Apr 09, 2025 Airport Advisory Commission

[00:00:03]

UM,

[CALL TO ORDER]

WE'RE CALLING THIS MEETING TO ORDER AT 3:01 PM PRESENT ARE LYNN HENDRICKS, FONG FONG, MYSELF, PATRICK ROSE AND DOYLE VALDEZ.

AMY, IS THERE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATION TODAY? OKAY.

OH, WE HAVE ONE MORE.

HELLO? COMMISSIONER C**N.

WELCOME.

CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES.

AND WE CAN HEAR YOU.

OKAY.

VERY GOOD.

AND HI, JEFF.

HELLO.

HELLO, BAKARI.

WE'LL WAIT FOR YOU TO, UH, COMPLETE ATTENDANCE ON SCREEN.

WOULD THE CHAIR PERMIT ME TO MAKE A COUPLE OF REMARKS WHILE WE'RE WAITING FOR FOLKS TO JOIN? OKAY.

YES, PLEASE.

UH, YOU HAVE TO SEE IT COMING.

.

UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYBODY.

THIS IS JASON ALEXANDER.

I'M THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF AIRPORT AFFAIRS FOR AUSTIN BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT.

UM, AND TODAY I WANTED TO MAKE EVERYONE AWARE IF YOU WERE NOT ALREADY, THAT IT IS OUR CHAIR'S LAST MEETING WITH US AS CHAIR AND ALSO AS THE DISTRICT 10 REPRESENTATIVE ON THIS COMMISSION.

SO I WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE HER AND JUST ON A PERSONAL, BUT ALSO A PROFESSIONAL NOTE, JUST THANK HER, UH, FOR ALL OF HER SERVICE ON THIS COMMISSION FOR THE EIGHT YEARS SHE'S BEEN DOING IT.

UM, AND FOR THE TWO YEARS THAT I'VE BEEN IN THIS ROLE, REALLY HELPING STEER THE SHIP AND GUIDE ME ON A LOT OF CRITICAL DECISIONS, AND I JUST COULDN'T BE MORE THANKFUL.

AND I APPRECIATE ALL YOU'VE DONE TO SUPPORT STAFF AT THESE MEETINGS.

SO THANK YOU.

YOU ARE WELCOME.

AND AS IT IS, UM, I'M VERY GRATEFUL TO, TO YOU AND TO STAFF.

OH, I GOT VIRTUAL APPLAUSE.

THANK YOU ALL.

YEAH.

ONE MINOR CLARIFICATION.

IT'S BEEN FIVE YEARS.

YEAH.

BUT SEEMS LIKE EIGHT SEEMS WE, WE'VE SPENT THE AMOUNT OF MONEY FOR EIGHT YEARS, BUT IT'S, IT'S BEEN FIVE AND A LITTLE CHANGE.

YEAH.

OKAY.

IF YOU DON'T MIND, I'M GONNA ADD SOMETHING, ADAM CHAIR, SO ABSOLUTELY.

TO, JUST TO MAKE AN INTRODUCTION, UH, OUR CHAIR'S SPOUSE, DAVID TODD, IS IN ATTENDANCE.

EVERYBODY SHOULD SAY HI TO DAVID.

WE, UH, IT, IT'S BEEN FOR ME TWO YEARS AND, UM, AUSTIN IS A GREAT CITY FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS.

ONE OF THEM IS THAT IT ATTRACTS SMART PEOPLE WHO ARE ENGAGED TO LEAN IN, WORK HARD, AND DO IT FOR THE RIGHT REASONS.

I HAVE REALLY MADAM CHAIR, BEEN IMPRESSED BY YOU WALKING THAT WALK.

LEARNED A LOT FROM YOU AND APPRECIATE YOUR SERVICE.

AND I KNOW THAT'S SHARED BY PROFESSIONAL STAFF AND BY VOLUNTEER COMMISSIONERS.

AND UNDERLINING MY THANKS AND RESPECT, THAT IS VERY GENEROUS.

AND OF COURSE, IT'S A MIRROR OF THE, UM, COMPETENCE AND COMMITMENT OF EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE ROOM.

SO THANK YOU.

MAKES IT EASY FOR ME.

UM, WHICH ISN'T TO SAY, AND MAYBE THIS IS THE TIME TO DO THIS, I WAS GONNA WAIT TO FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. I, I MAY SURPRISE YOU WITH FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. HOLD, WE'LL HOLD, PUT A PIN IN THAT FOR LATER AND WE'LL MOVE TO,

[APPROVAL OF MINUTES]

DO I HAVE A MOTION? MOVE APPROVAL.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

SECOND.

COMMISSIONER VALDEZ.

UM, SECRETARY ROSE SECOND.

UM, ARE THERE ANY CHANGES? NOTES? UM, SEEING NONE WILL, UM, WILL APPROVE THOSE MINUTES WITHOUT A VOTE.

ACCLIMATION.

OKAY.

UM, MOVING ON TO STAFF BRIEFINGS TODAY, I UNDERSTAND IS A BIG DAY FOR THE AIRPORT, AND WE HAVE A LOT OF THE OTHER DEPUTIES, UH, AT THE AIRPORT TODAY AND ELSEWHERE.

UM, BUT WE'RE RAJIV THOMAS, CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICERS NOT HERE.

HOWEVER, WE HAVE HIS DEPUTY CORRECT IN THE DEPARTMENT.

FINANCIAL MANAGER.

FINANCIAL MANAGER.

THANK YOU.

MM-HMM .

GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS.

MY NAME IS WILL MACK.

I AM THE, UH, FINANCIAL MANAGER OF THE OPERATING BUDGET HERE TO PRESENT ON RAJEEV'S BEHALF FOR THE FEBRUARY, 2025 FINANCIALS.

UM, WE ARE, UH, HAPPY TO PRESENT THESE TO YOU TODAY.

WE SERVED 687,000 PASSENGER IN EMPLOYMENTS IN THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY, WHICH IS 5.9% BELOW WHAT WE DID.

THE, THE PRIOR YEAR AVERAGE DAILY DEPARTURES TOTALED 217 IN THE MONTH, WHICH IS A DECLINE FROM 223 THE PRIOR YEAR.

WE HAVE SEEN SOME CHANGES IN SERVICE, UH, THAT ARE, THAT ARE DRIVING THAT EMPLOYMENT AND DEPARTURE NUMBER.

[00:05:01]

THESE UPDATES ARE PRIMARILY RELATED TO THE UPDATED RATES AND CHARGES, UH, MODEL IN THE YEAR.

AND, UH, THE OPERATING REVENUES, UM, YEAR TO DATE HAVE INCREASED 10% OR $12.6 MILLION.

OPERATING EXPENSES INCREASED 9% OR $1.1 MILLION.

THE DRIVER OF THE OPERATING EXPENSE CHANGE IS INCREASED STAFFING.

WE HAVE IMPROVED OUR VACANCY RATE SIGNIFICANTLY FROM, UH, FEBRUARY, 2024 TO FEBRUARY, 2025.

UH, ADDITIONALLY, WE ONBOARDED TEMPORARY STAFF TO ASSIST WITH PASSENGER FLOW AND, UH, UH, IMPACTS RELATED TO OUR A EDP YEAR.

TO DATE, THOSE OPERATING EXPENSES INCREASED 15% OR $9 MILLION.

THE SURPLUS TOTALS $28.6 MILLION THROUGH FEBRUARY, 2025.

THAT IS A 12% DECREASE COMPARED TO THE PRIOR YEAR.

WE HAVE INCREASED EXPENSES AND INCREASED, UH, DEBT SERVICE THAT ARE IN EXCESS OF OUR REVENUE GROWTH.

THERE'S ALSO SOME TIMING, UH, DIFFERENCES JUST WITH, UH, HOW THE EXPENSES ALIGN THROUGH THE YEAR.

SO BY THE END OF THE YEAR, WE, WE ANTICIPATE WE'LL BE, UM, PRETTY EVEN WITH WHAT WE, WHAT WE EXPECT AND ON PAR WITH, WITH OUR BUDGET.

HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

WELL, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND THANKS FOR EXPLAINING THAT TO US.

COMMISSIONERS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? UH, COMMISSIONER KON, I JUST HAD A QUESTION ABOUT CARGO.

WE DON'T USUALLY SEE CARGO DECREASE.

ANY IDEA WHY THAT HAPPENED? YEAH, WE HAVE SEEN SOME, UH, VOLUME CHANGES FROM SOME OF OUR CARGO CARRIERS.

UM, JAMIE MAY BE ABLE TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION AND, AND IF, IF NOT, THEN WE CAN DEFINITELY GET BACK TO YOU WITH A MORE SUBSTANTIVE RESPONSE ON WHAT IS HAPPENING THERE.

THANKS.

THIS ALSO MAY BE A JAMIE QUESTION.

THIS IS A GOOD QUESTION, JONATHAN.

I'VE BEEN WATCHING THAT ALSO.

UM, IS THIS TRACKING WITH OTHER AIRPORTS OF OUR SIZE ACROSS THE COUNTRY WITH DECREASED, UH, PASSENGER NUMBERS AND DECREASED CARGO? SO ON THE CARGO SIDE, WE HAVE SEEN, UM, SOME CHANGES IN US MAIL.

IT'S A, IT'S A SMALL PROPORTION OF OUR CARGO TRAFFIC, BUT IT, IT'S NOT INSIGNIFICANT IN THE PAST.

UM, AND THAT IS A CHANGE THAT HAS BEEN IMPACTING OTHER AIRPORTS MORE BROADLY.

UM, WE'D HAVE, I'D HAVE TO DIG IN A LITTLE BIT MORE ON THAT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE BROADER INDUSTRY IMPACT ON CARGO IS.

AND WE CAN DO THAT AND, AND PROVIDE YOU MORE INFORMATION ON THE, IN PLAINNESS.

WHAT WE'VE SEEN YEAR TO DATE IS MOSTLY RELATED TO CHANGES IN, UH, IN SERVICE OFFERINGS THAT WE'VE HAD FROM AIRLINES.

UH, I THINK IN THE COMING MONTHS WE'LL SEE MAYBE BROADER, UH, IMPACTS OF BROADER ECONOMIC IMPACTS, UH, AND SEE HOW THAT'S IMPACTING TRAFFIC BOTH HERE AND BROADLY INDUSTRY.

BUT WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION RIGHT NOW TO POINT TOWARDS ANYTHING OF THAT NATURE.

VERY GOOD.

THANK YOU, COMMISSIONERS.

WE READY TO MOVE ON? THANKS.

UM,

[3. Briefing on Air Service Update provided by Jamy Kazanoff, AUS Air Service Development]

IS JAMIE ON THE LINE? SHE IS NOT, BUT WE WERE KIND OF FEARFUL THAT SHE MIGHT HAVE TROUBLE.

SO I'VE PREPARED A COUPLE OF NOTES I CAN DELIVER ON HER BEHALF.

THANK YOU.

UM, BUT AS WE'VE DONE IN THE PAST, ANY QUESTIONS I MAY HAVE TO DEFER TO HER.

SO BEAR WITH ME.

UM, WELL, GOOD AFTERNOON COMMISSIONERS.

JASON ALEXANDER, DEPUTY CHIEF AIRPORT AFFAIRS.

UM, JAMIE IS TRAVELING ON BUSINESS.

SHE IS IN A DIFFERENT TIME ZONE, SO, UH, HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET HER ON THE NEXT, UH, QUARTERLY OR UH, MONTHLY MEETING.

UM, JUST A COUPLE HIGHLIGHTS FROM HER REPORT THAT SHE WANTED ME TO MENTION IF SHE WEREN'T ABLE TO JOIN.

THAT IS A QUARTERLY NUMBER OF SEATS FOR SALE.

APRIL THROUGH JUNE IS UP 1% OVER THE SAME PERIOD LAST YEAR, AND OVERALL UP 38% COMPARED TO PRE COVID LEVELS.

UM, WE ARE ANTICIPATING, UH, QUITE A BIT OF NEW SERVICE STARTING THIS MONTH AND OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, UH, YOU'LL SEE IN THE REPORTS THERE, UH, SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS, UH, BUT A PARTICULAR NOTE, SOUTHWEST FRONTIER, DELTA, WESTJET, AND SPIRIT ARE ADDING SERVICE.

AND, UH, SHE WANTED ME TO POINT OUT THAT THIS REPRESENTS, UH, WHAT SHE DEEMS A NICE MIX OF LARGE CARRIERS AND ULTRA LOW COST CARRIERS.

UH, WE ALSO HAVE SOME NEW NONSTOPS, UH, THAT'LL BE LAUNCHED BETWEEN MAY AND DECEMBER OF THIS YEAR.

UH, MOST OF THOSE ARE YEAR ROUND.

AND THERE ARE SOME SEASONAL ROUTES, AND YOU'LL SEE THOSE LISTED AT THE TOP OF PAGE THREE OF YOUR REPORT.

UH, IN ADDITION, DELTA, THEY'VE ADDED CABO, UH, FOR HOLIDAYS ONLY, UH, DECEMBER 20TH THROUGH JANUARY 5TH, AND I BELIEVE DAILY SERVICE IS ON SALE NOW.

[00:10:01]

UH, SHE WANTED TO ADD THAT WE DO CONTINUE TO SEE AND HEAR ABOUT SOFTENING IN THE ECONOMY.

AND OH, SHE'S ON, IF SHE CAN HEAR ME WELL, I'M GONNA FINISH THE NOTE AND THEN SHE CAN TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU.

UM, JUST TO ADD THAT WE DO CONTINUE, UH, TO SEE AND HEAR ABOUT SOFTENING IN THE ECONOMY AND TRAVEL DEMAND REDUCING.

AND WE DO EXPECT THIS TO AFFECT TRAVEL AT A US, BUT AS OF NOW, WE CANNOT REALLY FORECAST HOW MUCH OR WHAT THAT IMPACT WILL BE.

UM, A US CANNOT SEE ADVANCED AIRLINE BOOKINGS, UH, BUT OUR REPORTS PROVIDED TO THIS COMMISSION ARE HISTORICAL INFORMATION AND ACTUAL FLOWN AND SEATS FOR SALE.

UM, SO JAMIE IS CONTINUING TO MONITOR THAT, UH, WITH OUR AIR SERVICE DELIVERY TEAM.

AND, UH, SHE CAN TAKE ANY QUESTIONS NOW THAT I SEE HER ON SCREEN.

THANK YOU, JASON.

HI, JAMIE.

UM, HELLO.

SORRY ABOUT THAT.

IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU'D LIKE TO ADD TO, UM, JASON'S COMMENTS? NO, NOT REALLY, BUT I THINK WE NEED TO SORT OF BRACE OURSELVES A LITTLE BIT FOR SOME CAPACITY CUTS, UM, COMING IN OUR FUTURE.

SO WE NEED TO PREPARE FOR THAT BASED ON ALL THE ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTY AND THE TRAVEL DEMAND SOFTENING.

SO WE CAN PREPARE A LITTLE BIT FOR SOME ANNOUNCEMENTS OF PERHAPS SOME CAPACITY CUTS.

AND BY CAPACITY YOU MEAN THE, THE SIZE OF THE PLANE THAT IS CARRYING THE ROUTES MAY STAY, BUT THE, UM, THE PLANES THEMSELVES MAY BE SMALLER CRAFT? YES, I THINK, I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT.

IT MAY ALSO BE THE NUMBER OF FREQUENCIES OKAY.

UH, FOR SOME OF THESE ROUTES.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

UM, TRAVEL SAFELY.

THANK YOU.

ALRIGHT, THANKS FOR BEING HERE, COMMISSIONERS.

DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR JIMMY KAZEN OFFICE THIS AFTERNOON? OH, HELLO, COMMISSIONER MELA IS HERE.

AND UM, GO AHEAD, SCOTT.

OKAY.

