Sep 18, 2023 Arts Commission

[CALL TO ORDER]

[00:00:05]

GOOD EVENING.

IT IS 6 0 2 AND WE ARE GONNA CALL THIS SEPTEMBER MEETING OF THE ARTS COMMISSION TO ORDER.

UH, LET'S GO AHEAD AND START WITH ROLE.

I WILL START WITH THOSE HERE IN THE ROOM.

UH, WE HAVE GINA HOUSTON PRESENT, COMMISSIONER FASER CINI PRESENT, COMMISSIONER AC GRAY PRESENT, COMMISSIONER AMY MOCK PRESENT AND WELCOME COMMISSIONER MIKE KY.

PRESENT.

AND ON SCREEN WE HAVE COMMISSIONER HEIDI SCHMACK PRESENT.

AND I DON'T KNOW WHO THE OTHER INITIALS ARE, BUT IF YOU ARE COMMISSIONERS, YOU MUST BE ON SCREEN TO BE COUNTED AS PRESENT, WHICH I DON'T THINK I'M THINKING OF THE INITIALS.

I DON'T THINK THAT'S ANYBODY THERE.

OKAY.

WONDERFUL.

UM, WITH THAT WE, EXCUSE ME, GO TO OUR PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.

DO WE HAVE ANYBODY HERE SIGNED UP? WE DON'T.

NOBODY ONLINE.

ALRIGHT, WE'LL KEEP

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

UH, WE NEED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FOR THE ARTS COMMISSION MEETING FROM JUNE.

I BELIEVE THERE WAS, UH, WE DIDN'T MEET IN JULY.

RIGHT.

AND SO TO APPROVE THE SECOND, I BELIEVE THAT WE DID GET, UH, OH, THERE WEREN'T ENOUGH PEOPLE HERE.

AB I BELIEVE, I THINK WE DIDN'T HAVE A, WE HAD TO HAVE FORUM BECAUSE SOME OF US WERE NOT THERE, SO WE DIDN'T VOTE.

WE ABSTAIN.

OH, YES.

OKAY.

THAT'S RIGHT.

WE DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH VOTE TO PASS IT, I THINK.

OKAY.

WELL, WE'VE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THEM AT THIS POINT.

UM, DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? MOVE TO APPROVE MO UH, COMMISSIONER GRAY MOVES TO APPROVE.

DO I HAVE A SECOND? I SEE.

UH, VICE CHAIR MALACH.

THANK YOU.

SO APPROVED.

AND THEN WE ALSO NEED TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING, UM, IN AUGUST, ALL MOVE TO APPROVE, UH, MOTION BY COMMISSIONER GRAY.

SECOND.

SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER MARK.

WONDERFUL.

[3. Discussion of Chair’s Report on Congratulations to Elevate Recipients by Chair Zisman]

UH, GOOD EVENING.

MY NAME IS SELENA ZISMAN.

I'M THE WOMAN OF COLOR WEARING A WHITE BLOUSE.

I JUST WANTED TO, UM, THANK ALL THE NEW COMMISSIONERS.

WE ARE CELEBRATING A FULL DA HERE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OH, WELL OVER A YEAR.

UM, UH, COMMISSIONER HOUSTON, COMMISSIONER NEY, COMMISSIONER KY.

WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO HAVE YOU WITH US AND LOOK FORWARD TO, UM, GETTING YOUR INPUT AND PERSPECTIVE ON ALL THAT IS FACING OUR ARTS COMMUNITY.

I'M VERY EXCITED TO HAVE YOU GUYS HERE.

UM, WITH THAT, I ALSO WANNA CONGRATULATE ALL OF THE RECIPIENTS OF ELEVATE.

UM, WHAT AN INCREDIBLE DIVERSE, UM, GROUP THAT, UM, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO UPLIFT THROUGH THIS FUNDING.

AND, UM, I'M JUST SO LOOKING FORWARD TO ALL THAT'S GONNA COME AS A RESULT OF THOSE AWARDS.

SO, WITH THAT, UM, WE CAN KEEP GOING.

AND JUST A DISCLAIMER, IT IS VERY WARM IN HERE TODAY, SO AS I SHINE AND GLISTEN FOLKS AT HOME, PLEASE KNOW IT IS, IT'S NOT STRESS.

IT'S NOT STRESS.

I'M REALLY HAVING A GREAT TIME HERE TONIGHT IF I JUST COULD GET MY BODY TEMPERATURE TO REGULATE.

UM, ALRIGHT.

WITH THAT

[4. Discussion of the Art in Public Places Liaison Report by Commissioner Gray]

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

UM, THE, UH, ARTS AND PUBLIC PLACES REGULAR MEETING WAS HELD ON SEPTEMBER 11TH.

UH, THE, UH, PANEL REAPPOINTED STEPHANIE LIMO, UH, TO THE ARTS AND PUBLIC PLACES PANEL.

THEY APPROVED THE FINAL DESIGN FOR AL POCKET PARK APPROVED THE FINAL DESIGN FOR THE, UM, A F D 51 AND E M S 40 STATION, AUSTIN FIRE DEPARTMENT, IF YOU DON'T KNOW.

AND E M S APPROVED THE FINAL DESIGN FOR PARK OSA AND ALSO APPROVED THE REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE PALMER OF ARTS, UH, PALMER EVENT CENTER, A I P P PROJECT, AS WELL AS THE REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE FAMILY VIOLENCE SHELTER AND PROTECTION CENTER PROJECT.

UH, LAST BUT NOT LEAST, APPROVED AND REVISED THE REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE MEXICAN-AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER.

THERE WERE STAFF BRIEFINGS, WHICH INCLUDED, UH, CONSTANCE WHITE AS PROJECT MANAGER.

INTRODUCING THREE NEW STAFF MEMBERS, COLLECTION MANAGER SEAN HARRISON, PROJECT MANAGER LINDSEY HUTCHINS AND PROJECT MANAGER BRIANNA ILA.

UH, WE ALSO, ALEX ERRA UPDATED THE PANEL ON THE COMPLETED INSTALLATION OF THE GEORGIAN ACRES NEIGHBORHOOD PARK PROJECT, AS WELL AS THE FARR TENNIS CENTER PROJECT, UH, AS WELL, IN ADDITION TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT UPDATES ON THE SLAUGHTER LANE SEGMENT A AND THE BRUSH SQUARE, A I P P PROJECTS, THEY WERE ALSO SHARED.

UH, CONSTANCE WHITE ALSO UPDATED THE PANEL THAT THERE WILL BE AN A I P P PUBLIC ART SYMPOSIUM WITH THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY ON NOVEMBER 16TH FROM ONE TO 5:00 PM THE A I P P PANEL ALSO HAD A SPECIAL MEETING, UH, THIS PAST WEEK, UH, THAT INCLUDED DISCUSSIONS ON THE 2023 ARTS AND PUBLIC PLACES YEAR IN REVIEW.

SO WE WERE ABLE TO SEE WHAT WAS GOING ON, WHAT HAS BEEN COMPLETED, WHAT'S STILL IN HOLD.

IT'S A, A REALLY EXCITING THING TO SEE

[00:05:01]

AND JUST SO MANY PROJECTS.

IT'S AMAZING TO SEE WHAT COMES THROUGH AND ALL OF THE ELDERS THAT ARE INVOLVED.

UM, DISCUSSIONS INVOLVING PUBLIC ART PLAN AND PLANNING PROCESS FOR 2024, WHICH WAS JUST SKIRTED.

UM, WE DISCUSSED PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT AND AWARENESS, NOT TO DETAIL OF HOW THAT WILL BE DONE, BUT HOW IMPORTANT IT IS AS WELL AS THE OUTREACH TO ARTISTS.

