* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
          [00:00:03]
          ON MAY 21. 
          WE HAVE QUORUM. 
          [CALL TO ORDER - 6:00pm]
I KNOW CONGRESS MEETING OF THE CITY OF BOSTON, WINTER STORM TASKFORCE TO ORDER CITY STAFF. 
          WOULD YOU PLEASE POST OUR AGENDA? OKAY. 
          MY NAME IS TERESA DAVIS. 
          I'M THE CHAIR OF THE TASK FORCE AND I AM ALSO THE CHAIR OF THE CITY'S HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION AND ALETHA HOUSTON. 
          WOULD YOU LIKE TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF? UM, I'M ELISA HOUSTON AND I REPRESENT THE EARLY CHILDHOOD COUNCIL. 
          THANK YOU, KEN. 
          KATHERINE GONZALEZ. 
           THE UPPER, UH, THE CHAIR OF THE LGBTQ IS QUALITY OF LIFE ADVISORY. 
          THANK YOU MANUAL. 
          I'M THE CHAIR OF THE VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMISSION, SALLY. 
          SO I BOUNCED TO GOLD DISTRICT NINE COMMISSIONER FOR THE COMMISSION ON SENIORS. 
          THANK YOU, JONATHAN FRANKS, JONATHAN FRANKS, CHAIRMAN FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND MERRIAM CONNOR, FORMER AFRICAN-AMERICAN COLLEAGUE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND I BELIEVE IS ALSO ON THE BOARD OF PRESERVATION, AUSTIN. 
          THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR JOINING US THIS EVENING. 
          THIS IS OUR FIVE FIFTH MEETING OF FIVE FOR OUR WINTER STORM TASKFORCE. 
          WE DO HAVE SEVEN SPEAKERS SCHEDULED TO JOIN US THIS EVENING. 
          WE ALSO HAVE COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, VANESSA  REPRESENTING CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT TWO. 
          OUR TEST FORCE, UM, WAS CREATED TO RECEIVE COMMUNITY FEEDBACK IN ORDER TO PROVIDE CITY COUNCIL WITH THE REPORT REGARDING WHAT THEY CAN DO BETTER AND WHAT THEY NEED TO IMPLEMENT WITH REGARD TO ESTABLISHING AN ACTUAL EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN, UH, DUE TO WHAT OCCURRED WITH WINTER STORM ORI. 
          UM, SO WE WANT TO RESPOND TO PLAN FOR THE FUTURE AND IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A WINTER STORM. 
          ANY CATASTROPHE. 
          WE ARE AIDING IN THEIR EFFORTS TO ESTABLISH A RESPONSE PLAN THAT HOPEFULLY THE CITY MANAGER WILL IMPLEMENT. 
          UM, I'VE CALLED OUR MEETING TO ORDER. 
          SO WE HAVE CITIZENS COMMUNICATION. 
          UM, WE WILL SEE WHAT SPEAKERS ARE SIGNED UP AND WE WILL GO THROUGH OUR AGENDA. 
          BUT RIGHT NOW I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE THE FLOOR TO COUNCIL MEMBER  TO SAY A FEW WORDS AND WELCOME. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. 
          GOOD EVENING CHAIR, VICE CHAIR, CHAIR, AND TASK FORCE MEMBERS. 
          MY NAME IS VANESSA  AND I AM THE CITY COUNCILMAN FOR DISTRICT TWO, WHICH IS ANCHORED IN SOUTHEAST AUSTIN AND A PORTION OF SOUTH AUSTIN. 
          AS YOU ALL HEARD FOR THE LAST SEVERAL WEEKS, OUR COMMUNITY ENDURED UNIMAGINABLE CONDITIONS WITH WINTER STORM ERIE AS IT SWEPT ACROSS OUR STATE BACK IN FEBRUARY. 
          BUT WHAT I AM HERE TO SPEAK ABOUT TODAY ARE THE IMPACT SPACE SPECIFICALLY BY OUR CITY'S MOST MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES, JUST AS WE'VE SEEN THROUGH THE PANDEMIC, THIS WEATHER CRISIS DID NOT IMPACT EVERYONE EQUALLY. 
          I REPRESENT A COMMUNITY THAT HAS BEEN REPEATEDLY DEVASTATED BY NATURAL DISASTERS, LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES AND COMMUNITIES OF COLOR. 
          DO NOT HAVE THE RESOURCES TO SURVIVE IN DISASTERS LIKE WE HAVE FACED IN FEBRUARY. 
          AND SO ANY RECOVERY PLAN MUST ABSOLUTELY CONSIDER THIS. 
          THIS IS WHY I'VE CONTINUED TO UPLIFT THE VOICES OF DISTRICT TWO WHILE WORKING TOWARDS ANSWERS. 
          I HAVE HEARD THE REQUEST FOR IMPROVED COMMUNICATION FROM THE CITY ADMINISTRATION INCREASED ACCESS TO RESOURCES, BOTH IN PERSON ONLINE AND BY PHONE, MORE ACCESSIBLE DISASTER, PREPAREDNESS ACROSS ALL COMMUNITIES AND A MORE ROBUST SUPPORT FOR RENTERS. 
          IN RESPONSE, I HAVE AUTHORED AND CO-SPONSORED VARIOUS RESOLUTIONS TO ADDRESS THESE LARGER SYSTEMIC ISSUES, BUT I HAVE NOT WORKED ALONE. 
          MY STAFF AND I WERE ABLE TO RESPOND QUICKLY TO THE VARIOUS NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY. 
          THANKS TO THE MANY VOLUNTEERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO STEPPED UP TO SERVE OUR NEIGHBORS. 
          I WANT TO THANK THE INDIVIDUALS WHO DELIVERED CASES OF WATER AND BUCKETS OF WATER TO AREAS LIKE TERRY ROAD AND STASSNEY LANE LEGENDS AT ONION CREEK AND SEVERAL APARTMENT UNITS AND MOBILE HOME COMMUNITIES LIKE THE TRAILS AT THE APARTMENT COMPLEX, THE TERRACE COVE, APARTMENTS AND CHATEAU AT ONION CREEK. 
          I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE MANY VOLUNTEERS AND ORGANIZATIONS WHO SET UP AND SUPPORTED FOOD AND WATER 
          [00:05:01]
DISTRIBUTION SITES AROUND THE CLOCK. 
          THESE WERE CRITICAL TO THE WELLBEING OF DISTRICT TWO, AND WE CERTAINLY COULD NOT HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT THE HELP FROM DO GOOD. 
          ATX A DOVE SPRINGS FOUNDED ORGANIZATION, THE DEL VALLEY COMMUNITY COALITION, DOVE SPRINGS, PROUD OF THE AUSTIN LATINO COALITION, UM, EVEN FROM BUSINESSES LIKE WALMART AND TESLA, PEPSI ALSO STEPPED UP TO HELP OUR COMMUNITY. 
          AND, UM, AND ALSO OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS, AUSTIN ISD AND DEL VALLEY ISD WERE PART OF THAT JOINT EFFORT. 
          AS A POLICY LEADER, I DO NOT EXPECT THE SAME RESIDENTS SURVIVING A CRISIS TO TURN AROUND AND PROVIDE DISASTER RECOVERY SUPPORT THROUGH THAT SAME CRISIS. 
          BUT THAT'S CERTAINLY BEEN THE CASE IN DISTRICT TWO WHILE THANKFUL FOR THE RESILIENT CONSTITUENTS OF MY DISTRICT. 
          I DO NOT BELIEVE THE BURDEN SHOULD FALL UPON THEM EACH TIME A DISASTER. 
          THESE RESIDENTS SHOULD NOT NEED TO WORRY ABOUT THEMSELVES WITH DETAILS OF THE REGIONAL PAGING SYSTEM COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL WITHIN CITY COUNCIL DEPARTMENTS WITHIN CITY DEPARTMENTS AND THE CITY COUNCIL, UM, EMERGENCY HOUSING, LOGISTICS AND FOOD PROVISIONS. 
          AS A POLICY LEADER, I WILL CONTINUE TO ASSERT MYSELF ON BEHALF OF MY CONSTITUENTS TO QUICKLY DIAGNOSE SITUATIONS DURING A CRISIS AND MANAGE RESOURCES TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY ON BEHALF OF DISTRICT TWO. 
          AND THANK YOU ALL TODAY FOR JOINING US. 
          YOU KNOW, MY TEAM AND I, WE LISTENED TO THE PREVIOUS SESSIONS. 
          I KNOW THIS IS YOUR FIFTH AND FINAL SESSION, BUT JUST KNOW THAT FOR FOLKS WHO ARE PROVIDING FEEDBACK TODAY, WE ARE LISTENING AND WE ARE TAKING NOTE OF THE COMMENTS THAT ARE BEING PROVIDED. 
          AND CERTAINLY WE WILL REPORT BACK TO THE COMMUNITY ON STRATEGIES AND SOLUTIONS AS WE CREATE A MORE RESILIENT COMMUNITY. 
          THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. 
          THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER FONTEZ. 
          DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR COUNCIL MEMBER BEFORE SHE HAS TO LEAVE AND PROBABLY CONTINUE HER VERY BUSY DAY? YEAH. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          AND CITY STAFF, WOULD YOU PLEASE DISPLAY OUR AGENDA AGAIN? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO NEXT WE HAVE CITIZENS COMMUNICATIONS, UM, FROM SPEAKER SENATE, SOMEONE TALKING IS THAT YOU PATRICIA, IT MIGHT BE THE TABLE. 
          I'M LEANING SPEAKERS WHO REGISTERED TO SPEAK NO LATER THAN NOON. 
          THE DAY BEFORE THE MEETING WILL BE ALLOWED TO ADDRESS THE CONCERNS REGARDING, UH, ITEMS NOT POSTED ON THE AGENDA DURING THIS PORTION OF THE AGENDA. 
          DO WE HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP FOR CITIZENS COMMUNICATION FOR THREE MINUTES? WE DO NOT. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND FIRST WE HAVE APPROVAL 
          [1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – June 18, 2021]
OF MINUTES FROM OUR JUNE 18TH, 2021 MEETING CITY STAFF. 
          WOULD YOU DISPLAY THOSE MINUTES, PLEASE? FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW THEM BEFORE THE MEETING, WE ACTUALLY WILL NOT BE APPROVING MINUTES. 
          UM, AT THIS TIME WE'RE GOING TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FOR THE PAST MEETINGS, UM, AT OUR DEBRIEF ON FRIDAY. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ITEM TO OLD BUSINESS. 
          SO WE'RE STRIKING ITEM ONE FROM OUR AGENDA, JUST FOR RECORDING PURPOSES, ITEM 
          [2.a. Welcome and purpose of the Listening Session.]
TWO OLD BUSINESS. 
          UH, WE ALL KNOW THE PURPOSE OF THIS LISTENING SESSION. 
          UH, THIS WELCOME AND OUR LISTENING SESSION IS SPONSORED BY MYSELF AND TASKFORCE MEMBER, JEFFREY CLEMENS. 
          SO, UM, WE 
          [2.b. Listening Session – community members and organizational representatives provide testimony on their experiences during and in that aftermath of Winter Storm Uri.]
WILL GET RIGHT INTO IT WITH ITEM TO BE LISTENING SESSION COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ORGANIZATIONAL REPRESENTATIVES WILL PROVIDE TESTIMONY ON THEIR EXPERIENCES DURING, AND IN THE AFTERMATH OF WINTER STORM, EARLY SPONSORED BY MYSELF AND TASKFORCE MEMBER, JEFFREY CLEMENS, PATRICIA, WE HAVE SEVEN SPEAKERS. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? THAT IS CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          AND WE HAVE SIX TESTIMONIES TO READ INTO THE RECORD. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? WE ACTUALLY HAVE NINE TESTIMONIES NOW. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND BECKY, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO HELP WITH THOSE TESTIMONIES? OKAY, THANK YOU. 
          SO BECKY WILL READ THOSE INTO THE RECORD, UM, AFTER WE HAVE OUR SPEAKERS. 
          SO REBECCA WHO, UH, OR I'M SORRY, PATRICIA, WHO IS OUR FIRST SPEAKER? OUR FIRST SPEAKER IS DENISE EISMAN. 
          OKAY. 
          MS. EISMAN, CAN YOU HEAR US? I CAN, YES. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          YOU'LL HAVE ABOUT EIGHT MINUTES TO SPEAK AND, AND IF YOU'RE OPEN TO IT, WE MAY HAVE QUESTIONS AND FEEDBACK FOR YOU. 
          SO PLEASE BEGIN WHENEVER YOU'RE READY. 
          OKAY. 
          I'LL TRY TO SPEAK AS QUICKLY AS I CAN. 
          UH, AGAIN, MY NAME IS DENISE. 
          I'VE BEEN IN I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE AUSTIN HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION. 
          UH, MY TESTIMONY, BASICALLY MY STORIES THAT I SHARE OR THAT, THAT I HAVE, UH, ACCUMULATED FROM THE 
          [00:10:01]
HOTEL INDUSTRY HOTEL, UM, HOTEL MANAGEMENT, UM, THAT PARTICIPATED IN A SURVEY AND OF COAL THAT I HAD SENT TO THEM. 
          UM, HOTELS THAT RESPONDED WERE IN A ZIP CODE, SEVEN EIGHT, SO 4 7 0 1 7 4 4 7 5 2 7 5 9 AND 7 8 6 8 1. 
          UH, HOTELS BASICALLY WANTED TO SHARE THAT. 
          UM, MANY BECAME, UH, WELL, FIRST OF ALL, LET ME REWIND. 
          UM, I'VE BEEN IN AUSTIN SINCE 86 AND I CALL IT HOME AND I HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED A WEEK LIKE THIS EVER IN MY LIFE, UH, HERE IN AUSTIN AND READING THESE TESTIMONIES THAT HAVE BEEN PROVIDED TO ME, UH, JUST BROUGHT TEARS TO MY EYES AND, AND RELIVING THIS. 
          UH, BUT HOTELS WANTED TO SHARE THAT THEY DID BECOME HOME TO MANY, UH AUSTINITES UH, AS WELL AS PEOPLE THAT WERE TRAVELING THROUGH AUSTIN AND ABLE TO MAKE IT TO THEIR FINAL DESTINATION. 
          JEN, UM, WE WORKED HOUSING FIRST RESPONDERS, UM, UH, STAFF, UH, CITY STAFF, UM, EMPLOYEES THAT COULD NOT MAKE IT HOME THEMSELVES, UH, EMPLOYEES FINDING THEMSELVES HAVING TO SLEEP ON THE FLOOR BECAUSE ALL ROOMS WERE FULLY OCCUPIED, OBVIOUSLY DURING A PANDEMIC COMING OUT OF DEPENDENT OR DURING THE PANDEMIC, UM, STAFFING WAS VERY CHALLENGING. 
          SO, UM, MANY HOTELS STRUGGLED TO BE ABLE TO MEET THE NEED OF A FULL OCCUPANCY AND BASICALLY UNABLE IN AN UNSAFE, UM, TO MEET THAT NEED, UH, SOME HOTELS HOUSED OVER 1500 RESIDENTS THAT WERE WITHOUT POWER OR WATER. 
          AND WHILE THEY WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE SHELTER AGAIN, THE HOTELS, UH, WERE WORKING. 
          THEY WERE COMPLETELY, UH, OVERTAXED AND NOT STAFFED ADEQUATELY TO MEET THE CHALLENGE, BUT THEY, UM, IN MANY CASES, UH, HOTELS RUN OUT OF FOOD. 
          UM, BY THE END OF DAY TWO, IN SOME CASES, UH, THEY FOUND THEMSELVES JUST BASICALLY HANDING OUT CRACKERS, SERVING CRACKERS TO, TO GUESTS, UH, EVEN WITH THE FOOD SHORTAGES AND THE FLOODING, UM, UH, AND BROKEN PIPES LIKE WE MANY HAD, UM, AUSTINITES UM, AND THE HOTEL YEAS, UH, GUESTS, UH, RODE THE STORM OUT WITH THEM, UH, AND STAYED, UH, KNOWING THAT THEY FELT AS SYNTHES SAFETY, UH, BEING, UM, UM, UNDERCOVER, UH, HOTELS, UM, MANY, UM, THAT WERE SOME WERE CLOSED, HOTELS WERE CLOSED AND SOME OF THESE, UH, ZIP CODES THAT I PROVIDED, UH, AND AS, UH, AS MUCH AS TWO WEEKS WITH ALMOST 25%, SOME ROOMS STILL OUT OF ORDER TO DATE, UM, WHILE, UH, THEY WERE WITHOUT POWER. 
          I MENTIONED THAT THE GUESTS STILL, UH, CONTINUED TO, TO STAY, UM, SEM PROVIDED UNTIL THEY WERE UNABLE TO RELOCATE, UH, THE GUESTS TO OTHER LOCATIONS THAT MAYBE SISTER PROPERTIES THAT DID HAVE POWER AND WATER, A HOTEL, SOME CHOPPED, A HOLE IN THE POOLS, ICE TO BE ABLE TO FIT WATER, TO FLUSH TOILETS FOR GUESTS, UH, GIVING AWAY FOOD AND BOTTLED WATER, UH, WITHIN, UH, THE BUILDING, UH, SOME HAD EMERGENCY SUPPLIES AS THEY WERE PREPARED TO HANDLE THE DISASTERS. 
          THEY KNEW THAT THE WEATHER WAS COMING AND, UM, AND, OR, UH, SOCKING UP ON SOME FOOD SUPPLIES. 
          THAT'S STILL RUNNING OUT GENERAL MANAGERS ALL HANDS ON DECK, UH, WERE AT HOTELS. 
          UM, MANY MANAGERS THAT DID HAVE, UH, ELECTRICITY, POWER WATER, UH, FOUND THEMSELVES, UH, AND LIVING CLOSE TO HOME, GOING HOME, UH, COOKING, UH, FOR THEIR GUESTS AND TRANSPORTING HOT MEALS BACK AND FORTH, UM, ON THE ICY ROADS, UH, WHICH WAS NOT A VERY GLAMOROUS SITUATION. 
          UH, ONE TESTIMONY HERE FROM ZIP CODE 7, 8, 6, 8, 1 OUT OF POWER FOR TWO WEEKS OUT OF WATER FOR ONE WEEK, A BACKUP GENERATOR GENERATORS WERE DEAD COULDN'T CONTRACT, ANY, UH, CONTACT, ANY CONTRACTORS, OBVIOUSLY DUE TO THE STORM CONDITIONS, UH, SNOW MELTING ON ROUTE CREATED MAJOR LEAKS THROUGHOUT THE PROPERTY POOL PIPES WERE CLOSED, UH, CLOSE TO BURSTING. 
          UH, OBVIOUSLY AGAIN, MANAGERS, UH, UNABLE TO LEAVE AND MAKING CERTAIN THAT THEY WERE THERE, UH, TO, TO ACCOMMODATE WITH GUESTS AS BEST THEY COULD. 
          UH, LONG-TERM STAY. 
          GUESTS WERE, WERE FORCED TO STAY SINCE THEY COULDN'T FIND ANYWHERE ELSE TO GO. 
          EMPLOYEES, UH, WALKED THE HALLWAYS HOURLY FOR FIRE CHECKS. 
          EMPLOYEES ALSO HAD TO GO DOOR TO DOOR TO CONFIRM WHO WAS STAYING IN THE ROOM, UH, OPERATIONS DIDN'T FULLY RESUME TO NORMAL UNTIL CLOSE TO A MONTH, UH, AFTERWARD, UM, UH, THE INDUSTRY, UH, DURING THIS STORM, UM, BECAUSE I OVERSEE, UH, THE ASSOCIATION, I WILL SHARE THAT WE RECEIVED HUNDREDS OF EMAILS, UM, UM, UM, WITH ACCUSATIONS OF PRICE, GOUGING AND SUCH. 
          I WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE TEXAS HOTEL IN LAUNCHING ASSOCIATION AS WELL. 
          AND I, 
          [00:15:01]
UM, AND I TESTIFIED THAT WE, WITH ANY COMPLAINT THAT WE RECEIVE OF PRICE GOUGING, WE CALL THAT GENERAL MANAGER IMMEDIATELY TO ADDRESS ANY ISSUE THAT MIGHT COME UP. 
          AND WE DID GET A FEW, UH, COMPLAINTS AND THOSE WERE TAKEN CARE OF IMMEDIATELY. 
          UH, I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE ALSO THAT I WORK CLOSELY WITH HOMELAND SECURITY. 
          UH, I WORK CLOSELY WITH THE REAL ESTATE DIVISION OF THE CITY. 
          UM, AS WELL AS ALL DIVISIONS, I RECEIVED A CALL AT 10:00 PM ON FEBRUARY 13TH, SEEKING ROOMS TO SHELTER, THE UNHOUSED. 
          UH, I OFFERED IMMEDIATE SUGGESTIONS, UH, OBVIOUSLY KNOWING THAT, UM, UM, UH, JUST BASIC SUGGESTIONS OF, YOU KNOW, CAMP MAYBERRY SCHOOLS, CHURCHES, GYMNASIUMS, UH, GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS, ANYTHING LIKE THIS THAT MIGHT, UH, BE AS AN ALTERNATIVE, UH, FOR, FOR LOCATIONS FOR THEM. 
          I ASKED TO BE INCLUDED ON 80 CITY PLANNING CALLS, UM, BUT I WAS NEVER INVITED ON THE CALLS FOR SOME REASON. 
          UH, I RECEIVED A TEXT ON SUNDAY ASKING IF I WAS ON THE PLANNING CALL AND RECEIVED A LINK SO THAT I COULD JUMP ON THAT CALL. 
          UM, BUT YET, UM, WAS NOT ASKED TO, UM, WAS, DID I DIDN'T HEAR ABOUT THE NEEDS FOR THE HOTEL ROOMS? UH, WHEN I WORKED WITH CITY REAL ESTATE, UH, I REACHED OUT TO THEM TO SEE IF THERE WAS A NEED FOR, UH, THE IN-HOUSE OR DID WERE SHELTERS IN PLACE. 
