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[CALL TO ORDER]
SARAH FAUST, VICE CHAIR FT.BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR IS ONLINE PRESENT.
UH, BOARD MEMBER LEWIS HERE AND BOARD MEMBER DE PALMA.
[PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL]
AND WE'RE GOING TO BEGIN TONIGHT WITH PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.SO I'M GONNA TURN THAT OVER TO BOARD MEMBER LEWIS.
SO IS MY MIC WORKING? YEAH, YOU'RE DOING GREAT.
SO THE FIRST ONE UP IS, WHAT'S THE FIRST ONE UP IS KAYLA REESE.
UM, AND KAYLA, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
I AM THE, UM, APF, UH, ADVOCACY MANAGER, UM, AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE A FEW UPDATES.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, ON SATURDAY NOVEMBER 5TH, WE HAD A REALLY SUCCESSFUL, IT'S MY PARK DAY.
UM, WE HAD OVER 3,400 VOLUNTEERS TURNOUT, UM, AND DIFFERENT PROJECTS ACROSS ALL OF AUSTIN.
UM, OUR FINAL FITNESS IN THE PARK IS ON DECEMBER 10TH AT, UH, PARK SARAH GOZA AT 10:00 AM AND FITNESS IN THE PARK AND MOVIES IN THE PARK WILL RESTART IN SPRING 2023.
UM, IN ONGOING PROJECTS, WE ARE WORKING ON THE PALM PALMER LOU POCKET PARK IN DISTRICT FOUR.
WE HAVE A CONTRACTOR AND CONSTRUCTION SHOULD BE COMPLETED IN APRIL, 2023.
THE PROJECT WILL INCLUDE LOOP TRAILS, UPDATED PLAYGROUND AND PICNIC AREAS, UM, LITTLE WALNUT CREEK GREENBELT AND DISTRICT ONE, UM, IS ANOTHER PROJECT THAT WE HAVE ONGOING.
WE STARTED LOOKING AT THE DESIGN FOR A SECOND TRAIL HEAD AND TRAIL CONNECTIVITY FUNDED BY A GRANT FROM TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT WHILE WE WAIT ON A FULL SITE DEVELOPMENT PERMIT, UM, IN, UH, ONION CREEK METRO PARK IN DISTRICT TWO, WE ARE WORKING ON THE, UM, ALL ABILITIES PLAYGROUND THERE.
AND WE WERE GRANTED A $500,000 GRANT FROM THE POWELL FOUNDATION FOR THE DESIGN PHASE AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WHICH WE'RE WORKING ON NOW.
UM, THANK YOU FOR YOUR BOARD SERVICE AND DEDICATION TO AUSTIN PARKS.
OKAY, NEXT UP IS SHARON BLITHE.
AND, UH, MS. BLITHE, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
I'VE GOT A PICTURE I WANT TO SHOW Y'ALL.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
I WAS SHOCKED WHEN I WAS DRIVING THROUGH AUSTIN MEMORIAL PARK CEMETERY A COUPLE WEEKS AGO TO SEE THIS VERY LOUD SIGN.
UM, THE, THE SIGN DOESN'T MENTION THAT THIS IS CEMETERY LAND.
IT JUST MENTIONS WILDFLOWER MEADOW.
IT'S INVITING EVERYBODY TO COME IN THERE AND DO WHATEVER THEY WANNA DO WITH IT.
IT'S NOT SUITABLE FOR A CEMETERY ENVIRONMENT.
SO THANKFULLY, UH, LUCAS MASSEY AT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, I CALLED HIM AND HE WAS NOT AWARE OF, OF THIS ORANGE SIGN.
AND HE'S WORKING NOW WITH THE CEMETERY MANAGER TO GET A NEW SIGN MADE THAT'S GONNA BE GREEN IN THE BACKGROUND AND MENTION THAT THIS IS CEMETERY LAND AND WE SHOULD ALL BE RESPECTFUL OF IT, BUT I WOULD SURE HATE FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO ALL OF A SUDDEN POP UP WITHOUT ANYBODY KNOWING ABOUT IT.
SO WE NEED TO JUST HAVE MORE PUBLIC INFORMATION COMING OUT TO THE STAKEHOLDERS.
AND THEN ANOTHER ISSUE, UH, OUT THERE.
AND, UM, THE PUBLIC RESTROOMS HAVE BEEN NOT RESTORED FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF, TWO YEARS MAYBE, BUT I UNDERSTAND NOW THAT THEY'RE IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, THEY'RE GOING TO START THE RESTORATION OF THOSE.
AND THIRDLY, UH, WE HAVE A LITTLE PARK AT THE BASE OF MY NEIGHBORHOOD.
IT'S AT THE CORNER OF SPICEWOOD SPRINGS AND O LAMP PASSES TRAIL.
AND THE WEEDS GOT ABOUT THIS HIGH WHERE CARS COULDN'T SEE AROUND THE CORNER, UH, ANYBODY COMING DOWN SPICEWOOD SPRINGS TO THE O LAMP PASSES TRAIL.
[00:05:01]
I BELIEVE HIS NAME, AND HE'S SOMETHING OVER THE NORTH, NORTH AREA MOWING PEOPLE.AND HE SAID, NOW WE'VE DECIDED TO JUST MOW IT THREE TIMES A YEAR.
AND IT'S LIKE, WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? THEY WERE MOWING IT REGULARLY BEFORE HE TOOK OVER, I THINK.
SO I APPRECIATED THE PARKS DEPARTMENT WOULD KIND OF CHECK INTO THAT AND LET ME KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THAT, BECAUSE IT NEEDS TO BE MOWED MORE THAN THREE TIMES A YEAR BECAUSE IT'S A SAFETY HAZARD FOR CARS.
AND THAT'S ABOUT ALL I HAD TO SAY.
APPRECIATE THE PARKS DEPARTMENT AND WHAT THEY'VE BEEN DOING FOR OUR PARKS AND OUR CEMETERIES, AND I HOPE THAT WE CONTINUE TO HAVE GOOD COMMUNICATION AMONG EACH OTHER.
HI, MR. RAINIS, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES.
I'M THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF AUSTIN ROWING.
AND AS OTHERS HAVE SAID, I THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY.
AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU A COUPLE OF HIGHLIGHTS.
SO IN THE WORLD OF ROWING, UH, DUE TO TITLE IX, IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR JUNIOR WOMEN TO GET INTO COLLEGE, RECEIVE SIGNIFICANT FINANCIAL SCHOLARSHIPS, TO, UH, BALANCE THINGS OUT.
AND, UH, WE'RE VERY PROUD THAT TWO OF OUR YOUNG WOMEN HAVE BEEN RECRUITED BY DIVISION ONE NCAA PROGRAMS. ONE IS GOING TO UT AND THE OTHER IS GOING TO SMU.
I'M NOT GONNA CHOOSE SIDES, BUT I WILL SAY UT WOMEN HAVE BEEN THE TWO TIME NATIONAL CHAMPION FOR NCAA ROWING.
SO THAT'S REALLY PUT, UH, AUSTIN ROWING ON THE MAP IN TERMS OF, UH, OPPORTUNITIES.
AND AS A REMINDER, WE, UH, HAVE ABOUT A HUNDRED KIDS IN OUR JUNIOR PROGRAM.
WE ABSOLUTELY SCHOLARSHIP ANYONE WITH A FINANCIAL NEED, A HUNDRED PERCENT, INCLUDING TRAVEL TO REGATTAS.
FOR INSTANCE, THERE WAS JUST A REGATTA AND CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE.
IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUTH TO, YOU KNOW, SEE ANOTHER PART OF THE WORLD, SEE ANOTHER COMMUNITY, AND, AND WE PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THAT, NO QUESTION AS NEEDED.
AND, UH, RECENTLY THE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB HAD THEIR ANNUAL GALA LAW, AND PROUD TO SAY WE WERE A SILVER SPONSOR TO THE GAY LAW.
IT WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT FOR THE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB.
AND WE CONTINUE TO EXPAND PROGRAMMING WITH THEM, PARTICULARLY AS IT RELATES TO STEM EDUCATION AND ALSO OVERALL PHYSICAL FITNESS AND MENTAL WELLBEING.
AND IT WAS A REALLY COOL EVENT.
WENT TO THE RUDY MENDEZ THANKSGIVING DINNER.
WE WERE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE AND AT THE REC CENTER, AND THAT WAS GREAT TO SEE.
AND ALSO A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO DIRECTLY INTERFACE AND TALK TO THE COMMUNITY AND MAKE THEM AWARE OF ALL OF THE GREAT PROGRAMMING AVAILABLE AT THE WALLER CREEK BOATHOUSE.
AND THEN AGAIN, MY THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT CITY COUNCIL DIRECTOR MCNE, AS WE WORK OVER THE COMING DAYS TOWARDS A NEW STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT IN CITY OF AUSTIN.
YOU HAVE, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES? YES, MA'AM.
HELLO, I'M DANIELLE SEALS, AND I AM WITH A LEADERSHIP PROGRAM THAT WE WERE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO A COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECT LAST MONDAY, UM, THAT IS DUE DECEMBER 8TH.
AND OUR GROUP OF 30 PEOPLE HAVE COMMITTED TO RAISING $60,000.
50,000 WILL GO TOWARD LIFEWORKS OF AUSTIN, WHICH IS A NON-PROFIT THAT GETS, UM, TEENS, HOMELESS TEENS.
IT HELPS THEM GET HOUSED AND EDUCATED AND BACK ON THEIR FEET AND GIVE THEM DIRECTION.
IN ADDITION, OUR GROUP WOULD LIKE TO, UM, FUND A OR FIND A, UM, IT'S LOCKED ON HER PHONE, UM, A WISHING TREE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
SO THE IDEA WAS PARTS AND REC TO HAVE A WISHING TREE.
THEIR, THEIR DREAM IS IN PEACE PARK.
UM, BASICALLY WE WOULD FIND A TREE THAT WAS APPROVED BY Y'ALL, AND WE WOULD GET, UM, THE HEAD ARBORIST TO THE CITY INVOLVED AND USE SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS THAT WOULD, IT'S, UM, A CLOTH THAT YOU PUT AROUND THE BASE OR, OR THE MAIN BRANCHES AND STREAMS, AND PEOPLE CAN WRITE THEIR WISHES ON IT.
AND WHAT IT, THE PURPOSE OF IT IS TO ESTABLISH, UM, UNITY AND A VISUAL VOICE FOR WISHES IN OUR COMMUNITY.
UH, THERE WOULD BE A SMALL MONUMENT WITH A QR CODE THAT, THAT OUR COMMUNITY COULD FURTHER FUND THE, UM, LIFE WORKS OF AUSTIN AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THAT ORGANIZATION.
THERE'S ALSO, UM, DISCUSSION OF A SMALL CHILD-FRIENDLY,
[00:10:01]
UM, OH, DARN IT, WHAT'S THE WORD? A SCAVENGER HUNT.I GET STAGED, RIGHT, WITH THE SMALLEST WORDS.
SO IT'S A SCAVENGER HUNT, AND THEN IN THE PARK THAT LEADS THEM TO THE TREE, AND THEN PEOPLE POST THEIR WISHES.
AND SO OUR REQUEST TO YOU IS, UM, THE ORGANIZATION IS, WOULD LIKE PEACE PARK AND THE, TO FIND A TREE THAT YOU APPROVE OF IF SUCH AN ACTIVITY COULD OCCUR.
UM, WE HAVE TO BE COMPLETELY DONE WITH OUR PROJECT AND HAVE THE RIBBON CUTTING, UM, CEREMONY BY DECEMBER 8TH, WHICH YOU WOULD ALL BE INVITED TO.
UM, SO I, THE IDEA IS TO PITCH AND GET REVIEW APPROVAL OR, OR WHAT WOULD NEED TO BE DONE TO, TO MANIFEST SUCH A, A BEAUTIFUL SPACE.
FIRST OF ALL, UM, SHOUT OUT TO AUSTIN PARKS FOUNDATION.
WE DID HAVE A PROJECT AT NORTHWEST PARK AND HAD ABOUT ALMOST THREE DOZEN VOLUNTEERS THERE TO HELP CLEAN UP SHOAL CREEK.
SO IT WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL, UM, AND WE ALWAYS LOVE PARTICIPATING, AND IT'S MY PARK DAY.
UM, MY MAIN OBJECTION TONIGHT IS TO TALK ABOUT THE POND AT NORTHWEST PARK, WHICH MIGHT NOT SURPRISE SOME OF YOU.
UM, THE VISION PLAN THAT YOU ADOPTED, UH, AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR AND WAS PUBLISHED IN FEBRUARY, INCLUDED INSTRUCTIONS TO PART TO COMMISSION WATER QUALITY AND QUANTITY STUDIES TO DETERMINE HOW TO CONSERVE THE POND.
UM, ALL THE VISION PLAN MAJOR PROJECTS NOW UNDERWAY, THE POOL RENOVATION, THE DAM MODERNIZATION AND SEWER LINE REPLACEMENT.
UM, TOTAL WELL OVER 10 MILLION.
AND THE POND IS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THESE THINGS, BUT IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT CLEAR THAT THE POND IS A PRIORITY IN A HOLISTIC VIEW OF THESE, UH, PROJECTS.
UM, I I WANNA REMIND EVERYONE THAT A POND WAS PART OF THE ORIGINAL VISION PLAN.
WHEN THIS LAND WAS PURCHASED IN 1955, THE, THE NEWS REPORTS HAD A HAND DRAWING OF A POND IN, IN THE, THE NOTICES ABOUT THE PURCHASE OF THE LAND THERE.
SO I, I AM REALLY DEDICATED TO MAKING SURE THIS POND SURVIVES AND THRIVES.
UM, WATERSHED RE RE-ENGINEERED THE POND IN THE MID EIGHTIES AS PART OF ITS FLOOD MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, UH, FOR SHO CREEK.
UH, SINCE THEN, THE POND HAS EXPERIENCED SOME DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS, SUCH AS SILT BUILT UP DUE TO HAVING NO VEGETATIVE BUFFER.
UM, AND AS TO WATER TESTING, AS, AS YOU, UH, HAVE, UH, CALLED FOR, IT SEEMS THAT WATERSHED PROTECTION SHOULD BE ABLE, IF ASKED TO JUSTIFY TESTING FOR A POND TO WHICH THEY AFFECTED CHANGES IN THE EIGHTIES, UH, WHICH THE POND SITS IN THE MIDDLE OF A 31 ACRE DETENTION POND THAT THEY OVERSEE, AKA THE PARK ITSELF, AND WHICH IS DIRECTLY, UH, CONNECTED TO SHOAL CREEK, WHICH OF COURSE IS A VITAL PART OF WATERSHED'S PORTFOLIO.
UM, BEYOND THAT, PAR STAFF HAS CONFIRMED THAT A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF GROUNDWATER IS BEING CAPTURED AND RELEASED INTO THE POND VIA LEAKS CURRENTLY INTO THE PUMP ROOM.
OTHERS, OTHER GROUNDWATER GOING INTO THE POOL ITSELF.
THERE IS SOME TALK ABOUT TRYING TO ENGINEER SOME OF THAT GROUNDWATER TO BE RECAPTURED TO, TO BE DIRECTED TO THE POND.
AND WE FEEL IT'S REALLY CRITICAL THAT, THAT GROUNDWATER CONTINUES TO MAKE ITS WAY TO THE POND.
IT'S PARTICULARLY VITAL IN VERY DRY TIMES.
UM, I HOPE THAT THEIR ENGINEERING WORK WILL CONTINUE TO LOOK CAREFULLY AT THAT AND INCLUDE THAT.
UM, AND LASTLY, UM, WE WERE INFORMED THAT A POND MAINTENANCE CONTRACT IS INCLUDED IN THE CURRENT BUDGET.
AND WHILE WE HAVE NOT YET SEEN EVIDENCE OF ITS IMPLEMENTATION, UH, I CAN CERTAINLY ASSERT THAT ACTIVE VOLUNTEER INVOLVEMENT COULD SIGNIFICANTLY EXPAND THE IMPACT OF THAT WORK.
UM, BEYOND THAT, I DO WANNA JUST QUICKLY MENTION DAY-TO-DAY ISSUES.
WE ARE HAVING, UM, A A A 500 POUND TIRE WAS PULLED OUT OF THE POND, AND I WILL SAY THAT THERE ARE OTHER ISSUES RELATED TO SAFETY THAT ARE IN, INVOLVED IN, IN THE PARK DUMPING OF PERSONAL TRASH, UH, INCIDENTS ON ADJACENT STREET GRAFFITI AND ALCOHOL CONTAINERS THAT ARE DISCARDED THERE AMONG OTHERS.
SO, UM, WE WILL LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING OUR HEARING FROM YOUR, UM, SPECIAL WORKING GROUP.
THAT IS IT FOR CITIZEN COMMUNICATION.
I HAVE CALLED, UM, I, I HAVE ASKED SOME STUDENTS TO BE HERE TONIGHT FROM ST.
EDWARDS UNIVERSITY, AND I'M HAPPY TO SEE THAT SOME OF THEM MADE IT.
I GOT SOME PHONE CALLS THAT I COULDN'T TAKE FROM HERE, BUT I'M SORRY THAT
[00:15:01]
SOME OF THEM MIGHT BE LOST.[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
I FORGOT THE MINUTES.APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE REGULAR MEETING OF OCTOBER 24TH, 2022.
DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR CORRECTIONS ON OCTOBER MINUTES? DOES ANYBODY MOVE TO CERTIFY THE MINUTES? MOVE TO APPROVE BOARD MEMBER MORE? DO I HAVE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND.
ALL IN FAVOR? AND WE HAVE BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR ONLINE.
WE NEED TO HAVE, UM, IN ORDER PART OF OUR REGULATIONS OR THAT WE HAVE TO SEE THE FACES.
SO WE, WE NEED, UM, UH, BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS AND BOARD MEMBER FAST TO TURN THEIR CAMERAS ON FOR THE VOTE.
I KNOW BOARD MEMBER FAUS HAS A SICK CHILD AND MAY NOT BE AT THE CAMERA AT THE MOMENT, SO LET'S TAKE A VOTE AGAIN.
ALL IN FAVOR OF APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.
I HAVE BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS AND BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR ONLINE AND EVERYBODY ABSTAIN.
OH, AND WE HAVE ONE ABSTENTION ON THE DIAS.
HAVE I MISSED ANYTHING ELSE? DIG THE RULE.
NOW BACK TO WHAT I WAS SAYING.
[2. Presentation and discussion regarding potential historic preservation along Waller Creek]
INVITED TONIGHT, UM, THE FRESHMAN SEMINAR CLASS CALLED HOW YOUTH IMPACT THE AUSTIN'S FUTURE.THIS CLASS HAD BEEN STUDYING ICONIC AUSTIN SITES AND THOSE WHO CHAMPIONED AND PRESERVED THEM.
WE ALSO STUDIED WITH ALL THE OTHER FRESHMEN CLASS CLINT SMITH'S BOOK, HOW THE WORD HAS PASSED, WHICH EXPLORES HOW VARIOUS SITES AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE ILLUMINATING SOME OF THE, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE SLAVERY HISTORY.
AND THEN FOR THIS, WE ALSO WENT ON A, ON A WALKABOUT WITH DR.
JAVIER WALLACE DOWNTOWN, LOOKING AT SOME OF THE AUSTIN BLACK HISTORY SITES THAT ARE RIGHT UNDERNEATH OUR FEET.
UM, AND THEN THESE, THESE STUDENTS FOR THIS PROJECT, THEY WERE TASKED WITH, UM, DESIGNING WAYS THAT THE CITY COULD BETTER INCORPORATE THE HISTORY AND THE VIBRANT COMMUNITIES ALONG WALLER CREEK.
AND SO THEY WERE STUDYING ARTICLES FROM DR.
GORDON, WHO WE HEARD FROM EARLIER IN THE YEAR.
UM, AND THEY ALSO STUDIED SOME OF THE ARCHIVES FROM THE CARVER GENEALOGY CENTER AND THE AUSTIN HISTORY CENTER.
AND SO I HAVE SOME OF THOSE STUDENTS HERE TONIGHT.
AND I BELIEVE, UH, RICARDO, ARE YOU THE ONLY ONE FROM THE FIRST SET OF SLIDES FROM YOUR GROUP? OH YEAH.
SO, SO YOU GUYS COME ON AT FIRST.
DO YOU WANNA COME FIRST? AND I THINK THIS IS ACTUALLY THE SECOND SET OF SLIDES, BECAUSE I ONLY SEE BRETT ARE YOU, ARE THE REST OF YOUR PEOPLE COMING? OKAY.
I'LL LET THESE GUYS GO FIRST AND THEN WE'LL DO YOUR GROUP.
SO WE'RE GOING TO THE SECOND SET OF SLIDES.
I'M SORRY TO MESS UP THE ORDER HERE.
THIS IS RICARDO AND JOHN AND ROTA, AS SHE SAID.
WE'RE HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE FORGOTTEN HISTORY OR THE HISTORY THAT HASN'T BEEN TOLD FOR THIS PROJECT.
OUR GROUP, THE ANCHORS, WE DECIDED TO DO TWO PARTS.
THE FIRST PART WAS TO DO A MURAL THAT SHOWED THE HISTORY OF THE, THESE COMMUNITIES THAT LIVED IN, IN THE CREEK BEFORE THE PARK.
THE SECOND PART IS TO HAVE A PARTY REVEAL, WHICH BRINGS THE COMMUNITY TOGETHER AND GETS THE HISTORY OUT THERE.
YOU CAN TELL 'EM WHEN YOU'RE READY TO GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE IF YOU WANT TO.
UH, WE DECIDED THAT THIS WAS IMPORTANT, MOSTLY BECAUSE WE WANTED TO EDUCATE THE PEOPLE ABOUT THE PARK THAT HAS NEVER BEEN TOWED.
