Jul 18, 2025 Economic Opportunity Committee

TWO WILL BE THE BRIEFING ON DIVERSITY AND ETHNIC CHAMBER ALLIANCE REGIONAL EQUITY PLAN.

IT'S PASSES FOUR OH.

ITEM NUMBER

[2. Briefing on Diversity and Ethnic Chamber Alliance Regional Economic Equity Plan. [Tina Cannon, President & CEO - Austin LGBT Chamber of Commerce].]

UM, SO, UH, I BELIEVE WE HAVE A SPECIAL GUEST TO DO THAT.

AND THAT IS TINA CANNON, THE PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE AUSTIN, LGBT CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

OH, SEVERAL SPECIAL.

THEY'RE NOT PERMANENTLY AFFIXED.

UH, UH, UH, YES, COUNCIL MEMBER.

UM, SO THEY TRIED TO PACK US IN THERE YESTERDAY, LIKE SARDINES, LIKE THAT.

AND NOBODY SAID THAT WE'RE ALLOWED TO MOVE THOSE NAME TAGS.

YOU GUYS COULD SPREAD OUT .

YOU DON'T BE SILLY.

WANTED TO SIT RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER.

WE LIKE EACH OTHER.

OH, AND ALSO, HI, TINA .

HI, COUNCIL MEMBER.

UH, THANK, THANK YOU COUNCIL.

UH, UH, AS COUNCIL MEMBERS RE UH, SAID, I'M TINA CANNON PRESIDENCY OF THE AUSTIN LGBT CHAMBER.

I'M ALSO HERE WITH MY COLLEAGUES THAT YOU'LL MEET HERE IN A MOMENT FOR THE, UH, THE REMAINING, UH, DECK OF CHAMBERS.

UH, SO WE'RE GONNA LAY OUT, UH, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW, HOW WE'VE GOTTEN HERE.

UH, A COUPLE OF WORDS UP FRONT, AND THEN WE'LL RUN THROUGH THE DECK AND HAPPY TO ANSWER AND FEEL QUESTIONS.

FEEL FREE TO BE INTERRUPT AS MAXIMUS, UH, ALONG THE WAY IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE A BURNING QUESTION ABOUT.

UH, AGAIN.

SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.

UH, I'M HERE, JOINED HERE TODAY WITH MY COLLEAGUES.

WE'LL MEET IN A MOMENT.

REPRESENT DECA, THE DIVERSITY ETHNIC CHAMBER ALLIANCE, MADE UP OF THE BLACK, HISPANIC, ASIAN, AND LGBT CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE.

TOGETHER, WE LAUNCHED A VERY FIRST OF ITS KIND INITIATIVE IN THE UNITED STATES, THE REPLAN OR REGIONAL EQUITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

EACH OF OUR ORGANIZATIONS BRINGS A LEGACY OF ADVOCACY, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, AND CULTURAL COMPETENT SUPPORT FOR OUR UNDERSERVED BUSINESS COMMUNITY.

TOGETHER WE'LL LEVERAGE OUR COLLECTIVE STRENGTH TO ENSURE THAT SMALL AND MICRO BUSINESSES, PARTICULARLY THOSE THAT ARE HISTORICALLY EXCLUDED, ENTREPRENEURS HAVE ACCESS TO RESOURCES, TRAINING, AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT THEY NEED NEED TO THRIVE.

AUSTIN, OF COURSE, AS WE KNOW, IS AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE, BUT THAT PROSPERITY HAS NOT BEEN EVENLY DISTRIBUTED.

WHILE MEDIAN INCOME FOR WHITE HOUSEHOLDS IS OVER 104,000 ANNUALLY, BLACK HISPANIC HOUSEHOLDS TRAIL SIGNIFICANTLY BY 30 AND 22% RESPECTIVELY.

AND DESPITE POPULATION GROWTH, MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES ACCOUNT DISPROPORTIONATELY SMALL SHARE OF THE TOTAL FIRM'S EMPLOYEES AND PAYROLL.

THE REID PLAN DEVELOPED THROUGH YEARS LONG COLLABORATION WITH EACH OF OUR DECA CHAMBERS.

OUR DISTINGUISHED DECA ADVISORY BOARD, WHICH WE'LL LEARN ABOUT IN A MOMENT, AND OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS LAYS OUT A VERY CLEAR ACTIONABLE STRATEGY TO ADDRESS THIS.

IT IS GROUND IN THREE PILLARS, RESILIENCE, EQUITY, AND INVESTMENT, BUT IS MORE THAN A MISSION STATEMENT.

IT IS A BLUEPRINT, SOME KEY COMPONENTS, PLACE-BASED PROCUREMENT INITIATIVE, WORKING WITH OUR MAJOR EMPLOYERS, UH, TO SET REAL SUPPLIER DIVERSITY GOALS, NOT JUST PROMISES.

WE'RE IDENTIFYING PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITIES, BUILDING CERTIFICATION FRAMEWORKS, AND HOLDING COMPANIES ACCOUNTABLE FOR CLEAR BENCHMARKS.

ACCESS TO CAPITAL.

YOU'LL LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS IN A MINUTE AS WELL, BUT A LITTLE PREVIEW.

WE DID LAUNCH A $1 MILLION DECA LOAN FUND FOR BUSINESSES THAT DON'T MEET TRADITIONAL UNDERWRITING STANDARDS, BUT ARE READY TO GROW TECHNICAL CAPACITY BUILDING.

MANY OF OUR MINORITY FIRMS ARE EXCLUDED, NOT DUE TO LACK OF IDEAS, BUT BECAUSE THEY LACK THE BANDWIDTH AND OR MENTORSHIP TO SCALE.

SO WE ARE ROLLING OUT TARGETED SUPPORT, INCLUDING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, MENTORSHIP, AND INDUSTRY SPECIFIC TRAININGS.

ENTREPRENEURIAL PATHWAYS.

WE ARE SUPPORTING ASPIRING ENTREPRENEURS, HELPING INDIVIDUALS TURN THEIR SKILLS AND POTENTIAL INTO SUCCESS.

UH, EXPANDING ACCESS TO OWNERSHIP TO OPPORTUNITY AND ECONOMIC MOBILITY.

AND OF COURSE, WORKFORCE HOUSING AND CHILDCARE.

WE KNOW YOU CANNOT BUILD A BUSINESS, UH, IF YOU DON'T HAVE, UH, ADEQUATE HOUSING AND OR CHILDCARE.

THE REPLAN, OF COURSE, SUPPORTS BROADER CITY EFFORTS TO CREATE BOTH AFFORDABLE UNITS IN YOUR TRANSIT AND EXPAND CHILDCARE AVAILABILITY, BOTH CRITICAL TO LABOR PARTICIPATION AND ENTREPRENEURIAL STABILITY.

AND FINALLY, LONG-TERM, WE'LL BE CALLING FOR THE CREATION OF

[00:05:01]

A DECA BUSINESS CENTER FOR OUR UNDER-RESOURCED BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TO SERVE AS A PERMANENT HOME FOR THESE INITIATIVE HOUSED WITHIN DECA AND OR PARTNERSHIP WITH ONE OF OUR, OUR PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS.

SO WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT THIS MODEL IS THAT, UH, WE ARE SETTING A NATIONAL STANDARD PROOF IN POINT SEATTLE, WASHINGTON JUST LAUNCHED THEIR VERY OWN MINORITY CHAMBER COALITION CALLED THE WMBC, NOT A RADIO STATION.

OUR WORK IS ALREADY SHAPING NATIONAL BEST PRACTICES.

AND SO WE ARE JUST GETTING STARTED AS WE MOVE TO THE IMPLEMENTATION PHASE.

WE LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING OUR PARTNERSHIP, UH, WITH OUR FRIENDS AT THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

TOGETHER WE HAVE A SHARED COMMITMENT TO BUILDING AN ECONOMY THAT IS NOT ONLY DYNAMIC AND FAST GROWING, BUT INCLUSIVE, EQUITABLE, AND RESILIENT FOR ALL OF OUR AUSTINITES.

SO THANK YOU FOR BEING A PART OF THIS IMPORTANT WORK.

I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MY COLLEAGUES TO RUN THROUGH THE DECK AND GET A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAILED.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, TINA.

I TURN THIS ON.

THANK YOU FOR HAVING US, UH, MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL.

WE'RE SO EXCITED TO BE HERE WITH OUR DECA PARTNERSHIP.

UH, WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP AND CONTINUED SUPPORT AS WE WORK TOGETHER TO ADVANCE EQUITABLE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ACROSS CENTRAL TEXAS.

UM, IF YOU COULD TAKE US TO THE NEXT PAGE.

AS TINA MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, THE DIVERSITY ETHNIC CHAMBER ALLIANCE IS COMMITTED AND HAS A VISION TO MAKE SURE THAT WE STRENGTHEN MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES.

WE'RE GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR GOALS, OUR REGIONAL MO ROAD PLAN, AND OUR RE PLAN, IF YOU'LL MOVE US FORWARD TO THE NEXT PAGE.

AS TINA MENTIONED, WE'RE COMPRISED OF THE GREATER AUSTIN HISPANIC, BLACK ASIAN, AND L-G-B-T-Q CHAMBERS.

DECA REPRESENTS THOUSANDS OF SMALL BUSINESSES AND ENTREPRENEURS ACROSS OUR REGION.

MORE SPECIFICALLY OVER 4,000.

WE'VE COME TOGETHER TO ADDRESS THE PERSISTENT INEQUITIES IN ECONOMIC GROWTH AND TO ENSURE PROSPERITY REACHES ALL OF OUR COMMUNITIES.

WE'RE GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE, UM, DO THIS WITH A REGIONAL LENS IN MIND, RECOGNIZING THAT ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY DOESN'T STOP AT CITY BOUNDARIES.

OH, THEY GAVE ME THE CLICKERS SO I CAN DO THIS.

LET'S DO IT.

ALL RIGHT.

SO LET'S DIVE IN A LITTLE BIT MORE SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE REGIONAL, UM, ECONOMIC E EQUITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN.

AS TINANA LIKES TO SAY, EVERYTHING IS BETTER WITH ACRONYMS, RIGHT? READ PLAN.

UM, AS MENTIONED, IT IS THE FIRST OF ITS KIND.

IT IS, IT DOES NOT REPLACE EXISTING REGIONAL PLANS, BUT REALLY COMPLIMENTS THEM WITH A FOCUS LENS ON DIVERSE BUSINESSES AND WORKFORCE PARTICIPATION.

OFTENTIMES, OUR COMMUNITIES GET BROUGHT IN, UM, YOU KNOW, AT THE, AT THE TAIL END TO REPRESENT THE DIVERSITY.

AND THIS PLAN HAS THE INTENTION OF MAKING SURE WE GO MUCH FURTHER UPSTREAM TO BE PART OF THE DECISION MAKING TABLE, TO BE PART OF THE DATA AND NEED SURFACING FROM OUR COMMUNITIES SO THAT WE CAN MAKE THE RIGHT DECISIONS, UM, MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE COMMITMENTS AND FOLLOW THROUGH IN OUR SUPPORT AND COLLABORATION AS WE WORK THROUGH, UM, YOU KNOW, CENTRAL TEXAS.

UM, WE, LIKE TINA MENTIONED, HAVE THE BLUEPRINT AND WHO BETTER TO SURFACE THAT FROM, UH, FROM DIVERSITY COMMUNITIES? UH, FOR DIVERSITY COMMUNITIES.

AND SO OUR GOAL REALLY IS TO ALIGN PRIVATE SECTOR CAPACITY WITH PUBLIC NEEDS FOR INCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF ALL TO INTEGRATE EXCLUDED COMMUNITIES INTO THE BROADER ECONOMIC NARRATIVE, AND REALLY TO HAVE A COMMUNITY LED PLAN OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT UNDER DECK OF STEWARDSHIP.

LET'S MOVE TO THE REED, UM, ADVISORY COUNCIL.

THESE FOLKS ARE LEADERS ACROSS SECTORS FROM GOVERNMENT AND EDUCATION TO REAL ESTATE AND BANKING.

THEIR EXPERTISE AND LIVED EXPERIENCE GUIDES OUR WORK AND ENSURES ACCOUNTABILITY.

IT ALSO MAKES SURE THAT THERE IS, UM, LITTLE DUPLICATION.

OFTENTIMES WHEN PEOPLE ARE IN SILOS, WE CREATE AND RECREATE THE SAME WHEEL.

AND OUR INTENTION IS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE SURFACE THESE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO INFLUENCE AND GUIDE OUR WORK SO THAT WE CAN BUILD UPON, SO THAT WE CAN LOOK TO SCALE AND INJECT RESOURCES TO WHAT'S ALREADY WORKING AND PERHAPS AMPLIFY EXISTING GOOD WORKING WORK MODELS IN ADDITION TO IDENTIFYING NEW ONES, OUR DECA CEOS LOOK AT US IN OUR HEADSHOTS.

WONDERFUL.

UM, LET'S MOVE ON FROM HERE.

JUST TO, UM, GIVE YOU AN IDEA THAT THE DECA AND REPLANT IS INFORMED THROUGH DATA.

WE'VE DEPLOYED OVER 12,000 SURVEYS.

WE'VE HAD OVER 180 FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANTS, OF COURSE, THE 15 PLUS ADVISORY COUNCIL AND GROWING.

AND OUR COLLECTIVE 4,000 MEMBERS PLUS HAVE INFLUENCED AND HAD INPUT INTO OUR WORK.

OUR OUTREACH ENSURES THAT THE RE PLAN REFLECTS REAL COMMUNITY VOICES AND THE DIVERSE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITIES.

UM, AT A HIGH LEVEL, TINA MENTIONED

[00:10:01]

OUR FOCUS AREAS.

HOUSING AFFORDABILITY, OF COURSE, IS KEY TO WORKFORCE STABILITY, TRANSPORTATION, EQUITABLE ACCESS DRIVES, REGIONAL GROWTH IN SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES AND ACCESS TO CAPITAL.

OUR BUSINESS CONTINUE TO GET A NO 60% OF THEM WHEN THEY ASK FOR CAPITAL.

OUR OBJECTIVE AND GOAL IS TO GET A YES AND TO BE ABLE TO TRIAGE AND GUIDE, UM, THE OPPORTUNITY, UH, RESPECTIVELY WITH OUR PARTNERS.

