2026-09-23 - City Council Formal Meeting

00:00members.

00:03Each person must wear a safety vest at

00:05all times. [music] Safety vests along

00:07with trash bags will be supplied to you

00:09by ADOT. Remember, [music] no children

00:11below the age of 12 or pets are

00:13permitted in the program or in the work

00:15area.

00:17[music]

00:20For your safety, do not utilize music

00:22players. Your ears are often the first

00:24thing to warn you of imminent danger.

00:27Appoint a lookout for your group. work

00:29facing oncoming traffic and remember to

00:32stay at least 5 ft from the pavement

00:34edge.

00:35The fewer distractions for the traveling

00:37public and your group, the better. Now,

00:40when it comes to trash, know what you're

00:42picking up. If you cannot identify it,

00:45don't pick it up. This brings us to the

00:47topic of hazardous waste.

00:49>> Methamphetamine is the number [music]

00:51one drug abused in the United States and

00:53Arizona today and is responsible for a

00:56lot of our violent crime. The sun is

00:58rising. [music]

01:00>> Each pound of met that is manufactured

01:02produces 5 to six lb of hazardous

01:04materials [music] as waste. So when

01:06you're out here on the roadway, don't

01:08pick up things that have tubing that is

01:10red, ice chest that are red, or red

01:12chemical bottles. Bad guys throw them

01:14out here because they don't want to get

01:16caught with them. Also, leave those

01:18corroded propane bottles alone. Used car

01:21batteries, needles, syringes, or

01:23anything that you don't know what it is.

01:25[music]

01:27The best rule of thumb is if you are

01:29uncertain, don't touch it and inform

01:31local law enforcement. Remember, be

01:33alert.

01:34>> Also, do not enter pipes or culverts.

01:37The danger is too high, so let the pros

01:39deal with that. You should pick up small

01:41items made of paper, cardboard, plastic,

01:44styrofoam, wood, or rubber. Glass items

01:47and small empty containers are okay if

01:50they do not have sharp edges.

01:54Tie your bags securely shut and place

01:56the filled bags at least 6 ft from the

01:59pavement edge.

02:01Do not overfill or over stuff the bags.

02:04ADOT workers must lift these bags into

02:06their trucks. Place large or heavier

02:08items like tire debris or any items that

02:10would tear a bag near the filled bags.

02:13Remember, don't move anything that could

02:15cause you or your team members physical

02:17harm.

02:18ADOT will remove your filled trash bags

02:20from the roadside after the cleanup is

02:23complete. Avoid overexertion and drink

02:25plenty of fluids to stay hydrated. Adopt

02:28a Highway program encourages recycling,

02:30so collect the recyclables and take them

02:33with you. Make sure your group has

02:35enough water and that on-site first aid

02:37is available.

02:39Leave snakes alone. People are bitten

02:41because they try to kill a snake or get

02:43a closer look at it. Keep hands and feet

02:45out of areas you cannot see. Don't pick

02:48up rocks or firewood. Be cautious and

02:50alert at all times. [music]

02:52If you or a group member is bitten, wash

02:55the bite with soap and water. [music]

02:57Immobilize the bitten area and keep it

02:59lower than the heart and get medical

03:01help.

03:03Remember, you signed a permit to do

03:04this. That permit has terms and

03:06conditions. It is very important that

03:08you read and abide by them. Inform your

03:11ADOT adopt a highway contact at least 5

03:13days prior to the cleanup effort.

03:17We need to make sure your dates don't

03:19conflict with other highway uses. So,

03:21it's very important to know who your

03:23adopt a highway contact is and that they

03:25have your contact information. We need

03:27to know as quickly as possible if a new

03:29coordinator is appointed or if you

03:31change any of your contact information.

03:33Make sure everyone in your group fills

03:35out a volunteer registration form before

03:37each cleanup. The Arizona Department of

03:40Transportation wants this to be a

03:42rewarding and safe experience for all of

03:44you. Volunteers like you make this

03:46program successful [music] by giving

03:48your time and energy to make a positive

03:50impact on the environment. [music] Your

03:52efforts are appreciated very much so not

03:54only by ADOT but also by the citizens of

03:56Arizona and the visitors who will enjoy

03:59a cleaner state because of your hard

04:01work. So spread the word. Arizona, keep

04:04it grand.

04:08[music]

04:15>> [music]

04:27[music]

04:29>> Hi, my name is Brian Ty. I'm a water

04:31service technician for the City of

04:33Phoenix Water Department.

04:39>> [music]

04:40>> My role as a technician is to provide

04:42excellent customer service to our

04:44[music] residents in the city of

04:45Phoenix. As a water service technician,

04:48we [music] deal with leaks, turn on,

04:52turn offs of homes with customers moving

04:54[music] in and out of their residence,

04:57replacing meters, and [music] replacing

04:59stops.

05:08For me, [music] the most rewarding part,

05:10um, I grew up in city of Phoenix. I went

05:12to grade school, high school. So, for

05:14me, being able to [music] come back and

05:15provide the service to the community

05:17that I grew up in is very important to

05:19me.

05:23I believe the water [music] service

05:25technician position is important to our

05:28division because we are the first

05:30[music] people the customers see

05:55>> [music]

05:59[music]

06:04>> Heat. Heat. [music]

06:11Heat. [music]

06:24Heat.

06:42>> [music]

06:45>> Heat up here.

06:56[music]

06:58Heat

07:03>> [music]

07:07[music]

07:09>> up

07:13[music] here.

07:23Heat [music]

07:34up here.

07:39[music]

07:53Welcome everyone. We are starting the

07:57city's celebration of Diana Terrasi.

08:02>> I like the green.

08:05>> In the city of Phoenix, we celebrate

08:07people in many ways and one is with

08:10street signs. For nearly a decade, fans

08:13coming here have been welcomed with the

08:16street sign bearing Diana Terrasi's

08:18name. When the sign first went up, Diana

08:21had just surpassed the great Tina

08:22Thompson to become the WNBA's all-time

08:26leading scorer.

08:31Fortunately for Phoenix and for her

08:32fans, she kept going. And it is time to

08:36update the sign to recognize her

08:39incredible record scores in the city of

08:42Phoenix and the amount of baskets that

08:45she made. She's been a really important

08:48part of our city. We are so lucky that

08:50the Mercury drafted her number one pick

08:53and that she spent 20 seasons with us

08:56and the Phoenix Mercury, becoming the

08:58most decorated Olympian in women's

09:00basketball and remaining the WNBA's

09:03all-time leading scorer.

09:09>> And she's not content with just

09:11greatness on the court. She's also been

09:12an important contributor to our

09:15community, stepping up for parents and

09:17families, fighting for equality, and

09:19more. We are so grateful to have her

09:21commitment to the city of Phoenix, and

09:23the city of Phoenix is so pleased that

09:25we can honor her with this street sign

09:28with us.

09:29>> We're looking forward to unveiling the

09:31sign, which will show her current to

09:33total unscoring, more than 10,000

09:36points. That number will forever mark

09:39her place in WNBA history and remind the

09:41city of the countless moments she gave

09:42us to celebrate. Diana, your legacy is

09:45something we are proud of in the city of

09:47Phoenix. Thank you.

09:51>> And now we'll welcome Josh Bartlestein,

09:53the CEO of the Phoenix Suns and Mercury.

09:55Thank you.

10:00>> Good morning.

10:01>> Morning.

10:01>> It's a great day to celebrate the

10:04greatest of all time. You know, people

10:06throw around that word a lot. Goat, the

10:08greatest. There's only one greatest. She

10:11happens to be standing right behind me.

10:14You can throw around the stats, a

10:16three-time champ, six gold medals, an

10:19MVP, go on and on and on, but DT was the

10:23ultimate winner. She cared about winning

10:24at the highest level, and she did for

10:27all 20 years in the valley. Her loyalty,

10:30what she meant to the fans and her

10:32teammates and her coaches and what they

10:34mean to her is what separates Anna

10:36Terasi

10:41>> DT your first basket. You know what it

10:42was? You know who it was against basket.

10:45>> There you go. First basket Sacramento

10:47Monarchs, right? Last basket.

10:53>> Minnesota Links. There was a little

10:54trivia to do this. Minnesota Links. Uh,

10:57but all along the way, the points, the

11:00baskets, there were gamewinners, there

11:02were stepbacks, there were and ones

11:04looking at the ref, but those don't

11:06capture who DT is. It's the moments and

11:09memories. And you're going to see that

11:11on Sunday when you have people crying

11:13because they know what she means to them

11:15and their family. All 10,

11:18646

11:20baskets. So, it's a privilege. It's an

11:23honor to be of the greatest, a winner, a

11:26true champion, someone who means so much

11:28to Phoenix, the one and only Diana

11:30Terzi. I want to thank Mayor Ggo in the

11:33city for all they've done for this as

11:34well. DT, floor is yours.

11:37>> Wow.

11:41>> Good morning, everyone.

11:42>> Morning.

11:43>> Um, first off, I'd like to thank Mayor

11:46Ggo and and the city of Phoenix. Uh,

11:48this wouldn't be possible without her

11:50vision. um you know, without her

11:52thinking this is really important for

11:53the for the city, for the Phoenix

11:55Mercury um and and all the Phoenix um

11:59community. Josh and Matt, thank you guys

12:01so much. Um since you guys have really

12:05taken over the Phoenix organization,

12:07there's been this push to really make

12:09sure that the legacy of of this city is

12:12portrayed and and not only the the

12:14players that played in this building,

12:16but what the city is all about. And um

12:19you know when I think of the 20 years

12:20that I I spent here um

12:24I get really emotional cuz I came here

12:26as a little kid. I was 21. I guess

12:28that's not little but it was in my head.

12:31And I'd never been to Phoenix before. I

12:33had no clue what this city was about.

12:35And 20 years later it mirrors all the

12:37things that I thought were important in

12:38life as a teammate

12:41as a daughter and now as a mother. um

12:45hardworking city,

12:48a community that brings everyone

12:50together. It mirrors all the things that

12:53it takes to be a champion in life and on

12:55the court. Um and I just hope when

12:58people see that last name, it symbolizes

13:01all the things that it takes um to

13:05really make it. And that's hard work,

13:06discipline, consistency um and not only

13:10that, a great community. This wouldn't

13:12have been possible without everyone that

13:15played at the Phoenix Mercury, worked at

13:17the Phoenix Mercury, coached to the

13:18Phoenix Mercury, everyone who's been,

13:20you know, part of the fabric of what

13:21this championship community means. And

13:24uh, you know, it's it's an amazing thing

13:27for not only myself, my family, everyone

13:31who loves this team and this city, but

13:33for the future generation that can look

13:35up there. Um, and with hard work,

13:37anything is possible. So, I want to

13:38thank everyone who's here today. Um,

13:40what an amazing weekend. Um, I'm super

13:44thankful and grateful for everyone. Uh,

13:46I feel like every time I come to one of

13:48these, I see some faces I hadn't seen in

13:49a long time. And that feels really good

13:51more than any basket, more than any

13:53championship. It's really the faces that

13:55that have made this 20 years so

13:58important to me and my family. Um, and I

14:01I'm really thankful. And uh, let's get

14:03this sign and build. Here, guys. Go.

14:07>> All right. We need Scorch. Yeah, it's

14:10[music] countdown time.

14:56Good afternoon.

14:58Fire chaplain Tim Martinell will provide

15:00an invocation in keeping with the

15:02tradition of a legislative prayer for

15:04the council. Participation is entirely

15:06voluntary. Anyone may remain seated or

15:09step outside. When the chaplain is done,

15:11Vice Mayor Hajj Washington will lead us

15:13in the pledge of allegiance.

15:15Good afternoon,

15:18Madame Mayor. I would like to thank you,

15:20the city council, and your staff for the

15:21opportunity to open this meeting in a

15:23prayer. You please bow your heads and

15:25pray with me.

15:27Gracious God, we thank you for this day

15:29and for the privilege of serving the

15:30residents of Phoenix. We are grateful

15:33for the members of the city council and

15:36for their commitment to our community.

15:39As we gather to conduct the city's

15:40business, grant them wisdom,

15:43discernment, and clarity of thought.

15:45Help them work together with respect and

15:48understanding as they consider the needs

15:50of those that they serve. We also give

15:52thanks for the residents of Phoenix and

15:55for all who continue to make this city a

15:57vibrant and caring community. May this

16:00meeting be productive, thoughtful, and

16:02focused on the common good. And I pray

16:04this in Jesus's name. Amen.

16:09I pledge allegiance.

16:27>> Thank you. I'll now call to order the

16:29meeting of the Phoenix City Council.

16:32Will the clerk please call the role?

16:34>> Councilwoman Vardo,

16:35>> here. Councilwoman Hernandez

16:37>> here.

16:38>> Councilwoman O'Brien

16:39>> here.

16:39>> Councilwoman Pastor

16:41>> here.

16:41>> Councilman Robinson

16:43>> here.

16:43>> Councilwoman Stark

16:44>> here. Councilman Wearing

16:47>> Vice Mayor Hajj Washington

16:48>> here.

16:49>> Mayor Ggo

16:51>> here. Mario Barahas is with us to

16:54provide Spanish interpretation. Mario,

16:56would you introduce your team?

16:57>> Yes, Mayor. Thank you. Good afternoon.

16:59My name is Mario Vahas and today I'm

17:01going to be working with Oscar Monroy as

17:03interpreters uh to for our Spanish

17:05speaking community. I'll now take a

17:07moment to introduce ourselves to our

17:10Spanish speaking community.

17:46Thank you, mayor.

17:48Thank you so much. Will the city clerk

17:51read the 24-hour paragraph? The titles

17:54of the following ordinance and

17:55resolution numbers on the agenda will

17:56>> I found this on the web

17:57>> to the public at least 24 hours prior to

17:59this council meeting and therefore may

18:00be read by title or agenda item only.

18:02Ordinance is numbered S53185

18:05through 53224.

18:08>> Will the city attorney explain public

18:10comment, please?

18:11>> Yes. Thank you, mayor. Members of the

18:13public may speak for up to two minutes

18:14to comment on agenda items. Comments

18:17must be related to the agenda item in

18:18the action being considered by the

18:20council. General comments that go beyond

18:22the scope of the agenda items should be

18:24made during the citizen comment session

18:26at the end of the agenda. The city

18:28council and staff cannot discuss or

18:29comment on matters related to pending

18:31investigations, claims, or litigation.

18:34Additionally, any member of the public

18:35who appears before the council in their

18:37capacity as a lobbyist must, as required

18:40by Phoenix City Code, disclose this fact

18:42before addressing the council. The city

18:45code states that speakers must express

18:47their comments respectfully and

18:48courteously. Use of profane language,

18:51threats, or personal attacks on members

18:53of the public, council members, or staff

18:54are not allowed. Such comments are

18:56disruptive and unrelated to the

18:58council's business. Any person who

19:00violates these rules may lose their

19:01opportunity to speak further and could

19:03be asked to leave. Thank you, mayor.

19:06>> Thank you so much. We'll next go to item

19:08one, boards and commissions.

19:10>> Motion to approve.

19:11>> Vice Mayor, do you have a motion?

19:12>> I do. Motion to approve the mayor and

19:14city council's board and commissions

19:16appointment nominations.

19:18>> Second.

19:20All those in favor, please say I.

19:22>> I.

19:27>> Eyes carry. The vice mayor will conduct

19:29a swearing in ceremony. After the

19:31ceremony, I recognize Councilwoman

19:32Gordado for a comment.

20:05has a card.

20:11>> Okay. I state your name.

20:16Do solemnly swear or affirm

20:19>> domly swear or

20:21>> that I will support the Constitution of

20:22the United States

20:24>> that I support the Constitution of the

20:25United States

20:26>> and the law and the Constitution and

20:28laws of the state of Arizona

20:30>> and the Constitution and laws of the

20:32State of Arizona.

20:33>> That I will bear true faith and

20:34allegiance to the same.

20:36>> I will bear true faith and allegiance to

20:38the same.

20:39>> And defend them against all enemies,

20:40foreign and domestic.

20:45And I will faithfully and impartially

20:48>> I will faithfully and

20:50>> discharge the duties of

20:52>> duties of

20:54>> name of your board of commission

21:01>> according to the best of my ability.

21:04>> So help me God. Help me God.

21:06>> Thank you. Congratulations.

