City Council - Regular Meeting

and call the meeting to order if everyone could settle down. Um, if everyone could please if everyone could please sit down or find a seat. And if there's not a seat in here, you're going to have to go to our overflow section. Thank you so much. Um, so please members of the audience, if you could turn off your phones again, we're we're now in session, so if we could have everyone stop talking, that would be fantastic. Um, Council Member Negrete, would you lead us in the pledge of allegiance?

Yeah. Great. To the flag of the United States of America and to the stand indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Great. Um and council member Zernitzkaya, will you please Oh, sorry. Roll call and then we'll do the land. Call the roll. Council member Negrete. Council member Negrete. here. Here. Council member Hall present. Council member Rascin here. Council member Snell here. Council member Zernaya here. Rosas

present. Um now council member Zernskaya. Will you please do the land acknowledgement? I would be happy to.

The city of Santa Monica is located on the land of Tohenar. With great respect, the city acknowledges the Gabrieleno Tongba as the first people of this ancestral and unseated territory of Kurovanga, a village that we know as Santa Monica. We honor their elders, past and present, and the Gabrielano descendants who are part of the Gabrieleno Tongva tribes. We recognize that these peoples are still here and as settlers and Kuyam guests, we recognize our responsibility and obligation to care for their land in partnership with them. The city of Santa Monica commits to work in partnership with the Gabrielo Tongva people to uplift their voices and visibility on their ancestral land.

Fantastic. Um the clerk will ask if any council members will be recusing themselves prior to the um pursuant to the Lavine Act. Is is anyone recusing? Are there any council members? Saying none. Great. Um and then I'll I'm just going to take an agenda management motion. And we're going to ask that the city manager's report be moved before general public comment just given the uh special guest that we have. And we're going to ask to pull consent item 4A from the agenda. That item was already approved on March 24th. Um and then if close session exceeds 1 hour, we will move the remaining closed session item to be heard at the end of the meeting. Um and that is what I would ask for a motion on.

So moved. Second. Great. Let's vote. All in favor? I. Any oppose? Okay. No. Seeing none. Great. We will now move on to the city manager report.

Thank you, Madam Mayor, members of the city council. Um, very brief um city manager update for everybody. The um last couple of meetings, we have been remiss in not being able to introduce um our adoptable pet of the month in person. So, we wanted to get right to it tonight. Um, as you recall, we have uh implemented a new protocol. Our spectacular animal control officers um are going to be coming to our meetings, introducing everyone to our adoptable pet of the meeting. And tonight, we have a 1-year-old terrier mix named Lucky. Everyone, Lucky is housetrained. Lucky loves spending time with people just as much as he loves running around and playing with uh toys in the yard. He previously lived in a home with a yard to himself. He would do best in a home with no other small animals. Everyone take a look at Lucky. And if you have any interest in meeting him, maybe taking him home, please contact the animal shelter. As always, you can visit the Santa Monica Animal Shelter Foundation website to make a donation or shop the Chewy wish list. Everyone, let's welcome Lucky to our meeting. Hi, Lucky.

Hi, Lucky.

So, well behaved. Is Is Lucky permitted to come up here just to say hi to us while we're we're sitting here? Thank you. Really appreciate you guys. Are there any other updates, city manager? Great. Um, okay. We we will move on to uh general public input. We have 33 speakers and everyone will have one minute. Um so I will call Andrew Well, we had 33. Do we have 45 now? Anyways, okay 45. Andrew Hoyer, Morgan Hunter Gross, Jerry Rubin, Francisco Wararez, and if everyone again because we have a long meeting tonight, if someone has said something that you already agree with, you can do happy hands. There's no clapping. Please feel free if you know you agree with the comment to to you know remove your comment um in the interest of time uh if it's already been stated. Thank you.

Thank you. Good evening. My name is Andrew Hoyer and I am the president of Santa Monica Mid City Neighbors. We are the city recognized community neighborhood organization that covers the area from Lincoln to Santella and Wilshire to Colorado. We meet monthly in the community room of the Colorado Center. Our meetings provide a forum for residents to hear from city staff as they present upcoming plans and changes that they have been directed to focus on by the city council. You can find more information and become a voting member of our organization by going to our website www.mmidity neighbors.org and clicking the tab that says join. We'd love to have your support. Many people in our territory have noticed that significant changes are starting to happen on Broadway. I'd like to point out that this plan was first presented to us in October of 2023 and most recently in November of 2025. We've been privy to changes happened on 17th Wilshire and upcoming changes for Santa Monica Boulevard. Jing Yao will be joining us next Tuesday.

Fantastic. I have a video to play.

Gross. I made this video this time. I made it in Unreal Engine. I was inspired by Red Six. April is autism awareness month and I am showing you the future of flight because it proves what human beings can engineer when we try. We sent the first woman and the first black astronaut around the moon. Yet a child asked if there had ever been an autistic astronaut and the answer was basically no. That gap is the point. This is not just about awareness. It's about accommodation versus abbleism. Abbleism is discrimination. It teaches it treats difference like defect and forces disabled people to absorb the cost of everyone else's misunderstanding. Accommodation does the opposite. Observe first. Respect reality. Know a person's baseline. Make room for human difference with dignity. This year I could not camouflage anymore. Burnout burned through all my masks. So I said I need to find out who I am and what I am capable of. What I found is that my potential is real. That's why I show up. That is my president's school. I am trying to turn pain into pattern pattern into policy and policy into less pain and suffering for other people. Um I made this uh demo not this part but the first part for uh New York City for vendors. Um the geo Awesome. Thank you. Appreciate it. Uh, great. Thank you all. You can happy hands, but we appreciate the sentiment. Uh, Jerry Rubin, Francisco Wararez. I'll call a few more names. Patrick Bolic, Lizzie Moore, Debbie Bernstein.

Thank you very much. A couple things. First of all, I went to the Ocean Park Association meeting last night and Mayor Terosis, it was really wonderful your talk and the exciting things that we Santa Monica has to look forward to. We're all working together. It's going to be great. Second thing, I was really proud of the council and for contributing your discretionary funds for the uh denim run that took place on Sunday. such an important issue and want to thank Lawrence Cohen and so important for victims of sexual assault. And I'd really be remiss if I didn't thank all the good doctors and nurses and staff at St. John's Hospital. I was in there for surgery for eight days and just got out a couple days ago. Just a gallbladder removal. So uh and uh this will take a little time to recover, but I might be a little less gling. So, thank you. I love Santa.

Thank you.

Good evening. My name is Francisco Huarez. I'm a native of Santa Monica and uh here to tell you that April is also uh National Paralyzed Veteran Month and uh we're here to talk about a veteran issue. Um, I'm the chairperson and CEO of the El Camino Rial Forum, which is a veteran family organization. And I want to tell you about the fourth annual um Memorial Day event that we're going to have here at the Veteran Beach. It's land that was deed to the residents of the home inland. And uh this is our fourth year. We're going to be putting on barbecue and bringing the residents from up there down to here. The third year was big and uh bigger than the second and we expect this one to be bit better. We could use some help with transportation. So any one of you that could help facilitate a big blue bus picking up the residents up at the

I don't know if a member of our team could talk to you about that but great thank you. Um, so we have Patrick Bollock, Lizzie Moore, Debbie Bernstein, Christine Mele.

Good evening, mayor and council members. My name is Patrick Bolick. I'm a Los Angeles business owner who believes in supporting local businesses, but not at the expense of residential communities. The approved trapeze school is fundamentally incompatible with the neighborhood it will border. This is not a minor inconvenience. It is a material disruption to residents privacy and quality of life. Within days, 335 Santa Monica and Marveista residents are unified in response. This business does not belong adjacent to homes. No amount of mitigation changes that reality. This is not a request for triage or micro adjustments. It is a call for a correction that preserves the neighborhood while allowing this business to truly soar. I'm asking this council to act immediately to relocate the trapeze school to an appropriate commercial or industrial site so it can thrive and be embraced. And please consider if this were placed directly behind your home, would mitigation be enough or would you expect action? Thank you for your attention. Um, good evening, Mayor Terosis, council members, city leadership, and community members. I am here to express my gratitude for the swift response to our March 29th letter signed by 48 Dwey Street neighbors facing severe impact with the Santa Monica Trapeze School relocation directly behind our homes with no prior notification. Thank you, Council Member Snell, Council Member Negreti, Council Member Zernit Skaya, and City Manager Chi for your willingness to engage over the last three weeks. I would especially like to thank Deputy City Manager Peter James and public works director Chris Dishlip for their public apology of the failed communication and for spending last night with two dozen concerned neighbors who seek remediation. Together with you and council member Park's team, I am hopeful we can expeditiously find a

solution that is mutually beneficial. The coexistence of a trapeze business and home is not compatible for privacy and peace. I'm here to request everyone's leadership and your ability to enact change. Thank you.

Thank you, Debbie Bernstein. Okay, we'll move on. Christine Melee, Frank Mele, Denise Barton, Yvon Bush. Hi, my name is Christine Mele and I live on Dewey Street um directly adjacent to the Santa Monica Trapeze School um where it's been permitted. Um I'd like to acknowledge acknowledge the efforts of city manager Oliver Chi as well as council member Negrretti, Peter James, and Chris Dishlip, the three of whom who visited our home to better understand the concerns we have about the Santa Monica Trapeze School. Their willingness to listen, engage, and explore solutions feel like government working. And I was glad to be part of the conversation. But the underlying question remains, a commercial amusement attraction raised 20 to 30 feet in the air, amplified voice, voices, music, public crowds licensed 8:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. 365 days a year, is not compatible with a residential block whose homes sit 30 feet from its operator operations. If there is no compatibility, there's nothing to mitigate. We do not stand against the trapeze company. The operator deserves a location where

Thank you.

Hello everybody. My name is uh Frank Melee. Uh mayor, council members, thank you for your time. Uh I live on Dewey Street. My wife Christine, some of our other neighbors will be here um directly behind the Santa Monica Trapeze School uh location that's been cited for it. uh I spoke with this council pre at the previous meeting over three weeks ago and we've worked um over that time to speak with the neighbors to speak with the operator Kenna Stevens to find out more about what was going on with it um and to uh do the work of really informing everybody uh about what was going on. Um we started with a letter of uh 30 uh households and 48 uh residents. Tonight we have a petition of almost 350 people who have signed on who all agree that what's going on does not make sense. Um we are super grateful for the efforts of uh staff of everyone that came out and has been working to uh correct the issue. Um overall you know we didn't ask to be um the voice here and the operator of the trapeze school didn't ask to be placed there. I think

appreciate it. Thanks. Denise Burton, Ivonne Bush, Corey Bails, Jason Coggins.

Good evening. Oliver Tree, Justin in drag at the trans 101 event. Did we get to see another side of you or you were trying to be everything to everyone? Then Marose's pictures with Eric Swallwell. uh one at the cooperative Pam O' Conor being invited to the women's month move month month event at the library. Pam Okconor costs the city a million dollars or more including the city's legal cost and Pam Oconor made the city manager fired the new city assistant city manager before she could start her job. two unethical operatives. Elaine Pichek, who you brought back as interim city manager and retain as a part-time employee with the city now, was also involved in Pamela Connor saga listed above. So, mayor that so mayor the mayor chooses to hire and associate with people who questionable ethics. Do you not think that would make people question the ethics your ethics as well? Oh, but we already know that you you do like lying from the dis which was seen when you claimed to know nothing about the mentally ill housing on ocean when in reality you've been

thank you. Hi, good afternoon. My name is Yvan Bush U and I'm very happy to be here. I'm I live near Frank and Christine Mey uh on Dwey Street. Uh I was in their living room yesterday when Peter and Chris visited and I'd like to share what I took away from that conversation. Uh what the city has approved is in practical terms a business and a steady stream of strangers placed inside their living room and the living rooms and bedrooms and backyards of a of a dozen single family home dwellings. I am not exaggerating. It's really true. I just couldn't believe it. It is very clear that it will interfere with everyone's ability to enjoy their homes, their yards, outdoor space, and lives. I don't know why this decision was made this way. Maybe it's just because it's something that the city of Santa Monica can do.

Thank you. Thanks, ma'am. much. Okay, Corey Bills and then

Good evening. Uh my name is Corey. I'm also here to talk about the Trappy School. I live on Dewey Street. I'm here to speak against the Trappy School. Uh I very much consider myself a resident of Santa Monica. It's it is my backyard. Um after all, um it's my home and I'm so excited for my family neighbors and I to have access to undeveloped green space that was promised to us, not a trappy school. According to Visit Santa Monica website, there are already 55 arts and culture institutions in 27 municipal municipal parks. We need green space. Our neighbors and I align with the original idea which was to follow what was done in Berlin, Germany at Temple Hoffer Feld. Uh I just wanted to read a short description of that magical field. Um, aside from its fascinating history, sheer size, and uniqueness, one of the things that makes Temple Hofferfeld so special is the many creative, weird, and wonderful ways that Berliners use it. And this would be Santa Monicans. Stay long enough and you'll see beekeepers in the

Appreciate it. Thanks. Um, so we have Jason Coggins, Anna Gay, Eugene Naruse, Mark Schnean. Good evening everyone. My name is Jason Coggins and I'm here to speak on behalf of California Roadhouse taking over what was formerly Rusty's at 256 Santa Monica Pier. Uh longtime Santa Monica resident, uh former employee of Rusty's on the Pier and before that Rusty's Surf Ranch. So I think it's a really good idea to let's get California Roadhouse in there. Um just want to comment that that item will be available for public comment when we talk about uh closed session items. So that's not general public comment yet. Okay. If you want to remove your comment uh later.

Perhaps I will do that. Thank you. Great. Thank you. Anna Gami.

Great. Good evening, city council. My name is Anna Gami and I'm one of the authors along with Eugene Nus and Mark Schnean of the Make Polluters Pay petition that was circulating in November. Our petition has since gathered around 500 signatures all in strong support which are all from Santa Monica residents who believe that these polluters should be held financially responsible for the damages that they've created. Today we're presenting you a resolution urging you to support the polluters pay climate super fund act that was killed in committee this past February. The super fund act proposes that major fossil fuel companies contribute financially to the climate damage associated with their emissions and funding generated through this policy could also be used to protect communities across California which would hold these major fossil fuel companies directly accountable for their financial burden of their environmental effects rather than taxpayers during this time of fiscal crisis in our city. Thank you. Thank you. So we have Eugene Naruse, Mark Neman, Ricardo Greer, Corey Lambs.

Yep. Uh, good evening. My name is Eugene Nuse, and I'm also speaking in support of this resolution. Fossil fuel companies have known for decades that their products contribute to climate change. Yet, they funded campaigns to cast out on that science, delayed action, and continue to lobby against policies that would hold them accountable. The cost of climate change are substantial and rapidly increasing. Across California, extreme heat, wildfires, and drought are costing billions of dollars annually in emergency response, infrastructure damage, public health impacts, and long-term recovery. The result is clear. These costs are rising and they're being borne by the public. Yet, the companies most responsible are not paying for the damages. This resolution is a straightforward step towards accountability, ensuring that this financial burden does not continue to fall on taxpayers. Thank you.

Thank you. Good evening every Good evening everyone. I believe Santa Monica prides itself on being an environmental leader, but right now we are falling behind. While the Make Polluters Pay Act was stalled in the Senate due to heavy lobbying, cities like San Diego, San Francisco, and Los Angeles have refused to wait and are already moving forward to support local resolutions. Tonight, we're asking you to join them. We are asking you to take the make polluters pay resolution and place it on your very next agenda so we can ensure that Santa Monica regains its place at the forefront of the climate movement for all of our futures. Thank you.

Thank you. Is Ricardo Greer here? Yeah. Hello. Uh I have to take my name off and actually I'm supposed to talk with the uh city in terms of the um rusties and Okay. holding. So, um if anyone's here to comment on the uh close session item, that will be um when we have public input on on that's agenda item three on the agenda, items under the consent calendar and close session only. So, if you want to do that, please talk to our clerk um for that item. So, we have Corey Lamb, Raj Shletcha, Richard Zaringer, sorry for these butchering of names, and Lawrence Cohen.

Mayor, we also have Debbie Bernstein who was called earlier. Oh, okay. Debbie's back. Okay, great.

Hi, I'm Debbie Bernstein. I'm going to make this short. I'm a longtime Santa Monica resident. I graduated Samohigh in 1983. My kids went here and I think I'm here to talk I don't think I am here to talk about the Trapeze School. Um borders, you know, city lines, they're just lines. So, I consider Marv Vista are they're our neighbors. This is our neighborhood. Um, the trapeze school, which is a literal 247 circus, will be conducting business 247. I wouldn't want to live there, and so I'm here to speak out against that. Um, in the New York Times on uh, April 1st, there was an article about noise and how it affects our health. Research confirms that noise can increase hypertension, stroke, and heart attack risks causing hearing disorders such as hearing loss, tonitis, and hyper hyperacosis, noise induced pain. Thank you. Thanks. Jason Coggins.

This is actually Corey Lamb. I'm with Jason Coggins. We're all here to uh speak about the uh the lease of 256. Okay. Please talk to madam clerk about that. Thank you very much. Um Rajletcha. Great. Thank you. Sorry for the misprononunciation.

No problem. Honorable mayor uh and city council members. I'm Raja. I'm work and reside in Santa Monica. Very happy resident here. I want to begin my uh by expressing my sincere appreciation for the dedicated work you do to keep Santa Monica a great city to live in. Your commitment to our city is truly uh is city's future is truly valued. I am here to speak about the redevelopment of Santa Monica airport. As we look toward the historic transformation of this airport land, we have a generational opportunity to create a true urban lung of our community. I am requesting you to urge you to private to prioritize a higher allocation of this space for natural habitats specifically expanding our community garden programs. While traditionally parks are wonderful community gardens that offer unique benefits, sustainability, they bolster local biod diversity, improvei so soil health. They provide residents with on a hands-on way to connect with the earth and their neighbors. They enhance local food security, provide educational spaces for our youth by favoring productivity, green habitat over future.

Thank you. Appreciate it. Uh, Richard Zaringer, Lawrence Cohen, Cooper, Brower, Steve Cohen. No one here. Lawrence Cohen, come on up. Good evening. In March 2025, when my partner, Summer Willis, was in town to run the LA Marathon, we toured Santa Monica's UCLA Rape Treatment Center. We saw the services that they offer to men, women, children, LGBTQ population. But when we saw the adjacent Steuart House with a packed facility of children, that opened up our hearts and we knew we wanted to do more. That more is the denim lens. So, thank you council members for supporting us. We had an amazing first year. ABC, CBS, NBC covered it and I'm optimistic that the future's going to be even better. So again, thank you all so much and thank you for this beautiful commendation. Appreciate it.

Thank you so much. We appreciate you. Um Cooper Brower not here. Steve Cohen, Sean A House, Mohan A House, Jason Reed, Scott Reed. Okay. Um, Susan Dobsha, can I go two minutes since you both? Uh, no, unfortunately not. We have like 50 comments on this. Bill David's Patty Zortman afterwards.

Hi. Uh, my name is Susan Dobsha. I moved to Santa Monica 3 years ago from Boston. I'm here to advocate for a change in city code so hobbyist beekeepers can keep them keep beehives on public land. This would put us in the company of Paris, New York, Chicago, and Long Beach, who all enthusiastically support beehives on public land such as public parks, rooftops, and abandoned lots. The data is clear. The bee population on the west side is very low compared to the rest of Los Angeles. Allowing hobbyist beekeepers to keep bees on public land will benefit many constituencies, including community gardens, people interested in pursuing craft businesses with the pollen, propololis, and beeswax. And for those of you who suffer from allergies, we know the more local the honey is, the better job it does on your actual allergies. Current code restricts hives to privately owned lots, which currently includes only 25% of Santa Monica residents and only those in the highest income brackets. Sustainability activism should be a right, not a privilege. And

Mr. James, would you mind talking with her just to get her feedback? That that would be helpful. Thank you. Bill Davids, Patty Zortman, Jake Zortman. Hi, Mr. Davids.

