Orange City Council - Regular Meeting

I'm calling the regular city council meeting of July 28, 2026 to order. If you have not silenced your cell phones, please do so at this time. Tonight's invocation will be given by Pastor Danny Kurame of Bridge Community Church, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by Mayor Pro Tem Dennis Bilodeau. Please stand.

Would you join me in a word of prayer? God, in the busyness of our days and the things that are going on in our minds, we take time to acknowledge you. You describe yourself as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, a great and mighty God, great in counsel and mighty indeed. And we thank you for your invitation to. Help us where we need it. And we ask you, God, that tonight's meeting would be led by your spirit. God, we pray according to your word where you tell us we can ask you for wisdom when we don't have it. We pray that you would lead and guide this assembly or that your wisdom would be present. We pray blessing over our city leaders. We thank you, God, that you've placed them in positions of influence for your purposes. God, we thank you tonight for all those in our community. Lord, we pray blessing over the homes of each and every member of the city of Orange. And God, we thank you for our first responders that care for this city. We pray blessing upon them. Lord, our firefighters, as they risk their lives on a daily basis, God, we pray that you would bless and keep them and their families. And for our police officers, Lord, God, we pray that you would also go before them, giving them wisdom and grace and protection. And we thank you for this time together in the name of Jesus. Amen. Amen.

Please place your hand over your heart and say with me, 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. Thank you, Pastor Kurame. Madam Clerk, please call the roll.

Mayor Pro Tembilido?

Present.

Council Member Barrios? I'm here. Council Member Tavalares? Here. Council Member Gellenhammer?

Here.

Mayor Slater?

Here.

A quorum is present with Council Members Demetrio and Gutierrez excused.

Thank you. There's no proclamations or resolutions this evening. A quick announcement. After speaking with the city manager, item 8.1, the renaming of the library will not be considered tonight. The item may be brought back for consideration at a future date if directed by the city council. And if there's anyone that came to speak on that item, please feel free to do so under public comments. Madam Attorney, is there anything to report out from closed session?

Not at this time, Mr. Mayor, thank you.

Okay. City Clerk, how many public comments do we have?

We have 16 speakers.

Okay. At this time, members of the public may address the Council on matters not listed on the agenda within the subject matter jurisdiction of the City Council, provided that no action may be taken on off-agenda items unless authorized by law. Normally, with that many public speakers, I would limit it to two minutes, but we don't have a heavy agenda this evening, so I'm going to be generous and allow three minutes per speaker. And additionally, if any members of the public who are participating through Zoom wish to address the council on non-agenda items, please raise your hand. If you are calling in, please press star nine to raise your hand. We'll hear in-person speakers first and then move on to remote speakers. If you are participating remotely, the city clerk will announce when your three minutes are up and then you will be muted. So we'll begin with our public speakers. If you are next in line, please, if you could make your way toward the front so we can move this along. First speaker is Fred Francis, followed by Daniel Francis.

Mr. Mayor, members of the council, I'm asking to speak to you about saving the Holiday Skate Center. In 1938, Thornton Wilder wrote Our Town, a play in which the main character asks if anyone truly understands the value of life while they live it. Wilder's point was simple. We take the fabric of our lives and our communities for granted until they're gone. Unconsciously, we assume that the places which bring us joy, connection, and history will always be there. Today, standing in our own version of our town, the fabric at risk is Holiday Skate Center. I was born at St. Joseph's Hospital, as were all four of my children. My wife moved here in seventh grade. For 53 years, Holiday Skate Center has been where generations of local children like ourselves have socialized, found a measure of self-confidence and new skills, where families have skated together, and where some even met their future spouses. It's where my parents brought my siblings and me, and where my wife and I still bring our own kids, the youngest of whom is here tonight. In Thornton Wilder's play, tragically, the main character in his town only realized what she had lost after it was gone. We can choose a different plot for our story. We can see what Holiday Skate Center means to us, to our town, and we can choose to build on what we have rather than consign it to memory. Right now, the heirs of the original landowner and their agent, Peter Whittingham, look at this land and see one thing, profit, dollar signs for townhomes. There's nothing wrong in that, but a city isn't just a balance sheet. It's defined by the places where its soul resides, where families live their lives together, A place doesn't need to be an ancient monument to be historical or of merit. Its cultural significance can be what makes it worth protecting. Most of the revenue, as we know, for our cash-strapped cities comes from sales tax. If the city council approves this rezoning that the landowners are seeking to chase a brief financial shot in the arm, they aren't just cutting off the badly needed revenue for the long term. They are authorizing the destruction of a historic community asset. Deny the rezoning effort, please. Do a property assessment. Come up with a financial number and work out a fair and equitable assessment that meets the needs of our communities and the needs of the landholders. Save Holiday Skate Center. Not unlike Hart Park Pool, it is a vital public good and a living piece of our social fabric in our town. Save it and protect something special about Orange for the next 53 years, our shared history and our future, both.

Thank you. Thank you, Fred. Following Daniel Francis is Christina Martinez.

Members of the council, please excuse I'm not as prepared.

I also may not be as well-spoken. I'm also going to keep this short and sweet. As much as I haven't lived, I still had the opportunity to grow, to explore, to see the good, the bad, and the worst in people around me. Holiday Skate Center has been a great part of my life, by great meaning emotionally exciting. It's been one of my favorite places to go when I have the opportunity. It's been here for 50 years, and landlords just get to tear it down? Over 13,000 people have signed petitions to try and save Holiday Skate Center. Hopefully, we're able to buy the land, give us the chance to buy the land. I'm one of many people asking personally and professionally to keep a good traditional life, to keep a lot of what brings us together. Like my dad said, future spouses, friends, anything possible. Please save Holiday Skate Center.

Thank you. Thank you, Daniel. Following Christina is Samantha DeGaloma.

Good evening, Council. My name's Christina. I'm a homeowner, stakeholder, but most importantly, a parent here in Orange. I want to talk about the 24-7 warehouse proposal for 24-11 Glassell. In 2019, my husband and I bought our forever home here in Orange. Our oldest son was just four years old. We didn't just buy a home. We bought into a community. We fell in love with our home for so many reasons. The school that our son would be attending, Fletcher Academy, would not only provide him with a great education, but also the opportunity to learn Mandarin in the process. Our home provided us with more space to be able to have a second child. We looked at our home. When looking at our home, one of the deciding factors was the neighborhood. We saw kids playing basketball and people walking their dogs. The neighborhood felt safe. Today, seven years later, that beautiful community has blossomed. On any given afternoon, our streets are alive. Come by any day when there's not a heat advisory, and you'll see not only kids playing basketball, but also kids riding their bikes up and down the street, couples pushing their baby strollers, people walking their dogs, and the sidewalks coated in bright, colorful chalk art. It's the quintessential American dream, but that dream is under threat. If you allow this 24-7 warehouse to be built, we will be releasing 800 diesel trucks a day into our lives. You will effectively erase my community. The bikes will vanish. The strollers will disappear. The children will be forced inside as toxic diesel soot fill their lungs. Those colorful chalk drawings will fade away, and with them, our children's safety. I implore you. Look past the dollar signs. Choose our children's health, our safety, and our lives over financial gain. Thank you.

Thank you, Christina. Following Samantha is Rachel Rolnicky.

Good evening, Mayor, members of the City Council. My name is Sammy DiGirolamo. I was an Orange resident and homeowner for 10 years. Although my family now lives in Corona, I'm here tonight to ask you to help save Holiday. Holiday has been my second home since 2007. I raised my older daughter there and now I'm raising my younger daughter there. Even after moving out of Orange, we still make the drive regularly because Holiday Skate Center is more than just a roller rink. It's part of our family's life. We're not the only ones. Every time we come to skate, we also eat at local restaurants, shop at the outlets, or in Old Town Orange, and we spend money in the city. Thousands of families from Orange County, LA County, and the Inland Empire do the same. Holiday brings people into Orange and supports local businesses. Some people may think roller skating is a thing of the past, but it couldn't be further from the truth. Drive by on any Friday night and you'll see a full parking lot and a rink packed with teenagers, just like in the 80s and 90s. Come by on a Sunday and you won't find an empty parking space. Inside, you'll see one of the most diverse communities imaginable, from young adults to seniors in their 70s, all skating together. People from every background come together to encourage one another, make new friends, and share something they love. Holiday Skate Center is more than entertainment. It provides young people with a safe place to spend their time, away from screens and negative influences. It encourages exercise, community, and real human connection, things that are becoming harder to find. For many of us, it's also something much deeper. I live with chronic anxiety and depression, and over the years, holiday has been one of the places I could always count on to find my peace. I've watched countless people walk through those doors, carrying the weight of the world, only to leave smiling. For a few hours, they can forget their struggles and simply enjoy being part of a welcoming community. At a time when mental health is one of the greatest challenges facing our youth, places like Holiday Matter, they give people a healthy outlet, a sense of belonging, and a community that supports them. Those kinds of spaces are becoming increasingly rare, and once they're gone, we cannot simply replace them. If this council approves the zoning changes that would allow Holiday Skate Center to be demolished for condominiums or townhomes, Orange won't just lose a building. It will lose a piece of its history, a community gathering place, and a destination that has served generations of families for decades. I respectfully ask you to listen to the voices of the people in this community who have spoken out in support of Holiday. Please preserve this unique part of Orange's history and reject the zoning changes that would allow it to be torn down. Please choose community over convenience or profit. Please choose our youth, our families, and the generations still to come. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Thank you, Samantha. Following Rachel is Valerie Susselman.

