City Council Formal Meeting - Regular Meeting

that we retire on, that we address major medical expenses because we have a broken health care system. We need to honor that. And shame on us if we don't. And so to our neighbors and to our investors, we're not going to get everything right every day. But you have my commitment that we understand what is important and we will fix every mistake that we ever make and we will value what is important to you. And finally, to my staffs, and I'm sorry to put you on public blast, these units are about to be filled with people that are broken, that are imperfect, that are going to be difficult, that are going to be so frustrating. And I want you to please remember two things. This is not how their story was supposed to end. This wasn't the plan. And this is somebody's mom and this is somebody's dad. And so when the days get difficult, I need you to remember that and act accordingly. Thank you all so much. Oh, sure. After that I have to speak again. So, a bit choked up. So, um thank you Mr. Haynes very much and for those wise words that I think we can all live by. So, yeah, you got me. Um and um our final uh final speaker I'd like to introduce is Brian Stark. Brian is the the architect behind literally the architect behind what you see today. And I remember my first meeting with Brian and and we were talking about shipping containers and his vision and his vision for buildings and projects and how they interrelate to the community and how

they give back to the community and how they serve the community and the work that they do. And I'm an economic developer. I'm all about capitalism. I'm all about moving jobs forward. I'm all about about doing my job. and and I instantly started to drink the Kool-Aid on what what Brian wanted to move forward and and where he was going. And I think, you know, again, I remember thinking about people living in shipping containers and and we went from from conversation and and their work on containers on Grand and then the Oscar, which was my first RFP with the city of Phoenix. I I will admit I do have a picture of it up in my bedroom. It's such a beautiful, beautiful project. I went from my office to my bedroom. So it is uh it is up in my office to the IDA to the as I mentioned the demonstration project on second and Roosevelt to this. It takes a true visionary leader to move projects like this forward. These are not for the faint of heart. These are not easy. These are not walking into the planning department and pulling permits for something that's going to make money and that that they're going to do their projects. These are are are these take sheer will and the weight of these projects has rested on Brian's shoulders. So, I'm so honored to be here with him today and to celebrate this next new great project and look forward to what he does next. Please welcome Brian Stark. You're honored.

Thank you very much. I really appreciate and am grateful that everyone is here today. has taken the time. Council members, mayor, vice mayor, uh, Ruby, thanks for being here. Uh, it really, really means a lot that everyone shows up. We are here this morning because Mayor Ggo and the Arizona Department of Housing together were willing to say yes to an idea that didn't look familiar. They were willing to believe that housing could be built differently. That the rules we've always followed might not be the rules we always should follow. And moments like this only happen when leaders decide to do the safe thing. Doing the safe thing isn't the same as doing the right thing. We're standing at a point in history where where the numbers tell a very clear story. There are 60 million seniors in the US today. 30 million of them live on less than $29,000 a year. By 2034, for the first time ever, there will be more Americans over the age of 65 than under the age of 18. This is considered the crossing of the age curve. It's not just a statistic, it's a turning point in our American trajectory. At the same time, seniors are the fastest growing group experiencing homelessness. Last year, homelessness reached the highest level ever recorded, 34% higher than it than just 10 years ago. While the population itself only grew 7%. The trend is not flattening, it's accelerating. 30 million se seniors living on a fixed income, 29,000 a year, that buys less every single morning they wake up. They didn't fall behind because they stopped working. They fell behind because everything else, housing costs, health care, inflation, the job market, all started moving faster than anyone planned for. Many took out reverse

mortgages, the ATM that quietly drains the generational wealth they'd spent a lifetime building. The wealth they plan to pass down while many of their kids don't have the means to support them. If you look back across history, when societies faced uncertainty, they didn't always look forward or to AI for answers. They looked to their elders for judgment, for experience, for perspective earned over decades. But what happens when the future moves so fast that the experience gets left behind? What happens when the people who built the country can no longer afford to live in it? We believe the defining challenge of the next decade is not going to be artificial intelligence. It's not going to be automation and it's not going to be some technology we haven't invented yet. The defining challenge of the 2030s will be this. How do we house millions of lowerincome seniors with dignity? Because when historians write about this moment, they will not say we ran out of wealth. They may say, "We ran out of young people to carry the load. We ran out of obtainable housing. We ran out of systems designed for population that lives longer than any generation before it." And they may say, "We ran out of time to adapt." The crossing of the age curve isn't just a demographic event. It's a moment of decision, a test of whether we can redesign our cities, our infrastructure, and our priorities for a country that is older with less margin for error. and that deserves better than what the status quo was built to provide. That's why we're standing here today. Senior Bridge is 40 units of transitional housing built from repurposed shipping containers. The first of a a first phase of a continuum that will include 54 apartments on this same site. It's powered by solar panels and lithium batteries. Energy independent by design

here in the hottest city in the country. It's powered by solar panels. 300,000 lb of steel reused instead of produced and consumed. 280 tons of carbon never released into the atmosphere. Even the benches around this building do more than provide a place to sit. They pull cool air and moisture from beneath the structure, creating a microclimate under the solar canopy. But that's not the whole story. What Senior Bridge really is is a statement. It says that innovation isn't only about faster chips, self-driving cars, or smarter software. It's about deciding what people who built our community shouldn't be left behind when the world starts moving faster. It says dignity is infrastructure, stability is infrastructure, and community is infrastructure. And it says the future isn't something that just happens to us. It's something we decide to build. Today we're opening the first phase of Senior Bridge, but what we're really opening is proof. Proof that progress doesn't have to widen the gap. Proof that innovation, if given a chance in an industry typically isn't, can help. Again, it's something we decide to build. It's something that our mayor chose to build and is something that the Arizona Department of Housing chose to build. This proof of innovation if given the chance in an industry is typically it isn't housing can help close it the gap proof that when the age curve crosses in 2034 people will be able to back look back at this moment and say Phoenix figured it out. Thank you and Jen. You know, I think I what I love the most about this project, it's not a one-time project. This is replicatable at scale. It can be built around the region, the state, and the country to help solve the

challenges that we're facing today. Thank you so much for being here with us today and celebrating this milestone on this incredible project. Thank you.

