City Council - Regular Meeting

THERE WE GO. GOOD EVENING, EVERYBODY, AND WELCOME TO A MEETING OF THE ONTARIO CITY COUNCIL. FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS, MADAM CITY CLERK, IS A ROLL CALL.

THANK YOU, MAYOR LEON. THE RECORD WILL REFLECT ALL MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL ARE PRESENT AT THE MEETING FOR TONIGHT.

SO LET'S BEGIN WITH A PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE, WHICH WILL BE LED BY COUNCILMEMBER BOWMAN.

WOULD YOU PLEASE JOIN ME IN A PLEDGE FOR FLAG? READY?

I pledge 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.

Our invocation tonight will be led by Senior Pastor Gressler Thomas from Ontario Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Let us pray. Gracious God, we thank you for the opportunity to serve, and this evening we ask for wisdom that rises above personal preference, courage that chooses what is right, and humility that recognizes the value of every voice. Lord, remind us that communities grow stronger when people work together with integrity, respect, and a shared commitment to the public's good. When the path forward is not simple, help us to remain thoughtful rather than reactive. principled rather than divided, and hopeful rather than discouraged. May every conversation tonight move us closer to a community where trust is strengthened, opportunities increase, and every resident knows they matter. May this meeting be marked by wisdom, civility, and a genuine desire to serve. And may we leave this meeting with a shared vision of a stronger Ontario, deeper respect for one another, and a renewed commitment to serve every member of our community. Amen. Thank you.

Thank you. So I'm going to take privilege as the mayor and the agenda. I'm gonna move straight. We're gonna take up public comment after we take up the item that is listed tonight. So, we'll move straight over to council matters, then we'll come back to public comment.

I object any discussion or action under the agenda description boards and committees, which usually apply to citizens boards and commissions and appointments. Agenda provided no staff report, no resolution attachment, list of affected offices, identification of current representatives, proposed replacements, effective dates or explanation that the mayor intends to remove and replace existing city council appointees. Had a staff report. been provided and backup material included, it would have included the following information that the public had a right to know. I noticed that the council did receive a memo from the mayor. Unfortunately, the public was never able to see this. Obviously, the public didn't know what to discuss at this meeting.

Mr. Wapner, all you have the right to do... The point of order is not debatable. The point of order... The point of order is not debatable.

I'll take a recess and discuss this with you if you need me to.

Mr. City Attorney, can you please explain... Let's take a recess. I'm sorry. See, we can't even get the progress of the meeting right now because he won't... Because I want to file... It's enough. It's enough. Okay. Thank you, Kizzy. But we need to... Don't do that to him. Please. All we need to do right now is take a recess, and let's go back in the back and talk about what he's doing, because we haven't even taken up the issue.

Mr. Mayor, you're the presiding officer, and so if you call a recess, we will take it. I would prefer... that we know go to the back and talk. I'm happy to advise you one-on-one in the back as to what the council's policies and procedures provide when a point of order is raised, and then we can come back and conduct the meeting.

He's already making comments about us making a decision on these. We're not going to. We have to bring it up now in order to make that decision in two weeks or to discuss it in two weeks.

Mr. Mayor, I'm happy to advise you in a confidential setting. Okay, let's go.

Thank you. Hold on just a moment, please, so that we can have a point of order here. Okay, thank you. Good evening, everybody. It's good to see you all again. Enrique, good to see you. So after consulting with our city attorney, I feel correct. I'm correct. I did not recognize Mr. Wapner. He didn't ask for my recognition. He just took off. But as far as I'm concerned at this point, Since we've already crossed the barrier, I'm going to go ahead and recognize him that he might make all of his comments right now. The reason for this evening is that we can have the conversation to put it on two weeks' agenda ahead. But he feels it's important for him to make his statement tonight, and I feel like I'd like him to do that. It's only fair, isn't it? So please proceed. Recognized by the chair. Do you have my point of order?

I don't need recognition by the chair. I appreciate you doing me a favor to obey the state law.

Everybody does.

So as I was saying, the only backup material is this memo written by the mayor to the council and was not available to the public. So the public didn't know exactly what was going to be discussed tonight. All you see is boards and commissions. That could mean anything to anybody. So that is not an appropriate posting for the... formal of the Brown Act. The agenda didn't provide any staff report resolution, list of offices, any replacement for city council appointees. There was no staff report or backup. There had been some backup that would include the fact that I was appointed by the city to serve on three major agencies, the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority, Omnitrans, the Ontario International Airport Authority Board of Commissioners. Of course, I've represented Ontario on these commissions for over 25 years. They're not routine appointments to vacant positions. Removing these from bodies would substantially change Ontario's representation and could terminate or disrupt numerous leadership and policy positions entrusted to me by those regional agencies. My service at SPCTA past, present, board member. I represent all the cities in the West Valley on the General Policy Committee, all the cities in the West Valley in the Transit Committee, all the cities in the West Valley in the Legislative Policy Committee, member of the Metro Valley Study Session. I also represent San Bernardino County in the Metrolink Board. As such, right now, I am the liaison and I'm the only one doing negotiations between Metrolink and LA20 at the Olympics. So obviously, if I remove from that, then those negotiations just break down. I'm also representing the county at the Southern California Association of Governments, past president of that organization, member of the Transportation Policy Legislation and Audit Committees. I represent that organization at the National Association of Regional Councils Board, and I also represent San Bernardino County on the California Association of Councils of Governments. Through my appointment to Omnitrans, I serve as the Chairman of the Board, Chair of the Executive Committee, member of the Administrative and Finance Committee, member of the Operations and Safety Committee, and I also represent Omnitrans at the American Public Transportation Association. My appointment to the Ontario International Airport Authority, I'm the President of the Authority and member of the Finance and Audit Committee. I represent the authority of the American Association of Airport Executives, the Airport Council International, and the Southwest Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives. I was involved in negotiating accomplishing transfer of the airport. Any proposal to remove the commissioner and alter the authority's leadership is a matter of substantial public importance. California Government Court 54954.2 requires an agenda to contain a brief general description of each item of business to be discussed or transacted. The description must communicate the essential nature of the proposed business so interested members of the public can decide whether to participate. Nothing in board and commission appointments informs the public that the mayor intends to remove an incumbent from three major agencies, change Ontario's transportation airport representation, displace the chairman of Omnitrans, or potentially disrupt Ontario and San Bernardino County representation at SBCTA, Metrolink, SCAG, CalCOG, and other regional organizations. The absence of a staff report or supporting material makes the notice especially deficient. It prevents the council and public from determining which appointments are proposed, who possesses the legal authority to remove each representative, whether the council approval is required, whether fixed terms, removal, restrictions, or separate agency procedures apply, which regional positions would automatically terminate, which positions may be changed only by SBCT, Omnitrans, Ontario Airport, SCAG, Metrolink, CalCOG, or any other appointing organization. who the proposed replacements are and what effect the change would have on ongoing regional projects and negotiations, including preparations for the 2020 Olympic Games. Ontario did not directly point me to every resulting regional position. Several were conferred by SBCTA, SCAG, Omnitrans, OIA, The city therefore cannot treat all these positions at Ontario appointments or directly appoint replacements without complying with the governing boards. I request that the mayor and council take no substantive action or engage in substantive direction under this inadequately described item. The matter should be continued to a properly noticed meeting. Any future agenda should identify each principal appointment affected. State express it that removal. Replacement or reassignment will be considered, identify the proposed effective date, include an appropriate staff report, and explain the legal authority and regional consequences of the actions. If the mayor or council proceed, I renew and preserve my objection under the Brown Act and request that this complete statement, precise motion, the legal authority asserted, each position effective and every council member's vote be entered into the official record. I now move that the council take no action and engage in no substantive discussion under the objective item board and commission's appointments. Let the matter be continued to a future properly notice meeting. The posted agenda does not adequately describe the business proposed to be transacted as required by the government code section 59954.2. There's no staff report, resolution, attachment, list of effective boards, identification, of existing appointees, proposed replacements, effective dates, or notice that removal or replacement of long-serving city representatives will be considered. The phrase board and commission appointments has not reasonably informed the public that the proposed action may remove and replace Ontario's representative to the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority omnitrans and the International Airport Authority, and Mayor Pro Tem. The future agenda and staff report should identify each appointment affected, whether removal, replacement, reassignment will be considered, the current and proposed representatives, the proposed effective date, legal authority governing each action, and the effect on positions conferred. I request a second to this motion and a roll call vote on the motion. So I'm making that motion that the meeting be continued and posted properly under the Brown Act.