AS WE DID OUR RESEARCH, WE ACTUALLY CAME UP WITH A BUNCH OF PROBLEMS. ONE OF THE PROBLEM WAS NOT HAVING ENOUGH HISTORY OF THE PEOPLE THAT USED TO LIVE HERE.
UH, WE JUST WANNA DISPLAY THIS HISTORY IN A WAY WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME TO THE PARK, ENJOY THEIRSELF, AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE HISTORY.
OUR STAKEHOLDERS FOR THIS PROJECT WOULD BE THE PARK REX APARTMENT, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL, AND OUR CHOSEN ARTISTS FOR THE MURAL.
WE ALREADY HAVE OUR CHOSEN TO BE CHOSEN ARTISTS FOR THE PARTY REVEAL.
UH, WE LIKE TO INCORPORATE A QUOTE THAT SAYS, OUR ART, ART, OUR ART SHOULD BE INSPIRED IN A BROKEN MOTIONS.
ART SHOULD BE SOMETHING YOU COULD ACTUALLY FEEL BY CHRIS THE BREEZE.
OUR, OUR LOCATION FOR THE MURAL WOULD BE ALONG THE PATHWAYS OF 11TH STREET AND THE SY SQUARE THAT SHOWS HERE IN THE SLIDES.
UH, THE PICTURES WERE BY PROFESSOR ASAD, BILL
HI, I'M AZI AND I DESIGN THIS MULE.
[00:20:01]
ARE, UH, PEOP, OKAY.THESE ARE PEOPLE THAT LIKE ALL PART OF, UM, AUSTIN'S HISTORY.
IT'S, UH, REPRESENT FROM, UH, REAL PEOPLE, REAL LIFE STORIES THAT I GOT FROM DOING RESEARCH FOR IT.
UM, LIKE THE JAZZ PLAYERS ARE LIKE THE REPRESENTATION OF LIKE THE MUSIC SCENE IN WATERLOO PARK.
UM, AND THEN THE FIRST, UH, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH.
IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT IN AUSTIN'S HISTORY ASIDE TO INCLUDE IT.
I WAS GONNA INCLUDE THE DEAF, UH, DEAF AND BLIND SCHOOL OR THE, YEAH, DEAF AND BLIND SCHOOL, BUT LIKE, JUST PRETEND IT'S THERE.
UM, THEN I HAVE COWBOYS CUZ LIKE THERE WAS ONE AUSTIN AUSTINITE, IS THAT WHAT YOU CALL HIM? OKAY.
UM, THAT WAS A COWBOY AND TAUGHT OTHERS HOW TO LIKE DO RANCHING AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
SO I DECIDED TO INCLUDE HIM CATCHING A HORSE.
THEN I FOUND OUT ABOUT, UM, UH, AUSTIN, A POLICE OFFICER, UH, FIRST EVER BLACK POLICE OFFICER.
AND THAT'S WHY I HAVE LIKE THREE PEOPLE IN LIKE THE RIGHT, RIGHT HAND CORNER, WHICH THE BLACK ONE'S SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THE ONES THE POLICE AT.
THEN THE LAST ONE IS, UH, THERE WAS FAMOUS BARBER SHOP, UM, DOWN IN WATERLOO IN THE PAST, AND I'VE DECIDED TO INCLUDE IT WITH, UM, THE GUY GETTING HIS HAIRCUT.
YOU CAN'T SEE THE HAIR, BUT IMAGINE THAT THERE'S HAIR THERE.
THESE ARE THE INSPIRATION FOR THE PEOPLE.
UM, AS I SAID, THIS IS REAL PEOPLE, REAL LIFE STORIES.
AND I WANTED TO REPRESENT FOR THIS ART, AGAIN, THIS JAZZ IN THE MUSIC SCENE.
SWEET HOME BAPTIST CHURCH IN THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH SCHOOL IN THE BLIND SCHOOL OF THE DIVINE AND DEAF, UM, OUT IN AN ALBERT PHILLIPS IS THE COWBOY I WAS TALKING ABOUT EARLIER.
I'M, I'M SORRY, I'M BAD AT PRONOUNCING NAMES.
OH, ALONGSIDE, UH, THE MURAL, WE ALSO WANT TO HAVE A HISTORY SIGN SET UP THAT PEOPLE CAN COME AND, UM, KNOW ABOUT THE HISTORY THAT SAYS IN THE MEMORY OF THOSE WHO WERE FORCED TO MOVE IN THE FORGOTTEN.
THIS MIRACLE CASE IS IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE IN WATERLOO AND THE LAST STYLE OF THE RESIDENTS THAT CALLED THIS PLACE HOME.
WE ARE DOING THIS AS A CELEBRATION TO CELEBRATE THE AMAZING HISTORY OF AUSTIN.
UNFORTUNATELY, WE CANNOT BRING THE PEOPLE BACK FROM THE DEAD, BUT WE CAN RECREATE THIS IN A LIVELY MANNER.
THAT'S WHY WE CHOSE TO LIKE HAVE A MURAL BECAUSE WE CAN TAKE YOU GUYS FIRSTHAND THROUGH THE EXPERIENCE.
WE CAN TAKE YOU GUYS FIRSTHAND THROUGH HISTORY.
AND NOW, AS WE SAID EARLIER, I'M GONNA TELL YOU GUYS ABOUT THE REVEAL PARTY.
NOW JOIN US DECEMBER 1ST, WHICH IF YOU, IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR CALENDARS, THAT'S FRIDAY.
NOW THE REVEAL PARTY WILL BE ON 11TH STREET AND LIKE, LIKE EVERYTHING WILL BE VERY LIMITED.
NOW AT THIS EVENT, WE WILL HAVE FREE FOOD, WE WILL HAVE LIVE MUSIC, WE WILL HAVE ACTIVITIES FOR, IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY KIDS, BRING YOUR KIDS OUT TOO.
WE WILL HAVE ACTIVITIES AND WE WILL ALSO HAVE A CHANCE TO WIN FREE PRIZES.
WHO DOESN'T LIKE TO WIN FREE PRIZES? AND, AND LIKE, AND THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD COME TO THE PARTY.
THE FINAL REASON WHY YOU SHOULD COME TO THIS REVEAL PARTY IS BECAUSE THINK ABOUT IT LIKE THIS.
IT'S NOT JUST A PARTY, IT'S A PARTY.
HONORING AND CELEBRATING THE AMAZING HISTORY OF AUSTIN AND AUSTIN IS FILLED WITH AUSTIN IS FILLED WITH AMAZING CULTURAL HISTORY.
AND THANK YOU GUYS FOR THE OPPORTUNITY ALLOWING US TO COME AND PRESENT OUR PROJECTS.
BRETT, DO YOU WANNA DO YOURS? CUZ WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO KEEP MOVING.
CAN YOU COME IN? SO THIS WILL GO BACK TO THE FIRST SET OF SLIDES.
UH, SO MY NAME IS BRETT AND MY OTHER GROUP MEMBERS AREN'T HERE, BUT WE ARE PART OF H TWO O CARTOON.
SO OUR PURPOSE FOR THIS, FOR THIS, UH, PROJECT IS FOR, AS AUSTIN CONTINUES TO CONTINUE TO GROW, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO KEEP THE HISTORY ALIVE.
SO WE DECIDED TO MAKE A CARTOON AIMING FOR KIDS.
THE REASON BEHIND THIS IS THAT WE WANTED TO HAVE KIDS BE ABLE TO GROW UP AND
[00:25:01]
LEARN ABOUT THE HISTORY OF WATERLOO.THIS CARTOON WOULD BE LOCATED AT THE MOODY AMPHITHEATER SHOWING EVERY FRIDAY AWAY AND A WAY WHERE KIDS CAN HAVE FUN BUT ALSO LEARN AT THE SAME TIME.
THIS CARTOON WILL BE INTERACTIVE AND IT'LL ASK QUESTIONS TO GET THE KIDS INTERESTED AND INVOLVED.
THE CARTOON WILL BE SHOWN, WILL SHOW THE EVALUATION OF WATERLOO FROM BACK THEN TO NOW.
OUR CARTOON WILL BE 20 MINUTES LONG.
WE WILL HAVE IMPORTANT INFORMATION WHILE TRYING TO KEEP IT MINIMALISTIC.
DUE TO THE FACT THIS CARTOON IS AIMED FOR KIDS.
OUR INFORMATION WILL BE SIMPLE BUT INFORMATIVE.
FOR EXAMPLE, WHAT IS WATERLOO? GIVE DEFINITION, WHERE IT'S LOCATED, WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE BEFORE AND WHAT IT IS NOW.
MENTION KEY FACTS LIKE FLOODS, IMPORTANCE OF THE CREEK.
OUR CARTOON WILL BE SHOWN AT THE MOODY WATERLOO PARK ON A PROJECTOR.
SO WHAT WILL BE SHOWN AND SAID IS DURING THE FIRST FIVE MINUTES, WE WILL SHOW AN ANIMATED PICTURE OF WATERLOO AND ASK, DO YOU KNOW WHAT WATERLOO IS? THEN THEY WILL GIVE, AH, MY BAD OVERVIEW OF WHAT WAS WATERLOO LOCATED BY 15TH STREET AND RUNS THROUGH LADYBIRD LAKE.
WE WILL SHOW A MAP, A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME TOGETHER.
WATERLOO WENT THROUGH MAJOR PROBLEMS BEFORE IT WAS ALL OF THIS.
THE NEXT FIVE MINUTES WILL BE WE WILL SHOW THE HOUSES A LONG WATER OR WALLER CREEK.
WE WILL ALSO SHOW LIKE SOME PICTURES AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT HOW IN NINE OR OCTOBER OF 1870, AFTER 36, 36 HOURS OF RAIN, THE COLORADO RIVER FLOODED AGAIN, WHICH WAS LOCATED ALONG LOWER WALLER CREEK AND IT WASHED AWAY A HOUSE, WHICH WAS NOT GOOD AT ALL.
WALLER CREEK HAS GONE THROUGH MAJOR PROBLEMS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.
WALLER CREEK WASN'T JUST A CREEK, THERE WERE HOMES ALONG IT, BUT NOT ONLY THAT, IT WAS A PLACE FOR OTHER PEOPLE TO WASH THEIR CLOTHES.
NOW WE HAVE WASHER AND DRYERS TO WASH OUR CLOTHES, BUT BACK THEN A KID NAMED PAULA SUS SAID THEY USED THE CREEK TO WASH THEIR CLOTHES.
THE FINAL FIVE MINUTES IS, UH, THERE IS JUST SO MUCH HISTORY THAT WE DON'T KNOW THAT'S LIKE WHAT WE WOULD SAY IT WAS ONCE HOME TO PEOPLE, JOBS, BUILDINGS.
WATERLOO LIVING NOW IS A PLACE WHERE YOU COULD COME AND VISIT AND LOOK AT THE BEAUTIFUL NATURE WHERE YOU ARE RIGHT NOW.
HOW COOL IS THAT? WE'RE GONNA SHOW A PICTURE, PROBABLY THE PICTURE ON THE RIGHT.
I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS FUN CAR CARTOON.
AS YOU LEAVE TODAY, GO AND TELL YOUR FRIENDS SOMETHING INTERESTING YOU LEARNED TODAY.
THAT WOULD BE WHAT WE SAY AT THE END.
SO OUR AUDIENCE TARGET TARGETED ARE GONNA BE CHILDREN.
SO THE CHILDREN ARE GOING TO BE THE ONES WATCHING THE CARTOON.
UH, THE CITY COUNCIL, THE CITY COUNCIL CAN HELP IMPROVE OUR CARTOON AND HELP KEEP THE HISTORY ALIVE.
PARENTS ARE GONNA BE THE ONES THERE WITH THEIR CHILDREN SO THEY CAN WATCH IT AND LEARN STUFF TOO.
ALSO, THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS ARE GONNA BE TARGETED BECAUSE THEY WILL CONVINCE THE CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE.
UH, WHY WE CHOSE THIS? WE CHOSE THIS TOPIC BECAUSE WE THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SPREAD INFORMATION INTO KIDS THROUGH CARTOONS.
SINCE KIDS ENJOY CARTOONS, IF WE TEACH KIDS INFORMATION THROUGH A FUN INFORMAL CARTOON, THEY ARE MORE LIKELY TO REMEMBER THE INFORMATION WHEN THEY'RE OLDER.
THEIR CARTOONS WILL BE SHORT AND HOLD A LOT OF INFORMATION AND THERE WILL BE MULTIPLE EPISODES.
WE ALSO FEEL LIKE PARENTS WOULD LIKE THIS BECAUSE IT'S HELPFUL AND IT WILL BE INTERACTIVE AND EVERYONE CAN LEARN.
OKAY, AND THE FINAL SET OF SLIDES, THAT'S YOU GUYS,
UM, MY NAME IS TIFFANY WYN AND I AM SECRET FRANCO.
AND THIS IS OUR, UM, PLAN TO RESERVE, UM, WALL CREEK AND WATERLOO GREENWAY.
OKAY, SO HERE'S AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT WE ARE GOING TO BE GOING OVER TODAY.
UH, WE'RE FIRST GONNA GO OVER THE HISTORY, WHY IT'S IMPORTANT TO PRESERVE IT, OUR GOALS AND STRATEGY.
AND THEN, UM, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT OUR PLAN AND HOW WE CAN LIKE HELP PRESERVE THE HISTORY OF WATERLOO GREENWAY.
AND WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THE STAKEHOLDERS, WHO IS THE AUDIENCE, AND THEN THE OUTCOME OF WHAT IT CAN BE.
SO, UM, WALL, WALL CREEK HAS BEEN RUNNING ACROSS THE DISTRICT, NORTH
[00:30:01]
AND TO THE SOUTH, AND IT HAS INFLUENCE AND DEVELOPED OVER TIME.SO 15,000 YEARS AGO, INDIGENOUS PEOPLE WERE THERE AND GIVEN THE NAME OF WALL CREEK AFTER SLAVERY, AFRICAN AMERICANS SETTLED IN AND ESTABLISHED A COMMUNITY THERE.
AND THEN AFTER WE KNOW THAT SHO CREEK AND WALLER CREEK HAS ALSO BEEN PRONE TO FLOODING.
SO WE WANTED TO LIKE, THERE NEED TO BE IMPROVEMENT ON THE LAND AND SETTLEMENT THERE.
AND ALSO THE 1928 CITY PLAN PRESENTED AN IDEA WHERE THEY NEEDED TO RESTORE THE PLACE IN LAND NEAR WALLER CREEK, BUT ALSO REINFORCE THE JIM CROW POLICIES THERE.
ADDING MORE TO A LITTLE BIT OF A, UM, WALL CREEK'S HISTORY.
IN 1978, SYMPHONY SQUARE WAS OPENED AND IT'S MADE UP OF FOUR PARTS.
THE JEREMIAH HAMILTON HOUSE, THE NORTHERNS CLUB, WILLIAM P HARDER MEN'S HOUSE, AND THE MICHAEL DOYLE HOUSE.
IN 1975, THE WALLER CREEK DEVELOPMENT PLAN WAS PROPOSED TO IMPOSE IMPROVEMENTS ALONG THE CREEK.
AND WATERLOO GREENWAY WAS A WAY TO, TO CREATE A PARK AND TO BEAUTIFY THE AREA.
UH, WHY DO WE NEED TO PRESERVE WATERLOO SLASH WATER CREEK'S HISTORY? FIRST OF ALL, IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THE REMEMBRANCE.
UM, FUTURE GENERATIONS NEED TO BE AWARE OF THE PAST HISTORY FOR VARIOUS REASONS.
ONE BEING IT'S GOING TO SET UP THEIR FUTURE, LIKE THE ENVIRONMENT THAT THEY'RE IN AND WHERE THEY'RE GOING, THE, SORRY,
UH, IT'S, IT'S JUST IMPORTANT FOR THE NEW GENERATION TO KNOW THE PAST AND WHERE THEY'RE HEADING.
UM, THE CONNECTIONS, BEING ABLE TO CONNECT THE PAST WITH THE PRESENT IS VERY IMPORTANT.
IT HELPS YOU KNOW WHERE YOU'RE COMING FROM AS A PERSON AND IT HELPS YOU BY KNOWING HOW TO HELP IN THE FUTURE.
AND THEN DEVELOPMENT, AUSTIN IS A TOURIST CITY AND IT'S EXPANDING RAPIDLY AS WE KNOW.
AND SO IT WOULD JUST BRING SO MUCH MORE COMMUNITY AND SENSE OF TOGETHERNESS HERE IN THE CITY.
SO HERE ARE SOME EVENTS THAT HAPPENED IN THE PAST.
SO IN THE FIRST PICTURE TO THE LEFT, YOU CAN SEE THE 1915 FLASH FLOOD THAT KILLED 50 PEOPLE AND 12 PEOPLE ALONG WALLER CREEK.
IN THE MIDDLE PICTURE, YOU CAN SEE HOW THE STREETS WERE WERE CHANGING DUE TO LIKE SEGREGATION AND ALL OF THAT.
AND THEN IN THE VERY LAST PICTURE ON YOUR RIGHT, YOU'LL SEE IN 1978 THE CONSTRUCTION OF SYMPHONY SQUARE AND HOW JEREMIAH HAMILTON'S HOUSE WAS THE ONLY ORIGINAL BUILDING THAT WAS REMAINED UNTOUCHED AND STILL LIVES TO THIS DAY.
SO OUR MAIN GOAL IS TO PROMOTE INCLUSIVITY AND COMMUNITY THROUGH FOOD.
UM, ANOTHER ONE OF OUR GOAL IS TO EDUCATE THE PEOPLE ON NIGHTS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HISTORY OF THE CREEK AND WHY WATERLOO GREENWAY IS HOW IT IS TODAY.
AND THEN OUR THIRD GOAL IS TO PRESERVE AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND MEXICAN-AMERICAN RECIPES AND TRADITIONS.
AND YOU'LL SEE THAT WE ARE PLANNING TO OPEN A RESTAURANT CALLED CINA HAMILTON.
UH, HE WAS LIKE, UM, A SLAVE, BUT ALSO HE LIVED AT THE SYMPHONY SQUARE AND HE WAS ACTUALLY, UH, I THINK ONE OF THE NINE, UM, BLACK REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE.
HE WAS ALSO THE FIRST BLACK MAN THAT WAS ALLOWED TO BUY LAND IN THE AREA FROM THE PLANTATION.
[00:35:01]
OKAY, NEXT SLIDE.UM, AFTER SEEING ALL OUR GOALS, UM, WE WANTED OUR, LIKE, TARGET IS OUR MAIN GOAL, HOW TO PRESERVE THE HISTORY OF WATER CREEK AND WATERLOO GREENWAY.
AND THERE ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE NEED TO KEEP IN MIND, WHICH IS FIRST KNOW THE HISTORY OF WATERLOO CREEK, I MEAN WATERLOO GREENWAY AND WATER CREEK.
UM, BECAUSE LIKE HISTORY NEEDS TO BE KEPT AND KNOWN TO MOVE ON TO CREATE SOMETHING BETTER, WHICH IS LIKE, UM, IN THIS CLASS WE ARE LEARNING ABOUT HOW FUTURE OR YOUTH CAN HELP THE FUTURE.
AND THEN SECOND THING IS THAT WE WANT TO PLAN SOMETHING THAT BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER AND BUILD A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN ENJOY LEARNING ABOUT THE HISTORY.
SO OUR PLAN IS TO BUILD A RESTAURANT WITH THE RESOURCES, FACTS, AND, UM, HISTORY.
UM, WE WANT TO LIKE BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY BY BRINGING IN FOOD.
CAUSE FOOD BRINGS A DIVERSE GROUP OF PEOPLE TOGETHER.
AND SOME THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND IS WHAT'S GONNA BE ON OUR MENU AND HOW WILL HISTORY BE TIED TO THAT.
ON OUR MENU, WE WILL HAVE LIKE AFRICAN AMERICAN AND MEXICAN DISHES BECAUSE OF HOW THAT IS CONNECTED WITH WALLER CREEK.
AND THE NAMES OF THE ITEMS WILL BE SIGNIFICANT FIGURES WHO WERE INVOLVED IN THE HISTORY.
AND THEN FOR LASTLY, WE WANTED TO PICK A LOCATION WHERE IT IS IMPORTANT, WHICH IS SYMPHONY SQUARE, WHERE JEMIAH HAMILTON'S HOME IS ORIGINALLY.
SO SOME REQUIREMENTS WHEN OPENING UP A RESTAURANT IN AUSTIN, WE NEED CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY AND GENERAL ASSEMBLY PERMIT PERMIT TO OPERATE A FOOD ENTERPRISE AND SALES AND USE TAX PERMIT LICENSES TO SELL SLASH SERVE ALCOHOL PROVIDED THROUGH THE TEXAS ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE COMMISSION AND ZONING VERIFICATION APPROVAL.
THE INSIDE OF THE RESTAURANT, LIKE WHAT'S GONNA BE ON TABLES, WALLS, AND HOW IS THE HISTORY GONNA BE CONNECTED? WE WILL HAVE LIKE QR CODES ON THE TABLES TALKING ABOUT THE HISTORY OF WALLER CREEK.
UM, THAT QR CODE ACTUALLY WORKS, SO I'M PROUD TO MAKE THAT
UM, ANYWAYS, UM, IT WILL HAVE LIKE THE HISTORY AND BACKGROUND OF THE RECIPES BECAUSE THE RECIPES ARE REALLY IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE TRADITION CULTURE AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT.
AND THEN THE CONNECTION WITH SYMPHONY SQUARE.
I ALREADY SAID THIS A LONG TIME, BUT LIKE, OR A LOT OF TIMES JEMIAH HAMILTON HOUSE.
