City Council Meetings– San Gabriel City Council - Regular Meeting

Sorry. Who would have thought I I'm that popular? Only one one night in my life. Um, okay. So, welcome to the city council regular meeting. Today is Tuesday, April 21st, 2026. The meeting is now called to order at 6:56 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance will be led by Vice Mayor Ding. All rise. Right. And uh put on your for your right heart and repeat after me the 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.

Okay, clerk. Uh uh roll call, please. Mayor Chan here. Vice Mayor Ding here. Council member Herrera Aila present. Council member Manaka here. Council member Woo here. We will now have some announcements from our chief city clerk. Tonight's meeting is live streamed on the city's online platforms. If you wish to address the city council during tonight's meeting, we request that you please complete a speaker card and hand it to the clerk at this time. When speaking, please state your name for the record. Please note that interactions between the city council, city staff, and the public during meetings are subject to the city's rules of decorum.

Approval of agenda order. Are there any objections to the agenda order? Honorable mayor, staff would like to request that an item be uh pulled. Are we going to get it continued? Okay, that's fine. Never mind. Okay, let's move forward. All right, so anyone reorder? Okay, seeing none. Um, okay. Then the vote. Okay, so then we go all the way down to next item, please.

Public comment. This is the time set aside for members of the public to address the city council on consent calendar items and on items of interest that are not on the agenda but are within the subject matter jurisdiction of the St. Gabriel City Council. Mr. Mayor, I have no speaker cards. Okay. Uh, actually, we have Mary Garcia.

All right. Please come forward. No, today right now.

Good evening again, council. Um, Mary Garcia, 1238 South Pine Street, St. Gabriel. I have um couple of items here. I know I came before and I spoke about some of the properties um that are really overgrown and stuff and they're still there and I want to make sure that it's recorded this time. I have 1125 South Pine Street overgrown. Looks like the house is abandoned. I have 414 Mission. The house is empty. I know he's moved. He's up north. The weeds are past me. I think they're high. I have pictures, but I didn't print them. I have um 11 20 Uklit 11:28. The sidewalk, the tree is overgrown. It's raised the sidewalk. I know the city came by and they shaved it, but I mean the se the sidewalk is like this. So, what I'm asking on behalf of my cousin that lives at 10:28, is it possible for the city to remove the tree, plant a new tree, and fix the sidewalk? Cuz when I go visit her and I get off with my walker, it's dangerous. And I know that they tried to shave it, but it still it goes up and down. Okay. And the other one, 1024 Ucllet, that is a problem. I know the city has cited that property. I've seen the things on the door. It's vacant. It's been vacant for 15, 18 years, and it's awful. Um, the other thing I've called public works, there's been a couch, a small refrigerator, and some other trash there on Wells behind the Boba on the corner of Wells and St. Gabriel. I don't know

why they always use their and the old banks property as a dumping place. So if we could get that removed then I'd like to thank Mark. City continues to clean up the freeway. I know Rosemeat isn't in our district but man like yesterday I got off on Walnut Grove. When I got on Wan Grove I couldn't even see the cars coming. The weeds are so high. So I guess I need to go to Rosemeat city council and ask them. Do you know the city clerk over there? I mean the city manager over there. Okay. Give me a name. Okay. Thank you for listening to me. Can I can I just go over the addresses again to confirm you got them all? Uh 1025 South Pine 414 Mission 1024 Uklit, 1020 Uklit, and 1028 Uklit sidewalk and then a corner of Wells and St. Gabriel for the couch. Thank you. Denise God. Good evening. Congratulations, Mayor Eric Chang and Vice Mayor Tony Ding. Council members, I'm here on behalf of the San Gabriel Veterans Group to promote our upcoming events. The major one coming up, as many of you know, and hopefully everybody online will, is the San Gabriel is having the United States Air Force Band at the Playhouse on May 18th. This is like the biggest event the city will have to celebrate 250 with all the veterans in attendance. Our group is going out to other veterans group to try to fill the auditorium with tons of veterans for this event. So, we

appreciate the city hosting this event. Also, our field of honors will be on May 23rd, and tonight I collected several flags. So, I appreciate that. And we still have room for many more. So, thank you for that. And this last past weekend, Saturday and Sunday, we were at the San Gabriel Mission as soon as they got out of church, and we registered several San Gabriel veterans that didn't know about this. So, I continue to come every month. If you know of anybody born in San Gabriel that served or lived in San Gabriel, please go to the San Gabriel Veterans Coalition website, fill out the applications so when it's time for the memorial, we can get your name on there. Thank you for supporting our veterans group.

