Roll call of the city council meeting of Wednesday, December 17th, 2025 at 6 30 p.m.

Members Witherspoon, Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaff, Titus, and True.

I would like to ask everyone to please stand for a moment of silence and the pledge of allegiance.

And to the Republic of List.

One nation under God and divisible with a busy and justice law.

Motion to approve the minutes of December 3rd, 2025, and bills for payment on December 19th, 26th, and 2nd of January.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaft, Titus Troop, and Witherspoon.

Is there anyone here for a repository sale?

Okay.

We can go back to that.

My fault, sorry.

I get it off.

Okay.

Uh Councilwoman.

Thank you, President.

Dear Mayor Joe Shember.

Erie City Count City Council and the citizens of Erie wish that you accept our heartfelt congratulations on a well deserved retirement.

Whereas your dedication and unwavering commitment to making our city of Erie a better place to live, work, and recreate has left an indelible mark.

Whereas your eight years in office and your passionate vision have guided Erie through many challenges like the COVID pandemic, and we have celebrated numerous achievements as well.

Whereas we all have been fortunate to work under your tenure as mayor.

Whereas you have set the bar high for public service, and your legacy will continue to inspire us.

Whereas we wish you boundless good health, joy, and abundant time to enjoy your family, friends, and personal interests.

Whereas Mayor Joe, we thank you for the privilege of serving our community together.

We give you our warmest wishes in the next step of your life's journey on this December 17th, 2025.

Okay, now we could go back to repository.

Okay.

Is there anyone here to speak on a repository sale?

Is there anyone here to speak on a repository sale?

Is there anyone here to speak on a repository sale?

Okay, moving on.

Hearing none.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is Dave Ewling.

I live in the city of Erie.

First congratulations to the mayor will deserve.

Thank you for your service for eight years.

On August 6th, you all voted 7-0, 7 to 0 in favor of accepting the proposal of Erie events regarding operation of the Erie Zoo.

Today is the next important step in the process to ensure long-term viability of the zoo while creating an opportunity to revitalize the Glenwood Park Gateway to the city.

70 in favor of the ordinance authorizing the transfer of 96 acres to the Erie County Convention Center authority and to complete the transfer before the end of the year so that the city, the zoo, and your events start the year with a sense of certainty as to the future operations of this very valuable asset.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hello, good evening.

My name is Malcolm Pooly.

I'm from Erie, Pennsylvania.

Um, first off, I want to thank you, Mr.

Spoon, for your service.

Mr.

Chuck, for your service, Mr.

Mayor, for your service.

We appreciate everything y'all done for the city of Erie, and I'm sure y'all probably gonna continue doing great things for us.

Um I'm here to speak on behalf of Marcello Woodard.

Um I'm a little emotional because I I was just on Facebook, and um Marcello's youngest son just put up a Christmas wish list, and in his top three things he had.

He wanted a blanket with his dad's picture on it, and the number one thing that he really wanted was his dad.

So we know he's not gonna be able to get number one, but that just kind of that touched me.

That I I feel some type of way right now, just because um we're going on six months.

Our district attorney has really not said anything to us.

So I I was thinking earlier, and I was born in the 70s, but I was doing some reading on Jim Crow laws, and she is making us feel like she is governoring this case as if it is a Jim Crow case, which means in the 60s, white men were killing black men, and they were not being charged with those crimes.

This is going on six months, and we still have a crime where she is letting a white man who was a probation officer that killed the unarmed black man that he was supposed to be taking care of to have two weeks of probation left, still walk these streets.

And I feel some type of way that in this day and age, we continue to let this happen.

There is no way that that man should have enjoyed Thanksgiving, he's about to enjoy Christmas, it's about to be New Year's.

Like at some point, if she is not willing to do what I feel is right for the African American community, because looking at this as an African American, this is not right.

She is letting this man walk free.

He is probably watching this right now, like I wish Malcolm Pullion would shut up.

But he gotta understand that I will not shut up until he is jailed.

She should recuse herself and go do something else if she is not willing to help the citizens of Erie, Pennsylvania.

We all deserve justice.

Marcello deserves justice.

His son, his baby son just wrote that.

Out of anybody that deserves justice, it should be major.

Major is going through something right now, and there's nothing we can do about it because she won't say anything.

It seems like she's not willing to help this community get justice.

I'm tired of coming to talk to y'all every other month.

This is what our fifth, sixth time coming down here, some of us even longer.

But we understand that we have to keep fighting because people like Shateria, Major, Marcello's whole family, mom, dad, they need us.

You see, they they don't come do this.

They expect us to come do this.

That is why I'm gonna continue to come fighting, but again, our district attorney needs to either do the right thing or pass this down to somebody who is willing to help us get justice for Marcello Wooder.

Thank you.

Thank you, sir.

Good evening.

Uh my name is Deontay Cooley, lifelong resident.

Uh, first and foremost, thank you, Mayor Shimber, for your eight years of service.

Uh, I'm sure it wasn't easy to rent a city, regardless of the things that you know have been said.

That's not an easy job, and if if it was easy, everybody could do it.

So, thank you for your service.

Um, as well as you, Chuck.

Like, I definitely appreciate you.

I know this is gonna be your last time sitting up there, like when I ran how helpful you were to me and how accessible you were.

Like, it really truly meant a lot to me.

So I appreciate every single thing that you did along the way, and then even the things that you've done while serving in that seat.

Like, we've talked, we've had conversations, I've done my own research, and I know that you truly mean well.

Um, and Mr.

Witherspoon, to you, like, I know the last five months we've come down there and give you hell, but you've sat in that seat for as long as you sat in that seat.

You've dealt with you know the scrutiny of the people, you still kept your head up.

Um, you still done everything that you needed to do in order for you to serve there.

I mean, even to the point to where we we came down here and we asked you to quit, like you never gave up on the city.

You continue to be an advocate for the community regardless of what anybody had to say about you.

And that's very admirable.

That means a lot to me.

Again, regardless of what it may look like or feel like, or like it's something to look up to, it's something to see.

When you see a black man serving in the position that you are in and to be able to hold his seat and to be able to do the things that you have done and to create a legacy that you have been, again, regardless of the things that I've said over the last five months, that's nothing but something to be admirable admirable about.

Like I have nothing but the utmost respect for you, and I admire everything that you've done, and I hope that you'll continue to be an advocate for the community once you no longer serve in that seat.

Um for the board as a whole, like we appreciate the uh the 7-0, you know, uh vote for the resolution, and we're hoping that we can continue to you know build the relationship with you all so that you all can continue to advocate for us.

Um, Susanna Faulkner came down here and she spoke a little bit about she talked about us going to Harrisburg, and there are some people behind the scenes planning a trip to Harrisburg, and we're hoping that we can get some advocacy and some support from you all, maybe even some phone calls to when we get a date set to let people know hey, we want Erie to be represented, we want to come in the house, and we just want to be there, we want to have some things to speak to because that's important to us when we talk about getting justice for Cello.

We definitely appreciate the uh we've come down here, we've yelled, we've screamed, we've cried, and I feel as though you all have listened enough to say here's something of what we can do.

I also would like to know though, if the district attorney respond uh responded or replied to the resolution, if anybody from Harrisburg, if anybody's heard from Governor Shapiro yet, and if not, I would like to know what would what is the plan moving forward.

You know what I mean?

Like we need to do more planning, more action, less talking, less speeches, less screaming, and uh actually come together and collaborate on some things because we as a city are hurting.

We as a city are crying.

So this is not an us versus you all thing.

This is us spilling our passion, spilling our feelings, spilling our pain, and unfortunately, it has looked ugly.

Unfortunately, it has looked disrespectful.

But as a community, we still have been standing strong.

We still have been standing together in that 7-0 vote, like it meant a lot to us.

And then Mo to hear you say, you know, you've reached out to try to put together something to organize, but you didn't want to use it as a campaign run.

Like, as I sit back and think, I had to respect that.

You know what I mean?

Regardless of, again, what was said.

I I don't apologize for anything that I said, but that sometimes as a man, you have to sit and think.

Everybody's not gonna think or move like you.

So again, for you to say this is what I'm willing to do, and if the opportunity is still available, hopefully that opportunity is still available for us.

Because again, we just want justice.

We want change, we want help within our community.

So when we talk about things like uh uh a community review board to have some some type of involvement and interaction with the police, it's not to scrutinize them or tear them down.

It's for us as a community to build a relationship with the people who are supposed to be advocating for us, for the people who are supposed to be helping us.

So again, when I come down here and speak, I know I may come off as a loud mouth.

I know I may come off as an angry man, but I'm a very educated man, I'm a very resourceful man.

I'm very well connected to the community and the things that I speak for.

I speak for things more than just you know uh murders and stuff like that.

So when we say Justice Facello, legitimately, we mean change for all.

I see on the agenda it's about 25 new businesses who are getting some of those grants.

I love to see that type of stuff when we're we're um investing in our community, we're investing in our community members.

It's unfortunate that this situation has taken precedent over everything, and you all have taken the heat for that, but that's what's important to us right now.

But it does not take away the fact that the good things that we have seen you all do, but we more or less want you to support us as we are specifically saying apply some pressure to the district attorney.

We want you all to support us when we specifically are coming down here and saying these are the things that we would like to see change when we talk about the police review board, we talk about more activity um in our community.

Again, you all chose to sit in these seats, so it's not always gonna look good.

It's not always gonna feel good, but this is what it is.

When you decide to serve a community, you decide to set up for the infrastructure of the city and to serve the people of the city, you have to deal with the people, both positive and negative.

So again, I say all that to say, thank you for your service, thank you for your service, thank you for your services and appreciate it, regardless of how it sounds when I come up here, and we appreciate the 7-0 vote for Justice Fricello, and also I'm good friends with Gus and Roos, so hopefully we can get a 7-0 for that as well.

But thank you.

Good evening.

My name is Jerry Roberts, a lifelong residence of the city of Erie.

Uh, first, I like to start start off by saying thank you, Mayor Shempford, for your services, um, your due diligence and everything you've done for the city.