AND WE'RE GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE OF THE DECA LOAN FUND THAT TINA MENTIONED WITH OVER A MILLION DOLLARS.

IT'S ALREADY FULFILLING ITS OBJECTIVE OF GIVING ACCESS TO CAPITAL.

AND OF COURSE, CHILDCARE, CREATIVE ECONOMIES AND GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS IS ALSO PART OF THIS STRATEGY.

LET ME SAY THAT TO BE CLEAR, OUR GOALS ARE VERY SPECIFIC TO FOSTER COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS TO CREATE MORE INCLUSIVE WORKFORCE PIPELINES AND TO CENTER COMMUNITY VOICES IN ECONOMIC PLANNING.

WE DO THIS ALL WITH A REGIONAL APPROACH, AND I AM HAPPY TO PASS THIS ON TO OUR SISTER CHAMBER WITH MARK DUVALL, UM, THE GREATER AUSTIN ASIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TO TALK ABOUT THAT GLOBAL AND REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE.

YES, PASSING THE POWER.

GOOD MORNING.

TYPE A PERSONALITIES THAT NEED THE POWER.

EXACTLY THE BUTTON.

ALL I NEED IS THE BUTTON.

I DON'T NEED THE POWER .

GOOD MORNING COUNCIL.

THANKS FOR HAVING US.

UH, WE DO TAKE THIS, UH, REGIONAL, UH, GREATER AUSTIN TITLE VERY SERIOUSLY.

UM, AND YOU KNOW, OF COURSE WE, OUR FOCUS IS ON CITY OF AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY.

UH, BUT WE WORK WITH CITIES AND STAKEHOLDERS PARTNERS ACROSS THE, THE, UH, THE ENTIRE GREATER AUSTIN FIVE COUNTY REGION.

UH, FOR GACC, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, OUR, THE ASIAN COMMUNITY, UH, PAN-ASIAN COMMUNITY, UH, WHICH COVERS MANY CULTURES, OF COURSE, IS PAN AUSTIN.

UH, IT'S ALL OVER THE REGION, BUT PRIMARILY CONCENTRATED IN SORT OF NORTH AUSTIN, NORTHWEST AUSTIN, UP INTO CEDAR PARK AND LEANDER ROUND ROCK, PFLUGERVILLE.

BUT WE DO PRIORITIZE ALL OF OUR ACTIVITY ACROSS THE REGION.

UH, YOU KNOW, OUR DECK OF PARTNERS HAVE CONCENTRATIONS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE CITY, BUT WE'RE EVERYWHERE.

AND THAT'S REALLY, UH, EXCITING FOR US, UH, AS A COLLABORATION TO BE, TO BE EVERYWHERE.

AND, AND REALLY THAT'S A KEY POINT I'D LIKE YOU TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS.

IF YOU THINK ABOUT AUSTIN, WE'VE GOT SOME AMAZING INSTITUTIONS LIKE THE CITY.

UH, WE'VE GOT THE WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS, FOR EXAMPLE.

WE'VE GOT THE AUSTIN CHAMBER, WE'VE GOT OPPORTUNITY AUSTIN AND MANY OTHER INSTITUTIONS DOING GREAT THINGS FOR THE CITY.

BUT WE LIKE TO, WELL, I LIKE TO THINK OF THEM AS VERY VERTICAL.

THEY'RE VERY CONCENTRATED AND THEY'RE EXECUTING IN INCREDIBLE, UM, SUPPORT SERVICES AND, AND ENGAGEMENT FOR THE CITY.

BUT WE ACTIVATE ACROSS THE REGION.

I ALMOST THINK OF US LIKE A GRASSROOTS OR A COMMUNITY ACTIVATING FORCE.

SO WE DO TAKE THAT REGIONAL APPROACH VERY SERIOUSLY, AND IT IS, IT IS EXCITING TO SEE HOW THAT COMES TO, UH, TO FRUITION.

SO WE'RE EVERYWHERE AND OUR COMMUNITIES ARE EVERYWHERE.

UH, FOR THE NEXT SLIDE, I HOPE I GOT THAT RIGHT.

AND ROUND ROCK, UH HU SAN MARCUS MAYER, UH, BUDDA.

SO GLOBAL OUTREACH.

WE DO ALSO TAKE OUR GLOBAL ROLE, UH, VERY SERIOUSLY.

AGAIN, WE PARTNER WITH THE CITY.

WE PARTNER, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, THE SISTER CITIES, UH, PROGRAM.

WE PARTNER WITH THEM, THE WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCIL AND MANY OTHERS.

OPPORTUNITY AUSTIN.

AGAIN, WE DIRECTLY, UH, OURSELVES, UH, INTERACT WITH THE IRISH CONSULATE, THE MEXICAN CONSULATE HERE OF COURSE, BUT ALSO CONSULATES IN HOUSTON FOR THE ASIAN CHAMBER, THAT WOULD BE THE WHOLE RANGE.

PAKISTAN, YOU KNOW, INDIA, UM, IT WOULD BE PRIMARILY FREQUENTLY MALAYSIA, INDONESIA, JAPAN, KOREA.

SO THERE'S A LOT OF DIRECT ENGAGEMENT WITH THOSE, UH, CONSULATES.

WE ALSO ENGAGE WITH DELEGATIONS THAT ARE COMING TO EXPLORE AUSTIN FOR BUSINESS TRADE AND INVESTMENT PURPOSES.

BUT WE ALSO ACTIVELY, UH, ENGAGE INTERNATIONALLY.

I WAS ON TWO TRIPS LAST YEAR TO KOREA.

I WAS ON ANOTHER TRIP EARLIER THIS MONTH, UH, THIS YEAR, IN FACT, IN MARCH WITH THE OPPORTUNITY AUSTIN, UH, IN, UH, TAIWAN.

SO WE, WE DIRECTLY GO OVERSEAS AND WE PROMOTE, UH, PROGRAMS, UH, INTERNATIONALLY.

SO IF I GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE HERE, I KNOW THAT, UH, LAST YEAR THE LGBT CHAMBER LED A PROGRAM IN IRELAND, UH, ENGAGING WITH COMPANIES, ENTITIES, AND ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE LOOKING TO ENHANCE, UH, THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN IRELAND AND AUSTIN, INCLUDING, AGAIN, TRADE AND INVESTMENT.

I KNOW THAT WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ON A REGIONAL TRIP, UH, COMING UP NEXT MONTH, IN FACT, TO SEATTLE.

YOU MENTIONED SEATTLE EARLIER, TINA.

SO I THINK HAVING THESE REGIONAL BEST PRACTICE SHARING ACTIVITIES ARE IMPORTANT.

AND THEN FINALLY HERE, WE'RE LEADING A DELEGATION, UH, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH WILLIAMSON COUNTY TO, UH, KOREA, UH, IN OCTOBER.

THIS IS GONNA BE, I WOULD HISTORIC MAYBE A BIG WORD, BUT WE'RE GONNA HAVE 30 DELEGATES.

UH, FROM, AND AGAIN, BACK TO MY ORIGINAL POINT, REPRESENTING I THINK ALMOST ALL OF CENTRAL TEXAS.

WE HAVE TRAVIS COUNTY, WE HAVE WILLIAMSON COUNTY.

WE'RE HAY IN CALDWELL.

WE'VE GOT REPRESENTATIVES FROM CEDAR PARK, UH, GEORGETOWN

[00:15:01]

AND I JUST HEARD, UH, YESTERDAY THAT WE'RE ALSO GOING TO, GOING TO HAVE THE ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, UH, DR. JOHNSON JOINING US ON THIS TRIP.

WE'RE ALSO GONNA BE VISITING, UH, COMPANIES IN SEOUL, FRIENDS OF OURS LIKE SAMSUNG, BUT ALSO NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR MAJOR INVESTMENT.

WE'LL BE, UH, VISITING WITH, UH, JUNG IN CITY, WHICH IS A MAJOR SEMICONDUCTOR CLUSTER CITY IN SOUTH KOREA.

AND WE ARE ALSO GOING TO BE MEETING WITH OUR FRIENDS AT GUAM YOUNG CITY, WHICH IS AUSTIN'S SISTER CITY PARTNER.

SO WE'LL BE RESUSCITATING OR REVIVING OR REACTIVATING THAT RELATIONSHIP, WHICH HAS BEEN A LITTLE BIT QUIET, UH, SINCE COVID.

SO THE POINT THERE IS WE'RE REGIONAL, WE'RE GLOBAL, BUT WE'RE ALSO VERY, VERY LOCAL.

AT THE END OF THE DAY, OUR HEARTBEAT IS AROUND SERVING AND SUPPORTING THOSE MICRO AND SMALL BUSINESSES RIGHT HERE IN, IN CENTRAL TEXAS.

ALL RIGHT.

WELL, THANK YOU, UH, FOR COUNCIL LETTING US, UH, PRESENT.

AND I'M, I'M, I'M HONORED TO BE ON THIS DAY IS WITH MY WONDERFUL COLLEAGUES.

AND, UH, AS YOU CAN TELL BY THE, THE GREAT, UH, PRESENTATION AND THE TIME AND EFFORT TO PUT THIS TOGETHER, UH, YOU KNOW, OUR CHAMBERS ARE, ARE SERIOUS ABOUT ASSISTING OUR BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND BENEFITING THE WONDERFUL GREATER AUSTIN COMMUNITY THAT WE ARE PART OF.

UM, YOU KNOW, I HAVE THE HONOR AND DON'T HAVE ANY PROBLEM OF, UH, GIVING THE CONCLUSION AND THE ASK.

AND, UH, AND, AND, AND PROBABLY I THINK ALL OF YOU HAVE A COPY OF THE PRE PRESENTATION.

AND I GUESS THE, THE KEY THING THERE ON, ON PAGE 18, UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF GOOD EFFORTS AND THOUGHTS GO IN, BUT IT, IT TAKES MONEY, UH, TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.

AND I KNOW WE'RE IN A, IN A BUDGET CYCLE, UH, RIGHT NOW, AND OUR, OUR ESTEEMED, UH, CITY MANAGER HAS, HAS, HAS PRESENTED SOMETHING FOR US TO LOOK AT.

AND, AND, AND WE'RE, WE'RE HOPEFUL, WHETHER IT BE THE AUSTIN BUDGET OR, OR IT BE IN COMPILATION WITH, AS YOU NEGOTIATE WITH, UH, MAJOR BUSINESS PARTNERS AND SO FORTH THAT COME THAT, UH, UH, $1 MILLION IS CONSIDERED FOR AN ANNUAL OPERATING BUDGET TO MAKE THESE GREAT GOALS HAPPEN.

UH, AND THEN IN AN ALIGNMENT WITH THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE NEEDS TO BE CAPITAL AS, AS GREAT BUSINESSES ARE CREATED OR, OR EITHER, UH, WORKING CURRENTLY OR I MEAN CREATED, UM, THERE'D BE A START OF A $5 MILLION CAPITAL BUDGET THAT COULD, COULD GROW TO AT LEAST, UH, 50 MILLION.

AND, UH, AND AS WAS ANNOUNCED, UH, PREVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, WE ALREADY HAVE, UH, UH, PARTNERS LIKE, UH, WELLS FARGO WHO, WHO'VE GIVEN A MILLION DOLLARS TOWARD THAT EFFORT.

AND, AND WE THINK, UH, THAT, UM, UH, BUSINESS PEOPLE WOULD BE EXCITED TO BE A PART OF SOMETHING LIKE THIS.

AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T WANNA WORK IN SILO.

WE WANNA WORK WITH THE GREAT, UH, DEPARTMENTS OF THE CITY TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN.

NOW, THINK YOU'VE GOT REPRESENTATIVES FROM EDD AND, UH, SMBR HERE, WHICH HAVE BEEN GREAT PARTNERS IN TRAINING OUR BUSINESSES, UH, TO MAKING SURE THAT THEY HAVE THE BUSINESS ACUMEN, UH, TO BE SUCCESSFUL.

UH, UH, AT, AT THE END OF, YOU KNOW, FOLLOWING PAGE 18, UH, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SOME KEY QUESTIONS THAT WE ASK OF A NEW OR EMERGING BUSINESSES.

UH, BUT OF COURSE, WE, WE WANT THAT TO WORK IN, IN CONCERT WITH THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE, BECAUSE THERE COULD BE SOME, SOME DEFINITE INFORMATION SHARING.

UH, 'CAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, I THINK WE ALL HAVE THE SAME GOAL.

WE, WE WANT THIS WONDERFUL CITY OF AUSTIN TO, TO CONTINUE TO BE, UH, THE GOLD STAR OF DOING BUSINESS FOR ALL, ALL AMERICANS.

AND, UH, UH, SO WE THANK YOU FOR THIS TIME, UH, AND, AND REALLY WANT YOU TO CONSIDER PUTTING THIS INTO YOUR, INTO THE PLAN BECAUSE THIS IS NOT A PLAN FOR DECA THIS, WE BELIEVE THIS IS A PLAN FOR THE SUCCESS OF AUSTIN.

YOU SEE THAT, BORROW THAT CLICKER AND I'LL BRING US HOME .

UM, SO A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT YOU CAN BE A PART OF COMING UP, UH, THE SMALL BUSINESS SUMMITS.

I KNOW COUNCILOR CADRE WILL BE THERE WITH A PROCLAMATION FOR THAT DAY, BUT THIS IS OUR THIRD ANNUAL, UH, A COUPLE OF HUNDRED BUSINESSES SHOW UP TO THIS.

UH, AND IT CONTINUES TO GROW YEAR AFTER YEAR, BUT IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR TRAINING FOR A SMALL BUSINESS COMMUNITY.

SO POP IN AND JOIN US, UH, ON AUGUST 1ST AT THE CITY'S PLANNING AND, UH, PERMITTING DEVELOPMENT OFFICE.

UH, AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THE DECA LOAN FUND.

YOU CAN LEARN MORE AT, UH, DECA SYNTEX.ORG IF YOU ARE WATCHING ONLINE.

UH, AND THEN, UH, LEVERAGING YOUR SMALL BUSINESS WEEK.

