Latest news with #CityCouncil
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
See what Independence city council members will discuss in June 2 meeting
The Independence City Council is meeting on Monday, June 2 at 6:00 p.m. in council chambers at City Hall, located at 111 E. Maple Ave. in Independence. You can attend in person or watch an online livestream of the meeting through the city's Youtube channel. The agenda can be found online ahead of the meeting, which will include a public hearing on the city's proposed 2025-2026 budget and a public hearing on the city's development ordinance related to rules on motor vehicle repair. Residents do not have to sign up ahead of time to speak at a public hearing, but will be asked to limit their comments to the topic of the hearing. Members of the public can make comments on other agenda items of the meeting in person. You can register to comment in person or by calling (816) 325-7010 before 6 p.m. Monday. A proposal to require fingerprint-based criminal background checks for private security guards citywide A ban on metal detectors and 'treasure hunting' in city parks An ordinance dismantling the city's tourism commission, which was established in December 2024. After the main agenda, councilmembers may go into a closed session to discuss ongoing legal actions involving the city.
New York Post
4 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Post
NYC Council trashes Mayor Adams over Sanitation budget cuts
Mayor Eric Adams is losing his 'war on rats' — in large part because his administration refuses to fully fund a Sanitation Department unit dealing with a backlog of more than 1,700 garbage-strewn lots that need to be cleaned, a majority of City Council members said this week. Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens) fired off a bipartisan letter last week to the mayor signed by 30 council members demanding the city pump another $2.6 million yearly into agency's Lot Cleaning Unit back to pre-pandemic levels of 108 employees in 2019. The unit has since shrunk to 10 workers assigned to clean city-owned lots and vacant lots in the five boroughs. Advertisement 4 This debris-filled vacant lot on Baltimore Street on Staten Island is one more than 1,700 such abandoned or city-owned lots on a waiting list for the Sanitation Department of clean, according to the City Council. Obtained by the New York Post 'These [lots] are not only unsightly and unsafe, but they are also infested with rats and other vermin that spread disease,' Ariola wrote. 'Considering the resources your administration has poured into its 'War on Rats,' we expected that tackling these filthy areas in every borough would be a priority.' Advertisement Adams' proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 includes $820,277 for lot cleaning, increases the unit's staff to 15 and it's funding to $1.6 million by fiscal 2029. 4 Twenty-nine City Council members signed off a letter demanding Mayor Eric Adams pour another $2.6 million yearly into cleaning up vacant lots. Luiz Rampelotto/ZUMA / That's not enough, said council members who have been forced to use their discretionary funds to supplement nonprofits and city sanitation workers cleaning filthy weed-strewn lots and traffic medians. 4 Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens) suggested in the letter that Adams is losing his 'war on rats' – in large part because his administration refuses to properly fund the Sanitation Department. Michael Nagle Advertisement 'Having a severely deficient lot cleaning program only undermines other efforts by DSNY and your administration to 'Get Stuff Clean,'' wrote Ariola, referring to the mayor's campaign to cleanup city streets. 'It also sends a hypocritical message to New Yorkers that, while residents are required to comply with the rules, to containerize their garbage and clean their own properties or else face fines and penalties, their own city government has no such responsibility. 'We once again ask that you provide DSNY the funding they need to rectify this problem.' 4 A debris-filled vacant lot on Chandler Street in Far Rockaway. Obtained by the New York Post Advertisement The backlog of vacant lots desperately needing a cleaning include one on Chandler Street near Motts Basin in Far Rockaway, Queens, and another disaster at 75 Baltimore Street in Great Kills, Staten Island, according to council members. Both are garbage-filled, weed-strewn eyesores that have become neighborhood dumping grounds covered with abandoned shopping carts, mattresses, furniture and other debris. Rodent complaints to 311 spiked nearly 8% during Adams first two years in office — despite his ballyhooed multi-million dollar war on rats and vow from Day One to make headway against the vermin, The Post has reported. Updated statistics were not immediately available. Sanitation Department spokesman Joshua Goodman insisted Mayor Adams proposed budget for next fiscal year 'makes greater investments in a cleaner city than ever before.' 'The increased funding for cleaning vacant lots allows us to focus on those that pose health risks, those located near schools or parks, and those receiving 311 service requests – not just in the coming year, but for years to come,' he said. 'We can always do more with more, and we look forward to working with the Council to ensure resources are allocated efficiently to areas of greatest need.'
