[00:00:02]
[Environmental Commission on March 8, 2023.]
GOOD EVENING EVERYONE.TODAY IS WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8TH, AND THE TIME IS NOW 5:38 PM I AM CHAIRWOMAN KATHERINE BAAN, AND I CALL THIS MEETING OF THE DALLAS ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION TO ORDER
WE WELCOME YOUR PARTICIPATION IN OUR MEETING, IN THE LANGUAGE OF YOUR PREFERENCE.
AND IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST TRANSLATION OR OTHER ACCESSIBILITY SERVICES IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE, PLEASE CALL 2 1 4 6 7 1 8 5 2 2 2 DAYS PRIOR TO THE MEETING.
OUR NEXT MEETING OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION WILL BE APRIL 12TH AT 5:30 PM ALL RIGHT.
A COUPLE OF ANNOUNCEMENTS THIS EVENING AS WE'RE WAITING FOR A FEW MORE OF OUR, UH, COMMISSION MEMBERS TO GET THROUGH TRAFFIC AND JOIN US.
UH, WE ARE CELEBRATING, UH, NOT JUST WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH, UH, BUT INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY TODAY.
SO I WANT TO EXPRESS APPRECIATION FOR THE WOMEN THAT I HAVE THE PRIVILEGE OF SERVING, UH, ON THIS COMMISSION WITH AND, UH, THE STAFF MEMBERS OF THE CITY OF DALLAS WHO LEND US THEIR EXPERTISE, UM, AND, UH, WHO SUPPORT US.
ALL RIGHT, SAVE THE DATE FOR THE UPCOMING NORTH TEXAS CLIMATE SYMPOSIUM.
THAT'LL BE HELD ON TUESDAY, MARCH 28TH FROM 9:00 AM TO 3:00 PM AT UT DALLAS.
YOU CAN REGISTER AT BITLY, THAT'S B I T DOT L Y SLASH NT C S, ALL CAPS 2023.
ALL RIGHT, LET'S JUMP INTO OUR ROLL CALL MEMBERS AND REMINDER THAT IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE AND POSSIBLY TO KEEP OUR QUORUM THIS EVENING, WE WILL NEED YOU TO KEEP YOUR CAMERA ON FOR THE DURATION OF THE MEETING MEMBERS IN THE CHAMBER.
CAN YOU PLEASE LEAVE YOUR MICROPHONES OFF UNTIL YOU ACKNOWLEDGE SO THAT WE LIMIT OUR SOUND QUALITY ISSUES ON THE VIRTUAL SIDE? ALL RIGHT.
LET'S GO WITH DISTRICT ONE, PRESENT.
DISTRICT TWO, DISTRICT THREE, DISTRICT FOUR, PRESENT DISTRICT FIVE TRACING.
ESTHER VILLA, DISTRICT SEVEN, DISTRICT EIGHT.
MOVING ON TO OUR TECHNICAL PANEL.
MR. MARTIN, PRESIDENT AND ACCOUNTED FOR
ALL RIGHT, IN OUR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH COMMITTEE, MS. BAYOU, PRESENT, DR.
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING WITH US THIS EVENING.
WE DO NOT HAVE ANY REGISTERED SPEAKERS, SO WE ARE MOVING ON TO THE APPROVAL OF OUR MINUTES FROM OUR FEBRUARY 8TH COMMISSION MEETING.
IF THERE ARE NO CHANGES, I WILL TAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.
WE ARE MOVING ON TO OUR VERY FIRST BRIEFING ITEM.
ITEM A IS A BRIEFING MEMO FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS AND YOUR MEMO COMMISSIONERS.
THERE ARE A LIST OF BILLS FILED PERTAINING TO THE ENVIRONMENT.
UH, TO THAT LIST, I WILL ADD A FEW THAT WE ARE ALSO TRACKING.
UH, BUT FIRST I'M GOING TO LET MS. BEK GIVE US AN UPDATE ON THOSE BILLS THAT SHE IS WATCHING.
I JUST WANNA CALL A COUPLE BILLS IN PARTICULAR TO EVERYONE'S ATTENTION, UH, BECAUSE IT COULD HAVE, UM, THESE BILLS COULD HAVE BIG EFFECTS ON THE CONCRETE MENT BILL.
UM, I MEAN, ORDINANCE, THE LANDSCAPE ORDINANCES AND REGULATING ANY KIND OF COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY.
IT'S NEAR THE BOTTOM OF YOUR MEMO, SB 1 49 AND SB EIGHT 14.
THERE ARE SEVERAL BILLS THIS SESSION THAT ARE AIMED AT, UH, DETERIORATING THE PROGRESS OR KILLING THE PROGRESS.
[00:05:01]
BUT I WANNA CALL YOUR PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO SB EIGHT 14, WHERE A COMPANION BILL BY, UM, REPRESENTATIVE BURROWS HB 2127 HAS ALSO BEEN FILED.UM, LIKE I SAID, SOME OF THESE BILLS ARE MEANT TO DETER ANY REGULATION, BASICALLY, OF COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY.
AND, AND SOME OF THESE BILLS WILL ALLOW LAWSUITS AGAINST MUNICIPALITIES FOR TRYING TO REGULATE COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY.
SO I WOULD SAY OF THIS LIST, THAT IS PROBABLY THE WORST BILL THAT ARE HERE.
UH, THE T CQ SUNSET BILL IS OUT, AND THE PUC SUNSET BILL IS OUT, BUT THEY ARE NOT INCLUDED ON THIS LIST.
UM, A LOT OF THE GROUPS I WORK WITH STATEWIDE ARE DOING FURTHER ANALYSIS ON THAT, SO I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT THOSE FOR NOW.
AND FOR THOSE WHO WANNA TRACK THE TCQ BILL AS HB 1505, THE COMPANION BILL IS SB 1 31 39 7.
UM, AND THEN A COUPLE OF OTHERS THAT WE WANNA PUT ON YOUR RADAR IS, UH, HOUSE BILL, UH, 9 41.
UM, AND IT IS THE, UH, STANDARD PERMIT FOR CONCRETE BATCH PLANTS.
SO JUST ANOTHER CONCRETE BATCH PLANT BILL THAT WE'RE, UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE KEEPING AN EYE ON.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS VIRTUALLY ANYBODY IN THE CHAIN, IN, IN THE BRIEFING ROOM? NOPE.
UH, I'M SORRY, I HAVE MY HAND UP, BUT IT DOESN'T, THE LITTLE APOLOGIES.
NO, OUR LITTLE, MY LITTLE DIGITAL ONE DOESN'T SHOW WELL.
UM, SO I'M JUST A, I'M WONDERING IF MS. BEVIN CAN REPEAT THOSE BILL NUMBERS FOR ME SO I CAN GET THOSE DOWN REAL QUICK.
THEY'RE AT THE END OF THE MEMO THAT WAS GIVEN TO US FOR THIS EVENING, SB 1 49.
IT'S UNDER LOCAL REGULATION OF COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY SB EIGHT 14, AND IT'S COMPANION BILL, WHICH IS IDENTICAL, IS HB 2127.
UM, SO I, MY QUESTION WAS, ASIDE FROM, YOU KNOW, TRACKING THESE BILLS, UM, AS A, UM, COMMISSION, DID WE WANT TO WRITE LETTERS? IS THERE ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO, OR ARE WE WAITING FOR SPECIFIC, A SPECIFIC PROCESS OR SOMETHING TO HAPPEN BEFORE WE TAKE ACTION? UM, I'M NOT QUITE SURE.
UH, LET ME JUST MENTION THIS TO EVERYONE.
THIS, THIS SESSION, FOR SOME REASON IS PARTICULARLY SLOW IN GETTING OFF THE GROUND.
UH, AND THEREFORE A LOT OF THE COMMITTEES, UH, NAMELY NATURAL RESOURCES, UH, AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION COMMITTEE, OR TWO COMMITTEES THAT MANY OF US CLOSELY TRACK, THEY HAVE NOT STARTED HAVING HEARINGS ON BILLS.
SOME OF THESE BILLS WILL NOT EVEN GET A HEARING.
BUT FOR US TO SORT OF JUMP IN AND START WRITING ABOUT THESE BILLS BEFORE THEY MOVE INTO COMMITTEE IS PROBABLY A LITTLE EARLY, BUT I'LL BE HAPPY TO KEEP, UM, CHAIRMAN BAAN AND OUR O E Q S DEPARTMENT APPRISED OF THESE BILLS AS THEY MOVE.
DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, DR.
ASHLEY? IT DOES, IT DOES PERFECTLY.
I WAS GONNA ASK A SIMILAR QUESTION, LIKE, IS THERE, ARE YOU GONNA MAKE US AWARE IF THERE'S A TIME WHERE WE CAN SUBMIT OUR COMMENTS FOR THESE PARTICULAR BILLS? AND, UH, WHAT ARE THE CHANCES THAT THEY WERE GONNA MAKE IT TO THE FLOOR? THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION.
WITH US THIS EVENING IS OUR OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS REPRESENTATIVE, UH, MS. MALDEN,
[00:10:01]
DO YOU WANNA RESPOND? YES, ABSOLUTELY.UM, I'M A SENIOR COORDINATOR WITH THE CITY OF DALLAS OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS.
UM, SO THIS IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT OUR, OUR OFFICE WORKS ON IN COLLABORATION WITH OUR STATE LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR, CLIFFORD SPARKS, WHOSE EMAIL IS, UM, ON THE BOTTOM OF THIS MEMO.
SO WE ARE, YOU KNOW, HE IS ON THE GROUND IN AUSTIN TRACKING BILLS AS THEY'RE MOVING THROUGH THE PROCESS, AS THEY'RE GOING THROUGH COMMITTEE, AND ANYTHING THAT LOOKS VIABLE, UM, THAT WE DEFINITELY WOULD WANT TO SUPPORT OR DEFINITELY WOULD WANT TO OPPOSE.
UM, HE'S FLAGGING TO OUR OFFICES AND ALSO TO O E Q S AND ANY OTHER, YOU KNOW, RELEVANT, UM, OFFICES.
AND SO AS THOSE ARE, YOU KNOW, KIND OF LOOKING LIKE THEY MIGHT GO THROUGH COMMITTEE, THEY MIGHT BE, YOU KNOW, PASSING FURTHER ALONG.
UM, WE'RE CONSULTING WITH DEPARTMENTS, UM, AND ALSO THE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE, YOU KNOW, SUBMITTING ANY COMMENTS, UM, THAT, YOU KNOW, COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE, ARE TESTIFYING AND THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE O E Q S, UM, UH, SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS REALLY LIKE WEIGHING IN ON KIND OF HOW IT'S GONNA AFFECT THE CITY AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, SO THAT IS KIND OF OUR CURRENT PROCESS.
UM, AND SO WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY RELYING ON OUR, UM, OUR TEAMS IN AUSTIN TO KIND OF LET US KNOW WHAT'S LOOKING VIABLE AND WHAT'S NOT RIGHT NOW.
ALRIGHT, MEMBERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, DR.
LAKIN? UM, JUST, UH, UM, I WILL BE, UM, IF THE BILLS PROGRESS AND THERE'S ANYTHING, AND I, UM, I NEEDED TO VISIT LEGISLATORS.
I'M GOING TO BE IN AUSTIN ON MARCH THE 21ST, UM, ADVOCATING FOR THE EXPANSION FOR PREGNANT WOMEN.
