City Council - Regular Meeting

Yo, Adam. So we're gonna use this. I'm gonna put this there just in case they're reading. You guys are using the podium. Right? Yes. We are. Is there like

Good evening. There we go. Alright. Thank you all for joining us here. If you can all please join us and take a taking a seat. I'd like to call this meeting into order. It is 06:12. We do not have any closed session items. We'll go ahead and start with the roll call.

Council council member Peralta.

Present.

Council member Alonso.

Present.

Council member Romero.

Present.

Mayor Pro Tempe Mayor. Present. Mayor Melendez.

And I am here. Alright. We'll move on to the invocation and I'm gonna ask our city clerk to lead us in the invocation and then I'll ask the city treasurer to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. If you can all please rise.

As we gather here today, at the close of this year, we take a moment to pause in gratitude. We are thankful for our city council members and all who serve. Your dedication, long hours, and commitment to our community do not go unnoticed. We also extend our appreciation to the residents of our city whose involvement, ideas, and support continue to shape the place we probably call home. As we as we move through the meeting, may our conversations be respectful, our decisions thoughtful, and our shared purpose clear.

May this season bring peace, rest, and connection to each person here, and may the coming year offer new opportunities for growth and understanding. We wish everyone a joyful and safe holiday season, and we thank you all for your continued partnership in making our community stronger. We ask this in thy name, Amen. Testing.

Ready to begin. Mayor, I'd like to take a personal request. I'd like to acknowledge my wife's birthdays today, Carmel Matanga. Thank you for this privilege.

I was gonna I was gonna ask if you wanted to sing happy birthday to her. Alright. We'll move on to corrections to the agenda. City manager.

Mayor, council members, there are no corrections to the agenda. Thank you.

Okay. At this time, we'll

move on to the ceremonial items and presentations.

Thank you everybody for joining us this evening. We have, the recognition of our outgoing mayor, Salvador Melendez. At this time, we have, gifts to present to him. We have a scrapbook, a gavel, flowers to our OCOI mayor. So mayor, do wanna come on up?

And I wanna say thank you. Thank you to our mayor for, leading us this past year. We started with challenging times, but he was, steadfast and pulled through, and did everything the best that he could in guiding us through. He even had a spare time to get engaged, so congratulations. Yes.

A gavel. So this is, from the city council. We thank you, mayor, again for for your leadership, and please hold this as a memento of the 2025 time that you spent here as a mayor. Second time mayor here for the city of Manos of Montebello. Please give him a big hand.

Work to do. And then we also have a photo book that gets put together of all the events that he was highlighted here here in the city. And flowers on behalf of the city council and also for your fiance. Come on up, Danica, please. Thank you for sharing them with us.

I'll get them back. So

in addition to this, we also have certificates. We have senator Barb Archuleta here to present a certificate of gratitude for our mayor.

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I'm senator Bob Archuleta. I'm so proud to say I'm your senator. And, Montebello. You know, it seems like just the other night, I was on the steps of the I was gonna say steps of the capitol, the steps of the city hall, and we had, my god, 10,000 people out there for this beautiful tree lighting ceremony that Montebello put together.

So mister mayor and city council, I'd like to acknowledge that. What a successful event it was. And I will tell you as I told everyone that I was flying in from Sacramento, someone was tapping on my window wearing this red suit with reindeer, and he kept saying, where are you going, senator? I could read lips, and and I said, I'm going to Montebello. And he said, so am I. The greatest city in California. That's where we're going. Well, that's why I'm here tonight. And, Sal, I'm gonna address you as mister mayor for just a couple of more minutes, and that's it. Then after that, you're gonna do your reorg, and we'll have a new mayor.

And but I will tell you all that the city of Montebello has really, really made a dent in progress and affordability. It it just done so much for the for the general public. And, of course, the I gotta acknowledge the Beverly Hospital, which is now the Seventh Day Adventist Hospital, and it's providing service to everyone and sell and the city council. You're all involved in that as I was, and we have that. And, of course, look what's happened with Topgolf and all the things you're doing and the development.

