Oct 20, 2026 City Council Work Session

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GOOD MORNING, EVERYBODY.

IT'S NINE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING.

IT'S, UM, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

IT'S A GOOD MORNING.

LET'S JUST CALL IT A GOOD MORNING.

WE'LL WAIT FOR JUST A SECOND.

I'D LIKE TO, YEAH, .

I DON'T THINK THAT'S LOST ON ANYBODY.

COUNCIL MEMBER .

THAT'S GREAT.

HEY, MAN, THAT'S FROM JA.

ALL GOOD.

OH, GOOD WORK, MAN.

.

GUESS I'VE TURN.

ALL RIGHT, NOW I WILL CALL THE ORDER OF THE AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL FOR THIS WORK.

SESSION IS 9:01 AM ON OCTOBER 20TH, 2026.

WE HAVE A QUORUM OF THE CITY COUNCIL PRESENT.

WE'RE MEETING AT THE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS LOCATED AT CITY HALL AT 3 0 1 WEST SECOND STREET IN AUSTIN, TEXAS.

UH, MEMBERS, WE HAVE TWO ITEMS ON THE AGENDA.

BOTH ARE BRIEFINGS, AND WE WILL TAKE 'EM UP IN THE ORDER THAT THEY APPEAR ON THE AGENDA.

BUT BEFORE WE BEGIN, WE HAVE ONE PERSON THAT HAS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, AND I'LL TURN TO THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE AND ASK THAT THEY CALL THE NAME OF THIS PERSON.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER ON ITEM B, ONE KOMEL, HAYGOOD.

ARE YOU HERE COM KAMEL HAYGOOD.

KAMEL HAYGOOD.

ALL RIGHT.

DOESN'T LOOK LIKE, UM, UH, THEY'RE HERE TODAY.

SO WHAT WE WILL

[B1. A briefing on the Community Wildfire Protection Plan [Chris Graves, Wildfire Mitigation Manager - Austin Emergency Management].]

AND I'LL RECOGNIZE THE CITY MANAGER.

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

AND GOOD MORNING MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS.

TODAY WE ARE PRESENTING THE UPDATED 2026 AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN DEVELOPED THROUGH THE COLLABORATION AMONG THE CITY OF AUSTIN, TRAVIS COUNTY, THE WILDFIRE COALITION AND REGIONAL PARTNERS.

THE PLAN PROVIDES UPDATED WILDFIRE RISK ASSESSMENTS AND 71 RECOMMENDATIONS TO STRENGTHEN WILDFIRE PREPAREDNESS, MITIGATION RESPONSE, AND COMMUNITY RESILIENCE.

IT SERVES AS A NON-REGULATORY FRAMEWORK TO GUIDE FUTURE COORDINATION, PRIOR PRIORITIZE, RISK REDUCTION, AND SUPPORT IMPLEMENTATION ACROSS OUR REGION.

THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY, UH, FOR STAFF TO PRESENT THIS IMPORTANT WORK.

THIS MORNING.

I'LL TURN IT OVER TO JIM REDDICK, UH, DIRECTOR OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, AND CHRIS GRAVES, WILDFIRE MITIGATION MANAGER AND CHIEF EY, UH, AS NECESSARY, JIM.

THANK YOU, MR. MANAGER.

MR. MAYOR, MAYOR, PRO TEM, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, UH, IT'S MY HONOR TO SERVE AS THE DIRECTOR OF AUSTIN EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.

AND, UH, IT'S AN HONOR TO BE HERE, UH, BEFORE YOU TODAY TO TALK ABOUT THE COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN.

AS YOU'LL RECALL, LAST MONTH, I BELIEVE IT WAS THE NINTH, UM, Y'ALL HAD, UM, ADOPTED THE REVISION TO OUR ALL HAZARDS MITIGATION PLAN.

THE PLAN IS INTENDED TO IDENTIFY THE THREATS AND THE HAZARDS WHICH FACE OUR COMMUNITY, UM, AND, AND DOING SO WITH COMMUNITY INPUT TO DEVELOP RECOMMENDATIONS TO MINIMIZE OR ELIMINATE THE THREATS AS BEST WE CAN.

UM, THERE ARE NO REQUIREMENTS, ONLY RECOMMENDATIONS, AND THE CWPP IS VERY MUCH, VERY MUCH THE SAME, OF COURSE, RATHER THAN BEING ALL HAZARD, IT FOCUSES ON THE HIGH PROBABILITY, HIGH IMPACT THREAT OF WILDFIRE AND IS

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SO AGAIN, WITH COMMUNITY INPUT, UH, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH A FD AND THE AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY, UH, WILDFIRE COALITION, UM, THESE RECOMMENDATIONS WERE ALSO DEVELOPED TO HELP US GET TO WHERE WE NEED TO BE AGAIN, WITHOUT RECOMMENDATIONS, BUT JUST LIKE THE MITIGATION PLAN, THIS ALLOWS US TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR GRANT FUNDING.

SO WITH THAT, UM, I'M HAPPY TO SAY THAT WE WERE ABLE TO, TO HOST CHRIS GRAVES AND OUR IN OUR SHOP TO WORK THROUGH THIS PROCESS.

HE DID A FANTASTIC JOB, AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO HIM FOR HIS PRESENTATION.

THANK YOU.

GREAT.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, MR. RAM.

MAYOR, UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS AND, UH, MR. MANAGER FOR THE 2026 AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN.

WE HAVE, I'M PROUD TO SAY THAT IT IS COMPLETE, BUT LOOKING FORWARD, WHAT IS A COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN? IT COMES FROM THE HEALTHY FOREST RESTORATION ACT OF 2003, WHERE IT'S A COLLABORATIVE NON-REGULATORY BOT, UH, PLAN DEVELOPED WITH RESIDENTS, LAND MANAGERS, UH, PROPERTY OWNERS, AND SET FORWARD PRIORITIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO GROUPS WILDFIRE RISK WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.

KEY THINGS, THOUGH, IS THAT IT'S NOT A REGULATION OR A MANDATE.

IT'S NOT A SINGLE DEPARTMENT WORK PLAN, PARCEL LEVEL, RISK RATING OR INSURANCE TOOL, OR A COMMITMENT OF FUNDING BY ANY STAFF OR ANY ONE AGENCY.

AS PART OF THE HFRA, IT HAS TO BE AGREED TO BY THREE PARTIES, AND THAT'S THE LOCAL FIRE AUTHORITY, WHICH FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN WOULD BE AUSTIN FIRE.

WE ALSO HAVE TRAVIS COUNTY FIRE MARSHAL THAT IS INVOLVED SINCE THIS IS A REGIONAL PLAN.

IT'S FOR THE COUNTY OF TRAVIS COUNTY AND CITY OF AUSTIN.

UH, ALSO HAS TO BE AGREED TO BY THE STATE FORESTRY AGENCY, WHICH IS TEXAS A AND M FOREST SERVICE, AND THEN ALSO THE LOCAL GOVERNING BODIES, WHICH IS WHY WE ARE BRINGING THIS FORWARD TO YOU AS DIRECTOR.

REDDICK STATED THAT A CW A CURRENT CWPP ALSO ALLOWS US TO APPLY FOR GRANT FUNDING AND, UH, IS NECESSARY FOR, UH, MANY NUMEROUS GRANTS.

AGAIN, CWPP IS COMPLETE, AND OUR NEXT STEPS ARE TOWARDS IMPLEMENTATION.

BUT PRIOR TO THAT, WE NEED A LOCAL LEVEL ADOPTION.

ON NOVEMBER 6TH, UH, WE HAVE OUR IMPLEMENTATION KICKOFF, AND THIS IS WHERE WE ACTUALLY PUT, UH, PEOPLE TO WORK, ALIGN OUR PRIORITIES, AND START MOVING FORWARD.

WE HAVE A NUMBER OF TOOLS THAT WE'LL BE ENGAGING WITH THE PUBLIC AND IN BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS, AND THE BIG ASK IS TO HELP SUSTAIN THIS MOVEMENT FORWARD.

ONE THING THAT WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO IS ASSIGNING, UH, AND RECOGNITION EVENT ON THE SEVENTH.

SEVENTH.

WHY DOES THE C-W-P-P-R COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN MATTER NOW? WELL, IT'S A REGIONAL PROBLEM, AND WE RECOGNIZE THIS IN THAT WITHIN TRAVIS COUNTY, UH, WE HAVE 8,000 WILDFIRE INCIDENTS RECORDED SINCE 1998.

