* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:03] WELL, GOOD MORNING [CALL TO ORDER] EVERYBODY. I WILL CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER. IT IS NINE 30. WE ARE IN THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ROOM AT CITY HALL, AND THE FULL COMMITTEE IS PRESENT. UM, DO WE HAVE ANY GENERAL, ONE GENERAL COMMUNICATION? ALL RIGHT. IF WE COULD PLEASE HAVE [Public Communication: General] CALL OUR FIRST SPEAKER. WE HAVE CAROLINE REYNOLDS, AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. THERE WE GO. AND GOOD MORNING. I'M CAROLINE. I'M CAROLINE REYNOLDS. I LIVE AT ON 49TH STREET IN DISTRICT SEVEN, AND I'M A MEMBER OF THE ALLENDALE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION SAFETY COMMITTEE. MY FIRST JOB BACK IN THE LATE SEVENTIES WAS AT THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH DIVISION OF SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT, WHERE WELDON AND I HANDLED ALL NON-ROUTINE ENFORCEMENT AND COMPLIANCE ISSUES. I WAS HIRED FOR MY CHEMISTRY AND CHEMICAL ENGINEERING KNOWLEDGE TO DRAFT THE AGENCY'S CO COMMENTS ON THE, THEN RECENTLY PROPOSED HAZARDOUS WASTE RULES CALLED CRA. BUT THE ISSUE WHO BRINGS THAT BRINGS ME HERE TODAY IS THE RECENTLY PROPOSED RESOURCE AND RECOVERY RULE THAT REGARDS THE PLACEMENT OF DISPOSAL BINS, ESPECIALLY ON SHELL CREEK BOULEVARD WHERE WE LIVE. I UNDERSTAND FROM MRS. NELSON THAT JACOBSON MCCOMBS HAS NOW CHANGED THE PROPOSED RULE TO READ CARTS SHALL NOT OBSTRUCT THE PATH OF MAIL DELIVERY, LOCATIONS, VEHICLES, AND DRIVEWAYS, BIKE PATHS AND SIDEWALKS. OBSTRUCT IS AMBIGUOUS. THIS LEAVES THE SHOAL CREEK NEIGHBORS WONDERING WHERE THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO PUT THEIR RUBBISH RECYCLING AND YARD CLIPPING BINS. THE ONLY PLACES THE WEST SIDE RESIDENTS CAN PUT THEM ARE ON THE SIDEWALK, ON THE BIKE LANES OR IN THE NARROWEST STREET LANES. ALSO, THE BINS MUST BE REACHABLE BY THE ARM ON THE RR TRUCK. IT'S UNSAFE THE WAY THE THE RESOURCE RECOVERY TRUCK WEAVES IN AND OUT BETWEEN THE CAR LANE AND THE BIKE LANES THROUGH THE TURTLES AND THE STICKY UPS AND THE NUMEROUS SIGNS ON THE WEST SIDE OF SHOAL CREEK BOULEVARD. ALSO, ALL ALONG SHOAL CREEK LARGE TREES IMPEDE THE, THE TRUCK IN ITS ARM CODE NEEDS TO MAKE SENSE AND BE DOABLE. IT NEEDS TO BE UNDERSTANDABLE. MR. COMBS NEEDS, MCCOMBS NEEDS TO GO OUT TO SHOAL CREEK AND TRY OUT HIS IDEA FOR WHERE TO PUT THE BINS FOR THE RESOURCE RECOVERY PICKUP. MR. MCCOMBS NEEDS TO SEE HOW THE RAIL, THE RESOURCE RECOVERY TRUCK DROPS THE EMPTY BENDS, HIGGLY PIGGLY IN THE BIKE LANES WITH THE, WITH THE TOPS FLAPPING OUT. NEIGHBORS ASK, ARE WE SUPPOSED TO TAKE TIME OFF FROM WORK TO RACE HOME AND PICK UP THE EMPTY BINS IN THE BIKE LANES OFFENDING THE BIKE RIDERS WHO CALL A PD AND REQUEST THAT A TICKET BE ISSUED. STAFF NEEDS TO CARE ABOUT HOW THE NEIGHBORS LIVING NEAR THE PROJECTS FEEL AND WILL BE AFFECTED. STAFF IS DOING WHAT MANAGEMENT IS DOING, NOT LOOKING, NOT LISTENING, AND NOT CHECKING. STAFF AND MANAGEMENT NEED TO GET OUT OF THEIR OFFICE, LOOK AT THE PROJECT ACTUAL CONDITIONS BEFORE THEY START, TALK TO AND LISTEN TO RESIDENTS AND ASSURE THAT WHAT THEY WRITE WILL ACTUALLY WORK. AND THEN TO CHECK BACK AND ASSURE THAT IT'S SAFE AND WORKING. AS PROMISED, MANAGERS ARE NOT LEADING BY EXAMPLE. THEY SHOULD BE SPOT CHECKING PROJECTS UNDER THEIR SUPERVISION. ACTUALLY GO OUT AND LOOK AT THEM. THIS IS ABOUT ONE SINGLE SENTENCE IN PROPOSED CODE. MANAGERS ARE NOT LEADING. STAFF ARE NOT LOOKING AT ACTUAL CONDITIONS. LOOK AT THE TROUBLE. IT'S CAUSING A WASTE OF TIME AND A WASTE OF THAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR TESTIMONY. UM, WE'LL FOLLOW UP WITH THEM ON THIS TO, TO SEE WHAT WE CAN DO WITH THAT. UH, I BELIEVE THERE ARE NO MORE SPEAKERS. THAT'S CORRECT. ALRIGHT, SO WE WILL TAKE UP ITEM NUMBER ONE, [1. Approve the minutes of the Climate, Water, Environment, and Parks Committee meeting of April 1, 2025.] THE MINUTES. UH, IS THERE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? UH, VICE CHAIR ELLIS, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER SIEGEL. UH, ANY OBJECTION, ABSTENTION? ALRIGHT, MINUTES ARE APPROVED WITHOUT OBJECTION. UM, LET'S GO TO ITEM NUMBER TWO, [2. Briefing on proposed site-specific Land Development Code variances and amendments to facilitate construction of the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant Enhancement and Expansion Project [Shay Ralls Roalson, Director; Charles Celauro, Assistant Director - Austin Water].] A BRIEFING ON PROPOSED SITE SPECIFIC LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE VARIANCES AND AMENDMENTS TO FACILITATE CONSTRUCTION OF THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT ENHANCEMENT AND EXPANSION PROJECT. AND I WILL TURN IT OVER TO AUSTIN WATER. THANK YOU. IS THIS HOW I MOVE THE SCREEN, SIR? YES. OKAY. THANK YOU. [00:05:01] CHARLES SRO, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SERVICES WITH AUSTIN WATER. MY PROGRAM AREA IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION AND DELIVERY OF CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS SUCH AS THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. LAST MAY, THE CITY COUNCIL DID APPROVE, UH, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS FOR ABOUT A BILLION DOLLARS AT WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT FOR THE EXPANSIONS. AND SO IT'S A TRULY GENERATIONAL PROJECT THAT WE WERE, UH, THAT WE'RE DOING HERE. AND WE FEEL IT ALSO BRINGS SOME COMMUNITY BENEFITS. WHAT I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS TODAY IS HOW THE, WELL PULL THE MIC A LITTLE CLOSER TO YOU. OH, I'M SORRY. JUST A TOUCH. OKAY. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. UH, I'D LIKE TO GO THROUGH THE, HOW THE WALNUT CREEK, UH, SITS WITHIN OUR WASTEWATER SYSTEM AT PLANT HISTORY, HOW IT, HOW WE GOT HERE TO THE, TODAY, SOME OF THE PLANT UPGRADES THAT WE'VE DONE. THEN OF COURSE THE EXPANSION, THE FUTURE OF THE PROJECT. AND, UH, WE'LL GO THROUGH SOME OF THE PROPOSED LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE MINUTES WE LIKE TO DO. AND THEN, UH, LOOK AT THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION REVIEWS. SO THIS IS KIND OF THE WASTEWATER BY THE NUMBERS I CALL IT. UH, THIS IS JUST A FEW NUMBERS OF OUR, OUR, OUR SYSTEM OF OVERALL. UH, WE DO HAVE TWO REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS, THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT AND THE SOUTH AUSTIN REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. WHEN I SAY REGIONAL, I JUST MEANT REGION IN TERMS OF AREA. IT IS NOT REGIONAL, MEANING SERVING MULTIPLE CITIES. UM, BOTH THOSE LARGER PLANTS TAKE THE SOLIDS TO THE HORNSBY BIN BIO SOLIDS MANAGEMENT PLANT WHERE THOSE SOLIDS ARE ARE FURTHER PROCESSED INTO COMPOSTING AND DILLOW DIRT ON THE SCREEN. YOU CAN ALSO SEE SOME OF THE BLUE DOTS. THOSE ARE SOME OF OUR DECENTRALIZED FACILITIES, PACKAGE PLANTS, WE CALL THEM. AND THEY'RE KIND OF ON THE FRINGES OF THE WEST AND THE EAST SIDE OF, OF OUR SERVICE AREA. THIS IS A, A MAP SHOWING KIND OF WHERE WALNUT CREEK SERVES WITHIN THE CITY OF AUSTIN. UM, BASICALLY ABOUT WHERE 29TH STREET IS AND NORTH WHERE THE LINES ARE SHOWN IN RED IS THE SERVICE AREA FOR WALNUT CREEK. AND THEN FOR THE BLUE LINES KIND OF SOUTH OF THAT, THAT'S WHERE THE, THE SERVICE AREA FOR THE SOUTH AUSTIN REGIONAL PLANT SAYS. AND SO THOSE, THEY'RE NOT QUITE 50 50, I THINK WALNUT CREEK HAS A LITTLE BIT MORE FLOW CURRENTLY, BUT ABOUT 55, 45 PERCENTAGE. BUT IN GENERAL, ABOUT HALF THE, THE CITY GOES TO WALNUT CREEK WASTE WHERE OUR TREATMENT PLANT. SO LET'S GO THROUGH A LITTLE PLAIN HISTORY HOW WE GOT HERE. SO THIS IS A PICTURE TO THE RIGHT. THIS IS, UH, THE, THE OLDEST PICTURE I FOUND. UH, THIS IS, UH, EARLY, WELL MID, PROBABLY MID 1970S. THIS IS SHOWING THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE ORIGINAL, NOT THE ORIGINAL, BUT OF WHAT WE SEE TODAY. WHAT WE HAVE OUT IN THE FIELD TODAY OF A, OF AN 18 MILLION GALLON PER DAY PLANT. YOU CAN KINDA SEE THAT THERE'S, THE SITE WAS ACTUALLY ALREADY BEING USED ACTIVELY FOR WASTEWATER TREATMENT. IT APPEARS TO THE SOUTH. THERE IS SOME KIND OF A LAGOON SYSTEM THAT WAS ONCE THERE. SO I THOUGHT THAT IT WAS KIND OF A REALLY NEAT SLIDE WHEN I FOUND THAT. SO I'M GONNA SWITCH OVER THIS SLIDE NOW. WE'VE CHANGED THE PICTURE TO HOW IT LOOKS TODAY. THE CONSTRUCTION PHOTOGRAPH I SHOWED TO YOU YESTERDAY, UH, JUST, JUST A SECOND AGO OF THE 18 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY IS SHOWN IN BLUE IN THIS, IN THIS, UH, SLIDE. AND THEN IN 1987, ABOUT 10 YEARS LATER, WE WENT AHEAD AND UPGRADED THE PLANT TO 40 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY. AND THOSE SHOWN IN THE YELLOW BOXES. AND YOU CAN SEE ACTUALLY FOR THE 18 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY, WE HAD TO EXTEND THE TREATMENT BASINS FOR THAT TO GET TO THE 40 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY. AND THEN REALLY SHORTLY THEREAFTER, WE BUILT, UH, THE THIRD TRAIN TO GET UP TO 60 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY. AND THAT'S HOW THE PLANT SITS TODAY. UM, IN LATE 1990S, WE DID CHANGE THE OUTFALL FROM WALNUT CREEK, WHICH IS THE NAMESAKE OF THE PLANT TO THE COLORADO RIVER. SO THE