Council Chambers and must be turned in to the city clerk here at the Dais.

Please be sure to indicate the agenda item number which you wish to speak on.

Attendees who have joined us by Zoom will be called to speak after the in-person comments have been given.

Detailed instructions for public comment will be provided on screen when the time for public comment begins.

If there is a high volume of public comment this evening, we may decrease the time allotted for each comment or limit the total time for public comment.

In the event this occurs, please feel free to send your full comments to the city council at Council at Redwood City.org.

Written comments are not read aloud but will be made part of the final meeting record.

And I'll now turn it over to our city clerk to help call the roll.

Good evening.

We'll start with Councilmember Chu.

Here.

Councilmember G will be joining us shortly.

Councilmember Howard here.

Councilmember Padilla is absent this evening.

Councilmember Sturkin.

Here.

Vice Mayor Aiken.

Here, Mayor Martina Saballos.

Here.

Thank you.

Thank you, City Clerk, and we will move on to Pledge of Allegiance.

Vice Mayor, could you do the honors?

Please join me in saluting our flag.

I pledge allegiance to the flag at the United States of America.

And then to the recovery for which it says one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice well.

Thank you, Vice Mayor.

We'll move on to item four.

Item four is a procedural item for the purpose of identifying and confirming any council members who wish to participate in the meeting remotely and have not already provided a remote location listed on the agenda.

This item does not pertain to public comment from the public.

And seeing that we do not have any council members exercising this, we'll move on to item number five.

And item number five is the beginning of our presentations and acknowledgments for the night.

It is a call for local civic action to stop instances of hate and implicit bias that are a dangerous threat to the safety and the civility of our neighborhoods, towns and cities.

And I'll read a few whereas of the proclamation.

Whereas the City of Redwood City stands strongly in support of inclusivity for our diverse community, honoring and protecting every individual, regardless of race, creed, color, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, orientation, or identity.

And whereas education, compassion, and cooperation are key to unlocking understanding and embracing differences between people.

And whereas the City of Redwood City and numerous community partners hold events and activities focused on equity and inclusion throughout the year and during United Against Hate Week will provide special events such as strike a pose, an introduction to Vogue and the ballroom scene, a community conversation on respective dialogue, an open mic alongside Kenyatta College, a United Against Hate Unity Walk, Kick It With the Cops, and Harvesting Dreams, just to name a few events.

Now, therefore, be it resolved that I, Elmer Martina Saballos, Mayor of Redwood City, on behalf of the City Council and residents of Redwood City, do hereby proclaim October 19th through 25th, 2025 as United Against Hate Week and encourage the entire community to stand together in solidarity for a more cohesive and inclusive Redwood City.

And now I'd like to welcome uh my dear friend Mercedes Martin and members of the Promotores team from Redwood City together to accept the proclamation and give a few remarks before we take a photo.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you.

My name is Mercedes Martin.

I'm the public relations intern and welcoming Redwood City Portfolio Lead this year for Redwood City Together.

And me and one of our youth promoters are here to accept the proclamation on Redwood City Together's behalf.

I'll have one of our youth promotores, Giovanni, say a few words.

Hello, my name is Giovanni.

I'm a youth promoter for Redwood City Together.

United Against State Week is important to me because in a time where I believe that, like right now, unity and respect are the most important, and taking time to like acknowledge that is really important.

Thank you both and thank you for the team for being here.

If we can grab a quick photo, we have a proclamation for you all.

Thank you again for being here.

Thanks, everybody.

We'll now go on to our second proclamation for the evening, recognizing fire prevention week, which is October 5th through October 11th, 2025.

This week provides an important opportunity for residents of Redwood City to learn about fire safety, practice safe charging and disposal habits, and work together to make sure that our community is safer from preventable fires.

I'll now read a few whereas is from the proclamation.

Whereas Fire Prevention Week has been observed annually since 1922 during the week of October 9th in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.

And whereas the National Fire Protection Association or NFPA and the City of Redwood City are dedicated to reducing the risk of home fires and protecting lives and property of all residents through fire safety education and prevention efforts.

And whereas the 2025 Fire Prevention Week theme, Charge into Fire Safety, Lithium Ion Batteries in your home, highlights the importance of understanding and practicing fire safe behaviors when using and charging lithium ion battery-powered devices, which have become a part of daily life.

Now, therefore, be it resolved that I, Elma Martina Saballos, Mayor of Redwood City, on behalf of the City Council and the people of Redwood City to hereby proclaim October 5th through 11th, 2025 as fire prevention week in the city of Redwood City.

And I call upon all residents, schools, businesses, and community organizations to observe this week with appropriate programs, activities, and outreach to raise awareness about fire prevention and safety practices, especially in the use of lithium ion batteries.

And now I'd like to welcome Redwood City Fire Marshal Janice Chung to the podium to accept the proclamation and give some remarks.