Barriers and build bridges for more unite at Los Angeles.

A Los Angeles is truly for all.

Here's the idea.

In a city of four million people, we walk our streets, drive to our jobs, we see a lot of folks every day.

We may not know them.

So just reach out and say hello with a smile.

It breaks down barriers, it makes new friends.

Every day we meet somebody new.

And just say hello brings us closer together.

You know, just saying hello may seem very simple, but it can have such a tremendous effect.

Builds community, you build relationships, and so we're encouraging folks how we represent Los Angeles by saying hello, getting to know your neighbors and building bridges.

Especially right now in this moment.

Learn to say hello in a different language.

It can have such an amazing effect for non-English speakers.

So we can let them know that LA is for everyone and we care about them.

We're trying to show the world what LA is really about.

Well, my dear friend Ugo was talking, reminded me that we had our hello moment too.

I get elected to the city council.

Ugo gets liked to the city council.

Folks were just assuming who we were and telling us who we were and that we wouldn't get along.

You know what we did?

We just said hello.

We had coffee and we sat down and we talked, and as we were talking, we realized what is inevitable in every one of these conversations that you have with someone who you don't know.

You create connection.

Begins with hello, but it it ends with what do we believe together.

Just say hello is una campagna que serve com un recordatorio atelinos que para poder connectarnos, usualmente solo Iun simple passo.

El desir hola, el decid buenos días, buenas tardes, buenas noches.

People just saying hello, it seems like a small gesture, but it goes far.

And we want to be intentional to give people that vehicle to know that it's okay to just say hello, to break down barriers and to build bridges for a better Los Angeles.

LA City Wreck and Parks department joined with the Clippers and took a pickup basketball league to a citywide level.

Opening up sports as an outlet for young men has been a game changer for them, both on and off the court.

We are Michelle and Barack Obama sports complex where we have this fabulous league sponsored by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Been going on for years.

We've been running it here, and this is special league.

The league been around for a while.

It used to be pickups throughout the city with just different communities and stuff like that.

The Clippers took it over and working in conjunction with Wrecking Parks.

Every community has a wreck and part.

Yeah, people not sure if they could come here and play and stuff like that, but people like us, we make sure everything is safe for those different communities that can come here.

You know, with recreation and parks, our kids be here from four to like they 16 years old.

And then after that, you know, they off on their own.

They go to high school, they go to college, and then you know they don't have nothing to do.

Now, if they don't make it in college or they're just out there in the streets, anything could happen to them.

You know what I mean?

So it's important that we cater to our 18 to 25 year old because you know that's still development.

We gotta have something for those kids to do too as well.

I go to Cal State Dominguez, go touros.

As of right now, I'm a physical education teacher.

Right now that's my major at uh Cal State Dominguez, I got two degrees from LA Harbor College as well.

So, you know, but I'm an inner city kid that made some a lot of mistakes, but uh that's why I'm here to share my knowledge.

They need to have more programs like this for the kids that have these kind of opportunities is just no comparison.

We get all walks alive.

You got people that actually are in college that maybe to be able to get to a bigger higher level.

We have people that are not in college, actually gets in because of this program.

It's something that is that they need, all of us need it.

It's a good thing for all of the communities because you got some real competition out here.

You got a lot of dudes that's upscale and in basketball talent.

These are the kind of things that we try to provide and have these young men come together and have a good time.

The city's emergency management department is making sure a new generation is prepared, and it's camp ready LA.

Young Angelino's got insight into emergency response procedures and the opportunity to check out careers in the field.

We're here at the City of Los Angeles Emergency Operations Center, and this week is our fourth annual Camp Ready LA week in the City of LA.

So Camp Ready LA is a week-long program that we facilitate here at the emergency management department.

It's designed to expose 18 to 24 year olds about the profession of emergency management and other public safety sectors and disciplines.

The campers go through a number of different activities over the course of the week that will familiarize them with the emergency management planning topics, emergency response procedures like fire extinguishers and first aid, and ultimately they'll leave at the end of the week with a better skill set and familiarization with the emergency management profession.

I've enjoyed learning more about emergency management, about CRT, the crisis, a response team.

I didn't know that existed, especially here in Los Angeles.

We had a course on the bleed out.

We learned how to use the fire extinguisher.

Just very interesting, very rewarding.

I wanted to know how else the city of LA like all of them help each other out.

I wasn't too familiar with uh all of that, so I wanted to get a deeper understanding of what goes on behind the scenes.

We also just been uh talking about what the emergency operations center does and how it helps out the community, and there's just so much that I'm learning about that I didn't know about before.

I actually have a better idea of all the different things that uh city employees do.

I mean, it's not just like the things you see with you know LEFD, LEPD, like there's people like in the background, and so it's really exciting to see.

So I actually started as a camper here.

I was a participant of the Camp Ready LA program, and from there I got interested in emergency management, and I applied to be a fellow here at the emergency management department.

When I was a camper, I was just interested in what emergency management could be.

And now that I have the experience doing emergency operations center activations, I know what it's like to be behind the scenes and actually help the community, and I think that's what's the most rewarding about this.

I would definitely recommend any student, iSchool, I think it's 18 to 24, anybody in the age range that qualifies or that could take this program to definitely apply and do this program.

It definitely opens up a lot of doors.

You get to meet a lot of people.

I've met a lot of great people here so far.

Even if you're not entirely sure what you want to do, or if you're studying something unrelated, this is great to kind of just get your foot in the door and kind of really start that like next part of adult life.

We caught up with the office of LA City Attorney Heidi Felstein Soto.

The team are meeting with seniors to connect them with available resources and get feedback on services they would like to see in their neighborhood.

The city attorney's office is.

Today we are here in Council District 10, specifically at Jim Gillian Park, and we are meeting with our seniors in the community.

This is a program that the city attorney's office has been doing for the past about five months now.

We have visited various council districts.

This is our sixth day event today, and essentially the goal is to bring services and to introduce our seniors to the various departments and services that the city of LA as well as nonprofits across the city provide.

A lot of the times as seniors age, they retired, they're out the loop.

So when you have an opportunity to bring the information and services directly to them, they feel a lot more empowered.

And it's one of the best ways of how we build community is to inform each other, keep each other in the loop with what's happening, and we have an opportunity to mastermind different ways that we can get the information to them and ways that they can contribute to what they also want to see and not just what we want to offer.

We've received some great feedback from community members, and we are happy to continue hosting these events.

Right now, we are aiming to host at least one event at a different council district each month.

It's really essential for all programs if we're gonna thrive and provide services that are well meaning.

A lot of times people are interested in doing one-off events, but I think when you can have a web, it generates that root care that can grow, and you can be so creative, and then when you combine the resources, I think the sky is the limit.

Mayor Bass issues an emergency executive order related to the Palisades.

A new guide will support City of LA child care providers, and the LA Zoo now has two Tasmanian devils on view.

The stories up next on City Beat.

Following an executive order by California Governor Newsom, Mayor Karen Bass has issued an emergency executive order to prohibit Senate Bill 9 within a very high fire hazard severity zone.

Bass noted developers could have changed single-family lots into multiple residences, further challenging ingress and egress in the fire damage palisades.

According to Bass, Senate Bill 9 was not originally intended to be used in the rebuilding of a community decimated by the worst natural disaster LA has ever seen.

Under this emergency executive order, the City of LA will not accept or process applications for projects within the Palisades Fire Area.

For more information, visit mayor.lacity.gov/slash press.

The community investment for families department has partnered with Council Member Nithia Rahman to launch a new child care toolkit.

The starting strong guide is designed to help in the process of beginning and growing child care businesses and to give support to existing child care operations.

The community investment for families department reports that in the last decade the city of LA has had a significant shortage in licensed child care, with only 22% of children up to age five having licensed care.

According to Council Member Raman, this community investment in child care providers will have an impact on future generations of Angelinos.

For more information, visit community investment.lacity.gov/slash articles.

In partnership with the Australian government, the LA Zoo has received two Tasmanian devils named Danny Zuko and Crush.

Tasmanian devils are indigenous only to Tasmania, an island state of Australia where they are the top predator.

According to LA Zoo, Tasmanian devils are marsupials with the strongest by force relative to body size of any mammal.

This is the first time in five years that the zoo has Tasmanian devils, and they can now be seen in the animals of Australia Habitat.

For more information, visit lazoo.org.

This small garden at the fire station in Woodland Hills is really only a patch.

But into this patch goes a lot of community hearts, and the seeds that have been planted there are now yielding some real fruits and veggies.

So we are here at Fire Station 84.

We are going to be taking a look at the very abundant summer garden that we first started about a year ago.

We've had four seasons now, and everything's thriving.

So this seemed like a good time to show everyone what we're up to here at Station 84 in Woodland Hills.

Okay, well, there were a bunch of rose bushes that were not being taken care of.

I went around, I asked everyone, does anyone care about them?

And the response I got commonly was do whatever you want with them.

I fortunately teamed up with one of the local community members named Jill.

We call her the plant lady, and she had a pretty heavy hand in making this garden happen.

So we kind of immediately got to work planning the concept, and it's just gone so much better than we could have even hoped for.

A lot of people are surprised how small the garden is, but it produces a big volume of produce and vegetables, and I think it's great.

So it supplements what the firefighters are already cooking.

I mean, we kind of all know a pound of tomatoes is kind of expensive, so it does offset the cost of their food bills a little bit.

Having fresh fruits and vegetables does taste different and it's rewarding.

It brings me joy.

I think it's great for all of us mentally.

It helps us out.

It also builds community.

And I think that's something really special about gardens.

It brings people together, and that's something that this garden has also been doing where the community is coming out.

So we are inspiring people.

The greatest thing that I take away from the garden is getting a bunch of firefighters and the community together to make something special happen.

First it wasn't easy, but it's come together in such a magical way that I'm pretty stoked about it.

The extraordinary life of Dr.

Mary McLeod Bethune was honored by the Los Angeles Public Library at the branch that bears her name.

Today we're celebrating the memory of Dr.

Mary McLeod Bethun.

We've been dedicated to her memory, and we just thought this would be a great time.

Her 150th birthday.

We have a library that's named for our founder, and it does such wonderful work here in the community.

And it's been here for a while.

And we were so proud and so happy to get that invitation to come and do this presentation here at this library.

And we have uh four or five readers talking to us about the legacy of Dr.

Bethun and the work they're doing for the community.

You're happy to see all these smiling faces.

I'm gonna kind of start it off and give everybody the little bit of background and history and so forth, but then I'm gonna let the other ladies kind of share some input from their own personal experiences.

I look at her as a role model whose legacy transcended decades after decades after decades.

What I uh really like to say in reading about um Mary McClellan the Doom was uh full-circled moment for us as women right now.

To honor this woman who I don't even know what is just amazing.

And the more I've grown with NCNW, the more I lines about her.

Her parents were slaves, and she was told that she could never be educated, and her one wish was to learn to read.

Once she learned to read, the world was open to her, and she just went from there.

She was the first um African-American lady who worked with a number of different organizations.

She was actually president of the NAACP one time.

Um, she was president of the Urban League one time.

She figured out that there was power in numbers.

So she wanted to put everyone together so that they could have one voice.

And that rest still resonates today because the issues that we had then are the issues that we still have now.

The sun's out, and there's no better time for getting the community together and hanging out at the rec center, especially when water's involved.

Everyone gets to jump in before the summer slides away.

This is our summer kickoff bash, so we're welcoming the summer to our community.

We've got water jumpers, we've got food, we've got icy.

Basically, what this is is we're telling the community the summer's here.

We want to get the community members together at the recenter.

We're here with Resilient, it's a community outreach program.

And again, it's all about making wonderful safe summer for our community.

We're offering goodie bags for the kids, including backpacks and school supplies for back to school.

All our kids are going back to school in a month or so.

Um, and we have a lot of activities here for the kids: water slides, jumpers, face painting, and we're food serving lunch for all the members of the community who come by here today.

In spite of recent events, we just want people to know that the city of Los Angeles is still here for them.

It cares about them.