There is no second. You haven't been recognized either, Ms. Macias. But I'm overruling his motion and everything. He said everything that he can say in two weeks from now, which is why we bring it forward now in council comments just like we always do. This isn't anything different. Mr. Mayor, can we not accept a motion in a second? Yes.

If you'll just bear with me for a second. So the Mayor Pro Tem has raised a point of order and just placed it into the record. He's also added a motion which received a second. The point of order has to be ruled on before the motion and the second can be heard at the Mayor's discretion. So just bear with me a little bit. Before I get into the procedural fund that we're about to have here, with your permission, Mr. Mayor, I would like to just point one thing out. The Mayor Pro Tem has raised a point of order. We're gonna hear a lot this evening potentially about order and rules and decorum. And with all due respect to everybody who's here and feels very strongly about this issue and the city in general, I as the city attorney appreciate that. And I encourage people to be involved, to state their opinions as is their legal right, but to do so in an orderly manner, right? The Brown Act and our agenda. provide proper, excuse me, proper procedures for everyone to be heard at the appropriate time including the members of the council as you just witnessed here. I would just beg your cooperation to please be respectful and not stand up and shout out. You will have an opportunity to speak at the appropriate time. It's my job to make sure that the mayor gives you that opportunity. It just gets very difficult if everyone's talking and screaming at once. So it's just my informal request. You don't have to listen to me. I'm telling you that this evening will go much smoother if we follow some basic rules of respect and decorum. I think my two minutes are up, apparently, Madam City Clerk. Okay, so procedurally, the Mayor Pro Tem has raised a point of order. Mr. Mayor, as the presiding officer, you have to rule on that point of order. So this is your opportunity to do that.

I overruled it.

Okay.

That it might be his opinion of a point of order, but I don't believe it's in a timely manner. It doesn't follow our history of what we've done, and it's premature by all means. I felt it would be magnanimous to give him the opportunity to tell everybody he does everything. But beyond that, it's just a matter of the process that we go through. And when I overrule him, he doesn't have the opportunity to ask for a second and a vote on whether he should be taken, but at the same time, I think that it might not be bad to go ahead and take that vote.

Well, I think that's the appropriate thing to do, Mr. Mayor. I'll do respect procedurally under Robert's rules and Rosenberg's rules and just the way we do business. You have a motion on the floor. It's been made and seconded. The motion now belongs to the body. If any member of the council wishes to debate that motion, you may, but you may also go straight to a vote. Let's go straight to a vote. Thank you. Take the vote.

So we're voting to.

The mayor pretends motion is to cease all discussion on the agenda item as listed.

Continue the meeting until it's properly posted.

Okay, so that's, is everybody clear on what the motion is, council members? Yeah. Please take a vote. Motion fails.

All right. Okay. So that's due process for you folks. Now, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Mr. Barrett.

Another point of order. I just want to make sure for the record I review and preserve my exception.

You are once again taking exception to the rule. I didn't recognize you to be speaking right now. I know you're the mayor and I know you want to do this. Yeah, that's right. You're not in charge. I do have a right to state my opinion. You do, but you have to do it in proper order. And you already saw that I gave you- You obviously don't know the order.

You don't know Robert's Rules of Law. No, you don't. Gentlemen. You don't.

You're the one violating, not me. It's just like this whole thing.

If I could just say this, Mr. Mayor and Mr. Mayor Pro Tem. I anticipate that the discussion that the council's about to have will end up very strangely satisfying both of you. And that is because what I've heard the mayor pro tem raise objections to is actually addressed in the council's city council rules of conduct. There's a procedure to handle what he has raised. And so again, if you bear with us, we'll get there. I think it'll end up, as I said, satisfying the mayor pro tem and the mayor to some degree. That's what compromise is. But it's also provided for in your rules. So at this point, Mr. Mayor, I suggest that you hear the point of order just so we know what it is and then rule on it again. It's another point of order.

A second time?

I'm assuming, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, it's a different point of order.

Okay, but what I'm demanding, and you're right, thank you, I am the mayor. So you really need to act within Robert's rules and ask for recognition. You keep not doing that out of disrespect as it was brought up out of the audience. So I'm more than happy to hear what you have to say, but you have to do it correctly, okay? So now I recognize you to speak.

For the record, I want to renew and preserve my objection under Government Code Section 954.2. My participation in this discussion does not waive that objection. I request that the clerk record my objection and precise motion made concerning the appointment, the legal authority assorted, and each council member's vote. Thank you.

So noted. Thank you.

All right, you know what, there is a question I have to ask Mr. City Attorney. I see that we have a ton of public comment, and not really, because they don't always describe what it's about. And so I have to ask the public, if you filled out a blue slip, how many of you filled out a blue slip believing you were going to be speaking to this issue? Yeah, because it's not agendized as, like he said, as an item that you could say item six, whatever. And so rather than hear all of the public comments at this time, right, could I adjust and say, if you think this is what you wanted to speak to, come forward?

Of course.

So as I call your name, if you believe that this was the item you wanted to speak to instead of just general public comment, I'd like to, before I make my statement about why we're doing this, because it's not personal, it's not personal. It's about taking care of the city. So Chris Robles.

Two. You're all the problem. All five of you are the problem. Thanks, Chris. My name is Chris Robles. I'm a resident of Ontario and president of Fair Ontario. Tonight, I am introducing the Ontario Public Integrity and Right to Know Act. Because residents deserve a government that earns their trust. Every resident has a fundamental right to know how public decisions are made, who is influencing those decisions, and how taxpayer dollars and public resources are being used. Recently, FBI search warrants were executed at Ontario City Hall and involved a member of the Ontario City Council and the San Bernardino County 4th District Supervisor. And I have been reminded that our community, it is a reminder that our community wants transparency and accountability. And these are not options, they're essential. Regardless of how those, I'm running out of time. So bottom line is, I am just shocked at the behavior tonight. This is typical for those of you who haven't been here before. This is typical. And all this attitude about trying to follow rules, they don't follow rules. This two minute is always implemented when there are 26 items on consent calendar. And all I ever get is two minutes to talk on 26 items. It's the end for the entire council. We have one council member who's going to be ending his career. We have another one who has ended his own career. And Mr. Mayor, you may be lucky because of this election and the circumstances that have changed now that you have your former friend and employee running against you. But I and the rest of us have had it. If anyone wants to read my comments, I'm happy to show them. But I just can't stomach this anymore. I tried to come up here. You decided that it was two minutes. We had three minutes. I'm sorry I even asked. Thank you.