COME IN RACCOON.

OKAY.

THE, UM, HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO TRACK THE KINDS OF, UH, KINDS OF THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING WITH COMMERCIAL AIRLINES WITH DELTA? UH, THE RUMOR IS THAT THEY'RE AFTER SOUTHWEST AND, UH, THAT KIND OF THING.

BUT MY CONCERN IS HOW THAT SHOULD BE REFLECTED IN THE WAY THE TERMINAL HANDLES THINGS.

I MEAN, AMERICANS GOT THIS GREAT BIG HUGE, UH, BAGGAGE, UH, UH, AREA, UH, SOUTHWEST, NOT SO MUCH.

DELTA'S DOWN AT, UH, GATE EIGHT, I GUESS A BRAND NEW ONE, UH, THAT PEOPLE CAN'T SEEM TO FIND.

THE, UH, THE QUESTION I GOT IS HOW FAST SHOULD THE AIRPORT, UH, RESPOND TO THAT IN TERMS OF THE WAY WE LOOK AT AIRLINES AND OUR SERVICES WITH REGARD TO THAT? WELL, I MEAN, THE AIRLINES, UM, WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE THAT WE HAVE A NICE, UM, MIX OF NETWORK AND HYBRID AND ULTRA LOW COST.

AND THERE WILL BE CHANGES THE AIRPORTS SET UP WHERE THERE ARE PROPRIETARY GATES AND FACILITIES.

AND ALSO COMMON USE.

THE COMMON USE IN THE PROPRIETARY CAN BE, UM, STRATEGICALLY REVIEWED AND HANDLED BY THE OPERATIONS AND THE COMMERCIAL MANAGEMENT TEAM AS FAR AS SPECIFIC GROUPINGS.

NOW I KNOW THAT THE COMMERCIAL MANAGEMENT TEAM WORKS TO HAVE, UM, ALLIANCES SIMILARLY GROUPED WHENEVER POSSIBLE.

FOR EXAMPLE, DELTA KLM, AROL, MEXICO, AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO SEE MORE OF THAT AS THE BUILD OUT HAPPENS.

MORE OF THAT, UM, STRATEGIC REVIEW.

AIRPORTS CANNOT FORECAST WHEN AIRLINES WILL MAKE MAJOR CHANGES.

WE JUST CANNOT.

BUT, UM, STRATEGICALLY YOU CAN GROUP ALLIANCES AND YOU CAN ENSURE THERE IS COMMON USE AND OVERFLOW EVENTUALLY THAT CAN, UH, ASSIST WITH ANY MAJOR CHANGES.

THANK YOU, JAMIE.

AND WHILE YOU'RE ON THE LINE, WE HAD A PREVIOUS QUESTION FROM COMMISSIONER KUHN REGARDING THE, THE DROP IN CARGO.

AND ARE YOU ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT BRIEFLY THIS AFTERNOON?

[00:15:03]

I KNOW THAT, UM, WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION YET.

WE GET SOME INFORMATION FROM OUR LOCAL MANUFACTURERS.

AND WERE YOU REFERRING TO OVERALL AIR CARGO OR INTERNATIONAL SPECIFICALLY? AS FAR AS DIGGING INTO THAT? WE DO PLAN ON DOING AN IN-DEPTH AIR CARGO REVIEW WHERE AUSTIN STANDS.

AND WHEN WE HAVE THAT REVIEW DONE, WHICH I BELIEVE WILL BE READY BY OCTOBER ONE, WE'LL BE ABLE TO SHARE SOME OF OUR AIR CARGO, UH, EXISTING INFORMATION ALONG WITH HOW AUSTIN CAN BETTER POSITION OURSELVES IN THE AIR CARGO REALM.

THIS REPORT IS UPDATED ABOUT EVERY THREE YEARS.

I DON'T HAVE ANY SPECIFIC DATA OTHER THAN ANECDOTAL THROUGH THE NEWSPAPERS AND OTHER THINGS ABOUT THE SOFTENING.

BUT YES, WE CAN ALSO EXPECT SOFTENING OF AIR CARGO.

I'VE NOT HEARD SPECIFICALLY WHY THERE WAS A DROP AT THAT LEVEL.

THANK YOU.

THANKS SO MUCH.

UM, COMMISSIONER MEDO, ARE WE READY TO MOVE ON OR DO YOU HAVE A FOLLOW UP FOR JAMIE? WELL, I HAVE A, UH, THIS IS A JAMIE QUESTION, BUT WE CAN DO IT LATER.

UH, ONE OF THE THINGS I RAN INTO, UH, THIS, I GUESS WEEK BEFORE LAST, I GOT OFF A, UH, AIRCRAFT FROM THAT WAS SOUTHWEST FROM NEW YORK CITY INTO HERE AFTER SPENDING THREE, UH, NONSTOP FLIGHTS COMING BACK FROM INDIA WHEN WE GOT HERE THAT THERE WAS A THUNDERSTORM IN PROGRESS AIRLINES.

EACH INDIVIDUAL AIRLINE HAS A DIFFERENT POLICY WHEN IT COMES TO WHAT THEY DO WHEN THEY HAVE LIGHTNING IN THE VICINITY.

UH, BECAUSE THIS WAS AFTER MIDNIGHT, UH, SOUTHWEST WAS OFFLOADING THEIR BAGS LIKE CRAZY AMERICAN.

WE WERE UN-AMERICAN.

UH, THEY WERE NOT OFFLOADING BAGS.

UH, THE PASSENGERS WERE EXCITED, UH, FROM AMERICAN TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY WENT OFF THE RAILS.

UM, I WALKED INTO, UH, THE, UH, AMERICAN BAGGAGE.

I, 'CAUSE I KNEW THOSE GUYS, AND I SAID, I'M NOT GONNA ASK YOU ANY, I'M, I'M GONNA ASK YOU A QUESTION AND I'M NOT OFFENDED AND I'M NOT SURPRISED THAT ANY ANSWER YOU'RE GONNA GIVE ME, BUT WHY? AND EACH AIRLINES HAS THEIR OWN POLICIES WITH REGARD TO OFFLOAD BAGS, SPECIFICALLY WHEN THERE'S THUNDERSTORMS IN THE VICINITY.

I'M WONDERING WHETHER OR NOT IT WOULD BE WISE FOR US TO ASK FOR THAT POLICY.

NOT SO MUCH THAT WE, UH, ARE INTERESTED IN INFLUENCING THAT BECAUSE THAT IS A COMPANY ISSUE AND IT'S A SAFETY ISSUE TO THEM.

BUT IF WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO HELP ANSWER THE PASSENGER'S QUESTIONS WITH REGARD TO THAT, BY AT LEAST BEING ABLE TO SAY, LOOK, THE AIRLINES HAVE THEIR OWN POLICIES AND IT'S A SAFETY ISSUE WHEN YOU HAVE THUNDERSTORMS IN THE VICINITY.

WELL, I KNOW WE HAVE A ROBUST GUEST SERVICES PROGRAM AND THERE'S A LOT OF TRAINING IN THAT.

AND I KNOW YOU ARE A VOLUNTEER AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR WORK INSIDE THE TERMINAL AND ALWAYS POINTING OUT THIS TO US AND OTHER INFORMATION.

UM, I CAN HAND THAT QUESTION OVER.

I DON'T OVERSEE THE GUEST SERVICES PROGRAM, BUT WE CAN HELP MAKE SURE THAT THE POLICIES THAT ARE PUBLISHED BY THE AIRLINES ARE INCLUDED.

BUT YOU DID THE RIGHT THING BY ASKING THE AIRLINE DIRECTLY, UM, WHAT'S GOING ON.

UM, TRACY OR I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE A, A REPRESENTATIVE FROM GUEST SERVICES IN THE, IN THE ROOM THAT MAY, MAY BE ABLE TO HELP, UH, ELABORATE ON THE ANSWER HERE, THERE, THE, AND BY ASKING THAT QUESTION IN, IN NO WAY DO I BELIEVE THAT THE AIRPORT OUGHT TO INTERVENE ON AN AIRLINE POLICY WITH REGARD TO THUNDERSTORMS IN NEAR VICINITY.