          SO THEY ASSURED ME THAT SHELTERS WERE, UH, BEING, UM, UM, SECURED. 
          UH, AND SO, UH, CITY REAL ESTATE HAD NOT PLACED, UH, ANY REQUESTS FOR HOTELS THOUGH. 
          I DID, UH, PROACTIVELY REACH OUT TO EVERY GENERAL MANAGER OF EVERY HOTEL IN AUSTIN, TEXAS ASKING FOR ANY AVAILABLE ROOMS, UH, FOR AGAIN, HOUSED REQUESTS, SHOULD IT COME THROUGH. 
          AND, UH, WE DID HAVE SOME, WE DID HAVE SOME THAT DID ACTUALLY HAVE, UM, UH, IN THAT AND THAT, WITH THAT REQUEST, UM, HOMELAND SECURITY, I'M TRYING TO READ HERE ALSO, I JUST COMMENTS THAT WERE RECEIVED, UM, PREPARING FOR THESE EVENTS, SUPPLIES IN ADVANCE, UH, DECIDING ON HOW TO HANDLE, UH, THESE SNOW STORMS BEFORE, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY BEFORE THEY HAPPEN THAT A ROAD CLEARING FOR THE WEATHER, INCLEMENT WEATHER LIKE THIS, UM, MANY, UM, EMBARRASSING, DISAPPOINTED WITH THE, UM, THE, UH, THE, THE RESPONSE TIME FROM, UH, THE CITY, UH, AND THE CITY SUPPORT. 
          UH, THE POWER GRID WAS A BIG QUESTION, UH, FROM THE HOTEL YARDS, UH, UNDERSTANDING, UH, THAT POWER GRID, UH, AS THEY SERVED AS SHELTERS FOR THIS EMERGENCY SITUATION, A WARNING OF POTENTIAL THREAT WOULD HAVE ALLOWED THE HOTELS TO PLAN. 
          UH, AGAIN, COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPARENCY WAS, WAS, UM, A NUMBER, ONE CONCERN, UM, EMERGENCY VEHICLES, UH, FOR SNOWPLOWS, FOR EMERGENCY ACCESS. 
          WE WERE UNDER THE UNDERSTANDING THAT DALLAS AND HOUSTON HAD THEM AND AUSTIN DID NOT, UM, PLACING GENERATORS IN STRATEGIC PLACES. 
          UH, I WORKED CLOSELY WITH, UH, SURVIVE TO THRIVE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE, STRUCK, UM, UH, AMA ON SOME MUTUAL AID. 
          I UNDERSTAND THAT HAD, HAD RAISED QUITE A BIT OF FUNDS, UH, OVER 30 PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS REACHING OUT TO ME PERSONALLY, UH, IN MY HOME. 
          UH, I DID NOT HAVE POWER. 
          I DIDN'T HAVE TO HAVE THE LIGHT, UM, WATER, UH, FOR OVER WEEK, UM, POWER THROUGH, UH, SPORADICALLY. 
          UM, I HAD POWER JUST ENOUGH FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO REACH OUT TO MY HOTEL YEAS AND REACH OUT TO CITY LEADERS TO SEE, UH, AND, AND DEFINE AND ASSESS THE NEEDS, UH, THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE AT THE TIME. 
          UM, IT WAS A COMPLEX TRENT, UH, FROZEN POOL AT SAM TRAY. 
          AND THIS WAS, UM, FROM MORE ON A PERSONAL SIDE FOR LIKE APARTMENT COMPLEXES. 
          UH, I WANTED TO END WITH THAT MY EFFORTS TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE CITY, UH, IS, WAS DEFINED AFTER OBVIOUSLY MORE POWER, UH, WAS, UH, WAS, WAS BROUGHT ON AND TO THE VARIOUS, UM, DISTRICTS, UM, PLUMBING OBVIOUSLY WAS THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE. 
          UM, I WORKED CLOSELY WITH THE CITY AND CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE TO SET UP A PLUMBERS, UM, UM, UH, RELIEF, UM, GROUP BRINGING, UM, OFFERING, UH, HOTELS AT A TRIM DISCOUNTED RATE, UH, ASSISTING IN ANY WAY THAT WE COULD WITH NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, UH, AND BRINGING IN AND INVITING PLUMBERS FROM OUT OF STATE. 
          SO PROVIDING, UM, LOCATIONS FOR THEM TO STAY. 
          UM, I OBVIOUSLY THERE'S SO MUCH MORE TO SHARE, BUT I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS FOLLOWING, UM, THE SPEAKERS, IF YOU, IF YOU HAD ADDITIONAL OR WANTED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM ME. 
          THANK YOU, DENISE. 
          UM, THIS HAS BEEN VERY HELPFUL. 
          UM, DO YOU MIND IF I ASK, UM, 
          [00:20:01]
THE NAMES OF THE HOTELS THAT YOU, UM, IDENTIFIED THAT WERE ACTUALLY PRICE GOUGING? I KNOW WE'RE OUT PRICE GOUGING AND THE NAMES OF THOSE. 
          OKAY. 
          I WAS, I WAS THINKING YOU WERE GOING TO ASK THAT MAY HAVE THESE DIFFERENT DISTRICTS THAT I LISTED IN THE ZIP CODES THAT HAVE TO GO BACK TO MY SURVEY. 
          UH, THE HOTELS THAT WERE BROUGHT TO OUR ATTENTION, UH, WAS THE LINE HOTEL, UH, WAS A WYNDHAM ALSO WYNDHAM PROPERTY HOTEL. 
          UM, UH, THOSE TWO ARE THE ONES THAT CAME TO MIND. 
          WE IMMEDIATELY, UH, CALLED, UM, THE GENERAL MANAGER OF THE LINE, ADAM DIESEL, WE IMMEDIATELY CALLED. 
          AND, UM, THAT WAS NOT, UM, IT WAS, IT WAS, THEY, UM, THERE WAS NOT, UH, AN IDENTIFICATION OF A PRICE GOUGE THERE. 
          WE, AS WE DOUBLE-CHECK THE WYNDHAM DID, THERE WAS AN ERROR, I GUESS, IN POSTING OF THE PRICE FOR THAT ROOM, UM, THAT THEY HAD LISTED, IT WAS A WYNDHAM PROPERTY AND THEY IMMEDIATELY CORRECTED THE PRICE, UH, THE PRICE IT WAS LISTED, I GUESS, ON THEIR WEBSITE. 
          UM, THOSE ARE THE TWO THAT I, THAT I RECALL. 
          OKAY. 
          AND SO IN BOTH INSTANCES, THERE WAS NO ACTUAL PRICE GOUGING, OR THEY HAD A REASON FOR WHAT WAS REPORTED. 
          EXACTLY. 
          YES MA'AM. 
          OKAY. 
          AND, UM, D WHEN YOU SAID YOU WORKED WITH THE CITY MANAGER, WAS THAT WELL AFTER THE STORM, AND DID THEY REACH OUT TO YOU OR DID YOU REACH OUT TO THEM? I, UM, REACHED OUT TO, I WORK CLOSELY WITH, UM, UM, CITY REAL ESTATE. 
          AND SO CITY REAL ESTATE, UM, UM, WORKED BASICALLY, I GUESS, IN CONVEYING TO ME ANY MESSAGES FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE IN REGARDS TO, UH, ARE THERE HOTELS AVAILABLE? THERE WERE NO HOTELS AVAILABLE NOW, AUSTIN, TEXAS HAS ALMOST WELL. 
          THEY, WE DO, WE HAVE OVER 40,000 ROOMS NOW THROUGH THAT PANDEMIC. 
          THERE'S NOT ENOUGH STAFF. 
          THESE ROOMS ARE NOT WITH, WITH, UH, UH, CDC PROTOCOLS THAT WERE IN PLACE. 
          THERE WAS NO WAY TO OPEN UP 40,000 ROOMS. UH, THERE WAS NO WAY TO STAFF, UH, ADEQUATELY 40,000 ROOMS. SO WHEN WE SAY WE WERE AT FULL OCCUPANCY, A HOTEL, OR THE INDUSTRY WAS AT FULL OCCUPANCY, THAT MIGHT'VE STILL JUST BEEN MAYBE, UH, AT, AT 60% OF THAT COUNT. 
          OKAY. 
          AND I DON'T WANT TO MONOPOLIZE, DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR DENISE COMMISSIONER FRANKS? YES. 
          UM, I REPRESENT THE DISABILITY POPULATION OF AUSTIN, AND I WANTED TO KNOW IF, UM, SINCE, YOU KNOW, THE DISABLED POPULATION OF AUSTIN IS ONE OF THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATIONS WITHIN THE CITY. 
          IF, UM, ANY OF THE ROOMS WERE AT THE HOTELS ARE PRIORITIZED, YOU KNOW, LIKE ADA ACCESSIBLE ROOMS FOR THOSE PRIORITIZE FOR THEM MORE SO THAN OTHER RESIDENTS, OR WAS IT FIRST COME FIRST SERVE? UM, I WOULD NOT, I WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS NOT PART OF MY, MY, MY SURVEY POLL. 
          HOWEVER, UH, JUST KNOWING, UM, HOW THE HOTELS BOOK, UM, ADA'S ADA ROOMS ARE SPECIFICALLY FOR, YOU KNOW, IN THAT PRIORITY FOR ADA GUESTS. 
          UH, IT'S NOT, UM, IT'S NOT THAT THIS IS THE ONLY ROOM WE HAVE LEFT, AND THEN WE HAVE JOHN Q OR SALLY TO PUBLIC THAT JUST ARRIVED AND CAN'T MAKE IT TO HOUSTON. 
          SO WE'RE GOING TO GIVE THEM THAT ROOM. 
          UM, THEY'RE DEFINITELY RESERVED FOR, UH, FOR ADA GUESTS, VERY FORTUNATELY, UH, HOTELS THAT WERE CLOSE TO, UM, MEDICAL, CERTAIN MEDICAL FACILITIES AND SUCH DID LUCKILY HAVE A POWER AND A WATER, NOT ALL HOTELS WERE WITHOUT POWER AND WATER. 
          SO LUCKILY WE WERE ABLE TO, UM, TO, UM, TO FACILITATE THOSE NEEDS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS AGAIN? MY NAME IS DENISE. 
          EISEMAN. 
          I'M HAPPY TO, IF YOU THINK OF SOMETHING I CAN BE REACHED AT TO ME AT AUSTIN, LAUNCHING.ORG, ALWAYS HAPPY TO HELP IN ANY WAY I CAN. 
          THANK YOU, DENISE. 
          AND THIS IS THE CHAIR DAVIS AGAIN, WHEN YOU MENTIONED YOU WERE NEVER INVITED TO CITY PLANNING CALLS UNTIL SOMEONE REACHED OUT TO YOU AND ASKED YOU IF YOU HAD INFORMATION TO JOIN A CALL, UM, COULD YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THAT? DID YOU HAVE TO INVITE YOURSELF TO THESE MEETINGS AND IF YOU'RE COMFORTABLE, WHO REACHED OUT TO YOU TO TRY TO MAKE SURE YOU ATTENDED A MEETING? OH, ABSOLUTELY. 
          UM, I ACTUALLY AM, LET'S GET TOO PERSONAL, BUT I WAS IN, UM, THE, UH, EMERGENCY ROOM ON THE 24 HOURS, UH, PRIOR TO ME RECEIVING A CALL, UH, FROM, UM, SHE REPRESENTS, UM, UM, UH, UH, RESILIENCE, UM, UH, 
          [00:25:01]
WYANT SICKEST. 
          IT WAS, UH, JANICE. 
          UM, JANICE HAD CALLED ME AT THE CALL THAT I RECEIVED AND WAS GOING BACK TO MY NOTES HERE, BEAR WITH ME. 
          UM, YES, YES. 
          SO, UH, SHE WAS MY FIRST CONTACT, UH, AND I RECEIVED THAT CALL AND THE, SHE WAS, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY WORKING WITH MULTIPLE ORGANIZATIONS, UM, AND I RECEIVED THAT CALL AT 10, UM, AFTER 10:00 PM, UM, ON THE, UM, SHE HAD FIND MY NOTES. 
          I'M SORRY, BEAR WITH ME. 
          I RECEIVED THE CALL AT 10:00 PM, UM, ASKING FOR, UM, A NEED TO HAVE THE I'M LOOKING FOR 2000 ROOMS. THE REQUEST WAS WE ARE IN NEED OF 2000 ROOMS AS, AS THIS FORM IS ABOUT TO HIT FOR THE UNHOUSED. 
          HERE WE GO. 
          I RECEIVED THE CALL AT 10:00 PM. 
          THERE WERE 13 SEEKING ROOMS TO OFFER SHELTER FOR THE IN HOUSE. 
          AND THAT WAS WHEN I HAD OFFERED THE SUGGESTED AREAS AND SUCH, UH, SHE MENTIONED THAT THE NEXT DAY THAT, UH, CITY LEADERS WOULD BE, UH, DISCUSSING, UM, TRANSPORTATION THEY'D BE DISCUSSING, UM, HOW THEY WERE GOING TO HANDLE, UM, UH, FACILITATING DAN HOUSE. 
          AND AT THAT TIME I HAD ASKED IF I COULD PLEASE, YOU KNOW, AND BE INCLUDED ON ANY CALL AS I WOULD LOVE TO BE ABLE TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE THAT I COULD. 
          I WENT AHEAD AND SENT WITHOUT AN INVITE. 
          I WENT AHEAD AND SENT AN EMAIL TO ALL OF MY, UM, I SAY MINE BECAUSE IT'S MY, MY DATABASE TO MAKE IT TO THE HOTELIERS IN AUSTIN, A REGIONAL MANAGER ASKING IF THEY HAD ANY ROOMS AVAILABLE. 
          AND IF THEY, UM, UH, FOR FIRST RESPONDERS, UH, FOR HOMELAND SECURITY FOR, UH, FOR THE UNHOUSED. 
          AND SO I WAS ABLE TO ESTABLISH A LIST OF AVAILABLE ROOMS AT THAT TIME. 
          UM, I, UM, UM, WAS REACHED OUT BY, UM, SURVIVED THE THRIVE, UM, TEXTED ME, UM, COURTNEY SANTANA, WHO I'VE WORKED CLOSELY WITH AND ESTABLISHING, UH, ROOMS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, A SEPARATE, A SEPARATE, UM, DATABASE THEN THIS, UH, REQUEST. 
          BUT SHE TEXTED ME AND ASKED IF I WAS ON THIS CALL, THE CITY CALL. 
          AND I MENTIONED THAT I HAD NOT BEEN INVITED TO THAT CALL AND SHE SENT THE LINK. 
          SO I JUMPED, IMMEDIATELY JUMPED ON THE CALL. 
          AND, UM, AND THAT WAS WHEN I SAW CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THE MAYOR AND HOMELAND SECURITY AND EVERYONE ADDRESSING VARIOUS ISSUES, UH, UM, ON, ON, ON THIS MATTER AND SETTING UP SHELTERS, IT WAS THE CALL WAS TO SET UP SHELTERS AND TO BASICALLY, UH, FIND HOUSING, IMMEDIATE HOUSING FOR THE, FOR THE, UM, FOR THE HOMELESS. 
          SO YOU'RE A PRESIDENT OF THE AUSTIN HOTEL ASSOCIATION AND NO ONE FROM THE CITY ACTUALLY INVITED YOU TO THOSE CALLS. 
          IS THAT AN ACCURATE STATEMENT? CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          AND THEN, UM, DO YOU THINK IT WOULD BE AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE CITY'S, UH, FUTURE EMERGENCY PLAN TO, TO INCORPORATE YOU AND OTHERS WHO ARE INVOLVED WITH, UM, COMMERCIAL HOUSING, UH, IN THE PLAN IN TERMS OF TRYING TO, UH, HOUSE THOSE THAT HAD TO LEAVE THEIR HOMES AND HOW'S THOSE WHO HAVE NO HOMES AND SUCH EMERGENCY? ABSOLUTELY. 
          AND AFTERWARDS, AND, AND WHEN I SAY I DIDN'T RECEIVE A CALL FROM THE CITY FOR THAT PARTICULAR CALL, I DID NOT. 
          UM, I DID, YOU KNOW, REACH OUT TO CITY REAL ESTATE TO SEE IF THERE WAS A NEED AND HE'S, UH, DENISE WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE DOING GOOD RIGHT NOW. 
          THERE'S NOT A NEED. 
          I DID RECEIVE A CALL FROM HOMELAND SECURITY, HOWEVER, UH, TO JUST PREPARE, WE WILL, WE MIGHT NEED JUST, IF YOU COULD JUST FIND OUT AND I SAID, I ALREADY KNOW, I ALREADY I'M AHEAD OF THE GAME. 
          UM, SO JUAN, IF YOU NEED ROOMS, THE LOCATIONS, UM, UM, CITY REAL ESTATE, IF YOU NEED TO FIND ROOMS FOR THE IN HOUSE, HERE ARE LOCATIONS THAT ARE WILLING, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE 40 ROOMS HERE, 50 ROOMS THERE, 20 ROOMS HERE WITH ME, THERE WAS NOBODY THAT HAD 2000 ROOMS, OBVIOUSLY. 
          UM, BUT YES, I HAVE BEEN, UH, NOW SINCE, UH, I'VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, INVITED AND TYPICALLY, UM, UM, MADE AWARE OF JUST LIKE WITH THE PLUMBERS, UM, YOU KNOW, THE PROACTIVE MEASURES OF TRYING TO BRING IN PLUMBERS FROM OUT OF STATE. 
          THEY INCLUDED ME ON THAT. 
          AND SO I WAS ABLE TO, TO BE THE LEADS ON AND HELP FACILITATE, FIND THE HOTEL, NEGOTIATE, UH, A FRIENDLY RATE, UM, AND WORK WITH NONPROFITS THAT WE'RE GOING TO, UH, WORK WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE ON THAT PROGRAM. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THANK YOU FOR SIGNING UP TO SPEAK AND GIVING US YOUR TIME THIS EVENING. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR WHAT YOU DID DO DURING THE STORM TO, TO 
          [00:30:01]
HELP OTHERS, UM, WITHOUT MUCH, UH, CONTACT. 
          IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU WERE OUT OF POWER AND WATER FOR QUITE SOME TIME. 
          AND SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR EFFORTS AND WE WILL DEFINITELY, UH, INCLUDE IT BEING PROBABLY A GOOD IDEA FOR THE CITY TO, TO HAVE AN OPEN LINE OF COMMUNICATION WITH YOU AND OTHERS IN, UH, SIMILAR POSITIONS AS YOU IN THE COMMUNITY FOR FUTURE DISASTERS. 
          DOES ANYONE CARE AND HAPPY TO HELP? THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          YOU'RE WELCOME. 
          THANK YOU, PATRICIA. 
          WHO'S OUR NEXT SPEAKER. 
          THE NEXT SPEAKER IS LAUREN AMES. 
          OKAY. 
          LAUREN, CAN YOU HEAR US? YEAH, I CAN HEAR YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          IF YOU DON'T MIND, WOULD YOU TELL US WHAT, UH, CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT YOU LIVE IN AND THEN PLEASE JUST, UH, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR? UH, OF COURSE I LIVE IN DISTRICT SEVEN. 
          UM, BUT, UH, I'LL, I'LL GIVE MY BRIEF STORY. 
          UM, I WAS IN DISTRICT FIVE DURING THE, DURING THE STORM. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, WELL, GOOD AFTERNOON. 
          UM, MY NAME IS BORNE AIMS AND I AM REPRESENTING MYSELF. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND FOR SERVING ON THIS TASK FORCE. 
          UH, AND FOR HOSTING THESE LISTENING SESSIONS, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. 
          MY FAMILY MEMBERS, FRIENDS AND COWORKERS IN AUSTIN WERE ALSO WITHOUT POWER DURING THE STORM, BUT I'D LIKE TO BRIEFLY SHARE MY STORY. 
          UM, I LIVE IN NORTH AUSTIN, BUT I WAS VISITING MY PARTNER AT A LARGE APARTMENT COMPLEX IN SOUTH AUSTIN. 
          WHEN THE OUTAGE STARTED, UH, ALL OF THE HUNDREDS OF UNITS LOST POWER AND HEAT FOR FIVE DAYS, THE TEMPERATURE OF THE APARTMENT WAS 45 DEGREES ON THE FIRST DAY. 
          AND WE COULD NOT COOK BECAUSE STOVE ELECTRIC, UH, NONE OF THE STORES NEAR US WERE OPEN AND WE WERE CHARGING OUR PHONES AND OUR CARS. 
          WE WERE RELATIVELY FORTUNATE, BUT WE WERE EATING COLD SOUP OUT OF CAN INTERNET AND PHONE SERVICE WAS NOT WORKING MOST OF THE TIME ON MY PHONES. 
          SO I WAS LISTENING TO THE RADIO FOR UPDATES ON THE SECOND DAY, A PIPE BURST AND FLOODED THE COMPLEX WATER WAS POURING IN THE FRONT DOORS. 
          SO WE WERE COLD, HUNGRY, AND NOW DOES NOT HAVE WATER. 
          AND THAT WAS, YOU KNOW, THREE IN THE MORNING. 
          UM, I LIVED THROUGH HURRICANES IN HOUSTON, SO I KNEW TO HAVE WATER IN CUPS SO WE COULD FLUSH THE TOILET. 
          I TRIED TO DRIVE HOME SEVERAL TIMES, BUT THE STREETS BEFORE LIGHT AND EVEN TRUCKS WERE SPINNING AROUND ON LAMAR. 
          WE ONLY GOT OUT ON THE THIRD DAY BECAUSE THE COWORKER WITH AN SUV WAS ABLE TO US UP AND BRING US TO MY APARTMENT, WHICH HAD POWER ONLY BECAUSE IT IS NEXT TO A NURSING HOME. 
