[CALL TO ORDER]
[00:00:03]
I WILL CALL THE DECEMBER 16TH, 2020 DOWNTOWN COMMISSION MEETING TO ORDER AT 5:40 PM.
UH, MANOA YOU TAKE ROLL PLEASE.
MR. FELDMAN, MR. HARRISON, YOU'RE HARD TO HURT HERE.
HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, TAYLOR AND MISSIONARY HERE.
I DID NOT HEAR MY NAME COMMISSIONER LAYMAN PRESENT.
THE NEXT SIDE OF THE BUSINESS IS CITIZEN COMMUNICATION.
WE DON'T HAVE ANYONE SEND THEM.
WE HAVE NOBODY SIGNED UP TO SPEAK.
[1. Approval of Minutes of the September 16, 2020 and October 21, 2020 Meeting Minutes. (5 minutes)]
THE NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA IS THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM BOTH SEPTEMBER 16TH, 2020 AND OCTOBER 21ST, 2020.UM, I HOPE EVERYBODY HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE MINUTES.
ARE THERE ANY CHANGES OR CORRECTIONS THAT ANY COMMISSIONERS SEE THAT ARE NEEDED? I WOULD ONLY SUGGEST THE OCTOBER 21ST MINUTES WE REVISED THE DOWNTOWN.
COMMISSIONER'S NOT IN ATTENDANCE FOR THAT MINOR TYPO IN COMMISSIONER CAYDEN'S NAME? UM, THERE'S ACTUALLY STILL.
WELL, I'LL TELL, WE'LL TAKE THESE AS TWO SEPARATE MOTIONS AS I'M HEARING.
NO OTHER CHANGES WE HAVE TO PUT ON THAT.
UH, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE THESE AS TWO ITEMS. UM, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE SEPTEMBER 16TH, 2020 MEETING? I HAVE A MOTION, UM, ALL IN FAVOR TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE 2020 THE NEXT DAY.
WAS THAT A MOTION? WE HAVE A MOTION.
DO WE I'LL TAKE THAT? THERE WAS A SECOND ALL IN FAVOR.
THE FIRST ITEM OF BUSINESS DAY ON DOWNTOWN FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION, OUR NEW REPRESENTATIVE, UH, COMMISSIONER NELLIE RAMIREZ IS COMMISSIONER RIVERA IS ON THE LAW COMMISSIONER.
[00:05:01]
RAMIREZ IS COMMISSIONER REMITTERS IN A WAITING ROOM.[2.a. Public Safety Commission Update on Downtown Activity (Commissioner Ramirez, Public Safety Commission - 10 Minutes)]
HI THERE.UM, I'M EXCITED TO GET TO MEET SOME OF YOU A LITTLE BIT BETTER IN THE FUTURE.
THERE'S A LOT OF FEEDBACK ON THE LINE.
UM, YEAH, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
I'M EXCITED TO STARTED TO GET TO NO, YOU GUYS, SOME MORE OVER TIME.
HOPEFULLY EVENTUALLY IN PERSON, UM, AS UM, WAS MENTIONED, MY NAME IS NELLIE AND I'M THE LATEST NON-MOTOR VOTING MEMBER, ADDITION TO THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION.
I'M HERE FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION.
UM, AND I'LL BE GIVING YOU GUYS SOME REGULAR UPDATES AS A MATTER OF PROCESS.
UM, I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION RECEIVES QUARTERLY REPORTS FROM AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, EMS, AUSTIN FIRE, AND AUSTIN POLICE.
UM, SO THAT I'M RELAYING THE MOST RECENT INFORMATION AVAILABLE TO US.
I'LL LIKELY FOCUS ON, UM, I'LL LIKELY FOCUS MY REGULAR REPORTS, UM, TO YOU GUYS ON OUR MOST RECENT AGENCY UPDATE.
UM, AT OUR DECEMBER MEETING, WE GOT A DOWNLOAD FROM CHIEF GAY AND AUSTIN POLICE IN JANUARY.
WE'LL HEAR FROM AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY EMS, AND IN FEBRUARY, WE'LL HEAR FROM AUSTIN FIRE.
AND SO I'LL KIND OF PROCEED IN THAT FASHION, UM, UM, MOVING FORWARD.
UM, IF THERE ARE ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THAT YOU GUYS HAVE FOR ME, I'LL DO MY BEST.
AND IF I DON'T HAVE ANSWERS READY FOR YOU GUYS, I'LL FOLLOW UP AND GET THOSE EITHER TO YOU BY EMAIL OR AT THE NEXT DOWNTOWN COMMISSION MEETING.
SO THAT'S JUST KIND OF HOW I WAS THINKING.
I WOULD HANDLE THE SORT OF STREAM OF INFORMATION MOVING FORWARD, BUT IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANYTHING SPECIFIC THAT YOU GUYS WANT ME TO GO BACK AND GET AND BRING BACK, I CAN PREPARE THAT IN BETWEEN MEETINGS.
UM, BUT WITH THAT, I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU GUYS A QUICK UPDATE.
OUR LATEST QUARTERLY REPORT FROM APD COVERED THE CHIEF'S OCTOBER CRIME REPORTS, WHICH INDICATED AN OVERALL DECREASE IN CRIME ACROSS THE CITY ACROSS THE BOARD, HONESTLY, DOWNTOWN, SPECIFICALLY SAW DECREASES ACROSS THE BOARD IN BOTH AGGRAVATED ASSAULT AND ROBBERIES.
UM, I ALSO WANTED, I KNOW THAT APD HEADQUARTERS IS ON THE MIND QUITE A BIT.
SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON SOME OF OUR LATEST DISCUSSIONS.
UM, AS FAR AS THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION IS CONCERNED, WE'RE ENGAGING IN AN EXPLORATION OF WHAT THE SITE COULD BE, WHICH IS VERY MUCH REFLECTIVE OF THE EARLY STAGES IN WHICH THE PROCESS IS, UM, IN ANTICIPATION OF TODAY'S MEETING.
I ALSO TOUCHED BASE WITH CHIEF GAY FROM APD.
HE REITERATED THAT THIS HAS COME UP SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE, UM, THIS IS THE SECOND OR THIRD TIME, EVEN IN HIS TENURE THAT MOVING APD HEADQUARTERS HAS COME UP.
UM, THE PROCESS OF, OR MOVING PARTS AND, OR ALL OF APD KEY MENTIONED WILL BE A VERY LENGTHY PROCESS.
UM, THEY'RE GOING TO BE KICKING OFF DISCUSSIONS, UM, SORT OF AN ASSESSING OF NEEDS, UM, IN JANUARY.
AND THEY ANTICIPATE THAT BEING ABOUT A SIX MONTH PROCESS.
UM, AND THEN FROM THERE HE SAID, IT COULD BE YEARS BEFORE WE'RE READY TO SORT OF SEE EVERYTHING MOVE INTO, MOVE INTO PLACE.
UM, HE ALSO SAID THAT THEY'RE CURRENTLY ABOUT 500, UM, STAFF ASSIGNED TO WORK DOWNTOWN.
UM, NOT NECESSARILY ALL AT APD CARE HEADQUARTERS SIMULTANEOUSLY.
UM, AND ALSO THAT MANY OF THOSE 500 ARE RIGHT NOW WORKING REMOTELY.
THAT 500 REFLECTS THE MIX OF PATROL AND VARIOUS OTHER DEPARTMENTS LIKE RUTGERS RESEARCH, FINANCE, UM, ET CETERA.
AND AS PART OF THAT NEEDS ASSESSMENT PROCESS THAT THERE'LL BE KICKING OFF IN JANUARY.
THEY'RE GOING TO BE SORT OF FIGURING OUT HOW THOSE
[00:10:01]
DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS CAN BE SPLIT UP.UM, WHAT KINDS OF SPACE NEEDS THEY'RE GOING TO NEED.
UM, HOW MANY OF THOSE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS ARE GONNA NEED TO CO LOCATE, UM, TO WORK EFFECTIVELY TOGETHER AND WHAT THIS SORT OF REMOTE WORKING ERA, UM, WHAT AND HOW THAT WILL IMPACT THEIR FUTURE SORT OF SPACE NEEDS.
UM, HE ALSO HAS REITERATED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS THAT EVEN IF APD HEADQUARTERS JUST MEANING ALL OF THE VARIOUS OFFICES ADMINISTRATIVE AND OTHERWISE THAT ARE ANTICIPATED, UM, TO, TO HAVE NEEDS AND POTENTIALLY MOVE AROUND, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A NEED, UM, AND A CONTINUED NEED FOR A DOWNTOWN COMMAND AREA, UM, THAT WOULD TAKE CARE OF PATROLS VEHICLES, UM, THE INFLOW AND OUTFLOW OF SHIFTS OF POLICE OFFICERS THAT OPERATE ON FOOT, YOU BIKE VIA CAR.
UM, SO THERE'S, THERE'S STILL ALWAYS GOING TO BE A NEED FOR THAT DOWNTOWN.
UM, AND THAT, I WAS JUST, I WAS JUST KIND OF HOPING TO GIVE YOU GUYS A VERY GENERAL OVERVIEW OF WHERE WE ARE WITH APD IN DOWNTOWN RIGHT NOW, AND MY UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT'S GOING ON.
UM, BUT IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY MORE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO ME, JUST IN TERMS OF WHAT YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING FOR, WHAT KIND OF INFORMATION YOU'RE HOPING TO GET, BUT THAT'S, THAT'S PRETTY MUCH IT FOR ME AS FAR AS AN UPDATE ON APD, A GENERAL UPDATE AT THE VERY LEAST.
WHERE ARE THEY GOING TO
AND I DIDN'T KNOW IF THAT WAS THE CASE.
SO IF YOU COULD FIND OUT THE ANSWER TO THAT, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT.
YEAH, I CAN GO AHEAD AND DO THAT.
WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN UPDATES ON DISTRICT, UM, IN PROBABLY IN QUITE SOME TIME, SO I'LL MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW UP ON THAT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I HAVE ONE, HEY, EMILY, THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
UM, WILL THOSE REPORTS BE AVAILABLE ONLINE AS BACKUP ON THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION SIDE OR ON YOUR SITE, OR WHAT'S THE BEST WAY FOR PEOPLE TO ACCESS THOSE? IF THEY'RE INTERESTED? UM, THE APD SORT OF REGULAR REPORT IS AVAILABLE, UM, ON THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION AS BACKUP MATERIAL.
UM, BUT WHAT I CAN ALSO FORWARD IT TO MONA, UM, THE LATEST OCTOBER CRIME STAT REPORTS THAT I SPOKE TO CHIEF GAY ABOUT SO THAT YOU GUYS CAN HAVE THAT AS REFERENCE.
THE AUDIO BROKE UP
[00:15:02]
SO NOW, IS THAT BETTER? ARE THERE ANY PARTICULAR AREAS OF CONCERN IN REGARD TO DOWNTOWN POLICING THAT THE COMMISSION HAS AT THE MOMENT? UM, I DON'T BELIEVE THAT, UM, I SPOKE WITH CHIEF GAY A BIT ABOUT DOWNTOWN SPECIFICALLY, AND I HAVE SOME FOLLOW-UP CONVERSATIONS SCHEDULED WITH, UM, CHIEF CHACONE AS WELL.I DON'T KNOW THAT THERE ARE ANY PARTICULAR AREAS IN DOWNTOWN THAT ARE OF MORE CONCERN THAN OTHERS.
LIKE I MENTIONED, UM, CHIEF GAZE SAID THAT OVERALL DOWNTOWN CRIME IS DOWN.
UM, A LOT OF THAT IS JUST THERE LESS PEOPLE.
HE MENTIONED THAT, UM, THE SIXTH STREET AREA PATROLS IN THE EVENINGS ON THURSDAY, FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT HAS BEGUN AGAIN AS OF A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO.
UM, BUT THAT STUFF SEEMS FAIRLY UNDER CONTROL AT THIS POINT.
UM, SO NO, THERE'S NO AT THIS POINT THAT I KNOW OF ANY SORT OF RISING CONCERN.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
KRISHNA BEING HERE, WE LOOK TO YOUR OWN PARTICIPANTS
UM, AND JUST AS A REMINDER, BEFORE WE CLOSE OUT, UM, NEXT MONTH AND THE VIRTUAL ROOM AND NOT IN A BULL PEN SO SHE CAN HAVE VOICE AND VIDEO.
UM, I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY THAT JUST AS A REMINDER, NEXT MONTH, WE'LL BE GETTING AN UPDATE ON EMS. SO IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS IN ANTICIPATION OF AN EMS PRESENTATION, I COULD WORK ON GETTING THOSE ANSWERED IN ADVANCE.
IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY OF THOSE TO FORWARD ON, RIGHT.
NELLIE, I'D LOVE TO HEAR, UM, ANY KIND OF STATS ON, UM, EMS THAT PICKS UP CALLS THAT HAVE BEEN DEFERRED FROM THE POLICE.
ANYTHING LIKE THAT? EMS DEFERRED CALLS.
AND MS. RAMIREZ, I I'D LIKE TO HEAR ABOUT, UM, EMS AND COVID.
IS THERE ANY, UM, COULD YOU CAM ABOUT COVID PICKING UP NUMBERS? OKAY.
I THINK WE'VE LOST OUR MISSION CONTROL ANYBODY.
I HEAR YOU, THE CITY HALL GUY THERE.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? WE CAN HEAR YOU.
WE'RE IN THE BOAT WHERE WE ARE IN THE HEART OF TECHNOLOGY HERE.
[2.b. Downtown Aerial Right of Way (ROW) Vacations (Stephany Roy, Development Services Department and The Drenner Group - 10 min)]
UM, THE NEXT ITEM OF BUSINESS, OKAY.IS ITEM B DOWNTOWN AREA OR RIGHT AWAY THEY CATION, UH, COMMISSIONER SCHISSLER WILL BE RECUSING HIMSELF FROM THIS DISCUSSION.
AND WE HAVE STEPHANIE ROY WITH DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT AND THE DRAENOR GROUP TO PRESENT.
[00:20:11]
DID HE MEAN GOOD EVENING? WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE EVERYBODY'S BROUGHT INTO THE CONVERSATION BECAUSE THIS WHOLE ONE.IS EVERYBODY IN FROM THE WAITING ROOM THAT WE NEED, STEPHANIE? YES.
IF YOU'LL BEGIN, IF YOU'LL BEGIN YOUR PRESENTATION, PLEASE.
I'M NOT SURE IF THOSE HAVE UPLOADED, BUT I CAN GO WITHOUT THEM.
DO YOU NEED A PDF PRODUCT? YES, PLEASE.