WE DID THIS LAST, EARLIER THIS YEAR WITH THE CITY, UH, AND HAPPY TO CONTINUE THAT PARTNERSHIP, UH, ONGOING.

AND THEN OUR DECA LEADERSHIP, WHETHER IT BE THE CEOS OR, UH, OTHERS ON OUR STAFF, PARTICIPATE THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY

[00:20:01]

IN A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS.

THIS IS JUST A SMALL SAMPLING OF THE, THE PLACES THAT WE ARE ENGAGED AND INVOLVED IN AND LENDING OUR VOICE TO THOSE CONVERSATIONS.

SO WE ARE HERE, WE ARE EVERYWHERE.

WE'RE, UH, UH, VERY THANKFUL FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

UH, BUT WE'RE HOPING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GROW, UH, PROSPER TOGETHER.

THANK YOU ALL.

THANK Y'ALL.

AND, UH, THANK YOU YOU GUYS IN YOUR RESPECTIVE ROLES AS, UH, CHAMBER HEADS, BUT ALSO YOUR, JUST YOU AS INDIVIDUALS AND EVERYTHING THAT Y'ALL BRING TO AND DO FOR THE COMMUNITY.

UH, WE'LL OPEN IT UP FOR SOME, UH, QUESTIONS FROM MYSELF AND MY COLLEAGUES.

AND I WILL, I WILL HAND IT OFF TO, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON.

SHE CAN KICK US OFF FOR SOME QUESTIONS.

FANTASTIC.

I NEVER GET TO GO FIRST.

THANK YOU, CHAIR CADRY.

UM, SO I HAVE A COUPLE, WELL, YOU KNOW, I'LL START BY SAYING I REALLY ENJOYED THE PRESENTATION AND THERE WERE SOME SPECIFIC THINGS THAT I WAS HOPING TO HEAR THAT I HEARD.

UM, MOST ESPECIALLY AROUND TARGETS, AROUND MENTORSHIP, AND REALLY PROVIDING THAT GUIDANCE.

YOU KNOW, THE STEP BETWEEN HAVING THE DRIVE AND THE DESIRE AND THE AMBITION AND MAKING IT TO, YOU KNOW, TO, TO THE BEGINNING STAGES OF YOUR ENTREPRENEURIAL, UM, ADVENTURES.

UH, REALLY OFTENTIMES IT'S JUST THAT KNOWLEDGE GAP AND, YOU KNOW, THE LEARNING CURVE IS WHAT IS WHAT KILLS A LOT OF PEOPLE'S, UH, ENTREPRENEURIAL DREAMS. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE HEARING THAT.

SOMETHING I WANTED TO ADD THERE IS, IN MY CONVERSATION WITH SOME FOLKS LATELY AROUND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND CAREER TRAINING.

WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW I THINK OFTENTIMES SOME OF THE POSITIONS THAT GET SLEPT ON WHEN WE DO TRAINING AROUND WORKFORCE AND UM, UH, ENTREPRENEURSHIP, UH, IS LIKE SORT OF THE NON-TRADITIONAL, UH, JOB.

SO FOR EXAMPLE, UH, A HOUSE MANAGER OR A HOUSEHOLD MANAGER THAT'S A PRIVATE RESIDENTIAL JOB, BUT THEY OFTEN PAY SIX FIGURES, BUT THEY'RE JOBS THAT PEOPLE DON'T KNOW EXIST AND AREN'T LOOKING FOR.

UM, YOU KNOW, THE FOLKS THAT I KNOW THAT WORK IN FIVE STAR DINING, THAT'S A SIX FIGURE JOB, BUT NOT EVERYBODY'S PREPARED TO BE A A FIVE STAR DINING.

UH, OH, UH, COUNCILOR, ARE YOU BACK? SURE.

I I THINK SHE'S LEANING INTO TO THE HOSPITALITY TRADES, IT SOUNDS LIKE PRETTY SIGNIFICANTLY.

UH, ONE OF THE BOARDS THAT WE ALL SERVE ON IS VISIT AUSTIN AND, UH, WE PARTNER WITH THEM, UH, ON THEIR TRAINING AND THEIR SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE RAISING THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE WORKFORCE, BUT ALSO WITHIN THAT, WE HOPE WE FIND A BUDDING ENTREPRENEUR IN THE MIX AS WELL.

ALSO, TO ADD TO THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, IN SOME OF OUR WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC, UH, DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEES, UM, WE'RE WORKING WITH, UH, UH, WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS AND, UH, A CC, UH, FOR MM-HMM AND IN, UM, PUSHING FORWARD AN INFRASTRUCTURE ACADEMY BECAUSE, UH, UM, OUR PEOPLE, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S MANY WAYS TO GET SUCCESSFUL.

YOU KNOW, ONE, YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY IS, IS BUSINESS, UH, STARTING YOUR OWN BUSINESS.

UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, GOING THROUGH TRADES, THROUGH COLLEGE, THROUGH THE MILITARY, THERE'S MANY AVENUES.

UM, AND, UH, AND THAT'S ONE TO, TO, UH, ADDRESS THE ISSUE THAT SHE'S TALKING ABOUT.

UH, AND, UH, WE, WE HAVE, WE HAVE EVENTS, YOU KNOW, LIKE ON OCTOBER 4TH OF THIS YEAR, IT'S, UH, EIGHT 30 TO THREE 30 OF, YOU KNOW, FINANCIAL FITNESS SEMINAR WHERE WE CAN, PEOPLE CAN COME TO FOR FREE AND LEARNING ABOUT, UH, THESE POTENTIAL OPTIONS, UH, UH, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, ALL OF US CAN SING AND DUNK A BASKETBALL, BUT, UH, THERE'S MANY OTHER WAYS THAT WE CAN MAKE MONEY.

AND, AND SHE DEFINITELY MENTIONED THAT.

AND THAT IS ON OUR RADAR TO MAKE SURE OUR PEOPLE ARE AWARE, UH, AND HAVE A GREAT CAREER FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILY.

SAVE YOURSELF A LOT OF HEARTACHE AND MONEY AND OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY.

UM, AND, AND JUST FOR CLARITY, JOSE CAN BOTH SING AND DUNK BASKETBALL.

I WAS ACTUALLY GONNA MAKE THAT COMMENT.

SING AND DUNK BASKETBALL .

UM, I THINK WE MIGHT HAVE COUNCILOR HARBOR MADISON BACK.

I SEE TWO NATASHA HARBOR MADISON.

SO MAYBE ONE OF THEM IS WORKING.

ARE, ARE YOU THERE, COUNCIL MEMBER? OH, I THINK SO.

THERE YOU ARE.

UM, ALL RIGHT.

WE HAD TO, SO THIS IS WHY THEY DON'T LET ME GO FIRST.

SO THE POINT I WAS GETTING AT WAS, YOU KNOW, IN, IN CONSIDERATIONS AROUND, UM, SORT OF THAT ENTREPRENEURIAL GUIDANCE.

UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I ALWAYS THINK BACK ABOUT IS HOW IN MY EARLY ENTREPRENEURIAL VENTURES, UM, HEARING THAT STATISTIC ABOUT HOW, YOU KNOW, 80% OF SMALL BUSINESSES FAILED WITHIN THE FIRST FIVE YEARS MM-HMM .

AND HAD I LISTENED, UM, A LITTLE BIT MORE, THERE WERE A COUPLE THAT I JUST WOULD'VE SCRAPPED A LOT EARLIER.

SO I JUST WANTED TO ASK, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT SURE IF IT'S A QUESTION SO MUCH AS JUST, IT'S NOTEWORTHY THAT THAT MENTORSHIP AND THAT GUIDANCE SHOULD REALLY COME WITH SOME REAL TALK, YOU KNOW,

[00:25:01]

UM, GUIDANCE, UM, WAS WHAT I WAS GETTING AT THAT AND HAVING PEOPLE REALLY THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX.

I KNOW OFTENTIMES PEOPLE COME TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP THINKING THEY KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT THEY WANT TO DO, BUT HAVEN'T REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT THE LONG GAME.

AND YOU KNOW, HOW IT'S GONNA PLAY OUT, WHAT SERVICES ARE GONNA BE PERPETUALLY NEEDED, WHAT, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE, WHAT PROBLEM, WHAT CHALLENGE ARE YOU SOLVING THAT PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS NEED? SO, UM, THAT WAS MORE OF A COMMENT THAN A QUESTION.

AND THEN THE QUESTION THOUGH WAS, I'M REALLY EXCITED TO HEAR ABOUT HOW MUCH PARTNERSHIP YOU GUYS ARE THINKING ABOUT REGIONALLY AND BEYOND, AND YOU PROBABLY NOTICED ON YOUR WAY INTO CITY HALL, WE HAVE THOSE DIRECTIONAL SIGNS THAT SPEAK TO OUR SISTER CITIES AND OUR RELATIONSHIPS THERE.

AND I JUST WONDERED, ONE, DO YOU GUYS HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH SISTER CITIES INTERNATIONAL? AND IF NOT, YOU KNOW, I WONDER WHAT THAT PARTNERSHIP WOULD LOOK LIKE.

AND THEN TWO, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT SISTER CITIES INTERNATIONAL HAS A GOAL OF DOING IS GETTING 500, UM, AFRICAN CITIES, CITIES FROM THE MOTHER CONTINENT, UM, AS A PART OF THEIR, UH, COLLECTION OF CITIES THAT THEY WORK WITH.

UM, AND YOU PROBABLY NOTICED, OR WILL NOTICE NOW ON THAT SIGN, THERE AREN'T ANY AFRICAN CITIES OR, UM, PLACES IN AFRICA TO POINT TO, UH, ON THAT SIGN.

AND I'D LIKE TO GET THAT FIXED.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, AS YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT YOUR INTERNATIONAL VENTURES, UM, IT'S NOTEWORTHY THAT, YOU KNOW, I, I HEAR FOLKS TALK A LOT ABOUT, UM, WORK WITH, WITH VARIOUS DELEGATIONS AND INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL, BUT I REALLY DON'T HEAR MUCH ABOUT THE DIASPORA.

UM, AND GIVEN OUR, UM, THAT'S A MORE QUESTION, , I'M, I'M SORRY, I CAN'T HEAR YOU.

I WAS SAYING, SORRY TO INTERRUPT.

I WAS CHEWING QUEUING UP, MARK TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION FOR YOU.

OH, OKAY.

UM, AND, UH, AND I LOST MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT.

OH, I JUST, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT'S ON EVERYBODY'S RADAR.

THAT, YOU KNOW, GIVEN OUR, UH, POPULATION OF FOLKS IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, THAT IDENTIFY AS PEOPLE WHO ARE ORIGINALLY FROM THE DIASPORA, UM, IT'D BE A GREAT IDEA TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT INCLUSIVITY INCLUDES, UM, INCLUDES AFRICA.

I CAN JUMP IN, RIGHT? RIGHT THERE.

I WAS JUST IN AFRICA, BY THE WAY.

I WAS IN BOTSWANA, ZAMBIA, ZIMBABWE, AND SOUTH AFRICA, UH, FOR MY SUMMER VACATION RECENTLY.

AND, UH, I WAS THINKING THAT EXACT SAME POINT WHERE I WAS IN, UH, CAPE, I WAS IN THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE, AND THEY HAVE A, A SIGNPOST SIMILAR TO THE ONE THAT WE HAVE, UH, OUTSIDE CITY HALL, WHICH POINTS IN MULTIPLE DIRECTIONS AROUND THE WORLD AND THE DISTANCES, UM, FROM THAT POINT TO THOSE PLACES.

AND I WAS THINKING, WHERE IS AUSTIN ON THAT SIGNPOST AND VICE VERSA, YOU KNOW, WHERE IS AFRICA, UH, ON OUR SIDE POST? SO I'M, I'M EXCITED TO HEAR YOU SAY THAT, AND I'M HAPPY TO, TO, TO WEIGH IN ON THAT, UH, PERSONALLY AS WELL.

WELL, I APPRECIATE THAT.

SO WE'VE ALREADY BEEN WORKING WITH THE CITIES INTERNATIONAL FOLKS.

I'LL HAVE SHARON MAYS FROM THE DISTRICT ONE OFFICE COME DOWN AND SAY HEY TO YOU.

UM, BUT WE'VE ALREADY BEEN WORKING WITH THEM ON, UH, GETTING A RELATIONSHIP IN SALAAM, BUT, UM, WE GOT A LOT OF CITIES TO GO TO CATCH UP.

UM, SO THANK YOU.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

AND THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.

IT WAS GREAT.

AND, AND JUST TO ADD TO THAT, THANK YOU AND LOOK FORWARD TO THAT, THAT CONTACT, UH, INFORMATION FROM, UH, UH, MS. HAYES.

UM, UM, YOU KNOW, GREATER AUSTIN BLACK CHAMBER HAS OUR FOURTH WEDNESDAY LUNCHEONS, UH, WHERE WE CAN HIGHLIGHT, UH, BUSINESSES AND, UH, AND UH, UH, OTHER OPPORTUNITIES, UH, FOR BUSINESSES, UM, ON, UH, ON THIS COMING WEDNESDAY, JULY 23RD, WHERE ACTUALLY HAVING THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, UH, PEOPLE, THERE'LL BE COMING IN FROM, UH, THE CENTRAL AMERICA, UH, TOWN OF BELIZE.

UH, AGAIN, IT'S A, A, A BLACK, UH, BLACK TOWN.

AND THEY'RE WANTING, THEY'RE WANTING BUSINESSES TO, UH, EXPAND THEIR BUSINESS AND BUILD, UH, IN THE, IN THE TOWN OF BELIZE.

SO, UH, WE ARE DEFINITELY THINKING ABOUT, UH, UH, HELPING OUR BUSINESSES NOT ONLY THINK, UH, AUSTIN, WE WANT 'EM GROW IN AUSTIN, BUT GREEN CAN BE GOTTEN FROM EVERYWHERE.

SO WE DEFINITELY WANT THEM TO THINK, UM, INTERNATIONALLY AND GLOBALLY IN AFRICA, AMERICA, WHETHER IT'S AFRICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, OR WHEREVER.

SO ANYONE WOULD BE WELCOME, UH, TO COME.

IT'S FROM 1130 TO ONE O'CLOCK, UH, UH, AT OUR, AT OUR BLACK CHAMBER OFFICES.

