Jan 25, 2024 Mobility Committee

WE ALSO HAD TWO RIGHT OF WAY RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, BOTH OF WHICH PASSED WEST 35TH STREET AT KIRBY LANE AND CLAY AVENUE FROM BERN TO HOUSTON.

THEN WE ALSO CONSIDERED A RESOLUTION ON CAMPO VOTING PROCEDURES.

WITH THE GOAL OF SOMEHOW GETTING THEM TO BE FAIRER TO THE AREAS WITH LARGEST POPULATION.

AND WE, UM, CAME UP WITH SOME THINGS THAT WE THOUGHT MIGHT BE USEFUL AT MOVING IN THAT DIRECTION.

UNFORTUNATELY, THE RESOLUTION WAS TABLED DUE TO QUORUM ISSUES.

WE HAD SEVERAL MEMBERS WHO, UH, HAD TO RECUSE THEMSELVES, AND THAT MADE US VERY VULNERABLE TO THE FACT THAT WE HAVE TWO UNFILLED POSITIONS MORE THAN A YEAR AFTER THE ELECTED OFFICIALS TOOK OFFICE WHO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE POSITIONS.

ONE IS THE MAYOR, THE OTHER IS, UH, COUNCIL OF PERSON HARPER MADISON LISTENING, PLEASE TRY AND, AND MOVE ON TO THAT UNFILLED POSITION.

AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A APPOINTEE WHO DOESN'T SHOW UP, OR I THINK HE'S ONLY SHOWN UP FOR ONE MEETING.

UM, THAT'S, UH, COUNCILWOMAN KELLY'S APPOINTEE.

SO IF, IF YOU COULD SAY SOMETHING TO IMPRESS UPON THAT PERSON THAT THEY'VE AGREED TO TAKE ON A DUTY AND THEY SHOULD FULFILL THEIR, THEIR PROMISE THAT I GUESS TAKES CARE OF IT FOR THE, UH, URBAN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION.

ANY QUESTIONS ON WHAT WE SAW OR HEARD OR DID? WE'RE HOPING TO TAKE UP THE RESOLUTION ON THE CAMPO VOTING PROCEDURES AT OUR NEXT MEETING, AND HOPEFULLY WE WILL HAVE QUORUM TO VOTE EITHER WAY ON IT.

THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.

DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR THE VICE CHAIR OF UTC COUNCIL MEMBER? KELLY, SPEAK UP IF YOU DO.

YOU'RE SMALL ON THE SCREEN, SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE I DON'T SKIP YOU.

OUR APPOINTEE TO SEE WHAT, UM, WHAT'S PREVENTING THEM FROM ATTENDING THOSE MEETINGS.

AND THANK YOU SO MUCH, VICE CHAIR, FOR BRINGING IT TO MY ATTENTION.

UM, AS, AS I TELL ALL OF OUR COMMISSIONERS AND EVEN THOSE THAT ARE NOT APPOINTED BY ME, IF THERE'S EVER ANY ISSUE WITH ONE OF OUR COMMISSIONERS, PLEASE REACH OUT TO OUR OFFICE.

WE TRY TO BE RESPONSIVE ON THOSE ISSUES, AND WE'LL CHECK IN WITH

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THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT AGAIN, AND IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO ON THE OTHER SIDE, ON THE COMMITTEE SIDE TO HELP, WE'D BE GLAD TO.

WE KNOW WE HAVE A NUMBER OF AMAZING BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT PEOPLE VOLUNTEER THEIR SERVICES ON, AND SO WE CERTAINLY WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE AVAILABLE TO ATTEND THOSE MEETINGS, BUT ALSO RESPECTFUL THAT IT IS A TIME COMMITMENT.

IT'S, IT'S UNPAID WORK.

IT IS VOLUNTEER WORK, UM, HAS A HUGE LASTING IMPACT ON OUR COMMUNITY.

AND SO, UM, WE'LL KEEP WORKING TOWARD THAT AND MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE, UH, FOLKS WHO, UH, CAN MAKE THAT COMMITMENT.

OR IF SOMETHING COMES UP IN THEIR PERSONAL LIFE, SOMETIMES WE'LL, UM, APPOINT SOMEONE ELSE FOR THE TIME BEING.

SO CERTAINLY APPRECIATE EVERYBODY WHO'S VOLUNTEERING IN THAT CAPACITY.

ITEM NUMBER THREE, UPDATE ON THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF EACH CITY, DEPARTMENT AND OFFICE INVOLVED IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF MOBILITY RELATED PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS. WE'RE GONNA BE JOINED BY DIRECTOR OF TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS, RICHARD MENDOZA AND DIRECTOR OF CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES, JAMES SNOW.

LET'S MOVE ON TO THE NEXT

[3. Update on the roles and responsibilities of each City department and office involved in the implementation of mobility-related projects and programs.]

WE THOUGHT THAT THIS WOULD BE A GREAT MOMENT TO HAVE A BRIEFING ON THIS STRUCTURE.

UM, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORK.

SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY WE'RE SEPARATED INTO DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS NOW THEY'RE BACK TOGETHER.

AND WE ALSO HAVE THE ADDITION OF A NEW DEPARTMENT, CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES.

AND SO WE'RE VERY INTERESTED IN SEEING HOW, HOW DIFFERENT PROJECTS WORK THROUGH THESE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.

UM, WHAT STAFFING LOOKS LIKE, AND HOW TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING, UM, A GOOD PUBLIC AWARENESS OF WHAT IS IN THE WHEELHOUSE OF EACH OF THESE DEPARTMENTS.

UH, THE, UH, BICYCLE PROGRAMS. UH, THE ARTERIAL MANAGEMENT, THE RE-PIPING TOGETHER, COORDINATE IT WITH, UH, REPAVING OPERATIONS OF THE OLD STREET AND BRIDGE OPERATIONS.

COUNCIL MEMBERS.

RICHARD MENDOZA, DIRECTOR FOR TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS, AND I WILL BE CO-PRESENTING WITH, UH, MR. JAMES SNOW, DIRECTOR OF THE CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES.

UH, WE'RE GONNA COVER, UH, EACH OF OUR INDIVIDUAL DEPARTMENTS ROLE IN DELIVERING MOBILITY PROJECTS FOR THE CITY.

UH, I'M ALSO GONNA TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO DESCRIBE, UH, SOME OF THE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, UH, THAT THE NEW NEWLY FORMED TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT, UH, PROVIDES FOR OUR COMMUNITY ON A DAILY BASIS.

SO I'LL BEGIN.

UH, OUR TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WAS CREATED LAST SUMMER OF 2023 BY COMBINING THE FORMER AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT WITH THE COMMUNITY SERVICES AND STREET AND BRIDGE OPERATIONS DIVISIONS OF THE FORMER PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.

AND IN THAT SHORT TIME, WE HAVE CREATED OUR NEW MISSION AND VISION STATEMENTS FOR OUR NEW DEPARTMENT, AND THEY ARE ON THIS SLIDE.

WE ARE A HIGHLY RELIABLE ORGANIZATION THAT BUILDS AND MAINTAINS MOBILITY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR OUR COMMUNITY WITH DIVISION THAT AUSTIN IS A MODEL FOR SAFE, RELIABLE, AND SUSTAINABLE, UH, TRANSPORTATION.

IN TERMS OF THE INVESTMENTS FOR MOBILITY INFRASTRUCTURE, UH, WE ARE THE SPONSOR DEPARTMENT FOR A VARIETY OF PROJECTS ACROSS THE ALL OF THE CITY.

UH, PRIMARILY FUNDED FROM THE, UH, CITY APPROVED REFERENDUMS OF 20 16, 18, AND 2020.

THE NEXT SLIDE IS AN OVERVIEW OF THE NEW TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS, UH, DEPARTMENT.

AS YOU CAN SEE, IT'S, UH, IT'S A BIG DEPARTMENT.

IT'S THE THIRD LARGEST BY FULL-TIME EQUIVALENT PERSONNEL ACROSS THE CITY.

ONLY BEHIND AUSTIN ENERGY IN AUSTIN.

WATER, UH, AT THE TOP, UH, MYSELF HAS BEEN APPOINTED AS THE DIRECTOR DIRECTLY UNDER ME IS THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR, UH, FOR THE TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.

AND THEY OVERSEE PRIMARILY THE ENGINEERING AND OPERATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT FOR BOTH STREETS AND TRANSPORTATION.

ON THE RIGHT OF THE ORG CHART IS THE, UH, TRANSPORTATION PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, UH, DIVISIONS OF THE, OF TPW LED BY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, UH, RIGHT NOW, UH, INTERIM, UH, DIRECTOR AL BREWER, AND THEY'RE ON THE FAR LEFT.

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR ANTHONY SEGURA LEADS, UH, SUPPORT SERVICES.

AND THEN OUR PUBLIC INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS, UH, DIVISIONS ARE LED BY OUR CHIEF OF STAFF.

AND SO I WILL GET INTO A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ON THE SPECIFIC SERVICES AND, AND PROJECT DELIVERY RESPONSIBILITIES BY THESE DIFFERENT DIVISIONS IN THE FOLLOWING SLIDES.

SO THAT'S PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED, UH, THAT MERGER WAS PART, UH, INVOLVED PART OF THE OLD PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WITH AN OLD AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT THAT OCCURRED LAST YEAR.

AND WE'VE ALREADY BEEN BEEN ABLE TO REALIZE SOME IMPROVEMENTS IN EFFECTIVENESS AND EFFICIENCIES BY THE TWO FORMER, UH, GROUPS WORKING TOGETHER, PRIMARILY IN THE AREA OF STREET INFRASTRUCTURE, STREET REPAVING, AND THEN RE-PIPING AND COORDINATING,

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SO STARTING TO REALIZE, UH, SOME CLOSER COLLABORATION, CLOSER COORDINATION, AND IMPROVE EFFICIENCIES IN THESE VERY CRITICAL SERVICES FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

IF I CAN MOVE TO THE FIELD OPERATIONS DIVISIONS, UH, FIRST THE, UH, ENGINEERING AND PROJECT DELIVERY, IT'S PRIMARILY OUR TRAFFIC, UH, TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERS.

AND THESE ARE THE AREA ENGINEERS THAT RESPOND TO, UH, SERVICE REQUESTS FROM THE COMMUNITIES, UH, FOR ISSUES, ANYTHING RELATED TO TRAFFIC CONGESTION, UH, SPEEDING, CUT THROUGH TRAFFIC OR PARKING ISSUES.

BELOW THAT IS THE STRATEGIC MOBILITY SERVICES DIVISION.

THESE ARE OUR CREWS AND PERSONNEL THAT OPERATE OUR ARTERIAL MANAGEMENT, UH, SIGNALS, AS WELL AS SIGNS AND MARKINGS RIGHT OF WAY MANAGEMENT AND LEAD.

THE DIVISION ZERO, UH, PROGRAMS. THE TOP RIGHT ARE THE OFFICE OF CIVIL ENGINEER, AND THEY, UH, THEY PROGRAM THE ANNUAL STREET SERVICE PLAN, THE REPAVING AND STREET PRESERVATION, UH, PROGRAM, AS WELL AS THE SIDEWALKS, URBAN TRAILS, AND SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL.

AND THEN ON THE BOTTOM, UH, RIGHT IS STREET AND BRIDGE OPERATIONS.

UH, THIS IS THE LARGEST, UH, ORGANIZATION OF, OF THE, UH, STREET AND BRIDGE.

AND THESE ARE THE FOLKS THAT GO OUT THERE ON A DAILY BASIS, RESPONDING TO 3 1 1 RECALLS, UH, CALLS FOR UTILITY CUTS POTHOLE RESPONSE, AS WELL AS PAVEMENT OPERATIONS.

THE ANNUAL PAVING PLAN, UH, THE FORESTRY DIVISION IS WITHIN THIS DIVISION AS WELL, MAINTAINING THE MEDIANS AS WELL AS VEGETATION CONTROL AND THE RIGHT OF WAY.

AND THE NEWLY FORMED BRIDGE MAINTENANCE CREW IS IN STREET AND BRIDGE OPERATIONS AS WELL.

SO MOVING TO ENGINEERING AND PROJECT DELIVERY, TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING.

THIS, UH, UH, INCLUDES OUR AREA ENGINEERS THAT RESPOND TO CITIZEN 3 1 1 CALLS ABOUT TRAFFIC ISSUES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

UM, ALSO IN THIS DIVISION IS THE ACT OF TRANSPORTATION AND STREET DESIGN.

THESE ARE OUR IN-HOUSE DESIGN ENGINEERS.

UH, THEY, UH, UM, LOOK AT TRAFFIC STUDIES.

THEY ALSO SET SPEED LIMITS, UH, THROUGHOUT THE CITY, AS WELL AS, UH, IN PROPER INTERSECTION, UH, LANE CONFIGURATIONS AND IMPROVEMENTS.

AND THEN ON THE BOTTOM RIGHT, CAPITAL SERVICES PROJECT DELIVERY, THIS IS OUR IN-HOUSE TRAFFIC DESIGN GROUP.

AND THEY ALSO DESIGNED THE ACTIVE MOBILITY NETWORK IN SUPPORT OF THE ACTIVE MOBILITY LOCAL, UH, BONDS.

MOVING TO THE STRATEGIC MOBILITY SERVICES DIVISION, UH, THEIR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY HERE IS DESIGNING ALL AND PLACEMENT OF ALL THE PAVEMENT MARKINGS, CENTER LINE, UH, STRIPING, AS WELL AS OPERATING THE, UH, TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT CENTER AND OPERATING ALL OF OUR TRAFFIC SIGNALS.

WE HAVE OVER 1100 TRAFFIC SIGNALS AND PEDESTRIAN HYBRID BEACONS THROUGHOUT THE, THE CITY, AS WELL AS DESIGNING AND, AND, UH, TRACKING OUR VISION ZERO, UH, PROGRESSING GOALS TO ELIMINATE FATALITIES AND SERIOUS INJURIES ON OUR ROAD NETWORK THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

STRATEGIC MOBILITY SERVICES ALSO INCLUDES THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL EVENTS.

THEY WORK CLOSELY, OF COURSE, WITH RIGHT OF WAY MANAGEMENT.

THEY PERMIT ALL ACTIVITY WITHIN THE RIGHT OF WAY.

UH, YOU MAY BE FAMILIAR WITH THE, UH, UH, LIVING STREETS INITIATIVE.

SO THEY, THEY WILL WORK CLOSELY WITH THE SMART MOBILITY OFFICE AND ENSURING THAT THOSE, UH, PROGRAMS ARE PROPERLY MANAGED AND EFFECTIVELY, UH, UH, PROVIDED FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

MOVING ON TO CIVIL ENGINEERING SERVICES, THE OFFICE CITY ENGINEER, THEY, THEY SET THE DESIGN STANDARDS FOR ALL OF OUR HORIZONTAL MOBILITY ASSETS, INCLUDING STREETS, SIDEWALKS, CURBS, UH, AND BRIDGES, AND ANY, UH, STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS OF THE ROADWAY NETWORK.

IT ALSO CONTAINS THE SIDEWALKS AND SPECIAL PROJECTS DIVISION, WHICH NOW, UH, IT'S NOT ON THIS SLIDE, BUT THE URBAN TRAILS, UH, PROGRAM IS ALSO WITHIN SIDEWALKS.

THE TWO PROGRAMS ARE VERY SIM SIMILAR IN THEIR GOALS.

SO WE'VE COMBINED THOSE COMMUNITY SERVICES AS OUR SAFE ROSTER TO SCHOOL, NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERING, UH, PROGRAM, AS WELL AS, UH, ALL OF THE CROSSING GUARDS AT THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

UH, WE HAVE A LOGISTICS DIVISION TO

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ENSURE THAT ALL OF OUR CREWS ARE ADEQUATELY, UH, SUPPLIED AND HAVE THE APPROPRIATE EQUIPMENT, UH, TO DO THEIR JOBS.

THEN THE NEWLY FORMED OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE POSTURED GOING FORWARD, TO RESPOND EFFECTIVELY TO SOME OF THESE, UM, MORE COMMON, UH, WEATHER RELATED, UH, EMERGENCY EVENTS THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF WHICH WE HAD MOST RECENTLY, UH, HAD TO MOBILIZE FOR OVER THE MARTIN LUTHER KING HOLIDAY STREET AND BRIDGE OPERATIONS.

THIS IS THE BASIC, UH, WORK GROUP THAT TAKES CARE OF OUR PAVEMENTS AND SIDEWALKS AND BRIDGES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

WE'VE GOT ALMOST 8,000 LANE MILES OF STREETS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

INCLUDES DISTRICT MAINTENANCE.

THIS IS THE PRIMARY GROUP THAT RESPONDS TO 3 1 1 CALLS, UH, FOR SERVICE REQUESTS FOR, UH, ANY NEEDED EMERGENCY REPAIR, AND, UH, MAINTENANCE OF OUR RIGHT-OF-WAYS, PAVEMENT OPERATIONS.