UH, JUST ANOTHER BILL THAT I'M TRACKING THAT I THINK WOULD BE WORTH TRACKING FOR THE CITY, FOR THE CCAP SENATE BILL 1453.
IT ELIMINATES THE AUTHORITY FOR CITIES TO ENTER INTO A ENERGY SAVINGS AGREEMENTS, WHICH IS, UH, YOU KNOW, MAIN VEHICLE FOR THE CITY TO ACCOMPLISH A LOT OF ITS RETROFITS TO SAVE ON UTILITY COSTS AND IMPLEMENT, UH, RENEWABLE ENERGY RETROFITS.
SO, UM, I'D SUGGEST ADDING THAT ONE TO THE WATCH LIST AS WELL.
COMMISSIONER, YOU SAID SENATE BILL 1453.
UH, WE ARE GONNA MOVE ON TO OUR NEXT ITEM, UH, AND INTO OUR BRIEFING AGENDA THIS EVENING.
UH, ITEM A IS A BRIEFING FROM TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION ON THE DALLAS TREE EQUITY PLANTING MAP.
AND WITH US THIS EVENING, UH, IS NORM DALEY, THE CHIEF OPERATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER.
UM, IF YOU GUYS RECALL, WE HAD BRIEFLY DISCUSSED THIS EQUITY PLANTING MAP, UH, DURING THE MEETING THAT WE MADE THE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE EQUITY INDICATORS.
UH, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT AND I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU GUYS HAVE AGREED TO BE HERE THIS EVENING.
UH, SO OUR TYPICAL FORMAT IS YOU'LL DO 15, 12 TO 15 MINUTES OF PRESENTATION, AND THEN WE'LL DO, UH, JANET AFTER.
WELL, THANK YOU CHAIRWOMAN BAAN, AND GOOD EVENING TO THE, UH, COMMISSIONERS, FELLOW COMMISSIONERS, UH, WITH ME THIS EVENING ISS RACHEL MCGREGOR.
SHE'S OUR URBAN FORESTRY MANAGER OF TEXAS TREES.
WE ALSO HAVE SEVERAL OF OUR COLLEAGUES JOINING US TONIGHT, UH, AS WELL AS OUR C E O JEANETTE MANIER.
WE'RE DELIGHTED TO BE HERE AND ARE EXCITED TO SHARE SOME OF THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING, UH, INCLUDING OUR NEW REPORT, WHICH YOU JUST MENTIONED THIS EVENING.
OUR AGENDA WILL DISCUSS THE CONNECTION BETWEEN TREES AND URBAN FORESTRY, URBAN HEAT, AND ITS EFFECT ON HUMAN HEALTH.
AND WE'LL SHARE OUR NEW REPORT THAT SHOWS WHERE TO STRATEGICALLY PLANT TREES TO MORE FAIRLY PROVIDE TREE BENEFITS ACROSS DALLAS.
WE'LL ALSO DISCUSS SOME OF THE STEPS WE'VE TAKEN AND EXPECT TO TAKE FOR OUR GRASSROOTS EQUITY ENGAGEMENT PROCESS.
AND WE'LL LOOK AT DALLAS EQUITY INDICATORS AND SHOW HOW OUR, OUR REPORT, UH, ALIGNS WITH THE EXCELLENT WORK THAT DALLAS HAS BEEN DOING ON THESE ISSUES.
AS A BRIEF PRIMER FOR ANYBODY WHO'S LISTENING IN AND NOT FAMILIAR WITH TEXAS TREES, UH, WE'RE A 40 YEAR OLD RESEARCH-BASED URBAN FORESTRY NONPROFIT FOCUSING ON URBAN TREE CANOPY AND URBAN HEAT ISSUES, AND DEVELOPING PROGRAMS THAT RESPOND TO THOSE ISSUES AND BEAUTIFY NORTH TEXAS.
NEXT SLIDE PLEASES TEXAS TREES.
WE'RE OFTEN ASKING OURSELF THIS QUESTION, HOW DO WE CREATE A GREENER, CLEANER, COOLER IN HEALTHIER DALLAS? UH, WE'RE ACTIVELY ADDRESSING URBAN FORESTRY ISSUES THROUGH SEVERAL PROGRAMS, WHICH WE DELIVER WITH OUR PARTNERS.
NEXT SATURDAY, FOR INSTANCE, WE'LL BE PLANTING, UH, 50 TREES AT CREDIT PARK, SUPPORTING THE DALLAS PARK AND REC BRANCHING OUT PROGRAM.
[00:15:01]
TO SHARE WITH YOU THAT WE HAVE COMPLETED PHASE ONE OF THE COOL SCHOOLS PROGRAM OF DECEMBER, 2022.WE'LL BE TRANSFORMED 25 DALLAS ISD CAMPUSES, PLANTING ABOUT 3000 TREES ALONG WITH THOUSANDS OF D I S D STUDENTS.
UH, WE'RE ALREADY INTO PHASE TWO, DESIGNING THE NEXT 26 CAMPUSES, UH, FOR DALLAS, I S D.
I THINK YOU ALSO KNOW ABOUT T TTFS INVOLVEMENT WITH THE SOUTHWEST MEDICAL DISTRICT PROJECT TO REVAMP TWO MILES OF HARRY HINES BY CREATING A GREEN SPINE ALONG THE CORRIDOR AND BUILDING A 10 ACRE PARK AT THE INTERSECTION OF HARRY HINES.
OUR NATURE LAB IS BRINGING PEOPLE, COMMUNITIES, AND ORGANIZATIONS TOGETHER TO CREATE A SAFER, HEALTHIER ENVIRONMENTS FOR ALL.
SO THERE ARE MANY WAYS THAT TEXAS TREES AND OUR PARTNERS ARE CONNECTING PEOPLE AND TREES.
LET'S QUICKLY COVER, UH, A FEW TOPICS HERE, URBAN FORESTRY, UH, AND EXAMINE URBAN HEAT AND HOW IT AFFECTS US ALL.
AND WE'LL SHARE SOME OF THE RESEARCH THAT TTF IS DOING AND HAS DONE TO IMPROVE TREE PLANTING DESIGN AND PROVIDE GREATER BENEFITS TO THE CITY OF DALLAS.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, AN URBAN FOREST IS ALL THE TREES AND WOODY PLANTS IN URBAN COMMUNITY.
SO DALLAS HAS, UH, 14.7 MILLION TREES.
THE QUESTION THEN ARISES, WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THEM? AND THAT'S WHERE URBAN FORESTRY COMES INTO PLAY.
SO, URBAN FORESTRY IS THE ART, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY OF MANAGING TREES AND FOREST RESOURCES IN AND AROUND URBAN COMMUNITY ECOSYSTEMS FOR THE PHYSIOLOGICAL, SOCIOLOGICAL ECONOMIC AND AESTHETIC BENEFITS THAT TREES PROVIDE SOCIETY.
YOU CAN SEE UP ON THE SLIDE, THERE ARE FOUR KEY CATEGORIES WITHIN THOSE CATEGORIES.
THERE ARE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF TREE BENEFITS THAT ARE IDENTIFIED.
UH, IF WE LOOK AT ECONOMIC BENEFITS, TREES IN DALLAS PROVIDE ABOUT 226 MILLION IN ECONOMIC BENEFITS.
AND TREES ARE ALSO IMPORTANT FOR HEALTH BECAUSE THEY CLEAN THE AIR OF PARTICULATE MATTER, CO2 N OH TWO.
AND WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN A MOMENT.
WE SPENT A LOT OF OUR TIME FOCUSING ON THE ISSUE OF TREES, HUMAN HEALTH AND WELLBEING.
AND YOU CAN SEE SEVERAL POINTS THAT WE'VE COVERED UP THERE.
UH, I THINK I'LL, I'LL JUST MENTION THAT SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, EMPIRICAL DATA AND INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE OF LONG ESTABLISHED, A SOLID AND VIABLE CONNECTION BETWEEN HUMAN HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT.
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, THIS CONNECTION BETWEEN NATURE AND HUMAN HEALTH HAS BEEN STRENGTHENED AND FORTIFIED.
WE HAVE UNEQUIVOCAL DATA SHOWING THAT EXTREME URBAN HEAT IS LINKED TO INCREASED HOSPITAL ADMISSIONS, ASTHMA FLARES, MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, ANXIETY AND STRESS DISORDERS, MOOD DISORDERS, AND MANY OTHERS.
SO WE TALK ABOUT THE URBAN FOREST, URBAN FORESTRY, WHAT TO DO ABOUT MANAGING IT, IT'S CONNECTION TO HEALTH.
BUT WE WANNA SPEND A MOMENT TALKING ABOUT URBAN HEAT.
SO URBAN HEAT ISLANDS, UH, ARE ALL OVER THE CITY.
THEY OCCUR WHEN STRUCTURES SUCH AS BUILDINGS AND ROADS ABSORB AND READMIT THE SUN'S HEAT MORE THAN NATURAL LANDSCAPES, SUCH AS FORESTS AND BODIES OF WATER.
AND THAT RESULTS IN HOTTER DAYS AND NIGHTS IN THE CITY.
IN 2022, WE HAD 47 DAYS OF AIR TEMPERATURES ADD, OR OVER 100 DEGREES.
AND DALLAS, WHICH I KNOW IS A CITY THAT LOVES TO WIN, IS HEATING UP FASTER THAN ANY OTHER LARGE CITY IN THE NATION EXCEPT LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY AND PHOENIX, ARIZONA.
AND I'M NOT SURE WE WANT TO DO A VICTORY LAP ON WINNING THAT COMPETITION.
DALLAS IS ON TRACK TO EXPERIENCE AMBIENT TEMPERATURE INCREASES 10 DEGREES OVER, UH, 10 DEGREES ABOVE WHERE IT IS RIGHT NOW OVER THE NEXT 20 YEARS.
AND THIS IS PROBLEMATIC BECAUSE WHEN AIR TEMPERATURES RISE ABOVE THE TEMPERATURES TO WHICH PEOPLE ARE ACCLIMATED, THEIR BODIES ARE NOT ABLE TO RESPOND EFFECTIVELY WHEN SHED HEAT, AND THAT CREATES HEALTH PROBLEMS. SO, SUMMERTIME OBVIOUSLY, IS WHEN DALLAS EXPERIENCES GREAT HEALTH-RELATED ILLNESSES AND DEATH.
AND THAT'S BECAUSE HEAT EXHAUSTION AND HEAT STROKE CAN OCCUR WHEN A POOR BODY TEMPERATURE RISES.
AND THIS IS BECOMING A HUGE PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT.
WE MIGHT ALSO MENTION THAT HEAT WAVES, WHICH ARE TWO OR MORE DAYS AT WITH DAYTIME TEMPERATURES ABOVE 105 AND NIGHTTIME TEMPERATURES ABOVE 75, CAN LEAD TO REDUCED OUTDOOR ACTIVITY AND INFLUENCE THOSE WHO WORK IN OUTDOOR OCCUPATIONS.
I'D ALSO MENTIONED FROM A CITY POINT OF VIEW THAT INCREASED INFRASTRUCTURE DEMANDS ARE ALSO CAUSED BY HEAT.
THERE'S MORE MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS, UH, THAT RESULT FROM INTENSE URBAN HEAT.
UH, URBAN HEAT DRIVES TDF RESEARCH ON PROGRAMS. WE'VE APPLIED THAT RESEARCH TO DALLAS AND THE SOUTHWEST MEDICAL DISTRICT PROJECT.
AS WE ALL KNOW, DALLAS HAS 32% CANOPY, AND THE CITY SET A GOAL OF REACHING 37% CANOPY BY 2040.