Uh Mr.

Spoon, you know we go way back.

Pops.

That's what we used to call you.

You've done so much for us in the community, so much for people when we were younger growing up.

You started the Spoons League.

I can always remember the speeches you gave us on how to be a man and how the life isn't always about sports.

You're not gonna always make it in sports, and you always put in our head education and have some type of morals in your life.

And that stuck with me even to this day.

So I appreciate you for that for teaching us um things growing up.

But what I really wanted to say was um it we came down here a couple of times, just like Deontay said, we were angry, and I feel that you you all understand how we feel or are learning to understand how we feel.

We're learning um how you guys feel, we're learning your position and and uh what you all have to do in your positions.

Mo, we go back.

And just like Deontay said, I appreciate the idea you came up with.

Um, me and you spoke about that several times, and that plan is still in the in the works.

Um, but us as a whole as a community, it's time for us to pull together.

And not only should we understand each other, but we should know what's going on.

Mr.

Brzezinski, you you grew up on Six and Ash.

You taught at East Middle East High School for 25 years, so you know what type of people live in those communities now and what happens in those communities.

So you should be able to understand what we're going through and and why we feel the way we do.

It takes a village, and that's all of us, even the people behind me.

We all pulled together for this fight for justice for Cello.

And we appreciate the resolution from you guys, the 7-0 vote.

But now we asking if you could guys could just pull together with us and help along.

I know you got your hands are tied to a certain extent.

I know you don't have anything to do with the district attorney, and I get it, but I'm just asking that you understand because to hear from Malcolm that a little boy.

Take your time, brother.

A little boy's number one wish is for he wants his father for Christmas, not even Christmas, just in general.

It's gonna take a village for us to help bring that young man up and raise him into a king.

It's bad enough that this world is not fair to African American males.

So it's gonna take us to protect him, to look to guide him the right way.

That's all I'm asking y'all to do is just to be more understanding.

We understand, y'all.

Let's work together and be a village.

Thank you.

Good evening, Jennifer Kennedy, lifelong resident of Erie.

Uh, first to the mayor and to Councillor Nelson and Councillor Witherspoon, thank you for your years of service.

Thank you for everything you've done for our city.

And um we'll continue to do in other capacities.

We appreciate you.

Um to councillor Titus and to Councillor Schaaf, I wanted to say thank you for sponsoring that resolution.

That and thank you to the entire council for doing that 7-0 vote for us.

We truly appreciate you and you're standing with us.

Um, we look forward to what happens next that we can do together.

Um as I stand here, I realize that I'm third generation of Kennedys who have a come to council meetings to speak on behalf of others, and I'm grateful for that opportunity.

Um, as I look through the resolutions, I see under New Business that someone has brought forth a resolution to rename 21st in German after my grandparents, which is awesome and amazing.

So, thank you to whomever did that.

I'll find out later.

I appreciate you.

Um also wanted to then say, as Deontay mentioned, on the record and for the record, that we are asking for updates on the status of the resolution.

No.

Was it mailed?

Has it been received?

Has any response been given?

Um, and if not, what are your next steps if there has been no response so that we can make sure that we do get a response?

And then lastly, to just ask that you would continue using your leadership and your government position to fight for those who can't fight for themselves.

And um we're not just here fighting for cello, we're fighting for justice because justice for cello is justice for all.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Tina Hyotis.

I am from Erie PA.

And first of all, I'd like to thank Mayor Schimmer, Chuck Nelson, Mel Weatherspoon for their service to the city.

Hopefully, you guys will continue in other capacities as other people have spoken to continue to do well and do good works for the city.

But if city council would allow me, I would like to address Mr.

Ed Brzezinski right now for something that meant a lot to me.

When I was running for Erie City Council back before the primary, I ran into him in the Erie County elections office, and he made it a point to address me a newcomer into the political arena, not from Erie, not with deep roots.

I've only been here four years, and he said it was great to see newer people and newer faces getting in to Erie City government and wanting to step up and do their civic duty.

I hope you continue to use your vast knowledge and experience to help other newcomers that want to get into Erie politics, navigate that process, and to feel welcome, like you made me feel welcome.

The other thing that I would like to address is the Martello Woodard.

When there is a sense of bias and impropriety in the constituency that a district attorney represents, that is more than enough to have the state district attorney look at the situation and have her removed from the case.

So I would like to ask you guys to please use whatever means that you have necessary to apply that pressure.

And as Deontay said, if we go, not if we go, when we go to Harrisburg, any of you that would like to come, you guys are more than welcome to come.

That just shows a unified front for the city of Erie, that everyone wants fairness and equality for everyone who lives here in the city.

The third thing I want to bring up that does not have to do with Marcello Woodard, has to do with something that was brought to my attention during my election campaign.

But there was a fear of retribution by the people.

Those type of places are for people who are low-income elderly who may not have another place to go to.

But that doesn't mean that they have to live with transients coming in and out.

People smoking meth and leaving empty drug bags and residue in the stairwells.

That doesn't mean that they have to come out in the hallways and there'll be urine and stuff on the floor that is left there all weekend because the management companies are not doing their job.

Those contracts are awarded out by the city, and therefore they can be reviewed by the city.

And if they're not upholding their end of the bargain, then maybe those contracts need to be pulled from those companies, and those need to be readdressed.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, sir.

Good evening, everybody.

Good evening.

My name is Mimi O'Connor.

I live in the city of Erie.

I want to extend my thanks and accolades to Mayor Shember, to Councilman Nelson and Witherspoon for your experience, for your dedication, and mostly for your heart that has led you to give the service you have all these years, and I'm sure we'll continue going forward.

You're appreciated.

Let me be fair, let me be straight with this.

The goodwill, the peace on earth of the holiday season, as has been said before, must apply to all citizens of Erie, not just to the white ones who look like me.

In the wake of Cello's murder by his parole officer on July 2nd, it has been said that it's not a black and white thing.

It's a right or wrong thing.

Right is right and wrong is wrong.

And I completely agree with this.

But what has ensued is that for 168 days since that wrong thing, the white parole officer who murdered Cello has been free with zero repercussions.

While Cello's devastated family has been oppressed, oppressed further with silence and zero accountability.

Or hoping it'll go away.

First, the deadly violence.

Then the oppression of invisibility.

And now the suppression of the glaring truth.

But we can't what we can do is demonstrate our humanity in order to summon theirs.

Compassion is contagious.

You are an example of that.

I mean, you did that with the resolution that you passed on December 3rd.

We are all so very grateful for that.

It's a great beginning.

But we're calling now immediately, as we have been and will continue to do, for the arrest, indictment, and conviction of Cello's murder.

And we can't stop there because, as you know, systemic change must come to keep the wheels of justice in motion.

So first, and this is a real real quick list.

This city must ask the black brown community of Erie for their forgiveness, which they have not earned.

Let's start there.

And let's keep going.

It must be followed up with concrete, visible dollars and dedication, not just words, actions that are way past due.

This has been a very, very dark time.

Speaking of which, the winter solstice is in two days.

It's the darkest day of the year.

And while it's true that cursing the darkness does absolutely nothing, the good news, the sacred news, the holy news, is that nothing can stop the dawn of equity and of justice.

It's what this country was founded upon.

You can cancel programs like County Council voted down last week, Erie's Black Wall Street, but you cannot cancel people.

You can kill a man, but you cannot erase him.

We're all here, we continue to be here at City Council because we will not accept the Cello's legacy for his three children for his mom and dad, for his siblings, for Shamel Henderson, his fiancee, is the darkness of not mattering.

We do not accept this.

We will not settle until Cello's legacy reflects the light and the power and the promise of justice.

Nothing less than that the memory of Cello will always bring his loved ones peace and not pain.

That his memory may forever bless them and not break them.

Please join me in blessing Cello and all who love him in this season of love and light by saying his name out loud three times.

Cello.

Cello.

Cello.

I thank you for all that you've done, all that you will do, all that we will do together as we go to Harrisburg.

Peace for you and your families.

Thank you.

My name is Freder Tepford.

I live in the city of Erie.

Chuck, if you're not here, who's gonna answer my questions?

Chuck always answers my questions.

Sometimes in the middle of the meeting.

Come on.

We we text, we message, and and President Witherspoon, thank you for all your service.

And you know, maybe maybe as time goes by, you might do more to help the community of people who are blind and visually impaired.

If you have time just to think about it.

And thanks, Chuck.

And thank you, Mayor.

Um the times we're at the disability round table together.

I wish that they're in person again, and I wish that they would be more often again, and that there's more community involvement in it.

Um I am with everybody who has talked about Cello.

I do not, I understand that investigations take time, but I do understand the frustration that the murderer is seemingly at large and unaffected in his life by what he's done.

Um, so I have some other things.

Personally, I'm not a zoo person, but if people want to have a zoo, that's great.

If they have some way to keep it going, that's wonderful, but do not destabilize the golf course, and don't go taking trees down without some kind of review process.

There's woods around the zoo, and I know there's been talk of more acreage, but any removal of trees should be subject to scrutiny because those are precious trees.

Um there is a waterfront special use permit on the agenda.

Getting that permit for development, and that's a pretty significant development in a very special part of the city.

It's not a privilege.

I mean, it's not a right, it's a it it's it's a special thing that is granted under the conditions that are decided on.

It's not like just if it qualifies with the zoning, you you're entitled to that permit.

So I hope that you're really thinking hard about whether that's an appropriate way to develop that precious area along our bayfront.

Um please work with Andre, who's coming off the county council and the county council and the school district to come up with some sane way to work with repository sales and not to keep giving away our city property at 250 a pop to out-of-town business people.

Um business five, the lights and display.

I hope that is something that is consistent with the LED ordinance, and that understands that people like me are sensitive to lights.

We're sensitive to the lights in the country fair, we're sensitive to the flashing lights at the at the high school, and that we really need to be careful what kind of light displays we approve.

Um contracts number two for waste management.

They have yet to clean up Raspberry Street.

They have yet to clean up the sidewalk and their overhanging vegetation on Raspberry Street, just south of the railroad tracks.