THESE ARE AN IN-HOUSE, STREET REPAVING AND STREET PRESERVATION CREWS, APPLYING SEAL COATS AND THIN OVERLAYS THROUGHOUT THE CITY TO EXTEND THE LIFECYCLE AND MAINTAIN, UH, THE LEVEL OF SERVICE OF ALL OF OUR STREETS.

URBAN FORESTRY GROUP, UH, UH, OVERSEES THE CONTRACTORS THAT MAINTAIN AND CUT THE VEGETATION IN THE RIGHT OF WAY MEDIANS, AS WELL AS PUBLIC STREET TREES.

UM, AND THEN FINALLY, UTILITIES AND STRUCTURES.

UH, WE PROVIDE FINAL UTILITY CUT REPAIRS ON BEHALF OF AUSTIN WATER ON AN ANNUAL BASIS, AS WELL AS, UH, SUPPORT SOME OF OUR LOCAL MOBILITY BOND PROJECTS IN TERMS OF SIDEWALK INSTALLATIONS, BOTH NEW AND IN FILLING GAPS.

NEXT SLIDE IS ALSO PARKING.

SO PARKING MANAGEMENT SERVICES IS WITHIN TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS, AND IT INCLUDES, UH, ALSO MANAGEMENT OF THE PARKING DISTRICTS.

YOU MAY BE FAMILIAR WITH THE NEWEST PARKING DISTRICT.

WE, UM, WE, WE DEVELOPED IN, UH, SOUTH CONGRESS, AND SO THAT'S GOING ALONG REALLY WELL.

WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW TECHNOLOGY ON HOW TO, UH, YOU KNOW, EASE THE USE AND MAKE AVAILABLE, UH, UH, PARKING SERVICES, BOTH ON STREET.

AND WE ALSO MANAGE A NUMBER OF, UH, PUBLIC PARKING GARAGES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

FINAL DIVISION IS, UH, TRANSPORTATION SERVICES.

SO THESE ARE, ARE ORGANIZED AROUND BOTH TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND THEN PLANNING.

SO TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.

WE HAVE ENGINEERS THAT EVALUATE TRAFFIC IMPACT ANALYSIS, UH, STUDIES FOR, UH, NEW DEVELOPMENT WHERE THEY ADMINISTER THE NEW STREET IMPACT FEE, WHICH, UH, REQUIRES DEVELOPERS TO CONTRIBUTE TO A FUND TO ACCOUNT FOR CAPACITY IMPACTS THAT ARE, UH, CAUSED BY THEIR, THEIR DEVELOPMENT ON THE NETWORK, AS WELL AS THEY PARTICIPATE IN THE SITE PLAN REVIEW, UH, PROCESS TO ENSURE THAT NEW DEVELOPMENT IS OCCURRING, UH, IN A MANNER THAT DOESN'T CAUSE UNDUE IMPACTS TO THE STREET INFRASTRUCTURE.

THEY LOOK AT DRIVEWAY ACCESS, ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THE, UH, MOBILITY NETWORK.

LAND MANAGEMENT ENGINEERING IS A NEW DIVISION THAT RECENTLY, UH, TRANSFERRED OVER FROM DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DIVISION OVER THE TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.

SO THEY WILL ADMINISTER ALL THE REQUIRED, UH, UH, RIGHT AWAY EASEMENTS, UH, ENCROACHMENTS OR RIGHT AWAY, UH, ABANDONMENTS THAT ARE REQUESTED OF THE DEPARTMENT FROM THE COMMUNITY.

AND THEN SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT.

THIS IS OUR LONG RANGE PLANNING DIVISION.

UH, THEY UPDATE THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN.

THEY'RE ALSO RAPIDLY, UH, UH, WRAPPING UP THE AUSTIN CORE TRANSPORTATION PLAN.

SO THE NEXT SLIDE IS A TRANSITION SLIDE OF ALL THE DIFFERENT, UH, BOND IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS, UH, THAT WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH THE CAPITAL DELIVERY, UH, SERVICES, UH, DEPARTMENT.

SOME OF THESE ARE, ARE LOCAL, SMALL AND NUMEROUS IN NATURE THAT WE SELF-MANAGE WITHIN OUR CAPITAL DELIVERY GROUP IN, UH, TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC WORKS.

BUT FOR THE LARGE PART, THE LARGE INVESTMENTS, THE LARGE, UH, CAPITAL PROJECTS, UH, WE ENLISTED THE SERVICES OF THE NEW CENTER, UH, CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES DEPARTMENT.

AND MR. SNOW AND HIS TEAM, UM, MANAGE THOSE ON BEHALF OF THE TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS.

YOU, RICHARD, FOR HAND THAT OVER.

AND WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO DIRECTOR SNOW.

GOOD AFTERNOON.

THANK

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I'M SHANE SNOW, I'M THE DIRECTOR OF CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES.

WHAT I'M GONNA DO TODAY, THREE QUICK SLIDES IS FIRST OF ALL, UH, TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR DEPARTMENT.

TALK ABOUT, UH, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE MANAGE AND TALK ABOUT HOW WE INTER WORK WITH OUR ASSET OWNER.

UH, TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS.

UH, CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES WAS FORMED IN MARCH OF 2023, AND OUR MAIN FOCUS IS TO DELIVER, UH, BUILD PUBLIC PROJECTS TO SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY.

WE DO THAT BY WORKING WITH OUR TRADITIONALLY 12 INFRASTRUCTURE ASSET OWNERS.

THAT FALLS FROM TRADITIONAL ASSETS THAT, YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS AUSTIN WATER, THE AIRPORT WATERSHED, TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC WORKS, TO THOSE DEALING WITH PARKS, LIBRARIES, AND BUILDING SERVICES, AND ALSO WORKING WITH THE CONVENTION CENTER, A PD FIRE AND EMS. CURRENTLY, WE MANAGE OVER 500 ACTIVE PROJECTS, AND THAT INVESTMENT IS ABOUT $7 BILLION IN OUR COMMUNITY.

UH, NOT COUNTED IN THAT SEVEN BILLIONS.

WE ALSO WORK IN SUPPORT DELIVERY, THAT OF PROJECT CONNECT INITIATIVE.

WE ARE, UH, DOING AN INTEGRATED DELIVERY APPROACH AT THE AIRPORT EXPANSION, AND WE'RE ALSO USING THE SAME INTE INTEGRATED DELIVERY APPROACH AT THE CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION.

SO, LET ME EXPLAIN A LITTLE BIT, AND I THINK THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE ASKING, IS HOW DO WE WORK WITH ONE OF OUR INFRASTRUCTURE A, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE OWNERS? WELL, WE, WE SEE PROJECTS IN, IN A THREE GATE SYSTEM.

FIRST OF ALL, YOU HAVE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT.

SECOND PART OF THE, UH, SYSTEM OR GATE IS PROJECT DESIGN, AND THE LAST ONE IS PROJECT INSTRUCTION.

SO WHEN WE, WHEN OUR CAPITAL PROJECT DEVELOPMENT TEAM STARTS WORKING WITH AN INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNER, LIKE TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS, WE WORK WITH 'EM BASED ON WHAT THEY'VE IDENTIFIED AND PRIORITIZE AS COMMUNITY NEEDS, THEN WE WORK TOGETHER IN THAT DEVELOPMENT PHASE TO DEVELOP THE PRELIMINARY SCOPE, SCHEDULE, AND BUDGET, AND JOINTLY ENSURE SECURED FUNDING.

BUT THE OTHER THING WE DO AT THIS TIME TOO, IS ONE OF OUR KEY ASSETS OR KEY THINGS WE TRY TO DO IS A DIG ONCE APPROACH.

SO DURING THIS SAME TIME, WE TALK TO AUSTIN WATER, AUSTIN ENERGY, UH, WATERSHED TO TALK ABOUT, WELL, IF WE'RE GONNA DO A WORK IN THE RIGHT OF WAY FOR TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS, ARE THERE OTHER ASSETS THAT WE COULD ADDRESS? AT THE SAME TIME, WE USED TO DIG ONCE APPROACH, 'CAUSE RIGHT NOW THE CITIZENS, ALL THEY SEE IS THE CITY OF AUSTIN TRUCK.

THEY DON'T KNOW IF IT'S AN AE, THEY DON'T KNOW IF IT'S A WATER, THEY KNOW IF IT'S TRANSPORTATION.

SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO INSTEAD OF CONTINUOUSLY KEEP A COMMU, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD COMPLETELY UNDER CONSTRUCTION, WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS GO IN THERE.

ONCE WE'RE GONNA OPEN UP THE STREET, WE SHOULD ADDRESS THE WATER ISSUES, THE DRAIN ISSUES, AND POSSIBLY BURY THE AE LINES IF POSSIBLE.

SO DURING THAT PHASE, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT, AND THAT'S A SHIFT THAT WE'VE DONE IN THE PAST, IS USUALLY WHAT'S HAPPENING RIGHT NOW IS THAT USUALLY AT 80, 90% OF A PROJECT DEVELOPMENT, THAT'S WHEN THEY DO THE COORDINATION.

WE'RE NOW MOVING BACK INTO THE GATE OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT.

SO BEFORE WE EVEN START THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, WE'VE HAD THAT COORDINATION SO THAT WE CAN BE MORE EFFICIENT, EFFECTIVE ON HOW WE DELIVER A PROJECT.

THEN ONCE WE REACH THE GATE AND WE'RE DONE WITH THE GATE OF PROJECT DEVELOPMENT, IT'S HANDED OVER TO MY DEPARTMENT WHERE WE'RE FOCUSED ON DELIVERING THE PROJECT.

SO FOR DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, WE FOCUS ON DELIVERING THAT.

DURING THAT TIME, WE CONSULT AND WE HAVE ACTUALLY MONTHLY MEETINGS WITH TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS TO TALK ABOUT THE STATUS OF THE PORTFOLIO, WHAT'S GOING ON.

IF THERE'S ISSUES THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS, WE ADDRESS THEM THEN AND ALSO CONSULT IF THERE'S ISSUES THAT WE NEED TO ADDRESS.

ONCE WE'RE DONE WITH THAT, WHAT WE DO IS WHEN THE PROJECT'S DONE, AND SOME OF YOU HAVE ATTENDED THOSE NICE, UH, RIBBON CUTTINGS, WHAT WE DO IS WE TURN AROUND AND WE HAND IT BACK TO THE ASSET OWNER.

BUT ONE OF THE KEY THINGS WE'RE DOING IN THAT LAST PHASE IN THE DEVELOPMENT PHASE TOO, THAT I DIDN'T MENTION BEFORE, WE WANNA WORK WITH THE ASSET OWNERS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE THINK ABOUT THE MAINTENANCE COMPONENT OF IT.

A LOT OF PEOPLE SAY THAT WE SPEND SO MUCH MONEY ON CAPITAL PROGRAM, BUT ACTUALLY SPEND MORE MONEY ON MAINTAINING THOSE ASSETS ONCE THEY'VE BEEN, ONCE THEY'VE BEEN DELIVERED.

SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO INCORPORATE IN OUR PROJECT DEVELOPMENT IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S THE REQUIRED FUNDING OR NEEDS OR RESOURCES TO, TO MAINTAIN THAT ASSET OVER THE YEARS, UH, IN A TYPICAL STREETS BETWEEN 50 TO 70 YEARS SO THEY CAN PROGRAM THAT IN.

SO IT'S NOT DISRUPTIVE OR THAT WE USE FUNDS APPROPRIATELY, OR IF WHEN WE DESIGN, WE DESIGN IN A WAY WITH MAINTENANCE AND IN IN THOUGHT.

'CAUSE A LOT OF PROJECTS DON'T DO THAT.

WHAT WE DO IS WE DO A CHEAPER PROJECT UPFRONT AND THEN THE MAINTENANCE COST TRIPLES BECAUSE WE DIDN'T THINK ABOUT THAT AT THE BEGINNING.

AND LIKE I SAID, AT THE END, WE TURN IT BACK OVER TO TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS, AND THEN THEY MAINTAIN THE MOBILITY INFRASTRUCTURE.

I THINK, I THINK THAT GOES BACK TO, UH, RICHARD, IS THAT THE END SLIDE? I, I BELIEVE THAT'S THE LAST SLIDE.

SO ANY, ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE FOR EITHER MYSELF, JAMES, OR OUR TEAMS. I I REALLY APPRECIATE THIS PRESENTATION, ESPECIALLY THE CALL OUT TO SOME OF THE OTHER CAPITAL DELIVERY PROJECTS.

IT'S NOT ALL ABOUT MOBILITY, EVEN THOUGH A LOT OF THE BONDS WE'VE PASSED AND THE ONES THAT ARE HIGHER PROFILE RIGHT NOW ARE GONNA BE THE MOBILITY BONDS.

BUT I KNOW WE'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS OVER THE YEARS ABOUT, UM, ROADS IN PARKS AND TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE HELPING OUR PARK SYSTEM BE ACCESSIBLE TO PEOPLE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IGNORING THE MAINTENANCE COST UPFRONT MIGHT SAVE YOU MONEY THAT YEAR, BUT IN

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FIVE OR 10 OR 20 YEARS, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE A MUCH BIGGER PROBLEM ON YOUR HANDS.

AND SO IN THE LONG RUN, ARE YOU REALLY SAVING MONEY IF YOU'RE NOT LOOKING AT THESE INVESTMENTS, UM, THROUGH THROUGHOUT EVERY ANNUAL BUDGET THAT WE ADOPT.

DO WE HAVE QUESTIONS FROM COMMITTEE MEMBERS? COUNCIL MEMBER VELA? UH, THANK YOU CHAIR.

UM, THIS IS A, A STRANGE QUESTION, BUT IT'S BEEN A DISCUSSION, UH, ON MY, IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, WHICH WAS RECENTLY REPAVED AND I BELIEVE SOME STREETS GOT, UH, AND PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, THE CHIP IN SEAL OR, YOU KNOW, A, A ROCKIER, UH, ROUGHER A SURFACE, AND THEN ONE OR TWO STREETS GOT A, I THINK SEAL COAT, UH, WHICH, UH, YOU KNOW, LIKE SKATEBOARDERS AND ROLLERBLADERS LOVE.

UH, I WAS JUST WONDERING WHEN, YOU KNOW, ONE COATING IS CALLED FOR AND, AND WHEN THE OTHER, OR WHAT, WHAT ARE THE, UH, UH, I KNOW THAT'S A VERY IN THE WEEDS QUESTION, BUT IT'S COME UP, UH, AND, AND IT, AND IT PIQUED MY INTEREST.

THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER.

NO, THAT'S A, THAT'S A VERY, VERY SUCCINCT QUESTION ACTUALLY.

AND, AND A GOOD ONE.

YOU KNOW, UH, OUR, OUR, UH, OFFICE OF CITY ENGINEER AND PAVEMENT OPERATIONS DIVISIONS HAVE A VERY MATURE PAVEMENT, UH, MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.

UH, IT'S ONE OF THE, THE MOST, UH, MATURE ONES IN THE COUNTRY THAT, THAT I'VE HAD EXPERIENCE WITH.

AND THE GOAL OF THAT PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IS TO PRESERVE OUR STREETS, UH, AND EXTEND THE LIFECYCLE AS LONG AS POSSIBLE BEFORE IT REQUIRES TOTAL RECONSTRUCTION OR REHABILITATION.

SO MUCH LIKE YOUR CAR, WHICH YOU DON'T DRIVE IT UNTIL THE ENGINE FAILS, YOU DO PERIODIC MAINTENANCE ALONG THE WAY TO EXTEND THAT LIFE.

AND SO THERE'S A VARIETY OF TREATMENTS AND, UH, WE HAVE A PAVEMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM THAT, UH, SHOWS THE, UH, LIFECYCLE OF STREETS AND THE DETERIORATION CURVES THAT, UH, IN THE BEGINNING OF A NEWLY PAVED STREET, IT DETERIORATES AT A LOT SLOWER RATE THAN IT DOES AT THE END OF THE LIFE.

AND SO THE, THE, UH, THE SCIENCE IS TO APPLY THE RIGHT TREATMENT TO THE RIGHT STREET AT THE RIGHT TIME TO PUSH THAT DETERIORATION CURVE EVEN FURTHER OUT IN THIS LIFECYCLE.

SO CLASSICALLY, A NEWLY PAVED STREET IN THE FIRST THREE TO FIVE YEARS, YOU'LL GET A CRACK SEAL.

'CAUSE MOISTURE IS, IS THE PRIMARY WORST ENEMY TO THE CONDITION IN THE STREETS.

IT'S WHAT, WHEN IT INFILTRATES, UH, THE PAVEMENT ON TOP, IT'LL, THAT'S WHAT CAUSES POTHOLES.

AND THEN IT JUST GOES REALLY BAD FROM THERE.

