* 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 ] [00:00:04] DOWNTOWN COMMISSION ON, UH, JUNE 17TH, AND WE'RE GONNA GET STARTED NOW. UM, WOULD YOU CALL THE ROLE PLEASE, RYAN? YES, SURE THING. UH, CHAIR ISHMAIL. BRETT PRESENT ATTENDING VIRTUALLY. UH, CHAIR. DID YOU SEND ME THE, UH, VIRTUAL EMAIL, UH, WITH YOUR ABSTENTIONS AND CUSAL? I DID NOT. CAN YOU SEND IT TO ME AGAIN? UH, YEAH, SURE THING. UH, COMMISSIONER BEHAR PRESENT. COMMISSIONER BTA PRESENT. COMMISSIONER CARROLL PRESENT. COMMISSIONER CHEN PRESENT. COMMISSIONER SILVA. COMMISSIONER FRANKLIN. VICE CHAIR LEVINSON. C PRESENT? COMMISSIONER HOUSTON. COMMISSIONER PATO. PRESENT. COMMISSIONER SCHIFFER PRESENT. COMMISSIONER TUCCI PRESENT. SORRY. COMMISSIONER WILEY HERE. AND COMMISSIONER MCDANIEL HERE. ALL RIGHT. UH, [PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL ] NOW WE MOVE TO OUR PUBLIC COMMENT. DO WE HAVE PUBLIC SPEAKERS TONIGHT? WE DO. WE HAVE TWO PEOPLE SIGN UP TO SPEAK. UH, FIRST WE HAVE JONATHAN STONE, WHO WILL BE SPEAKING ON DSP INTRODUCTION. WELL, GOOD EVENING. UM, MY NAME IS JONATHAN STONE. YOU MAY HAVE HEARD I'VE BEEN AND BEEN INVITED TO AN EVENT THIS COMING TUESDAY. UH, BUT, UH, I JUST WOULD WANT TO INTRODUCE MYSELF AS THE NEW DOWNTOWN STRATEGY OFFICER, AND THAT OUR PATHS WILL BE GETTING TO CROSS A LOT MORE FREQUENTLY. AND MY PLAN IS TO BE AT EVERY, UH, DOWNTOWN COMMISSION MEETING IS THAT I'M ABLE TO BE AT. AND SO I JUST WANTED TO PUT THE FACE TO THE NAME AND HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAY HELLO. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU TOGETHER. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU. NEXT UP, WE HAVE SANTIAGO SPEAKING ON AGENDA ITEM NUMBER TWO. GREETINGS, COMMISSIONERS. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME AND SERVICE. UM, UH, I'M TRYING TO BEST FIGURE OUT HOW TO START THIS. I, I GUESS I WANTED TO START IT WITH A, A LITTLE, UM, BLURB. THERE'S SOMETHING CALLED LOKI'S WAGER, AND THE, THE NAME ORIGINATES FROM THE MYTH THAT LOKI MADE A WAGER WITH SOME DWARVES. AND AT HIS HEAD, LOKI LOST THE WAGER. AND WHEN THE DWARVES CAME TO RETRIEVE HIS HEAD, LOKI ASSERTED THAT HE COULD NOT TAKE IT, BUT THEY WERE NOT, OR THEY COULD TAKE IT, BUT THEY WERE NOT ENTITLED TO ANY PART OF HIS NECK. THERE ARE SOME PARTS WHICH BOTH PARTIES AGREED OR HEAD, AND BOTH PARTIES AGREE OR NECK, BUT NEITHER COULD AGREE WHERE EXACTLY ONE ENDED AND THE OTHER BEGAN AS A RESULT, LOKI KEPT HIS HEAD. UM, THE VISUAL THAT IS ON THE SCREEN RIGHT NOW IS FROM THE, UH, MOBILITY 35 EXPANSION PROJECT, AND AS CAN BE SEEN IN THE BOTTOM LEFT HAND CORNER, WHICH IS THE SOUTHEAST CORNER OF THE, THE SORT OF LIKE DOG LEG OF, UM, THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION'S BOUNDARIES. UM, AND SO I, I UNDERSTAND SORT OF THE BYLAWS OF WHERE EXACTLY THESE BOUNDARIES END. IS IT THE RIGHT OF WAY? IS IT THE CENTER LINE? UH, IN TERMS OF ALIGNMENT OF THE PROJECT, UM, WHICH IS CURRENTLY A FIVE, THE RIGHT OF WAY IS ABOUT A 550 FOOT, UH, SWATH THAT GOES ACROSS TOWN LAKE. UM, THE REASON I'M HERE TODAY IS I, I'VE BEEN ADVOCATING FOR A MOBILITY STUDY, UM, WHICH IS SORT OF WHAT I'M ADDRESSING WITH REGARD TO ENGINE TO TWO ITEM, UM, TO EVALUATE THE ONE, THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE THAT'S BEING BUILT WITH VERY LITTLE INPUT FROM THE CITY OF AUSTIN. UM, WHEN THE, UH, OUR 35 PROJECT WAS, UM, COMMISSIONED THROUGH THE CITY OF AUSTIN, UH, CAESAR CHAVEZ WAS THE, THE SOUTHMOST BOUNDARY OF THAT. SO NOTHING HAS BEEN, UM, FROM RIVERSIDE ALL THE WAY TO HOLLY, UH, HAS BEEN A HUGE BLIND SPOT, AND IT'S CURRENTLY WHAT IS BEING WORKED ON, UM, AND VERY DISTURBED. SO I'M, I'M GENERALLY HERE, UM, WITH COMMISSIONS, UH, ADVOCATING FOR FESTIVAL BEACH, FOOD FOREST. AND AS I KNOW SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE KNOWN, AUSTIN WATER GAVE 30 DAYS NOTICE BEFORE THEY, [00:05:01] UH, PLOWED THROUGH OUR FOREST. WE HAD CITY EXPANSION, UH, AGREEMENTS, UM, AND HAD TO REMOVE A HUNDRED TREES, UH, BEFORE THEY WERE TAKEN. THERE'S CURRENTLY CRUSHED ASPHALT IN PARKLAND. UH, THEY ALSO, UH, CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES REMOVED HISTORIC, UH, PECAN TREE, UM, IN VERY QUICKLY. UM, WHICH HISTORIC LAND MARKED COMMISSION APPROVED IN 2023, UH, TO DESIGNATE THE BOUNDARIES OF, UH, A HISTORIC PECAN GROVE MARKED BY A GRANITE MARKER ON THE TOWN LAKE TRAIL, UM, THAT WAS DONATED IN 1965. AND SO I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW CAN WE FIND A BALANCE BETWEEN NOT TAKING MORE TREES AND, UH, YEAH. CREATING A NICE SPACE, TRANQUIL FOR PEOPLE AND OTHER THINGS IN CARS. SO I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S TIME AND ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER. YOU HAVE A GREAT, GREAT REST OF YOUR DAY. THANK YOU. UH, TREES ARE VERY IMPORTANT AND OUR PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT IS VERY IMPORTANT, SO WE APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING IT TO OUR ATTENTION. AND WE DO NOT HAVE ANYBODY ELSE LINED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. ALRIGHT. THEN WE WILL MOVE ON TO OUR DISCUSSION ITEMS AND START WITH THE STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN. MINUTES. OH, NOPE. SORRY. MINUTES [1. Approve the minutes of the Downtown Commission regular meeting of May 20, 2026. ] FIRST. GOTTA DO THAT. UM, HAS EVERYBODY READ THE MINUTES? DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY CORRECTIONS OF THE MINUTES? OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR OF APPROVING THE MINUTES, SAY AYE. AYE. A AYE. ANY OPPOSED? HEARING? NONE MINUTES ARE APPROVED. NOW WE WILL MOVE ON TO OUR DISCUSSION ITEMS, WHICH WILL BE THE AUSTIN STRATEGIC MOBILITY PLAN. IF COLE IS HERE. UM, I BELIEVE THE VICE CHAIR. I BELIEVE THE FIRST BRIEFING WE HAVE ON THE AGENDA IS FOR A PD. AM I IN? I MIGHT HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT THE MINUTES. OKAY. UM, WHERE ARE WE? A PD? [2. Briefing regarding downtown crime statistics, APD priorities and needed resources for downtown, protocols for dealing with the unhoused, and Immigrations & Customs Enforcement (ICE) interactions and cooperation. Presentation by Michael Chancellor, Assistant Chief – Patrol, Austin Police Department.] UH, IS MICHAEL CHANCELLOR HERE? IT IS NOT MY DAY TODAY. I'M REALLY TIRED. . IT'S BEEN A LONG DAY. I WAS THINKING WE WERE OFF THE HOOK AND GETTING TO GET OUTTA HERE. . UM, NO SUCH LUCK. MY NAME IS MIKE CHANCELLOR, I'M AN ASSISTANT CHIEF WITH AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT. I'M OVER PATROL. THANK Y'ALL FOR LETTING US COME AND SPEAK ABOUT PUBLIC SAFETY IN DOWNTOWN. MM-HMM . HERE WITH ME. I HAVE THE NEW COMMANDER OVER THE DOWNTOWN AREA, CHRISTOPHER OLA, AND HE'S GONNA BE PRESENTING ON SOME OF THE REQUESTS THAT YOU HAD, AND THEN I'LL CLOSE OUT THE PRESENTATION. AWESOME. THANK YOU. UH, YOU ALREADY SAID MY NAME. CHRISTOPHER OLA USED TO BE THE OPERATIONS LIEUTENANT, UH, FOR DOWNTOWN AUSTIN. UH, SPOKE TO THIS COMMISSION A COUPLE YEARS AGO. MM-HMM . I REMEMBER CHAIRMAN, UH, ISHMAEL. UM, AND Y'ALL'S HELP, UH, WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IN THE PAST, GETTING US SOME OF THE RESOURCES WE NEED. SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. THANK YOU FOR VOLUNTEERING FOR THIS COMMISSION AND, UH, LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT Y'ALL CAN DO TO HELP OUT. AGAIN. THANK YOU. AND THE SLIDES, WHERE ARE THEY? NO, I THINK THEY GOT EMAILED IN. UH, WHILE WE'RE WAITING FOR THAT, IF I COULD ASK A QUESTION. UM, THE TERRITORY YOU COVERED IS IT DEFINED THE SAME WAY WE DEFINE DOWNTOWN, WHICH IS I 35 MLK LAMAR AND THE LAKE. UH, THAT'S ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE ARE. WE MIGHT BE A FEW BLOCKS OFF IN EITHER DIRECTION, UH, WITH OUR SECTOR FOR A PD, IT'S CALLED GEORGE SECTOR. UHHUH . AND SO, UM, WE'LL ACTUALLY, UH, HAVE FURTHER WEST OF LAMAR AND WE ACTUALLY GO ALL THE WAY OVER TO MOPAC AND THEN WE ENCOMPASS A LOT OF THE AREA AROUND THE CAPITAL AS WELL. OKAY. OKAY. OKAY. BECAUSE DOWNTOWN GOES UP TO MLK, RIGHT? YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. WELL, LOOKS LIKE YOU GUYS ARE OFF THE HOOK. , WHERE IS IT? I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON HERE. WHILE WE'RE WAITING ON THE PRESENTATION TO COME UP, ONE OF THE LAST SLIDES THAT WE HAVE THAT I WAS GONNA COVER IS ABOUT, UH, IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT. THAT WAS ONE OF THE REQUESTS THAT WE HAVE FROM THE [00:10:01] COMMISSION. AND SO THAT'S RIGHT. I CAN TELL YOU IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THIS YEAR, UM, THE DOWNTOWN SECTOR HAS ONLY COME ACROSS ONE, WHAT WE'LL CALL AN IMMIGRATION ENGAGEMENT. AND THAT WAS A TRAFFIC STOP THAT CAME BACK WITH AN ADMINISTRATIVE WARRANT. AND SO FROM THAT ADMINISTRATIVE WARRANT, ICE DID NOT COME OUT AND SERVE THAT THE PERSON WAS ISSUED A CITATION LEFT FROM THE SCENE. SO THAT WAS THE ONLY IMMIGRATION ENGAGEMENT THAT WE'VE HAD IN THAT DOWNTOWN AREA, UH, FOR THIS YEAR. UM, Y'ALL ARE WELL AWARE OF SENATE BILL FOR, UH, THE RESOLUTIONS THAT PASSED. AND SO, UM, I SEE THE PRESENTATIONS UP, BUT I JUST WANTED TO COVER THAT AND LET Y'ALL KNOW WHERE WE'RE AT WITH THAT. AND THEN TOWARDS THE END, IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE IMMIGRATION STUFF AND WE CAN ADDRESS THOSE, IT'S, IT'S NICE TO KNOW THAT 'CAUSE IT KIND OF SQUARES WHAT I'VE SEEN OR RATHER NOT SEEN. I LIVE DOWNTOWN HERE AND I JUST HADN'T BEEN SEEING A LOT OF THAT STUFF OUT HERE AND JUST, ALL RIGHT. AND IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE UP AND GOING NOW. SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND START. AND I THINK THE FIRST FEW GROUPS OF SLIDES THAT, UH, WE HAD PUT TOGETHER, WERE TALKING ABOUT WHERE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CRIME WERE HAPPENING IN DOWNTOWN AUSTIN. YOU CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE. UH, AND SO THE FIRST ONE THAT WE FOCUS ON IS CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS. SO THIS IS ANY VIOLENT CRIME WHERE SOMEBODY HAS CAUSED HARM. SO THESE WOULD BE ASSAULTS, ROBBERIES, AGGRAVATED ASSAULTS, UH, INTIMIDATION, HARASSMENT, UM, ANY OF THOSE TYPES OF CRIMES. AND SO YOU'RE GONNA SEE A, UH, HEAT MAP. AND THE HEAT MAP DOESN'T REALLY INDICATE, UH, THE, UH, LEVEL OF WHICH THE CRIME ACTUALLY EXISTS. IT'S JUST SHOWING YOU WHERE THE CRIMES ARE MOST LIKELY TO OCCUR. SO, UM, JUST BECAUSE IT'S RED DOESN'T MEAN THAT WE HAVE AN INCREASE IN THIS TYPE OF CRIME. IT'S JUST SHOWING YOU WHERE THOSE ARE HAPPENING. AND SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS, UH, THESE ARE ALL, UH, SITUATED AROUND THE, UH, EAST SIXTH STORE, SORRY, EAST SIXTH STREET CORRIDOR. UH, MANY OF YOU HAVE SEEN THE SIXTH STREET FIGHTS VIDEOS THAT ARE ALL OVER SOCIAL MEDIA. UH, IT SHOULD BE OF NO SURPRISE TO YOU THAT ASSAULTS HAPPEN ON SIXTH STREET, UH, WHEN PEOPLE CONSUME ALCOHOL AND THEY'RE VISITING THAT AREA. AND THEN, UH, THERE'S A COUPLE OF OTHER, UH, HOT SPOTS ON THERE. UH, THESE ARE CENTERED AROUND REPUBLIC SQUARE PARK AND AROUND SHOAL CREEK. UH, A LITTLE BIT NORTH OF LADY BIRD LAKE RIGHT THERE. UM, THAT SPOT HAS SINCE MIGRATED DOWN TO THE LIBRARY AND SECOND STREET, AND WE ANTICIPATE THAT THAT WILL BE MOVED AGAIN BECAUSE WE HAVE BEGUN TO FOCUS ON THAT AREA AT THE DIRECTION OF, UH, ONE OF THE CITY MANAGERS. UM, DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS? NO, GO AHEAD. OKAY. UH, NEXT SLIDE IS GONNA BE TALKING ABOUT CRIMES AGAINST PROPERTY. UM, THEY'RE ACTUALLY VERY SIMILAR TO THE CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS HOTSPOTS. AGAIN, IT'S GONNA BE AROUND EAST SIXTH STREET. IT'S GONNA BE AROUND REPUBLIC SQUARE, AND IT'S GONNA BE, UH, SITUATED, UH, IN THAT AREA ALONG SHOAL CREEK. AND SO THERE'S SEVERAL FACTORS THAT HAVE TO DO WITH THAT. UM, YOU KNOW, THE UNHOUSED, UH, THE TYPES OF NARCOTICS THAT ARE BEING SOLD IN THE AREA. UM, THINGS THAT ARE DRIVING PEOPLE TO GO AND STEAL THINGS AND SELL THEM FOR MONEY ELSEWHERE. UM, WE ALSO HAVE THE WAREHOUSE DISTRICT THAT'S INCLUDED ON THIS ONE AS WELL. AND, UH, WEST SIXTH STREET IS ALSO BIG. UH, WE DO HAVE A LOT OF PICKPOCKETING GOING ALONG, UH, WEST SIXTH STREET, ESPECIALLY ON THE WEEKENDS AND DURING LARGE MUSIC FESTIVALS AND HOLIDAYS. UM, NEXT SLIDE. YES, ONE MOMENT. GO AHEAD. UM, SO I MIGHT BE JUMPING TO YOUR FUTURE SLIDES, BUT I WAS WONDERING IF YOU WERE GONNA TALK ABOUT IF CRIME IN TERMS OF PROPERTY CRIMES DOWNTOWN AND, UH, PERSONAL CRIMES DOWNTOWN ARE UP RELATIVE TO THE PAST, LIKE THIS TIME LAST YEAR, OR, YEAH, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ONE YEAR AVERAGE OF ALL OF THESE CRIMES, WHETHER THEY'RE PROPERTY OR PERSONS, THEY'RE ABOUT EVEN WITH 2025 AND THEY'RE DOWN IN THE THREE YEAR AVERAGE. SO EVEN THOUGH WE HAVE LESS POLICE OFFICERS IN LESS RESOURCES, UH, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT THAT ALSO AS SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING TO LEVERAGE THE RESOURCES THAT WE DO HAVE TO TRY TO CONTINUE TO MAKE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON, UH, SOME OF THESE DIFFERENT, UH, TYPES OF CRIMES. THAT'S HELPFUL. THANKS. THANK YOU. UH, THE CRIMES AGAINST SOCIETY, UM, THIS ONE WE LIKE TO SEE, UM, BECAUSE IT SHOWS HOW PROACTIVE POLICE OFFICERS ARE BEING, UH, THE CRIMES AGAINST SOCIETY ARE LIKE POSSESSION OF CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE WEAPONS CHARGES. SO ANYTIME AN OFFICER GOES AND FINDS, YOU KNOW, A FELONY AMOUNT OF DRUGS, OR THEY FIND A WEAPON THAT COULD BE USED TO SHOOT SOMEBODY ON SIXTH STREET, UH, IT COMES INTO THIS CATEGORY. SO WHEN THESE TYPES OF CRIMES ARE UP, IT'S A GOOD THING FOR US. 'CAUSE IT SHOWS THAT OFFICERS ARE BEING PROACTIVE AND LOOKING FOR, UH, THESE, UH, QUALITY OF LIFE CRIMES, UH, THAT AFFECT PUBLIC SAFETY IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA. AND AGAIN, THEY'RE PRETTY MUCH ON PAR, UH, ON THE HEAT MAP WITH THE OTHER TWO TYPES OF CRIME AS WELL. [00:15:01] DOES ANYBODY ONLINE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? BECAUSE I JUST REALIZED WE NEED TO PAY ATTENTION HEARING. I DO HAVE A QUESTION. AND APOLO I APOLOGIZE BECAUSE I THINK I'M HAVING A MOMENT. I CAN'T RECALL THE NAME OF THE, UH, HIGH RESOLUTION CAMERAS THAT WERE BEING INSTALLED. HALO CAMERAS HALO, YES. RIGHT. THAT'S GONNA BE ON ANOTHER SLIDE, THE HALO CAMERAS. OH, SO THAT'S COMING UP. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY, GO AHEAD. AND SO I MENTIONED, UH, EARLIER, UH, THAT OUR STAFFING, UM, IS KIND OF CONSISTENT. IT'S KNOWN THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THE DEPARTMENT DOESN'T HAVE AS MANY OFFICERS AS IT SHOULD HAVE CURRENTLY. THE, UH, WHOLE AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT IS ABOUT 350 OFFICERS SHORT. AND SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT STAFFING, UM, EVERY SINGLE SECTOR ACROSS THE CITY IS SHOWING THAT THEY'RE GONNA, YOU KNOW, HAVE SOME VACANCIES. AND CURRENTLY IN DOWNTOWN WE HAVE 30 VACANCIES THAT WE'RE CURRENTLY EXPERIENCING, AND WE HAVE 12 PEOPLE ON LEAVE. AND THIS TYPE OF LEAVE RANGES FROM LIKE INJURY LEAVE WHEN OFFICERS ARE INJURED IN THE LINE OF DUTY WHEN THEY'RE HAVING CHILDREN, UM, WHEN THEY'RE ON FMLA OR THEY'RE GOING ON A MILITARY LEAVE. SO, UH, WITH ALL OF THE VACANCIES AND LEAVES THAT WE HAVE, WE CURRENTLY HAVE ABOUT 62 OFFICERS WORKING WHEN WE'RE AUTHORIZED TO HAVE ABOUT, UH, 104 ON THE STREET, UH, AT ANY GIVEN TIME DURING THE YEAR. UM, BECAUSE OF THAT, WE DO HIRE FOR OVERTIME ON THE WEEKENDS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE ENOUGH OFFICERS, UH, ON SIXTH STREET AND IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA TO MAKE, MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE SAFE. AND, UH, WE'RE SHOWING THAT WE'RE HIRING ABOUT 27 ON FRIDAYS AND 24 ON SATURDAYS. UH, THOSE ARE OUR BUSIEST, UH, NIGHTS OF THE YEAR. AND SO THAT'S HOW, UM, WE'RE JUSTIFYING HIRING THOSE OFFICERS TO WORK ON THOSE DAYS. OKAY. THANK YOU. UH, THESE ARE OUR DOWNTOWN PRIORITIES. AND, UH, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT CRIME, UH, WE REALIZE IT'S NOT JUST THE POLICE, UH, THAT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THAT. IT'S INCUMBENT ON A WHOLE BUNCH OF FACTORS. IT HAS TO DO WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. WE ALL KNOW THAT IF YOU GO DOWN EAST SIXTH STREET, THERE'S A LOT OF VACANT BUILDINGS, A LOT OF BOARDS, A LOT OF ALLEYS THAT AREN'T MONITORS, A LOT OF CREEKS THAT AREN'T ACTIVATED. UM, YOU KNOW, LIGHTING MAY BE OUT IN SOME OF THESE AREAS. UM, WE HAVE THE UNHOUSED POPULATION THAT WE'RE TRYING TO WORK WITH, THE HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICER, UH, OFFICER WITH, AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE CONNECTING PEOPLE, UH, TO THOSE KINDS OF SERVICES. AND SO A LOT OF OUR PRIORITIES HAVE TO DO WITH US WORKING WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND OTHER AGENCIES. AND, UM, I APPRECIATE MR. STONE INTRODUCING HIMSELF, HIM BEING HERE IS JUST AN EXAMPLE OF HOW THE, UH, CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE IS GIVING US ANOTHER RESOURCE TO HELP COORDINATE OUR EFFORTS WITH A LOT OF THESE OTHER, UH, OTHER DEPARTMENTS. BECAUSE LIKE I SAID, WHEN WE'RE GOING DOWN INTO THE CREEKS CORRECT, WE FIND A WHOLE BUNCH OF ISSUES THAT AREN'T JUST RELATED TO THE POLICE. AND SO, UM, WE DO APPRECIATE THE CITY'S SUPPORT ON, UH, THOSE, UM, SO CONTINUE OUR COMMUNITY PROSECUTION AND ABATEMENT EFFORTS. UM, THERE'S A LOT OF, UH, TALK IN THE PREVIOUS MONTHS ABOUT AFTER HOURS BARS ALONG EAST SIXTH STREET UNLICENSED BUSINESSES THAT ARE DOING BUSINESSES THAT ARE CONTRIBUTING TO CRIME DOWNTOWN. SO WE'RE WORKING WITH CODE ENFORCEMENT, THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, UM, TRANSPORTATION, ANY DEPARTMENT THAT REALLY HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH HOW THESE BUSINESSES OPERATE. UH, WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM, UH, TOGETHER TO ADDRESS, UH, ADDRESS THOSE. AND THESE TEAMS ARE BEING PUT TOGETHER ON THE WEEKENDS, AND THEY'RE GOING OUT AND DOING INSPECTIONS ON SOME OF THESE, UH, BUSINESSES THAT AREN'T LICENSED, DON'T CARRY, UH, OCCUPANCY CERTIFICATES OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. UM, WE CONTINUE TO, UH, DEPLOY, UH, DIFFERENT STRATEGIES TO HOW OUR PERSONNEL ARE, UH, ASSIGNED DOWNTOWN. AND SO, JUST LIKE WE WERE SHOWING THE HEAT MAPS, IF THAT EVER CHANGES, OR OUR STAKEHOLDERS GIVE US DIFFERENT FEEDBACK, WE'RE ALWAYS TELLING OUR SUPERVISORS WHERE THEY SHOULD BE SENDING THEIR OFFICERS BASED ON THE CURRENT INFORMATION OR A DATA DRIVEN DEPARTMENT. AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, UM, WE EVALUATE EVERY SINGLE WEEK. UH, WE TALK ABOUT, UH, STATISTICS EVERY WEDNESDAY AS A COMMAND STAFF. AND SO, UM, THAT'S A, A BIG PUSH BY CHIEF DAVIS. UM, QUALITY OF LIFE OFFENSES. UM, THESE ARE SOME OF THE, THE SMALLER TYPES OF CRIMES THAT GO ON, BUT THEY'RE STILL IMPORTANT. YOU KNOW, WHEN PEOPLE ARE SITTING OR LYING OR, YOU KNOW, DOING DRUGS ON THE SIDEWALK. UM, THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT GET COMPLAINTS FROM THE STAKEHOLDERS, THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE AND VISIT DOWNTOWN. AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID IS WE PUT TOGETHER A PUBLIC ORDER TEAM. UH, THIS TEAM IS A GROUP OF SIX OFFICERS AND TWO SUPERVISORS, AND THEY BASICALLY LISTEN TO THE STAKEHOLDERS, FIND OUT WHAT THEIR COMPLAINTS ARE, AND THEY TRY TO ADDRESS, UH, SOME OF THESE QUALITY OF LIFE OFFENSES. UM, THEY'RE GONNA TRY TO EDUCATE THE PERSON THEY'RE DEALING WITH BEFORE THEY, UH, GO TO A CITATION OR ARREST. BUT THE MAIN GOAL HERE IS TO TRY TO GET COMPLIANCE OUT OF, UH, INDIVIDUALS THAT MIGHT BE VIOLATING SOME OF THOSE LOWER LEVEL CLASSY MISDEMEANORS THAT MIGHT BE REFERRED TO THE DOWNTOWN COMMUNITY COURT. WE'RE EXPANDING [00:20:01] OUR FOOT AND BIKE PATROLS IN HIGH PEDESTRIAN, UH, TRAFFIC AREAS. UH, THIS IS IMPORTANT TO US. WE KNOW THAT, UH, WHEN OFFICERS ARE SEEN AND THEY'RE OBSERVED IN LARGE AMOUNTS, THAT CRIME WILL LIKELY NOT HAPPEN BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE AWARE THAT THEY'RE BEING WATCHED. UM, WE COMMUNICATE THIS REGULARLY TO ALL OF OUR, UH, HOTEL AND BUSINESS MANAGERS AS WELL, THAT IF THEY HAVE A SECURITY STAFF, YOU KNOW, JUST GETTING OUT, WALKING AROUND, MAKING SURE THAT AREAS ARE VISITED IS USUALLY ENOUGH TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE AREN'T GONNA COMMIT CRIME IN THE AREA. UH, WE HAVE DIFFERENT PUBLIC SAFETY AWARENESS INITIATIVES. UH, WE JUST GOT DONE, UH, PUTTING OUT OUR PICKPOCKETING, UH, INITIATIVE WHERE OUR, UH, OPERATIONS LIEUTENANT, LIEUTENANT CLEVELAND WENT OUT AND MET WITH ALL THE, UH, BAR OWNERS ON WEST SIXTH STREET WHERE PICKPOCKETING IS HAPPENING. AND THEY WERE SHARING INFORMATION, UH, WHETHER IT WAS SURVEILLANCE FROM PREVIOUS, UH, PICKPOCKETS, UM, SO THAT WAY PEOPLE KNOW, KIND OF LIKE WHO TO LOOK OUT FOR, UH, TIPS FOR THEIR DOOR GUYS TO SHARE WITH PEOPLE COMING INTO THE BARS WHERE YOU KEEP YOUR WALLET. UH, DON'T KEEP IT IN YOUR BACK POCKET, DON'T LEAVE YOUR PURSE, UH, JUST HANGING OFF A CHAIR AND GO DANCE. LIKE KEEP YOUR STUFF WITH YOU. SO THESE ARE ALL EXAMPLES OF HOW WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH SOME OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS DOWNTOWN ON SOME OF THESE INITIATIVES. UM, INCREASING OUR AFTER HOURS ENFORCEMENT FOR NON-COMPLIANT, NON-COMPLIANT ESTABLISHMENTS. I'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THAT. UM, AND AGAIN, THESE ARE OUR PACE TEAMS THAT ARE GOING OUT AND DOING SOME OF THOSE, UH, INSPECTIONS. UM, AND THEN, UH, WE HAVE OUR ENFORCEMENT EFFORTS TARGETING DRUG ACTIVITY AND IDENTIFIED HOTSPOT AREAS AGAIN. UM, WE USUALLY FIND THAT WHERE PEOPLE ARE ADDICTED TO DRUGS, THEY'RE SELLING DRUGS, BUYING DRUGS, THOSE ARE AREAS THAT WE OFTEN HAVE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CRIMES HAPPENING, LIKE