Mr. Mayor, I don't often do this, but I do need to state a truth. City Hall was not served with a search warrant. That is not what happened. That did not happen. at Ontario City Hall. There was no search warrant served upon the city. There was no search done of any of the city offices or records. Just to make that record clear.

Chris M. Did you want to speak to this?

Two minutes. I'm speaking on your Facebook post about what the meeting is about tonight. I didn't make a Facebook post. Two minutes. I can do it. Mayor and City Council, my name is Chris. I'm a new resident to Ontario and a Desert Storm veteran. Before moving here and investing in this community, I spent years researching the city. Its leadership, economic trajectory, the future, I chose Ontario because I saw the city moving forward with confidence, opportunity, and clear vision. Ontario stands out among many of its neighboring cities for economic strength, development, and quality of life. That success did not happen by accident. it reflects sustained leadership difficult decisions and the willingness to pursue what it best for the residents the businesses and the city's future in my view mr alan wapner has been an essential part of that progress as a veteran i am especially touched by mr wagner's support for our veterans including his work supporting affordable veterans housing development veterans have served our country and should have not struggled to find a safe stable and affordable place to live when they return home. Leadership that recognizes the need and works real solution matters deeply to me. I understand Mr. Wapner's home was searched by the FBI. That is serious and understandably raises questions, but a search is not an accusation. It is not a finding of wrongdoing, and to my knowledge, no accusation of Mr. Wapner has been made. Our community should respect due process and avoid reaching conclusion before facts are presented. Removing Mr. Wapner from his committee roles now would create unnecessary certainty at a time when Ontario needs continuity. Businesses and investors watch leadership closely. Enterprise and other companies want to continue investing in Ontario because they see a city with momentum and experienced leadership. Abrupt changes can interrupt confidence and thank you.

Thank you, Chris. Kizzy, did you want to speak to this issue?

Thank you, Mayor, Council. I initially came to speak about 25-22 Calaveras. However, after watching and being appalled by Mr. Wapner's behavior, I want to make it clear. Decorum is expected here. Decorum is also expected up here. When the mayor is speaking or anybody is speaking for that matter, there shouldn't be any interruption. When that's done from up here, it's easily done from behind here. So our leaders need to act like leaders. No knock on you, Mayor. That being said, Mr. Wapner, you pointed out a plethora of issues that appear semi-valid, with one being from law school. I don't know if you passed the bar or not. It looks like you're basically making your case for appeal. Good job. I give you kudos on that. You pointing out all of your accolades and all you've accomplished don't negate the fact that there's a succession plan in policing agencies, in corporations, in governing city bodies. So the removal of one individual does not stop the show. I'm not here to say that you should be removed. I'm here to say that when the mayor or anyone else brings up an issue, they should be heard by us residents as well as the other leaders, and the process should take its place. We have something that's very important to all of us, and it is a more perfect union. We are not the United States that we were 200 years ago, 300 years ago. We are a more perfect union. We are continue to evolve as a nation just as we do as humans. That being said, Ontario deserves transparency, not procedural deflection. What you did was an act of procedural deflection. I understand you need to protect yourself, but you also as a leader and one who served and protected Ontario PD admirably, you need to protect your residents as well. Thank you so much.

All right, thank you. Gianna Morrison. Okay, not this issue, Michael Rios.

So really quick to clarify, I was gonna speak on this issue and a separate one in my, so do I get a second time? Should I just wait?

I think you should just wait for the three-minute public comment. Buffy Gutierrez, are you speaking about this issue? Would you like to? Okay.

My name is Buffy Gutierrez. Role name is Consuelo Gutierrez. I live on Pleasant Street from Christmas on Pleasant. I've been a resident all my life. Same house, same room. What I've seen today, I was gonna say something else, but what I've seen today is You need to go. Straight up. You need to go. Wawa's right. I talked to, I prayed about it. You know, my family's like, what's going on? And that's what I, what I believe. You need to go. So thank you.

All right, thank you. Nicholas Leonard?

Separate issue.

Okay. Marty Binney? This issue or different? Okay. Brad Newman? Okay. Martha Aragon? This issue or another? Okay, wait. Then, next. Marty McBride? Okay. Matt Munson?

Good evening, Council and audience and staff. The thing I'm talking about is political integrity. It's something that bridges across party ideological lines. We shouldn't have to hold our noses because the best alternative stunk and understandable. People are innocent upon proven guilty. But we should be cautious. It's kind of like what happened with Ben Lopez in Montclair. Sometimes we just have to make sure we prevent the wrong thing from happening, but still being mindful about the judicial system at the same time. And also, I agree that maybe we should not put our eggs in one basket in the future when it comes to the next generation of city council members. Maybe put and spread the wealth around when it comes upon council appointments to commissions. Thank you.

All right, thank you. Luis Suarez? Yeah, yeah. Javier Hernandez? Tommy Muschigan? Not here? But make sure, is he going to speak to this or something different? Okay, we'll call him up for public comment. Andrea Galvan. Andrea Galvan. Karen May.

Hello, council and Ontario residents who care about the well-being of our city. I'm actually really proud of our city that there's so many people here paying attention. I know we've all seen the news and I also have other issues to speak about, but I think it's relevant for this particular issue because it does speak to transparency and due process. I actually think that it's gonna be difficult for you to govern sitting on the dais. And that's sort of a separate issue than due process. Everybody has the right to due process. But I don't think that the City of Ontario trusts the city council, and particularly when all indications point to very, very, very troubling corruption in the city. We will wait for due process, but I think that it's going to make it very, very difficult to govern. I do think you should step down and I think that we should have an opportunity to talk about it with the public, to talk about issues of transparency. There's a particular clause in the Fair Ontario proposal for reform. I know multiple groups and constituencies have put forward proposals for reform and I think that It would behoove the city to have public town halls about these various proposals and what we really need to rebuild the trust in our city. I'm particularly concerned with contracting and public land and land use decisions, development agreements. and the real estate transactions that happen behind closed doors that have been destructive to our city, destructive to our clean air, destructive to our traffic, destructive in many ways to the quality of life in our city. Thank you.

Marianne and Andrew? Marianne and Andrew? Oh, hi. This issue or public comment? Yes.

