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[CALL TO ORDER]
NOW 6:08 PM AND THIS IS THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD FOR JANUARY THE 12TH, 2024.AT THIS TIME, I'M GONNA DO A CALL TO ORDER, UH, PAGER VILLALOBOS PRESENT.
UH, SHELBY ORIE? UM, NICOLE MERRIT.
PRESENT? STEPHANIE BISON PRESENT.
UM, KIM TAYLOR? I'M PRESENT, BUT I'M WORKING ON MY, UH, MY CAMERA.
ALL RIGHT, WE'LL COME BACK TO HIM.
CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN HEAR YOU NOW.
LANE, CAN YOU HEAR US OR WE'RE ALL HAVING TECHNOLOGY ISSUES? BOARD MEMBER BECKER, CAN YOU HEAR US? COMMISSIONER BECKERS? CAN YOU HEAR US? ARE THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS ONLINE ABLE TO HEAR US IN THE ROOM? EVERYONE ELSE, I'M ABLE TO HEAR YOU.
WAYNE BECKER IS NOT ABLE TO HEAR US.
HE MAY NEED TO LOG OUT WEBEX AND COME BACK IN.
WELL, UM, I THINK, CAN I CONT I I'LL, UH, HE CHATTED ME AND HE SAYS HE CAN'T HEAR, SO HE IS GONNA, I THINK HE'S GONNA LOG BACK OFF AND THEN BACK ON.
UH, BLAINE BECKER, ARE YOU PRESENT? PRESENT.
HAVING FOUND A QUORUM, WE WILL NOW PROCEED.
[PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL ]
WE WILL NOW OPEN IT UP TO PUBLIC COMMUNICATION GENERAL.SO THESE ARE SPEAKERS THAT WILL BE ALLOTTED THREE MINUTES.
UM, FOR AGENDA ITEMS THAT ARE, UH, FOR NON-AGENDA ITEMS. ABSOLUTELY.
WE'RE GONNA BEGIN WITH GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT IN PERSON SPEAKERS.
THE FIRST SPEAKER IS ALLISON JOHNSON.
AFTER ALLISON WILL BE DIANA PROCTOR.
HI, IS THIS WHERE YOU WANT ME? OKAY, GREAT.
SHOULD I GO ON WITHOUT, THAT'S FINE.
UH, DOES SHE HAVE TO ACTIVATE HER MICROPHONE? THAT'S NOT, THAT'S OKAY.
I'LL JUST OPEN MINE SO I HAVE MY BULLET.
WE CAN GO AHEAD AND GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
I'M THE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WITH PEA PARK CONSERVANCY.
UM, I'M HERE TODAY TO REPRESENT PEA PARK CONSERVANCY TO SHARE WITH YOU A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM THAT WE'VE LAUNCHED IN PEAS PARK.
UM, WE ACTUALLY LAUNCHED IT LAST SCHOOL YEAR, 2022 TO 2023 SCHOOL YEAR, UM, AND ARE CONTINUING IT THIS YEAR.
IT'S CALLED OUR PEAS COLLEGE SCHOOL FIELD TRIP PROGRAM, WHERE WE BRING KINDERGARTEN THROUGH SIXTH GRADE CLASSROOMS AND THEIR TEACHERS, UM, TO PEAS PARK TO ENJOY A DAY IN NATURE, UM, A LEARNING EXPERIENCE AND A SERVICE EXPERIENCE IN THE PARK.
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LAST YEAR WE HAD ABOUT FIVE CLASSES, UH, FIVE DIFFERENT SCHOOLS PARTICIPATE IN THIS PROGRAM.AND THIS YEAR WE'VE PARTNERED WITH A ISD AND WE ANTICIPATE THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE ABOUT 12 OR 13 SCHOOLS COME OUT.
SOMETIMES THESE CLASSES INVOLVE JUST ABOUT 25 STUDENTS, AND WE'VE EVEN HAD, UM, ENTIRE FOURTH GRADES UP TO A HUNDRED STUDENTS COME OUT.
UM, AND WHEN THE STUDENTS COME TO THE PARK, WE LEAD THEM IN A VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE WITH OUR OPERATIONS TEAM, AND THEN WE ALSO LEAD THEM IN AN EDUCATIONAL COMPONENT OF THE DAY.
AND OF COURSE, THEN THEY HAVE LUNCH AND REPLAY AT THE END OF THEIR, UH, FIELD TRIP SLIDE.
UH, THE SERVICE LEARNING PROJECTS OFTEN INCLUDE THINGS LIKE THIS, SO SOMETIMES PLANTINGS, SEEDING, UM, OF PLANTS IN THE PARK, WEEDING, MULCHING, INVASIVE PLANT REMOVAL, OR LITTER PICKUP.
UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, THE KIDS HAVE A LOT OF FUN WITH MULCHING.
THEY GET TO CARRY BUCKETS AND, UM, LEARN ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF, OF THE WORK THAT WE DO IN THE PARK.
UM, AND IT'S, IT'S JUST A WAY TO INSPIRE KIDS TO GET OUTSIDE IN NATURE AND CONTRIBUTE TO THEIR COMMUNITY.
UM, THE EDUCATION LESSON OFTEN INCLUDES THINGS LIKE THE ANIMALS THAT YOU CAN FIND IN OUR CENTRAL TEXAS ECOSYSTEM.
WE TEACH THEM ABOUT PLANT LIFE CYCLES, THE DIFFERENT PARTS YOU CAN FIND OF A PLANT, UM, EROSION WATER CYCLES, THINGS LIKE THIS.
AND OFTENTIMES, OR EVERY TIME WE CONNECT WITH THE TEACHER AHEAD OF TIME TO FIND OUT WHAT THOSE STUDENTS ARE LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM SO THAT WE CAN TAKE THE LEARNINGS THAT THEY'RE EXPERIENCING IN THE CLASSROOM SO THEY CAN COME OUTSIDE AND ACTUALLY SEE IT IN, IN THE REAL WORLD.
UM, AND FOR TITLE ONE SCHOOLS, WE FUND THESE EXPERIENCES FOR THE STUDENTS.
SO WE WILL PAY FOR THE TRANSPORTATION AND THEIR LUNCH THAT DAY BECAUSE WE JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT ALL STUDENTS HAVE ACCESS TO THESE TYPE OF EXPERIENCES IN THE OUTDOORS.
SO JUST WANTED TO SHARE THIS, THIS PROGRAM WITH YOU.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE DIANA PROCTOR.
I'M DIANA PROCTOR, AND THAT IS MY SLIDE UP THERE.
IT IS TIME TO TAKE THE VIP EARLY ACCESS OUT OF THE TRAIL OF LIGHTS EXPERIENCE.
IT IS TIME FOR PARD TO START INVOICING THE TRAIL OF LIGHTS ORGANIZER FOR ZILKER PARK MAINTENANCE FEES AT MORE THAN 10 CENTS PER ATTENDEE, IT IS TIME FOR THE CITIZENS OF AUSTIN TO DEMAND FISCAL TRANSPARENCY, ALLOWING THE PUBLIC TO COMPREHEND THE REVENUE THAT SPECIAL EVENTS EARN FROM OUR PUBLIC PARKLAND.
IT IS TIME TO MAKE THE EVENT ORGANIZERS OF LARGE SCALE TICKETED EVENTS MORE RESPONSIBLE TO THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
THE SPECIAL EVENTS NOT ONLY CREATE A NEED FOR REMEDIATION, THEY ALSO BECOME POWERFUL STAKEHOLDERS WHO PREVENT PROJECTS URGENTLY NEEDED TO IMPROVE THE PARK'S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.
THIS NEEDS TO END FOR THESE REASONS AND MORE THAT I CAN PROVIDE.
I HOPE THAT THE PARKS BOARD WILL DRAFT A RECOMMENDATION AS FOLLOWS.
RECOMMEND THAT THE CITY LAW DEPARTMENT REVIEW THE 2023 COMPLIANCE BY THE TRAIL OF LIGHT EVENT ORGANIZER WITH THEIR LEGACY CONTRACT TO ENSURE THAT FUTURE EVENTS SATISFY THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS.
WITHOUT EXCEPTION, A HALF OF ALL EVENT NIGHTS ARE FREE TO THE PUBLIC FROM OPENING HOUR TO CLOSING WITHOUT SELLING EARLY ACCESS PRIVILEGES TO THE PUBLIC.
AND B, ATTENDEES UNDER THE AGE OF 12 ARE ADMITTED FREE ON ALL EVENT NIGHTS, REGARDLESS OF THE PAY OR FREE STATUS OF THEIR ADULT COMPANIONS.
AND ONE ADULT CAN BRING MULTIPLE CHILDREN FREE OF CHARGE AS INTENDED BY THE LEGACY CONTRACT.
RECOMMEND THAT THE PARKS DIRECTOR OR THE CITY MANAGER ABANDON THE 10 CENTS PER ATTENDEE MODEL FOR INVOICING THE TRAIL OF LIGHTS ORGANIZER FOR MAINTAIN MAINTENANCE FEES IN ZILKER PARK, BUT INSTEAD DESIGN AND IMPLEMENT A NEW RATE STRUCTURE FOR INVOICING ALL SPECIAL EVENT OPERATORS OF TICKETED EVENTS ACCORDING TO A PERCENTAGE OF REVENUE TO ACHIEVE A MAINTENANCE FUND FOR ZILKER PARK MORE CLOSELY ALIGNED WITH PUBLIC USE AND PUBLIC VALUE WITH THE ADDED BENEFIT OF INCREASING THE FISCAL TRANSPARENCY OF SPECIAL EVENT ORGANIZERS.
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RECOMMEND THAT THE CITY BUDGET OFFICE CREATE A NEW ZILKER PARK FINANCIAL ACCOUNT NAMED THE ZILKER PARK ENVIRONMENTAL CIP FUND, INTO WHICH UNUSED MAINTENANCE FEES FOR ZILKER PARK WOULD BE SWEPT ANNUALLY INTO A LONG-TERM SAVINGS ACCOUNT FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS SPECIFIC TO ZILKER PARK TO SEE THE CURRENT STATE OF IMA OF DAMAGES TO THE PARK AFTER ACL AND TRAIL OF LIGHTS.YOU'LL SEE MY PHOTOGRAPHS AT TODAY IN ZILKER PARK.COM.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE CLAIRE KREBS, FOLLOWED BY GRACE GILKER.
MAY I, DO YOU HAVE YOU, DO YOU HAVE ANY SLIDES? I I SENT A, UH, WORD, A PDF THAT HAS MY COMMENTS AND AN IMAGE, BUT Y'ALL DON'T SHOW.
I REPRESENT THE FESTIVAL BEACH COMMUNITY GARDEN ON A HUNDRED PERCENT VOLUNTEER RUN GARDEN LOCATED ON CITY PARKLAND JUST EAST OF I 35 AND JUST NORTH OF THE RIVER.
I'M HERE IN SUPPORT OF ONE OF THE STAFF UPDATES THAT YOU'LL HEAR TONIGHT ABOUT THE NOISE WALLS THAT TXDOT HAS OFFERED TO BUILD US TO PROTECT PARKLAND FROM THE SITE AND SOUND OF THE NEW HIGHWAY EXPANSION.
OUR GARDENERS HAVE WORKED REALLY HARD WITH TXDOT AND INTERNALLY TO COME UP WITH A DESIGN THAT YOU'LL SEE.
WE'VE HAD MANY MEETINGS AND SURVEYS IN ENGLISH AND MANDARIN AND SPENT COUNTLESS HOURS VETTING THIS ISSUE BEFORE DECIDING TO RATIFY THIS DESIGN.
AND SO WE ASK YOU PART BOARD TO ALSO SUPPORT THE DESIGN WE'VE RATIFIED, WHICH IS THREE WALLS THAT ARE 16 TO 20 FEET HIGH, AND THAT HAVE BEEN MODIFIED UPON OUR URGING TO CURVE AROUND AND MINIMIZE IMPACTS TO EXISTING TREES IN THE AREA.
WHEN IT COMES TIME FOR THAT STAFF BRIEFING, I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS AND GIVE DETAILS.
BUT WITH MY REMAINING TIME, I WOULD ASK YOU TO TAKE NOTES ON THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU SHOULD ASK OF TDOT AND PART WHO WILL BE SPEAKING LATER TONIGHT.
AND I BOLDED THOSE IN THE HANDOUT THAT I'VE GIVEN YOU GUYS.
OUR COMMUNITY GROUPS HAVE ALSO ASKED FOR OTHER AMENITIES, UH, BE BUILT NEAR THE WALLS IN THE RIGHT OF WAY THAT WILL BE LEFT THAT SEPARATES OUR PARKLAND FROM THE HIGHWAY.
AND THESE INCLUDE A RESTROOM, A WATER FOUNTAIN, AN ADDITIONAL CROSSWALK, LANDSCAPING INFRASTRUCTURE, AND BIKE RACKS.
UH, THESE AMENITIES WOULD BENEFIT NOT JUST US, BUT ALL USERS OF A NEWS FAIRED USE PATHWAY THAT WILL WEAVE IN BETWEEN THE WALLS.
UM, BUT WE'LL NEED COOPERATION FROM PARD AND TXDOT TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S FEASIBLE.
SO I ASK YOU TO PLEASE TELL PARD TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH US ON INCORPORATING THESE AND OTHER AMENITIES AND TO DIRECT PAR TO STRONGLY WEIGH OUR GROUP'S INPUT WHEN ADDING THESE AMENITIES.
I ALSO ASK YOU TO PLEASE SET A DATE BY WHICH PARD MUST UPDATE YOU ON ITS PROGRESS WITH.
THIS PART HAS BEEN VERY SUPPORTIVE OF US THUS FAR, BUT YOUR EYES ON THIS WOULD HELP.
AS FOR TEXT QUESTIONS OF TDOT, TXDOT HAS PROMISED TO INCLUDE OUR GROUPS IN THE AESTHETIC DESIGN OF THE WALLS AND THE LANDSCAPING THAT WILL BE AROUND THEM, INCLUDING PLANTINGS AND MURALS.
TXDOT HAS ALSO SAID THAT IT COULD INSTALL IRRIGATION INFRASTRUCTURE TO MAINTAIN THESE PLANTINGS.
SO I ASK YOU TO PLEASE ASK TDOT TO CONFIRM THAT THEY WILL BE INCLUDING THE GARDEN IN THE FOOD FOREST IN THE DESIGN OF THIS AREA.
AND TO REITERATE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT THEY INCLUDE IRRIGATION INFRASTRUCTURE AS PART OF THIS PROJECT.
A FINAL QUESTION, AS YOU MIGHT ASK TDOT IS ABOUT LEAD SAMPLING.
AFTER WE SHOWED TDOT EVIDENCE THAT HIGH LEVELS OF LEAD WERE LIKELY PRESENT IN THE RIGHT OF WAY, TEXDOT PROMISE TO SAMPLE THE SOIL BEFORE CONSTRUCTION, BUT WE HAVEN'T YET HEARD DETAILS.
SO YOU SHOULD ASK TEXDOT FOR DETAILS LIKE THEIR OFFICIAL SAMPLING PLAN AND THE TIMING OF IT.
YOU SHOULD ALSO ASK THEM TO SHARE THE RESULTS OF THEIR SAMPLING ANALYSIS WITH YOU, WITH PARD AND WITH US.
MY CONTACT INFORMATION IS ON THE COMMENT SHEET I GAVE YOU.
UH, JT AND NICOLE ALSO HAVE THAT, AND WE APPRECIATE ALL THE HELP.
AND WHEN YOU SAID NICOLE, YOU MEANT NICOLE.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE GRACE GILKER, FOLLOWED BY RA ANI.
HEY THERE, I, UH, I DON'T HAVE SLIDES, JUST, JUST VIBES
UM, SO MY NAME IS GRACE GILKER AND I'M THE COORDINATOR FOR THE FESTIVAL BEACH FOOD FOREST I 35 EXPANSION WORKING GROUP.
I'M ALSO HERE IN SUPPORT OF THE STAFF UPDATE REGARDING THE NOISE MITIGATION STRATEGY T HAS OFFERED IN RESPONSE TO THE HIGHWAY EXPANSION.
I'D ALSO LIKE TO THANK BOARD MEMBER NICOLE FOR HER HELP IN THIS PROCESS.
SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE COMMUNITY GARDEN FOR ABOUT SEVEN MONTHS NOW TO LOBBY TEXT DOT FOR MITIGATIONS, BOTH IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL
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IMPACT STATEMENT AND BEYOND.TO REITERATE, BOTH THE COMMUNITY GARDEN AND THE FOOD FOREST HAVE HELD MULTIPLE INTERNAL MEETINGS AS WELL AS THE TEXT DOT WORKSHOP TO ARRIVE AT THE DESIGN PRESENTED TONIGHT.
WE SUPPORT THIS THREE WELL DESIGN THAT MINIMIZES THE IMPACT TO EXISTING TREE CANOPY.
FURTHER, WE'RE HERE TONIGHT TO TRY AND ENSURE THIS WALL ADDS TO OUR COMMUNITY RATHER THAN SIMPLY DIVIDE IT.
WE ARE REQUESTING THE ADDITION OF A WATER FOUNTAIN, A BATHROOM BIKE RACKS THE PLANTING OF NATIVE SPECIES ON AND AROUND THE WALL AND A WATER METER TO SUPPORT THE IRRIGATION OF THOSE PLANTS.
WE KNOW THE FINANCING, PLANTING, AND MAINTENANCE OF THESE PLANTS WILL BE, WILL TAKE THE COLLABORATION OF BOTH TEX DOT AND PARD, AND WE ASK FOR YOUR HELP SECURING THIS AGREEMENT.
FURTHERMORE, OUR ONGOING CONVERSATIONS WITH PARD HAVE LED US TO THE CONCLUSION THAT A BATHROOM AND CROSSWALK MIGHT BE LESS FEASIBLE.
AND NEVERTHELESS, WE REMAIN FOCUSED ON THE LANDSCAPING WATER METER, WATER FOUNTAIN, AND BIKE RACKS.
I'D LIKE TO ECHO CLAIRE'S REQUEST FOR THE BOARD TO ASK THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.
NUMBER ONE, PLEASE ASK TEXDOT TO CONFIRM THAT THEY'LL BE INCLUDING THE GARDEN AND FOOD FOREST IN THE DESIGN OF THIS AREA.
AND REITERATE HOW IMPORTANT IT IS THAT THEY INCLUDE IRRIGATION INFRASTRUCTURE HERE.
TWO, PLEASE ASK TECH STOCK FOR DETAILS, UH, OF THEIR OFFICIAL SOIL SAMPLING PLAN AND THE TIMING THEREOF.
YOU SHOULD ALSO ASK THEM TO SHARE THE RESULTS OF THE SAMPLING WITH, UH, YOU AND PARD AND US
NUMBER THREE, PLEASE DIRECT PARD TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH US ON INCORPORATING THESE AND OTHER AMENITIES.
AND PLEASE DIRECT PARD TO STRONGLY WEAR GROUP'S INPUT IN ADDING THESE AMENITIES.
I ALSO ASK YOU TO PLEASE SET A DATE BY WHICH PART MUST UPDATE YOU ON THE PROGRESS HERE.
UH, I LIKE TO LEAD OUR PLANT WALKS AT THE FOOD FOREST ON THE FIRST SATURDAY OF THE MONTH, WHICH IS COMING UP.
AND, UH, I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THE 175 DATE OF UNDERSTORY TREES THAT OUR VOLUNTEERS HAVE PLANTED OVER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS.
UM, I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT RESPONSIBLE WATER USE AND NATIVE EDIBLE AND MEDICINAL PLANTS AND LOCAL ECOLOGY.
I LIKE TO GIVE PEOPLE LEAVES TO EAT.
UM, THE FOOD FOREST HAS BEEN ONE OF THE MOST MEANINGFUL COMMUNITIES I'VE BEEN ABLE TO BE A PART OF HERE IN AUSTIN.
I APPRECIATE YOUR HELP IN SECURING THESE MITIGATIONS AND GETTING ME BACK TO JUST HAVING MY HANDS IN THE DIRT.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE CY ANI, FOLLOWED BY KAYLA REESE.
UH, HER NEXT BAKER IS GONNA BE KAYLA REESE.
AND THEN WE WILL COME BACK TO CYRA OR IT WILL BE AUBREY RUDDER.
GOOD EVENING CHAIR AND BOARD MEMBERS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR.
UM, I JUST WANTED TO REINTRODUCE MYSELF TO THE BOARD.
I'M THE ADVOCACY MANAGER AT AUSTIN PARKS FOUNDATION.
UM, AND I ALSO WANTED TO SHARE SOME FUN THINGS THAT ARE COMING UP IN THE PARKS WORLD.
UM, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT HAS BEGUN AT THE ALL ABILITIES PARK IN ONION CREEK IN DISTRICT TWO, WHICH WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT.
ON FEBRUARY 3RD, WE'RE HOSTING AN OPEN WORKDAY FOR CLEANING UP THE OLD LAND PASSES DAM.
UM, WHICH ANYONE CAN JOIN OUR SPRING.
IT'S MY PARK DAY EVENT WILL BE HELD ON MARCH 2ND AND SIGN UP WILL OPEN UP ON FEBRUARY 5TH.
AND FINALLY, OUR 2023 FALL, ACL MUSIC FESTIVAL.
NEIGHBORHOOD GRANTS WERE AWARDED TO PARKADE ZARAGOZA IN DISTRICT THREE.
DOTTIE JORDAN IN DISTRICT ONE.
ELIZABETH NA MUSEUM IN DISTRICT NINE, THE CLARKSVILLE COMMUNITY GARDEN AND DISTRICT 10 ROY G IN DISTRICT THREE ARMADILLO NEIGHBORHOOD PARK IN DISTRICT TWO.
HE'S AND CUNNINGHAM SCHOOL PARK AND COMMUNITY GARDEN IN DISTRICT FIVE, WALNUT CREEK METRO IN DISTRICT SEVEN.
GUS GARCIA IN DISTRICT FOUR AND ST.
DAVID'S COMMUNITY GARDEN IN DISTRICT ONE.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE ARE WORKING ON DESIGN SERVICES FOR THE JAMESTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD PARK IN DISTRICT FOUR AND THE AGAVE NEIGHBORHOOD PARK DISTRICT ONE.
ALL THOSE, UH, DETAILS FOR ALL THOSE GRANTS AND OTHER PROJECTS ARE ON OUR WEBSITE@AUSTINPARKS.ORG.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND SERVICE TO AUSTIN PARKS.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE CYRA ANI, FOLLOWED BY AUBREY RUDDER.
SORRY, EVERYONE, I THINK I TOOK A POTTY BREAK AT THE VERY WRONG TIME.
UM, GOOD, GOOD EVENING ESTEEM.
MEMBERS OF THE STUDENT CITY COUNCIL AND FELLOW CITIZENS, I STAND BEFORE YOU TODAY AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE REVIVED NORWOOD HOUSE ALLIANCE, FUELED BY A SHARED VISION TO BREATHE NEW LIFE INTO AUSTIN'S MOST CHERISHED LANDMARK, THE NORWOOD HOUSE ON RIVERSIDE DRIVE, BUILT IN THE EARLY 19 HUNDREDS.
THE NORWOOD HOUSE HAS STOOD AS A SILENT WI WITNESS TO AUSTIN'S GROWTH AS HIGH AS ITS LOWS, AND THIS EVER-CHANGING TAPESTRY OF OUR COMMUNITY.
HOWEVER, TIME HAS LEFT THIS MARK AND THIS HISTORIC STRUCTURE NOW YEARNS FOR RESTORATION.
FOR A CHANCE TO RECLAIM FORMER GLORY, I MYSELF GREW UP IN AUSTIN
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AND I HAVE A STRONG LOVE FOR THIS CITY.MY FELLOW MEMBERS ALSO SHARE THIS LOVE, AND WE'VE MADE A COMMITMENT TO REVIVE THIS PROJECT.
A VARIETY OF CITIZEN GROUPS HAVE WORKED TO TRY TO FIX THIS.
THE MOST RECENT BEING THE NORWOOD PARK FOUNDATION, THEY WERE ABLE TO, AFTER 35 YEARS OF PERSISTENCE, THEY WERE ABLE TO SUCCEED IN GATHERING ALL CITY REQUIRED PERMITS AND RECEIVED A $2.9 MILLION PUBLIC FUNDING FOR THIS PROJECT.
THINGS WERE SH UH, SHOVEL READY, THEN THE PANDEMIC HIT AND EVERYTHING SHUT DOWN.
ALL THE PROJECT COSTS ESCALATED AND IT REQUIRED REBIDDING FOR THIS PROJECT.
IN DECEMBER OF 2022, THE FOUNDATION NORWOOD PARK FOUNDATION OFFICIALLY DISSOLVED AND DIDN'T LEAVE AN IDENTIFYING GROUP TO TAKE ITS PLACE.
THE VOLUNTEERS HOPE THAT THEIR PARTNER IN THE PROJECT AUSTIN'S PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT WOULD PICK UP WHERE THEY LEFT OFF AND GET THAT SHOVEL READY PROJECT MOVING FORWARD.
APPARENTLY OTHER PROJECTS COMMANDED MORE ATTENTION AND THE FUNDS WERE REASSIGNED TO THE BARTON SPRINGS BATHHOUSE.
THE NEW REVIVED NORWOOD ALLIANCE ENVISIONS A RESTORED NORWOOD HOUSE, UM, AS MORE THAN JUST A REFURBISHING OF A BUILDING.
WE SEE IT AS A VIBRANT PUBLIC PLACE BUZZING WITH ACTIVITY AND COMMUNITY SPIRIT, A VENUE FOR ART, EXHIBITIONS, COMMUNITY MEETINGS, EDUCATIONAL TOURS, AND PUBLIC EVENTS ALL SET AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF OUR BEAUTIFUL CITY.
HOWEVER, THIS VISION CAN ONLY BECOME A REALITY WITH YOUR SUPPORT.
THE JOURNEY REQUIRES COLLABORATION, DEDICATION, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, FUNDING EVERYTHING NEEDED TO BEGIN.
IT IS SHOVEL READY TO GO, BUT WE URGE YOU TO DISREGARD THE IMPULSE TO FUND THIS LATER WHOLEHEARTEDLY ENDORSING OUR EFFORTS AND THE EFFORTS OF PREVIOUS VOLUNTEERS AND HONOR THE WORK THAT THEY HAVE WORKED SO HARD FOR BY AGREEING TO A NEW PROJECT PLAN AND NEW FUNDING.
IN CLOSING, I INVITE YOU TO JOIN US, A NEW ACTIVE HEADSTRONG REVIVED NORWOOD ALLIANCE IN THIS NOBLE ENDEAVOR.
WE WORK TOGETHER TO TURN THE PAGES OF HISTORY AND BEGIN A NEW CHAPTER FOR THE NORWOOD HOUSE, A CHAPTER WHERE IT REGAINS ITS RIGHTFUL PLACE IN CULTURE, HISTORY, AND WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, YOU CAN ALWAYS VISIT THE SITE, THE NORWOOD HOUSE.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS PROJECT AND ITS PLANNING.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS GONNA BE AUBREY RUDDER, FOLLOWED BY SANTIAGO.
I AM THE SENIOR MANAGER AT THE AUSTIN ROWING CLUB HERE TO GIVE YOU GUYS OUR MONTHLY UPDATE.
UM, THIS JANUARY A RC IS HOSTED FOUR COLLEGIATE ROWING PRO PROGRAMS FOR THEIR WINTER TRAINING, A TOTAL OF 150 ATHLETES AND COACHES FROM GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY, SKIDMORE COLLEGE, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, AND THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA ALL CAME TO AUSTIN FOR A WEEK OF ROWING ON LADY BIRD LAKE.
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAVE HOSTED FIVE TRASH CLEANUPS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KEEP AUSTIN BEAUTIFUL.
WE'VE PICKED UP, UM, OVER 350 BAGS OF TRASH AND RECYCLING FROM LADY BIRD LAKE AS WELL AS THE TRAIL.
LASTLY, WE ARE GEARING UP TO HOST OUR 41ST ANNUAL HEART OF TEXAS REGATTA AT FESTIVAL BEACH, FEBRUARY 24TH AND 25TH.
THIS REGATTA BRINGS OVER 30 TEAMS FROM ALL OVER TEXAS AND STATES AND STATES AS FAR AWAY AS FAR AWAY AS WASHINGTON AND NEW YORK.
APPROXIMATELY A THOUSAND ATHLETES, ATHLETES JUNIOR, COLLEGIATE, AND MASTERS WILL BE PARTICIPATING.
WE INVITE YOU GUYS ALL TO COME AND CHECK IT OUT.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE SANTIAGO GREETINGS BOARD.
I APPRECIATE Y'ALL, UH, YOUR SERVICE TO THIS CITY AND, UM, NAVIGATING A LOT OF COMPLEXITY WITH REGARDS TO ALL OF THE YOU, YOU GUYS ARE PROBABLY OVERWORKED, I IMAGINE.
UM, AND I AM NOT SURE HOW TO LIGHTEN THAT LOAD.
UM, I'VE BEEN STUDYING A LOT OF HISTORY LATELY, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S BEEN REALLY FASCINATING TO ME IS STUDYING, UH, ROBERTA CRENSHAW AND, UH, SORT OF UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT THAT SHE HAD MADE ON THIS CITY, UM, WITH REGARD TO PIONEERING SOME REALLY AMAZING, UH, VALUES.
UM, ONE IN PARTICULAR IS NATURAL BEAUTY.
UM, IN 1965, UH, THIS BOARD WAS, UH, FOUNDED THROUGH A LOT OF HER WORK, UH, WITH REGARDS TO, UM, SORRY, THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT WAS FOUNDED, UH, FROM HER WORK WITH THIS BOARD.
UM, AND ONE OF THE PIONEERING PROJECTS WITH THAT WAS THE TOWN LAKE, UM, TRAIL.
AND, UM, IN READING OVER THE EIS FOR TDOT'S PROJECT, SOMETHING THAT'S COME TO LIGHT FOR ME IS THE, UH, HISTORICAL VALUE OF, UH, TOWN LAKE, UM, WHICH AS A TRAIL IS 200 ACRES.
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IF YOU INCLUDE THE LAKE, IT'S AN ADDITIONAL 400 ACRES.UH, IT IS AN ELIGIBLE PARK FOR NRHP ELIGIBILITY.
I WANNA RECOMMEND THAT THIS BOARD EVALUATE THAT FURTHER AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE CITY TO BEGIN TO PUT THAT IN THE REGISTER, UM, SO THAT IT CAN GET SOME PROTECTIONS.
UM, IN PARTICULAR, IT WOULD SUPPORT THE NAVIGATION OF THE SECTION 1 0 6 REVIEW PROCESS, UH, AND, UM, SEVERAL RESOURCES INCLUDING THE PECAN GROVE THAT'S IN EDWARD RENDON PARK.
UH, AND ADDITIONALLY LOOKING AT THE SAND RESERVE, UM, BEACH, UNDERSTANDING THAT IN 1960, I BELIEVE SAND AND GRAVEL COMPANY BEGAN DREDGING, UH, THE COLORADO RIVER AND COMPLETELY RE GEOENGINEERING, UM, THE SITE.
UH, WITH REGARD TO CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE RESILIENCE THAT THIS CITY NEEDS, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US REALLY LOOK AT THIS RESOURCE AND WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO HAVE SOME RIVER RESTORATION PROJECTS AND BRING, UH, SOME, SOME HEALTH AND QUALITY, UH, TO THE, THIS BODY OF WATER.
THE, UM, I DON'T, I DON'T THINK THE, UH, STAFF BRIEFING IS GONNA BE ENOUGH WITH REGARD TO A WALL.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE, ASK THAT THE CITY, UM, ASK FOR A BETTER DEAL, UM, WITH REGARD TO ESPECIALLY THE SECTION SIX F CONVERSION THAT'S BEING REQUESTED ON WALLER BEACH.
UM, LOOK AT THE ORACLE SITE AND WHAT THAT WAS ABLE TO BRING, UM, WHAT KIND OF ACCOUNTABILITY, WHAT KIND OF, UM, NOT ONLY MITIGATION, UM, BUT ENHANCEMENTS CAN WE BRING TO SOCIALLY AND CULTURALLY FOR THIS COMMUNITY.
UM, UM, YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A LOT OF CHALLENGES AND I, AND I RECOGNIZE THAT, UH, THE RESOURCES TO SUPPLY STAFF ARE PROBABLY NOT THERE.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO RECRAFT THAT AND IMAGINE, UH, SOME REALLY BUMPY ROADS AHEAD.
THAT'S IT FOR GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT.
ONE OF OUR IN-PERSON SPEAKERS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK ON ITEM FIVE, WHICH WAS POSTPONED FROM TONIGHT'S AGENDA.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO ALLOW THAT SPEAKER TO SPEAK NOW, UH, DURING GENERAL PUBLIC COMMUNICATION? YEAH, WE CAN.
AND YEAH, JUST AS AN ANNOUNCEMENT, WE, UH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS POSTPONED.
SO WE WILL NOT BE HEARING AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE TODAY.
YES, WE CAN HEAR FROM THEM NOW.
IF, UH, GAIL ROTH WOULD LIKE TO COME UP TO ADDRESS ITEM FIVE, YOU'LL HAVE, UH, 60 SECONDS.
DO WE DO THREE MINUTES FOR ITEM? YEAH, YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES.
THERE ARE THREE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THIS ITEM THAT HAS BEEN, UM, REMOVED FROM TONIGHT'S AGENDA THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO.
WHILE I'M NOT CATEGOR CATEGORICALLY OPPOSED TO THE CHANGES TO THESE RULES, I'M ASKING THIS BOARD TO CLARIFY AND NARROW THE LANGUAGE SO AS TO LIMIT THE AMOUNT OF CREATIVE INTERPRETATION THAT CAN BE DONE WITH THESE RULE CHANGES IN THE FUTURE.
THE CITIZENS OF AUSTIN ARE COUNTING ON YOU TO HAVE THEIR BEST INTEREST AT HEART AND ONLY SUPPORT THE RULE CHANGES THAT ARE NECESSARY, CLEAR AND APPROPRIATELY NARROW.
UH, YOU CAN HELP US IN THIS REGARD BY CLARIFYING SOME OF THE QUESTIONS I HAVE, UH, REGARDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT.
THAT'S TO ALLOW BUTLER TRAIL TO EXCEED 12 FEET AND WIDTH.