Hi. Uh, I want to raise a concern about the bank that's holding the pod funds. Essentially, they are sending out cards that have no chips in them. They are very easy to compromise. My card was compromised. I called into their call center overseas and I was told that even though the card was compromised, they charge a $6 fee and if you really want the card quickly, $25. Now, they are holding money hostage that are public funds. I don't like the fact that I'm being asked to pay $6 to get gain access to my funds. Uh the card is not a good card. This is easy to skim. It has no chip and the bank does not support the pod participants think it needs to can someone from team Okay, great. That thank you for that feedback. Patty Zortman, Jake Zortman, Zakiyia, Jamie Marie Davis.

Hi. Uh, I'm Jake Zortman. My My wife's not going to jump in here. So, uh, thank you very much, mayor and council members. I appreciate the time. Uh, again, my name is Jake Zortman. I am a resident of Dewey Street. I've been there for five years before that. We lived in Santa Monica for 20 where we started our family and raised our kids. uh where I started my business in 2002 which I continue to run and I'm a member of the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce. But regardless of whether we live in Santa Monica or Marvis or Venice or Brentwood or parts of West LA, we're a single community and we need to consider each other in our plans for development, permitting and zoning. And so my concern I'm here with my neighbors because of the trapeze school. Uh that area south of Airport Road is more than just residential residential adjacent. It's literally on the other side of our backyard fences. So, it's not an appropriate area for a noisy commercial enterprise that uses bright lights or or uh runs outside normal business hours uh in seven days a week. So, as your neighbors and members of our sheriff community, uh we urge and

Thank you, Zakia.

Okay. Hi, everyone. I am a 19th Street resident and I'm here just to say congrats to Santa Monica and all the gardeners in the city on 50 years of community gardens. I'm so excited about the 19th Street garden project. Thank you Teague Waybright for reviving this project after the pandemic and Alina B for leading us in our mission to create a garden where the seeds of intergenerational knowledge is shared. Residents have a place to be in community, spread joy, find ways to connect with neighbors, and foster well-being by cultivating educational workshops, classes, cooking demos, events, and more. Ed Audrey Heburn said, "To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. What we want to know is what will bring you to the garden." Thank you.

Thank you so much. Um, we have Jamie Marie Davis, Lori Delgado, John Lisk, Steven Steiner, and Alfred Arian. Come on up if you heard your name.

Jamie Marie Davis. Good evening, Mayor Terosis. Um, I have a simple request. Um, a complicated situation came up. Um, for those of you that don't know me, I'm sworn here in the city of Santa Monica to the law and I have endorsements and I um currently live in Santa Monica for 14 15 years. um on a public website called Next Door, there were um a few posts that I made um um promoting u an event that was going to happen at the airport. Also a video, a link to a video about Save the Airport and the and the efforts that they made in fighting the fires in Palisades over the past couple years and the goodness that they do and also uh

Okay, great. If you have more information, you can share with the clerk.

Okay, thank you Lori Delgado. Hello. Uh, good evening, mayor and council members. My name is Lori Delgado and I'm a resident of Santa Monica. I'm here today as a victim of physical assault and strangulation that occurred on October 2025 in my own community. I reported this attack and trusted the system to protect me. However, no meaningful action was taken. Criminal charges were not pursued. No restraining order was secured and I have been left with protection without protection and accountability. Strangulation is a m is not a minor incident. It's widely recognized as a serious and potential lethal form of violence. I'm asking the council to please look into my case being handled by the Santa Monica Police Department in coordination with the Santa Monica District Attorney. I'm also asking for increased accountability, better protocols, and stronger protections for women in Santa Monica so that no one else has to go through what I experienced. I would appreciate the opportunity to speak further with the council member or the city manager.

Thanks, ma'am. We asked our city manager to talk to the police department over there and if perhaps you can go go in that corner and speak with them. Thank you so much. John Lisk, Stephen Steiner, Alfred Arian.

Hi, my name is John Lisk. I live on Dewey Street across the street from Barker Hanger and this is an associate with the um trapeze school. For the last 10 years, I've been dealing with amplified music and PA systems that violate LA and Santa Monica noise ordinances. This comes from Barker Hangar's for-profit events, the flight museum, and the airport in general. It's been a battle of being lied to and set in circles by airport leadership and Barker Hangar. So, while the trapeze school doesn't affect me directly, I see as part of a longtime disregard by the airport of its neighbors. I want the airport to be a good neighbor and accountable to the surrounding community. Appreciate that. Thank you. Um, Steve Steiner, Alfred Arian.

Good evening, uh, mayor and council members. Thanks for listening. I am also a trapeze uh statement person. I live on Dewey Street uh with my neighbors and wanted to make a or additional comments about the uh financial um uh ramifications of of this going in. Uh 28 real estate professionals who worked across Marv Vista and Santa Monica. Uh the people actually sell homes in the area sent a joint letter to city manager and uh council member Tracy Park. uh their estimates were that 15 to 20% loss of value of homes um directly affected especially on Dewey Street and we had agents from Keller Williams party uh Christy's rodeo uh and every major brokerage on the west side also you know had the similar comments um you know this is data from actual professionals who sell the homes and you know city of Santa Monica has an effect asked hundreds of homes on Dwey to carry the loss And so we

hear you. I think we all received the letter. So thank you. Um Alfred Arian, Jason Reed, David Razo, Scott Reed. Uh good evening, mayor and council members. Thank you for us allowing us to be at this event on May 25th. Uh we appreciate your support and we just want to let you know lot 8 was given to us in 1888 and basically has been used for a parking area. That location should have been used for recreational therapy for our veterans. And again, one day we pray that day will come. For now, we want to thank you. Let freedom ring. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Reid.

Hello. Just uh sorry, but Jason Reed and Scott Reed are both for the California Roadhouse, so we'll be back up. Thank you. Appreciate it. David Razo.

Hello. My name is Dave Razo. I live in Santa Monica. I just want to thank you for allowing us to come here to the council meeting. Thank you. God bless you all.

God bless. Thank you. We We love a positive. Thank you. Um Heather Heather Thomasson. Um Ann Cartegy. Tiffany Walker. Ashley Olsen. Hi, it's Heather Thomasson here. Um, good evening, council members. And I was really hoping that uh, city manager Chi would be here because this is actually really especially for him. I wanted to remind you guys that in the realignment plan um that you guys kickstarted in October, there's one item that notably has not really had anything addressed about it. And city manager told me, I've asked him a few times, when can I ask you about this again? Because I kept asking him and the answer was we're getting there. We're getting there. And he said after the first quarter of 2026. And so this is the first meeting after the first quarter. So I'm asking this question number 15 on the realignment plan was a few things and then concurrently direct that staff initiate studies to identify policy options that do not jeopardize housing element certification and also ensures that future development on boulevards achieves compatibility with existing residential neighborhoods. I would really really really appreciate your attention to this point and some information for the neighborhoods and

thanks an Tiffany Walker then Ashley Olson.

Hello everyone. I am an I live on Wsworth by the beach. Um and I'm here to piggyback on some of the noise complaints. Uh here is the problem. Um there is that one guitar player there. uh every Thursday and Saturday and Sunday and has been for months. And I went to talk to him. I asked him like I love music. I'm not saying like no music ever, but he refuses to turn it down. He say can't for effect. Uh and had a neighbor went there and kicked his bucket almost got to a fist fight. And from what I understand, there's a lack of regulation there. Uh for a while, I could call the police. They would send me to code enforcement. con enforcement send me back to the police. Uh I think there should be some regulation there. Uh from understand I mean to me that's a public space public park understand you can listen to music but for yourself it doesn't have to be broadcasted for blocks. Um I can hear him play in my own house with the door closed by the way. Um so just uh thank you Tiffany Walker. Okay. uh Ashley Olsson and then we'll have Jonathan Foster, Joe D. Rosa, Daniel Campbell.

Good evening. At the last meeting, items 21 and 22 related to the realignment plan were pulled from the agenda. Those items go directly to how we address homelessness in our downtown core area and the keystone question of the entire realignment framework. So, tonight I want to ask something simple and direct. Do you support continuing the People's Concern Access Center as it currently operates, or are you in favor of closing and restructuring it? That is a yes or no question, and it deserves a yes or no answer. When a council repeatedly declines to take a position on something this consequential, residents stop reading it as deliberation, but opposition, because not taking a position is still a position, and the public is paying attention. So, I ask each of you on the record tonight, do you support keeping the access center open as it is or not? And I'm hoping you will use a point of personal privilege to clarify your answer. Thank you.

Thanks. Um, madame uh, assistant city manager, can you just clarify what we considered last meeting?

Sorry. Thank you. Yeah. So, the items were voted on. They just had to be pulled because there was a recusal. So they did move forward. So we voted on those items to move forward just with the the members that needed to recuse themselves out of the room when we voted. Exactly.

Okay. Great. So just wanted to correct the record on that. Uh Jonathan Foster, Joe D. Rosa, Daniel Campbell, Gina Debbaka. Hi. You guys are worse than kryptonite. Just Superman. Hi. I am just Jonathan Foster. Super bum drummer. Hi. And wanted to mention again, unfortunately, uh, way back when, uh, Jerry Garcia died, Phil had just passed away. And of course, beloved Bob Weir had passed away in January. It's really sad. Uh, there's only Billy and Mickey left. So, see if they do anything. And I've noticed that there's no reason almost for me to come up here. Everything I said, no, don't do that. No, don't do that. No, do it happens. So, I I'm I should just go kill myself because everything that's going on is absolutely sick and disgusting with uh having all that crap out there. So, what I noticed had happened to me on Third Street was the landowners friends of their family members were all over me and harassing the out of me for 25 years is another one of the problems.

Thank you. Um Joe D. A. Yeah. Hi. There's a video she's just going to play. Okay. While she's getting that up, we have um Daniel Campbell, Gina Debbaka, Sarah Mahir, and John.

This video presents the opportunity for the LA artist series at the Mark 3002 in Santa Monica. We face challenges like a need for tourism recovery and downtown pressures. But the solution involves city investments in major global events like the 2028 Olympics. The Projected economic impact is significant. We anticipate annual visitors growing to 1.2 million in a mature year. This is expected to generate dollar2 to 250 million in direct visitor spending and 18 to25 million in new toot and sales tax for the city by year. A deed restriction ensures this is a permanent legacy win the property for LA artist use such as art, music, and film events. This provides certainty and avoids future conversion to retail or residential use, benefiting the city and increasing land value. Our long-term economic projections show a $250 million mature annual impact growing at 3% annual inflation. This results in a cumulative economic impion, representing a generational economic driver for Santa Monica. The venueriven economic uplift boosts commercial leasing, property vales, real estate taxes and government owned assets.

Thank you, Daniel Campbell. Uh I think I was supposed to be on uh commenting on 16E, so I'll do it later. Okay. Gina Debbaka, Sarah Maher, John Doe.

Hey, how's it going guys? I'm John Doe from the other case and I was just stopping by to talk to you because it's funny how you got a homeless kid named John Doe from the other case but he's not represented in any of your lawsuits and while you're failing your background check Epstein and Gates are popping up too while you're forgetting to do your homework or coming up right behind you have a I'm sorry. Was that

John Doe? Um, we also have four phone callers. Oh. Oh, you're back. Okay. Thank Yeah. Yeah. Come on up. Come on up.

Hi, Gina De Gina Debbaka. Um, I'm just here to speak on and encourage since it's um arts month here in Santa Monica. Um, I'm just here to encourage the city council to support local artists that live here in Santa Monica, actual Santa Monica residents. Um, as a Santa Monica resident and artist, I run a performing arts um, and cultural center. I've been doing it over 20 years and I haven't felt the support from our city government. So, um, I just want to remind you all to please support the local artists here in Santa Monica. What we really do need and what we've been crying for for years is space. And I know that we have vacant spaces. And um so maybe you guys can all come up maybe you've already come up with a solution, but maybe you can support us artists with spaces, artist spaces. Thank you so much. That was it.

Thank you. Hopefully um Jenny Rogers is here, but we just opened our first civic art gallery on Friday uh for local artists. So let's let's talk more offline. Um, okay. We did Did folks I call who didn't get a chance to come up comment? Anyone else signed up on agenda item one who I did not call? General public comment. Okay, we're going to move to the phones.

David, we're ready for the callers. It looks like Jeff and David, are the calls on the phone? They are. I just invited the first caller.

Good evening everyone. My name is Jeff Burton. I'm a Marv Vista neighbor, dad of two, living directly south of the airport. Um, a part of the Santa Monica LA Westside community that lives, works, and plays together across the area. First, I want to say thank you. Most of us most of us were genuinely surprised uh by this trapeze relocation a few weeks ago. We've been really grateful for the engagement and collaboration since. And I want to thank city manager Chief, Peter, Chris, and council members for taking our concerns seriously and committing to a path forward. We strongly believe and appreciate the city recognizing that relocation is the solution here, not mitigation. The use is simply incompatible with a residential edge. Professionally, as a SBP at CBRE, my role is to evaluate the analysis and data behind major land use decisions. Engaging with you through this has been really refreshing to see that you're open to a more datadriven objective approach to use decisions. The experience reinforces how critical that transparency and process and cross city coordination will be as Santa Monica moves forward with the airport to park conversion. We really look forward to continuing to work collaboratively to get this right uh for this decision and those still ahead. Thank you.

Thank you

Denise. I you guys are calling the next person, right? No, they're you're calling the next person. Okay, David, we're ready for the next one.

It looks like there's three. Yeah, I know. We have uh Rachel Veron, Gerald Baker, Ethan Caretsky. Are any of them there ready to go?

Uh Michelle Veron, um you are now in the meeting. Press star six to unmute. Your one minute starts now. Hi, this is Rachel Burton. I am a resident of Dewey Street. I also am calling in about the trapeze school and I want to share why this matters so much to us. We have two young children, ages six and three. They run around my backyard in my home naked all the time very freely. And honestly, this is such a big privacy issue for us because it no, our home no longer will be private if this comes to fruition. The idea that people can see freely into our home changes that completely and a safe space for my kids. This isn't just about privacy. It's about noise and activity seven days a week. And it's just simply not appropriate. We are young parents. We have poured everything into our homes. This is our main asset. This is our legacy and it is so important to us to keep the value so that we can share this with our children one day. We under um your time's up. Thank you for your comment.

David, do we have the other two callers? Yep. I'm bringing them in right now. Okay, Gerald Baker, um, you're in the meeting. Press star six to unmute and your minute starts now.

Hi, good evening. Um, you know, I want to take a moment to talk about leadership and what it really means to represent an entire community. Mayor Mayor Carolyn Seros has continue to use her platform not as a voice for everyone, but to advance her own priorities, the things she personally supports, the things she wants to see happen. We see it in the housing projects on Ocean partic particularly those aimed at the severely mentally ill and in her broader views on the unhoused which seem to align more closely with county positions where she is also employed than with the concerns of many residents here in Santa Monica. We also see it in her political choices including her endorsement of Eric Swallwell, an endorsement that as far as I know has never been reconsidered or withdrawn. The mayor should represent everyone, not just a set of aligned interests, not just her personal agenda. This position should be used to bring people together to advocate for the good of the entire community.

Okay, your time is up. Thank you for your comment. Just want to correct the record that I day of rescended my endorsement of Eric Swallow. Thank you.

That's it. Yes, ma'am. That's it for Okay. There's just there's going to be one more person. Uh Ethan Ketsky.

Okay, Ethan, you are in the meeting. Press star six to unmute and your one minute starts now.

Good evening, Mayor Terosis and council members. I'm Ethan Kitzky, a Santa Monica resident and arts commissioner. And I'm here to speak in honor of arts, culture, and creativity month in California. In Santa Monica, arts and culture are not side notes. They are core parts of our identity, our economy, and our competitive advantage. So, as the city implements the realignment plan, expands entertainment zones, and prepares for major activations tied to downtown, the World's Cup, and the Olympics, we have a real opportunity to make sure those moments do more than just drive traffic. They should create real opportunities for the people who make Santa Monica feel like Santa Monica. Not just artists and creatives, but chefs, cultural producers, and athletes. As council define success on the scorecard, I hope we measure not just attendance and foot traffic, but also local creative participation and paid opportunities for Santa Monica talent. If the world is coming to Santa Monica, let's make sure it experiences what our creative community has built here. Thank you.

Thank you, Commissioner Kitzky. Um okay we that concludes public comment on general public agenda it general agenda items not on the calendar. Uh we will now move on to our special agenda items and uh we have a proclamation for arts culture and creativity month and I would like to call forward Sophia Klatsker and Jennifer Boyce.

Good evening mayor, council members, city staff, community members. Thank you for having us here tonight. It's wonderful to be with you to celebrate arts April as arts, culture, and creativity month in Santa Monica alongside National Poetry Month, a time that reminds us how essential creativity in civic life, community connection, and well-being are. My name is Sophia Klatgar. I'm the cultural affairs manager with the city of Santa Monica's recreation and art department. I'm pleased to be here tonight for this joint presentation in partnership with our colleagues in the library whose work plays such a vital role in expanding access to the arts learning and culture across the city. We officially kicked off the statewide month celebration last Friday with our partner California for the Arts and honored Senator Ben Allen at the opening of our first ever Santa Monica City Gallery located in Bergamont Station. We're especially honored tonight that Jay Baldwin, Santa Monica's new poet laurate, here this evening will read tonight's proclamation and help us mark this meaningful month. Thank you again for this recognition and for your continued support of arts and culture in Santa Monica. Here's Jennifer.

Good evening. I'm Jennifer Boyce, librarian 3 for adult and neighborhood services at the Santa Monica Public Library. Our poet laurate program reflects the library's role as a creative and civic space for storytelling, dialogue, and connection. On this 30th anniversary of National Poetry Month, we are proud to announce our second poet laurate, Jay Baldwin, uh, and look forward to the inspiring community- centered work they will bring to Santa Monica. Jay was born and raised here, grew up going to the Fairview Branch Library, worked as a school librarian in the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District, and is completing a master's degree in library science. They've competed in SL sorry they've competed in SAM slam poetry across the west coast performed in storytelling shows like the moth and are a longtime member of pride poets a collective of of LGBTQ plus poets who create custom poems in public spaces. Uh Jay sees libraries and poetry as spaces of activism, belonging, and creative engagement. Jay succeeds our inaugural poet laurate an Carmarmac who is here tonight. Their mission is to make poetry a visible living part of civic life bringing it into public spaces writing poems for community members and reminding everyone that they are worthy of a poem. Thank you. Hello everybody. This is my proclamation for National Poetry Month. Whereas I stand proudly before you today as a 40-year resident of this city, humbly offering the many lifetimes I have lived in the name of art and the abiding magic of storytelling. And whereas I once did not see vital parts of my identity reflected in the

places where I needed it most. And so art became both a refuge and call to action, a place of possibility and a tool for building what was missing. And whereas I was fortunate to grow up in a city that values children's literacy and education, where my mother took me to the Santa Monica Public Library to receive my first library card, and where my teachers at John Adams Middle School and Santa Monica High School nurtured my talent for writing even when I doubted myself. And whereas we celebrate that it only takes one educator to help an artist step out of the shadows and that the spark ignited in one poet can light the way for many. Whereas we have chosen a poet laurate to witness us, stand with us, and uplift our voices even in times of profound uncertainty and injustice. And in doing so, affirm our shared commitment to hope, inclusivity, and belonging. And whereas we turn to art not only as a witness, but as a bridge, calling us back to the parts of ourselves that are wild and good and free, reminding us that we belong to each other and to this sacred earth. And whereas we believe that creativity is not reserved for a few but is the birthright of everyone and that poetry and the arts invite every resident to express that which is most vital to them. Whereas we affirm that art is a living breathing ci part of civic life and we commit alongside the poet laurate to creating spaces in Santa Monica where all where all people feel authentically represented and know that they too are worthy of a poem. Thank you.

Congratulations. Um, so I I guess I've been asked to read the last part of the proclamation. So therefore, on behalf of the city council, we're hereby proclaiming the month of April as arts, culture, creativity, and national poetry month in the city of Santa Monica. And we are so proud of our new poet laurette. So let's take a picture quickly. You guys already have the proclamation. Okay, let's take it. Yeah.

