Ready to go. Good evening.
Welcome to Vancouver City
Council. Today is excuse me,
Monday, September 14th. This
afternoon we have three
workshops. The development fee
update, municipal code, title
19, parking cleanup. And then
we had a quick discussion with
Joy Fowler about our boards and
commissions fall recruitment.
You're now in our regular City
Council meeting. Would you
please stand and join me in the
Pledge of Allegiance? I pledge
allegiance 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.
Miss Maroon, would you please
call the roll?
>> Council member. Harless.
Present. Perez. Present. Fox.
Here. Paulson. Stober here.
Hanson. Present. Mayor.
McEnerny Ogle present.
>> Thank you very much.
Councilors. You have in front
of you the minutes of August
24th. Are there any corrections
or changes?
>> Move to approve.
>> Hansen. Seconded by Fox. All
those in favor, say aye.
Opposed. Motion passes. We have
three proclamations this
evening. Let's go ahead and get
started with our National
Preparedness Month. And we have
all sorts of people who are
going to come and join us.
Geraldine and Jordan, Giovanni
and Jennifer. Whereas the City
of Vancouver recognizes that
record breaking heat wave,
severe winter storms and raging
wildfires repeatedly
demonstrate our city's
vulnerability to natural
hazards, and the city is
committed to building community
wide resilience, to increasing
to the increasing hazards of
climate change. Whereas,
disaster preparedness is an
essential component of our
sustainable and resilient
community, and everyone who
lives or works in our community
shares responsibility for
minimizing the impact of
disaster. Therefore, September
is National Preparedness Month,
and it provides each of us the
opportunity to use information
available on www.ready.gov and
on our city website to prepare
for when disaster strikes. Now,
therefore, I Anne McEnerny Ogle,
Mayor of Vancouver, Washington,
do hereby proclaim the month of
September as National
Preparedness Month in the City
of Vancouver and encourage the
community to take steps now to
get ready for disaster. Can I
give this to someone?
>> Thank you. I'm going to take
a picture of her. I think. Come
and join.
>> All right. Good evening. I'm
Geraldine Moyle, the general
services director in emergency
management is part of the
general services portfolio. I'm
pleased to accept this
proclamation alongside Jordan
McFarlane, our municipal
emergency management
coordinator at Corissa, and two
partners who are helping us put
preparedness into action. And
I'm going to turn it over to
Jordan.
>> Thank you. Geraldine.
Tonight, we wanted to we wanted
you to hear from those who are
participating in the
collaboration between Crescent
and the City of Vancouver. Part
of our emergency preparedness
initiative. Be ready. Vancouver.
So first, I'd like to introduce
you to Giovanni Strano from the
city's Information Technology
Department.
>> Thank you Jordan. I'm
grateful and proud to say that
it has always valued high
availability, performance and
resilience. It's our best
practice. It's the technology
that we do. And for the past
year, we've been engaging with
with Corissa going down a
journey, exploring personal
preparedness. And in doing that,
we've been encouraged to take a
closer look at the individual
employee and really to use that
as a foundation to build on and
to scale out really what we're
already part of our goals. I
mean, literally a safe and
prepared performing
organization is literally in
our list of goals. And so as we
work with Cresta, here's what
we did. We we did a pilot of
personal preparedness exercises
and discussions. We developed
and carried out a tabletop
exercise. And I'm excited about
the future, one that we're
currently developing. And we
are working on our, our
continuity of operations plan.
So as we peel back the layers
of technology to get to the
individual, it really
highlighted that true
resilience is not just
technology. Actually, it's more
than that. It's. It's our core
values and the relationships
that emerge from the city's
values. So compassion,
collaboration, empowerment,
inclusivity, innovation, they
all help build the
relationships with others. And,
and so as we focus on ourselves
as individuals, it really just
highlights the need that we
need to lean on these values.
And really, the technology will
follow as long as we are true
to those values. So it really
pointed out that each of us as
an individual has a role. And
really it's that connection.
Again, it's that relationship.
And, and so in the in alignment
with the values, I really
wanted to point out that
compassion really, really spoke
to me as one of our values. And
so with technology and
compassion. I guess I really
liked observing the true
meaning of compassion. So to be
with co and passion, to suffer
and endure. And so for personal
preparedness and resiliency, we
are preparing ourselves to be
able to suffer and to endure
through times when we do need
to rely on each other in
alignment with our core values.
So I would like to thank Jordan
and Corissa for journeying with
us for the past year and, and
on the future initiatives we
will be doing. So thank you
Jordan.
>> Thank you so much, Giovanni.
Next, I'd like to introduce
Jennifer Beard. She is the
co-chair of the Evergreen
Highlands Neighborhood
Association. Jen recently
attended a be ready Vancouver
workshop event, and she's going
to share what happened next.
>> Thank you. Jordan. I went
into that workshop thinking I
was pretty much prepared. I
have emergency backpacks in our
cars, our RV, our home, but I
was not prepared for what I
learned. I came away realizing
that being prepared at home is
not the same as being prepared
to leave your home quickly. I
had an emergency supplies, but
I hadn't really thought through
what we would need if we
suddenly had to evacuate. With
the very active fire season
that we've had this year, and
seeing people we know
personally have to evacuate
their homes, that lesson really
hit home for us. The workshop
got me thinking about things I
hadn't considered before, like
having an actual go bag that is
ready with the things that you
need, such as medications,
documents, maybe things that
your pet needs, such as food
and medications. I realized
that even those of us who think
we're prepared can still
benefit and learn from
workshops like this. I realized
that we could learn a lot, and
that is what prompted me to
invite Jordan to speak at our
neighborhood. And since then,
we secured a larger space, so
we were able to invite some
surrounding neighborhoods and
the parish of Saint Joe's
Church to attend as well. I'm
really excited that we've been
able to take something we found
so valuable and share it with
our community, and I hope that
that helps our neighbors take
care of themselves, their
families, and each other in
case of an emergency. Thank you.
Jordan.
>> Awesome. Thank you both.
Jennifer and Giovanni. I really
think that both of your Demmon,
your experiences demonstrate
what this proclamation is about.