THAT'S THEIR ISSUE.

THEY'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR IT.

BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE IN GUEST SERVICES OR VOLUNTEERS OR WHATEVER THEY'RE DOING TO BE ABLE TO MAYBE SATISFY IN SOME WAY THE, UH, PEOPLE THAT ARE OBSERVING

[00:20:01]

I AGREE.

AND WE'LL CHAT WITH THE GUEST SERVICES MANAGER WITH THIS SUGGESTION.

THANK YOU, SCOTT.

YEAH, THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

AND WE'RE

[4. Briefing on Journey with AUS (AUS AEDP/Capital Improvement Program) Active Projects provided by Lyn Estabrook, Deputy Chief Development Officer]

GOOD AFTERNOON, LYNN.

GOOD AFTERNOON COMMISSIONERS.

UM, SHE SAID, LYNN ESTABROOK, UH, IF WE PULL THE PRESENTATION UP, I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT A COUPLE OF THINGS THIS MONTH, A FEW NEW PICTURES FOR YOU.

UM, AND SO ON THE PACKET, IF YOU HAVE YOUR PACKET IN FRONT OF YOU, IT'S ITEM PAGE NUMBER 28, BUT WE CAN SCROLL TO THE WEST INFILL AND CHECK TSA CHECKPOINT.

SO THIS IS A GREAT NEW PICTURE OF THE GLASS WALL.

UM, IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN TO THE AIRPORT RECENTLY AND YOU DRIVE UP ALONG THE MAIN DRIVE THERE, YOU WILL SEE NOW GLASS RIGHT UP AGAINST, UM, OR RIGHT NEAR THE, THE ROADWAY THAT'S ELEVATED.

AND SO THAT PROJECT IS MOVING ALONG REALLY QUICKLY.

AND THE IMAGE ON THE BOTTOM IS THE LOWER LEVEL THAT YOU DON'T SEE IN THE TOP IMAGE.

AND THAT IS WHERE THE EXPANDED, UM, PHASE TWO OF THE BAGGAGE SYSTEM IS GOING.

AND YOU CAN SEE A BLUE LINE IN THERE.

AND THAT'S A BELT, UM, A BAGGAGE BELT.

THAT'S WHAT THAT BLUE LINE IN THE IMAGE IS THERE.

UM, THIS PROJECT IS ON ON SCHEDULE TO BE OPEN UP IN THE SPRING, UM, OF 26.

SO IT'S VERY EXCITING AND, AND MOVING QUICKLY.

UM, THE NEXT IMAGE, IF YOU CAN SCROLL TO THE PARKING GARAGE, UM, ALTHOUGH IT'S NOT A NEW IMAGE, I DIDN'T WANT IT TO SAY THAT THE UPDATE IS THAT THEY'RE ACTIVELY MOVING, UM, DIRT OUT THERE.

AND THE PROGRESS IS, UM, QUICKLY, UM, MOVING ALONG TO MEET THE EX EXPEDITED SCHEDULE THAT WE ARE WORKING ON MAKING, UH, HAVING THE HALF SOUTH HALF SIDE OF THAT GARAGE ACTIVE, UM, FIRST BEFORE THE NORTH SIDE OF THE PROJECT IS SO THAT WE CAN EXPEDITE THE, UM, REMOVAL OF THE ORIGINAL PARKING GARAGE, WHICH IS THE RED GARAGE.

SO THAT PROJECT IS MOVING AND IT'S, UH, ON SCHEDULE RIGHT NOW.

AND, UM, IT'S EXCITING TO SEE DIRT MOVE OUTSIDE OF MY WINDOW EVERY DAY.

.

UM, AND THE OTHER PROJECTS I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT IN THE VERY NEXT PAGE IS THE ATRIUM INFILL.

UM, WE WILL BE HAVING GROUNDBREAKING MAYBE SOMETIME IN JUNE.

UM, WE'RE WORKING WITH OUR LEGISLATIVE TEAM TO MAKE SURE WE CAN FIND A DATE THAT WORKS FOR ALL OF THEM, UM, WITH COUNSEL AND, AND MAYOR, ET CETERA.

AND, UM, THIS PROJECT HAS ORDERED, UM, THE, THEIR STEEL, SO THAT IS GOOD .

THAT IS VERY GOOD.

AND THEY ARE ACTIVELY MOVING TO NEGOTIATE THE NEXT, UM, GMP, WHICH IS THE REST OF THE PROJECT THERE.

AND THEY LOOK TO START ACTUAL, UM, CONSTRUCTION IN MAY.

AND SO IF YOU DO, UM, COME TO THE TERMINAL IN, UM, LATE MAY AND OR THIS SUMMER, YOU WILL SEE CONSTRUCTION WALLS UP AND AROUND, UM, THE ATRIUM INFILL, WHICH IS AT THE CONCOURSE LEVEL.

AND THERE'LL BE NIGHTLY CLOSURES OF ONE BAGGAGE CLAIM AT A TIME ON THE LOWER LEVEL.

UM, BUT WE WILL, WE'RE TRYING TO MITIGATE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE ANY CLOSURES OR DISRUPTIONS.

BUT NO, THERE WILL BE NOISE THAT WILL BE HAPPENING.

UM, THE CONSTRUCTION WILL BE HAPPENING AT NIGHT FROM ABOUT MIDNIGHT THROUGH 8:00 AM BUT UM, STILL, IF YOU ARE ARRIVING ON A LATE FLIGHT COMING IN AT 2:00 AM OR AT 1:00 AM YOU MAY, UM, HEAR SOME NOISE.

SO JUST KNOW THAT WE ARE WORKING TO TRY TO MITIGATE THAT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

BUT WE'VE GOT TO TO WORK IN A, UM, ACTIVE, ACTIVE AIRPORT SITE.

SO BE PATIENT WITH US PLEASE.

AND THOSE ARE THE PROJECTS I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT IT THIS MONTH.

THANK YOU, LYNN.

ANY QUESTIONS FOR LYNN? COMMISSIONERS? I HAVE A GO AHEAD.

I JUST GOT, JUST, JUST QUICKLY, LYNN, YOU'VE GOT SO MANY DIFFERENT PARALLEL PATHS THAT YOU'RE WORKING RIGHT NOW.

IS THERE ANYTHING THAT GIVES YOU PAUSE? ANY ONE OF THOSE THAT IS OF MOST CONCERN OR AT A HIGH LEVEL? AT, AT A HIGH LEVEL, THE THINGS I CAN'T CONTROL ARE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.

AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE LOTS OF AGREEMENTS THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM ON.

UM, AND THEY'RE TAKING A LITTLE LONGER THAN IN THE PAST MM-HMM .

AND SO THAT'S WHAT, WHAT WOR WORRIES ME THAT PROJECTS WILL BE DELAYED, UM, BECAUSE OF IS THAT THE FTA STAFF? IS THAT NO, THERE ARE, UM, REIMBURSABLE AGREEMENTS, THERE ARE GRANTS, THERE ARE OTHER THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THAT'S KIND OF JUST SLOWED DOWN A LITTLE.

UM, THE PROCESSES ARE GETTING A LITTLE, UM, MORE, UM, LONGER.

YEAH, THEY'RE JUST GETTING LONGER.

[00:25:01]

I CAN WORK WITH THE CONTRACTORS TO MITIGATE PHASINGS AND, UM, TRY TO REDUCE DISRUPTION, BUT I CAN'T CONTROL ALL THEIR OTHER ENTITIES LIKE THAT.

MM-HMM .

AND WHEN DID YOU NOTICE THAT THAT SLOWING BEGAN? JUST CURIOUS.

UH, A FEW MONTHS AGO.

MM-HMM .

JUST TO, UH, THIS MAY NOT BE A QUESTION FOR YOU OR MAYBE FOR WILL.

