City Council - Regular Meeting

Good afternoon. I'd like to call this City Council meeting to order. We do have a remote disclosure.

For closed session, there will be no remote disclosure. Council Member Davis won't be participating in closed session tonight, but she will make the disclosure in your open session.

Thank you, Madam City Attorney. Do we have any public comment for closed session? I don't have any slips. I don't see anybody on Zoom. Madam City Attorney, what do we have on our agenda, on our document?

Mr. Mayor?

Yes. Mr. Mayor, Kevin Anthony just raised his hand on Zoom. Okay, thank you. Go ahead.

Mr. Anthony, it's your turn to speak.

Can you hear me?

Yes. Okay, perfect.

Hello, my name is Kevin Anthony. I'm 22 years old and I represent the city of Redlands. I care deeply about youth involvement in the city of Redlands because it impacts me and other young people in my community. I'm a part of Game Changers Leadership Institute. It's a program that helps youth ages 16 through 24 build leadership skills, confidence, and create positive change in their communities. Through this program, I'm learning about leadership skills and civic engagement, and I'm especially excited about receiving one-on-one mentorship regarding what I want to see in my community, which is Redlands. So I encourage you to support and invest in programs like this, like Game Changers and other opportunities in our city that uplift youth voices and leadership. So thank you for your time listening to youth voices.

Thank you. I don't see any other public comment on Zoom or in the audience or any written requests. Madam City Attorney.

Thank you, Mayor. We have two items on the closed session agenda. Conference of Legal Counsel, Existing Litigation, Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.91. In one case, California Department of Housing and Community Development versus Shangri-La Industries, LLC et al., Los Angeles Superior Court, Case Number 24STCV00629. And the last item is Conference of Real Property Negotiators, Pursuant to Government Code Section 54956.8. The property with APN number 0292063380000. Agency negotiators, City Manager Duggan and Assistant City Manager Boatman. Negotiating parties, Seth Davis, Managing Director of EREX Capital. And under negotiations is priced in terms of payment for possible purchase of property.

Thank you. We stand in recess until our open session. Thank you. I'd like to call this meeting to order. I'd like to reconvene the City Council meeting. Okay.

Okay, thank you.

We'll go on to the invocation by Councilmember Baric and the Pledge of Allegiance.

Today we seek your guidance for our city council meeting. Grant wisdom, clarity, and the unity to our mayor, our council members, I and all the staff as we discuss matters of importance to our community. May our deliberation be just, compassionate, and serve the common good of all the citizens. Please protect our police, fire, and all city employees. Bless our city, its people, our shared future. And I'd like to close, I had this closing the last time I had it, but I thought it was a great saying. Robert F. Kennedy, Sr., in 1968, when he was campaigning for president, he's at the University of Alabama, he had a great quote. A history has placed all of us northerners and southerners, black and white, within a common border, under a common law. all of us, from the wealthiest and most powerful men to the weakest and hungriest of children, share one precious possession, the name American. Amen.

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. Next, our closed session report. Madam City Attorney.

Mayor, before I give the closed session report, we have Council Member Davis who's participating remotely, and she'll need to make a disclosure.

Okay, thank you. Council Member Davis.

Thank you so much. Yes, I am participating remotely tonight because I am traveling on behalf of UC Riverside, and I'm not able to be there in person, but I'm grateful to join via Zoom. Thank you.

Thank you.

We had two items on the closed session agenda. There was no reportable action, and I'll note for the record that Councilmember Davis did not participate in that closed session.

Okay, thank you. We'll now move on to our presentations. We have two of them, one for Arbor Day and one for the National Library Week Proclamation. I'll step down below and we'll take care of those presentations. I'd like to call up Eric Reeves. Is he here? Okay. Well, this is to celebrate National Arbor Day, and I'll just call out a few of the whereases. In 1872, J. Sterling Morton proposed the Nebraska Board of Agriculture that a special day be set aside for planting trees, and this holiday called Arbor Day was the first observed in the planting of more than one million trees in Nebraska.

Oh, come on up, Eric.

Were you playing? We started on time. No, that's okay. So in 2026 marks the 154th anniversary of the holiday, which is now observed throughout the nation and the world. Trees can reduce the erosion and our precious topsoil by wind and water, cutting heat and cooling costs moderate, moderate the temperature, and clean air, produce oxygen, and provide habitat for wildlife. Trees are a renewable resource, giving us paper, wood for our homes, fuel for our fires, and countless other wood products. Trees in Redlands increase property values, enhance the economic viability of businesses and areas, and beautify our community. Trees... Wherever they are planted are a source of joy and spiritual renewal, whereas the City of Redlands enjoys rich heritage and dedication to the continued health and preservation of the urban forest. Now, therefore, let it be proclaimed that the City Council of the City of Redlands declares April 24, 2026 as Arbor Day and encourages all residents to support efforts to protect our trees and woodlands. Be it therefore resolved that the City Council of the City of Redlands encourages all residents to plant trees to gladden the heart and promote well-being of its future generations. And so, Eric, I'd like to thank you and your department and all those that have planted trees throughout the years. I want to thank you for your commitment to and us being able to provide more funding to trim more trees annually. And that's really made a difference in our community and our canopy. So congratulations to you and all the hard work that you and your employees do out there in the community. So if you want to say a few words. Nope.

I haven't said the words yet.

So I just, again, I appreciate it. I'm honored to accept the proclamation. I've been here for a lot of years, and I've always been involved with trees, and I hope to always be involved with trees. And, you know, we keep every year gaining a few more sites, you know, and tree sites and trees. So we currently have up to, like, Like 44,682, and I counted them all last year. So I was late. I was just finishing up. So anyways, thank you again for just honoring the day and what basically makes our city what it is. So I appreciate it. Thank you.

If I could call up Mr. Bill Hatfield or Don McHugh. Is Mr. Hatfield here today, this evening?

No, we have our vice chair, Dr. Roosevelt.

OK, well, why don't your board come on up? Yeah? And again, this is National Library Week, and I'll just speak a little bit about, whereas the staff at the A.K. Smiley Library tirelessly dedicate themselves to providing guidance and access to a world of information through books, periodicals, media, and digital resources, the A.K. Smiley Library, A.K. SPL, serves as a vital hub for lifelong learning, helping foster love and reading among patrons of all ages, offering access to exceptional adult literacy programs as well. The A.K. Smiley Library embraces diversity, inclusion, welcoming its individuals from all walks of life, providing a safe and welcoming space for exploration and discovery. The A.K. Smiley Library plays a pivotal role in promoting community engagement serving a place for individuals to enjoy a wide range of programming to connect, collaborate, and exchange ideas. The A.K. Smiley Library Heritage Tours Committee enables thousands of our area fourth graders each year to enjoy the cultural bus tour of Redlands. Whereas during the National Library Week, We celebrate the invaluable contributions of libraries like the A.K. Smiley Library in our society, recognizing the profound impact on education and cultural and dissemination of information. Now, therefore, let it be resolved that the City Council of the City of Redlands hereby declares April 19th through the 25th, 2026 as National Library Week and encourages residents to visit the A.K. Smiley Library and celebrate the adventures and opportunities the library unlocks for us every day. And Don, to your staff, and we want to appreciate all the hard work you do Diane Shimoda, Dr. Rosa Gomez, Mr. Wong, and other. Christina. Christina, yes.

And then Sierra Lightner is a library specialist at the library. Thank you, Mr. Mayor, and thank you for the honor here. I actually should turn it over to our vice president of the A.K. Smiley Library Board of Trustees, Dr. Gomez.

Well, thank you. Thank you, Mario and city council members. We know that the AK Smiley Library is the heart of the community. And so we have staff that are so dedicated to everything that they do. They always greet you with a smile. They're just the best staff that I can say that we have throughout the city. Thank you.

And I can invite everybody to Library Days this weekend, Saturday, April 25th, 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock, West Palm Avenue Band. The In-N-Out truck will be there for complimentary In-N-Out burgers. We're giving away some books for folks. It'll be a great celebration of our library.

Sure. I'm the president of the Friends of the Library, and we're honored to support the library with our fundraising efforts throughout the year. And like Rosa said, is the jewel of the Inland Empire, actually. There's no other library like it in the region, and we're all proud to support it. Thank you.

Okay, we'll now move on to our public comment. The first speaker I have is Andrew Coleman.

Good evening, Mayor and Council Members. My name is Andrew Coleman. I'm a business agent with Teamsters Local 1932 representing employees currently bargaining with the City of Redlands. At the last meeting, I came before you and asked that you provide directions to your representatives to bargain in good faith. I want to take a moment to acknowledge that since then, we have seen a noticeable improvement in the tone and professionalism at the bargaining table. If that changes as a result of your direction, I want to sincerely thank you It makes a difference and it's step in the right direction. That said, there's still important work ahead of us. The city's own classification and compensation study shows that Redlands workers are paid an average of 12% below market. With some classifications as much as 34% below market at the same time, rising health care costs continue to put additional strain on workers and their families, forcing them to pay more while. already earning less than their peers in surrounding cities. These are not abstract issues. They directly impact the city's ability to recruit, retain, and support a stable workforce. And when that stability is compromised, it affects the level of service provided to the residents of Redlands. Our members are simply asking for what is fair, competitive wages, affordable healthcare, equitable treatment across classifications. They want to continue serving the community but they need a contract that allows them to do so sustainably. So again, I appreciate the progress we've seen, and I respectfully ask that you continue that direction by supporting a fair and equitable agreement that reflects both the data and the value of your workforce. Thank you for your time.

Next public speaker is Andrew Guerrero.