I REALLY APPRECIATE HEARING THAT, AND I WAS GONNA BE QUIET UNTIL YOU SAID THAT.

SO NOW I HAVE ONE MORE THING TO SAY, .

SO, UM, THERE'S SOME VERY INTENTIONAL EFFORTS WITH THE SIDS, IS WHAT THEY CALL THEM, THE SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES.

SO THINK, UM, BARBADOS, BERMUDA, BAHAMAS, JAMAICA, UM, AND, UH, THE EFFORT TO MAKE A CONNECTION IN THE STATES.

AND THERE'S SOME REALLY INTERESTING, UM, POLITICAL STUFF GOING ON IN TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO, AND I KNOW THEY'RE VERY INTERESTED IN MAKING SOME CONNECTIONS IN THE STATES.

AND SO THAT'S ANOTHER THOUGHT, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, UM, FOR THE BLACK CHAMBERS, MOST ESPECIALLY BLACK FOLKS COME IN ALL VARIETIES.

AFRO-LATINO, AFRO CARIBBEAN, AFRO.

[00:30:01]

I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THIS WAS A TERM UNTIL RECENTLY, BUT OF COURSE IT IS AFRO EUROPEAN.

UM, AND SO WE COME IN, WE COME IN ALL VARIETIES, AND I DON'T KNOW THAT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY THAT WE'RE TAKING THE OPPORTUNITY, UM, TO RECOGNIZE BLACK FOLKS OF ALL, UM, OF ALL ORIGINS.

AND SO I REALLY APPRECIATE HEARING THAT ABOUT THE WORK YOU GUYS ARE DOING WITH THE FOLKS FROM BELIZE.

UH, AND WE'LL BE IN TOUCH WITH Y'ALL AS WELL.

'CAUSE I THINK, UH, I THINK THAT'S THE, THE, THE ECONOMY IS GLOBAL.

UM, SO OUR CULTURE AND OUR EFFORTS SHOULD REFLECT THAT.

UH, THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER.

UM, I'M GONNA PASS THAT OFF TO COUNCIL MEMBER SIEGEL FOR SOME QUESTIONS.

NAN, THANK YOU CHAIR, AND THANKS Y'ALL FOR THIS, UH, GREAT PRESENTATION.

UM, I KIND OF WANTED TO OPEN UP A CONVERSATION ABOUT MANUFACTURING, UH, WHICH IS AN ISSUE THAT'S, UH, NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART.

UM, AND JUST TO GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT, UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE ISSUES I CARE MOST ABOUT IS CLIMATE ACTION.

AND AS A COMMUNITY, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'VE, AS OUR ELECTRIC UTILITY HAS SET FORWARD, WE HAVE THIS VERY AMBITIOUS GENERATION PLAN BY 2035, RIGHT, TO ADD A COUPLE HUNDRED MEGAWATTS OF SOLAR POWER GENERATION, WHICH REPRESENTS THOUSANDS OF ACRES OF SOLAR PANELS.

AND THAT BY ITSELF COULD BE A MAJOR CATALYST FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LOCALLY.

AND, UH, ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS I'M THINKING ABOUT IS WITH THESE FEDERAL CUTS TO, FOR EXAMPLE, CLIMATE FUNDING, UH, IT'S MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER THAT WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO GENERATE THIS ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY LOCALLY USING EVERY TOOL WE HAVE IN THE TOOLBOX, WHETHER THAT'S OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY, WHETHER THAT'S USING CITY LAND, UH, AND IT DOES CONNECT SORT TO, YOU KNOW, THE INFRASTRUCTURE ACADEMY, RIGHT? SO HOW CAN WE MAKE IT SO AN AUSTIN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT CAN GRADUATE, MAYBE GET THEIR PRE-APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM AT AUSTIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, GET A, UH, AN APPRENTICESHIP WITH A TRADE, AND THEN GET A, A WELL PAID WORKING CLASS JOB, UM, YOU KNOW, BUILDING SOLAR PANELS OR, UH, DEVELOPING BATTERY TECHNOLOGY IN ALL THESE AREAS OF KIND OF GREEN OR RENEWABLE ENERGY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

UM, SO I JUST WANTED TO SIGNAL THAT I WOULD LOVE TO WORK WITH Y'ALL ON THIS, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE ATTRACT MANUFACTURING TO THIS COMMUNITY AND, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE, UH, YOU KNOW, CONNECT THE DIVERSE CHAMBERS TO THAT WORK? AND SO IF Y'ALL HAVE ANYTHING YOU CAN SHARE ON HOW MANUFACTURING FITS INTO YOUR PORTFOLIO, I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR THAT.

AND ALSO WOULD LOVE TO TALK TO YOU MORE ON THE DAYS AHEAD.

SURE.

I, I'LL TOUCH ON THE CLIMATE PIECE REAL QUICK.

UH, I KNOW MYSELF AND MY COLLEAGUE, UH, FROM THE HISPANIC CHAMBER OF BRITTANY, UH, RODRIGUEZ, UH, WE SERVED ON THE 20 20, 20 35 STAKEHOLDER GROUP WITH AUSTIN ENERGY, UH, AS PART OF THAT MULTI-MONTH PROCESS, UH, TO KIND OF LEAN IN ON, ON THE WORK THAT AUSTIN ENERGY WILL BE DOING, AS WELL AS THE STAKEHOLDER REQUIREMENTS OF AUSTIN ENERGY, BALANCING BOTH PRICE AS WELL AS, UH, CLIMATE.

UH, AND SO WE WERE PROUD TO DO THAT WORK.

AND I KNOW, AS MARK HAD MENTIONED BEFORE, WE'RE VERY ACTIVE IN THE FIVE COUNTY REGION.

AND WITHIN THAT FIVE COUNTY REGION IS REALLY MORE, ESPECIALLY OUTSIDE OF TRAVIS, ARE MORE OF THE ADVANCED MANUFACTURING HUBS.

AND WITH OUR FRIENDS AT ARM, UH, WE'RE VERY IN TOUCH WITH WHAT'S GOING ON IN THOSE SPACES.

AND MAJORITY OF THE COMPANIES I KNOW THAT WE VISIT WITH TEND TO BE LEANING IN MORE INTO THE ADVANCED MANUFACTURING SPACE, JUST BECAUSE THE, THE WORKFORCE NOW, ALONG WITH AUSTIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, BEING ABLE TO TRAIN THOSE FOLKS TO COME OUT INTO THOSE JOBS IS PRETTY SPECTACULAR.

SO WE'RE, THAT'S WHY I, BEING JUST AUSTIN FOCUSED WILL NEVER WORK FOR, FOR US AS A REGION.

WE ARE A FIVE COUNTY REGION.

AND NOW EVEN EXTENDING A LITTLE BIT FURTHER DOWN I 35 AS WELL, WITHIN THAT SAN MARCUS CORRIDOR, WELL, I'LL JUST SAY I'D LOVE TO SEE US FIGURE OUT HOW TO BUILD SOLAR PANELS, HOW TO RECYCLE SOLAR PANELS, HOW TO BUILD BATTERIES, RECYCLE BATTERIES.

I THINK THERE'S SOME MAJOR, UH, OPPORTUNITIES WHERE WE COULD BE A LEADER BECAUSE WE HAVE THIS ENVIRONMENTAL CONSCIOUSNESS AS A COMMUNITY, UH, BECAUSE WE HAVE THIS TECH HUB AND THERE'S AN INTERSECTION, YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH TECH AND RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGY.

SO, UH, TO ME, THAT'S A BIG OPPORTUNITY IN THE YEARS AHEAD.

AGREED.

UM, AND WITH NO OTHER QUESTIONS, YOU ALL ARE FREE TO GO, BUT REALLY DO APPRECIATE HAVING YOU ALL HERE TODAY.

THREE, WHICH IS A BRIEFING ON IMMIGRANT BUSINESS RESOURCES.

UH, NEXT UP IS ITEM NUMBER

[3. Briefing on immigrant business resources. [Michael Nahas - Economic Prosperity Commission].]

AND FOR THAT, WE HAVE A PRESENTATION BY AARON GONZALEZ, THE ECONOMIC PRO FROM THE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMITTEE.

UM, ALSO A, UH, APPOINTEE FROM DISTRICT NINE.

WELCOME.

THAT THESE BUSINESS OWNERS CONTRIBUTE TO THE AUSTIN ECONOMY.

AND I BELIEVE ALSO WE HAVE, UH, VICE CHAIR RAQUEL VALEZ SANCHEZ, UM, FROM DISTRICT THREE, UH, THAT WE'RE TRYING TO ENABLE HER TO SPEAK.

SO, AS YOU DESCRIBED, THANK YOU ALL FOR TAKING THE TIME TO, UH, HEAR ABOUT WHAT WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, WHICH IS ENABLING, UM, ENTREPRENEURS WHO HAVE LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY, UH, TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ECONOMY AND, UH, TO HAVE SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES.

SO, GOING TO THE NEXT SLIDE, UM, THE AGENDA TODAY, WE'RE GONNA GO THROUGH SOME OF THE DATA AROUND WHAT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT IS

[00:35:01]

UM, WE'RE GONNA UNDERSTAND THE SCALE OF THESE BUSINESS OWNERS AND THIS POPULATION WITHIN THE ECONOMY, UH, DIVE INTO SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT THEY FACE WHEN STARTING A BUSINESS.

UM, UNDERSTAND WHAT THE CURRENT POLICIES THAT ARE IN PLACE TO ASSIST THESE BUSINESS OWNERS, AND, UH, WHERE THOSE FALL SHORT AND MAKE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS BY LOOKING AT SOME PEER CITIES OF WHAT THEY'RE DOING, UH, CURRENTLY TODAY.

SO, AS YOU MAY KNOW, RIGHT, IS SMALL BUSINESS.

IT'S NO SMALL PORTION OF THE ECONOMY.

UM, WHEN LOOKING AT THE CONTRIBUTIONS NATIONALLY, SMALL BUSINESSES CONTRIBUTED TOWARDS TO 44% OF OVERALL GDP.

UH, SO HERE WE GO.

IT'S IMPORTANT TO EMPHASIZE THE DEFINITION OF WHAT LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY MEANS.

ALL IT MEANS IT'S INDIVIDUALS WHO DO NOT SPEAK ENGLISH AS THEIR PRIMARY LANGUAGE AND WHO HAVE A LIMITED ABILITY TO EITHER READ, SPEAK, WRITE, OR UNDERSTAND ENGLISH.

UH, THAT CAN OBVIOUSLY VARY.

BUT WHEN IT'S SPECIFIC TO BUSINESS OWNERS, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT TAKING OUT A LOAN OR, UH, NAVIGATING COMPLEX REGULATIONS, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE IN LANGUAGE THAT THEY FEEL MOST COMFORTABLE.

AS IT RELATES TO AUSTIN, UM, 15% OF ALL BUSINESS OWNERS IN AUSTIN ARE NOT FROM THE US.

UH, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE LOOK AT, WHEN WE ARE DESCRIBING PEOPLE WHO ARE, UM, FOREIGN BORN, RIGHT? WE MEAN NATURALIZED CITIZENS, LAWFUL PERMANENT RESIDENTS, AND UNDOCUMENTED RESIDENTS.

THIS ENTIRE POPULATION COMPRISES 19% OF AUSTIN'S POPULATION, AND THERE IS LIMITED DATA LOCALLY.

BUT BY PIECING TOGETHER STATEWIDE DATA AS WELL AS NATIONAL DATA, WE WERE ABLE TO DETERMINE THIS IS THAT, UH, 24% OF ALL THE NEW BUSINESSES IN AUSTIN ARE FOUNDED BY FOREIGN BORN ENTREPRENEURS.

THIS IS COMMON WITH NATIONAL TRENDS, IS THAT, UH, IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEURS, THEY ARE, UH, THEY START BUSINESSES AND THEY ARE OFTEN TURNING TO, UH, SELF-EMPLOYMENT AND STARTING THEIR OWN BUSINESSES, UM, MUCH MORE THAN, UM, THE NATIVE BORN POPULATION.

UM, IN TERMS OF, IN THE METRO AREA, THIS, FROM WHAT WE WERE ABLE TO TELL, THERE ARE OVER 31,000 IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEURS IN THE METRO AREA.

AND TO PUT THAT INTO CONTEXT, WITHIN AUSTIN ALONE, THERE'S, IN TOTAL, THERE'S 41,653 BUSINESSES IN TOTAL.

SO THAT'S NOT EXCLUSIVE TO IMMIGRANT BUSINESSES, THAT IS IN TOTAL.

SO WE DO SEE THAT IN THE METRO AREA, THERE IS A HIGH AMOUNT OF THESE BUSINESSES ALREADY, UH, EMPLOYING PEOPLE AND SERVING, UM, CONSTITUENTS ACROSS THE ENTIRE CITY.

SO, OTHER DATA THAT WE KNOW IS THAT THE LATINO POPULATION, SPECIFICALLY IMMIGRANTS, COMPRISE OVER 52% OF ALL LATINO OWNED FIRMS NATIONALLY.

AGAIN, WE DON'T HAVE WHAT THAT DATA IS LOCALLY.

UM, BUT THIS IS FROM THE STANFORD STATE OF LATINO ENTREPRENEURSHIP FROM 2023.

UM, AND AGAIN, FROM OTHER STATS, WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE 24% MORE LIKELY TO BE ENTREPRENEURS THAN US-BORN RESIDENTS.

SO ALSO PUTTING THIS IN CONTEXT NATIONALLY, WE KNOW THAT TEXAS RANKS AMONG THE STATES THAT HAVE THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEURS WHO HAVE LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY WITHIN AUSTIN IN PARTICULAR, HERE'S A BREAKDOWN BY, UH, COUNCIL DISTRICT THAT SHOWS THE PERCENTAGE THAT HAS LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY AND THE PERCENTAGE THAT HAS AN IMMIGRANT POPULATION.

ONE COMMON THOUGHT THAT COMES UP IS, OKAY, WELL, THE LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY POPULATION, UM, IT MAY BE OVER INDEXED IN CERTAIN DISTRICTS.

