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.

Vice Mayor Williams. Here. Council Member Wright.

Here.

Council Member Skutia-Brayton.

Here.

Council Member Alvarez.

Here.

Council Member Rickey.

Here.

And Mayor Zwollin.

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 Mayor and City Council. Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, I come before you today grateful for this city and the people who call Modesto home. I thank you for the responsibility you've entrusted to these city council members, staff, and public servants to seek the good of the community, especially when the work is hard and the outcomes are not simple. Your word tells us that wisdom is a gift you delight to give. So today, I ask for wisdom that is clear-headed, courageous, and compassionate. Grant discernment in decisions, patience in disagreement, and humility in leadership. Where there is tension, bring understanding. Where there is weariness, bring strength. Where there is division, plant seeds of peace. I pray especially for those in our city who feel unseen, the struggling family, the unhoused neighbor, the elderly resident, the young person searching for hope. May the choices made in this room tonight reflect a genuine concern for the flourishing of all. Lord, you taught that those who lead are called to serve. Shape our leadership by that truth. Guide every conversation, every vote, and every plan with integrity and love. I entrust this meeting and this community to you, amen.

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

Yes, Mayor. Written public comment was received and forwarded to the council. In addition, a reminder, public comment is three minutes. For those attending in person, speaker cards can be found at the entrance of the chambers. If you're participating remotely and would like to comment through Zoom or by telephone, please use the raise hand feature or press star nine on your phone when the relevant agenda item is announced. The mayor will call on you when it's your turn to speak.

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

Yes, Mayor. The council met in closed session today for two items, one related to existing litigation and then also a property negotiation item. No reportable action was taken.

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.

Thank you everyone for presenting us with this today. It is a true honor and I want to mention my whole family that's here and standing here and even in waiting before we walked in, I was filled with a lot of pride about what we've accomplished here and it's not lost on me that it's because of the community here. that we've been here for 90 years, and we've been through a lot of ups and downs with our community, and they've always been here to support us. And 101 years ago, my great-grandfather bought a property here in Modesto, and then 90 years ago started making olive oil, and I can't think of a better place that we could have chosen to make that happen. So thank you, and thank you everybody who makes this place great.

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 and that's food through your oil and products. Thank you for all you do. Thank you for contributing to our job economy and everything and may God bless you and your family and much continued success in the business.

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.

We've got an olive oil fitting, so whichever one you like best, that's the one to use.

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.

All right. Council Member Rippey.

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 other than Modesto, California. They love your products. They find them wherever they are. They order them. It's just a legacy. You are a legacy in our community. We recognize it. You're valued. We appreciate you. And thank you so much for your effort and staying and continuing to grow. We appreciate you. So I'll bring the certificate down. We'll bring it down. And thank you for being here this evening.

Thank you so much.

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

There you go, honey.

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

Love it.

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.

Motion by Vice Mayor Williams, second by Council Member Alvarez. And will the clerk please call the roll for this item?

Council Member Bavaro? Aye. Vice Mayor Williams? Aye. Council Member Wright? Aye. Council Member Scutia-Brayton? Aye. Council Member Alvarez? Aye. Council Member Rickey? Aye. And Mayor Zwollin? Aye. Carries unanimously.

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 indicate you wish to speak. There's no public comment. I will close public comments. Any comments from council members? Seeing none at this time, I have a resolution approving the appointment of Sarah Lytle-Pinney, John Griswold, and William Patterson to the Entertainment Commission for partial terms ending December 31st, 2028, and rescinding resolution number 2026-240. Do I have a motion? So moved. Moved by Council Member Wright, second by Vice Mayor Williams. Will the clerk please call the roll for this item?

Councilmember Bavaro? Aye. Vice Mayor Williams? Aye. Councilmember Wright?

Aye.

Councilmember Skutea-Braton? Aye. Councilmember Alvarez? Aye. Councilmember Rickey? Aye. And Mayor Zwollin?