UM, HE LIKE LIVED IN IN 1871 AND ALSO MADE IT A GROCERY STORE.
SO I THINK BUILDING A RESTAURANT THERE IS GONNA BE LIKE, LIKE A GROCERY STORE, BUT NOT, I LIKE IT.
OKAY, SO HERE'S, HERE'S A MENU WE CAME UP WITH.
UH, AS YOU CAN SEE, IT RANGES FROM VARIOUS CUISINES LIKE FROM MEXICAN AMERICAN TO AFRICAN AMERICAN RECIPES.
AND UH, SOME OF, SOME OF OUR ITEMS ARE NAMED AFTER HISTORICAL FIGURES LIKE HAMILTON'S TASTE AND WAIT, WHO IS YOUR LOOKS? YOU SEE, WE REALLY TRIED TO CREATE A VARIETY, LIKE OUR FOODS ARE RANGING FROM GUMBO ALL THE WAY TO BA BASO, WHICH IS LIKE CLASSICS IN EACH DIFFERENT CULTURE.
SO THAT'S HOW WE TRIED TO INCLUDE EVERY COMMUNITY AS MUCH AS WE COULD.
OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND AUDIENCES THAT WE'RE TRYING TO REACH ARE DR.
JAVIER WALLACE WITH BLACK AUSTIN TOURS BECAUSE WE FEEL LIKE HE WILL BE A GREAT PERSON TO TRY TO PROMOTE THIS FOR US.
UM, HEB FOR FOOD SUPPLY, FOOD ENTHUSIASTS.
LIKE RIGHT NOW, THE FLU FOOD BLOGGING COMMUNITY IS VERY POPULAR AND WE'LL FEEL LIKE IF THEY WERE TO, IF WE, IF THEY WERE TO BE REACHED, EVERYTHING LIKE WOULD START GETTING MORE RECOGNITION.
AND LASTLY, THE AUSTIN NATIVES AND THE CITY COUNCIL.
SO NOW WE'RE ONTO OUTCOMES AND SOME OF THE OUTCOMES IS TO LIKE PROTECT
[00:40:01]
THE BUILDING CUZ 70 SQUARE IS ALSO ONE OF THE HISTORIC BUILDING THAT IS STILL STANDING.AND I THINK HAVING THAT WILL KEEP THE HISTORY ALIVE THERE AND PRESERVING THE AGRICULTURE AND RECIPES, LIKE I SAID, RECIPES, TRADITION KOSHER IS GONNA BE KNOWN AND KEPT FOR A LONG TIME.
ALSO, BUILDING RELATIONS RELATIONSHIPS ARE FORMED AND MEMORIES ARE MADE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY AND WHAT BETTER WAY TO DO IT THAN WITH FOOD IN A RESTAURANT THAT'S LIKE ONE OF THE BEST PLACES PEOPLE CAN GO AND HAVE FUN.
AND THEN CONNECTING THE PAST WITH THE PRESENT.
UM, THIS IS TIME BACK TO WHEN I WAS SAYING HOW IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE PAST SO IT CAN HAVE AN IMPACT ON THE FUTURE.
AND WE JUST WANT, WE JUST REALLY WANT THE COMMUNITY TO KNOW THEIR HISTORY BECAUSE IT NEEDS TO BE REMEMBERED CUZ AND THERE HAVE BEEN SOME STRUGGLES AND THOSE NEED TO BE COMMEMORATED AND NEVER FORGOTTEN BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY HELPED US TO BE WHERE THEY'RE AT, WHERE WE ARE AT RIGHT NOW.
SO WE ARE ONTO, UH, DISCUSSION
[3. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve 9,574 square feet of Permanent Drainage Use on parkland located at Pioneer Crossing Neighborhood Park. Construction will not exceed 720 calendar days. Total mitigation is $146,840.]
AND ACTION ITEMS. NUMBER THREE, PRESENTATION, DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION REGARDING A RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE 9,574 SQUARE FEET OF PERMANENT DRAINAGE USE ON PARKLAND.LOCATED AT PIONEER CROSSING NEIGHBORHOOD PARK CONSTRUCTION WILL NOT EXCEED 720 CALENDAR DAYS.
TOTAL MITIGATION IS $146,000, UH, $146,840.
UM, WE HAVE PRESENTERS, MATT HAROLD AND GREG MONTE, RICK AND GREG MONTEZ.
UM, AS YOU MENTIONED ALREADY CHAIR, THIS IS A ACTION ITEM FOR THE, UM, TAKING A PARKLAND FOR A DRAINAGE USE FOR THE EXTENSION OF BREAKER LANE.
THIS PROJECT IS BEING SPONSORED BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN, AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT.
UM, AS YOU MENTIONED, MATT HAROLD WITH PUBLIC WORKS PROJECT MANAGER ON THE PROJECT IS GOING TO BE DOING A SHORT PRESENTATION, BUT WE'LL ALSO BE AROUND FOR ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE AFTER THAT.
UM, SO AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT IS LOOKING TO EXTEND BREAKER LANE FROM ITS CURRENT END NEAR DAWS PLACE TO, UH, SAMSUNG BOULEVARD, AS WELL AS ALSO EXTENDING TIEBACK DRIVE, UM, TO ENTER A SECT WITH BREAKER LANE.
UM, AND ADJACENT TO THE SAMSUNG BREAKER, LANE CORNER IS PIONEER CROSSING, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD PARK.
UM, THE EXTENSION OF BREAKER LANE WILL ADD SIGNIFICANT CONNECTIVITY TO PIONEER CROSSING EAST AND WEST'S NEIGHBORHOODS, AS WELL AS, UH, SIDEWALK AND BIKE LANE CONNECTIVITY FOR SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOLS TO, UH, PIONEER CROSSING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
AND WE'RE REQUESTING, UH, PERMANENT CHANGE OF USE OF PARKLAND FOR DRAINAGE PURPOSES TO ADD, UH, DRAINAGE DITCHES ALONG, UH, TWO SMALL PORTIONS OF THE EXISTING, UM, UH, PARKLAND, UH, ALONG THE EDGES OF THE ROAD.
UM, IT'S CURRENTLY UNDEVELOPED PARKLAND, UH, IT DRAINS TO THE WEST, AND SO WHEN WE PUT IN TIEBACK DRIVE, UM, WE WOULD BE PUTTING IN A CULVERT ALL WITHIN OUR RIGHT OF WAY, UH, BUT WOULD BE GRADING TOWARDS THAT, UH, TOWARDS THAT CULVERT TO MOVE WATER FROM THE PARK, LAND OFF THE PARK LAND, UM, AND INTO OUR STORM WATER FACILITIES.
UH, THIS WOULD KEEP, UH, PARKLAND FROM FLOODING, UM, FROM ITS OWN SURFACE FLOWS.
UM, SO THAT WOULD BE THE, THE TWO YELLOW AREAS REPRESENT THE, THE DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS.
IT WOULD PREDOMINANTLY BE GRADING.
UM, IT WOULDN'T BE ANY CONCRETE CULVERT OR CONCRETE DITCHES.
IT WOULD JUST BE GRADING, UH, TOWARDS STORM WATER FACILITIES THAT ARE WITHIN OUR OWN RIGHT OF WAY.
AND THEN WHILE WE ARE PROPOSING CURRENTLY, UH, MITIGATION FEES, WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF, UH, ACQUIRING RIGHT OF WAY, UH, FROM, UH, TWO PARCELS THAT WON'T, UH, WILL BE PART OF OUR TEMPORARY USE IN CONSTRUCTION AREA, BUT WON'T BE PERMANENTLY PART OF THE ROAD.
AND THOSE ARE SHOWN IN THE ORANGE HATCH THAT, UH, UPON COMPLETION OF THE ROAD AND REMOVAL OF OUR CONSTRUCTION FACILITIES, UH, WOULD BE DEDICATED BACK TO PAR, UM, ADDING THREE QUARTERS OF AN ACRE, UH, TO THE, THE PARK.
[00:45:01]
WE WOULD BE PROPOSING, UH, THE 9,500 SQUARE FEET OF PERMANENT USE DRAINAGE ACHIEVEMENTS, UH, WHICH, UH, WAS CALCULATED OUT AT THE 146,000, UH, ALONG WITHIN THE PROCESSING FEE OF, OF 4,000, UH, FOR $150,840 MITIGATION.UH, AND THEN ONCE WE COMPLETE THE LAND TRANSACTION AND WE, THE CITY ACTUALLY OWNS, UM, THE RIGHT OF WAY THAT WE WOULD BE DEDICATING, WE WOULD BE THEN CLEARED TO DEDICATE THAT 32,000, UH, SQUARE FEET, UH, OF PROPERTY, UM, TO PAR AND THE, UH, MITIGATION FEE WOULD BE RETURNED TO ATD.
UM, RIGHT NOW WE'RE ANTICIPATING IT NOT TO EXCEED 720 DAYS FOR CONSTRUCTION.
WE ARE, UH, IN OUR SECOND ROUND OF A HUNDRED PERCENT DESIGN, COMMENT REVIEW.
SO WE EXPECT TO BE ADVERTISING, UH, IN PROBABLY MAY OF 2023, WHICH WOULD PUT CONSTRUCTION STARTING IN THE FALL OF 2023 AND GOING INTO THE FALL OF 2025.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? ANYBODY ONLINE? ANY QUESTIONS? I HAVE A QUICK QUESTION.
BOARD MEMBER LEWIS, IF, IF WE, UM, DIDN'T, IF THIS WASN'T UNDERGONE, WHAT WOULD, WHAT WOULD BE THE CONSEQUENCES OF THAT? UM, SO CURRENTLY THE, ANY RAINWATER THAT'S FALLING ON THAT PROPERTY, UM, GOES ACROSS OR, OR MOVES TO THE WEST CROSSING WHERE WE'RE GONNA PUT TYVEK ROAD.
UM, AND SO HOW STORM WATER WOULD JUST BUILD UP ON THE PARK PROPERTY, UM, THIS, UH, I MEAN, IT WOULD EVENTUALLY FIND ITS WAY TO THE CULVERT THAT WE'RE PUTTING IN.
UM, BUT, UH, THIS WOULD JUST SPEED UP DRY IN THAT, UH, WESTERN EDGE OF THE PARK.
UM, UM, AND SIMILARLY, IT SLIGHTLY SLOPES TOWARDS THE NORTH THERE, UM, AT BREAKER LANE, IT, IT, IT JUST SPEEDS UP.
THE, THE, THE, UM, WOULD BE SPEED UP THE DRAWING AND DRAINAGE AND IT IS, IT'S JUST GONNA BE, UH, GRADED, UM, AND, AND RE-VEGETATED AS GRASSLAND.
UM, AND THE POINT OF THE PERMANENT DRAIN EASEMENT WOULD BE THAT, UH, AS THE, AS PAR DEVELOPS A PLAN FOR THE PARK, UM, IT WOULD JUST STIPULATE THAT EITHER, UM, NOTHING WOULD BE BUILT THERE OR THAT THE DRAINAGE REQUIREMENT WOULD BE CONSIDERED IN WHATEVER GOT BUILT THERE.
UM, TIM, EXCUSE ME JUST A MINUTE, TIM.
THOSE ARE, THEY JUST WERE LATE, BUT THEY WERE PART OF THE GROUP.
DID JAKE GET THERE? OKAY, THANKS.
NO, THANK YOU THAT, THAT WAS MY, UH, QUESTION.
ARE THERE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? WOULD ANYBODY LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION? I CAN MAKE A MOTION.
UM, I, UM, MOVE THAT, UH, THE PARKS BOARD RECOMMEND TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE 9,574 SQUARE FEET OF PERMANENT DRAINAGE USE ON PARKLAND, LOCATED AT PIONEER CROSSING NEIGHBORHOOD PARK.
UM, ALL IN FAVOR, UM, BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS, ARE YOU AVAILABLE? ARE YOU IN FAVOR? OKAY, GREAT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR PRESENTATION.
[4. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve The Trail Conservancy’s Annual Programming Plan for the Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail at Townlake Metropolitan Park.]
ITEM NUMBER FOUR UNDER DISCUSSION AND ACTION PRESENTATION.DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION REGARDING A RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY'S ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR THE ANNE AND ROY BUTLER HIKE AND BIKE TRAIL AT TOWN LAKE METROPOLITAN PARK.
AND, SORRY, UM, WE HAVE HERE CHRISTINE CHUL, PROGRAM MANAGER FOR PARKS AND REC, AND HEIDI ANDERSON, CEO OF THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
I'M THE PROGRAM MANAGER AND I SERVE AS A MANAGER OF THE COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAM AND A LIAISON TO OUR NON-PROFIT PARTNERS OF VARYING CONFIGURATIONS.
UH, JOINING ME IS HEIDI ANDERSON, THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER FOR THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
AND TODAY WE'LL BE PRESENTING TTCS FIRST FULL 12 MONTH ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR 2023 AND REQUESTING PAR MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO MAYOR COUNCIL IN SUPPORT OF THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY'S 2023 ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR PORTIONS OF TOWN LAKE METRO PARK.
[00:50:01]
JUST A QUICK OVERVIEW.UH, MARCH, 2020, COUNCIL DIRECTED CITY STAFF TO WORK WITH NONPROFIT PARTNERS TO CREATE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENTS THAT BENEFIT THE COMMUNITY AND OUTLINE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES BETWEEN PARTNERS AND PAR.
AT THIS POINT, PAR DEVELOPED THE PARTNERSHIP CONFIGURATIONS AND SUBSEQUENT ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES FOR EACH OF THE PARTNERSHIP CONFIGURATIONS.
PARTNERSHIP A INCLUDES PROGRAMMING, OPERATIONS, MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES AT A DETERMINED SITE.
UM, OCTOBER 21ST, COUNCIL AUTHORIZED THE NEGOTIATION OF THE PARK OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT, AN INTERIM PROGRAMMING PLAN WITH TTC AND REQUESTED THE PROGRAMMING PLAN BE PROVIDED TO COUNCIL FOR REVIEW AND DIRECTION FOR THE FIRST TWO YEARS.
THE PARK OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT WAS EXECUTED ON JUNE 10TH, 2020, 22, AND THE PROGRAMMING PLAN, UH, APPROVED, COVERED JUNE THROUGH THE END OF 2022.
SO I'M GONNA GIVE A QUICK OVERVIEW OF THE POMA TERMS AND PARTNERSHIP.
A ALIGNMENT AS IT PERTAINS TO PROGRAMMING PLAN, UH, PER THE POMA, TTC WILL NEVER CLOSE THE BUTLER TRAIL.
PRE-IDENTIFY IDENTIFIED PROGRAMMING SITES AND NUMBER OF ACTIVATIONS PER CAPACITY ARE IDENTIFIED IN THE PROGRAMMING PLAN PER THE NO MORE THAN 10 MINIMALLY OPEN EVENTS ARE PERMITTED PER YEAR.
THE ANNUAL PROGRAMING PLAN SH SHALL BE REQUIRED TO BE APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THE INITIAL TWO YEARS.
AND THE ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN MUST BE SUBMITTED TO PAR FOR THE DIRECTOR'S APPROVAL AT LEAST 90 DAYS PRIOR TO THE BEGINNING OF EACH CALENDAR YEAR.
TTC MAY PROPOSE NO MORE THAN FOUR EVENTS WITH AN EXPECTED ATTENDANCE OF OVER A THOUSAND PER DAY ANNUALLY.
CONSISTENT WITH THE PARTNERSHIP A TERMS ALL GROSS REVENUE GENERATED AT THE SITE MUST BE BE DEPOSITED INTO A PARK OPERATIONS FUND AND USED TO PAY FOR PARK OPERATING EXPENSES.
THE CURRENT PROPOSED ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN PROVIDED IN YOUR BACKUP, UM, TTC IS PROPOSING TWO MINIMALLY OPENED EVENTS, ONE MORE THAN IN 2022.
MINIMALLY OPEN IS A DESIGNATED AREA OPENED TO TICKETED PATRONS.
DEAF RECOGNITIONS OF DESIGNATIONS CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE SIX OF THE BACKUP.
THESE TWO EVENTS WILL BE CONSIDERED SPECIAL EVENTS WITH A THOUSAND OR MORE PEOPLE EXPECTED TO BE IN AT ATTENDANCE.
TWO LESS THAN IS PERMITTED PER THE DIPLOMA.
HEIDI WILL GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRAMS. THANK YOU.
UH, I'M HEIDI ANDERSON, CEO OF THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
THANK YOU FOR HAVING US TONIGHT.
IT'S REALLY FUN TO BE BACK HERE WITH OUR NEW NAME AND OUR NEW BRAND.
WE'VE CHANGED IT TO THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY SINCE WE SIGNED THE AGREEMENT IN JUNE, SO, UM, IT WAS A BIG MOMENT FOR US.
UM, OKAY, SO, UH, LET ME SHARE A FEW HIGHLIGHTS WITH YOU OF THE PROGRAMMING PLAN ITSELF.
UM, I THINK I SHOULD HAVE MAYBE CAUGHT THIS EARLIER.
I THINK WE ONLY HAVE ONE MINIMALLY OPENED, WHICH IS THE MOONLIGHT MARGARITA RUN.
UM, AND I'LL GET TO THAT IN A MINUTE, UH, WHICH IS GONNA BE 20 YEARS OLD.
AND THEN, THEN THE OTHER ONE, WHICH IS OUR NEW JUBILEE, IS PROBABLY JUST GONNA BE A PARTIALLY OPEN, NOT NOT THE SAME LEVEL OF RESTRICTION LIKELY.
UM, SO THE REGULAR ANNUAL PROGRAMMING THAT WE HAVE PLANNED, WHICH IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE COMMUNITY, IS OUR MUSIC ON THE TRAIL PROGRAM.
WE HAVE ABOUT 62 OF THOSE THIS YEAR.
ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS ARE ANCHORED IN OUR VALUE SYSTEM TO KEEP THE TRAIL A VERY NATURAL SANCTUARY AND IN OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION, AND BASED ON THE REQUESTS, UH, MADE OF THE PARKS DEPARTMENT TO US AND ALL PARTNERS REALLY TO PROGRAM THE PARKLAND TO, UH, ACTIVATE IT FOR MANY REASONS, WHICH I KNOW YOU'RE ALL FAMILIAR WITH.
SO, MUSIC ON THE TRAIL HAS BEEN A HUGE SUCCESS AND, UH, OFFERED US A A LOT OF GREAT EXPOSURE TO A DIVERSE POOL OF, OF, UH, DIFFERENT PEOPLE WHO MAYBE HAVEN'T USED THE TRAIL IN THE PAST.
OUR FLOW AND THRIVE SERIES IS OUR FITNESS SERIES.
SO WE HAVE ABOUT 12 OF THOSE A YEAR RIGHT NOW, JUST ABOUT ONE A MONTH.
UM, OUR SCAVENGER HUNT IS ONGOING.
WE HAD OVER 500 ACTIVE PARTICIPANTS IN THAT IN OUR FIRST SCAVENGER HUNT, AND THAT WAS ALL NATURE BASED A TREE PROGRAM.
THIS TIME IT'S GONNA BE HISTORICAL SITES ALONG THE TRAIL AND SOME OF THAT KIND OF INTERPRETATION, UH, EDUCATIONAL PIECE.
OUR KIDS ADOPT A GARDEN WILL BE HELD IN THE SUMMER.
WE HAVE IN UP TO ABOUT 20 KIDS WHO PARTICIPATE IN THAT OVER NEAR MENDEZ AND THE CAMACHO COMMUNITY CENTERS.
WE'VE STARTED A NEW PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CENTRAL LIBRARY AND WE'LL HAVE THIS YEAR IN THE PROGRAMMING PLAN,
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PROBABLY ABOUT FOUR PARTNERSHIPS WITH THEM BASED ON, AS AN EXAMPLE, BLACK HISTORY MONTH.WE'RE PARTNERING WITH, UH, THE LIBRARY WITH A BLACK AUTHOR AND GOING TO DO KIND OF AN ACTIVE STORY TIME EXPERIENCE ON THE TRAIL, UM, EARTH DAY CLEANUP AND FESTIVAL.
THIS IS WHERE OUR NEW, UH, EARTH DAY JUBILEE IS GONNA COME INTO PLAY.
IT'S MOSTLY GONNA BE OPEN AND FREE TO THE PUBLIC WITH CHILDREN'S ACTIVITIES AND MORE MUSIC ON THE TRAIL AND SEED BALL MAKING AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
ROOTS AND WINGS FESTIVAL PARTNER, UH, WE'VE CONTINUED TO DO THAT.
AND THEN HOLIDAYS ON THE TRAIL IS SOMETHING WE ARE EXPANDING.
WE HAD SANTA ON THE TRAIL SATURDAY AND WE WENT TO TWO LOCATIONS, A WEST SIDE AND AN EAST SIDE WITH A BILINGUAL SANTA AND HAD OVER A HUNDRED FAMILIES JOIN US AT ONE OF THOSE, BETWEEN THOSE TWO SITES.
SO IT WAS, IT WAS VERY EXCITING AND SUCCESSFUL.
UM, SO HERE IT DOES SAY TWO MINIMALLY OPENED, BUT WE REALLY ANTICIPATE THE EARTH DAY JUBILEE, WHICH WILL BE THE NEW EVENT THAT WE BRING TO THE TRAIL ON EARTH DAY, UH, NEXT APRIL TO BE LIMITED ON THE FENCING AND THE, THE TICKETED AREA.
THE BULK, THE MAJORITY OF THAT EVENT IS GOING TO BE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, BUT THE MA'S MOONLIGHT MARGARITA RUN IN JUNE, AGAIN ENTERING ITS 20TH YEAR.