That preparedness starts with
each of us here. But resilience
is something that we build
together. Thank you, mayor, and
thank you, Council, for
recognizing recognizing
National Preparedness Month and
for supporting a more prepared
and resilient Vancouver. Thank
you.
>> Thank you. All right. Let's
do Hispanic Heritage Month with
Nicole, Kimberly and Damaris.
Damaris. Whereas the Hispanic
heritage of the United States
extends historically over five
centuries and has been a
consistent and vital influence
on our country's growth,
development and long term
success. And Hispanic and
Latinos are multiracial and
multicultural. Hispanics
represent people with origins
from over 20 countries
throughout the United States,
Latin America, South America
and Spain, and Hispanics.
Having continued to support
Washington's economy with
growing labor force
contributions raging in fields
from professional and business
services to education, health
services, transportation and
utilities to production, and
much more. Whereas, the City of
Vancouver supports the
organizations, institutions and
people assisting with faced
disparities encountered by
Hispanics and continued access
to resources, jobs and livable
wages for Hispanics in
imperative for success. Now
therefore, I Anne McEnerny Ogle,
Mayor of Vancouver, Washington,
do hereby proclaim September
15th through October 15th as
Hispanic Heritage Month in the
City of Vancouver and encourage
all community members to join
in this observance and
participate in events that
celebrate rich cultural
traditions. All right.
>> Good evening, Mayor and
council members. My name is
Kimberly Quiroz. It is an honor
to receive this proclamation on
behalf of the Hispanic
Metropolitan Chamber and our
Hispanic community. Hispanic
Heritage Hispanic Heritage
Month is a time to celebrate
our culture, our roots, our
many contributions Latinos make
to our communities. I am the
senior business developer for
the Hispanic Metropolitan
Chamber. Over the last five
years, I've had the privilege
and honor of supporting
hundreds of entrepreneurs as
they start and expand their
business in Vancouver. I've
watched people turn ideas into
businesses, businesses into
jobs and hard work into
opportunities for their
families. The 2025 Latino GDP
report confirms what we see
every day. Latinos are driving
America's growth at a $4.4
trillion. The Latino economy
would be the fifth largest
economy in the world if it was
its own country. Behind the
numbers are real people parents
building businesses, families
creating jobs, and
entrepreneurs investing in
their communities. Here in
Vancouver, HMC is currently
supporting several businesses
to getting started and ready to
open up their doors these next
coming months, including two
daycares, a restaurant, a
floral business and several
construction companies. Every
day, these openings represent a
dream, a family, a commitment
to build something better for
our next generation. And for me,
Hispanic Heritage Month is
personal. It's deeply personal.
This past summer, I've had the
privilege of climbing three of
Pacific Northwest's largest
mountains Mount Hood, Mount
Saint Helens, and most recently,
Mount Adams. When I reached the
top of Mount Adams, I raised my
country's flag. I wasn't just
celebrating the climb. I was
honoring my heritage, my roots,
my journey that brought me here.
Because our heritage is not
something that we leave behind.
We carry it with us. Thank you
to the City of Vancouver for
recognizing our community and
celebrating Hispanic Heritage
Month with us. We are here. We
are building, we are
contributing, and we are proud
of where we come from. Muchas
gracias.
>> Thank you so very much. And
let's finish this with National
Day of Remembrance for Homicide
victims. And Michelle, Bart,
Karen Morrison. Okay. Whereas
each year, thousands of
families and communities across
our nation are forever changed
by the tragedy of homicide and
the National Day of Remembrance
for Homicide Victims, observed
annually on September 25th,
honors the memory of those
whose lives have been taken by
violence and recognizes the
enduring grief and resilience
of their loved ones left behind
in this day of remembrance
offers an opportunity to
increase public awareness about
the impact of homicide to
support survivors and their
families, and to reaffirm our
collective commitment to
preventing violence and seeking
justice. An organization such
as the National Women's
Coalition Against Violence and
Exploitation Odyssey World
International Education
Services, Everytown for Gun
Safety and the National
Organization of Parents of
Murdered Children provide vital
advocacy, resources and
compassionate support to
survivors of homicide victims.
And now, therefore, I. Anne
McEnerny Ogle, Mayor of
Vancouver, Washington, do
hereby proclaim September 25th,
2026 is National Day of
Remembrance for Homicide
Victims in the City of
Vancouver and encourage all
community members to honor the
lives lost, support survivors,
and renew our commitment to
help prevent violence in our
community.
>> Good evening, City of
Vancouver, honorable mayor and
Honorable City Council members,
we want to thank you for
acknowledging this event. My
name is Karen Morrison and I am
the President of Odyssey World
International Education
Services. And it is an honor
and a privilege to be
recognized as someone who has
gone through this. My son,
Julian Morrison, was murdered
in 2013. And so this is my way
of helping other parents who
have lost their children to
heal. And I'm grateful for
opportunity to come to Esther
Short Park on September 25th
from 5 to 7, and help those
needing a voice and needing a
place to heal, to come together
and heal together as a
collective community. I am
joined here today with these
two lovely individuals, and
they are board members of NWA
cave, and they will be
introducing themselves.
>> Good evening. My name is
Eileen Young. I am the
treasurer. Sorry.
>> Good evening. My name is
Eileen Young. I'm the treasurer
for NWA cave, the National
Women's Coalition Against
Violence and Exploitation. With
me tonight is Jennifer Orsini,
our secretary. I'd like to
thank Mayor Anne, along with
City Council, for this
proclamation and for
recognition. NWA cave is a
nonprofit dedicated to
supporting victims, survivors
and family members of violent
acts including murder, rape,
human trafficking, stalking,
domestic violence, and among
other acts. As Karen alluded to,
on Friday, September 25th, we
will be holding our candlelight
vigil where NWA, along with
Odyssey World International,
will be hosting this event.
National Day of Remembrance for
Murder Victims will be having
an impactful program along with
some wonderful speakers. This
event is free to the public
again. Esther Short Park Friday,
September 25th from 5 to 7. We
hope to see as many of the
public there attend as possible.
Thank you again, Mayor and City
Council for this recognition
and proclamation.
