* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. GOOD EVENING, AND [00:00:01] WELCOME TO THE JANUARY 8TH, UH, 2026 REGULAR MEETING OF THE CHANDLER CITY COUNCIL. THE VICE MAYOR BANGED US, GA GAVELED US IN TONIGHT, SO WELL DONE. CLERK, WOULD YOU PLEASE TAKE THE ROLE? MAYOR HARTKE HERE, VICE MAYOR ELLIS. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER ENCINAS. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER POSTON. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER ORLANDO. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS. HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER HAWKINS. HERE WE HAVE A QUORUM. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR INDICATION. TONIGHT WILL BE DELIVERED BY FATHER TAYLOR LUE FROM APOSTLES OF JESUS. HE'S A PASTOR AT ST. ANDREWS, THE APOSTLE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. AND OUR PLEASURE OF ALLEGIANCE BY VICE MAYOR ELLIS. PASTOR, LET US PRAY. IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. ALMIGHTY GOD, WE GIVE YOU THANKS FOR THE GIFT OF LIFE FOR A GREAT NATION AND FOR THE CITY OF CHANDLER, WE GATHER THIS EVENING AS A COMMUNITY GRATEFUL FOR THE MANY BLESSINGS YOU HAVE BEEN STORED UPON THIS CITY. IT'S REACHED DIVERSITY, STRONG VALUES, AND SPIRIT OF COLLABORATION. WE THANK YOU ESPECIALLY FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND CITY STAFF. COME, YOU HAVE ENTRUSTED WITH THE GRACE OF LEADERSHIP AND THE BURDEN OF AUTHORITY TO GUIDE OUR CITY TOWARD LASTING PROSPERITY. MAY THEIR ACTIONS REFLECT INTEGRITY, JUSTICE, AND COMPASSION FOR EVERY MEMBER OF OUR COMMUNITY. LORD, EMPOWER THEM TO SERVE ALL THOSE THEY ENCOUNTER WITH HUMILITY AND DEDICATION. GRANT THEM THE GIFT OF WISDOM TO SPEAK THE TRUTH WITH CHARITY. TO LISTEN WITH OPEN HEARTS AND TO ACT IN A WAY THAT HONOR YOU THROUGH THEIR WORDS AND DECISIONS. MAY THEIR DELIBERATIONS BE THOUGHTFUL AND MAY THEIR DECISIONS BE GUIDED BY SINCERE CONCERN FOR THE COMMON GOOD AS THEY FACE CHALLENGES AND EMBRACE NEW OPPORTUNITIES, MAY THEIR LEADERSHIP FOSTER UNITY AND COHESION THROUGHOUT OUR CITY. LORD, WE ENTRUST YOU THIS GATHERING AND ALL WHO SERVE TO YOUR LOVING CARE. HELP THEM TO ENSURE THAT EVERY VOICE IS VALUED, KNOWING THAT THE DIVERSITY OF PERSPECTIVES STRENGTHENS AND ENRICHES OUR COMMUNITY. WE ASK, CALLED THIS THROUGH CHRIST OUR LORD. AMEN. AMEN. THE NAME, THE FATHER, SON HOLY SPIRIT. AMEN. PLEASE JOIN ME IN RECITING THE PLEDGE I, THE OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, REPUBLIC, REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. THANK YOU FATHER LUANDA. THANK YOU VICE MAYOR COUNCIL, [ Consent Agenda Items listed on the Consent Agenda may be enacted by one motion and one vote. If a discussion is required by members of the governing body, the item will be removed from the Consent Agenda for discussion and determination will be made if the item will be considered separately. Proposed Motion: Move to approve the Consent Agenda of the January 8, 2026, Regular Meeting, Items 1 - 9.] WE HAD A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THE CONSENT AGENDA ON MONDAY AND, UM, AND GET OUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED. SO WHAT IS IN FRONT OF US NOW IS A, A CONSENT AGENDA NEXT ON OUR AGENDA. HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO PROCEED? MAYOR? COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS? YES. I WOULD LIKE TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS ONE THROUGH ONE THROUGH ONE THROUGH ONE THROUGH NINE. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND THAT. MAYOR SECOND BY VICE MAYOR ELLIS. UH, COUNCIL, ANY RECUSALS? ANYTHING ELSE? SEEING NONE, PLEASE VOTE. MOTION CARRIES UNANIMOUSLY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU COUNCIL. [10. Public Hearing Regarding Proposed Changes to Certain Water, Wastewater and Reclaimed Water Rates, Fees, and Solid Waste Collection Fees 1. Open Public Hearing 2. Staff Presentation 3. Council Discussion 4. Discussion from the Audience 5. Close Public Hearing Council Focus Area(s):] NEXT ON OUR AGENDA, WE HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING, UH, REGARDING PROPOSED CHANGES TO CERTAIN WATER, WASTEWATER AND RECLAIMED WATER RATES, FEES, AND SOLID WASTE COLLECTION FEES. SO I'D LIKE TO OPEN THIS PUBLIC HEARING AND HAVE A STAFF PRESENTATION BY MATT DUNBAR, WHO IS OUR BUDGET AND POLICY DIRECTOR, SIR MAYOR AND COUNCIL. UH, GLAD TO BE HERE WITH YOU TONIGHT TO TALK ABOUT THESE UTILITY RATES AND HAVE THIS PUBLIC HEARING. UH, FIRST OF ALL, I WOULD LIKE YOU TO KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT A SU AND U OF A THAT HAPPENS IN THESE CHAMBERS. AND I JUST WANNA POINT OUT, FOR THOSE OF US FROM NAU, UH, IT'S AN IMPORTANT SCHOOL. IN FACT, JUST THE OTHER DAY I LEARNED THAT THE LUMBERJACKS UP THERE, THEY HAVE A NEW, UH, STUDENT LED, UH, WHAT IS IT? A, A BREW CLUB ON CAMPUS. AND I WAS SUPER GLAD TO HEAR THAT THEIR FAVORITE BREW IS A LOGGER. SO THE LUMBERJACKS ARE DOING IT RIGHT UP THERE. MM-HMM . UH, SO JUST FOR THIS PUBLIC HEARING, I DO WANNA POINT OUT THAT THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION AS WELL AS ALL THE PRESENTATIONS WE'VE SHARED BEFORE WITH YOU, MAYOR AND COUNCIL IN WORK SESSIONS, ARE AVAILABLE ONLINE@CHANDLERAZ.GOV SLASH PROPOSED UTILITY RATES. UH, THAT INFORMATION IS THERE AS WELL AS COMPARISONS. UH, THERE'S A CALCULATOR THERE FOR RESIDENTS TO PUT IN THEIR OWN CONSUMPTION AND SEE WHAT THE, THE DIFFERENCE ON THEIR BILL WILL [00:05:01] BE. UH, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION. WE'LL SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN JUST A SECOND. AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE UTILITY RATE CHANGES, THE OUTREACH THAT WE'VE DONE, WHAT OUR RATE ANALYSIS SHOWED AS WE WENT THROUGH IT THIS YEAR, AND THE REVENUE REQUIREMENTS THAT THAT GENERATED. UH, TALK ABOUT EACH OF THE, THE RATE CHANGES FOR EACH UTILITY, WATER, WASTEWATER, RECLAIMED, AND SOLID WASTE. AND THEN GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROPOSED ORDINANCES THAT YOU'LL BE, UH, APPROVING OR TENTATIVELY APPROVING TONIGHT. UH, WATER WASTEWATER RECLAIM AND SOIL WASTE RATE CHANGE OUTREACH, UH, STARTED BACK IN AUGUST. UH, WE STARTED OUT DOING OUTREACH WITH RESIDENTS WITH, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS, HOAS, UH, COMMUNITY PARTNERS, AS WELL AS SOME OF OUR LARGE INDUSTRIAL, UH, UH, FOLKS AS WELL. WE DO HAVE OUR WEBSITE THAT I MENTIONED EARLIER. UH, AND ON THAT WEBSITE WE HAVE THE PUBLIC MEETING SCHEDULE, UH, COUNCIL ACTION SCHEDULE, THE PROCESS TIMELINE. WE TALKED ABOUT OUR RATE CHANGE IN PERCENTAGES AND DOLLAR VALUES BY CLASSIFICATION. UH, WE SHARED A MONTHLY CALCULATOR THAT THEY COULD USE. FAQS ARE AVAILABLE, AS WELL AS A FEEDBACK BUTTON TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK INDIVIDUALLY, UH, TO US, WHICH WE SHARED WITH MAYOR AND COUNCIL. UH, AND THEN THE LAST COST OF SERVICE STUDY AND PRESENTATIONS ARE AVAILABLE AS WELL FROM THE PUBLIC OUTREACH ON THE MEETINGS SIDE THAT WE HELD, WE HAD WORK SESSIONS WITH MAYOR AND COUNCIL. UH, WE HAD PUBLIC HEARINGS. NOTICE OF INTENT HAS BEEN POSTED, UH, AND IN THE PAPER, AND WE'RE DOING UP ONGOING UPDATES FOR ANY, UH, FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVE. AND IN FACT, FROM THE FEEDBACK THAT WE SHARED WITH YOU LAST NOVEMBER, UH, WE'VE ONLY RECEIVED ONE ADDITIONAL EMAIL, AND THAT WAS JUST A RECOMMENDATION FOR OUR, THE ACCESS TO, UH, HISTORICAL BILLS ONLINE. SO THEY HAD A RECOMMENDATION THERE. UH, SO IT WASN'T SPECIFIC TO UTILITY RATES. UH, WE MET WITH OUR, THE CHAMBER AND MULTI-HOUSING GROUPS AND EMAILED HOAS. UH, WE HAD RESIDENTIAL AND NON-RESIDENTIAL PUBLIC MEETINGS THAT WERE HELD, UH, TWO OF THOSE MEETINGS WHERE WE GOT TO INTERACT WITH THE PUBLIC, UH, THAT ANSWER ANY OF THE QUESTIONS THAT THEY MAY HAVE. AND THEN WE ALSO MET WITH INDIVIDUAL STAKEHOLDERS AS NEEDED AND PROVIDED BILL CHANGE INFORMATION TO THEM. UH, WE ALSO HAD INFORMATION IN THE CITY SCOPE, SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AND MEDIA RELEASES. SO OF THE TOTAL FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED, UH, WE GOT A LITTLE BIT OF A, A MIXED REVIEW, NOT A WHOLE LOT OF FEEDBACK. TWO EMAILS, ONE LETTER, FIVE WEBSITE COMMENTS. UH, NOW SIX WEBSITE COMMENTS, AND ABOUT 43 CAPTURED SOCIAL MEDIA COMMENTS WITH A MIX OF PEOPLE UNDERSTANDING THE NEED FOR