OUTFALL DOES GO DIRECTLY TO THE COLORADO RIVER CURRENTLY. AND THEN IN 2005, WE BUILT WHAT WE CALLED HEADWORKS NUMBER TWO, WHICH IS SHOWN IN THE RED BOX THERE TO, AND BASICALLY RERATED THE PLANT FROM 60 TO 75 BEING GALLONS PER DAY, MEANING THAT, UH, THE HEADWORKS IS WHERE WE, WE TAKE SOME OF THE LARGER DEBRIS OUT OF THE, OF THE WASTEWATER STREAM. BUT IN TERMS OF THE TREATMENT FACILITIES, UH, WE DIDN'T INCREASE ANY OF BASIN SIZES. SO WE ACTUALLY WENT FROM 60 TO 75 WITHOUT INCREASING ANY, UH, BASINS. AND IN 2019, AS WE SAW, WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO WHAT WE MAY NEED TO EXPAND THE PLANT. WE CREATED AN OPTIMIZATION FACILITY PLAN TO SEE HOW WE SHOULD EXPAND THE PLANT. IT'S KIND OF A FEASIBILITY STUDY AS WELL AS LOOK, JUST OPTIMIZE THE PLANT. IS THERE ANY, IS THERE ANY EXCESS CAPACITY WE HAVE AVAILABLE? AND WE FOUND OUT WHEN WE WENT FROM 60 TO 75, WE KIND OF USE, UTILIZED THE, THE AVAILABLE CAPACITY OF THE PLANT. SO AS THE PLANT GOT ABOUT 30 YEARS OLD, UH, WE BEGAN SOME STRATEGIC RENEWAL PROJECTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE RELIABLE AND SUSTAINABLE, UM, [00:10:01] UH, WORKING PLANT. THESE ARE ABOUT 10 PROJECTS WE'VE DONE IN THE LAST 20 YEARS, AND ABOUT THE LAST 10 YEARS, IT REPRESENTS ABOUT A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF WORK. UM, I DO SHOW THE HEAD WORKS NUMBER TWO IN RED FROM THE PREVIOUS SCREEN. UM, THE OTHER LIGHTER BLUE, UH, UM, COLORED, UM, GREEN COLORED ARE THE PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE COMPLETED TO DATE. AND IN THE BOTTOM ONE I DO SHOW IN 2 25. WE ARE CURRENTLY IN, UH, IN A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT WITH A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK PROJECT RIGHT NOW FOR THE PRIMARY AND FLOW EQUALIZATION BASINS WHERE WE'RE, WE'RE REPLACING THE CLARIFIER MECHANISMS THAT ARE BELOW GROUND AND COVERED RIGHT NOW. SO AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'VE, WE'VE, OVER THE 30 YEARS WE'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF WORK WITHIN THE PLANT ITSELF TO MAKE SURE THE PLANT STAYS HEALTHY. SO NOW WE ARE LOOKING FOR THE FUTURE. WE FEEL THAT, UH, THIS PLANT IS GONNA BE A GENERATIONAL PROJECT FOR US AND, UM, WOULD BRING BENEFITS TO THE COLORADO RIVER FOR THE ENHANCED TREATMENT. YOU KNOW, I WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS SOME OF THOSE FOR US. SO THE FIRST ONE IS OBVIOUSLY THE PLANT EXPANSION ITSELF. UH, WE WILL BE GOING FROM 25, UH, WE WILL BE ADDING 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY TO THE PLANT. SO WE'LL GO FROM 75 TO 100 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY. KIND OF JUST A BREAKDOWN OF THE HISTORICAL FLOWS. WE, WE'VE SEEN, WE CROSSED 75% OF THE PLANT CAPACITY IN ABOUT 2015 AND APPROXIMATELY ABOUT 10 YEARS LATER NOW, WE ACTUALLY HAVE SURPASSED 90% OF THE TREATMENT CAPACITY FOR THREE MONTHS IN 2024. SO WE ARE GETTING KIND OF TO THE, TO THE, TO THE, TO THE, TO THE CAPACITY OF THAT PLANT, UM, PLANT MODERNIZATION. UM, AS MENTIONED, WE HAVE BEEN DOING SOME WORK ON REPAIRING SOME OF THE, AND REPLACING SOME OF THE AGING INFRASTRUCTURE. THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PLACES WE WOULD STILL LIKE TO DO THAT. THOSE ARE THE HEAD WORKS, NUMBER ONE IN THE, IN FLUENT LIFT STATION. SO WE'LL CONTINUE WITH THAT. WITH THIS PROJECT. UH, TREATMENT UPGRADE, WE ARE GOING TO, UH, UH, REVISE THE TREATMENT PROCESS. WHAT WE CALL CURRENTLY IS A CONVENTIONAL ACTIVATED SLUDGE TO BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL, B AND R, MEANING THAT WE WILL ACTUALLY REDUCE MORE OF THE NUTRIENTS OUT OF THE WATER. WE WILL TAKE THOSE OUT BEFORE IT DISCHARGES IN THE COLORADO RIVER. AN EXAMPLE OF THAT WOULD BE THE PHOSPHORUS THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW TODAY. UH, WITH THE FLOW RIGHT NOW WE'RE PROBABLY, UH, YOU, UH, THE PHOSPHORUS LOADING THAT WE'RE PUTTING IN COLORADO RIVERS ABOUT ABOUT 2000 POUNDS PER DAY. WHEN WE GET DONE CONVERTING THE PLANT TO BIOLOGICAL NEUTRAL REMOVAL, EVEN AT A HUNDRED MILLION GALLONS PER DAY, WE WILL REDUCE THAT BY 60% TO ABOUT 860 POUNDS PER DAY. OUR MODELS SHOW THAT WE'LL, MAYBE EVEN MORE SUCCESSFUL, BUT, UH, THAT THAT WOULD BE THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENT WE WILL HAVE TO MAKE. SO WE, WE FEEL THAT'S A VERY POSITIVE FOR THE COLORADO RIVER STREAM. THE NITROGEN WOULD BE A SIMILAR WEIGHT ABOUT A 60% REDUCTION. SO THOSE ARE TWO REALLY GOOD POSITIVE IMPACTS FOR THIS PLANT EXPANSION. UH, SAFER, UH, UH, DISINFECTION PROCESS. UH, WE WOULD LIKE TO SWITCH OR DISINFECTION PROCESS TO ULTRALIGHT UV DISINFECTION. AND THAT WOULD GET US AWAY FROM THE DEPENDENCY OF UTILIZING CHEMICAL TREATMENT TO DO THAT FLOOD PROTECTION. UH, WITH THE NEW ATLAS 14 COMING IN, THE WHOLE PLANT IS A HUNDRED YEAR FLOODPLAIN. WE LIKE TO BUILD A FLOOD WALL AROUND IT TO PROTECT IT FROM THE FLOOD WATERS. THE, THE PLANT WOULD BE ABLE TO OPERATE IF IT ISN'T IN INUNDATED WITH FLOOD WATERS. UM, ADVANCED ODOR CONTROL, UH, THE PLANT WILL HAVE, UH, VARIOUS ODOR CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES, WILL HAVE BIO TRICKLING FILTERS, ACTIVATED CARBON FILTERS, AS WELL AS BASIN COVERS WHERE WE ACTUALLY WILL COVER THE, THE FACILITY. UM, AND THEN WE WILL DRAW THE AIR OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THOSE ENCLOSED SPACES AND TREAT THOSE BEFORE IT GETS DISCHARGED. CONTINUING SERVICE, RIGHT. WHILE WE'RE DOING THIS, WE NEED TO MAINTAIN THE FLOW, UH, TREATMENT THAT WE'RE DOING CURRENTLY. AND AS YOU COULD SEE, WE'RE GETTING CLOSE TO THE END OF THE PLANT CAPACITY. SO IT'LL BE, UH, WE'LL HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE CONSTRUCTION PHASING WILL ALLOW THAT TO DO THAT. THIS IS A, A VERY IMPORTANT GOAL FOR US. A CRITICAL GOAL. UH, WE ARE PROUD THAT THE NWA, THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CLEAN WATER ASSOCIATION, HAS AWARDED THE PLANT GOLD PERFORMANCE, UH, AGAIN THIS YEAR. A GOLD PERFORMANCE FOR THEM MEANS WE HAVE HAD ZERO DISCHARGE VIOLATIONS FOR THE WHOLE YEAR. AND SINCE THIS IS OUR FIFTH ONE, WE'LL ACTUALLY BE HONORED WITH A PLATINUM SPUN IN THIS, UH, END OF THE SUMMER. SO, WHICH IS THEIR HIGHEST AWARD. SO IT IS A CRITICAL GOAL FOR US TO MAINTAIN. SO HOW DOES THE KIND OF THE PLANT LOOK LIKE? UM, THIS IS KIND OF AN OVERVIEW OF THE, OF THE RIGHT, THE, UM, THE DARKER ORANGE OR TREATMENT BASINS. THE LIGHTER KIND OF YELLOW ARE SOME NEW BUILDING FACILITIES THAT WE'RE DOING, AND THEN THE KIND OF THE FLOOD WALL GOING ALL AROUND THERE. BUT THAT IS KIND OF JUST AN ARROW, ARROW VIEW COMPOSITE OF HOW IT WOULD LOOK LIKE. [00:15:01] WE CAN KIND OF WRAP THIS UP IN, KIND OF CATEGORIZE THE PROJECTS A LITTLE BIT. AGAIN, THE RENEWAL PROJECTS OF REPLACING SOME AGING INFRASTRUCTURE OF HEADWORKS. NUMBER ONE IN THE LIFT STATION, WE ACTUALLY HAD THE EXPANSION ITSELF. WE PUT 25 BEAN GALLONS PER DAY. AND WITH THAT I'LL, I'LL HAVE TO INCREASE THE PIPE COMING IN FROM MLK BOULEVARD INTO THE PLANT AS WELL AS THE OUTFALL PIPE. AND THAT'S A, THAT'S OVER A MILE TO GET TO THE COLORADO RIVER. SO WE'LL HAVE TO INCREASE THAT. SO THAT'S REALLY THE EXPANSION PART OF IT. TREATMENT CONVERSION, WE WERE GONNA HAVE TO GO BACK INTO THE WHOLE 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY PLANT AND CONVERT IT TO THE BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL, AS WELL AS PROVIDE UV DISINFECTION. AND THEN AGAIN, FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE PLANT, WE HAVE THE FLOOD WALL AS WELL AS WE HAVE A WET WEATHER FACILITY FOR HIGH FLOWS. SO HOW ARE WE GONNA DO THIS? WELL, WE'RE GONNA DO THIS IN SEVERAL DIFFERENT CONSTRUCTION PACKAGES. UM, THE, THE, THE CONTRACTS THAT WERE AWARDED LAST MAY WERE FOR A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK. SO WE WERE ABLE TO BRING THE CON THE CONTRACTOR IN WITH US. UH, WE HAD, UH, ABOUT JUST, WE, WE HAVEN'T EVEN HAD 30% PLANS COMPLETED. SO THEY WERE BEING ABLE TO REVIEW THE PLANS WITH US AND THEY CREATE WHAT'S CALLED GMPS, WHICH ARE GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE PACKAGES. THEY'RE JUST CONSTRUCTION PACKAGES. AND WHAT WE'RE STARTING FIRST WITH IS THE REHABILITATION OF THE AGING INFRASTRUCTURE, THE HEADWORKS NUMBER ONE, AND THE IN FLUENT LIFT STATION. UM, AND THEN WE WILL, UH, GO WITH ANOTHER ONE FOR MOBILE SITE MOBILIZATION. THERE'S GONNA BE A LOTS OF PEOPLE THAT NEED TO BE ON THE SITE TO BE ABLE TO WORK ON THIS. SO THEY'LL HAVE TO HAVE A, A PRETTY GOOD LAY DOWN AREA. WE HAVE LIMITED THAT ARE AMOUNT OF, THEY'RE ALLOWED TO STAY AT AT PEOPLE THAT THEY CAN HAVE ON THE PLANT AT ONE GIVEN TIME, MEANING THAT THEY WILL HAVE TO HAVE, MOST LIKELY THE DAILY CONSTRUCTION WORKERS AND TRADE WORKERS WILL BE PARKED OFFSITE AND BUST IN TO MINIMIZE ANY KIND OF TRAFFIC IN THERE. SO THAT'S GOING TO TAKE CARE OF SOME OF THAT. THE THIRD PACKAGE IS, UH, SUPPLY. UH, UH, WE WE'RE DEFINITELY FEELING THE EFFECTS OF THE SUPPLY CHAIN AND SOME OF THE EQUIPMENT IS TAKING OVER A YEAR TO GET DONE. SO WITH A CONTRACTOR ON BOARD WITH THE TECHNICAL SPECS OF THE CON ENGINEERS, THAT'S ALREADY DONE. WE KNOW WHAT A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT WE WANT, WE GO AHEAD AND GO AHEAD AND ORDER IT NOW. AND WHEN IT'S A YEAR WE'LL BE READY FOR WHEN IT GETS HERE. FOUR IS