>> If you want to.
>> Thank you again.
>> Thank you. That concludes
our proclamations and brings us
into community communication.
And we have several people that
have registered to talk about
items on the agenda. Michael
Moore and Brian Baker, please.
Yes, come on up and join us.
Give your testimony.
>> Yeah. Thank you, thank you.
>> I signed up too. So I guess
I'm next.
>> Good evening. Thank you for
your time once again. Some of
you saw me last week. Press the
button.
>> You have.
>> A.
>> Turn that on. Okay. There
you go.
>> Thank you once again for the
clarity and thank you for your
time. I'm here to discuss some
of the issues on the agenda, as
well as some other vital kind
of things for the community.
>> Michael, this is the
opportunity for items on the
agenda.
>> Yes.
>> Jaylee with the items. We
have a forum following our
business meeting.
>> Well, this is about the do
good Multnomah. Yes, yes.
Because there is a complaint
out there against them and I
did not know if you knew this,
but yes, there is. And there's
eight and a half years of state
oversight on that, and you
won't be able to fund them
because they got a complaint
because they didn't manage
their website and they haven't
attended to it. It's still not
fixed. So that is germane to
your decision tonight. And I
would suggest you take that
under advisement. But that is a
fact because of the C-TRAN
makes eight and a half years of
state auditory requirement,
auditory requirement. And
because there's that file, it
hasn't been dealt with, but
it's still there. So that's
going to prevent you from doing
that. And I know that I've
looked it up because that's
germane because of your other
position on the other board.
And that's mostly because this
person here had some other
issues with that. But I assured
her I am not doing any risk
management. No, no, that would
not be wise. So I'm going to
let the person who has the pen
that is mightier than the sword,
which is at the county level,
which we've had a discussion
and I have some items that are
yours as in technology. So this
is some technology I developed
for all of you and in every
form of government. And it's
right here on my phone and
Lannen, can you look at this?
So this is this is the NASA
type of stuff that they have
with Euler's method. So this is
up to date GPS. And I developed
this one. And you'll watch this
is a Cascadia and watch this.
Here's your tsunamis. You watch
that come up. Boom. And you can
sit there. So you notice that's
a cell phone. Have you ever
seen anything such as this?
>> Not that I can recall.
>> Because I made it because I
have another primary patentable
technology that goes along with
this. This is all yours. I made
this for government, so I'm
trying to get you your property.
I talked to USGS today. They
agree with me. They were
correct about some other
engineering problems that are
just fielded in these days,
which is one of the engineering
problems you face, which I
would suggest you hold. You
have the council, you can call
the attorney General and they
will say, yes, you will have a
problem with that. So as a time
out, because I want to help
everyone. Like I say, I'm not
doing risk management. I don't
have to because at the top of
the pen here is already agreed
to make me the consultant and
get your technology for you.
But someone who understands
Euler's method.
>> Okay.
>> Thank you for your time,
friend.
>> Go ahead.
>> Hi, my name is Bren. I'm a
long time Vancouver resident
and organizer for the No Hate
in Washington State campaign. I
would like to thank you for
discussing initiative 001 and
638 today. I hope that you will
take a strong stance on the
initiatives providing guidance
for residents so we can defeat
these harmfully harmful and
poorly written initiatives. In
November 001 would repeal our
current Student Safety Act,
which was sponsored by
Vancouver's own representative,
Monica Stonier. That act
provided important protections
for a safe and supportive
public education system by
reinforcing parental and
guardian rights, students
rights and employment
protections for school staff.
It would remove common sense
school record protections for
victims of abuse, discouraging
kids who are facing domestic
violence and sexual abuse or
bullying from seeking help from
teachers or counselors, and for
schools to knowingly release
students counseling and other
records, including notes about
being LGBTQ plus to abusive
families. While many parents
are loving and supportive, we
know that not every child is
safe at home. Outing kiddos to
unsupportive families can have
terrible consequences,
including abuse and
homelessness. And we know that
40% of unhoused LGBTQ plus
youth are unhoused because they
were kicked out of their homes
for their identities.
Initiative 638 is poorly
written and discriminatory.
It's the most extreme measure
of its kind in the nation. It
changes the law only for girls
to require medical sex
certification as part of sports
physicals for girls of any age,
literally listing examinations
of reproductive anatomy. In the
text of the initiative. With
birth certificates not being
allowed as a method of proof,
girls do not currently expose
themselves in physical exams
because it's not medically
necessary in order for them to
play sports. As a child
survivor of sexual assault, I
couldn't have exposed myself in
order to play, and this will
obviously keep many girls out
of sports. These initiatives
are harmful and discriminatory,
and that is why so many
organizations here in
Washington state and here
locally are opposing them,
including the Washington
Education Association, along
with both Evergreen and
Vancouver education
Associations. Washington State
Nurses Association, the ACLU
and many other orgs. I hope the
Vancouver Council will pass a
resolution against both of
these initiatives in support of
the children and teachers that
they will harm, in addition to
doctors, nurses, unions,
parents and all of the
community members here in
Vancouver that do oppose them
for our children's safety.
Thank you.
>> Thank you, Emily and Heidi
Green, please.
>> Hello. My name is Emily Crow,
and I am here to thank the
council for discussing the
resolutions around no hate in
Washington State and emphasize
the importance of taking a
stand and making it clear in
our community. Through that
hopefully swift act on the
resolution to just make it
clear that our community is not
one that can be dictated by out
of state campaign financiers or
culture wars that we want to
inflict on some of the most
vulnerable children in our
communities. As Bren mentioned,
there's the data shows the
impact that these initiatives
will have on kids. They're at
danger in at homes, of being
outed to family members who may
not be supportive or may become
abusive. They're less likely to
feel safe going to the people
that are supposed to protect us,
teachers and counselors and
authority figures. Because if
they're potentially being
abused for reasons that might
be related to their sexual
identity, whether or not they
are, they're more likely to be
afraid to go to those authority
figures for protection and the
ability of girls to play school
sports through these
initiatives is just at face
value, horrifying. And I can't
imagine myself playing school
sports in school. If there had
been any kind of exam in that
way. Also, as someone who faced
abuse from a doctor as a child,
it absolutely would have kept
me out of school sports and I
can only imagine. I guarantee
all of us know someone who is
abused as a kid, potentially in
an authority figure, like a
doctor or a teacher, and
requiring something like this,
making it part of our culture
and requirements just creates a
standard that I think opens the
door to a lot of really
problematic snowballs that our
children are going to be
experiencing and facing, and
will take a lot of undoing in
our community. Thank you.
