[CALL TO ORDER]
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IT IS THE LAST MEETING OF THE YEAR FOR THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION.
IT IS 5:34 PM AND WE ARE IN SESSION.
UH, FIRST ITEM OF BUSINESS IS TO CALL THE ROLE.
CHRISTIE, WOULD YOU BE KIND ENOUGH? YES.
AUGUST HARRIS PRESENT, ED ISHMAEL JR.
PRESENT RALPH BRETON, I'M SORRY, PETER BRETON.
SONYA SCHIFFER SHOULD JOIN SHORTLY.
UH, I WANNA WELCOME BACK, UH, NELLY PAUL RAMIREZ.
UH, SHE'S WITH THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION, AND WE ARE DELIGHTED, ABSOLUTELY DELIGHTED TO HAVE HER BACK AS THE LIAISON FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION.
FOR THOSE OF Y'ALL THAT HAVEN'T BEEN ON THE COMMISSION THAT LONG, UM, WE ADDED, WE HAD OUR CHARTER AMENDED TO ADD THAT POSITION TO THIS, UH, COMMISSION BECAUSE WE'RE SO INTEGRATED WITH PUBLIC SAFETY HERE.
AND IT WAS A VERY IMPORTANT, UH, ITEM THAT, A RECURRING ITEM AND CONTINUES TO BE AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE A RECURRING ITEM.
AND TO HAVE THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMISSION WITH REPRESENTATION HERE WAS VERY IMPORTANT, AND WE ARE DELIGHTED TO SEE YOU BACK.
UM, UH, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION THIS EVENING? NO CHAIR.
NOBODY WANTED TO COME SEE US ON KNOW DECEMBER 18.
[1. Approve the minutes of the Downtown Commission regular called meeting on November 20, 2024.]
BUSINESS IS THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.I HOPE EVERYBODY'S HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW THE MINUTES.
ARE THERE ANY CHANGES, MODIFICATIONS, ADDITIONS, SUBTRACTIONS? DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? I'M SO MOVED.
I HAVE A MOTION AND I HAVE A SECOND.
UM, WE DID HAVE A NUMBER OF ITEMS THAT GOT MOVED.
UH, I THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE A VERY ROBUST JANUARY MEETING.
UM, BUT TONIGHT WE HAVE SOMETHING THAT IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT FOR THIS COMMISSION.
UH, AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, UM, OUR PRIMARY ROLE IS TO OVERSEE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLANT.
[2. Presentation and discussion regarding the Downtown Austin Plan. Presentation by Chad Sharrard, Senior Planner, Planning Department.]
UH, CHAD SHERROD HERE, UH, SENIOR PLANNER WITH THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT TO, UH, DISCUSS THE STATUS AND UPDATE OF THE PLAN.LET ME GET ALL SQUARED AWAY HERE.
I I THINK MY CAMERA'S WORKING.
LET ME GET SHARED YOUR SCREEN.
ARE Y'ALL ABLE TO SEE MY SCREEN BY CHANCE? WE ARE, YES.
ALRIGHT, WELL, HI, UH, CHAD SARD HERE.
UM, SOME OF YOU MAY KNOW ME, SOME OF YOU MAY NOT.
UM, I'M A LONG RANGE PLANNER WITH THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UM, IN THE LONG RANGE PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
UH, I WILL BE LEADING THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN UPDATE.
UM, SO EXCITED TO, TO BE HERE TODAY WITH THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION AND, UH, KIND OF GIVE SOME INFORMATION OF, OF OUR APPROACH, HOW WE'RE, WE'RE GETTING TO, UH, THE MEMO IN FEBRUARY THAT COUNCIL HAS ASKED FOR, UM, IN COMPILING OUR SCOPE TIMELINE.
UM, BUT YEAH, LET'S, LET'S, LET'S DIVE IN.
UH, SO TODAY WE'RE GONNA GO OVER THE BACKGROUND OF THE ORIGINAL DAP AND THE RESOLUTION GOING FORWARD, OUR PRE-PLANNING PROCESS IN ORDER TO GET TO FEBRUARY AND SOME NEXT STEPS, UH, SUBSEQUENT FROM THAT.
SO, A BACKGROUND, THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN FROM 2011 DOWN.
AS YOU MAY KNOW, THE 2011 DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN, UM, HAD SEVEN TRANSFORMATIVE STEPS THAT WAS CREATING SIGNATURE PARKS, URBAN RAILS, SUCH AS PROJECT CONNECT, A REIMAGINATION FOR EAST SIXTH STREET, UH, INCREASED AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UH, MASSIVE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT DOWNTOWN, UH, ANY LAND, UH, DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS THAT WOULD COME OUT OF, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS IN THAT PLAN.
ADDITIONALLY, UH, CREATING A CENTRAL CITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
SO WITHIN THAT SEVEN OVERARCHING TRANSFORMATIVE
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STEPS, WE HAVE SEVEN PLAN ELEMENTS, UH, THAT EACH HAVE THEIR OWN RESPECTIVE GOALS.THE 30 RECOMMENDATIONS, OVER A HUNDRED PLUS ACTIONS, UH, WITHIN THE ORIGINAL PLAN, ALONG WITH KEY CONSIDERATIONS FOR EACH.
AND SO THIS IS A, A REALLY GOOD FRAMEWORK FOR, FOR HAVING A DOWNTOWN PLAN AND, AND THE UPDATE THAT IS COMING BECAUSE YOU HAVE THESE DIFFERENT SEVEN ELEMENTS ALL THE WAY FROM HISTORIC PRESERVATION TO MOBILITY, TRANSPORTATION, AND PARKING.
AND BRINGING THAT ALL TOGETHER CAN GENERATE THOSE RECOMMENDED CODE AMENDMENTS, ZONE CHANGES, SO ON AND SO FORTH.
UH, LASTLY ABOUT THE 2011 PLAN AND HOW IT WORKS, UH, WE'VE GOT THE NINE DOWNTOWN DISTRICTS, UM, FROM THAT PREVIOUS SLIDE, EACH WITH THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL GOALS, CHARACTER BUILT FORM.
SO THE UPDATE, THE RESOLUTION THAT CAME DOWN.
UH, SO WE'VE GOT RESOLUTION 2 0 2 4 0 8 4 0 2 8, UM, INITIATING AN UPDATE TO DOWNTOWN AUSTIN, COVERING THE NEXT 10 YEARS THROUGH THE LENS OF, UH, AN EQUITABLE, RESILIENT AND SUSTAINABLE LENS.
UM, WE'VE BEEN ASKED TO ENGAGE WITH STAKEHOLDERS, UH, A VARIETY OF, OF, OF DIFFERENT ENTITIES, UH, HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED.
UM, BUT OVERALL IDENTIFYING THOSE, THE NEEDS, THE OF THOSE THAT LIVE WORK EXPERIENCE AND INTERACT WITH DOWNTOWN, UH, AND THE SOLUTIONS.