FOR DISTRICTS THAT ARE NOT IN THOSE AREAS, WHY SHOULD IT MATTER TO THEM? AND WHAT WE SEE CONSISTENTLY IS THAT JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE LIVES IN THAT DISTRICT DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE A BUSINESS THAT DOES NOT OPERATE IN ANOTHER PART OF THE

[00:40:01]

CITY AND DOES NOT SERVE PEOPLE FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY.

UM, SO ANOTHER THOUGHT THAT COMES UP IS, WELL, SPANISH SPEAKING IS A LARGE PERCENTAGE, SURELY OF THE, UH, POPULATION THAT HAS LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY.

AND WHILE THAT IS THE CASE, WE DO SEE THAT IT IS, UH, WIDESPREAD ACROSS MANY DIFFERENT, THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT LANGUAGES AND NEEDS ACROSS THE COMMUNITY, UM, YOU KNOW, CONSISTING OF ASIAN PACIFIC ISLAND LANGUAGES, INDO-EUROPEAN LANGUAGES, ET CETERA.

SO IN, AGAIN, THE DATA IS DIFFICULT AT A LOCAL LEVEL, BUT AT A NATIONAL LEVEL, WE DO KNOW THAT OUT OF ALL ENTREPRENEURS, ROUGHLY 24% OF ENTREPRENEURS WHO ARE IMMIGRANTS HAVE LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY.

SO WE'RE STARTING TO KIND OF UNDERSTAND THE SCALE OF WHAT, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT AUSTIN, HOW MANY OF THOSE BUSINESSES MIGHT NEED THESE SERVICES.

AND I'D LIKE TO TURN TO THE POLICIES THAT ARE IN PLACE TODAY.

SO IN 2013, THE CITY MANAGER, UH, DIRECTED, UH, THE CITY TO DEVELOP A PLAN FOR UNIVERSAL TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETATION SERVICES, UH, TO SERVE THESE INDIVIDUALS.

IN 2022, A LANGUAGE ACCESS POLICY WAS PASSED THAT COVERED DATA COLLECTION, SIGNAGE, TRANSLATION, INTERPRETATION, TRAINING, CONTRACTORS, THIS DIRECT, UH, LANGUAGE ACCESS POLICY, IT WAS NOT SPECIFIC TO SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS.

IT WAS MEANT, UH, FOR THE CITY POPULATION AS A WHOLE.

AND SO, AS WE WILL SEE, THERE ARE SPECIFIC NEEDS THAT THESE BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE THAT ARE NOT BEING MET.

AND FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WILL TURN TO IS GREATER DATA COLLECTION.

AND WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ACTUAL CITY POLICY EXCERPT THAT I PROVIDED OFF TO THE RIGHT, IT TALKS ABOUT HOW THE DATA COLLECTION THAT IS OCCURRING IS TO TRACK CITY OF AUSTIN DEPARTMENT OFFICE OR PROGRAMS FREQUENCY OF CONTACT WITH THESE LEP INDIVIDUALS, UM, TO DO, TO RECORD THE CLIENT'S PREFERRED LANGUAGE OF COMMUNICATION IN THEIR CASE FILES.

SO AGAIN, THE SPECIFIC NEEDS OF BUSINESS OWNERS.

UM, STILL, WE STILL HAVE SOME WAY TO GO.

UM, THESE IMMIGRANT BUSINESS OWNERS, AS HAS BEEN DISCUSSED PREVIOUSLY, UH, THEY ARE TWICE AS LIKELY TO BE SELF-EMPLOYED.

UM, BUT OFTEN WE SEE THAT THEY HAVE HIGHER BUSINESS FAILURE RATES SUGGESTING THAT THEY DO HAVE UNMET NEEDS.

AND WHEN WE LOOK AT THE COMPLEX NATURE OF STARTING A BUSINESS, OFTEN THESE PEOPLE HAVE STARTED BUSINESSES BEFORE, UM, IN THE COUNTRIES THAT, UH, THEY WERE BORN INTO.

AND THEY HAVE LANGUAGE CULTURAL BARRIERS, LACK OF INFORMATION, UM, LIMITED PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL NETWORKS THAT EXACERBATE THESE CHALLENGES AND LEAD TO HIGHER BUSINESS FAILURE RATES.

ANOTHER MISCONCEPTION IS THAT THESE BUSINESS OWNERS ARE, UH, ONLY IN CONSTRUCTION OR HOSPITALITY, AND THAT'S SIMPLY NOT THE CASE, IS THAT WE SEE THAT ACROSS MAJOR INDUSTRIES, THAT THERE IS A, UH, SHARE OF IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEUR ENTREPRENEURS WHO HAVE THESE NEEDS.

UM, DID YOU HAVE ANY, UH, THINGS YOU WANTED? UM, YEAH, I DID WANNA COMMENT ABOUT IMMIGRANTS STARTING BUSINESSES.

UM, SO THEY DO KNOW THEIR COMMUNITIES BETTER, SO THEY'RE ABLE TO MEET NEEDS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES.

I KNOW I'VE BEEN TO A PINATA SHOP ON THE EAST SIDE.

UH, THERE'S ALSO MARIACHI BANDS, QUI ANDRA DRESSES, AND THESE BUSINESSES HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO GROW BEYOND JUST THAT COMMUNITY.

I MEAN, HAVING, I'VE BEEN TO A PINATA SHOP, UM, CERTAINLY PARTIES, AND CERTAINLY IF YOU'RE MAKING CI ADDRESSES TO START, YOU CAN OBVIOUSLY EXPAND BEYOND THAT.

UM, THESE, UH, MEMBERS OF THIS COMMUNITY HAVE A HARDER TIME GETTING HIRED OUTSIDE BY, YOU KNOW, NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS ARE GONNA GET A, A, AN ADVANTAGE.

UM, AND SO, UM, AND THERE'S OTHER FACTORS OF BEING UNDOCUMENTED HERE THAT LIKE, MAKE IT HARDER FOR THEM TO GET HIRED BY OTHER BUSINESSES.

UM, SO JUST PROVIDING THE THREAT OF STARTING A BUSINESS, THESE PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE TO START A BUSINESS TO BENEFIT FROM THIS PROGRAM.

THE, THE PEOPLE JUST HAVING THAT OUTSIDE OPTION OF BEING ABLE TO START A BUSINESS PROVIDES A BENEFIT TO THEM BECAUSE IT GIVES THEM A PLACE TO NEGOTIATE.

SO, UM, I WOULD SAY IN CITIES LIKE HOUSTON, WE SEE THAT THE IMMIGRANTS COMPRISE 24% OF THE POPULATION, BUT THEY OWN 42% OF THE BUSINESSES.

SO CONTRASTING TO WHAT WE'RE SEEING

[00:45:01]

IN AUSTIN, TO WHERE I BELIEVE IT WAS 15% OF THE POPULATION AND A ROUGHLY AROUND 20% OF BUSINESSES, UH, WE DO SEE A OPPORTUNITY, UH, AN OVERLOOKED AREA OF ECONOMIC POTENTIAL, UM, ACROSS TEXAS, RIGHT? THESE IMMIGRANT BUSINESSES, THEY EMPLOY OVER 635,000 WORKERS AND OVER $104 BILLION IN ANNUAL SALES.

SO, UM, MOVING TO THE, SO IN DRAFTING A, THE RECOMMENDATION AND IN PUTTING TOGETHER THIS PRESENTATION, WE SPOKE WITH THE CEO OF THE GREATER AUSTIN HISPANIC CHAMBER, MONICA MOZ ANDRY.

WE SPOKE WITH DORIAN, UM, ANTES, UM, FROM VICE CHAIR OF IMMIGRANT, UH, AFFAIRS COMMISSION.

AND WE ALSO SPOKE WITH CATHERINE SOBEL FROM THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UH, DEPARTMENT, SMALL BUSINESS DIVISION.

AND ULTIMATELY THEY CONFIRMED ALL OF THESE FINDINGS.

THEY HELP US UNDERSTAND WHAT WAS GOING ON AND WHERE THOSE UNMET NEEDS ARE.

AND IN LOOKING AT THE CURRENT ACTIONS FOR BUSINESS OWNERS, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, UM, LANGUAGE ACCESSIBILITY AND MARKETING IS WHERE THOSE CURRENT EFFORTS ARE.

WITHIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

THERE HAS BEEN A FOCUS ON INCREASED SPANISH OUTREACH WITHIN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT THROUGH PRESS RELEASES, COMMUNICATIONS, UM, PAID ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS.

WHY THIS IS RELEVANT IS ULTIMATELY IT SPEAKS TO A ISSUE THAT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT HAS HIGHLIGHTED, IS THAT ULTIMATELY, UM, WITHIN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, A PROGRAM LIKE, UH, BIZ AID HAS NOT BEEN OFFERED TO ASSIST THESE, UH, INDIVIDUALS.

AND WHEN LOOKING AT ONE OF THE REASONS THAT MIGHT BE, AWARENESS HAS COME UP.

AND SO I THINK THAT THERE'S A GREATER, WHEN LOOKING AT CITIES LIKE LOUISVILLE, UH, LOOKING AT CITIES, UM, THAT WE'RE GONNA BE HIGHLIGHTING HERE IN A LITTLE BIT, UH, PHILADELPHIA, BALTIMORE, CHICAGO, THEY ARE PARTNERING WITH LOCAL GROUPS TO BETTER, UH, CREATE AWARENESS AND MEET, MEET THESE PEOPLE WHERE THEY'RE AT.

SO THE RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, WHAT WE'RE RE RECOMMENDING IS, SO AS OF DECEMBER, 2024, THE COMMUNITY NAVIGATOR PROGRAM HAS NO LONGER BEEN OFFERED.

WE SUGGEST BRINGING THAT BACK TO HELP THESE SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS NAVIGATE MULTILINGUAL BUSINESS RESOURCES AND PARTNER WITH TRUSTED COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS TO DELIVER, UH, THIS PROGRAM, UM, INCREASE THE AVAILABLE DATA IS, AS WE'VE HIGHLIGHTED SEVERAL TIMES, THERE'S LIMITED DATA ON THIS POPULATION.

AND BY UNDERSTANDING MORE ABOUT WHAT RESOURCES THAT THIS COMMUNITY NEEDS, HOW THE RESOURCES COULD BE BETTER TAILORED TO ASSIST THESE INDIVIDUALS, WE DO BELIEVE THAT THERE WILL BE GREATER UPTAKE IN THE PROGRAMS THAT ARE BEING OFFERED.

AND ULTIMATELY IT'LL LEAD TO MORE BUSINESSES BEING FOUNDED, MORE JOBS BEING CREATED, AND MORE RESISTANCE TO ECONOMIC DOWNTURNS.

UM, PART OF THAT WILL BE CONDUCTING AN AUDIT AS WELL AS ON WHAT RESOURCES ARE BEING HIGHLY USED BY OTHER BUSINESS GROUP, UH, BUSINESS OWNERS, UM, BUT ARE NOT NECESSARILY BEING TRANSLATED TO THESE VARIOUS, UH, LANGUAGES, UM, TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THIS COMMUNITY.

AND WE'VE ALSO SUGGESTED, BASED ON OTHER CITIES, IS DEVELOP TO DEVELOP MULTILINGUAL BUSINESS GUIDES FOR KEY SECTORS.

WE THINK THAT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO PARTNER WITH THE MAYOR'S INFRASTRUCTURE ACADEMY, UM, TO POTENTIALLY, UH, YOU KNOW, WORK WITH GROUPS THAT ARE ALREADY DOING THIS TYPE OF WORK.

SO, UH, AS I MENTIONED, THERE ARE CITIES LIKE LOUISVILLE, WHICH IS PROVIDING THOSE MENTORS AND COACHES FOR HANDS-ON GUIDANCE.

PHILADELPHIA IS EMPLOYING TECHNICAL EXPERTS TO ASSIST ENTREPRENEURS WITH LICENSING INSPECTIONS, ZONING, AND REGULATORY PROCESSES.

BALTIMORE, CINCINNATI, DETROIT, AND ST.

LOUIS.

ALL OUR PARTNERING WITH THOSE LOCAL CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE TO CONNECT IMMIGRANT ENTREPRENEURS WITH ECOSYSTEM AND CHICAGO HAS CREATED A ONE-STOP SHOP NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER, UM, AND INDUSTRY SPECIFIC STARTUP GUIDES TO HELP THESE INDIVIDUALS.

SO, UH, THAT'S ALL WE HAVE.

I KNOW WE HAVE, UH, VICE CHAIR OF ALL THOSE SANCHEZ ON THE CALL AS WELL.

IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU'D LIKE TO ADD, I WILL OPEN IT.

THE THINGS I WAS GONNA ADD.

CAN YOU HEAR ME OKAY? YES.

OKAY, GREAT.

IS THAT REALLY THIS ENTIRE INITIATIVE CAME FROM THE FACT THAT WE WERE VISITING WITH OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

I WAS GONNA SAY, THE THINGS THAT I WAS GONNA ADD

[00:50:01]

WE WERE VISITING WITH OUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT WERE REPRESENTING WITHIN THE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION.

AND THE NUMBER ONE THING THAT BUBBLED UP TO THE TOP WAS ALL OF THE CONSTITUENTS, ALL THE RESIDENTS IN THE COMMUNITIES, UNDERSTANDING WHAT SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES WERE AVAILABLE.

AND AS WE DUG DEEPER INTO THAT, IT'S WHERE WE FOUND THAT THERE WAS THIS BIG DISCONNECT WITHIN LANGUAGE.

AND SO WHEN IT COMES TO THE INITIATIVE AND THE WORK, IT'S WHERE THIS IS THE FIRST STEP OF ONE TRULY FOLLOWING A, A MODEL THAT WAS ALREADY BEEN DESIGNED BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UTILIZING COMMUNITY NAVIGATORS, COMMUNITY NAVIGATORS WITH THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO BE ABLE TO HELP NAVIGATE ALL OF THE RESOURCES FROM ACCESS TO CAPITAL, TO DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES, TO EVEN START UP AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE SUPPORT, AS WELL AS NAVIGATING OTHER DIVISIONS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, WITHIN THE CITY OF AUSTIN SO THAT OUR SMALL BUSINESSES CAN BE ABLE TO HAVE ACCESS.