>> You turned it off. There you
go.
>> To efficient. Hi, my name is
Heidi Green. Thank you for
listening to us today. The
coalition that is no hate in
Washington state includes
nurses, mental health
professionals, teachers,
domestic violence prevention
groups, and many others. And we
all come together to oppose
these two harmful initiatives.
You've been hearing about 001
and 638, these poorly written
initiatives that were
bankrolled by Mega Mega donor.
They removed common sense
protections for child abuse
victims and put girls at risk.
Domestic violence experts say
that 001, for example, could
make it harder just for a child
to talk to somebody who's safe.
Because what it does is it
restricts student access to
help for challenges like
depression, sexual assault,
domestic violence, and bullying.
Parents have the right to know
what's going on with their kids
at school, full stop. But while
most parents are loving and
supportive, the sad reality is
that not all kids are safe at
home. According to researchers,
40% of LGBTQ plus homeless
youth were kicked out because
of their identities. Child
abuse is more widespread than
most of us would like to
believe. LGBTQ plus kids, like
all kids, deserve someone safe
to talk to while they just
figure out who they are.
Initiative 638 would require
tens of thousands of elementary
school, middle school and high
school girls to undergo
intrusive, potentially harmful
medical sex inspections every
year as a new part of sports
physicals, it takes decision
making power away from parents
and schools and athletic
associations with a statewide
ban to exclude trans girls from
participating on any teams at
any level. We all want to
protect girls, but 638 does the
opposite by discriminating
against girls and putting them
at risk of harm. The initiative
cruelly singles out trans girls
a tiny, tiny, vulnerable
minority of students for
exclusion based on
misinformation and fear about
what it means to be transgender.
And it encourages harassment
and violence. With that
misinformation banning trans
girls from from sports. Also,
if you look at a longer term
view, it's the first step on a
slippery slope of
discrimination that that goes
against girls who are taller,
stronger, maybe less feminine,
or just unexpectedly better
than their peers. They would
come under suspicion. So I
really encourage you to put
hate on notice that we won't
tolerate it in Vancouver. And
thanks for your time.
>> Thank you. Jamison Green. I
signed up. And and Carmen de
Lehan.
>> Who's joining me?
>> Okay.
>> Madam Mayor and Council
members, thank you for this
opportunity to address you. I
am concerned about these
initiatives because I
understand a lot about the
existence and the experience of
transgender people that most
people don't understand. I am a
transgender person. I grew up
as a transgender child and did
not receive any care or
treatment because there were no
words to explain what my
experience was. I was a very
athletic young girl. The female
body, and I did not have any
trouble in school because of
that, except that everybody
wanted me on their team. I was
very happy in school. I had a
wonderful childhood. The larger
schools, especially in my
younger years when I was going
to school with my neighborhood
cohort. So they all knew who I
was. But when I got older and
went to larger schools with
student bodies who had never
seen anybody like me before.
And by the way, I'm 78 years
old. And so when I went to
school, I had to wear dresses
to school every day, and still
people could not tell if I was
a boy or a girl, and I did not
know myself, but I was told to
say I was a girl. So I said
that it's very hard for a child
who has a difference, a natural
born difference that they're
growing up with to try to fit
in to their community. And you
make you build relationships
with your peers, with your
friends, you make friends and
people. You find out that
strangers are more likely to
hate you than they are to try
to get to know you. And it's
very, very frightening for
young people to have to go
through that. I honestly think
that these bills are written
specifically to make people
have knee jerk reactions to the
fears that they have about what
a transgender person is, and
who transgender people are.
Most of what people have
learned in the public sphere
about transgender people,
probably 99.9%, is false. There
is so much that is to be
learned from transgender people,
and transgender people are not
asking for any special rights
or any kind of treatment other
than to take good care of their
health and their bodies, and to
be able to function and to hold
a job and to raise a family and
all the things that normal
people do. And I just hope that
these we can avoid having these
bills enacted in the state of
Washington when we have very,
very good laws right now that
protect children in school.
Thank you.
>> Thank you. Carmen.
>> Yeah. My name is Carmen de
Lehan, also known as Melo. And
so I can talk about the
proclamations, right. That's on
the agenda because I don't want
to be told I'm wrong and get
kicked out again. So according
to the proclamations
preparedness. Okay, so let's
prevent forest fires by
building pumps inside wild
streams. Instead of hiring a
bunch of people, putting their
life on the line, make for the
same price a water fountain or
like like you water the grass,
but you water the forest. So
when there's a fire, you flick
a switch, it starts to water,
and you don't put lives at risk
for the same price, probably as
hiring a couple of guys who can
sue you in case they get hurt
on the job. The second one is
what Spanish heritage. My
parents came from Guatemala,
you know that. And that's great
that they contribute and all
that to the population. But I
just hope and pray that one day
I won't have to call someplace
and they'll say, Speak Spanish,
press one and Russian speak two,
because in this country we
speak English. And my parents
were determined to speak
English. My mother was insulted
when they looked at her and
said, oh, does your daughter
need to translate for you? No,
I can speak for myself and
there's no reason to be putting
money out when there's free
translation for all these
Hispanics giving money. And I
get there and everybody
speaking Spanish, I thought
this was the United States, she
said. She went and she put a
flag up. She put the Mexican
flag up. Really? I find that
insulting to come to my country
and put up their Mexican flag.
Just saying. And here's the
worst one homicide. Prepare
remembrance. One day, one day,
one day. You know, I was 15
when I survived attempted
homicide and I saw evil in the
eye. That's why today, when I
see evil, I name it because
I've seen it and I felt it with
my own two eyes. And evil is
homicide. And as I fought for
my life while I was bludgeoned
with that machete, the only
thought I had was that woman.