SO WE'RE ON TO WHAT'S ON THE SCREEN.
CAN YOU SEE WHICH ONE YOU MIGHT NAME? I THINK IT'S THE AERIAL ROW.
SO I'M GETTING THE HANG OF COMMISSIONERS.
MY NAME'S STEPHANIE ROY, AND I'M WITH LAND MANAGEMENT.
UM, I'M HERE TO INTRODUCE THREE APPLICATIONS THAT CAME TO US TO VACATE THE AREA RIGHT AWAY IN THE ALLEY OFF OF RIVER STREET.
UM, THESE THREE PROPERTIES ARE IN BETWEEN, ARE OFF OF THE ALLEY THAT'S IN BETWEEN RAINEY STREET AND EAST AVENUE.
AND THIS SHOWS YOU A LITTLE BIT OF A LOCATION OF WHERE THAT'S AT.
UM, THIS IS 61 RAINY STREET AND NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
AND THAT WAS 69 RAINY STREETS.
AND SO THESE THREE APPLICATIONS COLLECTIVELY VACATE AT 1,769 SQUARE FEET OF BURIAL RIGHTS.
UM, THEY'VE ALREADY RECEIVED APPROVALS FROM ALL 24 STAKEHOLDERS.
AND SO WITH THAT STAFF SUPPORTS THESE VACATIONS.
UM, I ONLY HERE TO, UM, INTRODUCE THESE THREE APPLICATIONS AND TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE FOR STAFF, BUT I UNDERSTAND THAT THE APPLICANT'S REPRESENTATIVE IS HERE TONIGHT.
UH, I'M AMANDA SWORE WITH JENNER GROUP, UH, AMY, IF IT'S POSSIBLE TO GET THE BLACK PRESENTATION THAT STARTS WITH RIVER STREET RESIDENCES ON IT PULLED UP, THAT WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED.
UH, AGAIN, MY NAME IS AMANDA SPORE WITH DRAENOR GROUP HERE THIS EVENING, UH, TO DISCUSS THE PARCEL PARTIAL ALLEY VACATION APPLICATION ASSOCIATED WITH THE RIVER STREET RESIDENCES PROJECT.
I DO HAVE ON THE LINE WITH ME REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE OWNERSHIP TEAM TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT I CAN'T, IF YOU HAVE THEM AFTER THE PRESENTATION THIRD REQUEST FOR BEFORE YOU THIS EVENING IS FOR SUPPORT FOR A PARTIAL ALLIE VACATION.
THIS IS AN ALLIE VACATION OF AERIAL RIGHTS.
ONLY THIS REQUEST, AS STAFF MENTIONED, HAS CLEARED ALL COMMENTS AND HAS RECEIVED A STAFF RECOMMENDATION.
I'LL GO INTO THE ALLEY VACATION, BUT WANT TO MAKE SURE I DO A HIGH LEVEL TOUCH ON THE OVERALL PROJECT.
PROPERTY WE ARE DISCUSSING THIS EVENING IS LOCATED ON THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF RAINY STREET AND RIVER STREET.
IT IS BOUND BY RAINY STREET ON THE WEST RIVER STREET ON THE SOUTH EAST AVENUE ON THE EAST.
AND IT IS CURRENTLY BISECTED BY THE DIRT ALLEY THAT YOU CAN SEE IN THIS ARIEL THAT WE'RE HERE TO DISCUSS THIS EVENING.
NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE CONSISTS OVER JUST OVER HALF AN ACRE AT 0.541 ACRES.
AND IT'S CURRENTLY ZONED CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT AND LOCATED IN THE RAINY STATE STREET DISTRICT OF THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM AND THE WATERFRONT OVERLAY.
THE PROPOSED PROJECT IS A RESIDENTIAL PROJECT CONSISTING OF APPROXIMATELY 409 RESIDENTIAL UNITS AND ASSOCIATED GROUND FLOOR RETAIL.
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GIVEN THE PROPERTY LOCATION, THE PROPERTY MAY DEVELOP UP TO AN EIGHT TO ONE FLORIDA AREA RATIO WITH UNLIMITED HEIGHT WITH THE PROVISION OF ON-SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING REQUIRED BY THE RADIUS YOU JUST DID OF THE WATERFRONT OVERLAY BY RIGHT BY PARTICIPATING IN THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.THIS PROJECT IS PROPOSING AN FFR OF APPROXIMATELY 21.4321, AND A HEIGHT OF APPROXIMATELY 569.
SO NEXT SLIDE PLEASE, AND MEET THE COMMUNITY BENEFIT ASPECT OF THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM THAT WAS MENTIONED.
THIS PROJECT IS PROPOSING TO PROVIDE A MIX OF ONSITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, AS WELL AS A FAMILY.
THE PROJECT WILL PROVIDE ONSITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING EQUALING 15,179 SQUARE FEET, WHICH EQUATES TO APPROXIMATELY 25 ON-SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.
IN ADDITION, THE PROJECT WILL PAY A FEE IN LIEU AND CONTRIBUTE OVER $1.2 MILLION TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
SO FOCUS ON THE ALLEY VACATION ASPECT, WHICH IS BEFORE YOU THIS EVENING, THIS IS AN IMAGE OF THE EXISTING ALLEY.
AND AS YOU WILL SEE, IT IS CURRENTLY A MUD PIT, UM, MANY TIMES, AND AS AN UNPAVED AREA THAT IS SUBSTANDARD WITH IT JUST OVER 16 FEET.
IT IS SANDWICHED WITH OVERHEAD UTILITIES UP LINES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ALLEY THAT ENCROACH INTO THE USABLE SPACE AND SEVERELY IMPACT THE FUNCTIONALITY OF THE ALLEY AS IT IS TODAY.
NEXT SLIDE PLEASE, AS PART OF THIS PROCESS IS STAFF MENTIONED, WE WORKED EXTENSIVELY WITH MANY DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING AUSTIN ENERGY, AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT, AND IF CLEARED ALL COMMENTS, AND WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO SHOW YOU THE CONFIGURATION THAT HAS BEEN, UM, IT'S BEING PROPOSED IF APPROVED THIS PROCESS WILL RECONFIGURE AN ALLEY THAT IS WOEFULLY SUBSTANDARD AND CREATE AN ALLEY THAT HAS A MINIMUM CLEAR WITH THE 26 FEET THAT WILL INCLUDE TWO VEHICULAR TRAVEL LANES, TOTALING A MINIMUM OF 20 FEET, AND WILL BE FLANKED ON EITHER SIDE BY TWO, THREE PEDESTRIAN ZONES.
IN ADDITION, THE PROJECT WILL PROVIDE A MINIMUM CLEAR HEIGHT OF 18 FEET AT ALL TIMES WITH AN ELEVATED HEIGHT TO 20 FEET AT THE ENTRANCE.
AND FINALLY, AS PART OF THE CONVERSATIONS WITH AUSTIN ENERGY ALSO INTRODUCED AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT, EXCUSE ME.
UM, WE HAVE RESERVED A LOCATION THAT YOU'LL SEE ON THIS RENDERING FOR SIGNAGE IN THE FUTURE.
IF AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT DETERMINES THAT IT'S NECESSARY TO ENSURE THAT THIS STILL FUNCTIONS AS A PUBLIC VALLEY.
SO AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS REQUEST WILL ALLOW FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PROJECT THAT WILL PROVIDE COMMUNITY BENEFITS TO THE RAINY STREET AREA, AS WELL AS UPGRADE AN ALLEY THAT IS CURRENTLY BARELY FUNCTIONING.
AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, THIS IS ONLY AN AERIAL VACATION.
SO AT GRADE, THIS ALLEY WILL CONTINUE TO FUNCTION IN A MUCH IMPROVED MANNER IN ALL OF THE QUOTE UNQUOTE ALLIE FUNCTIONS WILL CONTINUE TO BE HANDLED IN THE ALLEY.
IN SUMMARY, THIS IS A PARTIAL ALLEY VACATION WITH AN AERIAL ONLY ALLIE VACATION REQUESTS THAT WILL BURY EXISTING OVERHEAD UTILITY LINES, PAVED AND UNPAVED ALLEY AND WIDEN THE ALLEY AREA BY ALMOST 10 FEET.
AND SO WITH THAT, I'M HAPPY TO STOP AND ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE.
YEAH, THAT'S ONE QUESTION FOR STAFF, UH, REAL QUICKLY.
WERE THERE ANY OBJECTIONS FROM ANY GROUNDING PROJECTS OR DID YOU RECEIVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENT IN OTHER HEARINGS? WE HAD TWO MINOR, UM, COMMENTS THAT CAME IN BOTH WERE FORWARDED IT ON TO THE APPLICANT.
UM, OBVIOUSLY RAINY STREET WITH ITS BACKGROUND IS A HISTORIC DISTRICT.
UM, WE HAVE NOT SEEN THIS AT THE HISTORIC LANDMARKS COMMISSION AND I CAN ASSURE YOU, THIS IS YOU DIDN'T SHOW US, BUT THIS IS A MASSIVE PROJECT.
THERE'S NOTHING COMPARABLE, EVEN AS DAN SAYS, THE RAINY STREET AREA HAS GOTTEN.
UM, I THINK THAT IS PROBABLY WORTHY OF FURTHER DISCUSSION, BUT MY QUESTION SPECIFICALLY HAS TO DO WITH THE BENEFITS THAT YOU'RE POINTING OUT, UH, THE FEE IN LIEU OF AND THE, UH, AFFORDABLE UNITS.
[00:30:01]
TH THOSE WOULD BE REQUIREMENT IN OUR, AS OF RIGHT, IS THAT CORRECT? UH, NO SIR.SO A PORTION OF THEM WOULD BE AT, IF I COULD GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE, I CAN SHOW WHERE, WHERE THOSE WOULD BE.
SO BY REQUIRED IN THE EIGHT TO ONE FAR, WE WOULD BE REQUIRED TO DO ABOUT HALF OF THAT AMOUNT.
SO ABOUT 7,000 7,500 SQUARE FEET OF ON-SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND WE COULD PAY A FEE IN LIEU FOR THE REMAINDER, BUT AS PART OF THE DENSITY OPPONENTS PROGRAM TO ACHIEVE ADDITIONAL SUPERIORITY, WE HAVE OPTED TO DOUBLE THE AMOUNT OF ON-SITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE REQUIRED MATURE.
BUT I GUESS WHAT I'M TRYING TO DETERMINE IS THAT YOU'RE ACTUALLY BUYING THE AIR RIGHTS FOR PROPERTY THAT YOU DON'T OWN.
THIS IS A PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY, AND THIS IS A VACATION OF THE VERTICAL SECTION, BUT IF THIS WERE PRIVATE PROPERTY AND YOU HAD AN ADJACENT PROPERTY OWNER, YOU WOULD BE TALKING ABOUT PURCHASING AIR RIGHTS AND THERE WOULD BE SOME ASSOCIATED VALUE WITH THOSE AIR RIGHTS, SPECIFICALLY TALKING ABOUT AIR RIGHTS.
YOU'RE S YOU'RE, YOU'RE JUST SAYING, THIS IS WHAT THE PROJECT WOULD BE GENERATING BASED ON SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS, BUT THAT DOESN'T TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE VALUE OF A PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY, JUST BASICALLY PROPERTY THAT YOU ARE NOW GETTING ACCESS TO OUR AIR RIGHTS TO THAT YOU WOULD OTHERWISE NOT OWN.
AND SO THE COMMUNITY BENEFITS THAT I MENTIONED ARE PART OF THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM THAT I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY WAS AWARE OF, BUT THE PROJECT DID HAVE TO GO THROUGH AN APPRAISAL PROCESS FOR THE ARIEL ARIEL RIGHTS.
AND PRIOR TO CITY COUNCIL, THE PROJECT WILL HAVE TO PURCHASE THOSE RIGHTS.
IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT THEY GET BY, RIGHT? SO IT WASN'T APPRAISAL AND IT WILL BE, HAVE TO BE PAID FOR, WELL THAT HASN'T COME, COME THROUGH.
IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT NUMBER IS, WE JUST GOT THE INITIAL NUMBERS LAST WEEK, AND I DON'T KNOW THEM OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD.
AND IF I CLICK OVER THERE, I'M PROBABLY GOING TO LOSE YOU GUYS.
BUT I BELIEVE I HAVE, UM, SOMEONE FROM THE OWNERSHIP TEAM ON HERE OR STAFF MIGHT KNOW THOSE NUMBERS OFF THE TOP OF IT.
AMANDA, THIS IS, THIS IS MATEO WITH THE APPLE GROUP.
UM, UH, FOR THE COMMISSIONER'S QUESTIONS.
SO THE APPRAISAL DIDN'T COME BACK THIS WEEK, THE, UH, PURCHASE PRICE OF THE AIR RIGHTS IS 575,000.
THAT WOULD BE PAID TO THE CITY FOR THE RIGHTS.
AND THEN IN ADDITION TO, UH, THE PAYMENT FOR THE AIR RIGHTS FOR THEMSELVES, THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT WE'RE PROVIDING IS CALCULATED ON THE ENTIRETY OF THE, OF THE BUILDING.
UH, AND SO THERE'S OVER OVERLAPPING BENEFITS FROM THAT RESPECT.
AND THOSE NUMBERS ALSO DON'T INCLUDE THE TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE BEING PAID, WHICH, UM, TOTAL AGAIN, UH, OVER $600,000.
AND ONCE AGAIN, A CALCULATED ON THE DENSITY OF THE ENTIRE PROJECT, INCLUDING THAT PORTION BASED ON THE AIR RIGHT AREA.
LET ME JUST CLARIFY PART OF THE REASON THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ISSUE IS THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PROPERTIES AND I'VE ALERTED THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION.
WE AT THE HISTORIC LANDMARKS COMMISSION HAS BEEN VERY AWARE OF THIS, WHERE THROUGHOUT DOWNTOWN, WE HAVE HISTORIC PROPERTIES THAT AREN'T VERY DENSE, BUT THEY'RE ON PROPERTIES WHERE THERE'S A LOT OF PRESSURE BECAUSE OF ZONING AND BECAUSE OF THE ADJACENT DEVELOPMENT ON THE VALUE OF DENSIFYING.
SO HERE WE HAVE A SITUATION WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY GETTING TO DEVELOP SOMETHING THE PUBLIC HAS NOW WE'LL, WE'LL HAVE, I ASSUME BY THE TIME WE'RE FINISHED SOME VALUE, UH, THIS COULD BE A LEVERAGE.
I JUST WANTED TO ALERT THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION.