22:22Well, thank thank you so much, Mayor,

22:24and I'm truly honored to accept the

22:27responsibility of serving as co-chair of

22:29the FastTrack City SAH Committee. I want

22:32to thank Councilwoman Deborah Stark, Laa

22:34Pastor for their leadership and for the

22:37important work they have done alongside

22:39our community partners. This committee

22:42does incredible work bringing together

22:44the people, resources, and expertise we

22:47need to prevent new HIV infections,

22:49connect people to treatment, and care

22:52and confront the stigma that too often

22:54keeps people from seeking help. For me,

22:58this comes down to something very

22:59simple. where you live, what you earn,

23:02what language you speak, and what

23:03neighborhood you come, you call home

23:06should never determine whether you can

23:08get the care you need. We know there are

23:10still communities in Phoenix where

23:12people face real barriers to health

23:14care, testing, treatment, and even basic

23:17information. We also know that stigma

23:20can be a barrier all by itself. I'm

23:22looking forward to bringing people

23:24together, listening to the communities

23:26most impacted, and making sure we are

23:28reaching people where they are. If we do

23:31that, we can make a real difference in

23:33people's lives and continue moving

23:35Phoenix forward, the goal of ending the

23:37HIV epidemic. I'm proud to take on this

23:40responsibility, and I'm ready to get to

23:42work. Thank you, Mayor.

23:45>> Thank you, Councilwoman, for stepping

23:46up. This is truly life-saving work. We

23:49have such important medical advances

23:52that can help so much, but not everyone

23:54in our community is getting them. Thank

23:56you to Councilwoman Stark, Councilwoman

23:57Pestor, and our community volunteers. We

24:00have gotten international recognition

24:02for this effort, but we still got a lot

24:04of work to do and grateful that you are

24:06taking it on.

24:08With that, we move on to the liquor

24:11license portion of our agenda. We

24:12provide an advisory role to the state of

24:14Arizona. Vice Mayor, do we have a

24:16motion? Motion to approve items 2

24:18through 24.

24:19>> Second.

24:22>> We have a motion and a second. All those

24:23in favor, please say I.

24:25>> I.

24:25>> I.

24:26>> Any oppose? Nay.

24:29Passes. Next we go to city clerk. Are we

24:33ready for ordinances, resolutions, new

24:35business, planning, and zoning?

24:36>> Yes, mayor.

24:39>> Vice Mayor.

24:40>> Motion to approve items 25 through 81

24:42except for the following. items 30, 44,

24:4646, 47, and 63. Noting that item 33 is

24:51continued to October 7th, 2026, and item

24:5445 is withdrawn. And can the clerk

24:56confirm if there are any other items

24:57that should be excluded for in-person

24:59public comment?

25:00>> Mayor, vice mayor, no other items to

25:02exclude.

25:03>> Second.

25:05>> Have a motion and a second. Roll call.

25:08>> Yes.

25:09>> Hernandez,

25:10>> yes.

25:10>> O'Brien,

25:11>> yes. Pastor,

25:13>> yes.

25:14>> Robinson,

25:15>> yes.

25:16>> Stark,

25:16>> yes.

25:17>> Wearing,

25:17>> yes.

25:18>> Hudge Washington,

25:19>> yes.

25:20>> GGO,

25:21>> yes.

25:22>> Passes 90.

25:25>> We next go to item 30, which is a

25:26proposed 44th Street and Baja Road

25:29annexation.

25:30We'll open the public hearing. We do not

25:32have any comments on the public hearing.

25:34I will close the public hearing. We'll

25:36have a vote at a later day. We next go

25:38to item 44. Vice Mayor

25:42Motion to approve item 44. Second.

25:46>> Councilwoman Hernandez.

25:47>> Thank you so much, Mayor. I just have a

25:49couple questions on this item for

25:51probably David and team.

26:12Thank you so much, J. Uh, David, I

26:14almost called you Jason. I know Jason

26:15isn't here, so my bad. Um, but thanks

26:18for bringing this to the council for

26:19consideration. I think this there is a

26:21need for um this type of uh structure in

26:24the city. Um, you know, I think I've

26:26personally witnessed a few uh shouting

26:29matches amongst the city employees and

26:31I'm happy to support this item. Um, just

26:34a couple questions. Can you help me

26:35understand how you will identify which

26:39125 city employees get to be part of the

26:41training?

26:42>> Yes, thank you. Good afternoon, mayor,

26:44members of council. I have assistant HR

26:45director Karina Ramsey with me who will

26:47be able to answer that question.

26:51>> Mayor, members of council, thank you for

26:52the question. Um, this stems from an

26:55agreement with Aspatilla. During the

26:58initial pilot program, we will

26:59collaborate with Aspatilla to establish

27:01a committee. That committee will be

27:03asked to review data where to determine

27:06where in the organization there is most

27:08need for conflict resolution. The

27:11committee will then select up to 125

27:13participants to um have supervisors and

27:16managers throughout the organization to

27:18participate in the conflict resolution

27:19program.

27:20>> Thank you so much. Um my next question

27:22is um how do we plan to spread out the

27:25certified mediator training program? um

27:27you know 20 participants for is a small

27:30number um of certified mediators for

27:32such a big city.

27:36>> Mayor members of council, thank you

27:37again for that question. Much like the

27:39initial selection of the 125

27:41participants for the conflict resolution

27:43program, the committee will also select

27:45a cohort of 20 participants to become

27:48certified mediators. the cohort once

27:51select once they select a cohort they

27:53had to fully be committed to not only

27:55the initial training but the continuous

27:57education training and a two to

27:59threeyear commitment to be available for

28:01mediation throughout the city upon

28:02request.

28:03>> Thank you so much. Um and just my last

28:05question um will this conflict

28:08resolution opportunities be extended to

28:09mayor council and staff on the 11th

28:11floor? Um just asking for a friend.

28:17>> Good afternoon mayor members of council.

28:19Uh once the certified mediators are in

28:20place with this pilot program, they can

28:22be utilized citywide. Thank you so much.

28:25>> Thanks for ask.

28:26>> Okay.

28:30>> Thank you, Mayor.

28:30>> Thank you. Roll call.

28:32>> What another one?

28:33>> Yes.

28:33>> Ernandez,

28:34>> yes.

28:35>> O'Brien,

28:35>> yes.

28:36>> Pastor,

28:37>> yes.

28:37>> Robinson,

28:38>> yes.

28:39>> Stark,

28:40>> yes.

28:40>> Wearing,

28:41>> yes.

28:41>> Hodge Washington.

28:43>> Yes. GGO.

28:45>> Yes. passes 90.

28:49>> Next, we go to item 46. The vice mayor

28:51has been working on this one for a

28:53while, so I will turn to her.

28:57>> Thank you so much, mayor. Um, I move to

28:59approve item 46. Second.

29:02>> Thank you, mayor. If I may continue, I

29:04am especially proud to see the master

29:06leasing continue to move forward in

29:08Phoenix. It is an approach I've

29:10advocated for because we need more tools

29:12to move people from homelessness into

29:14stable housing. And I'm pleased to see

29:16that advocacy become real action. Master

29:19leasing is an important part of the

29:20housing strategy. Today, we are taking

29:22another step toward creating the

29:24capacity to bring properties online,

29:26connect people to housing, and provide

29:28the support they need to remain housed.

29:31I also appreciate that this item gives

29:33us flexibility to work with qualified

29:35partners as opportunities become

29:36available. For me, this is about taking

29:39an idea that we've been talking about

29:40and turning it into something that will

29:42have a real impact on people's lives. I

29:44want to again thank our staff and our

29:46community partners for helping us move

29:48this forward. I am beyond proud that

29:50master leasing is now becoming a part of

29:51how Phoenix approaches the housing

29:53crisis and I look forward to seeing the

29:55results for our residents. Thank you,

29:57Mayor.

30:01>> Thank you so much for your work on this

30:02item.

30:04Roll call.

30:07>> Yes. Sorry, I'll do a void explanation.

30:11>> Mayor, may I explain my vote?

30:14Yes,

30:15>> thank you. Um just wanted to say uh vice

30:17mayor, you know, thank vice mayor for

30:19leading on this. This is one of the

30:20important tools that we need um as we

30:23faith, you know, navigate through our

30:25housing um shortage that this is the

30:27type of creative solutions that cities

30:29can do. And so I'm really proud to see

30:31this. Um happy to support this and just

30:34really again thank you to the vice mayor

30:35for leading on this um innovative idea

30:37and to all the city staff um that really

30:40helped make this possible because this

30:41is like I said one of the one of the

30:43tools that we need um in really

30:45navigating through the housing uh

30:46shortage we face ourselves. So with that

30:48um I vote yes.

30:50>> O'Brien

30:51>> yes.

30:52>> Pastor

30:53>> yes.

30:53>> Robinson

30:54>> yes.

30:55>> Stark

30:56>> yes.

30:56>> Wearing Hajj Washington

30:58>> yes. There you go.

31:01>> Yes.

31:02>> House says 90.

31:05>> More good news uh in district 8. Uh item

31:0847. Vice Mayor.

31:11>> Motion to approve item 47.

31:13>> Second.

31:14>> Thank you. Again, I'm very excited about

31:16this investment in our Lavine

31:18neighborhood. Our seniors deserve spaces

31:20where they can stay active, build

31:22relationships, access services, and

31:24continue to be an active part of our

31:26community. Over this past summer, I was

31:28able to sponsor senior programming at

31:30the Prickley Pier Library, and there was

31:32an overwhelming amount of support from

31:34the seniors in this area. I would like

31:36to publicly thank the human services

31:37department for filling in that gap this

31:39summer. This project is particularly

31:41meaningful because the general

31:43obligation bond is allowing us to make a

31:45significant investment in a growing part

31:46of district 8. The approximately 12,000

31:50foot facility will provide space for

31:52multi sorry multi-purpose activities,

31:54fitness, meals, and other programming.

31:56And I'm looking forward to seeing that

31:58vision take shape. As we move forward

32:00through the design process, I want to

32:02make sure we continue listening to the

32:03seniors and the residents who will

32:04actually use this facility. The best

32:07community facilities are designed with

32:08the community, not simply for the

32:10community. I want to thank our residents

32:12for supporting the geo bond and our

32:14staff for moving this project forward.

32:16I'm excited to see this become a place

32:18where Lavine seniors can gather,

32:20connect, and thrive. Thank you, mayor.

32:23Thank you so much.

32:26This is a a very exciting vote. I have

32:30been talking and working on a senior

32:32center in Lavine for more than a decade,

32:33and how fabulous to move it forward

32:36during September, which is National

32:37Senior Center Month. So, good news for

32:41all of Phoenix's seniors, including our

32:43Southwest Valley. Roll call.

32:47Yes.

32:47>> Fernandez,

32:48>> yes.

32:49>> O'Brien,

32:49>> yes.

32:50>> Pastor,

32:51>> yes.

32:51>> Robinson,

32:52>> yes.

32:53>> Stark,

32:54>> as a senior, yes.

32:57>> Wearing.

32:58>> Haj Washington.

32:59>> Yes.

32:59>> GGO.

33:02>> Yes.

33:02>> Passes 90.

33:06>> Thank you. We next move to item 63.

33:08Police public record service fees and

33:10increase staffing level. This is a real

33:13priority, a one I brought up during our

33:15budget process. Our backlog is

33:17unacceptably long. We want our residents

33:19and members of the media to get their

33:21records in a timely way. So, I'll

33:23introduce Lorie Ba who has been working

33:25long and hard to address this problem.

33:28>> Thank you, mayor. Good afternoon, mayor,

33:30members of the council, and I will

33:31introduce the team that will be coming

33:33to the table to provide a short

33:35presentation on a proposal to address

33:38the backlog mentioned by the mayor uh

33:40and to discuss the um public records and

33:43services fee proposal for the police

33:45department as well as a request for

33:48increased staffing to address the

33:50backlog. As mentioned, um the team who

33:53is joining me as we speak is assistant

33:55director Court Hood with the police

33:57department and police administrator Amy

34:00Runquist. And both of them um are

34:02experts in this field and will be

34:04providing a short presentation. And

34:05we'll start with Court.

34:11>> Good afternoon, Mayor, members of the

34:14council. Thank you for the opportunity

34:15to present information about the two

34:17items before you today. I'm Assistant

34:19Director Cord Hood and I'm joined by my

34:22esteemed colleague, Police Administrator

34:23Amy Runquist.

34:29During our presentation today, we'll be

34:31providing you a broad overview of P

34:33police's public records program and the

34:34justifications and support of our

34:37proposals. But I'd like to begin with

34:39highlighting our why. What are we aiming

34:41to achieve by bringing these items? The

34:45first is rebalancing our cost recovery

34:47for services provided which directly

34:50supports our second goal which is to

34:52eliminate the backlog of of existing

34:54requests within one year. And lastly,

34:58our aim is to maintain pace with the

35:00increased volume of requests well into

35:02the future.

35:05So we'll start by uh providing an

35:07operational summary of how the program

35:08works. We'll discuss the fluctuating

35:11volume of requests we've received over

35:13the last five years. We'll focus on the

35:15backlog and the several challenges we

35:17face and round that out with a breakdown

35:20of our two proposals,

35:23which are adjusting the fee schedule and

35:25increasing the number of authorized

35:26positions.

35:30This slide outlines how we interact with

35:32requesters and the general public on a

35:33daily basis.

35:35Where some may assume that our work

35:37focuses solely on researching,

35:40redacting, and releasing records, there

35:42is much more to the work. The first tile

35:46on the left hand side of the slide

35:47represents our center of operations, the

35:49public records portal, where each one of

35:52more than 130,000 requests are managed.

35:56But the various ways we serve our

35:58customers outside of submissions

36:00received online, there are a lot. The

36:03bureau provides service to an estimated

36:0515 to 20,000 walk-in customers each year

36:08at our public service counter at 100

36:10West Washington Police Headquarters. And

36:13if submitting your request online or

36:15coming in person isn't the preferred

36:17option, we staff a call center that

36:20fields more than 68,000 calls every year

36:24to answer general questions. And we

36:26offer also offer the ability to schedule

36:29over the phone appointments or schedule

36:32in-person appointments at a time that's

36:34convenient for the customer.

36:36If none of those options work, we're

36:39happy to help via facts, email, and even

36:42letters received by mail. So, customer

36:45service truly is foundational of the

36:47work that we perform.

36:50This list uh is a request type uh and

36:54our our full list is extensive but here

36:56are the most commonly requested records

36:58we receive. Incident or department

37:01reports, CAD which stands for computer

37:04automated dispatch reports which is

37:06information stored by our 91 operators

37:08and dispatchers.

37:10Traffic crash reports.

37:13Requests for videos which primarily

37:15consists of bodywn camera videos.

37:19photographs and requests as part of

37:22legal proceedings.

37:24[clears throat]

37:26All of that work is currently performed

37:28by 54 hardworking full-time employees

37:30and 14 dedicated part-time employees,

37:34which also includes five supervisors and

37:36a manager that oversees the program. Our

37:39staff is assigned to various teams to

37:42ensure an equitable distribution of work

37:45and to provide subject matter expertise

37:47in areas where appropriate. For example,

37:50we have a team dedicated to managing all

37:52requests for the office of uh

37:54accountability and transparency. We have

37:56a team that manages the release of

37:58records to comply with our transparency

38:00protocols during critical incidents and

38:02those require extensive research and

38:05expertise in redaction and review. And

38:07we also have a team with expertise in

38:09being responsive to subpoenas.

38:15We're now presented with a visual that

38:17shows the total number of requests

38:18received for each of the last five years

38:21and our current calendar year

38:23highlighted in the blue bars in the

38:24slide and a snapshot of the number of

38:27backlogged requests recorded around the

38:28midpoint of each year indicated in the

38:30gold and yellow bars. I'd like to draw

38:33your attention to the first two years,

38:352021 and 2022.

38:38You'll note the request totals are

38:39higher than 2023 and 2024, which were

38:42measurably lower. However, one of the

38:45most significant changes occurs between

38:472024 and 2025

38:51where we experienced a 30,000 requests

38:54increase yearover-year.

38:57We'll discuss a few of the notable

38:59reasons uh that explain the increase in

39:01the coming slides, but I'd like to

39:02emphasize that we're on pace to exceed

39:042025's totals this year. So, it is no

39:07longer considered a fluke, which we

39:09believed it to be at one point or an

39:11outlier year, [snorts] but truly that if

39:14this record holds, it means that this

39:15year will be the highest for records

39:17requests receive ever.

39:21Turning our attention to the gold and

39:23yellow bars, those represent requests

39:24that we were unable to immediately

39:26triage or fulfill or as we call it, it

39:29constitutes a backlog of requests. And

39:31let's focus on that for just a moment.

39:35An important part of understanding many

39:37of our current challenges is to have an

39:38awareness of what began in 2020 that

39:41contributed to the explosive growth in

39:43the backlog totals. And you'll see the

39:44peak that's highlighted there in 2022. I

39:46know the font is a little small, but

39:48it's about 73,669

39:51requests uh in 2022. That's our our

39:54highest total ever.