My parents. When you're 15,
your whole life doesn't flash
before you because you're just
15. The only thing I knew was
that I didn't want my parents
to have to go and identify the
body. How many people have to
contemplate, gee, are my
parents going to identify my
dead body later on today? And
that's why I fought even harder,
because it's no joke. They've
normalized murder. They've
normalized. You know, you got
one day of remembrance. I live
with it every day. I see
somebody that reminds me of
that guy, and I have a reaction.
Yeah, I still have PTSD. She
probably does, too. But we've
normalized killing. You make a
mistake. You sleep with a guy.
Oh, just kill it. No, you could
have shut your legs. That was
your first choice. Murder isn't
fun. It's not cool to have a
gun. If you want to be a man,
fight with your fists, not with
a weapon. You are the weapon.
Talk to Bruce Lee.
>> We have Kimberly Elbon from
the center online.
>> Kimberly Ellamarie Elbon has
not joined the meeting.
>> Okay, okay, then I'll close
the community communication
portion of our agenda, bring it
back to council counselors. We
will be pulling. Staff needs to
pull item five. It'll be
returned to the consent agenda
next week. So five is off.
Counselor Fox is taking item 11
off to discuss. Are there any
other items one through 13 that
you would like to pull? 13 item
number 13.
>> Item seven.
>> Okay. Thank you. Any others?
Let me read so that we don't
forget. Item 11 is an ordinance
of the City of Vancouver
amending Vancouver Municipal
Code, chapter 8.22 to prohibit
camping and outside habitation
within 1500ft of the City of
Vancouver Bridge shelter
property amending VMC 8.22.030
definitions and VMC 8.22.040
unlawful camping of and outside
habitation, providing for
severability and setting an
effective date. Item number 12
an ordinance relating to the
2020 526 biennial budget and
making a supplemental
appropriation to account for
revenue in excess of initial
budget projections and to meet
certain necessary expenditures
to be incurred in 2020 526 that
were not and could not
reasonably have been foreseen
at the time of adoption. Of the
2020 526 budget, declaring an
emergency and providing for an
immediate effective date, I'll
entertain a motion for items
one, two, three, four, six,
eight, nine, ten and 12.
>> Move to approve Paulson,
Paulson.
>> Seconded by Perez Perez. All
those in favor, say aye.
>> Aye aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much. Item five
has been pulled, counselor
Stover, item number seven.
>> Great. Thank you. Mayor, I
just. Wanted to have let staff
have the opportunity to talk
about this grant that we're
receiving from the Haddan
Dayley Lynch Fund and how it
will help general Southwest
Washington. Southwest
Washington in general. Service
our homeless population.
>> Suzanne. Yes. Okay. Good
evening, Council and mayor. So
this grant is is really to kind
of help us a little further
along with our, our efforts to
coordinate in a more regional
way versus just within the city.
Homelessness really knows no
bounds for right now. We're
keeping it within Clark County.
So this portion of the grant,
because there might be some
additional coming later for
other portions of it, but it
essentially expands the heart
team into the county outside of
city limits. So we can, with
this piece, hire some outreach
workers that can move into the
Hazel, Dell, Salmon Creek and
other county areas, orchards in
preparation really for the
bridge shelter opening. Because
we even though the borders
exist, most people don't pay
attention to them. So people
often move back and back and
forth across city and county
lines, very similar to how
people do that, from Wasch dot
property to city property and
back. And we have really within
the city, worked hard to ensure
that we've got a very
consistent response. So people
don't have to move so much.
They can stay where they are to
stabilize and then move into
shelter or housing, whatever is
their next step. So this will
be able to occur countywide now
and kind of all in the same way.
That's really the the goal is
to ensure that we've got a very
similar or same response county
wide. So that that sort of.
Lack of coordination or just
kind of small differences in
responses don't become a
barrier to stabilization and
accessing services.
>> Thank you very much. I'm
excited for that ability to do
this. This work in a larger
geographical area. And just
want to say a huge thank you to
the Anne Dayley Lynch Fund for
their continued support of our
efforts to help those that are
seeking to restabilize their
lives. So thank you very much,
Jamie. Sure.
>> I'll entertain a motion on
item seven.
>> I'll move to approve
approval of item seven.
>> Seconded by Fox. All those
in favor, say aye.
>> Aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much. Moving on
to item number 11, Counselor
Fox.
>> Yes.
>> Yeah. Item 11. It seemed as
if we would be pulling it just
because there was. It looked
like a decision to be made,
perhaps by council to accept
the the wider buffer of 1500ft
from the shelter limits, but
also in looking at the three
proposed distances, one of my
questions on the 1500. I don't
know if there's an ability to
pull up that map so everyone
can see what I'm looking at. Is
that too much of a surprise,
Tony? Maybe. Sorry, but there's
a couple slivers of park space
within that 1500, and I was
just wondering the way that the
ordinance is written. Is it
distinctly only within the
borders of that line, or does
it apply to the entirety of the
property that it touches?
>> So in parks, period, within
the city of Vancouver, although
it's also true in the county,
people are not allowed to camp.
So in the park area, the
slivers would not actually
matter because it would apply
anywhere within that park. Okay.
>> All right. That helps. And I
wasn't sure I didn't look close
enough at other properties to
see how the lines split them or
not split them. So maybe that's
a general question. How do we
interpret the line? If it
splits a property?
>> That's a good question. I
mean, the the ordinance itself
specifically talks about 1500
or 1000ft for the safe stays
from any point, from the
nearest point. I might need an
attorney to help with that, but
I would guess I'm not a I'm not
a lawyer. That we have
historically just utilized the
actual lines, although I will
say in most cases, just
practically speaking, most of
the area is is private property.
Most places are privately owned.
So we haven't really
historically had a lot of
issues where a line made, you
know, made the difference. Like,
does that make sense?
