Aug 19, 2020 Audit and Finance Committee

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OF THE AUDIT AND

[CALL TO ORDER]

I'M JOINED BY MY COLLEAGUES ON THE COMMITTEE, COUNCIL MEMBERS, TOVO FLANAGAN AND POOL.

UM, I DO NOT YET SEE THE MAYOR AND WE MAY ALSO BE JOINED A LITTLE BIT LATER BY ONE OR MORE OF OUR COLLEAGUES, BUT I DO NOT SEE THEM ON AS OF NOW.

UM, I UNDERSTAND WE DO NOT HAVE ANY CITIZEN COMMUNICATIONS THIS MORNING, SO WE WILL MOVE INTO THE AGENDA.

I'M GOING TO TAKE UP ITEMS IN THE FOLLOWING ORDER, WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT MIXED UP FROM THE AGENDA.

I APOLOGIZE FOR THAT.

THEY'RE GOING TO TAKE UP THE MINUTES FROM THE THREE MEETINGS FIRST, THEN WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO WHAT IS ON THE AGENDA, ITEM FIVE, THE LOBBYIST PRESENTATION, SO THAT THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, UM, CAN MOVE ON WITH THEIR DAY.

UM, AND THEN WE ARE GOING TO TAKE UP THE CULTURAL CENTERS, OVERVIEW ITEM TWO, THEN A MILLENNIUM YOUTH CENTER AS ITEM FOUR AND MEXICO CARTHAY CONTRACTING ITEMS THREE WILL BE OUR LAST ITEM.

AND FOR EACH OF THOSE, WE WILL HEAR THE PRESENTATION AND TAKE QUESTIONS, UM, IN ORDER FOR THAT.

UM, SO

[1. Approve the minutes of the Audit and Finance Committee Meeting of May 27, 2020, Special Called Meetings on June 3, 2020 and June 10, 2020.]

UM, SO IT NOW READS THAT THE MOTION TO SUPPORT STAFF PRELIMINARY PLAN TO ADDRESS PENSION LIABILITIES WAS MADE ON COUNCIL MEMBER POOL'S MOTION FLANAGAN.

SECOND ON A FIVE ZERO VOTE.

I'D LIKE TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES.

COUNCIL MEMBER POOL, MOVE TO APPROVE THE MINUTES, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER FLANAGAN.

UM, ANYONE OBJECTING HEARING THOSE MINUTES ARE APPROVED.

THAT WAS NOT AN OBJECTION.

RIGHT? COUNCIL MEMBER TOBA.

THAT WAS A VOTING FAVOR.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

[5. City Attorney’s Annual Report regarding enforcement of Lobbyist Regulations, Chapter 4-8 of the City Code. (Law Department)]

UM, I PROVIDED NOT, IT'S NOT REALLY CRUCIAL, BUT I PROVIDED SOME BACKUP DOCUMENT.

I DON'T KNOW.

CTM CAN PUT THAT UP.

UM, YEAH, THIS ISN'T HI, THIS IS CTM.

YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A PDF.

YES.

OKAY.

COMING UP AND WHILE, AND WHILE WE'RE WAITING FOR THAT, I JUST WANT TO THAT, UH, MAYOR ADLER HAS JOINED US.

GOOD MORNING, STEVE.

SO, UM, THIS REPORT DATED AUGUST 17 OF 2020 IS FOR THE LAST TWO QUARTERS.

THE, BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC, THE, UH, DEADLINE FOR LOBBYISTS TO FILE FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2020 WAS EXTENDED TO MAY 30TH OF 2020.

UM, SO MAINLY OVER THE PAST YEAR, LOBBYISTS APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN, UH, COMPLIANT WITH THEIR FILINGS, YOU KNOW, FROM THE, FROM WHAT WE CAN TELL, UM, THE TOTAL REGISTRANT'S HAS NOT CHANGED MUCH, UM, BETWEEN, UM, 101 TO 110 OVER THE PAST YEAR, WE'VE HAD BUSINESS ENTITY REGISTRANTS RANGE FROM 14 TO 17, THAT'S BEEN FAIRLY CONSISTENT.

UM, THE MOST RECENT QUARTERLY REPORT THAT WAS DUE JULY 10TH, WE HAD EIGHT LOBBYISTS THAT DID NOT FILE TIMELY.

AND I AM NOT SURE WHY THAT IS OTHER THAN THEY ASSUME SINCE THEY'VE FILED MAY 30TH, MAYBE THERE WAS ANOTHER EXTENDED DEADLINE, BUT, UM, ALL FILED BY JUNE 2ND.

SO AS SOON AS THEY, SHORTLY AFTER THEY WERE NOTIFIED, UM, THEY PROMPTLY FOLLOWED THEIR REPORTS, UM, ANNUAL REGISTRATION FEES.

UH, ONCE THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE GETS ELECTRONIC FILING ON TIME THAT THIS ANY ISSUE WITH LATE PAYMENT OF ANNUAL REGISTRATION FEE SHOULD BE RESOLVED BECAUSE LOBBYISTS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO FILE A REPORT WITHOUT PAYING ALL THESE DO.

BUT UNDER THE SYSTEM THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE, UM, THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE ALLOWS A LOBBYISTS TO PAY THE REGISTRATION FEE.

FOR EXAMPLE, IF IT'S DUE IN JANUARY, AS LONG AS THEY PAID IT BY MAY 30TH, WHEN THEIR REPORT WAS DUE,

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SO WE HAD ONE LOBBYISTS THAT HAD NOT PAID REGISTRATION FEES AS A JANUARY.

THAT LOBBYIST IS WITH, UH, AN EMPLOYER.

UM, AND I LEARNED ON FRIDAY AFTER SENDING, UM, A NOTICE THAT BOUNCED BACK BY EMAIL CONTACTED THAT LOBBYIST BY LINKEDIN.

HE SAID, HE'S NO LONGER EMPLOYED WITH THAT EMPLOYER, BUT WILL ENSURE THAT THE EMPLOYER PAYS THE REGISTRATION FEE.

SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO FOLLOW UP ON THAT.

UM, WE ALSO HAD ONE LOBBYIST, UM, THAT DOES BROOKE'S OFFICE LEARNED AND DISCOVERED IT IN EARLY AUGUST THAT HE HAD NOT BEEN REPORTING CLIENT COMPENSATION.

HE HAS WAY HE FILLED IT OUT.

WAS I DECLINED, REFUSED TO REPORT.

MY COMPENSATION IS BELOW THE REQUIRED THRESHOLD.

AND THE WAY THE FORM APPEARS, IF YOU DON'T CLICK ON THE CATEGORIES, IT, IT SAYS, IF YOUR COMPENSATION IS 500,000 OR ABOVE, YOU HAVE TO DISCLOSE THE EXACT AMOUNT.

SO, UM, I ASSUME THE EXPLANATION IS THAT THERE WAS CONFUSION OVER THAT, BUT, UM, THERE WAS A PROMPT REPLY TO MY, UM, LETTER THAT THE AMENDED REPORTS WOULD BE FILED.

THOSE WERE FILED YESTERDAY.

UM, SO, UM, I'M ASSUMING THAT CLIENT COMPENSATION WAS THEN REPORTED.

UM, BUT IT'S NOT POSTED YET.

UM, JUST CHECK BEFORE THIS MEETING.

SO HOPEFULLY THAT ISSUE IS CORRECTED, BUT THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE WILL FOLLOW UP WITH THE AUDIT AND FINANCE COMMITTEE, IF THAT HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED WITH THOSE, UM, THREE NEW QUARTERLY REPORT FILINGS.

UM, SO IF THEY'RE, UM, LATE FEES, THERE ARE NO OUTSTANDING LATE FEES AT THIS TIME.

UM, THAT IS PRETTY MUCH IT FOR, FOR THE ANNUAL REPORT.

IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU, MS. CARTER, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS SEEING AS THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS? UM, THANK YOU, MS. CARTER FOR THAT BRIEFING.

