Hello, good evening, everyone.

Thank you for coming to our uh six PM uh Tuesday workshop here.

We're uh joined by uh Louis and Public Works.

If you can all introduce yourselves and kick us off.

Good evening.

Uh thanks for being here.

Um Kevin Ganya, director of Lewis and Public Works.

And I'm Egan Bates, Deputy for Maintenance and Operations Public Works.

And I'm Nee Flourington, I'm a division manager for Casella Waste.

So we're here tonight to give you an update on solid waste collection in the city.

It's been a number of years that we've been working on this.

Uh we're at a point where we thought it was appropriate to bring you up to speed, let you know what's going on in the area, but more specifically with Lewiston.

And I'll turn it over to Megan for a short presentation.

Then our plan is to open it up so we can hear from you all about what's going on and you get your thoughts.

Hi, so good evening again.

Um yes, we're back here to talk about cart to curb.

Um that's manual and automated side load collection of waste and recycling material.

So we started this discussion back in um fall of 2022 as part of the new contract with Casella.

Um the city opted with a two-year extension con up, which was part of the contract at that time.

And during that period, we learned about automated waste and automated collection, excuse me, of waste, and how that was going to be the new industry standard.

So we came before council in December of 22 to talk about how this was the industry standard.

Um there was no choice in the situation that this was the way that things were gonna go.

Um so the um after that we went out to bid um in fall of 24, and we started the new contract with Gasella um in uh July of 25.

So we have um a hybrid collection for the city of Lewiston, so that involves some areas of the city that will still be the manual rear load, and um then other areas of the city, the majority of the city will be the automated collection.

So on this map, you'll see a legend that will show uh three areas in yellow, green, and blue.

Um so on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, there'll essentially be three collection trucks out.

There'll be one automated, and there'll be one manual um truck that will be collecting recyclable, and one manual truck that will be collecting um regular waste material.

And then on Thursday and Friday, you're gonna have automated throughout the rest of the city.

I'm gonna bring this map over just a little bit to show you the um what will be the hybrid location, and this is um this is going to be I'm sorry, not the hybrid location, but the uh rear manual waste collection.

So this is where you have your multi-unit apartment buildings, and you have um on-street parking on one or both sides of the street.

So it makes it really difficult to get an automated truck in there.

So um I can see if I can make this a little larger.

But I can essentially tell you the areas that we'll be looking at.

And if I can't, then we'll just talk it out.

Okay, here we go.

So this yellow area, um striped area is the Monday route, and it is like the summer uh spring, winter whipple area, and then the green area is um the like Howard Um Howe um area.

I think there's Shawmet in that area too, and then the blue area is the largest um manual collection area, which goes around the Kennedy Park area, and then you've got um all the way out Lincoln Street.

Um so the program itself is called car to curve, and that um is because everyone that participates in this program will get the carts.

So we have the two carts as you walk in here into the council, you'll see two-size carts.

You'll see a 64 gallon, and you'll see a 94 gallon.

Um the uh so people that are participating will be the residential, um, just a single family residentials, your duplexes, your three-unit owner-occupied, and then those multi-unit apartment buildings that pay to be in the program.

So the apartment buildings will have the 94 gallon, the larger containers.

They'll have um one waste uh container for every unit, and then one recycle uh container for every three units, and then the um residentials will get one 64 gallon um cart for uh waste and one 64 gallon for recycle.

Um the communication uh to get the the word out to the the residents is gonna be really extensive.

Um there's gonna be a lot of changes and um some people most of us really don't like change, right?

So we're gonna just really try very hard to work with our our uh residents and property owners to get the word out.

So we have um a brochure that will be included with the carts.

So when the carts go out and when they get distributed, with them will be some directions.

The brochure will include information such as on the cart spacing, the placement of it, that the lid of the container will need to be down once the waste is in there and recycled the lid will need to be down.

The waste will be need to be in bags.

So the bags and then into the container with the lid down.

For recycling, it will be loose.

The recycling won't be in bags.

That the handle will need to face the road, and there'll be other directions that will go with that for the residents.

So not everyone will obviously get their cart on the same day or even the same week.

It's going to take a while to get all these carts out.

Do you have do you have an idea of how many carts are going to be distributed in Lewiston?

Roughly 20 to something thousand.

About 27,000 carts.

That's going to be a lot of work and it's going to take some time.

Now Casella will be out with the trucks at the start of the program for three or four weeks.

So they're going to be right with this right with the trucks.

They're going to be assisting the residents for those that are having some challenges with placing the carts in their proper location.

So they'll be putting like friendly reminder tags on the carts, letting the residents know how to place the cart.

There's also going to be an app.

Right now, it's undergoing some fine-tuning for our community, but it's really neat.

You can in this app you can enter your address and it will tell you what your collection day is.

It provides a calendar, which will show you if there's any changes in that collection day.

And there's also a part of the app that's called the Recycle Wizard, where if you have some challenges with what's recycled, you can enter in a certain material, for example, like a plastic laundry bottle.

You just enter that in and it will say place that in your recycle cart.

So I think that was kind of neat.

That's very helpful.

Also, Casella has a customer service telephone number as part of this contract.

Costello will be managing all of the customer concerns.

So that will go out as well.

And then the city's marketing director, yeah, the city's marketing communication director, Angia Morris, and her assistant will be also working with, actually, are currently working with the Casella.

They know that they're going to have the different languages, information's going to need to be in different languages.

There'll be pictures, icons, whatever is needed that best suits this community to get the word out.

And there's also a video.

Some of you have already seen the video.

We're going to show it again tonight for those of you who haven't seen it.

It's about a minute and 15 seconds long.

So let me go ahead and get that started.

You're playing it right now.

I am.

It's a minute and 15 seconds.

There we go.

Good morning.

Thank you for calling Casella.

This is Rachel.

How may I assist you today?

Yes, hi, Rachel.

My name is John, and I'm calling because I just saw your driver put my trash and recycling in the same truck.

I'm worried that all my effort to separate recyclables from trash is going to waste.

Thanks for calling, John.

Not to worry.

Your route is being serviced by what is known as a split-bodied truck.

The truck's body is split into two compartments, one side for trash and the other side for recyclables.

The driver is able to control where the material is going from safely inside the cab of the truck.

Really?

That's so interesting.

I was wondering why I was only seeing one truck on our street these days instead of two.

I was worried we weren't recycling anymore.

I completely understand your concern.

And believe me, we get calls like this all the time, and we're happy to help.

These trucks are safer for our drivers, cleaner for the environment, and cut down on traffic through your neighborhood.

Be sure to let your friends and neighbors know what you learned and help us spread the word.

I absolutely will, Rachel.

Thank you for taking the time to explain this.

I'm so glad to know that recycling is alive and well.

My pleasure, John, and thank you for being a Casella customer.

Okay.

So that video shows the split body truck.

So the first one of the first concerns is going to be the truck went down my street, but it was only one truck, and my recyclables, you know, what did my recyclables get put into a recycling or they just get thrown away?

Well, this is a split split truck, so yes, the recyclables will go with the recycling on the recycling side, and the ways will go on the wayside.

And as far as challenges, yes, there are going to be challenges.

We have 590 streets in the city of Lewiston, and there are about 100 of those streets that are going to pose some challenges to us.

So how are we going to meet those?

And the challenges are one ways, dead ends with no turnarounds, private and some public ways that will have to have group uh collection.

That means the carts are going to have to be brought to the beginning of the street.

Um so how are we going to meet those challenges?

Well, we're going to need some changes to the uh solid waste, chapter 62 of the ordinance.

Um and so some of those changes will be like definition for a suitable container, which will be the cart that the contractor provides, only that one.

Um and again, that's for those that are participating in this program.

And then other um things that will be changed in the ordinance will be um when we have a storm, um, there will be no carts allowed curbside the evening during the evening.

So um the truck plow trucks won't have to be going around carts or bury let alone bury carts.

And then just like people will shovel out their mailbox, they're gonna need to shovel out an area for their carts as well.

Um also um because of um the side load, um the right side load, there'll be changes to the traffic amendment.

So the police department and public works had their first meeting today to look at um how to attack um some of these um issues with proper um signage.

What's the what is this what are the signs going to say?

How where are they going to be placed?

So each of the streets, Costella has evaluated each of the streets providing that direction, but we have to provide um the proper language so people understand exactly what's going on, because there are going to be some streets that are going to be on the carts will go on one side.

It may be that you're taking your cart across the street, it won't go directly in front of your residence, but across the street.

And so there'll be carts on one side and there'll be parking on the other.

Um so that is basically the end of my presentation.

Um so I want to have a quick presentation to allow time for you guys to um to ask questions.

Uh thank you very much.

Questions, comments from the counselors.

Counselor uh Counselor Nagy.

So what what's the proposed rollout dates?

When when we're gonna start?

Okay, so it's going to roll out um it looks like uh July August.

The trucks, um these trucks will um arrive um early uh late spring, early summer.

So yeah, that's um we're playing on a July-August.

So but by the end of August, everybody should have their their carts at that point in time.

Okay.

Right.

Okay.

And again, it will take a few weeks to get the carts to everyone.

Right.

Understood.

Um that was my question.

Thank you.

Counselor Chittam.

Thank you, thank you, Megan.

Uh I'm sorry, uh Deputy Director.

Thank you.

Uh Will this map be on the website so that folks can see where when and where and how?

I saw that in the packet uh you've identified one street where the truck has to back down Nelky Place.

Uh and those folks will be notified individually.

Will this map and the instructions be distributed along with the carts when they come out in August, did you say?

Yes.

So the um the sample letter that you saw that will provide specific instructions to some residents on those particular roads, yeah, that will come with a cart.

Okay.

Um and one final question for me personally, um I generate a lot more recycling than I do solid waste.

Um your folks on the back of the of the uh compactor right now revel in the fact that my solid waste each week is about this big.

If I don't put the cart out, I mean it's gonna take me many months to accumulate a cart full of solid waste.

If I don't put the cart out for many months, and then I do suddenly put it out, is that gonna be creating a problem for your operators?

No, it won't.

Thank you.

Councilor Herman.

Thank you.

And thank you for the presentation.

Um the the parts of town that are staying with the rear load trucks due to the uh geometry and everything of the streets.

Are we still moving to the new carts?

Yes.

Okay.

So we won't be able to use other other containers.

Exactly.

Yeah.

So um as I had mentioned, um, yeah, the the carts, the reason why it's called cart uh to curb is that everyone's going to get the carts that currently are on the um, I should say, like I mentioned, the residential, single unit residential duplexes, um, the three-unit owner-occupied, and those that are currently paying into the program, they will all receive the carts.

Okay.

Thank you.

Council Roy, thank you.

Thank you for the presentation.

Um my question would be: can you remind us who is footing the bill for the carts?

Costello, it's part of the contract.

What happens if the wind comes up one day and the cart goes into the road and somebody drives and smashes it?

Yes.

You just call Casella.

Okay.

Yes.

All right.

That that property that property owner would call that Cassella customer care and let them know what happened.

Counselor Martell.

Thank you, Ms.

Mayor.

Thank you for the presentation.

What if someone produces more trash in a given in a week than that container can handle?

Springtime cleaning, whatever.

We limited to the one can per week?

Currently, yes.

It will be for the residential, so be that 164.

But then any remaining can be brought to the saw waste facility.

Okay, thank you.

Counselor Nadine.

So just to clarify on that point, um so if I put my own cart out there, it will not be picked up.

That's correct.

It has to be a Casella cart.

It's a certain type of cart that's got to handle that they aren't actually if like um the smaller carts, um, it will just slide through the arms.

It won't pick it up or or it may pick it up and get it and then it will slide off as it's tipping it into the back of the truck.

And if it's a rear load uh area, that's not actually the case, right?

They're doing that manually still.

That's correct.

Yeah.

Okay.

I I'm just trying to figure out look one of the challenges that we have in this community is is appropriate uh waste removal.

And so if we're limiting the amount of waste that's going to be picked up uh at the curb, um that doesn't mean that that's gonna stop the waste that goes to the curb.

Do you know what I'm saying?

Like ultimately uh a tenant's not gonna be like, well, I'm not gonna create or or a homeowner is not gonna be like, you know, I'm not gonna create 74 liters, you know, worth of trash versus 64, right?

Like and so it's just a a slight concern thinking about the fact that people will still bring their trash curb side and it still needs to get picked up.

And I think also one thing to and so maybe we can think about that like how how we're gonna address those issues.

Um and then another thing that I would bring up, since everybody is now gonna get a toter, um, at some point we should probably be asking people to no longer put out open recycling, uh, the old blue bins um in particular, um, and at some point possibly figure out a way to to curb the activity if it continues.

Um, you know, we know that trash in my neighborhood in particular ends up appearing there because either pu people put trash out incorrectly, not in toters, and they get and it gets torn open by animals, or it is recycling bins that get blown down the street.

And you know, that's that's where a lot of our neighborhood trash comes from.

Um so I'm just trying to think about those things, like how we're gonna appropriately deal with those things when people don't follow the guidelines of how much trash we're saying they should generate in a given week.

That's all.

Right, right.

And that's you know, we had that city ordinance, so we'll make revisions and uh public works, we'll work with code and police and uh we'll try our best to get those um items um ironed out before um before we start.

But it will be a part of the um again, this uh ordinance, chapter 62.

We'll be also spreading the word.

So I'm sure you know, this forum as well as uh the marketing as well as our social media.

So there's you know, it takes we figure 30 days to set new habits.

Uh and Casella is going to be there helping along with the rest of city staff.

So we'll be trying to reinforce that.

So if I may answer that question as well.

Um so part of what will happen is we've been the first fall to eight weeks, because city Lewis is a big city.

So we'll be out here most likely about full eight weeks.

Um what will typically happen is as soon as we start launching the carts, the truck start picking up, we'll be out here, we'll have a team who's gonna go through before the truck actually actually gets you a stop to talk parts, right?

To you know, do the education piece.

Um let's say, for example, you know, somebody put extra material for the first couple of weeks, we'll pick them up.

But we'll target, we'll put some notes on there.

Um we have appropriate tax that we already we have already created.

Um, you know, residents will come out to figure out, hey, you know, I see an orange dog on my bin, um, what's the what does that say?

Do we let them know hey, you know, don't put extra materials out, uh, make sure they are in carts.

But you know, after a while we'll stop picking it up.

We'll obviously work with the city to make sure, you know, to to come up with a cutoff date for when we're gonna stop picking up that extra material.

So, you know, gradually we'll see no extra material on the on the curb side.

That's the goal.

Yeah, so I it again I I have a major concern on that simply because people will, no matter what, put more trash out on the curb side.

It will happen.

And so we just need to make sure that that we have a solution for that that isn't going to tax the city uh or also create these.

I mean, like we we could go punitive, right?

But that doesn't also fix the fact that if somebody puts out seven bags of trash and they can only fit three in the toter, those three four other bags of trash need to go somewhere.

Um so like and it's not my fault that I live next to somebody who produced more trash than I did.

Or vice versa, right?

And so it it is a concern.

I'm just trying to figure out I you know, this this new trash scheme is double what our last contract was.

And I understand it's more expensive, you know, and there's totals involved, all of these other pieces, but it seems like we're talking about less service as well, and that's a concern.

I'll I'll leave it there for now.

Uh thank you.

Uh counselors, yes.

Um we will take problems as they come and I trust that the combined efforts of public works police and code can uh make quick work of them with any luck.

Uh further questions, comments from counselors.

Uh counselor, back to you again.

Um is there too little trash you can put in one of those buttons?

Thinking about Counselor Chitum's ho ho uh like hoarding up like four months of trash.

I mean, is there too little trash that you can put in one of them?

I would say no.

Okay.

No, like sometimes we will put an MTB now.

We'll dump it still.

Uh okay.

Because we don't know about CNN until we actually dump it, so um, yeah, never too little.

Perfect.

Thank you.

Uh this will uh no doubt be an adventure.

Uh further questions, comments from the counselors.

Uh anything further.

I would just say that we've seen some neighborhoods that are currently doing some of the practices we're talking about.

Uh so I I I'd like to be optimistic and say this this is something other communities are doing.

Aaron's gonna be going through this just before we are.

Uh we're also doing this in July and August, so we can roll through without snow and set some good habits and work through some of the problems, and we're not deploying this midwinter.

So thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh that concludes our workshop.

Uh administrator Kenrath, I think we're heading to executive session.

Yes, we are uh executive session pursuants MRSA title one section 405 C to discussing economic development issue of which the premature disclosure of the information would prejudice the competitive bargaining position of the city.

Uh requested action to enter into an executive session pursuant to MRS.

Hey, uh Title 1 section 4056 to discuss an economic development issue of which the premature disclosure of the information would prejudice the competitive bargaining position uh for the city.

Um I have a motion, please.

So moved.

Counselor Martel, second by uh Counselor Nagyen.

Uh all in favor.

We're heading to executive session.

Uh we anticipate being back uh very close to our advertised start time of 7 p.m.

Thank you all so much.

Hello, welcome to our Tuesday evening council meeting.

Thank you all for joining us.

We're gonna kick things off with a pledge of allegiance and uh administrator Kane Rath, if you can please lead us.

Liberty scene, justice or all.

Thank you very much, Administrator Kingrath.

Uh Madam Clerk, I believe we're ready to begin.

Uh yes, thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

All roll call votes for this meeting will begin with the counselor of Ward Five.

And I understand we have minutes.

You do the minutes of the February 17th meeting.

Um I have a motion to accept the minutes.

So move.

Counselor um should have been followed by Counselor Nature.

Madam Clerk, please call the vote.

Counselor for Mord 5?

Yes.

Word six.

Yes.

Word seven?

Yes.

Word one?

Yes.

Word two?

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four.

Yes.

Motion passed by voter seven to zero.

Thank you very much, Madam Clerk.

We are now up to public comment.

Any member of the public may make comments regarding issues pertaining to loose and city government.

This period is reserved for non-agenda items.

Public comment is also allowed during individual agenda items.

Public comment is limited to three minutes per person.

Please state your name for the record and please indicate if you're a loose and resident.

Because this is the business meeting of the city council, all questions should be directed to the mayor who asked staff to follow up at a future time.

So if you don't think it's part of the business, then I don't know what to tell you.

I mean, it's it's certainly more pertinent than the Gaza BS that you guys covered a couple you know a year ago.

Um if you seek the trust and the respect from the public, uh recommend showing us the courtesy of at least paying attention when we're here to speak.

That's really all I got to say.

So actually, one more bit.

Um my concern is about an individual, and I know that that he can do better.

Um I ran into him at the uh the special election, looked him in the face, shook his hand, wished him good luck.

He was attentive then.

Why can't he be attentive now?

Thank you.

Further public comments, Mr.