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Incoming City Council president said he felt 'threatened' by another City Councilman
There was a tense moment in a Jacksonville City Council meeting this week. Incoming City Council president Kevin Carrico, said he felt 'threatened' by City Councilman Matt Carlucci and requested that the sergeant at arms remove Carlucci from council chambers. The two were debating a bill that would make some changes to the Downtown Investment Authority. Carrico is the sponsor of that bill. It would enable the DIA to file legislation directly with the council president, thereby sidestepping the Mayor's budget review process. It would also require the DIA's CEO to be confirmed by the council, and gives the council and/or the DIA Board the authority to remove the CEO with a majority vote. Councilman Carlucci is not a member of the special committee on the future of downtown. But he helped put the DIA together. He said the DIA is meant to be independent. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< 'The DIA has its own board,' Carlucci said. 'They hire and then they fire the DIA board, who the executive director or the CEO reports to. That's the way it should stay.' Councilman Carrico said, 'With autonomy comes accountability. It is not a power trip, it's an accountability thing. The likelihood of the council wanting to remove a CEO would be pretty extreme.' In a video from Thursday's meeting, you can see Carlucci get up from his seat and stand near Carrico. That's when Carrico said he felt threatened. Action News Jax asked Carlucci what he was doing by approaching Carrico. Carlucci said, 'I walked up, as I normally do, before I leave a meeting early, and walked over to the chair and to say I'm leaving early. He was engaged in conversation.' We reached out to Councilman Kevin Carrico for an interview. He replied back saying 'no comment'. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Chicago Tribune
8 hours ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
City council approves $117M bond request to assist Valparaiso University plan for financial rescue
The Valparaiso City Council agreed unanimously to be the gateway for struggling Valparaiso University to have access to up to $117 million in issued bonds to help refinance existing debt and finance new projects, including building renovations. Ordinance No. 9 2025 passed with a second reading during a special council meeting Friday. At the council's May meeting when the ordinance was first introduced, Valparaiso University officials emphasized the need for the city's support by the first week of June to allow time for the bonds to be purchased. Council members Diana Reed, 1st District, Robert Cotton, 2nd District, Barbara Domer, D-3rd, Jack Pupillo, R-4th, and Council President Ellen Kapitan, D-At-large, attended Friday's meeting in person and voted in favor of the ordinance, as did Peter Anderson, R-5th, who joined the meeting remotely. Council member Emilie Hunt, D-At-large, was not able to attend, and nor was Mayor Jon Costas or Clerk-Treasurer Holly Taylor. City Attorney Patrick Lyp opened the special meeting by recapping the discussion and direction of Wednesday's Economic Development Commission. 'It's the recommendation of the Economic Development Commission that the City Council support and pass this ordinance in the best interest of the community,' Lyp said. 'And as I have continued to emphasize, the City Council is only serving as the needed conduit in order for VU to have access to these bonds in this timely manner. There is not any financial obligation or impact from the bonds being issued which would affect the city or taxpayers.' Lyp and Valparaiso University officials have also emphasized it is likely that even though the window of funds can extend up to $117 million in general obligation bonds, the latest calculations indicate that it is around $55 million which will likely be used by the university for financial needs. Mark Volpatti, the university's senior vice president for finance and chief financial officer, once again represented the university at Friday's council meeting and fielded what were only a few follow-up general questions. When Volpatti attended the May meeting when the ordinance was first introduced, he announced the university has sold or is concluding the sale of the three paintings, a topic which has drawn much public debate and criticism about the fate of the valued works, including Georgia O'Keeffe's 'Rust Red Hills.' He said the university is moving forward with its freshman village, noting the renovation work was being done without taking on debt and through 'the proceeds from the artwork.' The other artwork being sold are 'The Silver Veil and the Golden Gate' by Childe Hassam and Frederic E. Church's 'Mountain Landscape.' Among those from the public to speak during the public hearing portion of Friday's meeting was Valparaiso University Senior Professor John Ruff, who has invested years caring for the collection of works at the Brauer Museum of Art at Valparaiso University. He presented the council with a letter with more than 50 signatures representing a stance against the sale of any artwork. Ruff admonished the university for keeping the sale of the O'Keeffe painting 'secret' until it was reported by the media in mid-May. Volpatti addressed Ruff's remarks. 'My thoughts do turn to Richard Brauer and John Ruff and I can't imagine the emotions they've had the past two years,' Volpatti said. 'I respect and admire them and their passion for their career. If more people had such passion for their careers the world would be a better place. We have two camps about whether the sale of artwork should be used for the purchase of new artwork or let's look at the university as a whole and use the sale's funds where they are needed at this time. This is a philosophical question and one that won't be answered today.'