UM, WE DO NOT NEED TO TAKE ANY ACTION ON THAT.

ITEM IS MY UNDERSTANDING.

IT'S JUST, WE NEED TO HEAR THAT ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.

SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH MS. CARTER COUNCIL MEMBER POOL.

THANKS CHAIR.

I JUST GOT A NOTE THAT IT DOESN'T SEEM THAT OUR MEETING IS COMING OUT OF OUR ATX SEN, BUT MAYBE SOMEONE IN CTN CAN CHECK THAT OUT.

FALLS ARE AB GUYS.

I'M HAPPY TO LOOK INTO THAT IF YOU GIVE ME ONE MINUTE.

OKAY.

THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER POOL.

YEAH.

YOU BET.

I THINK IT'S ON ACX AND TO A POSSIBLE YES MA'AM SO I WILL PASS THAT, THAT CHANNEL INFO BACK OUT.

THANKS.

GREAT.

WELL, UM, THEN I THINK WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON, UM, TO THE CULTURAL CENTERS, UM, BEFORE WE GET STARTED, UM, TALKING ABOUT THE CULTURAL CENTERS, MILLENNIUM YOUTH AND MEXICO CARD FE.

UM, I JUST WANTED TO REMIND FOLKS THAT, UM, THESE AUDIT REPORTS FOLLOWED A COUNCIL RESOLUTION PUT FORWARD BY MAYOR PRO TEM GARZA, UM, AND OTHER COLLEAGUES, AND WERE PASSED UNANIMOUSLY BY THE COUNCIL.

UM, SO THAT, YOU KNOW, AS WE THINK

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SO COUNCIL HAD ALREADY IDENTIFIED A NEED FOR CHANGE, UM, WANTED MORE DETAILS TO BASE OUR FUTURE DIRECTION ON.

SO AS WE TAKE IN THE INFORMATION TODAY, I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE US TO USE THIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY, UM, FOR A RESET, WHICH I THINK WAS THE INTENTION UNDERLYING, UM, THE RESOLUTION AND ASKING THE AUDITOR, UH, TO MOVE FORWARD WITH, WITH THE WORK AND USE THIS INFORMATION, UM, CONSTRUCTIVELY, UM, TO IMPROVE THE FUNCTIONS OF THESE VARIOUS CENTERS.

UM, SO WITH THAT, I WOULD INVITE, UM, THE AUDITOR

[2. Cultural Centers audit requested through Council Resolution No. 20190619-086. (City Auditor’s Office)]

GREAT.

SO, UM, AS COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER CHAIR ALTER MENTIONED, UM, LAST YEAR YOU REQUESTED THROUGH RESOLUTION THAT WE LOOK AT, UM, VARIOUS CITY CULTURAL CENTERS TO DETERMINE IF THEY'RE OPERATING EFFECTIVELY AND SERVING THE COMMUNITY AS INTENDED.

SO WE REVIEWED SIX FACILITIES FOR THIS WORK, UM, AND OUR TEAM IS GOING TO GO THROUGH THOSE, UM, IN MORE DETAIL, BUT THESE INCLUDE, UM, THE FOUR CULTURAL CENTERS THAT ARE OWNED AND MANAGED BY THE CITY.

UM, THOSE ARE THREE MANAGED MY PART TO NAME THEM SPECIFICALLY, SORRY.

I THOUGHT I HAD THAT PIECE OF PAPER ON TOP, BUT, UM, THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER, THE, UH, EMMA ESPERANTO'S MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER AT THE GEORGE WASHINGTON, CARVER MUSEUM, CULTURAL AND GENEALOGY.

I'M GOING TO SAY MORE WORDS NOW, THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL AND HERITAGE FACILITY.

AND THEN, SO THOSE ARE ALL, UM, CITY OWNED AND OPERATED THE HERITAGE FACILITY.

THE LAST ONE I MENTIONED IS ACTUALLY, UM, OPERATED BY EDD THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

UM, AND THEN WE ALSO INCLUDED TWO BASED ON THE RESOLUTION THAT ARE, UM, HAVE KIND OF A MORE COMPLEX STRUCTURE.

SO THE MILLENNIUM YOUTH ENTERTAINMENT COMPLEX, UM, AND MEXICO CITY MUSEUM.

SO MEXICO CITY MUSEUM IS OWNED AND MANAGED BY A NONPROFIT.

UM, AND THE MILLENNIUM YOUTH ENTERTAINMENT COMPLEX IS OWNED BY THE CITY, BUT IT'S MANAGED THROUGH AN AGREEMENT.

IT GOES THROUGH A NONPROFIT COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION THAT THEN CONTRACTS OUT OPERATIONS.

SO WE'RE GOING TO TALK MORE ABOUT ALL OF THAT, BUT I JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW KIND OF THE SCOPE OF THE WORK THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY.

UM, BECAUSE OF THE SCOPE OF THE RESOLUTION AND ASKED I THINK, 17 QUESTIONS ABOUT ALL OF THESE CENTERS, UM, PLUS THE WAY THAT OUR FINDINGS FELL OUT, WE'VE ORGANIZED OUR WORK INTO THREE REPORTS, AND THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THREE ITEMS BEFORE YOU TODAY.

SO NEYHA SHARMA YOUR MANAGER.

I THINK ANYHOW IS ON, WELL, SHE'S ON THE CALL AT LEAST AUDIO.

UM, SHE MANAGED ALL OF THIS WORK.

UM, HENRY KAITUMA HE'S HERE FOR SURE.

I CAN SEE HIM.

UM, HE WAS THE OVERALL LEAD, UM, AND TYLER MEYER'S LEAD OR WAS THE KIND OF, UM, COLD LEAD ON ALL OF THESE PROJECTS.

AND HE WILL PRESENT THE FIRST AUDIT, WHICH IS THE CITY CULTURAL CENTERS AUDIT.

SO, UM, I THINK CTM, YOU HAD THAT UP EARLIER, UH, BUT IF YOU CAN PULL UP THAT PRESENTATION AND TYLER MEYERS WILL KICK US OFF.

GREAT.

I'LL JUST WAIT UNTIL IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE READY TO GO.

AS COREY MENTIONED, MY NAME IS PILAR MYERS AND I WAS ONE OF THE AUDITOR'S IN CHARGE FOR THE CITY CULTURAL CENTERS AUDIT.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

THIS REPORT COVERS THE FOUR CITY OPERATED CULTURAL CENTERS.

THREE OF THESE CENTERS ARE MANAGED BY THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT.

THEY ARE THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER, THE MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER AND THE GEORGE WASHINGTON, CARVER MUSEUM CULTURAL AND GENEALOGY CENTER.

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL AND HERITAGE FACILITY IS MANAGED BY THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

CITY COUNCIL REQUESTED THIS AUDIT THROUGH OUR RESOLUTION IN 2019.

THIS RESOLUTION INCLUDES QUESTIONS WHICH REQUIRED US TO REVIEW CITY PRACTICES, WHERE A NUMBER OF AREAS, WE THEN ORGANIZE THESE AREAS INTO DIFFERENT OBJECTIVES.

OUR WORK FOCUSED ON COLLECTING INFORMATION ABOUT CITY PRACTICES IN ORDER TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS AND THE RESOLUTION.

IN ADDITION, WE SURVEYED MEMBERS OF THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY SEEK THEIR OPINIONS ON AREAS INCLUDED IN THIS AUDIT.

WE ALSO REVIEWED GOVERNANCE STRUCTURES OF CULTURAL CITIES OR CULTURAL CENTERS, AND PEER CITIES HAS RECOVERED VARIOUS OBJECTIVES.

IN THIS AUDIT.

WE HAVE MORE FINDINGS THAN YOU GENERALLY SEE IN OUR OTHER OVERALL, WE FOUND THAT INEFFECTIVE STRATEGIC DIRECTION AND INEFFICIENT OPERATIONS THREATENED THE CITY'S ABILITY TO FURTHER CULTURAL OPPORTUNITIES.