THIS IS THE TYPE OF THING THAT WE COULD START CREATIVELY USING TO CREATE EASEMENTS THAT WOULD ALLOW PROTECTION OR SOME OF THE LESS DENSE PROPERTIES.
AND SO RIGHT NOW, THIS NUMBER IS GOING TO GO INTO GENERAL FUND, BUT I'D LIKE TO START PROPOSING THAT IS OPPORTUNITIES LIKE THIS COME UP, THAT THIS COULD BE AN IMPORTANT SOURCE THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO PROTECT SOME OF OUR RESOURCES THAT WOULD OTHERWISE NOT HAVE ANY, UH, UH, ABILITY TO BE MAINTAINED, UH, IN LIGHT OF SOME OF THE ECONOMIC PRESSURES THAT THEY'RE UNDER.
THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER, HOW DOES THAT, UM, IS, DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, COMMISSIONER MEISENBACH I HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, DID YOU, DO YOU KNOW, UM, MANY YEARS, THOSE AFFORDABLE UNITS WILL BE AFFORDABLE AND AT WHAT RATE OF AFFORDABILITY IT'S FOR 40 YEARS AT 80% MFI, WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH THE RAINY STREET REQUIREMENTS AND WE'VE, WE, WE MATCH THAT FOR THE ADDITIONAL.
SO THE PART THAT, UH, WE ARE REQUIRED TO DO IS 80% FOR 40 YEARS, AND WE MATCH THAT REQUIREMENT TO THE ADDITIONAL AFFORDABLE HOUSING THE PROJECT IS PROVIDING.
[00:35:05]
THANK YOU.UM, MY TEAM, DO YOU WANT TO SPEAK TO THAT, UH, ROUGH UNIT MIX AT THIS POINT IN TIME? IS THIS FOR THE OVERALL BUILDING? YEAH, THE AFFORDABLE UNITS.
OH, I CAN HAVE, I CAN HIT THAT PIECE OF IT.
SO FOR THE AFFORDABLE PIECE OF IT, THE FIRST TASK, THE 7,593 SQUARE FEET BY ORDINANCE IS REQUIRED TO BE A MIX OF PROPORTIONATE TO THE MIX OF THE OVERALL PROJECT.
SO EQUAL TO THE ONES, TWOS AND THREES.
AND THEN THE ADDITIONAL AREA THAT WE'RE DOING IS ALLOWED TO BE, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT UNIT SIZES AND THAT WILL LIKELY BE ONE BEDROOM UNITS.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? SO IS THAT 12 UNITS? I'M SORRY, IF I INTERRUPTED, IS THAT 12 UNITS? THAT WILL BE, UM, ONE BEDROOM, FOR SURE.
SO RIGHT NOW THE ESTIMATED MIX IS 22, ONE BEDROOM UNITS.
UH, TWO, TWO BEDROOM UNITS AND ONE, THREE BEDROOM UNITS, UH, BASED OFF OF THE, THE SIZE AND MIX OF THE BUILDING TODAY, WHICH WE WILL CONFIRM WHAT THAT HDD BEFORE A BUILDING PERMIT, BUT THAT'S WHERE WE'RE TRACKING TOWARDS RIGHT NOW, BUT THE 25 TOTAL.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, SO, UH, WHAT SORT OF SUPPORT ARE YOU LOOKING FROM? UH, THIS EVENING, WE WOULD VERY MUCH APPRECIATE A MOTION AND A VOTE THAT IS IN FAVOR OR AS SUPPORTIVE OF THIS ALLEY VACATION.
AND WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THE PROJECT AS A WHOLE.
UH, WE ARE SPECIFICALLY TALKING ABOUT THE ALLEY VACATION AND THE ASSOCIATED IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE'VE DISCUSSED.
MAY I ASK ANOTHER QUESTION? DO YOU, YOU SHOWED ONLY THE GROUND STREET GRAPHIC AND A PLAN.
DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING THAT SHOWS THE BUILDING AND PERSPECTIVE? UH, WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE WHOLE DISTRICT? I DON'T KNOW WHAT ALL IS LOADED IN THERE.
LET ME SEE WHAT I LOADED UP AND SEE WHAT I CAN SHIFT.
UM, I HAVE SOME, THERE MAY BE AN ECLIPSE 13.
I HAVE SOME GROUND FLOOR RENDERINGS I CAN SHOW WITH.
UM, IF I COULD GET THE PRESENTATION BACK UP, THAT WOULD BE APPRECIATED IF WE COULD START IT SLIDE.
SO THIS IS JUST ANOTHER RENDERING OF THE ALLEY.
AND THEN TWO MORE DOWN, I BELIEVE IS THE, IS THE FULL IMAGE OF THE BUILDING.
UM, WE HAVE AT THE LANDMARKS COMMISSION HAD A NUMBER NOW OF PROPERTIES WHERE WE REALLY COULD ONLY APPRECIATE WHAT WAS BEING PROPOSED BY LOOKING AT THE ENTIRE DEVELOPMENT.
AND, UH, I THINK I APPRECIATE THE SENSITIVITY THAT YOU HAVE IN THE WAY YOU'RE DESIGNING, UM, THIS VERY LARGE SCALE ADDITION.
UH, BUT AGAIN, THE, THE CITY HAS LEVERAGED IN THIS SITUATION IN THE SENSE THAT THIS IS POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE ABILITY FOR THIS DEVELOPER TO ADD EXTRA, UH, OVER WHAT IS STILL GOING TO BE RIGHT AWAY.
AND, UM, I THINK THAT THAT DOES RAISE THE STANDARD OR RAISE THE BAR FOR WHATEVER THE TRADE-OFFS MIGHT BE.
SO I DO APPRECIATE THE, THE, UH, UH, WILLINGNESS TO SHARE SOME OF THAT.
QUICK QUESTION, AMANDA, UH, DOUG LEVITAN MUSIC COMMISSION, UH, IS THE ALLEY GONNA GET PAVED AND WHY IN THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE ALLEY OR JUST THE LENGTH OF THE BUILDING LENGTH OF THE BUILDING IS ALL THAT WE CAN CONTROL.
SO I KNOW THAT THE CITY HAS PLANS FOR DIFFERENT PARTS OF IT, BUT WE ARE, WE CAN ONLY CONTROL WHAT IT'S ACTUALLY UNDER OUR BUILDINGS.
SO THEN IT'S JUST GOING TO REMAIN UNPAVED.
SO THIS ALLEY IS KIND OF FUNKY.
AND IF YOU GO ALL THE WAY TO THE OTHER END UNDER WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE CALL THE MILLENNIUM, UM, THAT IT'S SOLD AT THIS POINT IN TIME, IT, IT HAS SOME PAVED AREAS THAT GO UNDER A BUILDING AS WELL, AND, AND DO A 90 DEGREE TURN OUT TO RAINEY STREET.
AND THEN YOU HAVE THE MIDDLE AREA, WHICH IS CURRENTLY UNPAVED, AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE OUR AREA, WHICH IS FINISHED AS IT COMES OUT ON TO, TO RIVER STREET.
SO I KNOW THAT THE CITY HAS SOME
[00:40:01]
PLANS IN THE FUTURE TO HANDLE THE IN-BETWEEN AREAS, BUT AT THIS POINT, WHAT WE'RE DOING IS SETTING UP A FRAMEWORK FOR WHEN THE CITY, WHEN OTHER AREAS GET IMPROVED, IT WILL HAVE A, UH, A WIDER STANDARD THAT IT NEEDS TO MEET.I WOULD JUST ADD AMANDA, EXACTLY THAT THE DISCUSSIONS WITH ATD GIVEN THAT THIS IS ESSENTIALLY A GATEWAY TO THE ALLEY ON ONE SIDE, WAS ESTABLISHING A PROCESS THAT OTHER PROPERTY OWNERS MAY FOLLOW.
SO WE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE KEY CONSIDERATION WAS THE ADDITIONAL, UH, PUBLIC SIDEWALK EASEMENTS THAT WERE GRANTED ON, UH, THE, THE PRIVATE PROPERTY ADJACENT TO THE ALLEY IN HOPES THAT, UH, FUTURE DEVELOPMENT CAN FOLLOW A SIMILAR PATTERN AND EXTEND THAT SIDEWALK.
SO, AND, AND PAY THE IMPROVEMENTS ALONG THE ALLEY AS, AS THE REST OF RAINEY HAS DEVELOPED OVER TIME.
UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UM, DO I HAVE EMOTION FROM ANYBODY IN THE COMMISSION? I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO SUPPORT THE ALLEY VACATION AS PROPOSED.
I'VE GOT A MOTION AND A SECOND ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE.
WELL, FIRST OF ALL, IS THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? OKAY.
WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE FOR AVI TO TAKE THE PRESENTATION DOWN? THANK YOU.
UM, WITH THAT BEING SAID, THERE BEING NO FURTHER DISCUSSION ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY, AYE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY.
THE COMMISSIONER MINDSETS, THANK YOU FOR YOUR INPUT.
CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO AND LEVERAGE WHERE WE CAN.
SO MAYBE THIS WARRANTS FURTHER DISCUSSION.
I, I THINK THERE'S, THERE'S A LOT OF TRADE-OFFS THAT, UH, YOU CAN BE MAKING AND BEING ABLE TO SHOW THAT IN, IN A POSITIVE LIGHT.
UH, I APPRECIATE YOU ANSWERING THE QUESTION, ENCOURAGE YOU TO JUST SHOW THAT AS AN OPPORTUNITY.
SO THE NEXT ITEM OF BUSINESS IS ITEM SEEING HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS FOR HISTORIC LANDMARKS, NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICTS AND FUTURE HISTORIC DISTRICTS.
WE HAVE KARA WITH THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, UH, AND, UH, COMMISSIONER HAN SHAFT.
THIS FALLS RIGHT IN YOUR WHEEL OUTS AS WELL.
WELL, KARA IS LATE OF THE HISTORIC, UH, LANDMARK STAFF AND, UH, NOW HAS MOVED OVER TO TAKE ON EVEN BIGGER PROJECTS.
AND WE'RE JUST THOROUGHLY DELIGHTED THAT, UH, BEFORE SHE LEFT, WE LEFT IN GOOD SHAPE WITH THESE NEW STANDARDS THAT WILL UNIFY OUR HISTORIC DISTRICTS AND MAKE THE PROCESS OF GAINING, UH, THE USE OF HISTORIC DISTRICTS, UH, MORE ACCESSIBLE TO MORE NEIGHBORHOODS AND MORE VOLUNTEERS.
[2.c. Historic Design Standards for Historic Landmarks, National Register Districts and Future Historic Districts (Cara Bertron, Housing & Planning Department - 10 min)]
WITH THAT CARE, ARE YOU ALL SET? I AM.UM, AB STAFF, COULD YOU PULL UP THAT PRESENTATION PLEASE? AND THANK YOU.
UH, THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER HUNKS.
THAT, THAT, THAT WAS A GREAT INTRODUCTION.
AND NEXT TIME, I'M JUST GOING TO GIVE YOU MY NOTES AND LET YOU DO THE PRESENTATION.
SO, UM, YEAH, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS, AS HAS BEEN SAID, I'M KARA BERTRAND FROM THE HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT, AND IT IS AN HONOR TO BE HERE TALKING ABOUT THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS ON BEHALF OF THE DESIGN STANDARDS WORKING GROUP THAT WAS ESTABLISHED BY THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION IN 2018.
SO WE ARE NEAR THE END OF IT TWO YEAR PROCESS TO PLUS YOUR PROCESS WITH NUMEROUS STAKEHOLDERS AND HUGE POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION IN AUSTIN.
NEXT SLIDE, I WANT TO BEGIN BY ACKNOWLEDGING THAT HISTORIC PRESERVATION IS A TOOL TO STEWARD CHANGE NEXT SLIDE.
AND ALSO THAT DESIGN STANDARDS ARE A CRITICAL WAY TO MAKE DECISIONS AROUND THOSE CHANGES, CLEAR AND OBJECTIVE.
THERE ARE IMPORTANT FOR PROPERTY OWNERS, FOR DESIGNERS, CITY STAFF, AND HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSIONERS TO HAVE COMMON GROUND NEXT SLIDE.
SO THIS EFFORT TO CREATE A SINGLE SET OF HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS IS IMPORTANT FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS.
COMMISSIONER HEN, SETH MENTIONED A LITTLE MORE BRIEF THAN I'M GOING TO HOLD.
I'M GOING TO KEEP THIS, KEEP THIS SHORT.
[00:45:01]
UM, THEY WILL INCREASE EQUITY BY REDUCING RE THE RESOURCES THAT ARE REQUIRED FOR THE HISTORIC DISTRICT APPLICATION, WHICH IS A COMMUNITY LED PROCESS.THAT IS, IT HAS BEEN VERY TIME AND RESOURCE INTENSIVE.
THEY WILL INCREASE PREDICTABILITY FOR PROPERTY OWNERS IN POTENTIAL HISTORIC DISTRICTS, BY LETTING THEM KNOW FROM THE VERY BEGINNING WHAT'S REQUIRED WITH CLEAR ILLUSTRATIONS, THEY WILL TAKE A COMMON SENSE APPROACH BY RECOGNIZING COMMON UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES.
SO ALL EIGHT OF OUR EXISTING LOCALLY DESIGNATED HISTORIC DISTRICTS CREATED THEIR OWN DESIGN STANDARDS THROUGH A VERY LONG PROCESS.
UM, AND THOSE DESIGN STANDARDS WERE BASED ON THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR STANDARDS FOR REHABILITATION OF THOSE EIGHT SETS OF STANDARDS.
95% ARE THE SAME WITH JUST A FEW VARIATIONS.
SO IT REALLY DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO REQUIRE FUTURE HISTORIC DISTRICTS TO GO THROUGH THIS VERY RESOURCE INTENSIVE PROCESS.
UM, TO END UP WITH SOMETHING THAT'S BASICALLY GOING TO BE THE SAME AS OTHER DISTRICTS.
NEXT SLIDE, THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS WILL PROVIDE CLEARER STANDARDS FOR HISTORIC LANDMARK OWNERS AND NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICT PROPERTY OWNERS WHO USE THE SECRETARIES AT STANDARDS FOR REHABILITATION RIGHT NOW, WHAT I'LL MENTION, I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THOSE IN A MINUTE.
UM, IN CASE YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THEM, THEY ARE WONDERFUL STANDARDS.
THERE ARE 10 SORT OF NATIONAL PRINCIPLES THERE.
THEY'RE ALSO SUPER VAGUE AND FIGURING OUT WHAT YOU CAN OR CANNOT DO TO A PROPERTY.
