Thank you. Welcome to the Mesa City Council meeting on October 6, 2025. All of our council members are present. We're going to begin the meeting with an invocation by Pastor Angela White with the spiritual assembly of Bahigh Mesa, followed by the pledge of allegiance. Uh Angela, if you're here, please come forward and we'll all please stand for the prayer and pledge of allegiance. We'll have a moment of silence. Thank you. >> Thank you. Please join me in the pledge of allegiance. I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Thank you everyone. I want to start out this evening's uh meeting with deep sorrow. We're going to mourn the passing of engineer uh Paul Shupe with Mesa Fire and Medical who served for over 20 years for our fire department. Paul faced a battle with geoblast and brain cancer, but with the same courage and strength he showed throughout his career. As a retired Mesa Fire Captain paramedic, I know the bond of this profession and Paul exemplized the exemplified the best of it in dedication and compassion and the service to others. We extend our heartfelt condolences to his wife Nancy, their four children, and all who loved him. Paul's legacy will live on in the lives he touched and the community he protected. I'd like to invite our fire chief Mary Camelly to come forward and say a few words. Chief Camelly. Thank you, Mayor Freeman, members of the council and members of the community. Everything you said about engineer Paul Shupe is absolutely true. He was a wonderful member in this community, but also he served and he served with care. Everything he did for the organization, for our community, he gave his very best. Uh he fought the battle for almost a year. Uh he served our fire service. He was a trainer for our driver training to make sure we were out in the community driving safely and he was dedicated to that as well. uh his family and his um the fire department truly appreciate the community support, the support from council, city management that helped him through this battle and um the support he got for the service as well. It was an honor for us to serve him in that in that way and we're grateful for the service and the 23 years that he's given to our community. >> Thank you, Chief. Appreciate that. Will you join us in a moment of silence? Uh everybody, please stand for a moment of silence for Mr. Shu. Thank you. You can be seated. This past Thursday, I was honored to proclaim October 2nd, 2025 as the International Day of Nonviolence in Mesa. This day recognizes global in honor of Mahatma Gandhi. Reminds us of the strength and found in peace, dialogue, and understanding over hatred, intimidation, or violence. Mesa grows stronger when we treat one another with respect even in times of disagreement. By choosing civility, compassion, and reconciliation, we reinforce the foundation of our community. And that's very important. I'll read the uh again read the proclamation again. And it recognizes globally the international day of non-violence that non-violence represents a universal principle that rejects hatred, intimidation, and violence as mean of resolving conflict instead of calling for dialogue, understanding, and reconciliation. And our community of Mesa thrives when we commit to respecting one another even in times of disagreement and when we work together to resolve differences with civility and compassion. And the use of non-violence, whether physical, verbal, or political, destroys lives, erodess trust, and undermines the foundation of a healthy society. And the city of Mesa affirms that every resident deserves to live in a community where kindness, cooperation, and mutual respect are valued and upheld. I therefore I, Mark Freeman, virtue of the authority of Estimate as mayor Mesa, do hereby proclaim October 2nd, 2025 as International Day of Nonviolence. So with that, council, will you join me for a photo down in the front? Look at all those white people out there. Oh my god. Amazing. Thank you for your patience. because there's so many people here for items from citizen presence. I will take the item first item first so that you don't have to stay for the entire meeting and speak. So item 10 is items from items from citizen present. We allow up to three speakers three minutes to speak depending on the topic of the three speakers if allowed to allow council to hear an issue that has not been raised tonight. I want to remind everyone that this is a business meeting and to maintain proper decorum, please refrain from clapping, cheering or other disruptions. These interruptions make it difficult to move through the agenda to complete city business and for each speaker to be heard. If you engage in conduct that disrupts this meeting, such as shouting, clapping, or any other loud noise, you may be removed. This is your warning. So, let's be respectful and orderly so every voice has a fair opportunity to be considered. So, our first speaker tonight is Gail Graves. Gail, if you want to come forward, followed by on deck is Marissa Luna. Thank you, Gail. You have three minutes. >> Hi. Um, my name is Gail Graves. I'm a native Arizonan. I was born in Phoenix, lived in Mesa my teen years until through my 30s. left, came back about a year and a half ago. Um, my dad was a big influence in my life and he told me a couple things that are on my mind today. He told me that you can't, you have no right to complain if you're not doing something to fix the issue. So, that's why I'm here tonight. But he also told me, do not be intimidated by politicians. They work for you and you have to remind them of that periodically. When my dad taught me, >> excuse me, >> let's not do that. I don't want to remove anybody from this meeting. >> When my dad taught me to drive, Broadway east of Power was a dirt road. So, I've seen a ton of changes, improvements, growth since I was here last. But I've got to say, we would not have those positive things without the hard work and dedication of immigrants working right beside