39:562019 to 2020 was transformative for the

39:59bureau. Many manual non-technical

40:02processes were being phased out as we

40:04migrated to a new online portal and

40:06digital processing of requests. This was

40:09a good and necessary change for us.

40:11However, midway through that

40:13transformation, the COVID pandemic began

40:16and it mandated operational changes that

40:18impacted our ability to serve our

40:20customers in the most efficient manner

40:21possible, such as closing the service

40:24counter that allowed customers to come

40:26in person and it also required us to

40:28segregated staff in the office um and

40:31reduce in office staffing.

40:34While these adjustments, they're

40:36necessary to protect the health and

40:38safety of the public and our employees.

40:39At the time, it slowed our rate of

40:41fulfillment and as indicated in 2021 and

40:442022, the backlog ballooned.

40:48At the same time, in the midst of

40:50managing through the start of the

40:51pandemic, we received a considerable

40:52amount of public records requests

40:54related to demonstrations that occurred

40:56in the summer of 2020.

40:58Many of those requests were complex and

41:00comprised of hundreds of hours of videos

41:02and other uh records that required years

41:05of time and labor to collectively

41:07resolve.

41:09So in recognition of the lost progress

41:11and the mounting backlog, the bureau

41:13took steps to pick up where we left off

41:15with that change or that continuous

41:17improvement process. And that meant cont

41:20uh committing to picking up uh where the

41:23work began and to improve our

41:25operations.

41:27In the following three slides will

41:29provide highlights about this initiative

41:30to comprehensively evaluate the public

41:33records program in police which included

41:35a careful and thorough process to review

41:38and modernize our operations and

41:40identify opportunities for improvements

41:42and increased efficiency. Our first

41:45commitment or our first pillar was to

41:47process improvements.

41:50We examined every role and every

41:52assignment in the bureau to ensure

41:54alignment with our current needs and we

41:56eliminated the unnecessary or outdated

41:59processes. Remember a lot of our

42:01existing process at the time were

42:02mid-transition from these manual

42:05paperdriven processes to managing uh to

42:08digital.

42:09So, one example of of our improvements

42:11in this way was reviewing the makeup of

42:13our teams and resources dedicated to

42:15them.

42:17Next, we establish goals for every

42:19employee, and we measure their

42:21activities to ensure that the work is

42:22complete, that it's accurate, and that

42:25it's timely, whether they're conducting

42:26research on a request or they're ser uh

42:29serving an in-person customer.

42:34At the same time, we we procured several

42:36software programs that modernize how

42:38redactions were completed. That change

42:41reduced friction or the time required to

42:44fully process records that were becoming

42:46more and more digital.

42:48We also procured a management platform

42:50for our service counter that provides

42:52real-time metrics on our rate of

42:54efficiency and it ensures that customers

42:56are served as quickly as possible when

42:58they visit us in person.

43:01I also wanted to highlight a current

43:02project underway. It's not included in

43:04in the slide here uh but it is worth

43:07mentioning and that is a complete

43:08overhaul of our online public portal

43:10request portal. Among the many

43:13enhancements that will make submitting

43:14and monitoring the status of requests

43:16easier for customers. We're most excited

43:18for a feature that will allow customers

43:20seeking traffic crash reports to search,

43:23retrieve, and pay for their traffic

43:26crash reports if if they must, if

43:28they're mandated to um online without

43:30the need for any of our staff to be

43:32involved in that process. And that means

43:35that the vast majority of the roughly

43:3760,000 public records requests for

43:39traffic crash reports may be filled uh

43:42without our direct intervention of staff

43:44and they can be reassigned to other

43:46priorities for fulfillment fulfillment.

43:49So we're really proud of that and that's

43:50slated to go live at the end of this

43:52year at the beginning of next.

43:55The second uh innovative change that's

43:56noted in the slide here uh involves

43:58automating workflows and not

44:00notifications. So as a request is moved

44:02from one staff to another it prompts uh

44:05prompts are automatically generated

44:07which promotes increased awareness uh uh

44:10so the fulfillment process is not

44:12stalled.

44:15Lastly our third pillar to this process

44:18improvement project uh was a focus on

44:20staffing and recruitment. At the start

44:22of this project we found that higher

44:24rates of attrition and vacancies among

44:26our police records clerk. That's an

44:28entry level uh position. Um, but with

44:30council's generous support of increasing

44:33the starting pay to 17 from $17.52

44:37to $2261

44:39at that time, we experienced an increase

44:42in interest in those roles. So, we're

44:45thankful for council support.

44:48We also began a partnership with with

44:49human resources to streamline hiring

44:51when vacancies occur. And one example of

44:54this is our current process held just a

44:57few weeks ago when we hosted a one-day

44:58hiring event to fill 19 positions as

45:01part of our efforts to address the

45:02backlog backlog which we'll address in

45:05later slides.

45:10Returning to our annual backlog totals,

45:12you'll note the steep decline. You'll

45:13see the trend line highlighted in uh red

45:16and the in yellow and green. You'll note

45:18the steep decline in the backlog of

45:20requests between 2022, excuse me, 2022

45:23and 2024 that brought it down to its

45:26lowest levels. The hard work of every

45:29member in the bureau along with support

45:31from the department leadership, the city

45:33manager's office, and from council

45:35helped facilitate the changes and

45:36provided much needed momentum to drive

45:38the backlog down. However, for the last

45:4118 months, the backlog has incrementally

45:44increased to where it it now sits just

45:46below 40,000 requests as of now. So

45:50again, let me I just want to highlight

45:52from a low of about 27,000 in 2024, we

45:55are currently at this time just below

45:5740,000 requests.

46:00This slide shows us a current status and

46:03average weight times as of September 1st

46:04of this year of most of our of our most

46:07requested records types. So for incident

46:10number for incident requests just under

46:1310,000 public records requests the

46:15average wait time is anywhere between 11

46:17days and 6 weeks for traffic crash

46:19report traffic crash reports about 19

46:22days for the 74,000 public records

46:25request excuse me 7,400 public records

46:28requests for traffic crash reports

46:31for video requests that's your body worn

46:34camera and other video related media

46:35just under 13,000 public record public

46:38records requests And the weight is

46:40anywhere from 1.7 years to 2 1/2 years.

46:44And for all other requests cumulatively,

46:46the weight is anywhere between 17 days

46:49and 3 months for the estimated 9,64

46:53requests.

46:55So we we'll acknowledge that there are

46:57improvements to be made in each one of

46:59those uh categories, but it's clear that

47:01the body warning camera and associated

47:03video requests experienced the longest

47:05day uh delays. And let's explore some of

47:08the wise behind the delays.

47:12Our findings over the last year as we we

47:14analyze the backlog and why uh we

47:17experienced a steep increase in requests

47:20over that last year revealed an outsized

47:22increase in the number of commercial

47:24requests from non-commercial requests.

47:28And so we'll provide a definition that's

47:29before you. according to state law,

47:31using a state public record for sale,

47:34resale, or producing a document

47:36containing all or part of the record for

47:38sale or solicitation.

47:40So, essentially that means making money

47:42off of the public records request that

47:44you receive. And the greatest impact

47:46that we're seeing is to video requests,

47:49traffic crash uh uh report requests, and

47:52incident or department report requests.

47:58Alternatively, here are some examples of

48:00non-commercial requests that includes

48:03involved parties, victims,

48:06representatives of victims such as their

48:08family, their attorneys, their insurance

48:10companies. That also includes

48:12researchers. And I want to emphasize

48:14that media and journalists are not

48:16considered commercial requesters.

48:19Everyone else is non-commercial

48:21requesters.

48:26In review of the makeup of the backlog,

48:28we found that commercial requests made

48:29up nearly a quarter of all requests last

48:32year in 2025, which is up 32% over the

48:36last 5-year average. Also in general,

48:40overall demand for records has increased

48:42nearly 30% from 2025 over 2024, which we

48:46illustrated in that steep uh increase

48:49with considerable impacts to traffic

48:50crash report requests at 56% increase

48:54year-over-year and body warn camera uh

48:57requests, which is 17%.

49:02This slide shows us the breakdown

49:04between non-commercial and commercial

49:06requests of the existing backlog. You'll

49:08know commercial requests are highlighted

49:10in yellow as part of the bar and

49:12non-commercial requests are blue as part

49:14of the bar the bar. A moment ago I

49:18stated that 24% of annual requests are

49:20commercial in nature but the current

49:22makeup of the backlog 40% of those

49:25requests is 40%. Why is the difference

49:27there? Well, the reason why is we're

49:29repri re repri, excuse me, we rep

49:32prioritized our work to focus on

49:35fulfilling requests for general public

49:37ahead of the interests of those who seek

49:39to make a profit from these records.

49:44So, as we began to further analyze and

49:47understand the nature of the of these

49:49requests, we found some concerning

49:51trends and wanted to highlight one. On

49:54the slide before you on the right hand

49:55side, uh you'll see a table with 10

49:58requests included. It may be hard to see

50:00for those in the audience or even from

50:02the dis. Uh so I'll summarize it for

50:04you. There are 10 separate requests for

50:05video footage. One for 121 hours, one

50:09for 144 hours, one for 136, excuse me,

50:13let me go back. One, these are um

50:15separate videos, not hours. 121 videos,

50:19144 videos,

50:21136 videos, and another for 81 separate

50:25video clips. This is all from one

50:27requesttor.

50:29The total amount of video hours uh uh

50:32requested with standard redactions is

50:34almost 150 hours or 60 600 labor hours

50:39to process them with standard um

50:41redactions.

50:43We found that this one requesttor posts

50:45these videos on YouTube for what we

50:47assume is a sizable profit based on

50:49monetized views.

50:52On the left hand side of the slide,

50:53you'll note screenshots of other videos

50:55from other accounts where they're

50:57racking up millions of views in a matter

50:59of months. Again, it may be hard to see,

51:01but the top video on the left hand side

51:03there has 8.4 million views in less than

51:06two months.

51:09It's not just for videos uh for video

51:12media, but for incident reports and also

51:14traffic crash reports. As previously

51:15mentioned, these commercial requesters

51:18are using the public records request

51:19process as part of their their business

51:22model. Essentially, what uh which

51:24ultimately impacts our ability and

51:26capacity to serve victims, families, and

51:29other requesters who have true needs.

51:32So, I'll now ask uh Amy to present our

51:34proposed solutions to address what we've

51:36discussed and ultimately eliminate the

51:38backlog.

51:42[clears throat]

51:45Mayor and members of the council, these

51:47next slides will be a brief overview of

51:49the current and proposed fee schedules.

51:52The current fee schedule, last updated

51:54in 2019, which added a $5 deposit for

51:57requests and has some components dating

51:59back to 2004, no longer reflects actual

52:02processing cost or the complexity of

52:04today's modern records environment. The

52:07schedule includes nominal fees such as

52:0924 cents per page for documents and $4

52:12$4 per request for videos and photos. In

52:15practice, per request refers to the

52:17complete group of records submitted by a

52:19requester under a single public records

52:21request. A single request may contain

52:24one items or numerous items, including

52:26dozens of videos requiring review and

52:29potentially hundreds of hours of staff

52:31time to process, as was noted in the

52:33slide before. And that's all at the cost

52:35of a $4 flat fee. As a result, the

52:39current fee structure does not align

52:41with significant time, labor, and

52:43resources required for modern record

52:45processing, particularly for digital

52:47media and video redaction.

52:51Before presenting the itemized breakdown

52:53of the proposed fee schedule, it's

52:55important to highlight several key

52:56elements of the proposal.

52:58One of the first things you'll notice is

53:00a focused effort to separate commercial

53:02and non-commercial requests. A central

53:05goal of this update is to strengthen

53:07cost recovery while maintaining

53:08accessibility for non-commercial

53:10requesters. We're happy to share that

53:12most document requests submitted by

53:14non-commercial users will be provided at

53:16no cost, which reflects our commitment

53:18to transparency and public access. I'd

53:21also like to emphasize that victims and

53:23their families will not be charged for

53:25records, ensuring that those directly

53:26impacted receive needed information

53:29without financial burden. For commercial

53:32requesters, the proposed schedule

53:33includes increased fees that more

53:35accurately represent the actual time,

53:37effort, and complexity involved in

53:39fulfilling their requests.

53:41These requests often require extensive

53:43review and processing, including

53:45significant video examination and

53:47redaction. Adjusting fees for commercial

53:50users allows the city to recover

53:51appropriate costs while ensuring that

53:53public resources remain focused on

53:55serving non-commercial community needs.

53:58Collectively, these changes promote

54:00sustainable operations and a fee

54:02structure aligned with modern record

54:03processing demands.

54:08The proposed fee schedule introduces

54:09differentiated pricing for

54:11non-commercial and commercial requesters

54:13while aligning fees with the actual

54:14workload required to process modern

54:16digital records. We want to highlight

54:19again under this updated structure, most

54:21requests submitted by non-commercial

54:23users will be entirely free, reflecting

54:25a strong commitment to public access and

54:28transparency.

54:29[clears throat] For non-commercial

54:30requesters, the only circumstances in

54:32which charges would apply are when

54:34physical printed copies are requested

54:36for in-person pickup or mail delivery,

54:38and these fees will will remain nominal.

54:41Commercial requesters, however, will see

54:43a more structured cost framework that

54:45reflects the actual time and complexity

54:47associated with fulfilling their

54:49requests. Commercial users will pay pay

54:51a flat fee in addition to per page costs

54:54for documents. This pricing approach

54:56recognizes that commercial requests

54:58often involve more extensive retrieval,

55:01review, and production needs, and it

55:03supports the department's ability to

55:04recover appropriate costs while

55:06maintaining equitable access for

55:07non-commercial users.

55:10Regarding video requests, the current

55:12fee schedule charges $4 per video

55:15request, which as noted may include

55:17dozens of videos within a single

55:19submission. The proposed schedule

55:21modernizes this process by allowing

55:23requesters to review the video materials

55:25at no charge and identify the specific

55:28clips needed for standard redaction.

55:31This change improves efficiency by

55:33reducing staff review time and ensures a

55:36quick turnaround time on requests for

55:37our customers.

55:39for more complex reactions requiring

55:41detailed work. Fees are structured to

55:43ensure costs correspond only to the

55:45actual workload required.

55:48Additionally, the proposal eliminates

55:50the existing $5 flat deposit fee.

55:53Removing this charge reduces initial

55:55financial barriers, simplifies the

55:57request process, and ensures that fees

55:59are tied directly to the actual cost of

56:01fulfilling the request rather than an

56:03upfront administrative payment.

56:06Collectively, these modifications create

56:08a fee structure that's more accurate,

56:10transparent, and aligned with the

56:11realities of modern record processing

56:14while substantially improving

56:15affordability for non-commercial users.

56:20This slide provides a summary of our

56:22review comparing Phoenix's proposed fee

56:24schedule with those of other police

56:26agencies across the state. The updated

56:28structure is intentionally designed to

56:30clearly differentiate between

56:32non-commercial and commercial requesters

56:34while fully complying with statutory

56:36requirements.

56:37Compared with other Arizona agencies,

56:39the proposed schedule keeps Phoenix more

56:41affordable. Many regional agencies

56:44charge between 44 and $46 per hour

56:48[clears throat] for video review. In

56:50contrast, Phoenix's model allows

56:52requesters to access primary video

56:54content at no cost and applies fees only

56:56when supplemental redaction work is

56:58required. This approach ensures that

57:01requesters pay only for the specialized

57:03labor actually performed.

57:05Document fees also remain lower for

57:07non-commercial users compared to other

57:09agencies. You'll note that other

57:11agencies charge a flat fee plus a per

57:14page fee for all requesters. Under our

57:16proposal, digital document copies will

57:18be free for non-commercial requesters,

57:20making the majority of the document

57:22requests costf free. Charges would only

57:24apply to printed physical copies uh and

57:27for in-person pickup or mail or

57:29delivery.

57:31Overall, this proposal maintains Phoenix

57:33as one of the most accessible agencies

57:35in the state while ensuring fees reflect

57:37actual workload and responsible cost

57:39management.

57:43In reviewing our second item for

57:45consideration, we're requesting

57:46authorization for 10 new permanent

57:49nonsworn full-time employees dedicated

57:51to public records processing. The slide

57:54before you outlines the complete

57:56staffing plan developed to eliminate the

57:57backlog and meet ongoing operational

58:00demands. To support this effort, we're

58:02supplementing the 10 new positions by

58:05reassigning six existing permanent

58:07employees from within the department. In

58:10addition, we're actively hiring 19

58:12temporary full-time employees whose sole

58:14focus will be reducing the backlog

58:16within one year. In total, this staffing

58:20plan provides 35 full-time employees

58:22committed to improving the timeliness

58:24and consistenc consistency of our public

58:26records processes. This investment

58:29represents a necessary and strategic

58:30step toward delivering reliable,

58:32responsive service to the community.

