Welcome. We're now all here. Welcome, everybody. This is the City of Beverly Hills, City Council adjourned study session. Today is June 27, 2024, a little after 2.30. And we will start with a public comment on items that are not on our agenda. So, Fri, I have not been given any slips on items not on the agenda. If there's anybody here who has a slip on a non-agenda item, now would be the time to bring it up. Having seen nobody doing that, We'll go to the city clerk for any emails, video, audio, a non-agenda items. We do not have anyone for non-agenda or on written. Okay, very good then we will go to our first study session, agenda item. A number A1 discussion on memorializing the victims of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and our city manager is going to be presenting on that. Good afternoon, Mr. Mayor, members of the city council, Nancy Hunt Coffee, your city manager. Before I start, I do want to apologize. It is warm in here, apparently the air handler for this part of City Hall is not working at this time. So we have the other handler turned up full blast and we'll be bringing in some fans. So I do apologize to you and to the community that's joining us today for that. This afternoon we are looking for the City Council to discuss and provide direction on various options to memorialize the victims of the October 7th Hamas attack on Israel. As you are aware on October 7th, 2023, Hamas invaded Israel, killing civilians and soldiers while capturing at least 250 hostages on the Sabbath and a major Jewish holiday. The City Council took immediate action after this attack to recognize those that were murdered and kidnapped. We placed a Shabbat table at the front of City Hall with a place set for each of the kidnapped victims. We also placed flags in Beverly Gardens Park to commemorate those who lost their lives on October 7th. And the City Council passed a resolution on October 17th, condemning Hamas while expressing the city's unequivocal support of Israel. Since then, the city council has expressed interest to commemorate October 7 this year and moving forward, potentially in future years. A number of ideas have been mentioned to staff, including the possibility of reinstalling the flag display in Beverly Gardens Park. A short term display or memorial, October 7th is about three and a half months away. So perhaps something short term that is different from reinstalling the flags, providing an honorary designation to a city street or intersection and or creating a more permanent memorial to the victims of the attack. Just to walk through these options quickly, a city council will recall, we installed over 1,200 flags in Beverly Gardens Park. One flag represented each person that was murdered on October 7th, and the flag designation represents the nationality of each person that lost their lives that day. There have been some suggestions for short-term displays that could take place this October on October 7th. For example, lighting up City Hall or another area in blue, which we have done previously. Here's a picture of us honoring Israel previously. Or perhaps some, you know, a temporary display like the one that you see on the right side that tells more of a story. Another idea that has come forward is the possible honorary designation of a street city street or intersection. We have done this in the past. So here are some examples, the most relevant being Herzlway that was given an honorary designation over by Clark. We could also or additionally look at a permanent memorial or a permanent street renaming. We found a few examples elsewhere in the world where the fallen have been recognized. This one on the left is in Portugal. It's a memorial for those who lost their lives in 2023. And then the one on the right hand side is from the Maccabee World Union. So this was just a brief report to Tia, the discussion with the City Council members on vision that you have for a potential commemoration in 2024 this year and what that would look like this year. So things that we believe we could accomplish in the time before October 7th are returning the flags to the location in Beverly Gardens Park, a short term display or an honorary street designation. If the council is interested in a more permanent memorial or a permanent renaming of a street that would probably take a little bit longer but we could certainly start working on it now. With that we are happy to take any feedback or answer any questions. Thank you. Okay, thank you very much and we will go to public comment on item A1 and I have several comment cards and if we can start with Assemblyperson Rick Zabur, Shavez-Rabur's representative, Sherwin Shemble. is representative Sherwin Schumel. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Honorable Mayor, Honorable Vice Mayor, Honorable Council members, Sherwin Schmoyle from the Office of Assembly Member Rick Chavez-Ber in the wake of the acts of anti-semitism. We saw this weekend on Pico Robertson. Now, as much as ever, it is imperative we work to create a community that the Jewish community not only feels safe, worshiping in, but going about their lives. The assembly member is fully supportive of this body's efforts. And we are here to assist on this matter in any way we can. Thank you. And I'd also like to introduce our district director Robert Oliver, who joined me today. So thank you so much. Thank you both for being here. Next speaker card is Shervin and it looks like Nihen and I apologize if I've said that incorrectly from the United Jewish Coalition Thank you. It's Natan First off. Thank you for everything you guys have done for the community And keeping us all safe mayor and vice mayor and city council Ladies and gentlemen of the Beverly Hills City Council vice Vice Mayor and Mayor, esteemed residents and community members. Today we gather as a community in the heart of Beverly Hills in hopes to keep the spirit of the community high through tragedy. We stand before you with heavy hearts to pass A1 to honor and remember the victims of the tragic October 7th massacre that shook our community to its core. A memorial monument will hold profound significance in times of both triumph and tragedy. It stands as a symbol of remembrance, a steadfast marker ensuring that those we have lost are forever etched in our hearts and minds. This monument, which we propose today, will serve as more than just a physical structure. It will be a place of solace, reflection, and healing for all those who visit. Our duty today extends beyond mere remembrance. It's about resilience. It's about solidarity. It's about coming together as one Beverly Hills community to support each other through our shared grief and pain. This monument will unite. This monument will unite us in remembrance, reminding us of our strength as a community and our unwavering support for those affected. City council members, vice mayor mayor, it is our responsibility to ensure that this monument not only honors the past but also inspires hope for the future. It will stand as a testament to our resilience and our determination to overcome adversity. It will become a beacon of light guiding us forward with the knowledge that through unity and compassion we can heal and rebuild. Let us pledge today to move forward with the proposal A1 and determination. Let us pledge to never forget the lives that were tragically cut short and let us pledge to stand together in support of each other and our beloved Beverly Hills community. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next speaker card is Farzhi, some Marodi. I pronounce that incorrectly. Okay. Thank you. For those of you who couldn't hear, she's, she put in a card of support but does not wish to speak. Correct? Okay. Next one I have is from NARGIS. Zorakin toward. Good evening, esteemed council members and fellow residents. I stand before you today not only as someone who deeply loves this city, which has always been a sister city to Israel sharing its values and culture, but also as a Jewish mother. Today we need to push for a permanent memorial for October 7th, a day of profound tragedy and loss. This community has always had the moral clarity to stand up against hatred in all its forms. Establishing a memorial will not only honor the victims, but also serve as a powerful reminder to our citizens that atrocities of October 7 will never be forgotten or accepted. It's crucial to have this permanent memorial to ensure that future generations are aware of these events, and that no one can deny the horrific massacre that occurred. As a Jewish mother, I feel the urgency and importance of this memorial even more deeply. When we had the flag memorial, it effectively showed that many people lost, many people lost their lives on October 7th. It wasn't just Jewish people. The memorial helped educate and visually demonstrate that as one world, we all deserve the right to exist in peace. It was visited and shared by thousands of people becoming a staple for tourists and a powerful symbol of collective. I interacted just for one second. Oh my god, that's my baby. I just didn't want there to be a distraction while you were speaking. Okay. Where was I? Oh yeah. That we all deserve the right to exist in peace. It was visited and shared by thousands of people becoming a staple for tourists and powerful symbol of our collective humanity. A permanent memorial will symbolize our commitment to peace and safety to Jewish children, reflecting our hope for all, for a world, oh, sorry, for a world where they can grow up without fear. It will also reinforce that anti-Semitism won't be supported Sorry. Or a world where they can grow up without fear. It will also reinforce that anti-Semitism won't be supported here and that we stand united against all forms of hatred. Our city can set a powerful example for others by standing firm against hay and fostering a community of remembrance, resilience and peace. Thank you for your time. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Our next speaker is Sharon Nick. Good afternoon. Dear Mayor of Ice Mayor and Council members, as someone who has strong ties to the Beverly Hills community and is a staunch Zionist, and on behalf of the Iranian American Jewish Federation and the Israeli American Civic Action Network, I believe that the city of Beverly Hills has been a guiding light and strong supporter when it comes to human rights issues. Beverly Hills has many statues, art pieces and memorials dedicated to important and historic times in America's history. As I now citizen and once a refugee of Iran and an Israeli and American citizen. I and many feel that it is necessary to show solidarity with Israel and the Jewish people, especially now that Jew hatred has been on the rise in levels not fathomable in the years past. Beverly Hills has always led by example and has to do so now. We cannot allow the evils of harassment, intimidation, and bullying, and fear far safety stop us from standing up for what's right. This shouldn't be considered a divisive issue, but one that brings all of us together. The monument to the atrocities of October 7th will remind us not to be complacent and to remember. It's not just about Jews, but about Western values and democracy. Commemorating this terrorist act, but in remembrance of all the victims, we'll show the nation that we will not sit idly by and allow another Holocaust to happen. I suggest a permanent memorial that includes the names of all the victims of October 7th. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next speaker, Corkhart, I have is Roman Rebenicone. Benicine. Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council. Yes, my name is Roman Rebian. I'm a resident of the city. I work in the city and I bike around in the city. Seeing the memorial on Santa Monica Boulevard, it was amazing every day seeing all the tourists, the busloads of tourists coming in, driving by, standing next to taking pictures. I think 40 to 50,000 cars passed through San Monica and 7 to 8 million people visit Beverly Hills every year. So it's a huge deal to have a memorial here. The city has always had a history of being on the right side of the history of with Massa Aminian, the Iran Revolution, one of the first cities to do something about it. And now we have to have a permanent memorial. So people know it's as a minority, majority city. We stand with our sister city, Health Celia in Israel, and all of the Jewish community. Thank you. Okay, thank you. I have one more card on this item. Looks like I'm going to get another one. If anybody else has them, please bring them up to the city clerk. Next speaker is Mary Rabinavitch. My apologies for not being ready for this. I just dropped everything at work and drove here. So, excuse me if I start crying. Driving through here when you had all the flags and realizing how many people were murdered from different countries. Was just mind-boggling. And so emotional. And for anybody not to see this and for us to prevent it from being sin, so people will know what happened. It's just not acceptable. We need to do this. We have to show people that are driving by here what happened to us. We need to see this everywhere. We placed flags and names of people that were murdered on Hollywood Boulevard right after it happened. Having Beverly Hills had it when I came here, when I saw it, was so heartwarming to see that you're standing by us. And we really appreciate if you continue doing this. Thank you. The last speaker card I have is from Jared Gonzalez. Good afternoon, Councillors. I am also in support of establishing a permanent memorial for the Victims of October 7th. I know I speak for the families I work with at Hello Hebrew Academy as a math teacher there. That this is something that everyone in that school and the community itself would cherish. I think it's something that these citizens of Beverly Hills would staunchly support. And I think it's something we just have to do and hopefully do it soon. My only quam with the memorial ideas, the one about the street. I'm not as big of a fan of that because as you know streets get dirty, you know, they're not always, I mean here Beverly Hills, they're pretty well kept. But I feel like if we're going to memorialize something like October 7th, I don't feel like a street sign or something of that nature would be the most appropriate measure. I feel like something with the flags or similar would be the most appropriate demonstration of our support and our remembrance of the tragic events of that day. Thank you very much. Okay. Thank you, not seeing any other speaker cards in the chambers. We'll go to first video, any video, callers? We've got Kathy Melamed, on Zoom. Okay. Welcome, Kathy. If you can hear us. Thank you. Good afternoon, Mayor Friedman, Vice Mayor Nazarian, and City Council members. Like many here today, our family fled the Islamic Republic of Iran because we are Jews. Our father was on the execution list and in hiding for six months, we found refuge in this beautiful city. As a lifelong resident, I'm immensely proud of our city, proud to call Beverly Hills Pome. Why? Because as a community, we are always at the forefront of every issue. Treat everyone with compassion and always lead by example. Countless times I've heard from various people about how lucky we are to live in Beverly Hills. How our city council is so proactive and always one step ahead of everyone else. When I pass by our 9-11 memorial, I am reminded of the many who were lost that day. Yet I feel an immense sense of pride and some peace knowing that we honor those who were lost on a daily basis. The flag installation was internationally recognized and brought comfort to all of us. Today I ask all of you to honor our legacy as you have done before. By pen always standing on the right side of humanity, by creating a permanent memorial to those lives lost on 10-7. The lives of Jewish people, Muslims, Christians, and Jews from many countries around the world. It would be an honor to have a permanent memorial in our city. I thank you in advance. Thank you, Kathy. Any other video? We have a hasty Danish over. That