[A. Pre-Selected Agenda Items]
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IT'S NINE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING.
WE'RE MEETING AT THE, UH, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ROOM OF THE AUSTIN CITY HALL, WHICH IS LOCATED AT 3 0 1 WEST SECOND STREET IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.
WE HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT AND WE, UH, THE WAY WE WOULD GO TODAY IS WE WOULD START A BRIEFING WITH A BRIEFING ON THE DRAFT SCHEDULE FOR THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS AND HAVE ANY DISCUSSION RELATED TO THAT.
UH, AND THE ITEM AT THAT POINT, WE HAVE COUPLE ITEMS AND ITEM FIVE HAS PULLED 40, 40 AND 78, AND THAT'S THE ORDER I'LL, UH, CALL THOSE UP.
WE'LL, WE HAVE POSTED FOR AN EXECUTIVE SESSION AND, UH, WITH, UH, YOUR PERMISSION, I'LL, UH, USE DISCRETION TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHEN WE MIGHT DO THAT.
UH, WE ALSO, AS YOU KNOW, HAVE A ONE O'CLOCK TIME CERTAIN WHERE WE'LL HAVE A, UH, JOINT MEETING WITH THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP AND CAPITAL METRO BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
THAT MEETING AT ONE O'CLOCK WILL BE POSTED FOR ALL THREE PARTIES, UH, SEPARATELY FROM THIS POSTING.
BUT, UH, THAT MEETING IS POSTED TO MEET IN THE, UH, CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS.
SO WITH THAT, UH, THE FIRST ITEM ON
[B1. Briefing on draft schedule for land development code amendments.]
THE AGENDA WILL BE A BRIEFING ON THE DRAFT SCHEDULE FOR LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS AND DISCUSSION RELATED TO IT, AND THE, UH, ITEM ON THE AGENDA THAT'S RELATED TO IT.SO I'LL RECOGNIZE THE MANAGER, UH, MAYOR, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL.
THIS ITEM, UH, IS A RESULT OF THE WORK DONE BY THE COMMITTEE.
UH, WE TOOK THEIR, THE COMMITTEE'S WORK AND THEN, UH, FORMED IT INTO THIS MEMORANDUM, VERONICA, LEAD PRESENT DEVELOPMENT, AS WELL AS A COUPLE OF OUR, UH, PLANNING STAFF.
THE ONLY THING I'D SAY IS THAT, UH, JUST, UH, UH, GUESS INFORM THE COUNCIL AGAIN, THAT WE, THAT THE WORKLOAD AT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IS SIGNIFICANT.
AND, UH, SOME OF THE SCHEDULED ITEMS YOU'LL SEE WHEN WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO BRING THOSE ITEMS BACK IS GONNA TAKE A LITTLE BIT LONGER THAN WE MAY HAVE ADDITIONALLY OR MAY HAVE ORIGINALLY THOUGHT TO BE.
AND THAT'S SIMPLY CAUSE WE'VE GOT, UH, WE'RE SHORT STAFFED AND WE'VE GOT A LOT OF AMENDMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN GENERATED FOR US TO, UH, WORK ON THE CODE.
SO, JUST WANNA GIVE THAT AS AN INTRODUCTORY REMARK.
VERONICA, GOOD MORNING COUNSEL.
VERONICA, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
UM, JUST WANTED TO KICK IT OFF OVER TO OUR PLANNING STAFF TO WALK THROUGH THE PRESENTATION TODAY.
WHAT YOU'LL SEE IN THE PRESENTATION, AS JESUS MENTIONED, IS WE HAVE BEEN WORKING CLOSELY WITH YOUR OFFICES AS WELL AS THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE TO IDENTIFY THE CODE AMENDMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN, WE'VE BEEN DIRECTED TO DO, UH, THE PRIORITIZATION OF THOSE.
AND WHAT WE, AS STAFF HAVE GONE BACK AND DONE IS REALLY LOOKED AT TIMING BANDWIDTH OF STAFF AND WHAT MAKES SENSE IN TERMS OF, UH, OF MOVING FORWARD.
THEY'VE ALSO MADE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW WE CAN PAIR UP SOME OF THE CODE AMENDMENTS SO THAT THERE IS NOT, UM, ANY DUPLICATED EFFORTS OR A, A MORE EFFICIENT WAY TO WORK.
I HAVE, UH, STEVIE GREATHOUSE WHO'S GONNA WALK US THROUGH THE BRIEF PRESENTATION, BUT WE ALSO HAVE A SERIES OF DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS IMPACTED BY THESE AMENDMENTS HERE TO ANSWER ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.
AND I'M HAPPY TO NAVIGATE THAT CONVERSATION WHEN WE WRAP UP THE PRESENTATION.
SO, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, STEVIE? YEAH, GOOD MORNING, MAYOR.
UM, COUNSEL, I'M STEVIE GREATHOUSE.
I'M A DIVISION MANAGER, UM, WITHIN THE CITY'S PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
UM, AND I'M GONNA BE JOINED UP HERE IN A LITTLE BIT WITH OTHER MEMBERS OF THE, UM, CITYWIDE INTERDEPARTMENTAL CODE CABINET THAT CAN ANSWER QUESTIONS AS THEY COME UP, UM, RELATED TO THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
UM, I OVERSEE OUR CODE AMENDMENT SUPPORT TEAM, WHICH WORKS CLOSELY WITH THE INTERDEPARTMENTAL CODE CABINET THAT IS LED BY AC VERIO.
AND I'M PLEASED TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT AN UPDATE ON THE TIMING OF LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS THIS MORNING.
UM, UH, OKAY, I'VE ALREADY COVERED THAT.
AS THE MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL ARE AWARE, THE CITY WORKS, UM, CITY WORK TO DEVELOP AND MAP A COMPREHENSIVE REVISION TO OUR OUTDATED LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE WAS SUSPENDED IN 2020 BASED ON THE OUTCOME OF LITIGATION.
SINCE THEN, THE URGENCY AROUND UPDATING PROVISIONS OF THE CODE THAT ARE NO LONGER MEETING OUR NEEDS HAS ONLY GROWN.
AND CITY COUNCIL AND OR PLANNING COMMISSION HAVE INITIATED MORE THAN 60 AD HOC AMENDMENTS TO THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE.
AROUND A THIRD OF THOSE AMENDMENTS HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED ALREADY, OF THOSE THAT HAVE NOT YET BEEN ADDRESSED.
12 ARE MOVING TOWARDS REVIEW AND ADOPTION IN THE SHORT TERM, AND THE REMAINING AMENDMENTS ARE EITHER, HAVE EITHER BEEN INITIATED MORE RECENTLY OR ABOUT TO BE INITIATED THIS WEEK.
UM, OR MORE COMPLEX AMENDMENTS INVOLVING MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS THAT WILL NEED TO BE FURTHER DEVELOPED BEFORE REVIEW AND ADOPTION CAN BE SCHEDULED.
IN ADDITION, MANY OF THE OUTSTANDING AMENDMENTS ARE OVERLAPPING IN NATURE, UM, OR MIGHT BE ABLE TO BE BETTER ADDRESSED THROUGH A CONSOLIDATED APPROACH UNDER ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
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STAFF HAS RECENTLY FORMED AN INTERDEPARTMENTAL CODE CABINET, WHICH WILL HELP TO ENSURE COORDINATION OF CODE AMENDMENTS ACROSS MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS.IN PARTICULAR, WE ANTICIPATE THAT THE CODE CABINET WILL BE HEAVILY INVOLVED IN HELPING OVERSEE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MORE COMPLEX AMENDMENTS.
THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT HAS ALSO RECENTLY ESTABLISHED A LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENT SUPPORT TEAM THAT IS TRACKING ALL OF THE ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENT CASES AND HELPING TO ENSURE THAT INDIVIDUAL CODE AMENDMENTS PROCEED SMOOTHLY THROUGH THE CODE AMENDMENT PROCESS FROM INCEPTION TO ADOPTION.
AT THEIR MAY 23RD MEETING, THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE MEMBERS RECEIVED A PRESENTATION FROM THE CODE CABINET THAT PROVIDED AN OVERVIEW OF THE CODE AMENDMENTS THAT ARE CURRENTLY IN THE WORKS AND PRESENTED INFORMATION ABOUT WHICH AMENDMENTS WOULD ADDRESS HOUSING ISSUES AS WELL AS THE LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY OF EACH OF THE AMENDMENTS.
DURING THAT MEETING, THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE DISCUSSED A CODE AMENDMENT PRIORITIZATION ON MATRIX THAT HAS BEEN POSTED FOR CONSIDERATION UNDER ITEM NUMBER 53 ON THE UPCOMING COUNCIL AGENDA.
THE DRAFT CODE AMENDMENT SCHEDULE THAT WE ARE PRESENTING TODAY BUILDS ON THE DISCUSSION THAT TOOK PLACE AT THAT MEETING, AS WELL AS A NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL FACTORS.
UM, IN THE BACKUP FOR TODAY'S MEETING, YOU'LL FIND A MEMO FROM THE DIRECTORS OF THE PLANNING AND HOUSING DEPARTMENTS.
THAT INCLUDES SEVERAL ATTACHMENTS.
ATTACHMENT A PROVIDES AN OVERVIEW OF THE CODE AMENDMENT PROCESS.
ATTACHMENT B PROVIDES A DRAFT SCHEDULE FOR ALL OF THE ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENTS.
ATTACHMENT C PROVIDES MORE INFORMATION ABOUT EACH OF THE ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENTS AND UPDATES THE TRACKING DOCUMENT THAT WAS SHARED WITH THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE ON MAY 23RD.
AND FINALLY, ATTACHMENT D INCLUDES THE MEMO THAT WAS PROVIDED TO THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE BY THE CODE CABINET MAY 23RD.