THE, THE MONIES THAT WERE PROMISED TO THE AIRPORT THROUGH THE FAA GRANT PROGRAM, ARE THEY COMMITTED BY FAA OR IS THAT STILL PART OF THE SLOWDOWN? THAT THERE'S A PAUSE ON REIMBURSEMENTS AND, UM, YOU KNOW, YOUR ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE FROM FOR THESE GRANT MONIES? UM, LAST MONTH, THE FINANCE TEAM, UH, KATHY CAME AND GAVE A REALLY GOOD REPORT ON THE STATUS OF THOSE GRANTS.

WE'RE STARTING TO SEE SOME MOVEMENT IN SOME OF THOSE REIMBURSABLE.

WE DO REIMBURSABLE GRANTS MOSTLY AT THIS AIRPORT WHERE WE PAY FOR THINGS AND THEN SEEK REIMBURSABLE FROM THE GRANT THAT'S BEEN ALLOCATED TO US AND ENCUMBERED TO US.

UM, SO THAT'S GOOD NEWS THAT WE'RE SEEING SOME MOVEMENT THERE.

COMMISSIONER MADDO, OH, SORRY.

HONG, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION TOO? OKAY.

ALL RIGHT, SCOTT, AND THEN FA UH, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS I HAD IS, UH, WHEN YOU'RE DOING A LOT OF THESE PROJECTS, THEY OBVIOUSLY IMPACT OPERATIONS.

DO YOU HAVE A, UH, MEETING BETWEEN OPERATIONS AND THE CONTRACTOR AND YOUR ENGINEER AND SAY, AND TO, TO, TO BASICALLY MAKE SURE THAT, UH, OVERALL THE, THE PROJECT IS GOING SMOOTHLY AND IT DOESN'T IN AFFECT THE, UH, UH, PUBLIC AS BAD? UM, I'LL GIVE YOU AN EX EXAMPLE.

WE, WE DID, UH, UH, LA LAST WEEK, HE DID SOME WORK WITH, WITH, UH, THE BAGGAGE MM-HMM .

AND, UH, WE, AND ENDED UP LAST, LAST MINUTE.

UH, I, I'M OPERATING AT A DIFFERENT LEVEL.

I'M SORRY IF I'M TELLING YOU WHAT'S GOING ON AT, AT THE DIRT FLOOR, BUT, BUT SUDDENLY WE GET THIS PIECE OF PAPER, OKAY, THIS BAGGAGE SYSTEM IS GONNA BE CLOSED AT THIS TIME.

WELL, IT'S PRETTY LATE TO TELL THE DELTA PASSENGERS THAT PICK UP THEIR, THEIR BAGS ON THE NEW CAROUSEL DOWN ALL THE WAY DOWN TO, WAS IT SIX OR SEVEN? UH, SEVEN, THE NEW ONE, UH, THAT THAT'S NOT GONNA BE THERE.

IT'S GONNA BE UP AT, AND, AND YOU GET KIND OF, I MEAN, TRYING TO HAVE TO JUGGLE ALL THAT, THAT KIND OF THING ALONG WITH THE SENSE OF HUMOR OR THE CUSTOMER THAT YOU'RE FACING.

BUT, UM, BUT ALL THOSE THINGS GO ON.

I, I'VE BEEN IN THAT, I'VE BEEN IN THAT SHOES, AND I KNOW, AND, AND YOU GOTTA GOTTA TRY TO REFEREE THAT BEFORE IT HAPPENS.

UH, HOW'S THAT GOING? CAN WAIT.

UH, BEF LYNN, BEFORE YOU RESPOND TO THIS, AND COMMISSIONER AL, IT SOUNDS LIKE THE KINDS OF QUESTIONS YOU'RE ASKING TODAY ARE GUEST SERVICES QUESTIONS.

AND I WOULD, I, ALTHOUGH WE APPRECIATE HEARING THEM IN AT THIS MEETING, I THINK THAT THEY'D BE BETTER ANSWERED BECAUSE THEY SERVE YOU AND THE GUEST SERVICES TEAM.

WE'RE, WE'RE NOT, WE DON'T, WE'RE NOT VOLUNTEERS.

SO IF YOU COULD, IT COULD BE, BUT THAT REPRESENTS, YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M ASKING A QUESTION.

I THINK THAT REFLECTS OH, SURE.

HOW THE PROJECT IS BEING, BEING MANAGED AND WHAT THE, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S, WHAT'S HAPPENING.

AND I, I, I KNOW IT'S DIFFICULT, BELIEVE ME, I KNOW IT'S DIFFICULT, BUT, BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT HOPEFULLY WE'RE DOING WELL.

SO THE PROJECT TEAMS DO HAVE WEEKLY, UH, MEETINGS WITH OPERATIONAL STAFF AS WELL AS MONTHLY MEETINGS WITH LEADERSHIPS AND WEEKLY MEETINGS WITH EXECUTIVES AS WELL, DEPENDING ON THE PROJECT, THE OPERATIONAL DECISIONS ABOUT HOW TO MOVE PEOPLE AROUND WHICH BAGGAGE CLAIMS, WHICH GATES, THAT'S ALL OPERATIONS.

IT'S NOT, UM, DEPENDENT ON THE PROJECT OR THE PROJECT TEAM.

AND SO, UM, WE CAN GET, GET WITH OPERATIONS AND GUEST SERVICES TO TRY TO HELP RELIEVE SOME AND ANSWER SOME OF YOUR QUESTIONS.

BUT THE PROJECT TEAMS DO HAVE THOSE INTEGRATED, UH, WEEKLY AND MONTHLY PROJECTS, TEAM MEETINGS.

THANK YOU.

I RECOGNIZE THAT I'M OPERATING AT THE WRONG LEVEL HERE,

[00:30:02]

WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND COMMITMENT TO, UM, THE AIRPORT AND, AND YOU REPRESENT THE FLYING PUBLIC WHO ARE NOT FAMILIAR NECESSARILY WITH THE, WITH THE POLICY.

SO THANKS FOR BRINGING THOSE FORWARD TODAY.

BUT I WOULD, I, I GUESS TOWANDA WOULD BE, UM, CORDON AND, UM, AND, AND GUEST SERVICES IS UNDER OPERATIONS, CORRECT? MM-HMM .

CORRECT.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

I'M GONNA MOVE ON TO HONG KONG.

THANKS FOR THE UPDATE, LYNN.

UM, IT'S GOOD.

GREAT TO HEAR THAT WE LOCKED DOWN THE PRICE FOR THE STEEL.

UM, BUT HAVE YOU HEARD ANY HEADS UP WARNING, YOU KNOW, CONCERNS FROM OTHER CONTRACTOR VENDORS, UH, REGARDING THE PO POTENTIAL IMPACT FROM THE EVER CHANGING TARIFFS? YEAH, THE, WE'RE TRYING TO KEEP UP WITH WHAT'S HAPPENING.

UM, IT'S UP AND DOWN ALL THE TIME.

UM, OF COURSE, IF YOU SAW THE STOCK MARKET THE OTHER DAY, RIGHT? IT'S ALL OVER THE PLACE.

UM, WE ARE WORKING CLOSELY WITH A NUMBER OF OUR DIFFERENT PROJECTS, INCLUDING THE CENTRAL UTILITY PLANT AND OTHER PROJECTS TO SEE IF WE CAN GET SOME EARLY, UM, GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE SUBMITTALS THAT ARE BOTH EQUIPMENT, UM, AND OR MATERIALS.

AND SO WE ARE ACTIVELY LOOKING AND TRYING TO MAKE THOSE, UM, DECISIONS AHEAD OF TIME SO THAT WE CAN TRY TO LOCK IN SOME THINGS BEFORE IT, IT MAY, IT, IT MAY CAUSE SOME ISSUES AND WE MAY HAVE TO GO BACK TO COUNSEL TO GET MORE AUTHORITY IF, IF TARIFFS DO GO TO 30 OR 40% FOR SOME MATERIALS.

COMMISSIONERS, ARE WE READY TO MOVE ON FROM THIS ITEM? THANKS SO MUCH, LYNN.

GOOD LUCK WITH ALL THE PROJECTS.