us. And um so I'm here about the ICE issue. It may have been a good presented as a good idea to you guys when it started because they were going to work on the wor getting the worst of the worst out, the rapists, the murderers, that kind of thing. But we all know that is not what's happening today. They're grabbing parents from in front of schools away from their kids. They're sweeping people up at Home Depot. their racial profiling and those things are illegal and they're unamerican and they're wrong. And I'm concerned with guilt by association. If you have the police working alongside ICE, we already know a lot of them are poorly trained. A lot of them are thugs and they're doing things that are wrong. They're manhandling people. If I am at a protest and an unmarked vehicle pulls up and masked unidentified men get out and start pushing people around, if I call 911, I want to know they're there to protect me and not to back up ICE. I don't like us working with ICE. And I'd like to see that contract broken. And I also think there should be a requirement. Anybody working for ICE, any of those agencies, they've got to take the masks off. They've got to have identifying things on them. Again, I'm here to remind you that you work for us and I've never talked to anybody who supports what's going on. So, I'm asking you to please listen to your constituents. >> Thank you, G. >> Thank you. Mhm. Appreciate that. Marissa. >> Hi, Marissa. You have three minutes. >> Hi, my name is Marisa. I'm a nurse and a citizen of Mesa. I'm here to express my opposition to 287G, the agreement between Mesa PD and ICE. Just two weeks ago, I went to a Mexican Independence Day event held not too far away from here at Pioneer Park, and the crowd seemed to be pretty small for an event like that. So, I asked others who had been at that event prior. Um, is this a usual crowd size? Um, and I was told that this celebration is typically very well attended and usually very crowded. Um, but not this year. And why? Um, it's simple. Because people are scared to leave their homes due to ISIS's harsh and inhumane immigration policies that have been at play across this country. 287G while purporting to act as a benign longtime agreement with the Mesa PD and ICE has stoked fear amongst our neighbors and it shows. There are many Mesa citizens afraid to be in public spaces with their families for fear of being profiled and forcibly detained. No one should be afraid. No one should be afraid to live, play, and work in their own cities and towns. But agreements like 287G make these conditions possible. 287G is a welcome sign from Mesa to ICE to come brutalize our communities. As harmless as this city has expressed 287G to be, it does far more harm to people who don't look or live like you. My parents have selflessly served this city for years and continue to do so. However, my parents are people of color. And ICE does not care if you are on the city council, your vice mayor, or you serve at various Mesa institutions that improve the public and its spaces. They have targets on their backs and ICE could care less who they are because ICE does not see them as human. 287G is a backdoor method of giving ICE the okay to put a target on the backs of all peoples of color and any who oppose them. Here in Mesa, this is the reality of what this kind of agreement can do. I know it's been said that 287G has been around for quite some time and through different administrations. So why do we care? We care because we care about the well-being of our neighbors, right? We are an all-American city and one of the best big cities to live in. We can only be consistent with these titles if we truly strive to be a safe haven for all. 287G is an option. So, let's opt out of working with institutions that harm our neighbors and work to restore trust between the police and our community as no one should feel that they can't reach out when they need help. Thank you. >> Thank you, Marissa. Appreciate it. Let's keep it civil. Our next person is null James Markham. Null, are you here? Great. Come on up. You have three minutes. Can I Is this one? Oh, >> you can use either one. >> Sick over here, but Okay. Um, aloha, mayor, and to the rest of the city council. Um, I would like to talk about section 8. If you haven't built this yet in here, uh, Mesa, please do so. I would like to talk about police officers in Mesa need to do a better job at the city. We need more education for police officers with people with disabilities. And education, it is not what Trump said that stop taking Tylenol because it causes autism. That's no education for police officers. Having a disability my whole life and scared of police officers should never happen to me or to the rest of the disability community. Did you know that people lie if they have a disability or not? Did you also know that parents that have a child with a dis disability may still not understand the concept of a disability even though they have a child that has a disability? Did you know parents can take advantage of disabled people that get benefits? Example, money. Also, I would like to talk about your police officers in Mesa and how you should hire more women police officers. Speaking of women police officers, if they need time off from maternity leave, they should get paid time off with is 8 to 12 weeks. Also, if the father is having a child with the woman, then he should have 8 to 12 weeks paid time off. If a woman is having a miscarriage or if she's having abortion, she should have the time off and pay time off for that time. Also, I don't understand how as Democrat myself. I bet some other Democrats would do that like what they did to President Biden, I would never put someone up for recall on my city council if I was a candidate. I'm wondering why you made a recall election. Maybe you're afraid of women men. Maybe you are. or are women afraid of women? Ask yourself that question to yourself. And have you ever thought about that? I'm sorry to the