City Council — September 22, 2026

The meeting is called to order and I'd like to ask the City Clerk to please call the roll.

Council Member Kendrick is absent, all others are present.

Thank you. The city clerk posted orders of adjournment of September 8th and 15, 2026 meetings and the agenda of September 22nd, 2026 meeting in accordance with state law and City Council Housing Authority successor agency to the redevelopment agency policy. Now we have a proclamation for German-American month. Do we have anybody from that group here? Oh, there they are.

I didn't see the leader hose. Mike, that's proclamation for your group. Let me just read a little bit of this proclamation. It is very long so I'm just going to jump to the end, OK? Now therefore I, Bill Wells, Mayor of the City of El Cajon together with the City Council do hereby proclaim the month of October 2026 to be German-American Month. We call upon all residents to recognize the vital role German Americans have played in the development of our city and our nation and furthermore express our appreciation for promoting traditional German culture with live music, dancing games, and contests at the annual Oktoberfest in El Cajon. Please join us in celebrating the 54th anniversary of the El Cajon Clubhouse. Thank you, Mike.

Now I absolutely think we had the best Oktoberfest in town but maybe you could tell us a little bit more about all things that make it great. Oh congratulations!

This evening. Thank you and Yeah, 630 but we go two weekends start Friday night at 4 till 10 Saturday noon to 10 Sunday. Noon the nine and then we start again the next weekend as well everybody's welcome you don't have to be German you all you have to do is care about things that are German even if it's just beer so And food. So we have bratwurst, we have ox on the spit, we have potato salad, potato pancakes, sauerkraut, 12 different German beers.

Our band flies in from Germany they've been coming for over 20 years so we hope you can all make it. Kids are welcome there's a whole area just for kids and under 21 is free. We have the adults on Friday and Saturday at $15 and Sunday it's five dollars kind of a family day And then any active military is also free.

Can you tell everybody for the Internet and people watching at home where they go and when

you're open? OK well we start Friday night at four and then the grand opening is at 630. So the address is it's at the German American Societies. It's 10 17 South Mollison Avenue obviously in El Cajon and it's just a half a block from Chase Avenue So Saturday again, 12 to 10. Sunday, 12 to 9.

Perfect.

All

right. Any questions from the council?

I will add one last thing. Partly because our FES takes up our parking lot. Parking is tight so I would suggest on top of drinking the beer that you take a ride share of some sort. We have a whole area blocked off in

front. Good advice all around. I know you all have been to the Oktoberfest too, but always a family favorite. Really like the party you put on. It's really the best

in town. And if you didn't get all that information, oktoberfestalcajon.com is our website and we have flyers here for anybody that doesn't have one. Raise your hand and make sure you get one on the way out. Okay.

Anybody else want to say anything?

The Queen. Hi I just like to invite everyone to come out and also know that everyone out there is volunteers so we are looking for volunteers if any of you guys here want a volunteer. So and you get school credit if your child

do provide the Lederhosen or to the volunteers or they have to bring their

own. They have to bring their own but we have a lot of shops that sell them and all that stuff too. Sounds great.

OK

thank you.

Hi, I'm Monika. I'm of course from Germany near Heidelberg very near to Sulzbach, Sulzfeld your partner city and I'm... Are you from Sulzfeld? I'm from Heidelberg, which is near Sulzfeld.

Oh yeah we've had their delegation come out and meet with us before.

That's really great. I remember the new Bürgermeister that was a lady last time. Yes

I

remember her. She came to the club and like I said members get free entrance but you don't have to be a member to come in it's a family event for everyone In the county we have about 120,000 Germans here in San Diego County. Unfortunately they are not all club members. I

hope you have a good time.

Thank you.

All right, next I'd like to invite Deputy City Manager Marisol Thorne to join us at the podium to accept the proclamation for Human Resources Professional Day.

Hi. Good afternoon Mr. Mayor.

Marisol, I need... Oh go

ahead.

I need to read a little bit of this

first. Oh okay

yes. So use that. All right. Whereas recognizing the significance of HR professionals Fosters appreciation for their dedication and expertise in navigating the ever-evolving landscape of workforce management. And whereas on this day we celebrate the commitment, knowledge and skill of HR professionals who shape organizational culture and drive success. Now therefore I Bill Wells Mayor of the City of El Cajon together with city council do hereby proclaim September 26th 2026 is Human Resources Professional Day in recognition of the invaluable contributions of HR professionals to our organizations and to our communities. Thank you very much.