Welcome to Phoenix and Nevada Minute. Today we're here in the beautiful Papago Park visiting these amazing beautes. Minutes away from downtown, this amazing park offers incredible hiking areas, a golf club, and recreational facilities with its stunning massive bees that rise and fall throughout the park, adding a special view to your visit. The park also has some historical sites like the Governor's Tomb and the amphitheater that used to have the Easter sunrise service, concerts, and many more events. The trails are low and easy to trek, making it a smooth hiking spot. Additionally, you can visit Phoenix Sue and a desert botanical garden. Papago Park also has three ponds known as a Papago Ponds. A beautiful 6 acre part of the park ideal for fishing with wheelchair friendly parking and ramadas ready for a family picnic next to a famous site, the Hole in the Rock. A be that offers beautiful views all year long. Hi, I'm Councilwoman Laura Basod. Here along 27th Avenue corridor, the city has been working with residents and local businesses to strengthen safety and awareness in our community. Recently, that awareness helped make a real difference. After an Amber Alert was issued for a missing child in the valley, employees from Camelback Moving recognized a vehicle matching the description and helped prevent it from leaving until Phoenix PD arrived and safely recovered the child. Today we are here with Camelback Moving President Chad Olsen and employee Ralph Walmer who was there that day to talk about what happened and how community awareness can help keep Phoenix family safe. Thank you for being here today. Can you please tell me what it what you experienced and

what happened? So, everything as many of us know started Friday or Saturday night with the Amber Alert that most of the city got. Uh I got mine at around 1:00 a.m. Uh so that the community was alerted. Um and then Sunday morning we were dispatching our moving crews. We're a moving company and uh all of them as part of the routine stop at QT to get their coffee uh their their bagels, donuts, their burritos,

all of that. And so we had eight movers, three trucks at the at the QT when uh the security guard recognized the suspect and the child from the Amber Alert the night before. Uh the crews overheard him talking to the police. uh they were familiar with them because we are there every day. So um they ended up going and photographing the license plate and um after that uh Kevin Place, one of our gentlemen that worked for us, went to uh Ralph's truck. Uh they had just come in uh just got back to the truck from the QT and started discussing a plan to potentially block them in and not let them go if this was indeed the Amber Alert people. Now, Ralph, my question is, what was going on in your mind and how did you stay so calm as this was happening?

Uh, we were just hoping that we can get the child out. We watched them get into the vehicle. I had the Amber Alert photo up on my phone, so we were all confirming, making sure that was the lady and the child. Uh, we just had to keep it as calm as we could. That way, they didn't expect anything. Uh once we pulled up behind him to get the license plate number, uh that's when Kevin went back in to give the license plate number to the security guard. And we were only sitting behind him for two 3 minutes at most before the police department arrived. Right before they arrived, you could tell that the driver of the truck was getting ready to leave. He he did open up the door just to kind of look and, you know, see why suspicious. What are you doing?

Yeah. So he did open up the door just to look. He didn't honk. He didn't ask us to move or anything like that, but they were definitely getting ready to go. So, what I understand or what I've been told is Camelback Moving Company does training in this space.

Yes. So, we um through the Arizona Moving Association, uh we've had three conferences and the DPS Good evening and welcome to our April 16th communitywide budget hearing. This is a hybrid meeting, both in-person and virtual speakers uh signed up. Before we begin, we will uh have our interpreter, Mario Bahar Barahas, introduce himself. Mario.

Yes. Thank you, Ed. Good evening. My name is Mario Barahas. I'll be serving as an interpreter along with my colleague, Elsarte. I'll now take a moment to introduce ourselves to our Spanish speaking audience. much. Gracias. Thank you, Ed.

Thank you, Mario. Uh, my name is Ed Zurker. I'm the city manager and we're here this evening to receive input on the 2026 2027 city trial budget. This is the final budget hearing in our series this evening. And so, we're very pleased uh to have this time this evening. I'm joined by many city staff who are here as well to listen to comments from the public. We're also pleased to be joined here and hosted this evening by Vice Mayor Kesha Hajj Washington. And on the phone, we have council member Deborah Stark. At this point, I will turn to our vice mayor to welcome.

Thank you so much, Ed, for the introduction. I just want to say good evening to all of our residents that are taking the time to join us, whether in person or virtually. Thank you for being here. Thank you for caring enough about your city and the residents for and to make the time to come out. I also want to say thank you again to city staff. We've done quite a number of these but and you've all attended so thank you for um spending the evening with us. I just really want to go back to the residents and tell them their presence truly matters. Thank um we are here to hear from your voice. Your voice helps us understand what's working, what isn't working, and what we need to continue to focus on. It helps us ensure that our budget reflects the real needs whether that's public safety, housing, parks, youth, infrastructure or something else. We want to make sure that your perspective is heard and that's why we do these meetings. So, thank you again for being engaged. Thank you for caring enough to speak out and thank you for helping us build a budget that reflects this community's values and vision. Thank you.

Thank you, Vice Mayor. I'd now invite Council Member Deborah Stark from District Three, who's on the line, if she would like to say some words as well. Thank you so much. I think the vice mayor said it very well. This is important to us to hear from our constituents. You are the city and we value your comments and I'm anxious to hear what we are going to hear tonight. So, thank you so much. Sorry I can't be there in person, but I am going to listen in and hopefully hear some great comments. Thank you.

Thank you, Councilwoman. At this time, we will move into the introductory part of the uh presentation. I will turn it over to our deputy city manager, Amber Williamson.

Thank you, Ed, Vice Mayor, Councilwoman Stark, and members of our community who are here today and listening. The feedback we received today is very important as we finalize the proposed trial budget to present to city council. We want your input to be heard and considered before the budget is approved. The budget the proposed budget will be presented to the city council on May 5th and voted on May 20th. Information on the proposed budget is also available in the tabloid at the main table and is available in English and Spanish. You can also visit our website for more information at phoenix.gov/budget. If you wish to speak at today's hearing on the proposed budget, please fill out a form at the kiosk located in the hallway. We will now play a short video on the proposed trial budget. Immediately following the video, we will move to speaker comments. Every day in Phoenix, city employees work behind the scenes to keep our communities safe, connected, and thriving. The services they deliver, public safety, clean water, libraries, parks, streets, and more depend on thoughtful year-round planning. That planning begins with the city's annual trial budget. To create the trial budget, the city works year round toward a simple but essential goal. How to best maintain the services residents rely on every day. After determining these costs, any surplus can be used on new programs and services, employee compensation increases, or other council and community priorities. This year, the proposed 2026-27 city manager trial budget shows a

projected general fund surplus of $163 million, including 61 million in ongoing revenue and 102 million in one-time resources. After setting aside funds to keep the budget balanced into the future and accounting for needed operational costs, a $70 million surplus remains. This strong financial position allows the city to maintain and enhance essential services while planning responsibly for future needs. A key part of this year's trial budget is setting aside 75 million dedicated to helping balance the 202728 fiscal year, reinforcing Phoenix's commitment to long-term financial stability. By planning ahead, Phoenix continues its long-standing practice of structural budget balance, ensuring public safety, parks, libraries, and community programs remain stable and reliable for residents. This long-term planning also helps Phoenix State resilient in the face of challenges such as the recent incorporation of Santan Valley, which will reduce Phoenix's share of state shared revenue by more than $10 million next year. However, with our strong surplus and forward-looking planning in place, the 202627 trial budget suggests strategic investments that support health, safety, quality of life, and critical services for Phoenix. Throughout the year, departments review what it takes to maintain the programs residents rely on. Each March, the city manager releases a trial budget, a draft that aligns projected resources with anticipated expenses for the coming fiscal year. This year's draft is now available for public review from March 30th through April 16th. Residents are encouraged to share feedback through community budget hearings, online comments, phone calls, and social media. This input is important to the city council, and they