SO THIS TRIES TO NAIL THOSE DOWN AND MAKE THEM CLEARER AND EASIER TO USE FOR FOLKS, THE STANDARDS WILL PROVIDE AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL FOR PROPERTY OWNERS WITH ILLUSTRATIONS OF GOOD PRACTICES AND AN ILLUSTRATED GLOSSARY.
IN THE PAST, WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO REQUIRE INDIVIDUAL HISTORIC DISTRICT APPLICATION TEAMS TO PRO TO ADD, TO INCLUDE ILLUSTRATIONS BECAUSE IT ADDS COSTS, YOU KNOW, AND WE KNOW IT'S ALREADY AN EXPENSIVE PROCESS, BUT TH BUT THE LACK OF THOSE REALLY AFFECTS PEOPLE'S ABILITY TO USE THEM, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH, UM, HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE OR THE SECRETARY STANDARDS, THE STANDARDS WILL PROVIDE CONSISTENT STANDARDS FOR PROJECT REVIEW.
UM, THAT'S AT LEAST FOR HISTORIC LANDMARK, THEY NEEDED HISTORIC DISTRICTS AREN'T ANY OF THOSE DOWNTOWN.
UM, BUT, UH, FOR THE RECORD, THEY WILL BE ABLE TO ADOPT THESE STANDARDS IF THEY CHOOSE, BUT IF NOT, THEIR EXISTING STANDARDS WILL REMAIN.
AND FINALLY, A SINGLE SET OF HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS FOLLOWS GOOD PRACTICES IN PRESERVATION.
IT'S WHAT LEADING PRESERVATION PROGRAMS AROUND THE COUNTRY DO.
AND, AND WE ARE, UH, WE'RE EXCITED TO, TO COME ONE OF THEM, HOPEFULLY, NEXT SLIDE.
SO, AS I MENTIONED, THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR STANDARDS FOR THE REHABILITATION OF HISTORIC PROPERTIES ARE A SET OF NATIONAL STANDARDS ESTABLISHED BY THE PARK SERVICE BY THE SECRETARY OF INTERIOR.
AND THEY ESTABLISHED THE FOUNDATION FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROGRAMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, AND THEY ALSO FORM THE BASIS FOR THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS.
NEXT SLIDE, UM, BECAUSE THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR STANDARDS INCLUDE A LOT OF WORDS AND PHRASES THAT CAN SOUND VERY SIMILAR TO EACH OTHER.
I LIKE TO BOIL THEM DOWN TO A FEW OVERARCHING PRINCIPLES THAT APPLY THROUGHOUT THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS, SO TO PRESERVE BUILDINGS AS THEY DEVELOPED OVER TIME, ESPECIALLY THE PUBLICLY VISIBLE PARTS IN HISTORIC DISTRICTS TO MAINTAIN AND REPAIR HISTORIC MATERIALS AND, UH, PRESERVING THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE BUILDING.
AND IF YOU MUST REPLACE MATERIALS REPLACED IN KIND ENSURING THAT NEW ADDITIONS AND NEW BUILDINGS ARE BOTH COMPATIBLE WITH, AND ALSO DIFFERENTIATED FROM HISTORIC BUILDINGS, THEY, UH, THEY FIT IN, BUT THEY DON'T STAND OUT TOO MUCH.
THEY DON'T OVERWHELM THE HISTORIC BUILDING.
UM, SO ESSENTIALLY THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS, AREN'T INTRODUCING NEW STANDARDS.
THEY'RE JUST CLARIFYING THE SECRETARY STANDARDS THAT WE ALREADY GO BY.
SO HERE'S THE, UM, CHAPTER OUTLINE OF A HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS, NEXT SLIDE.
AND I'M GOING TO TRY TO ONLY HIT THE HIGHLIGHTS, BUT BASICALLY THOSE ARE WORKING PRINCIPLES THAT I JUST TALKED ABOUT AND THE 10 SECRETARIES STANDARDS, UM, AS A WHOLE FORM, THE FOUNDATION OF THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS AS THEY'RE APPLICABLE TO EACH, EACH ITEM, NEXT SLIDE.
SO NOW THE HIGHLIGHTS, SO THE WORKING GROUP PRIORITIZED MAKING THE STANDARDS EASY TO USE FOR EVERYONE, NO MATTER WHAT THEIR LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, BECAUSE THE STANDARDS APPLY TO CONTRIBUTING AND NON-CONTRIBUTING PROPERTIES IN DIFFERENT WAYS.
THERE ARE CHARTS AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH CHAPTER THAT SHOW WHICH STANDARDS ARE REQUIRED AND WHICH ARE RECOMMENDED.
THERE ALSO CHARTS ILLUSTRATING THE HISTORIC REVIEW PROCESS, WHICH IS NOT ALWAYS THE SIMPLEST THING FOR FOLKS TO UNDERSTAND IF THEY'RE NOT DOING IT ALL THE TIME.
AND WHAT PROJECTS QUALIFY FOR ADMINISTRATIVE VERSUS COMMISSION REVIEW.
[00:50:01]
CAN HEAR MY DOG DRINKING WATER, UM, HE WILL BE DONE SOON.UH, THE STANDARDS USE ACCESSIBLE LANGUAGE AND HAVE CLEAR GRAPHICS AND CONSISTENT SYMBOLS.
UM, HERE YOU SEE THE GREEN SUN IS A SUSTAINABILITY, UM, NOTE SUSTAINABILITY STANDARDS, AND THEN THE YELLOW STAR, UM, HAS THAT IS INCLUDED WITH ADDITIONAL STANDARDS AND NOTES FOR HISTORIC LANDMARKS.
AND THE PDF OF THE FILE INCLUDES HYPERLINKS TO HELP PEOPLE EASILY GET AROUND THE DOCUMENT AND ALSO TO GET TO OUTSIDE RESOURCE WEBSITES, UM, LIKE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE PRESERVATION BRIEFS, NEXT LINE.
SO, UM, NOW I'M GOING TO DIVE BRIEFLY INTO SPECIFIC CHAPTERS THAT COVER IN A WAY THAT COVERS OUR GOALS AND HOPE FOR OUTCOMES.
I KNOW I DON'T WANT TO KEEP YOU HERE ALL NIGHT, ALTHOUGH I THINK THE WHOLE DOCUMENTS REALLY GREAT.
UM, THIS IS A SORT OF SNAPSHOT OF THE MODERN CODES AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY SECTION THAT ADDRESSES HOW HISTORIC PRESERVATION PROJECTS INTERSECT WITH ENERGY AND FISH AND ACCESSIBILITY CODES.
SO THIS SECTION ALSO TRIES TO BROADEN THE PERSPECTIVE BASICALLY FROM, UM, SHORT TERM FIXES LIKE WINDOW REPLACEMENT IN A COUPLE OF WAYS FIRST, BY ACKNOWLEDGING THE LONGTERM SUSTAINABILITY BENEFITS OF KEEPING BUILDINGS STANDING AND PRESERVING HIGH-QUALITY HISTORIC COMPONENTS.
AND SECOND, BY FOCUSING ON HIGH IMPACT HIGH RATE OF RETURN ENERGY EFFICIENCY MEASURES, WHICH ARE TYPICALLY NOT WINDOW REPLACEMENT, UM, THERE'S A SPECIAL, WE ALSO HAVE A SPECIAL SUBSECTION ON WINDOWS AND ENERGY CONSERVATION IN THE REPAIR AND ALTERATIONS CHAPTER BECAUSE WE DON'T EXPECT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO READ THE WHOLE DOCUMENT STRAIGHT THROUGH ALL.
BUT IF ANY OF YOU DO, PLEASE PLEASE GET IN TOUCH.
I WOULD LOVE TO, I'D LOVE TO LOVE TO KNOW YOU.
UM, SO WE WANT TO MAKE THIS AS EASY TO USE AS POSSIBLE.
UH, NEXT SLIDE, THE REPAIR AND ALTERATIONS CHAPTER HAS A FEW GOALS, UM, A BIG ONE, UH, PEOPLE JUST TO HELP PEOPLE BETTER UNDERSTAND THEIR BUILDINGS.
AND THE CHAPTER INCLUDES A LOT OF DIAGRAMS THAT SHOW BUILDING PARTS AND ROOF WINDOW AND DOOR TYPES.
UM, MOST SECTIONS IN THE CHAPTER INCLUDE A SHORT DISCUSSION ON MAINTENANCE AND THAT'S SUPPORTED BY A MAINTENANCE AND PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC MATERIALS, LIKE A WHOLE CHAPTER TOWARDS THE END.
AND WE ALSO WANTED TO PROVIDE DIVERSE EXAMPLES OF BUILDINGS TO BROADEN PEOPLE'S UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT A HISTORIC BUILDING LOOKS LIKE.
AS YOU CAN SEE THESE, THESE ARE ALL RESIDENTIAL.
WE DO HAVE A DIAGRAM THAT SHOWS PARTS OF A COMMERCIAL BUILDING THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A LITTLE I'M REALIZING AT THIS MOMENT A LITTLE BIT MORE RELEVANT TO HAVE SHOWN YOU, BUT, UM, A LOT OF THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE REPAIR AND ALTERATIONS, NOT ALL OF THEM, BUT MANY OF THEM ARE RESIDENTIAL BECAUSE, UM, OUR HISTORIC BUILDING STOCK ACROSS THE CITY IS SO HEAVILY TILTED TOWARD RESIDENTIAL, BUT WE DO HAVE SOME COMMERCIAL THINGS.
SO THERE ARE SEPARATE CHAPTERS FOR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL ADDITIONS, BUT THEIR GOALS ARE SIMILAR, UH, FIRST TO PROVIDE A GOOD, UH, GOOD EXAMPLES IN A PRETTY DIVERSE WAY.
UM, AND ALSO TO CLEARLY ILLUSTRATE THE STANDARDS, WHICH IS, AGAIN, SOMETHING THAT OUR CURRENT, BECAUSE OUR CURRENT, UH, DESIGN STANDARDS DON'T DO NEXT SLIDE.
UM, THERE ARE ALSO SEPARATE CHAPTERS FOR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL NEW CONSTRUCTION, BUT THEY ALSO HAVE SIMILAR GOALS, THE WORKING GROUP, AND I FOCUS GROUP THAT WAS CONVENED TO, UH, LOOK AT COMMERCIAL AND DOWNTOWN STANDARDS IN PARTICULAR FELT THAT IT WAS ESSENTIAL TO ACKNOWLEDGE MARKET REALITIES AND LOCAL PRIORITIES AROUND DENSITY.
SO THIS IS SHOWN IN THE COMMERCIAL STANDARDS WITH ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT NEW BUILDINGS, UM, MIGHT BE MUCH LARGER AND TALLER THAN SURROUNDING HISTORIC BUILDINGS.
AND ALSO, UM, GUIDANCE ON HOW TO ADDRESS THOSE SITUATIONS.
UM, THIS DOES DIVERGE FROM MOST OTHER CITIES PRESERVATION STANDARDS, WHICH TYPICALLY LIMIT THE COMMERCIAL ADDITIONS TO TWO OR THREE STORIES, OR, YOU KNOW, IT DEPENDS, IT REALLY DEPENDS ON THE HEIGHT OF THE BUILDING.
UM, OUR WORKING GROUP FELT LIKE IT FELT LIKE IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT TO FOLLOW HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION PRECEDENT THAT WAS SET WITH THE APPROVAL OF A SCHEMATIC DESIGN FOR THE MASONIC LODGE, WHICH WAS A HIGH RISE ADDITION TO, UM, A LOW RISE BUILDING.
SO, UM, THESE STANDARDS DO THAT AND ALSO, UM, ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AUSTIN'S BUILDING STOCK IS EXCEPTIONALLY PETITE.
YOU KNOW, THAT THE CITY, UM, I GUESS THIS IS MORE RELEVANT FOR THE EDITION SECTION, BUT JUST THAT THE CITY, THE CITY'S BUILDINGS DOWNTOWN ARE, ARE VERY SMALL.
UM, AND THAT LARGER SCALE, NEW ADDITIONS MAYBE, UM, NECESSARY AT THIS, AT THIS POINT IN LIEU OF SOMETHING LIKE, UH, TRANSFERS OF DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS, WHICH WE DON'T HAVE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS INCLUDE AN ILLUSTRATED GLOSSARY THAT WE HOPE WILL HELP
[00:55:01]
PEOPLE TO NOT ONLY BETTER UNDERSTAND THE STANDARDS, BUT ALSO TO GET TO KNOW THEIR BUILDINGS BETTER, UM, IN A WAY THAT'S INTERESTING AND MAYBE NOT FUN EXACTLY, BUT YOU KNOW, THIS IS ENGAGING IN A WAY THAT READING, UM, JUST THROUGH A DICTIONARY, IT MIGHT NOT BE SO HELP, HELP FOLKS TO REALLY GET, UM, YEAH.GET TO KNOW THEIR BUILDINGS NEXT SLIDE.
AND FINALLY, I WANT TO GO OVER THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS.
AS I MENTIONED, THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION FORMED THE DESIGN STANDARDS WORKING GROUP IN SEPTEMBER OF 2018 THAT FALL, WE WORKED WITH A GRADUATE CLASS FROM UT TO SURVEY NATIONAL BEST PRACTICES IN HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS.
AND THEN WE TOOK THAT WHEN THE WORKING GROUP CONVENED AND AT THE VERY TAIL END OF 2018, EARLY 2019 TO DO A DEEP DIVE INTO SOME OF THOSE BEST PRACTICES AND TO CREATE A DRAFT USING THE, UM, PRESERVATION AUSTIN DESIGN STANDARDS, UH, TEMPLATE AS A BASE AND REALLY BUILDING OFF OF THAT.
SO WORKING GROUP DID, UM, THESE ARE COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND PROFESSIONALS, UH, WORKING IN SUBCOMMITTEES.
THEY DID A HUGE AMOUNT OF HEAVY LIFTING.
AND BY JUNE OF 2019, WE WERE ABLE TO RELEASE A DRAFT FOR COMMUNITY REVIEW.
UM, THAT DRAFT RECEIVED MORE THAN 175 COMMENTS FROM COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS.
OVER THE LAST 16 MONTHS, THE WORKING GROUP HAS REVISED THE STANDARDS GRAPHICS HAVE BEEN ADDED, AND THE DOCUMENT WAS LAID OUT AND FORMATTED.
THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION ADOPTED A RESOLUTION IN STRONG SUPPORT OF THE DESIGN STANDARDS LAST MONTH, REQUESTING THE CITY COUNCIL REVIEW AND ADOPT THE STANDARDS.