SO YOU'LL SEE A CRACK SEAL, AND THEN MAYBE AT FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS, UH, YOU'LL SEE A THIN SURFACE TREATMENT, LIKE A SEAL COAT, UH, A SLURRY SEAL.

AND THEN MAYBE AT THE EIGHT TO NINE YEARS, YOU'LL SEE A CHIP SEAL, AND THAT'S THE MORE COARSE, UH, UH, TREATMENT TOGETHER WITH AN EMULSION.

WHAT THAT DOES IS IT SEALS THE STREET, PREVENTS MORE MOISTURE FROM PREMATURELY, UM, UH, DETERIORATING THE STREET AND PUSHES THAT LIFECYCLE OUT FURTHER.

SO WE HAVE 8,000 LANE MILES OF STREETS IN OUR CATALOG RIGHT NOW, UH, AS A SYSTEM, ABOUT 74% OF THOSE ARE AT SATISFACTORY OR ABOVE.

UH, EVERY THREE YEARS, WE DRIVE THE STREETS WITH THIS APPARATUS THAT MEASURES HOW BUMPY IT IS, TAKES VIDEO, UH, OBSERVES, UH, DIFFERENT TYPES OF FATIGUE LIKE CRACKING, UH, POTHOLES, HEAVING, UH, SO THAT TO DETERMINE ON AN ANNUAL PROGRAM BASED ON THE BUDGET THAT WE HAVE, WHAT THOSE TREATMENTS ARE.

UH, BUT I DO HEAR YOU AND UNDERSTAND THAT THAT COURSE TREATMENT, IT'S FOUND TO BE THE MOST DURABLE LOW COST TREATMENT, ALTHOUGH IT'S NOT THE BEST CONDUCIVE FOR SKINNING YOUR KNEES OFF SKATEBOARDS.

AND, UH, WE DO HEAR THAT FROM COMMUNITIES, UH, AND WE DO RESPOND TO THOSE, UH, ON A, ON A REGULAR BASIS.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

THAT'S A, A, A GREAT ANSWER.

SO THAT CHIP AND SEAL THAT INDICATES AN OLDER STREET, THEN, UH, THAT, THAT IS, IS LATER IN, IN ITS LIFE CYCLE.

IT'S, UH, LIKE MIDLIFE.

CROSSINGS, IN TERMS OF TRAFFIC.

GOT IT.

AND I'LL PASS THAT ALONG.

THAT, UH, INFORMATION FOR, FOR THOSE THAT WERE, THERE WERE JUST QUESTIONS THAT'S TO, YOU KNOW, WHY DID ONE STREET GET ONE TREATMENT AND WHY DID THE OTHER STREET GET A DIFFERENT TREATMENT? AND LIKE YOU SAID, EVERYBODY LOVES THAT SMOOTH, SILKY STREET, UH, AND NOT SO MUCH, UH, THE CHIP AND SEAL, BUT I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND.

WE'VE GOTTA BE, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, A PENSION PENNIES AT THE CITY AND, AND TRYING TO USE, UH, THE, OUR, OUR CITIZENS' TAX DOLLARS AS EFFICIENTLY AS POSSIBLE.

UM, ANOTHER QUICK QUESTION.

UH, AND THIS HAS COME UP IN, IN, UH, VARIOUS PARTS OF THE DISTRICT, BUT THERE WILL BE ONE STREET THAT FOLKS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT IN TERMS OF SAFETY, IN TERMS OF

[00:30:01]

AND, AND, AND, UM, AND I'M HOPING TO DO THIS ON A DISTRICT-WIDE BASIS, UH, VERY SOON.

BUT I'D LIKE TO GET KIND OF A, A, A MORE UNIVERSAL, UH, UH, LIST OF IN FEEDBACK FROM MY CONSTITUENTS ON EXACTLY, YOU KNOW, WHICH, UH, UH, STREETS ARE OF THE HIGHEST CONCERN, AND THEN COMMUNICATE WITH Y'ALL AND THEN GO BACK AND, AND RELAY THAT TO, UM, TO THE CONSTITUENTS.

BUT IF THERE WAS, UH, AND, AND LET ME JUST USE THE EXAMPLE ONE THAT, THAT WE WERE RECENTLY DISCUSSING A BERKMAN, UH, BETWEEN, UH, 51ST STREET AND, UH, TWO 90.

UM, A LOT OF NEW HOUSING IS GOING IN, IN THAT PART OF AUSTIN AND WINDSOR PARK, BASICALLY.

UH, UH, AND THERE IS A, UH, A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, UH, CUT THROUGH TRAFFIC ALSO BETWEEN, UH, UH, TWO 90.

UH, IF YOU TAKE BERKMAN, YOU CAN REALLY WEAVE YOUR WAY ALL THROUGH DOWNTOWN.

SO I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF, UH, FOLKS THAT, THAT COMING OUT FROM, UH, MAINOR AND FROM ELGIN AND WHATNOT, THAT, THAT WORK DOWNTOWN THAT ARE, UH, CUTTING THROUGH THERE.

AND THERE HAVE BEEN, UH, UH, CONCERNS ABOUT THAT.

UH, HOW COULD WE, OR WHO WOULD BE THE BEST CONTACT, WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST WAY TO, TO KIND OF COMMUNICATE BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENT AND THE COUNCIL OFFICE, UH, AND, UH, THE, THE, THE CITIZENS, THE RESIDENTS, UH, ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE CAN DO, UH, YOU KNOW, THEY WANNA KNOW KIND OF WHAT THE PLANS ARE.

THEY WANT TO KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS.

IF THERE'S ANYTHING WE CAN DO, UH, UH, UH, SUGGESTIONS, DIRECTOR, MOST CERTAINLY.

AND, AND WE DO GET CALLS OF THAT, THAT MANNER, UH, THROUGHOUT THE CITY.

UH, I WOULD ENCOURAGE FOLKS THAT ARE EXPERIENCING ISSUES WITH TRAFFIC OR SPEEDING OR, UH, ANYTHING SAFETY RELATED IN THE PUBLIC ROADWAY TO UTILIZE A 3 1 1 SYSTEM.

UM, THERE'S GONNA BE A FOLLOW UP PRESENTATION ON THAT, BUT OUR, ONE OF THE DIVISIONS THAT I SHOWED PRIOR ARE TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING DIVISION.

WE HAVE THREE, WHAT WE CALL AREA ENGINEERS.

AND THEY'RE EACH ASSIGNED A SECTION OF THE CITY TO RESPOND TO, UH, UH, COMMUNITY ISSUES, JUST LIKE AS YOU JUST DESCRIBED.

AND IF THEY USE THE 3 1 1 SYSTEM, THEN WE CAN MAKE RECORD OF THAT.

WE CAN TRACK IT, AND THEN WE CAN ENSURE WE FOLLOW UP WITH THAT CONTACT INFORMATION WITH THAT COMMUNITY MEMBER, UH, ON THE, UH, ALTERNATIVES AND TREATMENTS, UH, THAT ARE AVAILABLE FOR US TO ALLEVIATE, UH, THAT CONCERN.

WE DO WORK REALLY CLOSELY WITH OUR VISION ZERO PROGRAM, UH, AND WE TRACK AND WORK WITH, UH, OUR, UH, A PD, WE'VE IDENTIFIED WHAT WE CALL THE HIGH CRASH NETWORK.

AND SO WE, UH, MANY TIMES WILL PRIORITIZE, UH, IMPROVEMENTS IN SAFETY, UH, TREATMENTS TO THOSE AREAS IN RESPONSE, UH, TO THOSE CALLS AND THAT FEEDBACK, BUT CERTAINLY INVITE THAT FEEDBACK.

AND THAT'S THE TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING DIVISION WITHIN ENGINEERING AND PROJECT DELIVERY? YES, THAT'S CORRECT.

GOT IT.

AND, AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT Y'ALL HAVE DONE A LOT ON BERKMAN.

UH, THERE'S A PEDESTRIAN, UH, BEACON THAT WAS NOT THERE BEFORE.

THERE ARE NUMEROUS, UH, UH, THERE'S BIKE LANES NOW THAT THAT, BUT, UH, UM, THIS IS THE STORY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

THE GROWTH AND THE TRAFFIC KIND OF CONTINUES DESPITE THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE MAKE.

UH, YOU KNOW, THERE'S JUST A, A LOT GOING ON IN A VERY DYNAMIC CITY, UH, AND, UH, AND, AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE ALL STRUGGLING TO, TO KEEP UP AND MAINTAIN THAT, THAT QUALITY OF LIFE.

BUT I APPRECIATE IT.

YES, SIR.

I THINK THERE WAS A COLLECTIVE GROAN WHEN YOU SAID THE WORD CHIP SEAL.

'CAUSE I THINK ALL OF OUR OFFICES HEAR ABOUT THOSE AND, YOU KNOW, TRY TO MANAGE AS, AS BEST WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR CONSTITUENTS ARE GETTING THE BEST SERVICES.

BUT THERE ARE DIFFERENT COSTS AND DIFFERENT TIMELINES TO THESE DIFFERENT TREATMENTS AS AS APPROPRIATE.

BUT I THINK WE'VE PROBABLY ALL GOTTEN CALLS ABOUT THE, THE CHIP SEAL MORE QUESTIONS, WANNA MAKE SURE I'M NOT MISSING ANY HANDS.

UM, I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION.

I ALSO THOUGHT OF, UM, ONE OTHER TOPIC THAT IS NOT UNDER THE CITY'S PURVIEW, AND THAT IS THAT THERE ARE SOME ROADS THAT PEOPLE DRIVE ON THAT ARE PRIVATE ACCESS.

UM, SOMETIMES WE'LL GET CALLS ABOUT POTHOLES IN THOSE SITUATIONS, BUT IT'S NOT A CITY OWNED RIGHT OF WAY.

AND SO THERE JUST MAY BE ISSUES THAT PEOPLE ARE CALLING IN TO 3 1 1 OR CALLING OUR OFFICES THAT ARE ACTUALLY IN THE HANDS OF WHOEVER THAT PROPERTY OWNER IS AND TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE MAINTAINING, UM, THOSE EASEMENTS AND ACCESSES, UM, AS APPROPRIATE.

SO I KNOW THERE'S A FEW OTHER SITUATIONS THAT WE'VE GOTTEN CALLS ABOUT THAT ULTIMATELY THEY'RE, THEY'RE NOT CITY RIGHT OF WAY, AND WE CAN'T SPEND CITY RESOURCES ON FIXING THEM.

SO THAT'S JUST ANOTHER LAYER OF SOME OF THESE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ROAD MAINTENANCE.

AND IF THERE'S NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, I THINK WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT TOPIC.

BE RESIDENT MOBILITY CONCERNS, HOW TO REPORT ISSUES, AND WHAT TO EXPECT PRESENTED BY OUR VERY OWN JEFF STENSON.

ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS GONNA

[4. Resident Mobility Concerns: How to report issues and what to expect.]

HELLO EVERYONE.

GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR, UH, VICE CHAIR AND, UH, COMMITTEE MEMBERS.

I'M JEFF SIMPSON.

I'M THE PUBLIC INFORMATION AND MARKETING PROGRAM MANAGER FOR AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.

I'M GONNA TAKE JUST A COUPLE MINUTES

[00:35:01]

TO TALK THROUGH, UM, KIND OF HOW WE HANDLE THOSE CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS THAT PRIMARILY COME TO US THROUGH 3 1 1.

UH, FIRST IS REALLY HOW TO REPORT THOSE ISSUES TO 3 1 1 OR TO, TO THE, TO THE DEPARTMENT TO GET THOSE TAKEN CARE OF.

IT'S REALLY ON A RESPONSIVE BASIS FOR MANY OF OUR, OUR ISSUES.

YOU CAN DO THAT BY CALLING THREE ONE ONE THAT CALL CENTER THERE.

UH, YOU CAN ALSO DO THAT BY GOING, OH, I'M SO SORRY.

I NEED TO HIT THE BUTTON MYSELF.

IT'S SELF-EMPOWERED.

UM, YOU CAN ALSO, UM, WHEN YOU CALL 3 1 1 OR USE THE, THE 3 1 1 MOBILE APP OR THE WEBSITE, YOU CAN THEN SELECT THAT SERVICE REQUEST ON THERE.

UH, WE ARE WORKING WITH 3 1 1 TO SIMPLIFY OR KIND OF REFRESH THE, THE TITLES FOR SOME OF THOSE.

THEY MAKE MORE SENSE FOR FOLKS IN THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

UM, BUT ON THERE, IT'LL ASK YOU THE LOCATION AND ALSO TO EXPLAIN THE CONCERN THAT YOU MAY HAVE.

UM, YOU'LL OBTAIN A TRACKING NUMBER, AND THAT TRACKING NUMBER IS CARRIED THROUGH THE SYSTEM TO MAKE SURE THAT IT IS, UH, CLOSED OR COMPLETED, IN OTHER WORDS, UH, IN A TIMELY MANNER.

AND WE TRACK THOSE FOR ALL TYPES OF SERVICE REQUESTS THAT WE RECEIVE.

UH, WE ARE ONE OF THE BIGGER DEPARTMENTS AS FAR AS, UH, CSRS OR, UH, CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS, PUBLIC SERVICE REQUESTS THAT COME IN.

AS FAR AS THE, THE, THE MOST FREQUENT ONES THAT WE DO RECEIVE, UH, SEVERAL OF THE TOP 10 IN THE CITY THAT YOU'VE SEEN IN OTHER PRESENTATIONS RECENTLY, UM, ARE ACTUALLY RELATED TO, UH, AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.

UH, WHAT, WHAT THE PUBLIC CAN USUALLY EXPECT IS A CALLBACK, UH, WITHIN 48 HOURS, ESPECIALLY IF WE NEED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND IN ORDER TO ADDRESS THAT CONCERN, UH, IF IT'S SOMETHING LIKE A SIGN THAT IS, IS KNOCKED DOWN, OR, UH, A ROAD SEND THAT MAYBE, OR MAYBE A, A TRAFFIC SIGNAL THAT IS AIMED IMPROPERLY, UM, THOSE CAN TYPICALLY BE CLOSED OR COMPLETED WITHOUT, UH, THAT, THAT FOR ONE-ON-ONE CONTACT.

BUT PRIMARILY FOR MANY OF THESE, UH, WE DO TRY TO TOUCH BACK WITH THAT CONSTITUENT WITHIN A 48 HOUR PERIOD.

UM, WE MAY ALSO REQUEST ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM THEM TO BE ABLE TO, TO COMPLETE THAT, THAT REQUEST AND UNDERSTAND THEIR CONCERN FULLY.

UH, THAT'S IN ADDITION TO REVISITING THE, THE LOCATION ITSELF AND ALSO PROVIDE THEM AN ESTIMATED TIME TO ACTUALLY HAVE THIS ISSUE RESOLVED.

UH, ONE ITEM THAT ALSO IS THAT WE CAN PROVIDE A WIT WRITTEN RESPONSE TO THAT CONSTITUENTS HOME OR EMAIL ON SPECIFIC ISSUES, UH, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES RELATED TO SOME OF THE ENGINEERING, UH, MATTERS WHERE THERE MAY NEED TO BE A LITTLE MORE ANALYSIS PUT INTO IT.

AND THIS IS AN OVERALL LOOK, A NICE LITTLE PIE OF THE 82,500 EVEN NUMBER, UH, CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS THAT WE SAW LAST YEAR.

THIS IS CALENDAR YEAR 2023.

SO FROM JANUARY 1ST TO DECEMBER 20, DECEMBER 31ST, THIS IS WHAT ALL THE CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS THAT CAME INTO AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.

YOU CAN SEE THE BULK OF THEM, UH, WERE PER FOR PARKING VIOLATION ENFORCEMENT, FOLLOWED BY TRAFFIC SIGNAL MAINTENANCE.

UH, THAT'S FOR, UM, TRAFFIC SIGNALS OR PEDESTRIAN HYBRID BEACONS.

UH, ADDITIONALLY YOU'LL SEE THE SHARED MICRO MOBILITY, SO THAT'S SCOTERS OR DOCKLESS BICYCLES.

UM, OFTENTIMES THE, THE MOST COMMON REQUEST ON THERE IS, UM, THEM BLOCKING THE ROADWAY OR IMPROPERLY STORED, OR ANOTHER TYPE OF MANAGEMENT ISSUE WHERE WE RELAY THOSE OFF TO THOSE INDIVIDUAL PROVIDERS OR ADDRESS THOSE, UM, IN A VERY CLOSE AND QUICK MANNER.

UM, THAT HAS A MUCH FASTER TURNAROUND TIME THAN A 48 HOUR PERIOD.

UH, YOU CAN SEE OVERALL THOUGH, AND THEN, AND THEN THE PIE CHART GETS A SMALLER, THOSE LISTS GO, UH, BEYOND THAT, UM, YOU CAN SEE THAT PIE CHART CONTINUES THERE, ABOUT 91, ALMOST 92% OF ALL REQUESTS THAT HAVE COME IN LAST YEAR WERE COMPLETED ON TIME.