Mayor, Council members, and city administrators.

What brings me out tonight was one of the first agenda items, but I would like to speak to it as a more global viewpoint, which is why I'm speaking now rather than when uh that agenda item comes up.

And that is the moratorium regarding the rent increases for the we're gonna be covering that a little later.

So anything regarding that at all should just be um you can come up during public comment for that agenda item.

Well, my point is it's more global than just the mobile home parks.

That's what brings me out.

So if you want to speak later, point of order.

Thank you, Councillor Chitam.

I'm sorry, please continue, sir.

What were you saying?

Point of order, Mr.

Mayor.

Yes, Counselor Chinam, how many?

Can we have the speaker identify himself, please, per council rules?

Thank you.

Uh yes, uh, can you please identify yourself?

You want me to continue or I I what's your name?

Roger Burner War 2, I'm sorry.

Thank you.

Yeah.

Um, if it's at least at all tangentially related to mobile home rents, uh, you need to speak during that uh agenda item.

Okay.

This is not specifically about the mobile home rents.

Please please continue for announcer, sir.

Okay.

What it is is I feel that the city should have a more global uh control over the rents, specifically the mobile home parks, but all housing you and its apartments, houses, and also for businesses in the city.

Because we have seen and heard that an awful lot of people are priced out of their apartments when a new owner from outside comes in and their rent increases, and we have no control over that, nor does the city have any control over businesses such as many of the businesses downtown who have closed because of rent increases.

So I feel that the city should have a more global ordinance covering all of them, because if you just have cover one and not the other, that's not really being equal to everybody that's more discriminating against one type of ownership and not all owners.

And I whether you know it's we can't have different rules for different types of owners.

I would like to see the city have one global ordinance for all types of rental units.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Further public comments.

My name is Ryan Salvatore.

I'm an Alburn resident.

So the affordability crisis is a huge problem, not only in the state of Maine, but all over the country.

And we need to do something about the affordability crisis.

Although if we put rent controls for lot rent, that is going to stop a lot of investment.

Um we're gonna be talking about um that is item number one.

We'll be talking about that a little later.

My apologies.

I thought we were on that comment.

I was in the hallway and I just overheard it.

I thought I was missing it.

Nope, you haven't missed much.

We're good.

Uh I I would urge you to come back during that agenda item.

I certainly will, thank you.

Thank you.

Further public comment for non-agenda items.

Public comment is now closed.

Thank you.

Madam Clerk.

Uh I understand uh that we have uh ASL interpreters here for item number uh seven, I believe.

Uh yes, that is correct.

Okay.

Um item seven uh could uh be who knows when tonight.

So I would like to move that.

Uh I would like to take item seven now.

Okay.

The next item on the agenda is the city administrators report.

Do you want to do that now?

The city administrators report right after the public report.

Oh, thank you.

Yes, we will first have the city administrators report.

My apologies, Administrator Cain Rat.

Nice try, Mr.

Mayer.

Please continue with your report, sir.

All right.

Uh a very quick update on our fiscal 27 plus screw 27 budget.

We will be presenting next week in a workshop.

Um I will just say in a very brief preview.

Um many cuts uh have been made.

I've talked about how difficult this budget um will be.

Um we are freezing additional positions this year to limit increases um with the exception uh of the uh requested public health position.

There are no new head count or no new positions included in this budget.

Um we will still have our work cut out for us.

So that will be presented um next week and we'll be in our workshops uh following that period.

Um the workshop schedule was emailed out again uh today, so that last through uh the months of March and April.

Um we recently had a really great meeting.

Um, administration communications and economic development department uh with the Balouis company um to really gain some insight and talk about local market conditions and to get some feedback on the potential barriers and barriers that they're seeing uh to investment uh in the city of Lewiston.

So we really did request some really good frank feedback uh of what some of their clients are identifying as uh issues preventing them from investing in the city.

Uh really great discussion.

Um and again, we're really trying to uh take on some efforts to improve the city's image and reputation uh and spur investment in the city, uh not only for residents but for businesses uh and developers and investors also.

Some staff updates.

We have some new hires.

Chris Sanders is our new animal control officer.

Uh Lucas Milliken is our new public works municipal garage uh shop assistant.

Uh we have some retirements, uh Corporal Patrick Griffin at PD uh has retired, as well as firefighter George Morgan uh at the fire department.

A couple of recognitions, uh Viani Slingby has been named Uplift LA's 2025 finest under 40, best in civic and municipal services.

So congratulations to Viani.

Uh and also Justin uh Bisson has recently been named the head coach for uh Lewiston High School Football.

So congrats to him.

He's staying with us at Public Works, but congrats to him and his uh position there.

A reminder that there is a survey for economic and community development uh available to help guide the department and its plan to identify specific needs for federally funded community development block grant uh consolidation funds.

Um the survey can be found at LewisMain.gov slash C D B G 26.

Um couple items coming up on our agenda.

Um AG's um FOIA training has been pushed off uh due to scheduling issues uh all the way until May, unfortunately, but it is still on the calendar.

It's not on the calendar for May uh 19th.

Um again, next week we'll be having our not only our budget presentation on the 10th, but also we'll be discussing uh the charter commission process and getting some ideas there with our legal council.

Uh lastly, uh the planning for the balloon festival has already begun.

This is how early it starts.

It starts in March.

Um the theme for this year will be announced soon, but the dates are out.

The dates for this year's balloon festival at Samarta Pain Park will be August 21st through 23rd.

Thank you.

Uh thank you, Administrator Kenra.

Appreciate your service to our city.

Uh Madam Clerk, once again, I'm very happy you're here.

Thank you.

Uh item number seven.

Item number seven resolution authorizing and directing an assessment of shooting related needs and financial burdens of individuals affected by the October 25th, 2023 mass shooting.

Requested action to review the legal opinion from the city attorney and to determine a course of action.

Uh do we need a motion at this time, Madam Clerk?

No, not at this time.

Okay.

Uh administrator Kenrath, do you want to kick this off?

Sure.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

So at our last uh meeting, um, this ordinance was or this potential um resolution, I'm sorry, was uh presented by Councillor Longshamp.

So that time it was discussed we would get uh a legal opinion to offer further guidance uh to the city um on how to proceed.

So uh that uh resolution that uh legal opinion is available to you.

Um in summary, I think it largely says that it may be uh a good idea or a good direction for the city to think about partnering um with a third-party organization to address some issues with privacy and some other items.

Um I will say that we have had some conversations, Deputy Administrator O'Malley uh with the resiliency center, for example, which is one potential partner uh the city could look to, um, but there could also be others.

So that opinion is is available uh in the packet, um, but that is the uh the reviewers digest version.

Thank you very much.

Uh yes, discussion.

Counselor Herriman.

Thank you.

Um I just wanted to point out that the memo that's in our packet um was not released by a vote of the council.

Um I don't object to any content in the memo.

Um and I I would certainly vote to release it, but I do object to the process of somebody unilaterally deciding that they're going to take it, take something that is the council's purview and release it themselves.

Just a reminder that attorney client privileged memos are the council's purview.

If we want to release it, it requires a vote of the council, not a unilateral decision.

Councilor Chitam, did you have your hand raised?

I did not, but I will later.

Further comments, questions from the council.

Yes, Counselor Long Chemson.

Sure.

Again, I would just uh share uh with the public and the count and the counselors uh the importance of making sure that all of the victims and survivors uh needs have truly been met.

Um and if they haven't, uh how we could possibly bridge that gap to figure out uh resources and and so forth.

So I am hoping that we will be able to find an organization to come alongside us to uh assist with making sure that needs uh have been met, and if they haven't, uh what we can do together to make sure um that everyone is truly um taken care of that's it for now, Councillor Chitam.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Uh Counselor Longsham, thank you very much for bringing this forward.

Um it has taken uh a lot of effort on your part, and I'm very appreciative of that.

Uh and I agree with the precept that we need to identify what the remaining needs of the victims uh and survivors of October 25th are.

However, I'm concerned about the city partnering, if we use that term uh carefully with any agency, because the city is subject to, as we're continually reminded, uh freedom of information, freedom of access uh requirements.

Uh there is very little that the city can do that can maintain the confidentiality and privacy of individuals who may not wish to be uh brought into the public eye.

So while I am very much in favor of having this assessment done, um I think it behooves the city to be very careful about how we tread in this area because it would be very easy for people who do not want to be revealed to be revealed because of the transparency requirements under state law that we all as a city operate under.

So that's my only caveat.

If we can find a way to have this assessment conducted, have these needs evaluated.

I'm all in favor of that.

But I think when we start doing that as a city, we run into some dangers.

Uh further questions, uh comments from the council before we head to uh public comment.

Yeah, yes, Counselor Nijin.

So in the past we've hired um individuals uh in order to conduct investigations, um and that has been confidential information unless the council decided to release it.

I also understand that you know we're talking about um uh a situation where Wall Lewiston is the site of of the mass shooting, um the uh victims uh hail from all over the region.

And so I think it that sometimes gets a little difficult as well being um a municipality because we only have certain jurisdiction, but again, looking outside to the ways that we can hire a third party or partner with a third party in order to identify not just needs um but also resources.

I I certainly know that um I'm not quite sure if any of the congressional monies came through that were promised to both the municipality and the state, which I believe some of the that funds should have gone to victims and survivors.

And so there are questions that we just don't have the answers to.

Um and I would be very supportive in providing any type of support uh to the folks that um have suffered through this horrible tragedy.

I mean, there's there's a lot of trauma there that I don't think you know I've been asked several times when is Lewiston going to get over this.

And it's a ridiculous question.

In some cases, some people will never get over it.

Um that's just what it is.

And so um I think that you know, although the trauma is very raw, we do have to do something in order to um be considerate of the needs of the people who suffered uh during that horrible event.

Mr.

Mayor?

Uh yes.

Yeah, I have communicated with the director of the resilience center, Danielle Parrett.

I've actually scheduled the resiliency center to come here on the 17th to give a presentation.

I think those folks of the resilient center have a pretty good handle on the needs of the folks.

I mean, they have offered to conduct a survey, find out what people have received, what they need to receive.

They would like to work with the city in terms of trying to do more outreach into folks who haven't utilized the services for the Maine Resiliency Center.

But speaking to the director, that they are more than willing to partner or work with us in terms of addressing these issues that have been brought up by Council Long James.

So my expectation is on March 17th, they will be it will be an agenda item that they'll do a presentation to you folks.

Welcome news.

Thank you, Deputy Administrator O'Malley.

One second.

Anything further, uh, Councilor Niji?

Uh yes, Councilor Long Chimps.

I think that sounds great.

Um I just would like to thank the counselors for um being open to this tonight and being compassionate and I think this is really what we're made of.

This is really what we're about when we just kind of set everything else aside and really look to the people to see how we can lead as leaders.

So today I'm just I'm really proud.

Thank you.

Further comments from counselors at this point.

We're now heading to public comment for this agenda item.

Um Keith Tremblay, Ward 7.

I stand before you today with a heavy heart and an overwhelming sense of frustration as we continue to navigate the overwhelming aftermath of this tragedy.

Many of the affected, including myself will forever live with memories of that night.

But some have to live with much worse.

Shrapnel, bullets, broken bones, physical reminders that their lives will continue to be a battle long after any of this.

With that in mind, I need to address a concerning issue.

While we appreciate the statements from the main community foundation on their handling of the distributions, they do not answer the questions that are being asked.

In their written statement posted to their website, the main the MCF maintains that from the beginning there were two funds, one specifically for victims and survivors, and another for broad recovery.

I can tell you from a survivor's side, that is false.

I have two emails from the steering committee space nearly a month apart.

The first email clearly referencing a single unified fund for the community, and it wasn't until the second email that the existence of two funds was mentioned.

If there were a separate fund, why was it not specified early on?

And who were all of the people that did know of this fund?

News stations, newspapers, local journalists, all reported on the vastly growing number of donations and messages that continued to pour in from near and far, and talks of the community coming together to shine its light in a time of darkness, gave peace knowing those in need were recognized, heard, and cared for.

What does it say to the people of the community when the feeling of unification and healing is stripped away, and simple questions from our leaders go unanswered, or better yet, get pushed back on.

Connections between MCF members and local nonprofits, distribution amounts, lack of required reporting, and unwillingness to even show all organizations that applied, whether accepted or denied, all lead to even more questions that we as donators concerned citizens and now re-victimized survivors have of you.

Was there any conflict of interest with any members of the organizations?

Was the full list of applied organization where is the full list of applied organizations to the second fund?

And why would you give out donated money without any required follow-up reporting?

As our elected leader leaders of the city council, if you truly want to show that you care not only about the ongoing needs of these survivors and community members, but also about the process integrity of this governing body, you have the power to request a formal investigation into the funds management and communications practices.

Mandate more detailed reporting from the foundations and potentially establish oversight measures to prevent similar issues in the future, God forbid.

This issue will not go away on its own, and I strongly insist you to push this forward and do the right thing.

Thank you.

Matthew Higrin.

At the last council meeting, I read a comment from a survivor of that night, Destiny Johnson, who ran terrified through the kitchen of Shreggies while bullets flew through the air.

Let's be honest.

No one who survived that night in any of these locations will ever be the same again.

Their world changed in an instant that night.

While I'm not exactly sure how the city precisely can help, but maybe just having the city out there advocating for these people.

Resources.

Aid.

Whatever they need may come in because the city is now beating using its big stick to beat the drum.

I wish you well tonight.

Ryan Salvatore, resident of Auburn.

According to the Maine Community Fund Foundation, who stewarded these funds, a hundred percent of the money raised was supposed to go to victims and their families.

Instead, you stood by while institutions lined up behind butchered and massacred families for their share of the check.

That is not governance.

That is moral bankruptcy, disguised as procedure.

Here are the facts.

4.7 million went to those directly affected.

A total of 162 individuals actually received money.

The average payout dispersed was 29,000 per person.

If the entire 6.6 million dollar fund had been delivered directly to the victims, that would have been 40,000.

The remaining 1.9 million was divided equally among nonprofits.

Over 900,000 went to Somali nonprofits.

Even the MCF stated that nonprofits largely failed to deliver meaningful help to those harmed in the shooting.

What did these nonprofits have to do with the shooting?

Did gunmen storm the nonprofits and shoot up their children and families?

No.

And none of these nonprofits are focused on tragedy relief, such as the Center for Grieving Children, which received nothing.

So I ask you this.

Do you think that that 1.9 million which was dispersed in nonprofits could have helped out people like Ben Dyer?

Dyer was excluded from fundraising help when he was still in a hospital bed fighting for his life.

How many other people like Ben Dyer are there that weren't able to receive this funding?

Speaking of Ben Dyer, when Dyer stood up at the last council meeting with visible injuries, you, Scott Harriman, refused to look at him and give him even the most basic of human respect.

Counselor Chittham, following the meeting, you sent a note to your fellow counselors complaining about the emotional tone of public common, which is meant to criticize you clowns, shine the light on this circus, and give public opinion on matters at hand.

Our first amendment right.

You stated that, quote, officials receive unwant unwarranted criticism.

Well, guess what?

You don't want criticism.

Don't take a job as a public servant and don't misuse the seat you temporarily occupy to feed your own ego.

You and Harriman are pretenders.

Actors feeding your own silly egos.

You were more offended by the tone of a survivor rather than those victims who have not received justice.

It is disgusting.

You are both a disgrace to this community.

As you consider whether and how aggressively to confront the main community foundation, this council needs to take a stand.

Whether it be a formal stance or an actual audit, this council needs to act.

If you don't, you expose this play for what it really is.

A dog and pony show pretending to play politics or even your own egos.

Thank you.

That's time.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Do right.

That's your time, thank you.

Hello, my name is Jennifer Zanka.

Um, I'm an Auburn resident.

Do you mind just moving the mic a little closer to you for folks at home?

Thank you.

Is that better?

Yes, yes.

Thank you.

I'm just gonna tell you my story.

The bullet blasted through my left arm, shattering my bone and destroyed my deltoid muscle.

I never thought I would survive.

I I thought I would never see my children again.

It all happened in an instant.

Just survival, pure instinct.

I was one of the lucky ones.

I made it out alive, but my body was severely damaged.

The city was on lockdown, and we're all experienced one of the worst mass tragedies ever.

I mourned deeply the loss of 18 souls and their families.

The pain unimaginable to me.

I cried for them.

I cried for the community.

The outpouring of support was amazing, and I was not going to let that monster define me.

I'm fine.

I lived.

I got this until I didn't.

You just never know when that time comes.

Homeland Security, FBI, victims advocates all came to my house once I was out of the hospital and told me not to worry that all of my bills would be covered.

Until it didn't.

I was strapped with a $93,000 hospital bill that my insurance company denied coverage.

I went to advocates.

I spoke with legislators.

I was on the phone with insurance company.

No one had an answer for me.

It was then, almost a year after the shooting, that I started looking at the distribution of funds from the MCF.

I realized that each nonprofit had received more than twice the amount that I had from the MCF.

I wrote a letter to them expressing my concern.

I asked for some kind of acknowledgement that maybe they didn't vet this out very well, that they were sorry, or that they would work with us, acknowledge the oversight and work together on a remedy.

But instead, all I heard was that they did nothing illegal, that they did a good job, and there's nothing to see here.

I've watched a few city council meetings where I was surprised at how the council members came across like they were the victims and we were attacking them.

So odd to me.

I understood the city council has many constituents.

The city was traumatized.

We all were.

Everyone was.

Support was needed, but why nonprofits that mostly did not have anything to do with assisting the families and victims of this horrible event?

So right the wrong, how do we proceed now?

It's difficult when there has been no acknowledgement of wrongdoing.

That would be the first step, but instead, we look at the ongoing needs of victims.

And on that point, it's tough to predict.

For instance, I didn't know I was going to have more surgeries.

Will I need to have more going forward?

I don't know.

I have shrapnel.

Is there going to be nerve damage?

Am I going to have to have my plates and screws taken out?

I don't know.

On the topic of mental health, that can be an ongoing issue or come up with years down the road in many forms.

I spoke with a disabled veteran in the parking lot, and I asked him, he was a Vietnam vet.

I said, Do you still have nightmares?

He said, Yes.

That was 50 years ago.

So I think you that's time.

Yep.

Further public comment.

Hi there.

My name is Destiny Johnson.

I'm from Wyndham.

I was at Smenge.

Um I know that none of you can probably imagine this because you've never been in, you know, in what we've been through at Svenge's or at in a shooting.

So imagine you're sitting at a high top table at Smange's Bar and Grill to the right near the half wall in the corner.

You've just sat down.

You ordered a couple of appetizers and some drinks with your friends.

Then a man walks in and starts shooting.

She just came in and started shooting my friend Jennifer right there that just spoke in front of you guys.

