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MINUTES
CITY OF BELLFLOWER
REGULAR MEETING OF THE BELLFLOWER CITY COUNCIL
MONDAY, MARCH 9, 2026
BELLFLOWER CITY HALL - COUNCIL CHAMBERS
5:30 P.M. CLOSED SESSION / 7:00 P.M. OPEN SESSION
5:30 P.M. - CLOSED SESSION
1 CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Santa Ines called the Regular Meeting to order at 5:34 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Bellflower City Hall, 16600 Civic Center Drive, Bellflower. 2 ROLL CALL
The following members of the City Council responded present to roll call:
Mayor Sonny R. Santa Ines
Mayor Pro Tem Victor A. Sanchez
Council Member Ray Dunton
Council Member Dan Koops
Council Member Wendi Morse
3 RECESS TO CLOSED SESSION
For the record, 1) City Manager Smoot announced the title of the Closed Session item; 2) Council Member Morse announced that she would recuse on Item 3-A (9920 Flora Vista Steet) as she has property interests within 500 feet of the subject property; and 3) there being no one from the public in attendance, without objection, Mayor Santa Ines recessed the Meeting at 5:35 p.m. to a Closed Session regarding:
A CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATOR
(Pursuant to Government Code § 54956.8)
Property:
Agency Negotiator:
Negotiating Party:
Under Negotiation:
9920 Flora Vista Street
Ryan Smoot, City Manager
Lori Koester
Price and terms of payment
For the record, Closed Session adjourned at 6:13 p.m.
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
4 RECONVENE FOR OPEN SESSION
Item No. 4
Mayor Santa Ines reconvened the Meeting at 7:04 p.m. with all Council Members present and announced that no reportable action was taken during the Closed Session Meeting.
7:00 P.M. - OPEN SESSION
5 CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Santa Ines called the Open Session of the Regular City Council Meeting to order at 7:04 p.m.
6 ROLL CALL
The following members of the City Council responded present to roll call:
Mayor Sonny R. Santa Ines
Mayor Pro Tem Victor A. Sanchez
Council Member Ray Dunton
Council Member Dan Koops
Council Member Wendi Morse
Staff Participants:
Ryan Smoot, City Manager
Karl H. Berger, City Attorney
Mayra Ochiqui, City Clerk
Len Gorecki, Assistant City Manager/Director of Public Works Brian McNerney, Director of Public Safety
Wangsu Lee, Assistant to the City Manager
Jennifer Russell, Management Assistant
7 INVOCATION
Council Member Wendi Morse offered the Invocation.
8 PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Director of Public Safety Brian McNerney led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance.
9 REQUEST TO APPEAR REMOTELY
None
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
10-A CITY COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS
Item No. 10-A
Mayor Santa Ines provided details relative to the City's upcoming Community Compost Pick -Up event at Palm Park from March 27 through April 3, 2026, encouraged residents to participate, and noted that the CalRecycle-funded program provides free compost to residents while supplies last.
Mayor Pro Tem Sanchez provided details relative to the Bellflower Volunteer Center Spring Basket Program, encouraged residents to participate by sponsoring a child, and noted that donations will be collected through March 23, 2026.
Council Member Morse provided details relative to the City's 2026 Bellflower Looking Better community beautification program, which will include updated guidelines, enhanced services, coordinated neighborhood yard sales, and free dumpsters for residents to dispose of unwanted items.
Council Member Dunton provided details relative to the Chamber of Commerce's St. Patrick's Day Network Bingo Game to be held on March, 12, 2026, and the "Monthly Morning Mingle" to be held on March 31, 2026, at 9:00 a.m.
Council Member Koops provided details relative to a Citywide residential cart exchange to comply with California's SB 1383, noting that the City's waste hauler (CR&R) will replace existing landfill, recycling, and organics carts at no cost.
For the record and without objection, Mayor Santa Ines suggested considering the presentations out of the order.
10-D Presentation: Certificate of Recognition to Former Public Safety Commissioner Jerry Trautman.
Mayor Santa Ines and his City Council colleagues presented a Certificate of Recognition to Former Public Safety Commissioner Jerry Trautman for his almost -18 years of service to the City as a Commissioner, including five terms as chair of the Commission.
Mr. Trautman accepted the certificate and thanked the City Council for the recognition.
10-B Proclamation: National Women's History Month
Mayor Santa Ines and his City Council colleagues presented a proclamation declaring the month of March 2026 as National Women's History Month and presented a proclamation to the Woman's Club of Bellflower.