INCREASES TO THOSE NOT IN FAVOR OF THE RATE CHANGES TO MANY COMMENTS, NOT RELATED TO UTILITY RATES AT ALL. UH, FROM A RATE ANALYSIS AND REVENUE REQUIREMENT PERSPECTIVE, EACH YEAR WE DO A, A THOROUGH ANALYSIS OF OUR FINANCIAL PLANNING FOR A 10 YEAR ANALYSIS OF OUR UTILITIES. UH, SO WE WILL LOOK AT WATER WASTEWATER AND RECLAIM IN SOLID WASTE AND VERIFY THAT THE REVENUES COMING IN ARE SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO COVER THE EXPENDITURES OF THOSE UTILITIES. AS WE DID OUR ANALYSIS IN THIS LAST YEAR FOR A RATE INCREASE, WE SAW THAT WE NEEDED A RATE INCREASE FOR ALL OF THOSE UTILITIES. FOR THE WATER SIDE, A 15% INCREASE WASTEWATER, 15% RECLAIMED IN 18%, AND SOLID WASTE 6%. UH, AND MEETING WITH YOU MAYOR AND COUNCIL. UH, THE DECISION OR THE DIRECTION WAS TO ALLOCATE THESE REVENUE REQUIREMENTS ACROSS ALL OF THE CLASSIFICATIONS EQUALLY. AND SO WE'VE DONE THAT AS WELL AS TO IN THE FUTURE, ADJUST TO AN ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT. WHEREAS ADJUSTMENTS HAVE BEEN IN EVERY OTHER YEAR IN THE PAST, THESE WOULD GO TO AN ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT. ALL RIGHT, SO FIRST OFF, ON THE WATER RATES THEMSELVES, UH, WE'LL TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE MAJOR FACTORS, UH, REQUIRING AN INCREASE ON OUR WATER RATES. SO WE DO HAVE AN INCREASING RATE OF REPLACEMENT OF OUR HIGHEST AND HIGH RISK WATER MAINS OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS. SO THROUGH AN ANALYSIS THAT WE'VE DONE WITH OUR UTILITY DEPARTMENT, WE'VE, UH, AND LOOKING BACK HISTORICALLY AT THE AMOUNT OF INFRASTRUCTURE, THAT'S INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S GONE INTO THE GROUND, WE DID A LOOK AT WHEN WE NEED TO START MAKING IMPROVEMENTS TO THAT INFRASTRUCTURE TO ENSURE, UH, SUFFICIENT WATER QUALITY AND PIPE QUALITY TO ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS IN AREAS WHERE THE PIPES WERE PUT IN 40 OR 50 YEARS AGO. AND WE NOTICED THAT WE NEEDED TO START INCREASING THE, UH, AMOUNT OF REPLACEMENTS THAT WE'RE DOING ON AN ANNUAL BASIS. SO WE'VE MADE THAT ADJUSTMENT OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS OF OUR PLANNING TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS NOT ALL NEEDING TO BE DONE IN A MATTER OF FIVE OR 10 YEARS. SO WE CAN DO THEM OVER TIME. UH, WE ALSO HAVE ADDED A REDUNDANT 48 INCH TRANSMISSION LINE TO REDUCE RISK OF A SINGLE POINT OF FAILURE. WE'VE GOT INCREASED AGING PLANT IMPROVEMENTS IN OUR CAPITAL PLANNING, UH, AND FILTER MEDIA REPLACEMENTS IN OUR 10 YEAR CIP. WE'VE INCREASED THE WATER PURCHASE COSTS, UH, THROUGH CAP AND SRP. SO AS THOSE COSTS INCREASE, WE HAVE TO ABSORB THOSE OR PASS 'EM ON TO THOSE USING THAT WATER. AND THE RECOMMENDATION HERE IS TO, UH, PASS THOSE COSTS ONTO THOSE USING THAT WATER THAT WE'RE PURCHASING AND TREATING. UH, SPEAKING OF TREATING, WE HAVE INCREASED OPERATING COSTS FOR TREATMENT CHEMICALS AT ALL OF OUR PLANTS. ALL OF THOSE CHEMICALS [00:10:01] HAVE INCREASED SUBSTANTIALLY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, AS WELL AS INCREASES TO THE POWER. AND WE ARE A HEAVY POWER CONSUMER, UH, FOR ALL THE PROCESSES THAT WE RUN THERE. WE DO HAVE A SOLAR, UH, SAVINGS THAT WILL HELP SOME, WE HAVE SOME SOLAR THAT WE'RE BUILDING IN THOSE FACILITIES THAT WILL HELP OFFSET SOME OF THOSE INCREASES TO POWER COSTS. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE INCREASED NEW AND EXISTING PERSONNEL COSTS FOR SOME OF OUR CERTIFIED OPERATORS AS WE CONTINUE TO, UH, FILL THOSE POSITIONS THAT ARE HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER THROUGHOUT THE VALLEY. SO WHEN LOOKING AT ALL OF THAT AND LOOKING AT WHAT ARE THE REVENUE REQUIREMENT WAS GOING TO BE FOR, UH, THE NEEDS OF THIS FACIL OR THE OF THE ENTERPRISE, UH, 15% INCREASE WAS DETERMINED AS THE NEED IN THIS FISCAL YEAR. AND THAT WILL BE ALLOCATED TO RESIDENTIAL, MULTIFAMILY, NON-RESIDENTIAL, OUR BUSINESSES, UH, AND THEN INDUSTRIAL AND LANDSCAPE EQUALLY ACROSS THEIR, UH, THE RATES THAT THEY PAY. SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FROM A VOLUMETRIC AND BASE WATER RATE CHANGE? THIS JUST KIND OF SHOWS THE TOTAL VOLUMETRIC RATES. UH, WE HAVE EXISTING CONSERVATION TIERS IN OUR SINGLE FAMILY AND MULTIFAMILY, UH, RATE STRUCTURE. AND THOSE WILL ALL GO UP AT THE 15% LEVEL ON THE NON-RESIDENTIAL LANDSCAPE AND INDUSTRIAL, THOSE WILL ALL GO UP AT 15% AS WELL. AND THEN THE BASE CHARGES WILL GO UP 15% AS WELL. SO FOR AN EXAMPLE, WATER BILL, ON AVERAGE, A RESIDENTIAL AVERAGE WATER BILL AT 10,000 GALLONS WITH A FIVE EIGHT INCH METER WILL GO UP FROM $26 TO ABOUT $30, UH, ABOUT A $4 INCREASE, UH, FOR MULTIFAMILY HOUSING. UH, THAT'S AT 150,000 GALLONS. A SIX INCH METER, WE'LL GO FROM ABOUT $1,300 TO 1485 PER MONTH. AND THEN NON-RESIDENTIAL ABOUT AN $80 INCREASE PER MONTH WITH LANDSCAPE AT ABOUT A HUNDRED LITTLE UNDER A HUNDRED DOLLARS A MONTH ON AVERAGE. UH, KEEPING IN MIND THAT WATER IS ONE OF THOSE THAT WHERE THE MORE YOU USE, THE MORE YOU PAY. SO WE DO HAVE WATER CONSERVATION, UH, OPTIONS FOR OUR RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES. UH, WE DO HAVE OUR TIERED RATES FOR MULTIFAMILY AND SINGLE FAMILY TO ENCOURAGE CONSERVATION. THE LESS WATER YOU USE, THE LOWER YOUR RATES ARE FOR THAT WATER. UH, AND THEN WE ALSO OFFER SOME FREE WATERWISE WORKSHOPS CITYWIDE, UH, FOR RESIDENTS TO PARTICIPATE IN. WE DO SITE VISITS, THEY CAN SCHEDULE WITH US WHERE WE'LL LOOK AT THEIR CURRENT USE OF WATER AND FIND AREAS WHERE THEY COULD POTENTIALLY FIND SOME WATER SAVINGS. AND WE HAVE RETROFIT KITS FOR HOMES BUILT PRIOR TO 1992. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE CURRENT CONSERVATION REBATE PROGRAM FOR RESIDENTS IN COMMERCIAL TO RE REPLACE GRASS WITH ZEROSCAPE, UH, NON-FUNCTIONAL TURF REMOVAL, AND THEN SMART IRRIGATION CONTROLLERS, WHICH ALSO HELP REDUCE THEIR WATER USAGE. ON THE WASTEWATER SIDE, WE HAVE SOMETHING SIMILAR AS FAR AS THE WHAT'S DRIVING THE RATES, UH, AN INCREASE IN CAPITAL NEEDS FOR REPLACEMENTS OF SOME OF OUR HIGHEST RISK LINES THROUGHOUT THE CITY, AND OVER 7,000 MANHOLES THAT ARE IN NEED IN OF REPAIR, UH, OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS. SO TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD TO DO ALL OF THAT WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, WE, THE RATE INCREASES NEEDED NOW TO RAMP UP TO THE DEBT SERVICE REQUIREMENTS FOR THAT, THOSE NEEDED IMPROVEMENTS. WE'VE ADDED A 66 INCH REDUNDANT LINE UNDER THE LOOP 2 0 2 TO ALLOW FOR EXISTING PIPE REHAB. WE'VE ADDED THE ELK TO WATER RECLAMATION FACILITY IN FLUENT PUMP STATION CONSTRUCTION. THERE'S INCREASED AGING PLANT IMPROVEMENTS IN THE NEW, IN THE 10 YEAR CAPITAL PLAN. INCREASED OPERATING COSTS, AGAIN FOR WATER TREATMENT, CHEMICALS OR WASTEWATER TREATMENT CHEMICALS, AND THEN INCREASED POWER COSTS AND NEW AND EXISTING PERSONNEL COSTS. ALSO INCREASING IN THIS UTILITY. UH, THE REVENUE REQUIREMENT AS WELL, WHEN WE DID OUR FINANCIAL ANALYSIS FOR THIS UTILITY WAS 15%, ALSO ACROSS OUR THREE CLASSIFICATIONS, RESIDENTIAL, MULTI-FAMILY AND NON-RESIDENTIAL. AND HERE'S A BREAKDOWN OF THOSE COSTS. RESIDENTIAL AND MULTIFAMILY ARE BOTH AN A FLAT FEE, UH, PER DWELLING UNIT. SO RESIDENTIAL, UH, EACH RESIDENCE WOULD GO UP ABOUT $4, UH, FOR WASTEWATER SERVICES. MULTIFAMILY ALSO A PER UNIT CHARGE ABOUT A $2 INCREASE. AND THEN THE NON-RESIDENTIAL IS VOLUMETRIC BASED ON THE USAGE OF THEIR, UH, WATER BILL OR THE DIRECT METERED, UH, FLOWAGE FROM THEIR SEWER METERS. SO AN AVERAGE BILL COMPARISON, UH, FOR A RESIDENTIAL BASE, AGAIN, RESIDENTS GOING UP ABOUT $4. MULTIFAMILY GOING UP, UH, A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT $300 PER MONTH, BUT THAT'S AT 150 UNITS. SO THE PER UNIT IS ABOUT $2 PER UNIT AND NON-RESIDENTIAL GOING UP, UH, ABOUT $220 OR SO ON THE RECLAIMED WATER RATE SIDE. WHEN WE DID OUR REVENUE REQUIREMENT, WE NEEDED MORE OF AN INCREASE AS WE HAVE SOME ADDITIONAL COSTS THAT ARE, UH, HITTING OUR RECLAIMED UH, FACILITIES. SO WE NEED AN 18% INCREASE. AGAIN, THERE'S ONLY ONE CLASSIFICATION FOR, UH, THIS UTILITY. SO IT'LL ALL BE AT THAT 18% INCREASE RATE. THE AVERAGE BILL GOING FROM ABOUT $680 TO $802. THIS IS MOSTLY IN SOUTH CHANDLER, UH, HOAS CITY PARKS THAT [00:15:01] ARE USING THIS RECLAIMED WATER AND SOME, UH, COOLING TOWERS FROM A SOLID WASTE RATES PERSPECTIVE. WE ALSO LOOK AT OUR SOLID WASTE ENTERPRISE. UH, AND WE NOT, WE NOTICED THAT WE HAVE INCREASES IN OUR CONTRACTS, UH, FOR HAULING AND FOR COLLECTION OF SOLID WASTE. AND SO TO COVER THESE CONTRACTUAL INCREASES, WE'RE ALSO INCREASING THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THEM TO OUR RESIDENTS. UH, AND THAT'S A 6% INCREASE TO COVER THOSE COSTS. SO THE AVERAGE, UH, MONTH OR THE MONTHLY FEE FOR A RESIDENT, WHICH WE ONLY PROVIDE RESIDENTIAL SOLID WASTE SERVICES, WOULD GO FROM 1886 TO 2105. IN ADDITION, WITH THOSE CHANGES IN SOLID WASTE, THERE'S ALSO SOME, UH, FEE UPDATES THAT WILL COME FORWARD TO YOU IN FEBRUARY. UH, SINCE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT KIND OF UTILITIES, WE, WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS WAS PART OF THE DISCUSSION THIS EVENING. UH, BUT IN ADDITION TO THE, THE GENERAL RATE CHANGE, THERE'S ALSO SOME CHANGES TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT WE COLLECT FROM RESIDENTS FOR SPECIFIC CHARGES THAT THEY'RE IN, UH, CAUSING US TO HAVE IS THE ACTUAL COST OF THOSE SERVICES. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, UH, A CONTAINER FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION RESIDENCE IS GOING FROM $148. OUR CURRENT COST IS 150, SO JUST RESETS THAT TO THE ACTUAL COST. AND THAT'S FOR A BUILDER. WHEN THEY BUILD A NEW HOME, THEY HAVE TO BUY THE TWO, UH, THE TRASH AND RECYCLE BINS THAT GO THERE. AND THAT REFLECTS THE ACTUAL COST OF THOSE BINS. UH, ADJUST THE SPECIAL COLLECTION FEE FOR CURBSIDE COLLECTION FROM 1850 TO 2350. THAT'S THE 2350 IS THE CHARGE THAT WE HAVE FROM WASTE MANAGEMENT TO GO AND COLLECT THAT. UH, SO WE'RE RECOUPING THAT SIMILAR TO OUR ALLEY COLLECTIONS. THE CHARGE TO US IS 41 50. THAT'S WHERE WE WOULD BILL OUR RESIDENTS IF THEY DID A SPECIAL COLLECTION OF THAT. AND THEN ADJUST THE FEE FOR ADDITIONAL BULK COLLECTIONS FROM 35 TO 43, UH, VISITS TO THE R-S-W-C-C. UH, THE PER TON CHARGE THERE WOULD BE FROM $50 TO $70 PER TON. AND THEN THE 400 POUND AFTER YOU'VE USED ALL YOUR FREE VISITS CHARGE WOULD GO FROM 10 TO $14, WHICH REFLECTS THE PER TON COST OF 50 TO $70. UH, THE CHANGE THERE. SO AGAIN, ALL OF THESE ARE JUST TO ADJUST THE COST OF THE CURRENT COST. THE CITY IS PAYING FOR A FULL COST RECOVERY ON THOSE. SO WHEN YOU ADD THAT ALTOGETHER WATER WASTEWATER AND RECLAIM THE COM COMBINED, AVERAGE CUSTOMER BILL EXAMPLE, UH, RESIDENT WOULD GO FROM 73 83 TO 83 12. SO ABOUT A $9 INCREASE, UH, MULTIFAMILY WOULD GO UP ABOUT $400. UH, NON-RESIDENTIAL COMBINED GOES UP ABOUT $200 IN COMPARISON TO OTHER VALLEY CITIES. HOW WE, WE RANK, UH, YOU'LL SEE ON THE FAR LEFT THE CURRENT CHANDLER RATE, AND THEN RIGHT NEXT TO IT ON ALL OF THESE SLIDES WOULD BE THE CHANDLER RATE WITH THE INCREASE. AND THEN YOU SEE THE CURRENT RATES THAT ALL CITIES, OTHER CITIES, UM, OR COMPARABLE CITIES, UH, THAT WE COMPARE AGAINST THEIR CURRENT RATES. SO FOR, UH, OUR MULTI OR OUR SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL, WE'RE STILL WELL UNDER THE NEXT CLOSEST, WHICH IS SCOTTSDALE AT $119. OUR AVERAGE MONTHLY BILL WOULD BE ABOUT $83. ON THE MULTIFAMILY SIDE, UH, STILL, AGAIN, CHANDLER'S THE FAR LEFT SIDE, UH, AND WE WOULD BE UNDER OUR NEXT CLOSEST COMPETITOR, WHICH IS TEMPE. ON THE NON-RESIDENTIAL COST COMPARISON, THESE ARE KIND OF CLOSER IN, UH, COMPARABLES, BUT WE'D STILL BE THERE AT THE FAR LEFT AT THE, AT THE UNDER THE NEXT CLOSEST, WHICH IS TEMPE. UH, KEEPING IN MIND THAT ALL OF THESE OTHER CITIES HAVE OTHER COST INCREASES THAT THEY'RE GOING FORWARD WITH FOR THEIR UTILITIES, BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL FACING THE SAME KIND OF INCREASED COSTS THAT WE ARE. UH, AND THOSE AREN'T REFLECTED THERE. THAT'S JUST WITH CHANDLER HOW WE CURRENTLY ARE AND MOVING FORWARD, HOW WE WOULD BE FOR OUR DIS INDUSTRIAL COST COMPARISON AS WELL. WE WOULD BE ON THE FAR LEFT SIDE, WHICH IS THE LOWER END OF THE SCALE AND LANDSCAPE, AGAIN ON THE LOWER END OF THE SCALE FOR THOSE AS WELL. SO BEFORE YOU TONIGHT ARE TWO ORDINANCES. THE FIRST IS THE WATER WASTEWATER RECLAIMED RATE CHANGES. THAT UPDATES CHAPTER 50 OF OUR CODE. UH, THE UPDATE, IT ALSO UPDATES A FEW DIFFERENT FEES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED IN THAT CHAPTER. FIRST OFF WAS OUR, IF WE HAVE SERVICE CALLS OUTSIDE OF NORMAL WORKING HOURS, WE CURRENTLY CHARGE $27, AND THAT WOULD GO UP TO $35 TO REFLECT THE ACTUAL COSTS OF PROVIDING THAT SERVICE. UH, THERE'S ALSO SOME ADJUSTMENT TO SOME LANGUAGE, SOME CLEANUP, FOR EXAMPLE. UH, WE HAVE SEVERAL SECTIONS WHICH SAY THE CITY SHALL, UH, AND IN PRACTICALITY, WE OFTEN MAY DO THAT DEPENDING ON THE SITUATION, DEPENDING ON WHAT THAT INDIVIDUAL NEEDS ARE. AND THAT, SO CHANGING A SHALL TO A MEG ALLOWS US THAT FLEXIBILITY DEPENDING ON THE, THE SITUATIONS THAT WE'RE FACING. AND WE ALSO ADD SOME CLARIFYING LANGUAGE FOR USING REASONABLE ESTIMATES IF WE CAN'T GET A READ ON A SPECIFIC METER AND THEN ENTERING THE PREMISES, UH, OUT, NOT THE INSIDE OF A BUILDING, BUT THE, THE LAND ASSOCIATED WITH A A PREMISES, UH, FOR METER INSPECTION AND PIPE INSPECTION. WE FOUND THAT WE NEEDED TO CLARIFY THAT LANGUAGE WHEN WE WERE DOING OUR LEAD, UM, EVALUATION OF CERTAIN, UH, FACILITIES. AND THEN THERE'S ALSO, UH, AS PART OF THAT ORDINANCE MEMO, THERE'S, UM, A, SOME LANGUAGE IN THERE TO [00:20:01] ALLOW US TO MAKE THE TRANSFER OF $25,000 TO SUPPORT THE ADDITIONAL ACTS OF KINDNESS FUNDING THAT WE TALKED ABOUT IN OUR WORK SESSIONS. THEN FROM THE OTHER ORDINANCE, ORDINANCE 51 49, UH, THIS IS CHAPTER 44, SOLID WASTE CHAPTER. UH, THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE THE ACTUAL RATE CHANGES THAT'LL COME IN FEBRUARY WITH ALL THE, THE CITYWIDE RATE CHANGES, BUT IT DOES HAVE SOME CLARIFYING LANGUAGE THAT NEEDED TO BE RESOLVED IN WORKING WITH LEGAL. UH, THEY WANTED TO MAKE SOME CHANGES THAT WOULD ADD SOME CLARIFYING LANGUAGE. FIRST OFF IS CLARIFYING LANGUAGE ON THE DEFINITION OF A COVERED RESIDENCE, UH, WHICH IS THREE OR FEWER, FEWER UNITS. JUST MAKES IT VERY CLEAR AS WHAT A COVERED RESIDENCE, WHICH MEANS WHO WE PROVIDE SERVICES TO IS ALSO ADD SOME CLARIFYING LANGUAGE TO CONTAINER SPACING. THERE ARE CERTAIN AREAS IN THE CITY WHERE WE NEED A THREE FOOT, UH, CONTAINER SPACING. AND TO REQUIRE THAT OF SOME OF OUR RESIDENTS BECAUSE OF THE TIGHT TURN RADIUS FOR THE TRUCKS TO GET IN THERE, WE NEEDED TO ADD THAT LANGUAGE THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO SAY, IN OUR CODE, WE REQUIRE THIS AREA TO HAVE A THREE FOOT RADIUS. SO, UH, TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN, UH, AS CLARIFYING LANGUAGE FOR OUR CHRISTMAS TREE COLLECTION DATES. UH, SO IT'S THE TWO FULL WEEKS OF JANUARY THE FIRST TWO FULL WEEKS. UH, AND ANYTIME BEFORE THAT IS WHEN A CHRISTMAS TREE COLLECTION CAN HAPPEN. AND IT JUST CLARIFIES WHEN THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS BECAUSE OF WHERE THAT, YOU KNOW, FIRST FALLS. SOMETIMES THERE'S CONFUSION THERE. SO THAT CLEANS THAT UP. IT ALSO ALLOWS FOR HOME-BASED BUSINESS WASTE TO BE REJECTED BASED ON TYPE OR QUANTITIES. SINCE OUR R-S-W-C-C FACILITY IS DESIGNED FOR RESIDENTIAL USE AND OUR RESIDENTIAL RATE PAYERS PAY FOR THAT, UH, WE DO HAVE SOME HOME-BASED BUSINESSES THAT ARE RESIDENTS AS WELL, BUT IF THEY HAVE HOME-BASED WASTE THAT ISN'T TYPICAL TO WHAT WE COLLECT THERE, UH, THAT ALLOWS US TO REJECT SOME OF THAT WASTE. AND THEN IT REMOVES THE REQUIREMENT FOR ANNUAL TONNAGE REPORTS FOR PRIVATE HAULERS THAT RUN ON CITY STREETS. THEY ANNUALLY HAVE TO SUBMIT A REPORT TO US, UH, ALLOWS US TO, TO REQUEST THOSE IF THEY, IF WE WANT THAT INFORMATION, BUT NOT REQUIRE THEM, UH, FROM ALL OF OUR PRIVATE HAULERS. EACH YEAR FROM A TIMEFRAME COM, UH, ADJUSTMENT FOR THESE ADJUSTMENTS, UH, WE'VE DONE OUR NOTICE OF INTENT THAT'S BEEN ADOPTED. THE PUBLIC OUTREACH HAS OCCURRED. UH, THE NOTICE OF INTENT HAS BEEN PUBLISHED IN THE NEWSPAPER. UH, WE'VE PROVIDED THAT FEEDBACK TO YOU, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. UH, WE'VE, TONIGHT IS OUR PUBLIC HEARING AND THE ORDINANCE FIRST READ, UH, THE ORDINANCE FINAL ADOPTION WOULD BE JANUARY 22ND, AND THEN WE'LL BRING FORWARD A RESOLUTION FOR CITYWIDE FEE SCHEDULE CHANGES ON FEBRUARY 26TH, WHICH WILL INCLUDE THE SOLID WASTE CHANGES TO THOSE FEES, AS WELL AS A FEW OTHER FEES THAT ARE IN THE CITYWIDE FEE SCHEDULE. AND THEN THESE RATES AND FEES WOULD BE EFFECTIVE FOR THE MARCH BILLING CYCLE, WHICH BEGINS MARCH 2ND, 2026. AND WITH THAT, I'LL ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, MATT. I, UH, I'VE