This isn't a movie scene that happened during the Lewis and Mass shooting.

I escaped my attempted murder through the kitchen of Spenge's.

I ran for my life.

In the days followed, the main community foundation created a fund to support victims.

The foundation announced that 6.6 million had been raised.

Of that, 1.9 million was distributed to 29 local nonprofit organizations.

Now I appreciate you guys looking into the needs and everything for us.

But at first glance, those numbers sound significant.

They sound like impact.

They sound like help.

But when you look closer, serious questions emerge.

Two nonprofit organizations out of 29, mainside out and main prisoner advocacy coalition, re each received funding of 65,000, totaling 130,000.

The individual associated with these organizations had previously been convicted of murder with a firearm.

So this person who murdered someone with a gun received more money than those who were killed by a person with a firearm.

Make that make sense.

Well, I'm grateful to be alive, but gratitude should not be silence accountability.

Survivors and families deserve transparency.

We deserve to understand how funds were allocated, what criteria were used, and how decisions were made.

When millions were raised in the names of victims, the victims should not be the afterthought.

This isn't about politics.

This isn't about fair.

This is about fairness.

It's about trust.

And it's about honoring the people whose lives were taken and forever changed in Lewiston.

The community deserves answers.

Survivors deserves survivors deserve clarity.

Families deserve to know that funds raised in their loved ones' names were handled with integrity, integrity, and transparency.

Well, we cannot undo what happened the night at Svenge's or at the Bowling Alley.

We cannot erase the fear, the loss, or the trauma.

But we can demand accountability.

We can insist that money that was raised for the victims.

The victims come first.

That's time, thank you.

Okay.

Thank you.

My name's Lisa Jones.

I live in Ward 2.

I did not come with prepared public comment tonight.

I did not um intend to speak unless something really um prompted me to.

And the speakers that have been speaking about this topic tonight have been saying more important things than I possibly could.

Um I have been speaking on their behalf for over a year now at this podium.

I have nothing to do with the mass shooting.

I have nothing to do with anyone who received money.

I have a very strong moral compass that is adamant that this really giant wrong be corrected.

I don't know how any of you can sit up there and continue to make excuses for what has been done.

There are people in our community who ran fraudulent nonprofits who received more than twice what a shooting victim got, closed their doors, spent the money, and ran away.

You're defending it.

I sent Council President Chitam a man community foundation email that stated one fund, 100%, all goes to victims and survivors.

Um probably one of the emails that was already referenced tonight.

Counselor President Chittham told me that email was poorly worded and can easily and understandably be misconstrued when taken out of context.

The gaslighting and the narrative creating that are going on surrounding this are unbelievable.

The survivors are correct.

The two funds thing was not from the beginning.

Creating a narrative is a political tool that is being used right now to try to change the facts of what happened.

And I literally don't know how anybody who sits up there representing Lewiston residents is okay with what happened.

Further public comment for this agenda item.

Um again, like Lisa said, um I I have no attachment to this incident that happened.

Um at the time, though, I was quote coaching uh 5th and 6th Lewiston football for the wreck.

Um during the time of the shooting, we were at Montello practicing and um we heard the sirens go off.

I also live, I'm a neighbor of the bowling alley.

Um I myself am a kid from downtown Lewison and I try to advocate for all kids from downtown Lewison, and I had four or five kids that were not supposed to drive home, but I drove them home because they're all my son's friends.

And again, we talk about what's morally right and what's wrong.

Well, I drove those kids home, and on the way back home, I started talking with my son about what might have happened and why all the cops were blocking us and why we weren't allowed to go to our house.

Um obviously we all know what happened, right?

Um, I have further since then um kind of dove into the youth advocacy I currently run um the I had the the um drug and alcohol uh support group at Franklin High School, and I'm also a local business owner.

Um I spent a lot of time in the community.

Um I've rubbed elbows with half of the people in this room.

I've reached out to half of you on the uh on the council directly.

Um I I guess what I what I'm getting at is it's I'm happy to see that you guys have come into a resolution and you guys are kind of putting down your uh your uh your different differences in trying to come to resolution.

Um, but I guess what I'm getting at is some of those kids that I was coaching uh that that long ago are now going into high school, and we're sitting here still wondering where the money went, uh, where who's who's who's at fault and and how we're gonna help these people.

I mean, again, I'm not I'm not one to sit here and pass judgment on people, but I think that um it's it's time for some answers, and it's definitely time for some accountability.

Thank you.

Uh Matt Roy Wert 6, uh Mayor and Councillors, besides uh Matt Eger and I speak routinely on transparency and accountability.

Uh per charter city ordinances it is correct that you don't have the power to legally compel anything, but you do have the power of the bully pulpit, which politicians will have to use in many instances.

Again, um there's the unethical uh and that bully where you can use the bully pulpit in this instance is actually have Maine Community Foundation actually explain their rationale on the very broad, I mean very broad definitions they use have criteria and how members were selected for the committee that actually awarded these, including multi at least six, if I remember correctly.

Uh executives and other people connected to awarded organizations, awarded themselves money.

That is the epitome of unethical and conflict of interest if there ever was one.

Thank you.

Further public comment for this agenda item.

Hello, my name is Sherry Stanton.

I'm a Lewiston resident and a survivor of the mass shooting.

I was at Schmingy's Bar and Grill that night playing in our weekly Cornhole League.

I was fortunate to make it out there out without being injured.

Others were not so lucky.

Our community came together after the shooting to help families of the deceased, survivors, and victims.

I have a document from the November from November of 2023 from the Maine Community Foundation that I received at a meeting that was held at the middle school that discussed the fundraising efforts and the goal of the funds being raised by the Maine Community Foundation.

At that time, 100% of the funds were to go to families of the deceased survivors and victims.

I have copies here if anybody wants to see.

All of it feels wrong to me and to so many others.

Help take care of the people in your community that were deeply impacted by this tragedy and try to do what's right.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Hi, my name is Quentin Chapman.

I live in Auburn, Maine.

I've been asked several times why I come here to Lewiston and speak.

I have constituents in my district that were there.

I have one that was shot.

They wouldn't come here and speak.

For them, it's not about the money.

The money is second place to the fact that they got put in second place.

And people thought it was better to give it to NGOs.

Today, a young woman I know and I trust posted something, Reagan Paul, and I said, No way, that can't be true.

Can't be true.

Usually I come with a canned speech.

I'm ready to go.

So I'm looking at this and I this can't be true.

Did you know that nonprofits and NGOs?

$13.5 trillion.

Their GDP, their money surpasses the entire annual GDP of every country except the United States.

Several combined.

And yet we found them to take forefront over our own brothers and sisters, our own community members.

Shame.

Not only do I think you should give the money back, but I think somebody owes.

No, not somebody.

I think you all owe an apology at the very least.

Good luck.

Further public comment.

Sky Harriman, why were you drawing this doodle?

Or why were you doodling while Ben Dari was speaking?

A man who was shot up to five times and was fighting for this for and for fighting for his life.

Is this the scum behind your ear?

Right here.

Take a look.

Honestly, to be honest.

My four-year-old nephew could draw a lot better than you.

I wonder what you're doodling now.

Will you show us what's in front of you?

No, probably not, but it's okay.

I can wait.

I have time.

David Jones.

What are you doodling?

The audience can please be quiet.

Please continue, ma'am.

Please stop.

Thank you.

David Jones will demand accountability.

Once the governor and we're not uh campaigning here, so none of that.

Do what needs to be done.

David Jones is candid for fraud and accountant bill.

Stop, thank you.

Your time is up.

Further comments for this agenda item.

Hi, my name is Ephrah Saeit Ase.

I am living in War II.

I'm also the executive director of IFCA Community Services.

We received one of the um funds.

I didn't have anything prepared today.

I just came um and I noticed um this topic came up, and I feel I have to say something.

Um there's a lot of victims that came here, and I am so sorry what happened that night.

It was a nightmare for all of us, but for you, more I bet.

I can only imagine the pain, the nightmare.

I come from a country where we had civil war and we had a lot of violence.

And so for something like that to happen here in Lewiston was very, very scary and re-traumatizing.

I feel like instead of hitting each other, um pitting us against each other, we should work together and getting um working for more help from the state.

Like all the victims should get health care from the state.

That night was really a nightmare for all of us.

Um I was up all night long, people were calling me, they didn't know what to do, they didn't know what to say, and I didn't know what to respond.

I was just on on phone calls trying to understand what happened.

And the next day, our team and many other organizations were on the road bringing food to people.

Everybody was locked up, they were scared.

So I just want to say that everybody in Lewiston was affected, and so to fight over this funding, um, I feel like there's bigger things that we can unite together and and get more funding from the state, as like getting help with health care and um the horrible things that have happened to the victims.

So as me coming from a ethnical community-based organization, I just want to um show you guys my sincerity and how horrible I feel, and we should not be pit against each other.

We are all in this together, and and we're gonna move together forward.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Andrew Jones, did you already speak during this agenda item, sir?

No, I spoke during general public comment.

Please continue.

Thank you.

Um, Andrew Jones, Ward 2.

Um, I was just if we can have it quiet in the audience, please.

If you need to talk, go to the hall or text to each other.

Thank you.

Um, with the previous speaker here, I was just I just wanted to come up and say that it was good of them to admit to coming here and and uh being a recipient of that money.

I intended to point that out if they didn't, so that was good on them for that.

Um I would have just rather them apologize for taking the money in the first place.

The organization was not entitled to that.

Uh the other thing I'd like to say is I understand that the this council cannot compel MCF to do anything, but that doesn't preclude you from asking them uh a proclamation from the mayor or a statement from the council calling upon them to do the right thing, like that sign back there says, do right.

That would be huge.

Um we haven't seen that yet.

Um maybe Scott can send them a photo of a doodle.

I don't know.

Thank you.

How are you guys doing?

Um, I'm from Sabatis.

Your name, sir?

Brandon Pelletier.

Thank you.

I don't ever come to these things.

Um I'm not gonna say that night really affected me personally.

Okay.

I was gonna go bowling that night with my boy.

It didn't happen.

I feel for these families that have to deal with this.

Now, me, I'm a United States Army combat veteran.

I serve two tours in Afghanistan.

Oh eight, oh nine, 10-11, 18-month tour and a 12-month tour.

Okay.

I've been shot at over a thousand times, blown up five times.

The biggest concern that I have for these folks is the mental health.

Someone that knows post-traumatic stress disorder.

Okay, I'm not gonna point the fingers at any one of you.

Whoever was involved, they're gonna feel something.

When these people start having breakdowns later on in life, mental illness, post-traumatic stress comes back and haunt them.

There ain't enough alcohol in this town that can mask and cover up their emotions.

I'm gonna tell you that right now.

After that happens, comes thoughts of suicide.

I've been there.

I know.

Okay.

These people are gonna need every little bit of help that they can.

They got enough financial stress, hospital bills, everything else.

It's just gonna compile and compile.

These people are gonna need all the help they can get.

Now I do pray.

I know some people that were injured, shot, and killed in that.

I know what it's like losing friends in battle.

I was trained to deal with it.

I dealt with it until I couldn't.

Same thing's gonna happen to these people.

It's only been a couple years.

Five years from now, ten years from now, it's gonna get worse for them.

It's gonna come back because they're gonna you know, see memorials, see pictures.

They go to the bowling alley, they're gonna feel the same thing.

Now, my biggest thing is if any one of you guys are involved with the whole disbursement of funds, you will feel guilt and shame when they start committing suicide.

That's not something you want on your shoulders.

And I'm not gonna sit there and point the fingers and be like it's you, Mayor, or you.

I don't know any of you.

Okay.

It's something that you're gonna have to live with.

And I pray that these families get the help that they need.

All right.

And I think you guys as City of Lewis and should come together and actually make it right on them.

I'm not gonna come up there and be like all different ethnicity and all that.

That ain't what it is.

The people that are involved with the people that involved, the people that were there to witness it.

I seen bodies, don't bother me anymore.

That's time, thank you.

Good luck.

Further public comment.

Martin Chartrand, Ward 3.

I'll also say I wasn't directly impacted with the shooting.

I was simply a resident of the area at the time.

Uh was really saddened by it.

And listening to the stories tonight, I'm also shocked that people that took bullets that night don't have their health care bills paid for.

That's wrong.

And that should be changed.

And I also know that nobody sitting up there was involved with the specific at the meeting community foundation.

I support accountability and transparency.

So we think that if one group gets more, another group needs to get less, or that if one group gets less, it's because of someone else getting something.

I think we can live in a world where that's not the case, where where there is more if we if we demand it from where you know there's lots of resources out there.

Um the state and the federal government has, and uh a lot of that was promised and should be coming.

It's it's not just because there were groups in Lewiston that got money.

And I hope I just invite folks to remember that it's not it's not always a competition.

Thanks.

Further public comment for this agenda item.

Going once.

All right, public comment is now closed.

Back to the council.

Uh yes, Counselor Longchams.

First, I would just like to say thank you to everyone that uh had the courage to stand up and talk today.

Um I can't even begin to uh relate to what anybody went through.

Um my daughter was one of the first officers that went into the uh bowling alley that night.

And it was just devastating uh what she shared with us.

So again, I would like to just say that I'm sorry for everything that you've gone through.

All I can do right now is just really try to assess what the needs are.

Um that's where we are at this point.

I would love for Maine Community Foundation to come here and do a workshop or a presentation of how the money um was distributed because that's that seems to be uh very large concern from a lot of the victims and survivors.

Um I can't make that happen, but I would encourage that uh if they're listening.

Um I think that's what the community is asking.

We may not like all of the answers, but I do think it would be better than an email or just something posted on their website.

Um as far as the nonprofits, I'll be honest, I don't agree with how that was distributed.

Um I wish that there was a way that they could just uh give it back if they felt compelled to.

I don't know that that can happen.

Um a couple of years now have passed.

Um and I just don't know that that's possible.

But I do know that we're here today.

I know that we're trying to come together to figure out what we can do moving forward.

We need to make sure that needs are met.

We need to make sure that people are taken care of, that um was traumatized in those uh two separate places.

And I just hope and pray that um that we can do that, that we can come together as a city uh to make sure that that needs are met.

And and I believe that we can.

We have a great administrator that is willing to um to help us with this, to work alongside uh organizations, and and I'm I'm really grateful for that.

So I know this may not be the answer that everyone is looking for, but I do think it is a step in the right direction.

And I think everything else will follow.

I think we'll be surprised at uh people stepping up and and wanting to do the right thing.

So again, I want to thank you guys for coming, and I'm sorry that you've even had to experience anything like this.

But I think together we can uh continue to move forward.

Um it'll be forever changed, but I I do think that we can um we can take care of some of the concerns that that we've heard tonight.

And I'm just I'm I'm grateful that some of the counselors here um seem to be on board for that.

Thank you.

Uh Counselor Martell, do you yeah?

Thank you, Ms.

Mayor.

I would like to thank everyone who came out and spoke.

I can only imagine uh how brave that must you must be and how difficult that must be to relive that and to share that in public on live stream.

Um I hear a lot of I I I would like to recognize what seems to be a change of tone from the body up here.

Uh it I think there was a common held belief.

It was repeated nationally, statewide, that there were feelings by a lot of people that this body didn't care.

And I'm glad to see that changing.

I'm glad to hear the tone and a little bit of the narrative changing.

I think it's important that we continue to look at the needs that remain, whether that's hiring a third party, someone that can do that and find out.

But an emotion that I've heard overwhelmingly tonight from a lot of the speakers, and one that I'm sharing is one of anger.

I know we want to stay positive and everyone wants to move forward and get along, but I'm angry.

I'm angry because money was misplaced.

Money went to people that didn't deserve it.

And I think that a lot of people are angry for a lot of different reasons.

But I think when you I can only imagine, but when you were a victim of this shooting and you or your family was directly affected by this, and you see money going to places where it had no business going, and you've got a group that was brought on to be the professionals and to make sure that this was done in our right way, and it simply wasn't.

It might have been done in a legal way.

The attorney general has rubber stamped whatever the behaviors were, and there won't be any criminal charges, but it was not done the right way, and I stand by that, and it sounds like a lot of the people who were directly affected by this feel like that.

I am not above looking at every single one of the nonprofits at the main community foundation, finding out where the accountability for the mistakes lie, owning some mistakes, and making sure those mistakes don't happen going forward.

There's a lot of tragedies that are probably still going to happen.

And when the good people of this country dig into their own pocket to try to help those in need during a time of tragedy, we do not want to dissuade them and prevent that from happening and squashing the good nature of the people of this country by them not having any faith in the process of where that money is going to go or where it's going to end up, or if it ends up in some quickly set up nonprofit that was just as quickly closed, and there's no idea where the money went.

So I am frustrated and I want some accountability, and I think that the idea.

Four of us out of the seven of us can do a lot in the city.

We may not have subpoena power to compel people to come here and testify in front of us and whatnot, but we can issue proclamations, we can use the bully pulpit like someone uh mentioned in public comment.

We are a body of resources and influence.

And I think that if we want to use it, we can.

And I think it's going to take a commitment from people on this body to truly do that.

But it is within our means to do a lot more than we've done.

And I will stand by that.

So whether or not we really want to do something is the question that should be asked of this group tonight.

And I understand that with the resolution that's in front of us, uh, we can't address all of the things that I'm that I'm saying.

I just I would like tonight for this to be the first step of many.

And um I think that there is frustration and anger that is not misplaced, and I think that uh getting accountability and finding out where the mistakes were made and getting some people to own some missteps will go a long way.

And um like Councillor Longchamp said, I don't know if we can claw any of the money back at this point, but I would certainly want to see some of that happen too if we could.

Um I know that that may be out of the grasp of this council, but there are a lot of things that are not outside the grasp of this council right now, and I would like to see us do something more about it.

Uh further comments from counselors.

Listen, um, yeah, I mean, we understand the October 25th shooting was our darkest tower, and I appreciate everyone who came here and spoke.

Thank you very much.

Um absolutely all of us who are on to your care.

Um care about uh the victims and the survivors and the families.

And uh I absolutely support uh finding out um, you know, you know, conducting in a way that respect uh you know, survivors and victims um uh privacy.

Uh you know, determining what needs still are uh yeah.

What is um Counselor Longchamps?

Do you or well one second?

Administrator Kenrath.

Um we just need uh a motion to direct you to uh work with uh a community organization.

It's already been put forth that the main resiliency center would be willing to help conduct a survey.

What is needed at this point?

Well, we do have the workshop scheduled for the next meeting where they will they will present the next meeting, correct?

So uh perhaps we want to take in their presentation and have some QA with them before uh deciding a specific path forward.

I don't know if that may make sense to just do that at the next meeting.

Uh that does make some sense to me, Councillor Long Champs.

