THE CITY COUNCIL/CALEXICO COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY SUCCESSOR AGENCY/CALEXICO FINANCING AUTHORITY MET IN REGULAR SESSION ON THE 5TH DAY OF MARCH 2025 AT 5:30 P.M. AT THE FERNANDO "NENE" TORRES COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 608 HEBER AVENUE, CALEXICO, CALIFORNIA. THE DATE, HOUR AND PLACE DULY ESTABLISHED FOR THE HOLDING OF SAID MEETING.
CLOSED SESSION - 5:30 PM
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Nuricumbo called the closed session portion of the meeting to order at 5:31 p.m.
ROLL CALL
PRESENT:
Mayor: Diana Nuricumbo
Mayor Pro Tem: Victor Legaspi
Council Member: Lisa Tylenda
Council Member: Adriana Marquez
Council Member: Lorenzo Calderon
PUBLIC COMMENTS:
Public comment received via email from Russell Betts.
ADJOURN TO CLOSE SESSION
City Council adjourned to closed session at 5:33 p.m. to discuss the following:
1. CONFERENCE WITH LABOR NEGOTIATORS
Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.6
Agency Representatives: Juan Contreras, Acting City Manager, Carlos Campos, City Attorney Employee Organizations: Certified Operators Association/SEIU Local 221
2. CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATORS
Property: Heffernan Ave. & 1st Street Bus Station
Agency Negotiator: Acting City Manager and City Attorney Negotiating Parties: United States of America
Under Negotiation: Price and Terms
3. PUBLIC EMPLOYEE APPOINTMENT
Title: Interim City Manager and City Manager
The City Council reconvened from close session at 6:20 p.m.
CALEXICO CITY COUNCIL/CALEXICO REDEVELOPMENT
SUCCESOR AGENCY /CALEXICO FINANCE AUTHORITY
OPEN SESSION - 6:30 P.M.
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Nuricumbo called the open session portion of the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m.
ROLL CALL
PRESENT:
Mayor: Diana Nuricumbo
Mayor Pro Tem: Victor Legaspi
CITY COUNCIL MINUTES PAGE | 2 MARCH 5, 2025
Council Member: Lisa Tylenda
Council Member: Adriana Marquez
Council Member: Lorenzo Calderon
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Council Member Caldero led those present in the Pledge of Allegiance.
MISSION STATEMENT
Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi led those present in the Mission Statement.
INVOCATION
Pastor Frank Zazueta led those present in prayer.
CLOSED SESSION ANNOUNCEMENTS
City Attorney Carlos Campos reported council met in closed session, direction received, no reportable action.
APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
City Attorney Campos stated staff's recommendation was to table Item No. 11 and bring back at a future date.
Motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, seconded by Council Member Calderon to approve the agenda and table Item No. 11. Motion passed unanimously.
PRESENTATIONS
4. Presentation: La Jolla Palms Subdivision Street Improvements.
Public Works Manager provided a brief presentation.
PUBLIC COMMENTS AND PUBLIC APPEARANCES
The following persons provided public comments to council: Raul Ureña, Jesus Solano, Liliana Hernandez, Gloria Romo, Joseph Guilin, Yolanda Cunningham, Beatriz Rosette, Jesus Rosette, Jonathan Rangel, Pat Ureña, Jessica Perez.
Gonzalez, Álejandra Guerrero, Karla Ibarra, Carmen Estrada and David Saunders.
