[00:00:02]
I'M ON A CALL TO ORDER THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION.
IT'S NINE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 29TH, 2023.
WE ARE MEETING IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS AT AUSTIN CITY HALL, WHICH IS LOCATED AT 3 0 1 WEST SECOND STREET, AND WE HAVE A QUORUM OF THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL PRESENT.
UH, I'LL NOTE FOR THE RECORD THAT COUNCIL MEMBER KELLY IS, UH, JOINING US VIRTUALLY, UH, MEMBERS.
THE ORDER WILL GO IN, WILL BE SOME, UH, PRE-SELECTED ITEMS, AND THEN WE'LL NOT PRESELECTED ITEMS. WE'LL GO TO BRIEFINGS FIRST.
WE'LL FIRST GO TO, UM, A BRIEFING ON THE SITE PLAN PROCESS ASSESSMENT.
THE, WE WILL THEN GO TO THE AUSTIN AUSTIN TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT.
THEN WE'LL HAVE A NUMBER OF ITEMS THAT HAVE BEEN PULLED, BUT I THINK FOR WILL BE BRIEF DISCUSSION, BUT JUST IN ANTICIPATION OF OUR COUNCIL MEETING, UH, TO MAKE SURE WE GET QUESTIONS, UH, ANSWERED OR PREPARE FOR QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED ON THURSDAY.
WE ARE POSTED FOR AN EXECUTIVE SESSION TODAY, UM, RELATED TO HOUSE BILL 2127, BUT MEMBERS, THERE'S A HEARING ON THAT TOMORROW AT THE COURTHOUSE.
AND SO, UH, UNLESS THERE'S OBJECTION, WHAT I'LL DO IS ACTUALLY, WE'RE ALSO POSTED FOR THIS ON THURSDAY AT THE COUNCIL MEETING, AND SO THAT WE'LL HAVE THE INFORMATION RELATED TO THE HEARING.
WE'LL JUST DO THE EXECUTIVE SESSION, UH, ON THURSDAY, UNLESS THERE'S OBJECTION TO THAT.
COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES, NO OBJECTION ON THAT ISSUE, BUT I DID WANNA PULL ANOTHER ITEM FOR DISCUSSION OKAY.
THAT IS THE CONTRACT FOR, UH, MEETING SERVICES.
COUNCIL MEMBER CADRE? YES, SIR.
UH, I JUST WANTED TO CONFIRM THAT YOU HAD SEEN ON, ON YOUR END ITEM 78 BEING PULLED BY OUR OFFICE.
IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING YOU WANTED TO PULL 78 YES, SIR.
SO THAT YOU COULD, UM, MAYBE WITHDRAW IT.
JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I HAVE MY NOTES RIGHT.
UH, YEAH, WE'LL COME BACK TO THAT.
[B1. Briefing on Development Site Plan Process Assessment]
WE, UH, HAVE SOME FOLKS HERE TODAY THAT ARE GOING TO PROVIDE US A BRIEFING ON, UH, A REVIEW THAT HAS BEEN DONE, A DEEP DIVE, UH, IF YOU WILL, A PERFORMANCE, UH, REVIEW, AUDIT, WHATEVER YOU WANNA CALL IT, OF OUR SITE PLAN PROCESS.AND I'LL, UM, RECOGNIZE THEM, LET THEM INTRODUCE THEMSELVES.
YOU WANT TO, YOU WANT TO SET US OFF? OKAY.
UH, GOOD MORNING, MAYOR VERONICA SENIO, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
JUST WANTED TO KICK US OFF BEFORE I TURN IT OVER TO OUR CONSULTANTS AND SAY A FEW WORD ABOUT A FEW WORDS ABOUT THIS IMPORTANT REPORT THAT YOU'RE GONNA CONSIDER TODAY.
IMPROVING AFFORDABILITY AND ACCESS TO HOUSING IS A CRITICAL PRIORITY FOR THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL FOR OUR ORGANIZATION AND FOR THE GREATER AUSTIN COMMUNITY.
THERE ARE NUMEROUS FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE AFFORDABILITY PICTURE, AND QUITE FRANKLY, MANY ARE NOT WITHIN THE CITY'S CONTROL.
HOWEVER, THERE IS ONE SIGNIFICANT FACTOR OVER WHICH WE DO HAVE CONTROL.
THE SITE PLAN REVIEW PROCESS, SITE PLAN REVIEW IS ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES ADMINISTERED BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN, WITH LAYERS OF REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE OVERSEEN BY 11 CITY DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
IT'S ALSO A PROCESS THAT CAN AND DOES IMPACT THE TIMELINES AND COSTS OF NEW DEVELOPMENT DESIGNED TO ADDRESS OUR HOUSING CHALLENGES IN AUSTIN.
WITH THAT AS A BACKDROP, WE ASKED MCKENZIE AND COMPANY AN INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED CONSULTING FIRM WITH EXPERIENCE IN BOTH THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR TO CONDUCT AN IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS OF OUR REVIEW PROCESS.
THIS TYPE OF DETAILED ANALYSIS THAT INCLUDES AN ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT PERFORMANCE PROCESS MAPPING, OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPACT, AND A HIGH LEVEL ROADMAP FOR IMPLEMENTATION ARE ALL A DEPARTURE FROM PAST REVIEWS.
MCKENZIE AND COMPANY FOCUSED ON UNDERSTANDING THE CURRENT PROCESS, ITS IMPACT ON BOTH OUR CUSTOMERS AND STAFF, AND HOW IT MIGHT BE IMPROVED.
IT WAS DONE WITH THE PARTNERSHIP OF MORE THAN 150 CITY STAFF LED BY THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT, BUT INCLUDING ALL OTHER DEPARTMENTS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS TO RE THE REVIEW HAS BEEN SHARED WITH OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM, WHO ARE IN SUPPORT OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
IMPLEMENTATION OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS WILL POSITION US TO MAKE MEANINGFUL SHORT AND LONG-TERM IMPROVEMENTS.
FURTHER, IT'LL HELP US STREAMLINE HOW OUR DEPARTMENTS WORK TOGETHER, WILL HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE FULL RANGE OF THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESSES AND WILL ACCELERATE PROBLEM SOLVING AND INNOVATION MOVING FORWARD.
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DIRECTOR JOSE ROIG, WHO'S HERE WITH US TODAY, HAS BEEN ASKED TO TAKE ON A LEADERSHIP ROLE THAT SPANS THE ENTIRETY OF THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
HE HAS THE FULL SUPPORT OF THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE AND THE SUPPORT OF DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP TO GET US WHERE WE NEED TO BE TODAY.
WE HAVE REPRESENTATIVES FROM MCKENZIE AND COMPANY TO SHARE IT WITH YOU AND OVERVIEW OF THEIR FINDINGS.
DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DIRECTOR RIG IS ALSO HERE TODAY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE AND TALK ABOUT THE STEPS THAT WE'RE TAKING.
AND LASTLY, BEFORE I TURN THIS OVER TO DREW ERDMAN WITH MCKENZIE
[00:05:01]
AND COMPANY, I DID WANT TO NOTE THAT BASED ON THIS WORK, WE ARE RECOMMENDING A CONSULTING CONTRACT THAT WILL SU, THAT WILL SUPPORT IMPLEMENTATION AND R C A REQUESTING AUTHORIZATION TO NEGOTIATE AND EXECUTE IS POSTED AS ITEM NUMBER 23 ON YOUR AGENDA THURSDAY.AND WITH THAT, I'M GONNA HAND IT OVER TO DREW.
I'LL INTRODUCE HIM IN A MOMENT.
UH, BUT MY NAME'S PAUL COULTER.
I'M A SENIOR PARTNER AT MCKINSEY, AND I'M THE MANAGING PARTNER FOR OUR AUSTIN OFFICE.
UH, I'VE BEEN SERVING, UH, CLIENTS WITH MCKINSEY FOR 23 YEARS.
UH, I'LL INTRODUCE DREW IN A MOMENT, BUT I COULDN'T PASS THE OPPORTUNITY TO INTRODUCE OUR FIRM, OUR OFFICE, AND MYSELF INSTEAD.
UM, UH, I'LL JUST START WITH, UH, A BIT OF CELEBRATION.
UH, WE'VE NOW BEEN IN OUR NEW AUSTIN OFFICE FOR 14 MONTHS.
WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF COLLEAGUES THAT ARE QUITE COMMITTED TO, UH, GREATER AUSTIN AND TEXAS AS CONTEXT.
AUSTIN IS THE THIRD MCKINSEY OFFICE IN TEXAS.
UH, THERE'S NO OTHER STATE IN THE COUNTRY WITH THREE MCKINSEY OFFICES.
IN FACT, OF OUR SEVEN 170 OFFICES GLOBALLY, THERE'S ONLY FOUR OTHER COUNTRIES OUTSIDE THE US WITH THREE MCKINSEY OFFICES.
SO, AS A FIRM, WE'RE VERY COMMITTED TO THE STATE, AND AS AN OFFICE, WE'RE VERY COMMITTED TO THE CITY.
UH, WE, WE LAUNCHED OUR OFFICE AND CONDUCTED A SERIES OF 138 INTERVIEWS WITH SOME OF YOU INCLUDED, UH, AND WROTE A REPORT THAT, UH, I WANTED TO JUST MENTION.
UH, HOPEFULLY EVERYONE'S, UH, HAD ACCESS TO IT, BUT WE'D LOVE ANY FEEDBACK AND ANY THOUGHTS ON, UH, THE CHALLENGES AND, AND THE ASPECTS TO CELEBRATE ABOUT OUR GREAT CITY.
UH, AND THEN ON A PERSONAL NOTE, UH, I'VE, UH, I'M NOT A NATIVE TEXAN.
I'VE LIVED HERE 16 YEARS, 13 IN AUSTIN, THREE, UH, ELSEWHERE IN, IN TEXAS.
WHEN I WAS IN THE MILITARY, UH, WE WERE SHARING, UH, BEFORE THE SESSION, UH, I, I, UH, HAVE, UH, UH, THREE CHILDREN.