How do you feel about this?

It makes sense to me.

That was basically what I was going to ask, and just make to make the uh public aware that on the 17th of March, we will have a meeting with the main resiliency center to have that discussion.

Is that what we're going to do?

To have the first initial discussion on how things might look or go.

Yes, the director will be here from the ranges and she centered and her staff to do a presentation, then we can have some.

We'll schedule some time for her to do a presentation, what they do within a time for QA with you folks.

And then based on that presentation, determine next steps.

That would be my suggestion, yes.

Make some sense to me.

Anything further, Counselor Longchamps?

No, just basically to say, you know, we can't take care of this uh in one meeting or overnight.

It's going to take time.

Um so your patience is very much appreciated.

But uh just know that we are trying to do what we can to make sure that needs um, if they haven't been met, that they will be.

So thank you.

Counselor Najing, yes.

Um I just wanted to say, thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

I just wanted to say first and foremost that I do appreciate everybody coming out tonight.

I know that I had a conversation with Rick Caye recently um concerning uh the fire department response.

And one of the things that was pointed out was um a lot of our first responders came into these spaces where um uh uh victims had had passed away.

Victims had been injured.

They're asking for help.

They didn't know who was in the building, they didn't know what threats were there.

Um and there was a lot of support for the first three weeks.

People kept dropping by the fire station, dropping off food, being like, hey, is there anything we can do for you folks, right?

That three weeks passed, and then nothing.

Um I'm sure that in many ways the survivors feel the exact same way.

Um there was a huge outpouring of support immediately based on the fact that we knew that what happened to us was not right and was not our fault.

Um it brought us all together for about a month.

And then we're dealing with a situation that so many people are suffering with trauma with bills um with all kinds of different issues that have not been resolved, don't have an advocate.

And I would say I'm not sure if the Lewis and City Council can fix all of that, but I am quite sure that we can advocate so that just like we went through uh a period of uh through the inquiry about the shooting that happened originally, um possibly we could get state representation in order to make sure that people are made as whole as they can be made.

Um you know, unfortunately, some of us will never never get past that night.

Some of us never had the opportunity to get past that night, but the victims should not be forgotten and should have supports.

I have walked alongside the victims and survivors for the past two plus years now and realize that you given our small team there's no way we could possibly know all the unmet needs and all the future needs that might be out there so um I'm happy to come to present to council to share what resources we do have available to learn more about um what there is going on in the community that we may not be aware of and to help support connecting resources um with those who are in need of those resources so thank you very much and thank you for your service at the resiliency center so I think we have a course of action counselors uh this will be uh next uh meeting uh deputy administer yes mayor on the 17th okay all right thank you all we appreciate you thank you yeah uh there was no there was no motion here right madam clerk correct okay all right uh we are now uh moving to item number one sure item number one public hearing and final passage for a moratorium ordinance regarding rent increases for lots in mobile home parks requested action that the proposed moratorium ordinance regarding rent increases for lots in mobile home parks receive final passage by a roll call vote we're gonna give it just a second here so moved counselor Harriman second signed by counselor nay uh discussion among counselors counselor uh chitam yes thank you mr mayor um we have passed this in first reading this is the second reading tonight uh we heard a number of people testifying who are owners of mobile homes on rented property within mobile home parks at our last meeting since that last meeting I have received and I believe we've all received uh four at least four uh communications from owners of mobile home parks um three of them came from uh bovita which is uh the the California owner of three of the largest the three largest parks in Lewiston and one was from a local uh owner of a park they made excellent points in their uh letters to us uh points which I hope we will bring up if this moratorium passes tonight during the ensuing hundred and eighty days when we work to resolve this issue so that uh it is fair to everyone um we certainly want to protect the people who are subject to uh rent increases but we also want to ensure that the owners of the mobile home parks have sufficient resources that they can operate them properly uh the moratorium that we're voting on tonight gives us a hundred and eighty days about a half a year for us to work out those issues and make certain that if there is action to be taken locally uh that it's being done with the concerns of all parties in mind uh counselor nagen so I would just say if this resolution passes tonight um uh in order to move the moratorium forward that one we should consider um aiming to remove that moratorium quicker than the 180 days if we can and then also referring um this work to a subcommittee of the housing committee if they are so willing um in order to work at we know that there are laws in place right now that um that function in certain ways we know that the advocacy may be missing in certain parts there's questions about junk fees there's questions about other pieces as far as like uh uh the shared cost of sewage or electricity things like that if we can get this move forward quickly and hand it back to to either put in specific ordinance that may be needed um or to basically you know do our due diligence to say we're taking care of uh this section of people while not damaging the business owners I think that that would be key so public comment for this agenda item I name it's my name is John Geary and I'm in what six resident of Fox Run

I think that that would be key.

So public comment for this agenda item.

My name is my name is John Gary, and I'm in Ward 6, a resident of Fox Run Mobile Home Park.

And I support the moratorium, but simply as a way to get you a come up with a an ordinance that gives us some protection.

The current state law is found in Title 10, Section 9093-Capital B.

And if you look at it even cursorally, you may come to the same conclusion I did that it was drafted by lobbyists for the mobile home park owners because it has absolutely no teeth, and worse than that, it establishes this vague notion of average lot rent, and it allows the owners of the mobile home parks to determine what that average is, which is ridiculous.

They can say that that average is say 100 more than current rents.

And then on top of that, they can add the consumer price index plus one percent for the Northeast.

So we currently pay 550.

And if they claimed to us that uh average lot with the amenities that we have, average lot rent was 650, and they could multiply that by 1.405 if 3.5 was the month's consumer price index when they give the notice.

And that would be an actual increase in rent of 23 and a half percent, which isn't, I don't think what any of you really would like to see.

We understand that park ownership is a business.

We understand that there has to be something built in for increases.

We expect increases.

Uh but what we would like to see on the level of the city is to establish that there is a base rent, and the base rent should be the existing rent for any lot at a date certain, which would be sometime during the more term period or when a new ordinance is enacted.

Then if we add the consumer price index plus one percent on top of that on an annual basis, that's reasonable.

We can all I don't know if everyone can live with it, but most of us could live with it.

And it certainly if you built in a process where uh a park owner has extraordinary expenses that they didn't have the previous year, there should be a mechanism for them to come and prove that there has been increases that were out of their control, and if that's the case, maybe they can get an exemption.

There's a lot to be considered.

We're not just looking for you.

Thank you.

Further public comment for this agenda item.

Ryan Salvatore, Alburn resident.

Um so the affordability crisis is a widespread issue, not just the state of Maine, but all over the country, and it's just that.

It's a crisis.

Um we have a lot of people who are on fixed income in the state of Maine.

I think we have one of the highest amount of retirees in the state of Maine.

A lot of people come to this state to retire.

Um the big problem that I would have with this agenda item would be that it might wind up actually putting people who own parks out of business if they have caps on their increases for rent.

And in that case, we'd be putting all these people out of homes.

We'd actually do the opposite of what we're intending to do here if these people aren't able to continue to operate their parks.

So I think we should all get a little bit more detail into exactly how much, you know, what the profit margins are on here, and if they have any room that we can, you know, wiggle in some kind of um moratorium on increases on lot rent.

Um but I think the biggest thing that we could do as a city is stop all the wild spending.

There's been so much wild spending with with no real audit and paper training.

But let's not uh germane to this topic.

It is because the agenda is absolutely not.

We're talking about lot rents here.

So if you want to continue using your minute in 45, 44 seconds to talk about that, please do so.

But we will be staying on topic.

All right, thank you for taking 15 minutes of my time.

Also, you didn't think say thank you for your service for the veteran that came up, but you did say for the uh the um person who is related to managing the funds for the shooting.

Anyway, um I just don't think that this is a good way to stop people from losing their homes.

Um, like I said last time, do you want your citizens to die in Walmart or do you want them to die in their own homes?

Um and I don't think this is an effective measure to be able to s avoid that future.

Um if these people who own these mobile home lot parks aren't able to continue to maintain their profit margins and they go negative, they're gonna sell it, it'll become a storage lot, and then they won't have a home to live in to begin with.

So I think the real answer to this question is cutting taxes and cutting spending because that would reduce the amount that the taxpayer in the city is obligated out of their own pocket, and that would actually help our citizens.

And I think David Jones understands we're not campaigning.

Your time's up.

Thanks.

Further public comment for this agenda item.

I encourage the public to remain on topic.

Good evening.

My name is Julie Ann Smith, and I'm speaking on behalf of the Manufactured Housing Association of Maine.

I would like to focus on the impact this ordinance would have on local ownership and on the people who live and work here in Lewiston.

Lewiston has 10 manufactured housing communities.

Eight of them have fewer than 50 sites.

These are not large institutional operations, they are small businesses.

In many cases, they are owned by individuals and families who live locally, pay property taxes locally, hire local contractors, and reinvest directly in their communities.

They plow the roads, repair the water lines, repave pavement, manage stormwater systems, and maintain common areas with local labor.

A blanket moratorium would not distinguish between a large national operator and a Lewiston-based small business owner.

It would apply equally to both.

But the financial impact would not be equal.

Small locally owned parks operate on narrow margins.

One park told me they lost $22,000 last year.

When insurance premiums rise, when road materials increase in costs, when property taxes go up, those increases are real and immediate.

If revenue is artificially frozen while operating costs continue to climb, it is the smallest operators, the ones rooted in this community who are harmed first.

And when small operators are harmed, the consequences are local.

Deferred maintenance, delayed infrastructure upgrades, reduced reinvestment.

In the worst cases, pressure to sell to larger out-of-state entities, better positioned to absorb regulatory constraints.

Ironically, a policy motivated in part by concerns about non-local ownership could accelerate exactly that outcome.

This ordinance also singles out one segment of housing providers while leaving apartments, duplexes, and single family rentals unaffected.

Many of those are also locally owned.

Selectively restricting one property type creates an uneven playing field within our own community and sends a signal that investment in manufactured housing, one of the few remaining sources of naturally occurring affordable homeownership, carries heightened regulatory risk.

It is also important to remember that Maine Law already provides a process for residents to challenge increases above CPI plus one through mediation if a majority oppose the increase.

The legislature chose a balanced statewide framework, and I can assure you that was drafted by the legislators, not by any lobbyists.

If Lewiston adopts a categorical moratorium layered on top of that system, it raises serious legal concerns and uncertainty.

Uncertainty that disproportionately affects small local operators who do not have the resources for prolonged legal disputes.

None of this is to dismiss the concerns raised by residents.

Affordability matters, stability matters.

But solutions should strengthen local housing, not unintentionally weaken the very small businesses that sustain it.

If the council's goal is to protect Lewiston residents, I respectfully urge you to consider the full local impact on the residents, but also on the small property owners, contractors, employees, and families who live and work here and who are part of the fabric of the city.

We share the same goal.

Stable, safe, and sustainable affordable housing in Lewiston.

I encourage continued dialogue and careful legal review before adopting a policy that could have lasting energy.

Thank you.

Wow.

John Sandelaire, I'm uh ward sex.

I live at Fox Run Homes.

I don't know.

She read so fast I can't made my head spin.

Um she mentioned some things that I just wanted to reiterate uh differences like apartments compared to mobile homes.

Um mobile homes we purchase, we are on lease land.

So we have a mortgage, we pay taxes, we pay uh we pay all the repairs.

The only thing they furnish is plowing in the summer.

I mean the winter.

And that's just the roads.

In the summer, they'll mow the non the grassy areas that are communal.

Also we are part of a group that really, I mean, we do not have places we can go.

If we do not stay in our homes, there's no senior housing available.

And the difference between apartment owners and us, everything's furnished to them.

They get heat, hot water, electricity, they get the uh snow removal, they get the lawns mowed.

We as pi uh being living in a park, we get nothing besides what I just mentioned.

We pay everything.

Heat, water.

We do the own s uh snow blowing, we mow our lawns, um, and we pay our taxes.

Um I just want people that don't real that don't realize that it's the big difference between renting and living in a in a park.

We're not given everything.

We really have to work for it.

Thank you.

Thank you for the public comment.

Step right up.

Public comment.

Uh okay.

Good evening, counselors.

My name is Adam Crans, and I'm a member of the team that oversees day-to-day operations at Country Lane, Stetsonbrook, and Fox Run here in Lewiston.

My responsibility is to ensure that these communities remain safe, well-maintained, and sustainable for the long term.

We understand that some residents are facing real financial pressure right now.

Rising costs create uncertainty, and for some households, housing stability feels fragile.

We take that seriously.

But it's important to understand the practical impact of a rent-increased moratorium.

Operating a manufactured home community is not a static endeavor.

Roads deteriorate, water and sewer systems require repair and maintenance.

Snow must be plowed, trees trimmed, insurance, labor, materials, and regulatory costs continue to rise, whether rents change or not.

When revenue is frozen while expenses increase, hard decisions about spending must be made.

If a moratorium is enacted, we will be forced to reassess several planned investments.

At Country Lane, we are planning a significant road repair project this spring under a moratorium that would likely be postponed or the scope of that project significantly reduced.

That is simply the financial reality of rising costs without corresponding revenue increases.

At Stetsonbrook, ownership has been preparing to develop 50 new home sites.

Projects like that require upfront capital and financial certainty.

A moratorium would immediately delay that development for the duration of the ordinance and likely longer due to the uncertainty this moratorium would create.

Ownership evaluates actual operating costs and market conditions carefully.

When increases occur, the goal is for increases to be predictable and gradual, not sudden and significant.

The current ownership group for these parks are long-term owners, not short-term investors.

They intend to hold these communities for decades.

Revenue is largely reinvested locally through contractors, vendors, materials, and jobs here in Lewiston.

Their success depends on stable communities and long-term trust.

We are willing to offer a rent-increased holiday for residents facing financial hardship if this blanket moratorium does not pass.

This would provide targeted relief to those who need it most while allowing time for thoughtful evaluations without unintended consequences.

A blanket moratorium may feel protective in the short term, but it risks postponed repairs, delayed housing expansion, and reduced long-term stability.

If the goalie goal here truly is lasting stability for residents and the community, we respectfully ask the council to vote no and instead bring together residents, the city, and the ownership group to find a balanced solution.

Thank you.

Please talk outside, thank you.

Please continue, sir.

Good evening, Craig Saddlemyer, uh Lewis and Resident Ward 4, uh Chair of the City's housing committee.

Uh housing committee hasn't taken a position on the issue, so I uh I'm speaking neither for nor against.

Uh but to Councillor Nagine's question, the housing committee, I think would be happy to uh take this subject on if it's something of interest to the council.

Um the state.

Uh I would agree with um one of the residents' assessments earlier that I think the state uh really dropped the ball on the legislation that it passed to address this issue is this issue.

Uh it's not really, you know, it does not give any kind of enforceable or binding um power to to the residents or to anyone to oversee what is done uh with rent and to ensure that it's reasonable.

Um it's largely basically a recommendation that they talk to each other is what it amounts to.

Um the so that aside the state has developed, I have not looked at it closely yet, but I know the state has developed uh a model ordinance for local towns and municipalities to adopt at the local level.

Um so those resources are available.

I know that the uh the governor's office is very interested in this subject, and the legislature remains interested in the subject.

Um at any rate, I think looking at what model ordinance has been produced is where the our committee would begin.

Um and then uh doing doing our own research and seeing what would be best for Lewiston if again, if that's what council would like to do.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Hello.

My name is Jean Carroll, and I live in Country Lane Estates.

Since the park was sold, we have already had a hundred and thirty-eight dollar increase.

Now, that park I am guessing has about eighty percent of elderly, which are beginning to hear the elderly are selling their places because they cannot afford the rent.

And we have nowhere else to go.

Uh these big companies who buy who bought us do not care about us.

They want us to pay the same rent that they carry the people in California.

And I'm just gonna deviate a little bit.

Down in Florida, I lived in a park where you owned your own home.

We went and had a petition to buy from the original owner.

They needed 51 percent.

We had the 51 percent, and she refused that.

You know why?

She got they had two mobile home packs that were selling ours, and the one on Stetson Road, they got 22 million dollars for that.

Now I'm gonna be 80 years old pretty soon.

My partner who's gonna be 83, we're gonna be out in the street because they keep going up with the rent, not understanding that we pay our taxes, and we pay property taxes.

We should not have to pay property taxes if we're paying rent.

Uh and that's all I have to say.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Further public comments.

Hi, my name is Chrissy Monte Calvo.

I live in Lewiston, and I am also the community manager for three of the Lewiston Mobile Home Parks.

So I'm speaking as both an employee and as a resident.

Before the park was sold, I worked with the prior owners.

They managed the park well.

When the pres when the residents had issues, they responded quickly and professionally.

Most communication happened by phone or email instead of face-to-face, but the level of service was there.

When the park was going to be sold, one thing that mattered a lot to the prior owners was finding someone who would keep taking care of the community and the people who live there.

That mattered to me too, because this just wasn't just a job uh was just wasn't where I work, it's where I live too.

It's my home.

And I'll be honest, I was uneasy about the sale.

One option that was discussed was residents buying the community themselves.

For me personally, that wasn't something I could support.

Um, because based on the purchase price and financing, it would have meant my rent and everyone else's going up a minimum of 200 a month.

That was not affordable to me, and it was deeply concerning.

I was also worried that the new owners might come in and make big changes or raise rents quickly.

But after working with the current owners, that hasn't been my experience.

What I've seen is a different approach to communication and support.

We're staffed in the office four days a week.

Residents can come in and talk to someone in person.

And when repairs are needed, whether it's equipment, material, or hiring vendors, ownership is there to support that.

When something comes up, we address it quickly, just like we always have.

I work hard to take care of the residents, and I do feel supported in doing that.

I also want to say honestly, I share some of the same worries that residents have.

But I think we can do a better job explaining longer-term plans so people know what to expect.

That's something I care about and want to keep improving.

From what I see day to day.

Freezing rents completely has real consequences.

Costs don't stop.

When there's no flexibility, it affects maintenance, repairs, and improvements.

Over time, that hurts the community we all live in.

I believe the current owners want to be here long term.

They want to invest in the park and work with residents, not against them.

I believe there are better ways to help people who are struggling without putting the whole community at risk.

So I'm asking the council respectfully, please do not vote for this moratorium.

Please give us the chance to work together, residents, the city, and ownership on a solution that protects people who need help while still allowing the community to be cared for properly.

I do care about this place.

I live here, I work here, and I want to see it stay a community working.

Thank you.

Hi, my name is Jackie Willett.

I live at Country Lane Estate.

They say they take care of everything, but you cannot even go to the trash can to put your stuff in there because it is so slippery and those stairs are so slippery that I have to have either my great-granddaughter to go do it or somebody because I if I fall, I'm done.

I've had plenty of surgeries, and I cannot do those.