Back her up. Wait until she speaks. Good evening, I'm here with my brother, Andrew Hanuna. My name is Marianne Hanuna. Since 2014, our family has invested millions of dollars into the city, into a business, a property, local jobs, and a vision for this community. We built a flourishing business in downtown Ontario that employed approximately 40 local residents. We relied on the permits the city issued us. We invested our family's resources in good faith. We built something we were very proud of, and we were so proud to give back to this community. This was my father's American dream, built in the city brick by brick. Then overnight, it was gone. The permit we had invested millions relying on simply disappeared. No due process, no warning, just gone. Distraught, we did what any citizen is taught to do. We turned to an elected official for help. After a council meeting, we approached council member Alan Wapner. trusting that our elected representative was there to serve this community. I showed him photos of our building, hoping he might understand what our family had created. As soon as I named the building, he said, and I quote, I know your building. I know exactly where that is. No need to show photos. I've been telling them to shut you down for months, end quote. I was shocked. Then he added, but it's going to be harder to shoot you up close now that I've met you. Before, when I didn't know who you were, it was an easy target, you know, easy shot with the sniper scope from a distance. But now that I've met you, it'll be a lot harder to kill someone you've had a conversation with. I was a 22-year-old woman asking an elected official for help, not expecting to hear language about shooting, targeting, and killing. Immediately after that, he asked us, how about you just sell the building to us? That was the first time I've ever heard a real estate offer after a physical threat. When I asked him to meet with another official, he said, no, no, it doesn't matter, the district, I hold the power in this city, as we can see with a lot of these fights today.

We want accountability.

We want accountability and transparency.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Okay, so those are- Those are all the speakers to this item. So I'm going to go ahead and address some things that are going on here because folks, the point of tonight and where it is on the agenda is to prepare for an upcoming agenda. That's the process. We have to bring it up now and I can actually unilaterally, uh, ask for something to go on the agenda in a, in a Typical council meeting during council comments, somebody would ask for an item to go on the agenda and a vote to see if that would be okay. So I just wanna make it clear, this wasn't about making any decisions tonight. This was about putting it on the next agenda. And all of us are keenly aware of the recent federal search warrants involving local officials in the airport. Right now, there's a massive amount of misinformation, as you heard from our city attorney. There were no search warrants at the city. Some of you have been getting some texts, this is my phone. It's never been taken by anybody. The misinformation and speculation swirling around our community, the rumors and all of this stuff and social media, it's not serving us. It's not serving us. The federal warrants are sealed and we don't have all the facts yet. However, the city of Ontario is actually fully cooperating with the FBI and federal authorities. We need to let the justice system do its work. I don't dispute that. And we can't panic and let hearsay dictate how we operate here. And so I've already publicly, as you know, I was on television. I've called for Council Member Wapner to resign from his roles as president of the Ontario International Airport Authority Board and his other committee assignments. And since he has not done so, it's now up to this council to do the right thing in my mind and remove him. Over the past few days, I've received countless calls from other elected officials in the region. and leaders throughout. Their message is united and clear. They're asking us to remove Councilmember Watner from these commissions and board seats because he's become a distraction on them. And that is not saying he's guilty of anything, folks. I pray he's not. But the distraction of the current activity is real. It's not about rushing to judgment. It's about operational focus of the City of Ontario and the agencies that he sits on. By taking affirmative action tonight, we can actually appoint, not tonight, excuse me, I don't mean tonight, in two weeks from tonight, we can appoint a dedicated replacement. We can eliminate the cloud of distraction and get on with the business of running the city and our airport until federal authorities complete their investigation. That's nothing new. He said, I gave the city a letter. And I'm not setting precedents. I'm following precedents that is all over the state and country. that when questions arise to people of leadership, they're removed from their influential positions until the truth is found out. And I don't see any problem with that. And so, I have some other comments to make that are not necessarily this issue, and I'll make them in a little while. But I just feel that it's absolutely time to bring term limits, contribution limits, and all of the things that we need to have to make this city a better city for everybody. I'm going to hold up. I have a lot of things to read. I'm going to hold up on all of you because I have sympathy for your ears. So at this point, The only issue is do we put it on the agenda and rightfully so for these issues to have a vote amongst the council to replace Mr. Wapner until there is something substantial in the decision from the federal investigation. And like I said, I hope it all comes to nothing. That would be my best prayer. But in the meantime, we have to protect the interests of the people. So we'll put this on, I'm moving that we put this on the agenda for in two weeks. Yes, Ms. Parada.

Good evening everybody. So here we go. So the FBI executed search warrants at council members' residence and served subpoenas at this city and the Ontario airport. Those are significant events that have understandably raised questions throughout our community. While the investigation continues, it is our responsibility to determine what's in the best interest of the city and the public institutions that we represent. Board and committee assignments are not personal entitlements. They are appointments made by this Council to represent the City of Ontario. When circumstances change, it is our responsibility to determine whether those appointments continue to serve the City's best interest. That same principle applies to the Ontario International Airport. The airport has also been served with a federal subpoena. The airport is one of the most important economic assets of this region and is simply good governance to ensure that this board can remain focused on their important work rather than the circumstances surrounding one or two of its members. This action does not determine guilt. It does not predict the outcome of the investigation. It simply recognizes that the act of federal investigation involving both the city and the airport requires us to exercise sound judgment in how we represent those institutions. Public trust is one of the most valuable assets we have in government. It takes years to build and one moment to lose. Our residents and our businesses expect that we protect that trust. And before I close, I want to thank the city staff for over the past week, you've continued to do what you always do, your best. You show up, you remain professional, and you keep the city moving forward despite these extraordinary circumstances. If this investigation ultimately concludes without any findings against Councilman Wachter, then these assignments can be reconsidered. But based on the facts before us today, I believe that we should be putting on the next agenda, temporary reassigning his appointments. Thank you.

Mr. Bowman? Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I totally agree. This is a coveted position of trust, and it's very easy to lose that trust. Anytime there's a cloud that's this serious that's put upon trust in general of an organization or one individual of an organization, it's important to take a pause, let everything settle, see what the final result is. If it's one of innocence, it's one of innocence. If it's one of guilt, then let the system take upon itself the legal ramifications for that. But in the meantime, until that is all codified and presented to us, we need to act like professionals and do what we need to do and support the suspension, basically, until this is clear of all participation that represents the City of Ontario on these organizations. That suggests that perhaps there was anything that wasn't correct in that presentation, but at this point, it has been questioned. And we need to pause, examine, and bring it upon the organization here of the council at the next meeting or wherever the mayor should decide, that should come before us and discuss it further. But I do support what the mayor has put upon the table for consideration at this moment because if we don't do this, we're remiss as leaders. It has to be done.

Thank you. Given that, I don't have to, as the mayor, I can set this as an agendized item before you tonight, given the situation, and for the next meeting. That's all this has been about.

Mr. Mayor, I didn't get my minutes.

You have to ask. I didn't want to ask you if you didn't want to say anything.

I'll let you finish your statement. No, no, no.

Ms. Macias, your turn.

There's a difference between government and policy. The only reason why they want to remove this man out of his seats is because the FBI is involved. If anybody is responsible for him being on these boards for so long, it's you guys. Now, because the FBI is quote unquote involved, you want to remove him from his seats? Your job is to protect the city, and that is my job, and you have not done a good job at it. So now it's your turn to also go.

Mr. Mayor, may I offer one piece of procedural guidance, and that is, although it's true that you generally have the authority to add an agenda item to any council meeting you would like, because we're talking about a removal from committees as of an intended action, Your council rules of conduct provide that a majority of the council has to vote to put that on the next regularly scheduled agenda. So I thought I heard somebody make a motion. I didn't hear a second, but the motion would be.

Mr. Bowman made a motion. Okay. Ms. Ferrata make the second.

Okay. So that's the motion on the floor and that would be in compliance with your rules of conduct.

