La Verne City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 3
Where: City Hall Council Chambers, 3660 D St., La Verne
How to attend: In person, via Zoom at LaVerneCA.gov/zoom, or by phone by calling 1-669-900-6833 and enter ID 817-5747-6840 when prompted.

🔗 Aug. 3 City Council Meeting Agenda
🔗 Aug. 3 City Council Meeting Agenda Packet

Council enters Closed Session at 5:30 p.m. to discuss labor negotiations with the City's four employee groups — the General Unit, Firefighters Association, Fire Middle Management Association, and unrepresented employees—plus one ongoing legal matter, City of Whittier, et al. v. Los Angeles County Superior Court, et al.

At 6 p.m., before the regular meeting even starts, Council holds a Study Session on the Goldspotted Oak Borer (GSOB) — an invasive beetle that's been killing oak trees across Southern California. County Fire and the County Agricultural Commissioner will update Council on what it's doing to La Verne's tree canopy.

Presentations

2026 Fire Risk Reduction Community List Recognition—La Verne has been added to the Board of Forestry's Fire Risk Reduction Community List. It's a state recognition, and it reflects the City's ongoing work to strengthen wildfire preparedness, cut down local fire risk, and protect the people, homes, and infrastructure that make La Verne, well, La Verne. Read more about the designation.

✅ Consent Calendar

Items on the Consent Calendar are routine and typically passed as a package unless pulled for individual discussion.

City Council Minutes from the July 20 meeting—Routine approval of the prior meeting's minutes.

Register of Audited Demands—$14,150,090.35 in City bills, covering payments dated June 3 through July 26.

Catch Basin Connector Pipe Screen Retrofit Project—Council is asked to award a $115,947 construction contract to G2 Construction Inc. to retrofit catch basin screens, plus authorize up to 10% in change orders ($127,541 total possible cost) and a $30,000 inspection-services contract with RKA Consulting Group. The project is funded through Measure W.

Why it matters: This is stormwater infrastructure work that keeps the City in compliance with its regional stormwater permit—funded through Measure W.

Durward Way Bus Pad Improvement Project—A $168,380 contract to CT&T Concrete Paving Inc. to replace and expand the bus pad on Durward Way, add sidewalk and ADA accessibility upgrades, and install solar lighting. It's funded by Foothill Transit grant money and Proposition C Local Return funds.

Why it matters: A transit-accessibility upgrade paid for by outside grant dollars, not local tax revenue.

Photography Permit: More Media, Inc.—A commercial shoot for a project titled "INO" will film at Bonita High School grounds and the La Verne Skate Park on Aug. 13, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. No stunts, no pyrotechnics, no street closures. More Media will pay $1,750 in permit fees and deposits.

Resolution Canceling the Aug. 17 City Council Meeting—The second August meeting is being canceled for lack of business items.

Why it matters: If you were planning to catch Council in late August, mark your calendar for Tuesday, Sept. 8 instead—the next meeting is pushed a day later than usual because of the Labor Day holiday.

📢 Public Hearings

🗣️ Want to comment on a Public Hearing item? You can speak in person (fill out a comment card at City Hall), attend via Zoom and raise your hand when the item is called, or email cityclerk@LaVerneCA.gov by noon July 20. You'll have up to three minutes.

First Reading: Gilead Sciences Development Agreement Amendment—Gilead's development agreement for its La Verne manufacturing campus technically expired May 5, but the company filed for its one-time, five-year extension before that deadline. Council is asked to extend the agreement retroactively through May 5, 2031, and update the impact-fee language so fees on future development lock in at 2027 rates. No changes to what's approved to be built, no new land uses, no bigger buildings. The Planning Commission recommended approval on June 10.

Why it matters: This locks in the rules of the road for Gilead's campus for five more years—it doesn't change what gets built, just how long the current deal lasts and which year's impact fees apply.

First Reading: Zoning Ordinance Amendment for Nonconforming Lots—A technical fix to City code. Right now, if you own two substandard ("nonconforming") lots next to each other, the City generally requires you to merge them into one. This amendment creates an exception when that merger requirement would block an affordable housing project.

➡️ Review the proposed changes to the ordinance

Why it matters: If you're a property owner sitting on two small adjoining lots and hoping to build affordable housing, the City can no longer force you to combine them first.

Discussion Calendar

🗣️ Want to comment on a Discussion item? You can speak in person (fill out a comment card at City Hall), attend via Zoom and raise your hand when the item is called, or email cityclerk@LaVerneCA.gov by noon July 20. You'll have up to three minutes.