Hello, good evening Mayor, members of the council. My name is Andrew Guerrero, and I am a City of Redlands employee and a proud member of Teamsters Local 1932. I am here tonight not just as a worker, but as a husband and a father of two, and a resident of this community. I take pride in serving this city. My family and I call Redlands home, and it matters to me that I can continue to both work here and live here. Like many of my coworkers, I'm doing my best to support my family while also showing up every day to serve the public with professionalism and dedication. Right now we are in the middle of contract negotiations. What we're asking for a simple, a fair contract that reflects the value of the work we do and allows employees to keep up with the rising cost of living in the very community we serve. As a member of Teamsters Local 1932, we stand together for fairness, respect and the ability to continue serving the city with pride. When you consider these negotiations, I ask that you think about the people behind the positions, the families, the parents and the individuals who are committed to the city long term. Want to continue serving residents with pride of fair agreement helps make that possible. Thank you for your time.

James Estrada.

Good evening, council members. Good evening, Mayor. I'm James Estrada. I'm a city employee going on over 20 years now. As of January, it's over 20 years. I'm the Teamster Chief Steward for Redlands, and I'm proud to represent the members this evening that I'm speaking on their behalf tonight. While I'm up here, I want to take a quick moment to acknowledge some of the divisions and services our hardworking Teamsters provide our community. library, recreation center, senior center, cemetery, parks, streets, solid waste, landfill, laboratory, admin services, customer service, finance, GIS, IT, building maintenance, building inspections, construction inspectors, water distribution, water production, fleet mechanics, and wastewater, just to name a few. These are some of the services we provide to our community that are essential and important. Naming these divisions is a good reminder for me since I've been here for over 20 years of how things have changed. 1 of those things that I've noticed that have changed quite a bit is the turnover in the city. There was a time when I used to know a lot of the city employees names when I walk around from different departments and divisions and it was just a time when you, when you knew a lot of faces and you knew people's names. But that that was a time when the. Excuse me. That was a time when employees saw the city of Redlands as an opportunity for a lifelong career here, a career that provided for you and your family. And that's really how I got here, because I came from a time when I could recognize the value for working for the city of Redlands, and I still do. And that was a time 20 years ago when you would get in with the city, you would be considered lucky. It's like winning the lottery to get in with the city. And so I still carry that mentality with me till this day. And I'm very grateful and I'm very proud and honored to still be working for this community that I that I live in and I want to try and get back to that mentality. And I think we can do that collectively together here. And I think the 1st step in doing that is for us to continue to bargain in good faith. Like, we are. And the 2nd step is simply the city honoring the data that you provided us from your class and comp study. So I'll close on this. Council members, Mayor, I ask you to take another hard look at the class and comp study and review the data. More importantly, please consider investing in your employees as you invested in city infrastructure. Thank you so much.

Next speaker is Dennis Bell.

Good evening. I have three things. First, parking in Redlands the weekend of the bike classic was a nightmare. This was a preview of what parking would be like in a couple of months with graduation in the bowl season. And for the people that were here for the races, it didn't rub off on downtown businesses. That's the normal foot traffic on state according to someone who had a bird's eye view of state. Normally packed umbrella alley was nearly deserted. Maybe same number of people left town or stayed away or has showed up. Then that the last council meeting, there was an agenda item approving contracts for the new safety hall construction. During the discussion of this, one of the council members remarked the new safety hall should have been done 20 years ago. So why wasn't it? It's the same reason as the one for the city not taking care of the streets. water distribution system, and sewage treatment plan that residents are paying for through the nose for now. The city's failed leadership, its misguided priorities, and lack of prudence in handling the public's money. Lastly, I understand Assistant City Manager Boatman is leaving the city's employee Redlands lost and someone's gain. I want to thank City Manager Boatman for his service to the city and its residents. It will be sorely missed. Best wishes and good luck in his new endeavor. Thank you.

Rosalia Leonardi?

Good evening. Thank you for this opportunity. My name is Rosalia Leonardi, and I'm a resident of Redlands. And tonight I want to share with you an upcoming community event that my husband and I are organizing. On May 22nd, at the University of Redlands Memorial Chapel, we are hosting a benefit event the Kalama brothers are going to perform. They are well known in the area. They performed at the Redlands Bowl last year and that are helping us to support this event. The reason behind this event is our daughter, Eleanor. She is now eight years old, and she was born with a rare genetic condition called Kleffstra syndrome. So she faces intellectual disabilities, autism, sleep disorders, seizures, and a lot of challenges. And in many cases, children with this syndrome might face regression. Regression means that they might lose the ability of talking, walking, feeding themselves. So that's the reason why behind this event. All proceeds will go to a Define, a non-profit organization that supports the research and there is really the time to find a treatment. And I'm not talking about a magic cure, but a real treatment, at least to face regression, the event our daughter and other kids might have. So thank you, I can say thank you to the City of Redlands, because some of you are already supporting this event, and here's hoping that we can spread the word, and if anyone is interested to know more about it, Just to support or spreading the word. It would be really helpful Thank you Thank you Where can people go find information?

When is the event? Can you tell us?

The event is on May 22nd at the Memorial Chapel And there's information somewhere I have yeah, we have a Website page and I have flyers with me. So Okay Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Next speaker is Robert LaFeld. I'm sorry, Roberta.

Hi, my name is Roberta LaFelton. I've been here before and I'm grateful to be here again. I want to thank you, Mr. Tejeda, for canvassing our neighborhood after I came here last time and the progress that the city's made in regards to the issues of our neighborhood and the Boys Club. I'm the sole neighbor of the community center and it took years to work out issues to make that comfortable. The city was very responsive, but it still took a lot of years. I feel that the city brought the Boys and Girls Club in our neighborhood and just let them do whatever. We still have lights that are glaring that aren't adjusted, aren't proper. When I talk to the, it's not Parks and Recreation, because you guys, they only lease the land, but that still needs to be addressed. It's still, there's people that can't sleep at night. There's an 85-year-old lady who has one visitor, a caretaker. You think she knows about blackout curtains? No, it's just ridiculous how the privileges that they have had impact our neighborhood. And really, any growth or expansion of any programs, one of the first questions need to be, how is this going to impact the neighborhood? Because we have been so impacted, it's ridiculous. I'm looking to retire and have peace. That's a retired neighborhood. We have lived there for decades. Then this Boys and Girls Club comes and steals our peace. From our lovely neighborhood that we have gone through different stages like any other relationship. But the Boys and Girls Club is the sole source of grief in our neighborhood now. And whenever anything is... There has to be some accountability to the neighborhood or the city. I feel like they leased the land from you. It's your responsibility. I feel like I'm doing somebody's job trying to rectify these issues. But it impacts my life so strongly. And you heard my neighbor, my one neighbor said that he was ready to move. This is outrageous, that this 501c3, whatever the dreams that they have that they're gonna do for our community or whatever at the expense of our neighborhood, that's not right. The noise, they honk their horns from 7.30, twice every family that leaves and comes back, honking, honking, the noise of the kids. And that isn't even counting the summer that's coming. mean i'm grateful that they took those administrative offices out of their 26 cars now that aren't there three four times a week but still there's so many things i can't tell you in a three minute time period the amount and this has been going on for years so thank you chandra tom this at the city bless her i have worn out my welcome with her so i'm here again you don't give her a break from me because i don't have it in me to keep doing this We did different routes on coming here to have it done in a quicker issue. I don't have decades to work this out again like we did before. I've been there for almost 50 years. When it was just dogs, you know, using the facility. Lost my view of the mountains. But thank you for what you came and did for us.

Thank you. And did you check the box where you want somebody to follow up with you from city staff and they will follow up with you?

I know they will. They're so wonderful.

Thank you. Thank you so much. Evan Sanford.

Well, I came here to speak about one thing, but based on the last speaker and two speakers before, I also wanted to comment. It might be worth looking into how the pickleball players are also impacting Clay Street. That wasn't a factor a couple of years ago, and now with so many people utilizing those courts, that might also be impacting that immediate area. 2 speakers ago, her husband actually came to a chamber event and made an impassioned plea. And I learned through the grapevine that council member and a lot of other members of our business community. have stepped up to support that family. So I'm very grateful and looking forward to attending that event as well. The reason I'm here two hours before my agenda item is I'd like to thank Chris Boatman. Over the last five years, I've had the privilege of working with him on a number of different projects and partnerships, and we just could not do it without your support. So I just wanted to wish you well in your next endeavors and remind you of something my mom taught me when I was little. you know, remember the little people when you're rich and famous. So from a little person, hopefully you'll still take my call in the future. Thank you.

B. Hamilton? I think it's him.

Thank you. I wanted to ask our esteemed City Council members to considering offering a shuttle service between the Redlands downtown and the parking structure across from the Metrolink station. This isn't just a convenience, it's a safety issue. And to understand what I mean, I wanted to tell you a story about my experience where I was walking down the street after I had gone to charge my car because I also enjoyed karaoke and I often visit the downtown area to sing. And normally I park in the southern parking structure because it's closer. However, on this night, my car was low on charge, so I decided to park and charge while I was singing. And let me tell you, the walk from the structure and back was one of the scariest experiences of my life. SAVE FOR A FEW HOMELESS PEOPLE. THERE WAS NO ONE NEARBY. IT WAS DARK AND THERE WERE A LOT OF PLACES WHERE PEOPLE COULD HIDE SO I PULLED MY PHONE OUT AND OPENED AN APP THAT CAN CALL THE POLICE IF I RELEASE MY THUMB FROM A BUTTON WITHOUT PUTTING IN A PASSWORD TO INDICATE THAT I'M SAFE. I thought as I got closer to the downtown I would feel safer, but it was quite the opposite. A man stepped out of the shadows and started walking toward me. I don't know that he meant me any harm, but for a moment I felt intense anxiety because he was the only one near until a couple came by. And returning to my car, I decided to take a different route, and a man followed me and started matching my pace. if i sped up he sped up if i slowed down he slowed down my thumb pressed hard on the screen i began power walking to my car and he broke off going around a corner but still heading north in the direction i was going across one of the parking lots And walking alone, I passed a man sleeping on the street and I didn't encounter anyone else until I got to the train station and saw two security guards patrolling the structure. And so I would like to ask, if you cannot offer that kind of a shuttle service, that you at least try to be offering at least more security in that area because it is a very scary and anxiety-inducing experience walking from that structure down to, the downtown area and my and I would hope that that is not something that you want and particularly given some of the things that have happened recently where there was a shooting in the downtown area and I think it would be important and prudent to offer that additional security or shuttle services. So, thank you.

