Council Regular/Special Meeting

MINUTES OF THE GILBERT TOWN COUNCIL, IN REGULAR MEETING OF TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2024, AT 6:30 PM, MUNICIPAL BUILDING I, COUNCIL CHAMBERS 50 E. CIVIC CENTER DRIVE, GILBERT, ARIZONA COUNCIL PRESENT: Mayor Brigette Peterson, Vice Mayor Scott Anderson, Councilmembers Chuck Bongiovanni, Bobbi Buchli, Yung Koprowski, Kathy Tilque and Jim Torgeson COUNCIL ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Town Manager Patrick Banger, Town Clerk Chaveli Herrera, Deputy Clerk Judy Martinez, Town Attorney Christopher Payne, Director of Finance and Management Services Håkon Johanson, and Financial Services Officer Tanya Wright AGENDA ITEM CALL TO ORDER Mayor Peterson called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Pastor President Rich Kempton of Gilbert SanTan Stake Presidency, of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints gave the invocation. Councilmember Bongiovanni led the Pledge of Allegiance. ROLL CALL Town Clerk Herrera called roll and declared a quorum present. 1 PRESENTATIONS; PROCLAMATIONS 1. PROCLAMATION - Proclamation declaring April 26, 2024 as 2024 Arbor Day in Gilbert, Arizona. Councilmember Bongiovanni read a proclamation declaring April 26, 2024, as 2024 Arbor Day, and presented the proclamation to the Parks and Recreation Staff. 2. PROCLAMATION - Proclamation declaring April 22-26, 2024 as Gilbert Water Professionals Appreciation Week. Vice Mayor Anderson read a proclamation declaring April 22-26, 2024 as Gilbert Water Professionals Appreciation Week, and presented the proclamation to the Public Works Staff. 3. PROCLAMATION - Proclamation declaring April 21-27, 2024 as National Infertility Awareness Week. Councilmember Tilque read a proclamation declaring April 21-27, 2024 as National Infertility Awareness Week, and presented the proclamation to Elizabeth Lee Gilbert resident and Vice President - Clinical Operations of Wellnest Fertility. 4. PROCLAMATION - Proclamation declaring April 6-12, 2024 as The Week of the Young Child. Councilmember Buchli read a proclamation declaring April 6-12, 2024 as The Week of the Young Child, and presented the proclamation to Beth Haas. 5. PROCLAMATION - Proclamation declaring April 2024 as 2024 Bike Gilbert Month. Mayor Peterson read a proclamation declaring April 2024 as 2024 Bike Gilbert Month, and presented the proclamation to Gilbert Police Department Public Affairs Officer Levi Leyba and the Strazza Family. 2 6. RECOGNITION - Recognition of Gilbert's MVP Volunteer Recipients. Mayor Peterson thanked Gilbert’s volunteers for their work and announced the following Gilbert MVP Volunteers: for the value of Bold - finalists Tricia Johnson and Cherrie Lonker and winner Natalie Braun; for the value of Driven – finalists Louise Kircher and Matthew Torel and winner Casey Steketee; for the value of Kind – finalists Pat Finch and Leanne Seli and winner Kelly Geisler; for the value of Humble – finalists Emily Jones and Judy Slack and winner Debbie Trenary, for the Group category – finalists Life Community Church and Special Needs Activity Program (SNAP) and winner Mercy Gilbert Volunteer Program; and for the Youth category – finalist Rafael Ramirez and winner Evan Vowles. Gail Loewen, a volunteer at One Small Step since 2015, was nominated for a Kind award. Despite her passing, her legacy lives on through her selfless efforts, particularly in helping families in need, especially children. Her husband, Hal Lowen, accepted the award on her behalf. COMMUNICATIONS FROM CITIZENS Deborah Starita, Gilbert resident, said she had a home that backed up to Williams Field Road and the railroad train track. She said she called the Town and then was told to contact Union Pacific, who informed her she could attend a Town Council meeting to request quiet hours be put forward. Don Edwards, not a Gilbert resident, said he formerly worked for the Town of Gilbert but was fired after filing a complaint. He discussed the cause and communications after the incident, then said there was no leadership in the Fire Department and multiple people were going through similar issues within. Steve Lavalle, Gilbert resident, said the biggest disappointment in the prior Study Session was that only one Councilmember asked questions at that time. He said Town Manager Banger discussed benchmark cities and the volume of social media engagement but no one asked why he used different cities. He spoke of the Office of Digital Government’s (ODG) mission statement, then discussed masks and perception. 3 Dan Reynolds, Gilbert resident, said he was a retired employee and speaking as a voice for Josh Reynolds regarding an injunction. He said he had previously given two of the three reasons Josh was terminated, then said the last reason was that Josh had taken a picture with his arm around a cutout of Donald Trump with a fire truck in the background, adding the Town of Gilbert could not be identified in the photo. He provided more details, stating Josh was targeted by the ODG. Ann Doucette, Gilbert resident, discussed the essence of the invocation during the Chamber of Commerce meetings; she said there was not a diverse representation of faiths. She said there was another issue of not addressing complaints in a timely fashion and discussed events at the Gilbert Garage and delayed responses. Lastly, she asked why the Town was not doing more to monitor said