It wants them to know that we have resources, we have numbers they can call, we have programs that can help them.

Unfortunately, a lot of them might not know about this, and we just are here today, spreading the word, letting them know that it's here for them.

Hey, you guys come over here.

It's a great opportunity to bring people from the community together.

You know, a lot of times in these kind of neighborhoods, we might be neighbors, but we might not be friends, and this is a perfect opportunity for us to come and meet each other and get together and break bread all in one place.

The Los Angeles Public Library has a lot more than books on offer.

Step in to the Mid Valley Branch Library, and you could be stepping up your physical and mental health.

This is the spot for welcoming and enthusiastic community class of Zumba.

Here at the Mid Valley Library today, we have our weekly Zumba class on Saturday mornings.

The 9 30 class is for adults, and we have a 10-30 session for children.

It's sponsored by our friends of the Midnawe Library.

We love to come, my daughter and I, because we like to help our help.

We feel more comfortable, more happy after the class.

Helps them move around and exercise and stay sharp and stay fit.

And it's all free here at the library too.

I'm so happy the community is actually providing this.

This is something that everybody needs to step in because actually you get socialization and you get to exercise.

Everybody in the class bonds.

We have a great enthusiastic instructor that's here.

Lula is amazing.

She is actually the best instructor.

There's no requirements for the class for you to show up, walk in, sign a waiver form, and you're all good to go.

Just come ready to exercise, come with your sneakers.

It's also really nice to enjoy with other people.

We meet people, we enjoy, we laugh.

So come on and join us.

Why are you missing out?

The Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery is located at Barnstall Art Park.

The park has five different entities.

We have the Hollyhawk House, we have Residence Ape, we have the Junior Arts Center, we have the Gallery Theater, and we have the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery.

So the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery was established in 1954.

And they had a number of exhibitions in here until 1971 when the current building was constructed, and this 10,000 square foot gallery is now able to exhibit even more artists.

The gallery continues after 1971 to really focus on Los Angeles artists.

And in actuality, it is the first institution in uh Los Angeles that is dedicated to exhibiting only art.

We actually predate LACMA in becoming a museum of art.

One of our unique qualities is that we do not have a collection.

We are always changing exhibitions.

All the exhibitions at the Municipal Art Gallery is dedicated to exhibiting the art of Los Angeles artists.

We have three exhibition periods a year.

We have summer, fall, and spring.

Every year, we also exhibit the annual Cola Exhibition, which is the Department of Cultural Affairs award to mid-career artists.

The gallery is free, so you're able to come in and see these exhibitions and learn about new artists sometimes before they've even been featured in a gallery.

The Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery provides this space as an outlet for artists, and it's so important to continue to support the art as a medium for our community to respond to the issues that are occurring in our world today.

The arts are incredibly important.

They provide that additional outlet for our community to express themselves and to learn from others.

The municipal art gallery can be a place where dialogue can occur between different groups and learning about diverse issues that are happening in our society today.

How do the visitors get to learn about something new, be challenged by ideas that different artworks promote, and also see beauty.

To really honor and promote the arts and local artists.org or following us on Instagram at Lamag Barnstall.

We are very prominent on uh social media.

In this week's things to do, enjoy open air theater in Griffith Park.

Catch some kitschy culture and history at the Central Library and dig in for an LA Sanitation Home Composting Workshop.

All the subnects on things to do.

If it's summer, it must be the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival.

This year, the Independent Shakespeare Company also presents Marlowe's Dr.

Faustus.

In the play, a mysterious scholar wishes to master the dark arts and strikes a deal with the devil to make it happen.

Dr.

Faustus takes to the stage from Wednesday through Sunday, beginning on August 6th.

Enjoy theater under the stars at the Griffith Park Free Shakespeare Festival with Dr.

Faustus, playing Wednesdays through Sundays at 7 p.m.

from August the 6th until the 31st.

Find out more at culture.lacity.gov slash events.

Join LA's public library for a fun-filled afternoon of storytelling with pop culture author Charles Phoenix, known as the King of Retro.

Phoenix is a mid-century pop culture expert, performer, and collector celebrating classic and kitschy American life and style.

On Sunday, August 17th, Phoenix is bringing some of today's most vibrant historians together, including Foo Houser, Merch Motel, and The Hood Historian.

Come and learn something new about the city you live in.

Visit the Mark Tapor Auditorium at Downtown LA Central Library.

Or Carl's Phoenix with special guests on Sunday, August 17th at 2 p.m.

For more information, visit lapl.org/slash events.

LA Sanitation and Environment presents a series of local workshops.

I know it's Saturday, August 16th.

They host home compost thing and urban gardening in the South LA wetlands.

Learn how easy it is.

The compost at home, an LA Sanitation Green Waste Specialist will show you how to turn kitchen scraps and your trimmings into nutrients for your soil.

Register on events for your spot, which includes a plant giveaway for each attendee.

August 16th at nine AM.

For more information.gov.

And that's a look at some things to do.

And that's all for this week.

I'm Natalia Belvaleo, and from all of us here in LA this week, thank you so much for joining us.

Remember that you can watch us online anytime at LACityview.org and we're also on Instagram, Facebook, X, and YouTube.

See you next time for more LA this week.

All right.

Good morning, and welcome to the regularly scheduled meeting of your Los Angeles City Council.

Today is Friday, the eighth day of August, eight eight in the year 2025.

Public comment for this morning's meeting will be taken in person in this chamber.

Clerk, let's begin our proceedings by calling the roll.

Yes, Mr.

President.

Blumenfield, Harrison, Hernandez, Purado, Lee, McCusker, McCosker, Nazarian, Patilla, Park, Price, Raman, Rodriguez, Soto Martinez, Yaroslavsky.

All right, first order of business.

Items one through three are items for which excuse me, sir.

Uh first order of business is approval of minutes of August sixth, two thousand twenty-five.

Councilmember Hernandez moves, Councilmember Lee, seconds.

What's next?

Commendatory resolutions for approval.

Councilmember Rodriguez moves.

Council Member Nazarian seconds.

Can we run through our agenda?

Yes, sir.

Items one through three are items for which public hearings have been held.

The government operations committee report for item three has been submitted and is available online in council file number two five-zero two six zero.

Any specials?

Mr.

Soto Martinez.

I have an amendment for item one, please.

All right.

Which items are available for the council to consider at this time.

All right.

Open the roll on those items, close the roll, tabulate the vote.

All right, 13 eyes on that.

What's next?

The council may now proceed to presentations.

Alright, before we do uh presentations, we've got great presentations today.

Uh, but I wanted to take a minute.

Uh members uh know that before we went on recess, we had started a practice of documenting and telling the stories and hearing from our constituents that were victim and uh caught in uh the siege that has been on this city by the federal government in the name of uh immigration reform.

Uh we got a restraining order and the raids calmed down for I don't know, ten or eleven days.

Uh and it seemed like just as we came back to council, the they start it back up.

So, as long as um these masked men are in our streets uh harassing and abducting our neighbors, we're gonna take a minute at the beginning of every meeting and uh put on the record what is happening in our city and our opposition to it.

Uh and so this morning uh we'll hear from Councilmember McCosker from the 15th district, and we will do so uh every morning until uh this siege is over.

Mr.

McCosker.

Thank you, Council President and colleagues.

I have a particularly disturbing story of an incident that happened this morning.

And I know that we all have these disturbing arrests apparently unconstitutional and unjustified.

In our district, as many of you have, we have a great group of community volunteers called the Harbor Area Peace Patrol.

And it is many, many dozens of folks who convene every day in the district, and they begin at the Coast Guard Station on Terminal Island, where information such that it's available to us tells us that two to 250 ICE agents and other federal agents stage there on the Coast Guard station.

And Council President, you joined me in a press conference with other elected officials demanding that ICE get off of the island.

This morning, in what was the normal and I will say effective operation of these peace patrollers monitoring cars coming and going, and by monitoring, I say lawfully protesting and lawfully recording the movements of cars.

One of the peace patrollers, and it doesn't matter whether it's a resident or a U.S.

citizen, but in this case it was a U.S.

citizen, was arrested, was on my observation of limited information, videotape, was brutally, aggressively taken down, and put into a vehicle and spirited it away.

Agents, when other peace patrollers sought information and kept a lawful, safe but short distance from officers and asked questions, other peace patrollers had guns drawn on them.

Had guns drawn on them.

And this person was taken away after what I would characterize with a lot of years in this business as a very aggressive uh unreasonable use of force on this human being was taken away, and we do not know because I don't have the complete information where the person was taken, but I have reported this action to Port Police, and Port Police, who has the jurisdiction for the island, is looking into all of the circumstances of the arrest.

They did not have personal eyewitness account of this arrest, which I will say that all of my observation and knowledge of the situation tells me is yet again another intentional violation of the TRO and an unconstitutional action by federal officers.

And I believe the reason why this person was arrested and why guns were drawn on the peace patrollers is because they have been effective.

They have been effective witnesses to actions, and I believe they have prevented more of these unconstitutional violations of residents' rights.

So I'm just here to report that we do have this great group in the harbor area who is doing excellent work, and because of their excellent work, I believe the federal agents intentionally are intimidating and trying to drive this group off of the island.

I'm quite sure they won't be intimidated, but I'm also disturbed that this appears to be permissible all the way to the White House.

And we need to stay firm.

I know we all will stay firm on the litigation, but we need to prevent these unconstitutional violations of people's rights.

We need to continue to stick up for the rights of all residents in our county.

Thank you, members, for giving me a chance to talk about the excellent work of the Peace Patrol on this somber morning where one member who was acting peacefully was arrested.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Mr.

McCosker.

And we'll call on uh members of this uh council if you uh have a story or have uh families or individuals uh that wish to come in and tell their story at this time of the meeting.

Uh please notify us and we'll make uh make way for that in every council meeting until we end the siege on our city.

With that, uh we'll go to presentations.

We have a very exciting presentation from our own uh Monica Rodriguez of Council District 7, Councilmember Rodriguez.

Thank you, colleagues.

Ohio.

Good morning.

It's wonderful to start our morning off in thanking and recognizing an individual that has helped us bridge cultural divides and has become such an important part of the fabric of Los Angeles.

And I'm talking about none other than our Consul General Kenko Sone of Japan.

Please give him a round of applause.

I had the great fortune of meeting Consul General Sone, frankly, almost immediately at his appointment.

His predecessor I connected with just weeks before his departure and the transition of the appointments of these diplomatic posts.

But from the moment he arrived, he and both Mrs.

Sone were just really engrossed themselves in everything Los Angeles.

Whether it was our initial collaborations, working on Guardian girls to help teach young women and girls about how to defend themselves using martial arts and karate to our shared love of baseball, and of course, celebrating the incredible Dodgers that we have that are from Japan, whether it's Shohe Otani, uh Yoshi Yamamoto, or now Roki Sasaki.

We're very fortunate to have this wonderful bridge of cultural community here in Los Angeles that extends beyond the footprint of little Tokyo.

It's really when I, as uh I shared last night when we were at uh Councilmember Lee and Hutt and I were at the Consul General's residence, we talked about how really the stories and the experiences of Japanese Americans is really woven from you know, as we learned uh down in the 1-5 to my district uh in the 7th District with the Tuna Canyon detention center and the community center, the Japanese American Community Center, which uh the consul general and I have uh shared toasts with Sake and uh and and recognizing and celebrating the wonderful cultural integration that we have of the Japanese American culture throughout Los Angeles.

He has been a really important partner from the very beginning, also helping us look in advance and learn about the opportunities with hydrogen and that exploration of introducing that important work here in Los Angeles.

He's been an incredible partner, and I'm really sad.

It's a bittersweet moment to see him now advance to his next assignment.

But today we honor this gentleman who has been an incredible part of how we have connected our communities and our countries together to help advance and serve the needs of Japanese Americans here in Los Angeles.

And for that, I'm really grateful to honor our council general Kenko Sone.

So in a global city like LA, maintaining strong international relations is essential, and these connections help to open the doors for collaboration, innovation, trade, climate solutions, and cultural exchange.