Before we get to our consent calendar, we're pulling item.

Mr mayor, we do have a speaker on zoom.

My bad. Go ahead, please.

Sarah Aragon, it's your turn to speak.

Can you hear me?

Yes.

Thank you so much for allowing me to speak today. My name is Sarah Aragon. I'm 18 years old and I'm a high school student, not in Redlands in Ontario, but what I'm speaking to you about today, I think is something that everybody can take from. I'm going to be honest, I don't have like a written statement prepared, but I will keep my message very brief. I'm speaking to you guys today because I wanted to raise the issue of AI within our educational system. I'm aware that I and everybody else is aware that AI is a new technology. It's booming. Employers find it important and worthwhile for for students or for people or employees to be able to use it effectively. But I'm speaking to you today because I believe, actually, I don't believe, I know that beyond just giving staff, teachers, and students trainings on how to physically utilize AI, I think the most important component of training surrounding AI is safety training because The bottom line is that in the American education system, our priority is to protect and support our students. And we need to implement safety protocols and safety trainings for our teachers and staff and for our students so that they can learn when and why using AI can be harmful. There are, this is a very large and complicated topic. What I'm asking you today is not to ask our local school districts or our local schools to have the larger conversation of the ethics surrounding AI. I believe that's a personal decision, but I do believe that it is inherently important that we arm our educators our parents, and most importantly, our students with the adequate resources in order to make an informed and safe decision. AI models can be especially dangerous for students' psychological health and and how they function in a classroom, et cetera, I don't have enough time to adequately explain every single harm and how it happens. But I do ask that honestly, really, truly, if you care about your students and if you care about the quality of our education system, that you will implement safety trainings on teaching students and teachers and everybody how to navigate ai safely because there are genuinely risks associated with it along outside of just it might be wasting water or you know uh big commercial products this is a psychological issue and can genuinely lead to so many problems and thank you that's all that i have thank you thank you next public comment on zoom

Hello, my name is Ray. I'm 16 years old, and I'm a student at Eleanor Roosevelt High School. I care deeply about expanding leadership opportunities for youth because it directly impacts me and other young people in my community. We aren't just the leaders of tomorrow. We have perspectives that matter right now. I'm currently a member of the Game Changers Leadership Institute, a program dedicated to helping youth ages 16 to 24 build essential leadership skills, gain confidence, and create tangible, positive change in our neighborhoods. Through this institute, I'm developing my skills in civic engagement and professional communication. I'm especially excited about the networking opportunities, which would allow me to connect with established leaders and learn how to navigate the professional world. I believe youth need more intentional investment in mentorship and leadership opportunities. When we are given the right tools and platforms, we can grow into capable leaders who drive meaningful change in our communities. I encourage you to support and invest in programs that prioritize uplifting youth voices and leadership. Your investment today builds a stronger community for everyone. Thank you for your time.

Mr. Moderator, do we have another public comment on Zoom?

No, Mr. Mayor.

Okay, thank you. I don't have any other speaker slips for public comment before we get to the consent calendar. We're pulling communication item J1 from the agenda. What are the consent calendar?

We'll approve the consent calendar.

Second. We have a motion to second. Madam City Clerk.

Council Member Barrett?

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda? Yes. Council Member Davis?

Yes.

Mayor Pro Tem Shaw?

Yes.

Mayor Cecilio?

Yes. Moving on to item J2. This is a recognition of the City of Redlands Wastewater Treatment Plant and Plant of the Year by the Santa Ana River Basin Section of the California Water Environmental Association, Municipal Utilities and Engineering Director Heredia.

Yeah. Good evening, Mayor, Council Members, staff, and the public. I am honored to present this recognition that John Hamburger, the wastewater utility manager, is here to give us a brief presentation. And I have the beautiful plaque here. We'll take photos after his presentation. Thank you.

Good evening, esteemed members of the Red Links City Council. I'm honored to stand before you today to share the exciting news that our wastewater treatment plant has been awarded the CWA SARB Section Medium Plant of the Year for 2026. This sparks a second win in just four years, having previously received the recognition in 2022. Go to the next slide. Okay, thank you. The plan of the award is prestigious recognition and highlights excellence across four key categories. I am proud to share how our team excelled in each of them. The 1st, we achieved 100% regulatory compliance requirements. This is critical as it directly reflects the community, the commitment to protect public health and the environment. Second, innovation and sustainability. We implemented new technologies and reduced the energy consumption by 15%. We also completed significant upgrades to our membrane bioreactor system and clarifiers. Additionally, we expanded our public outreach efforts to promote water conservation within the community. Third, cost effectiveness. Our teams streamlined operations, resulting in 10% reduction of overall operational cost. Staff also optimized chemical usage by fine-tuning treatment processes and successfully secured grant funding, including the state revolving fund support, to advance phase two of our treatment plant improvements without placing additional burden on the water enterprise budget. Operational performance we consistently maintain an average treatment capacity of six million gallons per day Ensuring reliable and efficient service to meet our community needs Okay, finally operation this award and not just recognize our past achievements reflects our ongoing commitment to excellence and wastewater management and We are dedicated to continue improvement our services and engaging with our community and ensuring sustainable future. Thank you for your continued support and for recognizing the efforts of our team. We are probably just proud to serve the city of Williams and remain committed to delivering innovative, sustainable water wastewater solutions together. We, we ensure strong and resilient future for our community. I also like to have our employees here that when the wastewater staff, please stand up. Without the supportive team here, we cannot do what we do for the community. So I'm very proud of the team that we have here, and you should be too. So thank you, and I appreciate your time.

Thank you. And we really appreciate the team effort of all the no matter how much upgrades we provide. But it's the employees that really that carry out the mission and the hard work to be able to get this acknowledgement. And we're really proud to know that we have professionals out there doing this job sometimes. unseen or thankless, but we recognize this and this award is a testament to that. And so we want to congratulate you and your team for doing this excellent work. And so if Council will join me down below, why don't we get our employees to come on up and we'll take a picture or photo. Director Heredia, join us too as well.

All right.

Wastewater.

What did I do now? All right. Thank you so much. Moving on to item K1.

which is the consideration of a license agreement with the Redlands Historical Museum Association and determine that approval of the license agreement with the Redlands Historical Museum Association is exempt from environmental review pursuant to section 15061 of the state guidelines implementing the California Environmental Quality Act. Assistant City Manager Boatman.

Thank you, Mayor and Council. In 2025, the City formally accepted the transfer of the Museum of Redlands property from the Redlands Historical Museum Association, or RHMA. With that transfer, the museum became a City-owned facility intended to provide a long-term public benefit through cultural, educational, and community programming. That transfer also contemplated an ongoing partnership with RHMA, recognizing their long-standing role in bringing the museum to fruition and their continued ability to support the facility through fundraising and community engagement. On January 20th, the City Council formed a subcommittee consisting of Council Members Barrett and Davis to help guide the development of an operational framework for this relationship. Since that time, staff has been working collaboratively with the Council Subcommittee, RHMA, and a subcommittee of the Library Board to finalize the terms of the agreement. The license agreement before you tonight reflects that collaborative effort. At a high level, this is a 20-year agreement that establishes a clear partnership between the city and RHMA. It is structured as a license, not a lease, which means the city retains ownership and overall management of the museum, while RHMA is able to support the museum through specific activities that generate revenue and enhance programming. There are two primary components of the agreement. First, the museum store. RHMA is granted the exclusive right to operate the store. They will be responsible for staffing, inventory, and operations at their sole cost, and all net revenue generated from the store are required to be reinvested in the museum to support its operations. Second, the event pavilion and surrounding areas. Our HMA has granted a non-exclusive right to utilize the space for fundraising events and to coordinate third-party rentals. This allows our HMA to play an active role in supporting the museum through events and programming, while all activities remain coordinated as well as city staff. The city and the city also retains the ability to use the facility for city sponsored events again with coordination. The agreement also outlines how these activities will be managed. Events must be approved and scheduled in coordination with the library director and our HMA is responsible for associated costs with those events. Um, and then again, they, the net, the net revenues support is, uh. coordinated to support the facility. Events must comply with city standards related to capacity, safety, and neighborhood compatibility, with additional review required for larger events. More broadly, the agreement is intended to ensure that RHMA can continue to support the museum in a meaningful way, particularly through fundraising and community engagement, while the library board provides oversight of the facility. In summary, this agreement formalizes a long-term partnership that builds on the work that has already been done to bring the museum to completion in positions both the City and RHMA to support its success moving forward. That concludes my presentation. I'm happy to answer any questions, and RHMA representatives are here as well.

Okay, thank you. Is there any questions or comments for staff? No? Does the representative from the Redlands Historical Museum have anything? I don't have any speaker slips, but if not, what's the wish of the Council?

I move this City Council determine that the approval of the license agreement with the Redlands Historical Museum Association is exempt from environmental review pursuant to section 15061B3, the state sequel guidelines. I move that the City Council approve the license agreement between the City of Redlands and Redlands Historical Museum Association.