SO I'VE MADE MORE AUSTINITES AND WE'RE
UH, AND IT'S BEEN AN HONOR TO COLLABORATE WITH THE CITY ON THIS TOPIC.
UM, SO I WANTED TO INTRODUCE MYSELF AND SET A BIT OF THAT CONTEXT, BUT NOW I'LL INTRODUCE DREW TO SHARE THE FINDINGS OF OUR WORK.
UM, AGAIN, IT'S AN HONOR TO BE ABLE TO PRESENT TO THIS WORK SESSION TODAY.
I'M A PARTNER IN MCKINSEY AND COMPANY.
LOUIS OFFICE, AND I SPEND A HUNDRED PERCENT OF MY TIME FOCUSED ON STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT IMPROVEMENTS.
UH, HAVE PAST PUBLIC SECTOR EXPERIENCE AS WELL AS PRIVATE SECTOR EXPERIENCE.
IT'S BEEN A PARTICULAR PRIVILEGE TO BE PART OF THIS EFFORT.
UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THE CLICHE OF PICTURES WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS.
WELL, THIS MIGHT BE WORTH 2000.
IT IS THE SCENE SETTER FOR WHAT YOU ALL HAVE EXPERIENCED, YOUR COMMUNITY HAS EXPERIENCED, BUT ALSO, QUITE FRANKLY, THE GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS OF HOW TO ADAPT TO THIS RATE OF CHANGE.
YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE NUMBERS, BUT IT IS WORTH STATING AGAIN, THAT AT THE START OF THE CENTURY, AUSTIN WAS THE 17TH LARGEST CITY IN THE UNITED STATES.
THIS YEAR, IT'S THE 10TH LARGEST.
THERE'S ONLY BEEN A HANDFUL OF OTHER CITIES IN THE UNITED STATES THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS KIND OF RAPID GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT.
AND IT IS UNDERSTANDABLE THAT THERE ARE NEED FOR CHANGE TO ACCOMMODATE THAT WHEN YOU THINK OF THE PUBLIC SECTOR AND HOW IT'S MANAGED.
UH, WE WERE ASKED TO CONDUCT AN ASSESSMENT.
WHAT WE DID FOCUSED ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE SITE PLAN DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
YOU SEE SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS UP ON THE SCREEN.
IT IS, YOU KNOW, PROCESS MAPPING.
IT IS GOING THROUGH LABORIOUSLY, QUITE FRANKLY, WITH THE STAFF OVER 150 FROM ACROSS 11 DEPARTMENTS, MAPPING OUT WHAT ARE THE EXACT STEPS INVOLVED IN A REVIEW PROCESS, GOING THROUGH THE IT PLATFORMS, BUT ALSO ENGAGING.
AND THIS IS SIGNIFICANT EQUALLY, THE CUSTOMERS, THE APPLICANTS, AS WELL AS THE STAFF IN THE PROCESS.
AND YOU SEE THAT THERE, WHERE OVER 20 DIFFERENT CUSTOMER ORGANIZATIONS OR APPLICANT ORGANIZATIONS WERE INVOLVED IN MULTIPLE WORKSHOPS AS WELL AS 178.
PARTICIPATING IN A SURVEY WILL SHOW SOME OF THOSE RESULTS MOMENTARILY.
BUT ALONG THE WAY, ALSO, SURVEYS OF CITY STAFF, WORKING SESSIONS WITH CITY STAFF AND INTERVIEWS AS WELL TO CO-DEVELOP THESE PERSPECTIVES.
SO, JUST A FEW HEADLINE MESSAGES TO START WITH, THE SATISFACTION WITH THE CURRENT PROCESS IS LOW.
OVER 80% OF APPLICATIONS HAVE THREE PLUS CYCLES THROUGH THE PROCESS.
OVER 30% HAVE FIVE TIMES GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF REWORK ALSO, AND THIS IS BASED ON THE SURVEY, ABOUT 80% REPORT TAKING MORE THAN A YEAR, AND ABOUT 28% REPORTED TAKING MORE THAN 18 MONTHS TO MAKE IT THROUGH THE PROCESS.
SO THIS IS JUST A QUICK COMPARISON TO SOME OTHER BENCHMARKS.
[00:10:01]
IS FOR HIGH SATISFACTION.IT'S ON A SCALE OF ONE TO 10, THAT WOULD BE A NINE OR A 10.
UH, IF YOU COMPARE IT TO SUCH THINGS AS THIS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OR A CABLE TELEVISION IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, OR EVEN STATE GOVERNMENTS, THAT'S NOT JUST TEXAS, THAT'S ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.
THE CURRENT STATE OF AUSTIN SITE PLAN REVIEW IS AGAIN, LAGS COMPARABLE BENCHMARKS.
NOW, THE CITY STAFF HAVE TO ADMINISTER AN INHERENTLY COMPLICATED AND EVOLVING CODE AND WANNA STRESS THAT THIS IS VERY, VERY HARD TECHNICAL WORK REGARDLESS OF WHAT JURISDICTION YOU'RE IN.
IN COMPARISON, IT IS JUST A VERY DIFFICULT CHALLENGE.
AND THEN AGAIN, GOING BACK TO THOSE PICTURES WHERE WE STARTED, WHERE THE EVOLVING NATURE OF THE COMMUNITY, YOU SEE THE SCALE OF THE REGULATIONS INVOLVED ABOUT 1800 DIFFERENT REGULATIONS.
THEN THAT GETS TRANSLATED INTO TECHNICAL MANUALS AND TECHNICAL CODES FOR THESE SPECIALTIES TO TRANSLATE INTO, INTO ACTION.
AND OF COURSE, THERE, IT'S AN EVOLVING CODE, WHICH IS UNDERSTANDABLE BASED UPON THE PACE OF DEVELOPMENT.
NOW, WE'LL NOT GO THROUGH THIS IN DEPTH, BUT THIS LAYS OUT THE BASIC ELEMENTS OF THE REVIEW PROCESS.
AND AGAIN, IT IS INHERENTLY COMPLEX, BUT IT INVOLVES FOUR BASIC STEPS.
THERE'S THE SUBMISSION WHERE AN APPLICANT PREPARES A PLAN AND THEN SUBMITS IT THROUGH THE FORMAL PROCESS.
THEN THERE'S B THE COMPLETENESS CHECK, WHERE THE CITY STAFF WILL GO THROUGH AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING IS COMPLIANT JUST FROM A COMPLETENESS STANDPOINT OR THAT'S THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.
THEN THERE'S PART C, WHICH IS THE, THE MAIN MEAT OF THE PROCESS, THE FORMAL REVIEW, WHERE UP TO 200 PEOPLE OR MORE MAY BE INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS, GOING THROUGH A SERIES OF TECHNICAL REVIEWS.
THIS IS THE MEAT OF THE PROCESS.
AND THEN THE BACKEND IS ACTUALLY THE PERMIT ISSUANCE.
OKAY? AND YOU SEE THERE THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT CAN TAKE NOT IN EVERY CASE, DEPENDS ON THE COMPLEXITY, CLOSE TO 1500 STEPS.
IT IS SIGNIFICANT HANDS-ON TECHNICAL EXPERTISE THAT GIVES YOU A SENSE OF HOW MUCH TIME IS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS THERE, ABOUT THE 20 EQUIVALENT OF 20 FTES FOR WORK, UH, FOR A WEEK.
JUST WANNA HIGHLIGHT ALSO, THIS IS NOT JUST D S D OR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT, YOU KNOW THAT, BUT IT IS WORTH EMPHASIZING 11 DEPARTMENTS OVER 200 PEOPLE COULD TOUCH A SITE PLAN REVIEW IN PROCESS, DEPENDING ON ITS COMPLEXITY.
ALSO, EVEN WITHIN THOSE DEPARTMENTS, THERE'S A SERIES OF VERY TECHNICAL SPECIALTIES IN SOME DEPARTMENTS HAVE MULTIPLE TECHNICAL REVIEWS BY DIFFERENT TECHNICAL EXPERTS AS YOU GO THROUGH.
AND THIS GIVES YOU A SENSE OF THE DIVERSITY, SCALE AND SCOPE OF THAT INTERACTION.
WANNA NOTE THAT MAKES IT INHERENTLY COMPLICATED TO EXECUTE EFFICIENTLY AND COMING BACK TO EXECUTING EFFICIENTLY.
ONE OF THE CORE FINDINGS THAT WE HAVE HERE IS THAT ACROSS THOSE 11 DEPARTMENTS AND ALL THOSE PUBLIC SERVANTS TRYING TO DO EXCELLENT WORK FOR THE CITIZENS OF THE, OF THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY, THERE IS A LACK OF ALIGNMENT ON BASICALLY WHO THEY ARE SERVING AND WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE PROCESS.
AND THIS IS JUST A WORD CLOUD.
THIS IS BASED UPON A WORKSHOP WITH CITY STAFF.
WORD CLOUD IS JUST HIGHLIGHTING WHEN WE ASK THEM, WHO IS YOUR, WHO DO YOU SEE AS YOUR PRIMARY CUSTOMER? THIS IS BASED ON THE FREQUENCY OF WORDS.
THE COLOR DOESN'T MATTER, BUT IT'S THE SIZE OF THE WORD.
WHAT MATTERS MOST IS THAT THERE'S VARIATIONS ACROSS THOSE 11 DEPARTMENTS.
AND IT IS HARD TO HAVE AN EFFICIENT PROCESS WITH MULTIPLE HANDOFFS IF YOU'RE NOT ALIGNED ULTIMATELY UPON WHAT IS THE PURPOSE AND WHO IS THE PRIMARY CUSTOMER OF THE PROCESS.
SO A FEW OTHER POINTS WE JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT.
WE SURVEYED THE CITY'S STAFF AS WELL, JUST BASED ON NOT THE SITE PLAN PROCESS EXACTLY, BUT MORE GENERALLY THE SKILLS AND CAPABILITIES FOR OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE OR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT, HOW YOU IMPROVE PROCESSES AS YOU WOULD IN YOUR WORK.