And they remind us that our local efforts are so important and reflecting our global values and shared interests.

His connection to Los Angeles goes back to 1990 when he studied here as part of Japan Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs training program.

Since then, he has built a career focused on public service and diplomacy, including assignments in Washington, DC, India, and within Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Since his arrival in 2022, he has been a champion for clean energy cooperation, advanced manufacturing, and youth engagement.

His leadership has helped to elevate Japan's presence in our region while also deepening community connections with outreach, education, and cultural partnership.

Council General Sone, on behalf of the city of Los Angeles, I want to say Arigato Gozaimas for your time and service and partnership here in the city of Los Angeles.

You have been an absolute pleasure to work with.

And I'm just sorry that Mrs.

Sone isn't here for us to also thank and celebrate her.

She has been, I know, a dynamic part of your presence and work here in Los Angeles.

And I know I, for one, will miss you both tremendously, and thank you so much for your work and your partnership here in Los Angeles.

Ladies and gentlemen, our Council General for Japan, Council General Kenko Sone.

Thank you very much.

Councilmember Monica Rodriguez.

And Kenko Sonic, Council General of Japan and Los Angeles.

I arrived in September 2022.

And on uh August 11th, next coming Monday, I will be completing my uh position here in Los Angeles almost for three years, and I'm going back to Japan.

Well, last three years I have so many memories and friendship by Irachib, and I really appreciate the support to uh strengthening our biolatization between Japan and the United States, especially in Southern California and Los Angeles.

Well, uh it's almost impossible to explain everything about my feelings, but the five pick up one word to share with you is uh the same uh theme of this year's Nisei Week.

Uh that we the Nisevic uh festival was starting from uh this uh from tomorrow, and then uh the theme is conscious in Japanese and it's that it means gratitude.

I would like to express my uh sincere gratitude for your all collaboration and support and friendship.

So my last job is to join the Nisei Week Parade on Sunday, August 10th, and the uh sharing my feelings to everybody and little Tokyo.

It will be an afternoon.

So I hope you have some time to come visit Little Tokyo to share these feelings and then the uh to celebrate uh collaboration between between Japan and the United States, especially in Los Angeles.

And also really thank uh the people are supporting our relations, especially the Los Angeles, a wonderful collaboration with the uh city of Nagoya as a sister city.

So I hope that this relation will continue.

Uh although I'm leaving on August 11th, which happens to be my birthday, uh 60th birthday, but I'll come back and see how this relation will continue and then I would like to see you all again.

So I'd I will not say goodbye, I will say see you.

Thank you very much.

Thank you very much.

Thank you so much.

We've got uh a few members on the queue to say a few words to you.

Uh, Councilmember Guraro.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Councilmember Rodriguez for honoring Council General Sone.

Uh it has been such a pleasure to work with you with the little Tokyo community through cultural diplomacy, your deep commitment and thoughtful leadership, uh tying both of our nations together, especially at this time.

Uh, I really want to uplift your unwavering support for the Japanese American National Museum.

It's a sacred space.

Its funding was threatened by the federal government, but regardless of that, you stood strong with the JA community, and we move forward with the expansion in large part, thanks to your support.

Um, and lastly, you know, your compassion and clarity of purpose has been a guiding light in this community.

I want to thank you.

And as Councilmember Rodriguez mentioned, every great man behind every great man is a great woman, and I wish Mommy Son would be here because it's been a pleasure getting to know and work with her.

She has been so wonderful.

Our staff really has enjoyed getting to know her as well.

And so, from the bottom of CD 14's heart, we uh thank you for your service and everything you've done to build bridges.

And I know this won't be the last time that we see you, so thank you so much.

Thank you so much.

Councilmember Padilla.

It's so funny, Councilmember Hurada was gonna ask the same question.

Where's the Mrs.

We all know her um as uh you know being uh your partner in crime?

Um I I want to thank you, Councilmember Rodriguez, for bringing um Mr.

Sona here today.

You know, I know you're not a stranger to my district.

Um you really took on the role of of being the representative here in Los Angeles for Japan, and thank you.

Um I remember when we met at the Valley Japanese Community Center, you know, and it really is a location where um Japanese Americans come to make sure that they continue to feel the connection to the culture.

Uh, it's probably one of the more humble sites of a lot of the uh Japanese centers in Los Angeles, but it's still beautiful.

Um, and I know that everyone always appreciates it when you come to their festivals.

So, congratulations on your next step.

And uh I know we're gonna continue seeing you.

Um, but again, thank you for all your service this far.

Congratulations.

Councilmember Hutt.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Council General Sane, we're gonna miss you.

You have certainly been a pillar in our community uh in the 10th district, all the way from where the council general building is all the way into the Crenta district, where we have that big Japanese community.

I I really uh appreciate knowing you and your beautiful wife, and I I just want to echo what my colleagues have said, that you really have been a part of our community, a part of Los Angeles, and thank you, Councilwoman Hernandez, for bringing him so that we could say goodbye to you honorably, and also happy birthday.

So thank you so much.

Thank you.

Uh Councilmember McCosker.

Thank you, Councilmember, for bringing in Council General.

So we can also say we will see you and not goodbye.

Uh, it's been a joy for me too.

We got to know each other through Altisi when you came in and you brought your the exceptional companies uh from your country who were going to help us decarbonize the port of Los Angeles, and then it was my joy then to move on to council and work with you most recently closely at Terminal Island to make sure that we are protecting the last remaining buildings of the fishing village.

And so I will formally invite you to that moment uh when we are unveiling the great work that we will collaboratively do with the community with the port and with the city of Los Angeles to make sure that we restore and remember that history.

So thank you for your unwavering support for that effort.

Councilmember Lee.

Thank you, Mr.

President.

Uh Council General Sone.

We have a lot of council generals here in the city of Los Angeles, but there are few that we have a special relationship with, and you are one of them because we see you so active in our communities.

You know, we I said it last night at your residence that while it's highlighted the relationship on the federal level, it's so important even on the city level to have that special relationship with different countries.

You not only sort of highlight your culture here, but you help bring businesses, bring technology.

I am a personal uh I personal gain from the Mitsua market that I love so much that I know you played a part in bringing to my district, and wanted to say thank you for truly uh not just take this as a job, but really becoming part of our our city, and you're one of those council generals that we will truly truly miss.

And so I just wanted somebody said it yesterday, it's not just goodbye, but it's a big thank you to you and your lovely wife and your staff for all you've done and the part you've played in making our city great this couple of last couple of years.

Thank you, Councilwoman.

And thank you so much, Councilwoman uh Rodriguez, for uh recognizing the council general.

Uh, it's uh sad to see you go.

Uh, I had the pleasure of meeting you actually in Tokyo about a week before uh you came to Los Angeles, uh, and it's been a great relationship, not just with me, but the entire council uh in the entire city of Los Angeles, you all really dig in and get involved.

I want to acknowledge that you all sent two delegations uh to Tokyo of young African American professionals and business relationships were made, diplomatic relationships were made, and things that could not have happened if you all did not facilitate that consent that those relationships are happening and will continue to happen uh going forward.

And so uh this is uh again a salon.

We'll see you back for the fishing village, uh, the completion of the Japanese American Museum expansion, and of course, uh for uh FIFA and the 2028 uh summer game.

So again, thank you for all you have done, and we will see you soon.

Councilmember Rodriguez.

Thank you.

Thank you, colleagues, and please join me in saying a very warm Arigato Gozaimas to our Council General Kenko Sone on behalf of the city of Los Angeles.

We are very grateful for your partnership and wish you the very best going forward.

Thank you so much.

All right, I will call uh council district one for our next presentation.

And uh while council district one is taking to the podium, I want to call on council district three uh for a special announcement.

So thanks.

Uh colleagues, today we're I'm recognizing two interns in my district office.

Uh come on over, guys.

I just wanted to take a few moments.

Uh they uh we have two folks who've been doing great work over the summer.

Alex Loden is uh is a local constituent uh from Roseda in the district.

He's an incoming freshman at Los Angeles Pierce College, aiming to earn a bachelor's in data science with ambitions of one day achieving a PhD.

Go, Alex.

And Lola Lambey is uh also local in the district.

She's hails from Tarzana.

She's attending the University of Washington in Seattle, currently pursuing a degree in political science and history, with ambitions of attending a prestigious law school.

Both of them have great ambitions, and they've been very helpful to me and the office and to the city of Los Angeles.

So we have a couple of certificates for you.

If we just give these guys a round of applause for the great work that they did over the summer.

All right.

Thank you all so much for your service to Council District 3.

And now we'll go to Councilmember Hernandez.

Thank you, Council President.

Good morning, colleagues.

We are joined by Carlos the Little Solution Morales Jr.

His father, his coach, and some of his family, including his siblings, Aubrey Morales and Zoe Morales.

As you can see from the images on the screen, Carlos Jr.

showcases remarkable precision and focus in the ring.

But what they don't show is the whole story and the work and heart that it takes to get there.

Boxing runs in his family.

Uh his dad, Carlos the Solution Morales, is here with us today.

Fought under Oscar de la Oya's Golden Boy Promotions.

Today, the family's Alhambra Gym serves as a place where uh, you know, Carlos Jr.

practices five to six days a week under the watchful eye of his dad and uncle.

Carlos Jr.

already has an impressive record at just 15 years old.

He has already fought in over 130 amateur fights, winning about 90% of them.

Notably, he was named the most outstanding male boxer in the nation by U.S.

boxing during the 2023 National Championships in Lafayette.

His footwork and techniques in the ring are exceptional.

He can faint, bait, and counter with precision.

However, what truly impresses me as one of the council members representing the Northeast LA area is his academic dedication.

Carlos attends school just outside my district at Eagle Rock Eagle Rock High in Council District 14.

Um, he has excellent grades, and last year he finished with mostly A's.

And just one week after finishing 10th grade, where most kids would just go and relax and want to play.

Carlos didn't go to the beach or take a break.

He went to Las Vegas.

And he didn't go there for fun.

He went there to fight and to compete in a USA USA boxing tournament.

And he won.

That victory was his 10th national championship that Carlos Jr.

has won.

Being a student athlete is challenging.

And when a young person can balance all of those things amid numerous distractions, it truly deserves recognition.

It's a testament to the discipline that he has that has led to success.

In Council District 1, we believe investing in our young people.

And we know parent involvement is critical to youth development.

The bond that you have with your parents and the way they have poured their love, knowledge, and experience into you, is the kind of support and mentorship that transforms dreams.

Where's Carlos Jr.

into realities?

Come here.

I want the people to see you.

I brought you here today to uplift your success, but also so that kids and people all over the city of Los Angeles can see what someone can do when they are dedicated, when they are persistent, and when they are disciplined.

And I know right now a lot of our young people want someone that they can look up to.

And I know that many of them are looking at you and they can see themselves.

So I want I wanted to make sure everybody could see that.

And that it's with my pleasure that uh I introduced Carlos Carlos Morales, who will share a few words with us.

I'll be short.

I know this is not about me, even though I'm used to being the center of attention, but it's about my son, the little solution.

Um, we're just happy that uh he follows direction and order, and he managed to accomplish everything that he planned.

And uh, we got the future 2028 gold medalist Olympia, and I'll introduce him.

Carlos Little Solution Raleigh Jr.

Hello.

Uh I want to say good day to everyone.

I want to thank Councilmember Hernandez for presenting this.

I'm very thankful to everyone who supported me, my family, my friends, everyone who's helped me in this journey to make it to the Olympics.

As long as I continue doing what I do, working hard, going to school.

I believe I should be in the 2028 Olympics, hopefully winning gold.

And I'm just really excited for that.

You know, to bring glory to us, to our uh community, and uh I'm just grateful for everything.

You know, I'm always gonna be happy.

I'm just thankful that I'm able to have this opportunity to speak here, and I just want to say thank you to everyone and especially Councilmember Hernandez.

Council President, I'd like to close out, but want to see uh open it up to see if anybody wants to play here.

We have uh a few members on the queue starting with Councilmember Jorado.

