Oct 22, 2025 Climate, Water, Environment, and Parks Committee

UH, GOOD MORNING.

CHRIS FLOTIS, DISTRICT 10.

UM, I HAVE A COUPLE OF WORDS TO SAY ABOUT ZILKER PARK.

UM, NEARLY THREE GENERATIONS AGO, AUSTINITES VOTED FOR A BOND TO BUY ZILKER PARK WITH INTEREST.

IT WAS MEANT TO BE A PLACE OF NATURAL RESPITE FOR AUSTIN'S WORKERS.

OUR CITY GREW MORE PARKS WERE PURCHASED, AND MORE PEOPLE ARE USING THEM FORWARD TO TODAY.

WE HAVE INVITED A COMMERCIALIZER SYSTEM TO OPERATE, PRESUMABLY TO FUND OUR PARKS.

IT HAS FAILED.

THE FLOW OF FUNDS ARE GOING FROM CITY COFFERS TO THE NONPROFITS, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

AND COMMERCIALIZERS, LIKE TICKETMASTER AND TRAIL OF LIGHTS ARE USING ZILKER AS A RENT-FREE VENUE.

AND THE REVOLVING DOOR OF PARKS STAFF WORKING FOR THE COMMERCIALIZERS HAS CORRUPTED THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.

THE COMMERCIALIZER CONTRACTS ARE NOT PUBLIC.

THEY'RE HIDDEN FROM ELECTED PEOPLE AND HIDDEN FROM PUBLIC.

IN ORDER TO DEBATE THEM, I THINK IT'S TIME TO PUT THE PUBLIC'S ALIENATION FROM OUR PARKS BY COMMERCIALIZERS SEEKING TO ACTIVATE THEIR PROFITS ON, ON THE BALLOT.

PUT EVERY CONTRACT ON THE COUNCIL AGENDA FOR ACTIVE DISCUSSION AND END THE REVOLVING DOOR.

THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.

IF WE CAN HAVE MARK MAY FOLLOWED BY KAREN KOCHER.

MORNING, MARK.

UH, HI.

UM, MY NAME IS MARK.

MAY I LIVE? OH, GOOD.

PLEASE UNDERSTAND MY COMMENTS.

SORRY.

UM, AND YOU KNOW, I LIVE IN D FIVE.

I'M HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT PARK FUNDING.

NOW WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE IS A, YOU KNOW, TEARY ON THE BALLOT WHOSE, UH, LANGUAGE IMPLIES A GOOD BIT OF THE MONEY WILL GO TO PARKS.

I'M NOT SURE THAT OF THE LANGUAGE IMP PROP QUEUES ACTUALLY BINDING, BUT I'VE HEARD THAT OTHER, THAT THE NUMBERS AROUND SIX, UH, $6 MILLION IS GONNA BE SPENT FOR PARKS.

ALRIGHT, SO WE'RE AT A PLACE WHERE YOU ARE ASKING THE TAXPAYERS TO PAY MORE MONEY FOR CITY BASICS.

SO LET ME ASK YOU THIS.

HAVE YOU ASKED OUR NONPROFIT PARTNERS TO BEAR MORE OF THE BURDEN? A FEW MONTHS BACK, THE HEAD OF A PF WAS HERE.

THERE WAS SOME GENTLE QUESTIONS FROM CM UCHIN AND PRETTY MUCH LAVISH PRAISE FROM ALL THE OTHERS.

AND YOU TOOK HIS COMMENT THAT THEY PREFERRED NOT TO DO MAINTENANCE WITHOUT ANY PUSHBACK.

FROM MY READ OF THE A PF NINE, 90 70% OF THEIR FUNDING COMES FROM ACTUALLY RENTING OUT OUR PREMIER PUBLIC PARK.

THIS MEANS PUBLIC MONEY.

IN MY BOOK, HOWEVER, THEY PAY THEMSELVES PRIVATE SECTOR, UH, SALARIES.

THEIR CEO IS COMPENSATED MUCH MORE THAN OUR MAYOR.

IN THE SAME YEAR, THEY BANK $3.6 MILLION FOR A GRAND TOTAL OF NEARLY $22 MILLION.

HOW DOES THIS MAKE SENSE GIVEN OUR CITY BUDGET? SO I ASK AGAIN, WHY CAN'T OUR NONPROFIT PARTNERS DO MORE? WHY IS IT EASIER FOR YOU ALL TO ASK THE VOTERS FOR $6 MILLION FOR PARKS MAINTENANCE AND NOTHING FROM A PF WHEN THEY HAVE $22 MILLION IN THE, IN THE BANK? THIS IS LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF TRUMP WORLD.

I'M NOT SAYING A PF DOES NO GOOD WORK OR THAT THE NONPROFIT MODEL IS, UH, FUNDAMENTALLY UNSOUND.

I LIKE AND HAVE DONE SEVERAL, IT'S MY PARK DAYS I'VE ACTUALLY DONATED TO A PFI AM SAYING THAT THIS, UH, THAT THIS NONPROFIT MODEL WITH A PF IS BROKEN RIGHT NOW, AND I'M ASKING YOU TO TAKE A STEP TO FIX IT.

NOW, I KNOW THE BIG A ACL PHOTO SHOOT IS COMING WHERE YOU ALL WILL STAND BY THE BIG CHECK AND ACT LIKE ALL THAT MONEY IS GOING TO PARKS.

AS I'VE SAID, THEIR OWN NINE 90 SHOWS WAY TOO MUCH IS GOING TO SALARIES AND INTO THE, AND INTO THEIR BANK ACCOUNT.

I CHALLENGE YOU ALL TO TREAT THE NONPROFIT PARTNERS NO BETTER THAN YOU TREAT YOUR OWN VOTERS AND ASK THEM TO DO MORE.

THANK YOU, MARK.

IF WE CAN HAVE

[00:10:01]

KAREN KOCHER.

HELLO.

GOOD MORNING.

I SURVIVED MOPAC ON MY WAY TO GET HERE, WHICH IS GREAT.

UM, AND YOU'VE ALREADY WON FOR THE DAY.

WHAT'S THAT? YOU'VE ALREADY WON FOR THE DAY.

WHEW.

THAT'S MAYBE TRUE.

WELL, UM, I'M HERE AS PART OF THE BARTON SPRINGS CONSERVANCY AND THE CREATOR OF THE LIVING SPRINGS DOCUMENTARY SERIES.

AND, UM, ONE OF THE GREATEST CHALLENGES TO PROTECTING THE SPRINGS, THE AQUIFER AND THE HABITAT, IS EFFECTIVELY EDUCATING THE PARK VISITORS.

AND, UM, THERE ARE FOUR OPPORTUNITIES TO DO THIS I'D LIKE TO SPEAK ABOUT, AND THERE'S SOME SLIDES UP HERE.

UM, ONE IS THE QUONSET HUT AND THE MAINTENANCE BARN.

AND WITH THE LOSS OF THE CLASSROOM SPACE IN THE BATHHOUSE, THIS LOCATION COULD BE CONVERTED INTO AN AMAZING EDUCATIONAL SPACE TO BE USED BY WATERSHED PROTECTION DEPARTMENT'S.

EARTH CAMP, THE AUSTIN NATURE AND SCIENCE CENTER PROGRAMS, AND THE SUNSHINE CAMP PARK RANGERS COULD ALSO MAKE USE OF THE SPACE TO EDUCATE VISITORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD.

IT'S A TYPE OF ADAPTIVE REUSE THAT IS AN ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND WAY TO GO WITH A STRONG EQUITY COMPONENT AS WELL.

UM, ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR INTERPRETIVE EDUCATION WOULD BE THE CREATION OF AN OVERLOOK ON THE NORTH SIDE OF BARTON CREEK THAT LOOKS ACROSS THE SUNKEN GARDEN, PROVIDING ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITY TO TELL THE STORY OF SUNKEN GARDEN'S PLACE WITHIN ZILKER FOUR SPRINGS.

IT IS ALSO VISIBLE EVIDENCE OF THE AQUIFER BELOW.

THERE COULD BE INFORMATION ON WATER QUALITY AND QUANTITY, AND OF COURSE, THE BARTON SPRINGS AND AUSTIN BLIND SALAMANDERS.

UM, IT WOULD ALLOW FOLKS TO LEARN ABOUT A KEY PARK FEATURE THAT THEY WOULD OTHERWISE MISS UNLESS THEY GO OVER TO THE SOUTH SIDE, WHICH IS ACTUALLY QUITE A DISTANCE.

UM, THE ILRA PONDS PROVIDE YET ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR ENVIRONMENTAL UPLIFT, ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION, AND INCREASING ACCESSIBILITY.

CURRENTLY, THE PATH THROUGH THIS AREA FROM THE UPPER PARKING LOT IS DANGEROUS FOR THE MOBILE AND INACCESSIBLE TO THOSE WHO ARE MOBILITY IMPAIRED.

UM, IT IS FULL OF NON-NATIVE PLANTS AND CURRENTLY NO INTERPRETATION IS PROVIDED.

SO THERE'S A LOT OF POTENTIAL THERE TO UPLIFT THIS, UM, CCC PROJECT.

UM, FINALLY, AND ARGUABLY ALSO AN OPPORTUNITY FOR EDUCATION ARE THE PROPOSED RESTROOMS AND CHANGING AREAS ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE POOL.

THE NEAREST BATHROOM IS CLOSE TO HALF A MILE ROUND TRIP AND UP A FLIGHT OF 32 STAIRS IF YOU'VE EVER TAKEN TIME TO COUNT THEM.

SO IT'S NOT HARD TO IMAGINE WHERE PEOPLE RELIEVE THEMSELVES.

IF ONLY 20% OF BARTON SPRINGS ATTENDEES CAME THROUGH THE SOUTH SIDE EACH YEAR, THIS IS CLOSE TO A HUNDRED THOUSAND PEOPLE.

I'LL JUST ASK YOU TO USE YOUR IMAGINATION AND THINK ABOUT WATER QUALITY.

UM, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF WE COULD TAKE CARE OF THIS ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD, AND I WAS NOT KIDDING WHEN I ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY FOR INTERPRETATION WITHIN THAT SPACE.

THE GREAT THING ABOUT ALL OF THESE FOUR PROJECTS IS THAT THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO UNLOCK PRIVATE FUNDS TO PAY FOR THEM AND NOT COSTING THE TAXPAYERS ASCENT.

SO, UM, WE WOULD LOVE TO GET THESE THINGS MOVING WITH A RECOMMENDATION FROM THIS COMMITTEE SINCE THE ZILKER VISION PLAN BLOW UP.

THE PARTS STAFF IS WAITING FOR CITY COUNCIL OR THE CITY MANAGER TO ACT.

ANYONE WOULD BE GRATEFUL.

HAVE YOUR BLESSING SO THAT WE CAN GET THESE IMPORTANT PROJECTS GOING.

UM, IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME.

THAT, I'D LIKE TO MOVE TO ITEM NUMBER ONE, APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.

MR. K, DO YOU HAVE ONE MORE COPY OF THE YES.

LASTLY WE HAVE NICO HOWARD.

HE MIGHT BE STUCK.

ALRIGHT.

I DON'T SEE NICO EITHER, BUT WE WILL, IF HE SHOWS UP LATER, WE'LL GIVE HIM THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK.

UM, ALL RIGHT, UH, JUST FOR THE RECORD SHOW THAT VICE CHAIR ELLIS IS PRESENT.

UM, WITH

[1. Approve the minutes of the Climate, Water, Environment, and Parks Committee meeting of September 24, 2025.]

UH, COULD I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES? VICE CHAIR ELLIS SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER UCHIN.

UM, AND NO OBJECTION, THE MINUTES FROM OUR SEPTEMBER 24TH, 2025 MEETING ARE APPROVED.

[2. Briefing on Long Range Planning at Austin Water: Facilities, Capital Improvements Program (CIP), and Major Construction Projects [Shay Ralls Roalson, Director; Melvin Frasier Jr, Facilities Process Manager; Martin Tower, Engineering Manager; Charles Celauro, Assistant Director, Austin Water Engineering - Austin Water].]

WITH THAT, WE CAN MOVE TO ITEM NUMBER TWO, A BRIEFING ON LONG RANGE PLANNING AT THE AUSTIN WATER FACILITIES CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AND MAJOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

AND I SEE THE AUSTIN WATER TEAM BEFORE US, SO I'LL, UH, LET DIRECTOR ROLSON TAKE IT AWAY.

GOOD MORNING CHAIR COUNCIL MEMBERS, THANK YOU FOR HAVING US HERE TODAY TO TALK ABOUT, UH, AUSTIN WATER'S LONG RANGE PLANNING.

UH, SO AS YOU ALL KNOW, UM, WE'RE A LARGE,

[00:15:01]

UH, WATER UTILITY.

WE SERVE OVER A MILLION PEOPLE IN CENTRAL TEXAS.

AND SO WE DO A NUMBER OF LONG RANGE PLANNING EXERCISES THAT ARE, THAT ARE WELL INTEGRATED WITH ONE ANOTHER AND HENCE THE, THE, THE PRESENTATION BY OUR COMBINED TEAM HERE.

UM, SO WE'LL START OUT BY TALKING ABOUT OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PROGRAM PLANNING AND HOW WE PRIORITIZE, UH, THE PROJECTS THAT WE BRING TO COUNCIL FOR APPROVAL.

UM, AND THAT'LL BE LED BY MARTIN TOWER, OUR INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT DIVISION MANAGER, UH, AND THEN WE'LL TALK ABOUT OUR FACILITIES PLANNING.

SO THIS IS, UH, WE, UM, MANAGE, UM, A NUMBER OF CITY PROPERTIES THAT HAVE AUSTIN WATER PERSONNEL, UM, FOR SERVICE CENTERS, TREATMENT PLANTS, UH, ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDINGS, UM, AND, UH, AND OTHER FACILITIES.

AND SO OUR, UH, FACILITIES MANAGEMENT, UH, DIVISION MANAGER, MELVIN FRAZIER, WILL TALK US THROUGH THAT.

AND THEN WE'RE GONNA HIT SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR MAJOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

SO, AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF, UM, WELL, WE HAVE HUNDREDS OF PROJECTS THAT RANGE FROM, UH, RELATIVELY SMALL TO TRULY GENERATIONAL.

AND SO CHARLES SRO, OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING, WILL, WILL TALK US THROUGH A FEW EXAMPLES OF THOSE PROJECTS.

SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR TIME AND ATTENTION, AND I'LL, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MARTIN.

ALRIGHT, GOOD MORNING.

MY NAME IS MARTIN TOWER.

I LEAD OUR INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT DIVISION, UH, WHICH IS RESPONSIBLE FOR STRATEGIC ASSET MANAGEMENT AND OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PLANNING PROCESS.

AUSTIN WATER OWNS AND OPERATES SIX MAJOR TREATMENT PLANTS, UH, HUNDREDS OF REMOTE FACILITIES LIKE PUMPING STATIONS, RESERVOIRS, LIFT STATIONS, PACKAGED WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS.

WE HAVE ALMOST 3000 MILES OF WASTEWATER PIPE, ALMOST 4,000 MILES OF WATER PIPE.

UM, AND THE ALL THE SUPPORT FACILITIES NEEDED FOR THE STAFF WE DEPEND UPON TO ENSURE RELIABLE WATER WASTEWATER AND RECLAIM WATER SERVICES.

ALTOGETHER, IT'S AN ASSET BASE WORTH OF SEVERAL BILLION DOLLARS.

OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PROGRAM ALLOWS US TO RENEW THESE ASSETS AS THEY AGE, ENHANCE OUR SYSTEMS, AND PURSUE OPPORTUNITIES TO INNOVATE, AS WELL AS EXPAND CAPACITY AS NEEDED TO KEEP UP WITH OUR DYNAMIC COMMUNITY.

THE NET RESULT IS PERENNIALLY THE LARGEST AND MOST SOPHISTICATED CIP PROGRAM IN THE CITY, IN WHICH STAFF AT EVERY LEVEL OF THE ORGANIZATION CONTRIBUTE TO IDENTIFYING THE INVESTMENTS NEEDED TO ENSURE RELIABLE AND RESILIENT SERVICE.

AT AUSTIN WATER, A COMMITTEE OF THE EXECUTIVE TEAM OVERSEES THE ANNUAL PROCESS BY WHICH THE CIP PLAN IS DEVELOPED.

EACH YEAR.

THE PLAN IS BUILT UP FROM ZERO WITH EVERY PROPOSED CAPITAL INVESTMENT REVIEWED AND THE PROGRESS OF EVERY ACTIVE PROJECT REVISITED, ENSURING ALIGNMENT WITH CURRENT PRIORITIES.

IN PRACTICE, THIS TAKES THE FORM OF A CONSENSUS JUDGMENT OF THE PRIORITY OF DOZENS OF BUSINESS CASES COVERING ALL MAJOR INVESTMENTS.

THIS IS PAIRED WITH THE DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO OUR CIP CHAIRS.

THESE ARE MIDDLE MANAGERS WHO ARE CLOSER TO THE GROUND AND RESPONSIBLE FOR DELIVERING THE IMPROVEMENTS BASED ON ASSET RISK DATA.

THESE CIP CHAIRS ARE ALLOCATED TO BUDGET FOR THE HUNDREDS OF PROJECTS THAT ADDRESS BREAD AND BUTTER RENEWAL OF AGING ASSETS.

IN THIS WAY, AUSTIN WATERS STAFF REQUESTS ARE SCRUTINIZED, VETTED, AND VALIDATED BEFORE THE PLAN IS FINALIZED.

TRIMMING DOZENS OF PROJECTS AND HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS IN SPENDING BEFORE IS INCLUDED IN THE ANNUAL BUDGET SUBMITTAL.

OUR CIP CHAIRS ARE INSTRUMENTAL IN GATHERING INPUT FROM INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS TO SCOPE PROJECTS AND SYNTHESIZE CAPITAL PLAN PROPOSALS FOR THEIR RESPECTIVE INFRASTRUCTURE GROUPS.

THEY NOT ONLY DETERMINE HOW BEST TO DEPLOY THE RENEWAL FUNDING, BUT IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION WITH OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS AND REGIONAL MOBILITY PROJECTS.

THEY ALSO IDENTIFY EFFICIENCIES THROUGH PARTICIPATION IN SERVICE EXTENSION REQUEST, BETTERMENTS AND OTHER PARTNERING OPPORTUNITIES.

THESE MANAGERS AND THEIR STAFF ARE ACTIVELY ENGAGED WITH MANY KEY PLANNING EFFORTS SUCH AS WATER FORWARD IMAGINE AUSTIN AND PROJECT CONNECT, ENSURING THAT THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS PIECES OF THESE IMPORTANT PLANS ARE CORRECTLY ACCOUNTED FOR IN AUSTIN WATERS CIP PLAN.

IN THIS SLIDE, WE CAN SEE THE SCALE OF THE FIVE YEAR CIP PLAN AS WE'VE DEVELOPED AND REFINED OVER THE YEARS AT AUSTIN WATER.