THESE ARE SOME HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SURVEY.
IT'S ON A SCALE OF ONE TO FOUR, FOUR BEING BEST, ONE BEING LOWEST.
THESE ARE SOME SELECT HIGHLIGHTS.
BUT WHAT IS SIGNIFICANT TO NOTE IS THAT ON SUCH THINGS AS, IF YOU LOOK ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE WHERE IT SAYS PRINCIPLES AND BEHAVIORS, THE IDEA THAT LEADERS HAVE VISITS TO WORK AREAS AND PROVIDE SUPPORT, THAT SCORES RELATIVELY WELL.
BUT IF YOU LOOK DOWN BELOW, UNDER OPERATING PROCEDURES AND, AND TECHNOLOGY WHERE IT'S QUESTIONS SUCH AS ARE STAFF TRAINED AND ROUTINE ROUTINELY APPLY ROOT CAUSE PROBLEM SOLVING? THAT'S JUST TECHNICAL FOR DO THEY KNOW HOW TO CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE A PROCESS WHEN IT CHANGES, WHICH IS INHERENT IN THE WORK THEY DO.
YOU LOOK AT SOMETHING LIKE THIS, THAT SCORES RELATIVELY LOW.
AND SO WHAT THIS JUST MERELY HIGHLIGHTS IS THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES TO BUILD AND IMPROVE THE SKILLS AND CAPABILITIES OF THE CITY TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE PROCESS.
NOW, ANOTHER POINT TO BE HIGHLIGHTED,
[00:15:01]
WE HEARD THIS MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE INTERVIEWS, BUT ALSO JUST THE DATA WE HAVE HERE, THE ATTRITION RATE FOR D S D STAFF.THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE INTERNAL TRANSFERS WITHIN DEPARTMENTS.
SO I WANNA NOTE THAT IT'S ACTUALLY A HIGHER PERCENTAGE, ABOUT FIVE OR 6% HIGHER, UH, WITH INTERNAL D DEPARTMENT TRANSITIONS.
BUT THE BROADER THEME, WHICH IS TRANSITIONS IN STAFF, HAVE AFFECTED THE PERFORMANCE AND EFFICIENCY OF THE PROCESS.
AND YOU SEE THAT IT TAKES, UM, AND THIS IS BASED UPON THE INTERVIEWS THAT NUMBER ONE TO ONE AND A HALF YEARS, IT COULD BE LONGER DEPENDING ON THE TECHNICAL SPECIALTY.
THIS IS HARD TECHNICAL WORK TO DO.
IT TAKES TIME TO BUILD THOSE SKILLS AND CAPABILITIES TO BE FULLY FUNCTIONAL AS AN EFFICIENT REVIEWER.
SO IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT SOMETHING WHERE IT TAKES A YEAR, A YEAR AND A HALF, AND SOME SPECIALTIES MAYBE OVER THAT, MAYBE TWO YEARS, AND YET THE AVERAGE TENURE IS LESS THAN THAT, YOU CAN SEE THAT THERE CAN BE A LOT OF DISCONTINUITY.
WE HEARD THIS BOTH FROM STAFF AS WELL AS CUSTOMERS.
NOW THERE'S MULTIPLE IT PLATFORMS. AND OBVIOUSLY THIS RANGES FROM THE VERY, VERY TACTICAL AND EVERY DAY TO THE AMANDA SYSTEM, WHICH IS THE CORE INTERNAL PROCESS MANAGEMENT TOOL.
IT'S AMANDA'S REPLACEMENT WAS ALREADY ON THE AGENDA FOR TAKING PLACE, BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS PASSED ITS LIFE EXPECTANCY, SO TO SPEAK.
AND WHAT THE ANTIQUATED, UH, AMANDA SYSTEM, WHAT THAT'S NECESSITATED IS QUITE FRANKLY A SERIES OF MANUAL WORKAROUNDS WITHIN DIFFERENT TEAMS. BUT IT ALSO PREVENTS FOR BOTH CITY STAFF AS WELL AS CUSTOMERS, THE TRANSPARENCY IN THE PROCESS, WHICH IMPEDES EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT, EFFECTIVE MEASUREMENT, AND EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE.
BUT THAT WAS ALREADY ON THE AGENDA FOR REPLACEMENT.
NOW, WE WILL NOT GO THROUGH THIS CHART IN DETAIL, BUT I DO WANNA EXPLAIN IT.
BUT WHAT MATTERS HERE IS WHAT WE ATTEMPTED TO CAPTURE, AND I WANNA STRESS THIS IS FROM THE QUANTITATIVE SURVEYS AS WELL AS THE INTERVIEWS, AS WELL AS WORKSHOPS.
THE IDEA OF A CUSTOMER SERVICE JOURNEY THROUGH THE ENTIRE END-TO-END PROCESS.
AND THIS IS A GRAPHIC REPRESENTATION, IT'S A QUALITATIVE CAPTURING IT, BUT JUST LET ME EXPLAIN HOW TO READ THE CHART.
IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE TOP WITH THOSE CHEVRONS, THAT'S THE ACTUAL BREAKDOWN OF THE MAJOR PARTS OF THE SITE PLAN REVIEW PROCESS THAT WE INTRODUCED EARLIER.
BUT IT'S A LITTLE MORE FINE-GRAINED.
AND YOU SEE THE APPLICATION COMPLETENESS, FORMAL REVIEW, AND THEN PERMIT ISSUANCE.
AND WHAT YOU SEE HERE IS FOR BOTH THE CITY OF AUSTIN STAFF, THAT'S THE LOWER ROW AND THE APPLICANT, WE TRY AND CAPTURE IN A QUALITATIVE WAY THEIR EXPERIENCE OF WHAT THEY'RE FEELING GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS.
AND THE TAKEAWAY FROM THIS GRAPHIC, UH, IS THAT BOTH SIDES ARE FRUSTRATED.
BOTH SIDES ARE FRUSTRATED IN THIS PROCESS.
WANNA NOTE ALSO, JUST, UH, WE DID SHARE THIS GRAPHIC WITH BOTH, UH, APPLICANTS AS WELL AS CITY STAFF IN WORKSHOPS, SAYINGS, AND THEY AGREED WITH IT.
THEY THOUGHT THIS WAS A FAIR REPRESENTATION OF BOTH OF THEIR EXPERIENCES.
NOW, JUST AS A SUMMARY TO STEP BACK FROM THAT FINE GRAIN, WHAT YOU SEE HERE IS JUST THE SUMMARY OF THE CHALLENGES YOU SEE ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE, THE APPLICANTS.
AND OFTENTIMES THEY'RE JUST MIRRORED ON THE CITY STAFF SIDE.
THEY'RE CAUGHT IN THIS PROCESS THAT NEEDS TO BE ADAPTED.
AND IT CAN GO FROM UNCLEAR REQUIREMENTS AND AN OPAQUE PROCESS.
AND YOU LOOK AT IT THROUGH THE APPLICANT'S LENS SOMETIMES, WHO'S IN CHARGE? WHO DO I CONTACT? THAT'S UNCLEAR.
THAT THEME OF LOSS OF INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE WITH STAFF TURNOVER A CRITICAL PAIN POINT.
THIS DELAY IN COMMENTS, THE COMMENTS COME IN BATCHES AT THE END OF THE PROCESS.
AND OFTENTIMES APPLICANTS SAY, IF WE HAD ONLY KNOWN THIS SIX MONTHS AGO, WE COULD HAVE ALREADY ADDRESSED THAT.
AND SO THE QUESTION OF HOW TO PROVIDE DRAFT COMMENTS EARLIER IN THE PROCESS TO ALLOW IT TO BE MORE ADAPTIVE, QUITE FRANKLY, INCONSISTENT PROCESS AND GUIDANCE, IT MAY DEPEND UPON, AGAIN, COMING BACK TO THAT STAFF TURNOVER.
THERE'S INCONSISTENCY IN HOW THINGS MAY BE INTERPRETED.
THIS EXACT SAME PLAN MAY BE VIEWED DIFFERENTLY BY SOMEONE.
UM, AND ALSO AT THE END OF THE PROCESS, THE WET SIGNATURE REQUIREMENTS EXTENDS THE PERMIT ISSUANCE.
AND YOU CAN SEE ALSO ON THE CITY, UH, SIDE THAT THERE'S COMPARABLE CONCERNS OR COMPARABLE FRUSTRATIONS.
I WON'T GO THROUGH THEM ALL, BUT HOPEFULLY THAT CONVEYS SOME OF THE MUTUALITY OF THE CHALLENGES.
AND EVERY MONTH OF DELAY WANT TO EMPHASIZE THIS, EVERY MONTH OF UNNECESSARY DELAY.
THESE ARE COMPLICATED PROCESSES THAT DO TAKE TIME, BUT FOR EVERY MONTH OF DELAY, THESE ARE SOME SCENARIOS I WANNA EMPHASIZE THAT THEY'RE SCENARIOS, BUT REPRESENTATIVE BASED UPON KIND OF AVERAGES OF THE TYPES OF DEVELOPMENT.
IT GIVES YOU A SENSE OF, YOU KNOW, THE, A REDEVELOPMENT
[00:20:01]
FROM A, FOR A SINGLE FAMILY, UH, REDEVELOPMENT AROUND $10,000 A MONTH OF EXTRA CARRYING COSTS.AND YOU SEE THAT FOR GREENFIELD DEVELOPMENT.
IMAGINE REDEVELOPING, UH, A PARKING LOT INTO A, UH, PROPERTY OR A MULTI-FAMILY RESIDENT RESIDENTIAL REDEVELOPMENT.
YOU CAN SEE THE SCALE AND SCOPE, BUT AGAIN, TIME IS MONEY.
EVERY MONTH OF DELAY INCREASES THE, THE CARRYING COSTS ON A DEVELOPMENT PROJECT.
SO LOOKING FORWARD, IF YOU, UH, APPROACH THIS, IT'S NOT ONE SINGLE PROCESS.