UH, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WANNA STRIVE FOR IS AT LEAST 90%, UH, COMPLETION.

UH, OF THOSE, I WANTED TO JUST, JUST DIVE INTO OUR TOP THREE HERE.

UH, I'LL ACTUALLY HAVE OUR TOP SIX REALLY QUICK.

YOU CAN SEE, UH, WITH PARKING VIOLATIONS, WE HAD ALMOST 15,000, ALMOST MORE THAN 15,500.

THEY HAD A 99.8%, UH, ON TIME COMPLETION RATE.

UH, IT DOES HELP THAT WE HAVE CREWS THAT ARE OUT ON OUR, IN THE FIELD, UH, THROUGHOUT THE DAY, ESPECIALLY DURING THOSE, UH, THOSE, UH, PARKING HOURS, THE PARKING ENFORCEMENT HOURS TO ADDRESS THOSE NEEDS.

UH, SIGNAL MAINTENANCE, ALSO ABOUT 96%, 95% FOR THOSE SHARED MICRO MOBILITY REQUESTS.

YOU CAN SEE THOUGH, UM, THAT WE HAVE ABOUT 10 TO 15,000 FOR THOSE TOP THREE.

AND THEN IT DROPS SIGNIFICANTLY DOWN FOR, UH, TRAFFIC SIGN MAINTENANCE, ABOUT 4,500 ISSUES THERE LAST YEAR.

UM, THAT'S OFTENTIMES A SIGN KNOCKED DOWN OR, OR MISPLACED OR, OR MISED DUE TO WIND OR OTHER, UH, ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS.

AND OF COURSE, POTHOLE REPAIR, UH, HAD ABOUT JUST UNDER 4,000.

UM, THAT ALSO, I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT NUMBER.

4,000 IS A FRACTION OF WHAT WE SAW FOR PARKING VIOLATIONS.

UM, THE SYSTEM IS VERY RESPONSIVE, AS YOU JUST HEARD MY DIRECTOR SPEAK ABOUT.

UH, WE HAVE CREWS THAT ARE DEDICATED TO KEEPING OUR RIGHT OF WAY, UH, WELL MAINTAINED, UH, ACROSS THE AREA, INCLUDING, UH, A TEAM THAT IS, UH, DEDICATED TO A MAIN, UH, TO SERVICING THOSE 3000 PLUS OR 4,000, UH, POTHOLE REPAIRS EVERY YEAR.

UM, THOSE COME TO US LARGELY THROUGH, UH, THE 3 1 1 SYSTEM AND CAN BE,

[00:40:01]

UM, THROUGH THE PUBLIC'S HELP TO BE ABLE TO HELP IMPROVE THOSE, UH, ROADWAYS, UM, AND THE STREET SYSTEM WITHIN OUR, UH, CITY.

ONE THING I DO WANNA HIGHLIGHT, WE HAD A FEW THAT FELL BELOW THAT 50% ON TIME THRESHOLD.

UH, THEY INCLUDED SOME ISSUES WITH PERHAPS TREE ISSUES IN THE RIGHT OF WAY, BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN ISSUES INVOLVING OUR, OUR URBAN TRAILS OR, OR BICYCLE NETWORK.

UH, PERHAPS A BOOTING COMPLAINT.

AND ALSO THE, UH, USING OUR PAY BY PHONE APP.

THAT'S THE PARK, A TX APP THAT YOU USE FOR PAID MARKING.

UH, WE ARE, UH, WE HAVE, UM, FLAGGED A LOT OF THOSE AND ARE LOOKING THROUGH A LOT OF THE PROCESS ISSUES.

SOME OF IT MAY BE A STAFFING ISSUE OR OTHERWISE, UM, BUT, BUT WE ARE MAKING SURE THAT MOST OF THESE, UH, THESE WILL ALL BE, UM, UH, IN A MUCH HIGHER COMPLETION RATE AND THAT WE'VE KIND OF FOUND THOSE ISSUES TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MOVE THOSE BEYOND SO THEY'RE NOT CONTINUALLY DEFICIENT.

UM, SOME OF THESE ALSO JUST REQUIRE ADDITIONAL FOCUS FOR OUR DEPARTMENT LEADS TO, TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.

ONE THING WE WANT TO DO IS HELP THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THAT RELATIONSHIP THEY HAVE WITH THE CITY AND THE CITY STAFF AND THE DEPARTMENTS THAT SERVE THEM ON A DAY-TO-DAY BASIS.

UH, WE HAVE SEVERAL, UH, CAMPAIGNS, UH, THAT ARE EITHER THROUGH PAID OR NON-PAID.

UH, WE CALL IT ORGANIC, UH, SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS.

UM, ONE OF 'EM YOU'LL SEE UP THERE ON THE LEFT SIDE IS A SHARED MICRO MOBILITY, UH, SAFETY CAMPAIGN.

UH, WE LAUNCHED THE RIDE PARK YIELD CAMPAIGN LAST SUMMER, UH, AND WE RAN THAT THROUGH THE FALL AND WE, WE CYCLED IT DOWN, UM, AFTER KIND OF THAT, THAT, THAT FALL, UH, PEAK SEASON FOR SCOOTER RIDING WHEN IT GOT A LITTLE COLDER.

AND WHEN WE SEE THOSE SCOOTER TRIPS DROP, UH, THOSE ARE TARGETED IN A LOT OF AREAS WHERE WE SEE HIGH RIDERSHIP, ESPECIALLY HERE IN DOWNTOWN WEST CAMPUS, SOUTH CONGRESS, UH, THOSE AREAS TO, UH, ENCOURAGE PEOPLE.

UH, THIS IS ALSO TARGETING A SPECIFIC AGE GROUP AND OTHER, UH, FACTORS THERE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE, UH, UH, DIAL IN ON THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MOST OFTEN USING SCOOTERS, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'VE KIND OF UNDERSTAND THE RULES OF THE ROAD AND HAVE A BEST PRACTICE ON THERE.

UH, WE ALSO ARE, UH, INCORPORATING SEVERAL SERVICE REQUEST CAMPAIGNS INTO OUR, UH, CYCLE AS WE OPERATE ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE PUBLIC IS AWARE OF THE DIFFERENT WAYS THAT THEY CAN, UH, MAKE US AWARE.

LIKE I HAD MENTIONED A LITTLE BIT AGO.

UM, FINALLY WE HAVE ALL OF OUR INFORMATION UP THERE.

YOU CAN ALWAYS GO TO AUSTIN TEXAS.GOV AND CLICK THE 3 1 1 1 BUTTON AT THE TOP, UH, RIGHT HAND SIDE THERE, UH, BY THE TRANSLATE BUTTON THAT'LL TAKE YOU RIGHT TO THAT CUSTOMER SERVICE FORM.

UH, SO FOLKS CAN REPORT THOSE AT ANY TIME.

UH, I ALSO RESPOND TO A LOT OF OUR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS WITH THAT SPECIFIC LINK, SO THAT WAY IF FOLKS ARE MENTIONING AN ISSUE, THE PUBLIC IS MENTIONING AN ISSUE, WE CAN ADDRESS IT THERE.

OF COURSE, WE ARE ALL FOUND@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV SLASH TPW AND I'M OPEN FOR ANY QUESTIONS.

I SEE VICE CHAIR CADRY HAS HIS HAND RAISED.

WHICH I GUESS FOR THE SAKE OF THIS MEETING, IT'S A CITY MANAGER WHO HAS HIS HAND RAISED.

YEAH, IT DOES.

THAT'S WHAT IT SAYS ON THIS DEVICE.

OH, UM, YEAH, I'M NOT A CITY MANAGER THOUGH.

UM, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.

I JUST HAD A, A FEW QUESTIONS UNDER COMMENTS.

YOU KNOW, MICRO MOBILITY IS A, IS A, IS A BIG THING IN D NINE AND WE GET A LOT OF 3 1 1, UH, CALLS, COMPLAINTS, CONCERNS, UH, AROUND THAT.

UH, I, I, I WAS WONDERING, WHEN IT COMES TO PARKING ISSUES, DOES THAT CAPTURE WHEN FOLKS PARK AND BIKE LANES? IT DOES.

IT DOES.

OUR, AT THE FOOTER IS A KINDA A MEDIA RELEASE, UM, IF THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL ALSO FOR THIS, UM, THAT INFORMATION HAS CURRENTLY, IT, IT SOLELY HAS THE, AND WE CAN ADD MORE INFORMATION TO IT IF IT, IF NECESSARY.

YEAH, SO, SO I MEAN, SOMETHING THAT WE REALLY WANNA LOOK INTO.

WE ESPECIALLY GET A LOT OF, UH, 3 1 1 CALLS AND, AND, UH, CALLS INTO OUR OFFICES AND EMAILS INTO OUR OFFICE WHEN IT COMES, YOU KNOW, AROUND SOUTH BY, WHICH STARTS IN ABOUT, UH, YOU KNOW, TWO MONTHS, UH, IS BIKE LANE BLOCKAGES, UH, ON, ON CONGRESS.

UH, AND, AND I THINK WHAT WE WANNA LOOK AT IS IF WE COULD LOOK INTO REREGULATE REGULATIONS THAT WE COULD PUT INTO PLACE ON ENFORCEMENT AND COMMUTING THIS TO THE PUBLIC AND, AND VENDORS AND WHATNOT.

MM-HMM, .

SO, UH, THAT'S IT, THAT'S ALL I HAD TO SAY.

IT WAS MORE OF A QUESTION SLASH COMMENT, SO THANK YOU.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

AND I'LL ADD THAT IT'S BEEN, UM, IT HAS BEEN REQUESTED BY THE URBAN TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION THAT WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE REGULATIONS AROUND PARKING IN THE BIKE LANE BEING ALLOWED, UNLESS IT IS SIGNED AND NOTICED THAT YOU CAN'T, VERSUS FLIPPING THAT AND SAYING THE EXPECTATION AND THE STANDARD SHOULD BE THAT YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED UNLESS THERE'S A SPECIFIC SITUATION LIKE MUSICIAN LOADING AND UNLOADING, WHERE MAYBE THAT'S JUST THE ONLY PLACE TO DO THAT.

SO WE'RE, UH, STARTING THAT CONVERSATION.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO JOIN IN, I THINK WE'D BE GREAT PARTNERS IN AND LOOKING INTO THOSE DETAILS AND WHAT IS POSSIBLE.

I WOULD LOVE TO JOIN IN.

YEAH, GREAT.

SIGNING PEOPLE UP FOR SUB QUORUMS ON THE SPOT.

I LOVE THAT.

UM, I HAVE A QUESTION.

SO FIRST OF ALL, I LOVE THE PIE CHART AND ALL THE DATA AND DETAILS ABOUT THESE CALLS THAT YOU PRESENTED.

IS THAT INFORMATION ON A PUBLIC FACING WEBSITE WHERE WE CAN CLICK AROUND OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT'S MORE INTERNAL? I COULD, IT'S AN INTERNAL DOCUMENT.

I HAVE AN INTERNAL SPREADSHEET.

UM, I COULD POST THAT SOMEWHERE.

I COULD ACTUALLY PUBLISH THIS REPORT IF YOU OH, INTERESTING.

SO CHOOSE, UM, ON

[00:45:01]

IT HAS THE, UM, TOTAL CALLS AND TOTAL ON-TIME COMPLETED, UH, ITEMS ON THERE.

AND THEN OF COURSE, THAT PERCENTAGE THAT WE'RE ABLE TO DERIVE IF YOU'RE SEEKING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PERHAPS WHAT, WHAT AN ON-TIME COMPLETION DURATION IS FOR EACH OF THOSE.

I CAN PULL THAT FOR EACH OF THE, OF THE CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUEST CATEGORIES AND INCORPORATE THAT INTO, UH, INTO THAT POSTING.

THAT WOULD BE FASCINATING.

I MOSTLY WANTED TO DRILL DOWN INTO A SIMILAR QUESTION TO WHAT VICE CHAIR CADRE ASKED, WHICH WAS, YOU KNOW, WHERE IS SOMETHING LIKE A PARKING INFRACTION IN A BIKE LANE AND WHAT MAKES THAT SEPARATE FROM BICYCLE PEDESTRIAN ISSUES? YOU KNOW, JUST KIND OF DRILLING DOWN INTO WHAT PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY SENDING IN AND, AND HOW YOU'RE ORGANIZING THE DATA AND, AND PERHAPS TO SPEAK TO THAT AND ALSO IN RESPONSE TO WHAT, UH, UH, AN ISSUE YOU BROUGHT UP HERE RECENTLY AT A PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING OR PRE PREVIOUS COMMITTEE MEETING, WE CREATED THAT DASHBOARD ON, UM, AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES AND, UM, SHOWING INCIDENT TRACKING AS WE HAVE IT IN OUR SYSTEM.

WE CREATED THAT, WE HAVE THAT DATA IN AN EXCEL SPREADSHEET, BUT IT HAS A LOT MORE INFORMATION NOW AND THAT, THAT, THAT PLATFORM IS NOW EMBEDDED AS A POWER BI DASHBOARD ON THE AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES WEBSITE.

UM, WE COULD, I WILL SEE IF THERE'S A WAY FOR US TO, UM, FIND A WAY TO ACTUALLY HAVE THAT LIVE FEED OR HAVE SOME SORT OF LIVE ILLUSTRATION OR VISUAL THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO HELP THAT AND, UM, PUT THAT ON THE TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT WEBSITE.

OH, THAT WOULD BE FANTASTIC.

I KNOW THAT THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT HAS ALWAYS KEPT PUBLIC DATA LOGS AND OPEN PORTALS FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO USE, BUT THEY ARE DEFINITELY NUMBERS AND COLUMNS AND YOU'VE KIND OF GOTTA FIGURE OUT HOW YOU WANT THAT INFORMATION TO BE DISPLAYED.

TO BE ABLE TO, TO MAKE IT FUNCTIONAL.

THERE'S A LOT OF DATA IN THERE AND SOMETIMES IT NEEDS A LITTLE ING .

I'M AWARE.

, WE CAN WORK WITH YOU ON THAT.

THAT, THANK YOU.

AND YOU HAD SPOKEN VERY BRIEFLY TO ANOTHER QUESTION I WAS GOING TO ASK, AND THAT IS IN, UM, WHAT'S THE LANGUAGE YOU USED RESOLVED ON TIME? YOU KNOW, ARE, ARE THERE SEPARATE EXPECTATIONS FOR EACH COMPLAINT THAT MIGHT COME IN, LIKE A PARKING VIOLATION? SEEMS LIKE IT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED FAIRLY QUICKLY, WHEREAS ANOTHER TYPE OF CALL OR ISSUE MIGHT TAKE A WEEK.

CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THOSE TIMELINES? CORRECT.

SOME OF THE OTHER ISSUES MAY INVOLVE REACHING OUT WITH A PROPERTY OWNER.

UM, FOR INSTANCE, THERE WAS ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE DEFICIENT CATEGORIES WAS A TREE ISSUE IN THE RIGHT OF WAY THAT OFTENTIMES INVOLVES A CONVERSATION TO BE HAD WITH THAT PERSON OF TO OWN, WHICH THE PROPERTY OWNER, UH, WITH THE PROPERTY OWNER INVOLVED IN THAT.

MM-HMM.

, I MEAN, I, I'M NOT, UH, THE PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THAT, SO I DON'T WANNA SPEAK TOO MUCH ABOUT WHAT EXACTLY IS DETAILED ON THERE, BUT THERE ARE, SOMETIMES THERE MAY BE ENGINEERING NEEDS OR ENGINEERING, UH, EXPERTISE THAT'S BROUGHT INTO SOME OF THE, TO COMPLETING SOME OF THOSE CUSTOMER SERVICE REQUESTS.

MM-HMM.

PERHAPS IT'S A, IT'S A MODIFICATION OF, UM, THE CURRENT SYSTEM TO ADDRESS A, A, A SAFETY NEED THAT WAS IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE PUBLIC, UH, REPORTING PROCESS.

I KNOW THOSE, THOSE CAN GET TRICKY.

I HAD A, AN INSTANCE IN MY DISTRICT, I WENT OUT AND PERSONALLY MET WITH A HOMEOWNER AND OUR CITY ARBORIST AND RIGHT OF WAY WITH PUBLIC WORKS AT THE TIME, AND ALL THOSE DEPARTMENTS HAD TO BE IN THE LOOP.

BECAUSE IT WAS INVOLVED, THE ARBORIST, BUT ALSO RIGHT OF WAY AND TRYING TO FIND OUT THE CORRECT SOLUTION.

WONDERFUL.

ON THE 3 1 1 APP AND THEY WILL GET A, LIKE A CLOSED NOTIFICATION.

FOR THOSE.

SO I, I KNOW THOSE CAN TAKE A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME BECAUSE OF EVERYBODY THAT'S INVOLVED.