          ONCE WE GOT BACK TO MY APARTMENT, I WAS ABLE TO HOST FRIENDS WHO DID ENOUGH POWER, BUT MY APARTMENT DOES NOT HAVE WATER. 
          DO YOU KNOW AN OUTAGE? AND WE WERE STILL UNDER THE BOIL NOTICE. 
          I KNOW THAT THIS WILL NOT BE THE LAST TIME. 
          THIS HAPPENS IN AUSTIN. 
          AND I AM ASKING THE CITY TO DEVELOP A PLAN FOR NEXT TIME, WHICH I'M VERY HAPPY TO TASKFORCE WHO'S DOING. 
          WE COULD NOT GET TO A WARMING CENTER OR A FRIEND'S HOUSE BECAUSE THE ROADS WERE NOT DIY AND WE WEREN'T ELIGIBLE FOR A COVID VACCINE. 
          SO WE WERE WORRIED ABOUT GETTING COVID. 
          THE INTERNET WAS NOT WORKING ON OUR PHONES SO WE COULD NOT WATCH THE MARATHON UPDATES. 
          WE COULD NOT LOOK AT GOOGLE DOCS AND WE WERE RELYING ON THE CAR RADIO, BUT THE ONLY NEWS WAS ABOUT ROWING BLACKOUTS. 
          SO WE'D HAD FULL OUTAGES FOR DAYS. 
          THE CITY NEEDS TO AT LEAST DIS THE MAJOR ROADS AND HAVE A PLAN TO GET FOOD, WATER, AND HEAT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE FREEZING DURING A BLACKOUT. 
          THE CITY ALSO COULD PROVIDE INFORMATION ON HOW TO FILE A FLOOD INSURANCE CLAIM, WHICH MANY OF MY FRIENDS HAD TO DO THE INFORMATION SHOULD ALSO BE RELAYED OVER THE RADIO SO PEOPLE WITHOUT INTERNET CAN HEAR IT. 
          I WAS REALLY, I WAS, I WAS RELYING ON THE RADIO TO GET INFORMATION. 
          I WAS AMAZED THAT THERE WAS ALMOST NO PRACTICAL INFORMATION AVAILABLE OVER THE RADIO DURING THIS CRISIS. 
          THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. 
          THANK YOU SO SO MUCH. 
          IF YOU, IF YOU HAVE A FEW MINUTES, LAUREN, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR LAUREN? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CALLING IN AND SHARING WITH THOSE LAUREN. 
          WE, WE, UM, APPRECIATE THIS AND WE ALL HAVE REALIZED WE'VE ALL GONE THROUGH A COLLECTIVE TRAUMA. 
          I'M SO SORRY THAT YOU HAD TO GO THROUGH THIS AND, AND WE WILL DO THE BEST WE CAN TO HELP THE CITY IMPLEMENT AN EMERGENCY PLAN FOR THE FUTURE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I APPRECIATE THAT. 
          THANK YOU, PATRICIA. 
          WHO'S OUR NEXT SPEAKER. 
          THE NEXT SPEAKER IS MIKE BATES. 
          OKAY. 
          MR. BATES, CAN YOU HEAR US? YES. 
          CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN'T. 
          YOU HAVE THE FLOOR AND IF YOU DON'T MIND, PLEASE LET US KNOW WHAT DISTRICT YOU WERE LIVING IN DURING THE STORM. 
          YES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, MY NAME IS MIKE BATES. 
          I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH YOU TODAY. 
          [00:35:01]
UH, I AM A LONGTIME RESIDENT OF AUSTIN AND CURRENTLY IN COUNCIL DISTRICT FIVE, UH, LIVE THROUGH THE WINTER STORM, UH, WITHOUT WATER AND INTERMITTENT POWER. 
          UM, I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED TO SEE HOW FRAGILE OUR ENERGY SYSTEM IS, AND EVEN MORE DISAPPOINTED WATCHING THE GRID IMPLODE, KNOWING THAT TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONS EXIST TODAY, THAT WHEN DEPLOYED BROADLY WOULD HAVE PREVENTED THE WORST IMPACTS OF THE WINTER STORM. 
          I'VE SPENT MY ENTIRE CAREER WORKING IN THE ENERGY INDUSTRY AND EVACUATING INVOLVED TODAY IN THE ONGOING ENERGY TRANSITION, UH, OR SOME MIGHT CALL IT A REVOLUTION, UH, AND WAS ONE OF THE FOUNDERS. 
          THE MEMBERS OF THE PECAN STREET PROJECT HERE IN AUSTIN WERE REDEPLOYED ONE OF THE FIRST SMART ENERGY DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS BACK IN 2009 SEVEN. 
          UH, I CURRENTLY LEAD INTEL'S ENERGY PRACTICE, WHICH INCLUDES A FOCUS ON TECHNOLOGY AND SOLUTIONS THAT ARE ENABLING UNLIMITED AMOUNTS OF CLEAN, RENEWABLE ENERGY TO BE INTEGRATED INTO THE MARKETS. 
          I THINK YOU WOULD AGREE NOT A DAY GOES BY WITHOUT HEARING ANOTHER GAME-CHANGING NEWS ABOUT THIS ENERGY TRANSITION. 
          UM, WE HEAR ABOUT THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS, UH, ON CLIMATE CHANGE, INCLUDING, UM, THIS WINTER STORM, ALONG WITH MORE PROMISING NEWS ABOUT WHAT I WOULD DESCRIBE AS ONE OF THE BIGGEST TRANSFERS OF WEALTH AND VALUE, MAYBE THE LARGEST EVER FROM CARBON BASED ENERGY INTO CLEAN, RENEWABLE AND RESILIENT ENERGY. 
          UH, THE WINTER STORM OF 21 DISASTER, WHICH IS STILL REVERBERATING, UH, WITH RECENT NEWS ABOUT, UH, SUPPLY SHORTAGES FROM OUR COT STILL HERE IN THE SUMMER. 
          UH, IT'S ANOTHER IT'S SHOCKING EXAMPLE OF HOW OUTDATED THE BUSINESS MODEL IS, UH, THAT IS TRANSITIONING COMBINED WITH THE LACK OF INVESTMENT IN SOLUTIONS THAT MAKE THE GRID SMARTER. 
          I THINK THAT HAVE LED US TO THIS IMPORTANT INFLECTION POINT, UM, IN THE ENERGY, UM, OF SUPPLY AT BIO SYNERGY AND THE MARKET IN GENERAL AND THE TEXAS, UH, THIS PIVOT AWAY FROM CARBON-BASED ENERGY DELIVERED, MOSTLY THIS KIND OF ONE WAY DEEPLY INGRAINED OUTDATED SUPPLY CHAIN IS BEING TURNED ON ITS HEAD. 
          A LOT OF IT'S LED BY, UM, A LOT OF THE CARDS AND NEUTRALITY MANDATES, INCLUDING, UH, FROM CITIES AND STATES, INCLUDING OUR OWN COMMUNITY CLIMATE PLAN. 
          UM, I THINK CONSUMERS OF ALL KINDS NOW ARE HAVING MORE CHOICES AND INCENTIVES THAN EVER TO GO GREEN AND WHAT I WOULD CALL ROLLOVER AND OWN ENERGY WITH MANY CHOOSING TO SELL BACK EXCESS TO CAPACITY. 
          AND THE, THESE ARE ALL GREAT. 
          UH, I THINK DATA POINTS, BUT, YOU KNOW, MIGHT ASK WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH TODAY'S TOPIC, WHICH HAS BEEN A WINTER STORM OF 21 AND, AND THE SOLUTIONS AND WHAT WE NEED TO DO AND BE THINKING ABOUT, UH, TO LESSEN THE IMPACTS OF THE FUTURE EVENTS. 
          UH, I THINK, UH, I'D LIKE TO ASK THE COUNCIL OF THE MEMBERS, UH, ON THE CALL TO IMAGINE HOW A FREE EXCHANGE OF, UH, AVAILABLE POWER FROM ALL POINTS OF ELECTRICITY GENERATION, INCLUDING CONSUMER OWNED POWER. 
          I MIGHT'VE CURBED THE UGLY UGLIEST IMPACTS OF THE WINTER STORM. 
          UH, TECHNOLOGY EXISTS TODAY THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN ENABLED AUSTIN ENERGY TO UNLOCK THIS CLEAN ENERGY BY INSTRUMENTING THE ELECTRIC GRID IN A WAY THAT REMOVES ALL BOTTLENECKS FOR INTEGRATING UNLIMITED AMOUNTS OF CLEAN ROOM ENERGY, BOTH CONSUMER OWNED. 
          AND WHEN I SAY CONSUMER ALSO TALKING COMMERCIAL, INDUSTRIAL CONSUMERS, AS WELL AS RESIDENTIAL, UH, CONSUMERS, UH, IT ALSO TECHNOLOGY ALSO EXISTS TODAY THAT WOULD HAVE ENABLED US ENERGY TO IN COOPERATION WITH ERCOT, THE BALANCE SUPPLY DEMAND WITH WHAT I WOULD CALL SCALPEL LIKE PRECISION THAT WOULD HAVE KEPT THE LIGHTS ON AT THE CRITICAL FACILITIES. 
          YOU KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, DOWNTOWN, WHILE ALSO TURNING DOWN THE POWER AND THE NEARBY BUILDINGS, WHERE IN THE STORM GAYS PEOPLE COULDN'T EVEN GET TO. 
          AND I KNOW THAT WAS A COMPLAINT AND HEARD A LOT ABOUT, UH, UH, SO, SO THE POINT THERE IS THAT THIS TECHNOLOGY EXISTS TODAY AND WITH WOULD HAVE AVOIDED THAT. 
          I THINK TECHNOLOGY ALSO, I THINK I KNOW TECHNOLOGY ALSO EXIST, UH, THAT WOULD ALLOW US TO INTEGRATE CONSUMER OWNED POWER, UH, WHETHER IT'S SOLAR BATTERIES, UH, GEN SETS TO HELP FILL THE GAPS WHEN THE CENTRALIZED POWER GOES DOWN, LIKE WHAT HAPPENED? THE WINTER STORM IS ALSO WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY, WHERE THERE'S STILL MAINTENANCE ISSUES ON THE CENTRALIZED POWER, WHERE POWER CAN'T GET TO THE POINT OF CONSUMPTION THE POINT HERE BEING INTEGRATING CONSUMER OWN POWER AT THE EDGE OF THE GRID. 
          UH, NOT ONLY ALLOWS US TO, UM, KEEP THE LIGHTS ON, BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS US TO FILL IN THOSE GAPS IN AREAS WHERE POWER CANNOT BE PROVIDED. 
          AND IT'S NOT A TECHNOLOGY PROBLEM. 
          IT'S NOT TECHNOLOGY 
          [00:40:01]
EXISTS. 
          IT'S BEING USED TODAY. 
          IT'S A MARKET PROBLEM. 
          IT'S WHERE INCUMBENT ENERGY PROVIDERS LACK THE APPETITE, OR MAYBE THE COURAGE TO MOVE INTO THIS MORE ENERGY RESILIENT SERVICE MODEL. 
          BUT I ALSO SEE AS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, TO EMBRACE THIS ENERGY TRANSITION, UH, AND SETTING THE EXAMPLE FOR OTHER CITY OWNED UTILITIES. 
          I THINK FIRST BY INVESTING IN, UH, AN UPDATED GRID THAT ENABLES A HUNDRED PERCENT ALWAYS ON CLEAN, RENEWABLE ENERGY VIA TWO WAY FLOW OF POWER FOR ALL POINTS OF GENERATION, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY'RE CONSUMER OWNED UTILITY. 
          UM, UH, SO BUILDING A GRID THAT ALLOWS FOR HIGHEST AND BEST USE ELECTRONS TO BE CONSUMED AT THIS POINT, UH, AND THAT DOES NOT EXIST TODAY. 
          I'M ALSO RECOMMENDING THAT, UH, THE CITY CONDUCT A FEASIBILITY STUDY TO IDENTIFY THE NEW REVENUE OPPORTUNITIES THAT, UH, COULD BE GENERATED FROM THIS NEW RE-IMAGINED GRID, INCLUDING SERVICES AROUND SOLAR STORAGE AND EV CHARGING, AS WELL AS ONBOARDING NEW SOURCES OF POWER OF CONSUMER ON ENERGY, AS WELL AS, UH, ENERGY TRADING, UH, EXCESS CAPACITY, UH, AND THEN FINALLY, UH, BUILDING GRID OF THE FUTURE DEMONSTRATION TO SHOW, UH, AND BETTER UNDERSTAND THE LONG RANGE OF, AND PLAN FOR FULL TERRITORY, RIGHT UPGRADE THAT WOULD AGAIN, HELP PREVENT AND MAYBE TO TOTALLY AVOID, UH, THE IMPLICATIONS OF, UM, THE, THE, THAT WE SAW AT THE WINTER STORM OF THIS YEAR AND WHAT WE'RE ALSO SEEING THE SUMMER AND I THINK SHOULD EXPECT TO SEE IN THE FUTURE. 
          SO THAT'S THE END OF MY COMMENTS. 
          UM, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE TIME AS I MENTIONED, AND I CAN STAY ON IF ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS THEY WANT TO ASK NOW, THANK YOU, MR. BATES, THIS IS CHAIR DAVIS. 
          UM, WOULD YOU BE OPEN TO US, REACHING OUT TO YOU TO MAKE SURE, UM, WITH ALL THE IDEAS YOU JUST PROPOSE THAT COULD BE HELPFUL WITH ALL OF YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE ENERGY INDUSTRY, IN PARTICULAR, YOU SAYING THE TECHNOLOGY DID EXIST FOR AUSTIN ENERGY AND PERHAPS AUSTIN ENERGY IN CONJUNCTION WITH ERCOT TO HAVE MITIGATED THE SITUATION PRIOR TO THE EXTREME BLACKOUTS, WOULD YOU BE OPEN TO US REACHING OUT TO YOU TO MAKE SURE WE UNDERSTAND THAT? ABSOLUTELY. 
          ANYTIME. 
          YEAH. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, KATHERINE GONZALEZ, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TESTIMONY TODAY, MR. BATES, I HAVE, UH, WHAT I'M HOPING IS AN EASY QUESTION, THOUGH. 
          I UNDERSTAND IT MIGHT REQUIRE SOME CREATIVITY. 
          IF CITY OF AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL IN SEPTEMBER, UH, HAS RECEIVED OUR REPORTS. 
          THEY WANT TO TAKE ACTION. 
          THEY'VE DECIDED THAT THE NUMBER ONE THING THEY WANT TO DO IS EMBRACE THE ENERGY TRANSITION AND MAKE THE INVESTMENT OUT LONG. 
          WOULD IT TAKE FOR THE ENTIRE CITY OF AUSTIN TO MAKE THAT TRANSITION IN YOUR, BECAUSE WHAT WE'RE SEEING RIGHT NOW IS DON'T REALLY HAVE TIME. 
          I MEAN, SHOULD'VE DONE THIS BEFORE AND WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT. 
          WE ALREADY HAVE EXPERIENCED SOME POWER INSTABILITY THERE IN SUMMER. 
          SO I'M CURIOUS HOW FAST ALL OF THIS FROM A LINE IN WORK. 
          THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. 
          AND OF COURSE I WISH I COULD ANSWER IT. 
          UM, BUT MY GUESS WOULD BE A FIVE-YEAR PHASED APPROACH WHERE YOU WOULD START WITH THE MOST CRITICAL LOAD BALANCING ISSUES. 
          LIKE THE ONE I MENTIONED WHERE CRITICAL FACILITIES NEED POWER, WHERE NON-CRITICAL FACILITIES, DON'T, THAT'S, THAT'S LOW HANGING FRUIT IN TERMS OF TECHNOLOGY AND, AND THE ABILITY TO SCALE. 
          UH, I THINK THE BROADER, UH, THE LONGER TERM, THE INVESTMENTS IN THE GRID ITSELF, UH, PUTTING, YOU KNOW, COMPUTE TYPE TECHNOLOGY, AI ENABLED TECHNOLOGY, AND IS SUBSTATION, UH, ACROSS ALL OF ALL SYNERGY SUBSTATIONS, AS AN EXAMPLE, WOULD PROBABLY TAKE ABOUT FIVE YEARS. 
          AND, UH, THAT WOULD ALSO ALLOW THE CITY TO COOPERATE ALL THE ED COME ON THE MARKET BY THEN I THINK THEN MAYBE FINISHING OUT OF MAYBE FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS WAS IN, BUT THAT'S A TOTAL SWAG, BUT AGAIN, I DO THINK HE COULD START WITH SOME LOW HANGING FRUIT THAT WOULD HAVE SOME BIG IMPACTS, UM, ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. 
          FANTASTIC. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I WILL BE REACHING OUT TO YOU FOR SPECIFICS AGAIN, ON THE LOW-HANGING FRUIT. 
          I THINK THAT WOULD BE VERY USEFUL FOR US TO INCLUDE IN OUR REPORT FOR WHATEVER IT IS TO CITY COUNCIL AND AUSTIN ENERGY. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? JUST A QUICK FOLLOW UP? I WAS JUST GOING TO ASK IF HE COULD SUBMIT HIS, WHAT HE JUST SAID TO US. 
          YOU, ARE YOU COMFORTABLE WITH THAT MR. BATES SUBMITTING, UM, IS IN WRITING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THAT'S 
          [00:45:01]
VERY INTERESTING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THEN, UH, JEFFREY CLEMENS. 
          YES. 
          UM, BUT YOU, FOR YOUR TESTIMONY TONIGHT, I WAS JUST CURIOUS IF YOU DO HAVE ANY, UM, CITIES ANYWHERE IN THE UNITED STATES THAT HAVE MADE THIS TRANSITION. 
          UM, I KNOW YOU SAID SOME OF THIS MIGHT BE NEW, UM, BUT JUST CURIOUS ABOUT IF YOU KNOW, OF ANY LOCATIONS THAT HAVE TRIED TO MAKE THIS TRANSITION, UM, THERE ARE UTILITIES THAT ARE MAKING THIS TRANSITION WITHIN SOME CITIES. 
          UM, I CAN, UH, CAN I NOT, THERE'S, THERE'S ONE IN NEW YORK, THERE'S ONE THING, YOUR POWER AUTHORITY, IF THERE'S POCKETS OF THEM AND THAT'S SOMETHING ELSE I CAN FOLLOW UP WITH YOU ON. 
          UH, BUT YES, THERE ARE AN ISSUE ALREADY THERE INVESTMENTS ARE BEING MADE IN CITIES TO UPGRADE THEIR LIBRARY SYSTEM, UH, TO MEET CARBON NEUTRALITY MANDATES. 
          SO LIKE FOR INSTANCE, THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO, WHICH IS ALSO MUNICIPAL UTILITY HAS A CARBON NEUTRALITY MANDATE. 
          I CAN'T REMEMBER THE DATE, BUT THERE'S A WHOLE PHASE IN PLAN TO GET THERE. 
          THAT INCLUDES, UH, INVESTMENTS MADE BY THAT UTILITY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE QUESTIONS? YES. 
          THIS IS COMMISSIONER FRANKS. 
          UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TESTIMONY. 
          UM, THIS IS JUST A, MAYBE A QUESTION YOU MAY NOT BE ABLE TO ANSWER BY JUST WANTING TO ASK. 
          UM, CITY COUNCIL WILL MOST LIKELY WANT TO KNOW WHAT THE FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS WOULD BE IN TRANSITIONING TO THIS DIFFERENT TYPE OF ENERGY SOURCE SOURCING. 
          SO DO YOU HAVE LIKE A ROUGH ESTIMATE OF WHAT THE FINANCIAL IMPACT MAY BE TO THE CITY? I REALLY, I REALLY DON'T. 
          IT'S A REALLY COMPLICATED, UM, MODEL AND SOME OF IT IS, YOU KNOW, POLICY INFLUENCED MARKET INFLUENCED. 
          UH, THE OTHER PART OF IT IS THERE IS A NEW, YOU KNOW, EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE NEW REVENUE GENERATING THAT, UM, WOULD BE INCORPORATED IN ROI ANALYSIS AS WELL. 
          BUT THAT WOULD TAKE, THAT WOULD TAKE SOME TIME, UM, TO PUT TOGETHER. 
          THAT'S UNDERSTANDABLE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          YEAH. 
          ANY MORE QUESTIONS? OKAY. 
          IF I MAY CALL YOU MICHAEL, YOU WILL BE IN TOUCH MOST DEFINITELY. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND THE KNOWLEDGE THAT YOU'VE SHARED WITH US THIS EVENING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. 
          GOOD NIGHT. 
          OKAY, PATRICIA, I BELIEVE WE ARE UP TO OUR FOURTH SPEAKER. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? YES, THAT IS CORRECT. 
          IF MARISSA  IS OUR FOURTH SPEAKER. 
          YEAH. 
          THANK YOU, MARISSA. 
          CAN YOU HEAR US? YES. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          UM, IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND TELLING US WHAT CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS YOU LIVED IN DURING THE STORM AND YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I LIVE IN 10. 
          UM, I'VE LIVED IN 10 FOR ABOUT 20 YEARS. 
          UM, SO WHEN, UH, MULTIPLE COPPER PIPES WITHIN OUR HOMES, WALLS BURST AFTER A WEEK OF FREEZING TEMPS AND THREE DAYS WITHOUT POWER WATER WHIPPED THE WALLS. 
          SO FORCEFULLY THAT OUR MASTER MASTER BEDROOM SOUNDED LIKE A DRIVE-THRU CARWASH, NO JOKE. 
          THE CHAOS THAT ENSUED AND THE EXTENSIVE DAMAGES TO OUR HOME WOULD BE TO TAKE TOO MUCH TIME TO DESCRIBE, BUT THE PAST FOUR MONTHS HAVE BEEN ABSOLUTELY OVERWHELMING. 
          MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE SEEN OUR SHATTERED HOME ASSUME WE DID NOT COVER FAUCETS AND PLUMBING WE DID, OR THAT WE DID NOT DRIP ALL OUR FAUCETS WE DID, OR THAT PLUMBING WITHIN OUR WALLS WAS NOT PROPERLY INSULATED. 
          AND IT WAS, BUT IN THE END, IT DIDN'T MATTER WITHOUT ANY WARNING TO ALLOW FOR PREEMPTIVE ACTION TO MINIMIZE OUR LOSSES. 
          OUR POWER WAS KEPT FOR THREE DAYS AND OUR HOMES SUSTAINED SIGNIFICANT WATER AND BREACH DAMAGES. 
          SO WHEN POWER WAS FINALLY RESTORED, WE FELT LITTLE RELIEF TEMPS INSIDE OUR HOME REMAINED IN THE LOW 40, BECAUSE MULTIPLE POWER SEARCHES IRONICALLY HAD ANNIHILATED OUR HEATERS BLOWER MOTOR WE'D ALREADY BEEN FORCED TO SHUT OUR WATER OFF OF OUR MAIN VALVE. 
          SO WE FINALLY RAISED A WHITE FLAG AND FLED TO A CROWDED HOTEL WITH OUR DOG UNTIL WE COULD GET A PLUMBER, A PLUMBER. 
          HIS TIME TWO WEEKS LATER TODAY IS JUNE 23RD, MORE THAN FOUR MONTHS AFTER WINTER STORE URI AND HACK OUR HOME REMAINS OFF LIMITS WHILE WE AWAIT COMPLETION OF REPAIRS, WE DO HAVE COMPETENT CONTRACTORS, BUT THEY'RE STRUGGLING TO KEEP UP WITH EXTREME CUSTOMER DEMANDS. 
          AND THEY'RE FRUSTRATED BY SUPPLY SHORTAGES. 
          OUR REPAIR EXPENSES HAVE SURPASSED A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS. 
          AND SO FAR HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE HAS ONLY COVERED HALF OF THAT. 
          JUST TWO DAYS AGO. 
          ONE OF MY CONTRACTORS DISCOVERED ANOTHER FREEZE RELATED ISSUE. 
          SO OUR EXPENSES WILL CERTAINLY GROW. 
          I HAVE 
          [00:50:01]
LOST SLEEP, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT I COULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY, BUT IN THE END OF MY ANSWER IS ALWAYS SAYING NOTHING, BUT WHAT COULD ERCOT AUSTIN ENERGY AND OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES DONE DIFFERENTLY? PLENTY. 
          AND I HAVE SIX VERY BRIEF SUGGESTIONS. 
          NUMBER ONE, COMMUNICATE RELIABLE INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATE AS IF NOBODY HAS ELECTRICITY DURING THE DAY WITHOUT WE HAD NO WIFI AND VERY UNRELIABLE LTE. 
          SO ALMOST ALL NEWS CAME FROM AN OLD HAND CRANK RADIO. 
          I HAD SHOVED IN A CLOSET AND CHECKED MESSAGES. 
          AND DURING THE WORST DAYS, THE CITY OF AUSTIN, SINCE ALERTS VIA EMAIL, TWITTER, AND FACEBOOK, BUT THOSE OF US WITHOUT POWER HAD NO WAY TO DOWNLOAD THEM. 
          SO IN THE FUTURE, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE CITY SENT SIMPLE TEXT MESSAGES AND CREATE A DEDICATED POWER CRISIS PHONE LINE. 
          IN AN IDEAL WORLD, THIS LINE WOULD BE STAFFED BY TRAINED AND KNOWLEDGEABLE PEOPLE, MAYBE LIKE RETIRED PLUMBERS OR ELECTRICIANS WHO COULD ANSWER TECHNICAL QUESTIONS AND PROVIDE TIMELY UPDATES. 
          AND I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THIS SHOULD BE A SEPARATE LINE FROM 3 1, 1, WHICH OFTEN PROVIDED CONFLICTING INFORMATION, BUT THAT'S ANOTHER STORY, UH, TO INVEST IN AT LEAST SOME EQUIPMENT THAT MITIGATES ICE AND SNOW, MY NEIGHBORS AND I WERE ESSENTIALLY UNDER HOUSE ARREST. 
          OUR NEIGHBORHOOD IS FULL OF STEEP HILLS AND THE TWO MAJOR HIGHWAYS THAT BORDER OUR NEIGHBORHOOD WHENEVER PLOWED THREE, ORGANIZE A VOLUNTEER FOUR BY FOUR VEHICLE TEAMS DURING OUR LAST DAY WITHOUT POWER. 
          I HITCHED A RIDE WITH THE DRIVER OF A FOUR BY FOUR DIESEL TRUCK WHO HAD LOTS OF EXPERIENCE NAVIGATING SNOWY AND ICY ROADS. 
          AND DURING OUR SHORT DRIVE, HE RECEIVED NUMEROUS PHONE CALLS FROM AREA NEIGHBORS, PLEADING WITH HIM TO PICK UP MEDICINE, FOOD, AND WATER. 
          HE TOLD ME HE WAS DOING HIS BEST, BUT ADMITTED, FEELING OVERWHELMED. 
          IMAGINE HOW AUSTIN I COULD HAVE BEEN HELPED IF WE'D HAD A TEAM OF DRIVERS LIKE HIM FOR ORGANIZED A VOLUNTEER CITIZENS RESCUE FORCE, RIGHT AFTER MY HOUSE STARTED FLOODING, I CALLED NINE ONE. 
          ONE FOR HELP WAS TOLD NINE ONE. 
          ONE WAS NOT ABLE TO DISPATCH ANYONE TO OUR AREA. 
          MY EMERGENCY WAS NOT HEALTH-RELATED THANK GOODNESS, BUT IF IT HAD BEEN MUCH LIKE A FOUR BY FOUR DRIVER TEAM, A CITIZENS RESCUE FORCE COULD BE COMPRISED OF PEOPLE TRAINED IN FIRST AID MEDICINE, OR JUST PEOPLE WHO COULD DELIVER FRUIT AND WATER TO SENIOR CITIZENS. 
          UM, FIVE CREATE AN AUSTIN SPECIFIC VIDEO LIBRARY THAT CITIZENS CAN EASILY ACCESS TO HELP US BETTER PREPARE FOR AN OVERCOME CRISES, WHETHER THEY BE RELATED TO POWER LOSS, BREATHING, TEMPS, OR EXTREME HEAT, A VIDEO TOOLBOX. 
          SO TO SPEAK. 
          I SAY AUSTIN SPECIFIC BECAUSE CHECKS OF HOMES ARE OBVIOUSLY NOT BUILT LIKE HOMES IN THE NORTHEAST. 
          PERHAPS THESE VIDEOS COULD BE ARCHIVED AT THE PUBLIC LIBRARY. 
          A SMALL EXAMPLE MIGHT BE VIDEOS ON HOW TO TURN OFF OUR WATER AT OUR MAIN BELTS, WHAT TOOLS WE NEED, ET CETERA. 
          I HAPPENED TO GET MY NEIGHBORS HELP, AND THAT WAS PIVOTAL. 
          HE HAD THE TOOL TANDY, UM, OR HOW TO IMMEDIATELY POOL CARPETING AND PATTY AS MY TEENAGE SON. 
          AND I DID BECAUSE OVERWHELMED CONTRACTORS ARE NOT LIKELY TO SHOW UP ANYTIME SOON AFTER A CRISIS AND WET CARPETS OR HEAVEN FOR MOLD AND MILDEW. 
          ANOTHER EXAMPLE COULD BE ARMING US WITH IMPORTANT QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN BUYING OR REVISING HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE POLICIES. 
          AND FINALLY, THE LAST ONE SIX PROVIDE, PLEASE PROVIDE MORE REBATES AND INCENTIVES FOR PEOPLE TO INVEST IN GREEN ENERGY. 
          THIS IS KIND OF PATHETIC, BUT MANY HOMES IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ARE DEPENDENT ON SEWAGE EJECTION PUMPS, WHICH WHICH ARE POWERED BY ELECTRICITY, WHICH MEANT MANY OF US COULD NOT EVEN FLUSH TOILET OR TAKE SHOWER DURING THE POWER OUTAGE. 
          WE COULD HAVE EASILY BENEFITED FROM GENERATORS OR POWERWALLS WHO COULDN'T HAVE. 
          SO MY FAMILY AND I ALREADY STRUGGLED WITH CHALLENGES POSED BY COVID, BUT WHEN YOUR STORM YURI TOOK THINGS TO A NEW LEVEL WITH COVID, WE AT LEAST KNEW HOW TO PREPARE AND PROTECT OURSELVES OR COTTON DID NOT GIVE US THAT CHANCE. 
          AND WE WERE VERY CONCERNED. 
          THIS WILL HAPPEN AGAIN. 
          THAT'S IT. 
          THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. 
          THANK YOU FOR JOINING US THIS EVENING. 
          WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR TIME AND YOUR FEEDBACK. 
          DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? YES. 
          THIS IS A TEST TASK FORCE MEMBER CLEMENTS. 
          AND, UM, I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU FOR GIVING US YOUR TESTIMONY. 
          UM, I'M SORRY THAT YOUR HOUSE IS STILL, UM, HALFWAY OFF LIMITS. 
          I, I CAN UNDERSTAND HOW PROBABLY DISASSOCIATING THAT CAN FEEL, UM, TO HAVE THIS ONCE, YOU KNOW, PLACE THAT YOU FEEL SO COMFORTABLE 
          [00:55:01]
IN NOW BE BASICALLY A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT. 
          SO I HOPE THAT YOU ALL CONTINUE TO GET RELIEF. 
          UM, HOWEVER DIFFICULT THAT CONTINUES TO BEGIN. 
          UM, UM, BUT JUST THANK YOU AGAIN. 
          HAVE YOU TRIED TO REACH OUT TO ANYONE REGARDING, UM, THE COST OF YOUR HOME REPAIRS AND ANY RELIEF FUNDS YOU COULD APPLY TO? I'M SORRY, I ONLY CAUGHT HALF OF YOUR QUESTION. 
          COULD YOU REPEAT IT, PLEASE? HAVE YOU, UM, REACHED OUT TO THE CITY OF BOSTON, ANY DEPARTMENT AT ALL TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY RELIEF FUNDS YOU COULD APPLY FOR, UM, WITH REGARD TO THE, THAT YOUR HOUSING, YOUR HOUSING REPAIR COSTS? UM, NO, I HAVE NOT. 
          THE ONLY THING I DID TRY TO DO WAS TO GET A LITTLE BIT OF PROPERTY TAX RELIEF FOR, YOU KNOW, THAT MY HOME VALUE WAS APPRAISED AT A CERTAIN VALUE. 
          EVEN A FRIEND OF MINE SAID, OBVIOUSLY YOUR HOME, IT'S NOT THAT VALUE RIGHT NOW. 
          SO I'M APPEALING MY PROPERTY TAXES. 
          I WAS A LITTLE DISMAYED TO SEE ORIGINALLY THAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING LIKE HALF A MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR A DISCOUNT. 
          UM, AND, BUT THIS FRIEND IS CONVINCED, CONVINCED ME THAT I SHOULD STILL APPEAL, EVEN THOUGH I HAVEN'T REACHED THAT'S RIDICULOUS. 
          I MEAN, THAT'S THE COST OF A PUBLIC HOME. 
          IT'S NOT MORE THAN THAT. 
          SO I, IT'S NOT, I HOPE I DON'T HAVE TO MEET THAT CRAZY THRESHOLD TO GET SOME RELIEF. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING WITH US AND, AND, UH, YOUR COMMENTS WILL NOT FALL ON DEAF EARS AND I APPRECIATE, UH, THE FIVE OR SIX POINT PLAN YOU JUST PROVIDED TO US. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU, PATRICIA. 
          I THINK WE'RE READY FOR OUR FIFTH SPEAKER CSO DOMO. 
          OKAY. 
          CAN YOU HEAR US CECIL? YES, I CAN. 
          THANK YOU. 
          WOULD YOU LET US KNOW WHAT DISTRICT YOU LIVED IN DURING THE STORM AND YOU HAVE THE FLOOR? YES. 
          THANK YOU. 
          UH, FIRST OF ALL, I WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU TO EVERYONE ON THE CALL. 
          UM, WE ALL, UM, I DON'T LIVE IN THE DISTRICT, BUT I WORK FOR, I'M AN, I'M A REGIONAL SUPERVISOR FOR BELCO EQUITIES AND WE OWN AND MANAGE 13 APARTMENT COMMUNITIES. 
          UM, AND YOU KNOW, RANGING FROM DISTRICT FOUR TO DISTRICT ONE TO DISTRICT SEVEN IS WHERE THE MAJORITY OF OUR PROPERTIES ARE. 
          I ALSO SERVE ON THE BOARD OF THE AUSTIN APARTMENT ASSOCIATION. 
          SO AS YOU GUYS CAN IMAGINE, WE WERE PROBABLY THE MOST EFFECTED. 
          OUR RESIDENTS WERE THE MOST EFFECTED BY THE WINTER STORM AND THE DAMAGE THAT IT CAUSED. 
          AND, AND ONE THING IT MADE US REALIZE WAS NO AMOUNT OF PREPARATION COULD HAVE PREVENTED WHAT HA WHAT HAPPENED. 
          AND IT'S BECAUSE TEXAS CONSTRUCTION IS NOT BUILT TO WITHSTAND THE KIND OF WEATHER THAT WE SAW. 
          SO WE WERE PUT IN A POSITION WHERE WE HAD TO REACT TO THE DISASTERS AS THEY WERE HAPPENING AS THEY CAME AVAILABLE, AS THEY CAME UP. 
          SO WE WERE ON PILLS FROM THE START, WHENEVER YOU'RE PUT IN A POSITION TO HAVE TO REACT TO SOMETHING, INSTEAD OF BE PROACTIVE TO SOMETHING YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE ALREADY ON YOUR HEELS. 
          SO, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR STRUGGLES ARE NOT ANY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT ANYBODY ELSE IS ON THE CALL HAVE BEEN THAT I'VE HEARD SO FAR, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY WAS AFFECTED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. 
          UM, AND, AND WHAT WE'RE HAPPY TO SEE IS THAT THE CITY THAT THE PEOPLE ON THIS COUNCIL SAW THE NEED TO HAVE A, I GUESS YOU WOULD CALL IT DISASTER PREPAREDNESS COMMITTEE, SOME SORT OF COMMITTEE THAT, THAT, THAT, THAT SHOWN SOME IMPORTANCE ON THE REACTION TO A DISASTER. 
          UM, AND, AND IT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, THE EFFECTS ARE STILL BEING FELT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE AUSTIN AREA. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, WE HEAR STORIES ALL THE TIME. 
          W WE'VE WE'VE WITNESSED THEM BEING IN THE MULTI-FAMILY INDUSTRY. 
          WE'VE, WE'VE, WE'VE WITNESSED PEOPLE THAT DIDN'T HAVE POWER, COULDN'T GET TO THE STORE. 
          AND WE ALL DID OUR BEST AS PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMPANY TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS AT LEAST HAD BASIC SERVICES TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITY. 
          AND, AND SOMETIMES WE'VE FOUND THAT TO BE CHALLENGING, UM, BECAUSE WE OURSELVES WERE LIMITED, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH POWER OUTAGES OR ACCESSIBILITY TO ROADS. 
          SO, UM, AND IN 
          [01:00:01]
SOME CASES IT WAS HEARTBREAKING FOR US TO MUDDY THAT WE WANTED TO HELP, BUT TO THE PEOPLE THAT WE COULD HELP, WE WERE THERE, WE WERE DELIVERING WATER, WE WERE DELIVERING HOT MEALS. 
          UM, ANYTHING THAT WE COULD DO, WE WERE, WE WERE TRYING TO DO UNTIL WE GOT THE REPAIRS TAKEN CARE OF. 
          UM, AND I'M SURE YOU'VE HEARD ALREADY THAT, THAT SOMETIMES THE REPAIRS TOOK LONGER THAN EXPECTED BECAUSE THE RESOURCES THAT WERE OUT THERE, THE CONTRACTORS THAT WERE OUT THERE WERE ALREADY STRETCHED THIN. 
          AND, UM, I DON'T, I CAN'T REMEMBER AUSTIN EVER BEING AFFECTED LIKE THAT, THIS AS A WHOLE, BY A NATURAL DISASTER. 
          AND I DON'T KNOW IF ANYBODY ON THE CALL CAN REMEMBER, BUT I'M 44 YEARS OLD. 
          AND, AND, AND I DON'T RECALL A SINGLE TIME WHERE ONE EVENT AFFECTED SUCH A WIDE AREA AND SO MANY PEOPLE. 
          UM, SO THE, THE, THE WINTER STORM CAUGHT US ALL BY SURPRISE. 
          UM, SO WE APPRECIATE THAT, THAT SOMEONE SAW THAT THERE IS A NEED, NOT JUST FOR A WINTER STORM COMMITTEE, BUT A DISASTER COMMITTEE, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE WINTER STORM WAS A ONCE IN A HUNDRED YEAR STORM, BUT OTHER DISASTERS ARE PROBABLY MORE LIKELY. 
          SO, UM, THE AUSTIN APARTMENT ASSOCIATION, WE DO HAVE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE HOPE THIS COUNCIL WILL TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION. 
          ONE OF THEM BEING AUSTIN ENERGY, ESTABLISHING A NEW POLICY THAT WOULD ALLOW FOR, AND ENCOURAGE RESILIENCY THROUGH ONSITE POWER GENERATION. 
          AND, AND BASICALLY IT'S, IT'S A, IT'S A MICRO GRID, POWER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, SOMETHING THAT WILL ALLOW AUSTIN ENERGY TO GENERATE THEIR OWN POWER. 
          IF THE GRID IS EVER CUT OFF AGAIN. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF, WELL, THE DAMAGE THAT OCCURRED PROBABLY COULD HAVE BEEN A V COULD HAVE BEEN, UM, COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF THERE WAS JUST SOME SORT OF POWER, UM, NOT HAVING POWER, JUST MADE THINGS A WHOLE LOT WORSE. 
          WE'RE ALSO RECOMMEND ALSO RECOMMENDING THAT THE CITY EXPLORE THE PROSPECT OF CREATING A FIRE SPRINKLER PIPE INSULATION  REBATE PROGRAM AND WHAT THAT IS. 
          AND THE MAJORITY OF THE WATER LEAKS THAT THE MULTIFAMILY INDUSTRY SAW WERE FOR UNPROTECTED FIRE SPRINKLER SYSTEMS THAT GO THROUGH SUBFLOORS THAT, THAT, THAT, THAT EXTENDED OUT ONTO THE BALCONY. 
          THOSE ARE NOT INSULATED AND THEY'RE, AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE INSULATED, BUT WE FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, ONE THING AND THE WINTER STORM DID WAS IT EXPOSED A LOT OF THE DEFICIENCIES IN TEXAS CONSTRUCTION WHEN IT COMES TO WINTER STORMS. AND WE FEEL LIKE, OKAY, IF OUR FIRE SPRINKLER PIPES WERE BETTER INSULATED, THAT WOULD HAVE THAT, THAT WOULD HAVE STOPPED A LOT OF THE WATER DAMAGE THAT WE HAD IN, IN, IN, IN MOST OF OUR MULTI-FAMILY. 
          UM, THE THIRD THING THAT WE'D LIKE TO BE, UH, FOUR IS, YOU KNOW, CLEARLY IDENTIFY REPRESENTATIVES ON THE CITY AND THE COUNTY DISASTER RESPONSE TEAM RESPONSIBLE FOR COORDINATED RESOURCE ALLOCATION. 
          AND THEN OF COURSE, COMMUNICATION WITH MULTIFAMILY PROPERTIES. 
          UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO ENSURE THAT, YOU KNOW, KEY LOCAL TRADE ASSOCIATIONS ARE ENGAGED WITH THEIR RESPONSE TEAM REPRESENTATIVE FOR INFORMATION SHARING AND RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT AND, AND INCLUDE KEY LOCAL TRADE ASSOCIATIONS AND DISASTER TRAINING EXERCISES. 
          SO WHAT WE'RE HOPING IS THAT WE CAN BE A PARTNER ON, ON, ON ANY SORT OF COMMITTEE OR TEAM THAT RESPONDS TO LARGE-SCALE DISASTERS, BECAUSE WE DO, HOW'S A LOT, THE PEOPLE IN AUSTIN, AND A LOT PEOPLE CAN BE AFFECTED AND A SMALL SURFACE AREA, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN APARTMENT COMPANY IS ON A SMALL PIECE OF LAND FOR THE MOST PART. 
          SO WE WOULD LOVE TO BE A PARTNER WITH THE CITY WHEN IT COMES TO DISASTER TRAINING, ET CETERA. 
          UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DEFINITELY WANT TO BE REPRESENTED ON DISASTER AND PROPERTY RELATED BOARDS, COMMISSIONS, RIGHT. 
          AND TASK FORCE. 
          UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER ONE OF OUR RECOMMENDATIONS, YOU KNOW, FOLLOWING WIDESPREAD STORM STORM DAMAGE, THE CITY PERMIT AND FEE WAIVERS FOR AT LEAST 90 DAYS FOLLOWING STORM EVENTS, WHICH IS WHAT THE CITY DID FOR THE, YOU KNOW, FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, YOU KNOW, THE CITY WAIVED A PERMIT 
          [01:05:01]
IT'S AND FEES, JUST SO THERE WASN'T ANY RED TAPE GETTING IN THE WAY OF REPAIRS BEING MADE TO GET PEOPLE BACK INTO THEIR HOMES. 