I'm sorry, Mr. Mayor, is there a discussion prior to the vote? Yes. Thank you, and I'm gonna, I appreciate you continuing the meeting, sorry, the issue, and I'll hold back most of my comments. I just wanna make a couple corrections. The mayor stated that I was requested to resign, yet the memo to us says that I should be removed, and I think the difference between being resigned and being removed. Also, it says that I'm a subject of an investigation. I've never been named a suspect, a subject, a target of any investigation. They did search the house. We don't know what they were searching for or for what. The subpoenas served to the airport and to the city don't reference me. I don't know. They're looking for some records. I have no idea what records they are, but I know that my name wasn't included in any of those subpoenas. That's it. I just wanted to make sure we had that for the record. Thank you. All right. Thank you.

Yeah. So we'll take the vote. Let's just get on with it. Let's take the vote. Let's put it on the agenda. Okay, so we will have this on the next agenda. I hope you all come again. So I'm gonna move all the way back over to public comment now. And our first speaker is Chris Robles. Mr. Robles, all good things come to those who wait.

They do. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And I do apologize for losing my temper. I was very confused. I'm sure a lot of people were confused, and I guess I was the test dummy for that. So let me get back to my Ontario Public Integrity and Right to Know Act. So I have already drafted a proposal for doing so. I'm glad to hear that you're on board with this. But more than just term limits, it needs to be substantially more. And rather than get into all the reasons, I think we all know what the reasons are, and I've spoken numerous times before this council about the lack of transparency. I want a transparency tool. Campaign finance records, lobbying disclosures, ethics, filings, contracts, public land transactions, and other information needs to be on the website and easily accessible. We need to have this apply, the Integrity and Right to Know Act needs to apply to expose lobbying activity, shine a brighter light on independent political spending, improve conflict of interest protections, expand disclosure of gifts and financial interests, increase transparency for contracts and public land transactions, and establish independent ethics oversight. And this needs to be broad, not just the mayor, not just the city council, but the elected city clerk, the city treasurer, all the appointed commissioners, senior staff, and city representatives, as we have just heard the laundry list of places that Mr. Wapner is serving outside on boards and regional agencies, including the airport authority. And by the way everyone, you should recognize that many of those pay extra dividend stipends to these council members when they attend. And they're very lucrative to add to their stipends, and this council is well compensated. You said it yourselves, and you are more than well compensated than any other city in the region. So I ask the community to join me as I hold public comments and hearings to discuss what should be in the integrity and right to know act and we will present this to you and we expect you to approve it or put it before the voters. We're not leaving this up to all of you. Most of you have been here 30 plus years. This is what the result of that is. So none of you are untainted by this. All of you had a responsibility for 30 years and you ignored it. And now is the time to fix Ontario's ongoing integrity and transparency problems. Thank you.

All right, Mr. Kizzee, it's now time for your public comment.

I've spoken on it several times since I believe it was brought to your attention March 18th, 2025, and that's the residents at 2522 Calaveras. I speak on behalf of the residents on Calaveras, Amador, Oak Hill, Parco, in Mildred and Del Norte. We are thankful to code enforcement for the recent installation of stainless steel mesh coverings to prevent the owner and his band of merry partners from coming in and out of the house at all times of the night, doing things that are lewd, mischievous, and vice-related in the cul-de-sac, preventing children from playing Preventing individuals from walking away from their vehicles without fear of something happening late nights when everyone is sleeping after a hard day's work. Councilman Parada was in the area and was able to hear some of the concerns. I'm sure that she's going to follow up, but I'm here bringing it to the City Council as well. On behalf of those residents, I ask that you, Mayor, and the rest of the City Council please reiterate to code enforcement. I know they cannot tell us everything. They cannot tell the residents everything, but reiterate to them the severity of that house over there and what Ontario PD has to do on a daily basis. As it stands, resources are being wasted and allocated over there that could be better served throughout our city. And I'd ask that you guys request that code enforcement takes the necessary steps to ensure that people are not living in the backyard, which is not secure. People are not living in abandoned cars that are parked in the driveway. allegedly, as one city employee pointed out, possibly making or manufacturing substances that could cause damage to individuals in the area. And that's it, sir. Thank you so much.

Thank you. Our next speaker is Joanna Morrison.

My name is Jenna Morrison. I've been a resident here for 15 years. I came here to talk about the newsletter you sent us about your newsletter. We never asked what matters to us. It's obvious an attempt to justify asking us to pay the cost to increase the police, fire, emergency services and infrastructure for Ontario ranch. But we know the developers are required by law to cover those costs. If you made bad deals, it's on you to halt the process until you can negotiate new deals. You can't ask the current residents to cover the cost to build a community that we can't afford to live in. What you're doing has only harmed Ontario's current residents. How? You sacrificed the current residents' health, enjoyment of life when you covered our views with 740 warehouses, clogged our streets with 95,000 trucks daily, blanketed our city with cancer-causing toxic fumes, all to generate money for a new community for someone else. In job growth, we don't want jobs that don't even pay enough to rent a room in Ontario. Economic development has been for everyone but us. The whole plan is collapsing. Warehouses can't function with no workers, and there's no one left to fill the current 4,500 entry-level warehouse job openings. Commuters won't fill them, not when elsewhere pays $4 to $7 more per hour than Ontario. The only way to fill those jobs is to provide apartments that rent for under $1,000 a month, because that's what 17 an hour can afford. The community needs 10,000 of them, yet you're only building 144. You're building 166,000 homes that your 17 per hour jobs can't afford to live in. You're completely failing to meet our housing needs. Funding, make the warehouses build employee housing. Mandate the warehouses pay equal to the rest of the state. The developers have to cover the shortage that.

One minute remaining.

How about you show us that you care by aggressively enforcing the five minute idling rule for the trucks the way you enforce the street sweeping rules. It'll generate revenue and improve our air so that we might even become safe to use the outdoor living areas you're creating. We're tired of being the collateral damage of your progress. Thank you.

Thank you, ma'am. Michael Rios.

So I was originally gonna speak about the idea of term limits and campaign contributions. So I'm very excited and delighted to hear you bring that up on your own. So appreciate that. I would like for this council to make a motion to vote on this in the future, to actually enact this into the law and not just bring it up. So I'd really appreciate that. Mr. Robner going off on his list of all the things that he does, all I heard was the too big to fail argument. For you to sit there and say, I do this, I do this, I do this, and that would derail the city, all I hear is too big to fail. All I hear is don't touch me because I'm too important. If you are that important, your responsibility is to be honest to the residents of the city, and like many other people have said, your ability to run this city and to sit up on this dais is deeply impacted by the raids that happened and your actions that have followed since then. Your deep defensiveness is very concerning, just to see, like, nobody's that defensive for no reason. So anyway, and then for your high horse that you jumped on, you benefited the most, most recently, by the unlimited campaign contributions in three donations, in your first three donations, and I'm speaking to Ms. Macias, you received $100,000 in three donations. That should not be allowed. That is insane that that was even allowed to begin with. So, yeah, I'd really like to see campaign contribution limits, term limits, all that's very important for the city and for the success of the future. Thank you.

All right, thank you. Nicholas Leonard.