THE FLOOD WALL. WE WANNA BUILD THE FLOOD WALL AROUND THE, AROUND THE PLANT TO PROTECT ALL THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ABOUT TO BUILD. AND THE FIFTH PACK IS FINALLY WE'RE GETTING TO THE EXPANSION PART, RIGHT? AND THAT'S IN THE DARK BLUE. AND THEN, UH, WE'LL BUILD THE, THE WET WEATHER FACILITY FOR MAINTAIN THE, FOR ANY HIGH FLOWS THAT COME TO THE PLANT. AND THEN PACKAGE SEVEN IS ACTUALLY CONVERTING THE EXISTING PLANT. UH, SO ONCE WE HAVE THE 25 BEAN GALLONS PER DAY ON SITE, I'LL BE ABLE TO TAKE OFF A 25 MILLION GALLON PER DAY SECTION OF THE EXISTING PLANT AND CONVERT IT. STILL MAINTAIN SEVEN, 5 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY AND WE'LL CONVERT THE WHOLE PLANT. AND THE LAST ONE IS THE OUTFALL. I WANNA MAKE SURE I HAVE ALL, EVERYTHING IN PLACE TO BE ABLE TO TREAT MORE FLOW BEFORE I RELEASE ANY MORE FLOW OUTFALL. SO WHAT ARE WE ASKING FOR IN THIS ORDINANCE? THE FIRST ONE IS THE, UH, CONSTRUCTION AND CRITICAL CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE ON THE WEST SIDE THERE. THE PART OF THE PLANT IS ACTUALLY ALREADY CURRENTLY IN THE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE. SO AS WE BUILD THE FLOOD WALL AROUND THE PLANT, WE ARE IN THE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE 'CAUSE OF THAT. SO THAT IS ONE, UH, AREA THAT WE'RE ASKING FOR ADMINISTRATIVE VARIANCE. AND WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING IS THE PURPLE IS THE TAKING. AND WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING IS IN THAT WE WOULD PROVIDE 150% MITIGATION PROPERTY FOR THAT TAKING. AND THAT IS SHOWN IN THE GREEN AND, UH, PROPERTY THERE. SO WE WOULD KIND OF CONNECT SOME OF THE, SOME OF THE AREAS THAT ARE LIKE THE EXPAND THE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE WHERE IT'S NOT SHOWN. AND THEN DOWN SOUTH ACTUALLY GET A VERY LARGE SECTION THERE. SO THAT'S WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING. UH, THE SECOND ONE IS CONSTRUCTION ON SLOPES. UM, AS I SHOWED BEFORE, THE PLANT HAD BEEN SOME KIND OF A LAGOON SYSTEM, SO THERE'S SOME EXISTING BERMS THERE, AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO BUILD THE, THE FLOOD WALL OVER THOSE BERMS. SO, SO SOME OF THAT CONSTRUCTION IS ON SOME SLOPES. SO, UH, A LOT OF THAT SLOPE YOU SEE ON SITE IS MANMADE. SO WE'LL HAVE TO GO OVER THAT. SO THAT'S ONE AREA WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR. UM, THE NEXT ONE IS CUTS AND FILLS. UH, FOR THAT LAGOON AREA, WE, WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO FILL SOME AREAS TO BRING IT BACK UP TO GRADE. SO THAT IS SOME AREAS THAT WE WILL HAVE MORE THAN THE FOUR FOOT FILL. AND FOR THE CUTS, SOME OF OUR BASINS ARE VERY DEEP AND WE NEED MORE THAN FOUR FOOT CUTS AND FIELDS FOR THAT. SO WE'RE ASKING FOR ADMINISTRATIVE VARIANCES ON THAT. UH, HERITAGE TREES, UH, RIGHT THERE AT THE ONE FAR CORNER THERE. UH, THERE, THERE'S, AS WE BUILD THE FLOOD WALL, WE ARE GOING TO IMPACT TWO HERITAGE TREES. THEY'RE PECAN TREES. WE ARE PROPOSING [00:20:01] THAT, THAT WE RELOCATE THEM. UH, SUBJECT TO, UM, A FEASIBILITY STUDY, UH, THE ARBOR CITY ARBORIST SAID PECAN TREES ARE VERY SUCCESSFUL. I HAVE A, WELL, A HISTORY OF VERY SUCCESS OF BEING REMO, OF BEING RELOCATED. SO WE'RE HOPEFUL WE CAN RELOCATE THOSE TWO HERITAGE. TREES. TREES. AND THEN THE OTHER AMENDMENTS ARE CHAPTER OUT OF CHAPTER, UH, 25 1 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS OF 25 2 FOR MULTIPLE SITE PLANS. AND AS I MENTIONED, WE HAD THOSE EIGHT CONSTRUCTION PACKAGES, RIGHT? SO WE WANNA BE ABLE TO DO THOSE INTERLOCHEN, INLY AND OVERLAPPING. AND SO THOSE ARE SOME CHANGES THERE AS WELL. AS I DID MENTION, WE ARE IN THE A HUNDRED YEAR FLOODPLAIN AND WE'RE REVIEWING, UH, WE'VE GOT THE, OUR FLOOD MODELING IN WITH THE WATERSHED PROTECTION AND, AND THE, AND THE FLOOD ADMINISTRATORS LOOKING AT THAT, THAT RIGHT NOW. AND THERE'S A POTENTIAL VARIANCES COMING FROM THAT. SO IN SUMMARY, UH, WE'RE ASKING FOR, UH, THE, THE ADMINISTRATIVE VARIANCES FOR CONSTRUCTION ON SLOPES, CUTS AND FILLS AND FOR THE HERITAGE TREES, UH, WE WILL WORK WITH THE, WITH THE, UH, WITH, WITH THE STAFF TO BE, TO DEMONSTRATE THAT THERE'S, WE CAN'T BUILD IT A DIFFERENT WAY TO, TO AVOID THIS PROBLEM. UM, WE MENTIONED THE OUTFALL GOING THROUGH AND WHERE I SHOWED YOU WHERE WE'RE GONNA PUT THE ADDITIONAL WATER, UH, CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE, THAT'S ALL A REPAIRING KIND OF FOREST AREA TO GET FROM THE PLANT ALL THE WAY DOWN THE COLORADO RIVER. WE'RE PROPOSING TO DO A TUNNEL. SO WE WOULD GO UNDERNEATH ALL THE TREES AND NOT TAKE ANY TREES OUT. SO WE ARE GOING TO DO THAT MENTION ABOUT THE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY WHERE WE WOULD PROVIDE 150% MITIGATIONS AND THEN OF COURSE THE TWO HERITAGE TREES THAT WE WOULD REMOVE THOSE IF ALL POSSIBLE. NO, EXCUSE ME, THAT WE WOULD RELOCATE THEM, UH, IF ALL POSSIBLE. AND AGAIN, RIGHT NOW CURRENTLY THAT IT FEELS THAT IT IS A FEASIBLE OPTION FOR US. AND WITH THAT, THAT BRINGS ME TO WHERE WE'VE BEEN. WE'VE, WE WERE AT THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION MEETING ON APRIL 2ND. WE'RE AT THE PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING YESTERDAY. UH, WE'RE HERE TODAY AND THEN WE ARE SCHEDULED TO BE ON, UH, CITY COUNCIL ON MAY 22ND. AND WITH THAT, UH, THIS IS ANOTHER, JUST ANOTHER ARTIST RENDERING OF HOW THE PLANT WOULD LOOK LIKE AFTER OUR CONSTRUCTION. AND WITH THAT, I WILL BE HAPPY TO TAKE ANY, UH, QUESTIONS. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU SO MUCH. ANY QUESTIONS? START WITH COUNCIL MEMBER DEON. THANK YOU CHAIR. UM, AND THANK YOU FOR THIS VERY HELPFUL PRESENTATION. I, MY TWO QUESTIONS WERE, UM, CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND, UH, HOW, UH, I WOULD GUESS BECAUSE THIS PLAN HAS BEEN BUILT IN PHASES THAT THEY ARE GOING TO AGE OUT IN TERMS OF THEIR LIFETIME, UM, IN DIFFERENT TIMES OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? HOW DOES THE, HOW ARE YOU TRACKING AND, AND, AND CAN YOU GIVE ME ANY INFORMATION ABOUT, UM, WHEN WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO REVISIT HOW LONG THIS PLANT IS GONNA LAST AND THE DIFFERENT PIECES THAT HAVE BEEN ADDED AT DIFFERENT TIMES WILL LAST, YOU KNOW, WE WERE FORTUNATE OR UNFORTUNATE, YOU KNOW, WE DID LIKE 40 MILLION GALLONS WORTH AND WE REPURPOSED THAT ALL BLESSED IN ABOUT TWO YEARS. SO A LOT OF THE, THE TWO THIRDS OF THE PLANTS ARE SIMILAR AGE, BUT WE, WE FULLY EXPECT THAT THE CONCRETE BASINS ARE A HUNDRED YEAR PLUS LIFE. UH, WHAT WE'RE SEEING WHEN WE'RE PLACING AGING INFRASTRUCTURE IS THE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT. THE CLARIFIERS ARE ABOUT 30 YEARS OLD. THEY START TO GET THEIR METAL AND THEY'RE IN WATER, SO THEY START DETERIORATE. UH, SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE REPLACE. SO WE FULLY INSPECT THAT SOME OF OUR, THE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT WOULD BE LAST AT LEAST 30 YEARS PUMPS WE'RE SEEING 20 TO 30 YEAR LIFESTYLE AND TWO. SO I FEEL THAT THE, THE, THE CONCRETE STRUCTURES HAVE A HUNDRED YEAR PLUS LIFE, BUT THE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT THAT MOVES, UH, UH, USUALLY ABOUT 30 YEARS IS WHEN WE NEED TO START REPAIRING THAT EQUIPMENT. AND SOMETIMES IT'S JUST A PART OF THE EQUIPMENT, RIGHT? UH, SOMETIMES WE JUST NEED TO REPAIR THE CLARIFIER DRIVE AND NOT THE WHOLE SWEEPING MECHANISM, SOMETHING LIKE THAT. UM, OTHER TIMES WE CAN WAIT, THE BLOWERS THAT ARE ON THIS PROPERTY TODAY ARE 50 YEARS OLD AND THEY'RE GOING STRONG RIGHT NOW. SO THEY, WE, SOME GOES. SO USUALLY THOSE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE DO, UH, TO MAINTAIN THAT AND FIGURE OUT WHEN WE NEED TO DO THOSE PROPERTIES. UH, WE'D HAVE A, A ROBUST ASSET MANAGEMENT AND WE HAVE A CONDITION SCORE AND WE KEEP A TRACK OF THAT AND WE KNOW WHAT WE COULD SEE AS THE CONDITION SCORE STARTS TO GO DOWN AND INFRASTRUCTURE SO WE CAN START PLANNING OUT THOSE PROJECTS TO REPLACE THOSE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT. OKAY. THANK YOU. YEP. HOPE FOR YOUR HELP AND I'LL TRY AND FIND THE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THAT ASSET MANAGEMENT PLAN. UM, THE OTHER PIECE WAS, I'M JUST CURIOUS IF YOU CAN HELP EXPAND ON, UH, WHY YOU SELECT THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT RISK AS THE, UH, [00:25:01] UH, INSTEAD OF DESIGN BY BUILD OR WHATEVER PRIOR POLICIES YOU WERE USING TO DO THE, TO REDEVELOP THIS OR BUILD OUT THIS NEW PIECE OF THE PROJECT. OKAY. I'LL GIVE YOU TWO EXAMPLES. SO I DID MENTION ABOUT THE PRIMARY AND FEB OR FLOW EQUALIZATION BASIN, UH, THAT WE'RE UNDERGROUND. WE DO HAVE A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK THAT I MENTIONED EARLIER, OUR CONTRACTORS MGC. AND WE CHOSE THAT BECAUSE IT'S A, THEY'RE 120 FOOT DIAMETER PIECES OF EQUIPMENT THAT WERE PLACED IN. AND THEN A ROOF WAS PUT ON TOP AND THE ROOF LOOKS LIKE IF YOU WERE UNDERNEATH I IH 35 AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE CONCRETE BEAMS AND I HAVE A SKYLIGHT THAT'S 10 BY 10 AND I GOTTA GET THIS PIECE OF EQUIPMENT IN AND OUT. AND I WANTED TO ENSURE THAT THE COORDINATION BETWEEN THE CONTRACTOR AND THE MANUFACTURER, 'CAUSE IT'S GONNA BE UNIQUE MANUFACTURING 'CAUSE THEY'RE USED TO BRINGING THE PIECES IN LARGE PIECES AND BRINGING SITE, THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO BRING IN SMALL, UH, OR COORDINATED AS WELL AS HOW WE'RE GONNA GET ALL THE EQUIPMENT OUT. SO THAT WAS FOR THAT PARTICULAR REASON, WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE ENTITIES TO DO THAT WERE VERY LINED UP. 