AND NOW WE'RE PRESENTING THEM TO RELATED BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS FOR POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL RESOLUTIONS OF SUPPORT TO COUNCIL.
IF THE COUNCIL DOES ADOPT THE STANDARDS, THEY WILL APPLY TO ALL HISTORIC LANDMARKS TO PROPERTIES AND NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICTS ON AN ADVISORY BASIS AND ALL FUTURE LOCALLY DESIGNATED HISTORIC DISTRICTS.
AND IF, IF THOSE HISTORIC DISTRICTS CHOOSE, THEY CAN ADOPT A SUPPLEMENT TO THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS WITH MORE SPECIFIC STANDARDS TO AUGMENT THE, THE BASELINE STANDARDS THAT ARE IN THIS DOCUMENT.
SO THE DESIGN STANDARDS WORKING GROUP HAS REALLY POWERED THIS PROCESS FOR THE LAST TWO PLUS YEARS.
AND THERE'S A TON OF CREDIT WORKING GROUP MEMBERS WERE SELECTED THROUGH AN APPLICATION PROCESS WITH THE GOAL OF HAVING ALL SORTS OF STAKEHOLDERS AT THE TABLE, AND THEY SHOWED REALLY OUTSTANDING DEDICATION THROUGH THE PROCESS OF DRAFTING, REVISING, REVIEWING MORE, REVISING, MORE REVIEWING.
UM, IT WAS, UH, A TON OF WORK AND, UM, UH, STAFF, I FEEL REALLY HONORED TO HAVE FACILITATED THE PROCESS AND CONFIDENT IN PUTTING FORWARD FORWARD THESE STANDARDS BECAUSE THEY WERE DEVELOPED BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ALSO FOR, FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
UM, I THINK WHAT WE, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR TONIGHT ARE OUR QUESTIONS.
UM, IF YOU HAVE ANY AND POTENTIALLY A RESOLUTION RECOMMENDING A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF COUNCIL TAKING UP THE HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS FOR CONSIDERATION AND ADOPTION.
I'M CURIOUS AS TO HOW WE MIGHT GO ABOUT GETTING A COPY WHEN IT'S AVAILABLE.
I HAD SHARED IT WITH STAFF AHEAD OF TIME, BUT, BUT WAS PERHAPS NOT CLEAR ENOUGH THAT THAT I, UM, MEANT TO INITIALLY HAVE BEEN POSTED AS BACKUP.
SO, UM, IT'S ON THE HISTORICAL PART, IT'S ON HISTORIC PRESERVATION WEBSITE.
SO ON THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION WEBSITE, UM, AS, UM, AS BACKUP FOR THEIR NOVEMBER MEETING.
SO I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT FOLLOWING UP TO MAKE SURE THAT WAS POSTED AHEAD OF TIME.
UM, THE, THE FILE WAS TOO LARGE TO SEND TO YOU, BUT, UH, WE WILL GET IT.
YES, WE WILL GET IT TO YOU AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
AND THIS WAS JUST THE ABBREVIATED VERSION.
GIVE US A MINUTE THAT LOOKS LIKE THE CHAIR OFFICE CALL.
JUST GIVE US ONE MINUTE ON HER MIC.
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? OKAY, PERFECT.
I WAS ACCIDENTALLY INSTEAD OF MEETING MYSELF DISCONNECTED.
UM, SO, UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS,
[01:00:01]
FOLKS, UH, COMMISSIONER HAN CHEF, WELL, AS YOU ALL ARE AWARE, I'M NOT A VOTING MEMBER, BUT IF, UH, ONE OF THE COMMISSIONERS WOULD MAKE A MOTION, THIS WOULD BE AN, A WEEDER POST FORWARD.IF WE COULD LOOK FORWARD FROM, UM, UH, RESOLUTIONS FROM BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS TO COUNCIL POINT THE VALUE OF THIS ACTIVITY, AND JUST ALSO RECOGNIZE IT'S GOING TO BE OUR RESPONSIBILITY IN THIS GENERATION ABOUT WHAT GETS PASSED ON OF AUSTIN TO THE FUTURE GENERATIONS AND A TOOL LIKE THIS MEANS THAT WE CAN BE MORE COMPREHENSIVE IN THE WAY WE ARE THINKING OF OUR PROPERTIES AND HAVING ISSUES IN HERE WITH, WITH WHAT THE AUDIO GIVE US ONE MINUTE.
I TELL YOU, I'LL BE REALLY, REALLY GLAD TO GET BACK TO THE OFFICE AT SOME POINT WHEN IT'S SAFE, WHERE MY COWORKERS DO NOT BARK AT PASSING, YOU KNOW, PASSENGERS BY IT'S.
I HAVE LOCATED THESE STANDARDS PDF AT THE HISTORIC COMMISSIONS.
LET'S SAY, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YES.
I PROMISE WE'LL GET THROUGH THIS MEETING.
UM, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE OR SUPPORT THE RECOMMENDATION OF STAFF WITH THE INDUSTRIAL DESIGN STANDARDS THROUGH STROKE LANDMARKS, SIR, COMMISSIONER HIND SOFT FINISH TWO SENTENCES, NEITHER NOR SPEAK.
OH, WELL, I, I, ALL I WAS SAYING IS THAT, UH, UH, THIS OF COURSE WILL REQUIRE ONE OF THE VOTING COMMISSIONERS TO MAKE THE MOTION, BUT ALSO ENCOURAGING THE, UH, CONNECTION TO SOME OF THE BROADER DISCUSSIONS WE'RE HAVING ABOUT MAINTAINING AUSTIN'S CHARACTER.
THIS GENERATION WILL HAVE TO DECIDE WHAT WE PASS ON, AND WE HAVE SOME NEW TOOLS, OR I SHOULD SAY WE WILL BE REINFORCING SOME OF THE TOOLS WITH THIS LEASE THESE CONSISTENT STANDARDS SO THAT WE AREN'T JUST LOOKING AT INDIVIDUAL PROPERTIES, PIECEMEAL, BUT WE CAN SEE THE CHARACTER OF THE DISTRICT AND THE AREA PRESERVED OVER TIME IN A SYSTEMATIC AND, AND I THINK MORE EQUITABLE WAY.
UH, SO TH THAT'S THE ARGUMENT, UH, IN A, IN A VERY SHORT, UH, VERSION OF, UH, UH, OF HOW WE CAN GO ABOUT DOING THIS AND STILL BE ALLOWING FOR CHANGE IN A WAY THAT'S COMPATIBLE.
UH, KARA QUESTION, HA HAVE, UH, DOLL INCORPORATED HAVING NOT SEEN THIS, THE DOCUMENT ITSELF, HAVE YOU ALL INCORPORATED ANYTHING ABOUT BOTH STATE AND FEDERAL TAX CREDITS? NO.
THAT THE STATE AND FEDERAL TAX CREDITS AREN'T MENTIONED IN THIS DOCUMENT, WHICH REALLY IS INTENDED TO GUIDE PROPERTY OWNERS ON HOW THEY CAN MAKE CHANGES TO THEIR BUILDINGS.
UM, CITY, OUR STANDARDS REALLY ONLY ADDRESS THE EXTERIOR OF THE BUILDING, WHEREAS, UM, STATE AND FEDERAL TAX CREDITS HAVE MORE, HAVE MORE STRINGENT STANDARDS FOR EXTERIOR WORK IN MANY CASES, AND ALSO REVIEW INTO YOUR WORK FOR COMPATIBILITY.
UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE MENTIONED ON OUR NEW AND IMPROVED WEBSITE, WHICH WILL HOPEFULLY, HOPEFULLY BE LAUNCHING SOON, BUT IT'S A SEPARATE, THE INCENTIVES, UH, INCENTIVES ARE, ARE SEPARATE FROM THESE LOCAL DESIGN STANDARDS.
[01:05:02]
WELL, MAYBE, BUT THE INCENTIVES THEMSELVES, UH, ENABLE SOME OF THESE PROJECTS AND INSPIRE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE TAKE THOSE STEPS NECESSARY TO RESTORE THESE BUILDINGS.BUT, AND IT'S LIMITED ON THE TYPES OF BUILDINGS THAT ARE ALLOWED, OBVIOUSLY IT'S, IT HAS TO BE INVESTMENT INCOME PRODUCING PROPERTY.
UH, WELL THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS, BUT PROJECTS THAT MIGHT NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY.
IF FOLKS UNDERSTAND THAT THESE, UH, STATE AND FEDERAL TAX CREDITS ARE AVAILABLE, UH, MIGHT FURTHER THE, THE INTENT OF THE DESIGN STANDARDS BY HAVING SOME OF THESE COME TO LIFE.
THAT, THAT, THAT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE.
AND I AM HOPING THAT OUR NEW WEBSITE WILL FOREGROUND THOSE INCENTIVES AND MAKE THEM MORE CLEARER TO PEOPLE.
WE, WE DON'T MENTION THE HISTORIC TAX ABATEMENT.
WE DON'T MENTION OUR LOCAL TAX EXEMPTION IN THE DESIGN STANDARDS EITHER.
UM, SIMPLY BECAUSE THE DESIGN, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE COULD HAVE, WE MAYBE SHOULD HAVE A WHOLE NOTHER DOCUMENT ON THE VARIOUS INCENTIVES THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR VARIOUS TYPES OF PROPERTIES.
THAT'S GETTING A LITTLE BIT INTO THE, IT'S GETTING, IT'S WONDERING OFF A LITTLE BIT FROM THE PURPOSE OF THE DESIGN STANDARDS, WHICH IS TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE ON, ON CHANGES THAT CAN BE MADE TO BUILDINGS.
WELL, I'M JUST SAYING, I THINK YOU'RE BRINGING UP AN EXCELLENT POINT AND PART OF THE REASONS HAVING FOLKS MAYBE OUT OF THE REGULAR GROUP, UH, LOOKING OVER THIS IS, THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS HOPING FOR.
I CAN SEE, UH, EVEN JUST A VERY, UH, SUCCINCT OVERVIEW OF PROGRAMS LIKE THIS, OR REFERENCES TO PROGRAMS LIKE THIS AT THE VERY BEGINNING AS A WAY OF POINTING OUT THAT THE DESIGN STANDARDS FIT WITHIN A BROADER CONTEXT OF TOOLS FOR PEOPLE INVOLVED IN PRESERVATION.
SO, UH, THAT, THAT THANK YOU FOR THAT OBSERVATION.
UM, I, IN PREVIOUS LIFE I WORKED ON THE, UH, STATE FRANCHISE TAX HISTORIC CREDIT WHEN I WAS ON THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION, WORKED ON THE INCENTIVE PACKAGE FOR HISTORIC LANDMARKS IN AUSTIN.
SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT I'VE SPENT QUITE A BIT OF TIME ON.
WE'LL DO I HAVE A MOTION FROM THE COMMISSION? I MOVE THAT WE SUPPORT THESE NEW DESIGN STANDARDS, CREATIVE WORK COMMISSION OR STAFF.
THE SECOND THING, ANDREW HARRISON.
AND, UH, I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION HEARING? NONE.
THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THAT TOGETHER.
AND ALL THE HARD WORK TEAM DID ON, ON GETTING THE DESIGN STANDARDS DONE, BUT THERE WERE A LOT OF FUN FOLKS THAT, THAT SERVED IN AN ADVISORY CAPACITY.
UH, THE NEXT ITEM OF BUSINESS IS THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAMS UPDATE LIVE MUSIC VENUES IMPACTED BY COVID AND WE HAVE ERICA AND KIM, ARE THEY OKAY? THERE'LL BE
[2.d. Economic Development Department Relief & Recovery Programs Update: Live Music Venues Impacted by COVID (Erica Shamaly and Kim McCarson, Economic Development Department Music Office - 10 minutes)]
ERICA AND ERICA.HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, INDEED.
WELL, MY VIDEO IS TRYING TO WORK.
IT LOOKS LIKE, UM, DO YOU HAVE THE PRESENTATION LINED UP? READY TO GO AGAIN? ONE MOMENT PLEASE.
I CAN ALSO SHARE MY SCREEN IF I NEED TO.
AND KIM, HOPEFULLY I HAVE YOU ON BACKUP.
MY I'M STARTING TO GET ICON CERT YOU KNOW, THINKING ICONS GOING INTO NICOLE'S.
[01:10:01]
TO GO.UH, THE COMMISSIONERS, DO YOU SEE THE PRESENTATION ON YOUR SCREEN? YES, WE DO.
I'M JUST SEEING A CIRCLE GOING IN CIRCLES.
I AM THE MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT DIVISION MANOR MANAGER OUT OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT WITH THE CITY.
AND WE'RE GOING TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE TODAY ON COMPLETED RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAMS THAT HAVE BENEFITED BENEFITED VENUES, AS WELL AS AN UPDATE ON THE RECENTLY LAUNCHED, UH, AUSTIN LIVE MUSIC VENUE, PRESERVATION FUND, AS WELL AS THE UPDATE ON THE LIVE MUSIC FUND EVENT PROGRAM, WHICH IS FUNDED THROUGH TAXES.
SO FOR COMPLETED RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAM SO FAR, UH, WITH FEDERAL CARES FUNDING, THIS IS JUST A QUICK OVERSIGHT, UH, OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE HAVE SPENT SO FAR ON THESE PARTICULAR BUSINESSES IN TERMS OF AWARDS.
AND YOU CAN JUST KIND OF LOOK THROUGH THOSE NUMBERS.
AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS AT THE END OF THE SLIDE, JUST LET ME KNOW, BUT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO A TOTAL AWARDED OF $981,842 FROM PEERS FUNDINGS TO LIVE MUSIC AND PERFORMANCE VENUES, LIVE MUSIC, PRODUCTION, BUSINESSES, LIVE MUSIC, STUDIOS, AND ENTERTAINMENT, OR NIGHTLIFE VENUES.
SO WE ALSO COMPLETED A, UH, RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAM FOR SMALL BUSINESS GRANTS AND A TOTAL OF, UH, THROUGH THIS PROGRAM, $401,979,000 WERE AWARDED TO LIVE MUSIC AND PERFORMANCE VENUES.
UH, AND THEN OVER 75,000 TO LIVE MUSIC PRODUCTION COMPANIES, UH, JUST AROUND $7,000 FOR LIVE MUSIC STUDIOS AND ABOUT $1,500 FOR ENTERTAINMENT OR NIGHTLY VENUES FOR SMALL BUSINESS GROUPS.
FIRST A PROGRAM WE HAD LAUNCHED, AND THIS WAS IN COORDINATION WITH THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, UH, PPE PROGRAM OR PVP PROGRAM, EXCUSE ME.
