City Council

looks like a cloak. If you're on your cell phone or tablet locate the 3 dots kept them lightly and put a check mark on your preferred language. Click done to activate them and begin the interpretation. Won't you join the Spanish Channel? We recommend you shut off main audio. Only here. The Spanish interpretation. Interpreter. We please restate this in Spanish. Yes, thank you. >> When I started to shut those being many going to be she wasn't that with us. You don't expect your device that the company MAY nominate a few more what need access Cohen's going to you the moment, those his bad enough. But the pretty of the super and thank you, my whole thought on road that attack you on scene. We're told him or When said in the state going up, his bio pics had low pending delays voiced by Border Daily My immediate the mean things push within a school child is a direction. Idea in this poignant I would assistance is something in the back So I could helpful to me probably thousands can let what is going on with Blue fish just yet in a part of this super DR. Know that each part that could hear the scoop on. Thank you. About with 15 feet, those with his one and with not a lot, but not a lot. I could some more moments. But what is going pick even a little too and side in wondering what that rescue worker peak. >> within in the heat. Any deal? My Spaniards this mean up Putin. >> mean, wouldn't even some innate this point in different that this that when I'm on a desk and we've got you, kid who that is come with for the next match going pick you very much. Back to you. >> Hello and welcome everyone to our JULY 23rd 2024 center of the City Council meeting.

It is now 12. 35 and we will be starting our seeing a Qorum Adams, a clerk. Can you please call the roll? Certainly Councilmember Rogers Councilmember Okrepkie here Councilmember MacDonald Councilmember Fleming. Councilmember offer us present. Vice mayor stop here. Mayor Rogers PRESIDENT, let the record show all council members are present with the exception of Councilmember Fleming. Be moving on to item 3. But prior to doing that, I would like to give a special shout out to our special guest that we have. >> The in our most vocal special guests. We little Shea here. >> Who you might hear throughout the beginning of the meeting. So welcome to our special little guest will now proceed to items. 3.1 through 3.5, which are close session conference with 3.1 conference with legal counsel about existing. We're getting litigation. 3.2 conference with real property negotiators. 3.3 conference real property negotiators. 3.4 conference with real property negotiators and 3.5 conference with. >> Labor negotiators. >> MADAM City clerk, a new police facility. Public comment on these items. Thank you, mayor. We're now taking public comment on closed session items. 3.1 through 3.5. If you're in the chamber and would like to make a comment but have not yet provided a speaker card. Please make your way to the podium. >> You'll have 3 minutes and a

countdown. Timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the record. If you choose to do so. The first speaker will be Sam followed by Ken. Then the light. >> My name is Sam Hole in vp of local 14 0, one, professional firefighters of Sonoma County. I'm here today to address the on the subject of the negotiations that are ongoing with your firefighters. Want to just say that the men and women of this department are are some of the Thank you will ever meet. Every crisis that the city is face. From time to the global pandemic. They've answered the call. They've always been there for you and for the city. Now we need you to be here for us in my time here. I watch our department fall to the very bottom of our comparable cities. Your firefighters are the worst pay 10 out of 10 in our survey. Dead last. Being dead last is not just bad for the employees. It's bad for the department is bad for the city. Can't fill positions. After a year of trying to hire. We still have 10 unfilled positions on the line. That's 16 unfilled positions. Total on the line. On the period of the pair. The next contract we'll have over 50 positions to fill due to Measure. H retirements are current hiring. Got. And we will be able to fill those positions because we're dead last in the city will suffer for it. We run more calls and are comparable cities by a lot around 30,000 calls compared her closest competitor at 19,000. You know, we make less than all of them. Facing these realities. It's hard not to think that were valued less than firefighters and other

departments. We've been told we're the best fire department, the nation by our leadership. We believe been told our leaders appreciate our sacrifices for the city. Appreciate partnerships, the pulse of the health of the city budget, the personal sacrifices. The missed moments with children, exposure to toxic carcinogens the life and death decisions alert. Just an alert, turned away. Been told that were valued. But these are words in reality with been allowed to fall to dead last in compensation. Your firefighters deserve more than words. Actions speak louder. And you have the power to take an action today in closed session that would speak louder than any words. We've always had a great working relationship with your We've been a partner. But the effort can all be on one side. And I know everyone here in this room wants to do the right thing today includes all of us. Good intentions are not enough. Words are not enough. We need action. Flexible who are willing to work but we cannot allow our member sacrifices to be valued so lightly or negotiators are standing by for a phone call. We will be able to find common ground. I believe On your worst day, we're always there to answer the call. And now we're calling on you. And we hope answer that call. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Ken followed by Eli. Then John. >> Mayor City Council, thank you for your time this afternoon. My name is Ken Martin. I am the labor negotiator for the unit to firefighters. Also retired firefighter and a resident here in Santa Rosa. I come before you today because I

represent I represent. 20 fire organizations within the Bay Area and over 30 throughout the state. During your JUNE council meeting, you discussed the city's decision to pattern bargain, providing all bargaining groups of 7, 4, 4 salary increase. Recently we agreed to mediation with your city council team. We're unable to reach an agreement because the city team had no movement. This mediation was a waste of time. The city is held its pattern bargaining position. Austin, the city attorney fees with no results. The actions the city's team is taking a bordering on bad faith bargaining an unfair labor charge with with the Public Employees Relations board. We're here today asking that the city bargain in good faith. That's their responsibility. Review our salary survey that we provided in the city as failed to provide. The salary survey that we will use and binding arbitration for forced to go there. The salary survey that is required by your city charter. It has not been fulfilled. Bring these employees up to the salary survey. To compare comparable salary survey. They deserve. A comparable survey like agencies alike size. Not within the county. Like agencies of like size. This is one of the top tier fire departments in the Bay Area. Treat them like they are. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Eli followed by John. Then Thomas. >> COUNCILMAN Citizens of Santa Rosa. My name is Eli held on a firefighter paramedic with the city. And I've been in ms in fire for 15

years. I started my career being a leader of the fire Academy in 45 or crews in California. Regional Fire Qaeda mean graduating at the top of my class with 3 of the 5 honors I have over 40 different fire service certifications, such a swift water rescue technician rescue boat operator rope rescue technician trench rescue technician confined space rescue technician in a fully qualified to be on the urban Search and Rescue Task Force team for team out of Oakland that gets in on national disasters as well as I have my bachelor's and science for fire management. The reason I expressed this to show you is to show you. This city. What kind of the employee kind of employees work for Santa Rosa Fire? I've seen up here today to tell you my story and the similarities of the troubles that I and this agency face today, I was a lateral to Santa Rosa Fire about 3 years ago. I left the city of Leffel some fire department after 8 years to come work at it. What I was told to be one of the best fire departments in the country by our operations chief. What I quickly realized was the members were some of the best in the nation, but that the city was as troubled as fulsome. I quickly realized that I had it full somewhere. The League of Cities was created. I'm sure some of you have heard of it that this city was exactly the same as fulsome and did not support the infrastructure in the first responders appropriately. Here are a few bullet points for you to understand where I'm coming from. Fulton Fire was the most underpaid city in Sacramento County. We also had a command staff to lie to live to our city council and say that things were status quo. But

that was far from the truth. We also are down a significant number. Firefighters at the end of my time in Tulsa, Fire Department, we lost 24 firefighters in 2 years. Yeah. 24. This was the direct reflection of poor compensation and negligence by our city to support the members of the fire department with so many departments across that state hiring the opportunity to leave, to go to other agencies is attractive. There's if we left. If I left today, I can go to any agency within the greater Barry, Bay area and make $30,000 more right away that I make here today. With also with that, I'm part of our recruitment committee and it is it is hard to get candidates in. Currently the pool for candidates is becoming smaller and smaller another thing to draw on is our employees were here. One 3rd of our lives are 40 96 schedule. Currently we're working. 96 48 schedules and away from our families. Two-thirds of our lives. After leaving, leaving full so fire department not only a few months later, they were crumbling as an agency and they were compensated with a 24% immediate pay raise to save retention within their agency. I would like to leave this state last statement before this agency gets in such a bad place. I would ask the city to look part of what actions and outcomes could come from its decisions to not compensate members of the fire department, the fair wage as the most qualified department and the greater northern California with only and rescue in Sonoma County. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be John followed by Thomas. Then Constantine. >> Good afternoon Council. My

name is John Hall, a member of the Santa Rosa, local 14 0, one executive board member of the negotiations team for the past 2 cycles, not including the reopening for the paramedic incentive. I just want to say thank you for the time allowing us to speak today. I'm humbled every day to serve our community that I'm a part of since 2018, we've had several historic Could catastrophes like the county, including the Tubbs Fire Glass Fire Kincade Fire. Wall Ridge fires not to mention the covid pandemic the whole time the fire department was on the front line for our community. Since then, we've seen an increase in mental health injuries and sacrifices. Our members have had to make for their families to serve the community. They're part of. Such as extended deployments to fires count was extra mandatory overtime assignments to the chronic understaffing, which is in part to difficulties in recruitment and retention. The fire department has continued to serve the citizens of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County through this all while providing the level of customer service, our citizens are accustomed to. Now would like to speak to fairness. So its time and this time we asked the council to see the work. We do the sacrifices we make. And in turn, we ask for fairness, it's not fair. Then we went to mediation with the intent to settle only to be met with the city's negotiating team, not having the authorization to settle the contract that day. It's not fair continually be ranked last against are comparable cities in terms of compensation. It is not fair to provide compensation studies to other bargaining

units while disregarding ours. It is not fair to offer a broad contract that does not reflect the job market value. Our sacrifices unit to members make on a daily basis while ignoring the request for fair compensation based on facts, not feelings in the end unit to members are asking for your support in seeking a contract that reflects the members worth to the city. One that is fair, equitable and brings us back into the Ford of our comparable cities. One that makes it easier for the department to recruit and hire and retain top tier talent. A fair contract today will show the membership that the city truly doesn't value the job, sacrifice and duty that our members perform on a daily basis. Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Thomas followed by Constantine than Kayla. Thomas. Go ahead. >> Thank you. Council members for allowing me this opportunity to speak. My name is Thomas Younger and the fire captain engine needs shift. 10 years ago. I got one of the greatest cause of my life. Santa Rosa Fire Department wanted me to come work for them. Santa Rosa was the big leagues and becoming a singer is a firefighter was a combination of a decade worth the work through school, volunteering in pay time with other smaller fire departments. Part of the hiring process had meeting with the back investigator. You're lucky. He told Santa Rosa Fire Department is a black hole Department. I knew immediately what he meant. The Paul, the center of the fire department was strong and because of its reputation as an outfit, the department was known for attracting top tier candidates who would make a career at a serving this community. But that black holes become a revolving door

in our department's ability to attract top tier talent has been hampered. Most glaringly. By the fact that we are dead last in compensation across Kabul departments in the Bay Area. Activities that constitute being a firefighter are all team oriented tasks. But when boil down the strengths of our individual members are what determine the outcomes of the calls we go on. Firefighting is an unbelievably strenuous activity. And at the end of the day, fires go out more quickly when strong people stretched a hose line up a hill where through a home to extinguish fire. One of the strongest I've ever seen was and record of the and restraint was many times. The difference maker on the fire and fires went out quicker when he was around. Henry left the Santa Rosa Fire Department for higher paying position 2 years ago. Affecting a positive outcome on a critical patient in the field means quickly decide during the information are given in applying the appropriateness and based on our protocols. One of the best I've seen on these intensely demanding incidents was Spencer Lopes Spencer's ability to stay calm under fire and deliver the best possible care. The field made him a true asset to the fire department and to this community. Spencer left for a position with a heart of Fire Department a couple years ago. Affecting a positive outcome on a critical presenting a good face for the organization needs tending to a person's needs with compassion and competency. It means nearing the concerns of the patient, making them feel heard and delivering the care they're expecting. Vincent. I was a great face for this organization. And Vince is unique ability to connect with

people. Made him a welcome presence in the firehouse and inside people's homes. Vince left this fire department for higher paying position with a different fire department. I could go on, but I believe the picture on pending is clear. We're losing top tier firefighters and we're struggling to fill the shoes they leave behind. I ask that this council enable us to carry on the legacy of the Santa Rosa Fire by providing us conversation that makes competitive in today's environment. Thank you for your time. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Constantine followed by Caleb My name is constant German common spelling, easy pronunciation. I've been working here in San Jose Fire Department for 10 and a half years. I'm speaking to advocate for fair compensation adjustments for your fire department. As you're aware, our current compensation places below average compared to similar departments in our compared comparative cities based on size and response called a volume. The disparity has become increasingly burdensome, especially considering the rising cost of living. One of the significant challenges we face is that city to spend extended periods of time away from our families due to the demands of work, having to work, more shifts. This not only impacts our personal lives but also affects our overall job performance around. Stress of prolonged separation from our loved ones can lead to decreased productivity and heightened emotional strain on us and our families ultimately affecting our ability to deliver optimal results. Fair compensation is not just about monetary value. It reflects

and the recognition of our hard work dedication and sacrifices we make daily. It demonstrates that our ability. It demonstrates that our contributions are valued and respected by the organization. As for me personally, many times I have answered a phone call when I'm away with my family because my co-workers respond to someone's home who doesn't speak English, but they only speak Russian. Gladly. I answer that call and gladly. I help them over the phone. When I'm away on my personal time with my family and I will continue to do so. Because it served the citizens of Santa Rosa. And I'm glad to do so. And I will do so. Even though it's not a recognized language in the city's diversity plan. Moreover, equitable pay ensures that we can maintain a reasonable quality of life amidst escalating living costs, allowing us to focus more effectively on our responsibilities without added financial strain. Investing in fair pay for your department is an investment of our collective well-being and success. It fosters a pow, positive work environment enhances retention rates and promotes greater job satisfaction amongst its employees. By aligning with our compensation with the industry standard. Knowledge in the unique challenges we face, we can strengthen our team and uphold our commitment to excellence. I urge you to consider these factors seriously and take proactive steps toward rectifying a fair contract with your fire department. Together, we can ensure that our department remains competitive, resilient and motivated to achieve our shared goals. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. >> Thank you. The next speaker

will be Kayla followed by map in Gary. >> Good afternoon. My name is Kayla Grant and I am a single roll paramedic with the center's a fire department working on there in response team. I've been in response to the past 2 years, which is almost the start of the program since being hired. And I've seen how amazing this program is for the city of Santa Rosa and how much difference it really makes. >> We have helped countless people in all walks of lives by finding resources or the support they need to get back on their feet and keep pushing through. >> As a singer, a paramedic on this unit. For the past 2 years, I've seen the highs and lows of this program as far as staffing goes. I've been there. I've been multiple months for my coworkers and myself have worked. 28 of the 30 days a month I've been forced to work without any choice of the day off. This cannot go on. And this cannot go on to get better without some help. As it currently stands in response is not able to operate. 24 hours a day due to low staffing, but them by the singer paramedics on this team? >> Well, the clinician engagement specialists are fully staff response is not able to provide the citizens of Santa Rosa with the round. The clock in response team due to paramedic shortage. This is partially due to lower compensations from our survey competitors, which include local ambulance provider here in this county. We we also interview paramedics from time to time. But normally the candidates who are not eligible, who are not eligible or pull out from the application process last minute due to wages, any need

to support their families. This stands as it stands now. We have 0 applicants in the process and we have no applicants who have turned in applications. With all this being said response team is in a position that we cannot provide the citizens of Santa Rosa that our leadership, sir, promised. And is a state mandate at this time. We cannot provide them with a 24 hour crisis team that is dedicated solely for the scent city of Santa Rosa. Again, we have no single paramedics in the pool, an application for the department. Therefore, we have no plan for the future of this program when our current members are looking for options of higher compensating jobs, needing to support their families. At this point, we need to ask yourself why. Why are you potentially going to let a great program like this fold? >> Without. >> Very negotiations. Where are you breaking promises to the citizens we serve and why are you not a upholding the best customer service at this? It the citizens of the city are owed by not only supporting your hard-working employees as well as their families so that they can continue to work in a place they live. And for me where I was born and raised, thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be map followed by Kerry. Then John. Go ahead. >> Thank you for allowing to speak to all My name is Matt talking PRESIDENT Of local 14 0, 1, Representing over 400 firefighters and ems professionals here in Sonoma County. I also have the privilege of being a fire

captain with Santa Rosa Fire Department and want to speak to you about my experience with a great agency today. I first applied for Saint Rose in 2011 and at the time I was competing against approximately 2000 other candidates for a job here. I wasn't hired until 2016 in a process that attracted 200 candidates. Today. The Santa Rosa Fire Department is lucky to get 30 applicants and even luckier to film Academy. Case in point is our current academy that was slated to have 10 new firefighters. But we're only able to fill 6 positions. Santa Rosa has 14 current firefighter vacancies on the line. And come MARCH will have to hire an additional 35 firefighters with Measure h funds. A tax measure spearheaded an ran by members of 40, no one, including myself. Generating nearly 10 million dollars a year in perpetuity for the city. Hiring. These additional firefighters will staff 3 new apparatus and city at 2 more fire stations and replace remodel. Many more. It is imperative we quickly hire these new firefighters because per capita Santa Rosa Fire is one of the busiest fire agencies in the Bay Area. And we're already beginning to fail to meet and pay standards for you. Needle is Asian and apparatus run volume. Places, our fire department position where could lose his insurance class rating placing our community's ability to obtain insurance at risk. While I understand the compensation alone does not attract employees. It does play a huge role in Macon, Santa Rosa, competitive in the Barry hiring market. And will sure we can attract high-quality candidates for best suited to

serve our diverse community. I'm asking that you all invest in the security of our city by bringing the compensation package for Sanders, a firefighter to a level it is competitive with our comparable fire departments. Thank you for your time and your investment in our community. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Kerry followed by John. Carrie. Go ahead. >> Could have been city council meetings. Gear look as captain of the center's a fire department. I'm a product of the uc Davis student resident for for the program. And I'm so proud to be working here. And this is the greatest thing that's ever happened to me. And my family. That being said, I'm here to discuss the recruiting concerns often faced with well at the department. I go out to local schools and talk to the youth about a wonderful career. Firefighters or providers and it's often difficult to talk to the youth because the reality is that now it is 500 need a lot of education. As you've heard before. Not only do you need to be a paramedic emt certified in x, y and z, but you also sometimes need to be bs degree to be in this job. So it's hard for me to convince the youth to go out and pursue all these degrees to then get hard and soon for less pay than comparable cities when the reality is that this individual can go and apply to a major city in be taken with 0 Experience. 0 credentials and they will take into the ropes. Another thing the city has been pushing is the d e and hiring from a local community. This has become increasingly increasingly difficult because we MISS The forest for the