THIS SHOWS THE GROWING PROBLEM WITHIN TRAVIS COUNTY.

IN 2011, WE HAD SOME SIGNIFICANT EVENTS.

THE STEINER RANCH FIRES AND SPICEWOOD FIRES WITHIN TRAVIS COUNTY ALONE, UH, DESTROYED NUMEROUS HOMES, BUT WE ALSO HAD A REGIONAL IMPACT IN WHICH WE HAD SEVEN OTHER FIRES OCCURRING DURING THAT TIME, WHICH STRAPPED RESOURCES.

OUR POPULATION IS GROWING.

WE'VE GONE FROM 1.3 MILLION AND 2020 TO 1.4 MILLION PEOPLE, AND, UH, NINE IN 10, UH, FIRES WITHIN TEXAS ARE CAUSED BY, UH, HUMANS, WHICH MEANS OUTREACH AND PUBLIC EDUCATION ARE PRIMARILY IMPORTANT.

WITH THAT GROWTH IN POPULATION, OUR EXPOSURE IS GROWING.

WE'RE HAVING TO BUILD MORE HOMES INTO THOSE PLACES WHERE WILDLAND FUELS OCCUR.

OUR CONDITIONS ARE INTENSIFYING WITH CLIMATE CHANGE, UH, AND LONGER PERIODS OF DROUGHT AND LOW FUEL MOISTURE.

WHEN THEN WE'VE ALSO RECOGNIZED THROUGH FIRES AROUND THE NATION AND ALSO LOCALLY, IS THAT THEY HAVE CASCADING IMPACTS.

WHEN WE HAVE A WILDLAND FIRE, IT AFFECTS NUMEROUS OTHER COMMUNITY RESOURCES, SUCH AS COMMUNICATIONS, INFRASTRUCTURE, POWER, WATER, UH, QUALITY AND WATERSHED, UH, STABILIZATION, AND THEY, THEY NECESSITATE RECOVERY RESOURCES.

SINCE THE 2011 FIRES, THE JOINT WILDFIRE TASK FORCE WAS CREATED AFTER THAT EVENT.

THIS, UH, JOINT WILDFIRE TASK FORCE THEN EVOLVED INTO THE AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY WILDFIRE COALITION, AND, UH, THE JOINT WILDFIRE TASK FORCE INITIATED THE INITIAL CWPP

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THIS WAS THE FOUNDATION PLAN.

OUR CURRENT UPDATE BUILDS UPON THAT PLAN.

IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY CHANGES.

IT JUST AUGMENTS, UH, WHAT THE FINDINGS OF THAT INITIAL PLAN.

IN, UH, 2023, THE COALITION RECOGNIZED THAT THERE WAS THE 10 YEAR WINDOW FOR OR GRANT ELIGIBILITY WAS WANING.

SO, UH, THEY SAW THROUGH AUSTIN FIRE DEPARTMENT A GRANT THROUGH TEXAS A AND M FOREST SERVICE, AND THE USDA TO UPDATE THE CWPP WITH THAT IN JULY, AND WE STARTED IN 2025, AND AGAIN, LOOKING TOWARDS IMPLEMENTATION IN 2026, THE PROGRESS THAT WE'VE DOCUMENTED SINCE 2014 WAS THAT WE'VE HAD 26,000 ACRES OF FUEL MANAGEMENT REPORTED WITH 6,000 PLUS ACRES TREATED WITH PRESCRIBED FIRE, 80,000 PLUS LINEAR FE OF SHADED FUEL BREAKS, AND ADOPTION OF THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE CODE BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ADDING WITHIN THE 2025 UPDATE IS THAT WE'VE UPDATED COUNTYWIDE RISK ASSESSMENTS AND FIELD ASSESSMENTS.

THESE TOOLS HELP US TO BE ABLE TO PRIORITIZE PROJECTS.

WE'VE ALSO ADDED A WATERSHED RISK ANALYSIS, LOOKED AT UTILITY PUBLIC HEALTH AND POST FIRE, UH, INTERSECTS WITHIN, UH, THE WILDFIRE RISK ARENA AND ALSO, UH, ADOPTED SOME PUBLIC TOOLS AND SHARED PROJECT TRACKING, UH, DASHBOARDS THAT CAN ACTUALLY SHOW OUR, OUR EFFORTS FORWARD THAT THERE'S STILL SOME GAPS MOVING FORWARD IS THAT, YOU KNOW, HOMEOWNER PARTICIPATION, UH, IN MITIGATION PROJECTS REMAINS LOW.

AND WE DIDN'T HAVE CENTRALIZED PROJECT TRACKING OR, UH, PUBLICLY VIEWABLE, UH, PROJECT TRACKING, WHICH COULD BE UTILIZED TO INFORM THE PUBLIC.

SO WE LAUNCHED IN 2025, AND THROUGHOUT THE SUMMER AND FALL, WE BUILT A FOUNDATION IN THE RISK, AND THAT MEANT REVIEWING OUR UPDATES, OUR DATA BASED MAPS, AND OUR RISK ASSESSMENTS.

DURING THIS TIME, WE ALSO SAW THAT THERE WAS, UH, THERE WAS A COMMUNITY MOTIVATION TOWARDS WILDLAND FIRE, AND WE CAPTURED ON THAT IN WHICH WE DID OUR FIRST, UH, PUBLIC MEETING, WHICH WAS A VIRTUAL EVENT, WHICH WE BROUGHT IN, UH, LOCAL FIRE MANAGERS AND EXPERTS, EXCUSE ME, INTO ENGAGING WITH THE PUBLIC TO HELP ALSO COMMUNICATE THAT THE PLAN WAS IN DEVELOPMENT, THAT WE WERE WORKING FORWARD AND WANTED THEIR INVOLVEMENT.

WE TURNED THAT ALSO INTO A, UH, A SET OF STRATEGIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS, AND ALSO, UH, ENGAGED THROUGH A PUBLIC SURVEY, UH, TWO PUBLIC MEETINGS, ONE ON THE WEST SIDE OF TRAVIS COUNTY, ONE ON THE EAST SIDE, AND THEN, UH, A A MONTH LONG PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD ON THE PLAN.

WE FINALIZED THAT PLAN WITH THE APPROVAL OF TEXAS FOREST SERVICE, AND AGAIN, WE'RE HERE IN FRONT OF YOU FOR, UH, ADOPTION AND IMPLEMENTATION PHASE.

SO WHAT DID WE FIND? WE HAD 377 SURVEY PARTICIPANTS, WHICH 77% OF THEM ARE CONCERNED, VERY CONCERNED ABOUT WILD LAND FIRE AND, AND NINE IN 10 SAY THEY SHARE RESPONSIBILITY, BUT ALSO THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENTS SHARE THAT RESPONSIBILITY AS WELL.

45% ARE UNSURE OF HOW TO EVACUATE SAFELY.

28% ARE NOT SURE WHAT THEIR INSURANCE WOULD COVER AFTER A WILDFIRE.

AND 32% NAMED COST IS THEIR LARGEST OBSTACLE TO HOME HARDENING AND DEFENSIBLE SPACE PRACTICES.

88% WOULD CONSIDER, UH, PARTICIPATING IN A COST SHARE PROGRAM OR TOOL SHARE PROGRAM AS WELL.

THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE FIND IS THAT NO SINGLE WILDFIRE EXISTS.

A WILDFIRE PROBLEM EXISTS WITHIN TRAVIS COUNTY.

WE HAVE THREE DISTINCT ECO REGIONS.

WE ALSO HAVE THREE DIFFERENT PLACES WHERE, UH, WILDFIRE HAS DIFFERENT EFFECTS.

ON THE WEST SIDE OF AUSTIN AND THE HILL COUNTRY AND TRAVIS COUNTY, WE HAVE THE WOODLANDS AND CANYON FUELS STEEP SLOPES AND LIMITED ACCESS AND EGRESS PROBLEMS. WITHIN CENTRAL AUSTIN.

WE HAVE THE GREEN BELTS AND PARKS AND PRESERVES, WHICH ARE PART OF OUR CULTURAL ETHOS HERE, BUT THEY PRESENT COMPLEX PROBLEMS AND THEY TAKE A, UH, HAVE SPECIFIC SITE PLANNING NEEDS THAT NEED TO BE THOUGHT OF, ESPECIALLY DURING DROUGHT IN THE EAST AND SOUTHEAST.