President Jana Enkhorn and Woman's Club of Bellflower members accepted the proclamation and thanked the City Council.
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
10-C Presentation: Woman's Club of Bellflower
Item No. 10-C
Woman's Club of Bellflower President Jana Enkhorn 1) gave a PowerPoint presentation providing an overview of the club's activities and history; and 2) responded to Council Members' questions.
For the benefit of the public, Mayor Santa Ines explained that the Council is inviting service clubs to make presentations periodically at Council Meetings to show the community the services they provide and encourage community members to join a service club, noting that they are an integral part of the City. 11 PUBLIC COMMENTS
Christina Lopez, 1) expressed concerns regarding downtown parking enforcement, emphasized the need for safer parking options for employees working late hours, and noted that ticketing employees creates hardships for workers and local businesses; and 2) suggested the City explore an employee parking permit program to balance customer turnover with employees' needs, highlighting that such an initiative would support the City's 2026 legislative platform of enhancing public safety and promoting local business growth.
At the request of Mayor Santa Ines, City Manager Smoot confirmed the topic could be incorporated as part of an upcoming parking study that Staff is preparing for City Council consideration.
Jennifer Gonzalez, resident, inquired about the process for adding a bus stop shelter at the intersection of Alondra Boulevard and Woodruff Avenue (in front of the 76 Gas Station), 1) noting that it only has a bench and trash can while the other side of Alondra Boulevard (near El Pollo Loco) has a bus stop shelter; and 2) emphasizing that a shelter would provide safety and protection from weather for bus riders, including students and other pedestrians.
At the request of Mayor Santa Ines, Assistant City Manager/ Director of Public Works Gorecki provided details relative to bus stop shelters, including 1) approximately 48 shelters were installed throughout the City several years ago as part of a federal grant; 2) not every location is suitable for a bus shelter and a site assessment was conducted for each location selected; and 3) the location suggested by Jennifer Gonzalez during her public comments has two driveway aprons which would make it difficult to incorporate the footprint of a bus shelter, but confirmed staff could explore the possibility of adding more bus shelters. 12 PUBLIC HEARINGS
None
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
13 ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION
Item No. 13-A
A Consideration and possible action to adopt Resolution No. 26-07 — A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Bellflower to set a public hearing regarding the intent to grant a water franchise to Bellflower -Somerset Mutual Water Company.
City Manager Smoot introduced the item.
Assistant City Manager/ Director of Public Works Gorecki 1) provided a brief verbal presentation of the Staff Report; and 2) responded to Council Members' questions.
Following brief discussion, it was moved by Council Member Dunton, seconded by Council Member Koops, and unanimously carried by the following roll call vote to adopt Resolution No. 26-07:
AYES: Council Members — Dunton, Koops, Morse, Sanchez, and Mayor Santa Ines
14 CONSIDERATION ITEMS
A Consideration and possible action related to the Simms Park Stormwater Project.
City Manager Smoot introduced the item.
For the record, Council Member Koops 1) announced that he would recuse himself from this item due to a conflict of interest as he owns property within 500 feet of the subject property; and 2) left the dais and Council Chambers at 7:42 pm.
Assistant City Manager/ Director of Public Works Gorecki 1) provided a PowerPoint presentation of the Staff Report; and 2) responded to Council Members' questions along with City Manager Smoot.
At the request of Council Member Dunton, Assistant City Manager/Director Gorecki 1) confirmed the stormwater system at Caruthers Park does not currently work as expected since it was a very early iteration of this kind of project, but the City is working to retrofit the system so that it will work better in the future, noting that the Simms Park Stormwater Project will have the newer functionality built in; and 2) stated that the ongoing maintenance is approximately $150,000 per year and is included in the City's annual Measure W allocation, noting that that funding can only be used for stormwater projects.
At the request of Mayor Pro Tem Sanchez, Assistant City Manager/Director Gorecki clarified that the grant was written strictly for the stormwater project, noting that the sports fields are a component of it.
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
14 CONSIDERATION ITEMS — Continued
Item No. 14-A
A Consideration and possible action related to the Simms Park Stormwater Project — Continued
For the record, City Manager Smoot 1) explained that during the previous discussion, staff reviewed what the project would look like if the stormwater project were not pursued, including the associated timeline and funding; 2) noted that the sports fields component would be partially unfunded without the stormwater project; and 3) stated that staff submitted additional funding applications and outlined the timelines for the City Council.