trees in the situation. How am I supposed to tell? A young in our schools? That this is a job for them when the reality is that they're going to have to probably move out of the city or out of the county to be able to afford a place to live. Not only impacts the city, the county financially, but it also impacts the safety of the city because that's a longer response time for those individuals to come in when they're needed. Operationally you for that. We just implemented squats to help with our increasing calls. And that's great. I think every one had a hand in putting that together. The fire foundation and our admin that that was a lot of work. But the reality is we still need to staff those resources. And like you heard earlier, we're having issues with getting individuals to apply. My generation. The pepper generation has often had to give back raises due to increased kind of contribution requirements on Calpers side. So take that in mind as well. I've got to travel country. I've met firefighters from all over the world, London, Mexico City. Ohio, Denver. Every city has issues that's a given. But whatever come to find out is that the grass is greener? You water and this is your opportunity to do just that. And again, I think you have never felt closer to my city council. Then today I've met many of you outside of here both professionally and personally. And again for that. I'm thankful and thank you for your concern with this issue. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be John. >> My name is John are I just

want to come brief. Just really want to introduce myself as a human being and not just as a firefighter. Want to talk a little bit here about sacrifice and what this means about this fire department is my 18th year here. I got hired here when I was a very young man and in my academy, we had 12 people. That was the biggest class we had hired in 6 years. Had this was a huge class of 12 people of that 12, half don't work here anymore. They've been retired out on medical injuries. Their lives are permanently destroyed because of things that they sacrificed for this community. One is dead. Other half are all suffering have all suffered major muscular skeletal injuries for this city. I off an injury waiting for a total knee replacement. As my second major surgery had to have because of this. But we act what we give to it. Diagnosed with cancer this department last year. Knew it all. It's not just what's happening. We're giving it all. We do ask for a lot. Now. We need something. We need you guys to support us the way we support the citizens, board with this community. What we do for this community. We need to know that you guys have our back. We need to know that our leaders stand behind us. We run into that fire. We need you guys now. >> there are no more names. And but I see a speaker at the West Lectern. Please go ahead. >> Thank you. Good afternoon, mayor and Really appreciate your time and Steidl port on the director of Santa Rosa Fire fighters local 14 0, 1, As you've heard here today, we

have a real passion, a group of firefighters. We care deeply about this job. We care deeply about this city. That's why we're all here today to show you all that like you've heard, we've been through a world within the last decade. Major fires pandemic flooding. You know, all that time. We've never failed to step up for the city. You know, we didn't have the option of working from home. We don't have the option to not staffing those engines and trucks and nor do we not want to do that. We love this job. We love being there and the work we do for the city. You know, with that also it's been mentioned briefly, our unions donate a lot of hours and financial commitments to make the city better. >> And everything we've done is just to The best we can for the citizens we protect. And I know we've expressed that to all of you before. I just want to say it again. That's that's all we're trying to do is be able to provide the best services we can to the citizens and we need help with that. And once again, you heard this plenty of time before we have fallen to the bottom of the barrel. And that's that's unacceptable. >> We've had a lot of broken promises in the past week ago. She Asians be heard, you know, take this race now will make you whole negotiations give up on these raises and or near retirement will give you more on the next one. And that's never been the case. We haven't been made whole with that. And that's that's something we can stand for. We fall in lower and lower. And like you've heard, we're at the bottom of the barrel now and for Santa Rosa to be in that position. It's it's not sustainable. It's it's affecting the viability of this department. And it's you know, frankly, it's affecting how well we're going to able

to protect the citizens. We can't recruit new members. We have members leaving for higher paying jobs and quite frankly, around this, department is gradually getting to an all-time low. I don't want to see that as a director of these members. And I know all of you don't want to see that as well. Like I said, it's something we can stand for. And as you can see in the room and I feel from the tenor. We're very passionate about this and we're very eager for a new contract. I'm hoping that we won't be back in this room at the next meeting of the same circumstances. I know council, I'm sure you're feeling the same way. So what I'm looking for is to get that phone call and we can get this negotiation negotiations back on track and get us what we deserve. And with the city's thank you. >> Thank you. Is there anyone else wishing to speak on the close session items? Please make your way to the podium. >> Hi there. I'm a father of a firefighter and we're sitting in his really comfortable room and I'm thinking about the conditions and nobody's mentioned it. Incredible triple digit weather. Guys are out fighting in and they're wearing 50 pound packs are topping up and down beans and bad footing and they are. Exposed to most extreme temperatures. A magical. And I think the personal toll has to be recognized. >> Thank you. Anyone else wishing to speak on this item. See no one else approach. The podiums. All right. Thank you. With that will now recess into closed session. Thank you, Thank you. Mayor Councilmember Rogers. Councilmember Okrepkie Councilmember MacDonald year, Councilmember Fleming, their councilmember over U.S.. PRESIDENT Vice mayor step

here. Mayor Rogers PRESIDENT, let the record show that all council members are present. Thank you. Will now proceed to item 4.1, which is our study session for today. >> Assistant city manager. Can please take it away? >> Thank you, item 4.1 of a county integrate transit service plan and Rachel Lee, deputy director of transit Lee percent. >> Good afternoon, mayor and members of council. We're pleased to be here today to some outcomes of some exciting work we're doing around transit integration here in Sonoma County as well. In Sonoma Marin counties we are joined today for this presentation by the consultants who led this project cta, which include Tim Paine, senior principal with Nelson either consulting associates that he's on zoom along with his associate Kyle Taniguchi. I'm also joined today by day n# # # # # , a senior planner with a cta who is the project manager. And our plan or Matt Wilcox, who was the city bus lead on this project? I also just want to mention that our consultants had a hard stop at 5, really trying to make sure they can still be here for this. So if they have to leave, we're going to keep going and will give the presentation. But hopefully they'll be able to stay. But if you a transition happening, that's what's going on. Okay. I'm going to start off this presentation. I'm getting a little bit of background on recent and ongoing integration efforts in Sonoma County. And I'm going to hand it up hopefully to ct as consultant to take us through the rest. The presentation about this

project, including the feedback we've gotten from riders on transit integration and challenges of moving between the trust transit systems. How this relates to the regional integration mtc is leading. And and then what the next steps for this project. So I'm going to kind of blaze through the background slides because I know that you all have seen a lot of this before, but just to put this effort that we're going to discuss today in a little bit of this whole discussion started way back in 2012 with empty seats. Transit Sustainability Project which came on the heels of the recession when a lot of transit agencies are facing some significant fiscal issues like today, Post-pandemic. And so that was where the conversation really began about further integrating the local bus operators in Sonoma County. Flash forward to 2018, 2019, the city of Santa Rosa and mtc jointly sponsored the transit integration and efficiency study are ties here in Sonoma County. This was led cta and developed a plan that we're currently implementing to better integrate the services. The center is a city transit in Sonoma County Transit. So this plan that we're talking about today as part of that ties study follow-up. Given the pandemic impacts on transit mtc started to engage with the topic of integration. Just noting that there's a huge fiscal cliff are a lot of transit operates in the Bay area. How can we emerge from the pandemic? Fiscally sound efficient but also providing a better and stronger transit network for writers. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on this. But, you know, the whole focus here in the Bay area is that there are 27 different transit agencies and we've all developed our own local policies and operating procedures that are very

responsive to local needs. But it creates a very fragmented system for the writer. And it's not always the most efficient way to use. Our are up scarce transit resources. This is led nbc to create a number of advisory bodies under the rubric, a regional network You'll have some other presentations for us on this topic in the future. This includes fair integration. How can we better? Integrate and harmonize are fair policies to make it easier to transfer between systems mapping and wayfinding. How do we integrate our public here in Santa Rosa? This fall will be a one of the pilot sites. One of the 3 in the Bay area for the wayfinding program. So you're going to see some new signage going up around the smart station, the transit mall and in between. We're going to bring you a present presentation about that in early SEPTEMBER. So you'll be hearing more about that soon. It's very exciting. Was a design review board last week and got really good feedback we're working with them to see around bus transit priority and accessibility. More to come on that as well. You've heard a lot about some of the work we've already completed under It's a wide ranging effort that looks at how we plan and deliver service together. How we coordinate would lot more work to do on fares. But we've gotten a start. We're working on how we integrate our customer service staff and their training. So if you call, one of our agencies are not just automatically getting transferred. If we have city bus can answer a question for a patron about Sonoma County, Transit or smart. We're going to do that. So we we've invested in that training as well. We launched the new City bus website a few months ago,

as you know, and that's going to be the Templet that then Sonoma County Transit and Petaluma transit moved to. So we start to have more uniform public information. I'm going out to riders keep going here. And then finally, I just want to touch on the mascots project which kicked off this morning. So this is hot off the presses. The study you're going to hear about today is is tied very closely to what we're calling the Marine Sonoma Coordinated transit service, analysis or mascots. Good name and the impetus for this was really recognizing that coming out of the pandemic. The travel patterns along the 101, corridor have changed dramatically commute are completely different than they were in 2019. Also, we have that rain and we've had to train for a few years. Markets have the chance operate and mature and it service delivery and add stations. And at this point, we really need to look at all the overlapping service along that corridor together it from a multi operator standpoint to decide what is the best network design for serving the 101, corridor through Marin and Sonoma counties quite a bit going on with this. We're meeting monthly as general managers. We have a sub planning subcommittee marketing subcommittee and also finance group looking at funding distribution within the counties. And we just kicking off this plan. What you're going hear a lot more about will be back to talk to you about this, to look at what we should all be doing in our local areas to support transit along the 101, corridor and for city bus that will include how do we do a better job feeding the regional network, including

smart and Golden Gate Transit. So with that, I'm gonna go ahead and turn things over to Tim. I'm assuming Tim is still on the zoom and can take over from here. But if not, I will keep going up. There he is. Okay, Tim, it's all yours. Thank you, Rachel. I hope I'm here in the Can you hear me ok? >> I >> tried to do this yesterday my microphone wasn't working for some reason or another. So there's a rapid text scramble got it straightened out with that. Good afternoon, mayor and council. Pleasure to be here this afternoon to talk about the completion of our integrated transit service plan. Actually, it's probably just another chapter in what will a long road to continuing to provide better mobility options for people in Sonoma County. And that's really overarching vision is to be able to create a. A transit system that is really seamless and easy for people to throughout. Throughout Sonoma County. We actually started out with the major Sonoma County only operators that would be of city bus, of course, Sonoma County Transit and Petaluma Transit. We added Golden Gate and smart as we got further into understanding a little bit more about what some of the crossover roles are between other agencies. We've been working on this for a hair over a year and as Rachel already said, this really starts to build on the work that was completed in 2019. All of this work as a lot more emphasis on things that agencies can work on together to improve integration of systems as

opposed to integrating the transit systems into one transit system, which was a lot of emphasis and investigation and ties looking at consolidating systems together and that sort of thing. This really goes stepped back from that and really says regardless of how systems are organized and covered, what can be done in the short term to really make a difference for riders in Sonoma County. Next slide. Please. So why is this really important? Well, to begin with one of the things that we know about travel in Sonoma County, particularly it's about 90% of all travel that starts in Sonoma County ends in Sonoma County. So county itself is pretty self contained. Many lower-income people depend on transit to move them. Not just within the city of Santa Rosa, but all over Sonoma County, including some of the less populated parts. One of the things that I'm gonna talk about your little bit is how writers few some of the integration efforts that they c at some of their major mobility issues. I'm honestly some of this urban are overserved in particular locations, not in general, but in specific locations. But many especially some of the more rural areas are actually underserved. So one of our ideas here is to be able to see if there are opportunities to move service around the county, too, reduce some of the over service and improve service. Just distribution throughout the county. Next slide. Please. This is all being done in the context.

Reach already said this post pandemic. But in Sonoma County, unlike many other parts of even the area, it's good. New story ever The pandemic sort of hit transit ridership low. The 5 agencies that were working with in Sonoma County have continued to recover. I'm quite nicely from the pandemic. Some of them even exceeding their pre-pandemic levels. But every one of them is in a ridership increased mode which is a really good context to work on. Continuing to improve service riders are being responsive. This service is continuing to provide services that they need and said doing additional work, just find ways to improve service is really important. Next slide, please. One of the things that we did next slide, please was extensive outreach effort that was done just a little over a year in the spring of 2023. Staff's 16 different in-person pop-up events. And we also administered a public along about the same time we close to almost 80774 Some of them in Spanish directly in Spanish. Produce the survey both in English and Spanish. And I will say with in my experience as a consultant working all over the country, this is the most directly in Spanish translated surveys that ever gotten from a survey. The normal number is 5 or 10, something along that line out of this number total

responses. We're really happy with that. One of the other things that we did is our entire outreach team was bilingual. So we were able to talk directly with people Spanish, the parents, Spanish, Spanish, if were not English-speaking as we were in the field, which produced a thinks are some really, really good results for this. Importantly, what it people say just start in terms of their level of satisfaction, about 51% of riders reported that they were somewhat satisfied or very satisfied. I'm on the other side of the scale there. Still fairly high percentage of writers that are just satisfied very dissatisfied. So the net satisfaction score, which is you take all the people that say they're satisfied and you subtract the people that say they're dissatisfied. This is the percent that remains about 31%. Still a somewhat positive. But most agencies to set a net promoter score as it sometimes referred to like to see this number up in the 80% range, which tells you there's a ways to go to get to that to that Plateau. So what is it why is it that this is important? As I said before, transit is a lifeline for many, many writers, lots of writers don't have other transportation options. In fact, 45% of the writers that we serve 8 who only use city bus Petaluma transit and sep do not have access to a vehicle. When you look at the percentage of people who are lower income riders that we define that as people with an income of $60,000 less per year responded that they don't have a regular access to

vehicles were talking about him fairly substantial populations here who are really dependent on transit in Petaluma excuse me in Sonoma County to be able to get around. So again, the principle of trying to find ways to reduce duplication service, not taking service away from anybody, the trying to move service surrounded, redistribute it differently and creating more seamless trip is one that way that we hope to be able to help some of these folks move around the county. A top issues for riders. Buses don't run early enough early enough on weekends and again, looking at the satisfaction score, remembering the overall satisfaction score was said net 31%. Now we're in a negative 20%. That satisfaction. That means that there's a whole bunch more people who are dissatisfied with this particular element of service and are satisfied. Same thing with us is not operated frequently on weekends or late enough on weekdays or often enough on weekdays and then even waiting time with transferring between buses, as you know, with 5 operators, people are frequently moving between the various operators there still an overall net. Just dissatisfaction with waiting time between So that brings us to transfers based on the right are survey. The writers report that half of their trips taken requires transfer some or all of the time. And again, based on the survey

about 70% of riders said according to schedules help them reduce their weights would really help their mobility. And I think what that says is we really need. Better understand where people are moving in the county so are are there, for instance, people who live in Petaluma who are daily traveling to the airport facility or daily traveling to the Santa Rosa campus of I that he just left me that, you the junior college in Santa Rosa, are they just going to the Petaluma campus for the traveling back and forth between the campuses? There is not a really good record of what's going on with transit ridership from an origin destination information perspective except between stations in the smart system because it's one of the features of the system that allows us to track where people get on the train and where they get off the train. So in terms of station to station, we really understand, but we don't necessarily understand where they go after leave the station where they've come from when that when they enter station. So there's a real data need here to better understand how people are moving about the county next slide. Please. Another question. Why don't people use more transit? Your use transit more This was a question that was asked of everybody and I I believe this is a combination of both writer said Non writers service doesn't run when it's needed. That's probably pretty obvious. Service is not running where it's needed. So people are trying to go places where there is not transit service and really important. This is where we don't see very often with these kinds of

numbers that the travel time is taking too long, that it people feel it just takes too long to move any place. Part of that has to do with earlier discussion of people trying to transfer between operators there is not a really good matchup say between the frequency the different operators operate with in Sonoma County, which creates some of those transfer delays. Here's a couple of direct quotes from These are We gave everybody the opportunity Inter open ended comments. Many in fact, probably as many in the service I have ever almost 3 quarters of the respondents put in some kind of open ended. Comments some that were really good. You know, obviously Curie to these a couple comments that we got from a lot of people saying, you know, better integration between the systems is really long overdue. Again, the point about why people are dissatisfied with weekend Services Night Services. The point is people do still need to work that take buses at these times and their jobs. Don't always correspond with trans a schedule. So it's really important to them if they're mobility, limit it that, in fact, how services being offered are being offered more broadly. Show. Rachel did a really good job of talking about him tc. So I

think I will well too much on this except to say that there are some of the issues like fares, for instance. We could have gone a long ways in our recommendations and a lot detail in a in fares. We're mtc is moving with respect to fear, implementation of Clipper to even though it's somewhat delayed from where the original schedule was. Plan. It still appears to be better to us continue to stay. I'm in touch with an integrated with these mtc efforts because they are white or that just Sonoma County. They're the entire Bay area. So let him tc the lead on those sorts of things. Other things like network conductivity improve travel times. They're high in and PCs priority list. But they are further down on work plan for him. C so for right now. In terms of that network, they're really focused more on information scheduled for match that sort of thing unless on how it physically all sits together. So these are places that Sonoma County can really start to make some progress moving forward is focusing in on some of these places where people are trying to make transfers again. Another place that origin destination is survey information comes really handy and also really taking a hard look at where services are duplicative, an overlap, overlapping and where things could be redistributed next to slights. Please. So what should be tackled first,