Oh, great. She

waiting. Thank you. Appreciate you guys. Okay, now we are going to call forward Shannon Perry to celebrate National Gardening Month. Hi, good evening mayor, council members. My name is Where is your clicker? My name is Shannon Perry. I am your chief sustainability officer. I have with me tonight Teague Waybright. He is the heart and soul of our community garden program. I'm gonna ask you to come stand all the way up here with me if you're willing. I really appreciate that we are getting to go um with our friends in the arts and culture community. Many of you will remember that the arts and culture goal area is the most recent addition to our sustainable city plan. And when we made that addition, we we used one what I think is fairly simple explanation. People often talk about sustainability as the three legs of the sustainability stool. Economy, equity, and environment. But I don't know about you, I've never

really thought about the legs of the stool as the most important part. The purpose of the stool is what it holds up. And what it holds up is the artistic and cultural identity of a community. And so I love that our sustainability commitments are the foundation that hold up this part of our community identity. So the fact that we're all here together tonight is just wonderful to me. Um so with that, I will stay on track and time. Um, it's my honor tonight to introduce a proclamation recognizing National Gardening Month and Earth Month and celebrating the 50th anniversary of Santa Monica's Community Gardens, an enduring network of shared green spaces that has defined and enriched our community since 1976. For five decades, these gardens have served as a place of connection, stewardship, and resilience, providing residents with opportunities to grow fresh food, build community, and foster beauty, and environmental awareness. The Santa Monica Community Garden Program is housed in the Office of Sustainability and the Environment and reflects the city's longstanding commitment to sustainability, local food systems, and equitable access to open space. Across generations, gardeners have cultivated not only fruits and vegetables, but also relationships, knowledge, and a shared sense of responsibility for our environment and our city. As we celebrate this milestone, we also recognize the volunteers, staff, and community members who have contributed more than 1 million hours to our program over the years. To commemorate this anniversary, the

Office of Sustainability and the Environment is hosting a series of events celebrating history, impact, and the future of our gardens. I want to make sure you all know that you are invited to join us on Saturday, May 9th, from 9 to 11:00 a.m. for the 50th birthday celebration of our Main Street Garden. This is where it all began. And don't miss our block party on Sunday, June 14th. We'll be celebrating our newest addition to the Garden Family, the 19th Street Community Farm. This evening, we are honored to invite eight of our dedicated volunteer gardeners to join us at the podium to read the proclamation. This proclamation along with the commemorative totes and cups that you have and have seen around were beautifully designed by Sahana Lindsay. Sahana, can you stand for us? Sahana is a committed environmentalist and a senior at Santa Monica High School. She's been actively involved in our Earth Day poster contest for years and we would like to thank Sahana for lending her talent to this endeavor. Thank you immensely. Uh we will miss her when she leaves for college this fall. Another Santa Monican we will be proud of. This anniversary offers an opportunity for all of us to reflect on the Santa Monica Community Garden legacy and to reaffirm our individual and collective commitment to cultivating a more sustainable, connected, beautiful, and resilient Santa Monica for generations to come. Thank you for your support on this vital part of Santa Monica. And thank you to Teague for his fearless leadership in keeping this community and this

ecosystem and this essential element of our Santa Monica identity so connected and thriving. Thank you Tik. Um, with that I will welcome Chris Gutierrez, Randy Ziggler, Alina Bezdikian, Kiara Selecta, Martha BDK, Bill Yostast, Cynthia Rose, and Tim Balor. And I will apologize for any misprononunciation and ask you to introduce yourselves as well.

Good evening. If you did not know, this is the logo for the 50th which Sahana has drawn. She also has done the artwork for the proclamation. On behalf of the community gardeners, we want to thank you. We want to thank the city of Santa Monica, the city council, certainly city staff, and anyone who's helped us work with you to bring alive a realm of regeneration, recreation, and beauty, where love can abound. With that, the proclamation. Whereas the city of Santa Monica proudly celebrates National Gardening Month and the 50th anniversary of its community garden program, which began with the construction of the Main Street Community Garden in 1976 and has since grown to seven community gardens that provide residents with welcoming spaces to grow food, connect with nature, and build lasting bonds. And

whereas for five decades, Santa Monica Community Gardens have promoted environmental stewardship, sustainable food practices, and urban greening education, contributing to a healthier and more resilient city. And whereas these community gardens serve as inclusive gathering places that foster intergenerational learning, cultural exchange, and neighborhood pride among residents of all backgrounds. And

whereas the community gardens support local food security and public health by enabling residents to grow fresh nutritious produce. Whereas the gardens reduce food waste by redistributing close to 10,000 pounds of surplus produce from local nonprofits and composting 15,000 lbs of organic material from our community composting program and local businesses annually, thereby driving it diverting it from the waist stream. And

whereas Santa Monica's community gardens have been thoughtfully designed to serve as a monarch butterfly way stations and provide habitat for pollinators essential to local biodiversity. And whereas April is recognized as National Gardening Month, a time to celebrate the many benefits of gardening, including physical activity, mental well-being, environmental education, and community connection. And

whereas the dedication of residents, gardeners, volunteers, city staff, and community members partners has been vital to the success and longevity of Santa Monica's community garden program with residents providing over 1 million hours of public land stewardship over the last five decades.

Okay. Now, uh, therefore, we on behalf of the city council proclaim April 2026 as National Gardening Month in honor of the 50th anniversary of Santa Monica's community gardens. And we're encouraging all residents to celebrate the lasting contributions of these gardens to environmental stewardship, community connection, public health, biodiversity, and the quality of life in our city. And to join in celebrating five decades of growing together. Let's take a photo. Come over.

Come on. Come on. We got a lot of people here. Beautiful art, too. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Say

at first I thought I didn't get Okay, thank you all so much for for being here and for the enthusiasm. We are now going to move on to public input um on items under the consent calendar and close session only. Uh and everyone will have one minute given the number of speakers. So, we will call you up and you can come up and approach the mic and just remember to restate your name so we know who who's talking. Arlo Timsman, Gonzalo Hernandez, uh Christina Navaro, Bridey Roberts, Danny Ivangh. Good evening, Mayor Terorus and members of the council. My name is Arlo Ishmile and I'm here today as one of the many workers who lost their jobs when Rusty closed their doors on the pier. So for years, Rusty's workers have showed up, served this community, and helped make that space what it was. When doors closed, we were left without war. Thanks. When doors closed, we were left without warning and without certainty of our future. Over the past year, we have worked alongside the community members to make sure that what happened to us does not become a pattern. We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for basic fairness and the right to return to the jobs we built. Working on the pier meant being part of something bigger, a shared connection with the community, and a pride to be part of something so beautiful. I'm asking you today to ensure that no workers are left behind when the restaurant reopens. We deserve the chance to come back to work. All of us.

Thank you so much for your time. Thank you. Gonzalo Hernandez, Christina Navaro, Ryd Roberts, Gonzalo Hernandez. I'm gonna translate.

Great. Hi, good evening. My name is uh Alberto Hernandez and I work at Rusty on the Santa Monica Pier for uh four years when Roi closet last year. It was not just the loss of a job for and my coworker was the loss of stability community and place many of of decade over a decade of our lives to since then we have stood together with our community to ask for something simple and fair. their right to return to our job when a new operator take over. I'm part of the pier was more than just a job to me. It was a community when I built a relationship with co-workers locals visitors from around the world. I am asking you to stand with us and help ensure that everyone every worker has a clear and protect us to return to work. Thank you.

Appreciate that. Christina Navaro, Brady Roberts, Danny Ivangh.

Good evening. Uh my name is Christina Navaro and I live in Santa Monica and I been hotels working for 22 years and I here because I care deeply about my fellow hospitality work whose wear part to rusting from Santa Monica Pier for many years. Any um any reopenings rusting locator should be serial work or working have the right return. This reflect to amend law to which draw the council approve and when rusty clause was just the workers whose uh care affect to or was the whose community that lost some this significate we allowed to accept No, it's okay. Thank you, Bry Roberts.

Bry Roberts. I am the community organizing director at Unite here local 11. Um, as the council deliberates a potential lease at the former site of Rusty's, we encourage the c the council to continue to do the important work and honor and uphold the worker retention law. The council should reject any applicant's attempt to avoid compliance with the worker retention law. We are concerned by press reports that came out this morning that the current applicant may attempt to bring in less than 100% of the workers back and avoid other requirements in the law. We urge that any agreement that is made follow the law and bring back all the workers. Workers deserve stability and the worker retention law and the pieces that make it up provide for this and protect the city's interest in having an experienced workforce on city property. An experienced and powerful workforce that bring years of service who are part of this community and will make any restaurant that is operating there a tremendous success. We thank you for your consideration when you're doing your deliberations.

Thank you um Mr. Ivangh. And we have Brett Marorrow, Tommy, Chris Scott, Camarada, and Angela Scott.

Good evening, madame mayor and council members. My name is Danny Ivanov, chair of the rent control board, and I'm speaking tonight in my personal capacity with respect to close session item 5D, discussing the price in terms of payment for lease with California Roadhouse. I strongly urge the council to approve a proposed lease agreement only if it explicitly contains written provisions offering protections for the former Rusty's workers pursuant to the framework outlined in the worker protection ordinance passed by this council in back in February. These provisions explicitly written into the terms of the lease must ensure that eligible former employees receive a meaningful opportunity to return to work at the lease premises and must also allow the city to monitor and verify compliance. The loyal, dedicated Rusty's workers at issue here are the backbone of our city's economy. Shame on us if we turn our back on them now. Thank you.

Thank you. Uh, thank you everyone. My name is Brett Morrow. I'm speaking on item 5D. I want to start by saying that I support the workers and supporting the workers and supporting businesses are not in conflict. But we need to be honest about what the bigger picture is here. For decades, the rules have tilted away from workers. Productivity and profits went up, but wages didn't, and stability declined. And this is a part of a much bigger problem. We have to remind ourselves too that these businesses are operating on public land supported by public investment and that should come with a higher standard. We passed right to recall and right to retain. And even though they may not apply in this case, we should do what we set out to do because the last staff report had some vague language in there about percentages that don't make me feel confident that we will. So, let me be clear. Every single Rusty's worker should be offered their job back. And the idea that this is coming from outside or special interests is not true and it is offensive to me. These workers are a part of the community. Wanting their job back is not

Thank you. Tommy Chris Scott Camarada Angela Scott.

Hi guys. Thanks for your service. I just came by to support the people trying to open up California Roadhouse. I think they're good people. I've worked with them for a long time. I know them personally. Um that uh does not exclude rights of people. I think these people ought to be offered a chance to get their jobs back. But the fact that they worked somewhere doesn't just entitle someone to have a job. Again, unless the law says it does, I don't know. But again, here to support the people trying to open up a business. They would be good partners for Santa Monica. Thank you.

Appreciate it. Scott Camarada. Oh, that was you. Um, no, Scott Camda is coming up. Yeah, come on. Sorry.

Scott Camada. Um, I'm here to speak about the California Roadhouse. Um, musician. I've played on the west side in Santa Monica for over 20 years. I can only speak to the side of having an environment play live music. It's very important. I think it builds communities from the ground up. I think there's a person here that could attest to that. that there I've played to thousands and thousands of people over the past two years on the west side directly and have built communities directly from places that will engage with the community directly. I can't speak to any mandates. I'm not familiar with them, but I do think this is an opportunity to bring back live music to a place that desperately needs it. Thank you. Angela Scott, Sam Rod, Russell Bernard.

Good evening, Mayor Terosas, Mayor Pro Timick. is not here. That's right. And council members and city manager Chi, I stand in strong support of the workers of Rusty Surf Ranch and the advocacy of Unite here. As a city enters close session negotiations for the lease at 256 Santa Monica Pier, this moment is about more than terms and pricing. It's about people. The pier is a cornerstone of our local economy and the workers who have sustained it deserve fairness, dignity, and opportunity. I support the rehire of Rusty's workers and believe that continuity of employment must be part of any agreement. These are individuals who have contributed to the character and the success of our city and they should not be left behind in the process. Santa Monica has always led with its values, supporting working families, strengthening our workforce, and building an economy that works for everyone. When we

Sam Rod, hello there. Nice looking city council. Um, hey, I've uh been a friend of Sean for over 30 years and I've seen him build businesses and or restaurants and uh he is an incredibly caring, passionate uh uh business owner and he he treats his staff and his employees like like family and loved ones and he still knows them to to this day. Um, and also the live music scene has been dying. Um, we need to get something back on on the pier. The pier has to get its soul back. It needs to get its groove back. And I know all you guys want it, too. And I think anything we can do to facilitate a business owner to hire back all these wonderful people and but but let him run his business and do a good job of it would be wonderful.

Thank you. Thank you Russ Bernard. And then we have Nick Jackson, Jason Coggins, and Tiffany Walker.

Good evening. I'm uh Rusty of Rusty Surf Ranch. I've known some of you for years from service on boards and commissions and the workforce development board, etc., etc. During my 40 years doing business with the tavern on Main Street and on the pier, the tavern is still going strong. The pier is still surviving, waiting for another good operator. I'm here tonight because of my 30 years as a lease holder at 256 Santa Monica Pier. then known as Rusty Surf Ranch. I read with excitement the news about the agreement with the city and the Pier Restoration Corporation for the new operator from California Roadhouse at the former Rusties. I was then quickly dismayed to learn the agreement regarding the Rusty's site was in jeopardy due to steps being taken by United here to insert itself in the process at the last moment. I must strongly condemn Thank Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Uh Nick Jackson, Jason Coggins. Thanks.

Good evening. I'm actually here on behalf of my wife who was a former colleague and associate of Sha Aos and she speaks very highly of him. We have two children under two so she couldn't be here but she felt I was more qualified to speak because I am a professional musician and I've been fortunate enough to call it a full-time job since 2014. Before that, my two lines of work were always working in music and working in the service industry. And though I'm not a Santa Monica resident, I spent a lot of time here putting in my 10,000 hours performing. Uh I used to play at this place on Main Street between Pico and Ocean Park. It's now a Ramen Place, but between that, the Victorian/Base Tavern, Jameson's, a lot of those gigs went away after COVID and uh people don't talk about it enough. I feel sorry for musicians who moved here postco because they have no idea what the live music scene was like beforehand. and uh it was thriving. Now, not so much. Most of the gigs I do now are relegated to just solo piano. And I'm really blessed to be able to do that, but there's nothing like the the energy of a live band with the horns and the and the bass and the guitar. And uh

Thank you, Jason Coggins. Then Tiffany Walker, Ricardo Greer, Richard Zaringer.

Hello everybody. How are you? Uh Jason Coggins here, former employee of Rusty's on the pier and before that Rusty's Surf Ranch. So um I've seen a few come and go and I just want to speak in my support for California Roadhouse to take over 256 Santa Monica Pier. I think they have a great model and I think it could be a really great spot. You know, get it really vibing in there, get the live music going. It's going to have a big summer and I think they'd be a really really good addition to uh Santa Monica and to the pier. So that's all I have to say and you know it's uh for your consideration. Thank you Walker.

Hi, thank you for having me. I'm here to support Shauna House and the California Roadhouse. I actually have worked with Shawn from the palm. Um and no one can do restaurants and service in a vibe that people want to do and go to like Sean. And I know union work as well. They're both equally that's needed in the world and Sean is the one who can bridge the gap and I really do think that um the pandemic did something and Santa Monica Pier is where I used to go to write music and there's a vibe that's just missing and I I only think that Sean and his people know what to do and to really make make the pier the pier like where you want to go. Not Manhattan Beach, not Venice. Let's bring it back. Yeah. Okay. Thanks. Bye.

Uh, so we have Ricardo Greer, Richard Zaringer, Scott Reed, Sean Aos.

Hello again, council members and mayor. Um, I'm here to speak uh of my support on uh California Roadhouse and um as a SoCal resident, as someone who spends countless hours at the beach, uh at the pier, and I spend a lot of hours at Rusty's with a lot of these workers here that did lose their jobs, and I know how they were affected, and it is sad to see. And of course, I want to see them with the opportunity to get their jobs back. I want to see the opportunity for the culture to reemerge and at the pier with live music, with that culture, with dance that brings people together, brings families, you know, and kids and people. So, I really would love to see that come back to the pier and just see the the restoration that and I know these guys will be the ones to do it. So, thank you for your support. Thank you. Is Richard here?

Okay, great. Hello everyone. Uh my name is Rachel Zeringer. I used to be a former employee at Rusties. I recognize a few of you. I'm happy to I'm happy to be here. It's my first time. Uh so yeah, I'm happy to be here on support of um Roadhouse California. Uh I wish I could speak like a lawyer, but I will not. I don't know how to. Uh but I feel like this is just a restaurant and these people want to create value here in the Salmonica. I feel that in my opinion from an unbiased point of view, Rusty's was one of the best bar in Santa Monica. He brought people from all over the world and families and all ethnicities and all situation. And u I'm not sure necessarily to understand fully why I'm here speaking in favor for those guys. I feel like it's a big statement. I feel like we're speaking we're not trying to open a gun store. uh they are just trying to open a restaurant and have some value in the community. It's a nice place for some music. Uh in my opinion, this shouldn't be too big. Thank you so much.

Scott Reed here. Yeah.

How are y'all doing? My name is Scott Reid. I've known Shawn for over 40 years and I've watched Shawn grow and build restaurants from the ground up and uh this is a great opportunity for the city of Santa Monica for Shawn and for all the workers. You all want your jobs back, right? Talk to Shawn. Okay, everybody here, get the lease done. Talk to him. These people could have been back to work six months ago. All right. Having unnecessary red tape costing people money, costing them time, having people out of work, it's all unnecessary. He's an open-minded guy. He loves people. He knows how to run a business. And he'll put these people right back to work. And you'll have a great city with a great thriving restaurant. Plus, I'm a piano player. And I want to go play. Thanks.

Great. We now have Sean Good evening, council, city manager, and mayor. Uh, thank you for your time today. Uh, my name is Sean Ahos, and I represent the California Roadhouse, an exciting new restaurant and live entertainment venue working to bring much neededed jobs, live entertainment, and music together with great foods and beverages on our Santa Monica Pier. We have a proposal submitted to the council that, if passed, will provide much needed job and economic growth for our city. The proposal we currently have submitted to the city provides for new jobs and full job training for every single former Rusty's worker that was working at 256 Santa Monica Pier when Rusty's closed. I just want to make that perfectly clear. The proposal I have right now in front of the city. I'm here to ask for your support and passing our proposal without further delay so we can open the California Roadhouse as soon as possible. Thank you.

Thank you. Jason Reed, Scott Reed, Mo House, a Sorry if I'm pronouncing your last name wrong. Mr. A House, Mo A House, uh, Cooper Brower, Tommy Chris.

Hello, I'm Jason Reid. I'm here in support of the California Roadhouse. Um, Sean Ahos and I have known each other most of our lives. We're actually partners at Veto Restaurant. So, that's what we own right now. And something about the employees, and of course, I believe they chef opportunity as well. We kept everybody at veto 100%. So when we bought the restaurant, we met with everybody. We loved them all. They were qualified. We kept every one of them. So he'll do the same thing. He will interview them and the people that should get a job, they will definitely get their job back. So please support Roadhouse. Thank you. Thank you. Is Scott Reed here? Okay.

Oh, you already talked. Okay,

Mo. Evening everybody. Thanks for taking the time to hear this out. Um, I just wanted to kind of express my support for the opening of California Roadhouse to bring live music back to Santa Monica. Um, Sean's my half brother that I recently reconnected with. Really excited on working with this project, uh, working on this project with him and, um, seeing the way he's run his current business, Veto in Santa Monica, I'm confident that it'll be a great success. help bring more jobs, bring everybody back to work, bring more jobs to Santa Monica and go with the creativity month element of supporting live music and really furthering that community identity. So, I think California Roadhouse is a perfect place to do that. I hope everybody agrees and we can take advantage of this opportunity. Thanks.

Thank you. Um, is Cooper Brower here? Tommy Chris. Okay. Sorry, I'm just reading the names. I got uh Steve Cohen. Oh, are you Cooper? I'm Cooper. Great. Come on down.

