Lake Forest’s City Council used its Dec. 2 meeting to highlight community activities, approve routine items and hear several pointed public comments on council honors and local business licensing.

Presentations and recognitions opened the meeting. Communications staff (agenda references show both Aaron Rodriguez and, later, Erin Rodriguez for separate presentation items) presented the city’s 2025 Halloween House Decorating Contest, noting nine participating homes, a public vote Oct. 27–31 on PollUnit, a Google map of displays, and roughly 74,000 social-media impressions. The Romero family of Lobo Drive was recognized as the contest winner and invited forward to receive a yard sign and a photo opportunity with council. The staff presentation also featured slides highlighting entries across neighborhoods.

The council next recognized Brian "Bubba" Wiggert as a community hero for alerting and evacuating residents from a mobile-home fire on Aug. 27 at about 3:30 a.m. Wiggert received a certificate and was photographed with council members.

During public comment, resident Sean Fletcher criticized a prior council action to adjourn a previous meeting in honor of political commentator Charlie Kirk, saying such honors risk politicizing civic meetings: "When a council chooses to dedicate an official meeting to a political activist ... it sends a message that this space is no longer neutral," Fletcher said. He urged the council to award recognitions that "strengthen our community rather than divide it."

Another speaker, business and property owner Brian McMillan, told the council he believes StretchLab operates as an unlawful massage business under Lake Forest Municipal Code 5.07.100, which he read as defining massage to include pressure or friction applied with the aid of mechanical or electrical apparatus. "That defines StretchLab as a massage business," McMillan said, and he urged code enforcement and removal of the city's massage-license moratorium.

On the consent calendar, council members voted to approve the remainder of routine items for the housing authority and council (housing authority items 1–2, council items 3–7). Item 7 (acceptance of Toll Brothers improvements and release of bonds for Tract 19128) drew public comment from Ken Forbes, who said he could not locate the property in county assessor records and asked the council not to vote until more information was provided. The record shows a motion and second to approve item 7 and the council proceeded to vote on the consent calendar.

Council and staff closed the meeting with brief reports about community events (including a local "Elf Yourself" event, LED light installations, SB 1383 compliance checks, and an upcoming toy drive on Dec. 14) and holiday well-wishes.

Next steps: items on the consent calendar are finalized per standard procedure; staff will follow up on public-engagement and code-enforcement questions raised during public comment as appropriate.