Good evening, Mayor and members of the City Council. So I apologize. This is completely insignificant compared to the other things being discussed. But my name is Nicholas Leonard. I'm a new Ontario resident. I want to start with a story. So on Christmas morning, shortly after leaving my new home in Ontario to visit my mother-in-law in Diamond Bar, My newly installed ring alarm reported motion inside my vacant house. I was away and had no way of knowing whether somebody had actually entered. I'm sure a lot of us here have all seen Home Alone, so a motion alert inside my empty house naturally brought images of this. My security provider notified the police and officers were dispatched. Fortunately, there was nobody inside. There was no B&E. I appreciate that the police responded. I understand the importance of respecting officers' time and allowing them to perform the many responsibilities without being repeatedly diverted to preventable false alarms. At the same time, checking on a possible intrusion and ensuring resident safety are among the important services we rely on for our police department to provide. I later learned that Ontario requires alarms to be registered and as I and I was then charged because mine was not registered. As a new resident, I had not received a notice of this requirement. I asked several new neighbors of mine whether they had alarm systems and whether they had them registered. They did not know what I was talking about. Their responses made me wonder whether the city had an opportunity to communicate this requirement, especially for new residents. It further brings into question why separate registration is actually needed. When a security company contacts the police department, dispatch already receives the address, knows the call came from an alarm provider, such as in this case Ring. The city can also use this dispatch records to identify repeated false alarms at an address. So I hear a lot of comments about money and times are tough. I know looking up from the U.S. Census Bureau, Ontario's median household income is approximately $10,000 less than the rest of California. So residents are already paying taxes. In my case, I'm already paying mandatory HOA dues to pay for security patrols as well as this alarm system. You know, I ask that maybe the council thinks about is this really necessary or are these fines really necessary to be finding funding for other projects, especially in these economic times.

Mr. Leonard, I'll ask our city manager to assign somebody to speak with you about this. Sure, I'm sure you can speak to Captain Carrillo. Back there, right now. Okay, thank you. Thank you for coming forward. Yeah. Our next speaker is Marty Binney.

I'll never forget the first time I spoke to Alan Wapner. I knew I supported him and told him I can't change my disability. You can see my cane and you can hear my speech. These things are part of who I am, I can tell you I like walking and I know my neighbors. I'll be a good precinct walker. Alan said, I'll give you a chance and we'll see how you do. That compassion and chance meant a lot. It was the start of a nearly 30 year friendship. It also gave me an opportunity to advocate for the people of the city I love. Alan Wapner, thanks for the opportunity and thanks for being the husband, father and leader that you are. You are truly an inspiration to many people and a fine example. You have always set a great example. Caring people like you are few and far between. Alan Wapner, I want to say something. Up there on the dais, I feel I've known you for a lot of years. You're definitely in your element when you're up there. You've been an outstanding leader. I like to see you continue to be on that dais, whether it's on this side or that side, doesn't make a difference to me. You're good at your job and you should be there. And I also feel that you should be serving on those boards, too, because I think that you've done outstanding with them. So that's all I want to say is you are great at what you do. I hope to see you continue to do it. Thank you.

All right. Thank you, Marty. Brad Newman.

Hello, friends. My name is Brad Newman. I am the former City Auditor for the City of Ontario in beautiful Southern California. Now, as you know, Alan Wampner very famously said, he's a Palestinian disguised as a Jew. He's a Palestinian disguised as a Jew. March 18th, 2025, one hour, nine minutes and 30 seconds. It was on your live microphone, Mayor. The next city council, you ejected that man. A man spoke, he identified as Jewish, and he spoke passionately. Because we have a racist city council, he was ejected. At the next city council meeting on the 1st of April 2025, whatever the meeting was, he spoke again. He said a prayer in Hebrew. On the 15th of July 2025, I condemned your hate speech, Alan. And you know what you said in response? I'm not going to apologize. This guy came in here dressed as a Palestinian terrorist pretending to be Jewish. You are an anti-American racist bigot. When people speak up here, you don't need to agree or disagree with them, Mayor. You know that. When somebody speaks up here, they're exercising our rights as Americans to the First Amendment. freedom of speech, freedom to petition government, freedom to assemble, free religious association. You justified your hate speech with your identity. You said that because you're Jewish, it's okay to condemn that man for his speech. Go back and listen to the comments. July 15th, anybody covering Alan Wapner's rape, any Alan Wapner's corruption, alleged corruption, they need to cover his anti-American hate speech. Now, Mayor, the reason why I came here to speak is actually to make sure you're aware. Did you get this? Did they print this out? I didn't hear you guys print this out. Did you print out the comments for today's meeting? This is a notice in public explainer.

One minute remaining.

About the submission to the California State Bar Association regarding attorney Michael Allen Heider's misconduct. Michael Heider, California State Bar, License Number 21-8776. He violated California attorney ethical standards, Ruben. It's in here. I would strongly recommend that you read it. Any member of the public that's actually interested in public corruption, you can request my public comment that was submitted to the City of Ontario, as well as Attorney Michael Heider's statement of facts, Police Chief Mike Loren's statement of facts, And you know what the amazing thing is in response to the statement of facts, Mayor? Attorney Heider justified his behavior by saying he's not an attorney. He was simply hired as a licensed and practicing attorney, but he doesn't believe he has to follow the ethical standards of the attorneys in the state of California. Thank you. Our next speaker is Martha Aragon.

Good evening, dear city council members. Good evening, everybody. We're here to state that the city council has violated the public trust due to unchecked mandates, corporate influences, and decisions that harm the health of residents. To restore the integrity of our community, we demand immediate structural reforms and council-wide accountability through the following petitions. Stricter limits. Implement short mandatory terms limits to prevent career politicians from entrenching special interests. Limits on campaigning contributions. Establish caps on corporate and individual contributions to ensure that public policies serve residents and not donors. IMMEDIATE RESIGNATION OF COUNCIL MEMBER ELLEN VOTNER. THE COUNCIL MEMBER MUST RESIGN PERMANENTLY DUE TO UNGOING FEDERAL INVESTIGATION AND SEARCH WARRANTS LINKED TO HIS OFFICE OR RESIDENCE. RESIGNATION OF THE REST OF THE CITY COUNCIL. CURRENT COUNCIL MEMBERS MUST RESIGN FOR ALLOWING ABUSE OF POWER, IGNORING ETHICAL BOUNDARIES, AND PRIORITIZING CORPORATE LOGISTICS OVER PUBLIC WELFARE. ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND PUBLIC HEALTH, AIR TRAFFIC REDIRECTION, STOP LAW ALTITUDE CARGO FLIGHTS OVER MINORITY COMMUNITIES TO REDUCE HARGE NOISE AND TOXIC EMISSIONS. MONETARIUMS AND LOGISTICS FREEZE THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW MEGA LOGISTIC CENTERS AND WAREHOUSES THAT FLOOD STREETS WITH POLLUTION FROM DIESEL TRUCKS. WE ALSO DEMAND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF MORE PARKS, THE REFORBISHMENT OF EXISTING ONES,

One minute remaining.

The system wants a massive planting of trees. The industrial pollution from these projects directly drives the local high rates of asthma, heart disease, cancer, and chronic diseases. It's time to replace a corporate first government with leadership that protects public health and operates with full transparency. Thank you. Daisy Macias, step down. You are helping him.

All right. Thank you. Thank you. Marty McBride.