afternoon, thank you so much for all of your efforts and thoughtfulness and having this flag installation and giving our community a voice during this really difficult time. our community of voice during this really difficult time. I am a, you know, member of the Beverly Hills community and that I grew up in Beverly Hills. And I also, an immigrant from Iran and I'm Jewish. And it's the community in Beverly Hills and the city of Beverly Hills and the schools that has helped bring me to where I am now and given me the confidence to stand and or actually sit here behind the Zoom and speak with you all as a Jew. Sadly, the situation isn't the same for our children today. I have a daughter who the other day told me that she now hides her star of David when she goes out where she doesn't want to wear her sweater with the menorah on it during Hanukkah and that's not how I grew up because Beverly Hills was not like that. That's actually where as a child I remember being taken on field trips to Simon Weesendall Center and that really impacted me. And now I think with this permanent memorial, if we can put that in, Beverly Hills with its big Jewish community and being a sister city to Israel is really one of the strongest and most capable cities of showing not just the country but the world that October 7th not only happened, but that the city stands behind its community, behind Jewish people. And I think that if we don't have that permanent memorial, people could forget, but this just having it there, imagine all of the tourists that come to Beverly Hills, seeing that, remembering it every time they come here, taking pictures with it, giving them a real memory of what happened and for us who have been here in Beverly Hills going to where the flags were standing there, the emotional just trauma but being able to recollect all the emotions there. I think are absolutely vital to Beverly Hills in its protection of the Jewish community, not just here but throughout the world because Beverly Hills really does that does have that kind of power and it's not just about anti-Semitism but it's anti-democracy it's anti-Americanism and And it's against humanity what happened on October 7th So I really hope that you take this into consideration this permanent memorial and Make it happen here in Beverly Hills because it would really mean a lot to thank you. Thank you very much We have one last person on phone Shelley is easy. Oh actually, there's two more people. We have Shelley is easy on phone I'm sorry. Shelly is easy. Please admit yourself. Maybe we can move on to the second move on. I'm sorry. Maybe we can move on to the second. So that's the. Hello. Hello. Hi. Sure. Go ahead. I'm sorry. I didn't. Thank you very much. Sorry about that. Honorable Mayor, vice mayor and council members, I first want to start by thanking you for creating an atmosphere in this city that makes your Jewish citizen safe and protected. This city has been in a wayasis among a lot of chaos throughout the last several months. And as a mother for children, I will forever be thankful for how Johnson you have stood by the Jewish community, especially after the horrific events of October 7th. As a long time resident, I just want to voice my support for a vibrant and permanent memorial, one that will hopefully be ready by October 7th, 2025. This, I'm sorry, 24. This has been a tough year and an action like this will send a strong message that the type we experience on Sunday in the Pico Robertson area will not be tolerated here in our wonderful city. I just want to add that I live very close to the Adab Torra Stinigog and on Sunday my children and I witnessed a lot of the protesters coming on to our specific block. We watched from our window and they marched by in confiers with faces covered and it was terrifying. But my eight-year-old son turns to me, said, Mommy, it's OK. We're in Beverly Hills. We're fine. We'll protect him here. And I just want to let you know how much that means to me. And thank you for creating that environment. And I think that any sort of memorial you create will only enhance that feeling for all of your residents, especially the children. Thank you very much. Thank you. Mayor, we have one more. Okay, go ahead. Tanah's Gulshan. Tanah's Gulshan, please unmute yourself. Yes, I'm a meet-and-m-so-sorry. Can you hear me now? Yes, go ahead. Hello? Okay, thank you. We can hear you. Good afternoon. Thank you we can hear you. Good afternoon. Thank you. Good afternoon on the role mayor, vice mayor, and members. Council members, I too want to echo what was just said previously. I think what she, you know, the words she spoke were powerful and beautifully said. So I really want to get out exactly. Someone who grew up and was raised in Beverly Hills and really loved Beverly Hills. I want to really start as well by saying, my express, my deep, deep gratitude and give a huge thank you to all of you into the city for all the incredible support you have given to the Jewish community for all that you've done to the community, again, to really support the Jews in the community, but also, you know, just make a few states. So, thanks to again, from the bottom of my heart for that. It really, really makes a difference in people's lives. You know, we, we move through the day every day very scared and very fearful and concerned, worried about what's about to happen. And so again, just thank you for that. And I do want to also express my support for permanent memorial in Beverly Hills. Again, I think you guys have done such unprecedented things in the last few months in October 7th that so many other cities have not done. And I think this would be just another way of showing such leadership and such support in our nation right now that's truly divided. I think this would be again just such a strong showing of support and love for the folks in your community and just, you know, as show of peace and solidarity. And it would really go truly a very, very, very long way. And I know that you will have a lot of support if you were to do this. It would mean a lot. And again, I think you would show such true leadership in our country right now. So just wanted to express my support for that. And I hope to see the tomorrow, up to the tomorrow as well soon. Thank you very much. That's, thank you so much. Appreciate the time. You guys considering this, really do. Thank you. So in a moment we'll move on to emails, but I want to... That's all we have right now. We have another caller. More calls. Leon Camilla, please unmute yourself. Hi there, this is Leon Kimmy. I'm sorry I'm not in the position to write my six months old as a moment. But I did feel it was very important for me to call and confirm my shots. I worked at Digital Lemon, Women in Cardinal Burt, which has probably co-ab parts that will never fade. As a city with a deep and meaningful connection to the community, I feel that our duty to honor those who cherish and stand in solidarity with their families and loved ones and the community. Beverly Hills has always been more than just the city of luxury and glamour. It is a community built on the hard work vision and contributions of many, including a significant Jewish population. From the early developers who shaped our city escape to the vibrant cultural and educational institutions that enrich our lives today, the Jewish community has played a pivotal role in development and growth in Beverly Hills. Creating memorials for those who lost their lives in October 7th is not just a gesture of compassion, it's an affirmation of our shared value. It is a testament to our commitment to remember and honor the victims and to support the Jewish community in these challenging times. Such immemorial will serve as a place for a reflection, unity and hope, reinforcing the bonds that hold us together. Moreover, Beverly Hills has always been leader, a city that sets an example for others to follow. By establishing the Somorial, we continue our tradition of leadership showing that we are a community that stands firmly against violence and terrorism. We demonstrate that we value human life, dignity, and the principles of justice and peace. As you ensure that the memory of those losses preserved and that their legacy inspires us to build a future free from hatred and fear. Let us show that Beverly Hills is a city that remembers the city that cares and the city that leads with compassion and strength. Thank you so much. Thank you. We do have a few more. Yael Shraga, please unmute yourself. Hi, are you able to hear me? Yes, go ahead. Okay, I'm also calling just hoping that we in the city of Beverly Hills can commemorate those laws on October 7. Just having the flags there for as long as we did, I think was amazing. and I'm hoping that we can have something permanent there so that we could remember all the live loss. The hostages will hope which will hopefully be home soon but just to remember the atrocities of what's happened on October 7th. Thank you. Of course, thank you. Our next person is Alan Shemoulihan. Please unmute yourself. Yes, just calling in to say that I'm also in favor. And thank you for all that you're doing. Thank you. I'm just double checking with staff. They're slowly rolling in so that's it. Okay. So I just wanted to, we do have some emails and I just wanted to first make a couple statements. One is I didn't mention this before but Council Member Wells is with us today. I just want to make sure everybody knew that. She's not available here in presently, but she is in her other office participating. The other thing I wanted to mention is that it is my intention and I've stayed as before to get all of the public comment out there. However, it is my intention certainly to be here in the past. I'm not sure if I can see that. I'm not sure if I can see that. I'm The other thing I wanted to mention is that it is my intention and I've stayed as before to get all of the public comment out there. However, it is my intention, certainly during the formal session, to limit public comment for about a half hour before the meeting on non-agenda-ized items. And that would also include any emails. We've done about a half hour right now, which is fine. And I would have gone on even longer because our agenda is pretty light this afternoon. However, we have many, many, many, many, many e-mails. Most of them are for me, e-mails. Somebody started some sort of string of e-mails and a a bulk of them and we may get the numbers from the city clerk in a moment. And it is my intention and I wanted to make sure it's okay with all of my colleagues starting with Council Member Wells that we do summarize these. If not, we will be here probably the rest of the afternoon. So can you tell us, Michelle, how many emails we would have to read if we did that now? Currently, we have over 3,100 emails. Okay. So we'll get the numbers from Michelle in a moment, but I just want to make sure that everybody's okay that we hear, that we do summarise them, and that is my intention to do so for this and for other meetings. But especially when we have serial emails where somebody sends it to their email list, and then you just click it and send it on because I believe most of them, and I've looked at many, many of them already. And we all get them, by the way, in advance, and they do become a part of the record, regardless of whether or and we all get them by the way in advance and they do become a part of the record regardless of whether or not we read them or not but I just want to make sure that summarization, your brief alluding to the fact that I think that most of these are in support of doing a memorial and I think, you know, we've heard all the public comments so far has also been in support of that. So unfortunately, we don't have time to read all 3100, but I'm very impressed by the number and the support and I'm really happy to see it. Thank you. Thank you. Council member Corwin? Sure, no, I'm in support. The only thing I would have is that if there was a form email that was sent in by a lot of people, maybe we could read that one email and then summarize the other emails so that everyone gets the full flavor we got. Absolutely. Absolutely. I agree with that suggestion. Yeah and I just want to point out yes we did get 3100 emails many of them most of them I think probably form emails but it did take all of those people to take the time to send the email to to click on, to do whatever and add their personal information, and pass it forward, just showing the relevance and the importance of this topic to our community. So thank you everyone who took the time to respond and to share your opinion and everybody who's here right now. I would be fine with listening to the form letter and also just having a general synopsis of, you know, if there's anybody opposed or if there are in favor to get those numbers. Thank you. Okay. So what I've asked the city clerk to do is to give us some numbers in terms of those who are in favor how many of the form letters were sent and if you can Read at least one of the form letters and if there's any other comments that need to be summarized and certainly anything in opposition We would like to hear those I'm well here is a one of the form letters I'm out here is a one of the form letters. Dear members of the Beverly Hills City Council, I am writing regarding agenda item A1, which concerns memorializing the victims of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. I strongly urge the council to take action on this important matter. The horrific events of the October 7 attack shocked the entire world. Our community is still reeling from the loss of so many Israeli and American citizens among many other nationalities. It is crucial that we honor the memory of those lost and stand in solidarity with their loved ones. A memorial serves as more than a tribute, it provides a space for us to grieve together and show our support for one another. I understand that budgetary constraints may be raised as a potential impediment to establishing a memorial. However, I urge the council to consider that the value of such a memorial far outweighs its monetary cost. Beyond the comfort of the memorial may bring to those affected, a memorial symbolizes unity. It becomes a powerful testament to our shared values and our commitment to combating hatred and violence. The impact on our community spirit and importantly, the education of future generations are immeasurable. Moreover, there are various options available that can be tailored to fit within budgetary limitations. Placing Israeli flags in Beverly Gardens Park is a cost effective yet powerful visual statement. Designating an honorary street or intersection is a lasting tribute that requires minimal financial investment. A memorial whether temporary or permanent could be funded through a combination of city allocation and community fundraising efforts. I respectfully urge the council to approve a permanent memorial without delay. Without delay, it's a significant trends in financial considerations. Let us demonstrate that Beverly Hills stands firmly against terrorism and in support of its diverse community of residents. Thank you for your attention to this important matter. I deeply appreciate your dedication to our community and your commitment to honoring the victims of this tragic event. And can you give us some statistics. I do not have the statistics on that right now. We can get that to you, but the majority of the letters are like this. Okay, fine. So we will go on and if we can get even if it's an approximate number, I know it's overwhelmed and I've reviewed most of them. They were sent to all of us in our email earlier today. And generally they were all in support. And it was the same form email as you read it. And usually the person at the bottom would type in their name who they were. Okay, so with that we will close public comment and go on to our discussion starting with Council Member Wells. And as I understand it, what we're talking about is our essentially some sort of temporary which may become the permanent or a separate temporary and then a discussion of a