BY TIANA GOEGEBUER

Eastvale – Last month the City of Eastvale held two City Council meetings. At the May 14 meeting, Council Members Ric Welch, Jeff DeGrandpre, and William Link were present, as well as Mayor Pro Tem Adam Rush and Julia Vasquez, the student liaison to the City Council. Mayor Ike Bootsma was absent. The invocation was led by Pastor Rob Norris from The Crossings church.

Two presentations were given: the first a Mental Health Month Proclamation to Mental Health Board Member, Patricia Carrillo; and the second was a presentation of certificates of appreciation for Clara Barton’s Walking Wednesdays Program.

There were no Public Comments, so the meeting progressed to the Consent Calendar. Items 5.1, 5.2, and 5.3 were approved 4-0-1, with DeGrandpre abstaining from 5.2 and Mayor Bootsma absent.

There were no Public Hearings or Old Business Items. The New Business Items were as follows:
8.1 -The council members nominated Karen Patel to possibly become a member of the Economic Development Committee. The nomination was passed 3-1, with Link voting “no” and Bootsma absent;
8.2 – Renewal of the Animal Services Contract with the County of Riverside was approved 4-1, with Bootsma absent.

The meeting adjourned at 6:59 with the City Manager’s report, the student liaison’s update, and closing statements from the Council.

The second City Council meeting was held on May 28. The meeting began on time with all council members present.

The Riverside County Transportation Commission gave a presentation on the future installation of a 14.6 mile Express Toll Lane in both directions of the 15 Freeway. The express lanes will be implemented in the current median of the freeway with multiple exit points along the route. Construction is projected to begin in 2018 with completion by 2020.

CitySourced will be launching their free Non-Emergency Civic Engagement app. It is scheduled to go live during the Picnic at the Park event at the end of June. It will be available for all NON-Emergencies such as graffiti reporting, code enforcement and parks and recreation information
Kris Kiltz, with the Public Safety Commission gave a report. The number of pot houses is down from three to four a week, to one per month, on average. The excessive speeding on the River Road Bridge will also be more heavily patrolled by the Sheriff’s Department.

During the Public Comment section of the meeting, LEAFF President, Rigo Arellano, and Vice President, Kris Kiltz, both addressed the council about the importance of the military banner program. Arellano also presented them with some cost savings bracket ideas for the banners.
The Consent Calendar was approved with the exception of some items which were pulled due to the expected length of this council meeting.

Two public hearings were held. The first, and most controversial one, was about the rezoning for the Goodman Commerce Center project. During the public hearing many residents spoke about their concerns. After much discussion, the council voted to continue this decision at a future meeting. Some of the concerns regarding the project were that restrictions need to be implemented on the times in which trucks may access those warehouses, load capacity issues, and permits with accurate tracking. The current estimation is 1,850 trucks per day, averaging 78 per hour. Even though there are legal operating restrictions for the hours of operation, this number could be increased significantly.

There are plans for four additional traffic lights in the area near Canto Galleano Road; however, it was advised this may not coincide with the proposal given to the City of Ontario, as residential homes are proposed across the street north of Hamner Avenue. The building will also have the option for solar installation if the tenant so chooses. In addition, most of the property will be warehouses, but they cannot guarantee that the future business will be staffed or fully automated. One section is to be a business park, and the rest a possible full service hospital (if they can get someone like Kaiser to come in), a hotel and possibly some retail in Phase 2. Additional information will be discussed at the next City Council meeting.

The council also approved rate increases for both Burrtec Waste Industries and Waste Management Fiscal Year 2013-2014. New business Items were also discussed.

The next City Council meeting will be June 11, 6:30 p.m., at Rosa Parks Elementary.

BY EMILY LUNDBERG

Julia Aquilar sits in on her first City Council meeting. (Photo Courtesy: Jennifer Madrigal)

On April 23, the Eastvale City Council’s first student liaison, Julia Vazquez, was introduced to the Council. Vazquez is a senior at Eleanor Roosevelt High School and currently serves as the Associated Student Body (ASB) President. She is also a member of the Senior Class Council, and plans to major in Psychology. As part of her position, Vazquez attended all City Council meetings during her tenure, and participated on the Board with the council members and Mayor Ike Bootsma. At the end of each meeting, she provided an update on the happenings at Eastvale schools, including activities, concerns, and anything else pertaining to the youth of Eastvale.

When asked why her position was of value, Vazquez said, “I think it’s important to have a student representative because it allows the students, the youth of the City, to have a voice and be a part of something bigger than just school… [and] be an active part of the community as well.” She went onto say she hopes, “With this position we will have more action taking place within the schools to make the students have an enjoyable, safe and fun learning environment.”

During the summer Vazquez will turn the reins over to the 2014-2015 ASB President and Vice President.