58:39Adjusted fee revenue will support the

58:41ongoing costs associated with the 10 new

58:43permanent positions. The projected

58:45annual revenue from the revised fee

58:47schedule is approximately $789535,000

58:51with a projection of $779

58:54$896,000

58:56to pay for ongoing position costs. It's

58:59important to emphasize that this revenue

59:00is not focused on profit. Rather, it's

59:02focus it's designed almost solely to

59:04offset the operational expenses required

59:07to process public records in a timely

59:09and efficient manner.

59:11The proposed fee adjustments ensure that

59:13we can responsibly fund the additional

59:15staffing needed to eliminate the backlog

59:17and maintain consistent service levels

59:19moving forward.

59:24In summary, the objectives of this

59:26proposal are straightforward. eliminate

59:28the existing backlog within one year and

59:31maintain a processing pace that keeps

59:32pace with increasing demand. The

59:35combined fee schedule adjustments and

59:37staffing recommendations directly

59:38support these goals. Collectively, these

59:41actions will enable the police

59:43department to rebalance cost recovery by

59:45using the revenue to fund the costs

59:47associated with 10 new positions, to

59:49stabilize operations, and to restore

59:51timely service to the public.

59:56Today, we respectfully request council

59:58approval for two items. Approval of the

1:00:00proposed fee schedule, excuse me, and

1:00:03approval to add eight permanent

1:00:04administrative aid and two permanent

1:00:06administrative assistant one positions.

1:00:09Thank you [clears throat] for your time

1:00:10and we welcome any questions.

1:00:17>> Thank you so much, Councilwoman

1:00:19Hernandez.

1:00:20>> Thank you, Mayor. Um, have a plethora of

1:00:23questions, I think, on this. Um, but I

1:00:25want to start by saying that I fully

1:00:27support the need to reduce our backlog.

1:00:30I think my my disagreement comes in this

1:00:33fee increase maybe being the best path

1:00:36forward for that. Um,

1:00:39I want to first start with, you know, my

1:00:42understanding is that our current

1:00:44policy, and I think it was talked about

1:00:46a little bit in here, is that a victim,

1:00:48the victim's attorney on behalf of the

1:00:51victim or an immediate family member of

1:00:53the victim if the victim is killed or

1:00:54incapacitated can receive one copy of

1:00:56the police report, audio recording, and

1:00:59video recordings at no charge. That's

1:01:01our current policy. Correct.

1:01:04>> Correct.

1:01:05>> Okay. Um, so my follow-up question is

1:01:08who is defining who is a victim um in

1:01:12this policy?

1:01:17>> Mayor and members of the council, the

1:01:19victim is typically defined in the

1:01:21police report.

1:01:23Okay. Well, the reason I asked is

1:01:25because even based on the current policy

1:01:29um there's a huge problem with this um

1:01:33with who's accessing you know the public

1:01:36records submitting public records uh and

1:01:39are they going to have to pay or not.

1:01:40For example, in officer involved

1:01:42shootings, the individual is usually

1:01:44listed and every single case I have seen

1:01:46is listed as a suspect. Um, so if we

1:01:50have a community member that is shot by

1:01:53police, they're going to be listed and

1:01:55usually remain um designated as a

1:01:59suspect for the entirety of of the case.

1:02:02Uh, that is the tr the the case in my

1:02:04brother's case where even in the final

1:02:06reporting, he remains listed a suspect.

1:02:09So based off of our current and our

1:02:12proposed policy, would immediate family

1:02:15members of these victims, because to me

1:02:18they're victims, but we have them listed

1:02:20as suspects. Now, would they have to pay

1:02:22for these increased fees when they

1:02:24submit public records?

1:02:27>> Mayor and members of the council, uh,

1:02:29no, they don't pay for fees. That's

1:02:31current and that'll continue forward.

1:02:33>> Okay. And is that reflected in policy,

1:02:37>> mayor? remember, excuse me, mayor,

1:02:39members of the council, Councilwoman

1:02:41Hernandez, our um public records uh

1:02:45staff who process these requests. Um

1:02:47they go to great lengths if it is not

1:02:50clear who a victim is and their

1:02:52communication with the requesttor to um

1:02:55establish um whether or not they're a

1:02:57victim or whether or not they qualify

1:02:59for free copies of of of records as um

1:03:03stated by by state law. So, you're

1:03:05correct. victims, the representatives,

1:03:07attorneys, um they would all qualify

1:03:09under uh under state law to receive a

1:03:12free copy of all records. And if we um

1:03:15either find in the police report and our

1:03:17or in our communication with the

1:03:19customer that they would qualify for it,

1:03:22then we will provide that um afford

1:03:24them. However, taking to your point, one

1:03:27of the enhancements that and the note

1:03:28that we can take back in programming

1:03:30this new um platform is to ensure that

1:03:33there is a way um for folks uh or

1:03:36customers who requesting records to

1:03:39identify themselves as a victim or at

1:03:41least communicate um with us if they are

1:03:43a victim so that they can um be provided

1:03:46free copies if if they would qualify.

1:03:48So, we can certainly take that that back

1:03:50and work that into the the new platform

1:03:52that we're developing.

1:03:53>> Okay. because I I still feel like

1:03:55there's there's going to be a gap there

1:03:58between the folks that are listed as and

1:04:01I don't know if maybe I'm not reating my

1:04:04question correctly, but if we're using

1:04:05the police reports and that's where they

1:04:08are being identified as either a suspect

1:04:09or a victim, like where in our policy is

1:04:12that going to be designated to make sure

1:04:14that when those record public records

1:04:16requests are submitted that our staff

1:04:19can properly identify them, right? cuz

1:04:22like it would would someone manually

1:04:24have to change the police report to show

1:04:27a victim

1:04:29in a crit and I'm talking like officer

1:04:31involved shootings critical incidents

1:04:32where they are automatically listed as

1:04:34suspects. So, what I'll say, uh, mayor,

1:04:37members of the council, Councilwoman

1:04:38Hernandez, in the scenario that you're

1:04:39providing, we work with our our

1:04:42partners, um, in um,

1:04:46uh, in human services and the victim's

1:04:48advocates so that families of of, uh,

1:04:51those involved in a critical incident

1:04:55can receive records. So, that is already

1:04:56part of our policies and procedures. So

1:04:58again, in specific to your your um

1:05:01example, we provide those those records.

1:05:04Uh no matter if they're uh considered at

1:05:07one point a victim or if they're

1:05:08considered a suspect, whatever their

1:05:09status is, if there's a family involved

1:05:11as part of that that relationship, we

1:05:14provide those records to them.

1:05:16>> Okay. Um and then my next um kind of

1:05:19question is you know within this policy

1:05:22and part of what I read it's says um the

1:05:24media family of anyone killed or

1:05:26incapacitated but that leaves um an

1:05:30entire

1:05:32amount of folks not identified in that

1:05:34right in that gap because there can be a

1:05:36lot that happens in between someone

1:05:37being killed or incapacitated. So how

1:05:40does that play into this proposed

1:05:41increase fee?

1:05:45Mayor, members of the council,

1:05:47Councilwoman Hernandez, um if they're

1:05:50non-commercial, if they are requesting

1:05:54records digitally for all documents,

1:05:58those will be those will be free for for

1:06:00our proposal. So, I just want to

1:06:01establish that if they fall somewhere in

1:06:03the gap again in their communication

1:06:05with us as we are processing their

1:06:08request or if there is a financial

1:06:10burden or if there's a need, we invite

1:06:13the communication. we provide that

1:06:15latitude for our our staff to evaluate

1:06:19it to involve supervision so that we are

1:06:21providing service uh to the community

1:06:24for those who would fall in in the gap

1:06:25that you're you're mentioning and I hope

1:06:27that answers the question sufficiently

1:06:30I think so um and maybe I just need to

1:06:34like give you sorry let me backtrack

1:06:37there is a video currently circulating

1:06:39through media through ABC15 reporting

1:06:41about Deontay Smith who was pulled from

1:06:44his vehicle

1:06:45by his hair and repeatedly punched by

1:06:47police officers. I'm gonna assume right

1:06:50without knowing any other things that he

1:06:53is probably very likely listed as a

1:06:56suspect in our reporting under this.

1:06:59What I'm hearing you say is would he

1:07:01have to he would be provided with copies

1:07:03of his public records for at no cost

1:07:07because it's a critical incident or how

1:07:10would that how would this scenario how

1:07:13would this apply here? Mayor, members of

1:07:14the council, Councilman Hernandez, I

1:07:16think I can maybe shed some light on

1:07:17what you're asking by using a little bit

1:07:19different language and and um this is

1:07:21the policy as I understand it, so please

1:07:22correct me if I'm wrong, director, but

1:07:24um the if any involved party to an

1:07:28incident, no matter how they're listed

1:07:30on a report, if they request a record,

1:07:33they would receive that record free of

1:07:35charge.

1:07:36>> Okay?

1:07:36>> So, if they are an involved party, they

1:07:39would receive that record. or if they

1:07:41are a representative of that involved

1:07:43party. So, for example, the the example

1:07:45that you're using, if um the attorney

1:07:49representing

1:07:50um the individual was to make that

1:07:53request, that record would be provided

1:07:55free of charge also.

1:07:57>> Okay, that I think answers what I'm

1:07:59getting at. And so, is our policy going

1:08:02to reflect involves party versus victim?

1:08:07Yes, mayor, members of the council,

1:08:08Councilman Hernandez, that is what our

1:08:10policy will reflect.

1:08:11>> Okay? Because I I you know, sometimes

1:08:13policies are left up to up to

1:08:14interpretation, right? And the way even

1:08:16now, right, the way that I'm reading it

1:08:18and I interpret it is a little different

1:08:19from how other folks may interpret the

1:08:21policy. So, I want to make sure that

1:08:23we're very clear. Um cuz I I don't feel

1:08:26it is fair if we have folks that are

1:08:29victims of police violence or their

1:08:31families to have to pay for any of the

1:08:33public records. Um, so just wanted some

1:08:37clarity there. Um, I think my next

1:08:39concern is do we see any um, and whoever

1:08:42wants to take this, but do we see any

1:08:44concern or risk with increasing these

1:08:46fees that would deter uh, the public

1:08:49from um, you know, not leaning to the

1:08:51first amendment rights um, by asking for

1:08:54these public records with these increase

1:08:56in fees?

1:08:59Mayor, members of the council,

1:09:00Councilwoman Hernandez, I I'll um speak

1:09:02to that and then if there's anything

1:09:03that director Hood or Miss Runquist

1:09:05would like to add, they can do that. Um

1:09:07what I would say to that is that this

1:09:09fee schedule should actually and the

1:09:11staffing level should actually make it

1:09:13easier for people to receive records um

1:09:16that would be related to their First

1:09:18Amendment rights. It will make it faster

1:09:20for people to receive records, whether

1:09:22that be documents or videos. Um, and it

1:09:24will also allow for um that video um the

1:09:28first video um submission to be the the

1:09:32medium blur that allows folks to quickly

1:09:34receive the video, look at it, and

1:09:36identify if there's a portion of it that

1:09:38they would like to have not blurred and

1:09:40and redacted with standard reductions.

1:09:43That process will be much quicker and

1:09:45will allow for folks to get the

1:09:47information related to their First

1:09:48Amendment rights more quickly than

1:09:49they're able to do today.

1:09:51>> Okay, thank you for that. Um, I think

1:09:52that moves it into my other big concern

1:09:55is this is ultimately like a b I see

1:09:57this as a budget item and and it's

1:09:59affects our budget. Um, you know, just

1:10:02this past June for the fiscal the past

1:10:03fiscal year, uh, council approved within

1:10:07the budget, there was $1.4 million for

1:10:10police to expand the public records

1:10:11department. Specifically, I believe it

1:10:14was said to, uh, address this records

1:10:17uh, request backlog. So I'm trying to

1:10:19understand what happened to that funding

1:10:22um and was that not enough and why and

1:10:26is that why we are now hearing increased

1:10:28this request for increased fees

1:10:33that mayor members of the council

1:10:35council member Hernandez um you are

1:10:37correct. We have been adding funds to uh

1:10:40the police public records budget. As

1:10:41court um summarized, we've been doing

1:10:44many things over the last few years,

1:10:46including this budget year to address

1:10:48the backlog, technology enhancements,

1:10:50and other things. Um however, to your

1:10:52point, that has not been enough to

1:10:54address the increase in demand. And so,

1:10:56in order to address the backlog and

1:10:58sustain the success after we address the

1:11:01backlog within a year, we need to now

1:11:04add positions. The thing that I will

1:11:06note, however, is that the cost of those

1:11:08positions will be covered by the

1:11:10increased revenues and the vast majority

1:11:13of those increased revenues will be paid

1:11:15by commercial users.

1:11:16>> Okay. I mean, that's still a little

1:11:18concerning because the total the

1:11:19totality of the police budget is about

1:11:21$1.3 billion, right? Between your

1:11:23general funds and your enterprise funds

1:11:25and I think the third fund, which or

1:11:27maybe it's just two funds in totality,

1:11:29that's $1.3 billion. This fee is the

1:11:33fees the fee increase is projecting to

1:11:37um

1:11:38do revenues of about let's run it up to

1:11:40$800,000. So within that $1.3 billion

1:11:44were we not able are we not able to

1:11:46identify $800,000 that would cover these

1:11:48positions? Because also, and I I I'll

1:11:52add this, that for the last few years,

1:11:56just our police department overtime

1:11:58alone has went over budget by over $20

1:12:00million. I think anywhere between 20 and

1:12:0325 million. So, is there not an

1:12:06opportunity to identify um money that's

1:12:09already currently in the budget to to do

1:12:11this exact same thing that is very

1:12:13needed, right? We all know that this is

1:12:15an issue. Um [clears throat] is that not

1:12:18a path? Also, did we explore maybe

1:12:20reassigning other positions to cover the

1:12:22temporary work? Because if the goal is

1:12:24to reduce the backlog within a year, did

1:12:27we explore other options before we

1:12:28landed on the fee increase? And I add

1:12:31that specifically because the total

1:12:33police budget is $1.3 billion.

1:12:35>> Mayor, members of the council,

1:12:36Councilwoman Hernandez, I don't recall

1:12:38which slide it was on, but um there is

1:12:40actually a combination of things that we

1:12:42are doing to address um the issue. The

1:12:45request for 10 new positions is new

1:12:48ongoing funding which will be covered by

1:12:50the revenues created through the updated

1:12:52fee schedule provided that's approved

1:12:54today. The um six additional positions

1:12:58are being added through reallocations of

1:13:01positions from elsewhere in the police

1:13:03department. So we are transferring

1:13:04positions from elsewhere in the

1:13:06department to add to the public records

1:13:08and services bureau. And then we are

1:13:10adding 19 new temporary um employees or

1:13:14FTE to cover that backlog and those

1:13:18positions will be funded with the

1:13:20existing police budget. So we are doing

1:13:22a combination of exactly what you

1:13:24suggested um between funding positions

1:13:27through the new revenues transferring

1:13:30positions from elsewhere in the

1:13:31department and um using funds from

1:13:34one-time savings within the police

1:13:35department budget to fund the temporary

1:13:37positions to address the backlog. Okay,

1:13:39I appreciate that, Laura. I think I just

1:13:40still have I still have an issue with

1:13:42just any because ultimately what this

1:13:45boils down to is that this is an

1:13:46increase in the police budget, right?

1:13:47Like we are having the department come

1:13:49to us to increase the fees that

1:13:51ultimately will generate $800,000 that

1:13:54goes on top of their already total

1:13:56budget of 1.3 billion. I just think that

1:13:58that's fiscally irresponsible of us to

1:14:00do if we have the pathways to do it. I

1:14:02already gave one example where if we

1:14:05control our overtime, we had plenty of

1:14:07funds to do this exact same thing

1:14:09without increasing fees to the public,

1:14:12right? Like that's ultimately the the

1:14:14the baseline issue here. Um

1:14:18I and yeah, that's a little I mean it's

1:14:22a little concerning because

1:14:24how this could be interpreted right to

1:14:26the public is that we are passing the

1:14:28we're footing the bill of accountability

1:14:30to the public.