WANT TO COME BACK TO THAT AGAIN? 11 DEPARTMENTS WITH THEIR OWN SUB-PROCESSES INVOLVED.
IT'S LIKE IT'S GEARS OF A MACHINE.
HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE THAT THOSE MESH TOGETHER? IT REQUIRES A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH ACROSS STRATEGY, PEOPLE, PROCESSES, AND STRUCTURE.
THERE'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO MOVE FROM, YOU KNOW, SILOED AT THE TOP, SILOED 11 DEPARTMENTS TO THAT COMMON APPROACH.
WHO DO WE SERVE? GOES THROUGH THE PEOPLE MODEL AS WELL, THE PROCESSES.
HOW TO MOVE FROM HIGHLY COMPLEX, OFTEN MANUAL WITH MANUAL WORKAROUNDS, INCONSISTENT.
AND THIS IS FOR BOTH CITY STAFF AND FOR APPLICANTS.
THEN BEING DESIGNED FOR, FOR BOTH OF THEM.
AND THEN OF COURSE, THE STRUCTURE AS WELL TO BE MORE FLEXIBLE AND INTEGRATED.
OUTLINE A LOT OF WORDS ON THIS PAGE.
BUT BASICALLY, ONE TAKEAWAY FROM THIS IS THAT YOU CANNOT DO THIS ALL OVERNIGHT.
BUT THE FLIP SIDE IS, IS THAT THERE ARE SOME THINGS YOU CAN DO IN THE NEAR TERM, MEDIUM TERM AND LONG TERM.
THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO WAY TO DO A RAPID IT TRANSFORMATION OVERNIGHT, OKAY? AND NO ONE IS SUGGESTING IT TAKES TIME, FOR EXAMPLE.
BUT HOPEFULLY THIS CONVEYS THE IDEA OF WHAT WILL NEED TO BE DONE IN DIFFERENT HORIZONS.
BUT THERE ARE A SERIES OF QUICK WINS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AND WANT TO STRESS IN THE PROCESS.
A SERIES OF OVER 30 POSSIBLE INITIATIVES DEVELOPED, IDENTIFIED, AND CO-DEVELOPED WITH CITY STAFF OF THE CITY STAFF ALSO OBVIOUSLY KNOWS THEY HAVE MANY GOOD IDEAS ABOUT WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO BEGIN MOVING FORWARD.
AND SO MANY OF THOSE ARE ALREADY IN MOTION AS THE DIRECTOR OF D S D WILL OUTLINE IN A SECOND.
BUT WHAT THIS HINGES UPON IS RAPID ACTION TO BUILD MOMENTUM, BUT ALSO, QUITE FRANKLY, GETTING THE CROSS DEPARTMENT GOVERNANCE, RIGHT? THIS IS HARD STUFF ACROSS 11 DEPARTMENTS.
BUT GETTING ON THE SAME PAGE, HAVING THE SAME PERFORMANCE INDICATORS, HAVING THE SAME CUSTOMER, AND THEN BEING ABLE TO BUILD THE SKILLS AND CAPABILITIES TO ADAPT IS GONNA BE THE SECRET FOR LONG-TERM SUCCESS AS OPPOSED TO SOMETHING THAT IS TACTICALLY DONE.
AND THEN YOU HAVE TO COME BACK LATER.
IT'S BUILDING, IT'S BUILDING THE CAPABILITIES TO FISH RATHER THAN GIVING SOMEONE FISH.
UH, I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO THE DIRECTOR AT D S D TO, UH, JOSE, TO WALK THROUGH THE PROGRESS SINCE WE COMPLETED OUR ASSESSMENT.
THANK YOU MCKINSEY FOR THAT PRESENTATION.
UH, GOOD MORNING, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
MY NAME IS ALSO ROY, DIRECTOR FOR D S D, AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TODAY AND PRESENT THIS TO YOU AND, AND REALLY DISCUSS THE PROGRESS THAT WE HAVE MADE SO FAR AND WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE IN THE FUTURE, WHICH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING.
UH, I STEP INTO THIS ROLE IN FEBRUARY OF THIS YEAR.
UH, AND SINCE THAT TIME, WE HAVE BEEN DIRECTING OUR ATTENTION TO IMPROVING TURNAROUND TIMES IN SITE PLAN REVIEW IS A MAIN PRIORITY, AND REALLY THE OVERALL EXPERIENCE WITH THE CUSTOMERS AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
UM, WE SET OUR SITES, FIRST OF ALL IN LAUNCHING OUR PUBLIC PROJECT TEAMS AND IMPROVE AFFORDABLE HOUSING OUTCOMES WHEN IT HAS TO DO WITH DEVELOPMENT, PROMOTING A CULTURE OF COLLABORATION BETWEEN ALL DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENTS AND WORKING TO ALIGN OUR WORK WITH THE MINDSET OF ONE CITY ONE TEAM, AND RECONNECTING WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS, WHICH IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE DO.
SO WE BEGAN THIS WORK IN LATE MARCH, AND, UH, MCKINSEY ACTUALLY FINISHED THE WORK IN, IN IN JUNE, AND WE'VE BEEN MAKING SOME PROGRESS, UH, NOT ONLY IMPLEMENTING SOME OF THE QUICK WINS, UH, THAT THEY RECOMMENDED, BUT ALSO SOME OTHER ONES THAT WE IDENTIFY AS, UH, AS IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY DO AS A DEPARTMENT.
SO FROM THE TOP, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, WITH THE SUPPORT OF THE CITY MEYER'S OFFICE, UH, WILL BE TAKING THE LEAD IN COORDINATING ALL THE REVIEW PROCESS AND EVERYTHING THAT HAS TO DO, DO RELATED WITH, UH, WITH, UH, IMPROVEMENT EFFORTS.
AND WE'RE GONNA BE DO THIS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE, UH, 11, ALL THE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE IN THIS PROCESS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE SITE PLAN.
WE HAVE ESTABLISHED ALREADY A CROSS-DEPARTMENTAL, UH, LEADERSHIP MEETING.
AND WE'RE GONNA MAKE SURE THAT THAT TEAM ENSURE THAT CHANGE IS HAPPENING THROUGHOUT THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS AND ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION, UH, THROUGHOUT THE TEAM.
ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE MAIN GOALS THAT WE HAVE
[00:25:01]
IS FIRST OF ALL, DEFINE AND CREATE THIS, UH, CROSS-DEPARTMENTAL KPIS.SO WE ARE MEASURING THE RIGHT THING, ALSO ESTABLISHING THE ORGANIZATION WIDE STANDARDS FOR CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
SO EVERYBODY HAS THE SAME EXPERIENCE ACROSS THE BOARD.
AND DEFINE THE IT REQUIREMENTS, UH, FOR THE ENTERPRISE TOOLS NEEDED TO SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
IN TERMS OF THE EXTERNAL, EXTERNAL EXPERIENCE ON THE, ON THE RIGHT SIDE THERE, UH, WE FULLY EXECUTED THE CO-LOCATION ALREADY.
SO ALL THE PANEL DEPARTMENTS HAVE, UM, DAILY IN-PERSON PRESENCE IN THE BUILDING.
WE PLAN TO EXTEND THE, UH, THE STAKEHOLDER ADVISORY COUNCIL THAT WE ALREADY HAVE TO INCLUDE MORE STAKEHOLDERS THAT HAVE WORKED WITH US IN THIS INITIATIVE AND OTHERS THAT HAVE REPRESENTED, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT SEGMENTS OF THE COMMUNITY.
UH, WE ALSO HAPPY TO REPORT THAT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LAW DEPARTMENT, WE ARE EXPANDING OUR PARALEGAL, UH, CAPACITY.
THERE'LL BE TRAINING, UH, STAFF ON THAT, AND WE'LL BE LOOKING TO HIRE ADDITIONAL, UH, PARALEGAL IN EARLY 2024 ON THE, ON THE PRE-SUBMISSION REVIEW AND EMPOWER CASE MANAGER ROLE.
WE HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULLY PILOTING THOSE, UH, IN THE SMART, UM, PERMANENT HOUSING, PERMANENT SUPPORTED HOUSING SITE PLAN REVIEW PROCESS.
AND WE ARE WORKING TO EXPAND THAT TO, UH, TO THE FULLEST SPECTRUM OF THE SITE PLAN AND ACTIVELY RECRUITING RIGHT NOW FOR TEMPORARY STAFF TO SUPPORT THAT MODEL.
SO WE CAN KEEP THE STAFF THAT IS DOING REVIEW, DOING REVIEWS, AND THEY DON'T HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, CHANGE THEIR PRIORITIES.
WE HAD NOT MADE GREAT PROGRESS ON, ON, ON THE, UM, ON THE, ON THE SUBMITTAL GUIDELINES.
SO WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS ON HOW WE CAN DO THAT AND HAVE THAT READY FOR THE STAKEHOLDERS.
AND WHILE WE LOVE THE IDEA OF THE PIECE OF TRACKER OR THE PERMIT TRACKER, UH, IT'S A GREAT IDEA.
UH, EVEN, EVEN, YOU KNOW, DOMINOES HAVE A WAY TO KNOW WHERE YOUR P IS AT THE TIME.
SO WE WANT THAT TRANSPARENCY, THAT OPENNESS, THAT COMMUNICATION.
UH, WE WANT TO BE, YOU KNOW, WE NEED SOME RESOURCES AND WE GONNA NEED THE SUPPORT FROM C T M TO MAKE THAT A PRIORITY SO THAT THAT'S HAPPENING.
UH, ADDITIONAL WINS THAT WE HAVE IN THE DEPARTMENT.
WE HAVE REALIGNED THE D S D SIDE PLAN, REVIEW STAFF AND, AND PRIORITIES, UH, TO SUPPORT THE CITY GOALS AND OBJECTIVES, WHICH ARE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UH, PUBLIC PROJECTS AND, AND PRIORITY PROJECTS.
WE HAVE REFINED SEVERAL SITE PLAN RELATED BUSINESS PROCESS TO STREAMLINE THE, THE COMMUNITY EXPERIENCE.