WE HAVE OTHER, UH, HIGHEST CONCENTRATION OF MODELED RISK.

PART OF THE PROBLEM THERE IS THAT WE HAVE CONTINUOUS GRASS FUELS AND, AND SHRUB FUELS THAT SUPPORT RAPID FIRE GROWTH, BUT WE ALSO HAVE SOME SOCIAL VULNERABILITY ISSUES THERE

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ONE OF THE THINGS I WANT TO EMPHASIZE WITH THIS MAP IS PLEASE DON'T TAKE THE RED AS, UM, AN ABSOLUTE RISK RATING.

ONLY WAY TO CALCULATE RISK IS TO HAVE AN ONSITE ASSESSMENT AT A LOCAL PROPERTY.

THE, THAT'S A KEY TOOL.

THIS IS A PLANNING LEVEL MODEL IN WHICH OUR EFFORTS IN THOSE AREAS THAT ARE DISTINCTLY DARK RED, OUR EFFORTS THERE WOULD PROBABLY HAVE THE MOST BENEFIT, THE MOST IMPACT TOWARDS THE COMMUNITY.

AND I WANTED TO EMPHASIZE THAT SO IT IT DOESN'T GET FRAMED IN THE WRONG WAY.

SO WE CAME OUT WITH, THROUGH THE WORK, THROUGH THE WILDFIRE COALITION, 71 RECOMMENDATIONS BUILT AROUND THE NATIONAL COHESIVE STRATEGIES, THREE GOALS OF RESILIENT LANDSCAPES, OUTREACH AND STRUCTURAL IGNITABILITY AND FIRE RESPONSE CAPABILITY.

ADDITIONALLY, WE HAD ADDED THE WATERSHED PROTECTION AND RECOVERY COMPONENTS TO THIS UPDATE, ALONG WITH CODE REVIEW UPDATES.

ONE OF THE TOOLS THAT WE HAVE TO COMMUNICATE, UH, ON OUR WORK TOWARDS THE RECOMMENDATIONS IS OUR CWPP HUB.

THAT'S THE PUBLIC FACING FRONT DOOR TO THE PLAN WHERE WE CAN SHOW MAPS AND OUR UPDATES HAS A STORY MAP, WHICH IS IN PLAIN LANGUAGE AND ABLE TO BE VIEWED BY THE PUBLIC SO THEY CAN GET AN UNDERSTANDING OF WILDFIRE RISK WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.

WE HAVE WEB MAPS, UH, FOR PLANNING LEVEL RISK AND SUPPORTING LAYERS AND OUR PROJECT TRACKERS SO WE CAN TRACK STATUSES AND OUTCOMES OF OUR PROJECTS.

UH, WE ALSO HAVE A FUELS MITIGATION PROJECT ANALYZER TO HELP, UH, SUPPORT DEPARTMENTS IN THEIR PROJECT SCOPING AND FUNDING, AND THEN COMMUNITY PLANNING, UH, TEMPLATES WHICH ALLOW COMMUNITIES TO ALIGN WITH THE CWPP IN THEIR WILDFIRE MITIGATION EFFORTS.

THINGS THAT WE'RE GONNA BE MEASURING EACH YEAR, OUR ACRES TREATED, THE NUMBER OF HOMES ASSESSED THROUGH SIZE EVALUATIONS AND HOME HARDENING ACTIONS, UH, OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS, AND THEN ANY CODER POLICY CHANGES.

SO AGAIN, IMPLEMENTATION IS SHARED ACROSS THE REGION.

THE AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY WILDFIRE COALITION IS THE MEANINGFUL PLATFORM FOR THIS.

IT'S COMPOSED OF AN EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, WHICH IS, UH, UH, INVOLVED WITH, UH, DEPARTMENTS, UH, THE CITY, THE COUNTY, AND, UH, PARTNER REPRESENTATIVES WHO HAVE DIRECT, UH, FIRE RESPONSIBILITIES WITHIN CITY OF AUSTIN AND TRAVIS COUNTY.

THE WILDFIRE COALITION AT LARGE HAS DEVELOPED, UM, ARE, ARE EXPERTS.

THIS IS WHERE THE, THE BODY COMES TOGETHER TO CREATE OUR, UH, ACTIONS TOWARDS THE RECOMMENDATIONS.

THEY ORGANIZE EXPERTISE, AND THEN ACTION FOLLOWS EACH PARTNER'S AUTHORITY WITHIN THEIR OWN ORGANIZATION.

WE HAVE NINE IMPLEMENTATION TASK GROUPS THAT DO THE WORK MOVING FORWARD.

NOVEMBER 6TH, WE HAVE THE COALITION IMPLEMENTATION KICKOFF AT AUSTIN ENERGY HEADQUARTERS.

HERE WE'RE GONNA BE REVIEWING THE FINAL PLAN AND DELIVERABLES, DEMONSTRATING THE PROJECT TRACKER ANALYZER AND DATA UPDATE PROCESS, UH, FOR, UH, PROJECT TRACKING, AND THEN ALSO ALIGNING TASK GROUPS, UH, CHAIRS, MEMBERS MISSING SEAT, AND, UH, FINDING THE MISSING SEATS AT THE TABLE, BRINGING THOSE PEOPLE IN WHO CAN HELP US MOVING FORWARD WITH, UH, WORKING ON THE RECOMMENDATIONS, AND THEN SETTING THE, AND PRIORITIZING THOSE ACTIONS DATA NEEDS AND REPORTING CADENCE TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.

SO WHAT WE'RE ASKING OF COUNSEL AND COMMISSIONER'S COURT IS TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE CWPP IS A REGIONAL FRAMEWORK.

IT'S A LIVING DOCUMENT.

IT'S NO LONGER MEANT TO BE SET ON A SHELF AND ONLY BROUGHT UP EVERY 10 YEARS, SOMETHING THAT IT IS GONNA NEED TO BE ANNUALLY REVIEWED AND, UH, LOOKED AT AND THEN UPDATED EVERY FIVE YEARS AS ONE OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS WITHIN THE PLAN.

THE RISK MANS ARE PLANNING LEVEL TOOLS AND ARE NOT PARTIAL LEVEL RISK DETERMINATIONS.

AGAIN, THOSE REQUIRE A SITE OF SPECIFIC DETERMINATION THAT CANNOT BE FOUND THROUGH SPATIAL DATA.

THE RECOMMENDATIONS GUIDE COORDINATION, THEY DON'T, UH, THEY, UH, DON'T OVERRIDE AN AGENCY'S AUTHORITY, UH, SUPPORT.

WE'RE ASKING FOR YOUR SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY IN ALIGNMENT WITH TASK GROUPS, COMMUNITY RESOURCES, ET CETERA.

UM, AND WE ALSO ASK THAT YOU CONSIDER THE CW PP PRIORITIES IN ANY FUTURE GRANT OR HAZARD MITIGATION PROJECT DECISIONS.

[00:20:01]

SO WE WOULD APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO ADOPT THE CWPP.

JOIN US IN THE DECEMBER 7TH PLANNING AND, UM, SIGNING AND RECOGNITION EVENT, AND CHA CHAMPION OUR WILDFIRE, UH, RESILIENCE AND CONSTITUENTS, CONSTITUENTS AND PARTNERS.

THANK YOU.

GREAT.

THANK YOU.

COUNCIL MEMBERS QUESTIONS, COUNCIL MEMBER UCHIN.

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

I'VE GOT A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS, BUT FIRST I JUST WANT TO THANK OUR PROFESSIONAL STAFF FOR THEIR, UH, TREMENDOUS WORK OVER THIS OVER LAST YEAR, AND THAT INCLUDES OUR CONSULTANTS, UH, WHICH IS SWCA.

UM, I REALLY FEEL LIKE THIS IS A, A KEY UPDATE.

LIKE CHRIS SAID, WE'VE REALLY DUE FOR AN UPDATE AND, YOU KNOW, THE WORLD OF WILDFIRE PREVENTION PREPAREDNESS HAS EVOLVED OVER THE LAST DECADE.

AND SO I THINK THAT THIS PLAN INCORPORATES A LOT OF THOSE CHANGES, AS DOES THE WE CODE THAT WE PASSED LAST YEAR.

AND GIVEN OUR SUBSTANTIAL RISK FACTORS HERE, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE CONTINUE TO STAY CURRENT ON THIS WORK.