Good evening, Mayor, Council, and staff. My name is Rachel Rolnicki. Although not on the agenda today, I'm here to talk with you about an item that will likely appear on a future agenda before the Planning Commission and one that may come before you. I'd like to share with you details about Rexford Industrial Realty Inc.'s 2411 Glassell Trucking Warehouse Project. I'm a District 3 homeowner in North Orange and live directly next to the proposed development site. Specifically, I live 80 feet from the project and I'm very personally invested and incredibly concerned about Rexford's proposal. I have a one-year-old daughter and my husband and I had planned to raise our family in our neighborhood, but this project is causing us to reconsider. As I understand, Rexford has proposed to demolish the existing office park, which they own on the corner of Glassell and Fletcher, and build a nearly 300,000 square foot warehouse with 36 trucking bays to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This facility is also a quarter mile from Fletcher Elementary School. My neighbors and I strongly oppose this project for many reasons. The increased trucking activity this project would bring would make a monumental impact to the District 3 North Orange community. The emissions these trucks spew, their weight on our public city roads will cause innumerable harm. Me and my neighbors, as well as the children attending Fletcher Elementary, will all suffer from the subsequent worsened air quality. The increased trucking traffic will also make our roads and communities less safe. The constant trucking activity would also make our community endure noise and sleep disruptions, as Rexford has proposed to the city that the trucking warehouse operate at all hours of the day, including nights and weekends. Ultimately, this 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week trucking warehouse does not belong next to a residential neighborhood and is not the Orange Way. I'd like to personally thank Councilmember Kathy Tavalaris, who joined our community as we attended a recent community open house hosted by the developer. The open house could have been held at a local park, such as Olive Park. Steve Ambry's Memorial Park or even Shaper Park, but no, the developer hosted the open house on the other side of town at Grijalva Park. Our neighbors, although, packed the house and there was even a line to get into the room. Neighbors were frustrated and upset and this meeting in no way placated our concerns. Again, a big thank you to the council member for attending that open house and seeing our community's massive response. Council, please hear me and my neighbors as we strongly oppose Rexford's 2411 LaSalle Trucking Warehouse project. You'll continue to see us as we attend all future meetings leading up to a potential hearing date for the project. Thank you very much for your time.

Thank you, Rachel. Following Valerie Sussleman is Jane Sussleman.

I'm also here tonight to talk about Holiday Skate Rink. I'm not going to say anything you guys are not going to hear over and over and over again. I grew up in the city of Orange going to Holiday Skate Rink. I went to the mall or I went to the rink. And both of them were so much fun. I moved away. I moved back. I'm raising my family here. And my kids are just now getting to the age where they can come to the rink and they're doing lessons. They're skating backwards. I mean, they'll tell you. They tell everybody. They love, they're having so much fun. And we're there all the time. We've been there ever since we moved back. It was one of the pieces of Orange history in my youth that I wanted to share with my kids when we finally moved back to this town. This town is so unique. It's not like other towns. towns in the area. I mean, I'm a teacher. I know where teenagers go. They can choose to go to Irvine Spectrum. They can choose to come to Old Town Orange. They can choose to go to Holiday Skate Rink. And last night, it was packed with teenagers, packed with families, multi-generational people, myself, my three kids, and it's a safe place. There's There's a community here that if it got rezoned, you're not replacing it with anything special. City of Orange is special. You guys do such a great job preserving history, providing places for families, providing places for youth, valuing youth, giving them a place to go, giving them safe spaces, safe spaces that parents can say, yes, you can step 10 feet away from me. You can step 50 feet away from me. And I will know that you're safe. You're safe in Old Town Orange. And they are so safe at Holiday Skate Rink. I get to sit down and my kids get to roller skate. I don't have to be right next to them the whole entire time. And that's huge in this day and age. I mean, everybody is saying, oh, my kids are off on their iPads all the time because I don't feel safe going out of the house. Well, the City of Orange, I feel safe. But Holiday Skate Rink is one of those places. And if it got rezoned, it would just be so sad. And again, I'm not going to stand here and say anything that you guys aren't just going to hear over and over and over again. I'm just here to yet be another voice, another person that tells you that When I am at Holiday, what I see is real. We're not up here blah, blah, blah-ing just for any old reason. We're here because it's real. Our lives at this rink are real, and we love it. Thank you.

Thanks, Valerie. Following Jane is Maggie Sesselman. If you can pull the microphone down. Thank you very much.

Hi, my name is Jane, and my middle name is Holiday, and I just love Holiday Skate Center, and I just am learning to skate backwards, and I did the splits yesterday on my own, and I get to see all of my mom's friends teenager friends that she teached and she's a holiday skate center just means a lot to me and I don't want that to go away and just be nothing and then I just was learning, and then my sister just kept roller skating with me, and I got to roller skate with my big sister and my mom, and Holiday Skate Center is just so, so family to me. Thank you.

Thank you, Jane Holiday. Following Maggie Sesselman... is not another Sussleman. Daniel Fallon. Yes. Please go ahead, Maggie.

I want to say is just Holiday Skate Rink was really fun going to it. And if Holiday Skate Rink goes away, it feels like we Jane's middle name kind of means it's still kind of by us. I just will miss Holiday Skate Center a lot and It would be a fun thing that it would be not going, not closing. I just wish we could have it every day forever because we were just learning how to do moves. And yesterday, Jane taught me how to do the splits. And it was fun. And all of those classes that we learned stuff, we were just learning. And we're going to have another class on Saturday, but then we don't know where we will roller skate. And I just want to say I'll miss it very much. Thank you.

Thank you, Maggie. You're very brave. Following Daniel Fallon is Myla Talbert. Daniel Fallon.

Mayor Slater, they're going to speak as a group. Okay. Okay. Okay.

Good evening, Mayor Slater, Mayor Potem, Bilodeau, and members of the Orange City Council. My name is Young Marine Private First Class Key.

Good evening. My name is Young Marine Private First Class Fallon. I'm Young Marine Private First Class Dillon.

And I'm Young Marine Private Tolbert.

Today, we're here to speak about the MTS Tuts and Young Marines, a youth leadership program and 501 nonprofit organization for boys and girls ages eight through high school. We teach leadership, physical fitness, and how to lead a drug-free, healthy lifestyle. Our program focuses on three pillars of leadership, teamwork, and discipline. Through rigorous recruit boot camp and ongoing training, participants learned the young Marine obligation, which emphasizes leading by example and living with integrity. In a world full of distractions, the MCS Tustin unit instills the Marine Corps fundamental values of honor, courage, and commitment.

By embracing these values along with the core principles of our program, participants can achieve success in anything. The MCS testing unit goes back to the community by raising veteran awareness. by volunteering at service events, such as the recent LA Fleet Week display at USS Iowa, such as the official Youth Drug Prevention Program of the United States Marine Corps. And our young Marines promote a healthy, drug-free lifestyle among our peers. We are not just youth. We are the responsible American citizens that our future requires. The City of Orange serves as an ideal training ground for these young leaders.

Leadership is an integral part of the Young Marines. The program builds youth leadership by organizing events to allow Young Marines to get involved within their own communities. These events are accessible to every Young Marine within our unit, regardless of financial circumstance and backgrounds. We march in large-scale parades, participate in structured community service, and perform various color yards for the community. One of our highlights was actually the Christmas parade of 2025 when we were broadcasted on live television for the world to see, which is pretty amazing that MCAS testing young Marines would love to collaborate with the City of Orange to develop the future leaders of America.

By supporting the MJAS Trust in Young Marines, you ensure that the future leaders of Orange are prepared, sharp, and ready to lead. Thank you for being part of a city that values the same things we do. If you're interested, you're always welcome to our unit, and please check out our website at youngmarines.org. Semper Fidelis.

All right. Gosh, thanks for coming tonight. Sounds like great organization. All right. Mary Oberschlake is next, followed by Diana Zenik.