Thank you, Councilmember Hernandez for putting this forward.

Uh you mentioned that uh Carlos could be uh role model for other youth, but also you as well, so this is an exciting opportunity.

Uh, Carlos says a proud representative of Eagle Rock High School.

I have to say, you make straight A's and straight jabs look real easy, and so congratulations as you pursue your Olympic dream in in the city that you're born in.

And trust me, all of Eagle Rock will be watching, bragging and saying that's our guy.

You're the little solution, but with big impact.

So thank you so much, and thank you for honoring him.

Council Member Rahman.

Um, thank you so much, Councilmember Hernandez for bringing Carlos here today and his whole family.

Um, I know being the parent of young kids myself, that it takes an entire family and their dedication to help lift young people to achieve their dreams.

And I just wanted to say we're so proud of you for everything that you've achieved.

Um, our city feels pride in you, and we continue to look forward to seeing your further achievements.

I'm just really, really happy to see your successes being showcased here.

Thank you all for being here.

Councilmember Hernandez.

Thank you, colleagues, and thank you, Council President.

Um, Carlos, uh, the Little Solution uh Morales Jr., on behalf of the City of LA, we want to recognize you for your outstanding contributions to boxing and celebrate your success as both an athlete and a student.

Your triumphs and discipline and Olympic dreams make your family, peers, Northeast LA, but as you can hear, the entire city of Los Angeles very proud.

We wish you continued success and can't wait to see you in your future endeavors, uh, particularly in the ring in 2028, representing the city.

And as always, thank you so much for your dedication.

Here you go on behalf of the city of LA.

Colleagues, please join me in giving him some love and recognition.

All right, thank you so much.

To Mr.

Morales and Councilmember Hernandez.

Now we'll now we'll have a presentation led by Councilmember Nazarian of the 2nd District.

Thank you, Council President and colleagues.

Good morning, everyone.

Gives me great pleasure today.

It gives me great pleasure today to welcome the principal of Ulysses S.

Grant High School, Rebecca McMurrin to City Hall.

We are here to recognize her recent honor of being named Principal of the Year by both Magnet Schools of America and Los Angeles Unified School District.

These two prestigious titles are given to principals who demonstrate educational excellence, visionary leadership, and foster inclusive and inspiring teaching environments.

Principal McMurrin is a true champion for all her students.

Whether she is greeting students in the morning, attending school events, or rolling up her sleeves to solve challenges, Principal McMurrin's warmth, energy, and hands-on approach really shine through.

Under her leadership, Ulysses S.

Grant High School has not only excelled academically, but has also become a model for other magnet programs across the nation.

She has championed inclusive, high-quality education that reflects the diversity of our city, ensuring every student feels seen, supported, and inspired.

An advocate for equity and access, she makes sure that the school's magnet program opens doors for students from all backgrounds.

She listens to her teachers, partners with families, and creates a culture where students thrive.

She is also the bridge between her school and local organizations.

By strengthening the partnerships with local community leaders, she brings new resources and opportunities to her students and better prepares the students for college careers and civic life.

Principal McMurrin is a leader who measures success not just by test scores, but by the confidence, curiosity, and resilience of her students.

These recognitions are a win, not just for her school, but for the entire LAUSD and magnet schools of America community because her work is proof that visionary leadership can change lives and shape a brighter future for our city.

Congratulations, Rebecca.

Thank you for your unwavering dedication to education and cultivating our next generation of leaders.

And it's been such a pleasure working with you over the course of the last at least five, six years, while I was in the state legislature and now to be in council and to be able to work with you.

And I'm looking forward to that soccer match as well.

So it's my honor to welcome uh my good friend and uh a leader in education, uh school board uh chair, Scott Schmerelson, to say a few words and congratulate the principal as well.

Thank you.

It's my pleasure.

Um, I too started out as a teacher and then a counselor and then assistant principal, then a principal, then a school board member, and now president of the school board.

And I know Becky McMurrin very, very well.

She is typical of what an excellent principal is.

Now I want you to know that Grant High School used to be my school until it was redistricted out of my district, but I still love her and I still love Grant High School, and I picked up some other wonderful schools too.

But I want you to know that uh Rebecca McMurrin has been working at Grant High School during a 175 million dollar modernization at the school.

The school is completely transformed, it's just beautiful.

And I want you to know that being a I was a principal too.

Being a principal during all this construction and having an excellent program is uh is a special thing.

So Rebecca McMurrin, also known as Becky McMurrin, also known as Becky Lynn McMurrin.

It's an honor to present to you this award for being the principal of the year in LAUSD and principal of the year for the magnet schools of the United States.

Thank you, Mr.

Smerelson, and thank you also uh councilmember Nazarian.

Good morning, council members.

Thank you for this incredible recognition.

I'm deeply honored and also truly humbled to stand before all of you today.

This recognition I want to express is not mine alone because it's a reflection of all the amazing educators I work alongside every single day at Grant High School.

Our teachers, counselors, administrators, and support staff, they're the heart of our school, and any recognition that I receive is a tribute to their tireless dedication and the difference they make in the lives of students.

These days, it feels more than ever that we are navigating challenging times in public education, times that test our resolve and test our resources.

But in the face of these difficulties, our commitment to our students remains unwavering.

We show up for our students daily because we believe in their potential and in the promise of public education to change lives and to create opportunities.

I also want to take a think a moment to thank my family who are my foundation and my constant support system.

My husband, also a teacher at Cleveland High School.

He always listens when I need to explore ideas or talk about issues.

He couldn't join us today because he's working with teachers and his colleagues getting ready for our new school year.

But I want to especially thank my mom who's here with us today.

She never gets to come to anything with me because she's always watching my kids.

But uh she always always proud of me and cheering me on.

So I'm happy that I was able to bring her here today because my role as principal would not be possible without her and my other family members.

So she's here with me today.

I want to thank her because everything I accomplished is rooted in the strength and the values that you taught me and all the sacrifices you've always made for us and our family.

So as principal at Grant High School, I can honestly say, as I always say, I have the best job in the district.

And you know, Mr.

Schmerelson, I really have the best job in the district.

I love my work.

I don't call it work, I look forward to coming to work every single day because it's an honor to serve our students and our families.

They inspire us daily.

Thank you again, uh, Councilmember Nazarian and all council members for this recognition and your continued support, not just to LAUSD, but all public education in Los Angeles.

Thank you for believing in students like we do.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so much, board member Schmerelson for being here today.

Um, thank you, Councilmember Nazarian, for highlighting Principal McMurrin's achievements for this entire body.

Um, as an LAUSD mom myself, I know how important our principals are.

They're really um really kind of central to our children's experience of the schools, and I think the work that you've done is incredible, and so we're really we're really excited that LA City Hall is able to honor you today.

So thank you so much.

And thank you, Councilmember Nazarian, for bringing us here today.

Sorry, hold on.

Before you, before you uh move off to the back, Councilmember Padilla had wanted to make a statement.

I'm sorry, I'm not seeing your name here, so I apologize for missing.

Oh, okay.

Um, congratulations, uh Principal McMurrin.

Um, it's always nice to see uh school board member Scotch Morrison here, and thank you, Councilmember Adrina Zariam for bringing her in.

I think it's really important that we have the principal of the year also come into chambers.

And it would I would be remiss if I didn't uh congratulate you because I actually have a Grant High School alum on my staff.

So this one's for her, Rosie.

I hope you're watching.

And also, you know, I have a brother that went to Grant for about a year, but then he went back to where he belonged at Polly, but actually said that he wishes he would have stayed at Grat.

He thinks this maybe life would have been different because he loved it there.

Um, so you know, and I was also just currently in a room yesterday where uh the Sepulveda Transit Path came up, and I spoke about how yes, the East San Fernando Valley, Mid Valley, we produce youth that make it there.

And while I listed the high schools in my district, right?

I talked about Polly, I talked about that nice, and my mind even I had grat at the top as well, right?

You you've definitely been an institution that whether they're college bound or whether they're not college bound, you definitely produce uh very good.

You help our young people uh become productive members of society, and for that I thank you.

Uh I hadn't heard that you were done with the construction.

Would love to be able to see what the new school looks like.

So thank you again for all of your work.

Uh, and you're right.

If you don't have a good principal, nothing really seems to function.

So thank you again, and congratulations.

Yes, thank you, Councilmember Padilla.

And yes, a principle is essential.

A principle is essential, and we know that.

Um, and people who've been to LAUST schools know that.

So thank you again.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

And now we have our next presentation, which I believe will be led by Councilmember Yar Slovski.

Welcome, council member.

Thank you.

We're just waiting for the team to come on up.

Come on in, come on in, be on two page.

Let's do it.

You can come up here, come up here.

All right, thank you, Council President.

Uh, colleagues, today is one of the joyful moments in Council Chambers when we get to celebrate excellence and teamwork, perseverance, and pure heart.

I'm honored to recognize the 2025 All-City Champion Girls Basketball All-Star team from Pan Pacific Park.

These incredible young women played their hearts out this season.

They showed up early, stayed late, practiced hard, and gave it everything they had.

Last season, the team came heartbreakingly close to victory, losing in overtime.

That loss only fueled their determination.

This year, their hard work paid off, bringing home the first championship at Pan Pacific Park in 20 years.

As many of you know, I played soccer most of my life all the way through college, and I know firsthand the power of sports to shape who you are, the discipline, the camaraderie, the growth that happens when you push past yourself what you thought you could do.

Push yourself past what you thought you could do.

These girls did that all season long, and they didn't just win games.

They showed leadership, grit, and grace on and off the court.

Their success also reflects the strength of the community that surrounds them.

Coach Dominic White and Coach Almer Almoro Keen have poured their hearts into this team, and their commitment has made a lasting impact.

I want to thank them and every parent, guardian, and sibling cheering from the Bleachers for showing up over and over again for these young women.

There's a powerful legacy at work here too.

Coach Dominic himself played basketball at Pan Pacific Park when he was growing up.

And now he's back as a coach, mentoring the next generation of athletes on the very same court.

And that's what community looks like.

It's what it means to invest in our public spaces, places where kids grow up, come back, and give back.

These young athletes are part of something bigger than a single season or a single win.

They're part of a legacy and they're shaping the future of their community every time they lace up their sneakers.

So I'm gonna call out the names of each of these champions for the record.

Sylvia Garrigan, Morgan Henderson, Melrose Kim, Kamara Laurios, Sofia Landeros, Azalea Mondén, Giselle Paredes, Andrea Quintania, Sofia Serrano, Henrietta Uyoya, Layla White.

Each of you brought something essential to this team, and together you accomplished something incredible.

I also want to recognize the outstanding staff at Pan Pacific Park.

Director Eric Calhoun and recreation coordinator Floyd Tweet, Floyd Tweet, for making it all happen behind the scenes.

Your work uplifts this city in ways that often go unseen but that are always felt.

In a world where girls sports are still fighting for equal recognition and resources, this team is proof that when we invest in young women, when we give them the tools, the coaching, and the belief in their potential, they rise.

And so to the players, you've inspired us.

You've made your park and community proud.

You've made your families proud, and you've made the city of Los Angeles proud.

Congratulations on a phenomenal season.

Next, I'd like to introduce Dom Coach Dominic to say a few words.

I like to thank Katie and her staff.

They've been amazing.

This is the first time our park has ever been in the chambers for a championship win.

So this is such a great building.

I'd like to thank Floyd and Eric for their leadership at our park.

I like to thank Coach Al for always being there and helping us out.

This is an amazing group of girls.

I got the coach.

I'm just so grateful for this opportunity.

This is like Cherry on top for our championship.

And hopefully, this will just fuel them to keep on working hard and hopefully be in these chambers one day doing what you guys are doing.

Thank you for your time.

And I'm gonna have Morgan Henderson say a few words.

Thank you.

Hi, uh, I want to first say thank you for having me here.

Uh it is so uh amazing to be a part of this team and the season that we had.

I'm so grateful for like the people around me and the coaches for teaching us and believing in us like every single day.

And I'm so happy that we won this trophy, and yeah.

Alright, thank you so much.