UH, LASTLY, A STRONG EMPHASIS ON IMPLEMENTATION AND COORDINATING SINCE THERE ARE SO MANY VARYING PRIORITIES, INTERESTS, GROUPS, UM, ALL WITHIN DOWNTOWN.
UH, LASTLY ON THAT RESOLUTION, UH, IT'S ASKING FOR COST ESTIMATES, IDENTIFYING POTENTIAL PARTNERS, FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES WHERE WE CAN SOURCE, UM, INVESTMENT FUNDS, UH, AND THEN ANY NECESSARY CODE AMENDMENTS THAT WOULD COME OUT OF THAT.
AND SO ALL OF THIS CULMINATES TO IN FEBRUARY, UM, HAVING A MEMO THAT HAS AN INITIAL COST SCOPE TIMELINE, UH, FOR THIS, UH, DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN UPDATE.
SO HOW DO WE KNOW WHERE WE ARE GOING IF WE DON'T KNOW WHERE WE ARE AT YET? SO A BIG EMPHASIS BEING ON IMPLEMENTATION.
HOW DID WE KNOW HOW THE 2011 AUSTIN PLAN DID? AND SO A BIG LIFT THAT OUR DEPARTMENT IS DOING RIGHT NOW IS IDENTIFYING THE IMPLEMENTATION STATUS OF, OF THE 2011 PLAN AND, AND REACHING OUT TO THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AND DOING A LOT OF INTERDEPARTMENTAL INTER COORDINATED RESEARCH, UM, TO PRODUCE A, UH, IMPLEMENTATION REPORT.
UM, THAT WILL THEN INFORM THE SCOPE, UM, AT LEAST A VERSION ONE AND A VERSION ONE OF THE TIMELINE AS WELL.
UH, THAT WILL BE GOING TO BE INCLUDED IN THE MEMO FOR FEBRUARY WITH COUNSEL.
UM, GOING BEYOND, UH, FEBRUARY AND COUNCIL IS STILL ADDITIONAL IMPLEMENTATION RESEARCH AND REFINING, UH, THAT PROCESS, WHICH IS ON THE NEXT SLIDE A LITTLE BIT MORE.
BUT BETWEEN MARCH, 2025 AND JUNE, 2025, WE'LL BE RECEIVING COUNCIL'S DIRECTION ON, ON, ON THIS PROCESS.
UH, CONTINUING THAT ADDITIONAL RESEARCH, SYNTHESIZING THOSE FINDINGS AND, UM, CONTINUING COORDINATION THAT WILL, WILL CREATE THESE POTENTIALLY AN UPDATED, UH, SCOPE AND TIMELINE, UH, OF VERSION TWO.
UH, BUT FOR THAT IMPLEMENTATION STATUS REVIEW, UH, WE WILL BE DOING IT IN TWO DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES.
THE, THE SMART REVIEW THAT WAS CREATED BACK IN, IN 2018 WITH, UH, SMART ME OR SPECIFIC SMART SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE AND RELEVANT.
SO WE'LL BE REVIEWING UNDER THAT LENS AS WELL AS THE, ACTUALLY GETTING INTO THE, THE NITTY GRITTY OF THE PROJECTS, THE PLANS, UM, AND HOW THEY ALL INTERSECT AND WHAT THOSE CHALLENGES AND EXPERIENCES WITH THE 2011 PLAN HAS BEEN AND, AND WHAT THEY NEED OUT OF A FUTURE PLAN.
SO WITH NOW HERE WE ARE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION WORKING GROUP.
UM, WE'RE GONNA BE EXPERIENCING THAT IN JANUARY, 2025.
SO I'M VERY EXCITED TO, UM, HEAR FROM Y'ALL AND, AND BE INVOLVED IN THAT PROCESS.
UM, AND IDENTIFYING GOALS FOR EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION.
UH, ADDITIONALLY, AS MENTIONED, THE COUNCIL MEMO IN FEBRUARY, UM, SUBSEQUENTLY A COST ESTIMATE WILL COME FROM THAT AND CULMINATING IN A INITIAL KEY STAKEHOLDER FINDINGS REPORT IN SPRING 2025, BRINGING ALL OF THIS RESEARCH TOGETHER.
UH, SO WE HAVE A LOT IN FRONT OF US, BUT IT'S VERY EXCITING AND, UM, I'M HAPPY TO HEAR FROM Y'ALL.
OPEN IT UP TO COMMISSION FOR QUESTIONS.
UH, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, I'VE HEARD A LOT FROM PEOPLE WHO WERE AROUND AND INVOLVED IN THE 2011 PLAN AND IMPLEMENTATION, THAT THERE WERE SO MANY, UM, COOKS IN THE KITCHEN THAT WE
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WEREN'T REALLY SURE WHO WAS DOING WHAT AND THERE WASN'T REALLY MUCH OF A GUIDING AUTHORITY TO TRY AND KEEP PEOPLE ON TRACK.SO HOW ARE YOU PLANNING TO APPROACH THIS DIFFERENTLY THIS TIME? YOU'RE ON MUTE.
NO, UM, I APPRECIATE THAT THERE, THERE IS SO MUCH COORDINATION THAT IS REQUIRED.
AND SO I THINK A BIG BASIS OF, OF THIS PLAN UPDATE IS HAVING A CENTRALIZED LOCATION THAT YOU, YOU CAN HAVE ALL OF THESE, WHETHER IT BE THE PALM PLAN OR PALM SCHOOL BEING REDEVELOPED, ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT ENTITIES COMING TOGETHER.
AND SO, UM, JUST BUILDING THE FRAMEWORK THAT SINCE THIS IS AN UPDATE ON THE 2011, THAT FRAMEWORK IS THERE.
SO, UM, I'M CONFIDENT IN, IN WHAT OUR DEPARTMENT'S ABLE TO PUT TOGETHER.
AND WHAT AUTHORITY DO YOU HAVE TO KEEP PEOPLE ON TRACK ONCE THERE IS A ROADMAP FOR, UM, UPDATING THE PLAN? NO, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
UH, SO THAT COMES BACK DOWN TO IMPLEMENTATION AND, AND VERIFYING CREATING A PROCESS.
SO THAT WILL DEFINITELY BE LOOKED INTO.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT.
WE DON'T WANT TO SEE EVERYTHING GET THROWN OFF TRACK BY, YOU KNOW, THE USUAL HORSES GOING INTO OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS.
COMMISSIONER KOFA, UH, I HAVE A QUESTION, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND YOUR, YOUR COMMITMENT TO SEEING THIS PLAN THROUGH.