UH, WE'LL BE AT SAND BEACH PARK AGAIN AND THAT WILL BE A MINIMALLY OPENED AGAIN EVENT, UH, AGAIN, WE'LL NEVER CLOSE THE TRAIL.
ALWAYS IMPORTANT AND IMPORTANT TO US TOO.
AND BY FAR MOST OF OUR EVENTS ARE JUST COMPLETELY FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
ARTS AND CULTURE ON THE TRAIL.
SO WE ARE ABOUT TO FINISH THIS PLAN.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS NOW FOR REALLY ALMOST TWO YEARS WITH VERY, VERY, UM, DETAILED, UH, EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO SHOW US AND, AND HELP US UNDERSTAND WHAT THE COMMUNITY WANTS TO BE SEEING ON THE TRAIL, HOW THEY WANT THE SPACE ACTIVATED.
YOU'LL SEE MORE OF THE INFORMATION THAT WE RECEIVE BACK ON THIS PROGRAM IN THE EARLY MONTHS OF NEXT YEAR.
BUT IF THIS IS NOT JUST A PUBLIC ART PLAN FOR THE TRAIL, IT'S CULTURAL PROGRAMMING AS WELL.
SO THE GOAL OF THIS PROGRAM, THE ARTS AND CULTURE PROGRAM FOR US, IS REALLY TO EXPOSE THE CURRENT TRAIL USERS TO NEW EXPERIENCES, HELP THEM ED, EDUCATE THEM AND HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT PART OF OUR CITY THEY MIGHT BE RUNNING PAST, UH, SOME HISTORICAL, UH, EDUCATION HAPPENING THERE, BUT ALSO ENTICE NEW PEOPLE WHO DON'T COME TO THIS PARK TO MAYBE COME AND EXPERIENCE SOMETHING BECAUSE IT WAS ENTICING TO THEM.
AND SO WE'LL BE BRINGING, AND NEXT, THE NEXT PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR WHEN WE COME NEXT FALL.
HOPEFULLY SOME ADDITIONAL, UM, EXPERIENCES FOR PARK USERS THAT COME OUT OF THIS PLAN HERE.
UH, WE HAVE TIPTOED INTO THIS SPACE A LITTLE BIT WITH OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE WILDFIRE CENTER, BRINGING INDIA EXHIBIT TO THE TRAIL.
THIS IS WHAT YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE.
IT'S BEEN VERY POPULAR ALREADY AND WILL BE, UH, THERE AND THROUGH Q1 OF NEXT YEAR.
VOLUNTEERING ON THE TRAIL IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST PIECES OF OUR COMMUNITY PROGRAMS. UM, WE CAN'T REALLY BE SUCCESSFUL AS AN ORGANIZATION WITHOUT THIS LEVEL OF VOLUNTEERING.
AND, UH, MANY OF YOU HAVE HEARD ME SAY THIS BEFORE.
I'VE BEEN IN THIS POSITION NOW FOR FIVE AND A HALF YEARS.
WHEN I STARTED, WE HAD FOUR VOLUNTEER EVENTS A YEAR, AND NOW WE HAVE BETWEEN A HUNDRED AND 150 A YEAR, UH, DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH THE PUBLIC RESPONDS TO US.
SO WE ARE ABLE TO BE VERY EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT WITH OUR DONATIONS AND OUR CHARITABLE GIFTS BY LEVERAGING THOSE DOLLARS WITH VOLUNTEER HOURS.
AND WE'VE REALLY FOUND THAT IT'S THE COMMUNITY THAT IS, IS HUNGRY TO COME OUT AND SUPPORT THIS PARK IN THAT WAY.
AND SO WE, WE HAVE AN AVERAGE OF ABOUT THREE VOLUNTEER EVENTS NOW A WEEK.
UM, PLANTING TREES, REMOVING INVASIVES, MULCHING, UM, ALL KINDS OF, UM, ALL KINDS OF DIFFERENT TRASH PICKUP.
UM, BEEN A BIG PART OF, OF OUR GROWTH.
UM, THIS IS, UH, A BIG PIECE, AGAIN, KIND OF ANCHORING ALL OF THIS IN OUR VALUE SYSTEM OF WHAT IS GONNA BE THE BENEFIT TO THE COMMUNITY, UH, WHAT DO THEY WANT? AND WE MAKE A REAL EFFORT TO LISTEN TO THE COMMUNITY.
UH, IF SOMETHING, IF WE TRY SOMETHING AND IT'S NOT SUCCESSFUL, THEN WE UNDERSTAND THAT AND WE'RE HAPPY TO MOVE ON.
WE JUST TRY SOME IDEAS AND MAYBE THROW 'EM AT THE WALL AND SEE WHAT STICKS.
SO THROUGH THAT ARTS AND CULTURE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN, WE'RE REALLY HAVING THIS DEEP DIVE OPPORTUNITY
[01:00:01]
TO LISTEN AND, AND RESPOND THAT WAY.BUT WE DO SURVEYS AND A LOT OF FOLLOW UP, UM, AT OUR DIFFERENT PROGRAMS AND COMMUNITY EVENTS TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DOING WHAT PEOPLE ARE, ARE MOSTLY INTERESTED IN US DOING.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE SANTA ON THE TRAIL WAS HUGELY SUCCESSFUL ON SATURDAY OVER AT HOLLY AND NOT TERRIBLY SUCCESSFUL, OR NOT NEARLY AS SUCCESSFUL AT AUDITORIUM SHORES.
AND SO WE NEED TO PIVOT THERE, RIGHT? BUT WE KNOW THAT THE HOLLY COMMUNITY AND THE EAST SIDE COMMUNITY JUST REALLY ENJOYED THAT EXPERIENCE.
SO, UM, WE TRY, UH, AND LISTEN AND RESPOND ACCORDINGLY BECAUSE IT IS IN OUR VALUE SYSTEM TO THAT WE ARE HERE TO SERVE AND, AND GIVE THE COMMUNITY WHAT IT IS THEY WANT IN THIS SPACE.
SO WITH OUR FREE, FREE MUSIC, FITNESS, EDUCATIONAL, FAMILY FRIENDLY PROGRAMMING, OUR PARTNERSHIPS, UM, AND, AND OUR COMMITMENT TO BILINGUAL TRANSLATIONS, UM, AND KEEPING THAT DEI FOCUS, ONE OF THE BIG PROJECTS YOU'LL SEE US, UH, COMPLETING NEXT YEAR IS, IS A BIG TREE PLANTING PROJECT AT THE NEW HOLLY SHORES TRAIL TO BRING SHADE EQUITY TO THAT SIDE OF, OF THE COMMUNITY AS WELL.
AND WE'LL BE DOING THAT, UH, WITH UH, VOLUNTEER SUPPORT.
SO THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT TODAY.
UM, IN CONCLUSION, WE'RE REQUESTING A RECOMMENDATION TO MAYOR AND COUNCIL IN SUPPORT OF THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY'S 2023 ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR PORTIONS OF TOWN LAKE METRO PARK.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? SARAH, DID YOU HAVE ONE? OKAY.
UM, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
THERE'S A WIDE VARIETY OF EVENTS OBVIOUSLY THAT ARE PROGRAMMED BY THE CHILD CONSERVANCY PLAN.
UM, ON THE PLAN, I HAD ASKED A, WELL, UH, THE PARKS BOARD MEMBERS KNOWS THIS, BUT NOT EVERYBODY ELSE.
I HAD ASKED A QUESTION ABOUT THIS, UM, IN ADVANCE.
AND SO THE PLAN DOCUMENT, THE WAY IT'S SET UP, IT GIVES US LOCATIONS AND THEN IT GIVES YOU, UM, A MINIMUM NUMBER OF EVENTS THAT WOULD TAKE PLACE AT THAT LOCATION.
SO IT'LL SAY, YOU KNOW, EIGHT PLUS SIX PLUS AND THEN IT ALSO TELLS YOU IF THERE WOULD BE ANY LIKE MINIMALLY OPEN AND, YOU KNOW, THESE DESIGNATIONS.
SO I JUST WANTED TO POINT OUT THAT I FEEL LIKE FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE OF THE PARK SCORE, THAT PART OF THE REVIEW OF THE PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR ANYBODY THAT WE HAVE A PARTNERSHIP WITH IS LIKE ALL THE THINGS YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, WHAT IS THE TYPE OF PROGRAMMING? WHAT IS THE CONTENT, YOU KNOW, IS IT FIT WITH EVERYBODY'S GOALS AND VALUES? BUT ALSO I WOULD LIKE FOR THAT NUMBER OF EVENTS PER LOCATION TO HAVE A MAXIMUM NUMBER SO THAT IT'S NOT EIGHT OR MORE, BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE EIGHT TO 25 EVENTS AT THIS LOCATION, EIGHT TO 108 TO 150.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE UPPER RANGE IS.
UM, AND SO I HAD EMAILED THAT QUESTION IN REGARD TO THIS PROGRAMMING PLAN AND THE RESPONSE I GOT WAS THAT, UM, THE, THE, UM, THE CONSERVANCY OR WHOEVER IS THE PARTNER IN THIS CASE, THE CHILD CONSERVANCY IS NOT REQUIRED TO TELL US THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ACTIVATIONS, EVENTS, WHATEVER YOUR WORD IS, UM, PER LOCATION.
THAT, THAT, THAT'S NOT A REQUIREMENT.
SO I WANTED TO POINT OUT THAT I ASKED THIS QUESTION, THIS EXACT SAME QUESTION WHEN WE DID THE PEASE PART PROGRAMMING PLAN BECAUSE IT WAS PRESENTED THE SAME WAY IT WAS PRESENTED WITH A MINIMUM NUMBER OF EVENTS AND THEN A PLUS ALSO WHEN WE LOOKED AT A, THE 2022, AND I KNOW IT WAS ONLY HALF A YEAR, BUT WHEN WE DID THE CHILD CONSERVANCY THEN TRAIL FOUNDATION, IT WAS THE SAME THING.
I ASKED THE SAME QUESTION, NOW WE'RE HERE, YOU KNOW, WITH THIS NEW VERSION.
SO IF, UM, YOU KNOW, THE CONSERVANCIES ARE NOT REQUIRED TO GIVE THAT INFORMATION, UM, I THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO THE PARKS BOARD IF THEY WOULD JUST DO IT.
BUT I THINK THE OTHER WAY, THE THING WE COULD TALK ABOUT IS, UM, GOING BACK AND LOOKING AT THE PARTNERSHIP A LEVEL GUIDELINES THAT WERE ADOPTED BY CITY.
I BELIEVE THEY'RE ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL.
I KNOW THE ORDINANCE WAS ADOPTED BY CITY COUNCIL AND THEN I DON'T KNOW IF THE GUIDELINES, BUT ANYWAYS, MAYBE WE NEED TO LOOK AT THOSE GUIDELINES AND MAKE A MODIFICATION THAT SAYS, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GONNA GIVE AN ESTIMATED MAXIMUM NUMBER OF EVENTS.
CUZ IT'S REALLY HARD FOR ME TO IMAGINE.
I MEAN, I THINK THAT MUST HAVE BEEN AN OVERSIGHT.
UM, CUZ I FEEL LIKE THAT'S LIKE A REALLY KEY COMPONENT OF THE WHOLE POINT OF THIS IS THAT WE'RE GLAD YOU'RE DOING ALL THESE INTERESTING EVENTS.
IT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME GREAT STUFF IN THERE, BUT WE NEED TO SORT
[01:05:01]
OF BE ABLE TO WEIGH AND KEEP AN EYE ON WHAT IS GOING ON BECAUSE THERE'S SOME POINT AT WHICH IT'S NOT SUSTAINABLE AND NOT HEALTHY FOR THE PARK AND, YOU KNOW, PREVENTING SOME OTHER NON-EVENT USES.SO, UM, I JUST, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT REALLY A QUESTION, IT'S JUST A COMMENT.
AND I DID WANNA, YOU KNOW, POINT OUT HOPEFULLY TO THE PARKS DEPARTMENT THAT I'VE ASKED THIS ON EVERY ONE OF THESE WE'VE REVIEWED AND, YOU KNOW, JUST KIND OF GOTTEN BLOWN OFF.
OH, IT'S NOT REQUIRED, BUT I'D LIKE TO SEE IT IF THERE'S, I'D LIKE TO KNOW BASICALLY HOW WE COULD ADJUST THE GUIDELINES SO THAT THEY DO STATE THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF EVENTS PER LOCATION.
BOARD MEMBER LEWIS, I JUST WANNA, IS MY MIC ON? YES.
SO FIRST OF ALL, I, I, UM, REALLY AM GRATEFUL FOR ALL THAT THE TRAIL FOUNDATION, YOU, YOUR WORK, HEIDI, YOU'VE DONE A GREAT JOB AND I REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT YOU, UM, HAVE DONE.
I DID KINDA WANNA PIGGYBACK ONTO WHAT VICE TIER F SAID, AND THAT IS, AND I KNOW YOU'RE, YOU, YOU DID SAY YOU'RE INCLUDING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, BUT I KNOW THERE'S ALSO A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT GO OUT TO THAT TRAIL AND THEY WANNA SIT THERE AND, AND JUST WALK THE TRAIL AND CHAT WITH THEIR FRIEND, OR THEY WANNA GET IN THERE, YOU KNOW, FOUR MILES, FIVE MILES AND THEY'RE JUST FOCUSED ON THAT AND THEY REALLY MAY NOT REALLY APPRECIATE THE ENTERTAINMENT AND DISTRACTIONS.
AND I THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO, UM, TO RECOGNIZE THAT.
AND, AND YOU'VE GOT LOTS OF THINGS GOING ON.
I AND I THINK THAT WE DON'T WANNA HAVE CONSTANT
SO I THINK IT'S, UM, IT IS IMPORTANT TO KIND OF LIMIT HOW MANY OF THOSE THINGS HAVE, AND YOU PROBABLY HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT THAT, BUT I, I DO THINK THAT IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT AS WELL.
WE, WE DO, WE ARE VERY COMMITTED TO KEEPING THE SPACE A NATURAL SANCTUARY.
SO IT, IT PROBABLY DOES LOOK LIKE WE HAVE A LOT GOING ON.
WE CERTAINLY FEEL LIKE WE HAVE A LOT GOING ON, BUT MUSIC ON THE TRAIL FOR AN EXAMPLE IS ONE HOUR ON SATURDAY MORNING, RIGHT? SO THESE AREN'T NECESSARILY JUST REALLY LONG EXTENDED, UH, UH, GATHERINGS.
PEOPLE AREN'T STOPPING AT THE TRAIL.
THE, THE MUSIC ON THE TRAIL WITH THE, YOU KNOW, 60 ISH EVENTS OR PROGRAMS A YEAR IS ONE OF THE MOST HIGHLY, HIGHLY, UH, APPRECIATED PROGRAMS THAT WE BROUGHT.
PEOPLE HAVE JUST ADORED IT, REALLY.
AND SO WE ARE RESPONDING TO THE FEEDBACK THAT WE, WE GET.
AND IF SOMETHING, LIKE I SAID, IF SOMETHING'S NOT WORKING, WE WON'T DO IT.
BUT WE ARE DEFINITELY VERY COGNIZANT AS WE STEWARD THIS SPACE, TAKING IT SERIOUSLY THAT IT IS A NATURAL SANCTUARY AND THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE WANT IT TO BE.
AND SO WE DO DO EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AROUND THIS TO MAKE SURE WE ARE MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE TRAIL USERS.
BUT IT'S A GOOD POINT THAT SHOULDN'T BE FORGOTTEN.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS? UM, I SEE ANOTHER, UH, LET'S GO TO BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR FIRST.
THANK YOU HEIDI, FOR, FOR YOUR WORK.
UM, REALLY DO APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AND, AND ALL THE GREAT WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.
AND I JUST WANNA ALSO PIGGYBACK ON WHAT BOARD MEMBER FAUS WAS SAYING, BECAUSE I THINK THIS JUST COMES TO A BIGGER ISSUE THAT HAS REALLY NOT NECESSARILY RELATES TO THE TRAIL, UM, BUT, BUT MORE JUST A BIGGER ISSUE WITH THE PARKS, UM, DEPARTMENT AND THE PARKS BOARD AND, AND IN TERMS OF HOW WE, WE DEAL WITH THESE RELATIONSHIPS AND THESE, UM, AND HOW, AND, AND JUST REALLY THE LIMIT BECAUSE THIS HAS COME UP FOR OTHER, AS YOU, AS YOU ALL KNOW, THIS HAS COME UP WITH REGARDS TO, UM, OTHER PARKS IN THE CITY.
AND, UH, I, I WOULD LIKE TO GET SOME, UM, SOME FEEDBACK FROM THE DEPARTMENT AS TO HOW WE CAN ADDRESS THIS ISSUE, UM, WHOLLY, NOT JUST SPECIFICALLY TO THE PARKS, UM, TO THE TRIAL FOUNDATION.
CHRISTINE, DO YOU HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ON THAT? UM, I'LL JUST MENTION CUZ I DID RESPOND SOME IN THE EMAIL JUST, BUT JUST SO THAT EVERYBODY HAS THE INFORMATION, UM, I JUST DID WANNA POINT OUT THE EVENTS ARE ALSO, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT VOLUNTEER EVENTS AS WELL.
SO THESE NUMBER OF EVENTS ALSO INCLUDE STEWARDSHIP EVENTS.
UM, ALSO THE SIZE OF THE EVENTS ARE ALSO TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION.
SO AGAIN, UH, THERE'S A MAXIMUM REGISTRATION FOR LIKE A FLOW AND THRIVE EVENT, AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION.
THOSE ARE 45 MINUTES LONG, UH, ON A SATURDAY AND DO HAVE A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE ALLOWED TO BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY REGISTER FOR THAT FREE
[01:10:01]
EVENT.UM, AND ALSO WE ARE ALSO RESPONDING TO WHAT WE HEARD FROM THE PUBLIC THROUGH OUR LONG RANGE PLAN AND THROUGH A LOT OF OTHER DIFFERENT ENGAGEMENT THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT HAS DONE OVER THE YEARS.
UM, SEEKING FREE COMMUNITY EVENTS IN THE PARKS TO ACTIVATE THE PARKS.
AND SO THAT DEFINITELY, UH, REALLY RANG TRUE IN THE LONG RANGE PLAN WITH, UH, SEEKING TO HAVE MORE FREE FAMILY FRIENDLY PROGRAMMING AND THIS IS, AND TO PARTNER WITH OTHER GROUPS THAT COULD HELP TO, UH, PROVIDE THAT PROGRAMMING.
SO THIS IS A RESPONSE ALSO TO THE LONG RANGE PLAN.
DO YOU HAVE THOUGH, UM, WHAT I THINK THEY'RE ASKING FOR IS JUST A VERY SIMPLE, THE LIMITING, THE GIVING US A RANGE.
MAY, IS THERE A WAY THAT WE CAN ARRANGE THAT? UH, SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE EXISTING AGREEMENTS.
I MEAN, WE CAN DEFINITELY HAVE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE PARKS BOARD AND I WELCOME THAT.
UM, BUT AGAIN, WE DO HAVE A EXECUTED AGREEMENT THAT DOESN'T GIVE THAT RANGE.
AND SO I WELCOME FEEDBACK ON WHAT YOU'RE SEEKING.
EVERY SITE IS DIFFERENT, EVERY, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE DIFFERENT SITES, DIFFERENT SIZES OF PARKS, AND SO IT WOULD BE HARD TO GIVE ONE SIZE, YOU KNOW, ONE KIND OF NUMBER FOR ALL OF THEM.
BUT I THINK, I THINK WHAT THEY'RE ASKING FOR, I DON'T THINK THAT WE'RE TRYING TO CHANGE THIS REPORT SPECIFICALLY TONIGHT.
I THINK WHAT I'M HEARING, AND TELL ME IF I'M WRONG, IS THAT I THINK WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR TOO, IN THE FUTURE GOING FORWARD, IS IF YOU CAN TELL US THERE'S A RANGE.
WE'RE GONNA DO EIGHT TO 25 OF THESE, OKAY.
OR WE'RE GONNA DO EIGHT TO 10 OF THESE, OR WE'RE GONNA DO EIGHT TO A HUNDRED OF THESE.
THAT WOULD BE EASIER FOR US TO UNDERSTAND THAN JUST A OPEN ENDED.
WE'RE GONNA DO AT LEAST EIGHT, BUT MAYBE 2000, WHO KNOWS, RIGHT? SO THAT'S, I THINK WHAT I'M HEARING.
AM I CORRECT BOARD MEMBER FAUST AND I SEE SOME NODDING HEADS.
SO THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING YOU IF MAYBE WE CAN MAKE A MODIFICATION TO WHAT WE REQUIRE, UM, JUST SO THAT WE UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IN THE, IN THE RANGE OF THESE EVENTS THAT ARE BEING HELD, JUST SO THAT WE HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT YOU'RE PLANNING.
AND I THINK THAT'S NOT TO SAY WE'RE NOT GONNA PASS THIS TONIGHT.
I THINK THAT'S JUST SAYING THAT'S SOMETHING WE GOING FORWARD WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
WOULD YOU BE THE RIGHT PERSON TO FIX THAT? YES.
AND, AND, AND ALSO TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION, WE'LL BE RESPONDING TO NEEDS.
SO AGAIN, STEWARDSHIP OFTEN IS BASED IF THERE'S A NEED AT A SITE, UH, AS WELL AS IF THERE'S A NEED FOR ACTIVATION AT A SITE.
SO THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOME, UM, LIKE THE RANGE IS A, IS A GOOD WAY TO PUT IT.
CUZ THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOME NEED, A NEED FOR NIMBLENESS IN THAT, THAT AREA FOR PROGRAMMING.
RIGHT? I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR, UM, VICE CHAIR FILES.
DID YOU HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION? I SAW YOUR HAND UP A MINUTE AGO.