DURING EACH BUDGET CYCLE, WE CREATE A FIVE-YEAR PLANS AND FORECAST OUT 10 YEARS TO COMMUNICATE TO THE MANY STAKEHOLDERS AS WELL AS MOBILIZE THE RESOURCES NEEDED TO DELIVER THESE COMPLEX PROJECTS.

THESE HEAVY INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS TYPICALLY TAKE THREE TO SEVEN YEARS FROM PLANNING TO STARTUP AND LONGER FOR THE MOST COMPLEX.

USING OUR DATA-DRIVEN, RISK ADJUSTED ZERO BASED CIP PLANNING PROCESS, OUR LEADERSHIP WAS ABLE TO SYSTEMATICALLY REFINE A STAFF REQUEST OF 3.6 BILLION DOWN TO THE $2.7 BILLION FIVE YEAR

[00:20:01]

PLAN THAT WAS INCLUDED IN THE CITY BUDGET PAST IN AUGUST.

A LOT OF THE GROWTH YOU SEE IN THE BARS HAS BEEN THE ARRIVAL OF LONG ANTICIPATED MAJOR GENERATIONAL INVESTMENTS INTO THE FIVE-YEAR PLANNING WINDOW.

EXAMPLES OF THESE MAJOR PROJECTS INCLUDE THE RECENTLY COMPLETED ADVANCED METERING INFRASTRUCTURE, THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN EXPANSION, AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF WATER FORWARD STRATEGIES LIKE AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVERY, AND IMPROVEMENTS TO OUR SUPPORT FACILITIES AND CAMPUSES, WHICH YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT SHORTLY.

AUSTIN WATER HAS A VARIETY OF INVESTMENT NEEDS ACROSS DIFFERENT ASSET CLASSES THAT WE RELY UPON TO DELIVER WATER SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY.

THIS CHART SHOWS THE BREAKDOWN BY ASSET CLASS AND IS INCLUSIVE OF ALL INVESTMENT DRIVERS.

SO THAT'S COMBINING RENEWAL ENHANCEMENT AND GROWTH.

AT A GLANCE, YOU CAN SEE THE IMPACT OF THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT AND ITS EXPANSION IN THE SIZE OF THE LIGHT GREEN CATEGORY.

THAT'S THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT CATEGORY AND THE WILLIAMSON CREEK INTERCEPTOR IN THE DARKER GREEN WASTEWATER PIPE NETWORK CATEGORY.

WE CAN ALSO SEE THE AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVERY STRATEGY OF WATER FORWARD IMPACTING THE DARK BLUE PUMP STATION RESERVOIR CATEGORY.

UM, AND, AND THE SEVERAL OTHER, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE GROUPS THAT WE HAVE THAT MAKE UP OUR ASSET BASE.

I'LL NOW HAND IT OFF TO MELVIN FRAZIER IN OUR BUILDINGS GROUP TO TALK A BIT ABOUT THE IMPORTANT INVESTMENTS THAT WE'RE MAKING IN AUSTIN WATERS CAMPUSES.

I'M SORRY TO INTERRUPT.

I WOULD NOR THE WAY TO THE END, BUT I'M JUST CURIOUS WHILE WE'RE ON THAT LAST SLIDE.

WHY IS OUR WASTEWATER NETWORK SO MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE THAN OUR TREATED WATER NETWORK, EVEN THOUGH WE HAVE MORE TREATED WATER LINES THAN WASTEWATER LINES? THERE'S A A FEW REASONS FOR THAT.

THE ONE OF THE MOST, UH, UH, HIGH PROFILE ONES THAT WE SEE IS MAJOR INVESTMENTS IN THINGS LIKE THE WILLIAMSON CREEK INTERCEPTOR, UH, AS WELL AS A MORE KINDA STANDARD, UH, EXPLANATION, WHICH MAY NOT BE SPECIFIC TO THIS MOMENT, BUT THE FACT THAT WASTEWATER PIPES, BECAUSE THEY ARE, UM, GRAVITY AND AT DEPTH AND LARGER, ARE BY FOOT A MORE EXPENSIVE COMMODITY THAN WATER PIPES.

YOU CAN BE SHALLOWER AND UH, AND LESS EXPENSIVE TO DEPLOY.

HVAC, GATES, UM, ALL SORTS OF THINGS THAT HAVE TO BE MAINTAINED AND UPGRADED.

WELL, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MARTIN.

UM, MY NAME IS MELVIN FRAZIER.

UH, I'M THE FACILITIES MANAGEMENT DIVISION MANAGER FOR AUSTIN WATER.

AND, UH, I HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF TALKING TO YOU ABOUT, I HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF TALKING TO YOU, UH, FOR A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR LONG RANGE BUILDING PLAN.

SO PROBABLY FROM THE VERY FIRST TREATMENT PLANT THAT WAS, UH, BUILT IN, UH, AUSTIN, UH, THE FACILITIES OF AUSTIN WATER HAVE BEEN VERY IMPORTANT TO THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN.

AND SO, WHILE I'M NOT GONNA BORE YOU BY GOING BACK INTO HISTORY TO TALK ABOUT THE VERY FIRST TREATMENT PLANT, I WILL BRING YOU TO 2019.

SO IN 2019, THERE WAS A STUDY, A UTILIZATION STUDY THAT WAS COMPLETED, UH, WITH ALL OF OUR, UH, FACILITIES.

AND IT HELPED US TO DETERMINE THAT THERE WAS A DEFINITE NEED FOR US TO UPGRADE OUR FACILITIES AND TO MAKE THEM BETTER.

AND SO THEREFORE, WE CREATED OUR LONG RANGE BUILDING PLAN THAT WAS GOING TO HELP US TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.

BUT OVER THE, THE COURSE OF TIME, AND JUST EVEN PRESENTLY, UH, WE HAVE, UH, OUR FACILITIES THAT SERVE OVER A MILLION CUSTOMERS, OVER 548 SQUARE MILES.

AND THESE ARE OVER 20 DIFFERENT LOCATIONS OR CAMPUSES.

BUT IF YOU DIG A LITTLE BIT DEEPER, UM, IT'S NOT JUST 20 DIFFERENT LOCATIONS, BUT IT'S 63 BUILDINGS, UM, THAT WE HAVE, THAT WE HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF.

AND THESE 63 BUILDINGS RANGE ANYWHERE FROM OFFICE SPACES TO OUR CALL CENTERS, TO SHOP AREAS, WAREHOUSES, STORAGE AREAS, EMERGENCY OPERATIONS.

THERE'S A BROAD RANGE OF THINGS THAT OUR FACILITIES TAKE CARE OF.

AND FOR THE MOST PART, OUR FACILITIES ARE HOUSING OUR STAFF.

AND WITHOUT OUR STAFF, WE ARE NOT ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF THE GOOD PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

SO, UM, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS SLIDE HERE, THIS IS SHOWING, UM, WHERE ON THE MAP ARE ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT, UH, FACILITIES.

AND SO OUR LONG RANGE, UH, BUILDING PLAN IS, UH, TO TAKE CARE OF ALL OF THESE FACILITIES, BUT MAYBE AT DIFFERENT LEVELS.

SO I LIKE TO JUST DIG A LITTLE BIT DEEPER AND SHOW YOU THE DIFFERENT LEVELS THAT, THAT WE'RE SPEAKING ABOUT.

UM, HERE WE'RE TALK, WE'RE HERE SHOWING OUR PERMANENT FACILITIES THAT, UH, AREN'T GONNA MOVE, AREN'T GOING TO CHANGE.

UM, THESE ARE OUR TREATMENT PLANTS, WHETHER IT'S OUR WASTEWATER PLANTS OR OUR, UM, TREATMENT PLANTS.

UM, FOR THE CITY OF BOSTON, UH, THESE, UH, PLANTS, UM, ARE GOING TO BE THERE TO CONTINUE TO SERVE OUR CUSTOMERS, BUT THEY HAVE MANY DIFFERENT BUILDINGS SUCH AS MAINTENANCE BUILDINGS, UH, SHOP BUILDINGS,

[00:25:01]

AND SO, UH, WHILE OUR LONG RANGE PLAN IS NOT REBUILDING, UH, THESE AT, AT THIS TIME, OR, UH, IT'S NOT INSIDE OF OUR PLAN, THEY HAVE TO BE MAINTAINED, UH, IN ORDER FOR US TO BE ABLE TO DO THE RIGHT TYPE OF UPKEEP AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING IS CARED FOR.

SO NEXT, UM, WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT, OKAY, SHALL WE PAUSE OR SHALL WE KEEP GOING IF Y'ALL ARE FOLLOWING ALONG.

SO NEXT WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR FACILITIES.

THAT'S, UH, FOR OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE.

NOW, OUR FACILITIES FOR OUR CUSTOMER SERVICE, UM, ARE FACILITIES THAT, UH, PROVIDE PLACES FOR OUR OPERATIONS, UH, TO BE ABLE TO, UM, COME TO AND TO BE ABLE TO MOVE OUT TO THE FIELD IN ORDER TO TAKE CARE OF OUR CUSTOMERS.

PLACES LIKE OUR SOUTH SERVICE CENTER, OUR NORTH SERVICE CENTER, UH, GO, UH, GLEN BELL SERVICE CENTER.

WE ALSO HAVE RIKER RANCH, RUTHERFORD HOUSE, AND ALSO WE ALSO HAVE PLACES LIKE TIMOTHY, ER, UH, ALL OF THESE ARE SERVICE CENTERS, UH, THAT OUR STAFF WORKS AT AND THAT HAVE TO BE MAINTAINED AND UPGRADED.

NOW, THESE ARE ALSO PART OF OUR LONG RANGE PLAN TO ALSO MAINTAIN, MAKE SURE THAT WE MAINTAIN THOSE AND UPGRADE THEM, UH, FOR THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN AND ALSO FOR OUR STAFF.

BUT WHAT'S EVEN MORE EXCITING IS SOME OF OUR NEW AND FUTURE PROPERTIES, UH, THAT, THAT WE HAVE.

SO, UM, UNFORTUNATELY OUR SLIDE ISN'T UP, BUT I CAN TELL YOU, AND IF YOU CLOSE YOUR EYES, YOU MIGHT CAN VISUALIZE IT.

I CAN GO TO THE TOP AND WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THE PROPERTY THAT WE HAVE.

THAT'S GOING TO BE OUR FUTURE NEW NORTH SERVICE CENTER HUB.

AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A PROPERTY THAT WE, UH, PURCHASED, UH, THAT YOU'RE PROBABLY FAMILIAR WITH, THAT'S MORE IN THE MIDDLE, UM, OF THE MAP NEAR 35.

AND ST.

JOHN'S.

THIS IS OUR NEW AUSTIN WATER CONTROL CENTER.

AND I'LL BRIEFLY MENTION A FEW MORE THINGS ABOUT THAT A LITTLE BIT LATER.

BUT, UH, ONE THAT YOU'RE PROBABLY EVEN MORE FAMILIAR WITH, IF YOU GO A LITTLE BIT DOWN TO THE SOUTHEAST IS OUR NEW SOUTH SERVICE CENTER HUB.

AND I'LL ALSO BE SPEAKING A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT.

SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, OUR LONG RANGE, YOU SAY NEXT SLIDE.

SO I KNOW YOU'RE GOING ON.

OH, I'M SORRY.

NEXT SLIDE.

OH, YOU GOT THE SLIDES.

I'M SORRY.

USE OF OUR STAFF, ALSO FOR THE USE OF MANY DIFFERENT OPERATIONS.

SO OUR NEXT SLIDE, UM, ABOUT THE KEY PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE UNDERWAY.

SO I'LL TALK ABOUT TWO OF OUR KEY PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE, UH, GOING ON.

AND, UH, OUR FIRST AND FOREMOST IS OUR AUSTIN WATER CONTROL CENTER.

AND SO THIS WAS, UH, PURCHASED, UH, ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF AGO.

UH, IT WAS AN EXISTING BUILDING.

AND, UH, WE ARE RENOVATING THIS BUILDING, UH, TO BE ABLE TO BE A COMBINED LAB.

WE'RE ALSO GONNA HAVE OUR SECURITY OPERATIONS THAT'S GOING TO BE OUT OF THIS.

UM, ANY TYPE OF EMERGENCY OPERATIONS WILL COME FROM THIS BUILDING.

AND THEN, UH, WE'LL ALSO HAVE DIFFERENT, UM, OTHER SUPPORTIVE, UH, OPERATIONS SUCH AS OUR, OUR DISPATCH, UH, AND OUR, OF COURSE, OUR CONTROL CENTER.

THIS WILL BE OUR MAJOR CONTROL CENTER FOR OUR OPERATIONS.

UH, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS BECAUSE, EXCUSE ME, THIS IS ONE OF OUR FIRST MAJOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS, UH, THAT WE'RE UNDERTAKING.

AND, UH, WE ARE ABLE TO UTILIZE, UH, THE, UH, AUSTIN PUBLIC FACILITIES CORPORATION TO BE ABLE TO HELP US OUT WITH THIS.

AND AT THIS PRESENT MOMENT, UH, WE'RE WELL UNDER OUR WAY.

WE'RE ABOUT, AT OUR, WE JUST HAD OUR 75% CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS.

AND SO THAT'S HELPING US TO, TO GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE'LL BE ABLE TO FINALIZE THINGS AND, AND HAVE CONSTRUCTION UNDER UNDERWAY SOON.

UH, HOPEFULLY WE HAVE PLANNED FOR THIS PROJECT TO BE COMPLETED, UM, BY THE END OF 2026.

OUR OTHER PROJECT THAT WE, UH, HAVE UNDERWAY IS THE RENOVATION OF OUR, THE WALL CREEK CENTER.

NOW, UH, THIS RENOVATION IS BEING TAKEN, UH, CARE OF IN TWO DIFFERENT PHASES.

UH, FIRST WITH FLOORS ONE AND 10, AND THEN FROM FLOORS TWO THROUGH NINE, AND THIS WILL BE A FULL RENOVATION OF THIS BUILDING, UM, UPGRADING NEW TECHNOLOGIES, MAKING THE SPACE MORE MANAGEABLE FOR OUR PEOPLE AND MORE EFFECTIVE, UH, FOR OUR STAFF.

AND, UH, THE FIRST PART OF THIS PHASE WILL START, UH, TAKING PLACE IN JANUARY OF, UH, 2026.

SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO, UH, TO THAT.

NOW AS WE GO, UH, TO OUR NEXT SLIDE.

UH, THIS IS A SLIDE THAT TALKS ABOUT OUR NEW SOUTH SERVICE CENTER HUB.

AND, UH, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT, UH, WAS JUST PURCHASED, UH, LAST, LAST MONTH.

UM, AND IT'S, UH, WE CONSIDER IT KIND OF A GAME CHANGER FOR AUSTIN WATER.

AND, UH, WHY IS THAT? WELL, IT GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO PUT THE LONG RANGE PART OF OUR PLAN INTO EFFECT.

UH, WE'RE ABLE TO PLAN FOR THE FUTURE.

WE'RE ABLE TO, UH, DECIDE HOW THINGS, UH, COULD BE TO BE ABLE TO BE MORE HELPFUL FOR, UH, THE USE OF OUR

[00:30:01]

AND, UH, ALSO TO BE ABLE TO, UH, EXPAND WITH THE GROWING CITY.

UH, I KNOW THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, UH, YOU ALL ARE AFFECTED BY EVERY DAY IS, UH, THE PLACE KEEPS GROWING.

WE GET MORE AND MORE PEOPLE.

SO HOW DO WE DEAL WITH THAT? WELL, THAT'S THE SAME THING THAT AUSTIN WATER HAS TO DEAL WITH, UH, BECAUSE WE SERVE THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

AND SO THIS, UH, UH, NEW SERVICE CENTER, THIS NEW SOUTH HUB, WILL GIVE US THAT ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO PLAN NOT JUST FOR NOW, BUT FOR THE FUTURE.

SO IF WE MOVE INTO OUR LAST SLIDE, UM, OUR LONG RANGE, UH, PLAN, UM, IS, CAN BE SUMMARIZED IN JUST A FEW, A FEW DIFFERENT, UH, TERMS. UH, OUR PLAN NEEDS TO BE FLEXIBLE, FLEXIBLE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE FUTURE, UH, THE FUTURE.

UH, THE WORD OF THE FUTURE MEANS THAT YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S, WHAT'S EXACTLY GONNA HAPPEN, BUT YOU GOTTA HAVE THE FLEXIBILITY TO BE ABLE TO MEET THE NEEDS OF WHATEVER IS GONNA HAPPEN.

AND SO OUR PLAN IS, IS FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO MAKE CHANGES AS NEEDED, UH, TO BE ABLE TO GO INTO A DIRECTION, BUT ALSO TO BE ABLE TO TURN LEFT TO RIGHT IF WE HAVE TO.

OUR LONG RANGE PLAN ALSO, UH, HELPS US TO BALANCE OUR ROUTINE MAINTENANCE THAT'S NEEDED, UM, EACH AND EVERY DAY WITH OUR LONG-TERM FUNCTIONAL NEEDS.

UH, IT ALSO PROVIDES US THE ABILITY TO LOOK FOR DIFFERENT TYPE OF SYNERGIES TO ENHANCE EFFICIENCY AND ALSO RESPONSIVENESS.

AND THEN, UM, SUSTAINABLE ELEMENTS.

WE'RE ALWAYS, UH, THINKING ABOUT, UH, SUSTAINABILITY, RESILIENCY FOR THE FUTURE, UH, PURPLE PIPE THINGS THAT'S GONNA BE ABLE TO HELP, UM, OUR EARTH TO LAST JUST A LITTLE BIT LONGER.

WE WANT TO INCORPORATE THOSE THINGS IN INTO OUR PLAN.

BUT MOST, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS IS TO PROVIDE A GOOD WORK ENVIRONMENT FOR AUSTIN WATER EMPLOYEES.

IF AUSTIN WATER EMPLOYEES HAVE A GOOD WORK ENVIRONMENT, THEN WHAT CAN THEY DO FOR THE CITY? THEY'LL BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY, THEY TAKE CARE OF OUR CITY EVEN MORE EFFECTIVELY.

AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT WHEN IT COMES TO OUR LONG RANGE BUILDING PLAN.

AND I THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY, UH, TO SPEAK TO YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT.

SO NOW I WANNA GIVE, UH, OUR ATTENTION TO, UH, MY FRIEND AND COLLEAGUE, MR. CHARLES RO.

HE'S GONNA HELP US ABOUT SOME MAJOR PROJECTS.

THANK YOU, MEL.

THANK YOU MELVIN.

UM, I'M THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR ENGINEERING TECHNICAL SERVICES, AND ONE OF THE MAJOR, UH, THINGS THAT I DO IN MY DEPARTMENT IS THE IMPLEMENTATION AND DELIVERY CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, SUCH AS SOME OF THE THINGS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT TODAY.

IN TODAY'S PRESENTATION, I'M GONNA GO OVER THROUGH SOME OF, SOME OF OUR SIX, UH, MAJOR PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE.

UH, THEY'RE, UH, MOST ARE, UH, QUITE LARGE, SO THEY PREPARE FOR LONG RANGE PLANNING AND CAN BE, UH, HAVE SOME ASSOCIATED WITH SOME RISKS.

AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT HOW SOME OF THE RISKS WE MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE RISKS.