That is a route to school.

That is a school route for kids walking to Strong Vincent.

UmGarys, the American Power Gym, lots of businesses think it's fine for them to clear their parking lots and make great big huge berms, 10, 12 feet high of snow blocking the sidewalk or blocking what would be sidewalk if there were sidewalk.

Left by businesses to please call 814-870111 and report them.

They should not be able to get away with that.

And lastly, the home rule charter.

Please schedule a petition signing event here at City Hall for people who want to be on the Home Rule Charter Commission if you are still doing that.

Thank you.

Hi there.

My name is Carla Arnone.

I'm a life, um I'm a born and raised in Erie, and I'm a Mill Creek resident.

Um I want to echo the gratitude to Mayor Shember and Mr.

Nelson and President Witherspoon for serving the community here, and um also to everyone for passing the resolution for Cello.

The last time I was here, I burst into song about how tired the community has grown of the injustice with regard to Cello.

And I used the impetus of that to finish the song and performed it at my church.

And what I didn't expect to come out was the names of all the unarmed black people who have been killed in this country by police.

Um it felt important because if you're gonna say you're tired, think about how tired everyone here is of the cello situation of not to getting justice and magnify that across the whole country.

So it was 63 names, and that's not even an exhaustive list.

And it went all the way back to a motto diallo in 1999, all the way to Cello.

Um what led me to do that was when Savannah Wilson at a town hall said we need more murals, we need more murals, we need more murals, and she was talking about art as a response to justice, injustice, and so cellos, uh uh murals for cello.

Um, and when I heard that, I thought, well, I can't paint, but I can write a song, right?

So that's what I that's what came out.

And um, so Mr.

Troop, if you do organize something, I'm very interested in helping, even behind the scenes, you know, writing something or performing whatever whatever is needed.

Um in any meeting, the most effective thing to come out of a meeting are action items, right?

Next steps.

So I want to figure out the next steps for Harrisburg.

Um pick a date, charter a bus, compile a sign-up list.

I want to help.

I want I was away from Erie for 19 years, and I came back to raise my voice here, and I missed a lot.

And I don't know how many times the council has traveled to Harrisburg for something that is important to them.

And so if you have advice for that that you can give us, please, please.

It's hard because everybody asks did we ever get a response to the letter to the governor and all these questions, and it just we asked them into the void.

So I'm asking that in action steps that you reach out in some way and let us know if you can, the answers to those questions, and how we can make the most out of a trip to Harrisburg on Cello's behalf.

I echo what Deontay said about justice meaning change, meaning equity, the voting down of Erie's Black Wall Street, like Mimi mentioned, it was gutting.

It was that was so hard to take.

And yet, Erie's Blackwall Street will go on with what they have, and they will continue to fight for change, just as we are continuing to fight for change.

As people have said, the holidays are so hard for people that are grieving.

And I saw that St.

Paul's Lutheran Church has a longest night service on Sunday, December 21st at 7 p.m.

for people experiencing grief and loss or loneliness during the holidays.

And I just thought that's a beautiful thing because the nights are the hardest for people that are grieving.

And I wish you a wonderful holiday season.

Thank you.

Hello, I'm Jared Stasheski, Erie, Pennsylvania.

And uh I would first like to thank Mr.

Chuck Stormwater Nelson for his service on council.

Your uh leadership, responsiveness, and uh just general knowledge of uh civics uh will be definitely missed.

So I hope his colleagues definitely keep uh a line open to Chuck.

Uh and I would like to once again address the lack of response from uh Governor Shapiro to all letters that uh Erie City Council seems to send him.

Is there any way that we could get information on what date the resolution was sent to Governor Shapiro?

Anyone have that date?

It was last week.

Last week.

And is there any planned way to kind of see if he's gonna respond?

He still hasn't responded to the July 24th letter as well.

No, we haven't heard anything.

Mr.

Mayor, do you have any response to that?

Okay.

So uh if we could please get him to respond uh to anything we sent him, that would be appreciated.

And uh thank you, Mr.

Witherspoon, for your service, and thank you, Mr.

Mayor, for your service as well, and have a great holiday.

Thank you.

Thanks, Jerry.

Hello everybody, my name is Willie Dixon from City Beerie.

Um I came here today because I've been watching and uh seeing and listening on the Marcello Woodard case, and um I would just wanted to approach you guys with a more emotional approach.

Um not saying anyone's approaching wrong, but I feel as if there's a lot that needs to be looked into more than what is being looked into.

I've been down here one time before, and I've watched his fiancee cry.

And I think to myself, like, do you guys feel that?

Not to just look at her and see that she's crying, but feel that she's crying.

They said that his son, so number one wish on his Christmas list was to have his dad.

I have a son and a stepson.

And I can only imagine my one and only boy to lay there and wish that he could have me.

So I wanted to come down here and say to you guys that we have to understand as a people, a community and a city that should stay together, that each one of us is more than anything bad that we've ever done.

And that the opposite, I'm sorry, and that the opposite of poverty isn't wealth, it's justice.

And that the character of our community and city isn't reflected on how we treat the rich and privileged, but how we treat the poor, disfavored and condemned.

Kevin Settlingers took from a family, a fiance, a son, community, more than he has the power to give back.

And as I sit back and I watch, our justice system is failing us.

It's failing us.

And it is not doing anything when it comes to the situation that should be done right now.

In my opinion, in Erie, this is the most important thing right now.

We have a we have a guy that took a man's life, an innocent man's life, and he's still free.

He just gets to go work somewhere else.

That's a problem.

That is a problem.

I know Mr.

Troop very well.

He's watched me grow up my whole life.

And I remember being 15 years old and strong Vincent causing the most problems.

And him telling me, you gotta do something better, or this isn't gonna be a good thing.

Brother D, another person has told me you have to pick and choose what you're gonna do with yourself.

Because the route you're going, it's not gonna be a good thing.

So I feel that our justice system is letting us down because nothing is happening right now.

And you guys, as our leader, mayor, council members, we have no one but you guys now.

Who do we go to when the person the people that we're supposed to call are the people that causing the pain.

This is still a law enforcement person that was held under oath to protect and serve.

And once that is stripped from us by that person, who do we go to?

Where do we turn?

I don't feel Mr.

Cooley, Mr.

Pullium, I don't feel it's anger when they speak.

I feel pain.

I feel hurt.

And they need you guys, the community, his family, his fiance, his son, more than ever.

Right now.

We don't want our children and kids to grow up and think that cops are gonna take their lives.

And that's what this is painting the picture of.

Because it's been, I don't even know how many days Mr.

Pulyam said, 168?

168 days.

And this man has been working, going home to his kids.

He gets to be out with his family on Christmas.

And we have a boy that just wants his dad for his Christmas.

So I just hope and I pray that you guys can really understand this on an emotional state.

Because justice for Marcello is the main thing, in my opinion, that should be fought for right now.

We shouldn't, there should be no middle on this.

And I feel there's a lot of middle on this.

No one should stand on the middle.

If you guys are the leader of our community, and you guys are any seats leading, we need you guys behind us a hundred percent.

There shouldn't be any, there shouldn't be any, we have to wait.

The wait is over because the time is now.

That's all I have to say.

Thank you.

I know this is your last city council meeting.

Um so uh thank you for everything that you have done for the city.

Um you have been very dedicated to the city.

I think that we are all very well aware of that.

So what I wanted to do earlier was I jumped onto a page reading about it was a City Erie website, and it was a little bit of a bio on you.

And on this bio, and it was talking about you know that you know your work and your history and working hard, and that in your work that what was important to you was building opportunity, restoring hope, and transforming Erie to transforming Erie for future generations.

So I thought that that was very it was really wonderful to read, and I think that you know really something that was definitely uh represented you.

Uh I know that uh in the work that I do and just living in the city, I see you at a lot of places.

And I tried at times to you know go up and say hello, and um, but I know that you're a very busy man always, but um, but you're at a lot of different things, a lot of events.

Um, you know, if you work in any kind of a business or nonprofit organization or enjoy any of the amazing things that we have around town, you probably would run into Mayor Shember.

Um so you know, I think that that's definitely a huge part of the position is having that presence.

So thank you for all of that.

Um you've always been very present um in our in our city and in our neighborhoods.

Um I also understand though, too, it's not just about that.

Um, it's also you know, you had a very big job.

You're kind of the CEO to the city.

So um, but I also know too, just a little bit um just from reading and just you know getting to know bits and pieces about you over the years, um, that family is really important to you.

Uh you know, family is ultimately what builds community, right?

Um so family is really why we are all here on whatever level.

Um, and I think that all of us on some capacity um you know see that recognize that, and we have some kind of a family and in some form of you know, you know, on a diverse situation or you know, um, you know, family, whether it's friends that we've taken on, um, actual blood relationships, um, but family is important.

So, families why we're here.

So, um, on that note, we continue to ask for the city council and the incoming leadership and the new mayor's support and the initiatives that are so critical for the community and the families, um, you know, initiatives like Justice for Cello.

So, because we want all of our families to be cared for and respected and loved.

We all want our all of our families to have access to basic needs, um, good paying jobs, access to food, safe affordable housing, safe neighborhoods, just to name a few things.

I think that we could probably all agree that those are really important things for all of us, for our families and for others.

Ultimately, we want each and every family in our community to have equal rights and to be treated treated with respect and to have justice.

Those are things that we have control over, um, whether it's on an individual basis or in the work that we do, and probably many of you in leadership, or even if you're you know moving on to a different position or you're retiring or whatever, you know, whatever your path, uh, wherever you're going, we have control over those things.

So, again, safety, rights, justice.

Because asking for safety, equal rights and justice in our community is what is just.

So, I am here asking for justice for Cello.

I asked that he and his family and the community be offered the same rights, safety, and justice that the parole officer has received for the past 168 days.

I'm also here advocating uh for justice for all.

I'm here advocating for the victims' rights, um, the family's rights, for cello's rights.

I'm here advocating for the safety, rights, and justice for each and every family member and each person in this community as well.

