[00:00:04]
[CALL TO ORDER ]
UM, LET'S TAKE A ROLL CALL.UH, CHAIR FRANKS, ARE YOU WITH? HE'S NOT WITH US.
VIRTUALLY? NO, HE'S ABSENT TODAY.
AND, UM, UM, ELIZABETH, I'M SORRY.
I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SAY YOUR LAST NAME.
SO WE ARE GONNA GO AHEAD AND START TODAY.
AND, UM, BEFORE WE DO START, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY THAT, UM, DONNA BETTS HA IS NOT ON OUR COMMITTEE ANYMORE.
WE APPRECIATE ALL OF HER WORK THAT SHE'S DONE THIS FAR, AND, UM, IN HER PLACE WE WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME LISA CHANG.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY ANYTHING? HI, IT'S A PLEASURE TO, UM, SEE SOME OF YOU ON THIS CALL, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING YOU IN THE FUTURE.
UM, I'M REPRESENTING DISTRICT TWO AND, UM, IT'S A PLEASURE TO SERVE ON THIS COMMITTEE, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO, UH, MEETING AND WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU IN THE FUTURE.
YES, WELCOME TO OUR COMMITTEE.
WE'RE EXCITED THAT YOU'RE HERE.
UM, DO WE HAVE ANYBODY SIGNED UP FOR A, UH, PUBLIC COMMENT? NO.
UM, NEXT, WE'RE GONNA MOVE ALONG
[1. Approve the minutes of the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities regular meeting on January 12, 2024.]
TO THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY MEETING.WE DIDN'T MAKE QUORUM, SO WE HAD NO MEETING IN FEBRUARY.
UM, I MOVE, CAN I, I CAN DO THAT, RIGHT? YOU LEAD A MOTION? YES.
I, I I WOULD LIKE TO MOTION THAT WE APPROVE THE AGENDA MINUTES FROM JANUARY 12TH, 2024.
SO SOMEBODY ELSE NEEDS THE MOTION.
SO I WOULD MOTION, MOTION TO APPROVE SOMEBODY SECONDS.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SECOND? YES.
AND THEN JUST A VOTE FOR EVERYBODY, AND IF YOU COULD HAVE YOUR CAMERA ON WHEN YOU VOTE, PLEASE.
WAIT, WE HAVEN'T, I HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL EVERYONE HAS THEIR CAMERA ON AND THEN I CAN CALL FOR A VOTE.
SOME OF THE OTHER ATTENDEES ARE JUST PRESENTERS.
SO DOES EVERYBODY HAVE THEIR CAMERA ON EVERYBODY? YES.
UM, SORRY, I'M JUST LOOKING AT IT.
I'M JUST LOOKING AND SEEING THAT SOME, UM, SOME OF THE THINGS ARE OFF.
ANY OPPOSED? ALL RIGHT, GREAT.
UH, VICE CHAIR, UH, I BELIEVE THAT THE NEWEST COMMISSIONER LISA CHANG, PREFERS TO ABSTAIN FROM THE VOTE.
IS THAT RIGHT, MS. CHANG? YES.
SINCE I WASN'T IN ATTENDANCE, I'LL BE ABSTAINING.
SO THAT MEANS THAT THE VOTE DOESN'T PASS SINCE IT'S ONLY FIVE VOTES.
SO WE'LL JUST BRING THESE MINUTES BACK FORTH UNLESS SHE PREFERS TO CHANGE HER VOTE, WHICH IS, EITHER WAY IS FINE.
I WILL CHANGE, UH, TO APPROVE.
[2. Staff briefing regarding Town Hall on Public Safety: People with Disabilities and Policing given by Lindsay Southard, Community Engagement Specialist, Office of Police Oversight.]
BRIEFINGS.UM, THIS IS REGARDING THE TOWN HALL AND PUBLIC SAFETY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND POLICING GIVEN BY LINDSEY SU.
I'LL WAIT, UH, JUST A SECOND FOR THE PRESENTATION TO GET LOADED UP.
WELL, FIRST I WOULD LIKE TO JUST BEGIN BY SAYING THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR, UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR IPHONE.
CAN YOU HEAR ME A LITTLE BIT BETTER? YEAH.
JUST WOULD LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH
[00:05:01]
FOR, UM, ALLOWING THE OFFICE OF POLICE OVERSIGHT TO PRESENT, UM, ON SOME OF OUR WORK TODAY.WE'RE VERY HAPPY TO, UM, TO BE HERE AND TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY.
UM, BUT BEFORE WE DO GET STARTED, BEFORE I BEGIN, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO LET EVERYONE LISTENING KNOW THAT, UM, THE INFORMATION, UM, SPECIFICALLY THE REPORT THAT I'M GOING TO BE REPORTING ON THIS AFTERNOON, UM, IS AVAILABLE, UM, ON OUR WEBSITE AT A TX POLICE OVERSIGHT.ORG.
IT'S AVAILABLE IN ENGLISH, IN SPANISH, AS WELL AS SCREEN READER ACCESSIBLE.
UM, AND WE ALSO HAVE BRAILLE COPIES AVAILABLE BY REQUEST.
WE HAVE HARD COPIES OF THOSE IN OUR OFFICE, SO WE ARE MORE THAN HAPPY TO PROVIDE THOSE, SHOULD ANYONE WANT ONE.
UM, AS MENTIONED BEFORE, MY NAME IS LINDSAY SOUTHARD.
I AM A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST WITH THE OFFICE OF POLICE OVERSIGHT.
FOR A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND ON WHAT I'LL BE SHARING TODAY, THE TOWN HALL ON PUBLIC SAFETY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND POLICING WAS A COMMUNITY EVENT SERIES HOSTED BY THE OFFICE OF POLICE OVERSIGHT.
BEGINNING IN 2021, OPO DEVELOPED THIS INITIATIVE IN DIRECT RESPONSE TO COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ADVOCATED FOR ACTION TO ADDRESS THEIR CONCERNS ABOUT THEIR INTERACTIONS WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
OUR PARTNERS INCLUDED THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, THE EQUITY OFFICE, AS WELL AS SEVERAL OTHER COMMUNITY ACT ADVOCACY GROUPS, OPO INTENTIONALLY CENTERED PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES THROUGHOUT THIS PROJECT, AND WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT LIVED EXPERIENCE IS LIVED EXPERTISE AT EACH EVENT, COMMUNITY MEMBERS OPENLY AND HONESTLY SHARED THEIR EXPERIENCES, THEIR CONCERNS, THEIR CHALLENGES, AND OTHER THINGS RELATED TO INTERACTING WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
OPOS GOAL WAS TO LISTEN TO COMMUNITY MEMBERS LEARN FROM THESE LIVED EXPERIENCES, AND DEVELOP ACTIONABLE RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE INTERACTIONS WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
WE COLLECTED FEEDBACK FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS, SYNTHESIZED QUALITATIVE DATA, AND DEVELOPED RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE COMMUNITY MEMBER INTERACTIONS WITH A PD.
SO, A LITTLE BIT OF A TIMELINE HERE, UM, FOR SOME CONTEXT.
UM, THE JULY, 2020, UM, COMMITTEE MEETING, THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES REALLY SERVED AS A CATALYST FOR, UM, OPOS WORK WITHIN THIS SPACE.
MEMBERS OF THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES EXPRESSED CONCERNS STEMMING FROM THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
THEY ALSO HIGHLIGHTED A NEED FOR MORE DETAILED DATA ON THE EXPERIENCES, UM, HIGHLIGHTING THE EXPERIENCES OF PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES AND POLICE OFFICERS AS THERE WAS A LACK OF OUTSIDE DATA PERTAINING TO MENTAL HEALTH.
IN MAY OF 2021, OPO COLLABORATED WITH THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND THE EQUITY OFFICE TO HOST THE FIRST TOWN HALL ON PUBLIC SAFETY FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN POLICING.
THAT SEPTEMBER OPO RELEASED THE FIRST TOWN HALL REPORT WHERE FEEDBACK FROM THE EVENT WAS ANALYZED, AND IT INDICATED THAT THERE WAS AN INTEREST TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION AND HOW OPO SHOULD BEST DO SO.
IN JUNE OF 2022, OPO HOSTED THE SECOND TOWN HALL, WHICH WAS A HYBRID EVENT WITH 75 COMMUNITY MEMBERS ATTENDING VIRTUALLY AND IN PERSON.
AFTER ANALYZING THE FEEDBACK FROM THE SECOND TOWN HALL, OPO RELEASED THE FINAL TOWN HALL REPORT IN OCTOBER OF 2023.
SO, AS A REMINDER, OPO HOSTED OUR FIRST TOWN HALL IN 2021, AND WE HAD 42 COMMUNITY MEMBERS ATTEND VIRTUALLY FOR OUR FIRST TOWN HALL.
OUR APPROACH WAS TO GATHER QUALITATIVE DATA THAT CENTERED ON THE LIVED EXPERIENCE OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
SO WE HAD TRAINED FACILITATORS ASK OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS TO INITIATE CONVERSATIONS WHILE MAINTAINING A SAFE SPACE FOR PARTICIPANTS.
HERE'S A SAMPLING ON THE SCREEN OF SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE ASKED.
AFTER GATHERING THE QUALITATIVE DATA, WE'VE DEVELOPED, DEVELOPED INSIGHTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO ADVANCE THIS CONVERSATION.
AND ON THE SCREEN, AND ON THE SCREEN, AND ON THE SCREEN NOW ARE SOME OF THE QUOTES, UM, AND SOME OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS AT THAT FIRST TOWN HALL MEETING.
THE QUOTATIONS HERE ARE UNEDITED, AND THEY WERE SELECTED, UM, TO REPRESENT SOME OF THE NUANCE IN THE COMMUNITY, CONCERNS
[00:10:01]
ABOUT INTERACTING WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AS A PERSON LIVING WITH A DISABILITY.THE FEEDBACK FROM THESE DISCUSSIONS WAS AGGREGATED AND ANONYMIZED AS QUALITATIVE DATA FOR ANALYSIS.
OPO STAFF THEN CONDUCTED A DATA SYNTHESIS OF COMMUNITY FEEDBACK FROM THE EVENT TO HELP DEVELOP OUR INSIGHTS NOW FOR OUR TOWN HALL.
ONE INSIGHTS, UM, OPO, AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, ANONYMIZED AND AGGREGATED THE RESPONSES FROM THIS FIRST TOWN HALL TO DEVELOP SEVERAL KEY INSIGHTS FROM THE TOWN HALL.
THE INSIGHTS INDICATED THAT THERE WAS A NEED TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION SURROUNDING THE EXPERIENCES OF PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES AND POLICING INSIGHT.
ONE, THE, THE PERCEPTION BY POLICE OFFICERS CAN LEAD TO PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES HAVING A NEGATIVE INTERACTION WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT, RESULTING IN MISUNDERSTANDING INJURY OR DEATH INSIGHT.
TWO, WITH IMPROVED COMMUNITY RELATIONS, THE BURDEN OF ENSURING THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT UNDERSTANDS THE UNIQUE NEEDS OF COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH DISABILITIES DOES NOT FALL ON THESE INDIVIDUALS, THEIR FAMILIES, OR THEIR CARETAKERS.
THREE, THIS CAN CREATE A DISADVANTAGE FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE INVISIBLE DISABILITIES.
INSIGHT FOUR, WHEN MAKING POLICY CONSIDERATION MUST BE GIVEN TO PEOPLE UNIQUELY IMPACTED BY VARIOUS SOCIAL CATEGORIES, CATEGORIZATIONS, SUCH AS RACE, CLASS, AND GENDER IDENTITIES.
MOREOVER, THIS CAN LEAD TO LONG LASTING EFFECTS OF TRAUMA FOR STUDENTS OF COLOR WITH DISABILITIES.
FINALLY, FOR INSIGHT SIX, A PDH SHOULD PROVIDE MORE MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES FOR OFFICERS TO IMPROVE THEIR INTERACTIONS BETWEEN LAW ENFORCEMENT AND PEOPLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS.
OKAY, NOW, FOR OUR RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, AS YOU SEE HERE ON THE SCREEN, THESE ARE THE FOUR RECOMMENDATIONS THAT WE CREATED.
BASED ON THE INSIGHTS FROM THE FIRST TOWN HALL, OPO DEVELOPED THESE RECOMMENDATIONS TO AID IN THE PLANNING OF THE SECOND TOWN HALL TO ADVANCE THE CONVERSATION WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS INCLUDED A REQUEST TO INCLUDE A PD OFFICERS AT THE NEXT EVENT, TO INCLUDE CONVERSATION AROUND INTERSECTIONALITY AND DISABILITY, AND FOCUS ON BUILDING EMPATHY AND UNDERSTANDING THROUGH CONVERSATION.
NOW FOR THE SECOND EVENT, OPO ASSEMBLED A PLANNING COMMITTEE COMPRISED OF SEVERAL SERVICE PROVIDERS, FAMILY MEMBERS, AND INDIVIDUALS WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE THAT PROVIDED VALUABLE INSIGHTS AND GUIDANCE DURING THE MEETING DESIGN PROCESS.
AND I'LL LEAVE THE RECOMMENDATIONS HERE ON THE SCREEN FOR A SECOND, JUST SO EVERYONE CAN READ THROUGH THOSE.
NOW, FOR TOWN HALL TWO, IN JUNE, 2022, THE OFFICE OF POLICE OVERSIGHT HOSTED THE SECOND TOWN HALL FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES AND POLICING.
AND 75 COMMUNITY MEMBERS ATTENDED THIS HYBRID EVENT, BOTH ONLINE AND IN PERSON.
DURING THE MEETING, OIO STAFF AND OTHER CITY OF AUSTIN EMPLOYEES COLLECTED COMMUNITY FEEDBACK THROUGH TWO FACILITATED EXERCISES.
THE FIRST DISCUSSION CENTERED AROUND INTERSECTIONALITY.
THE SECOND ACTIVITY INVOLVED FACILITATORS USING REALISTIC SCENARIOS TO DEMONSTRATE THE DIFFERENT PHASES OF A POLICE ENCOUNTER AND HOW THOSE PHASES REPRESENT CRITICAL POINTS FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
AND HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE'VE RECEIVED FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS AT THIS MEETING.
UM, AGAIN, I DO WANNA MENTION THAT THESE QUOTES ARE UNEDITED, BUT THEY WERE SELECTED TO REPRESENT, AGAIN, THE NUANCE IN THE COMMUNITY, CONCERNS ABOUT INTERACTING WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AS A PERSON WITH A DISABILITY.
UM, I'LL JUST PARAPHRASE ONE OF THESE QUOTES.
NOW, DISABILITY ISN'T JUST ONE THING.
THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT DON'T PRESENT THE SAME WAY.
THINKING ABOUT SITUATIONS LIKE DOUBLE DOUBLE AMPUTEES WHO HAVE A WHEELCHAIR HELPER AND BEING SEPARATED FROM THOSE THINGS, ARE THOSE THINGS THOUGHT ABOUT? AND ARE THERE POLICIES RE REGARDING THESE TYPES OF ACTIONS? KNOWING THAT EVERY BEHAVIOR IS SOMEONE SAYING SOMETHING ASKING WISE, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR DAY? HOW ARE YOU DOING? WHAT I NEED TO FEEL SAFE IS A RE-IMAGINING OF THESE SITUATIONS INSTEAD OF JUST SPARKING ORDERS.
[00:15:01]
THE FEEDBACK FROM THE DISCUSSIONS THAT WE HAD AT THE SECOND TOWN HALL.UM, THIS FEEDBACK WAS AGGREGATED AND, AGAIN, ANONYMIZED.
ITS QUALITATIVE DATA FOR ANALYSIS.
AND OPIOID STAFF, ONCE AGAIN, CON CONDUCTED A DATA SYNTHESIS OF THIS COMMUNITY.
NOW, FOR OUR FINDINGS FROM THE TOWN HALL TOO, OUR FINDINGS FROM THE SECOND TOWN HALL COULD BE BROKEN DOWN INTO THREE CATEGORIES, FEAR AND VULNERABILITY TRAINING AND ENGAGEMENT, AND UNDERSTANDING THE DIVERSITY OF DISABILITY FOR FEAR AND VULNERABILITY.
THIS STRESS, IT'S AMPLIFIED WHEN PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES ARE ALSO PART OF OTHER MARGINALIZED GROUPS.
THESE CONCERNS CAN OFTEN LEAD TO AN AVOIDANCE OF POLICE INTERACTIONS ALTOGETHER, OR SEEKING ALTERNATIVE RESOURCES FOR SUPPORT.
REGARDING TRAINING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, THERE IS A DI DESIRE FOR MORE SPECIFIED TRAINING AND INCREASED COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT FOR UNDERSTANDING THE DIVERSITY OF DISABILITIES.
THESE MISUNDERSTANDINGS CAN LEAD TO MISCOMMUNICATIONS AND UNNECESSARY ESCALATIONS IN SITUATIONS WHERE COMMUN COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH DISABILITIES INTERACT WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
SO, BASED ON THE FEEDBACK THAT WAS RECEIVED AT THE SECOND TOWN HALL MEETING, OPO DEVELOPED A FINAL SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE THE INTERACTIONS THAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES HAVE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
NOW, THIS FIRST SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS CENTERS AROUND RESEARCH.
THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS RECOMMENDED, HAS INVESTED IN SEVERAL CONSULTANTS AND REPORTS ON THE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PEOPLE WITH MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS AND A PD OFFICERS THAT HAVE YIELDED REALLY IN REALLY INSIGHTFUL FINDINGS AND ACTIONABLE STEPS.
A PD SHOULD PROVIDE REGULAR PUBLIC UPDATES ON THE STATUS OF THEIR IMPLEMENTATION, AND A PD SHOULD ALSO WORK WITH OPO AND THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE TO PROVIDE REGULAR PUBLIC UPDATES.
THIS NEXT SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS IS CENTERED ON DATA.
A PD SHOULD EXAMINE HOW TO COLLECT DATA, DOCUMENTING THE NUMBER OF USE OF FORCE INCIDENTS INVOLVING PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES BEYOND JUST MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS.
UNTIL MORE THOROUGH, QUANTIFIABLE DATA IS AVAILABLE, IT WILL REMAIN DIFFICULT TO HAVE A MORE COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF THE ISSUES AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INFORMED LASTING IMPROVEMENTS.
A PD CAN REVIEW THESE COMPLAINTS AS GENERAL FEEDBACK TO IDENTIFY AREAS FOR REVIEW AND FOR IMPROVEMENT.
A PD CAN ALSO UTILIZE THIS DATA AS WELL AS OTHER FEEDBACK TO IMPROVE UPON POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT INFORM THEIR INTERACTIONS WITH PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES.
CONTINUING ON WITH OUR DATA RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, ACROSS THE FEEDBACK THAT WAS PROVIDED TO OPO AT EVERY EVENT, COMMUNITY MEMBERS REPEATEDLY OFFERED TO PROVIDE INPUT, FEEDBACK, OR OTHERWISE HELP A PD IMPROVE.
ITS, IMPROVE ITS SERVICE DELIVERY.
THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A PD TO BUILD TRUST WITH ITS COMMUNITY AND COLLECT MEANINGFUL DATA AND DEVELOP ACTIONABLE IMPROVEMENTS TO CREATE POSITIVE CHANGE.
A PD CAN ADDRESS THIS GAP BY ENGAGING WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO DETERMINE HOW TO TRACK AND DEFINE THESE INTERACTIONS.
NOW, PERTAINING TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, OPO RECOMMENDS THAT A PD IDENTIFY STRATEGIES FOR OFFICERS TO INCREASE THEIR LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES IN ORDER TO BUILD TRUST AND DEMONSTRATE RECEPTIVITY TO COMMUNITY FEEDBACK.
THIS INCLUDES HOSTING EVENTS TO RECEIVE FEEDBACK DIRECTLY FROM PEOPLE WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE.
ADDITIONALLY, A PD SHOULD, SHOULD ATTEND AT LEAST THREE COMMUNITY EVENTS ANNUALLY THAT ARE HOSTED BY ORGANIZATIONS WORKING FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
FOR OUR FIRST TRAINING RECOMMENDATION, OPO IS REFERRING TO ANY MATERIALS THAT WOULD, THAT WOULD AUGMENT EXISTING ACADEMY CURRICULUM BY PROVIDING ANECDOTAL INSIGHTS FROM PEOPLE WITH VARIOUS DISABILITIES.
ADDITIONALLY, OPO RECOMMENDS THAT OFFICERS BE ENCOURAGED TO PURSUE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES THAT STRENGTHEN THEIR ABILITY TO
[00:20:01]
ENGAGE WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS LIVING WITH DISABILITIES.NOW FOR OUR NEXT STEPS, WHILE THIS REPORT DOES HIGHLIGHT A LOT OF ISSUES OR A LOT OF AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT, THERE ARE EVEN MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO BUILD TRUST WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND DEMONSTRATE A COMMITMENT TO SAFETY FOR ALL OPO INTENTIONALLY CENTERED PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
THROUGHOUT THIS PROJECT, WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT LIVED EXPERIENCE IS LIVED EXPERTISE AT EACH EVENT, COMMUNITY MEMBERS OPENLY AND HONESTLY SHARED THEIR EXPERIENCES, CONCERNS, AND CHALLENGES RELATED TO INTERACTING WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
THIS FEEDBACK PROVIDED BY THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS IS DATA.
I'D LIKE TO PARAPHRASE A QUOTE FROM THE POLICE EXECUTIVE RESEARCH FORUM.
YOU CAN'T, YOU CANNOT MANAGE WHAT YOU DON'T MEASURE.
YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU DON'T KNOW.
WE, AS CITY SERVICE PROVIDERS CANNOT IMPROVE UNLESS WE UNDERSTAND WHAT COMMUNITY MEMBERS NEED.
WE CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT COMMUNITY MEMBERS NEED.
IF WE DO NOT ASK THEM, DATA CAN VALIDATE EXISTING EFFORTS OR IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES TO DEVELOP MORE EFFECTIVE EFFORTS.
ALL OF THIS FEEDBACK DOES DEMONSTRATE AND INDICATE THAT THIS COMMUNITY FEELS UNDERSERVED.
AND OPO WANTS TO FACILITATE A WAY FOR A PD TO CONNECT WITH THIS COMMUNITY, TO BUILD UPON THEIR EXISTING EFFORTS.
AND JUST TO WRAP UP, UM, OR BEFORE I WRAP UP, UM, I DO WANNA THANK SOME OF THE COMMUNITY GROUPS WHO WORKED WITH US TO DESIGN THIS MEETING.
UM, EVERYONE THAT WE'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE IS LISTED HERE ON THE SCREEN.
UM, WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR THE COMMUNITY SUPPORT AND THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO TRUSTED US TO HOLD SPACE FOR THESE REALLY CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS.
AND WE SINCERELY THANK ALL PARTICIPANTS FOR THEIR WILLINGNESS TO CONTRIBUTE.
UM, WE'D ALSO LIKE TO THANK ALL OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN VOLUNTEERS WHO GAVE UP THEIR SATURDAY TO SUPPORT THIS EVENT.
AND HERE ON THE SCREEN, AGAIN, JUST WANNA MENTION THE WAYS IN WHICH YOU CAN ACCESS OUR REPORT.
YOU CAN ACCESS THE REPORT ONLINE@ATXPOLICEOVERSIGHT.ORG.
AND AGAIN, IT IS AVAILABLE ON OUR WEBSITE IN ENGLISH AND IN SPANISH, AND IS ALSO AVAILABLE, UM, IS, IS ALSO SCREEN READER, UM, COMPATIBLE.
UM, AGAIN, WANNA MENTION THAT WE DO HAVE BRAILLE COPIES OF OUR REPORT AVAILABLE, UM, HARD COPIES, SO YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO REQUEST THOSE.
AND WE CAN COORDINATE DELIVERY, UM, OF HARD COPIES OR BRAILLE COPIES OF THE REPORT TO YOU.
YOU CAN GIVE OUR OFFICE A CALL AT (512) 974-9090 TO REQUEST A COPY, SHOULD YOU WANT ONE.
UM, THAT IS IT FOR MY, MY UPDATE AND MY, UM, MY RECAP OF THE TOWN HALL ON PUBLIC SAFETY FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, IF EVER ANYONE HAS ANY QUESTIONS, I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO TRY TO ANSWER THOSE.
NOW, COMMISSIONERS, THIS IS THE STAFF LIAISON.
I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT THE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION IS INCLUDED IN BACKUP ON THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE, UH, FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
SO IF YOU WANTED TO REVIEW THAT AT ANY POINT, YOU CAN AS WELL.
I WAS JUST WONDERING, BASED ON THESE TOWN HALLS, DID, UH, A PD SAY THAT THEY WERE MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN HOW THEY, UH, DO THEIR, THEIR PROCEDURES AND STUFF AS FAR AS, I DON'T KNOW, TRAFFIC STOPS OR ANY KIND OF OTHER INTER INTERACTIONS THAT THEY LEARNED FROM THESE INTERACTIONS? I KNOW THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF REALLY VALUABLE INSIGHTS THAT WERE SHARED, UM, WITH A PD AS A RESULT OF THIS TOWN HALL.
UM, AND A LOT OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED WILL DIRECTLY INFORM HOW FUTURE CADET CLASSES ARE TRAINED, UM, AND WILL PROBABLY HAVE A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE ON, UM, THE CURRICULUM THAT'S, UM, ADMINISTERED DURING THE CADET ACADEMY.
UM, BUT SPECIFICALLY, I'M NOT SURE, UM, IF ANY POLICIES HAVE DIRECTLY CHANGED, BUT I DO KNOW THAT, UM, THE TOWN HALL DID, UH, KIND OF PUT A SPOTLIGHT ON AREAS IN WHICH THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVISE POLICY AND, AND ALSO A NEED TO REVISE POLICY TO BETTER SERVE COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
IS THERE SOMEONE THAT WE CAN CONTACT ABOUT HOW THESE TOWN HALLS WILL BE, HOW THE RECOMMENDATIONS WILL BE IMPLEMENTED IN POLICY CHANGE AND TRAININGS? YES.
UM, YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO EMAIL, UH, MYSELF, MY MANAGER, SARAH PERALTA, WHO IS THE PUBLIC INFORMATION AND MARKETING MANAGER, UM, AND EITHER OF US IS, UM, OR ANY MEMBER OF OUR COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT STAFF IS MORE THAN MORE THAN HAPPY TO PROVIDE YOU WITH THAT INFORMATION.
OUR, UM, DIRECT EMAIL FOR OUR COMMUNICATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TEAM IS
[00:25:01]
OPO OUTREACH@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV.AND AGAIN, THAT'S OPO OUTREACH@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV.
UM, AND AGAIN, IF YOU HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS RELATED TO, UM, HOW ANY OF THIS FEEDBACK WILL BE INFORMING AND SHAPING FUTURE POLICY AND POLICY DISCUSSIONS, WE'D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO, TO SHOOT YOU THAT INFORMATION.
AND, UM, I AM A LITTLE BIT LATER I'LL BE TALKING ABOUT SOME OTHER THINGS WITH THE TRANSIT, AND I KNOW THAT THEY ARE IN THE PROCESS OF GETTING THEIR OWN POLICE FORCE.
HAVE Y'ALL BEEN IN COLLABORATION? HAVE YOU SHARED THESE FINDINGS WITH THEM? I THINK IT WOULD BE REALLY VALUABLE AS THEY MAKE THEIR POLICIES.
I KNOW THAT, UM, AS AN OFFICE OF POLICE OVERSIGHT, WE ONLY HAVE JURISDICTION OVER THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT, BUT I'M SURE THAT, UM, AS CONVERSATIONS ARE ONGOING AND AS CONVERSATIONS, UM, PROGRESS, UM, AS IT REGARDING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE, THE NEW POLICE FORCE FOR, UM, THE TRANSIT, UM, WE WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO KIND OF SHARE OUR INSIGHTS AND WHAT WE'VE LEARNED FROM OUR, FROM OUR OWN RESEARCH WITH THEM, UM, AS THEY'RE DEVELOPING THEIR POLICIES.
YEAH, I, I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE REALLY VALUABLE FOR THEM.
SINCE I'VE ALREADY ASKED THE QUESTION,
I'M JUST WONDERING IF THERE ARE ONGOING OPPORTUNITIES FOR INPUT FROM THE PUBLIC? YES.
UM, AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, UM, YOU CAN ALWAYS REACH OUT TO US AT OPO OUTREACH@AUSTINTEXASDOT.GOV.
THAT'S OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS, UM, INBOX.
SO ANYTIME THAT YOU HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT, UM, OUTREACH, THINGS THAT THE OFFICE, UM, IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON, CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'RE HAVING, UM, WHAT INITIATIVES THAT WE'RE KIND OF FOCUSED ON, UM, YOU CAN ALWAYS SHOOT US AN EMAIL OR IF YOU HAVE FEEDBACK, UM, THAT'S KIND OF THE, THE, A CORNERSTONE OF, OF KIND OF WHAT DIRECTS OUR WORK AND WHAT DRIVES OUR WORK.