MY QUESTIONS ARE, IS THIS ALLOWANCE LIMITED TO LEGALIZING THE CURRENT TRAILS THAT EXCEED 12 FEET? OR DOES THIS ALLOW AT ANY POINT ON THE, THAT THE TRAIL COULD BE EXPANDED TO 12 FEET AT ANY TIME WITHOUT PUBLIC INPUT? ARE THERE ANY LIMITS TO THE WIDTH OF THE TRAIL IF IT IS EXPANDED? AND CAN THESE EXPANSIONS BE LIMITED TO HUMAN SAFETY OR RIPARIAN HEALTH? OR WILL THIS AMENDMENT ALLOW FOR OTHER DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE TRAIL REGARDING THE SECOND AMENDMENT, TO ALLOW THE TRAIL TO BE LOCATED WITHIN 50 FEET OF THE SHORELINE OF LADY BIRD LAKE, MY QUESTIONS ARE, DOES THIS ALLOWANCE, DOES THE ALLOWANCE ONLY LEGALIZE THE CURRENT TRAILS THAT ARE LOCATED WITHIN THAT 50 FEET? OR DOES THIS AMENDMENT ALLOW NEW TRAIL DEVELOPMENT ANYWHERE WITHIN 50 FEET AT ANY TIME WITHOUT PUBLIC INPUT? IN ADDITION, I NOTICED IN THE BACKUP TO THIS ITEM, UH, FIVE DASH ONE, THERE'S MENTION OF A TWO TO ONE MITIGATION, AND YET I DON'T SEE THAT LANGUAGE ANYWHERE IN THE AMENDMENT.
UM, IS, SO IS THIS A, THIS TWO TO ONE MITIGATION, IS THIS A SERIOUS COMMITMENT? IF SO, WHY NOT INCLUDE IT IN THE AMENDMENT LANGUAGE? AND WILL THE TWO TO ONE COMMITMENT BE ENFORCED? WILL IT BE INCORPORATED INTO THE CONTRACT LANGUAGE? AND IS THE MITIGATION REQUIRED TO OCCUR ON THE TRAIL ITSELF, OR CAN IT OCCUR ANYWHERE ON REGARDING THE THIRD AMENDMENT TO REQUIRE, UH, ADDITIONAL TO REMOVE THE REQUIREMENT FOR ADDITIONAL RESTORATION? UH, I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND
[00:30:01]
WHY THAT REQUIREMENT WOULD BE REMOVED, AND I'D LIKE TO HAVE SOME CLARIFICATION ON THAT.SO HOPE THESE ISSUES CAN BE CLARIFIED IN THE LANGUAGE NARROWED PRIOR TO TAKING ANY ACTION ON THESE AMENDMENTS.
BOARD MEMBERS, UH, ONE OF THE PUBLIC COMMENTERS DIALED IN REMOTELY AND IS SPEAKING ITEM 10, BUT IS REQUESTED TO SPEAK AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING.
WOULD Y'ALL ALLOW THAT? UM, WE USUALLY ARE TAKING, UH, IF THEY'RE SPEAKING ON AN AGENDA ITEM, THEY HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THAT AGENDA ITEM IS CALLED.
THAT'S THE END OF GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT.
AND, OKAY, SO WE ARE NOW MOVING ON, UM,
[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]
TO THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES.UH, BOARD MEMBERS, WE ARE APPROVING, UH, THE MEETINGS FOR OCTOBER THE 23RD, 2023, AND NOVEMBER 27TH, 2023.
AND MR. DOBA, CAN YOU CLARIFY WHY WE'RE DOING OCTOBER 23RD AGAIN? THERE WAS LIKE AN ERROR ON YEAH, THE, UH, THE MINUTES FROM OCTOBER 23RD THAT THE BOARD APPROVED DIDN'T, DID NOT INCLUDE, UH, TWO ACTION ITEMS, WHICH WERE PART OF THE ADDENDUM FOR THAT MEETING.
SO THE UPDATED MINUTES THAT WERE POSTED FOR THIS MEETING INCLUDE THOSE TWO ADDITIONAL ACTION ITEMS. THANK YOU.
SO I'LL GIVE THE, UH, BOARD MEMBERS A COUPLE OF MINUTES TO LOOK OVER, UH, THOSE TWO SETS OF, UM, MINUTES.
I, THIS IS PROCEDURAL, BUT UNDER ITEM FOUR, SECOND PARAGRAPH SUMMARIZING WHAT HAPPENED.
YOU'RE MISSING A WORD AFTER BOARD MEMBER BECKER'S SHOULD SAY BOARD MEMBER BECKER'S MOTION.
THE NOVEMBER MINUTES IS WHAT I WAS REFERENCING.
BOARD MEMBERS, IS THERE ANY OTHER CHANGES TO EITHER THE NOVEMBER OR OCTOBER MINUTES? ANY OTHER CHANGES TO THE OCTOBER OR NOVEMBER MINUTES? IF NOT, AT THIS TIME, I'LL TAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE, UH, OCTOBER 23RD, 2023 AND NOVEMBER 27TH.
IS THERE A MOTION? I'LL MAKE A MOTION.
THERE'S A MOTION FROM BOARD MEMBER HAMAN.
IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION.
AND THEN AT THIS TIME, UM, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HANDS.
NOW WE'RE GONNA APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION, UH, BOARD, BOARD FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING OF MARCH 23RD, 20 MARCH 23RD, 2023.
UM, THESE MINUTES WERE NEVER APPROVED BECAUSE SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE FINANCE COMMITTEE WAS DISSOLVED.
SO IF WE WOULD JUST TAKE A MOMENT AGAIN TO LOOK OVER THOSE MINUTES AND, UH, WE'LL GO FROM THERE.
[00:35:30]
ALRIGHT.BOARD MEMBERS, IS THERE ANY, UH, CHANGES THAT, UH, NEED TO BE MADE TO THE MARCH 23RD, 2023 FINANCE COMMITTEE, MINUTES CHAIR? UM, YES, SOME OF US WERE NOT ON THE BOARD AT THE TIME OF THIS, OF THIS MEETING.
UM, IS THERE ANY CONFLICT OR ANY PROBLEM WITH US VOTING TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? I NOT KNOW.
UM, I WAS REALLY GONNA TAKE LISA HAMAN AND CATHERINE FLOWERS, UM, LEAD ON THIS ONE SINCE THEY WERE BOTH ON THE COMMITTEE AND BOTH PRESENT AND ARE CURRENTLY BOTH PRESENT.
SO, UM, IN ORDER FOR ACTION TO BE TAKEN, OUR, UH, FOR US, WE DO NEED AT LEAST SIX VOTES.
SO I WILL SAY IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE, IT HAPPENED TO BE AN EXTREMELY STRAIGHTFORWARD MEETING, UM, THAT WE MISSED.
IT WAS A VERY SHORT FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING.
I DON'T KNOW, UM, WHAT BOARD MEMBER HAGMAN'S FEELING IS, BUT I FEEL IT'S AN ACCURATE REPRESENTATION OF WHAT HAPPENED.
DID YOU SAY IT'S NOT AN ACCURATE REPRESENTATION? NO, IT IS.
IT IS AN ACCURATE REPRESENTATION.
AT THIS TIME, I'LL TAKE A MOTION, UH, TO APPROVE THE PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD FINANCE COMMITTEE MINUTES FROM MARCH 23RD, 2023.
WOULD SOMEONE LIKE TO MAKE THAT MOTION? I'LL MAKE A MOTION BOARD MEMBER HUG MAKES THAT MOTION.
IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND.
THERE'S A SECOND FROM BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS.
ALL OF THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
WE WILL NOW, UH, MOVE ON TO, UH, OUR DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS.
[3. Discussion and possible action on letters of support for PARD Staff and Community Groups that participated in a 50,000 square foot graffiti abatement and park maintenance project at the Heath Eiland and Morgan Moss BMX Skate Park, and for PARD staff that prepared six recreation centers to accept portable generators as a supplemental/alternative power source should electric power be unavailable. ]
SO WE'LL TAKE AGENDA ITEM NUMBER THREE, DISCUSSION POSSIBLE ACTION ON LETTERS OF SUPPORT FOR PARTS STAFF, COMMUNITY GROUPS THAT PARTICIPATED IN A 50,000 SQUARE FOOT GRAFFITI ABATEMENT AND PARK MINUTES PROJECT AT THE HEATH ISLAND.AND MORGAN MOSS, BMX SKATE PARK, AND FOR PARK STAFF THAT PREPARED SIX RECREATIONAL CENTERS TO ACCESS PORTABLE GENERATORS AS A SUPPLEMENTAL ALTERNATIVE POWER SOURCE.
SHOULD ELECTRIC POWER BECOME UNAVAILABLE? UM, DID I DON'T KNOW IF BOARD MEMBERS GOT A COPY OF THE LETTERS, BUT IF THEY DIDN'T, UM, ARE Y'ALL PRESENTING ON THIS VERY QUICKLY? OKAY.
YOU, YOU, YOU PRESENT QUICKLY IF WE'RE GONNA DO IT.
SO I'LL TURN IT OVER TO, UH, DIRECTOR MCNEELY.
SO BOARD MEMBERS I HAVE WITH ME, SO CHANDLER, WHO WOULD BE PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WORK THAT WAS DONE AT THE SKATE PARK, AND SARAH TALKINGTON, WHO IS PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE WORK BEING DONE WITH REDUNDANT POWER.
WE HAVE, UH, VERY QUICK SLIDES TO SHOW YOU, JUST SO YOU CAN UNDERSTAND THE WORK THAT HAS RECENTLY BEEN DONE.
I'M PARKS GROUNDS MANAGER OVER AT GRAFFITI.
AND, UH, WHEN WE TOOK ON THIS PROJECT, IT WAS, UH, IT WAS PRETTY MUCH FULL OF GRAFFITI.
IT'S OVER 50,000 SQUARE FEET AND WE HAD 70, UH, STAFF MEMBERS THAT WE PULLED IN TO DO A FOUR DAY JOB.
IT WAS, UH, QUITE A, QUITE A JOB TO DO, BUT A LOT OF IT WE HAD TO, WE HAD TO REMOVE.
AND SOME OF IT ON THE, UH, VERTICAL SECTIONS WE WERE ACTUALLY WERE ABLE TO PAINT OVER.
BUT ON THE REMOVALS, UH, SOME OF IT TOOK TWO OR THREE TIMES TO POWER WASH AND, AND TO TREAT AND TO GET IT UP REMOVED.
UM, IT LOOKS A HUNDRED PERCENT BETTER AND WE'VE HAD TO GO BACK AND DO A FEW TOUCHUPS HERE RECENTLY, BUT WE FEEL LIKE THE GRAFFITI'S ACTUALLY SLOWED DOWN THERE AT THAT LOCATION.
SO, BOARD MEMBERS, JUST TO ADD TO WHAT SONNY SAID, THIS WAS A PROJECT THAT REQUIRED ABOUT 70 STAFF MEMBERS TO BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH OVER FOUR DAYS AND A, A CONTRACTED TEAM OF INDIVIDUALS.
SO I THOUGHT THEY, IT WAS WORTHY OF RECOGNIZING, UM, THE TEAMWORK AND ALSO RECOGNIZING, UM, HOW COMMITTED THIS TEAM IS TO DELIVERING, UH, A SPACE THAT LOOKS SAFE AND THAT PEOPLE CAN ENJOY COMING TO.
UH, ON ANOTHER NOTE, WE ARE ALSO TRYING TO DELIVER SPACES THAT PEOPLE, UM, THAT OUR COMMUNITY CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT COMING TO, AND SPECIFICALLY THAT THEY CAN FEEL ABOUT COMING, CAN FEEL GOOD ABOUT COMING TO WHEN, UM, WHEN IT APPEARS AS THOUGH WE ARE HAVING COLD WEATHER OR OTHER SORTS OF POWER ISSUES.
AND SO, TARA SARAH TALKINGTON IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PUTTING TOGETHER THE EQUIPMENT UPGRADE SO THAT WE HAVE REDUNDANT POWER AT OUR RECREATION CENTERS.
AND I'LL HAND IT OVER TO SARAH TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT WORK.
UM, EFFECTIVELY, UM, TO ACCOMMODATE REDUNDANT POWER AT OUR BUILDINGS, WE NEEDED TO INSTALL, UH, TRANSFER SWITCHES AND DOCKING STATIONS FOR BACKUP POWER.
[00:40:01]
WE, UM, HAVE PROCURED THE EQUIPMENT AND THE EXCEPTION OF IN TOPLESS, WHERE WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR SOME OVERDUE SUPPLY CHAIN, UH, COMPONENTS OF THAT PROJECT.BUT OTHERWISE, THE OTHER FIVE SITES WERE PREPARED IN ADVANCE OF THE WINTER STORM.
THIS IS, UH, WHAT THE PHOTO LOOKS LIKE FOR THE, UM, TRANSFER SWITCHES AND DOCKING STATIONS THAT WERE INSTALLED AT TURNER ROBERTS MULTIPURPOSE ROOM.
AND THE NEXT SLIDE SHOWS THE FULL, UH, GET UP WITH THE GENERATOR THAT'S PROVIDED BY BUILDING SERVICES AND HOW IT PLUGS INTO THE DOCKING STATION.
UM, THIS LAST SLIDE IS STAFF GARNERING TRAINING ON HOW TO OPERATE THE GENERATORS AND PLUG THEM INTO THE DOCKING STATION, SHOULD THEY BE REQUIRED.
AND, UM, JUST TO UNDERSCORE THAT, THIS WAS A REALLY COLLABORATIVE PROJECT ACROSS MANY DEPARTMENTS.
IT TOOK A LOT OF, UM, COORDINATION AND MANY CONTRIBUTORS.
SO I'M PROUD TO REPRESENT THIS WORK TODAY.
SO, BUT FOR, UM, WE WERE VERY LUCKY IN THIS LAST, UH, WINTER EVENT THAT WE DID.
BUT SHOULD THAT EVER HAPPEN, UH, WE NOW HAVE THE ABILITY AT SIX OF OUR COLD WEATHER SHELTER SITES TO BE ABLE TO ENSURE THAT THE LIGHTS AND THE THE HEAT WILL STAY ON, UH, IN THAT EMERGENCY.
AND THAT IT, I KNOW SHE, I THINK SARAH'S BEING VERY GENEROUS IN SAYING THAT.
A LOT OF PEOPLE DID IT, BUT, BUT FOR SARAH, THIS WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED.
AND SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT I MAKE THAT POINT.
THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING US THIS TIME TO RECOGNIZE, UM, OUR MAINTENANCE TEAM AND, AND SARAH AND HER TEAM FOR THE REDUNDANT POWER.
UH, BOARD MEMBERS, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT.
SEEING NONE, I WOULD LIKE TO READ THE TWO LETTERS, UM, THAT WE DRAFTED.
UM, THE FIRST ONE IS RELATING TO THE BMX PARK, WHICH STATES WE ARE WRITING TO EXPRESS YOUR DEEPEST APPRECIATION FOR THE OUTSTANDING WORK THAT YOU AND YOUR TEAM HAVE DONE IN GRAFFITI ABATEMENT AND PARK MAINTENANCE AT THE HEATH ISLAND AND MORGAN MOSS, BMX SKATE PARK, THE RECENT IMPROVEMENTS HAVE NOT GONE UNNOTICED.
THE POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY IS PALPABLE.
YOUR DEDICATION TO MAINTAINING A SAFE AND ENJOYABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR SKATEBOARDERS AND OTHER PARK GOERS IS TRULY COMMENDABLE.
IT IS EVIDENT THAT THE EFFORT AND CARE PUT INTO THE CLEANUP AND MAINTENANCE HAVE TRANSFORMED THE SKATE PARK, MAKING IT A MORE WELCOMING SPACE FOR EVERYBODY.
THE METICULOUS ATTENTION TO DETAIL IN THE MAINTENANCE WORK WOULD NOT HAVE, HAVE NOT ONLY ENHANCED THE PARK AESTHETIC, BUT HAVE ALSO CREATED A SENSE OF PRIDE AMONG THOSE WHO UTILIZE THE FACILITIES.
YOUR HARD WORK HAS NOT ONLY IMPROVED THE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE OF THE SKATE PARK, BUT HAS ALSO CONTRIBUTED SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE OVERALL WELLBEING OF OUR COMMUNITY.
THE SKATE PARK PLAYS A VITAL ROLE IN PROVIDING A RECREATIONAL OUTLET FOR INDIVIDUALS OF ALL AGES.
AND YOUR COMMITMENT TO ENSURING ITS UPKEEP IS TRULY VALUED ON BEHALF OF THE COMMUNITY.
WE WANT TO EXPRESS OUR GRATITUDE FOR YOUR EFFORTS IN MAINTAINING THE SKATE PARK.
YOUR WORK HAS NOT ONLY RESTORED THE PARK, BUT HAS ELEVATED IT TO A NEW LEVEL.
THANK YOU FOR DEDICATION, PASSION, AND THE POSITIVE IMPACT YOU CONTINUE TO MAKE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE WISH YOU, UH, CONTINUED SUCCESS IN YOUR ENDEAVORS AND LOOK FORWARD TO ENJOYING THE SKATE PARK FOR YEARS TO COME.
AND IN REGARDS TO THE, UH, POWER SOURCE, UH, PROJECT, IT STATES, UH, WE ARE WRITING TO EXPRESSION TO YOUR GRATITUDE FOR THE EXCEPTIONAL WORK AND DEDICATION THAT YOU DEMONSTRATED IN PREPARING SIX RECREATION CENTERS.
UH, PREPARING SIX RECREATION CENTERS TO ACCEPT PORTABLE GENERATORS AS A SUPPLEMENTAL ALTERNATIVE POWER SOURCE IN CASE OF ELECTRICAL POWER UNAVAILABILITY.
YOUR FORESIGHT AND PROACTIVE APPROACH TO ENSURING THAT OUR COMMUNITY HAS A RELIABLE AND RESILIENT POWER SOURCE DURING UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES ARE TRULY COMMENDABLE.
THE EFFORT YOU HAVE INVESTED IN MAKING THESE RECREATIONAL CENTERS RESILIENT WELL, UH, WILL UNDOUBTEDLY CONTRIBUTE TO THE SAFETY AND WELLBEING OF THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO RELY ON THESE FACILITIES DURING TIMES OF WEATHER RELATED EMERGENCIES.
BY TAKING THIS INITIATIVE, YOU HAVE NOT ONLY DEMONSTRATED YOUR COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY'S WELFARE, BUT HAVE ALSO SHOWN EXCEPTIONAL LEADERSHIP IN PREPAREDNESS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.
IN TIMES OF POWER OUTAGES OR OTHER DISRUPTIONS, THE ABILITY TO PROVIDE A RELIABLE POWER SOURCE CAN MAKE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE.
WE WANT TO EXPRESS OUR APPRECIATION FOR YOUR HARD WORK, ATTENTION TO DETAIL AND COMMITMENT TO CREATING A SAFER AND MORE RESILIENT COMMUNITY.
YOUR EFFORTS HAVE NOT GONE TO NOTICE IN THE IMPACT OF YOUR WORK WILL BE FELT BY THOSE WHO UTILIZE THE RECREATION CENTERS.
SO THOSE ARE THE TWO LETTERS, UH, THAT WE'VE WRITTEN, UH, BOARD MEMBERS AND WILL BE TURNED OVER TO THE STAFF WHO PARTICIPATED IN THIS PROJECT.
UM, AT THIS TIME, UM, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE LETTERS? ALRIGHT.
AND AT THIS TIME THEN I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE TWO LETTERS, UH, THAT I JUST READ.
UM, IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND.
THERE'S A SECOND FROM BOARD MEMBER BAAN.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
AND THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM WE WILL BE, UH, MOVING ON TO IS AGENDA ON ITEM NUMBER FOUR.
UM, AND THIS IS AN AGENDA ITEM THAT WAS, UH, IS THERE ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA
[4. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve negotiation and execution of a one-year contract extension with Zilker Park Boat Rentals. (PARD Long Range Strategies: Relief from Urban Life, Urban Public Spaces, Park Access for All).]
ITEM NUMBER FOUR? OKAY,[00:45:01]
NOW THIS AGENDA ITEM WAS TAKEN UP AT THE CONTRACTS AND CONCESSIONS COMMITTEE.SO AT THIS TIME, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO, UH, BOARD MEMBER BECKER, UH, TO MAKE A PRESENTATION, UH, TO, TO MAKE A STATEMENT AND POSSIBLY A MOTION.
SO, UM, UH, WE DID PASS, UH, THIS RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD IN THE MOST RECENT CONTRACTS AND CONCESSIONS.
UH, COMMITTEE MEETING ON JANUARY 19TH, UM, IS FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD.
THE, UM, WE ARE AT THE TAIL END OF A LONG-TERM CONTRACT WITH SEVERAL EXTENSIONS WITH ZILKER PARK BOAT RENTALS, AND IT'S TIME TO RECOMPETE, UH, RECOMPETE THAT CONTRACT FOR THAT SPACE.
UM, ORIGINALLY THERE HAD BEEN, UM, THERE HAD BEEN, UH, IN TERMS OF THE TIMING, THERE IS A NEED TO EXTEND THE CURRENT CONTRACT FOR AN ADDITIONAL YEAR IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO, IN ORDER TO GIVE THE PARKS DEPARTMENT TIME TO RECOMPETE IT.
UM, THE NEED THIS EXTENSION COMES FROM THE FACT THAT THEY WERE ORIGINALLY TRYING TO COORDINATE WITH THE ZILKER PARK VISION PLAN.
UH, BUT SINCE THAT HAS BEEN SHELVED, THEY'RE PUSHING FORWARD TO THIS INDIVIDUALLY.
AND SO THAT ADDITIONAL YEAR THAT THIS EXTENSION IS ASKING FOR IS THERE TO GIVE, UH, TO GIVE THE DEPARTMENT TIME TO SUCCESSFULLY, UM, PUT IT BACK OUT FOR BID AND MAKE A NEW SELECTION SO THAT IT'S FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD.
AND I WOULD, UH, UH, WE RECOMMENDED IT FROM THE COMMITTEE BECAUSE IT'S A FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD ASK AND FAIRLY STRAIGHT STRAIGHTFORWARD RECOMPETE.
AND SO I WOULD, UH, ENCOURAGE EVERYONE HERE TO PASS IT THROUGH AS WELL.
UH, BOARD MEMBER BECKER AT THIS TIME, DOES, UH, ANY PARKS BOARD, UH, BOARD MEMBER HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR? OKAY, THIS, IS THERE A PRESENTATION FROM THE CITY? IT'S IN THE BACK.
UH, AND IF MR. BECKER WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO RECOMMEND THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN COUNSEL AUTHORIZE THE NEGOTIATION AND EXECUTION OF THE CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH ZILKER PARK RENTALS BETWEEN FEBRUARY, 2024 AND FEBRUARY, 2025.
ALRIGHT, THAT MOTION HAS BEEN MADE BY BOARD MEMBER BECKER.
THERE'S A SECOND, UH, BY BOARD MEMBER REED, UM, AT THIS TIME, UM, IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION? ALL RIGHT, I WILL TAKE A VOTE.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
MOTION CARRIES 10 ZERO EXTENSION.
WE'LL, NOW, UH, LIKE I AS MENTIONED BEFORE, UH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE HAS BEEN POSTPONED.
SO WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX.
[6. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve a Temporary Staging Area, not to exceed 540 Calendar Says on parkland located at Upper Bull Creek Greenbelt (8020 Spicewood Springs Rd). Total Mitigation is $70,652.]
ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX? YES, CHAIR.WE HAVE, UH, SEVERAL SPEAKERS.
UH, OUR FIRST SPEAKER WILL BE, UH, UH, CHAIR.
ARE WE GONNA DO, UH, THREE MINUTES OR 60 SECONDS FOR THESE SPEAKERS? WHAT HAVE WE DONE? I, IT'S BEEN TWO MONTHS SINCE WE MET.
WHAT DID WE DO PREVIOUSLY? WELL, I BELIEVE THAT TYPICALLY WE DO 60 SECONDS FOR ITEM SPECIFIC COMMENT.
THAT DOESN'T SOUND RIGHT TO ME, BUT MAYBE I I'M MISREMEMBERING.
WE HAVE LIMITED IT TO 60 SECONDS IN THE PAST ON SPECIFIC ITEMS WHERE WE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER NORMALLY LIMITING TO 60 SECONDS, BUT I HAVE A LOT GOING ON AND MY MEMORY COULD BE FAULTY.
OUR FIRST SPEAKER WILL BE, UH, CEDAR STEVENS, FOLLOWED BY SHARON BLYTHE, SIT DOWN.
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING TO US.
UH, I WANNA SPEAK IN OPPOSITION TO THE CONCRETIZATION OF OLD LANE PASSES DOWN NUMBER THREE.
THIS IS A VERY SMALL PARK AND IT'S UNKNOWN TO VERY MANY PEOPLE EXCEPT FOR NEIGHBORS AROUND THERE.
AND THE FEW OF US WHO LOOK OUT FOR ANY KIND OF TRAILS IN GREEN SPACE ANYWHERE IN TOWN TO HIKE.
UH, IT'S SO SMALL AND IT DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A NAME.
ALTHOUGH, AS WE WORKED ON THIS, WE STARTED REFERRING TO SAVE THE DAM CANYON.
SO WE'RE NOW CALLING IT DAM CANYON.
UH, THIS PLAN IS OVER-ENGINEERED AND OVERWROUGHT IN TOTAL OVERKILL.
UH, IT WOULD DESTROY UP TO FOUR AND A HALF ACRES AT THE HEAD OF THIS LITTLE PARK.
UH, IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN THERE, I ENCOURAGE YOU TO GO AND VISIT.
IT'S HARD TO WRAP YOUR HEAD AROUND HOW MUCH CONCRETE IS BEING PLANNED FOR SUCH A SMALL PLACE UNLESS YOU GO THERE AND LOOK AT IT YOURSELF.
THE TRAIN IS VERY STEEP, ROCKY, AND DENSELY FORESTED.
AND THE PROJECT AREA HAS VILLE SALAMANDER SPRINGS, ONE OF WHICH APPEARS TO BE UNDER THE PROPOSED DAM.
UH, THE AREA IS CURRENTLY IN A STAGE OF RECOVERY FROM PREVIOUS LANDSCAPE AL ALTERATIONS RANCHING AND DEVELOPMENT.
AND, UH, THERE ARE TWO ARTIFICIAL, UH, FILLINGS THAT COVER THE LITTLE CREEK, INCLUDING THE DAM.
[00:50:01]
UH, DISCUSSION.THE BOTANY THERE IS VERY DIVERSE.
THERE'S, UH, ANIMAL LIFE EVIDENT EVERYWHERE, AND THERE'S LITTLE ENCROACHMENT, UH, SO FAR OF NON-NATIVE SPECIES.
UM, THE CANYON AND THE CREEK HAVE MANY CAVES.
SO I DON'T SEE THIS MENTIONED IN ANY OF THE STAFF.
UH, PREPARATION AND THE PROXIMITY TO ADJACENT ENDANGERED CAVE BUG AND CAVE INVERTEBRATES.
UH, I THINK IT'S HIGHLY LIKELY THAT THE ENDANGERED CAVE BUGS MIGHT BE PRESENT, UH, IN THIS CREEK AND IN THE CANYON WHERE THE PROJECT IS.
SO I'D LIKE TO SEE THAT ADDRESSED.
THE FLOODING, UH, UH, IS EXAGGERATED, IF NOT, UH, FICTITIONAL, YOU CAN'T SEE, UH, UM, TREE DEBRIS THAT INDICATES HIGH FLOODING.
THERE ARE SOME DRAIN PIPES THAT HAVE BEEN ERODED BECAUSE OF POORLY CONCEIVED, UH, PLACEMENT.
BUT, UM, NATURE, THEY'RE OUT OF VIEW AND NATURE IN TIME WOULD, UH, REPAIR THIS.
IN SHORT, I SEE NO REASON FOR $14 MILLION PROJECT OF CONCRETE IN THIS TINY PARK.
IT'S AN IDEAL SITE FOR A REWILDING FOR THE SMALL AMOUNT OF REMEDIATION THAT IS NEEDED TO CORRECT SOME OF THE EROSION.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE SHARON BLYTHE, FOLLOWED BY LINDA ELKINS.
UM, THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL CANYON IN DANGER OF DESTRUCTION.
UH, THIS IS A VIEW FROM MY BACKYARD INTO THE CANYON.
IT'S A VERY, VERY BEAUTIFUL, UH, VIEW FROM ALL OF OUR HOUSES UP THERE.
THIS IS A PICTURE I TOOK OF THE TRAIL THROUGH THE CANYON.
AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S VERY PRISTINE AND VERY, UH, WELL USED FOR A TRAIL.
IT HAS A SMALL RISK OF FLOODING DOWNSTREAM.
THIS IS A PICTURE I TOOK THIS MORNING OF THAT STREAM.
IT'S, IT'S, IT'S RUNNING PRETTY GOOD, BUT IT'S NOT FLOODING.
THE PLANNED RESERVATION WHERE THE RESTORE ENDANGERED SPECIES HABITAT SPRINGS ARE PRESENT.
MOST RUN OF US FROM THE SPRINGS BULL CREEK DOES NOT RUN THROUGH THIS CANYON.
THE CANYON HAS CAVES WHERE THEY'RE ENDANGERED SPECIES AND BACKUP WATER WILL DESTROY NATURAL HABITAT OF COVERING THE SPRINGS.
THIS IS ALSO A PICTURE I TOOK THIS MORNING ON THE CANYON JUST EAST OF THAT OTHER CANYON.
THIS IS CALLED THE ALBERT BULL CREEK CANYON.
WELL DRIVE, YOU CAN SEE THE WATER IS ALMOST TO THE BANK FULL.
THIS IS WHERE THE FLOODING TOOK PLACE.
IT WAS NOT IN THE OLD LAND PASSES DAM CANYON.
THE CHANGE OF THE DAN RESTORATION PLAN, PLAN, UH, WILL NOT DESTROY, WILL DESTROY THE CANYON IF YOU PUT ALL THAT CONCRETE IN THERE.
UM, THE STAGING AREA IS ANOTHER PROBLEM WHERE WATER TREATMENT PLANT TUNNEL WAS ACTUALLY BUILT THE SHAFT THERE.
I SENT YOU ALL INFORMATION ABOUT THE LAWSUIT THAT WE FILED IN 2010.
WE WON THAT LAWSUIT, UH, AND UH, WHICH RESULTED IN AN AGREEMENT THAT HAS NEVER BEEN IMPLEMENTED BY THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
UH, THEY PROMISED TO PUT A KIOSK DOWN THERE THAT'S NEVER BEEN BUILT AND A $500,000 PAYMENT TO PARKS FROM AUSTIN WATER, PART OF WHICH WAS TO BE USED FOR PARKS CLOSE TO OLD LAND, PASSES TO AREA.
THE NEW MO REVIEW PROMISES $70,000 TO BE USED ON THE EAST SIDE OF AUSTIN, NOT IN IN THE OUR AREA WHERE WE'RE GONNA BE AFFECTED BY IT.
THIS IS WRONG TO TEAR UP OUR CANYON AND PARKLAND AND USE THE MONEY ELSEWHERE.
THE TRIANGLE SHOULD NOT BE USED AS A STAGING AREA OVER A SENSITIVE WATER TREATMENT PLANT SHAFT.
THE TRUCKS COULD COLLAPSE THAT SHAFT.
TOO MUCH TRAFFIC ALONG SPICEWOOD SPRINGS ROAD TO BE SAFE FOR CARS AND SCHOOL CHILDREN.
UH, THIS IS A COMPLETE OVERKILL IN THE CANYON WHERE PEOPLE LIKE TO HIKE AND ENDANGERED SPECIES LIVE.
DO NOT USE A TRIANGLE AS A STAGING AREA, WHICH IS CLOSE TO BULL CREEK.
UNDO THE PLANS, REDO THEM AND MAKE IT RIGHT FOR US.
[00:55:01]
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS GOING TO BE VICTOR.UH, SORRY, VICTOR, UH, SHIRIA.
AFTER VICTOR WILL BE, UH, CHRIS SOA.
IT'S AN HONOR TO SPEAK HERE AND TRY TO INFLUENCE THINGS FOR THE BETTER.
UM, I PERSONALLY HAD A LOOK AT THE OLD DAM CANYON AS WELL, AND I'M A GENERAL CONTRACTOR AND I HAVE WORKED AROUND CULVERT DESIGNS AND I DON'T SEE, FRANKLY, I DON'T SEE THE JUSTIFICATION FOR SUCH A LARGE DAM TO BE BUILT IN THIS LOCATION.
I DON'T SEE THE, THE RUNOFF THAT WOULD CONTRIBUTE TO THAT MUCH WATER THERE PRESENT.
I DID SEE THE SPRINGS FLOWING ON THIS LAST SATURDAY WHEN I WAS THERE, RIGHT FROM UNDERNEATH WHERE THE CURRENT DAM IS LOCATED AS WELL AS I HEARD THERE'S 13 HERITAGE TREES I SAW AROUND FIVE THAT ARE IN THE BOTTOM OF THE VALLEY AND WILL DEFINITELY BE KILLED IF THE VALLEY IS FLOODED, WHICH WILL HAPPEN, YOU KNOW, AFTER A HEAVY RAINFALL.
UH, THE TERRAIN AROUND THIS CANYON IS STEEPLY SLOPED, CURRENTLY HEAVILY FORESTED AND COVERED.
IF ANY REMOVAL OF THIS HAPPENS, IT WILL DEFINITELY CAUSE EROSION, MORE EROSION PROBLEMS, WHICH SEEMS TO BE WHAT THIS WHOLE PROJECT IS TRYING TO MITIGATE.
UM, I FEEL LIKE THE, THIS COUNSEL NEEDS TO INVESTIGATE THIS WHOLE SITE MORE CLEARLY OR CLOSELY TO SEE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS REALLY NECESSARY BEFORE MOVING FORWARD.
AND I DID SEE MANY SIGNS OF WILDLIFE LIVING IN THE CANYON, AND WHILE WE WERE THERE, EVEN, IT WAS ALMOST A CONSTANT PRESENCE ACTUALLY.
AND GOLDEN CHEEK WARBLER HAS BEEN CITED ALL OVER THIS AREA, EVEN THOUGH I DON'T THINK IT'S IN THE TECHNICALLY PROTECTED AREA.
UM, IT'S DEFINITELY GONNA DESTROY THEIR HABITAT IF ANY OF THESE MATURE CEDAR TREES ARE REMOVED, WHICH MANY OF THEM WERE ALREADY TAGGED FOR REMOVAL, UM, ON THE DAM AND IN THE VALLEY.
I WISH I HAD TIME TO PRINT OUT AND MAKE A SLIDE FOR YOU GUYS, BUT YOU JUST GO OUT THERE AND LOOK.
IT'S REALLY BEAUTIFUL AS IT IS AND I DON'T THINK IT NEEDS ANYTHING ALONG THE LINES OF WHAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED TO MITIGATE IT.