UH, THERE WAS A REVIEW, A STARTED A REVIEW OF THE ORDINANCE AND GUIDELINES FOR THE PANEL.

AND, UH, AS WELL AS THE 2024 ART AND PUBLIC PLACES GOALS.

THE LAST TWO DISCUSSIONS, SEVEN AND EIGHT ARE STILL IN MOTION, BUT IT WAS A REALLY WONDERFUL MEETING.

THAT'S MY REPORT.

VERY FULL OF THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER GRAY.

UM, NEXT WE HAVE A DISCUSSION OF THE AUSTIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION CULTURAL TRUST ADVISORY COMMITTEE BY A E D C DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION BOARD MEMBER CARL SETTLES.

CARL, THANKS FOR BEING HERE WITH US TODAY.

I SEE A CSS.

I WAS ASSUMING THAT WAS CARL.

THAT IS.

OKAY.

LET'S GIVE CARL A MINUTE.

WE'LL COME BACK TO THAT.

UM,

[6. Discussion of the Downtown Commission by Commissioner Mok]

AND THEN THE NEXT ONE IS THIS COMING WEDNESDAY.

OKAY.

SO MAYBE AFTER THAT, I, I HAVE SOMETHING TO REPORT.

I REMEMBER.

SORRY, OUR MEETINGS ARE KIND OF LOPSIDED.

YEAH.

THANK YOU.

WITH UPDATES.

LET'S SEE.

CARL SETTLES.

ARE YOU PRESENT? LET'S GO BACK.

OKAY.

WE'LL PUT A PIN AND CARL CAN MOVE FORWARD.

UM, SEE IF HE CAN POP.

I'M SEEING TWO CSS.

I WONDER IF HE'S HAVING THERE.

IT'S, OH, THERE'S CARL.

[5. Discussion of the Austin Economic Development Corporation/Cultural Trust Advisory Committee by Austin Economic Development Corporation Board Member Carl Settles]

WELCOME.

HELLO.

MY APOLOGIES.

UH, I DIALED IN ON MY PHONE 'CAUSE I WAS WALKING INTO A BUILDING AND THEN I COULDN'T UNMUTE MYSELF ONCE I GOT ON VIDEO.

UM, OR SO.

ANYWAY, THAT'S BEEN, UH, RECTIFIED.

UM, HELLO EVERYBODY.

UM, GLAD TO BE HERE.

UH, APPARENTLY MISSED THE LAST, THE LAST MONTH'S MEETING SNUCK UP ON ME AND I DIDN'T, I ACTUALLY, I DIDN'T GET A NOTICE ABOUT THAT, SO I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT, UH, PROVIDING A REPORT LAST MONTH.

BUT, UH, GENERAL UPDATES.

UM, I'M ACTUALLY GOING TO BE, UH, TAKING OVER AS THE CHAIR OF THE AUSTIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UH, CORPORATION AS OF, UH, OCTOBER.

UM, SO WE, UH, VOTED, UH, IN SESSION, UH, LAST WEEK, UM, WITH, WITH THE BOARD, UH, TO INSTALL ME WITH THE WHOLE, UH, NEW SET OF, UH, OFFICERS AS WELL.

UH, SO THAT'S HAPPENING, UM, IN TERMS OF THE URBAN RENEWAL BOARD REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR BLOCK 16 AND 18 WAS RELEASED, RELEASED ON AUGUST 22ND.

UM, PHASE ONE OF THE R F P IS DUE IN NOVEMBER.

UM, AND WE'LL FOCUS ON THE DEVELOPER QUALIFICATIONS AND VISION.

ALL MATERIALS FOR THE RS R F P IS ON THE A E D C WEBSITE.

AND INTERESTED FOLKS SHOULD EMAIL JOSE@AUSTINEDC.ORG, UM, FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THAT.

UM, THE CREATIVE HUB AT THE, UM, UH, PERMITTING AND DEVELOPMENT, UH, OFFICE, UH, DESIGN PROCESS IS STARTING, UH, THE FIRST COMMUNITY WORKSHOP, BUT THAT WILL BE HELD ON OCTOBER 1ST AT 6:00 PM AT THE P D C SPACE ON MIDDLE FISCAL ROAD.

UH, DETAILS WILL BE POSTED ON OUR WEBSITE AND WILL BE DISTRIBUTED THROUGH OUR NEWSLETTER AND DISTRIBUTION LIST.

AND, UH, WE STILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN LEGAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, AS WELL AS ORGANIZATIONS ON THE LONG LIST OF, UH, OF POTENTIAL, UH, PROJECTS TO BE FUNDED.

THESE WERE THE 14 ORGANIZATIONS IDENTIFIED LAST SUMMER THAT HAVE BEEN CONSIDERING, WE'VE BEEN CONSIDERING, UH, FOR FEASIBILITY FOUR HAVE NOW BEEN ANNOUNCED.

THOSE ARE MILLENNIUM, THE MILLENNIUM CENTER, ROOT MAX SLASH BACK CAVE, UM, AND AT THE P D C AND, UM, THE HOLE IN THE WALL, ADDITIONAL ICONIC VENUE AND BOND PROJECTS ARE IN NEGOTIATION AND HOPE TO BE ANNOUNCED THIS FALL.

UH, SO THAT'S A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF WHAT I GOT THIS MONTH.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONERS.

ANY QUESTIONS FOR CARL? NO.

WONDERFUL.

WILL YOU BE SURE WHEN THE, UH, EVENTS ARE ANNOUNCED

[00:10:01]

ABSOLUTELY.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, CARL.

THANKS FOR BEING HERE.

MM-HMM.

, I WANNA RECOGNIZE THAT WE'VE GOT COMMISSIONER CHARLA PRESENT WITH US.

THANK YOU FOR JOINING AND BEING HERE TODAY.

[7. Staff briefing regarding an update on the Hotel Occupancy Tax by Laura Odegaard, Cultural Investment Program Manager]

NEXT STAFF BRIEFINGS.

WE HAVE, UM, STAFF BRIEFING REGARDING AN UPDATE ON THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX BY LAURA ORDE GUARD CULTURAL INVESTMENT PROGRAM MANAGER.

WELCOME BACK, LAURA.

GOOD EVENING, EVERYBODY.

ALL RIGHT, I GOT MY CLICKER.

WE HAVE A POWERPOINT.

WE'RE GOOD TO GO.

UH, SO GOOD EVENING EVERYONE.

I'M LAURA ODEGAARD, CULTURAL INVESTMENT PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

UH, MY PRONOUNS ARE SHE, HER.

I'M A WHITE WOMAN WITH LONG BROWN HAIR WEARING A BLACK DRESS AND A TAN BLAZER.

AND WITH THIS PRESENTATION, I'LL BE SHARING OUR AUGUST HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX COLLECTION NUMBERS.

UH, SO HERE YOU CAN SEE THE TOTAL HOT, UH, COLLECTION IN AUGUST WAS $11,510,668.

SO THIS MEANS OUR HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX CULTURAL ARTS FUND COLLECTION NUMBERS FOR AUGUST WERE $1,062,541.

UM, IN THIS SLIDE YOU CAN SEE BOTH THE APPROVED F Y 23 BUDGET AS WELL AS THE UPDATED YEAR END ESTIMATE.

AND JUST AS A REMINDER TO ALL THE COMMISSIONERS, THERE'S A DELAY IN HOW HOT REPORTING TAKES PLACE.

SO THIS SEPTEMBER REPORT THAT I'M DOING FOR YOU TONIGHT SHOWS FUNDS COLLECTED IN AUGUST FOR HOTEL STAYS IN JULY, CLICKING SORT OF, THERE WE GO.

