[1) CALL TO ORDER: Mayor ] [00:00:03] GOOD EVENING, I'M CALLING THIS MEETING TO ORDER. IT IS 6:01 PM. MADAM CLERK, MADAM CLERK WILL YOU CALL THE ROLL? I'M HERE. HERE. HERE. MAYOR SALDAÑA AND COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ ARE ABSENT. THEY ARE ATTENDING THE IPSC CONFERENCE. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. IF YOU'RE ABLE, PLEASE STAND FOR A FLAG SALUTE AND REMAIN STANDING FOR AN INVOCATION. SALUTE, PLEDGE. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION, UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. IS THERE SOMEONE HERE THAT CAN LEAD US IN AN INVOCATION? IF NOT, WE'LL JUST OBSERVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE. THANK YOU. YOU MAY BE SEATED. [5) APPROVAL OF AGENDA] OKAY, WE'RE ON TO ITEM FIVE, APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA. ARE THERE ANY CHANGES TO THE AGENDA? COUNCILMEMBER FOR THE RECORD, AGENDA FOR TODAY DO NOT INCLUDE RESOLUTION. UNDER THE MAP CORRECTION, THERE ARE NO CHANGES ON THE AGENDA. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. I WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR APPROVAL WITH THE CHANGES MENTIONED. MOVE TO APPROVE. SECOND. OKAY, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECOND. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU CALL THE VOTE BY ROLL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER RAYA. AYE. MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER RAYA, TO APPROVE THE AGENDA WITH THE CHANGES MENTIONED. MOTION IS APPROVED WITH 3 AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDAÑA AND COUNCILMEMBER MARTINEZ ABSENT THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. ITEM [6.a. Certificate of Recognition – Palm Avenue Middle School Drone Team] 06, PRESENTATIONS. FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT WANT TO FOLLOW THE AGENDA, IT'S RIGHT THERE BY THE DOOR ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE DOOR IS SOME BRIEFING AREA. 6A, CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION FOR PALM AVENUE MIDDLE SCHOOL DRONE TEAM. WE HAVE THE DRONE TEAM HERE AND WE HAVE THEIR TEACHER. HANG ON FOR JUST A SECOND. I'M GOING TO JUST PUT ONE UP THERE. WHAT WAS THAT? YOU WANT ME TO PUT ONE UP ON THE SCREEN? YES, PLEASE. ALL RIGHT. SO YOU'RE VIEWING A SAMPLE OF THE CERTIFICATES THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE HANDING OUT. WE HAVE THE DRONE TEAM WHO PARTICIPATED IN A COMPETITION RECENTLY. THIS IS THE PALM AVENUE DRONE TEAM. AND THEY WENT TO SAN DIEGO AND THEY WON THE WHOLE THING. THEY WON FIRST PLACE. CAN WE GIVE THEM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE? NOW, THEY WERE LED BY THEIR ADVISOR, JUAN RODRIGUEZ, WHO IS HERE PRESENT. I BELIEVE HE'S STANDING RIGHT THERE. THE TEAM WON THE OVERALL TITLE, BEATING OUT TEAMS FROM NEVADA, COLORADO, HAWAII, WASHINGTON, AND AMERICAN SAMOA. HOW'S THAT FOR PUTTING WASCO IN THE MAP? I'M PARAPHRASING NOW FROM AN ARTICLE THAT WAS ON OUR WASCO TRIBUNE. IT SAYS THE PROGRAM IS PART OF THE SCHOOL STEM PROGRAM, WHICH GIVES STUDENTS EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF ENGINEERING SKILLS. THE TEAMS BEGAN WORKING AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SCHOOL YEAR AND HAVE WORKED THROUGHOUT THE YEAR ON THEIR PROJECTS. THE WINNING TEAM WAS BYRON FUENTES, JADEN LIMON, ESMERALDA ROSALES, CHLOE ALVAREZ, AIDEN IBARRA-MONROY. SARAH CARRILLO AND ELIJAH SALAZAR. IF YOU COULD ALL STAND UP, WE'LL GIVE YOU A BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE. [00:05:05] A CERTIFICATE FOR EACH ONE OF YOU AND I'M JUST GOING TO READ ONE OF THEM AND THEN THEY WILL ALL READ THE SAME WITH YOUR DIFFERENT NAMES. THIS IS A CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION. THE CITY OF WASCO PROUDLY PRESENTS THIS CERTIFICATE TO SARAH CARRILLO IN RECOGNITION OF THE PALM AVENUE MIDDLE SCHOOL CANDY STARS US WITH A K 9320P DRONE TEAM FOR EARNING THE TEAMWORK MISSION CHAMPIONS AWARD. AT THE RECF AERIAL DRONE WESTERN REGION MIDDLE SCHOOL DRONE CHAMPIONSHIPS, HONORED ON MAY 19 OF 2026. SIGNED BY ME, MAYOR PRO TEM GILBERTO REYNA. AND CONGRATULATIONS. I WANT TO INVITE COUNCIL MEMBERS TO MAYBE THEY WANT TO COMMENT. COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA. YEAH, THANK YOU, MR. REINA. IT'S ALWAYS GREAT WHEN WE HAVE TEAMS THAT ARE HERE IN FRONT OF US THAT ARE DOING GREAT THINGS. JUST IN THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING, WE HAD ANOTHER TEAM, YOU KNOW, AN ENGINEERING TEAM THAT ALSO PLACED HIGHLY, YOU KNOW, PUTTING WASCO ON THE MAP. SO IT'S ALWAYS GREAT TO SEE THE YOUTH, I MEAN, YOU GUYS ARE ALSO YOUNG, DOING GREAT THINGS, AND SOMETHING LIKE DRONES, RIGHT? THAT'S OBVIOUSLY THE FUTURE. THE CITY OF WASCO ACTUALLY HAS A DRONE, SO MAYBE ONE OF YOU GUYS CAN TEACH, YOU KNOW, OUR FOLKS HOW TO USE IT AS WELL. BUT THAT'S RIGHT, OUR TEACHERS, YEAH. SO GOOD JOB. KEEP ON DOING GREAT THINGS. YOU GUYS OBVIOUSLY STILL GOT QUITE A BIT OF YEARS IN FRONT OF YOU IN TERMS OF SCHOOL. I'M SURE YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO DO GREAT THINGS. SO GREAT JOB AND WELL-DESERVED. THANK YOU GUYS FOR BEING HERE. AND MARIAH? WELL, KIDS, EXCELLENT JOB FOR PUTTING WASCO ON THE MAP. AND DEFINITELY ALL YOUR HARD WORK HAS PAID OFF. I KNOW ENDLESS HOURS OF PRACTICE, TRAINING, TEAMWORK, IT PAID OFF. WE'RE JUST LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING IN THE FUTURE WHAT YOU GUYS ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO LATER ON. SO GREAT JOB AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. THANK YOU. I JUST WANT TO SAY WE'RE SO PROUD OF ALL OF YOU. WITHIN THE LAST TWO MEETINGS, WE HAD THE CHEER TEAM WHO WERE WINNERS NATIONALLY AND WE HAD ALSO THE ROBOTICS TEAM WHO WAS ALSO A WINNER IN ONE CATEGORY, AND NOW WE HAVE YOU. AND THAT JUST MAKES ME FEEL SO PROUD ABOUT WASCO AND ALL OF OUR STUDENTS AND EVERYBODY, THE TEACHERS WHO PARTICIPATE IN THESE EVENTS, THAT THEY'RE ALWAYS ENCOURAGING THE KIDS TO DO THE THINGS THEY NEED TO DO AND TO PUT WASCO ON THE MAP. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL. WE'LL COME TO YOU NOW. MS. SERENA, WE ALSO HAVE CLARIBEL. OH, CLARIBEL, I SAW YOU THERE. BY ALL MEANS, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM. YEAH CLARIBEL, WOULD YOU TURN THE MICROPHONE ON? PROTEM MAYOR AND THE REST OF THE CITY COUNCIL, CITY MANAGER, MARIA, AND EVERYBODY ELSE. I DO APOLOGIZE THAT I DIDN'T HAVE THE CERTIFICATES FOR THE REST OF THE FOLKS THAT YOU JUST MENTIONED. BUT I WAS TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT, AND I GOT INTO THIS CERTIFICATE BECAUSE I WAS ON FACEBOOK AND I NOTICED THAT THESE KIDDOS WERE LIKE DRONES? I'M LIKE, DUDE, THEY'RE SMARTER THAN ME. THEY'RE YOUNG, THEY'RE SMART. AND THEY'RE LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE. I KNOW EVEN THE PHONE IS TELLING ME THEY'RE SMART. I KNOW. BUT I HAVE CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION ON BEHALF OF THE ASSEMBLYWOMAN, DR. BATES, FOR THE AMAZING JOB THAT THESE YOUNG KIDDOS ARE DOING, AND FOR THE ADVISOR, THEY GO OVER HERE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE QUALITY THINGS, TIME AND EFFORT, AND THE TOOLS NECESSARY TO BE ABLE TO DROP ANY DRUGS, BEING THE WINNER. AND PUT IT ON BUSWAY, NATIONAL WIDE. SO THANK YOU. I GOT CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION, NOT IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER. SO IF YOU, WHEN YOU WANT, I COULD TAKE A PICTURE WITH THEM TOO. I WILL APPRECIATE IT. SO THANK YOU GUYS AND CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU ALL. YEAH, WE'LL COME DOWN THERE. THANK YOU. AMAZING HOW YOUNG [00:10:12] KIDS ARE. OKAY, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, GUYS. CONGRATULATIONS. ARE WE GOING TO DO MARKINGS FOR OTHER PEOPLE? IS THERE— NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO. THANK YOU. [00:15:15] WHAT ARE WE DOING? I DON'T KNOW. YEAH, I TOOK CARE OF IT. YEAH, YEAH, YOU GOT IT ALREADY. ALL RIGHT, EVERYONE. YOU MIGHT WANT TO STICK AROUND BECAUSE THE NEXT ONE IS ALSO A VERY IMPORTANT ONE. WE'RE GOING TO BE RECOGNIZING WITH THE PROCLAMATION OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT. ALL RIGHT. EVERYBODY COULD FIND A SEAT. THANK YOU. [6.b. Proclamation – National Police Week] PROCLAMATION, NATIONAL POLICE WEEK AND PEACE OFFICERS MEMORIAL DAY 2026. WHEREAS, THERE ARE MORE THAN 800,000 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SERVING IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, INCLUDING THE DEDICATED MEMBERS OF THE CITY OF WASCO POLICE DEPARTMENT. AND WHEREAS, NATIONAL POLICE WEEK 2026 IS DEDICATED TO HONORING THE SERVICE AND SACRIFICE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHO HAVE BEEN KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY WHILE PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES AND SAFEGUARDING OUR DEMOCRACY. END, WHEREAS SINCE THE FIRST RECORDED DEATH IN 1786. THERE ARE CURRENTLY MORE THAN 24,000 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS IN THE UNITED STATES WHO HAVE MADE THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE AND BEEN KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY, AND WHEREAS, THE NAMES OF THESE DEDICATED PUBLIC SERVANTS ARE ENGRAVED ON THE WALLS OF THE NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS MEMORIAL IN WASHINGTON, D.C., AND WHEREAS, 363 NAMES OF FALLEN HEROES ARE BEING ADDED TO THE NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS MEMORIAL THIS SPRING, INCLUDING 109 OFFICERS KILLED IN 2025, BRINGING THE TOTAL NUMBER OF NAMES ON THE MEMORIAL TO 24, 775, AND WHEREAS, THE SERVICE AND SACRIFICE OF ALL OFFICERS KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY WERE HONORED DURING THE NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS MEMORIAL FUND'S 38TH CANDLELIGHT VIGIL ON THE EVENING OF MAY 13, 2026, WHEREAS, MAY 15 IS DESIGNATED AS PEACE OFFICERS MEMORIAL DAY IN HONOR OF ALL FALLEN OFFICERS AND THEIR FAMILIES, AND U.S. FLAGS SHOULD BE FLOWN AT HALF-STAFF. NOW, THEREFORE, I, MAYOR PRO TEM OF THE CITY OF WASCO, ON BEHALF OF WASCO CITY COUNCIL, AND ALL CITIZENS OBSERVE MAY 10 THROUGH 16, 2026 AS NATIONAL POLICE WEEK AND PUBLICLY SALUTE THE SERVICE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS IN OUR COMMUNITY AND COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE NATION. IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I HAVE HEREUNTO SET MY HAND AND CAUSE TO BE AFFIXED THE GREAT SEAL OF WASCO, CALIFORNIA ON THIS DAY OF THE 19TH OF MAY [00:20:01] OF 2026. YOU KNOW WHAT AN IMPORTANT PROCLAMATION AND RECOGNITION OF OUR OFFICERS AND EVERY TIME THAT YOU GO OUT THERE, YOU'RE PUTTING YOUR LIFE IN DANGER. WE KNOW THAT. AND WE KNOW FOR A FACT THAT HERE IN WASCO A FEW YEARS BACK, AN OFFICER WAS KILLED. DEPUTY CAMPAS. HE WAS KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY WHILE TRYING TO SERVE A WARRANT, WHILE TRYING TO SERVE A FAMILY, SAVE A FAMILY. SO IT'S NOT UNKNOWN, AND IT'S VERY SAD WHEN OFFICERS LOSE THEIR LIFE WHILE TRYING TO PROTECT US ALL. BUT WE OWE YOU A DEBT OF GRATITUDE JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE OUT THERE DOING WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO PROTECT US. SO FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, I THANK YOU, AND I ASK YOU TO STAY SAFE. MAYOR MEDINA, WE HAVE SOME WORDS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY. YEAH, THANK YOU. YEAH, I MEAN, THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR INTERNAL POLICEMEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM. OBVIOUSLY, YOU GUYS PLAY A VITAL ROLE IN WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE IN THE CITY OF WASCO, ESPECIALLY OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, RIGHT? WE'VE BEEN ESTABLISHED A LITTLE OVER TWO YEARS. YOU GUYS HAVE MADE A HUGE DIFFERENCE HERE. THE RESPONSE TIMES THAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SECURE HAS BEEN AMAZING. IT'S ALL THANKS TO YOU GUYS. AND I KNOW THERE'S BEEN THINGS THAT HAVE HAPPENED HERE. I KNOW WE JUST HAD AN INCIDENT YESTERDAY THAT HAPPENED, RIGHT? AND JUST BEING ABLE TO HAVE OUR OWN POLICE FORCE IS HUGE FOR US, UM, BUT IT DOESN'T GO WITHOUT ANY SORT OF DANGER, RIGHT? LIKE, UH, MR. REYNA MENTIONED, THERE'S, THERE'S BEEN INCIDENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED, UH, THANKFULLY