UH, SO THE S UH, AUSTIN ECONOMIC INJURY BRIDGE LOAN PROGRAM, WHICH WAS IN COORDINATION WITH THE PPP PROGRAM WITH SBA A TOTAL OF $35,000 FOR ENTERTAINMENT AND NIGHTLIFE, THEN USE 30,000 FOR LIVE MUSIC PRODUCTION COMPANIES, AND OVER $20,000 FOR LIVE MUSIC STUDIOS.
NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, KIM, SPEAK TO THIS NEXT SLIDE.
UH, KIM, UH, IF YOU COULD JUST GIVE US AN OVERVIEW OF THE CREATIVE SPACE DISASTER RELIEF PROGRAM.
SO, UH, I GUESS I'LL START MY VIDEO TOO, IN A WAY THAT EVERYBODY, HELLO, MY NAME IS KIM MCCARSON AND I WORK IN THE MUSIC DIVISION.
UM, SO YES, THIS IS, UH, THE CREATIVE SPACE DISASTER RELIEF PROGRAM.
THERE WERE $1 MILLION IN THIS PROGRAM AND, UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, THE LIST OF MUSIC VENUES ARE ABOUT 12 MUSIC VENUES THAT WERE AWARDED FUNDS UNDER THIS PROGRAM.
AND THIS PROGRAM IS SEPARATE FROM THE, SAY THE CARES, UH, FUNDING.
SO THIS MONEY DID NOT COME FROM THE CARES FUNDING.
SO 378,007 49, TOTAL AWARDS FOR LIVE MUSIC IN PERFORMANCE, BEEN USED 45,009 17 FOR LIVE MUSIC STUDIOS.
UM, SO, UH, LET'S SEE, I CAN, UH, TELL YOU THAT OF ALL THE APPLICATIONS THAT WE RECEIVED UNDER THIS PROGRAM, THERE WERE ABOUT 80% OF THOSE APPLICATIONS WERE FOR RENT, STIPEND AND MISS RENT.
IF THAT GIVES YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT THE NEED WAS.
AND WHEN THE APPLICATIONS CAME IN, UH, THERE ARE 65, UH, COMPLETED APPLICATIONS THAT ABOUT 2 MILLION, 700,000, UH, WE ONLY HAD A MILLION IN THE PROGRAM.
SO THAT JUST GIVES YOU ANOTHER IDEA THAT, UM, THERE WAS A, THERE WAS A LOT MORE NEED THAN THE WAR RESOURCES.
AND PLEASE GO VISIT ATX RECOVERS.COM, UH, FOR ANY OF THESE RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAMS AND CLICK ON THE DASHBOARD LINK TO THE RIGHT OF THE PAGE, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO GO AND CLICK ON EACH PROGRAM THAT HAS BEEN COMPLETED TO SEE EXACTLY WHO APPLIED, WHO WAS AWARDED AND ALL THE DEMOGRAPHIC BREAKDOWN FOR THOSE PROGRAMS. IT'S JUST TOO MUCH INFORMATION TO GIVE INTO A PRESENTATION, BUT PLEASE AGAIN, GO TO ATX RECOVERS.COM AND CLICK ON THE DASHBOARD ON THE RIGHT.
AND IT ALSO JUST HAS, UH, OTHER INFORMATION ABOUT PROGRAMS WE HAVE DELIVERED SO FAR AND ONES THAT HAVE
[01:15:01]
RECENTLY OPENED A CASE IN POINT THE SAVES AUSTIN, UH, VITAL SAVE AUSTIN'S VITAL ECONOMIC SECTORS, OR SAVES, UH, PROGRAMS. AND, UH, THAT'S A $15 MILLION PROGRAM THAT HAS JUST LAUNCHED.AND TODAY WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE AUSTIN LIVE MUSIC VENUE PRESERVATION FUND, WHICH WAS $5 MILLION, UH, COMPONENT OF THIS 15 MILLION.
UH, WE ARE THIRD PARTY ALONG CENTER IS NOW DELIVERING THIS.
SO I HAVE TWO PHASES TO THE AUSTIN LIVE MUSIC VENUE, PRESERVATION FUND.
UH, AGAIN, PLEASE GO TO LONG CENTER.ORG FORWARD SLASH SAVE US IN VENUES, UH, TO APPLY APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN THROUGH JANUARY 11TH FOR THE INITIAL PHASE OF EMERGENCY FUNDING FOR $20,000.
THIS IS JUST A PRETTY SIMPLE APPLICATION TO BE SURE THAT BUSINESSES THAT ARE APPLYING, UM, DO QUALIFY THROUGH THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, INCLUDING THE LIVE MUSIC VENUE DEFINITION.
AND SO EVERYONE WHO MEETS THESE REQUIREMENTS AND CERTIFIES THAT THEY WILL TAKE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, UH, EVALUATION OR PARTICIPATE IN AN EVALUATION WILL RECEIVE AN INITIAL $20,000 GRANT.
AND THAT'S AN EMERGENCY GRANT THAT THEY CAN USE ANY WAY THEY NEED TO USE.
AND, UH, WE EXPECT TO HAVE THESE CHECKS OUT BY THE END OF THE YEAR, WHICH IS WONDERFUL.
AND THEN FOR PHASE TWO, THIS IS WHERE IT GETS MORE COMPLICATED IN TERMS OF THE APPLICATION PROCESS.
UH, ONCE THE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE EVALUATION HAS BEEN COMPLETED, UH, THEY, WE CAN THEN FOCUS APPLICANTS TO TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROVIDERS, UH, THROUGH THE THIRD PARTY THAT WE ARE USING THAT THE LUNG CENTER IS WORKING WITH, WHICH IS TALA, UH, TO WORK WITH, YOU KNOW, EITHER GETTING THE TYPE OF ASSISTANCE THEY NEED WITH ACCOUNTING, WITH LAWYERS.
AND THEN, UM, WONG CENTER CAN WORK WITH THE APPLICANT TO FIND THE TYPE OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE THAT THEY REQUIRE.
AND SO ONCE THEY GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS AND, UM, THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, WORK TOWARDS AND GET THEIR APPLICATION COMPLETED FOR PHASE TWO HAS ENHANCED FUNDING.
THAT'S AN ADDITIONAL $140,000 ON TOP OF THE 20, UH, THAT CAN BE DONE IN MONTHLY INSTALLMENTS UP TO SIX MONTHS, BUT IT WILL DEPEND ON THE OPERATING EXPENSES OF THE BUSINESS FOR 2019 TO CALCULATE, YOU KNOW, WHAT THAT FINAL NUMBER IS.
IF THEY CAN GET THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT THAT THEY CAN GET AND, UH, UP TO $140,000.
SO, UH, PHASE TWO WILL START IN JANUARY RIGHT NOW.
WE'RE JUST VERY FOCUSED ON GETTING PHASE ONE DONE, AND THESE EMERGENCY CHECKS FOR $20,000 OUT TO THE ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
SO, UH, ONE COMPONENT OF THE AUSTIN LIVE MUSIC THEN PRESERVATION FUND IS TO PROVIDE A LIVE MUSIC VENUE, EQUITY, STRATEGIC PLAN.
UH, SO WE ARE WORKING WITH SEVERAL GROUPS IN ORDER TO HELP THE APPLICANTS CREATE THESE STRATEGIC PLANS.
WE ARE NOT PUTTING PEOPLE OUT INTO THE VOID TO JUST TRY TO FIGURE IT OUT FOR THEMSELVES.
WE'RE BRINGING ON AN EXPERT CONSULTANT TO WORK WITH ACO APPLICANTS, UH, TO CREATE, UH, A STRATEGIC PLAN BASED ON A LOT OF CONCEPTS THAT THEY CAN TAKE INSPIRATION FROM THAT FIT THEIR BUSINESS AS A VENUE.
UM, AND SO THERE'S DIFFERENT WAYS THAT THEY CAN CREATE THIS PLAN.
AND THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
THIS IS NOT LIKE A PASS FAIL TYPE OF ASSIGNMENT FOR THIS PLAN.
AND, UH, THE CITY WILL BE WORKING WITH APPLICANTS, YOU KNOW, FOR MONTHS TO JUST HELP THEM IN ANY WAY THAT THEY NEED TO BE ABLE TO, UH, LOOK AT THESE PLANS IN A PRACTICAL WAY AND REALISTIC WAY AND START IMPLEMENTING.
AND THE GOAL IS TO HELP CREATE A MORE DIVERSE AND EQUITABLE MUSIC INDUSTRY HERE IN AUSTIN.
AND, UM, WE FIGURE THAT WITH THIS LEVEL OF SUPPORT GOING TO VENUES, THIS IS ONE WAY THAT WE CAN REALLY WORK WITH THEM, ONE-ON-ONE TO CREATE THESE PLANS AND TO REALLY HELP, UH, IMPROVE, UH, THE, THE AUDIENCES THAT THESE VENUES ARE DRAWING, BUT ALSO JUST GENERALLY TO MAKE THE MUSIC INDUSTRY, UM, WORK TOWARDS A MORE EQUITABLE AND DIVERSE INDUSTRY HERE IN AUSTIN.
AND THEN THIS LAST SATURDAY, UH, THE, THE CULTURAL ARTS DIVISION, THE HERITAGE, UH, TOURISM DIVISION AND THE MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT DIVISION, UH, WE WORK TOGETHER TO, UH, BRING A MEETING THIS LAST SATURDAY, THE 12TH, UH, WHICH IS RECORDED AND WE CAN PROVIDE THE LINKS TO ALL COMMISSIONERS ALONG WITH THE PRESENTATION.
AND THIS WAS ABOUT WHAT WE PLAN TO DO FOR CULTURAL THINNING PROGRAMS FOR
[01:20:01]
SEPTEMBER, 2019, OUR INAUGURAL PROGRAM FOR THE LIVE MUSIC FUND, WHICH IS FUNDED BY HOTEL, BY HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAXES, UH, LIKE, UH, THE PROGRAMS WITHIN CULTURAL ARTS AND HERITAGE TOURISM.AND SO OUR FIRST PROGRAM IS THE LIVE MUSIC EVENT PROGRAM, WHICH SUPPORTS LIVE AND VIRTUAL MUSIC SHOWS AND SPECIAL EVENTS THAT CAN BE MARKETED TO LOCAL AUDIENCES POTENTIAL AND VISITING TOURISTS AND CONVENTION DELEGATES A PRIORITY WILL BE GIVEN TO ACTIVITIES THAT PROMOTE A MORE EQUITABLE AND DIVERSE LIVE MUSIC INDUSTRY IN AUSTIN.
SO THE PURPOSE OF THE LIVE MUSIC, UH, FUND EVENT PROGRAM IS TO ENCOURAGE, PROMOTE, IMPROVE, AND SHOWCASE AUSTIN'S DIVERSE LIVE MUSIC INDUSTRY THROUGH SUPPORTING LIVE AND VIRTUAL MUSIC EVENTS.
AND WE HOPE TO SUPPORT AUSTIN'S PROFESSIONAL MUSIC, BUSINESSES, AND ORGANIZATIONS, AND MUSICIANS AND BANDS THAT PRODUCE AND PROMOTE LIVE AND VIRTUAL EVENTS THAT CAN BE MARKETED TO LOCAL AUDIENCES, VISITING AND POTENTIAL TOURISTS AND CONVENTION DELEGATES.
SO CONTRACTS WILL BE UP TO $50,000 THAT APPLICANTS CAN DRAW, YOU KNOW, SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS CAN DRIVE DOWN FROM, WE UNDERSTAND THAT YOU CAN'T NECESSARILY GIVE US A SCHEDULE FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS AND NOT HAVE IT CHANGED A WEEK BEFORE A SHOW.
AS LONG AS THE SCOPE OF THE SCHEDULE REMAINS THE SAME.
AND YOU JUST DRAW DOWN FROM THAT, UH, TOP AMOUNT UNTIL IT'S GONE OVER A 12 MONTH PERIOD, NEXT SLIDE.
SO THE KEY ELEMENTS FOR THE LIVE MUSIC FUND THAT PROGRAM, AND, UH, THIS IS ABOUT EQUITY AND TO REALLY, UH, PROMOTE DIVERSITY AND EQUITY WITHIN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IN AUSTIN.
SO PRESERVATION AND ENRICHING THE PAST.
SO WE WANT TO INVESTMENT IN THE HISTORIC CULTURAL HERITAGE OF AUSTIN MUSIC AND THE PRESERVATION OF TRADITIONS AND LEGACIES OF HISTORICALLY UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES.
WE WANT TO FOCUS ON INNOVATION ENVISIONING THE FUTURE, INVEST IN THE INNOVATION OF TRADITIONAL BUSINESS MODELS, COMMITTED TO INNOVATIVE AND INCLUSIVE PRACTICES THAT BUILD CAPACITY AND UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES.
AND THEN OF COURSE, ELEVATION AND COLLABORATION EMPOWERING THE PRESENT INVESTMENT IN ELEVATION EDUCATION AND PROMOTION OF AUSTIN MUSIC FROM HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED COMMUNITIES.
SO THE ALLOWABLE ACTIVITIES ARE PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING THAT WE CAN PROMOTE TO TOURISTS AND RESIDENTS.
SO THIS COULD BE LIVE OR VIRTUAL SHOWS OF LOCAL AND TOURING MUSICIANS, UH, DISTRICT-BASED MUSICAL SPECIAL EVENTS.
UM, WE, THIS THE WAY THE STATUTE IS STRUCTURED, IT, THIS CAN ALSO PAY FOR MARKETING PLANS TO PROMOTE THESE ACTIVITIES TO AUSTIN AND TO A POTENTIAL TOURIST AND CONVENTION DELEGATES.
AND YOU CAN PRETTY MUCH PAY FOR EVERYTHING THAT HELPS TO PUT THE SHOW ON, UH, GUARANTEES THAT IS PAY THAT YOU GET TO THE ARTISTS, UH, THEN YOU AN OFFICE RENTALS, SALARIES, MARKETING, COLLATERAL SUPPLIES, AND THE NECESSARY TRAVEL FOR THESE SHOWS.
SO, UM, PRETTY MUCH, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE TYPES OF ACTIVITY, ACTIVITIES ARE ALREADY HAPPENING, AND SO WE'RE HELPING TO SUPPLANT ALREADY EXISTING EXPENSES.