Thank you, Miss Goach. Next item, please. Consent calendar. All items listed under the consent calendar are considered routine and recommendations will be approved in one motion unless a member of the city council requests separate discussion. Would any council member like to pull an item for separate discussion? No. Do I have a motion for items 4 A through F? I move to approve. I'll second.

Okay. Please vote. If I can find my little switchy thing.

Oh, legal mind to help. Maybe this. Oh, it's kind of a little far. Maybe I'm not sitting directly centered. Maybe that's why my arm's not long enough. Okay. Motion passed by vote 5-0. Okay, let's see. 5 Z. Next item, please.

Public hearing ordinances number 728 and 729 a amending to update the St. Gabriel Municipal Code relating to new state law for urban dwelling units, accessory dwelling units, and junior accessory dwelling units. Introduction and first reading. A written public comment was received from the California Housing Defense Fund requesting changes in the ordinances. In order to thoughtfully consider this input, staff has requested that the public hearing be opened and continued to May 19th, at which time staff will make their presentation.

Okay. I now open the public hearing and continue it to the regular city council meeting of May 19th, 2026. Honorable mayor, just as a formality, uh, if we could have a sec motion and a second and have a formal vote of the council to continue the open hearing till that date. All right. Okay. So, um, mayor, do I have a motion? I have a motion to to do with with the city attorney to continue that hearing.

It's so second. Okay. Motion by uh Councilman Herrera Abula, second by Councilwoman Denise Machaka. Okay. So, let's vote.

Motion passed by a vote of 5-0. Thank you. All right. There is no continued business. There is no new business. City manager report. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I just wanted to thank and congratulate Councilwoman Menaka on a great year. Enjoyed working with you and uh your leadership was uh evidenced by I think a lot of the great things that we accomplished. So, thank you so much and congratulations to Mayor Chan. I look forward to working with you this year and um continuing to move things forward. Uh thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr. City Manager. Um, now it's time for council comments and conference meeting reports. Who would like to begin? Council member Herrera A. M honorable mayor, I would like to go first. I'll keep it simple. I have nothing to report. Thank you.

Oh, all right. Nice and quick. Okay. And uh who who would like to go next? Councilman Ding. I I already did the short report. Okay. When I become the the vice mayor, actually the the last two weeks I I I I visit the you actually we pay by everything by ourself for the trip and the hotel everything and uh it's because my uh five campus the alumin uh the the university the celebration 130 years birthday. So I go to the five location. It's it's each location is far away too. And by the way, I have to I I have chance I just want to report for the on the Ta Bay. I have a opportunity thanks staff to help to to connect with our sister city bank district and uh have chance to meet their district the the director and uh I have the some uh some small meeting with them and uh and uh it's really good like uh appreciate the they are sister city by the way I stay the they are the director also is one of my the aluminina too in the in the in the the different members but I'm Shanghai in the shu okay so uh it's really coincident but it's it's really good and I I also find out our the former mayor the the mayor Wu have the they have the plaque in front their uh

history. So maybe later on I can give it to Alina some some photo too and uh they have PL they have the you have the the make some tree too right it's one one of the tree you you you yeah you plan the plan and there's a tree too yeah it's in front tree internal pl where have the both have the photo on there to celebrate but actually it's really good like learning they they they are district but their population isif 550,000 people

it's it's a 10 time with uh they have I think one two probably four floor the the the the building for the administrative building have 400 people working it's really nice it's really like it's not looks like for me feel like if if you're resident walking there it's feel like a really welcome uh to help them help the resident the the the whatever they they need it like they have to request something it's I I really like uh just want to share their uh I thought some experience they share with our city staff but our city staff so far also good but we are don't have the big like a waiting room. They have very huge waiting room too, right? And uh they are lucky. I I take the one hour subway. It's it's from my I live in the Tae go and there are subway station just in front of in front of the their office like distributing you know so it's really convenient so I wish like this kind of comm oh I also have p uh actually they really did something even they on the street they have they have a sign to welcome welcome like some denatory. Okay. One of it's welcome the city council member from the St. Gabriel. That's a Chinese character. Okay.