'CAUSE IT WAS VERY UNIQUE PROJECT AS WELL AS ABLE TO BUY THE CLARIFIERS. THERE WAS ONE OF THE MECHANISMS THAT ARE PIECES OF EQUIPMENT THAT TAKES A YEAR. AND SO WITH THE CMR CONTRACTOR ON BOARD, WE COULD, WE COULD HAVE THOSE ORDERED WHILE WE'RE WORKING ON OTHER THINGS FOR THE BIG PLAN EXPANSION, AS I MENTIONED, WE HAVE LOTS OF DIFFERENT AREAS OF CONSTRUCTION. AND TO HAVE ONE CONTRACTOR ON SITE TO BE ABLE TO MANAGE ALL THAT WORK WITH A DIFFERENT, UH, WITH A DIFFERENT, UM, SUB CONSULTS OR SUBCONTRACTORS THAT ARE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND DO ALL THAT WORK, THAT'S A BIG BENEFIT FOR US. IT'S BASICALLY AUGMENTATION OF OUR STAFF. UM, AS WELL AS, UM, AS WE GO IN WITH A CONTRACTOR WITH THE DESIGN, RIGHT, THEY CAN OFFER SOME, UM, SOME VALUE ENGINEERING OR, UH, BENEFITS OF HOW WE COULD MAYBE GO ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION THAT WOULD, WOULD REDUCE OUR COSTS. SO ON A UH, DESIGN BID BUILD, WE GET TO SEE THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS AT THE VERY END, RIGHT? I MEAN WE HAVE ENGINEERS ESTIMATES, BUT WE DON'T GET TO SEE IT AT THE END WITH A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER RISK PROCESS. WE CAN ACTUALLY HAVE HOW MUCH WOULD IT COST IF WE DID THIS WAY OR HOW MUCH WOULD IT COST TO DO THIS WAY? RIGHT? THE OTHER IMPORTANT PART OF THIS WAS, UM, NOT ONLY JUST FOR THE GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF IT WAS I MENTIONED ABOUT THE CONTINUING OPERATIONS. THERE'S A LOT OF UNDERGROUND PIPING THAT'S GONNA HAVE TO BE CHANGED. WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO TAKE BASINS ON, TAKE BASINS OFF ON WHAT, WHAT IS THE COLOR BOXES DON'T REALLY SHOW IS THAT ON THE FRONT OF THE EXISTING ITERATION BASIN? I'M GONNA HAVE TO BUILD NEW BASINS IN FRONT OF THAT. RIGHT IN FRONT OF THAT IS THE MAIN SPLITTER BOX WHICH SPLITS ALL THE FLOW. I'M GONNA HAVE TO DO A TEMPORARY BYPASS OF THAT SPLITTER BOX WHILE I DO THAT, HAVING THE CONTRACTOR ON BOARD WITH THE OPERATION STAFF, WE CAN CREATE THESE CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCES AND THE MAINTENANCE OF, OF OPERATIONS WHILE WE DO CONSTRUCTION WORK. AND WE DON'T HAVE TO GUESS, WELL, IT'S GONNA TAKE, I THINK THE CONTRACTOR'S GONNA DO IT IN TWO WEEKS AND THE CONTRACTOR'S GONNA BE, NO, IT'S GONNA TAKE TWO MONTHS. RIGHT. AND WELL, WE CAN'T HAVE TWO MONTHS. SO THOSE, THAT IS ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS. IT WAS HOW TO MAINTAIN AN ACTIVE PLANT AND THAT WE'RE GONNA CONVERT COMPLETELY AND WITH A CONTRACTOR ON BOARD WITH OPERATION STAFF, WE CAN GET THAT PLAN TOGETHER AND HAVE A SUCCESSFUL PROJECT. THANK YOU. IS THIS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE USED CMAR FOR A PROJECT OF THIS SCOPE? THE, THE, UH, THE LAST ONE THAT I AM AWARE OF WAS FOR HANCOCK'S WATER TREATMENT PLANT. SO IT HAS BEEN MORE THAN 10 YEARS SINCE WE HAVE DONE A A, A SEYMOUR PROJECT THAT I'M AWARE OF. WOULD, DO YOU, DO YOU FORESEE EVERYTHING SOUNDS LIKE OUTLINED AT LEAST THREE SIGNIFICANT PLUSES, ANY DOWNSIDES YOU WOULD SEE FROM SWITCHING TO THIS MANAGEMENT OR USING THIS, THIS UH, CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT, UM, SYSTEM? NO. NO. I DON'T, I DON'T SEE A DOWNSIDE ON THAT. UM, UM, UH, MAY, MAY, I'LL, I'LL GIVE YOU ONE 'CAUSE YOU PROBABLY SAY THERE'S GOTTA BE SOMETHING, RIGHT? I'LL GIVE YOU ONE, RIGHT. WHAT WE'RE HERE FOR TODAY IS, RIGHT, BECAUSE WHEN WE HIRED THE CONTRACTOR, WE HAD THE, WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY OF 30% PLANS, RIGHT? SO WE HAVEN'T EVEN GONE THROUGH THE PERMITTING PROCESS. BUT NOW I HAVE A CONTRACTOR ON BOARD, I'M ON A CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE. SO HENCE WE'RE ASKING FOR THESE ADMINISTRATIVE VARIANCES BECAUSE WE'RE TRYING TO CONSTRUCT DESIGN AND PERMIT AT THE SAME TIME. RIGHT? AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE BE ABLE TO GET THAT ALL DONE IN A, IN A, IN A PARTICULAR TIMEFRAME. I DON'T CONSIDER IT A DOWNSIDE. I THINK IT'S MORE A MECHANISM OF HOW TO GET TO THE END, BUT THAT'D BE ONE THING I WOULD OFFER. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH, . THANK YOU. CAN YOU GO INTO A LITTLE DETAIL ABOUT HOW THE COMMISSIONS RECEIVED THIS PRESENTATION? YOU SAID THAT IT HAD GONE TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION AND PLANNING COMMISSION. YEAH. UM, DID THEY PROVIDE ANY RECOMMENDATIONS OR DID THEY THINK THIS ALL SOUNDED [00:30:01] GREAT? NO, THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION DID MAKE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS. OKAY. I THINK THEY HAD 14 IN, IN TOTAL. OKAY. SO, UM, LEMME SEE. UH, I DON'T HAVE THAT LIST RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME. UM, I DO KNOW A COUPLE OF THEM I WILL GO THROUGH. UM, THEY ASK ABOUT SOLAR PANELS AND THE AREAS THAT ARE GREEN ON THE SITE ARE FOR FUTURE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS. SO WE CAN'T REALLY USE THOSE. UH, ROOFTOPS ARE REALLY AREAS WHERE WE CAN GO AHEAD AND GET OUR EQUIPMENT OUT. SO IT'S NOT VERY USABLE IN TERMS OF WHERE THE, THE BASINS ARE. THEN THERE IS THE ROOFTOPS OF THE ADMIN BUILDING, BUT THEY'RE DISJOINTED AND IT'S A LAB AND WE GOT A LOT OF VENTILATION, SO THERE'S NOT A LOT OF SURFACE SPACE. SO WE HAVE, AUSTIN ENERGY HAS BEEN TO OUR SITE IN THE PAST REVIEW THAT WE DON'T HAVE LIKE A A A LARGE AREA WHERE WE COULD DO SOLAR PANELS, SO THAT, I KNOW THAT WAS ONE OF THEM. UM, THERE WAS A POSSIBLE ASK OF MAYBE DOING SOME MORE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONES. UM, THERE WAS ONE ABOUT A PARK, BUT WE WOULD HAVE TO COORDINATE WITH PARKS ON THAT, ON THAT PARTICULAR PROJECT. RIGHT. THERE WAS SIGNAGE FOR, UM, FOR CONSERVATION. AND WE, WE CAN, THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN DO. UM, THERE WAS AN ASKED, UM, ON THE, ON THE SLIDES, UH, IN THE FRONT OF THE, OF THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT, THERE IS A CURRENT POND THERE, KIND OF A STORMWATER POND. UM, UH, THE, THE NEIGHBORHOODS DO USE THAT. THEY WALK AROUND THE POND, THEY FISH IN THE POND, THEY USE, THERE'S SOME PARKING THERE THAT THEY CAN GO ACTUALLY TO THE WALNUT CREEK TRAIL WAS TO MAYBE TRY TO MAYBE ENHANCE THAT PART OF THE AREAS. AND WITH THAT, I WANNA LET LIZ GO THROUGH 'CAUSE SHE HAS THE LIST. I SEE, I SEE. LIZ JOHNSON HAS JOINED US. YEAH. , GOOD MORNING COUNCIL MEMBERS. LIZ JOHNSON AND INTERIM ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER. AND UH, YEAH, CHARLES ACTUALLY HAS A VERY GOOD MEMORY. UM, SO THERE ARE 14, WE CAN SEND THAT TO YOU SO YOU CAN LOOK AT IT FURTHER. BUT I THINK IN ADDITION TO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HE MENTIONED, UM, THERE WERE, YOU KNOW, UH, INCREASED INTERPRETATION FOR THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND WHAT CONSERVATION PROGRAMS ARE, JUST TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF WATER GOING TO THESE PLANT THE PLANT, UM, UM, IMPROVE INCENTIVES FOR NEW AND REMODEL CONSTRUCTION TO UTILIZE WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAMS. UM, ADDITIONAL NUTRIENT MONITORING, UM, REPORTING BACK TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION ANNUALLY ON ANY OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE VARIANCES THAT WERE, UM, APPROVED. INCORPORATE NATURAL ELEMENTS AND NATIVE TEXAS PLANTS ALONG THE BASE OF THE FLOOD WALL. SO ONCE THAT GETS, UM, INTO, UH, UM, TO INCREASE BIODIVERSITY. SO ONCE THAT SITE PLAN COMES, WE WILL, UM, YOU KNOW, STAFF WILL LOOK AT THAT, INCORPORATE A TREE MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR THE HERITAGE TREES AND TREES PLANTED ON THE PROPERTY. UM, REDUCE LIGHT POLLUTION WITH DARK SKY LIGHTING WHERE POSSIBLE, UM, PRIORITIZING PURCHASING ADJACENT PROPERTIES THAT WOULD INCREASE CRITICAL WATER QUALITY ZONE. SO YEAH, AS HE, AS HE MENTIONED, THERE ARE SOME AREAS THAT ARE KIND OF A BUDDING, ONE OF THE, UM, THE, THE WALNUT CREEK TRAIL. SO, SO MAYBE EXPANDING THE PROTECTIONS OF SOME OF THAT LAND. UM, UH, LET'S SEE, ENHANCE AND IMPROVE PUBLIC BENEFIT WITH BIRDING WALKING NATURE EXPLORATION AND OTHER BENEFITS THAT, YOU KNOW, IF THAT, UM, PARK LAND EXPANSION DID OCCUR. I THINK THAT WOULD BE IN THAT SPACE. SOLAR PANELS, UM, ANNUAL REPORT TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION UTILIZING LOW CARBON CONCRETE, WHICH I BELIEVE THEY'RE ALREADY DOING. AND, UM, YEAH, MORE, MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE POTENTIAL PARKLAND TRANSFER. SO DID THE, FOR THE GREEN CONCRETE, THE CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES CURRENTLY FINALIZING THEIR CONCRETE SPECIFICATIONS AND WHEN THAT IS FINALIZED, WE WILL USE THAT IN, IN THE CONSTRUCTION METHODS OF THE PLANT. GOTCHA. OKAY. THOSE SEEM LIKE PRETTY GOOD RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, AND THEN THE ONLY OTHER QUESTION I HAD, OR MAYBE IT'S MORE OF A STATEMENT IS, I KNOW YOU MENTIONED IMPACTS TO NEIGHBORS AND TRYING