AND SO WE'RE REALLY ONE, JUST FOCUSED ON CHAMPIONING THIS AND BRINGING THIS SOMETHING THAT COULD BE A MODEL THAT IS REPLICATED WITHIN THE CITY AND BE ABLE TO BE UTILIZED.

ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? GREAT.

UH, THANK Y'ALL FOR PRESENTING.

UM, I WILL, HOPEFULLY IT DOESN'T CAUSE A, UH, A MESS LIKE LAST TIME, BUT I WILL PASS IT OFF TO COUNCILLOR HARPER MEDICINE, UH, AND DR.

UPPER MEDICINE AGAIN.

HOPEFULLY IT DOESN'T, UH, FREEZE OR WHATEVER HAPPENED LAST TIME.

WELL, DO YOU HAVE ANY, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COUNCIL MEMBER? I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, AND I DO BELIEVE IT'S GONNA DO SOMETHING WEIRD AGAIN, SO NO NO, NO, I, IT'S FINE.

I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS.

UH, PER SE, I, I DID WANNA SAY THAT I REALLY DO APPRECIATE THE EFFORT AND I'M CURIOUS TO SEE SOME DATA AS TO WHAT LANGUAGES ARE IN THE HIGHEST DEMAND IN TERMS OF, UM, UH, PEOPLE LOOKING FOR ADDITIONAL SERVICES, BUT, UM, IN, UH, OTHER LANGUAGES.

GREAT, THANK YOU.

UM, WELL, WE DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FROM THE FOLKS HERE, SO WE REALLY DO APPRECIATE Y'ALL COMING, PRESENTING AND ALL THE WORK THEY ALL DO.

ITEM NUMBER FOUR, WHICH IS A BRIEFING ON PHASE ONE OF THE CREATIVE RESET, WHICH IS FOCUSING ON ENHANCING OUR FUNDING PROGRAMS. AND FOR THAT, WE HAVE A PRESENTATION BY ANGELA MEANS THE DIRECTOR OF ARTS CULTURE, MUSIC ENTER ENTERTAINMENT, UH, BETTER KNOWN AS ACME.

UM, WITH THAT, WE WILL BE GOING TO

[4. Briefing on Phase I of The Creative Reset, focusing on enhancing our funding programs. [ Angela Means, Director of Arts Culture Music and Entertainment].]

THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.

THANK YOU AGAIN.

MY NAME IS ANGELA MEANS, AND IT TRULY IS A PLEASURE TO BE BACK IN FRONT OF YOU ALL TODAY.

I'M HERE WITH MY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, MS. MORGAN MEEK, AS WELL AS OUR INTERIM CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER, UH, CANDACE COOPER.

AGAIN, IT TRULY IS AN HONOR TO BE HERE.

ACME WAS BORN A LITTLE OVER FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS AGO, AND SO THE LAST TIME WE WERE HERE, WE, I THINK WE WERE ONE MONTH OLD.

SO HERE, I, I WOULD LOVE TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO OVER THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS, AS WELL AS OUR CREATIVE RESET PHASE ONE, SPECIFICALLY THE FUNDING, UH, PROGRAM THAT WE'VE ENHANCED WITH THAT, I'M GONNA START WITH SOMETHING THAT I LOVE TO SAY.

ARTS AND CULTURE IS NOT OPTIONAL.

IT IS AN ESSENTIAL SERVICE HERE IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, TEXAS, WHICH I KNOW YOU ALL KNOW.

WE BELIEVE IT IS THE HEARTBEAT OF OUR CITY, THE RHYTHM THAT MOVES US, THE STORIES THAT SHAPE US AND THE SOUL THAT MAKES AUSTIN UNMISTAKABLY AUSTIN.

THIS SLIDE, I REALLY ENJOY SHARING BECAUSE I'D LIKE TO TAKE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY TALK ABOUT THE IMPACT THAT THE ARTS AND CULTURE HAS WITHIN THE STATE OF TEXAS.

THAT $7.3 BILLION TRULY IS, UH, A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER.

UH, WE KNOW THAT FOR TEXAS, THE ANNUAL ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE ARTS AND CULTURE, UH, IS SIGNIFICANT NATIONALLY, AUSTIN IS DOING REALLY WELL.

WE ARE RECOGNIZED AS A CULTURAL POWERHOUSE.

WE'RE THE TOP 10 MOST CREATIVE CITIES IN THE UNITED STATES FOR CULTURAL VIBRANCY AND CREATIVE OUTPUT PER CAPITA.

IT REALLY DOES TELL A STORY WHEN YOU LOOK AT THESE NUMBERS, BUT IT'S JUST NOT ALL ABOUT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT.

WE REALLY ARE MORE THAN THAT.

IT BOOSTS MENTAL HEALTH.

THE ARTS AND CULTURE DOES THAT.

IT INCREASES THE GRADUATION RATES, IT IMPROVES WELLNESS F IT ALSO FOSTERS INCLUSION.

AND I'D LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT TO SAY, AFTER COVID, WHAT WE SAW WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY IS INDIVIDUALS NEEDING TO COME BACK INTO OUR SPACES SO THAT THEY CAN CONNECT WITH EVERYONE.

OUR SPACES AND OUR ARTS PROVIDES THAT FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

WE REALLY DO BELIEVE WHEN YOU SUPPORT THE ARTS, YOU'RE SUPPORTING THE WELLBEING

[00:55:01]

OF THE ENTIRE CITY.

HERE, I'D LIKE TO SHARE, AS I SAID EARLIER, WE ARE THE RESULT OF DECADES OF ADVOCACY.

OUR COMMUNITY CAME OUT IN STRONG SUPPORT FOR A NEW DEPARTMENT.

WE WERE BORN AT THE END OF FEBRUARY, 2025, AND IT WAS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF TOUGH FUNDING CLIMATES.

AND I WILL SAY WHAT WE'VE HEARD OVER THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS, OUR CREATIVES REALLY ARE RELYING ON THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S FUNDING BECAUSE OTHER FUNDING IS BECOMING VERY, UH, TOUGH TO, UH, ATTAIN THAT IS, UH, WHAT THE CLIMATE CURRENTLY IS.

THAT INCLUDES BANKING, DONATIONS, SPONSORS, ALL OF THAT.

OUR MISSION HAS BEEN VERY CLEAR, AND THAT'S TO PROTECT, INVEST IN, AND ELEVATE THE SOUL OF AUSTIN.

WE REALLY BELIEVE THAT THAT'S OUR CHARGE.

SO AS I SAID EARLIER, IT'S ONLY BEEN FOUR AND FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS.

OUR GOAL HAS BEEN TO LISTEN FIRST, ACT SECOND, BUILD TRUST THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS.

WE KNOW THAT OUR COMMUNITY HAS, HAS HAD A TOUGH COUPLE OF YEARS HERE IN THE CITY OF, OF AUSTIN, AND IT WAS IMPERATIVE THAT THIS NEW OFFICE BUILD THE FOUNDATION ON TRUST, COLLABORATION, AND LISTENING.

WHAT WE'VE DONE OVER THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS, COMMUNITY CENTERED APPROACH, ACME IS VERY, UH, SERIOUS WHEN WE SAY WE BRING IN OUR COMMUNITY TO OUR CONVERSATIONS OVER THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS.

THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'VE DONE.

AND WHEN WE SAY OUR COMMUNITY, THAT MEANS ALL OF AUSTIN.

AUSTIN COMMUNITY REPRESENTS EVERY COUNCIL DISTRICT, EVERY DEMOGRAPHIC, EVERY HERITAGE AND CULTURAL ASPECT, ALL EDUCATIONAL LEVELS.

AND THAT TRULY IS OUR WONDERFUL CITY OF AUSTIN.

WE ALSO STOOD UP FOR ARTISTS.

WE KNOW THAT OUR ADVOCACY IS KEY HERE.

IT IS IMPORTANT THAT WE ADVOCATE FOR THE ARTS AS WELL AS THE CULTURAL LEGACY HERE IN OUR CITY OF AUSTIN.

WE DUG INTO OUR RESEARCH, LOOKED AT ANALYZING OUR DATA, WHICH WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE A LOT OF WORK HAD ALREADY BEEN DONE.

UH, THIS CITY HAS, UH, HAS BEEN VERY COMMITTED TO ARTS AND CULTURE.

AND SO OVER THE LAST THREE TO FIVE YEARS, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF FEEDBACK THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS RECEIVED.

WE LOOKED AT THAT DATA, COMPILED THAT INFORMATION, AND ANALYZED THAT.

WE LOOKED AT WHAT OTHER CITIES ARE DOING ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

WE KNOW THAT AUSTIN IS ONE OF THE TOP CITIES THAT PEOPLE LOOK TO, BUT WE, WE KNOW THAT WE CAN ALWAYS DO BETTER.

THERE ARE OTHER CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT TO MODEL AFTER AS WE'RE ESTABLISHING AND STARTING THIS OFFICE.

AND OF COURSE, NATIONAL STANDARDS THAT IS THERE ALSO TO GUIDE EVERY DECISION THAT WE MAKE.

AND OF COURSE, WE'VE LAUNCHED OUR CREATIVE RESET RESET, WHICH REALLY IS A YEAR LONG STRATEGIC PLANNING EFFORT, AND THAT'S BUILT TO REALLY REBUILD OUR ECOSYSTEM WITH INTENTION AND IMPACT.

THAT CREATIVE RESET STARTS WITH PHASE ONE, AND WE STARTED WITH PHASE ONE BECAUSE AFTER SPEAKING WITH OUR COMMUNITY, WE RECOGNIZE THE CRITICAL STATE OF WHERE EVERYONE IS WHEN IT COMES TO FUNDING, SPECIFICALLY THE CITY OF AUSTIN FUNDING.

AND SO WE MADE THAT PHASE ONE.

SO FOR THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS, WE HAVE WORKED WITH MANY INDIVIDUALS TO GET AN UNDERSTANDING ON WHAT THEIR TRUE NEEDS ARE.

HERE IN AUSTIN, UH, TEXAS, THIS IS ONE OF THE SLIDES THAT I'M MOST PROUD OF.

WE REALLY DID TAKE TIME TO LISTEN TO ALL VOICES, UH, IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.

WE LAUNCHED A SURVEY THAT WITHIN THE FIRST THREE WEEKS HAD OVER 1200 RESPONSES TO WHICH WE WERE EXCITED ABOUT, BUT REALLY DIDN'T ANTICIPATE THAT LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.

WE CONDUCTED NEARLY 10 FOCUS GROUPS THROUGHOUT THE CITY, UH, WHERE WE SPOKE WITH INDIVIDUALS THAT GAVE US ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK.

WE CONDUCTED TWO CITYWIDE, UH, LISTENING SESSIONS WHERE WE HAD NEARLY A HUNDRED UH, GUESTS AT EACH ONE OF THOSE SESSIONS.

WE ALSO CONDUCTED ONE-ON-ONE, UH, MEETINGS WHERE SOME ORGANIZATIONS JUST REALLY FELT MORE COMFORTABLE COMING IN AND HAVING DIRECT CONVERSATIONS OR, OR THE ARTISTS MAY FELT MAY HAVE HAD THE TIME TO DO THAT.

OUR STAFF PUT IN A LOT OF WORK, AND I'M GONNA TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK OUR ACME STAFF BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN VERY ENGAGED WITH LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO ENHANCE THESE PROGRAMS. WE ALSO WORKED WITH OUR ARTS COMMISSION AND OUR MUSIC COMMISSION EVEN BEFORE ACME WAS, UH, STARTED.

THOSE, BOTH, BOTH OF THOSE COMMISSIONS CREATED WORKING GROUPS TO BEGIN

[01:00:01]

TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK TO THE CITY OF, OF AUSTIN ON WAYS TO ENHANCE THO THE FUNDING PROGRAMS. AND WE REALLY DO THANK THEM FOR THEIR TIRELESS WORK IN THOSE EFFORTS.

WE TOOK THAT FEEDBACK AS WELL.

SO WHAT DID WE HEAR? OUR COMMUNITY IS VERY CLEAR AND HONEST WITH US.

THEY TOLD US WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES WERE.

THEY TOLD US WHAT WAS WORKING, WHAT WAS NOT, AND THEY REALLY WANTED US TO TACKLE AFFORDABILITY IN WAYS TO REMOVE THE BARRIERS THAT THEY FACE.

UH, AS CREATIVES HERE IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN, THAT INCLUDES PARKING CHALLENGES WITH PARKING THAT INCLUDES JUST LOGISTICS, UH, TO WHEN YOU'RE SETTING UP A, A SET AND, AND TRYING TO GET OUT OF THE AREA OF TOWN, IT INCLUDED ALL TYPES OF NEEDING ACCESS TO SPACE.

YOU KNOW, THERE IS A DESIRE TO PROVIDE CREATIVE, UH, ART AND MUSIC THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE CITY OF AUSTIN, NOT JUST IN CERTAIN SEGMENTS OF THE COMMUNITY.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE HEARD.

WE ALSO HEARD ABOUT THE NEED TO BE TRANSPARENT AND WAYS TO BE MORE SUSTAINABLE, HOW THE CITY COULD PROVIDE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND TOOLS TO HELP THEM AS THEY ARE NOT ONLY APPLYING FOR THE FUNDING, BUT THROUGHOUT THEIR JOURNEY FOR SUCCESS.

WE HEARD A LOT ABOUT OUR PROCESSES AND TRANSPARENCY HERE AND WAYS IN WHICH WE COULD IMPROVE THEIR WHOLE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MOVING FORWARD.

WHAT WE WANTED TO FOCUS ON, AND WE, WE, WE LET THEM KNOW WE WILL HONOR THE CULTURAL LEGACY HERE IN AUSTIN.

WE'RE GOING TO SIMPLIFY OUR APPLICATIONS.

WE WILL ENSURE FAIRNESS, AND WE WILL SUPPORT ALL OF THE VOICES IN AUSTIN.

AND WE WILL HAVE A PROCESS THAT IS VERY TRANSPARENT.

EVEN THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS, ALL OF OUR DRAFT GUIDELINES ALONG THE WAY HAVE BEEN POSTED FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO SEE AND PROVIDE US WITH ADDITIONAL FEEDBACK AS THEY SEE FIT.

SOME OF THE PROGRAM ENHANCEMENTS THAT WE HAVE, AND ON THIS SLIDE IS FOR THRIVE ELEVATE NEXUS.