Second. We have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk?

Council Member Baric.

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda.

Yes.

Council Member Davis. Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw. Yes. Mayor Sacido.

Yes. Thank you. Moving on to item K2, this is a consideration of resolution number 8735, adopting the Arts and Cultural Master Plan and determine that the approval of the resolution is exempt from environmental review pursuant to section 15301 of the state guidelines implementing the California Environmental Quality Act, Facilities and Community Services Director Crocker.

Thank you, Mayor, members of the Council. In 2023, the City Council directed staff to advertise an RFP for the development of an arts and cultural master plan. The cultural planning group was selected for the preparation of this document, and they're here tonight to give a presentation. If adopted tonight, this will be the first arts and cultural master plan for the city. That'll be a guiding policy document for the arts in this community. And with that, I'd like to introduce David Pletner Sanders, the city's consultant.

Thank you. Welcome.

Thank you. Good evening. So I'm David Pletner Saunders. I'm a partner with Cultural Planning Group. I live in San Diego, and I'm here tonight representing the planning team. I'm also joined by Alejandro Gutierrez Chavez of Arts Connection. He's also a resident now, a relatively new resident of Redmond. His organization was our Redlands planning team member for this project. So I am very pleased on behalf of the team to present the Redlands Arts and Culture Master Plan to you this evening. We would like to present a quick overview, 10 minutes. We want to start with some background as a refresher, then we'll talk through the community planning process, what we learned, our recommendations, options for funding implementation, and first implementation steps. Tabitha thumbnail for you you you commissioned this plan in 2023 the planning process was done over the past two years and the majority of community engagement was in 2024 and 25 while the plan document that you have in your packet was drafted and edited over the past year. Here were the initial objectives for the plan what you and staff wanted out of the process. It's the city's first master plan for arts and culture, so you wanted an assessment of arts and culture in Redlands. You wanted a shared community vision and priorities. You wanted to treat the arts as a part of economic development, and you wanted to define a realistic role for city government in arts leadership. This slide essentially says that we did our homework. We did six months of community engagement, including interviews with city leadership, including all of you, I believe, discussion groups with arts organizations, artists, the business community, Cultural Arts Commission, and others. So with the general public, we did a community survey, community workshops during the downtown Riverside Art Walk and the Riverside Arts Festival, and an analysis of Redlands' creative economy. Our assessment of arts and culture in Redlands showed, not surprisingly, that your city is arts rich, and it has been for a very long time. From the Bowl and the Smiley Library to the new Museum of Redlands, you are anchored by a robust nonprofit arts and culture scene. You also have a vital community of individual artists and creatives who showed up for this planning process and are very interested in participating in city initiatives moving forward. Your public art collection of 69 artworks is listed and pictured in the plan. And your creative economy is nearly 25% greater than the national average and growing. Total earnings from your creative businesses are $103 million and account for more than 2,300 jobs in the community. Your top three creative industries are architecture, food trucks, and artists, writers, and performers. That last category is comprised of individuals who make a full-time living in the arts. The city conducted an economic impact study of just your nonprofit arts organizations in 2022. So this is a subset of your total creative economy we just looked at. I believe Tricia, So what presented this to you at least once in the past, but we wanted to include it again here. The nonprofits alone in the arts and culture sector generated more than $14 million in expenditures, supported 416 jobs and contributed $609,000 in local government revenue in that year. So what else did our research tell us? Residents are well aware and show strong support for arts and culture in Redlands 85% believe arts and culture are essential to their families 70% support increased city funding for the arts and These opinions are validated by a recent parks department survey done for the parks master plan in which 78% of residents rated high quality parks and cultural programs as very important While residents appreciate Redlands arts and culture, they also said the cultural assets and experiences are not equally distributed among areas in the city. And they also had differing opinions of how well their cultural backgrounds were represented. And they said they view culture as a solution, a way to better connect different groups in the community. This slide lists the priorities that residents have, what they want from this plan and from the city. More arts events and festivals to connect the city, as we just mentioned. Creative activities for all ages. People are interested in hands-on activities, so doing, not just watching or attending. A downtown arts and culture district, building on your current downtown vibrancy. A better music scene. Public art throughout the city. Expanded use of the Redlands Bowl. And city grants for Redlands artists. Here are the seven goals of the plan. Let's take a moment to walk through them and highlight a few of the supporting recommendations. The first goal is to develop a comprehensive public art program building on the foundation of the current program. This means expanding the public art collection throughout the city, developing a sustainable funding source, creating a fund for maintenance and conservation. The second goal is to enhance cultural infrastructure and creative spaces. This means identifying opportunities to reuse vacant or underutilized spaces, exploring development of a community arts center and developing a cultural district, which we referred to earlier. The third goal in the plan is to strengthen community connections through arts and culture. As we heard from residents, this means using arts and cultural programs to bring together the Redlands community. Also using arts to enhance public safety. We met with the fire and police chiefs and we identified multiple ways that arts can support the work of their departments. The fourth goal is to strengthen culture sector capacity, which means improving the capacity of city government to lead in arts and culture, building on the efforts staff have made and the Cultural Arts Commission has made to develop this plan, and strengthening the capacity of Redlands arts community. The fifth goal is to integrate arts and culture into economic development. This means incorporating arts and culture into economic development strategies and embracing cultural tourism as one such strategy. The sixth goal is to expand arts education and lifelong learning. The community values arts education and lifelong learning. As I mentioned, there's a strong appetite for hands-on creative activities, and there are many opportunities to expand this type of programming for youth and people of all ages. The seventh goal is to preserve and celebrate Redlands' cultural heritage. Redlands' history and heritage, of course, have a strong presence in your city. There are opportunities to use the arts to further celebrate and interpret Redlands history and your diverse cultures. You're already using this strategy successfully in the Museum of Redlands, the library, and other programs. So moving on to funding options, every cultural plan raises expectations for more resources and questions of how to pay for implementation. The overall funding goal in Redlands is twofold. First, more resources in terms of funding and staffing, and second, diversification of sources. Arts communities are less vulnerable to disruption when they can rely on multiple funding sources. There are a number of potential revenue sources identified for this plan. First, art in private development, which means requiring or incentivizing developer contributions for the arts. Many California cities allocate a portion of tourism dollars to the arts as they do with general funds and as you do. Redlands can also explore creation of a fundraising nonprofit dedicated to securing private contributions and grants similar to the friends of the library or friends of the parks. And lastly, we're living in a period of change and uncertainty in federal and state funding for the arts, but there are and will continue to be grants available and the city can monitor and pursue these opportunities. Our last slide is about implementation. Working with the city manager's office and the facilities and community services director with Tabitha, we defined these starting points for the first couple of years. It's based on a certain amount of funds set aside, earmarked for the arts and for implementation of this plan. The first steps are to identify opportunities in public parks, facilities and spaces for arts and cultural programs. Then to work with the Cultural Arts Commission to put out a call for proposals from Redlands arts organizations and artists. The private development fee for the arts is another early implementation step. This will require some research and development to sift through and evaluate the options. And lastly, allocate staff time to research and apply for grants, as we just spoke about. And with that, I'd be happy to hear your comments and answer any questions you might have. Thank you.

Are there any comments or questions? I just had a question. How many of these bullet points through this cultural arts master plan has the commission already been working on or has identified? Have we already started working on this master plan? Well, no not not exact but I saw some things in there that I think we were already a dent have already been identified and moving on and Trying to find I guess the the biggest challenge is finding the funding source, right? but I think some of these other elements that the Commission has been working on and thank you to the Commission and to the consultant for re-identifying and articulating those those points and

Yeah, that's what the plan does help. It helps staff kind of identify what we're already working on, how can we make those actions or measures enhance them to provide the arts further in the community. But they did a really good job identifying those and working with them. That was the whole reason, I think, for the meetings that they had with the council, with staff, and the commission.

And I think one of the things that had been working on through the Planning Commission was just voluntary asking some of these developers that are bringing in some of their projects and asking them voluntarily, could you incorporate a piece of artwork that reflects the community or has some sort of opportunity for the greater community to enjoy? And that was just a voluntary question. So I know we're really trying to... enhance our visibility in the arts and in public spaces because we do Recognize that there's an economic return on that and so we want to be able to kind of capture that but I think This is a good start a good starting point. Thank you, man Anybody else? Okay. Thank you so much for all the work and thank you to the Commission and thank you for now this master plan that we at least have a roadmap of how how we can get there and so Council Member Denise, do you have anything?

I do. Just a couple thoughts. First of all, thank you so much to the consultant as well as to the Cultural Arts Commission. I know this has been a long time coming, and I'm really proud of our city for doing this master plan work, and I agree with some of the comments around needing to find some more permanent funding sources. I know that's been a challenge for our Cultural Arts Commission for a while, and I hope that we can find some creative solutions for them as we move forward and yes the arts have a tangible economic impact in the city of redlands but more so they have a cultural and community and just overall well-being impact as well so i want to thank the artists in our community for making Redlands the thriving place that it is. I'm in Sacramento right now and I was in a senator's office today and there was a big picture of the umbrella alley in Redlands. It was a beautiful art piece and The staff was telling me that people come in and don't think it's real. And I said, no, it's absolutely real. It's a beautiful piece of our city. And I feel like that's one of the many examples of the art transforming the city. So let's continue forward in this direction. And thank you all for your work on this.

Okay, thank you. What's the wish of the council? I don't have any speaker slips, any public comment. Thank you. Any public comment? I don't see any public comment. Oh, yes, we do. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I apologize. Dennis Bell. Thank you.