permanent but something that we would some sort of direction that we would most likely send to a liaison so that they would be able to get all the information together and see what's necessary. Is that correct? Yes, Mayor. I think it would be helpful if there are particular thoughts for this October 7th, which is not too far away. As I indicated earlier, we can certainly put the flags back. It would be helpful to have that direction today if possible since the flags need some work. We could do some sort of different short-term recognition lights or that sort of thing. We also could probably have an honorary street naming completed by that time. And then if there's interest in a longer term, more permanent memorial, what would be the next steps into determining what would that look like and where would go and that sort of thing. So it's sort of this short term, long term discussion. And is this going to be the time and place to discuss security concerns or is that going to the lay is on after? Probably both Chief Strainbrook is here and is prepared to address general questions without knowing the specifics of where it would be and what you know what the memorial would be comprised of. I would imagine he would need more information to speak to the specifics. Okay, okay, so with that general outlook, we will go to council member Wells for her comments. Thank you so much. Well, first of all, I just really want to thank everyone that came out to speak today either in person or via Zoom and all of the emails. It's really impressive how many people are in support of having a permanent memorial around October 7. I know that in the past as a council, we've been discussing this and I feel like there's been support across the council for a memorial and now it's really about determining what the next steps are in the short term and and in the media in the short term and long term, I would say. So in breaking it down in that way. to commemorate October 7th in the horrendous attack on Israel and the victims honoring the victims of October 7th. And I do agree that it creates a place for people to gather. It creates community. And it also creates a place for education and as well as to where we stand against anti-Semitism and hate. And I think it's really important that we are able to do that and I support that. So in terms of the reaction and in terms of next steps, I thought about it and I you know I feel October 7th is coming up very quickly so one thought that I had is certainly I would support naming the street and we'd be happy to hear recommendations from staff where they think that might be appropriate. But more so, I would focus on, you know, kind of on the long term and working backwards is if we were to have a long-term memorial, where would you recommend that that would be? And if we were able to identify that site then between now and October 7th, it would be nice if we could actually designate that site then between now and October 7th it would be nice if we could actually designate that site and perhaps that temporary memorial is at the site where it will be intended to be a permanent memorial and I think of that in some ways like 9-11 and the towers. How the towers had a plan to have a permanent memorial, but in the interim, you know, they had a display. They had some sort of a display there as well as they always had the lights. They had lights displayed. And I'm thinking that that might be a possibility as what we would do in the short term. And while that is a short term display in terms display we could start to think about what a permanent display would look like in that space and I would love to have the community to be involved in that as well and make it not just the city creating a permanent memorial but having community participation with that and creating a way for them to participate. Okay, thank you. We'll move to Council Member Corman, please. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I too want to thank everyone for coming out today and calling in and sending letters on this matter. It's very important to the community. You can see that. This is not the first time we've discussed having a permanent memorial to the victims of October 7th. I think the last time we discussed it, there was unanimous support on the council for this concept. So we're now just talking about how we move forward, I think. In the short term, we talked about bringing back the flags on October 7th. There's a temporary memorial for the anniversary. I still support that. For just a matter of days around October 7th, I think it was a good idea. We have the flags. We don't have to think up a new memorial. Everyone loves the memorial. We recognize the flags are, we're a temporary installation. Some of them are not in the greatest shape. If they're only going up for a few days around the anniversary, I don't know how many flags we need to replace because I don't think any of them were in terrible shape. But I think that would be in the short term, the easiest and most effective solution. I think the community really did love the flags and would like to see it back at least one more time. As far as the permanent moral is concerned, I've definitely support that as well. We all I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry and certainly neighborhood feeling, neighborhood input. But I think that's something that I would be looking at. But I think, and I would also support and Council Member Miros suggested last time that we do rename or in additionally name one of our streets after the victims and I think that's also a good idea. That's something that can be both short-term and long-term. So I do support that, but I also think just from a standpoint of how do we get these things done? I think the most effective solution to get them done would be to designate an ad hoc committee with two of our council members to vet these things, as far as where it goes, what the permit moral would look like, how it would be paid for it depending on what it is, who designs it, and although we have all been supportive of this concept, I will acknowledge that the most vocal supporters have been council member Mairish and vice-marit Nazarian, and so I would suggest that they be on the ad hoc committee to bring this forward to us as that is as possible so we can move forward with what I know the community wants. Thank you. Thank you. Council Member Mirish. Thank you. I agree with all of the comments. I think there are certain things that we maybe could even decide today. I think we can decide to bring the flags back on October 7th. I agree that that's something that is very visual for the community. And quite frankly, the street naming or, as it was suggested, we call an intersection the October 7th Memorial Square. I think it would be appropriate to do it at the corner of Santa Monica and Crescent, where right sort of the intersection where the nexus is of where the flags are. And in fact, we could probably unveil that at the same time on October 7th that the flags are there if people agreed. I think it makes sense to do it there, especially because it also commemorates the flag installation, even though that's not permanent, that's where it took place. That's part of our history now. And I can't tell you how many people I've spoken with, not just from our residents, but people within the Jewish community and beyond who have said they are so appreciative of our city, of something that we did. One of the few cities to actually commemorate this. Now one thing I would do is when it comes to the number of flags, I would add the murdered hostages as well, because I feel that they deserve to be commemorated and they're added to the actual death toll, even if they weren't murdered on that day. I think that the story of the hostages, including the ones who are still imprisoned, is an important part of it. And that would be my suggestion. And I do think, as said, I think it's a simple thing to put up that street signage without changing the name of the street or anything, but just the additional signage, October 7th Memorial Square. It would be appropriate there. signage October 7th Memorial Square. It would be appropriate there. I agree with the long-term suggestion of the location. Craig, I actually thought you meant it was, I think it could be the park-cadi corner, but it could also be just across the street on the north side in front of the library. There's currently a statue there that could be a piece of art that could be moved. But I almost, you know, that it could be there as well. But I think one of those two locations, I like the idea. I'd be interested to hear what people think of almost, you know, doing a competition for it. And, you know, being deliberate about it, taking our time, doing something that is going to be meaningful and going to be there forever because October 7th is now, you know, a part of the fabric of what our community is. And, you know, I said, I think that to me is something that's a longer term project. But in the meantime, I do think bringing back the flags for the one year anniversary and actually I think it would be meaningful to unveil the October 7th Memorial Square at that location. I think it would be also talking about our plans at that time for a permanent memorial. It would be an absolutely appropriate way of remembering this horrific event. And I think we see we have the support not only of the community, even if it is a form letter, 3,000 people in such a short period of time. I think it's the right thing to do and I know that our council in the past is all expressed support and I'd love to see us move forward and I thank you mayor for agendizing it for today so that we're able to actually move forward. Thank you. Thank you. Vice mayor. Thank you very much. I too would like to first start off by expressing my gratitude to our mayor for agendizing this we appreciate it. I think that this is quite obvious that it's extremely important to our community. I mean having 3,100 letters coming in in such a short period of time. I don't know. I haven't been on council as long as my colleagues have, but it seems pretty remarkable. And it's obvious that the importance of October 7th really resonates with our community. And we've even had residents whose family members were held hostage and murdered in captivity. So that just proves how close to home this issue is for many of our residents. And many, many are people who have fled and, as was mentioned, from their homes and they found refuge in Beverly Hills. And to be able to have these displays in our own city being able to show a beacon of hope, it really is a testament to how strong and courageous and brave our community is to be able to stand against hate and anti-Semitism and violence. So I'd like to ask our chief a couple of questions with regards to safety. But again, as he's working up, I'd like to thank everyone. We've had so many different people from different community members, from Assemblymember Rick Sabor's office, and Hila Lahibu Academy, the Iranian Jewish Federation, elders in our community, mothers with their young children have come in, babies crawling up on the dius because this is important for people. We've had family members and et cetera. So again, I wanna thank everyone who's taking the time. So the chief and I've had some conversation about safety, but I wanted to start off by saying, if we were to consider a permanent memorial site across the 9-11 site, would that be, what would your thoughts be about that? So first of all, thank you, Mayor Goodesie, you, Vice Mayor of City Council, thanks for asking me to come up and speak. I'll speak very generally without having seen specific plans or locations. I would generally say the area of our government complex, of our city complex is good in many ways because it's very active. A lot of people around, a lot of our officers, firefighters, city staff, and I think eyes on the area are always helpful in terms of security. So that's the first thing. You know, we have great technology, obviously. Some areas have better camera coverage in this area has a lot of camera coverage so that that also is very helpful. I think we have to be sensitive to the fact that with the world politics the way they are and I just received a briefing from the FBI this morning, you know, a memorial like this could be the subject of people who may want to damage or destroy or protest there or something to that effect. So just broadly I would say something that's designed with security in mind in terms of not being easy to vandalize, not being easy to destroy. Even on the criminal side, we have an issue with bronze plaques, bronze statues, things like that being stolen because of metal theft, for example. So if we could work a little bit with whoever is in charge of designing and thinking out the process location, how the memorial is designed and what it's made of could be important. And those things I think would all, we'd take all of that consideration. We have a nice process called crime prevention through environmental design, which really is a format to how you design a place to be less conducive to crime or an improved security. Great, thank you very much, chief. I think I agree with you with regard to the signage. I think whatever we use for signage, that's gonna be a very integral portion of this because what we want to do is create an educational component to this memorial site. We want to be able to stand up to hate and as we've said, what occurred on October 7th so that it doesn't happen to any community regardless of race, religion or background.. Thank you, Chief. I appreciate that. Thank you, ma'am. So I guess with the questions that were brought up, the first would be with regard to October 7th coming up right away, I am an agreement that we should put the flags back up. I think that it's something. It's really, we already have the flags. I like the idea of adding the hostages. I mean, not that I like it, but I agree with it. I think that it's important to recognize that as well. You know, whether it's for a month or for two weeks, whatever is most feasible, I think would be a great idea for October 7th, because it's really is around the corner, especially with the summer holidays and what have you. With regard to the signage, I am in agreement with that as well. I think that there were two, I think that the honorary signage is a better choice as opposed to changing our designation. That would be a lot easier. With regard to thank you council member Corman, I would be honored if our mayor would have me to serve on this ad hoc because this is an issue that's very near and dear to my heart. I had some ideas with regard to the permanent memorial site that would be as inclusive as possible, something that wasn't necessarily about October 7th. But something like, well, yes, about October 7th. But for example, we have an artist who was kidnapped. He was 80 years old. His name was Chiam Paret. And he did art, he was one of the barriam members. And I'm sure that he has plenty of powerful pieces that we would be able to look at. Or maybe showing a young girl with saying that we will dance again. That way people could relate to it. It could be something that is meaningful and deep. So those are my thoughts. Again, I wanna thank everyone for taking the time to come out and really showing your support and the importance of a memorial like this. Thank you. Thank you, Vice-Mirror. So, you. Thank you, Vice Mayor. So you know more well I should say more than anybody else. Council member Mirish and myself went through the events that occurred in 2020 where security was an utmost concern and I guess that's heightened my awareness of security issues. The last thing I would want to have is putting our community in harm's way because of anything that we do. But I think that the suggestions that have been made thus far certainly are reasonable ones that can be handled. But I would tweak it just a bit. I do believe that on October 7th, we should have the flags return, perhaps for 10 days, sandwiching the period of time, perhaps for two weeks. I think that is something