So I would just like to end um with I would really like to see a continuation of building opportunity, just so Mayor Shember wanted to put in place, but building opportunity, restoring hope, um, because that's always so important, and especially now, we really need that, and also transforming Erie for future generations.

And so it's days like this and times like this, and sometimes these darker times that we can take as an opportunity to move forward and really initiate change.

So, Justice Ricello, and thank you for everyone.

Um, and thank you for your dedication to the city.

Uh I feel like I don't have to introduce myself.

I feel like everybody knows who I am, but just in case you don't, my name is Diana Chatfield.

I have been coming out and talking about Cello and how not just only the black community but the youth community feels about this top subject.

And one thing I really want to touch on is that I feel like when we're younger, we're taught about accountability and how if you do something wrong, it's either you take the accountability or karma will come to you.

I frankly believe in karma.

Like if I miss wrestling practice one day, I'm gonna lose a match.

That's simply because I didn't care enough to put in the work.

I actually just came from wrestling practice.

Um but like I was talking about accountability, and I feel like we just really haven't took accountability for what happened that day when Cello was killed.

I don't see him being held accountable, not only by the people who are leading, but some people in our in our community who choose to ignore what's happening and to choose to scroll through the post.

Cello's son is struggling so hard, and I cannot only imagine what it feels like to be major right now.

It breaks my heart knowing that a kid has a wish that will never come true because he lost his father that day.

Now, you're probably gonna ask, why do you keep coming up and say the same thing?

Well, I was taught that if you keep doing something, eventually something will come.

And I hope that you guys can realize that we are hurting not just his family, not just the people who were close to him.

I didn't even know who Marcello Woodard was until I was at work on my brick scrolling through Facebook and I seen a post with my coworker.

We need to start taking accountability because if we are showing our city that the man who killed Marcello Woodard is not being held accountable, what do you think is gonna happen to our youth?

They're gonna think the exact same thing, and then they're gonna start acting out.

And then when you guys go and you arrest them and you hold them to accountability, they're gonna be, well, this person didn't get held accountability.

Because I see it all the time in high school.

One person does something, the other person that does it gets held to accountability, but the other doesn't.

You need to stand on what you believe in and what I believe in is what I was raised by taking accountability.

If you guys can't help us take that accountability, then I simply don't know who I'm talking to right now.

I don't know who's leading me right now.

Because then again, I'm a 16-year-old girl, and I'm I'm told that I'm protected in this community and that I should feel safe walking home and back from school.

And I should feel safe going anywhere I go, but frankly, I don't, because I don't know what's gonna happen.

I don't know if someone who who's like who killed Marcello Woodard is gonna come after me next.

We don't know that.

We need to take accountability, and we also need to apologize to our African American community for making them wait this long.

It's not fair to us.

We're all scared.

We don't know if we should be driving with our head on a swivel looking around the mirrors or whatnot, because we don't know who's gonna pull us over and what's gonna happen next.

I just want you guys to know I'm very disappointed.

I'm also disappointed in our governor.

He's on TikTok right now, posting videos, not even responding to this demand we're making, not even responding to what we're asking.

And what are what are we doing?

No one up here is help hold holding him to accountability.

Not that I see of.

I don't see any of you guys making posts saying, hey, governor, maybe we should try to give these people a decision, or maybe you should say something.

Because remember, he's supposed to be running these communities just like you guys are.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Hearing none.

I'm sorry.

Hello, everybody.

Um, my name is Casey Walker.

I live in Erie.

I'm very nervous.

I'm sorry.

Um I do want to be here to support everybody seeking justice for Marcello Woodard.

I spent a lot of time at home, so I all I can do really is make calls and try to help them out the best way that I can.

I've called the governor's office plenty of times.

Each time somebody answers the phone, they don't know who Marcello is, and that's frustrating.

Um I wanted to take a moment um aside and see if you guys um I'm not sure what all I can say up here and what I can't, but on the same note of Marcello, I would also like to speak up for my brother who is incarcerated.

Um, just to display a little bit of the systemic racism that I see in this city coming from Massachusetts is very diverse.

I used to have neighbors that were Jamaican, Dominican, Colombian, Venezuelan, Puerto Rican, every race was my neighbor.

Here, that's not the case.

Um, I get treated nicer when I have straight hair versus when I have curly hair, which is weird, but this year, you guys a city, you guys do what you want.

Um I need to speak about my brother really quick before my time runs out.

Uh he's incarcerated, he's an inmate.

The lawyers and the judge that were present for one of his, I guess, like um meetings with the judge.

There were there were a lot of things that were said, and and I'm even shaking.

I don't want to say, I don't want to repeat what was said, but I have to in order to get this point across for my brother.

Um, they mocked his a la tattoos out loud.

Um, they made fun of his religion, they made fun of the fact that he had tattoos all over his body.

He was a tattoo artist when he was free, and you tell me what tattoo artists doesn't have some tattoos on their body.

Um, but not only that, because his last name is Hernandez, they threatened to send him to Juarez.

And that was the most frustrating.

It made my blood boil the moment that he told me.

Um, I it was it's my fault.

I started asking him, I started crying, I started asking, hey, what's going on inside the jails?

People want to know it, you know, is this just like one incident that happened, or what's going on inside there?

He not only told me that, but he also told me that when people are in the hole, the cameras see officers sliding trays of food to the inmates, just to find out that on the other side there's no food under those trays.

They're being starved on purpose.

And he's not saying this out of spite for anybody.

He didn't even, it's not about at that point.

That wasn't even about him.

He's telling me stories from other people where things are happening inside the prison.

I get it, they broke the law, they're in jail, they're bad guys, but they're isn't it like a corrections place where like you guys are supposed to be leaders, good leaders.

Um I don't think that's okay to starve people inside the prison, even if they misbehaved.

As mad as I am as my part at my partner at times, I'm still going to cook a meal for him at the end of the day.

I'm still gonna make sure he's fed and he's hydrated.

You guys shouldn't do that to people in jail.

It's not okay.

And the same way that you guys are mistreating people inside the prisons, you're doing it while they're out on parole trying to be better people.

That's not okay.

I I don't know what else to say.

I I promised my brother I would come up and speak on his behalf.

The whole Juarez thing.

You know who went up and muted the mic when my brother said, do these people know that I can hear them?

The judge stood up.

I don't know who the judge is.

I just found out this information.

The judge stood up and muted the mic, which means the judge not only was hearing what was going on, but the judge was also part of the laughing and the mocking, and that's shameful because these people are supposed to be in control of our freedom uh when we when we make a mistake out here.

That's racist, super duper racist, and I don't know, I don't know what how else to say it.

Racism killed Marcello, in my opinion, and you guys are not taking care of it.

I wish you would, and I wish you would also help your inmates.

I know I they did bad things, I've done bad things too, and you guys have forgiven me gracefully.

Maybe you not, not you directly, but I anybody, everybody has good things and bad things that they do.

Please, please, please.

I know they're bad guys, but please do better for the inmates in there.

They don't deserve to be starved.

And Marcello's family deserves justice.

And when I call offices, I expect the other people on the other line to know who Marcello Woodard is.

Thank you guys.

I love you guys, even though you don't know me.

I'm going to be here all the time.

I seem preppy and happy, but my mom just passed away the morning of Thanksgiving, and she's the reason why I was never able to leave my home or her home.

I was either caring for her at her house or my house.

But now I'm here, and I'm going to be dedicated, and I'm taking classes on politics so that I could be more involved and help the community.

So if you guys have more knowledge, reach out to me, help me out.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Are there any other citizens to be heard?

Hearing none.

Ordinances for final passage.

Council file number 16575, official ordinance 83, 2025.

An ordinance amending codified ordinances in City of Erie Part 9, Utilities and Public Service Code, Title 7, Other Public Services, Article 951, Residential Refuge, Section 95109, Garbage and Refuse Collection Fee, increasing the quarterly collection fee from 3062 per year to 32293 per year.

The annual collection fee shall be assessed against each dwelling unit and built on a quarterly basis.

Sponsored by Councilmember Witherspoon, seconded by Councilmember Nelson, the council file ordinance number 16575, and now known as official file ordinance 83 2025, be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, no Flores, Nelson, Shaw, Titus, Troop, Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 83 2025, finally by YA6, NAS 1.

Council file number 16576, official ordinance 84, 2025, an ordinance appropriating appropriating the sum of 400,000 from unappropriated fund balance and the liquid fuels fund for the expenditure thereof.

Funds will be used for the 2025 street lighting and traffic signals.

Sponsored by Councilmember Brzezinski, seconded by Councilmember Troop.

The Councilfile Ordinance Bill number 16576, and now known as official file ordinance 842025, be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schoff, Titus Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 84 2025, finally by Yay 7A.

Council file number 1657, official ordinance 852025.

An ordinance appropriating a sum of 115,500 from unappropriated and unanticipated revenue for the expenditure thereof.

This is a contribution from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania acting through the Department of Community and Economic Development for the Strategic Management Program.

Sponsored by Councilmember Flora, seconded by Councilmember Titus.

The Council File Ordinance number 1657, now known as official file ordinance 852025, be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaff, Titus, Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 85 2025 by Yay 7A.

Council file number 16578, official ordinance 86, 2025.

An ordinance appropriating the sum of 20 million five hundred and seven thousand four hundred and forty-seven dollars and seventeen cents from unappropriated and unanticipated revenue for the expenditure thereof from the City of Erie Capital Bond Fund.

It will be used to fund capital expenditures associated with the public safety complex, which is Miller Brothers proceeds from the 2025 City of Erie Capital Bond issue.

Sponsored by Councilmember Schaff, seconded by Councilmember Brzezinski, the Council File Ordinance Bill Number 16578, and now known as official file ordinance 86 2025, be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schoff, Titus Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 86 2025 by Yay 7 nay zero.

Council File number 16570 569.

Right?

Okay.

It's out of order.

An ordinance of the City of Erie, County of Erie, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania adopting the general fund and certain other budgets for the fiscal year beginning January 1st, 2026, and ending December 31st, 2026.

This is amended from the first reading ordinance.