there's you know, there's a world of recommendations there. 27 separate recommendations in the report itself. Plus, there's corridor options in some microtransit recommendations as well. These recommendations cover a number of areas have already talked about one of them day to, for instance. Again, focusing on getting really good data about how intensely the system is being used. Some of the operators Sonoma County have much better information. I will say that Santa Rosa City buses, one that's got excellent ridership information. Was really helpful. Not all the operators are at that same level. So it makes it difficult when we're starting to look at, well, how are people using this particular operator in this particular operative? One's got really good data. And the other one doesn't have good a data. It makes it very difficult to start making recommendations that what we should do this. This is how we should redistribute service because we don't really have a good handle on how people are using the system. It's another playset that origin destination information is important. Overlapping fixed route quarters have already talked about that a minute. Talk about an in just a minute. This is another place trying to make the experience of writers more seamless regardless of the color bus or train that they happened to be on. I'm in a in a perfect world. People would not know what carrier they're necessary necessarily moving on. It's know the county. What they know is I can get on a bus. I can get to where I'm going. I

pay one fair. I look at one set of information. I can get information from one thing. The look and feel is consistent. I feel like I'm in one system. It is meeting my needs and I'm not spending half hour sitting at the transit center someplace waiting for 2 buses to connect that I can move around the easily. There are some other fixed route recommendations, not surprisingly for coordination, writer, information, organizational issues are covered. There are some recommendations on paratransit which is too again improve integration of paratransit services. This is another place in tc moving head on some efforts with respect to paratransit service of these recommendations. Dove with that effort as well as the potential for micro transit. Now, I will say that Mike Transit is one of those things seems like. You know, when you have a ham in your hand, everything looks like a nail into the old saying and micro transit is one of those. It's not the solution for every mobility issue. Sometimes it is a really great solution, but it really takes an understanding of what's going on in the community what the community needs are with the communities trying to go some work working with the community and looking at where the options are and where they're not. What really provides people better mobility and what doesn't. So again, it would be really easy to go overboard and say, oh, yeah, there's 15 areas that you can implement microtransit. Instead what we've done in the report is

indicate areas we think have potential. But that needs further investigation from a planning perspective and really importantly, need that outreach to the community for the go ahead. Next slide, please. So one of the overlapping service quarter says the highway 1, one quarter. And this really is from the southern practically Petaluma of Sonoma County up through Santa Rosa. Why would we look at that? Number one, it has the most service of any place in all Sonoma County, which is not surprising because it also the place that there's more jobs and residential density than anyplace else in the county has a very large concentration of both and employment. All 5 operators. We work with a run at either part of where throughout this corridor. So again, there's opportunities to rethink how those services interact and how they act moving from place to place. So it has really high potential to improve mobility for many writers. It also has the great opportunity to reallocate transit resources to both improve service in this corridor as well as other quarters throughout Sonoma County. So it's kind of a gold if you will. And just give you an example. Of what people experience today, some of the choices that they have. We just picked a spot that's just north of dilemma. In Penn Grove, actually and said what if someone who lives close to this particular intersection decides that they want to go to downtown Saint Rose? That will just go to the Santa Rosa

Transit. All. What? How much time take them to get there. We included transfer time and the times vary as much as an hour from this location. And Pena go to is just over half an hour to get there on smart Su. There is very considerable difference in travel time, depending on what choices people make going from one place to another in the county. So one of the ideas here is to start taking advantage when when those services are operational of of integrating those 2, both improve people's travel time as well as improved their number of opportunities that they have to be able to move from. One place to another. Next slide. Please. Rachel already did a great job of talking about the effort. The one thing I do want emphasize the same thing. Here is that was true that I was talking about earlier collecting. That's top level ridership and the urgent destination data is really important. Looking at what's going on in that 101, corridor. It's important that we understand if that person how how many people MAY be getting a trying to go from Pembroke to downtown Santa Rosa to go back to the day example that they just gave you then with that Dayton had do the detailed planning figure out this looks like a better solution to us. But really important is to take that out to the community and say here's what we think might work better for you. What do

you think of this idea? And so it's just start interacting with the community, with the data with the proposal in hand that people can actually respond and react to some of this will come out of the mascot study as well. But it's going to be left in the hands the transit agencies to actually begin to execute that plan because the mascot still study. It's going to come out with set of recommendations. These recommendations, again, with respect to the 1, 1, quarter will go right along with it and hopefully together following pathway. We can begin to chip away at making the system. Operate better for the writers who are using it as well as attract new writers. The system, which is really important next slide, please. What what are some of our other high priorities? Talked about the recommendation to do better data collection. This is not just a challenge for the U.S. 1, one quarter. It's a challenge throughout the county. One of our recommendations for is cta to actually create a resource bank to assist agency. You did a collection that data management issues many of the agencies don't have staff. Available to just focus on nothing but data issues and Lots of times. New priorities coming in every day. I have to reprioritize going to set today to decide I'm going to move ahead and do the other things that are I'm on fire that are on the top of my inbox. First and the data

begins to slide back. So the idea here is to be able to supplement the agency's in Sonoma County, but staff that can act as a resource bank to help get that data in the hands of the planners. The can actually be good to something with that. There is tremendous amount of information on each one of recommendations in the study. We're not going to go through the mall today. Just going to say there are a number of other high priority recommendations in the study data is one of them. And again, we proposed way that a cta can help out with that. Our last slide for today. Next steps in the We are completing our presentations to ports and councils right The center of the City Council's the last one that we have scheduled to do we're potentially asking I'm not today, but for each board and council to sign onto an initiative to dedicate time and effort to integrate. Trance and integration in Sonoma County again. Yeah. Memorandum of understanding and then continue coordination, obviously, with ntc efforts initiatives as well as the mascots trance and integration effort with Marin and Sonoma County Golden Gate Transit district, especially asserted that the center of that. And with that, I'm going to stop talking and draw breath and see if you have any questions before we call it good for today.

>> Thank you very much for the presentation. And Tim, I believe thank you very much for sticking around. I know you had a 5 o'clock had to get out of here looking council to see if there any questions. Councilmember MacDonald. Thank you, Mayor. I want to say thank you for the presentation and I'm happy to hear that there's are going to be a real focus on coordinated services and not connectivity that so important for those that are using. >> Public transportation. One question I have and I do see it in the presentation was have we done any studies on students that go to the ajc when they're coming? You know, particularly from Windsor Cloverdale area to our Santa Rosa or Petaluma down and and and where that connectivity is because I know that's going to be going back in session. And so I do always have concerns around student ridership, but I think college age when looking at this kind of system. >> We spent a substantial amount of at both campuses. When we did the outreach said the Santa Rosa Junior college students are of touch. I would say that majority, but they are certainly part of the folks who responded to this survey. Certainly from Santa Rosa to the north and the 1, 1, corridor there is a lot of concerned about the fact that the service there is not very frequent. If you MISS A trip. You're back our intent and our 20, I don't remember what the frequency on route 60 is right now. Safe for someone coming

from Cloverdale to go to the this Santa Rosa campus. That's one of the sort of the targets for saying. Let's take some of the use a colloquial term here. I do. I don't be in a nasty way, but let's take some of the clutter out of the 101, corridor between Santa Rosa and Petaluma. Let's clean that up. Let's make it work better for people. And let's take some of the excess and do things like improved frequency so that there are more opportunities for people to go from Cloverdale to Santa Rosa on the 1, 1, quarter through the county system maybe from Sebastopol out to the West or maybe there from a snowman out to the east to get those are. Fairly. Remote locations. And there are people that travel all over because but you're a tea of services. Our focus in that 1, 1, quarter. And whether we're talking about school education, medical services, social services, other types of things. Most people have to travel to get to those kinds opportunities. So one of the things we're trying to do get improved their opportunities, too, to access those. Important. Why functions? Councilmember Rogers? >> So first, I want to say thank you to Rachel Cause. I know you've been working on this for years, 5 years whenever the ties to the first came out, I know it's been a

priority for you. My question really is around workforce development and we talk oftentimes through ties about making public transit affordable and reliable for folks. And a lot of that's in there. We've had a couple of instances where we actually had to cancel routes because we didn't have enough drivers just because it's hard to attract and retain that employee with all the specifications. Can you talk a little bit about opportunities to work with Sonoma County Transit and Petaluma transit specifically on that piece? >> Yeah, for sure. And one thing all highlight specifically, I'm not with those 2 agencies, we actually are in a conversation that's just begun with the Santa Rosa Junior college around Pre apprenticeship program. They have that they've developed golden Gate transit for bus operator positions. Specifically. It's a really well thought out and well design program to bring people into the profession, the career through ajc with a lot of skills development and there are now just expanding the program. Utter reached out to the other operators joining that program, which is very transit workforce development program locally here in Sonoma County. So we're really enthusiastic that is a possibility. Partnering with Santa Rosa Junior College and being able to have, you know, the access to their recruitment and then also the development that they do with the participants to get them ready for this career is pretty impressive. So I think that would be the thing that I would highlight that I think is potentially a great opportunity for us have a more success recruiting or retaining bus operators. Thank

you for the comment on that. >> I was going to just highlight a it was on slide. 12. When you look at the recovery from each of the agencies, a smart now is at its all-time high. It's something that they've been very proud of him. Part of that has been because of the efforts around you. 3 transit ridership programs, particularly during the summer and also programming public transit to be more accountable towards events and things that people are actually going to. So there's some significant learning opportunity for us with center is a city bus. The other bus operators from from what Smart has seen a successful as well. >> I also have 2 other comments about the things that are propelling smarts One is what they originally started operating back 2017, 2018. Their predominant. Emphasis was on the traditional commute periods. And coming out of the pandemic. They have began to focus on improving services on weekends showing in the gap between the commute periods. Reading later in the evening. The other really big thing that they've done is a comparatively speaking when they first started operating, their fares were much, much higher that the local operators, they have literally been reducing their fears aside from the right there are free programs which are. Great way introduce people to the service. Even for people who are still paying fairs. They have. Brought down substantially. So the fair penalty for using smart to go from place to place in Sonoma County or even from Sonoma Marin County. It's not nearly as great as was for years ago and it is made the service and

the ability to it begin to look at more integration options really attractive because of that. >> Yeah, I appreciate you highlighting that. Actually just even go one little step further. Smart was also the first transit agency in the nation to recognize work from home and price monthly passes. And and beyond that work passes based on a 3 or a 4 day work schedule instead of a full 5 taking the transit. So thank you for bringing that up. Vice mayor >> Pick up in the workforce development team. I'm glad we mentioned Srj. See, we also Ssu just a little bit to our I happen to work there. And I know from from my interactions with students and from looking at the schedules that can take up to an hour to get to to get to Santa Rosa from Ssu. Had about 6,000 students who are looking for internships and work. I'm we're trying campus less car centric. I know that has Su is called out in the as as a future area of focus again, from an economic development standpoint, think there's opportunity there and I just a personal standpoint. The new website a new app are great my wife and I very much enjoy watching riding the bus. We we rated very satisfactory. So thank you for all the work locally to make that to make in the bar union enjoyable. Thanks feed >> Thank you again. One of the one the other places that we did, one of the pop-up meetings talked about with our outreach su. It was getting a little bit late in academic period. So we didn't have probably as many students as would like to have had. But we

still got some. And what you're saying is very true. It is an activity center at that has a decent attraction. Now, if the service from various parts of Sonoma County was better than it is today, more frequent where people had better choices to go back and forth and different mobility choices that did not take this long. I think you could really increase transit ridership to just one of the state. >> MADAM City clerk, can you please facilitate public comment on this item? Thank you, mayor. We're now taking public comment on item 4.1. If you are in the chamber and would like to comment but have not yet provided a speaker card or your name. Please make your way to the podium. You have 3 minutes and a countdown timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the public record. If you choose to do so. The first public speaker will be Thomas. >> Thank you for the opportunity to speak a very item that you are concentrating on. I think the question both the question and the answer is data and I like what the gentleman from Nelson Nygaard was saying, which origin, destination study. So. At the time when I was studying transportation, forgive me. My name is Thomas Cells. And I'm a civil and environmental engineer. And I when I was studying transportation studies. My professor who is in Chicago with this time aggregator. Company for Transit. He has a company that. Doesn't West Area. And I said to him, what about? Origin? Destination study spending said we know where everybody go. They go from work go from home to work

and go from work to home. And I thought, no, that's pretty empty because everybody comes a lot of other places in between and then school and all these other things that he I mean, he was. He was being flippant a little bit. But they were expensive the time. The data is expensive to get. But now we have all these abilities to to get the data. So particular with cards and everything like that. So I would say words and destinations that very important. Prioritizing coordination of the stops. That's critical because that's actual experience of the people. Please, if you would, would recommend an additional staff that a meeting for smart and being one of the regional people involved and smart and getting smart. I was forgive me. I was the one who got smart in the priorities of the counting. So the made that a priority out of the 2020 economic development study. We didn't have a staff and her and we need to have a stop at her. And I think there needs to possibly for the coronation in that area of obviously in Rohnert Park There's a stop over there. It's too distant from issue. Circulator like what's happening at the airport now. So as more has a circulate around the airport business Park, one very similar to that would be tremendous for and for the whole community to get from what is coming. Where's the downtown of Rohnert over to to the stopping Rohnert Park and

get it there and that would be great. And all my comments are. Thank you very much. >> Thank you. Please go ahead on the East lectern. >> doing the wooden from Roseland. Please prioritize paratransit eligibility. Please make a situation available for veterans. Disabled veterans especially reached out to me stating that the bus service won't help them get to where they need to be. Lets them off in this case route to buy the South Santa Rosa community based outpatient clinic for Veterans Administration health. Don't get him right to the door. And so veterans again to use walkers or are in difficult situations have to walk over to that clinic. They don't understand that. Maybe they can work it out with the different agencies. All 6 of these agencies mention today I've written on. You can work up situation where the eligibility for disabled veterans no matter what their age. Could be. Liberalized, if you will, and help them get this door-to-door service so they can go right from where they live to the Veterans Clinic, which is out on route 2 or perhaps need to go up to the Northern Clinic, which is airport boulevard. But there's a way this could work if you folks would. What is the term for that collaborate together with the community as much as the agency's. Thank you kindly. >> Thank you. Speaker on the West sector. Please go >> Good Evening Council. When we're developing this plan for transit. Specifically like question Councilmember Rogers

and you do serve on the smart board. >> While there's been no public mention, but the tiny tax measure does not renewed within the next 5 years, but smart will cease operations entirely. We're continuing to give exponential funding. And there's no mention that all of a sudden, if it stops operating one day, what are we going to do? What's going to happen with funding? What will happen with the ridership that nobody's writing and now and so I would for staff to revisit these plans entirely and make sure included. Thank you. >> See no one else approach the podium for public comment on this item. All Bring it back to council. I'm looking to see if there any comments seeing I'd like to our staff very much for all the work that you definitely put into and working with the consultant. But just thank you very much. And it Councilmember Rogers pointed out it's hard cause we need staff to actually drive in clean and do everything that we need so weekend that participate in with the transportation and we lack in that. So we're trying and we know that you're trying. And so we just want to thank you very much for all the hard work that you're putting into it. With that we will roll right into our regular agenda and we will go down to item 6, which will be a report from Adam City regarding our closed session.

>> Thank you, MADAM. Councilmembers, that litigation report was a attached to the agenda materials. There were no settlements over $50,000 finalized in the month of JUNE. Our caseload remains at about constant level of 38 litigation matters. Many of our cases currently are in the discovery phase. Most have dates assigned to them. We continue to try to resolve smaller cases with little or no cost to the city. And that is the end of my report. On the closed session on the study session. You just held a study session and I think spoke for itself. Thank you. >> MADAM City Clerk, can you please facilitate public comment? Thank you. We are not taking public comment on item 6. The report on close to sessions and item 9. The report of settlement, some litigations. Is that correct? City Attorney sticker. I think you might have combined that I combine my report and left what I was supposed to report out, which is there no reportable action in any of the closed session matters. >> Okay. I've done it all. All right. Thank you. We are going to take public comment item 6. The report out on closed sessions as well as item 9. The report of settlements and medications. >> If you're in the council chamber would like to provide public comment on this. These items, please make your way to the podium. If you have not provided a speaker card, you have 3 minutes and a countdown timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the record. If you choose to do so. Please go

ahead on the West lectern. >> Good Evening Council. My name is Edina Flores and I would like to speak on pending litigation. Or non. There's not transparency with some of the council members who serve currently and they seem to be serving their best interest rather than constituents. I emailed councilmember a copy and I've not received a response. I just like to know where half a million dollars that was meant for the coffee party rebuilt one because there's no record of the disbursement and the minutes for the city. And as a former government employee, I'm very well aware that half a million dollar donation. There's neither be and you or it should be documented somewhere. And Kaiser who donated the half. A million also does not have that reflected within there. For my 90's submitted to the irs. So I've had many constituents chair that copy part coffee, parklets and terrible and it wasn't fixed up the way, but it was supposed to be so being that Property was the founder of Coffee strong. I'd like to know where the half a million dollars went. Thank you. >> Thank you. Are there any please? Go ahead. MISTER Else. >> Lou, thank In reading I happened notice that there were a number of real estate items in the closed session. It reminded me of something that come to in a second. Sometimes there's not enough transparency on on some of particularly so the one that I'm really is the the crossing, the Smart crossing Jennings. And I know there's a tendency to say, oh, well,

there's litigation involved in this or potential litigation or whatever. Having the opportunity to have closed session on those items does not mean that you should not have open sessions on those items, particularly Jennings crossing its very to actual. Reauthorization of the smart tax. So that we have that completed and the communication within the community is very important. That it's an integrated that your communication with the community is important and the community's engagement is important and then they go to the election for the tax that's going to reauthorize smart. So it's really important. And if we do this each month, the sorry, we did >> Comment on these items prior going into closed session. So this is just >> for the city attorney's report out. Yeah. Thank you. >> It's still about the report because it's about the transparency of those actions that I'm talking about, that we don't get a real report out of what's going on with Smart. Thank you. And Jennings. Thank you. >> Mary c no one else approaching the podiums for public comment on these items. >> We have no proclamations for today. We have no staff briefings. >> We're on item 9 in it. I MADAM City, attorney has already provided her report. So we're going Sunday manager. She has a report. >> Thank you, Mayor. Good Mayor members of council so many of you all were aware of the concerns we had around the cultural Heritage last week.