GOT A COUPLE, SO WE'RE NOW INTO COUNCIL DISCUSSION SECTION ON OUR PUBLIC HEARING IS, UM, I I JUST WANTED TO REITERATE, I KNOW ONE OF THE FIRST SLIDES YOU SHOWED WHERE IT WAS GIVING THE 15% RATES, THAT'S BECAUSE WE DIDN'T, WE HAVE BEEN DOING AN EVERY OTHER YEAR AND COUNCILS DECIDED TO, UH, EXAMINE THIS AND PURSUE THIS ANNUALLY SO THAT WE'RE NOT GIVING UP SUCH A BIG HIT EVERY, UH, OTHER YEAR. AND, UM, I DO REMEMBER LESS THAN FIVE YEARS AGO THAT I THINK GILBERT RATES WERE COMPARABLE TO OURS, AND IN FACT, UH, PERHAPS EVEN LOWER THAN OURS, BUT WE WERE RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER. AND IN MANY WAYS, THEY, THEY BITTEN A HARD BULLET, UH, TODAY, THIS SEASON OF THEIR OTHER CITY'S LIFE BECAUSE THEY HAD NOT BEEN INCREMENTALLY RAISING THESE RATES. AND, UH, SO I, I, I THINK IT'S GOOD THAT WE LOOK AT THESE, UH, CAREFULLY, THAT WE ALSO HAVE A POLICY THAT THE CITY DOES NOT SUBSIDIZE RATES, ALTHOUGH WE'LL SUBSIDIZE PEOPLE WHO HAVE NEEDS WITHIN IF THEY'RE UNABLE TO PAY. BUT IT'S JUST THAT I THINK THERE'S JUST A, A TALE OF CITIES THAT WE DON'T WANT TO GET OURSELVES INTO A SITUATION WHERE WE HAVE SUCH A HUGE HOLE TO DIG OUT THAT WE WILL ALSO BE HAVING A HUNDRED PERCENT INCREASES OR LARGE INCREASES RATHER THAN THIS INCREASE. NONE OF US IN THE CITY LIKES TO RAISE RATES. UH, THAT'S, THAT'S A GIVEN. BUT I THINK THIS ALLOWS THE RATES TO TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES, UH, WITHOUT, WITHOUT, UH, BEING SUBSIDIZED FROM OTHER PAYMENTS OR OTHER SCHEDULES WITHIN THE CITY. AND IT ALLOWS US TO BE FORWARD THINKING, TO HAVE MONEY TO WORK ON THESE THINGS THAT NEED TO BE WORKED ON RATHER THAN KICKING THE CAN DOWN THE ROAD AND, AND THEN HAVING A FUTURE COUNCIL HAVING TO MAKE SOME HARD DECISIONS. SO I APPRECIATE THIS COUNCIL WILLING TO MAKE THE DECISIONS TODAY THAT IS FUTURE THINKING AND WILL BE GOOD FOR TOMORROW. WELL, THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS, COUNCIL QUESTIONS. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ORLANDO? YEAH. UH, CAN YOU GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE WHERE THE GERMAN [00:25:01] SHEPHERD'S HANGING OUT THE WINDOW? UH, SOLID WASTE SLIDE. YEAH. NOT THAT ONE THOUGH. THIS ONE. I KNOW YOU THREW THAT IN. YOU THROW US OFF SO I WOULDN'T BE READING THAT. OH, IT'S THE SAME SHEPHERD. YEAH. YEAH, SAME ONE. SO THOSE ARE, UM, JUST TO BE CLEAR, THESE SOLID WASTE FEES ARE ONLY FOR, UM, UH, SPECIAL TIMES. IN OTHER WORDS, YOU'LL NOT GET CHARGED 2350 ONLY IF YOU HAVE A SPECIAL COLLECTION. CORRECT. AND I, YOU KIND OF, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE CLEAR ON THAT ONE. YEAH. THROUGH THE MAYOR, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER. THAT'S, THAT'S ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. SO IF, IF YOUR TRASH GETS PICKED UP, THAT'S COVERED IN YOUR, AN YOUR MONTHLY BILL, UH, IF FOR SOME REASON YOU HAVE FAMILY OVER AND YOU FILL THAT UP AGAIN AND IT'S ONLY, UH, YOU KNOW, YOUR COLLECTION DAY IS MONDAY AND IT'S WEDNESDAY AND IT'S ALREADY FULL, AND YOU CALL UP, WE'LL DO A SPECIAL COLLECTION, BUT YOU'RE GONNA PAY THAT 2350, THAT'S WHAT WE GET CHARGED FOR, THAT WASTE MANAGEMENT WILL COME AND PICK IT UP AGAIN. SO IT'S FOR THAT EXTRA COLLECTION. OKAY. GREAT. APPRECIATE THAT. MM-HMM . THEN THE OTHER THING, UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE COUPLE THINGS, I KNOW WE'RE TRYING TO FIX THIS PROCESS A LITTLE BIT BETTER, AND I, AS THE MAYOR TALKED ABOUT ONE THING DOING IT ANNUALLY. THE OTHER THING I KNEW IS AS WE GO THROUGH THE CIP NEXT YEAR, I'M LOOKING TO SEE HOW WE COST THESE OUT. SO IF WE DO THIS, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO THE RATES? IF WE DON'T DO THIS, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO THE RATES? I THINK THAT'LL BE A HEALTHIER DISCUSSION FOR US, UH, TO GET THE, YOU KNOW, A FOUR OR FIVE PAGE SPREADSHEET. UM, AND, AND OBVIOUSLY, UM, YOU KNOW, I'LL BE LOOKING FOR PROJECTS THAT, YOU KNOW, INDUCE GROWTH, ECONOMIC GROWTH, REVENUE, THAT TYPE OF STUFF. THAT'S AT LEAST MY PERSONAL I'D BE LOOKING AT THOSE THINGS. SO I APPRECIATE US LOOKING AT THAT. THAT'S A COUPLE FIXES WE'VE DONE ON THIS THING. AND FINALLY, UH, I KNOW WE HAD DISCUSSION, NOW WE DO THIS COST OF SERVICE, UH, EVERY FIVE YEARS FOR EACH CLASS, THOSE FIVE CLASSES AND USERS. AND BASICALLY WHAT THAT IS, MATT, IS, AND TELL ME IF I'M WRONG, IS WE GO OUT AND WE SURVEY THESE FIVE CLASSES AND WE LOOKED AT JUST HOW MUCH THEY'RE USING IN EACH ONE OF THOSE CLASSES, AND THEN THEY'RE CHARGED THE APPROPRIATE LEVEL. IF YOU USE MORE PERCENTAGE WISE, YOU GET CHARGED AT A HIGHER RATE, CORRECT? YEAH. SO THROUGH THE MAYOR COUNCIL MEMBER, IT'S, IT'S BASED ON THE ACTUAL COST THAT THEY PUT ON THE, THE BURDEN THEY PUT ON THE SYSTEM, RIGHT? RIGHT. THE BURDEN, UH, SO IT'S NOT JUST THE COST, BUT IT'S ALSO WHEN THEIR PEAK DEMAND IS THAT WE HAVE TO BUILD EXTRA CAPACITY FOR, SO IT LOOKS AT THE BURDEN ON THE SYSTEM AND AT AND ATTRIBUTES THE COST BASED ON THE BURDEN OR THE COST THAT THEY'RE CAUSING ON THE SYSTEM, RIGHT? SO IF A PARTICULAR ENTITY HAS A BIGGER BURDEN, OBVIOUSLY WE WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYONE, THEY COVER THEIR BURDEN, EVERYONE ELSE COVERS THEIR PARTICULAR BURDEN, AND WE DON'T, WE DON'T WANT ONE, ONE CLASS, YOU KNOW, HAVING TO COMPENSATE FOR ANOTHER CLASS. SO MY QUESTION TO YOU AND TO, TO DAWN, I BELIEVE YOU'RE LOOKING INTO THIS FIVE YEARS SEEMS LIKE IT'S WAY TOO LONG, AND THIS YEAR JUST PROVED US WITH THE INFLATIONARY RATES AND, AND ACTIVITY GOING ON. UM, IS THERE ANY WAY WE COULD BRING THIS CLASS OF SERVICE IN, YOU KNOW, EVERY OTHER YEAR, EVERY COUPLE YEARS, OR THERE'S ADDENDUM SOMETHING TO GIVE US A LITTLE BIT MORE? UM, I KNOW THIS YEAR YOU GET TO YEAR THREE, FOUR, AND FIVE, IT'S MORE OF A, OOH, I THINK WE'RE HERE VERSUS HERE IS THE SCI HERE'S THE CONCRETE PROOF OF WHAT'S HAPPENING. AND NO ONE COULD ARGUE WITH US WHEN WE HAVE THE PROOF OF WHAT THE, THE, UH, THE, THE SERVICE IS BEING USED. CORRECT. YEAH. AND THROUGH THE MAYOR COUNCIL MEMBER, THAT'S, THAT'S A GREAT POINT. AND THAT'S ONE OF THE, OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS WE, WE ARE STARTING A NEW COST OF SERVICE STUDY BEGINNING JU UH, JULY ONE OF NEXT FISCAL YEAR. SO AN UPCOMING PROCESS TO, UH, RE-LOOK AT THAT. UH, BUT OUR FINANCIAL POLICY REQUIRES US TO DO IT EVERY FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS, BUT IT DOESN'T MEAN WE CAN'T DO IT SOONER, SO, RIGHT. YOU KNOW, UM, LOOKING AT WHAT WE'VE JUST GONE THROUGH FROM A CHANGE IN COST PERSPECTIVE, I THINK GOING FORWARD IT'LL GIVE US REASON TO SAY IT'S TIME TO DO ONE. MAYBE IT'S ONLY BEEN TWO YEARS OR THREE YEARS, BUT BECAUSE OF SOME CHANGE THAT WE'RE SEEING IN, UH, EITHER COSTS OR IF WE HAVE A CHANGE TO THE GENERAL PLAN OR SOMETHING THAT CAUSES US TO NEED TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THAT DATA, WE CAN LOOK AT IT SOONER THAN THAT. SO, I MEAN, JUST THE, AND I DON'T WANNA BELABOR THIS, BUT JUST THE REALLOCATION OF WATERS FROM THE S RRP, CAP, YOU KNOW, THAT'S GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE A LOOK AT COST TOO, BECAUSE IF YOU'RE GETTING LESS WATER, IT'S GONNA BE MORE VALUABLE. ABSOLUTELY. AND THEREFORE YOU HAVE TO SHARE THAT. SO I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF REASONS WHY WE WANNA DO A COST OF SERVICE EARLIER, RATHER THAN WAIT EVERY FIVE, SEVEN YEARS, WHATEVER THE REQUIREMENT IS. ALRIGHT, THANKS MAYOR. IT'S ONE OF THE COMMENTS TONIGHT. ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, MAYOR COUNCILMAN HARRIS AND WE'LL STILL RESIDENTS WILL STILL BE ABLE TO GET, IF THEY WANT TO CALL IN AND DO AN ANNUAL BOAT PICKUP, THEY HAVE A LOT OF ITEMS, THEY'LL STILL BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT AS A PART OF THEIR SERVICE? YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. THROUGH THE MAYOR COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, THEY'LL, THEY'LL STILL BE ABLE TO HAVE EITHER FOUR FREE EITHER BULK PICKUPS OR TRIPS TO THE R-S-W-C-C, AND THEN THEY'LL PAY FOR THOSE IF THEY NEED MORE THAN THAT FOUR IN ANY GIVEN CALENDAR YEAR. SO, UH, IF THEY NEED SIX, THEY'LL PAY FOR TWO EXTRAS. UH, BUT THEY GET UP TO FOUR THAT ARE, ARE ABSOLUTELY NO CHARGE. AND, UM, AND [00:30:01] THE AVERAGE, I THINK THE, THE AVERAGE RESIDENT TYPICALLY ONLY DO ABOUT A COUPLE OF BOLT PICKUPS. WHAT WAS IT ABOUT TWO? YEAH, IT'S LESS THAN TWO FOR THE A FOR LIKE, ON AVERAGE, LESS THAN TWO PER RESIDENT. SO, OKAY. SO, SO BASICALLY THE RESIDENTS, TYPICALLY THE USES OF RESIDENTS 300, ALL THE HOUSEHOLDS, A HUNDRED THOUSAND HOUSEHOLD ONLY TYPICALLY TWO TIMES. CORRECT. IT HAPPENS AND THEY HAVE DOUBLE THE AMOUNT FOR. OKAY. AND, AND THAT DOES TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THAT THERE ARE SOME THAT LIVE CLOSE TO THE R-S-W-C-C. THEY JUST RATHER DRIVE IT THERE THAN DO A BULK PICKUP. UM, BUT THEY HAVE EITHER OPTION, WHICH IS ACTUALLY A GREAT BENEFIT TO OUR RESIDENTS. AND THAT, AND THAT INFORMATION IS STILL AVAILABLE ON THE CHANDLER.GOV ABSOLUTELY. FOR THEM TO DO IT. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YEP. MATT? UM, I GUESS SOMETHING TO LOOK INTO IS THAT I, I KNOW THIS TIME I HAD SEVERAL UTILITIES I OR, UH, A, A FREEZER, A DRYER THAT I NEEDED TO, UH, CHANGE OUT, BUT I, I DID FIND SOMEBODY WHO WAS WILLING TO COME PICK IT UP AND THEY, THEY KIND OF RECYCLE THESE ON THEIR OWN MM-HMM . SO IT, I DIDN'T HAVE THE, THE COST OR THAT, OR THE DING ON MY, ON MY FLOOR. IS THERE ANY WAY THAT WE CAN RESEARCH VENDORS THAT MAYBE WOULD DO THAT FOR US, FOR, FOR OUR RESIDENTS FOR FREE? AND I DON'T KNOW. I, I UNDERSTAND THERE MIGHT BE AN INSURANCE THING WITH THAT TOO, AND I, I DON'T WANT TO, UH, PUT US AT ANY LIABILITY, BUT I THINK THERE ARE SOME BUSINESSES SMALL THAT WOULD LOVE TO HAVE ACCESS AT, AT, UH, APPLIANCES OR OTHER LARGE THINGS IN PARTICULAR THAT MAYBE IT COULD BE A WIN-WIN FOR US IN THE CITY AS WELL AS, UH, RESIDENTS NOT HAVING TO EITHER PAY OR, OR HAUL OUT. IF WE COULD LOOK INTO IS WHAT'S THE LIABILITY FOR SOMETHING LIKE THAT AND IS IT FEASIBLE FOR US TO PURSUE? YEAH. AND BEFORE SAY YES, I WANNA LOOK AT JEREMY AND JUST BE LIKE, YEAH, OKAY, GOOD. BECAUSE HE'S GONNA BE DOING IT, NOT ME. SO, SO JEREMY'S PICKUP TRUCK, IS THAT OUR SOLUTION? ABSOLUTELY. YEP. JEREMY'S PICKUP TRUCK. . THANK YOU. ONE OF HIS DAUGHTERS FOR A COLLEGE, UH, CAN PAY FOR COLLEGE THAT WAY OR SOMETHING. ALRIGHT. SEEING NO OTHERS. THANK YOU. UM, IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION FROM THE AUDIENCE ON THIS ITEM? NO, MAYOR, I DON'T HAVE ANY ITEM. I DON'T HAVE ANY CARDS. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. SO I'D LIKE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING NEXT ON [11. Introduction and Tentative Adoption of Ordinance No. 5148, to Adjust Certain Water, Wastewater and Reclaimed Water Rates, Fees, and Processes Move City Council introduce and tentatively adopt Ordinance No. 5148 amending the Chandler City Code Chapter 50, Sections 50-1 through 50-5, Sections 50-7 through 50-9, Sections 50-11 through 50-12, and Section 50-19 to adjust certain Water, Wastewater and Reclaimed Water rates, fees, and processes, effective March 2, 2026, and approve a $25,000 transfer from the General Fund, Non-Departmental, Contingency Account, to the General Fund, Local Social Service Donations Account, to provide additional funding to the Acts of Kindness (A-OK) program through AZCEND to assist residents in need with utility bills. Council Focus Area(s):] OUR AGENDA IS ITEM ONE 11, WHICH IS INTRODUCTION AND TENTATIVE ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE NUMBER 51 48 TO ADJUST CERTAIN WATER, WASTEWATER AND RECLAIMED WATER RATES, FEES AND PROCESSES. IS THERE A MOTION? MAYOR, VICE MAYOR MAKES A MOTION. IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND IT. SECOND BY COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS. UH, MAYOR COUNCIL, PLEASE. MAYOR. MAYOR. UM, COUNCILMAN ORLANDO? BE VOTING NO ON ITEM 11. OKAY. WELL THIS IS JUST ITEM NUMBER 11. MAYOR. YES. COULD YOU JUST RESTATE THE MOTION? I'M SORRY. SHE RESTATE THE MOTION. RESTATE, UH, VICE MAYOR MADE THE MOTION TO APPROVE. WHY DON'T YOU? NO, HE, SHE ASKED YOU TO RESTATE THE MOTION. OKAY. THE MOTION WAS TO IMPROVE THE INTRODUCTION AND ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE NUMBER 51 48 TO ADJUST CERTAIN WATER WASTEWATER, RECLAIMED WATER RATES, FEES AND PROCESSES. AND I APPROVE THAT'S WHAT SHE, HER MOTION. WHAT MAYOR, JUST STATE IT AND I SECOND WHAT MAYOR JUST SAID THROUGH THE VICE MAYOR. ALRIGHT. AND SO THERE WE'RE JUST VOTING ON THIS ONE THING. UH, COUNCIL AYE. PLEASE VOTE. I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE. MOTION CARRIES BY. UM, MAJORITY WITH COUNCIL MEMBER POSTON AND COUNCIL MEMBER ORLANDO DISSENTING. OKAY, THANK YOU. [12. Introduction and Tentative Adoption of Ordinance No. 5149 Related to Solid Waste Collections Move City Council introduce and tentatively adopt Ordinance No. 5149 amending the Chandler City Code Chapter 44 sections: 44-1, 44-4 through 44-5, 44-5.3, 44-6 through 44-7.6 and 44-9.7 related to solid waste collections. Council Focus Area(s):] NEXT UP WAS THE SECOND ITEM THAT, UH, MATT BROUGHT TO US. INTRODUCTION AND TENTATIVE ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE NUMBER 51 49 RELATED TO SOLID WASTE COLLECTIONS. UH, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE NUMBER 51 49? COUNCIL HARRIS, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO, UM, TO APPROVE, UM, THE, THE ATTENDANCE ADOPTION ORDINANCE OF 51 49 AMEND, AMENDING THE CHALLENGE CITY CODE CHAPTER 44 SECTIONS 44 DASH THROUGH 1 44 DASH FOUR THROUGH 44 DASH FIVE. DO I GOTTA READ ALL THESE? NO, JUST, OKAY. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. YOU WERE GOOD AT 41. ITEM 12 RELATED TO SOLID WASTE COLLECTIONS ON ITEM NUMBER 12. I, I SECOND THAT. OH, GO AHEAD PLEASE. I HEARD COUNCIL MEMBER ORLANDO. OH, LINDA, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND SEEING NO CONVERSATION COUNCIL PLEASE VOTE. MOTION CARRIES UNANIMOUSLY. GREAT. [13. Election of Vice Mayor for a One-Year Term Move City Council elect a Vice Mayor of the Council with a term beginning January 9, 2026 and ending January 14, 2027. ] ITEM NUMBER 13 IS THE ELECTION OF A VICE MAYOR FOR A ONE YEAR TERM. AND I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT, UM, ANGEL AND CITAS WOULD SERVE AS OUR VICE MAYOR FOR [00:35:01] THE YEAR OF 2026. AND I WOULD LIKE TO SECOND THAT MOTION AS THE VICE MAYOR SECOND ANGELA COUNCIL MEMBER SINE WILL BE THE NEXT VICE MAYOR FOR THIS YEAR. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION. AND DID THEY ASK YOU IF YOU WANTED IT? WE SHOULD. DID. WE DID THERE. NO, MAYOR. SO LET'S DO THIS AGAIN. SUE, YOU HAVEN'T CHANGED YOUR MIND, IS THAT YES, YES. ALL RIGHT. I I DIDN'T HEAR THAT. YES, YES. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, COUNSEL, PLEASE VOTE. MOTION CARRIES UNANIMOUSLY. SO NEXT VICE MAYOR, YOU GET TO DO ALL THE ONEROUS THINGS THAT, UH, FALL UPON COUNCIL TO WRESTLE, UH, CONTRARY COUNCIL MEMBERS TO SHOW UP WHENEVER I CAN TO WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR EXCELLENT SERVICE, MAYOR. ALRIGHT, MAYOR, MAY I TAKE A A POINT OF PRIVILEGE, MAYOR THIS, OR YOU'LL BE ABLE TO TALK NEXT ON YOUR COMMENTS. OKAY, LET'S DO THAT. ALL RIGHT. SO [11. Unscheduled Public Appearances] DO WE HAVE, WE DO HAVE ONE UNSCHEDULED PUBLIC APPEARANCE. UM, AND THIS IS MEGAN RICHARDSON. MEGAN, PLEASE COME UP STATE YOUR CITY OF RESIDENCE. WE HAVE YOUR ADDRESS POSTED HERE, AND, UH, THE LIGHT WILL TURN ON. YOU HAVE UP TO THREE MINUTES WHEN IT TURNS YELLOW. THEN YOU ARE WINDING DOWN WITH ABOUT 30, OR IS THAT WORKING? THERE WE GO. ALL RIGHT. THE FLOOR IS YOURS. OH, WELL THANK YOU. UH, GOOD EVENING COUNCIL MEMBERS. UH, MY NAME IS MEGAN RICHARDSON. I AM A RESIDENT OF CHANDLER. UH, I CAME TO YOU TONIGHT BECAUSE I AM CONCERNED ABOUT THE TRAFFIC AND SAFETY SURROUNDING MY CHILD'S SCHOOL. IT IS THE KNOX GIFTED ACADEMY. IT'S ON HARTFORD AND ORCHID LANE. UM, I HAVE SPOKEN WITH, UH, RAYMOND WANG, THE PRINCIPAL, UM, UH, SAFETY, UH, AT C UM, AND ALSO WITH MARK HUISH. UM, I'VE ALSO SPOKEN WITH CHRISTIE PROXIMA, THE PRINCIPAL AT THE SCHOOL, AND I BROUGHT SEVERAL OF THE ISSUES TO THEIR ATTENTION. AND, UM, I JUST FEEL LIKE I'VE EXHAUSTED ALL OF MY, UM, OPTIONS AND I WANTED TO NOW BRING IT TO CITY COUNCIL'S ATTENTION. UM, THERE'S NO SCHOOL, UM, ZONE SIGNAGE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. THERE'S NO SCHOOL CROSSING GUARD, AND IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S NO PLAN TO HAVE ONE. AND, UM, IT'S A LITTLE CONCERNING. THERE IS A LOT OF UNSAFE DRIVING IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, A LOT OF ILLEGAL U-TURNS, UM, AND WITH NO SIGNAGE AND NO REAL POLICE PRESENCE AND NO, UM, PLAN TO HAVE MAYBE OFF-DUTY OFFICERS BE, UM, HIRED. UM, I JUST, UH, I'M, I'M SORT OF ON THE STRUGGLE BUS OF WHAT TO DO NEXT AND, UH, THOUGHT I WOULD BRING IT TO COUNCIL'S ATTENTION AND SEE WHERE WE COULD GO AND IF THERE'S A SOLUTION AND IF THE CITY COULD BE INVOLVED IN SOME WAY. SO, WELL, MEGAN, THIS IS AS UNSCHEDULED. WE CANNOT ENGAGE YOU IN A DIALOGUE HERE. SURE. BUT, UM, CERTAINLY HAVE, UH, STAFF GET BACK TO YOU AND, AND FURTHER WITH OUR POLICE AND SEE IF THERE IS ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO, AND WE'LL SEE WHERE WE GO FROM THERE. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I APPRECIATE THANK YOU SO MUCH. BEAUTIFUL COMING, MAYOR, COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS. YEAH. UM, YEAH. UM, ACTING CITY MANAGER TAD. HELLO. ACTING. UM, I KNOW THAT, UM, I KNOW I'VE, I'VE DEALT WITH CONCERNS AROUND SCHOOL SAFETY AND I KNOW THAT OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT HAVE A PROGRAM THAT THEY WILL GO OUT TO THE SCHOOL AREA. IT SOUNDS LIKE KNOX. I THINK KNOX IS A PRIVATE CHARTER SCHOOL, SO IT'S NOT, THEY'RE NOT, THEY'RE PUBLIC SCHOOL. YEAH. OKAY. SO I KNOW THAT THEY WILL GO INTO THE AREA AND THEY'LL DO SOME SURVEILLANCE AND THEY'LL TRY TO DO CALMING MEASURES AND STUFF LIKE THAT. SO MAYBE WHEN YOU GET A CHANCE TO TALK TO THE RESIDENT, UM, THERE CAN BE SOME CONVERSATIONS AROUND CALMING TRAFFIC, CALMING AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. UM, WITH THE LAW ENFORCEMENT, IF THEY'RE NOT ALREADY DOING SOMETHING AND THEN PERHAPS WE CAN REACH OUT TO CUSD TO SEE EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE DOING, UM, CONSIDERING THAT IT'S A PART OF THEIR DISTRICT OVERVIEW AND CITY COUNCIL MORE SO WHAT HELP PROVIDE FROM A CITY LEMON'S PERSPECTIVE. BUT TRY TO SEE IF WE CAN GET THAT COORDINATED FOR SURE. AND THOSE ARE ALL GREAT THOUGHTS FOR SURE. WE'LL DO. ALRIGHT, THANKS MAYOR. YOU'RE WELCOME. [ Current Events 1. Mayor's Announcements 2. Council's Announcements 3. City Manager's Announcements] NEXT UP IS [00:40:01] CURRENT EVENTS. I DO WANNA WISH OUR COMMUNITY OR CITY AND BEYOND A HAPPY NEW YEAR. WE DID SO MUCH IN 2025 AND THE YEAR AHEAD BRINGS NEW EXCITING POSSIBILITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE WILL FACE TOGETHER. SO ON BEHALF OF CITY COUNCIL, I DO WANT TO WISH EVERYONE HERE AND ACROSS OUR CITY A VERY WONDERFUL, HAPPY, UH, UH, PROSPEROUS AND SAFE NEW YEAR. NEXT I WANNA TALK ABOUT OUR, OUR A ARIZONA AZ TWO 50 KICKOFF. THE START OF THE NEW YEAR BRINGS THE START OF CELEBRATIONS OF AMERICA'S 250TH ANNIVERSARY HERE IN CHANDLER. ALL YEAR, THERE'S GONNA BE OPPORTUNITIES TO CELEBRATE AMERICA'S SEMI QUINCENTENNIAL, INCLUDING, UH, A TRAVELING FLAG DISPLAY AT CI CITY SIGNATURE EVENTS AND THROUGH THE RED, WHITE, AND BLUE PESTS THAT THE CITY HAS CREATED THROUGH OUR VISIT CHANDLER TEAM, WE'RE OFFERING, UH, EXCITEMENT, UH, FOR AS OUR FIRST EVENT, WHICH IS 250 LAPS, OR A 25 MILE CHALLENGE, IS OUR FIRST EVENT IN JANUARY JANUARY, WE INVITE YOU TO RUN OR WALK 250 LAPS AROUND THE INDOOR TRACK AT TUMBLEWEED RECREATION CENTER, OR RUN OR WALK 25 MILES AROUND TUMBLEWEED PARK. THIS IS THE FIRST OF MANY FUN EVENTS IN STORE ALL YEAR LONG. SO AS WE CELEBRATE AMERICA'S TWO 50TH, WE HOPE THAT YOU JOIN US. YOU COULD FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION ON THE FULL LINEUP OF ACTIVITIES@CHANDLERAZ.GOV SLASH AMERICA TWO 50. AND THE NEXT I DO WANNA INVITE EVERYONE IN OUR COMMUNITY TO CHANDLER'S ANNUAL STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS ON THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12TH, COUNCIL. AND I WILL, UH, INVITE YOU TO JOIN US AT THE CENTER FOR THE ARTS, WHERE WE WILL HIGHLIGHT OUR COMMUNITY'S ACHIEVEMENTS, ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM THE PAST YEAR AND LOOK FORWARD INTO 2026. THE RECEPTION STARTS AT 5:30 PM WHERE GUESTS CAN MINGLE SAMPLE FOOD FROM CHANDLER RESTAURANTS AND ENJOY A THEMED LOBBY EXPERIENCE. I'M NOT GONNA GIVE ANY HINTS OF WHAT THAT IS, YOU'LL HAVE TO COME. BUT, UH, COUNCIL IS PART OF OUR ACTION THEME THIS YEAR. YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION OUT ON THIS AND R SVP POSSIBILITIES@THECHANDLERAZ.GOV WEBSITE SLASH STATE OF THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBER ENCINA. WAIT. THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU. OH, THANK YOU. UM, VICE MAYOR IN THANK YOU GUYS. THANK YOU, UM, MAYOR TONIGHT FOR MY ANNOUNCEMENTS. I'M GONNA TAKE A FEW MINUTES, UM, FOR SOME WORDS OF APPRECIATION, UH, FOR TONIGHT'S SELECTION AS VICE MAYOR. UM, IT IS TRULY, I'M TRULY HONORED AND DEEPLY, UH, GRATEFUL. I WANNA THANK THE MAYOR AND MY FELLOW COUNCIL MEMBERS HERE FOR YOUR RECOMMENDATION AND FOR YOUR CONFIDENCE IN ME. I'M SO LUCKY TO BE ABLE TO WORK WITH A GROUP OF LEADERS WHO ARE VISIONARIES, MENTORS, AND YOUR TRUST MEANS A GREAT DEAL. SO I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORTING AND WORKING ALONG EACH AND ONE OF EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU GUYS. UM, AS WE CONTINUE TO SERVICE OUR CITY HERE. UM, I DO WANT TO TAKE, UM, SOME TIME TO THANK MY FAMILY WHO IS OUT HERE. UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNCONDITIONAL SUPPORT OVER THESE YEARS. UH, MY FAMILY ARE NO STRANGERS TO PUBLIC SERVICE. UM, SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR DEALING WITH MY SCHEDULE, MY COMMITMENTS AND MY EXPECTATIONS. AND I WANT TO THANK YOU TO MY FRIENDS, UH, FOR BEING THERE, FOR BEING HERE TONIGHT AND EVERY NIGHT FOR ME IN THE GROUP CHAT. THIS ROLE AS VICE MAYOR IS ESPECIALLY MEANINGFUL BECAUSE THIS CITY IS MY HOME. I GREW UP HERE, I LIVE HERE, I WORK HERE. THIS COMMUNITY SHAPED WHO I AM AND EVERYTHING I CARE ABOUT IS ROOTED RIGHT HERE FROM THE STREETS, THE SCHOOLS, THE NEIGHBORHOODS, THE PEOPLE. THIS IS WHERE MY STORY BEGAN AND IT'S WHERE I'VE CHOSEN TO INVEST MY TIME, MY ENERGY AND MY HEART. I'VE HAD A GREAT EXPERIENCE GROWING UP HERE IN CHANDLER AND SINCE I BEGAN SERVING, MY GOAL HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO PROVIDE THAT SAME EXPERIENCE TO ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS AND ESPECIALLY OUR YOUTH, OUR STUDENTS. I HAVE THIS PICTURE UP HERE, WHICH OH, PERFECT, RIGHT HERE. UM, THIS HANGS IN MY CITY HALL OFFICE HERE. IT'S ME IN THE SECOND GRADE AT SAN MARCOS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. AND IT'S A REMINDER OF WHY I CHOOSE TO SERVE. I SEE THIS KID AND I KNOW THAT HE WAS INSPIRED. AND MY HOPE IS THAT I AND THIS COUNCIL CAN INSPIRE TODAY'S KIDS THAT EVERY STUDENT CAN SEE THEMSELVES MAKING A DIFFERENCE, WHETHER IT'S IN PUBLIC SERVICE, BUSINESS EDUCATION, OR ANYWHERE. THEIR PATH TAKES THEM. AND THAT THROUGH THEIR WORK, THEY CAN INSPIRE THE NEXT GENERATION TO BELIEVE IN WHAT IS POSSIBLE HERE IN OUR CITY OF CHANDLER, WHETHER OUR VISITING SCHOOLS, READING TO STUDENTS, OR GIVING TOURS TO HIGH SCHOOLERS HERE AT OUR CITY HALL, IT'S ABOUT ALLOWING [00:45:01] STUDENTS TO FEEL THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY THAT HAS BEEN BUILT AROUND THEM AND HOW THEY CONTINUE TO DO THAT FOR OTHERS. WHEN STUDENTS BELIEVE THEY BELONG AND THAT THEIR VOICES MATTER AND THAT THEY TOO CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE, OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY BECOMES STRONGER AS VICE MAYOR. AND WITH THE LEADERSHIP AND DIRECTION OF THIS COUNCIL AND WITH THE WORK OF OUR INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE CHANDLER STAFF, I KNOW THAT WE ARE ALL COMMITTED TO MAKING CHANDLER THAT PLACE FOR ALL 290,000 PLUS RESIDENTS HERE IN CHANDLER. AGAIN, THANK YOU TO THE COUNCIL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY AND THANK YOU TO THE RESIDENTS FOR ALLOWING ME TO SERVE. I'M PROUD TO CALL THIS PLACE MY HOME AND I'M HONORED TO SERVE AS YOUR VICE MAYOR. SO THANK YOU, CUSTOMER POSTING. UM, NO ANNOUNCEMENTS. WHOOPS, NO ANNOUNCEMENTS TONIGHT, MAYOR. BUT I DO WANNA SAY VICE MAYOR, CONGRATULATIONS. I HAVE NO DOUBT YOU WILL DO AN EXCELLENT JOB. YOU'LL KEEP US ON YOUR TOES, WE PLAN TO KEEP YOU ON YOUR TOES, SO WE APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT YOU'VE DONE. I'M VERY PROUD TO SERVE ALONGSIDE YOU. I'M SORRY YOU MIGHT BE MOVING LATER, SO IF YOU CAN MOVE ME ALONG WITH THEM, THAT'D BE GREAT. UM, I JUST, I DUNNO ABOUT THAT. , I'M VERY HAPPY TO CALL YOU VICE MAYOR AND CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. COUNCIL MEMBER ALEX, COUNCIL MEMBER. THAT'S RIGHT. WELL, I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT TONIGHT TO THANK EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE MEMBERS OF THIS CHAMBER AND THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE SITTING UP HERE WITH ME. FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS, I STARTED SERVING WITH SUCH A HEART FOR CHANDLER, BUT SPECIFICALLY LAST YEAR WHEN I BECAME THE VICE MAYOR HERE IN THIS CITY, WE MET HISTORY. AND TONIGHT IN MY EYES, WE ARE MAKING HISTORY AGAIN BECAUSE IT IS WHAT CHANDLER IS ALL ABOUT. WE'RE CONSTANTLY THRIVING AND PUSHING FORWARD TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE WHO SERVE YOU ARE THOSE WHO LIVE IN THIS COMMUNITY AND HAVE A STAKE IN IT. AND THEY SERVE WITH HEART AND WITH PURPOSE. I AM GRATEFUL TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO THIS FOR MY CITY, LIVING HERE FOR 39 YEARS, ONE YEAR LESS THAN THE MAYOR SO FAR, . I HAVE FOUND MYSELF SO MANY TIMES DRIVING DOWN THE STREET AND PARKING AND PICKING UP A PIECE OF WHATEVER I SEE DIFFERENTLY ABOUT IN THE CITY. I'LL BE CALLING JOHN, UH, I'LL CALL SOMEBODY ELSE. I CALL DANA OR I CALLED, UH, THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES GUYS AND I'LL SAY, HEY, SOMEBODY NEEDS TO BE PICKED UP FROM THIS CORNER. I THINK THE IDEA OF BEING A GATEKEEPER AND TAKE CARE OF THIS CITY HAS REALLY BEEN INGRAINED IN ME BECAUSE I GREW UP UNDERSTANDING THAT WE ARE THOSE WHO LIVE IT BETTER THAN WE FOUND IT. AND I HAVE LIVED THAT EVERY SINGLE DAY OF MY LIFE. AND TO THE NEW VICE MAYOR, MAY I SAY SIR, THAT WE HAVE HAD NUMEROUS CONVERSATIONS. THE FIRST TIME YOU CAME HERE TO RUN FOR CITY COUNCIL, YOU CAME AND VISIT ME AND WE SAT IN THE FIFTH FLOOR ON TOP THERE AND WE LOOKED AT, UH, THE DOWNTOWN VIEW THAT WE HAVE ON THE FIFTH FLOOR. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN IT, PLEASE COME AND VISIT US. WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT YOU GET TO SEE IT. AND ONE THING THAT YOU SAID THAT WILL ALWAYS STAY WITH ME, YOU SAID THAT YOU ARE A LIFE LEARNER AND THAT YOU ARE HERE TO LEARN AND YOU ARE HERE TO SERVE. AND THOSE THINGS HAVE NEVER LEFT ME. AND I'VE WATCHED YOU IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND SEE THAT IN YOU, UH, THE HUMBLENESS THAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE AND THE FACT THAT YOU ARE READY TO BE REBUKED , YOU TAKE IT WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. WE HAVE HAD SOME NUMEROUS CONVERSATION, WHETHER IT'S STRONG LANGUAGE OR STRONG CONVERSATION, BUT WE ALWAYS WALK AWAY GIVING EACH OTHER A HUG, UNDERSTANDING THAT OUR MAIN GOAL IS TO SERVE THE PEOPLE OF CHANDLER NO MATTER WHAT OUR DIFFERENCES ARE ON ANYTHING. I'VE OWED YOU A FEW THINGS , BUT I'M SURE THAT YOU OWE ME A FEW THINGS TOO. SO I'M GONNA LEAVE YOU TONIGHT WITH A FOLDER. WHEN I CAME HERE AS VICE MAYOR FOR THE CITY OF CHANDLER, I KEPT ASKING, I'M BIG ON PROTOCOL. IF YOU KNOW ME, I ALWAYS WANNA KNOW WHAT'S NEXT. WHAT IS IT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO IF I'M IN A ROOM WITH THE MAYOR, HOW DO I ACT? IF WE HAVE, UH, DIGNITARIES COMING FROM OVERSEAS, WHERE DO I STAND? HOW DO I INTRODUCE MYSELF? THERE IS NO SUCH THING. SO I CALLED IN OUR CLERKS AND I SAT THEM DOWN WITH THE LAW DEPARTMENT AND I SAID, I NEED A BLUE POINT FOR THE VICE MAYOR OF THIS CITY. I NEED TO KNOW WHAT OUR ROLE IS CONSTANTLY ARE. IT'S NOT ONLY THAT WE SUPPORT THE MAYOR AND EVERYTHING, BUT WE ALSO NEED TO BE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT OUR ROLE IS. AND I HAVE DEVELOPED THIS FOLDER AND TONIGHT I HAVE ONE FOR YOU VICE MAYOR. AND IT IS SO WELL APP DONE THAT OUR NEW CLERK THAT WAS JUST HIRED. COME ON, STAND UP. COME ON. THIS IS OUR NEW CLERK TONIGHT. WE VOTED HER IN. YEAH. AND SO SHE WAS SO LIKE, SHE WAS SO KIND TO ACTUALLY EVEN PUT YOUR PICTURE IN YOUR BOOK. OH WOW. YOUR [00:50:01] PICTURE IS IN YOUR BOOK. SO YOU HAVE YOUR PICTURE IN YOUR BOOK. SO THIS IS YOURS. THANK YOU. SO I'LL CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR YOU AND EVERY ENDEAVORS THAT YOU ARE CONTINUE TO PUSH THROUGH FOR OUR CITY. AND NOW MAYOR, I WILL DO MY ANNOUNCEMENT. , I'LL DO MY ANNOUNCEMENT NOW. . SO NUMBER ONE, LET'S TALK ABOUT A MULTICULTURAL FESTIVAL. NEXT SATURDAY, JANUARY 17 IS THE CITY OF CHANDLER'S 31ST ANNUAL MULTICULTURAL FESTIVAL. IT IS GOING TO BE A HUGE AND BIG DAY. PLEASE JOIN US IN AJ PARK FROM 11:00 AM TO 6:00 PM FOR A CELEBRATION OF UNITY, DIVERSITY, AND COMMUNITY. THERE WILL BE A LOTS OF TO DO IN THAT AREA. WE WILL HAVE LIVE CULTURAL ENTERTAINMENT FROM AROUND THE WORLD. A CULINARY OASIS OFFERING VARIETY OF ETHNIC CUISINE THAT YOU'LL BE ABLE TO VISIT AND TASTE. CRUISER CAR SHOWS AZ CARDINAL EXPERIENCE AND MORE AND MORE FOR THE 20. WHAT? WAIT A SECOND. IT'S CALLED 31ST. 31ST INCREDIBLE YEARS. THIS FESTIVAL HAS BEEN THE CORNERSTONE OF UNITY IN OUR CITY, CELEBRATING ART, MUSIC, TRADITIONS, FLAVORS AND STORIES THAT MAKE OUR COMMUNITY EXTRAORDINAIRE. BRING YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY AND COME AND JOIN US. THE NEXT THING I HAVE TONIGHT IS THE GOLDEN NEIGHBORS EVENT. WE DO HAVE A DEPARTMENT HERE IN THE CITY THAT TAKES OUR SENIORS VERY SERIOUSLY AND WE DO SO MANY GREAT THINGS FOR THEM. AND GOLDEN NEIGHBOR IS ONE OF SUCH EVENT OUR GOLDEN NEIGHBORS PROGRAM CONTINUES AND I'M EXCITED TO SHARE AN UPDATE. OUR TEAM HOSTED A GREAT EVENT TODAY IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A A RP ON FRAUD PREVENTION. AND IF YOU MISS THAT, MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR JANUARY 22ND WHEN OUR CHAMBER POLICE AND IT DEPARTMENT WILL BE TALKING ABOUT SAFETY AND CYBERSECURITY. IT IS CRITICAL THAT OUR SENIORS KNOW HOW TO PROTECT THEMSELVES IN TODAY'S DIGITAL AGE AND OUR STAFF WILL DO THE BEST AND SHARE SAFETY AND SECURITY BEST PRACTICE WITH THEM AT THAT EVENT. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO SHARE THE GOLDEN NEIGHBORS PROGRAM WITH THOSE GOLDEN PEOPLE IN YOUR LIVES WHO COULD BENEFIT FROM IT AND ENCOURAGE THEM TO JOIN US ON THE 22ND. WITH THAT MAYOR, I WILL SAY THAT I AM NO LONGER THE VICE MAYOR. PLEASE DO NOT CALL ME VICE MAYOR AGAIN. . WE'LL TRY. THAT'S WHERE ORLANDO. THANK YOU MAYOR. SO THIS IS, THIS LITTLE ITEM HERE IS DEAR TO MY HEART BECAUSE THIS NOT SECRET THAT I GREW UP ON THE STREETS OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY. UM, BACK IN A TROUBLING TIME BY THE WAY. AND ONE DAY IN THE SUMMERTIME, I WAS ABOUT THIRD GRADE THIS, THIS BIG BOOKMOBILE. I HAD NO IDEA WHAT IT WAS. I SAID, IT'S THIS BIG VAN MOVING UP ON OUR STREET. AND THEY OPENED THE DOORS AND THERE WAS THIS WHOLE WORLD OUT THERE THAT I DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT. AND, UM, AT THAT TIME, THE SPACE PROGRAM WAS GOING REAL STRONG. SO MY FIRST BOOK WAS ABOUT THE SPACE PROGRAM. I GOT MY FIRST LIBRARY CARD. SO CHANDLER ON THIS SATURDAY, UH, AT 10:00 AM WE'LL BE HOSTING A RIBBON CUTTING FOR THE, AT DR. AJ CHANDLER PARK. WELCOME TO CHANDLER'S NEW DISCOVERY LIBRARY. THIS IS A BOOKMOBILE ON STEROIDS. YOU COULD NOT ONLY GET, UH, BOOKS FREE WIFI, PRINTING, SCANNING SERVICES, CULTURAL PASSES, AND EVEN A SEED LIBRARY. NOW, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT IS, BUT I'M GONNA BE THERE AT 10 O'CLOCK TO FIND OUT WHAT A SEED LIBRARY IS. UM, WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY OF THESE THINGS WHEN I WAS GROWING UP. UH, IT'S AN INNOVATIVE WAY TO EXPAND ACCESS AND RESOURCES. AND I THINK THIS IS, I GIVE LIBRARY KUDOS AND THE PARKS AND RECS DEPARTMENT BECAUSE THEY'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS ABOUT EXPANDING PROGRAMS. NOT BUILDING JUST BRICK AND MORTAR, BUT GETTING OUT INTO THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS AND WORKING WITH THEM IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS. THIS IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THAT. SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS GREAT BOOK, EXCUSE ME, THE DISCOVERY LIBRARY. THAT'LL BE THIS SATURDAY AND MAYBE I'LL FIND AN OLD SPACE BOOK IN THERE THAT I COULD READ FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF, UH, SPACE TRAVELERS. THANK YOU MAYOR. COUNCIL MEMBER. WHAT A SEED LIBRARY WILL DO IS REDEFINE A CD NEIGHBORHOOD. GOT IT. . THAT'S FUNNY. COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS. WELL KEEP IT