UM, AND

[5. Briefing on the appointments of Gregory S. Milligan and Rustin Roussel to the AustinBergstrom Landhost Enterprises, Inc. (ABLE) board of directors provided by Jason Alexander, Deputy Chief of Airport Affairs]

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU CHAIR.

UH, THIS SHOULDN'T TAKE TOO LONG.

I REALLY JUST WANTED TO SHARE FOR THE COMMISSION'S AWARENESS.

UH, AND FOR THE RECORD THAT LATER THIS MONTH, APRIL 24TH, WE ARE GONNA BE TAKING A RESOLUTION FORWARD FOR COUNCIL APPROVAL TO APPOINT TWO NEW, UH, DIRECTORS TO THE ABLE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

ABLE IS, UH, THE ABLE BOARD IS A SEPARATE BOARD, UH, THAT OVERSEES THE ACTIONS OF THE, UM, ABLE CORPORATION, UH, WHICH IS THE AWESOME BERGSTROM LAND HOST ENTERPRISES.

UM, THEY OVERSEE THE FINANCING, UH, THE PURCHASE REHAB OPERATION, AND EVEN THE MANAGEMENT OF THE AIRPORT HILTON.

UM, WE'VE GOT TWO VACANCIES ON THERE NOW.

UH, MOST RECENTLY, JENNIFER WILLIAMS, WHO USED TO WORK FOR THE DEPARTMENT, UH, HAS DEPARTED.

SHE'S NOW, UH, RELOCATED TO ANOTHER ROLE IN NORTH CAROLINA.

WE MISS HER DEARLY.

UM, BUT THAT TRIGGERED FOR US A NEED TO GO AHEAD AND MOVE FORWARD ON THESE, THOSE APPOINTMENTS ARE RECOMMENDED BY THE DEPARTMENT.

AND THEN, UM, TAKEN TO COUNSEL FOR FINAL APPROVAL.

UM, WE, SINCE IT'S A STAFFING ISSUE FOR A A CORP, A GOVERNMENT ENTITY THAT'S SEPARATE FROM THE AIRPORT ADVISORY COMMISSION PURVIEW, WE DON'T REALLY WEIGH IN ON THIS, BUT I DO HOPE THAT SOMEONE ON THE COMMISSION DOES TRACK THIS, BECAUSE THERE IS SOME DEBT OUTSTANDING FOR THAT HOTEL.

AND, UM, THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN, UM, SOME OTHER ISSUES PREVIOUS, AND IT, IT IS AN ASSET.

UH, COLONEL WAS ALL, YOU'LL HAVE TO TELL US, WHAT DID IT USED TO BE CALLED? THE AIRPORT HOTEL, THE, THE WESTERN PENTAGON.

WHAT WAS THE NAME FOR THE AIRPORT HILTON AT WHEN IT WAS COMMAND STATION? WHAT, WHAT WAS ITS NICKNAME? THE LAST DOOR ON THE LEFT.

IT'S A CIRCULAR BUILDING.

OKAY.

ALL RIGHT.

WELL, UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT, JASON.

AND AGAIN, KEEP AN EYE ON THAT.

UM, THEY MEET, I BELIEVE THEY MEET AS NEEDED OR QUARTERLY.

THOSE MEETINGS ARE POSTED ON THE CITY WEBSITE, BUT WE ARE NOT BRIEFED ON THEM.

WE'RE NOT IN INVITE.

WE CAN, YOU CAN GO.

THEY ARE PUBLIC, AND I WISH SOMEONE WOULD GO.

HOWEVER, I NEVER KNEW WHEN THEY WERE.

I ALWAYS FOUND OUT AFTER THE FACT.

AND THERE IS A WEBSITE ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE THAT HAS INFORMATION ABOUT IT, AND IT'S BEEN THE PROCESS OF BEING UPDATED TO REFLECT THE CURRENT, UM, BYLAWS AND INFORMATION.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

NOW'S THE FUN PART.

UM, WE'RE UP TO DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS. UM, WE CAN TAKE UP THE, UM, ITEM NUMBER NINE FIRST, OR WE COULD DO THE ELECTIONS AS AS STATED, BECAUSE ONCE, UM, ONCE, UH, ONCE WE VOTE FOR A NEW, UM, DOCKET, THE MEETING IS HANDED OVER TO THE NEW OFFICER.

SO MAYBE THAT'LL BE FUN.

OKAY.

SO ITEM AGENDA, ITEM NUMBER SIX IS NOMINATION.

I, I SUGGEST WE GO TO NINE OH AND YOU WORK THROUGH TO THE END.

OKAY.

I SECOND I'LL, YEAH, I'LL SECOND.

I'M GLAD.

OKAY,

[00:35:01]

TAKE IT AS A COMPLIMENT.

FANTASTIC.

OKAY.

ITEM

[9. Authorize seven contracts for capital improvement program management services for the Department of Aviation with Abadjis Systems Ltd.; AECOM Technical Services, Inc.; Geometrics Engineering, P.S., Inc.; Hill International, Inc.; Parson’s Transportation Group Inc.; STV Construction, Inc.; and Sunland Group, Inc., each for an initial term of five years with up to two one-year extension options in amounts not to exceed $35,000,000, divided equally among the contractors or the department may choose any contractor that can provide the required services. Funding: $2,083,333 is available in the Department of Aviation 2024-2025 Capital Budget. Funding for the remaining contract term is contingent upon available funding in future budgets. [This solicitation was reviewed for subcontracting opportunities in accordance with City Code Chapter 2-9B (Minority-Owned and WomenOwned Business Enterprise Procurement Program). For the services required for this solicitation, there were no subcontracting opportunities; therefore, no subcontracting goals were established. However, four of the recommended contractors identified subcontracting opportunities.]]

IS THERE SOMEONE HERE TO SPEAK TO ITEM NUMBER NINE TODAY? LYNN'S GONNA, OKAY, LET ME JUST READ, READ IT, PUT IN FOR THE RECORD.

IT, IT IS THE AUTHORIZATION FOR SEVEN CONTRACTS FOR THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SERVICES FOR THE MANAGEMENT SERVICES FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION.

I AM GONNA HAVE A HARD TIME PRONOUNCING, UM, AIS SYSTEMS LIMITED, AECOM, GEOMETRICS, HILL, PARSONS TRANSPORTATION, STV, AND SUNLAND EACH FOR AN INITIAL TERM OF FIVE YEARS.

SO THAT'LL BRING YOU TO 2030 WITH UP TO TWO ONE YEAR EXTENSION OPTIONS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $35 MILLION DIVIDED EQUALLY AMONG THE CONTRACTORS OR THE DEPARTMENT.

OR THE DEPARTMENT MAY CHOOSE ANY CONTRACTOR THAT COULD PROVIDE REQUIRED SERVICES.

JUST A SECOND.

THERE IS APPROXIMATELY $2 MILLION AVAILABLE IN THIS YEAR'S.

UM, CAPITAL BUDGET, UM, FUNDING IS CONTINGENT UPON THE FUNDING FOR FUTURE BUDGETS.

UM, THERE WAS NO SMBR OR PROCUREMENT FOR THIS BECAUSE THE FIRMS THEMSELVES ARE PERHAPS WOMEN OR MINORITY OWNED.

UM, YEAH, IT SAYS THAT FOUR OF THE RECOMMENDED CONTRACTORS IDENTIFIED SUBCONTRACTING OPPORTUNITIES THERE.

SO THIS I, I, I UNDERSTAND IS FOR, UM, STAFF ENHANCEMENT FOR PROGRAM MANAGEMENT.

AND I'M GONNA HAND THIS OVER, BACK TO LYNN.

LYNN TO, UH, YES.

THIS, THESE CONTRACT WILL PROVIDE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM MANAGEMENT SERVICES IN SUPPORT OF THE AIRPORT'S ROLLING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, AS WELL AS THE EXPANSION PROGRAM TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS OF INFRASTRUCTURE, UM, IMPROVEMENTS AND HELP US, UM, DELIVER THE PROJECT.