CITY MANAGER'S REPORT
Acting City Manager Contreras reported on the following items: thanked the department heads and city staff for their continuous hard work; traffic controllers were relocated to the administration building at Fire Station No. 1; welcomed new Animal Control Officer Noe Aguilar; had a meeting regarding cross border collaboration with Mexicali Police Chief, Mayor Nuricumbo, Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, Police Chief Orozco and Mexicali Director of Public Safety to establish cooperative effort between the two agencies; newly established investigations unit at the police department; staff applied for a grant application for ABC enforcement; staff removed all trash inside the Chamber of Commerce building; staff finalized the trimming of 2nd St. and 3rd St. palm trees; staff attended the ICTC Technical Advisory Committee meeting in El Centro; staff assisted ICTC with cleaning of 3rd St., Rockwood Ave. and Heffernan Ave. for the ribbon cutting event; staff assisted the Police Department with the removal of trash/debris in downtown; a tour of the New River Improvement Project - Calexico Reach was attended by city staff, Mayor Nuricumbo, Colorado River Basin Regional Quality Control Board, International Boundary Water Commission, Border Patrol-El Centro Sector, Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz Representative, Mexican Consulate, Imperial Irrigation District, Imperial County Public Health-Environmental Division, Mountain Cascade, Inc., and Dynamic Consulting Engineers; CITY COUNCIL MINUTES PAGE | 3 MARCH 5, 2025
received the first invoice from the CDBG grant that was submitted in October for Fire Station #2; will receive reimbursement of $690,516.06 with the second submittal at the end of the month; staff is working on a community platform for code enforcement and building permits to be submitted electronically; invited the public to the Candle Lit concert at the Calexico Carmen Durazo Cultural Arts Center on March 21, 2025; both the Mardi Gras dance and the Woman's Day Paint Night were a success; this Thursday at 5:00 pm the Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Memorial Library will celebrate Read Across America; the Carnegie Hall/Technology Center has been open and the Library received $16,522.00 for the Lunch at the Library Grant Program.
CITY COUNCIL COMMENTS AND REPORTS OF MEETINGS ATTENDED
Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi reported on the following items: met with Mayor Nuricumbo, Acting City Manager, volunteer community members at Nosotros Park to work on pending items; thanked Public Works Manger Falomir for the vandalism clean-up in the parks; met with Mayor Nuricumbo, Police Chief Orozco, Mexicali Police Chief and Authorities at city hall for continuous collaboration between agencies; met with Mayor Nuricumbo and Behavioral Health Supervisors and staff members regarding assistance being provided to our community with the unhoused population; met with Mayor Nuricumbo, Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz Representative, ICTC and Caltrans regarding City needs; met with Council Member Calderon and community members regarding several topics.
Council Member Tylenda reported on the following items: groundbreaking for the new transportation center located on 3"d Street; met with ICTC regarding short and long term planning to address southbound traffic issues; meeting with businesses in downtown regarding the parking meters that will be on the council agenda soon; in regards to Prop 218, previous council approved a contract with Republic Services back on October 2, 2019 and became effective in 2020 and ends in 2030. As per the contract, the solid waste rate increase is supposed to happen annually, as per the CPI, but has been deferred by direction of previous council; stated the city is contractually obligated and has not been keeping its side of the contract; encouraged everyone who wants more information to view the full contract.
Council Member Marquez reported on the following items: attended the Juvenile Justice Commission meeting to find ways to bring additional services to our community; thanked the Probation Department for bringing volunteers that helped at Rodriguez Park; met with the Calexico Fire Department regarding department needs and how council can support them; met with Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi regarding the upgrade and makeover of the city's social media and communications, received concerns from residents not being able to make comments during the Council meetings; met with community members to address concerns regarding the Home Key Program; met with Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi and Recreation Manager Gerardo in regards to the overview of future city celebrations; met with Ms. Gerardo and Jimmy Duron regarding the Candle Lit Concert that will bring art and entertainment to the community.
Council Member Calderon reported on the following items: attended the Mexican Flag Day Ceremony at the Mexican Consulate in Calexico; attended the ICTC Transportation Center groundbreaking ceremony; visited the animal shelter located near the airport and stated the facilities are in very need of repair and thanked staff for the tour of the facility; toured the water facility and mentioned that it is antiquated but very well maintained and the need to invest in new equipment to sustain future housing and business development and thanked Ivan and Jesus for the tour; toured the Calexico International Airport and expressed that it was antiquated but very clean and thanked Jerry for being very informative and explaining on new ideas that can be done with the airport and was very impressed by all the famous people that flown into Calexico.
Mayor Nuricumbo reported on the following items: met with Congressman Raul Ruiz and District Director of Caltrans to find funding for the repair of the Anza Bridge and find alternatives to make the Calexico International Airport self- sustainable; toured the New River Project and find funding for the maintenance; met with various youth sports organizations to discuss the City's green areas.