1:14:32by increasing these fees. Not to say

1:14:35that you might I doubt that any of you

1:14:37would agree with that, but that could be

1:14:38the interpretation and the feelings in

1:14:40the public, right? That we are

1:14:41requesting things. We are requesting

1:14:43these reports to ensure that our

1:14:45department is accountable that whatever

1:14:47situation happened to me that I can go

1:14:49get solutions, advocate for myself, do

1:14:51all the things. We're saying like, hey,

1:14:53now you have to pay these higher fees.

1:14:55So

1:14:57if I'm a just a resident, that's how I

1:15:00would take it is that the accountability

1:15:02is being footed on my back. And so how

1:15:06do we address that concern with the

1:15:08public and with our community?

1:15:10>> Mayor, uh, members of the council,

1:15:12Council Hernandez, I think those are

1:15:14important questions. I guess I'd offer

1:15:15another way to look at it. Couple things

1:15:17here. First of all, this is really

1:15:20trying to shift the burden from the

1:15:22non-commercial public who's standing in

1:15:25line today behind people who are trying

1:15:27to use videos to monetize on YouTube

1:15:31is shifting the cost to those commercial

1:15:33users. So, I I think we'd all agree that

1:15:37if you're making money off of our public

1:15:39records, you should pay more for that

1:15:42than people you mentioned involved

1:15:44parties. And so that's largely what this

1:15:47is trying to do is to level the playing

1:15:49field for the general public with the

1:15:51commercial users. So that's one thing.

1:15:53You mentioned overtime. I think it's

1:15:55important to note that the overtime is

1:15:57over the budget, but it's really

1:15:59compensating for the fact that we are

1:16:02continuing to be underresourced in

1:16:04numbers of police officers. So once we

1:16:07are able to get our number of police

1:16:09officers uh at 3125,

1:16:12we should see our overtime be more in

1:16:14line. So it's really we're compensating

1:16:17for for less officers available uh until

1:16:20we can hire that full number. And then

1:16:22the last thing I would just say is we

1:16:24really work hard in the budget and

1:16:25research department through the entire

1:16:27year to ensure that there aren't big

1:16:30pockets of money that are unallocated

1:16:32within all of our department budgets.

1:16:35Um, so we shouldn't have $800,000

1:16:39underused in the police department or

1:16:41any other budget because the budget and

1:16:44research department is constantly

1:16:45working with the departmental staff to

1:16:47make sure that the resources are

1:16:49matching the work that the council's

1:16:51authorized to do. So, I just wanted to

1:16:53offer that uh to to kind of put some

1:16:56light to the questions you're asking as

1:16:58well.

1:16:58>> Yeah. And I think I you know, I

1:17:00appreciate it. I think that is a point

1:17:01of contention and we're going to agree

1:17:04to disagree on the overtime and how that

1:17:06shapes out. Um, you know, I I still have

1:17:10I'm going to continue to have my

1:17:11concerns and you know, I did I know in

1:17:13the presentation it was mentioned

1:17:14affordability, right? And based on this

1:17:16new structure that we as Phoenix still

1:17:19remain affordable on these public

1:17:21records, but when we're looking at

1:17:22affordability as a whole, we're talking

1:17:24about either on either side, right?

1:17:26commercial or non-commercial users,

1:17:28everybody's being impacted by so many uh

1:17:31rising costs in so many things. Um I

1:17:34think in our CSSE subcommittee this

1:17:36morning, I mentioned how gas is over 450

1:17:38a gallon now. So there's a lot of

1:17:41increase in cost to our entire

1:17:44community across the board. And so in

1:17:48light of

1:17:50that, I'm like, this is just it's hard

1:17:52to see this and and know my

1:17:55understanding of the police budget

1:17:58and be okay with increasing these fees

1:18:00when I know that there there's more that

1:18:02we can look at within our police

1:18:04department budget and identify the funds

1:18:07needed to achieve the same goal. That

1:18:10would not mean that would keep us out of

1:18:12increasing fees to commercial and

1:18:14non-commercial but especially the

1:18:15non-commercial because there's still

1:18:17increase of fees right to the

1:18:19non-commercial users

1:18:22>> in some form.

1:18:23>> Mayor, members of the council,

1:18:24Councilman Hernandez, the vast majority

1:18:27of fees for non-commercial users are

1:18:29actually going down. Most uh documents

1:18:32are available electronically and those

1:18:35documents would be available free of

1:18:36charge to non-commercial users. The fee

1:18:39that is um increasing is the video fee

1:18:42and that is to specifically recover the

1:18:44cost which is very high to redact those

1:18:47bodywn camera videos. But again a

1:18:50non-commercial user can receive the

1:18:52medium blur video to be able to identify

1:18:54if there's a portion of that video that

1:18:56they want to have redacted with standard

1:18:58redactions and they would only pay if

1:19:00they request those standard redactions.

1:19:02>> Okay. Thank you. I appreciate that and

1:19:04thank you for answering all my

1:19:06questions. I still, you know,

1:19:08fundamentally believe that there is a

1:19:10way to identify the funds in the current

1:19:12$ 1.3 billion total police budget to

1:19:15achieve the same goals. Um, and I think

1:19:18that's just my interpretation of the

1:19:21knowledge that I have on the budget and

1:19:23because budget and research is so great

1:19:25at what they do and been able to help me

1:19:27and my team understand the budget, um,

1:19:29there's still a fundamental issue there

1:19:31for me and concern. But thank you for

1:19:32answering my questions. Thank you,

1:19:34Mayor.

1:19:37Councilman Robinson.

1:19:40>> Thank you, Mayor. Um, Court, Amy, you

1:19:43guys did an excellent presentation. I

1:19:44know how much work goes into all of

1:19:48this, and I know Court, you and your

1:19:49folks have been meeting with folks from

1:19:51different companies. I know some that

1:19:53I've referred to you who um all are

1:19:57working on this backlog issue because

1:19:59we're not the only ones dealing with it

1:20:01from a law enforcement standpoint. every

1:20:03law enforcement agency across the um

1:20:05United States is dealing with this with

1:20:07the advent of technology and bodywn

1:20:09cameras. It's taken a lot. So, with

1:20:12regard to that, thank you for all the

1:20:13hard work that you're doing. You're spot

1:20:15on on so many of those things, moving in

1:20:17the right direction. Um I had a couple

1:20:20comments to make more than anything

1:20:21else. And then Mr. Zurker, you answered

1:20:23two of them or you asked and answered

1:20:25and that was the issue about overtime.

1:20:28you know, be it controlled or

1:20:29uncontrolled, when you're short about

1:20:31500 police officers, you're going to

1:20:33have overtime. And as um Ed mentioned,

1:20:36when we fill that gap, and Commander

1:20:38Brewer and his folks are in the back of

1:20:40the room, they are working toward doing

1:20:42that, hiring at a pretty good pace,

1:20:46hiring qualified people to be police

1:20:48officers because there's a lot who want

1:20:49to be police officers. So, they're doing

1:20:51a great job in that respect. So, we're

1:20:53moving in that direction. There was also

1:20:55the issue of um commercial versus

1:20:58non-commercial and Ed you hit both of

1:21:00those things but a couple of other

1:21:01things were mentioned that I I I think

1:21:03deserves a little bit further

1:21:05explanation or at least something said

1:21:08on my part. We talk about um what a

1:21:12victim is. If we look in the Arizona

1:21:14Revised Statute, it's 134401.

1:21:17It explains who a victim is. So I think

1:21:21that might be a starting point for us

1:21:23rather than an interpretation of

1:21:25somebody who believes that because they

1:21:27are in an encounter with a police

1:21:29officer, they are a victim of police

1:21:31violence. That's not always the case.

1:21:34Some people may look at that and as was

1:21:36said, I will respectfully disagree with

1:21:39some people's interpretation of it. But

1:21:42Arizona Revised Statute, which is the

1:21:44state law, explains what a victim is.

1:21:48So, I think that would be a wonderful

1:21:49place for us to review and to have a

1:21:51knowledge of and helps us move forward

1:21:53there. Um, the last point I'll make and

1:21:56I kind of hit on it a little bit,

1:21:58victims of police violence. Police work

1:22:01is tough. You know, there's a lot of

1:22:03different things police officers are

1:22:04exposed to. I I I take exception to, and

1:22:08I understand where people are coming

1:22:09from when they say that, but I take

1:22:11exception to it always being used that

1:22:15people are victims of police violence.

1:22:17When we have police officers who work

1:22:20very hard and put their life on the line

1:22:22each and every day on, you know,

1:22:26probably most calls that they respond to

1:22:31and you know sometimes, you know, things

1:22:34happen. It is unfortunate. It is truly

1:22:37unfortunate in some cases. But I don't

1:22:39want everyone to think simply because

1:22:41some people will say police violence

1:22:44that the police are out there

1:22:47committing violence, doing things that

1:22:49they shouldn't be doing. Now, I'm not

1:22:51saying that hasn't happened. Clearly, it

1:22:53has. Clearly, it is being dealt with and

1:22:55has been dealt with. But I want us when

1:22:59it comes to victims to please understand

1:23:01what a victim is. And again, it's

1:23:04outlined in Arizona Revised Statute. If

1:23:06you're taking notes, 134401,

1:23:09Madame Mayor, thank you very much for

1:23:11the time. Again, court Amy did an

1:23:14excellent job on this presentation.

1:23:16Thank you very much.

1:23:19>> Thank you. We'll go to Councilwoman

1:23:20Gordado and then I'll turn to the vice

1:23:22mayor for a motion.

1:23:23>> Thank you, Mayor. Um I I just had just

1:23:26some clarifying questions. Thank you so

1:23:28much for for the presentation. I know

1:23:31that as a city, it's always hard. Um I

1:23:34think we're known to be the city that

1:23:36never increases fees, right? And I see

1:23:39the numbers from other cities and the

1:23:41numbers um that we have. We're always,

1:23:44you know, one of the most um comparable

1:23:47cities, I think. Um and there are some

1:23:49places where it's great and other places

1:23:51where it doesn't work.

1:23:52>> But I had just have some questions as we

1:23:54move forward with these fees. Um if you

1:23:58guys can answer this, that would be

1:24:00great. I guess my the question that

1:24:02still comes to mind for me is what

1:24:04specific benchmarks for response times

1:24:07does the police department intend to set

1:24:10once the additional FTEES are on boarded

1:24:15>> what what are we thinking around that

1:24:17>> excuse me mayor members of council

1:24:18Councilwoman Cordado that's a that's a

1:24:20good question um we're currently

1:24:23evaluating that now um and I guess a

1:24:25simple answer to the question is we want

1:24:28to ensure that when we receive receive a

1:24:30request, we can immediately work on it.

1:24:33And pending any evidentiary or

1:24:35investigative value that would prevent

1:24:36us from immediately releasing it, we

1:24:38want to be able to release it even a ma

1:24:40in a matter of days for all records

1:24:43types. That is that is the the ultimate

1:24:45goal. So, as we work on completing this

1:24:48backlog over this this next year, we

1:24:50will be setting in um realistic um

1:24:53attainable um goals and then holding to

1:24:55that and then setting in place processes

1:24:58to both measure and hold our our our

1:25:00folks, all of us accountable to ensure

1:25:02that we are quickly turning around those

1:25:05requests and delivering them to the

1:25:06customer so that we are not um incurring

1:25:09a backlog.

1:25:11>> Great. And then um is there I know you

1:25:13talked a little bit about separating

1:25:15commercial from non-commercial. I mean I

1:25:18would add another layer on top of that

1:25:22you know I mean especially with our

1:25:24officer involved shootings you know when

1:25:26families are needing are wanting right

1:25:29and deserve that information as soon as

1:25:32possible. Is there a way where we can

1:25:34say these are the requests that will be

1:25:37expedited no matter what else is

1:25:39happening especially with folks that are

1:25:42making money off us, right? Like how is

1:25:45it that we deprioritize

1:25:47commercial to making sure that we let

1:25:50families know what's happening um with

1:25:53their loved ones um that have that have

1:25:56suffered. Um you know I I just think

1:25:58it's very difficult for me. It is really

1:26:00hard when I hear a family that they're

1:26:03still probably still even still waiting

1:26:05today for for some of this information.

1:26:08And I just hope, you know, that we can

1:26:11create an expedited

1:26:13lane um for for these type of incidents,

1:26:17I I just think out of respect for the

1:26:19families, no matter whose fault it was,

1:26:22I just think families deserve answers.

1:26:24And I know that we're working really

1:26:27hard to trying to get there, but I would

1:26:29just recommend that we um as we're

1:26:32increasing these fees that we definitely

1:26:34expedite that and then being able to

1:26:36give people I know that we've gotten

1:26:38better about giving folks timelines, but

1:26:41how is it that we can shrink those

1:26:43timelines and being able to give out the

1:26:45information um to folks that they're

1:26:47requesting, you know, as soon as

1:26:50possible?

1:26:51Mayor, members of the council,

1:26:52Councilwoman Gordado, all very good

1:26:54questions. Um to your first question

1:26:56about families that are impacted um or

1:26:59involved in a critical incident, be it

1:27:01the victims, their families or the

1:27:02representatives. Um we're partnering we

1:27:05partner with the O currently the office

1:27:07of accountability and transparency and

1:27:08also with the family advocates in human

1:27:11services under the um critical incident

1:27:14protocol which I believe correct me if

1:27:16I'm wrong is a 10 calendar day protocol

1:27:18that we release all records related to

1:27:21that incident to the family through the

1:27:23family advocate. So that's a current

1:27:25policy that has been in place for

1:27:27roughly four or five years and that's

1:27:30something that that we continue um to

1:27:33prioritize and we have a specialized

1:27:35team that's dedicated solely when

1:27:37there's a critical incident or

1:27:40a a deemed critical incident. We make

1:27:42those that our number one priority to

1:27:44turn that around in a matter of of days,

1:27:46not business days, but calendar days. um

1:27:49to uh can I ask you to repeat the second

1:27:52part of your qu? Oh, I'm sorry. For um

1:27:55for expediting and and providing more

1:27:57awareness part of the the new platform

1:28:00that developing it provides uh status

1:28:02updates to customers. So when they make

1:28:04the request, it'll tell them what the

1:28:06current status is um uh whether it's

1:28:09still being worked or whether it's held.

1:28:11So we're increasing communications uh

1:28:13communication in that that way. Um but

1:28:15again our our our main objective here is

1:28:18to retire the the complete backlog so

1:28:21that we are responsive in a matter in a

1:28:24matter of days. Um and then lastly um

1:28:27each of the request type uh each request

1:28:30type is a little different. So for one

1:28:32for one type of request like traffic

1:28:34crash reports might be a matter of days

1:28:36but then there are others that we

1:28:37acknowledge take a little more time

1:28:39because of investigations or because of

1:28:41the the amount of records involved in in

1:28:44that request. So um I hope that answers

1:28:47the questions in terms of what we're

1:28:48doing to communicate more effectively

1:28:49with our customers and and have an

1:28:52overall plan for ex expediting requests

1:28:54for for requesters.

1:28:55>> No, I I appreciate that. Thank you for

1:28:57that. I guess the only the last thing

1:29:00that I would request is as as you guys

1:29:02are working through your backlog, you

1:29:04know, for us, you know, it could be

1:29:06either in a briefing or or what have

1:29:09you, just letting us know how that

1:29:11backlog is is going and how we're

1:29:13getting through it and what other

1:29:15support you might need from us to be

1:29:17able to get through that backlog. I I I

1:29:19think that's important. Like for me, you

1:29:21know, every time we do an increase, um

1:29:23it's never easy. Um but I know that it's

1:29:26necessary. Um, so I think it's also

1:29:28important for us to be able to respond

1:29:30to the public and be able to respond to

1:29:32folks on how is it that we're doing. Um,

1:29:35one, when it comes to response times,

1:29:36two, how far are we on the backlog, you

1:29:39know, and how are we moving that

1:29:41forward? And then lastly, once the

1:29:43backlog once we're done with the

1:29:45backlog, you know, what is what what is

1:29:47what are the new timelines and how is it

1:29:50that we're going to respond better and

1:29:52faster to folks as we continue to move

1:29:54forward? But again, thank you guys all

1:29:57for all of your hard work. I know these

1:29:59are not easy conversations and easy

1:30:01things to do, but are necessary. So,

1:30:03thank you everyone for for everything

1:30:05you guys do. Thank you, Mayor.

1:30:08>> Thank you, Councilwoman. We'll go to the

1:30:10vice mayor for comments and a motion and

1:30:11then Councilwoman Pastor and then

1:30:13Councilwoman O'Brien.