UM, SO HERE YOU CAN SEE HOW FAR PAST THE ORIGINAL APPROVED CULTURAL ARTS FUND BUDGET NUMBER OF 10.3 MILLION, AND HOW WE HAVE ALSO EXCEEDED THE UPDATED YEAR END ESTIMATE OF $14 MILLION.

UH, SO OUR HOT CULTURAL ARTS FUND ACTUALS RIGHT NOW ARE 15,637 15 MILLION.

WE'LL SAY THIS CORRECTLY, $15,637,258.

UM, FOR COMPARISON, THIS TIME LAST YEAR, THE CULTURAL ARTS FUND WAS $12.8 MILLION.

UH, AND AS A REMINDER, THE FUNDS COLLECTED THIS YEAR IN F Y 23 WILL BE USED TO FUND PROGRAMS IN THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR F Y 24, WHICH STARTS ON OCTOBER 1ST.

ANY QUESTIONS? THANK YOU, LAURA.

ALL GOOD NEWS.

I WANNA JUST ACKNOWLEDGE MY NEWBIES.

DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS IF THERE'S A POINT OF CLARIFICATION.

UM, I'VE SAID THIS TO YOU GUYS INDIVIDUALLY, BUT SOMEONE OUT THERE IS GONNA HAVE A SIMILAR QUESTION.

SO DON'T BE SHY.

BY ALL MEANS, IF, IF SOMETHING DOESN'T QUITE MAKE SENSE OR THE NUMBERS DON'T ADD UP, LIKE THIS IS WHAT STAFF IS HERE FOR US.

UM, BUT I THINK THAT LAST POINT YOU MADE IN TERMS OF WHEN THESE FUNDS ARE APPLIED OR IS A WONDERFUL REMINDER FOR ALL OF US.

LIKE THIS IS MONEY FOR NEXT YEAR AND THE FISCAL YEAR THAT WE FOLLOW, WHICH WILL BEGIN IN SEPTEMBER FOR OCTOBER.

OCTOBER ENDS IN SEPTEMBER, BEGINS IN OCTOBER.

MM-HMM.

YEP.

MM-HMM.

.

OKAY.

NO QUESTIONS FOR LAURA? NO.

OKAY.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

GOOD PLAYERS.

THANK YOU.

[8. Staff briefing regarding the Cultural Arts Funding Programs by Jesús Pantel, Cultural Funding Supervisor, and Laura Odegaard, Cultural Investment Program Manager]

WELCOME, JESUS.

GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.

I'M JESUS PANTEL, CULTURAL FUNDING SUPERVISOR.

UM, I WILL BE GIVING A PRESENTATION MAINLY ON ELEVATE, UM, BUT ON A COUPLE OF OUR OTHER CULTURAL FUNDING PROGRAMS AS WELL.

I, UM, SO JUST A REMINDER THAT, UH, AFTER THE CULTURAL FUNDING REVIEW PROCESS, WE ARE LOOKING AT A HOLISTIC CULTURAL FUNDING ECOSYSTEM WITH OUR PILOT PROGRAM.

SO THAT'S THRIVE, ELEVATE, AND NEXUS.

UH, THRIVE AWARDS WERE, UM, MADE IN JANUARY AND, UH, APPROVED, UH, WE GAVE AN UPDATE AT THE FEBRUARY ARTS COMMISSION MEETING.

UM, ELEVATE JUST CLOSED.

I'M GONNA BE SPENDING THE BULK OF THE PRESENTATION.

WE JUST, UH, MADE AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS, UH, LAST WEEK, UM, WEEK BEFORE LAST.

UM, AND THEN NEXUS IS IN THE, UH, MIDST OF BEING REVIEWED RIGHT NOW.

AND WE WILL BE MAKING NEXUS AWARD ANNOUNCEMENTS SOON.

UM, AND SO A LOT OF THESE, UM, UH, SLIDES ARE GONNA BE REMINDERS FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE BEEN ON THE COMMISSION FOR A WHILE, FOR SOME OF THE NEW ONES.

YOU CAN JUST, UH, SEE.

THESE ARE SOME, UH, KEY DATES OF THE ELEVATE, UH, FUNDING PROGRAM.

UH, WE'RE ON THE FAR RIGHT OF THE SLIDE WHERE THE AWARDS ARE ANNOUNCED.

UM, CONTRACTS ARE FROM SEPTEMBER 15TH, 2023 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2024.

SO JUST OVER A YEAR LONG

[00:15:01]

WHAT THAT'S MEAN, WHAT THAT MEANS IS THE ACTIVITIES THAT ARE FUNDED HAVE TO TAKE PLACE ANY TIME PERIOD WITHIN THAT.

IT COULD BE ONE DAY, IT COULD BE A COUPLE OF DAYS, IT COULD BE MULTIPLE ACTIVITIES, UM, OVER THAT TIME PERIOD.

UM, EVEN UP TO AND INCLUDING ON SEPTEMBER 30TH, 2024 IS THE LAST DAY THAT, UM, ACTIVITIES WILL BE FUNDED.

AND WE ARE WORKING WITH THE LONG CENTER AS OUR THIRD PARTY, UM, ADMINISTRATOR TO, UH, GET PAYMENTS OUT BY THE END OF THE SEPTEMBER, BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER IS THE GOAL.

AND WE ARE WORKING WITH THEM, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN, UH, HAVE THAT HAPPEN.

UM, SOME ELEVATE HIGHLIGHTS.

UM, SO WE DID HAVE OUTSIDE FACILITATORS THAT WERE HELPING US WITH THE ELEVATE PROGRAM.

UH, WE TRAINED, UM, 100 PEOPLE IN 10 DIFFERENT, UH, GROUP TRAININGS, SO THAT WAY THEY COULD BE MORE ONE-ON-ONE INDIVIDUALIZED TRAININGS OR, YOU KNOW, A, A SMALLER GROUP OF PEOPLE, I GUESS I SHOULD SAY.

NOT ONE-ON-ONE.

UM, WE DID HAVE FOUR, FOUR SPANISH APPLICATIONS THAT WERE RECEIVED.

UM, ONE OF THE, UM, CONTRACTS THAT WAS AWARDED, UH, WAS FOR, TO A SPANISH LANGUAGE APPLICANT.

UM, WE HAD, UM, A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF APPLICATION ASSISTANCE THAT, UH, THE STAFF PROVIDED IN A VARIETY OF, UH, DIFFERENT WAYS.

UM, AND 263 PEOPLE WERE ASSISTED IN THOSE, UH, VARIETY OF, UH, PUBLIC MEETINGS.

UH, SO AN ELEVATE APPLICATION SUMMARY, UH, 762 APPLICATIONS WERE STARTED.

487 WERE SUCCESSFULLY SUBMITTED.

AND THEN ONCE WE, UH, CHECKED FOR DUPLICATES, THERE WERE 448, UH, UNIQUE APPLICANTS THAT WERE ALSO ELIGIBLE.

SO SOME OF THAT 4 87, THEY WERE EITHER DUPLICATES OR THEY WERE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR FUNDING.

UH, WE WENT INTO THE REVIEW PROCESS.

THERE WERE 265, UM, INDIVIDUAL AND CREATIVE BUSINESS, UM, APPLICATIONS, OR NON 5 0 1 C ORGANIZATIONS.

UH, THEY ALL WENT TO A STAGE ONE REVIEW WHERE THEY WERE, UH, REVIEWED BY THREE DIFFERENT READERS, UM, AND SCORED AND COMMENTED ON.

THEY REVIEWED THE WHOLE APPLICATION, UH, THE TOP, UM, 125 APPLICATIONS, THEN WENT ON TO, UH, ROUND TWO, UH, STAGE TWO, UM, AND 75.

UM, UM, AWARDS WERE MADE OUT OF THAT.