Acting City Manager Contreras added that the Development Services Department has issued 105 building permits in the last month; working on fifteen new code enforcement cases; eight code enforcement cases have been closed; forty- five notices of violations have been issued; working on converting the zoning map from PDF to GIS and should be online by end of month.
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CONSENT AGENDA
Motion was made by Council Member Calderon, seconded by Council Member Marquez to approve the consent agenda consisting of the following items: Approval of City Council/Calexico Community Redevelopment Agency Successor Agency/Calexico Finance Authority Minutes for Meetings of July 31, 2023, February 19, 2025, February 22, 2025, February 26, 2025; Approval of Application for Alcoholic Beverage License for Calexico Market & Gas, 724 Emerson Avenue, Calexico, CA 92231. Motion passed unanimously.
DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS
ITEM NO. 7 ADOPT RESOLUTION APPOINTING RICHARD A. "RICK" DANIELS AS INTERIM CITY MANAGER PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTIONS 7522.56 AND 21221(h).
The following persons provided public comments to council: Raul Ureña, Pat Ureña, Beatriz Rosette, Jesus Rosette, David Saunders, Norma Aguilar, Jonathan Rangel, Leticia Cota, David Saunders, Russell Betts Motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, seconded by Council Member Tylenda to approve Item No. 7 with revisions to Section 4.1 and 4.2,, making the termination mutual with 14-day notice. Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 8 2024-25 2"d QUARTER BUDGET STATUS REPORT AND RESOLUTION TO AMEND THE 2024-25 BUDGET.
The following persons provided public comments to council: Raul Ureña, Daniela Flores and Karla Ibarra.
Motion was made by Council Member Calderon, seconded by Council Member Tylenda to approve Item No. 8.
Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 9 INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE REGULATING COMAPING ON PUBLIC OR PRIVATE PROPERTY.
The following persons provided public comments to council: Norma Aguilar, Maribel Padilla, Beatriz Rosette, Raul Ureña, Yesenia Higuera, Kathia Lara, Isabel Ureña, Ricardo Ortega, Ricardo Romero, Gael Garcia, Giovanni Neri, Daniela Flores, Alondra Avitia, Martha Cota, Celeste Aguilar, Johanna Espinoza, Irene Romero, Ismael Arvizu, Gilberto Manzanarez, Juan Valencia, Rebecca Lemon, Dylan Castillo, Vanessa Kilps, Ivana Gerardo, Caroline Calderon, Victoria Lara, Stefanie Rodriguez, Raquel Lara, Johanna Landeros, Sylvia Peterson, Gissel Regla, Cristina Gutierrez, Winter Garcia, Carlos Carlon, Randy Galvan, Dayana Godoy, Ginger Veliz, Abigail Dominguez, Darinka Dominguez, Iliana Gonzalez., Ashley Gutierrez, Charlotte Mascareno and Jonathan Ramsey.
Motion was made by Council Member Tylenda, seconded by Council Member Legaspi to extend meeting past 9:30 p.m.
Mayor Nuricumbo called for a 5-minute recess at 10:10 p.m.
Council reconveyed at 10:17 p.m.
Motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, seconded by Council Member Marquez to approve Item No. 9. Motion passed unanimously
ITEM NO. 10 ADOPT A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CALEXICO AUTHORIZING THE SURPLUS OF A MODULAR TRAILER.
The following person provided public comments to council: Beatriz Rosette Motion was made by Council Member Calderon, seconded by Council Member Marquez to approve Item No. 10.
Motion passed unanimously.
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ITEM NO. 11 APPROVAL OF BID DOCUMENTS FOR ADRIAN C. CORDOVA MEMORIAL PARK
SPEED HUMPS PROJECT AND AUTHORIZE THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO SEND THE PROJECT OUT TO BID.
This item was tabled for a future date.
ITEM NO. 12 APPROVE RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDSING BETWEEN THE CALEXICO BORDER PAWS RESCUE AND THE CITY OF CALEXICO.
