* 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. [00:00:04] WELCOME EVERYBODY TO THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP BOARD MEETING. THE TIME IS TWO, A SEVEN, AND I LIKE TO CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER WELCOME EVERYONE. UM, NOW THAT WE'RE HERE IN PERSON, I LIKE TO ENCOURAGE YOU ANY ONE OF YOU WHO WANTS TO WEAR YOUR MASK TO PLEASE DO SO WE HAVE JUST NOW MOVED TO STATE, UM, OF THE PANDEMIC. WE, UM, WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT YOU'RE HERE IN PERSON. SO PLEASE USE PRECAUTIOUS AS YOU SEE FIT THE, UM, WE HAVE A BIT OF TECHNICAL, UH, LOGISTICS TO ADDRESS AS WE HAVE ONE OF OUR, UH, BOARD MEMBERS EX-OFFICIAL MEMBER, GINA WILL BE JOINING US REMOTELY. SO WE'RE TRYING TO GET ALL OF OUR DEVICES TO COORDINATE WITH HER. SO BEAR WITH US AS WE DEAL WITH THIS NEW ERA OF, OF TECHNOLOGY AND, AND PANDEMIC AND IN PERSON AND DOING THE BEST WE CAN. SO THANK YOU EVERYONE. UM, AT OUR LAST BOARD MEETING, WE HAD SOMEONE ADDRESS THE BOARD REGARDING ACCOMMODATIONS FOR AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE. SO I JUST WANT TO REMIND EVERYONE THAT IF YOU DO NEED ACCOMMODATIONS FOR SIGN LANGUAGE, PLEASE LET CHLOE KNOW HER EMAIL IS POSTED ON THE AGENDA AND SHE WILL MAKE ACCOMMODATIONS FOR ANYBODY WHO WANTS TO ADDRESS THE BOARD IN SIGN LANGUAGE. WE WILL HAVE AN INTERPRETER, BUT WE NEED 24 HOUR NOTICE. SO PLEASE DO SO. UM, AND JUST A REMINDER THAT OUR MEETINGS ARE CLOSE CAPTIONED. AND SO WE'RE TRYING OUR BEST TO NOT ONLY FOLLOW, UH, THE FEDERAL LAW, BUT ALSO BEST PRACTICES AS WE ADAPT TO NEW TOOLS THAT WE HAVE AT OUR DISPOSAL. UM, SO TODAY FOR CUB FOR PUBLIC COMMENT, [I. Public Comment (please see instructions at the bottom to participate)] WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, MS. SYNOVIA, JOSEPH, IF YOU ARE HERE WITH US TODAY, WOULD YOU PLEASE, UH, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. THANK YOU. MADAM CHAIR, BOARD MEMBERS, UM, AS AN OVERVIEW, JOSEPH, IT'S SILENT ON MY END. SO I APOLOGIZE IF THERE'S A DELAY. I JUST WANTED TO MAKE COMMENTS SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO THE ORANGE LINE IN YOUR BOARD PACKET ON PAGE NINE OF 1 21. WHEN YOU GET YOUR UPDATE, IT'S THE DISCUSSION ITEMS ITEM, AS IT RELATES TO PROJECT CONNECT. I JUST WANTED TO STATE MY CONCERNS AS IT RELATES SPECIFICALLY TO THE INCLUSION OF NORTH LAMAR TRANSIT CENTER. I JUST WANT TO CALL TO YOUR ATTENTION THAT ON DECEMBER 17TH, 2018, THE LONGTERM VISION PLAN FOR PROJECT CONNECT EXCLUDED NORTH LAMAR TRANSIT CENTER. THE FIRST THOUGHT WAS SOUTH OF US, 180 3 AT WEST ANDERSON AND NARCAN LAMAR. I ALSO WANT TO CALL TO YOUR ATTENTION THAT ON JULY 27TH, 2020, WHEN THERE WAS A CHANGE IN THE COST FROM $10 BILLION TO $7 BILLION, THE ORANGE LINE REMAINED THE SAME 2.5 BILLION FOR THE ORANGE LINE. THE ORANGE LINE EXTENSION IS 24 TO 30 YEARS NORTH OF US, 180 3 IN TECH STOCKS RIGHT AWAY. AND THAT'S IN THE MARCH 9TH, 2020 BOARD PACKET ON PAGE 29. AND SO MADAM CHAIR, I KNOW THAT THAT ONE MARCH 17TH, 2021, DURING YOUR THIRD AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP MEETING, YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU WANTED TO LEARN THROUGH THESE MEETINGS AND YOU TALKED ABOUT BEING REALLY PASSIONATE ABOUT THE TUNNEL, AND YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT EXCAVATION AND MOTIVATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF ENGINEERS. I WOULD JUST ASK YOU WHEN YOU GET TO THE DISCUSSION ITEM TO PLEASE BE TRANSPARENT AND TO GET MR. MULLEN TO ACTUALLY EXPLAIN WHAT HAS CHANGED AS IT RELATES TO THE DOWNTOWN TUNNEL. AS YOU MAY BE AWARE, HOUSE BILL 3 8, 9, 3, FAILED TO PASS. AND IN PART I WANT TO THANK KUT TRANSPORTATION REPORTER NATHAN BERNIER FOR INCLUDING MY COMMENTS, AS IT RELATED TO TITLE SIX OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964, WHICH PROHIBITS DISCRIMINATION BASED ON RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN. AND I THINK THE MEMBERS WHO WERE THE TEXAS SENATORS, WHO LISTENED TO ME WHEN I EXPLAINED TITLE SIX, HOWEVER, THE STORIES THAT HAVE COME OUT JULY 14TH, 2021, AS IT RELATES TO THE TUNNEL, UH, THERE'S A KSA INSTALLER THAT ACTUALLY SAYS THAT IT WASN'T FEASIBLE. AND SO I WOULD JUST ASK THE REPORTERS TO BE ACCURATE IN THEIR REPORTING. THAT'S BIASED. AND I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN TO NATHAN [00:05:01] BURNEY. AND THERE WAS ALSO A JUNE, UH, JULY 14TH, 2021 ARTICLE BY COMMUNITY IMPACT THAT BOTH RECOGNIZED HOUSE BILL 3 8, 9, 3 FAILED, BUT IN THE UPDATES FROM CAPITOL METRO, JUST THIS PAST MONDAY, THEY'VE NOT ACKNOWLEDGED ANY CHANGES. AND SO IT'S LIKE LISTENING TO TWO DIFFERENT SCENARIOS. THERE'S THE ONE IN THE MEDIA. THERE'S THE ONE THAT'S BEFORE THE BOARD. AND THEN THERE'S WHAT CAPITAL METRO SIS, I GUESS THAT'S THREE DIFFERENT STORIES, BUT I WOULD JUST ASK YOU TO GET THE NARRATIVE, RIGHT. AND SO LOOK AT THE HISTORY I CAN'T HEAR. AND SO I'M JUST GOING TO CLOSE BY SAYING THE ONLY THING THAT CHANGED IS ENHANCED METRO RAPIDS NORTH OF US, 180 3. AND I WOULD JUST TELL YOU THAT THERE'S A JANUARY, 2018, UH, CAMPO, UH, APPLICATION THAT SHOWS THAT ENHANCED METRO RAPID STARTS AT METRO RAIL CRESTVIEW AS WELL. AND SO PLEASE STOP THE FALSE NARRATIVE ABOUT NORTH MEMORIAL TRANSIT CENTER BECAUSE THE MINORITIES ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE A RAIL FOR 24 TO 30 YEARS. I THANK YOU FOR A LONG THEY'RE MAKING A COMMENT. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, I'LL GLADLY ANSWER THEM. AND WE'LL JUST ASK YOU TO UPDATE THE BOARD AS IT RELATED TO THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED AND THE DEAF COMMUNITY. UM, YOU SAID YOU'D GET AN UPDATE THIS MEETING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MS. JOSEPH. UM, DO WE HAVE ANY MORE SPEAKERS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK NO MORE. OKAY. THANK YOU. UH, WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO, UM, OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR REPORT. UM, RANDY CLARK. THANK YOU CHAIR. APPRECIATE IT. AND THANK YOU BOARD MEMBERS FOR BEING HERE TODAY. AND WE, IT LOOKS LIKE WE GOT A GOOD CROWD, UH, ATTENDING, SO THAT'S GREAT. GREAT FOR SO MUCH INTEREST IN, UH, THE, THE PROGRAM AND THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP. I HAVE A COUPLE OF THINGS I WANT TO START OFF WITH. ONE IS RELATED TO OUR KIND OF THIS, THE FEDERAL PART OF THE PROGRAM. AND SO WE SHOULD HAVE A SLIDE. THERE WE GO. THANKS ONE MORE. THERE WE GO. THANK YOU. SO JUST TO HIGHLIGHT, UH, HOW WE'RE, HOW WE'RE MOVING THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS. AND I KNOW DAVE COUCHES HAS UPDATED THE BOARD, UH, AND, AND HE'LL TALK ABOUT THROUGH THE TECHNICAL UPDATE, BUT I WANT TO PUT A LITTLE FINER POINT ON HOW WE ARE WORKING THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS. SO, UH, FROM TIME TO TIME, YOU MAY SEE COMMENTS PUBLICLY OR EVEN ARTICLES. AND I WANT TO ALWAYS JUST GROUND EVERYONE IN THE PROCESS. AND I THINK WE'LL HAVE TO CONTINUE TO WORK IN OUR COMMUNITY TO EXPLAIN THE PROCESS. THESE ARE ALL NEW IN OUR COMMUNITY, SO I'M NOT SURE EVERYONE, YOU KNOW, TH TH IT'S IT'S COMPLICATED AND, AND WE'RE GOING TO DO THE BEST WEEKEND AND CONTINUE TO REINFORCE THAT THERE IS A PROCESS. UH, WE ARE DOING THE PROCESS AS INTENDED. WE'RE FEELING VERY GOOD WHERE WE ARE IN THAT PROCESS. A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THAT WOULD BE OUR EXPO IN PLEASANT VALLEY, METRO RAPID LINES. SO TWO BOARD MEETINGS AGO, WE MENTIONED TO YOU, WE WERE IN PRESIDENT BIDEN'S PROPOSED BUDGET, UH, JUST LAST WEEK, THE HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE, FY 22 BUDGET PROPOSAL HAD US LISTED AS WELL. SO BOTH REALLY GREAT SIGNS THAT FROM THE ADMINISTRATIVE SIDE AND THE CONGRESSIONAL SIDE, THAT OUR PROJECTS ARE LISTED IN BUDGET. NOW, WE'RE, WE'RE STILL OBVIOUSLY WATCHING DC RELATIVELY CLOSELY. THEY HAVE TO ACTUALLY APPROVE A BUDGET AT SOME POINT VERSUS A CONTINUING RESOLUTION YET ALONE INFRASTRUCTURE BILLS. BUT I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT BECAUSE, UM, THERE ARE, THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE THAT ARE STILL TRYING TO UNDERSTAND MAYBE NECESSARILY, UH, THE MECHANISMS I'M FUNDING, FEDERAL FUNDING. AND I WANT TO REEMPHASIZE THAT EACH PROJECT INSIDE THE PROGRAM IS ITS OWN PROJECT, AND THEREFORE HAS ITS OWN PROJECT FUNDING SCHEME AND MAYBE DIFFERENT FEDERAL OPPORTUNITIES RELATED TO THEM. SO NOTHING IS MONOLITHIC IN THE PROGRAM AND IT'S NOT ONE, AND IT'S NOT ONE ACTUAL PROJECT. WE LITERALLY HAVE DOZENS OF PROJECTS AND THEY'RE ALL GOING TO GO THROUGH DIFFERENT FUNDING PROCESSES. SO IN THIS, AS THE CAPITAL INVESTMENT GRANTS, SMALL STARTS PRO FUNDING SOURCE. SO WE ARE LISTED WE'RE FEELING VERY GOOD. DAVE MIGHT TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT SOME TECHNICAL ASPECTS OF THAT, BUT I WANT TO REASSURE EVERYONE. WE ARE, WE ARE FEELING VERY CONFIDENT THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS ON OUR FIRST PROJECTS OUT OF THE GATE, UH, CAP METRO, UH, WANTED TO MAKE SURE THIS BOARD WAS AWARE. CAP METRO ALSO RECEIVED AN AWARD THE OTHER DAY, $2.8 MILLION FROM THE FDA ON THE LOW AND NO NO EMISSIONS VEHICLE PROGRAM, WHICH IS FANTASTIC. THIS IS TO HELP US REPLACE OUR VEHICLE FLEET TO GO TO ELECTRIFICATION, ALSO CHARGING EQUIPMENT AND WORKFORCE TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE RELATED TO THAT. SO THAT'S ACTUALLY THREE YEARS STRAIGHT CAP. METRO HAS WON, UH, FDA LOWER, NO, NO EMISSIONS PROGRAM. AND WE ARE, UH, PLUS SOME FUNDING FROM THE STATE MALARIA IN THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS. SO WE ARE AGGRESSIVELY [00:10:01] GOING TOWARDS A ZERO EMISSION PROGRAM. AND I WAS ALSO A PART OF THE PROJECT CONNECT LONG-TERM VISION WHILE, WHILE NOT FUNDED THROUGH AN ATP MECHANISM, BUT CERTAINLY PART OF THE OVERALL VALUE AND GOAL SYSTEM THAT WE'RE TRYING TO CREATE IN THE COMMUNITY WITH PROJECT CONNECT. LASTLY, RELATED TO D UM, EXCUSE ME, JUST ON THE FEDERAL SIDE, JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT, UH, CAP METRO BOARD CHAIR AND I, AND THEN, UH, AND, AND, UH, MAYOR ADLER WAS IN DC AS WELL AND JOINED US FOR SOME OF OUR MEETINGS. WE, WE MET WITH OUR CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION EMPHASIZING AGAIN, THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSIT TRANSIT FUNDING WHILE THEY ARE KIND OF DOING THE SAUSAGE MAKING IN DC RIGHT NOW. I THINK IT IS LITERALLY CHANGING BY WE'RE AT THE POINT WHERE IT'S NOT CHANGING BY THE HOUR, IT'S CHANGING BY THE TWEET. AND SO WE'RE ALL KIND OF WITH BETA BREATH WATCHING WHAT WILL HAPPEN, BUT WE, WE ARE, WE'RE THERE, UH, EXPLAINING THE VALUE OF PROJECT CONNECT, GETTING THEM UPDATED ON WHERE WE ARE IN THE PROGRAM AND ASKING FOR AS MUCH FEDERAL TRANSIT FUNDING AS POSSIBLE FOR THESE PROGRAMS. WE ALSO HAD SOME REALLY GOOD MEETINGS WITH THE ADMINISTRATION AS WELL. UM, JUST, JUST GENERALLY, WE'RE TRYING TO GET INTO EITHER EVERY OTHER MONTH OR QUARTERLY UPDATES WITH FTA LEADERSHIP, PRETTY STANDARD IN OUR INDUSTRY, JUST AS CHE HERE'S WHERE WE ARE AT THE PROGRAM. KIND OF SEEING IF THERE'S ANY KIND OF RED FLAGS EARLIER, THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER ON, UH, BUT VERY GOOD POSITIVE MEETINGS, UH, THAT PEOPLE, AND I WILL TELL YOU OVERALL PEOPLE AROUND THE COUNTRY AND IN DC ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT OUR PROGRAM, THE NEXUS BETWEEN TRANSPORTATION AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT HAS PEOPLE EXCITED. THE ZERO EMISSION PIECE HAS PEOPLE EXCITED. THE TECHNOLOGY PIECE, THE INNOVATION OF AN ATP BOARD THAT IS SEPARATELY DESIGNED JUST FOR THIS. SO ALL OF THOSE LAYERS ARE, ARE GETTING A GREAT RECEPTION WHEN WE TALK TO PEOPLE. SO THAT'S GOOD. UH, THE OTHER TOPIC I WANTED TO BRING UP TODAY, UH, IN A REALLY POSITIVE WAY WE GO, THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE IS RELATED TO, AND THE TITLE IS CELEBRATING THE TRANS TRANS PROFESSIONALS AND LEADERS OF TOMORROW. AND SO I USED THE PHRASE A LOT, CRAWL, WALK, AND RUN, AND WE, WE, WE WANT TO DIP OUR TOE EARLY INTO KIND OF WORKING, UH, WITH THE COMMUNITY AND THINKING THROUGH INTERN AND APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS, WE HAVE A LOT OF THESE KINDS OF IDEAS PERCOLATING, AND WE HAVE, UH, A LOT OF WORK TO, TO BUILD A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT LARGE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM, ESPECIALLY FOR EITHER CONSTRUCTION, LABOR WORKFORCE, OR SOME ENGINEERING WORKFORCE, UH, THAT WILL HAPPEN OVER MONTHS AND YEARS AHEAD. BUT THE FIRST, UH, DIP IN THE WATER, IF YOU WILL, WAS HAVING 10 HIGH SCHOOL, SOPHOMORES AND JUNIORS PARTICIPATING IN AN ORANGE LINE, SUMMER INTERNSHIP PROGRAM. AND WE DID THIS WITH, UH, PARTNERSHIP AND LEADERSHIP BY AECOM WHO IS RUNNING THE ORANGE LINE DESIGN AND ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW FOR US. AND SO WE HAVE OUR STUDENTS, I THINK MOST OF THEM, IF NOT ALL HAVE JOINED US TODAY, I'VE HAD SOME CHANCE TO, TO MEET WITH THEM. THEY DID A, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'LL GO INTO OUR BUS GARAGES AND RAIL FACILITIES AND DIFFERENT THINGS OF THAT NATURE. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THEY DID WAS WORK ON KIND OF THE TRADE-OFFS OF IF YOU WILL, URBAN PLANNING AND CIVIL ENGINEERING, TRENT, AND KIND OF TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING ON CORRIDORS. AND THE TEAM WAS KIND OF GIVEN CELL CONGRESS AND THE DRAG. SO THE TWO MOST COMPLICATED PLACES THAT PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO SOLVE FOR 20 YEARS, WE SAID, HEY STUDENTS. AND WHAT I LOVED THE CONVERSATION WITH THEM WAS ABOUT, WAS THERE WAS A LOT OF CONVERSATION ABOUT, WELL, WHY CAN'T WE DO THIS? AND, AND THAT'S WHAT I ALSO ENCOURAGE THEM, WHICH IS THE FREEDOM OF VISIONING AND THE FREEDOM OF NOT BEING CONSTRAINED BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, THEY ARE GOING TO EXPERIENCE THE CITY WAY MORE THAN I'LL EXPERIENCE THE CITY JUST BASED ON AGE. AND SO I THINK IT'S SO EXCITING TO HAVE YOUNG PEOPLE HELPING GET INVOLVED IN A PROGRAM THAT WILL BE SO IMPACTFUL FOR THEIR FUTURE. UM, SO WITH THAT, IF, UH, BOTH, UM, KIMMY AND JACKIE, IF YOU DON'T MIND BOTH COMING UP, MAYBE YOU'D MAKE A COUPLE REMARKS ABOUT THE PROGRAM AND JUST YOUR THOUGHTS. AND THEN AFTER THAT A CHAIR, WE HAVE A CAKE, UH, AND WE THOUGHT WE COULD DO A LITTLE CELEBRATION, A COUPLE OF PICTURES WITH THE BOARD AND SEE A LITTLE CAKE BREAK JUST TO CELEBRATE THE GRADUATION OF THE STUDENTS FROM THEIR INTERNSHIP PROGRAM. SO WITH THAT, I'LL HAND IT OFF TO JACKIE AND KIMMY. WELCOME. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GOOD AFTERNOON, BOARD MEMBERS, MADAM CHAIR, I'M EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HOSTING US TODAY. UM, LIKE JACKIE SAID, MY NAME IS KIMMIE FELD BAUER. UM, I SERVE AS THE DEPUTY PROJECT MANAGER FOR THE ORANGE LINE DESIGN AND ENVIRONMENTAL TO REVIEW, UM, AND SPENT THE SUMMER, UM, DOING A REAL FUN PART OF MY JOB AND, UH, HOSTING, UH, THIS IS SIX OF OUR 10 BRILLIANT HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS THAT WE RECRUITED FROM, UH, ALONG THE ORANGE LINE CORRIDOR. WE WORKED WITH AISD TO IDENTIFY SCHOOLS WITHIN A ONE MILE BUFFER OF THE ORANGE LINE CORRIDOR SO THAT WE COULD IDENTIFY YOUTH THAT COULD THE PROJECT, UM, AND INFLUENCE THE OUTCOMES IN A WAY THAT MYSELF AND OTHER TECHNICAL EXPERTS ON THE PROGRAM MAY NOT HAVE, UM, UH, THE SAME VANTAGE [00:15:01] POINTS. AND SO ALSO WITH THAT, OUR HOPE IS THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO, UM, ADVANCE STEM CAREERS, UM, IN OUR COMMUNITY, UM, AND REALLY CREATE THAT, UH, THAT, THAT PIPELINE FOR, UH, TO TAKE OUR JOBS ESSENTIALLY. SO THANK YOU FOR HAVING US AND REALLY THIS IS ABOUT THEM. SO WE WANT TO CELEBRATE THEM. UM, THEY DID, LIKE RANDY SAID, SPENT SIX, SIX WEEKS WITH US. UM, THEY CAME IN EVERY THURSDAY FOR REALLY LONG DAYS. UM, WE DID EVERYTHING FROM VISITING DOTTIE WATKINS AND HER TEAM UP AT THE NORTH OPERATION CENTER. UM, WE WORKED ON, UH, UH, WENT TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN. UH, HOSTED US WHERE WE MET WITH CITY MANAGER CRUNK AND UNDERSTANDING THE, UM, THE, THE CRITICAL, UH, PARTNERSHIP THAT IT TAKES FOR MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS. UM, AND THEN ALSO TAUGHT THEM MICROSTATION AND OTHER WAYS TO, UH, UNDERSTAND HOW WE DESIGN PROJECTS LIKE THIS. AND LIKE RANDY SAID, UH, THEY SOLVED ALL THE PROBLEMS ON THE DRAG AND, UH, SOUTH CONGRESS. SO NO WORRIES ABOUT THAT. UM, AND YEAH, SO I'M, I'M REALLY SAD IT'S OVER, BUT REALLY EXCITED THAT THIS WAS OUR, OUR KICKOFF, UM, FOR HOPEFULLY MANY SUMMERS MORE TO COME, UH, PROJECT CONNECT INTERNSHIPS. SO THANK YOU FOR HAVING US. AND, UH, IF THE STUDENTS WANT TO COME UP AND BE RECOGNIZED BY THE BOARD, PLEASE JOIN US UP HERE. INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND WHAT SCHOOL YOU DO. OKAY. HELLO. I AM JOLLY AND JOEL KIZZIAH, IF ANYONE WANTS MY FUEL NOTE ANYWAY, UM, I AM FROM WAYSIDE SCHOOLS AND YEAH, I'M GOING INTO MY JUNIOR YEAR. HELLO. I AM HANNAH OLSON. I GO TO ANNE RICHARDS HIGH SCHOOL, AND I'M GOING INTO MY JUNIOR YEAR. HI, MY NAME IS MIRANDA, AND I'M ALSO GOING TO ANN RICHARDS INTO MY JUNIOR YEAR. HI, MY NAME IS ELLA MARIA OR ALLIE, AND I'M GOING TO MY SOPHOMORE YEAR AT WAYSIDE SCHOOLS. HELLO EVERYONE. I'M JAMIE. I'M GOING TO BE GOING TO MY SENIOR YEAR AT WAYSIDE SCHOOLS. HI, MY NAME'S AUGUST. I'M GOING INTO MY SENIOR YEAR AT AUSTIN HIGH, AND I'M REALLY GLAD I DID THIS PROGRAM AND I HOPE I CAN COME MORE. WELCOME EVERYONE. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR ENERGY IN PARTICIPATING IN THIS NEW ERA OF BOSTON, WHERE YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN WILL BE WRITING ON THE SYSTEM AND YOUR GRANDCHILDREN AND YOUR GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN. SO, AND I KNOW DR. BURNETT, YOU HAD A QUESTION. THANK MADAM CHAIR, WOMAN. UM, I COMMEND YOU FOR SPENDING YOUR TIME IN THE SUMMER DOING THIS. I'M CURIOUS. DID ANYONE CHANGE THEIR CAREER GOALS AS A RESULT OF THE EXPERIENCE? I THINK SOMEONE HAS AN ANSWER. UM, I DIDN'T REALLY CHANGE. I JUST KIND OF GOT A WIDER SPECT ON THE IDEA OF TAKING WHAT YOU LEARN FROM DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES IN LIFE AND USING THAT TO YOUR ADVANTAGE AND WHAT EXACTLY YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE. SO IT WAS A GREAT EXPERIENCE KNOWING THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT COULD ACTUALLY HAPPEN THAT EVEN BEING IN, BE IN TRANSIT IN WHATEVER YOU WANT TO DO IN LIFE, YOU COULD ALWAYS TAKE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES AND THAT LIFE, THOSE PEOPLE THAT YOU MEET AND USE THEM TO ADVANCE TO YOUR ADVANTAGE OR TO THE ADVANTAGE OF YOUR PURPOSE. SO THAT WAS NICE, VERY WELL SAID. I ENCOURAGE ALL OF YOU STARTING YOUR RESUME NOW. SO YOU WANT TO CAPTURE THIS AND PUT IT ON YOUR RESUME BECAUSE INTERN EXPERIENCES ARE NOTHING. AND WE WANT TO GIVE JOHN A. LITTLE BIT OF COMPETITION, SO NO FUTURE. SO CONGRATULATIONS. UM, FIRST OF ALL, I WANT ALL THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND AS DR. BURNETT SAID, YOU KNOW, IF I WAS YOUR AGE, I PROBABLY WANT TO BE PLAYING X-BOX OR, YOU KNOW, HANGING OUT WITH MY FRIENDS, NOT SITTING AROUND DOING BORING TRANSIT, BUT, UH, I THINK IT'S REALLY EXCITING THAT, THAT, UH, WE'RE ABLE TO GET, UH, STUDENTS LIKE YOURSELF THAT LIVE ON THE CORRIDOR TO ACTUALLY PARTICIPATE. I'VE DONE A LOT OF TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS OF THE COUNTRY. I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS. I THINK IT'S A GREAT IDEA. I ONLY WISH THAT WHEN I WAS YOUR AGE, I HAD THAT OPPORTUNITY. AND, UH, AS DR. BURNETT SAID, I HOPE SOME OF YOU THINK THAT TRANSPORTATION COULD BE INTERESTING. AND, AND WHEN YOU COME TIME TO PICK A CAREER, YOU MIGHT CONSIDER TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE. SO THANKS AGAIN. , WE'RE GOING TO TAKE SOME PHOTOS AND TAKE A QUICK [00:20:01] BREAK 4K. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. LET'S MAKE A COUPLE OF . EXCELLENT. SO WITH THAT, I'LL WRAP UP MY, UH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR REPORT. SO THE WAY WE KIND OF RESTRUCTURED YOUR DIRECT REPORT A LITTLE BIT WAS WE HAD THESE TECHNICAL UPDATES AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT UPDATES AT THE FRONT END AND EDX AT THE BACK. UM, GOOD SUGGESTION BY BOARD MEMBER ELKINS, WHICH IS KIND OF COMBINED THEM ALL TOGETHER. SO, UH, NOW WHAT I'D LIKE TO DO IS CALL UP JUST WITH INSIDE THE FRAME OF THE ENTIRE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR UPDATE. AND, YOU KNOW, THIS GIVES US A GOOD CHANCE TO DIFFERENT, UH, STAFF MEMBERS TO, TO, TO BRING TOPICS TO THE BOARD IS WE'LL ASK JACKIE [II.a. Community Engagement and Involvement Monthly Update] TO COME UP AND DO THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT UPDATE. THERE'S BEEN AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF ACTIVITY, UH, AND JACKIE AND ALL OF HER TEAM CONTINUE TO DO GREAT WORK IN THIS AREA. IT'S NOT ADVANCING OKAY. THERE WE GO. GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYONE. UH, MY NAME IS JACKIE NIERENBERG. I'M DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOR THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP. AND WE'VE BEEN QUITE BUSY THIS MONTH. SO I'LL GIVE YOU AN UPDATE AND TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHERE WE'RE HEADED. SO THIS PAST MONTH WE HAD A NUMBER OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETINGS. WE'VE BEEN AMASSING THESE ADVISORY COMMITTEES, WHICH IS REALLY GREAT, AND IT'S A WONDERFUL WAY TO GET PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS. SO ON JULY 22ND, WE HAD OUR PROJECT CONNECT AMBASSADOR NETWORK MEETING, UH, THE PKN AND WE HAD A, AN ORANGE LINE NORTH AND SOUTH ALIGNMENT WALKTHROUGH. THEN ON JULY 30TH, WE HAD THE PROJECT CONNECT, A COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE, THE CAC, UM, AND WE HAD A DISCUSSION ABOUT INTERNAL GOVERNANCE. UM, AND THEN WE ARE HAVING ANOTHER SPECIAL CALLED MEETING TODAY OF THE CAC SO THAT THEY CAN ADOPT THEIR BYLAWS AND ELECT OFFICERS ON, UH, JULY 7TH. WE HAD OUR FIRST PLANNING, SUSTAINABILITY EQUITY AND DBE COMMITTEE, THE PEACE SEC. AND WE PROPOSED, WE PRESENTED THE PROPOSED, UM, ATP DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION POLICY, AND GOT FEEDBACK, REALLY VALUABLE FEEDBACK FROM THE GROUP. UM, AND THEN ON JULY 12TH, WE HAD OUR JOINT TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING TO ORIENT EVERYBODY ON THE PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THESE ADVISORY COMMITTEES AND GIVE THEM A RUNDOWN ON THE PROJECT CONNECT PROGRAM. AND THEN JULY 19TH, WE, UH, WE HAD OUR FIRST ENGINEERING, ARCHITECTURE AND CONSTRUCTION MEETING, AND BASICALLY A GET TO KNOW YOU MEETING A LITTLE BIT OF AN ONBOARDING AND TALKING ABOUT WHAT THE COMMITTEE IS GOING TO BE DOING. UH, WE ARE PLANNING TO HAVE ANOTHER JOINT, UH, TAC COMMITTEE MEETING SO THAT WE CAN WALK THROUGH THE ALIGNMENTS WITH ALL THREE GROUPS AND INVITE THE CAC AS WELL. AND THEN FINALLY ON AUGUST 19TH, WE WILL BE HAVING OUR FIRST FINANCE AND RISK COMMITTEE MEETING LOTS AND LOTS OF MEETINGS GOING ON. UM, UPCOMING, WE HAVE A SERIES OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS HAPPENING, UH, STARTING NEXT WEEK. UH, REALLY EXCITED TO DO [00:25:01] THESE, TO TALK ABOUT THE 15% DESIGN AND START TALKING TO THE COMMUNITY ABOUT WHAT IT MEANS TO PUT THESE PROJECTS ON THE GROUND AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO ORGANIZE THE CORRIDORS, WHERE THESE PROJECTS ARE RUNNING. YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO INCLUDE A LOT OF DIFFERENT ELEMENTS TO MAKE IT A COMPLETE STREET. UH, AND SO IT'S A, IT'S A CHANCE FOR THE COMMUNITY TO SORT OF ROLL UP THEIR SLEEVES, TALK TO TECHNICAL FOLKS AND GIVE US SOME INPUT ABOUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO THEM AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD LEVEL. UM, AND TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT TRADE-OFFS, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN THE STREET, WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, MIGHT NOT BE AS IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE, AND THIS WILL GIVE US SOME GOOD INFORMATION TO MOVE FORWARD TO THE NEXT PHASE OF DESIGN. UH, SO WE'LL BE HAVING TWO BLUE LINE VIRTUAL MEETINGS, UM, WITH WORKING GROUP BREAKOUT SESSIONS AND FOR ORANGE LINE MEETINGS, MOSTLY BECAUSE THE ORANGE LINE IS SO LONG, WE'RE SPLITTING UP INTO NORTH AND SOUTH. UM, AND THEN AS ALWAYS, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN ONLINE SELF GUIDED VERSION OF THE MEETING ON PROJECT CONNECT.COM. THAT'LL BE LIVE JULY 27TH THROUGH AUGUST 27TH. AND THEN FINALLY, UH, WE HAD PLANNED TO DO OUR VERY FIRST IN-PERSON OPEN HOUSE MEETING, UH, THE 31ST AT THE LIBRARY. AND, UM, DUE TO THE UNCERTAINTY THAT'S GOING ON RIGHT NOW WITH COVID AND AN IMMINENT STAGE FOUR ANNOUNCEMENT, WE HAVE DECIDED THAT OUT OF ABUNDANCE OF CAUTION, UH, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO POSTPONE THAT SO UNFORTUNATE, BUT, UH, WE WILL BE BACK FOLKS. SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO DOING THAT IN THE FUTURE. AND JUST WANTED TO RECAP. WHEN WE BREAK OUT INTO OUR DISCUSSION GROUPS AT THESE VIRTUAL COMMUNITY MEETINGS, THEY WILL BE BROKEN OUT INTO SMALLER SECTIONS OF EACH OF THE CORRIDORS. AND AGAIN, THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET DOWN TO THE REAL GRANULAR LEVEL AND LET PEOPLE SPEAK TO US ABOUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO THEM AND WHAT THEIR CONCERNS ARE ABOUT THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD AS IT RELATES TO THESE PROJECTS. UM, AND SO THESE ARE THESE REFLECT WORKING GROUPS THAT WE'VE ALREADY ESTABLISHED, AND WE WANT THE COMMUNITY TO KNOW THAT PEOPLE CAN ALWAYS JOIN THESE WORKING GROUPS. THESE ARE GOING TO BE GOING ON FOR QUITE SOME TIME. WE'RE GOING TO GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER VERY, VERY WELL OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS. SO WE INVITE EVERYBODY TO PARTICIPATE. YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE IN A PARTICULAR AREA OF A WORKING GROUP. YOU CAN HAVE JUST AN INTEREST IN IT AND PARTICIPATE IN THAT SPECIFIC GROUP AS WELL. AND THEN UPCOMING IN THE FALL, WE'VE GOT MORE THINGS ON THE HORIZON. WE'VE GOT SOME, SOME COMMUNITY MEETINGS WILL BE HELD FOR THE METRO RAPID GOLD LINE AND THE DOMAIN SOUTH LAMAR ROUTES. UM, AND WE'LL PROBABLY DO AN OUTREACH, UH, A SERIES OF OUTREACH MEETINGS ON THE METRO RAPID STATION DESIGN AS WELL, MORE ON THAT TO COME, UM, WITH PICKUP, WE WILL BE DOING NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH FOR A NEW SOUTH AUSTIN SERVICE ZONE IN THE FALL. AND THEN FINALLY THERE WILL, THERE WILL BE NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH ON THE NEW METRO RAIL STATIONS AT MCCOLLOUGH AND BROADMORE, AND THAT IS IT FOR THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT UPDATE. I'M HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS BEFORE I PASS IT ALONG TO THE TECHNICAL UPDATE. THANK YOU, JACKIE. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD? YES. THANK YOU. MADAM CHAIR. THANKS VERY MUCH FOR THE UPDATE, JACKIE, THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT COMMUNICATION AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GOING ON. JUST ONE SUGGESTION GOING FORWARD FOR THE THREE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES. IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA THAT THE THREE HEADS, WHEN THEY HAVE A COMMITTEE MEETING AT THE BOARD, DO A TWO MINUTE UPDATE ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED IN THEIR RESPECTIVE COMMITTEES. SO, UH, MADAM CHAIR, DR. BURNETT MYSELF, I THINK THAT WOULD BE AWESOME. YES, THAT'S A GREAT SUGGESTION. AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT PREVIOUSLY. I THINK THAT WILL, THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO MOVING FORWARD. SO GREAT. THANK YOU. THANKS FOR, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK THAT, THAT, THAT CAP METRO AND AND ATP HAS DONE BEST IS REALLY INVOLVED THE COMMUNITY AND THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING. AND IT'S, IT'S GREAT TO SEE, UH, WHEN'S THE COMMUNITY GOING TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW AND COMMENT ON, UH, THE JPA DRAFTS AND MORE FORMAL THAT DAY IS THE TIME TO TALK ABOUT THAT NOW, OR IS IT DIFFERENT TO, WE'RE GOING TO DO A TECHNICAL UPDATE AND THEN THERE'S AN ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATE INSIDE THE ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATE. I'M GOING TO HAVE A COUPLE OF STAFF MEMBERS TALK ABOUT THE JPA PROCESS, AND THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF SCHEDULE IN THERE RELATED TO THAT. OKAY. UH, SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE'RE GETTING IN OUR OFFICE RELATE TO, UM, UH, PLANS TO MITIGATE THE HARM TO BUSINESSES. SO I ASK THAT NOW, OR SHOULD I ASK THAT QUESTION LATER? I WOULD, IF WE CAN DEFER TILL THE JPA UPDATE, THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE THE BEST TIMING. OKAY. UH, AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION I WAS SENT HERE BY MY CONSTITUENTS TO ASK, UH, RELATED TO, UH, THE, THE BEST TOOLS OR PRACTICES TO ENSURE THE EQUITY IN THE HIRING OF MINORITY CONTRACTORS. SHOULD WE COVER THAT THEN TOO? OR SHOULD WE GO TO THAT? THAT WILL BE COVERED AS WELL. SOUNDS GOOD. OKAY. I'LL HOLD ON TO ALL THOSE QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. [00:30:03] THANK YOU. I JUST HAD JUST A MINOR COMMENT. I THINK WE STARTED WITH JULY AND THEN CONTINUED IN JULY. THAT'S JUST THOSE OTHER MEETINGS STARTED IN JUNE, JUST A MINOR UPDATE ON THE TIMEWARP ON OUR SCHEDULES, BUT THANK YOU FOR ALL THE HARD WORK AND GETTING ALL THIS MEETING STARTED AND TO THE STAFF THAT ORGANIZED EVERYONE'S SCHEDULE TO MAKE SURE WE LAUNCH THIS MEETING. SO THANK YOU, JACKIE. OUR PLEASURE. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO NEXT UP CHAIR, UH, ASKING INSIDE THE UPDATE HERE FOR TECH UPDATE, DAVE COUCH COULD COME UP. UH, I WANT TO PUT A COUPLE OF NOTES AS DAVE'S COMING UP. ONE THING WOULD BE, UH, GABRIEL MENTIONED IT, BUT KIND OF FINE POINT ON THE SOUTH MAN CHECK PICKUP ZONE [II.b. Project Connect Monthly Technical Update] IS GOING TO LAUNCH JULY 27TH. SO THAT WILL BE NOW COMPLIMENTARY THE DESKTOP PICKUP ZONE THAT WE'VE ALREADY LAUNCHED. SO THAT'D BE TWO PROJECT CONNECT PROJECTS THAT HAVE ALREADY NOW BEEN ON THE GROUND, UH, MEETING THE KIND OF COMMITMENT FOR THE VOTERS AND RELATED TO THE OVERALL PROGRAM. SO THE TEAM HAS WORKED HARD TO, TO GET READY FOR THAT ONE. THE THIRD PICKUP ZONE WILL COME IN IN AUGUST. THE OTHER THING I WANT TO JUST, AND I KNOW DAVE WILL NATURALLY DO THIS, BUT I WANT TO REALLY REITERATE, UH, MY THANKS TO THE CITY STAFF AS WELL ON THE 15% DESIGN. UH, THEY ARE WORKING HAND IN GLOVE WITH DAVE, UH, PETER AND JOHN AND THE TEAMS. AND, UH, THIS IS A REALLY SIGNIFICANT PROGRAM, MEGA PRO TWO MEGA PROJECTS INSIDE THIS PROGRAM THAT WE'VE NEVER DONE IN THE REGION BEFORE. AND, UH, THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE, UH, THERE'S A NEW TOPICS, BUT I JUST WANT TO COMPLIMENT BOTH, NOT ONLY OUR STAFF, BUT THE CITY STAFF OF BEING JUST THIS WILLING GOOD PARTNER TO TALK ABOUT HOW WE ALL GOTTA WORK TOGETHER TO GET THIS DONE. SO JUST THANK YOU TO GINA AND NICK AND HER TEAM, UH, AS DAVE KICKS THAT OFF. OKAY. THEN I'M SURE BOARD MEMBERS, PRESIDENT OF CLARK. UH, IT'S A PLEASURE TO GO AHEAD AND GIVE YOU THE MONTHLY UPDATE ON PROGRESS THAT WE'RE MAKING ON PROJECT CONNECT. I WANT TO START WITH THE BLUE AND ORANGE LINES. UH, AS PRESIDENT CLARK HAS SAID, THE 15% DESIGN IS IN, UH, WE'VE GONE THROUGH REVIEW, UH, WITH THE CITY, UH, AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS. AND WE'RE IN THE PROCESS RIGHT NOW OF WORKING THROUGH THE COMMENTS THAT ARE THERE TO RESOLVE ANY AND THEN TO GET OTHERS INCORPORATED. SO WE TAKE THEM FORWARD INTO THE 30% DESIGN. WE'RE STILL OUT IN THE FIELD DOING SOIL BORINGS, LOOKING TO SEE WHAT EXACTLY WE'RE GOING TO HAVE FOR THE TUNNEL, SO THAT WE CAN ADVANCE THAT DESIGN. AND WE'RE ALSO GOING TO START SOMETHING THAT IS GOING TO BE MORE ADVANCEMENT ON THE SIOUX WORK, THE UTILITIES IN EACH INTERSECTION. SO WE'RE GOING TO START, AND WE'LL BE BACK WITH PROBABLY THREE CONTRACTS TO GO AHEAD AND START TO DO THAT WORK AT EACH INTERSECTION. THAT'S WHERE MOST OF THE INTERFERENCES WILL BE. UH, SO WE'LL, WE'LL BE COMING BACK WITH THAT SO THAT WHEN WE GET TO THE POINT THAT WE CAN GET STARTED, UH, WITH THE UTILITY RELOCATION, WE'LL HAVE THE INFORMATION, WE'LL KNOW WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING FOR. UH, THE, THAT WILL ALL TIE INTO THE 30% WE CONTINUE THE OTHER NORMAL ANALYSES THAT ARE THERE, EVERYTHING FROM LOOKING AT FEMA DRAINAGE ANALYSIS, UH, AND, AND AS MR. CARGILL HAS SAID, THE COORDINATION HAS BEEN TREMENDOUS WITH THE CITY. AS A MATTER OF FACT, WE HAVE A MEETING TOMORROW, UH, THAT'S GOING TO GO FOR ABOUT FIVE HOURS, UH, THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO GO AHEAD AND START TO SORT THROUGH THE PERMITS AND THE UTILITIES. UH, THE PERMITS ARE A VERY COMPLEX PROCESS. UH, SO IS THAT SOMETHING THAT AN ECON I HAVE PUT TOGETHER AND WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND START THROUGH THAT IN DETAIL, UH, TOMORROW, UM, IT, WITH PROTECT, WITH RESPECT TO THE NEPA PROCESS, UH, IN THE FIRST STEP OF EACH ONE OF THE NEW STARCH PROGRAMS, IF YOU RECALL THE PRESENTATIONS THAT WE'VE DONE PREVIOUSLY, THE FIRST THING YOU GET INTO IS PROJECT DEVELOPMENT. SO WE REQUESTED ENTRY INTO PROJECT DEVELOPMENT. WE ANTICIPATE GETTING THAT APPROVAL SOMETIME DURING THE EARLY PART OF AUGUST. UH, SO I DON'T KNOW, LET US GET ON THAT FIRST TWO YEAR CYCLE, 24 MONTH CYCLE TO GO AHEAD AND GET TO THE END OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND READY TO ENTER INTO ENGINEERING. WE CONTINUE TO WORK ON THE OTHER PORTIONS THAT WE NEED, UH, WHETHER IT'S ARCHEOLOGICAL, NOISE, VIBRATION, ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN YOU'RE DEVELOPING A FULL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT, METRO RAPID, UH, ON EXPO AND PLEASANT VALLEY, UH, THAT'S GOING ALONG VERY, VERY WELL. UH, FTA HAS ASSIGNED TO PMO, UH, TO GO AHEAD AND SHEPHERD US THROUGH AND REVIEW EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING, UH, SO THAT WE CAN GO AHEAD AND GET TO A FUNDING AGREEMENT, UH, WITH THAT WE'RE DEVELOPING THE READINESS DOCUMENTS THAT WE NEED, AND WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE CITY ON LOCATIONS OF THE INDIVIDUAL STOPS, WHETHER THEY'RE FAR STOP NEAR STOP AND ALL THE DETAILS THAT GO WITH IT. WE'VE ALSO GOT THE VEHICLE PROCUREMENT UNDERWAY, UH, IT'S EXPECTED TO VIA BOOKWORM. IT WILL COME BACK TO THE CAP METRO BOARD OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS THAT CONTAINS OPTIONS TO BE ABLE TO GET THE BUSES FOR, UH, ALL OF THE METRO EXPRESS ROUTES. UH, THE GOAL LINE, UH, WE'RE JUST SCRATCHING THE PROVERBIAL SURFACE, [00:35:01] GETTING READY TO GO AHEAD AND START WORK ON THAT. UH, AND WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF LOOKING AT THAT WITH FTA AND DOING AN ANALYSIS OF WHAT THE RIDERSHIP IS LOOKING AT, NOT ONLY THE GOAL LINE, BUT ALSO THE SOUTHERN EXTENSION OF 8 0 3 TO MANCHESTER IN OAK HILL ON THE RED LINE AND PICKUP SERVICE, UH, MR. CLARK ALREADY STOLE THE THUNDER, UH, WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD CIRCULATORS. UH, SO THEY'RE PROGRESSING VERY WELL, UH, AS THE LEAD INTO A LOT OF THE PROJECTS THAT WE'VE GOT IN PROJECT CONNECT, UH, MACOLA NEXT TO THE SOCCER STADIUM, UH, IS GOING WELL. WE'VE GOT A CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION REQUEST THAT'S IN FOR FTA FOR A SMALL PIECE OF LAND THAT WE HAVE TO ACQUIRE AS PART OF THE PROJECT, A 30% DESIGN WILL BE FINISHED IN JULY, AND WE'RE DEVELOPING, WHAT'S REQUIRED TO ACQUIRE REAL ESTATE. IT'S CALLED A RAMP REAL ESTATE ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT PLAN. SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE IN PLACE, AND WE'LL USE IT NOT ONLY FOR THIS, BUT ALSO THE FEDERAL PROCESS, UH, BROADMORE STATION COORDINATION IS ONGOING, UH, WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND ALSO WITH BASICALLY THE TRAIL FOUNDATION, LOOKING AT HOW WE GET TO WHICH POINT. AND THEN WE'VE ALSO GOT A LAKELAND LEANDER, UH, SECOND TRACK THAT WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF LOOKING AT THAT CONCLUDES MY REPORT FOR THE MONTH. I'M GOING TO BE GLAD TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. UH, THANKS VERY MUCH, DAVE. LOTS GOING ON IN YOUR WORLD. I CAN SEE JUST, JUST ONE QUICK QUESTION ON, UM, THE EXPO PLEASANT VALLEY. YOU MENTIONED VEHICLE PROCUREMENTS UNDERWAY. COULD YOU COMMENT A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, YOU'RE LOOKING INTO ELECTRICAL VEHICLES, ELECTRIC BUSES VERSUS CONVENTIONAL. YEAH. IT'S EVERYTHING. IT'S A, WHEN THE PROCUREMENT WAS PUT TOGETHER, IT'S A CAPITAL METRO PROCUREMENT TO GO AHEAD AND REPLACE STATE OF GOOD REPAIR BUSES AS THE BASE PORTION OF THAT CONTRACT IN TRYING TO ADVANCE QUICKER WITH WHAT WOULD BE THERE FOR EXPO IN PLEASANT VALLEY. WHEN THE CONTRACT WAS ADVERTISED, WE PUT AN OPTION IN THAT CONTRACT SO THAT WE COULD EXERCISE IT DEPENDING UPON THE TIMING OF WHERE WE WERE WITH EXPO IN PLEASANT VALLEY. IT IS AN ENTIRE ELECTRIC FLEET INCLUDED IN THERE ALSO IS THE OPTION FOR CHARGERS, UH, WE'LL NEED CHARGERS THAT ARE GOING TO BE AT THE END OF LINE. AND THEN WE'RE ALSO GOING TO NEED ADDITIONAL CHARGING EQUIPMENT, UH, THAT WILL BE AT THE BUS GARAGES. YEAH, THAT'S GREAT TO HEAR ON THE ELECTRIC BUSES. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS WE SHOULD START THINKING ABOUT, AND I'M SURE YOU ALREADY ARE, AS WE DEVELOP THIS PROGRAM AND I USE THAT TERM CAUSE RANDY LIKES THAT WORD AND IT'S THE RIGHT WORD. IT'S PROGRAMMED, NOT PROJECTS IS HOW DO WE MEASURE OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT IN THIS WHOLE PROGRAM? YOU KNOW, AN ELECTRIC BUSES ARE GOING TO BE A KEY COMPONENT TO LOWERING OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT AND THE FIRST STEP TO KIND OF, YOU KNOW, LOWERING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT IS YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO MEASURE IT. AND AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROGRAM OVER THE NEXT DAY, EIGHT OR NINE YEARS, THAT'S SOMETHING I'M SURE WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE FOCUSED ON. AND THE ARE THERE, I THINK WE CAN BE A LEADER IN, IN NATIONWIDE TRANSIT TO HAVING, YOU KNOW, I THINK THE BASIS BEHIND THE PROGRAM OF EVERYTHING, WHETHER IT'S BUS OR WHETHER IT'S LIGHT RAIL OR WHETHER IT'S EVENTUALLY THE COMMUTER RAIL, UH, AND PICKUP SERVICE, EVERYTHING BEING ELECTRIC VEHICLES, I THINK THAT'S GOING TO MAKE A TREMENDOUS EFFECT. UH, IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE STARTED TO PUT SOME INITIAL NUMBERS TOGETHER AT THE VERY, DURING I GUESS ABOUT THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF, BUT I AGREE IT'S SOMETHING WE NEED TO TRACK AND I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE A BIG BENEFIT. THANK YOU. I GUESS I'M JUST CURIOUS, THE $2.8 MILLION IS THAT USED TOWARDS THESE VIAS VEHICLES OR SOMETHING ELSE. I CAN ANSWER THAT FOR YOU, DAVE. UH, THOSE, THOSE ARE A GRANT THE WAY, THE WAY THE LOW AND ZERO EMISSION PROGRAM FDA WORKS, IT'S BASICALLY REPLACING A FLEET. SO THAT WILL ALLOW US TO RETIRE OUT KIND OF THE COST DIFFERENTIAL BETWEEN A DIESEL AND ELECTRIC BOSS ON, I THINK THAT BRAND WAS FOR FIVE AND PLUS SOME TECHNICAL TRAINING FOR STAFF AND SOME, UH, UM, DEPOT CHARGING THAT IS NOT CONNECTED TO FUNDING RELATED TO THESE THAT THAT'S JUST REGULAR, IF YOU WILL, CAPITAL METRO STATE OF GOOD REPAIR FLEET MANAGEMENT, JUST AS LIKE TO BOARD MEMBER ELKINS MENTIONED CAPITAL. METRO HAS A SUSTAINABILITY PLAN IT'S WORKING THROUGH RIGHT NOW ON A LOT OF CARBON GOALS, AND THOSE WILL FEED IN ULTIMATELY TO, AND WHEN THE TEAM COMES UP TO TALK ABOUT THE G JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, THEY KIND OF BLEND TOGETHER IN THE SENSE OF HOW THIS PART DOES ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT IN RELATION TO LONGTERM, HOW CAPITAL METRO OPERATES, THE SYSTEM, WHICH THERE, SO THAT KIND OF HAND IN GLOVE RELATIONSHIP. MY QUESTION REFERS MORE TO THE PICKUP SERVICE. ARE ANY OF THOSE VEHICLES ALSO GOING TO BE, UH, ELECTRIC VEHICLES OR IS THERE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT FLEET TO ALSO BE ELECTRIFIED? LET ME TAKE THIS. YEAH, GO AHEAD. THIS IS NOT GENERALLY DAVE'S WHEELHOUSE ON THIS ONE. UH, SO THOSE ARE NOT ELECTRIC. THEY, UH, BUT THEY'RE VERY LOW, LOW EMISSION IN THE SENSE [00:40:01] OF TRADITIONAL A FUEL SOURCE, BUT WE, OUR INDUSTRY IS KIND OF WORKING TOWARDS VEHICLES OF THAT SIZE BEING CONSISTENT FOR ELECTRIFICATION. SO WE ACTUALLY PILOTED ONE VEHICLE, BUT A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, UM, ONE THAT IS BEING USED IN KIND OF AIRPORT, CAR RENTAL, KIND OF CIRCULATION OPERATIONS, UH, THAT IS THE NEXT KIND OF VEHICLE KIND OF IN THE TRANSIT INDUSTRY. WE'RE WAITING TO SEE SOME ELECTRIFICATION, ZERO EMISSIONS PROCESS. SO THERE'S A FEW MANUFACTURERS OUT THERE. I WOULD SAY IT'S NOT READY FOR PRIME TIME YET, BECAUSE THE WAY THOSE VEHICLES ARE USED IS A LOT MORE LIKE A REGULAR CAR. UH, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THEY IDLE ALL THE TIME BECAUSE, UH, TYPES OF SYSTEMS ON BOARD AND THEN YOU HAVE SPECIALIZED LIFTS AND DIFFERENT THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO AGAIN, THE GOAL CAP METRO IS MORE OR LESS SAID, UH, OUT OF ALL OF OUR FLEET, THE GOAL IS TO GO TO FULL ZERO MISSION. SO RIGHT NOW THAT'S ELECTRIFICATION, BUT THERE MIGHT BE A TIME IN THE FUTURE WHERE THAT'S, UH, KIND OF HYDROGEN, UH, THAT THAT'S PART OF OUR INDUSTRY IS MOVING THAT WAY AS WELL. SO I THINK YOU'LL SEE EVERYTHING IN THE PROGRAM WE ARE GOING TO DO IS HOW DO WE MAKE EVERYTHING IS AS LOW TO ZERO EMISSION AS POSSIBLE THAT THAT ACTUALLY FUNCTIONS TO ALL RIGHT. SO LIKE WE COULD PROBABLY BUY A COUPLE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES THAT ARE VANS LIKE THAT, BUT THEY WOULD NEVER FUNCTION TO THE PERFORMANCE WE NEED FOR THE SERVICE TODAY. UM, BUT THE GOOD THING IS THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF A VEHICLE LIKE THAT IS TOTALLY DIFFERENT THAN A FIXED ROUTE BUS THAT ONCE YOU BUY YOUR YOU'RE REALLY WITH THAT ASSET FOR, YOU KNOW, BORDERLINE 14 YEARS. OKAY. THANK YOU, RANDY. UM, AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I DON'T NEGLECT MS. VAN DACA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS WHERE YOU CAN SEE US, UM, I WANT TO MAKE SURE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS AS WELL, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. UM, ANY MORE QUESTIONS? YES. A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. UH, JUST AN UPDATE. UM, MR. COUCH, THE, UH, FIRST ON THE RED LINE, UH, JUST REMIND ME AGAIN, WHAT THE TARGET TIMEFRAME IS FOR THE MCCALLA STATION BROADMORE STATION AND THE LAKELINE TO LEANDER, UH, UPGRADES, UH, TRACK UPGRADES. HE PORTION FOR THE MCCULLOUGH STATION, UH, IS A LITTLE OVER TWO YEARS OUT. UM, THE ONE FOR MACOLA, I DO NOT HAVE THAT FOR BROADMORE. I DO NOT KNOW THAT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT I'LL GET YOU THAT INFORMATION. OKAY. SO, SO LIKE FOR THE, FOR MCCALLA IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE, I THOUGHT I WAS HEARING SOME SPRING OF 23, BASICALLY, PROBABLY THEREABOUTS THAT COULD ENTIRELY BE, LET ME GO BACK AND MAKE SURE THAT I'VE GOT THE RIGHT DATES FOR BOTH OF THOSE AND I'LL GET THOSE BACK TO YOU. OKAY. UM, AND THEN, UM, BACK TO SOMETHING THAT IS REALLY WITHIN YOUR WHEELHOUSE. YEAH. GIVE ME ONE RICHARD, PLEASE, UH, BACK TO THE BLUE AND THE ORANGE LINE IN THE, UH, THE, UH, OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS. SO WE'RE NOW AT THE 15%, UH, DESIGN BILL, OR EXCUSE ME, 15%, UM, UH, 15% DESIGN WHERE WE SUBMIT AND SAY, THIS IS WHERE WE KIND OF THINK WE ARE, UM, AS WE'RE GONNA PRESENT OFFICIALLY, TODAY'S Y'ALL ARE GONNA PRESENT TO US AND WE'RE GOING TO GO THROUGH AND IT'S ALREADY POSTED ON THE WEBSITE FOR THE PUBLIC. YOU KNOW, THINK THINGS ARE GOING TO CHANGE. THINGS HAPPEN. WE MAY HAVE ONE IDEA WHEN WE GET STARTED AND WE GO ALONG AND WE FIND THE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE COME ACROSS THE, THE, YOU KNOW, ANCIENT INDIAN BURIAL GROUND OR WHATEVER. IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT CAUSES US OR LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE TRACK, UM, ESCALATIONS, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE, UH, ELEVATIONS INTERNALLY THAT THAT WILL CAUSE ISSUES. WHAT DOES THAT FUNDAMENTALLY DO WITH OUR FEDERAL PARTNERS? I MEAN, HOW MUCH VARIATION, UM, ARE WE GOING TO BE ALLOWED TO HAVE AS WE GO FROM A 15% UP TO A 30%, DO THEY, I GUESS FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE PUBLIC IS WE'RE MAKING KIND OF CHANGES. DO THEY LOOK BACK INTO, THEY GO, OH, WELL, AT 15% YOU SAID YOU WANTED, YOU KNOW, YOUR, YOUR THOUGHT PROCESS WAS THAT YOU WERE GOING TO HAVE THIS MANY THINGS, YOU KNOW, ABOVE GROUND VERSUS THIS MANY THINGS UNDERGROUND. OH. BUT AT 30%, YOU'VE, YOU'VE KIND OF FLIPPED IT A LITTLE BIT. DO THEY GO BACK AND HOLD SOME THINGS LIKE, LIKE PUT X MARKS OR WE CHANGE THINGS OR HOLD THINGS AGAINST US WHEN WE COME BACK IN THE NEXT PHASE OF THE PROJECT AND TURN IN THE NEXT, UH, UH, SUBMISSION FOR OUR PLANS. OKAY, LET ME, LET ME KIND OF WALK THROUGH THAT PROCESS. THE 15% DOES NOT GET REVIEWED BY FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION. WE GO AHEAD AND USE THE 15% THAT WE DEVELOPED WITH THE COMMENTS TO REALLY GET MORE DETAILED. WE'LL GO INTO 30% WHEN WE GET TO 30%, WE'LL DO THE SAME REVIEW, THE SAME PROCESS. AND WE GET THAT DONE AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME THAT WE GET OUT OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT THAT I WAS SPEAKING ABOUT EARLIER, AND THAT WE GO AHEAD AND GET OUT OF THE NEPA PROCESS. THE NEXT STEP IN THAT IS TO GO THROUGH WHAT'S CALLED ENGINEERING. AND WHEN YOU GO INTO ENGINEERING, IT'S THE TIME THAT YOU HAVE TO COMMIT TO THE FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION. WHAT THE SCOPE OF THE PROJECT IS GOING TO BE WITH A COST OF THE PROJECT IS GOING TO BE, AND THAT'S WHEN YOU GET LOCKED INTO WHAT THOSE DOLLARS WILL BE AND WHAT THE SCOPE WILL BE, UH, EXAMPLE WOULD BE, IF WE SAY AT THAT POINT IN TIME THAT WE'RE GOING TO BUY, YOU KNOW, 30 RAIL CARS, UH, WHEN WE GET TO THE END OF THE PROJECT, THEY WILL LOOK TO MAKE SURE WE BOUGHT 30 [00:45:01] RAIL CARS. UH, WE HAVE TO DELIVER WITH WHAT THAT SCOPE IS. THAT'S COMMITTED. UH, AND IT'S IT, THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING THAT WE GET AT THAT POINT. SO TO STICK WITH YOUR EXAMPLE, THERE, WITH THE RAIL CARS, IF WE, RIGHT NOW, WE'RE AT 15%, WE'RE LIKE, WE THINK IT'S GOING TO BE 20 RAIL CARS. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE GET TO THE 30% WHEN WE'RE ACTUALLY SUBMITTING FOR THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT PHASE OR FOR THE ENGINEERING PHASE. AND WE SAY, OKAY, ACTUALLY WE, WE REALIZE AFTER REVIEWING THIS WITH THE COMMUNITY INPUT AND EVERYTHING ELSE AND LOOKING AT OUR, OUR, OUR SPECS AND OUR DESIGN AND EVERYTHING, WE THINK WE NEED TO BUMP THAT UP TO 30 CARS THAT THE FEDS ARE GONNA SAY, OKAY, COOL. BUT IT'S NO PROBLEM. IT'S AT THAT POINT AT WHICH THEY SAY, OKAY, BOOM, NOW WE'RE LOCKING IT IN. AND NOW WE'RE GOING TO HOLD YOU TO WHAT YOU'RE SUBMITTED. RIGHT. LOCK IT IN. WHEN WE GO INTO ENTRY INTO ENGINEERING, GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS. AND THAT'S WHAT WE COME UP WITH FOR THE FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT AT THE END OF THE WHOLE PROCESS. OKAY. AND THAT IS, AND HOW MUCH DO WE HAVE TO HAVE, IS THAT, IS THAT AT THE 100% DESIGN OR IS THAT THAT'S AT THE 3,000 AND THAT'S ALL IN HOW WE DO THE CONTRACTING. THAT'S WHEN WE ACTUALLY DO IT. IT'S WE MAY DO SOME CONTRACTING THAT IS BASED ON 30%, DEPENDING UPON THE BUSINESS MODEL THAT WE CHOOSE. WE MAY DO SOME CONTRACTING THAT IS A HUNDRED PERCENT DESIGN. THOSE ARE THE THINGS WE HAVE TO LOOK AT IN A RISK ASSESSMENT LATER THIS FALL TO DETERMINE WHAT THE BEST METHODOLOGY IS FOR DOING THE CONTRACTING. AND THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE TO DO FOR THE FDA PROCESS. YOU HAVE TO HAVE, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO SHOW THAT YOU WENT THROUGH THE PROJECT, THAT YOU LOOK AT THE DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVES FOR CONTRACTING, AND THAT YOU'VE GOT SOMETHING THAT SAYS THESE ARE THE RIGHT ONES TO USE, UH, THAT MINIMIZES THE RISK. SO PLENTY OF TIME HERE TO GO ABOUT GETTING COMMUNITY INPUT, LOOKING AT OUR OPTIONS, TAKING THE SOIL, BARE BORINGS, LOOKING AT THE GEOLOGY, THE GEOGRAPHY, LOOKING AT COSTS, LOOKING AT COMMUNITY FEEDBACK AND INPUT TO TAKE WHAT WE ESSENTIALLY PROVED AS A MAP SAYING, THIS IS WHERE WE WANT TO GO TO FIGURE OUT THE BEST WAY TO GO ABOUT GETTING US THERE LONG BEFORE WE HAVE TO ACTUALLY SUBMIT THE FINAL DOCUMENTS AND SAY, HEY, FEDERAL PARTNERS. UM, THIS IS WHAT THE, WHAT WE BELIEVE IT'S GOING TO COST AND WHAT WE ARE ASKING YOU HOPEFULLY TO THEN, YOU KNOW, COME BACK WITH THE MATCH. WELL, IN TERMS OF A LONG TIME TO DO IT, UH, THERE'S A LOT GOING ON RIGHT NOW. THERE'S A LOT THAT WE HAVE TO GET THROUGH TO GET THROUGH THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROCESS. THE OTHER THING THAT'S THERE ON PROJECT DEVELOPMENT IS ONCE YOU GET INTO PROJECT, IT IS A 24 MONTH CLOCK. SO YOU'VE GOT TO GET THROUGH EVERYTHING THAT IS THERE TO BE ABLE TO GET ALL YOUR ADMINISTRATIVE THINGS DONE, EVERYTHING THAT'S REQUIRED TO BE ABLE TO GET APPROVAL, TO GET OUT OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT THAT GETS YOU INTO ENGINEERING. SO IT'S IT'S TO OUR ADVANTAGE TO GET AS MUCH DONE DURING THAT TIMEFRAME. AND WE'RE LOOKING TO BE ABLE TO GO AHEAD AND GET THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROCESS THE EIS DONE, UH, SOMETIME VERY LATE NEXT YEAR OR EARLY IN THE SPRING, BECAUSE THERE WERE A WHOLE SERIES OF GOALS THAT YOU'VE SEEN AS WE'VE GONE THROUGH WHAT WE'VE NICKNAMED THE SNAKE CHART, UH, THAT PUT US INTO DIFFERENT TIMEFRAMES THAT GET US ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE TIME TO GET THE FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT. SO THAT THAT'S THE PATH THAT WE'RE ON RIGHT NOW. IT'S SHOWN AS A COUPLE OF MONTHS OR IT'S SHOWN AS A QUARTER. SO THAT'S THE VARIATION. AND AS WE GO FORWARD, WE'LL BE GETTING MORE FINITE DATES FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE. BUT ALONG THE WAY, WE HAVE THIS FLEXIBILITY TO MAKE THE, TO MAKE THESE DECISION POINTS AND MAKE THESE CHANGES AS WE SEE WHAT THE COMMUNITY SAYS OR WHAT WE FIND THE, THE SCIENCE AND THE ENGINEERING SHOWING US AS WE GO ALONG THE WAY, AND IT WILL NOT PENALIZE US AS WE DO. YEP. WELL, ONE OF THE THINGS YOU'RE GOING TO SEE WHEN, UH, JOHN AND PETER COME UP AND DO THE PRESENTATION FOR DOWNTOWN ARE SOME OF THE OPTIONS THAT ARE THERE. THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE'VE GOT TO WORK OUR WAY THROUGH AS WE GO THROUGH AND DEVELOP THE NEXT PORTION OF THE DESIGN. OKAY. THANK YOU, SIR. I JUST WANT TO PUT A LITTLE PIN, UH, ON A LITTLE PART OF THAT TOO, TO EMPHASIZE A COMPONENT, BECAUSE I THINK BOARD MEMBER, YOU GOT TO AN IMPORTANT QUESTION. SO AS DAVE MENTIONED, WE'RE JUST ABOUT THE KICKOFF, UH, A WHOLE RISK RISK PROCESS. UH, THERE'LL BE A FORMAL FTA RISK PROCESS PER PROJECT ON THE, ON THE MEGA PROJECTS. THAT'S PART OF THE PROCESS THEY'LL REQUIRE, BUT WE ARE GOING TO, UH, INITIATE A RISK PROCESS INTERNALLY TO BRING TO THE BOARD ULTIMATE INFORMATION FOR YOU ALL TO MOVE FORWARD ON CONTRACT DECISIONS. AND A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THAT WOULD BE AGAIN, WE'LL, WE'LL TRY TO, WE'LL TRY TO WORK THROUGH THIS SLOWLY. AND I KNOW THIS IS HARD BECAUSE IT'S LINES ON A MAP AND THEN INDIVIDUAL LINE ITEMS, BUT WE'LL WANT TO GET A WALK THROUGH THIS WITH THE COMMUNITY, ULTIMATELY, A BOARD IN THE COMMUNITY, LIKE THE ORANGE LINE IS A GOOD EXAMPLE. THE ORANGE LINE IS LIKELY NOT TO BE A CONTRACT. THE ORANGE LINE COULD BE TWO CONTRACTS, COULD BE SEVEN CONTRACTS. THE BLUE LINE COULD BE THREE CONTRACTS THAT THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT AND TUNNEL, IT COULD BE ONE CONTRACT OR TWO CONTRACTS. THE VEHICLES COULD BE ONE CONTRACT AND THE SIGNALS AND POWER SYSTEM AND OTHER CONTRACT. WE NEED TO DO A COMPREHENSIVE RISK ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE WHAT THE RIGHT DELIVERY METHODOLOGY IS. SOME MAY BE DESIGNED, BUILD SOME MAYBE POTENTIALLY PROGRESSIVE DESIGN BUILD. SOME [00:50:01] MAY BE DESIGNED BID BUILD. IT COULD BE A COMBINATION OF DIFFERENT THINGS, UH, HOW WE DO FACILITIES VERSUS, UH, GUIDEWAY, UH, COMPONENTS. UH, WE HAVE TO MAXIMIZE, HOW DO WE GET THE BEST VALUE PER DOLLAR FOR OBVIOUSLY THE AUTHORITY? HOW DO WE CREATE AS THE MAYOR MENTIONED, DB OPPORTUNITIES. IF WE PUT THE ORDERS IN UNDER ONE CONTRACT, YOU WOULD PROBABLY LIMIT DB OPPORTUNITIES BECAUSE IT'S ONE BIG CONTRACT WHERE IF YOU SPLIT THEM, YOU MIGHT HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABILITY, UH, AVAILABLE WORKFORCE IN THE COMMUNITY. WE, WE, WE DON'T, WE'RE NOT A RAIL CULTURE IN AUSTIN, SO RIGHT. WE'RE NOT A CHICAGO OR SOME CITY LIKE THAT. THAT HAS JUST GENERATIONS OF SAY RAIL CAPACITY. SO WE HAVE TO DO OUR MARKET SOUNDINGS AND WORK WITH OUR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS TO SEE HOW WE CAN OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS, BUILD A WORKFORCE TO EVEN DELIVER THESE PROGRAMS. UH, WE WANT TO CREATE, UH, THE LEAST AMOUNT OF DISRUPTION TO THE COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, UH, IS GOING TO HAPPEN AT THE SAME TIME, UH, SOUTHWEST PARKWAY. UH, SO THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE'LL ASK A RISK CONSULTANT. YOU KNOW, THEY'D HAVE DONE THIS FOR MEGA PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS AROUND THE COUNTRY OR INTERNATIONALLY TO COME BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, STAFF HAS TO TAKE TO THIS BOARD, HERE ARE THE BEST OPTIONS IN OUR TECHNICAL OPINION FOR YOU ALL TO AUTHORIZE US TO DO CONTRACTS. UM, UM, AND THEN THAT GOES BACK TO WHAT I WAS MENTIONING EARLIER ABOUT THE FUNDING SOURCE. THE OTHER PART THAT I THINK IS IMPORTANT THAT WE'LL WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY AS, AS WE GO THROUGH. THIS IS, YOU KNOW, DAVE'S TALKING ABOUT THE FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT. THAT'S MULTIPLE YEARS AWAY FOR THE TWO BIG, BIG, BIG PROJECTS. WE WILL DEFINITELY BE DOING WHAT WE BRINGING TO THIS BOARD CONTRACTS TO START WORK LONG BEFORE, OR CERTAINLY BEFORE, DEPENDING ON LONG BEFORE WE'LL EVER GET A FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT. SO WE, WE WILL, WE'LL BE SPENDING HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS AND MONEY BEFORE WE GET THE ACTUAL FEDERAL CONTRACT LOCKED IN. THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE'RE NOT GOING TO GET THE FEDERAL CONTRACT. IT'S JUST THE WAY THE FEDERAL PROCESS WORKS. AND WE'LL NEVER GET THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO SIGN THE DOTTED LINE UNTIL WE ACTUALLY DO OUR PIECE. AND ONE OF OUR PIECES IS STARTING THE PROGRAM. SO THAT'S WHY WHEN YOU HEAR DIFFERENT PEOPLE TALK ABOUT, UH, THE FEDERAL PROCESS, THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT HAD TO HAPPEN TO MOVE US IN THE FEDERAL PROCESS WAS A LOCAL VOTE TO SECURE THAT FUNDING THAT IS LITERALLY THE ANCHOR OF EVERY MAJOR TRANSIT PROGRAM IN THE COUNTRY. NOW THAT WE HAVE THAT WE CAN WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH THEM TO TALK ABOUT THE BEST WAY TO ROLL DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE PROGRAM OUT OVER THE PERIOD OF TIME. THERE'S ONE THING TO GIVE A LITTLE EXTRA ON THAT. SO I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. ALTHOUGH IF WE DO RUN INTO BURIAL MOUNDS, WE KNOW RESPOND TO THIS, IT'S A CHAIR I'LL, I'LL ASK THE THIRD STAFF UPDATE, [IIc. Administrative Program Update] AND THIS IS, UH, IF WE COULD HAVE, I GUESS, DAVE, YOU'RE STILL UP, UH, I THINK UNTIL, UH, WITH THE CITY AND SHAMILA MUKHERJEE, UH, YOU KNOW, WILL COME UP. I'M NOT SURE HOW THE THREE OF YOU ARE GOING TO DO THIS EXACTLY WITH THE THREE, BUT, UM, BUT, UH, AND REALLY THE THREE, A LOT OF WAYS LEADS ON, UH, DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE JOINT. WE ORIGINALLY WAS CALLED THE JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO SEE THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO TRY TO TRANSITION THAT TO A JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT. WE THINK THAT IS MUCH MORE ACCURATE OF A TERM. UH, I THINK WE ENDED UP WITH JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT JUST BECAUSE THERE'S A COUPLE OR AUTHORITIES IN CALIFORNIA, QUITE FRANKLY, THEY USED THAT TERM AND THAT WE WERE DAVE AND I ARE MORE FAMILIAR WITH THAT AND THE TRANS INDUSTRY. SO WE JUST DID THAT. BUT JPA AS A JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, I THINK REALLY SYMBOLIZES WHAT WE ARE DOING HERE. AND THE PARTNERSHIP HAS JUST BEEN, SO, UM, AS THEY'RE GOING TO GET INTO THEIR COMMENTS, ONE OF THE THINGS I JUST WANTED TO MENTION IS WE WILL BE SENDING A MEMO, MIGHT ACTUALLY ALREADY WENT OUT FROM STAFF, UH, THIS AFTERNOON, UH, GINA AND MYSELF HAVE AUTHORED A MEMO TO BOTH CAP METRO BOARD AND CITY COUNCIL WITH THIS EXACT INFORMATION. SO THEY ARE ALL IN THE LOOP ON IT, EVERYONE'S ON THE SAME PAGE. SO ALL THREE PARTIES HAVE SIMILAR INFORMATION CAUSE IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, UH, AS WE WORK TOWARDS THESE WORK SESSIONS AND, UH, ULTIMATELY, UH, APPROVALS, UM, OR ACTION ITEM IN LATE OCTOBER, THAT EVERYONE IS ON THE SAME PAGE OF WHAT THE JPA IS AND WHAT IT IS NOT. AND I THINK MAYOR THAT GOES TO KIND OF YOUR COMMENT. UM, AND SO THE TEAM WILL KIND OF GO THROUGH THE SCHEDULE, THE DIFFERENT TOPICS IN THE JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT. I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT JUST ONE THING THOUGH, IS AS YOU, AS WE TEE THIS UP IS WE'VE ALREADY DONE IN THIS BOARD. I COMMEND THIS BOARD, BOTH CITY COUNCIL AND CAP, METRO BOARD HAVE ALREADY DONE, UH, SEVEN TOTAL ACTIONS RELATED TO THE PARTNERSHIP. AND THOSE ARE, UH, CAP METRO AND THE CITY COUNCIL FORMED THE ATP TO BEGIN WITH THEN CAPITOL METRO AND THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, CREATED THE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND THE TAX CAP, METRO AND THE ATP FUNDED THE CAP, METRO STAFF AND THE CAP METRO PROJECTS. THE CAP METRO IS DOING ON BEHALF OF ATP, THE RUBBER TIRE PROJECTS, AS AN EXAMPLE, ATP AND THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, ALSO DID AN ILA TO FUND A NIQUE AND HER AND HER TEAM FROM THE SUPPORT OFFICE FOR THE, FOR THE PROGRAM ATP AND THE CITY COUNCIL ALSO ALREADY HAVE DONE AN ILA [00:55:01] ON THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT FUNDING THAT YOU ALL APPROVED ATP AND THE CITY COUNCIL, UM, ARE FINALIZING, UH, THE FUNDING PROCEDURES, ILA, WHICH YOU ALL APPROVED AT THE LAST BOARD MEETING. AND I BELIEVE IT'S ON THE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA NEXT WEEK, WHICH WE ASSUME WILL BE APPROVED. AND THEN THAT WILL FINALIZE ALL OF THOSE ILS THAT JPA ITSELF WILL REFERENCE ALL OF THOSE ILS BECAUSE THAT IS GOOD WORK THAT EVERYONE HAS DONE AND, AND THE JPA WILL KIND OF REFERENCE AND BRING TOGETHER ALL THESE OTHER TOPICS. SO WE'LL HAVE THE TOPICS THAT ARE DONE PLUS THESE OTHER MOSTLY TECHNICAL TOPICS, UH, PUT ALL TOGETHER IN ONE LARGE PARTNERSHIP DOCUMENTS. SO I JUST WANT TO FRAME THAT UP. SO AM I HANDING THIS OFF TO DAVE, DAVE? OKAY, THANK YOU. TURN TURNED YOUR MICROPHONE, SORRY. UH, THIS IS A PARTNERSHIP THAT, THAT WAS FORMED TO GO AHEAD AND IMPLEMENT THE PROGRAM AND, AND THIS PORTRAYS BASICALLY THE WAY THAT EACH PART OF IT IS BEING DONE WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION. UH, WE'VE GOT THE ORANGE LINE, THE BLUE LINE, THE TUNNEL, UH, AND THEN THE GREEN LINE WHEN WE GET TO THE GREEN LINE, UH, AND IN ALL THE FACILITIES THAT WILL BE DONE UNDER THE DELIVERY MODEL, THAT'S THERE UNDER ATP. SO WHEN WE GET TO THE OTHER SECTIONS, WHICH IS THE ONES THAT ARE GOING TO BE DONE BY CAP METRO, THAT WE'VE NICKNAMED THE RUBBER TIRE PROJECTS, THOSE ARE THE ONES THAT WILL BE THERE. THAT'S THE METRO RAPID, IT'S THE METRO EXPRESS. IT'S THE, ALL OF THE DIFFERENT ONES, THE PICKUP SERVICE, THE CUSTOMER CONVENIENCE, ALL OF THOSE PARTS OF THE PROGRAM WILL BE DONE UNDER THE PORTION THAT IS THERE FOR CAP METRO. THE CITY, UH, HAS GOT THE PORTION THAT IS THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT PROGRAM, LOOKING AT WHAT'S THERE WITH INVESTMENTS, UH, LOOKING AT UTILITIES THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE SPENDING A LOT OF TIME OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS, FIGURING OUT WHAT THOSE RELOCATIONS ARE, UH, SO THAT WE CAN GET THAT WELL IN ADVANCE. AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN EXTENSIVE DISCUSSION. LIKE I SAID EARLIER ABOUT THE PERMIT PROCESS. WHAT IS DIFFERENT IS THIS IS A LINEAR PROJECT. IT'S DIFFERENT THAN A LOT OF PROJECTS THAT HAVE BEEN DONE IN THE CITY BEFORE. SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE GOT TO WORK THROUGH, WHAT PERMIT METHODOLOGY IS THERE. THAT IS THE RIGHT ONE TO GO AHEAD AND USE. AND THEN WE GET TO START THROUGH THE RIGHT OF WAY NEXT WEEK, WE'RE GOING TO BE TAKING A DETAILED LOOK AT SOME OF THE AREAS AND WHAT WE EXPECT TO BE ABLE TO DO AND WHAT AMOUNT OF RIGHT AWAY THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE ACQUIRING. LET ME TURN IT OVER TO AN EIGHT. THANKS DAVE. THANKS DAVE. UM, CAN YOU ADVANCE THE SLIDE, CHLOE? OH, I'VE GOT THE ADVANCE FOR OUR, SORRY. UH, BEFORE I GET STARTED, I WANTED TO, UH, INTRODUCE GINA VN DACA, UM, TO INTRODUCE THIS PORTION, UM, UH, IF SHE IS AVAILABLE, UM, ON THE TEAMS TO SAY A FEW WORDS BEFORE WE, UM, BEFORE I GET INTO THE DETAILS ON THE JOINT PARTNERSHIP FROM THE CITY'S POINT OF VIEW, THANK YOU AND NICK AND I JUST REALLY WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE ALL OF THE HARD WORK THAT STAFF HAS, HAS DONE. AND WHAT THEY'RE PUTTING INTO THIS PARTNERSHIP AND PARTNERSHIP REALLY DOES GET TO THE HEART OF THE WORK THAT WE'RE TAKING UNDERTAKING HERE. UM, IT'S, UH, OUR ROLE, YOU KNOW, RANDY AND I, AND, AND HE STATED IT PERFECTLY THAT WE'LL BE COMMUNICATING TO OUR POLICY MAKERS, UM, THAT ALL OF THIS BEHIND THE SCENES WORK IS TAKING PLACE IN. AND IT SEEMS LIKE, YOU KNOW, A SHORT TIME, BUT A YEAR AGO, UH, WE WERE JUST ENVISIONING WHAT PROJECT CONNECT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF IT WAS APPROVED BY THE VOTERS. AND HERE WE ARE, UH, WITH ALL THE WORK TAKING PLACE ON THIS JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, IT WAS A JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT, BUT PARTNERSHIP IS REALLY WHAT IT IS. UM, THANKS TO A UNIQUE, THANKS TO DAVE, THANKS TO CHARMELLA AND ALL OF THE TEAMS AT ATP, THE CITY AND CAPITAL METRO. AND I'LL TURN IT BACK OVER TO, UH, NICO DAY. THANK YOU, GINA. SO I'M HERE TO REPRESENT, UH, AS GINA SAID, THE HARD WORK THAT'S BEEN HAPPENING OVER THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS, PUTTING JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT TOGETHER, UM, YOU KNOW, KUDOS TO AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP STAFF AND CAPITOL METRO STAFF WHO REALLY DID GET SOMETHING STARTED GETTING STARTED IS WHAT I FIND SOMETIMES THE HARDEST PART OF A REALLY BIG PROJECT. AND SO THEY HA THEY STARTED WITH A DRAFT AND WE'VE BEEN CIRCULATING THAT DRAFT AND GOING BACK AND FORTH. AND WE'VE COME UP WITH A REALLY, UH, GREAT METHODOLOGY IN ALL THREE AGENCIES WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE TOPICS OF ALL OF THE ISSUES AND MATTERS THAT ARE GOING TO BE ADDRESSED IN THE JPA CAN ROLL UP TO THESE. IT LOOKS LIKE 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, 9, [01:00:01] PERHAPS CATEGORIES FROM CUNY COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UM, THROUGH DESIGN PERMITTING UTILITIES, CONSTRUCTION WORKFORCE ON DOWN TO SAFETY AND OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE. SO FROM THE CITY'S POINT OF VIEW, WE HAVE WORK GROUPS FROM VARIOUS FOLKS FROM ALMOST EVERY DEPARTMENT IN OUR CITY. MY BIGGEST JOKE RIGHT NOW IS THAT I'M GOING TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO INVOLVE ANIMAL SERVICES AND PROJECT CONNECT. THEY'RE PROBABLY THE ONLY DEPARTMENT THAT HASN'T BEEN INVOLVED, BUT I'LL FIND A WAY I WAS ON THE RAILROAD TRACKS, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE A LOT OF FOLKS WITHIN OUR ORGANIZATION WHO ARE EXCITED ABOUT THE PROGRAM AND EXCITED TO BE INVITED TO WORK THROUGH THESE REALLY, REALLY HARD ISSUES. UM, AND SO THAT, THAT IS HAPPENING. AND, UH, I WILL SAY IN RESPONSE TO THE MAYOR'S QUESTIONS WITH REGARDS TO, UM, W W WITH REGARDS TO HOW WE'RE GOING TO SOCIALIZE THIS, UH, WITH THE PUBLIC, WE ARE, WE ARE WANTING TO USE THE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE, UM, OTHER VARIOUS STAKEHOLDER GROUPS, AS WELL AS THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES OF THIS BOARD IN, UH, LATE SEPTEMBER LIKELY OCTOBER, WHEN WE DO HAVE A GOOD, ROBUST DRAFT TO SHARE AND PROVIDE THAT AS A, AS A WAY TO HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT AND PUBLIC REVIEW OF THE JPA. THAT IS, THAT IS WHAT WE ARE PLANNING, UH, RIGHT NOW. AND SO, UH, WE ARE, I ALSO PLAN TO HAVE, UM, A GENERAL MEETING IN OCTOBER WHERE THE PUBLIC CAN COME AND JUST ASK US ANYTHING ABOUT THE JPA. IT WILL BE OUT THERE FOR REVIEW, UH, AND THAT IS ANOTHER LINE OF COMMUNICATION THAT WE ARE PLANNING FOR AND HAPPY TO TAKE COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD ON THAT, BUT THAT IS WHAT WE'VE DISCUSSED, UH, YESTERDAY. AND, UH, SO WITH THAT, I DON'T KNOW IF CAP METRO SIDE WANTS TO MAKE ANY COMMENTS ON, UM, OUR INVOLVEMENT. UM, A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST TWO, YOU KNOW, SECTIONS OF THE JPA, YOU KNOW, JACKIE IS TAKING LEAD ON THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ALONG WITH THE CITY. AND THEN, UM, THE DESIGN PERVING UTILITIES OF COURSE, IS, IS, IS VERY HEAVY CITY ORIENTED ALONG WITH, UM, ATP. AND THEN YOU HAVE A LOT THAT ARE, THAT ARE, THAT HAS A LOT OF INVOLVEMENT FROM SHARMILA AND CAPITAL METRO. I JUST WANT TO MAKE ONE COMMENT ON TOP OF NIQUE AND THANK YOU FOR DOING THAT TO, I JUST WANT TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THE MAYOR COMMENT BECAUSE THE OTHER ONE YOU MENTIONED WAS THE, UH, THE DBE PROGRAM. AND YOU'LL SEE MAYOR THAT'S IN THE FINANCE BUDGET PROCUREMENT SECTION. SO THAT WILL LAY OUT THE PROCESS TO DEVELOP THE ATP DVE PROGRAM, BECAUSE ULTIMATELY AGAIN, THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP HAS TO HAVE A DVE PROGRAM BECAUSE YOU ALL WILL BE THE ONES ACTUALLY ISSUING CONTRACTS AND APPROVING CONTRACTS. SO, UH, THE WAY WE'RE BASICALLY A QUICK SUMMARY, BUT THERE'LL BE A LOT MORE, UH, UH, DETAIL IN THE, IN THE, UH, THE JOINT, UH, PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT IS, UH, RIGHT NOW. AND WE WERE BRINGING TO YOU, UH, VICKY AND COURTNEY ARE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT IS THE USE OF THE CAP METRO DBE GOALS NOW, BECAUSE THAT IS A FEDERALLY CERTIFIED GOAL. SO ATB BOARD HAS TO USE SOMETHING TO ACTUALLY DO ANY CONTRACTS. THAT IS THE ONE THAT IS ACTUALLY CERTIFIED. UM, AND THE ONLY ONE THAT COULD BE REALLY USED, UH, AND THAT CAN GET ASSIGNED. AND THEN THE IDEA IS THE CAP METRO BOARD JUST APPROVED A NEW WHAT'S CALLED AVAILABILITY STUDY FOR THE FEDERAL SIDE AND DISPARITY STUDY FOR THE LOCAL SIDE. AND THAT JUST GOT APPROVED A MONDAY AT THE CAP METRO BOARD, THE SAME INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANTS DOING THAT JUST ACTUALLY DID THE CITY'S, UM, DISPARITY STUDY AND THE COUNTIES. AND THE IDEA IS THEN WHEN THAT IS FINISHED, THOSE NEW GOALS WILL BE ESTABLISHED FOR F Y 23, THAT THEN THIS BOARD WILL BE ABLE TO USE BECAUSE IT'S BASED ON THE NEW, UH, AVAILABILITY AND DISPARITY STUDIES THAT WENT THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS. SO, UH, WAY MORE DETAIL OBVIOUSLY WOULD BE, BUT THAT'S THE QUICK SUMMARY RELATED TO MAYOR THAT, THAT, THAT POINT THAT YOU MADE, I JUST WANT TO BE RESPONSIVE TO THAT. SO I JUST WANTED TO, UM, I'M SURE MILA MUKHERJEE, UM, EVP PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AT CAP METRO. I JUST WANTED TO UNDERSCORE WHAT, UM, ANIQUE MENTIONED EARLIER THAT THIS HAS BEEN AN UNPRECEDENTED LEVEL OF PARTNERSHIP AND EXTENSIVE PROCESS THAT LED TO THIS. I WANTED TO THANK, UM, ASHLEY GLADSER IN CHEYENNE CROUSEY, UH, FROM GAP METRO WHO HAVE BEEN LEADING THE OVERALL PROCESS, AND EACH OF THE SUBSECTIONS THAT THERE HAS BEEN SO MUCH INVOLVEMENT FROM SMES ON ALL OF THESE, UM, UH, THREE DIFFERENT GROUPS, UM, THREE DIFFERENT ENTITIES JUST WANTED TO QUICKLY GO OVER THE NEXT STEPS, THE SCHEDULE FOR THE, UH, JPA. I THINK, UM, THE MAYOR HAD ASKED ABOUT THAT AS WELL, AND RANDY ALREADY GONE OVER SOME OF THE, UH, TIMELINE STEPS, BUT WE, UM, HERE WE ARE SINCE AUGUST OF LAST YEAR AND WHERE WE ARE TODAY. [01:05:01] SO THIS IS SUMMER OF 2021. UM, WE'RE COMING UP ON SEPTEMBER WHERE POLICY MAKERS, STAKEHOLDER BRIEFING ON JPA PROCESS WOULD TAKE PLACE. AND IN OCTOBER ETP CAPITAL METRO BOARD CITY COUNCIL JPA WORK SESSION WOULD TAKE PLACE ON OCTOBER 4TH WITH OCTOBER 29TH IS WHERE IT WOULD MOVE FOR ACTION. AND YOU HAVE BEEN, UH, FOLLOWING THE TIMELINE FOR THIS PROCESS, AUGUST 7TH AND NOVEMBER 3RD, WORTH THE TWO KEY MILESTONES THAT LED US ALL HERE. AND WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE THESE DEVELOPMENT TODAY. ANY QUESTIONS? DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, MAYOR? OKAY. JUST TO FOLLOW UP QUICKLY. I APPRECIATE THE, THE ANSWERS. UM, IF THE INITIAL WAY YOU'RE SOCIALIZING, THE JPA IS THROUGH THE COMMITTEES. IS THERE GOING TO BE A WAY FOR THAT'S A, THAT'S A GOOD WAY TO TALK TO THE COMMUNITY, BUT NOT TO HEAR FROM THE COMMUNITY, YOU'RE GETTING RESPONSES FROM THE COMMUNITY. SO IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY, IF THERE'S, I THINK THAT THE JPA IS SIGNIFICANT IN PART BECAUSE OF THE JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, BOTH FOR WHAT IT DOES, BUT ALSO WHAT IT'S NOT INTENDED OR SUPPOSED TO DO THAT PEOPLE ARE WONDERING IF THIS IS THE PLACE TO DO THAT. SO I THINK THAT IT'S GOING TO BE BOTH DOING WHAT IS PART OF THAT, BUT ALSO FINDING THE, THE RIGHT AND IDENTIFYING THE RIGHT AVENUES TO BE DEALING WITH SOME OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT, THAT MIGHT NOT BE PART OF THE JPA. SO BEING ABLE TO GET THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU MIGHT NOT ANTICIPATE, BECAUSE IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE JPA WILL BE IMPORTANT. SO IF THERE'S A WAY OR A PLACE ON THE, ON THE, ON THE WEBSITE OR SOMETHING, SO THAT PEOPLE MIGHT BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU OPTIONS SO THAT WHEN YOU ARE SOCIALIZING IN FRONT OF THE CAC OR IN FRONT OF THE, UH, THE, THE TASK FORCES, UH, YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO, TO ADDRESS THINGS THAT YOU MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE HAVE THOUGHT OF TO ADDRESS. AND THAT WOULD GIVE THE COMMUNITY AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENGAGE WITH YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND THAT WAS THE ONE THING I LEFT OUT OF MY, OF MY SPIEL OF HOW WE WERE GOING TO INVOLVE THE COMMUNITY. AND SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CREATING, AS YOU SAID, UH, PERHAPS, UH, THE WAY THAT WE WE'VE DONE ON MANY BIG PROJECTS, UM, A PLACE ON THE WEBSITE WHERE SOMEONE CAN SEND AN EMAIL, IT WILL GO TO A DEPOSITORY AND RELATIVE STAFF ON ALL THREE CAN VET IT, IS THIS JPA RELATED? IS IT NOT GET BACK TO THE PERSON, COLLECT THOSE, PROBABLY REPORT BACK AT THIS GENERAL MEETING, SORT THEM OUT AND HAVE A VERY CLEAR WAY, UM, TO GET THE QUESTIONS ANSWERED. UM, I KNOW THE PUBLIC IS THINKING A LOT OF FOLKS WHO HAVE BEEN FALLING PROJECT CONNECT ARE THINKING ABOUT THE JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT OR JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, BUT YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THEY MAY THINK IS RELATED TO THE JOINT PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT, BUT REALLY THEY CA THEY CAN BE ANSWERED IN OTHER WAYS. AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT WE'RE