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MINUTES
Special Meeting
ALHAMBRA CITY COUNCIL
Council Chambers, 111 South First Street
July 14, 2026
5:00 p.m.
ROLL CALL: At 5:11 p.m., on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, the Alhambra City Council met in the Council Chambers of Alhambra City Hall.
PRESENT: MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
ABSENT: LEE
Officials Present: City Manager Binnquist, Assistant City Manager Garcia, City Attorney Murphy, Assistant City Clerk Lamb McCarthy, Director of Parks and Recreation Macias, Director of Finance Lieu, Director of Community Development Ho, Economic Development Specialist MacCarley, Director of Public Works and Utilities Ahlen, Chief of Fire Department Ragusa, Chief of Police Kennedy, Director of Library Services LohGuan, Director of Human Resources Ko, Management Analyst Alvarez
FLAG SALUTE: Led by Mayor Maloney
CITY CLERK REPORT - NOTICE NO. N2M26-89
The Assistant City Clerk hereby reported that she duly gave notice of the special meeting of the City Council being held this evening pursuant to the order of the Mayor and in accordance with Section 54956 of the Government Code of the State of California.
PUBLIC COMMENT FOR NON-AGENDIZED ITEMS (TIME LIMITATIONS: 3 MINUTES PER SPEAKER, 30 MINUTES TOTAL) – F2M26-4
1) Melissa Michelson announced that she was running for City Council in the 5th District and gave her reasons for her campaign against the incumbent Councilmember AndradeStadler.
LEE: Councilmember Lee entered Council Chambers at 5:14 p.m. 2) Lewis McCammon supported the new ACT Bus routes and highlighted the benefits and positive features of the ACT Bus service.
3) Jennifer Ng, via Zoom, noted transparency issues with the Special Meeting and stated that the business should be discussed at a Regular City Council meeting.
PRESENTATION
1. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA EDISON UPDATE – F2M26-27
At the March 26 Strategic Plan session, the City Council requested a presentation from Southern California Edison (SCE). Areas where discussion was requested: A presentation of circuit maps with recent outage information, what type of claims can be filed for power loss expenses for residents, what SCE does to minimize business impacts for planned 2 7-14-26
maintenance, and General Q & A. Jonathan HORTON, Government Relations Manager for SCE provided a presentation, which is on file in the City Clerk’s office.
Discussion: Councilmember WANG discussed the statistics on the slides and Mr. HORTON provided clarification regarding SAIDI or the average number of minutes of sustained power interruptions each year.
Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER discussed the response and concern from residents, requested more information as to providing outreach to residents who are not online, and further discussed the Northeast corner of District 5 with faulty circuits which could be a wildfire risk. Mr. HORTON provided a description of the circuits and made clarifications.
Ms. ANDRADE-STADLER and Mr. HORTON went on to discuss recommended trees to be near power lines, financial assistance for senior citizens, and rebate programs for generators. Ms. ANDRADE-STADLER noted that SCE should consider programs to offer generators to seniors.
Councilmember WANG discussed various points in the presentation such as historic reliability of circuits serving Alhambra, outage causes for Alhambra, and the Capital Improvement map. Mr. HORTON provided clarification regarding Alhambra infrastructure, methods to report hazards and threats, and SCE’s plans to make improvements in Alhambra. Ms. WANG continued to discuss the uncertainty of outage times and the difficulties in planning for planned outages. She also suggested more information be available to seniors and medically vulnerable residents. She requested an annual report from SCE regarding service.
Councilmember MAZA further discussed circuits in the Southwest part of the City and requested improvements there with a better schedule for implementation.
Councilmember LEE discussed the Historical Reliability Chart in the presentation and requested more detail. Mr. HORTON provided clarification regarding SAIDI and SAIFI statistics. They went on to discuss the overview of circuits in Alhambra.
Mayor MALONEY discussed Alhambra’s membership in the Clean Power Alliance and its ability to provide insight as a board member.
Action Taken: City Council received and order filed this informational report presented this evening.
2. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE UPDATE – F2M21-43
Alhambra Chamber of Commerce President, Mr. John BWARIE, presented an update for Chamber of Commerce activities. Mr. BWARIE discussed economic development, hospitality, outreach in other neighborhoods, and expressed support for the Economic Development Action Plan.