Good evening, Mr. Mayor, Mayor Pro Tem, City Council. Hope all is well with all of you. I'm up here tonight for two reasons. I'll be very brief. Indivisible Orange has taken a position that we feel It is eminently practical to continue with the names of the libraries as they stand based on location. We see no reason to spend money changing anything at this time. And then the other issue I wanted to bring up, I hope you all are paying attention here in the county, what happened last week in Costa Mesa regarding their flock contract. Yes, they did. Decide to renew it, but I urge all of you, please, watch the news. Pay attention to what's happening around the country. And if you're really curious, call the mayor of Santa Cruz and the mayor of Watsonville. Talk with them and their city council. Thank you.

Thank you, Mary. After Diana is Betty Talbert.

Good evening, Mayor and City Council. Thank you for reconsidering item 8.1 and pulling it from the agenda. Regardless of it being pulled, I'd like to pronounce the e-comments, because I know not all of you read them, and I know that sometimes they don't make it into the minutes if they're submitted by the e-comments. I ask that these be accepted as part of the public record. My opposition is not about one individual, but it is about priorities. Our city continues facing monumental financial challenges. Residents are paying higher fees, preservation tools and personnel are being cut, departments are being asked to do more with less, and we are being told difficult budget decisions still need to be made. This is just not the right time to spend public resources renaming, with all that entails, one of our most important civic institutions. A library belongs to every resident. It should remain a place that unites our community, not one that divides it. Thank you for listening to the overwhelming public response and allowing the Orange Public Library to keep the same name it has held since its founding in 1885 before the city was incorporated. Thank you.

Thank you, Diana. Following Betty is Doug Hamilton.

I'm here to speak on, oh, Honorable Mayor and City Council. I'm here to speak on the library change of name, which was removed but might come back. First, I want to mention my sincere condolences to Mayor Murphy's family and friends. It's truly difficult to lose a family member, and it's a great honor that you're considering extending him. However, speaking here today creates a catch-22 for people who disagree with his proposals, perhaps being hard-hearted. I mean no disrespect, but I do not want the Orange Public Library renamed after any Orange politician, no matter how much they contributed to our city. First, public libraries honor books, all sorts of books, which spawn dreams that carry us through life. I was a fixture at the Orange Library growing up. Certainly one of the greatest inheritances that Americans have is our library systems. Orange's library is no exception. Since 1871, generations of Orange residents have experienced the power of reading and learning there. Changing the name of our library is a big ask. Maybe consider another way to honor him after the beginning of the year. The people of Orange don't have many buildings that can directly honor us. Our public library belongs to the people of Orange. Don't erase Orange Public from the library name. Generations of Orange residents represent the Orange Public Library. In total, together we all have many accomplishments, too, because of this library, because of what we experienced there and what we gained from it. Publicus in the Latin means of the people. We are the people. Second, this will cost us money. All the city council members have done their best to deal with fiscal problems. However, one can't complain about not doing enough to cut costs and then vote for this measure. I think we're all kind of on the same page at this point that we need to keep our costs down. Please discuss, reconsider what can be done in honor of Mayor Murphy and table this until after the beginning of the year.

Thank you, Betty. Following Doug Hamilton is James Gushon.

Mayor Slater and council members, thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak. For those of you that do not know me, I am Doug Hamilton, a homeowner near the Orange Mall for 42 years. I'm here to talk about the Meats to Himes specific plan and related concerns about the former Orange Mall. The specific plan has not been made available to the public and its release appears to be running very late. The delay is costing the city valuable tax revenue. The residents of Orange want to be involved in the specific plan process. There will be direct impacts to the community that must be discussed and mitigated. These impacts will affect the adjacent neighborhoods. City streets will possibly see a 5,000 increase in daily vehicle traffic from Walmart alone. The specific plan must not change the zoning on any portion of the TRC lot behind and or west of the Walmart building. That zoning, that area is zoned properly for Walmart and the current zoning is clearly the highest and best use for that portion of the TRC property. Our city budget must have the increased sales tax revenue that a Walmart Superstore expansion would bring. If the City Council makes the mistake of approving a mixed use zoning for that portion of the TRC property, it puts the site at risk of being subdivided and sold off to home builders. A zoning change will further undermine the city's budget. Keep this in mind. Proper zoning is the foundation of a bountiful city budget. The Grant Thornton Financial Instability Report predicted our city's bankruptcy in a little more than three years. Grant Thornton said two to three times during the presentation, the City Council cannot afford to give up any sales tax revenue from the former Orange Mall. I am of the belief that Placeworks has developed the preferred plan for the mall. I am asking that the City Council make it publicly available this week. Residents want to be directly involved in the process so we can have the highest and best outcome for the former Orange Mall. Thank you.

Thank you, Doug. Following James Cushon is our last public speaker, Kevin Reyes.

Good evening, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Mayor Pro Tem, members of council, city staff, first responders, and my fellow residents. This is about process, stewardship, responsible management of public assets. Both the library foundation and the city both have policies in existence for naming rights that ensure transparency, consistency, and accountability. Whether this item was heard tonight or was withdrawn, one question remains the same. How did a proposal involving one of the city's most recognizable and visible naming opportunities reach the agenda without first demonstrating compliance with those established policies? Library's policy has been in effect for over 20 years, with a revision being done over, excuse me, the library's initial policy has been in effect for 26 years, the initial policy being revised as recent as 20 years ago. There is one positive to come out of this discussion, though, is that it underscores the need for a better model. After more than five years of development, along with co-founder Adam Litwin and founding board member CeCe Sears, I'm proud to announce the formation of the Orange Park and Events Foundation, an independent California non-profit Foundation and that is, we're currently pursuing our 501C3 designation, which we should have within the coming weeks. Our mission is to restore and activate recreation, events, partnerships, and community initiatives that strengthen Orange, enrich quality of life, and create lasting public benefit through innovative engagement, stewardship, and sustainable investments. OPEF is a non-passive nonprofit. We are a working foundation that creates partnership, attracts investments, and delivers meaningful opportunities that strengthen our parks, our events, and our communities. Members of Council, before you return home this evening, you will find something in your inbox that will give you more information and insight into what we are all about. And for everybody here tonight and watching on TV, you're welcome to visit www.orangeparks.org for more information. Orange deserves more than maintenance. Orange deserves momentum. Thank you.

Thank you, James. Kevin Rays?

Dear council members and owners of the land, everyone watching, and anyone who has an ear to hear. 20-year-old Elisa Leos' father famously stated that he spent between $500,000 to $1 million on Elisa's training. Although Elisa also famously stated that her father didn't deserve to be happy over her decision to return to figure skating, the wealth Elisa's skating produced goes beyond finances alone. Roller skating is very much the same. Holiday Skate Center is set to close August 2nd, 2026. On that day, Orange will lose a valuable asset of generational wealth that will be hard to recreate. Houses are also generational assets, and with the rink being demolished in the place of 36 to 46 townhomes, according to what is available, Orange is looking at an estimated $371 to $491 million of profit over the course of three years, once the land has been rezoned and redeveloped, if each house is worth $1.3 million. While that number sounds fine on paper, it does not tell the whole truth. Paris spent $9.1 billion to host the 2024 Olympics. US figure skating has an estimated 18 million annual budget. The X Games generates roughly $30 million based on what's available online. But even if you offered me $9.1 billion to stop skating, I would refuse. simply because skating is priceless and creates experiences which money cannot buy. Scooters have made it into the X Games, and in the same vein, I will do everything in my power to see that artistic roller skating gets into the Olympics. I've only been skating for under two years, but it is not lost on me how God has used roller skating to change my life and the golden opportunity Orange has been blessed with. Elisa won Olympic gold and became world renowned. What if the next Elisa Leo is artistic roller skating is here in Orange and we take away their chance? They would either have to go to Fountain Valley or Irvine to train when they already had something set up at home. And if they get gold elsewhere, Orange will be in a similar position as Elisa's father, not deserving to be happy for such a success. It is for that reason that I urge the city council, as well as the owners of the land, and anyone who has power to reconsider this decision so that Holiday may open once again. Orange can still be known as the birthplace of Olympic roller skating, but I fear that people do not know what's at stake here. Don't become like Elisa's father. Don't become known as a city that had the chance but decided not to take it. Demolishing holidays is not the answer people are making it out to be. In fact, it will only complicate the issue. And deep down, you guys all know this. Consider, keep the land commercial. Consider the tax breaks and the legacies that can be made by keeping the place preserved as a historical landmark. I'm here to assist in whatever power I have. Thank you guys. God bless you all.

Thank you, Kevin. Are there any remote speakers?

No, Mayor.