So the city of Montebello is one to be recognized here by the state of California, and that's why I brought this certificate on behalf of the state of California to acknowledge you, Sal, no doubt, but also the city council for the work they've done together as a unit. And if there's one thing that we love to see in California is when people come to vet together, diversity. Speaking on behalf of the general public, every one of us who love the great city of Montebello, as you know that my two sons who are West Point graduates still serving, we ran the streets of Montebello at Grant Ray Park. It's beautiful up and down Whittier Boulevard. They're still serving to this day, and I had the honor to serve in the police department here in Montebello.

So my reach my roots are very deep in Montebello, so I made every effort to be here for you, Sal, and I wanna present this to you. If I may, mister mayor, on behalf of the state of California, in recognition of your work as mayor of the city of Montebello for the past year, your dedication to lead and to serve the community is commendable. Your commitment to making difficult decisions while striving to find the best solution has greatly benefited all who live and work in beautiful Montebello. So on behalf of the state of California, you're senator, and I'm so proud to congratulate you and wish you well. And please continue success, and don't forget where you came from.

Please always remember us little guys, you know, when you move up the ladder. I don't know what you have in your future, but whatever it is with your fiance, you passing the bar, did we all know that we have a future attorney here? And when you passed the bar, I was there. I was excited for you. So, Sal, watching you achieve so much in your political life and your personal life, it's it's such a joy and I'm so honored to have you as a friend. And so, again, once again, on behalf of the state of California, congratulations.

Okay, also with us here tonight is the office of supervisor Hilda Solis Maria Ponce.

No, Antonio

Chapa. Oh sorry, Antonio Chapa, sorry. Antonio Chapa.

You don't get Maria today. You get me. No. But it's it's good to be here in Montebello with everything that I've seen here done in the last few years. Makes me wanna move back. I used to be a a resident about twenty years ago, give or take, next to this little restaurant called Formento's. So no one really knows it, where it's at. It's a hidden gem in Montebello. But as mentioned, my name's Antonio Chapo. I am the district director and veterans liaison for the office of supervisor Hilda Solis, your supervisor for the 1st District.

It's it's always good to come back to Montebello, like I mentioned, and like the state senator mentioned as well, with all the great things that have happened here that I've seen in the last decade as well. And I know many more are to come as well. And that's because of individuals like yourself, sir. I know that we've had many chats over the years about Montebello and everything else that's gonna go on. And luckily, we've been able to sit down and break bread as well on that. And congratulations to to you and to your fiancee. She's hiding. Sorry. So I'm sure that talk about a power couple now.

Right?

So but and then also happy birthday to your lovely wife, sir. We'll we'll sing later.

But

congratulations, mayor. Thank you for your hard work and and dedicated and impact in regards to your tenure. Your leadership and commitment to community progress and steady guidance have left a meaningful mark on the city have left a meaningful mark on the city and its residents. As you conclude your term, and your accomplishments are deeply appreciated, and Montebello moved forward stronger because of your efforts. Wishing you continued success in all that comes next, and I have a little commendation from the county of Los Angeles to the honorable Salvador Melendez, Algon mayor Montebello, city council reorganization.

In recognition of dedicated service to the affairs of the community for all the civic pride demonstrated by numerous contributions for the benefits of all the residents of Los Angeles County. It's given today, 12/09/2025, and it's signed by the supervisor of the 1st District and the current chair of the board of supervisors, Hilda Alsulis. Congratulations, sir. Maria would have done it better,

so. Also

with us tonight is, the office of Congresswoman Linda Sanchez and we have Griselda Ortiz. Good

evening Montebello. My name is Griselda Ortiz. I'm the district director for Congresswoman Linda Sanchez. It is such an honor to be here today to recognize our outgoing mayor Salvador Melendez. I will have to say on a personal note, he's a great friend.

He's been a great partner all year and I don't think he publicizes this enough but when our community was hit by ICE agents over the summer, he was texting us pictures, records, he was texting us phone numbers of families that were affected so we could connect them to resources, connect them to legal help, and he's definitely made such a big difference in a lot of the families here in Montebello, so I do wanna take a moment to acknowledge him for that. And on behalf of Congresswoman Melinda Sanchez, congratulations year as mayor of the city of Montebello. I have a certificate for you and I also have a token of appreciation, a Christmas ornament for you and the rest of the city council, one for each so you guys don't have to fight for it this year.