that's extremely important. I would also be in support of a naming of the square for that same period of time and quite frankly, in perpetuity or as long as perpetuity can be, rather than having it their year round. And the reason I say that is that one of the conditions that I would place on this whole thing is that we have the 24-7 security during that period of time, protecting both the signage, the temporary signage for whatever it is October 7th, or way, or street or square, as well as the flags. And the reason for that is that it's a deterrent, but the one thing I would not want to see happen is there be any sort of incident that occurs, that becomes the attraction as opposed to the fact that we were memorializing it. And what I mean by that is some smart ass coming in there and figure that they're gonna take take down some signs or they're going to spray something on something. And then all of a sudden, what is meant to be a positive has now become a negative. So with that, those providers, I'm certainly on a temporary basis in support of it. And I would ask my colleagues to comment on that afterwards. In terms of a permanent memorial, I am absolutely in favor of that. I hadn't heard the other suggestion. I think that's a good one, John, where there is an art piece on the library property right next to some of the offices that we have, because that is closer on the government compound as opposed to being a little bit further away. Yeah, that's what it was written. Well, I think originally it was the other corner of the mini-park, but in any of them. I thought he meant in front of the library too. Yeah, no, I think that's what he said. Yeah, but I was also took the county. Correct. But either one, I think that's what he said. I mean, correct. But either one, I mean, either one of those is fine, I would be more favorable to the one on the city compound. But if the piece were such that it couldn't fit there, or it would be more appropriate there, I think that's excellent. That's excellent. I agree with John also that if we have unanimity in terms of doing something by October 7 such as a two, you know, ten days, two weeks as a temporary display, if we all agree upon that we should do that, see if we can do that now so that staff has lead time. If we can't then we will form an ad hoc right away to deal with that issue as to limitations. And as far as the permanent one, I want to give a little bit of time on that. I respect your suggestion. I'm a little bit of time on that. I respect your suggestion. I also am very interested in being on it, but let me see how everything works out and take it from there. So with that, I'm gonna go back to Marienci if we can come up with consensus or unanimity. Anything that I miss so far? Can I just get a clarification? Sure. So is your proposal that we put a temporary sign at Crescent, Santa Monica as October 7 Memorial Square around every October 7th or full time all the time? No, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it Yeah, because for the same reason, correct, is that I just wouldn't want that sign to be stolen, defaced, et cetera. And I don't want to have 24 or seven security in an area like that as extremely exquisite. Well, I wasn't going to say the other issue that I see, if we do it permanently, it becomes confusing. We have a memorial square on Creston, Santa Monica, and a memorial down at Burton Way and Rexford. People will not know, we'll assume the memorial is in the square, so I think it could be confusing. So I think if we were going to do a permanent street name or street additional name, it should be on Rexford, not on Crescent, and it wouldn't be a square. So I agree with you, the idea of creating an annual memorial square at Crescent and Santa Monica where the flags have been sounds good to me. Yeah, and it, and hopefully you'll be up to each council thereafter, but at least, can I have a spare time? The idea is that. Go ahead, Tom. Are you suggesting though that when the permanent memorial is it, it sounds like Rexford and little Santa Monica that we could a permanent site street signage there that designates that as October 7th memorials. And I would delay that for for the ad hoc. Sure I would do but I would say that would be something that I think we could do because then it's together and it's everyone know it's together. Okay. And just for clarity we are in agreement I heard from everyone to do a permanent memorial site. Is there a reason for the delay in starting with the ad hoc to start looking at it and discussing it? No, I think we just wanted to get the temporary out of the way now in terms of funding, what it's going to be, et cetera. I envision that project to be similar to what happened with the 9-11 memorial. And that was community involvement, and it's something that I think is going to take some time to do. So I think that's going to be something that we will do quickly, but I don't I think today what I'd like to do is get the temporary one set up and I think that's what staff would like also. May I ask a few more questions from Chief Barton since he was instrumental in putting the 9-11 memorial site together please? Sure. Thank you. memorial site together please. Sure. Thank you. Hi, Chief. Thanks for being here. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. I know that you were instrumental in putting together the 9-11 memorial site. Correct. And I just wanted to get some parameters of if you could just walk us through the process. How long did it take? What were the steps that you took? What did you learn? And what do you recommend for, for, in the, you know, for somebody who wants to do something similar? So the process for us started in 2009 where we created a, the Beverly Hills Fire Chiefs Fund to start collecting donations for the site. We reached out to a bunch of donors in the community who offered to donate. We had over 200 plus donations starting in 2009. And there was a bunch of in-kind donations as well. The total cost of the memorial, so we started in 2009, the memorial was completed in 2011. It cost about 450ish back then. And that was all done by, like I said, in kind donations or financial donations to get to that point. And then currently it costs us about $4,000. The fire chief fund who pays for it costs about $4,000 a year to maintain it. That's the granite, the water features everything else. And then public works is the one who takes care of all the landscape. Right, thank you very much. So I would like to pose a question to my colleagues. Would it be something that you would be interested in adding to our general fund to be able to support a project like this. And we could add it to our 501C3 status. So if people do want to contribute to that kind of like the suggestion that we had for Greystone, we would have different portions. So that if there were people who wanted to make donations, it would kind of move this along a little bit because it took you three years. Nine. Well, it depends on what we're doing. And the other part to that was too is getting the steel. So the steel was a process that we had to go through. The steel was the process. I remember that. And I remember you also worked with the rotary for that too. Correct. It was a great process. I don't know about my colleagues. I for one would like to see this moved along a little quicker than the two to three year process that it would take. And if there is a way to start addressing it as soon as possible. Again, I believe that this is really something we haven't had any community input into what it is that the community wants. And I think that's something that needs to be addressed. I don't know whether or not the fundraising through for the 9-11 memorial had a 501-C3 component to it. We got 3,100 emails of the community saying that this is what they want. I'm really confused. I don't understand what that means. You don't know what the 3,100 means. It means that there were a lot of people who were given a tab to press and then they wrote their name on it. Some of them were Beverly Hills residents, some were not. I think that we need to have the community involvement number one where it's going to be, whether it's going to be at the mini park, whether it's going to be on the library, where it's going to be somewhere else. I just don't think that we've involved the community in the actual planning stages of this. I think that the council has certainly indicated unanimously that we want to have a permanent structure there but I don't think that we've talked to anything about financing yet or any of that yet so I think that's going to go to the liaison. I'm sure there'll be more discussions but my sense is that I would like for the city to fund this. If people want to donate great, but I would really want to see donors' names on the memorial. I think if we're going to be names, it should be the names of the victims. But again, I think this should be a place of reflection, a place to come together. And I would just as soon see the city finance it, and I hope, and I'm sure that, to me, that's an important thing. But I do agree, I think I don't want this to take three years or whatever. I think that this should be something that hopefully can get done sooner. And it can be something that is extremely meaningful. That asset, you know, my feeling is, is that maybe we do a high level competition, that by the way is the way that the Vietnam Memorial initially people didn't like the design and it's become one of the most powerful and impactful memorials. I think we want something on a smaller scale but on that level. And when it comes to the permanent memorial, but I agree, I don't want to wait three, four years or whatever. Okay, what it looks, it sounded like it took two years for the 9-11 and most of that was waiting for the steel. So I don't think it's gonna be a three to four year project even if it were similar to that. But again, my feeling on that is that we need to have the community input, we haven't done that yet and we really need to know what the community wants. I don't know if the site that we're selected were the one on the south side of the street, a caddy corner to the fire station, whether or not the residents in that area would be an objecting to it. We don't know that until we do the community outreach. Go ahead. You know, I would also suggest that as far as the funding is concerned, I mean, maybe that we would fund it all, but it may not be, depending on what the design is. And I don't know, given what we've heard today, that we would not get contributions community, even if they didn't have people's names on it. So I think this is, again, these are issues, I think the ad hoc community needs to be formed to study, and that's what I would suggest. Okay, so, if we could have a wrap up as to what staff would like. So if we could have a wrap up as to what staff would like. So here's what I have so far. For this year's celebration of October 7th, we want to bring the eggs back to Beverly Gardens Park. So staff will bring back a report that lays out that direction as well as the costs to replace the poles and the flags that have faded. We will also make sure there are flags included for the hostages that have been murdered. We, I understand there's some interest in looking at the street designation. I've heard having the street designation at Crescent and Santa Monica, but perhaps it's temporary this year. We do want to do a permanent honorary street naming, but perhaps that would occur close to where the permanent memorial would be located. But I don't think we're talking about changing the main name of any sort of name. There's a honorary. Honorary. Honorary, a friend name, and a honorary. For sure. Right. We don't name squares anyways. Okay. So temporary for this year at Crescent and Santa Monica for the honorary street naming permanent would be closer to where the memorial would be. We're establishing an ad hoc that will help us develop out the idea of the permanent memorial, universal support for a permanent memorial. Suggestions are potentially at the south side of the library or in Rexford, many park. And the ad hoc, potentially the ad hoc will work through funding, design competition, potentially. I'm a little fuzzy on that part, but that's what I've heard so far. Can I just, what do you go to Mary first if I can? Oh, sorry. I just want to clarify one thing. Oh, sure. Go ahead. That's just it. So when you said replace some of the polls, because there was a discussion a long time ago replacing all the polls with permanent polls. So we're just done replacing the damage wood polls with new wood polls at this point, right? Well, so what staff would recommend is most of the polls and I apologize if I misspoke. Most of the polls are at the end of life and we would recommend replacing them with PVC which is a much more durable material. But if we're not sure we're going to bring the flags back more than once, I would be reluctant to spend too much money on polls we may not reuse again. So that was my concern. I mean, I know we talked to the PVC. They are more permanent but they're more expensive. So how do we want to handle that? Let us do some evaluation of the polls. We were doing some discussion about the dates that would work. I guess another thing I heard was to have the flags up for about two weeks. Staff is recommending potentially September 30th through October 14th. That would mean the flags would be up during Rasha Shana and also through Yam Kippur. And we do have the art show, the 18th and the 19th. So if we're able to bring them down the 14th, we can mo and then start setting up for the art show. So all that to say, let us take another look at the flags. We will see if we can reuse some of the wood dowels. The PVC will likely look different than the wood. And so we'll bring some options forward and council can decide, you know, what you'd like to do as far as replacing some of them, all of them, and then creating new ones for the hostages that have been killed. And we're also talking about 24-7 security similar to what occurred the last time is everybody on board with that. Mary. 24-7 security during the two weeks. Yes. Okay. Any other comments from Council Mayor Wells? Thank you. I support the timeframe with displaying the flags for the anniversary for October 7th this year. And yes, I would support having the security that we need that's necessary at that time. With regard to the meeting naming a temporary honorary street with the flags, I can be in support of that. If we're doing it temporarily, I think maybe the flags might be where the biggest impact is. And we might want to hold naming the street when it's permanent when we do the permanent memorial. That's a suggestion, but I could go either way. And I really do support the permanent memorial. I like the idea personally of the memorial being on the library side and away from the residential side. And as well, I also support having the community involvement as you know, whether it's, you know, some form where they can have their name added on the site or to be able to participate. I think we saw that response today. I think it's important for people to also be able to participate in what that memorial looks like. So I would like to make that available to the community. And I support the ad hoc. Okay, thank you. Council Member Carman, any further comments? Thank you. Yeah, so again, I support the proposed schedule for putting the flags back up. I don't want to spend too much money on the polls. With respect to the naming, the temper, the naming of the temporary naming of the square I can either way. I'm with councilmember Wells I the flags are going to be the most important thing We can add the square on a temporary basis, but I wouldn't I don't want to leave the impression We're gonna leave it as a permanent or even a recurring thing it once we get them in permanent more Let wish you know we're gonna support and potentially change the name that or add an additional name on Rexford or wherever we're going to do it. So I'm open to that one. And with respect to the other details, the preliminary