After a couple of months being away from his seat for health reasons, councilmember for Ward 5 Ivan Huish returned for the Mayor and Council regular meeting for the month of May.

An emotional Huish took a moment after the invocation to express his gratitude to the people of Douglas for the visits, letters, prayers and the flowers he received at one of the most difficult moments of his life.

After Huish’s words, the regular meeting started with a presentation by the Arizona Centennial Committee in Douglas concerning a series of centennial events scheduled for October of this year. Among the events to be presented by the committee in October are a Douglas Fly-In Pancake Breakfast; a Music Festival; a Time Capsule; a Photo exhibit of Douglas in the past, and more.

Both Mayor and Council thanked the committee for doing such an effort on behalf of the Douglas’ community and for honoring the Centennial of the statehood of Arizona.

Another topic presented a discussion by Mayor Gomez concerning issuance of City of Douglas Recreation Center Workout facility keys to local residents due to the need of usage of the space at early hours in the morning by senior citizens who do not have another place to exercise.

Gomez mentioned that a key was issued to some volunteers who have a good reputation, but a couple of months ago, the keys were removed from their custody with no explanation. Then, Gomez asked for some direction to address the issue.

One of the concerns expressed by Councilmember Rudy Quiñonez was how would the City control the number of keys that will be out on the streets; he proposed instead, to have a Recreation staff member going to unlock the door of the workout facility to secure the safety of the equipment and the people who uses it.

Councilmember Ray Shelton supported Quiñonez’s opinion and added that it is necessary to prevent any accident because of the lack of supervision of any recreation staff member and he recommended that City Attorney Juan Flores should look into the issue to find the best way to solve it.

In another agenda item, City Manager Curtis Shook offered a presentation regarding Fiscal Year 2012/13 budget goals.

Shook said City staff will continue budget protocols followed for the last decade and presented Council with a nine month update on the City’s financial position at March 30, 2012.

Since the Arizona State Legislature has not yet passed its Fiscal Year budget it is hard to present a final budget at present time, but he remarked that the final proposal for the budget will be put in front of the Mayor and Council for its review right on time.

In another agenda items, Mayor and Council approved:

Presentation/discussion by Juan Pablo Flores, City Attorney, concerning a pending lease agreement with Air Resources International Corporation for hangars on the southeast portion of the Douglas Municipal Airport. Not an action item – no action taken.

Discussion/decision on approval of third reading of ordinance no. 12-1009, an ordinance of the Mayor and Council of the City of Douglas, Cochise County, Arizona, authorizing the city to enter into a renewal of the cable television license agreement with Cox Communications that expired on April 20, 2011. Motion passed by a vote of 7-0.

Discussion/decision on approval of first reading of ordinance no. 12-1010, an ordinance of the Mayor and Council of the City of Douglas, Cochise County, Arizona, amending ordinance no. 08-921 and relating to title 12 of the City of Couglas Municipal Code pertaining to golf course operations by amending sections 12.60.010, 12.60.020, 12.60.030, 12.60.032, 12.60.035, 12.60.036, and 12.60.040; establishing severability of components of ordinance; and establishing an effective date thereof. Motion passed by a vote of 7-0.

Discussion/decision on approval of a City of Douglas Police Department vehicle list and an auction date scheduled for June 16, 2012, and with a backup date of June 23, 2012. Motion passed by a vote of 7-0.

Discussion/decision in consideration of a citizen’s petition concerning the establishment of a Youth City Council. Motion PASSED by a vote of 6-1, to acknowledge receipt of petition and table matter for consideration of petition at the June 13, 2012 Regular Council meeting, opposing vote by Council Member Mitch Lindemann.

Discussion/decision in consideration of a citizen’s petition concerning a change to the regular council meeting day from the second Wednesday of every month to the second Tuesday of every month. Motion PASSED by a vote of 6-1, to acknowledge receipt of petition and table matter for consideration of petition at the June 13, 2012 Regular Council meeting, opposing vote by Council Member Mitch Lindemann.

The next regular meeting will take place on June 13 at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall at which time Douglas’ new mayor Danny Ortega Jr. as well as the three new council members will be sworn into office.