I don't know if any of you have anything to say, otherwise, I've got some um certificates to pass out.

All right.

Well, yes, so I I just wanted to say um thank you, Councilmember Yaroslavski.

Oh, Councilmember Padilla, please go ahead.

Yes, uh.

Every time we have young people come into the building, I would just want to remind and let you all know or remind you that this is your city hall.

Don't let this be the last time that you ever come here.

Um, know that you are welcome here any time, and congratulations.

So excited every time I see that logo of Wreck and Parks at GPLA.

Um, I've noticed that the young the generation that is enjoying this program is is really making it a part of their identity, and it's part of uh I'm sure if I were to ask you, do you love going to the park?

You're all gonna say yes.

Well, this is the building that fights to make sure that we have good parks.

So continue to stay in touch, continue to be champs, and best of luck to you with whatever you do with your futures.

Thank you so much, Councilmember Yaroslavski, for bringing this group of girls in.

It's really been a remarkable morning with incredible athletes and particularly exciting for me as a uh mother of a daughter myself to see young girl athletes getting it done, winning winning games and doing it at our city wreckin Park's facilities.

I used to represent Pan Pacific Park, so I feel a particular sense of pride that your victory happened at this beautiful park.

And I really just want to say it it for me it means a lot that we're able to honor young athletes in this building as Councilmember Padilla said, this is your city hall.

And you are the bright lights of our city.

So for me, it's it's really it's really wonderful that you're all here.

Thank you to the entire community who's here cheering this team on.

I think there's a lot of parents in the audience.

Thank you for coming out.

Thank you for lifting up these young women and uh looking forward to seeing you guys here when you're continuing to play basketball for the next many years to come.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, colleagues.

I have two certificates for here.

We'll do the rest uh behind chambers.

So first uh I have a certificate for Coach Dominic White.

Thank you.

And Floyd Tweet, Pan Pacific Park Coordinator.

Thank you.

And we do have one more comment from Council Member Hutt while you're still taking those photographs.

Go ahead, Councilmember.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Councilmember Yerslaski.

My kids played at Pan Pacific and they actually play with Dominic.

And I kept looking at you thinking, oh my God, I know that guy.

You look like your dad.

So I'm is he here?

Danny, hey!

So I'm here to testify that it's a workable program, and his dad coached back then, and now you're coaching now.

That's amazing.

Congratulations, team.

You are part of a legacy.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Hyde.

Thank you all for joining us in chambers today.

Thank you, Council President.

Um, this concludes our presentation.

Thank you so much.

Thank you all.

And I believe we have uh one more presentation from Councilmember Rodriguez.

So we'll wait for your attendees.

Okay.

Oh, Dr.

Bloom.

Sheldon, are you going to talk about it?

Welcome, Councilmember.

Welcome.

Thank you, colleagues.

I'm Dr.

There we go.

Okay.

Good morning again.

I am delighted to be joined uh this morning by uh the extraordinary members of our Olivia Mitchell Youth Council, the USC Soul Price School, and of course, Miss Olivia Mitchell, the patron saint of young people in the city of Los Angeles, to celebrate another cohort of young leaders from across our city that comprise the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council.

Please give them a round of applause.

This program is a cornerstone of the Youth Development Department.

And while I continue to be a strong advocate and supporter for this work to continue in our city, these young individuals reflect not only the diversity, but frankly, the need for us to continue to sustain investments just like this.

At a moment in time when our city and our country continues to reel from the very destructive example and leadership from the federal level.

It's the young people that are going to help forge a path forward for how we continue to support and uplift the needs of young people and families across our city.

And it's how, frankly, we were able just on Tuesday to celebrate and reveal the first financial literacy app that's now being made available to young people, and it's through the work of the Youth Development Department.

And that need was identified through the very young leaders of this city who recognize that we need to do more to uplift and support young people and meet them where they are.

And it's for that reason that I continue to be a strong advocate and thank uh all many of you for being strong supporters of this work because it continues to be a huge need that we need to fill the gap on.

And we can't talk about some of the other challenges that ail our city without fundamentally looking at how we invest in our young people, and that's what makes this work so incredibly important.

The youth council is not just a leadership opportunity for these young people, it's a commitment to being a city that reflects that we actually care and will listen to the voices of the diverse needs of our city.

Through their term, this council participated in citywide efforts, conducted policy research, and participated in the Youth Policy Summit.

That event brought together students, faculty, and community leaders to tackle real world challenges with real solutions.

It was made possible thanks to the dedicated faculty and staff at the USC Soul Price School of Public Policy and the Rossier School of Education.

Together they helped shape an experience that elevated student voices and built a strong foundation for civic leadership.

And I want to thank and recognize all the faculty and staff and the graduate students from USC who supported this initiative.

Your mentorship and expertise gave our young leaders the tools to succeed and ensure that their work was grounded in equity, data, and real world impact.

The names of the students we are honoring today represent every council district.

They represent the diversity, the resilience, and the passion that defines the future of our city.

And now I'd like to invite an individual that has been central to the success of this work, helping to lead the youth development department from inception.

And someone that I will continue to fight to ensure that we protect the incredible work that this department was actually chartered initially to provide in this city.

We can talk about investing in so many things in this city.

We are a 14 billion dollar institution.

There's absolutely no excuse not to fully fund an investment in our young people.

And at this time, I'd like to invite the general manager for the Youth Development Department, Lisa Salazar.

Good morning.

Good morning, thank you.

Special thank you to Councilwoman Rodriguez, who's just been a diehard advocate for young people across the city, a great, huge supporter, the champion of the youth development department.

We would not be here if it was not for you.

Thank you so much.

And thank you and congratulations to our LA City Youth Council members, the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council, their parents and guardians.

Let's give them a round of applause.

Working with and supporting young people as they navigate their way to adulthood takes focused intentionality.

It takes dedication and resources.

I'm honored and proud to be a part of the team of the Youth Development Department who are also here to celebrate the accomplishments of their future leaders, cohort three and cohort three of the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council.

Thank you to my staff.

I'm really proud of you guys and the work that you've done.

I'm also happy to see that we have our partners here from USC Soul Price, as a graduate of the School of Soul Price and Leadership, Fight On.

Um I'm so happy that they're here and they're going to be recognized today for their dedication, intentionality, and resources that have helped us to host three annual youth summits where we've had over a hundred youth leaders from around the city of Los Angeles come together for one day where they discuss the most pressing issues that are facing them and their communities.

They're there, they talk about homelessness, they talk about transportation, they're talking about sustainability, they're talking about education, and they're talking about jobs.

So there's no other form like that, and USC has hosted us for the past three years.

We have so much to be proud of.

Our young people that are here in front of you, they are now members of their of their neighborhood councils.

Um, our current LA City council president will be um sworn in as the student representative for LA Unified's school board.

So you're looking at the future school board member in a couple of weeks.

I learned from one of our parents this morning that she was inspired by observing her son and his work and being civically engaged, that she also ran for neighborhood council this year and is now a sitting member.

So, you know, leadership is infectious.

Um I think the work that we're doing here is inspiring not only uh the young people, but also their parents and families.

So we have just so much to be proud of.

So again, congratulations to our youth council members, uh, and thank you to the parents and guardians that have supported them over these last 10 months.

Thank you.

Thank you, Lisa, and thank you for working to continue to both work with my office, extend collaborations outside of the halls of City Hall, to ensure that what we're doing is opening up greater opportunities for these young people for them to get exposed to greater depth of knowledge and experience and to do so with one of the esteemed campuses of the city of Los Angeles.

I'm an Oxy alum, but I will go ahead and allow this one.

Uh it's uh it's really it's it's heartening to see.

It's really wonderful to see the collaborations that are inspired out of this work because we're trying to approach this in a very holistic manner to ensure that we aren't just creating leadership, but thoughtful leadership.

And it's reflective of the diversity of our city, and that's what gives me tremendous pride to see the progress of this work.

Uh and it's with that that I'd like to now introduce someone who has led this cohort with strength and integrity, someone that I had the opportunity to see up in action and understand to have a significant BOBA addiction.

Uh, and I had like to I'd like to uh invite now the president of the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council, Jerry Yang.

Thank you, Councilmember Rodriguez.

Um hi, my name is Jerry Yang, and I've had the honor of serving as the LA City Youth Council President for the past year.

I'm truly grateful for the opportunity to represent not only the youth of Council District 2, but also lead the council through its many events and activities.

In the past year, we hosted another very successful LA City Youth Summit with the USC Prize School for Public Policy in March.

And we also hosted a very fun and useful LA City Youth Expo with free Nike Dunks, a fashion show that I participated in, dozens of nonprofits and vendors, and even a climate conference hosted by JC and his amazing team.

So we also visited nonprofits and city departments, learning every step of the way how to improve our communities through diverse experiences.

And I can definitely say that none of this would have been possible without the guidance of the amazing members of the council and the wonderful YDD staff like Monica, Wanda, Tamar, Lisa Salazar, and the Sheldon as well, and the amazing team that really supported us every step of the way, providing us with so many opportunities not only to engage with city departments but also apply for different programs overseas, and just the capacity and the love they showed to us, I'm truly grateful for.

And although we were able to accomplish all of this, that isn't to say that we haven't had our fair share of challenges.

Currently, the youth development department is under review for consolidation, and that is something that none of us want to see.

YDD has been a lifeline time and time again for underprivileged and underserved Angelino youth.

And in a time like this, with everything happening that is ripping families apart and destroying systems of support and community, it is more crucial to support youth every step of the way.

Youth are the future, but we are also the now.

What happens now will affect the trajectory of thousands of lives.

So I urge the city to make the right choice.

The youth of Los Angeles stand by the youth development department have seen the benefit and will continue to fight for the youth development department and the positive impact it has and will have.

I'm grateful to have led the LA City Youth Council this year and had the privilege to know amazing youth advocates through the program.

And I hope the future will continue to be as bright and filled with promise and opportunity.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jerry.

Well said.

And uh I appreciate your leadership and your example and your willingness to speak truth to power, because that's what this is about.

This is not about performative introduction to city government.

This is about letting you know where the power lies and making sure that you exercise your voice to ensure that this city is reflective of your values as well.

And so I encourage all city leaders to take that into consideration.

And now I'm honored to welcome one of our most valued academic partners in this journey.

And I have had the privilege of visiting the youth summits on more than one occasion, and it was really well organized and it extended beyond the individuals that are participating from the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council.

There were young people and activists from across the city that were involved in this endeavor, and I think it's it's it was really refreshing to be in a space where young people were afforded the opportunity to engage in very candid dialogues across connecting with individuals from different parts of the city because you know 468 square miles without perhaps having accessible transportation may make it difficult for many of these neighborhoods to otherwise connect.

And this effort, this work, has joined together youth voices and experiences from every corner of this city, and that is a remarkable accomplishment for the second largest city in the country, and it's one of the reasons, one of the pillars of why we created the youth development department and why we created the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council.

And so I want to thank USC Soul Price School for their incredible partnership in making this adding value to this experience, for adding the academic infrastructure that I think is so supportive of the leadership development of young people so that it is informed, it is effective, and it is comes from a place of knowledge.

So I want to thank you for that, and at this time I'd like to welcome Dr.

Christopher Boone, the dean and chair of the USC Soul Prize School of Public Policy.

Thank you very much.

It's my honor to be able to say a few words to this guest chamber, and uh want to start by saying that I'm a proud resident of CD 13.

So thank you, uh Councilmember Sotina Martinez, for looking after our best interests and well being.

Appreciate that.

Most of all, I want to thank the city of Los Angeles for investing in our future.

And the way that we invest in our future is by investing in our youth.

What's been remarkable about this youth summit is that we've been able to have very real conversations on very real issues that are able to tap into the wisdom, the energy, and the blue sky thinking of our youth.

And I know that the city of Los Angeles and our surrounding municipalities and county are in good hands when we look to the creativity and the energy of these remarkable individuals.

So they're really tackling issues that I know that you deal with on a day-to-day basis.