THERE'S NO SIGNS OF FLOODING CURRENTLY THERE.
UM, I DON'T WANT TO TAKE UP MORE TIME.
I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS GONNA BE CHRIS SOWA, FOLLOWED BY SUSAN SPATARO.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS, UH, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND, UH, HAVING, UH, ALL OF US SPEAK.
I ALSO KIND OF HAVE CONCERNS, UM, ABOUT THIS, UH, PROJECT FOR THE DAM.
UH, WHEN I MOVED HERE, UM, IT WAS, UH, A PLEASANT SURPRISE HOW MANY TREES AND PLANTS AND THINGS WERE IN THE CITY.
UM, AND I THINK THE NAME OF THE, ONE OF THE SLOGANS WAS CITY WITHIN A PARK.
UM, AND THAT PARTICULAR AREA, UM, FEELS LIKE THE COUNTRY.
I REMEMBER COMING UP, UH, SPICEWOOD SPRINGS AND JUST GOING, WOW, THIS IS KIND OF, IT'S KINDA LIKE THE COUNTRY UP HERE.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, IF IT AIN'T BROKE, DON'T FIX IT.
I THINK A LOT OF THE THINGS HAVE ALREADY BEEN SAID ABOUT, UM, ITS, UH, FUNCTIONALITY.
AND, UH, I GUESS THE POINT I WAS REALLY GONNA MAKE IS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, NATURE DESERVES OUR REVERENCE EVEN WITHIN THE CITY.
UM, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T PUT A PRICE TAG IN WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO BE IN AN NATURAL SPOT.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE, THE BENEFITS TO HUMANITY TO PEOPLE THAT GO THERE ARE, ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED, UH, BY THOSE THAT CAN SEE THAT.
AND, UH, SO THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE.
UM, MAYBE THE MONEY COULD BE USED FOR OTHER THINGS.
AND, UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
LAST SPEAKER ON THIS ITEM WILL BE SUSAN SPATARO.
HELLO AND THANKS FOR YOUR SERVICE.
I'M NOT GONNA REPEAT WHAT YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD, BUT THE WAY THE CITY IS GOING NOW WITH THE HOME INITIATIVE, THE ELIMINATION OF SINGLE FAMILY HOMES, WHICH MEANS THERE'S GONNA BE FEWER TREES, SMALLER LOTS, YOU HAVE A REAL JOB AHEAD OF YOU TO PRESERVE PARKS.
IT'S ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL FOR OUR COMMUNITY NOT TO, BECAUSE MORE PEOPLE WANNA MOVE HERE, UM, TAKE OUR PARKS AWAY BECAUSE WITH THE DENSIFICATION, IT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAT THERE ARE PARKS AND TRAILS AND PLACES FOR PEOPLE TO WALK AND BRING THEIR CHILDREN.
THERE IS NO NEED, YOU'VE HEARD TECHNICALLY FOR THIS PROJECT, AND THERE'S A LOT OF DAMAGE TO BE DONE.
SO ONE HAS TO SAY, FOR THIS KIND OF MONEY, WHY ARE WE DOING THIS? IS
[01:00:01]
THIS THE BEST EXPENDITURE FOR THIS MONEY? AND I WOULD SAY NO.THE FACT THAT THIS CONSTRUCTION IS IN A CANYON BELOW AN AREA WITH 400 HOMES, AGAIN, IT'S A DISRESPECT OF THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS.
AND I THINK THAT YOU NEED TO FIGHT HARD.
I KNOW YOU ALL LOVE PARKS OR YOU WOULDN'T BE ON THIS BOARD, BUT YOU NEED TO FIGHT HARD TO KEEP THE PARKS, KEEP THEM OPEN, NOT COMMERCIALIZE THEM, AND NOT ENGAGE IN THIS KIND OF CONSTRUCTION, WHICH REALLY HAS VERY LITTLE VALUE.
UM, THAT WAS OUR LAST SPEAKER, SO NOW WE WILL HEAR FROM MARIE LANCASTER.
UH, UNFORTUNATELY MARIE WAS NOT ABLE TO BE WITH US TONIGHT.
UH, SHE'S DEALING WITH SOME, UH, SICKNESS IN HER FAMILY.
I'M A ENGINEER WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT.
AND MR. PRICE, CAN YOU JUST HOLD ON, WE HAVE THE WRONG SLIDE UP RIGHT NOW.
THINK YOU, YOU CAN GET SOME RESTART.
SO ONCE AGAIN, UH, BOARD MEMBERS, UM, REALLY APPRECIATE Y'ALL'S TIME THIS EVENING TO ALLOW US TO COME AND, AND DISCUSS OUR OLD LAND PASSES DAM PROJECT AND, UH, WHY WE AS A DEPARTMENT AND, AND THE CITY FEEL THAT THIS IS A NECESSARY PROJECT, UH, TO ADDRESS SOME REALLY SIGNIFICANT, OUTSTANDING SAFETY ISSUES IN THE AREA.
UM, I ONCE AGAIN APOLOGIZE FOR MARIE NOT BEING ABLE TO BE WITH US TONIGHT.
UH, HOWEVER, UH, SHE WASN'T FEELING WELL AND I'M, I'M FILLING IN FOR HER.
UM, SO ALONG WITH ME, UH, TONIGHT WE DO ALSO HAVE OUR PROJECT MANAGER, UH, FROM THE CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES PROJECT, MINDA SANTO.
AND WE ALSO HAVE OUR ENGINEERING CONSULTANT ON THE PROJECT, KIM POTOK FROM A LOCAL ENGINEERING FIRM, ZA NICHOLS.
UH, AND ALSO TO MY SIDE RIGHT HERE IS GREG MONTEZ WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, UH, WHO HELPS OVERSEE, UH, THE USE OF PARKLAND, UM, UH, BY BOTH CITY DEPARTMENTS AND THE COMMUNITY.
UM, SO YEAH, WE'LL GET, GET STARTED THERE.
UM, AS A REFRESHER TO THE BOARD, UM, THE MISSION OF THE WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT IS TO PROTECT LIVES, PROPERTY AND THE ENVIRONMENT OF OUR COMMUNITY BY REDUCING THE IMPACTS OF FLOODING, EROSION, AND WATER POLLUTION.
SIMPLY PUT, WE PROTECT PEOPLE FROM WATER AND WATER FROM PEOPLE, AND THAT'S WHAT WE FEEL THE AIM OF THIS PROJECT IS.
SO THE OLD LAND PASSES DAM, FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE LOCATION OF THE DAM, IS LOCATED IN NORTHWEST AUSTIN.
SIMPLY PUT, IT'S NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF SPICEWOOD SPRINGS ROAD AND OLD LAND PASSES TRAIL.
WE HAVE THAT STAR ON THE SLIDE THERE TO ORIENT YOU.
ZOOMING IN A LITTLE BIT CLOSER TO GET A A LITTLE BIT MORE REFERENCE ON IT.
GENERALLY SPEAKING, THE PROJECT AREA IS BOUND BY SCOTLAND WELLS DRIVE TO THE EAST OLD LAND PASSES TRAILS TO THE SOUTH, AND TALLY RUN DRIVE TO THE WEST.
ALSO ON THE SLIDE THERE WE SEE TALLY RAND PARK THAT IS ALSO KNOWN AS NORTHWEST B'S NEIGHBORHOOD PARK.
UM, AND THAT PART IS A MORE FORMALIZED PARK THAT IS ATTACHED TO THE MORE NATURAL AREAS WHERE THE PROJECT AREA IS.
COULD YOU ADVANCE THIS? THANK YOU.
UM, FOR THE BOARD, WE HAVE THE PROJECT, UH, TIMELINE, UH, BOTH WITH THE HISTORY OF THE FACILITY AND THEN ALSO THE WORK THAT THE WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT HAS DONE TO DATE, UH, WITH THE PROJECT AND WHERE WE'RE GOING FROM HERE.
UM, THE DAM ITSELF WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1984 AS PART OF A STORM WATER DETENTION POND.
THE POND WAS CONSTRUCTED TO CAPTURE ADDITIONAL STORM WATER RUNOFF CREATED BY THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOOD, AND SLOWLY RELEASE IT BACK INTO THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM TO MITIGATE THE POTENTIAL INCREASES IN FLOODING DUE TO THE SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOOD'S DEVELOPMENT.
AS WITH TYPICAL STORM WATER DETENTION PONDS IN OUR AREA, THE POND AND DAM STRUCTURE WERE NOT DESIGNED TO RETAIN WATER BEYOND A 24 TO 48 HOUR PERIOD.
THE PARCEL CONTAINING THE POND FACILITIES AND THE ASSOCIATED DAM WERE ANNEXED INTO THE CITY'S FULL PURPOSE JURISDICTION IN 1997 WITH THE PARCELS
[01:05:01]
BEING DEDICATED AS PARKLAND.IN 2010, TROPICAL STORM HERMINE PRODUCED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF RAINFALL IN THE AREA SURROUNDING THE DAM TOTALS OF 10 INCHES AND 24 HOURS WERE MEASURED.
THIS RESULTED IN SIGNIFICANT FLOWS ENTERING INTO THE POND AND CAUSE DAMAGE TO THE DAM EMBANKMENT AND POND SAFE OR POND SPILLWAY, WHICH REVERSES THE DAM FOR NOMENCLATURE.
A SPILLWAY IS JUST A FANCY TERM FOR HOW WATER GETS FROM ONE SIDE OF THE DAM TO THE OTHER.
IN RESPONSE TO THIS DAMAGE, THE WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT INITIATED A PROJECT TO REPAIR THE DAM IN 2011, RESULTING IN A PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING PHASE IN 2012 TO IDENTIFY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ADDRESSING SAFETY CONCERNS WITH THE DAM.
DURING THIS PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING PHASE, THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES WERE FOUND WITHIN THE PROJECT FOOTPRINT, WHICH WERE NECESSITATED EXTENSIVE FEDERALLY PERMITTING COORDINATION WITH THE US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS AND THE US FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICES TO ENSURE THE PROTECTION OF THESE UH, SPECIES.
BOTH DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE DAM SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS AND THE CONTINUED OPERATION OF THE DAM.
WITH FEDERALLY PERMITTING GUIDELINES ESTABLISHED THE DESIGN PHASE OR PREPARATION OF CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS AND PLANS FOR THE CONTRACTOR TO CONSTRUCT THESE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS BEGAN IN 2018.
PLANS WERE COMPLETED IN THE FALL OF 2022 AND SUBMITTED TO THE CITY'S DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT TO BE REVIEWED FOR COMPLIANCE TO CITY REGULATIONS FOUND IN THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AND ASSOCIATED THE CRITERIA MANUALS.
WE HOPE TO RECEIVE A PERMIT TO, UH, CONSTRUCT LATER THIS SPRING.
AFTER OUR PERMITS HAVE BEEN GAINED, WE WILL SOLICIT BIDS FOR, FOR THE PROJECT AND FIND A COMPETENT CONTRACTOR, UH, TO BEGIN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THESE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS, HOPEFULLY LATER, UH, LATER IN THE FALL THIS YEAR.
UH, COULD YOU ADVANCE THE SLIDE? UM, SOME OF THE DAMAGE THAT WAS SUSTAINED BY THE DAM DURING TROPICAL STORM ARENA IS SHOWN IN THE PICTURES ON THIS SLIDE, AS WELL AS THE CURRENT CONDI CONDITION OF THE VEGETATION PRESENT ON THE DAM.
AS SEEN IN THE FIRST TWO PHOTOS, THERE IS SIGNIFICANT EROSION AND SLOPE FAILURES AROUND THE DAM'S OUTFALL.
WHY THE CONDITION OF THIS? WHY IS THE CONDITION OF THE DAM SAFETY OF THE DAM A SAFETY CONCERN IMPORTANT FOR THE CITY TO ADDRESS? DAMS POSE A SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC SAFETY RISK, IF NOT PROPERLY DESIGNED OR MAINTAINED IN THE EVENT OF A DAM FAILURE, ALL THE WATER IMPOUNDED OR CAPTURED BEHIND THE DAM IS SUDDENLY RELEASED, UNLEASHING A SUDDEN WALL OF WATER DOWNSTREAM, SUBJECTING ANYTHING IN THE WATER'S PATH TO SIGNIFICANT FLOOD DAMAGE.
THERE HAVE BEEN MANY EXAMPLES OF DAM FAILURES RESULTING IN SUBSTANTIAL, SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO DOWNSTREAM PROPERTY AND INFRASTRUCTURE, AND EVEN THE LOSS OF LIFE TO MINIMIZE THE LIKELIHOOD OF DAM FAILURES.
THE STATE OF TEXAS THROUGH THE TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY OR TCQ ADMINISTERS A STATEWIDE DAM SAFETY PROGRAM TO MONITOR EXISTING DAMS AND REGULATE THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW DAMS. IN ORDER TO MINIMIZE THESE DAM FAILURE RISKS THROUGHOUT THE STATE, THE STATE DAM SAFETY PROGRAM DESIGNATES HAZARD CLASSIFICATIONS FOR DAMS BASED ON DOWNSTREAM RISKS.
CURRENTLY, THE OLD LAND PASSES DAM IS CLASSIFIED AS A HIGH HAZARD DAM, WHICH IS THE HIRED HIGHEST HAZARD RATING ASSIGNED BY THE STATE.
FOR PERSPECTIVE, THE BASE CRITERIA TO BE A HIGH HAZARD DAM IS TO HAVE SEVEN OR MORE LIVES AT RISK DOWNSTREAM, THREE OR MORE HABITABLE STRUCTURES AND OR EXCESSIVE LOSS IN A NEAR URBAN AREA, AS WELL AS POTENTIAL FOR THREATENING MAIN HIGHWAYS, RAILROADS, PUBLIC UTILITIES, AND FACILITIES.
ADDITIONALLY, RECENT INSPECTIONS OF THE OLD LAND PASSES DAM PERFORMED BOTH BY CITY AND TCEQ STAFF HAVE FOUND THE DAM TO BE IN POOR CONDITION.
THIS PROJECT WILL ALLOW THE CITY TO ENSURE THAT THE DAM WILL BE BOTH BE IN COMPLIANCE WITH STATE REGULATIONS AND MINIMIZE THE DAM'S POTENTIAL FOR FAILURE.
THIS SLIDE FURTHER ILLUSTRATES THIS CURRENT SAFETY RISK ASSOCIATED WITH THE HIGH HAZARD OLD LAND PASSES DAM THAT IS IN POOR CONDITION.
IF THE DAM WERE TO FAIL THE WATER IMPOUNDED, UH, AND WATER IMPOUNDED TO THE CREST OR TOP OF THE DAM, UM, AREAS IN BLUE WOULD BE INUNDATED WITH FLOOD WATER.
THERE ARE MORE THAN 30 STRUCTURES THAT WOULD EXPERIENCE INDEN INUNDATION OF FLOOD WATERS, ALONG WITH DOWNSTREAM ROADWAYS, AND EVEN AN ELECTRIC SUBSTATION, UH, THAT SERVES THE AREA WOULD BE DAMAGED IN THE EVENT OF A DAM FAILURE.
AS A NOTE, THE OVER TOPPING OF A DAM IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE FOR DAM FAILURE DURING TROPICAL STORM HERMINE.
THE OLD LAMB DE OLD LAMB PASSES DAM HAD AN ESTIMATED 20 FEET OF WATER BEHIND IT BASED ON STAFFED INVESTIGATIONS, LEAVING ONLY THREE TO SIX FEET OF FREEBOARD OR AMOUNT FROM THE WATER LEVEL TO THE TOP OF THE DAM, UH, BEFORE IT OVERTOPPED.
WITH OUR COMMUNITY'S HISTORY WITH SIGNIFICANT FLOOD FLOODS AND FLOODING, AND THE INCREASE OF MORE SEVERE WEATHER EVENTS CAUSED BY GLO CLI GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE, THE PROJECT IS NEEDED TO ADDRESS THE SAFETY RISK.
[01:10:01]
HERE ARE SOME MORE PICTURES OF THE CURRENT DAM STATE.THE PICTURE TO THE RIGHT SHOWS THE SCALE OF THE EROSION, UH, ON THE DAM SLOPE.
UH, THERE'S A GENTLEMAN THERE ABOUT SIX FEET TALL STANDING IN THAT SLOPE.
THERE, UH, BOARD MEMBERS CAN SEE THE, UH, SIZE OF THE, UH, THE EROSION THERE IN THE PITCHER, AS WELL AS OTHER VOIDS AND DAMAGE THAT'S ON THE DAM EMBANKMENT, WHICH LEADS, UH, MORE LIKELY TO THE RISK OF THE DAM FAILING.
UH, ADDITIONALLY HERE, HERE ARE SOME OF THE OUTFALL OR SPILLWAY OF THE DAM AND THE CONDITION OF THE, UH, CURRENTLY.
UM, ALSO OF NOTE IS, UH, TREES ON THE EMBANKMENT, UH, TREES AND THEIR ROOT SYSTEMS DAMAGE THE DAM CORE, UH, THUS PROVIDING WAYS FOR WATER TO SEEP THROUGH THE DAM AND CAUSE, UH, FOR FAILURES.
HOPEFULLY, I'VE CONVEYED THE NEED AND DRIVERS BEHIND THIS PROJECT.
OUTLINE THE CURRENT SAFETY RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH OLAND PASSES DAM, WE ARE, HOW ARE WE PLANNING TO MINIMIZE THIS RISK? THE PROJECT CALLS FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF THE EXISTING SPILLWAY, UM, UH, FOR THE EXISTING SPILLWAY PHOTOS ON THE LEFT SHOW THE CURRENT SPILLWAYS PIPE CONDITION, UM, AS THE METAL PIPE THERE THAT WE CAN SEE IS RUSTED OUT AND, UM, IN BAD CONDITION.
UM, UH, AND WE WILL REPLACE THAT WITH A NEWER, UH, CONCRETE, UH, SPILLWAY THAT WILL BE MORE RESILIENT, UH, TO THE FLOODING CONDITIONS THAT WE EXPECT TO SEE IN THE AREA.
ADDITIONALLY, UH, THERE'S A WASTEWATER LINE THAT CURRENTLY TRAVERSES IN THE DAM STRUCTURE THAT WILL BE REPLACED DURING THIS PROJECT AND ALSO, UH, SHORED UP AND ENFORCED.
UH, THE TREES THAT ARE CURRENTLY ON THE DAM FACES WILL BE REMOVED DURING THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS.
THIS IS NECESSARY PER STATE DAM SAFETY CODES AS TREES IN THEIR ROOT SYSTEMS WEAKEN A DAMS CORE, MAKING IT MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO FAILURE.
THERE WILL ALSO BE AN INSTALLATION OF A NEW EAR FLOOD EARLY WARNING SYSTEM TO MONITOR THE LEVELS OF FLOOD WATER IN THE DAM, ALLOWING EMERGENCY MANAGERS TO MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS ABOUT POTENTIAL EMERGENCY DAM OPERATIONS.
ADDITIONALLY, WHERE THE WATER EXITS THE DAM IMPROVEMENTS WILL BE MADE TO ARMOR THE CREEK TO PREVENT ANY FUTURE EROSION THAT WILL RESULT, THAT POTENTIALLY MAY RESULT AS, UH, UH, A BYPRODUCT OF THE THE NEW DAM DESIGN.
ANOTHER KEY FEATURE IS THE AUXILIARY SPILLWAY.
UM, AND THAT IS THE, THE PART, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THE, THE CONCRETE PICTURE THAT THAT GOES DOWN THERE, UM, THIS AUXILIARY SPILLWAY ACTS AS A RELIEF VALVE.
IF THERE WAS ENOUGH RAINFALL BEHIND THE WATER INSTEAD OF OVER TOPPING THE DAM, THE EMERGENCY SPILLWAY WOULD BE ENGAGED, THUS BEING ABLE TO MAINTAIN THE DAM INTEGRITY IN TIMES OF GREAT, UH, RAINFALL.
UM, FINALLY, UH, RELATED TO THE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS NEEDED FOR THE DAM, UM, IT WILL BE RAISED AND REINFORCED TO WITHSTAND THE WORST CASE SCENARIO, FLOODS AS PRESCRIBED BOTH BY CITY AND STATE DAM CRITERIA.
IN ADDITION TO THE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS, WE ARE ALSO IMPROVING THE FACILITY'S ABILITY TO TREAT STORM WATER RUNOFF, IMPROVING THE WATER QUALITY BOTH DOWNSTREAM OF THE DAM AND IN THE BULL CREEK, UM, WATERSHED.
UM, AS THIS DAM EVENTUALLY, WATER FROM THE DAM EVENTUALLY MAKES ITS WAY INTO THE MAIN STEM OF BULL CREEK.
UM, THIS, THE DAM IMPROVEMENTS WERE ALSO, UM, WORKED TO IMPROVE THE JOLLYVILLE SALAMANDER HABITAT IN THE AREA.
UM, AND, UH, TAKE NOTE OF THE OTHER ENDANGERED SPECIES, UH, ALONG THE PROJECT FOOTPRINT DURING, UH, THE DAM CONSTRUCTION AND THE OPERATION OF THE DAM AFTERWARDS, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THE PROJECT COST WILL BE $12.8 MILLION.
SO, UH, WITH THE DAM BEING IN PARKLAND AND, AND OUR CONSULTANT PUT TOGETHER THE SLIDE TO ALLOW THE BOARD MEMBERS TO SEE THE PROJECT FOOTPRINT IN RELATION TO THE CANYON AND THE PARKLAND AREA THAT'S OWNED, WE HAVE THE ORANGE OUTLINE WOULD BE THE PROJECT, UH, AREA THAT WOULD BE UNAVAILABLE TO PARK USERS DURING THE CONSTRUCTION TIME PERIOD OF ABOUT 18 MONTHS.
UM, WE ALSO HAVE THE LIGHT BLUE AND THE DARK BLUE.
THOSE ARE THE INUNDATION POOLS OR HOW MUCH WATER COULD POTENTIALLY BACK UP BEHIND THE DAM.
THE LIGHT BLUE IS WHAT THE CURRENT INUNDATION OF THE DAM WOULD BE, UH, UNDER ITS CURRENT CONFIGURATION.
THE DARK BLUE IS HOW THAT WOULD EXPAND AFTER THE IMPROVEMENTS ARE MADE TO THE DAM.
THE RED AREA IDENTIFIED ON THE, THE, THE EXHIBIT HERE IS THE ACTUAL AREA THAT WILL HAVE REINFORCED CONCRETE OR CONCRETE ADDED TO THE AREA.
UM, DUE TO THE RECONFIGURATION OF THE DAM, WE WERE ABLE TO OFFSET ANY POTENTIAL FLOODING, INCREASE THE FLOODING THAT MAY BE CAUSED BY THE ADDITIONAL, UH, IMPERVIOUS COVER, UM, UH, TO REDUCE THE, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT CAUSING MORE
[01:15:01]
FLOODING IN ADDRESSING THE, THE ISSUES WITH THE DAM.UM, SOME OF THE IMPACTS THAT, UH, PARK USERS, UH, PARKLAND USERS WILL NOTICE IS THAT THERE WILL BE SOME TRAIL CLOSER TRAIL CLOSURES AS CURRENTLY A TRAIL TRAVERSES THE TOP OF THE DAM, UH, DURING CONSTRUCTION.
THAT TRAIL WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE FOR USE.
HOWEVER, WE WILL REROUTE THE OTHER EXISTING TRAILS, SO TRAIL USERS CAN STILL USE THE AREA, UM, DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TRAIL.
UM, THERE WILL BE SOME IMPACTS TO TRAFFIC FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
WE ARE NOT PLANNING TO STAGE TRAFFIC ON, UH, THE PARK AREA AT THIS TIME.
UM, AND THERE WILL BE A LOSS OF, UM, TREES AND BOULDERS ON THE SITE DURING CONSTRUCTION.
UH, SOME OF THE BENEFITS, UH, WE DO PLAN TO REUSE A LOT OF THE TREE MATERIALS IN BOULDERS FOR OTHER PARKS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
I THINK THIS WAS MENTIONED IN THE, IN THE PUBLIC COMMENT.
UH, WE ARE WORKING WITH THE CITY'S, UH, PARKS, DEPARTMENTS, CITIES, CONNECTING CHILDREN TO NATURE PROGRAM.
UH, RECENTLY THE PARKS DEPARTMENT HAS, UM, CONSTRUCTING A LOT OF NEW PLAY SCAPES THAT UTILIZE A LOT OF NATURAL ELEMENTS.
UM, MATERIALS TAKEN FROM THE PROJECT SITE WILL BE ABLE TO BE STORED AT A PARK FACILITY AND REPURPOSED THROUGHOUT THE CITY TO HELP SUPPORT THIS PROGRAM.
UM, ANOTHER BENEFIT IS, UM, THIS IS A CITY FACILITY THAT THE CITY OWNS AND MAINTAINS AS WE WORK WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT TO ADDRESS, UH, THE INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS.
WE WILL BE MINIMIZING, UH, THE GLOBAL RISK TO THE CITY OF, OF FLOODING, AS WELL AS, UH, MINIMIZING THE AMOUNT OF LIABILITY THE CITY MAY HAVE IN THE EVENT OF A DAM FAILURE.
SO THAT'S A, ABOUT THE, THE PROJECT ITSELF.
I'M, I'M SORRY, COULD YOU GO BACK TO THE PREVIOUS SLIDE? UM, OF NOTE, UM, THE MAG CORE PROJECT AREA IS CURRENTLY LOCATED WITHIN A DRAINAGE EASEMENT.
UH, AS SUCH, THAT DOES ALLOW THE WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT TO OPERATE AND MAINTAIN THE DAM ON PARK FACILITY, UH, WITHOUT GOING THROUGH A CHAPTER 26 HEARING.
SO THE ENTITLEMENT FOR US TO MAINTAIN AND OPERATE THE STORMWATER FACILITY, UH, IS ENCUMBERED WITH THE PROPERTIES ALREADY.
SO, THE ASK FOR US TODAY IS THAT IN ORDER TO FACILITATE THE PROJECT AND TO BE ABLE TO HELP US BE IN AND OUT OF THE PARK AS FAST AS WE CAN, WE ARE REQUESTING THE USE OF A PARD OWNED PARCEL LOCATED ON THE CORNER OF SPICEWOOD SPRINGS ROAD, RIGHT WHERE OLD LAND PASSES TRAIL BREAKS OFF.
UH, THIS WAS A SITE THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY USED BY THE CITY, UH, BY AUSTIN WATER DURING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE WASTEWATER, UH, SORRY, THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT NUMBER FOUR.
UM, WE ARE REQUESTING TO USE THIS AREA FOR THE CONTRACTOR, UH, TO POTENTIALLY USE FOR STAGING.
UM, UM, THEY WILL STORE, UM, NEEDED CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS THERE AND POTENTIALLY EQUIPMENT, UH, WHILE THEY WORK ON THE MODERNIZATION AND REHABILITATION OF THE, OF THE DAM FACILITY.
UH, WORKING WITH OUR, UM, UM, STAFF WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, UM, WE HAVE DETERMINED, OR THE, THE ESTIMATED, UM, UTILIZATION OF THAT, UH, SITE FOR PARK PARK MITIGATION FEE WOULD BE ABOUT $70,000.
UM, WE PLAN TO COVER THAT THROUGH THE IMPROVEMENT TO THE PARKLANDS THAT WE'RE MAKING WITH THE DAM, AS WELL AS THE COST OF TRANSPORTING THE MATERIAL TO BE REUSED BY THE CONNECTING, UH, CHILDREN WITH NATURE'S PROGRAM.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE FEEL THAT THIS IS A, A NECESSARY ASK DUE TO THE CLOSENESS, UH, TO THE PROJECT AREA.
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAD REACHED OUT TO OTHER LANDOWNERS, BOTH PRIVATE AND OTHER PUBLICLY OWNED PARCELS IN THE AREA.
THIS ONE MADE THE MOST SENSE TO BOTH FACILITATE THE CONSTRUCTION AND ENSURE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, TO MINIMIZE THE IMPACT TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
UH, ONCE AGAIN, WE'D BE PLANNING ON USING IT FOR 18 MONTHS, UH, AND IT'LL BE UTILIZED TO STORE EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS.
UM, AND JUST TO REITERATE, UH, THIS TRULY IS A SAFETY PROJECT, AND WHILE WE DO ACKNOWLEDGE THERE WILL BE SOME CHANGES TO THE CANYON, UH, WE ARE TRYING TO MINIMIZE THE OVERALL IMPACT TO PARKLAND, UM, IN, UH, THE NAME OF ADDRESSING THE SAFETY ISSUE THAT IS THERE.
UM, WE WILL TRY TO REUSE AS BEST WE CAN, ALL OF THE MATERIAL THAT IS TAKEN AWAY FROM THE DAM AND USE IT IN OTHER PARKS, UM, AND WORKING WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD TO REDUCE THE IMPACTS THAT MAY BE CAUSED WITH TRAFFIC AND REDUCING, UH, THE CONSTRUCTION TIME WILL BOTH BE FACILITATED BY ALLOWING US, UH, TO UTILIZE THE TRIANGLE, UH, PROPERTY.
UM, AND, AND THAT IS THE REQUEST OF THE PARKS BOARD IS TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION FOR US TO, UH, TAKE THE CITY COUNCIL TO REQUEST THE USE OF THE TRIANGLE PROPERTY WHILE CONSTRUCTING, UH, THE DAM.
[01:20:01]
UH, NEXT SLIDE.UH, AND SO MYSELF AND GREG MONTEZ AND, AND SOME OTHER TECHNICAL STAFF ARE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT THE PARKS BOARD MAY HAVE, UM, ON ANY OF THE SLIDES THAT WE PRESENTED OR QUESTIONS THAT CAME UP DURING THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD.
BOARD MEMBERS, I'M NOW OPENING IT UP TO QUESTIONS JUST, UH, TO, UH, UH, FOR BOARD MEMBERS' SAKE, THE AGENDA ITEM IS REGARDING, UH, A RECOMMENDATION TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE A TEMPORARY STAGING AREA NOT TO EXCEED 540 CALENDAR DAYS ON PARKLAND.
LOCATED AT UPPER BOWL CREEK GREENBELT 80 20 SPICEWOOD SPRINGS ROAD.
TOTAL MITIGATION IS 70 $70,652.
UM, BECAUSE THAT IS THE AGENDA ITEM, WE DO HAVE TO STICK TO TALKING ABOUT THAT SPECIFIC THING.
UM, SO I JUST WANTED TO DO THAT RIGHT? 'CAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT THE MERITS OF THE ACTUAL PROJECT.
SO THE MERITS OF THE ACTUAL PROJECT IS NOT, ARE NOT, IS NOT ON THE AGENDA.
SO WE HAVE TO STICK TO WHAT'S ON THE AGENDA.
SO AT THIS TIME, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO, UH, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO COMMENT, UH, QUESTIONS FROM, UH, BOARD MEMBERS.
I JUST WANT TO THANK OUR PRESENTERS FOR SUCH A CONCISE AND, UH, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF, UH, THE BACKGROUND FOR THE PROJECT, I THINK WAS VERY HELPFUL.
AND I WANTED TO ADD THAT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF IN ADDITION TO THE SAFETY, UM, ITEMS THAT WERE DISCUSSED DURING THE PRESENTATION, JUST NOTE THAT I THINK WITH OUR CHANGING WEATHER PATTERNS AND THE KIND OF MORE INTENSE RAINFALL WE'VE BEEN EXPERIENCING, UM, YOU KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, THE CITY ADOPTING OUT WAS 14.
THAT DEFINITELY SEEMS TO MAKE SENSE FROM A SAFETY PERSPECTIVE.
YOU KNOW, KIND OF EVERYTHING THAT WAS OUTLINED ALREADY IN THE PRESENTATION.
AND DEFINITELY, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE NEED FOR CONSTRUCTION STAGING AREAS, YOU KNOW, ON OTHER PROJECTS RELATED TO THE PARKS DEPARTMENT AND THE PARK BOARD DECISIONS AS WELL.
SO, JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU.
CAN I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE TEMPORARY STAGING AREA? OKAY.
SO ONE OF OUR SPEAKERS MENTIONED THAT IT IS, UM, THAT IT'S LAND THAT HAS A SHAFT UNDERNEATH OF IT AND, UH, THAT THAT'S FRAGILE.
CAN YOU SPEAK MORE ABOUT THAT? UH, YES, WE CAN SPEAK MORE ABOUT THAT.
SO, UM, THE ENTIRE TRIANGLE PROPERTY, UH, WE'RE NOT REQUESTING TO USE THE ENTIRE PROPERTY.
I DON'T KNOW IF, IF ANY OF THE BOARD MEMBERS CAUGHT THE RATHER, LIKE, LOOKED LIKE MY FIVE-YEAR-OLD DREW THE STAGING AREA, UH, THAT WAS INTENTIONAL TO, UH, WORKING WITH AUSTIN WATER AND DEFINING THE LIMITS THAT MAY INFLUENCE THEIR EMERGENCY SHAFT THAT THEY HAVE FOR THAT TRANSMISSION LINE FROM WASTE.
OR I DON'T KNOW WHY I KEEP ON CALLING IT WASTEWATER, BUT FROM WATER TREATMENT PLANT NUMBER FOUR.
SO WE HAVE COORDINATED WITH AUSTIN WATER AND ENSURED THAT, UH, THE LIMITS THAT WE WOULD ALLOW THE CONTRACTOR TO USE FOR STAGING WOULD NOT EITHER DAMAGE EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE OR IMPEDE THE OPERATION OR, UH, EMERGENCY MAINTENANCE, UH, THAT MAY BE REQUIRED OF AUSTIN WATER WITH THAT SITE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMON BOARD MEMBERS? ONE, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, HAS THE PROJECT ALREADY BEEN APPROVED, THE WHOLE PROJECT? THAT'S A, A GOOD QUESTION.
AS FAR AS APPROVAL GOES, WE ARE WORKING WITH THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT TO, UH, GATHER A LAND DEVELOPMENT PERMIT REQUIRED FOR THE PROJECT.
WE HAVE SECURED FEDERAL PERMITTING, UH, THAT IS THE LAST PHASE IS WORKING WITH THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT TO BE ABLE TO GET OUR PERMIT.
WE HAVE A FEW OUTSTANDING, UH, INFORMAL COMMENTS, UM, RELATED TO THE PROJECT.
ONE OF THEM WAS, THE STAGING AREA WAS SOMETHING THAT HAD CHANGED, UH, RATHER RECENTLY IN THE PROJECT HISTORY.
PREVIOUSLY IT HAD A DIFFERENT STAGING AREA WITH A PRIVATE LANDOWNER THAT FELL THROUGH.