SO THEY HAD IN THE STAGE TWO, A FULL REVIEW PANEL, UM, WHERE THE PANELISTS, UH, DISCUSSED THE APPLICATIONS, UM, AMONGST THEMSELVES, UH, FOR THE 5 0 1 C APPLICATIONS, UM, WE'RE AWARDING 125 SINCE THERE WERE ONLY 183, UH, NON-PROFIT 5 0 1 C APPLICATIONS.

UH, WE SKIPPED THE READER STAGE.

UM, SO ALL 183 WENT STRAIGHT TO THE REVIEW STAGE, AND 125 OF THOSE 123 WERE AWARDED FUNDING.

UM, AND SO NOW I'M GONNA GET INTO A LITTLE BIT OF, UH, WHAT, UH, KIND OF, UH, SOME DETAILS ABOUT WHAT THE APPLICANTS LOOK LIKE.

I'VE BROKEN DOWN ELEVATE, UM, SO THERE'S SOME STUFF AT THE END THAT'S THE PROGRAMS THAT A WHOLE.

BUT, UH, FOR THE RACE AND ETHNICITY OF THE LEADERSHIP AND THE GENDER OF THE LEADERSHIP, I WANTED TO BREAK IT DOWN FOR THE NONPROFITS AND FOR THE INDIVIDUAL CREATIVE BUSINESSES.

UM, SO 56% OF THE 183 ELIGIBLE NONPROFIT AATE APPLICANTS HAD, UM, EITHER MAJORITY WHITE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER AS THEIR, UM, LEADERSHIP, UH, MAKEUP, UH, FOR THE RACE AND ETHNICITY.

AND THIS IS SELF-REPORTED BY THE APPLICANTS.

ALL THIS DATA I'M GONNA BE, UM, PROVIDING YOU IS, UH, SELF-REPORTED BY THE APPLICANTS ON THEIR APPLICATION.

UH, 33% WERE MAJORITY, UH, DIVERSE RACE OR ETHNICITY, AND 11% WERE, UM, EQUAL, UH, WHITE OR DIVERSE RACE ETHNICITY.

UH, FOR GENDER OF THE LEADERSHIP, UH, 56% WERE MAJORITY FEMALE OR NON-BINARY, 35%.

UM, MAJORITY MALE PREFER NOT TO ANSWER.

AND EQUAL DISTRIBUTION IS, UH, 9%.

NOW, TAKE A LOOK AT THESE SLIDES.

I'M GONNA FORWARD TO THE NEXT SLIDE, AND THEN I MAY COME BACK TO THIS ONE SO THAT WAY YOU CAN SEE WHAT THE ACTUAL AWARDEES WERE.

SO FOR RACE AND ETHNICITY, 56% WERE MAJORITY WHITE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER OF THE APPLICANTS 47%, UM, WERE OF THE RECIPIENTS WERE MAJORITY WHITE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER.

UH, 42% MAJORITY RACE DIVERSE RACE ETHNICITY OF THE 125 AS OPPOSED TO 33% OF THE APPLICANTS.

AND THEN THE EQUAL DISTRIBUTION WAS 11% OF THE APPLICANTS AND 11% OF THE, UM, RECIPIENTS FOR THE GENDER OF LEADERSHIP, UH, 61%, UH, WERE MAJORITY FEMALE OR NON-BINARY.

UM, AS OPPOSED TO 56% OF THE APPLICANTS, UH, 35% OF THE APPLICANTS WERE MAJORITY MALE, OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER, UH, 29%.

UM, OF THE RECIPIENTS WERE MAJORITY MALE, AND 10% OF THE RECIPIENTS WERE EQUAL DISTRIBUTION, UM, WHICH IS SLIGHTLY UP TO THE 9% OF THE APPLICANTS THAT WERE EQUAL DISTRIBUTION.

SO THAT'S THE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS, UM, LOOKING AT THE INDIVIDUAL AND CREATIVE BUSINESSES.

UM, AGAIN, SELF-REPORTED FOR THESE AS WELL.

UH, 32% OF THE 264 APPLICANTS WERE MAJORITY WHITE OR

[00:20:01]

UM, 13% OF THE RECIPIENTS WERE, UM, MAJORITY WHITE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER.

UH, GOING BACK TO THE, UM, APPLICANTS, UM, AND I'LL, I'LL STAY ON THIS SO YOU CAN KIND OF ABSORB THESE NUMBERS AND INSTEAD SEARCHING BACK AND FORTH.

I'LL DO IT LIKE I DID THE FIRST TIME.

, I'M GETTING A LITTLE DIZZY HERE, GETTING A LITTLE DIZZY.

SO A LITTLE BIT, YEAH.

UM, OF THE NEXT TIME, IT MIGHT BE BETTER TO PUT 'EM SIDE BY SIDE, PUT 'EM SIDE BY SIDE.

SURE.

UM, MAJORITY DIVERSE RACE OR ETHNICITY WAS 53% OF APPLICANTS AND 15% WE'RE EQUALLY LED BY WHITE AND DIVERSE RACE OR ETHNICITIES.

UH, FOR GENDER OF THE LEADERSHIP, 50% OR HALF WERE MAJORITY FEMALE OR NON-BINARY.

A THIRD WERE MAJORITY MALE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER 17% WERE EQUALLY LED BY THE GENDERS.

UM, AND AGAIN, 80% OF THE RECIPIENTS WERE MAJORITY, UM, OR EXCUSE ME, 13% WERE MAJORITY WHITE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER RACE OR ETHNICITY.

80% WERE MAJORITY DIVERSE.

RACE OR ETHNICITY, 7% EQUALLY LED, UM, WITH THE GENDER LEADERSHIP.

UM, MAJORITY FEMALE OR NON-BINARY WAS 54%.

UH, JUST OVER A THIRD WAS MAJORITY MALE OR PREFER NOT TO ANSWER.

AND 11% WAS EQUALLY LED BY THE GENDERS.

UM, AND THEN THIS IS KIND OF BREAKING DOWN BOTH ARTISTIC DISCIPLINE AND AWARDEES BY COUNCIL DISTRICT.

UM, YOU CAN SEE ON THE LEFT THE ARTISTIC DISCIPLINE, UM, THEATER, MUSIC AND MULTIDISCIPLINARY WERE, UM, THE LARGEST NUMBER OF DISCIPLINES THAT WE GET.

AND THAT'S, THAT TRACKS WITH, UM, HOW, UH, AWARDS AND APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN IN THE PAST IN THE PREVIOUS FUNDING PROGRAMS. UM, I ALSO WANT TO, UH, DRAW YOUR ATTENTION THAT THERE WERE 18 ARTS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS.

NOW, THIS IS ALL ELEVATE APPLICANTS, ALL 200 THAT RECEIVED FUNDING COMBINED.

AND SO OF THOSE 218 WERE ARTS SERVICE ORGANIZATION, UM, 18 WERE ARTS EDUCATION.

UH, SO WE ARE FUNDING A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT ARTISTIC DISCIPLINES, INCLUDING ARTS SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS, UM, AND ARTS EDUCATION, UH, PROVIDERS.

AND WE EVEN HAD ONE ARTS, UM, OR MUSIC THERAPY APPLICANT.

UM, ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, YOU SEE A BREAKDOWN BY DISTRICT, ALL 10 COUNCIL DISTRICTS WERE, UM, UH, HAD RECIPIENTS WHO RECEIVED FUNDING.

UM, ON THE LEFT HAND, KIND OF THE BIGGER SQUARES, UM, SHOWS, UH, THE, UH, DISTRICTS THAT HAD THE MOST, UM, APPLICANTS THAT RECEIVED FUNDING.

SO DISTRICT THREE HAD THE MOST WITH 35.

DISTRICT ONE HAD THE SECOND MOST WITH 29, UH, DISTRICT NINE AND DISTRICT FOUR.