events and asked for something to be done. Charisia Arnold, Gilbert resident, asked the Council to put themselves in the shoes of a 17- year-old and described a relationship scenario that led to assault and abuse. She discussed the process after contacting the police and the officer process. She emphasized the need for immediate advocacy and transparency, ensuring that people were informed about the process even before the Advocacy Center was built. Kristine Brennan, Gilbert resident, discussed changes in the community around teen violence and arrests that were made in the death of Preston Lord. She emphasized the urgency for action and leadership to facilitate healing. Specifically, she advocated for the Police Department to classify the “Gilbert Goons” as a gang, which would enable access to funding, resources, and harsher penalties. She urged the timely implementation of recommendations from the Subcommittee on Teen Violence and asked the Council to prioritize community safety. Doralise Machado-Liddell, Gilbert resident, completed a request to speak card but was not present when called. 4 Vice Mayor Anderson asked Town Manager Banger to have staff contact the individual who spoke on the train topic. Mayor Peterson also asked staff to assist. Councilmember Torgeson discussed a comment that was made at a prior study session by Mayor Peterson. He said it initially seemed like a pointed remark when he realized it was actually in reference to something he had said two weeks prior. He said it was not said in a mean spirit rather, it was delivered with a sense of humor. He said he wanted everyone to know that it was him who made the comment. Mayor Peterson addressed an incident in which someone from the audience had written a staff member’s vehicle information on a blackboard in the building lobby and said it was unacceptable behavior. Police Chief Soelberg expressed gratitude to the Council and community for their efforts to end teen violence. He said there was an increased awareness of teen violence after the death of Preston Lord. He said the Subcommittee on Teen Violence would provide updates and recommendations to the Town Council and he highlighted the importance of community participation in finding effective solutions. He said to achieve long-term solutions, partnerships between law enforcement, community leaders, and stakeholders were needed. He expressed that the Gilbert Police Department was committed to working with parents, schools, nonprofits, and the Council to support youth. He said he was unable to comment on “Gilbert Goons”, as it was an ongoing investigation. CONSENT CALENDAR A MOTION was made by Vice Mayor Anderson, seconded by Councilmember Buchli, to approve Consent Items 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 18A, 19, 20 and 21. Motion carried 7-0. 5 7. INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT – consider approval of Intergovernmental Agreement No. 324000296 with Town of Queen Creek for Use of Household Hazardous Waste Facility, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 8. INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT – consider approval of Intergovernmental Agreement No. 324000312 with The Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County for jury services, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 9. AGREEMENT – consider approval of Cooperative Purchase Agreement No. 324000283 with Sentinel Technologies Inc. utilizing City of Mesa Cooperative Purchasing Contract No. 2023077 in an amount not to exceed $649,012.45 for Software, Storage, Related Products, and Services, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 10. AGREEMENT – consider approval of Cooperative Purchase Agreement No. 324000256 with Sierra Container Group, LLC utilizing OMNIA Cooperative Purchasing Contract No. 02-149 in an amount not to exceed $2,000,000 annually, for five years, for Residential Refuse and Recycling Containers, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 11. CONTRACT – consider approval of: a) Cooperative Purchase Agreement No. 324000316 with Freightliner of Arizona, LLC utilizing State of Arizona Cooperative Purchasing Contract No. CTR069472 in an amount not to exceed $18,500,000 for the purchase of Automated Side Loader (ASLs) trucks for the 6 Residential Collections service line of Solid Waste & Recycling, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents; and b) CIP contingency with Solid Waste Residential Replacement Fund as the designated funding source in the amount of $2,514,210. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 12. CONTRACT – Consider approval of: a) Job Order No. 24-0601 to Job Order Contract (JOC) Contract No. 320000122 with Willmeng Construction, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $635,723.41 for Fuel Stations Shade Structures, Project No. MF2533, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents; and b) a CIP Contingency using project savings from MF2532 South Area Service Center Vehicle Service/Repair Facility as the designated funding source in the amount of $80,724. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 13. CHANGE ORDER – consider approval of Change Order No. 6 to Contract No. 321000218 with DataBank IMX, Inc. increasing the contract amount by $658,935.75 for professional services and infrastructure to migrate and host Hyland OnBase Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 14. CHANGE ORDER – consider approval of: 7 a) Change Order No. 2 to Contract No. 323000089 with Precision Concrete Cutting, Inc. increasing the contract amount by $31,920 for Sidewalk Trip Hazard Repair at Discovery Park, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents; and b) a General Fund Contingency transfer in the amount of $31,920. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 15. BUDGET – consider approval of a Contingency to the Self-Insured Worker's Compensation Fund in the amount of $500,000 for worker's compensation claims. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 16. BUDGET – consider approval of a Contingency in the Self-Insured Health Fund in the amount of up to $5,000,000 for medical and prescription claims for FY 2024. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 17. GRANT – consider adoption of Resolution No. 4458 supporting the application and acceptance of a grant, Contract No. 324000324, for Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) funding for the Crossroads Stormwater Rehabilitation Project in the amount of $600,000 and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. Resolution No. 4458 was adopted. 18. GRANT/INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT – consider: a) approval of Intergovernmental Agreement No. 324000335 with Salt River Pima- Maricopa Indian Community (SRP-MIC) for a portion of 12% of the SRPMIC annual contribution, and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents; 8 b) acceptance of the 12% Gaming Contribution Grant, Contract No. 324000328 from the Salt River Pima – Maricopa Indian Community (SRP-MIC) in the amount of $50,000.00 for the Dignity Health Foundation for the Gilbert Children’s Dental Clinic program; c) acceptance of the 12% Gaming Contribution Grant, Contract No. 324000325 from the Salt River Pima – Maricopa Indian Community (SRP-MIC) in the amount of $25,000.00 for Homeward Bound for a shelter and community services program; d) acceptance of the 12% Gaming Contribution Grant, Contract No. 324000326 from the Salt River Pima – Maricopa Indian Community (SRP-MIC) in the amount of $50,000.00 to Helping Hands for Single Moms for the scholarship plus program; e) acceptance of the 12% Gaming Contribution Grant, Contract No. 324000327 from the Salt River Pima – Maricopa Indian Community (SRP-MIC) in the amount of $7,466.53 to Sounds of Autism for a workforce development program; and f) a Grant Fund contingency in the amount of $132,466.53. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 18A. GRANT – consider: a) adoption of Resolution No. 4461 supporting the acceptance of a grant, Contract No. 324000053, from the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) in the amount of $3,000,000 for the completion of Project No. WA1625 and portions of Project No.'s WA1640 and WA1643 and authorize the Mayor to execute the required documents; and b) approval of a Water Fund Contingency in the amount of $250,000 in FY 2025 for grant matching funds for Project No.'s WA1640 and WA1643. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. Resolution No. 4461 was adopted. 9 19. FEES - consider adoption of the System Development Fee Schedules for Traffic Signals, Roads, Police, Fire, Parks and Recreation, Water, Water Resources and Wastewater pursuant to Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) Section 9-463.05 to be effective July 1, 2024. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 20. RISK MANAGEMENT - consider acceptance of the Risk Management Quarterly report for the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Quarter 3. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. 21. MINUTES – consider approval of the minutes of the Regular Meeting of April 2, 2024, Study Session of April 2, 2024, and Special Meeting of April 1, 2024. This item was approved with the Consent Calendar vote. PUBLIC HEARING Mayor Peterson opened the public hearing for items 22, 23, 24, and 25. No one wished to speak and Mayor Peterson closed the public hearing. A MOTION was made by Mayor Peterson, seconded by Councilmember Buchli, to approve public hearing items 22, 23, 24, and 25. Motion carried 7-0. 22. LIQUOR LICENSE – conduct hearing and consider approval of a Series 12 Restaurant Alcohol License for Great Wall Chinese Restaurant located at 2473 South Higley Road, Unit 106. This item was approved with the Public Hearing Vote. 10 23. LIQUOR LICENSE – conduct hearing and consider approval of a Series 12 Restaurant Alcohol License for Pita Jungle Gilbert located at 1431 East Williams Field Road, Units 101- 103. This item was approved with the Public Hearing Vote. 24. PROPERTY ACQUISITION – conduct hearing and consider: a) adoption of Resolution No. 4459 approving the acquisition of right-of-way for Parcel Nos. APN 304-55-018K and APN 304-55-018L for Lindsay Road - Pecos to SR202, Project No. ST1170, for the negotiated amount of $229,373.21 plus acquisition and closing costs and authorize the Town Manager to execute the required documents; and This item was approved with the Public Hearing vote. Resolution No. 4459 was adopted. b) approval of CIP contingency, with MAG Revolving as the designated fund source, in the amount of $235,000. 