AND ONE ASPECT OF, OF, OF EVALUATING PROJECTS AND HOW WE DELIVER THOSE PROJECTS IS ALTERNATIVE DELIVERY METHODS, UM, SUCH AS COMPETITIVE SEAL PROPOSAL OR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISKS.

AND WE'LL GO THROUGH A COUPLE OF PROJECTS HERE TODAY.

WE'LL LOOK AT SEQUENCING OF CONSTRUCTION, SO WE DON'T IMPACT THE CUSTOMERS AS, AS, UH, ARDUOUS AS SOME OF THESE PROJECTS CAN, CAN HAVE A TENDENCY TO DO, AND HOW THE PROPOSED PROJECT WILL INTERCONNECT WITH THE EXISTING PROJECT, HOW THAT INTERFACE HAPPENS, AND HOW WE MITIGATE THAT AS WELL AS FOR THE CONTINUED MAINTENANCE OF OPERATIONS.

YOU KNOW, THIS WILL BE MENTIONED SEVERAL TIMES THROUGH THE DAY, IS THAT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO MAINTAIN A LEVEL OF SERVICE WHILE WE'RE REHABILITATING OR EXPANDING FACILITIES SO WE CAN MAINTAIN THAT SERVICE FOR THE CUSTOMERS.

UM, MENTIONED WE'LL HAVE, UH, I'LL GO THROUGH SIX PROJECTS IN OUR THREE MAIN CATEGORIES.

I'VE BROKEN 'EM UP INTO INFRASTRUCTURE, REHABILITATION, OPERATIONAL ENHANCEMENT, AND SYSTEM EXPANSION.

SO THE FIRST WOULD BE THE, UH, REHABILITATION PROJECTS, AND THAT WOULD BE REPAIRING OR UPGRADING EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE.

WELL, IT'S, THERE WE GO.

UH, THE FIRST PROJECT I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS IS, UH, AS, AS MARTIN HAD MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY, IS THE WILLIAMSON CREEK WASTEWATER INTERCEPTOR.

THIS IS AT A THREE AND A HALF MILE LONG, 72 INTER INTERCEPTOR THAT WILL REPLACE AN EXISTING GRAVITY SEWER THAT WAS ALMOST INSTALLED 60 YEARS AGO.

UH, THE PROJECT CHALLENGES INCLUDE, UM, AND HOW WE MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE, UH, CHALLENGES WAS WE USE A COMPETITIVE SEAL PROPOSAL ON THIS PROJECT.

UH, THIS ALLOWS US TO NOT ONLY EVALUATE THE PRICE THAT THE CONTRACTOR PROVIDED, BUT ALSO THE CONTRACTOR'S QUALIFICATION AND EXPERIENCE IN SELECTING THE CONTRACTOR.

THE NEW INTERCEPTOR WILL BE, UH, INSTALLED UTILIZING TRENCHLESS TECHNOLOGIES WERE FEASIBLE.

UH, MOST OF THE PIPE WILL BE CONSTRUCTED AS A TUNNEL.

WE GOT 40 TO 60 FEET DEEP THAT WOULD MINIMIZE IMPACTS TO CUSTOMERS

[00:35:01]

AS WELL AS TO THE CREEK.

AND THERE IS A, A SECTION OF PIPE WHERE WE'RE ACTUALLY PUTTING A PIPE WITHIN THE EXISTING PIPE, WHAT WE CALL CURED IN PLACE THAT'S SHOWN IN YELLOW ON THIS GRAPHIC.

UM, AND THAT'S WAY OF, OF REHABILITATING AN EXISTING LINE.

UH, WE WILL ALSO REMOVE AS MUCH OF THE EXISTING PIPE FROM THE CREEK AS FEASIBLE.

UM, AWESOME WATER, UH, WILL BUILD A WATER QUALITY POND THAT WILL SERVE AS A, UH, UH, UH, FOR WATER TREATMENT FOR A FUTURE PARKING LOT FOR ARCS, UH, FOR AUSTIN PARKS AND RECREATIONAL, UH, WE, WE WILL CONVEY FOUR ACRES OF LAND TO AWESOME PARKS AND RECREATION, AS WELL AS PURCHASE AN ADDITIONAL ACREAGE FOR TRAIL EASEMENTS WITH THIS PROJECT.

THIS CURRENT PROJECT IS IN THE BID PHASE, AND WE ACTUALLY TOOK BIDS THIS THIS MONTH.

THE NEXT ONE IS RENEWING AUSTIN, AND THIS IS INITIATIVE TO REPLACE AGING PIPELINES ACROSS THE CITY, UM, TO IMPROVE RELIABILITY, REDUCE COST OF REPAIRS FROM, UH, FREQUENT BRAKES AND CONSERVE WATER.

UH, AUSTIN WATER.

UH, I IDENTIFIES POOR PERFORMING PIPE WITH HISTORICAL BRAKE DATA, UH, LEAK REPAIR ORDERS, AS WELL AS CONDITION ASSESSMENT.

UH, THE REHABILITATION OF THESE PIPES, AS YOU KIND OF SEE IN THE, IN THE STREET, IS STREET REPAIRS.

AFTER WE DO THE ACTUAL PAVEMENT TRAFFIC CONTROL PLANS, UH, WE WILL MOST LIKELY THAT A LOT OF OUR PIPES ARE IN THE ROADWAY, SO WE'LL HAVE TO DETOUR THE TRAFFIC.

SO AS YOU'RE DRIVING HOME, SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO HAVE A DETOUR.

SO THAT'S, WE TRY TO MINIMIZE THOSE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.

AND IF, IF WE ARE PUTTING A NEW PIPE IN THE GROUND, WE OFTEN MOVE THE SERVICES FROM THE OLD PIPE TO THE NEW PIPE.

SO THEN THERE'S A DISRUPTION FOR THOSE CUSTOMERS AND WE MINIMIZE THOSE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AS WELL.

AND OF COURSE, THE PRIORITIZATION OF WHICH PIPES WE DO FIRST.

AND AS MENTIONED, WE, WE UTILIZE HISTORICAL BREAK DATA AND WHERE THE MORE MOST, UH, THE, THE, WHERE THE PERFORMING PIPE IS, WE TRY TO GO GET THOSE AND REPAIR THOSE.

THE NEXUS OPERATIONAL ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS, AND THIS IS, UH, UM, THESE ARE PROJECTS THAT WILL IMPROVE THE EFFICIENCY OF OPERATIONS AND TREATMENT.

THE FIRST, UH, PROJECT WE'D LIKE TO DISCUSS IS THE RECLAIMED DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM.

UH, THE RECLAIMED DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM PROVIDES REUSE WATER FOR NON-POTABLE WA USES SUCH AS IRRIGATION, COOLING TOWERS, AND TOILET FLUSHING.

AND THE EXAMPLE PROJECT I HAVE TODAY ARE FIVE PROJECTS, WHICH WE CALL COMPLETING THE CORE.

AND THIS WILL CONNECT THE, WHAT I CALL THE NORTHERN RECLAIM DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, WHICH IS SERVED BY WALNUT CREEK WASTE WATER TREATMENT PLANT, AND CONNECT IT TO THE SOUTHERN RECLAIM DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, WHICH IS SERVED BY SOUTH AUSTIN REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN.

UH, THIS, UM, EXTENSION OF THE RECLAIM WATER INFRASTRUCTURE WILL PROVIDE DOWNTOWN WITH TWO RECLAIM WATER SOURCES, IMPROVING RELIABILITY.

IT PROVIDES THAT LOOPING THAT WE TRY TO DO WITH THE WATER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, WHICH HAS SERVED US VERY WELL, UM, IN THE WATER SECTOR SIDE.

THESE PROJECTS ARE EITHER IN CONSTRUCTION OR AT THE LAST STAGES OF FINAL DESIGN.

THE NEXT PROJECT I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS IS THE HANCOCK'S RESILIENCY PROJECT.

THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE RESILIENCY THROUGHOUT THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT TO PROVIDE A SECOND BASIN FOR SOLIDS COLLECTION AND STORAGE AND TREATMENT.

CURRENTLY, THERE'S ONLY ONE BASIN AND NO REDUNDANCY, AND THOSE BASINS ARE SHOWN IN YELLOW ON THIS SLIDE.

THIS IS A WINTER STORM URI, UH, UH, EXTERNAL REVIEW RECOMMENDATION.

UH, AND IT WILL PROVIDE THE SAME LEVEL OF REDUNDANCY THAT WE OPERATE AT DAVIS IN AN ULRICH WATER TREATMENT PLANT.

IT WILL ALSO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE, UM, THE STAFF AVAILABILITY TO MAINTAIN THE PIECES OF EQUIPMENT WITHOUT HAVING TO REDUCE THE TREATMENT CAPACITY OF THE PLANT BELOW 50 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY.

THIS PROJECT HAS JUST FINISHED PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING DESIGN AND WE WERE, UH, DOING THE PROPOSAL FOR FINAL DESIGN.

THE LAST PROJECT I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS ARE SYSTEM EXPANSION, UH, WITH PROJECTS.

AND THIS IS IN, UH, THESE PROJECTS ARE NEEDED TO PROVIDE AND MAINTAIN THE CAPACITY AND THE LEVEL OF SERVICE FOR THE CUSTOMERS OF, OF AUSTIN.

THE FIRST ONE I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS IS THE MEDIUM DAVIS SERVICE TRANSMISSION MAIN.

THIS IS A, A 5.7 MILE 84 INCH TRANSMISSION.

MEAN THAT WILL TAKE TREATED POTABLE WATER FROM DAVIS WATER TREATMENT PLANT EAST TO JUST PASS THE WILLIAM MORRIS GOLF COURSE ON IL K BOULEVARD.

UH, THIS NEW INFRASTRUCTURE WILL PROVIDE WATER TRANSMISSION TO THE CENTRAL PRESSURE ZONE, WHICH IS THE CENTRAL DOWNTOWN AREA AS WELL AS TO EAST AUSTIN.

UH, THIS PROJECT WILL ALSO USE TRENCHES TECHNOLOGY AND WILL BE A TUNNEL DEPTHS PROBABLY APPROACHING UP TO 60 FEET DEEP TO MINIMIZE ANY IMPACTS

[00:40:01]

TO THE CUSTOMERS.

THIS PROJECT HAS ALSO JUST RECENTLY FINISHED PRELIMINARY PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING DESIGN.

THE LAST ONE I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS IS THE WILLIAMSON CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN, EXPANSION AND ENHANCEMENT.

THIS PROJECT WILL TAKE THE TREATMENT CAPACITY OF THE WALNUT CREEK FROM 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY TO A HUNDRED AND MILLION GALLONS PER DAY.

AND IT'S TRULY A EXAMPLE OF A GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT IN THE CITY FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

UM, THE, NOT ONLY ARE WE JUST EXPANDING THE ACTUAL TREATMENT CAPACITY OF THE PLAN, WE'LL BE UPGRADING THE TREATMENT CAPACITY, EXCUSE ME, THE TREATMENT, UH, METHODOLOGY TO WHAT WE CALL BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL.

SO WE WILL HAVE A HIGHER QUALITY WATER LEAVING THE PLANT, NOT ONLY FOR THE 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY THAT FOR THE EXPANSION, BUT ALSO GOING BACK INTO THE EXISTING 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY PLANT AND CONVERTING THAT, UM, WE WILL, UH, HAVE A FLOOD WALL AROUND THE PLANT TO PROTECT IT FROM FLOOD WALLS, FROM FLOOD OF EVENTS, UH, WE'LL HAVE ADVANCED, UM, ODOR CONTROL MITIGATION THROUGH SUCH TECHNOLOGY AS BIO FILTERS AND ACTIVATED CARBON.

UH, WE WILL PROVIDE, UM, PLANT-WIDE, UH, MODERNIZATION OF SOME AGING INFRASTRUCTURE, PARTICULARLY THE HEAD WORK STRUCTURE.

UM, THE PLANT WILL ALSO USE INHERENTLY SAFER DIS TECHNOLOGY.

WE WILL, WE WILL, UH, DISINFECT THE WATER USING ULTRAVIOLET VERSUS CHLORINE GAS ONCE WE GET DONE.

SO IT'LL BE SAFE FOR TECHNOLOGY TO USE.

AND AS WE DISCUSSED OF MANY TIMES ALREADY, TODAY IS THE, IS THE CONTINUING SERVICE OF OF THE PLANT WHILE WE'RE DOING THE CONSTRUCTION.

HOW DO WE EXPAND THIS, CONVERT THE EXISTING PLANT WHILE WE'RE STILL TRYING TO MAINTAIN THE CAPACITY OF 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY OF WATER RUNNING THROUGH THE PLANT.

UM, THESE ARE VERY, THIS IS VERY LARGE PROJECT.

UH, WE HAVE CHOSEN A, A CMAR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER RISK CONTRACTOR FOR THIS PROJECT.

AGAIN, THIS ALLOWS US TO EVALUATE NOT ONLY THE PRICE, BUT THE CONTRACTOR'S EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE PROJECT.

UH, WE, UH, ONBOARDED THE SEYMOUR CONTRACTOR AS WE FINISHED THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING DESIGN AND EVEN BEFORE WE HAD THE 30% DESIGN COMPLETE.

UM, THE ADVANTAGES OF THE SMAR CONTRACTOR, UM, ARE AS EARLY OR EARLY COLLABORATION, AS I JUST MENTIONED, THE, UM, THE CONTRACTOR IS IN THE SAME ROOM WITH THE OPERATION STAFF, WITH THE ENGINEERING STAFF TO DEVELOP THE PLANS.

UM, IT ALSO PROVIDES A SCHEDULING, UH, EFFICIENCY WHERE WE CAN OVERLAP SOME, UH, SOME, UM, UH, PROCESSES AS WELL AS MIS RISK MITIGATION.

AND THE IMPORTANT ONE IS THAT THE CONTINUING OF THE OPERATION OF THE PLANT WHILE WE ARE, UH, EXPANDING AND CONVERTING THE PLANT.

UM, SO HOW ARE WE GONNA DO ALL THIS, RIGHT? WE'RE GONNA TAKE THE BIGGER PROJECT AND WE'RE GONNA BREAK IT UP INTO PACKAGES.

AND PART OF THE CMR CONSTRUCTION METHOD IS TO HAVE THE CONTRACTOR GIVE US WHAT WE CALL GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE PACKAGES.

AND WE BREAK THOSE UP AND WE HAVE THE EIGHT PACKAGES THAT I SHOW UP HERE.

THE BOTTOM ONE OF THE, UH, THE REHABILITATION OF THE PTCS IS A DIFFERENT CMAR CONTRACTOR, BUT I, I JUST SHOWED IT ON THE, ON THE PLANS FOR CLARITY.

UM, PACKAGE NUMBER ONE IS SHOWN IN RED, AND THAT'S THE HEADWORKS AND THE INFLUE LIFT STATION.

THESE ARE SOME REHABILITATING PROJECTS THAT WE GET THE DONE.

WE NEED TO GET THE HEADWORKS DONE, COMPLETED FIRST BEFORE WE TAKE DOWN HEADWORKS NUMBER TWO FOR ITS EXPANSION.

UM, PACKAGE TWO IS, UH, SITE MOBILIZATION AND SITE SERVICES.

THIS IS WHERE THE CONTRACTOR WILL HAVE ITS TRAILERS AND AND MEET.

SO WE HAVE THOSE PACKAGES GOING ON.

PACKAGE NUMBER THREE IS LONG LEAD ITEMS. UM, THE, THIS IS A NOT CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY, BUT THIS IS ALLOWS US TO ACTUALLY PURCHASE SOME EQUIPMENT THAT WILL TAKE OVER A YEAR TO, TO MANUFACTURE AND DELIVER ON SITE.

SO WE CAN GET THOSE STARTED NOW.

AND THEN AGAIN, THIS IS THE PART OF THE OVERLAPPING OF THE SCHEDULE OF THE CONSTRUCTION.

FOUR IS THE FLOOD WALL.

AS I MENTIONED, WE ARE, EXCUSE ME, WE ARE IN A FLOOD PLAIN NOW AFTER ATLAS 14.

SO WE'RE PROVIDING A FLOOD WALL TO PROTECT IT FROM ANY KIND OF FLOOD EVENT.

UH, PACKAGE NUMBER FIVE IS ACTUALLY SHOWN IN BLUE IS THE ACTUAL EXPANSION.

THAT'S THE ACTUAL 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY NEW TREATMENT CAPACITY THAT WE'RE PROVIDING ONTO THE PLANT.

PACKAGE NUMBER SIX IS A WET WEATHER FACILITY THAT IS FOR HIGH FLOW EVENTS THAT COME TO THE CITY, UH, TO THE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT.

PACKAGE SEVEN IS ACTUALLY GOING BACK IN AND CONVERTING THE EXISTING PLANT TO BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL.

AND PACKAGE EIGHT IS, IT'S KINDA THAT PURPLE LINE THAT'S LEAVING THE PLANT AND THAT IS TO PROVIDE A NEW OUTFALL FOR THE NEW FLOW THAT'S COMING TO THE PLANT.

AS YOU CAN SEE ON THIS, ON THIS SLIDE HERE,

[00:45:02]

MUCH OF THIS, OF THIS EXPANSION IS REALLY TRUE ENHANCEMENT OF THE, OF THE PLANT ITSELF.

THERE'S MUCH MORE THAN JUST EXPANDING THE PLANT.

WE ARE DOING MUCH MORE THAN THAT.

WE ARE EXPANDING OF ALL THE ENHANCEMENTS THAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE PLANT AT THE TIME.

UM, CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE, UH, THIS, THIS SHOWS HOW WE ARE GOING TO IMPLEMENT ALL OF THE EIGHT, UH, GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE PACKAGES.

UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE'S OVERLAPPING OF THE, OF THE, OF ACTIVITIES, RIGHT? THE GRAY BAR SHOWING THE DESIGN, WHICH WILL CONTINUE ALL THE WAY THROUGH 2026, IS OVERLAP WITH THE PRE-CONSTRUCTION BASED SERVICES.

THAT IS WHERE THE SMAR CONTRACTORS SITTING WITH AS TO HELPING OF DEVELOP PLANS, CREATING COST ESTIMATES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE, AS WELL AS THE ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT SHOWN IN BLUE.

UM, THIS ALLOWS FOR ASSURER DURATION AND PROVIDES A BETTER VALUE FOR THE CITY.

THE RED LINE ON THIS GRAPH SHOWS WHAT WE CALL THE, UH, CRITICAL PATH.

AND ANYTHING THAT DELAYS IS A DELAY ON THIS RED LINE ACTUALLY DELAYS THE ACTUAL PROJECT ITSELF.

THERE IS NO FLOAT IN THIS.

AND THE CRITICAL PATH IS THE ACTUAL GETTING THE EARLY LEAD EQUIPMENT, EARLY LEAD ITEMS I MENTIONED TO GET THOSE STARTED IN A MANUFACTURING AND PURCHASING, CONSTRUCTING THE 25 MILLION GALLON PER DAY FACILITY.

SO WE CAN GO BACK INTO THE EXISTING FACILITY, WHICH IS THE PACKAGE NUMBER SEVEN, AND DO THATS FINAL CONVERSION OF, UH, BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL.