They're really amazing you know to they uh they they use the electronic board you know so they show me the eight over there you can see it. Okay. Yeah. So so just share this kind of experience and it's really like a cultural exchange. I I really like it the the that term and the our former mayor the leadership and our all the council member staff do the good job. So I wish we have the more sister city to exchange the our like cultural and experience to help our community is more better. And one things I I want to say because the where the America see talking about the free end of the freeway they have we have a lot of dumpling or something like that that's I feel the the in the Taiwan or China that they they make make the the freeway underneath the freeway they want to make every freeway like a park.

It's so nice. So we should be lending soon to it's help our community if we have budget you know to to do that but uh not I I know the city don't have enough money but uh uh it's CalR or that's belong to CalR hopefully we can talk to them let them put on more budget make it yeah that you have you feel like it's it's a good environment you not feel like underneath the the the the freeway, you know, or they call the highway. Okay. Yeah. Okay. That's all. So, too too much things need to share. Okay. All right. Okay. Thank you.

Thank you, Vice Mayor Ding. Who would like to go next?

I'll go next. Uh first of all, I wanted to uh let everyone know that um April 19th through the 25th is California Mosquito Awareness Week. And um a reminder that if you have a mosquito problem uh that is part of being part of this agency, you can make the phone call and at no charge they will come out and um evaluate the actually the whole neighborhood um to see if there why there's this infestation of sorts. And I've had a couple residents already do that and they were able to identify the location. Um, I also wanted to to let you know, I'm not sure if I had announced this, but I'm now the the vice president for the agency. It's a 27 member board. And um, so I was very honored to to be elected and um, I will be serving as um, uh, interim president surprisingly because our president right now has been called to military service. So, um, may he continue to be safe, um, out there along with my son-in-law. Uh, and, uh, just, um, another little tidbit is, um, when the eaten fire took place, um, it created an ideal condition for the mosquito breeding because of all those pools that are not being attended to. And so we were very fortunate to get a $500,000 um grant from Senator uh Rubio to try to continue to treat those pools. Um because otherwise um as many of you know, many of those houses have not been rebuilt. Many of those um pools are are still there and they're not being attended to. So we need to continue to monitor and that's what the agency does.

So, that's the first thing. Uh, second, I'm sure Mayor u Mayor Chan and Council Member Woo will talk about it, but we did have our symphony um on Thursday and again it was a wonderful concert. It was free to the community. it was um fully um they had a sponsor that um was able to um uh host the concert, but there were so many wonderful uh musicians, but I have to uh single out the mother and son panel duo. It was amazing. And this mother just was wonderful and her son and they and this was the 45th concert that they've done all over the world together. So they are a mother-son duo and uh it was just magnificent and I I think those who attend they try to bring new musicians and um you know they also had a guitarist David Hernandez and they had a violinist but we are just so fortunate to be able to bring that kind of talent um to our um community. And then we had our second uh farmers market and again it was very successful. We actually did the grand opening. So, thank you to everyone who was there and I think we're on a good path and we're going to continue on. I I'm very confident. I know that uh there were some asks and so I'm hoping that we could um you know be good partners and and and hopefully collaborate with the farmers market and do what needs to be done to continue that momentum. But I'm very proud of what we've done and and it's actually I think someone mentioned the first farmers market. It's actually the third one because we had one before I think even before I was on it and then it was at Vincent Lugal Park and

is it 10 years now? It was before I Yeah. So yeah, Councilman Harrington.

