City Council - Regular Meeting

If having reached the hour of 5.30 p.m., I am calling the August 25th, 2026 Modesto City Council meeting to order and ask the city clerk to call the roll. Council Member Bavaro.

Here. Will everyone please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance followed by the invocation from Mike Gunnarsson with City Ministry Network. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the

Thank you. All right, does the city clerk have any announcements?

Right. Thank you. Will the city attorney please report out on closed session?

Thank you. Next on the agenda is acknowledgements and presentations. Item one is a certificate of recognition celebrating the 90th anniversary of Shabika Family Olive Oil and Gourmet Foods. We have a certificate of congratulations. It says, presented to Shabika Family Olive Oil and Gourmet Foods on behalf of the Modesto City Council, I would like to express heartfelt congratulations on your 90th anniversary. And it will be presented today after we hear from Jonathan Shabika, A fourth generation and CEO of Shibika Family Olive Oil and Gourmet Foods. Please step forward. Welcome.

All right. Thank you so much for your comments. Any comments from council members? Council Member Wright. Thank you, Mayor.

As a person that loves to cook, I love using all your different types of olive oil. It really adds to the flavor, especially when I do spaghetti. You've got some great sauces over there that you carry, which I use all the time. And I think you guys are doing a great job. Thanks for being in our community.

All right. Council Member Scootia Brayton. Thank you, Mayor. And thank you, Mr. Shabika, for being here and bringing your family and your lovely little one that's making that little crackle noise over there. But your grandfather must be very proud of the fact that you all have brought this business to fruition where it is today in a community that really supports you and loves you being here. Your grandfather could have... built this business anywhere else but he chose to put it here and you all chose to maintain it here and provide just wonderful seasoning and spice to what gives us comfort a

All right. Thank you, Vice Mayor Williams.

Thank you, Mayor. Jonathan, you look good for 90, my friend. I just wanted to let you know. It's the olive oil. What flavor, though? Which flavor? You know.

Well, you all have been a staple in this community for many, many, many years and have always contributed to this community. And I think it's only fitting and fair that the city of Modesto here tonight show you that same grace and love that you all have shown this community. So congratulations to your entire family.

Thanks, Mayor. I want to just echo the sentiments of my other council members here. We just really appreciate you guys being in our community. And frankly, every day you choose to be a part of our community. And that means a lot to me. I know it means a lot to the council that you guys are here. You make an incredible product, a superior product. And you're not afraid to try something new, like the beer stuff. It's cool. It's really cool. I love the innovation. And I'm proud to have you part of our community. And thanks for your contributions. Thank you.

From my standpoint, I was born here. 1954, so 72 years. And I can remember at a very young age, Chebika was a family name that we heard a lot in my household growing up. My grandparents had dairy farms. I remember my mother talking about when the orchard was creating these olives, and olive oil was being made by this company, her family friends. And I remember that was the first realization that oil came from olives. I didn't realize that until then. And it was because of the Shabika family name. Now fast forward many decades ahead as my children have married and their spouses came from places

Thank you. Thank you for inviting us and thank you for the award. We appreciate it. It's nice to be recognized.

You're very welcome. Thank you for being here. Ciao.

All right. Thank you again. Next on the agenda, item two, consider accepting the resignation of Carlos Verduzco from the Entertainment Commission. Does council have any questions of staff? Seeing none, I will open item two up to the public. Any comments? From the public regarding item two, or if you're participating remotely, please use the raise hand feature now, or dial star nine on a telephone to indicate you wish to speak on this item. Seeing no hands raised remotely, I will close public comments. Any comments from council members?

Council Member Alvarez. Mayor, I want to thank Mr. Radusco for his service on the committee. Carlos is a very active member of our veterans community as well. So I just want to thank him for his time serving on the Entertainment Commission.

All right. Thank you. All right. I will, I need, I have a resolution accepting the resignation of Carlos Reduzco from the Entertainment Commission. Do I have a motion? Motion by Vice Mayor Williams, second by Council Member Alvarez. And will the clerk please call the roll for this item?

Next, item three, consider appointing Sarah Lytle Pinney and William Patterson to fill two vacancies to the City of Modesto Entertainment Commission as a non-permit holder with a partial term ending December 31, 2028, and appointing John Griswold to fill one vacancy of a non-profit special event permit holder for a partial term ending December 31st, 2028. Any questions from council for staff? Seeing none, I will open this item up to the public. Any members in the public could come forward or if you're participating remotely, please use the raise hand or dial star nine on a telephone to indicat

Aye. Carries unanimously. Thank you. Next on the agenda is public comment. Public comment tonight is available both in person and through Zoom. Thank you for joining us. The city council meetings are a place where everyone is encouraged to share insights, listen, and participate in the decision-making process that benefits our community. To ensure a fair and respectful environment, the mayor is responsible for maintaining order and decorum as outlined in the city charter and the rules of decorum posted at the entrance of the chamber. I ask that we are all respectful of all members of the publi

I do not see any hands raised online or we haven't received phone calls. All right. So next is Anthony Drobnik.

Thank you. Next, is there anyone online or phone in? Not seeing anyone. So we have Bruce. I wish I could... Okay. Welcome. Welcome.