1:30:14>> Thank you, Mayor. I actually had a

1:30:16question before I make the motion. I

1:30:18just want to make sure I clarify on

1:30:19this. Um, one of the stats that stood

1:30:21out to me was on slide 13 was the

1:30:24current backlog status for bodywn

1:30:27cameras being 1.7 to 2.4 years. And then

1:30:31when you pair that with slide 17, it

1:30:35says 40% of the existing backlog are

1:30:37commercial requests. If I had to

1:30:40interpret that, that would say 60% of

1:30:42the backlog are non-commercial or

1:30:45general public requests. Correct.

1:30:48Mayor, members of the council,

1:30:49Councilwoman or Vice Mayor Washington,

1:30:51correct?

1:30:52>> I would love to hear uh specifically

1:30:54what are we trying to do because I find

1:30:57um I know we're here to talk about the

1:30:59fee, but I find that backlog to be the

1:31:01most troubling of the group. Um to think

1:31:03that someone has to wait almost 2 and

1:31:051/2 years to get a copy of the body worn

1:31:10camera footage. I would love to hear

1:31:12specifically what we plan to do because

1:31:14I don't see a slide that explains our

1:31:17projected time frames for these. I just

1:31:19I I just want to hear a little bit more

1:31:21on this one.

1:31:22>> Yes. Uh mayor, members of the council,

1:31:24Councilman Haj Washington, a great

1:31:26question. The chart on slide 13 that

1:31:29gives our request time, those are

1:31:31averages and it encompasses whether

1:31:33you're commercial or non-commercial. It

1:31:35is it is just a a general average. But

1:31:38some I'll refer back to something that

1:31:40we mentioned in the presentation and

1:31:41that is is that we are prioritizing

1:31:43non-commercial requests ahead of all

1:31:46commercial requests. So, I would like to

1:31:49say I don't have the information to

1:31:50present, but I'd like to say that for

1:31:52non-commercial requesters, we are

1:31:54getting to your requests quicker, but as

1:31:56part of this process uh and and part of

1:31:59this project to retire the backlog, we

1:32:01are currently in the process of hiring

1:32:0319 additional staff now and with um uh

1:32:07approval. that is a total of 35

1:32:09additional positions that will be

1:32:11focused solely on the backlog so we can

1:32:14we can get those uh those weight times

1:32:17down um within within one year.

1:32:21So um did I hear you correctly that the

1:32:24intent or the goal is with this

1:32:26additional staffing that this would be

1:32:28reduced from from 1.7 to 2 sorry from

1:32:311.7 to 2.4 years down to a hope of

1:32:35within one year.

1:32:37Mayor, members of the council,

1:32:38Councilwoman or Vice Mayor Haj

1:32:40Washington. No, the the our intent is

1:32:44that the average weight time is a matter

1:32:46of days.

1:32:47>> Okay, that's very helpful to hear

1:32:49because I like I said, I find that to be

1:32:50a little troubling. Uh my next question

1:32:52is um I guess slide 22 is probably the

1:32:55best way to look at this. Um with

1:32:58respect to the video, um under the

1:33:01proposed it says the primary is uh free.

1:33:05How long does it take to get the primary

1:33:07redaction done and out to a resident or

1:33:11a requesttor?

1:33:14>> Mayor, members of the council, um, Vice

1:33:17Mayor Hajj Washington, now admittedly,

1:33:20we have that that backlog and so we're

1:33:22addressing we are working on video quest

1:33:24specifically, uh, going back years. the

1:33:28staff that we talked about um are

1:33:29working as quickly as possible to work

1:33:32through the existing B backlog um and

1:33:36and uh so we can get to a point where

1:33:39for at least the primary that initial

1:33:42request we can turn that around. We can

1:33:44very quickly take it uh it's a um of a

1:33:47difference it's about 75% faster to do

1:33:50the primary requests and get those out

1:33:52of the door. So that is a tool that

1:33:55we're leveraging and we're finding

1:33:57success with our with the customers that

1:33:58we're serving providing that to them

1:34:00quickly um for their review so that uh

1:34:04if they in turn um have additional needs

1:34:07they can come back and we can address

1:34:08them. So that I just want to make clear

1:34:10that that that that primary medium blur

1:34:13reduction uh change that we initiated a

1:34:15year ago is showing success. Um and our

1:34:18goal is to be able to provide that um

1:34:20within a matter of days once we get

1:34:22caught up with the backlog. The

1:34:24expectations within a matter of days

1:34:25when we receive the request we can

1:34:26quickly turn that video around and

1:34:28engage in the customer on any additional

1:34:30needs they have.

1:34:32>> So I I guess I maybe could be just kind

1:34:34of forthwife of my question. And I'm

1:34:36trying to get us some clear parameters

1:34:39so we can determine expectations for our

1:34:40residents. Is it is it going to be cuz I

1:34:44think your last comments which throw me

1:34:46off. Your last comment said we hope to

1:34:48have it within days after rectifying the

1:34:50backlog or something similar to that.

1:34:52And my question is um the primary for

1:34:56example someone wants a primary video.

1:34:58How long can the average Phoenic Phoenix

1:35:01Phoenix resident, not for commercial

1:35:03use, a general um non-commercial user,

1:35:07how long could they expect to receive

1:35:09one of these primary videos with the

1:35:12medium blur?

1:35:15[clears throat]

1:35:18Mayor, um members of the council,

1:35:22Vice Mayor Hajj Washington, um our

1:35:24current wait time is years for

1:35:27customers. The parameters that we are

1:35:30aiming to set

1:35:32um when we get caught up with the

1:35:35backlog is to again turn that around in

1:35:37a matter of days. Right now, if you were

1:35:40to submit a public records request, it

1:35:42it can take us up to a year and a half,

1:35:46two two a year and a half, two years to

1:35:50provide that primary um record. But with

1:35:53the addition of the staff that we're

1:35:55bringing in, we hope to our our

1:35:58objective is to um quickly get caught up

1:36:02with the current backlog that's there so

1:36:05that the customers who are ser are

1:36:07submitting requests in real time can get

1:36:09those um initial uh requests or initial

1:36:13um primary uh records within a matter of

1:36:17days. I hope that provides clarity.

1:36:19>> No, not necessarily. Um,

1:36:23so let me ask it this way. Um, if we're

1:36:27funding these additional staffing

1:36:29through increased fees, how will we

1:36:31measure whether or not these new

1:36:32positions are actually improving access

1:36:35for residents?

1:36:36>> Mayor, members of the council, Vice

1:36:38Mayor Haj Washington, the number of

1:36:40requests goes go down. That's how that's

1:36:42how we're we're measuring it.

1:36:44>> The number of requests or

1:36:46>> Yes, the backlog requests. um I'm sorry,

1:36:48not submitted requests, but the backlog

1:36:50requests because right now the number of

1:36:52of um public records requests for video

1:36:55on um I believe slide 16 um we've got

1:36:59about 8,000 excuse me, we've got about

1:37:02um 12,000 public records requests for

1:37:06video. And so part of the project and

1:37:08and my answer is geared towards we're

1:37:10trying to work through the existing

1:37:12backlog now so that there there is none.

1:37:15Um, so that when a request is submitted,

1:37:18we can we can get that turn turned

1:37:20around.

1:37:21>> Let me try. Go ahead. Let me let me say

1:37:24this one more. Let me try it one more

1:37:26way.

1:37:27If we were to approve the fund the fees

1:37:31that's been requested, this fee schedule

1:37:32proposed changes. You were able to get

1:37:35the additional positions that have been

1:37:37requested.

1:37:38At what juncture do you expect that we

1:37:41will be caught up on this backlog in

1:37:44order to have a more shorter time frame

1:37:47for responding to these outstanding not

1:37:50just outstanding all public records

1:37:52requests from police department

1:37:55>> mayor members of the council vice mayor

1:37:57Haj Washington

1:37:59>> okay thank you for that and mayor vice

1:38:01mayor if I may add um to your question

1:38:04also to counciloman Gordado's question

1:38:07the way that we and keep the council

1:38:09informed and the public informed of our

1:38:11progress on this initiative is um the

1:38:13public records and services bureau does

1:38:15produce a report um that identifies

1:38:19where we are at as far as the number of

1:38:21backlogged requests, the number of

1:38:23current requests coming in and the types

1:38:24of those requests. In addition to the

1:38:27turnaround times on each of those types

1:38:29of requests, there are nuances within

1:38:31each type of request. It will depend on

1:38:33if it's a non-commercial versus

1:38:35commercial request. It'll depend on if

1:38:37it's an involved party or an uninvolved

1:38:39party, but there are at least ranges of

1:38:41um average turnaround times for each of

1:38:43those requests. We can provide that um

1:38:45to the council and to the public in a

1:38:47gen infill packet on a regular basis so

1:38:49that you and the the members of the

1:38:51public can track the progress that we're

1:38:53making on this initiative if that would

1:38:55be helpful.

1:38:56>> Thank you so much for that. That is

1:38:57helpful. Um and I want to just make sure

1:39:00clarification. So within one year of the

1:39:02positions being filled or one year from

1:39:05us approving this additional fee

1:39:06structure.

1:39:07>> Mayor, members of the council, Vice

1:39:09Mayor Haj Washington, within one year of

1:39:11them being hired. So our plan with

1:39:14approval of the council is to have all

1:39:1635 positions filled um by the beginning

1:39:20of of 2027 in January. have them all

1:39:23trained specifically in body warn camera

1:39:26uh training within a month and and at

1:39:29the end of that training one year from

1:39:32from that date

1:39:33>> and are these 30 my last question these

1:39:3535 positions they are considered sworn

1:39:37or are they considered civilian position

1:39:39>> mayor member of the council vice mayor H

1:39:41Washington they are nonsworn

1:39:42>> thank you so much um thank you mayor for

1:39:45allowing me to ask my additional

1:39:46questions I would move for the approval

1:39:48of item 63 Second. Good.

1:39:53>> Thank you. We'll go to Councilwoman

1:39:54Pastor and then Councilwoman O'Brien.

1:39:56>> Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. Um, I have

1:40:01a question and I'm looking at slide 12

1:40:05and I'm looking at the backlog totals of

1:40:09where we started, where we really

1:40:12peaked, how we started, and then it

1:40:14peaked again.

1:40:16Um, I want to thank the mayor for um

1:40:21finding or charging for a solution for

1:40:24this. Uh, because I recall sitting in

1:40:282020 2021

1:40:31when community was coming and discussing

1:40:33about the backlog and wanting public

1:40:35records and uh and they continued year

1:40:40after year. So, I want to thank uh thank

1:40:43thank the mayor for getting to this

1:40:45point.

1:40:47It states

1:40:49though

1:40:51why the backlog increased on

1:40:5516 was because commercial requests and

1:40:59it's up 24%

1:41:02in 2025.

1:41:04Yet in 2022,

1:41:08at that time, we didn't have or I'm

1:41:10assuming that we didn't have commercial

1:41:12requests.

1:41:14And so,

1:41:16I'm trying to figure out that at this

1:41:19point, we decided because of the

1:41:22commercials request, we were going to

1:41:23then handle the backlog

1:41:26issue.

1:41:28And

1:41:29it troubles me because I've always

1:41:32wanted the backlog uh issue or the

1:41:35backlogs to be handled uh due to

1:41:37community requests and the community

1:41:40requested a lot throughout the years for

1:41:43this.

1:41:45And I'm troubled at the fact that we're

1:41:48saying, well, we're going to increase

1:41:52and we're going to have this fee because

1:41:54we have a high demand on commercial

1:41:56requests.

1:41:58And I just want to get clarity on this.

1:42:02We're doing this because we want to get

1:42:05rid of the backlog.

1:42:07and we now see an increase in the

1:42:11commercials requests. But in all

1:42:13reality, we want to get rid of the

1:42:14backlog. And the way we're going to get

1:42:16rid of the backlog

1:42:18is through hiring or putting more staff

1:42:23onto the backlog piece

1:42:26because we need there's more demand and

1:42:29we need people.

1:42:31I think that's really what we're getting

1:42:33to. Um, in the sense of this is the

1:42:37need.

1:42:38We have a need. This is how we're going

1:42:40to solve the need and we are hoping to

1:42:44get rid of the backlog in a timely

1:42:47manner.

1:42:48Most importantly, I think what the

1:42:50council would like to see and what

1:42:53community would like to see is a

1:42:55timeline. And I know we've been going

1:42:57back and forth and back and forth, but I

1:42:59think it's uh it behooves us to create a

1:43:02timeline

1:43:04and buffer because we're always going to

1:43:07have uh uh pieces where it doesn't go as

1:43:10planned, but at least a general sense of

1:43:13how

1:43:15community will be able to get the

1:43:17information that they need in order to

1:43:19move forward in whatever they need the

1:43:20information for. So, I want to thank you

1:43:22for doing this because I know this is a

1:43:25a tedious piece and going through

1:43:28records and looking at details and and

1:43:30coming up with a solution. So, I commend

1:43:33you for taking this on and getting us to

1:43:36where we are today. Um, thank you again.

1:43:41>> Thank you. Thanks for your words,

1:43:43Councilwoman O'Brien.

1:43:46>> Thank you so much, Mayor. Um, thank you

1:43:49to for this presentation and for the

1:43:51work that you've put in to get us here.

1:43:54Um, I want to ask a couple of questions

1:43:57related to the data. Um,

1:44:01you've shown in the presentation how

1:44:03many requests we've gotten. In the

1:44:04future, I would love for those requests

1:44:06to be broken down by commercial versus

1:44:09non-commercial to start with. Um, I

1:44:12appreciate that the B backlog is broken

1:44:14down that way, but it would also be

1:44:16helpful to see it in that that beginning

1:44:19request what it is. Generally speaking,

1:44:22are commercial requests more or less

1:44:25time consuming or is it a just kind of

1:44:28depends.

1:44:30>> Mayor, members of the council,

1:44:31Councilwoman O'Brien, thank you for the

1:44:33question. Um, it it depends. uh the

1:44:37largest issue that we're seeing with

1:44:39commercial requesters are is that the

1:44:42volume of requests over overall so for

1:44:46instance with track traffic crash

1:44:47reports we have commercial requesters

1:44:50that in a single day will request 100

1:44:53I'm just throwing a number out there but

1:44:55many much more than than your average

1:44:58citizen or customer non-commercial

1:45:00requesters is asking for their traffic

1:45:02crash uh report we're seeing requesters

1:45:05that will submit dozens in one single

1:45:07day. So from a volume perspective,

1:45:10they're uh they're requesting more. And

1:45:12then similar to the uh example that we

1:45:15we showed um uh on the slide about the

1:45:18video requests, uh they uh we're getting

1:45:23uh commercial customers that are um

1:45:25asking for all records. So they're

1:45:27asking for videos, they're asking for

1:45:29the NC they're it just runs a gamut. So

1:45:32the the complexity of even those

1:45:34requests um is is um um outsized than

1:45:39the average request that we receive.

1:45:41>> Okay, I appreciate that. Um another data

1:45:44point when you start providing us um how

1:45:48we're catching up on this backlog. I

1:45:49think that will be important

1:45:50additionally is staffing. Right. I know

1:45:53the hope is to be fully staffed by the

1:45:55end of January and to be fully trained.

1:45:58In a perfect world, we'd always have all

1:46:00of our positions filled. So, I think

1:46:01it'll be important to know where we're

1:46:03at in staffing as we go through this

1:46:05process. So, if we backslide or jump

1:46:07ahead, we can understand that aspect of

1:46:10it as well. Um, and then I appreciate

1:46:14that, you know, you've been asked a lot

1:46:15of questions about different types of

1:46:18situations. And I think what's really

1:46:20important to remember is that every

1:46:24request is not exactly the same. So,

1:46:26it's not easy to say, "Yep, we can

1:46:28handle this in two days," or it's always

1:46:30going to be 10 days. So, I appreciate

1:46:32you looking at it in on each individual

1:46:35case and being able to be nuanced in how

1:46:37we get that and providing it to our

1:46:42public, our non-commercial requesters,

1:46:45um, as free as possible. So, I I

1:46:48appreciate you doing that. Um I want to

1:46:51reiterate I think what some of my other

1:46:53colleagues said is very important to me

1:46:55that the commercial requests are at the

1:46:58bottom of the list that we are

1:47:00prioritizing our non-commercial

1:47:03um stuff even in the backlog. So there's

1:47:07a lot as one of them pointed out 60% is

1:47:10non of our backlog is non-commercial. So

1:47:13I know we've talked about that before

1:47:15but I just want to make sure I put it on

1:47:16the record. Um and I also want to uh

1:47:20touch on uh the overtime a little bit.