Why don't they clean at least where the dumpster is and it's so slippery that it won't hurt any big like they said, I'm gonna be 82, so I'm not gonna go slip and slide everywhere.

And another thing I I can't understand is they said that you gotta take care of everything, which I try to do my best, and I do.

But the thing I don't understand is if I'm renting a lot, and that there's I have two trees in front of my trailer.

So if one of my trees is sick and I have to, it has to be cut down, I have to pay the three or four hundred dollars to have that tree cut down because it it's on the lot that I'm renting.

It does that.

I'm only renting the lot.

I got the lot.

So things like that.

And they say they're gonna fix the street, those bumps, I tell you they're every you go 10 miles an hour, and it hurts under your car, and it it, you know, another expense.

But I we're all old over there.

Last time I came, I had 125 signatures of all the ones that had the same problem as I do.

And they you I don't know who it was, they took our signature my statement and the the signatures, so I am not making it up.

I brought a few friends tonight, and now I'm worried because of the snow, it's slippery, and I got to get home.

But I'm just here to hopefully help the ones that need it.

Thank you.

You drove safe for the public comment.

My name is James Malkett.

I live at uh 24 Fox Road and Drive.

And uh when the new owners took over within a few months, my rent went up $50 from 500 to 550.

Any new people coming in are paying 600.

And sooner or later, mine's going to be at 600.

If I can have it quiet in the room, please, thank you.

Please continue, sir.

Yeah.

And uh another thing.

We used to have our water read by a meter and just adjusted to each individual trailer.

Now we get everybody gets the same bill.

I don't know how this goes.

The neighbor next door to me wasn't there.

She's been in uh nursing home for months.

And she got a $40 a month water bill.

And all she's doing is dripping water because it's too darn cold out.

I don't think that's fair to her to pay 40.

Me pay 40.

Other people that are probably three or four people in the household are using more than I'm using, they paying 40.

They stopped reading the water meters.

And just generally giving everybody the same bill.

And uh you know, like we pay our rent, we pay taxes.

We do our own lawns.

They pay, they plow the road.

Not a good job, but they plow the road.

The previous owners, it was down to the pavement.

Now we got snow on the road after they plow and it turns to ice.

I walk the dog down the road and back.

Sometimes the dog can't walk on, he's slipping around as much as I am.

So I you know, they say they're doing a great job doing uh our parks.

Well, they're not doing as good as the previous owners.

The previous owners read the meters.

We got a water bill quarterly, and we knew how to budget for that.

All of a sudden they tell us within a month you're gonna have monthly water bills.

We don't budget that way.

Now we have to figure out how we're gonna budget.

And uh they should have give us a at least three or four months to get, you know, we're on fixed incomes for the most part.

Thank you.

Thank you for the public comment.

Public comment uh is now closed.

Back to the council.

Uh Councillor Nagyen.

So to first and foremost, thank everybody for coming out and speaking, both for and against.

Um I I do think um, again, coming back uh to Council President Chatham.

If this is the past tonight, we should possibly figure out how we're going to corral some of the complaints as well as also some of the feedback from the park owners and move this quickly through uh uh through the housing committee.

Uh, because I do think we kind of opened the Pandora's box at this point.

I'm afraid that if we do not pass this moratorium, we will see increases immediately.

Um and uh and so it we kind of we have to figure out where the flaws are and where the complaints are, and also make sure that we're not doing something that's gonna damage uh the ability of these parks to manage um their spaces.

So that's just my take on it.

Councillor Chitam, yeah.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um I agree with Councilman Ejean that we need to make this uh as rapid as possible.

Unfortunately, we have uh a heavy load ahead of us over the next three or four months.

Um 180 days uh seems like a long time.

It may not be.

I would advocate for a rapid resolution, but as he pointed out and several of the people pointed out tonight, this moratorium was aimed specifically and is aimed specifically at lot rent increases.

It talks nothing about maintenance, and we've heard several complaints that uh maintenance of the mobile home parks and communities has deteriorated since uh new ownership is taken over.

Um that's an issue that should be addressed.

Uh it is not addressed in this moratorium.

I very much appreciate Mr.

Saddlemer's uh willingness to take this on in the housing committee.

Uh I'd like to offer whatever help I can uh in that regard.

Um and I would like to see this done as rapidly as possible.

Uh the longer this is frozen, the more people are waiting for an answer.

So I'm hoping that the council will pass this moratorium tonight and that we'll get right to work on it.

Uh and again, I thank Mr.

Saddlemyer for his willingness to assume this uh within the housing committee.

Uh yeah, it's back to you, Counselor Nagene.

I just wanted to m make a distinct point as well.

We we have some seniors in our community that may run into issues with um paying their um their property tax.

Um they are not if they're occupying that home, they are not evicted um from that home.

Um the uh they'll accu uh accrue bills and they'll continue to accrue bills until that home is no longer occupied, and then the city collects its money.

That doesn't happen in a mobile home park.

Um if you can't pay your lot rent, you gotta go, even though you own the home.

And so that I think is one of the challenges when we're talking about people unlimited incomes.

Like, how do we make sure that people do get to stay at home?

And so um it's a concern of mine because especially in my neighborhood, there are several people who are on fixed incomes, um, who are are managing very small amounts of money in order to stay housed.

Um if if somebody could just pull the property out from under them, that would be horrendous.

Um counselors, it sounds like we want to send this to the housing committee and then administrator Kane Rath uh would the appropriate department be planning and code to uh uh to work on an ordinance.

Yes.

Yeah, okay.

So I I think sending it to the housing committee along with input from planning and code and uh taking it from there sounds sounds appropriate.

Further comments before we vote, counselors.

Madam Clerk, please call the vote.

Counselor from word five.

Yes.

Word six?

Yes.

Word seven?

No.

Word one.

Yes.

Word two?

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four.

Yes.

Motion passed by vote of six to one.

Thank you very much, Madam Clerk.

Uh thank you for coming.

Have a wonderful evening.

Yes, and drive safe.

I don't know how much snow has accumulated, but there's bound to be some item number two.

Brief break.

Wait, well.

Could we have a brief recess?

Uh we're now taking a brief recess.

Yes, wonderful idea.

Thank you.

That was great today.

Hello, thank you.

Uh, please take a seat or take your conversations to the hall.

We are back.

Uh, Madam Clerk.

Thank you for coming back.

Uh, I believe uh we're gonna we're gonna jump to item six.

Madam Clerk.

I didn't ever could you ask the council if they approve moving the agenda around like this.

I don't know whether we will or not, but it's the council's decision, sir.

Unless there's like strong objection, I would like to move to item six.

For the purposes of asking the council's opinion, I'm going to strongly object to rearranging the agenda.

I appreciate that.

Counselor Nagin, yes.

So this has been brought up before, and I'm going to bring it up again.

We have the ability to change the order in which we put things in the in the packets.

And it seems like multiple times we've decided that we need to move things, right?

So maybe as as as a body, we should have a discussion.

Not tonight, but at some point, so that we don't have to jump agenda items.

That's all.

Counselor Herman, would you like to win?

Yeah, same here.

I've brought this point up before, and it uh it still continues on.

We can we can arrange the agenda in any order we want.

We know which items are going to be interesting to the public, and we should just arrange them in that order so we don't uh just keep people waiting who have who thought they were going for the first agenda item, or potentially have somebody who thought they were gonna come later for a later item not be able to speak.

So it's it's just it's it's annoying to be honest.

Um Thank you.

Uh, we we are now uh Counselor Nagene.

I'd like to put a pen in this, but do you have something else?

Just really quickly one of the things too is that when we have city staff that needs to speak to agenda items it is good to put that towards the front if they don't have to be here till the end of the meeting.

It's something that I think has come up a few times but for instance moving this to the front of the agenda is good because we have a member of city staff that could probably go home after the presentation.

So the sooner we get started the sooner that can all happen.

Thank you counselors for all chiming in appreciate you all as always.

Madam Clerk item number six mayor point of order hello yes counselor I have objected and I believe under the rules of our engagement that calls for a council vote.

I I would request a vote please uh you know what happy to oblige I would like Madam Clerk how should we proceed on a vote for this um so counselor uh chitam is uh calling for a vote so basically making a motion to uh have a vote whether item six should be addressed at this time or during the regular course of business when it comes up chronologically on the agenda.

Yes I I believe you're understanding it correctly Madam Clerk uh yes yes uh can can we uh I I think Madam Clerk has just read the motion uh may uh can I have a first please uh that's the motion yes that that we address item six in its proper order so a yes vote will put the item six after item five and before item seven and a no vote will put item six on the current item agenda uh okay so a no vote means that we can do item six now am I understanding uh it um uh counselor chitam that's my understanding yes can we make this simple uh I would like uh the motion to read uh that we can do item number six now madam clerk Mr.

Mayor in the extent and not to prolong this silliness any further I will cede my motion to your motion sir yeah this is yeah this is um yeah we're having fun up here counselor Longchamps yes I'd like to read it we should just continue on we yeah I would like to continue on with item number six.

Okay let's let's do it yeah uh counselors are uh some counselors are insisting that we vote and so that's what we're attempting to do.

Counselor Herman, do you like to weigh in again?

Yes I I would be okay with proceeding with item six now but if you don't pick if you didn't pick agenda items like bingo balls we wouldn't have to have this whole discussion.

This is you you you've made your point Counselor Herman and you're now um yes thank you.

Uh counselors unless there's strong objection uh I would like to just move on with item number six do it uh Madam Clerk I the the uh Roberts rules on your are behind you I just throw it out the window we don't need it um I I appreciate the council's willingness to dispense with Bureau says Counselor Noble I would like to recognize you I just want to say that I asked to move it up because there were children in the back and I figured they wanted to go home.

Sorry I uh appreciate you yes uh uh the only person hasn't spoken counselor Martell are uh are you amenable to moving this up yes Counselor Roy I apologize for uh ignoring you for a second oh I'm good I was I was with I now now that we've got that out of our system uh item number six madam clerk item number six order authorizing a financial guarantee agreement with mill town sports and entertainment LLC for the acquisition of the colise requested action to adopt the order authorizing a financial guarantee agreement with Milltown Sports and Entertainment LLC for the acquisition of the Colise.

I have a motion please so moved.

Uh counselor Martell seconded by myself.

Counselor Najene uh acting director Blay thank you for joining us.

Mr.

Bostick thank you for joining us please kick us off there we go you know in your defense you didn't know if you were going to actually do this agenda item now or not so please continue please continue.

You can start with this piece.

So I'll start here.

For anyone in the room that doesn't know me.

I met with counsel earlier, which was great.

I appreciate the time.

Once again, I've been coming to the city of Lewiston for about five years now.

Um about 19 years, 19 months now on a regular basis working on this project.

Yes, it's a hockey rink, but I see it as a much bigger picture, and I laid that out to everybody here earlier this afternoon, this evening.

But it's it's about community, it's about helping kids.

It's about being inclusive, it's about giving kids an opportunity to grow the game of hockey that never had a chance to play the sport.

And we've done that since day one here.

Um has it been perfect?

No.

People from the back of the room can tell you we've had our ups and downs.

Um, but I'm still sitting here.

It's been 19 months.

Um I still want to see the success of the Colise.

And I still want to see the kids across the street, um, the kids from neighborhoods that would never have entered a hockey rink, come in and play the game.

Um along with that, obviously we spoke, it's not just a not just a rink.

Um we have tried our first concert.

We have had wrestling, we're going to have turf down in the spring and summer, and I think that this is just really big for the community, and I'm thankful for being a part of it.

I'm thankful for everybody behind me to uh to be behind me right now and uh have given me an opportunity to be part of this community.

So Milltown Sports, um it's a fairly new company.

Uh we just started this summer.

We we got the building July 1.

Um, this is one of the issues that we had discussed um previously.

July is a really tough time to get a rink.

Hockey is like uh a seasonal beach house, right?

So you don't want to buy a seasonal beach house in September when you can't rent it for the rest of the year.

Um, so we're a new company.

We put together a great group top to bottom of leaders in the industry of hockey, but also leaders in the in municipals, people that have been part of cities and development and planning and community support with everybody that's back there.

Um so that's really the Middletown Sports and Entertainment.

Anything else?

No.

So our ownership group right now.

So it's myself, a gentleman, Tom Tracy, and Matt Balkey.

Um we do not have any local ownerships quite yet.

We've talked to a lot of people in the community.

We have a lot of local supporters.

I put them on this list without the support and without the the families.

Um we don't have an ownership team.

Um Tom Tracy's background is in um construction, fire safety.

Um he's come up here and he's done work when we were just getting in the building, and we had some code violations that we had to get up and make the building safe.

Uh Matt's background is in insurance, and he's done a lot of work on that side of it with us.

Uh, myself, uh, my background, um, this is hockey.

This is 16 years for me.

Uh, this is my fourth program that I am building that is based on being a self-sufficient hockey program and a self-sufficient building.

Um let's face it, I I'd say about 98% of hockey is um trust fund.

It's it's big equity, it's wall street, and our model and what has worked in the past and still works.

Um I built the Islanders Hockey Club, Boston Hockey Academy, St.

Stevens.

Um, it's about being self-sustainable.

No one in this room wants somebody to come in, throw some money down and get bored three, four years later.

What we built here is self-sustainability, and that's our goal with this arena.

This is just some general information about the call, say.

If you haven't been in there lately, there's a new roof, there's a new bar and lounge, the concessions are have been improved.

It's clean.

There's toilet paper this year.

So we we've made as many improvements in a short time as we we possibly could.

The history of Lewiston, I think everybody here knows that.

It's special.

I mean, the reason I keep coming up here is I I get goosebumps walking in there.

Um not just hockey.

It's boxing, it's graduations, there's kids remembering their last day of high school there.

It's there's so much history in that building.

Um we want to be a part of the solution of continuing it.

Continuing part of the history here.

Um not on here.

I think it was like the 1930 Lewiston Maple Leafs that turned into the 1950s, if I'm right, uh Twin Cities, I believe they were called in the 1950s.

Uh this goes on.

Uh 1930s of having the Lewis and Maple Leaves is unbelievable.

Um today leagues are changing constantly, and we're dedicated to continuing to bring the most entertaining, the best hockey we can, um, and the best events and other sporting um events that we can into the into the Colise.

These are just some recent upgrades.

The the roof was uh was a million dollar upgrade.

Um the parking lot being eight acres was uh a nice three hundred thousand dollar pavement, but we don't lose front bumpers driving in there anymore, so it was well worth it.

Oh, go back one.

Um so when we had met with the Quebec Major Junior League, the the facility is actually in a really good um state right now.

They would like some luxury boxes, it's not a need.

They would like you know, a refs room to be nicer, it's not a need.

Everything that they gave us in their specs when they left was safety requirements.

Netting to be certain heights and certain locations, um, everything had to do with safety, everything else on top of that was stuff that we can take care of as we go.

Um growing the game, I mean, this is just you know hockey, yeah.

We we're gonna get a basketball court, we're gonna put turf in.

Um we want to we want to grow all sports, but um, in terms of growing the game in this city is giving kids um youth from all different areas, all different neighborhoods.

Um Boston Hockey Academy was the first to have a girls' academy in New England.

Um I think the growth in women's sports is gonna be huge, and I think Maine is already starting to do a really good job of that, and we want to be on the forefront of that as well.

So we have a 3.5 million dollar investment right now.

Um from TM investment.

Um shockingly, it's a uh it's a Lewiston-based family company, um, which I think is fantastic.

Um everything we've done since we've got here we've you know, I've talked to a lot of people here.

Um I bleed Lewiston now.

Um I get mad if something goes to Auburn.

So I'm so glad we were able to find somebody that would you know secure the investment side of it.

Um that was a Lewiston uh family owned business.

I think this is just about our our group in the Quebec League here.

Um we have guys like Ken Hodge, he's a legend in hockey.

Um we've brought in a lot of great people.

Um we have the youngest coach in the NCDC team right now doing a great job, who's a local local kid.

Our whole staff is local.

That was a huge, huge emphasis for me from day one was to use local vendors, restaurants, hospitality, and staff.

Thank thank you, Nate.

I'm gonna go ahead and basically I put together a memorandum for the uh the mayor and city council.

It's in your packet, but I'd like the public to hear about our way forward and how we're gonna, you know, how this, you know, essentially the the financial guarantee request is gonna work.

And really, this is Milltown Sports acquisition of the Colise.

That's that's the end goal is to get the Colise in new ownership to move the Colise forward so we have some longevity.

The economic and community development department respectively request City Council consideration approval of a financial guarantee for 1.4 million to support the acquisition and continued operation of Colise by Milltown Sports.

As you know, they've been here since July and been doing that for the last year with uh lots of investment already done.

This approval moves the sale forward to the underwriting of TM investments to include appraisals and financial checks.

I think that's the most important piece here that this is just moving this forward, and then we're gonna go ahead and put together the financial uh guarantee, which I'm gonna get into.

Milton Sports has negotiated a total purchase price of 4.9 million for the Colise down from an asking price of over 6 million.

A critical recreation and economic asset serving Lewiston in the broader region.

The proposed financing structure includes $3.5 million loan committed by TM Sports, which Nate discussed as a local investor, with the remaining 1.4 million dollar seller-held note to be retained by Dr.

Darrell Antioch.

The current owner of the Colise and primary shareholder of furland management.

The this remaining 1.4 million dollar represents the final fight financial component necessary to complete this transaction.

Milltown Sports has requested that the city provide a fan uh financial guarantee for the seller-held note in order to finalize the financial financing package and complete the purchase.

This guarantee would not represent an immediate expenditure of any city funds, but rather a financial assurance to facilitate the completion of the financing package.

So this is just a piece.

As you know, there's many pieces here.

The financial the city's financial guarantee would be supported by defining protections to the city.

One being a secure lean position of the property, subordinate only to the primary and secondary lender, TM investments, and structure to ensure the city's financial interests are protected.

A personal guarantee structure supported by a minimum one-year lease extension and operational commitment.

This operational commitment is key to luring getting the Quebec Junior Major Hockey League here.

We have to have this established here and now in this present day for this vote to happen so we can move the operations.

We can continue the operations during this transition period.

Performance benchmarks by the city will require a continued operation and availability of the facility for local youth hockey, high school hockey, and amateur athletic programs.

Um and I truly believe that this is this is our best foot forward.

The colise represents a final a vital community asset that supports youth and amateur athletes, regional tournaments, entertainment events, economic activity for local businesses, ensuring its continued operation and under stable ownership, aligns with cities' economic goals, preserving an important public venue, and maintains the Lewis Dom role as a regional destination for sports, recreation, and entertainment.

Without this final financial guarantee, this transaction's is done.

It's done.

Which would potentially place the long-term viability, the programming that's continuing to move on, the economic benefits of the facility would all be at risk.