SO THIS IS, UH, THIS CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE WILL TAKE OVER SIX YEARS TO GET THIS DONE.

SO NOT ONLY A LONG PLANNING PROCESS, BUT ACTUAL VERY LONG CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE FOR FOR, FOR THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT.

AS WE ARE GOING THROUGH, UM, THE PRE-CONSTRUCTION PHASE AND ADVANCEMENT OF THE CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS, AS MENTIONED, WE HAD THE CONTRACTOR ON BOARD BEFORE WE EVEN 30% PLANS.

AND AS HE'S HELPING US DEVELOP THOSE PLANS, WE ARE SEEING SOME UNCERTAINTY IN, IN THE PROJECT COST.

UM, UH, WHY WE'RE GOING THROUGH THIS.

UH, WE WILL BE GETTING THE OTHER GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE CONTRACTS IN HERE SHORTLY, UH, FOR THE REMAINING OF THIS YEAR.

AND AS THE BEGINNING OF NEXT YEAR, UH, WE HAVE FOUND OUT THAT, UH, WE HAVE BEEN SELECTED FOR, UH, FEDERAL LOANS THAT WILL BE, UH, THAT WE CAN HAVE LOANS UP TO 49% OF THE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.

UM, BUT LIKE MOST OTHER PROJECTS IN THE CITY, WE'RE SEEING SOME INFLATIONARY COST.

UH, WE'RE SEEING THAT THE MAINTENANCE OF OPERATION COST, UH, THE CONSTRUCTABILITY IS A, IS A SIGNIFICANT FACTOR FOR US.

AND WE ARE WORKING WITH THE CONTRACTOR TO, TO SEE WHAT IS AVAILABLE TO US TO BE ABLE TO EXPAND AND CONVERT THE PLANT WITHOUT PROVIDING A A, A LARGE TEMPORARY TREATMENT AND BYPASSES, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE THOSE ARE COSTLY EFFECTIVELY AND THEY'RE NOT PER PART OF THE PERMANENT CONSTRUCTION.

SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THOSE AS WELL AS CONSTRAINTS ON THE SITE.

WE'RE SEEING THE, THE, UH, THE SITE HAVE, UH, VERY TIGHT CONSTRAINTS.

IF YOU WERE GO OUT THERE TODAY, YOU WILL ACTUALLY SEE A TOWER CRANE, SAME KIND OF CRANE, YOU SEE A SKYSCRAPER.

AND WE'RE UTILIZING THAT KIND OF CONSTRUCTION METHODOLOGY FOR THE TIGHT ACCESS AND FOR BE ABLE TO HAVE MULTIPLE CONTRACTORS USE A SINGLE SOURCE CRANE.

UM, WE ARE ALSO, UM, UM, EMBARKED ON, UH, DEVELOPING, UH, THIS PROJECT AS AN ENVISION RATED PROJECT.

UM, I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE HEARD OF, OF LEAD AND WELL CERTIFICATIONS FOR BUILDINGS.

WE ARE GOING FOR CERTIFICATION AND VISION FOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT.

AND IT'S THIS, THIS RATING, UH, UH, IS DESIGNED FOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS AND WE ARE GOING TO GO SEEK THAT IF WE'RE SUCCESS WHEN WE ARE SUCCESSFUL, IT'LL BE THE LARGEST WASTEWATER TREATMENT, UH, PLANT, UH, ENVISION RATED PROJECT IN THE UNITED STATES.

THIS BRINGS ME TO THE END OF THE AUSTIN WATERS LONG RANGE, UH, PRESENTATION.

AND PLEASE LET US KNOW IF MARTIN OR UH, MELVIN OR I CAN ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.

VERY THOROUGH PRESENTATION.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCIL UCHIN.

THANK YOU CHAIR.

I WANTED TO START WITH, UH, I THINK IT'S SLIDE 28.

IT IS THE DAVIS SERVICE TRANSMISSION MAIN, AND I NOTICED ONE OF THE BULLET POINTS THERE IS MITIGATING THE IMPACTS TO NEIGHBORS.

YOU MENTIONED, I THINK GOING DOWN 60 FEET DEEP TO TRY AND ADDRESS THAT ISSUE.

WE'VE HAD A VARIETY OF WHAT I WILL CALL SPIRITED, UH, COMMUNICATION FROM NEIGHBORS ABOUT PRIOR AND I THINK MAYBE CURRENT MAINTENANCE CHALLENGES THERE.

CAN YOU EXPAND ON WHAT, HOW THE 60 FEET THAT YOU MENTIONED, IF I HEARD YOU RIGHT, OR OR WHAT OTHER MEASURES YOU MAY BE TAKING TO ADDRESS THOSE SORT OF, UM, MITIGATION IMPACTS? COUNCIL MEMBER, YOU, DO YOU SPECIFICALLY MEAN THE NEIGHBORS

[00:50:01]

OF THE PLANT ITSELF? YEAH, YEAH.

SO THE, SO I THINK, UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE, AND I'LL LET, I'LL LET CHARLES WEIGH IN IF I, UM, UH, TO ADD ANY COLOR THAT HE NEEDS TO.

BUT THE CHALLENGE RELATED TO THE NEIGHBORS DIRECTLY ADJACENT TO THE DAVIS WATER TREATMENT PLANT WILL BE THE VERY DEEP SHAFT THAT'S NEEDED TO CONNECT THIS TUNNEL TO THE TREATMENT PLANT.

UH, AND SO WE ARE LOOKING AT OPTIONS ON THE SITE AND OFFSITE TO BE ABLE TO, UM, TO MAKE THAT CONNECTION IN A WAY THAT, UH, MINIMIZES THE IMPACTS TO THE NEIGHBORS.

IS THAT FAIR? THAT IS CORRECT.

UM, NOT ALL SHAFTS ARE EQUAL.

UM, WITH THE SHAFTS YOU MAY SEE ON IH 35, EXCUSE ME, SORRY, ON AGE 35, THEY'RE VERY LARGE.

THEY HAVE THE, THE CRANE AND ALL, ALL THAT.

'CAUSE THEY NEED TO LOWER THE TONNING BORING MACHINE IN THERE AND THEY NEED TO TAKE THE DIRT OUT.

RIGHT.

THERE'S ALSO, UH, JUST A RETRIEVAL SHAFTS, WHICH ARE MUCH SMALLER THAN THAT.

AND SO WE'RE, AS, AS, UH, DIRECTOR SHA MENTIONED, THE LARGER SHAFT WE'RE TRYING TO DO, WE'RE PLANNING TO BE OFFSITE FROM THE, FROM THE, FROM THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT.

SO THEREFORE WE, ALL WE WOULD NEED IS JUST TO HAVE, AS THE PIPE ENTERS THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT WOULD JUST BE ABLE TO RETRIEVE THE EQUIPMENT.

WHAT SORT OF, JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY, WHAT SORT OF, UH, TIMELINE DOES THAT SORT OF PROJECT HAVE FOR IMPLEMENTING JUST TO SORT OF COORDINATE WITH VERY LONG ? UM, I THINK WE'RE STARTING, WE'RE JUST FINISHED WITH PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING AND WE'LL PROBABLY IN ABOUT TWO MORE YEARS OF FINAL DESIGN, UM, THERE, THERE WILL BE MOST LIKELY EASEMENTS THAT WILL HAVE TO BE OBTAINED OR EVEN, UH, TEMPORARY CONSTRUCTION EASEMENTS.

SO THOSE TAKE, UH, SOME TIME TO DO AS WELL, AS WELL AS THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS WILL TAKE, UH, QUITE SOME TIME.

I I IMAGINE MORE THAN FOUR YEARS.

SO TWO YEARS JUST TO BREAK GROUND AND THEN ANOTHER FOUR YEARS AFTER THAT.

AND I WOULD EVEN VENTURE A LITTLE BIT LONGER THAN AT LEAST, AT LEAST.

SO THEY'RE, WE'VE GOT A BIT OF TIME TO TRY AND WORK WITH THEM TO NOTIFY THAT WE DO, AND CERTAINLY ON A PROJECT OF THIS SIZE, WE'LL HAVE A REALLY ROBUST PUBLIC INFORMATION PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S AWARE OF WHAT WE'RE DOING AND WHEN WE'RE DOING IT.

AND COMM UH, WE ALSO HAVE STANDING YEARLY MEETINGS WITH THEM.

PROBABLY BE A UNFAIR COMPARISON, BUT WHEN I THINK OF THE WORK THAT WE DO IN HOUSING AND EXTENDING THE LIFE OF OLDER PROPERTIES, UH, THERE'S A POINT THAT THE COST OF MAINTENANCE ECLIPSES THE COST OF WHATEVER THAT REVENUE IS COLLECTED.

UM, JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY, SO MY MATH, THIS FACILITY IS 71 YEARS OLD, ROUGHLY, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

UH, HOW OFTEN DO THESE TREATMENT PLANTS LAST? AND I'M ASKING ALSO IN THE CONTEXT OF, UH, THE PROJECT YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT THE THE WALNUT CREEK EXPANSION TOO.

LIKE HOW LONG DO WE TYPICALLY EXPECT TO SEE A TREATMENT FACILITY LAST BEFORE WE EITHER DO MAJOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS OR RENOVATIONS? 'CAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT FROM WHAT YOU JUST EXPLAINED, PART OF WHAT WALNUT CREEK HAS IS, UM, IS EXISTING, UH, IS THE EXPANSION, BUT ALSO RENOVATING, EQUIP EXISTING FACILITIES THERE.

RIGHT.

SO THE, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR, UH, OUR FELLOW WATER UTILITIES THAT ARE IN EVEN OLDER CITIES THAN WE ARE IN, UH, WE SEE THAT, UM, THE, THEY MAKE LONG RANGE INVESTMENTS IN THEIR EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE AND THEN AT SOME POINT THAT IT REQUIRES A MORE MAJOR INTERVENTION OF EITHER REBUILDING BASINS OR EVEN, YOU KNOW, UM, DECOMMISSIONING AND, AND, AND BUILDING NEW, UM, TYPICALLY, CERTAINLY FOR US, THE LOCATION OF OUR WATER AND WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS, UM, THEY, THEY ARE ESSENTIALLY WHERE THEY NEED TO BE OUR WATER PLANTS IN ORDER TO ACCESS WATER FROM LAKE AUSTIN AND THEN THE MAJOR TRANSMISSION MAINS COMING OUT OF THAT SITE.

SO WHAT I WOULD ENVISION EVEN IN THE LONG TERM FOR AUSTIN, IS THAT WE WOULD REBUILD ON THAT EXISTING SITE RATHER THAN RELOCATE.

UH, SO CONCRETE MAY, UH, LAST, UM, YOU KNOW, 50 TO A HUNDRED YEARS, BUT WE ARE ALWAYS IN THERE DOING, UH, REHABILITATION AND NEW CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN ORDER TO EXTEND THE LIFE OF THE, OF THAT LOCATION.

UM, DO YOU WANNA ADD ANYTHING TO THAT MARTIN TOWER AGAIN? INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT.

I WOULD JUST ADD IT'S A BIT LIKE THE SHIP THAT LEAVES PORT ON A LONG JOURNEY AND THE BOARDS GET REPLACED ALL ALONG THE WAY.

IS IT THE SAME SHIP WHEN YOU'VE GOTTEN TO YOUR DESTINATION? WE'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, MECHANICAL ASSETS THAT ARE ROTATING THAT LAST 25, 35 YEARS.

WE'VE GOT INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL ASSETS THAT LAST 10 YEARS.

WE'VE GOT STRUCTURAL ASSETS THAT LAST A HUNDRED, 110 YEARS AND IT'S, UH, OUR DIRECTOR POINTED OUT WE'RE KIND OF DOING THAT WORK ALL ALONG THE WAY.

IT'S WHEN WE HAVE MAJOR EXPANSIONS OR SOME SIGNIFICANT ENHANCEMENT, BOTH OF WHICH ARE HAPPENING IN THIS INSTANCE AT WALNUT, UM, THAT WE SEE A BIG SLUG OF INVESTMENT.

AND WHEN YOU DO THAT, DOES THAT COINCIDE JUST LIKE YOU'RE DOING WITH WALNUT CREEK, WITH, UM, USING THAT OPPORTUNITY TO TRY AND ALSO, UH, RENOVATE, I MEAN, IT'S GONNA

[00:55:01]

SO IS THERE A, IS THERE A SIMILAR ANALOGY TO HOW YOU ALL APPROACH THE RENOVATION OR TO YOUR POINT, UM, DIRECTOR, IS THERE A WAY THAT WE UNDERSTAND WHEN WE'RE GONNA JUST BE DECOMMISSIONING AND REBUILDING ON THAT SITE? UM, OKAY.

FOR BOTH THE WALNUT CREEK WASTE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT AS, AS WE TALKED ABOUT TODAY, AS WELL AS THE SOUTH AUSTIN REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT, OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS, WE HAVE BEEN IN SIGNIFICANT, UM, GAINS OR, OR I GUESS WE HAVE HAD SIGNIFICANT PROJECTS TO REHABILITATE THOSE PLANTS.

SO WE HAVE GONE IN BASICALLY STARTING AT THE, AT THE DOWNSTREAM IN, WE REHABILITATED THE FILTERS, THE SECONDARY CLARIFIERS, THE ATION BASINS, AND, UH, THE PRIMARY TREATMENT CLARIFIERS THAT WERE, UH, THE PRIMARY CLARIFIERS AND NOW THE HEADWORKS FOR HEADWORKS NUMBER ONE.

UM, IF, IF THE PROJECTS HADN'T OVERLAPPED, WE PROBABLY WOULD'VE HAD THAT AS A SEPARATE PROJECT, BUT WE'RE UTILIZING THIS CONSTRUCTION RIDGE TO DO THAT.

SARS GOING THROUGH THE SAME THING RIGHT NOW, RIGHT? WE'RE ACTIVELY ON THE FIRST TWO TRAINS OF THE OLDER TRAINS ACTIVELY GOING AND REPAIRING THE, THE MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT AND THE ELECTRIC EQUIPMENT RIGHT NOW.

SO, AS MARTIN SAID, IS THE, IS THE SHIP THE SAME AS, AS WHEN WE, WHEN WE ROT LAND IS WE WERE CONSTANTLY, UH, REHABILITATING AND, AND MAINTAINING THE STRUCTURES AND THE FACILITIES.

AND I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO ADD THAT, UH, PART OF MAKING SURE THAT THESE STRUCTURES, UH, ARE GONNA LAST LONGER HAS A LOT TO DO WITH WHAT WE, WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WITH OUR BUILDING PLAN.

BECAUSE PART OF THAT IS MAINTAINING, UH, THOSE BUILDINGS, WHETHER IT'S CHANGING A ROOF, WHETHER IT'S REPLACING WINDOWS, WHETHER IT'S REPLACING DOORS, UH, WHETHER IT'S REPLACING FLOORS, UM, HVAC SYSTEMS, ONE OF THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS ABOUT OUR, UH, ASSET MANAGEMENT THAT MARTIN OVERLOOKS IS THAT, UM, THEY'RE RATED EVERY YEAR.

AND SO AS THEY'RE RATED EVERY YEAR, IF WE'RE SPENDING TOO MUCH IN MAINTENANCE FOR MAYBE AN HVAC SYSTEM INSTEAD OF US TRYING TO CONTINUE TO FIX THAT SYSTEM, AND THEN OUR, OUR PLAN OR, AND ALSO OUR ASSET MANAGEMENT HELPS US TO SEE, HEY, YOU MIGHT WANT TO WANT, WANT TO CHANGE THAT.

SO I, I THINK THE SHIP IS THE SAME, UM, THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT.

IT, IT ENDS UP BEING THE SAME NO MATTER WHAT WE'RE, WHAT WE'RE DOING.

BUT, UH, ALL OF OUR PLANS OF WORKING TOGETHER IS THAT WE'RE WORKING TO TRY TO MAINTAIN SOMETHING AND KEEP IT, KEEP IT GOING AND KEEP IT FUNCTIONING.

I APPRECIATE THAT.

LAST QUESTION VERY QUICKLY.

ON THE PIPE REPLACEMENT, YOU MENTIONED THAT, UM, YOU'RE LOOKING AT POOR PERFORMING MAINS, YOU'VE GOT A HISTORICAL BREAK DATA YOU'RE LOOKING AT.

WHAT IS THAT? IS THAT JUST, UH, REPORTS OF HOW OFTEN THOSE PARTICULAR MAINS ARE BEING REPORTED TO BE BROKEN? IS THERE ANY OTHER WAY THAT WE LOOK AT OR ANALYZE THE AGE OR ANY OTHER FACTORS? OR IS IT ALL COMPLETELY JUST DEPENDENT ON, UM, ON REPORTS? YEAH, SORRY, GO AHEAD.

OKAY, SO THIS IS MY FAVORITE PART WHERE I, WHERE YOU GUYS FIGHT OVER WHO ANSWERS QUESTIONS? YEAH, YOU THREW ME.

UH, SO WE ALL WANNA ANSWER ALL TALK ABOUT, UM, SO BRETT, OUR ASSET MANAGEMENT PROGRAM IN AUSTIN WATER, WE'VE, WE'VE INVESTED A LOT OF TIME AND EFFORT INTO TRYING TO DEVELOP CONFIDENCE IN OUR ENTERPRISE DATA.

EACH OF OUR ASSET CLASSES YOU CAN IMAGINE HAS DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS THAT LENDS ITSELF TO DIFFERENT EXPECTED, USEFUL LIVES AND HAVE DIFFERENT INDICATORS OF, UH, CONDITION OR, OR FAILURE MODES.

SO SPECIFIC TO WATER PIPES, YOU KNOW, OUR SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS, WE GATHER IN A COMMITTEE SPECIFIC TO THAT ASSET CLASS AND SAY, WHAT DATA DO WE HAVE? AND IT'S HISTORICAL BREAK DATA DOMINATES, BUT WE ALSO CAN LOOK AT SOME OF THE CAPACITY CONSTRAINTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

ON THE WASTEWATER PIPE SIDE.

IT'S A DIFFERENT BEAST BECAUSE WE CAN GO INSIDE OF IT, WE CAN PUT CAMERAS IN THERE, WE CAN LOOK AND, AND INSTEAD OF, UH, GETTING THE MOST INFORMATION AFTER WE HAVE REPAIRED A PIPE, WE CAN SEE AHEAD OF TIME WHAT THE CONDITION IS EVERY SINGLE YEAR AND TWEAK OUR APPROACH ACCORDINGLY.

WE HAVE DIFFERENT, UH, STANDARDS FOR DIFFERENT ASSET CLASSES BEYOND PIPES AS WELL.

BUT, BUT THAT'S KIND OF HOW WE DO IT.

EACH CLASS HAS BETWEEN ONE AND FIVE CRITERIA THAT WE LOOK TO.

THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME UNDERSTAND THAT.

THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT.

I, I MAY TRY AND EMAIL A COUPLE OF FOLLOW UPS.

WATER PIPES AND, AND WASTEWATER PIPES AND, AND OTHER, UM, OTHER ASSETS AS WELL.