Sponsored by Councilmember Witherspoon, seconded by Councilmember Nelson.

The Councilfile Ordinance Bill No.

16569 and now known as official file ordinance 872025 be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski Flores Nelson Schaff Titus Troop and Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 87-2025, finally by Yay 7-Nay Zero as amended.

Okay.

Council file number 1651.

Okay, geez.

Official ordinance 88-2025, an ordinance fixing the tax rate for all city purposes for the fiscal year 2026, beginning January 1st, 2026, and ending December 31st, 2026, is hereby fixed and levied at the rate of 14.12 mils upon each dollar of assessed valuation of real estate taxable for city purposes in the city of Erie during the 2026 or upon each 100,000 dollars of assessed valuation of real estate for the tax purposes in the city of Erie.

Sponsored by Councilmember Witherspoon, seconded by Councilmember Nelson.

That councilfile ordinance bill number 16570 and now known as official file ordinance 882025 be finally passed by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaaf, Titus, Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council pass official file ordinance 88, 2025, finally by A7NAZero.

Ordinances for first reading.

Councilfile number 16579, an ordinance amending the ordinance number 26, 1958, the traffic code at the city of Erie by installation of stop signs at six intersections.

Maple Leaf Drive and Pebble Drive stopping on Pebble.

Cold Spring Drive and Washington Avenue, stopping at Cold Spring Drive, Cold Spring Drive and Melrose Avenue, stopping on Cold Spring Drive, West 28th Street and Melrose Avenue stopping at West 28th Street.

Sponsored by Council Member Titus, seconded by Council Member Flores.

That councilfile ordinance number 16579 and have it been read is hereby adopted on first reading by City Council.

Mr.

President, one second.

Okay.

That's all I have.

Thank you.

Any other discussion?

Member Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schoff, Titus, Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council pass and adopt Council File Ordinance 16579 by Yay 70 on first reading.

Council File number 16580.

An ordinance authorizing the transfer of 96 acres of land to the Erie County Convention Center Authority, the ECCCA, to allow the ECCCA to take over ownership and operation of the Erie Zoo.

To approve a transfer agreement outlining the rights and responsibilities of the parties with regard to the transfer and to authorize the city to enter into lease agreements with the Erie County Convention Center authority to allow the city to continue to operate the picnic grounds and the golf course, which surround the zoo complex.

Sponsored by Councilmember Titus.

Seconded by Councilmember Flores.

The Councilfile Ordinance Number 16580 have been read as hereby adopted on first reading by City Council.

Members Brzezinski Flores Nelson Schaaf Titus Troop and Witherspoon.

City Council read and adopted Council File Ordinance 16580 by Yay 7 Nay Zero on first reading.

Council File number 16581, an ordinance appropriating the sum of 742,429 from unappropriated and unanticipated revenue for the expenditure thereof from the City of Erie ARP fund interest and will be used to fund the Capital Improvement Fund.

Sponsored by Councilmember Nelson, seconded by Councilmember Titus.

The council file ordinance number 16581 have been read as hereby adopted on first reading by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaff, Titus, Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council rent and adopt council file ordinance 16581 by Yay 70 on first reading.

Council File number 16582, an ordinance amending official ordinance 80205, known as the zoning ordinances, City of the Erie, by changing the classification and or the rezoning of the property located at Hillcrest Avenue, tax ID 185302-303, which is adjacent to a property located at 4125 Pete Street.

The Hillcrest Avenue property will be rezoned from R1 to C2, which is the same classification and or zoning of the adjacent property located at 4125 Peach.

Sponsored by Councilmember Flores, seconded by Councilmember Nelson, the Council Bile Ordinance 16582 haven't been read as hereby adopted on first reading by City Council.

Members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaff, Titus Troop, and Witherspoon.

City Council read and adopt council file ordinance 16582 by Yay 7 on first reading.

This takes us to old business.

Motion to move the balance.

Second.

No, it's just old business.

I'll read fast.

Okay.

Resolved by the council of the city of Erie that Erie Council pursuant to section 306 of zoning ordinance 80 2005 in a public hearing held Wednesday, November 19th in City Council Chambers.

And with the recommendation from the City Planning Commission, the request for waterfront conditional use submitted by Mick Erie Partners LP for construction of multiple family dwellings consisting of two three-story buildings, totaling 30 units located on nine consolidated vacant lots from Front Street to Short Street on Myrtle East on Short Street as 263 West Front Street, Erie PA.

Located in the waterfront residential district is hereby approved.

Sponsor Mr.

Brzezinski Flores Nelson Schaff Titus Troop Witherspoon.

City Council passed the resolution 7 to 0.

Resolved by the Council of Erie that the proposed repository sale of one property commonly known as East 26th Street 46 by 133.

Discussion.

Yes.

So I was at the land bank meeting and they talk about land, of course, but the grass growing and things like that.

And Mr.

Snipper had talked about the situation with trying to keep up the property maintenance at the land bank.

Snipper had talked about the situation with trying to keep up the property maintenance at the land bank they're um discussing if the people they had last year are going to be hired for the upcoming year, what have you, because they have to make sure that that land is taken care of properly and um that is a situation as a council person that I continually and consistently get a lot of phone calls about property maintenance, especially in the summer that land is not taken care of because of overgrown bushes grass high.

It is definitely a problem, and it's expensive to get the proper lawn care systems operating as well.

Call for pushing for the question voting on the resolution.

Members Brzezinski, no Flores, no Nelson, no Shaw, no Titus, no Troop, no Witherspoon, no resolution fails zero to seven council found number the proposed repository sale of one property commonly known as Buffalo Road 40 by 140, identified by Erie County Assessment Index number 1851 26103 by the Erie County Tax Claim Bureau to JM International Holding Group LLC 721 Burnt Tavern Road Suite Sea Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey, and the amount of 250 dollars is hereby approved.

Discussion same as one as before, same as before.

I did not feel that they provided sufficient evidence to meet the standards we've set forward.

Call for the question.

Voting on the resolution, Mr.

Brzezinski, no Flores, no Nelson, no Shaw, no, Titus, no Troop, no Witherspoon.

No.

Resolution fails, zero to seven.

This takes us to new business.

Motion move the balance second move in a second.

Any separations?

I request to move uh separate number nine.

Go ahead.

Go ahead.

I'll just separate four just to you know speak a moment.

Four.

Yeah.

Number one.

I was just going to inquire if it if I needed when I asked for the separation to give why I separated, or is that gonna wait until we call at any point?

Okay.

I think you can say it now, and then when the vote happened, then we're assembly.

Okay, yeah.

There's no rule.

You're good.

Um just for the record, I'm gonna abstain from number nine due to a work conflict of interest.

Any other separations I have one four and nine moving the balance of the agenda, members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson Shop, Titus Troop, and Witherspoon.

Resolution number one.

Erie County Council Member Mo Troop appoints Angela McNair of 2131 Lynwood Street 16510 to the Erie County Human Relations Advisory Board for a four-year term expiring December 2029.

Discussion.

Yeah, Lori, Mr.

President and Lori.

I just wanted to um thank Angela McNair for accepting the uh appointment to the board.

Um she's well known to the community.

Um she's been on boards before, been on school board before, so I believe that she understands the work needs to need to be done, and you know, everyone who knows her knows that she's really passionate about helping people.

So just want to thank her publicly for accepting the appointment.

I second that, Mr.

Troop.

Stall a lady.

Any other discussion?

Voting on the resolution, members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson Schaft, Titus Troop and Witherspoon.

Resolution passes 7 to 0.

Moving on to number four.

Erie City Council designates East 21st Street near German as Mother Mary Beth and Reverend Charles Senior Kennedy Way in honor after their passing in recognition as international missionaries and as founders of the Erie's community of caring, community shelter services, and community country day school.

Discussion.

I had one more street renaming under this first term of me being on city council to use, and I was really happy to be able to use them before we lose them because there are a lot of community members out there who do lots of community service for our city and our residents, and sometimes they don't get recognized.

So I'm happy that I was able to recognize this family.

Well, this couple who have done great service for our community.

Thank you.

Any other discussion?

Voting on the resolution, members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Shop, Titus, Troop, and Witherspoon.

Resolution passes seven to zero.

Number nine.

Resolved by the City Council of the City of Erie the approval of the following loan be formally ratified.

Eastside Renaissance Inc.

for one million dollars for 15 years or the fee of $5,000.

Discussion.

Voting on the resolution, Mr.

Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Shoff, Titus abstains, Troop, Witherspoon.

Resolution passes 6 to 0.

This takes us to committee reports.

Whenever you want okay.

Council Vice President Titus is going to make a few presentations.

Well, the presentations are up in the front on the desk there.

Yeah, if you want to.

Thank you.

Okay.

Um I'm gonna have I'm gonna share a little bit of love, if that's okay.

Sure.

So by councilmember Titus, seconded by council members Brzezinski, Flores, Nelson, Schaff, Troop, and Witherspoon.

Resolved by the Council of the City of Erie, that whereas we honor Teresa Stankhewich for her 12 years of dedicated service as City of Erie controller, and for her steadfast commitment to fiscal responsibility, transparency, and ethical governance.

Throughout her tenure, Teresa served as a careful steward of public resources, ensuring accountability and protecting the financial interests of the city of Erie and its residents.

Whereas, in addition to her duties as controller, Teresa played a vital role on numerous boards and committees, critical to the city's financial and operational stability.

She served on the police pension board, fire pension board, and the officer and employee pension board, where her do her diligence and attention to detail help safeguard the retirement security of those who have dedicated their careers to public service.

Her work on the Water Reserve Committee further demonstrated her commitment to long-term planning and responsible management of essential city resources.

In every role she held, Teresa brought independence, integrity, and a deep sense of responsibility to the people of Erie.

Therefore, it be it resolved, we thank Teresa Stankevich for her 12 years of service as a city controller and for her leadership across multiple boards and committees.

Her dedication, professionalism, and principled approach have last a lasting impact on the city of Erie and will be remembered with gratitude and respect.

Thank you.

So now we'll go to Council, Councilmember Chuck.