want to hear from you. After reviewing community feedback, the city council votes on the budget in May. Final adoption occurs in June, followed by the annual property tax levy ordinance in early July. Now, let's talk about what funds the annual budget. The general fund supports many of the services residents use every day, including parks, libraries, police, fire, youth, and senior programs. It is primarily funded through local sales taxes, state shared revenues, primary property tax, and user fees, and other revenues. Enterprise funds operate like standalone service providers. water services, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, and solid waste are funded by customers who directly use these services. Special revenue funds are dedicated to specific purposes, often supported by grants or voter approved sale taxes, and help enhance parks, transportation, and public safety. The city budget has several priorities, including balancing the budget, which is required by state law and city charter. continuing to provide the programs and services residents rely on and recommending how to use any potential surplus to benefit the community. Now to the 202627 trial budget, which continues Phoenix's work to enhance community safety. This includes lighting improvements in city parks to increase visibility and discourage crime and 17 new street lights and 24 upgrades along the 27th Avenue corridor supporting the community plans for safer streets and neighborhood revitalization. Meanwhile, staffing and maintenance funding will support new facilities such as the planned Lone Mountain Park and the 2023 GOB bond funded Estabbon Park Recreation Center. To support Phoenix families, the budget includes a $5 million set aside to help address child care affordability for Phoenix families. Teen programming will

expand across multiple community centers. Additional assistance at family service centers will support Phoenix residents experiencing financial challenges and a dedicated parking lease at Choya Library will maintain access during nearby redevelopment. Housing stability remains a major focus. Key investments will help replace expiring COVID era federal funding to continue vital services, including $12.9 million for emergency shelters servicing residents citywide. 1.5 million for the city's 247 heat relief site and extended hour schooling centers. 1.5 million for the Keys to Change shelter facility. $2.5 million to create a master lease program with more than 50 housing units for individuals exiting homelessness and $6.6 million for the housing trust fund supporting fee waivers, pre-approved housing plans, and other affordable housing efforts. These investments provide both immediate support and long-term housing solutions. To enhance in-person service at city hall, the budget funds improvements to the planning and development customer services area, including streamline check-in, clearer signage, improved visitor flow and technology upgrades to strengthen system reliability and reduce long-term contracting costs. The budget converts key temporary IT and engineering positions into ongoing roles, including cyber security specialists and network technicians. Aviation upgrades include new technology enhancements, water quality and safety staffing, and expanded support for international travel operations at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. The budget uses existing resources to convert a number of critical temporary positions to ongoing roles, strengthening internal capacity

across departments. And a $53 million employee compensation set aside helps Phoenix remain competitive in hiring and retaining skilled staff who deliver essential public services. With careful planning, responsible budgeting, and strong community involvement, Phoenix continues to deliver highquality services while preparing for the future. Your participation helps shape the path forward. Together, we're building a more sustainable, resilient, and welcoming Phoenix for the years ahead. Thank you. At this time, we will now go to our speakers. Uh we have two minutes allotted for each speaker. We have those in person and online. We are going to begin with our in-person speakers and I'll ask Cecilia to call your name. she'll call the name uh for the speaker and those who are on deck and we'd ask you to come to the microphone or when we get to the virtual we'll call you to speak on the phone. Cecilia going to start with Jessica Bueno followed by Emily Sanchez.

Hello. Good evening. Um, Councilwoman Hajj Washington, Vice Mayor, I'm sorry. I am Jessica Bueno here with Chispa Arizona as the clean and green campaign specialist where our campaign is focused on increasing tree shade canopy in West and South Phoenix and ultimately a larger free transportation um, campaign. So, I'm here today to you kind of heard my comments last night, but I wanted to reiterate that this budget process is not as transparent as it could be. As the fifth largest city in the country, we need to be a little bit more progressive around how we're engaging our uh residents in giving feedback around this process. But I do want to spend a little bit more time talking about the investment in transit. We're at a uh turning point where we can choose to really invest in public transportation. Meaning that with the decision to move forward with the light rail or high-capacity rail to in Mville, we also have the opportunity to really develop our transit oriented communities with intention to keep small businesses in their location, keep families in their homes. And I think the city needs to uh raise some private money, go out for a bond or do something because 10 miles of construction of um high-capacity rail is going to impact Mville. And it's uh up to the decision makers to make sure that we alleviate some of that displacement and disruption that's going to happen in that community. So, thank you again. Thank you all for the opportunity to hear from us and um thank you so much. Bye.

Emily Sanchez followed by Julian Sapetta.

Good evening. My name is Emily. I am here as a member of Chispa and I'm seeking the support of investments in providing more green spaces for our community. I have lived in Arizona my whole life and I notice continuously every year how heat becomes even more unbearable. Personally, I take my health and wellness very seriously. And because of this, I am very cautious about going outside. I wish I could go outside and be comforted by the sun's warmth. Yet, this is not the case. Going outside isn't just uncomfortable for me, yet it makes me extremely ill. I have multiple experiences with the sun's scorching heat as I remember just simply being at school having to be outside for recess or PE. And because I would spend even this small amount of time in the sun, I would have to go home early terribly sick. I would go home with a burning fever and not being able to get out of bed, except whenever I had to throw up. The nausea felt almost unbearable. I wish I had been able to play outside comfortably with my friends. Yet, this was not the case. This is why I am here advocating for the recognition of the dangers of extreme heat and how much it impacts one's quality of life. I envision a future where there are green natural spaces with real trees and real grass. Having natural vegetation will greatly help regulate the temperature and improve the air quality, which is most especially needed due to the urban heat island we live in every day. Not only will greenery benefit the environment, imagine being able to take a walk in the fresh air and be able to spend time with your family outside. This is why I urge you to realize the dangerous impacts CE is having on our community and create a better place for the future generations to come so they won't have to go through the experiences I had to go through. Our community should be able to comfortable to be comfortable in their environment and be proud to call this place their home. Thank you.