ROBBERIES OR CAR BREAK-INS. SO AGAIN, OUR PUBLIC ORDER TEAM, WHICH I TALKED ABOUT IN THAT THIRD POINT, THEY'RE ALSO DOING THAT AS WELL. NEXT SLIDE. UH, WE'VE DISCUSSED, UH, KIND OF, UH, THINGS THAT WE NEED STRATEGICALLY TO CONTINUE, UH, INCREASING OUR EFFORTS DOWNTOWN IN FIGHTING CRIME AND WORKING WITH SOME OF THE STAKEHOLDERS DOWNTOWN, UH, TO MAKE, UH, DOWNTOWN MORE VIBRANT AND LIVABLE. UM, WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT DOWNTOWN IS THE HEARTBEAT OF AUSTIN, AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE FEEL SAFE VISITING AND LIVING DOWNTOWN. UM, SOME OF THESE, UH, NEEDS THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE HAVE TO DO WITH CAMERAS. UH, COMMISSIONER YOU BROUGHT UP THE HIGH ALTITUDE LOCATION OBSERVATION CAMERAS THAT WE HAVE IN DOWNTOWN. UH, THERE'S SEVERAL OF THOSE. THERE'S OVER 50 RIGHT NOW. UM, SOME OF THOSE ARE BROKEN, AND WE DO HAVE THE NEED TO EXPAND SOME OF THOSE INTO SOME OTHER AREAS AS WELL. AND WE ALSO ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON OUR FUSS PROJECT, WHICH BASICALLY INCORPORATES PRIVATE CAMERAS FROM PRIVATE BUSINESSES BEING SHARED TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. MM-HMM . IF THOSE BUSINESSES, UH, WANT TO SHARE THAT FEED. UM, IF THERE'S EVER SOMETHING GOING ON AT THAT BUSINESS, THE PEOPLE THAT ARE OFF OBSERVING OUR HALO CAMERAS WOULD BE ABLE TO, UH, TAP INTO SOME OF THOSE CAMERAS, GET US SOME BETTER INTELLIGENCE. YOU KNOW, IF THERE IS SOMETHING HAPPENING WHERE THERE'S A FIGHT GOING ON, UH, SOMETHING WHERE SAFETY'S, UH, IMMEDIATELY NECESSARY, UH, WE'LL BE ABLE TO TAP IN AND SEE SOME OF THOSE, UH, BY USING SOME OF THOSE PRIVATE CAMERAS INTEGRATED WITH THE FUSS PROGRAM. UH, TWO YEARS AGO, THIS, UH, COMMISSION WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN GETTING US THOSE MERIDIAN BARRICADES, UH, WHICH BASICALLY PREVENT VEHICLES FROM ENTERING PROHIBITED AREAS. AND WE USE THOSE FOR BUSY WEEKEND NIGHTS DOWNTOWN FOR RACES, UH, FOR LARGE MUSIC FESTIVALS. UM, ANYTIME WHEN THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE GATHERED AROUND, IT WOULD BE A TARGET RICH ENVIRONMENT FOR SOMEBODY WANTING TO DO HARM. SO YOU ALL ACTUALLY HELPED US SECURE THOSE ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO. AND SO NOW THAT WE'RE STARTING TO DEPLOY THEM, WE'RE REALIZING THAT WE ACTUALLY PROBABLY NEED A COUPLE MORE GATES ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. AND THESE GATES PRETTY MUCH JUST SWING UP AND DOWN. AND THE REASON BEING IS WHEN WE WANNA GET A FIRETRUCK IN, THEY HAVE TO GET OUT, DOLLY, THE BARRICADES THAT WE HAVE AWAY OFF TO THE SIDE, GET BACK IN THE FIRE TRUCK OR AMBULANCE, AND THEN THEY CAN COME INTO THE AREA. UM, IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WORKED OUT, UH, IN THE MEANTIME, BUT IT WOULD BE MUCH MORE EFFICIENT TO HAVE SOME OF THESE GATES, UH, TO COMPLIMENT THE BARRICADES THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE. SO HOW MANY OF THEM DO YOU THINK YOU NEED AND WHAT DO THEY COST? UH, THERE'S TWO GATES THAT WE WERE DISCUSSING AMONGST THE SUPERVISORS DOWNTOWN, AND I THINK THEY COST ABOUT $15,000 EACH. 15,000 MM-HMM . AND I CAN, UH, GET YOU ALL THE QUOTES FOR THOSE AS WELL. MM-HMM . THANK YOU. UM, THE NEXT THING THAT WE NEED IS UTVS AND E-BIKES. UM, WE MENTIONED THAT WE WANT OFFICERS TO BE SEEN IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA. WE DON'T WANT THEM TO BE IN CARS AWAY FROM PEOPLE. SO PUTTING THEM IN, UH, THE U UTVS, THOSE ARE PRETTY MUCH LIKE THE BIG GOLF CARTS THAT YOU SEE DOWNTOWN. OKAY. UM, AND MAKE SURE THAT OFFICERS CAN HEAR WHAT'S GOING ON AROUND THEM. THEY CAN INTERACT WITH PEOPLE, HAVE CONVERSATIONS. AND THE SAME THING ON BICYCLES. UH, WE HAVE A LOT OF TRAILS, UH, ALONG LADY BIRD LAKE ALONG THE CREEKS THAT WE WANT OFFICERS TO BE IN. [00:25:01] AND WITH PATROL CARS, THAT'S JUST NOT POSSIBLE. SO, UM, THESE TWO, UH, VEHICLE SOURCES ARE GOING TO HELP US ACHIEVE OUR GOALS IN GETTING TO SOME OF THESE AREAS THAT IT'S HARDER TO GET TO IN A PATROL CAR WHILE MAINTAINING, UH, THE, UH, FACE OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WITH THE CITIZENS IN AUSTIN. UM, CURRENTLY WE ALSO HAVE A FLEET, UH, BACKUP WHERE, UH, DUE TO SOME OF THE PANDEMIC SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES, LABOR ISSUES, UH, THERE'S STILL NOT ENOUGH POLICE CARS TO GO AROUND FOR ALL THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES. SO WE THINK BY, UM, HAVING SOME OF THESE VEHICLES DEPLOYED IN DOWNTOWN, WE CAN DEPLOY THE VEHICLES THAT WE HAVE DOWNTOWN TO SURROUNDING SECTORS SO WE CAN MAKE SURE WE HAVE ENOUGH CARS FOR THEM AS WELL. MAKES SENSE. UM, PERSONNEL RESOURCES, UM, UH, THAT ONE'S, UH, KIND OF A NO BRAINER. UH, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW WE'RE 350 OFFICERS SHORT. UM, ONCE OUR DEPARTMENT CAN CATCH UP TO THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF POLICE OFFICERS THAT, UH, DIFFERENT COUNCILS AND COMMISSIONS HAVE DONE STUDIES FOR, TO FIND THE, THE IDEAL NUMBER, UM, THE AMOUNT OF OFFICERS IN DOWNTOWN WILL ALSO RISE AND WILL BE ABLE TO RESPOND TO, UH, A LOT MORE TYPES OF CRIMES DOWNTOWN AND MAKE CONTACT WITH MORE CITIZENS. UM, DRONES IS SOMETHING THAT IS, UH, YOU KNOW, BEING DEVELOPED, UH, ACROSS DIFFERENT INDUSTRIES AND BEING USED FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES. AND THIS IS JUST ANOTHER TOOL THAT WE CAN HAVE IN OUR, UH, TOOLBOX TO MAKE SURE THAT IF THERE'S SOMETHING GOING ON DOWNTOWN, WE CAN DEPLOY ONE OF THESE AND MONITOR IT FROM A SAFE DISTANCE SO WE CAN COME UP WITH A STRATEGY, UH, ON DEALING WITH IT. UM, YOU KNOW, IF WE HAVE ANOTHER ACTIVE SHOOTER OR SOMETHING, IF WE CAN GET SOMETHING IN THE SKY TO, TO GIVE US A OVERVIEW OF WHAT'S GOING ON WITHOUT HAVING TO WAIT FOR THE HELICOPTER TO FLY IN FROM THE AIRPORT. UM, IF AN OFFICER CAN JUST DEPLOY IT FROM A CAR, UM, SUPERVISORS, THE CHIEF COMMANDERS CAN GET AN EYE ON THE SCENE AND GET THE CORRECT RESOURCES DEPLOYED TO THAT AREA AND GIVE REAL LIFE INTELLIGENCE, UH, WHILE THE CRISIS IS UNFOLDING. UM, WE SAW THE BUFORD RESPONSE. WE HAD OFFICERS THAT RESPONDED WITHIN 57 SECONDS TO STOP THE THREAT AT, UH, THE CLUB ON WEST SIXTH STREET. AND SO THAT IS A TESTAMENT TO THE TRAINING THAT WE'RE DOING BETWEEN EMS FIRE AND THE POLICE. AND WE WANT TO CONTINUE THAT TRAINING. UH, CURRENTLY WE'RE SEEING THAT THERE'S STILL A NEED, UH, FOR THESE TYPES OF TACTICAL TRAININGS. AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN I THINK OF THESE, THEY DON'T HAPPEN VERY OFTEN. BUT BECAUSE DOWNTOWN HAS SUCH A DENSE AREA WITH VERTICAL BUILDINGS, UH, WE DO WANT TO START DEVELOPING TRAINING TACTICS TO RESPOND TO INCIDENTS THAT MIGHT HAPPEN ON HIGHER FLOORS AND WORK WITH THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AND EMS ON SOME OF THE BEST PRACTICES. SHOULD SOMETHING UNFOLD IN ONE OF THE TALLER BUILDINGS DOWNTOWN, HOW DO WE DEAL WITH IT? HOW DO WE GET THERE EFFICIENTLY AND QUICKLY AND TAKE CARE OF THE PROBLEM WITHOUT, UH, MANY LIVES BEING LOST? NEXT SLIDE. UH, THESE ARE SOME OF THE DISCUSSION TOPICS THAT, UH, WE'RE CURRENTLY GOING THROUGH. UH, WHEN WE'RE TALKING WITH STAKEHOLDERS, UH, JUST TALKING ABOUT THE PROTECTIVE BARRIERS WE MENTIONED ALREADY. UM, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CRIME, WE'RE ALWAYS TALK, TALKING ABOUT SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS, OUR CAPABILITIES IN DEALING WITH, UM, MONITORING AREAS. UM, I TOLD Y'ALL, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE DOING OUR SITE VISITS, LIKE AT THE LIBRARY, WE'RE LOOKING FOR DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE LIGHTING, UM, OPPORTUNITIES TO IMPROVE OUR VISIBILITY AND SITU, SO SITUATIONAL AWARENESS DOWNTOWN. UM, WE'RE CONSTANTLY TRYING TO TALK WITH, UH, STAKEHOLDERS ABOUT HOW TO BE MORE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS, NOT WALK INTO AREAS BY YOURSELF. UM, WE ARE DISCUSSING, UH, WITH OUR PARTNERS LIKE THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE, ABOUT HOW TO, UH, HAVE BETTER SIGNAGE IN THE AREA TO ASSIST VISITORS IN FINDING, UH, TRANSPORTATION, UM, PLACES OF INTEREST DOWNTOWN, AND THE EXAMINATION OF PEDESTRIAN INFRASTRUCTURE AND CIRCULATION PATTERNS IN THE AREAS WHERE HIGH VISIT WITH HIGH VISITOR ACTIVITY AND NIGHTLIFE RELATED DEMAND EXISTS. UM, CURRENTLY IF YOU DRIVE AROUND DOWNTOWN WHEN IT'S BARLOWS, LIKE IT'S REALLY HARD TO GET AROUND. SO WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH OUR TRAFFIC ENGINEERS ON DIFFERENT IDEAS AND TRAFFIC PATTERNS TO TRY TO MAKE, UH, OUR DENSE AREA MORE DRIVABLE AS WELL. UM, YOU KNOW, I'D LIKE EVERYBODY TO BE ON BICYCLES AND SCOOTERS AND NOT IN DANGEROUS CARS, BUT THAT'S NOT ALWAYS THE REALITY. SO, NEXT SLIDE. UM, HUGE TOPIC THAT COMES UP IS OFTENTIMES WHEN WE'RE TASKED TO GO AND WORK IN AN AREA OF CONCERN IS, UM, HOW DO WE DEAL WITH THE UNHOUSED PERSONS THAT ARE IN THAT AREA? WE CURRENTLY, LIKE I MENTIONED, WE'RE DOING SOMETHING IN SHOAL CREEK ALONG SECOND STREET NEAR THE LIBRARY. AND SO BEFORE WE GO IN AND WE TAKE POLICE ACTION, WE ALWAYS CONTACT DAVID GRAY IN THE HOMELESS STRATEGY OFFICE TO MAKE SURE THAT [00:30:01] THEY'RE AWARE THAT WE'RE ABOUT TO START OUR ENFORCEMENT AND EDUCATION CAMPAIGN, UH, IN THE AREA. THIS GIVES THEM A CHANCE TO GET IN THERE, CONNECT PEOPLE WITH SERVICES, AND MAKE SURE THAT, UH, PEOPLE KNOW THAT THE POLICE ARE GONNA BE COMING THROUGH THERE. UM, IT'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO START TALKING WITH PEOPLE, GETTING THEM TO REALIZE LIKE, HEY, THE CITY OF AUSTIN HAS PLENTY OF SERVICES FOR YOU. UM, AND WE TRY TO CONNECT THEM THAT WAY. UM, WE THEN GO IN, WE EDUCATE, WE GIVE WARNINGS. IF, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE COMPLIANT, THAT'S THE IDEAL, UM, OUTCOME IN THIS SITUATION. AND WE FIND THAT THAT'S, UH, THE CASE 99% OF THE TIME. BUT SOMETIMES PEOPLE REFUSE TO MOVE. AND THEN AT THAT POINT WE'LL PROBABLY ADDRESS, UH, WHETHER CITATIONS OR ARRESTS WOULD PROBABLY BE SOMETHING WE WANT TO APPROACH. UM, THE EDUCATION WE TALK TO THEM ABOUT IS WHAT CITY ORDINANCES SAY, HOW WE EXPECT OUR PUBLIC SPACE TO BE MAINTAINED. AND THERE ARE COMPLIANCE OPTIONS. UH, WE UTILIZE PROGRESSIVE ENFORCEMENT STRATEGIES, LIKE I MENTIONED, UH, TALKED ABOUT THE WARNINGS AND HOW WE ESCALATE TO CITATIONS IF, UH, NEEDED ARRESTS. UH, WE DON'T LIKE MAKING ARRESTS. IT'S VERY TIME CONSUMING, BUT SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS. UH, SOMETIMES WHEN WE RUN PEOPLE, UH, LIKE CHIEF MENTIONED, THEY HAVE DIFFERENT WARRANTS ISSUED FROM VARIOUS AGENCIES. UM, UNFORTUNATELY, UH, SOMETIMES WE DEAL WITH THOSE TOO. AND, UH, STRENGTHENING OUR INTERAGENCY COORDINATION. UH, WE CONSTANTLY WORK WITH OUR DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS ON GETTING FEEDBACK ON OUR, UH, ENFORCEMENT, UH, ACTIVITIES TO TRY TO BETTER OURSELVES, UH, EVERY TIME WE GO OUT AND DO SOMETHING. UM, ONE THING I FORGOT TO MENTION IS THAT WE DO HAVE A NEW, UM, WE CALL IT NO WRONG DOORS PROGRAM THAT'S GOING ON WHERE WE HAVE, UH, FOUR OFFICERS AND A SUPERVISOR THAT ARE CONSTANTLY GOING OUT. UM, WE USED TO HAVE ONE OFFICER, HER NAME WAS OFFICER BORTON A COUPLE YEARS AGO THAT WOULD HELP TRY TO ASSIST THE UNHOUSED INDIVIDUALS DOWNTOWN. BUT NOW WE ACTUALLY HAVE FOUR OFFICERS AND, UH, THEY DO A PLETHORA OF THINGS. THEY WORK WITH THE COUNTY ATTORNEY, THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY, ALL THE SOCIAL AGENCIES, ALL THE NGOS TO TRY TO GET PEOPLE CONNECTED TO DIFFERENT THINGS. NOW, WE HAD A COOL STORY LAST WEEK THAT THEY SHARED WHERE THEY FOUND OUT THAT SOMEBODY COULDN'T GET INTO A PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL WHERE THEY WANTED TO GO JUST BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE INSURANCE OR FUNDING, AND THEY WORKED TOGETHER TO GET MEDICAID AND MEDICARE APPROVED FOR THIS INDIVIDUAL SO THEY COULD GET A BED AT A HOSPITAL AND GET SOME TREATMENT. SO THESE ARE SOME OF THE, UH, OUT OF THE BOX THINGS THAT WE'RE THINKING ABOUT AND TRYING AND TRYING TO GET PEOPLE CONNECTED AND SOLVE SOME OF THE UNDERLYING REAL PROBLEMS THAT, UM, UNFORTUNATELY, UH, GET TRANSLATED TO CRIME OFTENTIMES. WELL, WE APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT. MM-HMM . NEXT SLIDE. UM, OFFICER, I HAVE A, A QUESTION VICE CHAIR. UH, THANKS FOR THE UPDATE. UH, I'M CURIOUS ABOUT THE CITATIONS. ONCE THE CITATION CITATION IS, UH, UM, ISSUED. WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS? WHAT DO THEY DO? YEAH, SO ONCE THE CITATIONS ARE ISSUED, UM, DEPENDING ON WHERE THEY'RE ISSUED, UM, AND IT'S ACTUALLY CITYWIDE NOW, BUT ALL THE CITATIONS IN DOWNTOWN GO TO THE DOWNTOWN COMMUNITY COURT. THAT COURT IS, UH, THE JUDGE IS, UH, JUDGE COFFEY. UM, AND HE ALSO HAS, UH, A STAFF OF SOCIAL WORKERS. AND HIS MAIN GOAL IS NOT TO TRY TO PUNISH PEOPLE OR JAIL PEOPLE OR FINE PEOPLE. 'CAUSE A LOT OF THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE THESE CITATIONS DON'T HAVE MONEY, AND HE UNDERSTANDS THAT. BUT IF HE CAN WORK OUT A DEAL WITH THEM TO GO GET A ID SO THEY CAN GET SERVICES OR THEY CAN DO SOME KIND OF COMMUNITY SERVICE TO HELP BEAUTIFY DOWNTOWN, UM, HE TRIES TO WORK ON GETTING PEOPLE CONNECTED TO SERVICES AT THAT STAGE AS WELL. WOULD THE RECORD OF CITATION INCREASE THE DIFFICULTY FOR THEM TO GET FURTHER SERVICES? NO, I DON'T THINK SO. I THINK ALL THAT'S BEEN WORKED OUT BY THE COMMUNITY COURT, AND I THINK THEY'RE VERY MINDFUL OF THAT IN PARTICULAR, THAT SOME OF THESE, UH, THINGS WON'T GO ON THEIR RECORD. UM, A LOT OF THESE THINGS ARE MISDEMEANOR CITATIONS, SO THEY'RE JUST LIKE, UH, CLASS C TRAFFIC TICKETS. UM, AND SO RARELY WOULD THOSE SHOW UP ON A BACKGROUND CHECK. AND I THINK THAT ONCE, UH, JUDGE COFFEE DISPOSES OF THOSE, ONCE HE'S CONNECTED THEM WITH SERVICES, UM, I'M NOT SURE IF IT WOULD EVER GO DOWN AS A CONVICTION ON A RECORD, BUT I CAN CHECK ON THAT, ASK HIM, AND THEN GET BACK TO YOU. THANK YOU. LAST SLIDE WE'VE GOT UP HERE IS THE, UH, IMMIGRATION ENGAGEMENT THAT WE TALKED ABOUT IN THE VERY BEGINNING. SO I'M NOT GONNA GO OVER IT AGAIN, BUT I WILL OPEN IT UP AND SEE IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON ANYTHING THAT'S BEEN PRESENTED OR THE IMMIGRATION. ANY QUESTION? COMMISSIONER WILEY? UH, YEAH, I'M NOT SURE THIS IS GONNA BE A QUESTION, BUT IT MAY END UP THERE, UH, MORE OF AN OBSERVATION, UM, BECAUSE OF, AND THANK YOU FOR SHOWING THE MAP, AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION THIS EVENING. UM, THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF, OF THE DOWNTOWN AREA, UM, [00:35:01] HAS SEEN AN INCREASE IN, UM, SPRAY PAINTING, UM, PEOPLE SLEEPING ALONG THE SIDEWALKS. IT'S KIND OF COINCIDED WITH WEST CAMPUS GETTING A LITTLE, UH, STRICTER ENFORCEMENT ON BOTH OF THOSE THINGS. SO I UNDERSTAND THE PRESSURE THAT'S KINDA PUSHING IT SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT IT RECENTLY, UM, I THINK WE ALL KNOW THAT, UH, THAT THE, THE STATUE IN PEACE PARK THAT'S VERY CLOSE TO THERE, BASICALLY DOWN THE HILL, UH, WAS BURNED DOWN. SO DO WE KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THAT? AND ARE WE LOOKING AT THIS KIND OF AS LIKE, I I DO NOT KNOW ABOUT THAT AREA THAT YOU'RE SPEAKING ABOUT. THAT'S NOT, UH, GEORGE SECTOR, WHICH IS DOWNTOWN AS FAR AS THE POLICE MAPS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT, THAT WOULD ACTUALLY BE BAKER SECTOR. UM, AND SO, UM, OH, IT'S, IT'S LIKE JUST ACROSS A COUPLE OF STREETS THAT OUR BORDERS EXIST. BUT, UM, OUR COMMANDER OVER THE AREA IN BAKER SECTOR, WHICH INCLUDES WEST CAMPUS IS CRAIG SMITH. AND I CAN DISCUSS THAT WITH HIM AND, UH, MAKE SURE THAT HE KNOWS ABOUT THE GRAFFITI AND ISSUES IN THE PARK UP THERE AS WELL. YEAH. BUT I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T, I DIDN'T DESCRIBE THAT VERY WELL. SO ON THE, UH, THE NORTH SIDE OF MLK IS NOW PATROLLED MORE HEAVILY, UH, BY THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, APPLYING RESOURCES, ET CETERA. UH, AND THAT'S KIND OF PUT PRESSURE ON THE SOUTH. SO SOUTH OF MLK ON THE DOWNTOWN GRID, UH, THERE'S BEEN AN INCREASE IN SPRAY PAINTING BECAUSE IT ISN'T CONTROLLED AS MUCH IN THE SPRAY. PAINTERS WANNA SEE THEIR WORK LIVE. UM, AND THE SAME WITH AN INCREASE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF MLK WITH, UH, WITH CAMPING AND SOUTH OF THEIR, NOT IN YOUR DISTRICT, BUT THE PEAS PARK VERY CLOSE TO WHERE ALL THIS OTHER STUFF IS GOING ON IS WHERE MOLIN WAS, WAS BURNED DOWN. AND, AND SO I JUST, I PASSED ALONG THAT AS AN OBSERVATION, BUT TO ALSO SEE IF WE KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE STATUE. YEAH, I UNDERSTAND. UM, AND ANYTIME YOU SEE GRAFFITI, IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO NOTIFY THE CITY 3 1 1. UM, I, I KNOW THAT OUR LIAISON THAT PUTS THESE, UH, COMMISSION MEETINGS TOGETHER, THEY COULD PROBABLY SHARE MY EMAIL ADDRESS. AND IF YOU HAVE THESE, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES THAT YOU'RE NOTICING, YOU CAN ALWAYS EMAIL ME DIRECTLY. I, I RESPOND TO MY EMAIL ALL THE TIME. I GIVE IT OUT TO ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS. SO IF Y'ALL SEE SOMETHING AND YOU KNOW, YOU THINK 3 1 1 OR, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER METHOD YOU ARE TAKING TO REPORT IT IS TAKING TOO LONG, JUST CONTACT ME DIRECTLY. OKAY. AND I'LL WORK WITH THE CORRECT CITY DEPARTMENTS TO GET IT, UH, REMEDIED. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK CHAIR COMMISSIONER MCDA. THANK YOU CHAIR. UM, THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY. UM, I WANTED TO ASK JUST A COUPLE QUICK QUESTIONS. ONE, YOU MENTIONED A LOT OF COLLABORATION WITH VARIOUS STAKEHOLDERS. I'M WONDERING, UH, UH, IS, DOES DPS STILL HAVE, UM, SOME TYPE OF JURISDICTION OVER THE, THE CAPITOL OR DOWNTOWN CORRIDOR OR SOMETHING? AND DO Y'ALL COLLABORATE AT ALL WITH THEM? YES. UM, IN ANY WAY, UH, DPS, UH, HAS JURISDICTION THROUGHOUT THE STATE. UM, SURE. SO, UM, THEY, THEY HAVE PARTICULARLY THE CAPITOL, BUT THEY DO COME OFF THE CAPITOL TO PATROL OUR AREA. AND SO THEY'VE BEEN ASKED TO HELP OUT IN SOME OF THE AREAS THAT WE DO GET COMPLAINTS ON. SO, YOU KNOW, THEY MIGHT SEND OUT SOME OF THEIR BIKE PATROLS DOWN SHOAL CREEK TO THE LIBRARY. UH, WE TALK TO THEM, UH, REGULARLY, UH, PROBABLY ONCE A MONTH AND, AND SHARE FEEDBACK BETWEEN EACH OTHER, YOU KNOW, UM, SOME OF THE COLLABORATION THAT WE HAVE GOES, UH, TO TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THE BIGGER EVENTS DOWNTOWN. OKAY. SO WHENEVER WE HAVE PROTESTS OR PARADES, UM, WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES THESE DIFFERENT, UM, FESTIVALS, PARADES, UH, PROTESTS, THEY CROSS OUR JURISDICTIONAL LINE. SO WE TRY TO MAINTAIN GOOD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEM. SURE. OR A HUNDRED THOUSAND PEOPLE IN A FOOTBALL STADIUM. RIGHT, RIGHT. , I MEAN, ALL KINDS OF STUFF. UM, SO RECENTLY I ACTUALLY WENT TO A BRIEFING THAT DPS HOSTED AND THEY, THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT DRONES. AND SO I KNOW YOU MENTIONED THAT AS PART OF THE RESOURCES THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. UM, I GUESS IN MORE OF LIKE, UM, OBSERVATIONAL AND PREVENTATIVE, PREVENTATIVE, YOU KNOW, PRESENCE, I'M WONDERING IF THERE'S ANY, AND I UNDERSTAND IF THERE'S LIKE CLASSIFIED OR YOU CAN'T REALLY TALK ABOUT THIS, BUT IS THERE ANY CONSIDERATION ABOUT, UM, DEFENSE AGAINST, UH, DRONES THAT MIGHT, UH, LOOK TO HARM THE COMMUNITY IN SOME WAY? YEAH, SO WE'VE PUT TOGETHER SOME TRAINING A COUPLE YEARS BACK, AND IT'S BEEN KIND OF ONGOING WITH DIFFERENT GROUPS WHERE WE'VE LOOKED AT POTENTIAL DRONE ATTACKS AND WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE AND WHAT OUR RESPONSE WOULD BE TO THAT. UM, THERE'S BEEN SOME LARGE TRAINING EXERCISES THAT HAVE REALLY GONE OVER THAT AND HOW WE WOULD RESPOND TO IT. I WON'T GET INTO THE DETAILS MM-HMM . FOR THE REASONS THAT YOU MENTIONED ABOUT HOW WE'RE GONNA MITIGATE THOSE ATTACKS, UM, SO THAT WE DON'T PUT THAT OUT THERE IN THE PUBLIC. BUT WE HAVE DONE TRAINING ON THAT, AND WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT. THANK YOU FOR PEACE OF MIND. AND COMMISSIONER. POW. YES, I, I HAVE A COUPLE THINGS. UH, FIRST YOU, YOU MENTIONED, UM, IT WAS AT SHELLY BARTON THAT, UM, SHE WAS OUR, UM, [00:40:01] SERGEANT AT WESTGATE TOWER WHERE I LIVED NEXT TO THE CAPITOL, AND SHE WAS VERY GOOD AND HER PARTNER AT THE TIME, THEY CAME TO HER OUR PROPERTY A NUMBER OF TIMES TO BASICALLY GIVE US SOME TRAINING AND UPDATES ON SECURITY. AND MAYBE, YOU KNOW, HAVING A PROGRAM WHERE THERE'S MORE OUTREACH TO PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, THOSE PROPERTY OWNERS KNOWING WHO THEY NEED, WHO'S OVER, UH, THEIR AREA AND WHO, YOU KNOW, THE PROTOCOL FOR CONTACTING, UH, I THINK WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL. YOU KNOW, UM, AS WE, UH, THE SECURITY BREACHES CONTINUE TO INCREASE DOWNTOWN, THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING TO, TO CONSIDER. AND THEN MY OTHER POINT, UH, BACK TO THE HALO CAMERA, I'LL NEVER FORGET THE TERM, I APOLOGIZE AGAIN. BUT, UM, WHEN THAT WAS INITIATED, UM, DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE HAD A NUMBER OF TRAINING, UM, UM, PRESENTATIONS ON THAT. AND WE EVEN HAD A SITE VISIT AT ONE POINT. UH, SOME OF US WENT DOWN TO, UM, THAT FACILITY AND, YOU KNOW, WE WERE GIVEN, UM, SOME DEMONSTRATIONS ON WHAT, UH, HOW THESE CAMERAS OPERATE AND, AND WHAT WAS BEING, UH, LOOKED AT AT TIMES DURING CERTAIN TIMES OF THE DAY AND THE EVENING, AND WHICH WAS VERY HELPFUL. AND, YOU KNOW, MAYBE HAVING, UM, ANOTHER OUTREACH LIKE THAT WOULD BE REALLY GOOD FOR PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, DOWNTOWN. AND THE, UM, YEAH, I, I THINK THAT WOULD JUST BE REALLY GOOD. AND THEN ALSO THERE WAS A PRESENTATION THROUGH DAA ON PROPERTY OWNERS CONNECTING TO THE HALO CAMERAS, WHICH YOU MENTIONED EARLIER, AND THAT WAS THREE, FOUR YEARS AGO AT LEAST. AND SO, UM, HAS THERE BEEN GOOD PARTICIPATION? YOU KNOW, I KNOW OUR PROPERTY'S INTERESTED