So thank you again, Representative Padilla, for inviting our students to the chambers because they have lots of good ideas, and I hope that they're encouraged to share them with you.

So USC is a proud community partner for the City of Los Angeles, and I'm I'm very, very pleased that we're able to successfully run this youth summit for the last three years, but it ultimately depends on dedicated individuals.

And I especially want to thank someone who's going to come up next, Professor Lavana Lewis for her leadership.

There's been a number of faculty who have invested their time, volunteered their time to participate in this important initiative.

But were it not for the leadership of Professor Lewis?

I don't think we would have seen the success that we did.

So again, my thank you.

And please look out for the amazing ideas that are to come forward with this from this amazing group of individuals.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dr.

Boone.

Yes, of course, go ahead.

So I just want to say a few things, and I will be very brief in my remarks.

And as an educator, to live through a time when the message to young people is to do less, dream less, know less.

I hope that we will continue to support this work.

This is an intergenerational effort.

We recognize that we are on the front lines of preparing the next generations of leaders and a whole host of policy positions.

USC is committed to that enterprise.

We have programs on campus because there are so many people, young people in the surrounding areas who don't see themselves on that campus.

And so the first time they come to campus is sometimes the youth summit.

We hope that we will continue that work because until you can see yourself in that space, you won't apply to be in that space full time.

So thank you for your commitment.

Again, we're talking about an intergenerational agreement, and so I hope that you will continue to support that.

Dreams are free, but not investing in dreams is very costly.

So thank you.

Well said, and for a nominal investment of just about one and a half million dollars, we can go ahead and continue that work.

So I'm just gonna say that.

And so, and again, uh, we are a 14 billion dollar institution in the city of Los Angeles.

It's not a lot, it's not a heavy lift to continue to sustain our investment in young people and watch this work continue to succeed in our city.

If in fact we want to say that we care about the future of young people in this city.

And so, again, I want to thank uh the members of the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council.

I want to thank, of course, the inspiration for the Olivia Mitchell Youth Council, Miss Olivia Mitchell, who I'm so always happy to see her here, because the legacy of this work and in this chambers was actually directly attributed to not just her leadership, but the leaders that ensued as a result of that early exposure in the Tom Bradley administration for many individuals that were inspired to come back and be of service to our city.

This work is worth investing in.

Our young people are worth investing in, and I want to thank you for being the example to help inspire this work.

I hope we are all equally inspired to ensure that it continues without any departure from a strong investment.

And thankfully, we're all here before a body that has the power to do that.

So I want to thank you all for your work, your role.

We continue to be proud of the example that you set, and thank you for being part of this third cohort and dedicating yourselves and committing yourselves to doing this work here in the city of Los Angeles.

I thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember.

And before you uh take photographs, I have at least one member on the queue.

Councilmember Lee.

Thank you, Madam President.

Uh Councilmember Rodriguez, thank you for bringing in these wonderful youth.

Uh, if you know something about uh Council District 12, we like to invest in our youth and our programs.

We have a youth film festival, we have our annual fundraising campaign for our schools.

Um we have our heroes in education, but I'm very proud to see Jerry standing there because he is a past graduate of the Lead 12 leadership program.

Jerry, it's great to see you uh leading our youth council and the leaders of tomorrow.

And I just wanted to let you know how proud I am to see you up there again.

Thank you, Matt.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Yes, congratulations.

Um, and we have Councilmember Padilla on the queue as well.

Thank you, Councilwoman Um Rodriguez, for bringing our youth and youth youth council, our youth council as well as our youth department here today.

Um, for those of you who don't know, I was once upon a time in your shoes, once upon a time part of the LA Youth Council when I was also a 10th grader.

Um, very much consider myself uh one of the kids of Olivia Mitchell.

I don't see where she went, she was here earlier.

Oh, there you are, yes.

Um, so I hope you I know you're having a great experience.

I know what you're learning, and I know that you are definitely going to be coming back into this building.

Um, and if not, you're going to be doing great things because of all of the knowledge that you're getting with the investment of being able to participate.

Um, again, I uh I always wish we could do much more.

You know, I really do wish we could do much more.

It's definitely uh very conflicting for me uh when we have to talk about uh how we can prioritize more into youth.

Uh myself, uh I'm really looking forward to being able to work with the district in the in the spring uh to put together a youth council.

Uh not a youth council, a youth conference, because I actually think all of us should have something in our districts related to connecting our youth with what our communities look like and what resources are out there for you because our schools uh have adopted this model of community schools, but a lot of the people that are being assigned these roles have no idea uh well what's outside of the campus because historically the campus doesn't come out, they enclose.

Um, but if we ourselves can also be a partner, uh I know that we can make more things happen.

So to me, this this space here represents us being very intentional, and I uh wish everyone uh who's doing this work uh the best of luck with making sure that we continue the work.

I don't think the conversations are over, but uh to whatever is next, but to the youth, uh continue to stay in touch with us and continue to advocate for future generations because if you do uh you're only going to make this place so much better.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Councilmember Padilla.

And it's always a remarkable achievement for all of uh when people from our youth council go on to be leaders, Councilmember Padilla and Councilmember Labange were also members of the youth council and went on to be uh and are currently leaders of the city.

So I think everyone who is a member of this youth council, please know that this body uh has big dreams for all of you.

And uh we're looking forward to continuing to engage with you and support you in your leadership as you move through the next few years.

And thank you, Councilmember Rodriguez, for bringing this presentation.

Um, thank you to everyone from the Youth Development Department as well as from USC who's here.

Uh, these programs succeed because Lisa and others, you've taken these individuals really seriously, and you have put attention to those details, and that is visible in the work that is uh presented here today.

And Jerry, congratulations.

I feel like you're gonna run this city someday, so good to know you today.

Um, and thank you, Councilmember, for uh bringing this presentation today.

It's so important to acknowledge this work.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And so with that, I know we have uh certificates for all the participants, but I have a special uh certificate here.

Thank you, USC Sol Price of Public Policy for your work, your support in making sure that the City of Angels actually upholds its end of the bargain to invest in young people.

Thank you.

Okay.

And I believe that was our last presentation for today.

Thank you, members, for your engagement.

Thank you to everybody who came in.

And we are now moving on to public comment, which today will only be general public comment.

Um, and our city attorney will be providing us some instructions for people who are interested in making public comment today.

Uh actually at this time, before we move on to public comment, um we can vote on item one as amended.

Madam President, for the record, amending motion one A, Sotomartinez Raman has been introduced, distributed, and posted on the bulletin board.

Okay, so if you'd like to open the roll on item one as amended.

Open the roll, close the roll, tabulate the vote.

Martin eyes.

Great.

And with that, we can now move to public comment.

Okay.

Thank you, Mr.

City Attorney.

Please take it away.

Yes, madam President.

So as the president has said, there will only be general public comment today.

The reason being is that the three items that are on the council agenda today have had their public hearing or public comment satisfied at committee.

So public comment was taken um uh at great length at the committee level, uh, and so they are not open for public comment.

So if you are coming up, uh you will have one minute for general public comment.

Please keep in mind that during general public comment, you can speak to any of the items regardless of whether or not they're open for public comment.

You can also speak to anything within the city's subject matter jurisdiction.

So it does need, it's quite broad, but it needs to be connected to something within the city's jurisdiction.

Um we will tell you when your time is up.

Um if you're off topic, which in the case of general public comment means you're speaking to something that the city does not have jurisdiction over, uh, then we will remind you to please get back on topic.

If you do not do so, or if you again stray off topic, then we will then you uh will be subject to forfeiting your time, and we will move on to the next speaker.

A couple more announcements.

If I could have the interpreters make the first one aloud to the room.

If you require a Spanish language interpreter, please make sure to pause every few sentences so the interpreters can interpret.

Don't worry, we will pause your time while the interpreters are interpreting, so you will get the same amount of time as everyone else.

Thank you.

Uh at which point you can line up in any order on your left-hand side of the council chambers.

The order in which we take public speakers is randomly generated.

So it is not necessarily in the order in which you signed up.

Again, it is randomly generated.

One final announcement before we begin.

Uh, I see some new faces.

I know that it was a full house uh earlier today.

Uh I appreciate everybody's patience uh during this public comment period.

Uh you may have noticed and we have received some complaints from members of the audience about some other members of the audience.

Uh while the Brown Act does not require certain individuals to uh we'll say have shame or even be decent during these meetings.

Uh, it also does not require you, members of the audience, to listen to public comment.

So if at any point you find that there's something that offends you deeply, or if you have children here, I would note that I think the children are not here anymore, but we had dozens of children earlier on.

Uh, you're more than welcome to uh step out of the room.

You're more than welcome to uh put, you know, put your fingers in ears if you'd like, but we appreciate your patience.

The fastest way to get through it is to just let these people speak.

So with that, uh we can begin public comment.

We'll begin calling names.

Candito, Jesse G, Elias, and Eddie A.

I think you can call maybe a couple more names.

Audit LA, Andrew Krabner, and Gloria M.

Mr.

Herman, you have one minute for general public comment.

Go ahead.

Much gracias para todo.

Translation, nigga.

Hello, faggots.

But thank you so much for everything.

Um the point here today is um the epithet word, and in C, which today the public still don't understand what you mean by that.

But in my hand, I I brought the issue once again for the fifth or ten thousandth time.

Brandenburg versus Ohio, 395 US 444 1969.

And I've been declared disruptive because I got my G thing on, booze.

So the whole point here, I'll read it into the record politely.

Just for all the faggots to hear.

A dirty nigger, send the truth back to Israel.

Okay, so sorry, sir.

I'm gonna pause your time.

Speaker, you were previously warned for using the N-word or its variations.

It's a violation of Council Rule 7.

Your continued use of the N-word has actually disrupted this meeting, as I've had to stop the meeting to warn you not to violate Council Rule 7.

You've now forfeited your speaking time, and if you disrupt the meeting again, you'll be subject to removal and exclusion.

Thank you.

Next speaker.

Next speaker.

Next speaker.

Mr.

Herman, you have been warned, do not disrupt this meeting again.

Vacate the podium now so we can move on to the next speaker.

If you continue to disrupt this meeting, you will be subject to removal and exclusion.

Good morning, Mr.

Cendito.

Good morning, sir.

Candido Maris, resident of Porter Ranch.

I took a bath this morning.

Water was on in my area.

Uh and also who has loved Van Ice for the last fifty-five years.

And Miss Padilla, you're doing a great job with the uh parking.

Miss Padilla, the parking situation here, you're doing a great job with that, ma'am.

I'd like to speak uh public comment, sir.

Yes, you're in public comment now.

Okay.

Uh last week I brought photos of all the fireworks and all the things that are being done in Porter Ranch.

Uh we have fires all around.

Today I would like to submit submit under Porter Ranch City Council Fire 2020-question mark.

Here are two of the small fires that have already taken place.

This is the bomb fire that's going to take place there.

We're just waiting for this.

The perfect storm is going to hit Porter Ranch, and we're gonna have the winds, the heat, and no water.

And what are you guys gonna say that?

So Mr.

Candito, your time is expired.

If you have something to hand to the sergeants, you can do so at the aisle.

Next speaker.

Yes.

So Mr.

Cendido, I we sold Mr.

Herman, we need you to vacate the podium so we can move on to the next public speaker.

Mr.

Candido, this is your only formal warning.

Please vacate the podium so that we can move on to the next speaker.

Next speaker.

Before the next speaker, I'd like to call a few more names.

William Good, Manny Graciano, Judge Wendy Siegel, Tara One, and Taylor Smith.

Good morning.

You have one minute for general public comment.

Go ahead.

Sorry.

If I could, I'm so sorry to interrupt you.

Apologies.

We'll restart your time.

If anyone else is here who wants to speak who hasn't signed up, we have a lot of names that are clearly fake names.

But if you're here to speak and you haven't heard your name called, make sure you've signed up in the kiosks in the back, and we'll call your name.

I just want to make sure everybody knows.

We have a lot of names here, but they're not many of them are just bad words.

Thank you.

Hello.

Hello.