The city's potential exposure under the proposed 1.4 million guarantee would be supported by substantial collateral value.

The negotiated price of $4.9 million establishes a current market supported valuation benchmark for the property with a primary loan again of $3.5 million and a city guaranteed seller's note of $1.4 million.

The total stack capital stack aligns with the appraised transaction value.

So they need to have a transaction value that's going to meet this requirement.

And again, to move that forward, we need the vote tonight.

So just one second.

Can we turn down the volume on the whole TV?

Thank you.

If I can hear it in here, it sounds pretty loud.

Please continue, Director Blay.

Yep.

In the event of a default, the city's secured lien position, subordinate only to the primary and secondary lender would be provide a recoverable interest in a major regional facility with significant structural land operational value.

The value ads include an option to purchase three or four acres of vacant land associated with this guarantee.

I think that's important to note.

There's an existing park there.

That could lead to an additional JDA or an additional sheet of ice.

So that that's I think that's important.

Additionally, the personal guarantee provides uh provisions, operational performance benchmarks, again continuation of revenue generating programming, hockey, entertainment, events, and other year-round uses.

Serves to reduce financial risk by supporting ongoing ongoing revenue streams and preserving asset value.

These protections collectively ensure the financial the city's financial guarantee is backed by both real property collateral and operational viability, substantially mitigating potential financial exposure.

The operational viability, I can't say that enough.

Thank you.

Thank you both.

Yes.

Administrator Kenworth, did you have something?

One quick point.

Yes, administrator, that could be a condition of this approval.

Thank you.

Counselors.

Yes.

Councillor Najene.

Thank you very much for the presentation.

Just as a quick piece, the operational performance benchmarks are requirement, but we don't actually have a mechanism in order to require to make them happen.

Correct.

Yeah, there would be there would be a mechanism for that to happen.

It would be part of the exhibit to the to the agreement.

Which would come before council.

Yes.

Okay.

Perfect.

And then when we talk about the collateral that's that's backing, it's the personal guarantee as well as the standing property value, should there be any property value once uh the first uh uh claimant uh uh gets whatever funds they have back.

So I I obviously I hope we never get there, but yes, the the value um it would be in the land and the assets that are there, um and that would be accessible by the to the city.

So one of the things I I think we're still carrying on uh the LCIP some uh some debts from the last time we went through uh Colise uh funding pieces.

One thing I'd like to think about, and I don't know if that there's a mechanism in which to do this, but instead of having uh the current owner hold a note, it would it be possible that we fund that portion and get paid uh interest on on the 1.4 million, giving us actual value.

Um and also giving us some guidance and direction should something fail.

I'm not saying anything is going to fail.

That's not what I'm saying.

Um I'm just saying that at the end of the day, uh having uh some like uh putting in a write-of-first refusal, I don't know is is even a possibility, nor would we necessarily have the funding to do it in a in in a given window.

Um I'm just asking these questions as things to think about.

Like ultimately, I think a lot of us would want to see that the valuation of the property comes through before we give the final approval, but like we give conditional approval tonight.

Yeah.

But just thinking about the different funding mechanisms that also allow us to have maybe a little bit more control and skin in the game.

Council, uh if I could speak.

Um yeah, I I appreciate that flexibility.

Um I I think that that might have been a harder ask.

Um but you know, if there's support uh from the council and from our you know, city administration that you know that gives us in terms of you know a financial deal some flexibility and you know, it may be a possible way out, but that's you know, that's just theoretically speaking.

But we'd have to figure out where the funding would come from, obviously.

Um I'm I'm just trying to think of ways ultimately we want to see the Colise used to its fullest potential.

We want to see development going forward.

We'd love to see a second street of ice.

If we get a turf field, that'd be fantastic.

If there was other development that was happening there, that'd be fantastic.

Those were all in the proposal pieces that I saw.

Um but there's also a question of you know this is gonna this is what we have playing going in and uh please speak into the mic for our audience at home.

Sorry, this is what we uh have coming mid-May Um if all goes planned, and that can be lacrosse, that can be flag football, that can be uh all sorts of of indoor.

Could be Hearts of Pine exhibition games, possibly on a rainy day.

Well, the idea we can put the floor on top of that too, to continue to have the circus that comes and camps and and stuff.

So really my questions were really about like how the funding mechanism works and if there's a possibility that we could uh actually get paid the interest on it as opposed to a third party, um, and then also give us uh maybe some controls as far as should something happen along the way.

Um and also some investment level too.

So um but obviously um aside from the uh evaluation of the property, actually like measuring out to what uh the sale price is.

Um I don't necessarily see a problem going forward from my perspective.

So thank you.

Counselor Long Champs.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um first I'd just like to uh say thank you for uh being willing to invest uh here in Lewiston.

And it sounds like you really uh love Lewiston and thank you very much.

Um I think it's important to keep the Colise alive.

Um I think it's been kind of dull for quite some time.

Um but I remember, you know, when the parking lot was full, and you know, it brings a lot not only to that building to but to businesses uh surrounding it.

So from my understanding, this 1.4 million dollars isn't actually coming from taxpayers unless something were to happen.

Um I do kind of like the idea of I don't I don't know if it would be possible for us to uh loan that kind of money.

I I don't know, but um maybe it's something you can talk to administration about.

Um then we'd have a little more uh control if something were to happen.

That's not anything against you, it just in life things happen.

But I look forward to uh the soccer turf.

Uh you know, the indoor we we've wanted that, the community has wanted that for a long time.

And uh I think hockey is something that's really important.

And uh I think hockey is something that's really important, uh and that's a huge event center for lots of different things.

So uh I look forward to attending uh things there, and and I hope that you get uh all the votes to at least you know continue uh the process that you've started.

So thank you.

Thank you.

Uh one quick question here.

So uh I I'm struggling to understand.

You know, right now we're just assuming risk, right?

That's correct, Mayor.

Yeah.

And then Counselor Nee Jean, are are you proposing that instead of just assuming risk we actually pay 1.4 million?

No.

I was saying that if we could collect the note is being held by the current owner, correct?

The 1.4 million that we're guaranteeing?

Right.

So if we were holding that note and paid an interest, there would be a profit uh on it.

That would be one thing.

And also we would have a vested interest in the actual property should something happen.

Uh and but again, I don't know if we have that money, where it would come from or how it would work.

It's just a thought at this point.

Okay.

Yeah, thank you.

Uh Counselor Herman.

Thank you.

Uh thank you for presenting.

Um I I do want to see this project succeed.

I'm still a little concerned about some of the details and um or maybe lack of details, I should say, you know, there was talk about sustainability and plans for growth, but we haven't had anything put in front of us, no numbers or anything like that.

Um I'm also concerned about the collateral if something were to happen.

Um we don't know how much the building is worth, so we don't know.

And you know, if we're third in line after the other investors, um, you know, they've got three and a half million into it.

It's currently valued at 1.8, which is probably undervalued uh understandably, but um, you know, if if something were to happen, then what happens to our 1.4 million?

It's it's a lot to put on the line without much of a much of a plan in front of us.

And that's what I'm struggling with is really the lack of the lack of information and the lack of uh of a cohesive idea before committing this money.

Counselor Chitam.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um thank you.

There there have been a lot of aspirations uh put up for the public and for us tonight.

Um these look like wonderful drawings and and renderings of what could happen.

Uh we've heard a lot of this could, we would.

Um, but per counselor Harriman, uh not a lot of detail has been in there.

Um I'm very concerned about committing 1.4 million dollars uh in the event that something were to go wrong.

And while I understand that the public who has spoken in favor of this, and we received a lot of letters this afternoon encouraging us to approve this guarantee.

Um those letters are based on emotional appeal, and I get that.

Um I'm looking at this from a risk and a and a financial standpoint.

Um I do have a couple of questions which I would like to ask uh and whoever is is free to answer those uh please.

Um is Milltown the entity that that ran into financial trouble earlier this year with its inability to pay uh electric and water bills and so on.

This year.

I'm sorry, perhaps last year.

That was Shift Sports.

We took on that in July.

Okay.

So the I think it was a $52,000 electricity bill that was not incurred by you, that was incurred by another entity before even just to have this meeting.

We were on schedule plans with everybody.

All right.

So it was not you that it was another entity that occurred that is that so there's um there was there was payment that was due, and some of that payment could have been from a previous vendor, um, but they incurred the the um those costs.

Um since that time, I know that we had put this meeting on hold.

Um, and we set up a they set up a correction uh payment program through again both the city sewer and water and CMP power.

Uh we verified that um prior to prior to this meeting.

So they're on they're on a payment plan, they've been paying their bills.

Um so um, that's that's what we know.

Okay.

All right.

So there was a hiccup, and that hiccup has been resolved in one way or another.

That's correct.

Okay.

All right, thank you.

Let's say that things go bad and that the aspirations don't happen and you cannot attract all of the concerts and venues, and I'd love to see the Colise used 100% fully utilized.

It hasn't been forever.

You say you can do that, and I'd love to believe you.

But let's say you can't.

What then happens if the loan is defaulted?

And there is a $3.5 million commitment to TM and a $1.4 million commitment to the current owner, which the City of Lewiston is now being asked to guarantee.

If that commitment is not made and the owner doesn't get his $1.4 million, it falls on the city to supply that.

So we would have to come up with the hard cold cash in that unlikely and undesired eventuality.

Is that correct?

Yeah.

I mean we've had a lot of conversations.

And you can have those securities, those checkpoints, you can have uh a dual roll position.

That was one thing that we had come up with an idea in the session as well.

Um to your point, uh another session, and this was a long time ago.

Um Joe, who is our lead consultant, he was the mayor of Somerville for 20 years, he brought assembly row into Somerville.

Um he had asked the question if I buy the building for 4.9 million dollars, and I said, I'll put another 1.4 in, and you match the 1.4.

And everybody at the table said that that's a no-brainer.

We already did our 1.4.

We're asking you to guarantee a 1.4 for us to continue.

But if we had come to that decision earlier and said, we're gonna buy this for $6.3 million, can you match a little of it?

We got yeses across the board.

So we started the process early because we had to.

And now we're backtracking and we're asking for a guarantee, and uh I understand that's a scary number.

It's a lot of money.

Um, but again, if we we went back and you had an investor tomorrow that said, hey, we'll buy this.

We need a match on a certain investment.

Uh I think a lot of people in this room would say that's a that's a pretty good deal.

Thank you.

Um you mentioned there's a new million dollar roof and a $300,000 parking lot.

Where did those funds come from?

Boston Hockey Academy.

I have funded everything this year for the most part.

So you've paid for that on a building you're leasing.

Yes.

Thank you very much for that.

I'm sure the city appreciates it.

The building appreciates it, um, and I do too.

Uh finally, I think there's a way that we can get what I'm hearing the council is concurrent concerned about is the is the lack of specificity and the lack of detail.

I'm understanding that you don't actually have the 3.5 secured.

You have a commitment from them to investigate whether or not to give you this money, but the you have to be vetted, you have to go through TNM, and I don't know TNM, uh, but you have to go through a process which I presume is fairly financially rigorous.

I would like to propose uh that we authorize guaranteeing this 1.4 million dollars tonight with a catch with some conditions.

Um I understand that you need this tonight in order for the process to move forward.

You've got like that old guy under Ed Sullivan, you've got nine plates spinning on sticks in the air, and you need all of them to keep spinning.

If we don't approve this tonight, all the plates fall down.

That's what I'm hearing, and I'm repeating that's not my own conclusion, that's what I'm being told.

So it behooves us tonight.

If we want to continue to see the Colise grow and improve, it behooves us to approve this.

However, I think I and a number of other counselors are concerned about the commitment.

So I am going to propose that we insert one word into the motion.

And I don't know if now is an appropriate time to do that or not.

Perhaps we ought to have public comment and any other uh counselors' comments, and I will make an amendment to the motion.

Uh at that time.

Yeah, no, I would appreciate that, Councillor Chairman.

But since you just mentioned uh if you did make a motion, where's that where would that what is that one word and where would it go?

Well, I'll make the motion then.

I move to amend the uh council order by inserting the word in the next to last line.

The therefore clause of this order says the city administrator, the council uh orders that the city administrator negotiate and execute in a financial agreement guarantee agreement with Milltown Sports for 1.4 million, subject to final legal review and and I would insert the word council approval and the acquisition of the call as I.

So I would like to see this come back to the council after a lot of these detailed questions have been answered after you have been vetted by TNM for the $3.5 million.

Um I'm willing to commit to the guarantee tonight, but I do want to have it come back to the council after these specifics have been addressed.

So that's my motion.

Do we have a second?

Can I ask?

Yeah, yeah, Councilor Longchamp.

I'll second the motion.

All right, we have a second.

Thank you.

Counselor Longchramps.

So if I'm understanding this right, we would the ones that want to put this forward and to see it you know continue moving, we would agree to the 1.4 million.

The only thing that would change is basically that you would come back after you've worked out some of those details or after you've worked out the details, come back and give us those details.

For our for our approval, yes.

For our approval of the details?

Of the agreement of the financial guarantee agreement, the problem is we don't have time to build a company at that point.

We don't have time to have youth trials this week.

We can't collect money, we can't build our product unless we have this time.

So coming back for another approval in four weeks is puts us out puts us out of business for a year.

And one other thing, I'm sorry.

Um I I've heard numbers a lot.

Um I faced it for the last 19 months.

There's not a PL in that place for 12 years.

There's not an expense sheet in that place for 12 years.

There's not a water bill, there's not a utility bill.

I'm writing this script every day.

I didn't know what the law was going to be.

I didn't know what the power was going to be.

We've had a gentleman in there that brought bags of cash and paid people.

I'm starting a business completely blind on numbers.

And I understand you guys want to see numbers, but I'm every month that's gone by, we figured out what that month cost on our own.

And that's the fact of it.

Uh thank you.

Okay, counselors.

Um just one thing to point out is that if we approve this tonight, uh removing the the council approval piece.

We're leaving the the pieces to the city administrator and to do the negotiation if we're specific with the city administrator and what we're expecting in order to come to a final agreement.

One would be the valuation of the building.

Uh two would be um, I believe some uh understanding of how the community benefit is ironed out completely.

Because one of the one of the things it costs us 1.6 million dollars a year to get trash removal in this city, and it only and it only works for certain residents, right?

Like we things are expensive uh unfortunately.

Um I don't know I it would be nice actually if the economic development department could come forward to us to say, you know, here are some pro formas on the economic impact in the community when this event happens, when that event happens, because it gives us numbers to actually look at to say, like for instance, if Mumford and Sons plays, or I maybe not I keep using that example.

I'll I'll use another one.

Um one second, one second.

Thank you, Mr.

Bolsway.

Please continue, Counselor Niger.

If we have an understanding of what the economic impact in our community is as well, that kind of offsets some of this discussion that we're having overall.

I know it has nothing to do with this particular uh piece, but it's it's how I answer my constituents.

Why do we invest in a particular thing?

I agree.

We have that.

One one one second.

Thank you.

Uh Counselor Natine, did you have anything else?

No, that's that you know that I think those are the things that one, if we uh approve the order as as written, but say uh to our administrator, these are the key sticking points that we want to make sure before you enter into a final agreement so that they can move forward.

I think that is legitimate.

Um we have one employee of the city can collectively.

Um then the second part is like understanding exactly what the larger economic impact is for the community when when when things happen.

I mean, obviously we don't have a place for high school hockey right now.

That's that that's a major concern.

Is it worth 1.4 million dollars?

I don't know.

Um I do know that there are other purposes there.

So Ms.

Radekinroth, did you want to chime in for a second?

Yeah, as I said before, my my thought was and you know, uh possibly we can work it out with the timeline that the the final financial guarantee agreement.

Uh yes, you could give some parameters in which to negotiate, but that actual agreement does come back here for approval before it moves on.

So I I think that may be uh just some of the concerns I'm hearing um and that I don't disagree with.

It may be wise as Councilor Chitham's motion motion suggests that it does come back.

And it's final version just for that stamp of approval here that the council signs off on it.

Thank you.

Um Counselor Long Champs, did you have your hand up?

I forgot what I was going to say.

We'll come back to you.

No, but I that's I my original thought, but I do have something else.

Um I do think that's a good idea also.

And I don't think it would really stop your other lenders or or you know, I don't think they would pull the rug out from under you.

If you get the votes tonight uh that say we want to support you, we're going to support you.

Um and then you get everything else lined up and you come back for final uh you know, that final vote, um you're still going to have our support.

We just need a little bit more um con concrete uh uh not evidence but uh documents as to how that's going to look moving forward.

And I I don't think that's too much to ask.

I think if you get the votes tonight, which is saying that we support this, we want to move forward.

Um I think an investor that is willing to loan uh you know that much money, four point what is it?

4.9.

I don't think that's going to stop them.

Yeah.

No, I'm I'm not worried about the investor, I'm worried about the kids.

So can you explain that a little bit?

So the next 30 days, there's gonna be hundreds and hundreds of kids playing youth sports there.

Okay.

We're gonna collect their money and then give it back, God forbid this came back as a no in two months, and they're not gonna have a place to play.

But if we agree tonight, if we if you have the votes, which say if it's all you know, if you get four votes that say yes, we support this.

I don't I mean, and then for it to come back, it's gonna basically come back yes for a final vote, but I don't I don't foresee that being a no, like that wouldn't even make sense.

I'm not saying that it couldn't happen, but that's that's I don't think our our uh goal.

Yeah.

Uh if I can, thank you.

Uh so I I think part of the concern is that uh I I'm not sure exact I understand uh what the council is saying that we uh you know some counselors are saying we need more uh more details.

Uh I'm not sure exactly what the council would want to see at the end.

And you know, so and and then if we have final approval, this is just like please move forward and get back to us.

This is the vote tonight then would not be an approval.

It's just like please proceed.

And if everything tur if everyone else is yes, then you can come back and then and then we can also see it for a yes.

Like I I just don't know how that uh I I'm not sure that's how we should be doing economic development in the city.

And I'm not also not sure like how what we would be looking for when it comes back.

You know, because the TN is it TNM, am I saying that right?

Yeah.

So TMN is going TNM is going to need to do underwriting, right?

And they'll you know, that whole process will need to move forward.

I I don't know what we're actually asking for.

And and why would we why we would hold it up tonight.

Mayor, if I could.

Yeah, please.

And then we'll recognize the counselor.

Um yeah, I think I think an approval with conditions that gives the administrator direction um as we sign the agreement, does the same exact thing as what you're asking for.

But it approves the project tonight.

Then you know, investors may walk away.

Um to say the least.

So you know, my experience is that you know uh we're we're gonna we're gonna execute the the agreement uh based on the direction of the council.

And if you give us clear direction, I think we we could do that.