At the request of Mayor Santa Ines, Assistant City Manager/Director Gorecki 1) confirmed that the $13 million allocated to the City would be returned to the Watershed Area Steering Committee (WASC) if the project were cancelled, noting that the funds would go back into the funding pool to be reallocated to another city's project currently in the queue; and 2) explained that approximately $2.5 million of Measure A parks grant funding could be used for an alternative project if the main project were to be cancelled.
Following lengthy discussion, City Manager Smoot suggested modifying the recommendation to be conditioned upon the approval of the pending funding applications, or if the funding applications are not successful, staff would return to the City Council for further direction rather than cancelling the project.
It was moved by Mayor Pro Tem Sanchez, seconded by Council Member Dunton, and carried by the following roll call vote to direct the City Manager to 1) move forward with the stormwater capture project and release an RFP soliciting bids to begin construction, conditioned upon the approval of pending funding applications; and 2) if funding applications are denied, return to the City Council for further direction:
AYES: Council Members — Dunton, Morse, Sanchez, and
Mayor Santa Ines
RECUSE: Council Members — Koops
For the record, Council Member Koops returned to the Council Chambers and dais at 8:14 p.m.
15 CONSENT CALENDAR
For the record, supplemental materials for Items 15-D (February 23, 2026, Regular Meeting Minutes) and 15-E (destruction of obsolete records) were distributed to the City Council and made available to the public prior to the start of the meeting.
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
Item No. 15
15 CONSENT CALENDAR — Continued
It was moved by Council Member Koops, seconded by Council Member Morse, and unanimously carried by the following roll call votes, to approve the actions stipulated on the Consent Calendar:
AYES: Council Members — Dunton, Koops, Morse, Sanchez, and Mayor Santa Ines
A Consideration and possible action to receive and file Warrant Register No. 26-091, dated March 9, 2026.
Action: Received and filed Warrant Register No. 26-091.
B Consideration and possible action to approve the Minutes of the February 9, 2026, Special Meeting of the City Council.
Action: Approved the February 9, 2026, Special Meeting Minutes.
C Consideration and possible action to approve the Minutes of the February 9, 2026, Regular and Special Meetings of the City Council.
Action: Approved the February 9, 2026, Regular and Special Meetings Minutes.
D Consideration and possible action to approve the Minutes of the February 23, 2026, Regular Meeting of the City Council.
Action: Approved the February 23, 2026, Regular Meeting Minutes, as amended.
E Consideration and possible action to adopt Resolution No. 26-06 — A Resolution authorizing the destruction of obsolete records from all City Departments.
Action: Adopted Resolution No. 26-06, as amended.
F Consideration and possible action to receive and file Official Travel Report — California Contract Cities Association Fall Education Summit, September 5 - 7, 2025 (Pursuant to AB 1234).
Action: Received and filed Official Travel Report for the California Contract Cities Association Fall Education Summit, September 5 - 7, 2025.
G Consideration and possible action to receive and file Official Travel Report — California Joint Powers Insurance Authority Annual Risk Management Education Forum, October 1 - 3, 2025 (Pursuant to AB 1234).
Action: Received and filed Official Travel Report for the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority Annual Risk Management Education Forum, October 1 - 3, 2025.
H Consideration and possible action to authorize the City Manager to execute Agreement File No. 970.1 1127 with M. Wilson Company Contractors, Inc. for On -Call Electrical Maintenance Services.
Action: Authorized the City Manager to execute Agreement File No. 907.1 "27 with M. Wilson Company Contractors, Inc., in a form approved by the City Attorney.
Bellflower City Council Minutes
March 9, 2026
15 CONSENT CALENDAR — Continued
Item No. 16
Consideration and possible action to authorize the City Manager to execute Agreement File No. 1083.2 with Built Rite Fence Company for On -Call Fence Maintenance Services.
Action: Authorized the City Manager to execute Agreement File No. 1083.2 with Built Rite Fence Company, in a form approved by the City Attorney. 16 COUNCIL REPORTS
Mayor Santa Ines made various comments and reports.
For the record, and without objection, Mayor Santa Ines requested the meeting be adjourned in memory Allen Gerard "Al" Venuti.
17 ADJOURNMENT
Without objection, Mayor Santa Ines adjourned the meeting at 8:18 p.m., in memory of Allen Gerard "Al" Venuti to the next Regular Meeting of the Bellflower City Council at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 23, 2026.
Sonny R. Santa Ines, Mayor
City of Bellflower
ATTEST:
1 Mayr: Och'qui, C
App oved: April 13, 2026