1:47:23It is important that our citizens feel

1:47:26safe in their city and we are short 5

1:47:29to600 officers. So ensuring that we are

1:47:32able to fill that time that those spaces

1:47:35that those people uh with overtime is

1:47:38imperative. And so I'm very appreciative

1:47:40of all of our officers and the work they

1:47:42do. And thank you all to the

1:47:45administration who is answering these

1:47:47requests and supporting our officers

1:47:49every day. Thank you for your

1:47:51presentation today.

1:47:54>> Thank you so much.

1:47:55>> Roll call.

1:47:59>> Yes.

1:48:00>> Hernandez.

1:48:01>> Yes. No. Sorry.

1:48:05>> O'Brien.

1:48:06>> Yes. Pastor.

1:48:07>> Yes.

1:48:08>> Robinson.

1:48:10>> Yes.

1:48:11>> Thank you. Stark,

1:48:13>> yes.

1:48:14>> Wearing,

1:48:14>> yes.

1:48:15>> Hodge Washington,

1:48:16>> yes. GGO,

1:48:18>> yes.

1:48:19>> Passes 81.

1:48:22>> I'll now turn to our city attorney to

1:48:23explain our final portion of the

1:48:24meeting.

1:48:26>> Thank you, mayor. During citizen

1:48:28comment, members of the public may speak

1:48:29to the city council for up to three

1:48:31minutes on issues of interest or

1:48:33concern. However, the matters addressed

1:48:35must be within the jurisdiction of the

1:48:36Phoenix City Council and on which the

1:48:38council has the authority to act. The

1:48:41citizen comment session is limited to 30

1:48:43minutes. The Arizona open meeting law

1:48:45allows the city council to listen to

1:48:47comments but prohibits council members

1:48:49from discussing or acting on the issues

1:48:51presented. However, council members

1:48:53mayism. Thank you, mayor.

1:48:58>> Thank you so much. Uh we'll begin with

1:49:01Shannon Brown followed by Chris Miller.

1:49:08Good afternoon, mayor, vice mayor, and

1:49:09city council. My name is Shannon Brown.

1:49:11I'm a member of the Awatuki Community

1:49:13Alliance. I live about one mile from the

1:49:15data center project at 48th Street in

1:49:17Thistle Landing. I wanted to share some

1:49:19notes with you from an interview with

1:49:21Trevor Nielsen. He's the president at

1:49:23Prometheus Hypers Scale. It's a company

1:49:25that builds AI data centers across

1:49:27America. Neielson said the following

1:49:29about data centers of this scale. Hypers

1:49:32scale data centers are very large

1:49:34industrial projects. They are very large

1:49:38energy projects. ACA's own meetings with

1:49:41SRP revealed that the this landing

1:49:43project will draw as much energy as 257

1:49:46Walmart super centers. They are 1

1:49:48megawatt and this project will use 257

1:49:51megawatt. And this is in a 40 acre area

1:49:54right surrounded by residential homes.

1:49:57They create pollution. They should not

1:50:00be near neighborhoods. No neighborhood

1:50:02should be within miles of these

1:50:03projects. This is admitting an admission

1:50:06from a person who builds these things.

1:50:09They should not be in rural areas. They

1:50:11should not be near schools. Tutor time.

1:50:13A a preschool is within a stone throw

1:50:15away from this build site.

1:50:18They are going to produce pollution and

1:50:20that pollution needs to be managed. Old

1:50:23data centers consume massive amounts of

1:50:24water for evaporative cooling. New data

1:50:26centers are using closed loop liquid

1:50:28cooling using less water. But the water

1:50:31gets released periodically to prevent

1:50:33buildup in pipes and it contains heavy

1:50:34metals and forever chemicals. So I want

1:50:38to know how that's going to be

1:50:38mitigated. The industry has done a very

1:50:40poor job explaining itself. This is from

1:50:42a person who builds these. This has

1:50:44created distrust. The industry needs to

1:50:46answer the concerns and not act as if

1:50:48those concerns do not matter.

1:50:50Municipals, cities are focused on

1:50:52impacts of property taxes and job

1:50:54creation. The Thistle project is already

1:50:56diminishing property values of homes in

1:50:58the area, which is a benefit to large

1:51:00developers that have plans to change the

1:51:0248th Street corridor.

1:51:05Trevor Nielsen, the the developer, has a

1:51:08little boy and he does not want one of

1:51:10these near his school. During an ACA

1:51:13meeting in August with Councilman

1:51:14Robinson and Joshua Bednarik, Councilman

1:51:16Robinson even admitted he would not want

1:51:18Menllo's data center across from his

1:51:20home.

1:51:22The national security China concerns are

1:51:25not compelling to people that Neielson

1:51:27meets with um that are near these uh

1:51:31projects. You have to go through the

1:51:33proper permitting process.

1:51:35The democratic process needs to be

1:51:37followed. In the case of the Thistle

1:51:39Landing project, permit by inspection

1:51:41circumvents this process.

1:51:43Permit by inspection is going on.

1:51:45There's a lot of secrecy around these

1:51:47projects. An example given by Neielson

1:51:49is that um government officials signing

1:51:51non-disclosure agreements. Neielson

1:51:54feels that this is outrageous and should

1:51:56never occur. If you are not being open

1:51:57about what you're doing, you are not a

1:51:59good neighbor. The backroom deals are

1:52:01creating mistrust and it feels wrong.

1:52:02Like when Menllo's attorney Snell and

1:52:04Wilmer submitted a stipulation

1:52:05modification in December of 2023 to

1:52:10Thank you.

1:52:23Good afternoon, Mayor Council. My name

1:52:25is Chris Miller, and I'm here on public

1:52:27comment because automated license plate

1:52:29readers must be abolished. The city of

1:52:31Phoenix has avoided much of the backlash

1:52:32in recent months as they don't use flock

1:52:35safety, but the city council was still

1:52:36tricked into signing contracts with

1:52:38organizations like Vigilant and Motorola

1:52:40Solutions. For thousands of years,

1:52:42people have debated how much authority

1:52:44the state should have over its citizens.

1:52:46ALPR companies say communities should

1:52:48not have to choose between safety and

1:52:50privacy. That slogan only works if the

1:52:52cameras deliver the safety they sell

1:52:54while not infringing on the liberties we

1:52:55are told we are to uphold. In business

1:52:58school, the case study is your best

1:53:00friend. And the city of Atlanta is one

1:53:01of the best case studies as Atlanta was

1:53:03an early adopter and has a large local

1:53:05concentration of this technology. Data

1:53:08from 21 to 25 while cameras grew

1:53:10exponentially show homicide clearance

1:53:13meaning solving the crime fell from 53.4

1:53:15to 48%. Robbery decreased by.1%. Motor

1:53:19vehicle theft rose only.3%.

1:53:22Assault only rose2%.

1:53:24These are clearly not the crime

1:53:26deterrence or crimesolving systems they

1:53:28are promised to be. Nationally, these

1:53:30systems only make two these systems

1:53:33often make two main claims with the

1:53:34first relating to missing persons and

1:53:36the second relating to stolen vehicles.

1:53:38When delving into the data from the

1:53:40missing person system, it shows no

1:53:42significant difference in overall

1:53:43missing persons. Also, also data on

1:53:46missing persons time to recovery scores

1:53:48seem to have not drastically changed on

1:53:51autotheft. These organizations often

1:53:53count an 11% sometimes even greater drop

1:53:55in motor vehicle thefts after cameras

1:53:58went live. These numbers fail to realize

1:54:00that motor vehicle theft has been

1:54:02decreasing from their co highs and we

1:54:04have a new administration that targeted

1:54:06crime at higher levels with various

1:54:07executive orders. Proponents say there

1:54:10is no privacy in public. A single

1:54:12officer seeing a plate on the street is

1:54:13not the issue. A network system that

1:54:16logs everywhere a person goes is

1:54:17persistent tracking. I am no legal

1:54:19scholar, but I would suspect if I

1:54:21followed a stranger for weeks on end and

1:54:22recorded every stop to understand that

1:54:24individual's personal life, I would have

1:54:26a harassment charge and restraining

1:54:28order on me. The phone as a tracker

1:54:30analogy fails as well. The Supreme Court

1:54:32already held that the government

1:54:34requires a warrant for historical

1:54:35cellite location. Also, if anyone on

1:54:37this city council or on the police force

1:54:39ever say, "What's the matter with

1:54:41these?" Since there are already cameras

1:54:42in public, those individuals should be

1:54:44forced to reread 1984 and take a class

1:54:47on the rise of the surveillance state in

1:54:49places like China. My ask of you is to

1:54:51have the courage to say no to these

1:54:53organizations that present flawed data

1:54:54and false promises. A city or police

1:54:57force that says they need these plate

1:54:59readers to do their job is like a doctor

1:55:02that says they need AI to read medical

1:55:04forms or a teacher that says they need

1:55:06AI to teach their classes. To the

1:55:08outside observer, it makes it seem like

1:55:11you don't have the skills or knowledge

1:55:12to do your job. I am pleading with each

1:55:14of you to understand the role of the

1:55:16state, the rise of the surveillance

1:55:18state, and not to go not to forego

1:55:20liberty for a false sense of security.

1:55:22Thank you.

1:55:27Thank you so much.

1:55:30We'll next go to Jenny Pelner, followed

1:55:32by Katherine Monk, followed by Bill

1:55:34Monk.

1:55:41>> Hi. Um, I'm Jenny Pner. Uh, I also live

1:55:44uh about a quarter mile from the data

1:55:46center that's being built. Since 1960 or

1:55:491996, the regulator regulatory path for

1:55:52data center cooling has drasted

1:55:54drastically. Historically treated as by

1:55:56general industrial uses requiring

1:55:58standard commercial building permits,

1:56:00data centers are now subject to rigorous

1:56:03special use permits, conditional use

1:56:04permits, water use agreements, and air

1:56:06quality permits that directly look at

1:56:08the cooling architecture. In fact,

1:56:10modern code overhauls across the Phoenix

1:56:13area often favor or mandate closed loop

1:56:16liquid systems over traditional high

1:56:19consumption evaporative systems to

1:56:21protect the desert water supply. From 96

1:56:24to 24, the state of Arizona has never

1:56:27had a uniform statewide zoning or

1:56:29specialized permitting framework for

1:56:30data center technology or its internal

1:56:33mechanics. Cooling loops fell under

1:56:35standard state building and mechanical

1:56:37codes. modern inter interventions. While

1:56:40there is still no statewide zoning, the

1:56:42Arizona Department of Water Resources

1:56:44closely monitors and regulates active

1:56:46management areas. As of mid 26,

1:56:49emergency groundwater limits have been

1:56:51enacted for industrial users in the

1:56:52Phoenix area. If a closed loop system

1:56:54requires chemicals, standard

1:56:56environmental discharge or chemical

1:56:58storage compliance rules from the

1:56:59Arizona Department of Environmental

1:57:01Quality apply. uh zoning overhaul by

1:57:05Maricopa County December 25. For

1:57:07decades, data centers defaulted to

1:57:10standard industrial zoning metrics.

1:57:11However, Maricopa County modernized the

1:57:13zoning ordinance, introducing explicit

1:57:15data center definitions. Data centers

1:57:18and unincorporated areas are restricted

1:57:20to specific industrial zones are often

1:57:22require special use permits permitting

1:57:24triggers. While a cold loop itself

1:57:26doesn't require a dedicated county

1:57:28license, the county strictly reviews a

1:57:30project's full footprint. If the cooling

1:57:32architecture depends on secondary dry

1:57:34cooler fans or associated backup diesel

1:57:36generators to maintain the loop during

1:57:38power outages, it triggers Maricopa

1:57:40County Air Quality Department general

1:57:42permits for stationary internal

1:57:44combustion engines. July 25, the city of

1:57:48Phoenix adopted ordinance G7396,

1:57:51which officially eliminated the byite

1:57:53approach for data centers, citing a

1:57:55facility now triggers a comprehensive

1:57:57special permit process governed by the

1:57:59Phoenix PD. The cooling strategy impact

1:58:02Phoenix requires dedicated water, sewer,

1:58:04and power line studies at the time of

1:58:06application. While a closed loop system

1:58:07is highly favorable because it minimizes

1:58:09municipal water draw down, any cooling

1:58:12infrastructure must meet strict city

1:58:14noise mitigation standards and aesthetic

1:58:16common uh camouflage requirements. Um,

1:58:19under city ordinances, Phoenix requires

1:58:21a special use permit, strict zoning

1:58:23reviews for new data centers. The city

1:58:25of Phoenix PDD evaluates infrastructure

1:58:27burdens on a case-by- case basis,

1:58:30directly looking at grid reliability and

1:58:32utility impact. It is time that the city

1:58:34discuss this matter with its citizens

1:58:36since Menllo's response now states a

1:58:39closed loop system and not a forced air

1:58:41system that their attorney stated. Thank

1:58:44you.

1:58:48>> Thank you. Katherine is next, followed

1:58:50by Bill, followed by James.

1:58:52>> Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My

1:58:54name is Kathy Monk and I live half a

1:58:56mile from the East Thistle data center

1:58:59construction site in Awatuki.

1:59:01City Council, we have serious concerns.

1:59:04Maricopa County has adopted an hours of

1:59:07construction ordinance named P22 which

1:59:11regulates the hours of construction and

1:59:13related activities. This ordinance is

1:59:16designed to ensure that construction

1:59:18activity doesn't harm the enjoyment and

1:59:20use of nearby property. Neighbors have

1:59:23documented via video recordings and

1:59:26photos that construction has been

1:59:28starting as early as 3:00 a.m. The city

1:59:31of Phoenix has the interviews, the

1:59:33videos, and the photos. Please take the

1:59:36time to review them because you have had

1:59:38them for months. From April 15th to

1:59:41October 15th, construction work cannot

1:59:44begin prior to 5:00 a.m. and must end by

1:59:47700 p.m. Section 104 concerns stop

1:59:52orders. Whenever work on a construction

1:59:55project is in violation of the

1:59:57provisions of ordinance P22, the

2:00:00construction can be stopped by a notice

2:00:02in writing. This should be done. This

2:00:05needs to be done. Section 105 states

2:00:08that permits may be revoked upon

2:00:10determination of ordinance P22.

2:00:14Multiple complaints to the city of

2:00:16Phoenix have been ignored. Emails have

2:00:18not been answered. Phone calls have not

2:00:21been returned. A neighbor was told that

2:00:24the city was too busy to take

2:00:25complaints. Another neighbor was told

2:00:28that construction complaints would not

2:00:30be taken regarding the East Thistle data

2:00:33center. That is unacceptable. In

2:00:36addition, decibel levels of construction

2:00:38noise have exceeded 93 dB. We are

2:00:43monitoring construction hours and

2:00:45decibel levels all the time. Please

2:00:49follow up on our concerns and contact

2:00:51the Awatuki Community Alliance with your

2:00:54findings. Our enjoyment and use

2:00:57[clears throat] of our property has been

2:00:58taken away from me, my husband, my

2:01:02family, and my neighbors. Thank you for

2:01:04your time.

2:01:08Thank you. Bill is next, followed by

2:01:09James.

2:01:12>> Aloha, Mayor Kate Ggo, and to the rest

2:01:14of the city council. It's nice. It's

2:01:16been a minute since we've seen each

2:01:18other, but I have a huge concern about

2:01:20the heat. This should be common sense to

2:01:23people, but it's not. And shade is not

2:01:27going to combat the heat. And we need

2:01:30like sprinklers or something else while

2:01:32we are walking on the sidewalks to

2:01:34businesses.

2:01:36See, I knew we should have never elected

2:01:39the chief police officer to Phoenix.

2:01:42There's been too many incidents since

2:01:44he's been in office. That's crazy. But I

2:01:48do support my police off police force.

2:01:51We need it. We don't need to defund it,

2:01:54but you guys should do your jobs and

2:01:56keep us safe. And we need to make sure

2:01:59your police cars and body uh and new and

2:02:03updated with technology

2:02:05and body cameras should not take that

2:02:07long to request the camera footage.

2:02:11Tempe can get it in days, not years. But

2:02:15we should have block cameras and license

2:02:18plate readers. I want to be safe and I

2:02:21might be the only Democrat talking about

2:02:23how safe it is for us. dress. Don't be a

2:02:27perk, please. Officers in Phoenix.

2:02:29Congratulations to Pierce Park that

2:02:32opened a few weekends ago. I was going,

2:02:34but it's too hot. But let's get into the

2:02:37park. When I play tennis on these courts

2:02:41and looking around, we need to make sure

2:02:44these bathrooms are clean and they're

2:02:46soap so I can wash my hands. We need to

2:02:50renovate these parks that I'm going to

2:02:52talk about. And maybe we should have a

2:02:55one tennis park for indoor tennis courts

2:02:57to combat this heat. And KTO Park

2:03:00District 4, Laura Pastor, GR Herburg

2:03:05Park, District 6, Kevin Robinson. And

2:03:08also, please put something attractive

2:03:11not ugly at 10831

2:03:14South 51 Street, Phoenix A85044.