Yeah, because if we're asking to to vote on it when it comes back, what we're really saying is, oh, we're tabling this until it comes back and then we can vote.

And I I'm just not sure that uh provides any assurance.

Um Councilor Herman, yes.

Yeah, I mean that that's my concern is voting for final passage on something where we have so little detail on it.

I mean, we don't even have a a business plan.

We don't even have a basic this is how much money I'm gonna make, this is how much money I'm gonna spend.

Um and we don't know the question about collateral still hasn't been answered about if we're third in line after someone who's invested three and a half million, what happens to our money?

Um so I might be okay with with this coming back to us if we have final approval on the agreement as the council, but I have a really hard time giving final approval tonight for something that I mean I I think it has potential and I want this to succeed, but I feel like you know if the scale's here, you should be here and you're more like here right now.

Like I think this needs to be fleshed out a bit more before we can commit this much money for for something like this.

At this point, uh Counselor Long Champs, uh did you have something else before we go to public comment?

Yes, really quick.

Um if we could approve it tonight and do exactly what we were originally going to do, trust in our city administrator to negotiate and put all of those uh things in there that we may suggest uh you know right?

Could we just do that?

Yes, we certainly could.

And it's also subject to underwriting.

So if the underwriting doesn't go through for TNM, then there's no deal, and then we're not guaranteeing anything.

Right, right.

Would that make more sense for you?

Or so again, back to the business side of it.

You know, we have bills to pay.

We have CMP, we have water, we have bills to pay staff.

We start collecting these families' tuitions, and this comes back for a second vote and it's a no.

We've spent their money powering the building, who's paying these families back.

No, that makes sense to me.

So basically I think what we need to do is either vote yes or no and trust in our city administrator to negotiate and and put in uh the things that need to be in what what's your opinion on that?

Uh hold on.

Oh, sorry, that's your own.

I'll ask opinions around here, thank you.

Counselor Long Share.

Uh Counselor Nagene, did you have something else to add?

Well, I I would like to know that as well.

But ultimately what what I'm looking at, first of all, there's a motion on the table uh to uh to um add that one word council approval, final council approval, to like looking at you know simple math, let's say uh homeowner average uh uh payment uh uh for taxes in a year is four thousand dollars as three hundred and fifty homes.

So it is a considerable amount of money.

Um you know, and and ultimately the answer I think to Scott Harriman's question to Counselor Herriman's question is if for whatever reason this does fold, we end up incurring a cost of uh of 1.4 million dollars.

That that that is what will happen now that there is a personal guarantee in there from the owner.

Um but initially we would be paying the current owner 1.4 million dollars if it fails.

Yes, counselor Herman.

Um I mean to be honest, what you said is kind of my point.

You said if you take these people's money and it something happens, who's gonna pay them back?

I feel like you should have that information before you come and ask for Lewiston taxpayer money to fund this.

Like that's the plan that I'm asking for.

Is the the business plan of how this is going to work?

Councillor Roy, and then we will be going to public comment.

Thank you.

I was just gonna say, can we go to public comment right now?

We we we can.

Yes.

We're now a public comment.

Please identify yourself.

You have three minutes.

Good evening.

Uh my name is Gil Rogers.

I'm from Topsum.

Um I serve as the president of Midcoast Youth Hockey.

Uh, we're the primary tenant for youth hockey at the Colise right now.

Um this is Lincoln, he's my friend.

Uh he's staying up way past his bedtime on a school night uh with a couple of his friends in the back because this is so important to them.

Um I had prepared remarks I was gonna read through, but you all brought up a bunch of questions that I want to make sure that I can answer the best of my ability.

So I'm gonna not gonna look down on my phone and read notes, I'm gonna look you in the eye and answer a lot of these questions.

Um questions about financial projections, questions about um economic impact.

I have done a ton of research on this.

I'm a marketer by trade.

I minored in economics in college, I do this for businesses as part of my day job.

The economic impact of the youth hockey association alone to the town of to the town of Lewiston is somewhere in the neighborhood of 1.2 to 1.3 million dollars in economic activity.

That's me bringing my kid to Italian bakery after every game, with win or loss to celebrate or win or to cheer him out to cheer him up when he sucks.

Right.

There are there are so many, and it happens a lot, we know.

Um the there the University of New England just published a study that the Portland Pirate, the Portland Mariners, rather, or the main Mariners rather, uh, are uh bring six point one million dollars in economic activity to the city of Portland.

Um and so that that was just published last week.

So the the impact of youth sports and the impact of sport in general cannot be understated and underestimated.

And what we're being what you're being asked to guarantee is less than the economic impact that the overall facility makes to the building, right?

So if we're putting the building at risk over the concern about the 1.4 million dollars, you're gonna lose more in economic economic activity just by the youth hockey association, not to mention maniacs games, not to mention the other events and programs that I'm confident that the group is gonna bring.

We've already made a commitment of about of approaching a quarter of a million dollars in kid money for ice time for the following season to say we are a part of this and we want to partner with this group, and we trust this group to support the the kids who want to play here, and that's real money that we have committed to and said we are going to spend an ice time filling up nearly 100% of youth hockey ice time from mid-September through March.

And that is the entire season that is blocked off for Midcoast Junior Polar Bears hockey to fill that building Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from open to close for all youth hockey time that's available.

So if you're looking for guarantees on the use of the space, these kids here, represented by Lincoln, because everybody else had to go to bed.

Um thank you, Lincoln's dad for having him here.

And the we're we are here to back to back up this group with the real people who are actually gonna be using the space.

Um any other questions about all of the other programs, that all comes with a little bit of trust in supporting the overall plan.

Everything that has been presented.

We have we are invested in this and want to support it, and thank you for your time.

Thank you.

Good night, Lincoln.

Further public comment.

Hey, good evening.

My name is Todd Hines, I'm from Topsum.

Um there's been a lot of conversations about the financial impact.

Um, and obviously that's a critical component here, but there's a much larger impact with this building in general.

Um I've been part of Midcoast Youth Hockey for a decade now.

Uh we've historically operated out of Watson Arena.

We get like five, sometimes six hours a week there, and we have 500 kids in our program.

There's not enough ice for us to skate there, especially with baits closing down their ice next year.

That was always our backup.

There's no baits next year.

Our ice has always been limited, but despite that, this league is really something special.

It means a lot.

It saved my wife coming out of postpartum.

Um there's this community that we've built that's special that we've brought in Lewiston and we've brought in Auburn, people that just want to be a part of it, and they're growing with us.

My three kids have grown up in Midcoast youth hockey, and tonight I really want to talk about my middle guy, uh Xander.

Um Xander lights up a room.

He is Lincoln knows he's team asander.

Um he's everyone's loudest fan.

He's the the funny kid, he's the loud kid.

Everybody flocks Zander, everybody loves Xander.

Uh except for Xander.

And um, I share all that because um without exaggeration, without shame, um, Midcoast Youth Hockey saved my son's life.

Um when he was seven, he was talking about self-harm a lot.

My second grader believed the world would be better off without him.

And when those dark thoughts take uh hold on a not fully developed prefrontal cortex, there's no logic.

Um not like the other leagues around here.

Um it meets every child exactly where they are.

The all-star, the beginner received the same encouragement and belief.

Every child who wears a polar bear sweater is taught work ethic, teamwork, and belonging.

And for my son, that changed everything.

It's been two years since I heard my kid say he wants to kill himself.

Um I know that for a fact because of Midcoast.

It's not simply additional lifetime.

Um Colise opened the doors and it allowed us to grow, to retain families and to reach children who otherwise would not have a place in this community.

It has brought families together across cities, it's created something bigger than hockey.

Without access to the colise, our capacity shrinks dramatically.

Fewer teams, fewer opportunities, fewer kids supported.

There's a lot more Xanders in the world.

I know there are more Xanders in our league.

Some of them skated at the Colise tonight.

Without this building, those children don't get the same chance that my son got.

I will continue dedicating my time and energy to the next Xander.

Please support this measure so there's still a door open for the next one to walk through.

Because for some build families, this building is the difference between hope and heartbreak.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Hello, counselors.

Megan heard Ward 6.

Um, I am also here representing our Midcoast tenue tier two state champs as of Sunday.

Um it's hard to put into words what a community building really means to you, especially when that building feels like home.

When you think about home, you think about comfort.

Your favorite spot on the couch, the burner on the stove you always use, a smell that instantly tells you you're exactly where you're where you belong.

A hockey rink doesn't exactly have that comforting scent, let's be honest.

Um, but the colise is our second home in every sense of the word.

Our kids have their spot, depending on which locker room they are in.

The parents have theirs too.

The same seats, the same place along the glass, the same corners where we stand shoulder to shoulder.

And the best part, our kids know exactly where to look.

In the middle of drills, during a face-off, after a goal, or a tough shift, they glance up and find us.

That silent connection says everything.

In that cold building, something incredibly warm is built.

Bonds between players that turn into brotherhood, friendships between parents that turn into lifelong support systems.

We celebrate together.

We stress together, we cheer until we lose our voices.

We pick each other up after losses, and we pile into the stands after wins.

It becomes a family, not the one you're born into, but the one you choose to grow with.

My child struggles with confidence in the classroom.

There are days when he questions himself.

But the second he walks through those ring doors, everything changes.

His shoulders lift, his eyes light up, he comes alive on the ice, his teammates believe in him, his coaches see something in him, import confidence into him in a way that sticks.

Out there, he isn't doubting himself.

He's strong, capable, and valued.

That's what this building gives our kids.

It gives them a place where they belong, a place where they are supported, a place where they learn resilience, accountability, teamwork, and heart.

It teaches them how to win with humility and lose with grace.

It teaches them how to show up for one another.

You can't measure that.

You can't put a price on it.

It's more than a rink.

It's more than a team.

It's our home.

Matthew Egrin, Ward 4.

Do we no longer have a time clock?

Um let's be honest.

I didn't grow up here in Lewiston.

I grew up in Old Orchard Beach.

We had the ballpark.

The ballpark.

That the city of old orchard ended up becoming the proud possessor of because a developer who had a grand plan, it failed.

We've seen businesses go into the Colise.

They have not succeeded.

I did not see a business plan tonight.

You got a he has a great optimistic plan, but there's no numbers.

Numbers are important in something like this.

He has commitment from the youth hockey team, which is wonderful.

But is that enough to keep this operation going?

I would like to see a business plan.

I'd like to see guarantees of what's going to come to the city.

As in where his what is his goal?

Okay, I'm gonna have this by this, by this, by this.

I didn't see all that.

I heard that the Turf is supposed to be here in May.

But I didn't see a business plan shown to us.

Maybe you guys got one, but I didn't hear anything about one.

Well, I'd love to see the Colise continue to grow and become what it used to be.

What I've heard it was back before I ever got here.

I also remind you, you have to be wise in what you're investing our city money in.

If this fails, that's one point four.

Are the 70 of you going to pay that 1.4?

No.

The taxpayers are it's a hard decision.

I don't envy you on this one.

Because either we support this, we take a hell of a risk, or we don't.

You guys have to make that call.

Just remember that's 1.4 million dollars.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Sorry.

Hi, it's me again, Brandon.

Umatis resident.

Uh I hate hockey.

I love it, I hate it.

It's expensive.

All right, it's a Florida vacation every year for us.

It really is.

Um, but Megan, team, last year.

We still keep in contact.

We love each other.

Um, you know, Mr.

Hines and Gil, all of them, even this gentleman right behind me.

We all know each other.

Hockey brought us together.

Now I've been going to the Colise for many years.

Concerts and the circus and all that.

I'd love to see these new guys own it because I know the current owner did away with everything.

That's why you haven't seen nothing there.

He didn't want it there.

He only bought the place just because his son played hockey.

He just wanted a place for him to go, and that was it.

And then he stays in his house in Connecticut or Florida, wherever.

He's not a stater.

Okay, he's a doctor.

New Jersey.

Yeah, I could care less about him.

I'd rather see it get used again.

Yeah, 1.4 million dollars.

If I had it, I'd invested it.

But I don't.

I'm just a lonely manner.

It's broke because of hockey.

Now for real though, I'd I'd love to see it get used again.

And you gotta have the concerts, you gotta have the trade shows, bring back the circus for the kids and all that.

The current owner.

I know the last three owners.

Okay, and the last three owners were great, and then as you've seen the changes, it started to go downhill.

No one cared.

And this guy definitely does not care.

So I'd like to I'd like to see them get it.

I know it's a lot of money, but I'd like to see them go for it.

They just everything in this world is living off hopes and dreams.

You can wish in one hand and shit in the other and see which one fills up first.

Uh please watch your language.

Sorry.

But I'm just saying, you know, I'd like to see it go forward.

We need it, the town needs it, and yeah, it would bring back a lot.

You get those concerts, the circus.

You know, that's all economic growth.

People buying junk food and candy and enjoying their time.

We're gonna sit there and let the building go to waste.

The next guy probably wouldn't be so sweet, and he'd probably do the same thing as this current owner right now.

Get rid of all the hockey because that's what he wanted to do.

He didn't care about these kids.

He wanted to get rid of all that.

He said he was gonna lock the damn doors and no, no, no more use.

That's sad.

That's sad.

I don't play hockey, I don't skate there.

But my boy loves it.

My boy loves it.

It's worth it, it's worth the experience, it's worth uh memories, it's worth everything.

That's time, thank you.

Further public comment.

Ray Vashon, Lord 4.

I played hockey back in the in the 60s.

I used to play for Holy Cross, jump in the back of a pickup truck and they bring us to the youth center to play.

You know, it was great times, and then the hockey games in the Lewis and High School against St.

Dom's.

I mean, the place was packed.

We had something to do.

You know, lately we went to the hockey game just a couple nights ago.

Great hockey.

The crowd wasn't that there, but the hockey was fantastic.

People should go and watch this stuff.

And you know, we're retired.

We said, what are we gonna do?

There's no place to go anymore.

Now we went to the concert they had.

We had finally had something to do, you know.

And he's gonna bring up more stuff for us, seniors can go somewhere and do something.

There's nothing in Lewiston.

We used to go dancing all the time.

We got mixes now, that's about it.

You know, we need to be places to go and do stuff.

We need something to do for seniors for young kids.

We need places like the Coliseo.

You know, so we have something to do.

And you guys should just vote it in.

Don't go negative, go positive.

You know what I mean?

You're all thinking if it don't work, don't worry about if it don't work.

Worry about how when it does work, what is it gonna bring to this town?

That's what we need.

Thank you.

Uh if we can have a quiet please, uh further public comment.

Kate Bash on Ward 4.

I wasn't gonna speak.

Um actually I came here thinking I did not want it done.

But after listening to everything for the kids, they need it.

I grew up uh in Lewiston, I'm originally from New York, but um, I grew up mostly in Lewiston.

We had drum course, pine tree warriors, scarlet cadets, legionnaires.

We had things to do.

Bert deal do till kept us off the streets.

Hockey's gonna keep the kids off the streets and off the drugs, and that's what they need.

Um, as far as the business plan, I think I heard somebody say my background is commercial banking.

The bank is not going to allow him to borrow money without a business plan, present it first.

And if the value is not there, they're not gonna lend him the money.

So we're not really taking a chance.

They're not gonna let him borrow unless he has I know he's doing his personal guarantee as well.

It's gonna work.

And like my husband said, be positive.

Help this guy make it positive, promote him more, vote yes.

Further public comment.

My name is Sarah Pomelo, and Lewiston has been my home for 30 plus years.

I'm invested in this community, was a 20-plus year employee of LPS, substitute ed tech classroom teacher, literacy coach.

I'm a mom of three boys who have all grown up in Lewiston.

I have a life here in Lewiston.

I am asking you to approve this opportunity you have to partner with Milltown Sports and Entertainment for the good of this community, as I believe it helps further the city of Lewiston's vision statement, which which says Lewiston is committed to being a community of excellence, position in the global community.

It's a place of pride, aspiration, diversity, engagement, and accomplishment.

In short, a civil society.

First of all, I'm a mom of three boys, all who play or played at the Colise for youth hockey, Lewiston High School, and for the junior level.

The experience for all three of my boys has proven to be instrumental in the development of who they are and how they live their life.

They take great pride in the moments they have experienced at the Colise, both the victories and the heartache.

Why?

Because the Colise was more than just a place where they won or lost.

It was a place where they developed great relationships with other peers their age, coaches, as well as with adults in their community.

In short, they were given an opportunity to grow and develop in a place that fostered excellence, pride, aspiration, diversity, engagement, and accomplishment.

Furthermore, for the past two years, I've helped to coach the Lewiston High School Girls Co-op Ice Hockey program.

The home for that program is the Colise.

I promise you that the hours spent in that building coaching the girls provides me the opportunity to join the city of Lewiston's vision in fostering excellence, pride, aspiration, diversity, engagement, and accomplishment.

Finally, this year I've worked with the Maniacs organization that is called the Coliseate Home.

Note five of those players are actually from Lewiston.

Another five or more are from surrounding areas of Maine.

My role has been among other things to find ways to get them engaged in the community.

One of Nate Bosick's utmost expectations coming into this current season was that whoever is a part of the hockey program needs to be active in the community.

So these hockey players have been involved in McMahon Elementary School once a month on early release days.

Players have volunteered typically on a weekly basis, unless scheduling or snow day issues, to assist with 21st century after school programming at McMahon.

They have facilitated floor hockey games with the youth at Tree Street.

Members of the team have also spent time, usually once every other week at the YWCA after school program.

They provided helping hands and smiling faces to the LA Metro Chamber of Commerce for both Taste of Harvest event that occurred in downtown Lewiston in October, as well as the stuff the bus event in December.

They participated in Family Engagement Night at Lewiston Middle School.

They've assisted on Ice for Youth Hockey both at the Colise and in Auburn.

They have been seen at local businesses as well as post-game skates and fan events.

In short, they were provided a space housed with people who helped them to foster excellence, pride, aspiration, diversity, engagement, accomplishment.

That's tough.

And then we're sent to do the same in our community.

Further public comment.

So we're gonna, as the administrator has said multiple times, it's well New Year's.

There to comply with charter without using a supermergatory, we need to cut six million from the city budget for FY 2027, which directory doesn't affect this.

But to Mr.

Mayor, Councilor Najin voting, well, you we're gonna have to ring fence 1.4 million just in case, taken away from other priorities.

And there other speakers have spoken about the economic development opportunities.

Well, the money spent, the city of Wilson, City Hall doesn't get any of that money that's spent locally.

You spend it at a business at a restaurant, the state gets, you know, it's cut from meals tax, sales and use tax, and then maybe the state would be nice, goes into our fun.

Five percent of that money goes into a final work.

Maybe that the state would be nice and give a municipality 60% of that if you're lucky.