SO THIS CONTRACT WILL PROVIDE, UH, AUGMENTED STAFF, UM, AND THREE OF THE FIRMS LISTED ARE SMALL BUSINESS, UH, SMALL MINORITY BUSINESSES.

AND I BELIEVE AN ADDITIONAL, UM, FIRM IS A SMALLER FIRM, UM, AS WELL.

AND THIS CONTRACT WAS SPECIFICALLY PROCURED TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEIR S FOR THOSE SMALL COMPANIES TO BID AS PRIME.

AND SINCE WE HAVE THREE OR SO OF THOSE, UH, ABOUT HALF OF THE TEAM THAT WAS SELECTED, OUR SMALL BUSINESSES, I THINK IT THAT WAS RELATIVELY SUCCESSFUL.

UM, IT IS HARD, I KNOW FOR MANY OF THESE SMALL COMPANIES TO GO UP AGAINST LARGER COMPANIES.

AND, UM, I'M PROUD THAT THREE OF THEM WERE SELECTED AND THAT THAT SHOWS SOME, UM, GROWTH THERE FOR THE CITY.

UM, THANK YOU.

DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? SO MOVED.

OKAY.

UH, SECOND ROSE, SECOND MEALL.

OKAY.

WE HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS.

WHEN DID THE PROCUREMENT, THE SOLICITATION RATHER GO OUT FOR THIS NOW? I WENT, NOW MY COMPUTER WENT DEAD.

OH, NOT DEAD, BUT, UH, OUT, IT WENT OUT.

GIMME A SEC.

YOU ASKED ME A DIFFERENT QUESTION WHILE I PULL THIS UP TO GET YOU THE DATES.

I GOTTA LOG BACK IN.

IT WENT OKAY.

I'LL ASK A COUPLE QUESTIONS AT THE SAME TIME.

THERE WE GO.

ARE THESE FIRMS, FIRMS THAT ARE FAMILIAR WITH, UM, WORKING AT THE AUSTIN AIRPORT OR IN AUSTIN FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN, OR WITH STAFF AT THE AIRPORT? SOME OF THE FIRMS HAVE WORKED FOR THE AUSTIN AIRPORT.

SOME OF THE FIRMS HAVE BEEN SUBS OF PRIMES BEFORE.

SOME OF THESE THAT ARE PRIMES NOW HAVE BEEN SUBS.

UM, AND, UM, THERE'S ALSO SOME NEW, UM, THAT HAVEN'T, LIKE HILL, UM, I BELIEVE HAS NOT DONE WORK AT AUSTIN AIRPORT PERFORMER OR PERHAPS EVEN STV.

SO IT'S A, IT'S A GOOD MIX.

SO THESE ARE SUBJECT AREA EXPERTS ON PROJECT MANAGEMENT.

AND THIS IS, AND CURRENTLY IF THIS, IF THIS WERE LIKE A SMALLER PROJECT, YOU WOULDN'T NEED TO HIRE OUTSIDE CONSULTANTS TO DO THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT.

YOU COULD DO IT IN HOUSE WITH THE, IF PRESUMING YOUR DEPARTMENT WAS STAFFED UP WITH PROJECT MANAGERS.

AND ISN'T THAT THE WAY PROJECTS USED TO BE RUN AT THE AIRPORT? YEAH, SO WE HAVE, UM, A SMALLER GROUP OF AVI AVIATION CITY EMPLOYEES.

UM, WE HAVE WORKED TO TRY TO GROW THAT, THAT TEAM.

UM, SOMETIMES WE'RE SUCCESSFUL AND SOMETIMES WE'RE NOT.

WE'VE POSTED POSITIONS SIX, SEVEN TIMES AND ONLY GOTTEN THREE OR FOUR PEOPLE.

SO SOME OF MY PROJECT TEAM THAT ARE CITY EMPLOYEES HAVE, YOU KNOW, 12, 15 OR MORE PROJECTS.

SO THIS WILL HELP, UH, RELIEVE, ESPECIALLY ON THE CAPITAL, THE ROLLING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM TO HELP RELIEVE SOME OF THOSE PROJECTS SO THAT WE CAN GET THINGS FROM, UM, SIDEWALKS TO ROADWAYS ALSO, UM, FIXED AS WELL AS THE LARGER PROGRAM.

AND SO THIS IS TO AUGMENT NOT ONLY PROJECT MANAGERS, BUT CONSTRUCTION MANAGERS AS WELL.

SO PEOPLE IN THE FIELD

[00:40:01]

HOW, HOW ARE THESE FIRMS? I UNDERSTAND THAT THEY'RE GONNA USE THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE CONTRACT AND, AND FIRM THAT WAS RECENTLY HIRED FOR, I THINK THAT WAS ANOTHER $35 MILLION.

HOW, UM, WILL THESE FIRMS OPERATE WITH THAT? THEY HAVE SECURITY CLEARANCE TO WORK IN THAT SPACE.

SO THE STAFF AUGMENTED, UM, PEOPLE THAT WE SELECT WILL BE PICKED ON A, A ROTATING BASIS AS A AD AD HOC CALL.

IF I HAVE A CALL FOR A PROJECT MANUAL, I'LL GET A RESUME.

WE'LL REVIEW THAT RESUME, SELECT THAT PERSON, AND THEY'LL BE THROUGH THE NORMAL CLEARANCE THAT HAS TO HAPPEN AT SECURITY.

THEY WILL SIT ON THE THIRD FLOOR WITH THE REST OF THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM AND FOLLOW ALL THE SAME POLICIES AND PROCEDURES AS THAT TEAM, INCLUDING USING OUR SOFTWARE, WORKING WITH OUR PROJECT CONTROLS TEAM, AND WORKING WITH ALL OF OUR COMMUNICATION STAFF AND, UM, OPERATIONAL STAFF.

SO THEY WILL, IN ESSENCE, WORK UNDER MY TEAM AND, AND MY TEAM'S LEADERSHIP.

UM, AND THEY WILL BE INTEGRATED INTO, IT'LL BE LIKE ANOTHER EMPLOYEE.

DO YOU HAVE AN INDICATION OF ASSUMING, YOU KNOW, IN AN OLD, IN THE OLD WORLD, WE WOULD HAVE FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES DEDICATED TO THIS PROJECT? AND DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THE MULTIPLIER IS FOR THE NUMBER OF FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES THAT ARE POTENTIALLY NEEDED FOR PROJECT MANAGEMENT WITH THIS CONSULTING NUMBER? I MEAN, WE ARE, I MEAN, WE WANT EVERYONE TO HAVE A LIVING WAGE AND HAVE PROSPERITY, BUT I THINK LIKE OTHER, UH, THIRD PARTY CONTRACTS FOR OTHER SERVICES, IT'S, IT SEEMS AT LEAST DOUBLE, IF NOT MORE, LIKE FOR THE, FOR THAT KIND OF WORK.

THE CITY HAS NEVER BUILT $4 BILLION IN ONE PLACE AT A TIME BEFORE.

SO WE ARE TRYING TO MAKE SURE ENOUGH CONTROLS ARE IN PLACE THAT EVERYTHING IS DONE IN, IN THE RIGHT WAY.

AND, YOU KNOW, KNOWING BACK WHEN WE BUILT THE ORIGINAL AIRPORT 25 YEARS AGO, UM, I WAS TOLD BY THE TEAM THAT WORKED ON IT THEN THAT IT WAS ROUGHLY ABOUT 130 PEOPLE.

AND WE KNOW THAT WITH TECHNOLOGY THAT'S IMPROVED SOME, SOME THINGS, BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE SITTING CLOSER TO 30 TO 50 PEOPLE.

SO IT'S, IT'S STILL, THERE STILL NEEDS TO BE MORE AS WE START DESIGNING CONSTRUCTION ON SOME OF THESE PROJECTS, WE NEED TO RAMP UP FOR ADDITIONAL STAFF.

OKAY.