25. CODE OF GILBERT - conduct hearing and consider adoption of Ordinance No. 2899 amending the Code of Gilbert, Arizona, by amending Chapter 26 Elections, Section 26-6 Primary Elections. This item was approved with the Public Hearing vote. Ordinance No. 2899 was adopted. ADMINISTRATIVE ITEMS 26. COUNCIL ADMINISTRATION - a) a presentation of the Annual Audited Financial Reports for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023; and 11 b) consider adoption of Resolution No. 4460 confirming compliance with Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S.) § 41-1494 in accordance with A.R.S. § 9-481(H). Director Håkon Johnson gave praise to his accounting team for the fantastic job they do and introduced Financial Services Officer Tanya Wright. Financial Services Officer Wright gave a brief overview of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report ending June 30, 2023, along with Jim Rebenar, an audit partner from Heinfeld and Meech (virtually). She also gave a brief overview of the Roles of Accounting and touched on a few points. She talked about the importance of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, such as accountability, management, the general public, and investors. She touched on a few components and gave a quick overview of what was included. She announced that for the last 32 consecutive years, the Town of Gilbert had received the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. She thanked their entire team and also recognized Accounting Manager Anthony St. George, Accounting Supervisor Emily Harmon, and Accountant III Matthew Masters. Rebenar thanked Financial Services Officer Wright and the entire team for the great work they provided. He gave an overview of the Scope of Audit and talked about the amazing accomplishment of the Town of Gilbert receiving the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for 32 consecutive years. He talked about what they looked for when they did an audit and gave their findings, including one instance of non-compliance noted on a reporting requirement regarding sub-awards, which he said was an allowable use, but was not reported back as required. Councilmember Torgeson asked how the Town could fix the one thing that was on the report for the next year, to which Rebenar said it was simply a requirement that the Town was not aware of. Mayor Peterson thanked the entire team and stated that the work was much appreciated. A MOTION was made by Councilmember Koprowski, seconded by Councilmember Buchli, to approve Item 26. Motion carried 7-0. Resolution No. 4460 was adopted. 12 27. COUNCIL ADMINISTRATION- Discussion and possible action related to recommendations and status updates from the Council Subcommittee on Teen Violence. Vice Mayor Anderson summarized the efforts of those involved on the topic and the recommendations presented by the public to the Subcommittee. Councilmember Bongiovanni spoke of the pride of seeing the community working together on the sad topic; he said he felt confident handing it off to Councilmember Tilque and the Community Engagement Task Force. Councilmember Torgeson discussed community involvement and said people paid attention even when issues were hard to define. He said they engaged, spoke up, and volunteered their time and expertise. He said there was no perfect solution, but seeing the collective effort was inspiring. He thanked Councilmember Bongiovanni, Vice Mayor Anderson, and everyone involved. Councilmember Tilque thanked all of the Councilmembers and everyone involved with the Subcommittee for all their work and time. She noted that the rest of the Councilmembers received the recommendations the day prior and she put some recommendations together earlier in the day on how to bring them to the Community Engagement Task Force (CETF.) She said after reading the recommendations she thought that some action and direction could be given to Council that evening. She said she did not feel the need to return to the Subcommittee. She said she was ready to provide input on how the CETF should move forward and wanted to ensure the community was informed on what the CETF would focus on. She said they could move quickly on four items: adding an additional police officer for Community Youth Engagement, approving all three phases of the Family Advocacy Center, enhancing the relationship between school district representatives and Council Liaisons, and a possible ordinance for banning brass knucks for juveniles and parenting responsibility. She mentioned possible due dates and stated that those were items that could be acted on quickly and would move the CETF along with any other possibilities. 13 All Councilmembers agreed with the addition of the Police Officer for Community Youth Engagement. Mayor Peterson asked for the Family Advocacy Center to be prioritized, and all Councilmembers were in agreement. Mayor Peterson asked for more information regarding the enhancement of the relationship between school district representatives and Council Liaisons. Councilmember Tilque said that the Council Liaisons and a member of the Town Manager's office would set up meetings with school officials regularly. Mayor Peterson expressed concern about not having enough Council Liaisons and suggested additional ones. Councilmember Bongiovanni said he was more than willing to help with the amount of schools Gilbert had. Vice Mayor Anderson expressed the importance of the relationships Gilbert had with the school districts and said that it was key for this to work. Councilmember Koprowski