I'm not against this plan per se, but this plan has taxpayer funded written all over it. And as for Redlands not quite Riverside when it comes to the arts, it's really not even quite Pomona or Ontario yet either. Thank you.

Thank you. Next public speaker, Alejandro Gutierrez.

Good evening, mayor. Good evening. City council, city staff and community. My name is and. I'm a proud resident almost a year here in the city of Redlands a father as of 2 weeks of. I have a baby girl that was born 2 weeks ago, and I'm really excited to develop deep roots and invest in the city and ensure that we have a thriving cultural ecosystem that she could play enjoy and be proud of. I want to I'm here today not only as a resident, but also I get to be your executive director of the Arts Council of San Bernardino County. We're a nonprofit organization dedicated to events in the arts, the culture ecosystem, and also the creative economy. Um, we do this through a variety of different programs from after school programs to workforce development, film festivals, artists and residency. And we also support jurisdictions, developers, small businesses with public art services across the county. Recently, we've contracted with the city of Ontario for their 1st, ever micro grant program, where they're investing directly to 2 artists to do murals and across the different districts in their city. Today I'm here to extend my appreciation for your leadership for investing in the vision and a roadmap for the city of Redlands. I think this articulates perfectly the dreams and aspirations and it gives us a nice roadmap to go forward on. I just want to share some recent data that I just came back from Sacramento, and I also serve on a variety of different state boards, recent data from CVL economics and a leading researcher. Adam Fowler shares that California creative economy generates over 288Billion annually, and is 1 of the fastest growing sectors in the state. And it's driven from a mix of revenue sources, such as entrepreneurship or industries, entrepreneurship, digital innovation and ultimately creative labor. Um, through arts connection, we help land the largest ever workforce development grant for the empire. We received in 2022, 4.7Million dollars. The state developed its 1st, ever creative economy strategic plan. There's real momentum from the state and I want to ensure for my community. My neighbor is my family that we get some of those tax dollars back. Um, and we invest into this, uh, ecosystem because the returns there. Um, so I'm grateful that the for your leadership and I'm excited to partner with you all to, um, implement this and continue that investment. Thank you.

Thank you. I don't have any written speaker slips. I don't see anybody on zoom. What's the wish of the council?

I move the City Council find that adoption of the Arts and Cultural Master Plan is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to Section 15061B3 of the CEQA guidelines. And I move the City Council approve Resolution No. 8735, the Arts and Culture Master Plan.

Second. We have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk.

Council Member Barrett.

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda.

Yes.

Council Member Davis. Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw.

Yes.

Mayor Sacito.

Yes. Moving on to item K-3. which is the consideration of resolution number 8778, providing notice of intent to increase water and wastewater rates, direct staff to issue the required Proposition 218 notice, establishing a public hearing date and location, and determine that the consideration of the proposed rate increase are exempt from the environmental review pursuant to section 15061B3 of the state guidelines implementing the California Environmental Quality Act, Municipal Utilities and Engineering Director Heredia.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. On January 20, 26, so not too long ago, the City Council appointed seven members to the Utility Advisory Committee who worked with staff in the city's utility rate consultant, who's here to answer any questions and develop great recommendations that provide adequate revenue to recover costs for services are equitable to all customer classes, comply with state and federal laws and are easily explained to customers presented a financial analysis, including revenue projections, reserve balances, cost escalations, and developed several scenarios that were considered by the UAC. The proposed rate will be presented by John James, chair of the UAC, and will provide more detailed information on the rate study. I also just want to say that if the UACs, or the council determines that The UAC and staff's recommendations are appropriate. Staff will issue a public hearing Proposition 218 notice, which is in your packet, which includes a copy of Resolution 7128 that describes protest procedures. And there's a schedule outlined in your agenda report as well that would allow the first rate increase to starting in January 1st, 2027. And without further delay, we'll present more in-depth analysis. Thank you.

Thank you, Director Heredia. Good evening, council members and mayor and staff. I'm John James, and as chair of the committee, I'm here to present on their behalf the summary of the recommendations they're making for the different utilities we have. Oops, wrong way. Appointed in January of this year, the committee reviewed the operations and financial status of the city's wastewater, potable water, and non-potable water utilities for the purpose of evaluating the potential need for revenue adjustments. The committee performed the financial analysis with operational input from staff and financial input from the consultant, Ref Tellis. The committee was comprised of seven members. There are two of them here tonight, Oli Ojeda and Paul Tour. The mission statement and goals are depicted here as they are stated on the application as well as the city's municipal code. Members appointed by council definitely approached the study with different points of view with a multitude of backgrounds representing the divergent interests of this community at large. The committee. approached the rate study by reviewing the financial analysis of each fund. Major items included operation and maintenance costs, cost of capital improvement projects, revenue projections based upon the current rates, restricted and unrestricted reserve balances, as well as the overall objective to keep the city's credit rating at a double A plus. That is also very, very high, in case anyone knew that. Congratulations to the wastewater group for the award that they had here. The city's wastewater system is a critical infrastructure operation necessary for the everyday health and safety of all of its residents. Wastewater is transported from all the residents by gravity flow piping system to the wastewater treatment plant. Approximately six million gallons of wastewater arrive at the treatment plant every day of the year, and it must be treated and discharged on a continuous basis. Because the wastewater flow to the treatment plant cannot be stopped, failure to treat and discharge on a real-time basis could result in environmental disaster. And again, congratulations to the staff for making sure that happens on a daily basis. There are many costs associated with everyday maintenance and operational costs of the treatment plant. Additionally, there are needs for capital improvement, replacement, and upgrades to keep the plant operational and compliant with environmental regulations. Many factors must be taken into account when determining adjustments to revenues. The requirements and restrictions related to Prop 218 play a large part in the final determinations of any adjustments. The core mandate is fairness and proportionality. Under Prop 218, water rates must be proportionate to the cost of service. We ensure compliance, ensuring that rates never exceed the actual cost to provide the service. Revenues stay within the utility, no diverting of funds. Every parcel pays only a specific nexus of cost. Cost of service include all normal operation and maintenance expenses, as well as all capital improvement costs. The cost to treat wastewater stream vary by customer based on the makeup and concentration of the waste stream of each customer. Looking at the aspects and metrics of the rate model by Raftelis, the committee has settled on recommending that the City Council increase rates for the next two and a half years. The recommended rate adjustment for wastewater is 7% per year through fiscal year ending 2028-29. This slide shows the effect of the increase for customers of all the various levels of wastewater treatment. The rates shown in larger fonts are only to highlight those rates which will be experienced by most of the residents. As a reminder, these are bimonthly rates. This slide shows the effect of the rates relative to one of the financial metrics evaluated by the committee. The year ending cash balances. The blue bars represent ending cash balances of total reserves. The black line represents the target level of reserves needed to keep the utility financially stable and to retain the credit level of AA+. On potable water, costs are incurred for water treatment, water well operations, maintaining reservoirs, and maintenance of the pipe delivery system. A major component of costs are capital improvement projects. There are more than $40 million in capital improvement projects planned by the end of fiscal year 28-29. The Water Fund does have a significant level of reserves, which will help cover the majority of these costs. The proposed rate increase for potable water is necessary to recover the increasing costs for services which includes routine infrastructure maintenance and emergency repairs, equipment and materials purchases, labor costs, in addition to the planned capital projects. As with wastewater, potable water must take many factors into account when making revenue adjustments, including the regulatory and restrictions of Prop 218. The potable water utility incurs both fixed costs and variable costs. Variable costs are related to the ever-changing consumption of water, including meeting the daily peaking demands resulting from customer uses. Additionally, there are fixed costs associated with keeping the utility ready to deliver water whenever the consumer demands it. The total cost of service for these and other expenses are compared to the current revenue stream. Adjustments to revenues are calculated to cover the total costs providing water services. Again, like wastewater, Prop 218 requires that the adjustments are applied proportionally to all customer types relative to the varying cost of service incurred by each customer. The proposed fixed rates and variable rates are shown in the following table. As with wastewater, again, looking at all the aspects and metrics in the rate model biograph tell us, The committee has settled on recommending that the City Council adjust rates for the next two and a half years. The recommended rate adjustments for potable water is two and a half percent per year through the fiscal year ending 28-29. Charges for water are split between fixed and variable charges. Fixed fees are the water service charge while the variable fee is based on the volume of water used by any customer. The larger fonts indicate those rates representing the water service charge for a single family resident with either a three quarter inch meter or a one inch meter. At the bottom of the table, the water usage rates are also shown. With the wide variance of lot sizes, landscaping designs, and water usage, charges for individual residents are highly variable and I think no one gets exactly the same bill. Oops, what happened? Oh. Okay, again, the committee looked at the cash balance metrics as one of the major considerations for requiring any rate adjustments. The committee felt that with its current cash balances, the portable water enterprise will remain healthy with a 2.5% rate increase. Again, the blue bars are the actual cash balances. The black line is what's needed to maintain reserves at a viable level. Keep going, what am I?

I got lost here.

Non-potable, oh, no wonder. Okay, for non-potable water, the committee is recommending no increase in rates for the next two and a half years. There is a significant cash balance to sustain it in a healthy status through the fiscal year ending 28 and 29. Again, this chart shows that the cash balances for non-potable water. Again, you can see the years with no rate increase and the cash balances remaining very high above the reserve target line. In summary, through the fiscal years ending 28-29, this slide shows the summary of the rate recommendations by the committee. 7% increase for wastewater, 2.5% for potable water, and no increase for non-potable water. So that's the end of what I have, and if we have questions, we can give back to staff for any operational, and Raph Tellis is here to answer any financial questions.

Any questions for? John, yes, Eddie.