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IN THIS PRESENTATION, WE WILL HIGHLIGHT THESE CRITICAL ISSUES ALONG WITH OUR RECOMMENDATIONS INTENDED TO ADDRESS THEM.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

OUR FIRST FINDING NOTES ISSUES WITH STRATEGIC PLANNING IS FINDING HIGHLIGHTS THAT THE 2018 BOND FUNDING WAS ALLOCATED WITHOUT KEY DOCUMENTS IN PLACE FOR MOST CULTURAL CENTERS.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

THIS TABLE SHOWS THE AMOUNT OF BOND FUNDING RECOMMENDED BY THE BOND TASK FORCE ALONGSIDE THE ALLOCATED AMOUNTS, FURTHER AND NOTES THAT THE MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER WAS THE ONLY CENTER WITH AN UPDATED FACILITY PLAN.

WHEN FUNDING WAS RECOMMENDED AND ALLOCATED THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER, AND THE CARVER MUSEUM DID NOT HAVE UPDATED PLANS AT THIS TIME BY NOT ENSURING FACILITY FACILITIES HAVE UPDATED PLANS.

CURRENT AND FUTURE SPACE NEEDS CAN NOT BE STRATEGICALLY CONSIDERED WHEN ALLOCATING BOND FUNDS.

OUR RECOMMENDATION IS THAT THE PARK DIRECTOR SHOULD ENSURE A CENTERS HAVE UPDATED FACILITY PLANS AND THAT THE EDD DIRECTOR INITIATE A STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS FOR THE HERITAGE FACILITY THAT INCLUDES FACILITY NEEDS.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE WANTING TO HIGHLIGHTS ISSUES.

WE NOTED REGARDING FACILITY MAINTENANCE DURING OUR REVIEW, WE NOTED PART HAD ALREADY IDENTIFIED SOME MAINTENANCE AND ADA COMPLIANCE ISSUES, BUT THESE ITEMS WERE NOT ADDRESSED.

THE PRIMARY REASON FOR NOT ADDRESSING THESE ISSUES WAS DUE TO INADEQUATE STAFFING AND A LACK OF FUNDING.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

THIS TABLE SHOWS THE IDENTIFIED NUMBER AND ESTIMATED COSTS OF BOTH ACCESSIBILITY AND MAINTENANCE ITEMS. AT THE TIME OF THIS AUDIT PART DID NOT HAVE A TIMELINE TO ADDRESS THESE IDENTIFIED ISSUES, NOT ADDRESSING MAINTENANCE ISSUES MAY LEAD THE COMMUNITY TO BELIEVE THAT THE CITY DOES NOT CARE ABOUT MAINTAINING ITS FACILITIES AS WELL AS POSING ACCESSIBILITY ISSUES AT CERTAIN FACILITIES.

OUR RECOMMENDATION IS FOR THE PART DIRECTOR TO WORK WITH THE CITY MANAGER AND BUDGET OFFICE TO IDENTIFY AND PRIORITIZE NECESSARY FUNDING FOR CULTURAL CENTERS.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE FINDING THREE COVERS ISSUES WE NOTED CONCERNING SPACE USE AT THE VARIOUS CENTERS.

THERE ARE MANY TYPES OF SPACES AVAILABLE AT EACH CENTER AND WE FOUND THAT CENTERS ARE NOT FULLY UTILIZING ALL THESE SPACES EFFECTIVELY.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

WE FOUND THAT THE COMMUNITY IS LIMITED FROM USING SOME OF THESE SPACES DUE TO SEVERAL CONSTRAINTS.

FIRST, SOME SPACES WERE NOT LISTED ON CENTER WEBSITES AS USABLE OR RENTABLE.

THIS MAY HAVE PREVENTED COMMUNITY MEMBERS FROM USING ALL AVAILABLE, ALL AVAILABLE SPACES AT SOME CENTERS.

SECOND, CERTAIN ADJACENT ROOMS CAN NOT BE USED AT THE SAME TIME DUE TO SPILLOVER NOISE.

OTHER POTENTIAL COMMUNITY SPACES WERE CONVERTED TO OFFICE AND STORAGE SPACE AND ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO BE USED BY THE COMMUNITY.

THIRD, WE FOUND THAT SINNERS MAY NOT HAVE EFFECTIVE WAY TO TRACK FACILITY USE THIS LIMITS, THE ABILITIES OF CENTERS TO REPORT ON AND MAKE DECISIONS.

ACCORDING TO USAGE TRENDS.

LASTLY, FACILITY OPERATING HOURS MAY NOT BE ALIGNED WITH THE COMMUNITY NEEDS.

FOR INSTANCE, 88% OF USAGE DURING FISCAL YEAR 19 AT THE HERITAGE FACILITY OCCURRED OUTSIDE NORMAL OPERATING HOURS.

OUR RECOMMENDATION WAS FOR BOTH THE PART AND ADD DIRECTORS TO ENSURE USE OF FACILITY SPACE IS OPTIMIZED.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE FINDING FOR HIGHLIGHTS, POTENTIAL BARRIERS RELATED TO ACCESSIBILITY.

HOLD ON.

UH, CAN WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE, OF HIGHLY FINDING FOR HIGHLIGHTS, POTENTIAL BARRIERS RELATED TO ACCESSIBILITY WITH ACCESSIBILITY, MEANING BOTH THE ABILITY TO NAVIGATE TO THE CENTER AND TO PARTICIPATE IN PROGRAMS. IN OUR SURVEY, WE ASKED ABOUT TWO TYPES OF BARRIERS, BARRIERS THAT EXIST FOR SOME COMMUNITY MEMBERS VIA AFFORDABILITY, INCLUDING RENTAL FEES AND PROGRAM FEES AND TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS, INCLUDING TRANSIT AND PARKING AVAILABILITY.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, ALMOST COMMUNITY MEMBERS BELIEVE THAT FEES ARE AFFORDABLE.

SOME EXPRESS CONCERNS.

THE SURVEY RESULTS SHOW THAT COMMUNITY, THE COMMUNITY CONSIDERED RENTAL FEES TO BE THE LEAST AFFORDABLE FOR TRANSIT OPTIONS.

MOST COMMUNITY MEMBERS WERE GENERALLY SATISFIED WITH THE CARVER MUSEUM AND THE HERITAGE FACILITY.

SOME EXPRESS CONCERNS ABOUT ACCESSING THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER AND THE MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER.

DURING THIS AUDIT, WE LEARNED THAT THE CITY IS ALREADY WORKING ON ADDRESSING SOME OF THESE CONCERNS.

WE HAVE RECOMMENDED THAT THE PAR DIRECTOR SHOULD WORK WITH STAKEHOLDERS TO RESOLVE THESE BARRIERS AT CULTURAL CENTERS.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE

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WE FOUND THAT WHILE OFFERED PROGRAMS THAT ALL CENTERS ALIGNING WITH EACH CENTER'S MISSION, INEFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF THIS PROCESS NEGATIVELY IMPACTS THE ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY OF INFORMATION USED IN DECISION MAKING AND MAY DUPLICATE WORK.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

WE NOTED THAT THE PROGRAM PLANNING PROCESS WAS NOT CONSISTENTLY FOLLOWED.

FOR INSTANCE, SINNERS HAVE NOT CONSISTENTLY ENGAGED WITH THE COMMUNITY IN THE PREP PLANNING PROCESS.

AND AT LEAST ONE THIRD OF THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS BELIEVE THAT PROGRAM PROGRAMMING IS PLANNED WITHOUT THEIR INPUT.

ALSO, THE PROGRAM PLANNING PROCESS USED BY STAFF IN EFFECT CREATES A DUPLICATE WORKFLOWS.

FURTHER PARDES OVERSIGHT OF THIS PROCESS DID NOT ENSURE DOCUMENTS USED FOR DECISION MAKING AND BUDGETING WERE COMPLETED.

WE RECOMMEND THAT PART ENSURE THE PROGRAM PLANNING PROCESS IS BOTH EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY MANAGE.