THIS IS THE MAIN, UH, FUNDING PROGRAMS FROM THE CULTURAL AREAS THAT YOU'LL HEAR OF.

UH, WE TOOK A LOOK AT A HOLISTIC APPROACH ON ALL OF THESE, UH, PROGRAMS TO ENHANCE ACROSS THE BOARD.

WE LOOKED AT OUR NEXUS, IF YOU RECALL, THE NEXUS, UH, GRANT.

UH, FOR THE PILOT THAT WAS A $5,000 GRANT AWARD.

WE EXPANDED THAT FROM $2,500 ALL THE WAY TO $20,000 TO ALLOW MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR CREATIVES.

UH, WITH ELEVATE, WE INCLUDED TIERED, UH, SYSTEMS, UH, TO MAKE IT MORE, UH, PARTICULAR FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS APPLYING FOR THOSE FUNDING SOURCES.

AND FOR THRIVE, WHICH IS OUR LARGEST, UH, CATEGORY, WE MADE SURE THAT WE CREATED A COHORT, UH, TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL TOOLS FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS AS THEY RECEIVED THOSE FUNDS.

AND THROUGHOUT THEIR JOURNEY HERE, I JUST BRIEFLY HIGHLIGHT, WE ALSO TOOK THIS OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE HERITAGE PRESERVATION, THE AUSTIN LIVE MUSIC FUND AND THE CREATIVE SPACE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, LOOKING FOR WAYS TO ENHANCE THESE PROGRAMS AS WELL.

I WILL SAY SOME OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE DID RECEIVE IS THERE ARE SOME MEMBERS OF OUR, IN OUR AREA WHERE THEY'RE JUST NOT AWARE OF ALL OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT THE CITY OF AUSTIN PROVIDES.

AND SO WE USE THIS, THIS, UH, AS A WAY TO HELP EDUCATE EVERYONE ON ALL OF THE AVAILABLE, WONDERFUL, UH, GRANTS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO, TO OUR PUBLIC.

SO WHAT'S NEW? WE DEFINITELY LOOKED AT OUR, UH, PROCESSES AND WE CREATED A MORE USER FRIENDLY PROCESS.

WE HAVE ONE SIMPLE APPLICATION NOW, TIERED FUNDING, NEW MICRO GRANTS AS I SPOKE OF EARLIER, MENTORSHIP PROGRAMS FOR OUR FIRST TIME APPLICANTS, MORE OPERATIONAL SUPPORT, TRANSPARENT SCORING AND FEEDBACK.

A UNIVERSAL APPEALS PROCESS WILL BE ROLLED OUT, INTERNAL PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS, AS I SAID EARLIER, AND JUST SIMPLER PROCESSES OVERALL.

SO WHO CAN APPLY FOR THIS FUNDING? REALLY EVERYONE, WHAT WE DO HERE AT ACME IS REALLY BELIEVE IN ACCESS FOR ALL.

AND THAT INCLUDES ALL OF OUR ARTISTS COMMUNITY.

THAT'S OUR INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS, OUR COLLECTIVES, MUSICIANS, PROMOTERS, NONPROFIT AND CREATIVE BUSINESSES, BOTH LEGACY AND EMERGING OR NEW ORGANIZATIONS ALL HAVE A NOW A PATHWAY TO RECEIVE FUNDING FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN HERE.

I JUST WANTED TO SHARE BRIEFLY THE FUNDING SOURCES, JUST SO THAT YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, YOU REMEMBER WHERE THE FUNDING IS

[01:05:01]

COMES FROM.

IT COMES FROM OUR HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAXES PRIMARILY.

WE ALSO HAVE A SMALL AMOUNT FROM THE GENERAL FUND, AND THEN WE DO RECEIVE, UH, FUNDING FROM THE CAPITAL PROJECTS FOR OUR A IPP PROGRAM.

AND I WANTED TO SHARE THIS WITH YOU.

ALTHOUGH WE'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK WITHIN THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS, WE HAVE MUCH TO DO STILL FOR, FOR ALL OF US THIS YEAR.

WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO START OFF OUR STRATEGY OVER THE NEXT FOUR PHASES, STARTING WITH THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROGRAM EVALUATION.

AS I SAID, A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, WE BROUGHT TOGETHER FIVE DIFFERENT TEAMS FROM FIVE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS.

AND THERE IS A DESIRE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS FOR OPPORTUNITIES AND WAYS TO ENHANCE.

WE HAVE ALL OF OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES, OUR MUSEUMS, OUR ARTS CENTER, AND WE'RE LOOKING FOR OPPORTUNITIES TO ENHANCE THOSE PROGRAMS. ONE OF THE, THE PHASE THREE IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE IS SOMETHING THAT I, I I THINK WE REALLY JUST NEED TO, TO SAY.

AS MUCH AS THE CITY IS PROVIDING TO OUR COMMUNITY, THERE'S JUST NOT ENOUGH FUNDING.

THE NEED IS GREATER THAN WHAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE.

AND SO WHAT OUR COMMITMENT IS, IS TO LOOK FOR OTHER RESOURCES TO HELP SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITY.

THAT'S JUST NOT WITH HOTEL OCCUPANCY, TAXES AND THE GENERAL FUND, BUT OTHER, OTHER WAYS.

WHEN WE LOOK AT OTHER CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY, WE'VE IDENTIFIED OTHER WAYS THAT THEY FUND ARTS AND CULTURE.

AND SO WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.

AND WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT WORK.

AND OF COURSE, IMPLEMENTATION.

SO TIMING ON THIS, WE'RE LOOKING AT OVER THE NEXT 12 TO 18 MONTHS TO HAVE ALL OF THIS, UM, COMPLETED.

SO FOR ACME, OUR VISION HAS BEEN VERY CLEAR.

WE REALLY BELIEVE THAT EVERY PERSON IN EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD, EVERY COUNCIL OFFICE HAS ACCESS TO CREATIVE OPPORTUNITIES AND CULTURAL EXPRESSION.

WE'VE HEARD OUR COMMUNITY LOUD AND CLEAR.

WE'VE ACTED ALREADY, BUT THE WORK ISN'T DONE.

AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO CONTINUING THE WORK WITH ALL OF OUR PARTNERS MOST BY, TO BUILD THE MOST VIBRANT, EQUITABLE, AND SUSTAINABLE CREATIVE CAPITAL IN THE WORLD.

AND I AGAIN, WANNA TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED IN SURVEYS, THE FOCUS GROUPS, THE ONE-ON-ONES, THE PHONE CALLS, THE EMAILS, THE TEXTS, JUST THE SMILES, THE STAFF, THE STAFF, THE STAFF, THE ARTS COMMISSION, THE MUSIC COMMISSION, CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT FOR OVER THE LAST FOUR AND A HALF MONTHS BEING VERY SUPPORTIVE OF OUR SPACE.

SO AGAIN, THANK YOU ALL AND FOR THE COMMUNICATIONS TEAM AS WELL.

AND I, WE ARE AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS.

UM, I HAVE, UH, I HAD TWO QUESTIONS.

I ONLY HAVE ONE NOW BECAUSE YOU HAD ANSWERED ONE DURING THE PRESENTATION, BUT, UH, I'LL PASS THAT OFF TO COUNCILL MEMBER HARBOR MADISON, IF SHE HAS ANY QUESTIONS.

I DON'T KNOW TO WHAT I OWE THE HONOR TODAY, BUT I WILL TAKE IT EVERY TIME.

CHAIR.

SO, JUST THINKING, A LOT OF OUR PROJECTS, YOU KNOW, BLOCK 16 AND 18, THE MILLENNIUM YOUTH ENTERTAINMENT COMPLEX, THE LIST GOES ON AND ON AND ON.

HI EVERYBODY.

THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION.

REALLY APPRECIATE IT.

I, FOR ONE, WAS SO EXCITED TO SEE, UH, THIS NEW DEPARTMENT DEVELOPED.

UM, IT'S ONE OF THOSE AREAS IN A COUNCIL OFFICE, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE DIVVYING UP THE TIERS AND FIGURING OUT WHAT THE VERTICALS ARE, WHO'S GONNA COVER WHAT, YOU KNOW, ARTS AND CULTURE ENDS UP GETTING THROWN IN WITH, YOU KNOW, AS OPPOSED TO SPECIFIC EMPHASIS ON.

UM, AND SO I RECOGNIZE THAT, YOU KNOW, TO YOUR POINT ABOUT CAPACITY, THERE'S, UM, THERE'S OFTEN NOT ENOUGH RESOURCES, BUT THERE'S ALSO NOT ENOUGH IN THE WAY OF CAPACITY.

SO SEEING THIS SPECIFIC DEDICATED OFFICE, UM, TO, YOU KNOW, ARTS AND CULTURE, WHICH YOU SAID IS IT'S NOT AN OPTION, IT'S ESSENTIAL.

UM, THIS IS JUST, IT'S EXCITING TO SEE IT HAPPENING.

AND I REALLY DO APPRECIATE THE LEVEL OF INTENTION THAT'S GOING IN ON THE FRONT END.

IT'LL PAY IN DIVIDENDS IN THE LATTER END OF, YOU KNOW, HAVING GOTTEN ESTABLISHED AND HAVING DEVELOPED THAT TRUST.

YOU KNOW, I TALK TO FOLKS ALL THE TIME, ESPECIALLY SOME OF OUR YOUNGER STAFFERS ABOUT, UH, BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS.

IT TAKES TIME.

UM, YOU CAN'T FORCE IT.

AND IF IT'S GENUINE THEN, YOU KNOW, IT WILL ALWAYS BE RECIPROCAL AND IT'LL ALWAYS BE HONEST, YOU KNOW, SO IN A CONVERSATION WHERE THERE'S LIMITED RESOURCES, SOMETIMES THOSE CONVERSATIONS ARE REALLY HARD.

AND TO HAVE AN ARTIST HAVE A REALLY HARD CONVERSATION WITH THE GOVERNMENT, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S CONSIDERABLY MORE PRODUCTIVE WHEN THEY HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU.

AND SO I APPRECIATE THAT AS WELL.

UM, AND SO THE PRACTICAL PART OF ME THOUGH, I HAVE TO WONDER, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK THAT RELATIONSHIP BUILDING, GIVEN THAT IT DOES TAKE TIME, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT, UM, MY OFFICE SPECIFICALLY IS WORKING ON, ON MY WAY OUT, YOU KNOW, WHOEVER IS TAKING OVER THE D ONE SEAT WILL BE COMING IN IN JANUARY OF 2027.

UM, AND THAT'S NOT THAT LONG FROM NOW.

AND

[01:10:01]

AND SOME OF THOSE ARE ASSETS IN DISTRICT ONE THAT HAVE LANGUISHED WITH DISINVESTMENT FOR SO LONG.

THE LEVEL OF DILAPIDATION, THE LACK OF CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT, THE LACK OF EFFORT, YOU KNOW, AND REALLY FIGURING OUT HOW SOME OF THESE FACILITIES COULD SUSTAIN THEMSELVES EVEN DESPITE THE BEST EFFORT.

YOU KNOW, I LOVE WHEN PEOPLE, I, I THINK THE GENERAL PUBLIC MIGHT BE OVER IT WHEN THEY HEAR US THINK THANK, THANK STAFF AND, AND PEOPLE WHO CONTRIBUTED TO THE PROCESS.

'CAUSE IT REALLY IS TIME CONSUMING WORK.

UM, EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT GETTING PAID, YOU KNOW? BUT THE WORK IS ESSENTIAL.

AND SO EVEN WITH REALLY DEDICATED BOARD MEMBERS THAT HAVE PUT IN THE WORK OVER THE YEARS AT SOME OF THESE FACILITIES OR WITH SOME OF THESE, YOU KNOW, INITIATIVES, IT'S JUST NOT ENOUGH IN TERMS OF CAPACITY.

AND SO I JUST WONDER IN THE INTERIM, WHILE YOU GUYS ARE REALLY RAMPING UP AND GETTING READY, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY, 'CAUSE LIKE YOU SAID, YOU PULLED FIVE DEPARTMENTS TOGETHER, THAT'S NO, THAT'S, THAT'S A FEAT.

HERCULEAN .

AND SO, BUT THAT ALSO MEANS, I KNOW YOU, I KNOW YOU GOT ALL THE BEST.

AND SO IN THE INTERIM, WHAT DOES THE PLAN LOOK LIKE FOR PROJECTS THAT ARE ALREADY IN THE QUEUE AND PROJECTS THAT NEED TO GET QUEUED UP FOR? AND I'LL JUST KEEP REFERRING TO MYSELF ANECDOTALLY, FOR, LIKE ME, FOR EXAMPLE, I CAN'T RUN AGAIN AND WOULD NOT PETITION TO DO SO AGAIN.

AND SO I, I'M OUTTA HERE IN JANUARY 27.

WHAT, WHAT SHOULD MY LONG RANGE PLAN LOOK LIKE IF YOU KNOW, FORESEEABLY THE NEXT SIX MONTHS OR EIGHT MONTHS, HOWEVER LONG, IS Y'ALL STILL REALLY GETTING PLANTED? YES.

AND I WILL TELL YOU OUR PHASE TWO, UH, IT'S STATED PROGRAM EVALUATION, BUT THAT INCLUDES OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES.

THAT WORK STARTS IN SEPTEMBER.

SO OUR, ALL OF OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES, THE ONES THAT YOU'VE MENTIONED, AS WELL AS THE OTHERS ACROSS THE CITY, ARE EAGER TO WORK WITH ACME SO THAT WE COULD TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WE DO WITH THOSE SPACES.

MANY OF THEM ARE GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME GOOD CONVERSATIONS.

I CALL THEM COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS, TO LOOK AT WHERE WE MOVE FORWARD, MOVE FORWARD, AND HOW WE VISION THE FUTURE.

ESPECIALLY IN, IN, IN, IN YOUR DISTRICT.

THERE ARE A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THE MILLENNIUM YOUTH ENTERTAINMENT COMPLEX BLOCK 1618, OR EVEN THE AFRICAN AMERICAN, UM, CULTURAL HERITAGE FACILITY THAT'S THERE AS WELL, THAT ENTIRE AREA.