WE LAUNCHED THE PUBLIC PROJECT TEAMS TO THE, WHICH IS DEDICATED TO SUPPORT THE C I P PROJECTS, AND NOT ONLY STREAMLINE THE REVIEW OF THIS PROJECT, BUT ALSO RESULT IN ADDITIONAL REVIEW CAPACITY FOR THE SITE PLAN TEAM.
BY REMOVING THOSE FROM FROM THE MAIN TEAM, UH, WE HAVE DEVELOPED A ROBUST SET OF, UH, BUSINESS PROCESS ANALYTICS TO UNDERSTAND CHALLENGES IN REAL TIME.
AND WE ARE PROMOTING A DEPARTMENT CULTURE WITH A BIAS TOWARDS ACTION THAT PRIORITIZES SUBSTANCE OVER PROCESS.
THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, IF WE DO THAT, WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF THAT? SO WHAT WE HAVE SEEN IS A SMART HOUSING REVIEWS ARE NEARLY A HUNDRED PERCENT ON TIME, UH, PARAMOUNT AND SUPPORTED HOUSING IS 100% ON TIME.
SO I'M HAPPY TO REPORT THAT WE HAVE RECOGNIZED A 50% REDUCTION IN DAYS NEEDED FOR INITIAL AND UPDATE REVIEWS.
IT WENT FROM 100 DAYS TO, YOU KNOW, APPROXIMATELY 43.
UH, WE HAVE ELIMINATED D S D PORTION OF THE SITE PLAN REVIEW BACKLOG, UH, EXCEPT FOR ONE DISCIPLINE.
AND WE HAD GRANT A FULL ONE YEAR EXTENSION TO THE SITE PLAN APPROVAL.
AND, AND THIS IS ONE THING THAT I'M REALLY BIG ON, COMMUNICATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY, UH, THROUGHOUT THE CREATION OF THAT ROUND TABLE WITH ALL THE DEPARTMENTS, UH, IN THE CITY, WE CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR IMPROVEMENTS, UH, BEYOND THE SITE PLAN PROCESS.
I MEAN, THE FACT THAT WE, WE CHOSE A SITE PLAN AS A MOST COMPLEX PROCESS THAT WE DO IN THE DEPARTMENT WITH THE IDEA THAT IF WE FIX SOME THINGS IN THERE, WE'RE GONNA ACTUALLY HAVE THESE ENHANCEMENTS AND IMPROVEMENTS THROUGHOUT THE DEPARTMENT.
SO WE ARE WORKING TO COMPLETE A COMPREHENSIVE OVERHAUL OF THE D S D WEBSITE TO IMPROVE THE ACCESSIBILITY AND, AND EASE OF NAVIGATION ON THAT WEBSITE.
WE'LL CONTINUE TO INVEST IN LOGIC WASTE, UH, LOGIC BASED WEB TOOLS TO SUPPORT THE CUSTOMERS THROUGHOUT THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
WE RECENTLY LAUNCHED, UH, UH, A WIZARD CALLED DO I NEED A PERMIT, WHICH IS, I'VE BEEN GETTING A LOT OF, UH, GREAT FEEDBACK ON THAT FROM THE COMMUNITY, UH, HOW EASY IT IS TO ACTUALLY NAVIGATE THAT PROCESS.
WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT A RECENT PILOT THAT WE LAUNCH WITH A COMPANY CALLED
UH, USING THAT COMPANY, WE'RE GONNA BE, UH, TESTING THE USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.
UH, I'M EXCITED ABOUT THAT ONE.
I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THAT GOING.
AND WE'RE GONNA IMPROVE THE QUALITY AND THE COMPLIANCE OF BUILDING PLANTS AND METALS WITH THAT, WITH THAT COMPANY.
LAST, BUT NOT CERTAIN, BUT NOT LEAST, UH, WE TOOK, WE, WE LOOK
[00:30:01]
FOR EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO EXPAND ON OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT ACROSS ALL THE GROUPS THAT WE HAVE WORKING WITH D S D.WE WELCOME ALL THE FEEDBACK, PARTICIPATION ACROSS ALL THE SEGMENT.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT EVERY DAY I HAVE, I AM BLESSED AND I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK ALONGSIDE A GROUP OF DEDICATED PUBLIC SERVANTS THAT ARE FULLY COMMITTED TO THE CITY AND THIS COMMUNITY.
AND I ASSURE YOU THAT WE ARE ALL INVESTED IN WORKING TOGETHER TO IMPROVE THE COMMUNITY, UH, EXPERIENCE THROUGH D SS D.
WITH THAT SAID, WE OPEN FOR ANY QUESTIONS.
THANKS ALL THREE OF YOU FOR THE REPORT.
UM, I'LL OPEN IT UP FOR QUESTIONS.
COUNCILMAN FUENTES, THANK YOU.
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, AND THANK YOU DIRECTOR ROY FOR YOUR COMMENTS.
I WAS VERY HAPPY TO HEAR OF ALL THE, UH, NEW INITIATIVES THAT HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED IN SUCH A SHORT TIME UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP.
UM, YOU KNOW, THIS INFORMATION IS, IS, IS IMPORTANT AND CERTAINLY WE'VE HEARD IN OUR COMMUNITY ABOUT THE ISSUES WITH OUR PERMITTING PROCESS OR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES PROCESS.
AND, AND CERTAINLY WHAT THAT ENTAILS.
AND FOR ME, THE WAY I LOOK AT THIS ISSUE IS UNDERSTANDING THE UNIQUE REALITIES THAT OUR FAMILIES ARE FACING IN THIS CITY.
YOU KNOW, I, I HEAR FROM FAMILIES ALMOST EVERY WEEK ABOUT BEING PRICED OUT AND HAVING TO MOVE ELSEWHERE BECAUSE OF HIGH COSTS.
THEIR RENTS ARE GOING UP OR THEY CAN'T AFFORD, UH, TO BUY THEIR FIRST HOME.
AND THAT IS AN ISSUE AS WE STRIVE TO MAKE AUSTIN AFFORDABLE COMMUNITY FOR EVERYONE, AND TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE KEEPING FAMILIES IN THEIR HOMES, WE HAVE TO ENSURE THAT THIS PART OF THE PROCESS WHEN IT COMES TO GETTING HOMES AFFORDABLE, HOMES BUILT IS QUICKER AND IT'S DONE EFFICIENTLY AND IT'S DONE IN A TRANSPARENT MANNER.
SO THIS INFORMATION REALLY IS HELPFUL IN GIVING US THE, THE FRAMEWORK TO HOW TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT WE NEED TO DO AS, UH, AS A CITY AND AS A POLICYMAKER.
A FEW OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAD FOR YOU ALL, I GUESS, DIRECTOR ROY, I'LL START WITH YOU.
ONE OF THE, UM, COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE AS PART OF THE MCKINSEY PRESENTATION WAS THE LACK OF ALIGNMENT ON WHO THE CITY WAS SERVING AS A CUST UH, WHO THE CITY WAS SERVING.
AND SO I KIND OF WANTED TO GET FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, YOUR LEADERSHIP, UM, WHAT IS THE CITY'S TAKE ON ON THAT SERVICE MODEL? THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES FOR THAT QUESTION.
I, AND I, I WAS ACTUALLY THERE AS PART, AS PART OF THE FORUM THAT ACTUALLY WHEN THAT WAS, UH, DISCLOSED.
UH, I THINK THAT'S A CHALLENGE.
NOW, WHO DO WE SERVE? DO WE SERVE THE COMMUNITY ONLY AND, AND ENFORCE THE ORDINANCE THAT WE HAVE? DO WE SERVE THE DEVELOPERS? SO IT'S THIS, IT IS, IS THIS DIVISION, YOU KNOW, WHO DO WE SERVE? I THINK AS A CITY, WE NEED TO ACTUALLY HAVE A BETTER VISION ON THAT.
IN MY VIEW, PERSONALLY, I'M HERE TO SERVE THE CITY OF AUSTIN, SO EVERYBODY'S MY CUSTOMER, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN GET THAT ACROSS THE BOARD WITH ALL THE DEPARTMENTS WE ARE HERE TO SERVE.
EVERYBODY THAT COMES THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT, WE CAN DO IT BETTER.
THE FACT THAT WE ARE JUST THE, THE ONE, ONE-STOP SHOP, UH, WE CAN, WE CAN PROVIDE A BETTER SERVICE.
I WANT PEOPLE TO COME TO THE DEPARTMENT AND SAY, I GOT A GREAT SERVICE IN D S D REGARDLESS THAT THEY CANNOT GO TO ANOTHER CITY TO GET A PERMIT.
SO WE, WE, WE HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO THERE.
I THINK THERE'S, UH, THERE'S A LACK OF, UH, UH, PRIORITIES OR UNDERSTANDING ON WHO IS REALLY THE CUSTOMER.
BUT I THINK WE'RE GETTING THERE.
WE HAVE ALREADY GETTING THE DEPARTMENTS TOGETHER.
WE ARE MEETING, WE ARE PROMOTING THAT CULTURE THAT EVERYBODY'S OUR CUSTOMER AND WE ARE HERE TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY.
SO I THINK WE ARE, WE'RE GONNA BE DOING GOOD PROGRESS ON THAT ONE.
SO, AND AS PART OF THAT CULTURE BUILDING, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE OTHER COMMENTS, OBSERVATIONS THAT WERE SHARED WITH THE, UM, REPORT WAS, YOU KNOW, THE ABILITY FOR STAFF TO BE ABLE TO PIVOT DEPENDING ON THE PROBLEM PRESENTED, UM, YOU KNOW, WANTING TO, TO COME FROM A PLACE OF IMPROVEMENT AND ITERATION WITH OUR PROCESSES.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO THAT ISSUE THAT'S RAISED? YEAH.
AND, AND THAT'S A CHALLENGE THAT WE HAVE.
AND I THINK SOME OF THE CHALLENGE COMES FROM NOT HAVING ALL THE TOOLS THAT WE NEED, YOU KNOW, IN THE TOOLBOX.