AND, AND SO ONE QUESTION I'VE GOT IS, YOU MENTIONED A MOMENT AGO THAT THE HOPE IS THAT THERE'S AN ANNUAL REVIEW.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR HAVING THAT REVIEW? THE REVIEW PROCESS WOULD COME THROUGH THE WILDFIRE COALITION.

IS IT ONE OF THE TASK GROUPS THAT'S ON THERE? IT, IT WOULD BE THROUGH THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.

OKAY.

UM, THEY WOULD INITIATE THAT, UM, AND THROUGH THE, THE ORGANIZATION OF THE WILDFIRE COALITION, UH, THEY WOULD MEET QUARTERLY TO GET TASK GROUP UPDATES AND THEN HAVE AN ANNUAL REPORT.

GOT IT.

THANK YOU.

SO I RECOGNIZE THIS IS A, A LENGTHY PLAN.

I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU GUYS, IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY, TO SHARE IT WITH COMMUNITIES AND NEIGHBORHOODS AND HOMEOWNERS AND LANDLORDS THAT MAY BE INTERESTED IN, I KNOW THAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEW TOOLS THAT ARE LISTED HERE THAT CAN HELP US, UH, MEASURE PROGRESS ON IMPLEMENTING THE KEY PROVISIONS OF THE PLAN.

UH, THAT SAID, I ALSO KNOW THAT WE'VE GOT, WE'VE HAD SIGNIFICANT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE CAPTURING THE SURVEY AND THE FEEDBACK FROM PEOPLE AS THAT HAVE BUILT THIS PLAN AND HELP REFLECT THE COMMUNITY SAFETY NEEDS.

I'M ALSO, THOUGH, AWARE OF SOME FOLKS THAT ARE IN THE HOME BUILDING COMMUNITY THAT HAVE RAISED SOME CONCERNS ABOUT A COUPLE OF PROVISIONS OF THE PLANS SUCH AS THE SEPARATION DISTANCE BETWEEN STRUCTURES.

SO I WAS HOPING THAT THE CHIEF COULD HELP US UNDERSTAND THE STATUS OF THOSE CONCERNS OR WHAT CONVERSATIONS HAVE BEEN SHARED, UH, TO TRY AND RESOLVE THOSE, THAT TENSION IF POSSIBLE.

THANK YOU.

COUNCIL MEMBER, TOM VOKEY, AUSTIN FIRE.

UM, WE CONTINUE TO MEET WITH THE HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION AND OTHER GROUPS.

UH, LOOKING OVER ALL THE CONCERNS ABOUT THE WWE CODE.

ALL THE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ARE IN THIS DOCUMENT ARE JUST THAT THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND SO OF THE 18 THAT ARE RELATED TO, UH, DEVELOPMENT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE IMPLEMENTED A PORTION OF PROBABLY 10 OF THE 18 ALREADY IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

SO SOME OF THESE ARE, YOU KNOW, SPECIFICALLY MAYBE TARGETED MORE AT THE COUNTY THAN THEY ARE US.

UM, BUT WE CONTINUE TO HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS.

UH, WE, WE GET TO DECIDE, UH, HOW WE IMPLEMENT OUR RISK, UH, REDUCTION IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.

AND SO WORKING THROUGH THE CODE ADOPTION PROCESS AND WORKING, UH, WITH OUR HOME BUILDERS AND EVERYBODY ELSE THROUGH THAT PROCESS, WE, WE DECIDE HOW THIS IS IMPLEMENTED.

AND SO, UM, THERE'S NO ACTION DIRECTLY FROM THIS DOCUMENT, BUT IT DOES PROVIDE GREAT GUIDANCE AND, AND SOME OUTSIDE, OUTSIDE PERSPECTIVE ON THE THINGS THAT WE REALLY NEED TO WORK ON.

AND SO WE TAKE IT SERIOUS, BUT WE ALSO MAKE SURE THAT WE CUSTOMIZE IT FOR WHAT MEETS OUR NEEDS IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN AS WELL.

SO AGAIN, THE A BOR AND SOME OF THE OTHER BOARD OF REALTORS AND SOME OF THE OTHER GROUPS, WE'VE HAD GREAT DISCUSSIONS WITH THEM.

WE'RE REVIEWING SOME, SOME PRIVATE STUDIES THAT THEY'VE DONE CURRENTLY.

UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE SEEING IF THERE'S ADJUSTMENTS WE CAN MAKE TO MAKE, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE REDUCING RISK, BUT WE ALSO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ABLE TO DO THE DEVELOPMENT THAT WE NEED TO DO IN THE CITY.

SO WE THINK THERE'S A BALANCE.

WE RECOGNIZE THAT BALANCE, BUT WE ALWAYS ERR TO THE SIDE OF SAFETY FROM THE PUBLIC SAFETY SIDE.

OKAY.

THANK YOU, MR. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT, CHIEF.

AND, UH, THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT, MAYOR.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, MAYOR PRO, TIM VELA.

OKAY.

THEN FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER LANG.

UH, THANK YOU, MAYOR.

A COUPLE OF OF THINGS JUMP OUT IN THE REPORT.

ONE OF THEM, AGAIN, SPEAKING TO A LOT OF THE, THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH SOME OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, ON PAGE, I BELIEVE ONE 15, THE CR FIVE ESTABLISH A MINIMUM 50 FOOT SEPARATION BETWEEN STRUCTURES, INCLUDING ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS, UH, AND IT SAYS ALL

[00:25:01]

AGAIN, I MEAN, IN THE VAST SWATHS OF AUSTIN, WE'VE BEEN GOING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION.

YOU KNOW, GOING TO LIKE FIVE FOOT, UH, SETBACKS, VERY SMALL SETBACKS TO ALLOW FOR SMALLER LOTS AND TO ALLOW FOR AFFORDABILITY.

THAT SEEMS TO GO IN THE EXACT OPPOSITE DIRECTION.

I JUST WAS WONDERING WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT WERE.

SO, I MEAN, THE 50 FOOT SEPARATION DISTANCE ACROSS THE CITY LIKE AUSTIN DOESN'T MAKE SENSE AT ALL.

BUT WHAT DOES MAKE SENSE IS MAYBE AGAINST THOSE VERY HIGH RISK AREAS WHERE WE'RE DIRECTLY WITHIN 50 FEET OF A WILDLAND AREA, IT MAY MAKE SENSE TO HAVE THAT SEPARATION DISTANCE.

UH, AND WE WOULD ONLY BE TALKING ABOUT THE, THE WOOEY AREAS AS WELL.

SO A MAJORITY OF OF THE CITY DOES FALL INTO SOME PORTION OF THE WOOEY, BUT IN THAT HIGH RISK AREAS WHERE WE WOULD PROBABLY FUNCTION OR FOCUS THAT OVERALL, I DO THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, 50 50 FOOT SEPARATION DISTANCE DOESN'T MAKE SENSE FOR US AS, AS A CITY, BUT THERE MAY BE PLACES WHERE IT DOES MAKE SENSE, AND THAT'S WHERE WE CAN DIG INTO THE CODE, UH, ON, ON THE, ON A MORE FINITE LEVEL TO GET WHERE WE NEED.

I, I, I MEAN, I COMPLETELY AGREE, UH, AND THAT'S WHY I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT, 'CAUSE THAT THAT'S NOT, TO ME, A, A REALISTIC APPROACH TO, UH, WILDFIRE MITIGATION IS TO HAVE EVERYBODY LIVE, YOU KNOW, UH, AT LEAST 50 FEET APART.

UH, I MEAN THAT, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, 90% OF AUSTIN IS PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THAT 50 FOOT DISTANCE.

UM, AND THEN THERE'S A HANDFUL OF OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS, AND I'M LOOKING AT THE CODE IN PARTICULAR, THE, YOU KNOW, REQUIRING, UM, NON-COMBUSTIBLE OR CLASS IGNITION SISTANT MATERIALS FOR DECKING AND SKIRTING ON MANUFACTURED HOMES.

UH, THE, THE, THE WILDLIFE, UH, UH, WILDFIRE RESILIENT LANDSCAPING STANDARDS, UH, UM, HOUSING, UH, HARDENING HOUSING UNITS, HARDENING, UH, PORTIONS.