THE DRAFT SCHEDULE PROVIDED IN ATTACHMENT B WAS DEVELOPED IN CONSULTATION WITH CODE CABINET DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING PLANNING, HOUSING DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, WATERSHED PROTECTION AND TRANSPORTATION, AND IN CONSULTATION WITH ADDITIONAL LEAD DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN DEVELOPING THE DRAFT SCHEDULE, STAFF CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING FACTORS, ITEMS THAT ARE ALREADY WELL UNDERWAY AND IDENTIFIED BY THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE AS POTENTIALLY BEING KEPT ON CURRENT TIMELINE.
THE DISCUSSION THAT TOOK PLACE AT THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING, STAFFING AND RESOURCE AVAILABILITY, BOTH IN TERMS OF LEAD DEPARTMENT RESOURCES AND THE RESOURCES OF SUPPORTING DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING THE LAW DEPARTMENT AND OTHERS, AS WELL AS DEPENDENCIES AND LOGICAL ORDERING OF THE AMENDMENTS.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE EQUITABLE T O D OVERLAY DEVELOPMENT WOULD BENEFIT FROM HAVING THE LARGER CHANGE TO CITYWIDE PARKING MINIMUMS BE ADDRESSED FIRST.
AND FINALLY, THE POTENTIAL FOR GROUPING AND CONSOLIDATION OF RELATED AMENDMENTS.
THE AMENDMENTS IDENTIFIED FOR POTENTIAL CONSOLIDATION ON THE DRAFT TIMELINE GENERALLY FALL INTO ONE OF TWO CATEGORIES, EITHER AMENDMENTS THAT WILL BE ADDRESSED THROUGH A BROADER AMENDMENT THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN OR WILL BE INITIATED, INCLUDING AMENDMENTS TO PARKING REQUIREMENTS, UM, REGULATORY AMENDMENTS RELATED TO SITE PLAN LIGHT AND AMENDMENTS THAT RELATE TO COMPATIBILITY.
OR THE SECOND CATEGORY IS THOSE AMENDMENTS THAT STAFF RECOMMENDS ADDRESSING THROUGH A MORE COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OR A MORE COMPREHENSIVE AMENDMENT, UM, INCLUDING DENSITY, BONUSES AND APPROACH TO CREATING NEW ZONES.
WHILE CODE AMENDMENTS MAY VARY IN COMPLEXITY AND DEPARTMENT LEAD, THEY ALL MUST FOLLOW THE REQUIREMENTS SPECIFIED IN CHAPTER 25 DASH ONE, ARTICLE 11 OF THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE, AND MUST MEET THE NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS SPECIFIED IN THE CODE.
THE CODE AMENDMENT PROCESS INCLUDES THREE PRIMARY PHASES, INITIATION OF THE CODE AMENDMENT, DEVELOPMENT AND ENGAGEMENT OF DEVELOPMENT OF SPECIFIC LANGUAGE AND ENGAGEMENT OF THE COMMUNITY.
AND THEN FINALLY, REVIEW AN ADOPTION OF AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE CODE.
DEPENDING ON THE COMPLEXITY OF THE AMENDMENT, THE DEVELOPMENT AND ENGAGEMENT PHASE MAY VARY IN LENGTH WITH SIMPLE CODE AMENDMENTS, WITH FEW CONCERNED STAKEHOLDERS TAKING FOUR MONTHS WHILE OTHER HIGHLY COMPLEX CODE AMENDMENTS COULD TAKE MORE THAN 12 MONTHS FROM BEGINNING TO END.
PART OF THE RANGE IN TIMING IS BECAUSE ENGAGEMENT WILL LOOK DIFFERENT FOR DIFFERENT CODE AMENDMENTS.
SIMPLE CODE AMENDMENTS MAY INVOLVE NO ENGAGEMENT BEYOND MINIMUM LEGAL NOTIFICATION AND REQUIRED PUBLIC HEARINGS.
WHILE MODERATELY COMPLEX CODE AMENDMENTS MAY ALSO INCLUDE TARGETED OUTREACH TO KEY STAKEHOLDERS AND HIGHLY COMPLEX, IMPACTFUL CODE AMENDMENTS SUCH AS DEVELOPMENT OF THE EQUITABLE TD OVERLAY WILL REQUIRE ROBUST ITERATIVE ENGAGEMENT PRIOR TO CODE DEVELOPMENT.
ATTACHMENT A IN THE MEMO PROVIDED AS BACKUP PROVIDES AN OVERVIEW OF THE CODE AMENDMENT PROCESS.
CODE AMENDMENTS MAY BE INITIATED BY EITHER CITY COUNCIL OR PLANNING COMMISSION.
ONCE THE CODE AMENDMENT IS INITIATED AND A LEAD DEPARTMENT HAS IDENTIFIED, STAFF WILL WORK THROUGH AN INTERDEPARTMENTAL PROCESS TO DEVELOP THE DRAFT CODE LANGUAGE AND CODE AMENDMENT, INCLUDING THE DRAFT ORDINANCE, LANGUAGE ANALYSIS, AND A STAFF RECOMMENDATION, AND WILL WORK TO ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS AS NEEDED IN DEPENDING ON THE COMPLEXITY OF THE AMENDMENT.
ONCE THE DRAFT AMENDMENT HAS BEEN DEVELOPED, IT WILL GO THROUGH A REVIEW AND ADOPTION PROCESS
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THAT INCLUDES REVIEW BY THE CODES AND ORDINANCES, JOINT COMMITTEE REVIEW AND PUBLIC HEARING BY PLANNING COMMISSION, AND ANY OTHER COMMISSIONS THAT ARE WARRANTED BASED ON THE TOPIC OF BEING ADDRESSED, AS WELL AS A PUBLIC HEARING WITH THREE READINGS AT CITY COUNCIL.NOTIFICATION IS REQUIRED PRIOR TO PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL HEARINGS, AND THE LAW DEPARTMENT IS INVOLVED IN THE REVIEW AND ORDINANCE PREPARATION.
THESE SLIDES PROVIDE A BREAKDOWN OF THE DRAFT SCHEDULE THAT IS PRESENTED.
UM, THESE SLIDES PROVIDE A BREAKDOWN.
UM, THESE SLIDES PROVIDE A BREAKDOWN OF THE DRAFT SCHEDULE THAT'S PRESENTED IN ATTACHMENT B IN TODAY'S BACKUP.
THROUGHOUT THE DRAFT SCHEDULE, YOU WILL SEE ITEMS THAT ARE LIKELY TO IMPROVE HOUSING AFFORDABILITY OR SUPPLY HAVE BEEN MARKED, UM, ON THE GANTT CHART WITH A HOUSE ICON, THE FIRST PART OF THE SCHEDULE PRESENTS THE TIMELINE FOR THOSE AMENDMENTS THAT THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE HAD INDICATED SHOULD BE KEPT ON THEIR CURRENT TIMELINE, UM, AND INCLUDES SEVERAL CODE AMENDMENTS THAT WILL BE CONSIDERED FOR ADOPTION THIS WEEK.
THE SECOND PART OF THE SCHEDULE PRESENTS A TENTATIVE TIMELINE FOR THOSE ACTIVE AMENDMENTS THAT STAFF WILL BE TAKING UP NEXT.
THIS PART OF THE SCHEDULE INCLUDES SEVERAL AREAS WHERE WE ARE RECOMMENDING GROUPING OR CONSOLIDATION OF RELATED AMENDMENTS.
IN PARTICULAR, A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS AND MODIFICATION TO COMPATIBILITY, A COMPREHENSIVE AND ANALYSIS AND POTENTIAL MODIFICATION TO DENSITY BONUSES, AND A COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS AND POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ZONES.
AS INDICATED IN THE MEMO, THIS TIMELINE REFLECTS A PHASING OF AMENDMENTS BASED ON AVAILABLE RESOURCES.
HOWEVER, ADDITIONAL RESOURCES WOULD BE NEEDED TO TAKE ON THE COMPREHENSIVE APPROACHES TO DENSITY, BONUSES AND DEVELOPMENT OF NEW ZONES BEING RECOMMENDED.
I WILL ALSO PROVIDE THE CAVEAT THAT ALL OF THIS WORK, UM, IS VERY MUCH A LIVING DOCUMENT THAT CHANGES AS NEW PRIORITIES ARE IDENTIFIED, UM, AND THAT WE'LL NEED TO CHANGE AS ADDITIONAL IMPACTS TO STAFF, UM, RESOURCES ARE FELT.
AND FINALLY, THE FINAL PART OF THE SCHEDULE INDICATES A LIST OF CODE RELATED STUDIES AND ANALYSIS CURRENTLY UNDERWAY, AS WELL AS A LIST OF PREVIOUSLY INITIATED CODE AMENDMENTS THAT WE ARE RECOMMENDING BE ADDRESSED THROUGH ANOTHER AMENDMENT OR THROUGH A MORE COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH.
THIS SCHEDULE, AS I MENTIONED, WILL CONTINUE TO BE MODIFIED AS NEW PRIORITIES ARE IDENTIFIED AND NEW AMENDMENTS ARE INITIATED.
BUT WE THOUGHT THAT IT WOULD BE USEFUL TO SHARE THIS DRAFT SCHEDULE WITH YOU AND ARE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
UM, AND MEMBERS OF THE CODE CABINET ARE HERE IN CASE THERE ARE QUESTIONS FOR DEPARTMENTS OTHER THAN PLANNING.
SO I INVITE THE CODE CABINET FOLKS THAT ARE HERE TO JOIN ME AT THIS TIME.
YOU ARE YOU GONNA BRING ANYBODY ELSE? OH, I'M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT.
WELL, THAT SOUNDS WORSE THAN WHEN I SOUNDED LIKE A ROBOT.
UM,
WE ARE COMPLETE WITH THE PRESENTATION AND NO OPENING UP TO QUESTIONS.
SO THAT'S FINE THEN I, THEN LET'S DO THAT.
UM, AND COUNCIL MEMBER HARBOR MADISON, I'LL CALL ON YOU FIRST.
I WANTED TO OFFER MY COLLEAGUES AND FOLKS IN ATTENDANCE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT.
