Jul 25, 2023 Audit and Finance Committee

[00:00:05]

THANK YOU.

I DIDN'T YOU TURN THIS ONE FIRST.

IT'S, IT'S FIRST AFTER THE MINUTES.

IT'S THE FIRST, YEAH.

[CALL TO ORDER]

MY NAME IS ALISON TER AND I'M CHAIR OF THE AUDIT AND FINANCE COMMITTEE.

IT IS 9 31 ON, UM, JULY 25TH, AND WE'RE HERE AT CITY HALL ON THE DIOCESE WITH ME, OUR VICE CHAIR POOL COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN AL ALTER.

AND COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES.

UH, COUNCIL MEMBER.

KELLY'S NOT YET HERE.

UM, WE ARE GOING TO GET STARTED.

I UNDERSTAND THAT WE DO NOT HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION CLERK, IS THAT CORRECT? GREAT.

THANK YOU.

SO WE WILL

[1. Approve the minutes of the Audit and Finance Committee meeting of May 24, 2023.]

DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? COUNCILMEMBER RYAN ALTER MOVES.

COUNCILMEMBER FUENTES SECONDS WITH NO OBJECTION.

WE WILL ADOPT THE MINUTES FROM THE MAY 24TH MEETING.

THANK YOU.

[2. Discussion and possible action regarding recommendations for appointment of member(s) to the Austin Convention Enterprises Board.]

I'D LIKE TO INVITE VICE CHAIR POOL TO INTRODUCE THIS ITEM.

THANK YOU CHAIR.

UM, WE HAVE IN FRONT OF US THE BIO AND, UM, THE BIO OF TROY RO MADRES.

IS MR. MADRES, HAS HE DIALED IN? I THINK HE WAS GOING TO TRY TO.

THERE HE IS.

MR. MADRES, COULD YOU GO AHEAD AND TURN YOUR CAMERA ON AND WELCOME.

IS OUR STAFF ABLE TO HELP US GET A SHOW, MR. MADRES ON CAMERA? WELL, AT ANY RATE, UM, MR. MADRES, WELCOME IF YOU'RE ABLE TO, UM, MAKE YOURSELF VISIBLE AND, UH, IF YOU'D LIKE TO SPEAK, YOU'D HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY.

UH, YES.

UH, GOOD MORNING EVERYONE.

THIS IS TROY MADRES.

UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH.

WELL, UH, CAN YOU GUYS HEAR ME? WE CAN HEAR YOU.

WE CANNOT SEE YOU.

OKAY.

UM, ARE YOU ABLE TO TURN ON YOUR CAMERA? I'M TRYING TO.

UH, OKAY.

I DON'T KNOW WHY I'M NOT GETTING ACCESS.

WELL KEEP WORKING ON THAT.

UH, MEANWHILE, WE DID PASS OUT YOUR, UH, BIO TO THE BOARD HERE.

UM, MR. UH, MADRIS WOULD BE A, AN APPOINTEE TO TAKE THE POSITION THAT SHERRY GREENBERG HAS HELD.

SHE IS, UH, RETIRING FROM THE ACE BOARD TO PURSUE OTHER VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES.

AND, UM, SHE VOLUNTEERED TO STEP DOWN AND MR. MADRAS IS AVAILABLE AND HAS BEEN INTERVIEWED, UH, FOR THIS POSITION.

SO I RECOMMEND, UH, HIS APPOINTMENT AND, UH, WOULD MAKE THAT MOTION.

THANK YOU.

DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SECONDED BY RYAN ALTER.

UH, MR. MADS, DID YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING ELSE? I THINK THERE'S ISSUES WITH THE AUDIO AND THE VIDEO, YES.

OKAY.

UM, COLLEAGUES, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING? OKAY.

SO WE HAVE A MOTION ON THE FLOOR, UM, TO APPOINT, UM, MR. MADRES ACTUALLY.

OKAY.

UM, VICE, VICE CHAIR, PERHAPS CHAIR.

YOU KNOW, WHO, WHEN YOU MENTIONED THAT MR. MADRES WAS INTERVIEWED, CAN YOU SHARE WHO DID THE INTERVIEW? WELL, IT WAS, UM, IN LOOKING FOR PEOPLE WHO WERE INTERESTED IN THIS POSITION, MY STAFF AND THE CITY STAFF ALSO TALKED WITH HIM AND PEOPLE WHO, UM, I'M NOT SURE IF IT WAS E D D OR, UM, AND MAYBE OUR STAFF CAN HELP US WITH THIS, WHO ALL TALKED WITH HIM.

MS. OLIVARES.

GOOD MORNING.

UH, DEPUTY C F O, KIM LAVAR.

I'M ALSO A MEMBER OF THE ACE BOARD.

UM, I HAVE, UM, HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH, UM, MR. MADRES.

HE HAS, HE'S HAS A LONG HISTORY OF, UM, ACT, UH, JUST BEING ACTIVE IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO IS AN INCREDIBLY, UM, SMART, UH, INTELLIGENT INDIVIDUAL WHEN IT COMES TO FINANCIAL MATTERS.

UM, HE SERVING OVER, OR WORKING FOR VARIOUS FINANCIAL FIRMS, UM, HE HAS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF KNOWLEDGE AROUND, UM, CITY FINANCIALS.

UM, SO IT, BECAUSE OF UNDERWRITING AND BOND ISSUANCES IN PREVIOUSLY, UM, AS ACE IS SEPARATE, IT'S A COMPONENT UNIT, BUT STILL A SEPARATE, UM, UM, UNIT.

UM, IT, IT STEP, IT PROVIDES A GOOD SEPARATION BETWEEN

[00:05:01]

BUT I CAN, I CAN STRONGLY SUPPORT HIS, HIS ROLE AS A, AND I'M, I'M DOING THAT AS A CITY OF AUSTIN EMPLOYEE, UM, AS, AND THEN AS AN ACE BOARD MEMBER, I WOULD, I'LL, I'M GLAD TO WORK WITH HIM, UM, AND ON THOSE EFFORTS.

THANK YOU.

UH, AND, AND I TRUST, UH, YOUR RECOMMENDATION BOTH AS A CITY OF AUSTIN EMPLOYEE AND AS AN ACE BOARD MEMBER.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

AND, AND SHOULD YOU DESIRE IT, WE CAN GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION AND, AND INTERVIEW HIM IF YOU'D LIKE TO.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

SO WE HAVE A MOTION ON THE FLOOR.

ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

AYE.

OKAY.

SO THAT'S UNANIMOUS ON THE DAAS.

MR. MADS, THANK YOU FOR YOUR WILLINGNESS TO SERVE AND THANK YOU TO MS. GREENBERG FOR SERVING, UM, SO, SO MANY YEARS FOR US, UM, STAFF, WHEN THAT COMES TO COUNSEL, IF YOU CAN CLARIFY THE TERM, I'M NOT SURE WITH MS. GREENBERG LEAVING, WHETHER IT'S THE BALANCE OF A TERM OR A NEW TERM THAT WE SHOULD BE APPOINTING HIM FOR.

SO, UM, THE MOTION WOULD BE TO POINT HIM AND, AND ADD THE CLARIFICATION OF THE, UM, EXTENT OF THE TERM THAT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE FROM A LEGAL PERSPECTIVE.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

UM, AND THANK YOU MS. POOLE FOR WORKING ON THAT.

[3. Open Data Portal Data Reliability Audit.]

WE WILL HEAR FROM THE AUDITOR'S OFFICE.

OKAY.

YES.

THIS AUDIT WAS MANAGED BY KEITH SALAS AND FRANCIS RILEY WAS THE AUDITOR IN CHARGE AND WAS GONNA PRESENT TO YOU TODAY.

THANK YOU.

UH, GOOD MORNING.

OOPS.

UM, MY NAME IS FRANCIS RILEY AND I WAS THE AUDITOR IN CHARGE OF THIS AUDIT.