IN IT AT THE SAME TIME, UM, DURING THIS, UH, PRESENTATION, THERE WERE CONCERNS BY PROPERTY OWNERS FOR INVASION OF, UH, PRIVACY. AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS, UH, DISCUSSED THAT IT WOULD JUST MAINLY BE CONNECTION TO EXTERIOR CAMERAS, NOTHING ON THE INTERIORS OF OUR PROPERTIES. SO I'M JUST CURIOUS AS TO, UH, WHERE THAT'S AT THAT PROGRAM IS, UH, HAS THERE BEEN GOOD PARTICIPATION? SO LIKE YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE HALO CAMERAS, WHEN WE FIRST GOT THOSE, UH, SET UP, IT TOOK A NUMBER OF YEARS TO GET IT SET UP. SO UNFORTUNATELY WHEN, YOU KNOW, YOU WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT LIKE WE DO, UM, YOU KNOW, THINGS DON'T REALLY PROGRESS THAT FAST. AND THERE'S A VERY, A VARIETY OF REASONS FOR THAT. ONE IS OF COURSE, HOW MUCH IT COSTS. THE SECOND IS, LIKE YOU MENTIONED, THE PRIVACY CONCERNS. SO MM-HMM . UH, WHEN WE DO PUT THESE TYPES OF TECHNOLOGY INTO PRACTICE, THERE ARE A LOT OF, UM, BOARDS AND, UH, COMMITTEES THAT ARE PUT TOGETHER TO TRY TO GET DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES ON THE BEST WAY TO DEPLOY SOME OF THE SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGIES TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE FEEL LIKE THEIR PRIVATE SPACES ARE STILL PRIVATE AND THAT THE GOVERNMENT ISN'T DOING MORE, UH, SURVEILLANCE THAN IS NEEDED. AND, AND IT'S FOR THOSE REASONS THAT IT TAKES A WHILE SOMETIMES TO, TO GET SOME OF THESE PROJECTS OFF THE GROUND. BUT THERE IS A LOT OF INTEREST IN THE FUSS PROGRAM AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE WORKING WITH OUR DOWNTOWN BUSINESSES TO SEE IF THEY'RE INTERESTED TO GET IT CONNECTED, BUT IT'S, IT'S WELL ON ITS WAY. UM, AND IT'S, IT'S ALMOST HERE. SO, WELL, I MEAN, AT THE TIME THERE WAS A DETERMINATION THAT IT WOULD BE VERY EFFECTIVE, ESPECIALLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE EVENING. UM, YOU KNOW, THAT MANY OF THESE BUSINESSES, THESE PROPERTIES HAVE NO, UH, NO ONE ON THEIR PROPERTY TO MONITOR, UH, BREACHES AND, AND TO HAVE, UH, THEIR CA THEIR EXTERIOR CAMERAS CONNECTED TO THIS SYSTEM. IT MAKES SENSE. AND I'M JUST, AGAIN, CURIOUS IF, UM, THERE'S BEEN AN INCREASE IN PARTICIPATION, I CAN GET THAT INFORMATION AND GET IT TO THE COMMISSION FOR Y'ALL. I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT IT WITHIN THE TRUST ACT AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE RESOLUTION THAT THE CITY'S PUT FORWARD AND EVERYTHING. AND SO, UM, BUT I'LL LOOK INTO THE NUMBERS FOR WHO'S, WHO'S, UH, KIND OF JOINED INTO THE HALO PROGRAM WITHIN THE FUSS PORTION OF IT, AND I CAN GET THAT TO Y'ALL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. CAN I ASK A QUESTION, COMMISSIONER? UM, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION AND, AND THANK YOU. AND THANK ALL THE OFFICERS INVOLVED IN THE BUFORT INCIDENT. UM, I, UM, HAD A QUESTION THAT, I GUESS IT RELATES TO THE, THE DRONES IDEA, BUT ALSO TO SURVEILLANCE IN GENERAL. UM, AND THEN SECONDARILY TO THE USE OF LICENSE PLATE READERS, WHICH I ASSUME ON SOME LEVEL MAY FEED INTO THE SAME SYSTEM AS THE HALO CAMERA IMAGES. I DON'T REALLY KNOW. [00:45:01] UM, BUT ARE THERE PROTOCOLS, UM, STANDARD OPERATING RATING PROCEDURES, UM, FOR, UH, ENSURING, UM, THAT THERE IS AN INAPPROPRIATE USE OF AERIAL SURVEILLANCE? UM, MM-HMM . SO CURRENTLY WE DON'T DO AERIAL SURVEILLANCE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF LIKE A SPEC OPS CALL OUT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. SO, UM, THE PREVIOUS EXAMPLE I GAVE TO THE LAST COMMISSION I SPOKE TO WAS ON THE SHOOTING, UH, IN PEACE PARK MM-HMM . UM, BACK IN THE FALL MM-HMM . UM, WE DID LOOK FOR THAT SUSPECT USING A DRONE, BUT THAT WAS THROUGH SPEC OPS. OKAY. SO, UM, RIGHT NOW WE DON'T DO ANY TYPE OF SURVEILLANCE AS FAR AS LOOKING PROACTIVELY FOR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. OKAY. IT'S ONLY, UH, AS A, WE ALREADY GOT AN INCIDENT UNFOLDING AND WE NEED TO FIND A SUBJECT OR SOMETHING OF THAT. SO, SO THOSE ARE THE GUARDRAILS ALREADY ON THE USE OF DRONES? IT'S THAT THEY'RE DEPLOYED REACTIVELY IN THAT SITUATION? YES. OKAY. THAT'S, UM, THAT'S HELPFUL. CAN YOU REMIND ME WHERE WE'RE AT ON THE LICENSE PLATE READER ISSUE? ? UM, I KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CONCERNS, PARTICULARLY I THINK THAT THE VENDOR SHARES ALL OF THEIR DATA WITH ICE AND DPS, SO IT'S SORT OF A BACK DOOR INTO ALL THAT INFORMATION. YEAH. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE NOT USING THOSE LICENSE PLATE READERS, AND SO THAT'S STILL SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GOING OVER AS THE TRUST ACT WAS, WAS BROUGHT IN. AND, UH, ARE WE ABLE TO BRING THOSE BACK? AND, AND HOW WOULD THAT LOOK AS WE'RE DOING THAT? RIGHT. IF WE COULD HAVE A FIREWALL. UM, ON THAT NOTE, UM, DOES DPS REPORT TO Y'ALL OR ANYONE, UM, HOW MANY, UH, REFERRALS TO ICE THEY MAKE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA? I'M SURE THAT THEY REPORT TO SOMEONE. IT'S NOT TO US , WELL, REALLY PUBLICLY WOULD BE THE QUESTION. RIGHT. I'M SURE THEY REPORT IT TO SOMEONE, BUT THEY'RE NOT GONNA GIVE THEM TO ANYONE IN AN OPEN RECORDS REQUEST. YEAH. WE'RE NOT GETTING THAT INFORMATION FROM THEM. OKAY. THANKS. COMMISSIONER BOOK. UH, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU, UH, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND, UM, I APPRECIATE, UH, THE OUT OF THE BOX THINKING AND THE RESPECT YOU'RE SHOWING TO OUR UNHOUSED COMMUNITY. UH, CERTAINLY. UH, ONE OF THE ISSUES I THINK THAT THIS COMMISSION HAS BEEN FOCUSING ON IS THE SAFETY, UH, OF OUR, THE PEOPLE WHO WORK DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, SERVICE INDUSTRY, MUSICIANS, ESPECIALLY IN THE EVENING HOURS. DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY, UH, DATA AROUND CRIMES VIOLENT OR THEFT, UH, COMMITTED AGAINST THOSE WORKING GROUPS SPECIFICALLY? UH, THERE'S NO SPECIFIC DATA THAT'S, UH, HAVING TO DO WITH SPECIFIC OCCUPATIONS OR ANYTHING OF THAT NATURE, BUT FROM THE DATA THAT WE DO HAVE THAT'S AVAILABLE ON OUR OPEN PORTAL, UM, IT'S SAFE TO ASSUME THAT EVERYBODY THAT'S IN THE AREA WOULD EXPERIENCE THAT SAME AMOUNT OF CRIME. SURE. YEAH. AND OTHER QUESTION, DO YOU GUYS COORDINATE WITH THE, UH, RED RIVER CULTURAL DISTRICT AND VENUE OWNERS AROUND THERE? YEAH. SO, UM, BEFORE I LEFT DOWNTOWN, UH, TWO YEARS AGO, WHAT THAT WAS ABOUT, UH, YEAH, BEFORE I LEFT, I, I WAS IN REGULAR COMMUNICATION WITH NICOLE, UH, AT THE RED RIVER CULTURAL DISTRICT. AND, UM, SHE'S SOMEBODY I JUST GOT PLUGGED BACK IN THIS NEW ROLE, AND SHE'S SOMEBODY THAT I'M GOING TO BE MEETING WITH AGAIN. UH, YOU KNOW, THE WALL CREEK AREA IS OF CONCERN TO THEM MM-HMM . AS WELL AS SOME OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CONCERNS IN THAT AREA. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, I, I DO REALIZE THAT A LOT OF THOSE VENUES AROUND THERE ARE STRUGGLING, STRUGGLING WITH CRIME, JUST THE GENERAL, UM, YOU KNOW, A APPEAL OF THE AREA, IF YOU WILL. SO, UM, THIS IS ONE OF THOSE AREAS WHERE WE'RE WORKING WITH ALL THE OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE COMING TOGETHER TO TRY TO TAKE CARE OF THE RED RIVER CULTURAL DISTRICT A LITTLE BIT BETTER. EXCELLENT. THAT'S GREEN NEWS. THANKS NEWS. OKAY. ANYONE ELSE? WELL, IF NOT, THEN I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO DOWNTOWN WOULD NOT BE WHAT IT IS WITHOUT YOU GUYS, AND ANY WAY WE CAN HELP YOU, WE ABSOLUTELY WILL. THANK YOU FOR SHARING YOUR INFORMATION AND HAVE A GREAT EVENING. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. AND NOW WE ARE MOVING ALONG [3. Update on the Central City District Plan. Briefing by Olivia Beams, Planner III and Chris Ryerson, Division Manager, Austin Planning. ] TO ITEM THREE, WHICH IS THE UPDATE ON THE CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT PLAN THAT WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO. I BELIEVE WE HAVE OLIVIA BEAMS AND CHRIS RYERS READY? MM-HMM . OKAY. ALL RIGHT. [00:50:10] OKAY. THANK YOU. UM, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. FOR THOSE WHO DON'T KNOW ME ALREADY, MY NAME IS OLIVIA BEAMS. I'M A PLANNER WITH AUSTIN PLANNING, WORKING UNDER CHRIS RYERSON, WHO IS ALSO JOINING US THIS EVENING, AS WELL AS, UM, ISHA JOHNSON, WHO'S THE PROJECT MANAGER AND THE, UM, FACE THAT MANY OF YOU HAVE SEEN BEFORE WHEN BRIEFING ON THIS PROJECT, SHE'S OUT OF TOWN. AND SO I AM STEPPING IN THIS EVENING. UM, THIS EVENING I PLAN TO UPDATE THE COMMISSION ON THE PROJECT AND HOW THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT HAS BEEN PROGRESSING, AND THEN AT THE REQUEST OF OUR WORKING GROUP, PROVIDING AN UPDATE ON PLACE TYPES MAPPING, AND HOW THAT'LL BE INTEGRATED WITH THE CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT PLAN. GREAT. SO BEGINNING WITH, UM, SOME PROJECT UPDATES, MANY OF YOU ALL HAVE SEEN THIS PROJECT TIMELINE BEFORE. UM, WE SHARED THIS WITH OUR WORKING GROUP AT OUR LAST MEETING, BUT THE BOTTOM LINE TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL IS THAT WE'VE EXTENDED OUR PHASE THREE OF ENGAGEMENT, UM, TO HAVE A LONGER PERIOD TO ALLOW US MORE TIME TO BRIEF ALL OF OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS WITH THE CITY, AND THEN ALSO HAVE MORE TIME FOR THE PUBLIC TO INTERACT WITH THE DRAFT PLAN WHEN IT'S READY IN EARLY 2027. AND THEN OUR TARGETED ADOPTION DATE IS MAY OF 2027. AND SO THE MAIN TAKEAWAY FROM THIS SLIDE IS THAT WE ARE EXTENDING THE TIMELINE TO ADOPTION OF THE CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT PLAN WHEN PREVIOUSLY IT WAS UNDER A VERY TIGHT TIMELINE. AND SO, UM, CURRENTLY WE ARE IN PHASE TWO OF ENGAGEMENT, AND RIGHT NOW THE TEAM'S FOCUS IS MEETING WITH, UM, PEOPLE SUCH AS PLAN IMPLEMENTERS. AND SO DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE AND THE DOWNTOWN STRATEGY OFFICE ARE, UM, SOME OF THOSE PARTNERS THAT WE'LL BE WORKING WITH. BUT THIS SPANS ACROSS SEVERAL DEPARTMENTS WITH THE CITY. UM, AND WE ARE ALSO FOCUSED ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF LAND USE SCENARIOS, WHICH WILL LATER ASSIST WITH, UM, THE POLICE TYPES MAPPING. AND THEN FINALLY FINALIZING, UM, THE DRAFT OBJECTIVES AND RECOMMENDATIONS THAT, UM, MANY OF YOU HAVE ASSISTED US WITH. AND JUST TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON OUR EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT, WE, UM, BEGAN WORKING ON THE EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT PRIOR TO PHASE ONE OF ENGAGEMENT. AND SO THIS WAS IN THE FALL OF LAST YEAR THAT THIS REPORT WAS STARTED. UM, IT FOCUSED ON ESTABLISHING A BASELINE FOR THE CENTRAL CITY PLAN AREA AND HELPED WITH DEVELOPMENT OF DIFFERENT, UM, TOPICS FOR THE PLAN AND INFORMED AREAS WHERE WE MAY NEED NEW RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS. AND THAT REPORT IS FINALLY AVAILABLE. UM, IT'S ON OUR WEBSITE@SPEAKUPAUSTIN.ORG SLASH CENTRAL CITY, AND IT'S RIGHT AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE. YOU CAN'T MISS IT. AND SO I ENCOURAGE YOU ALL TO REVIEW THAT REPORT AND, UM, JUST SEE ALL THE WONDERFUL INFORMATION THAT IT HOLDS. AND SO TO PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON HOW THE PLAN DEVELOPMENT HAS PROGRESSED. AS A REMINDER, THE PLAN'S, VISION STATEMENT AND GOALS WERE COVERED IN THE LAST COMMISSION MEETING WITH THE FULL COMMISSION. AND SO IN THE MEANTIME, WE HAVE HOSTED AN OPEN HOUSE WHERE IT WAS OPEN TO MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY, UM, TO HELP US REALLY NAIL DOWN OUR PLANS OBJECTIVES. AND I'LL DISCUSS THE RESULTS OF THAT OPEN HOUSE IN, IN A MOMENT HERE. UM, AND SO NOW WE'RE WORKING ON THE PLAN'S ACTION ITEMS, WHICH WILL BE THE FINAL STEP IN HOW THE PLAN IS, UM, ULTIMATELY THE MOST SPECIFIC OR THE MOST SPECIFIC PART OF THE PLAN. UM, AND THE ACTION ITEMS ARE REALLY THE, THE CRUX OF HOW WE GET TO ACHIEVING THE VISION STATEMENT THAT WE SHARED. MM-HMM . [00:55:02] UM, HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF THAT IN, IN ACTION. AND SO YOU MAY RECALL THAT THERE ARE EIGHT GOALS THAT WE'VE DEVELOPED WITH THE PLAN. HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF THE, UM, MOBILITY GOAL. AND SO THAT LARGER, UM, MORE GENERAL GOAL IS SHARED ON THE TOP LINE WITH A OBJECTIVE THAT IS A MORE GENERAL, LIKE, SORT OF DIRECTION FOR ACTION ITEMS TO GO. AND SO THE IDEA IS THAT WE HAVE OUR EIGHT GOALS, AND THEN OUR OBJECTIVES WILL SERVE TO MEET THOSE GOALS. AND THEN FINALLY, EACH ACTION ITEM WILL MEET AN INDIVIDUAL OBJECTIVE. AND SO EACH GOAL HAS, UM, ANYWHERE BETWEEN FOUR AND NINE OBJECTIVES WE HOSTED AND TWO OPEN HOUSES, UM, WITHIN THE PAST FEW MONTHS, ONE VIRTUAL AND ONE IN PERSON. AND WE SAW MANY OF YOU THERE. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR, UM, FOR THOSE WHO ATTENDED. UM, AT THAT OPEN HOUSE, WE SHARED ALL OF OUR DRAFT PLAN OBJECTIVES, AND THEN PARTICIPANTS, UM, AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY WERE ASKED TO RATE THEIR AGREEMENT OF EACH OBJECTIVE ON A LIKERT SCALE AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEY DIDN'T AGREE AT ALL TO WHETHER THEY AGREED A LOT WITH THE OBJECTIVE. AND THEN WE ALSO ASKED PEOPLE TO PROVIDE MAYBE SOME CONTEXT TO THOSE, UM, TO THOSE RATINGS. AND AS AN EXAMPLE, IF MAYBE STAFF SAW SOMEONE FLAG AN OBJECTIVE AS THEY DIDN'T AGREE WITH IT AT ALL, WE TRIED TO INTER INTERCEPT THERE AND HAVE A ONE-ON-ONE CONVERSATION TO UNDERSTAND MAYBE WHY, UM, WHY PEOPLE MAY FEEL THAT WAY. AND SO THE TOP THEMES OF THE WRITTEN FEEDBACK IS, UM, DISPLAYED HERE ON THE SCREEN, BUT MANY OF THESE SHOULD NOT COME AS A SURPRISE TO ANY OF YOU ALL. IT'S CONSISTENT WITH WHAT WE'VE BEEN HEARING THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS, AND THAT, UM, HOUSING IS A TOP PRIORITY AMONG THE COMMUNITY, UM, AS WELL AS SAFETY AND MOBILITY BEING CENTRAL TO DAILY LIFE. UM, ARTS AND CULTURE BEING PROTECTED AS THE CITY GROWS, AND REALLY HOLDING ONTO THE IDENTITY OF, UM, OF AUSTIN AS A WHOLE AND DOWNTOWN BEING NOT JUST FOR RESIDENT, OR NOT JUST FOR VISITORS, BUT FOR THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE THERE. AS WELL AS, UM, BALANCING THE, BALANCING THE CONSIDERATIONS WITH GROWTH, UM, BUT ALSO MAKING IT EASIER TO ACHIEVE, TO SUPPORT, UM, MANY OF THESE GOALS. AND THEN FINALLY, COMFORT, GREENERY AND SUSTAINABILITY BEING PART OF EVERYDAY SPACES. AND SO ENCOURAGING AN INTEGRATION OF THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT WITH THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT HERE, UM, WE'VE AGGREGATED THE FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED FROM THE COMMUNITY WITH THE EACH GOAL. AND SO, UM, AT THE OPEN HOUSE OR THE IN-PERSON, OPEN HOUSE PARTICIPANTS WERE ASKED TO RATE EACH OBJECTIVE INDIVIDUALLY. WHAT'S SHOWN HERE ON THE SCREEN IS AN AVERAGE OF THOSE OBJECTIVES. AND SO JUST GENERALLY BASED ON THE FEEDBACK THAT WE RECEIVED, WE SAW THAT PARTICIPANTS AGREED THE MOST WITH THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND MOBILITY GOALS. WHILE, UM, MAYBE WE NEED TO DO A LITTLE BIT MORE FINE TUNING ON OUR HERITAGE AND IDENTITY OBJECTIVES AND ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL ACCESSIBILITY OBJECTIVES. AND SO THAT FINE TUNING WORK IS WHAT WE'RE DOING RIGHT NOW TO MAKE SURE THAT BEFORE WE REALLY DIVE INTO THE PLAN ACTIONS, THAT THE, WE'RE NOT SKIPPING A STEP AND WE'RE MAKING SURE THAT THERE IS AGREEMENT WITH OUR OBJECTIVES. AND SO, UM, IF YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED FROM THE OPEN HOUSE, THERE IS A SUMMARY WITH DATA FROM BOTH OUR VIRTUAL AND IN PERSON OPEN HOUSES, UM, ON OUR PROJECT WEBSITE, IF YOU WANT TO SEE MORE ABOUT WHAT WE'VE LEARNED SO FAR. OKAY. MAY I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT GO AHEAD. I ATTENDED BOTH WORKSHOPS, A VIRTUAL, UM, AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT THAT VIRTUAL WORKSHOP WAS RATHER SHARP AND THERE WERE SOME GLITCHES. AND THEN THE IN-PERSON, UM, JUST AS JUST TO COMMENT, UM, MY OPINION ON THIS IS THE PLACING DOTS, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, GOING TO DIFFERENT PLACES IN THE ROOM AND PLACING DOTS, IS THAT THE MOST EFFICIENT WAY [01:00:01] TO, UH, ACTUALLY CAPTURE, UM, YOU KNOW, UM, THE OPINION OF, OF THAT PARTICULAR CATEGORY? I MEAN, WOULD IT BE, UM, MORE EFFICIENT TO USING TECHNOLOGY TO CAPTURE IT ELECTRONICALLY, UM, THAN JUST BECAUSE THERE WERE SOME CATEGORIES THAT THERE WERE JUST MULTIPLE DOTS ON TOP OF EACH OTHER. I MEAN, AND, AND HOW IS THAT EFFICIENT? I'M, I'M JUST A QUESTION. YEAH. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT. UM, WE OF COURSE VALUE THE, UM, THAT'S SORT OF AFTER THE FACT, UM, REFLECTION. AND WE DEFINITELY LEARNED A LOT FROM OUR PREVIOUS PHASES OF ENGAGEMENT. AND WE DID RECEIVE A LOT OF SIMILAR FEEDBACK THAT WE'RE TAKING INTO ACCOUNT AS WE DEVELOP OUR, UM, OUR, OUR NEXT ROUND OF ENGAGEMENT. AND SO IT'S, IT'S, WE'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO LEARN FROM EACH STEP IN THE PROCESS, BUT THANK YOU FOR PROVIDING THAT. WELL, IT, YOU KNOW, IT'S AN INVESTMENT OF TIME AND COMMITMENT AND, AND JUST, YOU KNOW, BEING ABLE TO CAPTURE THE STAKEHOLDERS, UH, COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS I, I THINK IS CRUCIAL OF COURSE, THAT WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME, WE'RE ON THE SAME PAGE HERE WHERE WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE WHO IS ABLE TO PARTICIPATE AND IS WILLING TO THAT MM-HMM . THEIR TIME IS VALUED AND THAT'RE ABLE TO CAPTURE WHAT, UM, WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, AND SO TO JUST TO SHARE WITH THE FULL COMMISSION WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON WITH THE SMALLER WORKING GROUP, WE, FOR THE LAST, WE'VE MET AS A WORKING GROUP TWICE BETWEEN THE, UM, PREVIOUS FULL COMMISSION BRIEFING AND TODAY. UM, AND IN THAT TIME WE'VE BEEN FOCUSED ON ACTION ITEM DEVELOPMENT. AND SO WE'VE BEEN TOOLING OR TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW WE MAY ACHIEVE THE OBJECTIVES. AND SO WE HAVE ASKED OUR COMMISSIONERS FOR, FOR HELP WITH, UM, PRELIMINARILY DRAFTING SOME ACTION ITEMS. AND SO THE FEEDBACK THAT'S BEEN SHARED HAS BEEN CONSISTENT THROUGHOUT BOTH OUR SESSIONS, UM, THESE PAST TWO SHIFTS SESSIONS. BUT AS WE'VE BEEN MEETING, UM, AS A WORKING GROUP, WE'VE HEARD CONSISTENTLY THAT ZONING SHOULD BE USED AS A TOOL TO IMPROVE, UM, HOUSING AVAILABILITY. THAT PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IS A VITAL WAY TO NOT JUST TRAVEL THROUGH DOWNTOWN, BUT ALSO TO TRAVEL TO DOWNTOWN. THAT SHADE NEEDS TO BE PROVIDED AS A WAY TO INCREASE COMFORT AND ENCOURAGE ALTERNATIVE FORMS OF TRANSPORTATION AND REALLY MAKE SURE THAT, UM, PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE IN GETTING OUT OF THEIR VEHICLES. AND THEN FINALLY, ACHIEVING SAFETY IN THE PUBLIC REALM THROUGH ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES, SUCH AS, UM, ENSURING THAT BUSINESSES ARE OPEN ALL DAY, NOT JUST DURING THE TYPICAL NINE TO FIVE HOURS AND ACHIEVING, UM, A GREATER NUMBER OF PEOPLE LIVING DOWNTOWN. SO THAT DOWNTOWN IS TRULY AN ALL DAY, UM, NOT ONLY DESTINATION, BUT AN ALL DAY SPACE SO THAT, UM, WHEN YOU ARE OUT ON THE STREET, YOU'RE, YOU DON'T FIND YOURSELF ALONE. SO THIS BRINGS ME TO OUR PLACE TYPES MAPPING WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON IN, UM, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE IMAGINE AUSTIN COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DEVELOPMENT. THIS IS AT THE REQUEST OF OUR, OUR WORKING GROUP TO PROVIDE THIS UPDATE. HERE WE GO. UM, AND SO THE IMAGINE AUSTIN COMPREHENSIVE PLAN IS CURRENTLY BEING UPDATED, AND A MAJOR PART OF THAT UPDATE IS TRANSITIONING TO A PLACE TYPES MAP. AND SO WHAT THAT IS, IS A DIFFERENT WAY OF LOOKING AT LAND USE FROM OUR CURRENT APPROACH, WHICH RIGHT NOW THE IMAGINE AUSTIN PLAN HAS GROWTH, UM, GROWTH CORRIDORS AND DEFERS A LOT OF FUTURE LAND USE TO INDIVIDUAL NEIGHBORHOOD PLANS, WHICH OUR CENTRAL CITY DOES HAVE, UM, DOES HAVE A NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN THAT GUIDES LAND USE DECISIONS, HOWEVER MANY PARTS OF THE CITY DO NOT. AND SO A BIG PART OF THE PLACE TYPES MAPPING WILL BE, UM, GUIDING DECISIONS ACROSS THE WHOLE CITY. AND SO A PLACE TYPES MAP IS NOT ONLY LAND USE, IT ALSO CONSIDERS CERTAIN THINGS LIKE THE [01:05:01] CHARACTER OF AN AREA AND HOW YOU FEEL WHEN YOU'RE IN AN AREA AND THINGS, HOW TRANSPORTATION INTERACTS WITH THE CHARACTER OF AREAS. SO, YOU KNOW, A, A COMPLETE NEIGHBORHOOD IS NOT JUST SINGLE FAMILY HOMES, IT'S ALSO IN ENSURING THAT THERE'S SIDEWALKS AND, UM, AMENITIES TO SUPPORT THOSE USES. AND SO THIS IS A MORE HOLISTIC AND FLEXIBLE WAY AS WELL TO APPROACH LAND USE PLANNING BECAUSE THE, A CITY IS NOT JUST ZONING OR LAND USE, IT'S, IT'S MANY THINGS. UM, AND SO CURRENTLY THE IMAGINE AUSTIN TEAM IS LEADING THE DEVELOPMENT OF A PLACE TYPES PALETTE, WHICH WILL THEN BE APPLIED TO THE CENTRAL CITY PLAN AREA. AND OUR, OUR EFFORTS ARE RUNNING IN TANDEM. AND SO, UM, THE TIMING CAN BE A LITTLE BIT AWKWARD AT TIMES IN THAT WE'RE, WE'RE STILL DEVELOPING THE, THE CATEGORIES THAT WILL THEN BE APPLIED TO THE AREA. BUT THE CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT PLAN IS, UM, JUST A GREAT OPPORTUNITY. SO BECAUSE WE'RE ABLE TO LOOK VERY SPECIFICALLY AT THE CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT PLAN AREA MM-HMM . UM, AND GET A LOT OF INVOLVEMENT AND FEEDBACK AS THAT PLACE TYPES MAP IS, IS DEVELOPED, UM, ADDITIONALLY A SET OF RULES THAT WILL GUIDE HOW THE PLACE TYPES ARE APPLIED ARE ALSO, UM, BEING DEVELOPED BY THE TEAM. AND THEN THE FINAL PRODUCT WILL BE, THIS WILL BE THE PLACE TYPES MAP THAT WE'RE HOPING TO HAVE A DRAFT VERSION OF IN FALL OF 2026. UM, IF YOU RECALL, WHEN OUR CONSULTANTS LAST BRIEFED THE GROUP, THEY DISCUSSED SCENARIO PLANNING. AND SO THAT SCENARIO PLANNING WILL BE, WILL HEAVILY INFLUENCE, UM, THE OUTCOME OF THE POLICE TYPES MAP. RIGHT. UM, AND CURRENTLY THERE'S A COMMUNITY WORKING GROUP THAT IS, UM, THAT THE IMAGINE AUSTIN TEAM IS ENGAGING WITH. AND THEY EXPECT TO HAVE ABOUT 28 ENGAGEMENT EVENTS ACROSS THE CITY WHILE THE, UM, PLACE TYPES PALETTE IS BEING DEVELOPED. THAT DOES CONCLUDE MY INTRODUCTION TO THE CENTRAL CITY, UM, DISTRICT PLAN AND THE WORK THAT WE'RE, UM, WE'RE GOING ON, RIGHT, OR THAT WE HAVE GOING ON RIGHT NOW. WE HAVE OUR CONTACT INFORMATION SHARED ON THE SCREEN THERE WITH ISHA BEING OUR, OUR PROJECT LEAD. AND THEN OUR WEBSITE IS ALSO AVAILABLE. AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A SHARED MAILBOX WHERE IF ANYONE WISHES TO REACH OUT AND UM, ASK A MEMBER OF THE TEAM ANYTHING. WE HAVE SEVERAL PEOPLE THAT MONITOR THAT INBOX AND SO SOMEONE WILL, SOMEONE WILL RESPOND. ALRIGHT, COMMISSIONER SHIPPER. SO I NOTED THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT ZONING AS A TOOL TO INCREASE HOUSING AVAILABILITY, BUT YOU DIDN'T MENTION THE D WORD, WHICH IS DENSITY. SO BARRIERS TO DENSITY THAT ARE BUILT INTO THE CURRENT LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE REALLY DO THROTTLE DOWN THE DEVELOPMENT OF HOUSING AND RESTRICT HOUSING SUPPLY ALL OVER THE CITY, BUT ESPECIALLY IN DOWNTOWN. MM-HMM . AND I'M CURIOUS TO SEE HOW THE PLACE TYPES COME OUT TOO. UM, WE, THERE ARE, WELL ZONING DOES IMPACT DENSITY. YES, IT IMPACTS LIKE HOW MANY DWELLING UNITS YOU CAN PUT IN A CERTAIN AREA. AND SO, UM, I, WELL, I CAN'T SPEAK TO ANY SPECIFICS ABOUT WHAT THOSE DENSITIES WILL BE IN THE PLACE TYPES PALETTE. UM, IT IS SOMETHING THAT'S DEFINITELY CONSIDERED AS, AS WE MOVE FORWARD AND AS PARTICULARLY IN OUR SCENARIO PLANNING, UM, WE'VE IMAGINED SEVERAL DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT WAYS THAT DENSITY CAN BE INCREASED AND ACHIEVED AND WHERE THAT MIGHT GO. THANK YOU COMMISSIONER WILEY, GO AHEAD. YEAH, UH, FIRST OF ALL, I, I HAD A QUESTION IN THE DALLAS CHART, WHICH I DIDN'T BRING INTO THE MEETING, BUT THE, THE CHART THERE SHOWED AN AREA THAT WAS KINDA GRAY IN THE MIDDLE IN THE PLACE TYPES MAP. MM-HMM . IS, IS THAT BASICALLY, DO THEY HAVE ONE COLOR FOR THEIR CITY CENTER? LIKE WHAT, WHAT MIGHT WE ENVISION OR, I DON'T KNOW DALLAS WELL ENOUGH TO KNOW IF THAT WAS BASICALLY THE DOWNTOWN IN THE CENTER THAT WAS LIKE KIND OF A GRAY OR MM-HMM . . OH, I SEE. UH, SO LIKE HOW MANY, LIKE FOR, FOR THE CITY CENTER, CAN YOU ENVISION THAT WE MIGHT HAVE [01:10:01] ONE CATEGORY, THREE CATEGORY? I MEAN, RIGHT NOW WE HAVE 13 PLUS ZONING CATEGORIES, SO YEAH. THE, THE WAY THE PLACE TYPES ARE STARTING TO SHAPE UP, AND AGAIN, THEY'RE STILL UNDER DEVELOPMENT, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, I COULD ENVISION A LOT OF THE CENTRAL CITY BEING COVERED BY ONE PLACE TYPE UHHUH, BUT CERTAINLY THERE'S GONNA BE SOME VARIETY. SO I WOULD GUESS LIKE 3, 4, 5. OKAY. DIFFERENT PLACE TYPES, CATEGORIES TO CAPTURE THE DIFFERENT AREAS OF DENSITY, THE TRANSITIONS FROM ONE TYPE OF DENSITY TO ANOTHER. UH, OKAY. YOU KNOW, MORE DENSITY AND INTENSITY IN THE CORE GOING TO LESS ON THE OUTSIDE. SO UHHUH, IT'S HARD TO SAY EXACTLY, BUT MY GUESS WOULD BE LIKE THREE, FOUR, MAYBE EVEN FIVE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES TO KIND OF CAPTURE THE RANGE OF WHAT WE ALL SEE AND ANTICIPATE IN THE FUTURE DOWNTIME. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND, UM, I WANTED TO, UH, MAKE AN OBSERVATION. I HAVE, I HAVE A COPY OF ONE OF THE DOCUMENTS THEY REFERRED TO THAT WAS, UH, SENT OUT ON MAY 26, 5 PAGES. IT'S CALLED, UH, CENTRAL CITY DISTRICT OPEN HOUSE COMMUNITY FEEDBACK. AND WHEN I READ THAT MY REACTION WAS THE SAME AS IT WAS THE SECOND TIME, THIS, THIS IS THE BEST CITY PUBLICATION I'VE EVER SEEN IN 33 YEARS HERE. AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE I, I WATCHED THE OPEN HOUSE, I WATCHED YOU ENGAGE, I KNOW THE CHALLENGES YOU'RE FACING. THIS IS LIKE, UNBELIEVABLE. THIS IS REALLY GOOD. AND IT ISN'T SAYING I'M GONNA DO THIS OR THAT. IT'S SAYING, HERE'S REALLY, HERE'S THE SITUATION WE'RE TRYING TO DEAL WITH IN, IN THE HONEST FEEDBACK WE'RE GETTING. AND, UH, SO HATS OFF TO YOU ALL. THIS IS TRULY OUTSTANDING WORK. UM, SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY, WE NEED TO GET YOU ALL LIKE A LINK TO THIS BECAUSE THIS IS, I THINK, VERY IMPORTANT STUFF. THE OTHER THING THAT WAS SENT OUT, THE EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT IS A LITTLE BIT OF A READ. IT'S 125 PAGES. I SCROLLED THROUGH IT AND I HAVE AN ENVELOPE WITH NOTES ON THE BACK OF IT, AND I DECIDED NOT TO BRING IT, UH, . BUT I DO THINK THAT, THAT BECAUSE THESE THINGS ARE HAPPENING NOW, THAT IT'S SORT OF LIKE, OKAY, NOW IT'S OUR TURN. WE, WE, WE NEED TO KINDA RALLY, UH, FOR, FOR THE MOMENT. AND, UM, AND SO I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHERE WE GO FROM HERE AND, YOU KNOW, ED ISN'T HERE, BUT, UH, I WOULD REALLY ENCOURAGE BETWEEN NOW AND BEFORE WE RE RECONVENE THAT, UH, THAT PEOPLE LOOK AT, AT BOTH OF THESE DOCUMENTS. AND, AND I WILL EVENTUALLY HAVE A NUMBER OF COMMENTS, BUT I WOULD, UH, I, I JUST WANT TO ASK, UH, AND 125 PAGES IS A LOT, UM, ON THE, THERE'S A MOBILITY CHART AND BECAUSE OF THE WAY THE TYPING IS DONE ON IT FOR THE, THE PROJECT CONNECT THING, IT SHOWS, UM, IT SHOWS TWO STATIONS ON, ON GUADALUPE AND ONE IS AT 10TH AND ONE IS, UH, ACROSS FROM THE UT MALL. AND THERE THEY'RE ACTUALLY, UM, THERE, THERE, THERE'S FOUR. UM, AND YOU CAN'T SEE IT ON THAT DIAGRAM. AND BECAUSE THAT IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT EVENT THAT THAT'S THAT, THAT'S HELPING BRING US ALL TOGETHER HERE. UM, YOU, YOU CAN'T SEE THE ONE THAT'S AT THE MUSEUM DISTRICT. AND IF YOU LOOK AT THE, THE, THE, THE LAYER, UM, NOW YOU GET INTO THE DETAILED LAYER, IT LOOKS KINDA LIKE THEY'VE LANDED ON 16TH STREET FOR THAT. UH, AND THERE'S ALSO ONE THAT, THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S AT 28TH STREET THAT THEY CALLED THE 29TH STREET. AND THOSE DON'T SHOW UP ON IT. AND I KNOW THAT WE ALL KNOW THAT, BUT WE ALSO WANNA BE SURE THAT THE CONSULTANTS, UH, YOU KNOW, ARE, ARE VERY MUCH, UM, IN IN TUNE WITH THAT. UM, AND THE ONLY OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO, UM, BRING UP TO PEOPLE'S ATTENTION TOO IS, UM, I THINK WE ALSO NEED TO GET YOU ALL A COUPLE OF DOCUMENTS BECAUSE IN 2006, THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION WENT THROUGH A SIMILAR EXERCISE. UM, AND WHEN THEY DID THAT, THEY PRODUCED ANOTHER SIX PAGE REPORT. AND HERE'S WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. AND HATS OFF TO THEM FOR, FOR THE WORK THEY DID BACK THEN. UM, TRYING TO STRUGGLE WITH THE PROBLEM OF THE DOCUMENT STARTS OUT SAYING WE, WE HAD ALMOST 13,000 PEOPLE LIVING DOWNTOWN IN 1940, AND THAT WAS 15% OF THE POPULATION IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN. SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT, WHEN MAYOR WYNN CAME AND SAID, WE WOULD LIKE TO GET 25,000 PEOPLE LIVING DOWNTOWN, AND THAT WAS ESSENTIALLY THE CHARGE FOR A LOT OF ACTIVITY. UM, IT WASN'T THAT BIG OF A STRETCH. IT WAS SAYING LIKE, LOOK, WE KNOW HOW TO DO THIS. LET'S . WE NEED TO DO IT AGAIN. AND, UH, SO [01:15:01] I THINK IT'S, IT'S USEFUL TO, TO LOOK AT THIS IN REFLECT ON WHERE WE'RE COMING FROM BECAUSE IF WE HAD 15000% OF THE PEOPLE IN AUSTIN LIVING DOWNTOWN, THAT WOULD BE A BUNCH. I MEAN, THAT WOULD BE MORE THAN SEATTLE HAS. THAT WOULD BE 150,000, 50,000 PEOPLE. AND SO, UM, I THINK IT'S, IT'S USEFUL IF YOU LOOK THROUGH THIS TO KIND OF GET A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON, UM, I'D BE HAPPY WITH 10%. THAT WOULD BE AWESOME. . WELL, YOU, THEY SAY IN SEATTLE THAT 10% OF THE PEOPLE WANNA LIVE IN DOWNTOWN SEATTLE. NOW, WHETHER, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE WANNA LIVE IN DOWNTOWN AUSTIN, BUT IT'S A LOT MORE THAN THE 15,000 THAT WE HAVE NOW. UM, AND UH, THERE WAS ALSO A DOCUMENT THAT I THINK YOU ALL SHOULD BE AWARE OF, NOT TO MAYBE GO THROUGH IN DETAIL, BUT IT WAS 67 PAGES THAT THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION CREATED THIS GROUP, THE SECOND REPORT THAT WAS, UH, FOCUSED JUST ON CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDORS. SO THEY LOOKED AT, AT SAYING, YES, WE WANNA GET TO 25,000 PEOPLE. HERE ARE FOUR DIFFERENT LEVERS THAT WE CAN PULL, AND WE'RE GONNA DO A DEEP DIVE ON ONE OF THEM. SO NOW IT'S OUR TURN. ABSOLUTELY. AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE WORK YOU ALL HAVE DONE. REALLY, REALLY OUTSTANDING. APPRECIATE IT. I'LL BE SURE TO PASS ALONG THE COMPLIMENT TO MY TEAM MEMBER , DOES ANYBODY ONLINE WANT TO COMMENT? DON'T WANT ANYBODY TO BE OVERLOOKED? ANYBODY ELSE? NO. OKAY. WELL THEN THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE, AND THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO. YOU REALLY ARE DOING A FANTASTIC JOB, AND WE APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU. AND HAVE A WONDERFUL EVENING. THANK YOU. AND NOW WE'RE GOING TO MOVE INTO OUR DISCUSSION [4. Presentation to provide an overview of Visit Austin’s activities and role in downtown. Presentation by Tom Noonan, CEO, Visit Austin. ] ITEMS. I THINK OUR FIRST DISCUSSION ITEM IS VISIT AUSTIN'S ACTIVITIES. TOM NEW IS HERE. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. I'M, UH, TOM NEWTON AND I'M PRESIDENT AND CEO OF VISIT AUSTIN. I'VE BEEN IN THIS ROLE FOR ABOUT 10 YEARS, A LITTLE OVER 10 YEARS NOW. AND LOOKING FORWARD TO HAVE A GREAT CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW WE'RE SELLING A MARKET, THE CITY OF AUSTIN. AND, UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR, FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR, UH, UH, YOUR ENERGIES THIS EVENING AND, AND DOING WHAT YOU'RE DOING FOR THE CITY. SO, UH, GLAD TO BE HERE AND REALLY HAPPY ABOUT HAVING THIS, UH, CONVERSATION. SO, FIRST THING, JUST A LITTLE, UM, THIS IS THE, WE, WE CALL THIS OUR ONE OH ONE PRESENTATION. WE DO THIS FOR ALL OF OUR NEW BOARD MEMBERS, ANYBODY THAT'S COMING ON BOARD. AND I WILL, I'LL LET YOU KNOW THAT. I'M HAPPY TO GIVE YOU THE LARGER FORM OF IT, BUT I, I, I KNOCKED ABOUT HALF OF IT OUT , SO IT'S STILL ABOUT 45 SLIDES. I'LL GO THROUGH THEM PRETTY QUICKLY. BUT IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, JUST PLEASE INTERRUPT ME AND I'LL STOP. 'CAUSE I'M GONNA GO THROUGH SOME SALES NUMBERS AND SOME OTHER THINGS AND JUST LET ME KNOW WHAT QUESTIONS YOU HAVE. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, WE'VE, WE'RE A 5 0 1 C SIX AND C3 ORGANIZATION. WE'VE BEEN, WE'VE HAD A CONTRACT WITH THE CITY SINCE 1996. UH, OUR JOB IS TO OBVIOUSLY TO PROMOTE AUSTIN AS A PREMIER MEETINGS AND TOURISM DESTINATION, UH, TO GROW HOTEL TAX, BED REVENUES, UM, AND JUSTLY PROMOTE THE CITY. UM, WE ARE, IF YOU LOOK AT VISIT AUSTIN, YOU KNOW, WE INCREASE VISITATION AND SPENDING. WE'RE THE PRIMARY BOOKING ENTITY ABOUT THE CONVENTION CENTER. AND I'LL GO THROUGH SOME OF THOSE NUMBERS. UM, WE, YOU KNOW, WE SOLIDIFY THE REPUTATION OF BEING THE LIVE VISA CAPITAL. WE PROMOTE LOCAL BUSINESSES, BOOST MEETING, TRAVEL, RECRUITING, SPORTING EVENTS, UH, ATTRACT FILMMAKERS, PROMOTE AND HIRE LOCAL MUSICIANS AND DRIVE MEDIA EXPOSURE. SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS WE DO EVERY SINGLE DAY. UM, JUST TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF WHERE THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IS RIGHT NOW. UH, LAST YEAR WE HAD 30 MILLION, UH, DOMESTIC VISITORS. WE SAW $11.4 BILLION IN VISITOR SPENDING. UH, WE, WE SUPPORT A HUNDRED, ALMOST 152,000 JOBS IN THE CITY. TAXES GENERATED FROM THIS INDUSTRY ARE $1.1 BILLION. SO IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, FOR EVERY HOUSEHOLD IN TRAVIS COUNTY, IT'S SAVING YOU $1,600 IN TAXES. IN TAXES. UM, VISIT AUSTIN, UM, WHEN VISIT AUSTIN, VISIT DALLAS. ALL THESE ORGANIZATIONS, THEY'RE CALLED DESTINATION MARKETING ORGANIZATIONS, D MOS. UH, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF DEPARTMENTS THAT LOT OF D MOS DON'T HAVE. YOU'LL SEE, UH, OBVIOUSLY OPERATIONS AND FINANCE, CONVENTION, SALES, DESTINATION SERVICES. WE HAVE THE AUSTIN SPORTS COMMISSION AS PART OF OUR ORGANIZATION. WE DO OBVIOUSLY ALL THE MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS AND TOURISM. WE ALSO HAVE A MUSIC OFFICE. WE ALSO HAVE A FILM OFFICE. WE ALSO HAVE A PARTNERSHIP DIVISION. UH, WHEN I CAME HERE 10 YEARS AGO, WE CREATED THE VISIT AUSTIN FOUNDATION, THAT'S ALL ABOUT, YOU KNOW, JOB TRAINING, UH, SCHOLARSHIPS, OPPORTUNITY FOR PEOPLE TO GET IN THE HOSPITALITY TOURISM INDUSTRY. SO WE CREATED THAT FOUNDATION AS WELL. UH, VISITORS SERVICES AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS INSIDE OF OUR ORGANIZATION. [01:20:01] UH, WE MADE A LIST. WE HAVE FIVE BOARDS. UM, AND WE'RE PROUD TO HAVE FIVE BOARDS. SO WE HAVE OUR VISIT AUSTIN BOARD OF DIRECTORS, WE HAVE OUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THAT BOARD THAT MEETS SEPARATELY. UH, WE ALSO HAVE THE SPORTS COMMISSION BOARD. WE HAVE OUR FOUNDATION BOARD, AND WE ALSO HAVE THE NEW, UH, AT, UH, AT I, THE TPI WE CREATED LAST YEAR. AND I'LL GO INTO WHAT THE TP I'S DOING AS WELL. UM, JUST TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF, YOU KNOW, OUR BOARD LOOKS AT OUR FINANCIAL AUDITS, OUR SALES QUOTAS, OUR SALES PLANS, OUR MARKETING PLANS, OUR, UH, OUR, OUR, YOU KNOW, WHAT MARKETING STRATEGIES WE'RE BRINGING FORWARD. THEY APPROVE OUR BUDGET. UH, THEY DO MY ANNUAL REVIEW, BUT THEY DO LOTS OF THINGS LIKE THAT. BUT THEY'RE BASICALLY MANAGE OUR DAY-TO-DAY OPERATION. THIS IS OUR, THIS IS OUR CURRENT BOARD OF DIRECTORS. UM, YOU'LL SEE NOT ONLY IS IT 50% HAS TO BE FROM THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, BUT YOU'RE ALSO GONNA SEE ALL THE CHAMBERS. YOU'RE GONNA SEE DAA, YOU'RE GONNA SEE THE AIRPORT, YOU'RE GONNA SEE RICA. YOU'RE GONNA SEE THE MAYOR, CITY MANAGER'S, OFFICE, COUNCIL MEMBER, ZOE'S OFFICE, UM, A CAP METRO, AND ALL THE TOURISM ENTITIES YOU'D EXPECT TO SEE HOTELS, RESTAURANTS, MUSIC VENUES, UH, THE CONVENTION CENTER MANAGER, YOU NAME IT, THEY'RE, THEY'RE ALL SERVING ON THIS BOARD. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS WE DO AT A, FIRST THING WE DO AT ALL OF OUR BOARD MEETINGS IS WE TALK ABOUT HOTEL TAX COLLECTION. AND IF YOU LOOK AT THIS CHART, YOU'RE GONNA SEE SEVERAL THINGS. THE COLORED BARS DOWN BELOW ARE WHEN THE CONVENTION CENTER OPENED, WHEN THE NEW CONVENTION CENTER OPENED. THE, THE, THE GREEN BARS ARE WHEN OUR BIGGER HOTELS CAME INTO DOWNTOWN. BUT IT'S TRACKING HOTEL TAX GENERATED, IT'S TRACKING NUMBER OF JOBS ASSOCIATED WITH THE TOURISM INDUSTRY. AND YOU CAN KIND OF JUST SEE THE GROWTH OF THE HOTEL TAX FROM 1990 ALL THE WAY TO 2025. AND IN JUST THE LAST DECADE, WE'VE GONE FROM ABOUT $80 MILLION IN HOTEL TAXES TO OVER $160 MILLION IN HOTEL TAXES BEING COLLECTED IN THIS COMMUNITY. AND AT EVERY BOARD MEETING, WE LOOK AT THE QUARTERLY COLLECTION. ONE OF, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE REALLY WANT TO DRIVE HOME IS OUR JOB IS TO DRIVE MORE HOTEL TAX COLLECTION. AND WHEN THAT HAPPENS, WE GET MORE MONEY FOR ARTS, MORE MONEY FOR HERITAGE, OBVIOUSLY MORE MARKETING DOLLARS, MORE MONEY FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER. BUT WE, WE RECOGNIZE THE SPECIAL DOLLARS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THE ARTS AND HERITAGE COMMUNITY, AND WE LOVE DRIVING THOSE RESULTS. ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT IS OUR RECENT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE STARTED COLLECTING THE AIRBNB TAXES AND THOSE AIRBNB TAXES, RIGHT? AND THEY'RE KIND OF OFFSETTING THE LOSS OF THE COVEA CENTER. SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT, WE'RE $165 MILLION WHEN THE CENTER'S DONE AND WE'RE COLLECTING THE AIRBNB, AND THEN THE HOTELS DOWNTOWN HAVE RECOVERED, UH, I CAN SEE US EASILY AT SOME POINT IN THE FUTURE AFTER THE BUILDING OPENS, PROBABLY SOME BEING SOMEWHERE NORTH OF $200 MILLION. I'M NOT SAYING THAT'S IN 2029, BUT WE'RE GONNA, AT SOME POINT WE'RE GONNA CROSS OVER TO THAT POINT. SO WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO SEE THAT GROWTH, WHICH IS IMPORTANT FOR OUR COMMUNITY. UM, CONVENTION SALES. WE HAVE A GREAT, UH, UH, DYNAMIC SALES TEAM THAT YOU'LL SEE HOW THE COUNTRY'S BROKEN DOWN BY COLORS ON THIS MAP. BUT WE ARE OUT SOLICITING CORPORATE MEETINGS, ASSOCIATION MEETINGS, TECH MEETINGS, YOU NAME IT. AND EVERYTHING FROM MAJOR CITYWIDE CONVENTIONS TO 10 ROOMS OR MORE, UH, TRYING TO DRIVE BUSINESS. AND, UM, SO WE ARE, WE ARE, IN FACT, WE HAD AN ALL TIME RECORD BOOKINGS LAST YEAR. AND, UH, THIS YEAR WE'RE GONNA OVERACHIEVE THAT. I THINK WE'LL BOOK OVER 800,000 ROOM NIGHTS JUST THIS YEAR. OUR SALES TEAM, UH, HUGE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOR THE FUTURE. AND IT'S LAYERED INTO LOTS OF DIFFERENT YEARS. UM, SO WE ALL KNOW WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE CONVENTIONAL EXPANSION RIGHT NOW. UH, UH, IT'S ON SCHEDULE. IT'S UH, UH, OUR FIRST BIG EVENT IS SOUTH BY IN 2029. UM, WE, WE WERE THE 60TH. WE WILL BE THE 35TH LARGEST CONVENTION CENTER IN THE COUNTRY. NOT ONLY SAY THE 35TH LARGEST, I THINK IT'S GONNA BE ONE OF THE BEST SETTINGS IN THE COUNTRY FOR A CONVENTION CENTER. YOU KNOW, $18 MILLION WORTH OF ART OUT OF OBVIOUSLY WATERLOO GREENWAY AND PALM PARK AND ALL THOSE THINGS SURROUNDED, I MEAN, THEY HAVE AN URBAN CENTER DOWNTOWN. AND JUST DROP IT DOWN TO PARK SETTING IS REALLY UNIQUE AND REALLY AMAZING. AND IT'S, UM, AND I'M GONNA SHOW YOU SOME OF THE RESULTS, WHAT WE'RE SEEING FROM CUSTOMERS AND WHAT THEY THINK ABOUT THAT BUILDING. SO THIS IS WHERE WE ARE YEAR TODAY. WE'VE ONLY BEEN ABLE TO CONTRACT THE BUILDING FOR ABOUT THE LAST YEAR. 'CAUSE WE COULDN'T CONTRACT THE BUILDING WHEN WE DIDN'T HAVE ALL THE FINAL DIMENSIONS, WHAT THE BALLROOMS WERE AND THE MEETINGS WERE, AND THE EXHIBIT HALLS WERE. BUT WE HAVE, UH, WE HAVE 25 DEFINITE GROUPS. WE HAVE 23 ON THE LEFT THAT WE'RE CALLING VERBAL DEFINITE. SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THEY'VE COMMITTED TO US. THEY SAY THEY'RE COMING, THEY SENT A LETTER, THEY SIGNED SOME OF THEIR HOTEL CONTRACTS, OR MAYBE THEY SIGNED THE CENTER CONTRACT, BUT THEY'RE NOT FULLY CONTRACTED YET. SO WE'RE NOT GONNA MOVE THEM OVER FROM 23 OVER TO 25 UNTIL THEY'RE, UNTIL THAT'S DONE. BUT THOSE, THOSE 48 BOOKINGS ARE PRETTY ROCK SOLID, UH, BECAUSE THEY'RE ALREADY STARTING TO SIGN CONTRACTS. AND THEN WE HAVE 84 OTHER TENTATIVE GROUPS THAT ARE HOLDING DATES IN THE BUILDING AS WELL THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO CLOSE. SO, AND THAT'S JUST WHAT WE'RE DOING IN THE LAST YEAR. UM, AND YOU'LL SEE THAT THAT'S $680 MILLION OF ECONOMIC IMPACT. AND TENTATIVES THAT'S, IT'S CLOSE TO $400 MILLION IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND ACTUAL BOOKINGS ALREADY. UH, WE HAVE GROUPS, AND TRADITIONALLY WE WOULD HAVE GROUPS WHO WOULD BOOK US THREE TO THREE AND A HALF YEARS OUT. WE HAVE A COUPLE GROUPS THAT HAVE BOOKED US FOUR TIMES EACH BETWEEN 2030 AND 2040 FOR THE NEW BUILDING. AND ONE OF THEM IS THE FIRST WEEK OF JANUARY, [01:25:02] KEY TEAM TIME PERIOD FOR US TO HAVE A 5,000 ROOM CITYWIDE CONVENTION. AND ANOTHER ONE IS THE SECOND WEEK OF JULY FOR FOUR YEARS. FOR FOUR YEARS. SO WE'RE STARTING TO SEE, WE'RE PUTTING BEER CONVENTIONS IN OUR CITY. 40% OF THESE GROUPS THAT ARE HOLDING DATES IN OUR BUILDING COULDN'T FIT IN THE OLD BUILDING. WE'RE SEEING A LOT MORE BIG MEETINGS COME TO TOWN. THEY'RE BOOKING FURTHER OUT. THEY'RE HELPING US BUILD COMPRESSION IN THE CITY LONG TERM. SO WE'RE SEEING THE EXCITEMENT ABOUT THIS NEW BUILDING FROM OUR CUSTOMER BASE. UH, AND, AND THE, AND REALLY THE SETTING, YOU KNOW, AS THE MAYOR TALKS ABOUT HOW WE'RE KIND OF REDOING OUR LIVING ROOM DOWNTOWN. WE REALLY ARE. AND IT'S, WE'RE STARTING TO SEE THE IMPACT FROM THAT. WE'RE STARTING TO SEE CUSTOMERS VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE PRODUCT THAT WE'RE BRINGING FORWARD. SO WE ALL HAVE SEEN THIS, THIS PICTURE, AND WE SEE THE DESIGN OF THE BUILDING. AND IT'S, UH, IT'S, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHERE WE ARE PROGRESSING RIGHT NOW. UM, WE DID, WE, WE CREATED WHAT WE CALL THE TWENTY FIVE THIRTY COMMITTEE. SO HOW ARE WE SELLING THE CITY IN 2025 BEFORE THE BUILDING WENT DOWN? HOW WE'RE SELLING THE CITY BETWEEN 25 AND 30 WHILE THE BUILDING IS DOWN, AND HOW WE'RE SELLING THE BUILDING 20, 30 AND AFTER. 'CAUSE WE'RE DOING ALL OF THAT SIMULTANEOUSLY. NOW. WE'RE PHASE ONE, WE'RE DONE 'CAUSE IT'S POST 2025. BUT WE HAVE STRATEGIES FOR EACH OF THOSE TIME PERIODS WHEN WE WERE SELLING, TRYING TO FILL AS MANY HOTEL ROOMS AS WE PO POSSIBLY COULD. SO IN THE 25 30 PLAN, WHICH WAS PUT TOGETHER BY VISIT AUSTIN, ALL OF OUR SALES LEADERS IN THE, IN THE COMMUNITY, GENERAL MANAGERS, UH, HOTEL OWNERSHIP GROUPS, ET CETERA, PUT THIS TOGETHER. AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE DOING IS WE'RE, WE'RE MAKING WITH THIS THE HIP PROGRAM, WHICH IS AN INCENTIVE PROGRAM WITH THE NEW TPI THAT'S ALLOWING US TO GO AFTER IN-HOUSE BUSINESS AND TRY TO INCENTIVIZE THOSE. SO SOMEBODY'S GOT A 200 ROOM MEETING AND THEY'RE LOOKING AT AUSTIN, THEY'RE LOOKING AT DENVER. WE WANT AN AUSTIN, RIGHT? SO WE'RE DRIVING THOSE SMALLER MEETINGS DURING THE CLOSURE TIME INTO OUR HOTELS IN SHORT TERM. AND EACH OF THESE HOTELS BECAUSE THE, THE AT PIT PROGRAM HAS A, A, A BUCKET OF MONEY THEY CAN USE TO TRY TO INCENTIVIZE THIS BUSINESS TO DRIVE MORE ROOM NIGHTS TO THE CITY IN A SHORT TERM LEVEL. WE'RE ALSO, UM, WE'RE ALSO DOING A LOT MORE, UM, UH, MARKETING AND ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. I WILL TELL YOU IN THE PAST, WE USED TO DO, UH, A WINTER, UH, A BRIEF WINTER CAMPAIGN. WE'D HAVE A SUMMER CAMPAIGN, AND THEN WE WERE JUST DOING SOCIAL MEDIA THE REST OF THE YEAR. NOW WITH THE TPI, THAT'S DOUBLED OUR BUDGET, WE'RE DOING ADVERTISING ALL THE TIME IN ALL OF OUR MAJOR DRIVE MARKETS IN ALL OF OUR MAJOR FLIGHT MARKETS AND OUR SECONDARY MARKETS. THEY'RE SEEING AUSTIN ADVERTISEMENTS. UH, WE'RE NOT SEEING HERE IN AUSTIN. WE DON'T RUN ADS HERE, OBVIOUSLY, BUT IF YOU'RE TRAVELING SOMEWHERE AND YOUR TV'S ON, YOU MIGHT SEE AN AUSTIN AD AT SOME POINT, RIGHT? SO, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO BRING MORE LEISURE ROOM NIGHTS TO THE COMMUNITY AS WELL. WE'RE ALSO BOOKING WHAT WE'RE CALLING MINI WIDES INSTEAD OF CITYWIDE. SO WE'RE GOING TO HOTELS SAYING, LISTEN, YOU'VE GOT A 1500 ROOM MEETING, WHY DON'T YOU PUT 800 ROOMS OF THAT IN THE JW MARRIOTT AND MAYBE 600 ROOMS IN THIS HOTEL AND A HUNDRED ROOMS IN THE THIRD HOTEL. AND WE'RE GONNA INCENTIVIZE YOU FOR DOING THAT KIND OF MINI WIDE BOOKING. WE'RE DOING IT FOR ALL SIZES OF HOTELS. SO IT'S NOT JUST THE BIG BOXES. WE'RE DOING IT AROUND THE HYATT, WE'RE DOING IT AROUND THE RENAISSANCE HOTEL. WE'RE DOING IT AROUND, YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE THREE SMALLER HOTELS AND THEY WANNA WORK TOGETHER, WE'RE CREATING WHAT'S CALLED A MINI WIDE PROGRAM TO TRY TO, TO BUILD THESE CLUSTER MEETINGS THAT CAN REALLY GIVE AN IMPACT IN THE COMMUNITY. SO WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ON THE MINI WIDES. UH, WE'RE ALSO, UH, REALLY GOING AFTER, UH, MORE SPORTS BOOKINGS. WE, IN FACT, WE'VE HIRED A NATHAN COP WHO IS OUR NEW HEAD OF OUR SPORTS COMMISSION. HE CAME FROM SAN DIEGO. UH, HE'S BEEN ON THE JOB FOR ABOUT TWO OR THREE MONTHS NOW, ALREADY HAS GREAT IDEAS. AND WE'RE STARTING TO SEE MORE SPORTS, UH, MORE SPORTING EVENTS COME TO AUSTIN. WE'RE SEEING MORE ROOM NIGHTS BECAUSE OF THAT. UH, AND THAT'S GREAT. 