AND AS WE MENTIONED A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO, UH, BY WAY OF COMPARISON, US FOREST SERVICE RECOMMENDS 40% URBAN TREE
[00:20:01]
CANOPY.TREE CANOPY IS A GREAT WAY TO COMBAT URBAN NEED, BUT THERE ARE SEVERAL PARTS OF THE CITY, LIKE THE SOUTHWEST MEDICAL DISTRICT, UH, DALLAS ISD SCHOOLS THAT WE HAVEN'T WORKED ON THAT ONLY HAVE 7% OF TREE CANOPY.
AND THAT LEADS US TO SOME OF THE WORK WE'VE BEEN DOING AROUND THIS ISSUE OF MICROCLIMATES AND MATTERS OF HUMAN COMFORT.
SO LOOKING AT THIS SLIDE, YOU CAN SEE DIFFERENCES IN SHADED AND UNSHADED SURFACE TEMPERATURES.
I THINK IT'S PRETTY CLEAR, BUT YEAH.
UM, WE'VE ALSO BEEN LOOKING AT, UM, HOW TEMPERATURES WITHIN A A FEW FEET OF A SHADED AREA CAN VARY AS MUCH AS 50 DEGREES.
SO WHEN WE THINK OF, OF, UH, TEMPERATURES, SAY AT A HUNDRED DEGREES, IF IF CONCRETE IS SHADED, IT'S PROBABLY AROUND A HUNDRED DEGREES, BUT IF IT'S UNSHADED, UH, IT CAN BE AS HOT AS 157 DEGREES.
AND WE ACTUALLY TOOK THAT TEMPERATURE ON OUR PARKING LOT THIS SUMMER.
IN FACT, BARK MULCH WHERE KIDS PLAY ON PLAYGROUNDS, UH, WHEN IT'S UNSHADED, IT CAN HIT TEMPERATURES OF 140 PLUS DEGREES.
THAT'S A REALLY HOT SURFACE FOR KIDS TO BE PLAYING ON, ON SCHOOL GROUND.
AND THAT'S WHY, FOR INSTANCE, IN THE COOL SCHOOLS PROGRAM, WE'RE PLANTING TREES AROUND THE PLAYGROUNDS TO SHADE THAT BARK MULCH IN THE FUTURE.
WE'RE ALSO GETTING INVOLVED IN EVIDENCE-BASED DESIGN, UH, WHERE WE, UH, ARE LOOKING AT MEASURING AND MODELING HOW TO DO BETTER TREE PLANTINGS.
UM, ACCORDING TO THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION, HEALTH IS A STATE OF COMPLETE PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND SOCIAL WELLBEING, AND NOT MERELY THE ABSENCE OF DISEASE.
AND WE THINK WE NEED TO, SORRY, WE THINK WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT HEALTH LONG BEFORE THE PATIENT'S STEPS FOOT IN ANY HEALTHCARE FACILITY.
IT'S OUR HOPE THROUGH THE PROCESS OF MEASURING AND GROUND TRUTHING DATA, CREATING MODELS WITH REAL TIME DATA THAT WE CAN DEVELOP DESIGN AND DESIGN SOLUTIONS THAT OPTIMIZE HEALTH.
UH, WE CONDUCTED NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.
UH, PARTICULATE MATTERS STUDY AROUND CHARLES ROYCE LEARNING CENTER TO DETERMINE WHICH TREES AND SHRUB PLANTED COMBINATIONS WOULD FILTER OUT AIRBORNE PARTICLES.
PARTICULATE MATTER IS A COMPONENT OF AIR POLLUTION THAT CONSISTS OF A MIXTURE OF SOLID PARTICLES AND LIQUID DROPLETS SUSPENDED IN THE AIR AND URBAN AREAS THAT DOMINANT SOURCES OF PM ARE FROM MOBILE SOURCES AND FUEL COMBUSTION.
SO VEGETATION CAN SERVE AS A NATURE-BASED SOLUTION TO REDUCE CHILDREN'S EXPOSURE TO TRAFFIC RELATED TO OTHER AIRBORNE PARTICULATE POLLUTANTS.
AND WE WANTED TO FIND OUT HOW PARTICULATE MATTER ACCUMULATION BY TREES VARY BY SPECIES, AND FRANKLY DISCOVERED THAT SOME TREES ARE BETTER AT THIS THAN OTHERS.
SO YOU CAN SEE RED BUDS NOT GREAT AT FILTERING OUT PARTICULATE MATTER, BUT VITEX, UH, PRETTY GOOD.
UH, NOT SHOWING THE GRAPH THOUGH WAS THE SHRUB USED IN THIS STUDY, WHICH WAS TEXAS SAGE.
IT ACCUMULATED FOUR TIMES MORE FINE PARTICULATE MATTER AND TWO TIMES MORE FORCE PARTICULATE MATTER THAN ALL TREE SPECIES.
AND IT DID SO AT OBVIOUSLY A MUCH LOWER HEIGHT.
THIS COULD BOULDER BOLSTER THE ARGUMENT TO PLANT SMALLER TREE SPECIES OR SHRUBS AT SCHOOLS FOR AIR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT AND LARGER TREES FOR SHADE TO REDUCE URBAN HEAT.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH MULTIPLE THINGS AND WE'RE USING THE SCIENCE TO HELP GUIDE US.
NOW, MOVING ON TO THE TREE EQUITY MAP.
I SHOULD MENTION THAT THIS REPORT AIMS TO FULFILL RECOMMENDATION EIGHT OF THE DALLAS U F M P 2021, WHICH I'M SURE YOU ALL FONDLY REMEMBER AND CONTINUE TO STUDY.
RECOMMENDATION A CALLED FOR A PLANT IS STRATEGICALLY PLANTING CARE FOR TREES TO ENSURE EQUITABLE ACCESS TO TREE CANOPY ACROSS DALLAS.
THIS REPORT PROVIDES AN ACTION GUIDE FOR DECISION MAKERS, CITY STAFF, DEVELOPERS, BUILDERS, AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS TO BETTER IDENTIFY WHERE TREES SHOULD BE STRATEGICALLY PLANTED.
AND THE FIVE PLANTING PRIORITY CATEGORIES USED FOR THIS TREE EQUITY PLANTING MAP ARE IDENTIFIED UP THERE.
DEMOGRAPHIC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, HEALTH, AIR QUALITY, AND URBAN HEAT ISLAND.
LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT THERE.
UM, THE METHODS USED TO CALCULATE PLANTING CLARITY SCORES ARE WIDELY ACCEPTED TO THE URBAN FORESTRY MANAGEMENT AND PLANNING PROFESSION.
THE AVERAGE MAX TEMPERATURE WAS DERIVED USING OUR TTF URBAN HEAT ISLAND MANAGEMENT STUDY.
YOU MAY REMEMBER THIS, WHICH WE DID IN 2017.
I, UM, EXCUSE ME, AND USES THE AVERAGE MAX TEMPERATURE WITHIN EACH CENSUS BLOCK ROUTE.
SO LOOKING AT THE MAP, EVERY, UM, SECTION IN
[00:25:01]
WILA IS CONSIDERED AN URGENT PLANTING AREA.SO NOT, UH, NOT, NOT, NOT THE HIGHEST PRIORITY, BUT A, A CLOSE SECOND.
SO THIS PLANTING MAP ADDRESSES TREE PLANTING THROUGH A MULTI-PART LENS.
UH, PLANTING PRIORITIES WERE TABULATED ACROSS TWO GEO GEOGRAPHIC SCALES, CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS AND THE 929 CENSUS BLOCK GROUPS WITHIN THE CITY OF DALLAS.
BLOCK GROUPS ARE USED BY THE US CENSUS BUREAU TO ASSURE STATISTICAL CONSISTENCY WHEN TRACKING POPULATIONS ACROSS THE US AND CAN BE VALUABLE INDICATORS OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICES THAT ARE LINKED, ASSOCIATED WITH DEMOGRAPHIC DATA.
USING THESE RESULTS, DALLAS CAN FOCUS A COMMISSIONAL TREE PLANTING EFFORTS TO IMPACT THE GREATEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO ARE ON MOST MEANING OF TREE CANOPY BENEFITS.
IDENTIFIED THROUGH THE FIVE FOUR MENTIONED CATEGORIES.
AND IF YOU WANT TO SEE MORE ABOUT THE, UH, PRIORITIZATION DATA SOURCES, METHODOLOGY AND CRITERIA, PAGES 14 TO 26, WE'LL COVER THAT FOR YOU.
UH, THIS SLIDE SHOWS, UH, COUNCIL DISTRICT.
SO WE ALSO RANK THE COUNCIL DISTRICTS IN TERMS OF PRIORITY COUNCIL.
DISTRICT FOUR IS TOP PRIORITY COUNCIL.
DISTRICT TWO SORT OF FELL IN MIDDLE OF THE PACK, AND THEN 14 WAS THE 14TH DISTRICT.
UM, BUT WITHIN EACH DISTRICT, WE HAVE RANKED THE TOP FIVE, UH, URGENT PLANTING AREAS, AND ALL THE DISTRICTS HAVE URGENT PLANTING AREAS, AND THEY'RE ALL RANKED FROM ONE TO FIVE FOR THE GRAND TRUTH.
GROUND TRUTHING IS NECESSARY FOR TREE PLANTING PROJECTS, BUT AGAIN, THIS IS A TOOL WE CAN USE TO HELP IDENTIFY WHERE THOSE PROJECTS SHOULD BE AND ADDRESS EQUITY WHILE WE'RE AT IT.
AND THAT GETS TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WHICH IS DEALING WITH THE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS.
UM, TTF WILL BE USING A GRASSROOTS HOLISTIC APPROACH TO PROPOSE AND THEN PLAN THESE TREE PLANTING PROJECTS.
AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT OBVIOUSLY WILL BE VITALLY IMPORTANT.
WE'VE ALREADY STARTED TO CONSULT WITH MANY OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS AND EXPECT TO COMPLETE THIS PROCESS IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS.
SO WE'RE SITTING DOWN REVIEWING EACH COUNCIL MEMBER'S DISTRICT, UH, WITH THE FINDINGS IN THE REPORT, RECOMMENDING PLANTINGS IN THESE URGENT AREAS, AND ALSO HEARING FROM THEM ABOUT WHERE THEY THINK, UH, UH, GOOD PLANTING, UH, OPPORTUNITIES MAY BE.
AND WE'RE, WE'RE ALSO WORKING TO, UM, PROPOSE SORT OF A LIST OF TREE PLANTING OPTIONS, SO THAT OVER THE COURSE OF THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS, WE CAN KEEP WORKING OUR WAY DOWN A LIST OF, OF, UH, THOSE AREAS THAT WILL BE URGENT TREE PLANTING.
SO, ONE OF THE THINGS WE WANT TO DO IS MEET WITH NEIGHBORHOODS AND OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND WE'LL BE DISTRIBUTING SURVEYS WITHIN THESE COMMUNITY TO GA COMMUNITIES TO GAUGE RECEPTIVENESS TO, TO TREE PLANTING, IDENTIFY POTENTIAL PROJECTS FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND IDENTIFY COMMITMENT FROM VOLUNTEERS.
SO WE'RE WORKING WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS.
WE'D ACTUALLY LIKE TO WORK WITH, WE WERE, IT WOULD SUGGEST THAT WE WORK WITH EACH ONE OF THE COMMISSIONERS AS WELL.