SO AS WE HEARD AT OUR FIRST, EXCUSE ME, MOST RECENT HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING OF THE YEAR STAFF IS EXPERIENCING A PERFECT STORM OF VACANCIES, CONFLICTING DIRECTION FROM PREVIOUS COUNCILS AND LIMITED TIME AND RESOURCES TO ENACT THE MANY POLICIES THAT WE ARE, THAT WE OR PLANNING COMMISSION HAVE ALREADY INITIATED.
AT OUR APRIL COMMITTEE MEETING, WE DIRECTED STAFF TO PRESENT A PRIORITIZATION OF THOSE EXISTING LAND DEVELOPMENT MEN, LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS IN MAY, SO THAT WE COULD WEIGH IN AS A COMMITTEE AND EVENTUALLY AS A FULL COUNCIL AT OUR MAY COMMITTEE MEETING.
WE THEN HEARD FROM STAFF AND DISCUSSED POSSIBLE CHANGES TO THE PRIORITIZATION DOCUMENT.
VICE CHAIR ALTER HELPED A LOT, UM, AND OUR COMMITTEE NAVIGATED THAT PROCESS WITH THE CHART IN IT.
IT IS NOW ATTACHED TO THIS WEEK'S COMMITTEE REPORT FOR THE FULL COUNCIL.
OUR COMMITTEE TOOK THIS ACTION TO ENSURE THAT STAFF'S LIMITED TIME AND RESOURCES ARE BEING SPENT ON POLICY THAT WILL HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT TO OUR HOUSING GOALS.
WE ALSO BELIEVE THAT BY PRIORITIZE, BY PRIORITIZING THESE HOUSING AMENDMENTS BY IMPACT AND COUNCIL INTEREST, WE'LL BE ABLE TO ENSURE THAT STAFF'S PRECIOUS TIME AND RESOURCES ARE SPENT WITH VERY CLEAR DIRECTION FROM THIS BODY.
WITH TODAY'S TIMELINE MEMO FROM STAFF AND FEEDBACK AND DIRECTION WE RECEIVE FROM THIS COUNCIL THIS THURSDAY ON OUR HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE INITIAL RECOMMENDATIONS, WE PLAN TO NEXT DISCUSS NECESSARY RESOURCES AND FURTHER PRIORITIZATION AT THE COMMITTEE MEETING ON THE 13TH OF JUNE.
I FULLY RECOGNIZE AND WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THIS IS NO SMALL TASK AND THAT STAFF IS TAKING ON A LARGE TASK.
THE COMMITTEE IS TAKING ON A LARGE TASK
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AND ASKING ALL OF OUR COLLEAGUES TO TAKE ON THE LARGE TASK, VERY IMPORTANT TASK OF ADDRESSING OUR HOUSING NEEDS.THIS IS A BIG FIRST STEP AND I THINK THE BEST OPPORTUNITY WE CURRENTLY HAVE.
SO THANK YOU STEPH, FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMITTEE OVER THE PAST THREE MONTHS.
AND THANK YOU FOR TODAY'S BRIEFING.
CAN I ASK QUESTIONS FOLLOW UP TODAY? ALL RIGHT.
I'M HAVING TROUBLE WITH THIS MIC TODAY.
UM, AND, AND I I'M NOT GONNA BLAME ANYBODY FOR DOING IT TO ME ON PURPOSE.
SO, UH, BUT I'M GONNA ASK THE CHAIR AND THE VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE, UM, FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, WHEN YOU STARTED THE PROCESS AT THE LAST MEETING OF TRYING TO, TO FIGURE OUT, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM RANKING, SO THAT AS YOU POINT OUT, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER, YOU'RE, YOU'RE LOOKING AT TIMING FOR STAFF, YOU'RE LOOKING AT PRIORITIES FOR COUNCIL.
UH, BIGGEST BANG FOR THE BUCK, I GUESS WOULD BE ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE WANT TO DO TO GET AFFORDABILITY.
WHEN YOU WERE CONTEMPLATING THAT, WERE YOU CONTEMPLATING THAT WE WOULD THEN, UH, HOLD ON TO DIFFERENT LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE CHANGES SO THAT THEY WOULD BE FED INTO THAT PROCESS BEFORE WE STARTED PASSING LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE CHANGES? WHILE WE'RE WAITING ON THAT PROCESS TO CONTINUE, SINCE I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK, I'LL DEFER TO YOU VICE CHAIR.
SO IN OUR MEETING, WE, THE IDEA WAS TO PRIORITIZE WHAT WE KNOW.
AND THEN, UH, THERE WAS A BRIEF DISCUSSION, UH, PARTICULARLY FROM COUNCIL MEMBER POOL ABOUT A COUPLE OF THE ITEMS THAT SHE'S BRINGING, I BELIEVE IN JULY AND HOW THAT MIGHT FIT IN.
THE HOPE WAS REALLY TO GET A GOOD, UH, IDEA OF WHAT THE LANDSCAPE IS SO THAT WE CAN GROUP THINGS THAT SHOULD BE APPROPRIATELY GROUPED.
AND IF WE KNOW THAT SOMETHING IS COMING IN JULY THAT MAYBE WE WANT THEM TO HOLD OFF ON UNTIL THEN, SO THAT WE DO GET THAT, UM, THAT WAS THE IDEA.
SO I BELIEVE, UH, AND, AND THE, THE, WHAT WE HAVE TOLD STAFF IS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE ONE MORE THING ON JULY AND THAT'S KIND OF IT FOR US TO FEED EVERYTHING IN SO THEY KNOW THAT'S COMING.
UM, BUT TO TRY TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THIS VOLUME AND START WORKING IT THROUGH BEFORE WE JUST KEEP PILING ON, WELL SEE.
AND THAT'S, AND THAT'S PART OF THE REASON I ASKED THE, THE, THE WAY YOU SAID THAT IS PART OF THE REASON I ASKED THE QUESTION.
BECAUSE ON THE AGENDA WE HAVE FOR THURSDAY, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF ITEMS. AND, AND, AND I'M SURE THIS WASN'T THE INTENTION, BUT IT AT LEAST HAS THE APPEARANCE OF TRYING TO GET IN BEFORE WE PUT TOGETHER A MORE COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH THAT, THAT NOT ONLY THE APPROACH OF THE COMMITTEE, BUT IT CORRESPONDS WITH WHAT STAFF IS NOW BRINGING US.
UH, AND IT WOULD GET AROUND THAT ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE.
BUT THAT'S ABSOLUTELY WHAT YOU JUST SAID.
THAT'S ABSOLUTELY NOT THE INTENTION.
THE INTENTION IS THAT THIS ALL WOULD GO THROUGH WHATEVER IS THE COORDINATED STAFF PLUS COMMITTEE REVIEW.
I THINK ONE OF THE KEY THINGS SHE MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, THAT THE AD HOC NATURE OF HOW WE GOT HERE, IT'S BEEN VERY AD HOC.
AND I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE DO LOOK COMPREHENSIVELY AND REALLY ENCOURAGE, YOU KNOW, THE DENSITY BONUS PROVISION, FOR INSTANCE, THE ZONING, UM, COMPREHENSIVE LOOK SO THAT THESE PIECES ACTUALLY DO START FITTING TOGETHER INSTEAD OF JUST, YOU KNOW, BEING BAND-AID ON BAND-AID.
AND SO, AND, AND WAS IT YOUR, WAS IT THE ANTICIPATION OF THE CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR OF THE COMMITTEE THAT AS THESE START AD HOC, THAT THEY WOULD GO FIRST TO THE COMMITTEE FOR BEING PLACED IN THE QUEUE, SO TO SPEAK? AND OF COURSE, AND I WANNA SAY IT AGAIN CAUSE I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT THE QUEUE WILL ULTIMATELY BE A COMBINATION OF WHAT STAFF IS TELLING US THEY BELIEVE NEEDS TO HAPPEN IN ORDER TO MAKE IT WORK AT ALL, INCLUDING NUMBER OF PERSONNEL TIME, THAT KIND OF THING.
AND THE WAY THE COMMITTEE, AS IT ALSO REPORTS TO THE FULL COUNSEL IS RANKING THINGS.
SO IT WAS THE IDEA THAT WE WOULD UTILIZE THAT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE PUTTING THEM IN THE QUEUE IN THE RIGHT PLACE.
AND AS I SUGGESTED A MINUTE AGO, NOTHING STICKS, SLIDES IN OR GETS PRIORITY SIMPLY BECAUSE SOMEBODY HAS BROUGHT IT TO THE FULL COUNCIL AS AN IF C BEFORE IT GOES THROUGH COMMITTEE.
I'M HAPPY TO DEFER THE CHAIR ON THAT ONE.
I KNOW SHE HAS, UH, A LOT OF GREAT IDEAS ON, ON WHAT WE CAN USE THE COMMITTEE FOR.
I THINK YOU REALLY DID A GOOD JOB OF ARTICULATING WHAT THE CADENCE IS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO ESTABLISH.
AND I THINK HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY TO BETTER UTILIZE OUR RESOURCES
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REALLY DOES TAKE SOME OF THE PRESSURE OFF OF STEP AND THE RESOURCES WE HAVE BY WAY OF THE COMMITTEES.SO I THINK THERE WAS A LOT OF GREAT INTENTION TO THINKING THROUGH WHAT THE CADENCE IS GONNA BE MOVING FORWARD.
AND THEN THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT WE'RE BRINGING BACK, UM, THE PRIORITIZATION ON THE 13TH MEETING, THAT WAS INTENTIONAL ON OUR PART.
WE HAD ORIGINALLY PLANNED TO GO AHEAD AND MOVE FORWARD, BUT AS WE WERE HAVING OUR COMMITTEE MEETING AND TAKING THE OPPORTUNITY TO LISTEN TO EVERYBODY'S CONTRIBUTION, WE RECOGNIZED THAT WE JUST WEREN'T QUITE THERE.
BEING ON THE SAME PAGE IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO PRIORITIZE.
I'VE DIDN'T SEEN THAT SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE SHIFTED THEIR PRIORITIES.
SO WE REALLY WANTED TO OFFER THE OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE MORE, UM, INTENTIONAL THOUGHT THROUGH THAT PART SO THAT IT WASN'T OUR ORIGINAL INTENTION TO BRING IT BACK TO THE COMMITTEE, BUT I THINK WE DECIDED AS A BODY THAT IT WAS NECESSARY TO BRING IT BACK YEAH.