SO ANYTIME YOU HAVE FEEDBACK, PLEASE, UM, SHARE THAT WITH US AT THAT SAME EMAIL ADDRESS.
UM, YOU CAN ALSO CALL US, OUR INFORMATION IS ALSO LISTED ON OUR WEBSITE, UM, OR CONTACT INFORMATION.
SO PLEASE REACH OUT TO US ANYTIME THAT YOU HAVE FEEDBACK.
UM, AS I MENTIONED IN THE PRESENTATION THAT, UM, COMMUNITY FEEDBACK IS OUR DATA.
SO, UM, THIS DATA DRIVES OUR WORK.
SO ANY INFORMATION OR FEEDBACK THAT YOU HAVE, PLEASE SHARE IT WITH US.
WE, UM, WE WOULD LOVE TO DIG INTO THAT.
MY QUESTION IS THIS, I THOUGHT SOME YEARS AGO THAT THEY CONSOLIDATED THE POLICE FORCES OF THE PARK POLICE, AAS, SDS AND WHATEVER UNDER ONE DESIGNATION.
AM I WRONG ON THAT? REMEMBERING THAT, BECAUSE I REMEMBER IT WAS MAYBE TWO OR THREE YEARS AGO A MOVE WAS MADE LIKE THAT.
I AM, I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH ANY CONSOLIDATION.
UM, CURRENTLY A PD, UM, A ISD, UT POLICE ARE ALL SEPARATE, UM, DEPARTMENTS.
AND THE ONLY DEPARTMENT THAT WE HAVE JURY EXT, UM, JURY, EX EXTENSION OVER CURRENTLY IS THE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT.
BECAUSE I COULD MORE, THERE WAS A CONSOLIDATION WITH AT LEAST THE PARK POLICE AND OTHER THINGS THAT THEY WERE REASSIGNING HER TO DEAL WITH SOME THINGS.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WAS A, A TIMELINE ISSUE, IF THAT WAS, YOU KNOW, WITHIN A SHORT AGREEMENT.
BUT I DO REMEMBER THAT BEING, UH, ON POINT.
THAT'S WHY I WAS WONDERING, WITH THE NEW CAPITAL METRO EDITION, IF THAT WAS GONNA BE A STANDALONE DEPARTMENT ORAL COMMUNICATION UNDER A PD WAS GONNA OCCUR.
NO, THAT'S IS, THAT'S CERTAINLY A RELEVANT QUESTION.
UM, AND I CAN FOLLOW UP TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY INFORMATION I CAN FIND ON THOSE CONVERSATIONS IF THEY DID TAKE PLACE.
UM, BUT CURRENTLY THEY ARE SEPARATE DEPARTMENTS.
I HAD A QUESTION REGARDING KIND OF, SORRY.
FOR STARTING WHEN YOU, UM, ABOUT TRADING PROTOCOL AND, UM, LOOKING AT CASES THAT ARE HAPPENING AROUND THE COUNTRY, UM, WHEN PEOPLE ARE HAVING A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS AND IF THE FOCUS IS ON DEESCALATION AND THEN INTEGRATING THAT INTO, I DON'T KNOW, EVIDENCE-BASED TRAINING, AND JUST LIKE, THIS WAS ANOTHER EXAMPLE, AND JUST 'CAUSE I'M SEEING THIS QUALITATIVE DATA THAT YOU'VE COLLECTED DURING THESE TOWN HALLS, AND PEOPLE ARE REALLY TRYING TO GET, UM, I GUESS THE OPO TO EMPATHIZE WITH THEIR SITUATIONS, THE THINGS THAT ARE VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE.
SO DO YOU STUDY CASES AND THEN HOW AFFECT? WELL, WE DO, WE DO, UM, OF COURSE, UH, WE, OUR POLICY TEAM, UM, O OPIOIDS DIVIDED INTO THREE DIVISIONS.
OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, COMMUNICATIONS POLICY AND RESEARCH, AND THEN OUR COMPLAINTS DIVISION, OUR POLICY AND RESEARCH TEAM, UM, THEY DO KIND OF KEEP, UM, THEY KEEP THEIR EYE ON THE PULSE OF KIND OF WHAT'S GOING ON NATIONALLY, UM, WHAT TRENDS ARE OCCURRING, NOT JUST NATIONALLY,
[00:30:01]
BUT ALSO WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.SO THEY'RE ALWAYS KEEPING AN EYE ON, UM, KIND OF TRENDS, HOW THOSE TRENDS ARE INFLUENCING ONGOING TRAINING, UM, WHETHER IT'S IN THE ACADEMY OR, UM, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT THAT THEY RECEIVE WHILE THEY'RE ALREADY, UM, A PART OF THE FORCE.
UM, SO THOSE, THOSE CONVERSATIONS IN THOSE DISCUSSIONS ARE ONGOING, UM, AMONGST OUR POLICY TEAM.
SO, UM, THERE ARE INSTANCES WHERE THEY, THEY SEE LIKE A NATIONAL STORY AND THAT COULD CATALYZE, UM, THEM EMBARKING UPON LIKE A, A SPECIFIC RESEARCH PROJECT OR, OR SOMETHING ELSE.
UM, BUT WE CAN'T NECESSARILY SAY THIS INSTANCE HAPPENED IN X, Y, Z TOWN AND WE WANT TO BRING THIS TO A PD AS AN EXAMPLE OF SOMETHING.
UM, THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY THE PROCESS THAT WE USE, BUT IT'S NOT TO SAY THAT INSTANCES AND, UM, THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN OTHER CITIES DON'T INFLUENCE, UM, OUR KIND OF PRACTICES AND WHAT WE RESEARCH.
UM, IT DOESN'T PRECLUDE US FROM RESEARCHING THINGS, UM, RATHER, IF THAT MAKES ANY SENSE.
UM, THIS MAY BE GETTING INTO THE WEEDS, BUT I WONDER IF ANY SPECIFIC PEOPLE ARE TRAINED TO DEAL WITH BOTH DEESCALATION AND MENTAL HEALTH SPECIFIC ISSUES? YES, THEY DO RECEIVE, UM, DURING THEIR CADET TRAINING AS WELL AS, UM, OFFICERS THAT ARE ALREADY A PART OF THE, UM, THE FORCE.
THEY DO RECEIVE TRAINING ON DEESCALATION, PARTICULARLY DEESCALATION WITH, UM, PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERIENCING, UM, A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS OR, UM, ANY OTHER SITUATION THAT THAT'S RELATED.
UM, HOW MANY HOURS OF THAT TRAINING AND THE SPECIFICS OF THAT TRAINING? I, I AM NOT EXACTLY SURE OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD.
UM, BUT I DO KNOW THAT THAT TRAINING HAS, UM, WELL, THE FREQUENCY, UM, IN, IN THE OFFERING OF THAT TRAINING HAS CERTAINLY KIND OF INCREASED.
UM, AND AN ADDITIONAL EMPHASIS HAS BEEN PLACED ON THE IMPORTANCE OF RECEIVING THAT TRAINING AND INCREASING ACCESS TO THAT TRAINING, AS WELL AS ENCOURAGING OFFICERS, UM, THAT, AGAIN, THAT ARE ALREADY A PART OF THE FORCE TO SEEK OUT OPPORTUNITIES TO, UM, TO DEVELOP AND TO LEARN ADDITIONAL MEANS, UM, IN, IN CURRENT, THE BEST PRACTICES AS IT RELATES TO DEESCALATION, UM, PARTICULARLY AS IT RELATES TO PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERIENCING A CRISIS.
ONE MORE, ONE MORE QUICK QUESTION.
DO YOU, DO YOU KNOW EXACTLY HOW MANY MENTAL HEALTH OFFICERS THAT WE HAVE? I DO NOT KNOW THAT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT I COULD PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION, UM, TO YOU.
I COULD, UM, DO SOME RESEARCH AND SEE IF I COULD PROVIDE THAT TO YOU.
WHEN YOU SAID THAT, UH, YOU WERE ASKING FOR A PD TO ATTEND THREE EVENTS A YEAR, HAVE THEY AGREED TO THAT? UM, WELL, THESE ARE SIMPLY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND I DON'T WANNA SAY THAT THEY HAVEN'T, UM, AGREED.
UM, AS YOU KNOW, THERE HAVE BEEN CHANGES, UM, SINCE WE PUT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS OUT.
THERE HAVE BEEN CHANGES IN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S LEADERSHIP.
UM, SO SOME OF THE, I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH WAS OF, OF THIS KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER ACTUALLY OCCURRED, UM, BUT I DO KNOW THAT, UM, APDS CURRENT LEADERSHIP IS OPEN TO, UM, KIND OF ONGOING DISCUSSION, IS VERY OPEN TO, UM, KIND OF IMPROVING BEST, BEST PRACTICES.
SO, UM, I WOULD HOPE THAT THEY ARE OPEN TO, UM, YEAH, LOOKING AT THESE RECOMMENDATIONS.
ONCE AGAIN, UM, I THINK THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UM, WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES, I, I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT.
CERTAINLY, I THINK IT WOULD BE A, A GREAT THING.
NO, THANK YOU FOR PRESENTATION.
AND AGAIN, UM, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS THAT I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO ANSWER, PLEASE REACH OUT TO US.
UM, OUR TEAM IS MORE THAN HAPPY AND MORE THAN WILLING TO, UM, PROVIDE ANY INFORMATION THAT YOU MIGHT NEED OR ANY INFORMATION THAT YOU WOULD, MIGHT, UH, YOU MIGHT WANT TO, UM, KNOW A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT.
SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK, AND I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A GREAT REST OF THE DAY.
[3. Presentation by Chris Duran, Senior Research Analyst; Jamey May, Housing and Community Development Officer; Julie Smith, Community Engagement Specialist; and Leslie Boyd, Acting Public Health Program Manager II; of the Housing Department, on the Community Needs Assessment and the Fiscal Year 24-29 Consolidated Plan.]
OKAY.THE NEXT ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS A PRESENTATION ON THE COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOR HOUSING FOR, UM, FISCAL YEAR 24 TO 29, THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN.
SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN UNMUTING.
I WAS HAVING SOME TROUBLE FINDING IT, BUT I'M GOOD TO GO.
THANK YOU FOR PULLING THE PRESENTATION UP.
I AM OUR SENIOR RESEARCH ANALYST IN THE FINANCE DIVISION OF THE, UM, HOUSING DEPARTMENT.
UM, I'M HERE WITH, UM, MY, UH, COLLEAGUE JULIE SMITH, OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
[00:35:01]
SPECIALIST, WHO WILL BE ON AS AN ACTIVE LISTENER HERE TODAY.UM, TAKING DOWN, UH, BOTH YOUR INPUT, BUT, AND THE CONVERSATION AS WELL AS QUE ANY QUESTIONS THAT COME UP THAT WE MIGHT NEED, WANNA GET BACK TO YOU ON.
HOPEFULLY WE CAN ANSWER THOSE HERE TODAY.
AND WE ALSO HAVE ON THE LINE JAMIE MAYER, UM, HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OFFICER.
I APOLOGIZE IN, IN ADVANCE FOR KIND OF LOSING MY VOICE HERE A LITTLE BIT.
I'M, UM, HAVE BEEN KIND OF UNWELL AND I'M RECOVERING FROM A SINUS INFECTION, BUT I'M, UM, BOUNCING BACK AND WILL DO MY BEST TODAY.
I, SO IF WE COULD GO TO THE FIRST SLIDE REAL QUICK.
UM, ACTUALLY BACK TO THE TITLE SLIDE.
I JUST WANTED TO START HERE, UM, AND SET THE TABLE FOR WHY WE'RE HERE TODAY.
UM, LIKE I SAID, WE'RE WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S HOUSING DEPARTMENT.
WE'RE CONDUCTING A COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT, UM, FOR PURPOSES OF OUR FIVE YEAR, WHAT'S CALLED CONSOLIDATED PLAN, THAT'S OUR FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN THAT'LL BE UTILIZED FOR, UM, OUR FEDERAL FUNDING.
BUT I, UM, AS WE'LL SAY A FEW TIMES HERE IN THIS, UH, PRESENTATION, WE'RE REALLY MAKING AN EFFORT TO MOVE TOWARDS TAKING ALL COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT DOWN FOR ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS. SO, UM, WHILE THIS'LL BE, UH, THIS PRESENTATION IS SPECIFICALLY FOR, UH, FEDERAL FUNDING, UM, WE'RE ALSO, YOU KNOW, IT, THE CONVERSATION AND DISCUSSION DOESN'T HAVE TO BE EXCLUSIVE TO THAT.
AND, AND REALLY WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY IS THAT WE'RE TAKING DOWN, UM, YOUR INPUT, UM, IN, UM, FOR USE FOR ALL ALL OF OUR PROGRAMMING.
UM, BUT THE, I'M GONNA GO THROUGH, UM, A PRESENTATION COVER, SOME INFORMATION, BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT, UH, PART HERE TODAY WILL BE, UH, THE FEEDBACK FROM YOU ALL, AND I'LL SHARE HOW WE CAN GET THAT FROM YOU, UM, OUTSIDE OF THIS, UM, MEETING AS WELL.
UM, SO NEXT SLIDE, UNLESS I'VE GOT CONTROL, WHICH I DON'T THINK I DO.
UM, SO I'LL, UM, YOU'LL HAVE THIS SLIDE DECK, IT GIVES A TABLE OF CONTENTS HERE.
I WON'T READ OFF, UM, ALL OF THEM, BUT, UM, THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS PRESENTATION, LIKE I WAS SAYING, WAS, UM, THE COMMUNITY INPUT THAT WE GET FROM YOU TODAY.
UM, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO ALSO NOTE THAT, UM, THIS, UM, SLIDE DECK WILL HAVE FURTHER INFORMATION FOR YOUR REVIEW IN AN APPENDIX SECTION.
UM, AND, UH, WE'RE DEFINITELY AVAILABLE FOR, YOU KNOW, WE CAN ALWAYS COME BACK OR ANSWER MORE QUESTIONS.
I'LL KIND OF BE COVERING A GOOD AMOUNT OF INFORMATION PRETTY QUICKLY, UM, BUT I'LL BE SHARING MY INFORMATION AS WELL FOR ANY FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS.
SO, UM, ON THE SCREEN RIGHT NOW IS, UM, OUR VARIOUS FUNDING SOURCES.
SO HOW DO WE FUND OUR PROGRAMS WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S HOUSING DEPARTMENT? UM, WE HAVE AN ARRAY OF SOURCES, BOTH FEDERAL AND LOCAL.
I'M GONNA BE ZEROING IN ON THE HUD ANNUAL ENTITLEMENT GRANTS TODAY, AND I'LL TALK ABOUT WHAT EXACTLY THOSE ARE.