EDD SAID THEY PLAN TO INCORPORATE PROGRAM PLANNING NEEDS INTO THE STRATEGIC PLAN PROCESS MENTIONED IN FINDING ONE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE FINDING SIX COVERS PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT ISSUES FOR THE CULTURAL CENTERS.

WE FOUND THAT THESE KEY MEASURES ASSOCIATED WITH CULTURAL CENTERS, LACK GOALS OR TARGETS.

WE ALSO FOUND THAT SOME PERFORMING PERFORMANCE MEASURES WERE BASED ON SMALL SURVEY SIZES WHILE OTHER CONTAINED INACCURATE INFORMATION.

ALL OF THESE ISSUES TOGETHER MAY REDUCE PARTS ABILITY TO DETERMINE IF CULTURAL CENTER PROGRAMS AND SERVICES ARE SUCCESSFUL.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, FOR INSTANCE, PAR TRACKS AND REPORTS FOR STANDARD PERFORMANCE MEASURES FOR CULTURAL CENTERS.

HOWEVER PART HAS NOT ESTABLISHED TARGETS FOR THESE PERFORMANCE MEASURES AT EACH CULTURAL CENTER.

WE ALSO FOUND CALCULATIONS IN SOME OF THE TRACKING SPREADSHEETS THAT RESULTED IN PUBLISHING AND ACCURATE DATA WITHOUT HAVING TARGETS AND ENSURING PERFORMANCE MEASURES ARE ACCURATE.

ART CANNOT TELL WHETHER CULTURAL CENTERS ARE MEETING THEIR GOALS FOR EDD.

WE NOTED THAT DEPARTMENTS HAVE NOT ESTABLISHED ANY PERFORMANCE MEASURES RELATED TO THE HERITAGE CENTER WE RECOMMEND.

AND WE RECOMMENDED THAT PART, BOTH ESTABLISHED TARGETS AND ENSURE ACCURATE AND RELIABLE INFORMATION IS USED FOR DECISION MAKING AND EDD.

WE RECOMMENDED THAT THE DIRECTOR ESTABLISHED BOTH MEASURES AND TARGETS FOR THE HERITAGE CENTER.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE FINDING SEVEN SUMMARIZES ISSUES WITH FEE ASSESSMENTS AT THE CULTURAL CENTERS WE FOUND THAT CENTERS DID NOT CONSISTENTLY CHARGE FEES AS OUTLINED IN THE FEE SCHEDULE, AS WELL AS HAVING INCONSISTENT PRACTICES ACROSS THE VARIOUS CENTERS.

THESE LISTS, THESE ISSUES LED TO UNCOLLECTED REVENUE AT EACH CENTER.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

OUR ANALYSIS OF FEES CHARGED AT CENTERS IN FISCAL YEAR 2019 SHOWED UNDER CHARGES OF AT LEAST $20,000 AT PARKS AND RECREATION CENTERS, AND AT LEAST $130,000 AT THE HERITAGE FACILITY REASONS FOR CHARGING UNDERCHARGING, WHERE THAT PART STAFF WAS INCONSISTENTLY LOWERING FEES BASED, BASED ON DIRECTION FROM THEIR MANAGEMENT AND STAFF, EXCUSE ME AND STAFF SOMETIMES CHARGE OUTDATED FEES AT A RATE APPROVED BY COUNCIL.

IN PRIOR YEARS FOR THE HERITAGE FACILITY MANAGED BY EDD, THE STAFF WAS ALLOWING THE USE OF THE SPACE WITHOUT CHARGING ANY USERS.

DESPITE THE FEE SCHEDULE OUTLINING RENTAL FEES, WE RECOMMENDED THAT THE PARTNER DRE DIRECTOR TAKES STEPS TO ENSURE FEES ARE CHARGED CORRECTLY, CORRECTLY, AND CONSISTENTLY, AND THAT THE EDD DIRECTOR FOLLOW THOSE.

ALTHOUGH THE CITY'S ESTABLISHED PROCESS FOR WAIVING FEES, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

I NEED EIGHT DISCUSSES DISCUSSES ISSUES CONCERNING THE PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENTS AND ADMINISTRATION OF ITS REC TRACK SOFTWARE CULTURAL CENTER STAFF USES REC TRACK TO REGISTER USERS FOR PROGRAMS, RESERVED SPACE FOR RENTALS AND PROCESS CERTAIN TYPES OF PAYMENTS.

WE FOUND MULTIPLE AREAS IN WHICH PART COULD IMPROVE THE SECURITY OF THE SYSTEM AND PREVENT UNAUTHORIZED USE.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

WE FOUND THAT OUT OF THE FIVE RECOMMENDED IT SECURITY PROCEDURES HARD HAD NOT IMPLEMENTED FOR THESE PROCEDURES.

FOR INSTANCE, THE SYSTEM DID NOT REQUIRE STRONG PASSWORDS AND DID NOT ENSURE THAT ROLES AND PRIVILEGES WITHIN THE SYSTEM ALIGNED WITH JOB DUTIES.

THESE ISSUES MAY EXPOSE THE REC TRACK SYSTEM TO UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS.

SINCE THIS APPLICATION CONTAINS IMPORTANT BUSINESS RECORDS FOR EACH CENTER, WE RECOMMENDED THAT THE PAR DIRECTOR

[00:25:01]

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

I THINK NINE COVERS ISSUES WE OBSERVED RELATED TO STAFF TRAINING.

WE NOTED THAT SOME CULTURAL CENTER STAFF DID NOT RECEIVE CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CULTURAL SENSITIVITY TRAINING.

THE LACK OF FULLY TRAINED STAFF IN THESE AREAS MAY REDUCE PART, MAY REDUCE STAFF'S ABILITY TO CREATE POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE COMMUNITY.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, SPECIFICALLY, WE NOTED THAT ONLY A FEW MEMBERS OF THE TEMPORARY STAFF AT CULTURAL CENTERS RECEIVED RECOMMENDED TRAINING WHEN REVIEWING THE COMMUNITY SURVEY, THERE APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN SOME NEGATIVE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND STAFF AT CULTURAL CENTERS.

IN ADDITION TO THE COMMUNITY SURVEY, WE ALSO CONDUCTED A STAFF SURVEY.

WE HEARD FROM STAFF MIRROR STAFF MEMBERS THAT THE CUSTOMER SERVICE TRAINING THEY RECEIVED WAS USEFUL STAFF AT THE HERITAGE FACILITY DO NOT RECEIVE CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CULTURAL SENSITIVITY TRAINING.

WE RECOMMENDED THAT BOTH THE PARD AND EDD DIRECTORS ENSURE THAT ALL STAFF RECEIVE NECESSARY TRAINING TO BETTER SERVE THE COMMUNITY.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

WE CONDUCTED A PEER CITY ANALYSIS OF CULTURAL CENTER GOVERNANCE AND OPERATIONS, AND THE RESULTS OF THAT WORK ARE PRESENTED.

AND FINDING 10, WE FOUND THAT MOST CITY OWNED CENTERS ARE RUN BY NONPROFITS AND THAT MOST CITIES HAVE A DEPARTMENT LEVEL ARTS AND CULTURAL AGENCY.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

FOR OUR COMPARISON, WE USE FOUR BASIC MODELS OF GOVERNANCE, GOVERNANCE OF CULTURAL CENTERS THAT ARE BASED ON THE OWNERSHIP AND OPERATION OF THE FACILITY.

EACH MODEL HAS ITS ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES ARE REVIEW SURVEYED SEVEN CITIES THAT CONTAIN 22 SIMILAR CULTURAL CENTERS OUT OF THESE 22 CULTURAL CENTERS, 16 OR ABOUT 73% ARE RUN BY NONPROFITS SIX OR ABOUT 27% ARE GOVERNMENT RUN AND NONE WERE FEE FOR SERVICE.