expressed the importance of the Council liaisons and schools relationships and said with additional Council liaisons, they would continue to keep the communication going. Councilmember Bongiovanni said that he was working with other cities/towns and Town Attorney Payne to bring an ordinance to ban brass knuckles and hoped to have that ready to bring to the Council for a vote by the end of May 2024. The Council asked for clarification regarding the ordinance, and it was decided to have a Study Session regarding parenting responsibility, and they would vote on the brass knuckles ordinance in May 2024. Mayor Peterson expressed concern regarding the parenting responsibilities on brass knuckles and said it needed to be a bigger conversation. Councilmember Tilque provided a possible overview of the CETF on Teen Violence. She said they would need to define the scoop and the number of members they would have. She said they would have their first meeting in June 2024. She said the Task Force would examine existing resources and mention what they were. She said they would also identify gaps and prepare recommendations to the Council in the areas of Resources, Education, and Promotion. She also added that Council Liaisons would provide monthly updates beginning September 2024 with a final report due December 2024. Councilmember Koprowski supported reconsidering all members based on the subject matter, rather than allowing former members to remain on, they would have to reapply if interested. The Council agreed with that recommendation. 14 The Council agreed to the number of openings and the requirements. Mayor Peterson suggested that teens be included as members of the CETF. Councilmember Bongiovanni agreed with Mayor Peterson and suggested they have a total of four (4) teens as members. Vice Mayor Anderson added that their main focus was expediency at that point in time. The final recommendation was to have a total of (11) regular members, to include no less than four (4) teens. The teens must attend a school within the Gilbert boundary, and must not be a senior in the current 2023-2024 school year. In addition, the Task Force will include two (2) adult alternates and one (1) teen alternate. They discussed non-voting, advisory members to include school districts and Gilbert Christian School as a private school, in additional to charter schools, American Leadership Academy (ALA), and San Tan. It was noted advisory members were to also include Gilbert Police Department and or/Student Resource Officers (SRO), as determined by Chief Soelberg, and a potential liaison from the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Committee (MYAC), if needed. Councilmember Tilque highlighted the application, interview, and appointment process. POLICY ITEMS 28. POLICY NO. 2023-03 - consider approval of revisions to Council Policy No. 2023-03 the Code of Conduct, rescinding and repealing Policy No. 2023-02 Ethics Handbook. A MOTION was made by Councilmember Torgeson, seconded by Councilmember Tilque, to approve Item 28. Motion carried 6-1, with Mayor Peterson casting the dissenting vote Policy No. 2023-03 was revised. FUTURE MEETINGS No discussion. COMMUNICATIONS 15 Report from the TOWN MANAGER on current events. Town Manager Banger acknowledged on March 28, 2024, Municipal Center Renovation Town Project won the Award of Merit for International National Design Association Southwest for the Public Facilities Category. He announced that April was Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month. He said on April 13, 2024, the Gilbert Fire and Rescue hosted the first Sensory Awareness Family Event (S.A.F.E.) at the Gilbert Public Safety Training Facility and talked about some of the things that were offered. He also mentioned that Gilbert Parks and Recreation has implemented sensory bags that could be found at each recreation center. Report from the COUNCIL on current events. Councilmember Bongiovanni mentioned the Parks and Recreation Arbor Day celebration and activities and also provided details about the Badges and Bobbers event. Councilmember Koprowski talked about upcoming events with the Gilbert Symphony Orchestra and also mentioned an upcoming community bike ride. Councilmember Buchli talked about the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Ford Championship. She said the event was a huge success with the highest attendance record and thanked everyone involved. Report from the MAYOR on current events. Mayor Peterson discussed the East Valley Mayors Prayer Breakfast and said it was the first time the event had been held on tribal land. She gave a brief overview of the event and thanked everyone involved. She also mentioned a groundbreaking ceremony for Znergy, which manufactures climate systems for data centers, and gave some details of what they do. 16 ADJOURN Mayor Peterson adjourned the meeting at 9:30 p.m. ATTEST: ___________________________ ___________________________________ Brigette Peterson, Mayor Chaveli Herrera, Town Clerk CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are a true and correct copy of the minutes of the regular meeting of the Town Council of the Town of Gilbert held on the 16th day of April, 2024. I further certify that the meeting was duly called and held and that a quorum was present. Dated this ____ day of ____________________2024. ___________________________________ Chaveli Herrera, Town Clerk 17