SHORT. I'M, I'M TRYING TO, YOU DIDN'T EVEN SAY CONGRATULATIONS, BUT IT'S OKAY. UM, WELL, I WANNA FIRST START BY SAYING CONGRATULATIONS TO ANGEL ENCINA, UH, FOR BEING THE VICE MAYOR. UH, CHRISTINE, YOU ARE NOW VICE MAYOR EMERITUS . [00:55:03] YOU GET TO JOIN THE LINEAGE, BUT I I WILL SAY THAT TRULY, UH, IT'S A SPECIAL DAY BECAUSE THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I THINK WE'VE HAD THREE MINORITIES BECOME VICE MAYOR IN THE CITY OF CHANDLER FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER IN HISTORY BACK TO BACK TO BACK. AND I THINK THAT'S A HISTORICAL POINT BECAUSE OF THE, THE, THE WORK THAT IT SHOWS THAT OUR COMMUNITY BELIEVE IN. CHANDLER BELIEVES IN EXCLUSIVITY, ALTHOUGH THERE MAY BE PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT DON'T BELIEVE IN IT, BUT CHANDLER BELIEVES IN IT. THEY VOTE THAT WAY. THEY MOVE THAT WAY. AND THEY ARE LITERALLY FOCUSED ON THE FACT THAT DIVERSITY IS WHAT MAKES OUR COMMUNITY SO STRONG. UNSURE WHY SOME PEOPLE WANT TO CHANGE THAT IDEAL. UNSURE WHY PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE DON'T WANT THAT. MAYBE THEY SHOULD BE DEPORTED. I DON'T KNOW. BUT I WILL SAY THIS MUCH IS THAT CHANDLER HAS CONTINUED TO BE THE, UM, BE A COMMUNITY THAT RISES TO THE TOP AND THEY CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT THROUGH THEIR VOTES AND THEY CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT. AND I KNOW WHAT I SAID WAS SHOCKING. YOU'LL GET OVER IT BECAUSE TRULY IT'S ABOUT THE COMMUNITY AND MAKING IT FIRST. SO ANGEL, I'M SO PROUD OF YOU AND I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU AND I'M SO GLAD TO SAY YES. I WANTED TO BE THE PERSON LIKE GO ANGEL. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT? MY COLLEAGUES GOT MY BACK. LIKE, THEY GOT YOUR BACK. OKAY. SO I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT CONGRATULATIONS TO, TO YOU AND TO YOUR FAMILY. 'CAUSE IT IS A HISTORICAL TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY BECAUSE YOUR FAMILY LITERALLY HAVE WALKED THROUGH THE STREETS WHEN IT WAS UNPOPULAR TO WALK THROUGH THE STREETS OF CHANDLER TO MAKE CHANGE WHEN IT WAS NOT POPULAR. SEE, DOING THE RIGHT THING AS A LEADER IS ABOUT DOING IT WHEN PEOPLE DON'T WANT YOU TO DO IT. IT'S STANDING UP WHEN PEOPLE DON'T WANT YOU TO STAND UP. IT'S ACTUALLY ABOUT HAVING A SPINE AND NOT BEING SPINELESS BECAUSE THERE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE TRULY SPINELESS AND THEY ALLOW THE PERPETUATION OF THINGS THAT DOESN'T MATTER TO OUR COMMUNITY TO GO FORWARD AND THEY TREAT IT LIKE IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD CELEBRATE, BUT WE CELEBRATE TODAY DIVERSITY, WE CELEBRATE WHAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE AND WHAT YOUR DIVERSITY IS, AND WE EMBRACE ALL THOSE GOOD THINGS. SPEAKING OF DIVERSITY, HAPPY NEW YEAR. MLK AWARDS IS COMING UP. AND THE REASON MLK HE'S IMPACTFUL IS BECAUSE HE BELIEVED IN MAKING SURE THAT NO MATTER WHAT THE COLOR YOUR SKIN WAS, NO MATTER WHAT YOUR ISMS ARE OUT THERE, HE BELIEVED THAT, UM, PEOPLE SHOULD BE TREATED BY THE CONTENT OF THEIR CHARACTER. SO GUESS WHAT? IF YOU TRIP ME, GUESS WHAT? I MAY NOT LIKE YOU ANYMORE. OKAY? BUT IT'S BECAUSE YOU DID SOMETHING TO ME. BUT IT'S ABOUT CHARACTER. YOU GUYS, WE GOTTA HAVE THAT, YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S WHAT MLK STOOD FOR. CHARACTER, VISION, DEDICATION. THERE'S NOTHING ELSE CAN BE COMPARED TO WHEN YOU HAVE DEDICATION, VISION, AND CHARACTER. THAT'S WHAT'S GONNA REALLY CARRY YOU. AND THAT'S WHAT MLK AWARDS IS ABOUT, IS TO, TO AP AMPLIFY THE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY CARRY THESE PRINCIPLES FORWARD. AND WE NEED LEADERS LIKE THAT IN THE CITY OF CHANDLER THAT'S GONNA SPEAK OUT AGAINST INJUSTICES, THAT'S GONNA SPEAK OUT WHEN THINGS ARE WRONG, NOT BEING SCARED AND NERVOUS, AND WORRY ABOUT WHO'S GONNA ATTACK YOU AND WHAT THEY'RE GONNA SAY ABOUT YOU. THAT'S THE TYPE OF LEADER I AM. THAT'S THE TYPE OF ENERGY I BRING TO THIS COUNCIL. THAT'S THE TYPE OF LEADER I WANT TO SEE IN OUR VICE MAYORS AND IN OUR LEADERS HERE. AND I HOLD THEM ALL TO THE SAME TYPE OF ACCOUNTABILITY BECAUSE THAT MATTERS. NOW, I HOPE THAT YOU GUYS WILL COME AND JOIN A LOT OF GREAT LEADERS THAT'S GONNA BE RECOGNIZED FOR THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING ON JANUARY 19TH. UM, ACTUALLY JANUARY 17TH, ON THAT FRIDAY ON THE 16TH, SORRY, ON THAT FRIDAY FROM FOUR TO 5:00 PM RIGHT HERE IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, WE'RE GONNA BE RECOGNIZING SOME AMAZING CHANDLER, UM, INDIVIDUALS WHO'S GONNA BE RECOGNIZED FOR, FOR THE WORK THAT THEIR SERVICE THAT THEY'RE BRINGING TO THE CITY OF CHANDLER AND THESE AWARDS HONOR THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF CHANDLER AREA RESIDENTS WHO CONTRIBUTE SIGNIFICANTLY TO CREATING A COMPASSIONATE AND SOCIALLY JUST, UM, COMMUNITY THROUGH THEIR DEDICATION IN HUMAN AND CIVIL RIGHTS. AND I CAN'T WAIT TO CELEBRATE THEM, AND I KNOW YOU GUYS CAN'T NEITHER. IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THAT, THERE'S GONNA BE A SPECIAL RECEPTION SO YOU GUYS CAN GET TO KNOW THE MLK, THE CHANDLER MLK AWARD WINNERS A LITTLE BIT MORE CLOSELY, UH, AND TRUST AND BELIEVE WE HAVE A DIVERSITY ARRAY OF AMAZING PEOPLE. AND I CAN'T WAIT TILL YOU GUYS MEET THEM. SECOND THING, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AND APPLICATIONS, RESIDENTS THAT ARE LOOKING FOR A MEANINGFUL WAY TO SERVE OUR COMMUNITY, ARE INVITING YOU TO APPLY FOR OPENING ON BOARDS, COMMISSION AND RESIDENT COMMITTEES. THESE GROUPS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN SHAPING CITY POLICIES BY PROVIDING RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL OR HELPING IMPLEMENT [01:00:01] APPROVED INITIATIVES. SERVING ON A BOARD OR COMMISSION IS A GREAT WAY TO BE, TO BRING YOUR VOICE, EXPERIENCE AND PERSPECTIVE TO THE TABLE WHILE MAKING AN IMPACT ON THE FUTURE OF OUR CITY. I ENCOURAGE ANYONE WHO IS INTERESTED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ONLINE AND CONSIDER APPLYING YOUR PARTICIPATION DOES HELP. SO, HEY, WE, WE OPEN. SO APPLY, GET WITH A COUNCIL MEMBER, LET 'EM KNOW THAT YOU WANT TO, YOU WANNA GET DOWN AND I KNOW THE MAYOR HE LOVES, UH, WHEN YOU GO OUT THERE AND GET COUNCIL MEMBERS TO PUT YOUR NAME ON AN APPLICATION SO WE CAN, UM, HELP MOVE OUR COMMUNITY FORWARD. WITH THAT BEING SAID, HAPPY NEW YEAR'S TO EVERYONE. I LOOK FORWARD TO SERVING WITH YOU, UM, VICE MAYOR, ANGEL ENCINA, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT MEETING. THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALRIGHT, UH, , WE STILL HERE. IT'S ALWAYS HARD TO FOLLOW YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER HARRIS. COUNCIL MEMBER HAWKINS. THANK YOU. YEP. WHERE SHE STARTS, WE MEET. LET'S, COUNCIL MEMBER HAWKINS SIT OVER THERE SO SHE CAN BE FIRST. WE CAN DO THAT. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S UP TO YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER. I'M SO POWERFUL. I EVEN MAKE YOU, I JUST FEEL FOR YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER . THANK YOU. I I WAS THERE BEFORE. I, I HAVE LITTLE HEART THIS SITUATION FOR YOU. YEAH. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, MAYOR. UM, I ACTUALLY HAVE NO ANNOUNCEMENTS TODAY. I, I TOLD A FEW OF YOU, I ACTUALLY HAD JURY DUTY TODAY, SO I DIDN'T KNOW THAT I WAS GONNA BE HERE IN PERSON. SO ANYWAYS, LONG STORY SHORT, I JUST WANNA SAY CONGRATULATIONS, VICE MAYOR. UM, I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT YOU'RE GONNA DO THIS YEAR. I KNOW YOU'LL DO AMAZING THINGS. SO CONGRATULATIONS AND THANK YOU FORMER VICE MAYOR CHRISTINE. WE APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU DID FOR THIS PAST YEAR. SO THANK YOU. SO BEFORE I GIVE OUT, IT WAS REFERRED, BUT I DO WANNA CONGRATULATE AND THANK JENNIFER BL FOR BEING WILLING TO, UH, BE OUR NEW CITY CLERK. UH, DANA'S GOING TO BE TRAVELING IN THE NEAR FUTURE, AND SO AS OF THE 11TH, JENNIFER WILL BE IN A NEW ROLE OR KIND OF SHARING AS THIS TRANSITION. BUT, UH, WE'RE EXCITED THAT YOU'VE TAKEN THIS, UH, WE'RE EXCITED FOR WHAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE. A LOT OF EXPERIENCE, A LOT OF WISDOM, A LOT OF MENTORING. AND SO I WANNA WELCOME AND UH, YOU TO YOUR NEW ROLE COMING UP AS WITH COUNCIL AS WELL. AND WITH THAT MEETING'S OVER, THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.