So I just want you to know that we of the concerns we are addressing the concerns and we are scheduled to bring us some of those concerns to the council for some approval. We want to make certain that we are working with you and working with the community to address those and address those and expedited fashion. If there are additional questions that you can reach out to me, and I for those to staff. But we are aware and we are committed to addressing each of those concerns. Also tomorrow at 5.30, we are having ice cream with a So ice cream. You know, not not pizza. And I talk over him and ice cream. It's there cream at 38 e Marlow Road. On Tuesday, JULY. The 30th were having coffee with a cop at Mattel Tay Food Park and that's at 6, 6, 5 Sebastopol Road. And on AUGUST us to 6 beginning at 4.30, I'm national night out. That will be located at Dick's Sporting Goods at 1975. Cleveland Avenue. >> as coffee. Tonight here this tacos and tacos. Just check in Bo, you can get call too, it's mainly Taco. Thank All right. Second. >> So we'll go ahead and goes city clerk to go ahead and facilitate public comment. Thank We're not taking public comment on item 9. The city manager's report out. If you are in the chamber would like to provide comment on this item but have not yet provided a speaker card. Please make your way to the podium. You will have 3 minutes and a

countdown timer will or at the end of that period as you approach the podium, please state your name for the record. If you choose to do so. On the east. Please go ahead. >> My name is Edina Flores and I'd like to the resignation of the cultural heritage for that was just mentioned. They were not within the fees studies their feedback was not included when the permit fees, for example, major revisions were increased from $1000 to $17,000. Astronomical. This is because the council did not understand what they were voting on at the time generation housing who I believe is PRESIDENT This evening was requesting to waive developmental impact fees entirely. And that was included the study. So when we're decreasing bees in one area, that burden is carried on individuals in another area. So we have to look at the increase is one. We're looking the deficit as well. So because we are building these affordable housing projects benefiting the developers on the Generation Housing board. Now the historic district is picking up that burden home home owners, the middle class are being burdened for housing projects that are not affordable whatsoever. So I would ask for council to bring back about the study and I actually know what they're voting on before voting accordingly. Thank I please go ahead. >> Hello, my name is Dwayne The Wooden from Roseland for many years over the decades of appeared before the Cultural Heritage Board to try to get them to consider the Roseland as a cultural heritage. Also and that we should have preservation and landmarks and

in order all the time. So I think right now, one just ballers board, save yourself the money and the time because essentially what has been used for is to help property owners in neighborhoods that are considered special. MacDonald Avenue. The Burbank neighborhood here. And just you got financial difficulties for the next 3 to 4 years coming around. Savers of all the trouble on this. Just abolish this board and then go back on those fees and get back to you even have to have certain types of fees in these neighborhoods because essentially what we're at, he's not really saving a lot of the culture in our communities. It's more about somebody special building, getting some sort of preference. I do believe there's more culture and Roseland. Then most of those other neighborhoods and they just don't understand because they never been around a really broad culture. So abolish the call for her to support. Thank >> Thank you, Mayor. Mc no one else approach the podium is for this item. Thank you. We will now have our first public comment non agenda matters. City clerk. Thank you, mayor. We're now taking public comment on item 14 non agenda matters this is a time when any person MAY address the council on matters not listed on this agenda, but which are within the subject matter

jurisdiction of the council. If you're in the chamber and would like to comment but have not provided a speaker card or your name, please make your way to the podium. You'll have 3 minutes and a countdown. Timer will alert at the end of that period, we will take the first. We will take 12 speakers under item 13. If we have more than 12 public comments on item 13 are part of the item. 14. The remaining speakers will be afforded the opportunity to speak on item 18 non agenda matters. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the public record. If you choose to do so. We already the first 12 public commenters. The first speaker will be Allen followed by summer than Jordan. Okay. I'll circle back to Allan Summer Jordan than Jason. Summer. Go ahead. >> I'm here tonight to read People's Resolution. Calling for a cease-fire in Palestine and Israel and demanding justice for all since you have all. >> Failed to hear our voices over the past 10 months. We the people of Sonoma County living on the stolen land of the coastal me walk Southern because Cheyenne WaPo people's the people who steward of this land for millennia before being subjected to displacement and genocide by European settlers. Colonizers. Believe that all life is precious and that all suffering and loss of life is tragic. We mourn the lives, lost on and since OCTOBER, 7th 2023 due to the violence in Israel and Palestine as well. We mourn the lives lost in the nearly 100 years leading up to

that day. 10 months into the United States backed Israeli genocide of Palestinians and Gaza and the rest of occupied Palestine. It is conservatively estimated that at least 200,000 Palestinians have been killed. The vast majority of the deaths and injuries being women and children. The entire population of Gaza is being subjected to starvation, thirst disease and lack of adequate medical care. Israel continues to block a necessary aid from entering the strip will simultaneously bombing neighborhoods indiscriminately killing and injuring all in its path, destroying hospitals and factories and power plants. Wells and water purification systems and everything that is necessary to sustain life. Israel has destroyed cultural institutions, schools, universities, mosques, churches, historical uncivil archives, libraries and historical sites amounting to cultural genocide. We recognize that the current crisis takes place within a long history of occupation and Zionist colonization and historic Palestine. The origin of the Zionist colonization of Palestine is found in the racist ideology of the late 19th century. European colonialism. Its goal is the displacement of indigenous Palestinian population and replacing it with a foreign one. We reject the racist colonial violence and genocide. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. View the struggle for liberation and Palestine as part of the wider struggle against imperialism and its legacy around the world and Africa, East Asia and the Pacific Islands and

the Americas to name. But a few and here at home in Sonoma County, the legacy of imperialism is experience daily by members of our community. Indigenous people, African Americans, immigrants and the poor face discrimination at every turn and our police forces trained by Israel, surveillance and population control are becoming ever more militarized. Thank you. The next speaker will be Jordan followed by Jason than Tammy. >> Jordan. >> Through solidarity and unity can liberation be achieved? We are reminded hear the words of the Australian indigenous actor, activist Lilo Watson. >> Well, if you have come here to help me, you're wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together. Many of us who are Jewish, like myself. Reject the notion of an apartheid at no stay on stolen land. We'll make us safe from Anti-Semitism. There has been intense Jewish opposition to Zionism since the concept was first proposed. There are hundreds of thousands of Jews worldwide who decided this about the actions of the state of Israel and repressing the Palestinian population and attempting to keep a Jewish majority in the area by force. During the many months since OCTOBER, 7th, local politicians and elected representatives like yourselves have failed their constituents and have been silent in the face of calls for them to take actions opposing the genocide in Gaza. Therefore, we the people of Sonoma County, joined the United Nations human rights organizations, world leaders,

religious leaders, the city of Cotati, the Sonoma County Commission on Human Rights. Santa Rosa Schools and citizens of the world everywhere and calling for an immediate and permanent cease-fire. We demand an end to all armed hostilities and an end to U.S. Military aid to Israel, including any and all weapons. We call for the prompt release of all hostages and detainees. Both Israeli and Palestinian. We demand equal rights and representation for everyone who lives in this region and that region and the right of return for refugees and their descendants to their homeland. We hold that it is the duty of local governments to convey an amplified the will of the people to state and federal governments. Therefore, we call on city and county governments in Sonoma County and around the country to heed the demands of their constituents and join with them in calling for an immediate and permanent cease-fire. These calls for a cease-fire must be backed by concrete and meaningful actions to pressure Israel and the U.S. Government such as divestment from Israel and from weapon manufacturers and companies profiting from the suffering of Palestinians and all oppressed people around the world. We demand that our tax dollars be used to strengthen and support our communities rather than funding endless war abroad as citizens of the world, we demand Peace liberation and freedom for all home Pakistan. Thank you. The next speaker will be Jason. Just just a reminder, everyone. >> shows affirmation or are

are allowed but no clapping, no snapping and what we need to keep it. We need to civil here. Thank you. >> The next speaker will be Jason followed by Tammy than Jerry. Jason, go ahead. >> Good I'm Jason Sweeney live in District 5 I have returned to speak you about a few I want to be fair to use. I know you have a lot on your plate, but I also want to voice my extreme displeasure with your silence and on the repeated requests for a cease-fire resolution. Obviously, we've taken matters into our own hands. We must. But the chasm. I want to talk about the chasm between words and actions since so I thought I'd start by reminding you a few maybe you forgot and I don't know the resolution that you passed in NOVEMBER of 2021. Declaring racism a human rights and public health crisis in Santa Rosa. I mentioned were in Natalie went off to our our lovely mayor, it feels a little uncomfortable or a talking about racism as a white person with with a certain degree of privilege. But we are doing the work that is required. We're not having the difficult conversations every time someone brings up this type of resolution. They talk about the difficult conversations that need to happen. We're not doing that. We're avoiding it were talking and you guys are being silent. I want to remind you on MAY 24th you, I think Laird retreat Independence Day, which is lovely on MAY 5th. The you pass a about the missing and murdered indigenous Women Girls in Persons Awareness Day, which also a national issue. And then, you know, during the during an ongoing genocide in APRIL, you declared APRIL one

month pass resolutions. We we we need we want your support and we want to know what community we live in. I want to remind the citizens of Santa Rosa that this is obstruction of democracy during an election year. We deserve to know where our city council stands on one of the most horrific events of our lifetimes. You cannot stand for peace and justice but remain silent to be silent is tod the system of violence when our so called leaders explain that they sometimes must put their feelings aside, asked them about their principles. This is coded language for their donors and the ruling class that they are willing to cast aside morality principles and reason to do the bidding of the establishment. The sad truth is that all of you are politically vulnerable. And I understand that. I understand that. But these are crazy times and we're living through this and it's it's not easy for any of us. So. I would just jump ahead because I'm running out of time. I'd say don't raise taxes on us again. Find your backbone and demand that we take care of every day. Americans that we prioritize everyday Americans over funding and this warning and the biggest single greenhouse gas emitter on the planet. The U.S. Armed forces. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Tammy followed by Jerry than on Lee. >> My name is Tammy. I will be something by Saul Williams. >> The pledge to resist. We believe that as people living in the United States, it is our responsibility to resist to the injustices done by our government and our names, not in our name. When you wage and with war, there can be no more deaths. No more transfusions of blood for oil. Not our name. When you invade

countries, bomb civilians kill more children, letting history take its course over the graves of the nameless, not our name. Will you erode the very freedoms you have claims to fight for? Not by our hands will be supply weapons and funding for the annihilation of families on foreign soil. Not by our mouths, but we let fear silence us. Not by our hearts. Will we allow whole people's our countries to be deemed evil? Not by our will and not our name. We pledge resistance. We pledge alliance with those who have come under attack for voicing opposition to the war or for their religion or ethnicity. We pledge to make common cause with the people of the world to bring about justice, freedom and peace. Another world is possible and we pledge to make it real. Will you pledge? Any you ask me to e-mail you email you never responded. What's up with that? Please do what's Levin, liberation for Thank you. The next speaker will be Jerry followed by on. We've Indy know >> Jerry, go ahead. >> Thank you for allowing me to time to address the council. This is a report of item, 15.1, which is the general business tax ballot measure which has been postponed leave until the next session. My name is Jerry Reed on the PRESIDENT And general managers for these European Volvo cars and Mercedes Benz of Santa Rosa, which we've established on a row in 1982. His family owned sharing with parties. Can I ask Can I you to hold that until we get to the item?

>> I'm sorry. That was can take. So can do we do one moment. Jerry apologies All right. I stand corrected. Jerry, a go. Go right Option will be quick was only. I'm here tonight to discuss upcoming consideration. A vote on AUGUST 6th increase the Santa Rosa Business license tax. >> That proposed increase would raise Santa Rosa business taxes by 1600%. This proposal is extreme solution to the budget situation. One point I'd like to make for the council is that the auto dealerships are businesses that have volume of sales and loaded profit. That successful dealer runs and a profit margin, one to 3% similar to a grocery store. The new tax proposal removed the $3,000 cap and taxes on our total sales. This measure passes our city, a business license tax would go from $9,000 a year to $145,000 a year. So we have to stop calling it a business tyke a license and probably start con attacks the city to actually greater than we pay and state corporate taxes. Can you imagine having a business paying federal corporate tax paying state corporate tax and now I have to pay and overly burdened city of Santa Rosa business tax. California has lost 240 major companies due to high taxation in poor business environment. After 4 years of seeing businesses leave state, Santa Rosa cannot afford to lose businesses. Our son was a car dealerships helps the city. The city council came to auto dealers in 1982. And wanted to an excess. Our business collects 4.1 million dollars in sales

tax employees, 118 people, 7 million dollars in payroll go on with Poppy. Will tax property tax business, property taxes? We know one to the business development Santa Rosa. It's easier to keep a business in the drawn, a new business, the staff at use their licensing collecting subcontractor to do all the research that have what they have not considered what other cities in the county pay. Would get a competitive disadvantage to other nearby businesses. The city made comparisons to the city of Tracy which passed a business tax increase has so much pushback from their businesses. They now have a one-year moratorium to the study. The issue, they also say the city of Sausalito, which has no car dealerships in the city of people read there. Not sure where that's at has 3 used car. Lots. Those comparisons are not viable yesterday, 7 auto dealers met with the city manager, the cfo and the vice Mayor Mark staff to discuss our concerns regarding car dealerships having high sales and low profits. Pointed out our unique business model and the harm that huge tax increase would have in our businesses. I believe they were open to argue information in understanding. Thank you for your consideration. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be on. We followed by Dino and then we're going to touch base to see if Alan has to rejoin council chamber and we please go ahead. On >> Yeah, my name didn't show up. In has could season high and now and she's up hiring us

today many, many, many years And I can't believe, know, many months if the months I'm coming here before you see it become sorry, we have a pretty sentido resolutions. Susan, prior resolutions, you'll have enough for them. And as in north past, I know you are or somebody You have them to the run. You have a mother. You have a cousins. And that s the one moment to end up you And the shoes off a in Gaza, Palestine right now, you know, can you or those Yes, they are 90 people like he learned. And p sure this was to report 2002, but we know oaks him published a close to 200,000 people are most them, women and children. One the reasons is that city government says we don't want to do this is we haven't nothing related. The 2 Gaza already, you know, was what if need to really be a? When I was officially been open come with they have wanting to work or even general could even are. >> they are welcoming And the this is a win. Know was really have to stand up. Special can report Nia, Northern California that the was a you know, not totally disillusioned and someone are running for. You know, you in their positions. I'm not excited at all. You know, I I should like to be here to fix

it. They want to get engaged so I can vote for you but looks they wanted do something resist. Some of us even raising voice strongly about the how one local government issue the stand up against the federal government. It is a parole her own channel site. So please Think about that one minute. You know, and how do you now by now, you know, by not taking any actions about the think about how many more back to And again, he cared at this very moment. Please something. They make me appear excited about running. Off in county. Baidu's up high >> thank you. The next speaker will be Dino followed by Dwayne, Then a tele. Do you know? Please go ahead. >> This is what the vice mayor said when questioned why the city council hasn't put a cease-fire resolution on the agenda and pass it. I would say 100% of people want in the eventual cease-fire. Called on my phone, just turned How humiliating to me a second >> Sorry about that. I would say that 100% of people want to bring to a cease-fire in the one one's violence taking place on both sides. But there are varying views on what's going on in the Mideast. And it's difficult to construct the resolution reflects a broad views in the city. I don't see the benefit of putting something like that tore through the council. >> That is such a complete and utter joke and he's obviously smart enough to know why

that's a joke. 77%, of Democrats in this country or for a cease-fire. 69% of Republicans, 56% of independents. Do you really think that number doesn't bear itself out in Santa Rosa? See the cities in California that have passed a cease-fire. I would cut it Folsom, Fort Bragg, Davis print would Richmond, Oakland, Berkeley or the pardon the Rent Stabilization Board? San Francisco Hosmer there in Montebello, punt Panola Longview's Laguna Beach 20 to go with tensions of this causing those communities. It brought people together because calling for a cease-fire is calling for peace. >> I know that you people don't want any of your time's actually advocating for labor unions in this county in this city. But the a l c I o the largest federation of trade unions in this country endorse a cease-fire a long time ago. What tension that I causing their unions. >> None. Today, 7 of the largest unions in this country led by Sean fines, uaw union simpler Joe Biden asking him initiate arms embargo against Israel, Amnesty International. Human Rights Watch major center as the prime minister of Spain, Emmanuel in France, Francis, have in common. They're all calling for a cease-fire with tensions in the cars and the Vatican with tensions in the cause in Rome. What tensions in the cars in Paris are in Barcelona and Madrid. What tensions of the cars in San Francisco, the city in the Bay area with the largest Jewish population, the

city I'm originally from. But now live here in Santa Rosa. I talked to my Jewish comrades in San Francisco. There's no tension. >> Are you kidding You are beholden to power. No chance. Wrote a book during the Vietnam War essay in the New York Review of books. >> Called the Responsibility of the Intellectuals. And he says that they don't call the Vietnam War because they're all beholden to power. They're all rule by the power structures in this country. The Israel lobby, the military-industrial complex, the big bosses, the big corporations and step on the working people of this country and the world for too long. >> You're all beholden to them. And like one of my comrades it earlier, maybe in your heart, you want a cease-fire, but you're too cowardly to advocate for it. So look in the mirror every day and look and say I'm on the wrong side of history because you are on the wrong side of history. Yellow bellied cowards. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be rain followed by a Taliban. Michael. >> Certainly. Please go ahead. >> just >> hello, my name is Duane De Wit and I'm from Roseland. And this is a flyer from 9 years ago when the county was talking about how they were going to help Rosen be better with what was called the Roseland Village Neighborhood Center. I was a member of the committee. Help to pick. One