Okay, thank you. That ends the public comments. Next is consent calendar. All items on the consent calendar are considered routine and are enacted by one motion approving the recommended action listed on the agenda. Any member of the city council, staff, or the public may request an item be removed from the consent calendar for discussion or separate action. And if any members of the public who are participating through Zoom wish to address the council on any consent calendar item, please raise your hand. If you are calling in, please press star 9 to raise your hand. We do have speakers for item 3.7, which is the Second Amendment to Memorandum of Understanding with Milan. Are there any other items that my colleagues would like to pull for discussion or questions? Seeing none, we have a motion to approve all but 3.7 from Mayor Pro Tem Bilodeau, second from Councilmember Tavelaris. Any other comments? Please vote.

There's public, right?

Mr. Mayor.

That is approved unanimously. Okay, Item 3.7, Second Amendment to Memorandum of Understanding with Milan, REI-X, LLC. We have two speakers for that. Drew Whitefeather followed by Laurel Maldonado. We have three speakers.

The human risk assessment report from OHA came into the water board on Sole Miller. First point, OHA did not agree with Milan's human risk assessment. Second, something that came out of the report is They cannot make a determination for open space as Milan keeps holding the rights for development. At what point is Milan gonna put a pin in it and determine a project for open space to the Water Board and LEA? But they keep holding their rights to build. Is it gonna be residential or open space? Because CalRecycle doesn't know. By the city lumping in this MOU together with Milan's residential and Sully Miller project, the city cannot piecemeal this project. This MOU agreement and tolling agreement is one project per the MOU amendment. Also by the city has said to the public, without all clearances, Milan will exercise their SB 330. Right now, Sully Miller is designated an illegal landfill. All the Water Board is doing is investigating the mounds and making determinations on the stockpile for open space or removal. LEA still has to do their investigation on the subgrade. Some of the subgrade testing has been done, but They have to bring it up to regulations for a landfill. Then they have post-closing and closing for a clean landfill. With the history of the site, that will take a full EIR. Dan, Jared, you guys gave false information at the public town hall meeting in Orange Park Acres. You said Milan's 30-home development at the OPA Arena, they were... THERE WAS NO WAY TO FIGHT IT. AND IF IT DOESN'T PASS, WE COULD GET 118 HOUSES. BUT YES, THERE IS. IT'S CALLED CEQUA. WE DON'T WANT 30 HOUSES OR 118. WE'RE NOT SAYING MILAN DOESN'T HAVE THE RIGHT TO BUILD, BUT WE'RE SAYING, WHAT ARE THE FULL IMPACTS OF THE PROJECT? AND THEN TELLING THE NEIGHBORHOOD THEY MIGHT GET AN ARENA. FALSE ADVERTISEMENT. THERE'S NO AGREEMENTS. And Dan, you won't even be in office when this comes back around. You can't make promises or even suggestions when you're not even going to be mayor at this point, at that point. That might even be illegal. Thank you.

Thank you, Drew. Next is Laurel Maldonado, and then followed by Sherry Pantaja.

Good evening, Mayor and City Council members. First, let me start by saying I'm not disputing the landowner's right to build on this project site. I am disputing and I have grave concerns that this MOU and MND are bypassing state, local, and county environmental safety and preservation laws, all of which cumulatively with the Sully Miller site have many dangerous and irreversible impacts. I am fighting for a full EIR of this project that has increased 500% from its original plan. Unfortunately, up until recently, the residents of OPA had only been given information regarding the California building laws in hopes to keep them quiet and compliant. Information was also given to OPA that OPA would get an equestrian arena on the Sully Miller site, yet there's nothing in writing, just empty promises and a hope and a prayer. Sounds like smoke and mirrors to get this project passed as is. In my opinion, Our community association leadership majority has failed their community obligations to provide complete information to residents to fight for our almost 100 year old community's safety and preservation. The lack of transparency and critical information made residents feel like they had no choice and they had no voice. That's when I and a group of residents decided it was time the neighborhood had complete information so they could decide for themselves to oppose or support this project. Every effort was made to silence us on social media, but word got out and over 200 letters were sent in regarding the MND. OPA and Orange residents found their voice. This is America, and if it's just my small community that I can fight for, I will. I sleep well knowing that I have my community's best interests at heart and have provided information they deserve. I was a board member of the Orange Park Association and took this obligation seriously to protect my community. I resigned over this project. The path and actions of this association majority no longer align with my moral and ethical beliefs in transparency and community involvement. I felt I could help my community better as a resident, so I will continue to fight for this community where I was raised and loved. I refuse to let Orange Park Acres be the sacrificial lamb while the city, Milan, and other communities benefit. Traffic safety matters. Fire evacuation matters. The protected oak trees matter. Wildlife matters. Our rural, equestrian, and large animal keeping rights matter. Orange Park Acres and Orange residents matter. Thank you.

Thank you, Laurel. Sherry Pantaja?

I'd like to thank you for this opportunity to speak. My name is Sherry Hart Pantaja, and I'm the Orange Park Association's president and 58-year resident of OPA. So I am the one that she's speaking that is leading my community in the wrong direction. I'm here to put on the record that the Orange Park Association supports the second amendment to the MOU with Milan and urges the city council to approve the amendment. Thank you once again for all your efforts to keep our community safe for future generations. Thank you.

Thank you, Sherry. Okay, I'll bring it back to the council for any questions, discussion, and or a motion. I have a motion from Mayor Pro Tem Bilodeau, a second from Councilmember Gilenhammer to approve this item. Are there any other comments, discussion, or questions? I'll call for the vote. That is approved four to one with Councilmember Barrios voting no. Okay, that ends the consent calendar. Next is reports from Mayor Slater. Item 4.1, consider removal of Adrian Gladson from the Design Review Committee. I don't feel there's any need for discussion on this. I would just ask for the council's support, and I guess I will make that motion. Okay. I should also add, if any members of the public who are participating through Zoom wish to address the council on this item, please raise your hand. If you're calling in, please press star nine to raise your hand. We'll hear in-person speakers first and then move on to remote speakers. If you're participating remotely, City Clerk will announce when your three minutes are up and then you will be muted. We have, I'm sorry, no speakers, but Council Member Barrios.

Yes, I had the chance to speak with Council Member Gutierrez, whose appointment this is, and she asked if I would be so kind as to say a few words on her behalf, which was that she was really disappointed in how this was handled. She felt very much like she was pressured into making decisions. into agreeing to this item and that she felt very, very strongly that it should have waited until she could be back here as part of the council when this decision was made so she could advocate or at least explain more about her own appointee. So she had asked me to do that and so I'm doing that.

Thank you, Council Member Barrios. Any other questions or discussion? I'll call for the vote. That was approved four to one with Council Member Barrios a no vote. Okay, reports from council members. Any council members have anything to report, announcements, anything? Yes, Council Member Tavares.

I just want to let everybody know that the last week of July and the first week of August, there'll be some major work done in the parking lot at the Mall of Orange. So you drive by and you see what's going on there, doing some repairs to the asphalt. So there'll be some big machines there.

Good, I like that report. Okay, we'll move on from council reports to item six, any AB 1234 reports? Seeing none. Item seven, reports from city manager as promised a report on the 2026 4th of July update and how that transpired this year.

Yes, thank you, Mr. Mayor and members of City Council. In 2025, with the November 24 passage of Measure AA, the city began the Safe and Sane Fireworks Program. Then, this past January, City Council directed staff to incorporate city drones in fireworks enforcement, which led to the city's social host program. Collectively, the fireworks program now compromises several departments and divisions, including the police department, the fire department, Code Enforcement Division and Community Services. Tonight for your consideration is the annual review of the fireworks programs with presentations from Chief Jevick, Chief Velasco, Rafael Perez, our Code Compliance Manager, Austin Postavoyt, our Administrative Manager. Each will provide an update of the respective components that comprise the city's fireworks program. And with that, I'll hand it over to Chief Jevick.