DID YOU, YOUR ANSWER? UM, NO, I'M NOT GONNA ASK ANOTHER QUESTION RIGHT NOW.
IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT WE LIKE, YOU KNOW, THINK ABOUT COMING BACK TO AT A DIFFERENT MEETING WITH THE RECOMMENDATION JUST SO STAFF KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
IT SOUNDS LIKE THEY HAVE THE IDEA, BUT, UM, THANK YOU.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT, WOOD, DOES ANYBODY HAVE A MOTION? OKAY, SURE.
BOARD MEMBER HAMAN, WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE? I HOPE I CAN, I HOPE I GET THIS RIGHT HERE.
SO, UM, I WOULD MOTION THAT THE PARKS BOARD RECOMMEND TO THE COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY'S ANNUAL PROGRAMMING PLAN FOR THE ANNE AND ROY BUTLER H BIKE TRAIL.
ALL RIGHT, DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND.
I HAVE A SECOND FROM BOARD MEMBER RANALDI.
UM, ALL IN FAVOR? IT LOOKS UNANIMOUS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK ON THIS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND YOUR TIME.
[5. Discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council on parks issues related to the Statesman PUD, including park upkeep and the formula for parkland dedication.]
OKAY, MOVING RIGHT ALONG.WE ARE ON ITEM NUMBER FIVE, WHICH IS DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION REGARDING A RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL ON PARKS ISSUES RELATED TO THE STATESMAN PUD, INCLUDING PARK UPKEEP AND THE FORMULA FOR PARKLAND DEDICATION.
AND I'M GONNA ASK IF DIRECTOR MCNELEY WOULD GIVE US A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT'S GOING ON, BECAUSE SHE IS INVOLVED IN THE, IN THE NEGOTIATIONS ON THIS.
SO, UM, KIMBERLY MCNEELY SERVING AS THE DIRECTOR, SO I WAS INVOLVED AS, UM, A STAFF MEMBER THAT WAS PART OF THE COUNCIL DISCUSSIONS THAT HAPPENED ON THE PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING, WHICH THE DATE I HAVE NOW FORGOTTEN.
UM, BUT WHAT WILL HAPPEN IS ON, UH, THIS COMING THURSDAY, THERE'LL BE ADDITIONAL DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THE STATESMAN PUD AND, UM, I'M DOING THIS FROM MEMORY, SO, UH, IF I'VE FORGOTTEN SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE A SPECIFIC QUESTION ABOUT, PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO ASK ME.
UM, TWO OF THE THINGS THAT WILL MOST LIKELY BE DISCUSSED IS, ONE IS A CONVERSATION ABOUT, UM, THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES AND HOW THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES WILL BE FORMULATED.
[01:15:01]
UH, THERE WAS A, A MOTION MADE BY COUNCIL MEMBER POOL, UH, LAST TIME THAT TALKED ABOUT, UM, A $9 MILLION.AND THEN THERE WAS ALSO CONVERSATIONS ABOUT 6.9 MILLION.
AND THOSE FEES CAME FROM THE 9 MILLION CAME FROM AN ESTIMATE NUMBER, UH, THAT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT PROVIDED OF, UH, PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES ESTIMATE PRIOR TO, PRIOR TO THE COUNCIL MAKING THE DECISION TO ONLY RAISE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES, 10% IN THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR.
AND IT DIDN'T INCLUDE, UM, COMMERCIAL FEES.
AND THE 6.9 MILLION WAS A ESTIMATE OF WHAT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT IS ESTIMATING WOULD BE, UH, IF YOU HAD RESIDENTIAL FEES AT THE NEW RATE AT THE, THE, THE NEW RATE THAT COUNCIL APPROVED IN THE BUDGET AND THE COMMERCIAL FEES.
AND SO THERE WAS CONVERSATION THAT WENT BACK AND FORTH ABOUT DID THE, DID THEY INTEND TO PUT A CEILING ON IT? DID THEY AT 9 MILLION, DID THEY THINK MAYBE 6.9 MILLION WAS A BETTER OPTION? AND INSTEAD SAY THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO HAVE SOMETHING ELSE PAY THEY BEING THE COUNCIL.
PERHAPS THERE'S ANOTHER PART OF THE PROJECT THAT COULD BE FUNDED.
AND SO THAT CONVERSATION WENT BACK AND FORTH.
AND ONE OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, AND I, I'M NOT A HUNDRED PERCENT SURE, I BELIEVE IT WAS MAYOR PROTE, UM, ALTER, WHO MAY HAVE SAID SOMETHING ABOUT WHY ARE WE PUTTING A CEILING OR A CAP, OR WHAT ARE, WHAT, WHAT ARE WE, WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT HERE? AND, AND THAT CONVERSATION, UM, I WAS STANDING AT THE DIAS WHEN THERE WAS GOING BACK AND FORTH AND IT WAS CLEAR THAT THE APPLICANT AND I HAD TWO DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS OF THE CONVERSATION AND WE TOOK A STEP BACK AND SAID, IT'S PROBABLY BEST FOR US TO STEP BACK AND THINK, ALLOW THE COUNCIL TO MULL IT OVER AND THINK ABOUT IT, AND THEN PROVIDE US SOME ADDITIONAL DIRECTION.
SO THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK THAT BOARD CHAIR, UM, HAS, UH, PLACED IN A MEMO TO, OR A RECOMMENDATION TO MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
AND THE SECOND ITEM WAS TO TALK ABOUT THE MAINTENANCE OF THE PARK.
AND SO THERE WERE OPTIONS AS TO WHO WOULD MAINTAIN THE PARK, WOULD THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT MAINTAIN THE PARK? WOULD A THIRD PARTY, UM, PARTNER LIKE THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY MAINTAIN THE PARK? WOULD THE DEVELOPER MAINTAIN THE PARK? AND WHERE WOULD THE FUNDING FOR THOSE THAT DIFFERENT, UM, THOSE DIFFERENT, UH, SCENARIOS, WHERE WOULD THAT FUNDING COME FROM? IT COULD COME FROM SOMETHING CALLED THE PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT, WHICH IS A, A P THAT THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE HELPS TO, UM, DISTRIBUTE.
IT COULD COME FROM AN ALLOCATION THAT THE PARKS AND REC BEGGAR, PARDON, AND THAT THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL WOULD ALLOCATE AND SAY, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO HAVE THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY AND FUTURE BUDGETS BE DEDICATED TO MAINTAINING THAT SPACE.
AND WE'D LIKE THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT TO MAINTAIN THE SPACE.
OR, UM, THERE COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE DEVELOPER AND A THIRD PARTY ENTITY TO THINK ABOUT, UM, HOW THEY MIGHT PARTNER TOGETHER AND A FUNDING SOURCE THAT ISN'T ONE OF THOSE TWO FUNDING SOURCES THAT I TALKED ABOUT.
AND SO THEREFORE, UM, WHEN I SHARED THIS INFORMATION WITH THE BOARD CHAIR, UH, WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED AT THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING.
I BELIEVE THE CHAIR THOUGHT IT WAS ALSO IMPORTANT, UM, TO, FOR THE BOARD TO CONSIDER WHAT THEIR OPINION IS AND MAKE THAT RECOMMENDATION TO CITY COUNCIL THE THINGS THAT ARE NOT IN THE, UM, IN THE, UH, UM, I BET YOUR PARDON.
AND IN THE MEMO THAT, OR THE RECOMMENDATION THAT YOU'RE, THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE CONSIDERING TONIGHT HAD TO DO WITH, UM, PARK AMENITIES.
THE PARK PLAN, ALL OF THAT CAN BE FOUND ONLINE.
AND I'M HAPPY TO SEND YOU LINKS TO THOSE DISCUSSION POINTS.
UM, BECAUSE FRANKLY, I'M NOT SURE IF WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT IT CUZ IT'S NOT REALLY POSTED.
I DON'T EXACTLY KNOW WHAT'S POSTED FOR DISCUSSION, SO I JUST WANT TO BE, UM, BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY.
BUT HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY OF THOSE QUESTIONS AND IF YOU HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR ME CUZ I WASN'T CLEAR, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO ANSWER.
IS THERE, ARE THERE QUESTIONS? DO YOU GUYS UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT OF THIS? MM-HMM.
I HAVE, YEAH, I HAVE SOME CLARIFYING QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS.
UM, SO IN THIS THE FIRST, UH, PARAGRAPH OF THE DESCRIPTION OF THE RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL, IT SAYS, UM, THERE'S A LINE THAT SAYS THE FEE MAY BE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER ALONGSIDE THE STIPULATION THAT EACH UNIT WOULD PAY A HUNDRED DOLLARS ABOVE THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEE.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, UM, THAT THE DEVELOPER HAS COMMITTED TO ALREADY OR IS THAT JUST ANOTHER IDEA THAT HAS BEEN, UM, PROPOSED? THE APPLICANT AND THE DEVELOPER HAVE ALREADY COMMITTED TO A HUNDRED DOLLARS ON TOP OF WHATEVER THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEE PER UNIT WOULD BE.
[01:20:01]
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU.ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YEAH, BOARD MEMBER MORE SO GENERALLY TALKING ABOUT GOING AROUND THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FORMULA.
UM, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT OCCURS SOMETIMES WHERE APPLICANTS ARE ABLE TO GET AROUND THE CAP OR, I THINK WHAT IS HAPPENING AS THEY DEVELOP THIS ORDINANCE IS THEY'RE HAMMERING ALL THOSE DETAILS OUT.
AND SO THAT WAS OUR CONCERN IS THAT WASN'T CLEAR ENOUGH BECAUSE I THINK MY, MY UNDERSTANDING OF, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER POOL'S MOTION WAS THAT SHE WAS TRYING TO HELP AND SHE WAS TRYING TO LAY OUT THAT FIRM DOLLAR AMOUNT.
BUT WHAT I DISCUSSED WITH THE DIRECTOR IS THAT THERE IS ALSO IN PLAY ADDITIONAL HEIGHT, WHICH WOULD INCREASE MM-HMM.
I THINK THAT'S WHY WE FELT LIKE WE NEEDED TO CLARIFY THAT WE THOUGHT THAT THIS SHOULD GO WITH THE TRADITIONAL, YOU KNOW, THEY SHOULD, WE SHOULD JUST FOLLOW, PARDON ME GETTING DRY AFTER A WHILE, UM, UH, WITH THE PARKLAND, UH, DEDICATION FEES, WE SHOULD JUST KEEP THAT AND THEN PLUS THIS ADDITIONAL A HUNDRED DOLLARS PER UNIT THAT WAS ALREADY AGREED TO BY THE DEVELOPER.
SO JUST ADHERE TO THE DEVELOP EXISTING FORMULA AND HE'LL ADHERE TO THE FORMULA PRECISELY.
SO, UM, THAT'S WHY WE FELT LIKE, I JUST WANTED TO SORT OF PUT THIS FORWARD TO GIVE A LITTLE, UM, NOD IN THE DIRECTION AND SUPPORT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT'S NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE DAA AND THE TRAIL.
WE DO NEED TO CHANGE THIS TO THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
SO TIM, I WOULD ASK YOU TO CHANGE IN THE FI I THINK THE ONLY PLACE IT'S MENTIONED THAT I FOUND IT WAS IN THE FINAL PARAGRAPH BEFORE THE VOTE, UM, THE TRAIL FOUNDATION SHOULD BE TRAIL CONSERVANCY AND AGAIN, TWO LINES DOWN THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
UM, VICE CHAIR, UM, I WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU TO BOARD MEMBER KA SHABEL FOR CONTINUING TO STAY VIGILANT WITH THE STATESMAN POD AND THE, UM, PLAN DEDICATION NEGOTIATIONS.
THIS HAS BEEN A REALLY LONG PROCESS THAT YOU'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN A LOT OF TWISTS AND TURNS AND APPRECIATE, UM, YOU WORKING WITH THE DIRECTOR TO BRING THIS BEFORE US.
I HAVE ONE CLARIFYING QUESTION AND THEN I ALSO HAVE, UM, A REQUEST TO CHANGE ONE WORD OR IT MIGHT BE TWO WORDS IN THE, IN THE RECOMMENDATION.
SO I THINK IN ORDER TO MAKE THAT CHANGE, SOMEBODY WOULD HAVE TO MOVE APPROVAL AND THEN I WOULD MOVE, UH, THEN I WOULD MAKE A MOTION TO AMEND IT.
BUT, UM, FIRST MY CLARIFYING QUESTION IS JUST, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU GUYS ARE VERY COMFORTABLE THAT IF WE APPROVE THIS RECOMMENDATION, NOT THAT CITY COUNCIL IS BOUND TO IT, CUZ IT'S JUST A RECOMMENDATION, BUT THERE'S NO WAY THAT THIS IS, WOULD SOMEHOW LIKE BACKFIRE.
AND THEY WOULD, SOMEBODY WOULD SAY, WELL, THE PARKS BOARD SAID YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE A CAP.
AND BECAUSE OF WHATEVER FORMULA EVENTUALLY COMES OUT OF THIS, IT ENDS UP WITH LESS.
I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY WAY, BUT JUST THE WAY THIS IS ALL STILL KIND OF UNDER NEGOTIATION.
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE, HAS ANYBODY YOU KNOW, KIND OF THOUGHT IT THROUGH AND WE'RE REAL CONFIDENT AND THIS IS THE RIGHT WAY TO GO? I'LL DEFER TO THE DIRECTOR.
SO THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION AND I WOULD LOVE TO MAKE THOSE GUARANTEES, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE UNIT NUMBERS WILL BE AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FORMULA WILL BE AT THE TIME WHEN IT'S ACTUALLY WHEN WE ACTUALLY HAVE TO APPLY IT.
SO I CAN'T WITH FULL 100% CONFIDENCE SAY THAT IT, IT WILL BE MORE THAN OR LESS THAN.
UM, I JUST, I I WANTED TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE YOU INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONVERSATION THAT WAS HAPPENING.
SO I'M SORRY THAT I CAN'T GIVE YOU THOSE ASSURANCES, BUT HOPEFULLY WHAT I HAVE TOLD YOU HELPS YOU IN YOUR MIND DETERMINE WHAT YOU THINK MIGHT BE BEST.
SO IF THERE'S A CAP, THERE'S A CAP.
IF THERE'S NOT A CAP, YOU COULD POTENTIALLY GO HIGHER.
SO THAT'S JUST THE BASIC THING WE'RE SAYING.
AND I DON'T MEAN GO HIGHER IN UNITS, I MEAN LIKE THE THE AMOUNT WOULD BE HIGHER, RIGHT? I THINK THAT IF THE, IF THE HEIGHT IS APPROVED, WHICH IS WHAT I THINK THEY'RE TR THEY'RE TENDING TOWARD THAT IT WOULD PROB IT COULD LIKELY BE HIGHER.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHY WE WERE CONCERNED ABOUT CAPPING IT AND SAYING SPECIFICALLY 9 MILLION, PUTTING A SPECIFIC NUMBER ON IT, UM, WE WERE AFRAID WOULD CAP IT SINCE THEY'RE CONSIDERING ADDITIONAL HEIGHT FOR THE PROJECT.
UM, MY, I'LL JUST GO AHEAD AND MENTION MY OTHER,
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MY REQUEST IS, HAS TO DO WITH, UM, THE PARK MAINTENANCE, UH, RECOMMENDATION.AND I JUST WANTED TO SEE IF WE COULD CHANGE, INSTEAD OF SAYING THAT THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY IS OPTIMAL, IF WE COULD JUST SAY IT'S PREFERABLE TO THE DEVELOPER.
IT'S NOT THAT I DON'T THINK THEY WOULD DO A GOOD JOB, I JUST HAVEN'T LOOKED AT THAT AT ALL.
AND TO ME IT'S KIND OF LIKE THE MORE YOU KEEP THE TAX NEED, TAX MONEY WITH THE CITY, THE PEOPLE HAVE THE MOST DIRECT SAY OVER HOW IT GETS SPENT.
AND IF THE MONEY'S LIKE JUST GOING STRAIGHT TO AN ORGANIZATION THAT DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB.
I MEAN I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE ANY PROBLEM WITH IT, BUT I JUST, THE WORD OPTIMAL IS, I DON'T FEEL LIKE I KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT THIS TO SAY THAT IT'S OPTIMAL.
SO IF THERE'S A WAY TO CHANGE IT FROM OPTIMAL TO PREFERABLE, I WOULD, I'M, I'M COMFORTABLE WITH IF UNDER BOARD MEMBERS ARE INTERESTED IN THAT CHANGE ALSO.
ANYBODY HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT? I, I ACTUALLY HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE SAME, UM, PART OF THE, UM, RECOMMENDATION, UM, WHERE IT SAYS, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME CONCERN EXPRESSED ABOUT, UM, LEAVING PARK MAINTENANCE IN THE HANDS OF THE DEVELOPER, UM, QUOTE, AS OWNERSHIP CHANGES OR OTHER FACTORS WOULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT THE LEVEL OF MAINTENANCE AT THIS SIGNATURE PUBLIC PARK.
UM, AND UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S GOOD TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT THE, YOU KNOW, IF THIS IS A MAJOR PARK, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT MAINTENANCE CHANGING HANDS COULD BE BUMPY.
BUT I'M CURIOUS IF WE ARE THINKING OF, UM, PARTICULAR EXAMPLES OF WHERE THIS HAS HAPPENED WITH OTHER DEVELOPERS IN THE PAST.
LIKE, DO WE HAVE REASON TO BELIEVE THAT THIS WOULD BE AN OBSTACLE TO PROVIDING CONTINUAL MAINTENANCE IF YOU KNOW A DEVELOPER, UM, YOU KNOW, IF, IF A PROPERTY CHANGES HANDS? I THINK MY PARTICULAR CONCERN WITH THIS IS THAT WE'VE ALREADY HAD TO FIGHT TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S CLEAR IT'S A PUBLIC PARK AND THEY HAVE, I INVITED MR. SETTLE TONIGHT ACTUALLY TO SHOW US, CUZ I DON'T HAVE MY PAUSE ON IT YET, BUT THEY HAVE MOVED THE BUILDING BACK 30 FEET FROM CONGRESS AVENUE WHERE THEY WERE ORIGINALLY GONNA PUT IT RIGHT UP THERE AND SORT OF TAKE AWAY THAT PUBLIC ACCESS THAT THEY HAVE MADE A PLAN TO CHANGE THAT.
UM, WHICH I AM HOPEFUL WILL CONTINUE TO GO ALONG WITH THIS PROJECT, BUT I THINK THAT THAT'S THE CONCERN THAT I HAVE IS THAT SOMEONE GETTING AHOLD OF THIS COULD MAKE IT FEEL LIKE IF THEY ARE, IF THEY'RE TAKING OVER THE MAINTENANCE, THEY HAVE A LITTLE MORE, THEY HAVE MORE FINGERS IN THE PIE THERE AND IT'S NOT AS PUBLIC AS IF SOMEONE WERE TRANSPARENTLY PUBLIC PUBLICLY MAINTAINING THAT PARK.
SO THAT IS MY CONCERN WITH TURNING OVER THE MAINTENANCE TO THE DEVELOPERS.
WOULD YOU AGREE, DIRECTOR? COULD YOU REPEAT THAT LAST SENTENCE,
UM, IN THEORY I THINK THAT, THAT, THAT MAKES SENSE.
I, TO ANSWER THE VERY FIRST QUESTION AS, I CAN'T THINK OF ANY, UH, SITUATION WHERE WE HAVE HAD THE CHANGE OF, UM, WHERE, UH, THE MAINTENANCE HAS HAD TO CHANGE HANDS WHERE IT HAS BEEN, UM, PROBLEMATIC OR EVEN THAT WE'VE HAD TO CHANGE HANDS.
SO, I MEAN, THIS IS ALL NEW TERRITORY AND I, I CAN UNDERSTAND SKEPTICISM, BUT I CAN'T POINT TO ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR THAT, UM, THAT, THAT SAYS THAT WE HAVE REASON TO BE SKEPTICAL.
WE'VE NOT DONE ANY, YOU KNOW, MOST OF THESE THINGS ARE KIND OF CUTTING EDGE OR WE'RE JUST GETTING OUR TEETH CUT.
I I KNOW YOU ALL WERE INVOLVED IN THE GROVE, RIGHT? BUT WE'RE JUST GETTING OUR TEETH CUT WITH THE GROVE OR, UM, EVEN MUELLER, RIGHT? WE'RE, THAT'S NOT, NOT REALLY THAT OLD AND IT'S FINALLY GETTING BUILT OUT.
SO SKEPTICISM IS SOMETIMES PART OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO WORK THROUGH.
AND I, I, I DEFINITELY UNDERSTAND THE, YOU KNOW, THE FEELING THAT THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY WOULD BE A PREFERABLE, UM, PARTNER FOR MAINTENANCE BECAUSE THEY ARE, THEY'RE AN ORGANIZATION THAT'S DEDICATED SOLELY TO PUBLIC SPACE AND TO STEWARDING PUBLIC SPACE.
WHEREAS, YOU KNOW, THE DEVELOPER IS, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, A DIFFERENT, UM, A DIFFERENT SET OF GOALS.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, I DO THINK THAT BOARD MEMBER FOS CONCERN IS A GOOD ONE THAT, YOU KNOW, UH, YOU WOULD HOPE THAT THE, UM, YOU KNOW, IF THE, IF THE DEVELOPER, UM, IS BOUND TO, YOU KNOW, A CERTAIN LEVEL, A CERTAIN STANDARD OF MAINTENANCE, THAT THE, THOSE TAXPAYER DOLLARS WOULD BE ABLE TO JUST DIRECTLY GO TO THAT, THAT SEEMS MORE, UM, THAT, THAT JUST SEEMS MORE STRAIGHTFORWARD TO ME THAN HAVING, HAVING IT GET ROUTED THROUGH THIS OTHER WAY.