AS MENTIONED EARLIER, ALL FOUR OF THE CULTURAL CENTERS ARE RUN BY THE CITY OF AUSTIN AND WE AND WOULD BE CONSIDERED GOVERNMENT RUN.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

WE ALSO LOOKED AT WHO OVERSEES THESE CULTURAL CENTERS WITHIN THE CITY ADMINISTRATION HERE.

CITY STAFF INFORMED US THAT SIX OF THE SEVEN CITIES HAVE A DEPARTMENT LEVEL ARTS AND CULTURE AGENCY AS DISCUSSED EARLIER.

THREE CENTERS IN AUSTIN ARE RUN BY THE MUSEUM AND CULTURAL PROGRAMS DIVISION WITHIN PARD.

AND THE HERITAGE FACILITY IS RUN BY THE CULTURAL ARTS DIVISION IN EDD.

WE RECOMMENDED THAT THE CITY MANAGER ASSESS THE EXISTING GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE AND, AND DETERMINE WHETHER OUR GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE CHANGES NEEDED.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE MANAGEMENT FROM PARD EDD AND CITY MANAGEMENT AGREED WITH OUR RECOMMENDATIONS.

THIS CONCLUDES OUR PRESENTATIONS ON THE CITY CULTURAL CENTERS AUDIT.

AND WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE QUESTIONS AT THIS TIME.

THANK YOU.

UM, I'M GOING TO INVITE A STAFF FROM PART AND THEN FROM EDD TO RESPOND BEFORE WE TAKE QUESTIONS AND MS. MCNEELY, WOULD YOU LIKE TO GO FIRST, PLEASE? I MEAN, BEFORE YOU GET STARTED, I JUST WANTED TO NOTE THAT IT LOOKS LIKE THERE, IF YOU'RE ON ATX N TWO, WE ARE CURRENTLY, I BELIEVE ON ATX N ONE AND TWO, BUT ATX N TWO, MAYBE SWITCHING OVER TO AN APH MEDIA AVAILABILITY.

I'M NOT, I DON'T HAVE THAT CONFIRMED.

SO IF YOU ARE ON ATX N AND YOU WANT TO STAY WITH US, UM, YOU MAY NEED TO SWITCH TO HEX N ONE.

UM, YES, I THINK WE ARE ALSO NOW BROADCASTING ON CHANNEL SIX.

I THINK THAT'S BEEN GREAT.

THANK YOU, MS. MCNEELY, PLEASE GO AHEAD.

THANK YOU.

THE RECREATION DEPARTMENT, I CONCUR WITH THE AUDITOR'S OFFICE THAT WE AGREE WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS, AND IN SOME CASES THERE ARE THINGS THAT ARE ALREADY UNDERWAY TO ADDRESS THE, UM, THE CHALLENGES THAT WERE NOTED IN THE AUDIT REPORT.

AND IN ORDER FOR US TO ASK OR TO ANSWER SOME SPECIFIC QUESTIONS REGARDING CULTURAL CENTERS, WHEN IT IS THE APPROPRIATE TIME, I WOULD ASK THAT WE MOVE, UM, MY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, LUCAS MASSEY FROM ATTENDEE TO PARTICIPANT, UM, WHEN, WHEN WE ARE, UM, WHEN THE COUNCIL MEMBERS ON THE AND FINANCE COMMITTEE WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS CERTAIN OR SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, MS. MCNEELY.

UM, MS. HOLT, ROB, ARE YOU OKAY? YES.

YES.

GOOD MORNING.

COUNCIL MEMBER ALTER THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT ALSO AGREES WITH

[00:30:01]

THANK YOU FOR THE ANSWER, ANY SPECIFIC QUESTIONS AND OPEN IT UP FOR QUESTIONS, BUT I JUST WANT TO, UM, REITERATE WHAT I SAID EARLIER BECAUSE OF THE HEX N SWITCHES.

UM, I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE SERIES OF AUDITS THAT WE'RE HEARING TODAY FOLLOWED FROM A COUNCIL RESOLUTION, WHERE WE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THERE WERE, UM, AS A NEED FOR SOME CHANGES AND WE'RE SEEKING MORE DATA AND MORE INFORMATION SO THAT, UM, WE COULD IMPROVE, UM, AND OVERSIGHT IN THESE PARTICULAR CENTERS.

AND I HOPE THAT WHAT WE'RE HEARING TODAY AND WHAT WE'RE LEARNING WILL ALLOW US TO HAVE AN APPROPRIATE RESET, UM, AND, AND MAKE THOSE IMPROVEMENTS, UM, TOGETHER INFORMED BY THIS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT THE AUDITOR'S OFFICE HAS BROUGHT IN RESPONSE TO THAT RESOLUTION.

SO COLLEAGUES, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER POOL, IF YOU'D LIKE TO GO FIRST.

YEAH.

I JUST WANT TO TRUST THIS OUT TO BOTH, UM, DIRECTOR MCNEELY, DIRECTOR HALT, ROB, IF, IF THE TWO OF YOU, SINCE THERE'S A SEPARATION OF RESPONSIBILITY AMONG THE FACILITIES, UM, UH, I'D LIKE YOU ALL TO COLLABORATE IN YOUR ASSESSMENTS OF THAT.

THEY'RE VERY, THE DIFFERENT FACILITIES ARE UNDER YOUR CONTROL AND PREPARE SOME KIND OF A RESPONSE ON WHAT RECOMMENDATIONS YOU HAVE TO REDUCE THE, THE SEPARATION.

UM, THE RECOMMENDATION THAT THE AUDIT HAS GIVEN US THIS TO HAVE, UH, ONE ENTITY HAVING HAVE THE OVERSIGHT SO WE CAN REDUCE THE LACK OF STANDARDIZATION THROUGHOUT.

SO IF YOU TO, I'M SURE YOU WERE PLANNING TO COLLABORATE.

ANYWAY, I JUST WANTED TO ASK IF THAT WAS THE CASE.

YES.

UM, COUNCIL NUMBER COOL.

WE'VE HAD ONE MEETING AND WE PLAN TO CONTINUE DIALOGUE, UH, TO SEEK DIRECTION FROM MANAGEMENT ON THE BEST PATH FORWARD.

GREAT, THANKS.

UM, UM, DIRECTOR MCNEELY, I CONCUR, UM, WE ARE HAPPY TO WORK WITH EDD AND ALSO TO SEEK, UM, ADVICE AND DIRECTION FROM OUR CITY MANAGEMENT.

AND W WE'RE HAPPY TO DO THAT.

WE'VE ALREADY, LIKE SHE SAID, WE'VE ALREADY MET ONCE AND WE'RE HAPPY TO MEET MORE TIMES TO BE MORE COMMITTED IN OUR, IN OUR DELIVERY.

THAT'S GREAT.

AND I THINK IT'S A REALLY GOOD TIME FOR US TO KIND OF REFRESH OUR OPERATING AGREEMENTS WITH THE VARIOUS ENTITIES.

UM, BUT AS WE KNOW, SYSTEMS OVER TIME CAN CREATE AND, AND SORT OF ERODE A LITTLE BIT AND YOU THINK YOU'VE GOT REALLY GOOD STRONG PLANS AND PLANS IN PLACE, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, COME TWO DECADES LATER AND YOU FIND OUT THAT THINGS HAVE SHIFTED AROUND AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE.

SO I THINK THIS IS A REALLY POSITIVE OPPORTUNITY FOR, UM, THE CITY WITH REGARD TO THE SPECIFICALLY THE CULTURAL CENTERS TO, UM, TO FIND SOME NEW, INNOVATIVE WAYS OF OPERATING AND REACHING OUT INTO THE COMMUNITIES EVEN MORE DEEPLY.

SO THANK YOU TO YOU BOTH ON YOUR STAFF OR THE CHICKEN ON THIS ADDITIONAL KIND OF EXCITING OPPORTUNITY.

THANKS, PAUL.