BUT WHAT WE'RE HOPING TO DO WITH THESE BRANDS IS TO REALLY PROMOTE THE TYPES OF ACTIVITIES THAT ARE BEING PROMOTED TO AUDIENCES, UH, SO THAT THE VENUES, THE ARTISTS, AND ALL THE DIFFERENT MUSIC ORGANIZATIONS THAT PRODUCE EVENTS, UM, ARE FINDING NEW AUDIENCES THROUGH COLLABORATION, THEY'RE WORKING WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF PARTNERS TO CREATE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SHOWS AND TO PROMOTE THESE SHOWS TO MORE AUDIENCES THAT THEY EVER HAVE BEFORE.
MAYBE THEY JUST DON'T KNOW WHO THESE AUDIENCES ARE, AND THESE COLLABORATIONS WILL HELP THEM DEFINE THESE AUDIENCES AND THESE NEW TICKET BUYERS OR THESE NEW ATTENDEES.
SO PRIORITY IS GOING TO BE GIVEN TO LIVE MUSIC, VENUES, LABELS, MUSIC, PROMOTERS, RECORDING STUDIOS, AND LIVE MUSIC, SPECIAL EVENT PRODUCERS, PROFESSIONAL AUSTIN MUSICIANS PERFORM SOLO AS PART OF A BAND, BUT ONLY ONE APPLICATION PER BAND.
UM, AND THEN MUSICIANS AND BANDS PROPOSING SPECIAL EVENTS IN COLLABORATION WITH OTHER DISCIPLINES LIKE DANCE AND ART POETRY.
UH, WE'RE JUST RECOMMENDING THAT THEY, UH, APPLY TO THE CULTURAL ARTS PROGRAMS, UH, SO THAT THERE'S MORE DIVERSITY IN THE TYPE OF FUNDING THAT COULD BE DELIVERED THERE AND A PRIORITY ALSO GIVEN TO BLACK AFRICAN-AMERICAN NATIVE AMERICAN, ASIAN, HISPANIC, LATINO, MIDDLE EASTERN PACIFIC ISLANDER LBGTQ, A PLUS, AND DISABILITY COMMUNITIES AND OTHER HISTORICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED AND UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES.
UM, RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, TH TH FOR ELIGIBILITY, JUST LIKE WITH OUR SAFETY PROGRAM, THE LIVE MUSIC VENUES HAVE TO MEET THE EDD, HIS DEFINITION OF A LIVE MUSIC VENUE, AS WELL AS A MUSICIAN, SO THAT WE'RE REALLY SURE THAT WE'RE FOCUSING ON THE PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITY.
[01:25:01]
AND WE HAVE A LOT OF PRECEDENT THERE WITH PREVIOUS PROGRAMS, UH, NEXT SLIDE.SO IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, HAPPY TO ANSWER WHAT I CAN HEAR, AND IF I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER, WE'LL TAKE THOSE QUESTIONS DOWN AND WE'LL BE SURE TO WORK WITH CHRISTINE TO GET THOSE ANSWERS TO YOU.
WHEN WILL THE LIVE MUSIC FUND OPEN UP FOR APPLICATIONS? SO WE'RE WORKING ON THAT RIGHT NOW.
WE STILL HAVE A LOT TO WORK THROUGH ON THE BACK END PROCESSES.
NOW THAT WE KIND OF UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PROGRAMS ARE GOING TO LOOK LIKE WE'RE WORKING ON IMPLEMENTATION AND WAYS THAT WE CAN BE VERY EQUITABLE AND MORE ECONOMICAL IN HOW WE RUN THESE PROGRAMS ON THE BACK END AS WELL.
SO YOU SHOULD BE HEARING BACK FROM US LIKE THE END OF JANUARY WITH NEXT STEPS, BUT WE PLAN TO BE, UH, LAUNCHING AND ANNOUNCING DETAILS IN SPRING 2021.
WELL, IF I ANSWERED ALL YOUR QUESTIONS ALREADY, THAT'S GREAT.
SO, BUT PLEASE DO REACH OUT TO CHRISTINE WITH ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS OR TO MONA, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE.
SO I DO HAVE ONE, UH, ONE MORE QUESTION.
WE HAVE A COUNT ON THE NUMBER OF LIVE MUSIC VENUES THAT ARE PERMANENTLY CLOSED.
THAT IS ACTUALLY NOT AN, UH, A STATISTIC THAT WE TRACK, UH, YOU KNOW, THROUGH THE DIVISION.
AND SO ANY INFORMATION I GIVE YOU IS JUST ANECDOTAL AND PERSONAL.
SO I DON'T KNOW AN OFFICIAL NUMBER.
I WANT TO SAY, IT'S SAY IT'S AROUND AROUND EIGHT.
UM, I DO KNOW THAT THERE WAS ONE CLOSE, BUT IS NOW, IS NOW OWNERSHIP IS OWNERSHIP IS TAKEN OVER.
YEAH, THAT'S A LOT OF THE SITUATIONS THERE COULD BE PEOPLE MOVING.
THERE COULD BE JUST A LOT OF TIMES VENUES DO THAT WHEN THEY SELL, THEY SELL THE BRAND AND ALL OF THE STUFF TO A NEW OWNER AND IT KEEPS GOING.
AND THAT'S WHY IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO LIKE, GIVE A DEFINITIVE ANSWER TO A QUESTION LIKE THAT.
IS THERE ANY ACTION THAT YOU WOULD LIKE FROM US TO SEE ERICA? OH, NO, NO, NOT FOR ME.
WE'RE JUST HOPING TO UPDATE YOU GUYS.
THE ONLY THING IS, IS JUST LET US KNOW IF YOU GET ANY QUESTIONS FROM ANY OF THE PEOPLE YOU GUYS REPRESENT AND SO THAT WE CAN WRAP THAT INTO ANY FUTURE Q AND A'S AND FACTS FOR THE PROGRAMS. WELL, YOU KNOW, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT MEANS IT CAN DISAGREE INDUSTRY IS TO DOWNTOWN.
SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR, FOR YOUR WORK ON THERE.
SEEMS YOUR TEAM'S WORK, THE HOPELESS, TREMENDOUS, TREMENDOUS.
UH, FOR SOME REASON WE'RE GETTING A LOOP, UH, IS, UM, ITEM THREE
[3. Old Business - Items from representatives of collaborating commissions including nonvoting members]
OLD BUSINESS, UH, ITEMS FROM, UH, REPRESENTATIVES OF OTHER COMMISSIONS.I DO NOT BELIEVE COMMISSIONER
SHE IS NOT COMMISSIONER HAIM, SETH, ANYTHING FROM THIS STORE CLAIM, THE COMMISSION.
UM, ONLY OTHER THING TO REPORT IS THAT, UH, WE WILL BE HAVING SOME UPDATES ON THE ANALYSIS OF THE, UH, IN COMPATIBILITY WITH CERTAIN PROPERTIES IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA AND ZONING.
UH, I'VE, DON'T HAVE THAT, UH, UPDATE AT THIS POINT, BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING WE'RE WORKING ON.
SO THAT'LL BE A FUTURE PRESENTATION.
CAN YOU ELABORATE ON THAT? UH, WE HAD REQUESTED A STAFF, UH,
[01:30:01]
AGAIN, TRYING TO BE PROACTIVE ON WHERE SOME FUTURE DIFFICULTIES OR CHALLENGES WILL BE IN LIGHT OF SOME OF THE, UH, CELEBRATED CONFLICTS THAT WE'VE BEEN HAVING TO ADJUDICATE THAT.UM, I ASKED THE STAFF IF THEY WOULD WORK WITHIN THE DISTRICTS OF DOWNTOWN IN IMMEDIATE VICINITY AND FIND THE ZONING THAT WAS VERY MUCH OUT OF SCALE WITH THE EXISTING STRUCTURES.
SO THE AMOUNT OF SQUARE FOOTAGE VERSUS WHAT WOULD BE ALLOWED AND THE PRESSURES AREN'T NECESSARILY COMPLETELY CORRELATED BETWEEN THE ZONING AND THE USE BECAUSE CERTAINLY A LOT OF NON HISTORIC BUILDINGS ARE IN THAT CATEGORY.
BUT, UH, BY LOOKING AT PROPERTIES THAT ARE IN OUR PROGRAM THAT ARE IN A, SHALL WE SAY A MUCH MORE PERMISSIVE ZONING CATEGORY, WE CAN BEGIN TO IDENTIFY SOME OF THE CRITICAL AREAS THAT COULD BE, UH, UNDER PRESSURE SOON.
UM, UH, RECENTLY THE ONLY THING WE MET, UH, THE TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION MET LAST TUESDAY AND WE ADOPTED THE ENDORSEMENT OF THE PROJECT THAT YOU DID TONIGHT, SAW THE SAME PRESENTATION, UH, ON THE AIR RIGHTS.
UH, AND THEN THE OTHER THING THAT WE HAVE BEEN TALKING A LOT ABOUT IS OUR REACTION TO THE INTERSTATE 35 PROPOSAL.
UM, WE ACTUALLY HAVE A SPECIAL CALL MEETING TOMORROW MORNING AT 10:00 AM TO TRY TO COALESCE A STATEMENT ON THAT CALLING ATTENTION TO CLIMATE ISSUES, SAFETY, UH, SUPPORTIVE HIGH CAPACITY TRANSIT IN THE CORRIDOR AND EQUITY.
AND, UM, THE COMMENTS ON THAT, I HONESTLY CAN'T REMEMBER IF THIS COMMISSION, THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSIONERS HAD A PRESENTATION ON THE INTERSTATE INTERSTATE 35 PROJECT OR NOT, UH, AS RELATES, I THINK PRIMARILY IN MY MIND, YOU MAY BE MOST INTERESTED IN THE WHAT'S CALLED THE LID OVER, UH, 35 OR THE PARK AREA OR WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL ABOUT KNITTING TOGETHER, UH, EAST AUSTIN AND DOWNTOWN, OR THE REST OF AUSTIN.
UM, AND WE HAVE BEEN ASSURED THAT REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE COMMENTS ARE THAT ARE DUE DECEMBER 31ST, THAT THE POSSIBILITIES AND PREPARATIONS TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN, WE'LL GO FORWARD.
BUT THAT WILL BE AN ADDITIONAL COST THAT THE CITY AND THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT WILL HAVE TO PAY FOR, WHICH IS A STATEWIDE POLICY THAT THEY'VE HAD AROUND THE, AROUND THE STATE, UH, SUCH AS IN DALLAS, WHERE THEY BUILT THE KLYDE WARREN PARK OVER, UH, THE FREEWAY THERE, NORTH FROM DOWNTOWN.
SO I THINK THAT THAT'S ALL I WOULD MENTION IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, BUT, UH, COMMENTS ARE DUE DECEMBER 31ST, BUT THIS IS SORT OF LIKE JUST A, A PLACE IN THE PROCESS THAT WE HAVE TO CLICK, CLICK OFF AND THEN IT'LL CONTINUE TO GO FORWARD AND MORE DISCUSSION WILL ENSUE.
NOW THE COMMENTS ARE DUE TO TXDOT, IS THAT RIGHT? CORRECT.
AND THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS ALREADY GOT ITS TECHNICAL TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT ATD, UH, COMMENTS TOGETHER.
SO THEY WILL BE MOVING FORWARD.
I THINK THE ATC OR THE UTC WILL BE OFFERING THESE ADDITIONAL COMMENTS SEPARATELY AND WE'RE MEETING BECAUSE THE DEADLINE IS THE 31ST AND WE JUST HAD THE PRESENTATION ON DECEMBER 8TH.
SO, AND COMMISSIONER, WHETHER IT BE THE, THIS IS MARTIN SANCHEZ.
I JUST HAVE A LOGISTICAL QUESTION.
IS THE COMMISSION NOW OFFICIALLY NAMED TO AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION? NO, I'M SORRY.
IT'S THE URBAN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION UTC.
UM, UH, DON'T BELIEVE COMMISSIONER CAITLIN WAS WITH US THIS EVENING.
I'M SURE WE HAVEN'T SAID WELCOME.
IT'S MY FIRST TIME PRESENTING TO THE COMMISSION.
UM, I BELIEVE IT'S BEEN OVER TWO YEARS SINCE THERE HAS BEEN A MUSIC COMMISSIONER ON THIS COMMISSION.
SO, UH, I HAVE, UH, QUITE A FEW ITEMS TO RUN THROUGH, TRY AND MAKE THIS BRIEF.
AND, UH, THANK YOU, UH, ERICA FOR KNOCKING OUT SOME OF THESE ITEMS, UM, BEING PULLED UP RIGHT NOW IS AN OUTLINE OF WHAT I'M GOING TO GO OVER.
THERE ARE A COUPLE OF OTHER ITEMS I WANT TO ADDRESS AS WELL.
[01:35:01]
FEEL IT'S RELEVANT TO, FOR THE COMMISSION TO UNDERSTAND WHO I AM.UM, I'VE BEEN IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY SINCE 2003.
UH, MY EXPERTISE IS LIVE MUSIC.
UM, I'M A DRUMMER, A VINYL DJ, UH, I'VE PRODUCED RECORDS, LIVE EVENTS, STAGE MANAGER.
UH, I WAS THE TALENT BUYER AT HALF-STEP ON RAINY STREET AND OSCAR BLUES UP NORTH PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC.
UM, I JOINED THE MUSIC COMMISSION IN, UH, APRIL, 2019 APPOINTED BY PAIGE ELLIS DISTRICT EIGHT BECAME A FATHER AND, UH, NOVEMBER OF THAT YEAR, AND AS OF MARCH OF THIS YEAR SAW THE ENTIRE LIVE MUSIC INDUSTRY CRUMBLE BEFORE OUR FEET.
SO, UH, WHAT THE MUSIC COMMISSION HAS BEEN WORKING ON, UM, MOST RECENTLY WAS THE PANDEMIC RELIEF PROGRAMS. UM, ERICA MENTIONED THE MUSIC VENUE PRESERVATION PROGRAM.
WE ALSO, UH, WORKED ON A AUSTIN MUSIC DISASTER RELIEF PROGRAM THAT WAS SPECIFIC TO MUSICIANS.
UH, THIS WAS 1.5 MILLION IN TOTAL, UM, UH, OF UP TO $1,000 GRANTS.
UM, AND THERE ARE LINKS TO, UH, THE BREAKDOWNS OF DEMOGRAPHICS, UM, ON THE OUTLINE I SENT EVERYONE, UM, ON TOP OF THAT, THERE WAS A CREATIVE WORKER GRANT BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY MUSICIANS WERE AFFECTED AND IT'S THE CREATIVE INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE.
UM, SO SPECIFICALLY IN THE MUSIC SECTOR, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UM, SOUND ENGINEERS, VIDEO AND LIGHTING, UM, STAGE HANDS AND MANAGERS.