Good evening, Mayor, Council members, staff, fellow residents and guests. My name is Marty McBride and I live in Ontario District 1. I am a mother, a grandmother, a homeowner, a business owner, a taxpayer, an activist and an advocate for environmental and economic justice and government transparency and integrity. For more than a year, the residents from all parts of the city have stood here and asked for more transparency, more opportunities for resident engagement in city plans and major decisions, and just a more effective flow of information from the city to its residents, especially regarding how the city spends taxpayer money. Right now, Fair Ontario has crafted a proposal for the Ontario Public Integrity and Right to Know Act. I wholeheartedly endorse this proposal and encourage all Ontario residents to read it and share it with their fellow Ontario friends and neighbors. This act is a huge step towards creating in the City of Ontario a government that is truly of the people, by the people, and for the people, and the residents of Ontario deserve no less. I want to speak on a second issue. Based on the actions of our planning commission at their most recent meeting, the council will soon be asked to consider a recommendation to impose imminent domain and remove the Arco station at Euclid and E Street. I want to make it clear that the removal of one of only two gas stations serving the residents living near downtown Ontario creates not scarcity, but a de facto monopoly. This does not serve the best interests of the people, especially as the remaining gas station is significantly more expensive and ask that the council members remember this when this item comes up for consideration. There are low and fixed income residents in this area. They need economical options for transportation. Removing this gas station without any other options and leaving the residents high and dry is not okay. Thank you.

All right, Luis Suarez.

Good evening, Mr. Mayor and council members. My name is Luis Suarez. I'm a small business owner. I'm a resident of Ontario. And I'm here to say enough is enough. Our families should be talking about housing we can afford, safer streets, better parks, good-paying jobs, and the future of our city. And instead, we're first to ask, what scandal is coming out of the city hall? Just a few days ago, the FBI executed a search warrant at the home of council member Wapner. Regardless of where the investigation leads, that's not what any community wants to see from its leaders. But I'm not here just to point out a problem, and I'm here with a solution. Just like Mr. Chris, I also drafted a model policy that would essentially call for two different things. The first one is to be able to set term limits to two terms, and the other one is to also limit campaign contributions. and also a ban on campaign contributions from businesses seeking or holding city contracts. This isn't just about one investigation or one election. It's about fixing the system. When a political figure like Mr. Wepner can remain in office for decades, raise enormous amounts of money, and transfer resources, like he has been doing to Ms. Daisy Macias, residents begin to ask who those elected officials are accountable to. Ontario doesn't belong to politicians. And I'll say that again. Ontario doesn't belong to you, Mr. Wapner. It belongs to the people who live here, who work here, who own businesses here, and who raise their families here. We ask you to please bring up an ordinance that addresses both the contribution limits and the term limits as soon as possible. And I'll say this to you, Mr. Leone. You know, if this isn't addressed immediately, we know that Mr. Webber's money will continue to impact One minute remaining. And that will be done through Ms. Daisy Macias. So I just want to foreshadow that for folks to be able to keep an eye out, that Ms. Macias will now be the person who will lead Wapner's vision of corruption in the city. Thank you.

Okay, folks, thank you. We really don't do that here. Javier Hernandez.

Hello, Mayor and City Council. My name is Xavier Hernandez. I urge you all to adopt both the campaign contribution limits and term limits for the City of Ontario. I am a board member of I United, also a board member of the ACLU of Southern California. I am also the executive director at the Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice. We represent more than 10,000 dues-paying members throughout the Inland Empire. Of those, we have 600 that live here in the City of Ontario. Tonight, I am submitting a petition signed by more than 100 Ontario residents who are asking for these reforms. Public office is a public trust, not a lifetime position, nor an opportunity for the biggest donors or special interests to have the loudest voice. When developers, wealthy individuals, or other interests can contribute unlimited amounts of money, it creates the perception, and too often the reality, that access and influence can be bought. Campaign contribution limits help ensure that every resident has a voice that matters, not just those who can write the biggest checks. Term limits encourage accountability, create opportunities for new leadership, and help restore public confidence in local government. Finally, if this council is going to emphasize transparency, order, and adherence to the Brown Act, those same standards should apply to everyone on the diets. I have attended meetings where a council member yelled at a mother simply because her daughter wanted to speak. Also, when statements such as you all have to go ring, and statements such as you all have to go ring hollow when The people making those statements may themselves become candidates for the very seats they're referring to. You don't use the dais to campaign. You don't use the dais to announce any of your campaign or your- One minute remaining. Or your political aspirations. I urge you to adopt a campaign contribution limits and trade limits policy. The ins and outs are conversations that you should have with community members. There's things that have been proposed, yet what we need is that Ontario residents sit with their leaders and that their leaders listen and that there is compromise so that we can move this city forward, not just the city, but our Inland Empire and the cities around it. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you, Council. All right. Thank you. Sorry. Yes. Could I? Yes. Okay.

Yeah. Right. Thank you. Tommy Mushigan. Not here. Andrea Galvan. Oh, there he is. Uh-huh.

Between the mayor and over here with Wapner, we all see, I brought this up before on your, Wapner's 460 form for the, in 22. Leon for mayor, your campaign gave him a non-monetary contribution. of $12,000 for a total of $15,022. So you guys are arguing back from before. You guys were all friends. Can't we all just get along? I know you guys are. So you guys are getting a little hissy fit. I saw your post on the social media while you were standing at the airport saying, I became the liaison for the airport and Leon did nothing. Well liaison whatever, we always point out to that airport. We all know that the passenger traffic is extremely low at this airport when ATL's got the highest passenger traffic. Plus you brought in Amazon too. I don't support Amazon whatsoever. Now, another thing here, especially reading in the newspapers with Wagner, is all this Chinese stuff. That's a communist country. And we've got here, look, your 700 form right here. So basically 10 years ago at this very point, you were on tour in China. Look at this. All these things you went and saw there. and you went toward all these things, and exactly 10 years ago, from this date. In fact, oh, look, what did you get? Oh, something Provisional People's Association for friendship with foreign countries. And what did you do? You got to go tour someplace and have dinner over there for $85 value and whatnot. And so there you go. So you're coinciding with a communist country, and it's disgusting. What are you doing that for? Do you go do that with the Soviets? Do you do that with Russia? No, you don't go do that. I know you don't. One minute remaining. Thank you. So I'm just saying, oh, and Mr. Mayor, of all that you were saying earlier, you got unlimited phone calls of all these elected people calling you about the issue. Who called? What are the other elected people in this county that were calling you off the hook? Did you write it down? Did you bring those notes? Yes. Oh, you didn't. So, and then that I'm sure Valencia is probably going to come back and she'll try to be the hero of the day. And another thing, I don't see this in Pomona. I've got Pomona 700 forms and the mayor over there. He don't go travel around the country under guises. They don't take campaign contributions, all these from the developers. They got a little bit more integrity. Yeah, we own a building in Pomona. So I'm just saying a little bit more integrity. So, and then do any of you five show up at the city hall every day for work?

No, you don't. Andrea Galvin.

Good evening, Mayor, Council, residents of Ontario and city staff. Mayor, I want to thank you for taking the initiative to consider campaign contribution limits and term limits. The city has real problems. Most of our residents earn an average of $80,000 a year. Last year, the city spent $2 billion. We desperately need oversight and change and not $250,000 from developers trying to buy a mayoral race. Our community needs lights and parks and sidewalks that are in front of where moms are trying to walk their kids to school. And we're really frustrated that we're having to have this conversation about what's happening, what the investigation means, what it means that Council Member Macias has accepted a $40,000 check from Alan Wapner and votes lockstep with him. We need change and we need the leadership of the council members that have been here fighting for our community. We are asking you to fight for our community once again, to break free of Alan Walker's hold on the city and to allow our residents to have voices again that advocate for the things that matter most. We don't need more warehouses. We don't need the things that take away from the small town feel of Ontario. We need investment in our downtown and we need to, not spend $1.7 billion more than the city of Rancho Cucamonga and not feel any nicer for it. I thank you all for your leadership and I look forward to seeing what proposal you bring to the city. Thank you.