I JUST WANT TO NOTE THAT, UH, RECOMMENDATION 16 DOES ASK THE CITY MANAGER TO COME BACK WITH RECOMMENDATIONS, UM, IN, WITHIN THE YEAR, UH, ABOUT THE GOVERNANCE STRUCTURES AND, AND ALTHOUGH THE CITY MANAGER HIMSELF IS NOT HERE, UM, AS, AS REPRESENTATIVES I'M, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT THAT WOULD BE THE PROCESS MOVING FORWARD, COUNCIL MEMBER FLANAGAN.

THANK YOU.

UM, AND I APPRECIATE CHAIR YOUR, UM, CONTINUED EFFORTS TO REMIND THE PUBLIC THAT THE COUNCIL IS WORKING VERY HARD TO GET THROUGH AUDITS ON A LOT OF AREAS.

AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE KNOW THAT THAT TYPE OF OVERSIGHT IS REALLY IMPORTANT.

I'M GLAD TO BE ON THIS COMMITTEE TO CONTINUE THAT LEVEL OF OVERSIGHT.

I'M PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN THE, THE PEER CITY REVIEW INFORMATION.

YOU KNOW, PART OF THE CHALLENGE WHENEVER WE GET UP HERE, CITY REVIEW IS WE NEVER REALLY HEAR IF THOSE PEER CITIES ARE DOING IT WELL, WE JUST HEAR WHAT THEY'RE DOING.

AND, AND I DON'T KNOW THAT IT'S NECESSARILY EVIDENCE THAT WE SHOULD COPY THE WORK OF PEER CITIES WITHOUT KNOWING IF THEY MIGHT BE HAVING SIMILAR CHALLENGES WITH, WITH THEIR CULTURAL CENTERS, UM, IN THE, IN THE NONPROFIT, WHICH SEEMS TO BE THE MAJORITY OF HOW PEER CITIES OPERATE CULTURAL CENTERS.

UM, COREY, CAN, CAN YOU GIVE A LITTLE MORE DETAIL ON WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IN, IN OTHER CITIES? IS IT INDIVIDUAL NONPROFITS PER CENTER? IS IT A NONPROFIT KIND OF LIKE AN ENDOWMENT OR FOUNDATION THAT WORKS WITH CULTURAL CENTERS? HOW DOES IT WORK WITH OTHER TYPES? I MEAN, SOME CITIES HAVE MUSEUMS, SOME CITIES HAVE OTHER TYPES OF THINGS.

WE HAVE A HISTORY CENTER THAT I PROBABLY MORE LIKE A MUSEUM THAT'S PART OF THE LIBRARY DEPARTMENT.

SO JUST A LOT OF COMPLEXITY.

SURE.

SO I'LL SAY A COUPLE OF THINGS, ONE YOU'RE RIGHT.

THAT, UM, WE ACTUALLY ARE PRETTY CAREFUL TO TRY TO CALL

[00:35:01]

SO WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE'RE LOOKING OUT AND WE'RE SEEING WHAT OUR PEERS ARE UP TO AND HOW THEY'RE HANDLING THE SAME THINGS, BUT WE DON'T TYPICALLY MAYBE NEVER, UM, WE DON'T AUDIT THEM TO SEE IF THEY ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUES THAT WE'RE HAVING OR WHAT KIND OF THINGS ARE CAUSING PROBLEMS FOR THEM.

SO IT'S JUST, IT'S BENCHMARK INFORMATION.

IT'S NOT NECESSARILY, THIS IS A BETTER MODEL OR THE RIGHT MODEL.

SO I WOULD SAY JUST GENERALLY ABOUT WHENEVER WE'RE DOING PEER CITY RESEARCH, WE'RE NOT TRYING TO SAY THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO DO IT.

WE'RE TRYING TO GATHER INFORMATION ABOUT HOW OTHER PEOPLE ARE.

AND I THINK YOU, YOU KNOW, THAT AND UNDERSTAND THAT.

SO THEN I WOULD SAY THE NEXT PIECE OF THAT.

SO FOR THESE PARTICULAR PEER CITIES AND THESE PEER CENTERS, SO LOOKING AT THE, THE OTHER CENTERS THAT WE LOOKED AT, I THINK 16 OF THE 22 ARE RUN BY NONPROFITS OF THOSE 15 ARE ACTUALLY SOMETHING THAT'S CALLED USER RUN, WHICH MEANS THAT SOME GROUP IN THE COMMUNITY, UM, IS THE PRIMARY USER OF THE FACILITY.

AND THAT GROUP HAS CREATED A NONPROFIT AND RUNS THE CENTER.

THEY CERTAINLY HAVE SUPPORT FROM THE CITY.

THEY HAVE FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM THE CITY.

THEY HAVE MAYBE A $1 LEASE FROM THE CITY.

THEY HAVE VARIOUS WAYS THAT THEY ARE ABLE TO CONTINUE THE WORK, UM, OF THE CULTURAL CENTER.

SO THEY'RE NOT OUT ON AN ISLAND ON THEIR OWN, A NONPROFIT RUNNING THIS ENTIRELY INDEPENDENT OF THE CITY, BUT THEY ARE THE KIND OF PRIMARY DECISION MAKER FOR ALL THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THE CENTER.

I WOULD SAY THAT'S WHERE 15 OF THE 22, UM, I DON'T KNOW IF I ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION OR NOT, BUT DON'T, BUT, BUT IN OTHER CITIES, OTHER CITIES HAVE MULTIPLE CULTURAL CENTERS LIKE WE HAVE WITHIN A SINGLE CITY AND, AND THOSE ARE RUN BY SEPARATE INDEPENDENT GROUPS LIKE THIS ONE, NONPROFIT FOR THE CENTER, ANOTHER NONPROFIT FOR THAT CENTER, I BELIEVE.

SO I THINK NEYHA HAS MORE INFORMATION ON THAT CONSTANT MEMBERS THAT CORRECT THAT EACH CENTER HAVE THEIR OWN NONPROFITS, WHICH RUN THOSE CENTERS OR IT TOOLS.

IT IS.

WE FOUND ONLY THAT THERE ARE, THEY HAVE ONLY ONE CENTER, WHICH IS CULTURAL CENTERS, BUT OTHER FIVE HAVE MULTIPLE HAVE CULTURAL CENTERS.

OKAY.

WHAT IS THE, WHAT IS THE ROLE THAT OUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS HAVE PLAYED IN OVERSIGHT FOR THESE CULTURAL CENTERS? BECAUSE MOST OF THEM ALSO HAVE A RELATED COMMISSION, RIGHT? YES, THAT'S CORRECT.

SO OUR UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THESE MANAGEMENT PRESENT THE REPORTS AND LIKE THEY'LL PROVIDE THE VARIOUS REPORTS OF ATTENDANCE AND OTHERS PERFORMANCES OF THESE CULTURE CENTERS TO THE OVERSIGHT BODY.

BUT WE DIDN'T LOOK IN DETAIL, LIKE WHAT ACTUALLY IS THEY ARE DOING WITH THIS? LIKE WHAT EXTENT THEY ARE PARTICIPATING IN THE OPERATION? I MEAN, I THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO HAVE ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER SHORTER AS PART OF THIS CONVERSATION.

UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE CHALLENGING, I THINK, FOR, FOR THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.

AND I, YOU KNOW, I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A LITTLE CONFUSED ABOUT WHY SOME THINGS LIVE IN PARKS AND WHY SOME THINGS LIVE IN EDD.

AND WHEN YOU GET DOWN TO THE METRICS BY WHICH THOSE DEPARTMENTS ARE MEASURED, NEITHER ARE REALLY MEASURED ON THE THINGS THAT IMPACT CULTURAL CENTERS, RIGHT.

WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT LIKE PARKS SCORE OR, OR, UM, WHAT IS THE, THE W THE, I CAN'T REMEMBER THE PHRASE ABOUT LIKE, WHEN, WHEN THERE ISN'T A WALKABLE PARK IT'S LIKE DISADVANTAGED OR UNDER BUILT ISN'T CAUSE NUMBER ALTER CAUSE PEOPLE, DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT THAT PHRASE IS? IT'S ESCAPED MY MIND, THE THING WHERE THERE'S NOT LIKE, NOT A NEARBY PARK.