By Councilmember Titus, seconded by Councilmembers Brzezinski, Flores, Schoff, Troop, and Witherspoon.

Resolved by Council of the City of Erie that whereas we honor Chuck Nelson for his four years of dedicated service of Erie City Council, his steadfast commitment to the community he served.

During his time in office, Chuck approached public service with sincerity, intelligence, and a genuine desire to make a positive difference for residents.

Whereas beyond his work on City Council, Chuck has been deeply involved in local ministry, where he has lived out his faith through service, encouragement, and compassion.

His commitment to helping others extended beyond public policy and into the daily lives of those in the community, reflecting a strong moral foundation and a servant's heart.

Whereas Chuck has always been a passionate supporter of local wrestling, recognizing the value of athletics and building discipline, character, confidence in young people, and his advocacy for the sport and its athletes demonstrated his belief in investing in the youth and strengthening community connections through teamwork and mentorship.

Therefore, be it resolved by the Council of the City of Erie that this commendation is hereby presented to Chuck Nelson for his service both in public office and beyond, and has left a meaningful impact.

We thank him for his four years on City Council, his leadership and ministry, and his unwavering support of local wrestling.

His dedication and example of service will be remembered and appreciated by the community he has so faithfully served.

Thank you.

All right, one more thank you on my end to go.

This is presented on behalf of all of council, whereas for be it resolved by Council of the City of Erie that, whereas for 22 years, Mel Weatherspoon has served the people of Erie with dedication, integrity, and unwavering commitment to public service.

Through his tenure on Erie City Council, he has been a steady voice for the community, guided by a deep belief in fairness, accountability, and the power of local government to improve lives.

Whereas Mel's leadership has been defined by his willingness to listen, to engage thoughtfully with complex issues, and to advocate for policies that strengthen neighborhoods and promote opportunities for all residents.

His long service reflects not only the experience but also the trust placed in him by the citizens of Erie.

Trust he is honored through the tireless work and principled decision making.

Whereas beyond legislation in council chambers, Mel Witherspoon's impact is measured in the relationships he built, the challenges he faced with resolve, and the example he has set for future public servants.

With the creation of the Spoons Basketball League and his contributions to Erie's youth, Mel has served as a role model for many.

His legacy is one of service before self and of genuine love for the city of Erie.

Therefore, it be resolved by the Council of the City of Erie that this commendation is hereby presented to Mel Weatherspoon, and we thank him for 22 years of devoted service to the City of Erie and for lasting contributions he has made to our community.

His commitment and leadership will continue to inspire Erie for years to come.

Happy second retirement, Melbourne.

Now we're committee reports, correct?

Oh, okay.

All right, let's start with Councilwoman to my left.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

I attended the historic review commission meeting, parking and towing boards appeals, the sewer authority meeting this past Tuesday.

Um they retired Attorney Tim Sennett retired, and uh attorney Tim Walter from the same law firm will be uh taking his place and uh the Erie Land Bank.

Hanukkah began on December 14th and ends on Tuesday, December 27th.

Happy Hanukkah to all those who celebrate Hanukkah as we embrace all faiths in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Mr.

Betza, this is your last city council meeting, and I want to thank you for all your dedicated service and commitment to our city.

I know we paid you, however, like I felt I could call you any time, email you any time.

Your wisdom, knowledge, interaction with our council has really greatly appreciated.

I know I'm you know, speaking for myself, but as well as council, you are greatly going to be missed, and uh best wishes to you in the new year in your endeavors.

So um thank you very much.

Um Mayor Joe, I uh read your uh tribute and uh most certainly will miss you.

Um Mr.

Nelson, um I'm never ever going to forget the night that we were at the Avalon Hotel where they had closed the neighborhood sheltering places during COVID and it was freezing, and you and I were in a room talking to the owner of the Avalon and another person.

Um you and I uh have had uh a nice camaraderie with uh working with the homeless, and I will never forget that.

Mr.

Witherspoon, um I will be your ride to die.

Um you can always um count on me for a ride whenever you want to go to a social event with me.

Um I'd be happy to pick you up.

You won't let me go, will you?

No, no, not at all.

Um you know, a person spoke about the Erie County jail.

So, you know, we are on city council, and the jail is in the city of Erie, but it is run by the county.

And um, so I just want to share with you a few times I have tried to visit um people that I have known.

Um I have a number of people that I knew who I had become friendly with and whatnot uh on the streets and you know, sometimes they end up in jail, and I had tried to visit and visit them and could not.

So you know, it doesn't matter, you know, if you're an elected official or not, you have to follow all the protocol and um you know I couldn't you have to go through the different steps and things like that.

So um, if they don't request your visit, you know, you can't visit them, and they have to know like where you live and all this other stuff.

So um I never had luck visiting people in the county jail.

Sorry, um as far as uh living with immigrants in our neighborhood.

Um Erie is really diverse.

Uh the holiday tree that is up in the foyer has a list of all of the countries that are represented in Erie, Pennsylvania.

And um I think there's like a couple hundred.

I don't know the exact number because I can't remember, but is it 300 Mayor Joe or something?

I don't know.

There's a lot of um people embracing living in Erie from different countries all over the world.

Um as far as um I have not received any um information regarding the Marcello Woodard resolution that we had passed and sent.

So um nothing on my end to report back about that.

Um other than um I am a person who uh really feels for others when they are in a situation where they feel hopeless and are suffering, and um my deepest sympathy to them to not have their loved ones this Christmas um just breaks my heart because um I know how it is.

My mom died uh it'll be 40 years, and I still um you know it's hard.

My dad passed away too, it'll be two years in January, and the holidays are a very difficult time for people who miss their loved ones.

But having said that, there are groups that are out there.

Um this past tow and review board meeting, we had uh person um who was in a grief group, and so there are more than one grief um support groups out there.

So perhaps if you Google it, um support groups will come up in the city of Erie.

I know the funeral homes often um also hold them.

But um I just wish everybody um hopefully uh you have a good holiday.

Thank you to the people who spoke.

Thank you for staying to the end of the meeting.

It is much appreciated.

And for your um collaboration, Fred, I appreciate it.

I'm done.

Really?

Thank you.

Councilman True, Mr.

President.

Um, so one of spoke to this folks from the Erie Downtown Partnership, and they um they wanted to express their gratitude on uh the uh downtown delice was very successful.

They wanted to thank the city staff, supposed to public works, the police, the fire department, and everybody involved.

Um they said over 313 kids skated.

That's a new record.

And um they're encouraging everybody to consider shopping local in this in this in this holiday season.

Also uh from the citizens response line.

Um just a reminder to Freddie, you'll like this, clear your sidewalks so that people come with the pedestrians can have a place to walk on uh on the sidewalks.

We're getting a lot of calls for that.

Um redevelopment had a couple things they wanted me to mention, two PA housing affordability grants, totaling 550,000 in investment for the city.

Um they launched an accessory structure demolition program called FAIR, um and Healthy Homes program expansion.

So those are a couple things to look for, probably find out on our website.

Also um personal note this Saturday, um Odessa's place located at 628 West 18th Street, we'll be having a free dinner, their takeout dinner, so anybody you know anybody can benefit from that.

It's free and open to the public from 11 a.m.

to 3 p.m.

this Saturday.

Also um on a school front.

Um there's four days left before uh the holiday break.

So there'll be a lot of kids out there, and also thanks to all of our you know, educators that show up every day and work with work with the kids and the youth.

And um to Chuck, I just want to say um, so I'm gonna say something to everybody, I'm gonna sum it up.

One thing I can say is um if I had to sum up Chuck, I would say he knows the stuff, no matter what it is wrestling, sports, politics, finances.

So I had to sum it up.

I would say he knows the stuff.

Um to attorney Betsa.

Um I just love it when you speak, it's just like a calming wisdom.

You know what I mean?

You just you know how to put those uh put everything in such a simple fashion for people to understand.

And uh thank you.

Thank you for your service.

Really appreciate it.

Um Mayor Shember.

Um I've never seen anybody attend so many events.

I mean, just your you're everywhere.

I sometimes I think there's three of you out there.

And and just you know, one of the things you talked about was tackling racism, just to even make that statement uh to try to attempt to do that.

You know, maybe it it didn't happen, but you got it started.

So when it does happen for our city, we can just look back and say, Mayor Shipper got this started.

So thank you for your service.

Um to pop a weather spoon, president weather spoon.

Spoon.

Thank you for you know, you're a quiet giant.

If I just sum it up, quiet giant in a lot of different people's lives, the political world and the and the little kid basketball world and the and the grandfathers that played basketball for you 30 or 40 years ago, you know.

You've been a quiet giant to our city.

And and you're not even from here, and I tell people that.

You embraced our city sometimes more than people who lived in our who grew up here and were from here.

So thank you for your service.

Um, really appreciate you.

I'm looking forward to working with Marilyn and Andre and also Daria, um, because you know we Academy Lions and uh and Central Falcons and all that stuff together, so looking forward to working with her too.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Remember when Mr.

Trooper's real quiet, you just kind of sat there and didn't say anything.

Yeah.

Coming in order.

Uh first off, uh the Port Authority wanted me to remind people that the Bicentennial Tower is open on the weekends from Friday to Sunday, 10 to 6, I believe.

If I get that right.

10 to 6.

So if you want to go down there and see uh a uh body of water that used to be ice, and I think it's becoming water again after the weather today and tomorrow.

Uh it's a beautiful place to be.

I think that thank everybody for what they did at the at the park, Joe.

That's such a beautiful thing.

My wife and I just take a ride and just drive around the park.

It's it's really beautiful.

It really is.

Uh that being said, the getting back to business here, the Port Authority is also working under master plan.

Uh they'll have more for us uh toward the end of January when they uh do the fine tuning.

Uh the Coke uh property there is unbelievable.

With uh it's gonna take time to get it done, but what a great opportunity for our city.

So we really have to work hard to get it right.

Uh the other side there, uh like thank Gus Pine.

Uh we went to the Christmas party.

It's kind of unique with the Erie uh event center because they throw a Christmas party for all of their workers.