I've known Sean for probably about 20 years. Worked with at the Palm and uh uh he's he's an incredible restaurant tour. He's really a people person. If you haven't met Sean, you need to go into Veto and to the Roadhouse. It's going to be a great thing. You just really need to get the restaurant. He's incredible with people. is incredible at running restaurants and uh I think he'll be fantastic an asset for the city. Thank you. Great. Um Steve Cohen.

Hello. Thank you for giving me a moment. Um music, sunshine, Santa Monica, the beach. I don't think anybody here would have a problem with having a great meal with a sunset and some great music. affording these people their jobs back. Musicians to work. I'm a 31-year restaurant guy, retired. I know what it takes to open a restaurant, work every day, familyowned and operated. Give this guy the chance to do what he wants to do. Provide jobs, safety, security, good food, good service. It's very simple. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Perry, is there a Perry here? Great. We have a Perry. And then I think Jason Reid and Scott Reed already went. Um Corey Lamb is next. And then Jonathan Foster.

Uh hello, I'm uh Perry. I actually know Sean A House from uh San Gabriel Country Club when he was our food and beverage manager and I've firsthand seen what he can do um with the food beverage when they've brought in live entertainment for special events when people have um called in and wanted him to do private events uh at the club. And I know for a fact he can do a good job. I'm sure he'll be able to provide everyone their jobs back with no problem at all. and it's just um a shame he's not getting the opportunity to do that even though I've seen him successfully do this before. And that's just all I wanted to say.

Thank you, Corey Lamb.

Thank you guys very much for this opportunity. I just also wanted to come and speak on behalf of Ashan Ahos and the uh 256 Santa Monica Pier lease. I worked for Rusty's on the pier for six years and it was a fantastic place, fantastic environment, almost like a beacon on the Santa Monica Pier which was our most cherished part of the city. Really drives all the tourism in, drives even locals, everything. And it's just it saddens me that I I still go down to the Santa Monica Pier just to see it still closed down when I know it has so much potential and so much value to uh to our whole local economy and just our local culture. Um, and it it long, you know, long story short, I'm just in support of having the the lease go through again and seeing that like little dim light that we had on the Santa Monica Pier shine again, you know, so all Santa Monica can shine on as a whole community and I think it's a great opportunity and I think Sean Aos is is the man to do it. Thank you for your time.

Great. Uh, Jonathan Foster. Hi, Jonathan Foster. I was going to speak on a um a second reading, which I'm not allowed to speak on, but when I was in the uh line to sign up, I had a small conversation with these people, so I thought I'd do this for us. Everything is up as usual, you know. So, live music. Here we go.

Yeah. So, I think uh I think Jim approves Jim approves from the grave that we should have a roadhouse on Third Street or excuse me, on the pier and they should have live music there. Uh but the reason I came up to speak is when I was speaking to them out there, they they seem to not know what the hangup is for 6 months. What's the hangup for 6 months? Why is this taking six months? They they nobody seems to know and I can't know, right? Because it's a close session, but why? What's the

Thank you. Did anyone sign up to speak on this item that I did not call because we were rushing through? Okay, that concludes public comment on special on excuse me. Oh, you have one come through. Yeah. Are you Are you here for the 16 items, though? That's going to be later.

Sorry, this was just Sorry, this was just public input on consent calendar and close session only. Um, actually, I'm just looking. We don't have any phone callers. Okay. So, we will now move to the consent calendar. I don't know, madame clerk, if you want to announce anything here. Um the consent calendar consent calendar. All items will be considered and approved in one motion unless removed by a council member for discussion. Um we have we need to note that item 4 A was is being removed. You said that earlier because it was already approved on 324. And item 4B council member

Yep. I'm going to be recusing. I'll just to make an announcement. I'm going to be recusing myself from item 4B, which is a general services agreement with LA County an abundance of caution. Even though there's no material conflict of interest, uh this contract will be entered into directly with my employer. And although this contract will not have any direct impact on my salary or employment with the county, I will recuse myself in order to avoid even the appearance of a conflict. Um and then additionally, I have uh pulled item 4E. Were there any other polls? Were there any other council any more items that council members want to have pulled? None.

Uh, madam mayor, I'll make a motion to approve the consent calendar except for the pulled items and uh to ask council member Hall to serve as the temporary chair in your absence. Second.

Although Can we voice or do we roll call? Roll call. There's money. Okay, great. Council member Zernaya. Yes. Council member Snell. Yes. Council member Rascin. Yes. Council member Hall. Yes. Council member Deterte. Yes. Meritosas. Yes. Um if I might suggest that we do 4E before I uh walk out for 4B if that would be okay. Okay. With with my colleagues. Great. Um so I don't know who's here on on 4e. That's the clarity software permitting and land use management system. It's a $1.4 million contract. Are you going to be Okay. I don't Madam Mayor,

I don't need a staff report unless anyone else needs one. No. Okay. So, I just um I have a couple of questions and I just want to make a couple of statements. So, the staff report describes the contract as an exception to the competitive bidding process under our municipal code. Uh staff, I I asked some questions in in the leadup to this item and staff has told us that a competitive RFP process did occur in 2024. Why does the staff report not say that? And if a competitive process happened, why is this being categorized as a sole source exception, an exception to our soul source?

No, for sure. The um nuance in this case is when the clarity permitting software was initially procured, it was through um a third party firm called Spidian. That was the salesperson point of contact for the overall permitting system. The agreement that we entered into was with Spidian to utilize the Clarity permitting software as we continue to move forward with the permitting program implementation. The request here is to basically continue with the existing agreement utilizing clarity but not have it be engaged through Spidian the implementer but instead have it be directly with clarity moving forward. So the exception here is that the initial RFP was procured correctly to secure um clarity as the software system through a third party Spidian. We're now just simply shifting the agreement to clarity directly, not as a pass through with the implementing company Spidian at this moment.

Okay. Um just contract transparency is really important to me. This uh our permitting software is like a major pillar of the realignment plan and ensuring that we are you know expediting our permitting and and h ensuring that businesses uh homeowners etc are able to get through that process. So going forward when staff brings a contract forward from a prior competitive process, can we make sure that it's more clear in the staff report? Uh because that's really important, I think, to the public. Certainly. Okay. Does anyone else have any questions? Great. Uh so again, I'm not questioning whether clarity is the right vendor. Um you explain the process. I just want to make sure uh that we don't have to ask this question in the future.

No, that's an oversight on my part. We'll make sure we address moving forward. Thank you. Does anyone want to make a motion? Uh, I'll move we approve this item and thank you, mayor, for those questions. I'll second. Council member Zarnaya, yes. Council member Snell, yes. Council member Ain, yes. Council member Hall, yes. Council member Grete, yes. And Mayor Trosus, yes. Thank you, mayor. So, we'll wait for the mayor to leave.

Okay. 4B is adoption of a resolution authorizing renewal of general services agreement with LA with the county of Los Angeles. Right. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Are there any questions from members of the council? Any comments? I'll move this item. Second. And who second? I'm sorry. Council Rasin. Okay. So, made the motion moved by Council Member Snell and seconded by Council Member Raskin. Okay. I'm sorry. I couldn't hear. I couldn't tell the voices. That's okay. Sorry. Council member Mcgrete. Yes. Council member Hall. Yes. Council member Raskin. Yes.

Council member Snell. Yes. Council member Zariskaya and that was a yes from council member Zernaya since for some reason this didn't turn on. Okay. Can someone ask the mayor to come back? I think she might have just gone into close session. So um if we can hear the close session items please. Okay.

Okay. close session. You have several items. You have an existing litigation and this is the John Doe. Several John Doe's. Next, we have another existing litigation. It's the city versus another existing litigation, the city, uh, Lisa Parsons versus the city. We have a real estate negotiation. It's for 256 Santa Monica Pier. City negotiator is the city manager. The owner of record is the city of Santa Monica. And this is with the California Roadhouse and it's um what's being negotiated is under negotiation is price and terms of payment for lease. Then we have um 5E which is another real estate property 2525 Michigan. This is Bergammont Station and again the city manager will be negotiating on city's behalf. The city owns the property and um under negotiation again is price and terms of payment. And then finally we have public employee evaluation. The title is city manager, city clerk, and city attorney. Those are your close sessions.

Thank you. Oh, sorry. Okay. Sorry. I really had to go to that. Um uh did we already say when we're returning in an hour? Um in accordance with your agenda management, we will return in one hour. Great. That will be at uh 8:21.

Tonight, it's a privilege to address the city council and uh the city staff. I appreciate the time and correspondence and consideration several of you have extended to me over the past six months. I'm a Santa Monica resident. I live in the Sunset Park neighborhood with my family, my two kids, my dog, my wife. I also maintain an office here in the city. I've applied to serve uh on the transit occupancy tax advisory committee. Some of you may say, why the TOT advisory committee? I say first and foremost, it's an opportunity to serve our community and contribute meaningfully to the city. I serve and have served on several nonprofit and professional organizational boards and community civic engagement has always been a consistent priority for me throughout my life. Professionally, my background spans real estate finance and budgeting. Much of my career has been spent working on capital projects, development, infrastructure, and close collaboration with with municipalities. I would bring a thoughtful and analytical perspective to the committee, one focused on interpreting key metrics, evaluating tradeoffs in aligning financial decisions with broader community goals. Beyond the numbers, I have a genuine stake in the long-term health of our city and the well-being of our neighbors. As a resident, I appreciate the council's leadership, significant efforts undertaken, and the difficult decisions required to implement the realignment plan. I'm already seeing the positive impact is having on our community. I I and I truly am seeing it. So, I I appreciate the hard work you guys are doing with it. I would welcome the opportunity to

contribute to that progress, hoping to inform thoughtful balance recommendations on the allocation of toot revenues. Thank you for your consideration.

Good evening, council members. My name is Matt Goldenberg and I'm seeking appointment to the recreation and parks commission. I come before you as a son of this city, somebody who grew up on these fields, learned to swim in these pools and owes much of who he is to the parks of Santa Monica. I come as a physician, as a parent, and as a neighbor. As a physician, I know that green space is not a luxury. It's a lifeline. Parks reduce stress, restore the mind, and strengthen the bonds that hold a community together. And the data is clear. Residents that live within walking distance of a park have measurably better health outcomes than those who do not. Parks are not amenities. parks or medicine. As a parent, I've watched my two daughters run, discover, and grow in the same spaces where I once played. What we preserve today, they will inherit tomorrow. As a neighbor raised in a town home half a block from Lincoln Middle School, I know that public land is not an abstraction. It's where community is born, where equities equity is expressed, and where the city keeps its promises. My career has been built on listening, finding common ground, and moving forward together. as the co-chair Nomai helped unii unite diverse voices around one vision natural grass on all public land in Santa Monica and that's the discipline purpose and commitment that I bring in service of something larger than ourselves Santa Monica's parks are not simply open space there where we heal breathe and remember who we are and we stand in a once in a generation moment a chance to build something that will outlast us all not merely a great park a legacy the work will not be easy no work worth doing ever is but if we work together think boldly and serve equitably we can make the park's vision plan, not just a document, but a destination. Together, we can activate every park park from pocket parks to flagship parks alike with arts, culture, and programming that gives every resident a reason to gather. Together, we can connect every neighborhood to green spaces, open fields, and clean air. Together, we can serve our athletes, advance equity, and continue to lead the region in environmental sustainability, not as rival priorities, but as a single promise to the future. If given the opportunity, I will not rest. Not until the park's vision plan is real. Not until equity is felt. Not until we built a Santa Monica that future generations will be even more proud to call home.

Thank you for the opportunity. Thank you, Karen Bettincourt. And then we have Perry, Brian, Carrian, Brad Euan.

Hi, I'm Karen Bettincort. Um, I am applying to be considered for the personnel board vacancy. I bring 30 years of supervisory experience whether it's in personal or privately held publicly held um being on both sides of the space and know the importance of having an engaged citizenry and independent truly independent voices making sure that there's a a firm appeals process. uh particularly I have I've experienced and seen and applied as a manager or a leader uh bad policies implemented well great policies implemented poorly um and the need for uh complete fairness and an engaged citizenry so I appreciate uh the consideration thank you

thank you um just really quick Perry Brian Carrian don't see you guys so Brad Euing and then Daniel Campbell Jonathan Foster Jessica Bower Good evening, council. I'm Brad Yuing speaking on my uh own behalf tonight. Uh really quickly on 11A just speaking in support. I think a beachside festival is an incredible opportunity for our city. Uh other cities are already eating our lunch like San Diego, Long Beach, and even Huntington Beach. So I I believe Santa is going to be a massive opportunity for the residents that live here and the tourists that want to come spend money here. And then on 16e, I put an application for the parks and rec committee. I would love the opportunity to serve. I'm a 10 year old a 10-year rec control ten in Santa Monica. Our parks are literally my backyard in a dense and growing city with a majority of renters. Our parks serve as essential third places for all of us. Uh and whether it's walking my dog in Palisad's park or getting dunked at basketball at the reed port Reed courts by kids that are less than half my age. Uh you know, it's good for me. And have chosen to serve on the board. My goals are to one see the city pursue long-term land bank land banking so every resident lives a short walk from their closest park. two, to address the shortage of active use facilities in particular pools and sports fields, and three, to expand cultural opportunities with a focus on the arts and music. I'm committed to collaborating with staff, fellow commissioners, and members of the community to help us become the model that other cities look to for parkland stewardship. Thank you for your consideration and have a good night.

Um, Daniel Campbell, and then again, Jonathan Foster, Jessica Bower, and that's all we have. So, if you signed up to speak and you don't hear your name being called, talk to our clerk. Uh, hello everybody. How you tonight? Um, I'm going to try not to race through everything. If you want more information on me, you saw the application. So, um, good evening, council. appreciate the invitation uh to speak about uh RPC tonight with you. Um my name is Daniel Campbell. Over the years, I've been fortunate enough to work with city staff, the district, um and our community partners to support our fields and facilities and programs. It allowed me to stay closely connected to our community and through youth um adult and uh school sports. And here's how I just sat and listened to people. Um I asked him sit down, have a cup of coffee, uh consider all the perspectives um to any issue that's out there. debate it with rigor, reach a consensus and move forward. Um, but this only happens with honesty and fairness and transparency as this council professes. You may know my advocacy is for space and sports and I do not consider one sport more bene beneficial than another. But I care deeply that our community has

access to parks, fields, and facilities. So, thank you for the consideration, and I'll work hard and do my best. If you have any questions, I'm happy to take them.

Thank you, Jonathan Foster. Jessica Bower. Hello again, Jonathan Foster. I believe this is 11 A staff report G ordinances, special events. So, I was out there a little while ago where they had uh something on all three blocks and there was a discussion about whether or not we could play there and they said that we can play and all this kinds of stuff. And I was kind of wondering when they say the city is going to choose a spot for more one more than one is going to pick a spot for a performer to perform in. Is that really the 501c3 or who in the city is actually picking that spot? A cso, a PSO, a actual blue police officer. Who's picking that spot? the 501c3 that I don't appreciate and uh you know when you erode the bottom you always lose and this yeah this all just happened um and I just had a conversation with Jeremy Ferguson here he he just told me this change was coming how come I always know that things are going to get voted on here and there's no vote took place yet but we know that you are going to pass bull crap That's that's what just happened with 4F. That's that's why you got to do this because they want to have big DJs and PAs out there. And today you just had today you just had 4F. Is that what it was? No, no, no. Two today 2A Proclamation Arts Culture and Creativity Month. And what when you have three blocks out on Third Street Prominade, you know the healthiest thing in Santa Monica is to have us street performers there. That that's true. They they they interact with us. Yeah. I I know so many married people's children. They come up

to the drum set and we have the best time. It's amazing. And you guys have them serving beer out there and now it's going to be cigarettes with the vape in the pot. You people are crazy. People are crazy. This is uh this is not what should happen. Jessica Bower.

Uh, good evening, mayor and council members. Thanks for having me. I'm Jessica Bower and I'm a resident of Santa Monica and I've applied for a position on the parks and recreation committee. Um, I am also the founder of a local run club called Carb Loaders. And we spend a lot of time eating and running around Santa Monica, uh, bringing together residents, uh, to support local businesses and activate our public spaces. And through that work, I've seen just how important our parks and public spaces are to building a sense of community, promoting health and wellness, and also to promoting economic vitality in the neighborhoods in which we live. Professionally, I work in communications and community engagement, and I would bring that lens to the commission, making sure that we not only have very strong programming, but also strong awareness and communication and participation about those programs. Um, if I'm appointed, my focus would be on expanding access to recreation, strengthening local partnerships, and uh continuing to make sure that our Santa Monica parks are welcoming to all and well utilized. Thank you so much for your consideration. Thank you. Okay, that concludes the comments on this item.

Do Oh, is there more? No, that's for the that's it. And I don't see any on the phone. No, we don't. We don't have Great. Um, so is there a staff presentation for 10A? Uh, first reading of the ordinance for the uh property maintenance code. fueler. Great.

All right. Good evening. Uh my name is Daniel Mick. I'm the code enforcement manager uh for the city of Santa Monica. Tonight's item is a request from staff for a code amendment um which creates a bridge in the property maintenance code chapter 1302 uh to the state civil code 1941.1 and makes violations of the civil code subject to the city's property maintenance code. Uh, as you may remember, back in September of 2023, as part of a larger neighborhood preservation program, the city adopted uh its first comprehensive property maintenance program. Uh, it was also joined with the vacant properties code and the public nuisance code. Um, but it's been it's been wonderful. It really does encompass a big portion of what code enforcement does on a day-to-day basis. Now a sign a sign significant number of our amount of our time is spent in code addressing concerns of residential habitability concerns. Uh and the primary law that we look to is the health and safety code 17920.3. Um it lists about 40 or so conditions um you know which if serious enough would render a unit uninhabitable. I believe they use the term substandard in that code. Um, and these would be conditions that that would be a threat to the health and safety of the occupant. I'm not going to go through all of them. There's just a few of those examples on the screen. Um, but there's also the civil code 1941.1. Uh, it lists several broad conditions that are required for tenantability. Effectively the same thing as habitability. Uh, substandard. They're all basically interchangeable. Um, so silicone 1941.1 really establishes that uh implied warrant of habitability that I'm sure we're all familiar with.

Um, but these conditions that are listed 1941.1, they're not as all-encompassing and they're much broader. They're not nearly as specific as uh 17920.3. Now, while there is a lot of overlap between the two state codes, uh there are some conditions in the civil code that are not found uh in the health and safety code. Uh AB628 became effective January of this year and it created uh the requirement that landlords provide a properly working stove and refrigerator. Um, so what we're asking is that we add language to the uh property maintenance code creating that bridge to the uh civil code. So this is effectively what we're looking at. Um, chapter 1302 establishes the minimum requirements of all properties. Uh, they must all meet in order to um protect the health, safety, and welfare of the community. That includes aesthetics. Now, letter Q under 1302.060 incor incorporates all the substandard conditions of the health and safety code into the property maintenance code. So, that just serves as the bridge to the health and safety code. Letter R allows us to declare a unit uninhabitable if the conditions are serious enough. So really what we're asking is just to add the green language there uh to create that bridge in Q&R to the civil code. Um so this would allow code enforcement to better enforce the provisions of state law and I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

Great. I don't see any questions in the queue colleagues. Okay. Does anyone have a comment? I just want to thank him for bringing it forward. You just kind of do clean up. I'm ready to move this item. I'll second it. Uh can I just ask um and uh I know you know I think you'd answered this before and uh I apologize for not bringing this over earlier. So there there are some other parts of the civil code like 1941.8 that also talk about other conditions. I would just ask hopefully we can incorporate our motion that um in the future we can come back with further refinements based on those other parts of the code.

Yeah, I've had uh discussions with the city attorney's office as well as Jen um kind of try to figure out like how would we want to approach this? It's certainly something we can do in a fairly short order. And I I would also just clarify that uh I did ask staff questions in advance of this meeting. the definition of uninhabitable that we're defining tonight is not going to affect any cases that are correct in progress so we can uh implement this on a going forward basis and I just thank you because I think we've been a leader on tenant protections and let's continue to to do that. So is there a motion on the floor?