UM, THIS AUDIT LOOKED AT TWO, UH, DATA RELIABILITY, UM, AND CONSISTS OF TWO MAIN PARTS.

UM, SO THE FIRST PART WAS A FOLLOW UP ON PREVIOUS AUDIT WORK OUR OFFICE HAD DONE, UH, WHERE WE HAD NOTED DATA RELIABILITY ISSUES.

UM, AND THE SECOND PART IS AN AUDIT OF THE CITY'S OPEN DATA PORTAL.

UM, HAVING RELIABLE DATA IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT ALLOWS THE CITY TO MEASURE, UM, THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ITS OPERATIONS.

UM, AND THEN ON THE COMMUNITY MEMBER SIDE, IT PROVIDES A WINDOW INTO CITY OPERATIONS AND HELPS PROVIDE ACCOUNTABILITY.

UM, RIGHT NOW THAT WINDOW'S A LITTLE BIT HARD TO SEE THROUGH, WE NOTED, UH, DATA RELIABILITY ISSUES IN PREVIOUS AUDITS.

UM, SO AS THE FIRST PART OF THIS AUDIT, UM, WE WENT BACK THROUGH OUR OFFICE'S AUDITS FROM 2017 THROUGH 2021, UM, AND LOOKED AT WHICH AUDITS WERE, WE NOTED, UH, DATA ISSUES, UM, AND THEN QUANTIFIED HOW MANY, AND THEN LOOKED AT THE TYPES OF ISSUES.

WE SAW, UM, OVER HALF OF OUR OFFICES AUDITS FROM 2017 THROUGH 2021, UH, HAD SOME SORT OF DATA RELIABILITY ISSUE.

UM, AND THOSE COVERED 20 DEPARTMENTS AS WELL AS CITYWIDE ISSUES.

UH, SOME OF THE MOST COMMON ISSUES WE SAW WERE MISSING DATA.

MY ANIMATION DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WORKING.

UM, SO DOESN'T SHOW ON THE SLIDE, BUT MISSING DATA, UM, DIRTY DATA, UH, WHICH, UH, INCLUDES THINGS LIKE EXTRA CHARACTERS, MISSPELLINGS, UH, DUPLICATES, OUTDATED DATA, UM, A LACK OF PROCESS FOR DATA, UM, AND THEN DATA BEING COLLECTED, BUT NOT BEING USED TO IMPROVE A PROCESS.

UH, SO BASED ON THE TYPES OF ISSUES WE SAW IN PREVIOUS AUDITS, WE SAMPLED SEVEN, UH, AUDITS.

OUR OFFICE HAD PREVIOUSLY DONE, UM, THAT WE DEEMED HIGHER RISK, UM, TO SEE IF THE DATA RELIABILITY ISSUES WE'D ORIGINALLY IDENTIFIED HAD BEEN RESOLVED.

UM, FOUR OF SEVEN, UM, STILL HAD UNRESOLVED, UH, RELIABILITY ISSUES.

UM, SO AS A RESULT OF, UH, THE FOLLOW-UP WORK THAT WE DID FOR THIS, WE DECIDED TO LOOK AT DATA RELIABILITY MORE GENERALLY.

UH, NONE OF THESE ARE, YEAH,

[00:10:03]

WE WILL FIGURE IT OUT.

DON'T WORRY.

SORRY.

THIS IS THE ONLY VERSION THAT WE HAVE IS THE P D F VERSION.

WOULD YOU PREFER US TO MOVE TO THE NEXT ITEM AND COME BACK WHEN YOU HAVE THE SLIDE? OKAY.

WE'LL KEEP GOING.

OKAY.

KEEP GOING.

OKAY.

OKAY.

SO, UM, SO SORRY FOR THIS.

UM, WE FOCUSED, UH, THIS AUDIT ON THE OPEN DATA PORTAL, WHICH IS A PUBLIC DATA SHARING WEBSITE, UH, THAT PROVIDES COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UH, ACCESS TO A WIDE RANGE OF CITY DATA, UM, COVERING TOPICS, UH, ACROSS CITY OPERATIONS, INCLUDING THINGS LIKE PERMITTING, TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND OTHER TOPICS.

DEPARTMENTS UPLOAD DATA TO THE PORTAL, UM, AND THESE ARE REFERRED TO AS ASSETS.

UM, AT THE TIME OF THIS AUDIT, THE PORTAL CONTAINED OVER 4,000 ASSETS, UM, INCLUDING, UH, DATA SETS, WHICH ARE THE RAW DATA ORGANIZED INTO SPREADSHEETS, DATA STORIES, UH, WHICH OFTEN PROVIDE, UH, A WRITTEN NARRATION, UM, WITH CHARTS, GRAPHS, OR PHOTOS TO PROVIDE CONTEXT FOR THE DATA STANDALONE CHARTS AND GRAPHS AND MAPS.

MR. RILEY, IF THIS IS THE WRONG PRESENTATION, DO YOU WANT US TO TAKE IT DOWN? IF THIS IS THE WRONG PRESENTATION, WOULD YOU LIKE US TO TAKE IT DOWN? OKAY, THANK YOU.

I, I THINK, SO IT'S NOT THE WRONG PRESENTATION, IT'S JUST THAT THE POWERPOINT VERSION HAD AN ANIMATION THAT'S NOT SHOWING UP IN THE P D F, SO THE DATA'S FINE.

IT'S JUST NOT AS HE'S TRYING TO SHOW YOU STUFF, IT'S NOT SHOWING UP IN THE WAY THAT IT WAS ORIGINALLY INTENDED.

OH, OKAY.

DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? YES.

YEAH.

OKAY.

SO WHATEVER YOU WANT DONE, THEN WITH THE SLIDES, PLEASE GO AHEAD AND, AND DO THAT.

I'M SORRY.

OKAY.

SO WE LOOKED AT BEST PRACTICES FOR OPEN DATA AND COMPARED AUSTIN'S OPEN DATA, UH, TO OTHER CITIES.

UM, AUSTIN ALREADY HAS, UM, SOME OF THE ELEMENTS OF BEST PRACTICES FOR OPEN DATA, INCLUDING AN OPEN DATA POLICY AND A PUBLIC PORTAL, UM, AND IS CURRENTLY, UM, IMPROVING OTHERS, INCLUDING A MORE, UH, USER-FRIENDLY PROCESS FOR SHARING DATA BOTH EXTERNALLY AND INTERNALLY, AND UPDATED USER GUIDANCE.

UM, HOWEVER, UH, THE CITY LACKS A STRATEGY FOR PROVIDING DATA.

UM, WE DON'T HAVE AN INVENTORY OF ASSETS, UM, AND THE PORTAL DOES NOT HAVE THE ABILITY TO TRACK INSIGHTS ABOUT USERS.

UM, SO WE DON'T KNOW IF PEOPLE ACCESSING THE PORTAL ARE CITY STAFF, COMMUNITY MEMBERS, OR BOTS.

UM, THAT BRINGS US TO OUR FIRST FINDING, WHICH IS NOT SHOWING UP ON THE SCREEN.

UM, THE FIRST FINDING IS THE CITY LACKS A STRATEGY FOR PROVIDING DATA.

INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENTS MAKE DATA PUBLICLY AVAILABLE THROUGH THE PORTAL, BUT OFTEN WITHOUT A CLEAR PURPOSE OR AUDIENCE FOR THE DATA, DATA IS OFTEN NOT PRESENTED IN A WAY TO MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE TO A WIDER AUDIENCE.

[00:15:02]

UM, WE DON'T HAVE AN INVENTORY OF ASSETS AND WE DON'T HAVE CLEAR STANDARDS FOR OPEN DATA.

AND THESE ALL CONTRIBUTE TO THE CITY'S LACK OF STRATEGY.