UM, BUT WE ALSO HAVE AN ARRAY OF LOCAL FUNDS AS WELL.
UM, AND WE'RE TA AND, UM, WE'RE, YOU KNOW, TAKING THAT, UH, YOUR INPUT INTO CONSIDERATION FOR THOSE AS WELL.
SO, THE, UM, US DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, UM, ALSO REFERRED TO AS HUD ALLOCATES, UH, ENTITLEMENT FUNDING ALLOCATES ANNUAL FUNDING, UH, TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN FOR PURPOSES OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND PUBLIC SERVICES.
UM, WE'VE RECEIVED ROUGHLY 14 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR FY 2324.
UM, SO OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, THIS PLAN IS FOR A FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN THAT'S GONNA BE ROUGHLY AT LEAST 70 MILLION.
UM, AND IT'LL LIKELY BE MORE BEING THAT, UM, THE FUNDING THAT WE'VE BEEN RECEIVING HAS BEEN GOING UP IN RECENT YEARS DUE TO THE POPULATION GROWTH, THE INCREASED NEED THAT WE'RE EXPERIENCING, UH, WITH INCREASED COST OF LIVING, ET CETERA, IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
SO, UM, YOUR INPUT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR THIS PLAN.
UM, IT IS OVER 70 MILLION IN FUNDING, AND I'LL GET OVER, I'LL, UM, GO OVER SOME OF THE PROGRAMMING THAT THIS FUNDING HAS HISTORICALLY FUNDED, UM, AND, UM, WHAT SOME OF THE, UH, ELIGIBLE, UH, USES FOR THESE FUNDS ARE AS WELL.
SO, ON THE SCREEN IS JUST AN OVERVIEW OF, UM, TO KIND OF GIVE SOME CONTEXT INTO THE PLANNING REGIMEN THAT HUD HAS US OPERATE UNDER.
UM, THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN IS THAT FIVE YEAR PLAN THAT ALLOCATES FEDERAL RESOURCES.
[00:40:02]
WHAT PROGRAMS WE'LL BE FUNDING WITH THE 70 MILLION OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.UM, AND THEN AT EACH YEAR WE ALSO DO, UM, CRAFT AN ACTION PLAN, UM, FOR SPECIFICS FOR THAT YEAR.
BUT IT ALL, ALL THE ACTION PLANS DO FOLD INTO THAT FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN.
SO, HOW ARE THESE FUNDING DECISIONS MADE? UH, THE COMMUNITY INPUT PROCESS, WHICH WE'RE ENGAGED IN RIGHT NOW, UH, WE CONDUCT INTERNAL HOUSING NEEDS AND MARKET ANALYSIS WITH OUR POLICY AND PLANNING STAFF.
AVAILABLE USE OF FUNDING SOURCES IS KEY.
SO, UM, ALTHOUGH WE'VE BEEN RECEIVING ON NET, UM, AN INCREASE BETWEEN ALL OUR GRANTS, OUR INDIVIDUAL GRANTS DO FLUCTUATE YEAR OVER YEAR.
AND SO WE HAVE TO TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT.
UM, AND THERE'S OTHER PLANNING EFFORTS WE TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.
YOU KNOW, A LOT OF JURISDICTIONS THAT RECEIVE THESE FUNDS ARE NOT AS, UH, LARGE AS THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
SO WE DO HAVE LOCAL PLANNING EFFORTS THAT SUPPLEMENTS OUR PLANNING, SUCH AS THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC HOUSING BLUEPRINT.
SO ON THE SCREEN ARE THE FOUR, UM, GRANTS THAT I'M ACTUALLY TALKING ABOUT WHEN I SAY THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN, THE FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN.
THESE ARE THE FOUR GRANTS THAT ARE FUNDED.
I'LL JUST GIVE A QUICK OVERVIEW OF EACH OF THEM.
UM, IN A SLIDE, A FUTURE SLIDE, I'M GONNA BE, UM, SHARING THE ACTUAL PROGRAMS WE FUNDED THEM, BUT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT, I FIND THAT'S THE MOST, UM, MAYBE, MAYBE WIDELY RECOGNIZED.
UH, GRANT AS WE GO THROUGH THE COMMUNITY, UM, IT'S OUR LARGEST GRANT, UM, AND MAKES UP ROUGHLY HALF OUR HALF OUR HUD FUNDING.
UM, AND IT'S GOT A VERY BROAD ARRAY OF ELIGIBLE USES.
SO WHILE HOUSING AND, UM, SUITABLE LIVING ENVIRONMENT ARE KEY USES OF THE CDBG FUNDS, UM, THERE'S, UH, A BROAD ARRAY OF ELIGIBLE USES, AND I'LL GET INTO THOSE.
WHEREAS SOME OF THE OTHER GRANTS ARE MORE, UM, LASER FOCUSED ON THEIR TARGET USE.
SO HOME INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIPS ARE VERY, A LASER FOCUS ON CREATING AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR LOW INCOME HOUSEHOLDS, UH, HOUSING OPPORTUNITY FOR PERSONS WITH AIDS, UM, BENEFITING LOW INCOME PERSONS LIVING WITH H HIV AIDS, AND THEIR FAMILIES AND EMERGENCY SOLUTIONS GRANT, UM, WITH A LASER FOCUS ON HOMELESSNESS AND, UH, ASSISTING OUR NEIGHBORS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS OR HOUSING CRISIS.
UM, SO BEFORE I GET INTO THE ACTUAL PROGRAMS, UM, THAT THOSE GRANTS FUND, UH, AT LEAST, UH, DURING THIS PAST CONSOLIDATED PLAN, I WANTED TO NOTE THAT, UH, IN 29 ON THE TOPIC OF FAIR HOUSING IN 2019, WE EXECUTED A REGIONAL ANALYSIS OF IMPEDIMENTS TO FAIR HOUSING.
I JUST WANTED TO NOTE, UM, WHY, YOU KNOW, USUALLY WITH OUR, I SHOULD SAY WITH OUR CONSOLIDATED PLANNING, WE EXECUTE A, UH, A ROBUST ANALYSIS OF IMPEDIMENTS TO FAIR HOUSING CHOICE OR A REVAMP TO OUR FAIR HOUSING DOCUMENTS.
AND THE ONLY REASON WE HAVEN'T, UM, EMBARKED ON A 2024 ANALYSIS OF IMPEDIMENTS IS DUE TO THE FACT THAT THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION HAS PROPOSED A AGGRESSIVE NEW EQUITY PLAN WHEN IT COMES TO FAIR HOUSING REGULATION, UM, THAT WE, WE PARTICIPATED IN THE PUBLIC COMMENT PROCESS FOR THE EQUITY PLAN, BUT WE'RE NOT QUITE UNDER THAT.
THE EQUITY PLAN HAS NOT BEEN, UM, SOLIDIFIED, UM, THE REQUIREMENTS AND THE REGULATIONS.
SO WE'RE A LITTLE BIT OF A HOLDING PATTERN AS FAR AS EMBARKING ON OUR NEXT BIG DOCUMENT, BUT IN THE MEANTIME, WE ARE SEEKING INPUT AND SURVEYING ON FAIR HOUSING ISSUES AND EXPERIENCES.
UM, AND CAN, SPEAKING CANDIDLY, I THINK THAT THOSE TOPICS ARE WHAT JUST NATURALLY COME TO THE TOP OF OUR CONVERSATIONS, UM, IN THESE MEETINGS, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER WE'RE EXPLICITLY NAMING FAIR HOUSING OR NOT.
BUT I JUST WANTED TO GIVE AN UPDATE THERE.
UM, I'LL BE KEEN, PARTICULARLY WITH THIS GROUP TO FOLLOW UP, UM, ON, UM, OUR PLANS WITH THAT UPCOMING EQUITY PLAN.
SO, UM, I THINK THIS IS A VALUABLE SLIDE BECAUSE IT SHOWS THE, UM, ENTIRETY OF OUR FEDERAL PROGRAMMING.
UM, AND I THINK, OF COURSE, THE TOP PURPOSE OF THESE, UM, THESE MEETINGS IS TO GET YOUR INPUT ON THIS PROGRAMMING.
BUT, UM, I'M FINDING THAT, YOU KNOW, WE COULD PROBABLY ENGAGE IN BETTER MARKETING AND, UM, PROBABLY, UH, GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT THESE PROGRAMS. SO I'M GLAD TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT IN THESE MEETINGS AS WE GO THROUGH THE COMMUNITY.
UM, I'LL JUST GIVE A QUICK OVERVIEW, BUT WE CAN ALWAYS FOLLOW UP ABOUT DETAILS OR ANSWER QUESTIONS TODAY ABOUT ANY OF THESE PROGRAMS. UM, LIKE I SAID, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDS THE MOST, UH, DIVERSE ARRAY OF PROGRAMMING ON, UM, THAT, SO WE'VE GOT, UM, WHAT'S
[00:45:01]
REFERRED, LABELED OR REFERRED TO AS ARCHITECTURAL BARRIER REMOVAL FOR BOTH RENTERS AND HOMEOWNERS.UM, WE HAVE OUR HOME REPAIR PROGRAMS AND HOMEOWNER REHABILITATION LOANS.
SO BETWEEN THOSE THREE PROGRAMS, UM, THERE'S, UM, THE OPPORTUNITY TO, UM, REHABILITATE HOMES TO MAKE THEM MORE ACCESSIBLE, UH, FOR OUR NEIGHBORS, UM, THAT MAY HAVE A DISABILITY OR, UM, OUR AGING POPULATION.
UM, THERE'S ALSO JUST, YOU KNOW, WITH THE COST OF LIVING AND DIS OUR DISPLACEMENT PREVENTION EFFORTS, IT CAN BE A WAY TO HELP KEEP, UM, INTERGENERATIONAL FAMILIES IN THEIR HOMES THAT MAY NEED, UH, ASSISTANCE AND, UH, THOSE REPAIRS.
UM, WE ALSO ENGAGE IN AFFORDABLE RENTAL AND OWNERSHIP HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE, SO PROVIDING THAT FINANCING IN EXCHANGE FOR, UM, A NUMBER OF, UH, AFFORDABLE UNITS FOR X NUMBER OF YEARS.
UM, AND THEN FOR, UH, ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE, UM, CDBG ALSO FUNDS A FAMILY BUSINESS LOAN PROGRAM.
UM, I'LL LET, UM, ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW WHAT, I'LL
SO, UM, I'LL LET JAMIE TALK ABOUT OUR, OUR HOME INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIP PROGRAMMING.
UM, AND I APOLOGIZE FOR NOT BEING ON CAMERA.
I'M HAVING CONNECTIVITY ISSUES.
UM, FOR OUR HOME FUNDS, THIS IS THE, UH, ONLY FUND OUT OF THE FOUR THAT WE MANAGE AS THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT, UM, INDIVIDUALLY, UH, WE FINANCE OUR TENANT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, UH, WHICH IS VOUCHERS, UH, FOR HOUSING.
UM, AND THAT IS, UH, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HAKA OR THE HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
WE ALSO PROVIDE OUR DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE, UH, PROGRAM, WHICH, UH, PROVIDES UP TO $40,000 IN DOWN PAYMENT, UH, FOR THE A FIRST TIME HOME BUYER.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE, UH, DOWN AT THE BOTTOM, OUR COMMUNITY HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION, OPERATING EXPENSE GRANTS, AND OUR, UH, CERTIFICATION RIGHT BELOW THAT, THAT PROGRAM PROVIDES, UH, UP TO $50,000 PER CHODO OR COMMUNITY HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION.
AND WE HAVE FOUR CHODOS IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UM, THAT'S BLACK LAND, BLACK SHEAR, AHA, AND, UH, GUADALUPE NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
AND, UH, THAT'S THE MAIN PORTION OF OUR, OF OUR HOME FUNDS IS PUSHING IT THROUGH THE CHOTO PROPERTIES AND THROUGH, UH, UM, THE TENANT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE.
AND THEN, UM, UH, I FAILED TO INTRODUCE OUR FRIEND FROM H-E-A-P-H, I APOLOGIZE, BUT LESLIE BOYD WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, AND SHE'S MOST EQUIPPED TO GIVE A, UM, OVERVIEW OF OUR HOPPO AND ESG, AS WELL AS OUR CDBG PUBLIC SERVICES PROGRAMMING.
I'M LESLIE BOYD WITH AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, UM, AND THE CDBG COLUMN ON THE, UM, LEFT, IF YOU GO DOWN TO THE SPECIAL NEEDS ASSISTANCE, UM, WE HAVE THREE SERVICE CATEGORIES.
ONE IS FOR C CHILDCARE, EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE A YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES PROGRAM THAT, UM, HELPS YOUTH WITH WRAPAROUND SERVICES, UH, FOR THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES.
AND THEN WE HAVE SENIOR SERVICES, WHICH, UM, HELP TO KEEP SENIORS IN THEIR HOMES AND ALSO HELPS 'EM WITH THINGS LIKE MONEY MANAGEMENT AND BILL PAYER SERVICES.
AND IF YOU GO OFF TO, UH, THE RIGHT, THE THIRD COLUMN IS HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PERSONS WITH AIDS, A PH, UH, AUSTIN PUBLIC HEALTH, UM, ADMINISTERS THE HOPWA PROGRAM.
WE ALSO HAVE A TENANT-BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE, UM, PROGRAM FOR RENTERS AND FOR HOMEOWNERS.
WE HAVE SHORT-TERM, UM, RENTAL, I'M SORRY, WE HAVE TENANT BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE FOR RENTERS.
AND THEN WE HAVE SHORT-TERM RENTAL MORTGAGE UTILITY ASSISTANCE FOR BOTH RENTERS AND HOMEOWNERS.
THEN, UH, IF YOU GO DOWN TO WHERE IT SAYS HOMELESS ASSISTANCE, WE HAVE SHORT-TERM SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, WHICH CAN INCLUDE HOTEL AND MOTEL STAYS, HOUSING CASE MANAGEMENT, PERMANENT HOUSING PLACEMENT, AND THEN FACILITY BASED HOUSING.
THIS IS IN PARTICULAR FOR AN AGENCY THAT, UM, OWNS THEIR OWN APARTMENT COMPLEX.
AND THE VERY LAST COLUMN IS OUR EMERGENCY SOLUTIONS GRANT COLUMN.
UM, WE PROVIDE FUNDING FOR RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAMS. WE HAVE A HOMELESS SHELTER OPERATIONS CONTRACT CURRENTLY WITH THE SALVATION ARMY FOR THEIR WOMEN AND CHILDREN SHELTER.
AND THEN WE PAY FOR HOMELESS MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM COSTS, SINCE ALL HOMELESS PROGRAMS MUST REPORT CLIENTS SERVED IN THAT SYSTEM.