UM, I THINK THAT'S ALL I HAVE.

I JUST, I'LL, I'LL SAY FOR, FOR MY LAST COMMENT, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE NEW APP.

I USE THE 3 1 1 APP TOO.

I KNOW PEOPLE THINK SOMETIMES WE HAVE MAGICAL WAYS OF GETTING THINGS DONE, BUT I HAVE HONESTLY FOUND WHEN I SEE SOMEONE WHO'S RUN OVER A STREET SIGN OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, I'LL JUST PLUG IT IN ON THE APP.

AND I DID THAT THE OTHER DAY AND NOTICED THE WHOLE APP WAS NEW, UM, THAT IT NOT ONLY HAD INFORMATION FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO PLUG IN THE CORRECT CATEGORY, WHICH HAS BEEN EXPANDED OVER THE YEARS, BUT ALSO HAD OTHER NEWS THAT MIGHT BE PERTINENT THAT THE CITY IS WORKING ON.

SO IT HAD KIND OF SOME ARTICLES ABOUT OTHER PROJECTS AND AND MAINTENANCE HAPPENING IN THE AREA, WHICH I THOUGHT WAS FASCINATING.

DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COUNCIL MEMBER VELA? YES.

ALTHOUGH, FIRST OF ALL, I JUST WANNA SAY GREAT TO SEE YOU, JEFF, AND, AND SO HAPPY THAT YOU'RE, UH, YOU'RE WITH THE CITY.

UH, AND UH, IT'S NICE TO NOT BE HERE EVERY DAY, TO BE HONEST.

I DO APOLOGIZE.

I HAVEN'T BEEN IN THE ATRIUM IN QUITE SOME YEARS, BUT YES.

YEAH, WELL, WE'RE TRYING TO DO OUR PART WITH THE, UH, THE ISSUES WITH COMMUTING AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

YES, LORD.

UH, AND UH, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS, AND I, I GOT TO CONFESS, I GOT, I DOWNLOADED THE THREE ONE WEB APP.

I STARTED USING IT.

I HAVE NOT, I HAVE FALLEN OFF ON MY, UH, UH, USING OF IT AGAIN, TRYING TO LEARN IT JUST TO, YOU KNOW, SO I CAN BE MM-HMM.

, UH, UP TO SPEED WITH, WITH, UH, WHERE MY, MY CONSTITUENTS ARE.

UM, BUT ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT I'VE HEARD REPORTED NOT SO MUCH RECENTLY, AND I WAS JUST WONDERING IF THERE WAS A CHANGE, WAS THAT SOMEONE WILL REPORT SOMETHING

[00:50:01]

EXACTLY.

AND THAT'S VERY, THEN IT'S NOT CLOSED.

UH, AND THAT'S FRUSTRATING TO THEM.

AND I'VE EXPLAINED TO THEM THAT THAT'S AN INTERNAL MORE LIKE IT'S BEEN PROPERLY REFERRED, SENT.

YES, YES.

UH, IS THAT STILL IS, ARE THEY STILL GETTING THE CLOSED NOTIFICATION OR, UM, BECAUSE I'M ALSO ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT USES THE APP ALL THE TIME.

UH, .

'CAUSE I'M ONE OF THOSE GUYS THAT REPORTS A LOT.

UM, IT WILL STILL SEND YOU THE CLOSE NOTIFICATION.

UM, MY EXAMPLE IS THERE WAS A KNOCKED OVER, UH, UH, STOP SIGN, UH, NEAR THE A CC HIGHLAND CAMPUS THE OTHER DAY, UM, ABOUT A WEEK AGO.

AND I CAUGHT IT ON THE WAY TO THE PDC.

UM, IT SAID IT WAS CLOSED WITHIN, WITHIN 20 MINUTES, BUT I KNEW THAT THE CREW COULDN'T POSSIBLY, I MEAN, BUT IT WAS STILL, THE SIGN WAS STILL DOWN.

IT MEANS IT WAS ASSIGNED AND THEN IT'LL BE, IT'LL BE TRIAGED AND SENT OFF.

UM, AND THEN THAT CREW WILL BE ABLE TO CLOSE OUT.

UM, YEAH.

AS BASED ON, BASED ON THE EXPECTATIONS.

THE ONLY THING I WOULD ASK, UH, IS THAT COULD THAT CLOSE NOTIFICATION BE CHANGED TO LIKE REFERRED TO DEPARTMENT OR, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING BECAUSE I MEAN, I, WE, IT'S, IT'S ASTONISHING THE NUMBER OF CALLS AND COMPLAINTS WE GET ABOUT JUST THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE LIKE, THIS IS NOT DONE, AND THEY CLOSE IT OUT.

YOU KNOW, I MEAN, AND, AND I, I TRY, I, I KNOW IT, I EXPLAIN IT, BUT JUST, UH, JUST, YOU KNOW, A POINT OF INFORMATION.

I AM HOPING THAT OUR FRIENDS AT AUSTIN 3 1 1 ARE WATCHING TODAY, .

UM, BUT I WILL TOUCH BASE WITH, UH, MY COLLEAGUE OVER THERE TOO, JUST TO EXPRESS THAT, UM, THAT SHE REFERENCED THIS REFERENCE, THIS CONVERSATION.

BUT YES, WE, BUT THAT'S ALSO PART OF OUR COLLABORATION WITH THEM.

WE DO A LOT OF, UH, SOCIAL MEDIA, UH, COLLABORATION POSTS TO KIND OF HELP PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENT SERVICE REQUESTS THAT THEY HAVE.

UM, BUT PERHAPS ALSO UNDERSTANDING THE APP AND WHAT THOSE WORDS MEAN, UM, IS ALSO VERY HELPFUL.

THAT'S HOW A LOT OF THESE, UH, THAT'S THAT SCOOTER SAFETY CAMPAIGN ACTUALLY CAME FROM CONVERSATIONS WITH CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND CITY MANAGEMENT, UM, ABOUT HIGHLIGHTING THOSE NEEDS TOO.

THAT'S GREAT.

WELL, AGAIN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

FIVE WILL BE OUR LIVING STREETS PROGRAM.

I WILL SECOND THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONFUSION OF TICKETS BEING CLOSED.

I DID NOTICE THE LAST TIME THAT, WELL, THE FIRST TIME I USED THIS NEW APP, WHICH HAS BEEN THE ONLY TIME, UM, IF YOU PLUG IN YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS, IT WILL GIVE YOU ALL THE INFORMATION AND YOU CAN LOOK AT THE NOTES OF THE PERSON WHO RESPONDED TO THE ISSUE AND THEY'LL SAY, I SAW IT.

WE REPLACED THIS IN, YOU KNOW, THE SIGN AND THE POST AND WHATEVER ELSE NOTES ARE IN THERE.

AND SO YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE ESSENTIALLY THE, THE WRITTEN LOG OF THE FOLKS WHO CAME TO FIX IT AND, AND HOW THEY DID IT.

SO IT'S PRETTY FASCINATING.

UM, AND I, I, I THINK MINE DIDN'T JUST SAY CLOSED, AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S BEEN FIXED, BUT, UM, IF IT HASN'T BEEN, I'M GONNA TRY THE NEW VERSION.

MAYBE THERE'S SOME HELP WITH THAT LANGUAGE, JUST LETTING FOLKS KNOW IT'S BEEN REFERRED.

UM, 'CAUSE WE'VE ALSO GOTTEN FOLKS THAT SAY THEY CLOSED THE TICKET AND THEY DIDN'T EVEN COME BY AND I DIDN'T SEE ANYONE COME OUT.

AND SO WE JUST WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYONE'S UNDERSTANDING THE SAME INFORMATION ABOUT, ABOUT THE PROCESS.

ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU MR. STENZEL.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

ITEM NUMBER

[5. Living Streets Program update.]

UPDATE.

A VERY EXCITING MOMENT.

OH, GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR, VICE CHAIR MEMBERS OF THE, UH, MOBILITY COMMITTEE.

MY NAME IS KIRK SCANLAN AND I'M DIVISION MANAGER OF THE SMART MOBILITY OFFICE.

AND I'M JOINED TODAY BY MATT MAGE, WHO IS OUR PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THE LIVING STREETS PROGRAM.

AND LET'S SEE.

SO I'M JUST GONNA SET THE TABLE FOR THIS PRESENTATION.

AND JUST TO KICK IT OFF, I'D LIKE TO SAY I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS.

WE ARE ABOUT TO TRULY LAUNCH A PROGRAM THAT WE HAD STOOD UP DURING THE PANDEMIC, WHICH WAS THE HEALTHY STREETS, WHICH IS CREATING SOFT CLOSURES THROUGHOUT RESIDENTIAL STREETS TO ESSENTIALLY FACILITATE, UH, SLOWER TRAFFIC AND BETTER SAFETY OUTCOMES, AS WELL AS PROVIDE, UM, WITHIN THE RIGHT OF WAY, UH, AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO USE IT FOR OTHER MODES THAN SINGLE OCCUPANCY VEHICLES, AS WELL AS FOR SOCIALIZATION.

UM, AND WE'RE REALLY EXCITED FOR THIS NEXT ITERATION, WHICH IS GOING TO BE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FROM THE FIRST IN THAT FIRST IT'S GOING TO BE PART OF A BIGGER PROGRAM CALLED THE LIVING STREETS PROGRAM.

AND THE LIVING STREETS PROGRAM IS GOING TO INCLUDE HEALTHY STREETS, WHICH IS THE SOFT CLOSURE OF RESIDENTIAL STREETS, AS WELL AS NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES AND PLAY STREETS.

AND, UH, MATT'S GONNA HAVE A TON OF DETAIL ON ALL OF THAT.

UM, OVER THE LAST, UH, SIX, EIGHT MONTHS, WE'VE BEEN DONE A LOT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE APPLICATION PROCESS AND HOW TO, UM, ESSENTIALLY VET, UH, THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF STREETS AND AREAS THAT PEOPLE WANT TO USE, UM, THIS KIND OF ACTIVATION.

UM, AND ONE OF THE BIG, UH, STORYLINES IS THAT WE DIDN'T QUITE KNOW EXACTLY WHAT, UH, WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE WE WERE GONNA GET.

UM, WITH THE INITIAL

[00:55:01]

ACTIVATION OF HEALTHY STREETS, IT WAS MORE THE CITY IDENTIFIED AREAS TO PUT IT, BUT THIS TIME IT'S A CITIZEN, UH, RESIDENT, UM, LED PROCESS.

UM, THEY'RE THE ONES WHO NEED TO SUBMIT THE APPLICATION AND ESSENTIALLY DO SOME WORK TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT APPLICATION GETS PUSHED THROUGH.

UM, WE'VE HAD THE APPLICATION PORTAL OPEN FOR ABOUT TWO MONTHS, AND WE'VE RECEIVED ABOUT 60 CORRECT.

60 APPLICATIONS.

SO TO ME, ONE OF THE BIG TAKEAWAYS IS THAT WE'VE SEEN QUITE A, QUITE A GOOD RESPONSE ON THIS PROGRAM.

UM, MATT'S ALSO GONNA GO THROUGH SOME OF OUR FIRST INITIAL SOFT LAUNCHES, UM, FOR THE PROGRAM AS WELL AS A SCHEDULE FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR.

AND AT THE END, WE'LL OBVIOUSLY HAVE SOME TIME TO TAKE SOME, UH, SOME QUESTIONS.

SO WITH THAT, I'LL JUST HAND IT OVER TO MATT.

THANK YOU KIRK AND THANK YOU COMMITTEE FOR HAVING US OUT HERE TODAY.

IT'S MY PLEASURE TO ACTUALLY PRESENT THIS PROGRAM TO YOU.

I'M GONNA TAKE YOU THROUGH THE BRIEF HISTORY OF HOW WE GOT TO NOW I'M ACTUALLY GONNA START IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT HISTORY AND THEN WORK BACKWARDS AND THEN MOVE FORWARDS AHEAD TO WHERE WE ARE MAYBE.

SO HEALTHY STREETS BEGAN AS A, AN INITIATIVE DURING THE PANDEMIC, AND IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO TAKE OUR FOCUS BACK TO THIS POINT BECAUSE PRIOR TO THAT WE DID HAVE ANOTHER PROGRAM CALLED NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES THAT IS PART OF THIS OVERALL PROGRAM.

BUT IT WAS REALLY THE HEALTHY STREETS INITIATIVE AND THE IDEA THAT DURING THE PANDEMIC, OUR CITY AS WELL AS OTHER CITIES ACROSS THE NATION REEXAMINED THE WAY WE USE THE STREET.

WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO THIS BECAUSE MOST OF US WEREN'T ACTIVELY PURSUING OUR TRANSPORTATION AND OUR TRANSIT TO AND FROM WORK.

AND THAT PUT US IN AN AT-HOME WORK CONDITION.

WE ADDITIONALLY NEEDED TO FIND A WAY THAT MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY COULD GET OUT, EXERCISE AND COMMUNE IN A SAFE WAY AND SAFE ENVIRONMENT.

THE STREET BECAME A VIABLE OPTION FOR THAT.

SO OUR DEPARTMENT AT THE TIME, TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT AND PUBLIC WORK SEPARATELY WORKED TOGETHER TO DO THIS PROGRAM CALLED THE HEALTHY STREETS PROGRAM IN THE PANDEMIC THAT LAUNCHED IN MAY.

AND BY SEPTEMBER WE HAD ENOUGH STREETS LAUNCHED AND OUT THAT WE WERE ABLE TO DO A SURVEY.

AND TO OUR AMAZEMENT, 72% OF THE RESIDENTS SURVEYED WERE IN FAVOR OF IT.

THAT'S ACTUALLY WHEN THE IDEA THAT THIS ACTUALLY MIGHT HAVE LEGS AND MERIT AND SHOULD CONTINUE ON BEYOND THE PANDEMIC.

SO IF THERE IS A SILVER LINING FROM THE PANDEMIC IS THAT PROGRAMS LIKE THIS AND OTHERS THAT CAME OUT OF THAT MOVEMENT ARE ABLE TO EXIST AT ITS CORE.

AT ITS CORE, THE STREETS PROGRAM, THE HEALTHY STREETS COMPONENT AND THE PLAY STREETS COMPONENT START TO GROUP TOGETHER WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES, AND THAT CREATES THE LIVING STREETS PROGRAM.

IT IS A RESIDENT LED PROCESS AND AS KIRK SAID AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS, WE STARTED THE PROGRAM OUT AS THE CITY PUTTING THESE PLACES OUT AND TRYING TO CREATE CONNECTIVITY.

AND THAT'S AN IMAGE THAT YOU SEE ALL THE WAY BACK FROM THE PANDEMIC ERAS.

UM, THEY USE SOFT CLOSURES AND THAT'S ACTUALLY BECOME PART AND PARCEL WITH THE PROGRAM AS WE INTEND TO ACTUALLY EXTEND IT THROUGH THE RESOLUTION.

THEY REQUIRE 60% RESIDENT APPROVAL ON A STREET, AND THAT'S A CRITICAL PIECE.

THAT'S MORE THAN A MAJORITY.

AND WE'VE FOUND THAT THAT'S BEEN A VERY SUCCESSFUL, UH, WAY TO GO ABOUT OTHER PROGRAMS THAT WE'VE DONE, LIKE NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERING PROGRAMS THROUGH OUR DEPARTMENT AS WELL.

MOST OF THESE, WITH EXCEPTION OF NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES, WILL LAST THREE TO SIX MONTHS WITH AN OPTION FOR RENEWAL.

AND THE LAST PART OF THE RESOLUTION WAS TO ADDRESS SOME EQUITY ISSUES.

ONE THING THAT THE NATION HAS SEEN WITH ALL OF THESE PROGRAMS WAS THAT THE STREETS THAT NEEDED THIS MOST, THOSE WITHOUT SIDEWALKS OR CONNECTIVITIES SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL MAY NOT HAVE THE ACCESSIBLE INFORMATION AT THEIR HANDS.

SO WE WANT TO ADDRESS THAT BY MAKING SURE THAT WE GET THE WORD OUT AND ASK THAT YOU SUPPORT US IN THAT AS OUR ADVOCATES.

SO THE PROGRAM'S BROKEN UP INTO THREE DISTINCT PARTS, NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES, AND I'LL GET INTO EACH OF THESE IN A SECOND.

HEALTHY STREETS AND PLAY STREETS.

EACH ONE HAS A SEPARATE GOAL, A SEPARATE FOCUS, AND A DIFFERENT INTENTION BEHIND IT.

THEY ARE ALL WHAT WE'RE CALLING SOFT CLOSURES, MEANING THEY'RE USING TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES TO SHUT DOWN THE STREET TO LOCAL TRAFFIC ONLY.

A NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTY AND ALL THE OTHER PROGRAMS ARE INTENDED TO BE RESIDENT DRIVEN.