AUSTIN HAD THE MOST ASSETS OF ANY CITY WE LOOKED AT.

UM, AUSTIN HAS ABOUT A THOUSAND MORE ASSETS THAN NEW YORK CITY, WHICH WAS THE SECOND MOST PROLIFIC POSTER OF OPEN DATA.

UM, BUT WHILE WE'RE PUTTING A LOT OF DATA OUT THERE, UM, MOST OF IT ISN'T GETTING MUCH TRAFFIC.

CTMS PERFORMANCE INDICATOR FOR THE PORTAL CONSIDERS ASSETS ACCESS TO OVER 1200 TIMES PER YEAR TO BE HIGHER INTEREST.

UM, IN 2021, ONLY 12% OF ASSETS MET OR SURPASSED THAT THRESHOLD.

42% OF ASSETS HAVE FEWER THAN A HUNDRED VIEWS.

AND BECAUSE WE CAN'T SEE WHO IS ACCESSING ASSETS, UM, IT'S REALLY HARD TO SAY, FOR INSTANCE, UM, IF AN ASSET MIGHT BE SUPPLYING, UH, DATA TO, TO SOMETHING ELSE THAT GETTING MORE VIEWS OR THAT, UM, IT MAY NOT BE GETTING MANY VIEWS, BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S OF PARTICULAR IMPORTANCE TO, UM, A GROUP OF PEOPLE.

WE ALSO LOOKED AT ACCESSIBILITY.

SO FIRST, A LOT OF THE DATA ON THE PORTAL IS RAW DATA, UM, WHICH REQUIRES COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO EITHER MANIPULATE THE DATA ON THE PORTAL OR DOWNLOAD IT INTO ANOTHER PROGRAM, UM, TO MAKE SENSE OF IT.

UH, FOR THE RAW DATA TO BE USEFUL INFORMATION, PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW HOW TO WORK WITH THE DATA, UM, AND, AND THEN ALSO HAVE THE TIME AND THE ABILITY TO WORK WITH THE DATA.

SO THIS REALLY ISN'T A GOOD WAY OF SHARING INFORMATION.

THE SECOND PART OF ACCESSIBILITY WE LOOKED AT IS THE TRAINING RESOURCES OUT THERE FOR CITY STAFF AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

AUSTIN PROVIDES SOME, UH, ONLINE TRAINING, UH, THROUGH THE, UH, PORTAL VENDOR.

UM, BUT WE FOUND THAT THIS IS REALLY A PLACE WHERE AUSTIN LAGS BEHIND SOME OF THE OTHER CITIES WE LOOKED AT.

UM, SO AUSTIN COULD, COULD MAKE, UM, ITS DATA ON THE OPEN DATA PORTAL MORE ACCESSIBLE, UM, MORE TECHNICAL DATA, MORE ACCESSIBLE TO MORE PEOPLE, UM, THROUGH MORE TRAINING.

OUR SECOND FINDING IS THAT THE, UH, SAMPLE OF ASSETS ON THE PORTAL DO NOT ALWAYS MATCH DEPARTMENT'S DATA.

UM, SO DEPARTMENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING, UH, ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, AND USEFULNESS OF THEIR DATA.

UM, BUT MANAGING OPEN DATA IS NOT SOMETHING THAT DEPARTMENTS, UH, IT'S NOT A PRIMARY FUNCTION OF DEPARTMENTS.

UM, WE LOOKED AT 11 OF THE MOST ACCESS TO ASSETS ON THE PORTAL TO SEE IF WHAT WAS ON THE PORTAL MATCHED, UH, ITS SOURCE DATA.

UM, AND I WANNA NOTE HERE THAT WE DID NOT LOOK AT THE DEPARTMENT SYSTEM OF RECORD TO SEE IF THE RECORD ITSELF IS ACCURATE, JUST IF WHAT'S ON THE PORTAL MATCHES THAT RECORD.

UM, WE FOUND THAT SIX ASSETS DID NOT MATCH DEPARTMENT'S DATA.

UM, AND THE DISCREPANCIES HERE VARIED FROM, UM, BEING OFF BY ONLY A COUPLE OF RECORDS TO BEING OFF BY HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS.

THE REASONS FOR THESE DISCREPANCIES, UH, VARIED.

UM, SO SOME WERE THE RESULT OF MANUAL ENTRY.

UM, AND SO IT'S THINGS LIKE TYPOS OR, UM, SOMEONE FORGETTING TO UPDATE THE ASSET.

UM, SO IN ONE INSTANCE, UH, A PERSON RETIRED AND, UM, PARTLY BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE AN INVENTORY, UM, OTHER PEOPLE IN THE DEPARTMENT WERE NOT AWARE OF ALL THE ASSETS THAT THE DEPARTMENT HAD OUT THERE.

UM, AND SO IT JUST DIDN'T GET UPDATED FOR, UM, A FEW MONTHS.

UM, OTHERS WERE SOMETHING GOING ON IN SORT OF THIS BLACK BOX OF AUTOMATION.

UM, IN THOSE INSTANCES, WE COULDN'T TRACE WHERE THE ERROR OCCURRED, AND IN MOST CASES, NEITHER COULD DEPARTMENT STAFF.

UM, BUT REALLY THE, UH, POINT FOR BOTH, UH, MANUAL AND AUTOMATED UPDATES, UH, WAS THAT MONITORING OF OPEN DATA

[00:20:01]

UM, AND THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY THE TAKEAWAY IS NOT THAT ANY PARTICULAR DEPARTMENT'S DATA IS WRONG, UM, BUT THAT WE HAVE WIDESPREAD DATA RELIABILITY ISSUES ACROSS THE CITY.

UM, SO DEPARTMENTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR PUTTING OUT THAT DATA AND MAINTAINING, AND ON THE PORTAL, C P M IS MANAGING THE PORTAL, UM, BUT ISN'T RESPONSIBLE FOR ENSURING THE DATA IS CORRECT OR UP TO DATE.

UM, AND NO PERSON IS RESPONSIBLE FOR AN OVERALL STRATEGY OF HOW OR WHAT DATA FLOWS FROM DEPARTMENTS TO COMMUNITY USERS.

SO THAT BRINGS US TO OUR FIRST RECOMMENDATION, UM, THAT THE CITY MANAGER SHOULD HAVE A, UH, GOAL FOR OPEN DATA, UM, AND A CITYWIDE STRATEGY FOR COLLECTING AND SHARING DATA.

UM, AND THAT, THAT STRATEGY SHOULD USE THE PERFORMANCE INDICATOR, UM, FOR HOW OFTEN ASSETS ARE ACCESSED, UM, TO SEE WHICH ARE HIGHER INTEREST, INTERPRET THE HIGHER INTEREST ASSETS, UM, AND DATA, UH, WITH VISUALIZATIONS AND OR DATA STORIES, UM, AND THEN REMOVE THE OUTDATED ASSETS FROM THE PORTAL.

OUR SECOND RECOMMENDATION, UM, IS THAT THE CITY MANAGER SHOULD ESTABLISH CENTRALIZED OVERSIGHT OF, OF OPEN DATA, UM, INCLUDING AN INVENTORY OF ASSETS AND PROCESSES IN PLACE TO ENSURE THAT DATA IS CORRECT AND TIMELY.

AND THAT, UH, CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION.

I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

UM, AND STAFF FROM, UH, C T M IS HERE AS WELL.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

SO I WOULD INVITE, UM, C T M IF THEY WANNA COME UP AND, AND MAKE A RESPONSE TO THE AUDIT.

THANK YOU, MR. ALLEN.

GOOD MORNING CHAIR, VICE CHAIR COUNCIL MEMBERS.

MY NAME IS IKA LAKEY.

I'M THE INTERIM C I O FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

UH, I'D LIKE TO OFFER JUST A FEW BRIEF COMMENTS ON THE OPEN DATA PORTAL, RELIABILITY, RELIABILITY AUDIT, CONDUCTED BY THE CITY AUDITOR'S OFFICE.