I do want to invite the HR team because they really are at the core of this function. So I'm going to have Celina Battisti who oversees work compensation, Judy who oversees our FMLA leave, Brenna oversees our recruiting and Megan is our HR manager who oversees the day-to-day operations. So this is actually one of my favorite days for city council because this is a behind the scenes team that normally no one gets to see. So it's our one opportunity to recognize them in public. So I'm really proud to stand here to recognize this very small But very mighty team. A lot of the work, like you said happens behind the scenes but they touch every aspect of our community in an indirect way as with every year in the state of California HR will always be in business because every year there's something new this year was no exception.

During one of the busiest times of HR when there were three contract negotiations, the HR team had to review 26 contracts for services. These are citywide contracts that now the state of California has said that HR has to review to determine if there needs to be a meet and confer notice. So that has added a new mandate. We don't have staffing for that so we've worked around it and they've done a wonderful job.

I also wanted to point out that we get analytics for our hiring and it's always amazing to see that our time to hire when we get someone on board is above the average to our peers. And I say this because we hired 58 individuals in the last 12 months we hired them Within a time period that was far less than our peers and we have one person who does the recruiting.

So I think that's a big achievement. I also want to point out that our agency also has one less HR person for every hundred employees and any other agency in the county of San Diego. So, I think this is quite an achievement for this little team Their commitment to transparency meaningful employee interaction and fiscal responsibility is reflected in all they do. They deliver service with a smile and truly look out for our employees while still having to balance the city policy that we are in charge of enforcing.

I just want to say a little bit of a thank you to our HR team. Thank you for your integrity, your hard work, your commitment to serving our community and above all thank you for treating every individual in the city regardless of the circumstances with the utmost dignity. And I do want to close with a quote that I believe truly exemplifies this HR team and how they strive to operate every day.

This is from Eleanor Roosevelt who once said, To handle yourself you use your head, to handle others you use your heart. So thank you.

Thanks Marisol we appreciate the hard work you do all of you thank you. Our last presentation is for Fire Prevention Week. And Chief Coe, would you please come down to the podium and accept the proclamation please? While you're coming down I'm going to read a little bit of this. Whereas the 2026 Fire Prevention Week theme charge into fire safety safe charging as a superpower serves us to remind all residents that safe charging can help reduce the risk of fires in homes and communities.

Now therefore I, Bill Wells, Mayor of the City of El Cajon together with the City Council do hereby proclaim October 4th through 10th 2026 to be Fire Prevention Week in the City of El Cajon. We urge all residents of the city of El Cajon to learn more about and practice safe charging habits. Chief Coe?

Good evening Mayor Wells, respected members of City Council, City staff just want to say thank you for the continued support for public safety specifically in this case Fire Prevention. I'd like to introduce to you our fire prevention team. To my right is Heartland Fire and Rescue's Fire Marshal Ken King, Deputy Fire Marshal Frankie Rodriguez and our El Cajon Fire Inspector Jeff Loverio.

And I would like to give an opportunity for Fire Marshal King to just say a couple of words regarding this year's theme. Please do.

Good afternoon. We all have lithium ion batteries. This is part of our life now, if we were just to take a few moments and transmit an important safety message regarding that it's this one only use approved chargers if it normally takes you 20 minutes to charge up your headlamp or an hour for your e-bike and you buy a charger that does it in five minutes chances are it's going to cause issues only use listed chargers Charge your cell phone or your lithium ion batteries on hard flat services. Amazingly enough, last year when we talked about this one of the messages that resounded most with residents was a lot of residents charge their phones in their bed at night with them. They use them as alarm clocks so they may put their cell phone on their pillow or beside their pillow even under their pillow If we have a lithium ion battery fire in that scenario, that's extremely dangerous.