Yes, just thank you very much for the report. 1st of all, I appreciate the fact, you know, as a rate payer, all of us are rate payers. I appreciate the explanation of how you and the members of the committee approach this with diligence to make sure that every rate payer doesn't experience too much pain in the process of doing this. Also, thanks to staff for all the work that they did and providing some information to the commission. My question is related to the. Sunset reservoir is that basically the final or is it almost the final. Infrastructure project that we need to do besides the wastewater treatment plan is that. So I know that we've gone through a lot of pipeline replacement projects, sewer replacement, repair, and things like that. So is that the last major project that we have?

I would say so, yes.

During the other projects are ongoing Programs to replace pipes for sewer because I would assume if that's the last one then future Visits or future instances where we asked the committee to get together and look at this is we're probably not going to see that much increases Just adjustments to make sure we're covering costs Thank you, correct

Okay, do you?

Yeah, Steph, can you, I'm sure you can do the math, I could probably do the math myself, but what would be the average increase that you figure in the next three years, incorporated all the increase recommendations? Can you come up with a figure, like is it gonna be 50 bucks per, you know, bi-monthly to residents, or, I mean, that's what, pardon?

I don't know if we have a factual rate. There is a chart that shows.

That's the non-potable. If you want to go to the potable. Potable was right there.

The 2.5, I don't have a problem. I'm really looking at the 7%.

wastewater yeah so I I would just say that because of the demand of our treatment plant and the upgrades to be able to handle the capacity and not fall under some you know Regulation that we need to be able to to cover the cost of of service upgrades maintenance that this is why this is needed to be able to Have a treatment plant that can take the capacity that it's at right? Yeah, I think that's what you're asking.

Well, I people are gonna ask me. Okay. We're having these rate increases Can you give me a ballpark of what's gonna cost me by monthly to from my water bill? I mean, that's

The first increase for just the wastewater is $2.75 per month, and that's $5.50 bimonthly on a bill for just the wastewater.

It's wastewater, okay. I'm trying to get an idea. People are going to ask me, hey, is my bill going to go up $72 every month and a half or every bimonthly? I mean, do we have any idea what the bottom line would be? Because this all comes under one bill, right? Yeah.

Well, I hope it's less than $10 the combined current water and wastewater bill difference for the first increase is $8 and 32 cents. Okay. Combined for the bi monthly bill. So it's a little over $4 a month for for that combination. Great. Thank you.

Can you go to slide 19?

Which one is 19?

It's beyond this beyond the beyond the presentation. Think it's that 1 next next 1. no, not the next 1. The black just going beyond beyond Nick. There you go. Oh, there's there's the thank you. A chart with all of the rates. On your water bill, this is both the water wastewater. A typical bill, but again, remember. There are no, there are no 2 bills exactly the same.

No, I understand that. It's always a ballpark, but people are going to say, hey, she voted for an increase. What is housing generally going to impact me on a, you know, by monthly basis. That's all is that this is the answer to my question.

What you said on page 20 of the report that's attached to this item. So if someone wanted to look it up, they could find it in that report. Trust me people want to look it up.

So. All right. Thank you. Good. Good report by the way.

And I would just just, you know, from my experience running a manufacturing plant. Regulations are there and they keep going up and up and up and up city. Has the same issue to deal with regulations wastewater is 1 of the ones, you know, there's a lot of regulations doing that. And I said in my report that they have to meet and treat the six million gallons a day, okay? There is no way of stopping that flow. It's not like a water pipe that you can turn off. This is a gravity flow pipe that goes down there. It cannot be stopped, otherwise it backs up in the street. So the requirement to have capital to maintain that system in an environmentally friendly and responsible way is critical. So yes, it's a big number, we know that. But it's necessary to make sure that we don't get environmental disaster here.

I appreciate you had a great explanation, especially the gravity flow and so on as well. I don't think people want to have wastewater on the streets anymore.

So also council members the last time this was presented to you and you voted on rates at that point staff had reported to council. We expected double digit increases in the future in this wastewater account. would like to credit the staff of MUED and our volunteers on our UAC they've really worked to try to keep the rate increases as low as they possibly could in some cases that we found better ways to do things in other cases we've been able to push out some projects so the full impact of that wouldn't be borne by the ratepayers all at one time and so I was I was actually very surprised when it came back at seven percent Because I was expecting somewhere in the 10 to 15% just for wastewater based on all the conversations we had the last time we did, we raised rates. So I just wanted to say kudos to the staff and the committee for working really hard to keep that down to 7%. Thank you.

Any other comments or questions.

On level mayor members of the city council city manager staff. My name is Paul. I'm intimately familiar with all these projects and our programs, water and wastewater programs. So, has done a study for us for, you know, this is not the 1st study they have done for us. The infrastructure needs we have, they are substantial. As you can see on the screen, we are looking at over 130Million dollar projects to be delivered in next 3 years. So wastewater is a key component. If you notice that, we are looking at $45 million infrastructure improvement. I'm pleased to see our staff was able to get that reward from our regional agency. Wastewater is always a challenge. Some of us do recall, because I'm living in community for some time, is that wastewater, we have our challenges. So we did our, what we call is a membrane bioreactors, you know, back in 1994. Then we subsequently upgraded that. And it does need major improvements. It's not only a question of, you know, having the rates. We are increasing the rates slightly. Like, you know, our advisory committee and as well as like city manager briefed, it's a challenge. We have a huge need. City was able to, staff was able to get... The devolving loan, which is perhaps 1 of the best loans you can get right now in the market for the wastewater treatment plant. So, but, you know, heavily subsidized by state. So, having said that, uh. Our advisory committee has done a great job reviewing this and the challenge not only that we have the rate increases. Now, what would challenge will be to deliver these projects. Construction cost is going up in last 10 years. Construction cost has gone up somewhere from 6 to 10%. What that means is the more we delay the projects, the cost adds up. So, like Council Member Tejeda mentioned, you know, that when we have these projects, so Sunset Avenue project, Sunset Reservoir is on books for some time. And simply we were accumulating the money and collecting the money so we can deliver that project. And now we are pleased that we are ready to proceed with that water, wastewater. In addition to, Council Member Baric, you asked there are other projects. Yes, there will be other projects. you know it's up system ongoing system we have one of the perhaps best system water system we have so we are not only doing the upgrades like that we just awarded the contract for new generators for emergencies so that's under construction and uh... our security systems we already placed that those improvements about five years ago now we are looking at the wastewater treatment plant we are looking at both over water treatment spent hank lee and tate So it needs upgrades. Those are, as we move forward, technology moves forward. So having said that, so I just want to brief you and we are recommending through our committee to approve these rates and then we will be looking forward to deliver these projects. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you. Thank you so much for that comment. I don't have any speaker slips for this item. I don't see anybody on Zoom. I do want to thank the Utility Advisory Committee for the work, the hard work of trying to Find the lowest rate possible, but still be able to enhance our system. And I believe it's 1 of the best systems we have, as Mr tour said of delivering the high quality of product of good drinking water, be able to treat the water so that we don't have violations from the state. water agencies, and then we increase our capacity to treat surface water at our treatment plants and provide water. I think all of us enjoy turning on the tap and knowing that we've got good, clean, high quality water coming out of there and being able to treat it at the down river resource. So I don't see any other, Councilman at the head that you had something else?

I'm just ready to make the move.

Okay, go ahead.

Let me get back over there I'm with the City Council determined that approval of the proposed water and wastewater rate increases is exempt from environmental review Pursuant to section 1 5 0 6 1 B 3 of the state's CEQA guidelines and I move that City Council adopt resolution number 8 7 7 8 Providing notice of intent to increase water and wastewater rates and I move the City Council direct staff to issue the required proposition 18 to 18 notice for a public hearing Second.

We have a motion and a second. Adam City Clerk.

Council Member Barrett.

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda.

Yes.

Council Member Davis. Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw. Yes. Mayor Sacito.

Yes. Moving on to item K-4, consideration of a sole source purchase of the dispatch console radio upgrade to Command Central AXS in the amount of $370,436.22 and authorization of the additional appropriations in the same amount, Police Chief Tolbert.

Thank you. Good evening, Mayor and Council. The item that you have before you tonight is the consideration of a sole source purchase of dispatch console radio upgrade to Command Central AXS. The Redlands PD dispatch center utilizes a Motorola dispatch console radio system that's integral to our daily public safety operations. And it's managed and maintained by the county of San Bernardino. The system provides primary radio radio communication between our dispatchers and our officers in the field, and also allows for communication with other law enforcement agencies. Our partners and fire as well as the University of Redlands and our security. Motorola solutions is transitioning their legacy equipment, which is what we currently have to the newer command central access console model. Our current consoles are at end of life, and there will no longer be manufacturer support or software updates. And for these reasons. Staff recommends replacing them with the upgraded system as described in the report We currently have seven consoles and the total cost to replace all seven will be three hundred seventy thousand four hundred thirty six dollars 22 cents staff recommends a one-time lump payment to replace all seven consoles to ensure continued operations and to avoid the creation of a long-term financial obligation and This concludes my presentation and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have

Mayor Pro Tem, just a question. Um, so on these upgrades, this is a wholesale upgrade, like starting over with a new console completely.

That's correct. The ones we currently have are about 20 years old.

Okay. And is this going to occur in the very near future? Or is this something that will happen with the transition to the new facility?

So it'll need to happen in the very near future and then be moved over to the new facility.

Okay, are we going to incur additional fees with trying to do the move?

Is that all already incorporated into our... That's a good question. I would anticipate that there would be some fees, and I don't know if that's already accounted for or not.

Okay, but we don't see another acquisition of $370,000 for that kind of equipment?

Not additional consoles, no.

Okay, thank you. Right, right.

Okay, I don't have any speaker slips for this item. Are there any questions or comments?