NBC News
8 hours ago
- General
- NBC News
A Japanese village that helped develop California's fishing industry could become container storage
From the turn of the 20th century to the early 1940s, a human-made island in San Pedro Bay held a flourishing Japanese American fishing village that helped develop Southern California's mighty seafood industry. On Terminal Island, more than 3,000 first- and second-generation immigrant fishermen from Japan, the issei and nisei, pioneered innovative techniques, like 6-foot bamboo poles and live bait, to catch albacore tuna and sardines. Their wives cleaned and packaged their bounties in the canneries. Then, during World War II, the entire community was uprooted and the village razed. The only remnants of the enclave are a pair of vacant buildings on Tuna Street, now dwarfed by colorful stacks of shipping containers and large green cranes that cover the island. The buildings are now under threat of demolition to make room for more containers, leading surviving Terminal Islanders and their descendants — now well past retirement age — to come together to try to save the last tangible connection to a largely forgotten legacy. 'These buildings are an integral part of American history that should never be forgotten,' said Paul Boyea, a board member of the Terminal Islanders Association, a group of about 200 former residents and their kin. In the past few months, advocates have made significant progress in saving the structures. In February, Councilmember Tim McOsker introduced a motion to designate the buildings as historic-cultural monuments, a status that would provide additional safeguards against demolition. In June, L.A.'s Cultural Heritage Commission will review the motion and decide whether to advance it for a vote before the City Council. This month, the National Trust for Historic Preservation put the buildings on its annual list of the 11 most endangered historic sites in America. Former Terminal Islanders recall scenes of families praying at a Shinto shrine and Buddhist temple, shopping at grocery stores, and watching movies and attending dances at Fisherman's Hall. Children practiced judo and played baseball. Boyea, 69, was born after the war and never lived on Terminal Island. But he said he's always felt a strong connection to the place where his mother was born, in 1919. His grandfather was a fishing fleet captain and president of the Japanese fishermen's association. The two buildings on Tuna Street, the commercial corridor of the Japanese village, housed the grocery A. Nakamura Co. and the dry goods store Nanka Shoten, both established more than a century ago. Efforts to preserve the buildings began two decades ago but gained momentum last May, when the Port of L.A., which owns a majority of the island, recommended demolishing them to create more storage space. Phillip Sanfield, the port's communications director, said that the department is working with Terminal Island advocates to hash out plans for the buildings and that no decision has yet been made. Terry Hara, president of the Terminal Islanders Association, described Tuna Street as the 'Broadway' of the Japanese fishing community. Hara's grandfather worked as a superintendent at a cannery, while his father and two uncles all became commercial fishermen. Terminal Island residents observed Japanese traditions, he said, holding mochi pounding celebrations on New Year's and dancing in kimonos at Girls' Day festivals. 'It was one big happy family,' said Hara, 67. 'Nobody locked their doors and families provided for one another when the need arose.' Geraldine Knatz, a maritime expert and co-author of 'Terminal Island: Lost Communities on America's Edge,' said Japanese residents made up roughly two-thirds of Terminal Island's population in the 1930s. The island, known in the early 20th century as 'L.A.'s Playground,' was also home to sizable numbers of artists, writers and lumber workers. 'It was a big, diverse community,' Knatz said. That all changed on Dec. 7, 1941, when Japanese planes bombed Pearl Harbor. The government quickly arrested hundreds of Japanese fishermen on suspicion that they were using fishing boats to spy for the Japanese military. They were sent to a federal prison; many didn't see their families for months. The following February, the remaining residents, mostly women and children, were given 48 hours to vacate the island. Around 800 Terminal Islanders were incarcerated in Manzanar concentration camp, and when they returned, almost the entire village had been bulldozed. With nowhere to live, many former residents resettled in Long Beach and the South Bay. 'The nisei didn't talk about incarceration because of the trauma,' Boyea said. In the 1970s, a group of survivors and descendants formed the Terminal Islanders Association to stay in touch through social events like annual picnics and New Year's celebrations. Later, members became involved in preservation and education efforts, partnering with the L..A Conservancy to set up a memorial in 2002 and now advocating for the restoration of the Tuna Street buildings. Preservationists and descendants of Terminal Island residents have suggested converting the buildings into a museum or an education center, or a general goods store for port workers on the island. 'These buildings could serve some kind of community function while still communicating their history in some way,' said Adam Scott Fine, chief executive of L.A. Conservancy. The number of surviving Terminal Island residents is dwindling. Less than two dozen are still alive, Hara said, including his mother, who is 100. As a descendent, he feels it's his obligation to honor the legacy they created. 'This is an American story, good or bad,' Hara said. 'We need to pass on the experience that took place to our children and grandchildren.'