So don't charge your cell phone in your bed. Amazingly enough, that was one of the things that the stats have started to show as an issue and people kind of understood and said yeah maybe that's not a smart idea I'll place it on the nightstand again with any type of battery if there's any sign that is starting to fail our deputy fire marshal talks about the three S's if there's any type of smell if it's starting to swell or if there is any smoking from a battery stop using that battery immediately. Call us we'll do what we do and EDCO has been a great partner for the disposal of lithium ion batteries. So again if we can push that message out here it's one of the things that's becoming a bigger issue for us.

We're starting to run calls on him it's starting to become an issue we're starting to see injuries the stats are starting to prove out that that we're dealing with these issues now that they're so pervasive and we want to get ahead of that during this national fire prevention week. Thank you

thank you. Okay, we are now at consent items. Consent items are routine matters enacted by one motion according to the recommendation listed below. With the concurrence of the City Council a council member or person in attendance may request discussion of a consent item at this time. Council members do you want to point any of the consent items? Seven. Seven okay let's go ahead and talk about seven

I just want to thank city staff on this project. I remember it took a long time. We, I believe the staff report says it took 14 months longer than what was contracted and we have a hold back of about $442,000. Thank you for holding that back until we can resolve things with the contractor. That's a good save of the taxpayers' money until we can resolve it so thank you.

Any other council members want to pull any consent items? Staff, did you want to pull any consent items?

No sir.

All right then I make a motion to approve all the consent items.

We don't have any.

Oh thank you. Are there speaker cards on consent items.

No speaker cards.

Okay then yes thanks. First and seconder please vote.

Motion carries by unanimous vote of those present.

Okay, we're now at public comment. At this time any person may address a matter within the jurisdiction of the City Council Housing Authority Successor Agency to the Elkhorn Redevelopment Agency that is not on the agenda. Comments relating to items on today's agenda are to be taken at the time that the item is heard. Please note that state law prohibits discussion or action by the city council on items not on the agenda.

Therefore this is not a time That the City Council will be answering questions about issues you raise. However we are taking notes and we will bring them to the attention of our city manager for follow up as needed. And of course an item may be placed on a future agenda. Angela do we have any speaker cards?

Sir, we have 12 speakers today. The first one will be Brenda Hammond.

Hi Brenda. Hi I guess you wanted me to put everybody in a good mood 12 speakers that sounds scary. OK so I don't have anything to say except for thank you for this summer. Thank you for the concerts think businesses for the car shows and we'll talk about the silver and gold balloon later but thank you.

Thank you Brenda.

Rich Ryle.

Mayor Wells, members of the City Council, ladies and gentlemen, my brothers of the ring and fellow members of the legendary class of 1969. I am here today as a graduate of The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. The Citadel has educated leaders since 1842 Its honor code is simple. A cadet does not lie, cheat or steal and does not tolerate those who do. That code means something to me. Public office is a public trust. It requires honesty to answer the questions of why they tolerate a city manager who has cost this city millions of dollars in damages and potential litigation. Mayor Wells has served on City Council since 2008 Councilmember Kendrick has served since 2002. Collectively, they represent more than 40 years in office. Together they are the strongest argument that can be made for term limits.

These two plutocrats have fostered a city hall culture in which the same people make the same decisions, protect the same insiders and expect the taxpayers to exaim the same results without questions. For approximately 25 years the downtown businesses have paid assessments for car shows, concerts and rigged bids. The voters deserve proof that their millions of taxpayer dollars have produced measurable improvements. Where is the independent study that shows us that for over 25 years storefront occupancy has increased enough to justify the millions of dollars paid for car shows? There is not one study that will show that there has been an increase in the number of businesses in downtown El Cajon for the last 25 years. I was forced to sue the city to grant public access to P-BID meetings.

A private citizen should not have to spend time, money and years of effort to attend public meetings that use tax dollars. In 42 days, El Cajon voters will have a chance to choose new leadership. Alexander Kraft running for mayor, Osama Bayati running in District 1 have both made term limits a priority. They've also called for a full investigation into City Manager Mitchell's unauthorized RFP that steered nearly a quarter of a million dollars in P-BID funds to Marco LaMandri. The voters deserve a city hall that follows the law, protects public money and serves rather than their entrenched interests. Last Tuesday the council approved a new CBD that raises taxes and add news taxpayers to replace the discredited P bid instead of following the law that barred the P bid from creating a new taxing authority.