If not, I'll move to approve the Dispatch Console radio upgrade to Command Central AXS with the County of San Bernardino in the amount of $370,436.22 and authorize an additional appropriation of the same amount.

Second. I have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk?

Council Member Baric?

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda?

Yes.

Council Member Davis? Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw?

Yes.

Mayor Saucedo?

Yes. Moving on to item agenda K-5, this is a consideration of a sole source purchase order modification with Ray Gaskin Service in the amount of $185,000 to a total amount not to exceed $385,000 for the procurement of an original equipment manufacturer OEM parts for solid waste division fleets, vehicles, facilities, and community services. Director Crocker.

Thank you, Mayor, members of the council. on july 1st 2025 the council approved a sole source purchase order with ray gaskin for the supply of oem new way parts used by the city's solid waste division this purchase order was based on a three-year historical average however during this last year the fleet division experienced a higher than anticipated number of repairs on some of the aging vehicles Due to the anticipated repairs staff is requesting the approval to modify this purchase order and I'm available for any questions Questions from staff.

I don't have any speaker slips.

I don't see anybody on zoom Okay, I move that City Council approve a sole source purchase order modification with Ray Gaskin service to increase the amount of the purchase order by $185,000 to a total amount not to exceed three hundred and eighty five thousand dollars

2nd, I have a motion in the 2nd, and I'm city clerk council member Barrett.

Yes. Council member data.

Yes.

That's member Davis. Yeah, Mayor pro Tim Shaw. Yes.

Yes. Moving on to item case 6 consideration of a 1st amendment to an agreement with. Kelmore Cough Enterprise Inc. Fire Apparatus Solutions to increase a total compensation by $93,600 to a total amount not to exceed $1,000,000. $12,800 and the First Amendment to the agreement with Waste Built Environment Solutions LLC to increase a total amount of compensation of $390,000 to an amount not to exceed $990,000 for fleet maintenance, parts and repairs, facility and community services. Director Crocker.

Thank you. Mayor, members of the council. In June of 2024 City Council approved two contracts for fleet maintenance services one with fire apparatus solutions and the other with waste built environmental solutions And unfortunately last year city had two vehicles impacted by extensive damage one was a fire engine involved in a traffic collision and the other one was a solid waste truck that resulted in damages from a sinkhole that was on private property and Due to these occurrences along with the supply of the OEM parts staff is request Requesting the approval of the first amendments as detailed in the staff report and again, I'm available for any questions Any question from staff?

No, I don't have any speaker slips. I don't see any public comment on zoom or comment on this item on zoom. I

With the city council approve a 1st amendment to an agreement with comic off enterprises incorporated doing business as fire apparatus. Solutions to increase the total compensation by 93,600 dollars to a total amount not to exceed 1,012,800 dollars. And I move that city council approve a 1st amendment to an agreement with waste built environmental solutions LLC to increase the total compensation by 390,000 dollars to an amount not to exceed. $990,000. Second.

We have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk?

Council Member Barrett? Yes. Council Member Tejeda? Yes. Council Member Davis? Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw? Yes. Mayor Sacido?

Yes. Moving on to item K7, consideration of a cooperative purchase of two Ford F750 flatbed trucks from P.B. Loader Corporation for an amount not to exceed $368,000. $1,361.98. Facilities and Community Services Director Crocker.

Thank you, Mayor, members of the Council. Staff is requesting the purchase of two Ford F750 trucks through a cooperative purchase. These trucks will be utilized in the Street Maintenance Division and will be replacing two trucks that are currently about 20 years old. They're experiencing frequent maintenance issues. Purchase of these vehicles are supported with the current adopted budget.

Thank you. Any questions from staff?

I'll move to approve the cooperative purchase of two Ford F-750 flatbed trucks from PV Loader Corporation for an amount not to exceed $368,361.98. Second. We have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk?

Council Member Baric.

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda.

Yes.

Council Member Davis. Yes. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw.

Yes.

Mayor Sacito.

Yes. And I think both those vehicles are retiring. I think we're still in service while I was still working. So, yeah. Boy, they are.

Boy, they're really old.

I walked into that one, right? You started it.

You started me up to crank it back. Thank you. Thank you.

Okay, good, good, good deal. Moving on to item K8, consideration of resolution 8780, amending restating resolution number 8220 to revise the city's in-kind policy for special events and determine that adopting resolution number 8780 is exempt from the environmental review pursuant to section 15061B3 of the state CEQA guidelines, Assistant City Manager Boatman.

Thank you, Mayor. The city of Redlands has a long history of supporting community special events organized by nonprofit organizations. These events are an important part of our community. They enhance the character of the city, bring residents and visitors together, support local businesses, and often serve as a key fundraising opportunity for organizations that provide local services. Historically, the city has supported these events through in kind services, such as public safety, staffing, street closures, traffic control and staff coordination. As outlined in the fiscal impact section of my report, the total estimated value of hard and soft costs associated with these events was approximately 534,000 dollars in fiscal year 2024 and 2025. These costs include staff time for event coordination, public safety services, street closures, and the other items I noted. Of that total, approximately $483,000 represent hard costs, which are the city's actual out-of-pocket expenses and are primarily driven by staff overtime, particularly in the public safety services area. These costs have increased over time due to broader economic factors that are expected to continue to rise with inflation and CPI adjustments. Staff will continue to include funding for these events and future budget requests subject to Council approval and available resources. The proposed policy includes a more sustainable approach moving forward. It establishes a defined list of approved events based on those supported in fiscal year 2024 and 2025, and only those events that are listed will remain eligible for in-kind support. Events not on that list will be allowed to occur, but will be subject to a fee based model for city services. Staff is also requesting direction to return within 90 days with the proposed fee schedule for city services. And to temporarily pause new event applications during that time to allow for its development once adopted. The fee structure will allow future events to proceed on a cost recovery basis, reducing impacts to the general fund. This approach maintains support for long-standing events while providing a mechanism to address rising costs and establishes a clear framework for future events. I'm happy to answer any questions.

Any questions from staff? Okay, I have two speaker slips. Dennis Bell.

The staff report for this item has a defined list of events eligible for continued in-kind support, also known as fee waivers. Then it mentions city resources required to support non-listed events as placing additional pressure on the city budget. What does one think this bloated list of eligible events is doing to the city budget? When this new city budget drops next month, it'll be the same old broken record of tight budgets and inability to fund various needed things. Fee waivers are headed for $600,000 per year. Overly compliant city councils have rubber stamped everyone, giving the public's money away with no questions asked. Organizations that request the public's resources need to produce their financials so the public can see how much monetary skin these organizations have in their game. I'll say it's a big fat zero, thank you.

Next speaker, Evan Sanford.

Good evening once again, council chiefs and staff. I'm Evan Sanford executive director at the Redlands chamber. We have some concerns about the proposed changes to the city's in kind support policy. 1st, we'd like to acknowledge the rising costs associated with staffing, public safety and operations. We also sincerely appreciate the recognition and continued support of longstanding events, including our own that have helped to shape Redlands into the community that it is today. These events have become more than just traditions. They're economic drivers, community builders, and a reflection of our city's identity. While the Chamber may be insulated under the current proposal, the broader impact on our membership and the community is significant. Many nonprofit organizations and local businesses rely on that in-kind support to get their events off the ground. Without that support, the barrier to entry becomes much higher, and for some, It can become impossible. It's important to remember that today what we consider to be legacy events at some point had to start somewhere often small and with limited resources, but grew over time with the help of a partnership with the city, a fee structure, especially one that includes quote full cost recovery for services like public safety and street closures risks eliminating that possibility entirely. Some alternatives could look like, if you're a Redlands-based organization, you can apply for a single in-kind request a year. If you've been operating in the city for more than five years, you might be able to apply for two a year. Or when an event is being proposed for the first time, the fees are waived until the second year, allowing the opportunity to prove the concept. If all else fails successfully, Maybe 20 or 25% cost recovery. The point is that there are multiple options as the city balances its responsibility to be financially responsible while at the same time, fostering growth, creativity and community participation. The Chamber would welcome the opportunity to work with city staff ahead of their presentation of this future fee structure based on the study that will be conducted. And we believe that fewer new events mean fewer opportunities for community engagement, reduced support for local businesses, and ultimately the potential for less vibrant Redlands. There is a reason that people from the greater area come to Redlands. They don't have what we have. Redlands thrives because of its people, its businesses, and its events. And we encourage the Council to ensure that this policy not only protects what we have built, but also allows for the space to see what comes next. And I can save you $1,800 because that one Love IE event won't be needing to be grandfathered in. So you can reduce that from that total amount. Hopefully that's helpful to you. Thanks for the consideration.

Thank you. And I think those are all good examples of a future action that will be coming before us that staff will consider some of those ideas. But for tonight, we are just really grandfathering in those other requests and honoring those. I think there's a number of them. I don't know what the number of them is. There's 24 events, about 39 events that are longstanding, and we want to honor those. But at some point in time, Because of our fiduciary responsibility we have to make sure that not only on the fiduciary end of it But our employees asking them to go out time and time again While they'll do it and they're really professional about how they do it We really want to be considerate of their their time and their family time as well. So all those are great ideas What's the wish of the council?