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MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT WITH THE PI, AND I AM NOT A FINANCIAL GURU OR EXPERT, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE PI IS MONEY PAID INTO AND OVERSEEN BY THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE, RIGHT? AND THEN THEY, THEY DISSEMINATE, I DON'T KNOW THAT THAT MONEY CAN GO DIRECTLY TO THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, JUST KIND OF LIKE THE WAY WE PUT THINGS IN THE GENERAL FUND.AND SO I THINK THAT WAS THE IDEA.
AM I CORRECT THAT THAT'S WHY, THAT'S WHY THE, I AM NOT AN EXPERT ON THE PIT EITHER, BUT I DON'T KNOW OF ANY SITUATIONS WHERE THE PI HAS PAID, BEEN PAID TO, UH, BACK TO THE CITY FOR, FOR SOME PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
UM, I, I KNOW OF THINGS THAT THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE HAS DONE ON BEHALF OF THE CITY USING THE P I E SOME RESTROOMS FOR INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS IN THE, UM, NORTHERN PART, NORTHERN BOUNDARIES OF THE CITY.
BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT THEY'VE, THAT WOULD BE A QUESTION THAT I WOULD HAVE TO ASK.
I I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO IT.
DID YOU HAVE A COMMENT BOARD MEMBER? NO, I, I WAS JUST GOING TO, UM, TO JUST SAY THAT I ALSO WENT, I WOULD FEEL A LOT MORE COMFORTABLE WITH THE TRAIL FOUNDATION.
I MEAN, IT'S SUCH AN ICONIC, ALL OUR PARKS ARE SPECIAL AND, AND WE WANT THEM TO BE ALL MAINTAINED TO THE HIGHEST STANDARD.
BUT THIS IS, UM, SUCH AN ICONIC PLACE AND THE TRAIL FOUNDATION KNOWS THE LAKE, IT KNOWS THE TRAIL AND KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND THEY'RE GONNA BE AROUND FOR I FOR A WHILE.
AND I FEEL I HAVE MUCH HIGHER COMFORT LEVEL WITH THAT.
SO I, UM, I, I WANTED TO CLARIFY WHAT THE CHANGE WAS THAT WE WERE GONNA MAKE TO THIS RECOMMENDATION.
I THINK THAT WE'VE CHANGED THE TRAIL FOUNDATION TO THE TRAIL TRAIL CONSERVANCY IN TWO PLACES IN THAT LAST PARAGRAPH.
AND THEN 1, 2, 3, 4 LIONS DOWN ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE.
THIS WOULD BE THE PREFERABLE ARRANGEMENT IN THE EYES OF THE BOARD INSTEAD OF OPTIMAL IS THE REQUEST.
SO JUST CHANGE THAT ADJECTIVE OR ANY FURTHER? THAT'S OKAY.
I JUST WANTED TO, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU GUYS UNDERSTOOD MY PREVIOUS COMMENTS.
I WANTED TO CLARIFY CUZ I WASN'T SURE AFTER BOARD MEMBER AND ALL THESE COMMENTS THAT I DO NOT WANT THE DEVELOPER TO MAINTAIN THE PARK AND DEFINITELY WANT US TO RECOMMEND THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE TRAIL FOUNDATION OR I JUST, IF THERE WAS A WAY WHERE THE CITY COULD DO IT ITSELF, THAT WOULD TO ME BE THE BEST ARRANGEMENT.
BUT I JUST FOR THIS PURPOSE, I WANNA GO WITH PREFERABLE.
AND THEN I ALSO JUST WANTED TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE OF, IF IN THE FUTURE, YOU KNOW, THIS IDEA THAT MAYBE IF IT'S SOLD THE SAME DEVELOPER WOULDN'T BE MAINTAINING THE PARK.
AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, THAT'S NOT A QUESTION.
LIKE, THESE PEOPLE ARE GETTING ENTITLEMENTS.
THEY WILL, YOU KNOW, GET THIS GOING AND THEN DEFINITELY SELL IT OFF.
SO I DON'T THINK WE'RE GONNA BE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL BE DEALING, TRYING TO DEAL WITH SOME INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION TO GET MAINTENANCE.
SO YOU DO NOT WANNA BE IN THAT POSITION.
I DON'T THINK, AND I, I CAN'T THINK OF AN EXAMPLE WHERE WE HAVE A PARK, A PUBLIC PARK, AND A PREMIER LOCATION LIKE THIS THAT'S TOTALLY PRIVATELY MAINTAINED.
IT'S NOT A PARTNERSHIP, BUT I HAVEN'T, YOU KNOW, THOUGHT ABOUT IT.
I THINK LIKE, DIRECTOR MI NEELY SAID, THIS IS NEW, BUT YOU DON'T NORMALLY EXPECT, UH, DEVELOPERS LIKE THIS TO HOLD THESE PROPERTIES FOR DECADES OR SOMETHING.
THAT WOULDN'T, WOULDN'T BE MY EXPECTATION.
SO ARE WE READY TO CALL A VOTE? ALL RIGHT.
UM, WOULD ANYBODY LIKE TO, I, I'LL, I'LL MOVE THAT WE GO FORWARD WITH THE RECOMMENDATION AS WRITTEN WITH THOSE CORRECTIONS FOR THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY AND ALSO CHANGING THE WORD OPTIMAL TO PREFERABLE.
DO I HAVE A SECOND BOARD MEMBER HEADMAN? UM, ALL IN FAVOR, IT'S UNANIMOUS ON THE DIAS AND ONLINE.
ALL RIGHT, LET'S MOVE ON TO, SORRY, BACK TO THE RIGHT PLACE.
[6. Staff Briefing regarding aquatics issues and interests related to operations.]
NOW WE'RE MOVING ON TO STAFF BRIEFINGS.UM, WE HAVE, AND I DON'T SEE LUCAS MASSEY, IS THAT JODI J COMING TO TALK IN HIS PLACE? OH, HE'S ONLINE.
THIS IS STAFF BRIEFING NUMBER SIX, STAFF BRIEFING REQUIRING, UH, REGARDING AQUATICS ISSUES AND INTEREST RELATED TO OPERATIONS.
UM, AND I'M JUST GONNA PREFACE THIS BY SAYING THAT, UM, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR MASSEY IS GONNA COME BACK IN JANUARY WITH A FULLER PRESENTATION, BUT I DID ASK HIM TO COME TONIGHT JUST TO SORT OF GIVE US A QUICK UPDATE WHERE THINGS ARE.
SO THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE TONIGHT.
THANKS FOR HAVING ME, UH, BOARD CHAIR, BOARD MEMBERS.
I KNOW AQUATICS HAS, UH, BEEN A HOT TOPIC, UM, AND IT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO THE, THE
[01:35:01]
CITIZENS OF OFFICE.SO, UH, DEFINITELY APPRECIATE THE FORUM AND BEING ABLE TO COME BACK WITH A FLOOR PRESENTATION IN JANUARY.
UM, JUST A, A BRIEFING IS A KIND OF A OVERALL AQUATICS WITH CONSISTS OF 45 AQUATIC FACILITIES.
WE HAVE A 12.5 MILLION BUDGET.
UM, I KNOW SOME OF THE THINGS WE WANTED TO TALK ABOUT THIS EVENING WERE THE PROCESS OF HIRING A DIVISION MANAGER.
UM, AS YOU KNOW, JODI J UH, WAS PROMOTED TO ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, SO I'M IN THE PROCESS OF, UH, FILLING HER HER BIG SHOES.
UM, AND I, I, I CAN'T GO INTO GREAT DETAIL, UH, BUT I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE, WE HIRED A NATIONAL RECRUITING SERVICE, UM, THROUGH THE HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT TO ASSIST US WITH CASTING A BROAD NET, UH, ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
UH, AND WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF, UH, FILLING THAT POSITION AND HOPE TO HAVE IT FILLED, UM, BY JANUARY, IS MY HOPE.
UM, THE OTHER HOT TOPIC WOULD BE LIFEGUARD RECRUITMENTS.
UH, WE HAVE KICKED OFF KIND OF OUR, OUR FALL SEASON.
WE ISSUED A PRESS RELEASE, UH, TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE LIVING WAGE, TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE INCENTIVES WE HAVE IN PLACE, AND, AND WE DID SEE AN UPTICK IN APPLICATIONS, UH, GIVEN THAT IT IS THE FALL SEASON AND, AND QUITE SOME TIME AWAY FROM SUMMER.
AND WHEN MOST, MOST STUDENTS, UH, WHO IS OUR, OUR BIGGEST, YOU KNOW, TARGET MARKET, UM, HAVE SET THEIR PLANS, UH, IT'S TYPICALLY A SLOWER TIME FOR US.
UM, SO WE'RE ALSO TAKING THE OPPORTUNITY TO, TO GO OUT AND DO SOME SCHOOL VISITS.
UH, WE HAVE A PLANNED FOCUS GROUP IN ABOUT A MONTH TO, UM, GET SOME FEEDBACK DIRECTLY FROM STUDENTS WHO ARE, ARE SWIMMERS.
UM, AND WE HOPE TO RAMP UP, UH, IN THE NEW YEAR.
AND I HOPE TO BE ABLE TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHAT THE PROGRESS WE'VE MADE.
I CAN TELL YOU NOW THAT WE HAVE ABOUT 200, UM, THIS JUST BALLPARK 200 EMPLOYEES ON PAYROLL, UH, LIFEGUARDS.
AND, UH, WE NEED TO GET THE MINIMUM OF ABOUT 800.
IDEALLY, I FEEL LIKE WE SHOULD BE PROBABLY ABOUT EIGHT 50.
I DO WANNA PUT IN A PLUG FOR, FOR THE FUTURE, UH, THAT, YOU KNOW, WE WILL HAVE SOME POOLS COMING ONLINE AND IN FUTURE.
SO THAT NUMBER, IF WE KEEP TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THAT 808 50 NUMBER COULD GO AS HIGH AS 900 IN, IN FUTURE YEARS.
UM, I ALSO KNOW THAT, UH, IN MY DISCUSSIONS WITH THE BOARD CHAIR THAT WE WANTED TO TALK MAYBE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT DEEP EDDIE POOL.
UM, SO JUST, AND I, I, I ALSO FEEL LIKE IT'S A GOOD EXAMPLE TO HIGHLIGHT THE, THE MAYBE BREADTH AND DEPTH OF, OF WHAT OUR AQUATICS FACILITIES ARE.
SO DEEP EDDIE POOL IS THE OLDEST POOL IN THE STATE OF TEXAS, OPENED IN ABOUT IN 1916 AS A PRIVATE VENUE, AND THE CITY TOOK OVER PUBLIC OPERATION IN 1935.
UM, SO OVER, OVER, YOU KNOW, THE CENTURY, I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD VARIOUS REPAIRS AND RENOVATIONS WITH A, A POOL OVERHAUL, UH, COMING IN IN 2012 WHERE WE MADE SOME, SOME SIGNIFICANT REPAIRS TO THAT FACILITY.
UM, I WANNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE WELLS.
UM, FOR THOSE OF YOU GUYS WHO HAVE NOT BEEN TO DEEP EDDIE OR OR SUPER FAMILIAR WITH DEEP EDDIE POOL, UH, THERE ARE FIVE WELLS ON SITE THAT WE DRAW WATER INTO THE POOL, UM, AND THEN WE DRAIN IT EACH, EACH EVENING.
UM, SO WE HAVE, UH, WELL NUMBER ONE, WHICH IS AN UPSTREAM, WELL, IT'S ONE OF THE TWO ORIGINAL WELLS USED AT THE POOL, AND IT IS STILL USED TO FILL THE COOL, UH, THAT PARTICULAR WELL IS ABOUT, IS ABOUT 25 FEET WITH A PUMP SITTING A FEW FEET FROM THE BOTTOM.
UM, AS A LITTLE BIT OF A HISTORY IN AUGUST OF 2009, UH, THIS WELL RAN DRY AND WE HAD TO CLOSE THE SHADOW END OF THE POOL.
UH, SO IT, FROM THAT, WE DRAW THAT, THAT MAYBE AT CERTAIN POINTS IN TIME, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT WE WILL SEE FLUCTUATIONS IN THE PRODUCTION OF THE WELL.
UM, WELL, NUMBER TWO, THE POOL SIDE WELL, UH, WAS CONSTRUCTED AFTER, WELL, NUMBER ONE WENT DRY.
THIS WELL IS, UH, AT 59.5 FEET AND THE PUMP IS LOCATED AT ABOUT 30 FEET.
UM, ORIGINALLY THE WELL WAS GONNA BE 180 FEET DEEP, BUT, UH, THE WELLS KEPT, THE WALLS KEPT COLLAPSING AND FILLED WITH SEDIMENT.
SO, UM, CUZ OF THAT WE CHANGED THE DEPTH.
WE HAVE A, A THIRD, WELL NUMBER THREE, THIS IS A HILLSIDE.
WELL, THE WELL IS 298 FEET DEEP.
THE PUMP SIT AT TWO 60 AND WE HAVE A, THE FOURTH ACTIVE WELL, UH, IS 400 FEET DEEP AND THE PUMP IS 360 FEET DEEP IN
[01:40:01]
THAT.WELL, UH, WE DO HAVE ONE DOWN DOWNSTREAM.
WELL, AND THIS IS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL WELLS.
IT'S NO LONGER USED TO FILL THE POOL.
IT WAS TOO CLOSE TO THE PROXIMITY OF LADYBIRD LAKE, SO IT PRODUCES SOME OF THE SAME CHARACTERISTICS AS THE LAKE WATER AS OPPOSED TO WELL WATER, UM, WELLS NUMBER THREE AND FOUR.
AFTER SEVERAL YEARS OF RUNNING THESE TWO WELLS, WE NOTICED THERE, UH, THERE WAS A LOWER WATER PRODUCT.
UM, SO WE ARE WORKING, UM, ON AN ANNUAL BASIS TO SCHEDULE SERVICING FOR THESE WELLS.
AND WE'RE, WE'RE TAKING A LOOK NOW CURRENTLY, UH, WITH SOME ASSISTANCE FROM THE FRIENDS OF GROUP, UM, TO MAYBE, UH, ALTER THE, UH, DEPTH OF THE PUMPS, UH, IN HOPES THAT WILL HELP REFILL OUR POOL ON A MORE REGULAR BASIS.
UM, SO ONE OF THE BIG ISSUES WE SEE WITH, WITH THE POOL AS WE USE WELL WATER IS THAT, YOU KNOW, PERIODS OF DROUGHT CONDITIONS.
LIKE WE'VE MAYBE HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS FOR YOU, FLUCTUATIONS WITHIN THE OPERATIONAL SCHEDULE AND OUR ABILITY TO FULL FILL AND DRAIN THE POOL ON A REGULAR BASIS.
I KNOW THAT WAS A LOT OF INFORMATION ABOUT DEEP PETTY.
I ALSO WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT'S ONLY ONE SINGLE FACILITY THAT WE, WE HAVE WITHIN OUR INVENTORY OF 45.
SO EACH OF THOSE FACILIT FACILITIES HAS BEEN BUILT OVER THE LAST HUNDRED PLUS YEARS.
UM, AND I LIKE TO, TO KIND OF COMPARE, UH, POOLS SOMETIMES TO, UH, CARS.
SO YOU THINK ABOUT HOW MUCH MAINTENANCE AND EFFORT IT TAKES TO PUT INTO A CAR, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS BUILT A HUNDRED OR OR 50 YEARS AGO, THAT THE SAME CAN BE SAID ABOUT A POOL.
AND I KNOW THAT WE'VE MADE SOME GOOD PROGRESS OVER THE LAST COUPLE BONDS, UH, TO REPLACE SOME OF OUR OLDER AND AGING POOLS.
THAT BEING SAID, JUST WANTED TO POINT OUT THAT THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENCES OUT THERE IN THE 45 FACILITIES AND THE WAY THEY OPERATE.
UM, THE MECHANICAL PARTS ARE NOT ALL THE SAME ALL THE TIME.
UH, SO, SO THAT IS KIND OF AQUAS OPERATION IN A NUTSHELL.
UH, LOOKING TO HIRE 800 FOLKS LOOKING TO KEEP ALL OF OUR POOLS OPEN THAT HAVE BEEN, UH, IN OPERATION IN SOME INSTANCES FOR A HUNDRED YEARS CAN BE A DIFFICULT CHALLENGE.
UM, AND RIGHT NOW I'M TRYING TO FIND A DIVISION MANAGER WHO CAN STEP IN AND HELP, HELP MAKE THAT A REALITY AND OPEN OUR, OUR POOLS THIS SUMMER.
I'VE GOT A SPECIFIC QUESTION ABOUT ETT.
I KNOW THAT, THAT THE WELLS ARE NOT FILLING IN TIME AND PEOPLE WHO PLAN TO COME AND SWIM IN THE MORNING ARE HAVING TO WAIT UNTIL SOMETIMES I THINK ONE, ONE NOTE I GOT WAS 2:00 PM DO WE KNOW WHEN THAT IS GOING TO BE RESOLVED? UH, I WOULD SAY NOT AT THIS POINT.
A LITTLE BIT OF IT IS GETTING A DRILL COMPANY IN TO ASSIST US WITH RAISING LOWER THAN THE WELLS.
AND AGAIN, THE, THE WATER CAN BE WATER LEVEL OR TABLE CAN BE A LITTLE BIT OUT OF OUR CONTROL.
SO I, I DON'T WANT TO SAY IT'S GONNA BE KIND OF A HIT OR A MISSED THING, BUT WE, WE WON'T KNOW UNTIL WE GET IN AND, AND MAKE ADJUSTMENTS TO, UH, THE PUMPS.
AND WHEN ARE WE GONNA BE ABLE TO, IS IT GEO, IS THAT THE NAME OF THE COMPANY THAT WE'RE WAITING ON? THAT IS, THAT IS THE COMPANY.
UM, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE A FINAL DATE SET.
UM, I NEED TO CATCH UP WITH MY TEAM, UH, AFTER THE HOLIDAYS TO, TO SEE WHERE WE ARE ON THAT.
I KNOW THERE WAS DISCUSSIONS RIGHT BEFORE THE HOLIDAY BREAK ABOUT, UH, GETTING THEM IN THERE FOR THE PEOPLE THAT RELY ON THAT FOR THEIR WORKOUTS.
UM, IS THERE ANY NEWS ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO TO MAKE IT A LITTLE MORE RELIABLE IN THE MEANTIME? UM, I, I, I HONESTLY DON'T HAVE A, SO I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER OF HOW TO MAKE THE POOL MORE RELIABLE AT THIS POINT IN TIME.
I, I THINK I'VE BEEN, UH, PRETTY CLEAR THAT IT'S DEPENDENT UPON THE WATER TABLE.
UM, MAYBE YOU COULD CLARIFY A LITTLE BIT OR WE DO HAVE ALTERNATIVE POOLS, UH, OPERATE YEAR ROUND.
WELL, I THINK IT'S THE ONLY ONE THAT DOESN'T HAVE CHLORINE AND THERE'S SOME PEOPLE WITH CHLORINE ALLERGIES.
UM, I THINK THE BEST I CAN SAY IS THAT WE'RE DOING OUR BEST TO GET IT BACK UP TO, TO, UH, FULL SPEED.
UM, WE DO HAVE THE NATURAL POOL OVER AT BARTON SPRINGS.
I KNOW THAT THERE'S A DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE AND IT'S TECHNICALLY A SPRING RATHER THAN THE POOL.
UM, IS THERE A WAY TO GET INFORMATION OUT TO THE PUBLIC THEN IF THERE'S NOT GONNA BE A POOL, IT'S NOT GONNA BE FILLED TILL THE AFTERNOON? UM, SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE USING SOCIAL MEDIAS OUR, OUR BEST COMMUNICATION TOOL.
WE HAVE HAD SOME INSTANCES OF ELECTRICAL OUTAGES, UM, NOT, NOT IN THE POOL SPECIFICALLY, BUT WITHIN THE AREA WHICH DO IMPACT THE
[01:45:01]
PUMPS.SO THAT'S, THAT'S ONE ADDITIONAL FACTOR, UM, THAT IMPACTS THIS POOL SPECIFICALLY.
UH, I THINK WE'RE, WE'RE TRYING TO DO A BETTER JOB OF COMMUNICATING IT AT DEEP A OVERALL THAT, THAT THESE, THESE FACTORS THAT GO INTO OPERATING THIS POOL SPECIFICALLY ARE SOMEWHAT OUT OF OUR, OUR CONTROL AT TIMES.
UM, I, I DO THINK THE BEST WAY FOR US TO, TO COMMUNICATE ON A, ON A, I WANNA SAY INSTANTANEOUS BASIS TO HAVE THAT, CONTINUE TO HAVE THAT SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT.
I KNOW WE'RE EXPLORING SOME DIFFERENT TEXT OPTIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND I THINK YOU HAVE ACTUALLY SUGGESTED SOME ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF COMMUNICATION LIKE THAT.
MAYBE SIGNING UP WITH TEXT GROUPS.
UM, SO THAT'S, THAT'S SOMETHING ELSE WHERE WE COULD EXPLORE AS WELL.
CUZ I THINK THAT WOULD BE A SUPER IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR PEOPLE TO HAVE A RELIABLE PLACE THAT THEY COULD CHECK WITHOUT JUST CALLING.
CUZ SOMETIMES THE PHONE MAY NOT BE ANSWERED OR, YOU KNOW, THAT KIND OF THING.
SO, I'M SORRY, I DON'T MEAN TO BE THE MONOPOLIZER QUESTIONS.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? OKAY.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND WE'LL SEE.