Julian Sepetta followed by Andrea Luna Cervantes. Good evening, council member and vice mayor. Uh my name is Julian Peda. I am here with Chief Parisa. I'm a senior community organizer and I'm representing Chief PC members. I'm here to uh speak on behalf of our membership. We support investments that will work um that will make our our city sorry we support investments that will make our city uh cleaner, greener, and more just. First of all, we'd like to express express gratitude for pri prioritizing children, youth, and families uh that lived um that have spoken for the trial budget. Our communities value our communities will benefit from free electric public transit. The students and the elderly should not have to pay for public transportation. Phoenix residents already pay for public transit through state taxes. Transportation is one of it's one of the biggest sources of air pollution here in in Phoenix. I have lived in Phoenix for 25 years. And I and I don't own a car, so I I use public transit to get around. And let me tell you that um we do not have a transit that's reliable. The bus is always late. Buzzes are um buses are never on time and Phoenix AC has one of the most highest transit fatality rates among the

uh major US cities. Arizona's Arizona's uh pedestrian fatality rate is is u mainly it's sorry hits nearly twice the national average rate with 70 73% uh state uh pedestrians crashes occurring in Maricopa County most of our members uh use public transit to get around public transit should be safe reliable and clean in investing in electric buses is can expand transit options will create healthier communities and reduce our dependency on cars and would also cut down on pollution and making Phoenix a more clean and safety place for us to live. Thank you for allowing me to speak today.

Andrea Luna Cervantes followed by Sasha Robinson. Hi, my name is Andrea Lunes Advantes. Um, good evening, Vice Mayor Hajj Washington. I live in Phoenix and I'm uh I live in District 8. Um, and I'm here to ask the city to invest in working families who are struggling to stay housed and stable. Right now, flexible financial assistance, refugee crisis support, and child care receive about $7 million combined. But that is not enough for the population and the need that we have here in Phoenix. We are demanding a 12 million investment that includes these programs along with right to council. Specifically, we are asking for a $5 million increase to flexible financial assistance so families can meet their basic needs, especially as we're seeing neighbors torn apart and breadwinners be taken by ICE. Too many tenants face eviction without a lawyer, especially um as we're seeing uh the housing crisis just get worse. And we need the city to ensure that a right to council is passed and invest in community legal services as well so families can get support with housing, immigration, um and workplace issues. The city must also invest more in housing, including increasing the master lease pilot program to 3 million to create real pathways to civility and for renters. Thank you,

Sasha Robinson, followed by Adriana Garcia Maximilliano. Hello. Can you hear me okay with this mask? I'm fighting a cold and the cold's fighting back, so I wanted to spare you my germs. Thank you, uh, Vice Mayor, um, council members online, and city staff. Um, I've come to talk about uh a specific project that my a few story neighbors um would really like to see put in the budget. Um, essentially some fencing along 7th Avenue from the I 10. Uh, so this would be the west side of 7th Avenue from the I 10 offramp to um the alley between Portland and Roosevelt. Um, the neighbors there are seeing a lot of property crime, um, encampments, fires being set, uh, things being stolen, drug paraphernelia. Um, just a lot of things that you wouldn't necessarily want to walk outside and be greeted with every day. Um, the alleys have been gated, but this area there that is actually a DOT property has now become sort of the hub for unwanted activity. So, the idea is to fence that area off, you know, after the sidewalk, um, to cut down on that, um, and hopefully make those neighbors feel like they have a safer space. Um, and I would eventually love to see that area turned into more green space uh, for a community space as well since FTO does not currently have actual community space. Um, but if we could start with that fence, I think our I think my neighbors would be um very happy.

Oh, I mean I I hate fences as a solution personally, but if there aren't any other, you know, the more immediate solutions, I think that's the best one and probably the most economical one at this time. Um, so what I'm here to advocate for and thank you for your time. Appreciate it. Adriana Garcia Maximilliano followed by Anna Louisa. Hi everybody. Uh good evening. My name is Adriana Garcia Maximilliano. I'm a resident of District 3. Good see um again Vice Mayor Hodgej Washington. Um I'm here uh representing Organized Power and Numbers. We're a an organization that works alongside uh working-class families on issues related to immigration uh and labor rights. Um we are asking for an increase in the flexible financial assistance portion of the budget um to go up by 5 million. uh really excited to see the child care and that whole bucket of family youth I I forgot the title family and youth services um has some really great programs in there that I think are really important to the community um especially the refugee crisis support as well um and you know usually um I come to do advocacy on uh behalf of members or or families that I know but uh this year things are hitting really close to home this last week. Um, three weeks ago, my my cousin got detained and is at Florence Detention Center. Um, and I've been trying to help out his spouse because they have two kids together, um, to uh, figure things out. And I, um, tried directing her to the rental and utility assistance at the city, which is

currently closed because there's no funding. um and so had to use uh the workers defense fund that has been put up by some nonprofits to support families who are currently um have members in detention or who have been deported. And it just reminded me of the need that's out there in the community right now when folks are losing family members to detention or to deportation that don't have stability anymore. And just like these programs really do support and can help people if we can actually increase uh the amount and make it more accessible to folks who need it. And so really hoping to see that change in the budget uh for families here in Phoenix. Thank you so much.

Anna Louisa followed by Noeli Lewis.

Anna Louisa. Uh good evening, vice mayor and councel. My name is Anna and I'm here with Chief Sparisa along with the youth that I've been organizing with throughout this budget process. Uh over the last few weeks, I've brought about a dozen or so young people to speak in these hearings. Uh not because it's easy, but because it's necessary. What we're doing is a bigger than just showing up today. What we're teaching our youth is how to show up in their own governance and how to understand decisions being made about their lives. how to use their voice with courage and something powerful happens when young people speak. They go home and they start teaching their parents too. This is how change grows and this is how it happens. I want to name something honestly and uh for many of us this budget process does not feel fully transparent. We are shown pieces but not always the full picture of how decisions are made or where all the money is going. And if we're serious about community engagement, then our communities deserve to be part of the entire process, not just reacting to what's already been decided for us. Because when you look at the bigger picture of the full budget, you see that the priorities are choices. And right now, our youth are asking for investments that actually meet their daily needs. They're asking for shade at bus stops where they stand in extreme heat, or trees that will protect their future. They're asking for transportation that allows them access to opportunities that is beyond their reach. And many of us are asking what would it look like to invest more directly into our communities to shift more of these resources into prevention into health, into the youth, into infrastructures that actually keeps people safe before the crisis happens. Because safety doesn't start with enforcement. It starts with care and access to investments. Our youth are not just speaking. They're doing the work. They've been planting the trees. They've been organizing their community cleanups. And they've been showing up for their neighborhoods. They're already building the future that we're asking you to invest in. So, when they come

here, they're not asking for handouts. They've been asking um they're asking for a partnership with y'all. We cannot continue to delay long-term solutions. We need both investment and immediate relief and long-term investment because the awareness is here and the urgency is here and our youth are no longer staying silent. We're raising a generation that understands their power and today they're using it. Thank you. Noelli Lewis followed by Nor Silva. Greetings everyone. Every soul here, everyone has present and taken a breath. Just know that it's all an offering. And as much as we may not have the same religious beliefs or spiritual practices, we have to remember our right to live, our right to have housing. And I have so many topics I would love to speak on, but with this two-minute increment, I'll be able to just leave you with knowing that it's time for us to get back into our heart spaces. And for everyone who is in what we consider power in this system, that we do what's best, not just for ourselves, but the souls around us, because we're never too far removed. Homelessness has gone up year after year here in Phoenix. You're not that far removed. Many are hungry. You're not that far removed. Women, children, schools, danger, you're not that far removed. So, if we just remember that when we're into implementing the money and the funds that are available, then uh we'll all be better off and then we can really turn some things around as far as our humanity. I would also like to speak on us having representation. When it comes to eviction, we have the highest rates and not having representation puts us at a disadvantage. All the classes are being erased. So, when it comes to knowing that it's not above or below you, then I think we