There was a motion second but I want to clarify what Council Rasin said. So there's other items that could also be um cleaned up for the lack of a better way of saying it in this particular code. Yeah. I mean there there are some other portions of the civil code. I'm thinking in particular one other portion of the same it's the same area of the code around 1941.1 1941.8 talks about situations where the natural disasters and like ash or debris make a building uninhabitable. Okay. So um obviously you know I I I'm I love what we're moving to forward with this tonight. I'm hoping just come back in the future with further refinements. Great great work, J. Really good work. Okay. Who Who seconded? Um, Madam Clerk,

council. Okay, great. So, we're ready for a vote. Oh, I'm sorry. Council Hall. Council member Hall. Second. Council Hall. So, okay. So, the motion was made by Council Member Snell and second by Council Member Hall. Yes. Council member, sorry, Council Member Negrete. Yes. Council member Hall. Yes. Council member Rasin. Yes. Council member Snell. Yes. Council member Zarneskaya. Yes. Mayor Terosas. Yes. Thank you, Mr. Appreciate you. Next, we have item 11A, Advancing Major Advance. Give me a second, Peter. Let me pull that up for you.

Good evening, council. Good evening, audience. My name is Peter James. I'm in the city manager's office waiting for that presentation to come up. Good evening, Oliver. Sorry, Peter. We got a great show for you tonight.

There you go. Tonight we're going to be talking about some uh major license agreements that we're bring bringing forward as well as um some code amendments that are necessary to seize the opportunity. Uh Santa Monica is entering a rare and highly visible period of opportunity tied to FIFA 26, LA28 and related global activity. And this presentation is about how the city can prepare now with the right agreements, code updates, and policy framework so that when opportunities come forward, Santa Monica is ready and we'll be ready to respond strategically, protect community interests, and capture long-term civic and economic value. The opportunity is clear. support local businesses, attract visitors, generate international visibility, and reinforce Santa Monica's identity as a premier coastal destination. The strategy is to move from an ad hoc basis and response to a curated pipeline of opportunities guided by operational readiness, fiscal responsibility, and public benefit. The recommended actions before you tonight work together as one package. They authorize negotiations on three major opportunities. They modernize portions of the municipal code and establish eventspecific resolutions as well as adopting environmental findings. Together the these actions create a clearer framework for moving forward in a disciplined and consistent way. This slide highlights that the legislative pieces are interconnected. The code amendments, that's the ordinance that's in the um recommended actions provide the overall framework. The resolutions apply that framework to specific events and the agreements establish the enforcable terms. That layered approach gives the city

flexibility where needed while maintaining structure and accountability. This work is grounded in three simple principles that we've discussed before. full cost recovery, operational readiness, and public benefit. The city's objective is not just to attract high-profile events, but to do so in a way that avoids subsidy, ensures strong planning, and delivers visible value to residents, businesses, as well as visitors. So, up next, I'll introduce you to three event opportunities that we previewed for you in December that have since matured to finalization. Each one is different in scale and format, but they're all being evaluated through the same framework. Public value, operational feasibility, financial responsibility, and protection of city assets. The Pitchside Club. Uh, this proposal would bring a World Cup theme band activation to the pier in June of 2026. That's less than 60 days away. is designed as a high energy, high visibility experience tied to one of the world's largest sporting events with the potential to increase foot traffic, support nearby businesses, and showcase Santa Monica during a globally recognized moment. The images on this slide help illustrate the atmosphere and visibility this activation would create. The key point is that while the event is exciting and highly marketable, it will would also be governed by clear city oversight around safety, accessibility, circulation, and restoration so that the public benefits are matched by strong operational controls. The Golden Voice concert, Golden Voice represents a complimentary opportunity on the cultural side. A music and cultural festival of this kind could broaden Santa Monica's event portfolio,

draw major regional attention, and generate meaningful support for hotels, restaurants, and local businesses while sustaining momentum beyond the World Cup period. This map shows the scale of the production and in versions that we have seen um in the city manager's office, there's also um a production quality that is unparalleled um demonstrating uh Golden Voic's uh experience as a global event partner. It also underscores why a clear city framework is so important. Events of this size require thoughtful planning around mobility, sound, public safety, sustainability, accessibility, and neighborhood impacts. And those issues are central to how staff and Golden Voice are evaluating the proposal. And we have members of the team from Golden Voice here in the audience tonight should you wish to to dig any further. The nation's village concept is one of the most significant opportunities under consideration for the LA28 period at this moment in time. It combines broadcast activity, hospitality, public engagement, and brand activation at Crescent Bay Park and lot 4 South. It's a little over 2.2 acres. It also includes a legacy improvement through the restoration of the historic pergola that's located in that park. What makes this proposal especially compelling, although not in this graphic, uh, and it is its scale, duration, and intentional and international visibility. It would position Santa Monica not just as a scenic backdrop, but as an active participant during the Olympic and Parolympic period with the potential for sustained broadcast exposure, visitor activity, and long-term public benefit. So, as staff reviewed these opportunities, it became clear that a

stronger regulatory framework was also needed. The following section is about making sure the city has modern tools to manage major temporary activations in a way that preserves oversight, supports flexibility, and aligns event approvals with clear operating conditions. The legislative layer cake. This slide explain explains the legal structure behind the package. The ordinance is the permanent toolkit. The resolutions are the targeted activators and the agreements are the enforceable contracts. This structure matters because each layer supports the next, allowing the city to be flexible without losing control or clarity. The ordinance is not about weakening standards. In fact, it's about modernizing the city's toolkit so that extraordinary temporary events can be evaluated case by case. Any flexibility granted here would be limited, conditional, tied to findings, and linked to requirements around restoration, safety, and minimizing impacts on surrounding uses. The resolutions apply that toolkit to specific events. They're not blanket exemptions, and they do not stand on their own. Instead, they allow council to authorize narrow eventspecific flexibility where warranted and only in connection with the ordinance and negotiated agreement terms. The code amendments that you'll find in the staff report focus on the areas most relevant to large temporary events, including park and beach use, noise, street performers, and signs. The overall goal is to make the city's rules more more current and workable for major events while still preserving public safety, operational clarity, and city authority. Now, this slide connects the sign code

amendments to a broader storefront re revitalization strategy. First, the ordinance would apply the same content contentneutral time, place, and manner rules to all temporary signs citywide, creating a clearer and more consistent framework. Secondly, on the prominade, the proposal would limit extended temporary signage to tenant spaces with active construction or a completed plan check application, helping align signage flexibility with real occupancy activity rather than prolonged vacancy branding. And on this slide, um, council may wish to provide direction on one narrow policy question, whether to adjust the maximum duration for temporary signs on the prominade with options such as 6 months, 12 months, or 18 months, but not less than the citywide standard of up to 120 days. And for questions on this content, we have Heidi and Jing in the audience. So what is before C council tonight is not simply a set of approvals. It's the foundation for how Santa Monica will meet a rare moment of global attention with preparation, with discipline, and with ambition equal to the opportunity. Done well, these actions will allow the city to welcome the world in a way that is inspiring, operationally sound, and fiscally responsible while turning short-term events into long-term public value. At its best, this is more about readiness for what is coming. It is about shaping a legacy of civic benefit, economic vitality, and renewed confidence in what Santa Monica can be. The rec the recommended actions that follow are the steps needed to bring that vision to life. And as I conclude this presentation, this slide stands as a recognition of the many hands across city hall that

make opportunities like these possible. Events of this scale do not simply arrive. They are earned through steady collaboration, persistence, and an extraordinary extraordinary amount of public service. There are over 120 names on this slide. And this is just our activities since December. Staff across departments have helped bring these opportunities to Santa Monica, keep them here, and shape them into experiences that are not only well-managed, but welcoming, festive, and meaningful for the community. In that sense, this slide is more than a thank you to these 120 staff. It is a reflection of a city moving forward thoughtfully, confidently, and together. Amen. Thank you. Um this is despite the laughter, this is obviously very important to us. Um if you have any comments uh or questions, please put yourself in the queue.

Well, do we have questions? I don't see any questions. Please put yourself in the queue if you'd like to make a comment. Council member Hall. Uh I'll just be brief. Um my my grandmother asked me recently on a call

about what we're trying to do and like what my agenda has been while being on council and and I thought for a second and I responded well we're trying to make Santa Monica clean, safe, affordable, and fun. And tonight we're working on fun. Um and I'm really excited and just want to say thank you to staff for all of the hard work um on all of these events. Um, there was a Tik Tok recently that I'm sure many saw about it was a it was a Gen Z influencer creator who was uh kind of poking fun, well, straight up making fun of Santa Monica for investing so much in the entertainment zone and said Santa Monica is doing everything possible to revitalize their economy uh and then leaning in on things that Jenz doesn't care about like drinking on the prominade. Um, so to that influencer, I say, uh, pay attention to this vote because I think we're about to do something really cool here that will set us off on a really good trajectory. Um, and I just want to thank again every name that's up here. I won't go through them all obviously, but thank you for acknowledging them, Peter. Um, particularly for taking my crazy idea that we should bring a music festival here. So, I see the Golden Voice team in the audience, Melissa and crew. um thank you for uh bringing this to us and um I think we're really excited and in for a treat here. So excited for our partnership moving forward. Thank you.

Uh Council Member Snell,

I too want to be brief. I I just want to thank the staff and Peter for for bringing this forward. This is as as Councilman Hall has said, this is uh part of a revitalization plan where we're going to have major activations, which is something that um I don't know Santa Monica has ever done before at this level. And so I think that uh the fact that we've taken the time to uh really think about how to create these large events and have uh a blueprint to do that is is very important. My only question with respect to the temporary signage ordinance uh I didn't see maybe I and I maybe I shouldn't with respect to businesses. How does it affect them with respect to their operations as far as um their their businesses uh as to activating the inside of their business or does that play into this particular audience?

Um I presume you're talking about for the prominade, not citywide. Right.

This is really just a clarification of, you know, when council adopted the code amendments back in October 2024, really the basis for um the expanded duration for temporary signage on the prominade because everywhere else in the city, it's like 30, 60 or 120 days, no more than that. What we heard on the prominade from property owners and brokers and it really being you know a place where we're focusing a lot of investment was an interest in being able to advertise like for example if you call the Google store right while they were under construction as sort of a coming soon notion you know was what they really wanted that flexibility for for so the basis of it really was like you know going to be in these situations where they were under active construction something was coming soon um so this is really just adding that clarification that was the purpose of the extended duration. It wasn't just for having a temporary, you know, sign for a long time like without that connection of an actual business opening.

Gotcha. Makes sense. Well, I want to thank everyone again on staff and I'm I'm really excited about seeing these events come forward. Thank you, Council Negrete.

Just keeping it brief. Um, this is my background. Twilight series was something that I have fond memories of and this is taking it up quite a few notches. So, I know that there was a lot of thought that went into how this impacts the community to make sure that the residents were thought about. First and foremost, our local businesses um as well. And from what I've um heard from businesses the last two months is they're really excited about this opportunity to be involved in the economic rebound of our city. They need foot traffic. We need people experiencing our city. And I mean really we have to think about how this is really at the epicenter of us rebranding ourselves. So I think we're working with some amazing people who just came off a little thing called um Coachella. So I think we're in good hands and thank you to the team and all those names up there. I just want to say thank you for putting that up there because I did not know that that was are those repeats in there some of those. Okay, but those are a lot of names. So, thank you and also a very uh riveting presentation over there,

Council Member Zern Skaya. Thank you. Um, so first I had just one quick question uh kind of building off of Council Member Snell's question about the temporary signage time limit. Um, so the question posed to the council is whether we want to have a 6, 12, or 18month limit. And I wanted to ask, how long does a typical business buildout take? Um, I mean, we actually just had a great meeting, I think, with some restaurant operators today. They said everything goes well from the time they issue a permit, the restaurant should be able to open within 6 months. If everything goes well.

If everything goes well. Yeah. Um, you know, we landed on 12 months because that's sort of the flexibility we had heard, you know, back then from brokers and property owners. um we just understand through feedback, you know, there may be a desire to revisit um that duration. So, right now it's a 12 plus a six, actually a six-month extension, which is kind of an odd way to do that given that temporary signs actually don't require a permit. So, to simplify that, you know, if you were thinking about something longer and then just call it 18 months, but I think, you know, I wouldn't personally recommend something less than six months just because that that buildout can, you know, obviously take that amount of time. Um, if my colleagues are amendable, I'd be comfortable with 12 months and and that's current code just so you know. Yeah,

I have different opinions about that. I mean I I'm open to other council member. Sorry, mayor. Oh, sorry. Keep going. Yeah. Yeah. Just a quick comment as well. Just wanted to echo the thanks to all of the staff for putting this together. Um, and thanks to our partners in the community. Um, Golden Boy Voice is here tonight for getting this in front of us and for creating this really great opportunity for our community and for our region really. Uh, and I think I probably wouldn't be alone in saying this is just the beginning and I can't wait to see what's next. Council member Rasca.

Yeah. Uh first of all, thank you to everyone who's put in so much work into making this happen. Uh clearly this didn't happen overnight. Uh this is the culmination of many months uh of hard work to make this happen. I'm really excited. Um Dan, I hope uh you know uh we can celebrate with your grandma here and uh listen to some good music. Um I the the only comments I have or direction and well actually I guess it's twofold. one one is I I I'm inclined to support a shorter duration with respect to the uh uh temporary signage.

Um but I hope that we can work together and figure out ways to partner with bringing these events not just from the event spaces but into the broader Santa Monica community. Uh partner with our local businesses, partner with our local restaurants to do activations. Um, I mean, one thing that's been ringing in my mind has been the debacle of the ticketing process for LA28, uh, for people to get lowcost tickets. Um, I mean, there's so many people in our community who would love to experience these events, but, you know, realistically would be priced out. So, I think one way to do that is to bring activations into our community, into local bars and restaurants, into local event spaces, into our parks. Uh so um you know it's a very abstract piece of direction but I'm so thrilled that you all are here so thrilled about this process moving forward and hopefully we can make that happen.

Thanks. Um did you were in the queue but you are now no longer in the queue. Yeah I I was just going to react to council member Zitkaya about the temporary signage. I think your concerns are handled by the fact that um active construction uh or complete plan check application would allow for temporary signage, but I would also um be uh favorable to the alignment with the citywide standard of 120 days.

Okay. I would I would agree with that. Um I also have a couple of comments if that's okay because I think all of my other colleagues have gone. Um just for Mr. James, specifically I have a couple of questions. Um, for the nation's village, what's the public access plan? So, will residents be able to visit any portion of the activation at Crescent Bay Park? Yes. The the high benefit value of the nation's village that it is full public access. Great. Fantastic. We love that. We like access uh especially to the coast. Um, and then the Miklo ultra event is 21 plus only as I understand it. Is that correct? That's correct. Um, has staff considered any sort of like all ages, family friendly friendly accompanying programming for people who want to bring their kids to celebrate FIFA?

As a matter of fact, we have uh the city has hired a uh event producer to run a complimentary program for all five weeks of the World Cup. Um those details are being worked out right now but they'll include activations on the prominade uh possibly Tongva Park, Palisades Park at our metro station and of course the production partner will be uh mainly responsible for hosting the open street event on July 19th which is the final day of the World Cup.

Fantastic. And then for the Golden Voice Festival, can you just talk to us about like the traffic plan and how we're going to mitigate impacts to the existing residents? I may want to ask our Golden Voice partners how they have designed this. We've been working in lock step with them. Um it is a multifaceted plan that contemplates uh the use of uh multiple modes of transit and travel to get to the site. We are not promoting parking down at the beach. We want to keep that area free and clear of vehicular congestion. So, Golden Voic is coordinating shuttles that would operate from the eastern borders of our city, airport, business park, run people down here. Uh they have a partnership with Metro. Um they are coordinating uh ride share, pickup and drop off in different locations. Uh we of course have micromobility and they are compliant with our bicycle valet requirements as well. Um, I think it's 35% of the attendants arriving by bicycle is what you're preparing for. It's a lot of bikes.

Great. So, you know, we we just want to make sure that we're not hearing from residents who are trying to get get around the city and saying, "Oh my god, there's a million cars down by the beach." Uh, so it sounds like we have a plan for that. We have a plan for that both operationally as well as uh through messaging and social media.

Great. Um, I mean, I have some comments. I would just uh note as we think through the um traffic related impacts, it's an issue that has everyone's full attention. Um as we've worked with Golden Voice, they've consistently reiterated this will be a no cars event. Um the um group and the team at Golden Voice we're working with has extensive experience operating large-scale music festivals without any vehicular access. Um and that's a model that we're all confident we can replicate here in Santa Monica. Fantastic. So, I guess just my comments would be um you know, we're getting ready to welcome the world to our shores starting in 26, but hopefully carrying us all the way through 28. I think this is just the beginning um of hopefully some additional exciting announcements that will be coming forward to council. And these events for me are not just about entertainment, but about economic opportunities. So, how are we making sure that we're harnessing all of these opportunities for every single restaurant, hotel, small business, worker? Um, really excited for what I've heard around making sure that there's a hyper local emphasis on Santa Monica, the businesses, the residents, the culture of the city. Um, and I think you all have been very very deliberate about this. So, we really appreciate the framework. I think you're again, like I said, you're you're starting something that I think is a framework for more of these types of discussions and that really showcases to the region that we are ready, we're open for business, and we are fun like uh council member Hall said. And I would just say we are not your your grandmother's city hall.

Uh we are making we are doing things differently here. Um, unless No, unless you're a grandma. I mean, just saying. So, and then I would just say like, you know, for example, the pergola at Crescent Bay Park, that's the type of legacy improvement. Um, that's like a double bottom line for us, right? So, we are not only getting the economic impact, but making sure that there there are improve lasting improvements that we can leave for the residents here. Uh, so I'm I'm super excited about that. I would just encourage us to continue thinking about legacy. Um, and uh, I think this is going to shape how Santa Monica manages major events on a going forward basis and I'm really proud to be part of it. Uh, and I'm happy for a motion, but council member Zernaya,

I was just going to say that I can live with 120 days for the the signage and I think all grandparents will totally be welcome at all of the things. Yeah. I just wanted to acknowledge we also our partners for Manhazer Bush are here too. Hi. Yeah. For the Mclobe Ultra Pitch Side Club on the pier and it's been really exciting to develop these relationships because these aren't one-time things, right? we are devel developing relationships um with these production companies with the sponsors that will come back again and again to this community and and be uh long-term investors in our community going forward.

Yeah. And I I guess I would just be remiss if I didn't say I think it's really important that everyone acknowledges why we've been so focused on handling the coastal commission as well because these events are taking um place in our coastal zone and we can't just set up shop and do them. I mean we need approval from the coastal commission and that's why making sure that we have uh streamlined process if we need to get a local coastal development permit or not um is so important for our economic recovery. I don't know if you want to say anything about

Well, I think you just gave me a perfect segue to to call out two members of our team that deserve some special recognition. Uh since you bring up the coastal commission. So, tonight um Roxan Tanamorei, our assistant director of community development, and Erin Arasco, our major events manager, are with the uh the Annheiser Bush team in Gonzalez uh to prepare for the the coastal or is it today or is it tomorrow? It's tomorrow morning. um to help shepherd that through. So, yeah, we don't we don't just work in a lab here in city hall. We're we're out there making uh building bridges. Right. Thank you so much. Um I'm prepared to move the item with the 120day direction, but council

I'll second that. Okay, great. Okay. Council member Zarniskaya. Yes. Council member Snell. Yes. Council member Rasin. Yes. Council member Hall. Yes. Council member Negrete. Yes. And Mayor Terosas. With pleasure. Yes. Thank you all for being here. Thank you. Appreciate you.

Okay. And now we now we move to a special meeting of the housing authority and we're recessing the regular city council meeting. I have to announce that acting as that the council acting as a housing authority you will receive $50 for this meeting and I need to call the role. Authority member Negrete here. Authority member Hall present. Authority member Rascin here, authority member Snell here, authority member Zarnosaya here, and chair Terosas here.

Okay. So, the first is approval of minutes of the housing authority board meeting from May 13, 2025. I'll move that item. Second. So, the tenant member is not here. Uh, I guess I move that we go to item 12. Uh, that's what I meant. 12 C. So, we're going to item Okay. So, hold on. They're coming, I think.