AND, AND ON, I THINK ALSO TO, WE DON'T JUST RELY ON PEOPLE TO REPORT, BUT WE, THROUGH THE NOW ADVANCED THE WATER METERS, WE CAN KNOW WHEN WE HAVE LEAKS.

UM, AND LIKE IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD, ALL THE POLYBUTYLENE PIPES WERE REPLACED BECAUSE THEY KNEW THOSE ARE THE ONES THAT BREAK.

SO THEY CAME AND REPLACED 'EM.

UM, AND I THINK, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, THE REPORT TALKED ABOUT SOME KIND OF LIKE SCANNING DEVICE THAT Y'ALL USE EXTERNALLY AND YOU, WHICH IS AMAZING TO ME THAT YOU CAN DO THAT.

BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF DIFFERENT TOOLS FOR ASSESSING THE CONDITION OF BOTH

[01:00:01]

BUT YEAH.

GREAT.

UM, ALRIGHT.

VICE ALICE, I'VE GOT THREE HOPEFULLY QUICK QUESTIONS I WANTED TO, TO ASK.

WE'LL TRY TO BE QUICK IN OUR RESPONSES.

WELL, AND, UH, TWO OF THEM AREN'T ON THE LIST, SO I, I LOVE WHEN THIS HAPPENS.

UM, THE BARTON CREEK INTERCEPTOR, I KNOW THAT THE LAST FORMAL RESPONSE WE GOT FROM AUSTIN WATER WAS THAT, THAT WAS ABOUT 10 YEARS ON THE OUTLOOK.

CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT ANY UPDATES THAT ARE HAPPENING SINCE WE HAD STARTED THAT PROCESS IN ABOUT A YEAR, YEAR AND A HALF AGO? YES.

UM, THE FIRST ASPECT OF THAT IS I'M GOING TO THROW OUT A DIFFERENT NAME, THE THOUSAND OAKS INTERCEPTOR.

NO LONGER NEEDED AT THE SITES THAT WE CURRENTLY, UM, UH, MAINTAIN.

SO THAT IS, UH, THAT WOULD BE WEST OF MOPAC.

THIS IS AN AGRA, UH, INTERCEPTOR THAT WOULD RELIEVE, UM, TWO LIFT STATIONS, TAKE THE BAND AS WELL AS RELIEVE CAPACITY CONSTRAINTS.

BUT THAT'S THE FIRST PART OF THE FUTURE.

BARTON CREEK INTERCEPTOR WHERE WE WOULD COME DOWN AND THEN TIE INTO A CONCEPTUAL MOPAC INTERCEPTOR AND STAY ON THE WEST SIDE OF MOPAC AND THEN COME DOWN TO THE DOWNTOWN TUNNEL.

SO THE FIRST ASPECT OF THAT IS THIS THOUSAND OAKS.

UH, THE, UH, THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING PHASE WILL INCLUDE THE ROUTING ANALYSIS OF THAT PIPE AS WELL AS LOOK AT THE ROUTING ANALYSIS OF THE FUTURE CONCEPTUAL MOPAC ENERGY.

SO THAT IS, UM, CURRENTLY ADVERTISED FOR, UH, ENGINEERING, UH, QUALIFICATIONS.

OKAY, THAT'S GREAT TO HEAR.

I KNOW, AUSTIN WATER IS ALREADY HELPING ME WITH A CONSTITUENT ON THOUSAND OAKS THAT HAS A DIFFERENT ISSUE.

SO IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A LOT GOING ON IN THAT AREA RIGHT NOW.

UM, MY NEXT QUESTION WILL BE ABOUT THE ULRICH WATER TREATMENT PLANT.

A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, THAT WAS THE ONE EVERYBODY WAS TALKING ABOUT, AND NOW IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S IN GREAT SHAPE.

I HAVEN'T HEARD OF ANY MAJOR REPAIRS THAT ARE, UM, NEEDING TO BE KICKED OFF AGAIN.

I KNOW THERE WERE SOME LONGER TERM REPAIRS THAT MAYBE WERE TAKING ABOUT TWO OR THREE YEARS TO COMPLETE.

ARE THOSE ALL FINISHED AT THIS STAGE? SO THE, THERE, UH, IS ALWAYS A LOT OF, UM, CAPITAL WORK HAPPENING AT ALL OF OUR TREATMENT PLANTS, INCLUDING ULRICH.

UM, AND SO THERE ARE A NUMBER OF PROJECTS THAT ARE IN VARIOUS STAGES OF, OF DESIGN, UM, AND CONSTRUCTION.

UM, THE, A BIG PART OF WHAT WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON AT ULRICH WITH AUSTIN ENERGY IS POWER RESILIENCY.

UH, AND SO AUSTIN ENERGY HAS COMPLETED A NUMBER OF IMPROVEMENTS TO THE BE CREEK SUBSTATION THAT SERVES ULRICH.

AND WE HAVE BENEFICIAL USE OF, UM, NEW LOWS, UM, ELECTRICAL FEED SYSTEM ON THE AUSTIN WATER SIDE OF THAT SUBSTATION THAT FEEDS OUR LOW SERVICE PUMP STATION.

SO YES, PROJECTS ARE PROCEEDING, RESILIENCY IS MUCH IMPROVED.

AND, UM, AND ULRICH IS, UM, IS CARRYING ON.

GLAD TO HEAR IT.

WE'RE BIG FANS OF THE ULRICH TREATMENT GRANT IN SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST AUSTIN.

IF IT'S NOT HAPPY, NOBODY'S HAPPY THAT THAT'S TRUE.

YES.

AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION WILL BE ABOUT A SOUTHWEST PUMP STATION.

I KNOW THERE'S BEEN DISCUSSIONS AROUND WATER PRESSURE, UM, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE SOME OF THE AREAS OUT ALONG 360, UM, TEND TO GET VERY HILLY.

AND SO I KNOW THERE'S BEEN SOME ISSUES WITH WATER PRESSURE, ESPECIALLY FOR LIKE FIRE COVERAGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT.

ARE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS MOVING ALONG? YOU CAN ALL FIGHT ABOUT WHO NEEDS TO? YEAH, WE ACTUALLY HAVE, UH, THREE PROJECTS.

UH, TWO ARE ELEVATED STORAGE TANKS.

ONE IS A TRANSMISSION MAIN.

UH, WE HAVE THE SOUTHWEST ELEVATED STORAGE TANK, AND THEN IT HAS A, A ACCOMPANYING PROJECT, A SOUTHWEST, UH, TRANSMISSION MAIN THAT COULD DO SOME LOOPING THROUGH THERE TO IMPROVE PRESSURE THROUGH THERE.

WE HAVE THE IH 35 SOUTH, UM, UM, ELEVATED S SOURCE TANK, WHICH AGAIN, WILL PROVIDE SOME MORE, UH, RESILIENCY OF HAVING WATER IN THE AIR, PROVIDE MORE BETTER PRESSURE AS WELL AS WE HAVE A STUDY IN THE WHOLE SOUTHWEST AREA TO EVALUATE ANY ADDITIONAL PROJECTS THAT WE NEED TO DO FOR, UM, INCREASING OR HAVING A BETTER RESILIENCY OF PRESSURE THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE SOUTHWEST, UH, REGION OF OUR SERVICE AREA.

THAT'S GREAT.

THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS I HAD.

UM, I'M GLAD WE ANSWERED THE QUESTION ABOUT THE SHIP.

WE DECIDED IT'S THE SAME SHIP .

UM, I APPRECIATE THE, UH, PHILOSOPHY TO START THE DAY.

UM, JUST A COUPLE BRIEF QUESTIONS.

UM, WHEN WE LOOKED AT THE PURCHASE OF THE SOUTH SERVICE CENTER HUB SITE, WE, UM, AUSTIN WATER DISCUSSED THAT OTHER PROPERTIES MIGHT BECOME AVAILABLE, UH, NO LONGER, UH, NEEDED.

UM, AND SO THAT SOME OF THESE AUSTIN WATER FACILITIES THAT ARE LOCATED IN MORE DENSE OR RESIDENTIAL AREAS SO IT COULD BECOME AVAILABLE FOR OTHER CITY NEEDS.

AND I'M WONDERING IF, UH, IF UNDERSTANDING THAT AVAILABILITY HAS ALREADY HAPPENED, IF WE HAVE A PLAN FOR, FOR THOSE PROPERTIES.

SO WE ARE KICKING OFF OUR, UH, THE PLANNING PHASE FOR THE SOUTH HUB SITE, AND THAT WILL REALLY HELP US DEFINE ALL THE FUNCTIONALITY THAT WILL GO TO THAT SITE, WHICH WILL THEN ALLOW US TO SEE WHAT EXISTING FUNCTIONALITY IS

[01:05:01]

SO, SO THE SHORT ANSWER IS WE'RE WE'RE NOT READY TO TO, UM, UH, WE HAVE MORE WORK TO DO BEFORE WE'LL BE READY TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION, BUT IT IS, UH, IT IS UNDERWAY.

OKAY, THANKS DIRECTOR.

SO I'M UNDERSTANDING THAT THAT MIGHT BE A, A MULTI-YEAR PROCESS.

FIGURE IT OUT.

IT'LL, IT WILL BE A MULTI-YEAR PROCESS.

THIS IS A LARGE SITE WITH A LOT OF, UM, FACILITIES ON IT.

THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS WE COULD PUT THIS, UM, THE, THE FUTURE USE OF THIS SITE TOGETHER.

AND SO WE WANNA BE REALLY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT THAT.

BUT WE'RE, WE ARE, UM, MELVIN AND TEAM ARE, ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT MAKING, UM, STRIDES QUICKLY ON THAT.

SO, UH, WE'LL KEEP YOU INFORMED.

WONDERFUL, THANK YOU.

AND THEN, UM, MY OTHER QUESTION HAVE A DIFFERENT TOPIC, UH, RELATES TO THE LARGE SCALE UNDERGROUND PROJECTS LIKE, UH, WILLIAMSON CREEK WASTEWATER INTERCEPTOR AND THE TUNNELING.

AND I JUST, WE NOTICED THAT LIKE YOU'RE DOING THINGS LIKE RESEEDING NATIVE GRASSES, BUILDING DRAINAGE PONDS, UH, MAKING IMPROVEMENTS, REMOVING INVASIVE TREES.

AND I GUESS OUR QUESTION WAS IN THESE LARGE TUNNELING PROJECTS, DO WE ALSO PLANT NEW TREES? IS THAT PART OF THE PROGRAM OR DO WE WORK WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS TO PLANT TREES IN THESE AREAS? UM, I DON'T KNOW THE EXACT NATURE OF OF OF WHAT IMPACT WE HAVE ON TREES.

IF WE ARE IMPACTING AN EXISTING TREE, THERE IS, YOU KNOW, CITY PERMITTING PROCESSES TO EITHER REMOVE THAT TREE AND IMPLANT NEW TREES.

UM, I, I WOULD HAVE TO GET BACK WITH YOU IF WE ARE PLANTING ADDITIONAL TREES.

OKAY, GREAT.

YEAH, WE'RE ALWAYS INTERESTED IN EXPANDING THE TREE CANOPY, SO WE'D LOVE TO HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT.

WILL MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER THREE, A BRIEFING ON ZILKER ENVIRONMENTAL PRIORITIES INCLUDING EMBANKMENT EROSION, INVASIVES MANAGEMENT, AND TREE PLANTINGS, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, AND INTERNAL SHUTTLE AND PARKING OPERATIONS.

ALRIGHT, WELL THANK Y'ALL VERY MUCH.

APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION AND UH, WE

[3. Briefing on Zilker Environmental Priorities including embankment erosion, invasives management and tree plantings, capital improvement projects, and internal shuttle and parking operations. [Janna Renfro, P.E., Managing Engineer- Austin Watershed Protection; Lindsey Machamer, P.E., SITES AP, Project Management Supervisor - Austin Parks and Recreation].]

AND WE HAVE JANA RERO LINDSEY, ER.

ALRIGHT, I'LL LET YOU FIGURE OUT WHO GOES FIRST.

GREAT.

YES.

UH, GOOD MORNING.

UH, GLAD TO BE HERE WITH YOU TODAY.

UM, MY NAME'S LINDSAY MOCKER.

I'M, UH, THE DIVISION MANAGER FOR PARK DEVELOPMENT WITH PARKS AND RECREATION, AND I'M HERE WITH JANA.

GOOD MORNING.

MY NAME'S JANA RENFRO.

I AM A MANAGING ENGINEER WITH THE CREEK FLOOD AND EROSION DIVISION IN THE PROJECT DESIGN AND DELIVERY BRANCH WITHIN WATERSHED PROTECTION.

UH, THE CREEK FLOOD AND EROSION DIVISION.

IT'S COMPRISED OF THREE ENGINEERING TEAMS, FANTASTIC AND DEDICATED ENGINEERING TEAMS THAT OVERSEE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AND IN-HOUSE PROJECTS FROM PLANNING DESIGN ALL THE WAY INTO CONSTRUCTION FOR DRAINAGE PROJECTS.

ALL RIGHT.

AND WE'RE HERE TODAY TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT ZILKER METROPOLITAN PARK AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL PRIORITIES, UM, INCLUDING WALKING THROUGH, UM, EFFORTS FOR EROSION REDUCTION, INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT, TREE PLANTING, COVERING, UH, A SMATTERING OF OTHER CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS WE HAVE GOING ON, AS WELL AS CONCLUDING WITH PARKING AND SHUTTLE OPERATIONS.

AND WE'LL START OFF BY TALKING MORE SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE BARTON CREEK AND BARTON SPRINGS POOL AREA BEFORE BROADENING AND TALKING ABOUT SOME EFFORTS IN THE PARK AT LARGE.

UM, SO THAT BEING SAID, I'LL DIVE INTO TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THE, UM, GUIDING INFORMATION WE HAVE, UH, THAT INFLUENCES OUR WORK AT THE PARK.

UM, IN THE ABSENCE OF HAVING A VISION PLAN FOR THE PARK AS A WHOLE, WE LOOK TO SOME OTHER GUIDING DOCUMENTS, UM, FOR REFERENCE THAT HAVE, UH, BEEN EITHER ADOPTED OR PUBLISHED, UM, RELATED TO THE PARK.

UM, ONE OF THE MAIN ONES BEING THE BARTON SPRINGS POOL VISION PLAN, WHICH WAS ADOPTED BY COUNCIL IN 2009.

UM, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT NEXT, UM, OTHER AVAILABLE DOCUMENTS FOR REFERENCE INCLUDE THE, UM, SILK PARK WORKING GROUP REPORT, WHICH WAS PUBLISHED IN 2019, AND DISCUSSES ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS AND PARKING CONSIDERATIONS, UM, AND ALSO THE ZILKER PARK NATURAL RESOURCES INVENTORY AND MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES, WHICH WERE PUBLISHED IN, UH, 2021.

UM, TALKING A LITTLE BIT MORE SPECIFICALLY ABOUT THE BARTON SPRINGS POOL VISION PLAN, UM, THERE ARE A VARIETY OF IMPROVEMENTS AND MAINTENANCE ACTIVITIES THAT ARE, UH, RECOMMENDED IN THAT PLAN.

UM, AS OF DECEMBER, 2017, ALL OF THE ITEMS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS SHORT TERM IMPROVE IMPROVEMENTS WERE COMPLETED WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ONE ITEM, WHICH IS, UH, WAS ON HOLD PENDING FUNDING AVAILABILITY.

AND THAT WAS THE SUNKEN GARDENS REHABILITATION IMPROVEMENTS.

AND WE HAVE BEEN MAKING STEPS TOWARDS, UM, ADVANCING

[01:10:01]

THAT PROJECT AS WELL.

UH, IN TERMS OF THE LONGER TERM IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE OUTLINED IN THAT PLAN, UM, THERE ARE SOME ACTIVITIES THAT ARE ONGOING THAT ARE MAKING PROGRESS TOWARDS THOSE LONG-TERM GOALS AS WELL.

ONE OF THOSE, UM, OR TWO THAT YOU SEE BULLETED ON THIS SLIDE ARE, UM, THE JOAN MEANS CABBEL BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION, WHICH HAS BEEN IN CONSTRUCTION AND IS NEARING COMPLETION OF THE CONSTRUCTION SOON.

UM, AND ALSO THE SECOND GARDENS IMPROVEMENTS, WHICH WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT.

UM, AND I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO JANA TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE, UM, BARTON CREEK IMPROVEMENTS THAT SHE'S BEEN INVOLVED WITH.

SO JUST TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE'S ORIENTED TO WHERE WE ARE IN SPACE, UM, THIS IS JUST AN OVERVIEW OF THIS STRETCH OF BARTON CREEK, WHICH, UM, UH, NORTH IS UP ON THE SCREEN.

SO BARTON SPRINGS POOLS DOWN AT THE BOTTOM LEFT, UM, FLOWING DOWN TO LADY BIRD LAKE ALL THE WAY AT THE TOP RIGHT, UM, BARTON SPRINGS ROAD, OBVIOUSLY CROSSING IN THE MIDDLE.

UM, THE BUTLER TRAIL EXTENDS ON BOTH SIDES OF BARTON CREEK AND, UM, IS PRETTY MUCH RIGHT AT THE TOP OF BANK.

UM, THROUGHOUT THIS REACH, JUST SOME, UM, LANDMARKS, UH, DOWN AT THE UPSTREAM END ON THE LEFT BARKING SPRINGS JUST DOWNSTREAM OF BARTON SPRINGS POOL DAM.

AND THEN VERY NEAR TO THERE, UM, THE ON THE SOUTH BANK, SUNKEN GARDENS ON THE NORTH BANK BOAT RENTALS AND OTHER RECREATIONAL ACCESS.

AND THEN MOVING DOWNSTREAM TOWARDS LADY BIRD LAKE, WE HAVE OUR TOME EROSION STABILIZATION PROJECT.

AND THEN ACROSS THE CREEK, UH, RIGHT AT THE CONFLUENCE LUNA POINT, JUST TO TALK IN GENERAL ABOUT THE CONDITIONS OF THIS STRETCH OF, OF BARTON CREEK.

UH, THE NORTH BANK AND THE SOUTH BANK DO HAVE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT CHARACTERISTICS, UH, THAT ARE WORTH POINTING OUT.

THE NORTH BANK IN GENERAL HAS LOWER BANKS, UH, WHICH LENDS TO MORE RECREATIONAL ACCESS AND USE TO THE CREEK.

AND THAT RESULTS IN COMPACTED SOILS, BARE SOILS, EXPOSED TREE ROOTS, SO NOT LIFE-THREATENING EROSION, BUT KIND OF MINOR EROSION.

IT'S MORE OF AN ECOLOGICAL IMPACT THAN LIKE A LIFE SAFETY, HEALTH SAFETY IMPACT.

AND THEN ON THE SOUTH BANK, UM, THIS IS WHERE WE HAVE MUCH TALLER BANKS.

AND AGAIN, THE, THE TRAIL IS RIGHT AT THE TOP OF THE BANK, THE CREEK BANK.

UM, MOST OF THE BANKS ARE GENERALLY STABLE AND WELL VEGETATED, BUT THERE ARE RISKS OF SLOPE FAILURES BECAUSE OF THE JUST STEEPNESS AND HEIGHT OF THE BANKS AND WITH THE TRAIL RIGHT AT THE TOP.