All right, good evening, mayor, members of city council. I'll be presenting the police department's perspective of a more comprehensive city approach to firework enforcement. On behalf of the police department, we appreciate that we are not fighting this battle alone. I'm very aware that even one illegal firework ignited in the city damages the quality of life for our residents, scares pets, and generates calls that take away from public safety handling other emergency calls. It's important to note we do not approach any fireworks enforcement as a revenue generator. We are solely focused on safety and improving the quality of life for our residents. There is a slide I will show in a few minutes that highlights a major safety victory for the city when I speak about the prohibited zone. It's also important to note that illegal fireworks are those that leave the ground and make a loud boom. All of the calls we get about illegal fireworks are not a result of safe and sane or those sold by nonprofits at booths. The firework calls we respond to are specific to illegal fireworks, and they have always been illegal. They are classified as misdemeanors under the California Health and Safety Code. As a result, the police department's ability to cite and or arrest for illegal fireworks rests primarily on officers witnessing somebody lighting or possessing them or having a witness who is willing to cite a private person's arrest. As you know, this presents significant challenges to any enforcement, which is why the PD was pleased to support the city's approach this year in the inclusion of code enforcement. And as a video that code enforcement will show soon, you will see how difficult it is to catch somebody in the act without something like a drone. But I want to highlight that there is a difference between misdemeanor offenses and administrative sites that our code enforcement will cover. In short, the PD is unable to cite for administrative violations. And that's why it's important to have code enforcement as our partner. So if you can go to slide two. I want to speak about what we did for outreach. And we distributed 200 flyers throughout neighborhoods that historically have high call volume related to fireworks. We deployed seven sign boards in areas where fireworks are prohibited. You can see the locations above. We utilized the 55 and Catella electronic sign board that spoke about ULight and WeSight. And we encouraged other ways of reporting illegal fireworks through a dedicated hotline, our PD info email, and 24-7 app. And if you can go to slide three. Our operational period began in June, June 20th, and ran through July 4th. The first phase is to deploy the electronic sign boards and opening up of the reporting platforms. From July 1st to July 3rd, we staffed a team of two officers from 6 p.m. to midnight to respond to calls for service and patrol areas that were reported through these platforms of reporting. On July 4th, we staffed two teams of two officers to support our code enforcement efforts. In total, 10 officers were deployed throughout the operational period, generating 97.5 hours of staffing. 57.5 of those hours were on July 4th alone. The cost for personnel was just under $6,000, which was a decrease of 44% from 2025. We spent about $1,800 on trailer rentals due to a delay in the delivery systems that we purchased. In total, our cost was about $7,700, which, again, was a decrease of about 40% from 2025.

If you can go to slide four, please. Thank you.

So in total, as I'll go over our results, Our calls for service from July 20th to July 4th were 386. It was an increase from 2025 and a decrease from 2024. Most of these were a result of a 24-7 app increase that almost quadrupled from 17 to 58 in one year. July 4th continues to generate the most total activity at over 228 calls. And you can tell from that it's almost 60% of our total activity occurs on one night. There's one arrest of interest, which was a misdemeanor that occurred on July 3rd during a traffic stop where three mortars and a launcher were recovered, and the driver admitted to picking them up in Santa Ana. And we had five separate confiscations, which resulted in 35 mortars, 12 Roman candles, and firecrackers that were recovered. And why that's significant, even though there was no arrest behind that, is that's 35 less mortars, 12 less Roman candles, and multiple firecrackers that are no longer making noise and generating additional calls for service. If you can go to slide five. So this is what I meant when I said earlier, this is really the win that we look at because when we started the Safe and Sane program, the biggest area of concern was the area east of roughly Hughes or Rancho Santiago and into our high fire zone areas. And as the fire chief will talk about in a minute, the fact that we had 18% of all calls that generated in that area is a huge decrease from what we used to see, and most of those are on the border, not in the deeper parts of the northeast section of our city, the Orange Park Acres area, and the area out by Peters Canyon, which are high-fire areas and very hard and difficult to patrol and to get to in order to help with evacuations and other safety concerns. So the fact that we only have 18% of calls in that area, And again, a majority of them happening on the 4th of July is really why we exist to provide that safety and that quality of life. And so with that, I want to share just a couple of other notes. For the operational period, our efforts were cut short on the 4th of July at 9.30 when we responded to Newport Beach, as many of you are familiar with on social media. A mutual aid call was put out and we sent additional resources to help. That included our drone operators and our firework specific team, along with several other officers. And so we were in Newport Beach assisting them. We also had a mechanical issue with one of our drones, and so we only had one drone that was operational. As you will see from some of the videos that we will show, one was still quite effective. Both drones were purchased in 2022. They are all at the end of their tech life and not designed for this type of enforcement. They're not equipped with GPS or map overlays. And so as we look for our next round of drone purchases, these will be features that we will look to include. And as you saw from other cities or other social media posts, when you have GPS and map overlays, it creates an effective enforcement opportunity, a more effective enforcement than the drones that we had. Other factors that could have contributed to the activity on July 4th was that it occurred on a Saturday rather than a normal weekday, the America 250 celebration and the city's advertisement of a drone enforcement program which could have encouraged additional calls and reporting on neighbors or other activity that night. So with that, that'll conclude my report and I'll transition to Rafael.

Good evening, Council, Mayor. So the matter before you is that a social host ordinance was adopted, and the social host ordinance essentially provides for strict liability upon any property owner, including their occupants, whether it's a rental or their guests, spectators, who are engaging in the illegal use of fireworks. and to the extent that they fail or neglect or refuse to participate in prevention of the use of illegal fireworks. And so through the use of the drone program, as mentioned by the police chief, 13 properties were identified. Of those 13 properties, eight properties met the criteria related to the social host ordinance as well as the legal discharge of fireworks that are prohibited. These are not safe and sane fireworks that are otherwise allowed to be used. And so $240,000 is what ultimately are fines that will be assessed against the various properties that fall within the criteria of the law. As you can see there, there are multiple properties at different ranges, so as the drone operation was capturing footage, it was certainly documenting every single discharge, whether it was a mortar or a Roman candle or a brick of fireworks that essentially launched off some type of projectile into the sky. Three properties where we were unable to substantiate just based on the review of evidence. There are a number of factors involved in that. Some of them were related to just the environment being too dark, not enough lighting to identify the individuals. and them being associated with a particular property. Another individual surrendered in lieu of any fines, 26 arrow mortars. That to us was a success because that was early on in the beginning of this operation, around 7.30. So there was still plenty of daylight and essentially it just discharged one. And so they gave up the rest of what they had in their possession. Another property was just identified by police and code enforcement officers. We were driving through a specific area as the drone team was capturing footage of that location. So before we show you this video, I just want to make a statement. The parties involved in the act of discharge of illegal fireworks, and engaging as a social host are innocent or proven guilty in a court of law or administrative hearing process. The footage you'll see just essentially captures the essence of the value of having drones to essentially capture people engaging as a social host, participants such as spectators being present to observe illegal fireworks, and then those individuals who are actually engaging in the use of illegal fireworks. So the drone will essentially pick up a location where fireworks are being discharged. As you see there, there are individuals who are on a private property, that private property owner did not give permission to these individuals to be on their property. So you'll see the discharge. The drone captures the footage after it's been lit and it has been projected into the air. Individuals return back to a property where you see spectators sitting around, standing around, preparing for an illegal fireworks show essentially. They return back to the location where they're discharging fireworks, where they reload, essentially, a number of different projectile mortars and other types of illegal fireworks. And once again, it goes up into the air, explodes, obviously creates noise and other dangerous factors. You've got brush in the area. These individuals, as soon as they see a police car, immediately retreat back to the house, and you will see as a police and code enforcement approach, all individuals start to run into the house. And so you could put into perspective one of the tall tale issues that I read on social media and we hear constantly is why doesn't police and code enforcement, without the use of this type of technology, you know, catch people in the act. It's very difficult because you will see individuals as soon as they see a black and white start to run. And then that just puts a number of strain on resources too. If we were to chase somebody into a house with a large group, it's just not a factor that we are interested in engaging in for the purposes of enforcing firework laws. But drone footage showing and depicting an illegal use of fireworks as it's tied back to a specific house makes the essence and the value of drones that much valuable for us to be able to then assess fines without really putting boots to have to chase an individual for the sake of enforcing the law. So next steps, the issuance of administrative citations will go out by code enforcement. It will go to a third party vendor for collection. Those that are interested in paying and those that are unpaid will go through a collection process as permitted by law. Individuals who are ultimately cited for this violation do have a right of appeal as permitted in law. They have a right to be heard. They have a right to present evidence as well as the city's use of drones and any witnesses such as our officers who were watching the act. They do have to pay an appeal fee in order for their matter to be heard. But there is a waiver of the total amount of the fine while a hearing officer ultimately renders the decision. There is a payment plan option for those individuals who cannot essentially pay the fine right off the bat. And then ultimately our hope is that the fines that are collected as part of this operation will go towards covering our staff costs, as well as the purchase of new drones and other equipment that is absolutely essential in order for us to continue to be successful in these types of operations. I will now turn it over to Fire Chief Alan Velasco.