FIRST, I'D LIKE TO COMMEND THE CITY AUDITOR'S OFFICE AND C T M STAFF ON THE COLLABORATION AROUND THIS AUDIT.

I THINK THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND OUR MANAGEMENT RESPONSE SUPPORT IMPROVING OUTCOMES FOR OUR COMMUNITY AROUND OPEN DATA.

UH, THE CITY'S OPEN DATA PORTAL WAS LAUNCHED IN 2013 AS PART OF THE CITY'S OPEN GOVERNMENT DIRECTIVE.

TO DATE, THE AUSTIN OPEN DATA PORTAL CONTINUES TO BE RECOGNIZED AS A LEADER IN THE OPEN DATA SPACE.

UH, C T M WAS INITIALLY TASKED WITH THE TECHNICAL ADMINISTRATION OF THE PLATFORM, AND NOW IS FOCUSED ON OPEN DATA PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION OVERALL FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

UH, C T M IDENTIFIED IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE OPEN DATA PORTAL PROGRAM IN LATE F Y 21 AND EXECUTED MAJOR OPEN DATA PROJECT, UH, A MAJOR OPEN DATA PROJECT BETWEEN MAY OF 2022 AND MARCH OF 2023.

UH, THE PROJECT PROVIDED UPGRADES TO OUR EXTERNAL OPEN DATA PORTAL AND IMPLEMENTED AN INTERNAL PLATFORM FOR COLLABORATION ON INTERNAL DATA SETS.

UH, THE PROJECT ALSO FOCUSED ON IMPROVEMENTS ON THE OPEN DATA PLATFORM STANDARDS, IMPROVED METADATA STANDARDS, MORE TRAINING FOR OUR OPEN DATA LIAISONS, AND IMPROVED VISIBILITY TO OUR OPEN DATA ASSETS.

IN JUNE, C T M, UH, BEGAN TRAINING SESSIONS TO HELP USERS WITH CREATING MEANINGFUL VISUALIZATIONS, AND WE'RE PLANNING ADDITIONAL TRAINING FOR INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL OPEN DATA PORTAL USERS.

UH, LASTLY I WANT TO MENTION WE'VE ADDED THE ACTIONS OF THE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE TO OUR OPEN DATA PROGRAM, UH, OPEN DATA PORTAL ROADMAP, WHICH NOW REFLECTS SIX INITIATIVES AND PROGRESS AND ANOTHER 33 PLAN BETWEEN NOW IN THE END OF FISCAL YEAR 24.

UH, THE IMPROVEMENTS INCLUDE TECHNOLOGY ENHANCEMENTS, BUT IMPROVED GOVERNANCE AND STANDARDS, DATA RELIABILITY CHECKS, AND OF COURSE, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ON DATA NEEDS AND USABILITY.

UH, I BELIEVE THE TEAM IS WELL POSITIONED TO MATURE OUR OPEN DATA PLATFORM, PARDON ME, AND THE ASSOCIATED PROGRAM.

THANK YOU, MS. LAKEY.

THANK YOU.

UM, COLLEAGUES, ARE THERE QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? COUNCIL MEMBER ES THANK YOU.

AND THANK YOU FOR THIS REPORT.

UH, MY QUESTION IS AROUND

[00:25:01]

I'M NOT SURE WHO WOULD BE BEST TO SPEAK ON IT, BUT IF SOMEONE CAN HELP SHARE WHAT THE MISSION AND OBJECTIVE OF THE OFFICE OF PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT DOES, BECAUSE I'M INTERESTED THEIR ROLE, UM, WITH OUR, WITH OUR AVAILABLE DATA.

GOOD MORNING, KIM LAVAR, DEPUTY C F O.

UH, PRIOR TO MY CURRENT ROLE, I WAS THE PERFORMANCE OFFICER FOR WHEN WE HAD THE OFFICE OF PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, UM, WITH A NUMBER OF REORGANIZATION, UM, EFFORTS WITHIN THE FINANCIAL SERVICES DEPARTMENT.

UM, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT HAS BEEN MERGED BACK WITH BUDGET, SO THERE'S THE BUDGET AND PERFORMANCE DIVISION.

UH, SO CARRIE LING, OUR BUDGET OFFICER, SHE OVERSEES BOTH OF THOSE FUNCTIONS.

UM, THERE ARE, AND I'M SPEAKING OFF THE CUFF HERE, I'M, I WASN'T PREPARED FOR THIS ONE, BUT, UH, UH, THE PERFORMANCE GROUP INCLUDES, UM, CURRENTLY NOW INCLUDES TWO, UH, TEAMS. ONE THAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT, UH, WORK, AND THEN ONE THAT DOES PROCESS IMPROVEMENT EFFORTS, UM, DIFFERENT PROJECTS THROUGHOUT THE ORGANIZATIONS TO FIND EFFICIENCIES, UM, IN TERMS OF THEIR, THEIR CURRENT GOALS AND PRIORITIES AROUND PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND THE, AND OPEN DATA AND THE SORT.

I CAN'T SPEAK TO THAT, BUT WHAT I CAN DO IS I CAN ARRANGE TO HAVE, UM, MS. LANG TO REACH OUT TO THE, UM, COMMITTEE TO PROVIDE, UM, MORE DETAILS LATER.

THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.

I MEAN, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE THERE WOULD BE SOME SYNERGY THERE WITHIN ABSOLUTELY THAT DIVISION AND WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ARE COMING OUT OF THIS AUDIT REPORT.

SO, UM, IF WE COULD, YOU KNOW, I'D BE INTERESTED IN HEARING STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIONS ON WHAT THAT MIGHT LOOK LIKE.

UH, CERTAINLY WE WILL CONNECT WITH THE CITY MANAGER TO DISCUSS THIS AT A HIGHER LEVEL, BUT, UM, FROM AN ORGANIZATIONAL PERSPECTIVE, UH, BUT JUST WANTED TO TO FLAG THAT.

SURE.

A C M GONZALEZ, DID YOU ALSO WANNA SHARE ON IT? THANK YOU.

COUNCIL MEMBER, RODNEY GONZALEZ, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE AUDIT OFFICE FOR THEIR WORK ON THIS.

UH, WITH REGARD TO YOUR QUESTION ABOUT RAISING THIS ISSUE TO THE CITY MANAGER LEVEL, WE ARE AWARE OF IT AND WE DO PLAN TO DISCUSS THIS TOPIC ON FRIDAY AT THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE.

AND TO, OF COURSE, LOOK AT THE, UH, HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AUDIT, WHAT WAS RECOMMENDED, AND WHAT IS THE BEST PLAN FORWARD.

YEAH.

THANK YOU.

I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT, AND I APPRECIATE THE TIME AND ATTENTION ON HOW WE PRESENT OUR DATA AND HOW WE MAKE IT PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.

I MEAN, WE KNOW THAT DATA IS A FORM, IS A WAY FOR US TO SHARE STORIES ABOUT THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING.

AND, UM, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE PUBLIC TO BE ABLE TO, TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE, THAT IT'S CORRECT, ACCURATE, AND THAT IT'S IN A USER-FRIENDLY FASHION.

SO, APPRECIATE YOU.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

AND I APPRECIATE YOU RAISING THAT COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES.

'CAUSE I THINK WE HAVE, UM, YOU KNOW, SOME CHALLENGES WITH HOW WE'RE USING DATA AS A, AS A CITY.

YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE MAJOR SHORTCOMINGS OF SSD 23 IS WE HAD A WHOLE LOT OF DATA SETS THAT WERE NEVER FULLY DEVELOPED, WHICH WERE HOW WE WERE GONNA MEASURE AND MOVE, UM, THAT FORWARD.

