* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [CALL TO ORDER ] [00:00:05] OKAY. IT IS NOW 4 0 9 IN THE WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11TH, 2026 WATER AND WASTEWATER COMMISSION MEETING. IT'S CALLED ORDER. SO I'M AT A ROLL CALL FOR ALL THE COMMISSIONERS. SO PRESENT, WE HAVE COMMISSIONERS, TRULY REYES, DURRANI, AND MAXWELL GAINES. AND VIRTUALLY WE HAVE COMMISSIONERS, WOLFSON, CR, AND TUON. SHOULD I, WE'RE STILL WAITING. SO SHOULD I SAY ANYTHING ABOUT ABSENCE? UH, SHORT FOR THE RECORD OR NOT? YOU CAN MENTION ABSENCES AT THIS TIME. OKAY. AND WE MIGHT HAVE SOMEONE JOINING LATE. OKAY. AND YOU CAN JUST ACKNOWLEDGE WHEN THEY JOIN. GOT IT. SO ABSENT PRESENTLY, UH, TO THE MEETING IS COMMISSIONER MARZULLO NAVARRO, UM, ORTIZ AND PENN. SO WE DO HAVE QUORUM. AND SO [Additional Items] BEFORE WE GET GOING, I WANT TO GIVE THE FLOOR DIRECTOR ROLSON. THANK YOU SO MUCH COMMISSIONERS. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. UM, I WANT TO INTRODUCE YOU TO OUR NEW CHIEF OF STAFF, EMILY CHANCELLOR. UM, EMILY, UH, BEGAN WITH US ON MONDAY. UM, AND SHE HAS BEEN WITH AUSTIN WATER FOR SOME TIME, BUT I'M GONNA LET HER INTRODUCE HERSELF TO YOU 'CAUSE YOU'LL BE HEARING FROM HER AS WE GO FORWARD. THANK YOU, SHAY. HI. I AM EMILY CHANCELLOR, AND I STARTED ON MONDAY AS AUSTIN WATERS CHIEF OF STAFF. UM, I'VE BEEN WITH AUSTIN WATERS SINCE 2018, AND PRIOR TO THAT I WAS AT THE CITY AT AUSTIN RESOURCE RECOVERY. MY, MY WORK HAS BEEN IN POLICY. UM, I WORKED AT THE CAPITAL STRAIGHT OUT OF COLLEGE, ACTUALLY. AND, UM, THEN I'VE BEEN WORKING IN PUBLIC INFORMATION, COMMUNICATIONS, MARKETING, OUTREACH. UH, ONE OF MY FOCUSES HERE AT AUSTIN WATER HAS BEEN, UH, SUPPORTING OUR CIP PROJECTS. SO MEETING WITH COMMUNITIES AND, UM, PROVIDING NOTICES AND WORKING WITH PROJECT TEAMS TO PROBLEM SOLVE AND HELP, UM, GET THESE BIG PROJECTS DONE IN A WAY THAT'S SENSITIVE TO OUR COMMUNITIES. I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE SERVING AUSTIN WATER IN THIS NEW ROLE AND LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL. YEAH, THANKS FOR THE CHANCE TO INTRODUCE MYSELF. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YES. CONGRATULATIONS, EMILY, AND I'M GLAD TO HAVE YOU NOW AT THIS POSITION. RIGHT. SO, YEAH. WELL, THANK YOU AND LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU. THANKS. SO I DON'T BELIEVE WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS, CORRECT? NO PUBLIC SPEAKERS. SO NOW MOVING ON TO THE [APPROVAL OF MINUTES ] APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE FEBRUARY 18TH, 2026 MEETING. ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS, REVISIONS, QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMISSIONERS? I MOTION TO APPROVE? OKAY. COMMISSIONER PAN DURGE MOTIONS TO APPROVE. I HAVE A SECOND. I'LL SECOND. OKAY, COMMISSIONER. TRULY SECOND. SO EVERYONE VOTING IN FAVOR OF APPROVAL, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OH, BOY. YEAH. GREAT. OKAY. PRETTY DATE UNANIMOUS. YEAH. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. TOO YOUNG. OKAY. MOVING ON TO THE DISCUSSION [DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS ] AND ACTION ITEMS. UM, SO I WILL GO DOWN THE ROLL CALL ASKING IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR RECUSALS. UH, COMMISSIONER TRI, UH, NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSALS. OKAY. COMMISSIONER REYES? NO QUESTIONS. NO RECUSAL. COMMISSIONER PGI? NO QUESTIONS. RECUSAL ON NUMBER 10. OKAY. I HAVE NO QUESTIONS. NO. RECUSALS. UH, COMMISSIONER CROS? UH, QUESTION ON SIX AND ITEM 13? NO RECUSALS. OKAY. COMMISSIONER ION, NO QUESTIONS. NO. RECUSALS. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. SO, UM, AND JUST FOR, UM, THE COMMISSIONERS, UM, ITEMS NUMBER 12 AND 13, WE WILL, UH, AND NUMBER 14, WE WILL PULL FROM POSSIBILITY OF CONSENT AGENDA SO THAT WE CAN HAVE THE PRESENTATION FIRST, AND THEN WE WILL, UM, ADDRESS THOSE ITEMS. UM, SO IT LOOKS LIKE THE CONSENT AGENDA WOULD BE ITEMS NUMBER 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9 WOULD BE 10. YEP. IT'S JUST A RECUSAL 10 AND 11. NO, WE NEED TO HAVE A SEPARATE VOTE ON 10 WITH THE, BECAUSE OF RECUSAL. OKAY. EXCUSE ME. SO THEN ONLY, UH, SO EIGHT, NINE, AND 11. ALRIGHT. SO, UH, [00:05:01] DO I HAVE A MOTION TO OH YEAH, THAT'S RIGHT. OKAY. ALRIGHT. SO DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA? I MOVE TO APPROVE. OKAY. COMMISSIONER SENOFF, UH, MOTIONS TO APPROVE. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I SECOND. OKAY. COMMISSIONER TRI SECONDS. I PASS IT ACROSS. JUST SOUNDS GOOD TO ME TO BE OFFICIAL. PERFECT. PERFECT FOR ME. ALRIGHT. SO EVERYONE, ALL THE COMMISSIONER OF VOTING IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY. CONSENT AGENDA WAS APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY. ALRIGHT, SO NOW WE ARE MOVING [6. Recommend approval to authorize a contract for construction services for the 2026 Austin Water Asphalt and Concrete Restoration for Austin Water with Alpha Paving, Inc., in the amount of $2,000,000 for an initial term of one year with four one-year extension option for a not to exceed amount of $10,000,000. Funding: $2,000,000 is available in the Operations and Maintenance Budget of Austin Water. ] ON TO ITEM NUMBER SIX. ITEM NUMBER SIX IS RECOMMEND APPROVAL TO AUTHORIZE A CONTRACT FOR CONSTRUCTION SERVICES FOR THE 2026 AUSTIN WATER ASPHALT AND CONCRETE RESTORATION FOR AUSTIN WATER WITH ALPHA PAVING, INCORPORATED IN THE AMOUNT OF $2 MILLION FOR AN INITIAL TERM OF ONE YEAR WITH A FOUR ONE YEAR EXTENSION OPTION WITH FOUR ONE YEAR EXTENSION OPTION FOR A NOT TO EXCEED AMOUNT OF 10 MILLION FUNDING OF 2 MILLION IS AVAILABLE IN THE OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE BUDGET OF AUSTIN WATER. SO COMMISSIONER SENOFF. THANK YOU CHAIR. UM, MY, MY QUESTION IS REALLY FOCUSED ON, UM, WHAT THE, IF AUSTIN WATER STAFF HAVE A SENSE OF WHAT THE CURRENT SIZE OF THE BACKLOG IS. UM, FOR PERMANENT PAVEMENT IS HANDLED BY AUSTIN TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS, A TPW. UM, THE BRIEFING MATERIALS, UM, SHARED THAT A TPW IS TYPICALLY THE, THE FIRST IN LINE, UM, FOR REPAIRS OF THIS KIND. BUT GIVEN THE BACKLOG THAT THEY CURRENTLY HAVE, UM, WE HAVE THIS ITEM WHICH IS REALLY LOOKING AT, UM, UH, AUTHORIZING A CONTRACT WITH A THIRD PARTY VENDOR TO HANDLE SOME OF THIS BACKLOG. AND SO, UM, I'M JUST SORT OF WONDERING IF THERE'S MORE INFORMATION Y'ALL COULD SHARE, UM, SO THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW LARGE THIS BACKLOG IS AND POTENTIALLY HOW DEPENDENT WE ARE ON A THIRD PARTY, UM, VENDOR TO HELP US GET THROUGH IT IF A TPW DOES NOT HAVE THE CAPACITY. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER. UM, THE, WE ARE OUT IN THE, IN OUR SERVICE AREA, UH, OBVIOUSLY MAKING PIPE REPAIRS, UH, AND THAT REQUIRES CAUSES STREET CUTS. AND SO WE DO HAVE A COORDINATED PROCESS WITH TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS. UM, AND WE HAVE THIS IDIQ CONTRACT AND WE HAVE HAD BOTH OF THOSE PROCESSES IN PLACE FOR, FOR SEVERAL YEARS IN ORDER TO PROVIDE SORT OF THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF FLEXIBILITY TO, TO ADDRESS THESE CUT REPAIRS TIMELY. AND THEN WE HAVE A NUMBER OF METRICS THAT WE TRACK, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, BOTH AVENUES ARE PERFORMING WELL FOR US. UM, WE HAVE, UH, VIR ANAM HERE WHO'S CAN, CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, UM, MORE COMPLETELY. GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS. MY NAME IS, UH, TAN ANJI, AND I'M THE DIVISION MANAGER OF, UH, UH, CONSTRUCTION AND REHAB, UH, SERVICES DIVISION. UH, MY DIVISION IS THE IN-HOUSE, UH, CONSTRUCTION GROUP FOR AUSTIN WATER. WE DO, UM, WASTEWATER AND WATER REHABS SCHEDULED PROJECTS. UM, AND WE ALSO HAVE, UH, PROJECTS TO, UM, YOU KNOW, HELP OUT OUR, UH, OTHER GROUPS WITHIN THE, WITHIN AUSTIN WATER. SO, SO WHENEVER OUR CREWS GO AND REPAIR, UH, PROJECTS, UH, LEAK, LEAK PROJECTS, YOU KNOW, LINE MAINTENANCE, THINGS LIKE THAT, THOSE PROJECTS GET TRANSFERRED TO, UH, UM, TO TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT. SO WE HAVE ABOUT, UH, SO EACH TIME WE, WE GO OUT AND REPAIR A PROJECT IS CREATED AND THAT PROJECT IS TRANSFERRED TO, UM, THE, UH, TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS DIVISION EVERY NIGHT. SO WE HAVE ABOUT, UH, 155 ON AN AVERAGE 155 WORK ORDERS THAT WE TRANSFER TO, UH, TO, UH, TO TPWD DEPARTMENT EVERY MONTH. AND THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE JUST BASICALLY FROM OUR LINE MAINTENANCE. IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE ALSO HAVE IN-HOUSE PROJECTS THAT WE DO. UH, FOR EXAMPLE, WE ARE, UH, REPLACING SOME OF THE POLY B SERVICE, UH, CONNECTIONS THAT WERE INSTALLED IN THE SEVENTIES. THOSE ARE BREAKING APART. SO MY GROUP, UH, UH, WE GO AHEAD AND, AND REHAB THOSE LINES. AND SO THOSE PROJECTS, WE GIVE IT TO THE IDIQ. SO THE ONES THAT WE, THE LINE MAINTENANCE PROJECTS, WE PROVIDE THAT TO, UH, TPWD, WE HAVE A SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT WITH THEM. WE PROVIDE THEM $11 MILLION PER YEAR, UH, PER, PER YEAR. AND THEN THIS IDIQ, UH, CONTRACT AS DIRECTOR SHEA MENTIONED, IS TO SUPPLEMENT THAT EFFORT, [00:10:01] UH, BY TPWD. SO OUR CURRENT BACKLOG, UH, IS ABOUT 850 AS OF NOW. AND, UH, SO IT'S OUR, OUR PERFORMANCE METRIC, WE WANT, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE IT BELOW 400. AND WE'VE HAD CONTINUOUS DISCUSSIONS WITH TPWD TO, TO ENSURE THAT WE REDUCE THAT BACKLOG AND THEY'VE MADE A COMMITMENT TO REDUCE THAT BACKLOG, UH, BY THE END OF THIS YEAR. THANK YOU. I I, I APPRECIATE THAT. UM, AND SO IF I'M UNDERSTANDING CORRECTLY, THE CONTRACT WOULD HELP SUPPLEMENT THE WORK BEING DONE BY TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT TO REDUCE THE BACKLOG DOWN YES. TOWARD OUR TARGET OF UNDER 400. YES. UM, CAN I ASK A FOLLOW UP QUESTION ON SURE. UM, DO WE FEEL THAT WE ARE ON TARGET TO HIT THAT GOAL OF, UM, GETTING THE BACKLOG BACK UNDER 400 BY THE END OF THE YEAR? WHAT TYPE OF MILESTONES MAKING ARE Y'ALL SORT OF LOOKING AT TO SEE IF WE'RE MEETING THAT? WE ARE MAKE, MAKING EVERY EFFORT TO DO THAT. AND, UH, WHEN THIS IDIQ IS IN PLACE, THEN WE'LL BE ABLE TO FURTHER REDUCE THAT BACKLOG. WE'VE HAD, AS I MENTIONED, WE HAVE HAD CONTINUOUS DIALOGUE WITH, UH, TPWD. THEY'RE ALSO PLANNING TO, UH, HIRE ADDITIONAL STAFF, UH, IN ORDER TO, UH, TO, UM, ATTACK THIS BACKLOG. UH, THEY ALSO HAVE OTHER PROJECTS FROM THE CITY. AND SO IN ADDITION TO THAT, UH, WE'VE BEEN PROVIDING SOME, UH, BACKUP MATERIAL FOR THEM TO JUSTIFY HIRING ADDITIONAL STAFF. GREAT. THANK YOU. UH, THAT ENDS MY LINE OF QUESTION ON ITEM SIX. I, I APPRECIATE THE EXPERTISE. SO, UM, MUCH OBLIGED FOR THE, UH, ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND DETAILS. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. I WAS GONNA ADD A LITTLE COLOR COMMENTARY THAT THIS IS AN ITEM THAT WE TRACK SO CLOSELY THAT, THAT I GET A REPORT ON IT EVERY MONTH AND THEN TANVIR SENDS ME AN UPDATE ON HOW WE'RE DOING. SO, YEP. I WANTED TO ASK SOME MORE COLOR COMMENT COMMENTARY, , UM, THIS HAPPENED RECENTLY. IT WAS NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR, A LEAK, LIKE POPPED UP IN THE STREET, CAUGHT IT IMMEDIATELY. SO I CALLED THE 3 1 1 AUSTIN WATER BEING GREAT. NEXT DAY. THEY WERE OUT, FIXED IT, AND OF COURSE DID THE TEMPORARY PATCH. AND THAT WAS THERE FOR A LITTLE BIT OF TIME. AND THEN JUST, I THINK LAST WEEK GOT PATCHED UP. SO, UM, AGAIN, THE IMPORTANT THING OF CATCHING THE WATER LEAK IMMEDIATELY WAS, WAS GREAT. AND, UM, BUT YEAH, I COULDN'T, I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A, A BIT OF A BACKLOG, BUT AGAIN, THE, THE PATCH WAS GOOD ENOUGH OR TEMPORARY, BUT, UM, YEAH, SO A LITTLE BIT MORE OF, OF THAT REASON WHY THIS IS, I THINK, UH, NEEDED TO, UM, APPROVE THIS, UH, CONTRACT. SO, YEAH. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONERS ON THIS ITEM? ITEM NUMBER SIX. OKAY. DO I HAVE A MOTION FOR APPROVAL? I MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE. OKAY. COMMISSIONER PAN DURGE A MOTIONS TO APPROVE. DO I HAVE A SECOND? I'LL SECOND. OKAY. COMMISSIONER REYES SECOND. SO ALL COMMISSIONERS VOTING IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY. VOTE IS UNANIMOUS. OH, YES. I WANT TO NOTE THAT COMMISSIONER NAVARRO, UM, NOW IS PRESENT AT THE MEETING. I TRAFFIC SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST RAIN. ABSOLUTELY. YEAH. YEAH. IT'S A MESS UP. IT IS A MESS. WE'RE WELCOME TO RAIN, THOUGH. WE WELCOME TO RAIN. THAT'S RIGHT. ABSOLUTELY. AS MUCH AS WE CAN GET. THANK YOU, COMMERS. YEAH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY, MOVING ON TO, [10. Recommend approval to authorize an amendment to the contracts for engineering services for the 2019 Small Scale Water and Wastewater Facilities Engineering Services Rotation List with BGE, Inc. dba Brown & Gay Engineers, Inc., Gannett Fleming, Inc., H.W. Lochner, Inc. dba K. Friese & Associates, LLC, Kennedy/Jenks Consultants, Inc., Walker Partners, LLC, and Weston Solutions, Inc., to increase the amount by $9,500,000 for a revised total contract amount not to exceed $20,000,000. Funding: Funding is available in the Capital Budget of Austin Water. Funding for the remaining contract term is contingent upon available funding in future budgets.] UM, ITEM NUMBER 10, WHICH IS RECOMMEND APPROVAL TO AUTHORIZE AN AMENDMENT TO THE CONTRACTS FOR ENGINEERING SERVICES FOR THE 2019 SMALL SCALE WATER AND WASTEWATER FACILITIES ENGINEERING SERVICES ROTATION LIST WITH BGE INCORPORATED, DBA, BROWN AND GAY ENGINEERS INCORPORATED, GANNET FLEMING INCORPORATED. UM, HW LOCK, LOCK LOCHNER, INCORPORATED, DBAK, FREEZE AND ASSOCIATES, LLC, UH, KENNEDY JINKS CONSULTANTS INC. UH, WALKER PARK, WALKER PARTNERS, LLC AND WESTON SOLUTIONS INCORPORATED TO INCREASE THE AMOUNT BY 9,500,000 FOR A REVISED TOTAL, UH, CONTRACT AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 20 MILLION. FUNDING IS AVAILABLE IN THE CAPITAL BUDGET OF AUSTIN. WATER FUNDING FOR THE REMAINING CONTRACT TERM IS CONTINGENT UPON AVAILABLE FUNDING IN FUTURE BUDGETS. SO THIS WAS JUST A RECUSAL FROM COMMISSIONER PANI. SO, UH, IF, UH, NONE OF THE COMMISSIONERS HAVE QUESTIONS, WE CAN, UH, TAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE. A MOTION TO APPROVE. OKAY. COMMISSIONER REYES MOTIONS TO APPROVE. THEY'LL [00:15:01] HAVE A SECOND. I'LL SECOND. OKAY. COMMISSIONER TRI SECONDS. EVERYONE VOTING IN FAVOR OF APPROVAL, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. COMMISSIONER TU? YES. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. UH, ITEM NUMBER 10, UH, IS APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY UNANIMOUSLY OH, WITH THE RECUSAL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY. SO NOW WE [15. Staff briefing regarding Austin Water's Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant expansion project and related funding. Presentation by Charles Celauro, P.E., Assistant Director of Engineering Services ] ARE MOVING TO THE STAFF BRIEFING, UH, REGARDING AUSTIN WATERS, WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT EXPANSION PROJECT, AND RELATED FUNDING BY CHARLES. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON COMMISSIONERS. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO, UM, PROVIDE THIS BRIEFING ON THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT, UH, EXPANSION AND MODERNIZATION PROJECT. WE'VE REPORTED OUT TO YOU, UH, A FEW TIMES IN THE PAST. AND SO, UM, I KNOW YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH THIS PROJECT. UM, WE'RE AT A MILESTONE NOW OF, UM, BEING READY TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE, UM, REMAINING FUNDING FOR THIS PROJECT. UH, AND SO THIS WILL GO TO CITY COUNCIL. UH, IT IS ON THE AGENDA TOMORROW. UM, AS YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK, UM, THAT WE BROUGHT ON TWO YEARS AGO. AND WORK HAS BEEN PROGRESSING, UM, REALLY PRODUCTIVELY IN TERMS OF GETTING THIS PROJECT READY, UM, AND INTO CONSTRUCTION. SEVERAL AREAS ARE IN CONSTRUCTION NOW. UM, AND SO I'LL TURN IT OVER TO, UM, CHARLES TO INTRODUCE HIMSELF AND PROVIDE THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR WILSON. FOR THE RECORD, I'M CHARLES RO, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNICAL SERVICES. MY PROGRAM AREAS IN CHARGE OF DELIVERING CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS SUCH AS THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. UM, AUSTIN HAS TWO REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANTS. THEY'RE THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT AND THE SOUTH AUSTIN REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT, IT'S LOCATED IN DISTRICT ONE. IT'S ON, UH, NINE FM 9 69 BOULEVARD, JUST EAST OF US, 180 3. UM, IT WAS ORIGINALLY CONSTRUCTED IN 1977, SO ABOUT 50 YEARS OLD WHEN THE AUSTIN POPULATION WAS A ROBUST 320,000. UH, TODAY AT A MILLION PEOPLE IS NOW IT'S TIME TO EXPAND THAT PLANT. UM, THE EXPANSION IS, IS JUST PART OF THIS PROJECT. WE HAVE A LOT OF MODERNIZATION THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING WITH THIS PLANT, UH, IMPROVEMENTS AS WELL. IT'S TRULY A GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN. SO NOT ONLY DO WE HAVE THE EXPANSION OF 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY, BUT WE ARE ALSO DOING AN UPGRADED, UH, TREATMENT PROCESS CALLED BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL, WHICH WILL REDUCE THE NUTRIENT LEVELS LEAVING THE PLANT, BENEFITING THE HEALTH OF COLORADO RIVER, WHICH MOST OF US ARE, IS VITAL TO MOST OF US HERE IN AUSTIN. UM, WE'LL ALSO GO TO SAFER DISINFECTION TECHNOLOGY. WE'LL USE UV ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT DISINFECTION TECHNOLOGY. SO THAT WILL ELIMINATE THE NEED OF A CHEMICAL DISINFECTION, WHICH WILL IMPROVE THE SAFETY OF, OF THE WORKERS AS WELL AS THE OVERALL COMMUNITY. UM, WE'LL MITIGATE ODORS BY INCORPORATING ADVANCED ODOR CONTROL TECHNOLOGIES. WE WILL ALSO BUILD A FLOOD WALL AROUND THE PLANT. THE FLOOD WALL WILL HAVE GATES, SO WE ALLOW TRAFFIC COME IN AND OUT. BUT THE, THE PLANT IS NOW LOCATED IN A HUNDRED YEAR FLOODPLAIN. AND SO WE'LL, WE'LL NEED TO HAVE, PROVIDE PROTECTION FROM FLOODING EVENTS. AND THEN WE'LL ALSO PROVIDE A CONTINUOUS SERVICE TO THE, UH, WHILE WE'RE DOING THIS, THE PROJECT WILL BE PHASED IN SEQUENCE TO ENSURE NO INTERRUPTION OF THE PLANT ITSELF PROCESS. UH, WE ARE PROUD OF THE FACT THAT THE WALNUT CREEK IS ONE OF THE FEW PLANTS IN TEXAS THAT HAS RECEIVED THE NOWELL PLATINUM AWARD. AND THAT MEANS THAT FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS, WE'VE HAD ZERO DISCHARGE VIOLATIONS AT THE PLANT. WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE KEEP THAT THROUGH THE CONSTRUCTION PROCESS. SO AS YOU CAN SEE LOT, WE'RE DOING A LOT MORE THAN JUST THE EXPANSION. ANOTHER WAY TO LOOK AT THAT IS TO LOOK AT THE, THE GRAPHIC TO THE, IT'S MY RIGHT, HOPEFULLY YOU'RE RIGHT TOO. UM, IS THAT THE GREEN BOXES SHOWN ON HERE ARE EXISTING BASINS AND FACILITIES THAT ARE OUT THE PLANT THAT I NEED TO DO WORK IN OR MODIFY FOR THE NEW BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL PROCESS. THE ORANGE BOXES ARE NEW FACILITIES TO SUPPORT THAT. AND THE BLUE BOXES YOU SEE ARE REALLY THE, THE BASINS NEEDED FOR THE ADDITIONAL 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY PLANT. SO YOU CAN SEE ONLY ABOUT ONE THIRD IS ACTUALLY THE EXPANSION. THE REMAINING PART OF IT IS TRULY THE MODERNIZATION AND THE IMPROVEMENTS OF THE PLANT. SO HOW ARE WE GONNA DO THIS? SO WE WENT TO THE, UH, CITY COUNCIL IN DECEMBER 22 FOR ALTERNATIVE DELIVERY METHOD. UH, WE CHOSE A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK METHODOLOGY, WHICH IS COLLABORATIVE DELIVERY METHOD, AND ALSO A [00:20:01] METHOD WE FELT THAT WOULD MITIGATE THE RISKS THAT WE TRY TO DELIVER THIS PROJECT. THEN IN MAY OF 2024, WE ACTUALLY SELECTED THE, THE CMAR CONTRACTOR, THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT RISK CONTRACTOR, WHICH WAS MWH CONTRACTORS. AND AT THAT TIME, THE AUTHORIZATION AMOUNT THAT WAS PROVIDED WAS $900 MILLION. AND THIS, UH, VALUE OF THE CONTRACT WAS BASED OFF OF THAT TIME OF OUR PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING EFFORTS AT THAT WE HAD COMPLETED AT THAT TIME. SO WHAT HAVE WE BEEN DOING? SO WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING IS WHAT WE'VE CALL PRE-CONSTRUCTION PHASE SERVICES WITH THE CONTRACTOR. AS MENTIONED, THIS IS A COLLABORATIVE DESIGN, MEANING THAT THE OWNER, THE DESIGNERS AND THE CONTRACTOR ARE ALL IN THE SAME ROOM HELPING REVIEW THE PLANS, UH, PROVIDING INPUT INTO THE PLANS, WHICH INCLUDE THE CONSTRUCTABILITY REVIEW OF THE, OF THE CONTRACTOR. I CAN BUILD IT QUICKER AND FASTER THIS WAY VERSUS THIS WAY. SO LET'S DO A DESIGN THAT WAY. THAT CONSTRUCTABILITY ALSO THEN ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT HOW WE CONTINUE THE MAINTENANCE, UH, OF THE CONTINUE OPERATION OF THE PLANTS. WE CALL THE MAINTENANCE OF PLANT OPERATION MO O 'CAUSE WE WANT ANOTHER ACRONYM. UM, SO HOW DO WE MAKE THAT WORK? SO THE CONTRACTORS THERE, RIGHT THERE WITH US. IT'S GONNA TAKE ME A WEEK TO DO THAT SO I CAN HAVE THAT DOWN, OR IT'S GONNA TAKE ME 10 MONTHS. WELL, WE CAN'T DO THAT. SO THEY'RE INVOLVED WITH US WITH THAT. THAT INFORMS US OF OUR CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCING AND PHASING TO MAKE SURE WE REDUCE THE RISKS IN THE PLANT TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T ABSORB ANY, UH, ADVERSE RISKS AS WE'RE DOING THAT. AND THROUGH THIS WHOLE PROCESS, THE CONTRACTORS ARE WITH US PROVIDING, UH, COST SAVING OPPORTUNITIES FOR US, RIGHT? NOT ONLY HOW THE BEST WAY TO, TO SEQUENCE THE PROJECT, BUT WHAT, WHAT METHODS WE COULD DO TO REDUCE COST ON THE PLANNER OF THE CONSTRUCTION METHOD. THROUGH ALL THOSE EFFORTS, WE, WE DEVELOP A NEW, UH, PROBABLE OPINION OF CONSTRUCTION COST WITH THE ACCURATE, MORE ACCURATE DESIGN PLANS. WE GET THAT THROUGH THERE. AND THEN AT THE LASTLY, UH, ONCE WE GET THE PLANS TO THE, TO THE STATE WHERE IT CAN BE BID, THE CMAR CONTRACTOR UTILIZES, UH, THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S FRONT END DOCUMENTS, BUT THEY ACTUALLY ACTUALLY DO THE BIDDING PROCESS AND, AND DEVELOP WHAT WE CALL A GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE PACKAGE. AND THAT IS THE ACTUAL BID PACKAGE. SO HOW DO THESE PACKAGES LOOK LIKE? WE'VE IDENTIFIED EIGHT PACKAGES THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO, TO DO FOR THIS PROJECT. UM, AS YOU CAN SEE ON HERE, THREE OF 'EM ARE ALREADY IN CONSTRUCTION TODAY. THE GMP ONE, TWO AND THREE FOUR ON THIS GRAPHIC SHOWS IT'S, UH, CONTRACT AWARD. I AM, UH, UH, WE ACTUALLY OFFICIALLY, UH, AWARDED THAT LAST WEEK. SO ACTUALLY WE NOW HAVE FOUR IN CONSTRUCTION. UH, WE HAVE TWO IN BIDDING PROCESS RIGHT NOW. THE GMP NUMBER FIVE, WHICH IS THE ACTUAL EXPANSION OF THE PLAN ITSELF. AND THEN GMP NUMBER SIX ARE BOTH IN BIDDING PHASE PROCESS RIGHT NOW. AND THEN WE HAVE TWO MORE IN THE DESIGN. THE ACTUAL CONVERSION OF THE EXISTING PLANTS ARE ABOUT 90, 90% DESIGN DONE. AND THEN THE OUTFALL PIPE IS, I, I NEED A PIPE TO, TO HAVE MORE FLOW COMING IN THE PLANT. I NEED A PIPE TO TAKE IT OUT IS 60% DESIGN. HOW THIS LOOKS IN A, IN A SCHEDULE FORMAT. ON THIS SLIDE HERE, THE GRAY BARS IS KIND OF THE DESIGN EFFORT. THE GREEN BARS IS THAT PRE-CONSTRUCTION PHASE, UH, EFFORT THAT I'VE TALKED TO YOU ABOUT THE CMAR CONTRACTOR. AND THEN AS THAT GOES INTO CONSTRUCTION, WHICH ARE THE BLUE BARS, YOU CAN SEE THE GREEN BAR STOP AND THE BLUE BAR START HERE, YOU CAN SEE THIS IS BY QUARTERS. UH, YOU CAN SEE THE THREE, UH, PACKAGES ARE IN CONSTRUCTION. FOUR AND FIVE ARE VERY CLOSE, AND THE OTHERS ARE, ARE, ARE GONNA BE, UH, IN CONSTRUCTION BY THE END OF THIS YEAR. UM, GMP PACKAGE NUMBER SEVEN, WHICH IS THE CONVERSION OF THE EXISTING PLANT, IS THE LAST PROJECT THAT WILL BE DONE COMPLETED AT THE PLANT. UM, THIS IS PART OF OUR PHASING WHERE I PUT 25 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY ON THE PLANT. SO I CAN ACTUALLY TAKE SOME BASINS OFFLINE ON THE EXISTING PLANT. AND WE WILL FINISH THAT ABOUT 2032. AND OUR CURRENT PROJECTIONS SHOW THAT WE WILL BE CLOSE OR AT 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY IN 2032. SO THIS IS BEING DELIVERED JUST ON TIME. SO WHAT WE'RE COMING BACK TO AT THIS TIME, UM, IS ON THE COUNCIL TO MARCH. TODAY'S COMMISSION MEETING IS TO INCREASE THE, UH, AWARD AMOUNT OR THE CONTRACT OR AUTHORIZATION AMOUNT BY $600 MILLION FOR A TOTAL OF $1.5 BILLION. AND, UM, WHY ARE WE COMING AT THIS TIMEFRAME? UM, AT THIS TIME IS IT'S KIND OF, UM, THE, THE METHODOLOGY OR JUST THE, THE PROGRESS OF THE PROJECT AS IT GOES THROUGH THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK METHODOLOGY, THE TOP LINE UP THERE, IT SHOWS KIND OF WHAT WE DO 99% OF THE TIME. WHAT YOU SEE MOST OF THE TIME HERE AT THE COMMISSION IS A DESIGN BID BUILD. [00:25:01] WHEREAS AN OWNER, MYSELF, WE HIRE THE ENGINEER, WE GO THROUGH PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING, WE GO THROUGH ALL THE DIFFERENT STEPS OF FINAL DESIGN. WE GO GET A, UH, CONSTRUCTION COST ESTIMATE, WE BID THE PROJECT, AND THEN WE ACTUALLY GET A COMPETITIVE LOW BID. SO I ACTUALLY HAVE A KNOWN CONSTRUCTION COST WHEN I USUALLY COME TO THIS COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL WITH 99% OF OUR PROJECTS. CONSTRUCTION MANAGER RISK IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT. IT STARTS THE SAME. WE HAVE AN OWNER MYSELF. WE GET THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING AND THAT, AND THAT DURING THAT TIMEFRAME, THAT'S WHEN WE DETERMINE THAT IT WAS BEST TO GO AHEAD AND GET A CMAR CONTRACTOR ON BOARD TO DELIVER THIS PROJECT TO MITIGATE RISKS. SO AT THAT TIME, WE GO AHEAD AND SELECT THE CMAR CONTRACTOR, AND