Discussion: Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER and Mr. BWARIE discussed the former “Around Alhambra” local newspaper publication. Councilmember WANG discussed the need for diversity of businesses and specifically family friendly businesses.
Councilmember MAZA also discussed the “Around Alhambra” publication and noted the challenging economic times for small businesses. Councilmember LEE and Mr. BWARIE discussed small businesses and outreach to family owned businesses. 3 7-14-26
Action Taken: City Council received and ordered filed this informational report.
3. CONSIDERATION OF AND INTRODUCTION FOR FIRST READINGS OF ORDINANCE NO. O2M26-4867 AND ORDINANCE NO. O2M26-4868 CALLING AN ELECTION FOR
A BALLOT MEASURE TO AMEND THE ALHAMBRA CHARTER PERTAINING TO
TERM LIMITS AND A BALLOT MEASURE BANNING DATA CENTERS, INCLUDING ASSOCIATED CEQA DETERMINATION LANGUAGE FOR EACH – F2M26-33, O2M26- 4867, O2M26-4868
Mayor MALONEY provided an introduction for the item and provided background and clarifications regarding City process to adopt an ordinance. At the June 22, 2026 City Council meeting a member of the public submitted for Council’s consideration proposed language that could be used in two ballot measures for consideration by the voters in Alhambra. The first pertained to Council term limits and the second pertained to a ban on data centers. Council expressed interest in potentially holding a special meeting to discuss the two measures. The City Attorney’s office reviewed both measures, made some clarifying changes to the language to resolve certain ambiguities and drafted the ordinances necessary to place these on the ballot, should the Council wish to do so.
The Alhambra Charter currently provides that a Councilmember may serve three consecutive four-year terms and then must take a three-year break before running again.
At that point the Councilmember can serve another three consecutive terms before another break must be taken. This could be repeated indefinitely. The proposed language would limit a person from holding more than 5 Council terms during their lifetime. After the third consecutive term they must sit out one four-year term before running again, at which point they would be limited to two more consecutive terms. The language also was not intended to apply to terms served prior to 2027 by sitting Councilmembers. The proposed language has been modified to eliminate certain potential ambiguities that could arise in its implementation.
On June 22, 2026, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. O2M26-4863 which included a ban on data centers. More specifically, the amendment includes a definition of data centers, and then lists them as prohibited in the employment zoning districts and does not list them as a permitted use in any other zone in the City. (Uses not listed as permitted are prohibited.) The proposed Ordinance would use the same definition used previously and add “Data Centers would be prohibited in all zones of the City” to the end of the definition.
Mr. MALONEY noted receiving feedback from the public and that there was no community consensus regarding a charter amendment to amend Councilmember’s term limits. He stated that community expressed concerns in the perceived urgency of the ballot measure pertaining to term limits and that the majority of public urged Council review the subject in time. Mr. MALONEY stated that should the City decide to review term limits, that the review be conducted with time to receive appropriate input from staff and the public. He requested Council table discussion of the proposed ballot measure pertaining to Council term limits and stated that the public could still provide comment. Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER supported Mr. Maloney’s suggestion and agreed that there could be future discussion of the topic. Council supported tabling consideration of a ballot measure pertaining to a Charter Amendment to change Council term limits at this time.
Mr. MALONEY provided further clarification regarding the proposed Ballot Measure to ban data centers.
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Public Comment:
The following people spoke in favor of the proposed ballot measure to ban data centers:
1) Michael “Alex” Jones also supported Council’s decision to table discussion of the tabled ballot measure pertaining to term limits. He clarified that he initially brought forward the idea for a ballot measure to amend Council term limits with the support of the Working Families Party and urged the public to reach out to him for information. 2) Amy Wong
3) Andrew Yip, representing SGV Progressive Action
4) Grace Wong
5) Dillan Foster
6) Victor
7) Ron Sahu, also noted a letter submitted to Council regarding the tabled ballot measure pertaining to Council term limits. He also urged Council consider a policy regarding future public led ballot measure proposals.
8) Lewis McCammon also noted concerns regarding the tabled ballot measure pertaining to Council term limits.
9) Mario Manzanilla
10) Shirley Tatsuno, also commented on the ballot measure process and the tabled ballot measure pertaining to Council term limits.