UM, SO WE WERE MAKING UPDATES TO THE PLANS TO, UM, SHOW THE STAGING AREA, UH, WITH THE PLAN.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WAITING FOR THOSE OUTSTANDING ISSUES TO BE WORKED OUT WITH THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT.
AND THEN, UM, THIS WILL GO IN A, THROUGH A PROCESS OF GOING TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THEN THE CITY COUNCIL.
SO CURRENTLY THE ASK FROM THE PARKS BOARD WAS, WE HAVE, THERE WAS A FEW VARIANCES DUE TO THE NATURE OF THE PROJECT THAT WE WERE UNABLE TO MEET CITY CODE WITH, UH, NAMELY, UH, CERTAIN CUT FILL ALLOWANCES, UM, PRESCRIBED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRITERIA MANUAL.
AND, UM, THE PROJECT MAINTENANCE ROAD IS RATHER STEEP AND DOESN'T MEET CRITERIA.
SO WE HAVE ALREADY GONE TO, UH, BOTH THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, UH, TO RECEIVE, UH, APPROVAL FOR THOSE VARIANCES OR RECOMMENDATION FOR THAT.
AND THEN TO THE ZONING AND PLANNING COMMISSION.
AND THEY APPROVED THE VARIANCES.
SO THEY ASK HERE WOULD BE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION
[01:25:01]
FOR THE USE OF THE STAGING AREA, AND THEN THE RATIFICATION OF THAT, OR THE ALLOWANCE OF THAT WOULD BE APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL.IT JUST SEEMS LIKE PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE, SINCE THE PROJECT HASN'T BEEN APPROVED YET TO TRY AND APPROVE A STAGING AREA FOR THE PROJECT.
UH, SO THE, THE PROJECT, UH, THE ASK THERE IS, IS WE CAN MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PROJECT.
WE JUST FELT THAT, UM, THE STAGING AREA HERE WOULD HELP US GET THE PARKLAND BACK ON, UM, UH, BACK ON TRACK OR BACK IN USE FASTER.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE OTHER OPTIONS THAT WE CAN LOOK FOR FOR STAGING AREAS.
WE JUST FELT THAT, UH, IT WAS AN APPROPRIATE ASK, UH, DUE TO THE PROXIMITY OF THE PROJECT AND THAT IT WILL BENEFIT PARKLAND, UH, FOR US TO FINISH THE PROJECT MORE EXPEDITIOUSLY.
UM, BUT, UM, I APPRECIATE YOUR CONCERN, COMMISSIONER.
I JUST WOULD RATHER, UM, HAVE, HAVE, HAVE YOU ALL COME BEFORE US TO ASK FOR APPROVAL OF A STAGING AREA FOR A PROJECT THAT HAD ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BY THE CITY, BY THE COUNCIL.
UM, SO IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO ME THAT IT HASN'T BEEN APPROVED YET.
UH, SO I, I GUESS JUST TO ECHO ON THAT, UM, AS WE ARE NOT SEEKING, UM, VARIANCES THAT REQUIRE COUNCIL APPROVAL, IT DOESN'T NEED TO GO TO THE CITY COUNCIL TO BE APPROVED.
AND SO WE HAVE GONE THROUGH THE APPROPRIATE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS TO GATHER THE SUPPORT AND THE APPROVALS NECESSARY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PROJECT.
THE, THE ITEMS REMAINING, UM, OUTSTANDING FOR US TO CLEAR BEFORE WE GRANT OUR PERMIT ARE THINGS THAT WE CAN WORK WITH CITY STAFF TO CLEAR.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, BASED ON, UH, DISCUSSIONS, UH, WITH OUR PARTNERS AT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, UM, WE FELT LIKE IT WAS THE APPROPRIATE TIME TO COME TO Y'ALL.
AND THEN, I GUESS I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION FOR, UM, FOR THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
IS THIS NOT AN, UH, AN ITEM THAT WOULD COME BEFORE US? THE, THE ENTIRE PROJECT, WE WOULDN'T HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW THE PROJECT TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION SINCE IT'S NOT GOING TO CITY COUNCIL.
THIS IS A WATERSHED PROTECTION, UH, PROJECT.
AND SO WATERSHED PROTECTION PROJECTS, UM, TYPICALLY DO NOT COME BEFORE THE PARK SPORT FOR APPROVAL.
MM-HMM,
THE ONLY REASON THAT IT'S HERE BEFORE THE BOARD TODAY AND MOVING ON TO COUNCIL, IS THAT THEY ARE ASKING TO TEMPORARILY USE, UH, A PORTION OF, OF PARKLAND ACROSS THE STREET TO EXPEDITE THIS PROJECT, UM, AND TO FINISH IT SINCE IT'S A SAFETY PROJECT.
SO WATERSHIP PROJECTS DO NOT ROUTINELY COME TO THE BOARD UNLESS IT'S FOR PERMANENT USE OF PARKLAND OR TEMPORARY USE OF PARKLAND.
THE BOARD TYPICALLY DOES NOT GET TO, UH, PROVIDE DESIGN CRITERIA TO, TO WATERSHED IT'S PERMANENT.
THANK YOU FOR ANSWERING MY QUESTION.
ANOTHER QUESTION, YOU MENTIONED, UH, THAT THERE ARE OTHER STAGING AREAS THAT YOU CAN CONSIDER.
SO, UH, IN YOUR OUTREACH, YOU, YOU MENTIONED TALKING TO THE COMMUNITY, UH, HAD YOU SHARED THOSE OTHER STAGING AREAS WITH THE COMMUNITY? SO PREVIOUSLY, I, I THINK PART OF THE PROJECT, UM, THE, THE, THE STAGING AREAS, UH, THAT WE HAD LOOKED AT, UM, WE DID HAVE ONE IN MIND THAT WAS ACROSS THE STREET WITH A, THERE'S A CHURCH PROPERTY ACROSS THERE THAT WE HAD WORKED WITH, UM, PROBABLY FOR A FEW YEARS.
AND, UH, THEY HAD PULLED OUT, UH, BEHIND.
AND SO WE WERE LESS SCRAMBLING.
I, I, WHEN I HAD SPOKE THAT, UH, STAGING AREAS, UH, WE COULD POTENTIALLY WORK WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS, UH, TO FIND A STAGING AREA, UM, TO FACILITATE THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT.
UM, HOWEVER THAT WOULD BE UP TO THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER, UH, TO BE ABLE TO, UH, MAKE THAT ARRANGEMENT WITH THE CITY.
UM, IN ADDITION TO THIS PARD, UM, THE PARD FACILITY FOR THE STAGING AREA, AUSTIN WATER ALSO HAS AN ADDITIONAL PROPERTY UP THE ROAD ON OLD SPICEWOOD SPRING, OR SORRY, ON SPICEWOOD SPRINGS NEXT TO WEXLER.
UM, AND THAT WILL ALSO BE UTILIZED AS STAGING AREA.
HOWEVER, UH, THERE'S QUITE A FEW MORE RESTRICTIONS ON THE SITE DUE TO SOME, UH, GEOLOGIC THERE, THERE'S LOTS OF SINKS AND VOIDS NOT MAKING IT AN IDEAL STAGING AREA, AND THERE'S A LOT OF LIMITATIONS OF THAT.
WE WOULD BE ABLE, WE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DELIVER THE PROJECT JUST BASED ON THAT STAGING AREA ALONE.
[01:30:01]
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? OKAY.AT THIS TIME, UM, WOULD ANYONE LIKE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION, UM, OR AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX? AND I GUESS, UH, HOLD WHERE'S I GOT HERE? IT'S OKAY.
I'LL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.
AND, UH, JUST TO CLARIFY, BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN, SORRY, I'M, I CAN'T SEE Y'ALL 'CAUSE MY, MY SCREEN HERE IS HAVE BAD VISION AND MY SCREEN ISN'T WORKING.
SO, UH,
SO JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, YOU WANNA MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO CITY COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL OF TEMPORARY USE OF PARKLAND LOCATED AT 80 20 BYWOOD SPRINGS ROAD, THE TRIANGLE NOT TO EXCEED 450 DAYS, UH, WITH TOTAL MITIGATION BEING $70,652.
I JUST WANNA CLARIFY, I THINK CHAIR, YOU SAID 450.
IT'S ACTUALLY 540 CALENDAR DAYS.
THERE'S A MOTION BY BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN.
IS THERE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND.
THERE'S A SECOND BY BOARD MEMBER HAYES.
AT THIS TIME, WE'LL HAVE ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION? SEEING NO DISCUSSION AT THIS TIME? I WILL TAKE A VOTE BY, UH, HAND COUNT.
SO ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION MADE BY BOARD MEMBER HAYES, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND AND KEEP THEM UP UNTIL TWO, FOUR.
ALL THOSE OPPOSED, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
WE'RE NOW MOVING ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN.
ARE THERE ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN?
[7. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve the negotiation and execution of a Parkland Improvement and Maintenance Agreement with The Trail Conservancy for the Holly Project. The agreement includes a maximum amount of funding of $889,000.00 that the Parks and Recreation Department will allocate to The Trail Conservancy for the construction of the project. (PARD Long Range Strategies: Relief from Urban Life, Urban Public Spaces, Park Access for All.)]
UH, YES, CHAIR.WE HAVE A, A FEW SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM SEVEN.
UM, PHILIP THOMAS WILL SPEAK FIRST, UM, FOLLOWED BY BERTHA RENDON DELGADO.
GOOD EVENING BOARD MEMBERS CHAIR.
I, UH, RESIDENT OF DISTRICT THREE IN THE HOLLY PLANNING AREA, LIVING A STONES THOROUGH FROM MUCH OF, UH, MANY OF THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT, UH, AND THE CHANGES THAT ARE GONNA BE MADE BY THE TRAILS CONSERVANCY GOING FORWARD.
UM, AS A VETERAN OF THE PLANNING COMMITTEE THAT HELPED CONCEIVE AND DRAFT THE, UH, 2014 HOLLY SHORES EDWARD RENDON SENIOR MASTER VISION PLAN, I HAVE TO SAY THAT, UM, WHAT TRAILS CONSERVANCY IS PROPOSING, AND IT IS, IS IN THE MIDDLE OF DOING, FITS THE FRAMEWORK THAT WAS CONCEIVED AND ADOPTED BY COUNCIL BACK IN 2014, AND IS WITHIN THE SPIRIT OF WHAT THE STAKEHOLDERS WORKED SO HARD TO CRAFT WITH THE COMMITTEE AND WITH PARKS AND WITH THE, THE REST OF THE CITY.
UH, SEVERAL STAKEHOLDERS HAVE MENTIONED TO ME THE QUESTION, UH, OF THE $45,000, UH, BUDGET ITEM FOR PERMITTING OF A BOAT DOCK.
UM, BACK IN 2013 AND 2014, DURING A LOT OF NEGOTIATION, UM, A BOAT DOCK WAS, UH, OPPOSED BY THE, BY THE MAJORITY OF THE STAKEHOLDERS AT THE TIME.
SO THEY HAVE, UH, VOICED THEIR OPINION THAT THEY ARE, THEY WANT TO KNOW WHERE A PERMITTED BOAT DOCK MIGHT BE PLACED, BECAUSE IF ONE GOES BACK TO THE 2014 COUNCIL APPROVED MASTER PLAN, THERE WAS NO BOAT DOCK IN THE LAGOON.
AND THE LAGOON IS MY AREA OF CONCERN.
AND SEVERAL OTHER STAKEHOLDERS AS WELL.
UH, THERE WAS A BEACH PROPOSED AND A BOAT DOCK FOR THE LAGOON.
AND THE COMMUNITY, UH, WAS VOCIFEROUS IN THEIR OPPOSITION OF, OF BOTH OF THOSE BECAUSE OF THE DANGEROUS NATURE OF WHAT'S UNDERWATER IN THE LAGOON, FOR SURE.
UH, SO THAT WOULD BE, UH, THE STAKEHOLDER'S QUESTION IS, UH, WHERE DOES THE TRAILS CONSERVANCY THINK THEY'RE GOING TO, UH, PUT A, UH, BOAT DOCK IF THE PERMIT IS GRANTED?
[01:35:01]
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR SERVICE.I DON'T, OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS BERTHA RONE DELGADO.
BERTHA REON DELGADO HERE, PRESIDENT OF EAST TOWN LAKE CITIZENS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, AND FORMER PARK CHAIR OF THE EDWARD RONE HOLLY SHERIFF'S MASTER PINE COMMITTEE, UH, THAT WAS TAKING PLACE, UH, IN THE YEARS OF, UH, 2012 TO 2014.
UM, I DO RESPECT, UH, THE NONPROFIT TRAILS, UH, FOUNDATION, FORMER FOUNDATION NOW CONSERVANCY, AS WELL AS THE PROJECT, UH, THAT'S BEING CURRENTLY DISCUSSED.
THE FUNDING IS WHERE I'M IN OPPOSITION AS WELL AS THE ITEM THAT'S BEING, UM, UM, ALLOCATED TO A BOAT DOCK.
UM, JUST LIKE MR. THOMAS HAS EXPRESSED, UH, WE, UM, AS THEIR STAKEHOLDERS AND, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS, ACTIVISTS AND ADVOCATES WHO PRESERVED THIS, UH, MASTER PLAN IN THIS PARK.
UH, WE WERE NOT IN NO AGREEMENT OF ANY BOAT DOCK, ESPECIALLY OF $45,000 THAT'S BEING ALLOCATED.
UM, ALSO THE FUNDING THAT'S BEING ALLOCATED TO THE TRAILS, UH, ALSO BROUGHT A RED FLAG, UM, BECAUSE THE ASSOCIATION, UH, WAS NOT NOTIFIED THAT THIS WAS COMING TO PARKS FOR AN APPROVAL.
AND MOVING TOWARDS COUNCIL IS A BREACH OF CONTRACT AND AN AGREEMENT THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT AND KIMBERLY, THE DIRECTOR, HAS MADE WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
GOING BACK TO 2014 AT CITY COUNCIL, UH, WHEN THIS PLAN WAS ADOPTED, UH, THERE IS A RESOLUTION THERE.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE STILL HAVE YET, UH, TO GET THIS DAIS TO BRING, UH, THE EDWARD RENDON HOLLY SHIRTS MASTER PLAN THAT WAS ADOPTED, UH, OVER 11 YEARS AGO TO BE BROUGHT TO YOUR ATTENTION.
NOT THE UPDATES THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE WITHIN THE DECADE, BUT THE AGREEMENTS AND THE RESOLUTIONS THAT WERE ADOPTED AND AGREED UPON OVER A DECADE AGO.
I SEE TODAY THAT'S NOT BEING HONORED BY YOUR PARKS DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP.
KIMBERLY, AS WE ARE NOT AWARE THAT THIS WAS ON THE AGENDA FOR TODAY, UH, THE LACK OF COMMUNICATION FROM YOUR PARKS LEADER AND DEPARTMENT IS A FAILURE OF, UM, YOU KNOW, ABIDING BY WHAT HAS ALREADY BEEN ADOPTED AND DISCUSSED AND AGREED UPON.
THIS IS THE, THE TYPE OF THINGS THAT WE ARE NOT GONNA ACCEPT.
OKAY? AND AS THE D IS HERE, YOU'RE HERE TO OVERSEE THE NEGOTIATIONS BEING MADE.
BUT IF WE, AS A NEIGHBORHOOD AND TAX DOLLAR, OUR TAX DOLLARS AND ANY OF THE PARKS BUDGET MONEY IS BEING ALLOCATED WITHOUT US EVEN KNOWING IS A, A BIG RED FLAG BECAUSE IT FEELS LIKE YOU'RE UNDERMINING THE COMMUNITY.
AND WHAT'S WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY AGREED UPON.
AGAIN, THIS IS NOT, UH, A NEGATIVE TOWARDS CHARLES'S FOUNDATION.
IT'S THE FACT OF THE FACT THAT, UH, THEY'RE NOT BEING TRANSPARENT WITH THE RESIDENTS THERE.
UH, THERE IS NO APPROVAL THAT I WAS NOTIFIED OR THE ASSOCIATION OR ANY STAKEHOLDERS FROM THE PARKS DEPARTMENT THAT A $45,000 BOAT RAMP IS BEING PLACED IN THE LAGOON.
WE ALREADY HAVE A BOAT RAMP EAST OF, UH, THAT, UM, BRIDGE, WHICH IS AT THE NASH HERNANDEZ, UH, SITE RIGHT AT THE END.
SO I HAVE GREAT CONCERNS, I WANT CLARIFICATION, AND I'M HERE, UH, TO SPEAK ON BEHALF OF OUR RESIDENTS AND OUR CONSTITUENTS AND OUR COMMUNITY.
THANK, THANK YOU, MS. MS. DELGADO, CAN YOU PLEASE SAY, BECAUSE I JUST, I I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING IT.
WHAT ARE YOU TALKING, I'M, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT A BOAT DOCK? BECAUSE, SORRY, I DON'T SEE ANYTHING ON THE PRESENTATION OR ON THIS THING ABOUT A BOAT.
'CAUSE I WANNA MAKE SURE I'M UNDERSTANDING YOU CORRECTLY THAT I'M NOT.
UH, IF YOU GO BACK AND YOU LOOK AT, UM, WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED, UH, THERE IS, UM, MONIES THAT IS BEING ALLOCATED TO TRAILS, RIGHT? FOR THE HOLLY PROJECT.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT, WHAT ALL THAT MONEY IS GOING TO? DO YOU HAVE AN ITEMIZED? UM, ANY, ANYTHING IN, IN YOUR BACKUP? 'CAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE ANYTHING IN YOUR BACKUP HERE THAT SHOWS WHERE ALL OF THAT $889,000 IS GOING TO, I THINK A BOAT RAMP IS MENTIONED IN THERE.
I JUST WANTED A CLARIFICATION PRESENTATION.
YEAH, IT'S, UH, IT'S, UH, PROBABLY RIGHT THERE.
IS THERE ANY OTHER SPEAKERS? MR. BECK? MR. BECK.
UM, AT THIS TIME THEN WE'LL HEAR FROM, UH, THE PRESENTERS FOR AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN.
I THINK THE OC IS, IF YOU PUT UP SLIDE NUMBER THREE, SORRY.
UM, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US TODAY.
MY NAME IS CHRISTINE CHU KNOLL, AND I'M WITH THE, UH, PARKS DEPARTMENT, AND I AM THE, UH, PROGRAM MANAGER
[01:40:01]
OVER THE COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAM.AND, UM, WE ALSO HAVE WITH US TODAY THE CAPITAL PROJECTS DIRECTOR NICK LOCK, WITH THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
AND WE'RE GONNA BE PRESENTING ON, UH, THE HOLLY PROJECT.
UH, JUST A REMINDER THAT IN 2022, UH, PARKS DEPARTMENT AND THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY EXECUTED THE PARK OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT, PER THE AGREEMENT, TTC MUST ENTER INTO PARKLAND IMPROVEMENT AGREEMENTS WITH PARD FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS AT THE SITE.
TTC MUST, UH, FOLLOW THANK YOU ALL CITY CODE, UM, AND REVIEW REQUIREMENTS.
AND A PARD PROJECT MANAGER IS ASSIGNED TO EVERY TTC PROJECT TO ENSURE, UH, CITY OVERSIGHT AND COMPLIANCE.
UH, THE AG THE AGREEMENT TODAY INCLUDES A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF FUNDING OF 889,000, UH, FROM PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES.
UH, NICK WILL PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE VISION, ENGAGEMENT, AND PROJECT DETAILS.
UH, AS SHE SAID, MY NAME'S NICK BLOCK, THE CAPITAL PROJECTS DIRECTOR AT THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY.
UH, WANTED TO GIVE YOU A BRIEF HISTORY OF THIS PROJECT.
SO YOU'LL SEE HERE THAT THIS IS ALL, UH, COMING FROM THE HOLLY SHORES EDWARD RENDON SENIOR VISION PLAN, UM, COMPLETED IN 2014, ADOPTED IN 2015, I BELIEVE.
UH, AND THE KEYS PARTS OF THIS, UH, PART OF THE VISION PLAN THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IN THIS SMALL PARK OR SMALL CORNER OF THE PARK IS A DA ACCESSIBLE PATHS, UH, IMPROVED PEDESTRIAN AND CYCLE TRAILS.
UM, AND ENHANCING THE LAKE EDGE HABITAT ARE JUST A, A COUPLE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS THAT ARE, UM, DIRECTLY FROM THE VISION PLAN.
YOU'LL SEE THE AERIAL, THAT'S THE EXISTING CONDITIONS, UM, AS WELL AS A VIEW THERE, LOOKING AT THE REALLY NICE EXISTING LIVE OAK TREES, UM, PROVIDING SOME GREAT SHADE, UH, AND THEN VIEWS OUT TO THE LAKE FROM UNDERNEATH.
THE PROJECT STARTED WITH COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ALL THE WAY BACK IN 2019.
UM, THE WHOLE SERIES OF EVENTS, SOME IN-PERSON EVENTS.
UH, WE DID SOME VIRTUAL EVENTS.
UH, WE WERE INTERRUPTED BRIEFLY BY THE PANDEMIC.
I FEEL LIKE A BROKEN RECORD SAYING THAT NOW.
UH, BUT YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE COMMUNITY REALLY LOOKING TO, UH, PROVIDE BETTER ACCESS TO THE WATERFRONT.
UM, THE EXISTING CONDITIONS HAS BEEN LONG USED FOR FISHING FROM THE SHORELINE, BUT, UH, BECAUSE OF THAT USE, IT'S ALSO KIND OF ERODING.
THE SHORELINE IS BECOMING A LITTLE BIT MORE HAZARDOUS.
SO PROVIDING SAFE ACCESS TO THE WATERFRONT, UH, PROVIDING, UH, BETTER LIGHTING IN THE PARK TO MAKE IT SAFER.
UM, AGAIN, NOW YOU'RE SEEING THINGS ABOUT THE EROSION AND SLEEP STEEP SLOPES.
UM, AND THEN ONE OF THE COMMUNITY REQUESTS WAS INCREASING THAT BOAT ACCESS WITH A DOCK OR BOAT RAMP OR FISHING PIER, UM, AND THOSE VIEWS.
AND SO YOU'LL SEE THERE AS WELL THE, THE DIFFERENT GOALS FROM THE DIFFERENT, UH, STAKEHOLDERS, THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND THE WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT AND THE PARKS AND REC DEPARTMENT, TRYING TO, TO BRING ALL THESE DIFFERENT, UH, GOALS TOGETHER THERE, UH, WITH BETTER WATER ACCESS, A DA PATHS LIGHTING, UM, AND NATURAL RESTORATION AND TREE PROTECTION TO THE EXISTING TREES.
THERE, AGAIN, LOOKING AT THE, UH, EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UM, PREDOMINANTLY IN 2019 HERE WITH, UH, BOTH IN PERSON AND ON TRAIL INTERVIEWS.
UH, WE MET WITH LOTS OF DIFFERENT COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDER GROUPS AND, UH, TRIED TO GET AS MUCH FEEDBACK AS POSSIBLE, UM, BECAUSE OF ALL THE HISTORY, OBVIOUSLY WITH THIS BEING, UH, WITHIN THE HOLLY POWERPOINT AREA AS WELL.
AND ULTIMATELY, YOU'LL SEE THE, THE LITTLE CHART THERE THAT'S TALKING ABOUT HOW WELL THE, UH, PLAN ON THE NEXT SLIDE I'LL SHOW YOU, UH, REALLY WORKS TO PRESERVE THE NATURAL CHARACTER OF THE PARK, BUT ALSO PROVIDE, UH, BETTER GATHERING SPACE FOR THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN THIS COMMUNITY.
UM, AND IT'S, IT'S, UH, OUTSTANDING SUPPORT FROM THE COMMUNITY, UH, THROUGH ALL THESE DIFFERENT EVENTS.
SO TO WALK BRIEFLY THROUGH THE FINAL PLAN, UH, IT'S A VERY SUBTLE, UH, IMPROVEMENTS.
YOU'LL SEE THE EXISTING, UH, BUT NEW LAKEFRONT TRAIL THAT PARD FINISHED BACK IN 2022.
THAT'S THE CONCRETE WALK, KIND OF LOOPING AROUND THE EDGE THERE, UH, AS WELL AS THOSE EXISTING LARGE TREES.
UH, JUST TRYING TO IMPROVE THE SOIL UNDERNEATH WITH KIND OF MULCH AND SEEDING AREAS.
AND THEN ALL ALONG THE WATER'S EDGE, TRYING TO IMPROVE THE HABITAT AND, UH, PROVIDE RESTORATION ALONG THE EDGE, PROVIDING A LAWN THAT'S EXISTING, BUT, UH, IMPROVING IT SLIGHTLY, AND THEN BEING ABLE TO MAINTAIN IT MORE.
[01:45:01]
AND THEN THE WALKWAY CONNECTION TO A FISHING PIER.SO THERE, THERE IS NOT A BOAT DOCK, UH, ACCESS TO THE LAGOON FROM THIS POINT.
THIS IS JUST A FISHING PIER THAT WILL HAVE, UH, A DA ACCESS FROM THE TRAIL, AND THEN ACCESS FOR, UH, ACCESSIBLE FISHING FROM THE DOCK ITSELF.
AND THEN YOU'LL SEE A SMALL LITTLE SECONDARY WATER ACCESS POINT THAT REALLY ARRIVED FROM, UH, THE EXTENSIVE PROGRAMMING THAT HAPPENS AT THE COMMUNITY CENTERS HERE.
THE CAMACHO UH, REC CENTER, UH, DOES A LOT OF AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR, UH, AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS TO HAVE KIND OF EDUCATIONAL, UM, EVENTS AND INTERACT WITH THE WATER, BUT NOT, UH, NECESSARILY LAUNCHING ANY BOATS OR ANYTHING FROM THIS PARK.
AND THIS IS JUST A, A BRIEF, UH, LOOK AT KIND OF THE MATERIALS TRYING TO BE, UH, VERY NATURALISTIC WITH EVERYTHING.
UM, USING LOCAL NATIVE, UH, PLANTING AND NATIVE STONE MATERIALS.
UH, YOU'LL SEE A LITTLE SNIPPET OF THE FISHING PIER THERE.
UM, AND AGAIN, THE FRONT WHOLE FRONT RAIL IS DROPPED TO PROVIDE ACCESSIBLE, UH, FISHING OPPORTUNITIES, UM, AS WELL.
AND THEN TRYING TO ENHANCE AND PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SEATING, UM, BOTH ON THE FISHING PIER AND ON UNDERNEATH ALL THE NICE SHADE TREES IN THE PARK AS WELL.
SO THE, UM, THE RECOMMENDATION TODAY WE'RE ASKING IS TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL TO APPROVE THE NEGOTIATION EXECUTION OF A PARKLAND IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT WITH THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY FOR THE HOLLY PROJECT.
THIS AGREEMENT INCLUDES A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF FUNDING OF 889,000 THAT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT WILL ALLOCATE TO THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT.
AND DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, BOARD MEMBERS? I'LL NOW OPEN IT UP TO QUESTIONS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN.
UM, YEAH, CAN YOU ADDRESS, UM, THE COMMUNITY'S ISSUE WITH THE $45,000 THAT'S BEING SPENT ON THE, ON, UH, ON A BOAT DOCK? OR IS THIS, IS IT A BOAT DOCK OR IS IT THE FISHING PIER THAT'S BEING REFERRED TO FISHING? YEAH.
I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH, UH, THE $45,000 BEING, UH, ADDRESSED.
THIS WILL ONLY BE A FISHING PIER THAT WILL NOT BE A BOAT DOCK IN THIS PROJECT, UH, COMING FROM ALL THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
SO THIS IS JUST PART OF THE PROJECT, LIKE THIS IS JUST PART OF, YOU'RE, YOU'RE TACK, IF I'M UNDERSTANDING THIS CORRECTLY, YOU'RE JUST TACKLING THIS IN PIECEMEAL FORMAT.
YOU'RE GOING SECTION BY SECTION.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE THIS ISN'T ADDRESSING THAT WHOLE AREA KNOWN AS THE EDWARD LON HOLLY SHORES PARK, BUT IT'S JUST RATHER A SECTION OF IT THAT'S BEING ADDRESSED.
THIS IS JUST ONE SMALL PIECE OF THE WHOLE VISION PLAN.
UM, BECAUSE THE VISION PLAN, OBVIOUSLY, TO DO THAT ALL IS, IS VERY EXPENSIVE TO DO EVERYTHING THAT'S CALLED OUT IN THAT.
SO WE'RE, THIS IS JUST ONE PIECE OF THAT, UM, THAT WE'RE TACKLING.
AND THEN I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ASK, IS THERE A BREAKDOWN OF THE COST EXPENSES FOR THIS PARTICULAR PIECE OF THE PROJECT? WE DO HAVE, UH, THOSE COSTS AS WELL.
UM, I DON'T HAVE EVERYTHING ON HAND, BUT WE DO HAVE, UH, A LITTLE BIT OF A, A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A BREAKDOWN OF WHERE EXPENSES ARE GOING.
AND THEN ONE MORE QUESTION IS, WILL THE, THE $889,000 COVER THE ENTIRE COSTS? IT, IT DOES NOT.
SO THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY, UH, FUNDS OR FUNDRAISERS FOR ALL THE ADDITIONAL COSTS, AND THIS IS ONLY FOR A PORTION OF THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS.
SO WE'RE FUNDING ADDITIONAL CONSTRUCTION COSTS AS WELL AS ALL OF THE SOFT COSTS, WHICH INCLUDES CONSULTANT FEES AND OUR STAFF TIME.
AND, UH, IT ALSO, WE, THE, THAT MONEY DOES NOT INCLUDE, UH, ANY OF THE MAINTENANCE.
SO AS PART OF THE POMA PARK OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT, UH, THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY WILL BE DOING MAINTENANCE ON THIS, UH, AND WE'LL BE FUNDING ALL OF THAT MAINTENANCE FOR OURSELVES.
BECAUSE I SAW ON THE TRAIL CONSERVANCY WEBSITE THAT THERE WAS A BIG FUNDRAISER WHERE OVER $2 MILLION WAS RAISED FOR THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT.
SO AGAIN, THERE'S THE COSTS THAT YOU'RE SEEING 899 ARE ONLY FROM, UH, SOME OF THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS.
THERE'S ADDITIONAL COSTS FOR CONSULTANT FEES AND MAINTENANCE AND ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS THAT ARE ABOVE AND BEYOND.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ANY OTHER, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS?
[01:50:01]
ALRIGHT.WOULD ANYONE LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION? UM, I GOT ONE MORE QUESTION.
SO WE MM-HMM,
MAYBE THIS IS FOR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT.
UM, UH, WAS THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION NOT NOTIFIED ABOUT THE PARKS BOARD? WAS THERE ANY PARTICIPATION OR NOTIFICATION TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION ABOUT THIS PROCESS? BEGINNING FOR APPROVAL, ABOUT TODAY, ABOUT COMING TO THE PARKS BOARD TODAY? OTHER THAN THE, I THINK THE NORMAL, UH, UPDATES THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT PROVIDES, AS WELL AS THE REGULAR COMMUNICATION ON WHAT PARKS BOARD MEETINGS ARE HAVING, I THINK THAT IS WHAT OCCURRED.
BOARD MEMBERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY.
WOULD ANYONE LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION AT THIS TIME? A MOTION? UH, THE PROPOSED MOTION IS TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL TO APPROVE THE NEGOTIATION AND EXECUTION OF A PARKLAND IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT WITH THE TRAIL CONSERV C FOR THE HOLLY PROJECT.
SO WHO SAID WHO SAID IT AND IT WAS ME.
IT WAS, UH, NICK, UH, BOARD MEMBER.
WAS THAT YOU, MS. BOARD MEMBER HAYES.
UH, SO ARE ANY DISCUSSION ON THE, ON THE MOTION? I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SEE KIND OF A BREAKDOWN OF COST BECAUSE OF THE CONCERN OF THE COMMUNITY, UM, ABOUT WHAT'S BEING SPENT ON WHAT.
UM, AND SO I DON'T FEEL LIKE I HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO APPROVE IT RIGHT NOW.
ANY OTHER DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION? ALL RIGHT.
AT THIS TIME I'LL TAKE A VOTE.
UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE.
UH, ON THE, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALL THOSE, UH, OPPOSED TO THE MOTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALL THOSE ABSTAINING, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
AT THIS TIME, IT IS 8 0 1, AND WE WILL BE TAKING A 10 MINUTE RECESS.
UH, WITHOUT OBJECTION, HEARING NONE.
WE'LL TAKE A 10 MINUTE RECESS.
MEMBERS, WE'LL GET STARTED AGAIN.
IT'S NOW 8:11 PM AND I'M GONNA COME BACK FROM THE RECESS.
UM, ARE THERE ANY PRESENTER, IS THERE, IS THERE ANY GENERAL
[8. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve the renewal of the Local Standards of Care for the City Parks and Recreation Department's Youth Recreation Programs (20230413-055). (PARD Long Range Strategies: Program Alignment.) ]
PUBLIC, IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER EIGHT? NO.AND WE'LL HEAR, UM, UH, THE PRESENTER.
I AM, UH, THE DIVISION MANAGER FOR CENTRALIZED PROGRAMS HERE WITH THE PARKS AND INAUGURATION DEPARTMENT HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE LOCAL STANDARDS OF CARE.
UM, THE STATE OF TEXAS HUMAN RESOURCE CODE CHAPTER 42, EXEMPTS MUNICIPALITIES, UM, FROM HAVING CHILDCARE LICENSURE PROVIDED, UM, THAT THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT ANNUALLY ADOPT STANDARDS OF CARE BY ORDINANCE AFTER A PUBLIC HEARING.
THERE'S, UM, THESE ARE SPECIFIC TO PROGRAMS THAT ARE ELEMENTARY AGE, SO AGES FIVE TO 13.
UM, THE ORDINANCE MUST INCLUDE MINIMUM STAFFING AND SUPERVISION RATIOS, AND THAT'S, UM, INCLUSIVE OF AQUATIC AND ADAPTIVE PROGRAMS, MINIMUM STAFF QUALIFICATIONS, MINIMUM FACILITY HEALTH AND SAFETY STANDARDS, MECHANISMS FOR MONITORING AND ENFORCING THE ORDINANCE.
A MEANS AND, UH, AND A MEANS OF DISTRIBUTION.
UM, FURTHER, IS PROVIDED THAT PARENTS BE INFORMED THAT THE PROGRAM IS NOT LICENSED BY THE STATE, AND THAT THE PROGRAM MAY NOT BE ADVERTISED AS A LICENSED CHILDCARE FACILITY.