UM, SO QUITE A FEW PEOPLE AND THAT'S JUST IN THE MUSIC SECTOR, BUT THERE WAS ALSO ARTS AND DANCE AND THEATER AND VIDEO, AND, UM, THAT WE'RE ALL AFFECTED AND COULD APPLY FOR THE CREATIVE WORKER GRANT.
UH, THAT WAS 3.5 MILLION IN TOTAL OF UP TO $2,000 IN GRANTS.
UM, THE LIVE MUSIC FUND, WHICH HAS WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC.
IT'S GREAT TO SEE THIS BEING ROLLED OUT, UM, AND, UH, LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE ABOUT IT.
UM, AND HOW WELL IT'S DOING FOR NEXT YEAR.
AGAIN, THAT IS HOT FUND REVENUE.
IT IS 15% OF THE ADDITIONAL 2% ADDED TO HOT FUNDS.
UM, IT WAS ESTIMATED AT ABOUT 3.5 MILLION PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC, BUT NOW WE'RE, THAT'S GETTING CUT PRETTY MUCH IN HALF.
UH, IF NOT, UH, WE'RE SEEING LESS OF THAT BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF TOURISM.
UM, THE NEXT IS THE $12 MILLION CREATIVE SPACE BOND.
THIS WAS A PROP B FROM 2018, WHICH WAS A LARGER $128 MILLION BOND, UH, TO BE USED FOR LIBRARIES, MUSEUMS, AND CULTURAL ARTS FACILITIES.
UM, I WAS ON THE WORKING GROUP FOR THIS CREATIVE SPACE BOND.
IT IS A JOINT PROJECT BETWEEN THE ARTS AND MUSIC COMMISSION.
AND I SHOULD NOTE THAT MY WIFE CELINA ZISMAN IS ON THE ARTS COMMISSION.
UM, IT, WE HAD MEETINGS, UH, WITH THE PUBLIC BETWEEN THE JOINT, UM, COMMISSIONS.
AND, UH, THE HARDEST THING WAS TO DEFINE WHAT A CREATIVE SPACE IS.
ONCE WE KIND OF OUTLINED WHAT THE FACILITY COULD POTENTIALLY LOOK LIKE.
UM, WE ARE NOW, UH, IN THE, I BELIEVE THE RFI REQUEST FOR INFORMATION HAVE CLOSED IN SEPTEMBER, AND I KNOW, UH, CHRISTINE MAGUIRE CAN FILL EVERYONE IN ON MORE DETAILS AS SHE, UH, TENDS TO PRESENT ON THIS.
UM, BUT THE RFQ I BELIEVE IS OPENING UP OR, UH, SOON, OR HAS BEEN OPENED UP WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE, UM, UH, SOLICITATIONS FOR SPACES AND OPERATORS, UM, WILL, UH, COME IN AND, AND QUALIFIED OPERATORS WILL BE SELECTED TO LOOK AT SPACES.
UM, THIS IS NOT SPECIFIC TO DOWNTOWN, BUT, UH, THERE HAVE BEEN, UH, KIND OF A CORRIDOR OF NEED FOR WHERE, UH, CREATIVE SPACES WOULD BE MOST BENEFICIAL AND SPECIFICALLY HIGHLIGHTING, UM, UNDERREPRESENTED AREAS, UM, SUCH AS EAST, UH, EAST OF 35, UM, AND WEST OF ONE 83, UM, ALL THESE PROGRAMS, WE ARE USING AN EQUITY LENS, UM, SPECIFICALLY A RACIAL EQUITY LENS WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, UM, THE, UH, EQUITY SPECIALISTS, MJR PARTNERS, UM, MARJORIE RECENT HER TEAM HAVE BEEN FANTASTIC, UH, THAT WE HAVE DONE SOME TRAINING AND SOME OF THE, UH, COMMISSIONERS HAVE BEEN INVITED TO DO, UH, SYSTEMIC RACISM ON DOING SYSTEMIC RACISM TRAINING.
UM, WE DID JUST GET A NEW CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.
UH, JONATHAN MAHOEN, AKA CHACO
[01:40:01]
WILL BE OUR CHAIR, UM, AND VICE-CHAIR AND CHARLOTTE PATTERSON.I'M REALLY EXCITED TO HAVE BOTH OF THEM AT THE HELM OF THE MUSIC COMMISSION, UM, AND A LOT OF GREAT THINGS COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE.
UM, WE DID, WE ARE WORKING ON NOMINATING BOARD, UH, UH, BOARD NOMINATION FOR THE AUSTIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION, WHICH IS NEWLY, UH, FOUNDED.
AND IT IS A, I BELIEVE A PUBLIC NONPROFIT THAT IS GOING TO BE WORKING WITH THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SECTORS.
UM, FOR VARIOUS PROJECTS, WE, UH, HAVE A DEADLINE OF JANUARY TO SUBMIT TO COUNCIL OUR NOMINATION.
AND THEN, UH, PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC WE WERE WORKING, UM, ON WITH APD ON TO GET THE SOUND ORDINANCE, UH, ISSUES FIGURED OUT BECAUSE, UH, APD WAS WRONGFULLY ENFORCING THE SOUND ORDINANCE SPECIFICALLY ON RAINEY STREET AND ON SIXTH STREET, UM, CITING, UH, BARS AND VENUES, UM, WRONGFULLY AND, UH, THE PANDEMIC ESSENTIALLY, UH, MADE THAT PROBLEM MOOT.
BUT, UM, ONCE WE GET MUSIC BACK UP AND RUNNING AND TOURISM IS BACK, THEN WE WILL BE WORKING, UH, TO FIXING THAT THOSE ISSUES.
SO I BELIEVE THAT'S ALL FOR NOW.
AND THEN I OPEN UP THE FLOOR FOR ANY QUESTIONS.
ANY QUESTIONS, FOLKS? WE'RE EXCITED TO HAVE YOU HERE IN A PART OF THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION AND LOOK FORWARD TO MANY MORE EXCELLENT REPORTS LIKE THAT.
[4.a. Downtown Commission Member Terms]
THE NEXT, UH, UH, COMMISSIONER TAYLOR IS NOT ON THE CALL TONIGHT.UH, SO THAT TAKES US TO ITEM FOUR STEP UPDATES, UH, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON THAT.
UH, I CONDITIONERS THE REASON THIS IS ON THE AGENDA IS BECAUSE THERE ARE FIVE PLACES WITH, ON WHAT KEEPS ME ON THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION, THAT YOUR TERMS ARE NEARING, UM, EXPIRATION.
AND I SENT OUT SOME INFORMATION ON THAT TO YOU.
SO IF YOU, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO, UM, FURTHER YOUR, YOUR, UM, PARTICIPATION ON THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION, AND I'M SORRY, I'M, I'M MY WORDS.
AREN'T COMING AS EASILY AS THEY SHOULD RIGHT NOW, PLEASE CONTACT THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE AND THEY WILL HELP YOU WITH THAT.
AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, DIRECT QUESTIONS, UM, YOU CAN ASK ME AND I CAN HELP YOU AS WELL.
AND I BELIEVE WE HAVE TWO THAT ARE COMPLETING THEIR SECOND TERM.
SO COMMISSIONER GOMEZ, HE'S NOT WITH US TONIGHT.
AND, UM, VICE CHAIR, BRISTOL, BOTH.
AND ACTUALLY SHE'S NOT ON THE CALL EITHER.
THEY'RE THEY, THEY'RE BOTH COMING TO THE END OF THEIR SECOND TERMS AND THERE IS A TERM LIMIT OF EIGHT YEARS.
UM, AND THEN, UH, MY TERM IS LIKELY TO BE CONTINUED SINCE MY SPONSORING COUNCIL MEMBER, UM, ONE OF THE RUNOFF LAST NIGHT.
AND SO, UM, THERE IS ONE AMONGST US WHO WILL NOT BE JOINING US FOR FURTHER MEETINGS.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO TELL FOLKS WHAT YOU'RE UP TO? YEAH.
UM, THIS WILL BE MY LAST COMMISSION MEETING.
I AM MOVING OUT OF TOWN, UH, BUT NOT TOO FAR JUST ON THE ROAD TO SAN ANTONIO.
UM, SO I AM NOT SURE WHO WILL BE TAKING MY PLACE YET.
UM, SO I'M SURE THERE'LL BE WONDERFUL AND IT HAS BEEN REALLY FUN WORKING WITH YOU ALL AND, UM, I'VE LEARNED A LOT, SO THANK YOU ALL FOR, I THINK THE TWO ISH YEARS, UM, WORKING WITH Y'ALL, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT AND I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WHAT YOU ALL DO FROM DOWN THE ROAD.
MEGAN, ARE YOU GOING TO MAKE IT BIG WITH, FROM AUSTIN TO SAN ANTONIO AND BACK AGAIN? I HOPE, BUT, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE NEED TO TRAIN, SO WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL RELAUNCH THE AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO AND THE MUNICIPAL RAIL DISTRICT AND, UH, GET IT COOL.
YOU'VE BEEN, IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE WORKING WITH YOU ON NOAH, SPEAK FOR THE REST OF THE COMMISSION.
WHEN I SAY THAT THERE'LL BE MISSED AND THEN PRODUCT WITH ENERGY TO THE COMMISSION AND BEST OF LUCK IN YOUR NEW VENTURE.
[01:45:05]
ALL RIGHT.UM, THAT TAKES US THOUGHT OF FIVE FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. ARE THERE ANY ITEMS THAT FOLKS WOULD LIKE TO, TO BRING UP FOR FUTURE MEETINGS? YEAH, YEAH.
UM, OVER TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO, I BELIEVE OUR CITY MANAGER WAS DIRECTED BY CONSOLE THAT, UH, TO MAKE HOMELESSNESS ONE OF HIS PRIORITIES.
UM, SINCE THEN I KNOW THAT THEY WENT AND GOT, UH, AT A HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICER THAT I THINK STAYED HERE FOR A WHOLE WEEK OR TWO, MAYBE A MONTH BEFORE SHE LIFTED THE WHOLE SITUATION AND SAID, YOU KNOW, WHO KNOWS WHAT SHE SAID, BUT SHE, SHE DIDN'T STAY AROUND FOR THAT.
SO, UM, AS, AS WE ALL KNOW, THE HOMELESS SITUATION DOWNTOWN IS NOT GETTING BETTER.
UH, THE CITY SEEMS TO BE CONCENTRATED ON THE HOUSING IS OPPOSED TO EMERGENCY, UH, ACCOMMODATIONS.
AND I'D LIKE TO SEE SOMETHING FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE ON, UM, WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND WHERE, WHAT THEY'VE DONE AND WHERE THEY'RE GOING WITH ALL THIS.
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, EVEN THIS WEEK IN THE PAPER, I BELIEVE THEY HAD AN ARTICLE ON OUT.
THEY ONLY SPENT HALF THE MONEY THAT THEY HAD ALLOCATED FOR THIS YEAR.
SO CLEARLY SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE SOMEWHERE THAT'S NOT BEING DONE.
AND I THINK WE, YOU KNOW, AS DOWNTOWN'S PRIOR AFFECTED BY IT, MORE THAN ANY OTHER PLACE, I THINK WE NEED TO SEE WHAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT FURTHER INFORMATION AND SOLUTIONS WE CAN FIND THAT THE CITY'S DOING.
UM, I KNOW THAT THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION IS GOING TO BE STARTING HERE IN JUST ABOUT A MONTH.
AND IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT, UM, LEGISLATION IS GOING TO BE FILED TO WHETHER IT PASSES IS ANOTHER THING OR WHAT FORM IT PASSES IN, BUT THE LEGISLATION IS GOING TO BE BROUGHT FORWARD THAT IS GOING TO BAN CAMPING STATEWIDE AND SITTING IN LINE.
SO THAT MAY ADDRESS SOME OF THE CONCERNS, BUT IT DOESN'T ANSWER THE, THE GREAT CHALLENGE BEFORE US.
AND IN THIS THEATER IN THE CITY, YOU KNOW, NEEDS TO ONE, NOT RELY ON THE STATE, BUT EVEN THAT, IF IT'S NOT ENFORCED, DOESN'T DO ANYTHING.
UH, RIGHT NOW IT'S ILLEGAL TO CAMP.
IT CURRENTLY IS ILLEGAL TO CAMP.
I BELIEVE IN PUBLIC PARKS, WHICH IS EVERYTHING ON LADY, BIRD, LAKE, WHERE ALL THOSE TENTS ARE SET UP.
THAT'S A PUBLIC PARK, CITY'S NOT ENFORCING IT.
SO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THERE, THERE'S LOTS OF PIECES GOING ON AND OBVIOUSLY IT'S A BIG PUZZLE.
NO, ONE'S BEEN ABLE TO PUT THE PIECES TOGETHER, BUT IT JUST DOESN'T SEEM LIKE WE'RE GETTING THE ATTENTION.
IT NEEDS OUT OF A CITY MANAGEMENT.
AND, UH, I THINK WE NEED TO PAY A LITTLE MORE ATTENTION TO THAT.
ANYBODY ELSE HAVE SOMETHING THAT THEY'D LIKE TO SEE IT AT ANYBODY? OKAY.
UM, WELL, I DON'T HAVE ANY FURTHER BUSINESS FOR THE COMMISSION THIS EVENING.
AND SO I'M GOING TO, UH, OFFER A MINUTE FOR AN ADJOURNMENT MOMENTARILY BEFORE I DO.
UM, THANK YOU FOR A VERY HARD YEARS WORK.
IT'S BEEN CHALLENGING FOR EVERYBODY THIS YEAR.
UH, YOUR PATIENTS, UH, HAS BEEN TESTED TIME AND TIME AGAIN, BUT, UH, WE CONTINUE TO TRY TO MAKE THE BEST OF AN AWKWARD SITUATION.
UM, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I'VE BEEN DOWN IN CITY HALL SINCE I THINK MARCH.
UH, AND I'M SORRY THAT THE REST OF YOU ARE NOT HERE IN THE SAME ROOM SO WE CAN SHARE COMMUNITY TOGETHER.
UM, BUT WITH THAT SAID, I WANTED TO WISH EACH OF YOU A VERY HAPPY AND SAFE AND HEALTHY HOLIDAY AND LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING ALL OF YOU IN, IN JANUARY.
AND WITH THAT, I'LL MOVE FOR ADJOURNMENT.
I HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND ALL IN FAVOR.
I'LL TAKE THAT AS A A HUNDRED PERCENT.
WELL, THANK YOU AGAIN VERY MUCH BEST WISHES
[01:50:01]
TO EVERYBODY.UH, I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOUR FACES HERE IN ABOUT A MONTH.
NOW, IF