11) Nathan Barrios
12) Barbara Ngai
13) Chloe Tan
14) Marcos
Public Comment received via email and on file in the City Clerk’s office:
The following people wrote in favor of the proposed ballot measure to ban data centers:
1) Nicholle Garza
2) Nicolas Rabb
3) Carmen Flores
4) Jennifer Pierce
5) Sierra Santillan
6) Alan Duong
7) Mary Nguyen
8) Madeline Ocampo
9) Justin Mui
10) Scott Johnson
11) Julie Wang
The following people wrote against the tabled ballot measure pertaining to Council term limits:
1) Chris Olson, representing Grassroots Alhambra
2) Adam Bray-Ali
Discussion: Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER highlighted Alhambra’s Environmental Sustainability goals and projects currently underway. She did not support a Data Center in Alhambra as a sustainable community. She discussed water as a human right and the plans to develop Alhambra’s industrial zones. She supported the proposed ballot measure.
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Councilmember WANG thanked speakers and staff for exploring different ideas. She spoke in support of a ballot measure to ban data centers and the vote of the people.
Councilmember MAZA thanked the speakers and discussed the ordinance to ban data centers. He supported the ballot measure to ban data centers and motioned to approve the adoption of the ordinance. Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER seconded the motion.
Councilmember LEE also spoke against data centers in Alhambra and supported the ballot measure to make it difficult to go against the will of the people in the future. She also seconded Mr. Maza’s motion.
Mayor MALONEY supported the ballot measure to ban data centers and discussed the need for environmentally sustainable practices.
Action Taken: City Council, by one motion, took the following actions:
1. Find the adoption of Ordinance No. O2M26-4868 pertaining to a ban on data centers in the City is not subject to further CEQA review as the City previously adopted a ban via City Council Ordinance No. O2M26-4863, for which CEQA review was undertaken and a CEQA determination was made. The proposed Ordinance No. O2M26-4868 would enact the same ban with no additional environmental impacts and as such is not a new project within the meaning of Public Resources Code Section 20165 and it can be seen with certainty that there will be no additional impacts not previously studied under CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3).
2. Declared introduced for its first reading:
Ordinance No. O2M26-4868: An Ordinance of the Alhambra City Council providing for a General Municipal Election in Said City to be Held on November 3, 2026, Providing for the Consolidation of the General Municipal Election with the Statewide General Election; Said Election Being Held for a Ballot Measure to Ban Data Centers within the City of Alhambra.
3. Directed staff to agendize for consideration at the July 27,2026 City Council meeting, the following items:
a. Second reading and adoption of the above-referenced ordinance; b. Adoption of a Resolution requesting the Board of Supervisors of the County of Los Angeles to order the consolidation of an Alhambra General Municipal Election to be held on November 3, 2026 with the Statewide General Election to be held in Los Angeles County the same day.
Vote: Moved: MAZA Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
CONSENT AGENDA (Item Nos. 4-9): (TIME LIMITATIONS: 5 MINUTES PER SPEAKER FOR 6 7-14-26
ONE ITEM, 10 MINUTES PER SPEAKER FOR 2+ ITEMS)
All items listed under the Consent Agenda, with the exception of Item No. 4, were considered by the City Council to be routine and were enacted by one motion.
4. ADOPTION OF THE CITY OF ALHAMBRA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACTION PLAN - F2M26-23, M2M26-116
Economic Development Specialist MACCARLEY delivered a staff report. On April 24, 2023, the City Council approved the 2023 Strategic Plan, which included Goal Three:
Create a Strong Financial Base and a Strong Economic Base (Economic Development).
One of the objectives of this goal was to develop an Economic Development Action Plan.
The Plan would establish a comprehensive and integrated approach to economic development that strengthens the City’s economic base. On January 26, 2026, the draft Economic Development Action plan was presented to the City Council. The Council provided feedback focused on the inclusion of a vision for the Industrial Corridor. Council highlighted the on-going efforts to connect with the local colleges especially CalState LA and East Los Angeles College and the plan’s effort for encouraging additional development opportunities and growth on Valley Boulevard.