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 public, presenters, and council members. Anyone who disrupts this meeting may be asked to leave. I appreciate your cooperation as we discuss key issues and make decisions that affect our city. We will now open public comment for items not on the council agenda, and each person has three minutes to speak. If you're participating remotely, please use the raise hand feature or dial star nine on your phone to indicate you'd like to provide public comment. I will alternate between participants attending in person and those participating remotely. At this time, I have three speaker cards, and I will call them in the order that I receive them. First is Danielle Morgart.

Good evening, Mayor, Vice Mayor, and Council. My name is Danielle Morger. I'm from the office of Assemblyman Juan Alaniz, here to provide a legislative update. Currently, Assemblyman Alaniz has two of his assembly bills headed to the governor's desk waiting for a signature. This is AB 1617, and this would streamline household hazardous waste reporting, and AB 1728, which expands the common course numbering system to include firefighting and law enforcement courses in our community colleges for the state of California. As always, if there's any questions regarding our legislation or you or someone you may know needs assistance with our casework services, please do not hesitate to reach out to our office. Thank you. Thank you.

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

My name is Anthony Drobnik. I'm a local high school teacher, and I want to address a few matters in relation to the previous city council meeting. As a reminder for everyone, under state law, council members may respond to matters being presented under public comment only as follows. One, briefly respond to statements made or questions raised. Two, ask a question for clarification. Three, provide feedback. Sorry, provide a reference to staff or other resources for factual information. Four, request staff report back at the subsequent meeting. Finally, five, a council member or the council itself may take action to direct staff to place a matter of business for a future agenda. With that in mind, it was very unprofessional for Eric Alvarez to talk over a concerned member of the public, Ryan Burstyn, and interrogate Ryan if he was a paid agitator. And Rosa doubled down on that question, insisting that Ryan answer Eric's question. This bad faith line of questioning was not a clarifying question. Eric didn't attempt to clarify anything Ryan had said. I don't even know Ryan, but elected officials openly heckling a member of the public making a good faith effort to engage the democratic process is undignified and unacceptable. Eric and Rosa, you should be ashamed of that behavior. It was out of line. And I want to briefly state that I'm not in any way affiliated with the Juan Tejas campaign, but I would urge all District 2 voters to elect Juan Tejas because Eric Alvarez clearly doesn't value listening to the community. If he did, he wouldn't have abused his position to silence the public like he did last meeting. I also want to draw attention to a social media comment made by David Wright. At the last city council meeting, a picture of me and a cat in a hat hat was circulated by the Modesto Bee as part of their story on the public response to data centers. David commented on the story with a disparaging remark directed at me. I quote, what a idiot, and he is a school teacher, sad, end quote. publicly insulting me because I decided to speak up on issues that matter? I'm outspoken enough to tell you to your face that insulting someone like that is spineless and childish, but that's an insult to children because my ninth graders are more mature and more polite. They know how to conduct themselves accordingly. When you insult people like that, you discourage them from speaking up and exercising their First Amendment rights. That's not okay, and it's not good leadership. And secondly, council member, you called me a idiot. Dude, it's an idiot, A-N, an idiot. If you want to insult my intelligence, Let me just put it this way. I think you made it clear which one of us is, to use your words, a idiot. And because I know this council, especially Eric, likes to discredit speakers who leave after public comment, I want to say that I will be listening to the whole meeting on Zoom. So when the three of you all decide to apologize, I will be able to hear that during comments later. And in closing, I do just want to say, Chris, Jose, Sue, Joseph, Nick, Jeremiah, I hope you all have a lovely night. Keep up the great work.

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

And I have to apologize. I thought you were Lynn's wife. But if you were born in 1964 ‑‑ I was born in 54 and I am Lynn's wife. Proceed.

You're throwing me off.