Before that, I did have a comment I did propose a, I did ask a question on this item and I had asked if the council well, we can entertain the idea of staff also, besides coming back with the rates or anything like that if we could ask them also to look at the potential for. Which events are better off like at a park or things like that so we can avoid? You know street closures and things like that. I don't know what other issues that may bring up, but I think it's worth a look at If you all are willing to agree with that if not, I'm agreeable with moving on with this recommendation here. Mr. City manager

Well, to address that, certainly, if this policy were passed by the Council, any group coming to us, we would steer towards the items that would be no cost or less cost to them, such as in a park, which is a lot less costly than closing the street and having the barricades put out and the police officers and everyone else there. So, yes, we would be directing everyone. We would give them all the options, trying to be creative and help them have their event. also the exercise for setting this would is purely cost recovery we won't be looking at trying to make money off any of these projects but what we would be looking at is whatever the estimated in-kind would have been is is something we would charge people what I one of the things I thought about was maybe charging them half upfront and then having a true up at the end because we do know that our estimates aren't always exactly what the charge is at the end so that the end they could pay us and if for some reason they don't pay us then they wouldn't be able to reserve in the future so we'd have some penalties built into that that that's what we're thinking about we will take a few months to try to come back with something that would work for the for the council

This has always been a real tough item because the charities that have, I'm a member of the Optimist Club, the Chamber of Commerce does so much for the city, and the Dog Jog is fantastic and a lot of other things they have. But $400,000 of hard costs, was that right? $483,000. $483,000, okay. But where do you draw the line? I mean, I guess it's good that we're drawing the line here with with 27. yeah. Yeah. Um, I just think I hope staff could make it. I just don't want to open the door that everybody at, you know, okay, relevance is great because they're cheap. Not, you know, I like to come to relevance because we're a beautiful community, a safe community and so on so forth as opposed to. Okay, let's. Let's cheat the, um, um, you know, it's a lot less to have it at revels as is Loma Linda or well, somebody, you know, only mentioned.

So there's other other communities that don't even do the in-kind support right so there's that yeah Yeah, because I've several times.

I've talked to other cities like you Kipa Kipa doesn't do that city of you Kipa so Anyway, it's that's not gonna Change my vote, but I just wanted to make sure that it's tougher new people come in our new Organizations come in that we you know we we make it fair. That's what I'm saying mm-hmm

Council Member Davis, do you have any comment or questions?

Yeah, I would say I'm sort of torn on this item. I agree with a lot of what Evan Sanford said. I really don't want this to be a mechanism to stifle the community events. There might be wonderful community events that are not on this list that we just haven't thought up yet or have not been proposed yet. I feel hesitant to support it. I'll move it along for now, but hope that we can revisit this if it is not serving us well in the future.

Basically, basically the major make sure people understand that we're voting to grandfather the people that are currently get we favorites. Is that correct?

Yes, essentially in a lump sum. I mean, we have what we're going to do is if if someone comes to us with a request to have an event and it's on this list, then we would accept. their application for in-kind support, which would still come to the Council for approval. It's not an automatic, you're not approving all of these for in-kind in the future, but you're accepting their application. All other events, we will not accept applications for in-kind support. We would work with them to establish what the fees are, and if they want to pay the fees, we'll work with them, if we have staffing available, to do their event. not really an uncommon thing to do. It allows cost recovery for the city for hard costs. And we are, I mean, here's 39 minus one from Evan. He gave us back this 38. We're almost approaching one a week on average. And so multiples occur sometimes in one weekend. And it is a lot on, our staff is great. They don't complain about things, but it's wear and tear on all the equipment that, Um, it's also an inconvenience to the public whenever we close the roads.

Well, and also, you know, again, a lot of people say, why don't we have more police? And, and, you know, I tell them that they're. A lot of them are double time. I mean, you know, we're very, very short on that. And people said, well, you should give away fees. How can we pay for more officers? And so I just want to make sure people understand that we're trying to be fiscally. Responsible to the, to the community. Um, but we have to also again, make it, um. Reasonably easy for staff and so they're not constantly working overtime and double times and things like that. So.

Anyway, is that it?

That's it.

Okay. I've complained enough. Good member Davis reiterate.

I think that, um. I think it's important for us to direct staff to still. Um, leave some room for allowing new events, right? To bring us an option that we can still approve a new event again. I think we're. Being incredibly limiting if we limit ourselves to just these events on a list.

and limiting creativity and I don't think that that benefits the city and the community feel that we want to create so I would be in favor of Just directing staff to bring back some options for us really the only option is what we're doing now is to accept the applications bring them to the council and see if they're approved because that's essentially what this is doing is stopping new events from coming to the council with applications and For in kind support, we're trying to look at a cost of these, the number of these, the wear and tear on employees and things like that. So, certainly, I mean, we, we, we can also, I mean, if the staff, if the council wishes for us to increase the number of these, we can look at directing resources from other areas to hire more staff to be able to handle this. It could cut down on overtime, but in the end it would be, I mean, we're saying if we're going to do new stuff, it's going to be more costly.

Mm. Hmm.

Well, again, if that's the case, then I, I don't think I can support this because I just find it to be too limiting.

Okay, I, I understand. Again, I, I think we have to have some guidelines. Uh, we've been extremely generous as as a community. Um, 400,000 dollars is a lot of money that we that we give up again. Majority of the people on that list are again contribute a lot to the community So they're giving back they're bringing people in the city to spend so it's kind of a hard to say. Okay. Yes 400,000 But what are we getting back sales tax and things like that people shopping? So it's it's tough Yeah, I agree with you.

It's it's I'm ready.

All right I move to adopt resolution 8780, establishing a revised policy for in-kind support and limiting eligibility events to those identified on exhibit A minus the one that Mr. Sanford has mentioned. For fiscal year 2024-25, approved events, the event list, excuse me, and direct staff to return within 90 days. With a proposed fee schedule, establishing charges for city services associated with special events, including, but not limited to staff time, public safety services, street closures, traffic control and operational support and direct. That the city not accept or process applications for events not included in on exhibit a. The revised exhibit a for a period of 90 days. to allow for the development and adoption of the fee schedule.

Second. Okay, we have a motion and a second. Madam City Clerk?

Council Member Baric?

Yes.

Council Member Tejeda?

Yes.

Council Member Davis? No. Mayor Pro Tem Shaw?

Yes.

Mayor Saucedo?

Yes. Okay, that takes us to Item L, Individual Council Member Announcements and or Reports. We'll start with Council Member Davis.

Hey, I had the pleasure of attending Earth Day, not just the celebration at the library, which was wonderful. It seems like it's growing every year. But beyond that, I participated in one of the morning events. I toured Three Sisters Farms, which was very exciting to get to see where the produce that I buy at our Grow Farmers Market is grown locally in San Timoteo Canyon. Additionally, I was happy to attend the ribbon-cutting for the kennel expansion at the animal shelter. And if there's more, I forgot to put it on my social media. So that's it for me for now.

All right. Council Member Tejeda.

Yes, thank you mayor. Uh, I attended the animal shelter kennels grand. What a grand opening celebration ceremony. Uh, the bike classic ceremony that we have annually. The church is a celebration for teachers of excellence and, uh, at work. My full time job, we attended a sunshine day hosted by the national orange show, which is a day in which many of the schools in our area in our region are invited to take their students with who have special needs to attend the event. And so that was really nice to see our kids get a chance to be out there all by themselves or with their own community. And so, yeah, that's what I did.

I'll do my monthly report. It'll go in the next one, but I did want to just take note of the fact that we were able to attend the teachers of excellence event that was sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and. They honored five teachers from the Redlands District and all five of them exceptional in their own right. And so many of our educators are exceptional. But I just wanted to say thank you and acknowledge those five who were recognized and for the church for taking the time to recognize them. It was a huge honor and it was a great event. And so it was nice to see people coming out to support our local educators.

Yeah, and I'd like to thank my fellow council members and Mayor Pro Tem for attending with me to the teachers of excellence. I also attended a Garner Holt first of its kind at the Boys and Girls Club, a 3D printer and the opportunity to learn how to make new animation characters. And so that was really great to see that. And also, yes, the Earth Day, we did the Pledge of Allegiance at the Burge Mansion for the What grade was that? First graders. Yeah, that's an ongoing annual awesome event. And then more, the best one of the day was our groundbreaking for the demolition of our new police station on Alabama and Redlands Boulevard. And so, a little windy, but I think we're well on our way to getting that completed. And so I want to thank the staff and thank the staff of the police department for hosting us out there and Coyle Tilden and the architecture. I think his name's Holt, Holt Architecture, and all those folks that made that event happen. And we're looking forward to demolition that and grading. So I don't have anything else. We stand adjourned. Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Barrett. Sorry.

I did a few things with my... Colleagues, again, animal shelter, what a beautiful facility that we've added, and it's something we should be real proud of. Dogs are gonna live better than we are sometimes. This is kind of a city event, but we honored, I was at a roast that raised funds for the benchwarmers on Martha Green up at the Burrage Mansion. Here's a citizen that's given so much to this community, and we recognized her. And she was a great sport as we roast her. Earth Day, Mary and I walked around a little bit and talked to people. We also, was it yesterday, we had the Redlands Food Task Force that unfortunately I had to leave a little bit early, but the mayor was there. Again, the flag raising, which was fantastic. I mean, to have that, Redlands has done that, that's something that's nationally known is fantastic. And that last and obviously not least, I got to speak the head annual meeting adult literacy, and I just told him as long as I'm on city council, Charlie, I'm going to ask for fence and make sure we keep this this program going on. I mean, the idea of someone who someone who learns to read and write become a much better citizen and a good citizen. And I think it's a great program. And again, I'm going to be. Pushing for it, so. All right.

Well, thank you. We stand adjourned to our next regular scheduled meeting of the City Council will be held on May 5th You can go the mile maybe 26.

We wanted to enjoy.

I'm sorry.

Yes in honor of Tom bright Cruz who is a member of our Municipal to see MUP WC Municipal Utilities and Public Works Commission he recently passed away and We want to honor him for volunteering for the city for a number of years and serving us and our thoughts and prayers are with his family.

Sure, thank you. We'll stand adjourned in his memory.