AND SO THAT'S WHY, UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THIS, UH, BANK STABILIZATION PROJECT ALONG, UM, CLOSE TO TWO ME.

UM, SO THERE IS A HIGHER RISK ON THE SOUTH BANK, UM, TWO PROJECTS THAT I'LL TALK ABOUT, UM, THAT WE'RE LANDMARKS ON THAT MAP.

UM, THAT WATERSHED IS CURRENTLY SPONSORING, UM, BARTON CREEK AT SUNKEN GARDENS.

THIS IS A PROJECT THAT IS DESIGNED TO STABILIZE.

THIS IS SWITCHED SOMEHOW I THINK THE TEXT GOT SWITCHED OR ERASED.

OKAY, I'M GONNA SPEAK THROUGH THE PROJECT OBJECTIVES, BUT DON'T, UM, , DON'T READ THAT TEXT.

APOLOGIES.

SO, UM, SUNKEN GARDENS, THE, THIS IS ONE OF THE, THE THREE MAIN SPRINGS AROUND BARTON SPRINGS.

SO THIS IS, UH, A PROJECT THAT WILL STABILIZE THE OUTFALL.

THE, THE, THERE'S AN OUTFALL CHANNEL FROM THE SPRING INTO BARTON CREEK ITSELF.

IT DOES GO DOWN A TALL, STEEP BANK, AND WE'RE EXPERIENCING SOME EROSION.

AND, AND EVENTUALLY THAT EROSION WOULD MAKE ITS WAY TO THIS HISTORIC STRUCTURE.

SO THE PROJECT WILL STABILIZE THAT, UM, OUTFALL CHANNEL.

IT WILL ALSO PROTECT THE HISTORIC STRUCTURES, AND IT'LL ALSO INCREASE AND IMPROVE SALAMANDER HABITAT.

UM, ACTUALLY ELIZA SPRINGS IS NOW ONE OF THE PLACES WHERE OUR SCIENTISTS FIND THE BEST SALAMANDER HABITAT.

SO WE'RE HOPING TO KIND OF RECREATE THAT SITUATION HERE.

UM, CURRENTLY WE'RE, WE JUST FINISHED PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING, UM, THAT JUST IN THE FALL.

SO WE'RE REVIEWING THOSE FINDINGS.

THE PROJECT IS UNFUNDED FROM HERE, SO WE NEED ABOUT A, A MILLION AND A HALF FOR ENGINEERING DESIGN AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT.

AND REMEMBERING OFF OF WHAT THAT SLIDE MAYBE USED TO SAY, I THINK IT'S SEVEN AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS FOR CONSTRUCTION.

SO ABOUT $9 MILLION, WHICH IS UNFUNDED.

THIS IS INCLUDED IN OUR LIST OF, UM, BOND PROJECTS.

UH, THE NEXT PROJECT IS, THIS IS CORRECT TEXT, UM, BARTON CREEK AT TO ME, BANK STABILIZATION.

SO THIS PICTURE SHOWS THE BANK FAILURE THAT HAPPENED THAT THREATENED THE TRAIL, THE TRAIL HAD TO, HAD TO BE CLOSED.

UM, AND SO AGAIN, WHEN I TALK ABOUT EROSION, THAT'S A LIFE SAFETY ISSUE.

THIS IS ONE OF THOSE, UM, TYPES OF PROJECTS.

SO THE PROJECT OBJECTIVE IS A PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD, STABILIZE THE SLOPE FAILURE, PROTECT THE TRAIL INFRASTRUCTURE.

UM, CURRENTLY WE ARE UNDER CONSTRUCTION AND PLAN TO FINISH BY THE END OF THIS CALENDAR YEAR.

[01:15:01]

UH, THE FUNDING OBVIOUSLY WE'RE FULLY FUNDED.

UM, ABOUT A MILLION DOLLARS WENT TOWARDS ENGINEERING SERVICES AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND THEN $6 MILLION TOWARDS CONSTRUCTION.

I HAND IT BACK TO LINDSAY TO TALK ABOUT THE REST.

YEAH, SO I'LL TOUCH ON TWO MORE, UM, EROSION ISSUES THAT WE'VE ADDRESSED, UM, BEFORE TALKING ABOUT OTHER INITIATIVES.

UH, THE NEXT IS LF POINT AND EMERGENCY REPAIR THAT WE UNDERTOOK THIS YEAR.

UM, SO EARLIER, UM, BEFORE THE SUMMER, UH, WE OBSERVED, UM, CRACKING AND EVIDENCE OF STRUCTURE FAILURES AT THE UM, POINT.

UH, WE WORKED REALLY CLOSELY WITH, UM, OUR COLLEAGUES IN WATERSHED PROTECTION AS WELL AS THE CITY ENGINEER'S OFFICE.

AND HIRED A THROUGH AN EMERGENCY PROCUREMENT PROCESS, A CONTRACTOR THAT COULD COME IN, UM, AND STABILIZE THE STRUCTURE THROUGH SOME DEEP INJECTION AND, AND, UH, STABILIZE IT AND LEVEL IT.

UM, WE ALSO WORKED WITH OUR IN-HOUSE CREWS TO COME BACK AND, UM, BACKFILL SOME OF THE VOIDS WITH RIP WRAP UNDERNEATH THE STRUCTURE ADDRESS, CRACKING AT THE MASONRY AND CONCRETE AT THE TOP, UM, AND ROUNDED OUT THAT PROJECT AND FINISHED UP IN SEPTEMBER.

UH, WE DID DEDICATE SOME OF OUR REMAINING 2018 BOND FUNDINGS TO GO TOWARDS THIS REPAIR.

UM, AND UH, NEXT I'LL TALK ABOUT, UH, BARKING SPRINGS, WHICH IS THE, UM, AREA JUST DOWNSTREAM OF THE SPILLWAY FOR THE POOL.

UM, AND, UH, THIS AREA IS ADJACENT TO SUNKEN GARDENS.

UM, BUT THE AREA THAT I'M TALKING ABOUT HERE DOES FALL OUTSIDE OF THE LIMIT OF WORK THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WITH THE SUNKEN GARDENS IMPROVEMENT PROJECT.

IT'S DIRECTLY NEXT TO IT.

UM, AND THERE'S NEED IN THIS AREA TO LOOK AT SAFETY AND SIGHT LINES AND ACCESS TO THE WATER, BUT ALSO SIGNIFICANTLY ADDRESS THE, UM, COMPACTION AND EROSION, UH, AND SOIL HEALTH AND, AND PLANT HEALTH.

UM, SO WE'RE LOOKING AT SCOPING, UH, RESTORATION ACTIVITIES IN THIS AREA IN, UM, SHORT AND MIDTERM GOALS.

UM, WE ARE INTENDING TO START LOOKING AT, UM, EASIER TO ACCOMPLISH THINGS LIKE, UH, INVASIVE REMOVAL, BIND OF TREES AND VINES, SOME, UH, TRIMMING OF THE, UM, PROTECTED TREES IN THE AREA, UM, AND WORKING OUR WAY TOWARDS, UM, SOIL RESTORATION.

SO ESTABLISHING SOME DIVINE DEFINED PATHWAYS THROUGH THE VEGETATION, UM, TO PREVENT DISTURBANCE AND PRESERVE SOME OF THE SOILS AS WE RESTORE IT.

SO WE EXPECT THAT THIS IS GOING TO BE NOT A ONE-TIME ACTIVITY, BUT SOMETHING THAT WE SCOPE, UM, THAT PROGRESSIVELY IMPROVES OVER TIME.

UM, AND WE HOPE TO, UM, UTILIZE SOME VOLUNTEER, UH, INITIATIVES TO ASSIST WITH, UM, WORK WE DEFINE IS NECESSARY FOR THIS AREA.

UM, SO MOVING ON TO TALK, UM, MORE BROADLY ABOUT THE PARK AS A WHOLE.

I WANNA TOUCH ON, UM, HOW WE'VE BEEN APPROACHING INVASIVE SPECIES, INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT FOR THE PARK.

UM, AND WE GO ABOUT THIS, UH, AGAIN, IN CLOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH WATERSHED PROTECTION, UM, IN A VARIETY OF WAYS, UM, THAT I CAN GIVE AN OVERVIEW FOR HERE.

UM, ONE OF THE MAIN WAYS IS, UH, WORKING WITH KEEP AUSTIN BE BEAUTIFUL, UM, WITH THEIR EXISTING CONTRACT WITH WATERSHED PROTECTION TO MANAGE THE ADOPT A CREEK PROGRAM.

AND SO THROUGH THAT PROGRAM, CREEK ADOPTERS, UM, CAN BRING FORWARD, UM, THEIR PROPOSALS FOR ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION AND INVASIVE SPECIES REMOVAL PROJECTS.

IT IS VETTED THROUGH WATERSHED PROTECTION AND AUSTIN PARKS AND RECREATION STAFF.

UM, AND WE ALSO COORDINATE VOLUNTEER WORK DAYS THROUGH THE PARTNERSHIP VOLUNTEER INTAKE, UM, PORTAL.

UM, WHEN WE'RE WORKING ON THOSE EFFORTS THAT ARE EITHER PROPOSED BY KEEP AUSTIN BEAUTIFUL, OR WHERE WE HAVE OTHER PRIORITIES, WE'LL SOMETIMES ALSO BRING IN, UM, AND WORK WITH AUSTIN CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS CREWS, UM, WHICH WE ALSO HAVE A CONTRACT WITH THE CITY FOR.

UM, AND THAT MIGHT BE IN SOME INSTANCES WHERE VOLUNTEER LABOR IS, UM, NOT QUITE ENOUGH TO ACCOMPLISH ALL THE GOALS.

WE MIGHT NEED MORE HEAVY MACHINERY THAT VOLUNTEERS CAN'T QUITE USE, UM, OR HAVE A MORE BROAD SCOPE THAT NEEDS TO BE ACCOMPLISHED.

AND SO IN THOSE CASES, UM, WE'LL BRING IN CREWS AND ASSIST WITH THAT.

UM, AND ONE OTHER EXAMPLE I'LL MENTION IS, UM, SPECIFICALLY WORK THAT IS UNDERWAY, UM, SPONSORED BY AUSTIN PARKS FOUNDATION, WHICH IS A THREE YEAR PLAN THAT HAS BEEN PROPOSED AND APPROVED FOR BARTON CREEK GREENBELT TRAIL MAINTENANCE AND ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION.

AND THIS IS A PLAN MORE BROADLY FOR BARTON CREEK, BUT SOME OF THE WORK FALLS WITHIN THE LIMITS OF ZILKER PARK ITSELF.

UM, AND THAT, LIKE I MENTIONED, THAT'S A A THREE YEAR PLAN WITH VARIOUS STAGES THAT ARE, UM, SUBMITTED THROUGH THE COMMUNITY ACTIVATED PARK PROJECT PORTAL AND REVIEWED AS, UM, THE PLAN GOES FORWARD TO IMPLEMENTATION.

BEFORE WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, GAIL, IS THAT YOU IN THAT PICTURE? WE, WE HAVE ONE OF THE VOLUNTEERS HERE AND I JUST WANNA TAKE A MOMENT TO THANK HER FOR HER WORK,

[01:20:01]

UH, IN THIS AREA AND IN OUR PARKS.

JUST WE, WE CAN NEVER HAVE ENOUGH VOLUNTEERS.

SO I WANTED TO, JUST A QUICK SHOUT OUT.

NEXT I'LL TALK ABOUT SOME TREE PLANTING AND GIVE YOU, UM, TWO EXAMPLES OF TREE PLANTING PROJECTS THAT HAVE BEEN HAPPENING THIS YEAR.

UM, THE FIRST IS THE PECAN GROVE PICNIC AREA.

UM, THIS IS TREE PLANTING.

IN ADDITION TO SOIL AND DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS, WE PLANTED 18 NEW TREES WITH THE ASSOCIATED IRRIGATION TO HELP THEM ESTABLISH OVER THE OVER THREE YEARS.

UM, WE ALSO, UH, DID SOME SIGNIFICANT SOIL DECOMP COMPACTION.

THIS WAS PRETTY COMPACTED GRAVELLY DEGRADED SOIL.

UM, WE BROKE UP THAT HARD PACK, UM, IN ORDER TO, UM, HELP THESE TREES HAVE BETTER, UH, OPPORTUNITY FOR SUCCESS.

AND WE ALSO DID SOME GRADING AND DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS TO ALLOW SOME OF THE RUNOFF FROM THE, UM, ADJACENT PARKING LOT TO HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITY TO INFILTRATE INTO THE GRASSY AREA.

UM, BEFORE MAKING ITS WAY TO BARTON CREEK.

UH, THIS TREE PLANTING PROJECT WAS FUNDED BY THE COUNCIL RESOLUTION, WHICH WAS THE BUDGET AMENDMENT TO THE FY 25 BUDGET THAT ALLOCATED URBAN FORESTRY REPLENISHMENT FUNDING TO, UM, TREE PLANTING ON PARKLAND AND SPECIFICALLY NAMED ZILKER PARK IS ONE OF THE RECIPIENTS.

UH, THE OTHER EXAMPLE I'LL, I'LL SHARE IS AN EXTERNALLY LED PROJECT, UM, WHICH IS A TREE MA TREE MOT I THINK I'M SAYING THAT RIGHT, PROJECT.

UM, THAT IS, IF YOU CAN TELL BY THE PICTURE ON THE SIDE THERE IS NEAR THE VIOLET CRAY TRAILHEAD, IT'S KIND OF HARD TO TELL 'CAUSE IT'S JUST A TREE COVERED AREA YOU'RE SEEING.

BUT, UM, IT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO THAT TRAILHEAD AREA.

UM, AND THE SCOPE OF THE WORK THAT'S BEING CONDUCTED, UM, THIS FALL IS, UH, REMOVAL OF SOME OF THE INVASIVE LIGUSTRUMS AND IN THAT CLEARING SPACE, GOING BACK AND PLANTING, UM, THESE, UH, STANDS OF TREES, UH, THAT COMBINE UNDERSTORY AND OVERSTORY CANOPY TOGETHER, UM, INTENDING TO KIND OF MIMIC THE WAY THAT NATURAL TREE STANDS GROW.

UM, AND SO THAT WORK IS FUNDED BY AUSTIN PARKS FOUNDATION AND ZILKER 3 5 1.

UM, AND THOSE PROJECTS ARE ONGOING.

I THINK THE, UM, THE ORIGINAL, UH, AREA FOR THE WORK WAS, UM, 3000 SQUARE FEET.

I THINK IT'S SINCE BEEN EXPANDED AND IT'S DOUBLED TO 6,000 SQUARE FEET OF THAT WORK THAT'S HAPPENING IN THAT AREA.

ALL RIGHT.

UM, NOW I'LL RUN THROUGH, UH, SAMPLING OF OTHER, UM, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS THAT WE HAVE ONGOING IN ZILKER PARK AS WELL.

UM, FIRSTLY, UH, THE ZILKER CLUBHOUSE REHABILITATION IS A HISTORIC, UH, RESTORATION, UM, AND PRESERVATION PROJECT OF THIS FACILITY.

UM, AND, UH, THE OUTCOME WILL BE THAT WE'LL HAVE, UH, FLEXIBILITY OF THE SITE AND ABLE TO HOST MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF EVENTS AND GROUPS, UM, GOING FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE.

THAT'S REACHED THE END OF THE DESIGN PHASE AND WE ARE ABOUT TO BE IN THE BIDDING PHASE.

UM, SO EXPECTING THAT BIDDING TO HAPPEN SOMETIME THIS FALL OR SOMETIME SOON.

UH, OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, UM, THE JOAN MEANS ELLI BATHHOUSE REHABILITATION PROJECT HAS BEEN UNDERWAY FOR SOME TIME AND, UM, IS, UH, PLANNING FOR A PARTIAL OPENING THIS FALL.

AND THE NEWLY, UM, COMPLETED RESTROOM PORTION WILL OPEN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

UM, THE PROJECT ALSO INCLUDES, UM, AS YOU ALSO PROBABLY KNOW, BUT NEW EDUCATIONAL EXHIBIT THAT WILL, UM, PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN ABOUT THE WATERSHED AND THE AQUIFER, UM, AND PRESERVING THE SALAMANDER HABITAT AS WELL.

UM, TWO MORE PROJECTS WE HAVE ARE THE ZILKER MAINTENANCE BARN.

UM, THAT IS, UH, BACK UNDER CONSTRUCTION NOW AND SLATED FOR COMPLETION, UM, SOMETIME IN MID 2026, SO SPRING SUMMER.

UM, A COUPLE HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS PROJECT TO MAKE YOU AWARE OF IS, WELL, FIRSTLY OF COURSE, IT'S THE PRIMARY MAINTENANCE FACILITY FOR THE CREWS THAT MAINTAIN ZILKER PARK.

UM, THE SCOPE INCLUDES, UH, PILOT ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT TO HOUSE ELECTRIC LAWN EQUIPMENT, UM, AND WE ARE INCORPORATING THAT INTO THE DESIGN NOW AND, AND MAKING THE PROVISIONS FOR, UM, HAVING AND THE RIGHT ELECTRICAL INFRASTRUCTURE TO OPERATE THAT PILOT.

UM, THERE'S ALSO GONNA BE SOME TREE PLANTING AS PART OF THE MITIGATION THAT'S NECESSARY FOR THE CONSTRUCTION THAT'S GONNA HAPPEN WITHIN THE PARK AS WELL.

UH, AND LASTLY, UM, MILE ZERO, MILE ZERO TRAILHEAD, UM, WHICH IS NEARING COMPLETION OF CONSTRUCTION AS WELL.

IT'S LED BY THE HILL COUNTRY CONSERVANCY, UH, FUNDED BY PARKS AND RECREATION, HILL COUNTRY CONSERVANCY AND AUSTIN PARKS FOUNDATION.

UM, THE FINAL STAGES OF THE PROJECT ARE HAPPENING NOW.

UM, TREE PLANTING IS, IS HAPPENING, UM, AS WELL AS THE FINAL RAIN GARDEN INSTALLATION THAT'S LOCATED OFF OF ANDREW'S LOCAL ROAD, SORT OF OUTSIDE OF WHERE THE TRAIL HIT ITSELF IS.

UM, AND THE GRAND OPENING FOR THAT IS SCHEDULED FOR NOVEMBER 15TH OF THIS YEAR.

SO CONCLUDING VERY SOON.

[01:25:02]

AND LASTLY, UM, I'LL ROUND OUT THIS DISCUSSION BY, UM, TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PARKING AND, UM, SHUTTLE OPERATIONS FOR THE PARK.

UM, AND SPECIFICALLY RECAP OF THE PERFORMANCE FOR THE SHUTTLE THIS SUMMER.

UM, SO AS YOU LIKELY KNOW, WE'VE BEEN PROGRESSIVELY WORKING TOWARDS, UM, PARKING DEMAND MANAGEMENT AND MINIMIZING PARKING ON THE ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE POLO FIELDS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND MAKING PROGRESS OVER TIME, UM, TO, UH, MAKE THAT IMPACT LESS AND LESS.