memorial, I think that's something to be addressed by the ad hoc. I think that it makes sense to get the ad hoc up and running. We heard that the 9-11 memorial took a couple years, but as the mayor pointed out, and chief Barton pointed out, much of that was trying to get the steel from the World Trade Center. And I think that if we get the ad hoc up and running, and they start to look at the issues we've discussed today, and start looking at funding. I think it's possible we could have a permanent memorial in place for October 2025, which I think the community would like, but I certainly think if we're going to do that we need to start moving. So those are my thoughts. And I must say I do agree if I was the one who started the discussion about a permanent street naming. I think that's something to come in the future. I think right now the only thing I'm supportive of just to be clear is the temporary so far and then once the ad hoc decides where it's going to be, et cetera, then the discussion of a permanent naming if any will occur. Councilmember Mersh. Thank you. So You know just bringing black the flags is yes, it's for the memorial, but I think having the street that's adding something to it now It's one year and we call street. It's actually it's street signage, but it would say October 7 Memorial Square So in theory it's sort of honorary naming of an intersection. I would, if you only wanted up temporarily, we're going to be taking down the flags and people are going to say, oh, why have you taken down the flags? I'd leave it up a little bit longer. And in fact, I don't see that much of a security concern. We still have rehearsal way. If you know, in theory, you think that could be a magnet for people to come and protest because Hertzel was one of the founders of modern Zionism. And it just fits in so well that nobody really notices it. And I don't think that the sign should be anything more than basically our street sign, like you saw there, like we have for Fred Heyman with the text. So it would fit in right there. It wouldn't be like something sticking out. So maybe we'll see it and we'll think it's not a big deal. And I do think it might make sense to keep it up for longer just because, as said, I think this is something that is always with us. And it always will be with us October 7th. When we have a permanent memorial, of course, we can maybe make a decision to change it. But I really think one of the things that this city did, and we've heard it from people that was very impactful, was the flags, and that's where the flags were, and that is now part of our history. So if we want to keep it up just for a temporary basis, I'm OK with it, but I think we'll see that it's going to blend in like Herdsal Way does and that it's not something that sticks out or attracts attention or whatever, but it does become part of just the streetscape. And you know, again, I wouldn't do bigger signage or anything like that, just the way that we've seen with Fred Heyman or Herzlwe, or something along those lines. Again, when it comes to the permanent memorial, I'd like for it to be as impactful as possible. I definitely would love to get a feedback from the community, and I do think people should be able to donate, but I think it's keeping it cleaner and more impactful. And actually, for all of the community, that it's not just people who give money, who are there, it's for everybody. And for also our friends in Herzlia. But again, we should look at that. And again, from my perspective, not saying that we should do it in that way, but thinking of the Vietnam Memorial, the way that has become so impactful, I think that's kind of the vibe, if you will, that we should be looking to create something that is meaningful and permanent in a place of reflection. In terms of the time frame, I do think it's appropriate for it to be up for a little shoshonan yom kippur, which falls naturally in that time period. And to then, we need to take it away for the art show, that sort of place is a limit on it. And again, we can expect people are going to say why have you taken it down? And that's why maybe if the streets, Dynitch stays up a little bit longer, we can point out, but that's there. Those are my thoughts. Thank you. Yes, thank you very much. I think we're all fairly in agreement with one another. I agree to put the October 7th flags up. I also think that we shouldn't spend too much on the polls until we decide if it's gonna be something that we wanna bring back annually. And then some of them are faded maybe perhaps getting something that is going to be a little more substantial with regard to the time frame. I'm okay with the time frame. I think that what we need to do is have very clear communications with our community. What happened last time was the flag was just all of a sudden came down and everybody was really surprised about it and they felt they didn't understand what was happening. So I think having that clear communication with the community is really going to be key. I think it'll be really nice to have the flags up during Russia-Shanan and Yom Kippur and I'm in favor of the security. I think that will be important. I think that getting feedback from the community and community participation will be important. I don't know if everybody is going to want their name on a memorial site for victims of terror. So perhaps that's something that the ad hoc could look at as well. And I do agree with using our 501C3 arm to be able to give people the opportunity to participate and in the fundraising for this. However, I wouldn't want to hold it up if that was the only way to raise money for this site. I would like it to be a joint effort between the city and possibly some donations. Okay, thank you. So just to wrap up in terms of the numbers of letters and support that came in, it was 3,174 in support, none were against. And what I would suggest is, what I would suggest is, if each one of those 3,174 people even donated 100 dollars, and with not the expectation of putting their name on anything, we'd have all the funding. And that's a support that we have for something like this and certainly any shortfall, I wouldn't have any problem with the city making up for it. But I think that in order to have a meaningful exhibit that we do need to have the community buy in on it. And I really think that that is important. I think we have direction on this. I think we're clear enough to move forward. Good. Okay, so with that, we will move on to item number eight, two, recommendation of the Beverly Hills City Council layers on, Roodeo Drive Special Events, Holiday Program Committee regarding citywide holiday decor for winter 2024 and Theresa I'm going to go ahead and get the floor. This needs to come down a bit. It is getting cooler in here, right? Please go ahead. All right. Good afternoon, Mayor Viscayr and Councilmembers. I'm Teresa Revas, associate project manager with public works. This item provides a summary. Let me see if I can get this little bit. A summary of our ongoing decor and the recommendations of the liaison regarding the Citywide Holiday Decor for winter 2024. The city's decor program is designed to create traditions, celebrate the season and attract visitors to shop and stay and dine in Beverly Hills. The city's ongoing decor includes street spans on North Cannon Drive, North Beverly, Brighton, and the Santa and reindeer display at Beverly and Wilshire. Also the Wilshire light spans that were custom fabricated for the city in 2019. 2023 was their fifth year of use and staff did work with the contractor to review the spans and determine that the hardware and components are in the spans are still in proper working order for their sixth year. We do recommend restringing the warm white and blue LED lights so that they have a fresh look match the trees below and have a bigger impact for Hanukkah. The estimated cost for restringing the spans is $85,000. The city also keeps warm white LED twinkle lights installed year round in the business triangle on Mulsier Boulevard, Olympic Boulevard, and La Sienauga. During the winter holidays, colored lights and tree canopy decor are installed on La Sienauga Boulevard and snowflakes on South Santa Monica Boulevard and the canopy. Over 100 street light poles are also wrapped in Garland and topped with red bows. And on Santa Monica, Brighton and Dayton. In 2023, the city purchased new decor for Robert Symbolovard, which is the semi-circle light pole decorations on the bottom left of the screen. And also lit Garland and bows and the former Robert symbol of our colored tree wrap lights and colored light fall tubes were moved to Camden Drive. Last year the city did receive feedback and a request to have a more sophisticated light display on South Beverly Drive. The decor on South Beverly Drive had been colored tree wrap lights and illuminated sidewalk sculptures. The sidewalk sculptures were at the end of their life and not usable again. And the liaison was presented with two options for new decor on South Beverly Drive and they did select the warm white LED starlight spheres and the canopy of the 80 ficus trees on South Beverly Drive. The spheres range from six inches to 12 inches, and will be installed in the lower portion of the tree canopy. Estimated cost to purchase, install, remove, and store the starlight spheres is $250,000 for the first year and $128,000 each following year for storage installation and removal. Expected lifespan of these items is about five years. Since 2021, the Decora in Beverly Gardens Park has included the lights on the Lily Ponceau, which is an audio and light show that runs each night of the holidays. This year the program will consist of six different shows with all new music and lights that all include holiday Christmas and Hanukkah music and lights. The city will also continue the Christmas tree and menorah in Beverly Gardens Park. Last year the city upgraded the menorah, base with packages, oversized radles, and enhance theatrical lighting behind the menorah and in the large ficus tree. The display will continue in 2024 along with the lighting of the menorah each night of Hanukkah. The city installs speakers on North Beverly, North Cannon, Brighton and Dayton during the holidays and plays a custom holiday playlist each day and night of the holiday season. The audio on Roe Deo will be included in the Roe Deo Drive Committee request for their programming, which will come separate to council. The annual signage includes street poll banners, a gobo projection onto the crescent side of city hall, valet signs at the parking garages and maps of the decor locations. Additional outreach includes ads and local papers, social media posts, and promotion by the city's partner agencies. This year the city manager's office is working with a consultant to develop new banner designs, which will be featured throughout the city's print and digital materials. And these designs will be featured throughout the city's print and digital materials, and these designs will be presented at a future meeting. The Decor and Beverly Cannon Gardens changes every year with the main attraction in the grass area and a secondary element in the patio. Last year, the liaison agreed that using the base element of the walk through 36-foot tree with updated Decor packages each year would be an effective cost savings, while still achieving a new look for each year. The budget for 2023 was 350,000, and based on the anticipated savings, the city's budget for 2024 is 250,000. This year, staff provided five decor options to the liaisons, including a proposal from neighboring hotel, the Mayborn Beverly Hills. The liaison recommended moving forward with the white design, which uses the city's tree, with warm white lights, dense oversized and varying sized sparkling ornaments, in shades of white and clear. It also incorporates an arch of bows around the walkthrough entry, a mass of wrapped packages on the ground, and banquet lights from the top of the tree to the four corners of the grass. Three large custom benches wrapped into gift packages are placed around the tree for seating, and a custom walkthrough ornament tunnel is in the patio area. The design implementation is estimated to be 345,000 and the Maverley Hills is committed to contributing $75,000 for the decor, which will be paid directly to the vendor for the ground elements and the banquet lights, leaving the city's portion at an estimated $270,000. The recommendation from the liaison is to move forward with the white tree design, reducing the decor on the tree so that the city's portion is within the city's budget of $250,000. Beginning in 2022, and again last year, staff worked with the city council liaisons to create a unique projection mapping light show called Unwrap the Magic on the City Hall Tower. The video is projected onto the north and west facing sides of the tower and includes a seven minute show every half hour, every day of the season from 6 PM to 9.30 PM. The additional clips in between the shows. The clips could be selected from a kiosk located at the prime viewing area at the southeast corner of North Crescent Drive and North Santa Monica. When the projection mapping was first considered, staff reviewed multiple location options, and durations, and selected the city hall tower, north and west facing sides to optimize the view from across town and help draw attendees to this show. The original plan was to create a content library which can be worked into a different show in future years to achieve some future cost savings. In 2022, staff did not have a system for tracking attendees at the show, but in 2023 we did have a technician on site who tracked attendees at each showtime and the totaled 4,300 people that stood at the primary viewing location during each show. This count does not include the numerous people that watched from further away or in their cars or came in between shows. The city also added the Jolly trolley in 2023 to connect rodeo drive to City Hall and bring people to the show. This feature was well attended with the season total of 1,300 riders on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights, excluding holidays. In January of this year, staff had a debrief with the City Council liaison to discuss the feedback from 2023 and give early direction for items that required additional time to design and procure. After this meeting, an informal RFP went out for the projection mapping to confirm that we were paying a competitive price for the show. The pricing was deemed competitive, but the original design firm did not submit a package. So if approved to move forward for 2024, we will engage a new design team for 2024, following the same format as previous years. And after much discussion, the liaison did recommend continuing the Unwrap the Magic Show. Again this year, in the same location, each night of the season with all new content for $750,000. The projection mapping show was powered in 2022 and 2023 with diesel generators, which produced approximately five metric tons of carbon dioxide each year. The city currently working on providing enough power to switch the generators to the city's 100% renewable electricity, which will eliminate the carbon emissions equivalent to one passenger car driving continuously for one year. Estimate for this electrical improvement including contingency is 115,000. And this power will run to the front lawn of City Hall and can be accessed by special events for an established fee. That's a recharge fee, correct? To any future users? I don't know the name of the fee. Okay. I think the question might have been if future vendors or event planners use that electrical system would we be able to pass through a charge for? Yes, the improvement does include a meter so we can see how much power is being used for that and could be charged back. So schedule, installation timeline is typically the same each year. Usually having all the lights up before the Thursday before Thanksgiving for the holiday lighting celebration. This year since Thanksgiving is late, we recommended starting having the celebration on Thursday