ALL RIGHT, SO NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
UM, SO I WANTED TO GIVE AN OVERVIEW, UM, REGARDING THE CLIENTELE THAT THE HOUSING DEPARTMENT SERVED IN FISCAL YEAR 2223.
WE, UM, WE TRACK DEMOGRAPHIC DATA ON OUR CLIENTELE IN OTHER WAYS, TOO.
UM, I PUT THOSE SLIDES IN THE APPENDIX, UM, RACIAL DEMOGRAPHIC DATA, ETHNICITY,
[00:50:01]
ET CETERA.UM, WE'VE EXPLICITLY BEEN INCLUDING INCOME BECAUSE WE CAN REALLY, UM, USE VALUABLE INPUT HERE.
AND, UM, AS IT REGARDS TO THE RATIOS OF CLIENTELE WE SERVE, WE'VE RECEIVING, UM, A DIVERSE ARRAY OF INPUT IN REGARD TO, YOU KNOW, UM, WELL, I GUESS I SHOULD TAKE A STEP BACK AND, AND, UM, EXPLAIN THAT THE MFI ON THE BOTTOM OF YOUR SCREEN, THAT'S MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME.
AND SO, UM, THE CATEGORIES THAT HUD HAS US DISAGGREGATE OUR, UM, OUR CLIENTELE INTO IT FROM AN INCOME STANDPOINT, UM, YOU'VE GOT LESS THAN 30% MFI, AND THAT'S ALWAYS, UM, EVERY YEAR THAT'S THE VAST MAJORITY OF OUR CLIENTELE SERVED ARE IN THAT LOWEST CATEGORY, LESS THAN 30% OF THE MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME FOR THEIR HOUSEHOLD SIZE.
UM, BUT THE, THE CONVERSATION'S BEEN AROUND, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOTTEN, UH, VERY CLEAR INDICATIONS.
WE ACTUALLY DID MEET WITH, UM, UH, ADAPTIVE TEXAS, UM, AND, UH, ACCESSIBLE ACCESSIBILITY AUSTIN, UM, ACCESSIBLE HOUSING AUSTIN, SORRY.
UH, THEY WERE VERY CLEARLY ADVOCATING FOR A HIGHER CONCENTRATION OF SERVICES IN THAT LESS THAN 30%, AND AT LEAST LESS THAN 50% MFI.
UM, SO, AND THAT, THAT'S ALSO WHAT WE'VE GOTTEN FROM A FEW OTHER GROUPS, WHEREAS, UM, OTHER STAKEHOLDER GROUPS HAVE ADVOCATED FOR A CONTINUATION OF THIS MORE TIERED APPROACH.
UM, I WILL SAY THAT, UM, LAST YEAR WE SAW A LITTLE BIT OF MORE OF A LINEAR DECLINE.
UM, THERE WERE MORE, UH, CONCENTRATED IN THAT 31 TO 50 AND A LITTLE LESS THAN THAT 51 TO 80.
UM, AND THAT 51 TO 80, YOU'LL, I SPECULATE YOU'LL SEE MORE OF THOSE PROGRAMS SUCH AS DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE.
UM, BUT, UM, IT'S DEFINITELY, UM, SO A GOOD CONVERSATION THAT WE'VE BEEN HAVING BOTH INTERNALLY, BUT ALSO WITH OUR STAKEHOLDER GROUPS.
SO, UM, ON THE LEFT SIDE OF YOUR SCREEN, AND, AND I, I, WE'LL ACTUALLY BE COMING BACK TO THAT TABLE.
UM, SO I KNOW THERE'S A LOT THERE.
UM, I'LL BE LEAVING IT UP AS WE GO INTO DISCUSSION.
UM, BUT ON THE LEFT SIDE, WE HAVE A, A TABLE WHERE WE, UM, DOCUMENTED, UM, OUR SURVEY RESULTS FROM 2019 IN REGARD TO THE TOP COMMUNITY NEEDS AND NEIGHBORHOOD OR COMMUNITY.
UM, ON THE RIGHT IS OUR, YOU SEE THE, I GUESS, FEEDBACK THEMES THAT OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTS, UH, TEAM HAS BEEN DOCUMENTING OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS.
AND SO I'M GONNA GO OVER EACH ONE OF THESE.
UM, THE PURPOSE OF DOING THIS IS TO, UM, REALLY KIND OF BOUNCE IT OFF OF YOU ALL AND, UM, YOU KNOW, HEAR, HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS AFTER THIS PRESENTATION ON WHAT ARE WE MISSING? DID WE, DO WE HAVE THIS RIGHT? ARE THESE THE TOP NEEDS? UM, HOW DOES IT RESONATE WITH YOU? SO, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
SO A KEY THEME WE'VE DOCUMENTED IS SIMPLY, I NEED IMMEDIATE HELP.
SO, UM, AT TOP SPACES THAT WE'RE DOCUMENTING THIS IN, FOLKS ARE NAMING, FINDING HOUSING RENTAL ASSISTANCE, MORTGAGE ASSISTANCE, EMERGENCY REPAIRS, AND EVICTION RESPONSE, LEGAL SERVICES OR, OR LEGAL SERVICES.
UM, OTHER TOP NEEDS EXPRESSED HERE, UM, UTILITIES, TRANSPORTATION, FOOD, AND EMPLOYMENT.
ANOTHER KEY FEEDBACK THEME WE'RE DOCUMENTING IS PERHAPS NOT, UH, FOLKS WHO ARE AT IMMEDIATE CRISIS OR IMMEDIATE NEED, BUT CERTAINLY NEED HELP MAINTAINING THAT OR MAINTAINING STABILITY.
SO THEY MAY BE A PAYCHECK AWAY OR A CRISIS AWAY FROM BEING, UH, MUCH MORE, UH, UNSTABLE.
UM, PARTICULARLY WE'RE DOCUMENTING FOLKS, UM, NAMING THAT IN THEIR, IN THEIR, UH, NEED FOR STABILITY.
UM, THEY'RE NAMING HOME REPAIR, RENTAL, PROPERTY MAINTENANCE AND UPKEEP, AS WELL AS PRESERVATION OF AFFORDABLE UNITS.
UM, OTHER NEEDS EXPRESSED CHILDCARE STEADY INCOME, UH, PARTICULARLY IN THIS, UH, COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT.
I BE, I BELIEVE CHILDCARE HAS JUST BEEN A BIG, A BIG THEME, UM, AS FAR AS, UM, AS FAR AS NEEDS.
AND, UM, THAT'S DEFINITELY A, UM, WE'RE HEARING THAT'S A KEY PART IN MAINTAINING STABILITY.
ANOTHER KEY FEEDBACK WE'RE DO THEME WE'RE DOCUMENTING IS I WANT THE OPPORTUNITY TO BUILD WEALTH AND LONG-TERM STABILITY.
SO WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE FOR AN INDIVIDUAL OR A FAMILY, UM, NEEDING A LEG UP TO BUILD THAT LONG-TERM STABILITY.
UM, FOR MANY, UM, THAT WE TALK TO, THAT MEANS AFFORDABLE HOME OWNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES.
UM, WE ALSO HEAR DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE IS NEEDED.
SO THAT INFORMS US, YOU KNOW, TO THAT THAT PROGRAM IS VALUED TO KEEP THAT GOING.
UM, OTHER NEEDS THAT WE'RE RECOGNIZING OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSING SPACE, OR TRAINING AND EDUCATION
[00:55:01]
AND ACCESS TO HIGHER PAYING JOBS.UM, THIS IS ONE THAT I PERSONALLY THINK HAS BEEN HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR IN THIS CURRENT COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT.
UM, AND SOMETHING THAT I THINK WE CAN MAKE STRIDES ON.
I NEED A MORE ACCESSIBLE PROCESS.
SO FOLKS ARE ASKING, WHERE DO I GO FOR HELP? WHAT SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE TO ME? WHO CAN I TALK TO? UM, AND AS WELL AS AN EXPRESSION OF NEED FOR INTERDEPARTMENTAL INFORMATION AND APPLICATION PROCESSES.
SO TO PUT, TO BREAK THAT DOWN, WHAT, UH, WHAT I, I, I, I TAKE THAT AS MEETING IS NEEDING MORE OF A ONE STOP SHOP, A ONE CLEAR ACCESS POINT TO SERVICES AND PROGRAMMING, RECOGNIZING THAT THERE CAN BE A LOT OF DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS, HAKA, DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS.
SO HOW DO WE MAKE IT MORE ACCESSIBLE AND MORE TRANSPARENT IN HOW FOLKS ACT? ACCESS SERVICES.
AND FINALLY, I DON'T TRUST THE CITY, UM, IS A KEY FEEDBACK THEME WE'VE HEARD.
UM, WE FIGURED IT'S BEST TO BE, UH, TRANSPARENT ABOUT THAT AND, UM, OWN THAT, UM, TRANSPARENCY IS NEEDED AND HOW DECISIONS ARE BEING MADE ABOUT HOUSING PROGRAMS. UM, PARTICULARLY IN ORDER TO BUILD UP THAT TRUST, WE HAVE TO HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS.
UM, AND WE'RE HEARING THAT, UH, PARTICULARLY WHAT'S NEEDED IS THAT, AGAIN, THAT COLLABORATION ACROSS DEPARTMENTS BEING THAT, UM, IT, IT'S, IT'S NOT HELPFUL TO BE, UM, PASSED FROM ONE DEPARTMENT TO ANOTHER.
SO NEEDING THAT, UM, INCREASED COMMUNICATIONS FROM DEPARTMENTS IS SOMETHING THAT WE WANNA WORK ON IN THIS SPACE AS WELL.
SO, GETTING THROUGH, UH, GETTING TO THE END OF THE PRESENTATION, UM, I THINK THIS IS, UM, PROBABLY ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT SLIDES BECAUSE IT SHOWS WHERE THIS COMMITTEE, YOU AS INDIVIDUALS, UM, THE COMMU COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT YOU WORK WITH OR KNOW THAT YOU REPRESENT IN, IN YOUR CAPACITY AS A COMMISSIONER.
SPEAK UP AUSTIN.ORG/MY COMMUNITY NEEDS IS REALLY WHERE WE CAN TAKE YOUR ADVOCACY, UM, FOR ANYTHING THAT'S BEEN PROMPTED IN THIS PRESENTATION.
UM, ADVOCACY FOR PARTICULAR PROGRAMS, HOW WE ADMINISTER THOSE PROGRAMS. UM, THERE ARE OTHER WAYS, UM, TO PARTICIPATE AS WELL, OR COGNIZANT OF ISSUES WITH DIGITAL DIVIDE, ET CETERA.
SO LOCAL LIBRARIES DO HAVE PAPER COPIES.
UM, YOU CAN CALL, UM, THE NUMBER ON YOUR SCREEN, 5 1 2 9 7 4 3 1 5 5.
UM, I'M PERSONALLY, I'VE BEEN SAYING THIS, EXCITED FOR OUR FIRST YEAR THAT YOU CAN TEXT, UH, MY COMMUNITY TO 7 3 2 2 4.
UM, AND THAT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRETTY EASILY, UM, AND TEXT US TO YOUR COMMENTS.
UM, YOU'LL GET A PROMPT AND, UM, AN OPPORTUNITY THERE.
AND, UM, PLEASE REACH OUT TO US IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE, UM, OUR OUTREACH, UH, MORE ACCESSIBLE, UH, FOR YOU OR ANYONE THAT YOU TALK TO.
UM, ON THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN, WE HAVE JULIE SMITH'S ADDRESS.
SHE'S OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST.
SHE'S HOSTING CONVERSATIONS, UM, IN THE COMMUNITY, REALLY TRYING TO GET THROUGH TO THE FOLKS WITH LIVED EXPERIENCE.
UM, SO, UM, SHE, WE ALWAYS APPRECIATE YOU REACHING OUT TO HER, UM, FOR THAT, UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
UM, SO THE, THE, THIS QUOTE UNQUOTE OFFICIAL COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSISTANT PERIOD ENDS MARCH 15.
WE'VE BEEN STRESSING THOUGH THAT, YOU KNOW, UH, MARCH 15 IS NOT THE LAST CHANCE TO GET INPUT INTO US.
WE'RE REALLY MOVING, WANTING TO MOVE MORE TOWARDS, YOU KNOW, A CONTI YOU CONTINUALLY ACCESS US TO GET INPUT INTO THE, INTO, INTO OUR PROGRAMMING AND PLANNING.
BUT MARCH 15, UM, WILL BE, UM, A GREAT, IF YOU CAN GET YOUR INPUT IN BY MARCH 15, THAT WILL BE ABLE, THEN WE'LL BE ABLE TO, UM, TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION FOR THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN, WHICH WILL BE PUBLISHED IN MAY.
UM, AND THAT'LL BE YET ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR INPUT.
UM, I PARTICULARLY LIKE THAT WE PUBLISH THE FIRST DRAFT, SO, UM, WE CAN BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE.
YOU CAN SEE WHAT WE FUNDED, WHAT WE DIDN'T, UM, WHAT THE FUNDING FIGURES ARE, SOME OF THE POLICIES THAT ARE PUT IN PLACE, ET CETERA.
UM, SO, UH, NEAR THE END OF THE SLIDE DECK, YOU HAVE MY INFORMATION.
UM, I REALLY ALWAYS E ASK PEOPLE TO REACH OUT, UH, DIRECTLY TO MY EMAIL THERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS OR REQUESTS FOR FOLLOW UP.
I KNOW WITH, UH, YOU JUST GOT A PRESENTATION, YOU'RE JUST GETTING ANOTHER ONE.
SO I KNOW IT CAN ALL JUST BE A LOT.
SO IF YOU, UH, THINK OF A QUESTION LATER OR WANNA REQUEST FOR, UM, ANY FOLLOW UP, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT TO MY EMAIL THERE.
AND I'LL END ON THE NEXT SLIDE.
UH, WHICH I'LL LEAVE IT HERE IF POSSIBLE, STAFF, WHILE WE ENGAGE IN DISCUSSION.
'CAUSE I FEEL LIKE IT TENDS TO GENERATE SOME GOOD QUESTIONS OR DISCUSSION.
[01:00:01]
AGAIN, UH, COMMISSIONERS, WE HAVE THE 2019, UM, SURVEY, SO WE'RE SURVEYING AGAIN, TOP FIVE NEEDS.UM, IT'S BEEN INTERESTING 'CAUSE IN THESE CONVERSATIONS, OF COURSE, SOME OF THESE NEEDS ARE STILL EXTREMELY CRITICAL AND YET SO MUCH HAS CHANGED POST PANDEMIC.