Thank you. Is there anyone online for next public comment? All right, is there anyone else wishing to speak under public comment for those items not on the agenda? Welcome.

You're welcome. I do not have any other speaker request cards in person. Sure.

Thank you. I'm going to have our deputy city manager give you her card to follow up with responses and some information that might help you. Okay, great. Thank you. If you'd reach out to her, you have her card. All right. I do not see anyone online. Yes.

Again, I'm going to have Allison share her card. If you would please email me directly, but she can give you that information too, and then we can give you all the information that you requested. All righty. You're very welcome. Any other members of the public regarding items not on tonight's agenda? Seeing no one in person, no one online, we will go to consent items. Will the city clerk please read the consent items?

I did not. Next on the agenda is consent items. Thank you for reminding me. An item may be removed from consent and discussed at the request of a member of the public or council member. Is there anyone on the council that would like a consent item removed for further discussion? Seeing none, is there anyone in the public that would like an item removed from consent for further discussion or comment? If you are participating remotely, please use the raise hand feature now or dial star nine on a telephone to indicate you wish to remove an item from consent. Seeing no one in person, I do not have

May I have a motion to approve the consent calendar? So moved. Moved by Council Member Wright, seconded by Council Member Scudia-Brington. Will the clerk please call the roll?

Aye. Carries unanimously. Next on the agenda is council comments and reports. Council Member Scudia-Brayton. Thank you, Mayor.

Well, I am delighted and very excited to announce the build-out of Green Acres Nursery at the old Toys R Us location. Many of you might have seen the Modesto Focus and Bee article in regards to the same topic. But indeed, staff is diligently working with the management team and moving forward and finalizing the permits and incentive programs and what will be the official announcement of the grand opening that we much are looking forward to. But let's all welcome this new and family-owned business to our community. They are going to contribute immensely to our economy and to our jobs and just t

THANK YOU, MAYOR. LAST SATURDAY, I HAD A DISTRICT FOUR NEIGHBORHOOD REPRESENTATIVE MEETING AT MY HOME WITH 12 MEMBERS IN MY DISTRICT. THE DISCUSSION WAS ABOUT DATA CENTERS AND JUST GETTING SOME INPUT FROM MY DISTRICT. I WAS FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE A RETIRED SCIENTIST FROM LIVERMORE LAB a retired engineer from Livermore Lab and other people who gave great suggestions and also what we should be, what I should be looking for in my due diligence as we go through this process. Highlights were on concerns were on the environment, noise, water and energy usage and just basically the cost benefits of

I also want to echo the sentiments of Council Member Esquida-Brayton here. It is exciting news that the Toys R Us building is being refurbished and it's going to be the site of another awesome business. And I really just want to thank staff for their dedication to working on this property. It's been a long haul and the public's been pretty upset that it's been vacant for so long. All the work you did on it, from putting together the vacant building ordinance to going out and finding a new business to come in that's going to bring more jobs and more revenue and one less empty building. I just k

Thank you, Mayor. I had the privilege a week ago last Saturday going by Forest Creek Park and saw hundreds of children out there on the new water features, the swimming pools. It was amazing to see the laughter and the joy that was going on out there. So many people have been by there to see what's going on. It's one of the jewels here in Modesto. I told the city manager we need a couple more of those throughout the city. He told me to find the money, so we'll have to start looking for the money. And also it's nice, we have 15 lifeguards on duty. So there's a lot of safety out there for the ki

Thank you, Mayor. I enjoyed all of the sentiments that were spoken, and I agree with all of them. Thank you for bringing that up. But there's one thing that's on the forefront of my mind today, and the next couple of days on August the 27th, My wife and I will be celebrating 40 years of marriage, and I am thrilled, humbled, and thankful for family, my wife. Love you. Be strong. We'll be strong. We'll continue to have more grandchildren. We have five at this time. But love you. Nancy Williams.

Thank you, Mayor. I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT A FEW THINGS TODAY. I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, AS MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUE DAVID WRIGHT MENTIONED, A NEW AQUATIC CENTER OPENING A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, AND THE TREMENDOUS FEEDBACK IN TERMS OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK THAT WE'VE HAD FOR THE COMMUNITY. I THINK THIS, AS HE MENTIONED, THIS IS A JEWEL. BUT I WANT TO TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF A LOOK BACK, RETROSPECTIVELY. The city manager had mentioned, you know, if we want more parks like this throughout our community here in Modesto, we find the funding, right? So I want to highlight some of the funding sources that made this 4th St

Thank you. Any other comments from council members? All right. I will proceed with my comments. On Thursday, August 13th, I met with our sister city students from our sister city, Kurume, Japan, right here in council chambers and had the opportunity to share with them about local government, what it is that we do and why we do it. And they were delightful, had lots of great questions, and I enjoyed meeting with them again. On that same day, I met with our new California Highway Patrolman Captain, Captain Serrato, who is again from this area, and he will now be responsible for the Modesto Divis

You're welcome. Are there any matters too late for the agenda? Seeing none, I'm calling the meeting of the City Council to be adjourned.