of the development teams. And it was done. So with the idea it was a promise and we know we didn't get it in writing for shall or must. It was about there was going to be a library branch. A community center put into this development. Throughout the planning process. We're always told yes, there's going to be that library branch there on Sebastopol Road. And there's also going to be a community center in the building. Once it goes up, it's a taxpayer funded situation in many ways and we feel like we've been harsh waddles. So word you can look up for fun, but it's not fun when you've been bamboozled like that. And now the city is participating in a game plan to build. What they call the Rosen Library down in the Bellevue District. They basically are neglecting the fact that we have a really nice situation with the small library up in Roseland on Sebastopol Road, which is the heart of that Census District. It is the most disadvantaged underserved. And overburdened community and not just Santa Rosa, but Sonoma County. Pretty much so. A game plan for us is like we want you folks to speak up for the rose and residents. We know he does. And I see is a way right now. But he can listen to this down the road and here that were not given up on making sure that our cultural center of Roseland is recognized and that we in this situation for the future, want to make sure that there's less. We also advocated there should be a one acre green space here and the ag and open space district

has already put forward lots of money, but it's being used for them and towed a food court, which is a former Sonoma County employee managing a site for a guy from Healdsburg. And they're actually running Roseland businesses out. Because they don't have to pay for bricks and mortar fees and the different stuff that the local businesses have participated in. So help Rosen by helping that Rosen Village Library in Roseland on Sebastopol Road. Thank you kindly for your >> Thank you. The next speaker will be a tele followed by Michael than Diana. >> Means that a We're not in a honorary mayor. Roseland. Man is on it. And I would like to see the bore city council to be on it as well. And continue that is that you are responsible to the community, federal taxes, state taxes, federal taxes trickle down to cities. Many cities has passes resolution about seizing fired cease-fire. You have a responsibility to this community in the majority in this community want a cease-fire, not only that the international Court of Justice had recently finally. Had made that decision and a ruling occupation in of Israel, Israeli occupation of Palestine is illegal. It has been all along. And I don't know how informed you are about international issues,

but that's why we're here that we need to address these things and it effects our lives as well. So like Otieno said, I think he said it very eloquently, ran down the list. So you know what's going on? If you haven't up until now. And he was right when he's walking out, that does its coward if you don't actually act on it. You know what the issue is, you know, that the majority of people are on but it don't bow down to power and is a minority in this community that you that has addressed you privately and they don't represent the Jewish community. There are Jews in audience right now. We're in this building right now. Don't agree with Israel Israeli policy. So you should be aware of this if you're not. I believe that you are. And I think Howard is is the correct word. I don't mean to demean you in any way. I just want you to do your job. Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Michael followed by Diana. Thomas. >> And they're Michael to tone resident of Santa Rosa and District 2 Ana Marie, Start by reading a quote from Aaron Bush now to self and waited outside the front gate of the Embassy of Israel and Washington, D.C., in protest of the genocide in Gaza 6 months ago. Now. Many of us like to ask ourselves, what would I do if I was alive during slavery or the Jim Crow South or a part-time. What would I do if my country was committing genocide? The answer is you're doing right That's the quote. And we're here because we need you to

take action. So what are you doing right now? You who refuse to use your power to call for a cease-fire. We need you to take action. What are you doing? You have allowed the city to continue having investments in Lockheed Martin and Caterpillar who profit from the genocide and Palestine's Palestine all while claiming cease-fire is not a local issue. Need to take action. What are you doing? Can we have supposedly entrusted with representing us who like us are citizens of a government that is shielded and enable these atrocities at every turn with the duty just like us to stand up against injustice done in your name. We need you to take action. What are you doing? Who are supporting a surveillance apparatus to be used against our community? That even the aclu has warned you about. Tolerate the destruction of homeless people's property while gaslighting them with claims that the resistant to services. There's a continuity in your actions. We need you to take action. You with your ice cream with a cop and coffee with a cop and ethnic studies with a cop. Have you had coffee with someone who's lost every belonging they own because of a cop. Because it happened here. We need you to take action today. Will you signed the people's resolution presented to you today? Please sign the people's resolution. We need you to take action now the time is now the time was Moore. It was it was in OCTOBER. It was before today. It was way before today. So we're asking you now sign this resolution. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Diana followed by Thomas.

>> Not sure of is working it is my my name is Diana Freeman. I'm the general dealer principal of Freeman Toyota. Freeman Lexus in Freeman collision. Like to speak to you about the proposed business license change. I think that when it was proposed, at least, you know, the documents that I looked at, they had not really the understanding of. The big companies that are in center's, especially on a row is if you look at our sales, it looks like, wow, that's a lot of money because obviously cars are expensive in this day in age repairs on them are very expensive. Parts of expensive. But if you look at our profit on that, almost all auto dealers here, the profit is somewhere between 2 and 5%. What those gross sales are. And now we're being asked to turn over, you know, somewhere between one and 2% of that, which is, you know, it's it's not possible because now we're also asked by the oem, which is that manufactures to put millions of dollars in our buildings and they make us do it into putting charging stations that cost millions of dollars Soler the cause millions of dollars. Well, that millions of dollars isn't You know, that comes out of our prophet. So in reality, we don't even really have to 5% of profit. It's less than that. When you look at how much money we have to put back in these in companies. And so I would just ask that you would look at that because when I saw the comparison at a meeting and they were showing, you know, the little amount

that was collected on the license. I noted that was left out was the property, the business property taxes that we pay, which is substantial for my company has $30,000 for, you know, and the and then if you look at the property taxes that we pay because of the size of our our businesses, for me, those those are $650,000 right there. And now with what you're proposing would add another probably 300,000 and now you're making it. You know, it's already a hard business. That's why all the family businesses are selling out. Santa Rosa has, you know, is probably the last. You know, little stronghold of family businesses in California, in the auto industry. And there's a few sprinkles here and there. But most are being sold out to corporates. And, you know, they hound me all the time and you guys are making it harder and harder for me to say no. And when they do take over, I'd like you to know that the first thing they do is slash everybody's pay. So all of the people who work for us, most of them will be fired if they take anybody back and they will be taken back at much less pay than what they have right now. It is. You know, I just ask you to look at this because as my you know, the other dealers said to you, they tried to do this without looking into it in Tracy in Tracy is now in a quagmire because they realized, oh, wow, we didn't really realize that these businesses, including Costco and big box stores all have very small profits on the other end when you're trying to put the

license on the and you know, the sales. So thank you for listening. I hope you would, you know, give us the opportunity to show you further how that really works for us. Thank you. The final speaker under item 14 will be comments. Please go ahead. Comments. >> Thank you for the opportunity to speak I want echo the comments of others here. My comment is about. Carbon dioxide Michael was talking about how these decisions that you're making. Reflective of a world view and the trouble that we right now is substantial. There are several existential threats. Some of which our office Keating, our View the greatest one, which is the environment. I want to point that out that so this is Airbus ship and Airbus has the largest airplane in the world that they put the fuselage of their really big Sri 20 years, 3.50, whatever. >> That really large Airbus plane. They put that inside of and then they would fly around will be decided that, okay, find stuff around like that's kind you know, it's first class. Maybe we could cut down on co 2 little bit. So they created the ships. They created 3. The ships and each one of the ships is about 200,000 pounds of steel need ship. Each ton of steel produce about 2 tons of carbon dioxide. Each one of the ships produces 400,000 tons of carbon dioxide in the

construction of the ship. Just a steal. Okay. Another of copper. What everyone This is actually really need ship. It's These these are mask. These are sales. That doesn't look like it. But that's what they are. So its sales around and also on some of the power. But the most important thing is that it saves 25,000 tons of carbon a producing 400,000 tons of carbon in its construction in first couple years will was under construction. It takes 15 years before that is a break-even point. So understanding the dynamics of what we're doing when we're approving construction were proving demolition, for instance. Sonoma Developmental Center has embodied carbon of what was built there in in the concrete of over a million tons of co 2. And this has embodied 400,000 on more than 2 and a half times, almost a total amount of the ships that the bill and exhausted into the atmosphere which will not break even for another 15 years would be demolished. The seem out the would be demolished over at Sonoma Developmental Center in fell swoop. They knock out all the People lives and replace him with other residential building. So this is going to come before you and assume that they want to be in the city and these are tremendous impacts that we have to be conscious of. The dynamics of them. Thank you. >> Thank you, mayor. That concludes tell public speakers item 14 non agenda matters. Thank you very much. We will now continue to back up to item statements of abstention by council members. MADAM

City, Attorney. >> Thank you, MADAM I Councilmember Alvarez has asked that I his recusal from item 16.1. Perez is recusing out of an abundance of caution. Based on his financial interest in the cannabis business. >> Thank you very much. We will now continue to 11. Which is council member and mayors reports. Councilmember crafty. >> Yeah, just one thing real this morning. We had the Public safety subcommittee with the 2 main items discussed aside from department updates were the police department's response is to Office of Independent Review, our independent Police auditor. There's a recommendations they went through on the recommendations in their responses. It was fairly evident during that entire process that the collaboration in the relationship between the department as well as earned Bentleys are a year was great in all recommendations will as well as possible. The second item that discussed was the real time crime center. I'm going through the various technologies that are in use as well as purposes of those restrictions that impose on those by law as well as self imposed policy of of the department and general over a well of the subcommittee and council. Those that a meeting is on YouTube. You can stream it there. If you'd like to see more in depth as about 2 hours long. So get into it too much more than that. Thank you. >> Thank you. Councilmember

MacDonald. Thank you, MADAM I just have a couple things I do want to say thank you to the community for. >> Giving us feedback on what had happened in the Cultural Heritage with them. Actually, I'm resigning this last week and I'd like to make a formal motion to bring back that fee increase associated with historic land mate mark alteration permits and fees for historic districts for reconsideration of the decade. >> motion made by the council member MacDonald's second by Mayor Rogers. Thank Can you please restate the motion on the floor? Can you restate the motion? Please? Councilmember MacDonald. This man. >> I moved to bring back the increase associate associated with historic landmark alteration permits and fees for historic districts for reconsideration to the council. >> Do you have any additional? >> Items for just to speak to the motion? I I mean, want to be very clear that we heard the community's concern around I think it's important that we bring back the entire fee schedule that had been rolled in to the presentation that was before council so that we're really clear on that, the increase and and the impact that that MAY have. But we don't want to have happen in the city of Santa Rosa is that people stop getting permits for work being done. And we did hear that there large increase on some of those. And we want to make sure that and the council is very clear about it as well as so that we can make a very important decision on this.

>> Thank you. Councilmember Rogers. >> Just as a point of clarification, if I can, I know that Director Osborne was already going through and potentially bringing. >> of the items back for consideration for reduced rate. >> Do you want to do the cultural heritage? Immediately or do you want all of them from director? Osborne? >> I think it more the most that we can get as far as a whole presentation would be fine. Mean, it's I want to delay the process because we certainly don't want to stop anyone from that in the current process of pulling a permit. But I think it be important to actually have the full scope of all the fees and Director Springs working on that would be helpful. I would be ok to us. I would like to second bringing as much back cause we And I also know if anyone is in the process working on something that the city is willing to work with people. We don't want people to not. >> Pull permits because we're figuring this out. So please do bring it to our attention. If we're interfering in your current process to proceed with renovations of your property. That is not our intent or desire to do so. >> Did that complete your report? Yes, ma'am. >> Thank you. Just have one more announcement. I attended the California Alliance for Jobs Reception last Friday night. Want to say thank you to them and their 3 large construction unions that meant to discuss the opportunities for us for the future for and the state's infrastructure. That's what the focus of this group is not just around jobs

in unions, but actually working to make sure that we have more money brought in for infrastructure, not just Sin City of Santa Rosa, but also in the state. So I just want to say thank you to him. >> Thank you. Vice Mayor step. Thank you, MADAM Mayor, just one for me on JULY 17th, the Violence Prevention Partnership Policy Committee has held its by and bi-monthly meeting. We've got an important srpd on the downtown corridor talking how it's been an unpleasantly busy summer. The downtown corridor with particular reference to a transit mall and at the plaza. But the police department is well aware that store in the city are well aware of these issues. And so the police department and the violence prevention team are both spending lots of time focusing on area. Then we also had a presentation from the Seminole County District Attorney's Office regarding victim services with again, particular focus on the Family Justice Center and the services. The wraparound services are of it that are available individuals and families were the victims of crime and abuse. And then we we conclude the meeting right by kicking around ideas for future topics. So stay tuned. Thank you. >> Look at council to see if there any additional councilmember for me. Thank you, mayor. On JUNE 26th I >> In San Francisco to mtc where we put the very housing finance on the 20 billion dollar housing bond on the ballot, which if passed, create 72,000 housing units throughout the Bay area. There's a lot of information,

education available out there for the decision for the voters throughout the 9 counties. Really exciting and interesting. And then last Thursday I was with the council member Rogers and Assembly member Connelly where we were there to support the of Planned Parenthood where they celebrated their card check verification elected to use seiu has as their labor union. It was an excellent opportunity to see what the power of grassroots organizing compounded with people who care about choice privacy and freedom in our communities can do when they put their heads together. So I just wanted to give a shout out to both seiu and Planned Parenthood for a job. Well done. >> From IReport, JULY, 11th, the Sonoma County Mayors Council directors We were able to review potential ballot measures that are coming up in NOVEMBER update since that is. Look briefly. And also city updates on local potential measures. JULY 13th. I was able to attend the spark your future women in that reads Workshop, which was really impressive. It was a free event for women to learn how they can thrive union electrical apprenticeship program. They have the opportunity for women to snap circuits Wire led lights, pipe beanpole wire and much more. The facility was beautiful and it took my breath away. Thank you to I b e w local Phi Phi one for welcoming me into the Electricity and the electrical

trades for women. I was able to also attend on that day park a month. Which do the work at Southwest Community Park. And again, if you have not participated in and I encourage each of you to do so. On JULY 19th this legislative. I attended the cinema legislative meeting in our business items were legislative What we can expect to see on the NOVEMBER. And yes, that is a reoccurring theme because the ballot will have a lot on in NOVEMBER. So I encourage everyone to educate yourselves on the items that will be on the ballot and how they will affect your community. On NOVEMBER. I mean, on JULY 19th, I was also able to attend a roundtable discussion with a pro to Maguire's than Billy member. Damon Connelly soon to be assembly member Rogers and state Sen Baldwin. With other local elected. We discuss some of the challenges that we that we're facing things we would like them to look into moving forward in Sacramento in ways that we can work together regionally to get things done. JULY 20th i was able to work out with srp these fine us which was fun and exciting. I actually ran for the first time. Even I didn't think I could actually run, but I did run. And that was pretty I'd like to take this time to appoint miles Horton into the community

advisory board miles currently serves as legislative policy in community engagement manager at Sonoma, Power where he had a Sonoma clean powers advocacy in the state Capitol. In addition to handling community engagement efforts. On geo's own initiative to build new next generation. Geothermal power in our region. Prior to joining Sonoma, clean power Miles. But 7 years in the California legislature in the offices state Senator Scott Wiener in Assembly. Speaker Robert Read this and had previously worked as a legal assistant on the Sierra Club's beyond coal campaign. He is a graduate of Williams College where he majored in political economy. In his free time, Miles enjoys hiking birdwatching in traveling and he lives in downtown Santa Rosa. So welcome Miles to our community advisory board. And with that city clerk, the police facilitate public comment. Thank you. We're not taking public comment on item 11. If you are in the chamber and would like to comment but have not yet provided your speaker card or your name, please make your way to the podium. >> You'll have 3 minutes and a countdown. Timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the public record. If you choose to do so. The first speaker will be Dwayne. Please go ahead. >> COUNCILWOMAN MacDonald for being vocal with the request to revisit the fees for the historic district. I did see

the article that came out today and >> it was spot on. Surprisingly, as we know, I'm not a fan of the press Democrat, but there was no transparency and it's obvious the communication was walking here. And so it's important. But all of the constituents and our hurt, especially the ones that are going to be affected the most speak to MS. Rogers reports. I'm not sure why we called MISTER Chris Rogers. Our future is only men when elections are months away. I actually had the opportunity sit down his opponent for Assembly, MISTER Michael Beer and his family over the weekend and they are genuine. They're hard working and I can't say the same about somebody who's had the most everything handed to him and had the audacity to accept the endorsement from California Teachers Association But your opponent was the PRESIDENT Of the California Teachers Association. And you actually told the Cloverdale Democrats that you deserve about endorsement because you grew up in the public school system. Who else grew up in the public school system. So as we know, I ruined a partial leave Ms Ariel campaign in the primary and I have no ruining yours and we know how about one during the primary is also thank you and GOD bless. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be >> away from Rosen. Thank you kindly and especially a big thanks to the mayor of Santa Rosa and the city manager. MISS Smith. The new director of the recreation and Parks

Department. Dante Watson and the new director of Transportation, Dan Hennessy, who all came out there for that park a month day at what's called Southwest Community Park, which was dedicated over 30 years ago for the people of the Bellevue District. Word sits and then the folks in Rosen who are across the street on Herndon Avenue, it was wonderful that you folks were out there and MISTER Smith, excuse MISS Smith. Was doing some good stuff, painting over graffiti making that place. Look nice because it was getting ready for junior Giants, which on Monday after that held their first little get together out there for team ball, for those youngsters get ready to play some sports and do good stuff. With that in mind that director Dante Watson. He's been more hands-on in some ways in any of the previous directors. We've had recreation and parks. He walked down to see what the folks in that area called the Rose. A neighbor would give a good look the and understood that there needed to be a better stewardship. With that in mind just before you folks to juror event, city parks and recreation and been out there in the neighbor would and help do some vegetation management cutting back on the front of the few letters. It's called wildfire prevention approach. These things happening just a couple of days later, there was a fire out there in the area that they did not go to. And that's because people are out there starting fires for camping. Thank you for your

time. All of the city folks that were there volunteering. I was so inspiring. You smile >> Thank you, Mary. See no one else approaching the podium for public comment on this item. Thank you. Will now proceed to item tall The minute we have sent one set of minutes dated JULY 9th 2024. Counselor there. Any corrections to the minutes nodding heads. MADAM City clerk, a new police facility. Public comment on item Thank you. We're now taking public comments on item to help and won the JULY 9th 2024 regular meeting minutes. If you'd like to provide public comment and you are in the council chamber, please make your way to the podium. If you have not provided a speaker card or your name, you have 3 minutes in the countdown. Timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please make sir, please state your name for the record. If you choose to do so. An approach. The podium for public comment on the minutes. Thank you. We will adopt item 12.1 as prison paid moving on to. >> Sorry, we're going to go ahead and go to our public hearings for tonight. So moving on to 16. MADAM City manager. All right. So correction, I apologize. We're going to go and we finish. We'll go to item 13. Our consent items matter and the city clerk. Can you please? No need to run. Sorry from all over the place. I apologize. You please read the consent items? Thank you, Mayor. Item