AND AS WE ARE EVOLVING, THE STRATEGIC PLAN, UM, THE OPEN DATA PORTAL PIECE OF IT IS, IS ONE PIECE.

AND IDEALLY, WE'RE HAVING THAT DATA THAT WE'RE USING TO, TO MEASURE OUR SUCCESS AVAILABLE ON THE OPEN PORTAL.

AND SO THE ACCURACY, THE, UM, EFFECTIVENESS AND THE TRAINING THAT OUR COMMUNITY HAS, AND THAT IS GONNA HELP US TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE AS WE MOVE FORWARD, UM, WITH A NEW STRATEGIC PLAN.

SO I THINK THAT CONNECTION IS IMPORTANT.

THANK YOU FOR, FOR BRINGING THAT UP.

UM, SO I WANTED TO CLARIFY IS, IF MY UNDERSTANDING IS CORRECT, WE HAVE NOW ASSIGNED A C T M RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE OPEN DATA PORTAL BEYOND THE TECHNICAL IN TERMS OF LEADING THE TEAMS TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, WE ARE ACCOMPLISHING THE GOALS THAT WERE LAID OUT IN THIS AUDIT.

IS THAT CORRECT? UH, CHAIR, I BELIEVE YOUR QUESTION IS, UH, SOME OF THIS IS ASSIGNED TO C T M RIGHT NOW, BUT I THINK YOU HAD MENTIONED SOME OF THIS IS, UH, IS MORE FOR THE BROADER ORGANIZATION.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE INTEND TO TALK ABOUT AT THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE IS OF COURSE, ALL THE RESPONSIBILITIES ASSOCIATED WITH ENSURING THAT WE HAVE A DATA PORTAL THAT WORKS FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND HOW BEST TO ASSIGN THOSE RESPONSIBILITIES.

UH, AS, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES HAD MENTIONED, THERE IS SO MANY RESOURCES IN OUR CITY, WHETHER IT'S OFFICE PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT, WHETHER IT'S C T M, WHETHER IT'S OFFICE OF INNOVATION, WE WILL BE LOOKING AT THIS HOLISTICALLY, UH, TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE ASSIGNING RESPONSIBILITIES FOR MAINTAINING THE DATA PORTAL, UH, IN THE WAY THAT THE AUDIT OFFICE HAS HIGHLIGHTED.

UH, SO THAT WAY WE ARE OUR BEST PRACTICE FOR DATA PORTALS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

AND I'M NOT SURE, KERIK, IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU WANTED TO ADD.

OKAY.

I'M JUST A LITTLE CONFUSED BECAUSE THE NUMBER TWO RECOMMENDATION WAS THAT YOU SHOULD ESTABLISH CENTRALIZED OVERSIGHT OVER OPEN DATA.

UM, AND THE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE WAS THAT THE AGREE AND THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN SAYS THAT THE CITY MANAGERS ASSIGNED OVERSIGHT

[00:30:01]

YES.

SO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, AND YOU MAY CHANGE THAT WITH YOUR CONVERSATION ON FRIDAY, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING FROM THE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE WAS THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT HAPPENED WAS THAT THERE WAS AN ASSIGNED RESPONSIBILITY WHERE BEFORE C T M UNDERSTOOD THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES, UNDERSTANDABLY AS THE TECHNICAL, THEY HAVE A LEAD RESPONSIBILITY NOW FOR THE BROADER, UM, PROJECT OF THE OPEN DATA PORTAL.

ABSOLUTELY.

AND JUST IN TERMS OF THAT RESPONSE, THE DRAFT AUDIT CAME TO US ON JULY 5TH, AND THEN WE HAD ABOUT, I THINK ABOUT TWO WEEKS TO RESPOND.

UH, I SPOKE WITH CARA, MYSELF, AND CARA WAS WILLING INITIALLY TO OF COURSE, TAKE ON THIS RESPONSIBILITY.

HOWEVER, WE DO INTEND TO HAVE A BROADER CONVERSATION.

SO FOR RIGHT NOW, FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE RESPONSE TO THE AUDIT, WE HAVE NAMED C T M, UH, AS THAT LEAD AGENCY.

HOWEVER, WE WILL BE DISCUSSING, UH, THE OVERALL RESPONSIBILITY.

AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, SHOULD THAT RESIDE WITH C T M OR, OR SHOULD THAT RESIDE WITH ANOTHER DEPARTMENT OR ANOTHER METHOD TO SIGN THAT RESPONSIBILITY.

OKAY.

SO WHEN YOU HAVE US SIGNED THAT, AND YOU HAVE FIGURED THAT OUT, UM, PLEASE SHARE A MEMO WITH US AND THEN WE AS A COMMITTEE CAN DECIDE WHETHER WE WANT TO, TO FOLLOW UP.

UM, YOU KNOW, I WAS IMPRESSED THAT WE HAD THIS ASSIGNMENT AND THAT WE WERE MOVING FORWARD AND MAY, THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE THE APPROPRIATE ASSIGNMENT.

UM, BUT YOU KNOW, MY IMPRESSION WAS THAT THROUGH THIS AUDIT, THIS WAS AN EXAMPLE WHERE THE AUDITORS WORKING WITH THE UNIT HAD REALLY DEMONSTRATED A CHALLENGE AND THAT IT HAD BEEN EMBRACED BY THE DEPARTMENTS INVOLVED AND THAT THE CITY MANAGER HAD STEPPED IN AND ASSIGNED RESPONSIBILITY.

SO AS THIS EVOLVES, PLEASE KEEP US, UM, APPRISED OF, OF THE NEXT STEPS.

UM, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, TRANSLATING A LITTLE BIT FROM THIS AUDIT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE TAKEN REALLY IMPORTANT STEPS TO MAKE OUR DATA AVAILABLE, AND NOW THERE'S MORE THAT WE NEED TO DO TO MAKE SURE THAT THIS DATA IS CLEAN AND IS USEFUL FOR PEOPLE.

WE NEED TO TRAIN PEOPLE, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WITH THE AVAILABILITY OF THE DATA, WHAT PEOPLE ARE USING AND HOW THEY'RE USING IT.

AND WHEN WE HAVE MULTIPLE DATA SETS THAT SPEAK TO THE SAME THING, IF THERE'S ONE THAT'S GONNA BE MORE HELPFUL FOR THE PUBLIC, SUCH AS THE VISION ZERO DATABASE IS MORE VALUABLE THAN THE REALTIME INCIDENT THAT PEOPLE ARE USING THE REALTIME INCIDENT DATABASE, THEN WE, WE NEED TO BE DOING THINGS THAT ARE STEERING FOLKS TO DATA SETS AND ARE GONNA BE MORE USEFUL, UM, FOR THEM.

AND WE WILL LEARN STUFF FROM THAT ITERATIVE KIND OF PROCESS.

WE ALSO NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S BEING USED INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY, UM, YOU KNOW, SO TO, SO THAT WE KNOW WHO WE'RE TRYING TO SERVE WITH THIS PROGRAM.

UM, I HAVE TO SAY THAT I'M NOT DISTURBED IF THERE'S A DATA SET THAT ONLY HAS A HUNDRED PEOPLE LOOKING AT IT, BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF REALLY OBSCURE QUESTIONS THAT MAYBE JUST A FEW PEOPLE OR A FEW ORGANIZATIONS MIGHT, UM, BE INTERESTED.

AND, AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING THIS WORK, WE HAVE THIS DATA OUT THERE TO BE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT TO BENEFIT FROM THE EXPERTISE THAT'S OUT IN OUR COMMUNITY.

SO PLEASE DO KEEP US, UM, YES, ENGAGED.

UM, THANK YOU.

UM, MS. STOKES, DO YOU WANT US TO ACCEPT THE AUDIT OR YOU JUST WANT US TO? OKAY.

AND CHAIR, I DID WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE WE WILL BE PROVIDING YOU AND THE COUNCIL AN UPDATE, UH, WITH REGARD TO THAT RESPONSE.