[01:00:01]

AND IN THAT IF YOU'RE A RESIDENT ON THE STREET OR DOING BUSINESS BUSINESS ON THE STREET SUCH AS AMAZON OR ANOTHER DELIVERY SERVICE, AN EMERGENCY OR CITY SERVICE THAT NEEDS TO GET THROUGH, OR EVEN JUST VISITING A RELATIVE ON THE STREET WITH CERTAIN CONTROLS, YOU CAN COME THROUGH THE CLOSURE AND VISIT THAT PIECE.

SO A NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTY ALLOWS A RESIDENT TO REQUEST THEIR SINGLE BLOCK TO BE SET UP AND INSTALLED AS A NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTY FOR 24 HOURS.

THIS ALLOWS THE COMMUNITY TO JOIN TOGETHER IN CELEBRATION AND COMMUNITY AND THROW A PARTY, GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER.

IT'S A SAFE WAY TO COMMUNE IN THE STREET AND IT TURNS THE STREET INTO ESSENTIALLY A RECREATION CENTER.

SO A HEALTHY STREET IS A, A GROUP OF SEVERAL BLOCKS.

WE'RE LOOKING FOR THREE TO FOUR TO MAKE THE, UH, INSTALLATION WORTHWHILE.

IT'S INTENDED TO USE A SOFT CLOSURE AS WELL APPLIED FOR BY A RESIDENT.

IT'S USES THESE SOFT CLOSURES TO REDUCE TRAFFIC TO LOCAL TRAFFIC ONLY, BUT ALSO USES CERTAIN STRATEGIES FROM THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN LIKE PITCHES, CHICANES, MID STREET, PEDESTRIAN CROSSWALKS, AND OTHER TECHNIQUES TO SLOW DOWN TRAFFIC ON RESIDENTIAL STREETS.

THEREFORE, IF YOU'RE COMING DOWN A LIVING STREET, WE REALLY ONLY WANT YOU TO GO DOWN THAT LIVING STREET IF YOU ACTUALLY HAVE BUSINESS ON THAT BLOCK PHASE, RIGHT? THESE AREN'T GOING TO BE THROUGH TRAFFIC STREETS IN THAT VISION.

THEY ARE FOR THREE TO SIX MONTHS AND THERE IS AN OPTION FOR RENEWAL.

A PLAY STREET IS DIFFERENT.

IT'S SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN A NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTY AND A HEALTHY STREET.

IT IS ONE BLOCK, IT IS RESIDENT DRIVEN.

IT USES SOFT CLOSURES AS WELL.

IT IS THOUGH FOR THREE DAYS A WEEK UP TO A MAX OF THREE DAYS A WEEK AND UP TO 12 HOURS A WEEK.

YOU AS THE RESIDENT GET IT SHOWS WHICH DAY OF THE WEEK YOU WANT TO DO THIS AND WHAT TIME OF DAY YOU WANT TO DO IT, AND THEREFORE IT'S REALLY TRULY RESIDENT DRIVEN.

IT'S UP TO A THREE TO SIX MONTH DURATION.

SO THEY'RE LONGER EXTENSIONS OF ESSENTIALLY WHAT A NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTY IS.

THEY ARE SOFT CLOSURES WHERE WE HAVE MONITORS ON EITHER END TO ONLY ALLOW IN THAT LOCAL TRAFFIC TO THAT SINGLE BLOCK.

BUT CHILDREN, PARENTS, AND OTHER YOUNG ADULTS CAN GET OUT ON THE STREET AND PLAY GAMES.

YOU KNOW, I'M FROM PHILADELPHIA.

THIS IS A VERY COMMON THING WHERE I GREW UP.

I'M PRETTY SURE THAT PLAYING STICKBALL AS A CHILD, THERE WERE A COUPLE WINDOWS BROKEN, MAYBE NOT BY ME, BUT MAYBE BY MY SISTERS.

UM, BUT THE IDEA COMES FROM THIS PLAY IN THE STREET WHERE YOUR NEIGHBORS GET TOGETHER AND THAT REALLY TIES TOGETHER COMMUNITY.

BUT WE WANNA DO IT IN A SAFE AND FUNDAMENTALLY SECURE WAY THAT PROVIDES THAT OPPORTUNITY.

ENGINEERING, IT'S THE LATTER THAT HAS US GREATLY CONCERNED ABOUT SAFETY ON THE STREET.

SO THE FIRST THING WE DID WHEN WE STARTED THE PROGRAM WAS WE DID OUR VIABILITY AND STREET ANALYSIS.

WE WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH OUR TRANSPORTATION AND ENGINEERING DIVISION TO COME UP WITH A CRITERIA.

THESE ARE ONLY RESIDENTIAL STREETS, AND I'LL GET TO THAT IN A SECOND BECAUSE THERE IS, UM, SOME LEVEL OF COMMERCIAL ALLOWED AT CORNERS AND INTERSECTIONS BECAUSE THAT IS ACTUALLY A CRITICAL POINT TO GET TO AND CRITICAL DESTINATION.

SO THEY, THEY'RE WHAT WE'VE REFERRED TO IN THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN IS THE CLASS ONE ROAD OR LOWER.

THEY'RE ROUGHLY 25 TO 40 FEET WIDE.

AND THIS IS, THIS IS STANDARD TWO LANE WITH PARKING ON EITHER SIDE, POTENTIALLY SIDEWALKS IF THEY WERE INSTALLED OR NO SIDEWALKS.

OUR REQUIREMENT IS THAT IT IS 90% OR MORE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES.

WE'RE NOT LOOKING TO ELEVATE THIS AT THIS TIME IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM FOR COMMERCIAL VIABLE USE.

THIS IS ABOUT OUR NEIGHBORS ACTUALLY BEING ABLE TO COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER AND THOSE THAT LIVE ON THEIR STREET.

WE ARE SET UP TO ALLOW MULTIFAMILY BUILDINGS AND UNITS AND PARCELS TO PARTICIPATE.

WE'VE FOUND WAYS TO ACTUALLY INCLUDE THOSE.

AND I'M GOING TO SEGUE HERE FOR A SECOND AND TALK ABOUT THE STRATEGIES AROUND THAT IN A LITTLE BIT DEEPER DEPTH.

WITHIN A MULTIFAMILY UNIT, YOU HAVE EVERYTHING FROM A SINGLE RESIDENT WITH AN AUXILIARY UNIT IN THE BACKYARD ALL THE WAY UP TO A 200 PERSON APARTMENT COMPLEXES AND EVEN LARGER WORKING WITH TRANSPORTATION

[01:05:01]

IF YOU HAVE A SINGLE 200 UNIT PARCEL EXITING ONTO A SINGLE STREET AT ONE LOCATION, THAT IS A LOT OF TRAFFIC TO DO A PLAN THAT STARTS WITH SAFETY AND TRAFFIC MITIGATION TO ALLOW RESIDENTS TO COMMUNE WITH EACH OTHER.

ADDITIONALLY, BECAUSE IT'S RESIDENT LED AND DRIVEN, A RESIDENT GOING INTO THAT APARTMENT COMPLEX OR COMMUNITY AS A MULTIFAMILY COMMUNITY WOULD HAVE TO DO OUTREACH TO HUNDREDS OF INDIVIDUALS THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BE THERE AT THE LIFESPAN OF THE INSTALLATION OF THE LIVING STREET.

SO WE DO IT ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS AND WE ACTUALLY EVALUATE THESE CRITERIA.

WHAT IT IS NOT ALLOWED TO DO IS AFFECT OUR CONNECTIVITY IN OUR GRID.

WE DO NOT WANT IT AFFECTING A MAJOR ARTERIAL.

AND WE'VE ACTUALLY FOUND WAYS TO EVEN ISOLATE IT DOWN TO ONLY BEING ADJACENT TO COLLECTOR ROADS AS IT GOES INTO A RESIDENTIAL LEVEL.

IT CANNOT AFFECT A TRAFFIC CONTROL SIGNAL AND IT WILL NOT AFFECT TRANSIT ROUTES.

WE DO.

HOWEVER.

NEXT SLIDE WE DO, UH, LOOK AT THIS AND WE FOCUS IN AT THE NEXT STEP ON THE PRIORITIZATION OF THESE STREETS.

SO WE HAVE ALL THE STREETS THAT ARE VIABLE AND THEN WE'VE DONE DEEPER RICHER ANALYSIS.

SO IN THESE CATEGORIES WE HAVE EQUITY, PUBLIC AMENITIES, CIVIC DESTINATIONS, FOOD AND ENTERTAINMENT.

THIS IS OUR CULTURAL ASPECT, MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION AND OPTIONS AND WHETHER SIDEWALKS ARE ON THE STREET OR NOT.

AND THAT'S SPECIFIC TO HEALTHY STREETS.

AND I'LL EXPLAIN WHY IN A SECOND.

WITHIN THE EQUITY ZONE, UM, WE KNOW THAT THE PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY IN THE MOST NEEDS OF A PROGRAM LIKE THIS MAY BE WITHIN WHAT WE CALL OUR EQUITY ANALYSIS ZONES.

AND THAT'S A DEEP RICH STUDY THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED TO THIS COMMITTEE AND OTHERS IN THE PAST THAT TPW DID A COUPLE YEARS AGO.

WE USE THAT DATA THAT REALLY IDENTIFIES THE EASTERN CREST OF OUR CITY AS A PRIMARY GOAL TO TARGET AND ELEVATE THOSE STREETS BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THOSE AREAS ARE IN THE MOST NEEDS.

ADDITIONALLY, BECAUSE THIS IS ABOUT ACTIVATION AND ACTIVITY, WE DO WANNA FOCUS ON THE PEOPLE WHO NEED IT THE MOST.

WHILE WE ALL CAN BENEFIT FROM A HEALTHY WALK, SENIORS AND CHILDREN NEED THAT ACTIVE INVOLVEMENT TO STAY FIT MENTALLY, SOCIALLY AND PHYSICALLY.

WE LOOK AT PARKS BOTH AS PARKS AS A DEFICIENT AREA AND THE STREET AS A POTENTIAL REPLACEMENT FOR THIS.

A RESPITE WHERE SOMEONE COULD GO INTO THE STREET AS A SPACE AND COMMUNE AND RECREATE, BUT ALSO AS A LOCATION AND CONNECTIVITY.

ADDITIONALLY, LIBRARIES, SCHOOLS, REC CENTERS AND OTHER CIVIC DESTINATIONS BECOME FOCUSES AS WE LOOK AT HOW A LIVING STREET CAN CONNECT.

ONE POINT TO ANOTHER POINT, BANKS POST OFFICES, HOSPITALS, THEATERS, SHOW VENUES, MUSEUMS, FOOD ESTABLISHMENTS, GROCERY STORES, ALL THESE PIECES IN THAT CENTER SECTION ARE CRITICAL DESTINATIONS FOR US, OUR NEIGHBORS AND OUR RESIDENTS AS WELL.

BEING ABLE TO USE A STREET TO WALK TO ONE OF THOSE LOCATIONS ENHANCES THE OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR HEALTHIER, MORE COMMUNAL COMMUNITY AND PROVIDES A SAFE METHOD FOR US TO DO THAT.

NEXT, WE WANT YOU TO BE ABLE TO GET TO OTHER PLACES BEYOND THIS.

SO CONNECTING TO OUR URBAN TRAILS, PROVIDING FOR A SAFE ROUTE, MAYBE NOT TOO DIRECTLY TO THE SCHOOL, BUT TO YOUR BUS STOP, FINDING A WAY TO GET TO THE NEXT TRANSIT STOP AND HIGH COMFORT BICYCLE LANDS AND LAST ON A HEALTHY STREET.

BECAUSE ALL OF OUR STREETS DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO A SIDEWALK, THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO USE THE STREET AS THEIR SIDEWALK.

AND WE'RE SEEING THIS AS WITH A SUCCESSFUL RATE.

AND THIS IS WHY OUR PEER CITIES ACTUALLY ADOPTED THESE PROGRAMS AND CONTINUED THEM ON AS WELL.

SO WE TAKE ALL THIS DATA FROM THE VIABILITY CHART AND THE PRIORITIZATION, WE COMBINE IT TOGETHER AND THAT GIVES OUR PRIORITIZATION VALUE.

THE NEXT STEP IS THE RESIDENTS ACTUALLY HAVE TO SUBMIT THEIR APPLICATION.

THEY COME TO US AND I'LL GET TO THAT PROCESS, BUT THEY ACTUALLY HAVE TO GIVE THAT 60% SIGNATURES AT A MINIMUM.

WE TAKE THE PERCENTAGE OF SIGNATURES WITHIN THEIR LIVING STREET AND WE MULTIPLY IT BY THE PRIORITIZATION

[01:10:01]

VALUE.

AND THIS GIVES US OUR METHODOLOGY FOR APPROVAL FOR EACH APPLICATION.

THIS ALLOWS FOR THAT EQUITY.

SO IF YOUR STREET IS SUPER EXCITED ABOUT HAVING A LIVING STREET, BUT YOU'RE NOT HIGH ON THE PRIORITY BECAUSE THERE'S NO CONNECTIVITY OR OTHER PIECES THAT MIGHT REALLY MAKE THIS A MORE COMMUNAL BEYOND JUST YOUR STREET, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO GET MORE PARTICIPANTS AND ELEVATE YOUR SCORE.

SO THE WAY THIS WORKS IS THE RESIDENT FILLS OUT AN EXPRESSION OF INTEREST THAT COMES TO OUR TEAM.

WE EVALUATE IT WITH OUR TRANSPORTATION ENGINEERING TEAM.

WE COME UP WITH THE CLOSEST VIABLE STREET.

WE SEND THAT BACK TO THEM AND ASK THEM TO THEN GO AND GET 60% OF THE RESIDENTS IN THAT AREA TO SIGN UP FOR IT.

ONCE THEY HAVE 60%, IT BECOMES A TRUE APPLICATION.

THAT APPLICATION LIKE NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERING PROGRAMS IS REVIEWED AT A DEADLINE WINDOW.

UH, WE JUST FINISHED OUR FIRST ONE IN JANUARY AND OUT OF THAT WE HAD 17 VIABLE LIVING STREETS THAT I'M HAPPY TO REPORT TO YOU.

AND WE'LL SHOW MORE STATS ON IN A SECOND THAT ALL OF THOSE ARE ABLE TO BE ELEVATED TO BE INSTALLED.

STAFF REVIEWS ALL THE APPLICATIONS AT ONE TIME.

WE USE THAT PRIORITIZATION VALUE TO TAKE THEM ONE AT A TIME, CROSS-REFERENCE IT WITH OUR FUNDING RESOURCES AND PROJECT OUR INSTALLATIONS.

AND THAT'S HOW WE ACTUALLY ESTABLISHED WHAT THE PROJECT IS.

SO RIGHT NOW WE DO HAVE 64 EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST, INCLUDING ALL THE COMPLETED APPLICATIONS, WHICH IS AN ASTRONOMICALLY HIGH NUMBER WE ANTICIPATED IN THE TWENTIES.

WE GOT THREE TIMES THAT IN A QUARTER OF THE TIME THAT WE THOUGHT WE WOULD HAVE.

UH, HIT ONE MORE FOR ME PLEASE.

SO THIS IS THE WAY THIS LOOKS OF THE 45 THAT WE RECEIVED PRIOR TO THE JANUARY DEADLINE AND WE'VE RECEIVED CLOSE TO 20 POSTS THEN, UM, WE RECEIVED 17 THAT WERE VIABLE.

WE'RE ABLE TO LIFT ALL 17, THAT'S 10 HEALTHY STREETS GOING IN AND SEVEN PLACE STREETS.

NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES CONTINUES TO DO THEIR PROGRAM SUCCESSFULLY AND OVER HALLOWEEN THEY DID CLOSE TO 15 TO 20 INSTALLATIONS.

SO THE COLLECTIVE PROGRAM IS SEEING A LOT OF FEEDBACK AND A LOT OF, UH, ACCEPTANCE AND WE HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN OUT THERE YET.

THIS IS OUR FIRST YEAR, THIS IS OUR LAUNCH.

THE AVERAGE APPROVAL RATE OF A STREET IS 73%.

THAT MEANS THEY'RE GETTING 13% MORE THAN THE MINIMUM NEEDED TO ELEVATE THIS STREET.

UM, IT WAS WITHIN THE FIRST SIX WEEKS OF OUR LAUNCH, NOVEMBER 1ST WITH OUR WEBSITE THAT WE BEGAN RECEIVING APPLICATIONS PRIOR TO DECEMBER ONE, WE HAD OVER 40 APPLICATIONS IN OUR PURVIEW.

AND THAT WAS AT THAT TIME, THE TIME MY COLLEAGUE AND I LOOKED AT EACH OTHER AND SAID, WE HAVE A GOOD PROBLEM TO HAVE, RIGHT? THIS IS GOING TO WORK AND THIS IS GOING TO DRIVE US TO THE NEXT LEVEL.

RIGHT NOW WE ARE CAPPED AT WHERE OUR BUDGET IS AT.