2:03:18Roadrunner Park is located in district

2:03:203. Deborah Stark, I have a concern about

2:03:23this park. We need to move the tennis

2:03:26courts another way or put more tennis

2:03:29courts too in district three. But

2:03:31someone hit a ball over the fence. These

2:03:34tennis courts are literally facing the

2:03:36street and every ball that goes over

2:03:38that fence, it could hit a car while

2:03:41driving. So that's my concern. And

2:03:43please do not make these ghetto parks. I

2:03:46care about my homeless people, but some

2:03:48have mental health issues and they will

2:03:51lash out on you for no reason. So, we

2:03:53need to make sure, please, we are taking

2:03:55care of our streets in Phoenix. Keep

2:03:58downtown clean, safe, because I know

2:04:00there's Democrats like me that like

2:04:03things clean in our cities and we don't

2:04:06like ugly things. And um and you know,

2:04:09there are some Democrats that don't like

2:04:11it. Mahalo and thank you so much.

2:04:15Thank you. And we actually did not go in

2:04:17the order I had intended. So I may

2:04:18actually ask the vice mayor to call the

2:04:20names so that she can help me with that.

2:04:23But the the meant I meant to have next

2:04:24Bill Monk followed by James Pelner and

2:04:27then Noah James Markham. So Bill, thank

2:04:29you for your patience.

2:04:32>> Good afternoon city council. My name is

2:04:33Bill Monk. Speaking today about the east

2:04:35data center in district 6. I'm very

2:04:38concerned that the city used

2:04:39administrative maneuvers instead of a

2:04:41pud review to allow such a heavy

2:04:43industrial data center to be built in a

2:04:45residential neighborhood. I'm also

2:04:47concerned that NDAs are obviously signed

2:04:49by leaders which mass what's really

2:04:50going on here. Proper was never to be

2:04:53utilized for heavy industrial business.

2:04:55The recent meeting in SRP confirmed this

2:04:58is a heavy industrial project.

2:05:01257

2:05:02megawatts of of power does not belong in

2:05:05a neighborhood.

2:05:07A put of review would have at least been

2:05:09the more correct and transparent way for

2:05:10this project to be considered. We the

2:05:13citizens of Awatuki should have had a

2:05:15voice in our future. City bureaucratics

2:05:18unfortunately took our voices away.

2:05:20Eventually, governments need to learn

2:05:22how to work with businesses for the best

2:05:23interest of their citizens, not what the

2:05:26business expects you to do for them.

2:05:29Menllo and the city have not been good

2:05:30neighbors from the start. Menllo's

2:05:33attorney and a village planning

2:05:34committee indicated that they were going

2:05:35to use a forced air project in order to

2:05:38cool the cooler the servers.

2:05:41We received a brochure last Sunday night

2:05:43in a meeting that was submitted by

2:05:45Menllo to our city council member Mr.

2:05:47Robertson and in it it says oh they're

2:05:51going to use a cool loop liquid system.

2:05:54Those systems require humongous amounts

2:05:56of large large water storage condenser

2:06:00water tanks, buffer tanks, and many

2:06:02other tanks to hold at least 12 million

2:06:05gallons of water at a time. They also

2:06:08hold many chemicals, a lot of them

2:06:10forever, bioades, corrositors, scale

2:06:13inhibitors, as well as very large WS of

2:06:16waste water. Brings up many things that

2:06:20could be underground. We don't know cuz

2:06:22none of these buildings that have to

2:06:24secure this are even showing on anything

2:06:26that we've been told or even been seen.

2:06:29We don't know if this is a mistake or

2:06:30not, but this was presented to us as

2:06:32from Menllo. Um, if this is true, the

2:06:37city of Phoenix and this site are not

2:06:39ready to process this type of waste

2:06:41water by any means. All the EPA rs have

2:06:44to check in. You can need a veral sites

2:06:46and everything else. It's time for

2:06:48everybody involved to take some action

2:06:51and take a look at this. Couple of other

2:06:53things just found out uh that during the

2:06:58permit review, they're now asking for

2:07:00three additional feet to be added to the

2:07:02height of the building. That's a total

2:07:04of 8 ft above the max and three more

2:07:07feet above what you guys have already

2:07:08stipulated they can go to. Um

2:07:12it's in review. How can we continue to

2:07:15justify this? Seems like the tail's

2:07:17wagging the dog in this project. Permits

2:07:20keep changing. The fees on these permits

2:07:23keep changing. City's making more money.

2:07:26But you cannot allow permit by

2:07:28inspection. That is not how you're

2:07:30supposed to be doing business.

2:07:34Thank you.

2:07:38>> Thank you. Our next speaker is James

2:07:41Plant Pelner.

2:07:45>> [clears throat]

2:07:47>> Thank you everyone. Uh my name is James

2:07:49Milner. I am a district 6 resident right

2:07:51across the street from data center.

2:07:53Question. In 1996, the property located

2:07:56at 48014811 East Thistle Landing Drive

2:07:58in Phoenix was governed under a

2:08:00localized zoning case designated as

2:08:02Z10966.

2:08:04This application established its

2:08:06underlying zoning as Commerce Park with

2:08:08a general commerce park option

2:08:10structured under section 626 of the

2:08:12Phoenix zoning ordinance.

2:08:15The commerce park district with general

2:08:16commerce park option was specifically

2:08:18designed to blend light industrial

2:08:20corporate office and ancillary

2:08:22commercial activities. Primary uses

2:08:24allow professional corporate offices,

2:08:27regional administrative clerical

2:08:28centers, research and development

2:08:30laboratories, medical and dental

2:08:32facilities, wholesaling and light

2:08:35manufacturing assembly operations

2:08:37provided they are they occurred within

2:08:39fully enclosed buildings.

2:08:42Supportive and retail services are

2:08:43permitted. Um, which includes standard

2:08:45office park services including

2:08:47commercial schools, daycarees,armacies,

2:08:49and employee dining facilities with

2:08:50strict rules against external building

2:08:53signs or direct exterior access to

2:08:57protect the corporate campus aesthetic.

2:08:59Prohibited uses of this space strictly

2:09:02banned are heavy industrial processing,

2:09:04raw food compounding, open air outside

2:09:06storage materials, large scale

2:09:08standalone commercial retail

2:09:09developments, and dead vehicle or

2:09:11freight trucking depots. Developments in

2:09:14this district were required to follow

2:09:16specific performance and design

2:09:18criteria. All operations excluding

2:09:20parking structures, loading zones, and

2:09:22temporary construction storage had to be

2:09:24entirely self-contained within closed

2:09:26structures. Noise, order, and

2:09:28vibrational outputs could not exceed

2:09:30standard ambient baseline levels when

2:09:32measured at the property line boundary.

2:09:35Parking fields visible from any public

2:09:37street required a 3-foot visual

2:09:39screening barrier, landscape, hedge,

2:09:40wall, or burm. The original 1996

2:09:44stipulations heavily restricted the site

2:09:46to standard corporate office use,

2:09:48leading to the development of the

2:09:50multi-building office park. However,

2:09:52significant modern zoning modifications

2:09:54altered the trajectory of this parcel.

2:09:56In early 2024, the developer Menllo

2:09:59Equity sought a formal modification of

2:10:00stipulations through the Phoenix

2:10:02planning hearing officer. The Awatuki

2:10:05Foothills Village Planning Committee and

2:10:06the Phoenix City Council ratified

2:10:08changes to allow the conversion of the

2:10:10low-rise office buildings into a massive

2:10:131 million square foot high-tech data

2:10:16center campus. The approved

2:10:18modifications cleared the way for a

2:10:19five- building technology development, a

2:10:21dedicated 2acre community park, and an

2:10:23on-site electric power substation.

2:10:27Under section 66 of the Phoenix zoning

2:10:30ordinance for the Commerce Park District

2:10:31with a GCP option, the following space

2:10:34requirements were enforced in 1996.

2:10:37Building cannot be any higher than four

2:10:39stories or 56 ft, whichever is less.

2:10:43front yard setback minimum of 25 ft from

2:10:46the public street property line. Thank

2:10:48you.

2:10:50>> Thank you.

2:10:52>> Our next speakers are Richard Van and

2:10:55Elisa Greerado.

2:11:10>> Hi. Uh, I'm here to talk to you about uh

2:11:15cash for cats.

2:11:17Okay, everyone's sitting there talking

2:11:18about it doesn't exist. You want to sit

2:11:20down with me for an hour? I can give you

2:11:22details on what's going on over at

2:11:24Justice Center with Rudy, the guy that's

2:11:25running it. He stole my phone. I have a

2:11:28police report of it.

2:11:30I was homeless for 7 months out in front

2:11:33of that place. Cass refused me twice

2:11:38on intake. You guys are talking about

2:11:41homelessness. You're talking about

2:11:43crime. What do you guys want me to do?

2:11:45You want me to be a drug addict?

2:11:47I'm asking literally, what do you guys

2:11:49want? You want me to become a thug? I'm

2:11:52a Christian. All right. I was the first

2:11:54person in the United States to go see

2:11:55Donald Trump when he came here in 2016.

2:11:58what he was saying about

2:12:01uh I'm so angry about this stuff right

2:12:03here. Basically, he said we're on

2:12:05September 30th last year, you said we

2:12:07are being invaded from within. Who's he

2:12:10talking about? Well, if you go to uh

2:12:12Galatians 5:1, okay, I don't have it on

2:12:16here unfortunately, but basically what

2:12:18it is, you're talking about Galatians uh

2:12:192:4, false brother unaware came in

2:12:22privately who came in to steal our

2:12:24liberty which we have in Jesus Christ.

2:12:27Okay. Okay. Now, who's that? Well, if

2:12:28you go and look at Ephesians 2:20, and

2:12:31they built upon the foundation apostles,

2:12:34the prophets, Jesus Christ themselves

2:12:36being Now, if you go and look at it, the

2:12:37cornerstone, the builders, who's that?

2:12:39The Masons. You go to Acts 6:9, the

2:12:41story of Stephen, it literally goes and

2:12:43says the Masons. Now, I have two Masons,

2:12:48Jeff Hawk over at uh Traffic Designs and

2:12:52also Ed Dey. Both of them work for an

2:12:54internet reputation repair company. Now,

2:12:57if you go on one of their websites, I'm

2:12:58a dangerous individual. Serious

2:13:00situations. Apply proceed with caution.

2:13:03I've never once gotten in a fight. I do

2:13:05know how to fight real well. Took 5

2:13:07years with Taekwondo from Mac Newton

2:13:08over on 32nd and McDall. He was my old

2:13:11teacher from in Chicago. Now, what I'm

2:13:14trying to get across to you people is

2:13:15I'm I'm still homeless because of your

2:13:19guys' system. I'm watching you guys up

2:13:21here sitting here. Talk this way, talk

2:13:22that way. Come with me, any one of you,

2:13:25and I will show you the people that are

2:13:26causing homelessness over there. There's

2:13:28a cash for Cats program going on, and I

2:13:31can't get help. I was told literally

2:13:33that they don't have any program for me.

2:13:35A 34year marriage was dissolved because

2:13:38of Mike Faith of the Peori, the Cop

2:13:40Shop. All right. He's on the Brady list.

2:13:43He's a liar. He should not have a badge.

2:13:46Let him face me manto man, face to face.

2:13:50Now, when Vance was here in Peoria, I

2:13:53went up there in one of my outfits cuz I

2:13:54was starting a YouTube channel. The fact

2:13:57of the matter is, all right, 15 cops

2:14:00were there and I was like, you get this

2:14:01man over here facing me cuz he ruined my

2:14:04life. Okay, sorry for the attitude, man.

2:14:08But attitudes are formed, not given.

2:14:12I'll be back with more on this. All

2:14:14right, trust me.

2:14:16>> Thank you. Our next speaker is Elisa

2:14:19Greer Herado.

2:14:20>> I'm going home now to the street

2:14:22somewhere because I can't get a house

2:14:24cuz I'm the wrong color. I'm white.

2:14:27I know what I'm talking about. Four

2:14:29intakes.

2:14:31Four by professionals that are

2:14:33psychologists.

2:14:35>> And then after that will be Craig

2:14:37Weaver.

2:14:40>> Afternoon, mayor. I just wanted to tell

2:14:42you again, thank you for the bathrooms

2:14:45over there. SOS and showers, but if you

2:14:48could help me out with getting um

2:14:50cleaning supplies for those who live in

2:14:53the

2:14:53>> X being Can you come to the mic, please

2:14:56for this to go inside instead of having

2:14:58to leave it outside all night?

2:15:00>> Is it possible to reset her time and let

2:15:02her start over so I cuz make sure we can

2:15:04hear her.

2:15:04>> Okay.

2:15:06>> Thank you.

2:15:08>> Start over.

2:15:09>> Yes, please.

2:15:10>> Okay. wanted to tell you thank you for

2:15:12the 88 bathrooms that you guys had put

2:15:14in. Those are greatly appreciated. But

2:15:17if we could if I could ask you to please

2:15:20help with the situation of getting

2:15:22cleaning supplies for the people who

2:15:24have

2:15:26the X- wings that you guys call X- wings

2:15:29because water doesn't disinfect

2:15:32anything. I mean only water and also if

2:15:36ADA ramps to go into the X-wing so that

2:15:39this doesn't have to sit outside all

2:15:42night.

2:15:45That's it. Thank you so much for the

2:15:48time.

2:15:48>> And then our final speaker will be Craig

2:15:50Weaver.

2:16:07>> [snorts]

2:16:14>> Hello. It's nice to see some of you who

2:16:17were at the recent Synergy conference.

2:16:20My name is Craig Weaver and I'm here

2:16:22today like I was 10 years ago this month

2:16:26when Phoenix

2:16:28avoided a huge mistake and the city

2:16:31council voted 90

2:16:34in favor of light emmitting diode street

2:16:38lights rated at 2700 Kelvin much like

2:16:42these up here. In 2016, a group of

2:16:45Phoenicians edited educated the city

2:16:48council and staff as to why specifying

2:16:512700 Kelvin LED was needed. And that

2:16:55decision still remains the best choice

2:16:58today.

2:17:00This choice avoided the horrible blue

2:17:02white LED that the American Medical

2:17:05Association 10-year study showed then

2:17:10that LED above 3,000 Kelvin mimics

2:17:13daylight all night long and are bad for

2:17:16our health. Currently in my

2:17:19neighborhood, we have bad 5,000 Kelvin

2:17:21blue white LED popping up everywhere.

2:17:24And I would bet that you have got some

2:17:27in your neighborhood as well. However,

2:17:30today the city environmental program

2:17:33department deserves a recognition in

2:17:37educating Phoenicians regarding smart

2:17:41LED lighting and the beauty of our night

2:17:44sky. Also, the planning and development

2:17:47department

2:17:48deserves a thank you for using a simple

2:17:52recommendation on the proposed 6,500

2:17:56acre development

2:17:59which resulted in a commitment from the

2:18:03company to 7 2700 Kelvin LED for all of

2:18:09the community's outdoor lighting

2:18:12fixtures.

2:18:14Recently, I found 24 cities and towns in

2:18:17Arizona that have already updated their

2:18:19lighting code to include LED. Planning

2:18:23and development outdoor lighting

2:18:25recommendation

2:18:27is sensible, timely, and it should

2:18:30continue on all other developments. But

2:18:33this also demonstrates that now is when

2:18:37LED should be addressed by updating the

2:18:41city's lighting code, which should be

2:18:44done as soon as possible.

2:18:47I'm hoping that our community, our

2:18:50communities will be as nice as the new

2:18:54community

2:18:56and will be

2:18:58a key part in as Phoenix continues the

2:19:01path to being a great city.

2:19:05I'd be glad to answer any questions.

2:19:08Please contact me on the address on the

2:19:10handout. Thank you for your time. Have a

2:19:12good evening.

2:19:14>> Thank you. Thank you, K. Thank you for

2:19:16this important update, Vice Mayor. Thank

2:19:18you. We did not have time for everyone

2:19:21who had signed up for public comment.

2:19:23So, if you did not get your slot today,

2:19:24we will take you at the beginning of

2:19:26public comment at the next formal

2:19:27meeting of the Phoenix City Council. We

2:19:29are adjourned.

2:19:34[clears throat]

2:19:42monument will be a great contribution to

2:19:44our city, our state, our country and to

2:19:46our upcoming generations of young

2:19:48people. Young people will come and go