I MEAN, ESPECIALLY WITH TECHNOLOGY, IT, IT IS REALLY CUMBERSOME.
IT'S ALL ABOUT PROCESS, PROCESS, PROCESS.
I, I CAME ON BOARD AND I, AND I ASKED, WHY CAN'T WE DO THIS OR THAT? AND, AND EVERYBODY POINTS OUT TO THE SYSTEM, WE CANNOT DO THIS BECAUSE THE AMANDA SYSTEM CANNOT DO IT.
SO I THINK WE ARE, WE ARE MISSING A LOT BASED ON THE TOOLS THAT WE HAVE.
SO I THINK THAT AS WE GET BETTER TOOLS, AS WE GET BETTER TECHNOLOGY, PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE TO PRIORITIZE AND, AND LOOK AT THEIR WORK, LOOK AT REALLY WHAT AM I DOING HERE AND, AND REALLY, YOU KNOW, PRIORITIZE THE WORK BASED ON, ON, ON WHAT THEY HAVE IN THE TABLE.
I THINK IT'S PART OF THAT'S, UH, CREATING THOSE CLEAR PROCESSES, RIGHT? MAKING SURE PEOPLE UNDERSTAND, UH, YOU KNOW, HAVE, HAS THE DEPARTMENT CONSIDERED THE I S O STANDARD? I KNOW THAT THERE'S A CERTIFICATION THAT DEPARTMENTS AND DIVISIONS CAN GO THROUGH TO HAVE A STANDARDIZED PROCESS.
IS THAT IN THE FUTURE? WE ARE LOOKING AT SOME OF THAT.
UH, WE, WE HAVE THE ISO UH, RATINGS ALREADY FOR THIS YEAR.
WE ARE LOOKING ALSO INTO ACCREDITATIONS IN THE DEPARTMENT, SO WE HAVE TO DO SOME IMPROVEMENTS TO ACTUALLY GET BETTER.
WE HAVE MEETINGS WITH THE, UH, WITH THE, UH, PEOPLE THAT DO THE ISO UH, RATING.
SO WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO, UH, GET SOME IMPROVEMENTS SO WE CAN GET A BETTER RATING COMING UP
[00:35:01]
AND, UH, ALSO GET SOME MORE ACCREDITATION IN THE DEPARTMENT BASED ON THE, UH, UH, BEST PRACTICES AND STANDARDS, UH, ACROSS THE NATION.SO WE CURRENTLY DO HAVE, YES, IO WE PARTICIPATE IN THE IO PROCESS.
UM, AND THEN LASTLY, AND I'LL, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MY COLLEAGUES, IS AROUND THE GOALS, THE KPIS THAT WERE WERE MENTIONED.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO, UM, THAT PROCESS, YOU KNOW, IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE KPIS, HOW WOULD YOU APPROACH THAT? UM, WHAT IS THE PROCESS THAT YOU PLAN TO TAKE ON? SO THE PLAN ON THAT ONE, RIGHT NOW, EVEN THOUGH WE HAVE SOME KPIS, UM, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE ACTUALLY MEASURING THE RIGHT THING.
SO WE MEASURING THE THINGS THAT COULD BE MEASURED AND ACTUALLY PROVIDE RESULTS.
SO WITH THE CREATION OF THE INTER INTERDEPARTMENTAL, UH, CROSS TEAM, WE ARE, ALL THE DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE DEALING WITH THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS ARE GONNA BE LOOKING AT THOSE KPIS.
SO WE CAN LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, TIMELINESS, UH, QUALITY OF THE WORK THAT WE DO SO WE CAN ACTUALLY GET THE RIGHT STUFF.
AND FOR THAT, I WILL TELL YOU THAT WE NEED THE RIGHT TECHNOLOGY, UH, ENHANCEMENTS TO ACTUALLY GET THE INFORMATION AND THE DATA TO ACTUALLY GET THE KPIS HAS BEEN A CHALLENGE, UH, UH, ON THAT.
UM, AND I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF STORIES ON THAT ONE.
WELL, AND I THINK TOO, HAVING, UM, THE GOALS SPECIFIC TO THE TYPE OF PERMIT MM-HMM.
UM, SO I THINK HAVING THOSE, UM, THOSE NUANCES INCLUDED, YES, TOTALLY AGREE.
AND THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LACKING RIGHT NOW, KIND OF THE, THE TOOLS TO DIVIDE, YOU KNOW, WHAT, IS IT A SINGLE FAMILY HOME? IS IT A MULTI-FAMILY? UH, WE HAVE SOME ISSUES WITH THE SYSTEM RIGHT NOW TO ACTUALLY GET THAT DATA CORRECTLY TO GET THOSE KPIS IN PLACE.
COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES, OTHER COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN ALTER.
I WOULD PICK UP KIND OF RIGHT WHERE COUNCILOR FUENTES LEFT.
WELL, FIRST I WANNA SAY, UH, I THINK YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB.
UH, I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHERE THIS IS GOING.
I THINK, UH, THE WORK THAT MCKENZIE HAS DONE IS REALLY LAID A, A GOOD PATH.
AND SO, UH, I APPRECIATE THE MANAGER AND THE MAYOR'S WORK ON THIS.
I KNOW IT'S AN IMPORTANT ISSUE.
UM, ONE OF THE, THE CONSTANT THEMES THAT YOU HEAR WITH PEOPLE, AND IT'S NOT JUST RELATED TO THE SITE PLAN PROCESS, BUT IT EXTENDS TO OTHER THINGS.
UH, YOU KNOW, GETTING SOMETHING FROM EITHER AUSTIN ENERGY, AUSTIN WATER, A TAP A TRANSFORMER, IS THE ABILITY TO JUST HAVE A REALISTIC EXPECTATION, RIGHT? HOW LONG IS IT GOING TO TAKE ME TO GET X? AND THEY MIGHT NOT LIKE THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION, BUT KNOWING THE ANSWER AND ALLOWING THE APPLICANT TO PLAN ACCORDINGLY AND THEN HAVE THAT ANSWER ACTUALLY BE REALISTIC AND NOT A, A MOVING TARGET, UH, I THINK IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
AND SO, UH, AS WE THINK OF THINGS LIKE THE PIZZA TRACKER AND OTHER TECHNOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENTS, UH, REALLY BEING ABLE TO ALLOW FOR REALISTIC, UH, UNDERSTANDING OF, WE THINK YOUR, YOU KNOW, EITHER APPLICATION OR THIS WILL BE DONE AT THIS DATE, AND THAT BE A, A REAL TIMELINE.
I, I THINK WE'LL GO A LONG WAY, UH, FOR PEOPLE.
AND AS WE DO THAT, AS WE KIND OF IMPROVE OUR TECHNOLOGY AROUND THIS, UM, I KNOW WE WANNA PUT THE RIGHT PROCESS IN PLACE SO THAT WE'RE NOT LAYERING GOOD TECHNOLOGY OVER BAD PROCESS.
UH, I AM JUST A LITTLE WARY THOUGH OF I KNOW HOW LONG IT TAKES US TO DO CERTAIN TECHNOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENTS.
AND SO I'M, I'M WORRIED IF WE WAIT UNTIL WE FINALLY GET THE PROCESS RIGHT, AND THEN WE START DOING THE TECHNOLOGY, THERE WON'T BE THAT, THAT INTEGRATION THAT WE NEED.
AND SO KIND OF BUILDING IT WHILE WE FLY, YES.
UH, ELEMENT, UH, I THINK Y'ALL ARE ARE PLANNING TO IT, BUT I JUST WANNA KIND OF EMPHASIZE THAT IMPORTANCE.
I, I JUST WANTED TO BRING UP THE, THAT QUICK THING, AND I THANK YOU FOR THAT.
I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.
COUNCIL MEMBER, COUNCIL MEMBER VELA IN, IN REVIEWING THE, THE SLIDES, AND AGAIN, APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AND, AND, UH, I'M VERY GLAD THAT WE'RE TACKLING THIS HEAD ON.
UH, THE, THE CITY IS ALSO A, AN APPLICANT, JUST LIKE THAT IS CORRECT.
ANY OTHER, SO WHAT ARE OUR INTERNAL, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO CITY STAFFERS THINK ABOUT THE SITE PLAN REVIEW PROCESS? BECAUSE THEY ARE HAVING TO GO THROUGH IT JUST LIKE THE, OUR PRIVATE SECTOR, UH, COLLEAGUES ARE, UM, I GUESS YOU CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT THEY ACTUALLY WERE ACTUALLY PART OF THE SURVEY THAT YOU SAW THE, UH, WITH THE, UH, SMILEY FACES ON THE, UH, HAPPY FACES,
SO THERE IS A, THERE WERE MORE FROWN FACES.
YEAH,
YOU CAN SEE THIS FRUSTRATING ON MOST SIDES.
AND, UH, IT, IT, IT IS A COMPLEX PROJECT, AND I THINK THAT IT GOES BACK TO THE COMMUNICATION, THE COLLABORATION BETWEEN EVERYBODY THAT IS INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS AND HAVING A, HAVING A WAY TO, WHEN WE ACTUALLY FIND THAT CONFLICT, A WAY TO ESCALATE THAT QUICKLY
[00:40:01]
SO WE CAN RESOLVE IT.RIGHT NOW, IT'S BEEN LIKE KIND OF LOST, YOU KNOW, AND IT TAKES TIME AND, AND PEOPLE DON'T, YOU KNOW, WANNA ESCALATE THINGS IN THERE.
SO PROVIDING D S D AS A, AS A, AS A, AS A LEADER FOR THIS PROCESS, WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, MEET WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
OKAY, WE HAVE A CONFLICT HERE, WE'RE GONNA MOVE IT.
BUT YES, IT'S A, IT IS, IT IS, IT IS A FRUSTRATION FOR BOTH SIDES.
I MEAN, IT'S NOT LIKE, LIKE THE CITY'S HAPPY WITH THE PROCESS AND THE CUSTOMERS, AND I MEAN, IT IS A FRUSTRATION BOTH SIDES.