The council expanded both taxes in the tax base rather than following the law and using the P bids final year to return unspent money to taxpayers they use that money to illegally set up another tax scheme By the time the taxpayers file their lawsuit, Kraft and Beate will be seated on the council closing out the long troubled history of corruption that defined the Wells-Kendrick era of

governance. Alexander Kraft?

Sorry I'm tall. Hi everybody! Well, Bill, Halloween's just around the corner and you've been posting a lot about how scared you are of the political movement that I represent. So I thought I'd just come down here and say boo! But no, seriously. You know I've been reading up a little bit and Mr. Wells you used to be a part of a company called Borrego Health which committed health care fraud at a massive scale taking Medi-Cal money for services it never provided but you weren't involved because your company Broadwell Health was structured as just a contractor for Borrego Health But of course, then during COVID your company Broadwell Health got caught taking health money to provide COVID tests that they actually never processed. But that's okay you weren't involved!

That was done by Test SD, which was a division of your company. And you weren't paying attention to what they were doing. And so now we're learning that the Downtown El Cajon Business Partners and Business Improvement District is violating the Brown Act, awarding no-bid contracts to themselves, destroying records, allegedly committing a bunch of felonies. But you're not involved. You're not involved because even though the city created it and has a seat on the board and its offices are in City Hall, It's actually its own independent organization, kind of like how Broadwell was just a contractor for Borrego and how Test SD was just a subsidiary of Broadwell.

And since you're such an honest and upstanding guy it must be very frustrating for you that so many of the businesses and organizations that you're involved with just keep stealing public money. Someone might get the wrong impression about you. There used to be a saying where there's smoke, there's fire. But I wouldn't really know. I leave the investigations like that up to the Fire Department and the fire inspectors who just spoke.

But of course since you cut city fire stations, I guess we won't know for sure until the whole city burns down.

Next speaker is Will Kopach.

Hello Mayor Wells and City Council, we meet again. To Councilman Gary Kendrick who's not here if you are watching this online please come back as soon as possible the people of El Cajon need you to Mayor Wells and the city council I may be one of your detractors but this time I'm gonna go a bit easy on you I'm going to say some positive things here and there, and then I'll just ask a few couple quick yes-and-no questions. First, I will admit that attending D.C. Council meetings is pretty educational to say the least.

I've learned more being here than, say, being at college classroom learning about local government politics. I also like the air conditioning here and I'll also say you're not Nazis or fascists or KKK members. However, I do think you are incompetent especially on the issue of homelessness and I also think you're unworthy to represent El Cajon. So now that we see eye to eye, let me ask you a few quick questions yes or no questions.

Alexander Kraft out here he wants to debate you as soon as possible will you debate Alex Kraft yes or no?

That's already been settled, yes.

The answer

is

yes. That's good to hear. Assuming if you win in November will you let a new generation of leadership take over your position in November of 2030? Yes or no? I'm not answering any more of your

questions, I'm sorry. I did want to set the record straight out of the debate because We've agreed to

that. So you're not down for

Mr. Mayor and the council remember this is a time where it's a public comment but not public discussion so I advise you not to respond to this gentleman.

OK. Well then if that's the case then I'm not going to ask you any more questions but I will say The election is six more weeks. So time's running out, like clocks ticking. Tick tock, tick tock and hopefully we get new leadership in the city of El Cajon because you have failed the city of El Cajon. That's all folks.

Next speaker, Jeff Lashmott.

Hello Captain.

Hi as you all know my name is Captain Jeff Lashmott served the City of Elkhorn Fire Department for 30 years I'm here with an update of my work-related cancer. My cancers returned and they started a new treatment regimen a month ago, month and a half ago. The good news, the blood test results are promising that the new treatment is effective. Now the bad news.

This treatment is added to my ongoing side effects that qualified me for workman's comp and disability retirement. I faithfully first served the citizens of the city of El Cajon in their hours or their worst need with empathy and compassion. As you know, the city staff denied my late request for a change in my service retirement to disability retirement. Again, I'll read the law.

section 2 1 1 5 4 on Receipt of the application respect to a local safety member, which I am Other than a school bus driver. I'm a fire captain The board shall request the governing body of the contracting agency, which is the city of El Cajon Employing the member to make the determination Summarize HR and the city manager's response to me regarding this issue. They say they have no responsibility Clearly, they don't understand the law The law states to see has the authority and responsibility to make decisions about my disability retirement Without any contact or explanation to me. They denied my request I'd also like to include their answer to this law when they were asked about would the city accept CalPERS and Would the City of El Cajon object to CalPERS if they accept this member's untimely, excuse me.