WILL YOUR PLAN INCLUDE ADDRESSING OUR OFFICE BUILDING AND OCCUPANCY RATE DOWNTOWN? YEAH, SO DEFINITELY WITHIN, WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE, THE, THE DOWNTOWN PLAN UPDATE IS YOU'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT MARKET TRENDS, YOU'RE GONNA BE LOOKING AT SOCIOECONOMIC TRENDS, UM, ESPECIALLY AS IT'S CONTEXTUALIZED TO, TO AUSTIN.
UM, NOT ONLY DOWNTOWN, BUT HOW, HOW DOWNTOWN INTERACTS FROM A DISTRICT SCALE, SO IN A REGIONAL SCALE.
SO, UM, I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THAT UP BECAUSE THAT IS A VERY VALID COMPONENT OF TRENDS GOING ON DOWNTOWN.
AND I, I GUESS MY FOLLOW UP IS SINCE THE LAST PLAN WAS PUT IN PLACE MM-HMM
WHAT ARE THE OTHER NEW CHALLENGES THAT WE HAVE IN 2024 GOING INTO 25 THAT YOU'RE ADDRESSING THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE BACK THEN? SO YOU HAVE A, A VARIETY.
YOU HAVE I 35 CAP AND STITCH COMING THROUGH IN, IN A MASSIVE INFRASTRUCTURE.
NOT ONLY THE CAP AND STITCH, BUT THE EXPANSION OF IT.
YOU HAVE LIGHT RAIL, WE HAVE MILLIONS.
OUR, OUR, OUR RESIDENT, OUR POPULATION HAS GROWN SO MUCH, UM, SINCE, SINCE IT'S IN 2011.
AND, AND, AND WHAT THE MARKET WAS THERE, COVID, HOW WE INTERACT WITH DOWNTOWNS.
IS IT, IS IT GONNA BE THROUGH PRE COVID? YOU KNOW, GETTING BACK TO THE OFFICE COMPONENT.
UM, IT WASN'T IN OFFICE CULTURE.
DOWNTOWN'S NOW ARE MUCH MORE ORIENTED TOWARDS THE RETAIL EXPERIENCE, LIFESTYLE EXPERIENCES.
UM, AND SO HOW CAN, HOW CAN THIS PLAN NOT ONLY ANALYZE THAT AND DISPLAY CURRENT TRENDS AND HOW DOWNTOWN IS BEING USED, EXPERIENCED.
UM, SO YES, THAT, THOSE ARE SOME DIFFERENT TRENDS, WHETHER IT BE COVID OR OFFICES OR, OR A LOT OF THE INFRASTRUCTURAL PROJECTS COMING IN.
DEMOGRAPHIC DIFFERENCES, THE INCREASE IN POPULATION.
SO, UM, THERE'S A VARIETY OF COMPONENTS.
YEAH, I, I APPRECIATE THAT A WHOLE LOT.
AND I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE IN YOUR STAKEHOLDER INTERVIEWS TO INCLUDE, UM, BUSINESSES THAT ARE DOWNTOWN MM-HMM
LIKE HOW DO WE KEEP THEM DOWNTOWN? AND THEN I, I'VE ENCOURAGED I THINK ANOTHER WORKING GROUP ON THIS AS WELL IN THIS POSITION, UM, EVEN WORKING WITH, WITH DOWNTOWN COMPANIES TO ENCOURAGE EMPLOYEES TO COME BACK TO THE OFFICE TOO.
'CAUSE, YOU KNOW, A FULL DOWNTOWN IS A SAFE DOWNTOWN, AND SO MANY OF THESE OFFICE BUILDINGS ARE GHOST BUILDINGS.
AND TO ME, THAT'S A BIG CONCERN.
UM, SO I THINK, I HOPE THAT THAT'S REMAINS A REALLY HIGH PRIORITY IN THIS PLAN.
UM, I AM NOT ONLY ON THIS COMMISSION, BUT I'M ALSO ON THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION BOARD, AND I'M ALSO CHAIRING THE PEDESTRIAN ADVISORY COUNCIL RIGHT NOW.
SO I WOULD SAY THAT ALL THAT, BOTH OF THOSE GROUPS NEED TO BE A BIG PART OF THIS.
DOWNTOWN RESIDENTS ARE THE HEART OF THE CITY RIGHT NOW, AS WE WERE JUST DISCUSSING.
AND SO THOSE OF US WHO REPRESENT THEM NEED TO HAVE A BIG SAY IN WHAT'S GOING ON.
BUT I ALSO THINK THAT YOU GUYS NEED TO LOOK AT, IN ORDER TO INCREASE RESIDENCES AND BUSINESSES DOWNTOWN, UM, YOU MAY NEED TO PUSH THE CITY TO REZONE SOME THINGS.
IT'S DENSITY, BONUSES, IT'S, UM, COMPATIBILITY
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STANDARDS, SOME OF WHICH DON'T ACTUALLY MAKE ANY SENSE,SO I WOULD, UH, JUST LIKE TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU DON'T FORGET THOSE THINGS BECAUSE I THINK THEY'RE GONNA BE A HUGE PART OF MAKING ANY KIND OF DOWNTOWN PLAN WORK TO BE FUNCTIONAL FOR EVERYTHING.
UM, UH, I DO HAVE A, A COMMENT HERE.
UM, THE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS BEEN A SERIES, UM, POCKETS OF PLANNING THROUGHOUT, UH, THE DOWNTOWN AREA AND MAKING SURE THAT THERE'S COORDINATION, UH, WITH THESE PLANNING EFFORTS OVERALL, UH, THROUGH THIS, UH, DOWNTOWN, UM, THIS AUSTIN PLAN, I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT.
MAKING SURE THAT BASICALLY EVERYONE'S ON THE SAME PAGE.
THERE'S IMPORTANT EFFORTS, UM, AS WE SPEAK HAPPENING, AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT, UM, IT'S ALL COORDINATED, UH, I THINK IS VERY IMPORTANT.
COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER? DID I SEE YOUR HAND UP? NO, NO, NO, I DIDN'T.
UM, YEAH, I ACTUALLY JUST HAD A QUESTION ABOUT, UM, SOME OF THE MORE LOW HANGING FRUIT WITH REGARDS TO SAFETY, WHICH IS THINGS LIKE LIGHTING, UM, AND WHETHER OR NOT THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN IS GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, SORT OF ACCOUNTING FOR THOSE, THOSE SORTS OF ELEMENTS.
UM, NOT JUST LIGHTING, BUT ALSO IN CONSULTATION WITH VISION ZERO, JUST PEDESTRIAN BARRIERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT TO MAKE MM-HMM
WALKABLE SPACES THAT ARE STILL ACCESSIBLE, BUT THEN ALSO JUST THINKING ABOUT JUST LIGHTING THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
'CAUSE WELDED, WELDED SPACES TEND TO FEEL SAFER, UM, ARE SAFER.
UM, SO YEAH, JUST QUESTIONS ABOUT LIGHTING ACTUALLY.