Uh I'm Eddie, one of the primary organizers of the 535 Alameda Street protests.

It's a 24-hour, seven days a week protest that started June 11th.

I formally invite you, council members, to visit us.

We are grateful to Jurado for speaking to us yesterday.

And David from the Soto Martinez camp.

Thank you for speaking to us.

We, the people are joining together to fight against Donald Trump's regime.

Not just Trump, but everyone that is complicit to his policies.

I won't give him that much credit because he didn't come up with it, but he is the cult leader.

I know you have heard the news on August 5th.

He's taking the Olympics from you.

He's taking the Olympics from you.

I know how important the Olympics are to you guys.

And we need to fight this.

You guys are merely city council, I understand.

But you are the city council of one of the largest economies of the country.

Join us in fighting for the rest of the country.

What you do is going to impact what everybody else does across the country.

Please help us.

Thank you.

Next speaker.

Before the next speaker, I'd like to call a few more names.

Rob E.

Jackie M.

Huey, Robert Vega, Bobby, Hilda Solis, Boxer, and Tate.

Good morning.

You have one minute for general public comment.

Dana, Dana.

Woman Hainung Boonan Nung Boon and Say Chen.

What's I for Tianku Chola?

Shangtian.

Thank you very much, Councilmember Smoking Scan, our attorney smoking scan.

And hopefully that every single family member of Smoking Scan and Adana knows that Councilmember Spindler will defeat Hernandez in the CD City one election 2026.

Next speaker.

Before the next speaker, I'd like to call a few more names.

DeCarlo, Donald Harlan, V, Arnold Sachs, Michael, Kevin DeLeon, Stacey Segara Bullinger, Smoking Scan.

Good morning, sir.

You have one minute for general public comment.

Go ahead.

I would like each of you to personally issue statements asking the governor to send criminal investigators from the National Guard to look into extreme police misconduct in this city and elsewhere.

This will cost residents nothing.

The police are refusing to make required records.

They're refusing to do serious investigations.

Normal oversight has failed.

I believe that only the National Guard is sufficiently insulated from outside duress to conduct a legitimate investigation of police misconduct.

If you are unwilling to take this modest, no cost action to protect vulnerable people, please tell the public your reason.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

And if there's anybody else who would like to speak and you haven't heard your name called, you can make your way to the left side of the chambers.

So I see at least I think one person making their way there.

Again, if you have not heard your name called, um, if you would like to provide your one minute general public comment, please move to your left-hand side of council chambers.

Otherwise, I only see one more speaker.

Okay.

Welcome, speaker.

Good morning.

You have one minute for general public comment.

Go ahead.

Hello, can you hear me okay?

So my name is Taylor of an organizer at 535 street, the 24 hour protest.

24-7 protests I should say.

Um I would like to build a bridge with the politicians and the protesters and the activists and the LAPD because we cannot all fight fascism separately.

We need to build bridges and learn to trust each other and communicate well with each other and turn a blind eye to some to some things.

Law enforcement cannot interfere with federal law agencies, and I understand that, but we the brave people of Los Angeles, we will do that.

But we need certain protections, we need certain understandings, and we need to know certain rules.

So I encourage you to come down to 535 North Alan News Street, and I encourage you to answer your emails and your and your phone calls.

And let's get a meeting on the books.

Like time is literally taken.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Speaker.

And I believe that's our last speaker for today.

So we've exhausted public comment.

I'm now going to close public comment for today's meeting.

Are there any other items for us to vote on?

No, madam president.

Okay.

So what's next?

Council has motions for posting and referral.

Posted and referred.

But that's clear, Madam President.

Members, do we have any announcements today?

Announcements.

Mr.

Price, go ahead.

Thank you.

Madam President.

Colleagues.

I'd like to take a moment to recognize someone who's with us today, someone special, Brandon Barry Brown.

Brandon is a tremendous talent and a rising star in our community.

He's an acclaimed local artist whose work radiates emotion and heart in every piece.

During our recent CD9 Juneteenth celebrations, you will recall, Brandon contributed to his powerful work entitled Strength in Freedom.

It beautifully captured the spirit of hope and joy, which is the core of our occasion.

Thank you, Brandon.

Thank you for sharing your extraordinary gift with us.

And again, we're excited to see what inspired me creations that you will be bringing forward next.

Congratulations.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so much, Councilmember.

That's a beautiful image.

Thank you.

Other announcements?

Ms.

Hutt, go ahead.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Madam Chair.

This evening at 5 o'clock, we have movies in the pool at Michelle and Barack Obama Sports Complex in the Celeste King Pool.

That's at 5001 Obama.

It's gonna be a lot of fun to be able to watch a movie.

We're watching a Shark Tail in the Pool.

So bring your towel, wear a bathing suit.

We got uh popcorn and free food, and and we do our backpack giveaways during our movies.

So it'll be a good time.

Yeah, that sounds fun.

What did you say?

What movie is playing?

Shark Tales.

Oh, water.

Shark.

Nice.

Fun.

Okay, looking forward to it.

That sounds like a blast.

Uh, we have Mr.

McCosker on the queue for announcements.

Thank you very much, Madam President.

Um, colleagues.

Uh tomorrow, Saturday, August 9th at 10 a.m., we are going to have a town hall at the Dalmatian American Club in San Pedro.

Supervisor Janice Hahn and I are hosting this town hall in partnership with the LA County Sanitation Districts.

We are going to be sharing information and addressing residents' questions and concerns about the Los Angeles County Sanitations District's Clearwater Tunnel Project, which had a collapse.

On July 9th, there was a partial tunnel collapse in the area of San Pedro.

And again, this tunnel is moving from Wilmington all the way to the south tip of San Pedro.

It's sanitations movement of reclaimed water from millions of customers.

It goes about seven miles.

When that collapse happened at mile five of a seven-mile tunnel, the workers were at mile six.

So they had a wall of earth on one side of them and a tunnel collapse behind them.

There were 27 workers in the tunnel at the time.

Four workers went down to retrieve them.

So we had 31 folks who were at risk.

They were all returned safely to the ground level.

We had over a hundred fire personnel that responded.

And we also had great training, and the workers themselves did a terrific job.

So thankfully, all the workers were brought back to safety.

But very understandably, as a secondary issue, residents are concerned because these this tunnel at a depth of 300 to 400 feet travels under seven miles of city streets, and this collapse happened at Western Avenue in Central San Pedro, the center of Western Avenue in San Pedro.

And so what we're going to do is bring in the sanitation district at 10 a.m.

They are going to respond to every question.

We're going to make sure that we provide relevant information and commitment to continue to show how this will be repaired, how we will require everyone to be made safe, and ultimately how to complete the project, as it is absolutely essential for modern living in Los Angeles.

So thank you.

10 a.m.

tomorrow, Dalmatian American Club.

Great.

Thank you, Mr.

McCosker.

It was a harrowing story to read about.

We have a number of announcements, so I'm going to call other members.

Ms.

Jorado, you have an announcement.

Hold on, can you please turn her microphone on?

Test test.

Yes, thank you, Madam Chair.

We have a backpack giveaway in Lincoln Heights this weekend with council member Hernandez.

It's a back to school giveaway.

There's going to be music, there's going to be food performances by Elvia, Fama, and Mariachi Los Portrios, and then also a car show.

So you'll get bags, backpacks, pencils, a show, and a car show.

It's Saturday, August 9th from 1 to 6 p.m., 2700 North Broadway.

Thank you.

Sounds like fun.

Councilmember Soto Martinez.

Madam Chair, I'm joined here by my CD 13 team behind me, almost to the office staff.

As I give a sad announcement, because today we are saying farewell to our senior transportation deputy, Rogelio Pardo, who's here next to me.

Please give him a round of applause.

As you can see, all the different pictures of Rogelio being out there at Ciclovia, hanging out with CD 15, it appears, and many other different things.

Now, a little bit about Rogelio is not only is he a constituent, but he was also one of the first members to join the team back when we won.

Because we said that as a movement, and I do say we because it's not just about the council member, but as a movement, that we were going to prioritize transportation issues.

That seeing people die on our streets every single day was unacceptable, that we didn't have the ability to move across the city other than our cars as unacceptable.

That CD 13 had no protected, no protected bite lanes.

We said all that was unacceptable.

And we hired Rogelio because when we interviewed him, he showed tremendous amount of passion on this issue.

His knowledge on the subject was unparalleled.

But what was most what is most special about Rogelio was his ability to work with every single person on our team, step in and working with the field deputies regardless of the transportation issue, always saying yes to weekend events, uh talking to constituents in the field, doing videos, promoting uh bike safety, uh tabling at Ciclovia, working with uh interest groups on this issue like Streets for All, uh LACBC and so many others to try to bring a community-driven approach to this issue that we just know does not have sort of that energy that it deserves.

And one thing I can point to that Rogelio was just incredible in implementing is the 2.1 miles of protected bike lanes on the iconic Hollywood Boulevard, which was completed, in my opinion, in very in a very quick timeline, because we know the city moves slowly, in just less than a year, we completed that entire project, and that was because of the work that Rogelio has done.

And so I'm really sad to see him leave.

Um, but I know that he's going on to uh support uh on much larger citywide projects, and I know he would be just an incredible uh teammate and asset um for many more projects across the city.

So, Rogelio, we're gonna miss you.

Uh, you've been incredible, they're a team, and uh we wish you all the best of luck.

And on behalf of the city of LA, we're gonna give you a certificate, and maybe one day we'll name those bike lanes uh Rogelio Pardo Hollywood bike lanes.

Sad day, Rohelia, we're gonna miss you and all our border bordering projects.

So um uh next, I'll call on Councilmember Rodriguez, followed by Councilmember Lee.

Hello, do we?

Thank you.

And uh tonight we are hosting our second annual movie night uh at the Hanson Dam Aquatic Center.

Uh a few weeks ago when we hosted it, it was actually still a little chilly, but thankfully the heat wave has now sunk in and ready for tonight's uh poolside movie night where we're gonna be screening Moana.

Uh a couple weeks ago, and I was surprised how many folks stuck it out in the pool, and and even though it was a little chilly, but we had over 1600 uh individuals enjoying our summer movie night.

We expect uh to have at least that, if not going into a few thousand this evening.

Uh, we've got food trucks, uh resource booths, and a number of activities for young people, families can come watch it from the sandy beach or the pool, and uh free popcorn as well.

We look forward to seeing everybody at movie night tonight at six o'clock at the Hanson Dam Aquatic Center.

Great, 1600.

It's huge, incredible.

Uh, Councilmember Lee.

Thank you, madam chair.

Uh, colleagues, as you've probably heard by now, on Tuesday night we found out that there was a valve failure, which then caused on Wednesday for over 9,000 homes to lose connection to water throughout Council District 12.

I just want to thank all the crews that have been working around the clock to fix this problem, and to thank all the different departments have worked so closely with the mayor's office, with my office, and making sure that Council District 12 has as many resources as possible for people to obviously um take showers, uh, use bathrooms, but also make sure that we had the resources with this hot weather to make sure that we had extra resources at our fire stations, different water tender trucks in our area, so we could make sure that we could battle anything that was put in front of us.

I'm happy to announce while I know everyone in Council District 12 that was affected is starting to see water come back when they turn on their faucets to please DWP is urging you to please still conserve water as much as possible.

We need to not only fill the distribution lines but also fill up the 10 million gallon tank that we have servicing the area.

So while I know that there is water, I know there's critical things that we need to use it for for bathrooms and washing your hands and drinking.

Please to remember that with the boil order, is I believe it's still in, but to check Dow D 1800 Dow DEWP if you have any questions, or to check the website to make sure to see if your area is still affected.

But please, until an all clear is given to please still conserve water.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Councilmember Lee.

Councilmember Nazarian is also on the queue for an announcement.

Thank you, Councilwoman.

Uh wanted to invite everyone this weekend.

It's gonna be a busy weekend in Council District 2.

We're having a uh concert in uh in the park, Noho Summer Night, 7 p.m.

North Hollywood Park.

We're gonna be uh featuring DJ Sal Roses, uh, and it starts at 7 p.m.