TO PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION IF THERE'S A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION STAFF COMING IN AND OUT OF THE SITE EACH DAY. UM, I KNOW PROJECTS OF THIS SCALE MIGHT HAVE OTHER IMPACTS ON NEIGHBORS LIKE THE DELIVERY OF EQUIPMENT, UM, TRAFFIC OR, UM, ROAD MAINTENANCE ISSUES. CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THE CONSIDERATIONS FOR SOME OF THOSE AND TRYING TO MAKE SURE THE NEIGHBORS AREN'T DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED DURING CONSTRUCTION? YES. SO AS MENTIONED, WE'RE GONNA LIMIT HOW MANY, JUST THE, JUST THE MANAGEMENT STAFF FOR, FOR THE, UH, CONTRACTOR WILL BE ON SITE. THE DAILY, UH, WORKER STAFF WILL BE OFFSITE, , UH, THERE IS AN EAST ENTRANCE COMING INTO THE PLANT. UH, WE ARE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND BASICALLY MAKE THAT, RIGHT NOW IT'S GATED OFF. WE'RE GONNA OPEN THAT GATE AND WE'RE GOING TO CREATE A CONSTRUCTION ZONE AND AN OPERATION ZONE. SO WHEN, WHEN WE DO HAVE VEHICLES AND, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE PROBABLY GONNA BE SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TRUCKS, SEMI TRUCKS COMING IN, THEY WILL BE ABLE TO DRIVE THROUGH THAT GATE AND GET INTO THE PROPERTY. SO WE SHOULDN'T HAVE ANY STACKING UP OF VEHICLES AND GETTING INTO MLK BOULEVARD, THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO GO RIGHT IN AND THEN THE SECURITY WOULD HAPPEN AFTER THAT. WE, ONCE [00:35:01] THEY GET TO THE CONSTRUCTION ZONE, WHAT THEY WANT TO GO INTO THE, THE OPERATION ZONE WHERE THE PLANT IS AND THERE WOULD BE SECURITY ON THAT PART. SO THOSE ARE A COUPLE THINGS THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW. OKAY. UH, I DO KNOW THAT THE, UH, IT, THE CONTRACTOR IS, IS, IS REACHED OUT TO TXDOT TO PERHAPS MAYBE EVEN GET A, MAYBE A TEMPORARY LIGHT THERE. DON'T KNOW THE FEASIBILITY OF THAT, UH, OF THAT IS WITH TDOT 'CAUSE THAT WE WOULD'VE TTO WOULD'VE TO AGREE TO THAT. BUT WE HAVE, WE ARE REACHING OUT FOR THAT. I WILL MENTION THAT THIS ROADWAY IS, UH, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON THIS ROADWAY. THERE'S A, THE CAPITAL UM, CORRIDOR PROGRAM IS TRYING TO DO, UH, SOME INCREASED SIDEWALKING THROUGH THERE. SO WE'RE COORDINATING WITH THEM ON THAT PROJECT AS WELL AS, UM, TEXTILES TRYING TO DO SOME WORK THROUGH THAT AREA. AND OF COURSE JOHNNY MORRIS ROAD HAS SOME THAT, THAT'S THE ROAD THAT CONNECTS RIGHT TO ML SIX, UH, MLK BOULEVARD. SO THERE ARE SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF PROJECTS THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF THE PLANT THAT ARE GONNA BE ALONG THERE TOO. AND WE'RE TRYING TO COORDINATE WITH THOSE AS BEST AS WE CAN AS WELL. OKAY. THAT'S GREAT TO HEAR. I WOULD HATE TO GO THROUGH ALL THIS AND THEN HAVE THE NEIGHBORS DRIVING ON BUMPY ROADS. YES. AFTER ALL THIS EFFORT'S BEEN PUT IN TO TRY TO IMPROVE THESE AREAS. YES. UM, THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAD. THANKS CHAIR, COUNCILOR SEA. THANKS CHAIR. AND UH, THANK YOU DIRECTOR FOR THE PRESENTATION. APPRECIATE IT. UM, I WANTED TO ASK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE, THE CONTRACTORS YOU'RE GONNA USE AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE VALUES AS A COMMUNITY TO MAKE SURE WORKERS HAVE SAFE WORKING CONDITIONS AND GOOD WAGES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. AND I'M CURIOUS, UM, FOR THESE CONTRACTS, DO WE UTILIZE PROJECT LABOR AGREEMENTS OR BETTER BUILDER, UM, IF, DO WE, DOES IT PLUG INTO OUR INFRASTRUCTURE ACADEMY WHERE WE'RE KIND OF TRYING TO CREATE THIS APPRENTICESHIP TRACK? UM, IF YOU COULD JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE PROTECTIONS FOR THE PEOPLE WHO ARE GONNA BE DOING ALL THIS WORK. CORRECT. I WILL, I'LL SEE WHAT I CAN DO FOR US. UH, FOR, FOR ONE, THE, THE, THE CONTRACTOR DOES ADVERTISE FOR SUB UH, UH, CONTRACTORS TO DO THE WORK. HOWEVER, IT IS BASED OFF OF THE CITY FRONT END DOCUMENTS. RIGHT. AND SO THERE IS ALL THE PROTECTIONS THAT THE NORMAL CITY PROJECT HAS. WE STILL HAVE WITH THIS ONE. UH, WE DO HAVE A, UM, UH, UH, INSURANCE PROGRAM THE CONTRACTOR'S GONNA PROVIDE, UM, UH, FOR THOSE THINGS. AND WITH BETWEEN THE INSURANCE PROGRAM AS WELL AS THE FRONT END DOCUMENTS, ALL THE REQUIREMENTS OF SAFETY FOR THEIR WORKERS AS OF ANY CITY OF AUSTIN PROJECT ARE STILL GONNA BE DONE HERE. UH, THERE WILL BE A SAFETY OFFICER ON BOARD. UH, WE WILL ACQUIRE A SAFETY OFFICER THAT WILL BE FOR THE WHOLE, FOR THE WHOLE PROJECT AS WELL AS THE, THE, UH, SEYMOUR CO HAS ELECTED TO EVEN, UH, HIRE EMS STAFF TO BE ON SITE FOR ANY KIND OF EMERGENCY THAT MAY OCCUR ON SITE FOR THEIR STAFF. 'CAUSE THEY'RE GONNA HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THERE. SO THEY WILL ACTUALLY HAVE A STAFF EMERGENCY CONTRACTING STAFF ON BOARD. SO. OKAY, GREAT. I CAN FOLLOW UP ABOUT THE, UH, THE OTHER REQUIREMENTS FROM THE FRONT END. YOU'RE, YOU'RE REFERENCING. YEAH. SO, UM, ERIC, DO YOU, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING OFFER I CAN SAY SO NO. ON THE THANK YOU. UH, YES. MY NAME IS ERIC KUNKEL. I WORK WITH CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES DEPARTMENT. I'M BASICALLY, UH, PART OF THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT TEAM THAT DELIVERS THE PROJECT AT, UH, WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT FOR THE EXPANSION. UM, I'M HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH THE CONTRACTS WITH THE CONTRACTORS AND CONSULTANTS. SO JUST TO CONTINUE WITH, UH, CHARLES WAS MENTIONING, EXCUSE ME, THERE'S, UM, ALL THE SMBR REQUIREMENTS FOR MINORITIES AND, UH, WOMAN-OWNED BUSINESSES THAT'S ALL IMPLEMENTED. THAT'S THE STANDARD CITY, UH, PROTOCOLS. WE GOT, UM, CONSTRUCTION TRAINING PROGRAM THAT'S DELIVERED THROUGH CAPITAL CONTRACTING OFFICE. WE HAVE, UM, THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S ALL BASED UPON THE, THE, THE VARIOUS TRADES AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT. UH, WE, UH, FOR CITY PROJECTS WE HAVE WHAT'S CALLED A ROLLING OWNER CONTROLLED INSURANCE PROGRAM. THAT'S A CITY CONTROLLED INSURANCE PROGRAM. BUT FOR THIS PROJECT, SINCE IT'S SO BIG, UH, WE'RE HAVING THE, THE CMAR, THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK HAVE THEIR OWN CONTRACTOR AND CON CONTROLLED INSURANCE PROGRAM, WHICH IS MODELED AFTER THE CITY'S PROGRAM. SO IT'S BASICALLY A LIKE, FOR LIKE, IT'S JUST THAT THE CONTRACTOR'S CONTROLLING IT, NOT THE CITY. SO THAT, AND THAT, THAT HAS VERY EXTENSIVE SAFETY PROTOCOLS AND ALL THE REGULAR, UH, REQUIREMENTS FOR INSURANCE LIABILITIES AND ALL THOSE THINGS. AND IT'S, LIKE I SAID, IT'S MODELED AFTER THE CITY PROGRAM, WHICH IS BEEN VETTED BY THE, UH, HRD AND THE RISK MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT AT THE CITY. SO THO THOSE ARE ALL JUST, UM, SOME OF THE, UH, ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTION. THANK YOU. JUST BRIEF FOLLOW UP AND APPRECIATE ALL THE CONTEXT. UM, ARE, DOES ANY OF THIS DEAL WITH, UH, LIKE WAGES FOR EXAMPLE, TO MAKE SURE, YES, THERE'S WAGE COMPLIANCE. UM, THAT'S PART OF THE CAPITAL CONTRACTING, UM, [00:40:01] REQUIREMENTS IN THE CONTRACT. THERE'S BASICALLY MINIMUM WAGES, UH, FOR THE VARIOUS TYPES OF TRADES AND, UM, THAT'S MONITORED ALSO BY CAPITAL CONTRACTING WAGE COMPLIANCE PROGRAM. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. SURE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH. I HAVE JUST A COUPLE QUESTIONS ON SLIDE 10. YOU REFERENCED THE 90% THRESHOLD BEING REACHED FOR THREE MONTHS IN 2024. AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT'S IMPORTANT 'CAUSE THAT TRIGGERS SOME REQUIREMENTS FROM TCQ. RIGHT? SO IF YOU COULD TALK ABOUT THAT. YES, WE DID MEET THREE MONTHS. THEY WERE, UH, JANUARY, FEBRUARY, UH, IN MAY. SO THE TRIGGER YOU'RE REFERENCING IS IF WE HAD THREE MONTHS TOGETHER, IT'S AN OFFICIAL TRIGGER. SO, BUT WE DID HAVE THREE MONTHS IN THERE. THE, UH, THE OTHER TWO MONTHS IN THERE WERE VERY HIGH EIGHTIES. RIGHT. WE WERE VERY CLOSE TO HAVING ALL THREE MONTHS DO THAT. SO. AND WHAT IS THE REQUIREMENT FROM TCQ? IF YOU HAVE THOSE THREE MONTHS, IF YOU HAVE THREE MONTHS IN A ROW OVER 90%, THEN THAT TRIGGERS THAT YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO START CONSTRUCTION. SUPPOSED TO START CONSTRUCTION OR LIKE PLANNING, LIKE WOULD, WOULD WHAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW COUNT? UH, I, I BELIEVE IT WOULD BECAUSE WE HAVE A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT ON RISK AND UH, WE HAVE ACTUALLY SOLICITED SOME OF THE GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICES ON THE STREETS RIGHT NOW. THE OTHER TRIGGER IS AT 75% AND THAT'S PLANNING, SO WE STARTED THE PLANNING PROCESS ON THAT AT 90% YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO START CONSTRUCTION, SO, AND WHAT IF YOU DON'T? WHAT'S THE PENALTY? IF YOU DON'T, THEN YOU START GETTING FINED BY TCEQ. YEAH, RIGHT. AND THEN YOU, IF YOU GO OVER 75 BEAN GALLONS PER DAY THAT'S, OR CREDIT, THEN YOU GET FINED FOR THAT. IF YOU CAN'T KEEP UP WITH THE DISCHARGE QUALITY LIMITS AND YOU CAN START GETTING FINED FOR THAT AND IT'S LIKE 20, DEPENDING ON WHAT IT IS, IT'S EITHER 25 OR $5,000 PER DAY PER INCIDENT, PER UH, PER VIOLATION. OKAY. UM, THE ONLY OTHER QUESTION I HAD WAS IF WE