I THINK WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE DOWNTOWN AND THEN THE NINE SEPARATE DISTRICTS WITHIN THE ORIGINAL PLAN, THERE'S EXISTING CONDITION ANALYSIS THAT HAS BEEN DONE FOR WHETHER IT BE THE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE CONDITION THAT THE SIDEWALKS CURRENTLY IN, OR IS THE CURB CUT ACCURATELY PLACED.
I THINK I APPRECIATE YOU GIVING THAT FEEDBACK, AND I'LL TAKE THAT BACK, UM, TO THE TEAM OF, OF WHEN LOOKING AT A DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN UPDATE AND, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS TO BE AT THE FRONT OF MIND, YOU KNOW, IS IT LOOKING AT THE LUMENS ON THE STREETSCAPE OR, UM, AND, AND, AND HAVING THAT KIND OF ANALYSIS WHEN DOING, UM, EXISTING CONDITIONS RESEARCH.
AND I GUESS IT'S JUST ABOUT WHETHER THAT IS PART OF THE PROCESS ON THE FRONT END, AS OPPOSED TO TRYING TO FIND MONEY AND BUDGET FOR IT AFTER THE FACT.
UM, BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE AFTER THE FACT IT FEELS LIKE LOW HANGING FRUIT THAT GETS OVERLOOKED.
SO ESPECIALLY THERE ARE BUDGET COMPONENTS TO THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN.
THERE'S DEFINITELY BUDGET COMPONENTS, BUT I THINK RIGHT NOW IT'S, IT'S GATHERING THAT FEEDBACK OF, OF WHAT DOES WHAT, HEARING FROM, FROM EVERYONE, WHAT, WHAT ARE THOSE THINGS.
AND, AND SO I APPRECIATE YOU MENTIONING IT.
UM, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER IT'S ITERATION THINGS, FALL, COMMISSIONER MOCK, I THINK I SEE YOUR HAND UP.
UH, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT FUNDING.
I PRESUME THAT WE'LL BE LOOKING AT THE BONDS.
SO, UM, IN ORDER TO GET THE SUPPORT OF THE WHOLE CITIZENS OF AUSTIN, UM, SO WE NEED TO FEEL THAT THIS IS OUR DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, UH, SO THAT, THAT, UH, THAT CAN, YOU KNOW, SO, SO, SO FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T LIVE IN DOWNTOWN AREA, BUT THEY COME, YOU TALK ABOUT RETAIL AND LIFE EXPERIENCE, NOW YOU HAVE THE MOODY THEATER, YOU KNOW, WITH THE ACL, AND YOU HAVE SO MUCH GOING ON IN DOWNTOWN WITH THE, YOU KNOW, THE HOTEL AND ALL OF THAT.
SO IT'S ALMOST LIKE A ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT, YOU KNOW, AND THEN WITH, I THINK THEY REPURPOSE ALL THOSE OFFICES AND THAT WILL CHANGE, YOU KNOW, THE CHARACTER OF THE AUSTIN DOWNTOWN.
I'M HOPING THAT, UH, IN YOUR PLANNING, YOU THINK ABOUT, THIS IS OUR DOWNTOWN, THIS IS THE DOWNTOWN OF ALL AUSTINITE THAT THEY, THEY WILL GET, THEY WILL BENEFIT FROM IT.
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THEY WILL GET GOOD EXPERIENCE, YOU KNOW, FROM THAT.SO THE TRAFFIC, THE, UH, MOBILITY, THE ACCESSIBILITY, ALL OF THAT, UM, YEAH, IS, IS GOING TO BE A CHALLENGE.
SO, AND, AND THE FUNDING PIECE, I MEAN, IF YOU CANNOT CONVINCE THE PEOPLE WHO DON'T LIVE IN DOWNTOWN, UM, THEN THAT, THAT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, A FUNDING CHALLENGE.
AND AGAIN, MY PET PEEVE HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE DI
I THINK IT IS VERY HARD TO WALK UNDER THE THREE DIGIT SUN, YOU KNOW, IN SIX, SEVEN MONTHS IN AUSTIN.
SO THAT MOBILITY ACCESSIBILITY HAS TO BE TOP PRIORITY IN ORDER FOR PEOPLE TO FEEL LIKE, OKAY, THIS IS OUR DOWNTOWN.
JUST MY TWO SENSES, AND THANK YOU.
UH, I WILL JUST REMIND FOLKS THAT FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT DO NOT REMEMBER THE DILLO AROUND THIS TIME OF YEAR, EVERY YEAR THEY DECORATED THE TROLLEYS WITH WREATHS AND GARLAND AND SOME OTHER THINGS TO, TO ENHANCE THE HOLIDAY EXPERIENCE DOWNTOWN.
I THINK, UH, ONE THING THAT COMMISSIONER MOCK BRINGS UP IS, AND I THINK IF THIS IS IMPORTANT FOR THE COMMISSIONER TO REMEMBER ON A GO FORWARD BASIS, AND CERTAINLY THE WORKING GROUP AS IMPORTANT AS, AS CRITICAL AS DAA IS, AS CRITICAL AS DANA AND THE DOWNTOWN RESIDENTS ARE, UH, IT IS IN ONE REASON WE COME FROM 10 DIS DIFFERENT DISTRICTS, AND WE'RE NOT ALL DOWNTOWN RESIDENTS, AND WE'RE NOT ALL DOWNTOWN BUSINESS PEOPLE, IS THAT DOWNTOWN IS THE HEART OF THE CITY, AND IT BELONGS TO EVERYBODY.
AND I THINK THIS COMMISSION AND THE WORKING GROUP AND STAKEHOLDERS IN GENERAL NEED TO REMEMBER THAT THIS IS EVERYBODY'S DOWNTOWN, AND WE WANT IT TO BE ACCESSIBLE, USABLE, UH, INCLUSIVE FOR EVERYBODY IN THIS CITY.
UH, AND SO THANK YOU COMMISSIONER MOCK FOR BRINGING THAT UP.
AND, AND IT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING THAT I THINK ABOUT A LOT.
UM, WE DON'T WANT BARRIERS TO GO UP AROUND DOWNTOWN, THE DISCOURAGE OUR FELLOW CITIZENS FROM COMING DOWN AND ENJOYING THIS WONDERFUL PART OF OUR CITY.
UH, I BELIEVE THAT I SAW COMMISSIONER FRANKLIN WITH A HAND UP.
COMMISSIONER VETO, UH, THANK YOU.
AS A DOWNTOWN RESIDENT OF OVER 40 YEARS, UH, DOWNTOWN IS TRULY A NEIGHBORHOOD.
WE HAVE OVER 15,000 RESIDENTS AND IN THE PLANNING, CONSIDERING THE IMPORTANCE OF US COLLECTIVELY AS A NEIGHBORHOOD, UM, OBVIOUSLY DOWNTOWN IS FOR EVERYONE, BUT WE, WE TRULY DO HAVE A NEIGHBORHOOD NOW, AND IT'S AN ACTIVE NEIGHBORHOOD, AND WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, SEVERAL ASSOCIATIONS.
SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, HAVING A, A VOICE AS A NEIGHBORHOOD IN THIS PLANNING PROCESSES IS CRUCIAL AS WELL.
COMMISSIONER ISHMA, UM, SO WE HAD A PRESENTATION LAST MONTH ABOUT, UM, DAA REACHING OUT TO VARIOUS CITIES THAT HAVE ALSO UNDERTAKEN A DOWNTOWN PLAN.
UM, WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS TO DO THE SAME OR, UH, MAYBE USE SOME OF THE DATA FROM DAA, BUT REGARDLESS, UM, NOT REINVENTING THE WHEEL OR FINDING OUT WHAT WORKED FROM OTHER CITIES? UM, LET ME JUST SAY, I HAVE TO JUMP.
MAKE SURE THAT YOU INCLUDE ME IN THE WORKING GROUP BECAUSE THIS IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME.
AND EVERYBODY HAVE A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY.
SAME TO YOU AND YOU AS WELL, COMMISSIONER.
SO, YES, UM, THERE'S A VARIETY OF, OF, OF STAKEHOLDERS AND DEPARTMENTS THAT YOU'RE GOING, WE ARE GONNA BE ENGAGING WITH AND HAVE BEEN ENGAGING WITH AND, AND EVEN HAVING THOSE INITIAL CONVERSATIONS TO HELP DEVELOP THE SCOPE.
AND SO THERE IS A WEALTH OF KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND, AND WHEN WITH OUR PARTNERS, WHETHER, WHETHER THAT BE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE.
SO, UM, HAVING, ESTABLISHING THAT AND, AND HAVING THAT COORDINATION IS VITAL TO, TO MAKING THIS PLANE SUCCESSFUL AND INEFFICIENT.
WHY INVENT THE WHEEL WHEN THE, WHEN IT'S THERE? SO, SO THERE IS A LOT OF, OF, UM, BENEFIT AND RESOURCE TO BE TAPPED.
SO I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THAT UP.
AND ONE OTHER POINT TO, UM, WHAT COMMISSIONER MOCK BROUGHT UP AND WHAT, UH, CHAIR HARRIS BROUGHT UP.
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KEEPING IN MIND THAT DOWNTOWN BELONGS TO THE REST OF THE CITY, BUT ALSO PROMOTING DOWNTOWN AS THE ECONOMIC ENGINE OF THE CITY, SO THAT WE HAVE BUY-IN FROM PEOPLE THAT ARE NOT DOWNTOWN FOR, AS COMMISSIONER MOCK STATED FOR WHEN THE VOTES COME UP FOR THE BONDS, MAKING SURE THEY UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF SUPPORTING MM-HMMDOWNTOWN AND, UM, THE FUTURE OF DOWNTOWN.
YET TO, TO FURTHER ON THAT, WE'VE SEEN IN YEARS PAST WHERE THERE'S BEEN, UM, SOME PUSHBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY, FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEY DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT DOWNTOWN IS THE ECONOMIC ENGINE.
UM, OBVIOUSLY, UM, IT'S TAX BASE HERE GENERATES SIGNIFICANT REVENUE FOR THE CITY, WHICH IS VERY IMPORTANT.
UM, AND THERE MAY BE BONDS, UH, THERE, THERE'S CERTAINLY GOING TO BE FUNDS FROM, UH, THE GENERAL OPERATING FUNDS THAT ARE GONNA BE REQUIRED TO IMPLEMENT AND SUSTAIN THIS BEYOND JUST THE P THAT WAS CREATED THAT, UM, DAA WORKS WITH.
UM, BUT HAVING SOMETHING IN PLACE THAT REALLY CONVEYS THE VALUE OF DOWNTOWN FOR EVERYBODY IS SUPER CRITICAL.
I DO THINK, AS THERE ARE TWO THINGS ON MY MIND, FUNDING IS ALWAYS ON MY MIND.
UM, BUT THE OTHER THING THAT I THINK IS CRITICAL, AND, AND I THINK YOU SAW THIS IN A RESOLUTION, IS THAT IT IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL AS YOU, AS STAFF ARE GOING THROUGH THIS PROCESS THAT WE THINK VERY HARD ABOUT HAVING SOME SORT OF ENTITY WITHIN THE CITY THAT IS SOLELY FOCUSED ON COORDINATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN.
ONE OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE'VE SEEN DOWN HERE, AND I'VE BEEN ON THE COMMISSION NOW EIGHT YEARS, IS THAT EACH OF THE DEPARTMENTS HAVE THEIR OWN AGENDAS.
THEY HAVE THEIR OWN PRIORITIES WITH FUNDING, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN STAFFING PRIORITIES, AND THEY DON'T ALWAYS COALESCE AROUND THE PLAN.
AND SO THAT'S WHY WE'VE HAD SOME THINGS STOP AND START.
SOME THINGS NEVER START AT ALL.
UM, WE'RE FAIRLY DOWN, FAR DOWN THE ROAD ON SOME OTHER THINGS, BUT IF WE DON'T HAVE A UNIT WITHIN THE CITY THAT'S SAYING, TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC WORKS, WHOEVER ROAD AND BRIDGE YOU NEED TO DO THIS, THIS, AND THIS, SO WE CAN MOVE THE PLAN FORWARD.
WE'VE GOT, AS YOU LOOK AT THIS, WE HAVE GOT TO HAVE THAT IMPLEMENTING BODY AND COORDINATING BODY WITHIN THE CITY THAT CAN MAKE SURE THAT ALL THESE DEPARTMENTS ARE COORDINATING AND DOING THEIR JOBS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE, THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN IS, UH, COMPLETE AND REALIZED, WELL SAID.
I WANNA SECOND THAT CHAIR HARRIS, AND ALSO JUST ADD, UM, AND I'M ASSUMING, UM, YOUR DEPARTMENT IS DOING THIS, BUT WORKING WITH THE DIFFERENT, YOU KNOW, FROM, YOU KNOW, THE CONGRESS REDESIGN, UM, YOU KNOW, AND HOW, AND I HAD A COUPLE OTHER QUESTIONS THAT'LL KIND OF BUNDLE INTO ONE, BUT I THINK THERE'S GONNA BE A LOT OF CHANGES COMING DOWNTOWN, AND YOU KNOW THIS BETTER THAN ANYBODY, BUT ONE OF MY CONCERNS IS THE CONVENTION CENTER GOING OFFLINE AND SUPPORTING THOSE SMALL BUSINESSES THAT ARE, UM, YOU KNOW, IN MANY WAYS KEPT ALIVE BY THE TOURISM THE CONVENTION CENTER BRINGS ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THAT'S OFFLINE FOR QUITE A NUMBER OF YEARS.