WE'LL PROBABLY BE KNOCKING ON YOUR DOOR SOON.
UH, THE SURVEYS THAT WE'LL BE USING WILL BE CONDUCTED IN BOTH, UH, SPANISH AND ENGLISH.
THEY CAN BE FILLED OUT ONLINE OR IN PERSON AT THESE MEETINGS.
UH, AND WE'RE PLANNING TO HIRE A NEIGHBORHOOD COORDINATOR WILL PROVIDE URBAN FORESTRY EDUCATION ALONG WITH IDENTIFYING, COORDINATING, AND IMPLEMENTING PLANNING PROJECTS.
SO THE LASTLY, WE'LL JUST MENTIONED THAT, UH, WE'VE TAKEN TIME TO REVIEW SEVERAL OF THE DALLAS PLAN TO DETERMINE THE DALLAS EQUITY INDICATORS.
UM, IN OUR TREE EQUITY MAPPING REPORT, THERE ARE SEVERAL URBAN FORESTRY INDICATORS THAT ALIGN WITH OTHER DALLAS EQUITY REPORTS AND GOALS.
FOR INSTANCE, LOOKING AT THE ENVIRONMENTAL BUBBLE UP THERE, IT'S THE BOTTOM RIGHT.
UH, WE CAN MONITOR THE INCREASE OR DECREASE AND TREAT CANOPY COVERED OR THE SURFACE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENTIALS FOR URBAN HEAT.
ALL THESE URBAN FORESTRY INDICATORS WERE DERIVED FROM SEVERAL OF THE DALLAS EQUITY RELATED PLANS TO ALIGN WITH THE CITY'S ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND URBAN FORESTRY GOALS.
AND ALL THE URBAN FORESTRY INDICATORS CAN BE MONITORED AND ARE MEASURABLE, UH, TO CORRELATE WITH TREE CANOPY COVER.
LAST SLIDE, SECOND LAST SLIDE.
UM, YOU, YOU KNOW, WE SEE SEVERAL OPPORTUNITIES TO PARTNER WITH THE CITY OF DALLAS.
WE WORK ALREADY IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS.
UH, WE'D LOVE TO SEE SOME, UH, OPPORTUNITIES TO HAVE ONE, UH, URBAN FORESTER CONTACT YOU CAN WORK WITH.
UH, THERE'S SEVERAL ITEMS UP THERE.
I'M NOT GONNA COVER THEM ALL, BUT I WILL SAY THAT ONE THING WE THINK IS REALLY IMPORTANT IN CONNECTION WITH THIS PARTICULAR NEW REPORT IS THAT THERE BE CONSIDERATION GIVEN TO OPENING UP ARTICLE 10 NARROWLY TO ALLOW MITIGATION TO BE USED ON
[00:30:01]
PRIVATE PROPERTY, ON THOSE URGENT PLANTING AREAS.WE FEEL THAT WOULD HELP TO, UM, EXPEDITE MORE PLANTING, AND IT WOULD ALSO HELP US WITH OUR EFFORTS TO RAISE FUNDS NEEDED FOR THOSE PROJECTS.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT WAS 50 MINUTES OR NOT, BUT I'M DONE.
SO NOW YOU GUYS SEE WHY I WAS REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS, UM, NEW TOOL AND THIS PRESENTATION.
OKAY, WE ARE GOING TO GO VIRTUALLY FIRST.
UM, MR. MARTIN HAS HIS HAND UP.
UM, UNLIKE MANY THINGS THAT WE DEAL WITH HERE IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION AND THE COUNCIL, UM, SOME THINGS HAVE A LOT OF RESISTANCE, UH, OBSTACLES, WHATEVER.
IT SEEMS TO ME LIKE, YOU KNOW, MOST PEOPLE GO, MAN, THESE TREES, GOOD IDEA.
WHAT IS, WHAT IS THE BIGGEST THING IN THE WAY OF THESE PLANS TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM? UH, WHAT'S IN THE WAY AND MAY MAKE THIS DIFFICULT OR SLOW IT DOWN? THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR ANSWER,
I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO ACCOMPLISH THROUGH THIS PROCESS IS, UH, MUCH MORE EDUCATION AROUND WHY THE TREES ARE IMPORTANT WITHIN THE COMMUNITIES WHERE THEY'RE GONNA BE PLANTED.
BECAUSE UNLIKE MANY OF OUR OTHER PROJECTS, UH, WHERE WE, WE SORT OF SHOW UP WITH OUR, OUR, UM, COLLEAGUES IN THE CITY AND VOLUNTEER GROUPS, WE'D REALLY LIKE THE COMMUNITY THEMSELVES, THE NEIGHBORHOODS TO EMBRACE THIS IDEA AND WORK WITH US TO DEVELOP, UH, PLANTING PROJECTS WITHIN THOSE URGENT AREAS, UH, THAT MATTER TO THEM.
SO I THINK, UH, THIS MAY NOT BE A FAST PROCESS, BUT WE ALSO FEEL IT'S AN URGENT PROC.
IT NEEDS TO BE URGENT, UH, BECAUSE OF THE HEAT PROBLEM, PARTICULARLY, PARTICULARLY IN THOSE URGENT PLANTING AREAS IS PRETTY IMPORTANT TO DEAL WITH.
SO I'M NOT SURE THAT THAT'S A, UH, THE ANSWER YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, BUT I THINK THAT ENGAGEMENT PROCESS IS A VITAL PART TO GETTING THIS DONE, UH, QUICKLY.
UM, UH, I, I THINK IT WON'T BE AS COMPLICATED AS PERHAPS OTHER MEASURES WE TRY AND EDUCATE PEOPLE ON.
SO,
UM, CHAIRWOMAN, UH, GOOD EVENING.
THANK YOU FOR THAT PRESENTATION.
UM, I'M REPRESENTING, UH, DISTRICT FOUR.
AND, UM, THAT, WHICH WAS PRIORITY NUMBER ONE.
UM, SO I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW, UM, WHEN DID WE GET STARTED? AND, UM,
WE'RE HOPING TO MEET WITH COUNSEL, UH, UH, MAYOR PERK, UH, WITHIN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS TO GET THAT PROCESS GOING WITH HER OFFICE AND TO GET HER GUIDANCE ON WHO SHE FEELS WOULD BE, UH, STRONG COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT WE COULD BEGIN TO WORK WITH.
SO OUR INTENTION IS TO, UH, GET GOING ON THE CONSULTATION PROCESS RIGHT AWAY.
UH, IN A PERFECT WORLD, WE'D LOVE TO SEE TREES GOING IN THE GROUND BY NEXT FALL FOR THE FIRST PROJECT.
AND, UM, THEN CONTINUE JUST TO, TO BUILD SUPPORT AND, AND NOT LOOK AT THIS AS A ONCE AND DONE, BUT AS AN ONGOING EFFORT.
SO THAT'S KIND OF THE TIMELINE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
UH, WITH RESPECT TO IRRIGATION, UH, YOU'RE SPOT ON THERE.
THAT WILL BE PART OF THE PROJECT PROPOSAL, UH, FOR CONSIDERATION.
UM, THERE, THERE ARE SOME IDEAS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT IN TERMS OF SUPPORTING RESIDENTS AND HOW THEY CAN, UH, WATER THEIR TREES.
AND, UH, WE'LL BE DISCUSSING THOSE WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS AS WE DEVELOP THOSE PROJECTS.
UH, WHERE THE PLANTINGS HAPPEN ON PUBLIC PROPERTY, WE'LL BE WORKING WITH THE CITY TO PROBABLY IRRIGATE THOSE TREES.
AND THEN ALSO, YOU KNOW, SO I APPRECIATED THE MAP.
SO I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU, IT SAYS DISTRICT FOUR, UM, BUT IT, IT'S NOT THE ENTIRE DISTRICT.
I'M, I'M ASSUMING THERE'S, THERE ARE CERTAIN AREAS WITHIN THIS DISTRICT, CORRECT.
UM, AND DO YOU HAVE THAT INFORMATION THAT YOU, UH, YOUR OFFICE WOULD BE ABLE TO SHARE WITH US? YES.
AND IN FACT, IT'S IN THE REPORT ITSELF, IT, THOSE LILAC AREAS MM-HMM.
WE'LL PROBABLY START WITH NUMBER ONE, BUT THAT'S WHERE WE NEED TO HAVE THE CONSULTATION WITH THE COUNCIL MEMBER AND THE COMMUNITY TO SEE WHAT OPTIONS THERE ARE.
UH, FOR US TO DEVELOP TREE PLANNING PROJECT.
WE'RE NOT GONNA DO THE WHOLE AREA ONCE CAUSE THEY'RE LARGE AREAS.
BUT WE WANT TO PICK SOMETHING THAT MAKES SENSE.
[00:35:01]
IDENTIFIED TWO FOR EACH ONE OF THE EXISTING DISTRICTS COMMISSION.WHEN WAS THE STUDY, DID, UH, PARTICULAR MATTER STUDY DID AT CHORE WEIS SCHOOL? I'M SORRY, THE PARTICULAR MATTER STUDY AT CHARLES RICE? UH, GREAT QUESTION.
WE, UH, STARTED WITH, UH, A YEAR AGO IN JANUARY.
U NT DALLAS U NT ARLINGTON, U N T
IT JUST COMPLETED IN DECEMBER.
THEY'RE LOOKING TO PUBLISH THE RESULTS.
I THINK WE HAVE A, I THINK THAT'S COMING THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS.
THAT WAS GONNA BE MY NEXT QUESTION.
WHERE DO I SEE THAT DATA AT? YEAH, WE'LL, WE'LL SEND YOU A COPY OF THAT.
I, I'M, I'M DISTRICT SEVEN, CHARLES RICE IS IN MY DISTRICT, AND I, I LIVE IN PY.
AND, UH, SO, UH, CANOPY, UH, SO YOU SAID THAT Y'ALL WAS, UH, INFORMED TO WORK WITH THE COMMISSIONERS, LIKE DISTRICT FOUR.
I WOULD LIKE TO, UH, HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT, UH, A CANOPY, UH, ON OUR MAIN STREET IN JOCKEY FOR, TO BLOCK THE EMISSIONS FROM THE TRAIN.
SO THAT WOULD BE GOOD FOR YOU TO REACH OUT TO, UH, ME FOR WE COULD DISCUSS THAT.
THANK YOU FOR THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER ROBERTSON.
OH, THANK, UM, MY NAME IS RENEE ROBERTSON.
AND UM, I'D LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR THIS VERY NICE BOOK THAT WILL HELP EDUCATION.
UM, MY QUESTION WAS TWO THINGS.
ONE STRUGGLING WAS THAT THE HEAT IS CEMENT.
AND DART HAS SO MANY UNCOVERED, UM, BUS STOPS.
SO THEY'RE JUST CEMENT BENCHES.
SO TO ME IT MEANS LIKE A RADIUS.
YOU'RE SITTING ON THIS BENCH, RIGHT.
THAT'S CEMENT, AND THEN AROUND IT IS CEMENT, AND THEN CHILDREN ARE SITTING THERE, SO THEY'RE HEATING UP AT ABOUT, THEY'RE SITTING IN A LITTLE BOWL OF 140 DEGREE.
YOU KNOW, AND SO I WAS JUST WONDERING, UM, IF YOU EVEN SPOT, I DON'T EXPECT THE TREE UP THERE TO STOP AND I'M JUST SAYING MAYBE THE AREA NEAR THERE.