Next, let's welcome the city of Monterey Park, our neighbor. We have, Jose Sanchez, council member for Monterey Park.

I brought my daughter with me because it's so important nowadays to recognize the importance of civic engagement and to instill those qualities in our youth. I wouldn't be true to my profession as a civics teacher if I didn't do so. Montebello holds an important for me, and it's not just because I represent the city of Monterey Park and the area that we share in common, which are our schools. Our schools are the bedrock of our community, and I went to Montebello schools, my wife went to Montebello schools. So Montebello holds a very special place in my heart and I wouldn't miss the opportunity to be here to also commend our outgoing mayor Sal Melendez and the amazing leadership that he has shown in this community.

As a council member in Monterey Park, we're always constantly looking at what our neighbor Montebello is doing and I cannot, and I know a representative earlier shared this, but it cannot be stated enough how well Sal did in terms of stepping up during a time period in our local history when ICE agents were attacking our communities here and still are in Southeast LA and throughout this area. And I can still see a lot of the images and what a great advocate he was for the residents of Montebello. And I think that true leadership is really when people step up to represent and fight for people who might not even give back to them but they know that they're doing the right thing and that's and I admire that about Sal. He always steps up to do the right thing and he did an amazing job for Mont Ebello. As a matter of fact, some of our favorite spots to eat at our and I know someone mentioned Fermentos early.

I know Fermentos. We celebrated my daughter's birthday this past Sunday here in Montebello but I'm I'm pretty sure there's no Monterey Park people here so. But and every once in a while, my wife will say, you know, why can't we get one of those like they have in in Montebello? But that's part of city planning, that's part part of life as well. But I appreciate all of the work that Montebello has done because it has kept Monterey Park on our toes as well.

We wanna be as competitive as Montebello as well. But we appreciate all of the development, all of the new businesses that you have, but it also gives us something to look forward to as well. And I wanna also congratulate you on your recent engagement and wish you all the luck in you just joining the bar as well. So I have a certificate here for self on behalf of the city of Monterey Park, your neighbor, and it reads, in appreciation for serving as mayor for the city of Montebello. Your leadership, dedicated service, and active participation has provided expanded services and support to your city, its residents, and the community.

The city council further extends our best wishes for continued success in all your future endeavors. How you guys got Topgolf before us, I I don't know. But thank you, Sal, for all that you do. And I know just because you're stepping down from being mayor doesn't mean that I know you you will continue to be a fierce and strong advocate for your community. Thank you so much for all you do.

We have more. Montebello Chamber of Commerce, we have executive director, Adrena Dugan. Please come up, Adrena.

First of all, I wanna say thank you so much for being such a great leader in our community and all the support you've given the chamber throughout the years, not just this year, but throughout the years. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart. The chamber appreciates you tremendously. The Montebello Chamber of Commerce, on behalf of its members, board, and staff, offers its deepest gratitude and acknowledgment to Mayor Salvador Melendez in recognition of his dedication and service to the community in his role as mayor of the city of Montebello over the past year. Congratulations to you. We will miss you as mayor, but you're gonna continue doing so many good things. I know it. Thank you so much.

And, now we're gonna go with, the president of our local three thousand eight hundred twenty one Montebello Firefighters Association, Zachary Humber.

Good evening everybody. Mayor Melendez, city council, the citizens of Montebello. I wanna thank you all for this opportunity to speak and reflect on behalf of mayor Melendez's last term as mayor. It's been a very challenging year, but through his leadership, experience, and dedication to this city, he was able to overcome those many obstacles. Within the fire department, you advocated for us a lot over this past year, and boy, have we accomplished a lot.