UM, AND I'M SO GLAD WE HAVE A COMMISSIONER FROM PUBLIC SAFETY, UM, ON TODAY BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, MY PERSONAL THEORY IS THAT BUSY CITIES, VIBRANT CITIES ARE SAFER CITIES THAN EMPTY ONES.
AND AS THAT CONVENTION CENTER GOES OFFLINE, HOW DOES THAT IMPACT SMALL BUSINESSES, THE, UH, LOW OCCUPANCY RATE OF OUR DOWNTOWN OFFICE SPACE? YOU KNOW, THAT HAS AN IMPACT ON PUBLIC SAFETY TOO.
AND I THINK ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE REALLY INTERSECTIONAL.
UM, AND I THINK ADDRESSING NOT JUST LIKE WHAT IS OUR IDEAL STATE, BUT ALSO WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES? THAT'S WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES THAT WE ARE FACING TODAY? UM, YOU KNOW, AND YES, IT'S DUE TO COVID AND IT'S, YOU KNOW, DUE TO US AS A CITY REACHING HIGHER AND BETTER FOR A CONVENTION CENTER, WHICH IS GREAT, BUT HERE'S THE ACTUAL CHALLENGES THAT WE SEE AND, YOU KNOW, HERE'S HOW THIS PLAN WILL ADDRESS THEM.
YEAH, I, I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE WITH, WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT IMPLEMENTATION AND WE'RE LOOKING AT FIGURING OUT WHERE WE'RE GOING, WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHERE WE ARE.
AND SO WITH, WITH THE, THE RESEARCH THAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW, YOU, YOU HAVE THEM, YOU KNOW, THESE TWO DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES, YOU CALL 'EM PHASES IF YOU'D LIKE, BUT DOING THAT SMART CRITERIA, WHICH IS A PROCESS ESTABLISHED PREVIOUSLY THE CITY SPECIFIC, SMART OR SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE, YOU KNOW, DON'T QUIZ ME ON IT, BUT, UM, THAT A SECONDARY PROCESS THAT WILL BE STARTING IN, AND I KNOW YOU HAD MENTIONED KATI AND, AND IT'S
[00:30:01]
FINDING WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THAT PROJECT OR THAT PLAN OR THAT PROGRAM, WHATEVER IT MAY BE, AND, AND REALLY FIGURING OUT WHAT THEIR EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN, WHAT THEY'RE NEEDING FROM A DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN, WHAT THEY'RE NEEDING FROM A DOWNTOWN.I THINK A LOT OF IT IS, IS, IS HAVING, IS STORYTELLING AND FIGURING OUT WHAT THESE DIFFERENT ENTITIES NEED.
AND SO A BIG PART OF THAT, OF WHAT'S INFORMING THE FUTURE PLAN IS FIGURING OUT CURRENT EXISTING CONDITIONS, CHALLENGES, SUCCESSES, SO ON AND SO FORTH.
I HAVE ANOTHER COMMISSIONER RAMIREZ, AND I HAD A QUESTION A LITTLE BIT ABOUT JUST THE BUDGET PROCESS.
UM, AND GRANTED THAT YOU GUYS ARE NOT GOING TO PRODUCE A FINAL SCOPE AND COST ESTIMATE UNTIL JUNE.
UM, ARE YOU GUYS RECEIVING ANY SORT OF DIRECTION FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE WITH REGARDS TO HOW TO MITIGATE COSTS FOR THE UPCOMING BUDGET ADOPTION IN, IN AUGUST? UM, ARE ARE YOU GUYS, DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY PLAN SPENDING FOR NEXT FISCAL YEAR WITHIN THIS PLAN? IS THERE, HOW DOES THAT BALANCE WITH THE TRE THAT MAY NEED TO HAPPEN AS SOON AS MAY? UM, LIKE HOW ARE YOU GUYS BALANCING ALL THOSE DIFFERENT BUDGET NEEDS AND HAVE YOU GOTTEN DIRECTION FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE WITH REGARDS TO THAT AS YOU'RE PLANNING? NO, THAT'S AN EXCELLENT QUESTION FOR THE, WITHIN THE RESOLUTION, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE IDENTIFIED, UM, YOU KNOW, ASKING TO, TO PULL FROM THE, THE IMAGINE AUSTIN BUDGET, UM, BEYOND WHAT HAS BEEN LISTED OUT IN THE RESOLUTION.
UM, I WOULD DEFER TO DEPARTMENT LEADERSHIP FOR, FOR TO, TO BETTER ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
I DON'T KNOW IF APRIL JSO IS ONLINE TO BE ABLE TO ANSWER THAT.
UM, BUT I WOULD, I WOULD DEFER KIND OF THAT MORE OF THAT CALIBER OF, UH, QUESTIONING FOR THEM.
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION, NUMBER ONE.
UM, SO WHEN IT COMES TO THE UPDATE FOR THE PLAN, I, I REALLY WOULD HOPE THAT THERE IS A, A PERSPECTIVE OR A LENS THAT REALLY ALLOWS FOR, FOR ONE, AS, UH, CHAIR HARRIS HAS KIND OF MENTIONED, UH, SOME INCLUSIVITY.
A LOT OF PEOPLE PASS THROUGH DOWNTOWN, GO TO DOWNTOWN JUST FOR ONE THING, AND THEN GO BACK HOME AND, AND DO SOMETHING ELSE.
UH, TO COMMISSIONER MARK'S POINT, IT IS BECOMING MORE ENTERTAINMENT FOCUSED, BUT I WOULD HOPE THAT THIS PLAN, YOU KNOW, SEES THAT SHIFT AS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF AND THAT WE CAN ADD ADDITIONAL USES THAT WE CAN ALLOW FOR VARIETY AND FLEXIBILITY IN WHAT WE BUILD TO COMMISSIONER LEVINSON'S POINT ABOUT ZONING, UH, SO THAT WE CAN HOPEFULLY CAPTURE SOME OF THOSE PEOPLE THAT GO TO DOWNTOWN.
FOR ONE THING, THEY GO TO THE OFFICE AND THEN INSTEAD OF GOING STRAIGHT BACK HOME, THEY CAN WALK TO A GROCERY STORE AND GET SOME FOOD AND THEN GO HOME, HOPEFULLY VIA A LIGHT RAIL
UM, BUT MAYBE NOT, MAYBE THEY LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE, AND THAT IS OKAY.
UM, OR IF THEY WANT TO GO SEE A CONCERT OR IF THEY WANT TO GO HANG OUT WITH THEIR FRIENDS, THAT THERE ARE A VARIETY OF THINGS THAT THEY CAN DO IN A DOWNTOWN, THAT THE DOWNTOWN IS LIVELY AND BUSTLING AT MOST TIMES OF DAY.