Okay. So, we'll go on to item 12 C, which is the public hearing and introduction for first reading of an ordinance to amend the text and zoning ordinance to align Santa Monica Municipal Code section 9.31.125 duplexes and lot splits on parcel zone for single unit residential with state law as modified by Santa Monica's six cycle housing element. And we do have one request to speak on this. Uh Denise Burton. Oh, my bad. I'm sorry. Thank you. We're we're going to do the staff report and then hear the public comment.

Ah, okay. She's 12B. Does it matter, Madam Clerk? Yes, it should be 12 C.

Okay, great. Hi, good evening. Um Ross is coming from his desk right now, so I'm going to start um and he will uh jump in just so we can get moving. Um so the item tonight is um the adoption of an SB9 ordinance. And just to give you some background because I think it's helpful um since a lot of time has passed, you know, when this discussion was initiated. Um so uh in January of 2022 um the state law became effective which allowed duplexes and lot splits on parcel zoned for single unit with a development cap of uh up to four units. On uh April 2023, council adopted the implementmentation of housing element program 4E which requires the local adoption of SP9. So like a state law um you know implementation of that of of that uh of that law um with a provision for parcels of 10,000 square foot or greater. So that's a housing element obligation. In January of 2025 um council directed to amend the SP9 ordinance by you want to jump in?

Yeah, it's all it's all good. Okay. Sorry I was behind on the recording. Apologies. My name is Ross Ferman, the planning manager for the city community development department. here tonight to present amendments to the existing implementation of SB9 in our local ordinance. So, as some background, as Jane had started, uh I'll try to go through these slides a little fast cuz they're quite wordy. Um SB9 originally was adopted in January of 2022 to allow duplexes and lot splits on parcel zoned for single unit residential with the development C. Wow. I'm so sorry. You're okay. I ran over here. It's okay. We're good. Wow.

Really apologize. Sorry. Where did you uh come from? Like I all you know just the other building. So it's very far apparently.

Yes. So in April of 2023, council adopted implementation of housing element program 4E which requires the local adoption of SB9 with provisions for parcels greater than 10,000 square feet. Um in January 2020 Oh, thank you. Sorry. Wow. In January of 2025, council provided a new direction regarding SP9's implementation that amongst other things removed the owner occupancy requirement and also at that time gave direction to guarantee minimum unit sizes of 1,200 square ft. Uh so in May of 2025 in addition to bringing forth amendments to adopt uh a new state law SB450 which cleansed up SB9 uh uh we also came forth with the prior council's direction but at that meeting uh it was also revi the minimum guaranteed unit size was revised from 1,200 to,500 square ft. Um however in August of 2025 in response to a technical assistant letter uh to the city of Arinda regarding owner occupancy requirements staff submitted a TA request to HCD regarding the following clarification. Uh, do projects on vacant parcels qualify for SB9? May the city through a local more permissive expansion of SB9? Remove the owner occupancy requirement that requires an applicant to intend to live in the project for a minimum of 3 years after approval of the lot split. And may the city adopt an ordinance separate and apart from the statutory requirement of SB9. Um, in November 2025, HD did respond that they would not be providing written or formal response to those topics. However, during that meeting, HCD did respond that they saw no issue with Santa Monica adopting two implementations of SB9. One ultimately codifying a strict implementation of the

state law and another one that is a more local provisions that would could include prior council direction. Uh this direction was ultimately memorialized in an email to staff on November 6 of 2025. So now that kind of brings us to the more recent uh direction. So in January of this year, council adopted an ROI to initiate the process to amend the zoning ordinance related to projects utilizing state law for small lot subdivisions. So that is a different state law. Uh but also projects consisting of duplexes and lots on parcels zoned for single unit residential, which is what we're here tonight. Uh tonight is really the first step in in this implementation. staff is bringing forth a revised code section uh to align with state law as required to be modified by the housing element. So the first stop on this process was to planning commission. Uh so staff on March 4th of this year uh went to planning commission to to present these amendments and at that hearing planning commission voted 6 to1 to recommend to council uh that they amend the text of the zoning ordinance to be consistent with state law and they also gave guidance to seek clarification from HCD regarding the eligibility of beneficial ownerships and trust when utilizing SB9 which subsequent to drafting this presentation we came across a new HCD technical assistant letter delivered in the end of March uh that uh trusts are eligible for SB9 project. So that was a good technical assistant letter that we came across. Uh we did want to highlight that the one commissioner who voted in opposition of the amendments uh did so because they felt the city uh should not move forward to these amendments until we simultaneously considered adoption of a local ordinance of SB9 that could remove owner occupancy or guarantee greater unit sizes of 1500 square ft. Uh the commissioner in opposition also highlighted that even in state law uh

and and according to HCD the city is not required to reduce the minimum unit size from 800 square ft. However, ultimately the commission did not recommend increasing the minimum unit size above 1,800 800 ft. So the next couple slides are kind of grouped into three categories to summarize the amendments. Uh the first category is the amendments to align with prior state laws. Uh so the first one would be for clarity removal of text that is not included in state law specifying eligibility of projects located on a developed parcel currently developed parcel proposing demolition or a vacant parcel. Uh so while we are proposing to remove this language as it's not stated in the in the government code, we did want to highlight that another HCD technical assistant letter does make clear that when there is an SP9 application proposing both a lot split and development, it is allowed to be proposed on a vacant parcel as it is presumed that because there will be future development that the parcel could be vacant for the lot split. Um so we are not including that language but there is clear direction uh regarding lots split standards and requirements. We are reintroducing the occupancy requirement that does require an applicant for a lot shall sign an affidavit stating that the applicant intends to occupy one of the housing units as their principal resident for a minimum of three years from the date of the approval of the lots split. The last amendment uh for this section is regarding guaranteed unit size. Uh, as we were looking at this as really kind of a reset back to state law, uh, just to kind of start the conversation, uh, the amendment reverts the guaranteed unit size from,500 to 800 ft² as the 800 ft² is the minimum that is stipulated in the law. However, in conversations with HCD, they have stated that this is an area that any city could exceed state

law uh, and guarantee larger unit sizes. So, the council tonight could vote to reinstate a greater size at 800 ft if they choose. However, we do want to note that when adopting guaranteed even larger guaranteed unit sizes, this could create the need to modify additional local standards in order to um accommodate these larger sizes. So, maybe more building height, reduced front yard setback. Uh so that's why staff wanted to reintroduce this slide as when the 1500 f feet was voted on back in May of 2025. This was the list of standards that the council voted would be kind of the prioritization of what standard to modify first in order to accommodate larger unit sizes. So you'll see it starts with increased building height, more F, so that's like the square footage that would be permitted. uh reduced upper story stepbacks, which is really just upper story modulation standards. Um reduced parking, if there even is parking required for the project, uh separation between units, reduced front yard setback, and finally um allowing for a side and rear setback that is less than 4T. I do want to note that state law actually just says that a jurisdiction cannot impose a side or rear setback greater than 4T. 4 feet were just established as kind of the base when we first adopted the SP9 implementation, but in reality, state law allows anything from zero to 4 feet to be implemented. So, we could also reduce that um without actually having to modify standards. The next group is amendments for a new state law that came into effect of January of this year, AB 1061. Uh both of these amendments really are in regards to historic districts. really they were clarifying that you can't demolish a contributing structure in an historic district to allow for an SB9 project. It also prohibits certain

alteration limits um when you're in an historic district. So, it's just putting a little bit more protections on our local districts or state historic inventory districts. Um and lastly, this section is really just in regards uh to some cleanups for ease of implementation to avoid conflicts between state law and local standards. So the first one would be to adding in language regarding upper story stepbacks which again are modulation standards. Um essentially it just means that where there is a new lot line that has been created uh the upper story stepbacks would not apply to those as there are no setbacks in those areas and setbacks are really meant to be built off of setbacks. Uh so this would just clean up that the original the intent would be just the perimeter. And lastly, the minimum front yard setback is a cleanup. Um, it's not actually amending what the front yard setback is. What this is, if the lot split resulted in now the front yard being off the alley, which is now the new front yard, um, it would just um establish a 4T uh require a 4ft requirement as would be required if let's say that was the rear yard for an SP9 project. So, it's just kind of aligning how the state law would be implemented in this somewhat unusual circumstance where the alley now becomes the front yard. Um, and that concludes my very breathy presentation. Um ultimately staff's recommendation as you can see on this slide is to adopt the finding statutory exemption pursuit to SQA and to introduce a force for first reading uh amendments to align with state law as required to be modified uh by the Santa Monica six cycle housing element. Um alternatively though we did want to provide some uh alternative findings in case there is a desire to uh revert the guaranteed unit size to a larger than 800 square ft. And that concludes my presentation. Happy to answer any questions.

Council member Raskin, we'll do questions first. Thanks. And I just got two questions before I say that. Uh we really got to have mist events like a uh Olympics of going from other thought there was items in between. I don't know what happened. Our fire marshall come in one time. Similar experience, but great job. Uh yeah, really thanks to the whole team for your work on this issue. Uh so like I said, just two quick questions. Um, so, uh, I I I've had a few folks in the public ask about the mechanism for making changes above and beyond state law. So, the mechanism would be to make amendments to the ordinance that's before us tonight, not to come back with a separate

I I guess it kind of depends on what the amendments are. There are certain uh alterations to state law such as maybe going beyond 800 square ft that through guidance from HCD and how the wording of the government code is written. um it's not written the same as let's say the removal of owner occupancy where owner occupancy is a requirement. So in order to remove that we would need to do that through a very separate local ordinance where guaranteed unit size think of it as like not a ceiling it's like a floor so that could be extended so it depends on the proposal of what the amendment would be the council would like to seek.

Got it. Okay. And then second question how how many SB9 applications have we seen? I believe only 10 uh since this became adopted. You know, new state law takes a while to kick off. Um they've ran the gambit between some are just doing lot splits and maybe they are going to propose development later on. Some maybe are just adding a second unit, so no lot split. Um more often than not, there is a combination between the two. Um, and depending on the unit size, we're seeing anything from, let's say, just an additional unit to, I think the largest would be a cumulative eight units with four being on each parcel that are utilizing the housing element program to incentivize development on those larger parcels greater than 10,000 square feet.

Got it. Perfect. Thank you, Council Reser Zerna. Thank you. Um, so question regarding the 800 square feet versus 1500 square feet. Can you please clarify if it refers to a minimum required size or a minimum allowable size? It

it's referring to we have to make sure that there is no local standards that would preclude someone from achieving an 800 two 800 square foot units. So let's say our front yard setback, you know, the the buildable area on what would be resulting after you do 4 foot on the side and rear, you factor in height and you do a front yard setback. If the buildable pad could not result in two 800 ft units, the applicant could request revisions to standards in order to build bigger to get to that. So whether it's 800 or,500, uh it's not a minimum. It's not a we a guaranteed maximum. It's just we have to make sure we are allowing for them to at least achieve those sizes. So to make sure I'm understanding this correctly, if we were to maintain the minimum guaranteed unit size of 1500 square ft versus 800, that doesn't preclude um someone from from building two 800 foot units or uh 800 foot units or 950 or a,000 or anything.

Absolutely not. It just means that if they would like to do 1500 and that requires modified standards, we would allow them to modify those standards, but it does not require them to build that. Okay, got it. And and you mentioned for the owner occupancy piece that owner occupancy is a requirement of SB9. So, if we wanted to uh remove the owner occupancy requirement and it's for lot splits only, not for just duplexes. Okay. Um we would have to do a our own separate ordinance. Is that correct? Okay.

How long would it could it hypothetically take um to for us to potentially see that type of ordinance if that were to be the council direction? Uh the good part is the the ROI that you authorized in January gives the staff permission to kind of start that process. We would need to still go to planning commission to go through the normal process. Um depending on, you know, what other changes that we would do except if it's just that one, I would imagine it would not take more than a handful of months to get back before council with a uh a local ordinance. Uh but again that's depending on how much we want to uh uh create out of our more local abilities.

Understood. Um and the uh with with that owner so the owner if we remove owner occupancy from this because it's a requirement of SB9. You mentioned that there is HCD uh technical direction or advice I guess that says that SB9 can be used to do lots splits on vacant properties. Are we still so that's still able to be in effect even if the owner occupancy piece is removed. Is that correct?

Yes. The guidance was really uh SB9 doesn't make clear whether you have to retain an existing unit in order to use it. uh the guidance actually which really helpful is you know what we are seeing that when someone's doing a lot split which and then creating more units it's just allowing that there was confusion in the beginning on whether it could be utilized on vacant parcels so I think this clarification is just saying that they understand that when doing a lot development together there's a presumption that well of course they're going to be they're going to be building something they're not trying to keep that vacant uh but it doesn't it wasn't related to the owner occupancy okay got it so that are they still hypothetically required then to live there or do they have to sign something that says we're going to live?

It's just an affidavit that they're intending to live on it as their principal residence for 3 years if part of their application is a lot split. So in the case of a vacant one, they'd be intending to live in one of those newly created units they're constructing. Okay. Right. Thank you very much. That's my question. This is Council Member Negrete. When if we Hi. If we were to expand to the 1500 square feet, just can you reiterate what that means in terms of expansion of footprint F?

Of course. Uh so if we if if it was voted to expand to guarantee that an applicant if they wanted to to build at least two 1500 ft², it may result in the greater need for us to modify local standards. Um maybe the original parcel was not that large to begin with. So after they maybe lot split now the parcels are even smaller. Therefore maybe our local standards of the front yard setback or height or a variety of these might not allow them to achieve a 1500 foot part uh unit if they chose. So what we are asked we what we were trying to highlight is that by increasing the guaranteed size it would also increase the potential to require modified local standards. I will say I did look at our approved um SB9s thus far. Um we have not uh had any applicant even since we upped it to 1500 square feet uh request modified standards in order to achieve it. So it appears that everyone is um getting the unit sizes they were planning for. Um and I've seen everything from unit sizes to 900 square ft to actually larger than 1500 ft² and they've not had to modify standards in order to achieve those. But it is very case by case, so it's hard to guarantee that would happen.

Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Um, Council Rascin, I think we're now in comments. Yeah. I'm I just want more clarification. So, if I understand correctly, SP9 says, I'm sorry, SP9 if we support staff's direction with SP9 as far as on occupancy, we still have the opportunity to come back to make a local ordinance. with respect to it. Correct.

If we um had direction with council to move to not make that decision tonight with SP9 and ask council to go back and bring back a local ordinance. Um, does that affect any timing or anything with respect to what's going on right now with

Stafford recommend that if there is still interest in pursuing a local ordinance that could do a lot more than this existing one, uh, the housing element does require that sta that the city adopt local implementation of SB9 pretty much verbatim to state law. So we would recommend still moving on this item. So we could clean up our existing ordinance as right now it is not uh consistent with state law. Uh and then we could you know round two can start on the more local ordinance where council has the ability to remove things that state law doesn't allow us to remove. Thank you.

Great. Council member Rascam. Um I I'm I'm going to make a motion, but first I want to I want to preface this by setting the table a little bit. So last May, May 13, 2025, uh we considered a package of housing items. This was a broad range of housing items in that meeting. Um we uh talked about administrative approvals, we talked about ADUs, we talked about SB123, we talked about SP9. uh and we had a really robust discussion that was uh informed by a lot of community input and community feedback with respect to uh these development standards and how they applied locally. What ended up emerging from that discussion was uh a legislative path forward that reflected I think consensus. I think it was successful consensus uh among the people on this dis that and I'm proud of the fact that we were able to work together to reach that outcome. Uh what ultimately we achieved through compromise and through consensus were some real wins for people like me who were really concerned about making sure that we had appropriate guard rails on uh on on large-scale development uh and development that was really impactful for our community. So what we did is we we uh limited uh the use of administrative approvals over one acre. We added certain health and safety requirements. We exempted hotel projects from those. And what I think is really crucial, we added a 5-year sunset to the use of administrative approvals over one acre. Uh as part of this legislative compromise, we agreed that we would also allow for some flexibility with respect to how SB9 projects would move forward and specifically uh with respect to

owner occupancy and the 1500 square foot uh uh size threshold, we we agreed collectively that we would we would move forward with that. Um so in in light of that promise that I I made to my colleagues on the dis I think it's really important to honor the compromises and promises and agreements we make as part of the legislative process. I I'm supportive of uh the ordinance that's in front of us um with the clarification that we would we would go up to 1500 ft consistent with that compromise that we made before. And that was a win-win for everyone. It was a win-win for people who were concerned about, like I said, uh, you know, the use of the administrative approval process, making sure we had appropriate oversight, uh, and also making sure that we had appropriate flexibility in laws like SB9. Um, I uh also think that we should give direction tonight to uh implement the other portions of that uh May 13, 2025 legislative compromise, which we're going to have to do through a separate ordinance uh on a different night than tonight. Um, but like I said, uh, you know, uh, in a time when people in government don't always honor their word, I think this is an appropriate time for us to do that. So, I'm going to move that we approve the ordinance as proposed by staff with direction that we just amend the uh, size threshold from 800 feet to 1500 square feet. Uh, and to come back with a separate ordinance that implements the direction that was given on May 13th, 2025.

Second. Great. Uh um city attorney is seems to be in the queue. Uh yes. Um since this is a public um hearing which is a little different than some of your other items this evening um I believe if there's anybody in queue we need to take public comment before you can continue your discussion. Great. I there wasn't anyone in the queue though. There isn't there is one. Okay. Um is this that's a late this late? That's late. Would this be considered late? Okay. Okay. So, we would need a vote and it would be reduced to one minute under your rules of order. Okay. Council member Negrete, did you want to comment on something else or I mean, are we do we have to hear the comment? Uh, okay. So, does anyone want to move to hear the comment? I'll move to hear the comment. I'll second. All those in favor?

I Okay. Uh, Miss Thomasson, you have one minute.

Thank you. You guys got here really fast. Um uh I just want to say that we have been here before with this item. It is true. Um that was a very different context and there were other people that were participating in the conversation that uh perhaps shouldn't have been. And um we need to stop racing to go beyond state law. We have aggressive state laws that are coming for every part of our city to upzone it. It is happening. It is happening quickly. We need to pace ourselves. Um the your own planning commission recommended not to go to 1500 ft to just adopt it as is. The the owner occupancy is a separate thing, but they again recommended against that. Please consider what they are saying. Um, we're moving too far, too fast on these. Let things take their course. Let's see what happens with them. Thank you so much.

Thank you, Councelor Negrete.

Yeah. So, my comments are, and I'm sure it's no surprise to anyone up here, is just that um for me, I feel like this is just another, you know, one-sizefits-all decision that doesn't reflect the realities of Santa Monica. SP9 changes fundamentally um our neighborhoods. Yes, single family neighborhoods. And we're being asked to align our local code with that direction, whether it makes sense for Santa Monica or not. Um, and I struggle a lot with that because we talk about this all being in the under the guise of affordability. And I think we all know that whether it's 1500 square foot or not. As a matter of fact, if it is bigger, um, it's definitely not going to be more affordable. And after what we just heard, maybe there hasn't been any submitted now, but if there's smaller lots, people are going to have to be expanding the footprint, which is drastically going to change um, our neighborhoods. um we're talking about increasing density without really truly understanding or having studied how the city's going to absorb it, which is why I don't think we should go beyond state law. Um and in terms of infrastructure, parking, enforcement, um basic services that we're already stretched thin on, I also think that is something we haven't truly considered or seen how it's going to impact our city in that way. I want to say that we just haven't done the research locally to understand how this actually plays out in Santa Monica. Um, and again, I just don't think in practice SB9 delivers the housing that actually is affordable to the people who need it the most, which is the Misty Middle families like my own. Um, we're making real permanent changes to our neighborhoods without clear data on outcomes and con that is concerning to me. I do want to flag that the 1500 square foot provisions on paper I think it sounds like protection but in reality in many of our smaller lots I don't think it aligns with what's actually feasible and at the end of the day this is the tension we keep coming back to

it's local control over state mandates I think it's important for us to say out loud that at some points and maybe I I'm the only person that's going to say it up here is that I don't agree with Sacramento continuing to dictate the use of land locally. We have local governments. We know our communities. I think we should be able to dictate those things. And whenever we were given the opportunity to not have to go beyond, I think it's imperative that we do so that we're responding to the community members here in Santa Monica, not in Sacramento. If we're required to move forward, then we should be implementing this in a way that minimizes unintended consequences. But I do want to be on the record saying that this is not how I believe planning decisions should be made.