Would the City of El Cajon accept, object? I love the way they write these legalese. Would the City of El Cajon object if CalPERS accepts this member's untimely application? Their one word answer was yes after 37 years of service. So clearly they don't understand the law, but they sealed my fate with their one word answer. They say they have no responsibility...

Okay, they sealed my fate with no... Sorry. They sealed my faith that I would not get a disability retirement. My wife said to speak kindly so I would kindly like to mention that the city staff are disingenuous They lack empathy and compassion. They stab me in the back when I ask for their help. They do not follow the same rules and policies I had to follow for 37 years.

I've filed a grievance to speak to the Personnel Commission, they hide behind the authority and deny me access to the Personnel Commission to investigate my concerns. There are hypocrites when they stand up and pledge allegiance to the flag saying justice for all.

No,

I'd like to finish. Yeah, I feel sorry for the citizens who come here looking for help and answers so they won't help For if you won't help somebody who devoted 37 years of their life to the service of the city You certainly aren't going to help them

Captain

we have

to be fair to everybody please yeah Everybody gets three minutes. So I've

filed a proper Grievance and it's been ignored not responded to So do you have any ideas or suggestions how I can get city staff to follow city policy and grant me access?

Captain, we've talked about this so many times. I think you know what your options are. I appreciate you coming but this is not the time that we're going to litigate

I don't want to litigate it. I want to talk to the City Personnel Commission, which is my right. They've also stated because I'm not an employee, I can't see them. Well their actions happened after I retired so they don't apply the rules equally.

Captain, I'm sorry we just can't do this here. This is not the place for this.

Well that's the only place I get to discuss my concerns.

When people are at odds with another organization to this point at some point they hire an attorney and litigating in the courts

I don't need to hire an attorney. I need the city staff to follow policies.

What I need to do is continue this meeting and you're not being cooperative, you're not being polite. Please sit down.

You can see how they treat a 37-year employee of the city so good luck if you need help.

Next speaker is Andrew Lawson.

Mr. Lawson, welcome.

Thank you, Mr. Wells. Members of the City Council and the city attorney's office. My name is Andrew Lawson. I'm running for the 79th Assembly District covers a brief portion of El Cajon south of the south of eight. Listen, I'm not a politician. I didn't prepare anything for this meeting. I haven't taken PAC money and I haven't taken any corporate money either.

I can say this, I can share some of the concerns that have already been spoken today but not for this particular city council. There are other politicians in this state as well. I hope that none of that is actually going on and I hope that it's just election season and the propaganda is rampant. Recognize that card stacking is a thing And that's exactly what Mr. Kraft was doing today.

So, I may be a conservative but I'm ready to fight for every single Californian in this room right now. There's unfunded mandates that come down from Sacramento as we've already heard today and it's time this nonsense stops. We have politicians living in Sacramento and they're making more money than any of us and they want more money. They want more money to the tune Trillions of dollars.

They want to raise your property taxes, they want to raise your taxes on your private health insurance and then they sit here and preach about somebody else's problems of affordability. Ladies and gentlemen wake up it's time for a change in California. The Democrat Party has failed us.

Denly Clauston.

Hello, welcome.

Thank you. Good afternoon City Council members and Mayor Wells I am here because I am concerned about a couple of issues that are of importance to my generation and to the people in my community. First is the city's contract with Flock. The city's contract with Flock is extremely expensive costing the city about $2.5-$3,000 per camera This city is already in a budget deficit and should not be spending more money on flock cameras.

Flock cameras also open up the possibility for abuses of power. For example, CNN reported on August 26th about a police officer who used his access to flock cameras to stalk his ex-girlfriend. And if flock cameras are operating within our city that opens up the possibilities Second, I want to talk about the Oklahoma Police Department's cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

An analysis by the Brookings Institute found that 0.43% job loss was found in an average of 0.433% decrease in job losses found in cities with large surges Ice officers. This also came with a 6 percent average decrease in consumer spending not only could this negatively impact the economy if it opens the door for an ice surge in El Cajon, it is also in direct violation of Senate Bill 54 which is state law.