>> It does, it does. And then I
guess my final question on the
1500 square foot map, now that
we have it up and folks can
take a look at it, I was
thinking about the areas around
the interchanges, which I know
are washed off property. But
you mentioned, you know, having
a little bit more capacity to
handle folks that are within
Wasch dot property or, you know,
kind of bordering going back
and forth over different
property lines. How, how do you
think that I guess these
particular areas being that
they're washed up property, you
know, what's going to look
different in those areas?
>> So I think we will see, and
this is in in part why 1500 was
recommended. I mean, it started
with the bridge shelters, just
a larger facility. So any
facility you put anywhere is
going to have some impact. This
has got more people, so it's
going to be larger. But when
you pair that with the fact
that there's also another
shelter fairly nearby, and it's
just true that there are there
are people who, who attempt to
be closer to a place that
services them in this specific
area. There is a great deal of
challenging kind of camping
issues that occur just outside
that 1000 foot. Yeah, very.
>> Very visible spaces too. Yes.
>> And it's it is largely on
Wasch dot property. We have a
great relationship with, with,
with Washdot regarding, you
know, kind of efforts related
to homelessness on their
property. Most of our work with
them is outreach, though
certainly we can provide some
support with law enforcement,
but their work on encampments
is much like fewer far between
than ours, which is more
consistent. So having this
actually helps with, I suppose,
kind of having a little more
teeth that can make something
stick versus people just
hopping back and forth and
there not being much that can
be done about it.
>> Okay, I support this 1500ft
proposal now that I've had my
questions answered. So thank
you, Jamie.
>> Sure.
>> Thank you. I'll entertain a
motion. On item 11.
>> Can I ask a question?
>> Let's do a motion then I'll
have you move.
>> Move to approve item number
11.
>> Second. Seconded by Fox. Go
ahead.
>> Councilor Jamie, we
discussed this probably close
to two years ago. Can you
remind me? So did we not make a
decision before? Do we not set
a distance before?
>> We did not set the distance
before. I kind of gave you a
little bit of a preview of what
I'd be looking at and what very
likely my recommendation would
be as, and then said I would
bring it back once we got
closer and needed to put that
ordinance into place.
>> Okay. So reminded me of
conversation back then. So part
of this line goes into the
county and so is Keesee Clark
County Sheriff's Office. Are
they planning on utilizing this
line?
>> I mean, they don't
necessarily. Have to because
it's a city ordinance. City
ordinances don't typically
apply on county property. But
again, some of that property, a
good chunk of it actually is
one of their parks. And they
already have ordinances related
to parks. However, I can say
because of that partnership
that we're looking forward to
with Hart in the county there,
there is going to be a
dedicated deputy from Keesee O
assigned to that County Hart
team. So there will be some
more consistent exactly as we
do it, you know, offering of
services, ensuring that, you
know, everybody kind of
understands what the
expectations related to camping
and like environmental damage
and solid waste and things like
that are as well as trying to
get people into the bridge
shelter. So there likely will
be more enforcement or
encouragement of moving into
shelter in those spaces, but
not necessarily because of the
city's ordinance or.
>> Buffer
>> Take it would take the
County Council adopting a
similar type ordinance for it
to be effective there. Okay. So
then help me out understanding.
So typically we say we don't
have jurisdiction over Wasch
property, but this extends into
Wasch property. Is there going
to be a memorandum of
understanding with Wasch Dot
that we can enforce the no
camping ordinance on their
property?
>> I can certainly talk with
them about that. There are
other ordinances, like state
state laws related to camping
on state property that could be
utilized. Now, the state,
however, has not had an
appetite for utilizing that
kind of enforcement.
Technically, people cannot be
camping on any Wasch property
ever, and they could be charged
with trespassing. They have not
been interested in trespassing.
They are supportive of us
citing people in the community
caught from their property and
certainly offering services,
which is kind of goes hand in
hand with that. There were
previous conversations. They've
got some new staff now, so I
might have to renew some of
those conversations. But
previously there were
conversations about potentially
changing that a little bit on
their end once the bridge
shelters open, because we would
have significantly more
capacity to offer shelter more
frequently.
>> I would I would encourage
reaching back out to Washed-out
and seeing about putting an MOU
into place so that there truly
is some teeth behind this 1500
foot barrier. Thank you.
>> Sure.
>> Okay.
>> I'll entertain know we have
a motion. We have a second. Any
other comments? I'll entertain
the vote. All those in favor,
say aye.
>> Aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much, counselor
Fox, item number 13.
>> All right. Just reviewing
the the claim vouchers. And
there was one item that caught
my attention because it was it
looks like a property
acquisition for $656,000. And
it wasn't familiar to me. So I
was asking if staff could tell
me with or $693,000. Sorry if
they could tell me a little bit
more about that before we
approve the expense.
>> Yeah, I'll go ahead and ask
Steve Wahl to come up here in
case you have any other
particular questions. But I
think it's a naming convention
for this company because do
Little Acquisitions operates
under a couple of different
names, but they're one of our
paving preservation contractors.
>> Oh. Oh that's interesting.
Okay.
>> And that's the answer. Steve
Wahl Public Works Director So
yeah, it's a contract for
pavement preservation work that
they're doing for us. So it's
just the first pay estimate of
a total contract amount. That's
roughly 3.7 million, but just
part of our normal pavement
preservation work.
>> It's pretty interesting
because all the other contracts
that we have, I recognize the
contractor's name. I can I can
kind of associate it with the
project, but that one. Okay.
Well then that was all my
questions. Thank you.
>> Okay. Entertain a motion.
>> I move to approve item
number 13.
>> Item number 13 has a motion
and a second Perez Perez has a
second. All those in favor, say
aye.
>> Aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much. That
concludes the consent agenda.
Brings it into communications
from the Council. Councilor
Harless pass. Councilor Perez.
>> None for me tonight. Thank
you.
>> Councilor Fox.