Citywide Street Sweeping: One-Year Agreement with CMAX — The City's longtime street sweeping vendor, Athens Services, declined to renew its contract and wanted an 18% rate hike — from $39.14 to $46.18 per curb mile. Rather than pay that, staff lined up CMAX Commercial Maintenance, Inc. to step in at the old $39.14 rate. Because it's an interim, one-year fix (not-to-exceed $173,000, including a $13,000 contingency), staff is asking Council to waive the City's usual formal-bidding requirement so service doesn't lapse while a full competitive process is run for a longer-term contract later this year.

Why it matters: If you notice a different street sweeper on your block this year, this is why — it's a stopgap, not the City's long-term pick.

2026 Christmas Morning Community Partnership Agreement—La Verne's Christmas Morning tradition is shifting from a City-run event to a community-led one. The newly formed Community Foundation of La Verne would serve as fiscal sponsor, with the Christmas Morning in La Verne Committee—led by longtime volunteer Scott Dilley—handling planning, fundraising, and day-of logistics. The City would still provide six lead vehicles with lights and sirens, radios, and help coordinate insurance. The event would keep its traditional six routes but run longer, 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and bring back goodie-bag distribution—about 12,000 bags of peanuts, oranges, and candy. The Committee has raised $3,400 so far. Council is asked to approve up to $16,000 in City seed funding toward the roughly $25,000 event budget.

➡️ Read more this sweet tradition returning to Christmas morning in La Verne

Why it matters: A holiday tradition a lot of La Verne families cherish is changing hands. Council's decision here sets the extent of the City's participation—money, vehicles, staff support—once it's community-run.

Declaration of 20 MPH School Zone Speed Limit—State law (AB 382) will drop school zone speed limits from 25 to 20 mph everywhere by 2031, but cities can adopt it early. After consulting with the Bonita Unified superintendent, staff is recommending La Verne do exactly that. Cost depends on the approach: full sign replacement runs about $10,000, while a hybrid option using adhesive overlays on signs that are otherwise in good shape would cost closer to $4,000 for this fiscal year. Either way, it comes out of the existing sign-replacement budget.

Why it matters: Slower speeds around schools when kids are present—but the new limit isn't enforceable until the new signage actually goes up.

🔥 Hot Topic

Goldline Pedestrian Bridge—the price just went up, and nobody knows by how much yet. This is the bridge that will carry pedestrians and cyclists over Arrow Highway and the Metrolink tracks, connecting the La Verne/Fairplex transit station to the Fairplex property. The San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments (SGVCOG) has been leading design and construction since a 2024 agreement, with $1.8 million in City funding already committed through the Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District.

➡️ Learn more about the bridge

Here's the problem: when SGVCOG applied for federal grant funding in 2024, the bridge itself was estimated at about $16 million. Since then, the City asked for architectural "betterments" and signage upgrades—approved in April and July of 2025—and construction costs for steel, concrete, electrical work, and labor have all climbed. The current engineer's estimate has the base bridge at roughly $18 million, with the City's requested upgrades adding another $3.2 million on top as separate "additive" bid items.

The bids for construction are being opened by SGVCOG the same day as this Council meeting, so nobody—including Council—will know the real numbers until Aug. 3. What Council is voting on is whether to send SGVCOG an additional $2 million in Measure M Multi-Year Subregional Program funds to help close the gap. That money is earmarked for the base bridge structure first; the architectural extras are built only if there's enough left over. If the bids come in high, La Verne could end up with a fully functional bridge—minus the design features Council was originally shown.

Why it matters: This is the City finding more money to help build a bridge whose final price tag isn't even set yet. Whether the "nicer" version gets built or just the basic one may come down to what happens at a bid opening on the same evening as this meeting.

🗣️ General Public Comment Opportunities

• In person at City Hall—fill out a speaker card before the item is called
• By email to cityclerk@LaVerneCA.gov—submit by noon on July 20; comments are shared with the full Council and become part of the public record
• Via Zoom—visit LaVerneCA.gov/zoom or call 1-669-900-6833, ID: 833-1417-8680; raise your hand to request to comment. (To raise your hand in Zoom, click the Reactions or React button at the bottom of your screen, then select Raise Hand. On a phone, tap the screen, select the More (...) icon, and tap Raise Hand.)

Public comment is allowed:

• During Public Hearings
• On Discussion Calendar items
• On Consent Calendar items if pulled for separate discussion
• During general public comment for items not on the agenda

Upcoming Dates to Note

👥 Civic Meetings

Old Town La Verne Business Improvement District Monday, Aug. 3, 8:30 a.m. | Café Wang, La Verne

City Council Meeting Monday, Aug. 3, 6:30 p.m. | City Hall Council Chambers

Senior Advisory Committee Wednesday, Aug. 19, 10 a.m.–11:15 a.m. | La Verne Community Center

Finance Commission Wednesday, Aug. 19, 6:30 p.m. | City Hall Council Chambers