AND THAT, AND THAT'S WHEN WE HAVE THE, UH, WE LAUNCHED THE PUBLIC PROJECT TEAMS, WHICH ACTUALLY DEALS WITH THE C I P WORKING VERY CLOSE WITH CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES, WITH, UH, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.
SO WE HAVE A PROCESS FOR THE CITY TO ACTUALLY GO THROUGH THAT, AND WE ACTUALLY PATTERNING THAT SO WE CAN, ANYTHING THAT WE DO THERE, WE CAN USE IT AS AN EXAMPLE.
WHAT CAN WE DO ON THE SITE PLAN AS A WHOLE AND ACTUALLY MAYBE EXPEDITE THE PROCESS AND, AND MAKE IT BETTER.
AND ON THAT, UH, I, I WAS AT, UH, THE, THE MES MEADOW, UH, UH, FLOOD DIVERSION, UH, CHANNEL THAT THEY'RE PUTTING IN THERE IN NORTH AUSTIN, WHERE THERE WAS THE, THE FLOODING, UH, TOOK PLACE, UH, RECENTLY.
IT WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT I HAD, UH, BEEN ABLE TO INTERACT WITH THE CAPITAL DELIVERY, UH, SERVICES.
UH, AND IS IS THE THINKING BEHIND THE, THE CONSOLIDATION OF THE CAPITAL PROJECTS INTO CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES TO EXPEDITE THESE KINDS OF, UH, OF PROJECTS AND PROCESSES.
YES, I'VE BEEN IN, I'VE BEEN IN CONVERSATIONS WITH, UH, DIRECTOR SNOW, UH, ON THAT REGARD.
WE ARE TRYING TO FIND OUT WHAT ARE THE REDUNDANCIES THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE RIGHT NOW SO WE CAN ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, TRANSFER SOME OF THOSE TO HIS TEAM SO THEY CAN DO ALL THE VERTICAL, I MEAN, ALL THE, UH, HORIZONTAL, UH, PROJECTS AND ACTUALLY EXPEDITE THE SITE PLAN, UH, PERMITTING PROCESS IN, IN THAT REGARD.
YEAH, I MEAN, THERE, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF SENSE IN THAT, WHERE FOR MAJOR PROJECTS LIKE THAT, THEY'RE GONNA REQUIRE EXTENSIVE PERMITTING, JUST PUT 'EM ALL IN THE SAME DEPARTMENT AND HAVE THAT'S KIND OF EXPERTISE.
UH, SO, UH, I, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT.
AND THE LAST, UH, QUESTION THIS HAS COME UP, UH, ACTUALLY WITH REGARD TO THE MAYOR PRO TEMSA ITEM ON THE, UH, ON THE, UH, THE SITE PLAN LIGHT OR REMOVING THE SITE PLANS FOR THE FOUR UNITS, APPARENTLY THERE ARE STILL CONCERNS WITH REGARD TO, UH, COMMERCIAL VERSUS RESIDENTIAL CODE, AND WHICH APPLIES WHEREBY, YOU KNOW, THE RESIDENTIAL CODE IS GENERALLY SPEAKING A MUCH, YOU KNOW, SIMPLER, AN EASIER CODE.
THERE ARE MORE CONTRACTORS AVAILABLE THAT KNOW HOW TO WORK, UH, THE RESIDENTIAL CODE AND, AND ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE STANDARDS FOR THE RESIDENTIAL CODE.
WHEREAS THE COMMERCIAL CODE STRICTER, UH, LIMITED NUMBER OF, UH, OF CONTRACTORS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, KIND OF FAMILIAR WITH THE PROCESS, FAMILIAR WITH THE CODE MM-HMM.
AND THE LINE, UH, UH, APPARENTLY, AND PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG THOUGH, IS TWO UNITS OR LESS, YOU USE RESIDENTIAL CODE.
BUT EVEN THOUGH WE HAVE ELIMINATED SIDELINE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE FOUR UNITS, THERE'S STILL THIS COMMERCIAL BUILDING REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE STRICT, UH, MAKE THOSE PROJECTS MUCH MORE DIFFICULT.
UH, I, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WAS QUITE CONTEMPLATED IN THE, IN THE SITE PLAN, UH, UH, UH, UH, ITEM, UH, AGAIN, THIS IS THE FIRST I'VE, I'VE REALLY, I'M LEARNING ABOUT THIS PROCESS, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, VERY COMPLEX, UH, UH, DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
AND AGAIN, ANY THOUGHTS ON THAT OR, OR, UH, UH, AND I UNDERSTAND ALSO, I'LL JUST SAY LIKE MEMPHIS, I BELIEVE JUST, UH, MOVED TO, UM, I THINK SIX UNITS OR LESS WAS RESIDENTIAL CODE, UH, AND I WANNA SAY NORTH CAROLINA AS WELL, MOVED TO BASICALLY SAYING THAT A FOUR UNIT PROJECT DOESN'T NEED TO GO TO THE COMMERCIAL, UH, LEVEL OF, OF, OF CODE.
WITH THE IDEA BEING THAT WE WANT TO FACILITATE THESE PROJECTS AND, AND MOVE THEM FORWARD.
JUST ANY, ANY THOUGHTS ON THOSE CHANGES? YEAH.
UH, EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT ACTUALLY PART OF THIS PROJECT, I'VE BEEN IN CONVERSATION WITH, UH, H B A ON THAT, ON THAT ISSUE, AND I HEARD FROM SOME OF THE, UH, STAKEHOLDERS ABOUT THAT CONCERN.
I, I'M A CODE GIGAHERTZ, SO I, I, I'M SORRY IF I GO TOO TECHNICAL.
UH, BUT, UH, YES, I MEAN, THE, THE, THERE'S A WAY TO ACTUALLY BUILD, UH, UP TO FOUR UNITS UNDER THE I R C UNDER THE RESIDENTIAL CODE.
AND SO WE, WE CAN, WE CAN BUILD THOSE AS A TOWN HOMES AND ACTUALLY USE THE I R C.
I DON'T CONSIDER THE I B C TO BE MORE COMPLEX THAN THE I R C.
THEY HAVE THE SAME REQUIREMENTS.
THE ONLY PROBLEM IS THAT WHEN YOU GO TO THE I B C, YOU HAVE MORE REVIEWS IN THE DEPARTMENT.
SO WE ARE WORKING THROUGH THOSE CHALLENGES RIGHT NOW AND TALKING TO STAFF, SEE HOW WE CAN ACTUALLY, UH, MAKE THAT, MAKE THAT A BETTER EXPERIENCE, UH, WHEN WE ARE DEALING WITH THE SITE PLAN LIGHT UP TO FOUR UNITS.
AND, UH, WE ARE, WE ARE MAKING PROGRESS ON THAT ONE, ESPECIALLY WITH ADOPTION ON THE NEW NEW COAST THAT WE'RE GONNA GO NEXT YEAR.
I WANNA START WITH A QUESTION ABOUT SLIDE 16.
IT TALKS ABOUT THE PEOPLE PART OF THIS HOLISTIC APPROACH.
AND IN THIS SLIDE WHEN IT SAYS 21ST CENTURY MODEL WITH COMPELLING EMPLOYEE VALUE PROPOSITION AND SKILL BUILDING, IS THAT GEARED TOWARD EMPLOYEE RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, UM, YOU KNOW, PROMOTING FROM WITHIN? IS THAT WHERE THAT'S COMING FROM? UH,
[00:45:01]
A LITTLE BIT OF ALL OF THE ABOVE.UM, WHICH IS, SO DOES STEP BACK A LITTLE BIT IF YOU LOOK AT, UH, THE RESEARCH OF PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEES, WHY THEY LEAVE.
SO ON THE RETENTION SIDE, ACTUALLY, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TOPS THE LIST OF THE LACK OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES.
THE FLIP SIDE IS ALSO ON RECRUITMENT AS WELL AS WHAT IS THE VALUE PROPOSITION FOR ME TO JOIN AN ORGANIZATION? AND THERE'S JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF A POTENTIAL SHIFT, NOT ADVOCACY, BUT JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, WHICH IS THAT MANY PUBLIC SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS STILL OPERATE ON THE KIND OF CRADLE TO END OF
SO IT'S HOW TO ADAPT TO BE MORE NIMBLE AND ATTRACT PEOPLE FOR MAYBE PERIODS OF TIME IN THEIR CAREER, YOU KNOW, AS START A CAREER, MID-CAREER AS OPPOSED TO HAVING A, A, A KIND OF CAREER, UH, YOU KNOW, END-TO-END PERSPECTIVE TOWARDS YOUR VALUE PROPOSITION.
I KNOW A LOT OF FOLKS THAT ARE OF RETIREMENT AGE NOW MAY HAVE STAYED IN ONE PROFESSION THEIR ENTIRE LIVES WITH ONE COMPANY, UH, BUT WE JUST DON'T SEE THAT THESE DAYS.
IT'S SOMETHING YOU JUST DON'T SEE THAT THESE ARE GOING TO BE MOVING AROUND.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS PREVIOUSLY ABOUT HOW TO ATTRACT FORMER EMPLOYEES BACK AND TRYING TO MAKE THAT INCENTIVE MORE FEASIBLE FOR PEOPLE.
THINGS LIKE, UM, COMING BACK IN AND FOLKS WOULD LOSE ALL OF THEIR VACATION PAY AND THEY'D COME BACK AND THEY'D START BACK AT SQUARE ONE.
UM, AND WE KNOW THERE'S FOLKS OUT THERE THAT HAVE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN WORKING, YOU KNOW, FOR THE CITY AND, AND FOR THESE DEPARTMENTS IN PARTICULAR.
UM, I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION, AND IT IS ABOUT SLIDE 15 WHERE IT TALKS ABOUT SINGLE FAMILY REDEVELOPMENT, GREENFIELD DEVELOPMENT, AND MULTIFAMILY REDEVELOPMENT.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A REALLY HIGH PERCENTAGE OF GREENFIELD DEVELOPMENT.