The following person provided public comments to council: Beatriz Rosette Motion was made by Council Member Calderon, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi to approve Item No. 12.
Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 13 ACCEPT AND/OR AMEND AGENDA POLICY.
Motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, seconded by Council Member Tylenda to accept the agenda policy as is and be strictly followed. Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 14 AUTHORIZE ACTING CITY MANAGER TO SIGN AGREEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BETWEEN THE CITY OF CALEXICO AND NICKLAUS ENGINEERING, INC. IN THE AMOUNT OF $97,902.06 FOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT, GEOTECHNICAL AND INSPECTION SERVICES FOR SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENT (GRANT ST., CALEXICO ST. AND VAN DE GRAAFF AVE.) FEDERAL PROJECT NO. CML-5168(036).
Motion was made by Council Member Calderon, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi to approve Item No. 14.
Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 15 SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENT (GRANT ST., CALEXICO ST. AND VAN DE GRAAFF AVE.) FEDERAL PROJECT NO. CML-5168(036):
a) AWARD BID PROPOSAL FROM ROVE ENGINEERING, INC. IN THE AMOUNT OF $647,289.00.
b) AUTHORIZE ACTING CITY MANAGER TO SIGN A CONSTRUCTION AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF CALEXICO AND ROVE ENGINEERING, INC. IN THE AMOUNT OF $647,289.00 FOR SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENT (GRANT ST., CALEXICO ST. AND VAN DE GRAAFF AVE.) FEDERAL PROJECT NO. CML-5168(036).
c) AUTHORISE ACTING CITY MANAGER TO APPROVE ANY FUTURE CHANGE ORDERS NOT-TO-EXCEED $64,728.90 (10% OF ROVE ENGINEERING, INC. BASE BID + ALTERNATE BID) AS PER CITY ORDINANCE NO. 1218.
Motion was made by Council Member Marquez, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi to approve Item No. 15.
Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 16 APPROVAL OF BID DOCUMENTS FOR ENRIQUE CAMARENA MEMORIAL LIBRARY, COMMUNITY CENTER, AND POLICE DEPT. PARKING LOT REHABILITATION PROJECT NO. 2025-300 AND AUTHORIZE THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO SEND THE PROJECT OUT TO BID.
The following person provided public comments to council: Jose Hinojosa Motion was made by Council Member Tylenda, seconded by Council Member Calderon to approve Item No. 16.
Motion passed unanimously.
ITEM NO. 17 INFORMATIONAL ITEM: FUND NO. 233 - LOCAL TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY/MEASURE D CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM FY 2024-2025 CITY COUNCIL MINUTES PAGE | 6 MARCH 5, 2025
Public Works Manager provided brief presentation.
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi requested the following items: None.
Council Member Tylenda requested the following items: monthly department memos on the projects being worked on; add department head comments in the agenda so they have a chance to highlight their projects.
Council Member Marquez requested the following items: provide information in Spanish to residents when the City is required to do so; look into payroll errors mentioned so employees can receive accurate payment; provide information/guidance to the community member that asked about the snack bar at the baseball field; look into the ordinance regarding trash cans sitting on the curb.
Council Member Calderon requested the following items: presentation on the status of the Heber Pak Project by April 3, 2025; presentation on future compliance needs for water and wastewater facilities; status report of cannabis business licenses and the revenue contribution to the City by May 7, 2025; a schedule for the City sweeper and put it on the website so residents can be prepared.
Mayor Nuricumbo requested the following items: thanked Acting City Manager Juan Contreras and welcomed Mr.
Daniels; asked Acting City Manager to follow up with Mr. Daniels regarding the MOU with the agency that is going to assist with the Heber Park and look for funding for the Water and Sewer Plants; City Clerk to start the interview process to fill the Commissions and be on the next agenda; start the process regarding the MOU with San Diego State; parking meters item on the next agenda; an update on the paramedics situation.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion was made by Mayor Pro Tem Legaspi, seconded by Council Member Marquez to adjourn meeting. Motion passed unanimously.
Meeting adjourned at 11:18 p.m.
Diana /Nuricumbo, Mayor
ATTEST:
Veronica L. Alvarado, City Clerk