          UM, SO WE WOULD DEFINITELY LIKE TO RECOMMEND THAT W YOU KNOW, WIDESPREAD STORM DAMAGE, THAT THE CITY LOOK AT WAIVING THOSE FEES AND PERMITS FOR A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME AT AT LEAST 90 DAYS TO GIVE CONTRACTORS TIME, TO HEAD STRAIGHT IN AND MAKE REPAIRS TO GET PEOPLE BACK IN THEIR APARTMENTS. 
          AND THEN THE SIXTH AND FINAL RECOMMENDATION THAT WE HAVE IS TO FULLY EXPLORE THE USE OF VIDEO INSPECTION PROCEDURES ASSOCIATED WITH SMALL PROPERTY, ROOF REPAIRS, AND ESPECIALLY COMMON WALL REPAIRS AND THE REQUIRED INSTALLATION AND SCREW PATTERN INSPECTIONS TO HELP REDUCE CONSTRUCTION DELAYS AND RESIDENT INCONVENIENCE. 
          SO WE KNOW NOW THAT THE TECHNOLOGY IS AVAILABLE TO, TO, TO MAYBE WE CAN SET UP SOMETHING WITH CITY INSPECTORS THROUGH A VIDEO CALL THAT MAYBE A CITY INSPECTOR CAN ASK YOU TO, TO VIDEO, UM, A CERTAIN REPAIR THAT MAY HAVE REQUIRED THEM TO COME BACK TO INSPECT IT FOR THEM TO GIVE THE OKAY. 
          UM, INSTEAD OF HAVING TO WAIT FOR THAT INSPECTOR TO COME OUT AND GIVE HIS STAMP OF APPROVAL, WE KNOW THAT THAT'S NOT GOING TO WORK ON EVERY INSTANCE, EVERY REQUIRED INSPECTION. 
          WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE JUST SOME THINGS THAT A CITY INSPECTOR HAS TO BE THERE. 
          MAYBE PUT HIS OWN EYES ON TOUCH FIELD, MAKE SURE EVERYTHING'S DONE. 
          BUT THERE ARE SOME OF THE SMALLER REPAIRS THAT REQUIRE PERMITS THAT WE FEEL LIKE THE VIDEO CALL WOULD SAVE A LOT OF TIME IN MAKING REPAIRS AND GETTING PEOPLE BACK UP, BACK IN THEIR HOMES, UM, YOU KNOW, QUICKER THAN HAVING TO WAIT FOR, UH, WAIT FOR AN INSPECTOR TO COME OUT. 
          AND THAT'S ALL I HAVE. 
          I'M OPEN TO QUESTIONS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SO LET'S SEE. 
          SO, UM, THIS IS CHAIR DAVIS. 
          I DO HAVE A QUESTION. 
          I KNOW YOU SAID YOU'RE WITH BELCO EQUITIES, BUT I'M WITH PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMPANIES SUCH AS YOURS AND OTHERS. 
          UM, IF THEY DIDN'T ALREADY DO YOU ALREADY ON YOUR OWN HAVE PROCEDURES IN PLACE TO INSTALL GENERATORS AT YOUR PROPERTIES IN THE EVENT, SOMETHING OCCURS LIKE OUR ENTIRE GRID GOING DOWN. 
          IF IT ISN'T, UM, UPDATED TIMELY, UM, TO ENSURE YOUR RESIDENTS HAVE SOME ELECTRICITY WE DON'T. 
          AND THE ISSUE THAT, THAT, THAT COMES WITH THAT IS THAT THERE WOULD BE NO WAY FOR ANYONE TO, TO, TO PUT A BIG GENERATOR OR ATTACH A GENERATOR TO A PROPERTIES, ENERGY GRID, BECAUSE FOR THE MOST PART, EACH DEPARTMENT HAS THEIR OWN METER AND, AND EVERY PROPERTY THAT WE OWN EACH DEPARTMENT HAS THEIR OWN METER, WHICH MEANS THAT WOULD REQUIRE A SEPARATE POWER STATION TO POWER UP THAT METER, TO PROVIDE ELECTRICITY TO THAT APARTMENT. 
          UM, EVERYTHING, ALL THE, ALL THE, ALL THE POWER LINES RUN UNDERGROUND AND UP INTO THE PROPERTY, THROUGH, THROUGH, UH, TO THE INDIVIDUAL APARTMENTS, IT WOULD BE EASIER FOR A HOTEL TO DO BECAUSE EVERYTHING IS LINKED TOGETHER. 
          ALL THE ROOMS ARE LINKED TOGETHER AND THEY'RE RUN OFF OF ONE METER. 
          BUT WITH MULTIFAMILY, YOU KNOW, EACH DEPARTMENT HAS THEIR OWN METER. 
          THANK YOU. 
          DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE QUESTIONS? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, CECIL. 
          WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. 
          WELL, YEAH, I'M, I'M DISAPPOINTED THAT THERE AREN'T ANY MORE QUESTIONS. 
          IF I FELT LIKE I WAS READY TO GO. 
          SO ONCE AGAIN, REACH OUT, WE, WE TAKE DILIGENT NOTES AND WE WILL REACH OUT, UM, TO, TO WHERE I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS REGARDING THE GENERATOR ISSUE, FOR EXAMPLE, BUT WE DO HAVE TWO MORE SPEAKERS, BUT IF YOU'RE OKAY WITH IT, WE WILL REACH OUT TO YOU WITH ABSOLUTELY. 
          THANK YOU AGAIN TO EVERYBODY ON THIS, ON THIS, UH, FORCE ON THE CALL. 
          UM, IT'S, IT'S GREATLY APPRECIATED AND EVERYONE HAVE A GOOD EVENING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          BYE BYE. 
          PATRICIA. 
          I THINK WE'RE READY FOR OUR SIX SPEAKER SIX SPEAKERS. 
          EMILY'S SAYING, CAN YOU HEAR US, EMILY? HELLO? YES, I CAN. 
          OKAY, GREAT. 
          WOULD YOU LET US KNOW WHAT DISTRICT YOU LIVED IN DURING THE STORM AND YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          HELLO EVERYONE. 
          IT'S GREAT TO BE HERE. 
          UM, MY NAME IS EMILY, JOHN, AND I ACTUALLY LIVE UP IN NORTH AUSTIN, BUT I'M OUTSIDE OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN LIMITS, BUT I WORK CURRENTLY WITH THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION AS A HEALTH STRATEGY SPECIALIST. 
          AND ON 
          [01:10:01]
BEHALF OF THE CENTRAL HEALTH EQUITY POLICY COUNCIL, AND SPECIFICALLY THE PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE. 
          THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TONIGHT. 
          THE EQUITY POLICY COUNCIL WAS LAUNCHED IN 2015 WITH MORE THAN 80 COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO ADDRESS THE HEALTH DISPARITIES IN TRAVIS COUNTY. 
          IN DECEMBER OF LAST YEAR, THE PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE WAS FORMED IN AN EFFORT TO BRING ABOUT LOCAL SOLUTIONS TO STATE AND NATIONAL PROBLEMS. THE COMMITTEE HAS DEDICATED A GREAT AMOUNT OF TIME TO THIS CONVERSATION, AND IT TENDS TO MANOR MEETING ABOUT TWICE A MONTH, PUT TOGETHER RECOMMENDATIONS, LOOKING AT POLICY AND SYSTEMATIC CHANGES TO IMPROVE RESPONSES FOR FUTURE EMERGENCIES AND TO PROVIDE QUALITY INPUT IN A TIMELY MANNER. 
          OUR COMMITTEE CONSISTS OF 11 COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO COME FROM VARIOUS PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUNDS WITHIN AUSTIN, BUT WHO ALSO BRING DIFFERENT LIVED EXPERIENCES TO THE TABLE. 
          OUR COMMITTEE INCLUDES BRANDON WALLISON, TACHIBANA BERRY ELIANA, GILMAN, KRISTEN DEBATE, CORRINE MATTHEW GENES, NOR COMSTOCK, PATRICIA HAYES, RUTH ALVAREZ, VANESSA SAUDIA, AND BEN KABBALAH. 
          UM, I'M ALSO JOINED LATER TONIGHT BY MEGAN FERMATA FROM CENTRAL HEALTH. 
          WE'LL BE SPEAKING MORE ON OUR POLICY RECOMMENDATION. 
          THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC HAS HIGHLIGHTED THE INEQUITY THAT PEOPLE OF COLOR AND OTHER MARGINALIZED POPULATIONS EXPERIENCED DAILY. 
          WE WOULD LIKE TO PARTNER ON OPPORTUNITIES CENTERED ON RE-ENTRY AND RECOVERY, AS WELL AS DISASTER PLANNING AND RESPONSE ON EQUITY. 
          BY CENTERING ON EQUITY, WE WILL PROVIDE SOLUTIONS AND SUPPORT FOR THE MOST VULNERABLE, WHICH IMPROVE THE CONDITIONS FOR ALL OF AUSTIN'S PRECEDENTS. 
          THROUGH THIS COMMITTEE, WE HAVE DONE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH INTERVIEWING PEOPLE ON THE FRONT LINE. 
          WE HAVE ENGAGED IN INTERVIEWS, INCLUDING COMMUNITY CARE, FRONTLINE STAFF, LGBTQ PLUS HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS, LEADERS OF THE EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER DIRECTORS OF THE SOCIAL SERVICES BRANCH, THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER, INTEGRAL CARE CITY OF AUSTIN HUMAN RESOURCES AND EQUITY DEPARTMENT, AS WELL AS RECEIVING A PRIVATE TOUR OF THE EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER FOR OUR COMMITTEE. 
          IN ADDITION, WE HAVE INTERVIEWED COMMUNITY HEALTH WORKERS FROM CARDEA SERVICES, COMMUNITY CARE AND CENTRAL HEALTH. 
          I JUST WANT A CONVERSATION THAT ALSO OCCURRED WITH COMMUNITY COALITIONS AND GETS TAKEN THE RECOMMENDATIONS INTO CONSIDERATION REGARDING OUR RECOMMENDATIONS AND OUR POLICY. 
          UM, WE HAVE ALSO ACKNOWLEDGED THE DATA DIFFERENT DRIVEN PIECES THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS WITH EPIDEMIOLOGISTS FROM AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH AND THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES, AS WELL AS CALLS TO AUSTIN, 2, 1, 1, AND DATA FROM THE COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT NETWORK DASHBOARDS. 
          THE PROCESS HAS ALSO BEEN INFORMED BY INDUSTRY LEADERS, SUCH AS THE ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION AND FOLLOWING MONTHS OF RESEARCH, INCLUDING INFORMATIONAL INTERVIEWS AND GATHERING OF EXPERT KNOWLEDGE, THE PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE, OTHER CENTRAL HEALTH EQUITY POLICY COUNCIL RECOMMENDS SEVERAL CHANGES FOR IMMEDIATE IMPLEMENTATION IN TERMS OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS, DISASTER RESPONSE, AND POST DISASTER HEALING. 
          I WOULD LIKE TO NOW PASS IT ON TO YOU AND MEGAN SURMAC FROM OUR COMMITTEE AND TRUFFLE HEALTH TO DELVE INTO THE POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS OF THESE THREE AREAS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU, EMILY. 
          JOHN, THIS IS MEGAN SEMEX WITH CENTRAL HEALTH. 
          UM, IN ORDER TO FOLLOW THE PROCESSES AND PROCEDURES OF THE WINTER STORM TASK FORCE, DO YOU NEED ME TO CLOSE OUT EMILY'S PORTION AND THEN CALL ON ME A SPEAKER NUMBER SEVEN. 
          ARE YOU PATRICIA? DO WE HAVE ANOTHER SPEAKER AFTER MEGAN? MEGAN IS THE FINAL SPEAKER. 
          OKAY. 
          YES. 
          SO THANK YOU FOR THAT, MEGAN. 
          AND YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. 
          OKAY, GREAT. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          WE THOUGHT WE WEREN'T LIMITED TO THREE MINUTES PER SPEAKER. 
          SO WE WERE TRYING TO GET CREATIVE ON HOW TO PROVIDE THE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE TASK FORCE. 
          UM, BUT ESSENTIALLY THE CENTRAL HEALTH EQUITY POLICY COUNCIL, THE PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE IS CALLING FOR POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS AND ULTIMATELY A SYSTEMIC CHANGE TO THE WAY THE CITY OF AUSTIN EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER DOES THEIR WORK IN ORDER TO MORE EQUITABLY, RESPOND TO DISASTERS AND IN ORDER TO PUT EQUITY IN THE FRONT OF DISASTER PLANNING, AND ALSO AS WE REENTER AND RECOVER, UM, SORRY, AS WE REENTER INTO SOCIETY AFTER THESE TRAUMAS THAT WE'VE EXPERIENCED, INCLUDING WINTER STORM URI AND, UM, AND THE PANDEMIC. 
          SO I'D LIKE TO START WITH UNDER THE FIRST UMBRELLA OF DISASTER PLANNING. 
          UM, WHAT WE'RE CALLING FOR IS TO DEVELOP INVALIDATE FUTURE DISASTER STANDARD STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES WITH PEOPLE OF COLOR, INCLUDING ASIAN AMERICANS, BLACK, INDIGENOUS, AND HISPANIC, LATINO COMMUNITIES, AND OTHER HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED POPULATIONS, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO LGBTQ THE ELDERLY AND GEOGRAPHICALLY ISOLATED AND PEOPLE WITH LIVING PEOPLE, LIVING WITH DISABILITIES AT THE TABLE. 
          UH, WE ALSO NEED TO INCLUDE EQUITY AND PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS INTO THE CITY OF AUSTIN EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN AND MAKE THIS AN EVERGREEN DOCUMENT. 
          THE CITY OF AUSTIN EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN, UM, TO HELP THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY IS CHARGED WITH THE, WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANNEXES TO THE PLAN. 
          AND ACCORDING TO FEDERAL FUNDING REQUIREMENTS, THEY ONLY DO THIS EVERY FOUR TO FIVE YEARS, BUT WE ARE LOSING CRITICAL INFORMATION IN LIGHT OF EVERY DISASTER, INCLUDING WINTER STORM ERIE. 
          WE NEED TO CAPTURE THE LESSONS LEARNED THAT THIS SPECIFICALLY, 
          [01:15:01]
THIS TASKFORCE IS GATHERING AND INCORPORATE IT INTO THE EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN. 
          AND WE CAN'T WAIT ANOTHER FOUR TO FIVE YEARS IN ORDER FOR THE PLAN TO BE UPDATED. 
          WE'RE ALSO CALLING FOR AN UPDATE TO THE CITY HAZARD RISK INDEX. 
          UM, THIS PRIORITIZES DISASTERS BASED ON PLANNING FOR DISASTERS BASED ON FINANCIAL IMPACT AND PROBABILITY OF OCCURRENCE. 
          BUT AS WE SAW WITH OUR WINTER STORM URI, THOSE TWO STANDARDS ARE NOT ENOUGH. 
          WHAT WE'RE CALLING FOR IS AN UPDATE TO THIS HAZARD RISK INDEX THAT WOULD PUT JUST THAT WOULD PRIORITIZE DISASTERS THAT WOULD DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECT OUR MOST VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES. 
          UH, WE'RE ALSO CALLING TO DEVELOP LOCALIZED DISASTER PLANS WITH STAKEHOLDERS, LIVING IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS MOST AT RISK. 
          THE CITY OF AUSTIN EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER HAS A MODEL FOR THIS THAT THEY DEVELOPED WITH THE UNIMIN CREEK NEIGHBORHOOD CAPITALIZING ON THE STRENGTHS AND THE NATURAL NETWORKS THAT EXIST IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD. 
          THEY DEVELOP LOCAL DISASTER PLANS AND RESPONSE AND COMMUNICATION EFFORTS WITH THOSE RESIDENTS. 
          AND WE THINK THAT MODEL NEEDS TO BE SCALED UP TO OTHER NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE MOST VULNERABLE WHILE ALSO CALLING TO DESIGNATE A COMMUNITY VOICE WHO WILL BE ACTIVATED AT THE BEGINNING OF A DISASTER TO INFORM THE PROCESS AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF THE INCIDENT COMMAND STRUCTURE. 
          AND WITHIN THE EMERGENCY OPERATION CENTER, THIS PERSON OR GROUP OF PEOPLE HAVE TO BE PEOPLE OF COLOR AND REPRESENT HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES. 
          THEY HAVE TO BE KEY STAKEHOLDERS OF NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE, UM, NO IT'S VULNERABLE. 
          OKAY. 
          SECOND, UNDER THE UMBRELLA OF DISASTER RESPONSE, WE'RE CALLING FOR IMPROVED DATA COLLECTION TO MORE QUICKLY RESPOND TO PEOPLE OF COLOR AND OTHER MARGINALIZED POPULATIONS IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE HAVE TO ENGAGE TRANSLATORS INTERPRETERS AND CULTURALLY SENSITIVE AFFIRMING WORKERS TO COLLECT BETTER DATA. 
          WE SUPPORT THE ASIAN AMERICAN QUALITY OF LIFE COMMISSION AND THEIR BUDGET PROPOSAL CALLING FOR A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN PIO FOR TRANSLATION SERVICES. 
          WE'RE ALSO CALLING FOR THE EOC AND THE INCIDENT COMMAND STRUCTURE TO USE THE SOCIAL VULNERABILITY INDEX IN TIMES OF A DISASTER TO IDENTIFY THE AREAS OF HIGHEST NEEDS AND ALLOCATE RESOURCES ACCORDING, AND ALSO THE POINT OF DISTRIBUTION FOR RESOURCES. 
          AND THEN FINALLY, WE'RE CALLING TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT A TRAUMA INFORMED COMMUNITY WIDE PLAN THAT CALLS FOR RE-ENTRY AND RECOVERY POST DISASTERS. 
          UM, THIS IS JUST A SNIPPET OF THE POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS THAT OUR PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE HAS DEVELOPED. 
          UM, YOU'LL HAVE THE TASK FORCE MEMBERS SHOULD BE PROVIDED A COPY OF THE FULL MEMO. 
          UM, WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK FROM THAT MEMO. 
          THAT MEMO WILL ULTIMATELY BE SENT TO CITY COUNCIL AND THE COUNTY COMMISSIONER'S COURT. 
          UM, YOU CAN CONTACT ME DIRECTLY. 
          UH, THE COORDINATOR FOR THE TASK FORCE DOES HAVE MY CONTACT INFORMATION. 
          SO YOU CAN REACH OUT WITH YOUR SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE MEMO, OR YOU CAN SEND FEEDBACK TO CEC COUNCIL THAT C H E P COUNCIL@CENTRALHEALTH.NET. 
          AND THAT CONCLUDES OUR, OUR COMMENTARY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU, MEGAN. 
          AND YOU EMILY, IF YOU'RE STILL THERE, UM, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO THE FLORIDA. 
          DO ANY COMMISSIONERS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY. 
          AND YOU SAID YOU PROVIDED THAT MEMO WITH YOUR, UH, FIVE POINT PLAN TO PATRICIA. 
          OKAY, EXCELLENT. 
          WE WILL DEFINITELY DELVE MORE INTO THAT. 
          UM, WE APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. 
          WE APPRECIATE THE WORK YOU'RE DOING, UM, WITH CENTRAL HEALTH AND, UH, WITH THE PANDEMIC EQUITY COMMITTEE, I WOULD LIKE TO REACH OUT AND JUST LEARN MORE ABOUT THAT. 
          UM, AND, UH, HOPEFULLY WITH ALL OF US FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT, WE'LL, WE'LL GET A PLAN IMPLEMENTED FOR AUSTIN THAT WILL BE HELPFUL IN THE FUTURE. 
          GREAT. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          THANK YOU, CHAIRMAN DAVIS. 
          YES. 
          UH, THIS IS THE LEAD HOUSTON. 
          I DO WANT TO REINFORCE THE, THE MESSAGE THAT WE'VE GOTTEN FROM THIS GROUP ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF EQUITY IN, UH, EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT. 
          UM, I'M SORRY. 
          I ALSO HAVE TO APOLOGIZE BECAUSE I NEED TO LEAVE IN ABOUT FIVE MINUTES FOR ANOTHER MEETING. 
          SO EXCUSE ME, BUY IF I DISAPPEARED. 
          SORRY ABOUT THAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          AND THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE. 
          REGROUP REGARDING YOUR SCHEDULE. 
          I AGREE. 
          EQUITY MUST BE IMPLEMENTED IN THIS PROCESSES AS WE'VE HEARD OVER TIME. 
          UM, EVERYONE WAS AFFECTED, BUT CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS WERE MUCH MORE AFFECTED THAN OTHERS. 
          UM, WITH THE, UH, A STORM IN FEBRUARY, PATRICIA, WILL WE STILL HAVE QUORUM WHEN ELISA HAS TO DEPART? YES, WE'LL STILL HAVE QUORUM. 
          OKAY, EXCELLENT. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, IT WAS THAT OUR LAST SPEAKER? YES, THAT WAS OUR LAST SPEAKER. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, I KNOW WE'VE ALL, UH, OUR VICE-CHAIR BECKY AUSTIN HAS AGREED TO READ, UM, TESTIMONIES 
          [01:20:01]
WE RECEIVED IN WRITING INTO THE RECORD. 
          UM, BECKY, WOULD YOU BEGIN WITH THE MOST RECEIVED OR AS IT APPEARS TO BE IN YOUR EMAIL? UM, WE'LL SEE HOW WE'RE DOING WITH THAT AT 7 35. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO THIS IS THE, UM, COMMUNITY RESILIENCE TRUST DOCUMENT. 
          AND HOW MANY PAGES IS THAT? UM, IT'S JUST ONE PAGE. 
          OKAY. 
          I WAS MAKING SURE THEY DIDN'T SEND THE ENTIRE REPORT. 
          OKAY. 
          YEP. 
          GO AHEAD. 
          I WILL START WITH THAT. 