So I saw the guys that show us seats at Sea Wolf's the otters, uh Boney Larry.

Yeah.

Uh it was just great.

It's a wonderful evening.

Uh Mr.

Richards was given an award, and Gwen White also uh received awards.

Uh they've both been mainstays of uh Erie events.

And I'd like to personally thank Gus for listening to us when we talk to him about saving the zoo.

Uh yeah, I know we gave him 96 acres, but as long as I'm alive, I'll be watching him.

And we're gonna have a zoo, that's a very important thing.

And we have to thank him for uh that's just another brick on his shoulder.

Because those guys are pretty busy.

Uh it's amazing.

Uh I've been privy to being lays on there for a couple years.

So I watched so many things happen.

People don't even realize half of the things.

They uh become partners with the Port Authority for the Great Tuesdays, and uh of course, because of what the convention center can do, they have the the proper technique and the qualities uh uh serve that uh Tuesday nights uh much more efficiently than we did as a Port Authority.

So that those are the two things being said.

I'm not gonna go through the lines with everybody.

I've been around long enough to know everybody.

Joe, we're gonna miss you.

Rocky, you rascal, you'll be back one place or another, you'll be back.

He'll land somewhere.

Mr.

Spoon, what can I say about you?

I'll tell you what I can say about you.

Don't say people talk about all the things that people can do.

This is a man who can make things not happen before potentially bad things happen.

When his voice rings out in the city of Erie, especially in the areas we're talking about.

Spoon country, I call it.

My friend, I'm gonna miss him a whole lot.

And you uh Betsa I hate you.

I love you.

I'm gonna miss you, man.

Uh we work well together.

Uh sometimes we didn't always agree, but we found we found a middle ground.

And that's what what it's all about.

I don't know.

Are you gonna be here, boy?

Are you back with us?

We don't know.

It depends on the powers that be.

Oh, you okay.

But I'm I don't want to say goodbye if you weren't.

No, but I I want to.

So I hear you.

Maybe Glaswell here too.

Anyway, that being said, folks, have a wonderful, wonderful holiday.

Uh Merry Christmas, happy new year, and uh we'll see ya.

Well, there's one more one more meeting 23rd, but we'll see you next year too.

Okay, thank you.

Councilwoman for the bread.

Okay, so before I get into the thanks for service, I wanted to give a quick little um email that I received from um an individual who who had um been working on the community energy um resolution that we had passed at the last meeting.

They sent an email that says, thanks, thank you, city council members um for taking the lead of this resolution.

The rel the resolution that you just passed, um, added you as number eight to seven other municipalities, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Lancaster are all on board.

We have Allen Allen Allen County, Lancaster Township, Carlysk Borough, and Sharpberg borough um as well.

So they wanted to thank us for passing that, and then I wanted to thank Mayor Schemberg um for your service as a mayor.

Uh I served four years under you as mayor.

Um coming into a mayor that had already been established for four years was a lot easier than somebody brand new.

Um I'm looking forward to the new opportunity to learn from a new mayor, but just having your team already established made it easy to come into the role as a newly elected council member.

So thank you.

I wanted to thank our president Mel Witherspoon.

Thanks to your 22 years of dedication you showed members in our community that it is possible to serve your community when you have a vision.

So thank you.

Thank you very much.

And then Chuck, I know you're just a phone call away, but you did a great job.

And the fact that you have accomplished everything, and you can say I didn't need to run.

It was pointless to run again, is honestly admirable because some people would have just stayed.

And and you know, out wore the welcome.

So thank you for that.

And then Teresa, thank you for your service.

I know that the pay increase that we did for the controller, sadly, you did not get to benefit from, but we heard your cries on the need for um the future controller to make a family sustainable wage and for that wage to be increased, and we did do that.

Um, Betsa, I wanted to thank you for your time as a city solicitor.

You were a great solicitor to a new president, and I look forward to possibly look uh working with you in the future.

And hopefully, Jason is here going forward.

Um I don't know, I didn't hear anything as far as I knew.

You were gonna be added to the team, so let's just fingers crossed.

Let's keep keep keep breaking up, Jason, but third class city code with the deputy solicitor has particular rules.

But either way, um thank you all for your service.

It was been a great delight the last four years to work with you all.

And I hope that everybody has a great Christmas.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh, we're gonna go next to our vice president.

All right, thank you.

Um I'll try and keep my mind brief.

EMTA did not meet this month.

Uh they they have December off.

I'd reported on that last one.

I'm I'm glad to see that we are about one vote.

We're one one vote away um from wrapping up some things that we've been working on for for over a year now with your events and the and the zoo, um, and I'm excited for for what that is and what what's to come next.

Um, I do want to acknowledge the again, the amount of uh pain and and hurt that we often are seeing in our chamber.

And this is it's sometimes you know it can get frustrating as we're like we don't have power over that, or we don't have control over that, but this is this is the platform that we have set up for the public, and um this is this is their access to us, and sometimes it's it's very frustrating to sit up here and and to not be able to dialogue back.

And so, but this is this is where how the current process that we have um at the moment.

Um, and then I I'll shift over to to saying to saying some goodbyes.

Um Chuck, I don't think that there's anybody on council who's frustrated me quite as much, but pushed me to grow in ways that I didn't fully expect.

So I appreciate you immensely for everything that you had offered, and I know that you will continue to offer.

Umor Shember, I know that we have not always agreed on on things, but I don't think I've met a single person who I could say without with every cell in their being is it is more genuine and so deeply committed to the city.

Um you are someone who who really has shown uh up as with every with every fiber of your being, and that wasn't lost on me, even when we weren't agreeing.

So thank you for everything that you have done.

Uh and Coach Witherspoon.

I think that there was a I was not expecting such a deep friendship to come as I had I gained a mentor in you.

Um and I am I am immensely grateful for for the time that you have afforded.

And I know that this is we're just not going to be sitting by each other, but we're still gonna be in communication a lot of time, and what you have given to the city again is something that many of us can aspire to, and and deeply grateful for what all you have offered.

So thank you.

And Ed, I'll leave you alone.

But thank you for and really you are somebody who has responded because I am somebody who emails at like 1 a.m.

And I'm always deeply surprised that it's not many many minutes after that I'm getting a response back.

So thank you for everything.

And with that, I will stop.

Yeah, I just I don't have a committee stuff to report on.

Uh just wanted to thank the community for this opportunity to serve.

Um wanted to give a little background on my time here and then uh address a couple people.

Um you know, this is something where in uh in my time as a pastor, uh, one of the roles I took in my denomination is where we start new churches, and there was an opportunity with an endowment in the fastest growing city in the nation.

And people on my committee said you should go take this opportunity.

You know that the struggles you're having that you're facing in your career, like that's because of the city you're in.

And so instead of changing my city, I kind of took note of what was happening there and thought about how I would change our city.

And uh, and I shared that with somebody one day, and they told me I should run for city council, and I told them that I wasn't going to use my um the stuff I've done for my community uh to advance their their political bullshit, and um, and then uh with a couple words the the idea changed, and so uh I think two weeks later is when they were addressing taking applications for Merski's seat in the appointment, and uh I think Fred was sitting right there, maybe one row closer uh next to me and Mary Rennie, who would go on to county council, and uh Fred walked out of that meeting uh because they weren't doing it with the transparency that was required or was responsible.

They wanted to do it in the co in the council chambers instead or in the caucus room instead of council chambers.

So she walked out.

I walked into the walked in there, she's gonna sit in.

And Mary and I sat there, and we all understood that the Fredo was the most principled person in this scenario, but we also wanted to have a shot, and we understood that that eliminated any chance.

And Mary and I debated what kind of chance we had.

Uh Ed was there as now he was like one of the top three in my calculations.

Were you there?

No, that was before.

No, Mike Keys was there.

There's there was a few of them.

Um and so Mary and I still hope to have a shot, even though we both knew that we had a very unlikely shot.

So then I ran for counsel, lost um to uh a couple of the guys up here, and then uh ran again and won.

Um also that day I met Mike Keys.

I enjoyed my time working with him on council, and I apologized to the staff at City Hall.

I'm not gonna address anyone on staff uh by name, but there's a ton of you that I really genuinely appreciate.

And I tried to say goodbye to a few today.

Um, you know, Mike kept all of us on our toes, and he was always down to to play ball, and I really appreciated that.

Um I think I still owe him a phone call because he checks in with me on a regular basis, and I'm pretty sure I have an unread voicemail of him for something that I didn't care to address in the last couple weeks or whatever.

Um I also served with Liz, and I'll tell you, she was the person I was most excited to work with coming in on council.

Um I'm sure you can read op-eds to see how that went, but um we've definitely worked by beyond that, and I've kept up with her closely since.

By that following summer, she and I were you know in great, great terms, and uh continued to have appreciation for one another.

Um to my elected official colleagues.

Um, Kathy made reference to uh our work together with some of the homeless community.

Um I will tell you a secret about Kathy that I don't think she publicizes, but when she first got on council, her goal was to find someone that was one of the most desperate people in the area and see their life turnaround.

And um, and that's how we connected is that when she and I walked down the street the first time together, that person saw us walking and recognized, recognized me first.

And then she realized, oh my goodness, this guy's not full of it.

Um as much as I mean, Tyler made reference to and you, I mean, a lot of them made references to what a prick I am to work with.

Um, but you know, that that mostly is because of uh what I do in the day is usually my real, you know, this is where I kind of get out that prick attitude in me.

Anyways, uh so we you know that guy is what two years sober now.

He was unhoused for 16 years, drinking a handle of vodka every day.

And he's employed, housed, and sober.

Um, you know, so some of the stuff that happens behind the scenes that you all don't see is the stuff that really drives me.

Um we got Mo here, you know, I appreciate your words to me.

Um we we sometimes I sometimes refer to Mo as go with the flow mo because he's so even keeled and always just chill.

Um I'm also probably I can think of two times.

I've seen him pissed off, and both of them were at me.

So you know, that probably goes to say once again how it is working with me.