WE WANT TO START TO LOOK AT IT DIFFERENTLY.

SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES, MAYBE IN THE PAST IT MAY, THEY WERE MORE SILOED.

WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT WAYS TO LOOK AT IT MORE AS A CITYWIDE APPROACH AND HOW WE ENSURE, UH, WE ARE LOOKING AT THE CULTURAL ASPECT OF AUSTIN AND PRESERVING THAT AND CELEBRATING THAT IN A MORE OF A CITYWIDE WAY.

WE DO PLAN ON.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

YES, WE'RE STARTING THAT WORK IN SEPTEMBER.

EXCELLENT.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

AND IF FOR NO OTHER REASON, I THINK HAVING THE PROCESS BE UNILATERAL MAKES IT SO THAT NOBODY'S PLAYING CATCH UP, YOU KNOW? BUT FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, WE HAVE TO RECOGNIZE THAT DUE TO THE HISTORY OF AUSTIN, EAST AUSTIN IS PLAYING 30 YEARS OF CATCH UP.

SO, YOU KNOW, I I, WHILE I WOULD BE REMISS TO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE ENTIRE CITY SHOULD BE CONSIDERED IN OUR EFFORTS, UM, WE HAVE SOME CATCHING UP TO DO IN CERTAIN PARTS OF THE CITY.

SO I JUST WANNA ALWAYS MAKE CERTAIN THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S AT THE TOP OF THE LIST.

WE EV EVERYBODY'S GOTTA START AT THE SAME, PLAYING ON THE SAME PLAYING FIELD BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD TOGETHER.

OTHERWISE THERE'S SOMEBODY STILL CATCHING UP.

UM, BUT THE, UM, THERE WAS SOMETHING YOU SAID THAT MADE ME THINK OF, OH GOODNESS.

MM UH, IT'LL COME, OH, YOU SAID YOU GUYS, IT'S STARTING IN SEPTEMBER.

AND SO THAT, WHAT THAT MADE ME THINK WAS THAT'S OBVIOUSLY AFTER THIS YEAR'S BUDGET DISCUSSION, CORRECT.

IN WHICH CASE, UM, YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, MAYBE THAT'S AN OFFLINE QUESTION.

WE'LL REACH OUT TO YOU ABOUT BUDGET, UM, QUESTIONS AND OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES.

THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND THANK YOU GUYS FOR YOUR HARD WORK.

UM, I, I HAD TWO QUESTIONS.

WELL, I, I HAD TWO QUESTIONS THEN.

I HAD ONE QUESTION.

NOW I HAVE ONE QUESTION.

I HAVE A CLARIFYING QUESTION.

SO I GUESS, SO TWO QUESTIONS.

YOU HAD MENTIONED THE TIMELINE FOR THE, UH, FOR THE KEY CHANGES, THOSE 12 TO 18 MONTHS, THAT INCLUDES FOR THE ARTS GRANTS AS WELL AS THAT.

IS THAT CORRECT? THE GRANTS ARE ACTUALLY ROLLING OUT WITHIN THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR MONTHS, I BELIEVE.

THREE TO FOUR MONTHS.

THREE TO FOUR MONTHS.

THE SLIDE TALKED ABOUT, UH, A PLAN ON HONORING OUR CULTURAL, UH, LEGACY.

OKAY, GREAT.

WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFYING QUESTION.

AND MY OTHER QUESTION ON SLIDE EIGHT, UH, THERE WAS A,

[01:15:01]

WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? WHAT'S THE PROCESS, UH, THAT REALLY STOOD OUT TO ME, BUT JUST WANTED KIND OF MORE, UH, CONTEXT FOR THAT? THAT IS A VERY GOOD QUESTION.

AND WE SEE OUR CHARGE.

WE ARE, YOU KNOW, WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT, WE'RE ARTS, CULTURE, MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT.

SO ALL FOUR OF THOSE WE WILL TAKE PRIDE IN AND MAKING SURE THAT WE FOCUS ON ALL OF THOSE FOUR AREAS FOR AUSTIN, TEXAS.

WHEN IT COMES TO HONORING OUR CULTURAL LEGACY HERE IN AUSTIN, I WILL SAY A LOT OF INDIVIDUALS THAT COME HERE AND ENJOY AUSTIN, IF THEY'RE MOVING HERE, MOVING THEIR BUSINESSES HERE, OR IF THEY'RE JUST COMING HERE TO VISIT.

WHAT MAKES AUSTIN SO FUN AND FABULOUS IS ITS CULTURE, IT'S MUSIC, IT'S ART, IT'S THE, THE ENTERTAINMENT.

ALL OF IT REALLY IS AN INSPIRATION.

AND IT'S JUST NOT AN INSPIRATION TO THE UNITED STATES OR INDIVIDUALS TRAVELING FROM OTHER AREAS.

BUT WE ARE A GLOBAL CITY WHEN IT COMES TO THESE SPACES.

AND SO WHEN WE SAY WE'RE GOING TO HONOR OUR CULTURAL LEGACY, WE WILL START WITH THOSE CONVERSATIONS THAT BEGIN IN SEPTEMBER WITH ALL OF OUR CULTURAL FACILITIES.

BUT WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE GAPS.

THE, THE CURRENT CULTURAL FACILITIES THAT WE HAVE ARE ONLY A FEW, UH, THAT REPRESENT ALL OF THE, UH, ALL OF US HERE IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.

AND SO WE WILL BE VISIONING AND IMAGINING WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE FOR US OVER THE NEXT THREE TO FIVE YEARS.

THANK Y'ALL.

UM, WELL THAT WAS IT.

UM, I APPRECIATE Y'ALL.

THANK Y'ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK AND THANKS FOR BEING HERE.

ARE ANY QUESTIONS FOR STAFF ON ITEM NUMBER FIVE, WHICH IS A PLACE-BASED INCENTIVES PROGRAM UNDER THE CITY'S CHAPTER THREE 80 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM TO ASSIST, AS DESCRIBED IN THE MEMO DATED JULY 3RD, 2025.

YEP.

UM, WELL NEXT WE HAVE ITEMS FIVE AND SIX, WHICH ARE BRIEFINGS BY MEMORANDUM.

UH, IF THERE

[5. Place Based Incentives program under the City’s Chapter 380 economic development program to assist as described in the memo dated July 3, 2025. [Anthony Segura, Interim Director - Economic Development Department].]

WE CAN OPEN THE FLOOR FOR DISCUSSION IF THERE'S NO, UH, AND IF NO ONE HAS ANY NO.

LOOKS LIKE, AND COUNCILOR HARPER MADISON, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR STAFF AND ITEM NUMBER FIVE? NO QUESTIONS, JUST SOME THANK YOUS.

I RECEIVED A, A COUPLE OF EMAILS OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST COUPLE WEEKS, UM, WITH SOME THANK YOUS FOR SOME PLACE-BASED MARKERS.

UM, AND I TOOK AN ACCIDENTAL WALK AT SEVENTH AND FROM THE SEVENTH AND PLEASANT VALLEY, UH, HEB TO, TO HOME.

I MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE LEFT MY PHONE IN THE UBER , SO IF I HAD TO WALK HOME AND COUNCIL MEMBER VELAZQUEZ, YOU GOT SOME PRETTY COOL MARKERS ON YOUR SIDE OF SEVENTH STREET.

UM, SO YEAH, JUST A, A SHOUT OUT TO, TO THE WORK THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING ON THOSE PLACE-BASED MARKERS.

THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER.

AND, UH, WE DO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS FROM COUNCIL MEMBER SIEGEL, AND ON ITEM NUMBER FIVE, THANK YOU, CHAIR.

UH, YEAH, I DON'T KNOW IF, UM, IF STAFF IS AVAILABLE.

MY, MY, MY TEAM HAD JUST A COUPLE QUICK QUESTIONS.

UH, I GUESS MAINLY RELATED TO NUMBER SIX ON THE AGENDA FOR ITEM NUMBER SIX.

REVISIONS TO THE CITY'S CHAPTER THREE 80 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM, UH, DESCRIBING THE MEMO DATED JULY 3RD, 2025.

UM, WE WILL THEN GO ON TO ITEM NUMBER SIX.

SO NO QUESTIONS FOR ITEM NUMBER FIVE.

UH, ITEM NUMBER SIX IS

[6. Revisions to the City’s Chapter 380 economic development program as described in the memo dated July 3, 2025. [Anthony Segura, Interim Director - Economic Development Department].]

AND WE DO HAVE QUESTIONS FROM THAT, FROM COUNCIL.

FRANKLY, I'M NOT ACTUALLY SURE MY, WELL, THANKS Y'ALL FOR COMING.

DIDN'T WANT YOU TO COME DOWN AND NOT GET TO TALK, YOU KNOW, SO, UM, UH, REALLY APPRECIATE THESE MEMOS AND, AND THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING.

UM, JUST THREE QUICK QUESTIONS.

I GUESS THE FIRST ONE WAS IN TERMS OF GETTING THE WORD OUT, UH, ABOUT THESE OPPORTUNITIES, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT, IF YOU COULD DESCRIBE, YOU KNOW, WHAT COMMUNICATE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS YOU'RE WORKING WITH, HOW YOU'RE GETTING THE WORD OUT ABOUT THESE OPPORTUNITIES? HI, UH, YES.

SO IN REGARDS TO THE BUSINESS EXPANSION PROGRAM AS WELL AS, UH, PLACE-BASED ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH A VARIETY OF STAKEHOLDERS.

UH, WE HELD SEVERAL WORKSHOPS IN APRIL.

UH, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH PRESERVATION AUSTIN TO GET THE WORD OUT, UM, AS WELL AS THROUGH DONALD'S DISTRICT WORK, UM, THAT HE DOES AS WELL WITH OUR PROGRAMS. UM, EXCUSE ME.

UH, WE HAVE BEEN SPEAKING WITH OUR, UM, DECA CHAMBERS AS WELL TO HELP GET THEM WORD OUT.

UM, MEETING WITH THE SMALL BUSINESS THROUGH OUR SMALL BUSINESS DIVISION.

UH, THEY HAVE OFFICE HOURS EVERY OTHER MONTH WE'VE BEEN ATTENDING AS WELL.

WE'LL BE ATTENDING THE SMALL BUSINESS, UM, CONFERENCE IN AUGUST.

UM, SO REALLY JUST TRYING AS MANY DIFFERENT AVENUES AS WE CAN, BUT ALWAYS OPEN TO ANY ADDITIONAL AREAS OF OUTREACH.

GREAT, THANK YOU.

UM, AND THEN THE SECOND QUESTION WAS, UM, I GUESS IN ADDITION TO MUSIC VENUES AND CREATIVE SPACES, UM, UH, CHILDCARE FACILITIES AND GROCERY STORES ARE ALSO ELIGIBLE, UH, FOR SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS. AND

[01:20:01]

SO WAS CURIOUS IF ANY CHILDCARE OR GROCERY STORES HAVE EXPRESSED INTEREST SO FAR? UH, YEAH.

GOOD MORNING.

DONALD JACKSON, UM, WORK WITH HALEY.

UH, WE, UH, CHILDCARE CENTERS AND GROCERY STORES ARE DEFINITELY ELIGIBLE.

AND I CAN SAY FOR THE PLACE-BASED PROGRAM, WE HAVE RECEIVED SEVERAL, UH, UH, INTERVIEWS WITH POTENTIAL APPLICANTS WHO HAVE, UH, REQUESTED APPLICATIONS WE'RE IN, WE'RE IN PROCESS WITH, UH, PROCESSING THEIR APPLICATIONS NOW TO SEE IF THEY'RE GONNA WORK FOR THE PROGRAMS. BUT SEVERAL CHILDCARE CENTERS, UH, NO GROCERY STORES SO FAR, BUT THEY ARE ELIGIBLE.

OKAY, GREAT.

AND THEN THE LAST, UH, QUESTION FROM MY TEAM WAS, UH, IN THE FOLLOW-UP DATE.

UH, OF COURSE IF THERE'S ANY APPLICATIONS APPROVED FOR BUSINESSES IN DISTRICT SEVEN, WE'D LOVE TO, UH, LEARN ABOUT THAT.

AND YEAH, IF THERE ARE ANY WAYS WE CAN SUPPORT YOUR WORK, UH, WE'D LOVE TO DO THAT.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

COUNCIL MEMBER, I'LL JUST ADD THAT, UH, WHEN ENTITIES ARE LOOKING TO COME TO AUSTIN, WE TALK ABOUT THE INCENTIVES OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEM TO SEE HOW WE CAN ACCOMMODATE RELOCATION OPPORTUNITIES IF THEY'RE INTERESTED IN THE FUTURE FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

SO THOSE ARE ONE OF THE THINGS THAT ENTITIES THAT ARE INTERESTED WILL ASK ABOUT INCENTIVES.

AND SO IT IS BASED UPON THE CRITERIA, CAN WE LOOK AT EXPANDING ONE OF THESE INCENTIVES IF THEY CAN OFFER, FOR EXAMPLE, CHILDCARE SERVICES.

AND SO IT IS AN ONGOING DISCUSSION WITH INTERESTED ENTITIES THAT ARE COMING, ARE WANTING TO COME TO AUSTIN TO SEE HOW WE CAN, UH, ACCOMMODATE THEM AND PROVIDE INCENTIVES THAT'LL MEET THE NEEDS OF THAT, OF THAT ENTITY IN GENERAL.

THANKS SO MUCH, DIRECTOR.

UH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON ITEM NUMBER SIX? I DO NOT.

OUR FUTURE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION, UH, I HAVE TWO ITEMS THAT I'VE, UH, UH, I HAVE ON MY DOCKET THAT I WILL LET MY COLLEAGUES GO FIRST IF THEY HAVE ANY FUTURE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION.

AND WITH THAT, I APPRECIATE Y'ALL.

UM, AND, UH, LAST UP BEFORE WE ADJOURN

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

AND I'LL, ONCE AGAIN, IT'S BEEN A TREND.

COUNCILOR HARPER MADISON, IF YOU, UH, IF YOU WANNA, IF YOU HAVE ANY FUTURE ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION, NOW IS THE TIME WE ARE WORKING ON SOMETHING, BUT I WILL SEND IT TO YOU VIA EMAIL.