So we're gonna, yeah.

So and uh this isn't a final approval.

This is just to have the two parties involved sign a purchase and sales agreement, still has to go to underwriting, still has to go closing.

Although uh mayor and counsel who were here last year, will remember with democracy brewing.

Our own city underwriter said we sh you you shouldn't went the money, but you did anyway.

There was a dumpster there a few months ago.

Nothing has happened then.

We've heard all these promises.

Ironically, from another Boston business.

Again, we're just this kicking this can down the road.

Well, Bates five is a perfect example here.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Hi, Jeff Gagne, Ward 7.

Uh, I just had a quick question for the council members.

Conflicting.

Can you clarify?

Is it taxpayer money or is the money coming from somewhere else?

I I believe, and I don't want to butcher your name, but I believe I said uh Councilman Nijin said the money wasn't from taxpayer money, followed by Councilman Herringman saying that it was coming from taxpayer money.

So I was just uh looking for clarification on that.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Hello, uh, my name is Kale BlaBrie.

I currently live in Lewis, and I don't know what ward I'm part of, but um this year I was the head coach for the Lewis and Maniacs program.

I was a graduate of St.

Dom's in 2015.

Um so pretty much every big game of my life has been played in that building.

Um I was fortunate enough to play two years of junior hockey out of that before going on to play uh division three.

Um I think two big things as a coach when you're bringing in kids from all around the world, especially uh with the window we had to build the program in 30 days.

Um, you know, currently with our group sitting in first place, the thing I'm most proud about with the team this year is that in our first year we were able to do over a thousand hours of community service across the board.

Um, and I think the missed message when you look at the call, say over the last 10 years, is that it's just a hockey ring.

It's just entitled players that come in and play.

And I feel like our group in the short span that we've been in that building has shown that it's community.

Um being a member of the community growing up here my entire life.

That was something when Nate and I originally met in July that really intrigued me because I think it's been one of the biggest misses that we've had.

Um, and I know firsthand from working for the main Nordiques for the Twin City Thunder to other junior programs that have been here.

We've gone far and beyond being involved in the local community and being a part of it.

Especially in the current generation of players, you get a little bit of entitlement with this generation.

So when you're seeing kids that come from very privileged homes to watching them be down on one knee at the Tree Street Use the Center working with children that have never even seen what hockey is something that as a coach you can't really ask for much more.

And we do expect a lot of out of our players.

And if you go back to when that facility first started getting constructed, the growth around there in the past 13 years, I think speeds for itself for what it did for the city of Auburn and having the twin sheets there.

It brings in a ton of various entities and business opportunities for everyone that only helps the economical growth within the city.

So thank you.

Anyone else before we close it?

Public comment is now closed.

Just really quick here.

And for the people playing it.

So yeah, thank you so much for being here.

Counselor Nagy.

Mr.

Mayor, I just want to clarify uh, and I think we all agree.

Um all money that the municipality spends ever is taxpayer dollars um some way or the other.

Um so just to make that clear, it's always taxpayer dollars, fees, fines, levies, um, or tax or or your property tax.

That's that's that's how uh municipality generates revenue.

Counselor Long Champs, did you have something?

Yeah, I would just like to say um, you know, I can't compare this to an empty building like Mill 5 or something.

You guys are are are a thriving hockey league um and have you know uh you've got plans uh but you are you are already established.

This building is up and running, there are people out there playing hockey.

Uh you're not starting from ground zero.

Um I'd like to see if we could just move on with the vote, please, as it is with no changes, if we could.

Uh are you asking to uh move the question?

Yes.

All right, do we have a second to move the question?

Point of order.

Uh yes.

Uh Councilor Herman.

We have an amendment on the table currently.

Yeah, I understand that, and we would move the question to vote on the amendment.

The counselor asked to vote on the original order without the amendment.

Thank you.

Um Councillor Um Councillor Long Champs, if we can hold off on I I do want to say one thing first.

So if we can yeah.

Uh Councilor Roy, I would like to say my one thing after you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor, for that.

Um, I've been waiting all night to say this.

I've played hockey with some people in this room, and you know who you are from Holy Family Days and all these things.

Um that place holds sentimental value to me so much that you wouldn't even know.

Well, you probably would know because I still remember the smell and the feeling I got when I walked into that locker room with my teammates.

It's bringing tears to my eyes right now.

Um, you know, and I I want to keep this positive.

It's not always about money, it's about relationships, it's about people, it's about community.

And I think you know you gotta take a chance sometimes, right?

And you just gotta let this go.

You gotta do it.

And that's the way I look at that.

Uh thank you, Counselor Roy.

Um, but yes, I mean, on uh on some level it is about money.

And I I understand the investment uh well, it's not an investment.

We're we're guaranteeing uh uh guaranteeing a loan here.

It's like we're uh we're we're co-signing for a car.

And uh yeah, I'm also concerned.

Uh uh, Madam Clerk, can you please read the amendment that is uh on the floor right now?

Sure.

The amendment before you is to insert the word council in the very last line of the order just before the word approval.

Okay.

And so I am uh I'm encouraging it's the amendment that's on the floor right now.

I'm encouraging the council to to vote down this change because this is not um, you know, we can we can trust that there's an underwriting process uh that will take place as well as um you know our economic uh development team and the administrator will have uh oversight over this.

And what we're you know, we don't even need to to to vote on this because all if we're if we're saying that we're gonna have approval later, this really isn't approval now.

And and I'm concerned it just doesn't um you know just kind of uh delays things and provides ambiguity.

Uh I I think we can uh you know, if we're if you're feeling good about this, uh then I think we can proceed knowing that underwriting uh will commence and uh and that the administrator and economic development team will have final review over it.

Uh counselor Harriman.

Thank you.

I I just can't support this without it coming back to the council without with some more detail.

Um the the lack of detail and the lack of numbers um is is just really concerning to me, and I would be okay if it comes back to us to review the the agreement, but I I just can't support it on um you know on on just without information.

Counselor Nagy.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

So I don't know if anybody recall recalls the whole process of of setting aside 400,000 a year for uh for the shelter, but that was a six-month process, right?

That was literally six months in order to get to the point where we decided to set aside $400,000 a year for three years for the shelter, which is less money than we're being asked to decide upon tonight.

And the challenge that constantly happens to this council is we're we have something put in front of us, and they're and it's like you've got to make a decision or else the entire city dies.

And and there's a huge amount of money involved in this.

Um and when I say huge amount of money, maybe not a huge amount of money, right?

But it's still almost five percent of our budget.

Um city city side, right?

And so like it it it is it is a considerable considerable amount to ask in a short time without having some of the questions answered.

And and I know that there were two executive sessions, which you know we won't go into because there are executive sessions that were talked about with this plan, but not to ask us to underwrite based on what was proposed tonight, you know.

And so it's just it's it's it's a challenge to me because I I'm looking at the administrator, and the administrator is saying maybe we bring it back so that the key so that the council does have a final approval on it.

Um but I also know that if we don't do anything, that building stays empty.

We also don't have hockey there right now.

I don't know if the hockey that's gonna happen uh in the next three months is gonna pay for making any of these things work.

One of the again, one of the concerns that I have is like, is there a mechanism in which we hold the note as opposed to guaranteeing something that we don't get paid any interest on?

Um and then also don't have the ability to have any say if something does go belly up.

I mean, if we're gonna if we're gonna back something, why wouldn't we actually financially back it so that we're we're making some type of at least a minimal profit, and we also have um some power in what happens if something falls apart.

That that that's all.

But you know, that's kind of my view on this.

Um and so I just wanted to share those pieces.

Uh final thoughts, counselors, before we vote on the amendment.

Uh counselor shouldn't yes.

Uh yes, thank you.

Um I I am concerned too about the the hastiness of this request.

Um it is a significant uh promise or commitment of the city, and aside from the two executive sessions at which not a lot of detail was discussed, um we've had half an hour, 45 minutes this evening to make a decision on this.

I'm comfortable with including the word council.

That's why I made the amendment that will bring it back here that will verify to us that there is in fact a business plan, that there is uh uh an underwriting commitment from TNM.

And again, I've said I don't know who TNM is and I don't know what their requirements are.

I'm taking it on faith that they are a legitimate uh lender if they've got three and a half million dollars to put forward to this venture.

Um so uh it's also been suggested that we can uh approve the original language with uh direction and terms and conditions and understanding to the council uh I'm sorry, to the administrator.

Um it's awfully late in the day to be sitting here, the seven of us, the eight of us, uh establishing and making up these are the things that we want to see in a final agreement.

So I I think that's a non-starter.

Um I'm gonna encourage the council to approve the amendment as I proposed.

Councilor Roy.

Thank you.

Um I have to apologize.

I misspoke earlier.

Um when I said it's not always about money.

This isn't my money.

It's the taxpayers' money, and I apologize for that.

Uh my emotions got the better of me on that because I was just reliving my days as playing hockey.

But um again, at the end of the day, it is taxpayer money, and uh, you know, we need to be good stewards of the money.

I also firmly believe that we need to have things in the community that people enjoy for their money.

And I think this is one of them.

And I'm confident that with all the underwriting and everything like that, that's why my emotion spoke that there will be guarantees.

So Madam Clerk, can you please call uh repeat the motion and then call the vote?

Sure, the motion before you is to amend the order and to add the word council in the last line of the order just before the word approval.

All's that for the vote, Mr.

Mayor?

Yes, yes, thank you.

Counselor from Ward 5.

Yes.

Word six.

Yes.

Word seven.

No.

Word one.

Yes.

Ward two.

No.

Word three.

Yes.

Word four.

No.

Motion passes by a vote of four to three.

Are we ready to vote on the main motion, counselors?

Madam Clerk, please call the vote.

Counselor from Word 5?

Yes.

Word six?

Yes.

Word seven?

Yes.

Word one?

Yes.

Word two?

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four.

Yes.

Motion passed by vote of seven to zero.

Thank you very much, Madam Clerk.

Thank you both.

Item number two.

Yes.

Item number two.

Public hearing and final passage regarding an amendment to the administrative code to establish a public safety committee.

There are two items for requested action.

The first item is to review, discuss, and determine an effective date of the proposed ordinance amendments.

Move that we do that, but I'm a little confused as to why we have to have an effective date.

Oh, it's because of the issue of the ad hoc versus the Yes.

We had discussion last time.

Yes.

Thank you.

Realistically, uh Administrator Kingrath, when is the earliest that this could be done, given that we have to 30 days and so on and so forth?

Of when this committee would begin its work?

Yes.

Sorry, that's a better way to put it.

Again, I think there's been some discussion between the mayor and the council when this you you have an active ad hoc committee on this topic.

I think there was some that would like to see this committee uh take shape earlier than that, but I think there'll still need to be some discussion on that.

So it can be uh put out to a date certain of when the new committee begins, but I think that's really a a a decision for the mayor and council to decide when this new committee will will take over because there is an active committee already in place.

And again, from a staff perspective, I think there's some concern about uh staffing two committees on the same topic operating in parallel tracks.

Yes, no, absolutely, and sorry, I apologize for uh the way I wish I asked the question.

I I was not trying to uh ask staff to to take sides in this dispute.

But when so if we pass this tonight and then it takes place 30 days after that, when would the soonest uh never mind about uh uh when would the soonest this committee could begin its work?

Like realistically, well, being that there's an active committee right now, I think it could be seamless at whatever point is desired, whether that's in thirty days or whether that's in four months.

I think that's a decision for the council.

If we pass it tonight, it would be active in 30 days, so it would be active potentially within a month, depending on also when we filled it.

Correct.

I guess my response is staff is ready to go whenever.

Okay.

Because we're already staffing a committee of some more topic right now.

Correct, yes, understood.

Thank you.

Um thoughts from counselors.

Uh counselor uh chitam, yes.

Thank you.

Um how does the membership of the current ad hoc committee comport with the required membership in the ordinance?

Is it possible in in some ideal world that the people who are serving on the ad hoc committee could all of a sudden start serving on the standing committee?

Do they meet the qualifications of the 14 people that have been listed in the ordinance?

Uh yes, some uh yes.

Uh some would there could be some overlap in terms of positions.

I have to have to go through them like one by one.

But yes, there could be some people who if they would if they so choose to serve on the standing committee could then apply and then you know be nominated by myself and then uh confirmed by council.

Do you have a sense, Mr.

Mayor, of whether that's 20 percent, 60 percent, 80 percent of the 14 people.

How many people are serving on the ad hoc committee right now?

Uh I think there's like eight or nine of us.

But um let me get back to you about that number.

And then so it's not just do they fill the slots, is do they want to continue on uh on a standing would they want to apply for a standing committee?

And I'm not sure that that's a given uh but i it could be.

I have not posed that question to them is what I mean.

I I I'm I'm making the assumption that if you're willing to serve on an ad hoc committee with a with a particular charge that you would also be willing to serve on a standing committee with that same charge.

That's a fair assumption.

Uh however, the standing committee will be for um all eternity.

And so uh ad hoc committees have uh finite dates.

And again, we wouldn't be expecting anybody to serve for all eternity, even in a standing committee.

I understand, but yeah, you get what I'm saying.

Um Counselor Najing, did you have your hand up?

Um just really quickly, uh, and this is actually a question for administration, but um when are we done with the budget?

When do we have to have it approved by?

It's like the first week in June, right?

Beginning of May.

Oh, okay.

So could we just set this to like uh hypothetically June 30th and I'll kind of agree and just kind of vote on it and move on?

I I'm um I mean I my preference would be to run through the end of August, but I I refuse to like battle the council on this.

So if the council, you know, if the if the council is willing to do June 30th, then I I would say give me another couple of months.

But if uh if the council is adamant that it starts right away, like we don't need to uh I I don't want to fight over the kids here.

I just know that we have two months of intense uh pieces with the budget.

And so I maybe August is is appropriate.

I honestly don't know.

I just know that I want to move this over to uh to a standing committee, and I want to make sure that we have enough like I don't want to be fighting about appointments to this committee uh while we're talking about the budget.

That's all.

No, no, no, no.

I absolutely do not there's no ego here is what I'm trying to say.

I I would love to have to the end of August.

In that case, we would have a September one start date, and then you know, have take applications and then be ready to go for for September one.

Um but I want us to be wholly focused on city business uh and not uh arguing about bureaucracy.

So yeah.

Um counselor long champs, yes.

As I stated before, I would like it uh to start right away.

Um but if we could all just agree on September 1st, I would agree to that as well.

That would give plenty of time to um you know uh take applications and all of the great things that have to happen to make sure that you have a uh great committee to get lots of things uh done that um that need to be done.

So I'm fine with you running until September first.

Thank you.

Um we'll come back to you, Counselor Naging.

Counselor Herman, yes.

Thank you.

Um yeah, I don't know why it can't just start uh in 30 days after we pass this.

Um September 1st is about six months from now, and I just see that as another six months of not much being done on this topic, which is again one of our top two priorities of the council.

I reject the notion that we would waste the next six months.

Uh counselor Naging.

Um one of the concerns that I that comes up just in my mind really quickly.

Summertime is really busy as far as public safety issues are concerned.

Maybe it might be good to have uh standing committee in place um for that summer period.

So I kind of do agree that if we could get it up and running as quickly as possible, that would be beneficial.

Feedback from other counselors.

Uh yeah, sorry, counselor Chudam.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um, September 1st, June 30th.

It's a date.

Um I I appreciate that we want to get a standing committee operating.

The first of the fiscal year is a date too.

Um July 1st seems to be a compromise.

Uh it gives time plenty of time for applications to be submitted.

It gets us out of the budget season.

Um it's not addressing the issues during the height of the summer.

Um but I I propose the first of July.

It's a nice start of the fiscal year date.

Further comments from counselors for go to public comment.

Yes, Councilor Martel.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Sooner the better for me.

This is going to be the group going forward.

Councilor Roy.

Thank you.

I too would say sooner the better, uh reasonably.

Um because with applications and all that stuff, I know that does take time and pressure on the administration.

So but as soon as as soon as we come.

Public comment for this agenda item.

Uh Matt Roy, word six.

Uh so last November, Mr.

Mayor, you you might remember, you issue the order for the current committee, which has a date certain uh ex term expiration, which is well, conveniently the end of the year.

So your this August 1st is well, any dates arbitrary by nature, obviously, but you we could we don't need the August is an artificial date, which for some reason you're wedded to it up until recently.

Um the city's website, all we have is a list of a dozen people for the current committee, the order, and nothing else.

So is it fit is it actually reasonable and fair to call this the ad hoc committee active?

There is no published agenda minutes since November.

Well, this is the order from November.

There's nothing posted on the city website that this committee is done anything.

Held any meetings, there's no minutes, there's no agenda.

So this committee is not doing anything anyway.

So we we can end this third within 44 30 to 45 days.

We you we can do more query, yes, your time as of next Tuesday is gonna be to vote your next 10 weeks, two days a week until then.

Occupied by the budget, rightly so, because that is the mission statement of the next year.

We we can do more than more than one thing at once, and apparently the current committee hasn't done a thing.

No public information posted.

So it's it's not feasible and fair and accurate or transparent or accountable to say that this the committee is actually active.

There's no record that it's ever met since November 25th, 2025.

Thank you.

Further public comment.

Back to the council.

Uh yes, I would agree that the website needs to be updated.

Um Councilor Chitam, yes.

Thank you, Mr.

Mayor.

Um if this ordinance becomes effective 30 days after today, which will be April 2nd.

Does that mean that the committee has to be fully constituted by April 2nd?

The ordinance doesn't become effective.

The ordinance doesn't require populating the committee immediately.

So the language of the ordinance, I think, should be 30 days.

And then whatever time it takes to populate the committee, uh and we can work the transition out with the mayor, who I'm sure would be uh I'm I'm positive would be amenable to a smooth transition between ad hoc and standing committees, particularly since there appear to be a number of people who are already on the ad hoc committee.

So uh I'm proposing that the blank date we fill in be 30 days from today, the passage, which would be the effective date of the ordinance, and then we work with all deliberate speed to fill that, and we've got a ready slate of eight or nine people who are already serving on this ad hoc committee ready to go.

So if a mo has a motion been made?

No, we're still discussing.

I don't know how we can discuss without a motion, but I will move then that we fill in the blank with uh April 2nd, 2026.

Uh Did you catch that, Madam Clerk?

Yes, that the effective date would be April 2nd, moved by Councilor Chitam, seconded by Councilor Nagyen.

Thank you.

Uh further questions or comments before we vote.

Madam Clerk, please call the vote.

Counselor from Ward 5.

Yes.

Word six?

Yes.

Word seven?

Yes.

Ward one?

Yes.

Word two?

Yes.

Word three?

Yes.

Word four.

Yes.

Motion passed by vote of seven to zero.

Thank you very much.