BEING MAYOR, COUNCILMEMBERS, ALTHOUGH OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS NOT INVOLVED IN THE ENFORCEMENT SIDE OF THINGS, I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THE OFD'S ROLE DURING THE FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND, SPECIFICALLY OUR FIREWORKS CAMPAIGN WHERE WE FOCUSED ON SAFETY, PUBLIC EDUCATION AND THE PREVENTION OF IMPROPER USE AND DISPOSAL OF SAFE AND SAFE FIREWORKS. So this slide, I know there's a lot of words here, but just to summarize it, we had our EM staff and CERT partner with Orange Community Foundation and Home Depot Foundation to organize the Fireworks Safe Disposal Campaign. And in this campaign, they put together, assembled and put signage on 1800 buckets and delivered them all to the 12 fireworks booths across the city over the weekend, all of which were used and taken by all the residents of of orange additionally on our prevention side we had them join those individuals and make sure that there was compliance both in distribution and in the use and educating the firework booths of how to. distribute and sell this product and educate the public as well. But I think one of the most impactful things that we did was the social outreach component of this campaign. In this campaign, through social media, we only had four posts regarding the 4th of July and the safety of using fireworks. But that generated 62,740 views with 1,214 engagements alone. just for that which is great um additionally through the city's um uh social media platforms we generated another 8 300 views so that just shows the importance of social media and that power of that um of that platform and the citizens need of being engaged and being informed so i thought that was a win there next slide Here, we're gonna get into the incidents and statistics. What I'm demonstrating here, what we're showing here, we had actually seven incidents that were directly related to fireworks. Some of the notable ones, which you might have already heard of, are the two garage fires, two structure fires, and also one palm tree fire, which was most likely due to an illegal firework for that one because it was up higher, obviously, off the ground. The chart shows we kind of compared just some specific data from July 4th specifically and another day, July 5th. Also, we took that weekend of July 3rd through the 5th and compared it to a typical weekend in June. OVER THE IN THE SAME YEAR YOU CAN SEE IN BOTH INSTANCES THE INCREASE IN CALL VOLUME ON BOTH OF THOSE DATES PRIMARILY DUE TO THE FIRE INCIDENTS THAT APPROXIMATELY FIFTEEN TO ONE RATIO GIVE OR TAKE BUT IT JUST SHOWS LIKE THE IMPACTS OF OF FIREWORKS AND THE FOURTH OF JOHN IN GENERAL ON THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. However, something to note with these incidents is none of these incidents that were reported or suspected that actually caused a fire from the fireworks, none of them were in our high fire hazard area. So that was a win for us as well due to education. With that, that's all I have. I'll be open for questions afterwards. Overall, the call volume was what was expected and there were no injuries reported. And I'll turn it over to Austin.

Okay, for the last portion of our presentation, we're gonna talk a little bit about the Safe and Sane Firework booth sales portion. A little bit less exciting than some of the first parts, but I'll do my best. So as a brief update on some of the changes from last year, this is the second consecutive year that we've run the Safe and Sane sales process. It's generally a two-phase process, starting with a lottery where nonprofits can submit an application and be selected to sell and fundraise by having a Safe and Sane Fireworks booth. The second phase is where they secure a permit and eventually get a booth to sell those fireworks. As a part of some of the updates for this second year, City Council approved Resolution 11648, which established a two-year permitting process. It updated affiliated organization language, and then also updated the list of automatic permittees versus those that get selected through the lottery. So the intent of the two-year process is where the lottery selections are given a two-year permit rather than one, and then it followed by two-year hiatus from participating in the lottery with the intent to show improvements for booth performance and also minimize city staff time needed to work people through the process as they become familiar in the second year. Ultimately, this culminated in 12 separate nonprofits or high schools that were able to fundraise for their respective organizations throughout the city. And so the next slide shows a map of where these respective booths are throughout the city, represented by those stars. All of the locations are within the Safe and Sane area of the city. That's that other map you would have seen that had the orange portion of the map being prohibited Safe and Sane. So all of the booths that are shown there on the map were permitted to sell fireworks generally from July 1st through July 4th with varying timetables. And they were operated by volunteers from respective nonprofits. The part that I think probably most people are interested in as far as the booths is their revenue. And so on the next slide, we'll see a little bit about that. We're still working on getting updated final figures on the revenue generated from individual booths. but the wholesalers have reported, which we believe to be a very close estimate, that the projected gross revenue for all the booths together was just under $600,000. That's an increase of about 15% from last year. And so the city will collect up to 7% of the gross sales, which is a pro-rata share from each permittee for the Safe and Sane Fireworks sold in the city. And if that estimate holds true, it would keep our amount that we can recover, not to exceed 42,000. So per the city ordinances, which are congruent with the California Health and Safety Code, we require that each organization pay based on their specific sales, but overall it'll end up being not to exceed 7%. And then what that will equate to is the city in September will end up invoicing those groups for the not to exceed amount for staff time that was spent specifically on items, and I'll list them here, they're shown on the slide, that relate to enforcement, inspection, education, specifically related to the program itself. And then on the last slide, we'll talk a little bit about next steps. So as a part of this two-year process, we're gonna continue to get feedback from these nonprofit groups. We have a survey that'll be going out later this week to get feedback on what worked well, what didn't work well, areas that we can improve for the second year of their permits. That'll also include a confirmation that they, in fact, do want to participate again. And we'll continue to coordinate with the nonprofits to make sure that they have ample time to pick their locations and submit permits again for the second year, coordinating with the wholesalers to get information on what they believe worked well in addition. So that concludes my portion of the presentation. I know there's probably questions for myself and my colleagues, and we'll hop up and answer those as they come up.

Thank you very much. That was a far more thorough presentation than I expected, but very, very informative. Really appreciate it, city manager and staff. I have a couple questions, but let's go to Council Member Barrios first.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Everyone, thank you for a wonderful job. This has been something I've been excited for. I've had several residents reach out asking for the report. So for the city clerk, since this wasn't part of like a staff report and it's not something we have on hand, can you make sure that we get all these or Mr. City Manager? that we get this report right away because there are lots of people who are interested in it. Austin, I wanted to make sure that you saw the letter that came through from the McPherson Foundation. Some really interesting insights there. So I just wanted to make sure you saw that. For the police chief, I understand what happened. What a crazy, unusual night on the 4th that you all had to respond and deal with. One of the things that we've seen in other cities and something that I brought up to the city manager when we first talked about this program was, is this an opportunity where we can expand either our police volunteers or that you would call for volunteers? I can tell you there's nothing my husband would love more than to use his certification as a drone operator and help and be trained for that and add to your capacity. and someone who couldn't be called away for another reason. So is that something that we could look to for the next year?

Yes, we can always look into that. I think for the first year, even code enforcement is looking to get, you have to get your FAA license, as you know. And we were looking at the cost of that. We do our own in-house training. We have our own certified people that do it. So looking at the first year, the successes, We definitely want to expand next year, and I know we're continuing to expand our own drone program with our professional staff like PSOs, records clerks, and dispatchers, and it's just a matter of dialing in what worked and what didn't work and obviously getting more drones and seeing how it was successful. So all of those things are on the table for next year.

Well, and I also especially wanted to thank you because looking at the costs you talked about right at the top in terms of being able to push your costs down from what we saw, I'm going to say three years ago, where it was really exorbitant what the overall costs were.

We were over $36,000 with zero. I mean, when you look at the results we had, the $36,000, and that's where I think we're very pleased to participate in a more comprehensive city program because we throw money at a problem and have very little results. And this year, having all of us be a part of this was successful with limited cost.

Completely agree. And my final question, I'm not sure which among you could answer this, but in terms of the citations that you listed, what is the likelihood that we will receive those funds? Are we, in this our first year, are we likely to be asking people about Like, you know, waving our finger at them or what, like what, I know that that happened in Stanton last year, I think there was one individual who was cited with half, like $100,000 worth of fines. So what is your expectation?

Sure, so certainly the goal is deterrence. That's foremost why we have such a social host ordinance. But then the aspect of collecting, certainly there are, we do have a third-party vendor that can, through state law, we're able to intercept, whether it's through taxes, through lottery winnings, through a number of means, for purposes of collecting. But every individual who is ultimately cited has a right to be heard, to have their case be heard. And then ultimately, a hearing officer, an independent hearing officer will make a determination and can render a lower fine or keep the fine as is. And so ultimately, we will be open to a negotiation if they're interested. And we don't necessarily want to have somebody lose their home for having engaged in illegal conduct of discharging firework. But we do want to deter, again, the activity. And so we hope that individuals who are watching and certainly those that you know, certainly hear about the outcome and success so far that they think twice because if we need to collect the full amount, we will collect the full amount. But, you know, we'll see what happens as it goes through the process.