13.1. Contract award, Rosen pavement, maintenance 2024. Item, 13.2 resolution go cinema, co-operative agreements. This item was continued from the JULY 9th, 2024 regular meeting. Item, 13.3. Resolution approval of First Amendment to professional services agreement number f 0, 0, 2, 3, 7, 1, for state legislative advocacy services with many public policy group. >> Division of any public Law Group, llp. Item 13.4 resolution renewal of Enterprise agreement with has e s r I for GIs software. Item. 13.5 resolution, 4th Amendment for one year extension with sla incorporated for planning and development related software support services. Item. 13.6 resolutions, Second Amendment to purchase order number 1, 6, 5, 1, 4, 0, with, you know, personal site Services incorporated. And item 13.7 resolution extension of proclamation of local homeless emergency. Thank you. Bring it back to council to see if there any questions on the consent items. >> We >> will now have public comment on the consent items. Thank you. We're now taking public comment on item 13, the consent calendar item. 13.1 through 13.7. If you are in chamber and would like to comment but have not provided a speaker card or your name, please make your way to the podium. You will have 3 minutes and a countdown timer will alert at the end of that period. As you approach the podium, please state your name for the public record. If you choose to do so. The first speaker will be doing. Well. We're waiting for doing to get over their kin ademas their

public comment. Please go ahead. >> I would like to speak believe it was 13.7 regarding the extension of the homeless emergency and as we all know, the big question in California, that's been surprisingly, the mainstream media constantly is where that money is going and a particular organization by the name of d my consulting and management received 26 million dollar no-bid contracts from the county's Sonoma and will operate in those sites out of Santa Rosa. I've sent you all e-mails regarding my concerns over Dima and you've been the individual to handle the independent audit was MISTER Eric Rozar. The auditor for the county a county of Sonoma, but I was a bit confused because his wife Kimberly Roser was the head of procurement for health services. She actually procure those contracts. And so it's just interesting. There's been no mention of that. So that raises my skepticism regarding the homeless monies and the fact that they don't seem to be going to the homeless community team actually expanded their business out to Harris County, Texas and the health services director ms Harvey Robinson brought her public information officer for the county, huge law along to Harris County with her to operate how services there. And from point, onward, they develop to the heart program to once again contract with themselves of the sheriff's

office. MISS Kathy Yost, who is the director of communications for Harris County sheriff. Her name was on the demon corporate filing for Harris County, Texas. She actually resigned from her position of 24 years. And so that corporate filing oddly was signed in taxes the same day as Sonoma County Supervisor, Gore his home Galveston County, Texas, which is about 45 minutes away. So I've shown you we can go through the documentation, but homeless services all 9-1-1, services, rather between taxes and elected officials essentially contracted with themselves, created an office for themselves and then gave themselves no-bid contracts. And I can show this. Just interesting that we're climbing. There's a homeless emergency, but nobody wants to investigate further. So I would implore the council to, you know, I go my concerns as to why our elected officials are pocketing home was moneys. Thank Thank you. The next speaker will be Twain. >> Sure. One moment, please. >> My name is doing to from Roseland. I'm talking about 13.1, which is the contract awards for Rosalynn pavement maintenance this year 2024. And the 2025. So 7 years ago when the city annexed Roseland, there was an agreement with the county that they would be giving the city $640,000 a year and that would go on for 10 years. So after 7 years, you should have 4.2 million dollars, at least. And we don't know where that money is gone. We don't know the accountability when roads are getting fixed during all this

time, some of the most important roads that had been so beat up all these years haven't really been fixed. That would be bar him avenue. That would be South Avenue. Very dangerous roads right now. So when I was hoping. Is that you folks would be able to talk with us about not just those road repairs, but also crosswalks. At least 15 years. There's been a talk about a crosswalk that would go from one side of Burbank Avenue to the Rosen Creek Elementary School that was built almost 15 years ago. And it's really important that we get the crosswalk. It's a canard. It is wrong to sell. The neighborhood's hold up because the astors to do studies. There is no lawsuit right now against the city any way, shape or form about this park that I put that picture up of. Basically the discussions have been around making sure you get better services and you don't pave a lot of land through here and Putin permeable servers, impermeable services of parking lots. 37 parking spaces. It's just unconscionable, especially because this area might be awkward for recharge area. And with you folks being a part of the groundwater sustainability management agency, you need to be watching out and making sure that you get prefers recharged and not find. More obstacles to getting water into the creek. So with this in mind. Please account to where the money's been spent

so far. How much is left in the count from the county and how can we get that crosswalk in no matter what goes on with this area here because people already walked through their people have already been using this. You call the park already. And many of you have been out there so lets make it safe for the children go across the street and get a crosswalk funded by the moneys that have already been put forward from the county during the annexation process. Thank you. Thank you. >> Speaker of the West Sector and please go ahead. >> Hi, my name's and ideas and I'm from Roselyn. I just want to echo everything that MISTER Dewitte said just because Roselyn is a consent item for today's agenda. >> We talk about how necessary it is to fix our roads. However, Roseland, even though it's still and next. >> Dre was and I stayed in 2017 into the city of Santa Rosa. If you just go drive-by Sebastopol Road MAY come an avenue Sunset Avenue, South Avenue and a lot of core being all love the road. Still not fixed. So when we're talking about improving Santa Rosa, let's start with Roseland because it's still under served and a lot of the finances that go into neighborhood. I mean, we're not seen So I'm going to also something that he had mentioned as a trust. The frozen in speaking as a community member too many relatives at 10. My school district there needs to be

across walk there. It's very dangerous. People are speeding up and down that road. And at night lights just aren't there. So let's please trying Roseland as best as we can. As much as we advocate and say that we going enjoying Roselyn, we go to to food park or when we go to tn Maria's been or we just go to ransom. And those in general, what's really prioritize fixing the roads long before we even going priortize this mid Penn Project because Sebastopol Road, if you go around the hours from 8 all the way to 07:00pm traffic is drastic. >> And there's many accidents. There's been civilians have been hit. >> And this really needs to improve. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mayor. Mc no one else approach the podium for this item. >> Thank you. >> Looking at vice mayor's staff. >> Thank you all. Make a motion that we approve items. 13.1 through 13003.7. >> we have a motion made by Vice mayor staff in a second by county number Okrepkie. And the city clerk. The please call the vote. Thank you. Councilmember Rogers Councilmember Okrepkie I Councilmember MacDonald. I Councilmember Fleming. I council member of runs. Vice Mayor stop. I Mayor Rogers, I let the record show this passes the 6 affirmative votes in Councilmember Alvarez ups. Absent, thank you. Moving on to item 15.1. >> Which resolution, General business tax ballot measure. This item has been continued to AUGUST 6, 2024, regular meeting. 15.2 resolution, transient occupancy tax. The

ballot measure. This item also has been continued to AUGUST 6, 2024, regular meeting. Moving on to 16.1, which is our first public hearing for tonight City manager. Item 16.1 is public hearing ordinance of the Council of the City of Santa Rosa Chapter 6 dash 20 of the Santa Rosa City code titled Regulation of Retail, Tobacco Sales. Arthur, as the city manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with the county for compliance monitoring and enforcement. >> Good afternoon, mayor and council Jason assistant city manager all be walking through this item with you tonight. This is a public hearing and and re visitation of the first read of this ordinance. So i want to just I put the slide in here. Just a reminder of where we came from. What the request was. We did put at the request of council during a council goal setting session session. We were asked to prepare tobacco retail license with idea of taking steps towards reducing impacts of youth in particularly youth access youth use and how we would accomplish that is is mirroring policy and program an ordinance that was drafted by the city of Petaluma and we brought that forward back in NOVEMBER for Sunday session. For a previous first reading and I'll go into little more detail that in just a minute. I also want to just highlight for kind of the snapshot of where we are at when we presented this back in MAY in MAY, we had 118 retailers listed by the state of California has a license holders for the sale of

tobacco. Retail are tobacco products I've provided for you because we did have a discussion at that time the distribution throughout the and which are how many were in each district. And at that point in time, 40 of those 118 retailers were within the 600 foot buffer. And went through the process in the ordinance. Describe what that meant for those retailers. So 14th 2023, we brought general ideas to the council with some framework on how we would want to accomplish the council request of establishing a tobacco retail license. The general feedback from council was we want to be very strong in the sense we want we want to really push on making an effort toward reducing for youth accessibility for youth. We drafted that ordinance in coordination with Sonoma about health department. And we brought forward a draft ordinance on MAY 20st 2024. As a first reading and received a for won approval from council with the one dissenting vote being that for a concern with economic development within our community. When we did the second reading back in JUNE, JUNE, 4th, there was additional questions and concerns relating to the economic component of what of this particular ordinance and counsel on a 5, 1, vote requested that we return with some alterations to the language specifically aligning the our ordinance with the ordinance recently adopted by

the county of Sonoma, which tempered restrictions for transfers and aligned the feed programs a little closer. So that there was a parity between the organizations. What I'm not going to do tonight, even though this is a first reading, I'm not going to go through in detail all of these particular sections. There's no changes specific to the sections and we don't I don't feel the need to kind of rehash some of those. And I want to focus specifically on those areas that the council requested that we focus in on with that said, I just want to highlight a couple of things. There are. Is no 2 section. There's no change. The section 50, which is the package the package pricing portion. There's no change on the limits of eligibility tobacco retailers.-1 piece, which included a transfer component. And we've eliminated that and just referenced what is now a new section. There's no change on the eligibility relating to the 600 foot buffer. So the key components that council had requested that we incorporate are all remaining within this as far as prime it ordinance components. We're going to step in and talk about those specific areas that you request it first and foremost is under the eligibility component there is a section in there that relates to density and total number of retailers within our community after consultation with Sonoma County, we determined that the language there was somewhat restrictive

meeting. The numbers within the state always changing. In fact, the report back from the county 2 weeks ago was that the number had reduced from 118, 215 retailers within the city. And therefore, what we wanted to do was to remove the specific reference to a number and just state that at the time that the ordinance is adopted by the council, that that number of retailers would be the upper cap of our ordinance. There's a second component of that section which relates to more of a density cut, a piece which what we outlined was that the number of retailers allowed would be consistent with one retailer per 2500 residents are population within the city. The way that works out is it establish is a different cap and that cap at this point based on 175,000 population is about 71 total retailers which if we have a change or if we have a retailer that's currently licensed, that drops out we would need we would not be allowed to issue a notice of availability for new licenses until we reduce the total number of retailers to 71. And I've provided 2 components here and you'll see this with most of the discussions today. The proposal right now in the ordinance is to really is to leave the language status quo. If changes by eliminating the

number stating that we're going to adopt the total number as of the date of the ordinance that the state has currently listed and will retain the density provision that says one per 2500 are one retailer for 2500 population and however, there is an alternative that I wanted to propose. Which is we would that we would remove the density component of that language and and here's the rational unwind, providing that as an option Opponents of the recommendation. During our last meeting. We are about economic development. And with that there was there's it could be viewed that we're still addressing and impacting the economic development of the retailers by establishing a new. That's utilizing the density. If the intent is simply to create a simple cap, similar to what we've done with short-term rentals. Then the alternative proposal would eliminate the language relating to the density. I left that in this particular point because there were 2 viewpoints within the council and I wanted try to bridge those 2 viewpoints to the best of my ability one is alignment with the Jason agencies and all agencies around us have that density provision in And so if we were to remove it, we would deviate from Sonoma County as well had Windsor and on I recognize that there's and economic development component and I wanted to give council that opportunity. You'll see in attachment to to the packet has language that's drafted specifically as a cut and paste should council

choose to make an adjustment? I did that because I wanted to make this a simple process. If there's a particular piece that you want to incorporate, I'd like to believe I've already done the work for you to be able to make those adjustments. And I'm certainly open to hearing your discussion or questions as we move forward through this. As part of the transfer. We created a new section, as I said in the last section, I removed a component that related to how transfers occur. By adding Section 65. We're utilizing language that's contained in Sonoma County's ordinance that they recently adopted. It eliminates the restrictions on transfers for anyone who's currently existing, even if a license. With a few exceptions. And those exceptions are listed here. It says you cannot transfer a license if you If you are moving to another location that is in violation of other sections of this chapter, in essence, if you are trying to relocate your business and you chose to relocate within 600 feet of the youth serving area that we would not allow that transfer to occur. The second is to transfer to another proprietor that has 2 violations within the last 5 years. The 3rd is to not allow a transfer if that proprietor has had their license revoked from another agency because there are many other agencies in our community that have similar programs or similar ordinances. Now, as I said, I'm trying to make this a little bit of a pick and

choose along the way there is an alternative. The reason I chose that second bullet here, which is the 2 violations in the last 5 years is Sonoma counties set set up where if you are one shy of are being revoked. You cannot take a transfer. So our program is set up in that way has since we've restructured for a 3 strike program. The alternative to this would to simply say. That we wouldn't allow a transfer if that proprietor has had their license revoked here within the city any of their other locations. So wouldn't create a discrepancy for an operator even though there's 2 strikes in the last 5 years, they're still considered an operator in good standing because they haven't violated and have their license revoked. So this is an alternative. Should you choose? I can replace and alter that to try to to clean it or make it more for the council. The section one 15, this is enforcement and penalties specifically relating to businesses that are unlicensed now. Council asked us to evaluate the penalty phase associated with this. But you did ask me to focus in on businesses that had licenses when we were going back to review this. We recognize we have inadvertently removed this section. Given the feedback that we heard from council about wanting to remain strong in enforcement and strong and penalties, it seemed

inappropriate for us to not have a fine structure far folks operating illegally. I mean, what we heard from retailers and over the last couple of meetings was there are a number of retailers. A majority of the retailers are operating in good faith are doing their job the way they're being told to by the law. It's these folks who not only don't have a license but are just don't care who they're selling to. That's why we brought this piece back. We thought it was appropriate and 2 were council started. We went right? We took what we felt the business and professions code allows us to enforce as the maximum penalty for an unlicensed retailer that is actually selling. For the section that you requested, which is one 60 we utilized Government Code Section. This is the same section of the county utilizes as well as other agencies within the county. Now some of the other agencies like Petaluma have a sliding scale. They've more or a violation can be made enough if a violation occurs, a fine can be made between 10500 per violation. The county began to also incorporate something something like that but a more structured approach. And so we did that as well. And we took that range based on this government code section. We created said violations structure this as $100 per violation. In the first instance, 200 for the second instance, 500 violation for the 3rd instance. Now recall

when we talked the last time per violation every product that violates our code is $100. If a retailer has 1000 products sitting in there business that violate this coat, it's 100 per 1100 times the 1000 and that is the find that they would be issued. So the good news for those council members who want to see strength. If they're really MISS Behaving, they're going to get hit with a big fine if they're just a little bit misbehaving. It's not going to be a severe and it's more now. The coach structure is in alignment with our neighbors. Now, as I mentioned before, we also took this council's request. We restructured to a 3 strike program. So we're not doing a 4th strike at the 3rd strike. Basically, we're going to be revoking licenses. There is an alternative language here and I mentioned 2 different code sections. The business and professions code and then the government code. Should council want to simply have a single code reference within our ordinance. Staff is recommending that we go back to the business and professions code and we take the minimum threshhold that they identify there. We think that still extremely It's significantly stronger as you see from the numbers. Then the government code section and the value and benefit here would simply be that retailers and our enforcement team would only need to go to one code in order to identify how they would be applying the fines. The other piece that I didn't hear and how is this last bullet? And regardless of which code section we choose, I want you I want to offer.