I WENT TO THE CITY COUNCIL MAY OF 24 RIGHT AFTER PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING AS MENTIONED NOW THE CONTRACTORS WITH US, WE ARE NOW GOING THROUGH, UH, DETAILED DESIGN OF THE, OF THE, OR OR INCREASING THE LEVEL OF DETAILED DESIGN OF THE CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS. WE'RE GETTING A DETAILED COST TESTAMENT. WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING OUT TO GETTING BID PRICES THAT GET KNOWN PRICES. AS MENTIONED. I'VE GOT FOUR OF 'EM THAT ARE, WE HAVE THE KNOWN PRICE, TWO ARE STILL IN BID AND TWO ARE STILL IN DESIGN, BUT WE NOW KNOW OF GREATER, UH, UH, DETAIL LEVEL OF THE ACTUAL CONSTRUCTION COST. SO NOW WE'RE COMING BACK AGAIN TO THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THE $1.5 BILLION REQUEST. AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE COMING BACK TO YOU AT THIS TIME. SO COSTS HAVE COMING UP HOW WE'RE MANAGING THE COSTS AND THE RISK. UH, ONE OF THE BIG COST DRIVERS IS THIS, UH, DYNAMIC MARKET THAT WE FIND OURSELVES IN AFTER COVID, THE ESCALATION OF COSTS AND GOODS AND SERVICES HAS REALLY, WE'VE, WE'VE SEEN THAT, UH, DEPENDING ON WHAT, UH, AGENCY YOU'RE LOOKING AT, IT'S, UH, IT'S WELL ABOVE 30% SINCE THE COVID PRICES, WHEN WE HAD THE PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING EFFORT AND THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS ON THERE MENTIONED A GREATER LEVEL OF DETAIL OF DESIGN. WE KIND OF KNEW WHAT WE NEEDED, BUT HOW IS IT ACTUALLY GONNA FIT AND WHAT ACTUALLY IMPLICATIONS DID WE HAVE TO DO TO MAKE THAT THAT NEW PIECE OF EQUIPMENT FIT IN THERE. SO A LOT GREATER DETAIL DESIGN OF HOW WE'RE GOING TO MAKE THAT WORK. UM, CONSTRUCTABILITY CONSTRAINTS IN TERMS OF MAINTAINING THE, UH, PLANT CAPACITY, WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DO SOME TEMPORARY BYPASS TREATMENT AND STORAGE. SO THAT'S SOMETHING TO MITIGATE THE RISK. SO THOSE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL COSTS WE HAD TO COME. UM, LIMIT, WE, WE HAVE A KIND OF A, UH, UH, UH, WE, WE REQUEST THE CONTRACTORS OF THE COME ON BOARD. THEY'RE WE'RE, WE ARE DOING COMPETITIVE SEAL PROPOSALS, SO THEY'RE QUALIFICATION BASED. WE WANT CON UH, CONTRACTORS WHO HAVE ACTUALLY WORKED AT AN ACTIVE WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. AND SO WE WANT THAT, THAT THAT EXPERTISE. SO THERE'S NOT EVERY CONTRACTOR TO COME WORK FOR US. SO WE DO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A LIMITED POOL THERE. SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT, UH, ONE THING THAT AND, AND SPACE LIMITATION OF SPACE, YOU KNOW, IT'S KIND OF INTERESTING AS THE WATER LINE, WHICH I CANNOT BELIEVE IS GONNA BE THE LARGEST BUILDING IN TEXAS. AS THAT TOWER CRANE CAME DOWN LAST MONTH, I'VE ACTUALLY GOT A TOWER CRANE SITTING AT WALNUT CREEK, WHICH OUR TREATMENT PLANT AND PROBABLY HAVE TWO MORE COMING AND WE'RE UTILIZING AS ONE OF THE CONSTRUCTION METHODOLOGIES THAT THE SEYMOUR CONTRACT CAME UP, IS WE'RE GONNA HAVE A SHARED TRAIN, UH, CRANES WHERE, UH, THOSE TOWER CRANES CAN SHARE BETWEEN THE EIGHT GMP PACKAGES. SO WE'RE NOT ALL STUMBLING ALL OVER EACH OTHER. 'CAUSE THE SITE'S SO CONSTRAINT AND THEN REGULATORY EXCELLENCE. SO WE DID, WE DID, WE ARE GOING TO TUNNEL THE OUTFALL PIPE, LEAVING THE WHICH TREE PLANT TO GO TO THE COLORADO RIVER TO SAVE THE THOUSAND TREES AND, AND NOT, AND PROTECT THAT REPAIR AND WATERWAY THERE. SO THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF AN INCREASED COST. BUT THROUGH THIS, AS WE'VE GONE THROUGH THIS AND WE'VE, WE'VE MANAGED THE COST AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE, AS WE SAW THE COST RISING, IT ALSO OFFERED US AN OPPORTUNITY. AND THE OPPORTUNITY WAS GO BACK OUT TO OUR LENDING AGENCIES AND LET THEM KNOW ABOUT WHAT WE'RE SEEING WITH THE COST AGENCIES. SO THE NEXT THING THAT WE ALSO ARE COMING BACK TO WITH THE CITY COUNCIL IS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO INCREASE OUR LOAN AMOUNT FOR EPA WITH THE ALONE TO $1 BILLION. SO WE INITIALLY HAD GONE TO CITY COUNCIL BACK IN 24 SLIGHTLY JUST AFTER WE SELECT TO SEE MORE CONTRACTOR FOR ABOUT FOUR $46 MILLION. WE'D LIKE TO INCREASE THAT, UH, ABOUT $553 MILLION TO A TOTAL OF $1 BILLION, UH, WITH THE LOAN FUNDING. UM, ALSO LIKE TO NOTE THAT, UH, JANUARY, UH, FEBRUARY 19TH, UH, THIS WAS LAST MONTH, THE TEXAS WATER BUILDING BOARD, THEIR BOARD APPROVED THE $59 MILLION LOAN FOR THE, THE CLEAN WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND, WHICH THEN LEAVES ABOUT $441 MILLION REMAINING THAT WE WOULD NEED TO FUND THROUGH THE AUSTIN REVENUE BONDS. UM, UM, WITH THE, UH, LOW INTEREST LOANS THAT WE, UH, ARE ACHIEVED FROM THE WIA EPA WIA LOAN AS WELL AS THE TEXAS WATER BOARD LOAN. THE [00:30:01] AVAILABILITY OF THE WFI LOAN HAS A UNIQUE ASPECT ALSO AS A DEFER PRINCIPAL PAYMENT. UM, THE ABILITY AVAILABILITY OF ME TO REBALANCE SOME OF MY OTHER, UH, UH, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS. I RUN ABOUT 400 PROJECTS IN A FIVE YEAR PERIOD. UM, WE DO NOT SEE ANY IMPACT THROUGH THE FORECASTED RATES THAT WE SUBMITTED IN 2025 TO BE ANTICIPATED THROUGH THIS REQUEST THAT WE HAVE TODAY. UH, WITH THAT, THAT ENDS MY PRESENTATION. WE'LL BE GLAD TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. OKAY, THANK YOU CHARLES. UM, SO I, I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS, BUT I'LL OPEN IT UP TO OTHER COMMISSIONERS IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. UM, SO WHEN I WAS READING THIS, IT SAID, UH, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT, UH, FACTOR IN DRIVING UP THIS CROSS WAS INFLATION RELATED ESCALATION. CORRECT. SO, UH, PARTICULARLY MY SPECIFIC QUESTION IS, WHEN THIS INITIAL BID WAS DRAWN OUT, WAS THAT FACTOR NOT CONSIDERED? SO AT THE TIME OF WHEN WE HAD THIS, UH, WHEN WE WENT TO THE CITY COUNCIL IN MAY OF 24 MM-HMM . WE ACTUALLY WENT, UM, UH, WE ACTUALLY BEGAN THAT IN 23. SO, WHICH MEANS THE, THE COST THAT WE HAD WAS REALLY PROBABLY A 22 NUMBER COST ABOUT THAT TIMEFRAME MM-HMM . AND WE HAD NOT SEEN THE IMPACT OF COVID INFLATION AT THAT, THAT TIME. UM, I DON'T HAVE A WHOLE BUNCH OF 75 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY PLANT SITTING HERE, SO I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO REFERENCE MATERIAL YEAH. REFERENCE. SURE. UM, THE PIPELINES, UH, COST IS THAT WE DO PIPELINES ALL OVER ALL THE TIME. AND ACTUALLY, AS Y'ALL KNOW, THE ENGINEERING COMMUNITY KNOWS THAT, UH, THE CITY REQUIRES YOU TO HAVE A LINE BID ITEM, RIGHT? MM-HMM . AND WE GET THERE. YOU CAN GO ONLINE TODAY AND GET THE LAST SIX MONTH ROLLING AVERAGE. RIGHT? SO THAT IS, WE GET TO SEE THAT. BUT A 75 MILLION GALLON PROBABLY, WE DON'T SEE THAT. WHAT I DO SEE IS THAT WHEN WE ARE, WE'RE GOING TO THIS, UH, WE GOT THE COST FROM THE, FROM THE ENGINEER, AND THEN WE EVALUATE IT, AND THEN I TRY TO COMPARE AS BEST I CAN, RIGHT? SO THE OTHER PARENT PASSES, SOME OTHER, OTHER PROJECTS THAT HAVE OCCURRED. THE MOST RECENT PROJECTS THAT OCCURRED AT THAT TIME WAS ONE PROJECT THAT AUSTIN WATER IS INVOLVED IN WAS THE EAST BRUSHY CREEK REGIONAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT IN CITY OF ROUND ROCK. AND THAT WAS GOING FROM A 20 MILLION GALLON PER DAY FACILITY TO A 30 MILLION GALLON PER DAY FACILITY. SO IT'S EXPANDING ABOUT 30%, WE'RE EXPANDING ABOUT 25. IT'S A LITTLE LOWER COST, I MEAN, LITTLE SCALE SIZES DOWN, BUT THEY ARE GOING FROM THE CONVENTIONAL ACTIVATED TO BIOLOGICAL NUTRIENT REMOVAL, JUST LIKE WE WERE, THEY WERE REDOING THEIR HEAD WORK STRUCTURE, JUST LIKE WE WERE DOING, THEY WERE DOING LIFT STATION, JUST LIKE WE WERE DOING, RIGHT. THEY WERE DOING FILTERS, THEY WERE USING UV. I HAD A FLOOD WALL AND I GOT SOME OUTFALL PIPES THAT THEY WEREN'T NOT DOING. BUT WHEN WE WENT THROUGH THAT, WE SAW THAT THE PRICES THAT, UH, WE HAD AT THAT TIME WERE IN LINE WITH THE BID PRICES THAT WE SAW AT THAT POINT. SO WE DID NOT SEE ANY RED FLAGS COMING FROM THIS COVID INFLATIONARY PRICE. SO NO, WE, WE'VE KIND OF LIVED THROUGH IT, THROUGH, THROUGH THIS SEYMOUR PROCESS THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW. RIGHT. SO, SURE. YES. WELL, INFLATION'S JUST ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF OUR ECONOMY, WHETHER YOU'RE REFERENCING IT TO LIKE A, THIS IS A MASSIVE PROJECT. I'M, I'M NOT SAYING THAT NONE OF THIS IS MERITED. UH, I THINK MY CHALLENGE HERE IS INFLATION'S NOT GONNA GO ANYWHERE. IT'S BEEN A PART OF ALL CONSTRUCTION COSTS. UM, ARE YOU TAKING THAT INTO CONSIDERATION AND MAYBE FUTURE BIDS? Y YES. SO EACH YEAR OF THE 400 REFERENCE PROJECTS I DO, RIGHT? THERE'S ALWAYS SOME IN CONSTRUCTION, SO