Well, and clearly the reduction overall in terms of calls and just the number of people who were affected was clearly a deterrent. And I really do applaud all of you for the idea that you would show mercy if someone was willing to cough them up and say, I'm not going to do this. And so you can walk away with all of that contraband and not have the issue. And then my final, this is more to the city manager, looking at from the firework sales, the amount of money we're anticipating this year. So the adjustments, obviously, we made last year are... were good in terms of the siting of the different booths. But I would just raise to your attention that that is something where when you're looking at that amount, that amount, what we're talking about in our portion of it, could have easily been utilized to pay for the 3rd of July event we were hoping to have. So next year, as we're planning and we're thinking ahead, we may never go back to the huge event that we used to have. But if we were going to have a smaller one, that amount would have covered that. And it's something, too, that I think we've talked about for licensing of whether it's TNT or somebody else, that they should be contributing to that as well. So I think we have some really nice options for next year. Thank you.

Council Member Gillingham.

Thank you. I'll start off with saying I agree with bringing back the July 3rd event next year. And secondly, and I think most importantly, really great presentation for a couple reasons. I haven't seen a cross department collaboration like this that has led to a really low cost, solid solution to enforcement. And I think there's really good structure and I think is just great to see. So thank you for the limited cost approach to resolving this. Just two questions. I appreciate the deterrence that comes with an $111,000 fine, you know, arrest for misdemeanor, and I think that should be something that's known, right, because it is an actual deterrence for future impacts. My question, and maybe just for everyone to know, What would cost somebody to get a fine over $100,000? Is it the quantity of the fireworks? Is it how they use them?

What creates the fine amounts? Sure, so it's based on the amount of fireworks that are discharged. Through the fine structure, the first offense, first discharge is $2,000, second is $4,000, and then every subsequent thereafter is $6,000. So it will continue to rise. What I do want to mention is that every one of those houses was contacted that night that the activity was occurring. They were given information in English and Spanish to help further deter further discharge. And so to the extent that the drone operation captured the essence of continuous discharge, the fines continued to accumulate. I'm sorry. We contacted him that night, essentially. So once the footage essentially captured what was going on as we were going call to call to call, we went to that particular location. So it wasn't that we were trying to run a running tab, essentially, but we were going call to call as the operation continued to kind of focus in on properties, essentially.

Rafael, just one other question. Any lessons learned from this time around that you want to deploy for next year, assuming that drones is a lesson learned and we might want more than one, but anything else?

No, I think the collaboration between multiple different disciplines and, you know, to continue to just work to fill in kind of the expectations of deterring legal fireworks. We're going to look at, you know, some of our ordinances and or just our procedure for block parties at a couple of these locations. They pulled block party permits. And the way that the mannerism of the permit program, the fines could have gone to either block party because they were both on the same street apart from each other. So we're going to look at a number of different ways to structure those that do want to do block party hosting for events to ultimately use safe and sane, but then deter the activity of the use of illegal fireworks. Thank you.

While you're here, I'm sorry, while you're here, I'm just curious, maybe you're not the right person to ask, but approximately what does the ideal drone that we need for this kind of enforcement cost?

So there's a number of drones that are out there. Certainly the cost, if we were to kind of set up as a payment plan, Over three years, it's approximately 17,000 per year to a total of about 52,000 for two drones with GIS, which allows for integration of being able to identify addresses in a quicker manner, the ability to utilize different resolutions as well as imaging, capturing. But there's kind of a plethora of different drone companies that are out there and certainly the chief of police and his team who are the primary operators of the drone program can eventually evaluate a drone that will accomplish their ultimate mission and as well as the mission if we're gonna use it in this capacity for firework enforcement.

Sounds like they would more than pay for themselves with this good enforcement. Next question is, so without identifying addresses, you cited streets or blocks. Was there just one violation per item listed or several on the same block or?

It would be one per, one location per block essentially on the list.

Thank you. And then lastly, when did you say the notices were going out?

They will be going out in the next couple of weeks. We just have to button up some processes on our end in order to facilitate the potential likelihood of appeals and payment plans as we work through that.

All right, fantastic. Anyone else have any final questions or remarks? All right. Again, a fantastic report, everyone. Very impressive. Okay. Moving on to Item 9, Legal Affairs. Item 9.1, Introduction and First Reading of Ordinance 13-26, amending Chapter 12.48 of the Orange Municipal Code pertaining to a prohibition of smoking in city parks. If any members of the public who are participating through Zoom wish to address the council, please raise your hand. If you're calling in, please press star nine to raise your hand. We'll hear in-person speakers first and then move on to remote speakers. If you are participating remotely, the city clerk will announce when your three minutes are up and then you will be muted. I think we should probably have a staff report.

Good evening mayor and members of the city council before you tonight is the introduction and first reading ordinance number 13 dash 26, which would prohibit smoking, vaping and the use of tobacco products in all city operated parks. Currently both state law and the orange municipal code prohibit smoking and vaping within 25 feet of playgrounds, recreational facilities and youth activities. However, outside of those specific areas, smoking is still permitted throughout the remainder of city parks. At the council's direction, staff presented this issue to the Park Planning and Community Events Commission for review and recommendation before bringing a proposed ordinance back for your consideration. The commission considered three options, maintaining the current regulations, creating designated smoking areas or expanding buffer distances, or prohibiting smoking, vaping, and tobacco use throughout all city-operated parks. Following the discussion, the commission voted to recommend a complete prohibition in all city parks. This concludes my report, and I'm available for any questions.

Thank you very much. I'm curious, did the police department weigh in on this?

They did. I can give you a brief summary of what they said, or I can turn it over to the chief.

Since you're here.

I think as I stated in February, what you decide, we will enforce. We don't have an opinion either way in terms of what we would prefer or not prefer. As I explained in February, any enactment of any sort of violation of this or enhancement of any park rules or regulations makes it difficult to enforce. That being said, that doesn't mean we won't enforce it when called, and that doesn't mean it doesn't give us another tool in our toolbox. to help keep the park safer or remove an individual who's difficult, a suspicious person, or whatever. And so whatever the council decides, we will do our best to enforce or to manage and work with our partners in the community services to make it happen.

And just for clarification, we're not going to have smoking police. It's just if you happen to be patrolling the park and you see groups or individuals smoking or vaping, then they will be approached that type of situation.

Correct. Like any misdemeanor, like urinating in public, defecating in public, all drinking in public, unless we see it or have somebody who calls and is willing to sign a private person's arrest, enforcement is difficult. But somebody calling And that takes us to the park or while on routine patrol. If we see it, it's a reason for us to go detain somebody. And again, to just be present and enforce the rules of the parks and the rules of the municipal code.

So this would apply to our entire creek bed too, I assume. Okay. Because there have been some fires started down there and I'm assuming that likely they were caused by smokers.

Yes, or people having campfires or others that all of all of which are prohibited in that anybody in the creek bed again is violating trespassing ordinances. So regardless of smoking being in the creek bed or in that in that grass river portion of it or the creek portion is a violation of all our municipal codes and trespassing.

Okay, thank you. That's very tolerous.

Thank you out what else is prohibited in parks.

There's a long list of things that are prohibited. Some of that would be swimming or bathing in a waterway, like a fountain or a sink. Oh gosh. Does any of them involve police action? All of our Orange Municipal Codes are enforceable through our police department.

Is alcohol prohibited? Yes. I know Chief mentioned that we're not out enforcing it. I just think with, you know, we've had a decrease in our force, correct? And I just get nervous about all this other crime and then we're going to go out and I know you said not, but, you know, get smokers. I feel like I have to say Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I don't smoke and I get sick of smoke myself and I rather not hang out with people who smoke, but it is a freedom that people have and I'm a little bit nervous about taking those freedoms away.

Yeah, like I said, I think we're not out there specifically to target people smoking. What we are doing is patrolling our parks, responding to calls for service that occur in parks. And if we see this violation, again, it gives us a reason to. Officers clearly have discretion whether they do contact somebody or not. but similar to alcohol, urinating, swimming in Eisenhower Park, camping, working on a bike in a park or in a prohibited area, we're not actively seeking those individuals. We are clearly at our parks because our community says we want safe parks. And so that's part of our routine patrol. It's also part of our directed presence in our parks. And if we see any sort of violation that we can enforce, our officers have the discretion to enforce it, but we know that our community wants us in our parks, and so any tool that the city wants to give us to make us more effective, we will enforce when we can.

Do we have officers in all parks?

We have officers who are assigned beats or areas, and in their beats or areas, they have several parks, and so on our briefing spindles, in our dispatch, calls for service that our heart and bike team pass on to every shift, We take enforcement based on problem, known problem locations or extra patrol checks such as people sleeping in parks, camping in parks, being in their creek bed after dark. So all of those are enforcement areas that we're aware of and when time or discretion allows, we're there to enforce it.