UH, THE STANDARDS OF CARE, UH, INTENDED TO BE THE MINIMUM STANDARDS.
SO, UM, ONLY THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.
WE TEND TO GO OVER THOSE BY WHICH THE CITY OF AUSTIN WILL OPERATE THE CITY OF YOUTH PROGRAMS. SO I'M HERE TO ASK, UM, A REQUEST THAT THE BOARD RECOMMEND TO THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE RENEWAL OF THE LOCAL STANDARD OF CARE.
AND WE HAVE NOT MADE ANY CHANGES FROM PREVIOUS YEAR.
AND WHEN YOU SAY THE PREVIOUS YEAR.
[01:55:01]
OPEN IT UP TO DISCUSSION.AND I JUST HAVE SOME CLARIFICATION QUESTIONS.
UM, WHEN YOU SAY THERE HASN'T BEEN ANY CHANGES, YOU MEAN TO THE ORDINANCE THAT WAS PASSED BACK IN 2023, CORRECT? IT WAS, IS THE ONE THAT WAS SIGNED BY, UH, MAYOR KIRK WATSON.
THAT WAS MY CLARIFICATION QUESTIONS.
ANY OTHER, UH, QUESTIONS, UH, FOR THE PRESENTER BOARD MEMBERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER EIGHT? I, I HAVE A QUESTION.
HOW MANY, UM, PROGRAMS PARTICIPATE USING THIS STANDARD OF CARE? ALL OF OUR AUSTIN PARKS RECREATION PROGRAMS, UM, THAT ARE SPECIFIC FOR AGE, UM, FIVE TO 13 THAT ARE NOT QUAL, UM, CONSIDERED A DROP IN PROGRAM? OKAY.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? ALRIGHT.
AT THIS TIME, UM, IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO RECOMMEND TO AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL TO APPROVE THE RENEWAL OF THE LOCAL STANDARDS OF CARE FOR THE CITY PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, YOUTH RECREATION PROGRAMS, UH, 2 0 2 0 2 3 0 4 1 3 0 5 5.
I'LL JUST SAY ONE MORE TIME THAT OH, UH, OKAY.
I'M JUST GONNA REPEAT THAT NUMBER AGAIN 'CAUSE I THINK I MESSED THAT UP.
AND THERE'S A MOTION BY BOARD MEMBER BAAN.
FROM BOARD MEMBER, UH, TAYLOR.
AT THIS TIME, ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION? ALRIGHT, I WILL NOW TAKE A VOTE.
ALL THOSE IN, IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALRIGHT, NOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO AGENDA
[9. Presentation, discussion and possible action regarding a recommendation to Austin City Council to approve an ordinance amending City Code relating to the naming and renaming of facilities, features, and properties that are part of the City’s Park system. ]
ITEM NUMBER NINE.ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE? OKAY.
WE HAVE A FEW SPEAKERS ON ITEM NINE.
OUR FIRST SPEAKER IS CHRIS FLORES, FOLLOWED BY JIM ROGERS.
MY NAME IS CHRIS FLORES AND I'M IN DISTRICT 10.
UH, I'M ASKING YOU TO DELAY THE RENAMING RULES IN ORDER TO INVITE MORE PUBLIC COMMENT AND DRAFT THE RULES WITH PUBLIC INPUT.
I THINK OUR PARKS SHOULD HAVE ONLY ONE PERMANENT NAME.
THIS IS MY OPINION, BASED ON GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION LIKE THE SPRINGS DI BETTY AUDITORIUM, SHORES MOPAC PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE.
THERE CAN ALWAYS BE A SIGN EXPRESSING GRATITUDE THAT CAN BE REPLACED EVERY FIVE YEARS SOMEWHERE NEAR THE ENTRANCE.
THAT WAY THERE'S A PERMANENT NAME FOR THINGS DON'T HAVE TO BE RENAMED, AND YOU CAN HONOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO NEED TO BE HONORED.
UM, AND EVERY FIVE YEARS, CLEAR THE SLATE.
I SUGGEST THE CITY END, THE PRACTICE OF SELLING PLAQUE SPACE AND NAMING THINGS AFTER PHILANTHROPISTS.
UNLESS THESE PEOPLE DONATE A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE LAND AND PAY FOR A HUNDRED PERCENT OF THE MAINTENANCE FOREVER.
EVERY PARK SHOULD INCLUDE THE THANK YOU SIGN IN THE, IN MY PROPOSED.
IN PROPORTION TO THE FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION, IT SHOULD EXPLAIN NUMBER ONE, WHO OWNS THE PARK, THE CITIZENS DO, WHO PAID FOR IT? AND THE AMOUNTS CAN BE LISTED IN TAXES AND INTEREST IN BONDS.
OVER 90 YEARS, THE CITIZENS HAVE PAID, WHO MAINTAINS IT? THE CITY OF AUSTIN, THROUGH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, X AMOUNT OF MONEY OVER HOW MANY YEARS WHO CONTRIBUTED TO IT? THAT WOULD BE A GOOD PLACE FOR THE BUTLER FAMILY AND THE AMOUNT THEY CONTRIBUTED SO THAT WHEN I WALK INTO THE PARK, I DON'T GET THE ILLUSION THAT THE TRAIL FOUNDATION OWNS IT, BUT RATHER I OWN IT.
AND THIS IS HOW MUCH ALL THE GENERATIONS BEFORE ME PAID FOR IT.
UM, THAT, THAT WOULD TRULY BE THE KIND OF THANK YOU.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR, UM, FOR, FOR YOUR ATTENTION AND FOR LISTENING TO ME.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS GOING TO BE JIM ROGERS, FOLLOWED BY ALEXANDER STRINGER, MR. CHAIRMAN AND PARK BOARD MEMBERS.
I'M A, UH, DISTRICT EIGHT AUSTIN RESIDENT.
I'M RETIRED PARKS AND RECREATION DIRECTOR, SO I DON'T ENVY ALL OF Y'ALL.
AND KIM BEHIND ME'S JOB MOST OF THE TIME, IT'S GREAT TO BE RETIRED.
I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT, UM, ONE OF THE ITEMS IN THERE AND THAT'S THE, THE, UH, 1 55 C ABOUT THE 25 YEARS.
I HAD A VERY GOOD CONVERSATION WITH, UH, DIRECTOR MCNEELY BEFORE, AND A LOT OF MY CONCERNS, UH, AND, AND, UH, OTHER
[02:00:01]
PROBLEMS THAT I MIGHT'VE HAD WITH THAT WERE ADDRESSED.MY CONCERN STILL IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF THESE FOLKS, UH, THAT I WORKED WITH A LONG TIME AGO THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, DID A FANTASTIC PROFESSIONAL JOB AND SPENT THEIR CAREERS DOING SOME OF THESE THINGS.
I WOULD JUST BE A LITTLE CONCERNED ON THE OTHER SIDE BECAUSE I KNOW SOME OF THE REASONS FOR THE, THE SUGGESTED 25 IS THAT AFTER 25 YEARS, WE FORGET WHO THESE FOLKS ARE IN, IN VIEWING SOME OF THE MINUTES OF YOUR RECENT MEETINGS, I NOTICED THERE WAS DISCUSSION ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE DON'T KNOW WHO THEY ARE AND THAT I, I KNOW THAT, UH, CHAIRMAN YOU HAD HAD SUGGESTED MAYBE THAT WE COMPILE SOMETHING SO THAT FOLKS KNOW WHEN THEY GO BY LNE POINT OR WHERE THEY GO TO, UM, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE OTHER POINTS, THEY KNOW EXACTLY WHERE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
I DO WANT TO COMMENT TOO, APPRECIATE, UH, TIM, I CALLED HIM THREE TIMES ON FRIDAY.
HE ANSWERED HIS PHONE EVERY TIME.
UH, HE'S, HE ANSWERED MY QUESTION TODAY.
SO AGAIN, I DO APPRECIATE BOTH DIRECTOR MCNEELY AND TIM.
GUYS, YOU, YOU MAY BE GOING READY, SIR.
OUR, UH, LAST SPEAKER IS GOING TO BE ALEXANDER STRINGER.
UM, GOOD EVENING BOARD MEMBERS.
I'M HERE SPEAKING IN SUPPORT OF, UM, ITEM NINE AND THE RENAMING OF, UM, CERTAIN PARKS WITHIN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, LET'S FACE FACTS.
WE HAVE TO GET RID OF OUR LEGACY OF RACISM HERE IN THE CITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.
AND, YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M 2% BLACK, OKAY? AND JUST LIKE NIKKI HALEY, I WAS RELENTLESSLY BULLIED BECAUSE OF MY SKIN COLOR.
AND THAT IS WHY WE NEED TO CHANGE THE NAME OF BARTON SPRINGS TO THE HUNTER BIDEN NATURE PRESERVE.
RIGHT NOW, HUNTER BIDEN, HE'S BEING TARGETED AND SHAMED BY MAGA REPUBLICANS FOR CHOOSING TO LIVE AN ALTERNATIVE LIFESTYLE.
AND HUNTER BIDEN, HE SUPPORTS SEX WORKERS AND SPENT OVER A A MILLION DOLLARS ON PROSTITUTES DURING THE DEPTHS OF HIS DRUG ADDICTION.
AND WHILE SEX WORKERS, THEY DESERVE A LIVABLE WAGE.
HUNTER BIDEN ALSO LOVES SMOKING CRACK, AND WE NEED TO DESTIGMATIZE RECREATIONAL DRUG DRUG USE IN ORDER TO CREATE A MORE RACIALLY AND SOCIALLY JUST SOCIETY.
HUNTER BIDEN IS ALSO AN ESTEEMED ARTIST AS LEADERS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD HAVE PAID HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS, IF NOT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FOR HIS PRICELESS ARTWORK.
HUNTER BIDEN IS ALSO THE REASON WHY WE NEED TO STAND WITH UKRAINE AND GO TO WAR WITH RUSSIA IN ORDER TO PROTECT DEMOCRACY ALL OVER THE GLOBE.
FURTHERMORE, IN ORDER FOR US TO TRULY, UM, BECOME PIONEERS IN SOCIAL JUSTICE AND ANTI-RACISM, WE NEED TO REMOVE GEORGE WASHINGTON FROM OUR SCHOOL CURRICULUM IN A ISD AS WELL AS PETITION JOE BIDEN TO ABOLISH THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION BECAUSE OUR COUNTRY WAS FOUNDED ON A LEGACY OF WHITE SUPREMACY.
ANYWAY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MAYOR AND COUNCIL, AND I HOPE YOU TAKE THIS INTO CONSIDERATION.
WE NEED TO ABANDON OUR RACIST LEGACY.
ALRIGHT, THEN WE'RE GONNA, UH, NOW HEAR FROM DIRECTOR MCNEELY.
YOU'LL REMEMBER THAT I, I CAME BEFORE YOU, UM, ASKED, TALKING ABOUT BOTH CHAPTER EIGHT AND CHAPTER 14, AND YOU PREVIOUSLY DID VOTE ON, UM, BOTH OF THOSE.
HOWEVER, SINCE THAT TIME, THERE HAVE BEEN SOME CHANGES TO CHAPTER 14 THAT I BELIEVE WAS APPROPRIATE FOR ME TO COME BACK WITH SOME REVISED LANGUAGE SO THAT YOU WERE ABSOLUTELY AWARE OF THAT AND YOU COULD WEIGH IN ON THIS CONVERSATION.
AND SO THAT'S WHY I'M HERE AGAIN TODAY.
CHAPTER EIGHT HAS REMAINED THE SAME.
SO WE'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT 14 TODAY.
AND YOU MIGHT REMEMBER THAT THE GOALS, THE ORIGINAL GOAL OF REVISING CHAPTER 14, WHICH ENDED UP BEING A REPEAL AND REPLACE, WAS TO TRY TO SIMPLIFY AND IMPROVE UNDERSTANDABILITY THE WAY THAT THE, THE WAY THAT THE ORDINANCE IS CURRENTLY WRITTEN HAS CAUSED MANY INDIVIDUALS, SOME, UM, MISUNDERSTANDING AS TO THE APPLICATION OF THE ORDINANCE OR WHATEVER, EVEN WHATEVER, WHATEVER THEIR OPTIONS ARE TO TRY TO RE RENAME, UM, SOMETHING IF THEY'RE INTERESTED IN DOING THAT.
AND YOU ALSO MIGHT REMEMBER THAT THIS PARTICULAR ORDINANCE BROUGHT FORWARD
[02:05:01]
WAS, UM, BROUGHT FORWARD YOU, BASED UPON THE WORKING GROUP RECOMMENDATIONS FROM FORMER BOARD MEMBER, UH, ANNA DECARLO, WHO ACTUALLY LED THAT WORKING GROUP.AND SO WE ARE IN, WE INCORPORATED HER, HER WORK AND THE WORK OF THAT WORKING GROUP INTO, UM, THIS PARTICULAR ORDINANCE.
SO THERE WAS SOME COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT WAS PART OF THIS PROCESS.
SO THE THINGS THAT I'M GONNA POINT OUT TODAY ARE THE THINGS THAT CHANGED FROM THE LAST TIME THAT WE HAD A CONVERSATION.
SO ONE THING THAT CHANGED IS THAT IN, IN 14 DASH 1 51, WE REMOVED THE DEFINITION OF PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER.
AND THE REASON WHY WE DID THAT IS BECAUSE THE WAY THAT THE, UM, THAT THE ORDINANCE READ IS THAT SOMEONE BY THE TITLE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER WAS TO BE THE INDIVIDUAL CONDUCTING MOST OF THE PROCESSING, THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND THOSE SUCH THINGS.
WE DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER.
AND SO WE DIDN'T WANT TO CONFUSE THE PUBLIC BY NAMING A PARTICULAR PERSON AND THEN HAVING THERE BE THIS, UM, WILLINGNESS OR THIS THOUGHT THAT WE HAD TO DO THE LETTER OF THE LETTER OF THE ORDINANCE, AND THAT WE WERE SOMEHOW BEING NON-TRANSPARENT BY NOT USING A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER.
SO AFTER DISCUSSING THAT, WE SAID, HEY, IT WAS PROBABLY BEST JUST TO REMOVE THAT DEFINITION AND THAT ALL THE PROCESSES WILL HAPPEN, BUT THEY COULD HAPPEN BY ANY GIVEN INDIVIDUAL WITHIN OUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, DEPENDING UPON WHO'S ASSIGNED.
SO OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPECIALISTS, MAYBE OUR PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, PERHAPS A PROJECT MANAGER, SOMEONE OF THAT NATURE.
UM, WE ALSO RENAMED THIS, SO IT USED TO JUST BE CALLED THE NAMING POLICY.
SO 14 DASH 1 55 IN THE ORIGINAL ORDINANCE THAT I PROVIDED TO YOU FOR THE REPLACE REPEAL AND REPLACE, WE JUST NAMED IT THE NAMING POLICY, BUT WE THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO BE MORE SPECIFIC AND TALK ABOUT THIS BEING THE NAMING AND RENAMING POLICY.
SO INDIVIDUALS REALIZED THAT THE SAME RULES APPLIED WHETHER YOU WERE NAMING SOMETHING AT A GIVEN TIME OR WHETHER YOU WERE TRYING TO RENAME SOMETHING.
SO AGAIN, TRYING VERY HARD TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE BEING VERY SPECIFIC AND, UM, EXPLICIT.
UH, WE ALSO CHANGED ONE DA, I'M SORRY, 14 DASH 1 55.
A PUBLIC RECREATION AREA MAY NOT BE RENAMED FOR A PERIOD OF 25 YEARS FROM THE DATE THE COUNSEL APPROVES A NAMING OR RENAMING UNDER THIS ARTICLE, UNLESS THE COUNSEL APPROVES A RESOLUTION INITIATING A RENAMING OF A PUBLIC RECREATION AREA BEFORE THE 25 YEAR PERIOD.
SO THIS WAS WHAT OUR SPEAKER SPOKE TO.
UM, MR. ROBINSON, HE SPOKE TO THIS BECAUSE, UH, HE BROUGHT UP A VERY GOOD POINT SAYING THAT THERE ARE CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE HAD THINGS NAMED AFTER THEM THAT, UM, WE MIGHT NOT REMEMBER.
THERE'S ALSO COMMUNITY THOUGHT THAT, WELL, WE RENAMED SOMETHING TWO YEARS AGO, BUT I DIDN'T REALLY LIKE THAT PROCESS AND I WASN'T, I DIDN'T REALLY FEEL LIKE THAT WAS THE APPROPRIATE NAME.
AND SO I'D LIKE TO BRING FORWARD A RENAMING OF THAT EXACT, THAT EXACT SPACE, UH, IN, IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
SO IN CHOOSING 25 YEARS, THAT'S HALFWAY TO IT BEING HISTORICAL.
WE WERE TRYING TO, UM, THE LAW DEPARTMENT AND I WERE JUST TRYING TO BE ABLE TO PUT SOME GUARDRAILS ON, OR SOME, SOME GUIDELINES ON RENAMING SO THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE ONE OR THE OTHER THING HAPPEN.
IT IS NOT OUR INTENTION TO NOT HONOR THE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAD BEEN RENAMED 25 YEARS AGO.
BUT IT'S ALSO OUR INTENTION TO TRY AND KEEP FROM, UM, COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO WERE DISTRESSED BY A PARTICULAR PROCESS OR JUST SIMPLY DON'T AGREE WITH THE PARTICULAR PROCESS FROM TRYING TO RENAME SOMETHING, UH, WITHIN A CERTAIN, A SMALL AMOUNT OF TIME THAT WE JUST DID THAT, IF I'M COMPLETELY HONEST WITH YOU, WHICH I'M TRYING TO BE RENAMING IS ALSO A HUGE STRAIN ON OUR STAFF RESOURCES.
SO TRYING TO, UM, BE ABLE TO FACILITATE RENAMING OVER AND OVER AGAIN OF A, OF THE SAME SPACE JUST BECOMES VERY CUMBERSOME AND, AND TAXING ON OUR RESOURCES.
25 YEARS, AGAIN, WAS THE REASON WHY WE PICKED 25 IS 'CAUSE IT WAS HALFWAY TO SOMETHING BEING HISTORICAL.
SO WE THOUGHT LIKE 25 YEARS WAS A, UM, A LONG TIME, UH, THAT YOU COULDN'T EVEN ADDRESS IT IF, IF IT HADN'T BEEN 25 YEARS OLD.
THERE'S NOTHING MAGIC ABOUT THE NUMBER, BUT THAT'S THE NUMBER THAT WE SELECTED AND THAT'S THE RATIONALE FOR WHY WE CHOSE 25.
SO THAT'S CERTAINLY FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
UM, IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION DIFFERENT THAN THAT, IT'S CERTAINLY WITHIN YOUR PREROGATIVE AND AUTHORITY TO DO SO.
THE OTHER THING THAT WE CHANGED, UM, WAS WITH, UH, 14 1 57.
WE ADDED THAT LINE THAT I PUT IN GREEN THERE.
SO ORIGINALLY IT SAID COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
[02:10:02]
DISAGGREGATE ENGAGEMENT FEEDBACK TO COMPARE DISTRICT BASED FEEDBACK TO THE TOTAL COMMUNITY.AND WE ALSO THOUGHT IT WAS IMPORTANT BASED UPON SOME FEEDBACK THAT I RECEIVED AFTER I GAVE THIS PRESENTATION TO CONSIDER RACIAL, ETHNIC, GENDER AND ECONOMIC DISPARITIES.
AND SO WE ADDED THAT INFORMATION BECAUSE WHEN WE ARE SAYING THAT WE'RE GONNA DISAGGREGATE THE INFORMATION FOR GIVEN AREAS, PART OF THE REASON WHY WE'RE DOING THAT IS TO CONSIDER RACIAL, ETHNIC, GENDER AND ECONOMIC DISPARITIES.
SO WE JUST ADD THAT TO BE MORE EXPLICIT.
IN 14 DASH 1 47, WE ALSO ADDED A NEW, WE HAD THIS IN HERE FOR CLARITY BECAUSE IT WASN'T THE WAY THAT IT READ PREVIOUSLY.
YOU COULDN'T TELL IF WE WERE SUPPOSED TO, WHEN THE 90 DAYS ACTUALLY STARTED FOR SOMEBODY TO CONSIDER A RENAMING.
SO FOR A NEWLY CONSTRUCTED PUBLIC RECREATION AREA OR PARK FEATURE, THE DEADLINE TO SUBMIT NOMINATIONS MUST BE 90 DAYS BEFORE THE DATE OF THE FIRST COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITY.
AND SO WE WERE JUST TRYING TO PUT A TIMEFRAME ON IT BECAUSE WE JUST SAID 90 DAYS, BUT WE DIDN'T SAY 90 DAYS FROM WHAT.
AND THAT DIDN'T GIVE INDIVIDUALS CLARITY AS TO WHEN IT WAS THAT THEY WOULD WANT TO, THAT PUT IN THEIR, UM, THEIR NAMING, UH, APPLICATION.
LASTLY, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD A DISCUSSION ABOUT 14 DASH 1 52.
THIS WAS AN ITEM THAT THE PARKS BOARD ORIGINALLY RECOMMENDED THE FIRST TIME AROUND YOU RECOMMENDED JUST TO ELIMINATE THIS PARTICULAR LINE.
UM, THIS PARTICULAR, IT WAS IT'S LINE 73 THROUGH 75 OF THE RE REPLACEMENT ORDINANCE, AND YOU HAD SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT IT.
AND ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS SHARE INFORMATION WITH YOU FROM MY CONVERSATION WITH THE EQUITY OFFICE RELATED TO THIS SO THAT YOU COULD USE THAT INFORMATION IN YOUR CONSIDERATION OF HOW YOU MIGHT WANT TO, UM, PROCEED TONIGHT.
SO I SPECIFICALLY ASKED THE EQUITY OFFICE ABOUT THE CONFEDERACY, THE WORD CONFEDERACY, AND THEY DID EXPLAIN THAT.
WELL, CONFEDERACY IS REALLY ABOUT BEING AN ALLY OF INDIVIDUALS WHO, WHO WERE IN FAVOR OF THE CONFEDERACY.
AND THE CONFEDERACY IS GENERALLY THOUGHT OF AS THE FOLKS WHO SUPPORTED, OR DURING THAT TIME PERIOD SUPPORTED, UH, ENSLAVING INDIVIDUALS.
AND SO IF THAT'S ALL THAT WE WERE CONCERNED ABOUT IS NOT NAMING THINGS AFTER INDIVIDUALS WHO WERE ENSLAVED, WHICH WAS THE 2017 RESOLUTION THAT I ORIGINALLY REFERENCED, THAT THE EQUITY OFFICE DID A REVIEW OF ALL THE NAMING.
THEY DID IT JUST BASED UPON CONFEDERACY.
WHAT I DIDN'T, UM, SHARE, AND WHAT I WANT TO SHARE TONIGHT IS, IS THAT IN 2020, THERE WAS ANOTHER RESOLUTION THAT THE EQUITY OFFICE RECEIVED.
AND THAT RESOLUTION TOOK A LITTLE BIT MORE BROAD LOOK AT THE NAMING OF, UH, THE DIFFERENT STREET NAMES AND OR BUILDINGS WITHIN AUSTIN.
AND THEY CONSIDERED IT A LITTLE BIT MORE BROADLY AND TOOK A LOOK AT IT UNDER THE UMBRELLA OF WHITE SUPREMACY, CONFEDERACY DISCRIMINATION, RACISM, UM, THE, THE THINGS THAT WOULD HAVE NEGATIVELY IMPACTED A GIVEN POPULATION RATHER THAN NARROWING IT JUST TO THE CONFEDERACY.
AND SO THE ONE THING THAT THE EQUITY OFFICE ADVISED ME, WHAT ABOUT IS THAT IF WE WERE INTERESTED IN NOT JUST FOCUSING ON THE CONFEDERACY, IF THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT YOU ALL WANTED TO CONSIDER, BUT WE WERE INTERESTED IN THINKING ABOUT THINGS MORE BROADLY THAN WE WOULD SAY SOMETHING TO THE NATURE OF HISTORIES TIED TO ENSLAVEMENT, RACISM, AND DISCRIMINATION.
ON THE FLIP SIDE OF THIS BOARD MEMBERS ARE INDIVIDUALS WHO WISH TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE PRESERVING HISTORY THAT 50 YEARS AGO, RIGHT? THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT MAKES SOMETHING HISTORICAL, THAT DECISIONS WERE MADE ABOUT THE NAMING BASED UPON THE THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING IN, IN TIME.
AND THAT THERE MAY BE SOME THINGS THAT ARE, UM, NOT FAVORABLE ABOUT AN INDIVIDUAL, BUT THERE MIGHT BE LOTS OF OTHER THINGS THAT THAT INDIVIDUAL DID THAT WERE, THAT WERE ACTUALLY POSITIVE AND HELPED TO ADVANCE CERTAIN THINGS WITHIN THE CITY.
SO AGAIN, 50 YEARS IS ABOUT, IS ABOUT THE, ABOUT SOMETHING BEING HISTORICAL AND THE CONFEDERACY COULD BE CHANGED TO SOMETHING THAT IS MORE ABOUT, UM, A LITTLE MORE BROAD LANGUAGE, WHICH IS I THINK WHAT YOU ALL WERE TALKING ABOUT THE LAST TIME THAT WE MET.
UM, I'M GIVING YOU THIS INFORMATION.
THIS IS HOW IT'S WRITTEN RIGHT NOW, IS THE WAY THAT IT'S UP THERE.
BUT I'M GIVING YOU THIS INFORMATION FOR CONSIDERATION BECAUSE I KNEW THAT YOU HAD VOTED PREVIOUSLY TO REMOVE THIS.
AND WITH THIS NEW INFORMATION, YOU MIGHT CHOOSE A DIFFERENT DIRECTION, AND IT'S CERTAINLY YOUR PREROGATIVE.
I JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW WHAT THE EQUITY OFFICE HAD SHARED WITH ME WITH THAT.
UM, I'M ASKING THE BOARD TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO CITY COUNCIL TO AMEND THE CITY
[02:15:01]
CODE RELATED TO RENAMING OR NAMING FACILITIES FEATURES AND PROPERTIES THAT ARE PART OF THE CITY'S PARK SYSTEM.AND I'LL LEAVE THAT UP TO QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION WITH THE BOARD.
ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS, DIRECTOR MCNEELY, COULD YOU CLARIFY ON THE 90 DAYS AMENDMENT, WHAT IS I GUESS THE DEFINITION FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITY? SO TYPICALLY, UH, WE, UH, SET OUT A A SCHEDULE, RIGHT? WE SET OUT A, A SCHEDULE THAT SAYS, HEY, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR DEVELOPMENT, THIS PARTICULAR PARK, AND WE LET EVERYBODY KNOW PRIOR TO, UM, THE TIME THAT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT'S GONNA HAPPEN.
SO WE WOULD SAY THAT 90 DAYS BEFORE THAT FIRST MEETING ABOUT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT HAPPENED WOULD BE THE DATE IN WHICH WE WOULD ASK PEOPLE TO SUBMIT A NAMING.
THIS WOULD BE FOR A PARK THAT'S BRAND NEW, OR A PARK THAT'S NOT, NOT, UH, FULLY DEVELOPED 90 DAYS BEFORE WE STARTED THE ENGAGEMENT.
THAT WAY, WHEN WE'RE DOING THE ENGAGEMENT, WE COULD LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT, HEY, THIS IS UNDER CONSIDERATION.
I GUESS HOW WOULD TYPICALLY, HOW WOULD YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE I'M ASSUMING THAT AT A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITY WOULD BE THE FIRST TIME A LOT OF PEOPLE WOULD HEAR ABOUT SOMETHING.
SO I GUESS WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TYPICAL METHODS WHEREBY SOMEONE WOULD LEARN ABOUT THIS, YOU KNOW, POTENTIAL NEW RECREATION AREA, BUT PRIOR TO THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITY, YOU KNOW, IF YOU WANTED TO SUBMIT SOMETHING FOR NAMING, YOU KNOW, HOW WOULD YOU FIND OUT ABOUT 90 DAYS PRIOR TO THIS? UH, WE USUALLY LET INDIVIDUALS KNOW, UH, THAT WE'RE ABOUT TO, UM, THAT WE'RE ABOUT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH AN ENGAGEMENT PROCESS.
BUT I THINK TO THE POINT THAT WOULD BE INCUMBENT UPON THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE TELLING PEOPLE PRIOR TO 90 DAYS OF THE FIRST MEETING THAT IT WOULD HAPPEN.
UM, BUT, BUT TYPICALLY WHAT WE DO IS WE ANNOUNCE IT THROUGH LIFT SERVES.
UH, WE MAKE SURE THAT WE PUT IT IN OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, UH, NEWSLETTERS THAT GO OUT, RIGHT? SO WE LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT ENGAGEMENT IS HAPPENING, BUT I THINK TO THE POINT THAT YOU'RE MAKING BOARD MEMBER, WE WOULD HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DID THAT AT LEAST MORE THAN 90 DAYS PRIOR TO THE FIRST ENGAGEMENT MEETING IF WE WERE TO KEEP 90 DAYS IN HERE.
AND THEN THAT IS TYPICAL, YOU MENTIONED THAT IT GOES OUT IN THE COUNCIL MEMBERS NEWSLETTERS.
THAT'S SOMETHING TYPICALLY THAT THE DEPARTMENT WILL HELP PUSH THROUGH, THEN WE USUALLY LET OUR COUNCIL OFFICES KNOW IT'S REALLY THEIR PREROGATIVE, WHAT THEY PUT IN THEIR NEWSLETTER, BUT THEY'RE OFTEN VERY ACCOMMODATING AND HELP TO GET THAT WORD OUT.
IT'S JUST, IT'S JUST ONE, IT'S JUST ONE METHODOLOGY.
IS THERE A NEED TO DEFINE WHAT A PUBLIC RECREATION AREA IS? IT IT IS DEFINED? IS IT? YES.
DID I MISS IT? DID I MISS IT? LEMME JUST, UM, I CAN FIND IT FOR YOU.
BOARD MEMBER SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO.
SO IT SAYS, FACILITY INCLUDES A BUILDING STRUCTURE OR FACILITY DIRECTLY USED BY THE PUBLIC, BUT DOES NOT INCLUDE, OOPS, THAT'S THE WRONG ONE.
UM, IF YOU GO DOWN TO DEFINITIONS IN THE, UH, BOARD, IT'LL TALK ABOUT INTO THE, UH, 14 DASH 1 51, IF YOU GO TO, UM, SO I APOLOGIZE, IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE, UM, IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE, UM, DEFINED AND I'M, I'M LOSING IT RIGHT NOW.
SO TO YOUR POINT, YES, IT DOES NEED TO BE FIND DEFINED.
A PUBLIC RECREATION OR PARK FEATURE, UH, SHOULD BE DEFINED AND IT SHOULD BE DEFINED IN THE DEFINITIONS, BUT I DON'T SEE IT RIGHT THIS SECOND.
SO THAT WOULD ABSOLUTELY BE SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO BE DEFINED.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? I HAVE A QUESTION.
UM, I UNDERSTAND THE RATIONALE FOR THE 25 YEARS.
UM, WERE THERE ANY OTHER TIME PERIODS THAT Y'ALL CONSIDERED, AND IF SO, JUST THOUGHTS AROUND THAT? YEAH.
THE REASON WHY WE'VE, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE IT COULD BE ANYTHING FROM FIVE YEARS TO, TO 50 YEARS, RIGHT? SO 50 YEARS WAS THE MARK THAT WE WOULD, WE PUT AS A, THAT WE PUT AS THE, THE, THE HISTORICAL, THE HISTORICAL SPACE.
AND SO WE THOUGHT, WELL, IF YOU HAD SOMETHING, IF YOU JUST SPLIT THAT IN HALF, THEN AN INDIVIDUAL COULD BE, COULD HAVE THEIR, UM, THEIR NAME ON SOMETHING FOR HALF THE
[02:20:01]
TIME VERSUS THE SECOND HALF OF SOMETHING, RIGHT? SO WE WERE JUST TRYING TO SPLIT THAT IN HALF SO THAT A GIVEN SPACE COULD BE, UH, NAMED EQUALLY FOR SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE 25 YEARS.HOWEVER, I RECOGNIZED THAT WOULD GIVE SOMEBODY AN OPPORTUNITY AT THE VERY 25TH YEAR BEFORE IT BECOMES HISTORICAL TO RENAME IT TO SOMETHING ELSE.
THAT WAS JUST, THAT WAS THE, THE THOUGHT PROCESS.
SO BASED OFF OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT YOU HAD WITH THE EQUITY OFFICE, DO YOU BELIEVE THAT IN REGARDS TO 14 DASH ONE DASH 52 SUBSECTION F THAT WE SHOULD STILL REMOVE IT OR IT NEEDS TO HAVE SOME ADDITIONS TO IT OR? I I THINK THAT IT IS A PHILOSOPHICAL DISCUSSION, AND I'M HERE TO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION SO THAT THE BOARD CAN MAKE AN EDUCATED RECOMMENDATION.
UM, I THINK SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE HEARD FROM ME BEFORE THAT I, UM, COMMUNITY RENAMING THINGS IS VERY STRESSFUL ON THE COMMUNITY.
AND SO MY ATTEMPT TO BRING FORWARD THIS REPEALED AND REPLACEMENT IS TO TRY AND LESSEN THE STRESS ON THE COMMUNITY.
AND FRANKLY, I DON'T KNOW THAT I CAN DO THAT.
IT'S, IT'S, IT, MY OWN STRESS.
IT'S STRESSFUL FOR, TO EVEN BRING FORWARD CERTAIN LANGUAGES, EVEN THOUGH I THINK THROUGH IT.
AND I THINK IT'S RATIONAL AND LOGICAL THAT ANY GIVEN PERSON IN THE COMMUNITY CAN FIND A REASON WHY THAT SHOULD MAYBE BE DIFFERENT OR HOW IT COULD BE, UM, STRESSFUL TO SOMEONE.
AND SO I DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATION AND REALLY BRINGING FORWARD FOR YOU TONIGHT FOR CONSIDERATION.
UH, THE FACT THAT IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO THINK ABOUT IT.
IF I WERE PRESSED, WHICH I THINK THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO GET ME TO DO, I WOULD FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WITH, UM, WITH BEING ABLE TO LOOK AT SOMETHING THAT TALKS ABOUT THINGS THAT ARE NOT JUST, THAT ARE, ARE HISTORICALLY HAVE HISTORICAL TIES TO THINGS THAT HAVE HARMED THE COMMUNITY.