This is a potential that says we're adding a new section or subsection that says the total fine, per instance shall not exceed $10,000, meaning regardless of if there's 1000 units there that the maximum fine for that retailer would be $10,000 for that particular instance. So that's another option. And I can. And that number was selected its it. There are other agencies that have used the $10,000 Total cap and I was trying to be consistent there. But again, it's it's there for us. Should the council request that we incorporate that into the language. Now, there are a few cleanup items that we did as well. And so as we were going through this, it gave us another opportunity to not really read this one more time. And there are a couple of pieces that we want to bring to your attention. One is under under section 20. There are the last sentence there gave an indication that if a product was fda authorized, that it would allowed to incorporated into a retail sells license based on council direction. The direction at this point in time is is regardless of fda authorization. We are not allowing in particular electronic smoking devices or flavored products. Therefore, we've removed that last sentence from the original. And we believe that this is conforms far more cleanly in with the Direction Council is asking of us. And I say that knowing that recently the fda did make an authorization of for new products for new

vaping products. That and they've provided authorization for marketing purposes for those products. Given that language there, even though you have a flavor ban, if they want there could have been an argument in contrast to what councils direction was that, in fact, those could be legally sold under this license. So we've eliminated altogether. The other is There was a question about how the full retail price was calculated in the way the language was written. There was confusion about how sales tax and fees were incorporated into the full retail price and so full retail prices excluding the taxes and fees in section 60. As I mentioned, we remove those 2 lines relating to the transfers so that we clean that up. An established a new section under 70. We we added language that reset the application deadline because making this effect of JANUARY first. And I think given the type of program this is to align with our annual budget having a JULY one, start date or a JUNE 30th. 3 application deadline make sense. So I wanted to make sure that I established that in the ordinance so that the work that we're doing with our partner agencies on creating the fees and issuing licenses was well known and understood by the retailers moving forward that it would be city fiscal year program, not a calendar year. And then lastly, Section one, 40 again, just restructuring that for a 3 strike program. Section one, 40 talks about suspensions for compliance when compliance

monitoring notice is that there's something amiss. It's kind of your fix-it ticket. In essence, by because we have that set up for a 4th strike. We wanted to make sure that we corrected So with that, it's recommended by the city manager's office that council hold a public hearing to discuss the regulation of tobacco, retail sales at this new ordinance, adding Chapter 6 dash 20 to the Santa Rosa City code titled Regulation of Tobacco, Retail Sales and 3 by motion authorize the city manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with the county of Sonoma for license administration and compliance, modern train. I'm happy to answer questions about this. I also have counterparts from our code enforcement team as well as friends at the county of Sonoma Health Department. If there are any, if you have questions for them. Thank you very much for that >> And thank you to you and the staff for your patience with us has in the public as we work this work this out. I'm looking to council to see if there Councilmember MacDonald. Thank you so much, Mayor and thank Assistant city manager nuts or I'm looking at this again. However, I do have a few comments and I don't think you'd be surprised by that. >> Based on my previous comments on rtl at teal are so on slide number 7, under the alternative proposal attachment I just want clarification. Are you suggesting that have the permits capped at 71 versus that proposed about revised language or we have the opportunity to discuss that right now. >> So the proposed language right now continues to incorporate the density

language in the ordinance, which makes it 11818. However, it's still also says the lesser of the total number issued by the state or one per 2500 population, which make it 71, which means that that under the current transfer rules, a retailer can transfer. However, there can be really substantial changes in the business model or it meaning they can't relocate right? These 3 pieces, they can relocate into another noncompliant zone. They can't sell to a retailer that has multiple violations or someone who's had a license revoked outside of that. Transfer of that license for that same location to a retailer in good standing can occur and that total cap remain in effect. Licenses surrendered. Or is revoked. Is subject to the lack of a transfer. No new licenses would be issued until we hit the lesser of which is interested in that? >> So then cap would be no more than 71. So if you lose your license is revoked. We're not going issue a new one based on the top revised language. But we've actually go towards the reduction, which would be about a 71. So we did. We'd have fewer folks selling tobacco. That's that's correct. That's the current language, the current proposal

in the or so that's a proposal that I'm comfortable with for a lot of different reasons. I think we've gone through them in the past. But since as an option and that's brought forward to council. I'd like us to consider that language, which is stronger and it it prevents children from having access, particularly when we looked at the map to see actually wear our retailers are located. I think that's an important one to add through into the language. If we go to slide 11, just for clarification. You have proposed language that started out as violations 1020500. And then like you to talk to me a little bit about the restructuring 3 strikes program. You're saying the restructuring was on the 3rd strike. They get fined and we just revoke their license after that. Is correct? Thank u k but on the second side onsite 12, you have increase to the violations under a different code and section. So I'd like to propose that that's a language we include so that it's $400 for violation 900 for a second instance. And and 1200 for the 3rd. And I'm not as comfortable with your cap. A $10,000. However, I think that one, it's the fines are not enough. We will continue to see bad players. Are people just selling to underage members of the committee because the fines aren't steep enough. They're taking that chance. So I'm more comfortable going with a higher violations for these instances because I think it holds everybody who runs a business accountable to ensure

that they're following the law. And in the ordinance that we put in place. So I would be more comfortable slide. 12 and having that language increased as far as your exceeds $10,000. I appreciate what you're trying to do. And if it's consistent with other jurisdictions and that's the will of this council, I'd be ok with it. But to be honest, if you've had that many violations, in my opinion, you're fine should be equal. What we put in place as far as the ordinance goes. That's not what I'm going to die on the sword for. However, I do think that if you're by making that many violations, you need to be accountable again, is a business owner to make sure that you're keeping years. You're, you know, business in check and that following what the law says as well as with the city of Santa Rosa says and with all of this in mind to keep children in community members safe and think if I go to. And the next slide, as far as start let's see which one was that? And Jason, had. That was JULY one 2026. My question is why are we going to 2026 and not 2025, which is a year away from now. >> So the thought process here was to give retailers just a little bit more certainty than the first 6 months. So that was really the We've also floated a concepts among staff that we would have potential to year licensing rather than an annual license. So it was really, too set a date we made

sense moving forward. I certainly understand. And if that's if the council wants to reset at a JULY one 2025, I now is reasonable. That's enough time for us to be able to get information out to retailers that this is coming forward. >> I'm fine with the two-year license. As long as we're doing our due diligence to ensure that enforcement is, you know, checking to make sure that everybody's following the rules. >> I think that it shows the urgency of making sure that we are holding people accountable that continue to sell. >> Tobacco to underage folks in the community. >> And I think that that was all of my maybe recommendations. Again, I do think >> that it's important that we get this in place tonight. I appreciate the work that's gone into all of from all of the staff members. I appreciate the community members that right in that continue to inform us on the data that shows that strong tr l's protect children, particularly children and families that live in lower socioeconomic areas in the community and children of color. And so I think it's critical that we get this in place tonight. I'm not happy that I had to come back again for reconsideration. We were almost there, but I do think that it's great that we were able to come to some conclusions and get this in place. Now. Thank you. As for clarification, Councilmember MacDonald use the Peart instance, but it's her product, not per instance, right? Per instance means like

one time they do it, that would be its per product. >> If they sell, correct, it's actually a combination of both. And so each instance. >> There could be multiple violations. And so the violation is based on the number of products in violation of our code at that particular moment. But that would still only be one strike even if 1000 products there that are illegal or cannot be sold. That's just one instance and one strike. But they're find on that 1000 products. They're not find on instance that side on that, the number of products with in that instance. That's correct. Okay. >> Just wanted clarify on that Vice mayor >> Thank you very much. Assistant city manager. We've really put you through the wringer in this And I I very much like we've come back might this addresses the concerns that I raised at the time it does not place undue constraints on some of our smaller local but it still makes But it's clear we accomplish is our aim, which is to make these products more difficult for you to purchase. With respect to my my colleagues reading, I have to say that I like your original proposal. Again, the purpose of this ordinance as we as we were approaching, it was to make it harder for you to buy products. It wasn't necessarily to go after the tobacco industry writ large, especially as adults are concerned. I'm more comfortable leaving. The number of key our licenses in place on on this So not necessary dropping into 71, but leaving them at the at the one 15, one, 18, whatever. The

whatever we determined. And then with respect to the the violations, I like the way you pitched proposed language where we're for, for people who are acting for for stores are acting in good faith. They're still find there will still we're still very much providing an incentive for them to act in good faith. But for bad actors, people were operating without a license as the mayor just just clarified where to go after them in a big way. I like the way to section doesn't. And as importantly, it aligns with Sonoma County code. That was the other very, very clear request we had from the business community where they said yes, absolutely put a fine structure in place, put inforcement structure in place, but don't make don't make have to track multiple jurisdictions across the county, which is what they're doing currently. So I like I like the fact we're bringing our code into line with the county and for that reason, I'm more inclined support The proposed language that you have. Just checking my notes here. I think those are those are the main points that I have great work trying to thread the needle on And I I I like what we will we have in front of us now. Thank Vice Mayor. Could I Kai? Ask a clarification question on your colleagues. Just want to make sure that when you're talking about the total cap on retailers, were you looking for a simple cap? >> Which is just the number of retailers that the adoption of the ordinance or were you

favor of the proposed language which also includes the language, says the lesser of total number of retailers or the density. Good, good clarification. Removing the lesser just keeping keeping it managing this, like managing St ours. Let's have a cap. Make it clear removing that 2500 density provision so that we're not we're not suddenly skewing the market in expected way. >> Thank >> Councilmember Thank you, Mayor. >> So I agree with nearly everything that councilmember MacDonald's said. The one thing that I would change is that I would not have a limit on the fines. I think the fines have to be with the fines are based on in infractions. I bristle at the idea that there's really an economic development argument to be made for a product. That's the whole economic models based on addicting children getting them to pay for the product for the life times and then shortening their lifetimes. Know that that we can do better. And I know that we continue to retire products, industries that that shorten the lives of people. So I I think that if we're going pay our economic hats on that, that we really ought to differently about an industry you know, like they do, they're selling to kids. Probably at worse. It's abuse of the children. And so I just think that really differentiate here is between going after the tobacco industry and going after tobacco businesses. I can see, although I disagree with, but I I'm supportive of the idea of protecting our local

retailers. I'm not in any way afraid of taking on the tobacco industry where across the world soup or nations in order to keep tobacco sales I mean, these industries are unconscionable. We should not at all fear, you know, or shy away from from attacking them. What we should do is we should talk about what we can do here that doesn't destroy our small businesses. I frankly think under cutting them are under underestimating them by thinking that if we take away tobacco that we're going to be taking away their livelihoods, weve regulated alcohol before we regulated tobacco before. And what happens is people who become creative because that's a business. People are there. They're problem solvers. As somebody who represents a district that is overburdened by these. I certainly want to maintain the 2500 foot turnover. That's really important because there are so many concentrated in my mind, lower-income neighborhoods. The other thing is really important to me is that if we whatever number we set the cap at the one these turnover, we don't the cap practice down until a point where we have one per 2500 and hopefully either non-existent or spread out through the city. At that point, I do think we're going to get to a place in our society where people it was. We've seen drastic reductions in tobacco use. We're going to continue see reductions over time. You know, businesses are still profitable and many other ways. Alcohol is not going anywhere. I'm sure they'll be some other thing. Maybe fruits and vegetables

will start to get sold at these. As a rather than a product that that's killing people. So that is that's my feedback. >> All right. It's the in. Come to real property. >> Thank you, Mayor. Yeah, I would just most of Vice mayor steps that I'm comfortable with, because language I'm the cap on fines. I'm just trying to do like simple math in my head and how. I mean, if you have. 50 cartons of cigarettes, right? You're being fined per instance. And that's per pack. I mean, you're you're talking constable amounts of money to somebody that's not going to have the 50,000 dollars in order to do that. That's that I think finding somebody for breaking the laws is is completely legitimate, trying to put them in the poor house to do so is not and I'm fine with the 10th out. I mean, it $10,000, not an insignificant amount of money, especially when you have the strikes in place where if you keep doing it keeps getting worse in eventually you're gone so I'm I'm fine. The proposed language, I'm fine with a $10,000 cap on on the fines yeah, other than that, I think, you know, I do want to say thank you very much for your work on this. And then sorry that you had to do more work than was expected. But I think I think the proposed language is something communication Do not take lately. The availability of tobacco products in certain products to kids specially flavored. I mean, we're not even talking about. Vape. Sinful flavored tobacco were all on the same page with that and so I want to thank you for for the work. He put it on on And yeah, I'm fine of the

proposed language. >> I would like to add, I just want to say and I think I've said this before we talk about fines and we talk about a cap is that it's not always the business owners that will making the violations. And so that is why I would like to some leniency. I guess you can say. >> Because they can in deal with people that work for them. But when we get to multiple violations, I think that they probably should have dealt with that are made it a I have been very strong with the people that they higher. But the first did happened and it could not be the business owner their substantial amount of fines. I always okay with finding, but I do want to look at it as educational experience to for business owners and not to just throw it, throw it at them because they could not be But it is the livelihood of their businesses and how provide for their families in other people's families. Also who are working for them councilmember funding that I left out. One thing that I also wanted respond to that, which is that? >> I I really do agree that we start in in 2025. That when we're talking about a product that that is harmful to children. There's really no time too soon. I understand that there's a brief where we need to educate people about signing up for the retail license. But as far as like a persons employee doing something illegal, a business owner is always responsible for their employees. I mean,

if you're running a bordello and in Nevada and your employee, you know, uses an underage child to engage illicit. They are not even a list that, you know, a sex act. Mean, that's pedophilia in. You're going to be responsible for that. It is always incumbent upon a business person to protect children and also to be responsible for the employees. I don't have a whole lot of patients for that. If you're going want to sell these these killing these deadly products that badly you should hire people who are capable of making that discernment so that that's where I stand with this one. >> Seeing no additional I I guess I did it in. >> Say. >> Mine. But I'm okay with slide. 8. >> Which is the proposed. I'm okay with the cap. In different for the cap. Honestly, because we're not taking away current licenses were just not allowing additional licenses. >> In some of are violating where we want the retailers to be at anyway. And so I'm okay with the lesser. Other 2. >> Violations I want to say that was the per the Okay with a 3 strikes and you're out. I think that's enough. Occasion and fines we need to just call it what it is. But it's a bad actor in our community and we

need to get rid of them. And I'm also okay with that starting in 2025, I think that gives us almost a year. And I think that we've been dealing with this in the retailer's see it coming. They know that we are going to be implementing something they've had time. To know that we're going to be implementing something exactly what it is. They don't know, but they've had time. I'm in Those are the points Perfect. So with that, we will now open the public hearing and a look at him city clerk to to facilitate public comment on this item. Thank you, mayor. We're now taking public comment on item 16.1. If you are in the chamber and would like to comment. >> But have not read it a speaker card or your name. Please make your way to the podium. You have 3 minutes and a countdown. Timer will alert at the end of that period as approach the podium. Please state your name for the record. If you choose to do so. The first public comment will be from. Me, followed by Michelle. Then Stella. Amy, please go ahead. >> My name is Inigo Tapia and I I'm a high school senior from Senator is a high and I am committed to advocate for a comprehensive ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products. And e-cigarettes and center is i strongly believe our youth deserves a free, a safe and healthy community free from the manipulative tactics, a big tobacco I care deeply about this issue because the youth in our community are being exposed to these dangerous products through

flavors that the liberty marketed to them. To address this problem. I'm working with a dedicated group to push for a ban on all flavored tobacco products, including flavored e cigarettes and flavored cigars. This ban will help protect our communities from the harmful part of tobacco addiction. And straight in the enforcement of our existing laws. I'm asking you to join us in this fight. Please provide support. And and the all flavored tobacco and e-cigarette products in Santa Rosa for the youth. Together, we can promote community wellness and ensure a healthier future for our youth. Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Michelle followed by Stella than Efron. Michelle McGarry. I'm actually going to be speaking for her because she couldn't make it. Okay, please go ahead good afternoon. Council members names and I'll be speaking on behalf of Michelle McCary. She would like to say that we have learned from recent local enforcement efforts that commercial tobacco retailers are illegally selling flavored electronic smoking devices. These are precisely the products that are popular within the youth in early June, a visit to center's a convenience store located near high School, which was full of students purchasing snacks before the start of school. Hi prominently displayed case of multiple illegal flavored vape products for sale after Inforcement provided education to the owner of the shop when the enforcement representatives return one week later, the illegal items

were removed by providing education and compliance guidelines to retailers. Illegal tobacco products can be kept out of the hands of the youth and the children, Tobacco retail license work. And studies continue to show that communities with strong enforcement provisions significantly reduced sales to minors. I ask you to pastas trl. Thank you. Thank you. The next speaker will be a Stella followed by f and then. >> Alexandra. Stella. Thank you. Please go ahead. >> Good evening. I'm my name is a stellar and I represent any of those health. A network of 17 federally qualified community health centers across 6 counties in Northern California. Who collectively serve over 300,000 patients annually. Our coalition includes Santa Rosa Community Health, Jewish Community, Free Clinic and Sonoma County Indian Health project all located here in Santa Rosa. I'm speaking today to express our strong support for tobacco retail licensing. Before you today as an advocate, community health advocate. I'm concerned resident Sonoma County, I'm deeply committed to the well-being of our residents. Why should our community suffer want to back up? Products are readily available retail outlets. We must be take effective measures to prevent needless deaths and protect our youth from the tobacco industry. Predatory practices updated the tobacco retail license is a critical step forward by regulating the sale of tobacco products we hold retailers

accountable for their role in distributing harmful substances. Furthermore, it acts as a deterrent for potential underage buyers, reducing the risk of life-threatening addictions are collectively responsibility is to shield the vulnerable, especially our youth from allure of tobacco. The long-term health implications are well documented and the cost to individuals, families and society is unmeasurable letters prioritize health over profit and send a clear message tour communities well for a non-negotiable. Thank you for your time and consideration. >> Thank you. The next speaker will friend followed by Alexandra life. Because head. >> Good evening. My name is a front Reyes and I'm a senior at the high school resin university prep. I'm currently a member in this program called Project True and we present and inform teenagers about the dangers of using tobacco, alcohol and other drugs. And I'm in support to ban the sale flavored tobacco products and e-cigarettes and Santa Rosa, I stand by this because I've seen several youth around me be actively exposed to these products in are being targeted to them specifically. Many have fallen to exposure and to adjust as I've been working with this program to and also the center of well-being. To advocate for the ban of all flavored tobacco products. And with has I think that it will help or you'd stay away. Cars and to not to fund to addiction and health issues. I'm asking the council to band is part products to help the youth from distracting other you during school hours because in our high school, there's a lot of youth smoking in the bathrooms. And this would help also the youth to prevent facing health issues that are of the age. Thank you for your time. And I to get your support to pass this >> thank you. The next speaker will be Alexandra, followed by

blight been Jamie. >> Hello, my name is Alexandra Mendoza Am a senior at Rhodes University prep. I'm here on behalf of project through a club funded and run by the son or well-being. Through my high school experience. My group and I have made a large effort to make sure schools are safe and healthy. We present about the dangers of substance abuse to students from primary school all the way to high school having a tobacco retail license would enforce the laws already imposed by the state California to eliminate flavors and vapes and other tobacco products that are targeted to you between the ages of 13 to 18. We need your support to help us. Thank you. And people, Sonoma County to be healthy and shy away from addiction. Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be light followed by Jamie. Then William. >> Has played young the community advocacy director for the American Heart Association. I'm here tonight to support the draft with majority of the staff amendments. I would request the exception of the start I'd love to see that 6 months for an effective date. Retailers have been in the room. They've been in the conversation. They know this is coming. If you want to give them additional grace time before you started your annual compliance checks, that's an option for you. But a year from now is pretty long. Industry is definitely here today in the including representative from the National Association, Tobacco Outlets. I would be shocked if they didn't ask you for a further delay or say they were confused about an element.