HAS THERE BEEN ANY ANALYSIS OF, UH, OF THE AFFORDABILITY IMPACTS OF, UH, SOME OF THESE, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS GONNA BE THE AVERAGE COST TO A STRUCTURE? AGAIN, LET'S ASSUME THAT IT DOESN'T APPLY TO ALL THE STRUCTURES, AND LET'S ASSUME IT APPLIES TO JUST A CERTAIN WESTERN TRAVIS COUNTY, FOR EXAMPLE, THE HIGHEST AREAS OF WILDFIRE RISK.

HOW MUCH IS THAT GONNA COST? YOU KNOW, SO I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY IT DEPENDS ON WHAT TYPE OF STRUCTURE THEY'RE BUILDING AND WHERE THEY ARE.

AND SO THERE'S THE ZERO TO 50 FOOT RANGE WHERE IT'S MORE SIGNIFICANT, WHERE THEY DO HAVE TO HAVE IGNITION EXIST, IGNITION RESISTANT CONSTRUCTION, YOU KNOW, ON A MAJORITY OF THE STRUCTURE.

BUT ONCE YOU GET OUTSIDE THAT 50 FOOT RANGE, WE BACK OFF OF IT A LITTLE BIT.

AND, AND JUST FOR, FOR, UH, I GUESS A LITTLE BIT OF PERSPECTIVE, MOST OF THE HOMES THAT WE'RE BUILDING NOW IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN ARE BUILT WITH, UH, YOU KNOW, HARDY PLANK AND, AND CLASS A ROOFS.

THAT'S THE, THAT'S THE INDUSTRY STANDARD.

SO IN MOST PLACES, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, CHANGING THE ROOFING STRUCTURE, ALL WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS ADDING SOME VENT STRUCTURES AND SOME THINGS LIKE THAT.

SO WHAT WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO CONCENTRATE ON IS MAKING THE STANDARDS, UM, THAT, THAT, AND MAKE, MAKE THE STANDARDS MAKE SENSE WITH A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ALREADY DOING.

AND SO THAT'S WHERE THE COORDINATION WITH THE BUILDERS, UH, BUT WE DO LOOK AT WHAT THE COST IS AND, AND WE RECOGNIZE THAT IN SOME AREAS THERE IS SOME SIGNIFICANT COST, BUT OVERALL, WE TRY TO FIGURE OUT, UH, THAT'S PART OF THE BALANCE, TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHERE WE BALANCE THE, THE COST WITH THE RISK.

AND SO WE WORK REALLY HARD ON THAT, AND WE WORK, UH, WE WORK WITH THE BUILDERS ON THAT AND WORK WITH EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN GET TO WHERE WE NEED TO WITH THE IGNITION RESISTANT CONSTRUCTION.

'CAUSE WE KNOW THAT'S THE PRIMARY WAY WE PREVENT STRUCTURAL LOSS DOWN THE ROAD.

AND, AND AGAIN, UH, APPRECIATE THAT.

AND, UH, I, I REALLY THINK, AGAIN, MOVING FORWARD AS WE AMEND OUR, UH, WILDFIRE REGULATIONS, UH, WE JUST HAVE TO, UH, UNDERSTAND THE AFFORDABILITY IMPACTS.

I WOULD JUST ASK, YOU KNOW, BOTH, YOU KNOW, THE, WHAT, WHAT I WOULD ALSO ADD IS THAT AS WE GO THROUGH THE CODE ADOPTION PROCESS, WHEREAS WHERE, WHERE THESE CHANGES WOULD, WOULD HAPPEN IS THAT WE DO AFFORDABILITY IMPACT STATEMENTS, AND WE DO ALL THE THINGS THAT WE DO WITH CODE ADOPTION, AND WE HAVE BRING EVERYBODY TO THE TABLE AND WE TALK ABOUT THESE THINGS.

AND SO IT'S AN ENTIRE PROCESS.

IT'S NOT, THIS DOCUMENT DOESN'T DO ANYTHING DIFFERENT THAN THAT OTHER THAN GIVE US SOME GUIDANCE WHEN WE'RE WORKING THROUGH OUR CODE PROCESS IN THE FUTURE, WHICH WILL INCLUDE ADDRESSING ALL OF THE ITEMS AND ALL OF THE CONCERNS YOU HAVE.

MM-HMM .

NOW, AGAIN, UH, UM, I, I, I, UH, AGREE AND JUST WANT TO BE VERY CONSCIOUS.

I, I KNOW WE HAD A, A SIMILAR, AND THIS WAS A WHILE BACK, HONESTLY, I THINK BEFORE MY TIME ON COUNCIL, BUT WITH REGARD TO, UM, ENERGY EFFICIENCY, AND THERE HAD BEEN A HANDFUL OF VERY, I THINK WELL-MEANING, WELL-INTENDED, UH, UH, REGULATIONS THAT HAVE COME FORWARD.

THERE WAS A, THE, THE VISIBILITY ORDINANCE, I REMEMBER THERE WAS, UH, THE, SOME ENERGY IMPACTS WHERE, UH, THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT, UH, UH, IN COST IMPACTS FOR ADOPTING THOSE.

AND AGAIN, NOT, UH, I THINK THEY'RE, THEY'RE GREAT IDEAS, BUT WE JUST HAVE TO BE CONSCIOUS OF, OF THE, UH, AFFORDABILITY IMPACTS, ESPECIALLY NOW THAT WE'VE MANAGED TO, TO KIND OF RATCHET DOWN SOME OF THE, THE EXTREMELY HIGH HOME PRICES.

UH, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, UH, VERY CONSCIOUS OF THE AFFORDABILITY.

BUT THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CHIEF.

THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TIM.

COUNCIL MEMBER LANG.

THANK YOU.

UM, FIRST OF ALL, I WANNA THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK ON THIS, AND I REALLY DO SEE, UM, I UNDERSTAND IT'S A LIVING DOCUMENT AND I REALLY DO SEE THE PROGRESS, UM, OVER TIME IN IT, AND SO

[00:30:01]

UM, I HAVE A COUPLE OF SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.

UM, ON PAGE FIVE, YOU TALK ABOUT SHADED FUEL BREAKS, AND I'M JUST WONDERING IF I COULD UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT BETTER THE CRITERIA FOR WHERE WE ARE GONNA IMPLEMENT WORK TOWARDS IMPLEMENTING FUEL BREAKS VERSUS NOT.

I'M GONNA HAVE OUR WILDFIRE DIVISION CHIEF SC ON COME UP AND TALK ABOUT SHADE OF FUEL BREAKS.

OKAY.

SO, UH, UH, DAVID SAURON, UH, INTERIM ASSISTANT CHIEF OVER SPECIALTY BRANCH, AUSTIN FIRE, UM, SHADED FUEL BREAKS.

SO AS FAR AS THE CRITERIA ON THAT, WE RELIED ON OUR, UM, LAND MANAGEMENT PARTNERS, SO AUSTIN WATER, AUSTIN PARKS AND REC AUSTIN ENERGY, WHO ACTUALLY COMPLETE THOSE PROJECTS.

UM, SO WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE, UH, THE, ONE OF THE MAJOR BENEFITS, UH, IN MY MIND AT LEAST OF THE CWPP IS IT TALKS ABOUT, UH, THE RECOMMENDATIONS AS FAR AS COORDINATING, UH, WORKING WITH THE AUSTIN, UM, TRAVIS COUNTY COALITION ON WILDFIRE, OR, SORRY, WILDFIRE COALITION IS COORDINATING ALL OF THAT WORK.

UM, AND SO GETTING OUR LAND MANAGEMENT PARTNERS IN THE ROOM, UM, WORKING TOGETHER SO THAT WE HAVE A, A, LIKE A COMPREHENSIVE, UM, PLAN WHERE THE SHADED FUEL BREAKS ARE ACTUALLY WORKING TOGETHER, UM, VERSUS EACH INDEPENDENT ENTITY KIND OF DOING THEIR OWN THING TO MANAGE THEIR LAND.

WE, WE CAN LOOK AT IT FROM A, FROM A WHOLE, UM, COUNTYWIDE PERSPECTIVE.

OKAY.

UM, IF I CAN DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO THE MAP ON PAGE EIGHT AND WHERE WE SEE THIS BOUNDARY BETWEEN DISTRICT SIX AND 10, UM, WHICH IS DARKER RED THAN CERTAINLY ANYTHING ELSE IN DISTRICT SIX AND, AND MUCH OF WHAT WE SEE INSIDE OF CITY LIMITS, IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THAT BOUNDARY, UM, IS FOLLOWING THE CANYON ALONG BULL CREEK, UM, AN AREA IN WHICH THE CITY OF AUSTIN IS A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT LANDOWNER, LARGELY UNDER WILD LANDS AND THEREFORE UNDER AUSTIN WATER, UM, AS YOU JUST DESCRIBED.