SO HISTORICAL TIES TO THINGS THAT HARM THE COMMUNITY MIGHT BE SOMETHING THAT GETS US AWAY FROM THE CONFEDERACY AND STILL ALLOWS US TO, UM, CONSIDER THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN NAMED AFTER INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY HAVE INADVERTENTLY OR PURPOSEFULLY CAUSED HARM OR DISTRESS TO OUR COMMUNITY.
THAT REALLY OPENS IT UP BECAUSE OUR, OUR, THE NAMING OF LOTS OF THINGS THAT ARE DEAR, NEAR AND DEAR TO A LOT OF INDIVIDUALS IN OUR COMMUNITY, THERE MIGHT BE SOMETHING ABOUT THAT PERSON THAT, UM, REALLY WAS STRESSFUL TO THE COMMUNITY AT THAT POINT IN TIME, AND THAT THAT PERSON COULD HAVE ALSO DONE A MILLION OTHER THINGS THAT WERE REALLY GOOD.
SO IT'S, IT'S A, IT'S A TOUGH ONE.
I JUST WANTED TO HONOR WHAT OUR, OUR, UM, SPEAKERS HAD SAID AND, AND SAY THAT GROWING UP IN AUSTIN, THINGS WERE NAMED FORMERLY, UM, JUST FOR WHAT THEY WERE.
WE HAD MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM, WE HAD THE TOWN LAKE TRAIL, WE HAD TOWN LAKE.
AND ALTHOUGH I DO, UM, I UNDERSTAND MANY PEOPLE WANT TO HONOR PERSONS WHO HAVE DONE A LOT FOR OUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT AND OUR PARKS AND PUBLIC PARK AREAS, IT'S, UM, IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO PICK ONE NAME FOR SO MANY WHEN, WHEN A A A PARK OR A TRAIL OR WHATEVER IT IS, UM, OR PART OF OUR PARKS DEPARTMENT, SO MANY CONTRIBUTORS HAVE, HAVE HELPED WITH THAT THROUGHOUT THE AGES.
SO I, I DO ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT OUR SPEAKER SAID ABOUT THAT.
AND THAT IS A VERY GOOD POINT.
UM, AND THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT UP.
I, IS THERE A TIME, UH, CONSTRAINT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS DIRECTOR? UH, WE LIKE, IS THERE LIKE A, THE DATE BY WHICH WE, THIS NEEDS THE PASS.
WE HAD PLANNED TO TAKE THIS TO THE, UH, COUNSEL ON FEBRUARY 15TH.
UM, AND BECAUSE I HAD MADE THE CHANGES TO THE LISTENING TO INDIVIDUALS, I THOUGHT IT WAS APPROPRIATE TO BRING IT BACK TO YOU SO THAT YOU COULD, YOU COULD HEAR AND CONSIDER FOR THE 14 ONE DASH
[02:25:01]
ONE DASH 52.UM, I TOTALLY GET WHAT YOU'RE SAYING ABOUT, UM, SAYING, UNLESS THE NAME IS RELATED TO THE CONFEDERACY, AND I KNOW THAT OUR BOARD DISCUSSED, UM, WHAT DOES THAT ACTUALLY MEAN AND WHAT ARE THE TERMS, AND HOW, HOW DO YOU REFINE THAT? AND I THINK YOU'RE, YOU'RE CORRECT IN, IN THINKING ABOUT MAYBE GIVING US A CHANCE TO ADD TO THAT OR BROADEN THAT TO INCLUDE, UM, HARMFUL INDIVIDUALS OR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HARMFUL TO THE COMMUNITY RATHER THAN JUST CONFINING IT TO THAT ONE, UM, TERRIBLE ISSUE.
BUT THEN HOW DO WE, HOW DO WE NOT LEAVE OUT SOMETHING, I GUESS.
SO THAT'S A VERY HARD CONVERSATION AND MAYBE OUR BOARD NEEDS MAYBE A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME TO THINK ABOUT IT.
SO I, I KNOW I BROUGHT THIS UP AND WE SPENT A LOT OF TIME TALKING ABOUT IT LAST TIME.
I, MY CONCERN REMAINS THAT IN LAW AND IN CODE, WHEN SOMETHING IS AMBIGUOUS, IT'S GONNA BE AMBIGUOUS.
AND I THINK BOTH THE CONFEDERACY LANGUAGES, THOUGH YOU CAN DEFINE IT, RIGHT? ANY NUMBER OF WAYS, IT'S NOT DEFINED HERE, RIGHT? AND SO IT HAS AMBIGUITY.
I THINK ANY OTHER LANGUAGE WE MIGHT COME UP WITH WOULD ALSO HAVE THAT AMBIGUITY.
AND SO MY CONCERN STILL STANDS, WHICH IS THAT THE EQUITY OFFICE TODAY MAY DEFINE IT X, Y, Z WAY, BUT THE EQUITY OFFICE IN HOWEVER MANY YEARS OR WHATEVER, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE, PEOPLE INTERPRET THINGS DIFFERENTLY.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE I JUST HAVE THIS SORT OF COGNITIVE DISSONANCE ABOUT THE WHOLE THING.
I DON'T KNOW I'M, THAT I'M EVER GONNA FEEL GOOD ABOUT WHATEVER LANGUAGE WE WOULD PUT THERE.
'CAUSE I DON'T KNOW THAT THE INTERPRET THAT I CAN FEEL CONFIDENT THAT THE INTERPRETATION WOULD BE THE SAME AS OUR INTERPRETATION IN THE INTENT, IF THAT MAKES SENSE.
ONE THING BOARD MEMBERS THAT MIGHT ALSO YOU SHOULD TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION IS THAT IN THIS ORDINANCE, THERE'S NOTHING IN THIS ORDINANCE THAT STOPS THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL AT ANY GIVEN TIME TO, UM, MAKE A DECISION IN, UM, THEY CAN WAIVE THIS ORDINANCE AND, AND DO WHAT WHATEVER IT IS THAT THEY BELIEVE NEEDS TO BE DONE.
AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT HELPS YOU WITH YOUR DECISION MAKING PROCESS OR YOUR RECOMMENDATION, BUT IT, IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT THERE'S NOTHING ABOUT THIS ORDINANCE THAT PRECLUDES THE CITY COUNCIL FROM CREATING A DIFFERENT PROCESS OR MAKING A DIFFERENT DECISION.
EVEN IF THIS ORDINANCE IS IN PLACE, THIS ORDINANCE IS TRYING TO GUIDE OR PUT SOME GUARDRAILS ON HOW WE DO THINGS WHEN THE COM, WHEN SOMETHING IS INITIATED BY THE COMMUNITY, HOWEVER, UM, COUNSEL, IT IS THEIR PREROGATIVE TO, TO CONSIDER THINGS, UM, JUST AS THEY COME UP AND, AND MAKE A, A, A JUDGMENT AT THAT GIVEN TIME.
YOU MISS WELL, YOUR LAST COMMENT.
IF THAT'S THE CASE, MAKE A JUDGMENT AS THINGS COME UP, THEN WE MAYBE COULD SIMPLIFY THIS 14 DASH ONE DASH 52 EVEN FURTHER.
UM, UM, AND MAKE IT REALLY AMBIGUOUS, CATHERINE.
UM, BECAUSE
AND SO IT'S HARD TO PUT GUARDRAILS ON THIS THAT ARE GOING TO MEET, SATISFY EVERYBODY.
UM, I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE SHORTENING WOULD BE, BUT WE COULD LEAVE IT UP TO CASE BY CASE.
I DON'T KNOW SPECIFICALLY BOARD MEMBERS.
IT WOULD BE IN 14 DASH ONE DASH 52 APPLICABILITY AND INTEREST D.
NOTHING IN THIS ARTICLE LIMITS THE COUNCIL'S AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH DIFFERENT CRITERIA AND PROCEDURES FOR NAMING OR RENAMING A PARTICULAR PUBLIC RECREATION AREA OR PARK FEATURE A COUNCIL APPROVE APPROVED RESOLUTION THAT ESTABLISHES THE CRITERIA OR THE PROCEDURE TO NAME OR RENAME A PARTICULAR RECREATION, PUBLIC RECREATION AREA OR PARK FEATURE CONTROLS OVER CONFLICTING PROVISIONS OF THIS ARTICLE.
AND THEN LATER ON IN THE ARTICLE, IT SAYS THAT, UM, EXCEPT FOR PROVIDED IN SECTION B, WHICH IS ABOUT PARK FEATURES, THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES NAMING AND RENAMING UNDER THIS ARTICLE.
SO IT DOES THE AUTHORITY TO NAME AND RENAME REALLY RESTS WITH OUR, OUR COUNCIL.
IF THAT HELPS, UM, YOU MAKE YOUR DECISION ACCORDING TO THIS, THE WAY THIS IS WRITTEN.
CAN, CAN WE JUST USE THAT SAME LANGUAGE? IT'S ALREADY IN THE, IT'S ALREADY IN THE, AND I WONDER THIS, AND YOU MAY NOT LIKE THIS SUGGESTION, BUT I WONDER IF IT WOULD BE, UH, PRUDENT OF US TO POSTPONE THIS ITEM UNTIL OUR FEBRUARY MEETING, WHICH WOULD THEN CAUSE
[02:30:01]
HOPEFULLY CAUSE A POSTPONEMENT FROM THE FEBRUARY MEETING TO MARCH FOR YOUR PURPOSES, IN ORDER TO POTENTIALLY GET THE EQUITY OFFICE HERE TO TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE IN DEPTH ABOUT WHAT THEY SPOKE TO YOU ABOUT.'CAUSE I THINK THAT THERE'S UN FROM WHAT I'M SENSING, I, OR LEMME JUST SPEAK FOR MYSELF.
THERE'S, UH, I, I FEEL A LITTLE BIT UNCOMFORTABLE WITH THE IDEA OF ELIMINATING, SEEMINGLY ELIMINATING, UM, THIS, UH, SUBSECTION F WHILE AT THE SAME TIME I ALSO FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE WITH MAKING IT SO BROAD THAT ANYONE CAN AT, AT ANY POINT SAY, WELL, I FELT HARMED BY THAT PERSON, OR, UH, THAT THEY THEN, THAT IT CLEARLY APPLIES AND THEN WE'RE LIKE IN A, OR CAUSING EVEN MORE CHAOS FOR, FOR YOUR STAFF.
SO I, I THINK THERE'S LIKE A HAPPY MEDIUM IN THERE, BUT I THINK IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THAT HAPPY MEDIUM, WE HAVE TO MAYBE JUST HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A DISCUSSION WITH THE EQUITY OFFICE AS TO LIKE WHAT IT IS THAT THEY'VE COME UP WITH, WHAT IT IS THAT THEY'VE RESEARCHED, AND HOW IT IS THAT THEY'VE ARRIVED TO CERTAIN CONCLUSIONS IN ORDER FOR US TO MAKE APPROPRIATE RECOMMENDATION ON SUBSECTION F.
'CAUSE I, IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THE ONLY, THE, THE TWO ITEMS OF DISCUSSIONS THAT HAVE COME UP HERE IS THE 25 YEARS, WHICH I THINK YOU'VE RATIONALLY YOU, YOU'VE, YOU'VE RA YOU, YOU'VE RATIONALIZED THAT FOR US.
BUT I THINK, UH, SECTION F IS GIVING PEOPLE HEARTBURN FOR DIFFERENT REASONS AND GIVING PEOPLE DIFFERENT HEARTBURN FOR DIFFERENT REASONS.
SO, UM, SHOW BOARD MEMBERS TWO THINGS.
ONE, UM, YES, WE CAN, WE CAN POSTPONE AND BRING IT BACK.
I, UM, IT'S NOT POSTED ON THE COUNCIL AGENDA JUST YET, SO THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO, UM, WORK THAT TIM OR I WOULD HAVE TO DO TO WITHDRAW AND THEN REPOST.
AND THEN SECONDLY, I CAN CERTAINLY ASK THE EQUITY OFFICE.
AND LASTLY, THERE WAS A RECENT MEMO THAT, UH, THE EQUITY OFFICE, UH, ITS PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION THAT THEY RECENTLY RELEASED, UH, THAT WAS A RESPONSE TO THE RESOLUTION IN 2020.
IT'S A FAIRLY LENGTHY REPORT, BUT I CAN SEND THAT TO ALL OF YOU THAT REALLY TALKS ABOUT NAMING, UH, AND, UM, THE DIFFERENT ASPECTS THAT WE'RE SORT OF SORTING THROUGH HERE THAT YOU MIGHT READ AT YOUR LEISURE BEFORE THE EQUITY OFFICE CAME TO THIS, CAME TO A MEETING TO TALK WITH YOU.
SO THAT MIGHT BE ANOTHER RESOURCE FOR YOU TO LOOK AT.
YEAH, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL.
I MEAN, I WOULD FIND THAT HELPFUL.
I DON'T KNOW HOW THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS FEEL, BUT I WOULD FIND THAT HELPFUL.
UM, BOARD MEMBERS, IS THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION ON THIS AGENDA? ITEM CHAIR? I HAVE OH, I SEE YOUR HAND.
SORRY, MY BOARD MEMBER ON, YES.
I AM JUST CONTINUING TO THINK ABOUT WHAT CATHERINE, UM, BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS MENTIONED, AND I THINK I WAS IN THE SAME CAMP LAST TIME.
AND SO, UM, PERHAPS, AND NOT THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE THE DECISION TODAY, UM, BUT PERHAPS IT IS SOMETHING AROUND, UM, YOU KNOW, THE CONFEDERACY AS CURRENTLY DEFINED BY THE EQUITY OFFICE.
UM, SO THAT IN TIME WE STILL HAVE WHATEVER THE NEW DEFINITION IS, AND SAME WITH OTHER LANGUAGE.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT THEN CAUSES MORE ISSUES, BUT IT, IT WOULD, UM, PERHAPS HELP TO KEEP IT CURRENT.
THAT WAS THE ONLY THING I WANTED TO ADD IN THE, IN THAT BOARD MEMBER BISON, IT WOULD ASSUME THAT AN EQUITY OFFICE ALWAYS EXISTS, RIGHT? RIGHT.
SO, I MEAN, AND I HOPE, I HOPE THAT THAT'S, I'M NOT TRYING TO PREDICT THE FUTURE.
I THOUGHT I THOUGHT THAT THROUGH TOO.
AND SO IT'S JUST, AS MUCH AS WE TRY TO KEEP IT, I GUESS THIS ORDINANCE ASSUMES THAT A PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT ALWAYS EXISTS TOO, SO, YOU KNOW.
UM, I DID HEAR LOUD AND CLEAR THAT WE NEED TO DEFINE OUR PUBLIC RECREATION AREA, WHICH WE WILL ADD TO THIS.
SO WE, WHEN WE COME BACK, WE'LL MAKE SURE WE HAVE THAT.
AND BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN WILL ALSO LOOK INTO THE 90 DAY TO, TO BETTER DEFINE THAT TO, SO THAT WHEN WE COME BACK, WHEN I COME BACK AGAIN, NOT ONLY WILL WE, COULD WE TALK ABOUT THIS WITH THE EQUITY OFFICE, BUT THE, THE OTHER TWO THINGS THAT YOU ALL POINTED OUT, I CAN ENSURE THAT, UM, WE, WE APPROVE UPON.
DO WE NEED A VOTE THEN ON POSTPONE IT OR ARE YOU JUST, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU HAVE VOTED TO POSTPONE.
OKAY, SO I'LL TAKE A VOTE THEN.
I MAKE A MOTION TO POSTPONE AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE UNTIL THE MARCH, UH, SORRY.
FEBRUARY, 2023 MEETING, UM, 2024 BOARD MEETING.
I'M NOT GONNA GO BACK IN TIME.
UH, I, MY MOTION IS TO POSTPONE AGENDA ITEM NUMBER NINE UNTIL THE FEBRUARY, 2024.
IS THERE A SECOND ON THAT MOTION? THERE'S A SECOND FROM BOARD MEMBER HAGMAN.
[02:35:01]
AT THIS TIME I TAKE A VOTE.ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
[10. Approve a recommendation from the Zilker Shuttle Working Group regarding a Transportation Impact Analysis and a Transportation Demand Management / Mobility study for the Zilker Park vicinity. (Sponsors: Hugman, Reed, Becker).]
NOW GO TO, UH, TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 10.AND AT THIS TIME I WILL TURN IT OVER TO, UH, BOARD MEMBERS, HAMAN, REED, AND BECKER.
YEAH, QUICK POINT ON THAT ONE ACTUALLY.
IS THERE ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 10? NONE.
I JUST WANTED TO NOTE, I AM LISTED AS A CO-SPONSOR OF THIS, BUT I ACTUALLY DON'T THINK MY NAME SHOULD BE ON IT BECAUSE ALTHOUGH I WAS ON THE WORKING GROUP, IT WAS REALLY, UM, THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS THAT WERE INVOLVED IN DRAFTING IT.
SO I JUST WANTED TO NOTE THAT FOR THE RECORD.
BOARD MEMBER, BOARD MEMBER HAMAN AND BOARD MEMBER REED, GO AHEAD.
SO OUR RECOMMENDATION IS BASED ON, UM, IN 2022 COUNCIL MEMBER ANNE KITCHEN, UH, AND THE INTERIM CITY MANAGER AT THE TIME, GINA FCA, I BELIEVE IS HER NAME.
UM, IT WANTED A A, A PRETTY MASSIVE TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY STUDY DONE IN ZILKER PARK, REALIZING THE PROBLEMS THEY HAD AT THE TIME, WHICH, UM, WE STILL HAVE NOW.
AND SO WHAT HAPPENED WAS BOTH OF THOSE WOMEN, UH, CHANGED POSITIONS ABOUT THAT TIME AND THE BALL GOT DROPPED.
AND SO WE JUST HAVE GONE BACK TO WHAT THEY WERE ASKING FOR FROM COUNCIL.
UM, AND, UH, WANT, WANT TO GET THAT BALL PICKED BACK UP AND, AND START, YOU KNOW, HAVE COUNCIL DIRECT, UM, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS TO, TO DO THE STUDIES.
UM, TO CONDUCT A TIA, UH, WHICH IS A TRANSPORTATION IMPACT ANALYSIS AND A TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT AND MOBILITY STUDY FOR THE ZILKER PARK BASIS OF OUR RECOMMENDATION.
WOULD YOU LIKE US TO READ IT? UM, SO THERE WAS A QUESTION ABOUT WHETHER IT HAS TO BE READ, UM, THE, JUST SAY THAT IT'S A AS AS POSTED IN BACKUP.
AND THEN, UH, JUST READ THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
SO SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF OUR, UM, ZILKER PARK ZILKER SHUTTLE WORKING GROUP, WHICH WAS HANDLING TRA UH, RESEARCH ON TRANSPORTATION, UM, I MOVE THAT, UM, THE PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD RECOMMEND THAT NUMBER ONE, AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL DIRECT THE TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO CONDUCT A TRANSPORTATION IMPACT ANALYSIS AND A TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT MOBILITY STUDY FOR THE ZILKER PARK VICINITY.
AND THAT THE STUDIES BEGIN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE TO ALLOW EARLY IMPLEMENTATION OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC RE-WORK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR 2024 AND EXTEND SUFFICIENTLY PAST THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION TO ALLOW TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS TO CAPTURE REALISTIC TRANSPORTATION DATA IN ORDER TO MAKE ITERATIVE ADJUSTMENTS AS NECESSARY.
NUMBER TWO, PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD RECOMMENDS AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL REQUEST A BUDGET ALLOCATION FOR THE TRANSPORTATION RELATED STUDIES FOR ZILKER PARK.
AND NUMBER THREE, AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL DIRECT TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS TO IMPLEMENT AN INTERIM TRANSIT SHUTTLE SYSTEM DURING THE TIA AND TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT MOBILITY STUDY THAT ALLOWS VISITORS TO PARK AND HAVE INTERNAL SHUTTLE SERVICE FROM MULTIPLE PARKING LOTS THROUGHOUT ZCO PARK.
AND THAT COUNCIL FUND, THE PROPOSED TRANSIT PROGRAM FULLY AS IT ADDRESSES THE UNUSUAL DEMANDS OF THE SUMMER OF 2024.
AND YOU CAN READ IN THE EARLIER PART OF THE RECOMMENDATION WHAT THOSE DEMANDS ARE.
AND I THINK WE ALL KNOW FROM, UM, PRESENTATIONS ON THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION.
ALRIGHT, THERE'S A MOTION, UH, FOR THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS.
IS THERE A SECOND? THERE'S A SECOND.
UH, FROM BOARD MEMBER HAGMAN AT THIS TIME.
WE'RE GONNA OPEN IT UP TO, UH, DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION, UH, BOARD MEMBERS.
IS THERE ANY DISCUSSION ON THE MOTION ON THE REQUEST? THIS IS BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN ON THE REQUEST TO CONDUCT THE TIA AND THE DEMAND MANAGEMENT STUDY.
[02:40:01]
TALKED ABOUT FUNDING BEFORE, YOU KNOW, AND THE BUDGET FOR THIS YEAR HAS BEEN SET.BUT, UM, I GUESS KIND OF WHAT IS THE FUNDING MECHANISM FOR THESE STUDIES, YOU KNOW, AND WHAT KIND OF TIMELINE ARE WE ANTICIPATING? BECAUSE I THINK IT WILL TAKE SOME TIME TO, YOU KNOW, GET THAT WORK APPROVED, KIND OF SCOPED OUT, COMPLETE THE TIA AND THEN ANALYZE THE RESULTS.
SO, UM, IN TERMS OF TIMEFRAME, YOU KNOW, TO DO ALL OF THAT WORK, HOW DOES THAT RELATE TO, UM, SPECIFICALLY, YOU KNOW, THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION PROJECT? I THINK WE HAVE LOOKED AT THE FACT THAT, UM, THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION WITH THE PARKING LOT BEING CLOSED WOULD HAVE AN IMPACT ON, UM, BEING ABLE TO ACCESS IT AND VISITATION.
BUT I GUESS SPECIFICALLY KIND OF WHAT IS THE TIMEFRAME TO COMPLETE THOSE, YOU KNOW, AND WHERE WOULD THE FUNDING COME FROM? GO AHEAD.
WELL, FUNDING, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE MAKING A RECOMMENDATION AND WE KIND OF THINK THAT THE CITY FIGURES OUT THE FUNDING.
SO WE, WE DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE FUNDING.
WE SIMPLY PICKING UP WHAT ANNE KITCHEN HAD ASKED FOR.
AND, UM, WE DO KNOW THAT THE BATHHOUSE PROJECT IS, IS ESTIMATED TO BE 18 MONTHS.
AND, UH, WE BELIEVE THAT THAT TRANSPORTATION STUDY AND ANALYSIS NEEDS TO, TO GO AT LEAST THAT LONG, UM, TO CAPTURE RELEVANT DATA, UH, BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER IF POSSIBLE.
UM, AND I SHOULD SAY TOO, THAT WE HAVE, OR I HAVE PERSONALLY, UM, BEEN IN TOUCH WITH ANNE KITCHEN AND HAD HAD A FEW CONVERSATIONS WITH HER AND SHE JUST TEXTED ME FIVE MINUTES AGO TO SAY, YOU KNOW, I WISH I COULD HAVE GOTTEN YOU MY, I MY STATEMENT OF SUPPORT IN TIME.
UM, AND THAT SHE IS PLANNING ON, ON CONTACTING, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN ALTER TOMORROW MORNING TO, TO MAKE SURE HE'S GOING TO BE THE CHAMPION ON THIS.
AND SO WE ACTUALLY HAVE HAD A FEW COUNCIL MEMBERS, UM, OFFER TO BE, UH, WELL WE HAVE WON, DEFINITELY MACKENZIE KELLY HAS OFFERED TO BE A CHAMPION ON THE COUNCIL FOR THIS RECOMMENDATION.
AND, UH, WE BELIEVE PAIGE ELLIS WOULD AS WELL.
SO WE DO HAVE THE COUNCIL SUPPORT THAT WAS THERE WHEN, AND KITCHEN AND THE INTERIM CITY MANAGER MADE THIS, UM, REQUEST IN 2022.
IT'S, IT'S SOMETHING THAT EVERYBODY WANTS.
AND SO I YOU'VE GOT A GREAT QUESTION ABOUT FUNDING, JENNIFER.
I DON'T KNOW IS THE ANSWER I CAN ADD TO THAT.
IF YOU LOOK IN THE BACK, UM, THERE ARE, THERE'S A BREAKDOWN OF THE, UM, FUNDING FOR THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION PROJECT AND SOME OF THAT IS COMING FROM THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX.
AND I'D LIKE TO THANK, UM, DIANA PROCTOR, WHO IS ON OUR ZILKER SHUTTLE WORKING GROUP FOR ALL OF HER HARD WORK, UM, DOING RESEARCH FOR US ABOUT THIS.
AND SO IT'S POSSIBLE BECAUSE, UH, THE BASIS FOR NEEDING A TIA AND TRANSPORTATION DEMAND, UM, MOBILITY STUDY IS THAT WE HAVE SO MANY TOURISTS COMING TO BARTON SPRINGS AND ZILKER PARK DURING THE SUMMER, AND WE WOULD EXPECT THAT THAT WILL INCREASE, YOU KNOW, IN THE SUMMER OF 2024 AND 2025, THAT SOME OF THIS FUNDING COULD BE COMING FROM THE HOT FUND IF THE COUNCIL PROPOSES THAT.
OR IT COULD BE BUDGETED THROUGH, UM, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE UP TO THEM, AND I HOPE THAT THE COUNCIL WILL, UM, WILL COME UP WITH A RESOLUTION TO, TO RECOMMEND THIS STUDY.
THESE STUDIES GET STARTED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
AND, UH, ALSO TO ANSWER YOUR OTHER QUESTION, BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN, UM, YES, IT WOULD NEED TO GO BEYOND THE TIME THE STUDIES WOULD NEED TO GO BEYOND THE TIME OF THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION PROJECT BECAUSE THAT'S AN UNUSUAL SITUATION AND IS NOT A TYPICAL INDICATIVE OF WHAT A NORMAL SITUATION IN ZILKER PARK WOULD BE BECAUSE OF THE CLOSING OF THE 140 SPACES IN THAT PARKING LOT THAT ARE IN FRONT OF BARTON SPRINGS CURRENTLY.
SO IT WOULD BEGIN AND THEN WOULD NEED TO GO BEYOND THE REHABILITATION, WHICH I BELIEVE WAS 14 MONTHS.
IT'S PROPOSED BEGINNING THIS MONTH.
I HAVE A QUESTION FOR, UH, WELL, NOT FOR Y'ALL, BUT REALLY IT'S, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S RELATED TO THIS, BUT IT'S A QUESTION FOR, UM, I GUESS ANYONE ON THE 20 24, 20 25 BUDGET WORKING GROUP IS, I KNOW Y'ALL HAVE BEEN WORKING ON SOME STUFF, UM, I'M NOT ASKING Y'ALL TO GIVE AN UPDATE ON THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT I WAS WONDERING HOW THIS TYPE OF, UH, THIS RESOLUTION, UM, OR THIS ASK FITS INTO, UH, WHAT Y'ALL ARE WORKING ON.
'CAUSE I KNOW THAT EVERYTHING'S BEEN ALLOCATED TO 20 FOR THE
[02:45:01]
REMAINDER OF THIS FISCAL YEAR, SO I'M JUST, I'M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT KIND OF LIKE HOW THIS FEEDS INTO THE BROADER STUFF THAT, INTO THE WORK THAT Y'ALL HAVE BEEN DOING.YEAH, SO I CAN PROVIDE JUST A, A BRIEF ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION.
THERE'S MORE TO UPDATE ON THAT GROUP.
BUT GENERALLY I WOULD SAY THIS TYPE OF REQUEST, IF WE WERE LOOKING AT FISCAL YEAR 24, 25, THIS WOULD BE THE TYPE OF THING WE WOULD TALK ABOUT WITHIN THAT WORKING GROUP AND HAVE A CONVERSATION OF WHETHER OR NOT WE WANTED TO PURSUE IT BASED ON WHAT PREVIOUS SORT OF THE FACT THAT THERE'S BEEN PREVIOUS REQUESTS FOR THIS FROM PRIOR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND CITY MANAGERS AND THERE'S SOME DOCUMENTATION.
ALL OF THAT STUFF IS THINGS THAT YOU MIGHT PUT IN FAVOR OF IT.
UM, AND THEN THERE ARE ALSO THINGS TO CONSIDER JUST ABOUT THE BUDGET PRO PROCESS OF THE CITY AND HOW DEPARTMENTS CAN REQUEST FUNDS AND WHAT'S MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED COMING FROM A BOARD RECOMMENDATION WISE.
BUT I GUESS WHAT I WOULD SAY IS, UM, SETTING ASIDE THAT THIS IS A REQUEST THAT SPANS TWO FISCAL YEARS AND WE'RE ALREADY IN A CURRENT FISCAL YEAR THAT IS FUNDED, OF WHICH THIS IS NOT FUNDED, UM, FOR THE 24 25 PART, IT CERTAINLY WOULD BE SOMETHING WE, WE HAVEN'T TALKED ABOUT YET, BUT WE COULD TALK ABOUT AS PART OF THAT WORKING GROUP, UM, BEING PART OF A LARGER REQUEST THAT THE BOARD MIGHT MAKE.
UM, THE TIMELINE FOR THAT WOULD BE MORE LIKE COMING TO THE BOARD IN MARCH, JUST FOR REFERENCE.
AND I CAN GIVE MORE OF AN UPDATE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE GROUP, BUT THAT WOULD BE MY ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION CHAIR.
UH, IF I COULD, IF I COULD TAG ON, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO UNDERSTAND BETTER ABOUT, I MEAN, I'M GE GENERALLY, UM, PRO DOING THIS SORT OF STUDY, BUT I DO HAVE SOME CURRENT CONCERNS ABOUT JUST LIKE UNDERSTANDING THE COST STRUCTURE.
I MEAN, PRESUMABLY THE FACT IT WOULD PROBABLY BE USEFUL TO SPECIFY THAT WE WOULD WANT THIS DONE BY AN INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY SOURCE, A THIRD PARTY SOURCE, OR A THIRD PARTY CONSULTANT, UM, IT'D BE HELPFUL FOR ME AT LEAST TO UNDERSTAND THE COST STRUCTURE BETTER FOR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
ESPECIALLY IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT'S INTENDED TO GO FOR OVER A YEAR.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE UP TO TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS ON HOW THEY FUND THESE STUDIES.
UM, I'M NOT SAYING THAT THIS, THAT WE WOULD RECOMMEND THAT THIS COME OUT OF, UM, PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT FUNDING, BUT RECOMMEND RATHER THAT, YOU KNOW, THE CITY COUNCIL HAVE THAT PART OF WHATEVER THEIR RESOLUTION WOULD BE TO GET THESE STUDIES GOING.
IN OTHER WORDS, WE CAN'T, I I DON'T SEE HOW WE CAN TELL THEM HOW TO FUND THEIR, THEIR TRANSPORTATION STUDIES.
IF YOU GO BACK AND, UM, LOOK AT THE HISTORY WHEN GINA FIAN, DONKA, UH, WAS CITY MANAGER, I THINK THE CITY MANAGER CAN ORDER THINGS LIKE THAT, UH, MIDSTREAM, MID BUDGET, UM, STUDIES OR, UH, ASSETS OR, OR YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A CITY MANAGER AS WELL AS A MAYOR HAS A CERTAIN BUDGET AND, UH, DISCRETIONARY FUNDS.
AND SO WE JUST DON'T FEEL LIKE IT'S OUR PLACE TO WORRY ABOUT IT.
UM, WE CAN'T NECESSARILY CONFORM OUR RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE APPROPRIATE BUDGET CYCLE.
WE JUST WANNA MAKE THE RECOMMENDATION.
AND THEN IT'S OUR JOB TO FOLLOW UP WITH ALL OF OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS SO THAT THEY CAN FOLLOW THE PROCESS WHEN IT, WHEN IT COMES BEFORE COUNCIL.
AND THAT'S HOW SOMETHING GETS PASSED.
UM, AND, AND, AND IT, IT WILL BE UP TO THEM TO FIGURE OUT THE, THE FINANCING AND, AND IT MAY BE THAT JESUS GARZA, OUR CURRENT CITY MANAGER, GETS INVOLVED AND SAYS, YOU KNOW, I WILL DIRECT THIS TRANSPORTATION STUDY.
SO BOARD MEMBERS, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, UM, MS. VAKA, SHE WAS AN ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, JUST SO YOU KNOW.
JUST FOR, AND THEN IT HAS BEEN MY EXPERIENCE THAT WHEN, UM, SOMETHING IS DIRECTED FOR US TO DO THAT ONE OF TWO THINGS HAPPENED.
EITHER IT'S ABSORBED INTO THE BUDGET THAT IT ALREADY EXISTS OR THERE IS A, A BUDGET AMENDMENT THAT OCCURS WHERE THE FUNDING IS FOUND AND THAT MONEY IS THEN INFUSED INTO THE BUDGET FOR THAT TO HAPPEN.
JUST TO, TO GIVE YOU AN WHAT MY EXPERIENCE IS, I'M SURE THOSE ARE NOT THE ONLY WAYS IN WHICH THINGS GET DONE, BUT I'M JUST LETTING YOU KNOW THAT THAT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE THUS FAR.
AND THEN IF YOU READ WHAT ASSISTANT CITY, FORMER ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, UM, GINA FEE AND DACA SAID, SHE SAID, I'M AWARE THAT THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO TIAS AND OTHER TRAFFIC STUDIES RELATED TO AN OFFICE DEVELOPMENT ON TOMI ROAD AND THE NEW DOHERTY ARTS CENTER RESPECTIVELY.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF THOSE WERE DIRECTED, UH, IF THOSE WERE PLANNED FOR IN THE BUDGET FOR AROUND
[02:50:01]
THE DOHERTY ARTS CENTER OR IF THEY WERE JUST ORDERED THROUGH THE CITY.SO I CAN TELL YOU THAT THEY WERE NOT PLANNED FOR IN THE BOND FUNDING THAT WAS APPROPRIATED FOR THE DOHERTY ARTS CENTER PROJECT FROM THE PARKS AND RECREATION.
I WILL RESEARCH WHETHER OR NOT THEY, THEY OCCURRED SO THAT YOU ARE AWARE OF WHATEVER THE RESULTS OF THAT PARTICULAR STUDY WERE.
UH, AND IF I MIGHT JUMP IN AGAIN, I BOARD REMEMBER HAGMAN, I I HEAR YOU ON THE APPROACH YOU'RE TAKING.
I JUST, MY CONCERN IS, SO LIKE I'VE GONE THROUGH THE, I MEAN, YOU ALL HAVE PRESENTED DOCUMENTATION THAT SHOWS THERE'S BEEN INTEREST FROM FORMER COUNCIL MEMBERS IN FIGURING OUT, UM, A SHUTTLE SYSTEM.