          AS DEMONI FROM JANICE BOOKOUT, WE WILL SOON BE PUBLISHING A FULL 30 PAGE REPORT, ADDRESSING THESE THINGS AND SHARING OUR INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 
          THE REPORT WILL CONCLUDE WITH RECOMMENDATIONS, INCLUDING FURTHER ANALYSIS INSTITUTIONS ARE NOT BUILT WITH THE FLEXIBILITY, RAPID RESPONSE, COMMUNICATION STRUCTURES AND EQUITABLE PLANS SUFFICIENT TO ADEQUATELY RESPOND TO COMMUNITY NEEDS DURING DISASTERS BECAUSE OF THIS, THE PERSISTENTLY AND RELIABLY, THEY PERSISTENTLY AND RELIABLY FAIL. 
          I MEAN, ANY ORGANIZATIONS ALWAYS RISE TO THE CHALLENGE MOST OFTEN IN SILOS ADDRESSING THE IMMEDIATE NEEDS OF THEIR CONSTITUENCIES. 
          WHILE THERE IS A MODEL FOR INCLUDING THE COMMUNITY IN DISASTER RESPONSE THROUGH THE B O A D SYSTEM TO DATE, THE VAST MAJORITY OF COMMUNITY GROUPS AND ORGANIZERS SERVING EAST AUSTIN HAVE NOT BEEN INCLUDED IN THAT SYSTEM. 
          AND ALSO RECEIVE THE LEAST FUNDING. 
          THESE DYNAMICS CREATE A SITUATION THAT NOT ONLY FAILS TO PRIORITIZE VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES, DESPITE THE FACT THAT PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS, BUT THE MET SIGNIFICANTLY DISPROPORTIONATE LEVELS OF HARM. 
          I'M TALKING ABOUT THE UNHOUSED DIFFERENTLY, ABLED, ELDERLY, THOSE LIKING DIGITAL ACCESS AND TRANSPORTATION ACCESS COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, MOBILE HOME COMMUNITIES, INSTITUTIONALIZED COMMUNITIES, SUCH AS NURSING HOMES AND PRISONS, THE UNDOCUMENTED, NON ENGLISH SPEAKERS, LOW INCOME COMMUNITIES, AND PEOPLE LIVING IN MULTIFAMILY DWELLINGS OR LANDLORDS ARE NOT RESPONSIVE OR WORSE AND EVALUATION OF CITY AND COUNTY EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS. 
          AND OUR MITIGATION PLANS TAKE AN AGGREGATED AND GENERIC APPROACH TO EMERGENCY RESPONSE. 
          IN MOST CASES REFERENCING ONLY THE ELDERLY AND CHILDREN AS VULNERABLE POPULATIONS. 
          THE PROBLEM IS NOT THAT WE DID NOT DO OUR JOB PROBLEM IS THAT THE JOB SCRIPTED OUR PLANS FAILS TO ADDRESS THE DISPARITIES, IMPACTING PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC SITUATIONS. 
          THIS WILL GET WORSE, NOT BETTER. 
          ACCORDING TO HALO'S 2014 REPORT ON THE FUTURE OF CLIMATE CHANGE IN CENTRAL TEXAS, EXTREME STORMS WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY PREVALENT. 
          WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR HOW WE VIEWED DISASTER MANAGEMENT? THE QUESTION CAN ONLY BEGIN TO BE ANSWERED THROUGH AN EQUITABLE COLLABORATIVE AND INCLUSIVE ENGAGEMENT AND EMPOWERMENT OF COMMUNITY GROUPS. 
          THAT'S WHY COMMUNITY RESILIENCE TRUST MOBILIZED ON FEBRUARY 13TH, OPENING A COLLABORATIVE SPACE FOR MANY ORGANIZATIONS AND CITY STAFF TO WORK TOGETHER, TO SERVE THESE COMMUNITIES, HOUSING AND FEEDING HUNDREDS OF UNHOUSED RESIDENTS, DELIVERING THOUSANDS OF GALLONS OF WATER AND THOUSANDS OF HOT MEALS. 
          BOTH FEMA AND CDC HAVE PROVIDED GUIDANCE ON HOW TO OPERATIONALIZE EQUITY AND DISASTER MITIGATION AND RESPONSE. 
          AND SEPTEMBER, 2020 FEMA PUBLISHED A SEVEN PAGE GUIDANCE DOCUMENT, HELP GUIDE TO EXPANDING MITIGATION, MAKING THE CONNECTION TO EQUITY. 
          BUT IF WE ARE TO INCORPORATE THIS GUIDANCE, OUR PLANS NEED AN EQUITY OVERHAUL LED BY A WIDE SPECTRUM OF COMMUNITY REPRESENTATIVES. 
          THIS IS MIRIAM CONNOR. 
          CAN I ADD TO THAT AS WELL? SURE. 
          SO I WAS, UM, ALSO VOLUNTEERING WITH CRT AND JANICE. 
          AND SO I HAVE SOME NUMBERS. 
          SO FEBRUARY 11TH, 12TH WAS PREPARATION. 
          UM, 15 DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS, UH, ORGANIZED 12 HOTELS WITH OVER 125 ROOMS. UM, HOUSED 300 TO 400 AND SHELTERED PEOPLE. 
          UM, 700 MEALS DELIVERED DAILY WITH THREE 
          [01:25:01]
30 TO 50 VOLUNTEERS. 
          UM, FEBRUARY 18TH, THE THIRD THROUGH THE 18TH WAS A RESCUE. 
          UM, WE ALSO HAD 10 HAKA PROPERTIES. 
          WE ADDED 15 OTHER PROPERTIES, A HUNDRED FAMILIES. 
          WE DID COVID TESTING IN THE HOTELS. 
          WE ACTIVATED THE MILLENNIUM YOUTH COMPLEX. 
          UM, AND THEN WE ALSO NEGOTIATED WITH, UH, OTHER ASD SHELTERS. 
          UM, AND THEN FEBRUARY 19TH, BETWEEN BETH, WE ADDED 15 MORE PROPERTIES, UH, A HUNDRED MORE FAMILIES. 
          WE ALSO HELP ESE IDENTIFY PRIORITY PROPERTIES LIKE CLAYTON LANE HARRIS, UM, NEIGHBORHOOD ALTAR, MOBILE, UM, NORTH LAMAR, WOODLAND OAKS, AND SOME OTHERS. 
          UM, WE EXTENDED CAPACITY AT THE HOTELS. 
          UH, LET'S SEE. 
          WE ALSO OPENED UP A, ANOTHER DISTRESSED AT, UH, OFF OF NORTH LAMAR. 
          WE DISTRIBUTED OVER 9,000 HOT MEALS, 10,000 MRAS, WHICH OF Y'ALL HAVE NEVER HAD AN MRI. 
          THEY ARE NOT GOOD. 
          AND THEY'RE VERY, VERY HARD TO PUT TOGETHER AND ALL OF THE DIRECTIONS ARE IN ENGLISH. 
          UM, AND THEN ALONG AND THEN FOR OVER 41,000 BOTTLES OF WATER AND 60 LOCATIONS TOTAL, UM, AND THEN WE LAUNCHED A WEBSITE CALLED AUSTIN COLD WHERE PEOPLE CAN, COULD GO AND REQUEST WHAT THEY NEEDED FOR WATER SHELTER. 
          UM, AND YEAH, THAT WEBSITE WAS PIVOTAL. 
          UM, AND THEN FEBRUARY 26TH THROUGH MARCH 1ST, UH, WE EXTENDED SUPPORT. 
          UM, WE HAD CROWN EVENT'S DISTRIBUTION CENTER, AUSTIN, NICOLE. 
          WE DID A TOTAL OF OVER 6,000 PEOPLE SERVED OVER 48,000 MEALS DISTRIBUTED OVER 9,000 GALLONS OF WATER DISTRIBUTED BY OVER 75 COMMUNITIES. 
          UM, AND WE SPENT LIKE THREE WEEKS DOING THIS OVER 14 TO 16 HOURS A DAY. 
          AND THIS REPORT THAT WE'RE WRITING IS, UM, IT'S VERY DETAILED AND IT GOES INTO, UH, ALL OF THE PLANS THAT, UH, HAVE BEEN PLANNED BY PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN WESTLAKE OR B GAMES FOR INSTANCE, OR A WATER PLANT. 
          AND, UM, AND THEN WE'RE ALSO WORKING ON A HEAT PLAN AS WELL, WHICH WILL COME OUT SOON TOO. 
          THAT'S ALL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          TEST FIRST MEMORY CONNOR. 
          WE APPRECIATE IT. 
          WE HAVE, UH, MANY MORE FOR BECKY AND MYSELF. 
          IF I JUMP IN AND HELP HER TO READ INTO THE RECORD, UM, I WANT TO ADDRESS, UH, I BELIEVE OUR ONLY VOTING MATTER OF PATRICIA IS A DATE, WHETHER IT'S THE NINTH OF THE 23RD, IS THAT CORRECT? CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES. 
          SO WE DO HAVE THOSE TWO DATES AS POTENTIAL PLANNING MEETINGS. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, HAS EVERYONE EVERYONE'S PREFERENCES THAT YOU RECEIVED INDICATED EITHER ONE OF THOSE DATES WOULD BE OKAY. 
          AND MY UNDERSTANDING WAS WE WERE, WE WERE PLANNING ON HAVING BOTH OF THOSE MEETINGS TO PLANNING, MEETING BOTH THE NINTH AND THE 23RD. 
          OKAY. 
          BASED ON THE FEEDBACK YOU RECEIVED, WHAT'S WHAT TIME WE WOULD MEET FROM 11 TO ONE? NO, NO, NO. 
          I'M SORRY. 
          NINE, NINE TO 11. 
          I APOLOGIZE. 
          YEAH. 
          AM I CORRECT? WE HAVE NOT OFFICIALLY VOTED ON THOSE DATES. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? NO, WE HAVEN'T. 
          OKAY. 
          SO, UM, I MOTION THAT WE HAVE OUR NEXT PLANNING MEETINGS ON JULY 9TH AND JULY 23RD, RESPECTIVELY. 
          AND YOU SAID 11 TO 1:00 PM. 
          PATRICIA IT'S NINE TO 11:00 AM. 
          9:00 AM. 
          9:00 AM TO 11:00 AM FOR BOTH DAYS. 
          UM, I DO NOT KNOW IF I'LL BE ABLE TO MAKE BOTH THOSE MEETINGS, BUT I'LL, I'LL DO MY BEST, UM, WITH THIS ADVANCED NOTICE. 
          DO I HAVE A SECOND? THANK YOU. 
          OKAY. 
          ANY DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          SOUNDS LIKE THAT'S UNANIMOUS TO ME, PATRICIA. 
          ANYONE ABSTAINING. 
          OKAY. 
          WE NOW HAVE OUR NEXT MEETING DATES AND TIMES I DID RECEIVE, UH, FROM ALETHA, THE CURRENT, UM, REPORT, UM, REGARDING THE INFORMATION OUR WORKING GROUP IS, UM, WHITTLING DOWN FOR US THAT I WILL INCLUDE IN OUR DRAFT REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT. 
          [01:30:01]
UM, YOU SHOULD HAVE ALL RECEIVED IT TO REVIEW. 
          I THINK WE CAN DISCUSS THAT, WHICH HOPEFULLY I'LL HAVE A FIRST DRAFT BY THE NINTH IN THAT MEETING. 
          UM, BASED ON THE INFORMATION WE HAVE, UH, TO DATE, INCLUDING WHAT WE RECEIVED THIS EVENING. 
          UM, SO DOES ANYONE NEED TO HAVE MORE DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT THE DOCUMENT WERE RECEIVED FROM THE WORKING GROUP? OKAY. 
          IF EVERYONE'S IN AGREEMENT, WE'LL USE THE REMAINING OF OUR REMAINDER OF OUR TIME THEN TO GET AS MANY TESTIMONIES AS WE CAN READ INTO THE RECORD THAT WE RECEIVED IN WRITING ANY OBJECTIONS TO THAT. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, PATRICIA, WAS THERE ANYONE THAT SPECIFICALLY INDICATED THEY DID NOT WANT TO BE NAMED WHO WAS SENDING A STATEMENT? NO, NOT THAT I RIDE, NO. 
          OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU, BECKY, PLEASE CONTINUE. 
          AND LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ME TO JUMP IN AND HELP SURE THING. 
          OKAY. 
          I'LL TAKE THESE IN ORDER. 
          UM, THEY'RE, THEY'RE NUMBERED ONE THROUGH NINE, SO I'LL JUST TAKE THEM AS THEY COME BECAUSE, UH, THE OLDEST OR THE SMALLEST NUMBERS WERE FROM PRIOR MEETINGS. 
          SO NUMBER ONE IS FROM LAWRENCE WILLIAMS AND THIS ONE, SO YOU'RE AWARE THIS IS A COUPLE OF PAGES, SO I'LL TAKE IT SLOW TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN. 
          PLEASE ACCEPT THIS EMAIL AS MY PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THE WINTER STORM TASKFORCE, IT WILL BE SAID THAT THE STORM WAS UNPRECEDENTED AND THEREFORE WE COULD NOT HAVE BEEN ADEQUATELY PREPARED. 
          WELL, I DON'T AGREE WITH THAT SENTIMENT. 
          UNPRECEDENTED, UNPRECEDENTED DOESN'T MEAN UNIMAGINABLE. 
          MY POINTS ARE PRIMARILY ABOUT THE WAY THE CITY AND AUSTIN ENERGY COMMUNICATED DURING THE STORM. 
          THESE ARE PROBLEMS THAT SHOULD NOT HAVE OCCURRED AND SHOULD BE EASY TO RECTIFY. 
          FIRST EMERGENCY COMMUNITY COMMUNICATION WAS TOO RELIANT ON TECHNOLOGY THAT REQUIRES ELECTRICITY. 
          AUSTIN ENERGY USE TWITTER, FOR EXAMPLE, AND AUSTIN EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, HELP MEETINGS ON FACEBOOK LIVE. 
          YOU CAN'T ACCESS THOSE CHANNELS WITHOUT DEVICES THAT REQUIRE ELECTRICITY TO REMAIN FUNCTIONAL. 
          THE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR FOR AUSTIN ENERGY COMPLAINED TO THE CITY COUNCIL THAT SHE'D ALSO WOKEN UP EARLY TO GO ON TELEVISION. 
          THAT TELEVISION ALSO REQUIRES ELECTRICITY. 
          ALTHOUGH IT'S OLD SCHOOL, I'D SUGGEST THAT RADIO COMMUNICATION SHOULD HAVE BEEN USED. 
          BATTERY POWERED RADIO IS A STAPLE OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, AND PEOPLE COULD ALSO USE THEIR CARS TO HEAR MESSAGES IF NEEDED. 
          HOWEVER, THAT WAS NOT DONE. 
          SECOND, THE MEETINGS HELD ON FACEBOOK LIVE WERE POORLY MODERATED. 
          THEY WERE ALSO NOT ACTUALLY FACEBOOK LIVE BECAUSE MEETING PARTICIPANTS WERE ON WEBEX AND THE WEBEX MEETING IS WHAT WAS STREAMED BY FACEBOOK. 
          THIS CREATED TWO PROBLEMS. ONE WE DIDN'T PARTICIPANTS COULDN'T DELIVER RELEVANT INFORMATION BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T READ, RESPOND TO QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS FROM VIEWERS. 
          SECOND MEETING PARTICIPANTS STAY ON TOPIC OR MOST MEETINGS TOO MUCH TIME WAS SPENT WITH THANK THANK-YOU'S FROM ONE DEPARTMENT TO ANOTHER, OR WITH COMMENTS THAT JUST ATTEMPTED TO DEFLECT BLAME TO OTHER AGENCIES LIKE ERCOT. 
          IF YOU HAD READ COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS FROM ORDINARY CITIZENS OR HAD A CLEAR AGENDA AND MODERATOR YOU'D HAVE BEEN ABLE TO QUICKLY PROVIDE SPECIFIC RELEVANT INFORMATION. 
          INSTEAD MUCH OF THE MEETING FELT LIKE WASTED TIME, WHICH WAS PARTICULARLY PROBLEMATIC GIVEN THAT MANY OF US WERE ON MOBILE DEVICES WITH LOW POWER, NO WAY TO RECHARGE AND NO TIMELINE FOR ONE POWER WOULD BE RESTORED. 
          AS A SIDE NOTE, DURING ONE OF THE MEETINGS, SOMEONE ASKED IF WATER WOULD BECOME A PROBLEM. 
          THIS WAS QUICKLY DISMISSED BY THE PANEL, BUT IT ALSO QUICKLY BECAME A PROBLEM FOR THE CITY. 
          I WOULD ENCOURAGE THOSE IN CHARGE TO BE MORE THOUGHTFUL NEXT TIME, AND TO ANTICIPATE HOW ONE PROBLEM CREATES ANOTHER THIRD COMMUNICATION WAS NOT TRANSPARENT WHILE THERE ARE MANY UNKNOWNS DURING A DISASTER. 
          WHAT AUSTIN ENERGY SHOULD HAVE KNOWN AT THE BEGINNING WAS THE POTENTIAL SCOPE OF THE BLACKOUTS. 
          INSTEAD, THEY INDICATED THAT BLACKOUTS WOULD ROLL. 
          THERE ARE ONLY TWO POSSIBLE REASONS WHY THEY THOUGHT BLACKOUTS WERE ROLE. 
          THEY DOWNPLAY THE POTENTIAL PROBLEMS INTENTIONALLY, OR THOSE IN CHARGE DON'T UNDERSTAND POWER GRID. 
          I WOULD HOPE THE CITY WOULD THOSE MANAGING AUSTIN ENERGY HAVE THE TECHNICAL SKILLS TO DO SO. 
          [01:35:02]
WHICH MEANS I HAVE TO CONCLUDE THAT AUSTIN ENERGY WAS DISHONEST. 
          INTENTIONALLY. 
          THIS CHOICE PREVENTED PEOPLE FROM BEING ABLE TO ADEQUATELY PREPARE IN THE FUTURE. 
          YOU SHOULD OPT FOR TRANSPARENCY SO THAT WE CAN PROTECT OURSELVES WHEN YOU'RE UNABLE TO DO SO. 
          FINALLY, FINALLY, WHILE I ADMIT THIS IS PRIMARILY ME VENTING A FRUSTRATION MAYOR ALBERT PEERED ON CAMERA DURING THE FIRST FACEBOOK LIVE MEETING WITH HIS ARTWORK. 
          WELL LIT LET'S SEE ATTACHED IMAGE. 
          AND JUST FOR YOUR INFORMATION, THERE'S A PHOTO AT THE BOTTOM OF THE DOCUMENT OF THE MAYOR, UH, ON TELEVISION, WE WERE ALL BEING TOLD TO WORK TOGETHER TO CONSERVE ENERGY. 
          SO POWER COULD START TO BE RESTORED SAFELY WHILE OUR LEADER WAS ON CAMERA. 
          IT'S LIKE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING THE OPPOSITE? I REMEMBER THIS VISCERALLY BECAUSE AT THE TIME I WAS UNDER THREE BLANKETS, EXCEPT FOR THE HAND HOLDING THE PHONE TO MY KNOWLEDGE, HE NEVER APOLOGIZED OR COMMENTED ON HIS ACTIONS IN THAT MOMENT OF SEVERE CRISIS. 
          OBVIOUSLY THIS WAS UPSETTING AT THE MOMENT, PERHAPS LESS, OBVIOUSLY THAT LEVEL OF ARROGANCE IS IN MY OPINION, A SIGNIFICANT PROBLEM IN THE LONG-TERM. 
          ESPECIALLY AS I HEARD SIMILAR ARROGANCE FROM THE AUSTIN ENERGY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR, AS SHE REPORTED TO CITY COUNCIL, ARROGANCE PREVENTS LEARNING, AND WE NEED TO LEARN TO PREVENT WHAT HAPPENED FROM REPEATING. 
          MY HOPE IS BY CALLING ATTENTION TO THE POOR ATTITUDES, PERHAPS PEOPLE CAN SHIFT AND OUR GOVERNMENT CAN RECOVER IN A WAY THAT ALLOWS US TO HAVE STABLE INFRASTRUCTURE OR AT LEAST GOOD COMMUNICATION. 
          WHEN IT'S UNSTABLE. 
          I APPRECIATE THE TIME AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THE HOURS, COME WITH THESE HEARINGS AND THE OTHER INVESTIGATIONS DONE ON THIS FAILURE OF AUSTIN ENERGY AIR CAUGHT LOCAL AND STATE GOVERNMENTS. 
          THANK YOU. 
          SINCERELY. 
          LAWRENCE WILLIAMS, ANY FEEDBACK OR QUESTIONS ON THIS ONE? DO YOU NEED A BREAK OR DO YOU WANT TO KEEP READING? I'M OKAY FOR NOW. 
          OKAY. 
          MY CATS GET NANCY. 
          IF THAT GETS NOISY, LET ME KNOW. 
          THERE SHE GOES. 
          I'LL BE ON PERMANENT RECORD. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          NUMBER TWO. 
          UM, THIS IS FROM ROMEO STEPHENS AND ROMY SAYS, HI, I'M A FIRST RESPONDER THAT WORKED DURING THE WINTER STORM. 
          FIRST, YOUR AMBULANCES HAD NO TIRE CHAINS AND WERE UNABLE TO RESPOND TO EMERGENCIES. 
          AMBULANCES, NOT HAVE FOUR WHEEL DRIVE AND WOULD GET STUCK IN THE DITCHES. 
          PRE-PLANNING EVEN THOUGH THE STORM WAS NOT A SURPRISE EVENT WAS NONEXISTENT CHURCHES AND OTHER SHELTERS DID NOT OPEN FOR STRANDED DRIVERS AND DISPLACED PERSONS SEEKING SHELTER FROM COLD WATER WAS NOT AVAILABLE TO FIGHT FIRES BECAUSE HYDRANTS FROZE DO BETTER NEXT TIME, ROMI STEVENS, ANY COMMENTARY ON THAT ONE? ALL RIGHT, I'LL GO TO NUMBER THREE. 