should all know that it's going to come down to us thriving amongst each other as community and neighbors. We need more water facilities and fountains for our homeless population because we're not that far removed. The heat is rising and it's definitely a karmic interest when it comes to the collective consciousness. So, at this point, I think that is in our everyone's best interest to do your part as you see fit and to remember to stay in your hearts as you do that. Thank y'all. Nor Silva followed by Connie Phillips. Fore! Foreign! Foreign! much homeless.

Um, the Halloween. is much um Miss Arizona work. Good afternoon. My name is Na.

I live in district 8 and I'm advocating so that there be more shade uh from the trees in my district. Kids go to school, they don't have any shade. The bus stops, there is no shade. And uh in my district, it's very bad. Uh close to the airport, there's a lot of empty properties. There's empty lots. And so there's a lot of homeless in the park. My neighbors, they complain that uh in the alleyways, one arrives and three then it's a whole line of them. They don't know what to do. So there is no solution. Who do I call? We feel unsafe. So also the youth I want programs for the youth. We don't want them to be out in the streets. Uh my district is is it's at great risk because there's a lots of drugs. Uh it's sad. And it's funny that the fact that when my kids were small, when we'd go out trick-or-treating, uh they would think that we were out uh uh asking for drugs and and it's uh that's uh stupid. But uh there's lots of drugs and so my my neighbors uh the kids uh the youth they've tried uh going out uh to a program uh called Arizona Work and they don't allow them to go in go in

there. They're asking for our our information and our data. Thank you. Thank you, Mario, for the interpretation. Uh, next we have Connie Phillips, followed by Devon Robinson.

Thank you. I'm Connie Phillips and I'm the president CEO of Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest. Vice Mayor uh Hajj Washington and Council Member Stark and city staff. I'm here because the res refugee resettlement organizations of which we are one in Phoenix one are we're representing thousands of refugees that live in the city of Phoenix. Refugees are a very distinct category of immigrants. They come to the city through an international refugee resettlement program or other programs specifically for people who are fleeing violence due to a very narrow criterion. They are vetted outside the United States and are assigned to a social service organization that assists them to integrate into the community. And a few facts, refugees have work permits and can work from the day of entry. They begin a path towards citizenship, which they're eligible for within 5 years. The goal of this program is self-sufficiency, and more than 85% of refugees reach that goal within six months. Years of research has proven that refugees pay far more in taxes over time than they ever take in support. The changes that have occurred due to the current presidential administration have impacted FA Phoenix residents who've come as refugees in the past three years in a really large manner. HR1 has made refugees that have not yet obtained their green cards ineligible for SNAP and healthcare. Their employment has also been impacted as some employers are now uncertain about whether they can continue to employ them. We're here today to ask for an increase in that 1.4 million that's been set aside for the refugees to increase that by 3 million to a total of 4.5 million. We believe that this is a good investment. This is a bridge time that is necessary because refugees are really

struggling. they are not eligible for food and for support and so this will bridge them to the time when they will indeed be self-sufficient. Thank you.

Robinson Devon Robinson followed by Mustani.

Good good evening everyone. Thank you, Vice Mayor and Council. I just want to say thank you for inviting me. This is my third day attending. Um, I represent Arizona Immigrant and Refugee Services. I am their immigration in-house counsel. I'm here because I believe that it's very important that with funding and the proper funding, we can affect change. As a former homeless person, I understand what it takes to get to up top of that mountain. And I believe with the right funding we can help many many refugees. They are pillars of our community. And with your help I believe that we can do the things that are necessary to affect change. Today I decided to do something different before coming here. I had a panel discussion with a group of refugees in my office at heirs refugee and resettlement and I had a Q&A to ask them several questions of why they believe they need funding. The first thing they told me which was very shocking is we need education to learn how to learn. I never heard that before placed to me but when they indicated to me that we need to learn how to learn because they come from backgrounds where they've never taken a test. They've never been in a structured environment. So they were promised when you invite someone into your home they believe you're going to take care of them. And I believe that too. If I invite you to home and I'm not going to take care of you, I at least should be able to give you the tools to survive. And that's what they're looking for. And I believe this panel and this team here can help them get to the next step. Thank you,

Mustani. Followed by Kevin Gman.

Good even Good evening, council members and community. My name is Mastani and today I'm here on behalf of the International Rescue Committee, a local refugee resettlement agency serving diverse communities in Phoenix since 1994. I'm an employment specialist, meaning I help connect clients from various backgrounds and skill sets to jobs. It has become increasingly difficult for my clients to not only acquire employment but to also maintain it. On average, my clients receive one interview opportunity for every 11 applications submitted, which is almost double the national average. I have two clients who have been participating in job search programs and activities for over 14 months now. Every week for over the past year, these individuals have invested 20 to 30 hours a week to improve their English and workplace knowledge, submitted more than three dozen applications, completed five interviews each, and have yet to be hired. American families across the country are facing real hardship, layoffs, economic uncertainty, and dwindling job opportunities. These struggles aren't limited to any one single community and our clients are part of this struggle too. We also understand the pressure localities face as the federal government pulls back and sets community and asks communities to carry more with fewer resources. That pressure is real. But this is also an opportunity. An opportunity to build stronger local systems that reflect who who we want to be. support people more effectively and help insulate our Phoenix community from future shocks. I cannot emphasize the long-term value of this funding enough. A 3 million increase for client services would

directly help organizations like ours meet urgent needs during this volatile period and close critical gaps in support and strengthen the local systems Arizona families rely on to regain stability. Thank you. Kevin Groomman will be our last in-person speaker and then we will be moving to virtual speakers starting with Alexander S.