And then on Sunday night, uh we are going to have a movie in the park featuring Sonic the Hedgehog 3 at Tierra Street Park at 7 30 p.m.

Uh Saturday night there'll be uh food, music, a lot of different booths for people to stop by and ask questions, and I ask that everyone brings canned goods and or non-perishables to donate to the North Hollywood Interfaith Food Pantry.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Lovely to see activities across the entire city.

And seeing no further announcements.

I ask, oh, I'm sorry, Mr.

McCosco.

Go ahead.

Something just actually transpired.

Um at the head of this meeting, I talked about the uh the Peace Patrol member in the Harbor area who was arrested by massed unidentified agents purporting to be ICE agents.

And that organization just contacted me to let us know that they will be holding a press conference at the Japanese memorial on Terminal Island at 12 30, so just in about a little over 40 minutes.

And the Japanese Memorial is located at 1124 South Seaside in San Pedro, San Pedro Address.

It's on Terminal Island, 12 30.

And just wanted to make it make the press uh aware of that.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Councilmember McCosker.

And I believe that's our final announcement.

Members, please rise for adjourning motions.

Members to my left, adjourning motion, Councilmember Lee.

Go ahead.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Colleagues, today I rise with a heavy heart to adjourn in memory of a remarkable man, a pillar of the West Hills community, and my dear friend Merle Schreibman, who passed away on August 1st at the age of 80 years old, following a courageous battle with cancer and complications with his heart and lungs.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio on April 17, 1945, Merle showed an early love for theater and film that never left him.

After moving to California, he earned both his bachelor's and master's degree from UCLA, specializing in theater, radio, television, and film.

That early spark would ignite a lifetime dedicated to the art of storytelling and the nurturing of future talent.

As a professor at UCLA for nearly three decades, Merle shaped generations of filmmakers, directors, and producers.

He was not, he was known not only for his technical expertise, but also for his infectious humor, his deep well of kindness, and his unwavering belief in the potential of his students.

His two books, The Indie Producer's Handbook, and the Film Director Prepares are still widely used in film schools across the country.

But Merle didn't just teach the art, he lived it.

He was also a prolific director, producer, writer, and actor.

His creative journey took him from the Cleveland Playhouse to the sound stages of Los Angeles, where he worked alongside legends, mentored under icons, and never stopped evolving.

And through it all, he never lost his love for the craft.

But most importantly, Merle was what we remembered as a loving father, a proud grandfather, a brother, and a mentor, and of course, a loyal friend.

He made history as one of the first single men in California to adopt to be allowed to adopt a child.

And his bond with his son Ian and his grandchildren Ariela and Axel was a source of immense pride and joy.

Merle was in every sense of the word extraordinary.

He had a gift, not just for directing a scene or crafting a shot, but for seeing the good in people and lifting them up.

His life was a master class in how to lead with heart, humor, and with purpose.

And I just want to say on a personal note, the West Hills Neighbor Council has had an amazing ability to put politics aside and differences aside and focus on what's important for their community.

And Merle, while never in a leadership position, was always one of those people who put together events.

You could count on the annual Valentine's Day dance, where a senior dance where we invited seniors from the area to come together and have Valentine's dinner and dancing with our community, which my wife and I go to every single year.

You can count on Merle to bring community together.

Just an example of what a neighborhood council can do when they work together about creating community.

He organized a yearly uh Halloween uh Halloween decorate house decorating contest where we would drive through all throughout the district and pick out different houses in different categories and give out awards to those houses that you know best fit those different categories.

And he brought people from the entertainment industry, people from the community together to judge these houses.

And it was an annual event that so many of us look forward to.

Merle was somebody with an incredible heart.

His memory is a blessing, and to his family, just know what an incredible difference he made in uh the city of Los Angeles.

And there are so many people, not only on the part of the community, but especially on the West Hills Neighborhood Council.

They are such a close-knit group, and I know they're watching right now, and we are all going to miss him very much, but we will remember him fondly in our hearts.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Councilmember Leanne.

I'm sorry for your loss.

Any other adjourning motions?

Councilmember McCosker.

Thank you very much.

Colleagues, I ask that we adjourn today's meeting in the memory of Robert, Bob, Anthony Santich, who passed away on July 19th at the age of 86.

Bob Santach was more than a lifelong resident of San Pedro.

He was a devoted husband, a loving father, a grandfather, very successful businessman, and a proud Trojan.

He passed away peacefully at home, surrounded by his family, and holding the hand of his wife of 64 years, Rose.

His final moments were filled with the same love, warmth, and strength that defined his life.

Bob graduated from San Pedro High School in 1956, earning both athletic and academic scholarships to USE.

There, he was a proud member of the 1958 national championship baseball team under a Hall of Fame coach Rod Dado.

He went on to earn both a bachelor's and a master's degree in business administration from SC, setting the foundation for a successful business career after baseball.

For over six decades, Bob dedicated his professional life to Dart Warehouse and Transportation, which Coach Dado founded.

For the last 25 years, Rob has served as president and executive board member of that company, known for his kindness and integrity.

He treated everyone with respect.

He led by example.

He was passionate about his work, but also carved out time to spend with his wife, his family, watch USC football and baseball to his wife Rose, his children, Anthony, who's here with us today, Esther and Robert and his grandchildren.

We send our deepest condolences and gratitude for sharing Bob with us all.

May he rest in peace.

I grew up with Anthony, getting to know each other really in the teen and high school years, and uh spent a lot of time in the around the dining table and and uh uh knew Anthony's dad and was always so pleased to see him in community, and I would stop and say hello even as he was getting sick.

Uh, always a gentleman.

And with your permission, I would like my friend Anthony Santach, if he can, to just say a couple of words about his father.

Thank you.

I want to thank you for honoring the memory of my dad, Bob Santach.

He was just the best man I've ever known.

He'd always say you could accomplish anything with enough love and hard work, and he brought those virtues to his job every day for over 60 years.

Much like the same way council member McCosker brings those same virtues, love and hard work to our district, and we appreciate it.

Just really quick.

My dad was from this really small Croatian family, but he married into a giant, loud Italian Croatian family in San Pedro.

They had over 800 people at their wedding.

My dad said he knew about 10 of them.

But my dad used to joke about the Trutaniches, and you may have known Carmen Trutanich, who was a city attorney, but they were just this giant family.

And uh he used to say being married to a Trutanic was like a walk in the park, Jurassic Park.

But my uh my dad claimed to fame was he hit a home run to get those Trojans into the 58 National Championship in a Jim Murray article.

Um, many years later.

They declared that one of the top 10 moments in Trojan baseball history.

Uh last week when Tim had learned, council member had learned my dad had passed.

Uh he sent me a very thoughtful and kind message, and he signed off with the USC Battle Cry fight on.

Now that would have made my dad smile a lot, knowing that he could get a Notre Dame alum.

Move to the point where he would say fight on.

So thank you again on behalf of my family.

God bless Bob Sanichin and God bless the city council and all the wonderful work you guys do.

Thank you too.

Thank you so much.

Any other adjourning motions on my left?

Adjourning motions on my right.

Councilmember Park.

You councilwoman.

I um have two today.

Um, I'm gonna start with Marlene Sedan.

It is with deep sadness that I ask that we adjourn today in honor of Marlene Sedan.

We are joined by her son Jamie.

Born in Toronto, she married Sandor Stern and they moved to LA in 1970 from Hidden Hills to Beverly Hills.

Eventually she settled on the West Side in Mar Vista.

Marlene was a loving mother and grandmother.

She worked various jobs while raising her four sons.

She worked for Jim Henson and The Muppets in the late 1970s and early 80s.

She worked in magazine publishing and then in TV and film production for a time here in LA from the TV series ELF to a remake of Splendor in the Grass.

But her passion was early childhood development.

She adored children.

She worked as a teacher and a preschool director running her own school for a number of years in Mar Vista.

She was considered the original punk rock mom, allowing wayward kids from Hollywood to take refuge in her home, a safe place to reset for teens from broken homes.

She was mom to many punk rock kids in the early 1980s.

Marlene had a wicked sense of humor and the biggest heart.

She could find out the life story of everyone she met because she genuinely cared about people in their stories.

In her later years, Marlene lived in Venice Beach and was very involved in the Jewish community around the boardwalk at the Bar Community Center.

Marlene carved out a life for herself and her boys and provided a home full of love and laughter.

I first met Marlene several years ago, and she shared with me a lot of the experiences that she had been struggling with, living right at Ocean Front Walk.

She provided mentorship and a perspective on issues and things that had worked and not worked right there in that very unique little community.

I'm incredibly grateful for the time that she spent sharing her wisdom with me.

And I'm on behalf of all of Council District 11 incredibly grateful for the role that she played in our community.

She passed away at the age of age 87 on Monday, July 7th in her sleep.

She survived by her four sons and their wives and partners, Sean Stern and Elizabeth Covisi, Mark Stern and Danielle Paust, Adam Stern and Mersa Nichols, Jamie Stern and Dana Stern, as well as her three granddaughters, Madison, Fauna, and Zuma.

She'll be missed beyond words.

Thank you so much, Councilmember.

My deepest condolences.

And I have one more.

Please.

They're always hard, but this one's really hard.

As we are adjourning today, I want to take a moment to recognize a tragic anniversary.

A year ago today, 16-year old Samantha, who was known as Sammy Lieber, a lifelong student at Bruntwood School, died in an ATB accident while on vacation with her family in Wyoming.

Today we are joined by Sammy's parents, Carla and Rod, along with some friends from the Brentwood community.

So, on behalf of the entire council and city of Los Angeles, we extend our deepest condolences for this heartbreaking loss.

Thank you for allowing us a moment to remember Sammy today.

The first thing people would notice about Sammy from a very young age was her infectious laugh and smile.

She was a kid who truly brought joy to the world, a kind and gentle soul who loved to dance and draw and listen to music.

As she grew, her skills developed, and she became a wonderful young artist who sketched and painted, not only for fun, but as a respite from the intense demands on teenagers these days.

Another thing you should know about Sammy is that she had plans, lots of plans.

Last summer, she was getting an early start on new concepts as editor of the school yearbook while training hard for the varsity cheer squad.

She had her eye on Tulane University, where she hoped to advance her skills in arts and graphics and join a sorority.

After college, she thought about a job in design, maybe about getting married, having two or three kids.

The names were already picked out.

And they would all live in a modern farmhouse with chickens, of course.

Sammy's middle school teacher Betsy Sandler remembers Sammy's determination and kindness, inspiring both students and teachers to make each day meaningful and special.

Last summer, Sammy began teaching kids in South LA the same art skills that brought her so much joy and peace.

In her memory, her parents have created the Sammy Foundation, which provides art and music supplies and support to schools in LA and all across the country.

The foundation has already supplied over 2,000 kids, many displaced by the Altadena Fires, with inspired by Sammy art kids.

As the council member for a devastated Bruntwood community, I'm heartbroken.

But I'm also inspired by Sammy's kindness, compassionate compassion, determination, and talent.

For the hundreds who were touched by her loss and the thousands who know her story, I want you to know that we will always remember and honor her legacy.

May she rest in peace.

Thank you, Councilmember Park and to the parents of Sammy.

Um you want to say something?

Could I say something?

I would love to.

I wasn't gonna speak today because I didn't think I could, and I won't keep you long because I know you all have other things to do, but um council and council member Park said um remember Sammy.

That's our motto, is remember Sammy.

That's what we're going for.

Um, but I actually want to say to you for a moment, don't remember Sammy.

I want you to think about the person in your family who is that young little one.

Sammy was the eighth grandchild, the littlest.

Think about the person in your family that inspires you most that you always have to give a hug to, that you always have to protect that with Sammy and our family.

And all I would ask is that you go and think about that person and give her a hug or him a hug, and you know, take that moment because you never know when you won't get any more moments.

Okay, thank you.

Thank you.

Your grief is really unimaginable, and we join you in your grief.

Thank you, Councilmember Park.

Any other adjourning motions?

Thank you all.

This meeting is adjourned.