UM, THIS PAST YEAR, UM, THE POLO FIELD PARKING OPERATION WAS, UH, REDUCED TO 50% OF THE TOTAL PARKING SPACE AND WAS OPEN ONLY ON WEEKENDS AND FOR EVENTS.

UM, AND AS A MANAGEMENT TOOL, WE IMPLEMENTED THIS ZILKER LOOP, UM, WHICH IS THE SHUTTLE THAT RUNS FROM THE STRATFORD, UM, DRIVE LOT.

UM, AND THIS YEAR IT SAW JUST OVER 7,000 RIDERS.

IT OPERATED FROM MEMORIAL DAY THROUGH LABOR DAY ON SATURDAYS AND SUNDAYS.

UH, AND THAT FIGURE OF 7,000 RIDERS WAS ROUGHLY COMPARABLE TO THE NUMBERS WE SAW IN 2024 WHEN WE WERE OPERATING THE EXTERNAL SHUTTLE, UM, THAT WAS GOING FROM ONE TEXAS CENTER INTO THE PARK.

UM, SO, UH, THE, THIS YEAR, UM, THE SHUTTLING FROM STRATFORD LOT WAS COUPLED WITH, UM, TWO HOUR FREE VALIDATION, UM, WHICH WE'RE SEEING AS AN EFFECTIVE STRATEGY TO DIRECT PEOPLE TO PARKING IN THAT, TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS THE POOL AND OTHER PORTIONS OF THE PARK.

UM, I ALSO WANNA POINT OUT THAT, UM, SOME OTHER EVIDENCE OF SUCCESS WE HAD IN THIS STRATEGY WAS, UM, THERE WAS SOME WET TIMES, IT'S HARD TO REMEMBER WHEN THINGS WERE WET, BUT EARLIER THIS YEAR, UM, THERE WAS SOME, UH, TIMES WHERE THE CONDITIONS OF THE POLO FIELDS WERE TOO WET TO KEEP OPEN.

UM, AND THOSE WERE CLOSED FULLY.

UM, AND ON THOSE TIMES WITH THE TWO BUS INTERNAL LOOP, WE WERE SUCCESSFULLY ABLE TO ABSORB VISITORS.

UM, AND WE HAD SOME OF THE HIGHEST RIDERSHIP NUMBERS OF THE SHUTTLE DURING THOSE TIMES.

UM, SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO, UM, KIND OF CONTINUING TO UTILIZE THIS SHUTTLE STRATEGY AND MAKE PROGRESS TOWARDS REDUCING PARKING IN THE POLO FIELDS.

UM, SO THAT ROUNDS OUT THE CONTENT WE HAVE TO SHARE WITH YOU TODAY, BUT HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE ABOUT THIS WORK.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

ANY, I COULD COME UP WITH ONE ONLY IF YOU HAVE IT.

YEAH, IT'S A VERY THOROUGH PRESENTATION.

I APPRECIATE ALL OF, ALL OF THE ROBUST INFORMATION THAT'S, THAT'S BEING BROUGHT THERE.

UM, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S NOT LOST ON ANY OF US, ESPECIALLY THOSE OF US UP HERE THAT, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE ISSUES IN THE PARK, LIKE EROSION CONTROL, TRANSPORTATION ISSUES AND, AND SHADE, THE LACK OF SHADE THAT'S BEEN THERE OVER THE YEARS IS JUST SOMETHING THAT I, I THINK I CAN SPEAK FOR CHAIR ALTER IN THIS MOMENT, BUT WE KIND OF SAID THOSE WILL NEED TO BE ADDRESSED, UM, AT SOME POINT BECAUSE WE'VE GOT SUCH GREAT ISSUES.

UM, BUT I'LL SWITCH GEARS INTO, UH, THE MENTION OF THE CLUBHOUSE ITSELF.

UM, I KNOW THERE'S BEEN SOME ISSUES WITH UNDERAGE FOLKS HANGING OUT THERE OVER, UH, THE EVENING HOURS, AND I'M JUST CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANY OTHER SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS PLANNED FOR THAT PROJECT BEFORE THE, THE IMPROVEMENTS GET UNDERWAY.

IT'S BEEN SOMETHING THAT'S, YOU KNOW, ALMOST TOO OFTEN I'LL JUST SAY TOO OFTEN WE'RE GETTING OUTREACH BECAUSE THERE'S, THERE'S FOLKS THAT ARE UTILIZING IT WITHOUT HAVING A RESERVATION AND WITHOUT RESPECTING THE SPACE.

UM, SO I DIDN'T KNOW IF SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS WERE A PART OF THE CLUBHOUSE REVITALIZATION.

UM, AND I APPRECIATE, WE'VE HAD SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH PARKS AND RECREATION STAFF OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS ABOUT OPENING UP THAT CONVERSATION WITH OUR POLICE OFFICERS.

UM, I CAN TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AND I'M HAPPY TO HAVE, UM, ANY OF THE OTHERS, UH, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OR DIRECTOR CHIME IN IF I'VE MISSED ANYTHING.

BUT, UM, I, I KNOW WE ARE AWARE OF THE ISSUE IN OUR WORKING WITH OUR, WORKING WITH OUR MAINTENANCE TEAM TO IMPLEMENT SOME, UM, SECURITY IMPROVEMENTS IN THE SHORT TERM TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, UM, SHORING UP SECURITY AND ACCESS, UM, LOOKING AT RE-KEYING OF THE FACILITY ULTIMATELY, UM, AS A ADDITIONAL SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS AND PUTTING BOLLARDS AND, AND UM, UH, PIECES OF INFRASTRUCTURE TO HELP SECURE THE FACILITY IN THE SHORT TERM, BUT ALSO INCORPORATE SOME OF THAT INTO THE PROJECT SCOPE LONG TERM.

DO YOU WANNA ADD ANYTHING? NO, ACTUALLY, UH, LINDSAY COVERED IT.

EVERYTHING.

I HAVE TO SAY THAT THE RECENT VANDALISM THAT WE HAD LAST WEEKEND WAS QUITE EXTENSIVE AND VERY DISHEARTENING, BUT WE ARE TRYING TO IMPLEMENT BOTH SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM, UH, IMPROVEMENTS, BUT WE'LL DO OUR BEST.

I APPRECIATE IT.

I KNOW THERE'S SOME NEIGHBORS THAT HAVE SOME VERY CREATIVE IDEAS THAT I THINK COULD BE HELPFUL IN THIS CONVERSATION TO HELP PROTECT THAT SPACE.

IT SEEMS LIKE MOST OTHER CLUBHOUSES AND REC CENTERS THAT ARE PART OF THE PARKS DEPARTMENT ARE EITHER JUST LESS ACCESSIBLE OR IT'S EASIER TO SHUT THEM DOWN, CLOSE THEM OFF, AND PEOPLE CAN'T ACCESS THEM.

AND FOR SOME REASON IT SEEMS LIKE THIS IS WHERE SOME OF THE TEENAGERS ARE DECIDING TO SPEND THEIR TIME AND NOT MAKING GREAT DECISIONS.

AND I JUST HATE TO SEE OUR PUBLIC ASSETS BECOME INACCESSIBLE TO OTHER FOLKS THAT DO WANT TO RESPECT THAT SPACE.

[01:30:01]

WE KNOW THAT THEY ARE DOING CERTAIN RE STRATEGIZING WITH THEIR PATROL UNITS AND TRYING TO PROVIDE BETTER COVERAGE, UM, WITHIN OUR PARK SYSTEM.

WE JUST DUNNO EXACTLY WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, WHAT TIMES OF DAY AND WHERE CAN PEOPLE BE, UM, BE ABLE TO ACCESS THESE PROPERTIES OR BE CUT OFF FROM ACCESSING THEM IF THEY'RE GONNA BE VANDALIZING SOME OF OUR PUBLIC PROPERTIES.

SO I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING HOW THAT CONVERSATION UNFOLDS.

WE WILL.

UM, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? I, I WANTED TO GO BACK TO SLIDE EIGHT, UM, AND JUST BETTER UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, BOTH IN THE BARTON SPRINGS MASTER PLAN AS WELL AS, UH, SOME OF THE COMMUNITY CONVERSATION AROUND THE PROPOSED VISION PLAN, UH, REALLY HIGHLIGHTED THE EROSION THAT YOU TALKED ABOUT ON BOTH SIDES.

UM, AND I THINK YOU TOUCHED ON, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE KIND OF TWO ELEMENTS HERE.

THERE'S THE LIFE SAFETY OF SOMEONE ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, FALLING IN OR SOMETHING, FALLING ON SOMEBODY.

BUT THEN ALSO THE ECOLOGICAL IMPACTS.

UM, WHAT PLANS DO WE HAVE FOR THE SPILLWAY HERE INTO LADY BIRD LAKE? UH, DO WE HAVE PROJECTS THAT ARE PLANNED BUT UNFUNDED? DO WE NEED TO DO THE PLANNING? WHERE ARE WE IN THAT STAGE SO THAT WE CAN HAVE MORE DEDICATED ACCESS POINTS SO PEOPLE AREN'T JUST WALKING OVER WHEREVER THEY WANT AND, AND CONTINUING THAT EROSION.

MM-HMM .

UM, SO I MEAN, I THINK JUST TO MAYBE ONE THAT'S A REALLY CLEAR EXAMPLE IS THE SUNKEN GARDENS, UM, REHABILITATION PROJECT, WHICH IS ENDING THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING REPORT STAGE AND IS, UM, IN NEED OF FUNDING FOR BOTH THE DESIGN PHASE THROUGH CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS AND THE, UM, CONSTRUCTION AS WELL.

AND, UM, THAT PROJECT DOES INCLUDE SOME SHORELINE IMPROVEMENTS IN ADDITION TO KIND OF THE CHANNEL REPAIR ITSELF AS WELL AS THE INTERPRETIVE ELEMENTS.

SO I THINK THAT'S ONE REALLY CLEAR EXAMPLE THAT, UM, IS IN PROGRESS AND IS IN NEED OF FUNDING.

UM, I THINK, AS YOU KNOW, IN THE AREA IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT THAT WE TALKED ABOUT WITH THE BARKING SPRINGS, I THINK OUR CURRENT PLANS IN TERMS OF SHORT AND MIDTERM EFFORTS ARE, UM, A LIGHTER TOUCH AND DOING WHAT WE CAN WITH THE LIMITED RESOURCES WE HAVE, UM, FOR THAT AREA AND THE LIMITED, UM, ABILITY WE HAVE TO MAKE LARGER TERM PLANS AND DECISIONS ABOUT THE AREA.

SO SORT OF UPKEEPING WITH THE MAINTENANCE, UM, AND MAKING IMPROVEMENTS, UM, WITHIN THOSE CONSTRAINTS THAT WE HAVE.

UM, SO I WOULD SAY THAT THAT'S GENERALLY SPEAKING, UH, GOING, GOING TO BE OUR APPROACH.

UM, I DUNNO IF YOU WANNA ADD TO THAT.

UM, YEAH, I THINK I CAN.

UH, WHEN, JUST FROM A WATERSHED PERSPECTIVE, UM, OUR PROJECTS ARE DRIVEN BY OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, WHICH ASKS US TO ADDRESS THE WORST PROBLEMS FIRST, WHICH IS GENERALLY THE LIFE SAFETY ISSUES.

SO WHEN SOMETHING ELEVATES THROUGH OUR STRATEGIC PLAN PRIORITIZATION, THEN WE'RE ALLOCATING FUNDING.

SO BOTH SUNKEN GARDENS AND TO ME BANK STABILIZATION ARE EXAMPLES OF THOSE.

I THINK WE WOULD LOVE TO BE PARTNERS IN A KIND OF A CREEK WIDE VISION PLAN THAT ADDRESS SOME OF THESE ISSUES ECOLOGICALLY FOR, YOU KNOW, WATER QUALITY IS ALSO PART OF OUR MISSION AREA.

UM, SO, AND I THINK THAT IT'S AT THE END OF THE DAY A A PLANNING ISSUE AND A FUNDING ISSUE.

BUT FOR THE MOST PART, I DON'T THINK THAT WATERSHED OR THE COMMUNITY NECESSARILY WANTS TO SEE THAT TYPE OF TREATMENT ALONG THE LENGTH OF, OF THE BANK.

AND YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAD THIS CONVERSATION IN A VERY DIFFERENT CONTEXT JUST HERE ABOUT MAINTENANCE VERSUS REPLACEMENT.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THE, THE EMBANKMENT FAILURE, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT KIND OF COST DIFFERENTIAL IS THERE OF DOING THE, THE PREVENTATIVE WORK ALONG THE EMBANKMENT VERSUS WHAT IS THE COST OF THE EMBANKMENT FAILURE FIX? SURE.

THAT, UH, PROJECT IN ITS ENTIRETY I THINK WAS AROUND 8 MILLION, 7 MILLION.

UM, IN GENERAL, LIKE PER LINEAR FOOT OF STREAM STABILIZATION, YOU'RE LOOKING AT A THOUSAND TO $2,000 PER LINEAR FOOT.

UM, SO THINGS, AND WE ARE TYPICALLY ADDRESSING PROBLEMS WHEN THE BANK HAS GOTTEN SO CLOSE TO A THREATENED RESOURCE OR IS, IS, UM, A SAFETY ISSUE THAT WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF SPACE TO WORK IN.

SO OUR AS, AS MUCH AS WE TRY TO CREATE ECOLOGICAL UPLIFT WITH OUR PROJECTS, A LOT OF IT IS HARD ARMORING.

SO I LOOK AT THE LIMESTONE BLOCKS HERE IN THIS ROOM, YOU KNOW, TO ME BEING STABILIZATION IS GENERALLY THAT WE REALLY TRY TO SOFTEN IT UP, UP WITH A TOE THAT HAS SOME, UM, VEGETATION OPPORTUNITIES.

[01:35:01]

SO WHAT STABILIZATION LOOKS LIKE WITHOUT THAT IS, IS THERE'S NOT REALLY LIKE A PROACTIVE WAY TO HANDLE IT BESIDES JUST SETTING THE TRAIL BACK, WHICH AGAIN IS A SPACE ISSUE.

WELL I THINK, UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE ARE HAVING THE CONVERSATION AROUND THE ENTIRETY, ENTIRETY OF THE CITY'S NEEDS AS IT RELATES TO THE BOND AND IF THERE ARE PLANNING NEEDS FOR THIS AREA, YOU KNOW, HAVING THOSE DOLLARS INCORPORATED SO THAT WE CAN PLAN THIS AREA.

BUT, YOU KNOW, I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE AS LIGHT TOUCH NATURAL SYSTEMS PUT IN PLACE, BUT THAT DO DIRECT PEOPLE TO THIS IS WHERE YOU FEED THE TURTLES.

MM-HMM .

UH, YOU KNOW, THIS IS WHERE YOU CAN ACCESS AND NOT CONTINUE TO HAVE THE TYPE OF HARMS THAT WE'RE DOING TO THAT AREA, UH, WHETHER THEY BE LIFE SAFETY OR ECOLOGICAL.

SO, UH, WE'LL CONTINUE TO, TO TALK AND WORK TOGETHER ON WHAT, WHAT WE NEED TO, TO SEE THIS THROUGH.

BUT I'D HATE TO WAIT ANOTHER SIX YEARS AND BE TALKING ABOUT, UH, THIS HAVE JUST GOTTEN WORSE WHEN WE COULD HAVE DONE THE RIGHT MORE, MORE COST EFFECTIVE THINGS NOW.

SO REALLY, UH, APPRECIATE THAT PRESENTATION AND, UH, IF THERE ARE NO OTHER QUESTIONS, WE WILL MOVE ON.

THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH.

UH, WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM NUMBER FOUR, A BRIEFING ON AUSTIN WATER STRATEGIC PLAN AND SEE SOME FAMILIAR FACES RETURN.

ALRIGHT,

[4. Briefing on Austin Water Strategic Plan Update. [Shay Ralls Roalson, Director; Martin Tower, Engineering Manager; Charles Celauro, Assistant Director, Austin Water Engineering - Austin Water].]

WE WILL, SORRY TO TO LEAVE YOU 23 MINUTES, BUT I TRUST YOU CAN DO IT.

ABSOLUTELY.

GOOD, GOOD MORNING AGAIN.

UH, AUSTIN WATER DIRECTOR SHAY RAWLS ROLSON, AND I HAVE OUR ENTERPRISE STRATEGIC PLANNING, MA MANAGER, ALISON ORTON SPRIGG HERE WITH US TODAY.

AND WE WILL GIVE YOU A HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW OF, UM, THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING ON OUR STRATEGIC PLAN UPDATE.

UH, AND SO WE'LL JUST GET, GET RIGHT INTO IT.

ALL RIGHT.

WELL, GOOD MORNING.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TODAY TO GIVE YOU THIS UPDATE ON OUR ENTERPRISE STRATEGIC PLAN FOR AUSTIN WATER.

I'M ALISON NORTON, SPRIGG, ENTERPRISE STRATEGIC PLANNING MANAGER.

UH, TODAY I'M GONNA WALK YOU THROUGH, UH, THE WHY, THE WHAT, THE INTENTION, THE PROCESS THAT WE DID TO UNDERTAKE, UH, REFRESHING OF OUR PLAN, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR PROJECT, OUR TIMELINE, ALL OF THE ENGAGEMENT WORK THAT WE DID, AS WELL AS THE RESULT AND GOALS, STRATEGIES, AND HOW WE'RE ALIGNING TO CITYWIDE PRIORITIES AS WELL AS OUR NEXT STEPS.

SO THE WHY, WHY WE REFRESHED OUR STRATEGIC PLAN.

UH, OUR PREVIOUS PLAN AT AUSTIN WATER WAS DEVELOPED AND PUBLISHED IN AND AROUND THE YEAR 2020.

AND AS WE ALL KNOW, UH, LIFE HAS CHANGED QUITE A BIT.

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED QUITE A BIT, A BIT SINCE THEN.

UH, WE'VE HAD A GLOBAL PANDEMIC, WE'VE HAD EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, WE'VE HAD EXTERNAL EVALUATIONS AT AUSTIN WATER.

AND SO WE REALLY WANTED TO REFRESH, UH, OUR GUIDING DOCUMENT FOR AUSTIN WATER TO BETTER REFLECT OUR EVOLVING ENVIRONMENT, UH, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT CLIMATE CHANGE, POPULATION GROWTH, UM, WORKFORCE CONCERNS, AS WELL AS, UH, REALLY ENGAGE WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND STAFF TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES ARE FOR, FOR WHERE, WHERE AND WHAT WE SHOULD BE WORKING ON.

UH, OF NOTE AS WELL IS THAT WE DO A LOT OF STRATEGIC PLANNING AT AUSTIN WATER.

YOU HEARD FROM MY COLLEAGUES EARLIER AS WELL.

UM, A LOT OF LONG-TERM PLANNING EFFORTS ARE UNDERWAY, BUT THIS IS REALLY THE FIRST TIME THAT WE WERE INTENTIONAL ABOUT ENGAGING WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND STAFF, UH, TO UNDERSTAND THEIR PRIORITIES AND WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO THEM.

SO WHAT THIS NEW PLAN WILL DO, UH, THIS IS AN ENTERPRISE WIDE PLAN FOR AUSTIN WATER.