WE LIVE IN A CITY THAT'S, I'D LIKE TO CONSIDER, UH, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT MORE CALM THAN, YOU KNOW, BIGGER CITIES WHEN I LOOK AT THIS PROCLAMATION AND I LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF 800,000, IT SEEMS LIKE A LOT, BUT YOU THINK OF CALIFORNIA AND IT'S REALLY NOT A LOT, RIGHT? UM, BECAUSE YOU GUYS ARE TRYING TO UPHOLD THE PEACE AND, YOU KNOW, CITIZENS WERE SOMETIMES NOT IN THE RIGHT STATE OF MIND OR WHAT IT MAY BE. SO YOU NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO GET YOURSELF INTO. SO THANK YOU FOR BEING THE FRONTLINE OF DEFENSE, ESPECIALLY FOR OUR CITY HERE IN THE CITY OF WASCO. THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO DAY IN AND DAY OUT. THANK YOU, MEMBER MEDINA. MEMBER REYNA. YEAH, THANK YOU. YOU GUYS HAVE MADE A BIG IMPACT IN OUR COMMUNITIES, AND YOU GUYS CAME HERE. WE REMEMBER ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO, WE HAD A HIGH WAVE OF CRIME AND VIOLENCE IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND SINCE THE ESTABLISHMENT OF OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT, YOU GUYS HAVE BROUGHT THAT SENSE OF PEACE TO OUR COMMUNITY. AND WE THANK YOU. WE THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO FOR US AND FOR OUR COMMUNITY. SO WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. WE'LL TAKE A MOMENT TO TAKE A PICTURE. IF WE COULD COME TO THE FRONT, OFFICERS THAT ARE HERE, PLEASE COME TO THE FRONT. AND WE'LL PRESENT THIS TO YOU. AND, UM, SO THE TALL ONES IN THE BACK AND THE OTHER ONES IN THE FRONT. NO, NO, THE THING IS, I'M ALSO HAPPY TO BE HERE BECAUSE OF THAT. THANK YOU FOR GIVING OF YOURSELVES TO BE A BLESSING TO ALL IN THIS SIDE OF THE WORLD. PEOPLE ARE RUNNING FROM WHAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING. THANK YOU. CONGRATULATIONS. [00:25:44] ALL RIGHT, I'M GOING TO MAKE THIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR OUR AUDIENCE. THE FUN PART HAS ENDED. THE BORING PART OF THE MEETING STARTS NOW. SO IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE, YOU'RE WELCOME TO DO THAT AT THIS TIME. OKAY. THANK YOU. YES, OF COURSE. PLEASE COME TO THE FRONT. I JUST WANT TO SAY, I WANT TO THANK YOU AND MR. RUBIO. UM, LAST, THE LAST 2 WEEKS I CAME TALKING ABOUT MY LIGHT POST THAT I GOT KNOCKED DOWN, AND I'M GLAD TO UPDATE THAT IT WAS INSTALLED YESTERDAY. NOW I HAVE LIGHT IN MY CORNER. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR FIXING THAT. LETICIA, YOU KNOW YOU TALK TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE. YES, I KNOW. YES, I'M VERY GRATEFUL THAT NOW WE HAVE LIGHT IN OUR CORNER. I TAKE THE SECURITY IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD VERY SERIOUSLY, SO I'M GLAD THAT IT'S THERE NOW. WE'RE HAPPY TO BE OF HELP AND WE THANK MR. VILLA FOR TAKING CARE OF THAT RIGHT AWAY. THANK YOU. YES. CITY CLERK WILL BE GLAD TO HELP YOU WITH THAT. AND IT WAS NO DISRESPECT, I'M SURE THERE'S STILL A LOT OF FUNDS, YOU KNOW. NO, JAY KNOWS THAT, YEAH. IN FACT, WHEN I SAID THAT, JAY WAS LIKE, YEAH. HANG ON, JAY, I'LL INTRODUCE YOU, JUST A MOMENT. WE HAVE TO CORRECT SOME TYPOS, I THINK. ARE WE GOOD? ALL RIGHT, ALL RIGHT. [6.c. Kern Council of Government (Kern Cog) - Update to the Long-Range Regional Transportation Plan (RTP)] MOVING ON TO ITEM C. THIS WOULD BE 6C. THIS IS CURRENT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENT, CURRENT COG, UPDATE TO THE LONG RANGE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN, RTP. MR. SCHLOSSER. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS JAY SCHLOSSER. I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE CURRENT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS. AND I SPENT THE LAST 20 YEARS WORKING IN THE CITY OF TASHPEE WITH YOUR CITY ATTORNEY DAY IN AND DAY OUT. SO I CAN TELL YOU THE FUN PART HAS ENDED. AND WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE RTP. IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT DOCUMENT. DEFINITELY NOT VERY MUCH FUN. I WOULD HAVE ONLY LIKED TO HAVE SAID TO THAT GROUP, I AM A LICENSED ENGINEER, THAT WE DESPERATELY NEED THOSE YOUNG FOLKS TO BECOME ENGINEERS AND TO JOIN US IN THIS LABOR. AND IT'S A GREAT JOB. I'M SORRY I DISMISSED THEM. NO, YOU'RE FINE. ENCOURAGE YOUR YOUNG ONES TO PURSUE STEM JOBS. GO TELL THEM RIGHT NOW. NO, IT'S OKAY. I'LL LET YOU GUYS... SO, GOOD EVENING. ANYWAY, CURRENT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, I DON'T KNOW, JUST BRIEFLY, THE KERN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS IS A REGIONAL PLANNING ORGANIZATION THAT REPRESENTS THE ENTIRETY OF THE COUNTY OF KERN. IT'S MADE UP OF THE 11 INCORPORATED CITIES HERE IN KERN AND THE COUNTY OF KERN THEMSELVES. YOUR MAYOR PRO TEM RAINA, WHO I MIGHT AFFECTIONATELY NOTE IS PROBABLY THE BEST-DRESSED MAN IN KERN COUNTY, IS REPRESENTED ON THE KERN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS. AND SO WE TAKE ON THE ROLE OF MANAGING THE FUNDS ASSOCIATED WITH TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS HERE IN THE COUNTY OF KERN. SO WE MANAGE BOTH FEDERAL AND STATE FUNDS THAT FLOW TO REPAIRING ROADS, BUILDING NEW ROADS AND TRANSIT OPERATIONS, AS WELL AS A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS. SO TONIGHT WE'RE OUT AND ABOUT. EVERY FOUR YEARS WE GENERATE OUR REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN, OUR RTP, ALONG WITH A SLEW OF ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS REQUIRED BY FEDERAL AND STATE LAW IN ORDER TO KEEP THAT MONEY FLOWING TO THIS REGION. AND SO EVERY FOUR YEARS WE COMPLETE THAT DOCUMENT, WHICH WE'RE ABOUT TO DO, AND IT INCLUDES A PUBLIC OUTREACH COMPONENT IN WHICH WE'RE COMING OUT TO EACH OF THE CITIES TO LET YOU GUYS KNOW THAT WE'RE [00:30:01] IN THE FINAL MONTH OR TWO ADOPTING THIS YEAR'S RTP CYCLE. SO HOW DOES A PROJECT MAKE IT, HOW DOES A BIG TRANSPORTATION PROJECT GET FUNDED? THE SHORT ANSWER IS IT HAS TO BE IN THE RTP TO DO IT. AND SO THERE ARE MULTIPLE LAYERS OR TIERS WITHIN THE RTP OF THE TYPES OF PROJECTS THAT WE ADVANCE. SHORT-TERM PROJECTS ARE THE ONES THAT WE ACTUALLY HAVE MONEY TO BUILD, AND WE KNOW WE'RE GOING TO DO THEM, AND THEY'RE IN THAT PLAN. AND THEN WE HAVE A COUPLE OF ADDITIONAL TIERS FOR PROJECTS AND IDEAS THAT WE WANT TO DEVELOP OVER TIME OR THAT WE KNOW AS WE'RE PLANNING 20 OR 30 YEARS FROM NOW, AS OUR COMMUNITIES GROW AND BUILD IN DIFFERENT WAYS, WE MODEL AND PROJECT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO NEED ROADS AND FREEWAYS AND TRANSIT SYSTEMS IN ORDER TO ACCOMMODATE THOSE NEEDS. SO THAT'S WHAT THE RTP DOES. WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU ABOUT YOUR INTERESTS RELATED TO THE RTP. WE HAVE ALREADY DONE QUITE A BIT OF OUTREACH. WE'VE ALREADY, BY OUR ESTIMATION, REACHED OVER 10,000 RESIDENTS OF THE COUNTY OF KERN IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AS WE HAVE SOUGHT THAT FEEDBACK. OUR BIGGEST WAY TO DO IT IS AT THE KERN COUNTY FAIR; EVERY YEAR WE SET UP A BOOTH AND WE WELCOME FOLKS TO COME TELL US WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES ARE. BUT WE EXPEND OVER THIS 20-YEAR PERIOD ABOUT $14 BILLION IN GAS TAX FUNDS HERE IN KERN COUNTY. THAT'S A PRETTY SIZABLE NUMBER. AND SO THAT INPUT FROM 50 DIFFERENT PUBLIC WORKSHOPS AND BOOTH EVENTS, ONLINE SURVEYS, INCLUDING A STATISTICAL PHONE SURVEY. DID ANY OF YOU GUYS GET THAT PHONE RANDOM TEXT THAT SAID MY NAME ON IT THAT SAID WE HAVE A PHONE SURVEY FOR YOU? I RANDOMLY RUN INTO PEOPLE WHO SAY, "OH, YOU'RE THE GUY. I GOT A TEXT FROM YOU." AND EVERYBODY THINKS IT'S SPAM. IT'S NOT. IT'S AN ACTUAL STATISTICALLY ACCURATE SURVEY IN WHICH WE POLL THE RESIDENTS OF KERN COUNTY TO FIND OUT WHAT YOUR PRIORITIES ARE. AND THE ANSWER, BY THE WAY, FOR WHAT KERN COUNTY'S PRIORITIES ARE, THEY'RE OVERWHELMINGLY ALWAYS FIX WHAT WE HAVE, RIGHT? WE'D LIKE TO SEE THE MOST NUMBER OF DOLLARS THAT WE HAVE GOING TOWARDS REPAIRING THE ROADS THAT WE ALREADY HAVE. WE HEAR YOU LOUD AND CLEAR, AND WE DESIGN A PLAN TO MAXIMIZE THAT GOAL. WHAT I'VE INCLUDED FOR YOU IN THE PACKET TONIGHT IS A COPY OF A TRANSMITTAL MEMO, A COVER MEMO, LETTING YOU KNOW THAT THE PROJECT IS COMING TO A CONCLUSION, AND YOUR FINAL OPPORTUNITY TO LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK ENDS ON JULY 2ND. ALSO, PUBLIC MEETING FLYERS. WE HAVE ANOTHER PUBLIC MEETING COMING UP IN TEHACHAPI ON JUNE 1ST WHERE YOU CAN FORMALLY PROVIDE FEEDBACK. WE GIVE YOU A DRAFT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE PLAN ITSELF AND THEN A LISTING OF PROJECTS BENEFITING YOUR AREA. SO INTERESTING NOTE HERE IS THAT THE PROJECTS CONTAINED IN THE RTP, YOU GUYS, WASCO REPRESENTS 14% OF THE POPULATION OF KERN COUNTY, AND WE ESTIMATE THAT THE IMPROVEMENTS LISTED IN THE PLAN OR THE DOLLARS LISTED IN THE PLAN, ALMOST 80% OF THOSE DOLLARS WOULD BENEFIT WASCO. WE LOOK AT THAT FROM THE WAY, WE KNOW THAT BECAUSE WE LOOK AT THE WAY FOLKS HERE TRAVEL, WHERE THEY GO. SO AN IMPROVEMENT IN BAKERSFIELD BENEFITS MANY RESIDENTS HERE IN WASCO, OR AN IMPROVEMENT UP IN DELANO MIGHT DO THE SAME THING. AND SO A LARGE MAJORITY OF THE PROJECTS THAT WE'RE PLANNING FOR IN THIS PLAN ULTIMATELY BENEFIT THE CITIZENS OF WASCO. MR. LOSSER, CAN YOU REPEAT THAT PERCENTAGE? DID YOU SAY 80%? SO 78.9% OF THE TRANSPORTATION EXPENDITURES BENEFIT THIS COMMUNITY. SO IF YOU LOOK AT THIS SHEET, YOU CAN FIND IT. I DIDN'T, SORRY, WE DIDN'T NUMBER THE WHOLE PACKET. IT'S NUMBERED 1 OF 13 HERE IN THE LOWER CORNER. THERE ARE EXTRA COPIES IF ANYBODY IN THE AUDIENCE WOULD LIKE A COPY AFTERWARDS. AND THERE AT THE TOP OF THE TABLE, THE SHARE OF YOUR COUNTY POPULATION, YOU GUYS ARE 14% OF THE POPULATION OF THE COUNTY, AND WE PROJECT THAT OF THE, AND THERE'S, WE PROJECT A LOT OF MONEY BEING SPENT IN KERN IN THE COMING YEARS, WHETHER ACTUAL OR PROPOSED, AND AGAIN, THAT NUMBER IS 78.9% OF THOSE TRANSPORTATION EXPENDITURES ARE BENEFICIAL TO YOU. SO, IN TERMS OF ROAD MAINTENANCE HERE IN KERN COUNTY, WE EXPECT IN THE NEXT 20 YEARS TO SPEND $1.4 BILLION COLLECTIVELY ON ROAD MAINTENANCE ACROSS THE COUNTY OF KERN. THAT'S A GIGANTIC NUMBER. TO GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT, ALL OF THE TRIP PROJECTS IN THE CENTER OF BAKERSFIELD THAT HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED IN THE LAST 20 YEARS ADD UP TO ABOUT $1.4 BILLION. SO THAT'S A SIZABLE INVESTMENT IN OUR FUTURE. A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT ARE MORE UNIQUE TO WASCO, THOUGH. $40 MILLION IS ABOUT TO BE EXPENDED AT THE ROUNDABOUT AT 43 AND 46. I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE AWARE OF AND PROBABLY DREADING. IT WILL BE DIFFICULT TO CONSTRUCT THAT WITHOUT DELAYS TO THE PUBLIC. BUT WE ARE ALSO IN THIS PLAN BEGINNING TO LOOK AT WHAT AN EXTENSION FROM MERCED AVENUE FROM 43 TO 99 WOULD LOOK LIKE. AND OBVIOUSLY WE'RE REACTING TO WHAT HIGH-SPEED RAIL IS DOING IN THIS COMMUNITY AND THE ADJACENT ROADWAYS. BUT THOSE DO BRING OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS IN ADDITION TO SOLVING PROBLEMS INTENTIONALLY CREATED. BOTTOM LINE IS THAT COMMENTS [00:35:01] ARE DUE BY JULY 2ND. SO ON THE LONG-RANGE REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN, WE ALSO INCLUDE, WE'RE REQUIRED TO GENERATE A CEQA ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT, A SHORT-TERM FOUR-YEAR TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT, THAT'S REAL MONEY FOR REAL PROJECTS, THOSE WE DO ON A FOUR-YEAR BASIS, AND THE ASSOCIATED FEDERAL AIR QUALITY CONFORMITY. I WOULD HAPPILY REPORT JUST AS AN ASIDE TO YOU GUYS, WE HAD THE CLEANEST AIR ON RECORD IN 2025. I KNOW THAT YOU'VE PROBABLY REPORTED THAT, MAYOR PRO TEM, TO THIS GROUP. BUT THAT'S A BIG DEAL THAT DOESN'T GET ENOUGH PRESS. WE'VE SPENT THE LAST 30 YEARS IN THIS REGION, AND I'M NEWLY APPOINTED TO THIS POSITION, BUT A LOT OF LABOR HAS BEEN DONE TO CLEAN THE AIR HERE IN THE CENTRAL VALLEY, AND I THINK MEANINGFUL STRIDES ARE BEING MADE. SO RESPONSE TO COMMENTS, LET US KNOW. WE CAN ADD PROJECTS STILL TO THE RTP AT THIS POINT, UNFUNDED PROJECTS. SO IF YOU HAVE PROJECT IDEAS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU ALL THAT YOU HAVE BEGUN TO SHAPE, WE ARE STILL ABLE TO ADD THOSE TO THE NEXT IN LINE LIST. PROJECTS THAT YOU HAVE MONEY FOR OR THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO GET MONEY FOR, THOSE TAKE A LITTLE LONGER TO GET INTO THE PLAN, BUT WE'RE ALWAYS OPEN TO HEARING WHAT THE CONCERNS ARE OF WASCO. SO PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO CONTACT US IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE. WE DO WORK FOR YOU ALL. THE BOARD IS MADE UP OF, AS I SAID, THE 11 INCORPORATED CITIES AND THE COUNTY OF KERN. YOU ALL JOINTLY VESTED THE KERN COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS WITH THE AUTHORITY TO DO THIS BACK IN THE 1970S, SO WE TAKE OUR JOB SERIOUSLY AND WE'RE HAPPY TO SUPPORT YOU ALL IN THIS EFFORT. SO THAT CONCLUDES MY REPORT. AND I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, MR. SCHLOSSER. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR MEMBER MEDINA? EXCUSE ME, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC FIRST. SIR? WELL, I DON'T HAVE THE SCRIPT FOR THE... IF ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE... YEAH, DOES ANYONE IN THE PUBLIC HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT MR. SCHLOSSER'S PRESENTATION? IF YOU DO, PLEASE COME TO THE MICROPHONE. OKAY, SEEING NONE, ANY MEMBERS, COUNCIL MEMBERS, MEMBER MEDINA? FIRST OFF, JUST THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND BRINGING THIS REPORT. I KNOW IT'S PART OF YOUR JOB, RIGHT, DUE DILIGENCE AND EVERYTHING THAT ENCOMPASSES IT. OBVIOUSLY, TRANSPORTATION IS A HUGE THING EVERYWHERE, RIGHT? WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING TO GET FROM POINT A TO POINT B AS FAST AS WE CAN. AND IF OUR ROADS AREN'T UP TO PAR, THAT'S OBVIOUSLY AN ISSUE. I KNOW I'VE VOICED MY CONCERN WITH SUPERVISOR COUCH ON SOME OF THE COUNTY AREAS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND IT'S GOT TO BE ADDRESSED. SO JUST THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO. I'VE GOT SOME HOMEWORK TO DO IN TERMS OF READING AND WHATNOT, SO THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THAT REPORT TOGETHER. AND IF SOMETHING COMES TO MIND, I'LL DEFINITELY MAKE SURE TO DO MY COMMENT BEFORE JULY 2ND. SO THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. MEMBER REYNA. YEAH, WELL, THANK YOU FOR COMING AND THANK YOU FOR THE REPORT. I JUST HAD ONE QUESTION. IN ORDER FOR THE PROJECT TO BE FUNDED, IT HAS TO BE IN THE RTP PLAN, RIGHT? THESE ARE REGIONAL PROJECTS OF REGIONAL SIGNIFICANCE. SO JUST REPAVING ONE OF YOUR LOCAL ROADS, YOU WORK WITH YOUR OWN STAFF TO DO THAT. FOR INSTANCE, WHEN I BROUGHT UP LOOKING AT EXTENDING MERCED AVENUE FROM 43 TO 99, THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF SOMETHING THAT'S REGIONAL IN NATURE. AND SO IF YOU GUYS ARE, IF THERE ARE THINGS ASSOCIATED WITH WASCO TO THAT NATURE THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN, PLEASE LET US KNOW. YEAH. SO DOES THAT ANSWER THE QUESTION? YEAH. AND WE INTERACT CONSTANTLY WITH CALTRANS. THAT'S A BIG PART OF OUR JOB, AS WELL AS WE INTERVENE ON YOU ALL'S BEHALF LOOKING TO CALTRANS FOR BOTH WHAT THEY'RE CURRENTLY WORKING ON, AND THEY ALSO HAVE A RUNNING 10-YEAR LIST OF PROJECTS THEY'RE HOPING TO DO. AND SO IF YOU HAVE CONCERNS ON 43 OR 46 OR 99 OR I-5 FOR YOUR CONSTITUENTS, WE'D LIKE TO KNOW THOSE, TOO, BECAUSE WE CAN WORK WITH THEM TO TRY TO INFLUENCE THE DECISIONS THEY MAKE. THANK YOU, MR. LESHER. I DO WANT TO MAKE A COMMENT, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I BROUGHT UP TO SUPERVISOR COUCH PREVIOUSLY. AND I WANT TO INVITE YOU TO DO SOMETHING. IF YOU HAVE THE TIME, I DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU'RE HEADING FROM HERE. BUT IF YOU'RE HEADING BACK TO BAKERSFIELD, I'D LIKE YOU TO DRIVE ON KIMBERLINA. YOU'RE GOING TO HIT KIMBERLINA AS YOU GO SOUTH. AND THEN IF YOU DRIVE WEST FROM HIGHWAY 43 TO CENTRAL AVENUE. CENTRAL? YES. YES? OKAY. I'D LIKE YOU TO SEE THE CONDITION OF THE ROAD. WILL DO. I'LL DO IT NOW. MORE THAN ONCE, AND IT REALLY IS IN DIRE NEED OF ATTENTION. IF YOU HAVE A MOMENT, PLEASE DRIVE THROUGH THAT SECTION, AND MAYBE YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN. YEAH, AND I INTERACT ALSO ON A MORE PERSONAL LEVEL. I INTERACT WITH THE LOCAL LEADERSHIP. SO JOSH CHAMPLIN IS PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR FOR KERN COUNTY. HE AND I HAVE WORKED TOGETHER IN THE ENGINEERING COMMUNITY FOR OVER 15 YEARS NOW. SO IF WE'VE GOT AN INDIVIDUAL COUNTY ROAD, A LOT OF TIMES THE BEST WAY TO GET THOSE KINDS OF PRIORITIES DONE IS JUST TO MAKE THE RIGHT CALL TO THE RIGHT PERSON, AND I'M HAPPY TO DO THAT. I'D LOVE [00:40:02] TO EMPHASIZED MY 20 YEARS WORKING FOR THE CITY OF TASHBEE. WHEN I TOOK THIS POSITION, ONE OF THE POINTS I WANTED TO MAKE TO THE BOARD, I KNOW YOU'VE HEARD ME, IS I UNDERSTAND SMALL CITIES, AND IT'S A CHALLENGE. I UNDERSTAND THE CHALLENGES. BUT DEDICATED HARD WORK. YOU GUYS HAVE GREAT STAFF, BY THE WAY. CAMERON ARNOLD IS YOUR REPRESENTATIVE ON THE TTAC. AND HE IS FAITHFUL TO ATTEND AND PAY ATTENTION AND TO LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING ADDITIONAL MONEY TO WASCO. SO THAT'S AN IMPORTANT, THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT STEP, QUITE FRANKLY, IN BRINGING DOLLARS BACK HOME. BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE CONSISTENCY WITH STAFF. SO CREDIT TO YOUR STAFF. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR. WALKER. I APPRECIATE YOU TAKING THE TIME. AND I DO UNDERSTAND KERN COUNTY IS A VERY BIG COUNTY. YOU KNOW, SO I'M CERTAIN THEY'RE WORKING ON A LOT OF ROADS. MAYBE YOU CAN GET THIS ONE DONE. WHEN YOU GET TO THE LIGHT, TURN RIGHT. TURN RIGHT. GOT IT. I DO HAVE A QUESTION REALLY QUICK. LOOKING ON, LIKE, PAGE 5 OF 12 THAT SAYS DOWN HERE, WHEN YOU HAVE ALL THE WASCO ONES THAT SAY, LIKE, CLASS 2 BIKE IN, SOME OF THEM ARE BOLD AND SOME ARE FADED. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT SIGNIFIES COMPLETED OR NOT COMPLETED, BUT IT'S PROBABLY NOT A PERFECT LIST. A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO, WE ADDED QUITE A FEW BIKE LANE PROJECTS. WE DO ASK, WE GENERATE THIS LIST EVERY YEAR, WE SEND IT TO STAFF ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE MONTHS AGO AND ASK YOUR STAFF TO TELL US THE ACCURACY OF THE LIST. THIS IS A BIG LIST, THE COUNTY-WIDE ONE IS LIKE 100 PAGES LONG, AND SO SOMETIMES IT'S NOT PRECISELY RIGHT. THAT'S MY UNDERSTANDING OF THE DIFFERENCE. SO THE GRAYED OUT ONES MEAN IT'S POTENTIALLY DONE? IT SHOULD BE COMPLETED, YEAH. BUT IF THERE'S AN ERROR THERE, PLEASE LET US KNOW. SINCE THAT, I'LL ADD SOMETHING ELSE THAT I HAD DISCUSSED BEFORE AT THE KERN COG, AND THAT IS BIKE LANES. SO, KIMBERLINA WOULD MAKE A PERFECT ROUNDABOUT, YOU KNOW, GOING FROM WASCO TO KIMBERLINA, GOING WEST AND THEN RETURNING TO WASCO. SO, IF YOU CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN, IF THEY'RE GOING TO BE FIXING THE ROAD, ADD BIKE LANES AT 43 IN KIMBERLINA? OR IT, YEAH, YEAH. WHEN YOU GET TO THE LIGHT, TURN RIGHT. YEAH, THAT'S WHERE THE ROAD IS IN BAD CONDITION. I KNOW THAT WE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE, WE HAD A SURVEY. IT'S DIFFICULT TO ADD BIKE LANES HERE BECAUSE THE ROAD IS USED FOR PARKING, AND SO THAT WOULD MAKE IT DIFFICULT TO ADD. BUT, BUT WHEN YOU GET TO KIMBERLINA, IF WE'RE TAKING ANY OF THE ROADS, LIKE THE PALM AVENUE, YOU COULD HAVE BIKE LANES THAT MAKE IT A CIRCLE FOR WASCO AND MAKE A REALLY NICE CIRCUIT THAT WOULD BE SEVERAL MILES LONG. I USED TO DO THAT ON MY OWN, BUT THERE ARE NO BIKE LANES AND IT'S NOT SAFE. NOT OUT IN THE COUNTY AREAS, THERE'S NOT. OKAY. YEAH, I KNOW THE COUNTY DOES ACTUALLY HAVE A PRETTY ROBUST PROGRAM OF WIDENING SHOULDERS ON COUNTY ROADS AND PROVIDING BIKE LANE SPACE. THEY ALSO PROVIDE A SAFETY BENEFIT FOR RECOVERY IF YOU SLIDE OFF THE ROAD. IF YOU HAVE PAVED SHOULDERS, IT'S A LOT SAFER. IT IMPROVES THE AIR QUALITY, TOO, BY NOT HAVING THAT BEING BLOWN OUT. SO VERY GOOD. OKAY, WELL, I'LL MENTION THAT TO THE COUNTY. I MEAN, THE COUNTY, WE WOULD LOOK TO OUR COUNTY PARTNERS TO APPLY. THERE'S A NUMBER OF POTS OF MONEY THAT WE HANDLE WHERE THEY COULD MAKE THAT CHANGE. SO NOW'S THE MOMENT, THOUGH, WITH SUPERVISOR COUCH LOOKING TO CHANGE SEATS HERE COMING UP IN A COUPLE OF MONTHS. SO I THINK IT'LL BE INTERESTING. YEAH, I'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH HIM, YES, AND I WILL CONTINUE TO DO THAT. OKAY. HE'S A GOOD MAN. HE'S A SOLUTIONS MAN. YES, HE IS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. APPRECIATE THE TIME. LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU. PLEASE. WOULD YOU PLEASE COME TO THE MICROPHONE? GOOD EVENING. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME, PLEASE. MY NAME IS OSCAR ENCISO. THE RESIDENTS, SO I HAD A QUESTION ON IT. BECAUSE YOU HAVE MENTIONED THAT IT WAS PROBABLY COMPLETED ALREADY, BUT IT'S CUT OFF ON SOME OF IT, AND IT STATES THAT IT STARTED ON WHAT DATES. IT STARTED THE YEAR, AND ON THOSE, IT HASN'T HAD A YEAR THAT IT STARTED. SO IT MEANS IT HASN'T STARTED. CORRECT? THOSE HAVE THE YEAR, AND THEN THE ONES THAT WASCO DON'T HAVE A YEAR OF STARTING, THESE ARE NOT COMPLETED. SO, OKAY, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE COMPLETED. THE ONES THAT ARE OLD ARE PRETTY MUCH, THE WASCO ONES HAVEN'T BEEN STARTED? YEAH, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE REFERRING TO, YEAH. ONE OF THEM? YEAH. OKAY, ONLY ONE OF THEM OUT OF THE OTHER ONES? YEAH. SO WE'RE PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE. SO MOST OF THE LIST IS THINGS WE WANT TO DO, NOT THINGS WE'VE DONE. BUT YES. AND ON THE RED SIDE, SO THERE'S GOT A, USUALLY RED [00:45:01] MEANS NEGATIVE OR HIGH COST OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. IT JUST MEANS CLIMATE. IT'S NOT A NEGATIVE. OKAY. YEAH, USUALLY IF YOU GET A RED, EITHER YOU'RE OVER-BUDGET OR YOU'RE UNDER-BUDGET. AGAIN, THINK OF THIS AS FUTURE PLANS. SO THAT'S THE WHOLE GOAL HERE IS TO CATALOG, AND WE DO CATALOG SOME PROJECTS THAT HAVE COMPLETED BECAUSE WE WANT TO SHOW— THIS HAS TO BE APPROVED, THE FINAL DOCUMENT, BY CALTRANS AND THE FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION. SO WE WANT TO SHOW THEM SOME OF THE PROGRESS WE'RE MAKING. BUT IN GENERAL, WHAT YOU'RE SEEING HERE IS IDEAS FOR FUTURE PLANS. IT'S JUST FORECASTS. SO THE ACTUAL, DO WE ALSO GET A FOLLOW UP, A PRIVATE PRODUCTION COST IF YOU'RE DOING LIKE BID DROPS? OR IS IT JUST ONE SET? MR. SCHLOSSER, OKAY, THERE YOU GO. GO AHEAD. NO, I JUST HAD A QUESTION. SO WE JUST WORK WITH CALTRANS. THEY'RE THE ONES THAT ARE GOING TO BE. NO, WE IMPLEMENT SOME OF THESE IN CALTRANS. DEPENDS ON WHAT ROAD. CALTRANS DOES WORK ON THEIR OWN ROADS AND WE DO WORK ON LOCAL ONES. OKAY, SO IT'S BEEN FORECAST THAT HAS BEEN STARTED SO THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY GET A BETTER NUMBER SOMETIMES. ABSOLUTELY. OKAY, THAT'S WHAT I WAS LOOKING AT. AND JUST TO PUT IT INTO CONTEXT FOR YOU IN REGARDS TO THE RTP, I CAN SPEAK TO, FOR EXAMPLE, THE TRUCK CLIMBING LANES FOR HIGHWAY 58 AT TEHACHAPI. THAT PROJECT HAS BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR OVER 25 YEARS. AND IT'S NOW JUST COMING TO FRUITION, SO IT DOES TAKE TIME FOR SOME OF THOSE PROJECTS TO GET THE PLANNING AND THE FUNDING. A LOT OF IDEAS. YOU GOT ONE STARTED. IF SUDDENLY WE GET A BUNCH MORE MONEY, WE'LL DO IT. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, MR. SPASSER. I LOVE THAT ENTHUSIASM. GOOD NIGHT. [6.d. Flag Presentation ] ALRIGHT, SO OUR NEXT ITEM IS ITEM 6D. THIS IS A FLAG PRESENTATION. BY ALEJANDRO RODRIGUEZ. ALEJANDRO WAS TELLING ME THAT YOU WERE HERE SIX YEARS AGO OR THREE YEARS AGO? SIX YEARS AGO, YEAH. 2018 ACTUALLY. RIGHT. 2018. HE MET WITH YOU. YEAH? AND HE MET WITH YOU. HE MET WITH YOU. YOU CAN'T FORGET HIM. LOOK HOW TALL HE IS. I BET YOU HE WASN'T THAT TALL THEN. I WAS A LOT SHORTER. I'M CERTAIN THAT'S THE REASON WHY. ALEJANDRO, WELCOME. THANK YOU, I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU GUYS FOR HAVING ME TOO. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. TAKING YOUR TIME. SO AS I HAD SAID BEFORE, THIS IS A PRESENTATION THAT I HAD FIRST FORMULATED THE IDEA 8 YEARS AGO WHEN I WAS A SOPHOMORE AT LOSCO HIGH SCHOOL. A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME, I GRADUATED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DAVIS WITH A DEGREE IN BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY. I WILL BE GETTING MY DOCTORATE IN PHARMACOLOGY IN LOS ANGELES. I'LL BE STARTING NEXT MONTH. AND ONE THING THAT I'VE ALWAYS REALLY LIKED IS FLAGS. IT'S A WEIRD PASSION THAT I HAVE, AND I, I FEEL LIKE NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE SHARE THIS PASSION THAT I HAVE, BUT I REALLY ENJOY FLAGS. AND I ENJOY FLAGS THAT HAVE A LOT OF SYMBOLISM AND MEANING BEHIND THEM. SO IT WAS MY GOAL TO MAKE A FLAG FOR WASCO THAT HAS A LOT OF SYMBOLISM AND MEANING BEHIND IT. EXCELLENT. SO WHY A FLAG FOR WASCO, RIGHT? I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE PROBABLY HAVEN'T REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT A FLAG FOR WASCO. IT'S NOT REALLY A THOUGHT THAT COMES UP FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE. BUT I THINK A FLAG IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY FOR A CITY THAT'S CONTINUING TO GROW, RIGHT? ALL THE CITIES AROUND US HAVE FLAGS AND I THINK IT'S A VERY SYMBOLIC ITEM THAT COULD SERVE WAZCO, RIGHT? AND WE ALREADY HAVE THE UNITED STATES FLAG, THE CALIFORNIA FLAG. IMAGINE THE FLAG OF WAZCO BACK THERE IN THE BACKGROUND, IT WOULD LOOK GREAT. SO I WANTED TO REPRESENT ALL MY IDEAS IN A FLAG THAT WOULD BASICALLY SHARE THE STORY OF WAZCO, RIGHT? SO A BASIC DESIGN FOR A FLAG, RIGHT? I THINK A FLAG SHOULD BE SIMPLE. IT SHOULD HAVE SIMPLE COLOR PALETTES, IT SHOULD HAVE BASIC GEOMETRIC SHAPES, AND IT SHOULD HAVE VERY LITTLE TO NO WORDS. YOU WANT TO LOOK AT A FLAG, MAYBE YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF IT RIGHT AWAY, YOU'RE LIKE, HUH, THAT FLAG LOOKS REALLY COOL. THAT'S A FLAG THAT I'M GOING TO REMEMBER. KIND OF LIKE WITH THE UNITED STATES FLAG, WITH THE CALIFORNIA FLAG, AND THERE'S A LOT OF CITIES IN CALIFORNIA THAT HAVE FLAGS THAT ARE LIKE, "HUH, I WONDER WHAT THAT FLAG IS?" AND I'LL GET INTO THAT A LITTLE BIT LATER. BUT ALL THOSE FLAGS HAVE SYMBOLS AND THEY HAVE MEANINGS, RIGHT? SO THAT'S WHAT I WANTED. I WANTED THE FLAG [00:50:01] TO TELL A STORY OF WASCO. SO NO OFFENSE TO ANYBODY WHO'S FROM THESE CITIES. I'M SURE TEHACHAPI LEFT. HE'S NOT HIRING ME ANYWAY, SO IT DOESN'T MATTER. ALEJANDRO, I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT ONE OF THOSE NAMES HERE USUALLY DOES NOT GET MENTIONED IN THIS CHAMBER. AND OKAY, THAT'S ANOTHER GREAT REASON AS TO WHY WE SHOULD HAVE A FLAG. THE CITY OF SHAFTER HAS A FLAG. NOW THAT'S NOT THEIR UPDATED SYMBOL, BUT THAT'S THE FLAG THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE AS OF 2026. HOW DOES THE CITY OF SHAFTER HAVE A FLAG AND WUSCO DOES NOT HAVE ONE? THEY'RE, THEY'RE BEATING US IN THAT ASPECT, RIGHT? YOU GUYS DON'T WANT THAT. BUT THE QUESTION THAT I WANTED— THAT I WANT YOU GUYS TO SEE IS WHERE IS THE STORY? ALL WE DID WAS GET THEIR LOGO AND SLAP IT BEHIND AND SOME COLOR. THAT'S NOT A FLAG. THAT'S JUST TELLING YOU WHAT IT IS, RIGHT? SO I WANTED TO CREATE A FLAG THAT HAS SYMBOLISM AND HAS MEANING. SO ON MY NEXT SLIDE, THERE IT IS. SO THESE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF MEANINGFUL CITY FLAGS. RAISE OF HANDS, HOW MANY OF YOU GUYS KNOW WHAT ALL OF THOSE FLAGS ARE? YOU GUYS PROBABLY KNOW 2, RIGHT? BECAUSE THEY HAVE WORDS. BUT ALL OF THESE ARE FLAGS FROM CALIFORNIA, AND ALL OF THESE FLAGS HAVE A MEANING AND ALL OF THEM HAVE SYMBOLISM. SO THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO, THAT HAS THE SACRAMENTO RIVER FLOWING THROUGHOUT IT. THE CITY OF FREMONT, THAT WAS FOUNDED BY GENERAL GEORGE FREMONT AND THAT WAS HIS PERSONAL SYMBOL, SO THEY CHOSE HIS SYMBOL TO BE THE FLAG. THE CITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO, THE MISSIONS, THE BEACH, AND THE SUN. THE CITY OF FRESNO, INDUSTRIALIZATION, AGRICULTURE, AND SUN. AND MY PERSONAL FAVORITE, THE CITY OF REDDING, THE SUN AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT LANDMARKS IN CALIFORNIA, THE SUNDIAL BRIDGE. SO I WANTED WASCO TO HAVE SOMETHING VERY SIMILAR, RIGHT? YOU MAY NOT LOOK AT THAT AND BE LIKE, "HUH, I WONDER WHAT THAT IS," BUT THAT REPRESENTS THE CITY, AND I WANTED TO REPRESENT WASCO THE SAME EXACT WAY. SO QUESTION, WHAT REPRESENTS WASCO, RIGHT? AND I REMEMBER YOU ASKED ME THIS QUESTION BACK IN 2018. YOU ASKED ME, WHAT REPRESENTS WASCO TO YOU? AND I HAD A LOT OF DIFFERENT IDEAS BACK THEN, BUT I FINALLY NARROWED IT DOWN, RIGHT? I THINK THAT A FLAG SHOULD BE ABLE TO REPRESENT WASCO FROM ITS BEGINNINGS ALL THE WAY TO THE FUTURE AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN. SO THE FLAG SHOULD TELL A STORY, AND IT SHOULD TELL A STORY FROM THE BEGINNING TO ITS FUTURE, TO CONTINUE THROUGHOUT. SO THIS IS THE DESIGN THAT I ULTIMATELY DESIGNED. NOW BEAR IN MIND, I DID BIOCHEMISTRY, I WAS NOT I STILL THINK I DID A PRETTY GOOD JOB, AND I'LL EXPLAIN EVERY ASPECT TO THE FLAG. SO THE 5 ASPECTS OF THE DESIGN, RIGHT? YOU HAVE A GOLDEN OUTLINE, YOU HAVE A GREEN GRID/BACKGROUND, YOU HAVE A WHITE CROSS, A GOLDEN WHITE CIRCLE, AND THE ROSE RIGHT IN THE HEART. SO THE GOLDEN OUTLINE, THIS REPRESENTS THE BEGINNING OF WASCO. HOW MANY PEOPLE HERE KIND OF KNOW THE HISTORY OF WASCO? STARTED OFF AS DEWEY, THEN DEWEYVILLE, AND EVENTUALLY WASCO. DOES ANYBODY KNOW HOW DEWEY WAS EVEN FOUNDED? IT WAS FOUNDED BY TRAIN TRACKS. SPECIFICALLY, THOSE THREE RAILWAYS. THE ATCHISON, TOPEKA, AND THE SANTA FE. AND THEY WERE NICKNAMED THE GOLDEN RAILWAY. NOW, WHY WERE THEY NICKNAMED THE GOLDEN RAILWAY? ONE, BECAUSE OF THE GOLD RUSH, BUT ALSO THE METALS THAT MAKE RAILROADS— COPPER AND BRASS. WHENEVER SUN SHINES UPON ON THEM, THEY HAVE A GOLDEN HUE. NOW THE ONES TODAY, THEY LOOK RUSTED, BUT THAT'S BESIDES THE POINT. BUT I WANTED TO REPRESENT THAT BECAUSE WITHOUT THAT RAIL— WITHOUT THOSE THREE RAIL SYSTEMS, WASCO WOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN FOUNDED. THIS DATES ALL THE WAY BACK TO WHEN WASCO FIRST STARTED, SO I REALLY WANTED THE FLAG TO HAVE AN ASPECT OF THAT IN ITS DESIGN. IT'S IN THE FLAG OF CALIFORNIA, THERE'S GOLD THROUGHOUT IT, SO I WANTED WASCO TO ALSO HAVE THAT. SO THE GREEN GRID. HAS ANYBODY HERE FLOWN ON A PLANE? I FEEL LIKE A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE, RIGHT? WHEN YOU LOOK AT WASKA FROM AN AERIAL VIEW, ALL YOU SEE IS GRIDS. THE ENTIRE KERN COUNTY, THE ENTIRE CENTRAL VALLEY, THEY'RE BUILT ON FARMLAND AND THEY'RE BUILT OFF OF GRID SYSTEMS. EVEN OUR CITIES HERE, YOU CAN LOOK THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE CITY, MOST OF THE CITY IS BUILT ON GRID STREETS. SO I WANTED THAT TO ALSO BE REPRESENTED IN THE FLAG, RIGHT? WITHOUT ALL THIS AGRICULTURE, DEWEY WOULDN'T HAVE BECOME DEWEYVILLE, AND IT WOULDN'T HAVE BECOME WASCO, AND WASCO WOULDN'T HAVE GROWN TO WHAT IT IS NOW. AND WASCO IS ONLY CONTINUING TO GET BIGGER AND BETTER, RIGHT GUYS? THAT'S RIGHT. SO I WANTED THAT TO ALSO BE IN THE FLAG, RIGHT? NEXT SLIDE. SO, THE WHITE CROSS. NOW THE WHITE CROSS REPRESENTS TWO THINGS. ONE, IT REPRESENTS THE GRID SYSTEM THAT WE HAVE, BUT IT ALSO REPRESENTS A PERSONAL CONNECTION, RIGHT? SO MANY PEOPLE LIVE HERE IN WASCO, SO MANY FAMILIES, SO MANY [00:55:01] IMMIGRANTS, YET THEY ALL LIVE HERE. THEY ALL LIVE IN WASCO. THIS IS THE ONE COMMUNITY THAT THEY HAVE. IT'S A MELTING POT, RIGHT? AND THERE'S ONLY MORE PEOPLE COMING IN, IMMIGRATING, MIGRATING, AND I WANTED TO REPRESENT THAT, RIGHT? IT'S AN INTERSECTION FOR MOST PEOPLE. ALL THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE HERE ALL CAME TOGETHER AND THEY FORMED WASCAH TO WHAT IT IS TODAY, RIGHT? SO I WANTED THAT TO BE IN THE FLAG. THAT'S WHAT THE CROSS REPRESENTS. IT REPRESENTS PEOPLE COMING TOGETHER INTO ONE PLACE, AND THAT IS WASCAH. SO THE GOLDEN WHITE CIRCLE. NOW THE UNIVERSAL SYMBOL FOR UNITY AND PEACE IS A CIRCLE, SO I THOUGHT WHAT BETTER WAY TO REPRESENT THAT THAN TO PUT A CIRCLE RIGHT IN THE CENTER, RIGHT? RIGHT IN THE CENTER OF THAT INTERSECTION. WE WANT WASCO TO BE A CITY FILLED WITH PEOPLE, BUT TO BE IN UNISON AND TO BE IN PEACE. SO I WANTED TO REPRESENT THAT IN THE FLAG. IT ALSO HAS A GOLDEN OUTLINE TO REPRESENT THE CALIFORNIA SUN. YOU KNOW, WITHOUT SUN NONE OF THIS WOULD BE POSSIBLE. I THINK IN MY OPINION WE HAVE A LITTLE TOO MUCH SUN HERE, BUT THAT'S I MEAN, WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT THAT, RIGHT? THAT'S JUST GEOGRAPHY. SO I WANTED TO REPRESENT THAT IN THE FLAG, AND I WANTED TO HAVE THAT INCORPORATED SO THAT WHENEVER PEOPLE LOOK AT IT AND THEY EVENTUALLY LOOK UP THE MEANING, THEY'RE LIKE, "OH, WE'RE MEANT TO BE IN UNISON AND WE'RE MEANT TO BE IN PEACE." BECAUSE WITHOUT THAT, THEN THIS CITY WOULD GO VERY BAD. SO, ROSE IN THE HEART, RIGHT? BACK IN 2018, I I REMEMBER YOU— I DON'T KNOW IF YOU REMEMBER THIS, BUT I HAD DESIGNED A ROSE. AND THE ROSE LOOKED NOTHING LIKE THE ROSE THAT YOU GUYS HAD DESIGNED. AND I HATED IT. I WAS NOT A DESIGNER. I WAS NOT AN ART STUDENT. I WAS VERY BAD. SO I TOOK INSPIRATION FROM YOU GUYS. YOU GUYS ALREADY DID THE HARD PART FOR ME. YOU GUYS ALREADY HAD A ROSE. AND ROSES MEAN SO MUCH TO THIS COMMUNITY. YOU HAVE THE WASCO ROSE FESTIVAL. MY SISTER IS ONE OF THE WORLD-CLASS ROSE GROWERS. WHERE'S THE ROSE, PLEASE? RIGHT OVER THERE. VERY FAMILIAR WITH YOUR SISTER. SO I WANTED THAT TO BE IN THE FLAG, RIGHT? SO I TOOK THE ROSE THAT YOU GUYS ALREADY HAVE, AND I SLAPPED IT RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE, YOU KNOW? AND IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT IT BEING A ROSE. THAT ROSE SYMBOLIZES THE COMMUNITY, RIGHT? WE HAVE FESTIVALS, WE HAVE WHOLE ENTIRE EVENTS DEDICATED UNDERNEATH THAT NAME. THAT'S THE SEAL THAT YOU GUYS PUT ON EVERY DOCUMENT, ON EVERY PAPER THAT GETS SENT OUT. AND I THOUGHT, WHAT BETTER WAY OF HONORING OUR TRADITION THAN TO DO THE EXACT SAME? SO THAT'S WHY THAT ROSE IS THERE. SO AN IMPORTANT NOTE THAT I'D LIKE TO MENTION IS I DON'T REALLY MIND IF YOU GUYS DON'T CHOOSE MY FLAG. OF COURSE, THAT WOULD BE REALLY GREAT. I MEAN, THAT WOULD LOOK GREAT ON A RESUME, YOU KNOW, LIKE, I HELPED DESIGN THE MUSLIM FLAG. FLAG, RIGHT? AND I SPENT 8 YEARS DOING IT, SO— BUT I REALLY DON'T MIND IF YOU GUYS HAVE MORE FEEDBACK FOR ME. AS A MATTER OF FACT, MR. MAYOR, I DON'T REMEMBER— I DON'T KNOW IF YOU REMEMBER, BUT YOU ASKED ME TO GET MORE COMMUNITY OUTPUT, TO GET MORE COMMUNITY INPUT. SO I HAD MESSAGED MR. TALON, THE AT-THEN PRINCIPAL OF WASCO HIGH, AND HE TOLD ME, HEY, WHY DON'T YOU MAKE A GOOGLE FORMS AND I'LL SEND IT OUT TO ALL THE TEACHERS AND I'LL SEND IT OUT TO ALL THE STAFF AND I'LL SEE IF WOULD GIVE YOU ANY ADVICE. SO I MADE A GOOGLE FORMS. HE SENT IT OUT. AND I GOT, I THINK, 452 RESPONSES— WOW. —OF ADVICE. THAT FLAG LOOKED VERY, VERY DIFFERENT BACK THEN. IT LOOKED MUCH DIFFERENT, ACTUALLY. AND I TOOK THEIR ADVICE ON THAT QUESTIONNAIRE. AND I ASKED THEM, HEY, WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO WASCO FOR YOU? WHERE DO YOU SEE WASCO IN A FEW YEARS? WHAT DO YOU THINK SIGNIFIES WASCO THE MOST? AND I TOOK ALL OF THEIR ADVICE, AND THAT WAS THE FINAL DESIGN THAT I CHOSE. THAT'S NOT TO MEAN THAT THIS DESIGN IS SET IN STONE. IF YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE FOR ME TO GET EVEN MORE COMMUNITY INPUT, I WOULD LOVE THAT TOO. THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. IN FACT, I WELCOME IT. ALL I'M ASKING IS THAT IF YOU GUYS WERE TO DESIGN A FLAG, WHICH I REALLY HOPE YOU DO— AGAIN, I'M REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT IT— I JUST HOPE THAT YOU GUYS CHOOSE A FLAG THAT HAS SYMBOLISM AND MEANING BEHIND IT. I DON'T WANT YOU GUYS TO BE A SHAFTER OR TO HAJJI, TO JUST GET YOUR LOGO AND JUST SLAP IT ON SOME BACKGROUND, YOU KNOW? WE AGREE WITH YOU. WE AGREE WITH YOU. WE DON'T WANT TO BE A SHAFTER. SO I GUESS NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE. SO NEXT QUESTION, THANK YOU. I DON'T REALLY KNOW THE LEGAL PROCESS WHEN IT COMES TO, I GUESS, ADOPTING A FLAG. I KNOW THERE MUST BE A VOTE ON IT, BUT I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO BE INVOLVED IN IT IF YOU GUYS ARE WILLING. AND I JUST THANK YOU GUYS FOR THE TIME AND CONSIDERATION. AND AGAIN, IF YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE FOR ME TO TWEAK THE DESIGN, IF YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE EVEN MORE COMMUNITY INPUT, I WOULD WELCOME THAT AS WELL. BUT LIKE I SAID, I SPENT THE PAST 8 YEARS KIND OF SITTING ON THIS IDEA, DOING A LOT A LOT OF RESEARCH ON IT. I GUESS NEXT SLIDE IF [01:00:01] YOU COULD. THAT'S ALL THE RESEARCH I DID. SPENT A LOT OF HOURS RESEARCHING WASCO, THE HISTORY OF WASCO FROM ITS ORIGINS TO NOW, TO WHAT IT'S BECOMING, AND I JUST WOULD REALLY LIKE IF WASCO WERE TO HAVE A FLAG THAT TELLS WASCO'S STORY. YOU KNOW, I WANT A FLAG THAT TELLS ITS STORY IN ITS ENTIRETY AND WILL CONTINUE TO TELL ITS STORY FOR YEARS ON END. AND I SEE THAT YOU LIKE PINS, MR. RAINA. IMAGINE A NICE WASCO PIN RIGHT HERE. I MEAN, I WOULD WEAR ONE TOO. I WEAR A PIN EVERY TIME I WEAR A COAT, AND THAT'S FREQUENTLY. NOW IMAGINE THE WASCO FLAG ON THERE ON A PIN. THAT WOULD LOOK GREAT. I AGREE WITH YOU 100%. BUT LAST SLIDE, I GUESS. THAT'S MY CONTACT INFORMATION IF YOU GUYS EVER WANT TO REACH OUT TO ME. I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AGAIN, I WOULD LOVE TO BE INVOLVED. ANY WAY POSSIBLE IF YOU GUYS DECIDE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IT. AND OF COURSE, LIKE I SAID, MY DESIGN IS NOT SET IN STONE, RIGHT? I HAD A LOT OF COMMUNITY INPUT ALREADY, AND IF YOU GUYS WOULD LIKE EVEN MORE COMMUNITY INPUT ON IT, I WOULD WELCOME THAT AS WELL. BUT I GUESS THAT'S NOW UP TO YOU GUYS, RIGHT? ALEJANDRO, I WANT TO SAY THIS, NOT START A CONVERSATION. I LOVE YOUR PASSION. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT. AND I LOVE THAT ABOUT YOU. AND YOU PUT IN A LOT OF WORK INTO DOING THIS. YES. I DO HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU. YES, NO WORRIES. MORE QUESTIONS. THIS ITERATION NOW THAT YOU HAVE BEFORE US, HAVE YOU PRESENTED THIS ITERATION TO THOSE 400 PEOPLE THAT SENT YOU THE EMAIL? I SENT OUT AN EMAIL TO THEM ACTUALLY, BECAUSE I STILL HAVE THE WHOLE ENTIRE— I STILL HAVE MY WASCO INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL EMAIL, AND I ACTUALLY SENT THEM THIS DESIGN AND EVERYTHING. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'VE GOTTEN IT. I'M ASSUMING SOME TEACHERS SOME TEACHERS AND STAFF DON'T WORK THERE ANYMORE. RIGHT. SO THAT EMAIL PROBABLY WENT OUT TO A FEW THAT DON'T WORK THERE ANYMORE. BUT I HAVE SENT IT OUT TO ALL OF THEM. I HAVEN'T RECEIVED A RESPONSE, BUT I HAVE SENT IT OUT. RIGHT. THE REASON FOR MY QUESTION IS BECAUSE OVER 400 PEOPLE SEND YOU FEEDBACK. YES. AND I'M CERTAIN THEY WOULD LOVE TO SEE, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU HAVE COME UP WITH BECAUSE OF THEIR FEEDBACK. AND I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW ALSO WHAT THEY THINK ABOUT THIS IDEA OF A FLAG. AND I AGREE. AND LIKE I SAID, YOU'VE DONE A GREAT DEAL OF WORK. I MEAN, IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE WHAT YOU'VE DONE. YOU PUT A LOT OF THOUGHT INTO IT, AND I APPRECIATE THAT. UM, I, I THINK THAT I'D LIKE TO SEE OR HEAR WHAT THE COMMUNITY THINKS OF IT. OKAY. AND OF COURSE, THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. SO I'LL PASS THE TORCH TO MR. MEDINA. ALEJANDRO, WELL, GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. NICE TO SEE YOU. I SAW YOU LAST WEEK. UH, LIKE I MENTIONED BEFORE, I MEAN, YOU'RE REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT THIS. WE COULD TELL, YOU KNOW, YOU THOUGHT THROUGH EVERYTHING, RIGHT? EVERYTHING HAS A RHYME AND A REASON, WHICH IS WHAT YOU WANT, RIGHT? BUT LIKE WE MENTIONED BEFORE, IT'S, IT'S SORT OF A PROCESS, RIGHT? I THINK THE SUGGESTION WAS COME TO THE COUNCIL, PRESENT TO THE REST OF COUNCIL. UNFORTUNATELY, WE DON'T HAVE THE FULL COUNCIL HERE TODAY. BUT THERE WILL BE FURTHER DISCUSSIONS AROUND THIS, RIGHT? IN TERMS OF YOUR DUE DILIGENCE, I MEAN, I THINK YOU DID QUITE A BIT OF THAT. I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST GOT INTO COUNCIL AND I WAS KIND OF THE SAME SORT OF ASPIRATION, SERVING MONKEY AND DOING ALL THESE THINGS, RIGHT? I THINK I GOT 45 RESPONSES, SO YOU DEFINITELY KNOCKED IT OUT OF THE PARK ON THAT SIDE. SO GOOD JOB. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, AND, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY WE CAN CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT. I WANT TO GIVE MYSELF SOME CREDIT. I THINK I SENT YOU IN THE ROUND— IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION WHEN I SPOKE WITH YOU. YES, YOU DID. IF IT WASN'T FOR YOU, I WOULDN'T HAVE SENT OUT THAT GOOGLE FORM AND I WOULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN THOSE RESPONSES AND THIS DESIGN WOULD BE VERY DIFFERENT, RIGHT? BUT LIKE MR. MEDINA, I'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK ON IT. I'VE DONE— I'VE GOTTEN A LOT OF RESPONSES. I'VE TRIED TO SEND IT OUT TO THOSE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY COULD GIVE ME EVEN MORE FEEDBACK ON IT. BUT, YOU KNOW, ALL I COULD ASK IS THAT YOU GUYS KIND OF TALK ABOUT IT AMONGST YOURSELVES. TO BE SURE, I DON'T WANT TO TAKE ANY OF THE CREDIT FOR YOUR WORK, I DID SEND YOU APPARENTLY IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. SO, MR. IT LOOKS RELATIVELY SIMPLE, BUT IT HAS A LOT OF MEANING BEHIND IT. IT HAS A LOT OF SYMBOLISM. AND JUST WHATEVER MOVES FORWARD FROM ON THERE, I WOULD LOVE TO BE INVOLVED. JUST LOOKING AT IT, IT BRINGS TO MIND ALL OF THE THINGS THAT YOU HAVE EXPLAINED TO US. I CAN SEE IT IN THE BLACK. SO, MR. RYAN. HEY, ALEJANDRO, IT'S MY FIRST TIME MEETING YOU, AND LIKE I SAID, YOU HAVE A PASSION, MAN. YOU HAD US ENGAGED, YOU GOT US FOLLOWING YOUR PRESENTATION, AND WE JUST FED OFF YOUR ENERGY. AND WELCOME BACK. YOU KNOW, A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, WHEREVER THEY GO TO STUDY, THEY DON'T COME BACK, AND YOU CAME BACK BECAUSE THIS WAS YOUR PROJECT. LIKE YOU YOU SAID YOU HAD IT FOR 8 YEARS AND YOU DID NOT LET IT GO BECAUSE THAT SHOWS YOUR COMMITMENT AND YOUR LOVE FOR THE COMMUNITY THAT YOU HAVE. OF COURSE. [01:05:01] AND YOU GOT, MAN, 400 RESPONSES BACK FROM THE COMMUNITY. USUALLY WHEN SOMEONE SENDS A SURVEY, YOU HAVE TO SEND 2 OR 3 MORE TO REMIND THEM TO REPLY, AND YOU GOT THE REPLIES RIGHT AWAY. THANKFULLY, I WAS LOVED. YEAH, SO LIKE MR. REYNA SAID, I JUST WOULD LOVE LIKE IF YOU SEND BACK THE END PRODUCT TO SEE WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE YOU, YOU GET FROM IT. NOW THEY GET TO SEE, TO SEE IT. BUT OVERALL, MAN, IT LOOKS, IT LOOKS GOOD. I LIKE IT. THANK YOU, I APPRECIATE THAT. SPEAKING OF THAT, IS THERE ANY OTHER WAYS THAT I COULD SEND IT OUT? I DON'T KNOW IF YOU GUYS, UH, I WOULD REACH OUT TO MR. TALON AGAIN, BUT NOW HE'S A SUPERINTENDENT. I DON'T HAVE HIS CONTACT INFORMATION ANYMORE, SO I, I THINK THAT WE CAN PROVIDE IT FOR FOR HIM, RIGHT? WE WILL PROVIDE THAT FOR YOU. SOUNDS GOOD. WE HAVE YOUR EMAIL. OUR CITY CLERK CAN FORWARD THAT TO YOU, ALEJANDRO. I'LL CONTACT YOU, ALEJANDRO. SOUNDS GOOD. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR A WONDERFUL PRESENTATION. ALL RIGHT, WELL, THIS WAS NOT BORING AT ALL. THANK YOU, ALEJANDRO. I THINK I'M GOING TO CALL A RECESS. WE WILL TAKE A 7-MINUTE RECESS. AND WE WILL BE BACK AT 7:15. OKAY? 7:15? 7:15. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, IT'S 7:15 AND I'M CALLING THIS MEETING BACK TO ORDER. ALRIGHT, MOVING ON TO ITEM 07, PUBLIC COMMENTS ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA. THIS PORTION OF THE MEETING IS RESERVED FOR PERSONS DESIRING TO ADDRESS THE COUNCIL, INCLUDING THE COUNCIL ACTING AS THE GOVERNING BOARD FOR THE SUCCESSOR AGENCY, AND ON ANY MATTER NOT ON THIS AGENDA OVER WHICH THE COUNCIL AND SUCCESSOR AGENCY HAVE JURISDICTION. SPEAKERS ARE LIMITED TO 2 MINUTES. A MAXIMUM OF 30 MINUTES WILL BE ALLOWED FOR ANY ONE SUBJECT. PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD BEFORE MAKING YOUR PRESENTATION. BROWN ACT REQUIREMENTS. THE BROWN ACT DOES NOT ALLOW ACTION OR DISCUSSION ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA, SUBJECT TO NARROW EXCEPTIONS. THIS WILL LIMIT A COUNCIL MEMBER'S RESPONSE TO QUESTIONS AND REQUESTS DURING THIS COMMENT PERIOD. ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS? SEEING NONE. ARE THERE ANY EMAIL COMMENTS, MADAM CLERK? MAYOR PRO TEM, THERE ARE NO EMAIL COMMENTS FOR THIS ITEM OR ANY ITEM ON THIS AGENDA. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, MOVING ON TO ITEM 10. WE HAVE NOTHING UNDER 8 OR 9. UH, PUBLIC SAFETY REPORTS. [10.b. Wasco Police Department (Mora) ] UM, CHIEF APPLETON IS NOT HERE, SO LIEUTENANT, YOU'RE UP. YES, SIR. YOUR TIME TO SHINE. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR PRO TEM PAYNE, MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. SO I WILL BE PRESENTING THE PUBLIC SAFETY REPORT FOR THE MONTH OF MAY. JUST PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, UM, THESE NUMBERS ONLY REFLECT FROM MAY 1ST THROUGH THE 15TH. SO FAR THIS MONTH, THE WASCO POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS GENERATED A TOTAL OF 1,447 INCIDENTS. OF THOSE, 502 WERE CALLS FOR SERVICE FROM THE COMMUNITY AND 545 WERE OFFICER-INITIATED ACTIVITIES. IN REGARDS TO TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT, OUR OFFICERS CONDUCTED 247 TRAFFIC STOPS AND ISSUED 95 TRAFFIC CITATIONS. OF THOSE CITATIONS, 34 WERE MOVING VIOLATIONS, WITH 21 SPECIFICALLY FOR SPEEDING VIOLATIONS. AS YOU CAN SEE, OUR OFFICERS HAVE BEEN ACTIVELY ENFORCING SPEEDING THROUGHOUT THE THE CITY THIS MONTH, AND IN ADDITION, 30 PARKING CITATION WERE ALSO ISSUED. OUR OFFICERS, UH, HAVE GENERATED 97 CRIMINAL CASES SO FAR THIS MONTH AND MADE 42 ARRESTS. WE ALSO CONDUCTED 29 PEDESTRIAN AND VEHICLE CHECKS, AND 14 RESULTING IN POSITIVE CONTACTS WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND AS FAR AS FOR STOLEN VEHICLES, WE HAD 2 REPORTED STOLEN VEHICLES AND RECOVERED 1 OF THEM. TRAFFIC COLLISIONS HAVE ACTUALLY DECREASED THIS MONTH. HOPEFULLY STAYS THAT WAY. SO FAR WE HAVE INVESTIGATED 3 VEHICLE COLLISION— COLLISIONS [01:10:03] WITH, UH, 1 INVOLVING DUI. AND I WOULD LIKE, I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO RECOGNIZE TWO OF OUR PAL BOXERS, CHRISTIAN RAYA AND VINCENT SALAZAR. SO BOTH THESE YOUNG MEN COMPETED IN THEIR FIRST AMATEUR BOXING MATCHES THIS PAST SATURDAY IN VISALIA, CALIFORNIA. CHRISTIAN WON HIS FIRST, THERE YOU GO, CHRISTIAN WON HIS MATCH AND ALTHOUGH VINCENT CAME UP A LITTLE SHORT, BOTH THESE BOYS REPRESENTED OUR COMMUNITY AND OUR ORGANIZATION EXTREMELY WELL. THEIR HARD WORK AND DEDICATION TRULY SHOWED, AND WE'RE VERY PROUD OF THEM. I ALSO WANT TO RECOGNIZE OUR COACHES, CARLOS PRIETO AND OSCAR ENCISO, WHO'S PRESENT HERE, FOR THEIR TIME AND MENTORSHIP THEY CONTINUE TO PROVIDE TO THESE YOUNG MEN. AND OF COURSE, THANK YOU TO THE PARENTS FOR ALLOWING THEIR CHILDREN TO BE A PART OF THIS PROGRAM. AND LASTLY, THE WASCO POLICE DEPARTMENT AND PAL ARE COLLABORATING WITH THE WASCO BICYCLE CLUB. SO ON MAY 29TH, WE'LL BE, WE'LL BE HOSTING A BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY EVENT AT THE PAL BUILDING, AND FOLLOWED BY A COMMUNITY FUN BIKE RIDE THROUGHOUT THE CITY. IT'S ONLY GOING TO BE 4 MILES. IT'S NOT GOING TO BE A VERY HARD BICYCLE RIDE. IT'S, UH, IT'S OFF, OFF, UH, ALL PACES AND AGES ARE WELCOME. SO, UM, HOWEVER, ANYONE UNDER 18 YEARS OLD WILL NEED TO COMPLETE A LIABILITY WAIVER TO PARTICIPATE. WE WILL ALSO BE GIVING AWAY BICYCLE HELMETS AND BIKE LIGHTS WHILE SUPPLIES LAST. THAT CONCLUDES THE REPORT. IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS— THANK YOU, LIEUTENANT. UH, GREAT STATISTICS, SIR. UM, IT REALLY HAS MADE A BIG CHANGE IN, IN THE AMOUNT OF ACCIDENTS YOU SEE THAT? YES. WE'RE MORE THAN HALFWAY THROUGH THE MONTH AND BIG DIFFERENCE. YES. AND IF THIS WERE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN HALF OF THE MONTH, BUT THIS MAY BE YOUR BIGGEST STATISTICS YET BY THE END OF THE MONTH IF THE TREND CONTINUES. SO I'M REALLY, REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING. IT SHOWS DRAMATICALLY THAT YOU'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK, YOU KNOW. WE WERE HAVING 13, 14 ACCIDENTS, AND NOW WE HAVE HAD ONLY 3, AND WE ARE ON THE 19TH OF THE MONTH. KUDOS TO YOU AND THE ENTIRE POLICE FORCE. THANK YOU, THANK YOU SO MUCH. MEMBER MEDINA. LIEUTENANT, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU GUYS DO. OBVIOUSLY, IT'S— YOU GUYS KEEP ON DOING A GOOD, GOOD WORK. GLAD TO SEE THE WHOLE BOXING DEAL. MR. RAYA, IS THAT YOUR SON? OH YEAH. SO GOOD JOB ON THAT. I HAVE SEEN SOME POSTS ON, ON THEM, SO THAT'S AWESOME. ON THE BIKE CLUB, YOU KNOW, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD. YOU GUYS ARE STAYING ACTIVE ALL THE TIME, RIGHT? IT'S NOT JUST INFRACTIONS AND STOPPING PEOPLE AND WHATNOT. YOU GUYS ARE DOING ALL THE, THE OTHER GOOD THINGS IN TERMS OF THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SIDE OF THINGS. AND THAT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE, UM, SEEING THE BIKE CLUB AND GETTING THAT KICKED OFF. HOPEFULLY THAT'S A BIG DEAL. I KNOW MR. REYNA, MAYBE YOU'LL GET BACK ON YOUR BIKE, MR. REYNA. THANK YOU. MAYBE THIS WILL BE THE IMPETUS I NEED TO GET GOING AGAIN AFTER OVER 2 YEARS OF NOT RIDING MY BIKE. OH YEAH, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. THANK YOU. THE WASCO BIKE CLUB, IS THAT NEW? IS THAT BURLINGTON? IT'S, UH, THEY'RE TRYING TO ESTABLISH IT. SO, AND IT'S, UM, RAN BY ANNA OROZCO. OH, OKAY. YEAH, YEAH, SHE'S ON THE— YEAH, RIGHT, RIGHT. OH, OKAY. YEAH, I JUST LOVE THAT YOU GUYS ARE FOCUSING ON THE MOVING VIOLATIONS AND SPEEDING BECAUSE THAT'S A, THAT'S A BIG PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE HERE IN THE, IN OUR COMMUNITY. PEOPLE ARE NOT MAKING THOSE STOPS. YOU GET TO THE STOP AND IT'S YOUR TURN AND THOSE PEOPLE TAKE OFF AND YOU'RE LIKE, OH I'M TEACHING MY KIDS AND I'M LIKE, HEY, IF YOU COME AT THE SAME TIME DOING THE STOP, JUST TELL THEM TO GO BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT GONNA STOP, THEY'RE GONNA GO. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU GUYS FOCUSING ON THOSE TWO THINGS AND GREAT JOB. AND YOU GUYS ARE ALWAYS INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. THAT'S WHAT I, I LOVE ABOUT THE POLICE OR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. THEY'RE CONSTANTLY INVOLVED WITH THE KIDS AND JUST SEEING, ESPECIALLY WITH THE PAL PROGRAM, YOU KNOW, [01:15:01] WE HAVE COACH OSCAR HERE. THEY PUT A LOT OF TIME. I HAVE GONE A COUPLE TIMES OUT THERE TO, TO THE PAL BUILDING, AND I SEE THERE'S A LOT OF KIDS NOW GOING OUT THERE. AND, UM, COACH CARLOS, HE NEEDED HELP, AND, AND OSCAR HAS STEPPED UP, AND HE DOES A LOT OF THE CONDITIONING. AND I'M GONNA TELL HIM, HE'S HERE, HE DOES AN AWESOME JOB WITH THE KIDS. HE EVEN RUNS, MAN. YOU RUN HOW MANY LAPS YESTERDAY? 4. AROUND THE PARK. HE HAD THOSE KIDS AND HE'S BEHIND THEM PUSHING THEM. AND ONE KID, HE WAS STOPPING ON HIS FIRST LAP AND HE WAS COMING BEHIND, HEY, LET'S GO, LET'S GO, MOVE IT, LET'S GO. AND THEN THAT KID DIDN'T STOP AND HE COMPLETED ALL 5 LAPS. AND, AND COACH OSCAR ASKED HIM AFTER THE END, WERE YOU TIRED? GOES, NO. AND THAT KID JUST NEEDED SOMEONE TO BE THERE AND GIVE HIM THAT PUSH. AND THAT'S WHY A COACH IS SO VALUABLE TO THESE KIDS. THANK YOU, COACH. THANK YOU, LIEUTENANT. GREAT, GREAT PRESENTATION. UH, YOU KNOW, REMEMBER RYAN MENTIONED SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, YOU COME TO A STOP AND THEN OTHER STOPS AND YOU KNOW THEY'RE NOT GOING TO STOP. YOU COULD INSIST ON YOUR RIGHT OF WAY, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO GET HURT IF YOU DO, RIGHT? THAT'S SOMETHING TO BE MINDFUL OF ALL THE TIME. WRONG STUFF. YEAH, IT'S JUST, UH, WE, WE ENCOUNTER THOSE DRIVERS EVERY SINGLE DAY, BUT HOPEFULLY THAT'LL GO AWAY. GREAT, GREAT WORK ALL AROUND. [11) CONSENT CALENDAR] THANK YOU. THANK YOU, LIEUTENANT. UM, ALL RIGHT, MOVING ON TO CITY COUNCIL BUSINESS ITEM 11, THE CONSENT CALENDAR. CONSENT CALENDAR. THE CONSENT CALENDAR CONSISTS OF ITEMS THAT ARE ROUTINE AND NON- CONTROVERSIAL IN THE STAFF'S OPINION. THESE ITEMS ARE APPROVED IN ONE MOTION UNLESS A COUNCILMEMBER OR MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC REQUESTS THE REMOVAL OF A PARTICULAR ITEM. THIS EVENING WE HAVE ITEMS 11A TO 11F. UM, AT THIS TIME I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE MEMBERS IF THEY HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST. ON A PARTICULAR ITEM ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR, MEMBER MEDINA? I HAVE NO CONFLICT. MEMBER RAYA? I HAVE NO CONFLICT. AND I DO NOT HAVE A CONFLICT EITHER. IS THERE ANYONE IN THE AUDIENCE WHO WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE AN ITEM? OKAY, SEEING NO ONE, ARE THERE ANY COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO REMOVE AN ITEM? MEMBER MEDINA? I HAVE NONE. MEMBER RAYA? NO. AND I DON'T HAVE ANY TO PUT PULL OUT. IF SOMEONE WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR APPROVAL OF THE CONSENT CALENDAR. I'LL MOVE TO APPROVE. I SECOND. IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU CALL THE VOTE BY ROLL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA, AYE. COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, AYE. COUNCILMEMBER RAYA, AYE. MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER RAYA, TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR. MOTION IS APPROVED WITH 3 AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDAÑA AND [14.a. Council finds this action is not a “project” under Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines; Adopt a Resolution Approving the Policy on Disruptions of Telephonic or Internet Services During Public Meetings in compliance with Senate Bill 707. (M. Martinez)] COUNCILMEMBER MARTINEZ ABSENT. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. MOVING ON TO ITEM 14, NEW BUSINESS. 14A, COUNCIL FINDS THIS ACTION IS NOT A PROJECT UNDER SECTION 15378 OF THE CEQA GUIDELINES. ADOPT A RESOLUTION APPROVING THE POLICY ON DISRUPTIONS OF TELEPHONIC OR INTERNET SERVICES DURING PUBLIC MEETINGS IN COMPLIANCE WITH SENATE BILL 707, PERIOD, PARENTHESIS. OH, I DON'T HAVE TO READ THAT. MR. MARTINEZ, MRS. MARTINEZ. HI, I WAS JUST GOING TO REFER THIS ITEM TO MRS. MARTINEZ. MY APOLOGIES. IT'S OKAY. OKAY, I CAN'T READ ME WITH MY GLASSES ON OR WITHOUT. ALL RIGHT, OKAY. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL MEMBERS. TONIGHT WE'LL BE PRESENTING THE POLICY REQUIRED UNDER SENATE BILL 707. THIS POLICY OUTLINE OUTLINES HOW THE CITY WILL RESPOND IF OUR TELEPHONIC OR INTERNET SERVICE ARE DISRUPTED DURING A PUBLIC MEETING. THANK YOU. STAFF IS RECOMMENDING THE COUNCIL TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION APPROVING THIS POLICY AND CONFIRM THAT THIS ACTION IS NOT CONSIDERED A CEQA PROJECT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS? ASSISTANT UNDER— ASSISTANT UNDER— I'M STILL CONTINUING. I'M NOT— I'M NOT DONE WITH MY APOLOGIES. I'M LOOKING DOWN AND I'M NOT LOOKING AT YOUR PRESENTATION. WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT MY GLASSES? THAT'S MY EXCUSE ANYWAY. I'M SORRY FOR THE INTERRUPTION. IT'S OKAY. UM, THE BROWN ACT REQUIRES THAT OUR MEETINGS BE OPEN AND ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC. [01:20:01] SB 707, ADOPTED IN 2025, ADDS NEW REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO THE TELECONFERENCING AND PUBLIC ACCESS. THESE REQUIREMENTS TAKE EFFECT JULY 1, 2026. ON JULY 01, WE MUST PROVIDE HYBRID MEETINGS, EXPAND PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS, AND FOLLOW NEW TELECONFERENCING RULES FOR ADVISORY BODIES SUCH AS THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND OUR MEASURE X COMMITTEE. SB 707 REQUIRES US TO OFFER BOTH IN-PERSON AND REMOTE PARTICIPATION PARTICIPATION. IF WE USE A VIDEO PLATFORM, WE MUST ALSO PROVIDE A CALL-IN OPTION AND ENABLE CAPTIONING WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE. CURRENTLY, THE CITY IS TESTING THE ZOOM PLATFORM, AND, UM, THE ZOOM PLATFORM ACTUALLY COMPLIES WITH THE SB 707 REQUIREMENTS. THE POLICY BEFORE YOU OUTLINES HOW WE RESPOND IF OUR AUDIO VIDEO, OR THE ENTIRE PLATFORM FAILS. IT ALSO IDENTIFIES WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR RESTORING THE SERVICE, HOW WE NOTIFY THE PUBLIC, AND AS WELL HOW WE RESUME THE MEETING. IT ALSO ADDRESSED HOW WE HANDLE DISRUPTIONS FROM THE PUBLIC AND HOW WE ACCOMMODATE, ACCOMMODATE ADA-RELATED REQUESTS. IF REMOTE ACCESS IS LOST, THE COUNCIL MUST RECESS FOR UP TO 1 HOUR WHILE STAFF, STAFF WORKS ON RESTORING THE SERVICE. IF WE CANNOT RESTORE THE SERVICE, THE COUNCIL MUST TAKE A ROLL CALL VOTE CONFIRMING GOOD FAITH EFFORTS AND DECIDING WHETHER IT IS THE PUBLIC'S BEST INTEREST TO CONTINUE THE MEETING. AGENDAS MUST BE TRANSLATED WHEN 20% OF THE POPULATION SPEAKS SPEAKS ANOTHER LANGUAGE AND SPEAKS ENGLISH LESS THAN VERY WELL. FOR WASCO, THE LANGUAGE IS SPANISH. ONLY THE AGENDA ITSELF MUST BE TRANSLATED, NOT THE FULL AGENDA PACKET. OUR WEBSITE MUST ALSO BE TRANSLATED UNDER THE SAME CRITERIA, AND THE TRANSLATION VERSION MUST BE ACCESSIBLE THROUGH A CLEAR LINK ON OUR HOME PAGE. SB 707 DOES NOT REQUIRE THE CITY TO PROVIDE TRANSLATION SERVICES. IT SIMPLY REQUIRES US TO ASSIST MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WANT TO TRANSLATE OR INTERPRET THE MEETINGS THEMSELVES. ALTHOUGH TRANSLATION SERVICES ARE NOT REQUIRED, THE CITY IS CURRENTLY PROVIDING THOSE SERVICES WHEN THEY ARE REQUESTED WITHIN 72 HOURS BEFORE THE MEETING. THE CITY MUST ALSO PROVIDE A DESIGNATED PHYSICAL LOCATION NEAR THE AGENDA POSTING SITES WHERE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC MAY POST TRANSLATED VERSIONS OF THE AGENDA. STAFF IS CURRENTLY PREPARING A DISCLAIMER FOR THOSE POSTING BOARDS STATING THAT THE ONLY TRANSLATED— STATING THAT ONLY TRANSLATED AGENDAS MAY BE POSTED AND THAT THE CITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENTS ON THE DOCUMENTS. AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE POSTING BOARDS OUTSIDE OF CITY HALL. THERE'S ANOTHER ONE IN THE FINANCE AND ANOTHER ONE HERE AT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, SO WE'LL HAVE ADDITIONAL BOARDS OUT THERE. THE CITY MUST MAKE REASONABLE EFFORTS TO REACH GROUPS THAT DO NOT TYPICALLY PARTICIPATE IN PUBLIC MEETINGS. COUNCIL WILL IDENTIFY THOSE GROUPS AND STAFF WILL FOLLOW THROUGH WITH THE OUTREACH. THE COUNCIL MUST PROVIDE AUTHORIZATION BEFORE ADVISORY BODIES USE TELECONFERENCING. MEMBERS MUST MAINTAIN REAL-TIME TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION UNLESS THEY HAVE AN ADA-QUALIFYING CONDITION. THESE BODIES MUST REQUEST REAUTHORIZATION FOR TELECONFERENCING EVERY 6 MONTHS, AND THIS IS JUST AUTHORIZING THE ADVISORY BOARDS THAT THEY CAN ALSO USE ZOOM IF NEED TO. SB 707 IS A— IT'S AN UNFUNDED MANDATE. WE ANTICIPATE COSTS RELATED TO AUDIOVISUAL UPGRADES, WEBSITE CONTENT, OUTREACH MATERIALS, AND ADDITIONAL STAFF TIME. A DETAILED COST ESTIMATE WILL BE DEVELOPED AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION. RECOMMENDED ACTIONS TONIGHT ARE AS FOLLOWS. ADOPT THE RESOLUTION APPROVING THE POLICY, CONFIRM CEQA EXEMPTION, AND FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO ATTEND— IDENTIFY THE GROUPS TO INVITE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PUBLIC MEETINGS. THIS [01:25:01] CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. IF THE COUNCIL HAS ANY QUESTIONS, I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO ANSWER. DULY NOTED. THANK YOU. SORRY FOR TRYING TO GET AHEAD OF YOU. ALL RIGHT, VERY GOOD. UM, LET ME SEE IF I HAVE A SCRIPT HERE THAT I MUST READ. ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME? OKAY, SEEING NONE, I'LL START THE CONVERSATION. THIS IS QUITE AN ENDEAVOR THAT WE HAVE TO DO, THAT THE STAFF HAS TO DO FOR EVERY MEETING. THAT'S CORRECT. HOWEVER, I'M IN A CERTAIN WAY— IF NOT PLEASED, JUST LESS WORRIED THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO TRANSLATE THE ENTIRE PACKET, WHICH WOULD BE A HUGE UNDERTAKING FOR STAFF TO DO AND NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO ACCOMPLISH PRIOR TO A MEETING. UM, THIS WILL GIVE ACCESS TO PEOPLE THAT PERHAPS NORMALLY WOULDN'T HAVE IT, UM, AS TO WHAT GROUPS WE NEED TO IDENTIFY TO INCLUDE IN THIS. A GOOD WAY PERHAPS WOULD BE TO COLLABORATE WITH THE SCHOOL SITES AND SEE IF THROUGH THEIR PARENT COMMUNICATIONS, YOU KNOW, THAT WE CAN REACH THE PARENTS OF THE CHILDREN THAT PARTICIPATE IN OUR SCHOOLS AND MAYBE THEY WANT TO BE PART OF THIS. MAYBE SOCIAL MEDIA ALSO. WE HAVE A SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE FOLLOWING FOR THAT SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE IS, BUT IT COULD BE ALSO NOTED THERE IN SPANISH, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR GROUPS THAT WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS. UM, AND I'M CERTAIN THERE ARE OTHERS, AND I'M GOING TO ASK THE MEMBERS HERE WHAT THEIR SUGGESTIONS ARE. BUT I WILL ALSO SAY THAT BY OUR OWN EXPERIENCE IS THAT THESE MEETINGS ARE NOT ATTENDED BY THE PUBLIC, RIGHT? IT JUST SIMPLY DOESN'T HAPPEN. I MEAN, WE HAVE A FEW PEOPLE THAT COME ON A REGULAR BASIS, BUT FOR THE MOST PART IT'S JUST STAFF AND THE COUNCIL. AND SO THIS MAY BE PUTTING A BURDEN ON CITY STAFF THAT MAY NOT BE NEEDED BECAUSE OF THE EXPERIENCE THAT WE HAVE HAD. IF IT CHANGES THINGS, IF IT CHANGES PARTICIPATION, THEN IT'S SOMETHING GOOD. BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT THAT WILL HAPPEN. I DON'T KNOW THAT WE'LL HAVE MORE PARTICIPATION BECAUSE NOW THIS INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE IN SPANISH. WE HAVE MADE ACCOMMODATIONS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE. WHENEVER SOMEBODY THAT DOESN'T SPEAK ENGLISH AND SPEAKS SPANISH— SPANISH WAS IDENTIFIED AS THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE IN WASCO SPEAK— WE'VE ALWAYS ACCOMMODATED THEM BY HAVING A TRANSLATOR, WHICH WE'RE NOW NOT REQUIRED TO DO. ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS MAKE IT AVAILABLE FOR SOMEBODY ELSE TO TRANSLATE. BUT YOU SAID THAT WE WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE A TRANSLATOR, WHICH IS A GREAT ACCOMMODATION. BUT I JUST DON'T KNOW. I MEAN, IT'S HAVING TO DO A LOT OF THINGS WITH PERHAPS— WHO KNOWS? I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE OUTCOME WILL BE. BUT CERTAINLY WE'RE GOING TO COMPLY. AND, UH, AND HOPE FOR THE BEST. UH, MEMBER MEDINA. YEAH, I MEAN, GIVEN THAT THIS IS A SENATE BILL, I MEAN, IT'S AFFECTING ALL OF CALIFORNIA, RIGHT? RIGHT. IT'S PROBABLY TARGETED TO BIGGER CITIES, AND— BUT IT'S HAVING UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES WITH SMALL CITIES LIKE US, GIVEN THAT IT'S AN UNFUNDED MANDATE. WE JUST TALKED ABOUT THIS NOT THAT LONG AGO WHEN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S POLICIES THAT ARE COMING DOWN FROM SACRAMENTO THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE UNFUNDED. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AT A COST, MAYBE MORE THAN IT'S WORTH FOR A SMALL CITY LIKE OURS, BUT WE GOT TO COMPLY. SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S THE UNFORTUNATE REALITY OF THINGS. I THINK JUST IN TERMS OF REACH, YOU KNOW, THE SCHOOLS, I THINK IT'S GOOD. WE CAN PROBABLY DO SOME SORT OF LIKE MAILER IN THE WATER BILL OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, JUST LETTING FOLKS KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S GOING TO BE ACCESSIBLE ONLINE BECAUSE THAT'S REALLY WHAT IT'S ABOUT. IT'S THE WHOLE ZOOM AND ACCESSIBILITY ONLINE, RIGHT, TO FOLKS. UM, SO YEAH, I MEAN, UM, IN TERMS OF, UH, COST, MARIA, I KNOW YOU SAID YOU WERE WORKING ON SOME SORT OF NUMBERS. AT SOME POINT YOU'LL COME BACK AND PRESENT WHAT THAT'S GOING TO BE. YES, THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. [01:30:01] MEMBER MEDINA. MEMBER REYNA, HAS THE CITY EVER PROVIDED, UM, SPANISH AGENDA? NO, THIS IS THE FIRST THIS WILL BE THEIR FIRST TIME. BUT IT'S JUST GOING TO BE THE AGENDA, NOT ENTIRE PACKET. THAT'S CORRECT. THAT'S GOOD. JUST THE SPANISH AGENDA ALSO NEEDS TO BE POSTED WITHIN 72 HOURS REQUIREMENT THAT WE HAVE WITH THE REGULAR AGENDA. SO HOW MANY HOURS? LIKE, IF SOMEONE NEEDS A TRANSLATOR, HOW MANY HOURS? 72 HOURS. IF I MAY ADD, MAYOR PRO TEM AND CITY COUNCIL, UM, CLERK, IT SHOULD BE ON. CAN YOU HEAR ME? OKAY. MAYOR PRO TEM AND CITY COUNCIL, I BELIEVE CURRENTLY OUR CITY WEBSITE HAS A GOOGLE TRANSLATE, AND I BELIEVE THAT APP TRANSLATES THE ENTIRE AGENDA, RIGHT, MARIA? IF THEY SELECT THE RIGHT THING. NOT THE DOCUMENT THAT'S UPLOADED INTO THE WEBSITE. IT DOES TRANSLATE EVERY, EVERY INFORMATION THAT'S ON THE CITY WEBSITE, HOWEVER NOT THE DOCUMENTS. OKAY, OKAY. SO DOES— AND I'LL FOLLOW UP A QUESTION IF YOU DON'T MIND— UH, DOES SB 707— DOES THIS SATISFY— THAT GOOGLE TRANSLATOR SATISFY SB 707 FOR THE TRANSLATING DOCUMENTS? YES, IT DOES. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ACCURATE? NO, IT DOES NOT. IT DOESN'T HOLD THE CITY LIABLE FOR THE INFORMATION THAT'S ON. GREAT TO MENTION THAT. YES, IT IS A TOOL THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE ON OUR WEBSITE. I BELIEVE WE TESTED IT THIS MORNING TO SEE IF IT WORKED, SO IT IS AVAILABLE OUT THERE FOR OUR RESIDENTS. WHETHER, YOU KNOW, WE PROBABLY NEED TO DO A BETTER JOB ON, YOU KNOW, MAYBE PUTTING IT MORE VISIBLE FOR PEOPLE TO SEE IT, AND WHEN YOU— THEY CLICK ON OUR WEBSITE BUT WE ARE WORKING WITH POTENTIALLY UPDATING OUR WHOLE WEBSITE AND MAKING IT MORE ADA-FRIENDLY. AND PROBABLY MARIA IS LOOKING IT UP RIGHT THERE. YOU CAN SEE IT AT THE VERY BOTTOM. YEAH, YEAH. RIGHT HERE IN THE BOTTOM WHERE IT SAYS GOOGLE, YOU SELECT YOUR LANGUAGE. OBVIOUSLY IT GIVES A LOT OF OPTIONS HERE. SPANISH. AND NOW IT CHANGES EVERYTHING IN HERE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE DOCUMENTS THAT ARE UPLOADED. OKAY, IT WON'T TRANSLATE THAT, BUT IT HAS THE WEBSITE TRANSLATED. OKAY, WELL, SO, BUT THAT THEN, THAT DOESN'T SATISFY THE, UM, THE REQUIREMENT TO HAVE THE AGENDA TRANSLATED? NO, NO, WE WOULD STILL NEED TO TRANSLATE THE AGENDA IN ITSELF. ANY, ANY OTHER COMMENTS? ALL RIGHT, UM, SO YOU'VE HEARD THE DIRECTION, RIGHT? YES, I DID. UM, OKAY, I'LL MOVE IT FORWARD. UH, MOVE TO APPROVE. I'LL SECOND IT. OKAY, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU CALL THE VOTE BY ROLL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER RAYA. AYE. MOTION BY MAYOR PRO TEM PENA, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION FOR 14A. MOTION IS APPROVED WITH 3 AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDAÑA AND COUNCILMEMBER [14.b. Council finds this action is not a “project” under Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines; Authorize the City Manager or Designee to Endorse and Execute a Purchase Order with Siemens for Repairs to the City’s Solar Farm, in an amount not to exceed $30,000.00. (Villa)] MARTINEZ ABSENT. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. MOVING ON TO ITEM 14B. COUNCIL FINDS THIS ACTION IS NOT A PROJECT UNDER SECTION 153 3.78 OF THE CEQA GUIDELINES, AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER OR DESIGNEE TO ENDORSE AND EXECUTE A PURCHASE ORDER WITH SIEMENS FOR REPAIRS TO THE CITY SOLAR FARM IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $30,000. UH, YEAH, $30,000. MR. VILLA. GOOD EVENING, HONORABLE MAYOR, PRO TEM COUNCIL. AS YOU KNOW, THE CITY OWNS A SOLAR FARM SOUTH OF THE WASTEWATER FACILITY. APPROXIMATELY 9 INVERTERS WILL NEED TO BE REPLACED, FORTUNATELY UNDER WARRANTY. UNFORTUNATELY, THE LABOR TO REPLACE OR TROUBLESHOOT THE UNITS IS NOT COVERED. I WANTED TO ADDRESS THE INVERTER ISSUE TOGETHER WITH THE VANDALISM THAT HAS OCCURRED. SIEMENS WAS ON SITE THIS PAST FRIDAY TO ASSESS ALL DAMAGES CAUSED BY THE VANDALISM. COMBINING THE INVERTER MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS WILL AVOID INDIVIDUAL INVOICES OR THE NEED TO RETURN ON SITE MULTIPLE TIMES, IN ADDITION WITH ADDITIONAL COSTS. WITH THAT, STAFF RECOMMENDS COUNCIL AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE A PURCHASE ORDER WITH SIEMENS TO PROCEED WITH THE REPAIRS. IF ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER. THANK YOU, MR. ARE THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS AT THIS TIME. UH, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS. [01:35:01] UH, MR. VILLA, I READ THE REPORT. IT SAYS THAT WE HAD, UM, VANDALISM TWICE. THAT IS CORRECT, TWO LOCATIONS. UH, AND, UM, CAN YOU TELL US HOW THIS VANDALISM OCCURRED? DID IT OCCUR FROM OUTSIDE THE FENCE, OR DID THEY JUMP THE FENCE AND GOT IN THERE AND DID IT CAUSE THE DAMAGE? IT DID. SO BOTH TIMES THE FENCE WAS WAS CUT. SO THEY HAD TO GO THROUGH TWO FENCES. ONE IS WHAT— THAT SURROUNDS OUR— WHAT IS THE GREEN WASTE FACILITY. THEY CUT THAT, THEN ACCESSED THE ACTUAL SOLAR FARM SITE, WHAT THEY CALL SOLAR FARM. THEY CUT THAT FENCE AND THEY GOT IN. AND THE WHOLE PURPOSE OF THEIR GETTING IN WAS TO STEAL THOSE INVERTERS OR JUST DAMAGE? THEY WERE— THEY'RE ATTEMPTING TO STEAL THE WIRING THAT LINKS EVERY PANEL TOGETHER TO THE INVERTERS. OH, THE COPPER. THE COPPER. COPPER. UH, MAYBE IT WASN'T THOUGHT OUT AS WELL. THAT WIRING IS VERY THIN, UH, SO THERE WAS A LOT LEFT ON, ON SITE. AND SO HOPEFULLY MAYBE END OF WEEK WE, WE GET THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF WHAT IT'S GOING TO COST THE CITY TO REPAIR, RIGHT? UM, NOW THIS SOLAR FARM WAS BUILT WHEN I WAS MAYOR, AND, YOU KNOW, WE INAUGURATED IT THAT YEAR WHEN I WAS MAYOR THE FIRST TIME. AND I KNOW THAT SIEMENS HAS A WARRANTY WHICH IS AN EXTENDED WARRANTY, AND I HEARD YOU SAY THAT IT IS UNDER WARRANTY, HOWEVER IT DOESN'T COVER THE LABOR, RIGHT? CORRECT. YEP. SO IT'S STILL UNDER WARRANTY, RIGHT? I ALSO READ ON THE REPORT THAT SIEMENS IS REQUIRING THAT WE TAKE MEASURES TO PREVENT ADDITIONAL VANDALISM. CAN YOU SPEAK ABOUT WHAT MEASURES WE'RE GONNA— WE'RE GONNA TAKE? JUST ADDITIONAL STAFF TIME OUT THERE. WELL, WE ARE IN— IN GETTING— ACQUIRE SOME CAMERAS TO PLACE OUT THERE. IT'S JUST GETTING POWER TO THE SITE. OKAY. WEIRD THAT IT'S A PRETTY NICE SPOT. YEAH, WE'RE PRODUCING ENERGY, BUT WE WE CAN'T TAP INTO IT. IT DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY. BUT YOU CANNOT JUST CONNECT TO THE PANEL. WE'RE DEFINITELY, UH, YOU KNOW, GET A HOLD OF CAMERAS. I THINK WE'RE LOOKING AT TWO PORTABLE STYLE CAMERAS THERE. ALL RIGHT, WELL, BEING THAT THIS IS NOT A SMALL EXPENSE, RIGHT? I MEAN, THIS, THESE PEOPLE CREATED A BIG EXPENSE FOR THE CITY. I THINK WE NEED TO TAKE TAKE GOOD MEASURES. YOU THINK 2 CAMERAS IS SUFFICIENT? IT SEEMS TO ME LIKE IT WOULDN'T BE, BUT WHAT DO I KNOW? SOME OF THESE CAMERAS, THEY DO THE 360. OKAY. SO WE'RE LOOKING INTO THE BEST CAMERAS THAT WE CAN, BECAUSE IT IS A HUGE INVESTMENT. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T WANT TO SPEND THE $300 ON A CHEAP CAMERA. SO NO, NO, I AGREE WITH YOU. WE WANT TO HAVE WHATEVER IS NECESSARY TO ALLOW US TO MONITOR THAT AREA. BUT YEAH, I THINK WE NEED TO SECURE IT AND MAYBE EVEN HAVE SIGNS, YOU KNOW, THAT, HEY, THIS DOESN'T HAVE THE COPPER WIRE THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. RIGHT. THIS IS NOT THE SITE. RIGHT? RIGHT. LET THEM KNOW AHEAD OF TIME SO THEY DON'T CUT INTO IT, RIGHT? BECAUSE YOU SAID THEY LEFT IT BEHIND, RIGHT? YEAH, THEY LEFT SOME OF IT BEHIND. I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THEY TOOK. I COULDN'T TELL YOU. OKAY. HI, ROB. YEAH, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT WAS IN THERE. YEAH. ALL RIGHT, UM, MEMBER MEDINA. YEAH, I MEAN, IT'S A BIG COST. I'M SURPRISED THAT WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN HIT BEFORE. OBVIOUSLY COPPER WIRE THEFT IS A BIG THING. I AGREE. YOU KNOW, RURAL AREAS, SO WHO KNOWS, UM, YOU KNOW, BUT HOPEFULLY CAMERAS, ADDING SOME CAMERAS OUT THERE, THAT SHOULD HELP OUT. OR IF NOT, WE, YOU KNOW, SEND THE DRONE OUT THERE AND PATROL IT ONCE IN A WHILE. BUT YEAH, I MEAN, I THINK— I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE ANY SIGNAGE, RIGHT? USUALLY WHEN THERE'S SOLAR FARMS LIKE THAT, THERE'S SIGNAGE OUT THERE AND WHATNOT. BUT I MEAN, THAT DOESN'T— THAT'S NOT GOING TO DETER SOMEBODY THAT'S GOING TO GO OUT THERE. BUT IF WE DON'T HAVE SIGNAGE, THAT'D BE SOMETHING EASY TO IMPLEMENT AS WELL. BUT YEAH, I MEAN, I THINK IF WE HAVE TO GET IT FIXED NOW VERSUS LATER, I THINK RIGHT, THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO DO. AND $30,000 SEEMS LIKE A LOT, BUT I MEAN, I'VE SEEN BILLS WAY MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THAT ON WATER PUMPS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND, AND THE PRODUCTION THAT WE'RE, WE'RE NOT PRODUCING NOW, UH, THAT WE'RE MISSING OUT BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT PRODUCING. YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S A VERY VALID POINT. I MEAN, IT'S COSTING US MORE THAN THE DAMAGE THAT THEY DID. CORRECT. WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT HAVING TO PAY FOR ELECTRICITY. YEP. CORRECT. DID WE GET AN INVESTIGATION ON IT? UH, WE REPORTED PD. WE— THEY, THEY TOOK OUT THE— YEAH, WE DID REPORT. UH, WE'RE JUST WAITING FOR THE WHOLE ASSESSMENT FOR THE TOTAL AMOUNT. UM, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO MAKE MORE COMMENTS, YOU CAN COME TO THE MICROPHONE. ARE YOU GOOD? OKAY. MEMBER REYNA. UH, WELL, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS [01:40:01] I HAD WAS THE— WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THE VANDALISM THAT MR. REYNA ASKED YOU ANSWER? WHEN THIS HAPPENED, WHAT KIND OF— DID YOU— APPARENTLY WE HAVE CAMERAS OUT THERE? NO, WE'RE TRYING TO— WE'RE— WE WANT TO TAKE SOME CAMERAS, BUT WE WANT TO GET GOOD QUALITY CAMERAS AND POTENTIALLY EVEN ADD SOME ADDITIONAL LIGHTING IN THAT AREA. IT'S JUST AN AREA THAT'S VERY SECLUDED. IT'S, YOU KNOW, OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND TYPE OF DEAL. BUT, AND LIKE MR. MEDINA MENTIONED— COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, SORRY. YOU KNOW, IT'S FORTUNATE, WE'RE FORTUNATE ENOUGH THAT WE HADN'T GOT HIT. AND I THINK IT'S BEEN UP AND RUNNING 8 YEARS MAYBE. I THINK IT WAS INSTALLED IN 2018, BECAME IN OPERATION. SO HOW FAR APART WERE THEY? YOU SAID THAT THEY WERE HIT TWICE, RIGHT? ONCE IN FEBRUARY AND ONCE, I BELIEVE MARCH WAS THE NEXT ONE. SO PRETTY MUCH BACK TO BACK, THEY CAME BACK. BUT THE TOTAL DAMAGES WE WON'T FIND OUT UNTIL SIEMENS COMES BACK WITH THE FULL REPORT, HOPEFULLY END OF THE WEEK. THEY CAME OUT FRIDAY TO DO THE LAST ASSESSMENT. MAYBE EVEN A LOUD ALARM, YOU KNOW, WOULD BE NEEDED IF THOSE CAMERAS CAN TRIGGER SOME KIND OF A LOUD ALARM. JUST THE SOUND OF IT MIGHT SCARE PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THEY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO, TO WORK AT STEALING. CORRECT. OKAY, SO LET'S TAKE ALL THE MEASURES NECESSARY TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING AGAIN. UM, $30,000. ALL RIGHT, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION FOR APPROVAL. SO MOVED. SECOND. ALL RIGHT, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU CALL THE VOTE BY ROLL? MAYOR PRO TEM REYNA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA. AYE. COUNCILMEMBER RAYA. MOTION BY COUNCILMEMBER MEDINA, SECONDED BY COUNCILMEMBER RAYA, TO ADOPT THE RESOLUTION FOR ITEM 14B. MOTION IS APPROVED WITH 3 AYES, WITH MAYOR SALDAÑA AND COUNCILMEMBER MARTINEZ ABSENT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR. YOU CAN APPLAUD IF YOU WANT. HEY, YOU GIVE, YOU GIVE ME TO COME TO ALL [15.a. Kern Economic Development Corporation (Medina)] OF OUR MEETING. KEEP THE ENERGY UP. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, ITEM NUMBER 15, REPORTS FROM COMMISSIONS AND COMMITTEES. UH, CURRENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, MR. MEDINA. UH, YEAH, UM, SO WE DON'T HAVE A MEETING, UH, YET SCHEDULED, BUT I DID ATTEND THE CURRENT ECONOMIC SUMMIT IN BAKERSFIELD. UH, AS ALWAYS, IT'S A GOOD EVENT. THEY ALSO HAVE A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION OUT THERE. THE STATE OF THE INDUSTRY, YOU KNOW, THEY TALK ABOUT IT'S STRONG. KERN COUNTY OBVIOUSLY HAS A GOOD, STRONG ECONOMY. IT'S ALWAYS FIGHTING FOR FIRST PLACE WITH FRESNO, TULARE COUNTY, THINGS LIKE THAT. ALWAYS KIND OF GOES BACK AND FORTH. SO ALWAYS GOOD INFORMATION OUT THERE. THEY USUALLY PUBLISH A BOOK. I'M SURE WE'LL GET SOME AT THE AT THE MEETING. SO ONCE WE HAVE THAT, WE'LL BRING SOME OVER. OKAY, THANK YOU. COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS, THAT'S ME. I, UM, I WAS UNABLE TO ATTEND, UM, THE MEETING. I THINK WE HAD A MEETING THIS LAST WEEK. UNFORTUNATELY, YOU KNOW, DUE TO MAJOR CIRCUMSTANCES AT MY HOUSE, WE, UH, [15.c. Wasco Task Force (Saldaña and Raya)] I WAS UNABLE TO ATTEND, SO NO REPORT. WASCO TASK FORCE, MR. RAYA. WELL, I, YOU KNOW, AS WE KNOW, MAYOR SALDAÑA IS AT THE CONFERENCE. I CALLED HIM EARLIER ON, I COULDN'T SPEAK TO HIM, HE DIDN'T ANSWER, JUST TO GET A DATE FOR, UH, THIS COMING MONTH. SO I'LL BE GETTING WITH HIM TO SEE IF WE CAN, WE CAN DO A CLEANUP THIS COMING MONTH. OKAY, SO YOU LET THE CITY CLERK KNOWS SO THAT SHE CAN [16) REPORTS FROM THE CITY MANAGER] PASS IT ON TO EVERYBODY ELSE. YES, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, REPORTS FROM CITY MANAGER. OKAY, THANK YOU. I HAVE A FEW ITEMS THAT I NEED TO REPORT OUT. THE FIRST ONE IS OUR COMMUNITY BREAKFAST. FREE WILL BAPTIST CHURCH WILL BE HOSTING THAT JUNE 3RD AT 7 AM. THE OTHER ONE IS I HAVE THE RESULTS FROM THE COMMUNITY CLEANUP ON FROM APRIL 25TH. MR. VILLA WILL BE PROVIDING THE RESULTS FROM THAT CLEANUP. OKAY, SO GLASSES HERE. SO I'LL BREAK IT DOWN. SO, UH, THE COMMUNITY CLEANUP HAPPENED APRIL 25TH. WE HAVE 5 TONS OF SCRAP METAL, WHITE GOODS, WHICH IS ALL YOUR APPLIANCES REALLY. WE HAVE 1 TON OF MATTRESSES PICKED UP. WE HAVE 10 TONS [01:45:02] OF TRASH THAT WAS TAKEN THERE ON SITE. THE E-WASTE IS 0.74 TONS AND TIRES WAS 0.77 TONS, SO A TOTAL OF 17.8 TONS. OF TRASH WAS COLLECTED ON THAT EVENT. WOW, I THINK IT DIED, BUT DID WE HEAR YOU? OKAY, GOT IT LOUD AND CLEAR. IF WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT, UNFORTUNATELY THIS ONE I WAS ABLE TO MAKE THERE, SO I JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY THAT HELPED OUT WITH THAT COMMUNITY CLEANUP. I KNOW POWELL WAS OUT THERE, SOME OF OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS MEMBERS WERE OUT THERE. THANK YOU. I KNOW THAT OUR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CODE GUYS WERE OUT THERE AND CITY STAFF, AND THANK YOU ALL FOR THE GREAT WORK YOU DO FOR THESE EVENTS AND EVERYTHING YOU PICK UP TO MAKE THIS TOWN BEAUTIFUL. THE OTHER ONE— THE OTHER EVENT THAT'S COMING UP IS A CELEBRATION OF EDUCATION. THE WASCO UNIFIED ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DISTRICT WILL BE HOSTING THAT MAY 25TH. MAY 1ST AT 2 PM. I BELIEVE OUR CITY CLERK HAS SENT OUT INVITES FOR THAT. AND THE OTHER EVENT WILL BE MEMORIAL DAY EVENT AT THE NATIONAL CEMETERY. THAT IS MAY 23RD AT 9 AM. AND I BELIEVE— DO THEY HAVE TO RESERVE, OR IT'S— THEY ALREADY RESERVED WHO WILL BE ATTENDING. GREAT. THE OTHER ONE IS THE CITY OFFICES WILL BE CLOSED FOR MEMORIAL DAY, MAY 25TH. THE CITY WILL BE CLOSED. HOWEVER, THERE'LL BE A WASCO MEMORIAL DAY EVENT ON MAY 25TH AT 10 AM AT THE WASCO CEMETERY. THAT IS OUR LOCAL MEMORIAL DAY EVENT AT 10 AM. THE OTHER ONE THAT'S COMING UP IS THE FATHER-DAUGHTER DANCE. MAY 21ST FROM 6:30 TO 8:30 PM AT THE 7TH STREET PLAZA. AND LASTLY, INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATION THIS YEAR WILL FALL ON JULY 4TH, AND IT WILL BE AT BARKER PARK, UM, AND I HAVE IT HERE FOR 6 PM, UM, AND THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO REPORT, MAYOR PRO TEM. YES, JULY 4TH. I THINK YOU HAVE THAT ON YOUR CALENDAR TOO, MR. RINGO. OKAY, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU FOR THAT REPORT, MRS. LARA. IF COUNCIL HAS ANY, ANY COMMENTS OR ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME, I CAN TAKE THEM, AND I'M SURE OUR CITY MANAGER WILL, OR MYSELF, WILL GET BACK TO YOU. I WANT TO CONGRATULATE OUR STAFF AND OUR COMMUNITY ON THIS VERY, VERY SUCCESSFUL CLEANUP. I BELIEVE THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU REPORT THE TONNAGE THAT WE HAVE COLLECTED. I DON'T REMEMBER HEARING THIS TYPE OF REPORT IN THE PAST. HE'S REPORTED IN THE PAST. REALLY? WHERE WAS I? WAS I NOT PAYING ATTENTION? THIS IS— SOUNDS LIKE— NO, IT'S INCREDIBLE. THAT IS HUGE, 10 TONS OF TRASH. 17. THAT IS HUGE. WELL, IT WAS ALMOST 1 TON OF E-WASTE. YEAH, I WROTE THAT DOWN TOO. YEAH, 1 TON OF— AND THEN WHAT WAS THAT, MATTRESSES AND 5 TONS OF SCRAP METAL. I MEAN, THAT'S JUST INCREDIBLE. THAT'S A LOT OF WASTE LANDING, NOT NECESSARILY IN THE RIGHT PLACE BECAUSE I GUESS WE SHOULD TRY TO RECYCLE AS MUCH AS WE CAN, BUT, YOU KNOW, AT LEAST IT'S NOT ON OUR STREETS, AND THAT'S JUST WONDERFUL TO HEAR. I THINK I— LET ME JUST FINISH [17) REPORTS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL] THIS UP AND THEN I'LL MAKE A SUGGESTION. ALL RIGHT. SO REPORTS FROM THE MEMBERS. MEMBER MEDINA? I HAVE NOTHING TO REPORT. MEMBER RAYA? NOTHING TO REPORT. OKAY. I WILL SAY THIS. I THINK WE SHOULD PUBLICIZE THIS, MAKE IT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC, THESE STATISTICS THAT YOU SHARED WITH US. PUT IT ON OUR WEBSITE, YOU KNOW, PUT IT IN THE MAILER WHERE WE SEND THE WATER BILLS, SOMETHING LIKE THIS. LET'S TALK ABOUT HOW IMPACTFUL THESE CLEANUPS ARE, AND MAYBE IT WILL ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO DO THE SAME ON THEIR OWN, RIGHT? MORE RECYCLING, MORE, YOU KNOW, COLLECTING OF TRASH IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS, THAT KIND OF THING. I THINK IT WOULD BE A VERY GOOD THING. I WANTED TO MENTION A COUPLE OF THINGS. THERE IS A NEW FIRE HYDRANT ON THE— WHAT IS IT— WEST, [01:50:02] SOUTHWEST CORNER OF 5TH AND D. AND IT'S ORANGE. IS THAT OUR NEW COLOR OF FIRE HYDRANTS, OR IS THAT, UH, FOR SOMETHING ELSE? MAYBE THERE'S AN OIL WELL THERE OR SOMETHING. IF, IF INDEED— I'M BEING FACETIOUS. YES. NO, NO, I BELIEVE THAT THAT'S JUST A NEW, A NEW INSTALLMENT, A NEW REPLACEMENT, AND IT JUST NEEDS TO BE PAINTED. AH, SO THAT IS THE WRONG COLOR. BECAUSE I LOVE THE ORANGE. WE SHOULD PAINT THEM ALL ORANGE. I KNOW WE HAVE TO MEET OUR REQUIREMENT, RIGHT? BUT IT'S ORANGE, AND THAT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION. WHOA, WE WERE PASSING BY. YEAH, IT LOOKS LIKE IT WAS JUST REPLACED, OR, YOU KNOW, JUST RECENTLY PLACED THERE. AND THEN ALSO, UM, SIDEWALK ON 5TH STREET BETWEEN POPLAR AND AND WHATEVER THAT NEXT STREET IS, IT'S ALREADY DONE. CLEANUP NEEDS TO BE DONE AS WELL. AND IT LOOKS REALLY, REALLY GOOD. IT DOES. IF EVERYONE GETS A CHANCE TO DRIVE BY THERE, THERE'S OTHER LOCATIONS. THERE'S THE LOCATIONS THERE ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE PARK. THERE'S THE LOCATION THAT'S BEING WORKED ON TODAY BY THE POWELL BUILDING, WHICH THERE WASN'T ANY SIDEWALKS THERE. THERE. AND THAT'S ALL DUE TO, YOU KNOW, SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL. THERE'S A SCHOOL DOWN THE STREET, UH, IT'S ALL CONNECTING. SO THEY'RE MOVING ALONG, DOING A GREAT JOB. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. I MEAN, THAT CAME FAST AND IT LOOKS REALLY GOOD. SO IT JUST NEEDS TO— NEED TO DO THE CLEANUP AND YES, WE'LL BE 100%. AND IF I MAY ADD, ON THE WHOLE SIDEWALK DEAL, I'VE GOTTEN QUITE A BIT OF COMMENTS ON THAT. YOU'RE RIGHT, PEOPLE ARE SAYING THAT IT'S HAPPENING AND THEY'RE HAPPY ABOUT IT BECAUSE IT'S IT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS. I MEAN, EVEN BY WHERE I LIVE, THERE'S— I DIDN'T REALLY THINK ABOUT IT BEFORE, BUT NOW IT'S LIKE, OH, LIKE, IT'S NICE TO HAVE A SIDEWALK, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHERE WE CAN GO AND WHATNOT. SO IT'S, IT'S BEING WELL RECEIVED AND IT'S BEING NOTICED, SO I THINK THAT'S GREAT. YEAH, THANK YOU. YEAH, PASS IT ON. I MEAN, WE'RE ALWAYS WORKING ON SIDEWALKS. I KNOW, YOU KNOW, WE DID A BIG PROJECT, UH, ON THE NEIGHBORHOOD ON THIS SIDE OF TOWN. I THINK, RIGHT? AND, UM, BUT I MEAN, THERE IS ALL THIS, AS YOU MENTIONED, SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL THAT NEEDED TO BE COMPLETED. AND, UH, YES, SO THAT REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LOOKS GOOD. THANK YOU. MISS REINA? YES? SOMEONE IN THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO COMMENT. OH YES, UH, PLEASE, ALEJANDRO, PLEASE COME TO THE MICROPHONE. THE DIFFERENT COLORED FIRE HYDRANTS, THEY JUST MEAN DIFFERENT PRESSURES. SO IF IT'S BLUE, IT WE WANT THE PUBLIC TO HEAR THAT. YOU ARE CORRECT ON THAT, AND IT IS JUST THE COVID YOU'RE GIVING US AN EDUCATION. CAN YOU TURN THE MICROPHONE OFF? YEAH, SO THE DIFFERENCE— LISTEN, THE DIFFERENT COLORED FIRE HYDRANTS JUST MEAN THE DIFFERENT PRESSURES THAT THEY CAN HANDLE. SO WHENEVER YOU CONNECT THE HOSE AND EVERYTHING, THAT HAS A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PRESSURES PER SQUARE INCH, AND THEN THAT'S JUST WHAT IT MEANS. ALL RIGHT, FIREFIGHTER AS WELL. NO, I JUST KNOW THAT FOR SCHOOL. COOL. I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW, I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WATER PRESSURE. MARIA, WE SHOULD HIRE HIM. HE IS CORRECT THOUGH. NO, DO I, ALEJANDRO, BUT, UH, I TELL YOU, I LOVE THAT ORANGE COLOR. I REALLY DO. I PROPOSE THAT WE PAINT THEM ALL ORANGE. NO. ALL RIGHT, UH, WE DON'T HAVE A CLOSED SESSION. WE DO NOT. NO. DID YOU WANT TO HAVE ONE? NO, PLEASE. I, I FORGOT TO SAY AT THE AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS MEETING, NORMALLY I HAVE MY PHONE ON SILENCE, ON SILENCE, SILENCE, BUT TODAY I DON'T BECAUSE IN CASE I RECEIVE A CALL, I WANT TO HEAR MY PHONE. BUT IT'S BEEN SILENT ALL ALONG, SO I'M MAKING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT FOR NOTHING, JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU ALL. GREAT MEETING. IT WAS REALLY GOOD. ALEJANDRO, YOU CONTRIBUTED GREATLY TO IT. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! LOVE THAT ENTHUSIASM. AND WE'LL CLAP IN JUST A MOMENT. THANK YOU ALL FOR A GREAT JOB, GREAT MEETING. THANK YOU. HAVE A GREAT EVENING. MEETING IS ADJOURNED. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.