COMMISSIONERS, DO WE HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS FOR LYNN AT THIS TIME? ARE WE ONLINE COMMISSIONERS? ER, KON? JONATHAN, DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION? YEAH, IT'S, I, IT'S BASICALLY WHAT YOU WERE JUST ASKING.

IT, IT SEEMS LIKE, ARE WE JUST DOING THIS TO, SO THAT WE CAN HIRE PEOPLE THAT WE CAN'T, 'CAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY TO HIRE THESE FOLKS? I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S REALLY THE SAME QUESTION THAT WAS JUST ASKED IS IT'S VERY CURIOUS.

I MEAN, IT'S $5 MILLION A YEAR.

HOW MANY PEOPLE IS THIS THAT WE THINK ARE GONNA BE HIRED? I'M, I'M, I'M CONFUSED BY IT, I HAVE TO ADMIT BECAUSE, AND THEN IT SAYS DIVIDED EQUALLY AMONG THE CONTRACTORS OR, UH, I GUESS STAFF COULD CHANGE THAT, RIGHT? WHY DOES IT EVEN SAY THAT IT MIGHT BE DIVIDED EQUALLY AMONG THE CONTRACTORS? WHY WOULD IT BE DIVIDED EQUALLY? AND SOME OF THE, THE CON SOME OF THE FIRMS THAT BID OR ARE FOCUSED FIRMS, I'LL USE THAT WORD, YOU KNOW, THEY MAY HAVE, YOU KNOW, GRANT WRITERS OR SOMETHING MORE, MORE PROJECT MANAGERS VERSUS CONSTRUCTION MANAGERS.

SO DEPENDING ON OUR NEED, IT, IT MAY NOT BE AN EXACT EQUAL DIVISION, UM, OF, OF LABOR.

AND, UM, IT'S ALL BASED ON RATES, UM, THAT ARE SET WITHIN THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS.

AND SO IT, IT WILL DEPEND ON, YOU KNOW, UM, DO I GET TO KEEP MY STAFF? DO I HAVE MORE STAFF THAT LEAVE FOR ANOTHER AIRPORT LIKE JENNIFER DID AND I HAVE TO GET MORE STAFF OR, OR, SO IT JUST DEPENDS ON THE, THE EACH, EACH YEAR'S NEED.

AND LYNN, UH, I THINK JUST MORE TO THE BASE QUESTION THAT'S COME UP, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE ROLES ARE SPECIALIZED IN NATURE AND THEY'RE PROBABLY NEEDED FOR PORTION OF THE TIME OF THE LIFE OF THE PROJECT.

UH, MAYBE IT'S IN THE DESIGN PHASE, MAYBE IT'S IN THE BUILD PHASE, BUT SOME OF THESE ROLES ARE MAYBE NOT NEEDED BY THE DEPARTMENT ON A FULL-TIME BASIS POST-CONSTRUCTION.

AND SO THIS STAFF AUGMENTATION ITEM IS ARGUABLY NOT TOO DISSIMILAR FROM WHAT OTHER LARGE AIRPORTS WITH LARGE CAPITAL PROGRAMS DO.

MAKES SENSE.

OKAY.

WELL, WE'LL, I DO HAVE A, A QUICK FOLLOW UP, UH, QUESTION IF YOU DON'T MIND.

UH, JOE, THANK YOU.

SO WE, WE THANK YOU.

IN READING THE, THE POSTING, IT SOUNDS ALMOST LIKE THE, THE ROLLING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT AND APOLOGIES FOR THE NOISE IS A RECLAMATION OR KIND OF RECYCLING PROJECTS AS DESCRIBED.

[00:45:01]

LIKE HOW DO WE SQUARE THAT CIRCLE? HOW SHOULD WE BE THINKING ABOUT THAT? I DON'T KNOW IF I UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION ASKED.

SURE.

SO AT LEAST BY MY READING ON PAGE, THE OVERALL PAGE 50 OF THE PACKET MM-HMM .

UH, UNDER THE ADDITIONAL BACKUP INFORMATION HEADING FIRST PARAGRAPH, YOU KNOW, ABOUT A QUARTER WAY THROUGH, THERE'S WORRYING AROUND THE ROLLING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS FOCUSED ON END OF LIFE PROJECTS FOR SYSTEMS COMPONENTS, ET CETERA.

AND SO IT JUST LEFT ME TO BELIEVE THAT THIS IS MORE OF LIKE A, A WAY TO PROJECT MANAGE SORT OF LIKE THE WASTE OR ANCILLARY PROJECTS FROM THE A-A-A-E-D-P AND NOT INITIALLY JUST A, A WORKFORCE DOCUMENTATION MOTION.

SO I'M JUST ASKING FOR CLARITY ON HOW WE SHOULD BE THINKING ABOUT THIS.

THE STAFF THAT MAY COME OFF THIS CONTRACT MAY DO EITHER AND OR BOTH.

UM, AN EXPANSION PROJECT IN A CAPITAL, A ROLLING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT, UM, LIKE A ROADWAY REPAIR OR, UM, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

SO IT JUST DEPENDS ON THE NEED AT THE TIME, UH, OF WHICH, YOU KNOW, AND, AND WORKLOAD MANAGEMENT, UM, WHAT THE STAFF WILL DO.

AND TO ADD TO THAT COMMISSIONER, UH, OR VICE CHAIR, I, I'M NOT SURE I'VE TOTALLY TRACKED 'CAUSE YOU CUT OUT A, A PORTION, BUT I DO WANNA ALSO EMPHASIZE THAT GOING BACK TO THE, THERE ARE CERTAIN SPECIALIZED ROLES THAT SOME OF THESE WILL, UH, SERVE AS STAFF AUGMENTATION FOR, BUT IN NO WAY DOES THIS SUPPLEMENT SOME OF THE CORE OPERATIONAL STAFFING OF THE DEPARTMENT.

UH, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE HAVING TO, TO CONSTRUCT STAFFING PLANS NOW FOR WHEN THE, UH, SECOND CONCOURSE OPENS, AND THOSE WILL BE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION, CITY OF AUSTIN STAFF THAT DO THE SAME WORK THAT THEY DO NOW.

SO WHAT, WHAT YOU'RE APPROVING HERE TODAY OR RECOMMENDING FOR APPROVAL HERE TODAY IS NOT IN ANY WAY GONNA SUPPLEMENT THAT CORE WORK.

UH, BUT THIS DOES SUPPLEMENT OR AUGMENT SOME OF THE STAFFING NEEDS THAT ARE EXISTING WITH THAT TRACK, WITH THE A EDP SPECIFICALLY.

UNDERSTOOD.

APPRECIATE THAT.

THANK YOU.

ALL RIGHT THEN.

UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR LYNN OR JASON AT THIS TIME? UM, THE LITTLE MONTHS, UH, MASS THAT I, I HEARD IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THREE TO 50 STAFF, WE WOULD'VE HIRED, UH, FOR THE CURRENT PROJECT.

YOU, SO I MAY, I MIGHT HAVE UNDERSTOOD IT WRONG, BUT IN THE PAST 25 YEARS AGO, THERE WAS LIKE A HUNDRED SOME PEOPLE, BUT NOW IF WE HIRE PROBABLY SOMEWHERE, LET'S SAY THE HIGHER END OF 50 PEOPLE, AND IF EACH ONE OF THEM ARE HA EARNING THE SALARY, UM, A HUNDRED THOUSAND PER YEAR, WOULD THAT BE REASONABLE FOR THE PROJECT MANAGER'S ROLE? AND IF THAT MA AT MASS ADD UP TO 5 MILLION, AND THEN NOW WE'RE ASKING A CONTRACT OR FOR 35 MILLION, AND YOU'RE SAYING THIS IS FOR FIVE YEARS OR PER YEAR? THE 35 IS FOR ALL FIVE YEARS PLUS PLUS THE TWO, FIVE YEARS PLUS THE TWO, SO SEVEN YEARS.

OKAY.

SO SEVEN TIMES.

YEAH.

IT JUST, IT SEEMS LIKE A VERY STEEP NUMBER BASED ON WHAT WE WOULD EXPECT.