AND GIVE IT SOME MORE TIME AND ATTENTION.
SO, SO WHAT, I MEAN, WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF ITEMS THAT ARE PULLED ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION EVEN HERE AT THIS WORK SESSION, BUT WHAT, WHAT I HEAR, AND I, I WANNA MAKE SURE I'M HEARING IT THE RIGHT WAY AND I'M NOT MISCHARACTERIZING IT, I DON'T WANNA CHARACTERIZE IT ON BEHALF OF THE WHOLE COUNCIL, IS WHAT I HEAR IS THAT NOW WITH, AND WE GOT, WE'LL HAVE QUESTIONS AND WE'LL WANNA DISCUSS WHAT STAFF HAS SAID AND WITH THE WORK OF THE COMMITTEE AND WHAT THE COMMITTEE'S IMPETUS AND MISSION DETERMINATION WAS, IS THAT NOTHING THAT'S ON THE CURRENT AGENDA FOR THIS WEEK IS INTENDED TO GET AHEAD OF THAT PROCESS.
INSTEAD, EVERYTHING THAT'S ON THE AGENDA AND IS GOING TO BE CONSIDERED THIS WEEK OUGHT TO BE CONSIDERED BY THE COMMITTEE FOR PLACING IN THE QUEUE IN THE APPROPRIATE WAY.
IS THAT, IS THAT THE WAY YOU SEE THAT? I WOULD SAY THAT'S AN APPROPRIATE APPROACH.
BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, I'D, I'D LIKE TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS SOME GREAT INTENTION TO BEING ABLE TO BRING THIS BEFORE THE BODY AS A WHOLE.
SO, YOU KNOW, OUR COMMITTEE IS VERY USEFUL, BUT THE BODY IS NO, THAT'S GONNA HAVE TO COME TO THE BODY AT SOME POINT.
BUT, BUT, BUT WE'VE ALL, I THINK, I THINK EVERYBODY RECOGNIZES THAT THERE'S A LOT OF WORK BEING DONE AND A LOT OF WORK THAT'S BEING DONE IN SUCH A WAY THAT IS USED THE, THE WORD AD HOC AND THE COMMITTEE WAS TRYING TO ADDRESS THAT.
STAFF IS TRYING TO ADDRESS THAT.
AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE DON'T VIOLATE, THAT'S PROBABLY TOO STRONG A WORD, BUT INTERFERE WITH THE PROCESS AND MISSION THAT THE THE OF THE COMMITTEE AND THE STAFF ARE BRINGING TO US TO MAKE THIS WORK BETTER FOR US AND THE CITIZENS.
COUNCIL MEMBER KELLY, AND I'LL COME TO THE MAYOR PRO 10.
AND THANK YOU CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR OF THAT COMMITTEE FOR HELPING LAY THAT PROCESS OUT FOR US.
UM, OUTSIDE OF WHAT WE'VE ALREADY DISCUSSED, I'M CURIOUS FROM STAFF TO KNOW IF THERE ARE ANY SPECIFIC ACTIONS OR INITIATIVES THAT THE COUNCIL CAN UNDERTAKE TO ASSIST YOU IN REACHING YOUR GOALS.
I THINK THAT WILL BE A CONTINUED CONVERSATION, UM, PARTICULARLY WITH THE, WITH THE COMMITTEE, BUT COUNCIL AS A WHOLE, UH, RESOURCES WERE MENTIONED AND WE ARE VERY SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING WHAT THAT, WHAT THAT RESOURCE NEED IS.
WE WANNA IDENTIFY THAT ACCURATELY.
UM, WE KNOW THAT IT'S NOT NECESSARILY AN EASY FIX.
WE KNOW, UH, INTERIM CITY MANAGER, GARA MENTIONED ON THE FRONT END, WE HAVE A, A VACANCY RATE THAT'S QUITE HIGH AT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
I'M VERY PROUD OF OUR PLANNING DIRECTOR.
SHE'S ALREADY MADE SOME HEADWAY IN ADDRESSING THAT RATE.
BUT AS WE BRING ON NEW STAFF, THEY'RE NOT GONNA NECESSARILY IMMEDIATELY START REVIEWING CODE AMENDMENTS.
THAT'S A, THAT'S A TRAINING NEED AND UM, IT TAKES A LITTLE BIT OF TIME ON THE JOB.
SO LOOKING AT PERHAPS HIRING A CONSULTANT TO HELP, PARTICULARLY WITH SOME OF THESE COMPREHENSIVE DISCUSSIONS.
UM, BUT REALLY TRYING TO FIND THE RIGHT FIT FOR WHAT THOSE RESOURCES ARE, UH, SO THAT WE CAN MAKE THAT ASK.
MY NEXT QUESTION WAS IN REGARDS TO THE BUDGET, IF THERE WERE ANY BUDGETARY NEEDS THAT YOU MIGHT NEED THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS THAT WE COULD ADDRESS? I KNOW YOU JUST MENTIONED A CONSULTANT.
IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU THINK RIGHT NOW OFF THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD OR IS THAT A BROADER LONGER TERM CONVERSATION? THAT'S A BROADER CONVERSATION.
WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF REVIEWING THOSE, UH, UNMET NEEDS PUT FORWARD BY THE DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE.
AND WE'LL BE TAKING THAT INTO CONSIDERATION IN THE CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED BUDGET.
I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THAT AND I KNOW MY COLLEAGUES PROBABLY DO AS WELL, ESPECIALLY FOR US TO HAVE THAT BROADER PICTURE SO THAT WE CAN HELP YOU COMPLETE WHAT YOUR GOALS ARE.
UM, I APPRECIATE THIS BEING DISTILLED DOWN INTO SOMETHING VISUAL.
UH, SOME OF US CAN READ UP, DOWN, LEFT RIGHT REALLY, REALLY EASILY AND SOME OF US LIKE PICTURES AND COLORS AND WAYS OF REALLY UNDERSTANDING WHAT ARE THE, THE CODES AND AMENDMENTS THAT ARE EITHER ALMOST OUT THE DOOR ALREADY BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THEM FOR A WHILE.
UM, EASY AMENDMENTS VERSUS HIGHLY TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS THAT WILL TAKE A LONG TIME.
UM, SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.
AND Y'ALL'S ABILITY TO TRY TO FACTOR IN, IF WE HAVE NEW IDEAS WHERE EXACTLY IN THAT SCHEDULE IT MIGHT FIT.
[00:25:01]
HELPFUL FOR US AS A, A DIAS TO BE ABLE TO SEE.UM, BUT SOMETHING THAT'S ALSO BEEN MORE ON MY RADAR LATELY IS JUST THE GENERAL PROCESS OF GETTING THROUGH CODES AND ORDINANCES AND THE PLANNING COMMISSION OR ANYTHING THAT NEEDS TO GO THROUGH, UH, ZONING AND PLATTING.
AND SO I KNOW THAT THAT ALSO HAS TO BE PART OF THE CONVERSATION.
I NOTICED IN YOUR MATRIX YOU DID HAVE, HERE'S WHERE COUNCIL APPROVAL IS AND HERE'S WHERE PLANNING COMMISSION IS.
UM, BUT WE HAD, I THINK ONE ALONG THE WAY THAT CAME INTO IT WON'T FIT ON CODES AND ORDINANCES NEXT MEETING BECAUSE THEY ALREADY HAVE TOO MUCH WORK AHEAD OF THEM ON THAT AGENDA.
AND SO THAT'S ANOTHER LAYER THAT I HADN'T REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT IN PREVIOUS YEARS.
AND SO IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL IF, IF WE KEEP AMENDING THAT CHART TO REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT IS THE PROCESS OF OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS IN DOING THAT.
UM, CAUSE I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS WHO ARE LOOKING FOR THAT PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT OPPORTUNITY TO COME AND SPEAK, UM, HOPEFULLY IN FAVOR, BUT IF, IF THERE'S OPPOSITION TOO, MAKING SURE THAT EVERYBODY HAS A CHANCE TO SPEAK.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S FEASIBLE IN FUTURE ITERATIONS OF THAT SCHEDULE.
YEAH, AND I WOULD JUST RESPOND FROM THE STAFF LEVELS THAT THAT'S THE PERSON THAT MANAGES THE STAFF LAY LIAISONS TO CODES AND ORDINANCES.
UM, THEY CODES AND ORDINANCES IS SCHEDULED TO MEET MONTHLY AND CAN HANDLE QUITE A BIT, BUT IT NEEDS TO BE, YOU KNOW, STAGGERED IN SUCH A WAY THAT WE DON'T HAVE SIX HIGHLY CONTROVERSIAL, HIGHLY COMPLEX ITEMS FALLING ON A SINGLE MEETING.
UM, SO GENERALLY AS LONG AS WE CAN STAGGER IT WITHIN REASON AND AS LONG AS, AND THEY TEND TO DO A PRETTY GOOD JOB OF MEETING QUORUM.
WE DID HAVE, UM, A MONTH LAST MONTH WHERE THEY WEREN'T ABLE TO AND WE HAD TO CANCEL THE MEETING, BUT GENERALLY THEY HAVE BEEN MEETING QUORUM AND HAVE BEEN MEETING MONTHLY.
UM, SO THAT'S JUST, I THINK THAT'S JUST A SIMPLE SORT OF SCHEDULING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE AREN'T SCHEDULING, YOU KNOW, MORE THAN FIVE HIGHLY COMPLICATED ITEMS TO ALL TRY TO HIT ON THE, THE SAME AGENDA MANAGER.
UH, MAYOR, MAYOR, UH, MAYOR, MAYOR
ONE IS JUST LIKE, UH, WAS MENTIONED A MINUTE AGO, UH, THE PROCESS I HAVE BEEN USED TO IN THE PAST IS THAT THE COUNCIL WOULD ESTABLISH IT'S BROUGHT THE GOAL IT WANTED TO ACHIEVE AND WE RETURNED THE STAFF LOOSE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT WE NEEDED TO DO TO ACHIEVE THOSE OBJECTIVES.