Two weeks ago, I came and I expressed my concerns about the city attorney violating my civil rights to instruct my elected official, Jeremiah Williams, and the mayor. I excuse you. You got a lot of other things to worry about. Maybe the letters that I sent and the requests that I made to Ava, the liaison, didn't get through to you. But you're busy. You, on the other hand, They have no excuse. I had a meeting with you. You canceled at the last minute, said you had to go to a ribbon cutting. Never got back to me. No one's reached out, that's your guys' term, to me about this since two weeks ago. I haven't got anything from you. I haven't got anything from your liaison or you personally. This bothers me. I asked to be put on the agenda for the next city council meeting so then I could do a letter instead of an email and get everything out in the open about this corruption through the city attorney. He doesn't like that. He doesn't like corruption. Nobody does. Nobody likes corruption being exposed. The day after that meeting, I was thinking, well, that was a good thing. Good thing to do. But this guy right here ordered the police department to fine me $1,250 for these ridiculous code violations. That's obviously retaliation. That's unacceptable. I've reconsidered about what I'm going to do. And I'm not going to be bullied. I'm not going to be intimidated. I'm not going to be scared off. I'm going to go through with this. But I thought I'd bring it to all your attention first about what this man up here has done. $1,250. I've got like probably eight or nine of these things starting from 2006. None of them has ever resulted in a fine that I had to pay. They all get dismissed. I was appealing the original one that was a couple weeks ago. I got a call from a police officer at 8 o'clock in the morning on a Sunday. Woke me up, starts grilling me. I want to come to your house. I want to talk to you. No, no, that's not happening. Put everything in writing. How's my appeal going? I filed an appeal. Well, okay, put that in writing. I've received nothing. I expect something in writing. from this man right here about what's going on with that peel, about what's going on with these ridiculous... A second violation is $250. A first violation is $100. How, then, they could make my first violation $400 and then... make my, without a notice of violation, just sending me a citation the day after I spoke for $1,250. I'm on a very limited income, less than $1,000 a year on Social Security, and that's killing me. You should be ashamed of yourself, Mr. Sanchez. I know you have no shame because you're an attorney. You've exceeded your time. You're welcome. Sue, it's nice. You said 64. I was going like, huh? You married Lynn, right? It's all right. Okay. You're still a youngster.

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.

Kevin McLarty, District 1. I wanted to speak about the fact that we still don't have air service in Modesto, or we still don't have commercial air service. I did a little bit of research and I found out the reason why we don't have it. Now, we've been told that we don't have it because the airlines pulled out. They weren't making enough money. United Airlines pulled out because They were doing what was called a milk run between Modesto and San Francisco and were between Modesto and LA and it wasn't profitable for them. I've heard that there weren't enough passengers. I know that part is not true because those planes were full all the time. But I found out that there's another reason that we don't have it, and this reason has not really been well publicized. The other reason is because we do not qualify for something called essential air service. Now, essential air service is a federal program. that provides air service to smaller towns that are further away from commercial airports. That I think 90 miles, they have to be at least 90 miles away from a commercial airport and they have to be a smaller town. MEDESTO IS TOO BIG, AND IT'S TOO CLOSE TO SAN FRANCISCO, BECAUSE AIR MILES, WE'RE NOT TALKING DRIVING MILES, WE'RE TALKING AIR MILES. WE'RE ONLY 80 AIR MILES FROM SAN FRANCISCO, AND SO THEREFORE, WE DON'T QUALIFY AS BEING 90 MILES AWAY FROM THE NEAREST AIRPORT. WE'RE ALSO CLOSE TO SACRAMENTO AIRPORT. So I think that the way that we're going to be successful in getting air service to Modesto is rather than looking at airlines and saying, how can we find an airline that's willing to come here? We should be asking ourselves, where can we find another funding source other than the federal government? OK. that cities like Merced have the essential air service program from the federal government, what can we have? What program or what incentive or what funding source can we find for Modesto to provide air service to us? I think that's the question that we need to be asking. Now, I've also done some thinking about why not try to attract an executive airline, an airline that provides Learjets that maybe hold 10 or 15 people rather than the larger commercial airlines. Those planes could land at our airport. Thank you.