November 14th. And then because and then due to the overlap of Hanukkah and Christmas and New Year's holidays, liaison recommended holding the menor lighting celebration on Friday, December 27th, which is the third night of Hanukkah. And since New Year's Day is in the middle of the week, the liaison agreed with the staff recommendation to keep the decor and programming up through the weekend and with removal beginning the night of January 5th, which is Sunday night. There is no request for additional funding based on staff recommendations outlined today. The funding has already been included in the fiscal year 2425 CIP for citywide decorative lighting and holiday decorations. No additional funds are requested this time. Staff will return at future date to discuss programming of the lighting or the lighting ceremony requests for the season, as well as the banners and signage design. Those items are not part of the CIP and will be presented at a future meeting. So at this time staff recommends that council provide direction regarding the holiday decor for 2024, including the liaison recommendations listed below. And on the slide. I think, and Teresa, the comment was made and I know we discussed it, but can you just go over it? The third night of Hanukkah, is Friday night with this Shabbat. Can you discuss that? Why that was chosen and it had just ever been done before We well the date was selected maybe we're gonna have some assistance Afternoon mayor and council Magdalena Davis, your community outreach manager. We've successfully held other menorah lightings on that on a Shaba on Friday. We do have good attendance and work with our local faith-based organizations to invite. This year, the first night of Hanukkah, we did receive back some feedback that there would be other competing menorah lightings at that time as well. So in addition to last year's, we've had several successful menoral lightings on Friday. Okay, thank you. Okay, so I interrupted you anything else Theresa? No, that's all. Okay, so we will go to, I get the liaison report first before public comments. Public comment. You can get the, yes, you get the liaison report first. First and then public comment. Okay. So if council member Wells has anything to add. Hello. Well, I think that both Blaster, Mayor Friedman and I support these recommendations, as you can see. One of the things that we didn't really talk about in this presentation was our discussion around the projection mapping on City Hall and we did ask that the committee go back and look at other options that we could possibly do in lieu of the projection mapping and as well you know really understanding why we'll spend another you know amount of money to create new content this year for the projection mapping and after looking at some some, you know, the timing of it, as well as I would say, the investment that we put into the projection mapping at this point and the feedback from the second year and staff really feeling that the, that that that building, that we would continue it for this year, but we would certainly look at for next year and explore further the options that they presented, which were really lighting up more of Beverly Gardens Park and creating interactive lighting and different activations in that park that would connect for the other projects and be the other things so that we could try and bring people to Beverly Hills to you know get out of their cars walk through and really experience all the different you know beautiful streets that we have that are lit up in all the different ways. So personally I have to say I just really struggled with the projection mapping but given our discussion about building and how much we've invested thus far, we landed on going ahead with it this year. But I do want to look at that other options going forward for next year and I think also that Lily Pond may be up for, it may be time for the Lily Pond to be considered for a refresh based on the number of years if I understood that correctly from our staff. So for this year I do approve it, but as well with the caveat of understanding that I really would like to reconsider potentially that projection mapping, simply because it's a long money. And I think that there may be other great things that we can do in Beverly Hills for the holidays that could keep us fresh and innovative and exciting for the following year. Thank you. Okay, if I can just add a couple things to that. You know, the cost of putting on the holiday events is enormous. I mean, there's no getting around it. It's a getting around it. It's a lot of money. On the other hand, we are in competition, so to speak, with other cities that are really trying to attract the type of visitor that we are trying to attract to the city of Beverly Hills also. If you look at the budgets of Paris, of London, et cetera, I mean, it's totally out of sight. The refresh items, we see that some of the items that Teresa was telling us about were five years old and they're time for refresh. So the items do stay around for a while. We've added to them over time and we have a complete stock. We have gone to Robertson. We've gone to South Beverly Drive. So the expenses have remained somewhat constant, but we've also expanded what we have been decorating. In terms of the projection mapping, going back on that history, when we first did projection mapping, we had three options in terms of how much we were going to projection map. That is, where we're going to use the entire bottom portion of the building and part of the tower or both parts of the tower, two parts of the tower, et cetera. And we chose the middle way of doing it, which was two sides of the tower. And the other thing we did was, at least for me, here are all those options. For me, the fact that we could use the projection mapping scenes year over year was really important to me because it would save a lot of money. I think it is really a huge attraction in us, in people looking at it, it being reported in other media, et cetera. But the idea was that what you couldn't play the same thing two years in a row because then it gets old and you can't advertise it as brand new. Two years, you could switch every other year, but that's still too close. But when you got to that, three years of having a backlog of scenes, and you go back to the first one, that was seen three years ago, and even perhaps longer than that if there's another idea for next year to skip one year of projection mapping, but we still have the inventory of those three years. So it was really for that reason that I felt that we could do it this other year and then look at it for the following year. Plus the fact that if we wanted to do something different with those funds, we're really kind of late in the game. It's really too late to have somebody do a whole new fabrication of something else, and we still apparently have one more year at the lily pond where we could still use that material. So it was basically for that reason that I, and I believe Councilmember Wells said that that's that was really the tipping point because she also had a lot of apprehension about it. In terms of the upgrade of the power service connection, you know, that's a real positive environmentally. And then fiscally, it's also a good deal, because now when an event such as vanity fair comes to use a crescent area, we'll be able to charge them for the use of power and its clean power. And hopefully they won't have as many generators or certainly less generators than they would otherwise have to have in the future which is a positive also. So you know I look as that power service upgrade is really an infrastructure upgrade to our facilities. So anyway that's how I got there and that is the end of the liaison report and we will go now to public comment if any. We do not have any one on zoom or on written comment. Okay, very good. So we will then go to Council Member comments and direction and start with Council Member Wilson. I my direction would be to accept the proposal. Thank you. Thank you. Council Member Corman. Thank you. So first of all let me thank everyone who participated in getting all this material together and thank the liaison committee in particular for vetting all these options and issues. And I would say that I am in support of all the liaison committee recommendations except for the projection mapping. And I went back and looked at the tape of your meeting and I saw that both Mayor Friedman and Councillor Morewell's were struggling a little bit with the projection mapping. It's expensive. And I understand why they ultimately recommended it. There is the money in the budget. There is nothing else to be done with that money at this point. There was discussion about the fact that it could create, a third year would create some inventory that could save money done online. But then it was unclear to me how much, man. I think it was unclear to you guys how much money would actually save because ever you have to set up the projection, you have to get it, you have to take whatever materials you're going to use. And then there was the whole question of would you take parts of the three years programs and do a mashup or you just do alternate each one of them which would be cheaper, but would that be as effective. And I also think that although when we first did the projection mapping, it did get a lot of international attention because there's a certain, as I've heard, said, wow factor to the whole thing. After two years, it's maybe less special and I would be surprised if we did it a third year, we'd get the same kind of media attention that we did initially. So I don't know how much we get out of this. It's far away from the business triangle. I mean, we do have the trolley that can bring people over. So if they're already here, they can go over and see it. But do people come to see the projection mapping and then go to road day or drive? That strikes me as probably unlikely. So I just look at the expense, $750,000, plus the $115,000 power upgrade, which we would not have to do if we don't do the projection mapping and it's unclear to me What the benefit other than the projecting map is mapping is sure it's an infrastructure upgrade We we may be able to do some cost recovery by charging it to other users in the area like vanity fair when they come But I don't know how much we're going to be able to up you know recoup our investment that way but I don't know how much we're gonna be able to you know, recoup our investment that way. Certainly if we delay it, there may be cheaper options going forward, maybe not. We don't know. We may not even do it. We may not even need to do it if the only thing we're doing is avoiding generators, more generators during vanity fair. So I would, I'm in favor of everything to liaison committee recommended except for the projection mapping in the power rep grade the associated power upgrade and I would also you know point out that we have a two million dollar budget deficit this year and That's a lot of this money comes from the general fund comes to TOT revenues, but the general fund and that's a lot of money We could use to better options. We talked just a little while ago at doing a permanent memorial to the victims of October 7th. We may be putting some city money towards that. This money could be used towards that, or maybe something else. But we know we have a deficit this year of $2 million that we're plugging with a one-time public benefit from the Rosewood project, which staff admits is not the proper use of that money. And I just think that we would better off keeping the money and using it elsewhere. Keep in mind, we have already fully funded the Chambers program, the Rodeo Drive program, the CDB program. We are going to fund the Rodeo Drive program, the CDB program. We are going to fund the Radeo Drive decorations. We're going to talk about that in a few minutes. I have some ideas about that, which may actually increase the cost of that, so we'll need to figure that one out. And we're going to fund the Radeo Drive event, the holiday event. So I just think we're better off saving our money and not doing the projection mapping. I don't think building a library is worth that much. And you know the truth is, if next year we had a budget surplus and we decided to bring it back, we could create the library there. And Mary just said that maybe we do it this year and take a year off. And so we take the year off this year and see where it goes. But I just think that that's a lot of money to spend on something that I don't think really brings business to the triangle. I don't think it's as special as once was and given our budget deficit we're better off keeping the money. But those are my thoughts. Thank you. And, Councillor Bermish. Thank you. And thank you to the liaison for the report. You know, it's interesting. It does have the feeling that we're almost trying to have to reinvent the wheel every year to do something fresh, to do something. I always felt that if you did something classic like, you know, the reveal at FAO shorts each year of the toys, something that you do each year that people look forward to, that you can yes make additional changes and add new things now and then to pep things up, but you don't have to reinvent the wheel every year. And I loved when we had the Baccaros chandeliers. I think that was so classy that I think that's a moment that people say, we have to go to Beverly Hills to see the to see the Baccarotchandeliers. We have to go every year to see that lighting and maybe other things. I still think that if we invested in those chandeliers and made that a fixed point, that's gonna be something that the holiday lighting ceremony is synonymous with the Baccaro Shandleurs and Beverly Hills, and that's something everyone needs to go see. I love projection mapping. I think it was actually because I'd seen it at Disneyland that was my suggestion back in the day, and I actually said, let's do it on Rodeo Drive. And maybe at some point, we do do it on on road to drive because one, we want the people on road to drive that creates something that is special and unique and vibrant and maybe we move the projection mapping eventually to road to drive. I loved what we did for City Hall I think it looked great. I think it had a wow effect and there were a lot of people there I think it looked great. I think it had a wow effect and there were a lot of people there. But I also, but I also have to say, I feel, yes, we have to celebrate the holidays and business, but I feel a little as festive just because of everything that's going on from October 7th to what happened, you know, a couple blocks away from where I live on PICO. I would actually agree with Craig, but I would almost say that I would like to take the save the money this year for the projection mapping and here market. I would put that into the fund for the October 7th permanent memorial. There we'd have three quarters of a million and we'd be able to work with that. And in fact, I think we could tell our residents, you know what? Maybe even have a sign there that says that projection mapping this year is not taking place. Instead, the city has decided to use that money to develop a permanent memorial to October 7th. And here's how you could get involved. Here's how you can make comments. That's my feeling on that. I really think to me when it's a choice between one or the other, and again, I was the biggest supporter of projection mapping. I think it is really cool. And I do think at some point it would be very cool to do it on rodeo. But to me this would be an opportunity to find some money and then we'll be set about the memorial that we've all said that we want to have. Craig's also right that we have a budget deficit so those are things that we're going to have to structurally address as well. But from my perspective, that's what I would like to say. And look forward to hearing about the events and all of that. But it just, it feels to me, unless there's a miracle, which maybe there could be, and the war is over, and the hostages are returned, I don't know. Thank you. Bye, sir. Thank