[7. Staff briefing regarding the Land Management Planning for Austin Parks and Recreation Department Natural Areas, including progress updates and anticipated timeline. (SD23 Strategies: Health & Environment, Culture & Lifelong Learning, Safety; PARD Long Range Strategies: Relief from Urban Life, Operational Efficiency, Urban Public Spaces, Park Access for All)]
UM, GOING ON TO STAFF BRIEFING NUMBER SEVEN, WE'VE GOT A STAFF BRIEFING REGARDING THE LAND MANAGEMENT PLANNING FOR AUSTIN PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, NATURAL AREAS, INCLUDING PROGRESS UPDATES AND ANTICIPATED TIMELINE, UH, WITH PRESENTERS, MATT MCCA FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION PROGRAM, UH, THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION PROGRAM, MANAGER OF PARKS AND REC.IS HIS MIC ON? HOW'S THAT? BETTER
UM, THANKS FOR ALLOWING ME TO PRESENT, UH, THIS BRIEFING TO YOU THIS EVENING.
I'LL DO MY BEST TO KEEP IT QUICK.
I'M THE I LEAD, UH, PARS LAND MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.
UH, AND THIS, I'M JUST GONNA BE GIVING A QUICK BRIEFING PROGRESS REPORT, UM, STATUS UPDATE ON THE LAND MANAGEMENT PART, LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN, ALSO KNOWN AS THE, UH, CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT AND RECOMMENDED MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES.
UM, SO JUST FOR EVERYONE'S INFORMATION, THE NATURAL AREA IS AN AREA WITH NATURAL CHARACTER TYPICALLY DOMINATED BY NATIVE PLANTS AND ANIMALS.
THESE ARE, UM, GREEN BELTS, NATURE PRESERVES, ET CETERA.
UH, THE MAJORITY OF PARS, ROUGHLY 17,000 ACRE PORTFOLIO AS DESIGNATED AS NATURAL AREAS IN SOME KIND.
UH, SO THE CHART UP THERE, ABOUT 74%, MORE OR LESS OF PARS TOTAL PORTFOLIO IS, IS DESIGNATED AS NATURAL AREAS.
UH, THESE NATURAL AREAS PROVIDE CRITICAL ECOSYSTEM SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY, UH, SUCH AS MENTAL HEALTH BENEFITS, SOCIAL WELLBEING, CLIMATE REGULATION, CLEAN AIR AND WATER.
UH, HOWEVER, MOST HAVE NOT BEEN MANAGED, UH, TO MAINTAIN ECOSYSTEM HEALTH.
SO ALL THOSE 74% ROUGHLY, UH, OF OUR PORTFOLIO IS NATURAL AREAS.
ONLY ABOUT 0.2% OF OUR BUDGET IS DEDICATED TOWARD NATURAL AREAS MANAGEMENT.
UH, THIS IS LED OVER TIME TO VARIOUS TYPES OF DEGRADATION, UH, WHICH MAKES THEM VULNERABLE TO, UM, STRESSORS AND THREATS SUCH AS HEAT, DROUGHT, DISEASE, ULTIMATELY WILDFIRE, UM, AND THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE RESTORATION.
AND, UM, MANAGEMENT OF PART NATURAL AREAS HAS LONG BEEN RECOGNIZED BY THE COMMUNITY AND PROFESSIONALS.
SO, ALL OF THIS, UH, HAS LED UP TO, IN 2019, UH, THERE WAS A WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS AUDIT, WHICH ASSESSED, UH, THE CITY'S, UH, CAPACITY REALLY TO PREPARE FOR AND MITIGATE WILDFIRE RISK.
UM, THAT AUDIT, UH, THERE WERE FOUR FINDINGS.
ONE OF THEM WAS PARTICULAR PART, UM, THE AUDIT, UH, FOUND THAT RECOMMENDED THAT, UH, WELL, IT, IT FOUND THAT PARD REALLY HAD INSUFFICIENT CAPACITY TO MITIGATE WILDFIRE RISK, UM, IN PARKLANDS.
AND SO ONE OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS WAS THAT PAR CREATE AND IMPLEMENT LAND MANAGEMENT PLANS WITH A PRIORITY ON, UH, WHAT WE'RE REFERRED TO AS HIGH RISK PROPERTIES.
IN RESPONSE, UH, PARD UH, AGREED TO CREATE A LAND MANAGEMENT PROGRAM TO DO THIS.
SO, UH, I'M NOW THE MANAGER OF THAT PROGRAM, AND I'M PLEASED TO PRESENT TO YOU, UM, ONE OF THE MAIN DELIVERABLES FROM THAT AUDIT, WHICH IS, UH, A LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN, UH, TO ADDRESS THESE RISKS, UM, BEYOND THE WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS AUDIT, UH, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THIS PLAN WILL HELP GUIDE THE DEPARTMENT IN ACHIEVING
[01:50:01]
MANY GOALS, UH, RELATED TO PARKS, MASTER PLANS, VISION PLANS, ALSO THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN AS WELL.THERE ARE SEVERAL GOALS IN THE, UH, NATURAL SYSTEMS, UH, SECTION OF THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN.
UH, THAT, THAT THIS LAND PART LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN WILL HELP US ADVANCE.
UH, JUST THE TIMELINE ON THE PROJECT.
UM, SO WE BACK IN, UH, FEBRUARY 21, UH, WE PUBLISHED AN RFP TO HIRE A CONSULTING TEAM TO DEVELOP THE PLAN WITH GUIDANCE FROM STAFF.
UH, WE DIDN'T GET GREAT PROPOSALS, AND SO WE WENT BACK OUT FOR A REBID IN JULY.
WE, UH, AWARDED, UM, AWARDED A CONTRACT IN, UH, OCTOBER OF 21.
KICKED OFF THE PROJECT IN JANUARY 22.
UH, THE CONTRACTOR HAS BEEN HARD AT WORK EVER SINCE.
UH, OVER THE SUMMER AND FALL AND PROBABLY CONTINUING INTO THIS WINTER, WE, UH, REACHED OUT TO, UH, OVER 30 STAKEHOLDER GROUPS.
UM, UH, WE ANTICIPATE A FINAL DRAFT EARLY IN CALENDAR 23, UH, AT WHICH TIME WE WILL COME BACK THROUGH THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS PROCESS AND ULTIMATELY SEEK, UH, AN APPROVAL FROM COUNCIL TO IMPLEMENT IT.
UH, JUST TO, TO EXPAND A BIT ON THE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT.
SO THERE'S BEEN SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT BEFORE, DURING, BEFORE AND DURING PLAN DEVELOPMENT.
AND, AND THERE WILL CONTINUE TO BE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT, UH, AFTER THE PLAN IS COMPLETE AND APPROVED AND WHILE IT'S BEING IMPLEMENTED.
SO BEFORE, UH, THE PLAN WAS DEVELOPED, UM, WE'RE DRAWING STRONGLY ON, UH, ALL OF THE PUBLIC INPUT, UH, THAT WENT INTO VARIOUS, UH, PARKS, MASTER PLANS OR VISION PLANS THAT THIS, THAT WE OVERLAP WITH.
UM, THE PART LONG RANGE PLAN, UH, THE CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN.
ALL OF THESE INITIATIVES, UH, PROVIDE STRONG PUBLIC GUIDANCE FOR, UM, FOR WHAT THE COMMUNITY NEEDS THIS TO BE.
UM, THE WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS AUDIT AGAIN, UH, WAS, WAS AN INITIATIVE OF THE, THE CITY AUDITOR AND, AND CITY COUNCIL.
UH, WE'VE ALSO PRESENTED TO THIS FINE BODY, AND WE'LL TAKE IT THROUGH CITY COUNCIL AS WELL.
UM, DURING THE PLAN, AS I MENTIONED, WE'VE REACHED OUT TO OVER 30 STAKEHOLDER GROUPS.
UM, THESE ARE, YOU KNOW, ALL OF 'EM THAT WOULD SHOW UP ESSENTIALLY.
SO PARTS, FOUNDATION, PARTNER GROUPS ADOPT A PART, GROUPS, FRIENDS GROUPS, CONSERVANCIES, ET CETERA.
UM, AND WE'VE BEEN WORKING INTERNALLY WITHIN, UH, WITH KEY CITY STAFF IN PART AND OTHER IMPORTANT, UH, OTHER DEPARTMENTS AS WELL.
AFTER THE PLAN IS APPROVED, AND WHILE WE'RE IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN, WHICH WILL REALLY, I SAY IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN, WE, THIS WILL BE REALLY HOW WE MANAGE PART NATURAL AREAS ONGOING.
UM, IT'S, IT'S REALLY NOT A, IT'S NOT SOMETHING YOU START AND STOP.
UH, SO WE WILL CONTINUE ENGAGE WITH KEY STAKEHOLDER GROUPS, NEIGHBORS, UM, VOLUNTEER GROUPS, UM, IN ORDER TO PRIORITIZE PLAN PROJECTS, INVOLVE VOLUNTEERS AND SCHEDULE PROJECTS.
SO ON THE PLAN ITSELF, UH, THE COMPONENTS OF THE PLAN, UH, AND UP, UP THERE IN RED, YOU SEE BASICALLY, UM, THE DEGREES OF COMPLETION WHERE WE ARE.
SO THE SITE ANALYSIS IS COMPLETE.
UM, SO THAT IS BASIC, UH, SORT OF BIOPHYSICAL ELEMENTS OF NATURAL AREAS, SOILS, HYDROLOGY, EXISTING VEGETATION, UM, DEGREES OF DEGRADATION, FOR EXAMPLE.
UH, THE NEXT ELEMENT, UM, THIS IS SOMETHING TO OUR KNOWLEDGE THAT HAS NEVER BEEN DONE.
IT'S A CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ANALYSIS.
AND, AND SO THE ULTIMATE GOAL WITH THE CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ANALYSIS IS TO GIVE US A QUANTITATIVE WAY TO ASSESS CLIMATE VULNERABILITY WITH RESPECT TO NATURAL AREAS.
IN, IN THIS BUSINESS, WE SPEAK OF RESILIENCY AND VULNERABILITY, KIND OF IN ABSTRACT TERMS, BUT IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO REDUCE VULNERABILITY AND IMPROVE RESILIENCY IF YOU CAN'T PUT A NUMBER ON IT AND MEASURE PROGRESS.
SO THIS IS WHAT THIS IS ALLOWING US TO DO.
ULTIMATELY, IT WILL PRODUCE A MAP OF CLIMATE VULNERABILITY OF NATURAL AREAS, AND WE'LL USE IT TO HELP PRIORITIZE WORK.
WE'LL DEVELOP MANAGEMENT GOALS, WHICH ARE, UH, VEGETATION TYPES THAT ARE EXPECTED TO BE THE MOST RESILIENT, NOT JUST NOW, BUT IN THE COMING DECADES AS CLIMATE CHANGE PROGRESSES.
RESTORATION STRATEGIES, THIS IS OUR ROUGHLY, ESSENTIALLY OUR TOOLBOX OF STRATEGIES THAT WE CAN USE, UH, WHEN AND WHERE APPROPRIATE, UM, TO RESTORE ECOSYSTEMS AND IMPROVE RESILIENCY.
AND THEN A ROUGH MONITORING DESI DESIGN TO HELP US, UM, ASSESS PROGRESS.
WE CALL IT A 10 YEAR DOCUMENT WITH A 50 YEAR HORIZON.
SO THE DOCUMENT ITSELF, GENERALLY THESE
[01:55:01]
SORTS OF DOCUMENTS TEND TO GET MAJOR UPDATES ABOUT EVERY 10 YEARS.UM, HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE NATURE OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND BECAUSE OF, UH, THE TIME SCALE ACROSS WHICH IT TAKES TO, TO SIGNIFICANTLY RESTORE ECOSYSTEMS, WE REALLY DO NEED TO BE REALLY PLANNING AHEAD 30 TO 50 YEARS, ESSENTIALLY.
UH, THIS, SO WHAT IMPLEMENTATION IS LIKELY TO LOOK LIKE? SO OUR KEY STRATEGIES THERE ON THE LEFT, SO WORKING TO IMPROVE WOOD, IMPROVE WOODLAND HEALTH.
UH, THE GOAL THERE WOULD BE TO REDUCE DENSITY, REDUCE COMPETITION, REDUCE FUEL LOADING, INCREASE DIVERSITY, UH, RESTORE, UH, INCREASE RESOURCE AVAILABILITY, AND IMPROVE SIGHT LINES FOR USER SAFETY.
PRESCRIBED FIRE IS AN IMPORTANT TOOL WHERE APPROPRIATE, I SHOULD SAY, UM, IT CAN DRAMATICALLY IMPROVE DIVERSITY, REDUCE FUEL LOADING, AND INTERESTINGLY, UH, IT CAN BE, UM, IT CAN DRAMATICALLY REDUCE RESTORATION COST WHEN PAIRED WITH OTHER STRATEGIES.
INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT, EVERYONE LOVES TO HATE LATUM SEEDING AND PLANTING TO FURTHER, UH, PUSH THAT DIVERSITY IMPROVEMENT GRASSLAND RESTORATION WHILE WHERE APPROPRIATE.
THE MAP THERE, UH, I'LL EXPLAIN IT A LITTLE BIT.
THE GREEN AND THE BROWN IS ALL BASICALLY ALL AUSTIN NATURAL AREAS.
ALL OF THE LAND THAT AUSTIN HAS SPENT MONEY ON TO PROTECT THE GREEN IS WHERE ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION HAS HAPPENED.
AND THE PINK IS A MAP OF SOCIAL VULNERABILITY INDEX.
UH, THAT IS, IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH IT, IT SOCIAL VULNERABILITY INDEX USES ABOUT A COUPLE OF DOZEN SOCIOECONOMIC INDICATORS IN ORDER TO ASSESS A COMMUNITY'S CAPACITY TO RECOVER FROM SOME SORT OF DISASTER.
THE DARK PINK IS HIGH SOCIAL VULNERABILITY, AND THE LIGHTER PINK IS LOW SOCIAL VULNERABILITY.
SO THERE'S A COUPLE OF FIRSTS THAT I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT IN THIS PLAN.
THE FIRST IS, ONE I ALREADY MENTIONED IS DEVELOPING A, A QUANTITATIVE CLIMATE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENT.
THIS WILL ALLOW US TO MAP NATURAL AREAS THAT ARE MOST VULNERABLE TO CLIMATE, UM, DRIVERS DISASTERS, ESSENTIALLY.
THE SECOND, FIRST IS USING SOCIAL VULNERABILITY INDEX OR SOMETHING LIKE IT PROACTIVELY IN ORDER TO HELP PRIORITIZE WHERE RESTORATION WORK HAPPENS.
SO WE'RE IDENTIFYING WHERE NATURAL AREAS ARE VULNERABLE, WHERE HUMAN COMMUNITIES ARE VULNERABLE, AND WE'RE PUTTING THOSE TOGETHER AND USING THAT TO HELP PRIORITIZE, UM, WHERE OUR LIMITED RESOURCES ARE DIRECTED.
NOT REQUESTING ANY, UH, ACTION FROM YOU TODAY.
HOWEVER, WE DO ANTICIPATE COMING BACK TO YOU EARLY NEXT CALENDAR YEAR WITH A RECOMMENDATION TO, UM, APPROVE, RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL TO APPROVE, UH, AND IMPLEMENT, UH, THE LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION AND FOR THAT WORK.
ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? UM, OH, GO AHEAD.
BOARD MEMBER, MORE FISCAL IMPACT ANTICIPATED FOR THIS, IS THIS BASICALLY A PRIORITIZATION DOCUMENT? SO WITHIN EXISTING RESOURCES AND VOLUNTEER CAPACITY, WE PURSUE WHAT'S IN THIS PLAN? OR IS THERE GOING TO BE ADDITIONAL STAFF NEEDED TO TAKE THIS ON? YES, THERE, THERE WILL BE, UH, BUDGET REQUESTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS.
I DON'T THINK I, AND THAT'LL BE A SEPARATE PRESENTATION THAT'LL BE PART OF THE PARKS DEPARTMENT ON UNMET NEED PROCESS, I ASSUME, LIKE WHEN WILL WE HEAR ABOUT THIS PART? PART? YEAH, ANY, ANY KIND OF BUDGET REQUEST THAT WOULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PLAN WOULD GO THROUGH THE TYPICAL BUDGET DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
SO IT WOULD BE, UM, IT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED ALONG WITH THE OTHER NEEDS OF THE DEPARTMENT.
BOARD MEMBER LEWIS? UM, NO, I JUST WANTED TO SAY, UM, THIS LOOKS GREAT AND I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE, THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE, AND I HOPE THAT THERE IS A, UM, AN EDUCATION COMPONENT TO IT SO THAT PEOPLE CAN, THE COMMUNITY CAN LEARN FROM WHAT YOU'RE DOING AND, UM, DEVELOP AN UNDERSTANDING AND, AND MAYBE WHERE THERE ARE POSSIBILITIES FOR STRATEGIES THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE, OTHER PEOPLE COULD USE IT AS WELL FROM WHAT YOU, THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE.
ANY FURTHER COMMENTS? UM, BOARD, UH, VICE CHAIR FAST.
IT SOUNDS LIKE SOME REALLY INNOVATIVE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.
UM, I WAS A LITTLE BIT CONFUSED.
I JUST WANNA CLARIFY THE SUPPLIES TO PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT NATURAL AREAS.
[02:00:01]
MEAN THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO WATER QUALITY PROTECTION LANDS? THAT'S CORRECT.UM, AND THEN MY SORT OF COMMENT WAS I DID NOT SEE ON THE, AND I MIGHT HAVE MISSED IT, UM, ON THE PRIORITIES PAGE, UM, YOU NOTED PRESCRIBED FIRES WHERE APPROPRIATE.
SO I APPRECIATE THAT ADDITION THAT YOU ADDED, BUT I DID NOT SEE AS A PRIORITY, UM, LIKE DEVELOPMENT OF ENDANGERED SPECIES HABITAT DEVELOPMENT WITHIN ENDANGERED SPECIES, MANAGE WELL, MANAGING THE LANDS TO PROVIDE HABITAT FOR ENDANGERED SPECIES WHERE APPROPRIATE SORT OF, YOU KNOW, THAT YOUR MANAGEMENT PRIORITIES ARE NURTURING OR MAKING THAT LAND AVAILABLE AS HABITAT, RIGHT? YEAH, THIS IS A, THIS IS A SHORT BRIEFING, SO WE CAN INCLUDE EVERYTHING.
I CAN SAY ROUGHLY 3000 ACRES OF PARK LAND IS CURRENTLY, UH, INCLUDED IN THE BALCONIES, CANYON LANDS PRESERVE.
SO THAT LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN, UM, ALREADY, UH, DIRECTS OUR MANAGEMENT FOR WHAT USED TO BE EIGHT ENDANGERED SPECIES IN 20 SOMETHING SPECIES OF CONCERN.
SO THIS WILL NOT CHANGE THE STRUCTURE OR NATURE OF THE BCP OR THEIR LAND MANAGEMENT PLANS AT ALL.
SO ALL OF THAT REMAINS INTACT.
UM, IF THERE ARE OTHER, UM, IF WE DO HAVE OTHER HABITATS THAT ARE POTENTIAL, UH, HABITAT FOR OTHER ENDANGERED SPECIES, THEN, THEN THAT WOULD COME OUT OF, THAT WOULD, WOULD COME OUT OF THE SITE ANALYSIS.
BUT CURRENTLY I'M NOT AWARE OF ANY, UH, SIGNIFICANT AREAS OF PARKLAND THAT ARE IDENTIFIED AS POTENTIAL HABITAT FOR OTHER ENDANGERED SPECIES THAT ARE NOT ALREADY COVERED IN THE BALCONES CANYON LANDS CONSERVATION PLAN.
I GUESS I WAS THINKING THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE MIGHT BE BCP SPECIES THAT WE COULD STILL MANAGE TO DEVELOP ADDITIONAL HABIT HABITAT FOR ON PARK MANAGE PARKS, DEPARTMENT MANAGE LANDS, IF THAT ALIGNED WITH THE OTHER, YOU KNOW, PRIORITIES.
I, I THINK, UM, YEAH, I'M, I I THINK ONE EXAMPLE MIGHT BE GOLDEN.
SHE WARBLERS AT MAYFIELD PRESERVE, FOR EXAMPLE.
SO THE VEGETATION TYPE, UM, FITS THE DESCRIPTION, BUT I DON'T THINK WE'VE HAD RESIDENT POPULATIONS OF GOLDEN SHE WARBLERS THERE.
UM, SO I, I THINK THERE'S DEFINITELY OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THAT POTENTIAL HABITAT.
ANY FURTHER COMMENT? ALL RIGHT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
WE'LL LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING NEXT TIME.
[8. Staff briefing on Parks and Recreation Department community engagement events, planning updates, development updates, maintenance updates, program updates and administrative updates. (SD23 Strategies: Health & Environment, Culture & Lifelong Leaning; PARD Long Range Strategies: Relief from Urban Life, Urban Public Spaces, Park Access for All)]
ON TO STAFF BRIEFINGS, UH, EIGHT STAFF BRIEFING ON PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EVENTS, PLANNING UPDATES, DEVELOPMENT UPDATES, MAINTENANCE UPDATES, PROGRAM UPDATES, AND ADMINISTRATIVE UPDATES.UM, DIRECTOR MCNELEY, OKAY, IN, IN YOUR BACKUP, THERE'S A 29 PAGE, UM, LIST OF IMPORTANT THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN HAPPENING IN THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT OVER THE PAST MONTH, BUT I'M NOT GOING TO READ THEM ALL TO YOU.