BUT AN ISSUE HERE IS THAT WE REALLY DO HAVE A LOT OF HOMES THAT ARE, THAT ARE WITHIN THAT AREA.

AND THEN WE HAVE A LOT OF AUSTIN OWNED LAND AS WELL.

AND WHILE THERE HAVE BEEN, UM, SOME CONTRACTS THAT WE'VE SEEN THAT HAVE LOOKED AT THOSE WILD LAND AREAS, I HAVEN'T SEEN THEM LOOK IN THIS PART OF THE WILDLANDS AREA.

AND WHILE WE HAVE DONE SURVEYS OF PART, THE EXTENT TO WHICH OUR PARKS OWNED PROPERTIES PARCELS ARE, UM, HAVE BEEN HARDENED AGAINST FIRE, THOSE ARE REALLY SMALL PIECES SURROUNDED BY THIS WILDLANDS AND WITH HOMES DIRECTLY LIKE FORMING, FORMING THAT BOUNDARY.

AND SO, I, I SAY ALL THAT TO SAY THAT, UM, I HOPE THAT THE NEXT TIME WE COME AROUND TO THIS PRESENTATION, I'D LOVE TO SEE A LITTLE BIT MORE FLUSHING OUT OF HOW WE ARE WORKING WITH WATER AND WILD LINES AND OTHER CITY OWNED PROPERTY BESIDES JUST THE PARK, THE PART OWNED PARCELS, AND, UM, AND HAVE SOME EXPLANATION OF THAT IN THE NEXT BRIEFING THAT WE GET.

I LOVE TO SEE THAT, UH, I APPRECIATE THE CONCERN AND, AND THE, THE QUESTION, SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I REALLY, UM, AM, AM EXCITED ABOUT WITH THE CWPP AND, AND ALL THE WORK BEING DONE ON IS THAT PROJECT TRACKING, UM, PIECE ON IT.

AND SO I'M, I'M, UH, LOOKING VERY FORWARD TO HAVING VERY COMPREHENSIVE TRACKING OF NOT ONLY WHAT WE'RE DOING, BUT ALSO WHAT THE COUNTY PARTNERS ARE DOING, UM, AND TO BE ABLE TO PAINT THAT ENTIRE BIG PICTURE OF HOW WE'RE MITIGATING WILDFIRE RISK COUNTYWIDE.

SO, UM, UH, I LOOK FORWARD TO PROVIDING THAT, THAT INFORMATION ON OUR NEXT BRIEFING FOR SURE.

THANK YOU.

UM, AND SPEAKING OF ALONG SOME OF THOSE LINES, LIKE ONE OF THE GAPS THAT WAS IDENTIFIED WAS HOMEOWNER UPTAKE OF THE SIZE INSPECTIONS, AND, UM, DO YOU THINK IT'S REALISTIC THAT WITHIN THE NEXT YEAR WE'LL START TO SEE SOME VISUALIZATION OF WHERE THOSE GAPS ARE? UM, I DO, UH, MM-HMM .

SO WE'RE, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT WE'RE CERTAINLY, UH, LOOKING AT WITHIN THE WILDFIRE DIVISION WITH AUSTIN FIRE.

AND THEN, UH, YOU KNOW, AS, UH, CHRIS GRAVES TALKED ABOUT, UM, GETTING THESE TASK GROUPS UP AND RUNNING WITH, UH, THE, UH, WILDFIRE COALITION, UH, THAT IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT WE REALLY WANT TO WANT TO, UM, UH, STRENGTHEN IS OUR TRACKING OF THAT WORK BEING DONE.

SO I, I'M, LIKE I SAID, I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO, WITH THE TOOLS THAT WE HAVE WITH THE CWPP, UM, BEING ABLE TO PRESENT THAT INFORMATION IN A COMPREHENSIVE, UH, THIS IS ALL OF THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE BY BOTH, UH, AUSTIN FIRE, AUSTIN WATER,

[00:35:01]

SO I, I, I DO THINK WE'VE, WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO, TO PROVIDE A MUCH BETTER PICTURE OF ALL THE WILDFIRE MITIGATION RISKS WORK THAT'S BEING DONE WITHIN THE COUNTY.

VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THAT.

AND I KNOW THAT, I UNDERSTAND THE WORK HAS BEGUN ALREADY AND, AND I APPRECIATE THAT.

UM, ANOTHER THING THAT I'LL NOTE ON PAGE EIGHT IS THINK IN A PREVIOUS PRESENTATION, WILL, THE WILLIAMSON COUNTY AREA WAS BLACKED OUT, AND NOW I'M SEEING DATA THERE.

LOVE THAT.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

UM, WHEN I TURN TO PAGE 18, 17 16, PAGE 16 IS THE LIST OF PARTNERS.

UM, AND YOU'VE MENTIONED SOME OF THE PARTNERS WHILE WE WERE TALKING JUST NOW.

UM, CAN YOU HELP ME, WILLIAMSON COUNTY IS SEVEN, SEVEN AND A HALF PERCENT OF THE CITY.

CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THE EXTENT TO WHICH THEY ARE AT THE TABLE AS A PARTNER CURRENTLY, AND IF NOT FULLY, WHERE WE'RE GOING WITH THAT? CHRIS, CHRIS GRAY, MC, CLASSON EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, I CAN SPEAK TO THAT IN THAT WE, UH, WITHIN OUR DISTRIBUTION LIST, WE ARE, UH, COMMUNICATING WITH, UH, THE FOLKS IN WILLIAMSON COUNTIES, PARTICULARLY WITH JOLLYVILLE, UH, THE CEDARVILLE OVERLAY THERE AND, UH, LEANDER OVERLAY IN THOSE AREAS.

SO WE ARE COMMUNICATING WITH THEM.

THEIR PARTICIPATION, AGAIN, IS, IS VOLUNTARY, UH, SO, YOU KNOW, THEY ARE WELCOME TO THE TABLE.

WE APPRECIATE THEIR INPUT AND OKAY.

I THANK YOU.

UM, AGAIN, HAPPY TO HEAR ABOUT THE PROGRESS IN THAT DIRECTION.

UM, I'M WONDERING ABOUT LARGE PRIVATE LANDOWNERS, UM, SORRY, SORRY TO KEEP FLIPPING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THOSE TWO PAGES, THE MAP ON PAGE EIGHT.

UM, ROBINSON RANCH IS A, IS A HUGE LANDOWNER.

IT IS A GRASSY AREA.

IT'S NOT POPPING UP IN HERE AS A PARTICULARLY SIGNIFICANT CONCERN, WHICH IS GREAT.

UM, BUT I ALSO HEARD WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT THE PROPENSITY FOR THESE FIRES TO SPREAD QUICKLY ACROSS GRASSLANDS.

AND, UM, ALSO NOTED WHERE IT REALLY GETS DARK RED IN THE SOUTHEAST AND THE NORTHEAST IS WHERE IT TRANSITIONS INTO COUNTY LAND, WHERE WE HAVE THESE LARGE, OFTEN PRIVATE LANDOWNERS.

AND SO TO WHAT EXTENT HAVE YOU ENGAGED WITH THE LARGEST LANDOWNERS OF GRASSLANDS? UM, ARE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT THAT? NOT CONCERNED ABOUT IT? SO WE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT IT, UM, AND WE HAVE, UH, THE WILDFIRE DIVISION HAS TRIED TO REACH OUT TO VARIOUS DIFFERENT, UM, LANDOWNERS AND WE'VE HAD VARYING DEGREES OF SUCCESS.

UM, BUT AS YOU'RE AWARE, COUNCIL MEMBER, AND, AND YOU KNOW, WE'VE, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS AT, AT LENGTH, UM, WE CAN ONLY MAKE LIMITED INROADS WITH, UM, PRIVATE LANDOWNERS AND, AND WE, AND WE DO OUR BEST TO REACH OUT TO THEM WHERE WE CAN, UM, AND PROVIDE EDUCATION AND, AND RECOMMENDATIONS AND SO FORTH.