you very much. Thank you. Vice-mer. Thank you very much. Thank you to the liaison and to staff. I know that this is a lengthy process. So we appreciate your time. I would like to suggest that we start this process sooner next time, next year. I think that a lot of times things are very set and it would be nice to get input from the council at an earlier date. For example, because we do have a budget deficit this year of $2 million, it would be the responsible thing for us to look at this earlier and see if there are ways that we could do some cost cutting to be physically responsible. So I have a few basic questions. Do we own the displays that are put throughout the city or do we rent them? We own most of them. We own them. But we do, like the projection mapping equipment is all rented. So there are some rented items. Some of the items in Beverly Cannon Gardens are rented. We did purchase the tree last year, but the secondary element is always rented. So it's a balance and then whatever we purchase, we then store with our vendor. All right, because I'm trying to understand the process. Do we own it, and then we put it up again, or do we have to change it annually? I know that when I go visit places, I don't necessarily remember what they had the prior year. And so it's not as important for me that the display gets changed annually, but that it exists. And so I'm trying to understand what we do as a city. And maybe you could explain it to the community. What we do with the lights and do we use the same ones? Do we replace them? Is it the actual LED that we need to replace? What is the majority of the lights are purchased in the decor elements and we look at what their lifespan is and of course it depends on weather and things like that and how long they're up for the holidays. And then it's stored and then our part of the costs that we pay this our primary contractor is to look at them again when they pull them out for the new year make sure they're still in good working order to be hung on the street or on the sidewalks. But the majority of our items are purchased and reused for as long as we can. Two years ago, for example, we did buy new the Starlight spheres that are on La Sienaica. We have, let's say we have 200 of them, we bought 50 new ones to keep that going. So there were, we still had some that were good, but we had enough that we're not, that we could extend their life by adding some more. And not replace the new one. You have to purchase a new one, or you just replace the bulbs. I don't know. I don't know. Certain decor you have to, certain decor, you have to replace the whole thing. But others, you can, some things you can replaceable. But most of our decor is part of a fabricated element that has to then get, the whole piece gets replaced. But not necessarily all of them. And from a sustainability perspective, what happens with like the things that we get rid of? The majority of it would be e-waste. Yeah. All right. And, you know, for example, the display that we have at Beverly Gardens, it's beautiful. I mean, it's really stunning. Are we changing that again this year? The lily pond? No. That isn't its fourth year and they estimated five years it has last year we did have to buy extra supplies to keep it going but it was in good shape after last year so we should be good this year we're not expecting to have to purchase new parts for that. Oh yeah. It just hit me. There is an odd smell in the chambers at this time and we are working on figuring out what is causing that and resolving it. We believe we believe it's the fan to cool the room that's causing it but what can I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not going to be asking about the question. I'm not have to be replaced every year. That's a $450,000 cost. So that's, I mean, that's just right there, that's partly why it's a citywide cost, and we're replacing them right now. All the other lights for each street, we try to have at least a five-year life for those items, we own them, and then the other, and then we try to extend their life. So we're extending the life on Wilshire. The only items that we rent is the extra in Beverly Cannon Gardens, which is like a little walkthrough where you take a picture of and the rental to have the projection mapping. Beverly Cannon Gardens, which is like a little walk-through where you take a picture of and The rental to have the projection mapping But that is the rest we own and we try to hold on for a number of years So we can do it. I think what the smell you're smelling is there's a fan above head that doesn't work well But we're trying to keep it cool So it went back on and we're trying to get it back off But I think those so that's really on as our guru when it comes to these things So I think so I think that's really I want you to understand that because it's not It's a constant is a constant process and that's not included in this budget, right? Yes, it is It is yes, it is but but. Okay. All right. Thank you for that. It's part of the year round, decor and continuing items, number there. Yeah. I noticed that the, I also watched the liaison meeting, and I noticed that there was a, they wanted to do a little higher for the Beverly Cannon gardens, and I appreciate that there was a, they wanted to do a little higher for the Beverly Canon gardens and I appreciate that the liaison suggested that we keep it as is at the 250 level. So thank you to the liaison for that. You know the projective projection mapping is really spectacular. It's awe inspiring and I think it's one of the most beautiful things. I too have often wondered why we do it all the way on City Hall because I wonder if people have the opportunity to really be able to enjoy it. If it is something that we want to do for the hotels and people coming to visit our city, it seems a little off. And when I was looking at the numbers, if we're spending 750,000 plus on this and there were 4,300 people that were registered to come see it that means we're spending $174.42 a person to come to this site to look at this beautiful display. Now that's a pretty expensive ticket to come and see a light display that I think we can do a lot of other things with that fund. So I too would be in agreement with Councilmember Korman and Marish that perhaps this year because we do have the budget restraint and we are interested in doing the October 7th memorial that we can divert those funds to something that will equally benefit the community and we would probably have visitors coming to see that as well. I like the idea of having the sustainable power portion. I would recommend that we bring that back when we do have vanity fair visiting us and perhaps that could be a conversation that we have with them to and the dates that were recommended. I absolutely do not think that we should have the December 24th or January 1st. I would never want to have staff leave their families to come and do something for a lighting. I think that's inappropriate and we want to be able to be inclusive and a united community. I do think that having a Hanukkah lighting on Shabbat, because you have to wait until it's sundown, is kind of counterproductive. So I would not support that. One idea that I would perhaps want to bring to my colleagues, you know, many places have done their lighting ceremonies ceremonies just like we're doing the Christmas lighting ceremony earlier perhaps we could look at doing a Hanukkah lighting ceremony earlier that way we get the community involved we could have many people joining us but it's not necessarily on the Sabbath that would interfere with a lot of our orthodox community who I'm sure would want to participate in this event as well and also we have a lot of people who want community who I'm sure would want to participate in this event as well. And also we have a lot of people who want to travel during the end of the year and they would miss this. So maybe that would be something that we can also look at as a different date. But definitely not on the 25th or the 1st. That's not what I'm suggesting at all, but perhaps even before Hanukkah starts earlier on so that we could have a larger, more robust community celebration. Those are my recommendations. Okay, thank you. Perhaps I'm going to need Shana up here, just on the power upgrade issue. Can you discuss what has been done? Has it partially been done? Is this topping it off? Where are we on that? We've done some partial work. We couldn't take the whole load this year. We did some partial work. But it does take time and planning to actually do this electrical work. So if it's something you want to be able to offer vanity fair, then we would recommend you still approve that portion of it tonight so that we can continue that work. So tell me what it is exactly that is it just for outdoor events or external events or is it any benefit to the campus we have right here now? It would benefit anything that we want to do outside and have power outside to plug in because it will bring a larger supply of power to the garden of city hall complex. Okay, so China can you say that one more time? What the benefit would be so the campus the benefit would be any kind of program We would like to do outside that needs power We would now have power outside that we don't have to bring a generator out In this area where where we were bringing the power and on the crescent side. I would support that. Craig do you have any other questions you want to ask on that because I think you are concerned about that. Yeah I mean so how often I mean it's great that we have the cleaner power on Crescent but how often are we going to use it. So I and that's the fair pressure for not doing projection mapping then then this year, I know about his vanity fair. And if we were to do like the festival BH, one of the topics is to where did we want to do it? So if there's any other festival. We didn't do, we didn't do, we decided not to do festival Beverly Hills on Crescent and close it down. So, right, so right now it's only right. Okay and if we have any events here between on Crescent and we put the about ballards up do we have any of those events that that would be of assistance to or not. It would provide another opportunity for them that they didn't have in the past. And that would be, that would, I just remember there being generators out on that north lot with the leaking fuel and all of that and that's what my recollection is. That's, yes, that occurred. Mayor, if I could just add, Mayor and Council, we have had events on crescent in the past. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. I think that's a good idea. Mayor, if I could just add, Mayor and Council, we have had events on Crescent in the past. Some are curings on that. Britwick comes to mind. Also the dance and fitness class. There's been discussion about that coming back. So it is possible that there could be events on Crescent. Okay. So So it sounds to me like Vice Mayor Nazarian, myself, and Council Member Wells, and I don't know what your position is on the generator. If it's an infrastructure upgrade that we can reasonably use for other things, then I'm okay with it, but I'm not sure that we need it. I kind of, yeah, if we're not, if we're ultimately not doing the projection mapping, then I would say maybe we can hold up on it. So I was gonna say three and a half people, now about three and a quarter are in favor of it. But I think we have three to go forward with it and it doesn't sound like we have support for the projection mapping and then everything else seems to be a go if I'm not mistaken. I think that summarizes it. Okay. Yes, we got it. Thank you for the Hanukkah celebration. Oh, and we need a date for the Hanukkah celebration. You know I'm looking at that. Were there any other dates? I guess it's a Magdalena question. Were there any other dates? Because the way I'm looking at it, we're not going to do what I don't believe on the 24th because that's Chris Maseve. It's pretty sure now. And then that goes to the 23rd which is a Monday. I don't have anything written down. That's correct. The other day. More to Sunday night. The other day that was in consideration during Hanukkah was Monday the 30th of December, but if we did do it before we could consider any date before the Christmas holiday or in the previous week. Yes. Oh, I mean, I would like to have the largest participation. Also, I know Hobart is doing there is on the 20 fit. They're doing theirs on Christmas Day. Correct. They were the only faith-based organization that did reply back to us immediately. The rest said it's a little early, and they'd kept back to me at a later date. That said, we did reach out. Okay, so what I would say is that Vice Mayor has asked that it not be on Friday night Shabbat. Why don't we look at other dates? Your suggestion is just dates before Hanukkah starts, correct? How about we bring a few dates back when we do the banner review with the liaisons and we'll return? I'm suggesting that whatever the mayor wants because this is his year and we want to celebrate him and I just don't know what kind of turnout it would be on a Shabbat, but whatever you want to leave him and I just don't know what kind of turnout it would be on a Shabbat But whatever you want to leave on whatever is convenient for you. I will be happy to support That's fine. Thank you. I thank you very much. Let's we'll talk about dates as far as that Consolidium. Okay. Thank you Okay, moving right along and we only have 15 minutes on this next item Item number eight three pressure is on To get this done. Recommendation of the Beverly Hills City Council, Roedale Drive Special. Events holiday program committee regarding 2024 Roedale Drive holiday decor proposal. Thank you, Mayor and Council, Magdalena Davis. Once again, in the interest of being speedy I will skip the majority of the introduction and let you know just a couple things it was recommended by the liaisons that we consider a Thursday November 14th for the kickoff but that is not being discussed today here I want to make that clear we initially bring you decor for review and a theme to make sure we have the direction before moving to rodeo drive banners and a kickoff event. So before you today, we have President K. Monica Rose from the RDC, as well as Kathy Gohari of VP of the RDC to discuss the proposed holiday decor and lighting on Rodeo. Hi, good afternoon. Mayor Friedman, Vice Mayor Azari and members of the council. Thank you. We're time today. I'm very excited. I'm very excited for this year's holiday lighting ceremony. It will be truly remarkable and I'm sure it will be as remarkable as the Concoursed delegates just was. We've been able to enjoy great success with Radeil Drive's holiday decor the last few years. Last year we had the hot air ballooned and the year before that we had the trains on Radeil and they were truly successful. We've made a name for ourselves as a must see for the holidays. Photos in videos of the holiday lighting ceremony are shared across social media platforms during a holiday season and after. Our exceptional visitor experience has solidified Radeil Drive as a remarkable destination for holiday. And an effort to maintain our world-class holiday lighting ceremony, we are here before you to request a review of one component of the planned holiday decor in order to save time and expenses. This year's Roedale Night's holiday lights theme is inspired by magnificent vintage ornaments with an exciting and alluring color scheme. And with us today we have Kathy Goheri and we also have Paul Marks with bourgeois productions with us today. The component that we are discussing is the life-size ornaments on display in a center median. These ornaments will prove, these ornaments will prove, there will be an extra 300 feet of coverage and require customization in order to fit the slim dimensions of the median as they are not compatible with last year's platforms. This year's budget, it's increased and I know everyone talks about inflation but our budget overall, for inflation has increased about 3%. The other part of the increase for our budget this year is the square footage. There's 300 additional square footage of decor on the street and also the labor costs are higher because we have more square footage so we're not using the platforms. And also we have an extra week. The time frame has been extended to January 5th because Hanukkah this year is January 25th through January 2nd. So we've extended it for a week. So that's also have the cost go up. So as you can see here, the holiday decor, the color of it, the vintage color, 10 foot tall toppers and the beautiful colorful icicle swirls, the different heights are very vibrant and it's 48 feet section of our Dale drive that you see here. This is the 400 block and it has different colors, the tree toppers and the tall decorations in a happy Hanukkah banner that we have on the street on a 400 block. 