AND WE CERTAINLY INTEND TO HAVE A, A VERY ROBUST, UH, RESPONSE, NOT JUST, OF COURSE, THE RESPONSE THAT WE PROVIDED TO THE AUDIT OFFICE FOR THIS, UH, AUDIT RECOMMENDATION, BUT A FULL PLAN ON HOW WE, UH, INTEND TO IMPROVE OUR APPROACH TO THE DATA PORTAL.

THANK YOU.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

AND, AND AGAIN, AS COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES RAISED, TYING THAT TO, UM, THE DATA WORK THAT WE ARE LAYING OUT FOR OUR NEW STRATEGIC DIRECTION, UM, I THINK IS ALSO IMPORTANT, UH, TO CONSIDER.

THANK YOU.

WITH THAT,

[4. Austin-Bergstrom Landhost Enterprise, Inc. operations and financial information concerning the Hilton Hotel at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.]

UM, MR. THOMAS, MS. THOMPSON, I'M NOT SURE WHO'S SPEAKING.

GOOD MORNING.

WE ARE CO-PRESENTING TODAY.

SO IS IT OKAY IF WE SIT HERE? THAT WORKS.

THANK YOU.

ABSOLUTELY.

THANK YOU.

LET'S SEE IF I CAN WORK THE CLICKER.

THAT'S THE NEXT CHALLENGE.

YEAH, I GOT IT.

GOOD MORNING.

MY NAME IS TRACY THOMPSON.

I'M THE CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION AT THE AUSTIN BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.

I ALSO SERVE AS THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE, UH, ABLE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

I'M, UH, JOINED TODAY BY MY COLLEAGUE, UH, AIRPORT DEPUTY CHIEF OF FINANCE, RAJEEV THOMAS.

AND WE'RE HERE TO BRING YOU JUST A PERIODIC UPDATE ON YOUR HILTON AUSTIN AIRPORT HOTEL.

UH, WHAT WE'RE GOING TO, UH, REVIEW TODAY VERY QUICKLY, UH, AND BE PLEASED TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS AT THE END, OR YOU CAN INTERRUPT US IF

[00:35:01]

WE'RE GOING TO, UH, GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF OVERVIEW OF THE AIRPORT, ESPECIALLY TO REFRESH YOUR MEMORY ABOUT, EXCUSE ME, NOT THE AIRPORT, THE HOTEL AT THE AIRPORT.

UM, GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF THE HOTEL AT THE AIRPORT, A FINANCIAL UPDATE, AND THEN SOME OTHER HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE, UH, BUSINESS ENTERPRISE AT THE HOTEL AT THE AIRPORT.

SO TO, UM, WE ARE VERY, UH, PROUD OF THE HISTORY OF THE UNIQUE FACILITY THAT IS THE HILTON AUSTIN AIRPORT.

IT WAS THE FORMER AIR FORCE BASE HEADQUARTERS.

UM, AND YET THE DATA POINT HERE, UH, TELLS YOU ALL OF THE DIFFERENT, UH, UM, CHARACTERISTICS OF THE AIRPORT WITH THAT OPENED IN 2001.

IT IS A FULL SERVICE LODGING FACILITY.

IT ACCOMMODATES MANY OF THE CREWS OF THE AIRLINES THAT FLY IN AND OUT OF AUSTIN, BERKSHIRE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.

SO IT REALLY IS A VERY ROBUST HOTEL WITH A LOT OF ACTIVITY.

UM, YOU GUYS KNOW THIS BECAUSE YOU CREATED THIS, UM, A CORPORATION AS A TEXAS NON-PUBLIC, UH, FACILITY CORPORATION IN 1998.

UM, THE CORPORATION, UH, ACTS ON BEHALF OF THE DEPARTMENT AVIATION AND ONE OF THE UNIQUE CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS HOTEL ENTERPRISE, IT IS SUBJECT TO F A A REGULATIONS JUST AS THE AIRPORT IS.

SO WE ALWAYS HAD GET TO LAYER ON OUR FEDERAL OBLIGATIONS FOR THE, UH, OPERATION OF THIS HOTEL ENTERPRISE.

THE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION, UH, PROVIDES THE OVERSIGHT FOR THE ABLE CORPORATION.

UM, AND WE HAVE TWO PRIMARY, UH, LEGAL AGREEMENTS WITH, UH, THE ABLE CORPORATION.

ONE IS A GRANT AGREEMENT WHERE WE SUPPORT THE BOND PAYMENTS AS REQUIRED IN CASE THERE'S EVER A DEFICIT IN THE, UH, DEBT SERVICE RESERVE FUND, AND A GROUND LEASE WHERE THE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION RECEIVES GROUND RENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE FEES, UH, FOR PROVIDING THE REAL ESTATE FOR THE HOTEL OPERATION.

THERE ARE TWO PRIMARY CONTRACTS FOR THE HOTEL OPERATION.

ONE IS A FRANCHISE AGREEMENT WITH THE HILTON, UH, FRANCHISE HOLDINGS.

AND WE HAVE A VERY, UM, UH, WELL, UH, A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR HOTEL MANAGEMENT COMPANY THROUGH A HOTEL MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, BOYKIN ENTERPRISES.

I'M GONNA TURN THE MICROPHONE OVER TO RAJEEV.

HE'LL TALK ABOUT THE OPERATING RESULTS DO.

ALL RIGHT, GOOD MORNING COUNCIL MEMBERS.

I'M, I'M RAJIV THOMAS, DEPUTY CHIEF OF FINANCE.

UM, SO THE, THIS SLIDE IS, UM, SHOWING YOU A FIVE YEAR COMPARISON OF THE OPERATING RESULTS OF THE HOTEL.

I WANTED TO KIND OF SHOW 2019 AS A BENCHMARK, UH, BEFORE THE PANDEMIC HIT HOW THE HOTEL WAS PERFORMING VERSUS 2022, WHICH IS AUDITED FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE, FOR THE FULL FISCAL YEAR.

SO THE OCCUPANCIES HAVE IMPROVED, UH, 2022 VERSUS 2029, 2019, 82% OCCUPANCY VERSUS 80%.

UH, THE AVERAGE DAILY RATE IS ALSO IMPROVED TO 164 VERSUS 142 IN 2019.

AND THE REVENUE PER AVAILABLE ROOMS YOU CAN SEE, SO, WHICH IS A FUNCTION OF BOTH OCCUPANCY.

AND THE, UH, AVERAGE DAILY RATE IS 135 IN FISCAL YEAR 2022, UH, VERSUS 114.

SO THAT WAS REFLECTED IN OUR REVENUES.

OUR REVENUES WERE 16.3 MILLION VERSUS 14.6.

THAT'S A NICE IMPROVEMENT OVER THE PRE PANDEMIC LEVELS.

AND OUR EBITDA ALSO, UH, IMPROVED 5.1 MILLION VERSUS 4 MILLION IN 2019.

AND FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR, UH, YOU CAN SEE WHAT WE BUDGETED IS VERY CLOSE NUMBERS TO WHERE THE PERFORMANCE WAS IN 2022.

AND, UH, THE NEXT SLIDE, I'LL GO OVER THE YEAR TO DATE.

FISCAL YEAR 2023 PERFORMANCE.

ALRIGHT, SO THIS IS FOR MAY 20 THROUGH MAY 20, 23.

YEAR TO DATE.

YOU CAN SEE THE OCCUPANCY LEVELS HAVE BEEN MUCH BETTER THAN WE HAD BUDGETED.

WE HAD BUDGETED 84% OCCUPANCY LEVEL, AND SO FAR THROUGH MAY, IT'S AT 88%.

UH, LAST YEAR AT THIS SAME TIMEFRAME, WE WERE AT 81% OCCUPANCY LEVEL.

SO THAT IS A NICE IMPROVEMENT.