'CAUSE A LOT OF THAT IS USUALLY EITHER WEEKENDS OR SUMMER. SO THAT HELPS OUR COMMUNITY. UM, AND, UH, SO, AND THEN WE'RE ALSO SELLING THE NEW CONVENTION CENTER, UH, AS YOU'VE SEEN FROM THE, FROM THE CHARTS. SO WE'RE, WE'RE SELLING, YOU KNOW, WE'RE ALWAYS SELLING THE FUTURE FOR US. THE CONVENTION CENTER'S ALREADY DONE, RIGHT. UM, EVERYTHING WE'RE DEVELOPING HAS ALREADY DONE, WE'RE ALREADY SELLING THAT FUTURE, WHICH IS KIND OF FUN. SO WE'RE ALWAYS LIVING A LITTLE BIT IN THE FUTURE, BUT WE KNOW WE HAVE TO SELL TODAY AS WELL. RIGHT? SO, UH, AUSTIN SPORTS COMMISSION, UH, WE HAVE 17 MEMBERS OF THAT SPORTS COMMISSION. IT'S MORE REGIONAL SCOPE. SO IT'S ROUND ROCK EXPRESS, IT'S, UH, IT'S CODA, IT'S DOWNTOWN. IT'S ANYTHING THAT'S GONNA GENERATE ROOM NIGHTS FOR OUR REGION. WE'RE GONNA SEE THE MAJORITY OF THOSE ROOM NIGHTS. SO WE'RE WORKING ON JUST BRINGING MORE SPORTING EVENTS TO OUR REGION, WHICH IS NOT ONLY GREAT FOR DRIVING ROOM NIGHTS, IT'S GREAT FOR OUR LOCAL COMMUNITY. IT'S A GREAT QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUE. IT'S GREAT FOR KIDS TO BE ABLE TO GO SEE SPORTS, PARTICIPATE IN THOSE SPORTS EVENTS. AND AS YOU KNOW, THE RECENTLY THE CITY MANAGER WAS TALKING, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER WAS TALKING ABOUT HOW THEY'RE REALLY TRYING TO HELP BUILD MORE SPORTS, UH, UH, FACILITIES HERE IN TOWN FOR YOUTH ACTIVITIES. SO WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING ON THAT. UM, THESE ARE SOME OF THE KIND OF EVENTS THAT WE BOOKED RECENTLY WITH THE, THE SPORTS COMMISSION, UH, DRIVE ROOM NIGHTS THROUGH OUR COMMUNITY. UM, AND, UH, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT NATHAN BEING HERE AS WELL. SO, DESTINATION VISITOR SERVICES, YOU KNOW, UH, RIGHT NOW WE'RE, UM, INCENTIVIZING CUSTOMERS TO COME LOOK AT US. SO IF YOU'VE GOT A MEETING THAT'S GOT 300 ROOM NIGHTS, UH, WE'RE GONNA BUY YOUR PLANE TICKET. WE WANT YOU TO COME HERE. 'CAUSE WE KNOW IF YOU, IF YOU FLY HERE, WE BOOK 70% OF THOSE MEETINGS. SO WE'RE ENCOURAGING PEOPLE. WE'LL BUY YOUR PLANE TICKET TO COME HERE, TO BOOK YOUR MEETING. UH, WE'RE DOING SITE INSPECTIONS. WE HELP, UH, WE HELP THEM FIND LOCAL BUSINESSES THAT CAN ASSIST THEM WITH THEIR [01:30:01] CONVENTIONS WITH WHEN THEY'RE IN TOWN. UH, WE HAVE OUTSOURCED HOUSING REGISTRATION SERVICES. WE DO PROMOTIONAL TRIPS. WE, YOU KNOW, WE HELP PLAN THEIR SITE INSPECTIONS. SO THAT'S WHAT OUR, THAT'S WHAT OUR SERVICES DEPARTMENT DOES. UM, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE BEEN TO ANYBODY, BEEN TO THE NEW VISITOR CENTER YET? MM-HMM. YES. SO, AWESOME. THANK YOU, . UM, SO WE ARE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE PHILLIPS BUILDING. YOU KNOW, IT WAS BUILT IN 1897. IT WAS AT ONE POINT IT WAS THE STUDEBAKER DEALERSHIP IN DOWNTOWN. IT HOSTED USO DANCES. AND WE LOOKED AT THAT BUILDING, AND WHEN WE LOOKED AT IT, WHEN WE FIRST STARTED THE PROJECT, I WAS LIKE, I'M NOT SO SURE. BUT WE, WE PUT SOME MONEY INTO IT, OBVIOUSLY. AND YOU'LL SEE ONE OF THE TWO MURALS WE HAVE IN THIS PICTURE HERE THAT WE'RE DONE BY LOCAL ARTISTS. IT'S NOT ONLY, IT'S A COFFEE SHOP, IT'S ALSO A MUSIC VENUE, AND IT'S ALSO THE VISITOR CENTER. WE'RE SEEING 30% MORE PEOPLE IN THE VISITOR CENTER THAN WE USED TO SEE. IT'S A BETTER LOCATION, IT'S WHERE IT'S GONNA STAY. BUT WE LOVE THAT WE TOOK THIS HISTORIC BUILDING AND RENOVATED AND BROUGHT IT BACK TO LIFE. AND IT'S REALLY MAKING A BIG DIFFERENCE FOR OUR COMMUNITY. AND WE WE'RE EXCITED 'CAUSE WE'RE HAVING A LOT OF MUSICIANS PLAYING IN THERE NOW, UH, SOUTH BY, DID SOME PROGRAMMING IN THERE THIS YEAR. AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO DO THOSE THINGS IN THE BUILDING. SO IT REALLY, IT REALLY TURNED OUT, IT WAS FUNNY WHEN THE ARCHITECTS WALKED IN, THEY SHOWED US THE DESIGN. WE WERE LIKE, IS THAT THE WAY IT'S REALLY GONNA LOOK? AND I SWEAR, IT'S EXACTLY WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE. THEY DID SUCH A GREAT JOB WITH IT. SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE VISITOR CENTER. IT LOOKS FANTASTIC. IT REALLY IS. GREAT. YES, THANK YOU. WE ARE, WE ARE VERY PROUD OF IT. UM, AND SO IT, IT'S, UM, IT'S GREAT. IT'S A GREAT LOCATION. FIFTH AND FIFTH AND, AND, UH, CONGRESSES. SO JUST, IF YOU GET A CHANCE, STEER OVER. IT'S RIGHT BY THE ME CARTE MUSEUM. MM-HMM . UH, MARKETING. SO YOU MAY NOT KNOW THIS, BUT 44% OF ALL RESTAURANT SPEND COMES FROM VISITORS IN OUR COMMUNITY. SO IF YOU LOVE A RESTAURANT, IT'S BECAUSE DURING THE WEEKDAY, TOURISTS WERE PROBABLY EATING THERE AND KEEPING THAT RESTAURANT ACTIVITY. UM, 36% OF ALL RETAIL COMPANY CAME FROM OUR VISITORS. 64% OF ENTERTAINMENT ATTRACTION SPENDS COMES FROM VISITORS. 94% OF ALL ACCOMMODATIONS ARE SPENT FROM VISITORS. SO THEY ARE DRIVING BUSINESS AND THEY'RE DRIVING REVENUE TO OUR COMMUNITY AND TO OUR, TO OUR LOCAL VENUES AND MUSICIANS, ET CETERA. AND SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT THAT IMPACT THAT THAT HAS ON THE COMMUNITY. UM, THESE ARE JUST SOME SNAPSHOTS OF SOME OF OUR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN. RIGHT NOW. WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING THROUGH AN ADVERTISING, UM, CONTRACT RIGHT NOW. WE'RE RENEWING OUR CONTRACT. WE HAVE FIVE COMPANIES THAT ARE BIDDING TO DO OUR ADVERTISING GOING FORWARD, BUT WE'RE ALWAYS GONNA BE OBVIOUSLY ON BRAND WITH THINGS LIKE LIVE MUSIC CAPITAL. SO YOU CAN SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, TAKE THE BAND ON THE ROAD. WE'RE ALWAYS THEMING OUT MUSIC AS WELL. SOME, SOMETIMES, OBVIOUSLY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT OUR MICHELIN STARS AND OUR, AND OUR CULINARY AS WELL, AND, YOU KNOW, OUTDOORS AND ALL THOSE KIND OF THEMES THAT AUSTIN'S KNOWN FOR. AND THAT'S, UH, THAT'S THE KIND OF ADVERTISING YOU'RE SEEING, UM, FROM VISIT AUSTIN THESE DAYS. UM, THIS GIVES YOU A SNAPSHOT OF WHO OUR VISITORS ARE, AGE, YOU KNOW, BACKGROUND. UM, AND SO THIS IS WHERE WE SPEND A LOT OF OUR TIME TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, CREATE OUR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS AND WHERE THEY'RE RUNNING. UM, YOU CAN SEE THESE ARE OUR MAJOR, UH, FLY MARKETS, UH, AND OUR MAJOR DRIVE MARKETS. UM, AND SOME OF THE MAJOR, SOME OF THE MAJOR THEMES THAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE'RE ADVERTISING. WE DO A LOT OF DIGITAL MEDIA, A LOT OF VIDEO CONTENT. YOU'LL SEE THAT WE'VE GOT, UH, A GREAT CITYWIDE VIDEO. WE ALSO HAVE, I THINK IT'S 12 DIFFERENT COMMUNITY NEIGHBORHOOD VIDEOS TO HIGHLIGHT DIFFERENT PARTS OF OUR COMMUNITY AND WHAT YOU CAN DO IN THOSE A IN THOSE AREAS. UM, THIS IS SOME OF OUR TALKING ABOUT SOME OF HOW OUR ADVERTISING INFLUENCING TRIPS AND THE IMPACT THAT'S HAVING. SO, YOU KNOW, YOU SEE A $373 RETURN ON EVERY AD DOLLAR SPENT. SO WE KNOW THAT THAT ADVERTISING IS DRIVING MORE ROOM NIGHTS TO OUR COMMUNITY. I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS GONNA PLAY OR NOT. IT KIND OF SKIPPED OVER, SO I'M JUST GONNA GO PAST IT. BUT THESE ARE SOME OF OUR ORGANIC SOCIAL MEDIA, UH, VIEWS. UH, THIS IS OBVIOUSLY, WE STILL PRINT A VISITORS GUIDE, SO YOU CAN STILL GET THE PAPER VISITORS GUIDE IF YOU WANT IT. UH, WE, YOU KNOW, WE ALSO HAVE THE AWESOME FILM COMMISSION. SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED, OBVIOUSLY WHAT THE STATE DID LAST YEAR AND THE, AND THE $3 BILLION THEY PUT INTO THE NEXT 10 YEARS. AND WE'RE GETTING MORE COMMERCIAL SHOOTS THAN WE'VE EVER SEEN BEFORE. UM, AND SOME, AND SOME SERIES, AND THERE'LL BE MOVIES AND IT'S, IT'S REALLY IMPACTING THE ENTIRE STATE. BUT OUR, UH, BRIAN AND OUR FILM COMMISSION AND KIM AND OUR FILM COMMISSION HAVE NEVER BEEN BUSIER. SO, UH, WE'RE SEEING A LOT OF THIS PRODUCTION BECAUSE OF THOSE INCENTIVE DOLLARS COMING INTO AUSTIN. UM, THERE'S THE, OBVIOUSLY THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM I JUST MENTIONED. UH, AND THEN, UH, I HOPE YOU KNOW THIS, BUT WE, WE WORK WITH A DATABASE OF OVER 800 MUSICIANS. AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING IN THE PAST WOULD, CONVENTIONS WOULD COME TO TOWN, THEY'RE LIKE, UH, WHAT KIND OF CASH INCENTIVE YOU'LL GIVE US? LIKE, NO, WE'RE NOT GONNA DO THAT. WE'RE GONNA LET YOU KNOW, INSTEAD OF GIVING YOU $15,000 IN CASH, WE'RE GONNA GIVE YOU $15,000 WORTH OF FREE MUSICIANS. YOU KNOW, SO WE WERE, AND THEY WERE LIKE, OH, WE LOVE THAT IDEA. SO . SO WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE DOING THAT. WE'RE DOING THAT NOW. SO WE ALWAYS MAKE SURE THAT WE TAKE MUSICIANS WHEN THERE'S A NEW FLIGHT THAT'S DEVELOPED. [01:35:01] WE'RE ON THE ROAD DOING THAT. WE, WE GO TO DIFFERENT FESTIVALS IF WE'RE, UH, INVOLVED WITH THE CONVENTION GROUP. THERE'S SEVERAL OF THOSE THAT ARE, UM, THAT ARE LIKE, YOU KNOW, PCMA, WHICH IS THE PROFESSIONAL CONVENTION MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION. IT'S A CONVENTION OF CONVENTION PLANNERS. WE PROVIDE THE MUSIC AT THAT EVENT EVERY YEAR. SO WE'RE ALWAYS PROMOTING OUR MUSIC AND OUR MUSICIANS TO THE MEETINGS INDUSTRY AND USING THAT AS AN INCENTIVE TO BRING YOUR CONVENTIONS TO AUSTIN. AWESOME. OMAR LAZANO, IF YOU KNOW HIM ON OUR TEAM, OMAR HAS BEEN WORKING FOR US FOR ABOUT 15 YEARS MM-HMM . AND HE'S EXCELLENT. AND HE'S DRIVING, UHA WORKS WITH HIM NOW. WE HAVE TWO PEOPLE IN THAT AREA AND, UH, DRIVING A LOT OF, UH, BOOKINGS FOR MUSICIANS. AND WHAT'S GREAT ABOUT IT IS THEY GET HIRED DURING THE DAY AND SOMETIMES THOSE, THEY GET, THOSE ARE BETTER PAYING GIGS GIGS THAN THEY HAVE AT NIGHT. YEAH. SO WE REALLY LOVE THAT OPPORTUNITY. WE WANT TO KEEP DOING MORE OF THAT. YOU BET. YOU'RE GONNA SEE SOME OF THIS AUSTIN ORIGINAL, IT'S PROBABLY NOT GONNA PLAY TONIGHT, BUT IF YOU PULL THIS UP ON OUR WEBSITE, YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THESE MUSIC VIDEOS THAT WE HAVE AS WELL ON, ON YOUR PHONE. AND THIS, AND THIS IS STICKING, SO I'M JUST GONNA GO THROUGH, SO I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE TPI, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU KNOW HOW THAT WORKS. IT'S BEEN IN PLACE FOR ABOUT A YEAR NOW, BUT IT'S A 2% FEE. THE HOTELS AGREED TO ASSESS THEMSELVES. ALL THAT CAN BE USED FOR SALES AND MARKETING. IT RUNS FROM 2025 THROUGH 2035. UM, THERE IS, UH, 13 MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. THEY HAVE TO BE HOTELS BY STATE LAW, MYSELF, UH, THE MONICA, UM, OR EXCUSE ME, MOLLY, THE NEW HEAD OF THE HOTEL LOGIC ASSOCIATION SITS ON THERE. AND KATIE ZIC, WHO RUNS THE CONVENTION, SITS ON THERE. WE SIT THERE AS NON-VOTING MEMBERS. UH, WE BRING IDEAS AND CONCEPTS TO THE BOARD THAT THEY APPROVE OF, BUT IT'S ALL ABOUT SALES AND MARKETING. SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT, UH, IS THE CENTER GONNA GENERATE MORE ROOM NIGHTS? IT IS. THE TEAM IS ALSO HELPING US GENERATE MORE ROOM NIGHTS FROM THEIR ACTIVITIES. AND I, AND I BROUGHT OUT JUST A SLIDE WHERE A SLIDE, BUT A SHEET WITH ME AND I TALKING ABOUT, UH, THE IMPACT IT'S HAVING JUST IN THE SHORT RUN ALREADY. SO, FOR INSTANCE, UM, WE HAVE 40 OF THOSE MINI WIDES WE TALKED ABOUT ALREADY BOOKED. THAT'S 161,000 NIGHTS. UH, WE'VE GENERATED OVER 700 APPLICATIONS FOR THE IN-HOUSE INCENTIVE PROGRAM. IT'S 600,000 NIGHTS, UH, GENERATING, UM, UH, GENERATING 150 MILLION IN, IN REVENUE FOR THE CITY. UM, AND THEN WE'VE DONE A PROGRAM FOR THE EXPEDIA, EXPEDIA GROUP, UM, ALL THE LIMITED SERVICE HOTELS, WE'VE CREATED A NEIGHBORHOOD PROGRAM. IF YOU WENT ON EXPEDIA AND WAS TRYING TO BUY A ROOM IN AUSTIN, YOU'D, YOU, YOU'D, YOU'D SEARCH A NEIGHBORHOOD. AND WHAT WOULD POP UP WOULD BE ALL THE LIMITED SERVICE HOTELS IN THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS. SO WE'RE DRIVING BOOKINGS TO THE LIMITED SERVICE HOTELS AS WELL. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT DOWNTOWN, IT'S ABOUT HOTELS ALL ACROSS THE CITY. AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TPI BOARD, THERE'S 13 OF THEM AND THEY'RE FROM DIFFERENT SIZE HOTELS AND DIFFERENT PARTS OF TOWNS AND DIFFERENT BRANDS. SO IT'S A REALLY DIVERSE GROUP OF FOLKS THAT ARE SERVING THAT BOARD. AND THEY'RE TRYING TO DRIVE MORE HOTEL ROOM NIGHTS TO THE COMMUNITY AND DRIVE MORE REVENUE TO THE CITY. JEFF DONAHOE, WHO'S THE GM OF THE HIGHER REGENCY DOWNTOWN, IS OUR CURRENT CHAIR. SCOTT BLAYLOCK, UH, IS OUR VICE CHAIR WHO'S WITH, UH, THE JW MARRIOTT. BUT THEY ARE, THEY'RE REALLY DRIVING A DIFFERENCE IN THIS FIRST YEAR. AND THEN EVERY ONE OF THOSE BOOKINGS YOU SAW FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER THAT ARE, THAT ARE DEFINITE, THOSE HAVE BEEN INCENTIVIZED, UH, BY THE T PIT ENTITY. IF YOU REMEMBER, THE CITY IS SEEING 20% OF THE T PIT WHEN WE BUY BUSINESS FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER. AND THAT MEETING TAKES PLACE, THOSE DOLLARS BECOME GENERAL FUND REVENUE THAT ARE BEING DEDICATED TO HOMELESS COSTS. SO WE THINK THAT'S PROBABLY SOMEWHERE BETWEEN FOUR AND $5 MILLION EVERY YEAR GOING FORWARD. THE CITY'S GONNA GONNA SEE. AND WE LOVE THAT BECAUSE IT'S THE BEST DOUBLE DIP WE GET THE REVENUE, WE GET TO USE IT FOR SALES AND MARKETING, AND THE CITY GETS THE BENEFIT OF USING IT FOR TAKING CARE OF OUR HOMELESS COMMUNITY. SO IT'S THE TPI PROGRAM'S REALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE FOR OUR, FOR OUR COMMUNITY. THESE ARE OUR TID BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AND THEN WE ALSO OBVIOUSLY HAVE OUR PARTNERSHIP DEPARTMENT AND OUR VISIT AUSTIN FOUNDATION. YOU PROBABLY KNOW TINA CANNON. UH, TINA'S OUR NEW, UH, VICE PRESIDENT OF PARTNERSHIPS AND SHE'S DOING A GREAT JOB RUNNING THE FOUNDATION AS WELL. AND THIS IS ALL ABOUT MAKING A DIFFERENCE FOR OUR COMMUNITY, LIKE HELPING PEOPLE FIND JOBS, FIND CAREERS. WE WORK WITH TRAVIS COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL, UH, TO HELP HIGH SCHOOL KIDS GET AN INTEREST IN THE TOURISM INDUSTRY. IN FACT, WE DO AN EVENT JUST HAPPENED RECENTLY CALLED THE GIVE BACK GIG. AND WHAT WE DID IS WE TOOK SIX KIDS THAT WANT TO HAVE A CULINARY BACKGROUND AND WE PAIRED THEM WITH SIX MISSION, UH, MICHELIN CHEFS. AND THERE WAS A COOKING COMPETITION AND THEIR PARENTS WERE THERE AND THERE WERE FOUR OH PEOPLE THAT BOUGHT TICKETS, THIS THING. AND YOU GET GREAT FOOD OUT OF IT AND IT WILL TUG AT YOUR HEARTSTRINGS. AND IT'S ALL ABOUT GETTING THESE KIDS EXCITED ABOUT, AND THEY LAPTOP COMMUTERS AND GIFT CARDS AND ALL THAT STUFF. AND, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE APRONS AND, YOU KNOW, A KNIFE AND CUTTING BOARDS, THEY GET ALL THE STUFF ABOUT GETTING THEM INSPIRED ABOUT WHAT MAYBE WANT TO BE IN THE COAL INDUSTRY. AND YOU HEAR THESE KIDS THAT WOULD NEVER NORMALLY SPEAK IN FRONT OF A GROUP, SPEAK IN FRONT OF 400 ADULTS TALKING ABOUT HOW PASSIONATE THEY'RE ABOUT FOOD. IT'S PRETTY COOL. THEN IF YOU GET A CHANCE, YOU WANT TO GO NEXT YEAR, IT'S IN APRIL. THAT'S CALLED THE GIVE BACK GATEWAY. BUT THAT'S SOME OF THE WORK THE FOUNDATION'S DOING. UH, BUT IT'S ALL ABOUT DRIVING, UH, OPPORTUNITIES FOR, FOR KIDS AND PEOPLE IN TOWN TO GET IN THE HOSPITALITY TOURISM INDUSTRY. AND THEN WE JUST, YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE A PARTNERSHIP, UH, DIVISION JUST BECAUSE IT HELPS US GENERATE MORE PRIVATE REVENUE JUST SO WE HAVE MORE DOLLARS FROM SALES AND MARKETING. SO THAT'S WHAT OUR PARTNERSHIP [01:40:01] DEPARTMENT DOES. WELL, SPEAKING OF THINGS LIKE, UM, YOU KNOW, INTERNSHIPS, PROGRAMS, PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE KIDS AND STUFF LIKE THAT, I WOULD JUST SUGGEST IF YOU'RE NOT ALREADY WORKING WITH BREAKTHROUGH, ALSO BREAKTHROUGH. YEAH. BECAUSE THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY. UM, THEY'RE ALWAYS, THEY WORK WITH KIDS IN EAST SIDE HIGH SCHOOL AND STUFF LIKE THAT AND, UH, TO GET THEM INTERNSHIPS AND PUT THEM THROUGH COLLEGE AND STUFF LIKE THAT. SO YOU MIGHT WANNA LOOK INTO THAT TOO. AND IF YOU HAVEN'T EVER CHANCE TO GO TO OUR ANNUAL MEETING, IT'S, UH, IT'S IN SEPTEMBER THIS YEAR AND WE HAVE ABOUT 850 PEOPLE THERE. AND WE TALK ABOUT ALL THE GREAT THINGS THAT TOURISM INDUSTRY HAS DONE FOR OUR COMMUNITY. IT'S A, IT'S A GREAT MOMENT. IT'S MY FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR. 'CAUSE WE GOTTA TALK ABOUT THE IMPACT OUR INDUSTRY'S HAVING ON THE COMMUNITY AND THE GREAT THINGS THAT ARE TAKING PLACE. AND A LOT OF, A LOT OF AWARD WINNERS, SCHOLARSHIPS AND PEOPLE BEING RECOGNIZED. THAT'S A NICE EVENT THAT WE DO EVERY YEAR. SOUNDS FANTASTIC. AND THIS JUST TALKS ABOUT OUR VISIT AUSTIN FOUNDATION AGAIN. UM, AND THESE ARE SOME OF THE PROGRAMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE, WITH THE, WITH THE, UH, FOUNDATION WE'RE WORKING ON. AND THAT'S IT. SO THAT'S, I KNOW I WENT THROUGH THAT REALLY FAST . SO IF I'M HERE FOR ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE, COMMISSIONER VEDA. WELL, FIRST, UH, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT ABOUT YOUR VISITOR CENTER. I'M THERE OFTEN. I LIVE DOWNTOWN JUST EIGHT BLOCKS AWAY, SO THREE OR FOUR TIMES A WEEK I'M THERE. AND GREAT TEAM HARRISON AND THE OTHERS THERE. OH, THAT'S AWESOME. YOU KNOW, THEY'RE GREAT, YOU KNOW, AND YOU KNOW, HIS SERVICE, UH, GIVING TOURS DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, MAYBE BEING ABLE TO EXPAND ON THAT, MAYBE EVEN CREATING VIRTUAL TOURS, NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, PHYSICAL TOURS. YEAH. I'VE HAD, HARRISON HAS BEEN UPRIGHT SWIM WITH US FOR 35 YEARS MM-HMM . UM, AND HE'S, HE, HE KNOWS THE CITY BETTER THAN ANYBODY, RIGHT? MM-HMM . UM, AND SO WE'RE HAVING CONVERSATIONS ABOUT, I'D LOVE TO DO LIKE SATURDAYS, YOU KNOW, COFFEES WITH HARRISON, YOU KNOW, CHATS WITH HARRISON IN THE, IN THE NEW, THE NEW MEETING SPACE SIDE. 'CAUSE HE REALLY DOES KNOW HOW TO SELL THIS CITY AND MARKET THE CITY. AND, AND HE KNOWS ALL THE HISTORY OF THE CITY AND HE'S GREAT AT IT. AND I AGREE YOU, WE NEED, WE NEED TO MINE MORE OF THAT ASSET WITH HARRISON. BUT YOU'RE RIGHT, NATALIE AND THE TEAM THAT RUN THAT BUS BUILDING DOWN THERE DO A GREAT JOB. UM, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT. I COMMEND YOU. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. I'M, I'M CURIOUS WHAT PERCENTAGE OF HOSPITALITY JOBS, UM, PROVIDE A LIVING WAGE? UM, AND I, I JUST LOOKED IT UP ON GOOGLE. IT MAY OR MAY NOT BE RIGHT, BUT IT TOLD ME THAT A LIVING WAGE IN AUSTIN IS $20 AN HOUR. I, I WOULD TELL YOU PROBABLY THE MAJORITY OF THAT IS, AND IT'S EITHER, IT'S EITHER IN SALARY OR IT'S IN TIPS. AND THE, THE CUMULATIVE IS ABOVE THAT. I, I REMEMBER THE FOUR SEASONS DID A STUDY ABOUT THEIR, JUST THEIR HOTEL A FEW YEARS AGO. AND YOU WOULD SEE THAT, THAT, THAT, UM, THE MAJORITY OF THOSE JOBS, YOU KNOW, HOSPITALITY TOURISM ISN'T JUST WAITERS AND WAITRESSES AND VALET PARKERS, IT'S ALSO GENERAL MANAGERS. IT'S SALES AND MARKETING PEOPLE. SURE. IT'S ACCOUNTANTS, IT'S WHATEVER. SO IT RUNS THE WHOLE GAMUT OF IT. BUT A LOT OF TIMES IT'S THAT, IT'S THAT FIRST OPPORTUNITY, THAT FIRST JOB. UM, AND, AND WE RECOGNIZE THERE'S, THERE'S PART OF OUR COMMUNITY THAT NEEDS THAT. RIGHT. BUT I, ONE OF THE THINGS I'M REALLY PROUD ABOUT AND THIS INDUSTRY IS YOU SEE MOST PEOPLE WALK IN THIS INDUSTRY, INDUSTRY AND ENTRY LEVELS. AND THEN LATER ON YOU SEE THEM AS GENERAL MANAGERS. I, I STARTED WITH AN $18,000 A YEAR JOB IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, RIGHT. UH, AND I WAS HAPPY TO HAVE IT. AND I HAD THIS OPPORTUNITY. I GREW MY CAREER OVER THE LAST 38 YEARS DOING THAT. AND I'M JUST ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE. BUT THERE'S A LOT OF FOLKS THAT, THAT COME IN THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY. THEY GET IT IN THEIR BLOOD AND THEY'D EITHER WORK IN THE HOTELS, THE RESTAURANTS, WHATEVER, AND THEY MAKE THEIR LIFE WORK OUT OF IT, AND THEY MAKE A VERY GOOD LIVING IN IT. BUT, UM, THE, THERE ARE SOME ENTRY LEVEL JOBS, THERE'S NO DOUBT ABOUT THAT. WE'RE PROUD OF THAT, THAT OPPORTUNITY, BUT IT REALLY SPANS THE WHOLE GAMUT. YEAH, I, I MEAN, I'D BE INTERESTED IN SOME ACTUAL DATA AND MAYBE I'LL DO SOME MORE RESEARCH. UM, I'M ALSO CURIOUS ABOUT WHETHER ANY OF THE HOTEL TAX DOLLARS, UM, GO DIRECTLY TO THE PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERNS THAT ARE, ARE A RESULT OF HAVING MORE AND MORE TOURISM IN DOWNTOWN AUSTIN. SO THERE ARE NINE LEGAL USES OF HOTEL TAX AND PUBLIC SAFETY ISN'T ONE OF THEM ISN'T. OH. OH, OKAY. SO MAYBE IT'S THE ALCOHOL TAX THAT CAN BE USED FOR THAT. YEAH, SO IT'S, IT'S, IT'S FOR ARTS, IT'S FOR HERITAGE, IT'S FOR VISITORS CENTERS, IT'S FOR CONVENTION OF VISITORS BUREAUS, YOU KNOW, IT'S FOR, IT'S FOR CONVENTION CENTERS, IT'S FOR SOME SPORTS VENUES. IT'S FOR SOME, UH, CONFERENCE REGISTRATION AND IT'S FOR, UH, SOME TRANSPORTATION THAT'S FOR, YOU KNOW, LIKE IF SOMEBODY HAS A CONVENTION, THEN YOU RUN SHUTTLE BUSES. IT'S FOR THE THOSE, AND THEN THERE'S SOME SIGNAGE. THAT'S REALLY THE ONLY LEGAL USAGE. YOU CAN'T, YOU CAN'T RUN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION WITH IT, BUT YOU CAN RUN, LIKE IF SOMEBODY SAYS, I'M BRINGING A CONFERENCE TO TOWN, I WANNA RUN 10 BUSES, THEY CAN USE IT FOR THAT. SO YOU COULDN'T RUN LIKE DWI PREVENTION, NO TRANSPORTATION WITH IT. NO, NO. IT'S PROFOUNDLY SHORTSIGHTED. THANK YOU, . IT'S, IT'S STATE LAW. YEAH. I DON'T, I DON'T DOUBT IT. I'VE BEEN TO THE LEGISLATURE, I KNOW HOW THEY THINK. THANK YOU, . MY BOOK TED. YEAH, TOM, MY FORMER, MY FORMER BOARD MEMBER. HOW CAN I HELP YOU? YEAH, , THANKS SO MUCH FOR WALKING US THROUGH WITH SO MUCH INFORMATION. SO MUCH GOOD INFORMATION AND GREAT NEWS. YEAH. UH, I WAS HONORED [01:45:01] TO, UH, SIT, UH, ON THE BOARD BEFORE AND WITNESS, UH, FIRSTHAND HOW, WHAT A STELLAR TEAM YOU, YOU HAVE AND UNDER YOUR LEADERSHIP. UM, SO I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS. ONE IS, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY OBSERVATION OF THE TREND FOR THE INTERNATIONAL VISITORS AND INTERNATIONAL EVENTS COMING TO AUSTIN? IT IS. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID THIS YEAR, AND I SHOULD HAVE GONE THROUGH THIS EARLIER. WE, WE STARTED WORKING WITH A COMPANY CALLED PTG AND PT G'S BASED IN MEXICO. I WILL. SO I'LL TELL YOU, TWO YEARS AGO, WE WEREN'T DOING A LOT OF ADVERTISING AND PROMOTING OF AUSTIN IN, IN, YOU KNOW, SOUTH OF THE BORDER. UH, AND WE, AND PTG, WHAT THEY DO IS THEY WORK WITH THE EIGHT LARGEST TRAVEL AGENTS IN MEXICO ABOUT BRINGING INTERNATIONAL VISITATION TO AUSTIN. SO NOW WE HAVE EIGHT TRAVEL GROUPS DOWN THERE THAT ARE SELLING PACKAGES TO AUSTIN. AND THAT WAS REALLY, SAN ANTONIO WAS DOING THAT, AND DALLAS WAS DOING THAT, AND HOUSTON WAS DOING THAT. AND AUSTIN'S LIKE THE NEW DESTINATION BECAUSE WE'RE FINALLY IN THAT MARKETPLACE. WE JUST DIDN'T HAVE THE BUDGET FOR IT. MM-HMM. SO NOW WE'RE WORKING WITH PTG TO PROMOTE US AND YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE WE HAVE THE NEW COPA FLIGHT, WE HAVE ALL OF OUR MEXICO FLIGHTS AND ALL THAT, AND WE HAVE A LOT MORE LIKE PORTER JUST OUTTA CANADA JUST STARTED. SO WE'RE DOING MORE ADVERTISING AND MORE OUTREACH AS WELL. YEAH. WE ALSO HAVE A REP FIRM IN EUROPE THAT'S REPRESENTING US FOR ALL THE, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, UH, UH, BA FLIGHTS AND, YOU KNOW, ALL THE OTHER FLIGHTS WE HAVE. SO WE WORK CLOSELY WITH THE CHAMBER ABOUT FLIGHT CREATION MM-HMM . UM, AND WE HELP SUBSIDIZE THOSE INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS. OUR FUTURE IS INTERNATIONAL BIG TIME WHEN THAT AIRPORT EXPANSION IS FINISHED AND WE SEEN MORE GATES WHERE WE'RE HAVING A LOT MORE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT NEW INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS COMING TO AUSTIN. THAT'LL BE, THAT'LL BE A BIG GROWTH FOR US. AND WE'RE CONCENTRATING ON THAT A LOT. FLIGHT TO ASIA, PLEASE. . OH, PLEASE. RIGHT. THAT'S, THAT'S VERY, VERY HIGH ON OUR LIST. AND THERE'S CONVERSATIONS GOING ON ABOUT THAT AREA OF THE WORLD AS WELL AS, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, MORE CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA, MORE EUROPEAN. THERE'S, THERE'S A LOT, THERE'S A LOT OF CONVERSATION. WE KNOW WE HAVE ALL THESE NEW GATES COMING TO THE AIRPORT. UH, WE CAN ACCOMMODATE SOME OF THOSE FLIGHTS EVEN NOW, BUT 'CAUSE WHEN THEY ARRIVE YEP. UH, BUT WE, WE DEFINITELY HAVE TO MAKE THAT, IT'S A BIGGER PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING EVERY DAY. THAT'S AWESOME. UM, THE SECOND QUESTION IS MORE, A LITTLE BIT DETAILED. YOU MENTIONED THAT THE MUSICIAN, UH, BOOKING FOR THE MU LOCAL MUSICIANS, I LOVE THAT IDEA AND PERSONALLY KNOW A LOT OF THE MUSICIANS WOULD BE BENEFITED FROM THIS, UH, PROGRAM. ARE, ARE YOU OPEN ONLY TO THE MUSICIANS LIVING WITHIN THE, UM, AUSTIN LIMIT OR REGIONAL? AND IF THEY'RE INTERESTED, DO THEY SIGN UP OR YOU GUYS REACH OUT TO THEM? HOW DOES THAT I, I THINK, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE LOOKING LIKE, I'M SORRY, CAN YOU SHOW ME WHERE YOU LIVE? BUT YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE IN THE AUSTIN REACH AND WE'RE PROBABLY WORKING WITH THOSE MUSICIANS, THEY PROBABLY PLAY IN AUSTIN A LOT MM-HMM . UM, AND SO WE'RE JUST TRYING TO DRIVE MORE BOOKINGS FOR MUSICIANS THAT, THAT ARE, THAT ARE WORKING WITH US. AND SO, YOU KNOW, OMAR GOES OUT AND TALKS TO THESE FOLKS, GETS SOME SIGNED UP AND TRIES TO HELP FIND THE BOOKINGS. YOU KNOW, SO, SO IF THEY'RE INTERESTED, SHOULD, SHOULD THEY REACH OUT TO VISIT AUSTIN? I WOULD HAVE 'EM REACH OUT. YOU CAN REACH OUT TO VISIT AUSTIN. I'LL REACH OUT DIRECTLY TO OMAR LOZANO MM-HMM . UM, WHO, WHO RUNS THAT PROGRAM. AND HE, UH, HE KNOWS, HE KNOWS EVERYBODY. SO IN THE MUSIC WORLD HERE IN AUSTIN, BUT HE'S DOING A GREAT JOB RUNNING THAT PROGRAM FOR US. THANK YOU. WE'RE, WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW MUSICIANS AND WE, AGAIN, WE TAKE THEM ON THE ROAD FOR LOTS OF THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING. GREAT. FANTASTIC. YEP. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER BOOKTA. YEAH. UM, TOM, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. SURE. I RUN THE AUSTIN TEXAS MUSICIANS ADVOCACY, UH, NONPROFIT, AND IT'S BEEN A FEW YEARS SINCE YOU AND I YEAH. HAD SOME VIRTUAL MEETINGS YEAH. DURING THE PANDEMIC. UH, WE LOVE WORKING WITH OMAR. WE LOVE ALL THE PROGRAMS YOU GUYS DO. AND, AND, UH, SO THIS IS A SHAMELESS PLUG THIS FRIDAY, THIS FRIDAY WE'RE CO-PRODUCING A, A A A PROGRAM WITH VISIT AUSTIN AND, UH, LOCAL SETS, A TX, UH, SCOTT STRICKLAND WILL BE AT THE VISITOR CENTER AT NOON. AND, UH, THIS IS, BY THE WAY, THIS IS MANDATORY ATTENDANCE FOR ALL MY COMMISSIONERS HERE, . BUT, UM, I I JUST LOVE THAT YOU GUYS ARE PRIORITIZING PROGRAMMING DURING THE DAYTIME BUSINESS HOURS. I THINK IT'S A REAL HUGE OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY BRING SOME MORE CULTURE AND MUSIC DOWNTOWN DURING THE DAYTIME. YEAH. THAT, THAT OLD VISITOR SAID THIS, WE DIDN'T HAVE THE SPACE TO DO THAT. SO WHEN WE, WHEN WE DECIDED TO DESIGN, DESIGN THIS NEWBUILDING, WE KNEW WE NEEDED TO HAVE THAT KIND OF SPACE FOR IT. AND, UM, AND SO WE HAVE A LOT OF FOLKS THAT ARE LIKE, I WANNA USE IT. CAN I RUN IT? CAN I, YEAH. YEAH. SO WE, IT'S, IT'S, THAT'S, IT'S A COMMUNITY ASSET. RIGHT? SURE. THANK YOU TOM. SURE. I'M GONNA PUT THIS ON MY SCHEDULE. . SEE YOU THERE. ANYBODY ELSE? WELL, I DO HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION BEING THERE SO OFTEN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS, UM, THE DUCK TOUR, THEY STOP THERE. IS THAT AN OFFICIAL, UM, STOP WHERE IT STARTS AND ENDS? YEAH. ALL OF, ALL OF THOSE BUS TOURS OPERATE RIGHT OUTSIDE THE FRONT DOOR OF THE VISITOR CENTER. MM-HMM. IT'S A BETTER LOCATION THAN THE LAST TIME IT USED TO BE PARKED AROUND THE CORNER. NOW THEY, THEY, IN FACT, I HAD LUNCH WITH PAUL WHO RUNS, WHO RUNS RIDE THE DUCKS YESTERDAY, AND [01:50:01] MM-HMM. HE, HE LOVES THE, THE WAY THE NEW SYSTEM'S WORKING, BUT THEY ALL, THEY ALL PARK RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE BUILDING FOR THE FIRST TIME. YOU KNOW, WE CAN RUN THREE OR FOUR BUSES THERE AT ONE AT ONE TIME. AND, UM, THEY JUST TAKE OFF FROM THERE. AND IT'S, WHAT'S GREAT ABOUT THAT IS USUALLY THERE'S, SOMEBODY'S GONNA BE THERE FOR 30 OR 45 MINUTES, SO THEY'RE GONNA END UP SHOPPING, AND THEN THEY'RE GONNA SPEND MONEY AND THEY'RE GONNA BUY COFFEE FROM THE NEW COFFEE SHOP AND THEY'RE GONNA, HERE'S SOME MUSICIANS PLAYING, AND IT'S JUST A WIN ALL AROUND. OH, THAT'S GREAT. YEAH. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER MCDANIEL. THANK YOU. UH, TWO QUICK QUESTIONS. FIRST OF ALL, THANKS FOR COMING TONIGHT. VERY INFORMATIVE. SURE. UM, I WAS WONDERING, IS THIS, UH, IS THE POWERPOINT YOU SHOWED TODAY, IS IT ONLINE ANYWHERE OR? UH, I, I WILL, WELL, YOU GUYS ALREADY HAVE IT, BUT I'M HAPPY TO, I'M HAPPY TO SEND IT YOU. OH, PERFECT. I DIDN'T SEE IT IN MY EMAIL, BUT I, I'D LOVE TO HAVE A COPY OF IT. AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION, I TRIED GOOGLING THIS JUST TO FIND OUT, BUT I'M JUST CURIOUS AS FAR AS, UH, WHERE AUSTIN COMPARES TO OTHER TEXAS CITIES IN, UH, REVENUE COLLECTED, UH, VIA HOT TAX. DO YOU KNOW? OR LIKE WHAT? DON'T, UH, DON'T HOLD ME TO THIS. OKAY. BUT, UM, AND I'LL, AND I'LL FIND THE RESEARCH AND I'LL, AND I'LL SEND IT TO YOU, BUT, UH, I BELIEVE THAT WE COLLECT MORE HOTEL TAX THAN ANY OTHER, UH, BESIDES, I THINK YOU'RE GONNA LAUGH CINNAMON SHORES, THEY ARE THE SINGLE LARGEST HOTEL TAX COLLECTOR IN THE STATE, UH, THAT, THAT DEVELOPMENT DOWN THERE. UH, BUT IN TERMS OF, I KNOW THAT, I KNOW THE CITY OF AUSTIN PROVIDES MORE, UH, HOT TAX FOR ARTS AND HERITAGE THAN ANY OTHER CITY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS. AND THEN WHEN YOU LOOK AT WHAT OURT IDS DOING, 20% OF THAT IS GOING THE CITY AND THE AVERAGE IS 5%. SO WE'RE, IF I MAY ADD TO THAT, THE, UH, LIVE MUSIC FUND IS THE FIRST EVER, UH, SUSTAINABLE PUBLIC FUND FOR MUSIC IN THE US YEAH. COMMISSIONER WILEY. UM, WELL FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR COMING IN. I'VE NEVER BEEN TO VISIT AUSTIN, SO I'D LIKE TO COME BY AND SEE YOU ALL SOMETIME ONE 11 CONGRESS, SEVENTH FLOOR , UH, DO YOU ALL TRACK THE ATTENDANCE FOR THE VARIOUS ENTERTAINMENT AND, UH, CULTURAL VENUES IN TOWN AS PART OF, WE GET A LOT OF THAT DATA FROM THEM. I'M NOT SURE THAT WE, WE'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, OUT THERE EVERY DAY TRACKING THAT. BUT I'LL TELL YOU, WE DO A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, CELL PHONE DATA TRACKING AND THINGS LIKE THAT SO WE CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, IF WHEN SOMEBODY COMES TO TOWN FOR AN A BETTER FESTIVAL, WE CAN SEE WHERE EVERYBODY, NOT, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY INDIVIDUALLY, BUT IN A, IN A SENSE WHERE, LIKE WITH PEOPLE COME IN FOR FORMULA ONE, WHERE DO THEY GO ACROSS THE CITY? RIGHT. UHHUH, , YOU KNOW, YOU CAN SEE THAT IMPACTING THE CELL PHONE DATA OR MAJOR CONVENTIONS. WE ARE ALWAYS, WE'RE ALWAYS, WHEN WE BOOK MAJOR CONVENTIONS, WE'RE ALWAYS FINDING EXACTLY HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE IN FOR THAT CONVENTION. PEOPLE BOOK HOTEL ROOMS DIFFERENTLY TODAY THAN THEY USED TO, YOU KNOW, SO NOW WHEN WE HAVE A CONVENTION THAT COME TO TOWN, THEY MAY BOOK 2000 ROOMS ON PEAK NIGHT, BUT THEY'VE GOT 14,000 PEOPLE AND I DON'T THINK THEY'RE PUTTING SEVEN PEOPLE TO A ROOM . SO, YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT THERE'S A BIGGER IMPACT THAN JUST THE ROOM THAT WE, WE KNOW PEOPLE ARE GOING TO AIRBNBS OR BOOKING HOTELS ON THEIR OWN. AND SO WE TRACK THAT AS WELL FOR THAT REASON. UM, AND THEN WE WE'RE ALWAYS CHECKING, YOU KNOW, WE, WE SEE THE REPORTS THAT STOP BY PUTS OUT OR WHAT ACL PUTS OUT, OR, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAPPENS WITH FORMULA ONE AND THOSE, THOSE MAJOR EVENTS. AND THEN, UM, AND THEN, AND WE LOOK AT OTHER FESTIVALS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO WE USUALLY ASK AND GET THAT DATA PER SE, BUT WE'RE NOT ACTIVELY TRACKING INDIVIDUAL IF THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. OKAY. OKAY. AND YEAH, AND PART OF THE REASON I ASK IS EARLIER WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THIS, UH, CURRENT, UH, CONDITIONS THAT, UH, HAS A CHART THAT THAT'S SHOWING WHERE THERE'S, UH, CULTURAL AND ENTERTAINMENT VENUES IN THIS CENTRAL CITY. WELL, YOU'LL SEE THE, YOU'LL SEE ALL THOSE, LIKE FOR INSTANCE, ALL THE MUSIC VENUES ARE ON OUR, ARE ON OUR WEBSITE, AND YOU CAN LOOK AND SEE WHAT, WHO'S PLAYING WHERE, YOU KNOW. YEAH. I THINK THAT THE INTENT OF THIS CHART THOUGH, IS MORE TO GAUGE TRAFFIC, UH, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE, THE VOLUME, LIKE WHAT, WHERE ARE WE GETTING ACTIVITY, IF YOU WILL? WELL, AND, AND WE CAN, WE CAN, WITH OUR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS, WHEN WE DO AN ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN, WE CAN SEE WHO, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHERE, WHERE PEOPLE ARE LOOKING AT OUR ADS. WE CAN ACTUALLY, WE CAN ACTUALLY ATTRIBUTE BOOKINGS TO OUR ACTUAL ADS, 'CAUSE THE, THE CLICKS ON THEM, AND YOU CAN, SO WE CAN SEE WHERE, WHERE OUR ADS ARE BEING EFFICIENT. UH, WE CAN SEE THOSE KIND OF THINGS. OKAY. SO WE, THERE'S A LOT OF TRACKING TOOLS, BUT, UM, WE'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, FOR INSTANCE, WE'RE NOT, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE ANTONE'S HAD IN THEIR RESTAURANT LAST NIGHT OR OTHER BAR. YEAH, NO, IT'S, IT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, BIGGER PICTURE KIND OF STUFF. AND, AND MAYBE I, I WILL STOP BY, BUT PART OF THE REASON IS LOVE TALKING ABOUT IT IS, UM, I'D, I'D LIKE TO TRY TO GET SOME DATA BECAUSE WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE CULTURAL AND ENTERTAINMENT, UM, VENUES, THERE, THERE'S SOME THAT ARE MISSING. AND IT'D BE NICE TO NOT ONLY WHEN WE IDENTIFY SOME OF THOSE TO ALSO, UH, PROVIDE NUMBERS TO KINDA SCALE IT AND SEE WHERE, WHERE THE TRAFFIC IS. AND, AND PART OF THE REASON IS, MY IMPRESSION IS THAT THE MLK CORRIDOR CLOSE TO I 35 IS ABOUT AS HOT AS IT GETS FOR, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU GET NEAR A FOOTBALL GAME. YEAH. WELL, THE FOOTBALL GAME ISN'T EVEN [01:55:01] LISTED AS AN ENTERTAINMENT VENUE. SO WE GOT A GAP THERE, AND IT'D BE GOOD TO KINDA SHOW, OKAY, HERE'S THE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE HAVE THAT MAYBE ALSO YOU'D NEED TO BE AWARE OF EXIST. UM, AND MY UNDERSTANDING IS THE, UM, UNDERSTANDING IS THE MOODY, MOODY CENTER. MM-HMM . IS ACTUALLY THE, THE, THE BUSIEST VENUE IN THE, ON THE PLANET FOR, FOR ANYTHING, YOU KNOW, ANY VENUE IN ITS SIZE OF THAT TYPE, THAT'S THE LAST THREE YEARS FOR, FOR, FOR ARENAS THAT ARE 15,000 SEATS ARE IN THE WORLD, NUMBER ONE, NUMBER ONE IN THE WORLD. SO I THINK PERCENT, I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE STORY, THAT IF YOU'RE, IF YOU'RE AROUND THERE, YOU REALLY FEEL IT. SO WE HAVE SOME OF THOSE STORIES, RIGHT? YEAH. WE DON'T HAVE THEM EVERY DAY FOR EVERYTHING. RIGHT. BUT, BUT, UM, AND OBVIOUSLY WE KNOW THAT THE UT STADIUM DRIVES A LOT OF OUR FALL. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK WE'RE REALLY GIFTED WITH IS, YEAH. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT OUR TOURISM MINISTRY, WE'RE NOT, SOME CITIES ARE JUST LIKE, OH, THEY, THEY'RE THEME PARKS, SO YOU'RE ORLANDO, WHATEVER, AND THAT ORLANDO'S A GREAT PLACE. RIGHT? RIGHT. BUT IT'S, BUT I, BUT I'M SAYING WE HAVE, YES, WE HAVE CULINARY, WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT WANT TO COME FROM NATURE. WE HAVE OBVIOUSLY THE MUSIC SCENE, BUT WE HAVE, WE HAVE ALL THE CORPORATIONS HERE AND ALL THE BUSINESS TRAVEL THAT TAKES PLACE HERE. AND WE HAVE CORPORATE MEETINGS THAT TAKE PLACE HERE. WE HAVE THE STATE CAPITAL AND THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS. WE HAVE ALL THESE TOURISM GENERATORS THAT MOST COMMUNITIES DON'T HAVE, YOU KNOW, AND THEN ALL THE FESTIVALS THAT WE HAVE ON TOP OF IT. AND SO WE PUT OUR CALENDAR TOGETHER. WE LOVE SEEING THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE FIVE UT HOME GAMES, AND THEN WE HAVE ACL AND ACL AND FORMULA ONE AND, AND THE FILM FESTIVAL AND ALL THESE THINGS THAT ARE CRAMMED INTO OUR FALL. AND THAT HELPS ALL OF THOSE WEEKENDS. AND THAT'S GREAT. UM, YOU KNOW, THIS YEAR WE'RE GONNA HAVE OLD OLE MISS, UH, UH, OVER, UH, FORMULA ONE. I KIND OF WISH WE HAD 'EM ON SEVERAL WEEKENDS BECAUSE THEY WON'T DO REALLY WELL, BUT THAT'S, THAT THAT'LL MAKE FOR AN AMAZING WEEKEND, RIGHT? YEAH. AND, AND, AND WE HAVE A BASEBALL TEAM THAT'S PLAYING IN THE WORLD SERIES. AND, UH, I ACTUALLY GO TO GAMES AND HAVE TALKED WITH PEOPLE THAT HAVE MOVED NEAR THE STADIUM TO BE NEAR THE STADIUM, SO, YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE, GREAT QUESTION. AND IF YOU WANT TO COME BY, I'D LOVE THAT, YOU KNOW? YEAH. CHRISTINE KRAMER ON MY TEAM IS OUR RESEARCH ANALYST, SO SHE CAN REALLY GET SOME DATA FOR YOU. OKAY, THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, IF NOT, THEN I'M GONNA SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS, BECAUSE YOU GUYS ARE DOING A GREAT JOB AND YOU GUYS ARE ABSOLUTELY INTEGRAL TO DOWNTOWN, SO WE APPRECIATE IT. SORRY, SORRY YOU WERE STUCK WITH ME. THE C THE C TEAM, BUT SHE WAS RIGHT. I'M OUR A AND B PLAYER ARE EVEN BETTER, SO, EXACTLY. APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ALRIGHT. AND NOW WE HAVE OUR FINAL PRESENTATION [5. Presentation regarding the 2026 State of Downtown Report. Presentation by Davon Barbour, President & CEO, Downtown Austin Alliance. ] OF THE DAY, UM, DAVEON BARBOUR FOR THE STATE OF DOWNTOWN REPORT. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS, UH, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC DAVEON BARBOUR PRESIDENT, CEO OF THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE. UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADDRESS YOU THIS EVENING. I KNOW THE LAST TIME I WAS BEFORE YOU WAS BACK IN FEBRUARY, UM, I JUST WRAPPED UP MY FIRST YEAR HERE IN AUSTIN. UH, SINCE THAT TIME, WE'VE, UM, HAD A NUMBER OF JUST, UH, SIGNIFICANT ORGANIZATIONAL MILESTONES. FIRST OF ALL, UH, CITY COUNCIL APPROVED OUR OPERATING, OUR, OUR ASSESSMENT RATE FOR FY 27 28. UH, CITY COUNCIL ALSO PASSED OUR SERVICE AND ASSESSMENT PLAN FOR THE, UH, FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR. WE, UH, CONVENED OUR ANNUAL MEETING FOR PROPERTY OWNERS OUTLINING ALL THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE PAST YEAR, AND WE ALSO CONVENED THE FUTURE OF DOWNTOWN EVENT. UM, THIS IS OUR BIG CELEBRATION OF ALL THINGS IN DOWNTOWN WHERE WE HIGHLIGHT, YOU KNOW, MANY OF THE PLAYERS WHO ARE MOVING DOWNTOWN FORWARD AND ALSO SOME OF THE OPPORTUNITIES MOVING FORWARD. I KNOW A NUMBER OF YOU ATTENDED THE EVENT, IT WAS AT THE PARAMOUNT THEATER. UM, AND SO WE REALLY THANK YOU FOR THAT. UH, DURING THAT TIME, WE ALSO RELEASE WHAT IS OUR ANNUAL SIGNATURE PUBLICATION, OUR STATE OF DOWNTOWN REPORT. AND THIS IS REALLY A HIGHLIGHT OF MARKET CONDITIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN, SOME OF THE KEY INITIATIVES. AND SO WHAT I'D LIKE TO DO FOR YOU TODAY IS PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF SOME OF THE MARKET HIGHLIGHTS, UH, BEFORE YOU SEAT SEATED. BEFORE YOU ARE IS A HARD COPY OF THE STATE OF DOWNTOWN REPORT, UH, FOR MY MEMBERS, EXCUSE ME, FOR MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. THE REPORT IS AVAILABLE ONLINE@DOWNTOWNAUSTIN.COM. UM, ALONG WITH MANY OF OUR RESEARCH REPORTS, WE'RE DATA GEEKS. WE LOVE DATA. UM, IT DRIVES MANY OF OUR POLICIES, OUR PROGRAMS, OUR MARKETING, AND OUR ADVOCACY. SO I ENCOURAGE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO TAKE A LOOK. AND SO WITH THAT, I WILL DIVE INTO, UH, THE PRESENTATION. OKAY. SO THE STATE OF DOWNTOWN, AS I MENTIONED, IS OUR SIGNATURE, UH, SIGNATURE, UH, REPORT. JUST BY WAY OF CONTEXT, DOWNTOWN IS A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTOR TO THE ECONOMIC BASE AND JUST PROVIDE SIGNIFICANT REGIONAL IMPORTANCE. UH, DOWNTOWN AUSTIN REPRESENTS JUST 0.5% OF THE CITY'S LANDMASS, BUT YET WE GENERATE 11% IN TAXABLE VALUE. THAT'S IMPORTANT WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE SERVICES, THE, UM, THE, THE SUPPORT. MANY OF OUR RESIDENTS, OUR BUSINESSES FROM POLICE, FROM FIRE, UH, JUST GENERAL CITY SERVICES. AND SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE A STRONG, UH, URBAN CORE. UM, WE RECENTLY COMMISSIONED A VALUE [02:00:01] OF DOWNTOWN STUDY AND SAW THAT OVER A 10 YEAR PERIOD, YOU ARE ALL FAMILIAR WITH THE INCREDIBLE TRANSFORMATION THAT'S TAKING PLACE, NOT ONLY WITHIN THE CITY, BUT ALSO WITHIN DOWNTOWN. AND SO, OVER A 10 YEAR PERIOD, WE SAW A 300% INCREASE IN THE TAXABLE VALUE IN DOWNTOWN, UH, $21 BILLION. I THINK ROUGHLY SPEAKING, IF IN, IN JUST SIMPLISTIC TERMS, THAT NUMBER ESSENTIALLY EQUATES TO, YOU KNOW, PROVIDING, COVERING THE BUDGET FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT OR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT, OR PERMITTING SERVICES. AGAIN, JUST OVERLY SIMPLISTIC, BUT REALLY TO, UH, POINT OUT THAT AS A FIGURE TO REALLY, UH, SIGNIFY THE IMPORTANCE OF DOWNTOWN AS AN ECONOMIC CONTRIBUTOR TO THE CITY'S FINANCES. NOW, YEAH. IN THE PAST YEAR, UM, AS YOU ALL KNOW, DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY HAS SLOWED, BUT THIS WAS A GOOD YEAR. AS THE MARKET CONTINUES TO, UH, RECALIBRATE THIS PAST YEAR, EIGHT YEAR, UH, EXCUSE ME, EIGHT PROJECTS WERE DELIVERED TO THE MARKET, UH, THAT ACCOUNTS FOR 3.94 MILLION SQUARE FEET OF SPACE. AND SO YOU'VE PROBABLY SEEN THIS GRAPHIC, UM, BEFORE THIS IS UPDATED TO REFLECT THAT NEW DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY. THE GRAY BUILDINGS ARE THOSE THAT ARE RECENTLY COMPLETED. SOME THAT STAND OUT WOULD BE THE REPUBLIC NEW OFFICE TOWER, UH, A TX TOWER RESIDENTIAL TOWER, UH, THE MODERN ALSO, UH, EXCUSE ME, MODERNA RESIDENTIAL TOWER, UH, JUST TO NAME A FEW. AND ALSO FOUR 15 COLORADO ON THE RESIDENTIAL SIDE. UM, THE PROJECTS IN, IN RED ARE THOSE UNDER CONSTRUCTION. AND THE GREEN, UH, PROJECTS ARE THOSE THAT ARE IN THE PLANNING STAGES. NOW, SOMETIMES I HEAR, AND I SEE HEADLINES THAT SAYING, YOU KNOW, UH, DOWNTOWN IS SLOWING DOWN OR DEVELOPMENT, UM, IS, IS SCREECHING TO A HALT. YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT THE CASE AT ALL. YOU KNOW, MANY, THERE ARE MANY DEVELOPERS WHO ARE STILL PLOTTING, UH, DEVELOPMENT WITHIN DOWNTOWN. THERE'S ABOUT 9 MILLION SQUARE FEET OF SPACE IN THE DEVELOPMENT PIPELINE. I MEET REGULARLY WITH INVESTORS WHO ARE EXCITED ABOUT DOWNTOWN, WHO ARE EXCITED ABOUT THE AUSTIN MARKET. UM, AS WE ALL KNOW, REAL ESTATE IS CYCLICAL. UH, MANY INVESTORS ARE SIMPLY WAITING FOR MORE FAVORABLE MARKET CONDITIONS FOR INTEREST RATES TO LOWER, FOR CONSTRUCTION COSTS TO LOWER. BUT THE MARKET FUNDAMENTALS ARE INCREDIBLY STRONG IN THIS COMMUNITY. UM, I'VE WORKED ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND COMMUNITIES. UM, THEY, THEY CANDIDLY, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, SUFFER FROM URBAN DISINVESTMENT. AUSTIN IS NOT ONE OF THOSE COMMUNITIES. WE SHOULD BE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE INFRASTRUCTURE, THE, THE ECONOMY THAT'S HERE AND THE, AND QUITE FRANKLY, THE GREAT QUALITY OF LIFE, UM, THAT'S OFFERED IN THIS COMMUNITY. UH, AND, AND WHILE REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY IS SLOWING DOWN, CERTAINLY PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE IS RAMPING UP IN A VERY, VERY BIG WAY. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF TRANSFORMATIVE PROG, UM, TRANSFORMATIVE PUBLIC INFRA INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS THAT WILL REALLY SHAPE THE WAY DOWNTOWN MOVES AND OPERATES IN THE FUTURE. AND ALSO, IN TERMS OF CONNECTIVITY TO THE OVERALL COMMUNITY, UM, WE KNOW AUSTIN LIGHT RAIL WILL BE UNDER BREAKING GROUND NEXT YEAR. THERE WILL BE FOUR STATIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN. WE ARE LASER FOCUSED, THINKING ABOUT STATION DESIGN, MAKING SURE THAT WE CREATE, WORKING WITH AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP TO CREATE REALLY EXCITING STATIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN. OUR PARTNERS AT WATERLOO GREENWAY OPEN, CELEBRATE IT, THE OPENING OF THE CONFLUENCE. UH, LAST WEEK, IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT, I ENCOURAGE YOU TO PLEASE GET OUT THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE TO SEE THIS INCREDIBLE URBAN GREENWAY RIGHT IN THE HEART OF OUR DOWNTOWN. AND SO I WANNA GIVE A BIG SHOUT OUT TO DR. COLLETTE PIERCE BURNETT AND HER TEAM, UH, AT THE GREENWAY TXDOT, UM, CERTAINLY WITH I 35 EXPANSION, UH, WILL, UM, BE DISRUPTING ACTIVITY WITHIN DOWNTOWN. THE CONVENTION CENTER IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION, YOU HEARD, UM, PREVIOUSLY FROM MY COLLEAGUE TOM NUNAN, UH, AT THE CON, UH, AT VISIT AUSTIN ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CONVENTION CENTER. SO THERE'S A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY UNDERWAY. UM, THIS IS IMPORTANT AGAIN, FOR, UM, IMPROVING CONNECTIVITY NOT ONLY WITHIN DOWNTOWN, BUT ALSO TO AND FROM DOWNTOWN, AND SUPPORTING GROWTH WITHIN DOWNTOWN. AND SO, I'LL GET INTO THIS A LITTLE BIT LATER IN THE PRESENTATION, BUT WE THINK ABOUT ON A DAILY BASIS, THE IMPORTANCE OF ENSURING ACCESSIBILITY TO DOWNTOWN THROUGHOUT THIS PERIOD. UM, THIS IS A PERIOD OF, OF, OF SIGNIFICANT DIS WHAT WILL BE, UM, DISRUPTION IF WE DO NOT CAREFULLY MANAGE THESE PROJECTS. AND SO WORKING CLOSELY WITH, UH, TPW, WITH TXDOT A TP, ENSURING THAT WE ARE MINIMIZING DISRUPTION, DENYING EVERY WOULDBE VISITOR, EVERY POTENTIAL RESIDENT, UM, EVERY POTENTIAL COMPANY, THE OPPORTUNITY TO SAY, YOU KNOW WHAT? I WANNA STAY AWAY. WE'RE GONNA STAY AWAY FROM DOWNTOWN. THERE'S JUST TOO MUCH ACTIVITY AND DISRUPTION GOING ON. AND SO, UM, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE, AND I'LL GO INTO A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL ABOUT THAT LATER. UH, DSI, DOWNTOWN AUSTIN STRATEGIC INITIATIVE. UH, I KNOW EARLIER YOU HEARD DURING THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD, YOU HEARD FROM JONATHAN STONE, UH, THE NEW DIRECTOR, UH, STRATEGIC OFFICER. WE ARE SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS INITIATIVE, AND WE REALLY THANK, UH, MAYOR WATSON AND, UH, CITY MANAGER TC WATSON FOR THEIR LEADERSHIP AND BRINGING THIS, UM, EFFORT FORWARD. THIS WAS, HAS BEEN A LONG TIME IN THE MAKING, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, THIS OFFICE REALLY PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY [02:05:01] TO, UH, BRING A MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO ADVANCING SOME OF THE KEY INITIATIVES WITH, TO, UH, FORWARD WITHIN DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'RE DELIGHTED TO WORK WITH JONATHAN, UM, IN THIS EFFORT. SO I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, JUST SOME OF THE MARKET, UH, CONDITIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN, CERTAINLY DOWNTOWN AUSTIN, LIKE OTHER DOWNTOWN, UH, CENTERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. DOWNTOWN LIVING IS IN, YOU KNOW, DOWNTOWN AFFORDS OFFERS MANY, THE, THE QUALITIES, THE CONVENIENCE, LEAVING THE CAR BEHIND. I'M A DOWNTOWN RESIDENT. I LOVE WALKING, YOU KNOW, TO RESTAURANTS, WALKING TO DIFFERENT BARS, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF ENTERTAINMENT. UM, WE CONTINUE TO SEE THAT, UH, PLAY OUT IN TERMS OF LEASING ACTIVITY AS WELL, YOU KNOW, DOWNTOWN, UM, ACTIVITY, UH, RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AND LEASING ACTIVITY REMAINS STRONG. WE SEE A NUMBER OF DEVELOPERS OFFERING CONCESSIONS, UH, UH, UH, FOR LEASING WITHIN DOWNTOWN. AS I NOTED BEFORE, SEVERAL DEVELOPMENTS, FOUR 15 COLORADO, A TX TOWER, EO MODERNA ARE REALLY OFFERING AMENITIES, UM, TO THAT REALLY SUPPORT THE URBAN LIFESTYLE. AND SO, UM, WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS. I WILL SAY, UM, ONE OF THE TACTICS THAT WE ORGANIZE AS, AS AN, THAT WE'RE DEPLOYING AS AN ORGANIZATION, WE CREATED WHAT ARE CALLED AFFINITY GROUPS. AND SO WE MEET REGULARLY WITH KEY CONSTITUENCIES WITHIN DOWNTOWN RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY MANAGERS, OFFICE PROPERTY MANAGERS, COMMERCIAL LEASING REPRESENTATIVES, RETAILERS, UNDERSTANDING, UM, WHAT SOME OF THE PAIN POINTS ARE, REFLECTING ON MARKET CONDITIONS SO THAT WE CAN ADJUST OUR MARKETING AND ALSO DEPLOY PROGRAMS TO ASSIST THEM ACCORDINGLY. AND SO, ONE OF THE GROUPS THAT WE DO MEET WITH REGULARLY ARE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY MANAGERS, THE OFFICE MARKET. UM, CERTAINLY THIS IS AN AREA THAT WE'RE FOCUSED ON, UM, REALLY ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN CONTINUES TO REMAIN A STRONG, VIABLE ECONOMIC CENTER. UM, WE'VE BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, DR. ERIC JOHNSON, REALLY ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN REMAINS THE HEARTBEAT OF COMMERCE. UM, FOR, FOR OUR COMMUNITY. UM, CERTAINLY WE THINK A LOT ABOUT COMMERCIAL VACANCY. UH, THE COMMERCIAL VACANCY RATE RIGHT NOW IN DOWNTOWN IS ABOUT 22%. WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT NUMBER COME DOWN. I THINK WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR POSITION COMPARING IT TO OTHER MARKETS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, I THINK WE'RE IN A FAR BETTER POSITION. YOU KNOW, HAVING WORKED IN OTHER MARKETS WITH OLDER BUILDING STOCK, YOU'RE SEEING MANY OF THOSE COMMUNITIES, UM, FOCUS ON CONVERTING, UM, OFFICE SPACE TO RESIDENTIAL. WE'RE FORTUNATE. A LOT OF OUR PRODUCT IS NEWER. AND I THINK, AGAIN, FROM A, UM, FROM A, UH, FROM A GENERAL INFRASTRUCTURE STANDPOINT, THE INDUSTRY'S FINANCIAL SERVICES TECHNOLOGY WILL CONTINUE TO POWER AND FUEL WHAT HAPPENS IN AUSTIN. YOU PROBABLY HEARD ABOUT A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT LAST WEEK, UM, APOLLO, UH, CAPITAL, YEAH. UH, OUT OF NEW YORK. LOOKING AT, UM, LOOKING AT, UH, AUSTIN, WE THINK THAT'S AN INCREDIBLE SIGNIFICANT, YOU KNOW, SIGNIFICANT SIGN OF CONFIDENCE FOR THE AUSTIN MARKET AND CAN PROVIDE, UM, SIGNIFICANT RIPPLE EFFECTS. AND SO WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE TO DOUBLE DOWN ON, UH, WORKING IN OUR PARTNERSHIPS WITH OPPORTUNITY. AUSTIN REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AGENCY WITH THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, UH, AND ALSO WITH THE CITY. AGAIN, REMOVING SOME OF THOSE BARRIERS, UH, TO, UH, TO BRINGING BUSINESS WITHIN DOWNTOWN, THE HOTEL MARKET. UM, CAN'T SPEAK ENOUGH ABOUT THIS. YOU HEARD, UH, FROM MY COLLEAGUE AGAIN, TOM NEWTON, TALKING ABOUT THE IMPACT OF, OF TOURISM ON THE MAR ON THE HOTEL MARKET. I CANNOT UNDERSCORE THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CONVENTION CENTER TO HOTEL ACTIVITY, AND ALSO TO LEAD TO ENTERTAINMENT, TO DINING, UH, AND SHOPPING WITHIN DOWNTOWN. IT ABSOLUTELY IS A RIPPLE EFFECT. UM, WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH OUR HOTELIERS. I SERVE ON THE BOARD OF THE HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, AS WELL AS VISIT AUSTIN. WE DO HEAR THE PAIN POINTS. WE KNOW THAT ACTIVITY HAS BEEN DOWN, AND SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING AS AN ORGANIZATION TO PARTNERING WITH VISIT AUSTIN WITH OUR HOTELIERS, DEVELOPING, YOU KNOW, MARKETING CAMPAIGNS TO ENCOURAGE STAYCATIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN. THAT'S SOMETHING I THINK WE TAKE FOR GR THAT WE CAN TAKE FOR GRANTED, UM, AS A COMMUNITY, UM, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE INCONVENIENCE THAT A VISITOR MAY PROVIDE IN OUR COMMUNITY. BUT, UM, THERE'S A RIPPLE EFFECT. YOU KNOW, MANY OF THE FR OR SOME OF OUR FRIENDS, OUR FAMILY, UM, OUR NEIGHBORS ARE BARTENDERS, THEY'RE SERVERS IN RESTAURANTS, THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING IN HOTELS. AND SO WHATEVER WE CAN DO, YOU KNOW, I KNOW A LOT, MANY OF US FLEE AUSTIN DURING THE HOT SUMMER MONTHS. AND SO WORKING, UM, WITH MANY OF OUR HOTELS TO PACKAGE DEALS, TO ENCOURAGE STAYCATION, UH, SUPPORTING, UH, MANY OF OUR LOCAL, UH, HOTELS, REALLY GOES A LONG WAY. UM, I KNOW I PREVIOUSLY SHARED WITH YOU BACK IN FEBRUARY THAT I'VE BEEN TRAVELING WITH VISIT AUSTIN, MEETING WITH CONVENTION PLANNERS CONSULTANTS, AGAIN, REAFFIRMING THE IMPORTANCE OF DOWNTOWN, UM, AND OUR READINESS TO SUPPORT THOSE CONVENTIONS. WHILE THE CONVENTION CENTER IS UNDER CONSTRUCTION, WE'VE GOT THREE HOTELS THAT WILL BE OPENING THIS YEAR, UH, ONE HOTEL TRUE BY HILTON AND THE HOTEL TRINITY. UH, ON THE RETAIL SIDE, WE'RE CONTINUING TO FOCUS ON RETAIL. WHEN I THINK, WHEN, AS AN ORGANIZATION, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE CONTINUED EVOLUTION OF DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, RETAIL IS CERTAINLY AN IMPORTANT AMENITY TO SUPPORT OUR RESIDENTS, [02:10:01] OUR WORKERS, OUR VISITORS. UM, WE RECENTLY COMPLETED A DOWNTOWN USER SURVEY, AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO BRINGING THOSE RESULTS BACK, UH, TO THE COMMISSION. WE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR FROM SOME DOWN FROM, UH, DOWNTOWN RESIDENTS ABOUT THEIR INTEREST IN A FULL SERVICE GROCERY. WE THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT AMENITY TO SUPPORT, UM, INCREASED LIVING WITHIN DOWNTOWN. WE'VE ALSO HEARD FROM DOWNTOWN WORKERS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF AFFORDABLE FOOD OPTIONS, OF DINING OPTIONS. AND SO REMOVING SOME OF THOSE BARRIERS THAT INFLUENCES OUR RECRUITMENT EFFORTS. UM, IN FACT, RECENTLY WE PARTNERED WITH VISIT AUSTIN, UH, REAL ESTATE COUNCIL OF AUSTIN, UH, AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP, THE CITY OF AUSTIN, AS WELL AS THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE TO EXHIBIT AT A, UH, AT AN EVENT CALLED ICSC LAS VEGAS. AND SO, IF ANY OF YOU ARE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE, ICSC IS THE LARGEST, UH, RETAIL REAL ESTATE TRADE ORGANIZATION IN THE WORLD. AND SO WE WERE THERE EXHIBITING ALONGSIDE MANY OTHER CITIES, OTHER STATES SAYING, BRING YOUR BUSINESS TO AUSTIN. LOOK AT OUR GROWTH. WE'VE GOT RESIDENTS, WE HAVE WORKERS, WE HAVE VISITORS. WE NEED MORE ENTERTAINMENT, DINING, SHOPPING OPTIONS. AGAIN, SAYING THAT WE WANT THESE AMENITIES. WE ARE VIABLE AND STRONG BUSINESS CENTER. AND SO I THINK WE HAD, YOU KNOW, WE MADE SOME GREAT BUSINESS CONTACTS. WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO CONTINUING THAT, BUT GETTING THAT, UH, CELEBRATING THE AUSTIN BRAND, PROMOTING IT, NOT RESTING ON OUR LAURELS IS SO IMPORTANT. UM, YOU KNOW, TOM TALKED ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF VISITOR SPENDING. WE SEE THAT, UH, I WOULD SAY FROM A LEASING STANDPOINT, FOOD AND BEVERAGE CONTINUES TO DRIVE A LOT OF LEASING ACTIVITY WITHIN DOWNTOWN. YEAH. UM, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT SORT OF PACKAGING THAT WITH HOTELS, UM, YOU KNOW, THINKING ABOUT GOING TO, UM, YOU KNOW, TAKING PART IN A COMEDY SHOW OR GOING TO A SHOW AT, AT THE PARAMOUNT THEATER, IT'S THE BEFORE AND THE AFTER EXPERIENCE. YOU KNOW, NOT, NOT NECESSARILY JUST SIMPLY GOING TO THAT, YOU KNOW, EVENT. YOU WANT TO MEET UP WITH YOUR FRIENDS, GRAB A DRINK BEFOREHAND, GRAB DINNER. AND SO THE MORE THAT WE CAN CREATE THOSE OPPORTUNITIES FOR GATHERING, IT REALLY SUPPORTS AND REALLY CREATES THIS VIBRANT DOWNTOWN. WE HAVE BEEN WORKING, UM, VERY CLOSELY WITH, UM, THE AUSTIN, EXCUSE ME, WITH THE AUSTIN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ON RIBBON CUTTINGS. AGAIN, LOTS OF AT GROUND FLOOR RETAIL ACTIVITY. WE THINK THIS IS SO IMPORTANT TO CELEBRATE OUR SMALL BUSINESSES WHO ARE CHOOSING TO INVEST IN DOWNTOWN. EVERY RESIDENT, EVERY BUSINESS, EVERY VISITOR, AS IS A, IS A CONSUMER. CONSUMERS HAVE CHOICES. AND WE HAVE CHOSEN, AGAIN, TO REALLY DOUBLE DOUBT AND WRAP OUR ARMS AROUND OUR BUSINESS, OUR BUSINESSES. UM, THIS IS A PHOTOGRAPH OF JUST ONE OF THE RIBBON CUTTINGS. UM, I CAN TELL YOU WE'VE RECEIVED POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM MANY OF THE BUSINESSES. THEY LOVE THIS. UM, I HAD A CHANCE TO CHECK IN WITH ONE OF THE BUSINESSES, UH, UM, WHERE WE, THAT OPENED THIS PAST YEAR DURING THE CONFLUENCE. THEY WERE PACKED, AND THEY SAID, DAVON, THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE REALLY APPRECIATE WHAT DAA HAS BEEN DOING. THE CHAMBER, WE ARE PROUD OF DOWNTOWN. WE WANT TO, WE WANT TO EXPAND IN DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE THIS EFFORT. AGAIN, I WANNA GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO OUR PARTNERS, UM, AT THE AUSTIN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ON THIS EFFORT. UH, JUST A COUPLE OF OTHER JUST NOTABLE OPENINGS, THE KIMBERLY VAN HORNS, HAKAI HAKASAN. THIS IS, UH, UH, JAPANESE, UH, MARKET ON, ON, ON, UH, CONGRESS AVENUE AND THE 700 BLOCK. UM, GREAT, GREAT SUSHI, JUST LOTS OF PRODUCT OFFERING. VERY COLORFUL. IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN BY, GO, GO CHECK IT OUT. ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO SO. UH, DOWNTOWN'S WORKFORCE. WE ARE THE DOMINANT REGIONAL EMPLOYMENT CENTER. AGAIN, 130,000 WORKERS IN DOWNTOWN REPRESENTING DIVERSE INDUSTRIES, GOVERNMENT, UH, TOURISM, UH, HOSPITALITY, TOURISM, HOSPITALITY, FINANCIAL SERVICES. UM, YOU KNOW, WE ARE THE REGIONAL WORKFORCE. AND AGAIN, MAKING SURE THAT DOWNTOWN IS THE ECONOMIC CENTER IS REALLY IMPORTANT. WE'VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT JUST VISITATION, UM, A LOT OF DOWNTOWNS ARE ACTUALLY STRUGGLING TO GET WORKERS BACK, UM, INTO DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'VE BEEN THROUGH OUR PROGRAMMING THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE CREATE THIS FEAR OF MISSING OUT, CREATE, MAINTAINING THIS EMOTIONAL CONNECTION FOR WORKERS TO BE IN DOWNTOWN. ONE OF THE PROGRAMS THAT WE RECENTLY LAUNCHED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ANTONE'S IS CALLED LIVE FROM DOWNTOWN AUSTIN. THIS IS A FREE CON DAYTIME CONCERT SERIES, UM, THAT'S DEPLOYED IN THE PLAZAS OF OFFICE BUILDINGS IN DOWNTOWN. AND SO IT'S BEEN A GREAT PROTOTYPE. WE'RE LOOKING TO CONTINUE THAT, THIS EFFORT, UH, IN TERMS OF JUST DOWNTOWN VIBRANCY, UM, PROUD TO REPORT THAT WE HAVE, UH, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT FOOT TRAFFIC. UM, WE HAVE RETURNED TO, UH, PRE PANDEMIC LEVELS, 93%. AGAIN, VERY STRONG RATE VIBRANCY. WE SEE THE, THE ACTIVITY WITHIN DOWNTOWN. OUR OFFICE IS LOCATED RIGHT AT THE INTERSECTION AT SIXTH IN CONGRESS ON A DAILY BASIS. YOU CAN SEE THE BUZZ, THE LEVEL OF FOOT TRAFFIC, UM, AT, AT THE INTERSECTION. AND SO, AGAIN, ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN IS VIBRANT IS VITALLY, VITALLY IMPORTANT. ABOUT 56% OF OUR BUDGET GOES TO THE PUBLIC SPACE EXPERIENCE, ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN IS CLEAN, UM, THAT IT'S SAFE, THAT IT'S ATTRACTIVE. THOSE FUNDAMENTALS ARE ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL IF, WHETHER YOU'RE A VISITOR, [02:15:01] UH, WORKER OR RESIDENT, IF YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE THE AREA IS SAFE OR CLEAN OR ATTRACTIVE, YOU MAY NOT WANT TO VISIT. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO SHOP IN DOWNTOWN. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO SUPPORT AN ART GALLERY OR GO TO AN EVENT. AND SO THOSE ARE SO FUNDAMENTAL TO THE VIBRANCY OF DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'RE UNWAVERING ON THAT. UM, ON THAT COMMITMENT, 162,000 VEHICLES TR UH, TRAVERSE DOWNTOWN ON A, A DAILY BASIS. AND AGAIN, AS YOU KNOW, TDOT IS EXPANDING. UH, YOU KNOW, UH, WILL BE LOWERING, UM, I 35. AND SO WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE CITY ON CAP AND STITCH. I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT A LITTLE MORE AS WELL. UM, I CANNOT TALK ABOUT JUST PROGRESS WITHIN DOWNTOWN AND MAIN, OR AT LEAST MAINTAINING OUR MOMENTUM WITHOUT DISCUSSING HOMELESSNESS AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH. I WOULD SAY THIS IS THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE THAT WE HEAR FROM STAKEHOLDERS WITHIN DOWNTOWN. UM, IT WAS THE TOP ISSUE RAISED BY, UM, DOWNTOWN USERS IN OUR DOWNTOWN USER SURVEY, WHETHER YOU'RE A RESIDENT, A WORKER, UM, A UM, VISITOR, UH, WITHIN DOWNTOWN. OVER THE YEARS, WE, AS AN ORGANIZATION, WE HAVE WORKED VERY CLOSELY, UM, WITH A NUMBER OF SOCIAL SERVICES, EXCUSE ME, SOCIAL SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS. UH, WE WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH DAVID GRAY IN THE CITY'S OFFICE OF, OF STRATEGIC HOMELESS SERVICES. UH, AND AS YOU CAN SEE HERE ON THE SCREEN, THIS IS A CHART JUST OUTLINING HOMELESS ACTIVITY, UNSHELTERED ACTIVITY OVER THE YEARS. GENERALLY, WE DO SEE AN INCREASE IN ACTIVITY DURING THE SUMMER MONTHS. UM, WE'VE WORKED TIGHT TIRELESSLY. WE DO A QUARTERLY ACCOUNT WITHIN THE, UM, UH, OVER THE, OVER THE YEARS. THE LAST QUARTERLY COUNT THAT WE DID WAS BACK IN APRIL OF THIS YEAR. AND SO THIS IS A BIG ISSUE FOR US. WE'RE GONNA BE WORKING VERY CLOSELY, UH, WITH MANY OF MANY OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY SERVICE PROVIDERS, AGAIN, ENSURING THAT WE ARE PROVIDING A MUCH NEEDED SUPPORT TO OUR, UM, OUR, OUR, MANY OF OUR VULNERABLE CITIZENS WHO NEED SUPPORT, ACCESS TO SERVICES. BUT AGAIN, FOR DOWNTOWN TO THRIVE, WE KNOW THAT WE, WE CANNOT IGNORE THIS ISSUE, UM, ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN IS VIABLE. SO I WOULD SAY STAY TUNED ON ON MORE, UM, I ACTION ITEMS ON THIS ALERT. I ACTUALLY HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MODERATE A PANEL HOSTED BY OPPORTUNITY AUSTIN ABOUT A WEEK AGO. UM, OUR PANELISTS INCLUDED DR. UH, PAT LEE, CEO OF CENTRAL HEALTH, DAVID GRAY FROM THE CITY, AND ALSO MATT MALIKA, UH, WHO RUNS ECHO, UH, THE CONTINUUM OF CARES SERVICE. SO, AGAIN, LOOKING AT THIS COMPREHENSIVELY, I WOULD SAY THAT, UM, IT WILL REQUIRE THE BUSINESS, COMMUNITY, PHILANTHROPY, UM, AS WELL AS GOVERNMENT TO REALLY COME TOGETHER TO MAKE AN IMPACT IN THIS AREA. UM, ON THE HOSPITALITY FRONT, AGAIN, I TALKED ABOUT 56% OF OUR BUDGET IS DEDICATED TO THE PUBLIC SPACE EXPERIENCE. THESE ARE JUST A FEW STATS. UM, IN THE IMAGE HERE, YOU CAN SEE JUST SOME OF OUR DOWNTOWN AMBASSADORS, THESE MEN AND WOMEN WORK TIRELESSLY TO ENSURE THAT DOWNTOWN IS SAFE, IS WELCOMING. UM, THEY ARE THE BEST MARKETING FOR OUR DOWNTOWN AUSTIN ALLIANCE. UM, I CANNOT GET A CONVEY JUST A NUMBER OF POSITIVE REMARKS WE RECEIVED FROM STAKEHOLDERS ABOUT THEIR WORK. UM, YOU KNOW, I'M PROUD THAT ABOUT 30% OF OUR, OF THIS LATE WORKFORCE ARE FORMERLY INCARCERATED, FORMERLY HOMELESS. WE THINK THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT, AGAIN, TO, UH, WE HAVE A BIG COMMITMENT TO SECOND CHANCE HIRING. WE LEAD WANT, WE LEAD BY EXAMPLE. UM, WE'VE BEEN ENCOURAGING OTHERS WITHIN THE BUS BUSINESS COMMUNITY AS WELL, TO IDENTIFY THOSE LOW, UH, BARRIER EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES TO GET INDIVIDUALS BACK INTO SERVICE. BUT, UM, SAFETY ESCORTS, POWER WASHING, UH, TRASH REMOVAL. ONE INITIATIVE THAT I DO WANT TO POINT OUT THAT WE, UM, UM, LAUNCHED THIS YEAR WAS CALLED OUR RED CARPET SERVICE. AND AS AN ORGANIZATION, WE GET TO BE NIMBLE. WE GET TO BE TACTICAL. UM, YOU KNOW, WORKING WITH MANY OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS, THE, UM, YOU KNOW, THE HOTEL GMS, COMMERCIAL LEASING REPRESENTATIVES, UH, RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES, THEY HAVE THE INTEREST, AGAIN, IN TERMS OF INCREASING FOOT TRAFFIC, INCREASING THE INCREASING OCCUPANCY AND VISITATION. AND SO WHAT WE'VE DONE IS TO UTILIZE OUR AMBASSADORS TO ESSENTIALLY GO OUT FLOOD THE ZONE WHEN THERE'S PROSPECTS IN TOWN, WHEN THERE'S A, MAYBE A CONVENTION THAT'S CONSIDERING AUSTIN, A COMPANY CONSIDERING, UH, COMING INTO DOWNTOWN. YOU KNOW, WHEN WE ALL, UM, HOST AN EVENT WHERE WE'VE GOT COMPANY COMING OVER, YOU KNOW, WE MAKE SURE WE GOT THE, WE HAVE THE HOUSE IN ORDER. NOT THAT DOWNTOWN ISN'T IN ORDER, BUT AGAIN, WE THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND TO SHOW, UM, THOSE THAT WOULD BE RESIDENT OR COMPANY OR CONVENTION, THAT YOU'RE IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT, YOU'RE IN A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT THAT'S GONE. UM, THAT HAS BEEN RECEIVED VERY WELL BY MANY OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS. UM, IN FACT, SINCE LAUNCHING THE PROGRAM OVER THE PAST SIX MONTH MONTHS, WE'VE HAD OVER 125, UM, REQUESTS. UM, AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO SO GREAT, UH, BEAUTIFICATION PROJECTS. UM, AGAIN, JUST BEING VERY TACTICAL AS AN