Council member Raskin.

Well, I primarily intended to remake my motion. I I do want to respond just a few points. I mean, first of all, Council, I I agree with you. I mean, very few people are using this law. Very few people are are actually building uh SB9 projects. We've seen 10 of them. uh you know far more people are using ADU laws and other laws that are are also state laws to uh uh densify these neighborhoods. Uh I think more problematically um and we don't have the need on this yet. Hopefully we will with our rent registry, but um you know my anecdotal experience is that very few people who are building these are actually renting them out to families who really need this type of housing. I think one of the compelling reasons why a 1500 foot uh threshold was proposed was to facilitate the development of three-bedroom units, which I know we've both talked about as being something that's that's needed. I mean, I looked for a three-bedroom apartment a few years ago and there were only a handful available citywide. So, is this going to solve our housing problem? Probably not. I mean, there's much bigger fish to fry here. Um, I I'm I'm supporting this this because we we we had come to an agreement before. Um, you know, just on the point of of analyzing all this, I mean, we we we did analyze this in the context of the housing element uh environmental review. Uh, but we're going to have to take a look at this again in a few years when we go through the next housing element cycle and hopefully we can we can take another hard look at this through that process. Um but you know again all that being said uh you know I feel compelled to honor the commitments that we had made on the dis before and for that reason I'm going to move that we uh approve the ordinance as recommended by staff except going up to 1500 square feet uh and give direction to come back with a separate ordinance implementing the direction we gave on May 13th 2025.

Council member Zernitzkaya.

Thank you. I'll u continue to second that. I um I also just wanted to note that the reason that we are seeing so many laws come from Sacramento dictating how cities need to build more homes is because for decades cities across California restricted the development of new homes, particularly the missing middle homes. And um and I hear what you're saying in that the homes that could be built under this might not be affordable for many folks, but they're going to be more affordable than the homes that are currently available on the market today just by the nature of having to use less land for the same amount of home effectively. And we are in a housing crisis. I I know we've been over this before, but we continue to be in a housing crisis. Although Santa Monica has uh according to a recent news story that I believe just came out today, we have seen a drop in rents. And part of that is because so much so many new homes have recently come online and are now available. And I recognize that it's just, you know, it does feel like a bit of a drop in the bucket because this isn't going to get us out of the housing crisis that we're in overnight. And I I hear um what you're saying about the potential changes to our neighborhoods, but I think the other thing with this particular item specifically is that we've only had 10 projects across this entire city when the majority of the land that's zoned for housing is zoned for single family

homes. So, I don't think that this is going to have as dramatic or as fast of an impact than as I think some folks think it might. I think it will be a more gradual change. It's not going to happen overnight. We're not going to automatically see a bunch of duplexes and lot splits just get submitted um or get built. It's going to take time. And I think that's kind of the the whole point of it. It's It took us time to get into the housing crisis we're in. It's going to get take us time to get out of it. But I think we can as long as we continue to try to make changes that are responsive and try to follow the data and make more homes available for more people. Thank you,

Council Member Nebraska. I'll make it brief. I don't want to go back and forth, but I wanted to just say that I appreciate your comments and I appreciate that you appreciate what I my view up here. So, we're having a discourse and that's what this is about. And I think you believe that and that's okay. And I think for me, I see this as a developer windfall that is being set forth by policy makers um above us. And yes, true. Maybe there was landlocked areas and and I'm sure um I know there's a lot of truth to that, but I think the reality is in the in where we live and where land is so expensive, as you mentioned, property is expensive. What is happening is increasing and going beyond state law, we're we're going to be there anyways. They're going to remove um you know, owner occupancy and they're they're going to be setting us up to continue to go down this path anyways, right? At least it seems so. So, for me, it feels like we should just be doing what we're being asked and and then waiting and taking a pause to see how it's actually impacting affordability. My biggest fear is someone who's been born and raised in this city and has seen so many changes. Gentrification can be great in many ways. My old park that I grew up in that, you know, we weren't allowed to walk through after 8:00 at night now has a farmers market and a Whole Foods across the street. Who knew? But the reality is it's becoming so unaffordable that we are stuck in our rent control department. And a home right next to the freeway is over a million dollars. And putting two homes on a lot is not going to make it affordable for anybody here because it's just going to continue to make it more um of an appetite for those that can gobble up outside investors property, build whatever they need to build and flip these units. And they are controlling the price market. They are pricing people. developers are pricing people out of the market and I believe that policy is playing a part in that

and that's just my two cents on it but we can move forward with your guys's vote. Okay, we have a Yep, we have a motion on the floor. We had the motion by council member Rascin and it was seconded by council members. Yes, correct. with the amendment. Right. Okay. Council members Arneskaya. Yes. Council member Snell. Yes. Council member Rascin. Yes. Council member Hall. Yes. Council member Negrete. No. And just to explain my no vote. We have a commission who advised um Mayor Mayor Terosis. Yes. Oh, sorry. Did you want to state?

Did you want to state your no? Yeah, I just said sorry. We have I'm I'm Thank you, staff, but I'm siding with the commission that we have that advised Um, no. So, okay. So, city attorney is the is our is our appointee here? Authority member here. Were was that individual called? Yes. Do they know to be here? She was notified. Is she on route? We left a message. We called and left a message. I mean, we have a quorum.

Sorry, Ju just to clar, can we put this uh on a microphone, please? So, the individual, our our authority board member was notified of the meeting. Correct. Correct. Uh housing staff has been communicating with her. Uh we notified her of it. We're a little bit ahead of scheduled, but we had called her, left a message letting her know we were ahead of schedule. What time did we tell her to be here?

Um, we relayed the information that was on the agenda. We let them know it was an estimated time of 10:50 this was going to go. We let them know that could change and to make accommodations to come here. So uh we just presented the information as we had it at the time which was as of yesterday and as we got updated information as this item moved forward uh we called them and left a message uh do my colleagues want to just a point of parliamentary inquiry. Um do if we move on to the 16 items do we close the special meeting and then reopen it later? We have to reopen it. Yes.

Okay. I would prefer we do that and wait for our housing authority board member to come back to hear the rest of Okay. Item 12. Let's Should we take a 5m minute break? Sure. We will uh be in a fivem minute recess um until 10:32 or until which time the member appears. Great.

Do you want to be a bill?

Say your last name for me again. I'm sorry. Muk Tacid. Tacid. Okay. So, we'll do authority. Authority member Negrete. Yes. Here. Authority member Hall present. Authority member Rascin here. Authority member Snell present. Authority members here. Rosas present. And authority member Oh, I'm sorry. I'm mess it up. Present. Haj Mukassid.

Haj. Okay. I'll get it before I'll get it before the end. Okay. So, first we have the approval of the minutes for the housing authority from May 13, 2025. And we had a motion previously from council, I'm sorry, from authority member Snell and then we had it seconded from chair to roas. Do we need a staff report? No, it's just the minutes. We can do this by all can do. We can do this by voice vote. Yes. Okay. All in favor? I. Any opposed? Any abstensions? Don't see any. Okay, great.

Okay, so then the next item we have is the public hearing and adoption of the fiscal year 202627 annual public housing authority plan. And we do have one request to speak. Um hello. We're trying to start a presentation.

Okay. And as I understand it, we'll have a staff report and then take the public comment. her notes aren't showing on the thing. Um well uh well while well while we're working on that my name is Helena Salvio with the Santa Monica Housing at I'm a senior administrative analyst with the Santa Monica Housing Authority which is part of housing and human services department and we're here to present the PHA plan uh for 2026 2027 fiscal year and uh to get your approval of our PHA plan and as well as to hear um to request to have public comments heard as well um to the PHA plan. Can I do it from

I do apologize um for the delay first city council presentation. Just Then slide go down. Again, I apologize for the delay. Good evening, Chair Terosis and Housing Authority board members. Again, my name is Yenna Salavio and I'm a senior administrative analyst for the city of Santa Monica Housing Authority within the Housing and Human Services Department. And tonight tonight I'm pleased to present the proposed public housing authority otherwise known as PHA plan for the fiscal year 2026 27 consisting of the annual plan and firstear progress report for the five-year plan for 2025 2030 and the draft administrative plan. Staff respectfully requests that the Santa Monica Housing Authority Board present

tonight, hold a public hearing, receive public comments, and approve this proposed plans. The Santa Monica Housing Authority provides rental assistance to over 1,700 lowincome Santa Monica residents through six federally funded and regulated programs. Each year, the Santa Monica Housing Authority is required to submit an updated PHA plan to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, as most of folks call it, HUD. And this year's submission includes the following. An attachment A, the annual plan for fiscal year 2026 27 and a progress report for 5-year plan for fiscal year 2025 2030. In attachment B, the draft administrative plan for fiscal year 2026 2027. In attachment C, the summary of proposed discretionary policy changes. And finally, in attachment D, the public comments and input. These documents reflect our evolving goals, policies, and strategies and ensure transparency with HUD program participants and the broader community. The PHA plans outlines our annual and long-term direction. The PHA plan has many components, but this year the two key components are one, the proposed annual plan and progress report for the current five-year plan. And the biggest highlight of this fiscal year is the opening and lease up of a Berkeley station at 1342 Berkeley Street, which is a new 13 unit modular permanent supportive housing community for vulnerable Santa Monica youth and families. And the second component of the plan is the draft administrative

plan for fiscal year 2026 27. And this year's updates mainly focus on improving engagement and housing stability for current participants and also expanding our tier one to include those affected by domestic violence and provide them with a more holistic supportive approach. Public transparency and engagement at central to this process and all job documents were available for public review and comment from January 20th to March 6th, 2026. Staff engaged voucher holders and the public throughout this process. And this year we expanded our outreach by presenting to disabilities commission as well as hosted an introduction session at the regularly scheduled housing commission meeting and held a workshop providing an overview of a PHA plan process and guidance on how to participate in the PHA plan process. staff is proud to present the finalized draft PHA plan tonight which incorporate feedback gathered from the community and key stakeholders. Furthermore, staff welcomes any final comments tonight and is requesting the housing authority board approval of a PHA plan and its submission to HUD by the April 17th, 2026 deadline. Upon approval, the PHA plans will go into effect on July 1st, 2026. Um, I do want to point out that HUD is still in the process of implementing the Housing Opportunity for Modernization Act, otherwise known as HUDMA, and SMHA has proactively adopted many of the required changes, and is preparing for full compliance. At this time, we're expecting it uh to occur by January 1st, 2027.

This transition has resulted in prehma and posthma in our administrative plan for chapters 6, 7, and 11 pending HUD instruction for implementation. Proud this transition staff will continue to keep voucher holders informed as we roll out HOTMAS aligned procedures based on the work completed and put and input received. Staff recommends that the Santa Monica Housing Authority Board one, hold a public hearing and receive public comment, two, adopt the fiscal year 2026 2027 annual plan and progress report for current 5-year plan. Three, adopt the fiscal year 2026 2027 Santa Monica Housing Authority Administrative Plan and authorize the submission of a fiscal year 2026 2027 PHA plan, which once again consists of a fiscal year 2026 2027 annual plan and progress report for current 5-year plan and administrative plan to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. ment and finally adopt the finding of no possibility of significant effect pursuant to section 15065061 B free of the squa guidelines. I very much thank you for your time and your patience and thank you for your support and commitment to housing in our community. At this time that concludes my presentation. Um, if you have any questions, if my colleagues wouldn't mind putting themselves in the queue if they have questions. Are there any questions, folks?

Great. Okay, we will move to comments. So, if you have any comments, feel free to put yourselves in the queue. Oh, thank you. Um, council resernitaya, we do have one public comment. Um, so we'll take that public comment before we go into our uh council member comments. I'm sorry. Questions should come first. Questions of Right. No one had any questions. That's why we're Yeah. So, uh, Denise Barton. Barton. Thank you.

Good evening. And I'm 12b. May I begin by making by asking what happened to the RAB, a resident advisory board, and why doesn't the RAB have regular meetings like other boards and commissions? or did an ADA person review and approve this document? Because they don't think having to prove that you're a disabled person is not discriminatory. I know I recently asked to have my worker changed to the ADA person due to abuse. I was told there were 2,000 people ahead of me. And when I tried to identify myself as a disabled person when I first got affordable housing, the worker wanted to know nothing about it. that if you can't get assistance from the city attorney's office and and legal aid takes weeks. In a year, disabled tenants are forced to endure. Being overcharged rent due to algorithms and not being able to get the overpayment back. My pay being told not to pay rent for months and then to pay it all at once, which I do believe is illegal, as well as other questionable accounting practices. Or what about my last reertification which had to be submitted five times including threatening my affordable housing in writing but finally my affordable housing person called my advocate to find out how to open it. This should be a reflection on all attachments included as well as the quality of employees within the city but the city doesn't want to know but maybe Hen will be interested. Thank you.

Thank you. Um now we will move into comments. I do not see anyone in the queue. Oh, okay. That's fine. Um, Miss uh, member McTacid. Can someone turn on her mic? Yeah. Thanks. Great. Oh, wait. It's not on. There you go. It's on. Great.

I want to speak not just as a board member, but as the only person at this table who is actually living under the policies we're discussing. On paper, this plan reflects progress, utilization rates, budget alignment, program goals, etc. But I need to be clear, having a voucher is not the same as having housing. There is a gap between policy and lived reality. And that gap is where people fall through. There normally are two representatives on this board, and there were two until that other person told me what had happened to their voucher. So, those problems exist and they're real and there should have been another person appointed to where that person didn't have to lose their voucher for whatever reason. But I get emails all day long, people looping me into their issues. Um, and I can't help but care. And I know you guys probably don't get those emails, but I do because people feel like I don't just vote on this, but I represent them here. So, as the lady said, I'm sorry I don't know your name, but um you know, an official RAB, I know you the housing authority has decided that the RAB is supposed to be just all the tenants, but normally it's a body that we put together as tenants. So, we continue to ask for that and we hope that that will be implemented. Um, I want to ask this board to shift from outputs to outcomes. Not how many vouchers we issue, but how many people are actually stably housed in Santa Monica. Not how many landlords we recruit, but how many stay. Not whether our payment standards meet guidelines, but whether they meet the actual market and whether or not people can get help when their voucher is rejected. They need feedback as to why. And then are they being rejected so that they can just be given to someone else?

A lot of voucher holders are left with that and then they have to work all these hours to now pay this rent and they don't have a lifestyle at all. Um so because from where I sit the lived experience tells a different story than all this data alone and a lot of people are complaining to me about the same thing. And if we are serious about equity, then the question is not whether we have programs in place. The question is, are those programs truly working for the people they were designed to serve? I'm asking this board to center that reality, not as an afterthought, but as a primary measure of success, not because until the experience of voucher holders aligns with the promises in the plan, we all still have work to do. Thank you.

Thank you. Um Oh, that is not Von Tanglin. Got it. Rascan, go ahead.

Thank you. Um, and yeah, member Matasa, thank you for for those comments. It's it's impactful, I think, for me to hear it from your perspective. And, you know, I forget when it came up last time, but when we were recruiting for the other uh position, um, we had three applicants, but none of them had met the qualification of being uh, formerly unhouse or being a voucher holder. And it's incumbent upon all of us in this council and you know I take accountability for this for recruiting folks to participate on this board who who reflect our community reflect those lived experiences. Um so I for one you know need I think to work with all of us to to make sure that uh not only this board but all of our city boards and commissions reflect the experiences that we seek to serve through uh the lens of equity that you're talking about. Um yeah, I 100% uh think um you know e equity should be at the foundation of everything we're doing here. Um and delivery is is crucial and uh you know I I really commend our our team for the work that has been done so far and the work that we need to do in the future. Uh I'm really looking forward to some of the things that we have teed up uh including opportunities for g greater collaboration between uh the housing authority and the city attorney's office to make sure that enforcement programs uh like the ones you're talking about really can can uh be implemented successfully. So there's a lot of work to be done. I I mean given the environment with our federal government right now, it's really difficult to run a housing authority. And um I think we all acknowledge the difficult regulatory environment and we've participated in in proactive litigation to make sure that our citizens are protected, that we're fighting for the rights of all people, uh especially those who are underserved. So I look forward to continuing that work, but obviously there's more to be done.

Um and I just have a quick I guess question comment um for our staff. How is the proposed HUD rule on mixed status families affecting us here in Santa Monica? Do we um have an an order of magnitude on on what that might do to us? And are we uh going to comment on that? Um I can comment on that. um us along with other housing authorities and our you know in in the greater Los Greater California uh have written our comments and our beliefs for how this uh would impact us especially the mixed status mostly because you know as it stands now um there's a misconception that mis mixed status families do receive a benefit from benefit from housing which is not necessarily true they are prrated in their assistance so we're kind of reiterating that back to HUD uh and letting them know that this is just another uh a barrier for the the process and it's it's joined by the most of the housing authorities in California. So, we're waiting for that response. Um right now it's not regulatory change and we're monitoring the situations and monitoring situations. We are keeping track of our mixed families um and we will respond accordingly once they declare the final rule. So we have submitted a a public comment to the proposed rule

more like joined we're joining with any specific information about the impact on Santa Monica. Yeah. Also just um we are drafting a public comment for the regulatory change that um will be coming towards probably you for signature for submitting on uh the city of Santa Monica's behalf. Okay. And I just appreciate uh what member McTass had said. I think it's important that we center our folks with lived experience. Um with that being said, oh, are you ready to move? Okay, go ahead.

Sorry. So to follow up on authority member Montasid's um I hope I pronounced it right. Sorry. Um comments. I was wondering do we collect that sort of data as well like how many folks are stably h housed? um like how many how many of the vouchers are actually being used? How long they're being used for? Are we able to present that data or included in reports going forward? And I'm sorry if I I missed it in this report. Um some of that data, yes, we can pull we can pull numbers about when people entered the program. um it is housing choice so there's you know the way it's entered in the system it doesn't really contemplate how uh you know they move and stuff like that but we can pull like I can speak for now we have 1 1700 plus people uh we have an about a turnover rate for unit changes of about 6 to 7% um that obviously spiked after we changed our payment standards in 2022 and we we saw a lot of movers then um so if you wanted more accurate data we do have some HUD metrics that we can pull directly from the side that can tell you some demographics based on what we report to HUD and that's readily available and it's public.

And do we also have data on things like how long does it take somebody who have has received a voucher to get um to find a home and be able to start living there? Uh yeah, we have general statistics on that stuff, but uh I would like the only point that the caveat to that is people generally take time to find the right housing situation for them and that's encouraged um because one thing we don't want is folks to move in quickly and uh find out the circumstances are aren't the best for them. So, generally speaking, part of the process we do and we adopted in the last couple years is we we talk to them and we try to connect them and let them know what what questions to ask when they're leasing so they don't enter an agreement or a lease agreement that that's not amendable to their situation or the family circumstances.

Thank you. And I I would just echo the comments to include folks with lived experience in more of our decisions moving forward. Thank you. And I'm happy to move the staff recommendation. Great. Anyone want a second? I'll second. Great. Authority members ariskaya. Yes. Authority member Snell. Yes. Authority member Rascin. Yes. Authority member Hall. Yes. Authority member Nadete. Yes. And tenant representative Mutasu. Yes. And mayor I'm sorry. Cheer to Roses. Yes.

Fantastic. Thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

Um we will now conclude the special meeting. Uh and we will move on to 16 items. Um we Sorry. Go ahead, Madame Clerk. Okay. Okay. So, I wanted to I wanted to um let you know that item 16B and I'm sorry, 16B and item 16, which one did I have, mayor? I'm sorry. 16B and 16F will have to be continued due to ineligibility because of the applicants. So, we're going to start off with 16A and this is appointment. And so, this is I'm sorry, I got to pull up my schedule. So this is appointment to building life fire safety commission. So there's one seat that is a general seat and then there's one seat that has a requirement of homeless behavioral health services. There's no one qualified for that one. So the members that we have, we have three members, Mark Andrews, Brian Carrian, and William Helms. And they all qualify for the general seat. Let me pull this up for you. Okay. So, those are the three candidates for the general. So, it's one seat. And so, we have, like I said, we have Brian Carrian, William Helms, and Mark Andrews.