Following the City Council meeting, Staff conducted public outreach on three separate occasions in the month of February 2026. Feedback from public outreach meetings have been incorporated in the Action Plan, which now included a vision for the Industrial Corridor. Updates were also made to the West Valley College District to more explicitly include residents. Overall, the Action Plan was well received and is ready to be adopted by the City Council. It would provide a strategic framework to guide the City’s economic growth and resilience over the next three to five years. The Plan reflects the community’s values, its collective vision for local economic resilience, and a shared understanding of a desired future.
Public Comment:
1) Bernice Ortega, also submitted comment via email, and requested Council table discussion to give the community more time to review, noting that the Plan may affect East Main Corridor and future developments. She also reported a faulty traffic signal at Granada St. and Main St.
2) Rita Ledesma also submitted her comments via a letter to City Council. She expressed concerns regarding the West Valley College District and tying plans to CalState LA.
She stated that the community wants the City to be family and pedestrian friendly, with open greenspace.
Public Comment received via email and on file in the City Clerk’s office:
The following people wrote to request additional time for public review and discussion. The public also expressed concerns as to how the Economic Development Plan may affect zoning or design guidelines:
1) Marisol Grier
2) Raul Cardoza
3) Bernice Ortega
4) Laura Freeborn
5) Olga Michaels
6) Connie Li
7) Lawrence Marchese
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8) Lori Nielson
9) Philip McCanless and Violet Aguilar
10) Scott Langteau
11) Janet Klien
Discussion: Councilmember LEE spoke in support of the Economic Development Action Plan as an item from Council’s Strategic Plan Goals.
Councilmember MAZA spoke in support of the Plan. He addressed the concerns of the public and Director of Community Development HO provided clarification.
Councilmember WANG discussed the Plan and discussed the public meetings that were held in an attempt to gain public input. Ms. WANG and Ms. MACCARLEY discussed the ability to continually change the Plan and receive more public input. Ms. WANG suggested the City use the Neighborhood Watch system of meeting with “Block Captains” as neighborhood representatives in order to disseminate information.
Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER spoke in support of the Plan and the need for the City to continue to work on receiving public input and seek new opportunities for the City. She noted the need for more work on the entrance to the City through a college district or Valley Blvd. Ms. ANDRADE-STADLER motioned to adopt the Economic Development Action Plan. Ms. WANG seconded the motion.
Mayor MALONEY reiterated previous comments that this was not a regulatory document and would not affect zoning. He further addressed concerns regarding the East Main Corridor. He supported the Plan and expressed that he was still open to public participation.
Action Taken: City Council adopted the Economic Development Action Plan. (M2M26-116)
Vote: Moved: ANDRADE-STADLER Seconded: WANG
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
5. APPROVAL OF A CONTRACT FOR THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION OF WORKERS COMPENSATION CLAIMS – F2M18-42, C2M26-44, M2M26-117
On July 1, 2018, the City Council authorized the City’s membership in the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority (CJPIA) for insurance services. Under the requirements for membership the City would be required to contract with a third-party administrator selected by CJPIA, Athens Administrators, to provide workers compensation claims administration services. The City’s Memorandum of Coverage for the Workers Compensation Program dictates that CJPIA, “at its discretion, will choose and manage service providers necessary to fulfill its objectives; including third party claims administrators, medical management providers, defense attorneys, investigators, etc.” The City previously contracted with Athens Administrators from 2023 to present and this agreement through June 30, 2029 would constitute a continuation of services agreement as required by CJPIA.
Discussion: None.
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Action Taken: City Council approved a contract with Athens Administrators, subject to final language approval by the City manager and City Attorney, to provide third party workers compensation claims administration through June 30, 2029 and through the City’s membership with the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority; authorized the City manager or her designee to execute the contract and related documents; and, directed staff to undertake the steps necessary to execute the contract and finalize Council’s action. (M2M26-117)
Vote: Moved: WANG Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
6. AUTHORIZE RFP: PYROTECHNIC SERVICES FOR THE ALHAMBRA FOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION – F2M26-38, RFP2M26-9, M2M26-118
The City of Alhambra sought to establish a 3-year contract with a professional pyrotechnic operator for the City’s Fourth of July Celebration. Although staff sought a 3-year contract, the City of Alhambra would have the option to renew the pyrotechnic services after each year, pursuant to satisfactory performance. At this time, staff recommended the City Council authorize the circulation of a Request for Proposals for pyrotechnic services. The Request for Proposals would be released on July 15, 2026.
Discussion: None.