UH, WE ARE VIEWING THIS DOCUMENT AS A BLUEPRINT FOR US, A DECISION MAKING FRAMEWORK, A GREAT COMMUNICATIONS TOOL.

IT REALLY OUTLINES EVERYTHING THAT IS IMPORTANT TO US AND THAT WE'LL BE WORKING ON IN THE COMING YEARS.

UH, IT HELPS BUILD CONNECTIONS.

WE'VE SEEN THAT ALREADY IN ALL OF OUR ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITIES WITH STAFF IN THE COMMUNITY.

UH, IT REALLY ENABLES US TO SHARE OUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE AND, UH, REALLY HELPS US INCORPORATE AND ALIGN ALL OF OUR EXISTING PLANS.

Y'ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH WATER FORWARD DROUGHT CONTINGENCY, OUR LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLANNING THAT YOU HEARD FROM THIS MORNING.

AND SO WE NOW HAVE A DIRECT LINE OF SIGHT INTO OUR HIGH LEVEL GOALS INTO ALL OF OUR EXISTING WORK THAT'S ALREADY BEEN GOING ON.

UH, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, OR OR LASTLY, IT'S, IT'S LONG RANGE AND FLEXIBLE.

THIS PLAN'S GONNA ALLOW US TO SCALE UP, SCALE DOWN, UH, DEPENDING ON WHAT'S GOING ON AROUND US AND HOW WE NEED TO RESPOND TO, UM, THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING.

SO OUR INTENTION WITH THIS PROCESS, UH, GOING IN, UH, WE WANTED TO BE THOUGHTFUL, FLEXIBLE, TRANSPARENT, REALLY SHARING RESULTS ALONG THE WAY, UH, ENGAGING WITH STAFF AND COMMUNITY, UH,

[01:40:01]

IN AN INCLUSIVE WAY.

WE WANTED TO CONSIDER, UH, INPUT FROM ALL LEVELS OF OUR ORGANIZATION, OUR CUSTOMERS, THE COMMUNITY, UH, VIEWING IT THROUGH AN EQUITY LENS, ENSURING CLIMATE RESILIENCE IS ADDRESSED, AS WELL AS MAKING IT ACCESSIBLE AND INFORMATIVE.

SO WE KNEW WE COULDN'T DO THAT ALONE.

, UH, AT THE TIME IT WAS MYSELF AND A TEAM OF TWO.

SO WE NEEDED TO ENGAGE, UH, WE KNEW WE NEEDED, WANTED TO ENGAGE, UH, HELP IN, TO HELP FACILITATE US THROUGH THIS PROCESS.

SO WE ENGAGED WITH BLUE SKY PARTNERS, A LOCAL CONSULTING FIRM HERE IN AUSTIN, WHO HELPED US DESIGN OUR PROCESS AND, AND GUIDED US THROUGH OVER THE LAST YEAR.

PLUS, UH, WHAT WE ENDED UP DOING WAS ESSENTIALLY A GROUND UP PROCESS WHERE WE ENGAGED WITH ALL LEVELS OF AUSTIN WATER, THE COMMUNITY WE SERVE.

WE DID THIS THROUGH A VARIETY OF METHODS AND TACTICS.

WE HELD FOCUS GROUPS, WE LAUNCHED SURVEYS, UM, WE HAD LISTENING SESSIONS WITH STAFF, UM, AND BLUE SKY GUIDED US ALONG THE WAY.

UH, WE REALLY DUG INTO THIS PROJECT OVER THE LAST 14 MONTHS.

UH, WE SPENT THE MAJORITY OF LAST FALL PLANNING, UH, OUTLINING OUR PHASES, OUR DELIVERABLES.

UH, AFTER WE CAME BACK FROM THE HOLIDAYS IN JANUARY, WE LAUNCHED OUR STAFF ENGAGEMENT PHASE.

UH, WE LAUNCHED A SURVEY OUT TO AUSTIN WATER STAFF.

WE HELD LISTENING SESSIONS.

WE ALSO STOOD UP A STRATEGIC STEERING COMMITTEE, UH, MADE UP OF INTERNAL, UH, SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS FROM ACROSS AUSTIN WATER.

FROM THERE, WE MOVED INTO OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PHASE.

UH, AGAIN, LAUNCHING SURVEYS, HOLDING LISTENING SESSIONS, UM, BEFORE BRINGING ALL THAT BACK AND REALLY, UH, DISSEMINATING THE INFORMATION, FILTERING THE FEEDBACK THAT WE GOT, DEVELOPING OUR GOALS STRATEGIES, AND LOOKING AT ALIGNMENT TO BROADER CITYWIDE PRIORITIES.

SO WE DID QUITE A BIT OF ENGAGEMENT, UH, ON THE EMPLOYEE OUTREACH SIDE.

UH, LIKE I SAID, WE LAUNCHED SURVEYS.

WE WENT OUT AND MET WITH TEAMS ON ALL SHIFTS, ALL HOURS, UH, ENCOURAGING THEM TO TAKE OUR SURVEY.

WE HELD LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS, WE HELD LISTENING SESSIONS.

UH, WE PROVIDED AVENUES FOR FOLKS TO ANONYMOUSLY PROVIDE US INFORMATION.

AND ON THE COMMUNITY SIDE, WE LAUNCHED A SPEAK UP AUSTIN PAGE WHERE WE INVITED FOLKS TO TAKE OUR SURVEY.

WE SENT OUT A PORTAL MESSAGE ON MY A TX WATER, UH, WITH OUR SURVEY LINK, AS WELL AS OFFERED OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE COMMUNITY TO ATTEND, UH, LISTENING SESSIONS, BOTH IN PERSON AND VIRTUAL.

SO WE WERE INCREDIBLY PLEASED WITH THE AMOUNT OF ENGAGEMENT THAT WE GOT THROUGH THESE EFFORTS.

UH, AS YOU'LL SEE ON THE CUSTOMER AND COMMUNITY SIDE, WE HAD OVER 3000 RESPONSES TO OUR SURVEY, UH, THAT ENABLED US TO HOLD, UH, IN, IN-PERSON AND VIRTUAL LISTENING SESSIONS.

UM, AND WE HEARD, WERE ABLE TO HEAR FROM 60 COMMUNITY PARTICIPANTS ACROSS THOSE SESSIONS.

UM, ALL COUNCIL DISTRICTS WERE REPRESENTED AS WELL.

UM, WE LOOKED AT, UH, PARTICIPANTS AND INVITED THEM BASED ON, UH, COUNCIL, THEIR COUNCIL DISTRICTS HOUSEHOLD INCOME LEVELS, UM, RACE AND OTHER DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS TO ENSURE WE HAD A DIVERSE GROUP IN EVERY SESSION TO LISTEN TO.

AND ON THE STAFF SIDE, UH, AGAIN, WE HAD A GREAT RESPONSE TO OUR SURVEY.

WE HAD 575 RESPONSES, UH, THAT, UH, TRANSLATED INTO FIVE ADDITIONAL LISTENING SESSIONS WITH STAFF.

WE HAD OVER 60 STAFF ATTEND THOSE.

UH, WE HAD 20 PLUS FOLKS ON OUR STEERING COMMITTEE.

AND, UH, OVER THE COURSE OF THE LAST 14 MONTHS AS WELL, WE HELD, UH, 10 LEADERSHIP WORKSHOPS.

SO ALL LEVELS OF OUR, OF OUR LEADERS, FROM SUPERVISORS TO DIVISION MANAGERS TO MANAGERS AND AND EXECUTIVE TEAM ALL ENGAGING WITH THIS FEEDBACK AND, UM, UH, VIEWING, YOU KNOW, ALL THE PRIORITIES THAT WERE, THAT WERE COMING THROUGH THAT FEEDBACK PHASE.

SO REALLY WHAT THAT RESULTED IN IS WE REALLY NEEDED TO TAKE A HARD LOOK AT, UH, ESSENTIALLY THE FUNDAMENTAL PURPOSE OF OUR ORGANIZATION.

AND WE FELT THE NEED, UH, THAT IT WAS TIME.

AND WITH ALL THIS FEEDBACK TO REVISE OUR MISSION, VISION, AND DEVELOP GOALS FOR THE ORGANIZATION AT AN ENTERPRISE LEVEL.

UH, SO WE DID REVISE OUR MISSION.

OUR NEW MISSION STATEMENT READS, AUSTIN WATER WORKS EVERY DAY TO PROVIDE WATER FOR PEOPLE AND CARE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT.

OUR VISION STATEMENT READS, BUILDING AUSTIN'S WATER FUTURE TOGETHER.

UH, WE REALLY FEEL LIKE THOSE ARE CLEAR, CONCISE, AND ENCOMPASS EVERYTHING THAT WE DO AT AUSTIN WATER.

NOW, IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THIS MISSION AND THIS VISION, WE, WE NEEDED TO DEVELOP GOALS.

WE DEVELOPED FIVE HIGH LEVEL GOALS, UM, FOR THE ORGANIZATION WITHIN THIS PLAN.

UH, THE FIRST ONE REALLY FOCUSING ON CREATING A THRIVING TEAM AT AUSTIN WATER.

UH, THIS GOAL IS, IS CREATED PEOPLE FIRST CULTURE.

UM, WE HAVE GOT A COUPLE STRATEGIES UNDER, UNDER THIS GOAL.

WE'RE GONNA FOCUS IN ON CULTURE AND SHARING EMPLOYEES AT EVERY LEVEL FEEL VALUED, SUPPORTED, UH, TRAINING.

WE'RE GONNA EMPOWER A SKILLED WORKFORCE THAT'S, UH, BOTH SKILL DRIVEN TRAINING AS WELL AS PROFESSIONAL

[01:45:01]

AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT.

UH, FOCUSING IN ON EMPLOYEE CARE, MAKING SURE OUR POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ALIGN WITH OUR EMPLOYEES, WELLBEING, SAFETY.

UH, WE'RE ALSO GONNA FOCUS IN ON INTERNAL COMMUNICATION AND ENGAGEMENT, PROVIDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR FEEDBACK WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION AND INFORM OUR STAFF AND, UH, AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND AS THE ORGANIZATION EVOLVES.

AND ALSO FOCUSING IN ON TECH TECHNICAL DEPTH, UH, ENSURING THAT WE'RE STRENGTHENING PATHWAYS TO CREATE GENERATION OF, OF NEW AUSTIN WATER, UH, PROFESSIONALS.

OUR SECOND GOAL IS FOCUSING IN ON SERVICE EXCELLENCE.

UH, THIS IS DELIVER HIGH QUALITY AND SUSTAINABLE WATER WASTEWATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES FOR OUR CUSTOMERS.

EXPANDING ON TECHNICAL DEPTH.

WE'RE ALSO GONNA FOCUS ON TECHNICAL EXPERTISE.

SO THIS IS OUR KNOWLEDGE, OUR RESEARCH, OUR LEADERSHIP THAT WE HAVE ALREADY AT THE FOREFRONT OF OUR INDUSTRY.

UM, BUT MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE, UH, FOCUSING IN ON AND LEVERAGING THAT WITHIN OUR ORGANIZATION.

UM, FOCUSING ON ENTERPRISE PERFORMANCE AS WELL.

UH, INTEGRATING ALL OF OUR CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT EFFORTS ACROSS THE UTILITY INTO ONE FRAMEWORK.

KNOWLEDGE SHARING, VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE ARE DOCUMENTING AND EXPANDING ACCESS TO ALL OF THAT TECHNICAL DEPTH AND EXPERTISE THAT WE HAVE, AS WELL AS, UH, RESOURCE MANAGEMENT.

SO REALLY FOCUSING ON DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING DIVERSE AND ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS STRATEGIES TO PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE TO ENSURE WE HAVE THAT SERVICE EXCELLENCE.

OUR THIRD GOAL, UH, IS IN AND AROUND PROACTIVE INFRASTRUCTURE.

OUR GOAL IS TO INVEST IN AND MAINTAIN DEPENDABLE INFRASTRUCTURE AND SYSTEMS. UH, Y'ALL REALLY SAW THAT AT WORK EARLIER IN THIS MEETING WITH MY COLLEAGUES PRESENTING ON ALL OF THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS, FACILITIES, PROJECTS.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE AN INCREDIBLY COMPLEX AND ROBUST CIP PLANNING PROCESS, AND THIS IS US BEING FORWARD LOOKING.

SO YOU GOT A GLIMPSE INTO THE STRATEGY AT WORK TODAY.

UM, THAT IS US BALANCING ROUTINE MAINTENANCE WITH LONG-TERM SYSTEM DEMANDS.

UH, WE'RE GONNA LEVERAGE SMART SYSTEMS, DATA TECHNOLOGY, REALLY FOCUSING IN ON FUTURE READY SUSTAINABILITY.

UH, YOU KNOW, BUILDING RESILIENT SYSTEMS THAT ARE ADAPTABLE TO POPULATION GROWTH, CLIMATE CHANGE, UH, AND THEN ALSO HAVE AN ELEMENT AND A STRATEGY FOCUSED AROUND INCREMENTAL ESCALATION.

THIS IS US BEING ABLE TO SCALE UP AND DOWN IN, UH, EMERGENCY EVENTS OR, UH, OTHER EVENTS THAT MAY HAPPEN TO MEET THE SCOPE OF EACH SITUATION.

WE NEED TO WRAP UP.

OKAY, UH, FINALLY WE'RE GOING TO, UH, FOCUS IN ON OUR COMMUNITY.

YOU KNOW, WE DID A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THEM.

UM, WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE FOSTERING PUBLIC CONFIDENCE AND PREPAREDNESS AND PARTNERSHIPS.

YOU KNOW, REALLY SINCE WINTER STORM URI, WE'VE REALLY ENGAGED WITH THE PUBLIC AND BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS, UM, ENSURING THEY'RE PREPARED FOR THE FUTURE.

SO WE WANNA CONTINUE BEING A TRUSTED PARTNER, CONTINUE OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS, ENSURING WE HAVE EQUITABLE SERVICE DELIVERY AND COST EFFECTIVENESS FOR ALL.

UM, FOCUSING IN ON STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS, YOU KNOW, NOT JUST SHORT TERM SERVICE DISRUPTIONS, BUT ALSO OUR LONG TERM, UM, PRIORITIES LIKE CONSERVATION.

AND THEN CONTINUE BEING A COMMUNITY COTE, UM, PREPARING AND, AND, UH, PRESERVING OUR RESOURCES FOR THE FUTURE.

UH, AND FINALLY WE'RE GOING TO TAKE OFF WATER.

NEXT LEVEL, WE'RE GONNA DRIVE INNOVATION TO IMPROVE EFFECTIVENESS AND RESPONSIBLY MANAGE RISKS.

SO, YOU KNOW, THIS IS US FOCUSING IN ON, UH, DATA QUALITY.

WE WANNA MAKE INFORMED DATA DRIVEN DECISIONS.

WE NEED GOOD DATA TO DO THAT.

UH, WE WANNA FOSTER INNOVATION MINDSET.

WE WANNA STREAMLINE HIGH FREQUENCY PROCESSES, MODERNIZE OUR TOOLKITS, AND REALLY BRING IN SCENARIO PLANNING, UM, IN ORDER TO BE PREPARED FOR THE FUTURE.

SO WITHIN ALL OF THAT, WITHIN ALL OF THESE HIGH LEVEL GOALS, WE FEEL LIKE THERE'S A VERY DIRECT AND CLEAR LINE OF SIGHT TO BROADER CITYWIDE PRIORITIES.

BOTH THE CITYWIDE STRATEGIC PLAN, UH, AND IMAGINE AUSTIN AS A WHOLE.

AND ALL OF THE DIFFERENT LONG RANGE PLANS THAT WE HAVE AT AUSTIN WATER, UH, AGAIN, CREATES THAT LINE OF SIGHT AS WELL.

UM, WE FEEL LIKE EVERY GOAL THAT WE HAVE DEVELOPED WITHIN THIS PLAN ALIGNS TO ONE OF THE CITYWIDE STRATEGIC PLANNING GOALS AND PRIORITIES AS WELL.

AT A GRANULAR LEVEL, YOU CAN SEE HOW WE'VE ALIGNED THIS HERE.

AND REALLY NEXT STEPS, YOU KNOW, WE'VE, WE'VE DONE A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK TO DEVELOP THIS PLAN, UH, FOR THE ENTERPRISE AND FOR AUSTIN WATER.

AND NOW WE REALLY NEED TO IMPLEMENT IT, RIGHT? SO WE ARE SOCIALIZING THE PLAN, UH, BOTH TO AUSTIN WATER STAFF, BUT ALSO CITY LEADERSHIP AND THE COMMUNITY.

UH, WE'LL CONTINUE ALIGNMENT WORK.

WE'LL CONTINUE LOOKING IN AT ALL OF OUR PLANS, PROJECTS, UM, CONTINUE TO ALIGN TIGHTER BUDGET PROCESSING AND RESOURCING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MOVING FORWARD AND MAKING PROGRESS ON THESE GOALS.

UH, WE'LL CONTINUE IDENTIFYING GAPS AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE'LL WE'LL TRACK, TRACK THAT PROGRESS, UH, TAKING A LOOK INTO OUR KPIS AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES TO MAKE SURE WE CAN MEASURE PROGRESS.

UM, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WE'RE GONNA WORK THE PLAN.

SO WITH THAT,

[01:50:01]

UH, I'LL OPEN THIS UP TO ANY QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, UH, NO QUESTIONS, BUT I'LL JUST SAY, UM, THE COMMUNICATION THAT Y'ALL HAVE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE WITH CONSTITUENTS HAS BEEN EXTREMELY HELPFUL.

I KNOW NOBODY EVER WANTS TO HAVE TO HAVE A WATER UTILITY REPAIR AND, AND HAVE TO HAVE THEIR WATER TURNED OFF FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, BUT Y'ALL HAVE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW SO THAT WE CAN PUT IT IN OUR NEWSLETTER, REACH OUT TO THE CONSTITUENTS THAT WILL BE AFFECTED.

AND THEN Y'ALL'S FOLLOW UP HAS, HAS BEEN REALLY GOOD OVER THE YEARS.

AND SO I KNOW THAT'S A CRITICAL COMPONENT TO THIS, UM, THIS STRATEGIC PLAN.

AND JUST WANNA SAY THANKS AND, UM, EXTEND MY APPRECIATION TO THE WHOLE TEAM.

WE APPRECIATE OUR PARTNERSHIP.

YES, WELL, VERY THOROUGH WORK AS ALWAYS.

NO SURPRISE THERE.

UM, BUT APPRECIATE THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.

ALRIGHT, WELL WE MADE IT.

UM, GOOD JOB.

I KNOW NINE MINUTES TO SPARE.

SO WE,

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

WE DO HAVE, UM, FUTURE ITEMS. IF ANYBODY HAS ANY FUTURE ITEMS, YOU'RE ALWAYS, YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND ME.

UM, BUT I REALLY APPRECIATE THE CONVERSATION TODAY.

WE HAVE NO MEETING IN NOVEMBER.

OH YEAH.

NOTHING TO, UNLESS THEY WANT TO PRESENT.

MM, NO.