Thank you, Vice Mayor, Council Member, city staff. I'm very impressed with all the people that have spoken so far. It's very impressive. Um, and I want to echo my comments from my colleagues. Uh, I think Connie spoke very well. Devon did as well. Um, IRC passionately for the refugee community. I work for the Welcome to America Project as its executive director. I do a lot of employment work for for us. Thank you for the opportunity to speak. You don't mind, take a moment, either close your eyes or look at your phone, which you never hear about, but conjure up an image of who a refugee is. I tried to give you a little hint. I bet you did not guess Sergy Brin or Steve Jobs dad. Without them, you would not be having your phones right now. When we invest in refugees, they pay back huge dividends. Many stood side by side with our military in Afghanistan, helping to provide certain surgery, helping in doctor's offices, and now they are here. They're not in the operating room. they're in the back room washing dishes trying to stave off homelessness. This is a small investment you guys can make, but it could have significant impacts. Phoenix has always been a a a a transplant city, very welcoming of everyone. These refugees were welcomed and invited to be here. They have every authorization to work and I implore you, please increase the amount devoted to the refugees so they could at least get some additional workforce development, education, English, certifications. It will make a significant investment for refugees and our community for Phoenix. So, thank you. We will now be transitioning to our

virtual speakers starting with Alexander S. followed by Emac Ullef. My name is Axel with International Rescue Committee and I'm reading a testimony written by Alexander. My name is Alexander and I live in district one. I came to the United States as a refugee with dreams of building a more stable and safer life. Back home, I was in a medical field and I hope to continue that work here, contributing my skills, supporting my family, and becoming part of this community. I got hired as a mechanical engineer, but that did not last long because I was quickly laid off due to my employment authorization card expiring. Even though my social security is unrestricted, rebuilding a life is not easy. Alongside these challenges, I'm also raising a child with a disability and that means my wife cannot work. She is the primary caretaker for our child, hence making me the sole provider for our family. The end of benefits like NAF and the challenges of finding stable employment have made it extremely difficult for me to provide for my family. These barriers are not a lack of effort. They are reality. Many refugees face while trying to rebuild from nothing. I still have goals. I still want to work to give back and to stand on my own. But right now, support systems are what makes that future possible. Without them, families like mine risk falling farther behind instead of moving forward. Therefore, I ask the city of Phoenix to support the refugee community

by increasing their funding towards basic needs, employment, legal services, and community education. If my employer was educated about refugees right to work, my job wouldn't have been affected like it was. Thank you, mayor, and council members for allowing me to share my story.

Next, we will hear from Immacul Followed by Leroy M. Oh, you can't You want to just go ahead with um Fore temple. Um, this is a I'm going to um read Immacul's English version. My name is Imacil. I am a 60-year-old I'm a 64 year old woman who resides in District 5. I came to this country seeking safety and dignity as a refugee. I believe that here I would be able to leave my later years with some stability

and peace. I live with serious medical conditions, conditions that require consistent care, medication, and proper nutrition. Because I am a refugee and the government paused my ability to get my green card, I am no longer eligible for SNAP of no fault of my own. SNAP benefits are not a luxury for me. They are a lifeline. They allow me to eat in a way that supports my health so I do not end up in the hospital. I recently went to my medical appointment and my doctor reminded me that I'm supposed to be on a strict diet to manage my health. But the truth is now that I no longer have nap, my life depends on the kindness of family and friends to feed and house me because I struggle with work due to my worsening health and I cannot dictate what they can afford to put on my plate. It is a cycle. I need the nutrition to get better and go back to work. But I can't until my health is better, which won't happen without healthy foods. Thank you for allowing me to speak here today, and your support for refugees through this budget will make a big difference. We are relying on you.

Next, we will hear from LJ Joy M, followed by Aziz B. refugees. Green card. Green card. Fore! Foreign! Foreign! My name is Melanie and I am reading um Leo's testimony uh translated to English. My name is Leo and I live in district 5. I am a single mom who was resettled as a refugee with the dream to rebuild my life, support my family, and be a good community member. Starting your life from zero is never an easy process for anyone, but I had hopes that with support I would be able to make it. I am a young lady ready to work. Finding a job has been a challenge. I am able and

have been applying to multiple jobs, but employers don't understand I'm eligible to be hired. Recently, I lost a physical card that shows that I'm authorized to work in the United States. I can provide other documents such as my unrestricted social security card that also proves my eligibility, but because I don't have the document more familiar to employers, my employment authorization card, I have been denied employment multiple times. I have tried to apply for the renewal of this card, but it is too costly. The irony is I cannot afford to replace the card and gain employment because I have no work income and have a family to support. With the new policies, I am not eligible for benefits like SNAP because I have not adjusted my status and cannot afford the legal services and fees to apply for my green card. To put it into simple words, I want to work but I am stuck. Every day I now worry about whether I will be able to feed my children. I am asking you to consider increasing the budget for refugee assistance. There's great need for employment solutions, basic needs, legal services, and community education. The refugee community needs your support. Thank you for allowing me to speak.

Aziz B followed by Richard D.

Uh, good evening. My name is Melanie and I am from the International Rescue Committee and I am reading a testimony uh for Aziz um translated to English. I waited over 12 years through unconscionable circumstances and seemingly endless vetting for my refugee application to be approved. When my family and I arrived in the United States, we relied on food stamps for the first four to five months while we made our difficult transition. After escaping Iraq, the assistance was how we got back on our feet in the safety of the United States. After a short time, I landed a job in information technology. This role was a turning point for us. I could pay our rent consistently, put food on the table, and even afford private health insurance. The stability of employment is invaluable, and I could not have gotten a job without the initial help of staff. But life took a drastic turn when I was diagnosed with cancer. The news was devastating and I faced an 8-monthlong hospital stay for treatment. The decision to stop working was entirely out of my hands. However, I needed to continue to support my pregnant wife and fouryear-old child. So, I applied again for the temporary but life-saving assistance that aided us when we first arrived. It was granted for 4 months. Then without clear justification that support was cut off. The unprecedent the unexpected denial put us in a dire financial situation. I had no choice but to borrow money to ensure my family could meet dayto-day expenses and maintain some semblance of stability during this tumultuous time. I hope the city of Phoenix will hear the stories of families like my own and understand that one, we would love nothing more than to support ourselves, but two, we like so many often face significant hurdles and rely on the

grace of good people and a temporary helping hand to get to where we need to be to survive and thrive. We promise you that is exactly what we want to do with your support. Thank you. Richard D followed by Naomi B.

Uh Richard B could not attend. Uh but we have Naomi. Naomi then followed by Nan Zema J.

Good evening everyone. This is uh Naomi Betel. Uh I'm standing here on behalf of refugee. They have come to our organization. These are people who are coming into America hoping that they'll have good life. But unfortunately with the budget that you are you are presenting it's like they not have hope anymore because they come from back home they come pressure and when they reach here they meet again pressure it means some people they will die even before their ages. So please what we are requesting from you is if you can help us to increase a little bit so that at least they can set some challenges while they're trying to settle into America because they face many problems many challenges with what you have proposed is not enough. We beg you if you can increase a little bit it will help like it can go up to open size for five million it will be okay at least you can try our by all means to help these refugees who are hopeless at least to give them hope again while they're trying to settle themselves thank you for giving me chance to talk to you

nia followed by sad Okay,

good evening. My name is John and uh I live in the city of Talison. I'm the one of the refugees who live here a little longer and um I do volunteer working closely with the family member here in our community and I see many families facing a huge issue every single day. Some family member are losing access to the food assistance and health care which make it difficult to support their children and their wellbeing. At the same time, rents continue to go up and many families are struggling to keep up. Even though um some of them are working, it's still difficult for them to maintain to put a food in table. So as a result more family are at risk and in addiction and the housing instability. One most concerning is that many families are forced to make a difficult choice between food, health care and rent. So that's why I'm asking the state to increase the budget from 1.5 million to 4.5 million there to support our family needs. And thank you for your time.