BUT, UH, IT, IT'S A LARGE PART OF WHY THE WILDFIRE DIVISION AND OUR, OUR COUNTY PARTNERS FOCUS, A LOT OF OUR EFFORTS ON THAT HARM HOME HARDENING, AND WE TALK ABOUT THE WY CODE.

AND SO WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT IS THAT, UM, PRIVATE LANDOWNERS, UH, WHILE THAT THAT FUELS MITIGATION RISK IS, IS SUPER IMPORTANT, UM, THAT'S ONLY ONE PIECE OF THE PUZZLE AND THE SCIENCE TALKS OR REALLY SPEAKS TO THAT HOME HARDENING AS BEING, UM, THE MOST, UH, BANG FOR THE BUCK, SO TO SPEAK.

SO THAT'S WHY THAT, THAT TENDS TO BE, AS YOU KNOW, AS YOU'RE AWARE, MOST OF OUR, OUR MESSAGE AND, AND WHERE, WHERE WE FIND, UM, CERTAINLY THE MOST, UH, RETURN ON INVESTMENT IN TERMS OF OUR OUTREACH, UH, MESSAGING IS, IS GETTING THAT HOME HARDENING PIECE IN MM-HMM .

AND SO THAT, THAT'S TYPICALLY WHERE WE FOCUS OUR EFFORTS IS OKAY.

I GUESS WHAT I'M THINKING IN TERMS OF WE'VE GOT THE HOME HARDENING MESSAGING, BUT THEN ALSO GRASS OR OTHER VEGETATION MANAGEMENT BEST PRACTICES MIGHT, MIGHT ALSO BE A USEFUL COMPONENT.

ABSOLUTELY.

AND, AND WE DO HAVE, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR FUELS, UH, SORRY, OUR FIRE RESILIENT LANDSCAPES TEAM DOES DO THAT OUTREACH WORK.

UM, I CAN'T SPEAK, UH, TO DETAIL SPECIFICALLY AS FAR AS WHO, WHO THEY'VE REACHED OUT TO MOST RECENTLY, BUT, BUT WE DO REACH OUT TO THOSE, THOSE PARTNERS AND, UM, WE DO HAVE EFFORTS WORKING ON THAT SORT OF THING FOR, FOR THAT FUELS MITIGATION WORK.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

I APPRECIATE, UH, I, YOU HAVE REALLY A CHALLENGE GOING ACROSS ALL THESE DIFFERENT JURISDICTIONS AND OWNERSHIP SITUATIONS AND ALL, AND I APPRECIATE THE WORK YOU'VE DONE TO MOVE FORWARD, ESPECIALLY AT THE BOUNDARIES OF OUR CITY.

THANK YOU.

THANKS, THANK YOU.

COUNCIL MEMBER, UM, THOSE ARE ALL THE COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT I THINK YOU WANNA SPEAK ON THIS ITEM.

UM, THANK YOU ALL VERY, VERY MUCH.

MANAGER, YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING? GOOD DEAL.

WE REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK YOU'RE DOING.

THANK YOU ALL.

THAT WILL TAKE US TO OUR NEXT AGENDA

[B2. A briefing on the state of Austin Capital Delivery Services [Adriana Castaneda, Director; Genest Landry, Assistant Director; Marcus Hammer, Assistant Director - Austin Capital Delivery Services].]

THANK YOU, MAYOR.

UH, AND TODAY'S, UH,

[00:40:01]

TURN IT OVER TO YOU, ADRIANA.

WELCOME.

OKAY, SO GOOD MORNING MAYOR AND CITY COUNCILS.

MR. CITY MANAGER ARIANA CASTANEDA, CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES DIRECTOR, AND THIS MORNING, UH, WITH ME IS JANE LANDRY AND MARCUS HAMMER ARE ASSISTANT DIRECTORS WITHIN CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES.

FOR TODAY'S PRESENTATION, IT IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO PROVIDE YOU WITH AN UPDATE ON THE STATE OF AUSTIN CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES.

WITH OUR PURPOSE, ACCOMPLISHMENTS, AND PATH FORWARD, THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO REINTRODUCE THE DEPARTMENT, AND I WANT TO START BY GROUNDING US BY DEFINING WHO WE ARE, WHAT WE DO, AND WHY OUR WORK MATTERS.

CAPITAL DELIVERY SERVICES IS RESPONSIBLE FOR TURNING THE CITY'S CAPITAL INVESTMENT INTO PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE THAT AUSTIN RESIDENTS, BUSINESSES, AND VISITORS RELY ON EVERY DAY FROM PLANNING AND DESIGN.

THROUGH CONSTRUCTION AND INSPECTION, OUR TEAM WORKS ACROSS THE FULL PROJECT LIFECYCLE TO DELIVER SAFE, HIGH QUALITY AND SUSTAINABLE PUBLIC PROJECTS FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT CDS DO NOT, DOES NOT DELIVER THESE PROJECTS ALONE.

OUR SUCCESS DEPENDS ON HOW WELL WE WORK AS ONE CITY AND ONE TEAM WITH OUR COMMUNITY, CITY DEPARTMENTS, CONSULTANTS, CONTRACTORS, AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS, THAT COLLABORATION IS WHAT ALLOWS US TO NAVIGATE COMPLEXITY, SOLVE PROBLEMS, AND ULTIMATELY DELIVER BETTER OUTCOMES FOR AUSTIN.

TODAY I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE A STEP BACK AND LOOK AT CTS TWO THREE LENSES, WHERE WE ARE TODAY, WHAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED, AND WE WHERE WE ARE HEADED NEXT.

THIS IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ALLOW TO RECOGNIZE THE WORK OUR TEAM HAS DELIVERED, BUT ALSO TO REAFFIRM OUR COMMITMENT TO IMPROVING WHO WE, HOW WE DELIVER CAPITAL PROJECTS BY BEING MORE STRATEGIC, TRANSPARENT, COLLABORATIVE, AND MORE RESPONSIVE TO THE NEEDS OF OUR GROWING CITY.

WITH THAT SET US A FOUNDATION, JANA LANDRY WILL WALK US THROUGH A CLOSER LOOK AT WHAT CDS DOES AND THE ROLE WE PLAY IN DELIVERING FOR AUSTIN.

THANK YOU, ADRIANA.

BUILDING ON WHAT ADRIANA JUST SHARED.

AT CDS, WE ACCOMPLISH OUR WORK THROUGH THREE CORE RESPONSIBILITIES.

THE FIRST IS PROJECT MANAGEMENT.

THIS IS WHERE OUR TEAMS DO THE HANDS-ON WORK OF MOVING THE CITY'S CAPITAL PROJECTS FROM PLANNING AND DESIGN THROUGH CONSTRUCTION AND CLOSEOUT.

OUR PROJECT TEAMS COORDINATE ACROSS DEPARTMENTS, CONSULTANTS, CONTRACTORS, AND STAKEHOLDERS TO KEEP THESE PROJECTS MOVING.

THE SECOND IS DELIVERY SUPPORT.

THIS IS WHERE WE CREATE STANDARDS, PROCESSES, AND GOVERNANCE THAT DRIVES CONSISTENCY CITYWIDE.

WE REINFORCE THIS THROUGH OUR COMPREHENSIVE PROCEDURES MANUAL AND A ROBUST TRAINING PROGRAM THAT KEEPS OUR TEAMS ALIGNED AND READY TO EXECUTE.

AND THE THIRD IS PROJECT CONTROLS.

THIS IS WHERE WE INDEPENDENTLY MEASURE AND TRANSPARENTLY REPORT OUT ON PROJECT PERFORMANCE SO THAT WE HAVE RELIABLE INFORMATION ON SCOPE, SCHEDULE, COST, AND RISKS, AND CAN IDENTIFY PROJECT ISSUES EARLY ENOUGH TO ACT ON THEM.

YOU'VE SEEN THIS THROUGH OUR BOND DASHBOARD AND OUR QUARTERLY REPORTS.

SO IN SIMPLE TERMS, WE DELIVER PROJECTS, WE ESTABLISH THE FRAMEWORK FOR HOW THEY'RE DELIVERED AND WE MEASURE HOW THEY'RE PERFORMING.

THE VALUE OF HAVING THOSE FUNCTIONS TOGETHER IN ONE DEPARTMENT IS THAT IT CREATES STRONGER ACCOUNTABILITY AND EARLIER VISIBILITY INTO PROJECT ISSUES.