Included. As if you do go with a 2 year license that you maintain the stated annual frequency of compliance inspections per 12 month period. At the end of the day, this is a business license. Much like selling alcohol or other products. Public health is an inherently anti business. It's anti unregulated business that impacts health. In regards to the fines. I request that the fines be kept him out. That ensures that they are civil and administrative in nature and not criminal misdemeanors or infractions. We know suspensions work for licensed retailers. They're often a bigger care and then fines is often closer to the equivalent of the fines that you're considering with a 30 or 90 day suspension for to all tobacco sales, not just some products. The suspension period allow for education course correction without a criminal or infraction held on the retailer. In terms of unlicensed retailers, you can suspend the amount of time before they're able to obtain illegal illegal license. In addition to monetary fine, that would be a guy civil and administrative. I appreciate the council's commitment to this issue. You've had many lengthy discussions. I just ask that the policy and its final considerations is fair and equitable and at the same time upholds the regulation of a product that we know kills half a million people per year impacts people with asthma. We're nearing wildfire. Smoke season. We don't need additional impacts on Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Jamie followed by William. Then break. >> Good afternoon, MADAM Mayor and council members. My name is Jaime Barajas. I'm representing many of the retailers with the National Association about go outlets. As we all tobacco products are highly regulated and it's already illegal to sell to

anyone under the age of 21 as the City manager most of the retailers are law business owners. Now there's an issue of as you mentioned at the beginning the meeting, used a lobbyist with a public policy group should be able to assist you in finding grant dollars Attorney general's office. Annual in order to add more code enforcement out on the streets the city Santa Rosa. Also, where is the date of the descent of Santa Rosa in particular? Has the impact on the state player event? It is already illegal a year and a half ago. They should not be sold in stores or underground markets widely need more bands when we don't know if the recent player Ben has worked. We've asked from the Summit County Public Health Department to pull times. There is no data that shows if it's working or not with over a year and a half under its belt. And as this city management mentions that Sessions 2006.2. As of last week, the fda approved 14 Eufy products for them. As you mentioned, work flavored, which is the legal California. But 10 of them are unflavored. The fda defines these as an station a cessation products to leave adults really smoking combustible cigarettes. I believe the fda's the highest authority in this country on what's what's in the best interest of public health? I think we should listen to him. 10 cities in California already passed the approval of these vape products, including the city in the county of San Francisco. The after fact to say to these are products that help quit smoking. Let's

listen to them. You receive the e-mail few months ago from Union City Councilmember Jaime Patino, who started the same way here with the full flavor ban and realize the real issue as some of the youth of mentioned is illegal vape products. Disposable ones. Let's focus on the issue. The penalties are fine. If you did, you pay for it. Someone to county supervisors rabbit Gore also did not believe in the in what was passed in the county went through additions of the ordinance and most of said, where is the local data? Know, local data was provided information from 10, 15, 20 years ago was provided nothing under state flavor We asked you to make that simple factual requests from the public health department. Where is the data? And in fact, an overreach of government. We thank you and we hope you consider some of these request. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Williams followed by Craig. >> Thank you. Council as a smoker affected by these laws directly. My work life and personal. I'm wondering if the agenda being served is actually the agenda. The council and state are pushed the stack that. >> It's the stop tobacco access to kids, which we all agree. It seems to be a great idea. But ironically, it's really only doing one thing. It's closing the free enterprise of the tobacco industry. The laws have removed every single product except 2 owned by rj Reynolds and Morris. The thing that bothers me the most is the added to that. It's ok to punish the choices of

law-abiding, taxpaying says and businesses who are not providing to kids. We did not elect our officials to make these decisions or to parent us. Your job is to protect all of us. My freedom to choose the type of tobacco. I want to smoke and to protect the free enterprise of that. All of the taxpayers are supposed to be compacted protected by elected officials. Smokers and non-smokers. I have heard this council mentioned that they see no purpose for smoking whatsoever, but that's not a decision. We ask our officials to make. Isn't that holds the stores providing the tobacco to the kids. There are plenty of bad actors out there. I do agree they need to go. I really do want enforcement for them. I would like them gone. I'm not one of them. So I don't understand why. As a citizen, I'm losing my choices. We also know that pro full prohibition of something doesn't work. 18th amendment alcohol for those who remember the tobacco we sold regulated. It's unbelievable. Understand that it's unhealthy choice. But guess what? We all have the right to choose something that's unhealthy for I want to smoke. I know the consequences of my smoking. I have the choice to quit. Have the choice to smoke. I'm not asking city to parent me through my smoking. You actually mentioned in one of your meetings and I was present for that. You had no numbers whatsoever to what's being lost for every million dollars of sales using 92,500 and tax dollars. The state's losing 125,000 tax dollars. 2 stores in this town are preparing to close due to the state's regulation. Those calls were issued this year.

Within the last month and over the course of the last 3 years, not that anyone seems to care, but you've lost for juice manufacturers that were local homeroom Santa Rosa businesses that are now gone and not offered in the market anymore because of these different bands and success in these bans. >> We understand that we want enforcement. >> I want inforcement. I want the bad actors gone. >> But they do it with in an educated ordinance. None of useful. The guy right the council staff riding one of mom, your including things in the ban that have nothing to do with the whatsoever. Please, if you're going to do this, do this within educated perspective. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be great, followed by Pam. Great. Go ahead. You Council. My name is Greg Damron. I was born and raised in Santa Rosa. I had one of those bucolic childhoods of the late 70's and 80's were. >> Call it a feral child in Santa Rosa lived in them are low. >> Road area of Monroe Elementary and then move Rincon Valley and rode our all the time to downtown Montgomery Village and then a valley in Rincon Dolly. And so I'm a true Santa Rosa and brought my son back here when he was a year old in 2003. To raise in here it really was It's one of my first impressions returning from overseas doing hiv prevention work is seen the proliferation of discount cigarette stores here in 2003 2004.

>> It was as a kid. I remember seeing the Squire in I was not us the teen smoker, we saw the Squire and we curious about that kind of. Cool stuff. The humidor, cetera, being in my early 30's and seeing the proliferation of discount smoke shops and having family members that struggled with smoking. I thought, you know what happened to Bedford Falls? You know, we've become Potter's bill yet. Frank Capra movie allusion there. And then as did work for county of Sonoma and then other public health volunteer work my son became a teenager and got involved in doing undercover surveillance work. And I work with from Community Action. Partnership. As well as other teens throughout the county and Santa Rosa and those smoke shops. That proliferated then became fate and other smoke specially smoke shops in the last 10 years. I call it tobacco blight. It's not the Santa Rosa. I grew up in and as smoking rates have dropped. But we and over privilege, a proliferation of these stores and per the comments council members today, councilmember. But Donald and Fleming, thank you. Bringing light to Our children deserve to have to live in communities where they have a fair advantage where they're not being targeted by the multi-billion dollar industry. An industry. Who for whatever we lose in terms of tax revenues for products going off and smoking reduction, we gain. Hundreds of millions of benefits of health I don't have that figure for you, but I can supply it next Thank you for having your vision. There's a old, ancient text that says there's a lack of vision, the people perish and really here

today because high school students for 5 years ago and concerned parents. Audiences that I help support do presentations with her. Voiced concern. We had students here tonight. We had students engaging you 4 years ago. Thank you for listening. Thank you for taking the people's vision, making it your I was told at Sonoma State that public boards don't like visionaries proving them wrong. Thank you. Thank you for your vision. >> Thank you. The next speaker will be Pam. About one moment? I'll get it turned on for you. Thank you. Thank you. Hi, I'm Pam Granger and the tariff tobacco-free Sonoma County Community I'm here tonight with the thanks. >> I want to mention the importance of enforcement and to express our concern about density. So first of all, the thanks, of course, for all those things you agree on that focus on youth. Unfortunately, the tobacco industry takes choice away kids start using tobacco products when they're young before they're even they're not even cook te at and they get hurt. And so their their choices gone early on and we're dealing with that industry that is lover. I have a market, a daughter that was marketing in college. Difference said just take a look at the tobacco industry and you're going to get what marketing really is. They just came out with a product. It was a system. The news with a of a product or you can play game on I mean, this

industries is make them stop. So we talk about importance of enforcement. This is where the picture will help. One of the student students talked this Paola talked about gun into a Santa Rosa story. And you can see on the top shelf, this is all the products mind you. This was recent the flavored tobacco ban went into effect JANUARY of 2023. So we're talking a year and a half ago within the last 3 months they did this visit and when they took away the things that they should not be selling a year and a half later, you can see what the case looks like in the bottom. There was just an inspection done down in Petaluma and I were talking about, I understand if and sells something underage percent and screws up and they do it once and it doesn't happen again. This door had faded panels in the back of it and behind those fake panels were hundreds products in certain be sold. So if can we really need to be on top of game. So that's the importance of enforcement. And I'm so glad that you're going to be working with the county because they've got this skill set to to do that for you. And then the last thing is right now. If you keep at 100 it's 2.18, or so merchants, you're never going to get away from the health and equity of the density. You have right now.

If you want to match your neighbors, I highly suggest that you go with a a a a lower cap there's so much more. Thank you for that. Thank you. Is there anyone else in council chamber wishing to provide comment during this public hearing? >> Mariam, see no one else approach the podiums on this item. Thank you with that. I'll now close the public hearing and bring it back to council for final comments and we'll start with Councilmember Rogers. >> I think so much Mayor you know, I have I have one friend that started smoking at over the age of 30. And I always felt like that was really weird. So I decide to go look it up. He was literally the only person that I knew that started smoking so late in life, according to the fda, 87% of people who smoke started smoking before they were 18. There is no other industry in the world. That's future success. Depends on getting kids who are known to make stupid decisions. Hold on a product before they're 18. That's just I can't think of anything that compares to that. And I absolutely agree. Let the good operators But the reality is 3 chances for bad operators is probably at least one chance too many the first time. It's a miscommunication. The second time it's malicious the 3rd time. You know that it's a it's a design flaw. So I am going to support tonight. I would support a stronger ordinance. I think that is something that our community needs to do to keep our children safe. >> Thank you. Are there any additional comments from council members? All right. I'm going as Councilmember MacDonald to make a motion. But

it I would like you to be very specific about if it's the proposed language or if it's it. It just so people like me can follow along. Thank you, Mayor. I'll do my best to make clear. And I do want to make one more comment. >> My son who is now 20 year-old to buy and tobacco but does not anymore. We go to a corner store and buy tobacco when he was in high school. >> Yes, a guy that you had to be 18 to get this and he said, oh, yeah, but I make so much money selling to kids that it's worth the risk of the fine because I'm making more money every day being able to do this. And so there was absolute disregard at the time and sadly, my son, Brock. But purchased and he was under 18 at the time. But the point in the story is that there are people out there that are making a profit on our community and our children. And so with that, I'd like to go ahead and make put forward a motion for consideration of the council. And so I move the adoption of the tobacco retail license with on slide 7. The alternative proposal to remove the 2500 didn't need lower the cap to 71. And slide 12. To go with alternative language to where the violations are increased. However, this inning to my colleagues to have a cap of the $10,000 to ensure that this is able to go forward tonight. And then to ensure that we change the language that you have been there for 2026 and move it to

2025. And with that, I would make those proposed changes and are recommendations. That's my motion. >> Mayor, could I ask for clarification before moving forward? >> Yes, because that gives me time to figure out what she just said. Councilmember McConnell you asked for. The alternative language relating to density which removes the language saying the lesser of >> the proposed language in our the language in the proposed ordinance includes both the language for what's currently authorized by the state at the time of the ordinance or the It's the lesser of that or one per 2500. So the alternative language remove that density prevention. Is that what you're asking? That didn't idly wage. >> So to keep the density language because we wanted to lower to 71. So the the density language is included in the proposed ordinance as Drought k I apologize. It's as alternative proposal on slide 7. So whatever is going to get is to 71. I don't care if its proposal, one proposal to or 20 what I want to make sure is whatever is in the motion is to reduce it down. So somebody loses their license from the 3rd strike. We don't issue a new one until we get to that. 71, which I think if they did the calculations right? >> That's is that yes, there on the motion. I apologize. That's really messy. Yes, MADAM City attorney, I'd like to just clarify that point. So I'm looking the attachment which has the alternative language, which takes the proposal that I'm the

assistant city manager. I'm prepared and brought forward in red lines it with some changes. So as to the first item, which is 6 dash 20 Dash, 0, 6, 0, You are not accepting the red lines. You're going to keep the original language that is in the ordinance in front of you. So using the language, the assistant city manager used the proposed bank language. Not the alternative. Is that correct? One additional cleanup language. But I think I I MADAM Mayor, allow the assistant city manager finish with his clarifications. This just housekeeping at the very end of the ordinance on the effective date. I would suggest that we modify the proposed language to say that the ordinance takes effect on the 31st Day following its adoption which is what the law requires. I think staff have I went ahead and they added a date, assuming that do your second read on AUGUST 6. But I think we MAY have miscounted by one day. So we need to fix it either way. And I'm going suggest that we just haven't role in the event that for some reason this item gets continue to dump. You don't get to your consent calendar. We don't have to make that change. So this is a house keeping one. It would simply change the proposed language so that the effective date would read the ordinance shall become effective on. The 31st Day following its adoption. However. Section 20006.0, 0, 5, 0, shall not take effect until JANUARY. First 2025. Just for point of clarification. Did you say

JANUARY first 2025. >> What would you say? Did you say JANUARY first 2025. Are you with immigration? I'm just clear on this is around when it's going to start. I thought that was JULY one 2025. Are you talking about something else? City? Mitt City attorney? I think there there are 3 dates at one date is the date that the ordinance takes effect. And I am making a proposed to suggestion to make it comply with state law that the ordinance would take effect the 31st Day following its adoption. The second day that I read the second day, the JANUARY first 2025. In your in the proposed ordinance. That's not a change. That would be the date that licenses would need to be. Folks would need to get the deadline to have there. >> Licenses submitted if they already have a business. Is that correct? That's correct. And then there is a 3rd day which would be a modification to the ordinance which would moved from JULY first 2026 to JULY. 1st 2025 and I'm going to hand over to assistant city manager to explain what that date >> So that date was just simply to establish when renewals will be from moving forward because we're not able to start the licenses this JULY. We are going mid cycle to begin this program. We want set for retailers so that they clearly understand from this point on here is the date that it's going to be. And so if it's the request of the council set JULY first 2025 rather than JULY, first 2026. Okay. But we will start

inforcement and licensing at the beginning of the calendar year. Thank you. >> 7 motion made by council member. And I was second by. Councilmember Fleming. All righty. MADAM City, attorney and sorry, I'm just going to clarified. I want to make sure we don't have to come back into this one. Again, kisses. >> the assistant city manager would. Need flatten my tires or something. I don't know I'm looking again at the attachment would which has the alternative language. And I want to make clear that 6 dash 20 Dash, 0, 6, 5, the transferability of the license. You are not move. Your motion does not include the alternative language. It's the original language that's in the proposal. Is that correct? What a slide is that on matters. City attorney. Slide 8. Alternative language is on slide. 9. I was going with the proposed language on that. Okay. And to I think we're going with the alternative language in the penalties section, which is 6 dash 20 dash, 1, 6, 0, penalties for that we're going with the alternative language. And that is page 12 slide. 12. Thank you very much. >> So we have a motion made and we have a second. And so we'll handed over to. MADAM City clerk for the vote. Councilmember Rogers Councilmember Okrepkie. I Councilmember MacDonald. I Councilmember Fleming. I Councilmember Alvarez recused. Vice mayor stopped. I Mayor Rogers, let the record show this passes. The 6 affirmative

votes. No, thank you. All right. We are moving in in. Thank you to the community. >> For continuing to advocate and to stick with us as we work through this moving on to 16.2, which is our second public hearing. >> For tonight, out of city manager. Item 16.2 public hearing Santa Rosa Fire Department annual weed abatement program report. >> Good evening. Mayor Rogers numbers, the council. Name is Paul Lowenthal Division Chief Fire marshal with San Jose Fire Department here for the annual we've been the program public hearing regarding weed abatement liens promise to make this as quick as I can as a reminder that we have him program is run by a fire prevention the weed abatement inspections are based on the requirements of the program which apply to all homes and properties in the wildland-urban interface and vacant. Lots across the entire city. The ordinance goes into effect upon declaration of our local fire requires those properties remain in compliance during the season. Essentially inspections take roughly 11,000 properties will going to There are reinspected a re inspections that take place. If a property is found to be out of compliance after their first inspection, their second inspection and any compliance inspection for The abatement takes place property owners that do come into compliance that are Bateman abated, received bills from the city. That also goes for those that failed their to inspections. Those that do essentially pay their We come before you for the annual that are sent to the county collections. So the recommendation is that you

take the annual report of the for the cost of the weed rubbish as provided for in the applicable city Code Section. And allow us to proceed with that process. I'll take any questions. >> Thank you. I'm looking to council to see if they're in the questions. We have no questions from council. We have no one in the chamber to make public comment. Open the public hearing close the public hearing. No one in here to make comment and then we will go ahead pass it to Councilmember Fleming to please make the motion. All move recommendation of the city of Santa. >> Rosa confirming that reported fire department on the cost of weed and payment as provided for in Section 9. Dash. 0, 8, 0, And then Dash 0, 8 dot. Oh 809. Dash 0, 8, dot. 0, of the city of Santa Rosa. Second, it. >> We have a motion made by Councilmember Fleming in a second by Mayor Rogers. Are there any additional or any comments seen? None. MADAM City clerk me please call the vote. >> Councilmember Rogers Councilmember Okrepkie. I Councilmember MacDonald. I councilmember Fleming, I Councilmember Alvarez is absent. Cancer. Vice mayor stopped. All right. Mayor Rogers, let the record show this passes. 6 affirmative votes. Thank you. We have no one in chamber for a public comment on non agenda matters. Item 18.

>> I would ask council to give me just 2 seconds so I can adjourn the meeting in the name of Frank go. They fire engineer. Frank Go. Frank Del Monte. Started with the Santa Rosa Fire Department on OCTOBER. 24th 1988. He was promoted to fire engineer on JUNE 30th. A 2002 engineered a Monte has continually proven to be Be an outstanding apparatus operator who is safe dependable and a master of his craft. Franco has trained and mentor countless other firefighters and engineers over the years with humility and Class Franco is a true leader in the organization and is known for his reliability, loyalty and friendship. I would also like to add that Franco is known for his ability to eat a burrito in about 5.6 seconds in the little sound that he makes after he completes his meal. Would like to thank engineered a And I know I am with the rest of my colleagues for his 36 years of amazing service to our community and to the city. So I thank you very much, Frank, go for everything that you have. During your tenure here at the city of Santa Rose, you are appreciated Inlet. Thank you so much. And with that, we will adjourn the meeting. Thank you.