Um, you know, but he's I think one of the most sensible and even killed people that we work with here.

Um, you know, it's appreciated the the career he's shown to build up the next generation, and that those values are continually demonstrated for a lot of us in our careers outside of here.

He you know, he demonstrates them uh and then brings those passions here.

Um Ed, you know, we've uh you know, as all of these people, we've all gone toe to toe at time to time.

Uh he made he brought up an old thing from I think my first year on council where I he made comments about if you can't respect your betters, or we can't respect your elders, respect your betters.

And uh, and that was that was a threat.

But the uh and then I and I I went and tailored my shirts after that to make sure he he knew, and then he reminded me shortly thereafter that he actually had a 48 chest and that he had to get a shirts custom made, and they still had me beat.

So um when we got on to council, you know, you don't always know what to expect out of these people.

And really, I thought Liz was gonna be the one to show us the ropes uh with Jasmine, Mo and I coming on.

And um really Ed was the one that took the most time to show us the ropes and to show us how things operate.

He introduced us to the convention center, the Port Authority, he brought us in on all these things.

He let me know which of the authority uh liaison assignments came with a lunch.

The free lunch.

The free lunches.

There was four of them.

He has two of those assignments, but I got the other two in my four years.

Um, you know, he's he's one that has taken the time to show me where, not just where, but you know, he tells me like, here's how you can make something move in this department.

Here's a guy you can talk to.

And that was uh to actually get anything done, and all I really care about is getting stuff done.

That's the most vital stuff to know.

And Ed really, really took the time to do that.

Uh Tyler, the first time I met Tyler was at a baseball game.

Uh his uh their son and my daughter were like best friends back in like third and fourth grade, uh, fourth grade.

And so Tyler and I sat together, and that was really where the context of our uh relationship started.

Um it's been fun working with them.

I think I think you learned the different barriers of this job that I've beaten my head against for two long two years longer than you.

And uh, and I think I think I managed to be just that much more tired than you uh to let you know about those.

And um, and Tyler's the one I trust most, I would say in these next couple years, um, you know, to be effective and to move things forward.

Um Jasmine is one that um you know we ran three races against each other.

Um there was one time in the primary that we both won that she named uh she ran as a slate and she named everyone else that was running and a reason why to vote for them except for me.

So basically, hey, there's four votes you get, please use three of them this way, or vote for this person, this person, this person, or this person, and just I was the only one she didn't name very deliberately.

How do we work together?

How do we push things through?

And I think I think it was some of the most effective years on council.

Uh, you know, we both ended up president there pretty quickly, and and and I think we showed a lot of success.

Um I asked everyone that had ever been on council that I had a chance to meet, what it was that they were able to accomplish, and I asked that to Mel, and he talked about always being a team guy.

He was a guy that always kept the spirits up that he always like that, and and there's probably been I I keep track of the votes, so I know that I voted against Mo more often than anyone, but Mel's the second most, and uh, and some of those votes have been literally about whether or not Mel's gonna be on council.

Um, you know, and and when we made that vote, that was a pretty contentious week, and uh, and he was I remember greeting you after that, and I think you were like three guys that are ready to fight me, and then you hugged me and said, All right, let's get to work tomorrow.

Like, like it's that quick of a pivot that um that if you've ever seen council have a divisive vote, by the time we walk into that caucus room, we're usually laughing together, and Mel has been uh the the probably the most key example of that, Joe.

Um I work closer with all these guys than I work with you, so I have more to say about them.

I know them all more.

But of everyone on the stage, uh, because Jasmine's easy because it's just her and Dave.

He's the only person I can name everyone in their family.

It's Rhonda, it's Jamie, it's Jody, it's it's Joe, right?

I mean, like, um, and the reason for that is that when I was president council, he and I went to get lunch every month, and we went we went to get lunch, you know, a couple times my first year and uh a month before I started, and uh, you know, we we were having this battle when I was president of council over Chris and we went to have lunch, and we sat down and and Joe looked at me, he's like, All right, I know we've been fighting, uh, you know, I I think you should come to my side on this, but uh we're here for lunch.

Do you really want to talk about this?

I was like, nope.

He's like, Great, and then we spent the next hour talking about our families.

I really thought those lunches were gonna be like productive like policy debates, and they never were.

He just took the time to talk about, and really, and I don't think this was in his intent, but really to emphasize the significance of family in the midst of this work and the priority of it.

Um, you know, so I I always appreciate that.

Um, and I think I learned a lot in the midst of that, and it factored into decisions I made.

Um I have people ask me if I'm coming back to council, I'm not.

Um I have a full life of many things I love to do.

So I very quickly got a job coaching wrestling, which is what comes up in that resolution, and um, you know, I was able to uh put my dissertation before the internal review board, and so that's moving on.

I and my ministry is a more than full-time job with two teenage girls at home and a wife of 18 years.

So uh I'm I'm happy with what has been accomplished here.

I'm proud of the relationships that have been built, and I'm very, very thankful to the community that allowed me this privilege.

Thank you.

In the words of Paul Harvey, good day.

Just like that.

I want to thank my colleagues first and foremost for the support and education that you've given me.

Thank Kathy.

She's my Uber driver, her.

Uh, without them, sometimes I wouldn't make it.

I want to thank Mo Troop, the quiet one of the group.

But when he speaks, he speaks with thunder.

Thanks, Mo Troop.

When I became president, Chuck.

First thing Chuck said, I want to be your financial guy.

I said, okay.

No, no problem.

He's done an outstanding job.

An outstanding job.

And I thank you, Chuck.

And Ms.

Jasmine.

Understand, folks.

That's tough lady.

If she disagreed with you, she'll let you know.

She might apologize to you later on, but she's gonna let you know.

She's a researcher.

She researches everything that we need to know, and she shares it with us.

And I appreciate that.

Because of you, you made me stronger.

And my vice president, Dr.

T.

He don't ever stop working.

He's constantly researching.

He's constantly at a meeting.

He covers the meeting I can't make.

And I appreciate that very, very much.

But I appreciate his son more than I appreciate him.

His son Zim.

That's my buddy.

Mayor, you and I go back a long ways.

Now, Mayor don't have to tell that story anymore.

That he would go to the Gannon Games and watch me do my thing.

And he would go back to his gym and try to emulate me.

I could have told him he couldn't do that.

But he didn't ask me.

I didn't know him then.

But that's an honor just to hear that, Mayor, and I appreciate it.

And you've done an outstanding job for the city.

Attorney Betts.

He's there whenever I need him.

I'll give him a call day and night.

But he gets on my nerve at the gym in the morning.

He bench pressed 250.

I bench pressed 20 pounds.

No problem.

But uh thank you, sir, for being there for me, especially on all the legal matters and the friendship.

Ticket and tow committee, Jason.

Yeah, you thought I'm gonna forget ticket and toe.

I thank you for your professionalism.

I appreciate that very much.

I also want to thank the citizens of Erie for voting for me for putting me at the helm of your city.

You see something in me that maybe I didn't see in myself.

I've had the opportunity of serving with some of the strongest and greatest council persons.

Liz Allen, Mario Bagnoni, Jim Thompson, Mr.

Casey, and my current crew.

I want to thank you very, very much.

And we could not do it without our staff.

Laurie, Mike, Kelsey.

We couldn't do it without them.

They make things happen for us.

No, you're not getting a race.

Is there anything else we need to cover?

Nothing else.

His report.

Oh, you get a report.

I'm gonna be like the mayor when uh get older.

I'm sorry, Mayor.

You got it, your floor.

I'm gonna be very, very, very quick.

I do appreciate everybody on City Council.

Thank you very much, all of you.

I've enjoyed working with you, and I know we didn't always agree, but that doesn't really matter to me.

I mean, I'm I I stay open, and uh I was gonna say tell the same story about myself that Mel already told, so there's no need to do that.

Uh I appreciate this time together.

And the one last thing I want to say is uh I'm kind of a pen freak, and I think most of you know that.

And uh there are five different colors of my newest pen.

And you know, they light up when you press the back.

It's it's got a sunrise, and it's got my name, and that says, thank you for making my eight years as mayor a great time, and for all that we accomplished.

So I'd probably have given each of you one of these pens already, but I'd like to give each of you a pen as well as everybody else sitting up here.

So I've got plenty, so you should be able to get a color you like too.

And uh I'll do that as soon as we you know adjourned.

Correct.

Yes, thank you.

Thank you, Attorney Betsy.

Just briefly I want to thank the mayor for giving me the opportunity um to serve as solicitor for the past eight years.

Um thank you to each council member I I've had the opportunity to work with.

I truly cherish that uh every moment.

Uh I love all you guys.

It's been a great time, and thank you to the clerk's office, Lori, you're awesome, Kelsey and Mike and Marilyn and Rose in the past.

Uh it's been a great eight years, and I look forward to hanging out with you in a different capacity in the future.

Thank you.

Your goatee looks good.

Great.

Thank you.

My modeling career is uh ready to go.

Jason.

Uh I'll be real brief.

Uh I just want to say it's a pleasure working with everybody.

I know some people are staying, some people are gone.

It's been great learning, meeting um from all of you.

I mean that includes myself.

I feel like I've learned a lot about how city government works, quite frankly, and just how patient you have to be in this in any part of the city because things get done, but sometimes it takes a little bit of time.

Um my plan is to be back.

I do uh today, as we were talking about goodbyes, I jotted down a list of like 10 things that you know if I could change, you know, make some changes to some ordinances next year.

Some of them are obvious you've already discussed, some are more pet peeves of mine that need improvements.

Um that's just me, but I really do appreciate the opportunity to work with all of you.

That includes like the mayor, uh attorney Betsaw, and you guys.

So I don't like saying goodbyes, so I'd like to say, like, I'm not saying goodbye, I'll just I'll see you around next time, you know.

So thanks.

Thank you, Lori.

Our pleasure serving with all of you.

Mike.

I'm Tito.

I echo those sentiments.

I've learned a lot from everyone, and I'm gonna miss a lot of you guys.

Good luck to everyone.

All of them hear nothing else.

This meeting's adjourned.