UM, AND THEN, UH, LIKE I SAID, JUST SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION ON THE SIDE AS WELL.
BUT, UM, ANYWAYS, I'LL TAKE A PAUSE.
UH, THANKS FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY RECIPE VOICE AND, UM, I'M CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS.
I HAVE A QUESTION YOU WANNA GET A CHANCE.
SO YOU SAID YOU DID THIS ASSESSMENT.
HAS THERE BEEN PARTICULAR STEPS TAKEN TO DO A POINT IN TIME COUNT FOR OFF NIGHTS WITH DISABILITIES? WOW, THAT'S SUCH A PHENOMENAL QUESTION.
A POINT IN TIME COUNT FOR, UM, OFF NIGHTS WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, BUT JAMIE, I'M CURIOUS IF YOU'RE AWARE OF ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
I KNOW THAT WE, UH, WE COLLECT DATA, IF YOU'RE SPECIFICALLY SPEAKING OF, UH, UM, INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS WITH DISABILITIES, THAT INFORMATION MIGHT BE CAPTURED HOWEVER THAT, THAT POINT IN TIME COUNT IS, UH, I DON'T, IT IS DEFINITELY LACKING, UH, A FULL COUNT.
UM, IF, IF YOU'RE AWARE OF WHEN IT TAKES PLACE AND, AND HOW IT WORKS.
UH, UM, WE KNOW THAT IT IS AN UNDER COUNT, SO I KNOW ABOUT THE POINT IN TIME COUNT FOR HOMELESSNESS.
WHAT I'M SAYING IS, I MEAN, WE'RE CHARGED HERE TO TAKE AN ASSESSMENT WITH THE NEEDS OF HOUSING AND THOSE THINGS.
OBVIOUSLY AUSTINITE FOR DISABILITIES IS A BIG, UH, SECTION OF THAT, BUT IF WE DON'T DO ACCOUNTS WITH HOW MANY AUSTINITES WITH DISABILITIES WE HAVE WITHIN THE CITY OR AUSTIN PROPER MM-HMM,
'CAUSE I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS FOR 60 DAYS AND THERE'S BEEN NO STATE ENTITY NOR ANY OFFICE WITHIN THE CITY THAT CAN GIMME A SOLID NUMBER ON IN THAT MATTER.
I CAN, UM, I'LL REACH OUT ON MONDAY TO OUR, OUR CITY DEMOGRAPHER.
UM, AND THEN IF WE DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION, WE CAN DEFINITELY TAKE THAT DOWN AS INPUT FROM YOU THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE, THAT NEEDS TO BE EXECUTED.
AND THEN I HAVE ONE MORE FOLLOW UP QUESTION IF I MAY.
UM, SO I KNOW THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS PROGRAMS TO HELP OUT WITH, UH, TO REHABILITATE HOUSES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE, AND IT GOES WITHIN SPECIFIC AGE GROUP AND OTHER THINGS THAT QUALIFY.
BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT IT COULD BE WHEN THAT PERSON PASSES AWAY OR THAT PERSON IS NO LONGER AT THE RESIDENCE, THAT IT'S UP TO THE HOUSEHOLD PEOPLE THAT DEMANDING PEOPLE THAT RECEIVE THAT HOUSE TO PAY BACK SOME FEES.
DO YOU KNOW IF THAT'S A STANDARD PRACTICE OR ARE THE PEOPLE THAT RECEIVE THOSE SERVICES AWARE OF THAT? BECAUSE I'M GETTING SOME FEEDBACK ON THAT MATTER.
I BELIEVE I CAN SPEAK TO THAT.
WE HAVE, UM, IN THE PAST, UH, THROUGH OUR DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, AS WELL AS THROUGH OUR HOME, UH, REPAIR, OUR HOME REPAIR LOAN PROGRAM, UM, THE TERMS OF THOSE CONTRACTS, UH, WHICH, UH, ARE REPAYABLE, UM, WERE, UH, MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN WHAT WAS REQUIRED BY HUD.
UM, AT THE TIME IT WAS CONSIDERED BEST PRACTICES, UH, TO REQUIRE A, UH, UM, A SHARED EQUITY COMPONENT AND A HOME REPAIR LOAN.
UM, WE ARE GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS NOW OF MODIFYING SEVERAL, UH, LOANS WITHIN OUR PORTFOLIO, UH, TO, UH, ALIGN THEM WITH THE CURRENT HUD GUIDELINES.
UM, AND THAT INCLUDES, UH, REDUCING THE, THE AFFORDABILITY TIME PERIOD.
UH, FOR EXAMPLE, A A $15,000 LOAN, UM, MAY HAVE CARRIED A TERM OF UP TO 40 YEARS, UH, WHEREAS THE HUD GUIDANCE FOR THAT WOULD BE MUCH LOWER, CLOSER TO 20 TO 25 YEARS.
UH, SO MODIFYING THOSE LOANS TO, TO, UM, TO MIRROR WHAT HUD REQUIRES.
UH, NOW WITH RESPECT TO HOW A, UM, HOW AN INDIVIDUAL WHO INHERITS A HOME, UH, HAS TO DEAL WITH, UH, THE, THE RESTRICTED COVENANT THAT HAS BEEN APPLIED TO THAT PROPERTY AND THE LIEN, UH, THAT WAS PLACED DUE TO THAT LOAN OR THE, UH, UH, THE DOWN PAYMENT ASSISTANCE.
UM, IF THE INDIVIDUAL INHERITING
[01:05:01]
THE PROPERTY IS INCOME QUALIFIED, THEN THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD, UH, UM, WE'D ALLOW THAT INDIVIDUAL TO MAINTAIN AND CARRY THAT RESTRICTIVE COVENANT WITH THEM.HOWEVER, UM, IF THERE IS A, UH, UM, AN INHERITANCE, AND THIS IS ONLY ON SOME OF OUR LOANS, IT MIGHT NOT BE ON OUR TOTAL PORTFOLIO, BUT ON SOME OF OUR LOANS THAT ARE RATHER OLD, UM, THERE WAS A, A COMPONENT THAT SAID IF, UH, THERE IS NO ONE ELIGIBLE TO, UH, OCCUPY THE UNIT AS THEIR PRIMARY RESIDENCE, UH, TO BE INCOME QUALIFIED, UH, THEN, UH, THE ESTATE, UH, WOULD, THE LOAN WOULD HAVE TO BE REPAID.
I'M NOT SURE HOW MANY OF OUR LOANS HAVE THAT, UH, THAT THAT TERM.
UM, BUT THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO ADDRESS.
SO I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE ARE, UH, IT WAS A PORTFOLIO OF APPROXIMATELY 1100 LOANS, UM, THAT EXCEEDED THE HUD GUIDELINES.
UM, AND UH, IT IS APPROXIMATELY 800 OF THOSE, UH, THAT, UH, WILL, I BELIEVE WILL, UH, THE LIEN WILL BE RELEASED.
UM, SO WE'RE GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS CURRENTLY.
BUT CAN I, CAN, I MEAN, IF YOU HAVE THAT, I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE THAT JUST FOR, FOR REVIEW FOR A HISTORICAL RECORD, JUST SO WE UNDERSTAND WHAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND AUSTINITE IN GENERAL, UH, HAD TO ENDURE AS A, AS A POINT OF PRACTICE, EVEN THOUGH IT'S BEING CHANGED.
WELL, UH, UM, I WILL PUT YOU IN CONTACT WITH THE, THE PROGRAM MANAGER FOR THAT AND WE, WE'LL PROVIDE THE INFORMATION.
I'M ALSO VERY INTERESTED IN THE, IN THE DEMOGRAPHY STUFF, AND THAT'S LIKE KIND OF A SIDE THING.
LIKE WE'RE, AS A BOARD, WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO GET THAT.
LIKE THAT'S SOMETHING WE, WE CAN'T FIND ANYWHERE.
UM, BUT THAT'S LIKE A, THAT'S JUST SOMETHING ELSE.
AS IT LOOKS LIKE YOU GUYS ARE DOING PHENOMENAL WORK.
UH, WHY IS ONE OF THE LARGEST COMPLAINTS, UH, THAT I DON'T TRUST THE CITY? DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY INSIGHT INTO THAT? I THINK THAT'S A PHENOMENAL QUESTION.
I THINK OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTS, JULIE SMITH IS, IS PRETTY APT TO SPEAK TO THAT.
WE KNOW THAT'S FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS.
SOME OF THEM VERY HISTORICAL THAT SOME OF THE, JUST THE DISCRIMINATION, UM, THAT HAS BEEN IN OUR, OUR CITY FOR MANY YEARS.
SO KNOWING THAT THAT STILL HAS, UH, AN IMPACT ON THE LIVES OF PEOPLE LEADS TO A LOT OF THAT DISTRUST.
UM, PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD BAD EXPERIENCES, WHETHER IT BE WITH OUR DEPARTMENT OR A DIFFERENT DEPARTMENT, WE KNOW THAT THE, UM, THAT IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT DEPARTMENT PEOPLE HAVE INTERACTED WITH, THAT WE ARE THE CITY AND, UM, UH, THAT, YEAH, THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD NEGATIVE EXPERIENCES OR BEEN OVERPROMISED AND UNDERDELIVERED.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO ENGAGEMENT, WHAT WE HEAR A LOT IS YOU COME AND ASK WHAT WE NEED ALL OF THE TIME, AND THEN WE NEVER HEAR BACK FROM YOU.
UM, SO WHY DO YOU KEEP ASKING US WHAT WE NEED? SO WE KNOW THAT, UM, THAT, UH, SO WE HAVE A LOT OF, WE HAVE A LOT OF EARS LISTENING, BUT WE DON'T WANNA HAVE A LOT OF HANDS DOING.
SO REALLY WANTING TO SEE THE PROOF THAT WHEN WE SAY WE'RE GOING TO DO THINGS BETTER, THAT WE, THAT WE MAKE CHANGES AND WE DO THAT AND WE USE INPUT.
UM, SO I WOULD SAY THOSE ARE THE, THE PRIMARY, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, HISTORIC INEQUITIES, UM, HAVING BAD EXPERIENCES, AND THEN THAT LACK OF TRANSPARENCY AND HOW WE'RE MAKING DECISIONS AND LOOKING BACK OR PRIMARILY THE REASONS.
AND I KNOW THERE ARE MANY OTHERS.
THANK YOU FOR, THANK YOU FOR ANSWERING MY QUESTION.
I HAD A QUESTION REGARDING THIS NEEDS ASSESSMENT, IF IT'S FOR THE FIVE YEARS OR ARE YOU GOING TO REEVALUATE BUDGETS BASED ON, I MEAN, SOME OF THESE, UH, IT'S SOME OF THE MAJOR PROGRAM AREAS ARE KIND OF, UM, CHANGING, LIKE HOPWA.
I KNOW THAT IT'S BEEN PRETTY WELL FUNDED IN THE PAST, BUT DUE TO NEW, YOU KNOW, TREATMENTS, I'M NOT SURE IF I'VE SEEN BUDGETS DROP, UM, OUT OF STATE WHERE I'M FROM.
SO I'M JUST WONDERING HOW YOU'RE GOING TO BE ASSESSING, UM, BUDGETS YEAR BY YEAR? SO THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
WE, UH, SO WE'RE TAKING THIS INPUT FOR THAT FIVE YEAR PLAN, UM,
[01:10:01]
FROM A STRATEGIC STANDPOINT, UM, YOU KNOW, THOSE MAIN PRIORITIES, UM, YOU KNOW, WE ASSESS WHAT ARE THE NEEDS, AND SO THEN HOW DO WE MEET THOSE NEEDS.BUT THEN YOU'RE RIGHT, THAT YEAR OVER YEAR, WE DO HAVE TO ASSESS ON AN ANNUAL BASIS BASED ON THE FUNDING ALLOCATIONS.
UM, SINCE IT IS ENTITLEMENT FUNDING AND THERE IS SO MUCH HISTORY, UH, TO A LOT OF THESE FUNDS, UM, WE DO FEEL RELATIVELY CONFIDENT, UM, UH, BASED ON, YOU KNOW, JUST OUR, OUR, OUR EXPERIENCE.
AND I MEAN, I KNOW, UM, LEGISLATION IS, IS HOPEFULLY BEING PASSED VERY SOON FOR THIS NEXT COMING YEAR.
AND SO I HOPE THIS GETS TO YOUR QUESTION THAT THE INPUT NOW, YES, IT'S FOR THE FIVE YEAR, BUT THEN WE ALSO HAVE TO DO THAT ANNUAL, UM, REEVALUATION.
AND SO THAT IS WHEN WE DO COME BACK NEXT YEAR FOR THE ACTION PLAN.
BUT THIS YEAR'S PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE'RE SETTING THOSE MAIN FIVE YEAR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES PROGRAMMING, UM, AND THEN ACTION PLAN INDIVIDUALLY IN THE INDIVIDUAL YEARS.
WE'LL TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THOSE FUNDING, UH, ON A YEAR BY YEAR BASIS, IF THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION.
AND AS LONG AS THERE'S CLARITY AROUND WHY CUTS ARE BEING MADE OR MONEY IS BEING MOVED TO A NEW PRIORITY AREA, UM, WE KNOW THAT CERTAIN ISSUES CAN GET REALLY POLITICIZED AND THEN THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY THROWN AT IT.
AND THEN, UH, SO I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH THAT HAPPENS HERE, BUT I KNOW WITH HOUSING IT, IT CAN BE VERY CONTROVERSIAL.
SO THAT'S JUST A QUESTION I'M, I'M HAVING AROUND THOSE MAIN PRIORITY AREAS NOW, BUT WHAT'S GOING TO MAYBE BE THROWN INTO THE MIX WITHIN THE FIVE YEAR PERIOD? JAMIE, DO YOU HAVE ANY FINAL THOUGHTS THERE? THE LAST THING I WOULD SAY BEFORE MAYBE SEEING IF JAMIE HAS ANYTHING, IS THAT, UM, THESE FUNDING, THESE ALLOCATIONS ARE SET AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL.
UM, JUST TO CLARIFY, I THINK MAYBE YOU, YOU MAY KNOW THAT, BUT, UM, SO, YOU KNOW, UH, WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE STATE OR LOCAL LEVEL, FORTUNATELY THESE FUNDS ARE, ARE, ARE RELATIVELY INSULATED FROM THAT.
JAMIE, DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER THOUGHTS? UH, THE ONLY THING THAT I WOULD SAY IS THAT, UH, IF WE DO WANT TO, OR IF THERE ISN'T A PUSH OR A MOVEMENT TO, TO MOVE FUNDS AROUND, UH, UH, WITHIN THE CONFINES OF WHAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED AS PRIORITIES AND PROGRAMS IN THE CON PLAN, IN THE CONSOLIDATED PLAN, THAT IS A HEAVY LIFT, UM, UH, TO, TO ADD THINGS TO IT, UH, IS THE HEAVY LIFT MOVING, MOVING THINGS AROUND IS LESS, UH, LESS COMPLEX.