ORGANIZATION. UM, WE HAVE BEEN PAINTING LIGHT POLES WITHIN DOWNTOWN, UM, MULCHING, PLANTERS ALONG BRAZOS, UH, REPAINTING OF THE THIRD STREET BRIDGE. AGAIN, OUR AMBASSADORS ARE GETTING OUT THERE. UM, WE WALK THE [02:20:01] STREETS AS AN ORGANIZATION. WE'RE VERY PEDESTRIAN ORIENTED. UM, WE, WE, THE DETAILS MATTER. YOU KNOW, WE'RE LOOKING, IT, IT'S FUNNY. UM, AS, UH, MANY OF OUR, AS IN OUR INDUSTRY, MANY OF OUR, YOU KNOW, OUR SPOUSES OR FAMILY MEMBERS LAUGH AT US BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, EVEN IF WE'RE ON VACATION OR TRAVELING, WE'RE TAKING PICTURES OF TRASH CANS OR LIGHT POSTS, OR THE WAY ART IS PLACED ON A BUILDING. UM, WE OBSESS WITH THOSE DETAILS. AND BECAUSE WE'RE WALKING THE STREETS EVERY SINGLE DAY FROM THE PEDESTRIAN EXPERIENCE, UM, WE'VE GOT A HEIGHTENED LEVEL OF SENSITIVITY ABOUT THAT. REPUBLIC SQUARE. UM, YOU KNOW, WE DO A LOT IN TERMS OF, UH, UH, ARTS AND ACTIVATION THROUGH OUR, UM, ACTIVE URBANISM PILLOW, UH, PILLOW, UH, PILLOW, EXCUSE ME, NOT PILLOW PILLAR. UM, WE MANAGE AND OPERATE, UH, REPUBLIC SQUARE, DELIVERING LOTS OF PROGRAMMING. YOU'RE PROBABLY FAMILIAR WITH THE WEEKLY FARMER'S MARKET. UM, JUST A NUMBER OF EVENTS THAT OCCUR THERE OF THE PHOTOGRAPH THAT YOU SEE HERE IS OF YOGA THAT TAKES PLACE. UM, I REMEMBER WHEN I MOVED TO AUSTIN LAST YEAR, AND I, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, STEPPED OUT ONTO REPUBLIC SQUARE EARLY JUST, UM, ON THE NIGHT OF YOGA, AND I WAS COMPLETELY BLOWN AWAY TO SEE EVERY INCH OF REPUBLIC SQUARE COVERED WITH A YOGA MAT. UM, AND A, YOU KNOW, A YOGI TAKING PART IN, IN THE FITNESS. THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE WANT TO SEE. THAT'S WHAT DOWNTOWN IS ABOUT. YOU KNOW, PROVIDING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES, THOSE FREE OPPORTUNITIES FOR COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO GATHER, UH, TO TAKE PART IN, IN THE, UH, THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT WITHIN DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE THOUGH THOSE OPPORTUNITIES. UM, WE'VE HAD OVER 270,000 VISITORS, UM, AT REPUBLIC SQUARE, BUT A LOT MORE ATTENTION NEEDS TO GO THERE. WE THINK ABOUT, UM, ADDITIONAL FUNDING SUPPORT FROM, UH, FROM MAINTENANCE AND JUST ONGOING PROGRAMMING. UM, AGAIN, WE TALKED ABOUT THE CONFLUENCE AND THE GREENWAY. SHOUT OUT TO OUR PARTNERS. THIS IS GOING TO BE, THIS IS A SPECTACULAR URBAN GREENWAY. AGAIN, THAT WILL INCREASE, ONLY INCREASE VISITATION WITHIN DOWNTOWN. UH, AND THEN FINALLY, I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT, UM, EACH YEAR AS AN ORGANIZATION, THE DAA BOARD OF DIRECTORS ADOPTS WHAT ARE OUR, UH, SEVEN, EXCUSE ME, WHAT ARE OUR ORGANIZATIONAL PRIORITIES? AND, AND, UM, WITHIN YOUR PACKET, UM, YOU'VE GOT A LITTLE HANDOUT HERE. IF YOU OPEN THE FIRST PAGE, THESE ARE OUR TOP SEVEN ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS FOR THE YEAR. UM, THIS IS ESSENTIALLY YOUR CHEAT SHEET. SO IF SOMEONE SAYS, WHAT IS DAA UP TO, YOU KNOW, THIS YEAR, THIS IS YOUR ROADMAP IN A VERY SUCCINCT, UM, UH, MANNER. AND FOR MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, YOU CAN ALSO FIND THIS INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE. THESE ITEMS ARE NOT IN ANY PARTICULAR ORDER, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ADDRESSING BEHAVIORAL, UH, BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND HOMELESSNESS. THAT IS THE ABSOLUTE TOP PRIORITY THAT WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS. CONSTRUCTION MITIGATION, ENSURING THAT DOWNTOWN REMAINS ACCESSIBLE. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE A SINGLE RESIDENT, A SINGLE COMMERCIAL TENANT, A SINGLE MEETING OR CONVENTION DURING THIS TIME OF SIGNIFICANT CONSTRUCTION, PARTICULARLY AS SUBURBAN DEVELOPMENT AND COMPETITION IS VERY STIFF RIGHT NOW. WE HAVE GOT TO ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET IN TERMS OF, UM, YOU KNOW, CUSTOMER SERVICE, SAFETY, ALL OF THE ABOVE, MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE CAN GET TO AND FROM DOWNTOWN, AND FOR THOSE USING DOWNTOWN WHO LIVE DOWNTOWN, TO BE ABLE TO TRAVER TRAVERSE DOWNTOWN ON AN ONGOING BASIS. UH, EAST SIXTH STREET EVOLUTION. I AM REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS. UM, YOU KNOW, I DO A LOT OF RETAIL WORK. MANY I PRESENTED TO YOU BEFORE, AND WE TALKED ABOUT A LOT OF THE WORK THAT BEGAN AS A PUBLIC SAFETY INITIATIVE ON EAST SIXTH STREET HAS REALLY EVOLVED INTO A FULL-BLOWN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY, TRYING TO CREATE THIS 18 HOUR VIBRANT DISTRICT, ADDITIONAL ENTERTAINMENT DINING. UH, WE'VE BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH TPW ON NEW ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS ALONGSIDE, UH, THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IN TERMS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CENTRAL CITY PLAN, AND ALSO WITH PRIVATE SECTOR, UM, WITH DEVELOPER AND OWNERS LIKE STREAM REALTY. AND SO, STAY TUNED. I WANT YOU TO, I AM EXCITED ABOUT, UH, YOU KNOW, EAST SIXTH STREET AS AN ORGANIZATION. AGAIN, WE'VE GOTTEN OUT THERE. WE HAVE WALKED THE STREET. WE'VE DEVELOPED A TOOLKIT FOR PROPERTY OWNERS ASSISTING THEM, UH, TO MAKE, UH, IMPROVEMENTS. WE LAUNCHED A PILOT FACADE IMPROVEMENT GRANT PROGRAM. WE HAVE FIVE BUSINESSES RIGHT NOW THAT ARE MAKING IMPROVEMENTS TO THEIR PROPERTIES. WE'RE BIG BELIEVERS IN THE BROKEN WINDOWS THEORY. IF AN AREA LOOKS UNATTRACTIVE, IF IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S, UH, IF THERE'S DISINVESTMENT, IT MAY, IT, IT'S LIKELY TO CAUSE UNWARRANTED BEHAVIORS. AND SO, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE IMPROVING SIGNAGE, THAT WE'RE PRESSURE WASHING, THAT WE'RE GIVING A FRESH COAT OF PAINT. IT'S SO IMPORTANT. WE THINK ABOUT EAST SIXTH STREET, UM, E UH, EVOLUTION AS A COMPANION PROJECT TO THE CONVENTION CENTER. YOU KNOW, WHEN THE CONVENTION CENTER OPENS, WE WANT PEOPLE TO ALSO SAY, WOW, WHAT HAS, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S HAPPENING IN AUSTIN? LOOK AT THIS INCREDIBLE TRANSFORMATION ON EAST SIXTH STREET. UH, SO [02:25:01] STAY TUNED. ENHANCED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. WE HAVE BEEN WORKING VERY CLOSELY, AGAIN WITH DR. JOHNSON, VERY GRATEFUL FOR HIS LEADERSHIP. UM, UH, THE COLLABORATION WITH OPPORTUNITY AUSTIN, THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE RICA, AGAIN, MAKING SURE THAT DOWNTOWN IS VIBRANT, NOT ONLY FOR LARGE BUSINESSES, BUT ALSO FOR SMALL BUSINESSES AS WELL. UM, JUST FROM A VERY, YOU KNOW, GRANULAR STANDPOINT, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT NEW RETAIL OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN DOWNTOWN, YOU KNOW, WE WANT DOWNTOWN TO BE FULL OF LOCAL AUSTIN BUSINESSES WHERE WE'VE GOT UNIQUE OFFERINGS, UH, REMOVING THOSE BARRIERS, ADDRESSING THE REGULATORY PROCESS, THE PERMITTING STANDPOINT. UH, ARE THERE, IS THERE FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE THAT WE CAN PROVIDE TO THEM? UM, ONE EXAMPLE OF THAT WOULD BE, UH, CURRENTLY THROUGH DAA, WE LAUNCHED A POLY CONSTRUCTION MITIGATION PROGRAM. THAT'S AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. IT'S ALSO, I WOULD SAY, AN INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM. AGAIN, PROVIDING FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO MITIGATE DISRUPTION TO BUSINESSES, UM, SO THAT WE MAINTAIN OUR SMALL BUSINESS SOCK WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. ONE OF OUR GRANTEES, I, I, I LOVE USING THIS STORY, CENTRAL CITY BREWING, WHICH IS ADJACENT, UH, TO THE CONVENTION CENTER CONSTRUCTION. THEY'RE USING GRANT, SOME OF OUR GRANT FUNDING TO, UH, PURCHASE NEW COFFEE, UH, EQUIPMENT SO THAT THEY CAN EXPAND THEIR HOURS, SERVE COFFEE, UM, TO OFFSET SOME OF THE BUSINESS THAT THEY WOULD BE LOSING. ANOTHER BUSINESS, UM, IS UTILIZING OUR FUNDING, UH, TO HIRE A SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER TO PURCHASE SIGN IT. IT'S THESE LITTLE MOMENTS, UM, AND JUST THESE SMALL DOLLARS THAT ARE VERY TACTICAL, BUT PROVIDE SHOW LOVE AND SUPPORT FOR OUR SMALL BUSINESSES FROM A RETENTION STANDPOINT, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, PRESERVING AUSTIN BUSINESSES, ENSURING THAT WE HAVE SMALL BUSINESSES WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY AS WELL. UM, FUTURE PROOFING I 35, YOU'RE PROBABLY AWARE AND HEARD A LOT OF THE COUNCIL DISCUSSION. UH, WE ARE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH THE CITY, WITH TPW, WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ON, UH, DEVELOPING AT LEAST A GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE AS WELL AS FUNDING PLAN FOR, UM, WE BELIEVE WHAT WE BELIEVE IS THE FIRST VIABLE CAP. AND THAT'S FOR, UH, FROM CESAR CHAVEZ TO, UH, FOURTH STREET. UH, SO STAY TUNED ON THAT FRONT. UM, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. THE CENTRAL CITY PLAN UPDATE. I KNOW YOU HEARD AN APPLY, UH, UPDATE FROM THE CITY PLANNING STAFF. I CANNOT STRESS THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT PLAN. I WANT, WE DAA, WE WANT TO THINK BIG. YOU KNOW, WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THE VISION OF DOWNTOWN, IT'S A PLACE THAT OFFERS MIXED INCOME HOUSING, THAT'S OFFERING VIBRANT RETAIL. THAT'S, UH, UM, THAT'S CREATING A, UH, SPECTACULAR, UH, UH, BUSINESS DESTINATION CREATING JOBS. WE NEED TO BE BOLD IN OUR VISION AND ENSURING THAT THE PLAN ALSO PROVIDES THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK TO ACHIEVE THAT OUTCOME. AND SO WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THAT. AND FINALLY, LIGHT RAIL DESIGN. UM, I, I WANT TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO A TP AND OUR PARTNERSHIP THERE. AGAIN, WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH THEM ON STATION DESIGN. AS I SAID TO YOU BEFORE, WE THINK THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE REALLY COOL STATIONS WITHIN DOWNTOWN INCORPORATING, YOU KNOW, ART U UTILIZING, UH, LOCAL AUSTIN ARTISTS FROM A PROGRAMMING STANDPOINT. UM, LET'S KNOCK IT OUT OF THE PARK AGAIN, OUT OF THE PARK, AND AGAIN, CREATE THIS, UH, DYNAMIC DOWNTOWN. SO I'VE COVERED A A LOT THERE. UM, YOU HAVE A COPY OF THE FULL STATE OF DOWNTOWN REPORT, BUT HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UH, THAT YOU MAY HAVE. UH, I HAVE A, A COUPLE THINGS. COMMISSIONER . UM, FIRST, I, I, I WANT TO COMMEND, ALWAYS DO, AND I HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY. THE AMBASSADOR PROGRAM IS REMARKABLE. UH, YOU KNOW, I LIVE DOWNTOWN, UH, I'M A, I LIVE ASR 99% OF THE TIME. AND IT, IT JUST, IT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE. AND I, I THANK YOU FOR EXPANDING THE PROGRAM AND, YOU KNOW, UM, RECOGNIZING, UH, ANNUALLY, YOU KNOW, ONE OF YOUR AMBASSADORS OF THE YEAR, YOU KNOW, YOU MIGHT EVEN CONSIDER DOING A MONTHLY RECOGNITION. YOU KNOW, I, I THINK THEY'RE JUST REMARKABLE, UM, STEWARDS OF DOWNTOWN AND JUST THEIR PRESENCE MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'LL BE SURE TO CONVEY THAT AS WELL. OH, IT'S JUST REMARKABLE. BUT, YOU KNOW, IN OUR BUILDING, WESTGATE TOWER, UM, OUR PRESIDENT OF OUR BOARD, UM, YOU KNOW, IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, UM, DID A, A REACH OUT, UM, UH, RECOGNIZING, UM, OUR THANKS BY, UM, I THINK IT WAS, HE WANTED TO GIVE A RECEPTION, AND IT WAS NOT LOGISTICALLY POSSIBLE. SO I THINK HE PROVIDED SEVERAL HUNDRED DOLLARS AND, UM, LIKE A GIFT CARD TO, FROM ROYAL BLUE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. AND, AND SO THAT RECOGNIZED ONE OF YOUR DOWNTOWN BUSINESSES AS WELL. BUT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN, YOU KNOW, EXPANSION OF YOUR BOUNDARIES. UM, WHERE ARE YOU EXACTLY WITH THAT, UM, WITH THIS EXPANSION AND NO, THANK YOU. THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. UH, RECENTLY CITY COUNCIL APPROVED THE EXPANSION OF THE PIT 360 CONDOMINIUMS, UM, OPTED TO JOIN [02:30:01] THE PIT. AND SO THAT'S BEEN, BEEN RATIFIED. I DO, UM, I WOULD SAY THAT WE ARE RECEIVING SOME INQUIRIES ABOUT ADDITIONAL EXPANSION. WE, UM, JUST AS A REMINDER, DA IS FUNDED THROUGH A VOLUNTARY ASSESSMENT. SO IT'S THE PROPERTY OWNERS THAT SAY, YES, WE, WE WOULD LIKE THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, ASSESSMENT. I THINK AS DOWNTOWN CONTINUES TO EVOLVE, WHEN I THINK ABOUT, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, THE RAINY STREET DISTRICT WITH INCREASED RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT THAT'S TAKING PLACE THERE, I THINK THERE MAY BE SOME OPPORTUNITIES TO MOVE WEST WESTWARD AS WELL. THE GOOD THING IS, I THINK, UM, I SHOULD SAY, I THINK, BUT, UM, WHAT I HEAR FROM SO MANY CONSTITUENTS IS THEY ACKNOWLEDGE THE SERVICES THAT DAA PROVIDES AND WOULD LIKE TO BENEFIT FROM IT. ABSOLUTELY. MR. CAR, THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR. UH, I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT DAA HAS DONE WITH THE CITY AT REPUBLIC SQUARE. AND, AND I'M SEEING NOW, YOU KNOW, BRUSH SQUARES GETTING SOME LOVE, AND, AND SO I'M REALLY INTERESTED IF THERE'S BEEN ANY DISCUSSIONS WITH, WITH DAA, WITH THE CITY ABOUT, ABOUT DA HELPING TO PROGRAM AND ACTIVATE WOOLRIDGE SQUARE, BECAUSE IT IS VERY UNDERUTILIZED, AND ESPECIALLY THINKING ABOUT HOW A LIGHT RAIL STOP IS GONNA GO THERE. UH, THERE'S A LOT OF POTENTIAL FOR THAT SPACE. SO I'M WONDERING IF ANY OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS HAVE HAPPENED. UH, WE HAVEN'T HAD DIRECT DISCUSSIONS, BUT I DO THINK THERE ARE SOME OPPORTUNITIES, UH, MOVING FORWARD TO, FOR DISCUSSION. I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY, UH, TO ATTEND, UH, THE STATE OF THE COUNTY ADDRESS. UH, AND DURING THAT TIME, JUDGE ANDREW BROWN EXPRESSED HIS DESIRE TO SEE WORK ALONGSIDE THE CITY TO CREATE THE MUSEUM DISTRICT. AND SO, UM, I THINK CERTAINLY W SQUARE, W SQUARE PLAYS AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THAT. WHEN WE THINK ABOUT WITH LIGHT RAIL, UM, RUNNING ALONG GUADALUPE, UM, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY THERE ALSO TO ACTIVATE MANY OF THE, UM, SURFACE PARKING LOTS, UH, BRINGING, UM, CREATING THAT FROM A BRANDING ASPECT AS WELL, INCORPORATING, UM, THE LIGHT RAIL STATION. SO WHERE WE GETTING TO HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND WE THINK IT'S IMPORTANT. OKAY. GREAT. THANK YOU. WELL, I, I WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THAT AS WELL. EXCUSE ME. OH, CAN I ? YES, NOW YOU CAN. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT, KIMBERLY. THANK YOU. UM, YOU KNOW, FOR YEARS, UM, I'VE BEEN THE CO-CHAIR OF PRINCIP OF RIDGE SQUARE, AND, YOU KNOW, WE ARE BASICALLY, UM, REASSESSING OUR INVOLVEMENT, UH, WITH THAT GROUP, AND WE'RE EXPANDING ON IT. YOU KNOW, JUST THIS WEEK, DAA HAS, UM, TRANSFERRED. WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF TRANSFERRING THE URLS FOR WOODRIDGE SQUARE. AND SO THERE, THERE'S SOME ACTIVITY HAPPENING WITH THAT. AND SO, UM, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT WORKING DIRECTLY WITH DAA ON BRINGING, UH, THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS, UH, VERY SPECIAL HISTORIC SQUARE BACK, BACK TO JULY. SO THANK YOU. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT, BECAUSE THERE'S REALLY, IT'S REALLY VERY UNDER UNUSED AND UNDERUTILIZED AT THIS POINT IN TIME. YES, I AGREE. AND, AND IF I MIGHT, I WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, DURING, UM, YOU KNOW, DURING OUR BUDGET PROCESS, UM, WE MADE THE VERY DIFFICULT DECISION NOT TO INCREASE OUR ASSESSMENT, BUT WE KNEW THAT IT WAS THE RIGHT THING THING TO DO DURING THIS, UM, TOUGH, UM, FISCAL CLIMATE. AND SO CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, WITH REDUCED RESOURCES, WE NEED TO THINK CREATIVELY IN TERMS OF ADDITIONAL ONBOARDING, ADDITIONAL FUNDING, UM, SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO EXPAND PROGRAMMING, LIKE ACTIVATION OF OUR PUBLIC SPACES. UM, WE'VE RECENTLY, YOU KNOW, UM, RETOOLED THE MISSION OF OUR FOUNDATION. UM, WE ARE CONDUCTING A PHILANTHROPIC READINESS ASSESSMENT AS WELL, UM, TO ALLOW US TO BRING ON MORE CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO EXPAND PROGRAMMING AND THE LIKE, COMMISSIONER WILEY, UH, YEAH, I JUST WANT TO, UH, BRING UP, I, I WAS AT THE CONFLUENCE RECENTLY, AND THAT PLACE IS NEXT LEVEL. I MEAN, THAT IS JUST UNBELIEVABLE. IT'S GORGEOUS. UM, IS, ARE YOUR AMBASSADORS GONNA GO? WHAT IS GONNA BE, WHAT, HOW ARE WE GONNA KEEP IT LIKE THAT? THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION. THANK YOU SO MUCH, UH, COMMISSIONER. SO, DAA, UM, HAS BEEN PROVIDING, UH, AMBASSADOR SERVICES, UM, AT THE MOODY AMPHITHEATER. WE ARE, WE WILL ALSO BE CONTINUING, UM, PROVIDING SERVICES AT THE CONFLUENCE AS WELL. SO THERE WILL BE BOTH CLEANING PRESENCE AS WELL AS SAFETY PRESENCE. AND AGAIN, ABSOLUTELY WE BELIEVE THE, THE CONFLUENCE AND THE, THE GREENWAY IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTOR TO DOWNTOWN. AND SO WE'RE VERY PROUD OF THE ONGOING PARTNERSHIP WITH THE, UH, WITH THE CONSERVANCY. WELL, AND, AND WE'RE REALLY PROUD AND GRATEFUL FOR YOUR, YOUR LEADERSHIP AND, AND DOWNTOWN IS JUST LIKE ON FIRE, THAT, THAT IS SUCH AN AMAZING ADDITION. SO THANKS FOR ALL YOU DO. COMMISSIONER BOOKTA. YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. UM, [02:35:01] I JUST WANNA ECHO, UH, COMMISSIONER PTO, UH, AND PRAISE OF YOUR, UM, YOUR DOWNTOWN AMBASSADORS. UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE DETER DETERMINED OBVIOUSLY, THAT A LOT OF THE SAFETY RESOURCES END AT 10:00 PM AND AS YOU'RE AWARE, ONE OF OUR BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS IS TO EXTEND THAT PROGRAM TILL, UH, 3:00 AM. UH, WE DID RECEIVE KIND OF A BUDGET ESTIMATE FROM BILL PRICE AND, AND HAVE MET WITH, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER QUADRY, UH, TO KIND OF MOVE THIS FORWARD. BUT I, I JUST WOULD INVITE YOU TO HELP US KIND OF GET THIS ACROSS THE FINISH LINE SO THAT DOWNTOWN IS SAFE AFTER 10:00 PM FOR SO MANY OF THE SERVICE INDUSTRY AND CREATIVES THAT WORK DOWNTOWN AT THAT TIME. ABSOLUTELY. NO, THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT. YOU KNOW, WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR, YOU KNOW, THE SUPPORT OF THE RIVER, RIVER CULTURAL DISTRICT. WE THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF DOWNTOWN. AS, UM, I SHOULD POINT OUT THAT DURING THE FUTURE OF DOWNTOWN, UH, WE RECOGNIZE RIVER, RIVER CULTURAL DISTRICT AS, UH, PROVIDING THE DOWNTOWN VISION AWARD. AND SO CERTAINLY ENSURING, MAKING SURE, UH, MAKE ENSURING THAT SAFETY, UM, IS TOP OF MIND FOR OUR MUSICIANS, FOR OUR, OUR VISITORS. UM, THAT'S WILL, IS ALL, WILL BE HIGH ON THE AGENDA AS WELL CONTINUE TO BE. SO COMMISSIONER MCDANIEL, THANK YOU CHAIR. UM, THANK YOU FOR COMING AND THANK YOU FOR THE SERVICE, UH, YOU PROVIDE DOWNTOWN. UM, I HAD A QUESTION THAT I DON'T KNOW NECESSARILY THAT AN ANSWER OR, OKAY, SO A FEW MONTHS AGO WE HAD SOMEONE COME TALK TO US ABOUT TWO WAY STREETS IN AUSTIN, AND PARTICULARLY DOWNTOWN. AND I THINK ONE OF THE AREAS HE WAS LOOKING AT WAS SIXTH STREET, AND HE WAS USING THE EXAMPLE OF SECOND STREET AND HOW SIXTH STREET HASN'T ALWAYS LOOKED LIKE WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE TODAY AND POSSIBLY REVITALIZING THAT. GIVEN THAT'S ONE OF YOUR TOP SEVEN PRIORITIES THAT YOU OUTLINED. I'M JUST CURIOUS IF YOU'VE TALKED TO THIS GENTLEMAN OR THEIR GROUP OR IF THERE'S ANY STRATEGY BEHIND THAT. WE HAD SENT I THINK SOMETHING TO THE, TO THE COUNCIL, BUT I'M NOT SURE IF WE EVER GOT ANY SORT OF RESPONSE BACK OR ANYTHING. BUT NO, WE SENT THEM A LETTER, BUT LIKE A RECOMMENDATION. RECOMMENDATION. I WAS JUST CURIOUS, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY SPEAKING, I DON'T WANNA PUT YOU IN A BOX OR TELL YOU, YOU KNOW, SAY SOMETHING THAT COULD BE POLITICALLY PROBLEMATIC, BUT JUST CURIOUS IF YOU'VE ENGAGED WITH THEM AT ALL. UM, WE HAVE NOT PER SE. UM, I WOULD SAY IT'S POSSIBLE THAT MAY, UH, ONE OF OUR STAFF MEMBERS HAVE, BUT I PERSONALLY HAVE NOT, SO I CAN'T SPEAK WITH AUTHORITY ON THAT. UM, I WOULD SAY IN TERMS OF JUST OVERALL MOBILITY PLAN FOR DOWNTOWN, WE HAVE PROVIDED A FORMAL COMMENTARY ON THE, UM, A CT PLAN, AUSTIN CORE TRANSPORTATION PLAN. SO TPW HAS THAT, THAT IS ON THE RECORD. UM, WITH RESPECT TO THE ROADWAY IMPROVEMENTS, UH, ALONG EAST SIXTH STREET AS WELL, WE HAVE PROVIDED FORMAL, UH, RECOMMENDATION ON THAT AS WELL. UM, I BELIEVE OPTION THREE, UM, THAT WAS THE, UM, THE VERSION THAT WE WENT WITH THAT, UM, THAT WE'RE ENDORSING WHERE THAT DOES NOT HAVE BIKE LANES. WE THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT AGAIN, TO, UH, SUPPORT THE LEASING STRATEGY ALONG EAST SIXTH STREET THERE. SO THANK YOU. MM-HMM . ANYBODY ELSE? WELL, THANK YOU THEN. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. AND YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY I WANT TO ECHO THAT YOUR AMBASSADORS ARE FANTASTIC AND DOWNTOWN WOULD NOT BE WHAT IT IS TODAY WITHOUT THEM OR WITH ALL THE REST OF YOU AND ALL THE WORK THAT YOU DO. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. HAVE A GREAT EVENING. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. OKAY. AND WE HAVE TABLED THE [6. Discussion regarding the Austin Historical Association, a possible tour, and topics for a future presentation request.] DISCUSSION FOR, OF THE AUSTIN HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION FOR NEXT MONTH. SO THAT WILL BE BROUGHT BACK THEN BECAUSE THERE WAS A DIFFICULTY WITH THE WORDING. IT WASN'T ACCURATE, SO WE'VE HAD TO CHANGE THAT. SO THAT BRINGS US [FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ] TO FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. IF ANYBODY HAS ANYTHING THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO PUT ON THE AGENDA, PARTICULARLY HEARING NONE, I'M GOING TO CALL FOR ADJOURNMENT THEN AT 8:10 PM GREAT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. * 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.