WE CAN EXTEND ALL 17 OF THESE THROUGH THE FISCAL YEAR, WHICH IS CRITICAL.

WE DO NOT WANT TO END THIS PROGRAM, LEAVE A HICCUP AND CONTINUE ON.

SO WE HAVE THE FUNDING SET ASIDE FOR THAT RIGHT NOW AND THAT'S WHERE WE GET TO THE NEXT STEPS.

AND THOSE CONVERSATIONS CONTINUE.

IT STARTS WITH OUR LESSONS LEARNED.

WE DID THREE SOFT CLOSURES.

THESE ARE OUR PILOTS.

WE BEGAN WORKING WITH THESE THREE GROUPS EARLY, EARLY ON IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROGRAM AND IMPLEMENTATION.

WE NEEDED RESIDENT FEEDBACK ON WHAT THEY WERE GOING TO WANT, WHAT THEY ALREADY KNEW AND WHERE THEY WANTED TO SEE CHANGE.

AND AVENUE G, BECAUSE IT WAS THE LAST REMAINING HEALTHY STREET FROM THE PANDEMIC, WAS AN OBVIOUS CHOICE TO ELEVATE.

THAT TEAM IS SO GALVANIZED THAT WE NO LONGER CALL IT AVENUE G, IT'S HYDE PARK HEALTHY STREET.

THEY HAVE ADOPTED IT AS A COMMUNITY.

WE HAVE RESIDENTS FROM AVENUE F AND H WHO ACT AS AMBASSADORS FOR THE AVENUE G HYDE PARK, HEALTHY STREET.

IT'S AMAZING.

THEIR BIG COMPLAINT THOUGH IS THE LOOK AND THE FEEL, RIGHT? WHEN DO WE GET MORE PERMANENT INFRASTRUCTURE

[01:15:01]

HOW IF WE'RE A COMMUNITY, CAN WE BRAND THIS MORE ABOUT OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND US AS RESIDENTS? WE'RE TAKING ALL THAT INTO CONSIDERATION AND THAT GOES INTO THE NEXT ITERATION.

WE'RE ALSO IN THE PROCESS OF CURRENTLY WORKING WITH THEM ON HEARING MORE OF THEIR FEEDBACK ON HOW WE CAN DO A BETTER JOB.

RIGHT NOW WITH WHAT WE HAVE, 37TH STREET, YOU GUYS MAY HAVE SEEN IT IN THE NEWS.

UM, THIS WAS A HUGE SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH.

AND I'M GONNA DIGRESS JUST FOR A SECOND.

THE THREE AREAS THAT WE CHOSE, WE CHOSE WITH A CRITICAL LENS.

WE KNEW WE HAD ACTIVE RESIDENTS IN THESE AREAS.

WE KNEW WE HAD ACTIVE ISSUES TO ADDRESS.

SO ON 37TH STREET WE HAVE THE CHRISTMAS TREE, LIGHTING, CANDY, CANE LANE, WHATEVER, 37TH STREET LIGHTS.

AND THAT IN THE PAST HAS BEEN SUBJECT TO QUESTION OF IS IT AN EVENT? HOW DO WE MANAGE TRAFFIC? FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE HAD A PROGRAM THAT WE COULD APPLY TO THEM.

SO WHEN WE APPROACHED THEM, THEY WERE LIKE, WHAT CAN WE DO? HOW FAST CAN WE GET YOU THE SIGNATURES? THEY GOT ALL THEIR SIGNATURES IN TWO WEEKS.

IT WAS AMAZING.

THEY SAW OVER 3000 PEOPLE THROUGH THE STREET ON AVERAGE A NIGHT WEEKDAYS, TUESDAYS AND WEDNESDAYS, 1500 WEEKENDS, 8,000.

AND THESE ARE THEIR ACCOUNTS, NOT OURS.

WE DIDN'T DO HARD COUNTS.

UM, BUT IT WAS A COMPLETE ROAD CLOSURE AND THAT'S WHERE WE WERE ADAPTIVE AS A TEAM WITHIN TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS, WE WORK WITH OUR ENGINEERING TEAM TO LOOK AT THE SITUATION AND ADAPT.

AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE REASONS WE CHOSE THIS.

SO IT WAS SO SUCCESSFUL THAT THE TWO PROBLEMS THAT CAME OUT OF IT WAS OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE STAYING TOO LONG IN OUR COMMUNITY.

WE REALLY DIDN'T HAVE THE CAPACITY FOR THEM, BUT IT WAS AMAZING.

SO EVERYONE WAS MILLING ABOUT IN THE STREET, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALLOWING US THAT OPPORTUNITY.

THAT WAS ACTUALLY FEEDBACK, WHICH IS POSITIVE FEEDBACK IN MY OPINION, THAT SHOWS US THAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY CAME FROM OTHER COMMUNITIES AND WANTED TO TALK TO THEIR NEIGHBORS ABOUT THIS STREET.

THAT'S GREAT PLACEMAKING.

THE LAST PIECE WAS HOW CAN WE SAFEGUARD WHEN YOU HAVE A DESTINATION THAT IS THIS STRONG IN PLACEMAKING, THIS STRONG IN CULTURAL AND THIS MUCH IDENTIFIED AS AN ICON.

ICON, SORRY, AS A PLACE TO GO IN AUSTIN, ICONIC.

ICONIC THANK YOU AS A PLACE TO GO IN AUSTIN THAT PEOPLE WANT TO GO AND VISIT WITH THEIR CHILDREN'S FAMILIES AND OTHER PEOPLE.

HOW DO WE GET THEM THERE SAFELY? SO YOU KNOW, THE SUCCESSES OUT OF THIS ARE THAT IT MAY PRESENT OTHER PROBLEMS THAT WE WANNA LOOK AT AND ADDRESS, RIGHT? AND THAT'S THEIR FEEDBACK FROM US AND THAT'S WHAT WE OBSERVED OUT THERE.

THEY'RE ACTUALLY CONTINUING AS A HEALTHY STREET.

THIS IS ONE OF THOSE STREETS THAT WAS UNDER 25 FEET.

IT'S ONLY 24 FEET AND HOME LANE.

THE OTHER END OF THE STREET NARROWS DOWN TO 21 FEET.

THESE ARE VERY, VERY NARROW STREETS WITH A LONG LENGTH OF STRETCH OF ROAD WITHOUT INTERMITTENT BREAKS.

SO TO GET ACROSS THE STREET JUST TO TALK TO YOUR NEIGHBOR, YOU ARE LITERALLY RUNNING ACROSS THE STREET.

MID-BLOCK BETWEEN CARS.

WE KNOW FROM OUR VISION ZERO STUDIES THAT THAT'S NOT SAFE.

ALRIGHT, SO THE LAST ONE IS FISHER GARDEN.

AND THERE'S A LOT OF LITTLE RED DOTS IN AND AROUND THE FISHER GARDEN NEIGHBORHOOD.

IT'S THE HIGHLIGHTED STREETS ON THE MAP THAT I'M SHOWING THIS NEIGHBORHOOD.

UM, YOU MAY KNOW IT AS LIMON FAMILY'S NEIGHBORHOOD CA LIMON.

UM, I'VE KNOWN IT AS ONE OF THE OTHER PLACES TO GO DURING THE HOLIDAYS, BUT I'VE ALSO KNOWN IT AS AN EAST AUSTINITE AS A PLACE OF HOPE AND INSPIRATION IN THE COMMUNITY.

THESE ARE LEADERS IN OUR COMMUNITY AND THEY'RE FACED WITH A PROBLEM OF THE LITTLE RED DOTS.

THOSE ARE HIGH INCIDENT CRASHES.

THIS IS ONE OF THE AREAS IN OUR CITY WHERE VISION ZERO AND OTHER PROGRAMS WITHIN TPW FOCUSES THEIR ENERGY TO SLOW AND MITIGATE TRAFFIC BECAUSE WE WANT TO DECREASE THE NUMBER OF CRASHES AND REACH THAT TRUE VISION ZERO MOMENT.

IN DOING THIS.

WHAT WE'VE FOUND IS THAT THIS NEIGHBORHOOD IS CONCERNED ABOUT TWO THINGS.

THEY'RE LOSING THEIR COMMUNITY IDENTITY AS THINGS CHANGE AND DEVELOP.

AND AUSTIN GROWS BIGGER AND STRONGER, BUT THE COMMUNITY ITSELF IS STILL REALLY STRONG

[01:20:01]

AND THEY WANT TO CONTINUE THAT TO THE NEXT GENERATION.

SO WE HAVE A STRONG COMMUNITY AND A PLACE AND MEMBERS AND NEIGHBORS THAT WANT TO ACTUALLY REPRESENT THIS NEIGHBORHOOD, BUT THEY ALSO NOW HAVE THIS PROBLEM OF ALL THIS TRAFFIC CONGESTION IN AND AROUND THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD THAT IS NOW STARTING TO CUT THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOOD.

THEY DON'T HAVE SIDEWALKS.

SO WHAT THEY USED TO DO IS WALK TO AND FROM EACH OTHER'S HOUSE.

IT BECOMES MORE AND MORE DIFFICULT AS PEOPLE START TO CUT THROUGH THIS NEIGHBORHOOD TO BYPASS TRAFFIC INTERSECTIONS TO DO THAT.

AND THIS IS A WAY TO GAIN THIS BACK FOR NEIGHBORS TO USE A TRAFFIC MITIGATION TECHNIQUE, A SAFE PLACE TO WALK AND COMMUNE, TO BUILD COMMUNITY AGAIN AND CREATE WHAT WAS ONE OF THE BEST NEIGHBORHOODS AND STILL IS ARGUABLY ONE OF THE BEST NEIGHBORHOODS IN EAST AUSTIN.

ALL OF THAT LEADS TO THE LAST PIECE.

WE ARE AT A POINT OF ITERATION, AND I'M GONNA TAKE YOU ALL THE WAY THROUGH THIS.

IN 1914, NEW YORK CITY CREATED SOMETHING CALLED PLAY STREETS.

CITY OF AUSTIN HAS NEVER HAD A PLAY STREET.

WAIT.

WELL, CITY OF AUSTIN HAS NEVER OFFICIALLY HAD A PLAY STREET PEOPLE PLAYING THE STREET ALL THE TIME, BUT WE WOULD PREFER A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR THEM TO PLAY ON THE STREET.

NEIGHBORHOOD BLOCK PARTIES STARTED TO DO THAT IN MAY OF 2017, A YEAR LATER MAY OF 2018.

IT WAS CODIFIED AS A PROGRAM.

IT CONTINUES ON TO TODAY.

THE PANDEMIC HAPPENED AND OUT OF THE PANDEMIC COMES HEALTHY STREETS.

COLLECTIVELY, THESE THREE PROGRAMS THROUGH THAT SURVEY START TO DEVELOP THE RESOLUTION.

OUR STAFF REVIEWED CITY COUNCIL DIRECTIONS TO CREATE THIS.

WE RESPONDED TO THE RESOLUTION IN JANUARY OF 2022 AND TOOK ON THE LIFT TO MAKE THE PROGRAM LIVING STREETS.

AND THAT'S WHERE WE'RE AT NOW.

ALL THROUGHOUT THAT PROCESS, WE'VE DONE OUR DUE DILIGENCE, WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY, DOING COMMUNITY EVENTS, GOING TO OUR LOCAL REC CENTERS AND TALKING WITH OUR NEIGHBORS AND CONSTITUENTS.

WE LAUNCHED OUR FIRST APPLICATION WINDOW FOR PLAY STREETS AND HEALTHY STREETS IN NOVEMBER.

ENDED IT IN JANUARY AND OUR FIRST LIFT IS COMING UP NOW WITH THE FIRST SIX MONTHS.

THAT IS THE START OF THE PROGRAM, NOT THE END.

WE KNOW THAT WITH 45 OTHER APPLICATIONS SITTING ROUGHLY IN OUR PORTFOLIO, WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO AND WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE WHO ARE INTERESTED AND WE BARELY SCRAPE THE BARREL WITH OUTREACH WE NEEDED TO ENSURE THAT WE HAD THE FACILITIES, CAPABILITIES, STAFF TECHNIQUES, EQUIPMENTS AND PROGRAM IN PLACE BEFORE WE LAUNCH IT AT THAT NEXT ITERATION.

SO OVER THE NEXT YEAR, WHAT WE'LL BE DOING IS LOOKING AT THE SUCCESSES OF THIS CURRENT YEAR'S LIFT WITH 17 STREETS.

WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING FROM DATA COLLECTION ALL THE WAY TO INTERVIEWS AND SURVEYS TO GET FEEDBACK FROM OUR RESIDENTS.

THE DATA COLLECTION INCLUDES LOOKING AT OUR CRASH DATA, LOOKING AT OUR CONNECTIVITY THROUGH TRAFFIC STUDIES, LOOKING AT OUR PEDESTRIAN AND MULTIMODAL ACTIVITY WITHIN THE STREETS.

IT'S ALL THIS DATA AS WELL AS THE EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST, THE APPLICATIONS RESOLVED AND THE NUMBER OF RESIDENTS WHO HAVE SIGNED UP FOR THE PROGRAM THAT WILL PROVIDE US BETTER FEEDBACK ON HOW TO LIFT THIS NEXT SLIDE.

AND WITH THAT, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO QUESTIONS FOR YOU.

THAT'S A GREAT PRESENTATION.

UM, AS THIS PROGRAM EXPANDS, DO YOU SEE THE NEXT STEPS THAT WOULD BE MOST HELPFUL TO BE ADDITIONAL STAFF? IS IT MORE MATERIALS? IS THERE SOME OTHER RESOURCE THAT YOU'RE SEEING IS KIND OF, UH, NOT NOT MAKING IT ABLE FOR, FOR YOUR TEAM TO BE ABLE TO PROCESS EVERYTHING THAT'S COMING IN AS FAST? I'M GONNA DEFER TO MY DIRECTOR FOR THAT QUESTION AND LET HIM ANSWER THAT 'CAUSE WE'RE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF BUDGET.

AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE'VE HAD.

COUNCIL MEMBERS.

YEAH, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE PROGRAM.

YOU KNOW, IT'S VERY EARLY IN ITS INCEPTION.

WE'LL BE CONTINUING TO COLLECT DATA AND GET INPUT FROM THE COMMUNITY.

WE ARE ENTERING THE VERY FIRST, UH, PARTS OF OUR BUDGET PLANNING FOR FY 25 AND WE'LL BE WORKING WITH FSD TO WEIGH THIS AGAINST ALL THE OTHER SERVICES AND PRIORITIES FOR THE DEPARTMENT GOING FORWARD.

OKAY, WE'LL, WE'LL STAY TUNED AND MAKE SURE YES, MA'AM, THAT YOU HAVE WHAT YOU NEED FOR THIS.

I KNOW WHEN WE WROTE THIS RESOLUTION, PART OF THE CONSIDERATION WAS THAT, UM, WE WANTED NEIGHBORS TO BE ABLE TO COME AND PICK UP THE ROAD BARRICADES AND BE ABLE TO SELF MONITOR, UM, HOW PEOPLE ARE COMING AND GOING FROM THOSE, YOU KNOW, FROM THOSE BARRICADES.

[01:25:01]

AND I KNOW WE MAY HIT A MOMENT WHERE IT ENDS UP BEING A MATERIAL COST, WHICH IS A LOT EASIER FOR US TO, TO GET GOING THAN ONGOING PERSONNEL COSTS, BUT HA HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT THAT MORE AS WE TALK ABOUT MID-YEAR OR REGULAR CYCLE BUDGET AMENDMENTS.

QUESTIONS FROM COLLEAGUES? LET'S GO WITH VICE CHAIR CADRY FIRST.

MORE.

AND THEN COUNCIL MEMBER VELA MORE OF COMMENTS THAN, THAN QUESTIONS, BUT, UH, I, I WAS HAPPY TO SEE 37TH STREET AND AVENUE G UH, BOTH D NINE, UH, PLACES.

SO REALLY REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.

UH, I, I, UH, I HAVE SOME FRIENDS IN THE HYDE HYDE PARK, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD.

AND WHEN I WAS A CANDIDATE, I'D OFTEN, UH, OBVIOUSLY KNOCK ON A LOT OF DOORS.

UH, AND I I LOVE SEEING IT AND IT'S GREAT HEARING THAT THE COMMUNITY'S KIND OF TAKEN, TAKEN OWNERSHIP OF THAT.

UM, SO I JUST WANNA HIGHLIGHT TWO OF THE THREE PLACES SHOWN WHERE D NINE.

UM, AND THEN I, I'M REALLY EXCITED FOR THE WORK THAT THE LIVING STREETS PROGRAM IS DOING.

UH, AND YOU KNOW, I JUST WANNA SAY THAT IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO AS AN OFFICE OR AS A DAIS, UH, TO SUPPORT THIS FURTHER, UH, YOU KNOW, VERY MUCH, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE ALL ON BOARD.