HAD YOU ALL THOUGHT ABOUT LOOKING AT ANY OF THAT? WELL, WE HAVE BEEN IN TOUCH, UH, VERY BRIEFLY WITH DART.
AND WHEN WE, UH, PRESENTED TO THE SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE ON MONDAY, THEY ASKED US TO WORK WITH, WITH DART, UM, FOR THE TRAIN STATION.
UH, WE HAVEN'T, AS FAR AS I KNOW, BEEN INVOLVED WITH, UH, PUTTING TREES IN TRANSIT, UH, SORRY, BUS STATIONS.
BUT, UM, WE CAN CERTAINLY LOOK AT THAT AS WELL.
AND IT IS NOT SO MUCH THE ACTUAL, YOU KNOW, TRANSIT STATIONS WHERE THE TRAIN GOES THROUGH.
IT'S THE NEIGHBORHOOD STOPS LIKE ON THE CORNERS.
I TRIED, UH, MAPPING IT CAUSE I LIVE NORTH, SO I LOOKED AT NORTH AND SOUTH AND I ACTUALLY THOUGHT I WAS GONNA FIND ALL OF THEM SOUTH AND I DIDN'T.
THERE'S SOME NORTH THROUGH THERE A LOT.
THERE'S ACTUALLY A LOT THAT ARE JUST A BENCH AND STONE BENCH.
AND THERE'S JUST NO PROTECTION.
AND MY OTHER QUESTION, THE TREES, UM, YOU WERE SAYING THE PARTICULATE MATTER.
SO THE LOWER THE, THE SMALLER LIKE, UH, TEXAS SAFE, SOME OF THE SMALLER TREES ACTUALLY ABSORB MORE PARTICULATE MATTER.
VARYING LEVELS ARE GOOD TO HAVE.
SO SMALLER SPECIES AND THEN OVERHEAD SPECIES.
UM, BUT THEN I DID WANT TO POINT OUT ON THERE, VIX IS, UH, AN INVASIVE SPECIES.
SO IT'S NOT ONE WE WANT TO PROMOTE PLANTING EVERYWHERE.
UM, BUT YES, DIFFERENT LAYERS OF GREEN IS WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, FOR, BECAUSE OF THE WEIGHT OF THE PARTICULATE MATTER VARY.
SO YOU'RE WANTING DIFFERENT LEVELS.
OH, AND WHEN YOU LOOKED AT DISTRICT EIGHT, DID YOU SEE A LOT OF HOT SPOTS? I KNOW THERE ARE LOTS OF TREES, BUT THERE ARE LOTS OF BEAR AREAS TOO.
UH, YEAH, DISTRICT EIGHT, I THINK YOU RANK WELL PACK.
UM, SO THAT WOULD MEAN THAT THERE WERE DEFINITELY HOT SPOTS, BUT IT WASN'T QUITE, IT'S NOT AS BAD AS YEAH.
BUT THERE ARE RANKS OF ONE THROUGH FIVE FOR PRIORITY PLANTING AREAS.
THANK YOU VICE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS GOOD NEWS.
AS PARTICULARLY CLOSE TO MY HEART, AS I HAD A HAND IN THE RACIAL EQUITY INDICATORS THAT INCLUDED THE EJ ISSUES AND TREE CANOPY WAS, WAS THE ONE I WAS PERSONALLY CHAMPIONING.
THIS IS GOING TO FUEL ME AS I KEYBOARD
[00:40:01]
WARRIOR FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS.SUPER EXCITED FOR YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD COORDINATOR TO COME AROUND.
DISTRICT SIX, THE DISTRICT THAT I REPRESENT, UM, THAT WILL BE AMAZING.
HOPEFULLY FACE TO FACE MORE ENGAGEMENT ISSUES.
UM, ARE YOU, WHAT ARE YOUR ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES? ARE YOU NECESSARILY OFFERING YOURSELVES TO COME TO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION MEETINGS? RIGHT.
HOW ARE YOU ON SOCIAL MEDIA? HOW ARE YOU ACTIVE? UM, AND HOW ARE YOU UTILIZING CITY RESOURCES TO SPREAD THE WORD? WELL, THESE ARE ALL GREAT QUESTIONS.
UH, I WOULD SAY WE'RE PRETTY ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA RIGHT NOW.
WE HAVE EVERY INTENTION OF COMING TO LOCAL MEETINGS AND, AND TALKING TO THE COMMUNITIES ABOUT, UH, THE IMPORTANCE OF TREES IN URBAN FORESTRY AND PLE TREE PLANTING PROJECTS, EXPLAINING THE PRIOR, THE PRIORITY PLANTING, UH, CONCEPTS SO THAT THEY CAN, UH, THINK THROUGH WITH US ON WHERE TO, WHERE TO PUT THEM.
UH, WE, WE DO USE CITY RESOURCES.
I THINK THIS IS, WE'RE STILL IN THE NASCENT STAGES OF DEVELOPING HOW THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN, BECAUSE OF COURSE, WE JUST PUBLISHED THE REPORT AND MM-HMM.
BUT THEN WE'LL COME TO YOU RIGHT AFTER.
WELL, YOU'RE GONNA MEET WITH DISTRICT SIX ON FRIDAY, I HEAR
YOU'RE ALWAYS INVITED TO A WEST DALLAS ONE MEETING.
IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD PARTICULARLY, WE HAVE DEVELOPERS AND HOMEOWNERS AGGRESSIVELY REMOVING TREES.
DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE? DO YOU HAVE, CAN YOU SPEAK TO THAT? JUST EDUCATION? THE MORE WE TEACH PEOPLE HOW IMPORTANT TREES ARE, THEY WILL STOP CUTTING DOWN, MESSING THIS WHEN YOU'RE NODDING.
WE'D BE HAPPY TO TALK TO THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THAT.
I, I THINK THAT, I WANT TO BE CLEAR, TEXAS STREET FOUNDATION IS NOT AN HANDY DEVELOPMENT, UH, FOR THE FORESTRY NONPROFIT, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE CERTAINLY ADVOCATE FOR KEEPING AS MUCH OF THE CANOPY AS POSSIBLE.
UH, WE'VE WORKED WITH THE DALLAS BUILDERS ASSOCIATION PREVIOUSLY AND HAD A PRODUCTIVE RELATIONSHIP.
AND I, I THINK THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM TO MAKE PROGRESS IN TERMS OF EDUCATING PEOPLE ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING, PARTICULARLY HOW, GIVEN AN INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF HEAT WE HAD LAST SUMMER, SO MM-HMM.
SO THIS IS NOT A CONVERSATION, WHAT I'M FAMILIAR WITH.
BUT WE'RE LOOKING FOR A RECOGNITION OF TREES MATTER AND THEY MATTER MORE THAN EVER.
SO, YOU KNOW, FINDING WAYS TO DEVELOP IT PRESERVES EXISTING CANOP FINALLY.
AND FINALLY, ONE LAST NITTY GRITTY QUESTION.
WE HEAR FROM THE CITY FREQUENTLY THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE THE STAFF TO MAINTAIN THE TREES IN THE FIRST YEAR THAT THEY'RE PLANTED.
SO THE CITY'S BEEN DOING GREAT ABOUT PLANTING TREES IN MEDIANS, IN PARKS.
WHAT ACTUAL PRACTICAL RESOURCES DO YOU GUYS HAVE, IF ANY, TO HELP US MAINTAIN THOSE TREES ONCE THEY'RE PLANTED? RELATED QUESTION.
I KNOW, DID WE GET A, UM,
BUT, UH, ONCE WE SORT OF GET GOING IN THAT PROGRAM, WE, WE SEE OPPORTUNITIES TO PROVIDE MORE SUPPORT WITH CITY PROJECTS AND, AND ACTIVITIES.
I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE MORE CONVERSATION FOR THE CITY FOR HOW THAT'S GOING WORK.
WE'RE WORKING WITH VARIOUS CITY AGENCIES RIGHT NOW IF WE PUT THAT PROGRAM TOGETHER.
BUT, UM, WHEN WE GET DOWN TO THE SPECIFICS OF WHO'S DOING WHAT AND WHEN THAT, THAT, THAT'S A WHOLE FAR DOWN THE ROAD.
AT LEAST A FEW MONTHS EVERYWHERE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT, DR.
UM, YOU, UH, GAVE US SOME GREAT, UM, DALLAS HEALTH EQUITY INDICATORS THAT IT SEEMS LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO UTILIZE TO, UM, DOCUMENT THE EFFECTIVENESS, UM, OF THE PROGRAM.
BUT I GUESS MY, MY BIG QUESTION IS WHAT'S YOUR TIMELINE ON THAT? IT TAKES A WHILE FOR TREES TO G GROW, BUT THESE ARE ISSUES THAT REALLY NEED TO BE ADDRESSED IN A, IN A REALLY TIMELY MANNER.
SO WHEN DO YOU THINK YOU'LL GIVE US SOME OF THESE HEALTH EQUITY INDICATOR, YOU KNOW, KIND OF INFORMATION AND DATA? YEAH, SO WE JUST WENT THROUGH THE PLANS AND KIND OF BROUGHT ALL THAT TOGETHER.
UM, AND THEN WE, WE HOPE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS INFORMATION THROUGH THE SUMMER AND INTO THE FALL.
I GUESS TO BE MORE SPECIFIC, ONCE YOU'VE IMPLEMENTED SOME OF THE,
[00:45:01]
UM, THE, THE TREE EQUITY, ONCE YOU'VE PUT IN SOME OF THESE TREES, ONCE YOU'VE, YOU KNOW, STARTED TO DEVELOP SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS, WHAT ARE GONNA BE THE, I'M ASSUMING THESE ARE GONNA BE THE OUTPUTS THAT YOU'RE GOING TO KIND OF GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY AND SAY, THIS IS WHAT'S BEEN EFFECTIVE IN HELPING THE COMMUNITY.WHAT'S THE TIMELINE TO GET THAT INFORMATION? OKAY.
SO YOU'RE LOOKING FOR LIKE THE MEASURABLES OVER TIME, KIND OF LIKE A REPORT.
SO ONCE WE START THESE PLANTINGS, WHICH WE LOOK AT THE DOING SOME OF THESE EQUITY PLANTINGS IN THE FALL, I WOULD SAY BY THE FOLLOWING SUMMER, WE COULD HAVE, YOU KNOW, POTENTIAL ESTIMATES OF WHAT THOSE TREES OVER THE NEXT 20, 25 YEARS WOULD BRING TO THE COMMUNITY.
UM, SO I LOVE THE WAY IT'S BROKEN OUT BY AREAS THAT ARE MOST NEEDED, BUT IT'S SO OBVIOUS ON THE MAP, UM, THAT AREAS OF TOWN THAT ARE SUFFERING MOST FROM HEAT ISLAND EFFECT HAVE MORE OF THESE AREAS.
WHEREAS WHATEVER THE DISTRICT WAS THAT YOU SHOWED UP NEAR THE PARK CITIES, I MEAN, THEY'VE GOT A FEW AREAS, BUT THEY'RE MUCH MORE IN THE GREEN ZONE THAT YOU SHOWED.
SO WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EQUITY, HOW WAS THAT APPROACHED? I MEAN, IT, IT'S ONE THING TO SAY WE'VE GOT THESE VIOLENT, UM, AREAS IN EACH DISTRICT.
IT'S ANOTHER THING TO LOOK AT IT AS A WHOLE OF WE'VE GOT THESE RED AREAS AND VIOLET, LIKE WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT PROPORTIONALLY THE, UH, THE NEEDS TO REDUCE, UM, PARTICULATE EMISSIONS WE ALREADY KNOW IS MUCH GREATER SOUTH OF I 30 THAN IT IS NORTH.