ON PAGE ONE, THERE IS INFORMATION ABOUT THE ZILKER PARK VISION PLAN AND THE FACT THAT THERE IS STILL OPPORTUNITY FOR ADDITIONAL, UM, FEEDBACK, UH, ON THE PLAN.
AND THERE ARE A COUPLE OF MEETINGS, VIRTUAL AND ALSO IN PERSON THAT ARE HAPPENING BETWEEN NOW AND JANUARY 8TH.
ON PAGE THREE, THERE'S INFORMATION, UH, THAT WILL, UH, TELL, TELLS YOU ABOUT PARKLAND THAT WE ARE PURCHASING OR THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PURCHASE WITH COUNCIL APPROVAL.
THAT WILL BE BEFORE COUNCIL ON DECEMBER 8TH.
IF YOU FAST FORWARD TO PAGE EIGHT, UM, I WANTED TO JUST LET YOU KNOW THAT THERE HAD BEEN SOME CONVERSATIONS.
I KNOW THERE'S A WORKING GROUP THAT IS TALKING ABOUT SAFETY AND SECURITY WITHIN THE PARKS, AND I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT, UH, WE DID ADD SOME SECURITY CAMERAS AT GIBBONS RECREATION CENTER.
FAST FORWARD TO PAGE 13, PLEASE KNOW THAT OUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, THE DOLO STUFFY RECREATION CENTER, RECEIVED THE LONE STAR PROGRAMMING AWARD FROM THE TEXAS RECREATION AND PARK SOCIETY FROM THE CENTRAL REGION.
AND IT WAS BASED UPON, UH, A PROGRAM CALLED THE FESTIVAL OF TREES THAT WAS THEMED, A CHRISTMAS THEMED EVENT THAT WAS HELD ALONG BOGGY CREEK AND, UM, ALLOWED INDIVIDUALS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY TO ENJOY DECORATED TREES.
SPEAKING OF TREES, UM, SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ATTEND THE ZEER TREE LIGHTING YESTERDAY, BUT IF YOU WERE UNABLE TO, PLEASE KNOW, THE TREE WILL BE LIT UP NIGHTLY BETWEEN NOW AND JUNE 1ST.
AND ALSO, PLEASE KNOW IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE TRAIL OF LIGHTS, UH, THAT, UH, GRAND OPENING IS SCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 8TH, AND WE'LL GO THROUGH
[02:05:01]
DECEMBER 23RD.I BELIEVE THAT MONDAYS ARE THEIR DAY OFF THIS YEAR.
UM, BUT I WOULD HAVE TO LOOK AT THE WEBSITE.
SO BEFORE YOU VENTURE OUT ON A MONDAY, PLEASE CHECK THE WEBSITE.
UM, PLEASE KNOW THAT ON PAGE 21, WE'VE PROVIDED YOU INFORMATION ABOUT HANCOCK.
SOME OF YOU WILL RECALL THAT THERE WAS LOTS OF CONVERSATION ABOUT THE GOLF COURSE AND SHOULD IT BE A PARK AND SHOULD IT BE A GOLF COURSE.
AND, UM, LUCAS MASSEY WAS ABLE TO WORK WITH BOTH THE GOLF COMMUNITY AND THE, UH, RECREATION COMMUNITY.
AND THEY WERE ABLE TO HOST, UH, NOT ONLY IT'S MY PARK DAY, BUT ALSO AN EVENT, UH, AT HANCOCK WHERE, UM, PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO ENJOY THE SPACE, SPACE BOTH AS A GOLF COURSE, BUT ALSO AS A, A PARK FOR THAT PARTICULAR DAY.
UM, THE DEPARTMENT ALSO WON, UH, THROUGH PRESERVATION AUSTIN, UH, WHICH IS THE CITY'S LEADING HISTORIC PRESERVATION NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION.
THE DEPARTMENT WAS, UM, AWARDED FOUR SEPARATE AWARDS, ONE FOR DOWNS FIELD RESTORATION, UH, ONE FOR THE HASKELL HOUSE RESTORATION, AND TWO PROGRAMMING AWARDS, ONE FOR OAKWOOD CEMETERY IN PARK KOSA.
YOU CAN READ MORE ABOUT THAT ON PAGE 25.
JUST, UM, A NOTE OF INTEREST, OUR YOUTH SPORTS ORGANIZATION, UM, IN FISCAL YEAR 21, 22, AFTER A LONG HIATUS OF NOT BEING ABLE TO PLAY, UH, OVER 26,000 YOUTH PARTICIPATED, UH, AS PLAYING IN SPORTS ON CITY PARKLAND.
ON PAGE 28, THERE'S INFORMATION ABOUT ANOTHER HONOR THAT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT WAS, UM, GIVEN, AND IT, WHAT WE WERE SELECTED AS A TEXAN BY NATURE, UM, 20, UH, HONOREE.
AND WE RECEIVED AN AWARD ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT.
UM, WE RECEIVED AN AWARD FOR THAT.
AND THEN ALSO, IF YOU JUST WERE INTERESTED IN UNDERSTANDING A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT OUR BOND PROGRAM, I KNOW SOMETIMES THOSE QUESTIONS COME UP ON PAGE 28 AND 29.
THERE'S INFORMATION ABOUT HOW, UH, BOND FUNDING WAS EXPENDED STARTING FROM 2018 THROUGH, THROUGH TODAY.
AND TWO PRESENTATIONS WERE GIVEN BY, UM, LI AND HER TEAM TO THE BOND ADVISORY TASK FORCE, NO COMMISSION, I'M SORRY, THE BOND, THE BOND ADVISORY COMMISSION, UM, REGARDING, UH, THE EXPENDITURES AND THEN THE REST OF THE REPORT YOU COULDN'T READ AT YOUR LEISURE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH AND CONGRATULATIONS TO THE DEPARTMENT ON THEIR HONORS.
I'M SORRY, MAY I JUST ADD ONE THING? I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF INTEREST ALSO IN INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, AND PLEASE KNOW THAT WE DID, UH, A MAJOR ENCAMPMENT CLEANUP, UH, AT GUS GARCIA RECREATION CENTER.
AND WE WERE ABLE TO, OBVIOUSLY WITH OUR PARTNERS, NOT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT ALONE, BUT WE WERE ABLE TO, AND WE'RE STILL CLEANING UP THE SPACE, BUT THE INDIVIDUALS THAT WERE THERE ALSO COMBINED WITH INDIVIDUALS THAT WERE LIVING, UH, NEAR THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER, WERE ABLE TO RECEIVE HOUSING.
AND IF I COULD JUST GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO TAMIKA BATEMAN, WHO IS HERE FROM, UM, GUST GARCIA RECREATION CENTER, SHE, UH, EXPRESSED THAT SHE JUST, I HAVE TO CONFESS, I WENT OVER AND SAID, I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WANNA SPEND YOUR MONEY MONDAY NIGHT HERE LIKE THIS.
AND SHE SAID, I ABSOLUTELY DO.
SHE SAYS, I'M JUST REALLY INTERESTED IN HOW EVERYTHING WORKS.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S REALLY COOL.
AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE HER A SHOUT OUT.
AND SHE'S THE CENTER DIRECTOR AT COST GARCIA RECREATION CENTER.
SO BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS WHO IS ON, UM, ON THE SCREEN.
SHE WOULD BE THE BOARD MEMBER THAT REPRESENTS DISTRICT FOUR, SO YAY FOR TAMIKA.
ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? OKAY.
THEN LET'S MOVE ALONG TO OUR, UM, THANK YOU.
AND I REALLY DID APPRECIATE HAVING THAT, UH, THE BOND UPDATE AT THE END.
I'M GONNA SPARE YOU MY UPDATE FROM SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT ADVISORY BOARD SINCE WE JUST HAD A LITTLE DISCUSSION ABOUT THAT.
SO, UM, WE WILL HEAR MORE AFTER THE DECEMBER 1ST READING AT THE CITY COUNCIL.
[10. Update from Downtown Commission.]
TO NUMBER 10, UPDATE FROM THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION BOARD MEMBER.TAYLOR, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY? ARE YOU STILL THERE? I AM SORRY ABOUT THAT.
UM, ACTUALLY THEY CANCELED THE MEETING, SO WE DIDN'T HAVE A MEETING, SO I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH NAME.
UM, UPDATE FROM JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE AND, UH, DALMA, MR. DAL'S NOT HERE TONIGHT.
[12. Update from Zilker Park Vision Plan Working Group.]
FROM THE ZILKER PARK VISION PLAN WORKING GROUP.UM, DO WE HAVE A REPORT FROM LOUIS DALMA F TAYLOR? DOES ANYBODY HAVE A COMMENT? I, UM, WE HAVE, I DON'T BELIEVE WE'VE MET SINCE THE OCTOBER PARKS BOARD MEETING, UM, BUT WE DID MEET, HAVE A VERY LONG MEETING IN SEPTEMBER TO TALK ABOUT THE, OR MAYBE IT'S EARLY OCTOBER, BUT TO TALK ABOUT THE RELEASE OF THE ZILKER PARK VISION PLAN.
AND IN THAT MEETING I REQUESTED, UM, A BRIEFING ON THIS AGENDA ON THE COMMUNITY INPUT
[02:10:01]
PLAN FOR THEILER PARK VISION PLAN.UM, I JUST, YOU KNOW, REQUESTED THAT OF THE STAFF AND THE CONTRACTORS AND THEY, IT'S CLEARLY NOT ON THE AGENDA, SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THAT UPDATE.
AND THEN WHEN WE GET TO FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, I WILL ADDRESS THIS AGAIN.
[13. Update from Crime and Law Enforcement in Parks Working Group.]
UPDATE FROM CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE PARKS WORKING GROUP.WE, UM, HAVE BEEN MEETING, I THINK WE, WE PLAN TO HAVE A, A RECOMMENDATION IN JANUARY.
AND SO WE'VE JUST BEEN GETTING SOME, UM, INPUT FROM DIFFERENT PEOPLE, DIFFERENT, UH, WE'VE HEARD FROM PARK RANGERS POLICE, UM, CONSTABLE TRAVIS, UH, ANGUS, WHO DID A FABULOUS JOB.
SO WE ARE DEFINITELY, UM, I FEEL LIKE WE'VE GOTTEN A GOOD BIT OF INPUT AND NOW WE'RE, UM, IN THE PROCESS OF TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE OUTPUT.
SO HOPEFULLY WE WILL HEAR BACK FROM US IN JANUARY WITH OUR RECOMMENDATIONS.
[14. Update from the Homelessness Working Group.]
UPDATE FROM THE HOMELESSNESS WORKING GROUP BOARD MEMBER HOMAN.UM, SEVERAL OF US ARE GOING TO DO A TOUR OF HAVEN FOR HOPE ON FRIDAY IN SAN ANTONIO AS WE, UM, JUST LOOK AT SOLUTIONS FOR AUSTIN.
SO, AND I'VE BEEN TALKING WITH BOARD MEMBER HOMAN, UM, THIS, THIS WORKING GROUP HAS TAKEN ON A LIFE OF ITS OWN AND SO WE'RE GONNA WORK ON PERHAPS SPINNING IT OFF INTO SOMETHING BEYOND A WORKING GROUP.
SO MAYBE AT SOME POINT WE'LL HAVE A REPORT AND THEN WE WILL MOVE ON FROM THERE.
UM, UPDATE FROM THE AQUATICS WORKING GROUP.
WE HAVE THAT MET AGAIN SINCE THEN.
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
UM, FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. SO I KNOW THAT VICE CHAIR FAUST SAID SHE HAD SOMETHING THAT SHE WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP.ARE YOU STILL THERE, SARAH? YES.
UM, I WANTED TO REQUEST AN AGENDA ITEM THAT WOULD PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE JOB SLIPPER PARK VISION PLAN, BUT TO ADDRESS SOME SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.
SO THE FEEDBACK THAT I'VE BEEN RECEIVING JUST FROM THE COMMUNITY IS THAT THE JOB VISION PLAN IS OUT, THERE'S A PROCESS FOR SORT OF GIVING COMMONS, UM, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THE PLAN.
I THINK THERE'S A SURVEY, THERE IS A LIST OF LIKE A BUNCH OF POPUP EVENTS THAT ARE GONNA HAPPEN IN DECEMBER.
THERE'S THE VIRTUAL MEETING, THERE'S THE IN-PERSON MEETING AT THE MACBETH RECREATION CENTER ON DECEMBER 10TH.
UM, BUT IT'S NOT CLEAR TO ME OR TO THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE ASKED ME HOW ANY OF THAT FEEDBACK WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE DRAFT PLAN.
UM, WILL THE CONSULTANTS AND THE STAFF GO BACK AFTER ALL OF THOSE OPPORTUNITIES AND THAT INFORMATION HAS BEEN COLLECTED AND SORT OF, YOU KNOW, TAKE IT INTO ACCOUNT AND MODIFY ANY OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, WILL, HOW WILL THAT INFORMATION BE PRESENTED TO THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS? UM, AND LIKE ONE OF THE SPECIFIC THINGS WE HEARD ABOUT ON THE FIRST PART OF THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOR THE JOB VISION PLAN WAS THAT THERE WAS A LOT OF POPUP EVENTS, BUT NO, UM, NO ACTUAL FEEDBACK WAS RECORDED AS COMING FROM THAT LOCATION.
SO IF YOU GO TO, UH, A COMMUNITY THAT'S NOT NEAR WIL PARK, AND WE, THEY WERE GOING ALL OVER AUSTIN, WHICH WAS GREAT, BUT WE DIDN'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THE THOUGHTS WERE FROM THESE PEOP FROM, YOU KNOW, THESE DIFFERENT AREAS SO THAT WE COULD INCORPORATE THAT.
SO, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A QUESTION I HAVE.
HOW IS, HOW ARE THESE POPUP, HOW IS THE INFOR THE FEEDBACK THAT YOU GET GONNA BE RECORDED? UM, NOW THAT WE'RE AT THE DRAFT PLAN STAGE, IS IT GONNA BE THE SAME PROCESS WHERE YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A POPUP BUT JUST GIVE PEOPLE A LINK AND WE'RE NOT GONNA KNOW LIKE, WHAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT PEOPLE AT THE SPECIFIC AREA THEIR CONCERNS ARE? CUZ UM, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT A COUPLE OF THINGS.
ONE, IF WE'RE ASKING PEOPLE TO SPEND THEIR TIME AND ENERGY ON THIS, THAT WE ARE HAVE A METHOD FOR ACTUALLY USING THE INFORMATION THEY'RE GONNA GIVE US.
AND I, RIGHT NOW, I CAN'T EXPLAIN THAT TO PEOPLE BECAUSE WHAT I'VE SEEN, AND I READ THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN, I READ EVERYTHING.
WHAT I'VE SEEN IS LIKE, TAKE THE SURVEY, GIVE YOUR FEEDBACK, COMES TO A POP UP, COME TO A MEETING, AND THEN IT'S GONNA, YOU KNOW, GO ONTO THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS.
AND SO IT DOESN'T, I DON'T, IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO ME RIGHT NOW.
I'M SURE THERE'S A PLAN, I JUST DUNNO WHAT IT IS.
[02:15:01]
SO I'M HOPEFUL THAT MAYBE WE COULD GET A BRIEFING THAT DESCRIBES SPECIFICALLY THE PLAN AT THIS POINT.IT WOULD BE IN JANUARY AND IT'S AFTER THE FACT, UM, OF ALL THESE POPUPS.
BUT, UM, I DO THINK THAT WE NEED SOME MORE INFORMATION AND SOME TRANSPARENCY ABOUT WHAT THIS FULL PROCESS IS IN ORDER TO GET AS MANY PEOPLE TO GIVE THEIR FEEDBACK AS POSSIBLE AND TO REALLY FEEL LIKE IT'S GONNA BE VALUED.
SO IF ANYONE ELSE IS INTERESTED IN THIS, AND THIS ISN'T ON THE MERITS OF THE PLAN, LIKE I'M SAYING, THIS IS REALLY JUST THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOR THIS SPACE.
AND IF ANYONE ELSE IS INTERESTED IN THIS, UM, AND COULD SECONDLY REQUEST, I, I WOULD LIKE TO SECOND THAT AND I WOULD ACTUALLY LIKE TO ASK FOR, MAYBE WE COULD REACH OUT TO THE DESIGN GROUP TO GET AN ANSWER TO SOME OF THAT THIS AS THIS IS GOING ON, IF WE COULD GET SOME INFORMATION FROM THEM AS A MEMO ONLINE THAT WE COULD GET AN EMAIL FROM THEM SO THAT WE HAVE SOME OF THESE ANSWERS.
BECAUSE IF WE WAIT TILL JANUARY, LIKE SHE SAID, IT'S GONNA BE DONE.
SO I THINK THAT MAYBE ASKING, UM, THAT THE DESIGN GROUP PEOPLE OR WHOEVER'S ASSOCIATED WITH THAT COULD GIVE US SOME ANSWERS ABOUT HOW THEY'RE COLLECTING THAT INFORMATION AND, AND AND INCORPORATING THAT.
IS THAT POSSIBLE? IT'D BE POSSIBLE.
AND I WAS JUST WONDERING WHETHER THE WORKING GROUP WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ANOTHER MEETING WITH OUR TEAM AND GET SOME DIRECT INFORMATION FROM, UM, OUR STAFF AND THE DESIGN GROUP.
I WAS GONNA SAY, IF YOU CAN DO THE MEMO AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THEN WE CAN HAVE A MEETING IF THAT'S APPROPRIATE.
BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAD A WORKING GROUP MEETING AND THEY TOLD ME WHAT THE PLAN WAS AND I SAID, WELL, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF WE COULD GET THIS BEFORE THE PARKS BOARD AND GET EVERYBODY'S LAY OUT THE PLAN AND, YOU KNOW, NOBODY WOULD DO THAT.
SO YOU'RE, YOU'RE OFFERING WHAT WE'VE ALREADY DONE IF THEY CAN DO, WHICH WASN'T SUFFICIENT.
SO IF THEY CAN DO THE MEMO AND THEN YEAH, WE CAN, UM, HAVE A WORKING GROUP MEETING.
BUT I DO THINK THAT THE WHOLE, IT'S IMPORTANT ENOUGH THAT THE WHOLE PARKS BOARD SHOULD GETS WAY IN AND UNDERSTAND AND SO SHOULD THE REST OF THE COMMUNITY, THAT WOULD BE FINE.
UM, ANY OTHER FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS? UH, BOARD MEMBER BERNARD? UM, I'D LIKE AN UPDATE ON THE POND AT NORTHWEST PARK, SPECIFICALLY ON THE TESTING THAT HAD BEEN REQUESTED AS PART OF THE VISION PLAN.
NO ITEMS AT THIS TIME? HUH? NO ITEMS AT THIS TIME.
SO HOW WE MEASURE THAT, I'D LIKE TO START EXPLORING THAT TOPIC A LITTLE BIT MORE THOROUGHLY.
IT'S COME UP IN OUR CRIME AND PARKS GROUP.
IT'S COME UP IN, YOU KNOW, SEVERAL OTHER MEETINGS WE'VE HAD IN THE PAST ABOUT POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR MEASURING VISITATION, FOR PRIORITIZING, UH, DIFFERENT MAINTENANCE OR OTHER TYPES OF PROJECTS WE UNDERTAKE.
UM, ALSO THE POTENTIAL TO MAYBE DRAW ADDITIONAL FEDERAL FUNDING DOWN DEPENDING ON WHAT KIND OF METRIC WE'RE USING.
UM, SO IT'D BE NICE TO LEARN WHAT A PARK STAFF HAS TO SAY ON THIS.
IF THERE'S ANY PREFERRED METHOD OR COMBINATION OF METHODS THAT WOULD BE USED IN MOST EFFECTIVELY MEASURING VISITATION AND KIND OF LIKE WITH AN EYE TOWARDS THE BUDGET CYCLE, IF THERE'S ANY, UH, EVEN BALLPARK COSTS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THAT THAT YOU COULD SPEAK OF.
IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO BE AN AGENDA ITEM, COULD BE A MEMO, UM, COULD BE SOMETHING THAT WE DISCUSSED IN THE NEXT FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING.
UM, BUT JUST SOMETHING TO GET US THINKING MORE PRECISELY ABOUT THAT KIND OF NICHE ISSUE THERE.
UM, AND THE ONLY THING I WOULD ADD IS THAT WE HAD ON OUR LAST, ONE OF THE THINGS WE WANTED TO DO ON THE FUTURE AGENDA ITEM WAS ABOUT, UM, FOLLOWING UP ON THE CONCERNS THAT A CITIZEN BROUGHT TO US LAST MONTH ABOUT ROY GUERRERO.
AND I DID NOT PUT THAT ON THIS AGENDA BECAUSE I'M KIND OF WAITING TO HEAR FROM THE CRIME WORKING GROUP BECAUSE I THINK THAT MIGHT ALL PERTAIN SO MM-HMM.
IF THAT IS ALL, ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS, I JUST WANNA SAY REALLY QUICKLY, THANK YOU GUYS FOR HAVING PATIENCE WITH THE STUDENTS.
IT'S VERY SCARY TO COME AND LOOK AT A DIAS AND I, I WANTED TO SHARE THEIR IDEAS BECAUSE I FELT LIKE IT'S USEFUL TO US TO CONTINUE TO HEAR COMMUNITY INPUT ABOUT WAYS.
AND THEY DID A LOT MORE THOROUGH RESEARCH THAT DIDN'T ALWAYS BUBBLE TO THE SURFACE THERE ABOUT THE, UM, COMMUNITIES ALONG WALL CREEK.
BUT I APPRECIATE YOUR PATIENCE
[02:20:01]
AS THEY, AS THEY PRESENTED THEIR IDEAS TONIGHT.AND UM, IT IS 8 23 BY MY WATCH AND IF THERE ARE NO OBJECTIONS, I ADJOURN THIS MEETING.