THEY'RE ALREADY SET. THERE'S SOME IN DESIGN, SOME IN BIDDING, AND SOME PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING PHASE. AS WE GO THROUGH EACH MILESTONE OF IT, OF, OF THAT PROGRESS, MOSTLY FOR PRELIMINARY, 30% DESIGN, 60% DESIGN, WE REQUEST UPDATED COSTS FROM THE CON UH, UH, FROM THE ENGINEERS ON THAT MM-HMM . AND THEN WHEN WE GO THROUGH THE, UH, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT EACH YEAR, WE KNOW WHAT THE UPDATED COST IS. RIGHT. SO EACH YEAR I DO UPDATE THOSE DIFFERENT, UM, PROJECTS THAT I HAVE AND NEW AVAILABLE DATA. WE DO UPDATE THOSE. SO MY, EACH YEAR I DO REFER, REFLECT THAT INFORMATION COST IN THERE. OKAY. AND I, I WOULD SAY THAT THE, UM, THE SORT OF UNIQUE CHALLENGE HERE IS THE, THE TIME IN WHICH WE BROUGHT THE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK CONTRACT TO COUNCIL. SURE. WE WEREN'T YET SEEING THOSE REALLY EXCESSIVE INFLATIONARY PRESSURES COMING INTO OUR BIDS. AND SO WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY, WE COULD SORT OF SEE IT ON THE HORIZON, BUT WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY, ANY BASIS ON WHICH TO GO WITH A DIFFERENT NUMBER MM-HMM . UM, AND WE'RE HAVING SOME CONVERSATIONS IN THE CITY ABOUT HOW DO WE BRING FORWARD THESE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK CONTRACTS BECAUSE IT'S ALWAYS GONNA BE [00:35:01] AT PRELIMINARY ENGINEERING, AND SO IT'S NEVER GONNA BE THE FINAL NUMBER. SURE. AND SO HOW CAN WE DO THAT A LITTLE BETTER WHERE WE'RE NOT PROJECTING A NUMBER THAT'S, THAT WE KNOW IS NOT GONNA BE THE FINAL NUMBER. RIGHT. RIGHT. SO, AND THAT, LIKE CHARLES IS SAYING, YOU KNOW, IN OUR NORMAL COURSE OF BUSINESS, WE ARE INCORPORATING THE INFLATIONARY PRESSURES ON A YEAR OVER YEAR BASIS MM-HMM . AND WE DON'T BRING IT TO YOU ALL OR TO COUNCIL UNTIL IT'S LOCKED IN. RIGHT. AND SO WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO CMAR A LITTLE MORE EFFECTIVELY SO THAT THOSE PRICE, UM, AND NOT THE PROCESS, JUST THE WHAT PRICE WE BRING AT WHAT TIME SURE. TO JUST BE A LITTLE MORE TRANSPARENT. YEAH. YEAH. YEAH. I MEAN, I, I THIS IS NEEDED. UM, UH, THIS IS MERITED. I'M, I'M NOT, UH, CHALLENGING THAT. MY NEXT QUESTION THAT I HAVE IS, AFTER YOU WENT THROUGH THIS, UH, DETAILED BID WITH MWH CONSTRUCTORS, HAVE YOU GUYS, UH, SOUGHT AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW OF THAT EXACT SAME INFORMATION WITH ANOTHER CONTRACTOR THAT HAS THE EXACT SAME EXPERIENCE? SO ARE YOU REFERENCING WHEN WE WENT IN THE INITIAL TIME THAT WE WENT SELECTED, WELL POST, SO POST SO INITIAL IS KIND OF, I THINK WE ALL KNEW THAT IT'S PROBABLY GONNA COME UNDER, RIGHT? CORRECT. 'CAUSE YOU'RE, YOU'RE NOT TO THE POINT WHERE WE GOT INTO DETAILS. CORRECT. BUT NOW WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DETAILS. CORRECT. AND NOW WE'RE, WE'RE GETTING PRETTY CLOSE AND PRECISE AT WHAT THE BID IS. HAVE YOU REFERENCED THAT BID WITH SOMEBODY WITH ANOTHER QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR? SO, SO DURING THE BIDDING PROCESS OF THE GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE, THE, THE PROCESS WE GO THROUGH IS THAT THE, BEFORE THE, THE CMAR CONTRACT ACTUALLY BIDS THE ACTUAL PRICE MM-HMM . HE OFFERS US WHAT WE CALL IGMP INITIAL GUARANTEED MAXIMUM PRICE. SO THIS IS WHAT I THINK IT'S GONNA COST. SO THAT IS KINDA LIKE THE, UH, YELLOW BOX IN THIS, IN THIS FLOW CHART, RIGHT? MM-HMM . HE'S GIVING US AN OPINION OF COST. I STILL HAVE MY ENGINEER ON BOARD MM-HMM . TO REVIEW THAT COST. RIGHT? AND THEN HE GETS THE, THE, THE, THE BIDDING DOCUMENTS AND ACTUALLY COMPETITIVELY SEAL BIDS THAT, SO WE DO SELECT THE CONTRACTORS ON, UM, QUALIFICATION AS WELL AS PRICE. SO HE GOES OUT THERE AND SO IT'S A COMPETITIVE BID AND HE GETS THOSE PACKAGES TOGETHER. AND TO DATE, ALL THOSE PACKAGES HAVE BEEN LOWER THAN THE IGMP TO DATE SO FAR. SO THE PRICE THAT WE DO GET IN HAND IS A COMPETITIVE PROCESS. IT'S NOT JUST THE CMAR CONTRACTOR SAYING, I THINK IT'S GONNA COST THIS MUCH. RIGHT. HE ACTUALLY GOES THROUGH, UH, THE COMPANY ACTUALLY GOES THROUGH AND ACTUALLY COMPETITIVELY BIDS THOSE AND THEY ACTUALLY USE THE SAME FRONT END DOCUMENTS I WOULD NORMALLY USE. RIGHT. BUT HE'S ACTUALLY DOING IT FOR THE CITY AND GETS IT TOGETHER. THE ADVANTAGE THAT WE HAVE IN THE COST SAVINGS WE GET OUT FOR THE CMAR CONTRACTOR FOR, VERSUS ME DOING IT, IS THAT, UM, IF I WAS BIDDING THIS PARTICULAR PACKAGE RIGHT HERE, RIGHT? MM-HMM . UM, I COULD GET FOUR DIFFERENT CONTRACTORS TO DO ONE EACH LITTLE PART, OR I CAN GET ONE TO DO THE WHOLE THING, RIGHT? AND THE COMPETITIVE SEAL, THE SEYMOUR CONTRACTOR SAID, WELL, THIS GUY WAS THE LOWEST, SO HE'S GONNA DO THIS PART. THIS GUY'S THE LOWEST, SO THIS COMPANY'S GONNA DO THIS PART. SO I CAN GET THE LOWEST OF ALL THE THINGS A CONCRETE OR THE ELECTRICAL MM-HMM . OR THE PIPES MM-HMM . RIGHT? SO HE CAN PACKAGE IT TOGETHER LIKE THAT AND GIVE ME THE LOWEST PRICE OF THAT. AFTER WE GET THROUGH WITH ALL THAT, WITH THE CITY, WE GO THROUGH ALL THAT GMP MAXIMUM PRICE AND WE GO THROUGH ALL THE COST OF WORK AND THEN ALL THE ADDITIONAL FEES THAT ARE, ARE ON THERE, YOU KNOW, UH, PROFITS, OVERHEAD BONDS AND STUFF LIKE THAT. WE'D GO THROUGH THAT AND THEN WE VALIDATED OURSELVES WITH THE ENGINEER. SO THAT IS THE CHECK AND BALANCE WE DO HAVE, BUT THE ACTUAL COST OF WORK IS ACTUALLY A TRUE COMPETITIVE BID. YEAH. IT'S A SEALED PROPOSAL BID. 'CAUSE THERE'S ALSO QUALIFICATIONS, BUT IT IS STILL COMPETITIVE. THAT'S, THAT'S ALL I GOT. THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS. OTHER QUESTIONS? I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS. DID, DID YOU WANNA GO FOR NEXT CHAIR? GO AHEAD. ALRIGHT. UM, CHARLES, THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION. VERY HELPFUL AND INSIGHTFUL. UM, TWO PARTS. I THINK ON THE LAST SLIDE YOU TALKED ABOUT HOW THIS DOES NOT NEED ANY MODIFICATION TO AUSTIN WATERS RATE PLAN FOR THE APPROVED BUDGET. SO THAT'S GREAT. HOW DOES THAT IMPACT YOUR EXISTING CI PS HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT IT WAS GONNA INVOLVE YOU, , ? IS THIS GONNA IMPACT YOUR EXISTING CIPS PLAN CIPS OR IS THIS GONNA PUSH SOME THINGS OUT TO SUBSEQUENT YEARS? LIKE HOW DOES THAT PLAY ALONG? SO, SO THERE, AS MENTIONED, I DO HAVE ABOUT 400 PROJECTS, RIGHT? SO I AM HAVE THE AVAILABILITY TO REBALANCE SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT ARE NEEDED, UH, WITHOUT REALLY ACCEPTING ANY KIND OF INCREASED RISKS, UH, TO PROVIDE, UH, TREATMENT, UH, OR SERVICE TO THE CUSTOMER. SO THAT IS MY EFFORT PART OF THAT. MM-HMM . WHERE [00:40:01] I CAN DO THAT. SO, AND IN SOME PROJECTS, LIKE, UH, A STORAGE RECOVERY ACTUALLY DID IS GONNA BE A LITTLE LATER, RIGHT? MM-HMM . AND, AND SO THAT, THAT HELPED OUT A LITTLE BIT, JUST, JUST COINCIDENTALLY MM-HMM . SO THOSE ARE LITTLE, SOME OF THOSE PROJECT THINGS OF THAT NATURE. SO I HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A, OF A KNOB, I CAN TURN ON THAT PART. MM-HMM . AND THEN FINANCE HAS SOME OF THEIR KNOBS. JOSEPH GONZALEZ, UH, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OVER BUSINESS SERVICES. UM, YEAH. AND, AND FROM A RATE PLANNING PERSPECTIVE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE BEEN PLANNING FOR THIS PROJECT FOR, FOR MANY YEARS. UM, AND THERE'S REALLY TWO BIG DRIVERS TO OUR BUDGET AND OUR RATES AS IT RELATES TO CIP PROJECTS. UH, PART OF IT IS WE'VE GOT A, A, UM, FINANCIAL POLICY THAT SAYS WE SHOULD FINANCE ROUGHLY 35 OR, OR CASH FUND, 35 TO 50% OF, OF OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS. UM, THINK OF THAT AS A DOWN PAYMENT. UM, AND THEN OF COURSE YOU, YOU FINANCE AND, AND PAY THE REST OVER TIME. UM, SO THE FINANCING PIECE COMES THROUGH AS DEBT SERVICE AND UH, THE, THE CASH FUNDING OR DOWN PAYMENT PIECE HAS IMMEDIATE IMPACT ON OUR OPERATING BUDGET, BUT IT'S, IT'S A PERCENTAGE OF OUR ANNUAL CIP EXPENDITURES. SO, AND I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT THAT DURING OUR 2024 COST OF SERVICE PROCESS, UH, THE WALNUT CREEK PROJECT SPECIFICALLY WAS A BIG POINT OF DISCUSSION AS IT RELATES TO THAT FINANCIAL POLICY, YOU KNOW, FUNDING BETWEEN 35 AND 50%, UH, UPFRONT AS, AS YOU KNOW, CASH DOWN PAYMENT. UH, WE RECOGNIZE THE IMPACT ON TODAY'S CUSTOMERS ON PAYING FOR MORE THAN AT AT LEAST A THIRD OF THE PROJECT TODAY FOR, UH, ENHANCEMENTS AND, AND EXPANSION THAT WILL SERVE CUSTOMERS FOR THE NEXT 40, 50 YEARS. RIGHT. AND SO FROM A GENERATIONAL EQUITY PERSPECTIVE, YOU KNOW, WE WANTED TO, TO LOWER THAT RATE IMPACT FOR TODAY'S CUSTOMERS AND WE RECOMMENDED, YOU KNOW, 20% CASH FINANCING TARGET OR DOWN PAYMENT, UH, FOR LARGE GENERATIONAL PROJECTS LIKE THIS. AND, AND