THE D THE DIFFERENCE IS HERE IS THAT WE'VE LANDED ON A FIX AND THEN WE'VE GOTTA GO FIGURE OUT HOW TO, HOW TO WORK WORK THROUGH THAT FIX, WHICH, WHICH COMPLICATES THE, THE, THE STAFFING, THE LEGAL AND THE NOTIFICATION PROCESS.
SO IT'S ONE THAT YOU COULD HELP US BY VISITING WITH STAFF EARLY ON ABOUT YOUR MAJOR OBJECTIVES AND THEN WHAT KIND OF INCLINATIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE THAT NEED TO GET DONE.
THAT WOULD HELP US GET THROUGH THE PROCESS MUCH FASTER.
THE SECOND THING IS WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF DOING THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES REVIEW.
UH, UNLESS WE FIX THAT REVIEW, THIS STUFF'S, WE CAN PASS THE CODE AMENDMENTS, BUT IF WE DON'T FIX THOSE PORTIONS OF THE CODE, WE'RE GONNA BE AT A LOG JAM WITH, IN THE INABILITY TO PROCESS THINGS FAST ENOUGH SO WE CAN GET THE DENSITY AND THE HOUSING UNITS ON THE GROUND.
AND THE FINAL THING I'D SAY IS THAT, UH, AS, AS THOSE THINGS ARE IDENTIFIED, WE MAY BE ABLE TO, TO, TO MOVE SOME THINGS FASTER AS WE LEARNED ABOUT, UH, THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW PROCESS, THINGS THAT WE OUGHT TO MOVE TO THE HEAD OF THE LINE THAT WOULD BE MORE EFFECTIVE WITH RESPECT TO DENSITY.
WE JUST WANNA GIVE THAT FLEXIBILITY OF THE STAFF.
I THINK WORKING THROUGH THE COMMITTEE IS THE PRO IS THE, BECAUSE SOME OF THESE THINGS ARE COMPLEX AND THEY'RE INTERTWINED.
SO I THINK IF WE ARE GIVEN THAT FLEXIBILITY, IT GIVES THE STAFF THAT FLEXIBILITY TO FIND THE POINT ABOUT ADDING SIX ITEMS THAT MIGHT TAKE A DECRE AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF TIME, JUST, JUST MAKES IT DIFF IT JUST, UH, GUMS UP THE PROCESS.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR US AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
AND I, UH, ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE I MENTION, WE KNOW THAT SOME OF THESE OTHER BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WILL TAKE UP THESE ITEMS LIKE THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, UM, URBAN TRANSPORTATION, THEY'VE GOT A, YOU KNOW, WELL VESTED INTEREST IN SOME OF THESE CONVERSATIONS.
UM, I GENERALLY, UH, ENJOY WHEN WE DO THINGS FROM KIND OF A HIGH LEVEL, TOP DOWN COMPREHENSIVE APPROACHES.
I KNOW THAT IN YEARS PAST WE HAD ALL SAT DOWN TOGETHER AND FIGURED OUT WHERE THE LOW-HANGING FRUIT WAS, WHAT ARE THE THINGS WE THINK WERE MOSTLY IN FAVOR OF AND WHO CAN TAKE LEAD AND WANTS TO REALLY GET THAT ACROSS THE FINISH LINE.
UM, BUT I WANT US TO KIND OF SWITCH INTO HOW CAN WE MAKE THE MOST BANG FOR THE, THE TIME AND ENERGY THAT, THAT WE'RE TRYING TO PUT INTO HOUSING AND PLANNING.
CAUSE I KNOW THERE'S A TON OF FOLKS THAT WANNA GET THESE GOOD THINGS DONE.
UM, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE DOING THINGS IN A REALLY THOROUGH MANNER.
SO, YOU KNOW, IF IT TAKES TWO YEARS TO GET THROUGH IT AND THEN WE HAVE A NEW COUNCIL AND WE'VE GOT DIFFERING OPINIONS, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA DO IT AGAIN.
I, I THINK THAT'S, UM, JUST KIND OF A WRINKLE WE NEED TO IRON OUT AND TRY TO TRY TO GET US AS, AS FAR AS WE CAN EVERY TIME WE MOVE THE BALL FORWARD.
COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES, THANK YOU AND THANK YOU COLLEAGUES FOR THE CONVERSATION.
I'M EXCITED THAT, THAT WE'RE HAVING THIS CONVERSATION.
I KNOW IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME COMING AND WE ALL KNOW THE NEED FOR US TO HAVE A COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE TO OUR LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AND, UM, BECAUSE OF THE, YOU KNOW, THAT, YOU KNOW, WENT TO THE COURTS AND, UM, SINCE THEN WE'VE HAD THE PREVIOUS COUNCIL AND NOW THIS COUNCIL COMMITTED TO LAND USE REFORM
[00:30:01]
AND WE'VE BEEN OFFERING TWEAKS, UM, TO OUR, OUR LAND CODE.AND, UM, AND NOW WE'RE AT A POINT AND WE'VE BEEN AT THIS CRITICAL POINT FOR YEARS WHERE WE'VE NOW HAD 38 ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENTS IN PROCESS BECAUSE WE'RE COMMITTED TO ADDRESSING OUR HOUSING CRISIS AND WE'RE COMMITTED, UH, TO LAND USE REFORM.
AND SO THE QUESTIONS I HAVE AROUND THIS ARE ONE FOR STAFF, BUT TWO, I WANNA DIG INTO THE COMMITTEE PROCESS BECAUSE I, AND I APPRECIATE WANTING TO STRENGTHEN HOW WE DO OUR WORK THROUGH OUR COMMITTEE.
UM, BUT I THINK GIVEN THIS TOPIC, GIVEN THE IMPORTANCE OF HOUSING AND OUR COMMITMENT TO ADDRESSING OUR HOUSING CRISIS, I JUST WANNA BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW THE COMMITTEE PROCESS IS MORE EFFICIENT OR FACILITATES A BETTER OUTCOME WITH HOW, UH, HOW WE MOVE FORWARD.
UM, BECAUSE WE'RE ALL HERE, I THINK WE'VE ALL BROUGHT FORWARD HOUSING RELATED POLICIES AND JUST KNOWING THAT IT IS A PRIORITY OF THE WHOLE, UH, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ALLOWING FOR, FOR THAT PLATFORM AND THAT WE'RE ADVANCING AT THE SCALE NEEDED.
UM, SO FOR, FOR STAFF, THE QUESTION I HAD, A COUPLE QUESTIONS I HAD IS, UM, WITH THE DRAFT SCHEDULE FOR THE ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENTS, HOW DID YOU, HOW DID STAFF PRIORITIZE THESE POLICIES? UH, AND FOR EXAMPLE, UM, THE, WE HAVE THE FLAM AMENDMENT FILING DEADLINE.
YOU HAVE THAT POTENTIALLY COMING BACK TO US IN SEPTEMBER, UH, WHICH IS GREAT.
THAT SEEMS LIKE A EASY CHANGE.
AND I KNOW WE JUST PASSED THAT POLICY AT OUR LAST COUNCIL MEETING LAST WEEK.
AND THEN, UM, BUT WE HAVE THE CHILDCARE SERVICES PART, WHICH WAS THE ZONING RELATED TO, UH, BUILDING CHILDCARE CENTERS THAT IS COMING BACK TO US LATER THIS YEAR, UM, WITH OCTOBER AS, AS, AS A TIMEFRAME, THE TENTATIVE TIMEFRAME WEEK PAST THE CHILDCARE REZONING ITEM BACK IN JANUARY.
AND SO I AM TRYING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND YOUR, YOUR THOUGHT PROCESS ON, ON THOSE TIMELINES.
I CAN TAKE A STAB ON THAT ONE.
SO AT THE, THAT ONE IS OBVIOUSLY AN ITEM THAT WOULD BE ASSIGNED PRIMARILY TO, PRIMARILY TO THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT AS LEAD DEPARTMENT.
AND WE HAVE BEEN WORKING THROUGH GETTING OUR STAFF UP TO A PLACE WHERE WE CAN ACTUALLY STAFF COMPLEX CODE AMENDMENTS.
UM, AND THAT ONE WILL HAVE SOME COMPLEXITY TO IT.
SO THAT IS WHY IT HAS, IT'S, IT'S ON THE TIMELINE, UM, WITH PART ONE OF SORT OF HANDLING, UM, THE ITEMS THAT WE CAN HANDLE, UH, WITH, UM, RELATIVELY STRAIGHTFORWARD COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND RELATIVELY STRAIGHTFORWARD TECHNICAL WORK WITH THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS WOULD BE ADDRESSED THIS YEAR AS PART OF THAT PART ONE WITH A LATER PHASE MOVING FORWARD THAT WOULD BE MORE COMPLICATED AND INVOLVED IN SOME CASES, UM, WORK THAT'S HAPPENING BEYOND THE CODE.
UM, BUT THAT ONE, THE PRIORITIZATION OF THAT ONE IS SIMPLY A, MAKING SURE THAT WE'VE ACTUALLY GOT THE STAFF THAT ARE GONNA BE AVAILABLE AND HAVE THE EXPERTISE, UM, TO DO THE WORK.
SO YOU'RE THERE IS IS PART OF THAT, OH, GO AHEAD, ACM.
I WAS JUST GOING TO ECHO WHAT, UM, STEVIE SAID ABOUT THE PART ONE AND PART TWO IN THAT PARTICULAR SITUATION.
THAT IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF A VERY COMPLEX, UH, UH, UH, CHANGE PROPOSED.
AND STAFF HAS TAKEN THE TIME TO REALLY WORK THROUGH THAT AND SEE WHAT CAN WE PRIORITIZE SO THAT WE'RE MOVING THE PRIORITIES FIRST SO THAT WE'RE TAKING SOME ACTION AS OPPOSED TO PUTTING THE WHOLE, UH, DIRECTION ON HOLD UNTIL WE GET THE STAFF OR THE, THE RESOURCES THAT WE NEED TO HAVE THAT COMPLEX REVIEW.