The city of El Cajon should not be Indirect violation of state law and the Elkhorn Police Department should stop cooperating with ICE. Lastly this cooperation with ICE also creates a chilling effect for many citizens because it sows mistrust in police officers. Many undocumented citizens or undocumented immigrants may be more afraid to report crimes to police if they believe that police involvement can get them deported.

So in conclusion I believe that the city of El Cajon should cut its flock contract and the El Cajon Police Department should stop cooperating with ICE. Thank you.

Osiel Bakri

Welcome.

Hello. Good afternoon, Mayor Wells and City Council members. My name is Usaid Alsheikh Bakri. I'm a high school student at El Cajon Valley High School and a member of the Elect Bayati for El Cajón City Council Committee. As part of this campaign, I have been mobilizing students in registering voters. I joined this effort because I believe in Osama Bayati's campaign and his ability to represent my generation's priorities and vision for the future.

I trust him to give young people a voice in local government and ensure that we have a role in shaping the future of El Cajón. I'm speaking today to voice concerns regarding the city's use of Flock license plate cameras and the El Cajon Police Department's cooperation with federal immigration authorities, which conflicts with state law under the California Values Act.

Mass camera surveillance is an invasion of privacy that leaves many residents, including myself feeling watched rather than protected. Automated license plate tracking opens the door to misuse and unchecked data sharing beyond privacy harms spending over $400,000 on flaw cameras places a heavy strain on public funds that could directly help reduce the city's nearly two million dollar budget deficit or support vital community programs.

I am also concerned about local police cooperation with ICE. When law enforcement interacts with immigration authorities, it breaks down community trust. When residents fear that calling 911 to report a crime or request help might lead to questioning or deportation, entire neighborhoods stop communicating with police, ultimately making our city less safe. I urge our city leaders to take these concerns seriously and thank you for your time.

Mayor, we have four more speakers. Next speaker is Serene Norton.

Hello. Hi. Pull it down now.

Good afternoon to everyone in the room Recently, I had to avail of medical services in the city of El Cajon. For example, flu vaccine. At each location, I had to fill out a form. One of the questions in those forms were what is your race? I responded, Pacific Islander. The next question after that was what is your ethnicity? My ethnicity is Chamorro but for some reason Guamanian slash Chamorro was what was presented on those forms, every form.

Guamanian is not an ethnicity under the Pacific Islander race category. It is a demonym. The true and rightful ethnicity under this particular Pacific Islander race category is Chamorro, and only Chamorro. By allowing the demonym Guamanian as an option alongside the true ethnicity of Chamorros on these forms, even though Guamanian is not an ethnicity, is an erasure of true Chamorro history and identity. It is a form of ethnocide of the Chamorro ethnicity.

The state of California, county of San Diego, the city of El Cajon Is aware that the term Guamanian is a demonym and not an ethnicity, yet it continues to allow it to exist under an ethnicity category. Thank you.

Thank

you.

Scotty Hill. Is Scotty Hill here? OK.

Sure bring it up.

Hi welcome. What do you want me to say. Oh your time. Oh Scotty Hill I'm a student from Fall Hollow High School I'm here for this assignment called GIA El Cajon City Council. Don't cry. For approximately years, they received tax proof increase in the number of money where citizens can save up money. The voters deserve rights as they follow laws. The taxpayers use higher taxes to use on higher prices with tax on their prices.

So many businesses have spoken for themselves on them with different government groups. The citizens of El Cajon read laws of receiving safety agencies so the people are employed on companies where when they follow laws, the city of El Cajon objects year of service when they speak kindly about following policies that people have to be helped if they do not know how.

A couple of issues of our generation is the city's lack and need to save money for things they really need to use for. The Analysis Institute can, with a degree of consumer spending El Cajon Police Department should stop cooperating with the ICE agents for criminals that are being falsely convicted. An invasion of privacy spends about four million cameras for one that are scammers so we have to call police to help save us and save money on cameras for safe identity.

Good job. Thank

you. Osama Bayati.

Hello, sir. Welcome.

We saved the best for last. OK. Just whenever I start, right?