SO IT ALMOST FEELS LIKE WE'RE BACK TO, YOU KNOW, GOING FOR EQUALITY AS OPPOSED TO EQUITY.
SO I'M JUST WONDERING IF YOU CAN TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW IS THERE, IS THERE, UH, PRIORITY FOR THOSE AREAS THAT HAVE THESE OTHER HIGH LEVEL RATINGS THAT ARE NOT VIOLENT, BUT THEY'RE RED AND THEY'RE SOUTH OF I 30? CAN YOU SPEAK TO, TO THAT? I DON'T KNOW IF I'M BEING, UH, LET ME GIVE IT A, A, A TRY HERE.
SO I, I THINK THAT, UM, THE RED AREAS ARE VERY IMPORTANT AS WELL.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE, AS I SAID, NOT TOP PRIORITY, BUT THEY'RE RIGHT BEHIND THE TOP PRIORITY.
THAT'S WHY THEY'RE CALLED EMERGENT.
UM, AND I THINK THAT IN CONSULTATIONS WITH THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, THE COMMUNITIES YOURSELVES, UH, WE NEED TO, UH, DETERMINE WHICH MAKES THE MOST SENSE FOR EACH, UH, COUNCIL DISTRICT.
SO THERE, THERE MAY BE OCCASIONS WHERE, UM, A RED AREA MAY BE PREFERRED FOR ANY NUMBER OF REASONS.
AND I THINK THAT WE WANT TO KEEP IN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE KEEPING AN OPEN MIND TO WHICH IS THE BEST WAY TO PROCEED.
I WOULD ALSO SAY IT'S STILL EARLY DAYS IN OUR CONSULTATION, SO WE HAVE MORE TO LEARN.
AND, UM, I, I THINK THE DATA CERTAINLY HELPS US, BUT WE DO NEED TO GROUND PROOF THESE AREAS AS WELL.
AND THAT MAY ALSO BE A, A LIMITING FACTOR IN TERMS OF WHAT WE CAN DO.
DID YOU SAY GROUND PROOFING? CAN YOU GROUND PROOFING? YES.
UH, THAT'S WHERE WE GO OUT AND TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THE MAP TELLS US AND THEN SEE, OH, OKAY.
WE, WE, WE CAN'T PLANT IN THIS PARTICULAR PART OF THE PURPLE AREA BECAUSE THERE'S A BUILDING ON IT, BUT THERE MIGHT BE A, AN ADJACENT AREA THAT HAS JUST CONCRETE THAT COULD BE LIFTED OR, UM, SOME SURFACE THAT WOULD BE IDEAL FOR PLANTING, OR MAYBE IT'S A, A MEDIAN.
SO, UH, GROUND TRUTHING MEANS THEN SORT OF TAKING THE DATA FROM A MAP AND, AND ACTUALLY SEEING FOR REAL, UH, WHAT'S DOABLE IN TERMS OF, OF PLANTING RESPONSE.
UM, I, I STILL THOUGH, I'M NOT SURE I'M BEING CLEAR ABOUT THE EQUITY ISSUE, THAT WHEN YOU HAVE A DISTRICT, AND WE, AND WE JUST LOOK AT IT ON THE MAP, WE KNOW IT'S ALREADY A LOWER INCOME, UH, DISTRICT.
AND, AND THERE'S SO MUCH HISTORY BEHIND THAT.
SO IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EQUITY AND WE'RE LOOKING AT VIOLET AREAS ON EACH MAP, BUT IT'S VIOLENT WITHIN A SEA OF GREEN IS NOT, DOES NOT PRESENT THE SAME NEEDS AS VIOLET WITHIN A SEA OF RED.
[00:50:02]
RIGHT.AND THOSE DISTRICTS ARE THAT THAT'S WHY WE DIDN'T ONLY RANK THE, UH, VIOLET AREAS WITHIN EACH DISTRICT.
SO THAT'S HOW YOU END UP WITH DISTRICT FOUR BEING THE MOST URGENTLY, UH, NEEDED AREA FOR PLANTING.
AND FOR OUR COMMISSIONERS, UH, VIRTUALLY, WE'VE GOT THE BOOK HERE.
ERIN SENT OUT, UH, A COPY OF IT EARLIER THIS MONTH, BUT WE CAN SEND IT OUT AGAIN, UM, IF THAT'S HELPFUL.
LOCKMAN AND THEN, UH, UH, COMMISSIONER DANKER.
UM, THANK YOU FOR THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.
UM, AS YOU WORK THROUGH YOUR PLAN, DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING IN PLACE TO, AS ASSESS AREAS OR NEIGHBORHOODS THAT ARE CHANGING? SO, I LIVE IN DISTRICT SIX.
UM, MY CURRENT NEIGHBORHOOD HAS OVER 30 NEW HOMES.
AND THIS PLACE LOOKS SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT THAN IT DID A YEAR AGO THAN IT DID SIX MONTHS AGO THAN IT DID THREE MONTHS AGO.
AND, UM, I USUALLY DON'T EVEN KNOW WHEN A HOUSE WENT DOWN
BUT WITH THAT, A LOT OF OUR TREES ARE GOING, OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, OUR EMBLEM IS A TREE, BUT I THINK IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS, THIS PLACE IS GONNA LOOK VERY DIFFERENT.
SO IS THERE GONNA BE ONGOING ASSESSMENT OF NEED? AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO ECHO WHAT, UM, COMMISSIONER, COMMISSIONER WALLACE WAS TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, AS YOU'RE LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, THE EQUITY PIECE, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT WHICH AREAS HAVE MORE PARTICULATE MATTER, WHICH AREAS HAVE MORE CONCRETE BATCH PLANTS, WHICH AREAS HAVE MORE POLLUTION, NOT EVEN JUST THE POVERTY LEVEL, BUT, UM, TAKING THAT PIECE INTO ACCOUNT WHEN YOU ASSESS WHICH AREAS, YOU KNOW, HAVE AN URGENT NEED.
UH, I WOULD SAY THAT THE, THE, UH, REPORT ITSELF WAS DONE AT, AT A POINT IN TIME, BUT, UH, THE REASON FOR THE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS WITH THE COMMUNITY, UH, AND, AND COMMISSIONERS IS TO IDENTIFY IF THE BALLS MOVED IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION DOWN THE FIELD, UH, EVEN AT, EVEN SINCE THE REPORT WAS PUBLISHED.
SO WE DO WANNA BE RESPONSIVE AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, UH, STILL PLANTING IN URGENT AREAS, UH, WHEREVER POSSIBLE.
AND THEN TO ADD TO THAT, I WILL SAY THAT'S WHY THE EQUITY INDICATORS FOR URBAN FORESTRY ARE BEING REALLY, UM, HIGHLIGHTED ALSO, IS BECAUSE YES, WE DO HAVE SOME DATA AND SOME BASE POINT KNOWLEDGE, BUT THERE ARE MANY OTHER AREAS THAT WE CAN START COLLECTING DATA FOR AND ALL OF THOSE CAN BE MEASURED.
UM, SO THIS WILL GIVE US, IF WE, ONCE WE START USING THESE EQUITY INDICATORS AND TAKING THESE MEASUREMENTS, WE CAN SEE IN AREAS IF AIR QUALITY IS GETTING WORSE, IF THERE'S MORE IMPERVIOUS SURFACE OR IF THERE'S A DECREASE OF IMPERVIOUS SURFACE, WHICH YEAH.
BUT, SO WATCHING THOSE, BEING ABLE TO MEN MEASURE THOSE OVER THE YEARS TO COME AS WELL.
UM, YES, UM, UH, I, IT'S INTERESTING THAT I THINK A NUMBER OF US IN TERMS OF THE EQUITY, UH, PART OF IT ARE KIND OF GOING DOWN A SIMILAR ROAD OF LOOKING AT EQUITY IN THE CONTEXT OF MULTIPLE NEEDS OF WHICH TREES ARE ONE.
AND I THINK YOU HIGHLIGHTED, UH, IN YOUR AREA, ONE OF THE AREAS THAT I'VE HAD SOME PARTICULAR CONCERN AND INVOLVEMENT IN, WHICH IS PARTICULATES AND THE CONNECTION TO CHILD ASTHMA, UM, THE, UM, PARKLAND CENTER FOR CLINICAL INNOVATION, UM, WHICH IS LOOKING AT A BROAD VARIETY OF SOCIAL FACTORS AND THEIR CONTEXT TO HEALTH HAS DEVELOPED A, UH, VULNERABILITY INDEX, WHICH ACTUALLY GETS DOWN TO THE BLOCK LEVEL.
UH, AND I'M WONDERING IF YOU AND THE PARKLAND CENTER FOR CLINIC ELEVATION HAVE SHARED DATA BECAUSE YOU'RE KIND OF WORKING ON THE SAME ISSUES.
AND IT WOULD BE NICE IF WE HAD, UM, AREA, IF WE HAD SOME OF YOUR, THE INFORMATION THAT YOU FOLKS ARE DEVELOPING AS PART OF THAT VULNERABILITY INDEX THAT THEY'VE DEVELOPED.
[00:55:06]
CAN YOU HEAR VIRTUALLY NOW? CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? THERE, SHE'S, OKAY, GOOD.SO, UM, WE HAVE, I'VE HAVE HAD A MEETING WITH DR.
CERISE AND OUR NATURE LAB IS, UH, IN THE RESEARCH THAT WE'RE DOING IN THE MEDICAL DISTRICT.
WE ARE SHARING THAT WITH UT SOUTHWESTERN, UH, CHILDREN'S AND PARKLAND.
UM, AND WE'RE UT AND IF, IF YOU DON'T KNOW, UT SOUTHWESTERN HAS A NEW, UH, UH, HEALTH, UH, NATURE AND HEALTH SPECIALIST THAT THEY'VE HIRED, AND THEY'RE GONNA HAVE A NEW CENTER.
SO WE'RE KIND OF, RIGHT NOW WHAT WE'RE DOING IS SYNERGIZING ALL OF THIS AND BRINGING IN THE HOSPITAL SUSTAINABILITY OFFICERS AS WELL.
SO WE CAN START LOOKING AT NOT JUST THE MEDICAL DISTRICT, BUT WHAT IS THE RESEARCH THAT WE'RE DOING THERE THAT APPLIES TO ALL OF THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING ACROSS ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS. IT'S NICE, BY THE WAY, WE BROUGHT UP THE DATE ON, UH, WHAT THE, UH, UH, TEXAS TREE FOUNDATION WAS DOING A FEW YEARS AGO WHEN I WAS AT PARKLAND, AND ALSO THE PRESIDENT OF THE ASTHMA COALITION.
I MET WITH THE FOLKS IN HER AT THAT POINT.
THE, UH, THE CONCEPT OF THE SOUTHWESTERN DISTRICT WAS CONCEPTUAL RATHER THAN ACTUAL, WELL, IT'S ACTUAL, WE'RE HIRING OUR, OUR, UM, IT'S OPERATIONS WILL BE OUR LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE FIRM, AND WE WILL START THAT IN APRIL.
SO WE WILL GO TO CONSTRUCTION IN THE CITY OF DALLAS.
WE'LL DO CONSTRUCTION ON PHASE WORK, UH, AND IN NOVEMBER OF 2024.
AND THEN THE SECOND PHASE OF THAT WILL BE, UM, IN 20, WE'LL START WITH THE PARK AND GO NORTH TO MOCKINGBIRD TO FINISH UP FOLLOWING THERE ON THAT.