So on any given week or month or however you measure that, what is the number one thing that your officers are fighting or arresting for parks.

In our parks, camping and then possession of drug paraphernalia or drugs or warrants. Those are probably the three most. So being in the park after dark, which would include camping, trespassing, and then once they contact, drug possession, and then somebody who has a warrant are probably the three most.

So if somebody's smoking a pack of cigarettes, is that now? would be considered part of the same crime?

It would be a municipal code violation, so they could be cited. Again, it meets all the requirements of an arrest if they refuse to sign the citation. They could be taken to our detention facility and or to Orange County Jail for that. However, a mirror smoking violation would be a municipal code violation and most likely handled through a citation.

When you say, like, when somebody's violating one thing, they're violating several things, though?

What we find is individuals who are violating park rules, and again, they're not your average park user. It's the people who are there for no real reason. We find that there are several offenses and or warrants and or conditions of search and seizure that they're subject to because we contact them for something that may not be what they end up being arrested for. such as being in the park after dark or camping or whatever. There's always something else.

Thank you. Thank you, Mayor.

Council Member Barrios.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor and Councilmember Tevalaris. You are not alone in this. When this came up last time, and Chief, I understand what you're saying, but this just sounds like it's an excuse to target people. I'm not saying that's what you're saying. I'm just saying this is what it sounds like on the other side, and it sounds like a real slippery slope. Because everything else you described, and I've seen it in front of my house very often, whether you're peeing out on the sidewalk or you're using our parks as a bathroom or you're doing drugs, all those things are illegal. They are illegal to begin with. So we are adding something to this that is not illegal in any other circumstance. And that, I think, just kind of crosses a line. I think... My colleague is 100% correct. We are down a lot of cops. It may be a tool, but I just, I don't know. There's something about this. It just feels like we're going to be targeting people in the same way that we're allowed to racially profile people right now. And it just feels wrong in a lot of ways.

Well, two things. Number one, we're not advocating either way for this. Whatever the council decides, we will either enforce or we'll continue normal activities as they are. I just want to clarify, we're not racially profiling people. I just want to make sure that wasn't... No, I know. We're not legally racially profiling anybody. However, similar to, I think a year ago, we passed a working on certain bikes or having so many... Those are... While they could potentially be more susceptible to certain people who are doing those activities, again, we are not doing anything outside of the norm of our normal patrol checks. Being in the parks, if we see it and we can enforce it or make contact or detain somebody, we have discretion to do that. We don't advocate for any of these. If it's something that the city council feels is necessary or that can help can help or it's something that you're addressing through a community concern, we're here to support it or we're here to do the normal course of business either way.

And I completely understand that. I just think it's important to get a different point of view of how it might look to other people. You know, we don't mean it to be that way, but I think it's important to be on the record to say that a lot of people are being stopped and pulled over based on something and then other things fall into place where really that's not, I mean, when you've, I've done the ride alongs and seen the chop shops under the bridge, clearly illegal, you know, clearly wrong. So, but I'm just very concerned about how this could just, this could really violate somebody's rights because it's something, you know, it's just, this could escalate. I wouldn't want our cops to be in that position either, not when we are down so many individuals that we need.

I did follow up with other cities mentioned in the staff report, Tustin, Costa Mesa, Buena Park, They have few, if any, calls for service related to smoking in the parks. And again, it's what they described as, it's a tool if we need it, or it's a violation if somebody calls. But in terms of their volume, their calls for service, like Tustin's was enacted in 2017. It's a very low type of call for service and a very low activity that they're responding to.

It just seems like a waste of your time. So thank you.

Mayor Pro Tempillato.

This is something I've kind of struggled with because I tend to err on the side of getting government out of people's lives. Smoking has been very detrimental to my family. It wiped out an entire family tree of mine, including my mother and her brothers who all smoked and they didn't know any better. They died of lung cancer as a result, which is a horrible death, I can assure you. I don't think it's unreasonable for the public to have an expectation that they can go to a city park with their children and have it be smoke-free. There's plenty of other places for people to smoke. So I will support the recommended action to prohibit smoking within our city parks. Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor Pro Tem. So I'll just kind of conclude. When I, early on in my, when I was elected mayor, as you all know, I have office hours. One of my earliest appointments was someone from the American Lung Association wanted to meet with me and I said, sure. And she met with me and she showed me a graph of all the cities in Orange County and said, you know, there's only like four or five cities that still allow smoking in recreational areas and parks in Orange County. Of course, Orange is one of them, not surprisingly. So, but I told her, I said, you know, we've got so many things on our agenda. I mean, I'd like to visit this someday, but, you know, it's going to have to wait. So three and a half years later, three years later, I did want to bring it to the council for consideration. I definitely, you know, no one should be targeted for what they're doing or who they are or anything like that. But I definitely see vagrancy And in our parks, and some people making it an all-day hangout at a picnic table, and usually it's people that are unfortunately suffering from tobacco abuse or they're addicted. And that's a place where they can hang with their buddies and smoke all day. That's not acceptable behavior in our parks. And like the chief said, it is just another tool. gives the police a reason to just approach them and say, hey, you're not supposed to smoke in the public parks, and this isn't a place for you just to hang out and smoke all day. I do agree with Mayor Pro Tem. I think there's a reasonable expectation that all of our parks and trails should be smoke-free at this point in time. So for that reason, I wanted to bring it forward. Whether we pass it or not, that's entirely your decision, but I will be supporting this as well. Council Member Taveleris.

Thank you, Mayor. Just a follow-up question. If this does pass, would we be having signage at the trails and the parks and all that stuff? I think I've seen that in the beach cities, but I don't know what you're thinking here.

We would edit our existing park regulation signage to include this ordinance, this part of the OMC.

Would that have to be done right away, or can it wait until you update the signage?

Sorry, the signage would be, once this goes into effect 30 days after the second reading, we would adjust our signage. We would not replace our signage. We would just adjust it. Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Any other questions, comments?

I just had one follow-up question, because I didn't see that in the staff report on this one. What would be the cost of that? Maybe I just missed it.

We didn't do the math, to be honest, but it's nominal. It's basically a sticker over our existing signage.

Good question, always. Anything else? I will call for the vote. Oh, and the maker of the motion, please read the ordinance title as listed on the recommended action, Council Member Gillanammer.

Suggested action is to introduce and conduct first reading of ordinance number 13-26 and ordinance of the City Council of the City of Orange amending chapter 12.48 of the Orange Municipal Code pertaining to parks to update sections related to smoking and vaping.

Thank you. By the way, were there any remote comments?

No speakers.

Okay, thank you. I'll call for the vote. That was approved three to two with council members Barrios and Tavaleros.

Mr. Mayor, this is a first reading of an ordinance, so this requires a majority of the entirety of the council, so it would need four affirmative votes to pass at this time. it fails because there were three affirmative votes.

Okay. Can it be brought back to the next, continue to the next council meeting?

Okay.

In order to reconsider, I ask that you please make a motion to request for a reconsideration. If that passes, then a secondary motion can be made regarding the approval of the recommended action.

I'm sorry, point of order. I thought you could only ask for a reconsideration if you are on the winning side of the vote.

That is correct. Kathy voted no, correct?

Council Member Tavalares voted no on the original motion.

She's on the affirmative side.

She was on the prevailing side, the side that prevailed. Even though there were just two of us, it's just because the other ones were absent? That is correct. Because it's a reading of an ordinance. An ordinance, any item regarding spending of public funding or resolution requires four affirmative votes.

So there's a motion for reconsideration made by Council Member Tavelaris. Is there a second? Council Member Gillenhammer, please vote. Motion to reconsider passes four to one. Council Member Barrios voting no. So the only motion that can be made is to continue it to the next council meeting or?

Oh no, the second reading would be coming back to the city council.

Okay, so we can pass it tonight.

Yes, that is correct. Mr. Mayor, on August 11th, the second reading will be presented back to the council where at the time the council can discuss this item again if it chooses to.

All right, need a motion to approve this item. Someone that would like to read the ordinance again. Is that necessary? Okay, second from council, motion made by Mayor Pro Tem Bilodeau, second from Council Member Gillenhammer. Mayor Pro Tem, you're on.

Yes, this is a motion to introduce and conduct a first reading of the ordinance number 13-26, an ordinance of the City Council of the City of Orange amending chapter 12.48 of the Orange Municipal Code pertaining to parks to update sections related to smoking and vaping.

Thank you. So the motion is to pass this ordinance on its first reading. I'll call for the vote. Motion is approved, four to one, with Councilmember Barrios voting no. The next regular city council meeting will be held on Tuesday, August 11, 2026 at 6 p.m. in the council chamber with closed session beginning at 5 p.m. if necessary. We are adjourned.