OF COURSE, NOT EVERYONE IS AWAKE AT 2:00 AM BUT TO THOSE POINTS, I HOPE THAT THE PLAN VIEWS THAT AS A STRENGTH, RIGHT? THE VARIETY AND THE FLEXIBILITY OF MULTIPLE USES, NOT JUST IN ONE SPACE, BUT IN THE FULL DOWNTOWN CAN DO FOR OUR DOWNTOWN.
UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE DIOCESE? COMMISSIONER ISHMAEL QUESTION? UM, SO HOW HAS THE, HOW HAVE THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS AND STAFF RECEIVED THE RESOLUTION FROM COUNCIL? HAS THERE BEEN ENTHUSIASTIC BUY-IN? HAS THERE BEEN RESISTANCE? UM, WHAT HAVE YOU SEEN SO FAR AND WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES AND ANTICIPATIONS FOR COOPERATION WITHIN THE CITY? WELL, I'M OFF.
SO NO
BUT NO, I, UM, I'VE WORKED PREVIOUSLY, UM, ON THE SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT AND, AND OTHER PROJECTS WITHIN THE AUSTIN URBAN COURT.
AND SO HAVING THOSE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS, WHETHER WITHIN, WITHIN THE CITY OR, UH, WITHOUT THE CITY, UM, YOU KNOW, YOUR, YOUR EXTERNAL PARTNERSHIPS, WHETHER THAT BE DAA, RETHINK 35, SO AND SO FORTH.
[00:35:01]
UM, GENERAL EXCITEMENT, I, I'M, WE'RE, WE UNDERSTAND THE NEED, UH, GOING FORWARD AND IT'S, IT'S AN EXCITING TIME AND, UM, I'M VERY EAGER TO GIVE ALL OF THESE VARYING PRIORITIES AND INTERESTS IN A HOME, AGAIN, IN AN UPDATED HOME, UM, TO, TO REALLY SORT EVERYTHING OUT AND SO, AND, AND, AND REFINE THAT VISION FOR DOWNTOWN.SO, VERY LOT OF EXCITEMENT ON MY END FOR SURE.
BUT I'VE, I'VE, I'VE SEEN A LOT OF EXCITEMENT, UM, IN GETTING THIS INITIAL PROCESS STARTED AND GATHERING INFORMATION AND, AND PEOPLE'S STORIES ABOUT DOWNTOWN.
UH, ONE THING, IF FOR THOSE OF Y'ALL THAT SUBSCRIBE TO THE AUSTIN MONITOR, IF YOU DON'T, I CERTAINLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO SO, BUT, UH, OR I GUESS IT WAS WATSON'S WIRE TODAY, HE SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSED DOWNTOWN AND, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL GET WATSON'S WIRE, BUT, UH, WELL WORTH A QUICK READ BECAUSE IT WAS VERY MUCH ABOUT THE EXECS THINGS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW.
AND I THINK HIS COMMENT TO CONCLUDE WAS THAT THIS WILL BE SOMETHING TO WATCH OVER THE NEXT FOUR TO EIGHT YEARS.
WELL, I WANTED TO, UM, GO AHEAD, FOLLOW UP WHAT YOU HAD SAID WITH A QUOTE FROM THE MISSION STATEMENT OF THE DAA CREATE, PRESERVE AND ENHANCE VIBE, VITALITY, AND VALUE OF DOWN IN AUSTIN FOR EVERYONE.
SO YOU'RE RIGHT ON THE MONEY WITH, THERE YOU GO.
ALRIGHT, CHAD, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME THIS EVENING.
WE, WE ARE GOING TO MOVE TO OUR
[3. Approve additional membership to the Downtown Austin Plan Working Group.]
NEXT ITEM, WHICH IS TO APPROVE MEMBERSHIP TO THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN WORKING GROUP.UM, AS YOU ALL KNOW, THE WORKING GROUP, UM, CANNOT, UH, CONSTITUTE A QUORUM OF THE BOARD, AND SO YOU'RE LIMITED IN THE NUMBER OF FOLKS THAT CAN SERVE.
UM, AND WE HAD A NUMBER OF FOLKS, CAN I TURN IT OVER TO YOU? OH, SURE.
UM, SO YES, AT OUR LAST, UM, DOWNTOWN COMMISSION MEETING, WE HAD 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 PEOPLE VOLUNTEER TO BE ON THE DOWNTOWN WORKING GROUP.
MYSELF, CHARLES, SONYA SCHIFFER, AND PETER BRETON.
AND, UM, WE NEED TO HAVE, WE DON'T NEED TO HAVE, BUT I UNDERSTAND THERE MAY BE ONE MORE PERSON INTERESTED IN JOINING THE DOWNTOWN WORKING GROUP.
UM, SO I GUESS WE WOULD OPEN THE FLOOR UP TO THIS.
AND, AND BEFORE WE DO, I DO WANT TO LET, LET, UM, ALL OF OUR LIAISONS KNOW THAT YOU ARE CERTAINLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE.
WE'RE JUST TALKING ABOUT VOTING MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION THAT CONSTITUTE THAT QUORUM.
ACCORDING TO MY RECORDS, I SHOWED THAT COMMISSIONER LEVINSON, VICE CHAIR, ISHMAEL, COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER, AND COMMISSIONER VETO JOINED THE WORKING GROUP AT THE LAST MEETING.
SO THERE'S ONE SPOT AVAILABLE FOR THE WORKING GROUP.
NOW, NOW THAT I'VE SAID THAT AND OUR DEAR LIAISONS, YOU ARE CERTAINLY INVITED TO PARTICIPATE.
YOUR, YOUR VOICE IS DEFINITELY NEEDED IN THE PROCESS.
BUT AS FOR VOTING MEMBERS, DO WE HAVE ANOTHER VOLUNTEER COMMISSIONER? KOAL HAS RAISED HER HAND.
AND SHE HAS SAID THAT SHE, SHE WOULD BE WILLING TO SERVE ON THE, ON THE, UH, UH, THE WORKING GROUP IF THAT, YEAH.
SO DO WE NEED A MOTION TO, UH, WE DO NEED A MOTION TO APPROVE THE, THE BODY OF THE WORKING GROUP.
SO IT, SO PETER, DID YOU, WERE YOU ON IT LAST TIME? YEAH, I THINK SO.
I, I BELIEVE, UM, I FEEL SO BAD BECAUSE I'VE FORGOTTEN, UH, THE, THE MADAM TO MY LEFT ON THE SCREEN IN WHITE.
UM, UH, BUT I HAD MENTIONED I WOULD BE HAPPY TO SERVE IF SHE DID NOT WANT TO OH, OKAY.
THAT I WOULD BE HAPPY TO BE AN ALTERNATE.
AND, AND SO EVERYBODY KNOWS, AND THIS IS UP TO THE WORKING GROUP AND TO, UM, THE COMMISSION AS A WHOLE, UM, I WOULD EXPECT THAT THE WORKING GROUP WOULD COME BACK FREQUENTLY TO REPORT UPDATES AS IT PROGRESSES WITH ITS WORK.