Starting with an extensive hazardous material training program, six weeks, we're able to accomplish it. And pretty soon, we're gonna have our very own hazardous material team. Also, a USAR team. We have a lot of members now. We're a leader in the region, and we even have Nacho. Right? A new member of the USAR team. In addition to Nacho, we're able to get Delta. And Delta is, part of the arson team, and she's a accelerant canine detection dog. So having two dogs in a fire department, let alone one, it's a rarity.

But now Montebello has two, so thank you, mayor. Most importantly, though through his strong advocation, I'm happy to say here in two months, Montebello Fire Department will be fully staffed, and that is rare. And I could speak from experience being a fire captain on the front lines of the Palisades fire, commercial structure fires in the city, rescues. Looking back and having a full team is very important, and we're able to do our job protecting life, property, environment, very safely and, efficiently. So, mayor, behalf of local thirty eight twenty one, the 60 members of the Montebello Firefighters Association, and executive board of the Montebello Firefighters Association, I'd like to thank you for your service, excellent leadership, and guidance as mayor of the city of Montebello.

But most importantly, a true supporter of labor and the fire department. Thank you very much.

And also with our fire department, we have our Montebello fire chief, Fernando Pelaez.

Good evening, everybody. Mayor, I just wanna say thank you for everything, for your leadership, your dedication, and most of all, trust for entrusting me and allowing me to definitely serve out my dream. It's been amazing. And, appreciate those phone calls and check ins that you do and those times we're able to sit and have coffee and discuss things. And, I really see your heart, your dedication, and I see such a bright future for you.

I don't have

a flattery or a yowl or a or a certificate, but what I've got for you is, in the fire service, a white helmet signifies, leadership, who's in charge, who's in command, and who's in control. So when you see a white helmet on the fire ground, that's the leader. What we have here is, we, we had the shield mate with mayor, Melendez Montebello, fifty five, which is our station 55, and then the passports that say mayor. So

Thank you chief. Do we have any other certificates that would like to be presented? I think we covered them all. But before we continue, I do wanna recognize our commissioners. We have city commissions here.

We have the parks and recreational commissioners, Oliver Jimenez, Olaf Luevano. Joshua Ulloa. We also have our civil service commissioners. We have Delia Delgado. Alexandra Bettiseno.

Henry Fimidis. Traffic and safety. Traffic and safety commissioners, we have Ruben Baez, Maria Knox, And our planning commissioners, Irando Medina. And did I miss anybody? Sandra.

Oh, doctor Sandra Hernandez. Sorry. That's fine. Anybody else? Did I miss anybody? Alright. I think that recognizes all our commissioners, and we will continue with our meeting.

Well, thank you Mayor Pro Tem for the presentations and for leading this and thanks to all of the folks that spoke, my colleagues around the region, and everybody that shared those nice certificates, presentations and awards, it means a lot to me. As I come to the close of this year serving as your mayor, I just wanna begin by saying what an absolute privilege and honor it has been to serve this community for a second time in this role. Montebello is my home, and it is not lost to me how meaningful it is to be entrusted again with this responsibility. I I thank each and every resident for that trust. Tonight, I also wanna sincerely thank everyone who came forward to speak, to participate, and to share public comments throughout this year.

Your voices matter. Whether you agreed with us or challenged us, I hope you always felt heard, respected, and represented. That is the foundation of good local government. This year was not without its challenges, far from it. We navigated difficult decisions, complex projects, and moments that truly tested leadership.

But through it all, I can all say that every decision I made was guided by the best interest of our residents, our businesses, and our community stakeholders. Governance is not easy but it it would always it must always be rooted in integrity and service. To my colleagues on the city council, thank you. As we all know, no single council member makes decisions alone. It is the entire council body working together, five perspectives, one city.

I thank you for the debates, the collaboration, the dialogue, and the shared commitment to Montebello's future. To our city staff, thank you for always rising to the occasion, including my last minute requests, my phone calls, and my just one more thing. Your dedication does not go unnoticed. To the executive team, our city manager, assistant city manager, and department directors. Your leadership is the backbone of our city's success.