UM, AND THAT STRUCK ME, YOU KNOW, ARE ARE WE INCENTIVIZING YOU UTILIZING THE MOST CENTRALLY BASED LAND WHERE A LOT OF FOLKS ALREADY WORK AND TRYING TO SHORTEN COMMUTES? OR ARE WE, UM, SOMEHOW INCENTIVIZING, YOU KNOW, BUILDING IN THE GREENFIELD, WHICH IS FARTHER AWAY AND SOMETIMES CAN CREATE CONGESTION AND OTHER SORTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS.
UM, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT NEW DEVELOPMENT VERSUS REDEVELOPMENT AND WHICH ONE'S MORE ENTICING? ABSOLUTELY.
WHAT I CAN SPEAK TO IS THE, THE FACTS OF THE CASE.
I CANNOT SPEAK TO THE INCENTIVES OR THE POLICY PERSPECTIVE, SO MAYBE I'LL, UH, TURN OVER TO THE DIRECTOR ON THAT.
BUT THE, THE NUMBERS THAT YOU SEE ON SLIDE 15, WHICH ARE, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, 30 PERC, 38% OF THE APPLICATIONS IN 2022 WERE FOR GREENFIELD DEVELOPMENT.
WE DID LOOK FOR, UM, FROM 2020 THROUGH 2023 AS WELL TO SEE IF THAT NUMBER WAS CONSISTENT.
IT IS BASICALLY CONSISTENT WITH THE HISTORIC NORM.
CANNOT SPEAK TO THE INCENTIVES OR ENCOURAGEMENT ON THAT NUMBER.
JUST ADMINISTRATIVELY, I DON'T KNOW IF, IF THE DIRECTOR HAS COMMENTS ON IT, BUT JUST FROM AN ADMINISTRATIVE STANDPOINT, THOSE WERE THE PERCENTAGES.
YEAH, I, YEAH, I'LL HAVE TO GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT ONE BECAUSE I DON'T THINK WE HAVE THAT DATA, BUT I, I, I MEAN, I DON'T THINK WE ACTUALLY DOING MORE LIKE INCENTIVES ON, ON THE GREENFIELD.
UH, I MEAN, IT'S ALL MANDATED BY THE, BY THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE.
UM, SO I WILL HAVE TO LOOK AT THE DETAILS ON, ON, ON THE AMOUNT OF, UH, DEVELOPMENT THAT IS GOING ON IN THERE AND SEE HOW, HOW IS THAT, THAT WE ARE, YOU SEE THAT AMOUNT OF DEVELOPMENT THERE.
AND THEN ANOTHER QUESTION ON THAT SAME SLIDE, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT SINGLE FAMILY VERSUS MULTIFAMILY, WAS THERE AN ASSESSMENT OF THINGS THAT ARE BETWEEN DUPLEX AND LET'S SAY 20 UNITS? LIKE WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE SITE PLAN, LIGHT PROCESS THAT STAFF IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON.
WAS, WAS THAT PART OF YOUR ANALYSIS IS HOW HARD IS IT TO GET THROUGH FOR MISSING MIDDLE STYLES OF HOUSING? UH, WE DID NOT DO THAT ANALYSIS, SO HAPPY TO PROVIDE THE DETAILS ON THE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL.
THAT SCENARIO IS BASED ON A DUPLEX WE COULD GET INTO, BUT WE DIDN'T, WE ONLY DID THESE THREE BASIC SCENARIOS.
JUST AS A REMINDER, THAT ORDINANCE PASSED AFTER THEY ACTUALLY FINISH THEIR WORK.
SO WE WERE IN THE PROCESS OF MAKING THOSE ADJUSTMENTS.
SO I THINK WE'RE GONNA SEE MORE OF THAT INFORMATION ONCE WE GET PEOPLE USED IN THE SYSTEM AND SEE HOW, HOW WE SEE THIS TO ACTUALLY GO THROUGH IT.
I KNOW THESE CONVERSATIONS ARE HAPPENING CONCURRENTLY WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO BUILD THE MORE FLEXIBLE STYLES OF HOUSING THAT THAT FIT MORE SEAMLESSLY INTO, INTO WALKABLE NEIGHBORHOODS.
AND, UM, SO I'LL BE CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THAT CONVERSATION PLAYS OUT MOVING FORWARD.
I HOPE THAT THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO GET IT RIGHT AND TO GET IT DONE VERY SMOOTHLY FROM THE BEGINNING.
UM, SO I THINK THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITY IN WITH THESE CONVERSATIONS.
UM, EXCITED, UH, TO SEE THIS WORK MOVE FORWARD.
UM, I DO WANNA JUST OFFER A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE BECAUSE THIS IS
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NOT THE FIRST TIME WE'VE HAD THIS CONVERSATION.IT'S NOT THE FIRST TIME THAT OUR STAFF HAVE SAID THAT WE NEED TO HAVE BETTER COORDINATION AND THAT THEY WANTED A STUDY AND THEY WANTED THESE OTHER THINGS, AND FOR VARIOUS REASONS THAT HASN'T HAPPENED.
UM, SO FOR THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, YOU KNOW, I REALLY DO HOPE THAT THIS TIME THE UPPER MANAGEMENT WILL LEAD IN, UM, AND HELP TO MAKE THIS WORK, UM, SO THAT WE CAN SHORTEN THE TIMES AND FACILITATE, UM, THE PROCESS.
BUT THAT REALLY DOES REQUIRE NOT JUST MR. ROY'S LEADERSHIP, IT'S GOING TO REQUIRE, UM, THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE LEANING IN.
UM, SO I JUST WANNA KIND OF UNDERSCORE THAT IF THIS TIME IS GOING TO BE DIFFERENT, IT IS NOT JUST ON THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
UM, DIRECTOR, UM, I WANNA GO BACK TO THE QUESTION THAT COUNCIL MEMBER FUENTES RAISED ABOUT THE PRIMARY CUSTOMER, UM, AND THE DIFFERENT VIEWS OF THAT.
I MEAN, THAT'S INHERENT IN A GOVERNMENT, UM, POSITION.
AND, AND SO WHAT I REALLY WANNA UNDERSTAND IS, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE CODES ARE NECESSARY FOR LIFE AND SAFETY AND TO PROPAGATE VALUES THAT WE HAVE IN OUR, IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND, UM, I'M A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT THAT PRESENTATION OF, OKAY, WHO'S OUR PRIMARY CUSTOMER? UM, AND THEN WE'RE SAYING, WELL, EVERYONE'S OUR CUSTOMER.
I'M NOT SURE THAT AN, THAT, THAT SOLVES THE PROBLEM THAT'S BEING RAISED MM-HMM.
SO, CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND HOW WE PRIORITIZE THE LIFE AND SAFETY ISSUES AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUES THAT ARE PART OF THIS PROCESS AT THE SAME TIME THAT WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S COSTS THAT WE'RE IMPOSING ON THE APPLICANTS WITH THE TIME.
LIKE HOW DO YOU GET THAT RIGHT BALANCE AND, AND WHERE DOES THAT, UM, LIFE AND SAFETY, QUALITY OF LIFE PERSPECTIVE GET BROUGHT IN? AND HOW IS THAT VALUED IN THIS PROCESS THAT YOU'RE PROPOSING? THANK YOU FOR THAT.
AND I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S A CHALLENGE THAT WE HAVE, RIGHT? WE HAVE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AND EVERYBODY HAS A DIFFERENT PRIORITY AND THEIR, THEIR MAIN JOB IS TO PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT OR UTILITIES AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT THEY HAVE A PIECE ON THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.
SO FINDING THAT BALANCE, YOU KNOW, FINDING THAT, HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO DO DEVELOPMENT IN A RESPONSIBLE WAY WHILE WE ACTUALLY ACHIEVE ALL THE OUTCOMES? SO AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S, IT'S ALL ABOUT OUTCOMES, IS HOW WE CAN GET, WE CAN GET A BETTER PROCESS IN PLACE THAT WE CAN ACHIEVE ALL THE GOALS THAT WE HAVE, UH, WHETHER IT'S ENVIRONMENT, WHETHER IT IS WATER QUALITY, WHETHER IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, LOCATIONAL UTILITIES AND SO ON, AND RESOLVE THOSE CONFLICTS ALONG THE WAY.
I THINK THAT THE, THE MAIN KEY HERE IS ACTUALLY NOT BEING STUCK IN A PROCESS, BUT ACTUALLY LOOK AT THE, AT THE SYSTEM AND LOOK AT THE CUSTOMERS AND, AND, AND PROVIDE THAT EXPERIENCE.
UH, AND FINDING THAT BALANCE, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON WITH THE, UH, INTERDEPARTMENTAL, UH, MEETING THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW WITH THE, WITH THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS THAT WE HAVE.
UM, I WANNA WANNA SUGGEST THAT PERHAPS YOU TAKE A LOOK AT HOW WE'VE IMPLEMENTED THE WILD AND URBAN INTERFACE MM-HMM.
WE ARE ONE OF THE ONLY, UM, CITIES IN THE COUNTRY THAT HAS DONE THAT.
MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE WAY THAT THAT'S BEING IMPLEMENTED IS REALLY, UM, WORKING COLLABORATIVELY TO ADDRESS THE REAL PROBLEM THAT THE LIFE SAFETY, UM, ISSUES POSE, UM, WHILE STILL ADDRESSING SOME OF THE COST ISSUES AND BEING CREATIVE, UNDERSTANDING THAT DIFFERENT SITES ARE DIFFERENT, UM, AND HOW YOU DO THAT.
AND SO THERE MAY BE SOME LESSONS TO LEARN EVEN FROM OUR OWN PROCESSES THERE, BECAUSE I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE STILL GROWING IN THAT PROCESS, BUT I THINK WE HAVE DONE SOME OF THE THINGS, UM, RIGHT IN THAT REGARD.
UM, THE OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO RAISE WAS THE IT PLATFORMS. SO WE'RE NOT VERY GOOD AT IMPLEMENTING NEW IT PLATFORMS. I'M IN MY SEVENTH YEAR ON COUNCIL, AND I THINK FOR SIX AND A HALF YEARS I'VE BEEN