AND THAT CERTAINLY CREATES THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL OF THE COMMISSION TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION.
IT'S JUST THAT THE WORKING GROUP CAN ONLY HAVE, UH, CANNOT HAVE A, A, A QUORUM OF THE, THE COMMISSION THE TIMELINE FOREVER.
THE, ACTUALLY, THERE, THERE TYPICALLY ARE SOME TIME LIMITS ON WORKING GROUPS.
[00:40:01]
TO BE SHORT IN NATURE, SO IT COULD BE THAT YOU PASS A RECOMMENDATION AND THEN REFORM WITH A DIFFERENT SCOPE AS THE WORK PROGRESSES.UM, SO I WOULD IMAGINE THAT YOU'LL, UM, THAT WILL HAPPEN WITH TIME.
IT'S, WOULD IT, WOULD IT BE APPROPRIATE TO ALLOW TO CONTINUE TO PARALLEL THE CITY'S PROCESS UNTIL THEY SUBMIT TO COUNCIL? YES.
SO MAYBE FIVE TO SIX MONTHS MM-HMM
OF THE WORKING GROUP, AND THEN YOU CAN RECONSTITUTE TO, TO ADDRESS SOMETHING ELSE GOING FORWARD, OR A SECTION OF THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN OR SOMETHING, WHATEVER YOU DECIDE TO DO.
CHAIR AT THIS MA'AM POINT, THE, THERE ARE FOUR MEMBERS OF THE WORKING GROUP ALREADY.
SO IF COMMISSIONER KOEL WOULD LIKE TO SERVE, WE WOULD JUST NEED TO TAKE A MOTION TO ADD OR TO THE WORKING GROUP.
UH, WELL, SO THOSE HAVE ALREADY BEEN VOTED ON AND APPROVED.
WELL, THEY DON'T TECHNICALLY NEED TO BE VOTED ON.
THEY VOLUNTEERED TO, UM, TO JOIN LAST TIME.
THERE WERE FOUR IF YOU WANT ME TO READ THEM AGAIN INTO THE RECORD, BUT THEY ARE IN THE MINUTES, SO, OKAY.
UH, WELL THEN COMMISSIONER KOFA WILL BE THE FIFTH MEMBER OF THE, THE WORKING GROUP.
BUT SINCE IT'S IN ADDITION, WE WOULD DO NEED TO TAKE ACTION ON ADDING HER.
UM, DO I HAVE A MOTION IN FAVOR? I HAVE A MOTION IN FAVOR.
[FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS]
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE, UH, WATERLOO GREENWAY COME TO OUR NEXT MEETING.THEY WEREN'T ABLE TO MAKE IT TONIGHT.
UH, AND WE'RE GOING TO GET AN UPDATE ON THE WATERLOO GREENWAY, AND WE'VE GOT A FULL AGENDA.
THERE SHOULD ALSO BE SOME, AN UPDATE ON THE, UM, MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS IN THE SEA HOME AREA.
YEAH, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO GET ON THE SCHEDULE FOR MM-HMM
UM, OTHER, OTHER ITEMS? I GUESS IT'S SORT OF NEW, UM, SINCE WE WERE JUST TOLD THAT THERE WILL BE A MEMO TO COUNSEL IN FEBRUARY.
SHOULD WE PLAN ON CHAD COMING BACK IN FEBRUARY? I THINK THAT WOULD BE FINE.
IF, IF STAFF COULD ARRANGE THAT.
CHAD, YOU'RE STILL ON THE LINE? YES, WE CAN, WE CAN RETURN IN FEBRUARY.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS WAS TALKING ABOUT THE LAST MEETING, I DON'T THINK IT WAS, BUT, UM, MAY WANT TO JUST NOTE FOR THE AGENDA, THE CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION THAT WAS PASSED, UH, ON THE 12TH THAT RECOMMENDED THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION BE MERGED WITH THE SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT COMMISSION.
UM, THAT'S PROBABLY SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE FLAGGED FOR FUTURE ACTION.
SOMETHING TO, TO, UH, WE CAN CERTAINLY HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS ABOUT THAT AND WITH CLERK'S OFFICE.
UH, I THINK THERE IS CONVERSATION ABOUT, UM, REALIGNING OTHER BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AS WELL.
AND SO THAT IS SOMETHING FOR THIS COMMISSION TO, TO BE MINDFUL OF.
UM, THERE WAS SOMETHING ELSE I HAD ON MY MIND.
UH, I CAN'T REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS, BUT I WILL SAY, UM, WE, WE'VE HAD A GOOD YEAR.
UH, IT'S HARD TO BELIEVE THE YEAR'S UP.
UH, THIS IS OUR LAST MEETING OF 2024, AND WE'RE SET FOR 2025.
UH, WE'VE GOT AN AMBITIOUS PROGRAM FOR NEXT YEAR.
I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.
I WANT TO THANK, IN PARTICULAR OUR STAFF.
CHRISTY, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK.
OUR, OUR AV STAFF IS YOU'RE GREAT.
UH, AND I WANT TO THANK OUR LIAISONS AND I'VE, I'VE DONE THIS SEVERAL TIMES AND I WANNA REEMPHASIZE THIS BECAUSE I SEE SEVERAL OF Y'ALL ONLINE AND, AND WE MISS SEEING YOU HERE.
UH, BUT, UH, OUR LIAISONS ARE SUCH AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE WORK THAT WE DO HERE, AND THEY ARE SUCH AN IMPORTANT VOICE, AND I DO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT Y'ALL KNOW THAT, UM, TO REACH OUT, UH, FOR IF YOU HAVE A REPORT TO MAKE TO, UH, THE COMMISSION, UM, SINCE WE CHANGED THE WAY THINGS WERE LAID OUT A LITTLE BIT, UM, WE HAVE NOT HAD AS MUCH INPUT FROM YOU GUYS.
AND I URGE YOU, UH, IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S COMING BEFORE YOUR BORDER COMMISSION THAT YOU DO, UM, BRING IT TO US, UH, BECAUSE WE'D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT IT AND IT WHERE IT AFFECTS DOWNTOWN.
BUT THANKS EVERYBODY FOR YOUR HARD WORK, FOR YOUR PATIENCE, FOR YOUR ATTENDANCE.
UM, I WANNA WISH EVERYBODY, I WISH EVERYBODY
[00:45:01]
A VERY HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON.SO I, I, IT'S A PLEASURE TO WORK WITH THAT.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THERE,
UM, BUT I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR YOUR HARD WORK.
AND I WANNA WISH YOU THE MEST CHRISTMAS HAPPY HOLIDAY, HOWEVER YOU CELEBRATE, AND A WONDERFUL AND GLORIOUS 2025.
UH, AND WITH THAT, THERE BEING NO FURTHER BUSINESS OF THE COMMISSION.