I SAID, I READ YOUR LIT PARK'S DEFICIENT.

YEAH.

THANK YOU.

IT'S LIKE, I DON'T WANT TO SAY IT, YOU KNOW, THE CULTURAL CENTERS DON'T SPEAK TO THOSE METRICS.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, I CAN UNDERSTAND THE DESIRE FOR SOME CITIES TO HAVE A SEPARATE DEPARTMENT THAT WOULD BE FOCUSED ON THESE THINGS, BECAUSE THEN YOU COULD HAVE METRICS THAT ARE DRIVEN TO THAT.

AND THEN I THINK IN EDD, THIS IS IT'S ALWAYS BEEN KIND OF A WEIRD FIT IN THAT DEPARTMENT.

MORE, I THINK, ASSIGNED TO THEM BECAUSE OF THE WAY WE MANAGE HOTEL TAX AND THE CULTURAL MONEY FROM HOTEL TAX THAN ANY KIND OF REAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMPONENT.

I DON'T KNOW THAT I'M THINKING THAT A WHOLE SEPARATE DEPARTMENT IS A GOOD IDEA EITHER.

AND I'M, I'M FRANKLY MORE INTERESTED IN EXPLORING THESE NONPROFIT MODELS AND EVEN, EVEN TO CONTEMPLATE HOW WE MIGHT WORK AT A REGIONAL LEVEL THROUGH NONPROFITS.

AND WE, WE HAVE, WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT GENTRIFICATION AND DISPLACEMENT MOVING MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY AND TO SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES, BUT THESE CULTURAL CENTERS WERE OFTEN APPROVED AND BUILT BY THOSE RESIDENTS BEFORE THEY MOVED INTO PFLUGERVILLE OR KYLE OR BUDA.

AND SO THERE'S STILL A LOT OF KIND OF REGIONAL INVESTMENT, EMOTIONAL INVESTMENT INTO THESE CENTERS.

AND I WOULD IMAGINE THAT SOME OF OUR SURROUNDING NEIGHBORS HAVE BUILT CENTERS

[00:40:01]

UM, SO I'M, I'M INTERESTED IN THINKING THROUGH THAT AT THAT LEVEL.

AND IT PROBABLY, TO ME, IT WOULD BE NOT CITY MANAGED, BUT TO HAVE A LOT MORE OF A FOCUSED OVERSIGHT ROLE OVER A CONTRACTUAL AGREEMENT WITH A NONPROFIT THAT THEN MANAGED THESE CENTERS SO THAT THERE COULD BE VERY CLEAR METRICS THAT HAD A VERY CLEAR SIGNPOST ABOUT WHEN THOSE METRICS WERE BEING MEASURED AND KIND OF CONSEQUENCES.

IF YOU DON'T MEET THE METRICS.

AND RIGHT NOW, I THINK IT HAS BEEN KIND OF GLOMMED ON TO OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND WE NEVER MEASURE THOSE DEPARTMENTS BY THESE METRICS.

SO THAT'S THE WORK THAT I'M INTERESTED IN GETTING INTO ON THIS.

THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER FLANAGAN, I'M GOING TO GO TO COME TO MEMBER TOVO.

UM, THANKS VERY MUCH.

THIS IS REALLY USEFUL.

THIS IS A USEFUL CALL.

THIS IS A USEFUL AUDIT, AND I THINK RAISES, YOU KNOW, MULTIPLE ISSUES THAT WE CAN CAN AND SHOULD DISCUSS IN THE MONTHS TO COME.

UM, ONE THING THAT SEVERAL OF YOU HAVE TOUCHED ON THAT I JUST WANT TO ARTICULATE IS THAT THERE'S, THERE'S DEFINITELY CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE KIND OF PROGRAMMING AND WORK THAT GOES ON WITHIN OUR CULTURAL CENTERS AND THE KIND OF WORK THAT IS GOING, TAKING PLACE IN OUR LIBRARIES.

UM, AND, AND I, I THINK THERE DOES NEED TO BE CONVERSATIONS MORE BROADLY ACROSS, ACROSS, UH, THESE DEPARTMENTS.

AND I'LL JUST OFFER ONE EXAMPLE WHEN WE WERE TALKING WITH OUR STAFF ABOUT WHAT THEY WERE DOING IN THIS TIME OF PANDEMIC, IN TERMS OF VULTURE VIRTUAL PROGRAMMING.

IT SEEMED TO ME THAT OUR LIBRARY SYSTEM COULD LEARN FROM SOME OF THE KINDS OF REALLY INNOVATIVE VIRTUAL PROGRAMMING THAT'S GOING ON AT OUR ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

AND SO, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, BUT I DO KNOW THAT, YOU KNOW, AS OUR LIBRARY NOW HAS A GALLERY AND OTHER KINDS OF PROGRAMMING THAT WE WOULD HAVE ORDINARILY SEEN IN OUR CULTURAL CENTERS, THERE'S PROBABLY A WAY TO A, PROBABLY A WAY ON A NEED TO THINK ABOUT THIS DIFFERENTLY AND THE HISTORY CENTER, WHICH HAS PRIMARILY SERVED AS LIBRARY FUNCTIONS WITH SOME PROGRAMMING AND SOME GALLERY SPACE.

I THINK TWO IS, IS WITH THE MOVE TO THE FOC.

I'M GOING TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY BRIDGE INTO CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING IN A WAY IT JUST DOESN'T HAVE THE SPACE TO DO SO IN THE PAST.

AND THEN AGAIN NEEDS TO BE IN CONVERSATION WITH A CULTURAL, WITH OUR CULTURAL CENTERS, SO THAT WE'RE SHARING IDEAS AMONG AMONG THOSE.

SO THAT'S JUST SOME COMMENTS I WANTED TO JUST TALK.

UM, I HAD SOME REAL SPECIFIC QUESTIONS QUICKLY ON PAGE 11.

THERE IS A COMMENT ABOUT FACILITIES THAT I NEED TO GET BACK TO, BUT I THINK IT IS, I THINK IT WAS A POINT THAT THE WEBSITES, SOME SPACES ARE NOT LISTED ON CENTER WEBSITES, WHICH MAY REDUCE COMMUNITIES.

I AGREE WITH THE POINT, UM, THAT ABSOLUTELY, YOU KNOW, THAT INFORMATION SHOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE ON CENTER WEBSITES, BUT IT'S, I BELIEVE THAT, I MEAN, SOME OF OUR CENTERS ARE SO ARE SO WELL USED THAT IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO ACTUALLY FIND RENTAL SPACE.

I KNOW THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER FOR EXAMPLE, IS, IS VERY WELL OCCUPIED.

AND SO I JUST WANT TO ASK YOU IF THAT MATCHED WITH YOUR FINDINGS, THAT THE FACT THAT THEY'RE NOT NECESSARILY ADVERTISING ALL THEIR SPACE, DOESN'T, IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY EQUATE TO A LACK OF, UM, USAGE.

THAT'S A QUESTION FOR OUR AUDITOR.

SURE.

AND I DEFINITELY THINK, YOU KNOW, THERE'S LIKE A BALANCING ACT THAT THE CULTURAL CENTERS HAVE BETWEEN LIKE HOW MUCH OF THEIR TIME DO THEY SPEND DOING RENTALS AND HOW MUCH OF IT IS MISSION DRIVEN AND PROGRAM PROGRAMMATIC, OR LIKE IT'S A MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER WITH THE LATINO ARTISTS ACCESS PROGRAM, BUT WE DID JUST FIND IT LIKE IT IS A BARRIER TO THE COMMUNITY WHEN THEY JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT IS AVAILABLE AT THE CENTER.

I MEAN, AT THE, YOU KNOW, NOT HAVING, LIKE KNOWING THAT THERE IS A KITCHEN AT THE MEXICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER AVAILABLE TO USE ALONGSIDE YOUR EVENT.