person that's on the recall right now. Um that you've been mistreated by the council. So, mahalo and thank you for taking the time to listen to me tonight. >> Thank you, Noel. Appreciate that. Um >> look at yourself. Pardon? Look at your phone. Miss Mosley, is there anything that I missed? >> Uh, no, Mayor. I have several other cards that were received for this item that didn't get the opportunity to speak who can go to the QR code or on our Mesa website to submit an online comment and the council will receive those emails for review and they'll be published online tomorrow. >> Okay. Thank you very much. Those who'd like to stay, we're going to have our business portion of the meeting. If you'd like to leave, you're welcome to. Otherwise, we'll have about another two hours for council meeting. But uh we'll if you'd like to leave, you can do so now. Okay? If not, okay, we'll just give you a few minutes for those that'd like to leave. Okay, with that we'll move forward. Item one is the consent agenda. Miss King, are you here? Please come forward. And uh for right now, 9A is on the consent agenda. Correct. >> Correct. Yes. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Good evening, mayor and council members. These are items on the consent agenda. All items listed with an aster will be considered on as a group by the city council and will be enacted on with one motion. There will be no separate discussion unless a council member or citizen requests in which events the item will be removed from the consent agenda and considered on as a separate item. Item 2 A, approval of minutes of previous meetings as written. Item 3 A, act on liquor license application for Echo Karaoke 1844, West Broadway. >> What just happened? >> Officers, if someone's disrupting this meeting, you're welcome to remove them. Okay, just so you know. >> All right, continue on. Miss King. >> Item 3B, act on liquor license application for Golden Valley, 832 West Baseline Road. Item 3 C, act on liquor license application for Taco Land Inca Mex, 1231 West Baseline Road. Item 3 D, act on liquor license application for Level One Arcade Bar, 48 West Main Street. Item 3E, act on liquor license application for Drama, Ramen, and Bowl, 2650 East University Drive. This is for a recommendation of disapproval to the state liquor board for the reasons stated in the agenda and the attachments. A yes vote for this item on the consent agenda will constitute city council's order recommending disapproval of the liquor license application. Item 3F, act on liquor license application for Sunnyside, 2823 North Power Road. Item 3G, act on liquor license application for Walmart Fuel Center, 330 West Baseline Road. Item 4 A, approving one-year term contract with four-year renewal options for gas service regulators for the material supply warehouse for the energy resources department. Item 4 B, approving three-year term contract with two-year renewal options for mobile natural gas supply for the energy resources department. Item 4 C, approving dollar limit increase to the term contract for stage hand temporary worker services for the arts and cultural department. Item 4 D, approving an additional vendor award to the cooperative cooperative term contract for Bridgestone and Goodyear tires for the material supply warehouse for fleet services and the Mesa Fire Medical Departments. Item 4E, approving additional vendor award to the cooperative term contract for miscellaneous construction materials for the materials and supply warehouse. Item 4F, approving the use of 33-month cooperative term contract with the renewal for options for janitorial and sanitation supplies, equipment, and related services for multiple city departments. Item 4G, approving 5-year term contract for water, wastewater, corrosion monitoring, and testing services for the water resources department. Item 5A, approving resolution to entry into an intergovernmental agreement with the flood control district of Maroka Maricopa County for construction construction management operation at maintenance necessary for drainage improvements along Elliot Road from the East Maricopa floodway to Ellsworth Road. Item 5B, approving resolution to enter into grant pass through agreement with the city of Phoenix for a grant for the Federal Transit Administration to allow the city to construct and install transit micro shelters. Item 6A, approving ordinance amending sections 10-4-4 and 10-4-5 of the Mesa City Code to reduce speed limits speed limit from 40 mph to 35 miles per hour on Extension Road between Baseline Road and Southern Avenue as recommended by the transportation advisory board. Items 7 A and 7B pertain to Gateway Parkway development. Item 7A is approving ordinance for zoning case 22-890 for property located at the northwest and southwest corners of Ray Road and Haw Road. Reszone with a planned area overlay and site plan review for an industrial development and future commercial park. Item 7B is approving resolution to enter into a development agreement for an industrial and commercial development located on property at the northwest and southwest corners of Ray and Haw Road. Item 8A, approving bingo application for Stephen Clark, manager at 3403 East Main Street. And item 9A, repealing the entirety of chapter 36, non-conforming uses, structures, and lots and adopting a new chapter 36 non-conforming and procedurally conforming. Mayor and council members, these are the items on the Gazan agenda. >> Just sorry, just for clarification, 3E was read correctly. because it I heard a denial and so okay we we got all okay thank you council will entertain a motion thank you Mr. IA second by Miss Spillsberry. Please cast your vote. Passes 70. Thank you. And I believe that's all them things we have items for this meeting. So I'll entertain a motion to adjurnn. Thank you, Mr. Summers. Thank you, Miss Goldforth. All in favor say I. I. Okay. This meeting is adjourned. Thank you for your attendance. [Music] Yeah. [Music] Heat. [Music]