SO THEY'RE REALLY TRYING TO TAKE PIECES OF THAT AND MOVE THEM FORWARD EVEN THOUGH WE CAN'T MOVE THE WHOLE PIECE FORWARD AT THIS TIME.
AND, AND, AND I GET THAT PIECE, BUT I GUESS, YOU KNOW, SINCE WE PASSED IT IN IN JANUARY, WAS THERE NOT WORK DONE BETWEEN JANUARY AND NOW ON, ON THE ISSUE? BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S NOT REALLY BEING LOOKED AT UNTIL WELL, UNTIL THE SUMMER.
YEAH, AND OUR, I WILL JUST SAY THAT OUR DEPARTMENT HAD A SINGLE STAFF PERSON THAT WAS INVOLVED IN STAFFING MOST OF OUR CODE AMENDMENTS, UM, THAT LEFT THE DEPARTMENT.
AND WE HAD SEVERAL MONTHS WITHOUT US EVEN A SINGLE STAFF PERSON.
WE DO NOW HAVE A TEAM OF TWO THAT ARE DOING ALL OF THE COORDINATION WORK TO KIND OF MOVE THE AMENDMENTS THROUGH, HAVE BEEN SHADOWING ALL OF THE AMENDMENTS THAT ARE MOVING FORWARD WITH LEAD DEPARTMENTS OR CASE MANAGERS EITHER ELSEWHERE IN OUR DEPARTMENT OR THROUGHOUT THE CITY, UM, THAT ARE NOW AT A PLACE WHERE THEY CAN BEGIN TO DO THE WORK, TO PULL TOGETHER THE EXPERTISE THAT WE DO STILL HAVE KIND OF SCATTERED ACROSS THE CITY, UM, IN VARIOUS PLACES, INCLUDING OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT THAT'S SITTING TO MY RIGHT.
UM, TO ACTUALLY MOVE THAT ITEM FORWARD.
SO THAT ONE I WILL SAY IS A, UM, WE HAVE NOT HAD DEDICATED LEAD STAFF ASSIGNED TO THAT ITEM UNTIL NOW.
GI GIVEN THE PARTICULAR EXPERTISE THAT IS NEEDED.
AND THAT, AND, AND THANK YOU, THAT'S A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF WHY I BELIEVE WE NEED TO SCALE UP OUR CAPACITY AND HAVE SOME OF OUR HAVE INTERIM SOLUTIONS AS WE AWAIT FOR OUR PLANNING DIRECTOR TO STEP UP.
[00:35:01]
PLANNING DEPARTMENT, IT, YOU KNOW, HAS OVER 30% VACANCY RATE.YOU'VE MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, BRINGING IN ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, BUT HOW ARE WE BRINGING IN THOSE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, THOSE CONSULTANTS AT THE SCALE THAT IS NEEDED FOR THE INTERIM? I MEAN, KNOWING WE DIDN'T HAVE AN EXPERT STAFF MEMBER ON STAFF FOR MONTHS.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, SO WHAT IS THAT PROCESS OF BRINGING IN THE EXPERTISE AND THAT WHAT SCALE? YES.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER AS UH, AS VERONICA MENTIONED A MINUTE AGO WE'RE, UH, WE, I'VE G WE'VE GIVEN THE AUTHORIZATION TO GET ON CONSULTANTS THAT WOULD HELP US TO AUGMENT STAFF, UH, OTHER WAYS TO AUGMENT THE STAFF.
SO WE'VE GIVEN THE GREEN LIGHT TO GET THAT DONE.
UH, AND THE FACT IS, IS THAT, UH, IT'S THE ISSUE OF WORKLOAD DOESN'T GET DIMINISHED.
YOU JUST HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO, HOW TO GET IT DONE.
SO YOU, BUT I, I THINK THAT'S THE SCHEDULE, UH, RECOGNIZES HOW EVEN IF THE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES WHEN WE CAN GET TO THOSE, I MEAN, BUT I THINK IT'S ALL IN PROCESS.
THERE'S NOTHING THAT'S HOLDING US UP WITH RESPECT TO THAT.
I KNOW THE NEW PLANNING DIRECTORS MADE SOME CHANGES TO BRING ON SOME ADDITIONAL STAFF.
UH, ALL THOSE THINGS ARE, ARE, ARE WORKING AND IN PLACE.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO MOVE AS FAST AS WE CAN TO NOT JUST, UH, ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, BUT OTHER QUESTIONS THAT OTHER COUNSELORS MAY HAVE ABOUT THEIR ITEMS. MM-HMM.
AND IF I COULD ADD ANY ADDITIONAL, YOU KNOW, RESOURCE QUESTIONS, I'LL DEFINITELY DEFER TO THE ACM OR MY DIRECTOR WHO'S SITTING, UM, BEHIND ME SOMEWHERE.
CUZ WE ARE DEFINITELY DOING THE WORK TO BUILD THAT TEAM TO BE ABLE TO DO THE WORK LIKE THE, THAT IS HAPPENING MM-HMM.
UM, AND IT IS PARTIALLY IN PLACE NOW BECAUSE WE HAVE STAFFED IT WITH TWO FOLKS, BUT I ALSO WANTED TO, UM, ALLOW DEVELOPMENT OFFICER, UM, FROM DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, BRENT LLOYD TO SAY A FEW THINGS BECAUSE HE'S GOT MORE OF THE INSTITUTIONAL MEMORY AROUND THAT PARTICULAR, UM, REQUEST FROM COUNCIL AS WELL.
UM, AND JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT HE'S GOT LARYNGITIS, I'M SORRY, BRENT.
AND I'M NOT CONTAGIOUS, I HAVE NO VIRUSES, BUT I, IT'S LIKE, BUT THEY ALSO, UM, BUT UH, I JUST WANTED TO SAY KIND OF BROADLY SPEAKING, IN LOOKING AT, LOOKING AT SOME KEY FACTORS THAT INFORMED PRIORITIES THAT WENT INTO THE PREPARATION OF THE SPREADSHEET AND ALSO INFORMED OUR BRIEFING, UM, AT THE HOUSING PLANNING COMMITTEE LAST WEEK, I THINK THERE WERE, YOU KNOW, BROADLY SPEAKING, THREE CRITERIA WE LOOKED AT AND ONE IS, IS HOUSING.
UM, THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE IS ABOUT A LOT MORE THAN HOUSING.
UM, WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, CABINET MEMBERS THAT REFLECT ALL THE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES.
WE HAVE OUR DEPUTY ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER HERE WHO SERVES ON THE CABINET AND THERE ARE OTHER, OTHER OFFICIALS AS WELL.
BUT HOUSING IS THE PRI PRIORITY RIGHT NOW THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED FROM COUNCIL AS BEING THE MOST SIGNIFICANT THING TO EMPHASIZE.
SO WE LOOKED AT WHAT AMENDMENTS ARE THE MOST GERMANE TO HOUSING, WHAT AMENDMENTS ARE GONNA MAKE THE MOST IMMEDIATE IMPACT IN MOVING THE NEEDLE ON GETTING UNITS ON THE GROUND, PARTICULARLY AFFORDABLE UNITS, BUT UNITS IN GENERAL AS WELL.
WE ALSO LOOKED AT SIMPLICITY AND COMPLEXITY.
YOU KNOW, SOME AMENDMENTS, UM, ARE A LOT MORE COMPLEX THAN THEY SEEM AT FIRST BLUSH.
AND SO WE LOOKED AT THE DEGREE TO WHICH AN AMENDMENT COULD BE, UM, IMPLEMENTED WITHIN A REASONABLE TIMETABLE.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE LEVEL OF COMPLEXITY AND THE CHALLENGES THAT IT PRESENTS, BOTH IN A DRAFTING PERSPECTIVE BUT ALSO IN AN IMPLEMENTATION PERSPECTIVE.
SOME OF THE AMENDMENTS ARE ONES THAT WILL REQUIRE ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES, SHIFTS IN THE REVIEW PROCESS, AND THAT WILL VERY MUCH INFORM THE WORK THAT'S ONGOING WITH RESPECT TO THE DEVELOP DEVELOPMENT SERVICES REVIEW PROCESS.
SO WE CONSIDERED THAT AS A FACTOR AS WELL.
AND THEN WE ALSO LOOKED AT WHAT AMENDMENTS ARE WELL UNDERWAY ALREADY.
SO WE HAVE AMENDMENTS THAT REGARDLESS OF WHERE THEY STAND ON THESE OTHER CRITERIA, THEY'RE, THEY'RE IN PROCESS, THE TRAIN HAS LEFT THE STATION AND THEY'RE ON THEIR WAY.
AND THEN I'LL JUST SAY IN, UM, IN CLOSING, BEFORE I LOSE MY VOICE, I'M NOT SUPPOSED TO BE TALKING
WE, IN THE, IN THE BEST OF TIMES WE'VE HAD A, A GROUP OF PEOPLE SOMEWHAT INFORMAL IN MOST CASES THAT ARE DEDICATED TO WORKING ON CODE AMENDMENTS.
YOU KNOW, NOT ENTIRELY THEY HAVE OTHER JOBS TOO, BUT UM, ARE AVAILABLE TO WORK, UH, INTERDEPARTMENTALLY TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S A HOLISTIC PERSPECTIVE BROUGHT TO BEAR ON CODE AMENDMENTS AND ALSO TO BE A RESOURCE FOR COUNCIL.
UM, WHEN YOU'RE CONSIDERING INITIATING AMENDMENTS TO HELP MAKE SURE THAT AMENDMENTS ARE GONNA DO WHAT YOU THINK THEY'RE GONNA DO, THEY'RE NOT GONNA RAISE ISSUES THAT ARE MAYBE NOT APPARENT FIRST BLUSH AND THAT THEY CAN BE ACCOMMODATED REASONABLY WITHIN AVAILABLE RESOURCES.