>> I just wanted to share the
kind of fun but busy weekend on
one. We had our nine over 11
event down at the waterfront to
celebrate the celebrate know,
memorialize the 25th
anniversary of the events that
changed our world. So that was
Friday. Beautiful day, thank
goodness. And then Saturday,
just saying, went to Oksana's
Art school and did a ribbon
cutting, which was the first
time I've ever gotten to do
ribbon cutting on behalf of our
council. So that was kind of
fun. And also want to point out
that, you know, this is a
business, new small business, a
woman operated business that's
at our district. And so just
excited to see some new
businesses popping up even
before we have new development
popping up. So I just want to
share that. And then I followed
that up by handing out to the
Foundations Block party that's
at the Boys and Girls Club on
Andreasen, just, you know,
three years into that
particular organization in our
community and excited to see
the teenagers from the
foundation show up at our
community forums and other
public events and just the
block party. Again, luckily, it
wasn't raining. And so just
tons of kids running around
playing and having good
barbecue. So it was kind of a
fun day.
>> It is.
>> Thank you, Councilor Paulson.
>> Shana Tova, for those who
celebrate.
>> Thank you.
>> Councilor Stover.
>> I'll take a pass tonight.
>> Thank you.
>> Councilor Hanson.
>> I'll take a pass.
>> All right. A couple
different things. Yes. The
observance of nine over 11 and
CMac, the organization that
helps the city put that on, did
a wonderful job. The peace and
justice was this weekend at
Esther Short Park. It was a
packed day, and once again, the
weather turned out perfect for
them. Counselors. This Friday
we have two events the
Vancouver station. The food
cart has their grand opening.
This is one of our largest food
cart projects at 4:00 and then
at 6:00, it's the POW Mia
observance out of the Armed
Forces Center. So again, it
continues to be a busy time,
even though we're still in
summer. Every good city manager.
Do you have something.
>> I do, mayor? We'll go ahead
and invite Aaron to go ahead
and come on up. And I think
Catherine Kelly is probably
with us remotely. To talk about
the statewide initiatives. And
just to cue this up, this is
something that while the City
Council is prohibited from
being able to campaign or to
spend money on political events,
one of the things that the city
does have is a tool is you as a
council, can make a collective
decision to to pass a
resolution of support or
opposition. As you recall, we
most recently did this with our
own proposition, proposition
five. So it's following along
in that vein. These are just
happened to be statewide
initiatives. And, you know,
there was an interest among
several city council members to
have a discussion and see if
the city wanted to take a
position on these issues. Aaron.
>> So, Aaron, before you get
started, there are anywhere
from 27 to 31 different items
that could be legislative
priorities and such and state
initiatives, initiatives on
this ballot. Are you expecting
us to make motions and pass
resolutions tonight?
>> I am not expecting any
action taken tonight. I was
asked, as the city manager
mentioned, by the way, good
evening, Mayor and Council.
Aaron Lande, assistant City
manager. My understanding is
that there were two members of
council who just asked for some
time to be put on the agenda
for council to have a
conversation about taking a
position on two of the
statewide initiatives. Those
are the two mentioned in the
memo in front of you. That's
IL26-001 and IL 266-638. I am.
I don't think you really want
me to talk. I really tried to
keep the memo that's in front
of you as neutral as I could.
Just sort of. Here are the
facts and the example, the two
initiatives themselves. And
this is merely a chance for you
all to have a conversation
amongst yourselves about if you
would like to take a position,
and if you'd like to direct
staff to come back with a
resolution. If you do, I should
be able to be back here for the
October 5th, whatever the first
Monday in October meeting is
with those resolutions. If
there's if there's a desire for
resolution.
>> Because on the agenda, it
does say council discussion.
>> So discussion of of the next
steps, I guess.
>> Yeah.
>> Okay. Thank you very much.
All right. Go ahead. Aaron.
>> Well, that that was pretty
much the last of my thing was I
have there's two initiatives. I
mean, there's two initiatives
that I brought forward. That
was my understanding is that
you wanted to discuss those. So
I'm going to stop. And you guys
can discuss and direct as you
want.
>> Let's go ahead. Tony, do you
have his memo? Let's take one
at a time. There we go. Yes.
>> All right.
>> I will jump in a little bit
more.
>> I was going to say we. So
Aaron can you see it from your
side of the screen?
>> I can, but I'm going to just
actually read some of the
summary rather than the
legislative language.
>> Yes. Hang on.
>> Tony, can you flip it to
this side?
>> Oh.
>> So 26001. Is that our first
one?
>> That is the first one. So
this is concerning parental
rights related to their
children in public schools.
>> Thank you Aaron. Go ahead.
>> So this is would reenact
initiative 2081 known as the
Washington Declaration of
Parental and Legal Guardian
Rights. In 2024, the Washington
State legislature passed the
indirect initiative. Then, in
2025, the legislature amended
initiative 2081 through House
Bill 1296, which at various
points added, modified and
repealed various provisions
from the initiative list of
rights. And so the proposed
ballot initiative would reenact
the following rights, which the
House Bill repealed so as to
receive prior notification
about medical services being
offered to their child, except
in medical emergencies. To
receive prior notification
about medical services or
medications provided that could
affect the parents or guardians
health insurance costs, and to
receive prior notification when
the school arranges medical
treatment. That requires follow
up care after school hours, and
the proposed ballot initiative
would repeal the following
rights. Which House Bill 291296
added, among others, to have
their child receive a public
education in an environment
where discrimination based on a
protected class is prohibited.
To file a complaint on behalf
of their child relating to
harassment, intimidation and
bullying to receive annual
notice of the public school's
language access policies and
services. So that's the very
bare bones summary of what this
initiative would do.
>> Okay.
>> So three bulleted points
there of what it would reenact,
and then three, what it would
repeal. All right. Councilors.
>> I'll start over. Go ahead.
Thank you. So my my comments in
general about these two
initiatives are going to be
based upon our core values as a
council, our core values as a
city chief among those is
equity and and also safety and
treating a very, in my mind,
very protected class of our
citizens, our young people with
care and respect and safety and
making sure that they're able
to spend chunks of their time
in environments that are
supportive and encouraging of
who they are and the journey
that they're passing through.
So it's a general statement for
both of these. I know we're
just dealing with the first one.
I am in support of us taking a
position and taking a position
in opposition to these two
initiatives. Thank you.
>> Thank you.
>> Yes, councilor Perez.