COULD GET A, EITHER IF YOU COULD TALK ABOUT, OR WE COULD JUST GET A CLEARER CHART ON, UH, PAGE 20 RELATED TO THE TREE MITIGATION. I WAS TRYING TO MAKE OUT SOME OF THESE NUMBERS AND THEY'RE A LITTLE FUZZY, BUT ARE Y'ALL, I GUESS YOU COULD JUST, IF YOU COULD ANSWER, ARE YOU MITIGATING MORE THAN YOU'RE CUTTING OR, OR WHAT'S THE BALANCE THERE? OH, FOR THE TREES? MM-HMM . FOR THE TREE, WE'RE REMOVING TWO TREE. WE, WE ARE GOING TO RELOCATE TO HERITAGE TREES. RIGHT. UM, DEPENDING ON THE SIZE, THEY'LL MOST LIKELY BE RELOCATED ON SITE. THAT, THAT POND AREA WOULD BE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR THAT. PECANS, LIKE THE LITTLE, LITTLE WATER, UM, WE ARE WORRIED ABOUT THAT IF MAYBE TAKING 'EM OFFSITE IF HOW THAT WOULD WORK FOR TRUCKING. SO WE WERE DOING THAT. SO IT'S JUST THE TWO TREES AT THIS TIME THAT WE HAVE IDENTIFIED. WELL, AS IT RELATES TO THE HERITAGE TREES ON YOUR CHART, YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE GONNA BE IMPACTING A NUMBER OF NON-PROTECTED HERITAGE TREES. YEAH. I'M JUST CURIOUS THE, THE TOTAL TREE IMPACT VERSUS THE MITIGATION, WHAT THAT BALANCE IS. I DON'T KNOW THAT OFFHAND. I WOULD HAVE TO GET THAT INFORMATION. YOU AND YEAH, IT'S SOMEWHERE IN THIS CHART, BUT LIKE I SAID, THE NUMBERS ARE OKAY. A LITTLE SMALL AND A LITTLE FUZZY. OKAY. ALRIGHT. OKAY. WE, WE CAN GET THAT FOR YOU. GREAT. WELL, I APPRECIATE IT VERY MUCH AND LOOK FORWARD TO Y'ALL WORKING THROUGH SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS AS VICE CHARLES MENTIONED. SOUNDS LIKE OKAY, THE COMMISSIONS ARE, HAVE SOME INTERESTING IDEAS AND LOVE TO THANK YOU. SEE WHAT Y'ALL CAN INCORPORATE. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. UH, WITH THAT WE CAN MOVE TO OUR NEXT ITEM HERE. SO THAT BRINGS US TO ITEM [3. Briefing on proposed amendments to administrative rules for the placement of carts for collection and return trip fees [Jason McCombs, Division Manager- Austin Resource Recovery].] NUMBER THREE, A BRIEFING ON PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO ADMINISTRATIVE RULES FOR THE PLACEMENT OF CARTS FOR COLLECTION AND RETURN TRIP FEES. HI, GOOD MORNING. UH, MY NAME'S JASON MCCOMBS. I'M A DIVISION MANAGER WITH AUSTIN RESOURCE RECOVERY AND, UH, WE, BEFORE US TODAY, WE'VE GOT PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THIS, UH, SOLID WASTE ADMINISTRATIVE RULES. THESE, UH, AMENDMENTS ARE PRIMARILY FOLKS THAT ARE ON SINGLE FAMILY HOMES HERE IN AUSTIN, UH, AROUND CART PLACEMENT, UH, WHAT TO DO WITH THE MATERIALS WHEN THEY DON'T FIT INTO THE CART AND ANY, UH, RETURN TRIP FEES THAT MAY OCCUR. UH, SO ADMINISTRATIVE RULES ARE NOT CODE. UM, THEY'RE, THE RULES ARE HOW THE DEPARTMENT IMPLEMENTS THAT CODE. A RR IS UNIQUE FROM OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS AND THAT WE DO NEED TO BRING CODE TO, UH, OR RULES, I SHOULD SAY, TO CITY COUNCIL. MOST OTHER DEPARTMENTS, UM, HAVE A, A DEFINED RULES PROCESS THAT ULTIMATELY ENDS WITH THE CITY MANAGER. SO THAT'S WHY THESE ARE HERE. UM, SO AS A RESULT OF THAT, A RR HAS, UH, WORKED IN COLLABORATION WITH WAC AND WHICH IS A ZERO WASTE ADVISORY COMMISSION, UH, TO IMPLEMENT A RULES ADOPTION PROCESS THAT ALIGNS WITH THE NEEDS OF THE CODES AND ALSO ALLOWS FOR PUBLIC INPUT PROCESS. UH, THE FIRST DRAFT OF THE RULES THAT YOU HAVE HERE TODAY WERE ORIGINALLY PRESENTED TO ZERO WASTE ADVISORY COMMISSION BACK IN JANUARY. THEY WERE THEN, UM, [00:45:01] POSTED TO SPEAK UP AUSTIN FOR 38 DAYS TO, UH, GATHER PUBLIC INPUT STAFF, THEN ADJUSTED TEXT BASED OFF OF THAT FEEDBACK. UM, AND YOU HAVE SHOULD HAVE A COPY IN YOUR BACKUP OF SOME OF THAT FEEDBACK THAT WE GOT ON STUFF FROM, UH, FROM SPEAK OF AUSTIN. OH, I SHOULD ALSO BE REMISS TO SAY WE ALSO PRESENTED TO WAC EARLIER THIS MONTH AS WELL. SO, UM, AND THEY DID, UH, VOTE TO RECOMMEND THESE RULES. SO, UM, THIS IS A PART OF A LARGER RULES, UM, AMENDMENT PROCESS THAT WE ARE UNDERTAKING. UM, WE HAVE IDENTIFIED A NUMBER OF RULE CHANGES THAT NEED TO OCCUR. AND SO WE HAD THE FIRST, UM, ROUND OF THOSE RULES, UH, WENT TO THE ZERO WASTE ADVISORY COMMISSION AND COUNCIL BACK IN NOVEMBER AND THEY WERE PASSED. WE ARE HERE ON ITEM NUMBER TWO. UM, SO WE'VE GOT A NUMBER OF RULES CHANGES HERE AHEAD OF US AND I'M SURE WE'LL BACK. SO THIS IS JUST A QUICK OVERVIEW OF, UM, MANY OF THE RULES CHANGES. YOU DO HAVE A STRIKETHROUGH VERSION IN THE BACK, UH, IN YOUR BACKUP OF WHAT THOSE RULES CHANGES ACTUALLY ARE. UM, AND SO I WILL SAY THAT IN AFTER THE ZAC MEETING WE HAD EARLIER THIS MONTH, THERE WAS AN ARTICLE FOLLOWING UP IN THE AUSTIN MONITOR, WHICH HAS SPARKED A SECOND ROUND OF STAKEHOLDER COMMENT HERE, PRIMARILY CENTERING AROUND, UM, BIKE LANES AND SIDEWALKS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO, UM, THOSE CAN BE SEEN IN SECTION 6.1, 0.3 AND UH, REALLY AROUND THERE THE CARTS SHALL, WHAT, WHAT HOW IT READS RIGHT NOW IS CARTS SHALL NOT BE PLACED IN THE PATH OF MAIL DELIVERY, LOCATIONS, VEHICLES, DRIVEWAYS, BIKE PATHS AND SIDEWALKS. AND SO, UM, WE, WITH THAT ADDITIONAL STAKEHOLDER FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED, WE WENT, UM, AND WE MET WITH OUR PARTNERS AND WITH THE TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT AND, UM, WE ARE RECOMMENDING THAT TO CHANGE THE BE PLACE TO OBSTRUCT, UM, THE, YOU KNOW, WE UNDERSTAND THAT WE BELIEVE THAT THE CARTS, UM, CAN COEXIST IN BIKE LANES AND MANY TIMES WILL NEED TO. UM, THE INTENT REALLY WITH THIS IS TO ENSURE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THAT WHEN WE'RE SUPPORTING BIKE LANES, WE'RE SUPPORTING, UM, SIDEWALKS, BUT THE, THESE CARTS AREN'T BEING LEFT FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIME BLOCKING THE FLOW OF TRAFFIC, YOU KNOW, AND THAT THAT IS NEEDED, UM, TO HELP SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY. SO, UM, WITH THAT, UM, I THINK, OH, AND I WILL SAY WE WILL, UM, BE, WE WILL FOLLOW, CONTINUE TO FOLLOW UP. UM, I THINK WITH THIS, UM, WITH OUR, UH, PLAY THAT SPOKE EARLIER AS WELL, AND WITH THAT ALLEN DAY GROUP, WE CAN COMMIT, UM, TO REACHING OUT TO, TO, UH, THAT GROUP TO UH, SPEAK TO THEM ABOUT THEIR, THEIR UNIQUE SITUATION THAT THEY ARE SEEING THERE. WE, UH, WE RUN INTO DENSE, UM, CHALLENGES ACROSS THE CITY AND UM, AND YOU KNOW, SO WE'RE ACCUSTOMED TO THEM IN DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS. SO, UM, WITH THAT I CAN TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. GREAT. ANY QUESTIONS? I'LL START. GO FOR IT. UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION AND REALLY, UH, FOR SUMMARIZING THE PUBLIC, UH, COMMENT. I THINK THAT WAS VERY HELPFUL. UM, JUST, YOU KNOW, UH, GIVEN THE SHOAL CREEK BOULEVARD IS IN DISTRICT SEVEN, JUST WANTED TO FOLLOW UP ON THAT. SO I GUESS, UH, UH, THE CONCEPT HERE IS THAT, YOU KNOW, IF IT'S A TWO LANE BIKE LANE AS IT IS ON SHOAL CREEK, THAT YOU COULD PUT YOUR BIN ON ONE LANE AND SO IT'S OKAY TO LIKE TEMPORARILY BLOCK ONE LANE. IS THAT THE CONCEPT? YEAH, I, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT A 24 HOUR PERIOD HERE OF, YOU KNOW, THE CART BEING OUT. AND SO, UM, YES, AND US AND OUR CONVERSATIONS WITH TRANSPORTATION THERE, WE, WE DO WANT MANY TIMES IT WILL NEED TO BE PLACED INTO THE BAR BIKE LANE. UM, EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD'S A LITTLE BIT UNIQUE AND SO WE KIND OF HAVE TO DEVELOP DIFFERENT STRATEGIES, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE WE WANT THEM BOTH TO COEXIST. AND SO I THINK THAT'S REALLY WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO CREATE LANGUAGE THAT'S BROAD ENOUGH THAT CAN, YOU KNOW, KIND OF HELP IT BE ADAPTABLE TO THESE DIFFERENT SITUATIONS. BUT LIKE I SAID, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE OPEN TO, YOU KNOW, SPEAKING TO DIFFERENT COMMUNITY GROUPS TO HELP ADDRESS THIS. GREAT, THANK YOU. AND JUST A COUPLE OTHER QUESTIONS. MY, MY STAFF IDENTIFIED ONE IS, UM, YOU KNOW, WITH THE RETURN TRIP FEES, AND IT DOES SEEM LIKE, UH, THE PROTOCOL IS GONNA VERY CLEARLY TELL THE CUSTOMER, DO YOU AGREE TO PAY FOR RETURN TRIP? UM, UH, MY STAFF WAS WONDERING IF THERE MIGHT BE CONFUSION ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE ON DEMAND BULK OR, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE OTHER ON-DEMAND PROGRAMS THAT ARE AVAILABLE, UM, YOU KNOW, WITHOUT A CHARGE BASICALLY. UH, DO YOU THINK ANY PUBLIC EDUCATION MIGHT BE NEEDED TO, TO REALLY LIKE, SPELL OUT FOR FOLKS? THIS IS WITHOUT A CHARGE, THIS DOES COME WITH A CHARGE? OR HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT PUBLIC EDUCATION? UM, YEAH, I THINK IT IS SOMETHING WE'VE CONSIDERED. I THINK, AND I KNOW OUR, UM, OUR OUTREACH TEAM IS KIND OF AWARE OF THAT AS WELL. UM, THESE TEND TO BE PRETTY UNIQUE SITUATIONS WITH, WITH THE RETURN TRIP FEES THEMSELVES, WHERE THEY ARE CALLING THEM, SAYING, A LOT OF TIMES IT'S, YOU KNOW, YOU MISSED OUR CART IN THE MORNING. IS THIS THE MOST TYPICAL ONE THAT WE SEE? UM, BUT THAT'S USUALLY WHERE ALSO THAT CONVERSATION HAPPENS WITH, YOU KNOW, WITH THE RESIDENT WHENEVER THEY CALL IN, UM, TO HELP. UM, IF THERE IS [00:50:01] CONFUSION OR CONCERNS, WE CAN, WE CAN TALK THEM THROUGH THAT TIME, BUT I, I HOPEFULLY WE'LL CONTINUE TO EDUCATE AND, AND CLARIFY THAT. GREAT. AND, UH, IS THERE MORE PUBLIC COMMENT THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN ON THIS OR IS IT PUBLIC COMMENT OVER? UM, I WOULD SAY PUBLIC COMMENT IS OVER. I, YOU KNOW, THESE, WE, WE HAVE NOT, WE STILL HAVE TO GO TO COUNCIL, SO I THINK WE CAN STILL TAKE THIS, UH, YOU KNOW, TAKE IT THERE AS WELL. BUT, UM, BUT YES, WE ARE TRYING TO I THINK, MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS THE NEXT STEPS. OKAY, GREAT. THANK YOU. YEAH. VICE CHAIR ALICE, I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT THE, THE BACK BILLING. IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WOULD JUST KIND OF BE A SURPRISE POP UP ON A BILL? OR WOULD THERE BE ANY LENIENCY ON DUE DATE IF, LET'S SAY SOME FEE WAS, YOU KNOW, NOT BEING COLLECTED EFFECTIVELY AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN YOU REALIZE, HEY, THIS FAMILY OWES A LITTLE BIT MORE MONEY. IS THERE ANY LEEWAY TO SAY, WE REALIZED THE BILLING WAS OFF AND WE UNDERSTAND IT MAY TAKE A LITTLE TIME TO GET CAUGHT UP? YEAH, THAT IS, THAT IS A, THERE IS NOTIFICATION AS WELL. IT'S, IT'S, IT DOESN'T JUST SHOW UP ON A BILL. THERE'S USUALLY A LETTER SENT AND THE CONVERSATIONS DO OCCUR. SO YES, IT'S POSSIBLE. OKAY. AND IF THEY CALL AND SAY I MIGHT NEED A LITTLE MORE TIME TO CATCH UP, THERE'S FOLKS THAT CAN ANSWER THAT CALL AND HELP WALK THEM THROUGH IT? I WOULD THINK SO, YES. YES. WITH OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM FOR SURE. I, I FIGURE WITH OTHER UTILITY BILLING, IT HAPPENS AND SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THIS WAS FOLLOWING THAT SAME PROCESS. YES, YES. UM, AND THEN BECAUSE WE HAD A SPEAKER COME AND TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, A SITUATION IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD THAT WAS MAYBE ATYPICAL FOR MOST NEIGHBORHOODS, UM, CAN YOU TALK ABOUT HOW MUCH, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC NOTIFICATION OR OUTREACH IS GONNA HAPPEN ABOUT A CHANGE OF RULES OR HOW THEY CAN GET MORE INFORMATION? UM, IF THEY'RE NOT QUITE SURE WHERE THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO LEAVE THEIR BINS? OH, OH YEAH. SO LIKE SPECIFIC TO LIKE A UNIQUE NEIGHBORHOOD? UM, YEAH, NO, TYPICALLY WHAT WE'LL DO, IT'S THE MAJORITY OF TIME WHEN THIS HAPPENS, IT, IT'S, IT TENDS TO BE IN A VERY SMALL, MAYBE NUMBER OF RESIDENTS, YOU KNOW, AND WE'LL WORK WITH THEM VERY DIRECTLY, YOU KNOW, UM, I THINK WITH A NEIGHBORHOOD GROUP, YES, WE WOULD DEFINITELY WANT TO TALK TO THE GROUP THEMSELVES AND THEN WE CAN DEVELOP AN OUTREACH STRATEGY AROUND THAT, YOU KNOW, UM, DEPENDING ON THE OUTCOME OF THAT. UM, OKAY. BUT THAT'S GOOD. WE, IN DISTRICT DATE IN PARTICULAR, WE HAVE A LOT OF BIG NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ACTUALLY HAVE A MANAGER FOR THEIR HOA OR THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. UM, AND SO I WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE ABLE TO SHARE THIS INFORMATION, YOU KNOW, SO PEOPLE AREN'T SURPRISED ABOUT IT. 'CAUSE THERE MAY BE SOME QUESTIONS THAT THEY HELP FILTER DOWN, OF COURSE, AND WANNA MAKE SURE THEY'RE PUTTING THEIR, THEIR BINS OUT IN AN APPROPRIATE MANNER. UM, AND THE LAST QUESTION IS, ARE THERE ANY DIAGRAMS ON THE WEBSITE OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT TO KIND OF HELP, HEY, IF YOU HAVE THIS SITUATION, THIS IS WHERE IT'S APPROPRIATE TO LEAVE YOUR BINS? AND IF YOU HAVE THIS, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE TWO-WAY BIKE LANE, WE RECOMMEND THAT IT'S ACCEPTABLE TO BLOCK ONE OF THE BIKE LANES KNOWING THAT PEOPLE CAN MOVE AROUND IT? YEAH, I DON'T, I WOULD SAY NO, NOT AT THAT TIME TO THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL. WE DEFINITELY SPEAK TO THE SPACING, YOU KNOW, AND, AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE, BUT, UH, I WOULDN'T SAY SPECIFIC TO THAT AT THIS TIME, BUT IT IS SOMETHING WE CAN DEFINITELY CONSIDER. OKAY. YEAH, MAYBE SOME VIDEOS MIGHT BE HELPFUL JUST AS PEOPLE REALIZE A RULE'S CHANGING AND NOT QUITE SURE. OF COURSE, SOME FOLKS LEARN BETTER WITH TEXT AND SOME PEOPLE LEARN BETTER WITH DIAGRAMS AND PICTURES AND VIDEOS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, SO. UNDERSTOOD. UM, I KNOW THAT, THAT MAY BE HELPFUL. UM, I THINK THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE. THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER DEJA. THANK YOU CHAIR. UH, THANKS FOR THIS PRESENTATION. I JUST WANNA BUILD ON THE PRIOR COMMENTS AND COUNCIL MEMBER ALICE'S QUESTIONS, WHICH IS, I THINK WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE STEPS YOU ALL ARE TAKING FOR PUBLIC COMMUNICATION AND AWARENESS AROUND THIS, BUT WHAT ABOUT, UH, LIKE IS THERE A TIMEFRAME FOR LENIENCY OR AS, AS WE WORK THROUGH, I MEAN, AGAIN, WE HEARD FROM A SPEAKER EARLIER ABOUT, UM, YOU KNOW, ABOUT BIKE RIDERS WHO MIGHT CALL IN A PD AND REQUEST A TICKET. SO WE, WHAT SORT OF, UM, HOW MUCH AFTER YOU'VE DEPLOYED THIS SOLUTION, UH, AND THIS BECOMES THE RULES FOR NEIGHBORHOODS AND SINGLE FAMILY HOMEOWNERS, HOW MUCH, UH, GRACE PERIOD ARE WE OFFERING PEOPLE BEFORE WE DO START, UH, ENFORCING THIS IN A MORE RIGOROUS WAY? YEAH, I, I DON'T THINK THIS IS SOMETHING WE ARE GOING, I WOULD SAY A RIGOROUS ENFORCEMENT. I THINK WHAT IT'S REALLY RESULTING IN IS CONVERSATIONS, YOU KNOW, AND CONVERSATIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, TO FIND SOLUTIONS. THAT'S WHAT WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FOR HERE. UM, IT, YOU KNOW, IT IS SOMETHING WE'RE SEEING AND WE'RE SEEING INCREASINGLY, YOU KNOW, ACROSS, THERE'S INCREASED DENSIFICATION ACROSS THE CITY. AND SO, UM, LIKE I SAID, THIS IS SOMETHING WE'VE, WE'VE, UM, WE, WE TRY TO WORK WITH THE RESIDENTS WITH THE HOMES THEMSELVES AND, UH, WE CAN DEFINITELY WORK WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS THEMSELVES. UM, A LOT OF TIMES IT'S THE OPERATOR THEMSELVES WHEN THEY'RE THERE AT THE SITE, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, HAVING A, YOU KNOW, REAL BRIEF, YOU KNOW, JUST SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW, THIS IS, THIS IS WHAT WE'RE SAYING, YOU KNOW, COULD YOU HELP OUT HERE. SO THAT'S REALLY, I THINK WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT HERE AS, AS A DEPARTMENT RULE, UH, MORE SO THAN SOMETHING WE'RE, YOU KNOW, GOING TO BE, UM, ENFORCING IN A KINDA PUNITIVE WAY IN ANY WAY. SO, OKAY. SO YOU DON'T SEE THE SCENARIO THAT, THAT THE SPEAKER LAID OUT WHERE THERE'S GONNA BE A BUNCH OF TICKETS WRITTEN OR [00:55:01] CITATIONS WRITTEN BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE NOT COMPLYING OR MAYBE JUST UNAWARE OR SLOW TO COMPLY WITH THE CHANGES HERE? YEAH, THIS IS, THIS WOULD BE A DEPARTMENT RULE AND SO THIS IS NOT SOMETHING WE SEE AS BEING PUNITIVE. YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, WELL APPRECIATE YOUR WORK ON THIS AND I DON'T THINK THERE ARE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, SO, ALRIGHT. THANK YOU. WITH THAT, UM, I WILL JUST INVITE LIZ JOHNSON TO COME UP, UH, ON ITEM NUMBER [4. 2024 State of Our Environment Report memo dated April 17, 2025 [Liz Johnston, Interim Environmental Officer - Watershed Protection].] FOUR, THE 2024 STATE OF OUR ENVIRONMENT REPORT MEMO. I DON'T IF YOU WANNA GIVE ANY COMMENTS SURROUNDING THAT. AND THEN MEMBERS, IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS SURROUNDING THIS MEMO THAT WAS SENT OUT, I KNOW THERE ARE A LOT OF COOL DASHBOARDS AND INFORMATION, UH, CONTAINED IN THAT, THE LINK REFERENCE THERE, BUT JUST HAPPY TO HAVE OUR ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER BE ABLE TO PROVIDE ANY INFORMATION THAT Y'ALL WOULD LIKE TO HAVE. YEAH. UH, THANK YOU. SO, YES, IT IS MY GREAT HONOR TO PRESENT THE 2024 STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT REPORT. UM, THE STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT, UH, ENVIRONMENT REPORT IS, UH, ACTUALLY MANDATED BY CODE TO BE PRESENTED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER TO COUNSEL EVERY APRIL. SO WE WERE HAPPY TO TARGET THE EARTH DAY WEEK, UH, TO PRESENT THIS TO THE COMMUNITY. UM, AND WHILE THE REPORT MAY BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER, THE DATA INCLUDED IN THE REPORT IS VERY MUCH A CITYWIDE EFFORT AND IT INCLUDES INFORMATION COMPILED BY, UM, FOLKS THROUGHOUT THE CITY'S ORGANIZATION, INCLUDING LAKES, CREEKS, AND OFF AQUIFER INFORMATION BROUGHT BY WATERSHED PROTECTIONS SCIENTISTS. WE HAVE INFORMATION FROM AIR QUALITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE FROM THE OFFICE OF CLIMATE AND RESILIENCY. WE HAVE URBAN FORESTRY INFORMATION FROM THE DSDS COMMUNITY TREE DIVISION, UM, PUBLIC OPEN SPACE INFORMATION FROM OUR COLLEAGUES IN PART AND INFORMATION ON AUSTIN WATERS WILDLANDS PROGRAM. IN ADDITION THIS YEAR, UM, BECAUSE THERE'S A A LOT OF TALK ABOUT HOW DO WE MEET OUR OPEN SPACE GOALS RELATED TO CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN AND INCREASING, UM, ACCESS TO OPEN SPACE, UH, THROUGHOUT THE CITY, WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE IMPORTANT TO DO A, UM, HAVE A LOOK BACK AT, UM, PREVIOUS EFFORTS THAT, UH, TO ACQUIRE LAND, UM, THAT EVENTUALLY BECAME AUSTIN, UH, WATERS WILDLANDS PROGRAM. SO WE HAVE A FEATURE STORY, IT'S A VIDEO, UM, ABOUT, UH, AUSTIN WA WATER WILDLANDS DIVISION. IT'S CALLED PROTECTING AUSTIN'S WILD