UM, AND I THINK THERE, THERE ARE A FAIR NUMBER OF AMENDMENTS IN, IN THE QUEUE THAT MAYBE WERE NOT GIVEN THAT LEVEL
[00:40:01]
OF REVIEW.AND I THINK UNDER, UM, INTERIM CITY MANAGER GARZA'S LEADERSHIP AND ACM SENIO AS WELL, THE GOAL IS TO DO BETTER GOING FORWARD.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ALL HERE FOR.
AND, UM, I'M GLAD BRENT SAID THAT BECAUSE I DO, THE CODE CABINET WAS VERY THOUGHTFULLY CONSTRUCTED BECAUSE OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS.
WE HAVE IT REPORTING INTO MYSELF AS THE, THE EXECUTIVE LEAD.
UH, THAT'S THE IMPORTANCE WE ARE PLAYING ON IT AND THAT IS A, A RESOURCE TO COUNCIL AS WELL.
SO THAT INTERDEPARTMENTAL CONSIDERATION AND VIEW OF THE CODE AMENDMENTS IS HELPFUL IN SOMETHING THAT IS, YOU'RE CONSIDERING CHANGES AND COMPLEX, UM, AMENDMENTS WE CAN PROVIDE AS A RESOURCE TO YOU TO HELP VET IT AND HELP THINK IT THROUGH.
AND COUNCIL MEMBER, ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS TO JUST ADD TO THIS IS WE MADE THE ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGES CONSCIOUSLY BECAUSE WE THOUGHT THERE NEEDED TO BE FOCUSED ATTENTION ON PLANNING AND PLANNING ALONE, ALL THOSE THINGS SO THAT THERE COULD BE THAT FOCUSED, UH, ATTENTION UNDERSTANDING THAT HOUSING'S A COMPONENT OF THAT, BUT REALLY PLANNING IN THE, IN THE LARGER SENSE.
AND SO, AND I THINK WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE TALKED ABOUT THIS MORNING, WHICH IS REALLY CRUCIAL, THE CADENCE AND THE PACE, IF WE'RE ABLE TO KEEP THAT AT A, AT A, AT A WORKLOAD THAT WE CAN GET IT DONE, THE STAFF DON'T GET OVERWHELMED AND DON'T GET WRAPPED AROUND THE AXLE CUZ WE'VE GOT SO MANY THINGS COMING AT 'EM.
WHAT IT DOES IS IT JUST SLOWS EVERYTHING DOWN.
THAT'S, THAT'S HOW YOU CAN HELP US IN ADDITION TO ADDING RESOURCES.
BUT THAT WOULD BE GREAT HELP TO US SO WE CAN PACE THE WORK, GET IT DONE IN A TIMELY WAY AND GET IT BACK HERE FOR COUNCIL TO HAVE CONSIDERATION TIME TO VOTE.
AND YOU SAW OUR VERY SIMPLE PROCESS OF HOW WE APPROVE A CODE AMENDMENT IS THAT YELLOW DEAL WHERE IT WENT ABOUT TH A 360 OF ALL THE DIFFERENT PLACES WE GOTTA TOUCH BEFORE WE COME BACK TO COUNCIL.
AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, HAVING THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE CABINET IS, IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF YOUR LEADERSHIP AND ACM RIO'S LEADERSHIP AND UNDERSTANDING THE PRIORITY OF COUNCIL AND MOVING THE ORGANIZATION IN ALIGNMENT.
SO I WANT TO SHARE MY GRATITUDE FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP ON THAT.
UM, I WANTED TO ASK, YOU KNOW, WHAT IF WE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS IMPLEMENTATION PLAN FROM THE LENS OF IF WE WERE TO GET THESE, IF WE WANTED TO GET ALL OF THESE POLICIES BACK TO COUNCIL BY THE END OF THE YEAR, WHAT MIGHT THAT LOOK LIKE? YOU KNOW, WHAT WOULD RESOURCES WOULD BE NEEDED? AND TO YOUR POINT IN A WAY TO NOT EXHAUST OVERWHELM OR BURN OUT OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENT STAFF, BUT IF WE HAVE A, A GOAL OR A VISION TO HAVE THESE POLICIES COME BACK TO US IN A TIMELY MANNER, KNOWING THE PROCESS, BUT HOW COULD WE SCALE OUR RESOURCES TO THAT EFFORT? HAVE Y'ALL CONSIDERED THAT, YOU KNOW, WELL HAVE YOU, HAVE YOU TAKEN A LOOK AT THE CHALLENGE THROUGH THE LENS OF IF WE KNOW THIS IS A PRIORITY FOR COUNCIL, WE KNOW THAT WE CAN GET ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO HELP US, UM, IN, IN THIS EFFORT WHILE WE STAFF UP OUR DEPARTMENT? HOW MUCH RESOURCES WOULD WE NEED TO ACHIEVE IT? I THINK THAT IS A DISCUSSION WE CAN HAVE.
UH, I THINK WE REALLY NEEDED TO HAVE THIS COMPREHENSIVE LOOK AND REVIEW OF ALL THE CODE AMENDMENTS THAT WERE ON THE, ON THE RADAR, UM, SO THAT WE CAN RIGHT SIZE THAT RESOURCE, UH, REQUEST.
BUT I THINK THAT'S A CONVERSATION AND A DISCUSSION THAT WE CAN HAVE.
EXCUSE ME, I AM ALSO NOT CONTAGIOUS.
UM, BUT, UM, I I DO THINK THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF MOVING PARTS.
SO AS WE'RE BUILDING THE TEAM, AS WE'RE BRINGING ON STAFF, THAT HELPS US MOVE, IT'S A MOVING TARGET, IF YOU WILL.
AND SO WILL GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME TO RIGHT SIZE THAT, WHAT THAT RESOURCE WOULD BE.
BUT IT'S HELPFUL TO HEAR FROM COUNSEL WHAT YOUR PRIORITIES ARE SO THAT WE CAN TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION.
AND MY LAST QUESTION ON THIS IS OUR LEGAL CAPACITY AND YOU KNOW, AND I GUESS THIS IS FOR OUR CITY ATTORNEY, YOU KNOW, KNOWING THAT WE ARE RE SHIFTING OUR, UH, OUR PLANNING RE RESOURCES AND DEPARTMENT AND WE'RE, WE'RE SCALING UP OUR RESOURCES, PART OF THE PROCESS DOES COME TOWARDS LEGAL REVIEW OF OUR CODE AMENDMENTS.
AND MY QUESTION IS, DO WE HAVE THE LEGAL TEAM NEEDED NECESSARY SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE A BOTTLENECK WITHIN THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT AS THESE CODE AMENDMENTS COME FORWARD? WE HAVE A GREAT LEGAL TEAM, UM, ON THESE LED BY TRISH LINK WHO'S IN THE OFFICE HERE.
AND, UM, WE ARE CONTINUING TO WORK THROUGH ALL OF THEM.
WE HAVE A NEW LAWYER JUST STARTED THIS THIS WEEK, SO WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE STAFFED UP.
BUT YOU HAVE, YOU HAVE, WE LOOKED AT THIS FROM KNOWING THAT WE HAVE 38 ACTIVE CODE AMENDMENTS IN PROGRESS, THAT WE ARE GOING THROUGH THIS, UH, DRAFT OR WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.
HAVE YOU ALL ASSESSED YOUR DEPARTMENT'S NEEDS? AND YOU KNOW, LIKE ARE WE, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE THINKING THROUGH OF THIS PROCESS AND IF WE NEED ADDITIONAL LEGAL RESOURCES THAT WE'RE ALSO MAKING SPACE AND INCLUDING THAT, ESPECIALLY AS WE COME UPON BUDGET SEASON, I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT COUNCIL MEMBER.
YOU KNOW, WE REASSESS CONSTANTLY OUR NEEDS IN THE DEPARTMENT AND THERE'S ALWAYS A NEED FOR MORE PEOPLE AND WE HAVE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE WILL HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH THE CITY MANAGER AS HE PROPOSES
[00:45:01]
THE BUDGET.AND I, I WOULD LIKE TO ECHO ON THAT.
THANK YOU FOR THE, THE CONVERSATION ABOUT RESOURCES.
I KNOW IT'S BEEN VERY HARD FOR STAFF BEING SO SHORT STAFFED AND WE HAVE A VERY COMMITTED WORKFORCE AND PEOPLE WHO REALLY COME TO WORK FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE IN THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING.
AND TO, TO HAVE THIS WORKLOAD WITH SUCH A HUGE, UH, VACANCY RATE IS HARD.
AND SO I KNOW IT'S, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S HELPFUL FOR STAFF TO HEAR THAT COMMITMENT FROM COUNCIL ON THE RESOURCES.
SATURDAY
I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE TO REMIND MY COLLEAGUES THAT EVERYBODY'S INVITED, UM, TO THE COMMITMENT MEETINGS.
SO EVERY COUNCIL MEMBER WHO DECIDES TO ATTEND IS WELCOME.
I MEAN, COUNCIL MEMBER VELA MIGHT AS WELL BE A MEMBER OF THE BODY HE'S BEEN TO EVERY MEETING.
SO I THINK THAT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO HAVE STAFF BE ABLE TO CANDIDLY SPEAK TO US AS A BODY AND EVERYBODY'S INVITED.
COUNCIL ALLISON ALTAR THEN COUNCIL MEMBER RILEY.
UM, I'M PLEASED THAT WE ARE RECOGNIZING THE LEVEL OF STAFFING THAT WE'VE HAD IN PLANNING WITH THE MAGNITUDE OF THE WORK THAT THE MAJORITY OF COUNCIL HAS ASKED THEM TO DO.
UM, I THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT THERE IS A PRIORITIZATION AND THAT WE, WE RECOGNIZE THAT, UM, THOSE PIECES.
UM, I WANTED TO JUST, UM, RAISE A FLAG FOR THE AIS D UM, INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT AS SOMETHING THAT IS A HIGH PRIORITY FOR ME.
OUR VOTERS PASSED A $2.44 BILLION BOND AND THEY ARE EXPECTING A I S D TO DELIVER AND WE AS THE CITY HAVE A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE, UM, IN DOING THAT.