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

Hi, my name is Fran Phillips. I've lived in Modesto for exactly a year and two months. And I'm here because where I live is unfortunately inundated with homelessness that just walk up to the residential areas and ask for money. I live next to McHenry. I live on Corson Avenue. These were once really beautiful homes. And now we are getting, because of what's associated or located on McHenry, We're getting problems with homelessness and crime. My car's been broken into. Like I said, people come up into my yard asking me for money that, you know, we have to shoo them away. It's not a normal situation. It originally was where we live was a rental my son owned, and we couldn't rent it because of the homelessness issue. Now, I know that Modesto's done a lot with it, but my question is why does there have to be So many pot shops, so many marijuana shops on McHenry. Literally two at the end of Corson and one every two blocks off McHenry. I don't understand. This makes no sense. Modesto could be really beautiful in that area. It could be very family friendly and it's not because of these people. There was a furniture shop that closed down. They opened up, and now they're closing down again. Same reason. The homelessness on McHenry is a problem, and I think it's associated with the sheer number of marijuana shops that are on McHenry. Thank you.

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.

I WAS HERE TWO WEEKS AGO AT THAT HISTORIC CITY COUNCIL MEETING WHERE THERE WAS DOZENS OF PEOPLE HERE DISCUSSING THE DATA CENTERS AND THE CAMERAS. I THOUGHT THERE WAS A MAN THAT HAD PUT IN A REQUEST TO add those subjects to the agenda and I was curious kind of what the process is of adding those subjects to an agenda. I understand there's a lot of kind of like logistics around like how to even carry a conversation like that because a lot of the conversation was about THAT KIND OF SOUNDS LIKE A VOTE, BUT I'M CURIOUS, CAN ITEMS BE ADDED TO AN AGENDA JUST TO HAVE A PUBLIC DISCUSSION? JUST BECAUSE I NOTICED THAT A LOT OF THE RESPONSES THAT YOU GUYS WERE GIVING TWO WEEKS AGO WAS JUST concern regarding the legality of you being able to have a dialogue regarding those subjects, which makes sense. There's a process to this. So I'm curious kind of what is the process of being able to add an item to an agenda? Can we have dialogue regarding the data centers? Or, you know, I understand a moratorium, you know, a request for a moratorium is another subject, it's another conversation. That's a whole other thing. But can we just have a conversation regarding data centers and plot cameras? Can that be added to the agenda? Is there already a process happening right now to have those discussions? And also, what differs from a discussion and a request for a moratorium in the city?

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.

Thank you. I appreciate it.

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?

Yes, Mayor. Item 4, consider approving the minutes for the August. Did you ask if an item wanted to be removed from consent?

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 anyone online. Will the city clerk please read the consent items?

Yes, Mayor. Item 4, consider approving the minutes for the August 11, 2026 Council meeting. Item 5, consider approving an agreement for the operation of a safe sleeping program with Modesto Gospel Mission for a total amount not to exceed $100,000. Item 6, consider accepting an informational report for the June 2026 Accounts Payable Payment Register and Void Report. Item 7, consider approving the purchase for seven fleet replacements for a total amount not to exceed $1,110,447. Item 8, consider approving the agreements for the furnishings of electric motor rewind rebuild services to ANJ Works, Modesto, California, and Modesto Industrial Electrical Company, Modesto, California, for a total combined amount not to exceed $965,098 over five years. And item nine, consider approving an agreement with Muniquip LLC, Roseville, California, for WEMCO hydrostall pumps, parts, and electrical components for a total amount not to exceed $804,248 over five years.

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?

Council Member Bavaro? Aye. Vice Mayor Williams. Aye. Council Member Wright. Aye. Council Member Scudia-Brayton. Aye. Council Member Alvarez. Aye. Council Member Rickey. Aye. And Mayor Zwollin.

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 to our community here. THE OCCUPANCY IN THAT SPACE HAS BEEN LONG AWAITED. SO AGAIN, WE WILL MOVE FORWARD IN WORKING DILIGENTLY WITH THEM AND OPENING THAT UP TO GREAT WELCOME AND FANFARE. SO LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE. ALSO, I HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF ACCOMPANYING THE MAYOR LAST WEEK to the post-academy graduation in Stockton, where we welcomed six new Modesto police officers to our MPD family here, and it was wonderful. It was wonderful to see family and loved ones celebrate the graduation of these six new and young police officers, and it was wonderful to welcome them to our team. Thank you.

All right, Council Member Bavaro.

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 having data centers, if any, in Modesto, but it was a productive conversation and great input from the people in District 4. Thank you, Mayor.

You're welcome. Council Member Rickey.