Thank you. Our next speaker is Stephanie. Claudia.

I'm also going to be making my public comment in Spanish, so just so we're aware.

Buenas noches, alcalde y miembros del consejo. Mi nombre es Stephanie Martinez y estoy aquí esta noche porque creo que es un momento de una verdadera rendición de cuentas y un verdadero cambio. Últimamente hemos escuchado llamados para que ciertos funcionarios electos den un paso al costado. Pero si vamos a hablar de rendición de cuentas, entonces debe aplicarse por igual a todos. No solo las personas con las que no estamos de acuerdo políticamente. El alcalde Paul Leon ha estado en el cargo por más de dos décadas. El concejal Jim Bowman también ha servido a esta ciudad durante décadas. Y la concejal Deborah Parada también ha pasado muchos años en este consejo, igual que el señor Wapner. El servicio prolongado puede ser honorable, pero nadie debería creer que la antigüedad por sí sola le da derecho a permanecer en el cargo indefinidamente. Esto incluye analizar seriamente cómo el tiempo de cada miembro en el cargo ha dado forma a esta ciudad, las decisiones tomadas durante este tiempo y si estas decisiones han reflejado consistentemente el mejor interés del público. Los residentes merecen perspectivas frescas, nuevas ideas y líderes que sean plenamente responsables ante las personas a las que representan, no solo de nombre, sino de sus acciones a lo largo de su mandato. También ha habido controversias públicas que involucran a miembros de este consejo. Reportes periodísticos han planteado preguntas sobre posibles problemas relacionados con la ley Brown Act, que involucran al alcalde y a otros concejales. Y muchos residentes han expresado preocupaciones sobre la transparencia. Esos reportes pueden ser discutidos, pero han contribuido a una pérdida de confianza pública. El arresto público del concejal Bowman, bajo sospecha de conducir bajo la influencia del alcohol, DUI, y de atropello y fuga también generó serias preocupaciones sobre su juicio y liderazgo. Ya que hablamos de ética, transparencia o conducta personal, los funcionarios electos deben ser mantenidos al más alto estándar porque el público deposita su confianza en ellos. Además, han sido preocupaciones públicas continuas por parte de residentes respecto a la larga permanencia del concejal Alan Wapner y sus dobles funciones en el liderazgo del transporte regional, lo que algunos miembros de la comunidad consideran que podría generar posibles conflictos de interés o como mínimo, dudas sobre prioridades divididas. Esto no se trata de ataques personales, se trata de consistencia. Si vamos a pedir que un funcionario electo dé un paso al costado debido a preocupaciones sobre su conducta, entonces debemos estar dispuestos a aplicar el mismo estándar a todos. Now it's in English.

I'm bilingual, why can't I?

Because you should have been doing it during your time.

Yeah, if you'd given us notice, we could have made accommodations.

But there's nothing on the blue card that says that I can't say it in Spanish or English.

You take it. Mr. Mayor, you're the presiding officer. The purpose of public comment is to communicate to the council. in a way that the council can understand. You chose to speak in Spanish.

Because there's Spanish speakers here, and they also need to know what's going on. You guys don't provide an interpreter or translation services.

As a matter of fact, we do, Ms. Martinez. I'll do respect. Is she certified? We do.

I would like to see her certification.

That's not the point. The point is, Mr. Mayor, I'm sorry, I apologize. I should not be debating with a member of the public.

Okay, you know what? That's enough.

That's enough.

That's enough, okay? It's an issue of fairness. We need to go and do this in a- Absolutely. Because you took off and didn't even allow us, you went very fast, you didn't allow us to even tell you to take a minute so we could get a translator. You don't do it your way. You do it our way. And our way is for you to say something. That's okay. Stephanie, love you, but you've got to sit down. Thank you. So we're going to move on to the next issue here.

You're also breaking the brown eye.

Well, do what you've got to do. And, you know, also remind everybody you're running for office, so that's okay. We'll go ahead and we'll, Mr. Bowman. Mr. Van Wehle. Yeah, we're going to get that.

But, yeah, I think that you've got to wait for a minute.

Yes, you let me know.

Okay. We have one more speaker that is called in. So let's hear what she has to say. Tina Silva.

You went very fast. You didn't allow us to even tell you to take a minute so we could get a translator. You don't do it your way. You do it our way.

Ms. Silva, if you could please turn down your television. You are now live in the meeting. Ms. Silva, you are now live in the meeting.

I think that you got to wait for a minute. We have one more speaker that is on the call then.

So folks, this is a new system. And if you're, it's like when, Don, when they were on the radio, you would say, turn your radio off, right? Because there's a delay, and that's what's going on. We're trying to get Tina on, but if it isn't gonna work, we're just gonna move on. So we have finished with the public comments. And Mr. Bowman has something to express. And then after that, we're probably gonna just finish.

Yes, well, thank you, Mr. Mayor. And I'm gonna ask, I'm gonna surprise the city attorney if he would read a letter. Because repeatedly I've heard Michigan, others come up and accuse me of something. And I've never responded because it has no, no validity here, but it's something they get great pleasure in doing, and generally there's somebody that puts it up because they think it's funny.

So I'm gonna have a, just take a look at this.

I wanna remind everybody why he's doing that. This is Ontario Night Out. We're actually supposed to be out visiting people in their home parties, so I'm going to see if we can finish this up pretty quick.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Council Member Bowman has asked me to read the following into the record. It is a letter from the Office of the District Attorney, Mr. Jason Anderson, dated August 7th, 2024. We have reviewed the information contained in your file and have determined the following. Based on the BAC of .01, there is insufficient evidence to proceed with the case. Your DMV hearing is canceled. We appreciate your cooperation in completing this evaluation process and regret any inconvenience this may have caused. However, it is the department's responsibility to ensure that all licensed drivers can safely operate a motor vehicle. If you have any questions about this notice, then that's standard form language.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

I just want to get that perfectly clear for the record. I've listened to this for years. It's put out there for political reasons, of course. unforgettable situation that happened. It was a medical situation. It had nothing to do with alcohol. In fact, the police department did what they had to do at the time and they took four tests in the field that couldn't produce anything. I went to the hospital down the street. Like I said, it was a medical problem. They did the same thing and there was nothing. All of that is submitted under their control, to the hospital, to the district attorney's office for review. It was furthered. It was sent to him. And there wasn't enough even to consider moving forward with anything. So it was all very succinctly choreographed with a young reporter that used to work for Channel 7-11. We know who played all this. So it's been a game, and I hear it tonight. Young lady stands up. It's easy to say, but she's not even listening.

Thank you, sir.

All right. Well, It's my opinion enough has been shared and we do need to get on to this whole thing going on. So without exception, I'd like to thank you for participating in our meeting. Our next regularly scheduled meeting will be on August 18th, 2026. Thank you for attending everybody.