OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Gilbert Town Council Meeting – May 6, 2026

Town Council Meetings — Wednesday, May 6, 2026
BodyGilbert, Arizona
SessionTown Council Meetings
DateWednesday, May 6, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:19:31

Transcript — Verbatim
7:06

We'll uh get started in about two minutes if I ask everyone to head towards their seat.

7:14

I told you there were there wasn't enough attention tonight.

7:18

Next week, but I'll be targeting like one at the beginning of people.

7:27

Scott, their thing this week was not a good idea.

9:09

I'd like to call to order the regular town council meeting of May fifth, twenty twenty-six.

9:36

Um, before, and I asked him, so is there anything you'd like to have prayer for?

9:40

And he said everything.

9:42

So join me as we pray for everything.

9:45

Father, we thank you for this wonderful town.

10:00

Father, and those are the things that you've asked us to ask you for, and that is love and wisdom.

10:05

So, Father, may the mayor and council and the town staff.

10:10

Father, may they serve you as they serve people that you love.

10:15

And Father, we do ask for wisdom.

10:18

Wisdom, Father, to steward well, this great community.

10:25

Father, to meet the needs of this community with your wisdom.

10:31

Father, to see the vision that you have for this great town.

10:39

And Father, we ask that not only the wisdom for the mechanics of the town, but Father, for the youth, for the adults, for the children.

10:51

Father, that for all generations, for the seniors.

10:56

Father, to be well cared for and thrive.

11:00

And Father, most of all, we ask your blessing upon this time.

11:06

Father, may your presence fill this place.

11:09

In Jesus' name we pray.

11:11

Amen.

11:13

Thank you, Jan.

11:14

Our pledge will be led by Councilmember Buckley.

11:30

One nation under God.

11:34

With liberty and justice.

11:40

Thank you.

11:40

Roll call.

11:41

Mayor Scott Anderson.

11:42

Here.

11:43

Vice Mayor Chuck Bongiovanni?

11:44

Here.

11:45

Councilmember Bobby Buckley.

11:46

Here.

11:46

Councilmember Kenny Bucklin.

11:48

Here.

11:48

Councilmember Yan Kaprowski.

11:50

Councilmember Monty Lyons?

11:52

Here.

11:52

And Councilmember Jim Torgeson.

11:54

A quarum is present.

11:55

Thank you.

11:56

We have a number of proclamations and presentations tonight.

11:59

I'm going to move number five up the recognition of Ascend and the East Valley Mayor's Prayer Breakfast, since we have a number of people that are attending for that tonight.

12:09

So we'll move that up first.

12:11

I'll come on to the cast.

13:03

It was a very successful event.

13:05

We had many sponsors.

13:10

Our breakfast sponsor was ASU.

13:13

Supporting sponsors included Arizona Public Service, Salt River Pima Maricopa Indian Community, Southwest Gas, Johnston and Company, Liberty Market, Core Construction, and Gilbert Chamber of Commerce.

13:25

And so many more that participated that morning, and we are proud to have been able to host that breakfast and for the results of that breakfast.

13:35

And I the first thing that we did when we started to plan this was to call on the experts, and that was Joel and Stephanie Biggs.

13:42

And talk about some credentials.

14:14

Thank you very much, Mayor.

14:15

It's an honor to uh help produce this event, but couldn't do it without some amazing people that you'd mentioned here.

14:22

These guys are incredible, and this is these are the folks that make it happen.

14:26

Now, in a few weeks, I'll be on the beaches of Normandy, France, where we will be conducting a ceremony for a few of the remaining World War II veterans who stormed the beaches of Normandy about 85 years ago.

14:39

These gentlemen still remember in great detail what happened on that day and recognize the importance of liberating France at the time from Nazi tyranny.

14:50

Every time we produce an event, our organization gives out what we call a history maker medallion.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Community Engagement███████████████15%
Procedural██████████████14%
Personnel Matters████████████12%
Public Engagement████████████12%
Parks and Recreation█████████9%
Public Safety█████████9%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████████9%
Economic Development████████8%
Water And Wastewater Management█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

Gilbert Town Council Meeting – May 6, 2026

The Gilbert Town Council met on May 6, 2026, to consider a consent calendar, public hearings, an administrative resolution, and receive reports. The meeting opened with a prayer, pledge, and roll call (all seven members present). Numerous proclamations and presentations recognized community partners and staff achievements, followed by public comments and council items.

Proclamations & Presentations

  • East Valley Mayor's Prayer Breakfast & Ascend Recognition: Joel Biggs (Historic Programs) presented history maker medallions to the mayor and council. Valerie Schaefer (Mayor's Aide) thanked sponsors and highlighted that the event raised $3,000 for Care Inc. and $20,000 for Ascend, which provides food bank, homeless services, rent/utility support, senior meals, and family resources in Gilbert and Chandler.
  • National Tourism & Travel Week (May 3–9, 2026): Councilmember Buckley read the proclamation. Tourism stats: $371 million visitor spending in 2024, 6.9 million visitors in 2025, hotel room demand grew 6.7% in 2025.
  • Economic Development Week (May 4–8, 2026): Councilmember Torgeson read the proclamation, praising Dan Henderson (outgoing Economic Development Director) for 19 years of service, particularly transforming the Heritage District.
  • Cactus Yards Award: Vice Mayor Bongiovanni presented the 2025 Outstanding Park of the Year award from the U.S. Sports Specialty Association for Baseball—the sixth time in seven years.
  • Dan Henderson Recognition: Town staff and council thanked Henderson for his leadership, presenting a gift.