Thanks, Mayor.

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 know that this city is committed to filling other problem buildings in Modesto as well, like the Longs on McHenry and the Osh building on Sisk. We're not going to stop until these things are fixed. And I just really appreciate staff's dedication to getting the job done. Also, I'm really looking forward to the city coming up with an ordinance to help manage e-bikes. Recently, we had an e-bike rider that died at Roseburg and College Avenue in my district. Last year, 97 people were injured in accidents involving e-bikes. And the thing is, when this city writes a good ordinance, good things happen. Whether it was the sideshow ordinance, The smoke shop ordinance, the vacant building ordinance, an ordinance like this will make Modesto better, and I appreciate the work that the city's putting in on it to make Modesto safer. And finally, I want to thank the city's Public Works Department for working to address issues downtown, like the planters on 10th Street, the trees on 11th Street, and throughout downtown. Downtown is a really important part of Modesto's future, and just taking care of it is a great way to keep it going. Thanks, Mayor.

You're welcome. Council Member Wright.

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 kids, making sure they go down the slides one by one. Have lifeguards at the end of the slides making sure they can get off before another child comes down and it's a fantastic and I know that this city is going to be blessed having that part and especially People that live over in that area.

Thank you Vice mayor Williams

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.

All right. Council Member Alvarez.

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 Street Park Aquatic Center possible. So Prop 68, approximately 2019, the former administration and some of my colleagues sitting up here when they were in their first term attracted those state dollars to Modesto. And that was approximately $8.5 million for 4th Street Park. And in addition to that, around 2022, when Measure H passed, when I assumed office, post pandemic, there was increase in costs, increase in construction, increase in labor, increase in everything across the board. So through the diligent work in navigating the budget, MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES AND I FOUND ANOTHER ADDITIONAL $9 MILLION TO MAKE THIS AQUATIC CENTER A REALITY. THE TOTAL PRICE TAG ON THE FOUR STREET PARK, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE COMMUNITY TO KNOW, IS APPROXIMATELY $17 MILLION. 8.5 CAME FROM PROP 68. and uh... some the additional cost of totaling nine uh... approximately nine million for the seventeen million dollar price tag came from uh... post twenty twenty two uh... from measure h funds and some general fund dollars so i want to highlight both administrations before i took office uh... former council member tony madrigal for his diligent work in attracting those state dollars uh... and convening the community uh... through public engagement workshops et cetera And then my council colleagues sitting up here today for our diligent work in fighting for those dollars to come to the underserved district during budget season the last several years. Also, the liability waivers are now available to fill out online. So when we had our kickoff, we saw a lot of feedback online from residents on social media that it would be more convenient for families to be able to go online, fill it out, walk up, and just uh... head into the park have some fun so we we made that possible now thanks to your feedback online uh... we're here to listen we're here to to act upon uh... what the community wants and um... i think that's a good example of our staff uh... being nimble in that so i appreciate the parks and rec department director jeremy rogers i appreciate uh... the communications department uh... sonya and her team uh... for for uh... for making that happen for our community's benefit in terms of being more efficient in our paperwork. Second, I want to highlight Modesto Police Department getting statewide recognition as Department of the Year. And that's receiving an FBI National Academy California Chapter Award. MPD was honored as the Department of the Year for the Sacramento region in recognition of the work the Modesto Police Department and community are doing to reduce crime and improve safety in Modesto. So this recognition just goes beyond any single person, program, department, or statistic. And I'm going to quote our police chief, Brandon Gillespie here. This recognition, it reflects the direction we are heading as an organization and highlights the positive results being achieved through strong community partnerships. innovative policing strategies, and the commitment of our entire Modesto community. In addition to that, major property crimes continue to decline. So through July, several major crime categories remain below the 2025 levels, including auto theft, which is down 25%, or sorry, 36%. Commercial burglary is down 43%. Vehicle larceny down 49%. Residential burglary down 25%. Robbery is down 13%. Shootings are down a huge 23%. I mean, this is a testament to investing in public safety. And the Modesto Police Department are working directly and collaboratively with our community partners. So I want to highlight and tip my hat to all this work. Also, I want to highlight, I want to make sure that the city is aware. I've been working directly with the pop-up community on making sure that we create a separate track for micro permitting. And I've made sure that I spoke with the member of the public who came and spoke a couple weeks ago on behalf of the pop-up community to make sure that I made it clear that we made some recommendations to staff to come up with some direction, some paths forward to make sure that we try to create an atmosphere that's conducive to economic development for our small mom-and-pop shops, and even before mom-and-pop shops, a pop-up community. So I want to just make sure that the staff is aware of that. That's it, Mayor. Thank you.