OBVIOUSLY THE ZORA PARK VISION PLAN HAD A FULL SORT OF A PROPOSAL FOR HOW A SHUTTLE PLAN, AN INTERNAL SHUTTLE PLAN THAT'S ACTUALLY QUITE SIMILAR TO THE ONE THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING MIGHT POTENTIALLY WORK.
I ALSO DUG UP, UH, RECENTLY, UH, EARLIER TODAY I DUG UP AN OLD SILVER PARK, UH, WORKING GROUP RECOMMENDATION FROM 2018 THAT WAS TALKING ABOUT THE SHUTTLE, SO, UH, UH, OF PUTTING A SHUTTLE TOGETHER.
SO I, I HEAR YOU IN ALL OF THAT, BUT I DO FEEL LIKE MY, I SORT OF FEEL THE OPPOSITE OF YOU, WHICH IS LIKE, I FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, IF THIS IDEA KEEPS COMING UP AND IT KEEPS GOING NOWHERE, THEN I THINK IT'S SORT OF INCUMBENT UPON US NOT TO JUST SORT OF THROW ONE MORE VOICE OF LIKE, OH, THIS REALLY OUGHT TO HAPPEN IN, BUT TO DO THE HOMEWORK TO UNDERSTAND BETTER WHY IT HASN'T HAPPENED BEFORE AND WHAT THE COST STRUCTURE IS, AND IF IT IS THE COST STRUCTURE THAT'S BEEN GETTING IN THE WAY OF IT OR SOMETHING ELSE.
I THINK MY, MY CONCERN IN ALL OF THIS IS JUST LIKE, I FEEL LIKE WE, WE COULD BE DOING MORE HOMEWORK ON SPECIFICALLY ON THE RECOMMENDATION FOR THE SHUTTLE SERVICE, UH, AND NOT JUST SORT OF PASSING IT ON TO COUNCIL, BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE IT'S BEEN WELL ARGUED THAT IT IS SORT OF, UH, BEYOND TIME FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS TO HAPPEN.
I THINK, AGAIN, I THINK THERE WOULD BE SOME VALUE IN TRYING TO BETTER UNDERSTAND, UH, NOT JUST SAY THIS SHOULD HAPPEN, BUT ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND WHY IT HAS NOT HAPPENED UP UNTIL THIS POINT, SORT OF MY OPINION ON THAT TOPIC.
WE DID A LOT OF RESEARCH ON SHUTTLES AND UH, WE PASSED THAT ALONG, UM, SHUTTLE COMPANIES, SHUTTLE PRICES, BUDGETS, UM, AND, AND SO WE DID DO THAT RESEARCH.
ACTUALLY, WHAT WE FOUND OUT YESTERDAY, THE REASON, UH, OUR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SHUTTLES AND TRANSPORTATION ANALYSIS, UM, HAVE NOT MOVED FORWARD IS WE DID NOT COMMUNICATE WITH OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS AND LINE UP, UH, THE FOUR NEEDED COUNCIL MEMBERS.
WHEN WE PASS A RECOMMENDATION, WE HAVE TO HAVE FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT WILL SPONSOR IT, AND ONE OF THEM HAS TO BE A CHAMPION.
THAT'S WHY NONE OF OUR RECOMMENDATIONS HAVE GONE ANYWHERE.
SO THIS TIME WE'RE TRYING TO DO IT RIGHT AND I'VE REACHED OUT, OR WE ALL REACHED OUT TO, YOU KNOW, SOME OF OUR, OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS TODAY TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY WOULD BECOME AN OFFICIAL SPONSOR FOR THIS RECOMMENDATION.
UM, SO COUNCIL HASN'T SEEN OUR PRIOR RECOMMENDATIONS, UNFORTUNATELY.
I WOULD ADD THAT, UM, IN ADDITION TO THE ITEMS THAT ARE OUTLINED IN THE, UM, RECOMMENDATION OR THE RESOLUTION HERE, AND I APPRECIATE ALL OF THE BACKGROUND.
YOU KNOW, IT WAS VERY HELPFUL TO SEE SOME OF THOSE DATES, YOU KNOW, UM, FROM 2022 WHERE YOU LISTED THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, AND WHEN THE TIA A WAS RECOMMENDED, UM, IN ADDITION TO THE FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT ARE NEEDED TO GET THIS IN FRONT, IN FRONT OF CITY COUNCIL, I FEEL LIKE IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO HAVE A MORE DETAILED COST BREAKDOWN OF HOW MUCH THESE STUDIES WOULD COST.
UM, YOU KNOW, KIND OF THE MORE INFORMATION, THE BETTER TO HELP GIVE ALL OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS AND HELP THEM MAKE A DECISION.
I AM CONCERNED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHERE THE MONEY WOULD BE COMING FROM IF IT WOULD BE, UM, YOU KNOW, TAKEN FROM, UH, SOME OTHER PROJECTS.
YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS ITEM THAT WE'RE DISCUSSING AS WELL AS A WHOLE BUNCH OF ITEMS THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT DOES ARE, YOU KNOW, CRITICAL FOR, UM, KIND OF THE FOLKS THAT LIVE HERE, BUT WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BALANCING THE NEEDS FOR EVERYONE AND NOT TAKING FUNDING FROM ANOTHER PROJECT THAT ALSO MIGHT NEED IT.
SO I THINK A DETAILED, UM, ESTIMATE, I DON'T KNOW IF WE CAN, YOU KNOW, AS PART OF THE RECOMMENDATION, SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, CITY COUNCIL SHOULD, UH, DIRECT EITHER THE TRANSPORTATION GROUP OR THE PARKS DEPARTMENT TO WORK WITH A SUB PROBLEM, GET AN ESTIMATE OF THE FEES, YOU KNOW, PARTICULARLY FOR SOMETHING, IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT A SCOPE FOR A TIA, YOU KNOW, WHERE THEY'RE LOOKING AT TRAFFIC, UM, DURING CONSTRUCTION OF THE BATHHOUSE AND THEN, UM, DOING TRAFFIC COUNTS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT AFTER CONSTRUCTION OF THE REHABILITATION IS COMPLETE.
THAT'S A FAIRLY LONG TIMEFRAME.
SO I'M CONCERNED ABOUT, AGAIN, WHAT THE COST WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, IS IT GONNA BE
[02:55:01]
$50,000 TO COMPLETE A REPORT OR, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW, WHATEVER IT IS.AND I THINK HAVING THOSE HARD NUMBERS AND BEING ABLE TO PRESENT THAT MIGHT HELP.
IT'S, I ANSWER WHETHER, YOU KNOW, IT SHOULD BE FUNDED BY PART, IT'S NOT OUR JOB THAT'S GONNA COME FROM THANKS.
SO, UM, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER ANNE KITCHEN WAS FORMERLY THE CHAIR OF THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE AND SHE ASKED FOR A PRESENTA A PRESENTATION FROM AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT ABOUT THAT EXACT SUBJECT.
SO A PRESENTATION ON HOW TO GET A TRANSPORTATION IMPACT ANALYSIS AND TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MOBILITY STUDY DONE AS THE CHAIR OF THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE.
SO THIS WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WHEN THE FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, UM, ARE CO-SPONSORING A RESOLUTION TO DO THIS, THAT WOULD BE A DISCUSSION AND A PRESENTATION GIVEN TO THEM BY TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS AS FAR AS HOW MUCH IT WOULD COST.
AND THEN I IMAGINE THAT THEY WOULD GO INTO DETAIL ABOUT WHERE IT WOULD COME FROM AND HOW THAT THAT COULD BE FUNDED.
SO IT'S, IT WOULD BE REALLY DIFFICULT FOR US TO GET A CLEAR COST BREAKDOWN FROM TRANSPORTATION IN PUBLIC WORKS TO ADD TO THIS RESOLUTION OR THIS RECOMMENDATION RIGHT NOW.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT WOULD HAPPEN AT THE COUNCIL STAGE.
IS THIS, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT PERHAPS, UM, WE CAN HOLD AND VOTE ON NEXT TIME? IT DOES, IT FEELS LIKE THROUGH CONVERSATION.
JUST THE FUNDING PIECE SEEMS TO BE A STICKING POINT, UH, FOR MANY AND WE MAY NOT EVEN HAVE THE VOTES TO, TO MOVE IT FORWARD.
JUST SO I MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND, I'M MAINTAINING YOU CORRECTLY.
YOU'RE SAYING WHAT YOU'RE WANTING TO DO IS JUST, UH, POSTPONE THIS, UM, AGENDA ITEM, UH, TO THE NEXT MEETING? YES.
CAN I, UM, CAN I ASK DIRECTOR MCNEELY A QUESTION ON THAT? UM, SO MY UNDERSTANDING IS WHEN BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MAKE A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL, THEY DON'T GET INTO THE NITTY GRITTY OF, WELL, HOW MUCH IS THIS GOING TO COST? THEY SIMPLY MAKE A RECOMMENDATION THAT SAYS, HEY, WE ARE VOLUNTEERS REPRESENTING THE PUBLIC.
WE THINK THIS WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA.
AND, UH, WE, WE WOULD LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, WORK IN THIS CASE WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT WITH TRANSPORTATION TO SEE THIS TRANSPORTATION STUDY COME ABOUT.
IT SEEMS IN, UH, BYLAWS FOR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT I JUST READ TODAY AND, AND SHARED WITH A COUPLE OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS HERE, UM, THAT WE ARE NOT TASKED WITH THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL.
WE SIMPLY COME UP WITH A CONCEPT THAT MAKES SENSE, THAT WILL HELP THE PUBLIC, THE, THE GREATER GOOD AND, UM, AND SEND THAT TO COUNCIL AND LET COUNCIL FIGURE OUT HOW THE FUNDING WORKS TO ASK A BOARD OR PERMISSION TO COME UP WITH FUNDING.
SEEMS, UM, IT'S, IT'S NOT PART OF WHAT IS WRITTEN IN THE BYLAWS, FIRST OF ALL, ON BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS.
AND IT, IT JUST SEEMS LIKE IT'S ASKING, UM, THAT'S REALLY THE WORK OF STAFF TO FIGURE THAT OUT.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO THAT? UM, I DON'T, I DON'T, I DON'T DISAGREE WITH EVERYTHING THAT YOU'VE SAID.
UM, HOWEVER, I WOULD SAY THAT IF THERE IS A REQUEST FOR, BY WAY OF EXAMPLE, THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT TO PAY FOR SOMETHING AND WE ARE NOT FUNDED FOR IT, THEN THAT MEANS THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE THAT WE DON'T DO, RIGHT? SO THEN WE HAVE TO MAKE THAT DECISION, AND THEN WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE FULLY TRANSPARENT WHEN DIRECTED TO DO SOMETHING.
WHEN COUNSEL DIRECTS US TO DO SOMETHING, WE DO COMMUNICATE WITH THEM THAT IF WE'RE DIRECTED TO DO THAT, IT'S GOING TO COST X AMOUNT OF DOLLARS TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.
AND IF WE'RE DIRECTED TO DO THAT, THEN WE WOULD USUALLY WE EXPLAIN WHAT IT IS THAT WE WOULD NOT DO, OR WHAT, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR, UM, FOR OUR BUDGET, OR WHAT ARE WE GONNA HAVE TO MOVE AROUND OR HOW WILL WE PRIORITIZE THOSE, THOSE QUESTIONS OFTEN COME TO US.
AND SO THERE ARE THINGS THAT ARE UNFUNDED MANDATES, AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT UNFUNDED MANDATES FROM A DEPARTMENT PERSPECTIVE ARE DIFFICULT TO, ARE DIFFICULT TO MANAGE BECAUSE IT MEANS WE HAVE TO MAKE THE TOUGH DECISION ABOUT WHAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO.
SO, UM, TO THE POINT THAT YOU'RE MAKING, YES, SOMETIMES WE RECEIVE RESOLUTIONS WITHOUT FUNDING.
SOMETIMES WE RECEIVE RESOLUTIONS WITH FUNDING.
SOMETIMES RESOLUTIONS WILL SAY, WE WANT YOU TO DO ALL THESE THINGS AND WE WANT, UM,
[03:00:01]
THE FUNDING TO BE, UH, A FUNDING.WE WANT YOU TO COME BACK WITH A REPORT AS TO HOW YOU WOULD FUND THAT BEFORE PROCEEDING, YOU KNOW, A, A RESOLUTION CAN SAY ALMOST ANYTHING THAT WE WANTED TO SAY.
SO WE, WE DO HAVE THE FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS, CURRENT COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT HAVE SAID THEY WILL BE SPONSORS FOR THIS.
AND THEY HAVE ASKED US NOTHING ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO SUGGEST TO BE PAID, YOU KNOW, THAT IT GETS PAID FOR.
AND SO, UH, WE SORT OF LOOK AT THEM AS THE EXPERTS AND THEY SAID, HEY, WE'LL BE YOUR SPONSORS AND IF THERE'S ANY KIND OF CHANGES MADE TONIGHT AT YOUR BOARD MEETING, THEN YOU KNOW, WE WILL REVIEW THAT AND, AND MOST LIKELY CONTINUE BEING YOUR SPONSORS.
THEY DIDN'T ASK US, WHY ARE YOU SENDING A RECOMMENDATION FOR THIS TRANSPORTATION STUDY WITHOUT TELLING THE COUNCIL HOW IT'S GOING TO BE PAID FOR? THAT DIDN'T EVEN COME UP.
AND SO THIS IS, THIS IS JUST SIMPLY US SAYING THE CITY NEEDS TO, TO PAY ATTENTION TO TRANSPORTATION AND MOBILITY IN OUR IN
YEAH, I, I JUST WANNA CLARIFY THAT MY CONCERN IS AROUND WHAT, SIMILAR TO WHAT BOARD FRANKLIN OR BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN BROUGHT UP ABOUT POTENTIALLY TAKING AWAY FROM SOMETHING ELSE THAT WAS ALREADY PLANNED TO BE FUNDED.
AND SO IT'S NOT AROUND ALL THE WORK THAT HAS GONE INTO THIS OR WHETHER IT'S WORTHY OF MOVING FORWARD OR NOT, IT'S AROUND NO LANGUAGE AROUND FUNDING IN ANY WAY.
AND SO IT, THROUGH THIS CONVERSATION, THAT CONCERN HAS COME UP FOR ME.
AND SO I WOULD NOT VOTE TO MOVE THIS FORWARD TODAY IF WE VOTED TODAY.
UH, DID I SEE YOUR HAND UP A BOARD MEMBER KIM TAYLOR? YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO, SO I WANTED TO ASK DIRECTOR NEELY SOMETHING, I WANNA KNOW WHETHER OR NOT SHE CAN JUST GIVE US AN EXAMPLE OF ONE OF THE OTHER TRANSPORTATION STUDIES THAT SHE'S BEEN IN CHARGE OF, OF WHAT ABOUT WHAT THE, THE PRICE WE, SHE QUOTED, SHE NAMED, UM, TWO OF THEM EARLIER.
I THINK DOUGHERTY CENTER WAS ONE OF THEM.
AND I'M JUST, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY COST? SO FOR CLARIFICATION, THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT DOES NOT TYPICALLY PAY FOR TRANSPORTATION STUDIES, AND I AM UNAWARE OF THE COSTS BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT SOMETHING THAT WAS ORIGINALLY PART OF THE PLAN.
AND WHAT I SAID WAS THAT I WOULD RESEARCH TO SEE IF IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED, AND IF IT DID HAPPEN, IT PROBABLY CAME FROM OUR TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT.
SO BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR, I JUST, I DON'T HAVE THE ANSWERS FOR YOU, BUT I WILL RESEARCH TO SEE IF THAT DID HAPPEN.
I'M SURE THAT MY TEAM WOULD KNOW, UH, IF A PROJECT HAD A STUDY LIKE THAT, THAT WE PARTNERED WITH THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT.
BUT I DON'T HAVE THE NUMBERS TONIGHT.
AND I WISH THAT I KNEW, UH, AN ESTIMATE, BUT I REALLY DON'T.
WELL, SO JUST TO CLARIFY THAT MONEY IS NOT COMING OUT OF THE PARKS DEPARTMENT IF, IF, IF THERE IS A STUDY AND THERE IS A RECOMMENDATION FOR THE STUDY, IT YOU HAVEN'T EVER PAID FOR ONE BEFORE, IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? I, I, I COULDN'T TELL YOU.
I SAY THAT WE DIDN'T PAY, WE DID NOT PLAN FOR IT NOR BUDGET FOR IT IN THE DOUGHERTY ART CENTER.
SO IF IT DID HAPPEN, IT EITHER TOOK AWAY FROM THE DOUGHERTY ART CENTER CONSTRUCTION PROJECT, OR IT WAS PAID FOR BY TRANSPORTATION.
BUT I DON'T KNOW THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION.
I WOULD HAVE TO, AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT IT WAS CONDUCTED.
I HAVE TO DO THE RESEARCH TO PROVIDE YOU THAT INFORMATION.
I JUST SIMPLY DON'T KNOW INTIMATELY ENOUGH ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR PROJECT AND WHERE WE'RE AT WITH THE DOHERTY ARTS CENTER.
TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION TONIGHT, IT'S NOT, I'M NOT BEING EVASIVE, BUT I CAN FIND OUT FOR YOU.
AND JUST, JUST, JUST, SORRY, JUST AS A, JUST AS A REMINDER, BOARD MEMBERS, UH, WE DO HAVE A MOTION ON THE FLOOR AND THE MOTION IS TO, UH, PASS THE RESOLUTION AS POSTED IN BACKUP, UM, JUST SO WE DON'T LOSE TRACK.
'CAUSE I KNOW WE STARTED DISCUSSING ABOUT POSTPONING IT, UM, AND OTHER STUFF, AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT LOSING SIGHT OF WHERE WE'RE AT.
SO THAT'S THE MOTION ON THE FLOOR.
IF ANYBODY WANTS TO MAKE A MOTION AN AMENDMENT TO THE MOTION, THEY CAN DO THAT, WHICH THEN I'LL FOLLOW A ARY PROCEDURE ON THAT.
BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHERE WE'RE AT RIGHT NOW.
SO JUST WANTED TO REMIND EVERYONE OF THAT.
JUST WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE.
UM, REGARDING POSTPONING THIS MOTION.
UM, SO I WOULD LIKE TO CALL OUR BOARD'S ATTENTION TO THE FACT THAT, UM, THE PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD RECENTLY PASSED A RECOMMENDATION THAT THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL DIRECT THE TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO DEVELOP A TRANSPORTATION PLAN FOR VISITORS DEPARTMENT SPRINGS DURING THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION CONSTRUCTION.
WE DID PASS THAT WE ALL VOTED ON FOR THAT A, A RECOMMENDATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
AND IF WE POSTPONE GETTING THIS RECOMMENDATION TO THE COUNCIL WITH IT WITH, OR HAVING THE ATTENTION OF FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS NOW WITH THE BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION
[03:05:01]
COMING ON AND CAUSING POTENTIALLY IN THE SUMMER OF 2024, SOME REALLY BAD TRAFFIC ISSUES THAT NEED TO BE AT LEAST STUDIED AND OBSERVED AND DEALT WITH, UM, WE, I FEEL LIKE IT'S GOING TOO LATE, SO POSTPONING IT TO NEXT MONTH TO DISCUSS FINANCING IT, WHICH I DON'T THINK THAT WE'RE IN A POSITION TO MAKE ANY SORT OF RECOMMENDATION ON HOW TO FINANCE TRANSPORTATION IMPACT ANALYSIS STUDIES, UM, IS GOING TO POSSIBLY, WE WILL LOSE OUR COUNCIL SPONSORSHIP AND ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER THAT REALLY IS GOING TO BE A VERY IMMINENT, NEEDING TO BE AT LEAST STUDIED THIS SUMMER.SO I, I HOPE THAT WE CAN PASS SOMETHING TONIGHT TO GET IN FRONT OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS.
ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION BOARD MEMBERS AT THIS TIME? CAN YOU, UM, TELL US AGAIN WHO THE SPONSORS? UM, I REMEMBER THE CHAMPION.
I DON'T REMEMBER THE OTHER SPONSORS THAT YOU MENTIONED.
UM, I MENTIONED THAT ANN CHEN JUST TEXTED ME MOMENTS AGO.
SHE HAS ALREADY TALKED TO RYAN ALTER AND, AND SHE KNOWS THAT HE IS, UM, CONSIDERED ONE OF THE SPON, UH, WE'LL PLAN ON SPONSORING IT.
UM, NOT SURE IF HE WOULD BE THE CHAMPION OR NOT.
WE ARE HOPING THAT, UM, WE, WE FEEL CONFIDENT THAT COUNCIL MEMBER ELLIS WOULD BE THE CHAMPION.
UM, OUR DIANA PROCTOR HAS HAD, UH, A FEW HOURS OF CONVERSATIONS WITH ED SCRUGGS IN PAIGE ELLIS'S OFFICE.
AND, UH, AS RECENTLY AS THIS EVENING, DIANA SHARED WITH US, UH, THE, THE LATEST CORRESPONDENCE THAT ED SAID HE THINKS THAT THERE WON'T BE A PROBLEM WITH HER.
UM, AT THE MINIMUM BEING A, A SPONSOR OF IT AND MAYBE BEING THE CHAMPION.
WE DO HAVE MACKENZIE KELLY WHO HAS SAID SHE WILL ABSOLUTELY BE THE CHAMPION IF PAIGE ELLIS DOES NOT WANT TO BE THE CHAMPION.
UM, AND WHO IS OUR FOURTH PERSON? ALISON, WALTER, ALISON ALTER.
AND YEAH, AND, AND, AND ON THE, ON THE FINANCING, I, I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR, YOUR, THE SENSITIVITY, THE SENTIMENT ON THE FINANCING, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WOULD MOST LIKELY COME OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND IF COUNCIL, IF OUR FOUR SPONSORS ARE EFFECTIVE IN COMMUNICATING TO THEIR FELLOW BOARD MEMBERS, AND EVERYBODY AGREES OF THE, THE URGENCY OF THIS STUDY, GIVEN THE BATHHOUSE REMODEL, AND IT IS DETERMINED THAT TRANSPORTATION DOESN'T, IS NOT ABLE TO, UH, FINANCIALLY COMMIT, THEN THIS KIND OF THING SOMETIMES COMES OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND.
SO WE REALLY DON'T KNOW HOW THEY WOULD FINANCE IT.
BUT AGAIN, IT'S, IF I'M HAPPY TO SEND YOU ALL THE BYLAWS FOR, UH, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AND, AND US DETERMINING A BUDGET AND WHERE THE MONEY WILL COME FROM TO DO A STUDY IS NOT OUR SCOPE OF WORK.
AND SO IF, IF I COULD JUST PREVAIL UPON YOU, UM, MACKENZIE KELLY GAVE ME THESE BYLAWS JUST YESTERDAY AND, AND I WAS ENLIGHTENED TO LEARN SO MUCH.
SO I, I HONESTLY THOUGHT I SHOULD SHARE THAT, SHARE THAT WITH MY ENTIRE PARKS BOARD RIGHT AWAY, BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW THAT ANY OF US HAVE, HAVE READ THIS.
UM, AND SO THERE'S, IT'S, IT OUTLINES OUR SCOPE OF WORK AND MAKING A RECOMMENDATION DOES NOT MEAN WE HAVE TO COME UP AND FIGURE OUT HOW IT'S GOING TO BE AFFORDED OR FINANCED.
BOARD MEMBERS, ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? THERE'S A MOTION ON THE FLOOR.
MOTION ON THE FLOOR IS TO PASS THE RECOMMENDATION AS POSTED IN BACKUP AT THIS TIME.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? SAY, UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALL THOSE OPPOSED SAY WHAT? OKAY, WE HAD FOUR HERE.
WE DON'T HAVE, OKAY, LEMME SAY THIS AGAIN 'CAUSE I DIDN'T SEE EVERYONE VOTE.
ALRIGHT, LEMME DO THIS ONE MORE TIME.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALL THOSE ABSTAINING PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
[03:10:01]
A MOTION AND MY MOTION'S GONNA BE TO, WELL, I, SO OUR WORKING GROUP IS NOT, NOT DISSOLVED.UM, AND SEE HOW AND, AND GET IT TO FIT INTO AND HOPEFULLY GET IT TO FIT INTO THE FRAMEWORK THAT THEY'RE WORKING ON IN ORDER TO GET IT, UH, FUNDED.
YEAH, I, IT'S, UM, IS THERE A SECOND ON MY MOTION? PERSON'S JUST GONNA DIE.
I GUESS, UH, STEPHANIE BEAN, UH, OR BOARD MEMBER HAYES.
OH, I JUST GOT SOMETHING FROM I'LL SECOND OR STEPHANIE ABOUT FINANCING.
BAAN? NO, I HAD A QUESTION IF YOU COULD REPEAT IT, BUT I THINK BOARD MEMBER HAYES HAS SECONDED.
OH WAIT, YOU'D SECOND IS BOARD MEMBER HAYES.
NOW AT THIS TIME I'M GONNA OPEN UP FOR DISCUSSION.
I KNOW BOARD MEMBER HAGMAN, DO YOU HAVE ANY DISCUSSION ITEM? UM, YES.
SO THIS WAS JUST SENT BY DIANA PROCTOR, UH, GIVES US SOME SHEDS, SOME LIGHT ON FINANCING.
THE, UM, QUESTION IS WHO CAN DEVELOP A SCOPE FOR ZILKER PARK TRANSIT SLASH PARKING PLAN AND WHAT WOULD THAT COST? THE ANSWER PART WITH SUPPORT FROM THE AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT CAN DEVELOP THE SCOPE AND WILL BE FOLLOWED BY SOLICITATION THROUGH THE CAPITAL CONTRACTING OFFICE.
FOR A PROFESSIONAL SERVICE AGREEMENT, STANDALONE COST WOULD PROBABLY EXCEED $200,000.
PARD IS CURRENTLY RESEARCHING THE POTENTIAL TO INCORPORATE THE TRAFFIC SLASH PARKING SLASH CONNECTIVITY STUDY IN THE CURRENT SOLICITATION FOR THE BARTON SPRINGS BATHHOUSE ZONE VISION ZONE VISION PLAN.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT REALLY, UM, THIS WAS AN ANSWER THAT PARD HAD GIVEN TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION, UM, ON, ON FINANCING A TRAFFIC STUDY.
SO THANK YOU DIANA, FOR SENDING THAT.
I'M NOT SURE, UM, THAT, THAT'S RELEVANT SINCE I DON'T THINK THAT COUNSEL WOULD BE ASKING PAR TO PAY FOR THIS.
THEY'RE GOING TO BE TALKING TO TRANSPORTATION.
AND SO, PARDON ME FOR INTERJECTING THAT.
ADDITIONALLY, NOW THAT WE'VE MOVED TO THE IDEA OF WORKING WITH THE BUDGET WORKING GROUP, UM, WE DID LAST FALL SPEAK WITH, UM, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR RICARDO SIZ.
AM I CORRECT IN SAYING HE'S AN ASSISTANT DIRECTOR?
AND, AND HE DID GIVE US SOME COST ESTIMATES FOR, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, I'M WRONG.
BOARD MEMBER REED, HE'S A DIVISION MANAGER.
DIVISION MANAGER, RICARDO SOLIS.
AND HE DID GIVE US, UM, SOME COST ESTIMATES FOR SHUTTLES LIKE THE E TRAMS THAT HE THOUGHT WOULD BE REALLY IMPORTANT TO HAVE AS INTERNAL CIRCULATORS IN ZILKER PARK DURING THE REALLY BUSY PQ DAYS TO TRY AND FACILITATE A BETTER PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION WITHIN THE PARK.
AND THOSE, UM, TRAMS, I BELIEVE WE, WE BROUGHT THAT INFORMATION BEFORE THE BOARD, UH, AMOUNTED TO $30,000 A PIECE.
SO IT WAS $60,000 FOR THE TWO SHUTTLES.
ANY OTHER, UH, DISCUSSION OR AGENDA? UH, ANY OTHER DISCUSSION OR QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? THE MOTION ON THE FLOOR IS TO REFER THE RECOMMENDATION TO THE BUDGET WORKING GROUP.
ALL RIGHT, NO FURTHER DISCUSSION.
UM, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND AND KEEP THEM UP.
ALL THOSE OPPOSED, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
ALL THOSE ABSTAINING, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
THERE'S ONE PERSON WHO HASN'T VOTED.
I MISSED MY OPPORTUNITY AT THE BEGINNING.
WHAT ARE YOU, WHAT ARE YOU VOTING? I'M VOTING FOR.
ALRIGHT, THAT MOTION CARRIES 7 0 3.
[03:15:01]
OKAY.BOARD MEMBERS, WE HAVE ABOUT 27 MINUTES LEFT IN THIS, UH, MEETING.
UM, WE ARE NOW GONNA MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER
[11. Staff Briefing on the installation of a sound barrier along I-35 near Festival Beach Food Forrest. Presenter(s): Justin Stewart, Director, Planner Sr., Parks and Recreation Department]
11 AND IF NO ONE'S OPPOSED TO IT, UM, YOU CAN READ, UH, NUMBER 12 AGENDA ITEM ON YOUR OWN.UM, I THINK, UH, MR. BECK SENT THAT OUT SO WE'LL JUST WITHOUT ANY OPPOSITION, WE'LL SKIP AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 12, UH, TODAY.
OKAY, SO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 11, PLEASE.
ANY SPEAKERS ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 11.
ALRIGHT, UH, WHO'S PRESENTING? UH, DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY, WE DIDN'T REALIZE
THIS IS THE STAFF BRIEFING QUESTION.
UH, BOARD MEMBERS, UM, JUSTIN STEWART, THE DEPARTMENT AND THE PLANNER.
AND I'D THANK CLAIRE AND GRACE FOR BEING HERE AND THE
AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO THANK, UH,
UM, JUSTIN STEWART WITH THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
I'M A PLANNER AND I WANT THANK, UH, GRACE AND AND CLAIRE FOR THEIR COMMENTS THEY GAVE EARLIER TODAY AND, UM, FOR BEING HERE.
AND I WANT TO, I WANNA THANK TOMMY AIO WITH, UH, WITH TDOT.
HE'S AN ENGINEER AND A MANAGER FOR THE AUSTIN DISTRICT.
AND, UM, I'M HERE TO GIVE A QUICK BRIEF, UH, BRIEFING ON, UH, THINGS THAT ALL THREE FOLKS, ALL, BOTH PARTIES HERE, INCLUDING MYSELF, HAVE NOW BEEN WORKING ON, WHICH IS, UM, THE OFFER, UH, BY TXDOT TO BUILD A SOUND WALL AT, UH, THE NORTH SHORE OF LADY BIRD LAKE.
UM, IF I, UH, PUSH THIS, DO I, ARE YOU TRYING TO GO TO THE OTHER ONE? YES, SIR.
I'D LIKE TO START WITH THIS ONE, UH, ORIENTATION.
UH, THE, THE, THE CRE, THE COLORADO RIVER IS JUST BELOW US.
AND ESSENTIALLY, UH, WHEN TEXT DOT BUILDS OR REBUILDS BRIDGES, THEY'LL GO OUT THERE AND THE TEST, THE, UH, DECIBEL LEVEL.
AND IF YOU'RE, IF IT'S UNHEALTHY LEVEL, THEY'LL OFFER TO BUILD A WALL OR NOT.
AND, UM, IT BECOMES THE BENEFICIAL, UM, UH, PARTY DECISION WHETHER THEY WANT IT OR NOT.
SO IT'S PARKLAND THAT YOU SEE HERE IN THE HATCHED.
UH, THE GRAPHIC TO THE LEFT SHOWS JUST TWO WALLS ALONG I 35.
THE GRAPHIC TO THE RIGHT SHOWS THREE SEGMENTS OF WALLS, UM, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THANKS TO, UH, CLAIRE AND GRACE, THE FOLK AND THE FOOD FOREST AND THE COMMUNITY GARDEN WHO, WHO REALLY MAINTAIN AND MANAGE THE PARKLAND OVER THERE, UM, THEY'VE GIVEN US THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, UM, GREAT GUIDANCE AS TO, YOU KNOW, WHICH SCENARIO THEY WANTED.
UM, AND WE HAD A CHARETTE, UH, WITH TEXDOT OUT, OUT IN THE GARDEN THERE, UH, TO, TO KIND OF EXPLAIN FURTHER WHAT THE OPTIONS ARE.
AND, UM, UH, THE BRIEFING HERE TODAY IS TO, IS TO LET Y'ALL KNOW THAT LO AND BEHOLD, THE TH THE, THE FIGURE TO THE RIGHT, UH, WAS THE ONE CHOSEN.
AND IF WE COULD GO TO THE OTHER GRAPHIC NOW, PLEASE.
JACKSON, UM, HAS, HAS BEEN CHOSEN.
AND SO BY, BY, UM, YOU KNOW, LISTENING TO OUR CONSTITUENTS HERE THAT, THAT HAVE THEIR HANDS IN THE SOIL MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE, WE, WE ARE ACCEPTING TEXTILE.
WE ARE, WE'RE WANTING TO ACCEPT TEXTILES OFFER FOR A WALL.
AND THIS GRAPHIC IS JUST A LITTLE MORE DETAILED AND IT SHOWS YOU SOME OF THE WORK THAT CLAIRE AND GRACE HAVE DONE IN REGARDS TO THE FURTHEST NORTH OR PAGE RIGHT.
UH, RED LINE NOW, WHICH IS A WALL.
IT SHOWS A JOG AROUND A, A BIG PECAN TREE.
AND TDOT HAS BEEN GRACIOUS ENOUGH TO, UH, KIND OF ADJUST THE WALL INTO THEIR LAND A LITTLE BIT MORE.
SO, UM, THAT IS IN ESSENCE THE, THE MEANING OF, OF THIS BRIEFING IS JUST LETTING Y'ALL KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT OUR INTENTIONS ARE AND THAT THERE'S BEEN A GOOD DISCOURSE OR GOOD, UH, DIALOGUE BETWEEN, UM, THE AGENCIES AND, AND, UH, THE FOLKS PROGRAMMING THIS SPACE AND AS WELL AS, AS THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UM, IF YOU HAVE ANY BOARD MEMBERS ANY QUESTIONS? YEAH, I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
I ASSUME THAT'S, UH, BOARD MEMBER MERIT? YEAH.
I WANNA FOLLOW UP WITH SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT, UM, THE, THAT THE COMMUNITY THAT GRACE AND CLAIRE WERE ASKING DURING THEIR COMMENTS.
UM, SO ONE OF THEM, SO I KNOW THAT THERE'S LIKE SOME AMENITIES THAT THEY'RE REQUESTING THAT THAT HASN'T BEEN RESOLVED YET.