>> Thank you for bringing this
back to us for discussion. And
thank you to my colleagues for
for having this discussion
right now. And I'm in support
of also moving forward with the
resolution, because for me as a
parent, it's about child safety,
and we don't do enough for our
youth in the city. And our
children are looking and seeing
what we decide today for them.
And this is where we need to
stand up and really think about
how all this aligns with our
priorities as a value that we
put on regarding equity,
regarding safety. And I think
this is where we walk the talk
as a city, as city leaders, our
children should be protected,
respected with dignity, and not
treated as less than or
discriminated upon. And for me,
it is absurd that one of these
initiatives is downright
pedophilic in nature, and I'll
be if I'm going to allow that
to happen to any young little
girl because of hate. So I hope
that we all stand up and we do
the right thing.
>> Councilor Fox. Go ahead.
>> Since it sounds like we're
going to discuss them as a
group.
>> But let's discuss this first
one.
>> Oh, okay. Well, then the
first one just I usually tend
to do more research when it
comes time to actually vote on,
on it. So just a little bit in
advance doing some research.
And, you know, I think one of
the pieces that might not be
super well known is, you know,
that some of the things that
the original. Proposal had
tried to enact were things that
were contrary already to
federal and state laws. And so
the changes that are our state
legislature had made to live
when we, when they enacted into
law, was basically to clean up
some of those provisions. And
so I want to just honor the
fact that moving this forward
and hopefully our voters do a
little bit of research, too.
The last thing you want to do
is, is not only contradict
federal law, but create
something that's confusing to
enforce as well. You know,
changing the time frames for a
school district to respond to a
public records request and
requiring some, you know,
burden, burdensome process on
our school districts to respond
to these things is not what we
want. We want the focus to be
on students and their
experience in school. We want
them to feel safe, all of those
things. So I would support. Us
moving forward to just share
the word with the rest of the
public that this initiative
doesn't do the thing that it
says it's doing. It just makes
it more confusing and
contradicts federal law.
>> Thank you councilor. So I've
heard from three of our
councilors. Councilor Harless.
>> I'm just waiting until we
discuss our next one or the
next one before making any
motions.
>> Let's take this particular
one. Let's take them
individually. These are
individual policies, bills. And
to give staff direction, do you
want to give staff direction on
this one?
>> I'll move to ask staff to
write a statement in opposition
of IL00IL26001. Thank you.
>> I have a motion. Is there a
second? Second motion and a
second. Further discussion?
Mayor Council.
>> Just to. Clarify the motion,
it's not write a statement, but
write a resolution. Is that
correct?
>> Mayor? I moved to write a
have staff write a resolution
in opposition of IL 26001.
>> Is the second. Accept the
change.
>> Yes.
>> Second accepts the change.
Any other discussion? Hearing
none, I'll entertain. We have a
motion. We have a second. All
those in favor, say aye.
>> Aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much. Aaron,
would you take the second one,
please?
>> All right. The second one.
This is initiative IL 26-638
would prohibit students it
defines as biologically male
from competing in certain
school athletic activities
intended for female students
only. It would require
verification of biological sex
by students, healthcare
providers. This ballot
initiative would require school
districts and nonprofit
organizations that regulate
interscholastic activities to
prohibit, quote, excuse me,
quote, prohibit biologically
male students from competing
with and against female
students, end quote. In sports
with separate team or
individual competition for male
and female students, the ballot
initiative would require
students seeking to participate
in athletic activities
designated for female students
to submit documentation from
their health care provider.
Verifying, quote the student's
biological sex based on
reproductive anatomy, genetic
makeup, or normal and
endogenous. And I don't I can't,
I'm sorry, produce testosterone
levels, end quote.
>> Okay.
>> Discussion. Counselor. Go
ahead.
>> This initiative does disturb
me on many levels, and I'm I'll
echo some of the testimony
we've heard tonight from folks,
but also, as you know, kind of
centering it back on my role
for Council on the Children's
Justice Center Council and
hearing the stories and
opportunities that can occur
for sexual abuse on this one is
a red flag. You know, we just
in this community are reeling
from, you know, the doctor who
had sexually abused thousands
of kids by, you know, basically
asking their parents to leave
the room so he could examine
girls. So, yes, I'm, I would
definitely support an
opposition statement or
resolution on this particular
resolution.
>> Did you just put that in the
form of a motion counselor?
>> Well, if other council
members want to weigh in before
that, but.
>> Or we.
>> Can or we could weigh in
after we make a discussion. So
I, I move to ask staff to put
together a resolution in
opposition of this initiative.
>> Motion needs a second.
>> Second, second.
>> Seconded by Councilor Perez
discussion. Mayor. Councilor
Soelberg.
>> Thank you. The other thing
that this. Ballot initiative
does not take into effect is
there is a actually a
significant number of intersex
individuals in that are both
born with some combination of
male and female. Reproductive
hormones, reproductive organs,
and are almost entirely left
out of any conversations. And
so it's also extremely
discriminating against those
individuals. So I reiterate, as
a cisgender white men man who
personally have no clue the
struggle that our transgender
folks go through very much come
down in it is not for me to
understand, but for me to love,
care and support. Thank you.
>> Thank you.
>> Additional comments. Hearing
none, we have a motion. We have
a second. All those in favor,
say aye.
>> Aye.
>> Opposed? Motion passes.
Thank you very much. Mr. Lande.
Do you need any additional
information from us?
>> I don't thank you for the
direction, and I will see you
back here at the first meeting
in October.
>> Thank you.
>> City Manager. Any additional
comments from your seat?
>> Just a couple of things for
follow up. We've got a couple
of items flagged, but they're
all administrative in nature.
One is to just make sure that
we have enough time for the
continuation of the parking
ordinance update discussion.
And then I think the other one
that I had noted, let's see.
Was related to parsing out the
school data from the impact
fees, which I'm sure staff
already has on their list.
>> Okay.
>> Counselors, were there any
other items that you thought
the city manager had on his
list? Nope. Nope nope nope.
Okay, that concludes the
business portion of this
meeting. It is 746. We will now
move into the community forum.
This is the opportunity where
we hear from individuals on any
item we audiotape. We do not
videotape. So we'll go ahead
and turn off the TV cameras.