SO ALL OF THOSE HAD, UM, ABOVE 20.

UM, AND THEN ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, YOU CAN SEE MORE OF THE BREAKDOWN FOR, UM, IN THE TEENS OR, UH, SINGLE DIGITS FOR, UM, DISTRICT SIX, UH, NOT IN AUSTIN, OR SOME LEFT AT BLANK.

SO THEY JUST, UM, EITHER LEFT AT PLAN OR DID NOT KNOW.

SO, AND THAT, I BELIEVE IS THE PRESENTATION.

OH, NO.

UM, THAT WAS IT FOR ELEVATE RECIPIENTS.

I STILL HAVE MORE TO GO.

SO THERE IS AN APPEALS PROCESS, UH, FOR THOSE WHO, UM, DID NOT RECEIVE FUNDING.

I HAVE BEEN SPEAKING WITH APPLICANTS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN POTENTIALLY, UM, FILING AN APPEAL, UH, IN OUR OLD FUNDING PROGRAMS. WE DID HAVE AN APPEAL PROCESS.

THIS ONE WILL BE, UH, SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT.

UH, WE MODELED IT OFF OF THE OLD PROGRAM, BUT IN THE PAST IT WAS, UM, THE APPEALS, UH, DECISIONS WERE MADE BY STAFF WITH THIS ONE, THE ARTS COMMISSION IS INVOLVED.

THE WAY THE APPEALS PROCESS WILL WORK IS, UM, APPLICANTS, UH, SUBMIT, UM, AN APPEAL FORM, AND THEY CAN GO TO OUR WEBSITE, WWW.AUSTINTEXAS.GOV/ELEVATE.

UM, AND THIS IS NEAR THE TOP OF THE PAGE.

YOU CAN SEE, UM, THE ORGANIZATION FINALISTS HERE.

THIS IS A SCREENSHOT OF THE WEBPAGE.

UM, SO LIST WHO THE ORGANIZATIONS WERE THAT RECEIVED FUNDING, WHO THE INDIVIDUAL AND CREATIVE BUSINESS, UM, RECIPIENTS WERE.

AND THEN BELOW THAT IS THE APPEALS PROCESS.

UM, YOU CAN APPEAL, UH, BASED ON MISINFORMATION OR FOR CONFLICT OF INTEREST.

SO IT'S A VERY, UM, UH, SPECIFIC ITEMS THAT CAN BE, UM, APPEALED.

SO I HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH APPLICANTS TO GO OVER, YOU KNOW, WHETHER OR NOT SOMETHING, UM, UM, CAN BE, UM, APPEALABLE.

UM, I TELL THEM IT IS UP TO THEM ULTIMATELY, IF THEY DECIDE I'M, I'M NOT NECESSARILY TRYING TO DISCOURAGE THEM FROM APPEALING, BUT I'M LETTING THEM KNOW, YOU KNOW, IT SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT'S BLACK OR WHITE.

UM, IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT'S A SHADE OF GRAY BECAUSE OF SUBJECTIVE OPINIONS AND SCORES OF THE PANELISTS ARE NOT APPEALABLE.

SO, UM, UH, STAFF WILL BE, UH, LOOKING AT THE ELIGIBILITY APPEALS, UH, OR AT THE APPEALS TO SEE IF THEY'RE ELIGIBLE.

IF STAFF DETERMINES THAT THEY ARE ELIGIBLE, UH, WE WILL BRING THOSE TO NEXT MONTH'S, THE OCTOBER ARTS COMMISSION, UH, MEETING, OR WE WON'T BRING THE APPEALS, BUT WE WILL, UH, LET YOU KNOW THAT WE FOUND SOME THAT STAFF POTENTIALLY THINKS ARE ELIGIBLE FOR APPEAL.

UM, AND THEN YOU ALL WILL FORM AN APPEALS WORKING GROUP.

UH, THE APPEALS WORKING GROUP WILL, UM, REVIEW

[00:25:01]

UM, UM, YOU'LL MAKE YOUR RECOMMENDATION, BRING THAT TO THE NOVEMBER ARTS COMMISSION MEETING, AND THE FULL ARTS COMMISSION WILL VOTE ON WHETHER OR NOT, UM, THE APPEALS WERE SUCCESSFUL.

AND IF SO, HOW MUCH FUNDING THE, UH, SUCCESSFUL APPEALS, UH, SHOULD RECEIVE.

UM, THE DEADLINE, UH, FOR THE APPEAL IS 10 BUSINESS DAYS FROM RECEIVING, UH, NOTICE OF, UH, YOUR AWARD.

UM, AND SO SINCE WE SENT THOSE OUT, UH, NOT THIS PAST FRIDAY, BUT LAST FRIDAY, THE AWARD APPEAL IS, UH, DEADLINE IS 11:45 PM THIS FRIDAY.

UM, SO, UM, THE WAY WE HAVE IT SET UP, IT'S IN 15 MINUTE INCREMENTS.

SO WE, UH, DID IT AS CLOSE TO MIDNIGHT AS WE CAN, BUT IT'S THIS FRIDAY, UH, THAT THE APPEALS PROCESS, UM, DEADLINE IS, IS DUE.

UM, AND THEN OTHER GRANTS, UM, AS I MENTIONED, UH, WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF REVIEWING NEXUS.

UH, THERE WILL BE $55,000 AWARDS, UM, IN NEXUS.

UH, WE RECEIVED 191 ELIGIBLE APPLICATIONS.

AND THIS IS A STAFF, UM, REVIEW.

SO STAFF FROM, UH, BOTH THE CULTURAL ARTS DIVISION AS WELL AS THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT ARE, UM, IN THE MIDST OF, UH, REVIEWING ELEVATE APPLICATIONS.

AND WE WILL ANNOUNCE, UH, OR EXCUSE ME, UH, NEXUS APPLICATIONS AND WE WILL ANNOUNCE NEXUS AWARDS AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER.

UH, THE ARTS EDUCATION, UH, RELIEF GRANT HAS CLOSED AS WELL.

UH, WE WILL BE AWARDING 19 AWARDS OF $25,000 EACH.

UH, THERE WERE 58 ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS.

UM, AND WE HAVE EIGHT EXTERNAL PANELISTS, UH, THAT ARE CURRENTLY REVIEWING APPLICATIONS.

UM, AND THERE WILL BE TWO CONCURRENT PANEL REVIEWS, UH, THAT ARE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC HELD ON WEDNESDAY, UH, SEPTEMBER 27TH, STARTING AT 10:00 AM.

UM, AND YOU CAN FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THAT BY GOING TO OUR WEBSITE, AUSTIN TEXAS.GOV/ARTS-EDUCATION-RELIEF GRANT.

AND THAT WAS MY PRESENTATION, SO I'M OPEN TO ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.

COMMISSIONERS.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, JESUS.

COMMISSIONER GRAY, JUST A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.

UM, IN THE EVENT OF A SUCCESSFUL APPEAL, WHERE WERE THOSE FUNDS COME FROM? UH, SO WE WOULD LOOK TO SEE, UM, WHAT WE HAVE IN THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX, UM, UH, THAT IS SET ASIDE FOR THIS YEAR.

AND, UM, THE AWARD AMOUNT WILL DETERMINE ON HOW MANY SUCCESSFUL, IF ANY, UM, APPEALS THERE ARE.

GREAT.

UM, THIS MAY BE PICKY, AND I KNOW YOU GOT A GREAT ANSWER, BUT THE PREFER NOT TO ANSWER ANSWER KIND OF FLOATS AROUND IN THE, IN THE REPORTING.

IS THERE A REASON WHY IT'S FLOATING INTO FEMALE, MALE, UH, THAT DA AND NOT JUST BY ITSELF? OR DOES IT MATTER? UM, MAYBE IT'S A VERY NAIVE QUESTION.