UH, BUT THE AVERAGE DAILY RATES HAVE STARTED TO COME DOWN.

WE HAD BUDGETED ABOUT $172 PER ROOM, BUT YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEE IT'S 165 IS WHAT WE ARE SEEING RIGHT CURRENTLY, BUT IS IN ALMOST IN LINE WITH WHAT WE DID LAST YEAR.

UH, THAT LEADS TO OPERATING REVENUES OF $7.3 MILLION.

YEAR TO DATE, OUR BUDGET WAS 7.4.

UH, THAT'S BECAUSE THE ADRS DID COME DOWN VERSUS WHERE WE BUDGETED.

SO THE OPERATING REVENUES ARE ABOUT A HUNDRED THOUSAND LESS THAN WHERE WE BUDGETED IT, BUT AGAIN, EXCEEDING LAST YEAR'S PERFORMANCE BY $572,000, UH, AT FOR THE SAME TIMEFRAME.

SO EBITDA, AS YOU CAN SEE ACROSS THE BOARD YEAR TO DATE VERSUS BUDGET, VERY CLOSE, UH, SLIGHTLY EXCEEDING, UH, THE BUDGET, BUT SLIGHTLY BELOW, UH, YEAR TO DATE, 2022.

[00:40:03]

AS YOU CAN SEE AT THE BOTTOM, THIS COMPETITIVE SET WAS KIND OF ESTABLISHED IN 2017 WHEN WE ISSUED THE BONDS.

AND, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A SET THAT WE COMPARE AGAINST THAT ALSO PROVIDES THE SAME LEVEL OF SERVICES AS THE AIRPORT HILTON.

UM, IN THIS CASE, YOU CAN SEE THE OCCUPANCY LEVELS ARE 82% VERSUS AUSTIN MARKET OF 68%.

SO THIS HOTEL DOES BENEFIT FROM THE AIRPORT TRAFFIC.

UH, A LOT OF THE, OUR, UM, UH, CUSTOMERS, UH, TRANSIENT CUSTOMERS THAT COME IN FOR EARLY MORNING FLIGHTS STAY OVERNIGHT.

SO IT IS VERY CLOSELY CORRELATED TO THE TRAFFIC AT THE AIRPORT.

SO IT BENEFITS WITH THAT.

OCCUPANCY RATES, AS LONG AS THE AIRPORT IS STAYING BUSY, UH, THE AIR, THE HOTEL IS EXPECTED TO STAY, BUT VERY HIGH OCCUPANCY LEVELS TOO.

AND THE COMPETITIVE SET, AS I MENTIONED, IT'S, YOU KNOW, THE ADRS WERE HIGHER AND ALSO THE REVENUE PER, UH, AVAILABLE ROOM WAS HIGHER THAN THE AUSTIN MARKET AND THE COMPETITIVE SET.

SO THIS IS THE SAME COMPARISON YEAR TO DATE FOR FISCAL YEAR 23.

UH, AS YOU CAN SEE, THE AUSTIN MARKET HAS ACTUALLY IMPROVED A LITTLE BIT ON THE OCCUPANCY LEVELS.

UH, IT WENT FROM 68% TO 69.8%, BUT THE HILTON IS PERFORMING, UH, EVEN BETTER THAN LAST YEAR AT 88% OCCUPANCY LEVELS.

UH, BUT THE, THE, THE ADRS FOR THE AUSTIN MARKET, AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S 178 IS, IS HIGHER THAN THE WHAT THE HILTON, UM, AIRPORT IS EXPERIENCING.

UH, BUT YOU KNOW, IT'S ALL TRENDING IN, IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION SO FAR YET TO DATE.

SO I'M GONNA MOVE OVER TO THE LOAN AGREEMENT.

UM, SO IF YOU MAY RECALL, UM, IN 2021, DURING THE PANDEMIC, UH, OUR OCCUPANCY LEVELS FELL ALMOST TO 15% TO 20%.

AND WE WERE NOT, UH, GENERATING ENOUGH REVENUES, UH, AND WE COULDN'T COVER OUR EXPENSES, UH, THAT WE NEEDED TO PAY.

WE NEEDED TO KEEP THE AIRPORT OPEN BECAUSE WE HAD CONTRACTS WITH THE FLIGHT CREWS TO MAINTAIN AND, AND OPERATE THE HOTEL.

SO AT THAT TIME, DUE TO THE CASH, UH, SHORTFALLS, WE REQUESTED A LOAN FROM THE AIRPORT TO THE HOTEL, WHICH WAS FOR $2.6 MILLION IN TOTAL.

UH, THE FIRST PART OF THAT WAS A BASE LOAN FOR 1.35 MILLION, AND THE SECOND PART OF IT WAS A CONTINGENCY LINE OF CREDIT FOR 1.25 IN CASE THAT WAS NEEDED.

AND, AND THE DRAW ON THE LOAN WAS SUPPOSED TO EXPIRE IN DECEMBER OF 2022.

SO THE, THE RESULTS OF THAT LOAN SO FAR IS, INITIALLY WE DID FUND 1.35 MILLION, BUT RIGHT AROUND THAT TIME, UH, WE ALSO GOT APPROVED FOR P P P LOAN, UH, ALSO, WHICH HELPED THE HOTEL.

WE HAD TWO P P P LOANS, UH, ONE POINT $900,000 AND ANOTHER ONE FOR $1.3 MILLION.

SO WE TOOK ADVANTAGE OF BOTH OF THEM.

AND ALSO BY THE FIRST QUARTER, ALMOST THE SECOND QUARTER OF 2022, TRAFFIC STARTED TO PICK UP AT THE AIRPORT.

AND ALSO THE, THE OPERATING PERFORMANCE OF THE HOTEL, UH, IMPROVED IN LINE WITH THAT.

SO WE RETURNED $525,000 OF IT AT THAT TIME BACK TO THE AIRPORT BECAUSE WE FELT AT THAT TIME WE DID NOT NEED IT ANYMORE.

SO WE WERE LEFT WITH ABOUT $825,000 IN A PRINCIPAL BALANCE.

AND DURING THAT TIME PERIOD BEFORE THE LOAN WAS REPAID, YOU KNOW, IT ACCRUED AN INTEREST AT 2% AT, UH, FOR AN IN, YOU KNOW, $27,000 IN ACCRUED INTEREST.

AND DUE TO THE, UM, THE LIQUIDITY THAT WE HAD, UH, AT THE BEGINNING OF 2023, WE WERE ABLE TO REPAY THE LOAN EARLY IN FULL AT $851,000 AND 719 CENTS.

SO THIS, THIS NEXT UPDATE IS ON THE GRAND AGREEMENT.

SO THE AIR, THE AIRPORT HAS A GRAND AGREEMENT AND, UM, ABLE IS A SUBORDINATE OBLIGATION OF THE AIRPORT.

SO DURING THE PANDEMIC PERIOD, UH, THE HOTEL, THE ABLE WAS NOT ABLE TO MAKE ITS BOND PAYMENTS.

SO THE AIRPORT HAD TO STEP IN AND FUND THE DEFICIENCY IN THE DEBT SERVICE RESERVE FUND DURING THOSE PERIODS.

AND FOR A TOTAL OF $4.8 MILLION, THAT WAS THREE, UM, UH, UH, PAYMENTS OF DEBT SERVICE THAT THE, THE AIRPORT HAD TO FUND, UH, TOWARDS ABEL.

UM, BUT SINCE THE, NOW THAT THE PERFORMANCE IS BACK TO, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE NEED IT TO BE, AND THE HOTEL CAN COVER ITS DEBT PAYMENTS IN FULL, UH, NO, NO MORE ADDITIONAL PAYMENTS, UH, NEEDED, UM, ON THIS SITE.

SO THAT, ANY QUESTIONS ON IT? THANK YOU.

WE'RE ALMOST DONE HERE.