Sade Omi DG followed by Mary Ka.

Good afternoon. Uh my name is Shade Omid. I'm the director of refugee program for Cali Charity. I'm here representing all the resettlement and the refugee that we have preset to. And I thank I thank the council member for giving me this opportunity. Today I'm here to advocate for increased refugee service fund for 1.3 million to 4.5 million to meet the grow need in Sydney. And we have heard the statistics of how many refugee we have referred to and 85 like 1,00 1,000 refugee have been referred to in Phoenix only or more than 1,000 and out of them 85% of them have secure employment which means these refugee are contributing member of Phoenix. They are contributing citizen of Phoenix. This number reflects both progress and pressure. While outcome are being achieved the pace is limited by capacity. We are seeing we are seeing ongoing barrier. Clients are losing access to benefit such as access food stamp. Their work authorization are being cut off and there's a risen in housing cost which make placement increasingly difficult. At the current level we are operating beyond capacity and what remained um um back from us is housing support is limited. Employment outcome are lower that they should be not due to lack of effort but lack of but due to lack of ro um resources. Increasing the budget to 4.3 million will allow us to expand and will provide more housing assistant. It will accelerating employment placement for our refugee. It where family reach stability faster and reduce long time of reliance on emergency system. Refugee in Finnish are ready to work. They are contributing member of Finnish. They want to become self-sufficient. With the

right investment, we can shorten that part and strengthen our local economy. I respectly urge the Finnish council to increase our refugee service fund to 4.5 million. Thank you for your time and consideration. Mary is no longer on the call. We will go next to Cynthia Greyber followed by Teresa Hill. Hello. Uh my name is Cynthia Greyber and I am a neighborhood advocate. Uh last Wednesday, a young girl who attends Central High School was riding light rail on her way home to her apartment on 19th Avenue in Cattleback. During her ride, a group of boys began to grope her. Fearing for her safety, she pushed them away and asked her friend to walk her home. While walking home, six boys brutally attacked both the young girl and her friend, leaving them injured in the street along 19th Avenue. This should never have happened. Today, I am requesting 2.5 million to fund real-time camera monitoring connected directly to the community safety plan. With real-time monitoring in place, this situation could have been identified immediately and officers could have been dispatched in real time to intervene before the assault escalated. This investment is about prevention, faster response times, and protecting the thousands of students and families who depend on light rail every day, especially the hot spot corridor like Camelback to Dunlap. Realtime response is not a luxury. It is a difference between a safe trip home and a tragedy we could have prevented. Um, I have one more request. Thank you. I am requesting that the city set aside 150,000 to fund an independent analyst to review Phoenix judicial release practices involving

repeat offenders along the 19th Avenue corridor from Camelback to Dunlap. Residents and businesses continue to see the same individuals arrested multiple times and return to the same area. We need reliable data to understand how often these these individuals arrested four or more times are released without travel restrictions that could limit repeat activity in this high impact corridor. This request is not about criticizing judges. It is about transparency, facts, and making better policy decisions based on data. 150,000 investment is small compared to the reputed cost of crime, police response, and community harm. I respectfully ask the council to fund this analysis to help improve safety along 19th Avenue, Camelback to Dunlap. Thank you so much for your time. Teresa Hill is not on the call. We are going to move to Suzanne Day followed by Bill Whit Meyer.

Hello, this is Suzanne. Can you hear me?

Um, yes, I thank you. I am calling as uh on behalf of Phoenix spokespeople to ask you to continue to support bicycling and safe ways of getting around. I know you know that gasoline has gone up recently and it doesn't look like it's coming back down anytime soon. So, um, we're asking for you to set aside money to maintain and install more physically separated and protected bike lanes and also improve the existing paint and flexible post buffered bike lanes, perhaps converting them to something um, more akin to what is has happened down on uh, the beautiful two-way cycle track on Third Avenue in Willow. that is very much appreciated. Um we also ask that you enforce speed limits particularly where there is bicycle infrastructure. We are very vulnerable users out there and we appreciate your support. also asking for um reasonable speed limits on those roads with a cycle that are cycling arterials. Perhaps 20 or 25 miles an hour, especially on streets like 12th Street. Those are half mileile streets. Those are not arterials and they don't need to be 30 or 35 or 40 miles an hour. Thank you for all that you do. Appreciate you.

Bill Whitmire followed by an ender. Good evening, Vice Mayor Hajj Washington and Council Member Stark. My name is Bill Whitmire. I live in North Phoenix District 2 and I'm a member of Organized Power and Numbers. It's difficult to maintain affordable housing in Metro Phoenix. As a former case manager at the largest family shelter in Maricopa County, I saw many families get back on their feet and affordable rentals. Yet months later, they faced rent hikes, making housing unaffordable, and they were on the streets again. This is unacceptable. Additional investment must be made into the housing trust fund to make real affordable housing available to working families. Child care is a major expense, and there are child care deserts in Phoenix, making it difficult to find care. I ask that the city get creative like it did with the former child care program at the airport. Surely a research study can be conducted on how to finance creative child care programs for citizens in need. Working families, which include refugees and immigrants, need flexible financial assistance, community legal services, and a right to counsel or ordinance to prevent evictions and provide proper legal counsel. Our community should not have to choose between paying rent and feeding our families. and everyone deserves the right to legal representation, civil or criminal. My ask to council is that $12 million be allocated to community legal services, flexible financial assistance, services to refugees and immigrants in crisis, and a right to counsel program. Finally, regarding the food and distribution and medical assistance ordinance that council is considering, it would take away muchneeded community services from the unsheltered and criminalize community work. City dollars

should be used to support our work, not to arrest us and place us in the system of mass incarceration. Thank you for your time.