          THIS IS FROM JEFFREY BACHELOR. 
          THE BIGGEST ISSUE FOR MOST PEOPLE IS THAT THEY WERE TRAPPED IN AUSTIN. 
          THE FRUITS HAD BEEN CLEARED. 
          MOST PEOPLE WOULD HAVE LEFT AUSTIN FOR A CITY WITH ELECTRICITY AND WATER. 
          I RECOMMEND STORING ONE STORM OF SALT TO CLEAR THE ROADS, JEFF YOU FEEDBACK. 
          OKAY. 
          NUMBER FOUR, THIS IS FOR MARK. 
          RICHARD. 
          MARK SAYS POWER COMPANIES WILL DO ANYTHING TO AVOID SPENDING MONEY. 
          THAT'S NOT MATTER OF HOW MUCH DAMAGE OR HOW MANY PEOPLE DIE UNLESS YOU FORCE THEM. 
          NOTHING WILL BE DONE. 
          RIGHT. 
          NEXT ONE IS FROM DEBBIE WORKING THIN. 
          REBECCA B WRITES DEAR CITY OF AUSTIN. 
          I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT THE WINTER STORM IN FEBRUARY AND THE POWER AND OUR OUTAGES ADD ANN IS STILL HAVING A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON MY PERSONAL RESIDENCE. 
          MY HOUSE AT 3005 REFUND RIDGE DID NOT LOSE POWER, BUT DID HAVE AN INTERIOR PIPE THAT FROZE AND RUPTURED CAUSING 
          [01:40:01]
SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO MY HOME. 
          WE FOLLOWED THE SECRET WAY REQUEST TO KEEP OUR THERMOSTAT AS COOL AS POSSIBLE. 
          AND TO TURN OFF ALL MAJOR APPLIANCES AND POOL EQUIPMENT, OUR POOL EQUIPMENT FROZE AND RUPTURED. 
          WE STILL CANNOT FIND THE NEEDED PARTS FOR REPAIR IRRIGATION SYSTEMS FROZE AND NEEDS REPAIR. 
          MY ELDERLY 87 YEAR OLD PARENTS DID LOSE POWER TO THEIR HOME. 
          SO I DROVE THROUGH THE ICY ROADS TO GET THEM AND BRING THEM TO MY HOUSE. 
          THE CELL TOWER IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD FROZE THE CITY OF AUSTIN, OWNS A UTILITY COMPANY AND SHOULD BEAR THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS CATASTROPHIC UTILITY FAILURE THAT SHOULD NEVER HAVE HAPPENED. 
          THE TINY CREDIT ON MY UTILITY BILL IS A JOKE COMPARED TO THE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. 
          YOUR FAILURE COSTS ME. 
          AND I SINCERELY DOUBT THIS IS A ONCE IN A LIFETIME EVENT, THAT'D BE WORKING. 
          THEN YOU FEEDBACK SO FAR. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          NUMBER SIX IS FROM IRENE CONICH. 
          IRENE WRITES JUST WANTED TO SHARE MY EXPERIENCE AND HOPE THAT IT NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN. 
          I'M OLDER THAN 70 AND A SLIM BUILD. 
          SO I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF EXCESS WEIGHT THAT COULD GENERATE HEAT. 
          ALSO, I HAVE AN ELECTRIC STOVE, SO THERE WAS NO POSSIBILITY OF GETTING ANYTHING WARM INSIDE ME. 
          MY GOOD NEXT DOOR NEIGHBORS LEFT EARLY THAT FIRST AFTERNOON OF THE SNOW TO SHELTER AT THEIR SON'S HOUSE. 
          NO MATTER HOW MANY COATS I PUT ON, INCLUDING A FULL LENGTH OLD FUR COAT, I COULD NOT GET WARM. 
          MY NORMAL BODY TEMPERATURE IS IN THE MID OR LOWER 90 SEVENS. 
          I TRIED UNDER THE BLANKETS, BUT IT MADE NO REAL DIFFERENCE TO HOW I FELT INSIDE. 
          I HAVE A LOW THYROID AND TAKE MEDICINE FOR IT, BUT NOT ENOUGH TO OVERCOME THIS KIND OF COLD. 
          I THOUGHT I WOULD BE ABLE TO TOUGH IT OUT THAT EVENING, BUT A FEELING OF DREAD CAME OVER ME WHEN DARKNESS FELL SO MUCH THAT I FELT IF I WENT TO SLEEP, I MIGHT NEVER WAKE UP. 
          MY FEAR WAS THAT I WOULD SLIP INTO HYPOTHERMIA AND NO ONE WOULD EVER KNOW UNTIL THEY TRIED TO CONTACT ME. 
          AT SOME LATER POINT. 
          IT WAS ONE OF THE SCARIEST TIMES OF MY LIFE. 
          I CALLED MY DAUGHTER IN ROUND ROCK AND ASKED HER AND HER HUSBAND TO COME AND GET ME. 
          IT WAS DANGEROUS DRIVING FOR HIM. 
          AND HE HAD NEVER DRIVEN ACROSS TOWN IN THE SNOW. 
          SHE HAD HAD POWER EARLY IN THE DAY THAT HAD LOST IT AS WELL. 
          I FELT THAT IT WAS BETTER TO BE THERE EVEN THOUGH I WAS SO COLD, I HAD TO WEAR MY MASK TO KEEP MY FACE FROM BEING FRIGID INSIDE THEIR HOME. 
          I FELT THAT IF I WAS GOING TO SLIP INTO HYPOTHERMIA, AT LEAST SOMEONE MIGHT BE AROUND AND NOTICE THE FOLLOWING DAY, MY DAUGHTER, AND SON-IN-LAW FOUND A NEIGHBOR WHO HAD POWER ACROSS THE STREET FROM THEM. 
          AND THEY WERE ABLE TO MICROWAVE SOME HOT WATER FOR ME THAT EVENING. 
          MY SON-IN-LAW STARTED CALLING HIS COWORKERS, ASKING IF ANYONE HAD ROOM TO TAKE US. 
          WE WERE SO FORTUNATE THAT HE FOUND ONE WHO WAS WILLING TO TAKE THE THREE OF US FOR TWO DAYS AND NIGHTS. 
          I FELT THAT IT SAVED MY LIFE. 
          I WEIGHED THE PANDEMIC RISK OVER THE RISK OF DYING FROM BOTH THEIR MIA AND DECIDED TO TAKE MY CHANCES WITH COVID RATHER THAN FREEZE TO DEATH. 
          I'M REALLY WORRIED THAT THIS MAY HAPPEN AGAIN. 
          I'VE LIVED HERE SINCE 1976, AND I'VE BEEN LUCKY THAT THE POWER NEVER WENT OUT FOR THAT LONG A TIME. 
          AT THAT TIME, I HAD MY HUSBAND AND I WAS MUCH YOUNGER. 
          NOW I HAVE CHANGED CIRCUMSTANCES. 
          I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT I WOULD HAVE TO DO TO SURVIVE. 
          IF THIS HAPPENS AGAIN, I DREAD THAT. 
          I DON'T THINK I COULD HANDLE IT ON MY OWN IRENE KOENIG. 
          ALL RIGHT, I'LL KEEP GOING. 
          NUMBER SEVEN. 
          AND THIS IS FROM A COMMISSION ON SENIORS. 
          SO IT'S LOOKING TO SEE IF THERE'S, IF I MAY. 
          IT'S ACTUALLY FROM DOCTOR DR. 
          JACKIE ON HALE, WHO IS A COMMISSIONER ON THE COMMISSION ON SCENE. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU, SALLY, FOR 
          [01:45:01]
CLARIFYING THAT. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO IT SAYS SALLY, HERE A FEW NOTES FROM MY DIARY DURING THE UNPRECEDENTED WINTER STORM IN FEBRUARY 7, 8, 7 3 1 ZIP CODE AGE, MALE, 73 YEARS, FEMALE, 63 YEARS. 
          SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 1ST, UH, SORRY. 
          FEBRUARY SUNDAYS, FEBRUARY 14. 
          SPECTRUM GOES DOWN AROUND 6:00 PM. 
          MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15TH, 6:00 AM. 
          A JET STREAM STREAM HAS TAKEN A TRIP TO THE SOUTH. 
          WE ARE WITHOUT POWER, HEAT, LIGHT, AND DIMINISHING CONNECTIVITY. 
          A LARGE TREE FELL AND GRAZED THE BACK OF OUR HOUSE. 
          NO WINDOWS BROKEN. 
          FORTUNATELY TWO OF MY CLOSEST NEIGHBORS HAVE BURST PIPES. 
          WE ARE WRAPPED IN BLANKETS TO STAY WARM. 
          ON THE FLIP SIDE, WE HAVE ENOUGH FOOD TO COOK ON OUR GAS STOVE AND THANK GOODNESS FOR 80 AND T SERVICE FOR OUR CELL PHONES. 
          SPECTRUM IS STILL DOWN TUESDAY FROM THREE 16, 6:00 AM. 
          WE'RE STILL WITHOUT POWER GOING ON 48 HOURS. 
          ALL OUR PHONES ARE ON LOW BATTERY. 
          ALL CHARGERS ARE JUICED OUT SHOVELED OUR DRIVEWAY YESTERDAY TO GO TO THE LBJ SCHOOL AND RECHARGE PHONES AND LAPTOPS TOOK AN HOUR TO GET HOME. 
          VERY DANGEROUS, ICY CONDITIONS AND STRESSFUL ACCIDENTS EVERYWHERE. 
          WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17TH, 7:00 AM. 
          THINGS ARE GETTING WORSE IN AUSTIN. 
          TEMPERATURE. 
          TODAY IS 23 DEGREES. 
          NO POWER SINCE MONDAY AT 6:00 AM. 
          THE CURRENT SITUATION FOR WATER SERVICE AND SUPPLY IS DETERIORATING. 
          AND AUSTIN WATER JUST ISSUED A WATER BOIL NOTICE FOR THE WHOLE CITY. 
          WE ARE ALSO WITHOUT POWER AND ABOUT TO LOSE ITS CHARGE, UNABLE TO GET TO THE HOTEL BECAUSE OF IC SIDE ROADS. 
          WE ARE LUCKY TO HAVE AVOIDED BURST PIPES, MANY PEOPLE, INCLUDING MY CLOSEST NEIGHBORS ARE STILL AT HOME WITHOUT WATER. 
          WE WILL CONTINUE TO BOIL WATER. 
          GIVEN CITY RECOMMENDATIONS, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18TH, 6:00 AM WOKE THIS MORNING WITH NO SIGNS OF POWER. 
          AFTER THREE DAYS WITHOUT LIGHT, EAT OUT WATER AND CONNECTIVITY. 
          WE ARE FREEZING AND EMOTIONALLY EXHAUSTED, NO HOT WATER, EITHER BOILING WATER TO WASH DISHES, SWITCHING TO PAPER PLATES. 
          HOPE BY MONDAY, IF NOT SOONER, THAT POWER WILL BE RESTORED. 
          ERCOT HAS GIVEN PERMISSION TO TURN POWER BACK ON, BUT WHO KNOWS WHEN MY NEIGHBORS WHO LIVED IN A PLACE WITH POWER AND WATER SWEPT US, SORRY. 
          IT'S AFTERNOON. 
          WE'RE STAYING SAFE AND WARM CHARGING. 
          OUR FIVE ELECTRONIC DEVICES CATCHING UP ON EMAILS. 
          OPTIMISTIC. 
          THE POWER WILL FLOW SOON. 
          EMAILED COUNCIL MEMBER ALTAR AND HER OFFICE IS FINDING OUT WHEN POWER IS EXPECTED TO BE RESTORED IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD. 
          WE ARE IDENTIFIED 1,350 HOUSEHOLDS AS THAT HIGH PRIORITY ON THE GRID. 
          FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, WOKE AT 6:00 AM CALLED UBER TO RIDE HOME, DROVE TO LBJ SCHOOL FOR HEAT, LIGHT, AND CONNECTIVITY. 
          POWER IS RESUMED AT 6:00 PM. 
          SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20TH WOKE TODAY AT 6:00 AM. 
          MORE APPRECIATIVE THAN EVER TO A HOME WITH HEAT, LIGHT WATER AND CONNECTIVITY. 
          NO RESTOCKING. 
          THE FRIDGE AND PANTRY TODAY STORES ARE EMPTY. 
          WE ARE LUCKY TO AVOID ADVERSE PIPES, MANY PEOPLE, INCLUDING MY CLOSEST NEIGHBORS ARE STILL AT HOME WITHOUT WATER. 
          WE WILL CONTINUE TO BOIL WATER. 
          GIVEN CITY RECOMMENDATIONS, SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21, MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES. 
          I HOPE YOU'VE MADE IT THROUGH THE POLAR VORTEX IN ONE PIECE AFTER SPENDING FIVE DAYS WITHOUT LIGHT HEAT, HOT WATER AND CONNECTIVITY, OUR POWER WAS RESTORED ON FRIDAY. 
          I BRING 19 AT 6:00 PM. 
          SOME OF OUR FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES ARE STILL WITHOUT WATER DUE TO BURST PIPES. 
          THE COMMENTS? YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          A COUPLE MORE. 
          UM, THIS IS 
          [01:50:01]
NUMBER EIGHT. 
          THIS IS FROM THE TEXAS KABOD HOUSES. 
          FILL THE VOID WITH KINDNESS IN THE MIDST OF DISASTER AND JUST A HEADS UP. 
          THIS ONE'S ABOUT TWO AND A HALF PAGES LONG. 
          WE CAN GO TILL ABOUT EIGHT, 10 TONIGHT. 
          SO YOU'RE GOOD, BECKY. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          IT SAYS FIRST. 
          AND THIS IS FROM MICHELLE, A COMMON OR CAME IN FIRST PUBLISHED BY JEWS IN THE CITY, TEXAS, TEXAS KABOD HOUSES. 
          FILL THE VOID WITH KINDNESS IN MIDST OF DISASTER 3 0 4 SHARES BY MICHELLE CAME IN MARCH 11TH, 2021 IN KINDNESS PROFILES. 
          LAST MONTH, SURPRISED TEXAS STORM AFFECTED MANY IN THE STATE, BUT THE SMALL COMMUNITY OF AUSTIN WAS HIT ESPECIALLY HARD. 
          MY BIGGEST FEAR WAS AT NIGHT. 
          I KEPT CHECKING ON MY KIDS, MAKING SURE THEY WERE WARM AND WE'RE BREATHING UNDER ALL THE HEAVY BLANKETS. 
          THANK GOD WE WERE ALL SAFE. 
          RIFKA B SAYS THAT SHE WAS NOT ALONE IN HER FEAR, STARTING FEBRUARY 11TH, INTENSE, COLD, AND HEAVY SNOW CUT POWER TO MILLIONS OF TEXANS. 
          BUT ONCE IN A GENERATION, WINTER STORM INCAPACITATED THE ENTIRE STATE. 
          THANKS TO THE HARD WORK OF THE LOCAL NETWORK OF COBOTS. 
          AUSTIN WAS TOUCHED BY KINDNESS THROUGH THIS INCREDIBLE HARDSHIP. 
          AS I STARTED TO FORM ON THE RUINS, I AVOIDED BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES FEELING UNEASY. 
          THEN THE POWER WENT OUT. 
          I WENT TO PICK UP MY DAUGHTERS WHO MADE A GAME OUT OF COUNTING. 
          HOW MANY TREE BRANCHES HAD FALLEN DUE TO ICE ACCUMULATION. 
          ARTS OF THE ROADS WERE BLOCKED EVEN ON MY ALTERNATE ROUTE UPON OUR RETURN. 
          LUCKILY THE POWER HAD BEEN RESTORED, BUT THE HOUSE HAD DROPPED NEARLY 10 DEGREES AND ONLY 45 MINUTES THAT NIGHT IT SNOWED SIX INCHES. 
          I KNOW I'M A TEXAN RECOUNTED RABBITS, LUCY LOVER, TOPS OF KOBATA ROUND ROCK. 
          I LIVED IN NEW YORK FOR SEVERAL YEARS. 
          NORTHERN CITIES KNOW HOW TO HANDLE SNOW AND ICE, BUT IT IS SUCH A PRIORITY HERE. 
          THE SECOND WE LOST POWER, WE HAD TO LEAVE OUR HOME HOUSES IN TEXAS ARE BUILT TO WITHSTAND AND RELEASE HEAT. 
          LACKING BASEMENTS. 
          REFINES ARE SHALLOW AND LOW ADDICTS ARE VENTILATED. 
          WATER PIPES ARE VERY CLOSE TO THE SURFACE AND OVERHEAD POWER LINES ARE OFTEN ENTANGLED IN TREES. 
          AUSTIN HAD A FEW INCHES OF SNOW. 
          TWO WEEKS BEFORE ANY RESOURCES WE HAD WERE ALREADY USED WITH SNOW. 
          ONCE EVERY 10 TO 15 YEARS WAS NO APPARENT REASON TO INVEST IN SNOW CLEARING EQUIPMENT. 
          AUSTIN IS ALSO PART OF AN UNDERGROUND RIVER THAT SUPPLIES THE DRINKING WATER FOR SAN ANTONIO. 
          SO SALTING THE BURDENS WOULD RESULT IN POISONOUS RUNOFF, USUAL TEMPERATURES FOR THIS TIME COVER IN THE SEVENTIES AND EIGHTIES WITH A BRIEF FLUCTUATION INTO THE THIRTIES. 
          WHEN THAT HAPPENS, A POPULAR LOCAL JOKE ASKS, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO WEAR FOR THE WEEK OF WINTER AND THE AFTERMATH OF THE STORM TEXANS RECEIVED BACKLASH ON SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIMING THEY WERE WIMPS IN HANDLING THE COLD, SOME OFFERED ADVICE AND RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS. 
          BUT WHEN A WHOLE CITY IS SHUT DOWN, HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO FIND A GENERATOR OR A WOOL SWEATER? THIS WAS MORE THAN JUST COLD SAID MUSI. 
          I HAVE WINTER COATS FOR MY BABY BECAUSE WE LIVED IN NEW YORK. 
          I DON'T HAVE A WINTER COAT FOR MY FOUR-YEAR-OLD. 
          WE DON'T NEED IT HERE. 
          RIFF COULD BE LACKED POWER FOR DAYS. 
          OUR HOUSE DEPENDS ON ELECTRICITY FOR COOKING TO SHOWER. 
          PRETTY MUCH FOR EVERYTHING. 
          WE WERE ALSO WORRIED ABOUT OUR PIPES. 
          AFTER ONE OF OUR PIPES FROZE, WE USED OUR CAR TO GET SOME HEAT AND CHARGE OUR CELL PHONES. 
          WHEN THEY RAN OUT ON A FIREWORK FIREWOOD, JUST A FEW INACCESSIBLE STORES WERE OPEN AND NONE HAD FIREWOOD LEFT. 
          THANK GOD FOR GOOD NEIGHBORS. 
          WE FINALLY GOT SOME FIREWOOD ON TUESDAY, USED WHATEVER WE COULD FIND TO KEEP THE FIRE GOING AS THE COLD AND THE CEILING OF THE ENTRY TO THE UNIVERSITY KABOD HOUSE COLLAPSED AND A BURST FIRE. 
          SPRINKLER FLOODED THE SANCTUARY LIVING AREA AND KITCHEN. 
          GROCERY STORES WERE UNABLE TO RESTOCK SHELVES AS MAYBE PATRONS WAITED FOR HOURS IN LINES OUTSIDE. 
          TEMPERATURES DROPPED TO FOUR DEGREES FAHRENHEIT AS PEOPLE STRUGGLED TO STAY WARM. 
          [01:55:02]
SHABBAT AFTERNOON, ROLLING BLACKOUTS ACROSS THE STATE WERE SCHEDULED TO BEGIN, BUT WHEN IT CAME TIME TO ROLL TO THE NEXT SECTION OF THE GRID AUTHORITIES WERE POWERLESS TO DO SO AT THE MERCY OF THE ICE OUTAGES, FOLLOWED RESIDENTS WERE ASKED TO CONSERVE THE LITTLE ELECTRICITY THAT WAS AVAILABLE. 
          TURN DOWN YOUR THERMOSTAT, TURN OFF ALL EXTRA LIGHTS AND UNPLUG ANYTHING YOU CAN. 
          WATER BOIL NOTICE WAS ISSUED. 
          SO MILLIONS MORE WERE LEFT WITHOUT WATER SINCE THEY COULDN'T USE THEIR STOVE. 
          STORY'S POURED IN OF FATALITIES CAUSED BY FIRES, CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING AND HORRIFIC TALES OF ACCIDENTS AND HYPOTHERMIA. 
          THE CITY WAS PARAPHRASED. 
          EMERGENCY SERVICES WERE RENDERED INCAPACITATED AND NATIONAL AND STATE RELIEF ORGANIZATIONS WERE UNABLE TO HELP. 
          NATURALLY CALLS BEGAN COMING INTO THE KEBAB. 
          QUIET LEVI LEVERTOV SAYS AN ELDERLY COUPLE CALLED MY PARENTS AFTER THEIR WATER WENT OUT. 
          MY MOTHER ASKED, DO YOU NEED FOOD? DO YOU NEED ANYTHING? JUST NEED WATER. 
          A CALL FOR HELP WAS PASSED TO RICKY HERTZ, ROBINSON OF SOUTH AUSTIN AND LEVI'S SISTER. 
          THEY SAID WE CAN'T LEAVE THE HOUSE. 
          THERE'S ICE EVERYWHERE. 
          AND WE NEED WATER. 
          IT WAS INSANE TO THINK THAT THEY WERE PARCHED IN THE 21ST CENTURY BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T LEAVE THEIR HOUSE TO GET DRINKING WATER. 