[03:20:01]
SO I WANNA KNOW IF YOU COULD COMMENT ON THAT.AND I THINK ONE OF THEM IS LANDSCAPING IN INFRASTRUCTURE FOR WATER, UM, AND MAINTENANCE AROUND THE, FOR THE PLANTS THAT ARE GONNA BE AROUND THE WALL.
UM, UH, BUT TONIGHT'S BRIEFING IS REALLY JUST TO, JUST TO TALK ABOUT THE PRESENCE OF THE ABSENCE OF THE WALL.
WITH THAT SAID, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I MEET WITH TEX DOT MONTHLY FOR A WHOLE HOST OF ISSUES, UM, AND, AND THIS IS, IS IS NOW ONE OF THEM.
SO, UM, UH, YEAH, THERE'S A LIST OF AMENITIES THAT ARE IN THEIR COMMENTS, AND I, I FIND THEM ADMIRABLE.
AND, UM, I THINK A LOT OF THOSE, UM, MAYBE HAVE TRACTION.
UM, MAYBE A LOT OF 'EM ARE, ARE A LITTLE BIT BEYOND I THINK THE, UM, REALLY WHAT, WHAT THAT AREA MAYBE DESERVES OR WHAT, WHAT SHOULD BE THERE, UH, IN REGARDS TO THE VEGETATION.
YEAH, IF YOU PUT VEGETATION ON A WALL, IT'S, IT'S GONNA NEED TO BE IRRIGATED.
SO, UH, I DO THINK THAT'S A, AN ITEM THAT I, WE CAN CONTINUE TO TALK TO T ABOUT, UM, THAT LARGELY AT A HUNDRED PERCENT DESIGN, BUT WATER, UH, METERS, UM, FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN ARE STILL, UH, KIND OF BEING PLANNED.
AND SO, UM, I WOULD HAVE TO GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT.
UM, WHAT ABOUT WHEN YOU SAID SOME, SOME THINGS ARE LIKE MORE FEASIBLE THAN OTHERS, LIKE THE, WHAT I REMEMBER FROM LIZ IS LIKE WATER FOUNTAIN, BATHROOM, CROSSWALK, BIKE RACKS.
UM, WHAT, WHAT DO YOU THINK IS LIKE MORE FEASIBLE? UM, WELL, I, I DRILLED DOWN A LITTLE BIT AND, AND YOU CALL IT SOME OTHER DEPARTMENTS TO SEE WHAT THEY THOUGHT OF THE AREA, YOU KNOW, UM, PUBLIC WORKS AND TRANSPORTATION.
AND, UM, MAYBE IF WE CAN PUT UP THAT GRAPHIC AGAIN.
THE, THE SECOND ONE, OR YOUR FIRST ONE? MY SECOND ONE, JACKSON.
UM, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I, I PERSONALLY LIKED, YOU KNOW, THE IDEA OF A, OF A MID-BLOCK, UH, CROSSWALK, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT MY AREA OF EXPERTISE AND TRANSPORTATION, YOU KNOW, POINTED OUT THAT IT'S KIND OF AT A CURVE THERE, RIGHT WHERE THE GREEN AND THE BLUE STOPS, SO BASICALLY ON WALLER STREET RIGHT AT THE PEAK OF THAT.
UM, AND SO, UM, YEAH, SO, UM, YOU KNOW, AND THEY, THEY HAD BETTER EXPLANATIONS THAN THAN THAN I HAD, AND THEY OFFERED TO BE HERE TONIGHT, BUT I THOUGHT I COULD REALLY CARRY THEIR MESSAGE, UM, AT LEAST FOR THAT DEPARTMENT.
UM, YOU KNOW, AND, AND THEN A BATHROOM UP THERE, UH, SQUEEZED BETWEEN THE WALL AND THE TRAIL.
I, I MEAN, THERE'S A BATHROOM, JUST A STONE'S THROW SOUTH.
UM, SO I MEAN, THAT'S JUST KIND OF MY GUT REACTION.
UM, WATER'S ALWAYS A GREAT IDEA.
UH, I DON'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, AT THIS POINT, IT'S, UM, UNLESS IT GETS KIND OF, UH, FAST TRACKED INTO T DOTS PLANS, THEN IT BECOMES KIND OF A CHANGE ORDER, UH, YOU KNOW, LATER ON IN THE GAME AND WHO, WHO PAYS FOR IT.
UM, SO I GUESS THAT'S WHAT I MEAN.
I DON'T KNOW HOW, UM, UM, BIKE RACKS WOULD FIT THERE.
YOU KNOW, THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT DID KIND OF EXPRESS THAT, YOU KNOW, AFTER THE WALLS ARE BUILT, WE CAN KIND OF START TO MOVE AROUND IN HERE AND SEE WHAT IS FEASIBLE AND WHAT MAKES SENSE FOR KIND OF PLACEMAKING.
UM, SO AS I, I, I CAN APPRECIATE SOME OF THEIR LISTING OF AMENITIES.
UM, I JUST THINK, UH, SOME OF THEM I THINK ARE MAYBE, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OUTTA PLACE, AND SOME OF THEM WE JUST CAN'T, UH, AGREE TO OR COMMIT TO AT THIS TIME.
BUT WE CAN KEEP TALKING, YOU KNOW, PLANNING IS THIS INTEGRAL KIND OF DISCIPLINE.
SO LITTLE, LITTLE STEPS CAN THEM, CAN PERHAPS, UH, UNCOVER SOME OPPORTUNITIES TO PLACEMAKING.
I MEAN, AGAIN, I REALLY APPRECIATE THEIR SENTIMENT OF A WALL IS GOING UP, LET'S TRY TO GO TOWARDS IT TO OPEN IT UP SOME SO WE'RE NOT, UM, BEHOLDEN TO A, A DIVISIVE, ANOTHER DIVISIVE TYPE OF INFRASTRUCTURE.
SO, UM, JUST DON'T KNOW REALLY WHAT THAT SPACE COULD, COULD WORK AS, OR HOW PEOPLE ARE GONNA NECESSARILY MOVE.
DOESN'T MEAN WE CAN'T GET THERE, BUT, UH, TO TEXT DOT'S KIND OF POSITION, THEY NEEDED TO KNOW AT THIS POINT WHETHER THEY'RE GONNA BUILD IT OR NOT.
AND SO WE'RE HERE TO TELL YOU TO BRIEF YOU THAT THE PARKS DEPARTMENT IS GONNA ACCEPT THEIR OFFER.
AND FOR, FOR ANY DEVELOPMENTS THAT ARE POSSIBLE OR ANY ADDITIONAL AMENITIES, WILL YOU CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE GARDEN AND THE FOOD FOREST? ABSOLUTELY.
UM, I HAVE A, I WONDER YOU, YOU SAID YOU TALKED TO THEM MONTHLY.
[03:25:01]
THERE A WAY THAT YOU CAN SUBMIT AN UPDATE TO US EITHER COMING BACK OR SUBMITTING A WRITTEN UP TO IT UPDATE TO US NEXT MONTH SO THAT WE CAN HAVE KIND OF ONGOING INFORMATION? UM, YEAH, SURE.HOW, HOW, HOW WOULD I DO THAT? JUST A, ANOTHER BRIEFING OR WRITTEN? IS THAT WHAT YOU, EITHER ANOTHER BRIEFING, OR, I'M NOT SURE, DIRECTOR MCNEELY, IS THERE, IS THERE A MECHANISM FOR, FOR THEM TO SUBMIT A WRITTEN BRIEFING TO US? UH, YES.
UH, WE CAN FORWARD AN EMAIL, A WRITTEN, UH, REPORT TO THE BOARD VIA EMAIL.
UM, I HAD A COUPLE, I HAD ONE MORE QUESTION ABOUT TEXT DOT TOO.
I'M NOT SURE IF YOU CAN ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS.
UM, BUT THE QUESTION IS ABOUT THE, I GUESS THERE WAS SOME, UM, THEY DID SOME SOIL SAMPLING AND IT LOOKED LIKE THERE WAS SOME, SOME POTENTIAL LEAD IN THE SOIL AND THEN THEY WERE GONNA DO SOME MORE TESTING.
CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT? I CAN'T TALK ABOUT THAT, AND I WOULD RECOMMEND, UM, I MEAN, I, YEAH, I, I CAN'T SPEAK TO THAT.
UM, IS THAT SOMETHING YOU COULD TALK TO T DOT ABOUT? SURE.
TO GIVE THEM THAT? YEAH, I KNOW IT'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN, UH, VETTED, I GUESS.
SO, UM, THE PROCESS THAT THEY'RE FOLLOWING, FOLLOWING, BUT, UM, IF YOU'D LIKE THAT, UH, RESPONSE FROM THEM IS WHAT YOU YOU'RE ASKING FOR, I COULD, I COULD LOBBY FOR THAT RESPONSE.
UM, IS TOMMY THERE? TOMMY IS HERE.
CAN HE ANSWER? CAN HE ANSWER THE QUESTION? IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO STEP UP? WHO'S TOMMY? WHO'S, WHO'S TOMMY? UH, TOMMY ALGO, THE
AND, UM, THANK YOU HEARD ON THE QUESTION, UH, FROM, UH, UH, BOARD MEMBER MERIT AND ALSO HEARD, UH, CLAIRE IN THE FOOD GARDEN GROUP MENTION THAT QUESTION IN THE BEGINNING.
UM, YOU KNOW, I, I TOO PERSONALLY DID NOT HAVE A RESPONSE FOR YOU, UH, RIGHT NOW, BUT, UM, HEARD ON THE QUESTION SO WE CAN GET WITH OUR STAFF AND, UH, GET BACK WITH, WITH THE GROUP, BUT JUSTIN IS CORRECT.
WE DO, UH, MEET WITH PARD AND, UH, THE FOOD FOREST IS A IMPORTANT STAKEHOLDER ON THE PROJECT THAT, UH, WE HAVE BEEN IN DISCUSSION WITH.
SO YOU, SO YOU GUYS CAN COMMIT TO GIVING AN UPDATE IN BY BEFORE OUR MEETING NEXT MONTH, AND THAT'LL INCLUDE AN UPDATE ON THE SOIL SAMPLING AND AT LEAST IF THEY'RE GONNA DO IT, WHEN THEY'RE GONNA DO IT, AND IF THEY'VE ALREADY DONE IT, WHATEVER THE RESULTS WERE, I CAN DEFINITELY, UH, COME BACK TO OUR STAFF WITH THE QUESTION ABOUT THE SAMPLING TO, TO GET BACK TO YOU.
AND JUST TO, AND JUST TO CONFIRM THAT THE GARDEN FOOD FOREST IS GONNA, IT'S, IS YOU, YOU TALKED ABOUT IT BEING A STAKEHOLDER HERE, TALKING ABOUT IT, THAT Y'ALL ARE, THAT THERE'S A FEEDBACK LOOP DIALOGUE THING GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN Y'ALL AND, UH, THAT AND, AND THE STAKE AND THAT STAKEHOLDER YES.
THAT THAT IS, THAT IS CORRECT.
WE HAVE OUR PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT TEAM THAT, UH, UH, KEEPS IN TOUCH WITH STAKEHOLDERS AND FOOD GARDEN BEING ONE OF THE MANY.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS, JUST SO THAT I MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THE PROJECT, THE SOUND WALL ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF FLORES STREET IS BEING BUILT ON THE CITY'S PROPERTY.
AND I GUESS ARE THESE SOUND WALLS THAT ARE BEING PUT IN PLACE BY TDOT AS A PART OF THE PROJECT? ARE THOSE REQUIRED MITIGATION OR IS THIS SOMETHING KIND OF OPTIONAL AND ADDITIONAL THAT IS BEING PROVIDED BY TDOT? YOU KNOW, IS IT A REQUIREMENT ALREADY FOR MITIGATION OR IS IT AN OPTIONAL ITEM THAT'S BEING PROVIDED AS A BENEFIT? SO CERTAINLY THERE'S SOME FOLKS OF MY ENVIRONMENTAL STAFF THAT CAN SPEAK BETTER TO THIS.
I CAN GIVE YOU THE, THE HIGH LEVEL, FOR EXAMPLE, THE FOOD FESTIVAL, IT'S ONE OF THE, UM, LOCATIONS THAT WAS ESTABLISHED AS JUSTIN WAS EXPLAINING ABOUT, UH, NOISE MITIGATION, UM, AS PART OF THE EIS AND AT, UH, AT THE END OF THE DAY, THERE'S A VOTE, EXCUSE ME, THERE'S A VOTE MADE FOR, UH, THE NOISE WALL.
UM, SO THAT'S WHERE, UH, JUSTIN'S RECOMMENDATION IS COMING FROM.
YEAH, TO ANSWER YOUR, YOUR QUESTION, BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN TXDOT, UH, UH, THROUGH THEIR EIS THEY IDENTIFY AREAS THAT ARE GOING TO BE LOUD, AND THEN THEY GIVE, THEY LET THE BENEFICI THE, UH, BENEFICIAL LANDOWNER DECIDE WHETHER THEY WANT IT OR NOT.
SO THE, THE, WE ARE THE PARKS DEPARTMENT, CITY OF AUSTIN, ARE THE BENEFICIAL LANDOWNERS OF THIS AREA THAT IS GONNA BE LOUD.
AND, UH, DIRECTOR MCNEELY COULD PROBABLY SAY YES OR NO, WHETHER WE WANTED THE WALL OR NOT.
BUT SHE, AS A GOOD PLANNER, WANTED TO GO THROUGH THE FOLKS WHO WERE ACTUALLY OUT THERE AND, UM, USING THE LAND AND WHO, WHO ARE
[03:30:01]
ACTUALLY GONNA BE INFLUENCED THE MOST.SO WE, WE THOUGHT THIS WOULD BRIEFING YOU ALL, UH, TO LET Y'ALL KNOW THAT, UM, WE ARE LISTENING TO THE FOLKS WHO ARE ACTUALLY OUT THERE AND WORKING AND, YOU KNOW, CREATING THE COMMUNITY AND ALL THE GOOD THINGS THAT THEY DO.
WE'RE SIMPLY RELAYING THEIR ASK.
UM, AND THEN WE ARE KIND OF BLESSING IT.
NO, I DEFINITELY THINK THAT THE SOUND WALL WILL BE A GREAT IMPROVEMENT, YOU KNOW, AND DEFINITELY MITIGATION THAT'S NEEDED AS, AS PART OF THE PROJECT, SO THANK YOU.
I GUESS, UM, ONE OTHER QUESTION WITH THE CONSTRUCTION OR INSTALLATION OF A SOUND WALL, UM, PARTICULARLY ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF FLO STREET WHERE IT'S CITY OF AUSTIN PROPERTY, I GUESS, UM, SINCE IT'S MITIGATION THAT'S BEING PUT IN AS PART OF THE TDOT PROJECT, I GUESS IS TXDOT, UM, PROVIDING ANYTHING TO THE CITY FOR USE OF THE LAND THAT THE SOUND WALL'S BEING BUILT ON? OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? YEAH, UM, I'M NOT SURE IF I CAN PROVIDE AN ANSWER ON USE OF THE, THE LAND.
UM, I KNOW THAT THERE'S, UH, PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS AS PART OF THE PROJECT.
I CAN CERTAINLY GET THAT QUESTION TO OUR STAFF AND GET A RESPONSE FOR, FOR JUSTIN ON THE FOLLOW UP FOR THIS.
THAT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO KNOW.
I WAS JUST NOT SURE IF, AS A PART OF, YOU KNOW, THE NEGOTIATION, AGAIN, LET ME STRESS THAT I DEFINITELY THINK THAT THE SOUND WALL IS VERY BENEFICIAL AND, YOU KNOW, BY ALL MEANS SHOULD MOVE FORWARD.
UM, I THINK AS YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S ANY, UM, ADDITIONAL ITEMS, YOU KNOW, THAT TEXT.KIM PROVIDE SINCE IT WOULD BE OBVIOUSLY NICE FOR THE SOUND WALLS TO INTEGRATE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY FULLY, UM, IF THERE'S ANYTHING ADDITIONAL THEY CAN PROVIDE, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S JUSTIFIED PERHAPS AS USE OF THE CITY'S PROPERTY, YOU KNOW, FOR THE INSTALLATION OF A SOUND WALL.
UM, IT'S JUST WHAT I WANTED TO SEE IF THAT WAS, YOU KNOW, ANY ADDITIONAL INFO OR OPTIONS THAT WERE AVAILABLE.
YEAH, AND I WANNA PIGGYBACK OFF THAT A LITTLE BIT TOO AND JUST SAY LIKE, UM, AS FAR AS THE WATER INFRASTRUCTURE IN PARTICULAR, THE IRRIGATION SYSTEMS AND ANY OF THE OTHER AMENITIES, LIKE IF TXDOT IS THE ONE PAYING FOR THOSE, THAT WOULD BE, THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
IS THAT THE CASE NOW? IS THAT WHAT'S IN THE PLAN NOW? SO I KNOW WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY IS THE NOISE WALLETS ITSELF.
UM, AND I DON'T WANNA SPEAK FOR JUSTIN.
I, I THINK THAT'S BEYOND THE NOISE WALL.
CERTAINLY IT CAN STILL CONTINUE TO BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION.
UM, AND OF COURSE WITH IRRIGATION, UM, AGAIN, NOT, NOT TRYING TO SPEAK FOR JUSTIN, YOU KNOW, I, I KNOW WE ALSO WORK WITH AUSTIN WATER, UM, AND PARTNER WITH THEM FOR WATER NEEDS ON THE PROJECT, SO I CAN SEE OTHER PEOPLE BEING A PART OF THE DISCUSSION.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UH, BOARD MEMBERS.
ALRIGHT, WELL THANK YOU SO MUCH.
ALRIGHT, BOARD MEMBERS, WE ARE NOW MOVING ON TO, AND WE HAVE, UH, NINE MORE MINUTES, SO WE'LL TRY TO SPEED THROUGH THIS.
[13. Update from South Central Waterfront Advisory Board. (Bazan) ]
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 13, UH, BOARD MEMBER BAAN.YES, SHE'S, CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES.
ON, UH, YEAH, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 13, SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT.
SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT ADVISORY BOARD.
UM, WE RECEIVED A STAFF PRESENTATION OF THE SOUTH CENTRAL WATER BOARD OR WATERFRONT, UH, COMBINING DISTRICT AND DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.
UM, THAT PRESENTATION IS AVAILABLE ONLINE IN THE BACKUP FROM THE ONE 18 MEETING.
AND IT HAS THE DENSITY BONUS CALCULATOR INFORMATION AS PART OF THAT.
ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? AGENDA
[14. Update from Downtown Commission. (Franklin) ]
ITEM NUMBER 14, BOARD MEMBER FRANKLIN, UH, DOWNTOWN COMMISSION, UH, FOR THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION THIS MONTH THEY HAD PRESENTATIONS ON THE PALM DISTRICT PLAN, WHICH IS, UH, JUST WEST OF I 35 FROM WATERLOO PARK TO TOWN LAKE.UM, ANDREA, IT'S A POLICY LEVEL GUIDE.
SO THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT OPTIONS FOR KIND OF, IM IMPLEMENTATION GOVERNANCE WITHIN THE DISTRICT.
UM, AND THEN THEY ALSO SPOKE ABOUT THE C HOME DISTRICT.
THERE ARE SOME MULTIMODAL PROJECTS, UH, ASSOCIATED WITH THE C HOME DISTRICT AIMED AT INCREASING CONNECTIVITY AND ACCESSIBILITY.
AND SO THEY'RE ALSO WORKING ON, UM, FEASIBILITY DESIGN IMPLEMENTATION THERE.
UH, ANY QUESTIONS? BOARD MEMBERS? ALL RIGHT.
[15. Update from Joint Sustainability Committee. (Bazan, Becker) ]
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 15, UH, EITHER BOARD MEMBER BAAN OR BECKER ON THE JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE.[03:35:01]
UM, IS TAKING PLACE LATER THIS WEEK, SO I DON'T HAVE AN UPDATE FROM THIS MONTH YET.[16. Update from Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Budget Working Group. (Flowers, Orme, Merritt, Becker, Franklin) ]
AND AGENDA ITEM NUMBER 16, THE, UH, BUDGET WORKING GROUP, UH, BOARD MEMBER FLOWERS, VICE-CHAIR FLOWERS.AND SO I, I HAVE ENVISIONED HAVING A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME FOR THIS, BUT THAT'S OKAY.
AND I HAD ALSO ENVISIONED HAVING THE MINUTES POSTED, UM, BUT I GOT THEM TO TIM QUITE LATE AND I'M NOT SURE IF THAT'S SOMETHING CAN, THAT CAN BE POSTED AFTER THE FACT, TIM, OR IF THERE'S A PROBLEM POSTING SOMETHING AS BACKUP FOR WORKING GROUP UPDATES.
UM, THE REASON IS WE SORT OF DISCUSSED AS A WORKING GROUP THIS LAST TIME THAT IT WOULD BE A GOOD IDEA TO TAKE PRETTY GOOD MINUTES AND POST THEM PUBLICLY SO THAT THERE WAS SOME TRANSPARENCY IN THE PROCESS SINCE THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS BROUGHT UP AS A CONCERN BY SOME PUBLIC COMMENTERS.
AND SO I, WE DID TAKE PRETTY GOOD MINUTES THAT ARE RELATIVELY SUBSTANTIVE AND SO I'D LIKE TO SHARE THEM OUT.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF TIM, UH, IF YOU CAN ADDRESS WHETHER THAT WAS MY LATENESS THAT CAUSED IT TO NOT MAKE BACK UP AND IF THERE'S SOME WAY TO GET IT OUT THERE OR WHETHER IT WAS A PROCEDURAL ISSUE, IT BEING UNDER WORKING GROUP UPDATES.
YEAH, I'LL, UH, CHECK MY INBOX AND MAKE SURE THAT I RECEIVED THOSE AND GET THOSE POSTED AS BACK UP TO THIS MEETING.
I FIGURED IT WAS PROBABLY MY LATENESS, BUT IF YOU CAN'T FIND THEM, JUST HIT ME UP.
BUT, SO JUST TO GIVE Y'ALL A SUMMARY, WE DID MEET ONCE IN EARLY DECEMBER.
UH, WE WERE INTENDED TO MEET, UH, LAST WEEK, BUT I UNFORTUNATELY HAD A FAMILY EMERGENCY, WHICH I WILL NOT CONSUME EVERYONE'S TIME WITH.
UM, BUT IT TOTALLY DERAILED MY ENTIRE WEEK.
SO I'LL BE RESCHEDULING THAT MEETING SOON.
UM, SO THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE ON THE WORKING GROUP, IF YOU COULD LOOK FOR AN EMAIL FROM ME SOON TO RESCHEDULE THAT NEXT MEETING SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TALKING.
BUT WE MAINLY HIT ON A FEW THINGS.
WE TALKED ABOUT THE GENERAL TIMELINE AND THE GOALS OF THE WORKING GROUP.
WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW, WHAT OUR STRATEGY WOULD BE FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF BUDGET REQUESTS.
AND I ENCOURAGE YOU ALL TO READ THE MINUTES WHEN THEY DO GET POSTED.
UM, THERE'S SORT OF A WAY THAT THE CITY THINKS ABOUT BUDGET REQUESTS DURING THE PROCESS AT COUNCIL THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO HOW WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO BETTER ADVOCATE FOR THINGS WE WANNA GET THROUGH.
AND UM, I JUST ENCOURAGE YOU TO LOOK AT THAT.
IT'S NUMBER TWO, IT TALKS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE PROCESS FOR THE DIFFERENT WAYS FORWARD.
SO WE TALKED ABOUT THAT AS WELL.
UM, WE ALSO JUST TALKED ABOUT GENERAL IDEAS ABOUT HOW WE MIGHT BE MORE EFFECTIVE DURING THIS PROCESS TO BE ABLE TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WOULD BE ONE REALLY POWERFUL AND ALSO HAVE A CHANCE OF GETTING THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS IN A WAY THAT WOULD BE MOST IMPACTFUL.
WE DID NOT TALK ABOUT SPECIFIC IDEAS AROUND BUDGET ITEMS. WE WERE REALLY MORE FOCUSED ON SORT OF PROCESS AND HOW WE MIGHT APPROACH OUR WORK AS A GROUP AND OUR STRUCTURE.
THERE ARE STILL A NUMBER OF ACTION ITEMS THAT NEED TO BE COMPLETED FROM THAT MEETINGS, HOLIDAYS, BUSY TIMES.
SO I'LL REMIND WORKING GROUP MEMBERS AS WELL IF YOU CAN LOOK BACK AT THOSE MINUTES AND LOOK AT YOUR ACTION ITEMS AND WE'LL TRY AND COMPLETE THOSE.
BUT FOR THE NEXT TIME WE MEET, MY GOAL FOR THE NEXT TIME WE MEET, AND IT WILL DEPEND ON WHEN WE CAN GET IT SCHEDULED, IS TO, UH, IF AVAILABLE WE'LL GET AN UPDATE FROM STAFF ON SORT OF HOW THINGS ARE LOOKING ON THE PARKS DEPARTMENT SIDE IN TERMS OF THEIR OWN INTERNAL PROCESS FOR HOW THEY LOOK AT BUDGETING NEEDS AND WHAT THEY MIGHT BE ASKING FOR IF THEY KNOW AT THAT POINT THEY MAY NOT, WE'RE A LITTLE EARLY IN THE PROCESS.
UM, AND THEN TO TALK THROUGH ITEMS THAT WE BELIEVE, UH, WE MAY NEED TO CONSIDER FROM THINGS THAT HAVE COME UP THIS YEAR OR FROM PAST YEARS THAT STILL AREN'T FUNDED.
SO, UH, THE REFERRAL OF THE KER SHUTTLE ITEM WOULD BE ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT WE WOULD TALK ABOUT, UM, AS PART OF THAT PROCESS.
AND SO OTHER IN THIS VERY SHORT TIME THAT WE HAVE, IF THERE ARE OTHER THINGS THAT PEOPLE WANT TO BRING FORWARD, UM, ESPECIALLY FOR FOLKS WHO AREN'T ON THE WORKING GROUP AS ITEMS THAT YOU THINK WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT.
THE GOAL HERE IS THAT WE WILL HOPEFULLY COME WITH SOME SORT OF RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD BY MARCH OR MARCH MEETING.
UM, BUT OBVIOUSLY THERE'S A LOT OF TIME BETWEEN THEN AND NOW.
WE'RE GONNA MEET SEVERAL TIMES.
BUT THAT JUST GIVES YOU AN IDEA, SORT OF THE TIMELINE WE'RE LOOKING AT.
AND THAT MARCH TIMELINE IS BASED ON THE CITY'S OWN BUDGET PROCESS TIMELINE.
AND THAT'S SORT OF THE IDEAL WINDOW FOR US TO BE MAKING A RECOMMENDATION FOR IT TO ACTUALLY GET HEARD AT THE RIGHT TIME IN THE PROCESS AND HAVE THE BEST CHANCE OF SUCCESS.
SO I DO ENCOURAGE YOU TO READ THE MINUTES WHEN THEY GET POSTED AND FEEL FREE TO HIT PING ME IF ANYBODY HAS QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING IS UNCLEAR AND SORRY THAT THOSE DIDN'T MAKE IT UP, UM, BEFORE THE MEETING ITSELF, BUT I'LL STOP TALKING NOW IN CASE ANYBODY HAS ANY QUESTIONS OR SUGGESTIONS IN OUR VERY FEW MINUTES HERE AND BOARD MEMBERS.
I DO THINK EVEN IF WE HAVE TO STAY AN EXTRA FIVE MINUTES PASS, THEN THAT I THINK THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR Y'ALL TO TELL THE, THE, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ON THE WORKING GROUP ABOUT ANYTHING THAT, UH, Y'ALL WANT TO SEE FUNDED, ANYTHING THAT CITIZENS HAVE TOLD YOU THAT THEY'RE CONCERNED ABOUT IN YOUR INDIVIDUAL DISTRICTS.
UM, SO I'LL I'LL OPEN THAT UP NOW FOR THAT.
CITIZENS WERE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE TRAFFIC PROBLEMS AND PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION IN ZILKER PARK DURING THE SUMMER.
AND JUST CONFIRMING BECAUSE OF THE REFERRAL OF THAT RECOMMENDATION, WE WILL DEFINITELY BE TALKING ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF THAT AND THAT CONCERN
[03:40:01]
AT THE WORKING GROUP MEETING.I'M NOT SURE IF THIS GOES HERE OR AS ALSO POTENTIALLY FOR A FUTURE AGENDA ITEM, BUT I'VE BEEN TALKING WITH FOLKS AT DITTMAR RECREATION CENTER, UM, AND THEIR LEADERSHIP IS JUST WANTING TO COME FORTH ABOUT SOME UNMET NEEDS FOR THAT PARTICULAR RECREATION CENTER.
YEAH, I'VE NOTED THAT THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT, UM, DIRECTOR MCNEELY, I DON'T KNOW WHEN WE'LL SEE THAT GAP ANALYSIS FROM THE REC CENTERS.
UM, I KNOW THERE WAS A, THAT WAS STILL SORT OF NOT FINALIZED, BUT I WOULD, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE AN UPDATED TIMELINE FOR WHEN THAT MIGHT COME BEFORE THE BOARD.
'CAUSE OBVIOUSLY THAT WOULD INFORM, IT WOULD'VE BEEN USEFUL FOR THE GUS GARCIA ITEM, BUT IT WOULD INFORM DEMAR TOO.
SO JUST TO BE, IT SHOULD BE COMING IN THIS MONTH.
UM, LEONA JUST RETURNED FROM BEING OUT OF THE COUNTRY AND SO I WILL DOUBLE CHECK WITH HER TOMORROW AND I'LL GIVE YOU ALL A TIMEFRAME.
BUT PLEASE KNOW THAT THAT GAP ANALYSIS IS REALLY ABOUT BUILT ENVIRONMENT FACILITIES.
IT'S NOT ABOUT THE NEEDS OF A PARTICULAR RECREATION CENTER TO DELIVER PROGRAMMING JUST JUST FOR CLARITY.
BUT IT, IT DOES ADDRESS SORT OF FACILITY ISSUES.
LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, IF THE BUILDING WERE OVERCROWDED AND THERE WERE A NEED FOR ADDITIONAL SPACE OR NO, IT WOULDN'T ADDRESS THAT.
IT WAS JUST ADDRESSING SORT OF OUTDATED LIKE FACILITY PLUMBING UPDATES, THAT TYPE OF THING.
AND, AND BOARD MEMBERS, JUST BEFORE WE WERE ABOUT TO ADD TIME, I'M GONNA MAKE A MOTION TO EXTEND PAST 10:00 PM UM, IS THERE A SECOND ON THAT MOTION? A SECOND? THERE'S A SECOND.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? RAISE YOUR HAND.
SO BOARD MEMBERS, I'LL SEND A, JUST FOR THE SENSE, FOR THE, FOR THE SAKE OF TIME, I WILL SPEND SEND YOU, UH, AN OUTLINE OF THE SCOPE OF WHAT IT WILL, UH, SO YOU HAVE THAT INFORMATION IN ADVANCE OF ACTUALLY RECEIVING IT.
AND UM, THE ONLY OTHER THING I'LL BRING UP IS, OTHER THAN THE DEMAR, UH, I WAS GONNA BRING UP DEMARK, UM, IS THE ANIN CREEK METROPOLITAN NORTH.
UM, PEOPLE WANT, UH, FUNDING FOR MORE LIGHTING, LIGHTING, UH, UH, AND SHADE STRUCTURES THERE.
AND I KNOW THAT A PF IS ABOUT TO FUND SOME SHADE STRUCTURES THERE, BUT, UM, WITH A, IT'S A FAST GROWING AREA AND THERE WILL PROBABLY NEVER BE ENOUGH SHADE STRUCTURES THERE, BUT DEFINITELY LIGHTING, UH, IS GONNA BE A BIG IMPORTANT THING.
UM, OBVIOUSLY IT'S LIMITED BECAUSE OF THE FLOOD AREA THAT IT'S IN, BUT UM, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANY WAY TO WORK AROUND THAT.
SO THAT'S THE ONLY OTHER, THAT'S THE ONLY THING I WOULD TALK ABOUT FOR ONION CREEK NORTH.
ANY OTHER, UH, THINGS JUST, I BELIEVE THAT I TALKED ABOUT THIS LAST YEAR AT SOME POINT, BUT AROUND, BECAUSE WE'RE COMING UP TO THE TIME TO SIGN UP FOR SUMMER CAMPS, THEY ALWAYS FEEL REALLY QUICKLY AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THE ONES LIKE CAMACHO, ALL THE KIND OF THE ADVENTURE ONES AND THEN ARTS AND CULTURE.
UM, JUST IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN BE HELPFUL WITH AROUND THAT WHEN THINKING ABOUT BUDGET.
ALRIGHT, ANYTHING ELSE? BOARD MEMBERS.
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
JUST DO FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. ANY FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS OR YOU CAN ALWAYS JUST EMAIL ME AND MR. BECK, UH, CHAIR BE LOBO.I WANNA GO AHEAD AND PUT DITMAR RECREATION CENTER AS A POSSIBILITY FOR A FUTURE AGENDA ITEM.
WHETHER THAT BE A PRESENTATION OR SORTS AROUND THE, THE NEEDS AND THEN THEIR HIGH PARTICIPATION RATE.
SO, UM, I'D PROBABLY BE REACHING OUT TO YOUR BOARD MEMBER FOR A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION 'CAUSE THAT COULD BE EVERY RECREATION CENTER.
SO JUST TO MAKE SURE I'M, I'M MEETING THAT YOUR NEEDS BOARD MEMBERS.
UM, JUST SO YOU KNOW, THE THINGS THAT I'M GONNA FOLLOW UP WITH YOU THAT I DON'T NEED AS FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS UNLESS YOU WANT TO PUT THEM ON THERE, IS I KNOW BOARD MEMBER TAYLOR, I PROMISE THAT I WOULD PROVIDE HER SOME INFORMATION ABOUT TRANSPORTATION STUDIES THAT HAVE BEEN COMPLETED WITHIN THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT AND THE COSTS OF THOSE.
SO I WILL EMAIL THAT TO EVERYONE.
AND THEN ALSO THE GAP ANALYSIS AND THE SCOPE OF WHAT THAT WAS SO THAT YOU'RE AWARE OF IT BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY GET THE GAP, THE, THE ACTUAL GAP ANALYSIS INFORMATION.
ANY OTHER FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS? ALRIGHT, IT IS NOW 10 0 2 AND I'M GONNA ADJOURN THIS MEETING WITHOUT ANY OPPOSITION SEEING YOU THEN.