1 MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL
CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBER
38300 SIERRA
HIGHWAY,
SUITE
B
PALMDALE, CALIFORNIA
FEBRUARY 18, 2026
www.cityofpalmdale.org
1)
CALL MEETING
TO
ORDER
Mayor Ohlsen called the meeting to order at 5:02 pm.
Note: All City Council memberships are reflected in their City Council titles.
2)
ROLL CALL
MAYOR
OHLSEN,
MAYOR
PRO TEM
BISHOP,
COUNCILMEMBERS
LOA,
BETTENCOURT,
ALARCÓN
PRESENT: Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
ABSENT: None.
3)
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE AND MOMENT OF
SILENCE
Councilmember Loa led the pledge of allegiance.
Interim City Manager Mendez removed item 4.5 from the agenda to return at a later date.
4)
CONSENT
CALENDAR
The following individuals provided public comments: Jason Zink discussed item s
4.5 and 4.7, as well as
various topics. Roger Soderstedt spoke about Arnie Quiones Park
,
specifically the picnic and K
-
rails.
Mayor Ohlsen closed the public comments for
the
Consent Calendar.
The following items were pulled for discussion by Councilmembers: 4.2, 4.7, 4.8. and 4.9.
4.1)
Waive full reading of the Resolution(s) and/or Ordinance(s) to be considered and voted on at this meeting. (This allows for reading the title only in lieu of reciting the entire text).
4.2)
Approve First Amendment with Wilson Events Incorporated for booking and
onsite production services, increasing the agreement by $335,680 for a total
2 not to exceed amount of $585,680 for a term of one
-
year with an option to
extend an additional one
-
year term.
Director Smith presented the staff report.
Councilmember Loa inquired about the existing contract amount ,
and Director
Smith stated it was about a $300,000 contract to start. Further discussion ensued regarding extending the contract.
Motion: Approve First Amendment with Wilson Events Incorporated for booking and onsite production services.
Moved by Austin Bishop, seconded by Andrea Alarcón.
Vote: Motion carried (5
-
0)
Yes: Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
4.3)
Authorize an Energy Storage Resource Adequacy Agreement between Circle
City Energy Storage LLC, an ENGIE
company,
and California Choice
Energy
Authority on behalf of Energy for Palmdale’s Independent Choice (EPIC) for
the purchase of Resource Adequacy long
-
term, mid
-
term reliability capacity
for a term of ten years.
4.4)
Approve Final Tract Map No. 53920
-
1 (located at the intersection of Kingman
Drive and Westgate
Drive).
4.5)
Approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with WM pursuant to Conditional Use Permit (CUP) 98
-
12. Interim City Manager Mendez removed item 4.5 from the agenda to return at a later date.
4.6)
Approve Requisition with SiteOne Landscape
Supply,
LLC for landscape
aggregate, boulders, and materials in an amount not to exceed $200,000 for
Fiscal
Year
2025
-
26. 4.7)
Receive and file the City of Palmdale’s 2025
-
2030
Five
-
Year
Capital
Improvement Plan.
Deputy Director Wu provided a PowerPoint presentation.
Councilmember Bettencourt requested that a public link be provided on the City's website regarding street work.
Director Torres stated that an interactive map would be added to the website in the future.
3 Mayor Pro Tem Bishop discussed incorporating an AI chatbot into the website.
Councilmember Alarcón inquired about the CIP package maps included for
each section, specifically the street projects list and the traffic map related to District 5. Director
Torres
provided clarification on the district projects.
Councilmember Alarcón preferred continuing the item. Councilmember Loa
concurred with Councilmember Alarcón and suggested additional time would be needed to study the item. Mayor Pro
Tem
Bishop discussed the traffic
light
map. There was further discussion among Council and staff on making a
designation or distinction between the Council districts, redevelopment of the
Chimbole Cultural Center and the
Library,
and tabling the
item.
Motion: Bring this item back to a meeting with
the
incorporation of all projects
moving forward in the 5
-
year time span.
Moved by Andrea Alarcón, seconded by Richard J. Loa.
Vote: Motion carried (5
-
0)
Yes: Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
4.8)
Approve Second Amendment to Agreement with Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA) for additional design review services for the Palmdale Boulevard and Sierra Highway Railroad Crossing Safety Upgrades Project, and increasing costs of $445,500.
Councilmember Loa recused himself from this item and stepped away from the dais due to the project being in proximity to his office.
Motion: Approve Second Amendment to Agreement with Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA) for additional design review services for the Palmdale Boulevard and Sierra Highway Railroad Crossing Safety Upgrades Project.
Moved by Austin Bishop, seconded by Laura Bettencourt.
Vote: Motion carried (4
-
0)
Yes: Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
Councilmember Loa returned to the dais.
4.9)
Approve the minutes from the previous meeting.
Councilmember
Alarcón
requested that further information be added to
the
minutes on page 6, Item 10, to be revised to more accurately reflect the
meeting discussion specifically related to bringing back a resolution as an action item.
Motion: Approve the minutes from the 2/11 and 2/12 meetings.
4 Moved by Andrea Alarcón, seconded by Richard J. Loa.
Vote: Motion carried (5
-
0)
Yes:
Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea
Alarcón.
Motion: Approve all items listed on the agenda with the exception of items 4.2,
4.5,
4.7, 4.8, and 4.9.
Moved by Richard J. Loa, seconded by Austin Bishop.
Vote: Motion carried (5
-
0)
Yes:
Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
5)
NEW BUSINESS
5.1) Discuss a potential amendment to the Palmdale Municipal Code (Chapter
2.08.040) regarding regular meeting date, time, place, and provide direction to staff.
The following individuals provided public input: Eugene Hernandez and Jason Zink.