It was Councilman Harrington. Yeah. So it was at Vincent Lugo and then we did the one here at Park and Ride and then now here. So again, you know, those were sometimes you got to take some steps to finally get to that destination and I I just want to applaud, you know, staff and everyone who has been very patient and but I I think we got it this time. I think we got it. So I'm really really pleased with the operators and um they want to make it happen, too. Also, um I had the opportunity to work with the Sanro Valley Civic Alliance. They hosted a Bites and Insights tasting tour and they're going to different communities. Uh Monterey Park was the first, we're second. They're going to go to Alhhamra and they just had um kind of a a little walking tour from Blossom Market all the way to uh Golden Deli and uh Paris Baguette and the Bakery. But I had an opportunity to participate as the mayor then. And um it was great because I got to put my personal bias and I also so I got to talk about the the uh the really uh the cuisines very proud of our cuisines here and then of course the city give them a little um background but that was a great opportunity and I hope um that could maybe serve as a as a model for um our economic development team and maybe hosting some of those or maybe through the hotels. I know they're always looking for experiences, but we all learned something. We got to talk to the owners and so I am very very um it it was it was a very interesting little walk there. And then um lastly, and again I poor council member Woo, I need to be last next time I guess because we been seeing a lot of each other lately, but um uh we were able to attend it's called the Center for the Pacific Asian um family. They had their fundraising event at the Beastro 168. They're on San

Gira Boulevard. It is dedicated to ending domestic and and sexual violence in the Asian and Pacific Islanders communities. Uh they have a confidential um helpline 24/7 and it is April is sexual assault awareness month. So it was it was a the timing was good and we were happy to be there and just kind of reaffirm our commitment to supporting survivors and foster a culture of consent and respect. So with that I will end it and uh thank you everyone for the well wishes too. Thank you Council Member Manaka and uh Council Member Woo you're up.

Thank you Mr. Mayor. Uh I was pleased to participate in the soft opening of St. Gabber Farmers Market on April 11th and then I celebrated its grand opening official one in April 18. And the new community space reflects our continued commitments to supporting our local businesses and creating vibrant gathering uh places for our resident. And following following the official ribbon cutting ceremony on April 18th, I attended the silent day out event hosted by our Singapore PD that I want to extend my sincere appreciation to our officers for organizing the this meaningful uh initiative and for their continued efforts in rising awarenesses of autism and supporting the families within our community. So, mayor, that concludes my report. Thank you, Councilman Woo. Okay, so I guess I'm up. I'll try to make this quick. Um, on April 8th, I attended an Arcadia Chamber of Commerce mixer at the Habitat for Humanity office in Pasadena. On April 13th, uh, I attended my monthly Chinese American Citizens Alliance dinner meeting. on April 16th um I was at a networking mixer at at our own Luna's and um and also on the 16th I attended the as my colleagues have mentioned uh the arts bridging the gap San Gabriel Valley Symphony concert at our own Mission Playhouse. On the 17th, I attended BisFed annual the business federation at annual awards

lunchon in Glendale. On the 18th, I attended an American uh American Chinese Dance Association performance at our very own Mission Playhouse. And uh on also on that day there in the morning I attended the San Gabriel uh farmers market grand opening ribbon cutting and it looks like it was very it's it's getting to be very popular and successful. So, we're we're uh hoping for good things there. And from and oh, just a reminder, it is going to be every week, every Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. every Saturday in the Mission District where we shut down the streets and bring in and out all the vendors. So, you can't miss it. And also on that day, 10:00 am to 12:30 p.m. as my colleagues have mentioned, uh I also attended this the silent day out at the Vincent Lugo Park in recognition of autism awareness month. And that concludes my report. So see the next item. Yeah, let's see. uh close session. We have none. And uh just uh the adjournment uh message, the next regularly scheduled city council meeting will be held t on Tuesday, May 5th, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. Now, I know that you all know what day that is. And you will you will want to party instead of coming to city council meeting, but don't do it. Come to city council meeting instead. So, um, the meeting is now adjourned at 7:25 p.m.

All right.