Anne Ender followed by Melody Moss. Good evening. Thank you, Vice Mayor Hajj Washington, City Manager Zurker, and Deputy City Manager Williamson. Um, as I said last year, my sincere gratitude for your department and for the fidiciary responsibility of the city's budget. Being a relentless supporter of public safety, I appreciate the attention to both Phoenix Fire and Phoenix PD's needs. My request is that we utilize allocation from the police department's budget for engaging ASU or some other organization for research in order to understand and find solutions to the Phoenix Police Department staffing crisis. In addition to that, I have a question and a comment and I am so sorry. Um, Councilwoman Stark is on the line. Good evening. Would you please identify where allocation of 1 million to enter into an agreement with the law firm Cooper Smith Brockman to provide legal counsel related to the community transparency initiative? It where is that in the budget? Additionally, I understand there's $5 million being asked for or from the so-called stakeholders and costs associated with the implementation of this policy. I've heard several speakers mention the budget process lacking transparency and I disagree. However, the process of creating this initiative as policy truly did lack transparency as many of the community leaders, block watches, and many of the supporters of public safety never received any communication or invitation to participate in these listening sessions. Nonetheless, I've had the privilege of working with these leaders that have done the work dedicated to solutions for safe neighborhoods. Therefore, I'm going to echo Mrs. Greyber's request of $150,000 allocation to fund independent

analysts to study judicial release practices affecting repeat offenders along the 19th Avenue corridor. I'm also echoing her request for um Oh gosh. um for allocations to expand the real-time operations for public s public transit safety. She's really done the research and I respect all of that and I believe what she's asking for is realistic. Thank you. Have a good evening. Melody Moss followed by Mary Kish.

Uh hello, my name is Melody Moss. I live in the FQtory neighborhood in in downtown Phoenix. Uh the area that I'm speaking about with you tonight is the culdeac area of of Portland Street where it meets 7th Avenue. It presents a unique problem to the FQtory neighborhood. This is an area that ADA owns and is maintains the landscaping. It's an expansive landscape area that attracts drugs, crime, and homelessness activity that originates from the 7th Avenue. It's across from Circle K that has its fair share of 911 calls and next to the 7th Avenue freeway overpass that has pan handlers parked there almost every day. Story residents adjacent to this area have had their irrigation lines cut, their homeless, their homes trespassed, items stolen from their porches multiple times, and incidents incidents there have only increased in frequency with the gating of both alleys behind Portland Street, which the city has done and we are grateful for. The city needs to install a fence behind the sidewalk along 7th Avenue, enclosing the ADOT property to keep the pedestrian traffic moving up and down 7th Avenue where it belongs. I do believe that this would make our neighborhood much safer and it would uh decrease a lot of the illegal activity that currently goes on in this area. I've been working with ADOT and the neighborhood services department and they are seem to be a minimal a minimal to this uh process. However, our impediment right now is money. I anticipate that uh the cost of this fence would be approximately $50,000 and I do believe it would be a good

investment in the downtown community. I have invested as my neighborhood has in uh infusing money into this neighborhood to make it a desirable area and I'm hoping that the city will uh do the same and help us out with this project. Thank you so much.

We have Mary Kaya will be our last virtual speaker followed by in-person speaker Elise Mugab. Mayor and Council, good evening. My name is Mary Kek and I lead Nick's Refugee Connections, which is a valleywide network of Christians who love and support our refugee neighbors. Um, I personally have many refugee friends here in the valley, including two adult children who came here as unaccompanied refugee fighters. They all live in the city in districts four, five, and eight, and I live in district 4. I'm here today in support of an important investment into our city and to speak to what we're seeing in our refugee neighbors lives, which is not so different from the previous testimonies we've heard tonight. Um, my daughter Angelique is a refugee from the Congo and she lives with her husband and four children in District 8 in an apartment complex with many other refugee families. She has been telling me the past few weeks how many of her neighbors are hungry. Many barriers have gone up over the last year that are making it harder for refugees to find jobs. For example, their work authorization cards are not being renewed um in a timely manner by the government and so employers will not hire them without that card even though the law says that they can legally work here with or without the card. These neighbors of ours want to work. They have many skills to offer and they can't feed their families without income. Churches and individuals are trying to help and trying to fill in the gaps, but it's not enough. We need more support from the city in order to keep families housed, fed, and stable. If we don't address these needs now, the needs will grow and become even harder to address down the road. This is why um investments like this matter. Flexible financial assistance paired with case management and connections to resources can be the difference between stability and crisis. So I urge the city to please increase this investment by $3 million

so it can reach all the families who need it, refugees and others across our communities who are impacted. When families are supported, our entire community is stronger. Thank you so much for your leadership and for the opportunity to speak. Our last speaker will be Lis Mugab.

Good evening, vice mayor and members of the city council. My name is Elise and I'm a student here in Phoenix and I represent Chispa, Arizona. I'm here today because this city is becoming too hot to live in comfortably. After school, I walk home for about 30 minutes. And in that time, there's barely any shade, no trees, no covered areas, just the lake sun the whole way. By the time I get home, I'm exhausted from the heat. And I know I'm not the only one dealing with this. Students, workers, and families all across Phoenix are outside every day walking, waiting for buses, or just trying to get home. And in in this extreme heat that becomes dangerous. That's why we need more trees and more shade in our city. Trees are aren't just for roads. They low they lower temperatures and protect people. Shade our bus stops, sidewalks, and school isn't extra. It's necessary. We also need to invest in free or more affordable electric transportation. Not everyone can afford a car and walking long distance in this heat shouldn't be the only option. Green access accessible transportation will help people get where they need to go safely while also reducing pollution. As you make decision about the budget, I ask you to prioritize what people experience every single day such as extreme heat, lack of shade, and limited transportation option because no one should have to risk their health just to get home. Thank you.

Those are all the speakers we have online and in person. We thank everyone for taking the time this evening to be here to speak and throughout our entire series of budget hearings. I also want to thank our staff for attending these as well. at this time. Uh so the the next steps will be that given this feedback and information we're gathering, we will return to the city council for a presentation on May the 5th for a proposed budget uh for the council's consideration. They would vote then on May 19th. Uh with that, Council uh Vice Mayor Haj Washington, uh pleased to turn the meeting back to you and to Council Member Stark.

Thank you so much. Um, again, I just want to reiterate my gratitude to all of the residents that took the time out to come out tonight to speak and share their concerns. Your present again truly matters. Taking the time to show up and share your voice ensures that our budget reflects the real needs of our and priorities of our community. Um, this process is stronger because of you and we and we are grateful that you took the opportunity to come down and do that. So, thank you for your engagement and thank you for your commitment. Thank you for your support of this great city. Thank you, Ed. Thank you, Vice Mayor, Council Member Stark.

Yes, I want to say thank you as well. Uh, we had a robust amount of speakers tonight with a lot of thoughtful comments, and I do appreciate them taking the time to come to our hearing. Um, and I'm anxious to see uh a compilation of all the comments that we've gotten at all the different budget hearings, but I do appreciate everyone speaking tonight. Thank you so much. Thank you to staff as well.

Thank you, Council Member Stark. Uh again, thank you all for attending. The the uh comments will be addressed in our final report that will come to the council on May the 5th. And with that, we thank everyone for attending and wish you a safe and pleasant evening. And and with your two sons, maybe uh Yuma and Flagstaff could also get medical schools.