Matt Herman, Anthony Edwards, and Bob Hson's are ellegible for reelection. The city clerk's office had anformational session back in October 15 for anyone interested in running uh to walk them through the process. We did have a candidate packet at that moment. That candidate packet has been updated online. The prospective candidates need to collect between 455 signatures and 900 uh or 98 signatures for qual um from qualified registered voters in order to be in the ballot. Uh moving the primary election also moved out the date of the nomination packet filing deadline. So that will be now March 23rd, 2026 by 5:00 pm. It also moved the voter registration deadline to June 22nd for the primary. The general election was not um effected, so that still remains October 5th. I've posted the election information on the city website, so that's been updated. The candidate packet is also updated to have all the um dates going forward. The call of election was published in the Cassag Grand Dispatch and it has been posted on the website and uh physical copies are posted at city hall in the communication center. With that that's conclude my report. If there's any questions I can

any questions comments? Okay. Thank you Adriana. So, do we need to um No, just a report. Okay, perfect. Okay, so that is it. The last report. So, we'll go ahead and start with reports. And why don't we start with Becca? Are you good? I don't have anything to report. Nothing to report. Okay, Anthony, you good? No report. Matt,

um real quick, the Youth Commission shredding day again, April 26th, First American Credit Union. So, bring your stuff to shred and ecycle electronics. Thank you to public works department for their help with that. And I I used the CC click fix app the other day when I was at Dave White Park and I got a notice today that it was fixed. So, it works. So, use it whatever is like a problem with the picnic table. So, they'll do anything. So, big stuff, little stuff, just report it and they'll take care of it. Good. Thank you. That's it. Okay, front. Uh, no reports, Bob. No report. All right.

No reports. I'm good. Good. We were We were all on vacation.

Not really. Probably you guys. There's a couple things on here that you were you attended. One leadership academy. I know most of you were there for the the first meeting. So wanted to thank the staff and we have a couple members that um are participating in the academy and um I think we have 26 student or um um attendees and yeah they it was such a variety of people. So, thank you to everyone that that um came to that the public um police department awards, many of you were there. Um and so, thank you to the police department for recognizing some of the accomplishments um from from our police officers. So, it was a great event, well attended and um appreciate that. The state of the city, if everyone can mark their calendars, is March 4th. Um we're going to have some fun videos from everyone here. you guys all completed, finished your videos. Okay, good. Looking forward to seeing them. So, um if you can all mark your calendars, 5:15 Cash Union High School. It's um the first time we're doing an evening event. So, we're really hoping we can get people because in the past people have said that they weren't able to attend because it was in the middle of the day. So, hopefully we can get um you know, more people to attend this at Cascan Union High School. And um you know I I've been actually attending some of our some of the other cities state of the city um um um events. Maricopas I went to very nice event. It's nice to go because you can kind of see what's happening in these other cities. And so went to Maricopa's um Florence was the same night so several of us mayors kind of split up and went to the different cities but I did get to go to Maropa. I went to the city of Chandler. Mayor Hartki is really active with the league and he comes to ours every year. his daughter lives here in Caster Grand and so um it was really um good to go to the Chandler one definitely a production not going to be you know a little little low you know ours is toned down a little bit and then I'll be going to Queen Creeks next week so those are always great

events um Terminus Days is coming up downtown on the 28th at 11:30 a.m. So, if anyone would like to come there and um on March 2nd, if everyone can mark their calendar, it's the America 250 um which is the um celebration of the um the 250 years. Say it. Say it. Um so, the 250th birthday and so we are going to have an event at the Dorothy Powell Senior Center. It's a traveling museum that's going to be coming here to the city of Cashran. Danny, I know you and your staff have been working with them. Um, Secretary of State Fontes is going to be here. There's going to be just um it's an interactive mobile museum. Um, you know, hands-on activities for all ages, a video experience, a replica of the Liberty Bell. Um, there's going to be guided tour starting at 10:00 a.m. So, come on out. Come out and support this. We're really fortunate that they are coming to our city, you know, bringing this mobile um museum. So, um you know, of course, the the um library is going to be participating and we're happy ha happy to have the Secretary of State here with us on that day. So, 10:00 a.m. on uh Monday, uh March 2nd. So, please join us. And

you don't want to say semi-quincential. No, I can't can't say that. Semiquincentennial. Semiquential. I can't do it. That's a tongue twister. Um okay. I think that's it. That's it. Is there anything else? Anyone? Did we miss anything? I don't know. Um, okay. So, we'll go ahead and adjourn the meeting. No study session. Thank you all for coming and we'll see you in a couple weeks. Meeting adjourned.