Public Comments

  • Noah (Gilbert resident): Congratulated Mo Beta on its first Gilbert location. Criticized the Gilbert Police Department's handling of the Preston Lord case and the Gilbert Goons, called for more police and attention to disabilities, asked to clean sewers downtown (especially by Port Hillos), and advocated for light rail. Also stated "the Mormons think they rule Gilbert."
  • Barbara (Gilbert resident): Accused the council of not genuinely caring about residents, especially regarding the water situation. Questioned finances, including a $12.3 million discrepancy dismissed by a staff member, and said all council members should be removed. She also criticized the length of proclamations taking time from business.

Consent Calendar

Items 6–18, and 22 were approved 6‑0 (one member not voting). Key items:

  • 6: IGA with ADOT for Higley Road improvements (Warner to Amber Lane); town share $2,843,046.
  • 6A: IGA with Maricopa County for Stacy Road improvements (paving ½ mile, annexation; no cost).
  • 7: Amendment with SRP for non‑residential grass removal rebate; total $540,000 through April 2035 (up to $60,000/year).
  • 8: Cooperative purchase agreement with All Pro Fencing for park maintenance; up to $400,000/year.
  • 9: Contract with Patriot Drone Shows for drone shows at town events, including July 4; $73,500/year for 4 years (saves ~$35,000/year vs. previous contract).
  • 10: Revised MOA with DHS for a staff detail to the National Operations Center; administrative only, no cost.
  • 11: Contract with Sunrise Engineering for drought interconnects design; $303,530.
  • 12–14: Contingency transfers for workers’ comp ($1.5M), health trust ($3M), and risk management ($600,000).
  • 15: Contracts for Advocacy Center Phases 2 & 3 design (15% pre‑design); PMCM $467,500 (BOARCH LLC), AE $880,805 (DFDG Architecture). Councilmember Torgeson confirmed this is only the beginning of design.
  • 16: Grant from Bureau of Reclamation for turf removal rebates; total grant $250,000 (previously $125,000), with 50% match from water fund.
  • 17: Grant from Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for “Click It or Ticket”; $13,000, no match.

Public Hearings

  • Items 19 (liquor license) and 20 (property sale): Approved 6‑0 (one not voting) without discussion.

Administrative Item

  • Item 21: Resolution 4660 designating the Chief Fiscal Officer to submit the FY 2026–27 expenditure limitation report; approved.

Town Manager Report

  • Recognized Municipal Clerks Week and Judy Martinez for earning Master Municipal Clerk designation.
  • Announced Gilbert’s 230th traffic signal at Leighton Lakes Boulevard and Lindsay Road.
  • Recognized National Firefighter Day and EMS Week. Gilbert Fire & Rescue has 270 first responders, responded to 26,000+ incidents last year, completed 10,400+ medical transports (avg. 28.5/day), and achieved a 36% return of spontaneous circulation rate (national pre‑hospital standard is 20%).

Council Reports

  • Vice Mayor Bongiovanni: Reminded of Memorial Day ceremony Monday, May 25 at 8:30 AM on the town lawn; thanked staff.
  • Councilmember Bucklin: Provided Valley Metro transit data for Gilbert – FY25 bus boardings 11% higher than FY24, averaging 444 riders/day; paratransit and ride choice trips combined served 53,871 trips in FY25; FY26 first half saw 61,119 boardings.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent calendar approved (6‑0).
  • Public hearings for liquor license and property sale approved (6‑0).
  • Resolution 4660 adopted.
  • Council directed staff to proceed with all aforementioned contracts, grants, and contingencies.
  • Meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

We'll uh get started in about two minutes if I ask everyone to head towards their seat. I told you there were there wasn't enough attention tonight. Next week, but I'll be targeting like one at the beginning of people. Scott, their thing this week was not a good idea. I'd like to call to order the regular town council meeting of May fifth, twenty twenty-six. Um, before, and I asked him, so is there anything you'd like to have prayer for? And he said everything. So join me as we pray for everything. Father, we thank you for this wonderful town. Father, and those are the things that you've asked us to ask you for, and that is love and wisdom. So, Father, may the mayor and council and the town staff. Father, may they serve you as they serve people that you love. And Father, we do ask for wisdom. Wisdom, Father, to steward well, this great community. Father, to meet the needs of this community with your wisdom. Father, to see the vision that you have for this great town. And Father, we ask that not only the wisdom for the mechanics of the town, but Father, for the youth, for the adults, for the children. Father, that for all generations, for the seniors. Father, to be well cared for and thrive. And Father, most of all, we ask your blessing upon this time. Father, may your presence fill this place. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thank you, Jan. Our pledge will be led by Councilmember Buckley. One nation under God. With liberty and justice. Thank you. Roll call. Mayor Scott Anderson. Here. Vice Mayor Chuck Bongiovanni? Here. Councilmember Bobby Buckley. Here. Councilmember Kenny Bucklin. Here. Councilmember Yan Kaprowski. Councilmember Monty Lyons? Here. And Councilmember Jim Torgeson. A quarum is present. Thank you. We have a number of proclamations and presentations tonight. I'm going to move number five up the recognition of Ascend and the East Valley Mayor's Prayer Breakfast, since we have a number of people that are attending for that tonight. So we'll move that up first. I'll come on to the cast. It was a very successful event. We had many sponsors. Our breakfast sponsor was ASU.

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