I THINK IT COULD BE AN IMPORTANT FACTOR WHEN YOU'RE MAKING DECISIONS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, RENTAL, LIKE MAYBE I'M GOING TO RENT THAT CITY CENTER, BUT THERE ARE SOME, LIKE WE ALSO FOUND THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF OVERLAP BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE WANTING TO RENT THE SPACE AND, AND THE TYPES EVENTS THAT THEY WERE HAVING.

LIKE MAYBE THEY WEREN'T MISSION, LIKE THEY WERE NOT DEVELOPED BY THE CENTER STAFF, BUT THEY WERE STILL IN SOME WAYS MISSION DRIVEN AND THAT THERE WERE, YOU KNOW, IT WAS A, AN EVENT PREDOMINANTLY JUST, YOU KNOW, CELEBRATE SOMETHING, SOME ASPECT OF MEXICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE OR, YOU KNOW, SOME, SOME, SOME SIMILAR TYPE OF EVENT.

I SEE.

THANK YOU.

SO IT'S REALLY, SO THAT, THAT COMMENT, THAT FINDING WAS REALLY

[00:45:01]

RIGHT.

AND, AND, AND LIKE THIS.

ABSOLUTELY.

AND THEN, AND THEN THESE, THIS FINDING KIND OF GOES IN AND, UM, YOU KNOW, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF DETAIL HERE, BUT SOME ROOMS ARE HEAVILY USED, SOME ROOMS AREN'T HEAVILY USED.

AND, UH, THAT IS SOMETHING WE NOTE.

UM, BUT YOU KNOW, PART OF THAT MAY BE WHY SOME OF THESE ROOMS THAT WERE NOT HEAVILY USED OR AS USED AS MUCH AS THEY COULD BE, OR I THINK WE USE THE WORD OPTIMIZED, UH, THEIR USAGE.

UM, MIGHT'VE BEEN BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T LISTED ON THE WEBSITE.

IT'S THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL.

I'M NOT SEEING THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL REPORT.

IT'S NOT NECESSARILY BECAUSE IT'S NOT THERE.

I MAY JUST NOT HAVE LANDED ON IT YET.

BUT IF, IF THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL ABOUT WHICH ROOMS AT DIFFERENT FACILITIES IS NOT IN THE REPORT AND THE FINAL REPORT, IF YOU WOULD MAKE SURE WE GET SOME OF THAT DETAIL, THAT'D BE USEFUL.

I'M LOOKING AT PAGES NINE AND 10 AND 11 AND NOT NECESSARILY, UM, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY, UH, MAYBE THIS JUMPING OUT AT ME NOW.

I'M SORRY.

I DO SEE IT ON PAGE NINE NOW.

THANK YOU.

RIGHT.

IT'S EXHIBIT SIX.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

UM, I WANT TO ADD A QUESTION ABOUT THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

I THINK THIS IS FOR OUR PART DIRECTOR.

SO WE DO HAVE, IT WAS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THERE IS A NONPROFIT, A FIVE OH ONE TWO THREE, UM, THAT IS IN PLACE HELPING WITH BOTH FUNDRAISING AND PROGRAMMING.

AND JUST WANTED TO ASK YOU TO SPEAK, SPEAK TO THAT.

SO COUNCIL MEMBER TOBA, THERE, THERE'S A NONPROFIT THAT IS IN PLACE.

IT'S NOT SPECIFICALLY AFFILIATED WITH THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

IT'S A NONPROFIT THAT CARES DEEPLY ABOUT, UM, ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES.

AND ONE OF THOSE IS THE, UH, IS THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

UH, WE DO WORK WITH THEM, UH, IN, IN SOME CASES ON CERTAIN TYPES OF EVENTS OR CERTAIN TYPES OF OPPORTUNITIES THAT MIGHT BENEFIT THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY SPECIFICALLY AT THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

BUT IT'S NOT A NONPROFIT IN THE WAY THAT, AND IT JUST IS JUST BY WAY OF EXAMPLE, IT'S NOT A NONPROFIT IN THE WAY OF THAT TRAIL FOUNDATION WHO HAS ADOPTED THAT PARTICULAR SPACE AND IS ACTIVELY FUNDRAISING ONLY FOR THAT SPACE AND IN DOING SO IN A VERY STRATEGIC AND PLANNED WAY.

BUT I DO NOT WANT TO IN ANY WAY, SHAPE OR FORM THE AMOUNT OF SUPPORT THAT THEY PROVIDE IN STAKEHOLDER RELATIONS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND PROVIDING US INSIGHTS INTO WHAT IT IS THAT THE COMMUNITY IS LOOKING FOR, BUT IT'S NOT AS IT'S NOT AS WELL OILED MACHINE, OR IT, MAYBE IT HAS EVERY POTENTIAL TO BE.

BUT I THINK THAT THEIR, THEIR MISSION IS NOT SPECIFIC TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

IT'S IT'S TO OTHER, UM, OTHER TYPES OF ISSUES AND OTHER TYPES OF CHALLENGES OR OTHER TYPES OF INITIATIVES WITHIN THAT WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.

SO I THINK I NEED, AND THIS IS PROBABLY SOMETHING I NEED TO JUST TAKE OFFLINE AND UNDERSTAND BETTER THE EVOLUTION OF THAT RELATIONSHIP, BECAUSE AT ONE POINT THE FOUNDATION WAS LOCATED AT THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER AND WAS ACTIVELY PROGRAMING THAT SPACE.

AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, IT WAS MY, I MEAN, THAT'S MY MEMORY OF IT, UNLESS AS AN OBSERVER, I WASN'T UNDERSTANDING IT WELL WAS THAT THEY WERE VERY MUCH WORKING TOGETHER ON THE SUCCESS OF THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

SO I'M NOT, AGAIN, I'M NOT UNDERSTANDING OF THINGS HAVE CHANGED IN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS OR UNDERSTANDING THAT YES, THINGS HAVE CHANGED AND I'M HAPPY TO TALK OFFLINE ABOUT THE SUGAR THAT, AND HOW THAT PROGRESSED FROM WHAT YOU REMEMBER TO WHERE WE ARE NOW.

OKAY.

ARE THEY STILL LOCATED AT THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER? SO THERE'S STILL A STAFF MEMBER ONSITE AT THE ASIAN REC AND RESOURCE CENTER.

I'M GOING TO ASK LUCAS MASSEY TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION.

I'M NOT A HUNDRED PERCENT SURE, SURE.

WE CAN, WE CAN TAKE THAT OFFLINE, BUT THAT, IT JUST SURPRISED ME AS WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE GOVERNANCE, BECAUSE THAT WAS, UM, YOU KNOW, THE MODEL THAT WE WERE STRIVING FOR AT THE ASIAN AMERICAN RESOURCE CENTER.

AND SO I NEED TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THAT, ESPECIALLY IF ONE OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS OR, OR IF WE'RE LOOKING AT PEER CITIES THAT HAVE NONPROFITS THAT ARE VERY, UM, INVOLVED.

I WANT TO UNDERSTAND THE EVOLUTION OF THOSE EXPERIMENTS HERE IN AUSTIN, BECAUSE WE HAVE NOW HAD SEVERAL ONE WITH A PRIVATE MANAGEMENT CONTRACT AT THE MILLENNIUM CENTER, UM, RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FOUNDATION AT THE ASIAN AMERICAN CENTER.

UM, AND THEN ONE, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK ABOUT THAT.

I THINK I NEED TO, AND THAT IS, UH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

THERE WAS A REFERENCE TO AN ORGANIZATION ON PAGE 12, THERE'S A REFERENCE TO AN ORGANIZATION THAT WAS TO HAVE RUN THE PORTAGE FACILITY.

[00:50:01]

SO WHEN THE CENTER WAS ORIGINALLY CONTEMPLATED AS A RESULT OF THAT AFRICAN AMERICAN QUALITY OF LIFE STUDY, IT WAS ORIGINALLY ENVISIONED THAT THE FACILITY, BUT ARTS NO LONGER EXISTS.