BEING RESPONSIVE TO THE COMMUNITY AS WE MOVE THE PROGRAM FORWARD. SO, UM, YOU HAVE OUR COMMITMENT THAT WE'LL WORK ON WAYS TO DO THAT, UM, THROUGH, UH, SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER, AS WE'RE, AS WE'RE CREATING JPA. IT SOUNDS GOOD. I SEE YOU DO THAT BEFORE, AND THAT WORKED REALLY WELL, AND I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN YOU WERE ALREADY PLANNING TO DO IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THE OTHER QUESTION THAT YOU ANSWERED DVA HELPED. AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION I WAS SUPPOSED TO ASK, TELL ME IF I'M SUPPOSED TO ASK IT NOW OR NOT, IS WE'RE GETTING A LOT OF CALLS FOR PEOPLE NOW THAT THEY SEE THE DRAWINGS COME OUT, THAT THAT SHOWS OUR MEASURE OF DISRUPTION. YOU CAN'T MAKE AN OMELET WITHOUT SCRAMBLING THE EGGS A LITTLE BIT. WHAT ARE WE TELLING PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE CONCERNED ABOUT MITIGATION ISSUES? W WE'VE STARTED NOW THAT WE'VE GONE THROUGH THE DETAILS, UH, AND BRINGING THEM OUT TO THE COMMUNITY FOR, UH, THE OUTER PARSONS OF THE ORANGE LINE AND THE BLUE LINE, AND THE PRESENTATION YOU'LL HEAR LATER, UH, IS GOING TO TAKE THE CENTER OF THE CITY. UH, WE WERE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND HAVE THAT LIVE, UH, MEETING NEXT SATURDAY. UH, WE'RE GOING TO DO IT VIRTUALLY THE SAME WAY THAT WE'VE DONE A LOT OF THE OTHER MEETINGS. UH, AND WE ACTUALLY HAVE HAD MORE PARTICIPATION, UH, ON THE VIRTUAL SIDE THAN WE DID WITH A LOT OF TIMES WITH IN-PERSON. UH, AND WE'LL ALSO BE GOING TO THE COMMUNITY GROUPS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS THERE THAT, UH, JACKIE SHOWED EARLY IN THE PRESENTATION WAS THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITY GROUPS THAT ARE ALONG THE ALIGNMENT. UH, SO WE WILL BE GETTING THOSE TECHNICAL PIECES OUT AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO THAT TO BETTER. THAT SOUNDS GOOD. AND IF THOSE ARE THE MOMENTS TO HEAR ABOUT CONSTRUCTION AND MITIGATION, MAKE SURE PLEASE THAT YOU ADVERTISE THOSE PUBLIC MEETINGS WITH THAT SPECIFIC THING IN MIND. SO PEOPLE KNOW IN ADDITION TO JUST LEARNING ABOUT THE LINE YOU HAVE UNDER HERE ABOUT THAT AS WELL. OKAY. THANK YOU. I KNOW BOTH OF YOU WHO WANTS TO GO FIRST? THANK YOU. UM, THANK YOU, NICK. I JUST, JUST A QUICK QUESTION ON THE JPA IS, IS THE GOAL OF THE JPA WITH RESPECT TO SAY DBE TO [01:10:01] SET GOALS, OR IS IT MORE JUST TO DELINEATE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES? UM, I CAN AGREE SINCE I GAVE THE, A LITTLE BIT OF ANSWER, IT'S GOING TO REALLY TALK ABOUT HOW A PROCESS FOR THE ATP TO SET THE GOALS. OKAY. BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, YOU CAN'T SET A GOAL NOW, RIGHT? BECAUSE, UH, WE GOT TO RIGHT NOW THAT THE ATP WILL USE THE CAP METRO'S GOAL BECAUSE IT'S THE ONLY FEDERAL CERTIFIED TRANSIT GOAL TO BE ASSIGNED. AND THEN, LIKE I MENTIONED, THE CAP METRO BOARD JUST APPROVED A NEW CONTRACT WITH A CONSULTANT TO DO THE AVAILABILITY DISPARITY STUDY, WHICH WILL TAKE BOTH SAY A YEAR, YEAR AND A HALF, THAT INFORMATION IT'S BEING DONE IN THAT SCOPE TO HELP CAP METRO AND THE ATP TO BE BROUGHT BACK HERE BY OUR PROCUREMENT AND OUR DBE TEAM FOR YOU ALL TO SAY HERE IS BECAUSE THE BOARD WILL ULTIMATELY HAVE TO APPROVE A DBE GOAL, BUT IT HAS TO BE DRIVEN THROUGH THE FEDERAL PROCESS, RIGHT, BECAUSE THERE'S THAT, BUT THEN THERE MAY BE LANGUAGE THAT YOU CAN INCENTIVIZE ABOVE GOALS, UH, BASED ON MEETING FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS. SO, UH, THAT THE J THE JPA IS GOING TO TALK ABOUT THAT PROCESS. AND THERE'S GOING TO BE MULTIPLE THINGS IN JPA, JUST TALKING ABOUT PROCESS, BECAUSE THINGS ARE NOT DONE, RIGHT. THERE'S GOING TO BE SAFETY PROGRAMS, THINGS. OBVIOUSLY WE DON'T HAVE SAFETY PROGRAMS DONE ON PROJECTS THAT WON'T START FOR SEVERAL YEARS, BUT IT'S TALKING ABOUT THE PROCESS AND THE B PROCESS ON, UM, UH, THE DBE COMPONENT. THERE'S A PROCESS. WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT A PROCESS TO STATE SUSTAINABILITY GOALS FOR CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS, WHICH THAT'S PART OF THE DESIGN PROCESS, BUT ALSO PART OF THE COSTING PROCESS. AND SO I THINK YOU'LL SEE THERE'S A FAIR AMOUNT OF STUFF THAT IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ATP, MY SET UP A PROCESS FOR, BECAUSE ULTIMATELY YOU ALL OUR STAFF SUPPORTING YOU ALL RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTRACTS THAT EFFECTUATE, WHATEVER THE PROCESSES ARE. OTHER THINGS THAT ARE IMPORTANT REALLY THAT DAVID AND NICK ARE WORKING ON, AND THEY'RE DOING A GREAT JOB ARE THE REAL, SO MOST OF THE DOCUMENT, WE REALLY, REALLY TECHNICALLY FOCUSED ON THINGS LIKE, UM, UTILITY RELOCATION, UH, THINGS LIKE RIGHT AWAY, UH, PERMITTING, UM, THINGS LIKE, UM, UH, EASEMENTS, THINGS OF THAT NATURE, UH, INCREDIBLY DETAILED THAT, UH, UH, NIQUE AUSTIN ENERGY, AUSTIN WATER, PEOPLE LIKE THAT ARE WORKING WITH DAVE'S TEAM ON. OKAY, THANKS. SO I WAS GOING TO ASK THAT SIMILAR QUESTION TO, UM, TONY, BUT HAVE ANOTHER PART OF THAT. WHERE DOES THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT FIT IN HERE UNDER THE TOPICS? SO WE HAVE OUR HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT AT THIS, EXCUSE ME AT THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WHO IS POINT ON THE 300 MILLION, UH, THEY'VE ALREADY RECEIVED AS, AS YOU ALL KNOW, 23 MILLION OF THE 300 MILLION. UH, AND WE ARE STILL FIGURING OUT, IS THERE A PLACE IN THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SECTION, UM, TO TALK ABOUT THE EQUITY ASSESSMENT TOOL THAT IS CLOSE TO BEING COMPLETED AND HOW THAT MIGHT, UH, AND HOW THAT MIGHT WORK IN THE JPA FOR TRANSPARENCY, BUT THAT'S A VERY GOOD QUESTION. AND WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH, UH, WHERE THAT CAN BE SPOKEN TO AND WHAT IS THE RIGHT LEVEL OF INFORMATION THAT SHOULD BE THERE RELATED TO THE 300, WHICH IS PART OF THE PROGRAM, THE 300 MILLION, WHICH IS PART OF THE PROGRAM. OKAY. UM, OKAY. I THINK YOU'LL SEE IT ALSO IN THE REAL ESTATE SECTION. AND AGAIN, THERE'LL BE REFERENCES BACK TO THE ILA THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BECAUSE WILL BE CLEAR THAT THE CITY'S HOUSING DEPARTMENT IS THE RESPONSIBLE STAFF WILLING TO DO THAT PART OF THE PROGRAM VERSUS OTHER PARTS. SO I THINK, UH, NICK HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD. IT'S, WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO WEAVE THE KIND OF EQUITY ASSESSMENT TOOL IN THE C SECTION, BUT AT THE SAME TIME IN THE REAL ESTATE SECTION THAT WE REFERENCES TO AN ILA THAT'S ALREADY DONE, THAT YOU ALL HAVE APPROVED WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN, IT WOULD BE CROSS-REFERENCED. SO SOME THINGS THAT YOU MENTIONED THAT ARE CROSS-REFERENCING OR HOW WE'RE GOING TO AWARD THE GRANTS FOR THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT WILL BE PART OF THIS JPA. YEAH. SO THE JPA WILL HAVE A BUNCH OF INFORMATION ON TOPICS THAT YOU ALL HAVE NOT DONE ANY AGREEMENTS ON, AND THERE'LL BE SECTIONS THAT JUST REFERENCED ON ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'VE ALREADY DONE, BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE TO REDO THE WORK THAT'S ALREADY BEEN APPROVED, LIKE AN ILA THE PAST THREE MONTHS AGO IS AN ILA. SO THOSE WILL BE REFERENCED IN SECTIONS, AND THEN THERE'LL BE A BUNCH OF OTHER THINGS THAT WE'VE NEVER GOTTEN TO YET. BUT IF WE NEED TO HAVE IT IN WRITING EVERY TIME WE CAN, EVERYWHERE WE CAN, EVERYWHERE WE CAN ADDRESS IT IN ALL AGREEMENTS, ALL DOCUMENTS, EVERYTHING. AND NOT JUST THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT, BUT JUST IN GENERAL, UM, BECAUSE THAT'S, YOU START SKIPPING OVER THINGS AND THEN WE'LL BE RUNNING TO TRY AND CATCH UP. THE, THE LAST QUESTION I HAD IS WHEN WILL A DRAFT BE OUT SO THAT WE DON'T ASK THE PUBLIC TO READ A 500 PAGE DOCUMENT THAT'S ALREADY PRETTY DONE. YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. AND I, AND I WILL SAY THAT, WHAT DID YOU LIKE ALL MY QUESTIONS [01:15:01] I DO, UH, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW IF, UM, ANYBODY ELSE WANTS TO COMMENT ON THAT, BUT I WILL SAY AS WE ARE WORKING OUR WAY THROUGH ALL OF THE SECTIONS OF, OF ALL THOSE TOPICS THAT WERE PREVIOUSLY ON THE SLIDE, AND AS THEY BECOME READY AND AGREED UPON BY THE THREE PARTNERS, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF RIGHT NOW, UM, YOU KNOW, WE WILL TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HOW TO BEST RELEASE THOSE. UM, YOU KNOW, MAYBE IT'S BY A SEARCHABLE, SOMETHING ON THE WEBSITE THAT'S SEARCHABLE. SO IF SOMEONE IS REALLY INTERESTED IN THE DBA OR WORKFORCE PROGRAM, THEY CAN JUST CLICK THERE TO SEE IT WHEN WE'RE READY IN OCTOBER FOR THAT, UM, TO BE VIEWED BY THE PUBLIC AND TO TAKE THOSE COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC OR TAKE, UM, YOU KNOW, QUESTIONS THROUGH THE EMAIL PORTAL, OR HOWEVER, ALL THE WAYS DIFFERENT WAYS THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IT ARE PUBLIC MEETING. AND SO, UM, THAT'S HOW I, YOU KNOW, IN, IN HAVING MANAGED THESE BIG PROJECTS BEFORE, LIKE THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN, WE HAD IT BY CHAPTER. SO PEOPLE WHO WERE JUST INTERESTED IN CHAPTER SIX, WHICH WAS THE EQUITY CHAPTER, THEY COULD JUST GO THERE AND FOCUS IN AND SEND US DISCREET COMMENTS. SO WE'LL FIGURE OUT A WAY TO, UH, YOU KNOW, TAKE BITES AT THE ELEPHANT ONE BITE AT A TIME. I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO, UM, CONSIDER USING THE TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES AND THE PROCESS, BECAUSE THEY'RE ALMOST DELINEATED BY THE TOPICS THAT YOU'VE IDENTIFIED AS YOU GO THROUGH THE PROCESS. UM, THE, UM, DIVERSITY EQUITY INCLUSION POLICY THAT WE WENT THROUGH THE COMMITTEE, THE PIECE THAT COMMITTEE GAVE SOME VERY THOUGHTFUL COMMENTS THAT THE STAFF NOR I THOUGHT OF NOR, UH, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD THAT LOOKED AT. SO IT WAS, IT SHOWED THE BEAUTY OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EARLY ON, AS OPPOSED TO GIVING THEM SOMETHING THAT'S ALMOST DONE. CAUSE THAT'S HOW YOU BAKE THINGS IN THE DOUGH. UM, AND THEN IT'S HARD TO GET IT OUT. SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE US TO USE THOSE COMMITTEES BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE SAID. WE WERE GOING TO USE THOSE COMMITTEES FOR. THANK YOU FOR THAT FEEDBACK. OKAY. THANK YOU, DR. BURNETT. AND I KNOW YOU, UM, TO YOUR, TO YOUR POINT ABOUT THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT AND MAKING SURE THAT IT IS IN WRITING AND ALSO MAY RATHER TO YOUR POINT ABOUT THE QUESTION ABOUT THE DISPLACEMENT FOR, YOU KNOW, THE EFFECTS IT HAS ON BUSINESSES THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HOUSING, AS WELL AS DISPLACEMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL ENTITIES. WHAT GIVES AUSTIN, IT'S SO MUCH OF HIS CHARACTER AS WELL. SO WE'RE THINKING BROADLY ABOUT ANTI-DISPLACEMENT FOR BOTH HOUSING AND BUSINESSES AND HAS THEY GET IMPACTED BY, BY THE DISRUPTION OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS PROGRAM. SO, UM, THANK YOU, UH, NATE, FOR, FOR ALL THE HARD WORK AND SHARMILA FOR EVERYTHING AND MR. COUCH, DO WE HAVE ANY MORE QUESTIONS? YES. REMEMBER STRATTON. SO JUST TO CLARIFY, THEN I THINK I REMEMBER THAT WHEN WE WERE FIRST TALKING ABOUT THIS LAST SUMMER THAT WE TALKED ABOUT HOW THAT THIS WOULD BE A YES, MASSIVE DOCUMENT, WE'RE TALKING, GETTING INTO THE WEEDS AND THE NITTY-GRITTY DETAILS IN SOME CASES, AND THIS COULD BE YES, A 300 5400, 500 PAGE DOCUMENT IS WE'RE BREAKING IT UP BY SECTION. UM, BUT JUST KIND OF STICKING WITH THIS THEME, KIND OF LOOKING AT AS AN EXAMPLE OF, OF, OF A SMALL PIECE OF THE BIGGER PUZZLE HERE. UM, WHEN WE'RE, WHEN WE'RE STARTING TO GET INTO THE WEEDS OF THE, UM, CONSTRUCTION AND WE'RE LOOKING AT ISSUES WHERE WE'RE, WE'RE GOING TO BE, UM, POTENTIALLY EITHER TEMPORARY DISRUPTION AS WHERE I'M TEMPORARILY GOING TO HAVE TO CLOSE BUSINESS ACCESS, OR WE MAY HAVE TO ADJUST THE PATHWAYS OF VARIOUS, UM, UTILITIES AND THAT KIND OF THING. UH, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THEM WITHIN THIS AGREEMENT THAT IT'S GOING TO, IS IT, IS IT GOING TO GET INTO THE LEVEL OF DETAIL THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THAT THE CITY'S ROLE WILL BE THUS IN TERMS OF, UH, HELPING WITH THE, UM, PERMITTING PROCESS AND THE PROJECT CONNECT OFFICE, WE'LL DO THIS KIND OF THING FOR THESE SORTS OF ISSUES AND THE, THE, UH, TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT'S ROLE WILL BE THUS FOR, YOU KNOW, ENSURING THAT THE, THE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT FLOW IS SOMETHING VERSUS WHAT ATP'S ROLE IS. AND I IMAGINE IT, IN THAT PARTICULAR INSTANCE, TAP METRO'S ROLE AS THE THIRD PARTY IS KIND OF NAIL IN THAT, BECAUSE WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THE, THE EXISTING, UH, BUS AND TRANSIT SYSTEM. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SPECIFICALLY THE, THE CONSTRUCTION AND WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE CITY'S ROLE WITH WHAT ATP IS DOING. IS THAT KIND OF, ARE WE REALLY GETTING INTO THAT LEVEL OF WEAKNESS OR IS IT SIMPLY THAT IT'S STATING THAT, UM, THAT FOR ALL OF THESE KINDS OF THINGS, THE CITY WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS TAKING THE LEAD, AND THEN IT GIVES THE FLEXIBILITY TO CITY STAFF TO WORK THROUGH WHETHER IT'S CONTRACTING POLICY PROCEDURES, [01:20:02] UH, ADMINISTRATIVE, RULEMAKING, WHATEVER IT IS THAT WE'RE JUST STATING, BASICALLY WHO'S ON FIRST, WE'RE GETTING INTO THE DEEP DETAIL ON SOME OF IT, LIKE I SAID, WITH THE THINGS THAT ARE PERMITTING AND UTILITIES, THE BEAUTY OF THE WAY THIS PROGRAM IS SET UP WITH THE OVERALL PROGRAM OFFICE. IT WILL BE AN ECON I IN ADJACENT CUBICLES OR OFFICES WITH STAFF FROM THE CITY, FROM EACH ONE OF THE DIFFERENT UTILITY SECTIONS WITH THE ABILITY TO GO AHEAD AND DO THE REVIEWS, THE APPROVALS, AND THEN ISSUE PERMITS. SO IT'S, IT'S ONE SIZE FITS ALL. IT'S ALL OF US LIVING TOGETHER. IT'S ALL OF US WORKING JOINTLY TO GO AHEAD AND ADVANCE THE PROGRAM. THAT'S THE ONLY WAY A PROGRAM LIKE THIS CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED, UH, BECAUSE THERE ARE GOING TO BE HICCUPS THAT HAPPEN AS IT GOES ALONG, REGARDLESS OF HOW MUCH WE TRY TO GET EVERYTHING IN THE JPA, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THINGS WHERE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WORK OUT AS WE GO FORWARD. SOME OF THOSE ARE GOING TO COME UP AT THREE IN THE MORNING, UH, AND THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO WIND UP DOING. UH, BUT I THINK THAT IT'S THE EFFORT AND IT'S THE TIME THAT EVERYBODY IS SPENDING RIGHT NOW TO PUT IT TOGETHER. UH, AND THESE ARE SOME OF THE MOST CHALLENGING SUBJECTS. WHAT HAPPENS WITH UTILITIES? WHAT DO YOU DO WITH PERMITS? HOW DO YOU DO WHAT WITH TRAFFIC STAGING SO THAT YOU HAVE THE LEAST EFFECT? UH, SO ALL THOSE THINGS ARE WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO WORK THROUGH RIGHT NOW. OKAY. I WILL, I'LL JUST SAY, I, THIS IS AMAZING. THIS IS TRULY, UM, I LIKE USING THIS WORD FOR SOMETHING OTHER THAN COVID UNPRECEDENTED IN ITS NATURE. UM, I WILL JUST, I'LL JUST SAY THAT, THAT I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT AS WE'RE DRAFTING THAT JUST FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, SERVING BOTH ON THE CAP METRO BOARD AND ON, UH, THIS, THIS BOARD HERE, I, I DON'T WANT US GETTING INTO THE, INTO THE, TOO MUCH INTO THE WEEDS WITH THIS. I DON'T WANT TO SEE THIS POLICY-MAKING BODY, UM, BECOMING A, UM, UH, GETTING INTO THE BUSINESS OF, OF EITHER HELICOPTER PARENTING OR MICRO-MANAGING THE WAY THAT, THAT THE STAFF IS TRYING TO DO THEIR JOB. BECAUSE MY FEAR IS IS THAT IF WE LAY OUT TOO MUCH IN THE JOINT POWERS AGREEMENT, THEN THAT MEANS THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO COME, THAT THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO LITERALLY STAFF WILL HAVE TO COME BACK TO THE CITY TO ATP AND TO CAP METRO LITERALLY, POTENTIALLY JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO MOVE TRAFFIC CONE. AND THAT'S, THAT'S NOT WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE HAPPEN. I KNOW THAT'S NOBODY'S INTENT, BUT I JUST, I THINK IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT I REALIZED THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE AND A LOT OF STAKEHOLDERS WHO WANT TO SEE A LOT OF THINGS HAPPEN. AND CONSEQUENTLY, A LOT OF THINGS NOT HAPPEN AS WE'RE, WE'RE PUTTING THIS TOGETHER ON PAPER. I JUST THINK WE, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE STILL HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY AS AN ATP BOARD TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN GET THE JOB DONE AND GIVE THE STAFF WHAT THEY NEED TO GET THE JOB DONE WITHOUT TRIPPING OVER OURSELVES IN WHAT COULD BECOME POTENTIALLY TOO MUCH TAPE. AND LET'S JUST USE THAT TO BE UNPRECEDENTED IN THE OTHER DIRECTION AS WELL. THERE IS A MIDDLE, THERE IS A WAY TO DO BOTH. SO I JUST WANT TO BE CONSCIOUS OF THAT BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS. WE GOT TO GET THIS DONE AND IT GETS DONE FOR THOSE, WITH THE VOICE. SO THERE IS A MIDDLE, SO LET'S FIND THAT MIDDLE. ABSOLUTELY, ABSOLUTELY AGREE. YEAH. I WAS JUST GOING TO COMMENT THAT AS, AS WE'VE BEEN GOING THROUGH ALL OF THE SECTIONS, WE ARE THINKING EXACTLY IN THOSE WAYS WE ARE, WE ARE THINKING THROUGH, AS WE SHOULD BE LIKE, OKAY, WHAT, HOW DOES THIS NEED TO HAPPEN? CONSTRUCTION-WISE OR WHATEVER. OKAY. NOW LET'S, LET'S GO BACK. WHAT IS THE DIRECTION AND THE JPA THAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO ENABLE THAT WORK. AND THEN, UH, TO YOUR POINT, DR. BURNETT, YOU KNOW, WHAT DETAIL ARE WE COMFORTABLE PUTTING IN HERE BECAUSE IT'S THE RIGHT THING TO DO. AND SO THAT IS THE PROCESS THAT WE ARE TAKING. UM, AND IT'S A GOOD PROCESS. UH, SO I HOPE THAT, THAT YOU ALL WILL BE PLEASED WITH WHAT YOU SEE WHEN, WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU SEE THOSE SECTIONS IN OCTOBER, THANK YOU ALL FOR THE WORK THAT YOU'RE PUTTING IN ON THIS, BECAUSE THIS IS, THIS IS HUGE. ONE THING I LIKE TO ALSO ENCOURAGE, AS WE, AS WE IMPLEMENT NEW WAYS OF DOING THINGS THAT ARE SEAMLESS OR MORE EFFICIENT, THAT WE ARE HELPING THE CITY OVERALL, NOT JUST MAKING THIS EFFICIENCIES FOR PROJECT CONNECT, BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT A LOT OF HAVING DONE PERMITTING IN FIVE JURISDICTIONS IS CHALLENGING TO PERMIT ANYTHING IN AUSTIN. SO ANYTHING WE CAN DO TO HELP FACILITATE AND CREATE NEW WAYS OF DOING THINGS BETTER FOR EVERYONE WOULD BE A HUGE, HUGE GAIN FOR THE OVERALL COMMUNITY AND FOR OUR FUTURE. SO, UM, AS WE DOCUMENT THESE BEST PRACTICES, I REALLY WANT US TO ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT, ARE WE REMOVING BARRIERS TO GETTING THINGS DONE BETTER? ABSOLUTELY. AND YOU KNOW, TOMORROW AS DAVE POINTED OUT, UM, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST OF OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES STAFF AND OUR PROJECT CONNECT OFFICE [01:25:01] STAFF, UH, LOOKING AT, UH, PILOTING A NEW TEAM AT THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICE DEPART SERVICES DEPARTMENT, UH, SPECIFICALLY FOR LONG LINEAR CIP CORRIDOR TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS, WHICH ARE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, UH, AS YOU WELL KNOW, UH, IS, IS NOT IT'S, IT'S DEVELOPED AROUND VERTICAL DEVELOPMENT AND OUR CIPS ARE DIFFERENT, ESPECIALLY OUR TRANSPORTATION, ESPECIALLY THIS PROGRAM. AND SO WE ARE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT, ARE THERE ANY CODE AMENDMENTS ARE THERE, WHAT ARE THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO TO BECOME MORE EFFICIENT, NOT ONLY FOR PROJECT CONNECT, BUT TO HELP THE 2016 QUARTER PROGRAM AS WELL, AND OTHER TYPES OF LOCAL MOBILITY, BICYCLE, PEDESTRIAN, OTHER PROJECTS AS WE MOVE FORWARD. SO, UM, IT'S AN EXCITING TIME AND WE'RE GOING TO BE SOLVING FOR PROJECT CONNECT, BUT IT, AS YOU SAID, IT'S GOING TO HELP ALL OF OUR OTHER, UH, TO BE EFFICIENT AND ALL OF OUR OTHER PROGRAMS, WHICH IS, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT WE SHOULD BE DOING. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO WITH THAT CHAIR, THAT IS THE CONCLUSION OF THE DIRECTOR REPORT. I APOLOGIZE THAT MAY HAVE TAKEN A LITTLE LONGER THAN ANTICIPATED, BUT, UH, CERTAINLY A GREAT CONVERSATION, APPRECIATE THE FEEDBACK. UH, AND I'LL HAND IT BACK OVER TO YOU. THANK YOU EVERYONE. UM, I THINK I LOST MY PLACE IN THE AGENDA NOW, SO, SO YEAH, WE'RE HERE. ACTION ITEMS. PERFECT. SO I KNOW, UM, WE HAD A DISCUSSION BEFORE THIS MEETING ABOUT THE APPROVAL OF OUR MEETING MINUTES. I DON'T THINK THOSE HAVE BEEN UPDATED YET. SO, UH, WITH EVERYONE'S APPROVAL AND THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR JOINING US. THANK YOU. UM, THE, I KNOW WE'VE READ THE MINUTES, SO WE'RE NOT READY TO APPROVE THESE YET BECAUSE THE AMENDMENTS HAVEN'T BEEN DONE, HOW SHOULD WE PROCEED WITH, UH, WITH THE CHANGES AND CORRECTIONS THAT WERE NOTED? YEAH. SO I LIKE TO DO, UM, POSTPONE THE ACTION ITEM, NUMBER ONE OF THE MEETING MINUTES, UNTIL WE CAN, UH, READ THE, THE UPDATES THAT WE PRESENTED US AS MINE, THERE WERE MINOR CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS TO BE MORE DETAILED. UM, SO WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO [III.b. Adoption of the ATP Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Policy] ACTION ITEM NUMBER TWO. AND, UM, SO THE ADOPTION OF THE ATP DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION DEI POLICY, OUR GENERAL COUNSEL, CASEY BARAQ, SHE WILL GIVE US SOME BACKGROUND, CASEY. SURE. GOOD AFTERNOON, ATP BOARD. UM, IN YOUR PACKETS, AS YOU MENTIONED, YOU HAVE THE PROPOSED ATP DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION STATEMENT THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON WITH YOU ALL FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS. AND AS JACKIE NIERENBERG MENTIONED ALSO OUR PLANNING SUSTAINABILITY EQUITY AND DVE COMMITTEE WAS ABLE TO REVIEW THAT AND DISCUSS IT AND GIVE THEIR FEEDBACK ON AT THEIR MEETING ON JULY 7TH AND, AND SUBSEQUENT EMAILS. SO, UM, I ACTUALLY WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE OUR NEW, UM, EQUITY AND DBE DIRECTOR, COURTNEY CHAVEZ. UM, SHE HAS A LOT MORE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS THAN I DO. UM, SHE, SHE ACTUALLY JOINED US AFTER WE HAD TO STARTED DRAFTING IT, BUT SHE WAS ABLE TO GIVE SOME GOOD INPUT, UM, AND ALSO JOIN OUR P SEC MEETING. AND, UM, WE'RE VERY GLAD TO HAVE HER. SHE COMES TO US FROM THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, WHERE SHE SERVED AS DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION. AND AT TXDOT, SHE SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT IMPLEMENTATION OF TITLE SIX AND ADA POLICIES, THE DBE AND HUB PROGRAMS, THAT'S HISTORICALLY UNDERUTILIZED BUSINESSES AND ALSO DEVELOPED COMMUNITY FOCUSED AND COMMUNITY-BASED WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PLANS. SO SHE'S, LIKE I SAID, JOINED A LITTLE AFTER WE STARTED THE POLICY, BUT SHE'S GOT GREAT INPUT AND SHE'S GONNA, UM, SHE KNOWS THE POLICY AND OUR STATEMENT INSIDE AND OUT, AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. SO I'LL, UH, I'LL HAND IT OVER TO HER. THANK YOU, CASEY. AND HELLO BOARD MEMBERS, PRESIDENT CLARK, NICE TO SEE YOU ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING TOGETHER AND REALLY BUILDING ITS RELATIONSHIP. AS WE EMBED EQUITY ACROSS EVERYTHING THAT WE DO AND MAKE IT BAKED INTO THE DOUGH OF WHAT WE NEED FOR PROJECT CONNECT. UM, YOU'VE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE DEI POLICY STATEMENT. IT IS, IT IS EMBLEMATIC OF ONE OF OUR CORE VALUES OF WHAT WE WANT TO BUILD INTO PROJECT CONNECT. I MEAN, IT IS BUILT ACROSS EVERYTHING THAT WE WANT TO WANT TO DO HERE. UH, CASEY DID MENTION, MY FIRST DAY WAS JULY 6TH AND THE PIECE THAT MEETING WAS JULY 7TH. SO I, I HAD A FIRST TASK ITEM OF MAKING SURE THAT WE LOOKED AT THE, UM, POLICY STATEMENT THAT EVERYTHING IN THERE LOOKED GREAT. I MADE SOME, SOME NECESSARY RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT REALLY THE PIECE THAT COMMUNITY, THE COMMITTEE THAT WAS, UH, REVIEWING THE, HAD SOME GREAT COMMENTS THAT ENDED UP CHANGING AND REFLECTING ON WHAT THE STATEMENT IS. SO WHAT YOU'LL NOTICE IS THAT WE'VE REMOVED AN ENTIRE COMPLAINT SECTION FROM THE POLICY STATEMENT BECAUSE WE WANT IT TO REALLY EXEMPLIFY THE INTENT OF THE STATEMENT IS [01:30:01] A MORE POSITIVE DIRECTION. SO THE COMPLAINTS PIECE WAS PULLED OUT. IN ADDITION, THEY SUGGESTED A LOT MORE INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE IN CERTAIN AREAS THAT WE HAD MISSED. AND SO IT WAS GREAT FEEDBACK TO GET FROM THEM. UM, AS WE LOOK FORWARD, WE'RE VIEWING THE STATEMENT REALLY AS A STARTING POINT, HEY, THIS IS OUR BASELINE OF WHAT WE WANT TO BUILD INTO PROJECT CONNECT AND THE PROGRAM ACROSS THE BOARD. BUT WE ALSO HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO GROW FROM HERE TO UPDATE THE POLICY AS NEEDED TO BUILD IN ACCOUNTABILITY METRICS WHERE WE NEED TO. SO WE CAN BE TRANSPARENT, NOT ONLY WITH THE BOARD, BUT THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE. AND SO AS WE GROW AS A TEAM AND COMMUNITY, THE POLICY STATEMENT WILL GROW AS WELL. AND SO I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE STATEMENT. I KNOW, UH, IT WAS PART OF OUR BACKUP, UM, THAT I WAS ABLE TO READ THE, WHAT WAS POSTED. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE HAD A CHANCE TO SEE IT. YOU DIDN'T SEE IT ON THE BACKUP. I, I DIDN'T, I DIDN'T GET IT AND DIDN'T SEE IT IN THE BACKUP MATERIALS. OKAY. IT'S LIKE THREE PAGES LONG. AND ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT, UM, AS WE WENT BACK AND FORTH IN THIS, UM, THANK YOU, CHLOE, IN THE REVIEW OF THE POLICY WAS THE SOMETHING THAT DR. BURNETT HAD POINTED OUT IN THE PAST ABOUT WHAT WOULD BE OUR ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES AND WHAT WOULD BE, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW, HOW ARE WE, UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE FOLLOWING THE POLICY CORRECTLY AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS PROGRAM, BUT, UM, THIS WAS GOING TO BE A SEPARATE ELEMENT THAT GOING TO BE IN CONJUNCTION TO SUPPORT THIS. YES. AND SO, AS WE DEVELOP THE ADDITIONAL POLICIES THAT WE NEED, CAUSE WE HAVE TO DEVELOP OUR OWN TITLE, SIX PLANS. WE NEED TO LOOK AT, UM, HOW OUR COMPLAINTS, PROCEDURES WORKED. A LOT OF THE COMPLIANCE PIECES THAT BUILD INTO IT. AND THEN WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BUILD FROM THERE AS AN ENTIRE ECOSYSTEM OF METRICS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE IDENTIFYING ALL THE EQUITY NEEDS AND REPORTING THE NECESSARY THINGS GOING FORWARD. SO IN THE FUTURE, WE CAN PROBABLY ADD IN SOME ITEMS INTO THE POLICY ITSELF, BUT REALLY IT'LL BE SITTING SEPARATE. SO HOW DOES THE BOARD FEEL ABOUT, UM, ADOPTING THIS POLICY VOTING NOW? DID YOU ALL FEEL READY? DO YOU NEED MORE TIME? YES. OR MEMBERS COMMENT. SO I'VE GONE THROUGH IT A COUPLE OF TIMES. I THINK IT'S GOOD THAT WE HAVE IT. I THINK THE IMPORTANT THING TO NOTE IS THIS IS GOING TO BE A LIVING DOCUMENT. THIS IS A TEN-YEAR PROGRAM. THIS WILL CHANGE. WE WILL ADD THINGS TO IT. WE WILL MODIFY IT. SO IT MAY NOT BE PERFECT, BUT MY 2 CENTS WOULD BE, LET'S GET SOMETHING ADOPTED. WE HAVE IT IN PLACE. UM, SO I'M A BIG BELIEVER IN THE FACT THAT IT'S A LIVING DOCUMENT. THE OTHER THING I THINK THIS IS CRITICAL. AND I THINK I SAW A LANGUAGE ABOUT, WE NEED TO HAVE REGULAR REPORTING TO THE BOARD ON HOW WE ARE ADHERING TO THIS POLICY STATEMENT. OTHER VIOLATIONS ARE, ARE WE IN GOOD FORM? SO, UH, REGULAR REPORTING TO THE BOARD ON THIS, I THINK WILL BE IMPORTANT. SO THAT'S MY COMMENTS, UM, BOARD MEMBERS. YEAH, I AM 110% COMMITTED TO DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION. I SERVED AS A MEMBER OF, UM, MAYOR, MAYOR. ADLER'S ONE OF HIS, UH, ON THE HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE FOR YOUR, UM, UH, TASK FORCE TASK FORCE. AS A MATTER OF FACT, MY CONCERN AND FRUSTRATION IS MORE A MATTER OF PROCESS THAN IT IS POLICY BECAUSE WE, AS A BOARD, LOOKED AT THIS AND MADE THE DECISION EARLY ON THAT WE WANTED TO TAKE THIS BACK INTO DRY DOCK AND GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF EXTRA TIME AND FEEDBACK. AND, UH, AND I, I APPLAUD THAT WE DID THAT AND I APPLAUD, UH, YOU KNOW, DR. BURNETT IN, IN YOUR WORK. MY CONCERN IS I DIDN'T HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY WAS NOT GRANTED ENOUGH OF AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE DOCUMENT. I DIDN'T GET TO SEE A RED LINE TO SEE THE DIFFERENCE IN IS MY COLLEAGUES AND CAP METRO KNOW, I WAS REALLY BIG ABOUT RED LINES ABOUT SEEING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT ONCE WAS AND WHAT IS NOW BEING PROPOSED. I DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW. I WAS LITERALLY JUST HANDED THIS REVISED COPY RIGHT NOW AS TO WHAT WE'VE GOT, THAT THE FIRST TIME I'M BEING ABLE TO SEE IT. UM, I DON'T LIKE, I DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE OR CONFIDENT BEING PUT IN A POSITION WHERE I'D HAVE TO, UM, QUITE FRANKLY, ABSTAIN BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW THE INFORMATION AT HAND. I DON'T THINK THAT SENDS A GOOD MESSAGE. I DON'T THINK THAT, [01:35:01] THAT MY COLLEAGUES AT CABINET FOR WOULD APPRECIATE ME ABSTAINING OVER SOMETHING, THIS IMPORTANT. I DON'T THINK IT SENDS A GOOD MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY. SO IS IT, LET ME JUST INTERJECT BECAUSE, UM, I JUST TALKED AS CASEY. I THINK THAT WAS AN OVERSIGHT ON THE STAFF'S PART. YEAH. I'LL GET A COPY. THAT'S WHAT I'M GETTING AT. OKAY. SO LET'S, SO THERE, YEAH, I DON'T, I DON'T WANT IT AND THAT'S THE, I DON'T WANT TO HOLD THIS UP, BUT I'M CONCERNED ABOUT, I DON'T WANT TO MUDDLE PROCESS. RIGHT. I DON'T WANT TO MUDDLE AN OVERSIGHT ON THE STAFF WITH WHAT THE BOARD RECEIVES AS THE POLICY EXACTLY. WAS AN OVERSIGHT. EXACTLY. THERE'S A PERIOD THERE. SO I SUGGEST MADAM CHAIR THAT WE MOVE THIS TO NEXT WEEK. JUST LIKE WE DID THE MINUTES. YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. I WOULD APPRECIATE THAT. YEAH, THAT THAT'S FAIR ENOUGH FOR ME. I KNOW THAT AS FAR AS I WAS CONCERNED, I WAS ABLE TO READ IT ON THE, ON THE BACKUP PACKAGE. AND, UH, BUT TO YOUR POINT, JUST TO MAKE SURE I CAPTURE THIS CORRECTLY, WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE AS THE RED LINE TO, TO BE ABLE TO SEE WHAT WERE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE, THE FIRST ONE THAT WAS PROPOSED AND THEN THE CHANGES THAT IS CORRECT. AND, AND I, I I'VE EXPRESSED THAT TO STAFF AND THEN I, I DIDN'T RECEIVE ANYTHING UNTIL I SAT DOWN AND SAW THIS HERE RIGHT NOW. SO I THINK THAT, AGAIN, I THINK THAT IT WAS A HICCUP AND A LITTLE BIT OF A JUST GROWING PAINS ISSUES IS WE'RE JUST, WE'RE, WE'RE BUILDING THINGS OUT. BUT, UM, I THINK THAT, THAT IF WE COULD JUST A LOGISTICAL ISSUE AND I FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE, IF I COULD SEE IT BEFORE I COULD VOTE ON IT, I WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S IN IT BEFORE I, YOU KNOW, CAST A VOTE ON. YEAH. UNDERSTOOD. I THINK YOU PROBABLY GOT AN EARLIER VERSION. UNFORTUNATELY, I TOOK A VACATION, SO THAT'S, THAT'S ALL ON ME. UM, BUT I DON'T, THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO REASON WHY WE CAN'T, UM, GIVE IT ANOTHER MONTH AND DISCUSS IT IN AUGUST. YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELL TAKEN AND WE'LL MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THAT. I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? SO JUST AS A GENERAL RULE, IF ONE OF US COMES TO THE DIOCESE AND DIDN'T GET A DOCUMENTED TIME TO BE ABLE TO REVIEW IT, AND THERE'S NOT A REASON THAT IS COMPELLING FOR US TO DO IT, WE SHOULD JUST ACCOMMODATE THAT. AND I APPRECIATE THAT WILLINGNESS AND THINK IT'S THE RIGHT THING TO DO AS WELL. NO, I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S A VERY GOOD CALL AND I KNOW THIS IS REALLY ONE OF OUR MOST IMPORTANT PIECES OF NEW ORGANIZATION AS WELL. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST TIME WE POSTPONE THIS ITEM WAS TO THAT DR. BURNETT WITH HER TEAM COULD LAUNCH, IT COULD HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT. AND I, I I'M GRATEFUL FOR THAT TIME THAT YOU GUYS HAVE INVESTED IN IT. SO THANK YOU. AND THANK YOU AND WELCOME TO THE TEAM. THANK YOU. THIS IS A WARM WELCOME RIGHT NOW. A LOT OF FUN GOING FORWARD. I APPRECIATE THE FEEDBACK BECAUSE IT'S NECESSARY FOR US TO MAKE SURE WE GET IT RIGHT. AND THIS POLICY IS IMPORTANT. IT WILL BE THE UMBRELLA TO EVERYTHING THAT WE INTEND TO DO. SO, UM, I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IT'S GOOD TO SEE A NEW HIRE THAT DOESN'T COME FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN NOTE. WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO ACTION. ITEM NUMBER THREE, THE APPROVAL [III.c. Approval of resolutions authorizing the Executive Director, or his designee, to enter into interlocal agreements with each of the (i) U.S. General Services Administration; (ii) Region 8 Education Service Center; and (iii) State of Texas for purposes of participating in certain of their cooperative procurement programs.] OF RESOLUTIONS AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OR HIS DESIGNEE TO ENTER INTO INTERLOCAL AGREEMENTS WITH EACH OF THE U S GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION TO REGION EIGHT EDUCATION SERVICE CENTER, ITEM THREE, THE STATE OF TEXAS FOR PURPOSES OF PARTICIPATING IN CERTAIN OF, OF THEIR COOPERATIVE PROCUREMENT PROGRAMS. AND WE HAVE VICKY REDERICK THAT OUR DIRECTOR OF PROCUREMENT, WHO HAS SOME BACKGROUND FOR US, MS. RODRICK, HI AFTERNOON, MADAM CHAIR, BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CLARK. UH, WE HAVE THREE ITEMS THAT WE ARE GOING TO, UH, VOTE ON, UH, IN A BLOCK, UH, AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE PROJECT CONNECT FORWARD. OKAY. SO AS WE TALK, I'M SORRY, AS WE TALK THROUGH THE CO-OP AGREEMENTS, UH, JUST TO GIVE A GENERAL OVERVIEW, THE BENEFITS OF USING A CO-OP IS ONE THAT IT CREATES PROCUREMENT EFFICIENCIES, THE SOLICITATIONS OR PROCUREMENTS HAVE ALREADY BEEN DONE AND MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF A COMPETITION. SO IT'S A STREAMLINED PROCESS, EVEN BOTH TIME AND MONEY. UH, THE BENEFIT TO US IS THAT THERE'S NO COST FOR ATP TO JOIN THESE COOPERATIVES AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THEM, NEED TO DO WE HAVE ANY PURCHASING OBLIGATION OR LIABILITY THERE'S NO MINIMUM OR ANYTHING THAT WE HAVE TO MEET IN ORDER TO BE A MEMBER OF THE CO-OPS. BUT AS THAT, WE DO HAVE SOME RESPONSIBILITIES, [01:40:01] ONE, WE HAVE TO FOLLOW OUR PROCUREMENT POLICIES FOR ALL PURCHASES, WHICH I WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO, UH, PRESENT TO YOU AT THE NEXT BOARD MEETING. AND THEN WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE PARTICIPATION RULES OF EACH CO-OP AND THEN FOLLOW THE LAWS AND REGULATIONS OF EACH CO-OP, WHICH ARE VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT WE ALREADY DO AS FAR AS ALL OF THE, UH, CHAPTER 4 50, 1 OF THE TRANSPORTATION CODES OR ANY, YOU KNOW, FEDERAL REGULATIONS OR CFR 200. SO ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE ALREADY TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. THE THING THAT WE HAVE TO DO, IF WE'RE GOING TO USE FEDERAL FUNDS FOR THESE IS, AS WE IMPLEMENT THESE CO-OPS IS MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE ALL THE APPLICABLE FEDERAL CLAUSES AND THOSE PRIOR TO EXECUTION. AND IF WE HAVE ANY N W B EAGLES OR ANY TYPE OF PARTICIPATION GOALS, THAT WE INCLUDE THOSE IN OUR PORTION PRIOR TO EXECUTION AND ANY APPLICABLE INSURANCE GOALS OR ANYTHING ELSE APPLICABLE TO ATP THAT IS NOT ALREADY INCLUDED IN THOSE PARTICULAR CO-OP AGREEMENTS. SO THE FIRST OF WHICH IS THE GENERAL SERVICE ADMINISTRATION OR THE GSA ADVANTAGE, THE, UH, WHAT ALLOWS ATP TO JOIN. THIS IS, UH, WE ARE THE FINE AS A LOCAL GOVERNMENT, UH, ON THEIR 40 U S CODE 5 0 2. AND THE SECTION OF THE E-GOVERNMENT ACT, THE 2002 THAT GIVES US OUR AUTHORIZATION IS PUBLIC LAW, 1 0 7, 3 47 AND PUBLIC LAW, 1 10, 2 48. THE REQUIREMENTS THAT WE HAVE TO JOIN GSA IS THAT WE REGISTER OUR DOMAIN. SO WE'LL HAVE TO USE WHEN WE GO, WE'LL USE AUSTIN TRANSIT, PARTNERSHIP.ORG. RIGHT NOW, I UNDERSTAND THAT WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF SHORTENING THAT, BUT WE ERASED THAT DOMAIN AND WE'LL HAVE THE ABILITY TO USE A GSA FURTHER PURCHASING. AND WHAT WE'RE USING THIS FOR IMMEDIATELY IS FOR E-BILL OR WHICH IS OUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE THAT OUR PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM USES TO MANAGE PROJECTS. SO THAT'S THE IMPORTANCE OF BRINGING US TO THE BOARD. NOW, THE NEXT CO-OP IS WHAT'S COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS TIPS OR THE TEXAS AND OUR LOCAL PURCHASING SYSTEM. AGAIN, UH, WE'RE DEFINED AS A GOVERNMENT ENTITY ON THE 7 91, UH, 0 0 3. THE AUTHORIZATION IS ON THE TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 7 91, WHICH IS THE, UH, IN LOCAL CORPORATION CONTRACTS, AS WELL AS THE TEXAS EDUCATION CODE SECTION 8 0 2, WHICH IS THE REGIONAL EDUCATION SERVICES, CONTRACTS, AND ARTISTS WHO ENTER INTO THIS PARTICULAR CO-OP, UH, WE JUST, IT JUST ALLOWS US A LICENSE TO PURCHASE, AND WE JUST HAVE TO HAVE BOARD AUTHORITY TO ENTER INTO THE CO-OP. AND, UH, I DO APOLOGIZE, BUT WHAT THIS ONE WILL ALLOW US TO, UH, DO IS TO USE PLANET BIDS SO THAT WE CAN, WE CAN, UH, DO PROCUREMENTS UNDER THE ATP UMBRELLA VERSUS THE CAP METRO UMBRELLA. IT'S THE ESOURCING. AND THE NEXT ONE IS THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION OR COMMONLY REFERRED TO AS DIR. AGAIN, OUR ELIGIBILITY IS THAT WE'RE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND WE ARE AUTHORIZED UNDER THE INNER LOCAL GOVERNMENT CORPORATION ACT. AND ALL WE HAVE TO DO WITH THIS ONE IS WE, UH, ENTER INTO WHAT'S CALLED IT INTERSTATE CORPORATION CONTRACT, WHICH IF WE HAVE THE RESOLUTION, WE JUST SIGN IT, WE SEND THE INFORMATION IN AND WHAT THIS ALLOWS US TO DO AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE INTO OUR BUILDING IS TO PURCHASE IT, UH, TECHNOLOGIES IF WE NEED THEM. SO WITH THAT, THAT'S ALL I HAVE. IF THERE ARE ANY RELATED TO THOSE, I'LL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO ANSWER THEM. THANK YOU, MR. RODERICK, DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD OR NO, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I THINK THIS WAS THE EASIEST ONE TODAY, SO THANK YOU. WELL, IF THERE'S NO QUESTIONS, I'D LIKE TO REQUEST A MOTION AND A SECOND TO APPROVE THE ACTION ITEM. NUMBER THREE, DO WE HAVE A MOTION? I'LL MAKE THE MOTION BY THEM. JACKIE, DR. BURNETT AND SECOND BOARD MEMBER ELKINS. SECOND. EVERYONE WHO APPROVED SAY AYE. AYE. ANY NAYS? THE MOTION PASSES UNANIMOUSLY. THANK YOU. UM, OUR NEXT ITEM ON THE AGENDA, WE HAVE AN UPDATE [IV.a. Project Connect Central Alignment Review] ON THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT FROM THE ORANGE AND, UM, AND THE BLUE LINES FROM US, MR. JOHN ROME, DEPUTY PROGRAM OFFICER AND MR. PETER MULAN, MULAN, UM, CHIEF OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN DESIGN AND OFFICER OF THE AUSTIN PROJECT CONNECT [01:45:01] OFFICE. MS. MR. RON, GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR, BOARD MEMBERS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CLERK. UH, TODAY WE WILL PRESENT TO YOU THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT, UH, FOR, UH, THE 15%, UH, DESIGN. AND, AND I HAVE TO SAY TO YOU, IT'S AN EXCITING TIME TO BE TO THIS POINT. WE'VE TRANSITIONED THROUGH, UH, THE ALIGNMENT AND THIS IS AN AREA THAT DEFINITELY HIGHLIGHTS A MAJOR PIECE OF THEIR PROGRAM. THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT IS, IS THE CORE OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN. IT'S AN OUTSTANDING OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO, TO REALLY DEVELOP THE AREA FOR RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL. UH, AND WHAT THIS CITY REALLY HAS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME AN OUTSTANDING GROWING GREAT CITY. THAT IS DEFINITELY, UH, A SHINING STAR ON THE MAP. AND SO, UH, TODAY, UH, I LIKE TO, TO START WITH THE PROJECT CONNECT SEQUENCE PLAN, AND THIS IS SOMETHING YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH, BUT WE ALWAYS LIKE TO GO BACK TO THE CORE OF WHERE WE BEGAN AND WHAT THE PROGRAM CONSISTS OF. AND I, I TOUCH ON THAT WORD PROGRAM. AGAIN, WE CONTINUE TO EMPHASIZE THAT TODAY, THE ORANGE AND BLUE LINE PROJECTS, AS PART OF THE PROGRAM BEFORE WHAT WE WILL CONTINUE TO, TO BRIEF YOU ON. AND IT SHOWS THE OUTLINE OF THE YEARS THAT WE GO THROUGH OUR PLANNING PHASE, THE DESIGN, THE CONSTRUCTION, AND COMMISSIONING OF THOSE TWO PROJECTS AS WELL LISTED ARE THE METRO RAIL PROJECTS, THE METRO RAPID METRO EXPRESS PARKING RIDES, THE METRO BUS, THE COMMUTER TECH SYSTEMS AND THE ANTI-DISPLACEMENT INVESTMENT. SO I LIKE TO CONTINUE TO HIGHLIGHT THE KEY MILESTONES IN THE PROGRESS THAT WE'VE MADE. UH, WE'VE GONE THROUGH AND BEEN ABLE TO PUT THE CHECK MARK THERE FOR THE NOTICE INTENT FOR THE NEPA PROCESS. WE HAVE COMPLETED, UH, THESE 15% DESIGN SUBMITTAL, AND WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF COMPLETING THAT REVIEW PROCESS. AND WE HAVE SUBMITTED OUR LETTERS REQUESTING ENTRY INTO PROJECT DEVELOPMENT TO THE FTA, AND WE ANTICIPATE TO RECEIVE APPROVAL FOR THAT PROCESS IN AUGUST NEXT MONTH, AS WELL, JUST TO HIGHLIGHT, UM, UH, THE SCHEDULE AND THE KEY MILESTONES MOVING FORWARD. AS WE TOUCHED ON A LITTLE BIT EARLIER, WE DO HAVE THE PROJECT THAT CONTINUES TO PROGRESS FROM 15% DESIGN LEVEL TO 30% DESIGN LEVEL. THAT WOULD BE THIS TIME NEXT YEAR, THAT WE WOULD GO THROUGH A PROCESS TO FULLY COMPLETE THAT PROCESS AND ALLOW, UH, THE COMPLETION OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT PHASE. SO THIS WALKS YOU THROUGH SPRING OF 22, THAT DRAFT BEING SUBMITTED, THE DEI S BEING SUBMITTED WITH DESIGN AND COST ESTIMATES, AS WELL AS IN SPRING OF 22, THAT'S WHEN WE WOULD GET OUR INITIAL FTA RATING AND THEN COMPLETION OF THE 30% DESIGN AND COST ESTIMATES AND COMMENT PERIOD, WHICH WILL LEAD US TOWARDS THAT MAJOR MILESTONE OF RECEIVING THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT, AS WELL AS THE RECORD OF DECISION IN DECEMBER OF 2022. SO AGAIN, THE ALIGNMENT BRIEF AND SEQUENCE, WE STARTED THIS PROCESS IN MAY WITH THE BLUE LINE. WE CONTINUED LAST MONTH IN JUNE WITH THE ORANGE LINE NORTH AND SOUTH, AND NOW OUR FOCUS TODAY WILL BE ON THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT DOWNTOWN TO SOCO. SO TODAY WE WANT TO ACTUALLY TAKE YOU BACK IN TIME A LITTLE BIT AND SHOW YOU THE PROCESSES THAT WE'VE GONE THROUGH AS A CITY, UH, TO DEVELOP TRANSPORTATION. AND SO THIS NEXT SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS, UM, IT'S NOT, IT'S LOCKED UP. SO THE NEXT SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS THE OVERALL PROGRAMMING, THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT, AND WHAT WE'RE SHOWING ARE THE DIFFERENT MODES OF TRANSPORTATION AND THE CONNECTIVITY THROUGHOUT THIS AREA. YOU CAN SEE THE STATIONS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED, THE TRANSIT HUB THAT'S IDENTIFIED THROUGHOUT THE AREA, THE CONNECTIONS FOR THE RED AND THE BLUE LINE. AND AS WELL, YOU CAN SEE THAT WITH THE, THE PURPLE LINES THAT ARE IDENTIFIED, THE BUS ROUTES THAT ARE THROUGHOUT THE, THE AREA. AND SO, UM, I'LL START A PROCESS WHERE I HAND THIS OFF TO PETER MULLEN, OUR CHIEF OF URBAN DESIGN AND ARCHITECTURE. AND HE'S GOING TO WALK US THROUGH AND TAKE US THROUGH A PROCESS A LITTLE BIT BACK IN TIME IN 1839. THANK YOU, JOHN. UM, YEAH, WE, WE LIKE TO, TO PUT, WHEN WE'RE DOING, UM, WITH PROJECT CONNECT IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT, SO GOING BACK BEGINNING HERE AND YES, IN THE FUTURE, I WANT US TO ADD NOT STATE STATUS. SO WE'D LIKE TO GO BACK TO THE, THE ORIGINAL PLAN OF AUSTIN FROM 1839 AND BECAUSE MUCH OF WHAT WE'RE DOING IN THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT REFLECTS, UM, THE ORIGINAL INHERENT STRUCTURE OF THE CITY [01:50:01] AND ITS ORIGINAL PLAN. AND IN PARTICULAR, UM, THE FOUR HISTORIC SQUARES, UH, REPUBLIC SQUARE, UM, BRUSH SQUARE, WOOLDRIDGE SQUARE, AND NOW WAST, UH, HAMILTON SQUARE IN THE NORTHEAST. BUT THE TWO ON THE SOUTH, UH, REPUBLICAN BRUSH SQUARE ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF, UM, THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT AS WE START TO WEAVE THIS NEW TRANSIT SYSTEM THROUGH THE CENTER OF THE CITY. UM, IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THAT TRANSIT IN THE, IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY IS NOT NEW. UM, AND THE 19TH CENTURY, WE ACTUALLY HAD INNER CITY RAIL THAT CAME RIGHT INTO THE CENTER OF DOWNTOWN. AND WE HAD TWO TRAIN STATIONS ACTUALLY AT THE CORNER OF THIRD AND CONGRESS. UM, THOSE BOTH WERE LOST, UH, IN THE, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE 20TH CENTURY, BUT THAT WAS, THEY WERE AN IMPORTANT PART OF, OF THE CITY'S GROWTH AT ITS AT ITS EARLIEST IN ITS EARLIEST DAYS. UM, AND SO IT'S, AGAIN, SOMETHING THAT I THINK CAN BE REFLECTED AS WE MOVE FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE. UM, MOVING FORWARD, WE ALSO HAD A ROBUST STREETCAR SYSTEM, UM, DOWNTOWN, AND THIS, YOU KNOW, WAS VERY ACTIVE INTO THE, AGAIN, THROUGH THE SECOND WORLD WAR AGAIN, LOST FOR A LONG TIME. BUT I THINK AGAIN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO REALIZE THAT THIS, THIS TRANSIT SYSTEM WAS AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR CITY FABRIC FOR MUCH OF ITS HISTORY. THEY ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE SOME OF THE LESS POSITIVE EPISODES THAT OUR CITY'S HISTORY AND THE HISTORY OF CITY PLANNING IN AUSTIN. UM, YOU KNOW, ONE EXAMPLE OF THE MOST NOTABLE EXAMPLE, THANKS 28, UH, AUSTIN MASTER PLAN, WHICH, UM, REDLINED PARTS OF THE CITY AND REALLY IN SEGREGATED, THE CITY, RACIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY. UM, AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL, UH, WE'RE STILL GRAPPLING WITH THE IMPACTS OF, OF THAT SEGREGATION. UM, I THINK WE, WE FEEL LIKE PART OF OUR ROLE WITH PROJECT CONNECT IS TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO STITCH THE CITY BACK TOGETHER TO THE BEST WE CAN, UM, AND REALLY BUILD A, UH, A CONNECTED CITY FOR THE 21ST CENTURY THAT HEALS SOME OF THESE WOUNDS. UH, AND WE'RE ALSO BUILDING ON THE POLICIES OF THE RECENT PAST. AND I WANT TO LET, UH, NICK TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THOSE AND HOW THEY INFORM WHAT WE'RE DOING TODAY. THANKS, PETER. UH, I WOULD LIKE TO JUST ELABORATE A BIT ON THESE THREE POLICY DOCUMENTS, UM, TO TAKE A MOMENT BECAUSE THEY REALLY DO PROVIDE OVERARCHING DIRECTION FOR THIS PROGRAM, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, TO HELP GUIDE THE, THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PHASE THAT WE'RE IN NOW, THE VISION HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED, BUT NOW WE HAVE TO MAKE IT. SO, AND WE STILL NEED TO BE GUIDED BY, UH, THE POLICY DIRECTIVES IN, IN THESE THREE DOCUMENTS. SO THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN ADOPTED IN, UH, 2011 AS A TRANSPORTATION GOAL, IT'S IT STATES THAT WE SHOULD DEVELOP DOWNTOWN AS A MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM THAT IMPROVES ACCESS TO, AND, UH, MOBILITY WITHIN THE DOWNTOWN. THAT IS WHAT WE'RE ACHIEVING WITH PROJECT CONNECT. AND THAT DOWNTOWN STREET SHOULD BE REBALANCED TO PROVIDE MORE EQUITABLE ACCOMMODATION OF, AND FOR PEDESTRIANS BICYCLISTS TRANSIT, SCOOTER USERS, I'LL ADD THAT IN THAT WASN'T IN THE PLAN BECAUSE IT WASN'T A THING WHEN IT WAS DONE, UM, AND VEHICULAR MOBILITY. AND, AND AS, AS WE GET INTO THE ASM P POLICY, YOU KNOW, WE IN CHAPTER THREE OF THE ASM P WE DEVELOPED THE VISION FOR ALL OF THE MODES THAT, THAT THE CITY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR, BUT UNDERSTANDING THAT OUR GOAL WITH THE ASM P IS A 50 50 MODE SHARE, BECAUSE THAT WAS THE DATA-DRIVEN APPROACH TO THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN THAT HAD US LOOK TO THE FUTURE WITH DATA TO SAY, IF 50 OF US, IF 50% OF US STILL NEED TO DRIVE ALONE, THAT'S OKAY. IF THE OTHER 50%, EVEN AS WE DOUBLE OUR POPULATION CAN WALK BECAUSE LAND USE IS REALLY IMPORTANT. CAN CAN BICYCLE WE'RE TAKING LEAPS AND BOUNDS WITH OUR BICYCLE