UM, THE ACTION PLAN IS WHERE WE WOULD, UH, DO A LOT OF THE, THE FINE TOOTH, UM, ACTIVITIES LIKE PROGRAMMING OUT AND SAYING, UH, RATHER THAN SAYING WE'RE GOING TO DEDICATE $3 MILLION TO THIS PROGRAM, WE WOULD ACTUALLY SAY IT'S GOING TO BE 2.9984, YOU KNOW.
UM, SO THE ACTION PLAN IS REALLY WHERE THE, WHERE THE DETAILS COME INTO PLAY.
UM, ONCE THE ACTION PLAN IS APPROVED, IT'S EVEN HARDER TO MOVE THOSE DOLLARS AROUND.
SO I THINK THAT TO TO, TO YOUR QUESTION, UM, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE BUDGETARY, UH, UM, UH, PRIORITIES CHANGE? UH, IT JUST LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE IN GOVERNMENT, IT TAKES A LITTLE WHILE FOR THE, FOR THE SHIP TO TURN.
UM, SO, UH, ADDING NEW PRIORITIES OR MOVING FUNDS AROUND CAN BE DONE, BUT IT IS A PROCESS.
I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION THAT KIND OF LEADS INTO HER OLD QUESTION FOR A BIT.
UM, I WAS JUST, PETE, IF, IF I COULD, I WAS JUST GONNA ADD ONE MORE THING ON THAT, UM, AND THEN GO TO YOU.
I JUST WANTED TO ALSO MENTION THAT WE WILL, WE DO COME BACK ANNUALLY TO UPDATE YOU ALL ON THESE FUNDING LEVELS.
SO WHEREAS I SHARED, UH, THAT WE HAD OUR 14 MILLION THIS YEAR, WE'LL BE BACK NEXT YEAR AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO SHARE, YOU KNOW, WHERE THOSE FUNDINGS, UH, DID ALLOCATE, BUT I'M SORRY, PETE, GO AHEAD.
YOU KIND OF MENTIONED SOME PSH UH, PUBLIC SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE CURRENT, UH, GUIDELINE IS FOR LIKE, IF I WAS A DEVELOPER AND I SAID, HEY, COME GIMME A TAX BREAK.
WHAT THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF TIME IS NECESSARY FOR THAT? IS IT THREE YEARS? IS IT FIVE YEARS? AND THEN A FOLLOW UP TO THAT IS ONCE WE GET A GOOD NUMBER ON HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY DISABLED IN AUSTIN, THAT MAY SPEAK TO THE INCREASING THE AMOUNT OF YEARS OF PSH THAT IS NEEDED IF IT IS NEEDED FOR AUSTINITE.
SO I WANT TO SEE HOW THAT THOSE TWO WOULD WORK WITH EACH OTHER IN A SENSE.
AMY, ARE YOU ABLE TO SPEAK? SO, UH, WHEN YOU SAY, UM, UH, THREE OR FIVE YEARS, I WAS JUST USING THAT AS AN EXAMPLE.
BUT DO YOU KNOW, DO YOU KNOW IF IT'S THREE YEARS, FIVE YEARS OR WHAT? SO, SO FOR OUR PROGRAMS WHERE WE, UH, WHERE WE APPLY A RESTRICTED COVENANT TO THE
[01:15:01]
PROPERTY, UH, REQUIRING CERTAIN AFFORDABILITY LEVELS OR SERVICE TO POPULATIONS LIKE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING, UM, WE HAVE TERMS, IF WE'RE PUTTING MONEY INTO A DEAL, IT'S AT LEAST 40 YEARS IF WE OWN THE PROPERTY OR ARE PART OF THE, THE DEVELOPMENT TEAM.UM, SO ARE THE HOTELS THAT, UH, ARE BEING CONVERTED TO PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSING.
THERE'S ONE IN, UH, UM, IN DISTRICT SIX, UH, ONE IN DISTRICT SEVEN.
UH, THESE ARE, UH, THESE WILL BE PERMANENT SUPPORTIVE HOUSINGS, UH, FACILITIES FOREVER, UM, UNTIL THE CITY SELLS THEM, WHICH, UH, AFTER THE AMOUNT OF WORK THAT WE'VE PUT INTO 'EM, I HOPE WE DON'T SELL 'EM ANYTIME SOON.
UM, THE, UH, THE PRIVATE DEVELOPMENTS THAT HAVE, UH, UH, PRIVATE AGREEMENTS WITH, UM, SERVICE PROVIDERS OR WITH ECHO, UH, THOSE TERMS MAY FLUCTUATE.
UM, HOWEVER, WE, IT IS BEST PRACTICE TO PROVIDE A, AS LONG A TERM AS POSSIBLE TO ENSURE THAT INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE, UH, WHO ARE RENTING, UH, ARE NOT DISPLACED.
DO WE HAVE AN EXAMPLE OF ONE OF THOSE TERMS THAT ARE HIGHLIGHTED OR ILLUSTRATED SO WE CAN, UH, SEE THAT AS IT, AS IT MAY, UH, AFFECT, YOU KNOW, IZED WITH DISABILITIES, IF THAT'S MAYBE A POSSIBLE RESOURCE? ABSOLUTELY.
I CAN SHARE, UM, WE CAN SHARE TEMPLATES OF, UH, LOANS THAT WE HAVE MADE IN THE PAST.
UM, I WILL SAY THAT FOR ANY, UM, ANY DEVELOPMENT THAT IS FINANCED WITH THE RENTAL HOUSING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, UH, MUST PROVIDE A MINIMUM NUMBER OF UNITS, UH, THAT ARE ACCESSIBLE.
UM, AND THERE IS CITY, CITY ORDINANCE, UH, THAT REQUIRES, UH, ANY UNIT ON, UH, THE GROUND FLOOR TO BE VISIBLE, UM, AND ADAPTABLE.
AND I HAVE TALKED TO MULTIPLE DEVELOPERS, UM, RECENTLY, SPECIFICALLY FOUNDATION COMMUNITIES.
WE HAD A, A GRAND OPENING JUST THIS WEEK.
UM, AND, UH, THEY ARE, THEY ARE FOLLOWING WHAT'S CALLED UNIVERSAL DESIGN, UH, WHICH ALLOWS FOR ADAPTATION AND, UH, AND, UH, REHABILITATION TO ACCESSIBILITY LEVELS, UM, RATHER EASILY.
SO YOU'VE GOT FULL TURN RADIUS IN THE BATHROOM, UM, WIDE DOOR, WIDER DOOR FRAMES, WIDER HALLWAYS.
UM, SO IT'S NOT JUST WHAT WE ARE REQUIRING AND WHAT THE, WHAT THE MARKET IS PROVIDING, BUT REALLY WHAT, UH, SOCIETY IS POINTING TOWARD WITH UNIVERSAL DESIGN AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
I WONDER IF I COULD ALSO ASK, UM, AFTER YOU CATCH A BREATH, HOW MANY PEOPLE APPLYING NEEDING HOUSING OR HOUSING SUBSIDY OR DOWN PAYMENTS, ET CETERA, IDENTIFY AS DISABLED? AND WHETHER YOU HAVE THAT KIND OF DEMOGRAPHIC COLLECTION QUESTION? UM, YOU KNOW, WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT IT'S NOT ALWAYS EASY TO GAUGE WITH RESPECT TO THE TENANT-BASED RENTAL ASSISTANCE, I BELIEVE WE DO HAVE THAT, UH, THAT DATA POINT.
UM, BUT I'LL HAVE TO CHECK, UH, WITH OUR CONTRACT MANAGEMENT TEAM.
UM, WITH RESPECT TO, UH, OTHER FUNDING DEVELOPMENTS, UH, WE DO KNOW HOW MANY UNITS WE HAVE REQUIRED TO BE, UH, ACCESSIBLE AS PART OF THE CONSTRUCTION.
HOWEVER, UH, WE ARE NOT CAPTURING ONGOING DATA OR LONGITUDINAL DATA, UM, TO SEE WHAT THOSE DEMOGRAPHICS LOOK LIKE TODAY.
SO WE CAN SAY WHAT THE DEMOGRAPHY OF A DEVELOPMENT IS ON DAY ONE, BUT NOT DAY 400.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
UM, IF YOU, IF WE HAVE FURTHER QUESTIONS, WE CAN REACH OUT TO Y'ALL, BUT WE, UM, WE HAVE ABOUT 10 MINUTES, 20 ABOUT 10 MINUTES LEFT IN OUR MEETING, AND I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE OUR TIME.
THIS HAS BEEN REALLY HELPFUL AND I, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S GENERATED A LOT OF WONDERINGS FROM OUR GROUP, AND I APPRECIATE YOU.
YEAH, THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH.
UM, OKAY, VERY QUICKLY, OUR NEXT
[4. Presentation by Vice Chair Meyer on updates from the January 11, 2024, Project Connect Community Advisory Committee (CAC).]
AGENDA ITEM IS FROM ME AND THE UPDATE FOR THE PROJECT CONNECT COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE.UM, I'VE BEEN ATTENDING THOSE MEETINGS NOW.
UM, I'VE BEEN TO TWO OF THOSE MEETINGS NOW, AND I KNOW THAT I'M ALSO ON A, UM, PUBLIC SAFETY SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING AND, UM, THE TRANSIT AUTHORITY IS CREATING THEIR OWN POLICE FORCE.
AND RIGHT NOW THEY ARE GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS OF DEVELOPING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES SO THAT THEY CAN, UM, THEY, SO THAT THEY CAN GET THEIR CERTIFICATION FROM
[01:20:01]
TCO, WHICH LIKE IS THE REGULATORY, UM, PER REGULATORY PEOPLE THAT DO THAT.UM, THERE, I DON'T HAVE IT IN FRONT OF ME RIGHT NOW.
I THOUGHT I DID, BUT I DID NOT.
UM, THERE ARE 10 AREAS, AND WHILE ONE OF THE AREAS IS EQUITY BASED, IT SEEMS MOSTLY TO BE IN RELATION TO, UM, RACE.
AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WHEN THEY'RE DEVELOPING THESE PROCEDURES AND POLICIES, THAT ON DAY ONE THEY HAVE CONSIDERED PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES IN THEIR, UM, IN THEIR POLICIES AND PROCEDURES, THEY, EVERY TIME THEY PUT OUT SOME NEW POLICIES AND PROCEDURES, THEY'RE GOING TO POST THEM AND HAVE A TWO TO THREE WEEK PERIOD OF PUBLIC COMMENT.
I CAN SHARE AN EMAIL WITH CHRISTIE WHO CAN SHARE IT OUT TO THE REST OF YOU, AND IT WILL HAVE A LINK THAT YOU CAN GO TO THEIR WEBSITE AND FIND ALL THE ALL 10 AREAS THAT THEY'RE LOOKING AT.
AND ALSO THE ROUGH ESTIMATE OF THE TIMELINE OF WHEN THEY WILL BE COLLECTING PUBLIC COMMENT.
UM, I, I HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT THERE IS SOMEONE THAT, UM, REALLY FOCUSES ON A DA AND THINGS LIKE THAT AT CAPITAL METRO AND THAT THEY'LL BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THEM TO, UM, DESIGN TRAINING AND CREATE POLICIES THAT DO INCLUDE WORKING WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
BUT I THINK THAT BECAUSE THIS IS NOT SPECIFICALLY IN THOSE 10 AREAS THAT YOU NEED TO HAVE TO GET CERTIFICATION, I FEEL LIKE IT MIGHT, UM, SLIP THROUGH THE CRACKS.
SO I THINK THAT AS AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE, WE REALLY NEED TO PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO WHAT'S GOING ON AND MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THE EQUITY PIECE THAT THEY KEEP TALKING ABOUT AND ASSURING ME THAT PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES WOULD BE COVERED UNDER, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS CORRECT, THAT THERE ARE POLICIES, UM, AND PROCEDURES RELATED TO PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.
UM, SO PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL FROM THAT.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY, GREAT.
[5. Review of goals for the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities.]
NEXT AGENDA ITEM IS WE ARE GONNA REVIEW THE GOALS FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES.UM, I KNOW THAT, UM, FOR, FOR YOU THAT ARE JUST COMING ON, WE ARE TRYING REALLY HARD TO KIND OF GET A SCOPE OF WHAT THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SHOULD BE DOING.
AND PART OF THAT HAS BEEN TRYING TO GET SOME, UH, GOOD DEMOGRAPHIC DATA TO SEE WHAT POPULATION WE'RE SERVING.
AND THAT'S BEEN A STRUGGLE FOR US.
I'M HOPING THAT, UM, THAT SOME OF THE HOUSING COMMITTEE AND THE CITY DEMOGRAPHER CAN HAVE SOME INPUT FOR US.
THAT WOULD BE GREAT IF THEY DID.
I KNOW WE ALREADY HAVE A SUBCOMMITTEE GOING WITH THAT.
UM, DO YOU, DO Y'ALL WANNA TALK ABOUT THAT SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING AND WHO'S ON IT? AND, UM, IF Y'ALL HAVE MET, UH, WE HAVE NOT MET, THAT'S A BALL THAT'S IN MY COURT.
WELL, I, ARE WE DISCUSSING A BIT OR ARE WE JUST WAITING? IS THAT ME TOO? IT'S, OR NOT? I CAN'T REMEMBER.
SO, UM, PETE, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, THE, UM, ITEM FIVE IS TO REVIEW THE GOALS FOR THE MAYOR'S COMMITTEE, AND THEN ITEM SIX IS LIKE SAYS DISCUSSION TO DETERMINE WORK GROUPS.
SO I WAS JUST GONNA TALK ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY, WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE GOING, AND SO THEN WE CAN, UM, SEE IF ANYBODY ELSE HAS ANY ADDITIONAL GOALS OR, AND THEN WE CAN MOVE INTO THE DISCUSSION FOR WORK GROUPS.
UM, WE ALSO HAVE A WORK GROUP ON TRANSPORTATION AND, UM, WE'VE MET ONCE, WE HAD SOME, UM, TOWN HALLS AND SOME, UH, ONE ONLINE EVENT TO TRY TO GET SOME INFORMATION FROM THE COMMUNITY.
UM, WE CAN PUT THAT ON NEXT MONTH'S AGENDA IF WE NEED TO.
I KNOW THAT WE'RE IN A HURRY, UM, BUT WE DO HAVE A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WORK GROUP, SO DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANYTHING ABOUT GOALS THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE OR, I'M SO SORRY.