300 block would have the theme Roedale nights holiday lights and once again the beautiful decor going down rodeo. It's very much so continuous going down rodeo because we don't have the platforms this year. As you can see here, this is from Wilshire Boulevard to Little Santa Monica Boulevard, and it's very continuous, very beautiful the way the decor would look this year. So that's the proposed layout. Also you can see the height of it which is very successful, the height that we had of the hot air balloons, that was very much so like the height of the, so we're doing that again with the Beverly Hills shield and some items, purses, shoes as part of the decor. And once again, the decor is in the vintage colors. Here we go. We see the decor details, the happy Hanukkah and the Rodale Nights Holiday Lights theme. And this is to give you a more of a close-up of the fireworks LED light display. This is a little bit more of a close-up instead of the rendering, so you can see more what it would look like. Also, we would continue as we've done in the past on the 16 palm trees that line Rodale sensor median, the warm white lights with the dripping and running lights and also our rose bushes would have the cascade of the sparkling lights on them. As Kathy Sain, of course, they're all the existing. And this is our vintage color palette and inspiration. So they're vintage ornaments and you can see the color palette. So this is where we got the color palette for the lens. Also, this is our holiday lighting inspiration and this is the Cathedral in Milan, Italy. And as you can see, it has that beautiful color palette that we'd be doing something similar. I'm sorry. Oh, yes. And so our budget for this year's decor is $524,502 for our decor. Thank you very much. Okay, if there's nothing further, further we'll go on to the Layus on Report Council Member Wells. And if not, I will go forward with it. We entertained the suggestions of the Roeday-O-Drive Committee. There were some minor tweaks that have occurred in the presentation. In essence, we recognize that Rodeo Drive Committee has to run all of the potential choices through a large committee of the businesses on Rodeo Drive. They were in favor of this. The expenses within reason in terms of what has been done in the past and the liaison was favorable to it. So with that, we will go to any public comments. We do not have any public comments on this item. Okay, and then if Council Member Wells comes on, we will take her. If not, we will go first to Council Member Cormick, please. Okay, thank you. So great work. I think everything looks really terrific, and I think Lee has a good job looking at this stuff. I had one question. I tend to like graphic things, so I really appreciate the Christmas-oriented vignettes that don't say Merry Christmas on it. But we have the Happy Hanukkah, which has Happy Hanukkah. I was wondering, was there any discussion about having a more graphic-oriented Hanukkah vignette that doesn't say Happy Hanukkah necessarily? And I'm not sure what that would be. Maybe you have a dreidel or a menor or some other iconographic image which could be a blue and white. And then, of course, that would, this is the next point. That would obviously mean we have to create another vignette which may be more expensive, I don't know, but then you would have less of the other vignette. And then you could reserve the vignette that has the banner for rodeo nights and holiday lights. And that would be the only banner, which would be kind of interesting to have that as an emphasis of the only writing on the block. Just a thought, as they said, I think everything is good, but I just, that was a suggestion I had, that's all. May I? So yes, anything is possible. We can do, none of the writing is infinite at this point. And we will take suggestions, of course. There is usually what we try to do is the blue and the white and the silver usually takes two different vignettes. With all due respect, we don't want to add more. So maybe we can substitute something. If we do change something with Hannah Cutten, yes. Of course, I think we could still leave the rodeo nights, holiday lights, because usually red and green, I mean, anywhere in the world, it just relates to Christmas. So, but yes, all of it is up for discussion. Should you? That's my only suggestion is I like more graphic things and less writing. I think it's more festive. It's particularly when you're celebrating the holiday. But obviously I'm open to everyone else's comments. But thank you. We might as say we did do the dreidel before. Was that two years ago we did do the dreidel. So just with Anna Monora. So just trying to change it up a little bit, but we appreciate that. Maybe John could suggest some other iconographic images that would be appropriate and it would be good. I don't know. Are you seating your time to Mr. Mayor? I am. Okay. Thank you. Well, Menoras are always, you know, sources of light. Look, I'm, you know, I'm supportive of all the work that everyone did. I'll support this, but I will say, as I said, I'd love to see the Bakarosh and the leaders come back. There's just something special, elegant, classy, wonderful about that. And you don't have to explain it. People can say, yeah, they do say now, we're going to go see the holiday lighting and rodeo drive. But it just adds an element of class. Oh, we're going to see those Baccarousch Handlers. There's just nothing like it anywhere else in the world. And I'd love to see us bring that back on an annual basis with little additions and other things. And I would also love to see at some point projection mapping on Rodeo Drive. I think that would be spectacular. I know it's a lot more expensive and maybe once costs come down we'll be able to do it. So yes we have you and I have had this discussion about Bacarash Abeliers. Everybody in this town would love those back. And obviously those are no longer available. They were property of gearies at that time and they have sold every single one of them. So ideally, we would have to... I think Tom Luminth all said that, you know, he could talk to them and they'd manufacture them. We could even maybe have some sort of say as to how they look. Correct. Yes. And then the upkeep, which is a few hundred thousand. So it just has to be budgeted, but it would always be a great element that could be mixed with anything or with nothing. So yes, sir. That's number one. And mapping when the city first decided to do the location on the City Hall tower It was originally discussed to do it on radio drive and the location was the Beverly Wilshire At that point the liaisons and I believed council felt that it would be more universal and more accessible If he was on a tall tower where even when cars were driving by they would see it. So we would love it definitely. If it's the right artwork, I'm sure the merchants and hoteliers would be very much in favor. Thank you. One note is the proposal was also significantly more expensive for the hotel given its size and scale. And also wouldn't it disturb the people in the hotel? Because the light is pretty bright. Yes, but I think there was some way of projecting it in this section where it was not going to be an issue. The hotel was all for it at that time, but the budget was almost double. So. Okay, Thank you. Let's go on to Vice Mayor and we're going to try and finish both of us within the next three minutes. Okay. Yes, sir. So first of all, thank you to the liaisons and thank you to the committee. I know it takes a lot of time. Again, I'd love to see this come to us a little sooner. It's not as much of a budgetary constraint as the previous item was. So I appreciate that. I also love the Bacchara chandeliers. I know that just maintaining Bacchara is delicate and storing those things. I'm sure would be very difficult because if any of them chip or break that would be quite costly. The core looks really nice, but I'm just wondering, is kind of like the same question I asked previously, why are we not keeping like the toys and the bears? That was so cute, the trains. And is there a reason we keep changing it? That's definitely a reason that we keep changing it. So I'll just mention, definitely social media is one of the things and all of the other competition I believe Mayor Friedman said that earlier. There's a lot of competition. We have a lot of other malls. We have Century City. We have the Grove. There's Coast of Mason, Newport. There's a lot of competition. In what social media, social media is all about content and something different. So it's very important that we have changed. Right. So I think that rodeo drive is the crown of our city and we want to celebrate it and we want to make it as special and fantastic as possible. So thank you for keeping it classy and keeping it... Sorry, I just wanted to add, we also have... Our research also shows that the younger affluent shoppers are always looking for new. So we're also trying... We certainly want to support that, especially on radio drive. So I understand that. Yeah. All right. I'm in favor of this and the way that it's presented. Thank you. Thank you. And thank you. And I'll just check one more time if Councilmember Wells has anything to say. And if not, I am. I am. I am. Yeah. And we were in support of it. So with that, I'll close out this item. Thank you very, very much. I think I believe that there was supposed to be a purchase order approved and since council with Jay. Yes, there was a wall in usual. It's not unheard of for this particular item to have a purchase order approved at a study session and not a formal. It prevents our partners from being here very, very late on the same day. And given that Council Member Wells is on video teleconferencing into the meeting that has to be approved by roll call vote, you can't just do it by consensus. Okay, so we need to call a roll call. We need to do a motion. Yes, second. We move the for the first. So motion. Yes. Second. For the purchase order. OK. Oh, yeah. So we move the motion is to approve the purchase order. I move to approve the purchase order in the amount requested. OK. With that, we'll do the roll call. Council member Wells. Yeah. Council member Korman. Yes. Council member Mirish? Yes. Council Member Corman? Yes. Council Member Mirish? Vice Mayor Nazarian? Yes. And Mayor Friedman? Yes. Thank you so much. With that I will thank you. Thank you all. Thank you so much. Okay and at this point in time we are going to... Do you have anything to say first? Potential. Potentially. Potentially we have an additional item on the closed session today at about quarter to one. We received a letter from Californians for a home ownership. That letter threatened litigation specifically. It said now that the city stands at the precipice of denying the application, which is the staff recommendation tonight. We are notifying you that we intend to initiate litigation against the city under the Housing Accountability Act tomorrow if it does so. So, is that the group that is deceptively named California's Rehomotorship that's really financed by the real estate industry and dark money? That would be my understanding. Okay. So, the council can add, it is my opinion that discussion in open session would prejudice the position of the local agency. And I think there's a significant exposure to litigation pursuant to government code section 54956.9D2. So the council can add this to the closed session agenda if it makes two findings. The first finding is that this came to the attention of the legislative body since the posting of the agenda. Of course this came to the attention of the legislative body today at about 1. So that was clearly after the posting of the agenda. And two, that there's a need to take immediate action. And of course, you will have to act on this application or on this appeal tonight because it has been continued and there is no more time. So if you feel that those two findings are appropriate and we'll have to do a roll call vote, then you can add this to the closed session agenda. So before we adjourn this meeting, we want to take a roll call vote on that or do I adjourn it to the closed session items for those items on the closed session, including the addition of this one subject to the roll call? You can take that motion, either before you have the roll call or after, I would suggest that you could do the roll call, take any public comment, and then take the motion. Then take the motion to add, if you decide to add this to the agenda. Okay, so let's do it that way. So I want to adjourn the meeting to the closed session for those items on the closed session agenda. And if we can have a roll call. Call to add this. No, we're right now we're doing some roll call for the closed session first. Okay, for the regular City Council closed session. Council member Wells. Here. Council member Korman. Here. Council member Mirish. Vice Mayor Nizarian. Here. And Mayor Friedman. Here. And then going on, there has, we have just heard a presentation as to an item that just came to our attention that is a threat of litigation on an item that we just learned about and that item is going to be on the evening agenda. We want to find out whether or not each council member can make the findings to add that this item to the closed session agenda at this time. So with that, we need a motion and a second and then you need public comment. So if we can have a motion? I move we add this item to the closed session, tonight's closed session agenda based on the findings that Larry you just described. Second. And take public comment. And with that we'll take public comment and then we'll go to any questions because it looks like Councilmember Wells has a question. Any public comment? questions because it looks like Council Member Wells has a question. Any comments? I don't have any written. I'm just trying to make sure there's nothing for Zoom. I'm waiting for an answer. And that's fine. In the interim, what's Council Member Wells has a question? Yes, thank you. My question is with regard to item number two. So I understand number one in terms of finding about this after posting the agenda, but for item number two, a layer you reference, not having more time. So can you just expand on that a little bit? We have to act on this appeal with an a certain number of days. We had this scheduled for, I believe the original date was, I believe it was March 11th, but I could be wrong on that. In any event, that was the last date act on it. This was continued a number of times while we were in discussions with the appellant. And we've continued that until tonight. And I believe that given that that was the last day, it was continued until tonight that we have to act on this tonight at this meeting. I think the first gate was sent for March 11th. Okay, any other questions before we take a roll call on the motion and the second? It appears we do not have public comment. Okay, so we will go to roll call. Okay, Council Member Wells? Yes. Council Member Corman? Yes. Council Member Marish? Yes. Vice Mayor Nazarian? Yes. And Mayor Friedman. Yes. And I will take roll call for the parking authority closed session. There isn't any. I don't believe we have a parking authority this evening. I read it. Thank you. Okay. Thank you. See you all back at around seven o'clock.