INFRASTRUCTURE. I RODE MY BIKE, MY ELECTRIC BIKE HERE TODAY. SO IT DIDN'T GET TOO SWEATY. UM, OUR PEDESTRIAN INFRASTRUCTURE, BUT TRANSIT IS KEY. AND AS YOU KNOW, TELEWORK HAS BEEN KEY BECAUSE OF THE UNPRECEDENTED, I'LL USE IT FOR COVID, UM, UH, BOARD MEMBERS, STRATTON, UM, YOU KNOW, THE UNPRECEDENTED, UH, SILVER LINING OF IF THERE'S ANY AT ALL, IF YOU EVEN WANT TO CALL IT THAT OF COVID OF TELEWORK, RIGHT? IF, IF 50% OF US CAN DO DIFFERENT THINGS, BUT WE QUADRUPLE TRANSIT USE THAT'S THE KEY TO THAT 50%. AND SO JUST REALLY UNDERSTANDING HOW WE DO THAT AND CREATING PLACE AND CREATING RIDERSHIP, BUT ALSO UNDERSTANDING THAT WE HAVE TO RESPECT OUR PAST OUR CURRENT [01:55:01] AND OUR FUTURE PEOPLE AND WRITERS AS WE CREATE, UM, ONE OF THE ECONOMIC GOALS IN IMAGINE AUSTIN AND THE DOWNTOWN PLAN, WHICH IS CREATING CULTURAL CENTERS. RIGHT? AND SO PETER'S GOING TO TALK A LOT ABOUT WHAT THE STATION'S MEAN TO THIS PLAN AS, AS A HAND, THE PRESENTATION BACK TO HIM. UM, AND SO FINALLY, I WANT TO REITERATE THAT WHILE WE HAVE REALLY FANTASTIC POLICY DIRECTION, WE NEED TO CONTINUE THE COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION THAT WAS DONE IN THE PLANNING PHASE OF PROJECT CONNECT WITH THE CITY AND OUR RESIDENTS AND OUR STAKEHOLDERS, AND CONTINUE THAT THROUGH PROJECT DEVELOPMENT, BECAUSE ONLY THEN ARE WE GOING TO FIGURE OUT THE RIGHT BALANCE OF THE TRADE-OFFS THAT WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO, THAT ARE GOING TO NEED TO HAPPEN AS WE RETROFIT PROJECT CONNECT INTO OUR URBAN FABRIC, SO GREAT POLICY GUIDANCE, UM, CONTINUED COLLABORATION. UH, AND NOW PETER'S GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, THE GREEN SPINES. THANK YOU. THANKS SIDDIQUE. UM, YEAH, SO, UH, LOOKING AHEAD AT PROJECT CONNECT AND, AND THE ALIGNMENTS DOWNTOWN IN THE CENTRAL AREA OF THE CITY, UM, REALLY, I THINK THAT THE, WHAT DID HE TOUCHED ON ABOUT THAT THIS IS, HAS TO BE A SYSTEM THAT IS BOTH ABOUT TRANSIT, BUT ALSO ABOUT OTHER MODES AS WELL. IT'S ALL ABOUT CONNECTIVITY. THIS IS A PROGRAM, IT'S A SYSTEM, ALL OF THESE MODES HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER. SO WE ARE TAKING THAT WHAT WE'VE PREVIOUSLY DESCRIBED AS THIS HUMAN CENTRIC AND HOLISTIC DESIGN APPROACH TO THE ALIGNMENT, UM, AND ITS DEVELOPMENT. UM, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE DOWNTOWN AREA, IT REALLY FOUR STREET HAS EMERGED. AND AS WE'VE DEVELOPED THE DESIGN AND ADVANCED THE DESIGN, UM, FORESTRY HAS EMERGED AS THE KEY. RIGHT. UM, AND I THINK IT GOES BACK TO THAT ORIGINAL HISTORIC PLAN OF AUSTIN. WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO REIMAGINE FOUR STREET IN A WAY, UM, THAT IS EXCITING FOR ITSELF, BUT ALSO HELPS TO REINFORCE THE TWO HISTORIC SQUARES THAT IT CONNECTS BRUSH SQUARE AND REPUBLIC SQUARE. UM, YOU'LL SEE HOW ALL OF THE DIFFERENT LINES THAT COME INTO THE, INTO THE CENTER, BASICALLY ALL CONVERGE ONTO FOURTH STREET. WE HAVE THE EXISTING RED LINE COMING IN FROM THE EAST. UM, THE PROPOSED ORANGE LINE ALIGNMENT BASICALLY ALIGNED WITH GUADALUPE STREET ON THE WEST SIDE. UM, THE BLUE LINE COMING IN FROM THE EAST, UH, ALONG TRINITY STREET AND THEN CUTTING ACROSS FOURTH STREET. AND THEN INTERLINING WITH THE ORANGE LINE GOING UP TO THE NORTH, UM, IN THE FUTURE, THE GREEN LINE COMING IN, UH, NEW COMMUTER LINE THAT WILL CONNECT US TO, UM, COLONY PARK AND, AND HOPEFULLY EVENTUALLY MAINER, UM, COMING IN ON THE, ON THE RED LINE ALIGNMENT AS IT COMES INTO THE CENTER OF THE CITY AND THE FUTURE GOLD LINE. UM, UH, AGAIN, INTERLINING WITH THE ORANGE LINE CUTTING ACROSS FOURTH STREET AND THEN CONTINUING UP, UH, NORTH ALL ALONG THE TRINITY STREET ALIGNMENT UP TO HIGHLAND MALL. SO YOU CAN SEE HOW ALL OF THIS IS COMING TOGETHER. UM, ON FOURTH STREET, INCLUDING THE NEW METRO RAPID LINES AS WELL. AND THERE ARE OTHER BUS LINES THAT KIND OF CONVERGE IN THIS AREA. UM, SO WE HAVE, WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT THIS. THIS IS REALLY ABOUT KIND OF INTERCONNECTIVITY BETWEEN THE LINES AND HOW DO WE DESIGN THE SYSTEM TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT AND LEVERAGE THAT TO PROVIDE US AS MUCH ACCESS AS WE CAN. SO, UM, ALONG THAT CONVERGING ALIGNMENT OF THE VARIOUS LINES, WE ARE ANTICIPATING, UM, FIVE POTENTIAL STATIONS, UM, GOVERNMENT CENTER, CAPITAL WEST TO THE NORTH, UH, AND THEN FOUR STATIONS ROUGHLY ALIGNED ON FOURTH STREET. WE'VE GOT REPUBLIC SQUARE ON THE WEST, UM, UH, CONGRESS AVENUE STATION AT CONGRESS AVENUE, UH, THE CONVENTION CENTER BRUSH SQUARE STATION, UM, ON THE EAST, WHICH IS SORT OF A COMBINATION OF THE EXISTING DOWNTOWN STATION ON THE RED LINE AND THEN ACCESS TO THE NEW LINES, UM, THAT WERE BEING PROPOSED AND THE RAINY MAX STATION, UM, DOWN AT THE SOUTH. UM, AND ALL OF THOSE FOUR OF THOSE FIVE STATIONS WOULD BE CONNECTED BY A DOWNTOWN TRANSIT HUB, WHICH WOULD BE A MULTI-LEVEL SYSTEM, BASICALLY CONNECTING ALL THOSE THROUGH THE SUBWAY RIGHT IN THIS AREA. SO REMEMBER A LOT OF THESE LINES AND WE'LL SHOW HOW THIS WORKS ARE TRAVELING UNDERGROUND, UM, IN A NEW SUBWAY SYSTEM, UM, THIS AREA. SO HERE'S ANOTHER VIEW OF, OF THAT DOWNTOWN TRANSIT HUB. UM, THE, THE YELLOW AREA BASICALLY OUTLINING THE EXTENTS OF THAT INTERCONNECTED, UM, UNDERGROUND SYSTEM, CONNECTING THOSE FOUR STATIONS. UM, AND YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY I'LL GO THROUGH IN DETAIL HOW THEY ALL WORK. UM, BUT THE IDEA IS, AGAIN THAT THE, THE, THE CONVENTION CENTER OF BRUSH SQUARE STATION IS BOTH THE ABOVE GROUND STATION FOR THE RED LINE, BUT ALSO PROVIDING ACCESS INTO THE SUBWAY SYSTEM. UM, THE OTHER THREE STATIONS, UH, REPUBLIC SQUARE CONGRESS AVENUE, RAINY MAC WOULD BE UNDERGROUND STATIONS, SERVING VARIETY OF LINES AS THEY COME THROUGH THIS AREA. UM, ONE THING FORMS THE, THE WAY THAT WE'RE EVOLVED ADVANCING THE DESIGN IS, IS ABOUT [02:00:01] HOW DO WE MAKE THIS SYSTEM, RIGHT? ESPECIALLY AN UNDERGROUND SUBWAY SYSTEM, WHICH IS NEW FOR AUSTIN AND NEW FOR AUSTINITES AS INTUITIVE AND AS EASY, AND, UH, BASICALLY IS PLEASURABLE TO ACCESS AND TO NAVIGATE AS POSSIBLE. AND PARTICULARLY FOR ALL USERS, RIGHT? IF WE DESIGNED FOR, UM, USERS WHO MIGHT BE, UH, WHO HAVE THE HARDEST TIME MOVING AROUND, THEN WE WILL BE DESIGNING FOR EVERYONE. UM, AND SO A LOT OF THE, THE SORT OF THE ORIENTATIONAL LINE OF THE CONCOURSE IS REALLY DESIGNED ABOUT IN THE CITY. SO THIS IS HOW IT WORKS, RIGHT? AND THIS IS A CROSS SECTION THROUGH FOURTH STREET. UM, AND YOU CAN SEE THE SECTION ABOVE, AND THEN THERE'S THE SORT OF PLAN DIAGRAM AT THE BOTTOM SHOWING HOW THE LINES COME INTO THAT FOURTH STREET CORRIDOR. WE'RE SEEING FOUR STREET REALLY AS A, AS A MULTI-LEVEL MULTI-LEVEL MULTIMODAL CORRIDOR, UM, CONNECTING STREET LEVEL, UH, AN INTERMEDIATE CONCOURSE LEVEL, AND THEN THE, UM, THE PLATFORM AND TRAIN LEVEL BELOW. UM, AND SO THERE'LL BE A KIND OF CONTINUOUS CONCOURSE AT THAT INTERMEDIATE LEVEL, BASICALLY CONNECTING THE STREET TO THE TRAINS, TO A NUMBER OF ALL THE LINES THAT CONVERGE IN THIS AREA WITH REPUBLIC SQUARE STATION ON THE LEFT, ON THE WEST CONGRESS AVENUE STATION IN THE MIDDLE, AND THEN CONVENTIONS THAT ARE BRUSHED SQUARE STATION ON THE RIGHT. AND YOU CAN SEE HOW THE ABOVE GRADE TRAINS THE RED AND THE GREEN LINE COMING IN ON THE RIGHT SIDE, CONNECT DOWN INTO THAT, UM, INTO THAT, THAT ENTRANCE AND THAT TRANSIT NODE. UM, HERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A DETAIL ABOUT HOW IT WORK, UH, BETWEEN THOSE THREE LEVELS. AND I THINK THE KEY WITH, WITH, WITH DESIGNING A MULTI-LEVEL SYSTEM IS TO MAKE IT AGAIN AS, AS EASY AND INTUITIVE TO UNDERSTAND AS POSSIBLE. UM, SO WE WOULD HAVE STAIRS ESCALATORS AND ELEVATORS CONNECTING ALL THREE LEVELS. UM, YOU CAN SEE THE ELEVATORS, UH, IN COLORED IN BLUE. AND AGAIN, THIS IS A DIAGRAM. THIS IS NOT A DESIGN PER SE, BUT IT'S SHOWING HOW WE MAKE THIS REALLY SIMPLE AND INTUITIVE AND PROVIDING UNIVERSAL ACCESS, UM, THROUGHOUT. UM, AND, AND HERE ARE SOME OF THE LOOKING AT PRECEDENT. SO I WANT TO JUST POINT OUT SOME OF THE, THE ELEMENTS THAT MAKE THESE MULTILEVEL SYSTEMS WORK BEST FROM A DESIGN PERSPECTIVE. UM, SO, AND THIS IS THIS EXAMPLE, AND WE'RE REALLY LOOKING AROUND THE GLOBE FOR BEST IN CLASS SOLUTIONS HERE. UM, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE GOT ACCESS TO NATURAL LIGHT, RIGHT? SO YOU'VE GOT A CONNECTION TO THE OUTDOORS AND TO, YOU KNOW, THE AREAS WHERE WE FEEL, UM, MOST FAMILIAR AND MOST AND BEST ORIENTED. WE HAVE GENEROUS, UH, SIDEWALKS AND ESCALATORS. UM, WE ANTICIPATE LOTS OF PEOPLE MOVING THROUGH THESE STATIONS. AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE THAT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE, UH, LONG SIGHT LINES CONNECTING THESE DIFFERENT LEVELS. SO YOU CAN SEE OUR, YOU CAN SEE DOWN INTO THE PLATFORM LEVEL, THIS IS BOTH FOR EASE OF NAVIGATION, BUT ALSO FOR SAFETY. UM, AND SO THESE ARE JUST SOME OF THE ELEMENTS THAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DESIGNING INTO OUR STATIONS DESIGN. AGAIN, WE'RE NOT THERE YET, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO DESIGN THE ALIGNMENTS TO ALLOW FOR THESE CONDITIONS. UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF HAVING A MULTI-LEVEL SYSTEM IS THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO CREATE DOUBLE HEIGHT SPACES, RIGHT? SO THE PLATFORM ENVIRONMENTS THEMSELVES ARE NOT CRAMPED AND YOU DON'T FEEL CONSTRAINED AND, UM, COMPRESSED, BUT THESE ARE ACTUALLY GENEROUS SPACES THAT, UM, CAN BE, UM, UH, I DON'T WANT TO SAY ENNOBLING SOUNDS ESOTERIC WORD, BUT I THINK WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT CREATING BEAUTIFUL SPACES AND THIS WAS THE ONE THE WAY WE CAN DO THEM. UM, AND THEN LOOKING AT, UH, SORRY, IT'S STUCK. THERE WE GO. UM, OKAY. CEREALS, YOU KNOW, USING MAKING SURE WE'VE, WE'RE PUTTING GLASS IN THE RIGHT PLACES SO THAT WE HAVE LONG SIGHT LINES AND VISIBILITY. UM, THIS IS BOTH ABOUT, UH, AGAIN, EASE OF NAVIGATION AND SAFETY, AND THEN SOME OF THE STUFF SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGICAL AMENITIES THAT WE'RE ANTICIPATING ON THE PLATFORM LEVEL, UM, OUR PLATFORM SCREEN DOORS, RIGHT? SO THESE WERE DOORS THAT BASICALLY SECURE THE PLATFORM FROM THE TRACKS. UM, THIS IS BOTH FOR SAFETY SO THAT PEOPLE ARE NOT GETTING INTO THE TRACKS, BUT BECAUSE WE ARE IMAGINING THAT THE PLATFORMS WOULD BE CONDITIONED SPACES, UM, YOU KNOW, THE PLATFORM DOORS ALLOW US TO, TO CONTROL THAT CONDITION ENVIRONMENT MORE EFFICIENTLY. UH, IT ALSO GIVES US OPPORTUNITY FOR SIGNAGE AND WAYFINDING, AGAIN, VERY CRITICAL ASPECT OF, OF THE SYSTEMS, AGAIN, MAKING IT AS EASY, INTUITIVE TO NAVIGATE AS POSSIBLE. AND THEN THINKING ABOUT THE BEAUTY OF IT, THE WAY WE'RE IMAGINING THE SYSTEM RIGHT NOW ON FOURTH STREET IS THAT WE CAN REALLY DESIGN THE SYSTEM FROM THE STREET DOWN, RIGHT? THIS IS ABOUT, UH, ONE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES IS HOW DO WE USE THIS NEW TRANSIT INFRASTRUCTURE TO ENHANCE WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE STREET AT FOURTH STREET ITSELF, UM, AND CREATE THIS NEW REALLY SIGNATURE GREEN SPINE. ONE OF THE GREAT STREETS OF AUSTIN, UM, IN THIS LOCATION, UM, I'M GOING TO HAND IT BACK TO, UH, TO NEED TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT KIND OF THE, THE TRANSPORTATION OPPORTUNITIES HERE AND, AND FROM A POLICY PERSPECTIVE, THANKS, [02:05:01] PETER, THE, THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S, UH, STANDS READY TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT, WHAT WE'RE DESIGNING IN THIS PRELIMINARY STAGE DOES SUPPORT. AS PETER SAID, THE, YOU KNOW, ALLOWING FOR US TO CREATE A PLACE TO KEEP AND CREATE PLACE, UM, ALONG FOUR STREET AND ALONG OTHER AREAS, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WANT THE DESIGN TO BE GUIDED, UH, BY THE VALUES OF AUSTIN AND ALSO GUIDED IN PROJECT DEVELOPMENT. BY, LIKE I SAID, CONTINUED COLLABORATION AND COORDINATION WITH RESIDENTS, THE BUSINESS OWNERS AND STAKEHOLDERS, AND OF COURSE GUIDED BY OUR POLICIES. UH, WE STAND READY TO COLLABORATE. WE KNOW THAT WE CAN DO THINGS DIFFERENT FOR DIFFERENT RESULTS WITH REGARDS, UM, TO FOURTH STREET, UH, AND HOW IT CONNECTS THE PROPOSED STATIONS. SO THERE'S ASPIRATIONS. AND I THINK WE CAN DO BETTER THAN THIS. THIS IS TODAY. AND I THINK WE CAN DO BETTER. WE CAN HAVE, UH, YOU KNOW, WE CAN CONNECT THE STATIONS DOWNTOWN AND HAVE A MORE VIBRANT URBAN ENVIRONMENT, UM, THAT MAKES IT SAFER FOR EVERYBODY AS WE, AS WE CONNECT, UM, ON THE, ON THE LIGHT RAIL UNDERNEATH US, BUT ALSO ON FOOT BY CAR, BY BIKE IN OTHER PLACES. SO, UH, THE AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY STANDS BEHIND THESE ASPIRATIONS AS WE, UH, LOOK AT THE DETAILS OF THE ALIGNMENT, BUT ALSO THINKING ABOUT HOW DOES THAT AFFECT OUR ABILITY TO CREATE SPACES LIKE THIS, UM, AS WE MOVE THE PROGRAM FORWARD. SO BACK TO PETER, THANK YOU. UM, SO ALONG ENFORCED STREET, WE'RE LOOKING AT THREE MAJOR STATIONS. THESE WOULDN'T BE THE ONLY ENTRANCES INTO THE SYSTEM, BUT THREE MAJOR HUBS, TWO AT THE END, AND THEN ONE IN THE MIDDLE OF CONGRESS AVENUE. UM, THE TWO AT THE END REALLY FUNCTIONED AS KIND OF THE BOOKENDS OF THIS NEW NEWLY RE-IMAGINED FORCE FREE CORRIDOR, UM, ADJACENT TO THE HISTORIC SQUARES AT REPUBLIC SQUARE AND BRUSH SQUARE, UM, WITH, UM, AND YOU KNOW, THIS IS THE VIEW LOOKING WEST ON FOURTH STREET, UM, AT BRUSH SQUARE. SO BRUSH SQUARES DIRECTLY TO THE RIGHT, UH, IN THE CONVENTION CENTER IS DIRECTLY TO THE LEFT. AND YOU CAN SEE, UM, THIS IS A LARGE PLAZA AREA THAT WAS, UH, BUILT AS PART OF THE RENOVATION OF THE DOWNTOWN STATION FOR THE RED LINE A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO. UM, AND WHEN, SO WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY HERE TO CREATE A REALLY GENEROUS ENTRANCE INTO THE TRANSIT HUB WITH A SIGNATURE PIECE OF THAT. AGAIN, SIGNALS, UM, WHAT'S HAPPENING BELOW, BUT ALSO SERVES AS A KIND OF ARCHITECTURAL BOOKEND TO FOURTH STREET. UM, AND AGAIN, LOOKING AT PRECEDENTS, YOU KNOW, THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, GLAZED, UH, TRANSPARENT STRUCTURES THAT ARE BOTH GENEROUS AND INVITING, UM, TO THE PUBLIC, TO DOWN INTO THE TRANSIT SYSTEM BELOW, UH, NO, THERE ARE LOTS OF GREAT EXAMPLES, UH, OF THIS AROUND THE WORLD, UM, IN DIFFERENT SCALES AND SIZES AND FORMS. UM, I THINK OBVIOUSLY WE'D WANT TO DO SOMETHING IN AUSTIN THAT'S DISTINCTLY AUSTIN. SO THIS IS NOT DESIGNED PER SE, BUT I THINK JUST, UM, THE OPPORTUNITY TO JUST AN IDEA ABOUT HOW WE CREATE THESE STRUCTURES THAT INVITE PEOPLE DOWN INTO THE SYSTEM. UM, THIS IS A SMALLER SKID ONE IN PHILADELPHIA. AGAIN, I THINK YOU COULD SEE HOW THERE ARE WAYS TO INCORPORATE THIS WITH HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE. AND OBVIOUSLY THAT'S AN IMPORTANT ASPECT OF HOW WE'LL DEVELOP THIS, UM, GOING FORWARD. UM, UH, ON THE WEST SIDE REPUBLIC SQUARE WOULD BE THE OTHER BOOKEND. UM, AND SIMILARLY, UM, WE'VE GOT SOME WE IMAGINED, UM, HOPING TO BASICALLY ENLARGE THE SIDEWALK, UM, IN THIS AREA TO CREATE ENOUGH SPACE WHERE WE COULD HAVE, UM, THAT KIND OF STATION ENTRANCE INTO THE TRANSIT HUB AT THE WESTERN END OF FOURTH STREET. UM, I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT REPUBLIC SQUARE, UM, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE, UH, WE'VE MADE SOME MINOR ADJUSTMENTS TO THE PLAN, THE ALIGNMENT, UH, WE HAD BEEN SEEKING, UH, A BILL THROUGH THE, UM, THROUGH THE LEGISLATURE TO ALLOW US TO BUILD PART OF THE REPUBLIC SQUARE STATION UNDERNEATH REPUBLIC SQUARE, UM, THAT DID NOT GET PICKED UP. AND SO WE ARE, HAVE ADJUSTED THE ALIGNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC SQUARE STATION BY PUSHING THE PLATFORMS A LITTLE BIT TO THE NORTH. THIS SLIDE NORTH IS TO YOUR RIGHT. UM, IF YOU CAN IMAGINE, UM, AND SO THE PLATFORMS WOULD BE CENTERED BASICALLY BETWEEN FIFTH AND SIXTH STREETS. UM, AND, AND PART OF THE STATION UNDERGROUND. REMEMBER THIS IS ALL UNDERGROUND, STILL WERE UNDERGROUND STATION. UM, AND THE IDEA IS THAT WE WOULD COLLABORATE WITH THE DEVELOPMENTS ON BOTH SIDES OF GUADALUPE, UM, TO PROVIDE STATION ENTRANCES AS WELL AS, UM, THE NECESSARY, UM, SERVICE AND BACK OF HOUSE SPACE FOR THAT STATION. BUT IT ALLOWS US TO BASICALLY CONTINUE THE ALIGNMENT AND CONTINUE BUILDING A STATION IN THIS LOCATION WITHOUT TOUCHING REPUBLIC SQUARE PROPER. UM, UH, WE WOULD SEEK [02:10:01] TO BUILD A, AN ENTRANCE ON THE, YOU COULD SEE IT ON THE LEFT-HAND SIDE OF THE SLIDE, UM, AT THE END OF FOURTH STREET, AS I WAS SAYING BEFORE, THAT WOULD CONNECT TO THE CONCOURSE, UM, AND, UH, TO THE TRANSIT HUB. SO IN THE CENTER ENTER, UM, THIS IS, UH, THIS IS ACTUALLY OKAY. SORT OF A NEW EVOLUTION OF THE DESIGN, WHICH WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT, UM, THE IDEA OF BUILDING A STATION AT THE CORNER OF FOURTH AND CONGRESS. UM, AND AGAIN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO RECALL THAT WE ONCE HAD A TRAIN STATION ON THE CORNER OF THIRD AND CONGRESS. UM, I, IT'S INTERESTING, I'VE FOUND IT VERY FEW PEOPLE REMEMBER THIS, RIGHT? THIS IS JUST KIND OF, YOU KNOW, UH, AND I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THIS UNTIL WE GOT INTO THIS PROCESS TOO. SO IT'S BEEN EXCITING TO DISCOVER. UM, WELL, IT'S INTERESTING THAT WE TEND TO HAVE SHORT MEMORIES, RIGHT? AND WE NEED TO HAVE LONGER MEMORIES. UM, BUT I THINK WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE A HUB, UM, IN THE FORM OF A PIECE OF ARCHITECTURE OR A BUILDING IN THIS LOCATION IN A WAY THAT WAS DONE, YOU KNOW, IN THE EARLIEST DAYS OF THE CITY. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THERE IS A, UH, PARKING LOT CURRENTLY AT THE CORNER OF FOURTH AND CONGRESS THAT'S BEEN A PARKING LOT FOR 50 YEARS. UM, AND, UH, I THINK WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, UM, CREATE A NEW TRANSIT HUB THAT REALLY IS, COULD BE A PIECE OF CIVIC ARCHITECTURE. UM, ALL GREAT CITIES HAVE GREAT TRAIN STATIONS, UM, APOLOGIES TO THE AMTRAK STATION, BUT WE DO NOT HAVE A GREAT TRAIN STATION IN AUSTIN RIGHT NOW. UM, OBVIOUSLY THIS IS BIGGER THAN WHAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO DO ON THE CORNER OF FOURTH AND CONGRESS, BUT AGAIN, SYMBOLICALLY IT'S AN IMPORTANT IDEA THAT I THINK WE NEED TO PURSUE. UM, SIMILARLY, THESE TRAIN STATIONS ARE OFTEN COMBINED WITH GREAT PUBLIC AMENITIES, RIGHT? IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT TRANSIT. IT'S ABOUT THE OTHER THINGS THAT YOU CAN COMBINE WITH TRANSIT WHEN YOU HAVE LOTS OF PEOPLE MOVING THROUGH THESE BUILDINGS. UM, AND SO READING TERMINAL MARKET, WHICH HAS A PUBLIC MARKET, UM, IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE IN PHILADELPHIA. UM, AND THIS IS A MORE CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLE, UM, LOWER MANHATTAN. THIS IS THE FULTON CENTER WHERE ALL OF THE SUBWAY LINES COME TOGETHER AND THERE'S A GREAT BIG INTERIOR SPACE HERE, BUT ALSO PUBLIC PRESENCE ON THE STREET, RIGHT TO SIGNAL. THIS IS A, THIS IS A PUBLIC BUILDING, RIGHT? THIS IS A CIVIC BUILDING. UM, IT'S DIFFERENT POSSIBLY, YOU KNOW, THAN, THAN JUST, UH, UH, PART OF THE COMMERCIAL FABRIC OF THE CITY. AND WE NEED THOSE, THOSE PUBLIC NOTES. SO THIS IS A EARLY CONCEPT DIAGRAM. THIS IS NOT A DESIGNED JUST TO BE CLEAR, UH, BUT JUST SHOWING HOW WE COULD INCORPORATE SOME OF THOSE ELEMENTS THAT I TALKED ABOUT BEFORE NATURAL LIGHT, UM, EASY ACCESS, YOU KNOW, BETWEEN MULTIPLE LEVELS WITH LONG SIGHT LINES. UM, YOU KNOW, IN THIS CASE, POTENTIALLY OFFICE FLOORS ABOVE, RIGHT. THAT'S A VERY, YOU KNOW, UH, TYPICAL CONDITION, BUT CREATING A, ESSENTIALLY A NEW LANDMARK AT THE CORNER OF FOURTH AND CONGRESS WITH ACCESS TO ONTO THE SYSTEM BELOW AT THE CENTER OF THIS, THIS UNDERGROUND TRANSIT HUB. UM, OKAY. AND THEN AT THE EAST SIDE OF, OF THE TRANSIT HUB, WE HAVE THE, THE CONVENTION CENTER BRUSH SQUARE STATION. UM, YOU CAN SEE, UH, BASICALLY THE, THE EXISTING DOWNTOWN STATION ON THE RED LINE, WHICH WILL ALSO IN THE FUTURE SERVE THE GREEN LINE, UM, WITH, YOU CAN SEE THE ENTRANCE INTO THE D TREADS THAT HUB IN THE BACKGROUND THAT KIND OF PINK SQUARE THAT'S, UM, HIGHLIGHTED THAT WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER. UM, AND THEN GOING TO THE SOUTH, UM, WE ARE IMAGINING A NEW STATION AT, UH, UH, THE RAINY MAC STATION. SO ON THE BLUE LINE THAT WOULD, UH, HAVE ENTRANCES SOUTH OF CESAR CHAVEZ. UH, WE ARE LOOKING AT TWO OPPORTUNITIES FOR ENTRANCES, UM, SOUTH OF CESAR CHAVEZ, ONE TO THE EAST, WHICH WOULD BE ADJACENT TO WATERLOO, GREENWAY AND WALNUT CREEK. UM, AND ONE THAT'S SLIGHTLY TO THE SOUTH, JUST AT THE END OF TRINITY STREET, UM, REALLY VERY CLOSELY ADJACENT TO THE BUTLER HIKE AND BIKE TRAIL. AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SEE WE'VE HIGHLIGHTED THE, THE PEDESTRIAN PATHS FROM THE STATION ENTRANCES TO RAINEY STREET INTO THE MAC. UM, AGAIN, RANDY STREET WOULD BE A FOUR MINUTE WALK. THE MAC WOULD BE A SIX MINUTE WALK. SO THIS IS REALLY CLOSE. UM, YOU KNOW, GREAT PROXIMATE ACCESS TO THAT NEIGHBORHOOD, WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY GROWING SO INTENSELY, UM, THESE DAYS. AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF OTHER MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURAL IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN THE CITY. UM, WATER GREENWAY, WE'LL, WE'LL BE BUILDING NEW BRIDGES OVER WALLER CREEK IN THIS LOCATION, UM, THAT WILL FACILITATE THAT PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENT FROM THE TRANSIT STATIONS TO THE RAY STREET NEIGHBORHOOD AND THE MAC. UM, AND I THINK IT'S ACTUALLY A GOOD EXAMPLE OF HOW WE'RE TRYING TO PULL ALL OF THESE CITY COMMUNITY INVESTMENTS TOGETHER SO THAT THE WHOLE REALLY WORKS BETTER THAN THE SUM OF THEIR PARTS. UM, AND THEN THOSE, AGAIN, THAT PART OF THE PLAN FOR THE BRIDGE ACROSS THE LAKE IS TO HAVE A PEDESTRIAN CYCLING COMPONENT TO IT, A REALLY GENEROUS ONE IMPORTANT ONE. UM, SO THAT, THAT YOU CAN SEE HOW ALL THOSE PEDESTRIAN PATHS KIND OF COME TOGETHER AND WORK TOGETHER WITH THE, THE STATION ENTRANCES, [02:15:01] UM, A LITTLE BIT TO THE NORTH. OKAY. SO, UM, THAT'S THE KIND OF THE, THE DOWNTOWN TRANSIT HUB. I WANT TO COVER TWO OTHER AREAS, THE GOVERNMENT CENTER CAPITOL WEST STATION, UM, TO THE NORTH AND ALSO SOUTH CONGRESS. UM, SO LOOKING TO THE NORTH OF THE NEXT STATION ON THE ORANGE LINE NORTH FROM REPUBLIC SQUARE, YOU CAN SEE THIS MAP IS SHOWING THREE DIFFERENT OPTIONS, UM, REPUBLIC SQUARES AT THE SOUTHERN END OF THE, OF THE DIAGRAM. UM, WE'RE LOOKING AT THREE OPTIONS FOR THE LOCATION OF THE, OF THE GOVERNMENT CENTER CAPITOL WEST STATION. UM, AND WE'RE EVALUATING THOSE OPTIONS FOR A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT CRITERIA. UM, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT OF WHICH IS THE LOCATION OF THE PORTAL WHERE THE UNDERGROUND SYSTEM COMES OUT OF THE GROUND AND BASICALLY THEN GOES BACK ONTO THE SURFACE. SO IF YOU CAN IMAGINE BASICALLY THE ORANGE LINE IS COMING NORTH ALONG GUADALUPE OR UNDERNEATH GUADALUPE, UM, UNDERGROUND. AND THEN AT SOME POINT IT'S GOT A RISE UP TO THE SURFACE AGAIN, AND WE'RE LOOKING AT TWO DIFFERENT OPTIONS FOR THAT. ONE IS WHERE THE PORTAL, WHICH IS THAT SORT OF BLACK CHEVRON, UM, ONE WOULD BE BETWEEN 16TH AND 18TH STREETS, AND THE OTHER OPTIONS WOULD HAVE THE PORTAL LOCATED JUST NORTH OF MLK BOULEVARD. SO HERE'S A, JUST A DETAIL ON THAT. YOU COULD SEE THE AQUA COLOR IS THE LOCATION OF THE PORTAL. UM, ONE OF THE FEATURES OF THE PORTAL IS THAT BECAUSE BASICALLY THE TRAIN IS GOING TO BE IN BETWEEN THE UNDERGROUND AND THE SURFACE, IT DOES CUT OFF VEHICULAR ACCESS OR PEDESTRIAN ACCESS ACROSS THE GUIDEWAY IN THAT LOCATION. SO IN THIS CASE, 17TH STREET WOULD BE BLOCKED FROM TRAFFIC IN PEDESTRIAN CONNECTION ACROSS GUADALUPE. UM, UH, THE OTHER OPTION IS TO TAKE THE UNDERGROUND, UM, UH, TUNNEL NORTH OF MLK. YOU CAN SEE THAT'S IN THE, IN THE, UH, THE PURPLE, THE ORANGE COLOR. UM, AND THEN THE AQUA AGAIN IS THE PORTAL. SO THE TRAIN WOULD RISE UP AND THEN YOU'D BE ABOVE GROUND. BY THE TIME WE GET TO 21ST STREET, UM, I WILL SAY THAT THIS OPTION, THE ROADWAY IS MUCH MORE CONSTRAINED IN THIS LOCATION. SO IT'S, IT'S, UH, IT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S A KIND OF A TOUGH FIT. UM, THIS, UH, MOVING THE, THE PORTAL NORTH OF MLK, UM, HAS SOME ADVANTAGES BOTH IN TERMS OF THE WIDTH OF THE RIGHT OF WAY, BUT ALSO BEING ABLE TO BASICALLY MANAGE THE INTERSECTION OF MLK A LITTLE BIT MORE EASILY. UM, ALTHOUGH THERE ARE ALSO ADDITIONAL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH IT. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK ALSO ANOTHER IMPORTANT CRITERIA THAT WE'RE LUCKY TO AT IS, YOU KNOW, RIDERSHIP AND LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE. YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'RE GOING TO SEE A LOT MORE DENSITY NORTH OF THE CAPITAL WITH THE ONGOING CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CAPITOL COMPLEX PHASE. ONE IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION, ALMOST COMPLETE. UM, THEY'RE ALREADY IN THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING PHASE TWO. UM, YOU CAN SEE A MAP OF THAT, THE MASTER PLAN FOR THE CAPITAL COMPLEX ON THE LEFT. SO WE'RE GOING TO SEE A LOT OF RIDERS IN THAT AREA. AND SO MAKING SURE THAT THE STATION IS AS CLOSE TO THOSE WRITERS IS AS CAN BE. UM, THE OTHER CRITERIA REALLY ARE ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT THE STATION IS KIND OF HALFWAY BETWEEN REPUBLIC SQUARE, UM, AND THE UT STATION. SO YOU COULD SEE THE, THE, THE DIMENSIONS THERE WITH THESE TWO OPTIONS. UM, THE OTHER ONE I WOULD POINT OUT IS THAT WE ARE SEEKING, WE ARE LOOKING RIGHT, AS WE ALWAYS DO, TRY TO MAXIMIZE INTERCONNECTIVITY OF DIFFERENT MODES, UM, A PLACE WHERE BUSES, MOTHER, THEIR INNER CITY BUSES OR, OR METRO EXPRESS COULD TERMINATE IN THE DOWNTOWN CORE AND CONNECT DIRECTLY TO, UH, THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM. UM, AND OBVIOUSLY REAL ESTATE OPTIONS FOR THAT ARE LIMITED. UM, WE ARE WORKING WITH, UH, YOU KNOW, OUR PARTNERS TO IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES. THERE IS, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF COUNTY OWNED PROPERTIES THAT WE THINK MAY BE PROMISING, AGAIN, LOTS MORE STUDY TO COME THERE, BUT, UM, THAT'S ANOTHER CRITERIA THAT WE NEED TO EVALUATE AND AS WE EVALUATE THESE OPTIONS, UM, AND WE WILL, WE WILL BE TAKING ALL THESE OPTIONS TO THE PUBLIC AND GETTING THEIR FEEDBACK AS WELL. SO THIS IS JUST HOW QUALITATIVE EXAMPLE OF HOW WE MEASURE THOSE OPTIONS ON A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT CRITERIA, NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH THIS IN DETAIL. UM, BUT YOU CAN SEE, THIS IS HOW WE APPROACH THIS DECISION MAKING PROCESS. WE'LL BE SHARING THIS WITH THE PUBLIC AS WELL IN THE PUBLIC MEETINGS IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS. UM, HERE'S SOME DETAILS ON, ON HOW THOSE STATIONS, THOSE DIFFERENT OPTIONS WOULD BE CONFIGURED RELATIVE TO THE ACTUAL STATION. I'M NOT GOING TO GO INTO DETAIL HERE. UM, SOME OF THEM ARE MORE COMPACT THAN OTHERS, I WILL SAY BECAUSE WE'VE GOT TO ACCOMMODATE VENT SHAFTS AND, AND, UH, VENTILATION SYSTEMS AND, AND EMERGENCY ACCESS, ET CETERA. SO AGAIN, LOOKING AT THE RELATIVE COST OF THESE STATIONS IS, IS PART OF THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS AS WELL. OKAY. UH, MOVING ON TO SOUTH CONGRESS, UM, AGAIN, HERE'S THE AREA MAP SHOWING, UH, THE AUDITORIUM SHORES STATION AND THE SOCO STATION, UH, AND THOSE 10 MINUTE WALK SHEDS, UM, UH, ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE STATIONS. UH, SO REMEMBER WE ARE, YOU KNOW, UNDERGROUND ON THE, ON THE RIGHT SIDE, AND [02:20:01] I'LL TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE CROSS THE RIVER. SO IN THE ALTERNATIVE ANALYSIS PHASE, UM, WE HAD, UH, ANTICIPATED THAT THE CROSSING OF THE ORANGE LINE OVER THE LAKE WOULD BE ON A BRIDGE. AND AS WE GOT INTO THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING AND STUDYING ALL OF THE PARAMETERS THAT WOULD, UM, WOULD AFFECT, OR THE ALIGNMENT OF, OF THE ORANGE LINE, THIS LOCATION, WE REALIZED THAT THERE WERE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT POTENTIAL CONFLICTS, UM, WITH A BRIDGE IN THIS LOCATION. UM, YOU KNOW, I'LL POINT OUT A COUPLE OF THEM. ONE IS THE, THE LOCATION OF THE PORTAL, OR AGAIN, THE PORTAL IS WHERE THE, THE SURFACE LEVEL TRANS GO UNDERGROUND. UM, SO YOU CAN SEE THAT BLACK CHEVRON, AGAIN, IN THIS SCHEME, THE PORTAL WAS GOING TO BE LOCATED BETWEEN CESAR CHAVEZ AND THIRD STREET. AND AS WE LOOKED AT THIS IN MORE DETAIL, REALIZING THAT THAT WOULD REQUIRE THE CLOSING OF SECOND STREET. UM, SO WHICH WAS, I THINK GOING TO BE NOT, NOT IDEAL. UM, ALSO THERE ARE A WHOLE SERIES OF UTILITY CONFLICTS ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE LAKE, UM, RIGHT IN WHERE WE WOULD WANT TO GO UNDERGROUND, UM, THAT WE'RE GOING TO MAKE THAT MORE COMPLICATED, UM, AND EXPENSIVE TO MOVE. UM, WE'RE ALSO RECOGNIZING THAT THE, THE AREA ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE LAKE AT AUDITORIUM SHORES IS, UM, IS A BIG FLOOD PLAN, RIGHT? SO, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MANAGE THAT WITH THE ALIGNMENT WAS PROVIDING A CHALLENGE. SO AS A RESULT, UM, OUR CURRENT RECOMMENDATION FROM THE, FROM THE DESIGN TEAM IS THAT WE EXTEND THE TUNNEL, UM, FROM DOWNTOWN FOR THE ORANGE LINE UNDERNEATH THE LAKE AND CONTINUE IT TO THE SOUTH SIDE. SO THAT AUDITORIUM SHORES WOULD BE A, UM, AN UNDERGROUND STATION. UM, AND WE WOULD BASICALLY CROSS THE LAKE UNDERGROUND AS OPPOSED TO BEING ABOVE CRAP. UH, THE AUDITORIUM SHORE STATION, UM, IS IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF THREADING A NEEDLE. UM, THERE ARE LOTS OF UTILITIES ON RIVERSIDE. WE'RE ACTUALLY, YOU CAN SEE THE BLUE AREA, THE BIG BLUE AREAS, BASICALLY THE STATION BOX, INCLUDING SOME BACK OF HOUSE SPACES, UM, THAT WOULD BE UNDERGROUND UNDER TWO SITES THAT ARE, ARE LIKELY TO BE UNDER DEVELOPMENT. SO THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER DEVELOPER COORDINATION EFFORT. UM, AND YOU CAN SEE THAT WE'RE ALSO, BUT STILL ANTICIPATING A CONCOURSE GOING BACK TO, UM, AUDITORIUM SHORES AND THE CORNER OF THE LOG CENTER ON THE PALMER EVENTS CENTER. SO HAVING A STATION ON THE WEST SIDE OF SOUTH FIRST STREET TO CONNECT TO ALL THOSE PUBLIC FACILITIES OVER THERE, AS WELL AS SOME ENTRANCES, UM, CLOSER TO THE STATION BOX, AS WELL AS TO THE EAST. SO, UM, THAT'S HOW THAT WOULD BE CONFIGURED. SO WE'RE UNDERGROUND COMING UNDERNEATH THE RIVER. AND THEN THE QUESTION IS, WELL, WHERE DO WE GET UP BACK UP TO THE SURFACE AS WE MOVE SOUTH. AND AGAIN, SERIES OF CONFLICTS. I'M NOT GOING TO GO THROUGH ALL THESE IN DETAIL, BUT THE MOST, I THINK SIGNIFICANT ONE IS BOLDEN CREEK, RIGHT? WELL, WE, WELL, WE REALIZED THAT WE COULDN'T GET ABOVE UP TO GROUND TO GET OVERBUILDING CREEK IN TIME AND ABOVE THE GOLDEN CREEK FLOOD ZONE. UM, SO BASICALLY THAT PUSHES EXTENDS THE TUNNEL TO THE SOUTH SIDE OF BOLDEN CREEK. UM, AND THEN THE QUESTION IS HOW DO WE GET UP TO, TO THE SURFACE? SO WE'RE LOOKING AT TWO OPTIONS, UM, FOR WHERE TO COME OUT OF THE, WHERE TO GET TO THE SURFACE ON, ON SOUTH CONGRESS, UM, OPTION H AND V, WHICH WERE COLLECT COLLOQUIALLY, CALLING THE SHORT TUNNEL AND THE LONG TUNNEL. UM, SO THE SHORT TUNNEL BASICALLY GETS TO THE SURFACE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. AND THE, THE LOCATION FOR THE PORTAL WOULD BE ROUND NELLY AND ACADEMY STREETS. YOU CAN SEE AGAIN THAT BLACK CHEVRON WHERE, UM, THE TRAIN WOULD COME OUT OF THE GROUND AND GET ONTO THE SURFACE. AND THEN IN THIS SCENARIO, THE LE THE STATION LOCATION WOULD BE AT, UM, NEAR THE LIVELY MIDDLE SCHOOL. UM, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT FARTHER TO THE SOUTH. YOU CAN SEE THAT IN THE BLUE BOX ON THE DIAGRAM. UM, AND SO YOU CAN SEE WE'RE UNDERGROUND. AND THEN WE COME BASICALLY MIDWAY THROUGH SOUTH CONGRESS THROUGH THAT RETAIL DISTRICT WOULD COME UP TO THE SURFACE AND THE LONG TUNNEL WE STAY UNDERGROUND LONGER. UM, THE SOCO STATION WOULD ACTUALLY BE ANOTHER UNDERGROUND STATION. UM, AND WE DO HAVE SOME FLEXIBILITY ABOUT WHERE TO LOCATE THAT, GIVEN THAT IT IS UNDERGROUND BECAUSE IN OUR FOOTPRINT ABOVE OF THE STREET WOULD BE MINIMIZED. UM, AND THEN THE PORTAL IS BASICALLY DOWN FURTHER TO THE SOUTH, AGAIN, JUST SOUTH OF THE MIDDLE SCHOOL, NEAR LELAND STREET. UM, SIMILARLY WE'RE EVALUATING THESE TWO OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, ON A VARIETY OF CRITERIA. UM, UH, SORRY, MY SLIDE IS IT DOESN'T WANT TO SEE THE CRITERIA. OKAY. THANK YOU. UH, OH YEAH. SO HERE'S SORRY. HERE'S A, JUST A SUMMARY OF THE TWO OPTIONS. UM, YOU KNOW, THE SHORT TERM AND THE LONG TUNNEL. UM, ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF THE, OF THE LONG TUNNEL IS THAT DOES GIVE US A LITTLE BIT MORE FLEXIBILITY IN TERMS OF THE ROADWAY AND HOW THAT GETS RECONFIGURED FOR BIKES, PEDESTRIANS, TRAFFIC, PARKING, ET CETERA. UM, WITH THE SHORT TUNNEL WE HAVE IN THE INCLUSION OF THE LIGHT RAIL SYSTEM IN THE STATION, IT'S A LITTLE MORE CONSTRAINED. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, THERE ARE LOTS OF, UH, OTHER CRITERIA [02:25:01] AS WELL THAT WE HAVE TO MEASURE. UM, THERE WE GO. UM, YEAH, A WHOLE SERIES OF OTHER CRITERIA, UM, CONSTRUCTION IMPACTS, PROPERTY IMPACTS COSTS, UM, WILL BE A BIG ONE. UM, SO AGAIN, THIS IS PART OF THE PUBLIC CONVERSATION WE'RE ANTICIPATING, AND WE'LL BE REVIEWING THIS ALL WITH THE PUBLIC. AGAIN, THERE'S SOME DETAIL ON EACH OF THE STATION LOCATIONS. I WON'T GO INTO THIS IN MUCH DETAIL. THAT'S ALL PART OF THE PUBLIC PROCESS THAT WE'LL BE SHARING WITH THE PUBLIC, UM, UM, GOING FORWARD. SO THAT'S THE CENTRAL ALIGNMENT. UM, WE ARE IN THIS MOMENT WHERE WE'RE PUTTING ALL THIS OUT TO THE PUBLIC, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED TO SHARE IT WITH THE PUBLIC AND GET THEIR FEEDBACK. THIS IS, UM, IN RESPONSE TO BOARD MEMBERS. STRATTON'S QUESTION BEFORE I THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN DOES ALL THIS GET FIXED, WE REALLY WANT TO USE THIS TIME TO GET AS MUCH FEEDBACK AS WE CAN AND FOLD THAT INTO THE MIX BECAUSE IT MAY RESULT IN CHANGES. I MEAN, WE HAVE TO BE OPEN TO THAT BASED ON THE FEEDBACK THAT WE GET AND THE INFORMATION THAT WE GET FROM THE PUBLIC. SO WE ARE HOLDING A WHOLE SERIES OF PUBLIC MEETINGS, AS JACKIE SAID EARLIER, UM, IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS, UM, THE, THE OPEN HOUSE IN JULY 31ST, UNFORTUNATELY WE ARE, WE ARE, UM, WE HAVE CANCELED JUST GIVEN WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH COVID RIGHT NOW, JUST TO BE, YOU KNOW, CAUTIOUS, UM, HOPE WE CAN FIND ANOTHER DATE FOR THAT IN THE FUTURE OF THINGS GET BETTER. UM, AND THEN THERE IS, YOU KNOW, OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT MONTH, UM, ONLINE SELF GUIDED TOURS, UM, AND WE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL BE COLLECTING LOTS OF, OF, OF COMMENTS, UM, DURING THAT PERIOD. UM, AND THEN WE'LL BE REFLECTING ON THOSE AND THEN FOLDING THEM INTO THE PROCESS. SO HAPPY TO TAKE ANY OF YOUR QUESTIONS. NO, THAT'S A LOT. THANK YOU, PETER. AND I, I WORE OUT THE BOARD, THEY'RE ALREADY, THEY'RE DROPPING LIKE FLIES. RIGHT? GREAT. AND THEN I KNOW THE MAYOR MAY HAVE TO LEAVE. SO I WANT TO GIVE YOU THE FLOOR MAYOR, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, HOW MANY REAL QUICK, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. JUST INCREDIBLY EXCITING TO SEE, AND IT JUST FEELS MORE REAL AND MORE TRANSFORMATIVE WHEN YOU SEE THE PICTURES, UH, AS WITH THE DISCUSSION EARLIER, I HOPE WE'RE ABLE TO EXTEND THE DISTANCES TO MAKE THEM WORK. UH, UH, AND AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE, THAT, THAT OBVIOUSLY YOU DON'T INVOLVE IS COST ISSUES AND SCOPE ISSUES AND THE LIKE, BUT I HOPE WE'RE ABLE TO FIGURE THAT STUFF OUT. THE ACTIVITY ON FOURTH STREET PROBABLY IS, IS SOME OF THE MOST EXCITING IN TERMS OF REALLY TRANSFORMING URBAN AREAS AND OUR DOWNTOWN CREATING A MALL. LIKE THAT WOULD BE JUST AN INCREDIBLE STEP, I THINK, FOR OUR, FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND FOR, FOR OUR, FOR OUR CITY, UH, PROBABLY LEAPFROG US PAST MANY OTHER CITIES IN THE, IN THE COUNTRY IN TERMS OF THAT KIND OF, UH, URBAN MOMENT IN PLANNING. SO I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT TO SEE THAT WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES ASSOCIATED WITH THE MOVEMENT OF THE REPUBLIC STATION BECAUSE OF WHAT HAPPENED? WELL, IT'S A PLEASURE. YEAH. SO, UM, AS I SAID, WE'VE HAD TO SHIFT THE REPUBLIC STATION PLATFORM. LET'S PUT IT THAT WAY, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT TO THE NORTH FOR HALF A BLOCK, THREE QUARTERS OF A BLOCK NORTH. SO I WOULD SAY THE DISADVANTAGES ARE, I THINK WE, WE SEE REPUBLIC SQUARE OBVIOUSLY AS A, YOU KNOW, AS A MAJOR PUBLIC HUB. UM, AND WE WANT TO HAVE AN ENTRANCE AT REPUBLIC SQUARE. WE STILL WILL HAVE AN ENTRANCE AT REPUBLIC SQUARE, BUT YOU'RE A LITTLE BIT REMOVED FROM IT FROM THE, FROM FOURTH STREET, WHICH IS THAT MAIN HUB. UM, THERE WILL BE POTENTIALLY DON'T KNOW YET SOME ADDITIONAL COST ASSOCIATED WITH THAT, BECAUSE AGAIN, DEPENDING ON WHAT WE CAN WORK OUT WITH OUR DEVELOPER PARTNERS, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THE, UH, SO, BUT WE'RE MAKING A WORK, I WILL SAY THAT THE, THE DISADVANTAGES ARE NOT CATEGORICAL OR ENORMOUS. I MEAN, AND THIS IS, I THINK IT'S A GOOD LESSON FOR ALL OF US, THE DISADVANTAGES OR POTENTIAL COST IMPACT. YES. AND, AND LOSS OF THE DIRECT ACTION IS A LITTLE BIT, WELL, IT'S STILL, WE'LL STILL HAVE DIRECT ACCESS TO JUST A LITTLE BIT OF A DISTANCE. YOU KNOW, NOW YOU CAN ALSO SEE THAT AS AN ADVANTAGE BECAUSE NOW THE STATION'S CLOSER TO SIXTH STREET, RIGHT. WHICH IS OBVIOUSLY A MAJOR HUB AS WELL. SO, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THERE ARE TRADE OFFS IN BOTH, IN BOTH WAYS. WHAT I WAS GONNA SAY IS I THINK THAT IT WAS A REALLY GOOD MUSCLE FOR US TO HAVE TO WORK IN A WAY, RIGHT. THEY'RE GOING TO BE CHALLENGES THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS, RIGHT. THINGS THAT COME UP, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO WORK AROUND THEM AND SOLVE FOR THEM. AND I THINK THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF HOW WE'VE ALREADY FIGURED OUT HOW TO DO THAT. I JUST WANT TO HAVE MAYOR, I THINK, BUT I WOULD FRAME UP THAT THE TERM I WOULDN'T USE THE MOST IS IT'S, UH, IT'S A LOT, IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY COST LOSS. RIGHT. UM, SO THAT'S WHAT I THINK, YOU KNOW, PIER AND I, DAVE, A FEW OTHERS HAVE REALLY SPENT TIME WITH, WHICH IS IT TOOK AN OPTION OFF THE TABLE VERSUS ALLOWING THE COMMUNITY TO HAVE MORE [02:30:01] FLEXIBILITY AS WE GO THROUGH THE PROCESS. AND, AND SO WE DON'T KNOW YET ABOUT COSTS AND BET ALATION AND DIFFERENT THINGS. IT JUST TAKES ONE, IT TAKES MAYBE INSTEAD OF A TWO BLOCK STATION UNDERGROUND TO ONE BLOCK. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TRACK GEOMETRY WISE. WE CAN MAKE THE TURN AND WE KNOW WE'RE BUILDING THE STATION. SO THERE THERE'S BEEN NO CHANGE TO THE CONCEPT THAT WE HAVE A REPUBLIC SQUARE STATION, AND WE CAN MAKE ALL THE GEOMETRY WORK, WHICH IS VERY COMPLICATED IN THE GRADINGS BETWEEN NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, AND WEST. IT WOULD JUST BE AN OPPORTUNITY COSTS THAT WE'LL HAVE THE COMMUNITY CAN'T GET THE FULL EFFECT PROBABLY OF WHAT WE CAN DO BECAUSE OF THAT. OKAY. AND I APOLOGIZE, I'M GOING TO NEED TO, TO, TO, TO LEAVE THERE'S, UM, UH, A MEETING OF THE KIND OF LEADERSHIP IN THE AREA ABOUT COVID OBVIOUSLY THE NUMBERS ARE JUST, UH, SCREAMING LARGER, UH, IN OUR COMMUNITY RIGHT NOW APPEARS AS IF, WELL, THE, UH, VACCINATION IS REALLY GOOD TO PREVENT SOMEONE FROM GETTING A SERIOUS, UH, ILLNESS. WE'LL KEEP THEM GENERALLY OUT OF THE HOSPITAL AND OUT OF ICU, IT LOOKS LIKE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN VACCINATED ARE ABLE TO PASS ON THE VIRUS, EVEN IF THEY JUST HAVEN'T ASYMPTOMATICALLY. SO I WOULD IMAGINE WE'RE GOING TO BE MOVING TO A PLACE HERE, CONSISTENT WITH YESTERDAY'S ANNOUNCEMENT. WE'RE ASKING PEOPLE TO WEAR MASKS INDOORS, BUT AT THIS POINT I DON'T SEE A LIMITATION IN WHAT PEOPLE CAN DO OR OCCUPANCIES OR THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. JUST A LOT MORE FOCUSED ON, ON WEARING MASKS, CERTAINLY INDOORS. AND IF YOU'RE UNVACCINATED, WHEN YOU'RE AROUND, WHEN YOU'RE AROUND OTHER PEOPLE, SO I'M GOING TO LEAVE AND PICK UP MY CALL, BUT THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR AND BOARD MEMBER. UM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, PETER AND JOHN, AND, UM, CERTAINLY LOVE THE VISION OF WHAT YOU'RE PRESENTING. I'VE SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN DENVER SEEING THE 16TH STREET MALL SPEND SOME TIME THERE, FULTON STREET, TIME SQUARE, WHICH HE DIDN'T SHOW. SO IT'S A GREAT VISION AND IT WOULD LOOK TREMENDOUS ON FOREST STREET. UM, I KNOW THAT RANDY TALKS A LOT ABOUT THIS AND, AND THIS IS KIND OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT, WHICH IS A FUNCTION OF, OF SCOPE COSTS AND SCHEDULE. WHEN YOU MOVE ONE, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER TWO HAVE TO MOVE AS WELL. AND I THINK YOU SAID THE RIGHT WORD, WHICH IS, THIS IS ALL ABOUT TRADE-OFFS. SO IF WE ADD THINGS HERE, YOU KNOW, WHAT DOES THAT DO TO SCHEDULE? WHAT DOES THAT DO TO THE COST? AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK WE ALL ARE AWARE OF, AND WE NEED TO KIND OF FOCUS ON IS KIND OF THIS TERM SCOPE CREEP, RIGHT? AND WE JUST NEED TO BE AWARE THAT AS WE ADD FEATURES, HOW ARE WE GOING TO PAY FOR IT? SO I THINK THIS IS GREAT, THE PRESENTATION, I LOVE THE VISION, BUT WE DON'T HAVE THE FULL PICTURE YET. WE DON'T HAVE THE COST. WE DON'T HAVE THE SCHEDULE IMPACT, AND THAT WILL COME AT THE RIGHT TIME. AND WE'LL REVIEW THAT. MY OTHER BIG CONCERN IS THAT COST OVERRUNS ON PHASE ONE ARE GOING TO HAVE AN IMPACT ON OUR ABILITY TO DO PHASE TWO. AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE THINK ABOUT PHASE TWO. AND I KNOW WE ALL KNOW ABOUT THAT, BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHAT GOT CUT OUT OF THE PLAN BACK IN JUNE OR JULY OF LAST YEAR, WHEN WE HAD TO SKINNY THIS DOWN TO MAKE IT KIND OF AFFORDABLE. AND PHASE TWO IS TAKING THE ORANGE LINE UP TO, UM, TO RUN BERG AND, UH, TECHBRIDGE TECH RIDGE TAKING ITSELF THE CONVERSION OF THE BRT ON THE GOAL LINE TO LIGHT RAIL AND, AND GREEN LINES. SO THAT WAS SOMEWHERE, I THINK ABOUT 3 BILLION, 2.7. SO IF WE KEEP ADDING THINGS TO PHASE ONE THAT ARE QUOTE UNQUOTE, NICE TO HAVES AND NOT CRITICAL, WE IMPACT OUR ABILITY TO DO THE PHASE TWO W WHICH IS IMPORTANT. SO WHEN I TAKE A LOOK AT ALL OF THIS, AND I KNOW WE DON'T HAVE THE ANSWERS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE EXPANDING THE UNDERGROUND TUNNEL, PROBABLY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF ABOUT 1.5, 1.7 MILES. SOME OF THAT IS ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL. WE GOT TO DO IT THROUGH THE GEO-TECH AND FLOODING. SOME OF IT IS, YOU MENTIONED AS THE NICE TO HAVES, WHICH IS THE LONG AND THE SHORT TUNNEL. AND THERE WERE TWO OF THOSE. AND WE ALSO NEED TO UNDERSTAND, ANYTIME WE GO ONTO GROUND, I KNOW YOU, ALL IT COSTS GO UP EXPONENTIALLY, YOU KNOW, TUNNELS ARE POTENTIALLY 700 MILLION TO A BILLION A MILE. AND IF WE'RE IN NEW YORK CITY, IT'S 2 BILLION, A MILE AND THERE'S HIGHER ONM COST OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE COSTS ON TOWELS. IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE'RE EXPANDING THE NUMBER OF UNDERGROUND STATIONS. I MAY BE OFF FROM FIVE TO SEVEN, I DON'T KNOW, AND WE'RE GOING EVEN DEEPER. SO WE'RE GOING TO LEVELS TO THREE AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG ON THIS, BUT THAT HAS A COST IMPACT. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE JUST NEED, AND I KNOW WE'D HAVE THE ANSWER IS, BUT THOSE ARE THE THINGS, HOPEFULLY AT THE RIGHT TIME WHEN YOU HAVE THEM WILL BE PRESENTED SO WE CAN UNDERSTAND THOSE TRAILS. YEAH. A HUNDRED PERCENT OBVIOUSLY, UM, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT WE'VE GOT TO MANAGE [02:35:02] THE PROGRAM, RIGHT? SO ALL OF THE PROJECTS WITHIN THE PROGRAM, WITHIN THE FUNDING THAT THE VOTERS APPROVED, UM, AS WELL AS ANY ADDITIONAL FUNDING SOURCES THAT WE CAN FIND, RIGHT? NOT, NOT FROM LOCAL TAXPAYERS, JUST TO BE CLEAR, BUT YOU KNOW, ADDITIONAL FUNDING, FEDERAL GRANT PROGRAMS, ET CETERA. BUT WE KNOW WE HAVE TO WORK WITHIN THAT FRAMEWORK. UM, AND IT'S GOING TO BE AN ITERATIVE PROCESS, RIGHT. TO FIGURE OUT, AND WE HAVE TO COME BACK TO THE PUBLIC AND PRESENT TO THE BOARD, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT THOSE TRADE-OFFS ARE AND HOW WE RECOMMEND MANAGING THEM. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. I JUST WANTED TO, UH, ADD A LITTLE TO THAT CAUSE MORE MEMBER. CAUSE I THINK, I MEAN, THAT'S GOING TO BE THE WHOLE JUST OF THIS WHOLE BOARD AND MOVING THROUGH CONTRACTS AND OBVIOUSLY WE ARE STILL, YOU KNOW, WE MIGHT BE ALMOST TO THE SECOND ENDING, BUT WE'RE ALMOST, WE'RE STILL IN THE FIRST INNING. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS WE PUT THESE, THESE TO DO THE DILIGENCE, GET THE INFORMATION, UH, WE WANT TO BRING THE BOARD INFORMATION THAT HAS BEEN VALIDATED IN QA QC MULTIPLE TIMES. UH, CAUSE WHEN WE BRING SOMETHING PUBLICLY, WE HAVE TO STAND BEHIND THAT INFORMATION. WE HAVE TO GET OUR RISK ANALYSIS KICKED OFF AND UNDERWAY. SO THERE'S A LOT OF MOVING PARTS AS YOU WELL APPRECIATE. CAUSE YOU'RE VERY FAMILIAR WITH THOSE, UH, KIND OF, UH, THIS INFRASTRUCTURE, UH, WORLD. I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I PUT A NOTE ON WHAT YOU MENTIONED ABOUT WHERE YOU WERE LABELED PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO, JUST SO YOU, AND THERE'S NO CHANCE OF CONFUSION IN THE PUBLIC ALL PROJECTS THAT WERE CONSIDERED FUTURE EXTENSION. SO SAY NORTH AMERICA AND SENATOR TO TECH RIDGE OR STASSNEY TO SLAUGHTER, THEY ARE NOT FUNDED AND IN NO WAY, WHATEVER WE DO ON QUOTE UNQUOTE PHASE ONE WOULD IMPACT A PHASE TWO PHASE TWO. WE'LL HAVE TO GO GET DIFFERENT MONEY TO DO PHASE TWO. UM, SO I JUST WANT TO KIND OF MENTION THAT THE GOAL LINE AND THOSE TWO ORANGE LINE EXTENSIONS ARE NOT ENVISIONED IN ANY FUNDING SCENARIO AT ALL. UH, ON THE TUNNEL PART, YOU ARE CORRECT THAT, UH, CONSTRUCTION CERTAINLY WILL BE MORE EXPENSIVE TO DO THAT. UH, WHILE THERE ARE SOME ONM ASPECTS OF TUNNELS THAT ARE MORE EXPENSIVE. THERE ARE ASPECTS THOUGH THAT ARE, UM, CHEAPER TO RUN SO WE CAN RUN SERVICE FASTER. WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO GET AWAY WITH LESS FLEET. WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO HAVE FASTER TRIP TIMES, THEREFORE GENERATE MORE GENERATE, UM, UH, PER TRAP PASSENGER COSTS, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENTLY. SO THERE'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF THAT WORK THAT WE HAVE TO GET INTO TOO. SO WHAT'S THE BALANCE BETWEEN RUNNING PUMPS AND CLEANING THIS STATION VERSUS AN AIR CONDITIONING VERSUS, YOU KNOW, UH, ULTIMATELY TRAVEL TIME AND SAFETY BENEFITS OF PEOPLE CAN'T GET ON THE TRACKS AND DELAYS WITH OTHER VEHICLES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO ALL THOSE POINTS YOU BRING ARE INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. AND WE JUST, THE VOLUME OF WORK AHEAD OF US TO ENGAGE THIS BOARD OVER THE NEXT REALLY IT'S THE NEXT YEAR BY NEXT SUMMER, WE REALLY THAT'S WHEN THE NUMBERS ARE GOING TO MATTER THE MOST WHEN WE HAVE 30% COST ESTIMATES FOR THE MEGA PROJECTS AND HAVE SOME OF OUR RISK ANALYSIS DONE AND THEN STARTED TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO PACKAGE THINGS AS A GROUP, UH, AND THE BEST WAY TO IMPLEMENT THE PROGRAM. AND I THINK, I THINK WE'LL PROBABLY END UP AROUND SEPTEMBER TIMEFRAME IS WHAT WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS TO TRY TO GET MORE INFORMATION TO THIS BOARD REGARDING SOME COSTS, ESTIMATE STRUCTURE. AND I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT. WE SEPARATE BUDGET FROM COST ESTIMATES BECAUSE THOSE ARE DEFINITELY DIFFERENT THINGS. I THINK WE'RE GOING TO TRY TO EMPHASIZE AS BEST WE CAN THAT THE BUDGET IS REALLY THE 8.75 CENTS. THAT IS WHAT THE VOTERS APPROVED. AND WE HAVE TO, AS PETER MENTIONED, FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET THE PROD PROGRAM OF PROJECTS DONE WITHIN THE FUNDING SOURCE THAT HAS BEEN APPROVED, BUT WE REALLY HAVE A TRIANGLE. AND AS YOU MENTIONED, THEIR SCOPE AND THEIR SCHEDULE AND THERE'S COSTS AND ANY PART OF THAT TRIANGLE THAT MOVES THE OTHER PARTS OF THE CORRESPONDENT WE MOVE. AND AS A COMMUNITY, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, ADJUST WITH THAT RIGHT AWAY. WE KNOW THERE'S GOING TO BE RIGHT AWAY. ESCALATION COSTS BECAUSE EVERYONE'S PROPERTY VALUE IN THE CITY HAS GONE UP 30% SINCE JANUARY WELL, THE PROPERTY WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING TO ACQUIRE AS PART OF THAT PROPERTY, EVERYONE KNOWS THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF INFLATIONARY ADJUSTMENT ON CONSTRUCTION COSTS. WE ARE OBVIOUSLY PART OF THAT AS WELL, BUT THEN SOME OF THAT MAY BE TRANSITORY AND MAY COME BACK AND YOU KNOW, SO THERE'LL BE A LITTLE ADJUSTMENTS THERE, BUT I REALLY, REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS. AND THAT'S THE STUFF THE TEAM IS, UH, INCREDIBLY FOCUSED ON AND WE WILL DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO BRING THE BOARD AS MUCH OPEN, TRANSPARENT INFORMATION AS WE GET IT THROUGH THE SYSTEM. THANK YOU, PETER. THANK YOU, EVERYONE. WHO'S WORKED TIRELESSLY FOR THIS INCREDIBLE PRESENTATION. DO YOU HAVE A COMMENT FROM GUEST? WELL, FIRST OF ALL, I KNOW WHEN WE STARTED THIS OUT, UM, IT WAS REALLY A BUNCH OF IT WAS WE APPROVED A MAP. WE APPROVED LINES ON IT REALLY LINES ON A MAP TO GET FROM POINT A TO POINT B. WE KNEW AT THE TIME WHEN WE WERE APPROVING THE LINES THAT WE, WE DIDN'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW WE WERE GOING TO GET THERE. TH TH TH THERE WAS A LOT OF CONVERSATION AMONG, UH, IN COMMUNITY MEETINGS AND ACROSS THE CITY ABOUT WHAT WAS IT GOING TO BE, UH, YOU KNOW, IS IT GOING TO BE BRT? IS [02:40:01] IT GOING TO BE LRT? YOU KNOW, WHAT ABOUT THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER? AND THE ONE THING WE DID ULTIMATELY DECIDE WAS, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WANTED IT TO BE LIGHT RAIL, BUT, AND NOT, AND NOT BUS, BUT BEYOND THAT THINK THAT WAS PRETTY MUCH THE, THE LONG AND THE SHORT OF IT. AND WE HAD THIS, THESE KINDS OF PRELIMINARY IDEAS, AND WE HAD A, AND WE HAD A PRICE TAG. THAT'S WHAT GOT US TO THE EIGHT POINTS, THE 8.75 CENTS. AND, AND HERE'S WHERE WE WANT TO FUNDAMENTALLY GO. AND I, AND I GET THAT. UM, I'LL JUST, I'LL JUST SAY FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, I ALWAYS PERSONALLY, UNTIL I SAW THE BRIEFING, I'D ALWAYS THOUGHT WE WERE GOING TO HAVE ONE, YOU KNOW, ONE SINGULAR BRIDGE, THE, THE, THE, THE GEMSTONE OF THE PROJECT WAS GOING TO BE THE BLUE LINE BRIDGE. I GUESS I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION WE ALWAYS WERE GOING TO GO UNDER WATER. I MEAN, UNDER, UNDER A TUNNEL UNDER THE, UH, LABORED LAKE FOR THE ORANGE LINE, I DIDN'T REALIZE IT WAS A GIVE AND TAKE THAT WE WERE QUOTE UNQUOTE, LOSING A BRIDGE TO GO UNDER UNDERGROUND IN THE FIRST PLACE TO ME THAT, THAT WASN'T A BIG DEAL. UM, THE, THE, THE QUESTION I'VE GOT, I GUESS, OUT OF THIS, AND PART OF THIS TIES INTO BOTH THE FACT THAT THIS IS AGAIN TO WHAT RANDY SAID, WE WE'VE GOT A PLAN, A PRELIMINARY IDEA. WE'VE GOT A POT OF MONEY. WE HAVE SOME, SOME IDEAS HERE ABOUT HOW WE WANT TO ACCOMPLISH IT, BUT WE HAVEN'T DUG DOWN TO THE REALITIES. WE COULDN'T GET INTO THE REALITIES UNTIL THE VOTERS SAID, YES, LET'S PROCEED. SPEND MONEY TO TAKE IT TO THE NEXT PHASE AND FIGURE OUT WHAT IT'S REALLY GOING TO COST TO MOVE IT FURTHER DOWN. THE, THE, THE, UH, THE BALL DOWN THE FIELD I'LL CHANGE SPORTS ANALOGIES OR DOWN THE TRACK AT THE TRAIN AND GET THE TRAIN DOWN THE TRACK. THERE YOU GO. SO LOOKING AT THIS, THE, THE, THE FOURTH, THE FOURTH STREET QUARTERS WE TALKING ABOUT, AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT HERE, REMIND ME PETER IN THE INITIAL PROJECT, OR, I MEAN, THE, THE INITIAL THOUGHT PROCESS OF THIS, WAS THERE GOING TO BE THIS, THIS WAS THE INITIAL THOUGHT PROCESS TO HAVE A LONG UNDERGROUND CONCOURSE STRETCHING FROM, UH, DOWN FROM THE DOWNTOWN STATION, AS WE WERE PROPOSING TO CALL IT, THEN ALL THE WAY OVER TO REPUBLIC SQUARE, WHERE YOU COULD WALK UNDERNEATH ALL THE WAY ACROSS FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER. WAS THAT WAS THAT I THINK THERE WAS REALLY, NO, IT WAS, UM, I MEAN, AS SOON AS I STARTED ON THIS PROJECT, THERE WAS, THAT WAS PART OF THE THINKING FOR SURE. UM, SO BECAUSE THAT'S PART OF WHAT MAKES THIS INTERLINE CONDUCTIVITY SO SEAMLESS, AND WE USE THAT WORD SEAMLESS A LOT. UM, I THINK THE THING THAT, THAT IS EVOLVED IN OUR THINKING LITTLE MORE, AND AGAIN, IT'S NOT SAID IT WASN'T THERE AT ALL, BUT JUST RECOGNIZING THE OPPORTUNITY OF WHAT WE HAVE, WHAT WE CAN DO AT THE STREET LEVEL. RIGHT. AND THINKING ABOUT TRANSIT, NOT JUST AS THE, AND ESPECIALLY DOWNTOWN, NOT JUST AS A TUBE UNDERGROUND. RIGHT. BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE FULL USER EXPERIENCE FROM THE STREET LEVEL AS THEY MOVE FROM THE STREET AND THEIR DAILY LIVES DOWN INTO THE SYSTEM. RIGHT. AND THEN THAT STARTED TO STIMULATE THINKING ABOUT WHAT THE OPPORTUNITY AT THE STREET LEVEL WAS, AND TO DEVELOP THAT MORE, RIGHT. BECAUSE YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE COMING UP THE STREET. ANYWAY, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE ELEVATORS AND STAIRS AND VENT SHAFTS AND ALL THIS STUFF. SO YOU, THERE'S LOTS OF INFRASTRUCTURE POKING UP FROM THE TRANSIT HUB INTO THE STREET. WELL, HOW DO WE INTEGRATE THAT INTO SOMETHING THAT'S MAYBE MORE HOLISTICALLY INTERCONNECTIVITY, HOLISTIC PLACEMAKING OPPORTUNITIES. SO THAT, THAT WAS, ARE ALWAYS PART OF IT. IT, IT, BUT IT SOUNDS TO ME LIKE WHEN, WITH THE INACTION OF THE LEGISLATION, WHEN THINGS DIDN'T HAPPEN ON THE LEGISLATIVE FRONT, UM, IT SOUNDS LIKE THINGS JUST TWEAKED A LITTLE BIT, CAUSE THAT THAT CONGRESS AVENUE STATION IS I LOOK BACK AT THE ORIGINAL MAP THAT WAS NOT ORIGINALLY PART OF THE PROPOSAL, BUT IT, IT SOUNDS LIKE WHAT WE'VE GOT HERE IS INSTEAD OF BUILDING, AS IT WERE MAYBE A TAJ MAHAL KIND OF STATION, WHICH AS WE HAD TALKED ABOUT, IT SOUNDED LIKE THAT THE REPUBLIC SQUARE WAS GOING TO BE LIKE THE REPUBLIC SQUARE WAS GOING TO BE LIKE THIS BIG CROWN JUUL. WE'RE KIND OF MAYBE LOOKING AT REALITY HERE IS WE'RE GOING TO MAYBE KIND OF SCALE BACK THAT, BUT THEN IT GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO THEN BUILD UP THIS, THIS NEW ADDITIONAL STATION USING THE EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WAS ALREADY PROPOSED. SO IT, IT, IT KIND OF FEELS LIKE TO ME AND WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO AS Y'ALL MOVE INTO THIS KIND OF COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS AND PROPOSED COST ESTIMATES IS THAT WE'RE STILL SPENDING THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WAS PROPOSED. WE'RE JUST SHIFTING IT AROUND THAT WAY. INSTEAD OF BUILDING THE TAJ MAHAL AT, AT REPUBLIC SQUARE, WE'RE GOING TO BUILD AS IT WERE TWO NICE MANSIONS, IS THIS KIND OF WHAT I WOULD GUESS SORT OF, OH, TWO, TWO VERY, OR INSTEAD OF POORLY DESIGNED, UM, YOU KNOW, INSTEAD OF A THREE CAR GARAGE REPUBLIC, WE'RE GETTING TWO . YEAH. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE RIGHT ANALOGY IS. THAT'S COMPLICATED, I GUESS, BUT YEAH, I WOULD SAY THIS PART, REMEMBER, UM, WE ALWAYS HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT THESE WERE CONCEPTUAL COST ESTIMATES WITH NO SPECIFICITY [02:45:01] ON DESIGN BECAUSE WE WERE AT CONCEPTUAL, RIGHT? SO UNTIL THE VOTERS APPROVED, MOVING FORWARD, WE HAD NO MONEY TO ADVANCE DESIGN. SO THAT PART YOU ARE A HUNDRED PERCENT CORRECT. SO I WOULDN'T SAY THAT WE HAD ANY VISION OF A TAJ MAHAL PER SE, A REPUBLIC SQUARE MORE THAN SAY, CONVENTION CENTER IN THE SENSE THAT WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO CREATE IS WHEREVER THE MULTIPLE LINES COME TOGETHER, WE NEED A LARGE UNDERGROUND URBAN FOOTPRINT CREATE THAT FRICTIONLESS TRANSFER. SO WE'VE ALWAYS ASSUMED MULTI FLOOR STATIONS, RIGHT? BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO HAVE THAT MULTI FLOOR TO DO. I THINK WHAT IS A LITTLE CONFUSING FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT, YOU KNOW, AND I'M FEELING A LITTLE SPOILED BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I LIVED IN BOSTON, WHICH IS HEAVY, HEAVY, UNDERGROUND SUBWAY, KIND OF OPERATIONS. PEOPLE ARE CONFLATING WHERE A PLATFORM IS VERSUS A STATION. AND PETER AND I SPENT A LOT OF TIME WITH THIS AS PETER CAME ON BOARD, WHICH WHERE A PLATFORM IS, IS PLATFORM IS A COMPONENT OF A STATION. SO WE MAY HAVE A STATION LIKE REPUBLIC SQUARE. THAT ACTUALLY HAS TWO PLATFORMS, BUT IT'S ONE STATION. SO LET'S SAY, I KNOW YOU NBC FOR AWHILE. METRO CENTER IN DC, METRO CENTER IN DC HAS MULTIPLE PLATFORMS ON MULTIPLE FLOORS, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY CALLED METRO CENTER STATION. PETER WITH A, WITH A LOT OF OTHER PEOPLE FIGURED OUT, I THINK A BETTER WAY TO STITCH THE TWO LARGER STATIONS WITH CONGRESS AV IN A WAY THAT CAN CONNECT ALL FIVE LINES, A LITTLE MORE FRICTIONLESS FOR EVERYONE. UM, BUT I, I DO, I WANT US TO NOT LEAVE THIS MEETING WITH ANY, ANY THOUGHT THAT NOT HAVING THAT ACTION TO LEGISLATURE ACT. I, I JUST, I DON'T WANT TO, OVER-EXAGGERATE THE LACK OF ACTION BEING THAT I DON'T WANNA SAY IT WASN'T A BIG DEAL, BUT I DON'T WANT TO PERPETUATE SOMETHING THAT MAYBE PEOPLE THINK IT'S A BIGGER DEAL THAN IT WAS. IT JUST TOOK AWAY OPPORTUNITY COSTS TO DO SOMETHING MAYBE INSTEAD OF HAVING WHERE A DEVELOPER IN THIS BLOCK AND THE PARK TWO BLOCKS. NOW IT'S THIS BLOCK AND NOT THIS ONE, IT, WE, WE JUST WANTED AS MANY OPTIONS UNDERGROUND AS POSSIBLE WITH THE BUTTERS. SO WE CAN WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY FOR THE BEST DESIGN. THERE WAS NO IDEA THAT IF WE'RE NOT UNDER THE PARK, THIS IS A PROBLEM VERSUS THE NEXT BLOCK WE JUST WANTED AS MANY POSSIBLE FOOTPRINTS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE CAN MAKE THE TURNS. THAT'S THE NUMBER ONE THING ABOUT TRACK GEOMETRY. AND FROM THERE, EVERYTHING ELSE IS JUST CONTINUING TO WORK THROUGH. SO WOULD HAVE BEEN A NICE YES, BUT IT IS NO WAY DETRIMENTAL TO THE, TO THE PROGRAM WE ARE MOVING FORWARD AND MAYBE NEXT LEGISLATIVE SESSION, THE OPPORTUNITY WILL PRESENT ITSELF. AND WE CAN, UH, ADD, ADD FURTHER FLEXIBILITY TO THAT STATION DESIGN. BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I WOULDN'T NECESSARILY CLASSIFY AS TAJ MAHAL VERSUS THREE MATCH AS MUCH AS, AND I KNOW THAT. YEAH, BUT THEY ALL HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER IN THIS SEAMLESS FRICTIONLESS WAY WHERE WE WANT SOMEONE TO GO FROM THE ORANGE LINE, TO THE BLUE LINE OF THE GOAL LINE, TO THE RED LINE WHERE, BECAUSE THAT'S THE ULTIMATE TRANSIT SYSTEM, THEY ALL CONNECT AGAIN. WELL, I, I WAS REFERRING TO, IN TERMS OF, OF, OF HOW WE BUILD IT AND THE PLACEMAKING ASPECT OF IT IT'S IT'S BECAUSE YEAH, COMING FROM DC, THERE IS A BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SAY A METRO CENTER OR A UNION STATION VERSUS SAY A CAPITOL SOUTH, WHICH LITERALLY AT CAPITOL SOUTH, IT WAS ONE YOU'RE YOU'RE ON ONE LINE AND YOU, YOU GO DOWN AN ESCALATOR AND BOOM, THERE IT IS. AND YOU EITHER GO AT ONE DIRECTION OR THE OTHER, THERE WASN'T A LOT INTO IT. IT WASN'T DESIGNED AS A PLACE MAKING FUNCTION WHERE PEOPLE COME TOGETHER AND I'M REFERENCING BACK TO ALL OF EVERYTHING THAT WE DID IS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THIS, WHERE WE SHOWED THESE BEAUTIFUL RENDITIONS OF HERE'S, WHAT REPUBLIC SQUARE COULD BE AS A PLACEMAKING FUNCTION, WHERE YOU KNOW, THAT CONCOURSE HAS GOT PLACES FOR, YOU KNOW, UH, RESTAURANTS AND COFFEE SHOPS AND, AND LIVE MUSIC AND ALL THIS AND, AND, YOU KNOW, LIGHTING COMING IN. I GUESS MY THOUGHT, MY THOUGHT TO THAT IS, IS JUST THAT I ACTUALLY KIND OF SEE THIS AS AN EXTRA OPPORTUNITY THAT'S BEEN BROUGHT IN. IF WE'RE HAVING TO SHIFT THAT STATION, THE PLATFORM ITSELF FURTHER NORTH TOWARDS CLOSER TO SIXTH STREET, THAT'S NOW OPEN UP EXTRA SPACE TO BUILD AN ADDITIONAL PLATFORM AS IT WERE THERE AROUND CONGRESS. AND NOW THEN KIND OF SPREAD OUT THINGS. AND NOW BASED ON WHAT YOU'RE PROPOSING HERE, IF WE DO THIS KIND OF CONGRESS SORT OF UNION STATION SORTS OR CONGRESS STATION AS IT WERE, AND WE CAN BUILD UP THAT WE WEREN'T ABLE TO MAYBE THINK ABOUT BEFORE, THAT COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO EVEN BE A REVENUE GENERATOR FOR THIS PROJECT. IF WE'RE GOING TO MAYBE POTENTIALLY LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, RENTING OUT OFFICE SPACE OR POTENTIALLY PARTNERING WITH SOMEBODY. SO I I'M JUST, MY POINT IS, IS THAT I THINK THAT THIS IS AN X, THESE ARE EXCELLENT. YOU GUYS ARE BEING VERY INNOVATIVE AND I THINK VERY THOUGHTFUL AND LOOKING AT WAY DIFFERENT WAYS OF, OF BRAINSTORMING THIS. THAT COULD BE A REAL, IF NOTHING ELSE COSTS NEUTRAL TO WHAT WE HAD HAD BEFORE, EVEN THOUGH WE DON'T REALLY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE, BUT EVEN POTENTIALLY COULD BE A, YOU KNOW, A POSITIVE BASED ON WHAT WE'RE LOOKING. OKAY. YEAH. THERE'S CERTAINLY CERTAIN ASPECTS. AND HOPEFULLY THIS, THIS WILL CONTINUE AS WE MOVE THE DESIGN PROCESS FORWARD WHERE WE'RE, WE'RE ACTUALLY RATIONALIZING AND STREAMLINING THE DESIGN. WE'VE ACTUALLY REDUCED THE NUMBER OF PLATFORMS [02:50:01] IN THIS SCHEME, FROM WHAT WE HAD BEFORE, JUST BECAUSE OF THE WAY YOU HAD TO MAKE THE TURN AND THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN LINES, ET CETERA. SO, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME, THERE ARE SOME EFFICIENCIES THAT WE'RE BUILDING INTO THIS, UM, AND WE WILL CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR THOSE OPPORTUNITIES AS WE ADVANCED THE DESIGN. I THINK THE OTHER THING TO POINT OUT AND FOR US TO THINK ABOUT IS THERE'S ALSO THE, THE, THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE TRANSIT SYSTEM TO THE IMAGE IN PEOPLE'S MINDS OF THE PUBLIC REALM, RIGHT. AND HOW DO YOU MAKE THAT AS LEGIBLE AND AS CLEAR AS POSSIBLE. AND I THINK THAT GETS BACK TO FOURTH STREET WITH THE BOOKENDS OF THE SQUARES AND ENTRANCES INTO A TRANSIT SYSTEM WITH A MAJOR HUB AT CONGRESS AVENUE, IS THAT CRYSTAL CLEAR VISUAL IDEA, RIGHT. THAT PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE TO GET. AND IN SOME WAYS THE VALUE ADD TO THE USERS OF THE TRANSIT SYSTEM, RIGHT. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO QUANTIFY THAT, BUT AS ENORMOUS. RIGHT. AND SO WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR THAT, THOSE OPPORTUNITIES IN TERMS OF THE DESIGN OF RATIONALIZING, THE IMAGE OF THE TRANSIT SYSTEM IN THE EYES OF THE PUBLIC. THANK YOU. GREAT, GREAT JOB. THIS IS, I KNOW IT'S GOING TO BE EVOLVING. IT'S GOING TO BE EVER, IT'S GOING TO BE EVER-CHANGING AND IT LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT THE, YOU KNOW, AS YOU ALL ARE LOOKING AT THE OPTIONS, YOU KNOW, IN THESE VARIOUS PIECES, AS WE GO FURTHER ALONG, AND THEN, ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THE ENTRANCE AND THE EXIT, THE TUNNEL, THE TUNNEL SIDES ON BOTH THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH SIDE, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THOSE, THOSE, THOSE OPTIONS ARE GOING TO BE EVOLVING TOO. AND, AND THE COST ASSESSMENTS. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, DO YOU INCLUDE SOUTH CONGRESS UNDERGROUND OR DO YOU PUT IT ABOVE GROUND? I KNOW AGAIN, SAME DEAL, BUT WHAT ARE THE OPPORTUNITY COSTS THERE AND WHAT'S IT GOING TO DO TO THE OVERALL SYSTEM COSTS? UH, I'LL BE CURIOUS TO SEE, DO WE END UP SEEING TO RANDY'S POINT, IS IT GOING TO BE POTENTIALLY CHEAPER, ACTUALLY PUTTING THE, KEEPING A STATION, THE SOUTH CONGRESS STATION UNDERGROUND VERSUS ABOVE GROUND. SOME OF THESE THINGS I KNOW IT'S MOVING PARTS AND WE'LL SEE IT AS WE GO ALONG, BUT I IT'S, IT'S JUST GREAT TO KNOW THAT THAT, THAT THE COMMUNITY IS ON THIS. WE'RE ALL ON THIS JOURNEY TOGETHER ON THIS, ON THIS TRAIN, GOING DOWN THIS TRACK. SO THAT'S RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, BOARD MEMBER STRAPPED ON. I KNOW KEITH, YOU HAVE A COMMENT. YEAH. SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE A NOTE BEFORE WE WRAP UP THAT, UM, MS. ZENOBIA JOSEPH, UM, UNFORTUNATELY GOT DISCONNECTED AND SHE HAD A COMMENT RELATED TO OUR DEI POLICY STATEMENT. AND, UM, I JUST WANTED TO OPEN THE FLOOR TO HER IF SHE WANTS TO MAKE THAT COMMENT NOW, KNOWING THAT WE DID DEFER IT TO AUGUST, SO SHE COULD ALSO HOLD OFF, BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE SHE HAS THAT OPPORTUNITY. SURE IS MS. MS. JOSEPH, ARE YOU ON THE LINE AND, AND ARE YOU ABLE TO TUNE IN IF SO, WE WILL LOVE TO HEAR YOUR COMMENTS. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. I APPRECIATE BEING ABLE TO COMMENT. I JUST WANT TO EXPRESS THAT MY FRUSTRATION WITH ITEM TWO REFLECTS HOW MINORITIES GET DISENFRANCHISED. AND IT IS PRETTY IRONIC THAT YOU ARE ACTUALLY TALKING ABOUT THE DIVERSITY POLICY. AND HERE YOU HAVE A BOARD LIAISON WHO TELLS ME JUST COME BACK TO OUR AUGUST, 2021 MEETING. I WANT TO REMIND YOU THAT STATE LAW HOUSE BILL 28 40 REQUIRES YOU TO ALLOW THE PUBLIC TO MAKE COMMENTS. IT SAYS QUOTE, DURING THE BODY'S CONSIDERATION OF THE ITEM, IT IS NOT UP TO STAFF TO UNILATERALLY, DECIDE TO DISMISS SOMEONE WHO IS TRYING TO PARTICIPATE. THAT'S CALLED VIEWPOINT DISCRIMINATION. AS IT RELATES SPECIFICALLY TO MY COMMENTS. I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU, IF YOU JUST THINK OF COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS AND THE FAILED PIECE OF LEGISLATION, THEN YOU MISS THE WHOLE POINT. THE POINT IS TO COMPLY WITH TITLE SIX OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964, YOUR BOARD PACKET SPECIFIES THE SECOND, WHERE AS YOU HAVE PERPETUATING RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND CIVIL RIGHTS, YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TITLE SIX OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT ANYWHERE IN THE PROPOSED POLICY. AND I WOULD ASK YOU TO RECOGNIZE THE NEED TO INCLUDE THAT LANGUAGE, BUT TO ALSO COMPLY. AND I JUST WANT TO CALL TO YOUR ATTENTION. I KNOW MADAM CHAIR, YOU DON'T KNOW ALL THAT HAPPENED BEFORE YOU WERE BOARD CHAIR, BUT MAY 22ND, 2020 MEMBERS STRAFFORD ACTUALLY CALLED EQUITY A DISTRACTION. AND THEN THE SOLUTION WAS FOR COMMISSIONER TREVELYAN AND COUNCIL MEMBER KITCHEN, TO PUT EQUITY IN THE RESOLUTION. AND I JUST WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT HIRING BLACK PEOPLE AND HIRING HISPANICS AND PUTTING THE WORDS ON PAPER DOES NOT EQUATE TO COMPLYING WITH TITLE SIX. AND WHILE YOU SIT THERE AND YOU ARE ACTUALLY HAPPY ABOUT THE CHANGES, I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT MARIA FERNANDEZ HAS IMPLICIT BIAS. MR. CLARK TOLD YOU THAT HE HAS KNOWN NURIA [02:55:01] FOR YEARS. AND I VENTURE TO SAY THAT SHE HAS NO IDEA THAT BLACK PEOPLE SIT AND WAIT 60 MINUTES FOR THE BUS ON THE NEW ROUTES, NEW ROUTE 3, 3, 9 TUSCANY, AND THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE FORMERLY HOMELESS AT COMMUNITY FIRST VILLAGE, THAT BUS 2 37 IS INTERLINE WITH THE BLACK PEOPLE AT CRESTWOOD AND THEY WAIT 60 MINUTES TOO. THEY CAN'T EVEN GET TODAY LABOR. SO PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE USING THE MINORITIES TO GET THE FEDERAL FUNDING. AND I WILL LASTLY CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO BOARD MEMBER, DR. COLETTE PIERCE BURNETTE. SHE WAS THE TREASURER FOR THE MOBILITY PACK THAT ACTUALLY HAD AN AD ON KZ. I, THAT PLAYED 250 TIMES THAT SAID THAT IN THE PAST TRANSIT PLANS HAVE BEEN OFFERED TO VOTERS THAT LEAVE OUT AUSTINITES WHO RELY ON AFFORDABLE AND EFFICIENT BUS SERVICE. THE PROJECT CONNECT TRANSIT PLAN IS DIFFERENT. THE PROOF IS IN THE PLANET EQUITY AS IN THIS ONE, AND THAT IS A LIE. IT WAS PROPAGANDA. AND I HEAR THE DEEPER, BUT I JUST WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND WE LIVE THE DISPARATE IMPACTS AND TITLE SIX, THE FEDERAL CHANCELLOR ADMINISTRATION CIRCLE OF 4, 7 0 2 0.1 B REQUIRES CAPITAL METRO TO REANALYZE THESE ROUTES AND TO HAVE EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF THE RESOURCES. I THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO MAKE MY COMMENTS. AND I WOULD ASK YOU TO RECOGNIZE THAT I REPRESENT THE TRANSIT DEPENDENT RIDERS THAT YOU NEED IN ORDER TO GET THE FEDERAL FUNDING, AND I WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT AGAINST IT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, MICHELLE. UM, SO BEFORE WE WENT ON TO, UM, TO PUBLIC'S, UH, TO MORE PUBLIC COMMENT, PETER, I WANTED TO OFFER A COUPLE OF COMMENTS BACK TO THE PRESENTATION AND TO GIVE YOU KUDOS AGAIN FOR SUCH AN EXCEPTIONAL JOB TO YOU AND THE STAFF AND WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A REALLY A GREAT, GREAT JOB. UM, THREE THINGS THAT I WANTED JUST TO POINT OUT ONE WAS THAT I SPECIFICALLY LOVE HOW ASPIRATIONAL IT IS THAT THE, THE LEGIBILITY OF OUR SYSTEM, THE CLARITY OF OUR GRID WITH A CITY OFFERS US A GREAT AMOUNT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT CLARITY. AND LIKE YOU SAID, WITH THE WAYFINDING AND THE VALUE OF ANXIETY, INDUCE MOBILITY, THERE'S A LOT THAT WE CAN GAIN FROM THAT. BUT ALSO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT REALLY RESONATED WITH ME IN THIS PARTICULAR PRE THE WAY THAT YOU GUYS PRESENTED THIS PLAN AS, AS IT RELATES TO DOWNTOWN AS EVERYONE'S NEIGHBORHOOD, IS THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT, WHERE WE ALL BELONG, THAT WITH THEIR TRAIL SYSTEMS, THAT I REALLY THINK THAT, THAT PERHAPS WE CAN ALL AGREE THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS DONE A GREAT JOB OVER THE DECADES TO BUILD OUR TRAIL SYSTEMS, TO REALLY BE AN ASSET OF MOBILITY. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I SHARED WITH THE STAFF DURING THE BRIEFINGS IS THAT IT WOULD FANTASTIC IF WE CAN SEE AN OVERLAY OF OUR STATIONS WITH OUR TRAIL SYSTEM AND THAT INTERACTION AS IT BECOMES PART OF AGAIN, MORE LAYERS OF CONNECTIVITY THROUGH OUR MODES, WHICH I REALLY LOVE SEEING HOW THE WATER, THE WATER WALLER CREEK, UH, IS REFERENCED HERE AS WELL. AND LASTLY, I LIKE TO ALSO POINT OUT THAT WHEN WE'RE ADOPTING AND WE REALLY BRING REFERENCE AND DEFERENCE TO THE DOWNTOWN VISION, AS WELL AS THE IMAGINE AUSTIN PLAN AND THE S THEY ALSO STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN IS THAT EACH OF THOSE PLANS ALREADY HAVE A LOT OF COMMUNITY INPUT THAT HAVE GONE INTO THOSE PLANS. SO I REALLY WANT TO COMMEND STAFF THAT NONE, NONE OF THESE PLANS STAND IN A VACUUM AND THAT BY US CONTINUING TO REFERENCE ALL THOSE PLANS, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE RECOGNIZE, BECAUSE THE FIRST THING THAT I NOTICED WHEN YOU MENTIONED THAT THIS PEDESTRIAN PROMENADE ON FOURTH STREET, WHAT I FIND REALLY EXCITING ABOUT THE SOMETHING THAT WAS MENTIONED IN THE IMAGINE AUSTIN PLAN IS OUR ABILITY TO HAVE THE WINNER, RIGHT? THAT, THAT IDEA OF A FESTIVAL STREET, AN ACTIVE STREET, A VERY, UH, ORGANIC LIFE LIFE, UH, UH, STREET, WHERE AGAIN, EVERYONE BELONGS. AND I CAN'T EMPHASIZE ENOUGH THAT AS WE DISCUSS WHAT DOWNTOWN MEANS FOR THE CITY, FOR OUR CITIZENS, FOR THE WORLD, I REALLY WANT TO, TO COMMEND YOU GUYS, AND TO REALLY CONTINUE ON THIS JOURNEY OF ASPIRATION OF DOING BETTER, BECAUSE WE CAN, AS WE BE, YOU KNOW, WE ALL BELONG IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD AND, UM, BOARD MEMBER ELKINS. I DO THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE PRESENTING WITH THIS, UH, IDEAS, THAT WE DON'T HAVE THE COST ANALYSIS, THAT I HOPE THAT WE CAN PUT SOME ALSO SOME VALUE OR SOME PRICE, BECAUSE IT'S THE HARDEST PARTS TO QUANTIFY, [03:00:01] HONESTLY, IS THAT, THAT HUMAN ASPECT OF QUALITY OF LIFE, BECAUSE FOR MANY TUFTS IS WE DON'T HAVE METRICS, CARBON EMISSIONS OR CARBON CHANGES IN OUR FLEET, OR HOW WE DOING THIS. I WANT US TO FIND THOSE METRICS THAT HELP US TELL THE STORY OF WHAT WE VALUE AS A COMMUNITY, BECAUSE SOME THINGS ARE NOT THERE THERE'S A PRICE STACK FOR EVERYTHING, BUT HOW DO WE PUT A PRICE STACK TO SAFETY AND PRICE STOCK, TO PEDESTRIANISM PODESTA, YOU KNOW, PRICE STACK TO WALKABILITY AND CHILDREN RIGHT. IN OUR CITIES AND EVERYONE BELONGING. SO I JUST REALLY SEE HERE REALLY, REALLY EXCITED. AND, AND THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THAT HAS GONE INTO, INTO PUTTING THIS, THIS PRESENTATIONS TOGETHER. I KNOW THIS IS PROBABLY OUR LONGEST SPORT MEETING TODAY, SO EVERYONE, UM, IF THERE'S NO MORE COMMENTS, I LIKE TO CLOSE THIS, UH, THERE, OUR MEETING MEETING, UM, ARE THERE ANY FURTHER COMMENTS FOR MY ANYONE? SO, UH, I LIKE TO CLOSE OUR MEETING NOW. THE TIME IS FIVE 20 AND OUR MEETING SENSOR ADJOURN. THANK YOU. * 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.