Action Taken: City Council authorized staff to circulate a Request for Proposals to prospective operators to provide pyrotechnic services for the Alhambra Fourth of July Celebration, with proposals due by 4:40 p.m. on August 8, 2026; and, directed staff to undertake the steps necessary to finalize Council’s action. (M2M26-118) Vote: Moved: WANG Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
7. RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE URBAN WATER MANAGEMENT PLAN AND WATER SHORTAGE CONTINGENCY PLAN – R2M26-22, F2M11-37, M2M26-119 The California Department of Water Resources requires every urban water supplier to prepare and adopt an Urban Water management Plan (UWMP), including a Water Shortage Contingency Plan, and periodically update the Urban Water Management Plan at least once every five years, in years ending in six and one. The 2025 Urban Water Management Plan and Water Shortage Contingency Plan were prepared pursuant to the “Urban Water Management Planning Act” and the California Water Code and required adoption by July 2026. On June 22, 2026, City Council held a Public Hearing and adopted the Urban Water Management Plan, however, the approval was supposed to be done by resolution, so the required resolution was attached for Council adoption.
Discussion: None.
Action Taken: City Council approved Resolution R2M26-22 adopting the Urban Water Management Plan and Water Contingency Plan. (M2M26-119) 9 7-14-26
Vote: Moved: WANG Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
8. NOTICE INVITING BIDS: CHILLED WATER SYSTEM UPGRADE AT THE ALHAMBRA POLICE DEPARTMENT – F2M26-39, N2M26-91
On March 24, 2025, the City Council approved a one-year contract, commencing on April 26, 2025, with Total Environmental Management Service, Inc. (TEM) for a temporary cooling unit at Alhambra Police Department due to a chiller failure resulting in no cooling in the building. Said contract was extended for another twelve months in order to accommodate the time needed to conduct the due diligence study of the current Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system in the building, prepare the specifications, obtain the necessary approvals from the Building Division, solicit bids, and start the construction. The consultant who prepared the HVAC design would also provide bid support and construction oversight to the project.
Discussion: None.
Action Taken: City Council authorized staff to issue notice inviting bids to prospective contractors for the Chilled Water System Upgrade at Alhambra Police Department, with bids due no later than 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, August 13, 2026 and opened at 11:00 a.m. that same day; and, directed staff to undertake the steps necessary to finalize the Council’s action.
Vote: Moved: WANG Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
Absent: NONE
9. QUARTERLY CONTRACTS REPORT AS OF JUNE 30, 2026 – F2M25-40 On August 26, 2024, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. O2M24-4837, implementing the California Uniform Public Construction Cost Accounting Act (CUPCCAA), as outlined in California Public Contract Code Sections 22000–22045. On April 28, 2025, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. O2M25-4845, updating contract thresholds in accordance with recent CUPCCAA amendments. During this meeting, the Council also requested a report identifying all contracts awarded between $50,000 and $75,000, which previously required Council approval before CUPCCAA implementation. During the reporting period of April 1, 2026 through June 30, 2026, there were five contracts awarded in the amount of $50,000 to $75,000 without City Council approval.
Discussion: None.
Action Taken: City Council received and filed the quarterly contracts report for the period of April 1, 2026 through June 30, 2026.
Vote: Moved: WANG Seconded: ANDRADE-STADLER
Ayes: LEE, MAZA, WANG, ANDRADE-STADLER, MALONEY
Noes: NONE
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Absent: NONE
COUNCIL COMMUNICATIONS (ANNOUNCEMENTS & FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS) – F2M26-7 Vice Mayor ANDRADE-STADLER responded to comments made by Ms. Ortega during public comment for Item No. 4. She went on to discuss concerns with Los Angeles County Animal Control and requested to agendize a discussion. City Manager BINNQUIST made clarifications. Council supported Ms. Andrade-Stadler’s request.
Mayor MALONEY announced upcoming City events such as the upcoming delegation from Kirishima and reception at the next City Council meeting.
ADJOURNMENT: At 8:13 p.m. there being no further business for the Council to transact, the Mayor, with the consent of the City Council, adjourned to the next regular meeting of the Alhambra City Council scheduled for Monday, July 27, 2026 at 6:00 p.m.
BRIANNA LAMB MCCARTHY
ASSISTANT CITY CLERK