UM, NO, I, I DON'T KNOW.

I GUESS WE, UM, UM, DON'T HAVE ANY SPECIFIC REASON FOR THAT SO WE CAN BREAK IT OUT IN THE FUTURE.

COOL.

JUST WONDERING, IT'S IF IT'S, IT'S NOT CONSISTENT, WHETHER IT'S THE HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OR THE LOWEST OR WHEREVER IT SITS.

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST EARLY QUESTION, BUT I KNOW IT'S BEEN TALKED ABOUT BEFORE.

JUST A REMINDER, THE NEXT CYCLE FOR ELEVATE STARTS.

WHEN AND WHAT FISCAL YEAR OR WHAT TIME WINDOW DOES THAT COVER? SO, UM, WE ARE CURRENTLY PLANNING ON STARTING ELEVATE, UH, SOMETIME IN EARLY 2024 MM-HMM.

.

UM, WE WANT TO LOOK AT THE TIME PERIOD OF WHEN ELEVATE, YOU KNOW, SO FOR, FOR THIS YEAR IT WAS, UM, UM, SEPTEMBER 15TH THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30TH.

MM-HMM.

, WE'D LIKE TO GET MORE ON, UH, JULY 1ST THROUGH JUNE 30TH, UH, TIMEFRAME FOR ELEVATE.

SO THAT WILL, YOU KNOW, AND IF IT TAKES, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE OF MONTHS TO DO PANELS, UH, WE'LL HAVE TO KIND OF WORK OUR WAY BACK.

BUT WE NEED TO LOOK HOLISTICALLY AT WHAT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT AS A WHOLE, UM, IS DOING FOR OTHER PROGRAMS, UH, THAT WANT TO LAUNCH.

BUT THAT IS OUR CURRENT PLAN IS TO HAVE ELEVATE, UH, RUN FROM JULY 1ST THROUGH JUNE 30TH.

GREAT.

SO IT'S NOT, IT'S, IT'S NOT, ARE YOU PUSHING IN THE FUTURE TO GET BACK IN A FISCAL YEAR WINDOW, OR IS IT, I, AM I REMEMBERING CORRECTLY THAT IT'S GONNA BE, THEY'RE ALL GONNA BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT.

THEY'RE ALL GONNA BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT, SO THAT WAY STAFF CAN SPEND MORE TIME OUT IN THE COMMUNITY.

UM, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE AS MANY FINAL REPORTS I'LL DO AT THE SAME TIME OR CONTRACTS, UH, GOING OUT AT THE SAME TIME.

SO IT IS PURPOSEFULLY BEING STAGGERED.

GREAT.

THANKS FOR REMINDING US OF THAT.

SURE.

WELCOME.

ONE NOTE, UH, CITY STAFF.

WE'VE GOT, UH, COMMISSIONER GARZA IN THE ATTENDEES AREA, IF WE CAN MOVE HIM OVER.

SUPER.

THANK YOU, UH, COMMISSIONERS.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONER HOUSTON? UH, YES.

UM, FULL DISCLOSURE, I AM CURRENTLY IN A PRODUCTION FOR ARCHIVE THEATER AND I HAVE NOT SPOKEN TO ANYONE IN THE ORGANIZATION ABOUT THE PROCESS, BUT I'VE HEARD THROUGH THEIR GRAPEVINE,

[00:30:01]

IS THERE ANY WAY THAT I CAN LOOK AT THE BACKGROUND OF THAT? SURE.

SO, UM, UM, WE CAN, UH, MAKE A NOTE AND WE CAN, UM, GET AT THAT.

BUT THE WAY THE, UM, SO I TALKED ABOUT THE INDIVIDUAL AND CREATIVE BUSINESSES.

SO THERE WAS A TWO ROUND PROCESS, RIGHT? AND SO NOT EVERYBODY ADVANCED TO THE SECOND ROUND OF FUNDING.

SO IT'S A 5 0 1 C THREE.

IT'S A 5 0 1 C ORGANIZATION.

MM-HMM.

.

OKAY.

UM, WE CAN LOOK, UM, INTO THAT ONE.

THEY MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ELIGIBLE 'CAUSE THERE WERE SOME APPLICATIONS THAT WERE, THAT WERE NOT ELIGIBLE.

BUT IF YOU CAN, UH, SEND US THE NAME, WE CAN LOOK INTO, INTO THAT ONE TO SEE WHAT, UH, THE REASONING FOR THAT MIGHT BE.

OKAY.

I'LL SHOOT AN EMAIL OUT.

THANK YOU.

MM-HMM.

, COMMISSIONER CINI.

HI.

YES.

UM, SINCE WE'RE SPEAKING ABOUT DEADLINES, UM, SINCE THRIVE, I BELIEVE OPENED IN DECEMBER, MAYBE DECEMBER OF 2023, OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, SOMETHING LIKE THAT, UM, WHEN WILL THAT BE EXPECTED TO REOPEN FOR NEW APPLICANTS? SO THRIVE WON'T BE OPENING UP AGAIN FOR AT LEAST ANOTHER YEAR.

THRIVE IS A TWO YEAR FUNDING PROGRAM.

SO, AND IT RUNS, UM, THE WAY IT ENDED UP RUNNING, LIKE APRIL WAS THE, UM, UH, CONTRACT START DATE.

BUT, UM, WE WANT THAT ONE TO RUN ON A CALENDAR YEAR.

SO, UM, YEAR ONE, WE'LL CLOSE, UH, DECEMBER 31ST, 2023, UH, YEAR TWO, UH, WOULD RUN FROM JANUARY 1ST, 2024 THROUGH DECEMBER 31ST, 2024.

UM, AND SO WE WOULD DO, YOU KNOW, OPEN UP ELEVATE PROBABLY MID, UM, 2024, UM, AGAIN, FOR THE, FOR THE NEXT TWO YEAR FUNDING CYCLE.

DO YOU MEAN THRIVE AND ASSUMING THRIVE ASSUMING THE PROGRAM, UH, THRIVE? YES.

NOT ELEVATE.

YEAH.

AND THAT'S ASSUMING THE PROGRAMS, UH, STAY AS IS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THESE ARE PILOT PROGRAMS. WE'RE GONNA BE REVIEWING, UM, ALL OF THE PILOT PROGRAMS, THRIVE, ELEVATE, AND NEXUS, UM, TO SEE WHAT, IF ANYTHING, UM, WILL CHANGE.

SO ASSUMING THRIVE STAYS IN ITS CURRENT FORM, IT'S A TWO YEAR FUNDING CYCLE.

UM, AND, UM, IT WOULD OPEN UP PROBABLY IN, YOU KNOW, A THIRD OF THE YEAR IN HALFWAY INTO THE YEAR OF, UH, UH, 2024, UH, MOST LIKELY.

GOT IT.

SO IT WON'T BE SIMILAR TO, UM, LIKE, LET'S SAY TEXAS COMMISSION ON THE ARTS WHERE THEY HAVE DIFFERENT, LIKE ARTS YEAR ONE, ARTS YEAR TWO, SO THERE'S MULTIPLE RECIPIENTS FOR THOSE GRANTS.

WE HAD DISCUSSED THAT.

SO AGAIN, YOU KNOW, PART OF THE, UH, REVIEW PROCESS, UM, LOOKING AT THAT, UM, FOR THE PILOT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT SURE IF WE WANTED TO DO THAT, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE ARE LOOKING AT ALL KINDS OF, UM, FEEDBACK FROM, UH, THE APPLICANTS, UH, FROM THE COMMUNITY, UM, WHO APPLIED BUT MAY NOT HAVE GET GOTTEN FUNDED FROM, UH, U S A ARTS COMMISSION.

UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, CURRENTLY, UH, THAT'S NOT THE PLAN IS TO JUST, YOU KNOW, OPEN IT UP, YOU KNOW, FINISH OUT THIS FIRST COHORT AND THEN, UH, SEE WHAT WE, UH, HOW WE WANT TO STRUCTURE THRIVE, UH, MOVING FORWARD.

GOT IT.

AND FOR NEXUS, THAT ONE'S SUPPOSED TO RUN EVERY SIX MONTHS.

UH, SO WHEN IS THE NEXT CYCLE FOR THAT ONE? THE NEXT CYCLE WILL BE EARLY, UH, 2024 IS, UH, THE CURRENT PLAN FOR THE NEXT CYCLE, UM, FOR ACTIVITIES FROM APRIL 1ST THROUGH OCTOBER 30TH.

SO THAT ONE IS GONNA RUN MORE ON THE CITY'S, UH, FISCAL YEAR.

SO, UH, THE FIRST HALF, UM, AGAIN, AS, AS CURRENTLY ENVISIONED AS CURRENTLY PLANNED MM-HMM.

, UM, OCTOBER 1ST, UH, THROUGH MARCH 31ST, UM, FOR THE FIRST, UM, UH, ROUND OF ACTIVITIES OR FOR THE FIRST, UH, NEXUS ROUND.

AND THEN THE SECOND ROUND WOULD BE APRIL 1ST THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30TH.

GOT IT.

AND I JUST HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION 'CAUSE I KNOW THESE ARE ALL REALLY NEW.

SO, UM, FOR NEXUS, ARE THERE PANEL REVIEWS FOR THAT ONE? I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T CATCH THAT ON THE, SO THERE, THERE ARE PANEL REVIEWS, BUT IT'S AN INTERNAL, UH, PANEL DONE BY STAFF.

IT'S NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

UM, NEXUS IS VERY SIMILAR TO OUR OLD COMMUNITY INITIATIVES PROGRAM, WHICH WAS ALSO, UH, JUST REVIEWED BY STAFF.

THAT WAS REVIEWED BY ONE STAFF MEMBER.

UH, THIS ONE, UH, NEXUS IS, UM, WHILE SIMILAR, WE ARE MAKING IT MORE OF A PANEL LIKE PROCESS WITH, AGAIN, BOTH CULTURAL ARTS DIVISION STAFF MEMBERS AS WELL AS, UH, STAFF MEMBERS FROM THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT REVIEWING THOSE NEXUS APPLICATIONS.

GOT IT.

SO WITH NEXUS BEING KIND OF INTERNALLY REVIEWED, IT'S SO THAT IT KIND OF PUSHES FORWARD A LITTLE BIT FASTER THAN LIKE KIND OF GETTING OKAY.

GOT IT.

CORRECT.

AWESOME.

THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU.

MM-HMM.

, AND WE'LL BE HEARING ABOUT THE NEXUS RECIPIENTS BY THE END OF THE MONTH, RIGHT? YES.

THE CURRENT PLAN IS TO, UM, ANNOUNCE AWARDS, UH, BEFORE THE END OF SEPTEMBER.

AND SO WE WILL HAVE A MORE ROBUST, UH, NEXUS UPDATE AT THE OCTOBER ARTS COMMISSION MEETING.

FANTASTIC.

UH, COMMISSIONERS, I, I WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE, I KNOW YOU HEARD ME MENTION THAT COMMISSIONER GARZA IS NOW IN THE ROOM, BUT, UM, COMMISSIONERS

[00:35:01]

HI EVERYONE.

UM, UH, SO, UM, UH, MS. HAD MENTIONED, UH, THIS IS THE COMMISSION MEETING, UH, THAT THERE WAS A CONDUCT, UH, BEING TO USER EXPERIENCE ACROSS THE BOARD, UH, UH, FOR THESE .

IS THERE ANY MORE INSIGHT INTO THAT OR SHOULD WE, , IS THERE A LINE AND, UH, UH, WHAT IS, UH, THE GAUGE ON WHETHER THAT SAYS WOULD OR WOULD NOT IMPACT THE ? YOU'RE BREAKING UP A LITTLE, BUT I THINK SOVIA UNDERSTOOD WHAT YOU WERE SAYING, SO SHE WILL RESPOND.

THANK YOU.

GOOD EVENING.

SOVIA HOLT, DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

YES, THIS LAST QUARTER OF 2023, WE ARE TAKING AN EVALUATION OF THE ENTIRE SYSTEM THAT INCLUDES PORTAL, THAT INCLUDES, UH, LANGUAGE ACCESS, THE ENTIRE USER EXPERIENCE.

WE'VE HEARD A LOT OF FEEDBACK, AND SO WE WANNA TAKE OUR TIME, UM, AND, UH, DO AN EVALUATION OF THE SYSTEM TO SEE HOW WE CAN IMPROVE THE USER EXPERIENCE, BECAUSE THERE WERE A LOT OF THINGS WE HEARD, AND I WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AND SAY WE ACCEPT THAT AND WE'RE STRIVING TO GET IT BETTER.

BUT WE HAVE ABOUT A FIVE 10 PAGE PLAN.

UH, WE'RE, WE'RE BRINGING IN CONSULTANTS, WE'RE WORKING WITH C T M, WHICH IS OUR TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT TO SEE HOW WE CAN DEFINITELY IMPROVE.

AND SO THE NEW LAUNCH DATES ARE, SEEMS REASONABLE BECAUSE THEY PROBABLY WON'T START TO THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR, BUT JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AND LET YOU KNOW THAT WE HEARD YOU, UH, I MADE A PRESENTATION TO THE HISPANIC QUALITY OF LIFE ABOUT IT.

AND SO WE JUST WANT TO TAKE OUR TIME TO TRY AND GET IT, UM, RIGHT.

UH, IT'S NOT GONNA BE PERFECT 'CAUSE WE ARE IN AN IMPERFECT WORLD, BUT I JUST WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE WERE CHALLENGES.

WE HEARD YOU, AND WE'RE GONNA BE, UH, TALKING WITH OUR CLIENTS TO UNDERSTAND THEIR USER EXPERIENCE, TALKING WITH STAFF AND EVERYTHING.

I DON'T HAVE A FIRM TIMELINE, UH, HAVING SOME CONTRACT CHALLENGES WITH ONE OF THE CONSULTANTS.

SO, UH, JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT.

THANK YOU.

NAGA.

MARIELLA.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

SO, JUST TO CLARIFY, THAT WILL INCLUDE COMMUNITY FEEDBACK AND THE CONSULTANTS WILL BE WORKING DIRECTLY WITH COMMUNITY, THOSE WHO APPLIED ON BOTH SIDES OF THE COIN RECEIVED AND DIDN'T RECEIVE.

PERHAPS WE ARE GOING TO BE WORKING WITH THE CONSULTANT TO CHART THE BEST PASSPORT ON HOW WE RECEIVE THAT FEEDBACK.

BUT THE GOAL IS DEFINITELY TO HEAR FROM COMMUNITY.

I'VE HEARD FROM COMMUNITY, I'VE MET WITH SEVERAL MEMBERS.

I WANNA THANK MY EQUITY INCLUSION COORDINATOR WHO'S ONLY BEEN ON THE JOB MAYBE THREE MONTHS.

HE'S HEARD A LOT.

HE'S NOW DOING CONSTITUENT SERVICES TO HEAR FROM ALL OF OUR CONSTITUENTS SO THAT HE CAN HELP ALONG WITH US CHART THE BEST PATH FORWARD.

BUT WE HEARD YOU, WE HURT COMMUNITY AND WE'RE GONNA TRY TO GET IT RIGHT.