AS WE WENT THROUGH OUR PUBLIC INVOLVE INVOLVEMENT PROCESS, YOU KNOW, OUR STAKEHOLDERS AGREED THAT, YOU KNOW, 35 TO 50% WAS, WAS TOO MUCH AND 20% STRUCK A GOOD BALANCE OF GENERATIONAL EQUITY, UM, AND STILL REDUCING THE LONG-TERM FINANCING COSTS OF, OF A PROJECT OF, OF THIS SIZE. SO AS WE THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, OUR RATE PLAN AND, AND THE TWO IMPACTS TO OUR BUDGET, UM, THE, THE DOWN PAYMENT PIECE IS A PERCENTAGE OF OUR ANNUAL SPEND. AND, UM, ALTHOUGH THE PROJECT COST IS GOING UP, UM, WITH THE 20% TARGET AND UM, THAT THE 600 MILLION BEING SPREAD OVER THE LIFE OF THE PROJECT, IT DOESN'T SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE OUR PEAK ANNUAL SPEND THAT WE WERE WORKING TO COVER WITH OUR RATE PLAN. SO, UM, SO WE'RE ABLE TO DO THAT. UM, IN ADDITION, THE BULK OF THE DEBT REPAYMENT, UH, WILL JUST NATURALLY FALL WITH THE TIMING OF THE PROJECT, UH, BEYOND PEAK YEARS OF OUR, OUR CURRENT LEVELS OF DEBT SERVICE. SO AS OUR DEBT SERVICE FALLS, OUR PEAK YEARS ARE IN 29 AND 30, UM, MUCH OF THE DEBT REPAYMENT WILL BE SCHEDULED AFTER THAT, YOU KNOW, BOTH NATURALLY AND IN TERMS OF HOW WE STRUCTURE THE DEBT. UM, AND, AND SO WE'LL HAVE CAPACITY AS THE ANNUAL SCHEDULED DEBT SERVICE FALLS TO LAYER ON THE NEW DEBT IN A WAY THAT, YOU KNOW, MINIMIZES THE IMPACT TO, TO OUR CUSTOMERS AND STILL FITS WITHIN OUR, THE RATE PLAN THAT WE PROPOSED LAST YEAR. VERY HELPFUL. VERY DETAILED. THANK YOU . UM, JUST ONE OTHER QUESTION. THIS IS MORE JUST LIKE IT'S A MORE GENERIC COMMENT. UH, MORE THAN A CONCERN, I GUESS CMA THE SIZE WAS REALLY WHAT DICTATED IT TO BE A CA, RIGHT? NOT SO, I MEAN, I SEE A LOT OF OTHER BENEFITS THAT WERE LISTED HERE, AND I'M NOT FULLY SOLD ON THE FACT THAT THIS IS SPECIFIC ONLY TO CMAR PROJECTS. SOME OF THESE BENEFITS LIKE OPERATIONAL CONTINUITY CAN HAPPEN THROUGH A CONVENTIONAL DESIGN BID BUILD. SO MY POINT WAS IT'S IS THE SIZE THAT DICTATED THE CMAR BENEFIT OVER ANYTHING ELSE. I'LL WEIGH IN ON THAT, THAT WE, WE, WE WENT THROUGH A SIGNIFICANT ANALYSIS OF WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO DELIVER THIS PROJECT. AND IF WE DON'T, WE, IT'S A CONSTRAINED SITE WITH MULTIPLE PROJECTS HAPPENING AT ONCE. AND SO A MAJOR BENEFIT OF CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK IS ONE CONTRACTOR WHO'S RESPONSIBLE FOR DELIVERING ALL OF THOSE INTEGRATED PROJECTS ACROSS THE SITE. WE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO BID THIS AS ONE PROJECT. WE WOULD'VE BROKEN IT UP AND BID IT AS EIGHT DIFFERENT PROJECTS. UH, AND, AND THAT LAUREN IS SAYING EVEN MORE MAYBE . YEAH. UM, AND, AND THAT WOULD BE EX LIKE ALMOST [00:45:01] IMPO MAYBE IMPOSSIBLE FOR US TO MANAGE ON THAT ONE SITE, ALL OF THOSE CONTRACTOR INTERACTIONS. AND SO HAVING A SINGLE CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OVERALL PROJECT DELIVERY WAS REALLY IMPORTANT. THANK YOU. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. I JUST HAD, I JUST HAD A COUPLE LIKE LOGISTICAL, SO OF THE, LIKE THE EIGHT PACKAGES, UM, I GUESS KIND OF A ROUGH PERCENTAGE OF A TOTAL COST. I MEAN, IT SEEMS TO ME LIKE THE, THE 75 MGD EXISTING PLAN, THAT'S THE, A BIG BULK OF IT I WOULD IMAGINE. SO DO YOU HAVE ANY SENSE OF PERCENTAGE WISE OF TOTAL CONTRACT, WHAT THIS BREAKS DOWN AS? YEAH, UH, I CAN GO, I CAN GO REAL QUICK FOR YOU. YOU READY? ? SO, SO, UH, PACKAGE NUMBER ONE, WHICH WAS THE HEADWORKS IS ABOUT 8% OVER THE ORAL COST. UH, PACKAGE TWO, THE MOBILIZATION AND SITE SERVICES. NOW THAT IS WHERE THE CONTRACTORS BUILDING THEIR, WE CALL IT TRAILER CITY. UM, UM, IT'S UNIQUE. THEY ACTUALLY BUILT THE SHIPPING CONTAINERS AND THEY PUT 'EM TOGETHER. IT'S VERY INTERESTING. YOU KNOW, Y'ALL SHOULD GO OUT AND TAKE A LOOK ANYWAY. INCLUDES THAT PLUS INCLUDES THE GENERAL CONDITIONS FOR THE CONTRACTOR. SO ALSO WHEN I SAY THAT IT LIKE SOUNDS HIGH, BUT IT'S, IT'S A LOT OF, ALL THE MISCELLANEOUS COSTS. JUST SAY IT'S 6%, THE LONG LEAD ITEMS, WHICH IS, UM, UH, ALL THE ELECTRICAL STUFF, THE LONG, IT'S GONNA TAKE US A YEAR TO GET, WE WANTED TO PURCHASE THAT EARLY. IT'S ABOUT 5%. THE FLOOD WALL IS ABOUT 5%. THE PACKAGE, THE 25 MILLION GALLON PER DAY PLANT IS ABOUT 31%. THE WET WEATHER FACILITY IS 9%. THE WET WEATHER FACILITY IS A, A MAJOR CONSTRUCTION COST S UH, UH, SAVINGS THAT WE DID WHEN I CONVERTED THE EXISTING PLANT. THE HYDRAULICS, UH, WOULDN'T ALLOW ME TO GO THROUGH THE FULL PEAK FACTOR. SO WE, SO WE HAVE TO BUILD A WE WEATHER FACILITY FOR THAT. SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE DOING THAT. UH, THE EXIST, THE CONVERSION OF THE, OF THE 75 MILLION GALLON PER DAY PLANTS, ABOUT 26%. AND THEN THE OUTFALL PIPES, WHICH IS ALSO INCLUDES SOME OF THE IN FLUENT PIPES IS 6%. THANK YOU. THAT WAS THE EXACT ANSWER I WAS LOOKING FOR. UM, AND THEN, UH, WHEN YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE BENEFITS AND YOU MENTIONED ABOUT THE, UM, KIND OF ONE FOR LOOKING FOR CONTRACTORS WITH SPECIALIZED, UH, HISTORY OF WORKING ON IT, YOU KNOW, CONTINUING OPERATING. DO YOU FEEL LIKE THAT'S CONSTRAINING SOME OF THE OPPORTUNITIES OR, UM, THE NUMBER OF CONTRACTORS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY BID A, A PROJECT IF IT WASN'T, UM, THAT CONSTRAINT? IT, IT, IT MAY, UH, JUST, UH, NOT THAT IT'S OPENED UP FOR ALL CONTRACTORS. UM, I, I DO SAY THAT, I MEAN, EVEN IN OUR DESIGN BID BUILD, OUR, OUR SECTION, OUR REQUIREMENTS STILL REQUIRE THE CONTRACTORS TO HAVE LIGHT PROJECTS. UM, THE COMPETITIVE SEAL PROPOSAL DOES ALLOW US TO EVALUATE CONTRACTORS WHO HAVE HAD REALLY EXTENSIVE, UH, WORK IN EXISTING WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT. SO WE CAN SCORE THAT A LITTLE BIT AS AN ADVANTAGE FOR US. 'CAUSE WE DO FEEL THAT'S AN ADVANTAGE FOR US. SO IN THAT REGARD, MAYBE SLIGHT REDUCTION. YEAH. 'CAUSE JUST THINKING ABOUT TRYING TO GET THE BEST PRICE, RIGHT? AND IF YOU'RE LIKE, WELL, WE, WE ONLY REQUIRE, YOU KNOW, ONLY ALLOW CONTRACTORS WHO HAVE WORKED ON OPERATING CURRENTLY. AND IT'S NOT, I I SAY THAT MAYBE THAT, MAYBE I DIDN'T SAY THAT REALLY CLARIFY. I MEAN, IT IS ONE OF THE, HOW ABOUT IT'S ONE OF THE, UM, QUALIFICATION BASES THAT'S IN THERE FOR SCORING OPPORTUNITIES. SO HOW ABOUT THAT? UM, PLEASE DO NOT GET WRONG THAT, THAT, UH, UH, I, I DON'T KNOW, I CAN'T SAY SPECIFICALLY, BUT I BET I COULD GET SOMEONE TO TELL ME, THERE'S PROBABLY A CONTRACTOR ON BOARD THAT'S WORKING ON THAT HASN'T BEEN ON THE WASTEWATER PLANT, LIKE HANDLING SOME PIPING OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. BUT THAT'S WHERE THE SEAMAR CONTRACTOR IS ON BOARD AND OVERSEES THAT RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE SURE THAT PERSON GETS TAKEN CARE OF. YEAH, NO, THANKS. I JUST WANTED TO JUST BECAUSE I KNOW WHENEVER I LOOK AT THESE THINGS FOR BIDDING FOR MY COMPANY AND I'M LIKE, OH, I GUESS I CAN'T DO THAT ONE. SO, UM, YOU JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING, YOU KNOW, A GOOD, UH, UM, AMOUNT OF, WE HAVE TO, TO DATE, AS MENTIONED, WE'VE ALWAYS HAD MULTIPLE BIDS, AND SO FAR THEY HAVE BEEN LOWER THAN WHAT WE ANTICIPATED. OKAY. SO, UM, AND SO THAT BRINGS ME TO, I GUESS MY LAST, UM, SO IN YOUR MEMO, UM, DIRECTOR WALSON, I GUESS US SAID THAT, UH, AUSTIN WATERS DOES NOT ANTICIPATE MODIFYING THE AMENDED CONTRACT AMOUNT, UH, AMENDED CONTRACT AMOUNT FOR THE EXPANSION AFTER, IF THIS IS APPROVED, RIGHT? BECAUSE I GUESS WITH THE THOUGHT OF NOW GETTING ACTUAL BIDS IN PLACE AND THIS BEING A $600 MILLION CONTINGENCY. YEAH. RIGHT. SO THAT'S JUST WANTED TO, AGAIN, BACK TO LIKE [00:50:01] YOUR QUESTIONS WITH INFLATION AND ALL THESE THINGS. IS THAT, GO AHEAD. SO A AS MENTIONED, WE HAVE FOUR GMPS THAT WE HAVE KNOWN CONSTRUCTION COSTS. TWO, THAT WE HAVE VERY DETAILED CONSTRUCTION COSTS. TWO ARE STILL IN DESIGN, SO NOT ALL OF IT IS KNOWN, RIGHT. BUT WE DO FEEL THAT WE HAVE, UH, THE, THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION WHERE WE, WE FEEL WE CAN BRING THIS IN FOR 1.5 MILLION OF BILLION, RIGHT? IF SOMETHING DOES HAPPEN, WE DO HAVE, HAVE CONTINGENCY PLANS WHAT WE NEED TO DO, MAYBE HAVE TO DEFER A PIECE OF PACKAGE OR SOMETHING THAT IF WE NEED TO DO THAT. SO, SO WE DO NOT ANTICIPATE COMING BACK TO CITY COUNCIL. OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT'S MY QUESTIONS. UH, COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? COULD I MAKE A COMMENT MORE THAN ANYTHING? YEAH, YEAH. UM, I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH MY COUNCIL MEMBER ON THIS A LITTLE BIT, SO, UM, IT WAS AWESOME. LIKE THE ANSWERS ARE THE SAME, YOU KNOW, LAST WEEK AND THIS WEEK, YOU KNOW, OR WHATNOT. SO, AND I, A LOT OF THE QUESTIONS YOU ALL ASKED