UH, AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO LOOK INTO HOW WE CAN COMBINE, UH, LIVING STREET PROJECTS WITH PARKING CON CONVERSION EFFORTS, UH, FOR MORE, UH, FOR EVEN MORE PUBLIC SPACE.

NOW THAT WE DON'T HAVE PARKING MINIMUMS, I THINK IT WOULD BE GOOD TO SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT OUR EXISTING WAYS, UH, TO, TO MULTI MULTIFAMILY PROPERTY OWNERS AND, AND, AND OTHER FOLKS.

AND THEN I THINK THE ONE, ONE THING I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT AND WOULD LOVE TO, YOU KNOW, I GUESS GET YOUR, UM, I DUNNO YOUR THOUGHTS ON, IS THERE'S A PROGRAM IN, IN SAN FRANCISCO CALLED THE GROUND PLAY PROGRAM.

UH, IT'S, IT'S A CITY COUNTY PARTNERSHIP FOR GRASSROOTS PLACE MAKING EFFORTS IN LIKE LIVING STREETS.

UH, AND I WAS THINKING MAYBE WE COULD LOOK INTO A CITY COUNTY PARTNERSHIP, UH, TO GROW AND PHASE INTO, YOU KNOW, A, A PERMANENT, UH, PER INTO PERMANENT IMPROVEMENTS.

IT'S A GREAT SUGGESTION.

SAN FRANCISCO WAS ONE OF OUR FAIR CITY REVIEWS, AND THEIR PROGRAM IS PHENOMENAL.

UM, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN BRAND AND DEVELOPMENT, AND THAT BRAND AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONCEPT IS REALLY WHERE OUR RESIDENTS WANT THE PROGRAM TO GO.

SO WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT LOOKING AT THOSE CITIES AS THEY LAUNCH THEIR PROGRAM, BUT THEY'RE NOW REACHING BACK OUT TO US AND ASKING US HOW WE'RE DOING WITH OURS, WHICH IS ALSO EXCITING TO HEAR.

YEAH, WE WE'RE, WE'RE BETTER THAN SAN FRANCISCO.

THAT'S WHY WE'RE, THAT'S WHY WE'RE ALL HERE.

UM, THAT'S IT.

UH, CONSTRUCTION, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY THAT'S GONNA BE RIGHT, UH, ALONG A PORTION OF, UH, UH, OF CONGRESS AVENUE AND THEN I 35 RECONSTRUCTION IS GONNA DIVERT A LOT OF TRAFFIC ONTO OUR, UH, ONTO OUR CITY STREETS.

COUNCIL MEMBER VELA .

WE'RE NOT TRYING TO START FIGHTS OVER HERE.

I DON'T KNOW ANYONE IN SAN FRANCISCO.

UH, THANK YOU FOR THE, THE PRESENTATION.

UH, REALLY EXCITING ON 37TH STREET.

I'VE BEEN THERE MANY TIMES AND THIS YEAR IT WAS JUST A, A HUGE SUCCESS.

UM, EH, AND I WANTED, I'M SO GLAD THAT COUNCILMAN RE'S HERE BECAUSE IT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT, THAT HE AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT, UH, IN THE PAST HAS BEEN, UH, A, UH, A SLO VIA ON, UH, CONGRESS.

UM, WHICH I KNOW THERE HAS BEEN.

I KNOW THAT THIS IS A, A, A, A PREEXISTING, UH, IDEA, UH, THAT HAS BEEN LOOKED INTO, UH, I THINK, UH, BASED OFF OF A RECENT VISIT TO MEXICO CITY.

UH, AND, UH, UM, REFOR MA AVENUE, WHICH IS THERE, CONGRESS AVENUE, MORE LIKE A BROADWAY IN NEW YORK.

I, YOU KNOW, THE MAJOR AVENUE IN THE MIDDLE OF, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE BIGGEST CITIES IN THE WORLD CLOSES ON SUNDAY.

UH, AND IT'S A SUNDAY FUN DAY IN MEXICO CITY, AND THE VENDORS COME OUT AND THE BICYCLISTS COME OUT, AND IT IS ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING THINGS.

AND, UH, I JUST, I MEAN, TO ME, CONGRESS JUST LENDS ITSELF SO WELL, I MEAN, FROM THE CAPITOL KIND OF TO DOWN TO THE RIVER, MAYBE A LITTLE BIT FARTHER.

AGAIN, I'M NOT GONNA, YOU KNOW, DESIGN THIS FROM THE DIOCESE, BUT I, I, I, I, UH, WOULD LOVE TO, UH, TO, TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

NOW.

I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF THROW THAT OUT THERE AND, AND SEE WHAT, UH, ANY THOUGHTS OR COMMENTS.

WELL, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.

COUNCIL MEMBER.

UM, WITH RESPECT TO CONGRESS AND DOWNTOWN CORE FOR RIGHT NOW, THAT IS EXCLUDED FROM THE LIVING CHIEF PROGRAM.

IT'S NOT RESIDENTIALLY DRIVEN HOPE AND ASPIRATION, THOUGH, IS THAT THE PROGRAM DEVELOPS AND WHERE IT GOES FROM THERE, WE DON'T KNOW.

SO WE ARE OPEN TO IDEAS OF REINTERPRETING THINGS, BUT KEEP IN MIND THAT IH 35 ATP'S PROJECT, THOSE ARE ALL GONNA BE FUNDAMENTAL DISRUPTORS TO AVERAGE DAILY CONNECTIVITY.

AND WE'RE VERY COGNIZANT ABOUT HOW WE MIGHT WANT TO INCORPORATE DIFFERENT MODALITIES AND TRAFFICS.

SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO STUDYING THAT FURTHER AND IN THE PROCESS OF DOING THAT WITH OUR DEPARTMENT AS WELL AS OTHERS WITHIN TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS.

I, I, I APPRECIATE THAT AND, AND LOVE TO HEAR IT.

I, I THINK IT WOULD BE GREAT TO DO A PILOT, YOU KNOW, DO IT A A COUPLE OF WEEKENDS OR, YOU KNOW, AND SEE HOW IT GOES.

SEE WHAT WE LEARN.

I, I COMPLETELY HEAR YOU.

THAT ONCE THE PROJECT CONNECT,

[01:30:01]

UH, THAT SAID, NEITHER OF THOSE PROJECTS ARE GONNA BREAK GROUND .

I, I MEAN, THIS IS, THIS WOULD BE A GOOD TIME.

I MEAN, THE SHORT TERM BEFORE THOSE GET GOING, UH, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT.

UH, AND AGAIN, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE, LIKE I SAID, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE ALL THE WAY DOWN TO SLAUGHTER OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT A SMALL PORTION ON A TEMPORARY BASIS, UM, TO, YOU KNOW, ALLOW, UH, THE, THE, THE RESIDENTS OF AUSTIN TO JUST ENJOY THEIR, UH, THEIR CITY.

UM, UH, IT WOULD BE, UH, GREAT TO SEE AND, AND I'LL, YOU KNOW, COUNCIL MEMBER CADRY AND I'LL CONTINUE TO TALK ABOUT IT.

OBVIOUSLY IT'S A, A D NINE, UH, A A STREET, BUT I JUST THINK IT'S A, IT'S A, IT'S A WONDERFUL IDEA.

SURE.

DO OTHER FUN THINGS IN THE SPACE THAT, YOU KNOW, CAN, CAN BE BETTER UTILIZED FOR THE PUBLIC.

I'M ALSO INTERESTED IN THAT CONVERSATION ABOUT CONGRESS.

UM, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ONE OF THE LOCATIONS THAT TENDS TO BE MORE PREDICTABLE WHEN WE DO HAVE ROAD CLOSURES.

THERE'S LOTS OF RACES, LIKE THE STATESMAN 10 K GOES THROUGH THERE.

THE TEXAS BOOK FESTIVAL TAKES IT OVER FOR A NUMBER OF BLOCKS, UM, WHEN THEY HAVE THEIR PROGRAMMING.

AND SO I'M INTERESTED IN THE CONVERSATION.

IT MAY NOT FIT UNDER THE CATEGORY OF ONE OF THESE TOPICS, BUT MAYBE THERE'S ANOTHER WAY TO, TO DO SOMETHING FUN LIKE THAT.

I MEAN, THE PECAN STREET FESTIVAL IS HUGELY SUCCESSFUL AND IT IS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME THING.

IT JUST GOES EAST WEST INSTEAD OF NORTH SOUTH.

UM, BUT I MEAN, I SAW, I THINK THERE WAS LIKE A SLIP AND SLIDE AND A BOUNCY HOUSE.

I MEAN, THERE WAS ALL SORTS OF STUFF THE LAST TIME THEY DID A PECAN STREET FESTIVAL.

SO WE KNOW PEOPLE, UH, WANNA BE ABLE TO USE THE STREETS THAT WAY.

UM, I, I'LL JUST FLAG, I HAVE A COUPLE OF IDEAS ABOUT BARRICADES FOR THOSE FOLKS THAT ARE ASKING FOR MORE LONG-TERM APPLICATIONS AND THEY WANT MORE VISIBILITY AND IDENTIFICATION OF THAT BEING A HEALTHY STREET.

I WON'T GO INTO DETAIL HERE JUST BECAUSE SOME TRAFFIC ENGINEER MAY SAY, LET, LET'S NOT GO DOWN THAT PATHWAY HERE.

LET'S MAKE SURE IT'S WELL VETTED AND, AND UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT IT IS.

BUT I HAVE SOME PICTURES I'D LOVE TO SHOW YOU.

I'VE SEEN THESE DEVICES DEPLOYED IN TOWN, UM, NOT IN THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY, BUT THEY'RE BIG ENOUGH THAT A FORKLIFT WOULD PUT THEM IN PLACE.

AND THEREFORE I THINK PEOPLE MAY FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE WITH THEIR KIDS BIKING IN THE STREET IF THEY HAD SOMETHING THAT WAS A MORE FORMALIZED BARRICADE.

BUT, UM, WE CAN HAVE THAT CONVERSATION OFFLINE.

UM, AS FAR AS THE SCORING FOR SIDEWALKS, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE CONSIDERATION? ARE YOU LOOKING FOR STREETS THAT DON'T HAVE SIDEWALKS? MAYBE THEY'RE SUBSTANDARD STREETS AND THEREFORE THE STREETS ARE GOOD ACTIVATIONS FOR THAT WALKABILITY AND FOR FOLKS IN WHEELCHAIRS TO BE ABLE TO GET AROUND.

CAN YOU TALK ME THROUGH THAT? SURE.

THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.

COUNCILMAN MORALES FOR SIDEWALKS A LIVING STREET IS AN OPTION IN LIEU OF THE PHYSICAL CONSTRUCTION OF A SIDEWALK, WHICH CAN BE VERY DISRUPTIVE TO THE RIGHT OF WAY.

EVERYONE THINKS IT'S FOUR FOOT OF CONCRETE, BUT IT'S MUCH MORE THAN THAT.

WHEN WE DO THIS, IT'S CURB GUTTER, UTILITIES, MEDIAN, THE CONCRETE, ALL THE TREES AND EVERYTHING THAT PASSES THROUGH THAT.

SO THE COSTS ARE OFTEN PROHIBITIVE IN TERMS OF ITS DEVELOPMENT AND INSTALLATION.

A LIVING STREET AFFORDS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO COMMUNE AND USE THE EDGE OF THOSE STREETS THE SAME WAY THEY WOULD USE THE SIDEWALK.

AND THAT'S ONE OF THE SUCCESSES OF THAT WE SAW OUT OF THE HEALTHY STREETS PROGRAM AND THE PANDEMIC VERSION.

SO IT'S USING THAT TO TARGET THOSE AREAS.

AND THAT'S WHY YOU SEE THAT AS A PRIORITIZATION FOR THE HEALTHY STREETS ON A PLAY STREET, THOUGH, TO RECREATE IN THE STREET TO PLAY AS A SPACE, AS AN AREA, AND A DIFFERENT USE OF A RIGHT OF WAY.

IT'S NOT NECESSARY WHETHER YOU HAVE A SIDEWALK OR NOT.

IF I'M PLAYING FOUR SQUARE OR KICKBALL, IT'S NOT GONNA FIT ON THE SIDEWALK.

SO WE'RE LOOKING TO OPEN THAT UP FURTHER AND THAT'S WHY THAT DOESN'T FALL AS A PRIORITIZATION WITHIN PLACE STREETS.

AND THAT'S REALLY THE FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE.

SO YES, WE ARE LOOKING TO ELEVATE THOSE STREETS THAT DON'T HAVE SIDEWALKS AS WE START TO INSTALL SIDEWALKS THROUGHOUT THE CITY, AND WE'RE DOING A PHENOMENAL JOB OF THAT.

MM-HMM, , THANK YOU FOR THAT.

NO PROBLEM.

I APPRECIATE IT.

UM, UH, ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM FOLKS BEFORE I CLOSE THIS CONVERSATION OUT? I, I JUST WANNA SAY, I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR ABILITY TO REALLY BRING THIS PROGRAM TO LIFE.

UM, NO MATTER HOW EXCITED OUR COMMUNITY GETS, IF WE DON'T HAVE, YOU KNOW, A STAFF AND A DEPARTMENT THAT'S WILLING TO TAKE THIS ON AND TO REALLY MAKE SURE IT'S FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY FOR EVERYBODY, UH, THEN WE WOULDN'T BE IN THIS POSITION.

AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.

IT WAS INTERESTING BEING ON THE DIOCESE WHEN COVID HIT AND REALIZING HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE WANTING TO GO OUTSIDE AND, AND USE THIS PUBLIC SPACE.

YOU KNOW, THE STREETS ARE PUBLIC SPACE, THEY ARE FUNDED BY THE GOVERNMENT AND IT'S, IT'S WITH THE COMMUNITY'S SUPPORT THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN HAVE SOME FLEXIBILITY IN HOW THESE STREETS ARE UTILIZED.

YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT NEEDS TO BE A THOROUGHFARE AND WHAT NEEDS TO BE ACTIVATED FOR THE NEIGHBORS SO THEY CAN BRING OUT THEIR PICNIC TABLE AND THEIR CAMPING CHAIRS AND THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, HAVE A BIRTHDAY PARTY OR, OR

[01:35:01]

SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR WORK ON THIS AND LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT CHAPTER.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

AND I'LL EXTEND THE GRATITUDE TO THE REST OF THE TEAM.

THERE'S SEVERAL OF US INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT.

FANTASTIC.

I BET, I BET IT'S A FUN JOB TOO, .

IT IS.

IT'S ENJOYMENT.

EVERY DAY I GET TO COME TO WORK.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

GOOD, THANK YOU.

ALRIGHT, THE LAST ITEM

[6. Identify items to discuss at future meetings.]

WE HAVE ON OUR AGENDA IS IDENTIFYING FUTURE ITEMS. SO FAR FOR FEBRUARY.

WE'VE TALKED ABOUT SOME CONVERSATIONS AROUND, UH, I 35 CAP ANDIT PRIORITIZATION.

I KNOW THIS IS A CONVERSATION THAT VICE CHAIR CADRE AND I HAVE, HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT AS WE WORK THROUGH, UH, THE CAP AND STITCH PROGRAM.

UH, PROJECT CONNECT UPDATES AS THEY'RE WORKING THROUGH LIGHT RAIL PLANNING, MULTIMODAL CONNECTIVITY AS THEY DEVELOP THEIR DOCUMENTATION FOR THE NEPA PROCESS.

AND THEN TENTATIVELY TALKING ABOUT BIKE LANES AND PARKING REGULATIONS AND ENFORCEMENT.

SO THOSE ARE A COUPLE OF THE IDEAS THAT WE'VE HAD IN THE HOPPER.

UM, WE KNOW THE AIRPORT IS STILL SLATED, UH, TO BE WORKING THROUGH THEIR EXPANSION OVER MANY, MANY YEARS.

UH, FLEET ELECTRIFICATION FOR THE CITY, ETOD PLANNING, AIR QUALITY ISSUES AND OTHER PARKING CODE AMENDMENTS THAT MAY BE COMING DOWN.

SO WE'VE, WE'VE GOT A RUNNING LIST IF ANYONE WANTS TO ADD OR DAYLIGHT ANYTHING HERE OR LET US KNOW OFFLINE.

LET'S GO AHEAD.

VICE CHAIR CADRY.

UM, FUTURE ITEMS TO DISCUSS IN FUTURE MEETINGS.

UM, PARKING IN REGARD TO THE ULI TAP RECOMMENDATIONS WAS ONE THING THAT OUR OFFICE KIND OF, UH, WANTS TO LOOK AT.

AND THEN ALSO ADDITIONAL UPDATES REGARDING, UH, THE WORK NEEDED TO COMPLETE THE ELIMINATION OF PARKING MANDATES CITYWIDE.

FANTASTIC.

ANYTHING ELSE TO ADD? COUNCIL MEMBER VELA.