Councilmember
Alarcón
requested additional background on the chosen
meeting day,
and Mayor Pro Tem Bishop provided the background for moving the meetings to Tuesdays. Councilmember Loa spoke regarding the meeting day,
and the venue selected for the recent Special meetings.
Motion: Keep meetings as is.
Moved by Austin Bishop, seconded by Richard J. Loa.
Vote:
Motion carried (5
-
0)
Yes: Eric Ohlsen, Austin Bishop, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea Alarcón.
6)
CITY MANAGER’S
REPORT
I
nterim City Manager Mendez provided an update on several upcoming events including: West
C
oast Classical
’s Spring Fling
at the Palmdale Playhouse on
February 28; News and announcements
on
February 3
rd
,
the
President signed a bill
designating $2 million dollars for the Rancho Vista grade separation with the help of Congressman Whitesides and Council;
he
announced EIFD is seeking to fill a
vacancy and the deadline to apply is February 26; the City is seeking input via an online survey on mural projects for Courson Park thru March 5; and announced the nomination for the Veteran of the Year Award
is open until March 31.
5 7)
SHERIFF’S
REPORT
Captain Bardon provided a recap of the year and an update on January response times for routine calls for service, working with the Partners Against Crime Team,
Part
1 Crimes, gang
-
related shootings, arrests, firearms recovered, graffiti, collisions, and
traffic citations. He announced the upcoming Interfaith Prayer Breakfast and the Haunted Jail event on October 3.
Councilmember Loa
asked about the number of traffic citations issued for
red light
violations. Captain Bardon stated
that
a majority of the citations are for speeding.
8)
NON
-
AGENDA PUBLIC
COMMENTS
The following individuals provided public input:
Eugene Hernandez discussed an AV
Press article related to AV Edge; Drew Mercy
provided
an update on
AV Edge
projects and events
; Jason Zink discussed city work hours, flooding,
and other topics;
Lou Walker commented regarding programming in the Antelope Valley and reserving event space at a city park; Marcos Alvarez discussed the
Council meeting time and
a
n item
that was passed in Pasadena related to
federal
immigration enforcement;
Emmet spoke on immigration
enforcement
raids and thanked the Sheriff's
Department;
a gentleman
spoke about immigration
enforcement
and requested a
plan of action; Felix
and Sonia
spoke on a potential resolution
related to immigration
enforcement
;
and
Irving
and another gentleman
thanked Council for incorporating
translation services at the meeting and stated
their
concerns regarding
immigration
enforcement
.
9)
COUNCIL REPORTS, ANNOUNCEMENTS AND REQUESTS FOR
FUTURE
AGENDA
ITEMS
Councilmember Alarcón requested a quarterly report from AV Edge as an agenda item
and asked AV Edge
to provide subsidized events for veterans, seniors, and fixed
-
income residents.
Also, she r
equested
that a resolution regarding
federal
i
mmigration
e
nforcement be brought back to
the next meeting to obtain Council and
community input. Mayor Ohlsen and Councilmember Alarcón discussed scheduling a meeting to draft a
resolution to bring back to the Council for feedback and consideration.
Motion: Bring back a draft resolution
to
the next meeting
on
f
ederal
i
mmigration
e
nforcement.
Moved by Andrea Alarcón, seconded by Eric Ohlsen.
Vote:
Motion carried (4
-
0)
Yes:
Eric Ohlsen, Richard J. Loa, Laura Bettencourt, Andrea
Alarcón.
Abstain: Austin
Bishop.
Councilmember Bettencourt requested an update on the City logo.
6 Mayor Pro Tem Bishop thanked the City staff.
Mayor Ohlsen made a statement regarding communication among Council, staff, and residents.
10)
CLOSED SESSION
City Attorney confirmed the items listed.
Public comments: None.
10.1 )
CONFERENCE
WITH
LEGAL
COUNSEL
–
EXISTING
LITIGATION
Sheils
v.
City of Palmdale
Los Angeles Superior Court 25STCV05268
This closed session is being held pursuant to the authority of California
Government Code Section 54956.9, subdivision (d)(1).
10.2 )
CONFERENCE
WITH
LEGAL
COUNSEL
–
EXISTING
LITIGATION
Concerning CV Communities, LLC
v.
Antelope Valley
-
East
Kern
Water
Agency,
et al.
Los Angeles Superior Court 20STCV10953
This
closed
session is being held pursuant to the authority of California
Government
Code
Section 54956.9(d)(1).
10.3 )
PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT
Title: City Manager
This closed session is being
held
pursuant to the authority of California
Government Code Section 54957.
10.4 )
PUBLIC EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE
EVALUATION
Title:
City
Attorney
This
closed session is being held pursuant to the authority of California Government Code Section 54957.
11)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY CITY
ATTORNEY
Closed Session was held from 6:51 pm to 8:42
pm.
City Attorney Severino announced the
following:
10.1 -
There was no reportable
action.
10.2 -
There was no reportable
action.
10.3 -
There was no reportable
action.
7 Interim City Manager Mendez reported the following:
10.4 -
Council authorized the initiation of City Attorney
recruitment.
12)
ADJOURNMENT.
Mayor Ohlsen adjourned the meeting at 8:44 pm to March 3, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chamber located at 38300 Sierra Highway, Suite B, Palmdale, California.
PASSED, APPROVED, and ADOPTED this 3rd day of March 2026.
Eric Ohlsen,
Mayor
ATTEST:
Rochelle Scott, City Clerk
Eric
Ohlsen
(
Mar
9 ,
2026
09 :
03 :
40
PDT
)
Rochelle
Scott
(
Mar
9 ,
2026
10 :
40 :
03
PDT
)
Rochelle
Scott