UM, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S ON A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT TRACK IN TERMS OF HOW YOU'RE TRACKING THINGS, BUT I, BUT I DIDN'T WANNA LEAVE THIS DISCUSSION WITHOUT, UM, HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF GETTING THAT RIGHT SO THAT A I S D CAN MOVE FORWARD, UM, WITH WHAT THEY EXPECT FOR THAT BOND.
UM, IT'S VERY COMPLICATED IN THIS ENVIRONMENT TO SECURE CONTRACTORS AND DO ALL OF THOSE PROCESSES.
UM, AND THERE THERE ARE PIECES THAT NEED TO BE DONE WITHIN THAT INNER LOCAL, UM, IF THERE ARE A FEW PIECES THAT CAN'T GET RESOLVED QUICKLY, PLEASE GET THE OTHER PIECES DONE AND COME BACK TO US WITH A SECOND ILA IF THERE ARE SOME BECAUSE WE, WE REALLY NEED TO LET THEM KIND OF BE MOVING FORWARD.
AND THEN I ALSO WANTED TO ECHO WHAT COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES WAS SAYING ABOUT THE CHILDCARE ITEMS. UM, YOU KNOW, THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IS NOT ONLY HOUSING, UM, AND THESE OTHER ELEMENTS, YOU KNOW, IF WE NEGLECT THEM FOR A FEW YEARS WHILE WE FOCUS ON HOUSING, THEN WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE, YOU KNOW, ADDITIONAL CRISES THAT WE'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS.
UM, SO I WOULD ALSO ENCOURAGE US TO BE THINKING, UM, ON THE CHILDCARE AMENDMENTS, HOW WE ARE GOING TO ADDRESS THOSE.
BECAUSE IF WE'RE GONNA BE PUTTING A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THESE AREAS, THEY'RE GONNA NEED CHILDCARE, THEY'RE GONNA NEED TO HAVE DECENT SCHOOLS.
UM, AND, AND WE CAN BE PENDING WISE AND POUND FOOLISH IF WE'RE, IF WE'RE NOT CAREFUL.
UM, I HAVE A ONE QUESTION FROM YOUR MEMO THAT STUCK OUT TO ME.
WHEN Y'ALL SEE ALL THE, THE ARROW, THE ONES THAT ARE ALREADY IN PROGRESS AND IT WAS A MENTION THERE THAT THESE ITEMS WILL OCCUPY STAFF CAPACITY THROUGH OCTOBER 23.
ARE YOU SAYING THAT THESE ITEMS THEY WILL ALL IN IN SOME BE BE FINISHED IN OCTOBER 23, BUT OTHERS ARE, YOU KNOW, PER YOUR GANTT CHART GONNA BE IN DEVELOPMENT OR THAT STAFF RESOURCES ARE DEDICATED TO THESE ARE, ARE FILLED UP WITH THESE ITEMS UNTIL OCTOBER, AT WHICH POINT WE CAN MOVE FORWARD? YEAH, THAT WAS, UM, THAT LANGUAGE IS PROBABLY LESS PRECISE THAN IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN.
WELL NOT OCCUPY ALL OF OUR, ALL OF OUR STAFF RESOURCES.
I THINK WE ARE EXPECTING THAT WE WOULD BE WORKING ON THE DEVELOPMENT PHASE OF ALL OF THE ITEMS THAT WERE SHOWING US WORKING ON THE DEVELOPMENT PHASE OF, IF THAT MAKES SENSE.
I JUST WANTED TO YEAH, THE, THE GANTT CHART IS ACCURATE,
UM, IT'S COMPATIBILITY THAT'S PRETTY LENGTHY.
IS, IS THE LENGTH OF TIME IN DEVELOPING IT, IS SOMEONE WORKING ON THAT DAY IN AND DAY OUT OR IS THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY'LL, THEY'LL WORK ON IT AND THEN IT NEEDS TO GO SOMEWHERE AND SOMETHING WORK ON SOMETHING ELSE.
ESSENTIALLY WHERE I'M GOING WITH THIS QUESTION IS IF COUNSEL SAID TO YOU, YOU KNOW, ONE OR TWO OF THESE ITEMS ARE SOMETHING THAT WE JUST, WE THINK ARE, ARE REALLY CRITICAL NEED TO BE DONE NOW, IS THAT COMPRESSIBLE WITH MORE
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STAFF OR IS IT JUST IT TAKES THAT LONG CUZ IT TAKES THAT LONG? SO KIND OF TWO PARTS TO THAT ANSWER.ONE IS THAT A LOT OF THE MORE COMPLEX ITEMS REQUIRE EXPERTISE FROM MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS.
SO BY DEFINITION WE'RE GONNA HAVE MULTIPLE PEOPLE WORKING ON IT.
UM, OF THOSE MULTIPLE PEOPLE, PROBABLY THE MAJORITY OF THEM ARE WORKING ON OTHER THINGS SIMULTANEOUSLY.
SO IT'S NOT THEIR ONLY WORK, BUT THAT, THAT MAKES SENSE BECAUSE WE NEED MULTIPLE STAFF FROM MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS ON SEVERAL AMENDMENTS THAT ARE ALL HAPPENING AT THE SAME TIME.
UM, BUT THE OTHER, UM, SORT OF TIMELINE CONSTRAINT THAT I WANT TO POINT OUT IS THERE'S ALSO A COMMUNITY RESOURCE AND AN ENGAGEMENT CONSTRAINT.
SO COMPATIBILITY IS A GOOD EXAMPLE.
THE EQUITABLE TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT OVERLAY WORK IS ANOTHER REALLY GOOD EXAMPLE ON THE CHART WHERE WE KNOW THAT WE WILL NEED TO HAVE SOME ROBUST COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND IN SOME CASES ITERATIVE ENGAGEMENT.
UM, AND THAT CAN ONLY HAPPEN SO QUICKLY.
UM, SO THERE'S, THERE'S SOME CONSTRAINTS THERE THAT AREN'T JUST A PEER RESOURCE CONSTRAINT ON THE STAFF SIDE.
AND THAT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE.
UH, AS IT RELATES TO THE FLOW CHART, THE CODES, CODES AND ORDINANCE JOINT COMMITTEE, WHAT EXACTLY IS THEIR ROLE IN ALL THIS? WHAT DO THEY BRING TO THE TABLE THAT LET'S SAY PLANNING COMMISSION DOESN'T OR? SURE.
SO THE CODES AND ORDINANCES JOINT COMMITTEE INCLUDES MEMBERS FROM THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THE ZONING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY, UM, APPOINTED TO THAT COMMITTEE TO SERVE IN THAT ROLE.
HISTORICALLY, THEY HAVE BEEN KIND OF THE COMMISSION MEMBERS THAT HAVE DECIDED TO DEVELOP AN EXPERTISE IN OUR CODE, UM, AND TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE ACTUALLY A FAIRLY SOLID TECHNICAL SOUNDING BOARD, UM, FOR SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT STAFF IS BRINGING FORWARD.
UM, AND THEY WOULD WILL BE INVOLVED IF PLANNING COMMISSION INITIATES THE CODE AMENDMENT THAT IS A STAFF-LED CODE AMENDMENT, TYPICALLY STAFF WOULD TAKE IT TO THE CODES AND ORDINANCES JOINT COMMITTEE TO, FOR A RECOMMENDATION TO PLANNING COMMISSION TO INITIATE, AND THEN IT WOULD MOVE BACK TO CODES AND ORDINANCES JOINT COMMITTEE FOR REVIEW AS A DRAFT BEFORE IT HITS THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
SO THE, THE PLANNING COMMISSION REALLY RELIES VERY HEAVILY ON THE CODES AND ORDINANCES JOINT COMMITTEE, UM, FOR THEIR EXPERTISE AROUND THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE.
AND DO IS, IS IT REQUIRED BY CODE? AND THAT MIGHT BE A TRISH QUESTION TO GO TO CODE AND ORDINANCES.
WHAT IS A TRISH QUESTION? CHURCH LINK WITH THE LAW DEPARTMENT? YES.
ACTUALLY IN THE CITY CODE PROVISION SPECIFIC TO THE JOINT COMMITTEE, IT SAYS THAT CODE AMENDMENTS ARE SUPPOSED TO GO THROUGH THEM AND BECAUSE THEY ARE A JOINT COMMITTEE, IT IS PLANNING COMMISSION AND ZAP.
AND SO THAT'S ZAPS, UM, REAL OPPORTUNITY TO WEIGH IN TO THIS, WHICH IS VERY VALUABLE TO THE MEMBERS OF THE ZONING AND PLANNING COMMISSION.
SO WE DO FOLLOW THAT PROCESS UNLESS WE ARE DIRECTED OTHERWISE.
ARE WE AUTHORIZED, I GUESS LEMME BACK UP THE REQUIREMENTS UNDER 5 0 2 TO GO TO PLANNING COMMISSION OR TO GO TO CODES AND ORDINANCES.
ARE THOSE REQUIRED BY STATE LAW OR IS THAT A REQUIREMENT WE'VE PUT ON OURSELF? WE ARE REQUIRED TO GO TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION IF WE ARE AMENDING ZONING REGULATIONS.
SO ANYTHING IN 25 2 ARE OUR REGULATING PLANS OR SOMETHING OF THAT NATURE.
WE ARE REQUIRED BY STATE LAW TO GO TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
OTHER AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 25 COUNCIL, UH, MADE A DECISION THAT THAT'S THE PROCESS THEY WANT, WANT TO FOLLOW AND WANT IT TO GO THROUGH THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
COUNCIL AVELA, I, UM, I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER OF, UH, PUENTES COMMENTS.
AND I JUST WANT TO REITERATE THE, I GUESS THE, THE URGENCY, UH, AND I'LL SPEAK FOR MYSELF.
I KNOW THAT OTHER MEMBERS ARE IN A, A SIMILAR SITUATION, BUT, YOU KNOW, I WAS ELECTED LARGELY TO, UH, LOOSEN UP THE, UH, ZONING REGULATIONS AND GET MORE HOUSING BUILT AND THAT'S BEEN AGAIN, A THEME IN MANY ELECTIONS AND WE AS A BODY NEED TO