Montebello simply does not move forward without your expertise, professionalism, and countless hours behind the scenes behind the scenes work. I also do wanna acknowledge city clerk, city treasurer, city attorney, and everybody here that that's part of the Montebello team. Thank you all of you for the for your hard work. To our service clubs, volunteers, nonprofit leaders, and community organizers, You are the heart of the city. The city of Montebello is not successful because of one person or one department.

It is successful because of the people who show up, serve tirelessly, and stay involved. And I encourage everyone to continue to stay engaged. Local government works best when the community is at the table. To our public safety personnel, our police officers and firefighters, and to the leadership of both chiefs, thank you for your unwavering service, your sacrifice, and your commitment to protecting the city. You run towards dangers when others run away.

We are deeply grateful for you. And on a personal note, to my fiance, thank you for standing beside me through long meetings, late nights, difficult decisions, and moments of stress. Your patience, support, and love are truly what keep me grounded, and I would not be able to do this without you. And as I pass the gavel to our incoming mayor I wanna say this, I wish you great success, great strength, and yes, some much needed rest because leadership is demanding. Your success is not just your success, it is success of the city of Montebello.

I continue I look forward to continue to serve alongside you. And finally to the people of Montebello, thank you for allowing me to serve again as your mayor. This year reminded me that our city's resilient, passionate, diverse, and full of promise. The work continues but though though so does our shared hope for what Montebello can be. Thank you all.

Okay, so we'll move on to, do we have any public comments on non agenda items?

Yes. Yes, Mayor. We do have one speaker card.

Yeah. At this time, this is the time for public comment. Each speaker will have three minutes. You will be called forward to address the comments, and I should note it's only on the items that are on the agenda tonight. So it's only on the one item of the selection of the mayor and the mayor pro tem. Is that what the card states? Yes.

We have speaker Robert Hernandez.

Please state your name. You have three minutes.

Good evening. My name is Roberto Hernandez, and good evening everyone. Outgoing mayor, incoming mayor, everyone here. I come to congratulate Salma Landes for what everyone has said regarding your accomplishments, your challenges as mayor and as council member. I hope that this inspires our incoming mayor, and that, again, you work together as key members of our community to continue uplifting our community, its residents, its businesses, its nonprofits, our faith establishments here, because over the years of being a resident here, of twenty three years, I've noticed some changes.

I know that my residency doesn't compare to others here who have been here for generations, But I'm very proud that my wife and I have raised our children here, and I continue to look forward to being a resident, and having myself as contributing to the beautification of our city, both by providing my services, but also by helping any of the city council members with anything that you might need. My services are available. I don't come here to say what you can do for me. I've known that throughout my years of my profession, I give. I'm an educator, so I've been teaching for almost thirty one years, and I know that it is through giving that we serve our community, so I'm here to say to you again, congratulations, Mr.

Melendez, and, for your dedication to our serve to our community and our and the residents. And, I offer my services to every single council member here tonight. Thank you.

Thank you for your comments. Do we have a Mayor

any other concludes our speaker cards. Okay.

At this time, we'll move to staff communications on items of community interest.

Mayor, I just wanna say on behalf of myself and the employees of the city of Montebello, I wanna thank you for your leadership during this year. It's been a pleasure working with you and likewise we look look forward to working with the new mayor and vice mayor. Thank you.

Thank you for those comments. And at this time we'll move on to our regular business. And we'll go into item number two, City Council selection of mayor mayor pro 10 positions under Montebello Municipal Code section two point zero eight point zero ten reorganization.

Yes. Mister mayor, members of the city council, tonight is the opportunity to select a mayor and a mayor pro tem. We will start with the position of the mayor. At this time, mister mayor, it'd be appropriate to entertain a numb open the nominations and entertain a nomination from the floor. It does not need to receive a second. Okay.

At this time, we'll open up nominations. Is there anybody that would like to nominate one of our your colleagues for the mayor position?

Yes, mayor. It would be my honor to nominate Georgina Tamayo for the position of mayor of Montebello.

Okay. We have a nomination.

It would also be appropriate to determine if there's any other nominations and if there are not then it would be appropriate to close the nominations. Okay.

Do we have any other nominations?