DO YOU KNOW, ARE THERE ANY PLANS TO TAKE CARE OF THE RUCKY ON THE SOUTH NORTHEAST CORNER? NOBODY IS GOING TO MESS WITH THE BURIES
I MIGHT, I MIGHT ADD, UM, I KNOW THAT THE STAFF IS, IS, UH, NOT TALKING A LOT ABOUT THE WORKFORCE PROGRAM CUZ WE HAVEN'T OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED, BUT WE HAVE HIRED OUR, UH, EMPLOYEES FOR THAT.
AND WE ARE WORKING WITH SOUTH DALLAS EMPLOYMENT, UH, PROGRAM AND OTHERS TO IMPLEMENT THAT.
AND WE FEEL THAT THAT WILL BE OUR, UH, IT'LL INCREASE CAPACITY, NOT JUST FOR THE TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION, BUT FOR THE CITY OF DALLAS AND OUR PROJECTS.
LOCKMAN, I REMEMBER TALKING WITH YOU.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
SO HELPFUL AND VERY ENCOURAGING ON ALL THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING.
I LOOK FORWARD TO JOINING Y'ALL IN THE MEETING WITH MY COMMISSIONER, DISTRICT 13, MY COUNCIL MEMBER DISTRICT 13, UM, IN THE COMING WEEKS.
JUST A COUPLE QUICK QUESTIONS.
CAN YOU ELABORATE ON WHAT THE WATER METER POLICY RECOMMENDATION IS? SO WE ARE HAVING ISSUES IN SOME OF THE PARK PLANTINGS THAT WE ARE DOING FOR NOT HAVING A WATER METER, UM, OR A, UH, A DISTRICT, A IRRIGATOR FOR THE DISTRICT.
SO WE'RE HAVING ISSUES, UM, IMPLEMENTING PROJECTS SOMETIMES DUE TO THAT.
THERE'S NOT A LICENSED IRRIGATOR FOR THAT DISTRICT TO DO A WATER METER IF THAT MAKES ON, ON PUBLIC, ON, ON CITY OF DALLAS LAND.
ARE YOU GETTING WHAT YOU NEED FROM DWU? NO, NO.
WE WOULD LOVE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT, WHAT THAT IS AND HOW WE COULD HELP SUPPORT GETTING WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE THERE'S METERS IN PLACE TO PROVIDE FOR THE MAINTENANCE OF THE TREES.
UH, CAN YOU ELABORATE A LITTLE BIT MORE ON ARTICLE 10 PROVISION THAT YOU RECOMMENDED ON THAT SLIDE FOR THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE MITIGATION EFFORTS? SURE.
SO ARTICLE 10, UH, WE BELIEVE COULD BE USED TO, UH, PROVIDE MITIGATION TREES FOR PRIVATE PROPERTY PLANTINGS IN URGENT PRIORITY AREAS.
SO RIGHT NOW WE UNDERSTAND THE WAY ARTICLE 10 IS WORDED, THAT THE TREES CAN ONLY BE PUT ON PRIVATE PROPERTY FOR THE TO TORNADO EMERGENCY.
THAT HAPPENED A FEW YEARS AGO.
AND WE'RE SIMPLY SUGGESTING THAT ONE IDEA COULD BE TO OPEN THAT UP TO ALLOW THOSE MITIGATION TREES TO BE PUT ON PRIVATE PROPERTY IN THE URGENT PLANTING AREAS.
WE THINK THAT WOULD HELP FACILITATE, UM, THE DEVELOPMENT OF MORE TREE PLANTING PROJECTS MUCH MORE QUICKLY.
I DON'T, I DON'T EXACTLY FOLLOW.
SO HOW, WHAT WOULD THE APPROVAL PROCESS AND THE, THE FUNDING PROCESS BE LIKE FOR PUTTING TREES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY? SO THE CITY
[01:00:01]
FUNDS THE TREES FOR PRIVATE, THEY WOULD BE FUNDING THE TREES FOR PRIVATE PROPERTY.RIGHT NOW THERE'S ONLY A, A VERY NARROW EXCEPTION FOR FUNDING TREES ON PRIVATE LAND, AND THAT'S BASED ON THE TORNADO, UM, VICTIMS. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO EXPAND THAT EXEMPTION, UH, ON PRIVATE PROPERTY FOR ALLOWING JUST THOSE VIOLET AREAS IN THE REPORT, UH, TO UTILIZE MITIGATION TREES.
AND THAT WOULD, UH, HELP TO FACILITATE OUR EFFORTS TO FIND FUNDERS TO SUPPORT PLANTING PROJECTS.
I GUESS LAST QUESTION FOR NOW IS JUST IN RELATION TO THE TREE INVENTORY THAT THIS CITY IS UNDERWAY, UM, VERY IMPORTANT, UM, VERY NEEDED.
YOUR REPORT HAD A LOT OF GOOD INFORMATION ABOUT OTHER CITIES, TREE INVENTORIES, DIFFERENT WAYS TO GO ABOUT COMPLETING THE TREE INVENTORY.
CAN YOU JUST ELABORATE A LITTLE BIT MORE ON SOME OF THE WORK YOU'RE PROPOSING AND HOW IT RELATES TO THE, THE NEED FOR A TREE INVENTORY TO BE COMPLETED? I MEAN, WHAT IS ABLE TO BE DONE NOW BEFORE A TREE INVENTORY IS COMPLETED, AND WHAT CAN WE ADVOCATE FOR THIS CITY TO BE ABLE TO COMPLETE THE TREE INVENTORY QUICKER IN A WAY THAT MAKES THE BIGGEST IMPACT? WELL, I I THINK MOST BASICALLY THAT WITHOUT A TREE INVENTORY, YOU REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE.
SO IT'S HARD TO MANAGE A FOREST IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S IN IT.
AND I, I THINK WE VIEW THAT GETTING THE TREE INVENTORY DONE IS VITALLY IMPORTANT AND NEEDS TO HAPPEN ASAP.
I KNOW THE CITY'S WORKING ON, UH, AN RFP TO HAVE THAT HAPPEN.
UH, BUT AS FAR AS WE'RE CONCERNED, UH, SPEED IS OF THE ESSENCE.
TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE, UH, PARTICULARLY WITH THE ONSLAUGHT OF EAB B I THINK WE FEEL THAT FOR THE CITY TO FULLY, UH, UH, UNDERSTAND THE MAGNITUDE OF HOW TO DEAL WITH EAB, THEY'VE GOTTA UNDERSTAND HOW MANY TREE ASH TREES THEY'VE GOT.
THAT'S ONLY GONNA HAPPEN THROUGH AN INVENTORY.
I KNOW THEY'RE TAKING STEPS RIGHT NOW TO, TO DO AN ASH TREE INVENTORY, BUT THERE ARE A LOT OF ASH TREES OUT THERE.
AND I THINK WE FEEL THAT THE SOONER THE INVENTORY CAN BE DONE, UH, A MORE ACCURATE, UH, ASSESSMENT OF HOW TO DEAL WITH THINGS LIKE EAB AS WELL AS JUST MAN GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THOSE 14 MILLION TREES, UH, WILL BE POSSIBLE.
WELL, LAST QUESTION REAL QUICK.
H DO YOU KNOW ROUGHLY HOW MANY OF THE 14 MILLION TREE FIGURE IS ON PUBLIC VERSUS PRIVATE PROPERTY? UH, OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, I, I DON'T KNOW THAT NUMBER.
I COULD GET THAT FOR YOU THOUGH, AND GET BACK TO YOU.
UM, AS I'VE ALREADY EXPRESSED TO YOU, I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS DATA.
I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT POLICIES WE CAN MAKE WITH THIS DATA AND EXCITED TO SEE HOW WE CAN CHANGE, UM, WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE, THE TREE LANDSCAPE LITERALLY IN, IN OUR CITY.
UM, THIS, UH, REPORT, DID YOU USE THE NEW REDISTRICTING, UH, MAP SO THAT THE COUNCIL DISTRICTS ARE ACCURATELY REFLECTED OR IS IT THE OLD IT'S THE, IT'S THE, IT'S THE OLD ONE.
UM, AND THEN THE OTHER QUESTION WAS, UH, SORT OF A PIGGYBACK ON COMMISSIONER DER'S QUESTION ON THE ARTICLE 10 ISSUE, WHICH WAS, IF WE'RE USING THOSE FUNDS TO, UH, TO PUT TREES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, IS IT JUST THE TREE? IS IT THE IRRIGATION? IS IT, IS IT MAINTENANCE? WHAT, WHAT CAN BE PUT TOWARDS PRIVATE PROPERTY? YEAH, I THINK THAT'LL BE, NEED TO BE PART OF THE DISCUSSION ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THIS IS VIABLE.
I THINK THOSE ARE EXCELLENT QUESTIONS AND I, I THINK, UH, THERE PROBABLY NEEDS TO BE A CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT MAKES SENSE IN THOSE URGENT AREAS.
IT MAY BE THAT, UM, MAINTENANCE SHOULD BE INCLUDED.
IT MAY BE THAT MAYBE THE TREE PLANTED, UH, IS, IS SUFFICIENT.
UH, IT MAY BE DEPENDENT UPON WHERE THOSE TREES ARE IN ANY GIVEN PART OF THE CITY.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE, WE THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE THAT CONVERSATION AND, AND TO SORT OF LOOK AT OPTIONS AROUND WHAT MAKES SENSE, UM, BASED ON THE REPORT.
BECAUSE I CAN SAY, YOU KNOW, I PLANTED NINE TREES, UH, LAST YEAR, AND THREE OF THEM ARE ALREADY DEAD BECAUSE OF THE BRUTAL HEAT THAT WE HAD, UH, LAST SUMMER.
UM, AND SO IF WE'RE GONNA MAKE AN INVESTMENT, UH, RIGHT, YOU KNOW, A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF TREES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT THOSE TREES ARE GONNA BE THERE IN 20 YEARS AND DO THE JOB THAT WE'RE HOPING LIKE THAT INVESTMENT WILL, WILL LET THEM DO.
AND IT WAS BROUGHT UP ON MONDAY THAT THAT IS SOMETHING, ESPECIALLY FOR THE HISTORICAL TREES THAT THE CITY IS LOOKING AT FOR MAINTENANCE FOR, YOU KNOW, EQUITY AREAS, THE HISTORICAL TREES, WHO'S GOING TO MAINTAIN THOSE TREES AS WELL.
SO IT'S DEFINITELY A POINT TO BRING UP.
I'M NOT SEEING ANY OTHER QUESTIONS
[01:05:01]
OR COMMENTS.SO WE WANT TO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BRINGING THIS BRIEFING TO THE COMMISSION FOR SPENDING YOUR EVENING WITH US.
UH, WE REALLY APPRECIATE THIS WORK AND WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO PARTNERING WITH YOU, UM, AS YOU GO INTO THESE DISTRICTS SO THAT WE CAN HELP YOU CONNECT WITH THE COMMUNITIES, UM, THAT, THAT WE'RE WORKING IN.
WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL TOO.
THANKS FOR GIVING US SOME TIME TONIGHT.
UP NEXT, THIS EVENING, WE'RE GOING TO GO INTO BRIEFING ITEM B, WHICH IS A DALLAS FOREST STREET UPDATE WITH US THIS EVENING.
WE HAVE PHILLIP IRWIN, THE MANAGER OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
BLAKE WEN THE MANAGER OF PARK AND RECREATION.