WERE DEFINITELY KINDA MY VISCERAL QUESTIONS. YOU KNOW, I WENT FORBIDDING, RIGHT? MY FAVORITE TOPIC, UM, I THINK THERE'S A BIGGER ISSUE HERE, WHICH IS THE FUNDING AND FINANCING ENVIRONMENT. AND SO IN A, IN, I MEAN, A 67% SHIFT IS BIG AND I THINK WE'RE GONNA SEE IT IN A LOT OF OTHER PLACES. SO IT'S NOT, I DO WANT OUR CITY TO GET BETTER AT THESE ESTIMATES. WE'RE, YOU KNOW, AND WE'RE GETTING MORE COMPLEX. SO THIS ISN'T GONNA BE THE LAST BILLION DOLLAR PROJECT THE CITY DOES. SO NOW I'M TAKING US EVEN OUT OF AUSTIN WATER. SO I THINK MY THOUGHT KIND OF TODAY, UM, AS I GO BACK TO MY COUNCIL MEMBER FOR TOMORROW, I MEAN, THIS PROJECT'S INEVITABLE. WE NEED TO DO IT. I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A REALLY STRONG PLAN. THE BIGGER QUESTION IS FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER, RIGHT? FOR OTHER, THE, FOR THE SOUTH AUSTIN RENOVATION THAT WE'RE GONNA, IS PROBABLY UP NEXT IN LINE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA SEE THIS AGAIN. AND WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO WHEN I THINK A MORE COMPLEX ENVIRONMENT THAN THE LAST FIVE YEARS GOING FORWARD AND LIKE NEXT YEAR, LIKE I FEEL LIKE WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A HUGE SPIKE. AND SO HOW DO WE AS A CITY JUST GET BETTER AT NAVIGATING WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN? THERE'S GONNA BE A LOT OF HARD CHOICES. A LOT OF THOSE 400 PROJECTS ARE GONNA GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THE LINE. AND WHAT I WANNA KNOW, THERE'S SOME KIND OF PRINCIPLE OR PHILOSOPHY OF HOW WE AS A CITY ARE GONNA NAVIGATE THE NEXT FIVE YEARS. 'CAUSE I ACTUALLY THINK IT'S GONNA BE HARDER, BUT NOW WE'VE GOT SOME LEARNING. SO I ALSO DON'T WANNA LEARN, LOSE THE LEARNING. SO I'LL STOP THERE 'CAUSE THIS IS NOT A PHILOSOPHICAL DISCUSSION, BUT I JUST WANTED TO, YOU KNOW, KIND OF COMMISERATE WITH THE QUESTIONS, UM, MY FELLOW COMMISSIONERS HAVE ASKED. AND, UM, BUT ALSO NAME THE, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO GET THIS DONE FOR OUR CITY, BUT THERE'S JUST, I THINK MORE PLANNING AND BETTER PLANNING WE NEED TO DO IN A LOT OF AREAS FOR, FOR AUSTIN. SO I LOOK FORWARD TO HOW WE'RE GONNA HELP NAVIGATE THAT. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, AND YEAH, I MEAN, LOOK AT IT FROM A STATEWIDE, I MEAN, THIS IS REASON FOR THE, UH, THE TEXAS WATER FUND, UH, $20 BILLION, UH, FUND SO THAT THERE'S, YOU KNOW, A POSSIBILITY OF HAVING A POT OF MONEY FOR THIS FUTURE INFRASTRUCTURAL NEEDS THAT TEXAS HAS. SO, I MEAN, IT'S JUST, THAT'S WHAT IT'S GONNA, IS GONNA TAKE, IT'S GONNA TAKE, YOU KNOW, THINGS BEING PUT ON THE TABLE AND SAY WE'RE COMMITTED TO IT. AND SO EVEN DOWN TO THE, THE MUNICIPALITY LEVEL. SO, UM, OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. THANK YOU CHARLES. THANK JOSEPH. THANK YOU. SO NOW WE'LL MOVE BACK UP TO [12. Recommend approval to authorize an amendment to the construction contract for the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant Expansion to 100 Million Gallons per Day (MGD) Project with MWH Constructors Inc., to increase the contingency by $600,000,000, for a revised total contract amount not to exceed $1,500,000,000. Funding: $600,000,000 is available in the Capital Budget of Austin Water. ] ITEM NUMBER 12. OKAY. SO, UM, ITEM 12 IS RECOMMEND APPROVAL TO ALL AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN EXPANSION TO 100 MILLION GALLONS PER DAY PROJECT WITH MWH CONSTRUC INC. TO INCREASE THE, THE CONTINGENCY BY 600 MILLION FOR A REVISED TOTAL CONTRACT AMOUNT, NOT TO EXCEED ONE, UH, BILLION $500 MILLION FUNDING OF 600, UH, MILLION DOLLARS IS AVAILABLE IN THE CAPITAL BUDGET OF AUSTIN WATER. SO HOPEFULLY WE GOT ALL OF OUR QUESTIONS ASKED. SO DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? A MOTION TO APPROVE ? OKAY, SO COMMISSIONER, YEAH, WE, WE'VE GOTTA LET COMMISSIONER TRI SECOND THAT, I MEAN, AFTER THAT FANTASTIC REMARK. WE'VE GOTTA HAVE YOU SECOND THAT. OKAY. SO COMMISSIONER VARO MIGHT GIVE MY MEMBER A FIT THOUGH IF I, I'M ON THE RECORD, SO SOMEBODY ELSE, PLEASE. ALL RIGHT, I'LL SECOND. I'LL SECOND. GOOD. I'LL SECOND COMM COMMISSIONER. YOU'LL HEAR THAT? YEAH. PERFECT. GOOD REMARK. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO COMMISSIONER VARO MOTIONS TO APPROVE. COMMISSIONER PGI MOTIONS TO SECOND. SO EVERYONE VOTING IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY, PERFECT. THE [00:55:01] VOTE IS UNANIMOUS. OKAY. MOVING ON TO [13. Recommend approval of a resolution authorizing the City Manager to increase the amount of a low-interest loan from an amount not to exceed $446,842,000 to an amount not to exceed $1,000,000,000 from the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan program for the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant expansion and enhancements projects. Funding is contingent upon available funding in future Austin Water operating budgets.] ITEM NUMBER 13. RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF LOW INTEREST LOAN FROM AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED 446,842,000 TO AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $1 BILLION FROM THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCIES. WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, FINANCE AND INNOVATION ACT LOAN PROGRAM FOR THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLAN, EXPANSION AND ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS FUNDING IS CONTINGENT UPON AVAILABLE FUNDING IN THE FUTURE. AUSTIN WATER OPERATING BUDGETS. COMMISSIONER SENOFF, YOU HAVE A QUESTION? UM, THANK YOU CHAIR MAXWELL GAINES. I ACTUALLY THINK THAT THE QUESTION I HAD WAS ANSWERED DURING THE DISCUSSION AROUND SOME OF OUR FINANCING. UM, SO I AM ACTUALLY HAPPY TO MOVE STRAIGHT TO, UH, CONSIDERATION OF THE ITEM UNLESS OTHER COMMISSIONERS HAVE QUESTIONS ON THIS ITEM. OKAY, THANK YOU. UH, COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON ITEM 13? IF NOT, THEN DO I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? YES, I WILL. MOTION TO APPROVE. I'LL SECOND THAT ONE. OKAY. I WILL MOTION TO APPROVE. I'LL DO, I HAVE A SECOND. I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION. OKAY. COMMISSIONER NAVARRO, SECONDS. EVERYONE VOTING IN FAVOR, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY. VOTE IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, MOVING ON TO [14. Approve appointment of members and officers for the Commission’s Budget Committee for the FY 2026-2027 budget process. ] ITEM 14. THIS IS, IS, UH, NOT A GOOD ONE TO DO WHEN WE DON'T HAVE ALL THE COMMISSIONERS AVAILABLE, BUT YEAH. YEAH. ALL RIGHT. SO ITEM NUMBER 14 IS APPROVE APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS AND OFFICERS FOR THE COMMISSION'S BUDGET COMMITTEE FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 20 26, 20 27 BUDGET PROCESS. UM, SO JUST A COMMENT. SO I PARTICIPATED IN LAST YEAR'S, UH, BUDGET COMMITTEE. I'M TRYING TO REMEMBER IF I DID THE YEAR BEFORE. UM, AND, UH, IT IS A VERY INFORMATIVE PROCESS, UH, COMMISSIONER AS WELL LAST YEAR WITH, WITH ME A VERY INFORMATIVE PROCESS. AND, UM, SO YEAH, SO WE WANT TO, UM, PUT IT OUT TO SEE WHO WOULD LIKE TO, UH, SERVE ON THE BUDGET COMMITTEE. CAN WE NOT REAPPOINT YOU BOTH BACK? NO, THAT'S NOT AN OPTION. I SECOND NO, . I WOULD LIKE TO, I WOULD LIKE TO BE ON IT AGAIN IF THAT IS, UM, ACCEPTABLE. WHAT WAS THAT? COMMISSIONER TU ? I WOULD LIKE TO BE ON THE COMMITTEE AGAIN IF ACCEPTABLE TO MY FELLOW COMMISSIONERS. I, I WOULD BELIEVE THAT WAS PROBABLY BE ACCEPTABLE, SO THANK YOU. UM, AND SO, UH, REMIND ME, IS IT TWO OR AS MANY, UH, UNDER THE QUORUM AMOUNT, RIGHT? CORRECT. YEAH. YOU NEED TO KEEP FIVE, FIVE MEMBERS OR FEWER. YEP. WITH QUORUM, TINA ROMERO, UH, ACTING ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR FINANCIAL SERVICES. SO LAST YEAR WE DID HAVE THREE MEMBERS. AND SO, UM, AT LEAST THREE. MM-HMM . THANK YOU. DOES ANYONE, IF, IF, YEAH, NOW WHAT'S THE TIME? OH, IF THERE'S AN INTEREST. I WAS JUST TRYING TO ASK MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT LIKE, WHAT'S THE TIME COMMITMENT? IS IT IN PERSON, IS IT VIRTUAL? CAN YOU JUST MAYBE KIND OF GIVE US A LITTLE OVERVIEW OF THAT, PLEASE? YES, I SURE CAN. SO NORMALLY WE HAVE ANYWHERE BETWEEN ONE TO THREE MEETINGS. THE THIRD MEETING'S NORMALLY LIKE A STANDING MEETING IN CASE IT'S NEEDED. UM, WE'LL START THE MEETINGS USUALLY SOMETIME, UM, TOWARDS THE END OF MAY, MAYBE BEGINNING OF JUNE. UH, WE WILL DEFINITELY COMPLETE THOSE MEETINGS. USUALLY BEFORE THE END OF JUNE, WE'LL WORK ROUND SCHEDULES AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S THE BEST TIME TO HAVE THESE MEETINGS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET THE QUORUM FOR THEM. UM, AND THE FIRST MEETING'S USUALLY JUST AN UPDATE, TALKING ABOUT, UH, THE FORECAST WE SUBMITTED, TALKING ABOUT ANY ITEMS THAT WE THINK MAY NEED TO BE IN THE BUDGET. UH, THE SECOND MEETING'S MORE OF, UH, INFORMATION ABOUT OUR CAPITAL PLAN AND, UM, WHAT PROJECTS ARE IN IT, AND HAVING THOSE DISCUSSIONS AND HAVING THE RATE DISCUSSIONS. UM, AND THEN THE THIRD MEETING IS JUST HOLDING OVER JUST IN CASE WE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. BUT WE TRY TO WRAP EVERYTHING UP BEFORE THE END OF JUNE. OUR BUDGET IS ACTUALLY DUE IN JUNE NOW. IT USED TO BE DUE IN THE FIRST WEEK OF MAY. NOW IT'S DUE IN THE FIRST WEEK, AROUND THE FIRST WEEK OF JUNE. AND COUNCIL, UM, WILL GET THAT BUDGET IN MID-JULY. UM, WE, YEAH, WE NORMALLY SCHEDULE THEM, UH, FOR AT LEAST TWO HOURS, BUT THEY USUALLY LAST AROUND MAYBE AN HOUR AND A HALF. IF THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS, UM, THEN WE CAN GO THE FULL TWO HOURS. HOWEVER IT'S NEEDED. UM, WE CAN HAVE IN PERSON AND, UM, REMOTE [01:00:01] IF, IF IT MAKES IT MORE AVAILABLE TO HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS. IT WAS A VERY EFFICIENT, UH, PROCESS. AND TINA AND THE TEAM, THEY REALLY DO A GOOD JOB OF PRESENTING EVERYTHING TO US IN A VERY EASY WAY TO UNDERSTAND AND, AND TO, TO, FOR OUR CONSIDERATIONS. SO, UM, I MEAN, I'M, I'M GOING TO UM, UM, PUT MYSELF ALSO, WELL, I GUESS WHAT'S THE, YOU KNOW, VOTE MYSELF, OR WHATEVER YOU WANNA CALL IT, , UH, FOR THE, UH, BUDGET COMMITTEE. AND SO, BUT WE WOULD LOVE, UM, OTHERS. UM, I, I'M HAPPY TO, IF NOBODY ELSE, I'M, I'M HAPPY TO BE THE THIRD PERSON. OKAY, GREAT. SO THAT'S A POTENTIAL. YEP. I'M ALSO INTERESTED IN, UM, JOINING THE BUDGET COMMITTEE FOR THIS YEAR. UM, IF THAT IS AMEN TO THE GROUP, UM, HAPPY TO PUT MY NAME FORWARD FOR CONSIDERATION AS WELL. GREAT. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER WALEN CR. OKAY, SO I THAT'S FOUR. THAT'S, THAT'S GREAT. I THINK WE, THAT'S RIGHT. SO THAT'LL KEEP US UNDER QUORUM. UM, AND SO THEN, UH, WE NEED TO TAKE A VOTE TO APPROVE AND NAME AND CHAIR, VICE CHAIR. OH, YES. OKAY. UM, OKAY. MAKE IT EASY. UM, SINCE MYSELF AND COMMISSIONER TUON ARE THERE, HOW DO YOU SAY IT? RANKING MEMBERS. INCUMBENT MEMBERS. UM, THEN, UM, COMMISSIONER TUON, WOULD YOU, UH, CARE TO BE THE CHAIR OF THE BUDGET COMMITTEE AGAIN? RIGHT? YES. I WOULD LOVE THAT. THANK YOU. PERFECT. OKAY, THEN, UM, I CAN BE THE VICE CHAIR. OKAY. AND SO THEN FROM A VOTING STANDPOINT, DO WE NEED TO, YEAH. YES. IF YOU COULD JUST READ OFF AGAIN THE NAMES OF THE FOUR MEMBERS WHOSE CHAIR, VICE CHAIR, AND THEN JUST TAKE A VOTE TO MAKE IT OFFICIAL. OKAY. SO AFTER THE DISCUSSION, THE MEMBERS OF THE BUDGET, UH, THE COMMISSION'S BUDGET COMMITTEE WILL BE, UH, COMMISSIONER MAXWELL GAINES, COMMISSIONER TUON, COMMISSIONER WOLFSTEN CRT, AND COMMISSIONER PANI WITH, UH, COMMISSIONER TUON BEING THE CHAIR, AND COMMISSIONER MAXWELL GAINES BEING THE VICE CHAIR. AND SO EVERYONE VOTE IN FAVOR OF THE BUDGET COMMITTEE. PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. OKAY. IS THAT GOOD? OKAY. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR THAT. LOOKING FORWARD TO IT. THANKS, TINA. OKAY, COMMISSIONERS, UM, WE ARE DOWN TO FUTURE AGENDA, [FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ] AGENDA ITEMS. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY FUTURE THOUGHTS, NEEDS OH, OH, BEFORE WE, UM, GO INTO THAT? UM, WHO ATTENDED THE WILD LANDS, UM, CONSERVATION TOUR? HEY, COMMISSIONER NAVARRO, YOU WANNA GIVE A QUICK REPORT? SURE. I MEAN, IT WAS, IT WAS AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE. UH, A LOT OF GOOD WORK BEING DONE THERE. UM, SO IT WAS, IT WAS REALLY COOL TO GO IN, IN THE CAVES. I GOT A LITTLE CLAUSTROPHOBIC, SO I'M LIKE, I'M READY. I'M READY TO GET OUTTA HERE AND NEED SOME SUNLIGHT. BUT NONETHELESS, VERY, VERY INFORMATIVE. UM, AND JUST GREAT WORK THAT IS BEING DONE. UH, AND I THINK THAT'S JUST A TESTAMENT TO, TO YOU GUYS, UM, AND TO THE CITY AS A WHOLE, UH, OF JUST BEING VERY PROGRESSIVE ON PROTECTING ALL THE WATERSHED DISTRICTS. YEAH. COMMISSIONER SCRO. YEAH, NO, I WAS JUST GOING TO, UM, EXCUSE ME. NO ADD, UH, YEAH, COMMISSIONER NAVAR AND I, I THINK HAD A REALLY INSTRUCTIVE, UM, HONESTLY FUN TOUR ON FRIDAY, UH, WITH THE WILDLANDS TEAM, UM, STARTING AT BARTON SPRINGS. UM, SORT OF UNDERSTAND WHERE THE WATER LITERALLY BUBBLES UP, UM, GOING FURTHER DOWN TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE ROLE OF THE CAVE SYSTEMS, UM, ARE IN SORT OF PRESERVING THE QUALITY OF OUR WATER, UM, AND HOW, YOU KNOW, MEMBERS OF, UM, THE COMMUNITY CAN ACCESS THESE CAVE SYSTEMS FOR RECREATION FOR FURTHER LEARNING, UM, TO UNDERSTAND THEIR ROLE IN PRESERVING, UM, ENDANGERED SPECIES UNDER OUR CARE. AND THEN I, I THINK THE, THE PART THAT I ENJOYED MAYBE THE MOST WAS, UM, UH, A SHORT SEMI-URBAN HIKE , UM, WAY DOWN IN SOUTHWEST AUSTIN AROUND CIRCLE C RANCH, UM, ON SOME OF THE LANDS UNDER OUR MANAGEMENT TO REALLY LOOK AT HOW WE PRESERVE, UM, OUR NATIVE ENVIRONMENT, UM, THROUGH, UH, PRESCRIBED BURNS THROUGH, UM, SEEDING OF NATIVE PLANTS, UM, 20 MILES AWAY WHERE THE WATER THAT FALLS ON THESE PLANES WILL EVENTUALLY GO INTO THE AQUIFER AND 20 MILES AWAY COME BACK UP THROUGH BARTON SPRINGS. SO I JUST WANT TO GIVE, UM, YOU KNOW, ROUND OF APPLAUSE FLOWERS TO, UM, HEATHER AND VICKI AND, UH, THE WILDLANDS TEAM FOR SETTING THIS UP. UM, AND ALSO SETTING IT UP SO THOUGHTFULLY IN A WAY [01:05:01] THAT I THINK REALLY SORT OF COMMUNICATED THE BIGGER NARRATIVE OF WHERE OUR WATER COMES FROM, UM, IN A VERY CLEAR ECOLOGICAL SENSE, UM, AND HOW IT COMES RIGHT BACK TO THE HEART OF THE CITY. SO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE. TO THE TEAM. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONERS. THE, UM, DIVISION MANAGER OF WILDLANDS, JUSTIN BATES LIKES TO SAY THAT THE, THE WATERFALLS HERE FIRST. UM, SO REALLY, UM, THEY'RE OBVIOUSLY VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT THE MISSION AND I, UH, REALLY ENJOY THE TIME THAT I HAVE TO SPEND ON THE WILD LANDS. I HAVE SO FAR DECLINED TO GO INSIDE AND IN THE CAVES. SO VERY IMPRESSED THAT YOU, THAT YOU TOOK THAT ON. WELL, THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING ABLE TO ATTEND THAT TOUR. UM, SO YEAH, SO BACK TO THE FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, IF THERE ARE ANY. IT'S NOT A TOPIC, IT'S JUST A RECONSIDERATION OF THE TIME, CONSIDERING ALL THE TRAFFIC ISSUES THAT WE HAD WITH MULTIPLE PEOPLE AND PEOPLE JOINING. I KNOW WE HAD MADE THIS CHANGE TO ACCOMMODATE COMMISSIONER MORIARTY, UH, BACK WHEN WE MADE THE CHANGE. SO JUST WONDERING IF WE SHOULD GO BACK TO 6:00 PM FOR TWO REASONS. ONE IS THAT'S REALLY WHEN PUBLIC IS AVAILABLE, AND THAT'S THE POINT OF THIS COMMISSION, IS TO ALLOW FOR PUBLIC TO COME AND SPEAK IF THERE IS A TOPIC THAT THEY WANNA TALK ABOUT. AND ALSO JUST HAVE MORE OF A QUORUM AND NOT BE STRUGGLING. IT JUST A, NO, IT'S A, IT'S A DEFINITELY A TOPIC THAT, UH, COULD BE ON A FUTURE AGENDA FOR ALL OF US TO, UM, UH, DISCUSS AND DEBATE. SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT. COMMISSIONER PANI. OKAY. I HAVE JUST ONE COMMISSIONER. THIS EITHER COULD BE A DISCUSSION OR JUST MAYBE POINTING TO RESOURCES. 'CAUSE THERE'S SO MANY RESOURCES REALLY AROUND THE, UM, M-B-E-W-B-E PROGRAM, LIKE IN THE CITY. AND I WAS, I SAW A COUPLE OF OUR ITEMS TODAY THAT WE COULDN'T PREDICT, LIKE THE SUBCONTRACTING IF THEY MET. UM, AND JUST, I'M CURIOUS, YEAH, I'M JUST CURIOUS TO LEARN MORE AND HOW THAT PLAYS AND HOW WE'RE PERFORMING AGAINST, THERE'S GOALS AND WE REPORT AGAINST WHAT THE PERFORMANCE IS, BUT IS IT REALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE? UM, SO AGAIN, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A GROUP DISCUSSION. IF THIS COMMISSION HAS GONE THROUGH THAT BEFORE, BEFORE I WAS ON, ON THE COMMISSION, UM, OR IF, UM, HEATHER AND VICKY HAVE RESOURCES THAT WOULD JUST MAKE IT EASY TO, UM, STUDY UP, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL AS WELL. SO EITHER ONE, WHATEVER WORKS BEST FOR THE COMMISSION TO LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE. BUT AGAIN, I WANNA BE CLEAR, I THINK THERE'S TWO THINGS LIKE LEARN ABOUT THE PROGRAM, BUT THEN HOW ARE WE PERFORMING AGAINST IT? I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER ITEMS? IF NO, THEN, UH, THE, UH, WATER WASTEWATER COMMISSION MEETING, IT'S CONCLUDED AT FIVE 17. THANK Y'ALL VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.