AT CDS, WE SEE OURSELVES AS EXPERTS IN NAVIGATING THE CITY'S PROCESSES TO TURN A PROJECT FROM A CONCEPT IN A SPONSORING DEPARTMENT'S CAPITAL PLAN INTO A COMPLETED PUBLIC ASSET.

SO WE START BY SERVING AS THE OWNER'S REPRESENTATIVE DURING DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION, ALLOWING OUR SPONSORING DEPARTMENTS TO FOCUS ON MANAGING THEIR ASSETS AND PROVIDING SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY.

PROVID, OUR PROJECT MANAGERS BRING TECHNICAL AND DELIVERY EXPERTISE NEEDED TO NAVIGATE COMPLEX CITY PROCESSES AND THEY'RE SUPPORTED BY OUR CONSTRUCTION INSPECTORS WHO SERVE AS THE CITY'S EYES AND EARS IN THE FIELD, MAKING SURE PROJECTS ARE BUILT SAFELY ACCORDING TO PLANS AND SPECS, AND THAT WE ONLY PAY FOR WORK COMPLETED.

CDS ALSO PROVIDES CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENT PROCESSING FOR THE CITY'S ENTIRE CAPITAL PROGRAM.

WE ALSO HAVE IN-HOUSE ENGINEERING AND SURVEYING EXPERTISE ALONG WITH QUALITY ASSURANCE SERVICES THAT HELP IDENTIFY ISSUES BEFORE THEY BECOME COSTLY CONSTRUCTION CHANGES.

AND WE SUPPORT EARLY PROJECT PLANNING, PERMITTING

[00:45:01]

SO THE COMMON THREAD AMONG ALL THESE SERVICES IS THAT CDS BRINGS THE EXPERTISE AND COORDINATION NEEDED TO NAVIGATE COMPLEX DELIVERY ENVIRONMENTS AND TURN CAPITAL PLANS INTO COMPLETED PUBLIC ASSETS.

CDS MANAGES AN EXCEPTIONALLY LARGE AND COMPLEX PORTFOLIO, 467 PROJECTS WITH A COMBINED BUDGET OF $10 BILLION.

OUR LARGEST PARTNER IS AUSTIN WATER, WHERE WE DELIVER A VARIETY OF PROJECTS FROM TREATMENT PLANT UPGRADES TO WATER WASTE, WATER PIPELINE RENEWALS, AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN.

OUR NEXT LARGEST PARTNER IS TPW, WHERE WE DELIVER ROAD TRAIL AND BRIDGE PROJECTS THAT KEEP AUSTINITES MOVING.

WE ALSO SUPPORT WATERSHED PROTECTION ON 64 PROJECTS THAT KEEP STREAMS HEALTHY AND REDUCE FLOOD RISK.

WHAT'S IMPORTANT HERE IS THE SCALE AND THE DIVERSITY OF THE PORTFOLIO.

WE'RE DELIVERING ACROSS 17 DEPARTMENTS FROM QUI CRITICAL UTILITY PLANTS TO ROADS, BRIDGES, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND COMMUNITY FACILITIES.

SINCE OUR INCEPTION IN 2023, CDS HAS MADE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS DELIVERING THE CAPITAL PROGRAM.

CDS HAS ADVANCED IN THAT TIME 225 PROJECTS INTO CONSTRUCTION AND COMPLETED CONSTRUCTION ON 233.

OVER THAT SAME PERIOD, WE'VE SPENT $2.3 BILLION IN CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUNDS.

THAT'S A SUBSTANTIAL INVESTMENT IN AUSTIN'S INFRASTRUCTURE.

THE PHOTO HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF THAT INVESTMENT AND IT'S FROM THE RIBBON CUTTING FOR THE BREAKER LANE EXTENSION PROJECT, WHICH WE DELIVERED WITH TPW.

THIS PROJECT CREATED A NEW ROADWAY CONNECTION WITH SIDEWALKS, BICYCLE FACILITIES, AND SAFER CROSSINGS NEAR PIONEER CROSSING ELEMENTARY AND REQUIRED CLOSE COORDINATION WITH PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT SO THAT BOTH THE DEVELOPMENT AND THE ROADWAY COULD OPEN CONCURRENTLY.

IT'S A GREAT EXAMPLE OF PUBLIC PRIVATE COORDINATION THAT CDS MANAGES EVERY DAY AND DELIVERING MEANINGFUL IMPROVEMENTS FOR OUR COMMUNITY.

SO THIS SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS A FEW OF THE PROJECTS THAT CDS HAS RECENTLY DELIVERED ACROSS THE CITY.

STARTING AT THE TOP LEFT IS THE MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER, WHICH WAS AN EXPANSION AND RENOVATION PROJECT, AND WAS COMPLETED IN FEBRUARY OF THIS YEAR.

THE LITTLE WALNUT CREEK FLOOD RISK REDUCTION PROJECT WAS COMPLETED IN MARCH AND REDUCED FLOOD RISK TO HOMES AND ROADWAYS BETWEEN METRIC BOULEVARD AND RUTLAND DRIVE IN NORTH AUSTIN.

THE DOVE SPRINGS PUBLIC HEALTH CENTER WAS COMPLETED IN 2024 AND PROVIDED A NEW COMMUNITY HEALTH FACILITY IN SOUTHEAST AUSTIN.

THE ROY G. GUERRERO PARKS CHANNEL STABILIZATION PROJECT ADDRESSED SIGNIFICANT EROSION AND FLOODING ALONG COUNTRY CLUB CREEK.

THIS PROJECT WAS THE LARGEST EROSION CONTROL EFFORT IN AUSTIN'S HISTORY AND RECEIVED A 2025 TEXAS A PWA PROJECT OF THE YEAR AWARD.

THE WALLER CREEK CONFLUENCE PROJECT WAS DESIGNED AND CONSTRUCTED IN COLLABORATION WITH THE WATERLOO.

GREENWAY CDS MANAGED THE PROJECT IN CONSTRUCTION, UM, THROUGH CONSTRUCTION COMPLETION IN EARLY 2026.

AND FINALLY, THE WISHBONE BRIDGE REACHED SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION AT THE END OF 2025.

IT WAS RECENTLY RECOGNIZED AS A 2026 ROADS AND BRIDGES TOP 10 HONOREE AND HAS RECEIVED NATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR ITS DESIGN AND DELIVERY.

THIS SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS A FEW PROJECTS AMONG THE 3.5 BILLION THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE.

IN CONSTRUCTION, SLAUGHTER LANE IS ADDING ROADWAY CAPACITY, BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN IMPROVEMENTS, AND DRAINAGE AND WATER QUALITY IMPROVEMENTS BETWEEN BRODY AND MOPAC.

CONSTRUCTION IS EXPECTED TO BE COMPLETE IN 2027.

OLDLAND PASSES DAM INCLUDES THE REPLACEMENT OF THE SPILLWAY AND IMPROVEMENTS TO A DOWNSTREAM CHANNEL AND A SCHEDULE FOR COMPLETION IN EARLY 27.

THE COUNTRY CLUB CREEK TRAIL FEELS AN IMPORTANT TRAIL GAP BETWEEN TWF AND ELMONT DRIVE, WHILE ALSO PROVIDING SIGNIFICANT CHANNEL STABILIZATION IMPROVEMENTS.

IT'S EXPECTED TO REACH SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION EARLY NEXT YEAR.

THE MCNEIL DRIVE WATER TRANSMISSION MAIN IS CONSTRUCTING A 72 INCH TRANSMISSION MAIN TO INCREASE CAPACITY FROM THE HANCOCKS WATER TREATMENT.

PLANT.

CONSTRUCTION IS SCHEDULED TO END IN EARLY 2028 AT THE CONVENTION CENTER.

MASS EXCAVATION IS COMPLETE AND FOUNDATION WORK IS UNDERWAY.

STRUCTURAL STEEL IS ARRIVING ON THE SITE DAILY.

THE PROJECT TEAM REMAINS ON TRACK FOR SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION BY THE END OF 28, AND AN OPENING BEFORE SO BY SOUTHWEST IN 29.

AND FINALLY, THE WALNUT CREEK WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT EXPANSION IS A MAJOR MULTI-PHASE CAPACITY AND REHABILITATION PROJECT BEING DELIVERED THROUGH EIGHT

[00:50:01]

NOW I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MARCUS HAMMER, WHO WILL DISCUSS SOME KEY INITIATIVES THAT CDS IS CURRENTLY WORKING ON.