Who do we want to nominate, folks? You want to nominate? I'll nominate uh Andrews. Any other nominations? No. Do we want to vote by acclamation? We can do that. All those in favor? I. Any opposed? Any abstensions? Welcome to the fire life safety commission, Mr. Mr. Andrews. Okay. Next, we have the appointment and it's an unscheduled vacancy for the personnel board. And we have two applicants for that. We have Karen Bendicort and Christopher Smith.

I'd like to nominate Chris Smith. Are there any other nominations? I don't want to say it incorrectly. Karen Bend

I think this

Oh yeah, we did do it. Okay. Okay. Go ahead and place your votes. Did everybody vote? Yep.

Because I'm not seeing it.

Who wrote sorry? Okay, so it looks like Christopher Smith. No. Whose name is that? Barry. Okay. Uh, everyone, please enter your name correctly so we know who voted for who. Welcome, Mr. Smith to the personnel board. Appreciate you. Sorry, Barry. Sorry. Um, okay. Next, hold it together.

Okay. So, next we have the transit occupancy. And for this one again we have two seats which must reside in the city. Um and then the one seat is ineligible. So we have Scott Ginsburg and we have Brian Carrian. And those are the two two seats two applicants like to nominate Scott Ginsburg and Brian Kerry. Okay. So since those are only two we can do this by voice voice. Of course. Um, all those in favor? I. Any opposed? Any abstensions?

Thank you, Mr. Ginsburg, for staying here the entire time and for your passion. We appreciate you. Welcome to the TOT advisory board. Okay, now here comes the fun one. Were we have an an appointment and it's one seat, one unscheduled vacancy. And I think we have I'm sorry, wrong one. And I think we have 11. Nine. I see. Is that how many it is? It's a lot. Okay. So, do we have any nominations? I'd like to nominate Matthew Goldberg. Okay. Anybody else? I'd like to nominate Brad Yuing and Daniel Campbell. There's only one seat, right? But you're doing Yeah.

ranking thing. Okay. Anybody else? Okay. So, I'm gonna get rid of Nikki. Okay. Let me have I'm sorry. Let me have the names again. So, it's Matt Goldenberg. Okay. Brad Yuing and Daniel Campbell.

Oh, excuse me. Golden. I do know that. Sorry, Matt. legislation votes.

Did everybody vote? No, no, no, no. There's a lot of names in here. I'm still typing my name in. Oh, I did. I pressed reset. I don't know. And please make sure to vote. Oh, it's only one. Okay. You put them in order, right? That's how you do it. Yeah. You put them on your

Tell me. Are you guys ready? No. Oh, sorry. I just did a Is everyone has everyone voted? Has everybody voted? Great. Yep.

Sorry, dude. Okay, so nobody got four votes looks like that first time. Hold on, hold on, hold on. Round two, Bradley Ewing. So Bradley Ewing, congratulations. Bradley got the four votes. Okay, Bradley Ewing, welcome to the Recreation Parks Commission. Okay, next we have, like I said, the housing authority. We have no nominations for I mean we have no one none for that then next. Okay.

Sorry madam may I can just make a a point of privilege. I given we've got three candidates in the audience I one of the challenges of rank choice voting is that we sometimes have to balance three really wellqualified applicants and uh you know I think we all recognize uh that we had three really good choices tonight and uh we hope to uh see you back here in the future and I hope that we can accommodate all of them. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So, next we have a recommendation to accept Joseph Antonini's resignation from the disabilities commission and authorize the city clerk to publish the vacancy. So moved. Second.

And you can do this by voice vote. All those in favor? I I opposed abstensions. No. But our gratitude to Mr. Antonini for serving. Yes. Okay. Next we have

Next we have a request from council member Hall, Mayor Pro Tim Swick, and Mayor Terosis that the council direct staff to update the city's responsible AI use policy, direct the procurement of one or more enterprise AI systems, incorporate AI upskilling into staffing training, and commit to a policy of workforce protection. Who'd like to present? Uh I'll present this very quickly. Um briefly, the private sector has already moved. Uh I think this is we think this is a talent strategy of uh we've long been seen as a city that is innovative and forward thinking. Um and that we should be getting ahead on this. uh responsible adoption requires consultation with our workers and representatives of the workers and clear protections uh so that workers are not replaced by AI. Um, and we would like to see an updated policy framework and authorization of staff to go and purchase or or enter into an agreement with one or more enterprise AI systems so that our uh city employee data, candidate data, resident data is all um uh adequately protected and not out in the commercial sandbox uh that um we can access just going on the internet and claude and chatbt etc. uh we need to protect that data and have an enterprise system in house.

I will move the item second.

Oh, I'm sorry. Um Council Member Zerncia, thank you. Um thank you so much for bringing this forward. I I really appreciate that we're taking a proactive approach. I I just wanted to note that we received a written public comment from the disabilities commission and if it's amendable to my colleagues, I would direct staff to include that in their considerations um in in towards implementing this this policy.

What what is the comment? What is what are you amending it? Uh so their letter um basically uh kind of went over uh how to improve opportunities and minimize the risks of artificial intelligence technologies when it uh with regards to people with disabilities. So, including the ADA coordinator in the procurement and implementation of AI technologies, exploring the use of AI tools to improve the accessibility of the city's websites, applications, and digital assets, collaborating with the disabilities commission and residents with disabilities in the planning, development, implementation, and evaluation of AI policies. improving access to information uh communication technology uh hardware software telecommunications networks for assistive technologies powered by AI disclosing the use of AI minimizing bias monitoring and assessing it and learning from other environments and sharing lessons learned.

Yes, I think that's contemplated in the motion with the resident and employee protections. But uh great that it's been spelled out clearly because I think that's really important. Yeah, I right. I I did. Was it? Yeah, I know. You want me to? Okay. All those in favor? I.

Any opposed? Any abstensions? Okay, great. Um, I'll just quickly say 16 I. Um, we know that the growing place is a really important partner to all of us at the city. We've uh shown you know our model as kind of an international model of success for early childhood development uh and the growing place is celebrating their 40th anniversary at Belmar Park uh and we're you know very very excited about that and they've you know asked for our support. So I'm putting forward uh some of my discretionary money and um would anyone else like to join me in that?

I put my name in the queue. Is this the lab school specifically? Uh, it's all I mean they have three campuses, but yes. Yeah, that's one of the three. Yes. So, I think you're trying to get to five by proposing a thousand of your own. So, I'll propose a thousand from my discretionary. Great. I'll I'll also throw in a,000. Great. I promise not to do this again. And be happy to throw in a thousand for my discretionary fund as well. And I'll put in a th000 as well. Fantastic. So, we're going to give $5,000 to the growing place. Uh, and I will move that There a second? Second. Fantastic. Okay, hold on a second. Council member Zernaya, yes. Council member Snell, yes. Council member Raskin, yes. Council member Hall,

yes. Council member Ngrete, yes. Mayor Rosas, yes. You always have to vote on money. Of course, as we should.

Okay, so next we have 16J. And this is Council Member Negrete. Did you want to take it off? Yeah, just uh quickly, this was born out of not just my own experience of having my windows broken. Um many times as a business owner, um you may or may not realize that often times you're required to carry glass insurance writers or the deductible is so high that the cost of replacing the glass is just one key part. Well, when I was walking to get dog food, I noticed that my local dogs um food pet groomer in Sunset Park also had a broken window and their cash register was stolen and the wood paneling was up for quite a while because of the same circumstances I find myself under. So, this was to propose a couple of things. One is to create and by the way the timing of this was sort of worked out with the city manager because there's already I know it seems aggressive with the 15 days but that's because there's already some of this business recovery funding set up. And so part of it is to help small businesses with an up to amount. Maybe it's $2,500 um to obtain assistance if they qualify being based on a smaller business to replace glass. I just want to state here that my music store would not be eligible and that is how I'm setting it up. Um but also that we list um if it's feasible and legal local vendors that they um prioritize to use for any sort of recovery necessities. Um and then the other piece of it is the portal and coordinated response. This is because it's quite difficult. So, you're running a business. Um, and I'm just speaking from experience. A crime occurs. You have to deal with that crime in its instance. You now have to figure out how to get the window fixed. But now you have to pull footage. You have to submit that. And it is not an easy process to follow up on. And so to the extent that we could create a portal that's much easier for businesses to submit updated footage or updates to the crime that

occurred and then also be able to coordinate with police um as they do do these um I don't know what they're called um city manager where they do like the safety checks where they'll come if you're a victim of you know repeat vandalization or or vandalizing or crime they'll come and do like a free check and sweep and give you some um tools and and things that you can do to your business to harden it. So that's what this is really about. It's just born out of a need. There was a handful of businesses in the last 62 days that have had these small breaks and it's not just the impact of the window itself. It's the time that every you have to take in all the follow-up. Right now with a police report, you've got to call the non-emergency line, then you've got to be transferred around and then you got to email someone. And that's why people end up sometimes just not reporting it at all. So, any questions? Uh, I see council member Snell Rascin in the

Thank Council Ready for bringing this forward. You know, many times with small businesses,

you when something like this happens, u their insurance minimums don't allow for them to go out to their insurance companies to get reimbursed for these kind of things. And I I think this is an opportunity for us to to uh show our support for those types of businesses when vandalism does happen. And then with respect to the portal, I just think that uh uh we should make it as easy as possible with what we're trying to do with all our small businesses to be able to get the information and um be able to um apply for the application and get some kind of response to it in a very timely manner. So, I I think this is a very uh easy ask for for city council.

Council member Raskin. Um yeah, I was primarily This is a good idea. Uh you know, I know uh you and a lot of other small business owners around town have have dealt with these ongoing problems. Uh I was primarily going to ask about the uh aggressive timeline, but it sounds like that's been worked out. Um and I'm not tied to that. that was was suggested because it's kind of I mean the resources are sort of there. Okay. I mean we could check with city manager. Do you think that's an if it's an aggressive timeline we can we can say I I I I'm not tied to the timeline.

The um um the timeline we can adjust to meet the council's um prerogative as part of this conversation. um the um 15-day time the council is willing to give the staff authorization to a certain amount of funding tonight. Um we can set something up um pretty quickly to facilitate. It might make some more sense though to provide us with a little bit of time to um fully vet a proposal and we can bring it back here um at our next meeting or two to review those protocols with the council. But we can operate the council's discretion if you'd like to delegate that authority to staff to put something together or vet something a little bit more fully to bring it back for full council consideration.

So just to in plain speak, does that mean you'd like me to say up to 30 days so you have more time to vet something out? um that would likely be um um more um that would be recommended um to have a little bit more time if that's the council's preference to put it together in 15 days. The council gave us authorization and parameters for a program that you approved. We could certainly get something up and running. Um I don't know there were specific parameters um identified yet, but um as part of the conversation here, we're certainly available to do that. um might be more advantageous though if the council provided um some direction to allow us to come back within 30 days with the overall program parameters for approval before we move forward.

Council member Raskin, I was just going to say that the summer approaching was one of the key um factors because in business retail we see an uptick in these types of crimes um during the summertime. So just keep that in mind. Yeah, I mean I'll defer to uh our city manager and other staff as to what makes sense for timing. Um I'll just say I'd love to borrow this idea for other forms of crime where it doesn't necessarily make sense to uh go through insurance. Yeah. I mean or or even where insurance isn't isn't common. Like can we have a database of like bike theft or something like that? Yeah. So something to think about. Council member Hall,

sorry. I I do have a question because I it's a little unclear to me in the item. Are we contemplating granting money against something tonight? Because I don't see that in the item. Yeah. I don't know how that got left out. I think I'm looking to you, city manager. Yeah. No, I know. I talked about that earlier. I The question is I'm I'm looking at the city manager. Is this was was the idea that this is going to come out of this pre-existing money that's set aside for business recovery efforts that we talked about in the last meeting or

Yeah, the conversation we had in terms of funding sources, the council set aside a $3 million economic recovery fund. That was one of the ideas we had mentioned and discussed as potentially a source um of monies that could be invested into this if that was the council's direction. Um, but I think that's part of the what we were hoping to get direction from council on. If this is something that has merit, um, it certainly seems to if we had a little bit of time to work through the details, we can certainly bring it back as one of our additional economic recovery tools um, as part of the larger economic revitalization efforts that we're working on.

Okay. Well, I I think we were pretty clear that we wanted those funds to be put towards retail to restaurant conversions and economic activations specifically in our downtown and prominade. So, I worry that we're like chipping away at some of our key initiatives. I'm like very supportive of making it easier for businesses to like figure out what to do post a crime. I think we should have a a more I mean we have these like howto things on our website that probably haven't been touched in several years. One of them is how to report a crime and it's kind of outdated and I I think having an updated how-to that has, you know, a one-stop shop of what to do in those moments is really important. Um I'm unwilling to put money that insurance is for here when we've prioritized it for other things. I'm also like a little worried about a prevetted list of Santa Monica based vendors. Like do we take liability if these vendors mess things up for us? I mean like

that's why I said if only if it's I was just trying to prioritize the local businesses but obviously we wouldn't want to force that. We would just maybe provide a local list. I think it's it if we're directing if we're directing someone who needs a repair towards a specific vendor like that feels like we're assuming some liability of vetting. Um I I hear you like it the promotion of local businesses. I I think we just need to explore that a little bit. Um I think there's a lot of good here and I I want to be supportive of what we're what you're trying to do. Um maybe if you'd be willing uh can we continue this and maybe like me, you and and council member Snell work on it together to come back with something.

Yeah, that's what I was trying to do. I often work on these things solo was trying to reach out. I I will say though that in terms of the money part, I hear you on the chipping away. The intent is not to have some large amount. And just on the comment on the insurance, you have to know that like the insurance deductible is so high after three or four of these, you end up considering whether or not you should just close your doors often. And that is a true statement, not an exaggeration. So that was the purpose was to send a message that, hey, you know, I don't know how many people are actually going to really tap into an amount that's going to chip away at even 1% of what we've put aside. But even if it was $25,000 set aside and a note sent out, I mean, just today we had an incident before we came into city hall to say, "We understand that this is happening and we understand the impacts and we're trying to make a concerted effort to make sure that you're made whole." Um, but I'm also open to having more discussion behind the scenes so we can come back with like a It sounds like there's a lot to be looked at in terms of where exactly or how much this money is and how we identify who qualifies. Yeah, because I if we're going to do it, I'd want to make sure that it's like a sustainable program and not just kind of like a one-time right influx of cash.

Um, Council Member Zern Skaya, thanks.

Um, I I was just wondering, so on the I really like where this is going, uh, and I appreciate you bringing this forward. I was wondering if on the uh potential kind of money piece if uh we could consider doing it as a pilot program for a limited period of time with you know up to I I don't know exactly the amount. Um I I do agree with the concerns about like quoteunquote shipping away at our our um the funds that we've already set aside, but if it's $25,000 I I think that's something we could find somewhere. I assume city manager um and I I appreciate the flexibility on the timing. So I think as soon as they can feasibly come back with an implementation plan and maybe it's a phased implementation plan where uh the how-tos are updated first and then we know how is this portal going to be um created and what are our risks for creating the list of Santa Monica based vendors and maybe there's some language in that list that says we do not take any liability for the quality of these repairs. We're just letting y'all know. We'll let the attorneys figure that out. Um, but I I really appreciate you bringing this forward and I I hope that this lets our business community know that we really are trying to look out for them, not just for people who are starting a business here and trying to open one, but trying to keep their businesses going and trying to help our existing businesses succeed. So, thank you.

Yes. I just think if you drive around, it's unfortunate, but I'm sure you guys see it. There's a lot of boarded up windows. It's a crime that kind of is sort of silently happening, but it's definitely impacting the business community. So, hopefully we can come up with something that makes sense, and if money is unused, it goes back into the bigger pot of money to help businesses.

I I would just make a quick comment. Um I I think I would love to see um the totality of what we're using the $3 million for if that's like just so that we can evaluate the tradeoffs. So like as part of the broader business attraction, retention, support, stabilization, and expansion program. Um, I think what I'm hearing here sounds like a business interruption fund um, for businesses who have uh, suffered from retail theft, from crime, from economic shocks, from all of those. And so it sounds like we need some sort of small grant program. Um I I just I would say like in my professional life I know that there is substantial liability with having um contractors that you're providing to from the city to private enterprise for the same reasons that we said. So I just I I just have a few concerns about that. But again very supportive of the concept. It sounds like we need some sort of grant program though. Um, if that makes sense and would like to hear about it in the the broader uh economic uh development strategies.

Yeah, I think all that makes sense. In the discussions that um Council Member Nigerete and I had um it was fairly modest. Um, I think we described something like maybe you cap it at no more than $2,500 per instance um as an inter business interruption fund. So, um, I think the conversation the council's having here is super thoughtful and um, depending on how the council like to move it forward. We're happy to support the effort as it continues to mature.

And just to be clear, it wasn't to force people to contract with anyone. I was just trying to provide a list cuz another thing that happens is you're in the panic of replacing your window and first you have to call someone to board it up and you're just googling and you end up with someone who's driving from Palmdale to board up your window and you don't realize that there's someone down the street. Again, lived experience. So, I'm just saying it would be nice to at least say here's it could be people outside the city. That's fine. But if what was a one-stop shop that I know I can go to the crime response portal and I can see exactly all the different ways that I could help. Yeah. No, I think that's a good idea. I mean, I wonder if there's a way to just have like we're not there's some sort of disclosure that's saying we're not attesting to the like quality of their work or whatever.

They are a they are a local business that has put themselves forward and you can at your own risk use them. Yeah. Okay, cool. So, it sounds like the direction is to come back with a more vetted out plan once we've had some discussion with staff and um council member Hall, council member Snell and myself. That's what I'm hearing. If the council's comfortable with that, it sounds like a great plan. I don't think there's anything to vote on, right? We're just moving it forward to So, we need we need a a maker or a motion. We need a motion, a seconder, and a voice. So, so there's there's no motion. We're just taking no action. No action. Yeah. Okay.

And we'll we'll we'll come back we'll come back with a new plan. Okay. Great. Um I think that that concludes the 16 items. Uh Madame Clerk, is there an adjournment that I'm supposed to be reading? I'm not aware of one. Okay. I I think that Mr. Wick had one, but uh we will wait till our next meeting for that. No communication. Great. Um okay. With that being said, we have uh the final second half of close session. How long do you think that's going to take? 20 minutes. 20. Great. We'll we'll shoot for 20. Great.

And Heidi, what were the items again that you guys are hearing? Um the items and we'll do a full report out again. Um we understand that perhaps the first one did not um was not heard. Um but items um 5A, 5B, and 5C are the remaining items.

We'll be back by 11:45. And do we need to have all of us return or can we just have

Yes. Okay, great. Let's chop chop. All right. Okay. I don't I mean,

well, it's still too long. I second that.

All right, I'm gonna get more info. Hold up. You miss Charcoal.

Thank you.

I think

Oh, okay. Good. Okay. So, there was a hearing problem. I mean, there was some sort of I think that's what it was. I tried. Okay, it's 11:58. We're ending the meeting in this day. We're attempting. So, we've returned from close session. All items have been heard. You got to wait for the Do I have to wait for the rest of them? Yeah. Okay. Hurry up.

We'll get you right back up.

Great.

We're finishing in today's day. It's 11:59. Let's go. Um as we understand that perhaps the first report out was not heard um we will do the report out for both um for both um close sessions. The first time the council convened for close session items 5D, 5e and 5F were heard. Um and with respect to item 5D, council directed staff to continue negotiations with California Roadhouse to include rehiring of all former Rusty's employees. The second time council convened um items 5A, 5B, and 5C were heard with the following reportable action for item 5C. The city council approved a settlement in Lisa Parson v city and employment action. The city denies liability and does not admit fault, but agreed to settle for $300,000 and certain nonmonetary terms and in exchange plaintiff agreed to release all claims against the city. The settlement was approved by a vote of six to zero with Mayor Prom Zwick absent. That concludes the report out.

Great. We'll see everyone on April 28th. Thank you. Exactly. Midnight, huh?