AND JUST TO CLARIFY, IS THAT, THAT'S THE BACKEND, THE, THE MECHANISM, LIKE THE ACTUAL PORTAL, AND THEN IS THAT ALSO INTO THE OVERALL APPLIC, LIKE THE APPLICATION OR THE, IS IT SOUP TO NUTS OR IS IT JUST A FACET OF THE PROCESS? WE DON'T WANT TO CHANGE THE INTENT OF THE QUESTIONS I'VE GUARANTEED STAFF.

HOW DOES IT OVERLAY ONTO A SYSTEM? OKAY.

LIKE, HOW DO THE QUESTIONS OVERLAY ONTO IE.

PORTAL IS AT THE BEST SYSTEM.

GOT IT.

HOW DOES LANGUAGE ACCESS, HOW DO WE, UH, PROVIDE THAT SERVICE? WE'RE TALKING TO OUR SISTER DEPARTMENTS WITHIN THE CITY TO SEE HOW THEY EVEN HANDLE IT.

HOW DOES PAR HANDLE IT? HOW DOES A P A HANDLE IT? AND WE ARE LEADERS IN THAT SPACE.

WE DEFINITELY PROVIDE A LOT OF COMMUNITY SERVICE, A LOT OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

AND SO WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT IT TO SEE WHAT WE CAN SUSTAIN AND HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD.

FANTASTIC.

I'M SEEING, UH, LAURA SNEAK UP HERE.

JUST GONNA SNEAK UP AND ADD, UM, AS WE MENTIONED BEFORE, IT'S A MULTI-STEP REVIEW PROCESS.

MM-HMM.

.

SO THE REVIEW PROCESS THAT I THINK SOVIA WAS JUST MENTIONING WAS SPECIFICALLY AROUND THE SOUP TO NUTS, THE SYSTEM, THE PROCESSES, ALL OF THAT.

AND THEN WE HAVE A SEPARATE CONSULTANT THAT'S REVIEWING ALL HOT PROGRAMS AND THE EFFICACY OF OUR EQUITY EFFORTS.

OKAY.

SO REVIEWING THE PROGRAMS, THE QUESTIONS, THE RESULTS, IS IT HELPING THE ORGANIZATIONS AND THE ARTISTS LIKE WE THOUGHT IT WOULD MM-HMM.

.

SO TWO SEPARATE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING IN TANDEM.

JUST TO CLARIFY, SHE'S SHE'S CORRECT.

I FORGOT ABOUT THE MEASURE CONTRACT.

YES.

THAT'S IMPACT.

VERY EXCITED SYSTEM.

YES.

AND I KNOW THAT THAT'S BEEN A QUESTION FROM THE COMMUNITY IS, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THESE EFFORTS, THIS BIG UPHEAVAL ISN'T REALLY TAKING US TO WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO GET.

SO I THAT'S INCREDIBLE.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU BOTH.

UM,

[00:40:01]

ANYBODY ELSE? JUST A SUGGESTION, PLEASE.

THIS IS JUST MORE OF A SUGGESTION, UM, IS I THINK FEEDBACK IS OBVIOUSLY VERY CRITICAL.

UM, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU CHANGE SYSTEMS AND LIKE THE UX DESIGN.

UM, SOMETHING I THINK THAT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL IN THE FUTURE, NO MATTER WHAT WE LAND ON, IS DOING, UM, LIKE AN ACTUAL TRAINING SESSION WHERE YOU, WHERE LIKE A PERSON FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN THAT'S ON THE TECH SIDE ACTUALLY TOURS THE APPLICATION FOR FOLKS.

UM, AS AN APPLICANT THAT, UM, APPLIED, UM, I FOUND IT REALLY PROBLEMATIC THAT YOU COULDN'T SAVE THE INFORMATION.

AND I THINK THAT'S VERY JARRING FOR FOLKS, UM, WHEN THEY'RE APPLYING TO SOMETHING WHEN YOU COMPLETELY CHANGE THE SYSTEM.

BUT THERE'S NOT ANY TOOLS FOR TRAINING.

AND I KNOW THAT Y'ALL HAD LIKE YOUR ONE-ON-ONE TECHNICAL, BUT YOU KNOW, NOT EVERYBODY CAN MAKE THAT.

IT WOULD BE REALLY USEFUL TO JUST BE ABLE TO HAVE REFERENCE DOCUMENTS, UM, ESPECIALLY VIDEOS BECAUSE IT'S A VISUAL BASED COMPONENT.

SO THAT'S, UM, SOMETHING THAT I'VE SEEN OTHER GRANTORS DO, LIKE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS, TEXAS COMMISSION ON THE ARTS.

UM, AND THEN MY LAST BIT OF FEEDBACK, WHICH I KNOW THAT IS LIKE VERY WISHFUL THINKING, IS HAVING A CENTRALIZED WAY THAT PEOPLE APPLY FOR ALL CITY FUNDING.

I THINK, YOU KNOW, HAVING IT PARTITIONED OUT WHERE, YOU KNOW, TELECOMMUNICATIONS HAS ONE SYSTEM AND THEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT HAS ANOTHER SYSTEM, IT'S VERY CONFUSING.

UM, AS A PERSON IN THE COMMUNITY WHO RUNS A NONPROFIT OR IS LOOKING FOR FUNDING TO HAVE TO KIND OF DIG AND ALSO LEARN ALL THESE DIFFERENT, UM, LIKE DESIGN PROCESSES WITH, I DON'T THINK IT'S VERY EQUITABLE, UM, FOR, AND I KNOW THAT Y'ALL ARE NOT IN CONTROL OF THAT, BUT THIS IS MY FEEDBACK FOR YOU.

SO THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

VERY VALUABLE FEEDBACK.

THANK YOU COMMISSIONER.

ANYONE ELSE? OKAY.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, JESUS.

AND THANK YOU TO STAFF FOR ALL THE WORK YOU DO AND CONTINUE TO DO.

WE'RE SEEING THE IMPACT IN THE COMMUNITY.

I PERSONALLY HEARD FROM A HANDFUL OF FOLKS ON BOTH THE NON-PROFIT AND FOR-PROFIT, UM, SIDE OF THE RECIPIENT LIST, UM, JUST ELATED.

SO IT'S WORKING, IT'S HAPPENING.

THE FUNDS ARE GETTING OUT THERE, PEOPLE ARE EXCITED, UM, TO MOVE ON, UM,

[9. Staff briefing on Creative Space Assistance Program by Kim McCarson, Music and Entertainment Division]

UM, AND TO CLARIFY, WELL KIM COMES UP HERE.

THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT WAS FACILITATED BY THE MUSIC DEPARTMENT, BUT REALLY UMBRELLAS BOTH LIKE, ENDS ALL THE ENDS OF OUR CREATIVE COMMUNITY, WHICH IS WHY I'VE INVITED KIM TO PRESENT TO US TODAY.

AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE AND MAKING TIME.

YOU'RE WELCOME.

SO I'M KIM MCC CARSON, THE PROGRAM MANAGER IN THE MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT DIVISION OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

AND I'LL BE GIVING A PRESENTATION TONIGHT ON CREATIVE SPACE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, WHICH WE CALL C CSAP FOR SHORT.

SO YOU'LL HEAR ME SAYING THAT.

UM, AND IT'LL INCLUDE PROGRAM OVERVIEW AND SOME AWARD RESULTS.

SO FIRST, UH, JUST PART OF THE OVERVIEW, THE PURPOSE, AS YOU KNOW, RENTS AND REAL ESTATE PRICES HAVE BEEN INCREASING RAPIDLY IN AUSTIN.

AND AS A RESULT, MANY CREATIVE ORGANIZATIONS ARE PRESSURED TO MOVE FROM THEIR SPACE IN SEARCH OF CHEAPER RENT, SOMETIMES OUTSIDE OF THE CITY.