I'M, I'M SO NEW TO THIS COMMITTEE, BUT UM, I DO HAVE A BACKGROUND IN EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND, UM, ALSO PUBLIC RECREATIONAL SPACE.
SO I WOULD LOVE TO, UH, LEARN WHAT'S ALREADY HAPPENING AND THEN,
[01:25:01]
UM, CONTRIBUTE IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE, POSSIBLY IN A WORKING GROUP.UM, I THINK THAT FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, I KNOW THAT OTHER THAN JUST KIND OF SOME, I HAVE A PERSONAL INTEREST IN TRANSIT AND SOME PEOPLE HAVE OTHER PERSONAL INTERESTS OR PER, UM, BACKGROUNDS.
I HAVE LEARNED A LOT BEING ON THE TRANSIT PROJECT CONNECT COMMITTEE.
AND I KNOW THAT WE HAVE, LIKE, WE HAVE A HOUSING COMMITTEE, WE HAVE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEES, WE HAVE ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT, UM, COMMITTEES THAT ARE MEETING WITH THE CITY.
AND I THINK THAT IF EACH ONE OF US WAS ABLE TO PICK UP ONE OF THOSE, UM, COMMITTEES AND GO TO THEIR MEETINGS, THEN WE WOULD SEE LOTS OF OPPORTUNITIES TO PUT IN, UM, INPUT FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES AND ADVOCATE ON THE CITY LEVEL.
I KNOW FOR ME, I, I DO HAVE AN ADVOCATE BACKGROUND IN EDUCATION, BUT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE CITY.
SO I THINK THAT IF WE JUST KIND OF REALLY FOCUSED OUR ATTENTION NOW ON DIFFERENT COMMITTEES THAT THE CITY IS HAVING, YOU KNOW, WELL THE, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT COMMITTEES THAT THE CITY ALREADY HAS SET UP AND WHERE WE COULD KIND OF FIT IN BECAUSE IN MY OPINION, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES CAN FIT IN EVERY SINGLE CONVERSATION OF ALL THE DIFFERENT BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS THAT THE CITY HAS IN TERMS OF ADDRESSING GOALS.
I MEAN, I HONESTLY HAVE OFTEN WONDERED IF THERE IS ANY WAY THAT THE CITY CAN SET UP A SITE FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES OR HOWEVER THEY MAY BE IDENTIFYING, UM, YOU KNOW, TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT DISABILITIES, ET CETERA, TO, UM, TO ACCESS INFORMATION AS SORT OF A CONSOLIDATED CLEARING HOUSE OF WHERE CAN I GO TO GET CERTAIN QUESTIONS ANSWERED OR BETTER ADVOCATE FOR MYSELF.
UM, GRANTED IT WOULD PROBABLY PROVIDE A BUNCH OF LINKS THAT OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS MAY FIND REDUNDANT, BUT I THINK THAT IT WOULD BE A GREAT RESOURCE ALSO FOR DEMOGRAPHIC DATA COLLECTION IF THAT WERE PERMISSIBLE.
I THINK THAT'S A REALLY GREAT IDEA.
I KNOW JUST PERSONALLY WITH MY FAMILY AND MY CHILDREN WHO HAVE DISABILITIES TRYING TO FIND THE DIFFERENT SERVICES AND THESE PEOPLE DO THIS AND THAT PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, THESE OTHER PEOPLE, THEY DO THIS.
AND ALSO JUST BEING ABLE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION LIKE I JUST PROVIDED ABOUT, UM, COMMUNITY MEETINGS AND UM, THINGS LIKE THAT.
I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE A REALLY GOOD SERVICE FOR THIS COMMUNITY.
SO SOME KIND OF PAID CITY WORKER WOULD BE COMPILING THAT WEBSITE, I MEAN, WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, MAKING IT AND YEAH, GO AHEAD, PETE.
WELL, THAT'S WHAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT DOING A RECOMMENDATION BECAUSE OF THIS PAST TWO MONTHS OF TRYING TO FIND SOME DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION WITH EVERYBODY.
IT'S CO IT'S BECOME CLEAR TO ME THAT NOBODY'S TAKEN THIS INFORMATION.
SO I I THINK OUR NEXT STEP IS, IS TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION THAT THE CITY HAS TO, THAT THE COUNCIL MEMBER, COUNCIL MEMBERS COUNCIL HAS TO SPECIFICALLY MAKE AN ACT OR AN ACTION THAT'S GONNA CONSOLIDATE THIS INFORMATION AND ACTUALLY GO DO A POINT IN TIME COUNT LIKE THEY DO HOMELESSNESS LIKE THEY DO WITH VETERANS.
THEY, THEY CAPTURE INFORMATION IN OTHER POPULATIONS BECAUSE REGARDLESS OF WHAT ASSESSMENTS WE HAVE FOR FIVE YEAR PLANS AND ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE DON'T KNOW.
AND WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE NEED IF NOBODY'S TAKEN A CONCERTED EFFORT TO COUNT THIS POPULATION, OUR POPULATION.
YEAH, AND I AGREE WITH ALL OF THIS.
I WANTED TO TELL YOU THAT I HAVE AN UPDATE FROM THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMITTEE ABOUT BUDGETING, AND IT'S PERTINENT THAT WE NEED ANYTHING THAT WE WANT IN THE BUDGET.
IT'S DUE BY THE 15TH TO THE 20TH.
AND I, I DON'T KNOW IF ANY OF US HAVE COME UP WITH ANY BUDGET ITEMS FOR OUR COMMITTEE, BUT, UH, THEY'RE DUE REALLY, REALLY SOON.
AND I THOUGHT THAT WE SHOULD ALL KNOW SINCE, UH, IT'S SEVEN O'CLOCK NOW.
I THINK, UH, I'LL TRY TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT OFFLINE, BUT THAT THIS ALL NEEDS TO BE WRAPPED UP INTO THAT REQUEST OR AT LEAST HAVE SOMETHING STATED THAT FOR WHATEVER AMOUNT OF YEARS THIS DEMOGRAPHIC HAS NOT BEEN PROPERLY ASCERTAINED, SO THEREFORE THERE CANNOT BE A PROPER REQUEST OF WHAT I, YOU MIGHT WANNA GET IN TOUCH WITH THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMITTEE BECAUSE NOW THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT THAT COMMITTEE DOES, IS THEY, THEY BUDGET,
[01:30:01]
THEY, THEY REQUEST MONEY FOR.OKAY, SO THAT SPECIAL INTERESTS WE HAVE, WE DON'T HAVE THAT ON OUR AGENDA.
SO IN ORDER TO GET THIS DONE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO, UM, REQUEST A SPECIAL MEETING.
DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO DO THAT? BECAUSE YOU CAN'T, MAYBE, MAYBE WE CAN'T APPROVE BUDGET COMMITTEE BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS.
IT'S NOT ON THE AGENDA FOR TONIGHT.
THAT WOULD BE SO WE WOULD HAVE TO, YOU CAN'T DO IT AS A WORK GROUP.
A WORK GROUP CAN'T GO TO THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMITTEE.
SO WHAT WOULD HAVE TO, WHAT WOULD HAVE TO HAPPEN IS THE CHAIR OR THE VICE CHAIR WOULD HAVE TO CALL A SPECIAL MEETING SPECIFICALLY TO THE, A HIGHLIGHTED TOPIC AND THEN WE COULD DO IT AND WITH ACTION, AND THEN WE CAN GO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION.
THIS IS ALL OF THE BUDGETARY STUFF FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
I UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT WE NEED TO HAVE, OKAY, I JUST WANTED, I JUST, I WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYBODY UNDERSTOOD
SO WE DO UNDERSTAND, BUT WE DID NOT HAVE A MEETING IN FEBRUARY.
AND UM, SO THE PROBLEM IS, I DON'T KNOW, UM, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THERE HAVE BEEN SOME DISCREPANCIES WITH THE, THE RULES OF HOLDING MEETINGS AND AGENDAS.
UM, SO JUST MAKE SURE EVERYBODY CHECKS THEIR EMAILS AND FAMILIARIZES THEMSELVES, UM, JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE LOOKING EXTRA CLOSELY NOW TO EVERYBODY'S AGENDAS AND ALL WHAT WE'RE DOING.
SO IS, IS ANYONE AVAILABLE TO MAKE, BECAUSE I, I THINK THAT WE DO HAVE TWO REALLY GOOD BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS.
I THINK THE POINT, TIME AND COUNT, I THINK THAT THEY SHOULD DO IT ALONG WITH THE OTHER SPECIAL POPULATIONS THAT THEY DO.
AND, UM, I THINK ALSO THE RECOMMENDATION FOR, UM, MAINTAINING A WEBSITE AT THE VERY MINIMUM, UM, JUST TO POST INFORMATION WHERE PEOPLE CAN GET INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES FOR THE CITY.
UM, WOULD PEOPLE BE WHAT, UM, IT IS THE EIGHTH NOW.
WAIT, SO, SO STAFF'S HERE, SO THE VICE CHAIR OR THE CHAIR CAN CALL A SPECIAL MEETING SPECIFICALLY FOR THE TOPICS THAT WE HIGHLIGHTED, IS THAT CORRECT? YES.
COMMISSIONER SALAZAR, THE VICE CHAIR OR THE CHAIR CAN CALL A SPECIAL MEETING.
SO, UM, I CAN CALL A SPECIAL MEETING ON THE 12TH AT FIVE O'CLOCK OR FIVE 30.
CAN PEOPLE ATTEND? WILL WE MAKE QUORUM? I WILL.
IF YOU CALL THE SPECIAL MEETING, I CAN ATTEND.
WE NEED, WE NEED, WE HAVE TO HAVE SIX.
SO EVERYBODY ELSE ONLINE, CAN YOU ATTEND SO WE CAN ADDRESS THESE BUDGETARY ITEMS? I CAN THINK THAT'S THE QUESTION I CAN ATTEND.
I THINK THAT WE NEED TO HAVE SOMETHING TO SUBMIT TO THE JOINT INCLUSION COMMITTEE, YOU KNOW, BY THE 20TH WE NEED TO HAVE SOMETHING FINALIZED, I GUESS, AT THE MEETING ON THE 12TH.
THAT'S WHAT WE'RE THAT'S WHY WE'RE HOLD, UM, THAT'S WHY WE HAVE TO HAVE THIS MEETING.
I'M JUST MAKING SURE I'M CLEAR.
AND SO THEN AT THIS, AT THIS SPECIAL MEETING, WE'LL MAKE OUR BUDGET REQUESTS AND THEN WE CAN, UM, PASS THOSE OVER TO THE JOINT INCLUSION INCLUSION COMMITTEE.
UM, AND I KNOW THAT IT SEEMS RUSHED, BUT I KNOW MANY OF US ARE NEW TO THIS COMMITTEE.
WELL, WE MISSED FEBRUARY AND WE DID MISS FEBRUARY.
UM, SO VICE CHAIR, I WOULD JUST MENTION THAT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE AN ADEQUATE SPACE.
SO YOU'RE SAYING MARCH 12TH AT FIVE 30? OH YEAH, THAT'S TRUE.
SO I CAN CERTAINLY LOOK AND SEE WHAT'S AVAILABLE CITY BUILDING WISE, BUT WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE EITHER YOURSELF OR THE CHAIR OR ANOTHER SENIOR MEMBER BE PRESENT IN PERSON.
AND IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE AT THAT TIME.
IF YOU FIND OPENINGS IN APPROPRIATE PLACES AT OTHER DATES OR TIMES, I CAN, WE CAN ALWAYS CHECK OUR EMAIL.
EVERYBODY, UH, SHOULD CHECK THEIR EMAIL, ESPECIALLY WITH THIS TIME SENSITIVE ISSUE.
AND THE RECOMMENDATIONS SHOULD BE READY BY THE 12TH, IF THAT'S THE DATE THAT IT'S SELECTED FOR THE MEETING.
THAT WAY IT CAN BE INCLUDED IN BACKUP AND EVERYBODY HAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE ANY AMENDMENTS IF NECESSARY.
I'M AVAILABLE BETWEEN FOUR AND 7:30 PM ON THE 12TH.
SO MAKE THE, MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE CHECKING YOUR EMAIL PROBABLY ONCE IN THE MORNING AND ONCE IN THE AFTERNOON, BECAUSE WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE EVERYBODY TO MAKE A QUORUM.
AND I AM GONNA WAIT, UM, TO HEAR BACK, TO MAKE A FINAL DECISION ON WHEN THE MEETING IS DEPENDING ON SPACE.
WE KNOW THE TIME SHOULD BE FROM FOUR TO SEVEN AND WE CAN HIGHLIGHT SPECIFICALLY WHAT WE NEED BECAUSE I THINK A SPECIAL MEETING HAS TO HAVE A SPECIFIC TOPIC ON THAT SO WE CAN FORWARD YES.
AND THE SPECIFIC TO TOPIC WILL BE BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND THEN I'LL TRY TO WORK ON SOMETHING AND THEN WE CAN DISCUSS IT AND
[01:35:01]
HAVE SOMETHING PRESENTED ONCE WE HAVE OUR SPECIAL CODE MEETING.UM, DOES ANYBODY HAVE TO MAKE A MOTION TO DO THAT, OR CAN DO I JUST SAY THAT WE'RE GONNA DO IT? YES.
WE'VE YOU'VE ALREADY ESTABLISHED YES.
AND THEN DOES ANYBODY, I, I KNOW THAT WE'RE OVER TIME REALLY QUICKLY,
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
I DO HAVE TWO FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO PUT ON, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT, I COULD DO THAT VIA EMAIL IF WE'RE ALL CHECKING OUR EMAIL.I'LL JUST MAKE A, UM, I'LL MAKE A RECOMMENDATION AND THEN SOMEONE CAN SECOND IT.
UM, THERE ARE A COUPLE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN REACHING OUT TO ME THAT WOULD LIKE TO GET ON OUR AGENDA.
SO PLEASE, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANYTHING ELSE? I DO YOU NEED A MO OKAY.
UM, THERE WAS A FORMER QUESTION AS TO WHO WAS ON THE KIND OF POINT IN TIME ACCOUNT COMMITTEE, AND THAT IS JENNIFER AND LEAH.
UM, OKAY, SO IF NO ONE HAS ANYTHING ELSE, UM, WE DOES IT, DO I HAVE ANYBODY TO MOTION THAT WE ADJOURN? MOTION.
UM, IS EVERYONE'S CAMERA ON? THAT NEEDS TO BE ALL IN FAVOR.
ALL IN FAVOR, UH, SAY AYE OR RAISE YOUR HAND.
THANK YOU SO MUCH AND I HOPE WE CAN GET OUR MEETING TOGETHER ON THE 12TH.