SIDE. SO, UH, PLEASE TAKE A LOOK AT THAT VIDEO. UM, AND REALLY I JUST WANNA APPRECIATE THE MULTI-TALENTED ELIZABETH FUNK WHO REALLY DID MOST OF THE WORK, COMPILING ALL THE INFORMATION TOGETHER AND PUTTING, UM, HELPING, UH, COORDINATE WITH AUSTIN WATERS STAFF TO, UH, CREATE THE, THE FUTURE STORY. SO, AND GRATITUDE TO ALL OF THE STAFF AND ALL OF THE DE DEPARTMENTS THROUGHOUT THE CITY ORGANIZATION, BRINGING THIS REALLY IMPORTANT INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC EVERY YEAR. SO GRATITUDE TO EVERYONE THERE. AND IF WITH THAT, I WILL HAVE, UH, OPEN IT UP FOR ANY QUESTIONS. GREAT. ANY QUESTIONS? I DON'T THINK SO. ALRIGHT. YOU DO? YES. OKAY. THANK YOU CHAIR. UH, AND THANK YOU, UH, THIS IS A WONDERFUL REPORT. REALLY ENJOYED THE VIDEO AS WELL. VERY NICE. UM, UH, YOU KNOW, I GUESS I, MY FIRST QUESTION IS KIND OF HOW THIS REPORT COULD BE UTILIZED ESSENTIALLY, UM, FOR SOME OF THE BIG DECISIONS WE HAVE IN COMING UP. FOR EXAMPLE, UH, THE CHAIR OF OUR COMMITTEE HERE HAS PUSHED FOR A CLIMATE INVESTMENT PLAN, RIGHT? AND, UH, I UNDERSTAND CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES IS FACILITATING A PROCESS WHERE WE THINK ABOUT WHAT OUR CAPITAL NEEDS ARE AND, UM, WE DID HAVE A GREAT PRESENTATION FROM THE OFFICE OF CLIMATE AND RESILIENCE TO KIND OF ANALYZE SOME OF THE POTENTIAL CLIMATE PROJECTS WE COULD FUND. BUT, UM, I GUESS FROM YOUR POINT OF VIEW, HOW WILL THIS REPORT BE UTILIZED TO, UH, HELP THE CITY IDENTIFY PRIORITIES FOR FUNDING, WHETHER THAT'S CLIMATE OR OTHERWISE? YEAH, I MEAN, I WOULD SAY THAT EACH DEPARTMENT THAT PROVIDES DATA, THE DATA IS COMPILED IN ORDER TO SUPPORT DECISION MAKING. SO FOR INSTANCE, UH, WATERSHEDS INFORMATION ABOUT LAKES, CREEKS AND AQUIFERS REALLY HELPS, UM, UM, UH, HELPS US UNDERSTAND WHERE OUR CREEKS IN MOST NEED OF SUPPORT. WHERE DO WE, YOU KNOW, THE DATA THAT WE USE TO, TO MAKE DECISIONS THAT GUIDE FROM OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT GUIDE HOW WE ACTUALLY OPERATE AS AND, AND, UM, UH, PUT MONEY IN. UM, AND I WOULD SAY THAT IS TRUE FOR ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS THAT, THAT COMPILE INFORMATION. SO, YOU KNOW, RELATED TO, UH, CLIMATE, YOU KNOW, OA COLLECTS THIS DATA AND THEY USE THAT INFORMATION, BUT THE REPORT ITSELF REALLY IT'S LIKE A CLEARINGHOUSE OF INFORMATION THAT SOMEBODY CAN GO TO TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT ALL OF THESE VARIOUS PROGRAMS. SO IT REALLY JUST, I THINK, HELPS, UH, PROVIDE ACCESS TO INFORMATION TO A WIDER, UM, GROUP OF PEOPLE. SO, OKAY. SO THE CITY MANAGER ISN'T GONNA BE ASKING YOU WHAT SHOULD BE ON THE NEXT BOND, YOU KNOW, , NOT ME. NO. , THAT IS DEFINITELY A GROUP EFFORT. RIGHT ON. THANK YOU. UM, WELL THEN ONE, ONE SPECIFIC ONE ABOUT, UH, THE URBAN FOREST, UH, GOALS. I, WE [01:00:01] NOTICED THAT, UM, WE'VE KIND OF LIKE MAINTAINED STEADY AT 41%, UH, COVERAGE AND WE HAVE A GOAL OF GETTING UP TO 50%. AND, UM, I GUESS WHERE WOULD KIND OF THE ACTION PLAN FOR THAT LIVE? YOU KNOW, LIKE AS WE TRACK PROGRESS TO THE GOAL? YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT IS A ALSO A MULTI-DEPARTMENTAL EFFORT. SO THE, THE, UH, DSDS STAFF HAVE THIS INFORMATION THAT THEY COMPILE AND THEY WORK WITH VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS INCLUDING WATERSHED AND OCAR TO IDENTIFY WHERE ARE THE MOST EFFICIENT NEEDS. SO WHEN THERE ARE UM, UH, FUNDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE, THEY CAN USE THIS INFORMATION TO, TO PRIORITIZE AREAS. IF THERE IS A TREE PLANTING EVENT, YOU KNOW, THEY WORK WITH, UH, COMMUNITY PARTNERS LIKE TREE FOLKS AND OTHERS TO, TO HELP, TO HELP, UH, TO, YOU KNOW, IMPLEMENT THEIR PROGRAM. SO I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY ARE THE KEEPERS OF THAT INFORMATION, BUT IT IS DEFINITELY A, A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT. OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT'S IT. I JUST HAVE ONE QUESTION AND THAT IS, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE A LOT OF CATEGORIES THAT Y'ALL DISCUSS FROM AIR QUALITY TO TREES TO CLIMATE CHANGE. AND I'M CURIOUS IF, IF THERE WAS JUST ONE, AND IT DOESN'T EVEN NEED TO BE THAT GLOBAL CATEGORY, BUT JUST ONE THING WITHIN YOUR REPORT WHERE, I DON'T WANNA SAY LIKE ALARM BELLS ARE FLASHING RED, BUT LIKE WHAT DO YOU SEE JUST AS OUR TOP THING THAT WE REALLY NEED TO ADDRESS AS UH, A COMMUNITY FROM AN ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVE? YEAH, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK BACK ON THE URBAN FOREST AND REALLY FOCUSING ON HOW TO MAKE THAT AS HEALTHY AND RESILIENT AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE IT DOES AFFECT SO MANY DIFFERENT AREAS. IT AFFECTS PUBLIC HEALTH, THAT IT AFFECTS UM, WATER QUALITY, IT AFFECTS, UH, HEAT ISLAND AFFECT, YOU KNOW, MENTAL HEALTH. UM, AND I THINK AS WE, WE KNOW THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS REAL AND AS SUMMERS BECOME MORE HOT, DROUGHTS, FLOODS BECOME MORE PREVALENT, IT'S GONNA PUT A BIG STRESS ON OUR URBAN FOREST AND I THINK WE MIGHT SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, THE TYPES OF SPECIES THAT LIVE HERE ARE NOT GOING TO THRIVE IN THE FUTURE. AND SO HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN, UM, IMPROVE RESILIENCY IN THE URBAN FOREST IN THE FUTURE? OKAY, VERY GOOD. WELL WE PREDATING YOU HERE. WE WERE ABLE TO TRIPLE THE MONEY TO GET MORE TREES PLANTED AS THE BUDGET AMENDMENT I HAD MY FIRST YEAR AND THEN KIND OF HAD TO REDO IT AGAIN THE SECOND YEAR. BUT WE ARE TRYING TO, TO PUSH THAT MONEY OUT AND GET MORE TREES PLANTED EVERY YEAR. SO HOPEFULLY WE CONTINUE TO BUILD ON THOSE EFFORTS. YOU KNOW, THE COUNCIL HAS MADE LOTS OF VARIOUS, UH, INVESTMENTS AND, AND WHETHER IT'S JUST LOOKING AT STREET TREES OR OTHER, UH, I THINK PEOPLE REALLY WANT TO SEE MORE OF THAT THROUGHOUT THE CITY, ESPECIALLY IN THE AREAS WHERE HISTORICALLY IT'S BEEN UNDER CANOPY. YEAH. SO APPRECIATE YOU HIGHLIGHTING THAT. UM, OH, SOUNDED LIKE YOU WERE GONNA WRAP UP AND I JUST HAD AN IDEA I WAS ALRIGHT. UM, IN OUR MOBILITY COMMITTEE WE'VE HAD, I THINK IT WAS COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON MENTIONED BEING CURIOUS ABOUT STREET TREES AND ESPECIALLY POLLINATORS AND FRUIT TREES. AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S ANY INFORMATION THAT YOU COULD SEND TO ME VIA EMAIL, UM, BUT I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THAT CONVERSATION. HOW DO WE KIND OF PLAY INTO THIS BLEND OF URBAN CANOPY HEAT ISLAND EFFECT AND ALSO MAKING SURE THAT OUR FOOD SYSTEMS ARE MORE SUSTAINABLE AS WELL? 'CAUSE NOW WE HAVE THE, THE FOOD PLAN. UM, SO I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THAT AND JUST HAD A LAST MINUTE IDEA AND THOUGHT IF YOU COULD SHARE ANY INFORMATION, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE RIGHT NOW, BUT, UM, COMPILE SOMETHING AND SEND IT TO US. IT MIGHT BE JUST INTERESTING. WE CAN FIGURE OUT HOW USEFUL IT IS AND WHAT WE COULD POSSIBLY DO TO HELP MORE. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. THAT'S GREAT AND WE WILL FOLLOW UP. GREAT. LAST IS JUST ITEM NUMBER FIVE. ANY IDEAS FOR [5. Identify items to be discussed at future meetings.] FUTURE MEETINGS? UH, ALWAYS HAPPY TO TAKE THOSE NOW OR YOU CAN REACH OUT. OH, I HAVE A TAKER. UH, WELL THIS IS JUST TO GIVE A HEADS UP TO MY COLLEAGUES HERE THAT WE ARE WORKING ON A PILOT THAT HAS NOW SCHEDULED FOR THE END OF MAY IN GREAT HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD PARK TO TRY AND WORK WITH THE PARKS FOUNDATION IN PART AND GET SOME OF THE DEAD AND DOWN VEGETATION THAT'S ON THE GROUND. WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY OUT THERE, TRY AND BUILD POTENTIALLY A 10 YEAR PLAN FOR HOW TO MAINTAIN THAT KIND OF PARK AND GET MORE ENGAGEMENT IN THE COMMUNITY. AND SO HOPEFULLY GONNA HAVE SOME DATA AFTERWARDS, UH, FROM THAT, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH COULD WE ACCOMPLISH AT WHAT, AT WHAT COST OR ECONOMICS, UH, AND ALSO USING SOME EQUIPMENT FROM WILDFIRE DIVISION CHIPPERS, ET CETERA. BUT HOPEFULLY BEING ABLE TO BE ABLE TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU ALL IF THERE'S AN APPETITE FOR THAT. 'CAUSE THIS IS NOT THE ONLY GREEN SPACE I KNOW I'VE GOT IN MY DISTRICT WHERE WE NEED TO DO SOME WORK. I JUST WALKED, UM, THE STACK VALLEY GREEN BELT, WHICH HAS A LOT OF SIMILAR CHALLENGES AND UH, MY GUESS IS AL MIGHT HAVE SOME PARKS AND PRESERVES THAT HAVE SIMILAR PROBLEMS ALSO THAT ALSO MIGHT POSE SOME RISKS FOR THE COMMUNITY. SOME OF THESE, A LOT OF [01:05:01] THE DEAD AND DOWN VEGETATION IS, YOU KNOW, 20, 50 FEET AWAY FROM SINGLE MULTIFAMILY HOMES. UH, SO ANYWAY, I'LL THROW THAT OUT THERE AS A POTENTIAL TOPIC ONCE WE GET SOME DATA FROM THAT PROJECT. GREAT, GREAT. UM, AND JUST AS, UH, WE'LL BE IN CONTACT WITH YOUR OFFICES, BUT IT'S, IT'S PRETTY STACKED AGENDA NEXT TIME. SO IF WE'RE ABLE TO GO TO NOON, IF THAT DOESN'T CONFLICT WITH YOUR SCHEDULES, MIGHT BE ADVISABLE JUST TO BLOCK THAT OFF. BUT, UH, WE WILL, WE'LL REACH OUT. I'M GETTING A, A FROWNY FACE OVER THERE, BUT WE'LL, WE'LL HAVE A CONVERSATION, SO, ALRIGHT, WELL WITH THAT, IF THERE IS NO MORE BUSINESS TO COME BEFORE THE COMMITTEE, UH, WE WILL STAND ADJOURNED AT 10:36 AM . * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.