Seeing none, at this time we will close the nomination period. And then with one person being nominated for mayor, it would be appropriate then for the city clerk to poll the city council to confirm Georgina Tamayo as the mayor of the city of Montebello. Council member Peralta.

Aye.

Councilmember Alonzo? Aye. Councilmember Romero?

Aye.

Mayor Pro Tempe Mayo?

Aye.

Mayor Melendez? And I vote aye. Congratulations, mayor.

Thank you very much. Mona Bello, tonight as I stand here entrusted with the responsibility to serve as your mayor, my heart is full. Full of gratitude, full of humility, and full of hope for everything we will achieve together. I was not raised to seek titles, I was raised to serve, to work hard, to lift others. I was taught that leadership isn't about a spotlight, it's about service and compassion and the courage to do what's right when it isn't easy.

And tonight, I bring those values with me because this moment is not about me, it's about all of us. To my colleagues on the city council, thank you. Thank you for your partnership, your dedication, and your shared commitment to serve Montebello. Together through collaboration, respect, and purpose, we will continue to move the city forward. To the District 1 commissioners and all the commissioners here today, thank you for your countless hours of making our boards and committees function.

Thank you for your expertise, your service, and your commitment to our city. To my campaign team, your dedication, your trust, and your tireless tireless work made this moment possible. I will never forget all that you have contributed. To my neighbors who know me not by the title but as a lady who lives in the corner house, Thank you for keeping me humble, connected, and grounded to everyday life. To the girl scouts and the boy scouts here this evening, thank you.

You remind us that leadership starts young with kindness and bravery and a willingness to step forward. You are the future of Montebello and you inspire us. And to my long time friends who have walked beside me since my younger years, Thank you for believing in me before I ever imagined standing here. To my family members, my aunts, my uncles, my cousins, my nieces, my nephews, my in laws, and my extended family. Thank you for lifting me with your love, your encouragement, and your belief in me.

This moment belongs to you as much as it belongs to me. And to my siblings, my sister and my two brothers, thank you for grounding me, challenging me, and reminding me exactly where I come from. You shape my strength and my heart. To my daughter and my son, you are my greatest purpose. My hope for a better world begins with you.

Thank you for your love, your patience, and inspiring me to lead with compassion. And to my husband, thank you for your strength, your partnership, and your unwavering belief in me. You have been my anchor, my encourager, my steady hand through every step of the way of this journey. I could not have done this without you. To the residents and business owners of Montebello, you are the soul of this community.

Your stories, your struggles, and your dreams guide every decision I make. Thank you for trusting me with your voice. To all my invited guests here tonight, you have been part of this journey and I wanted to share this milestone with all of you. Tonight, I step into this role with a simple promise. I will lead with honor, I will serve with heart, and I will always put the people of Montebello first.

This city is full of resilience, full of people who rise, who care, who give. I have experienced this firsthand. Together, we will continue to build safer neighborhoods, stronger partnerships, and a future where every child in Montebello believes their dreams are possible. Thank you for this extraordinary honor. I am ready to serve, I am ready to work, and I am ready to lead with heart. Let's keep building a stronger Montebello together.

First of all first of all, congratulations, mayor.

Thank you.

Your first order of business then is to have the city council select a mayor pro tem. The same process would be followed. It would be appropriate to open the floor for nominations and receive any nominations for the position of mayor pro tem.

So the floor is open for nominations. Mayor pro tem.

Madam mayor, I would like to nominate or it would be my honor to nominate council member Danielle Romero for the position of mayor pro tem.

And then it would be appropriate to see if there are any other nominations.

Any other nominations?

Hearing none, it would be appropriate to close the nomination period.

We close the nominations.

And we'll turn over to the city clerk to poll the city council for the selection of the position of mayor pro tem. Council member Peralta.

Aye.

Council member Alonso. Aye. Council member Romero.

Aye.

Mayor Tamayo.

Aye.

Council member Melendez.

And I vote aye.

Mayor, we have a new mayor pro tem.

Congratulations, mayor pro tem Romero. Our next item is the AB twelve thirty four travel reports if we have any to report out. No travel reports. So with that, I will adjourn my first meeting as mayor. We're adjourned.