I WANTED TO GIVE YOU,

[00:45:01]

YOU MAY RECALL THAT PRIOR TO THE COVID IN 27, WELL, IN 2017, IN THAT BOND ISSUE, IT FUNDED SOME REQUIRED RENOVATIONS AS REQUIRED BY THE HILTON FRANCHISE AGREEMENT.

AND THEY, UH, WE DID COMPLETED PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO, UH, PRIOR TO COVID.

UM, WE STOPPED THE RENOVATION AT THAT POINT BECAUSE OF, UH, OBVIOUSLY THE FUNDING, UH, SHORTFALLS, UH, RE RETAIN SOME MONEY IN THE RENEWAL AND REPLACEMENT FUND FOR A FUTURE DATE.

AND THAT FUTURE DATE HAS COME WHERE WE'RE ABLE TO, UH, FINISH THE RENOVATIONS THAT WERE REQUIRED BY THE, UNDER THE HILTON FRANCHISE AGREEMENT.

AND THAT INCLUDES THE PUBLIC SPACES.

WE ARE GOING TO, UM, UH, CONSIDER THE REVENUE AS WELL AS THE CAPITAL SOURCES FOR, UM, THE FUTURE RENOVATIONS AND PHASE THOSE OVER TIME.

SO, BUT IT WILL INCLUDE THE LOBBY, THE CHECK-IN DESK, THE RESTAURANT, AND THE LOUNGE.

THE PUBLIC SPACES WILL BE RENOVATED HERE IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

IN ADDITION, UH, YOU MAY RECALL IN OUR PREVIOUS UPDATES, WE HAVE, UM, A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH, UM, UNITE HERE, LOCAL 23.

HERE IS A HISTORY OF OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE, UH, WITH THE UNION, UH, IN APRIL, AS IT SAYS RIGHT HERE IN APRIL 22, WE ENTERED INTO THE, EXCUSE ME, THE MANAGEMENT COMPANY ENTERED INTO A LABOR PEACE AGREEMENT.

UM, AND THEN, UH, IN NOVEMBER OF 22, AN EXCLUSIVE BARGAINING REPRESENTATIVE WAS SELECTED.

AND CURRENTLY THE, UH, MANAGEMENT COMPANY PROSPERA, IS IN NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE UNION REPRESENTATIVES FOR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING.

WE EXPECT THAT A TENTATIVE AGREEMENT WILL BE READY FOR RATIFICATION VOTE IN AUGUST OF 2023.

AND THE ABLE CORPORATION AS AN ENTITY HAS THE REQUIREMENT TO REVIEW ANY COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT AND VOTE ON THE TERMS OF THAT AGREEMENT AS NEGOTIATED.

UM, SPEAKING OF THE MANAGEMENT COMPANY, PROSPERA BOYKIN, UM, THE ABLE BOARD IN, UH, COORDINATION AND DIRECT COORDINATION WITH OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM UNDER, IN THAT MANAGEMENT, UNDER THE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT DID INCREASE, UH, THE LIVING WAGE FOR, UH, EMPLOYEES OF THE HOTEL ENTERPRISE, EFFECTIVE FEBRUARY 18TH, 2022.

UM, THE COUNCIL APPROVED AN AMENDMENT EXTENDING THE TERM OF THE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT LAST SEPTEMBER.

UM, AND WE HAVE UNTIL, UM, UM, OCTOBER 31ST, 2024, THE CURRENT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT WILL STAY IN PLACE AS AMENDED, WHICH INCLUDED, UH, IN WHICH INCLUDED LIVING WAGE AND OTHER CITY POLICIES THAT WE THOUGHT WERE IMPORTANT FOR THE HILTON HOTEL TO ADOPT IN THEIR MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT.

WE ARE, AS I MENTIONED, THE CURRENT AGREEMENT DOES END ON, IN OCTOBER 31ST, 2024, UM, WITH THE UNION SUPPORT ABLE AND PROSPERA INTEND TO ENTER INTO A NEW MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, NEGOTIATE A NEW MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT WITH CURRENT BEST, UH, HOTEL PRACTICES FOR, UH, MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS AT AIRPORTS.

AND WE'LL BE BRINGING THAT NEW MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT, UH, TO CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL PRIOR TO ITS EXECUTION, SOMETIME LATER THIS YEAR OR EARLY IN 2024.

AND THAT IS OUR UPDATE FOR TODAY, AND WE ARE PLEASED TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, COLLEAGUES.

ARE THERE QUESTIONS? COUNCIL MEMBER? I HAD MORE OF A, A COMMENT, UM, THAT I'M REALLY PLEASED TO SEE THE AIRPORT BE WELL ON ITS WAY TO BE A WALL TO WALL UNION AIRPORT, BOTH WITH AIRPORT EMPLOYEES, WITH THE HOTEL, UM, WITH THE, UH, CONCESSIONAIRE.

UH, SO I'M EXCITED TO SEE THAT PROGRESS MOVE FORWARD AND I THINK THAT'S AN, AN AMAZING, UH, EXAMPLE OF OUR VALUES AS A CITY AND I THINK IT'S PROBABLY A, A NATIONAL MODEL AS WELL.

SO JUST WANTED TO EXTEND MY GRATITUDE.

THANK YOU, COUNCIL .

THANKS.

AND I ESPECIALLY APPRECIATE THE REPORTING BACK ON HOW WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO EMERGE FROM, UM, THE COVID PERIOD BETWEEN 2020 AND 2022.

I REMEMBER BEING PARTICULARLY CONCERNED OVER THE FATE OF THE FINANCIAL FATE OF THE VARIOUS ASSETS THAT THE CITY HAS IN PARTICULAR.

UM, THE, UM, FOLKS OUT AT THE AIRPORT, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SO CAREFULLY STEWARDING THAT PROPERTY AND THE FINANCES AND FOR THE REPORTING BACK.

I THINK IT'S BEEN HELPFUL FOR US TO KIND OF MONITOR HOW THIS HAS PROGRESSED AND I'M REALLY HOPEFUL AND OPTIMISTIC TO CONTINUE TO SEE THE, THE FLOURISHING OF, OF THAT HOTEL.

IT'S A, A REAL PLUS FOR OUR CITY, ESPECIALLY LOCATED WHERE IT IS.

AND I'M GLAD THAT THE, THE CREWS ARE ABLE TO SPEND, UH, UH, THEIR DOWNTIME AT THAT HOTEL AND NOT HAVE

[00:50:01]

THANKS FOR THE REPORT BACK.

APPRECIATE IT.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

I WANTED TO JUST CONFIRM ON THE GRANT PIECE, I APPRECIATE THAT THE LOAN WAS PAID BACK, UM, FOR THE GRANTS THAT WILL BE PAID BACK AS PART OF THE BOND PAYMENTS OVER TIME, OR ARE THOSE, IS THAT FUNDING THAT THE, THE AVIATION DEPARTMENT IS KEEPING? YEAH, THERE IS NO MECHANISM TO KIND OF PAY BACK, UM, THAT GRANT UNFORTUNATELY.

UM, AND YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE, UH, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR DEBT SERVICE COVERAGE RATIO, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT WE ARE PROJECTING FOR IN FISCALLY AT 23, IT'S 1.41, WE HAVE TO MEET 1.25.

SO THERE'S NOT A LOT OF ROOM OR MARGIN AT THE END OF THE DAY TO BE ABLE TO PAY BACK $4.8 MILLION, I THINK OVER THE COURSE OF THE, UH, FOR OVER THE COURSE OF THE, THE, THE BOND SCHEDULE.

UM, YOU KNOW, THE, RIGHT NOW THE DEBT SERVICE PAYMENTS ARE, THIS YEAR IS ABOUT THREE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS.

IT ESCALATES TO 4 MILLION AND EVENTUALLY TO 5 MILLION ABOUT 20 YEARS DOWN THE LINE.