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 Division. I had the opportunity on August 17th to participate with Vice Mayor Williams in the official turning over of the responsibilities of organizing the Fourth of July parade from the Kiwanis to the Stanislaus Latino Chamber of Commerce. And I want to publicly express my appreciation to our vice mayor for his years and years of dedication in making the 4th of July parade happen. And he looks forward to helping the new group take over and have it be just as successful. Thank you so much, Vice Mayor Williams. yes and on wednesday august nineteenth vice mayor williams and council members could be a break and i were able to attend the kaiser modesto urgent care ribbon-cutting which will be uh... another op healthcare opportunity for members of kaiser and uh... is right here in our location and they are ready to treat many patients On Tuesday, August 25th this morning, I spoke with the docents at their Docent Council General Meeting at the McHenry Mansion. And what a delight that was. These are people in our community, a couple, I would say there was probably 25 people there, that donate thousands of hours of volunteer efforts to do tours of the mansion, to man the museum. And thousands of people come through these two locations. And without these volunteers, this would not happen. And I am so appreciative of them for having me come speak today and give a little update on our city. And spend time with them. Upcoming on Friday, August 28th, we have the McClure Meadows ribbon cutting, which will provide a housing area with, in the first phase, 17 new units opening. So this is another way that we are moving the city forward with housing. And the last... Comments that I'm going to have this evening are a little unusual. It's not something that I usually do. But you will notice that the flags throughout the United States of America will be at half staff for this upcoming week, and that is because of the death of Dolly Parton. I just heard a comment. I've heard many, many tributes today already about her as just driving from place to place. And one person said this related... felt this was really powerful, that she had more common sense in her pinky finger than most people have in their entire body. She, I would add, had more business sense. She stood up to more executives than should ever have been required of anyone throughout her entire career. She did it and was extremely successful. Marriage success? Marriage Common Sense, she was married for 60 plus years to Carl Dean, who just died last March. Creative Sense, she wrote over 3,000 songs and was in 12 films. And even above and beyond that, she established... imagination library where her goal is to have a book in every child's hand to learn to read and to make that kind of an impact is so impressive. I once heard an interview about why she dressed the way she did and she said she did this because when she was a little girl and she saw a woman downtown that was known as the town tramp and to everyone berated and criticized, she thought she was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen in her life. I appreciate her life. Apparently she has requested to have a small family private service and have people contribute to the Imagination Library as they see fit. So I felt it was important to recognize her and her life at this time and she impressed me. throughout her life. That's it for my comments. Does the city manager have any comments?

Now, as our council comments were made, the 4th Street Park is open now to welcome thousands of individuals to our community, and more important, all the smiling kids out there enjoying the park. We're certainly glad to see that. With any new opening, we're always learning and growing. We're going to be implementing now a pre-registration process to avoid the lines and having kids wait outside. We're excited to kick that off, so you can now go on our website and be able to pre-register for our available time slots at the park. In addition, I also want to recognize our Modesto Police Department as the 2025 Agency of the Year for the Sacramento region by the FBI National Academy of the California Chapter. Last week during the chapter's annual conference, Modesto Police Chief Brandon Gillespie and Captains Bobby Meredith and Robert Raina proudly accepted the recognition on behalf of the department. This prestigious honor recognizes the collective efforts of our police department and community to reduce crime and enhance public safety throughout Modesto. I think this award also speaks to the relentless drive by our police department's leadership and the entire department to not only drive down crime, but the fear of crime. It has certainly changed in our community, and I'm proud of our Modesto Police Department. Thank you, Mayor.

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.