Oh, just whenever you're ready.

All right. Osama Bayati, candidate for El Cajon

City Council. Can you bring the microphone so we can hear you? Yes. Is that better? Yes, much better. Thank you.

Osama Bayati candidate for El Cajon City Council District 1. I am here today to speak directly to the mayor and council about the example your leadership has set for my generation and the consequences it has had for our city. Mr. Mayor, this is a photograph of you and I when I was 16 years of age. It was taken right here when you publicly recognized me with a Certification of Achievement from my Homelessness Research Project through the GCI at Harvard University.

At that time as a young boy coming from poverty, I saw you on the board as the embodiment of the kind of leaders I hoped to someday become. I pictured you as the defenders of dignity, people willing to fight for those whose names you may never hear. This is what I thought a politician was. However, I then grew up. I read books like Ron Paul's The Revolution and discovered partisan tribalism.

I began to understand why division has become the refuge of leaders who have run out of results. I now point to this council as a case study in how much political tribalism can consume the very institution entrusted With the future of our children. Since we took that photograph, the city of El Cajon is yet to see meaningful increase in population as over 5,000 residents have moved out. Our workforce has shrunk and we have built the fewest homes per capita in the entire county.

Meanwhile, our expenses have outpaced our revenues for four straight years leaving us with a 1.4 million budget shortfall enforcing 2.5 million in internal department cuts just to stay above water and yeah Taxpayer dollars are being poured into national political lawsuits drawing attention far beyond El Cajon while challenges at home remain unsolved. This board has refused to comply with state law in pursuit of headlines, using City Hall as a platform for stunts and political theater despite countless advocacy by local leaders and the establishment of new state law to finally count Middle Eastern and North African residents who still refused to give Arabs, Chaldeans and Kurds a simple checkbox on city forms. Choosing instead to push divisive symbolic cultural resolutions that target them instead.

My initial councilman Councilman Kendrick the mayor of Santee John Minto personally told me that you switch political parties after realizing the Republicans were not going to endorse you So you became a Democrat, yet despite numerous Democrats urging you not to criminalize speech regarding the state of Israel by framing it as anti-Semitism. You and Mayor Bill Wells lobbied this council to pass it.

I want the audience to understand that I refuse to be the messenger of despair and I'm confident for the future that lies ahead because this type of leadership is a dying breed of men, and you will be replaced. I look around today and I see a new generation of leaders instinctively rejecting inherited indoctrination and carrying the potential to shape a future unlike any that has come before it. Their willingness to question beliefs previous generations never imagined challenging is the source of my hope.

Thank you.

Mayor, the last speaker is a remote comment so we will give Ms. Melanie Bennett just a couple seconds to sign in.

I'm sorry who are

we waiting for?

Well, looks like the person's out here.

Ms. Bennett if you can hear us press star six. Oh

it's on the

phone. Please go ahead.

Can everyone hear me?

We can hear you.

Just thank you for the time and hello to everyone in this room. I want to absolutely agree that the police should not salute with ice, I have an example for you. First of all City Heights has been recently attacked and parents being taken from elementary school people being picked up in a violent way And I was at the rally last Wednesday, and it was phenomenal by the way. 300 people got together in one day. Amazing! Even the mayor went there but also of course it was a council member, Ilo Rivera who did a phenomenal job. But my point is I spoke to someone who saw the most recent horrendous attack and grab and kidnapping. I have to say that we're sorry but that's how it feels like everyone watching There was an accident, a three-car accident because of that because ICE agents were swarming.

Those three cars left. They did not do anything except leave the area out of fear. Normally what you'd do is three car crash, let's call the police, let's get them help if anyone injured or let's get insurance. They couldn't do that at that point because of the scare tactics that are going on. So just those three things We need ice out of the home that's happening right now here in El Cajon.

We don't need block cameras, that is very intrusive and then we need to take an example City Council member who got his community together with speech after speech after speech. Also the police participated by holding the cars back and we were able to do a rally and walk down the street to the Euclid Elementary School. It was beautiful, it was beautiful. And that's what we want. We want our community to get together. Together, together we can take care of each other. We need to take care of each other. So thank you and I love Eleanor Roosevelt A quote ending with, use your heart. Thank you.