          TAKING TO FACEBOOK THAT HURTS IS ASKED FOR VOLUNTEERS. 
          THEY WERE ABLE TO QUICKLY FIND SOMEONE WHO WAS WILLING TO BRAVE THE DANGEROUS CONDITIONS AND BRING WATER TOGETHER. 
          FAMILIES OF AUSTIN AND SURROUNDING AREAS WORKED TIRELESSLY BRINGING HOT MEALS AND WATER STRANDED TEXANS, RABBI MINDY, AND MUST-SEE LABORATORIES RALLIED YOUNG ADULTS FOR THE CAUSE WHILE THEY DID THEIR BEST TO COOK MEALS FOR THE MASSES, EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE WITHOUT POWER THEMSELVES, IT'S PRETTY AMAZING. 
          THE VOLUNTEERS THAT WERE WILLING TO GO OUT, RABBI LEVI RECOUNTED, EVEN ON THE FIRST NIGHT, THERE WERE A FEW VOLUNTEERS WHO WERE READY TO DO IT TO DRIVE OUT IN THE ICE AND THE SNOW. 
          THEY WERE BASICALLY RISKING THEIR LIFE TO HELP OTHERS. 
          THE ROADS WERE SO SCARY. 
          LUCY WAS WORRIED FOR HER HUSBAND AS HE DROVE. 
          MY HUSBAND KNOWS HOW TO DRIVE IN THE SNOW. 
          HE'S A MONTREALER, BUT OTHER PEOPLE WILL THINK IT'S LIKE DRIVING ON SAND WHERE YOU CAN GO REALLY FAST, BUT IT'S REALLY LIKE DRIVING ON WATER WHERE YOU DON'T DO ANYTHING AND YOU JUST BREATHE. 
          SHE ADDED I'VE BEEN IN VERY COLD PLACES AND THIS WAS THE WORST EXPERIENCE I'VE EVER HAD WITH SNOW YET THROUGH ALL THE FEAR AND OBSTACLES, THEY IN THEIR VOLUNTEERS PERSEVERED RABBI YOSEF AND RACHEL LEVERTOV. 
          THE HEADS OF THE KABOTA. 
          BOSTON NEVER SEEMED TO BE ABLE TO PUT DOWN THEIR PHONES. 
          PEOPLE WERE BEGGING FOR HELP MEALS, WATER AND RELOCATIONS. 
          MY OWN FAMILY TOOK AN A FRIEND WHOSE POWER AND HEAT HAD BEEN OUT FOR DAYS AND HAD BEEN BOUNCING FROM PLACE TO PLACE. 
          PARENTS CALLED FROM OUT OF TOWN, FEEDING WITH HER TO FIND PLACES FOR THEIR YOUNG CHILDREN, THEIR YOUNG ADULT CHILDREN TO STAY MOST WITH NO PRIOR AFFILIATION WITH THE JEWISH COMMUNITY TRAVERSING, THE SNOWY ICY ROADS WAS NEAR IMPOSSIBLE. 
          FIVE NEIGHBORS FROM MY APARTMENT HELPED ROCHELLE. 
          AND I GET OUT OF A SITUATION WHERE OUR TIRES WERE JUST SPINNING GLORIA AND EXPLAINED. 
          WE WERE NEEDING TO MAKE ONE LAST DELIVERY. 
          30 MINUTES OF SPINNING SIDE TO SIDE. 
          EVENTUALLY GOT US OUT OF OUR PARKING SPACE. 
          RABBI LEVI SHARED. 
          MY PARENTS GOT A CALL FROM THIS GUY WHO NEEDS FOOD. 
          THEY SEND OVER A YOUNG ADULT VOLUNTEER HERE. 
          BRITTANY, THE OLDER GENTLEMAN IS BASICALLY SITTING ALONE IN HIS APARTMENT, CONFINED TO A WHEELCHAIR. 
          HE'S LITERALLY FREEZING COLD IN A WET, DISGUSTING LEAKING APARTMENT. 
          SHE GAVE HIM A WARM MEAL AND THEN SPOKE TO MANAGEMENT. 
          THEY MOVED HIM OVER TO ANOTHER APARTMENT. 
          A GROUP OF Y J JP VOLUNTEERS WERE SCHLEPPING ALL OF HIS THINGS FROM ONE APARTMENT TO THE OTHER BECAUSE HIS APARTMENT GOT COMPLETELY RUINED RIFKA AND HER FAMILY. 
          HE HAD STRUGGLED THROUGH A FREEZING SHABBAT, NO ELECTRIC 
          [02:00:01]
POWER AND LIMITED FOOD. 
          BUT THANK GOD WE HAVE THE NEXT DAY WE HAD POWER FOR ABOUT TWO HOURS AND WARMED UP SOME MILK FOR MY KIDS. 
          NOTHING LIKE A NICE WARM DRINK. 
          DURING COLD DAYS, WE WERE HAPPY AT THAT MOMENT BEFORE THE POWER WENT OUT AGAIN, MICHELLE EVER TALKED, WAS ABLE TO BRING RIFKA AND HER FAMILY, A WARM MEAL, ROCHELLE NUMBER TALKS, AND GLORIA DEFEATED THE ICY ROADS AND SHOWED UP AT OUR PLACE, BRINGING A WARM MEAL, MORE LIKE A FEAST AND FIREWOOD. 
          I WAS SO THANKFUL AND ALWAYS WILL BE A FEW DAYS LATER. 
          IT WAS BACK IN THE MID EIGHTIES. 
          I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GO FOR A WALK. 
          YOU MIGHT NEVER KNOW, OH THAT ANYTHING HAD HAPPENED BY LOOKING AROUND, BUT YOU COULD SMELL IT. 
          ALL OF THE LANDSCAPING WAS DEVASTATED. 
          LARGE LUKE OBEY, PRICKLY PEAR CACTI, TROPICAL PALMS, ROSEMARY BUSHES AND ROSES WERE ALL BLACKENED ROTTING WORK. 
          CREWS WERE OUT IN FORCE FIXING POWER LINES AND RE PATE, REPLACING BURST WATER MAINS. 
          THE FACT THAT THE WATER SHORE WATER SHORTAGE IS STILL HERE. 
          IT'S TWO WEEKS POST AND YOU CAN STILL ONLY BUY TWO CASES OF WATER IS WHAT SHOCKS MOOSE. 
          LOCAL NON-PROFITS HAVE SET UP SHOWER AND LAUNDRY STATIONS THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND FREE WATER CAN BE FOUND AT AREA HIGH SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES THROUGHOUT ALL JEWISH LIFE. 
          CONTINUED. 
          RABBI LEVI SAID LITERALLY THE FIRST NIGHT OF THE STORM, WHEN THERE WAS NOT ANOTHER PERSON ON THE STREET. 
          MY MOTHER, MY MOTHER TOOK SOMEONE TO MIKVAH. 
          MY MOTHER WASN'T GOING TO DRIVE. 
          SO MY FATHER TOOK THEM BOTH IN THE CAR AND THEY WERE DRIVING AROUND IN THE BLIZZARD TO GET DOWNTOWN TO THE MIKVAH WHEN NOBODY ELSE WAS ON THE ROAD. 
          EVEN I THOUGHT THEY WERE CRAZY, BUT THEY DID IT. 
          THANKS TO THE HELPERS. 
          THIS HARD TIME BECAME A LITTLE EASIER TO SUPPORT COVAD RELIEF EFFORTS IN AUSTIN. 
          PLEASE VISIT FAWAD AUSTIN.COM. 
          OKAY. 
          I BELIEVE THERE'S ONE MORE, ALSO A COUPLE OF PAGES. 
          THIS IS FROM, UH, JULIE COYDEN SAYS TO MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS FROM JULIE COYDEN RESIDENT OF AUSTIN, TEXAS DISTRICT TWO LEAD MEMBER OF T E A M, WHICH IS TEXAS ENERGY ACCOUNTABILITY MOVEMENT DATE, JUNE 23RD, 2021 SUBJECT RECOMMENDATION CONCERNING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INDEPENDENT BOARD. 
          THE GOVERNOR OF THE AUSTIN ELECTRIC UTILITY TESTIMONY DURING THE FEBRUARY 21ST, 2021 ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE CRISIS. 
          I, ALONG WITH A GROUP OF CONCERNED, AUSTIN CITIZENS FORMED AN INFORMALLY STRUCTURED COMMUNITY ACTION GROUP CALLED THE TEXAS ENERGY ACCOUNTABILITY MOVEMENT OR TEAM SINCE FEBRUARY, 2021, WE HAVE BEEN RESEARCHING A MEANS TO RESOLVE AUSTIN ENERGY'S PHYSICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFRASTRUCTURE SHORTFALLS THAT CONTRIBUTED TO THE CRISIS IN FEBRUARY. 
          AND THAT WILL LIKELY CONTRIBUTE TO FUTURE CATASTROPHES THAT WILL NEGATIVELY IMPACT NOT ONLY QUALITY OF LIFE, BUT AS WE HAVE SEEN LIFE ITSELF WITH THE UNFORTUNATE DEATHS RESULTING FROM THIS CRISIS, OUR RESEARCH CONSISTS OF NOT ONLY WORKING WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC OFFICIALS INVOLVED IN THE UTILITY COMMISSION AND AUSTIN ENERGY, BUT ALSO SPEAKING WITH THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC UTILITY CEOS AND A CPS TRUSTEE SPEAKING WITH SEVERAL MOU HEADS IN CITIES THROUGHOUT THE U S AND WITH BOB KAHN, THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR THE 2012 THOROUGH STUDY OF THE GOVERNANCE OF AUSTIN'S MOU, WHICH I WILL CITE MOMENTARILY. 
          ADDITIONALLY, I RECEIVED, I RECENTLY RECEIVED THE RESULTS OF A F O R I A REQUEST. 
          IT PRODUCED MORE THAN 1300 PAGES OF DOCUMENTATION, ALL FIRMLY POINTING TO THE NEED FOR AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO IMPLEMENT AN INDEPENDENT BOARD OF TRUSTEES TO GOVERN AUSTIN ENERGY. 
          I FORWARDED THIS DOCUMENTATION TO COUNCIL WOMAN. 
          VANESSA IS CHIEF OF STAFF, JESSICA CORNADO TODAY 
          [02:05:01]
THROUGH OUR RESEARCH INVOLVING PUBLIC OFFICIALS, WE HAVE REVEALED THAT VEGETATION FOLIAGE CONTROL IS THE NUMBER ONE OF MANY ISSUES THAT FACE AUSTIN, ACCORDING TO OUR SURFACES VEGETATION SLASH FOLIAGE, THAT'S BEEN A KNOWN RISK FOR YEARS AND IS WHY AUSTIN LOST POWER BEFORE THE MORE WELL-PUBLICIZED AIR-CON FIASCO AUSTIN ENERGY KNEW IT WAS A SIGNIFICANT RISK, BUT INSTEAD OF ADDRESSING, IT DID NOT APPROPRIATE FUNDS WHEN AND WHERE IT WAS OR IS NECESSARY. 
          ACCORDING TO OUR SOURCES, AUSTIN ENERGY HAS NOW APPROPRIATED TWICE THE BUDGET FOR CONTROLLING THE VEGETATION FULL FOLIAGE AND HAS AGREED TO FOLLOW THE NEW DISTANCE REGULATIONS, ALL FANTASTIC NEWS. 
          BUT THAT SAID NONE OF THE IMPLEMENTATION HAS OCCURRED AS OF AT LEAST A MONTH AGO. 
          WHEN I ACQUIRED THIS INFORMATION, THERE IS A MYRIAD OF OTHER PROBLEMS TO BE ADDRESSED SUCH AS ENERGY EFFICIENCY, PROGRAMS, MISAPPROPRIATED INVESTMENTS OF HUGE PROPORTIONS AND OTHERS, WHICH I'M HAPPY TO SHARE IN A LATER DOCUMENT OR CONVERSATION. 
          ALL THIS SAID OUR DOCUMENTS DATE BACK TO 1994 AND DEMONSTRATE THAT UTILITY COMMISSIONER AFTER UTILITY COMMISSIONER, AS WELL AS OTHER PROFESSIONALS IN THE FIELD, I'VE RECOMMENDED TO CITY COUNCIL THAT AUSTIN ADOPTED AN INDEPENDENT BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR OVERSIGHT AND MANAGEMENT OF ITS MOU AUSTIN ENERGY. 
          THE LAST TIME CITY COUNCIL ADDRESSED THIS TOPIC WAS IN 2012. 
          THE BOB KAHN GOVERNANCE STUDY IN THE STUDY INTERVIEWS WITH PAST HEADS OF AUSTIN ENERGY UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDED TO THE CITY COUNCIL THAT A BOARD OF TRUSTEES ESTABLISHED ANOTHER COMMON THREAD EMERGING FROM THIS STUDY WAS THAT LARGE MOU HAVE BOARDS OF TRUSTEES. 
          AUSTIN, WE WERE TOLD IS THE SIXTH LARGEST MOU IN THE U S AS AUSTIN IS EXPONENTIALLY EXPANDING. 
          IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THAT A BOARD OF TRUSTEES IS ESTABLISHED TO ADDRESS THE MOUNTING INFRASTRUCTURE COMPLEXITIES THAT COME WITH AN EVER EXPANDING POPULATION TO QUOTE THE JUNE 4TH, 1996, MEMORANDUM TO CITY FOR MARYLAND. 
          YOU JONES PHD CHAIR, ELECTRIC UTILITY COMMISSION IN QUOTES. 
          THE EEC HAS REVIEWED THE PRICE WATERHOUSE COMPETITIVE PERFORMANCE REVIEW AND CONDUCTED A SERIES OF PUBLIC FORUMS DESIGNED TO FOSTER PUBLIC EDUCATION AND DIALOGUE REGARDING THE ISSUES OF ELECTRIC UTILITY COMPETITIVENESS AND DEREGULATION AS REQUESTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL. 
          YES, EDC OFFERS AND FULLY SUPPORTS THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR COUNCIL CONSIDERATION FOR IMPLEMENTING INITIATIVES DESIGNED TO IMPROVE THE COMPETITIVENESS OF THE AUSTIN ELECTRIC UTILITY. 
          OKAY. 
          AND WE HAVE TWO MINUTES, BECKY. 
          OKAY. 
          THE AUSTIN'S COUNCIL SHUFFLED THE CHARTER ELECTION ON AUGUST 10TH, 1996, TO ESTABLISH AN INDEPENDENT BOARD ELECTRIC UTILITY BOARD TO GOVERN THE AUSTIN ELECTRIC UTILITY SUCH BOARD MEMBERS SHALL OWE THEIR FIDUCIARY DUTIES TO THE AUSTIN ELECTRIC UTILITY, WHICH IS OWNED BY THE CITIZENS OF AUSTIN. 
          THE CITY COUNCIL SHOULD RETAIN APPROVAL OF RATES THAT ISSUANCE AND EMINENT DOMAIN, THE ELECTRIC UTILITY BOARD SHALL HAVE ALL THE OTHER AUTHORITY NOT RETAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL, INCLUDING DEVELOPING POLICY OVERSEEING PERSONNEL AND APPROVING THE BUDGET. 
          UV SHALL APPOINT A CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND DELEGATE TO THE CEO FULL AUTHORITY TO MANAGE AND OPERATE THE ELECTRIC UTILITY. 
          THE CEO SHALL REPORT DIRECTLY TO THE EEB. 
          AND THIS IS QUOTED FROM THE GOVERNANCE STUDY, DEPENDENCIES PAGES 57 TO 59. 
          THERE'S JUST ABOUT ANOTHER PAGE LEFT. 
          SO I SHOULD BE ABLE TO WRAP UP THE DOCUMENT. 
          GOVERNANCE STUDIES DEPENDENCIES CONTINUES WITH MORE PARTICULARS AND THE FULL DOCUMENT IS AVAILABLE BY CONTACTING ME OR JESSICA CORNADO AND A JANUARY 14TH, 2002 MEMORANDUM TO THE MEMBERS OF THE CHARTER REVISION COMMISSION FROM THERESA REAL CHAIR OF THE ELECTRIC COMMISSION. 
          SHE AGAIN REFERS TO THE AFOREMENTIONED JUNE 4TH, 1996 MEMORANDUM AND A JANUARY 7TH, 2002, MEETING THE EUC AND NANA UNANIMOUSLY PASSED THE RECOMMENDATION SET FORTH IN 1996. 
          MEMORANDUM, ONCE AGAIN, ON JULY 4TH, 
          [02:10:01]
24, 20 12, A MEMORANDUM WAS SENT TO THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL THIS TIME BY LARRY WEISS GM AND EXECUTIVE LIAISON TO THE EUC READ THE ANONYMOUS UNANIMOUS APPROVAL OF THE FOLLOWING MOTION RESOLVED. 
          THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL SHOULD HOLD THE CHARTER ELECTION AND THE FALL OF 2012 TO DETERMINE WHETHER AN ELECTRIC UTILITY BOARD SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED TO GOVERN THE ELECTRIC UTILITY. 
          IN MY CONVERSATION WITH BOB KAHN, THE PROVIDER OF THE MOST RECENT 2012 STUDY, WHICH IN AUSTIN TERMS IS BEYOND OBSOLETE, DUE TO AUSTIN'S EXPONENTIAL GROWTH. 
          I ASKED WHY A BOARD OF TRUSTEES HAS NOT YET BEEN IMPLEMENTED HIS RESPONSE THAT HE HAD NO IDEA. 
          AND HE WAS ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE STUDY ITSELF. 
          THIS REMAINS MY QUESTION TO USE CITY COUNCIL. 
          WHY AFTER SO MANY YEARS, THAT'S AN INDEPENDENT BOARD OF TRUSTEES INDEPENDENT FROM CITY COUNCIL, BUT WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH CITY COUNCIL, NOT YET BEEN ESTABLISHED, WE ARE AWARE OF THE INCONVENIENCE OF REISSUING BONDS, BUT THIS SHOULD NOT BE A FACTOR TO STOP IMPLEMENTATION. 
          THAT IS SO NECESSARY FOR OUR CITY, ESPECIALLY IN THIS CURRENT ECONOMY. 
          ADDITIONALLY, TEXAS LAW PROVIDES FOR AN INDEPENDENT BOARD OF TRUSTEES. 
          THERE'S A SECTION HERE THAT SAYS MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF UTILITY SYSTEM MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL OF UTILITY SYSTEM MAY BE VESTED IN THE MUNICIPALITIES GOVERNING BODY OR BOARD OF TRUSTEES NAMED IN THE PROCEEDING, ADOPTED BY THE MUNICIPALITY AND CONSISTING OF NOT MORE THAN FIVE MEMBERS. 
          ONE OF WHOM MUST BE THE MAYOR OF THE MUNICIPALITY, THE LAW FURTHER SPECIFIES COMPENSATION AND METHOD OF PROCEEDINGS. 
          AND THEN THIS IS THE LAST PARAGRAPH. 
          I'M HAPPY TO SHARE WITH YOU MY COPIOUS NOTES FROM HIM BY OUR RESEARCH, WITH A TEAM OF LIKE-MINDED CITIZENS. 
          WE'RE EAGER TO SEE SIGNIFICANT CHANGE GOING FORWARD. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH ATTENTION TO OUR REQUESTS. 
          SINCERELY JULIE CORDIN. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH, BECKY, FOR READING THAT ALL INTO OUR RECORD, UM, THAT IS OUR TIME THIS EVENING. 
          UM, IF YOU WOULD ALL, IF YOU HAVE IN MIND TO REACH OUT TO ANYONE WE'VE, WE'VE HEARD FROM IN ANY OF OUR FIVE, UM, SESSIONS, WOULD YOU EMAIL THAT TO PATRICIA SO WE CAN MAKE SURE WE AREN'T CROSSING WIRES OR MORE THAN ONE PERSON IS REACHING OUT TO THE SAME INDIVIDUALS ASKING THE SAME QUESTIONS? UM, WE WILL MEET AGAIN ON JULY 9TH, 9:00 AM TO 11:00 AM. 
          UM, I WILL BE WORKING ON THE REPORT BEGINNING WITH, UH, MY OWN NOTES AND THE INFORMATION AT TWO DATES SURMISED BY OUR WORKING GROUP. 
          THEY WILL BE WORKING ON MORE. 
          IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY PLEASE SEND ALL THE NOTES YOU'VE TAKEN SINCE OUR FIRST MEETING TO THE WORKING GROUP TO SEE IF THEY CAN, UH, INCORPORATE, SEE IF I MISSED ANYTHING, IF THERE'S ANYTHING THEY DON'T HAVE THAT WE COULD FURTHER USE. 
          UM, FOR OUR REPORT, I MOTION THAT WE ADJOURN THIS MEETING. 
          DO I HAVE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND. 
          AND JUST TO MENTION, WE ALSO HAVE THE DEBRIEF ON FRIDAY IN ADDITION TO THE JULY MAKINGS IN OUR, IN OUR DEBRIEF ON FRIDAY. 
          AND THAT DEBRIEF IS 11 TO 12. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? IT'S 11 1 11 TO ONE. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          OKAY, SO I SECOND THE MOTION TO ADJOURN. 
          ANYONE, ANYONE OPPOSED IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          AYE. 
          AYE. 
          SALLY. 
          AYE. 
          OKAY. 
          HERE, SALLY. 
          HEY, I THINK WE HAVE AT LEAST A QUORUM THAT HAS MOVED TO ADJOURN. 
          SO THIS MEETING OF THE CITY OF BOSTON'S WINTER STORM TASK FORCE IS ADJOURNED AT 8:14 PM ON JUNE 23RD, 2021. 
          THANK YOU ALL. 
          PLEASE ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR EVENING. 
          THANKS FOR YOUR TIME. 
          SEE YOU FRIDAY. 
           THINGS ARE GOING WELL FOR HIM ON FRIDAY NIGHT. 
           WHY DON'T YOU COME AROUND? .
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.