PRESTON WILMS, THE ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR FOR PUBLIC WORKS COMMISSIONERS.
THANK YOU FOR LETTING US COME IN TODAY AND GIVE Y'ALL A, UH, BRIEF UPDATE ON WHAT THE, UH, FORESTRY TECHNICAL TEAM, UH, HAS BEEN DOING AND ACCOMPLISHING OVER THE LAST YEAR.
UM, YOU HAVE MYSELF, BRETT JOHNSON.
I'M A SENIOR ENVIRONMENTAL COORDINATOR SLASH URBAN BIOLOGIST, UH, WITH THE, WITH THE, UH, DALLAS PARKS DEPARTMENT.
WE HAVE KAREN WOODARD, THE CITY FORESTER WITH DWU.
UH, WE HAVE PRESTON, UH, WILLIAMS. HE IS FORESTER, UH, WITH, UH, PUBLIC WORKS AND PHIL IRWIN, THE CHIEF ARBORIST OUT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.
JUST A GENERAL REMINDER THAT FOR KIND OF, FOR THE SAKE OF TIME, WE DO HAVE AN UPDATE, UH, IN YOUR APPENDICES ON WHERE THE TECH TEAM AND THE CITY IS WITH THE URBAN FOREST MASTER PLAN.
AND WE CAN REVIEW THAT DURING THE QUESTION ANSWER ALSO.
AND WITH THAT, I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO PRESTON TO ACTUALLY CONDUCT, UH, PRESENTATION TODAY.
SO FOR A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF WHAT'S IN OUR UPDATE, WE HAVE THE EMERAL DASHBOARD STATUS UPDATE AND SOME UPDATES ON CITY CODE CHANGES AND UPDATES ON OUR TREE PLANTING EFFORTS AND THE HISTORIC TREE DESIGNATION AND OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS, AS WELL AS THE NEXT STEPS WE'RE PROPOSING.
SO, MOST OF Y'ALL I'M SURE ARE FAMILIAR WITH GENERAL DASHBOARD AT THIS POINT.
IT'S THE INVASIVE WOOD, BORING BEETLE.
IT'S THREATENING ALL OUR NATIVE ASH SPECIES AND SOMEBODY ESPECIALLY IMPACTFUL ON THE RETURN FOREST BURKE IDENTIFIED IN MAY, UH, 2022 WITHIN DALLAS CITY LIMITS IN WESTERN PARK COUNTY, AND TEXAS FOREST SERVICE, TEXAS DEPARTMENT, AGRICULTURE, AND CITY OF ACTIVATED DEMO DASH FLOOR ACTION PLAN.
AND TO DATE, UH, OVER A THOUSAND ASH TREES HAVE BEEN INVENTORIED ON PUBLIC PARTS AT OVER 322 SITES.
AND IT INCLUDES SIZE, AGE, CONDITION, AND, UH, GEOLOCATION PHOTOGRAPHY.
AND 116 SIGNIFICANT ASH TREES THAT'S OVER 24 INCH DIAMETER HAVE BEEN TAGGED AND TREATED FOR THE INL DASH FOUR.
AND THE, UH, JUST NOTE THAT THE TREATMENT'S DONE DURING THE GROWING SEASON, AND IT'S CURRENTLY ON A THREE YEAR TITLE.
SO HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF OUR CURRENT TREE INVENTORY USING OUR TREE KEEP SOFTWARE.
AND HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF ONE OF THE TREATED ASH TREE TAGS.
SO IF Y'ALL ARE ANY OF YOUR, UH, ANY PEOPLE IN YOUR DISTRICT ASKED YOU TO SEE THESE BLUE TAGS UNTREATED CONCERNS, SO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS.
UH, ARIZONA ASH WAS REMOVED FROM, UH, THE PROTECTED LIST BECAUSE IT'S ESPECIALLY SUSCEPTIBLE AND MOST OF THOSE WERE KNOCKED BACK BY THE FREEZE, THE WINTER STORM NUI ANYWAY.
UM, AND THEN ASH TREES HAVE BEEN PROHIBITED FROM REQUIRED PLANTINGS OR NEW PLANTINGS ON CITY PROPERTY.
SO FOR REQUIRED LANDSCAPING FOR NEW DEVELOPMENT, THEY'RE NOT ALLOWED TO USE ASH TREES ANYMORE.
AND THEN NATURAL DEFORESTATION EVENTS WERE ADDED FOR PLANTING USING REFORESTATION FUNDS
[01:10:01]
FOR PLANTING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY.AND WE ACTUALLY HAVE SOME MORE, UH, RETREAT PLANTINGS COMING UP THIS SPRING FOR THE AREAS AFFECTED BY A TORNADO AND THEN THE DEFENSE TO PROSECUTION FOR REMOVAL OF THREATENED SPECIES.
SO IF YOU HAVE AN INFESTED ASH OR EVEN A SUSCEPTIBLE ASH THAT YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT, YOU CAN PREEMPTIVELY REMOVE IT ON THE PRIVATE PROPERTY.
AND THEN WE HAVE UPDATES OF THE, UH, LANDSCAPE AND TREE MANUAL AMENDING SECTIONS ONE AND TWO, AND THEN, UH, TARGET ALL 22 FOR THE PUBLICATION ONLINE NEXT TIME.
AND THIS FALL WE PUT IN A TOTAL OF, UH, 3,470 NEW TREES AT HOMES, PARKS, AND SCHOOLS.
AND THEN THE SPRING THERE'S 4,500 PLANS, AND WE'VE ALREADY HAD THE FIRST PLANT IN THAT WEEKEND NEXT TIME.
AND THE TEXAS TORRE TREE COALITION HAS NOMINATED THREE TREES ON PUBLIC PROPERTY.
AND WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF GETTING THOSE DESIGNATED AND GETTING, BRINGING THE BOARD COUNCIL.
AND, UH, THERE WILL BE A, A PLAQUE PRESENTATION AND DEDICATION FOR ONE AT, UH, BECKLEY AND COMMERCE.
THERE'S A HISTORICAL PECAN THAT'S KIND OF BEEN THROUGH THE RINGER THAT WE'RE GONNA TRY TO GIVE IT SOME EXTRA PRODUCTION THERE.
AND FOR OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS, UH, THERE'S ALWAYS OPPORTUNITY VOLUNTEERS AND WE'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF TRAINING AND PRESENTATIONS AND SOME ENHANCED MARKETING.
I HAVE SOME EXAMPLES OF THOSE.
SO FOR VOLUNTEERS, WE HAVE OUR BRANCH OUT DALLAS DRIVE-THROUGH RETRIEVER GIVEAWAY WE'RE, WE GIVE AWAY THOUSAND TREES EVERY YEAR, AND WE HAVE BRANCHING OUT PARK PLANTINGS AND THEN SALUTING BRANCHES WHERE WE MAINTAIN AND PLANT TREES AT VETERANS CEMETERIES.
AND THEN ALSO WE HAVE OUR COMMUNITY FOREST ACADEMY.
AND THEN WE USE COMMUNITY FORESTERS TO HELP OUT WITH OUR TREE AND DOORS.
NEXT ONE FOR TRAININGS AND PRESENTATIONS.
UH, IN 2022, THERE WAS 41 PRESENTATIONS AND OVER 1500 COMMUNITY MEMBERS REACHED.
AND SO FAR WE'VE ALREADY HAD SEVEN EVENTS IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY.
AND, UH, PARKS WAS WELL REP REPRESENTED AT THE SOUTHWEST, UH, PARK DIRECTION TRAINING INSTITUTE.
AND THEN WE'VE ALSO BEEN TALKING TO GARDEN CLUBS AND MASTER NASHVILLE.
UM, IT'S HAD SEVERAL COMMUNITY EAV PRESENTATIONS WORKING WITH COUNCIL LEADING IN THE SPRINGTIME AND FOUR WORKSHOPS TARGETING LOCAL PRIVATE TREE COMPANIES FOR WAYS TO MANAGE
AND WITH RAMPING UP THAT MARKETING WITH THE EAV MARCH, UH, CAMPAIGN, WE'RE GONNA BE BLASTING OUT ON ALL OUR SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS AND EMAIL AND THEN THE NEW SAVE A TREE WATER CAMPAIGN GOING INTO THE SUMMER, AS WELL AS TREE MAIN, SEASONAL TREE MAINTENANCE.
AND THEN THE TECHNICAL TEAMS PUTTING TOGETHER A FORESTRY EAB PANEL VIDEO THAT'LL BE COMING OUT THIS SPRING.
AND, UH, UPDATING THE FORESTRY WEBSITE.
AND HERE'S AN UPDATED TIMELINE ON THE GREAT TRINITY FOREST LOOKING IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS.
AND PARKS WAS RECOGNIZED FOR ALL THEIR, UH, INNOVATIVE PROJECTS, INCLUDING WOOD WASTE AND BRANCHING OUT AND EQUIPMENT ENHANCEMENT, TRYING TO BE ON THE CUTTING EDGE OF URBAN FORESTRY.
AND ALSO THE CITY WAS RECOGNIZED AS A WHOLE FOR ALL OUR PLANTING EFFORTS, ENHANCING THE URBAN FOREST AT THE RECENT NORTH TEXAS URBAN FORESTRY COUNCIL, OR NORTH TEXAS URBAN FORESTRY CONFERENCE.
AND HERE'S OUR WEBSITE AND SINGLE CONTACT TO IT WILL REACH EVERYONE ON THE FORESTRY TEAM.
NEXT ONE MOVING FORWARD WILL BE THE SPRING 2023 ARTICLE 10 BRIEFING, AND THEN ALSO UPDATES ON THAT CITYWIDE TREE INVENTORY RFP.
AND THEN, UH, WE'LL BE WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITY FORESTERS CAN BE, WE ALREADY HAVE SOME, UH, INVENTORY DAYS SPRING AND NEXT ONE.
OTHER THAN THAT, WE HAVE THE APPENDICES.
SO SINCE WE DO HAVE SOME TIME, UM, IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND, UH, WALKING US THROUGH THE URBAN FOREST MASTER PLAN ACTIONS UPDATE, UM, AND I THINK MAYBE WE GOT SOME, SOME WIRES CROSSED BECAUSE WHAT WE HAD ACTUALLY WANTED IN THIS BRIEFING IS SORT OF A BREAKDOWN OF WHERE WE ARE, SOME KPIS AND PERFORMANCE METRICS OF THE 14 VARIOUS STEPS THAT ARE WITHIN THE MASTER PLAN, AND THEN WHERE WE ARE ON EACH STEP WITH PERCENTAGES.
SO ALL OF THE SLIDES PREVIOUSLY YOU SAW ARE PART OF THE MASTER PLAN.
THE DIFFERENCE WAS LAST YEAR WHEN WE PRESENTED AND PUT WHICH, WHICH RECOMMENDATION ON EVERY SINGLE SLIDE, EVERYBODY GOT CONFUSED WHEN IT WAS ON THE
[01:15:01]
EXACT SLIDE, LIKE THE TREE PLANTING, WHICH RECOMMENDATION, BECAUSE A LOT OF 'EM OVERLAP TWO OR THREE RECOMMENDATIONS.AND SO THAT'S WHY WE PUT IT IN THE APPENDICES.
IF YOU LOOK AND SEE THESE ARE OVER SEVERAL YEARS, AND EVEN THOUGH THE RECOMMENDATIONS ARE OVER SEVERAL YEARS, WE STARTED OR WE'RE DOING SOME OF THEM BEFOREHAND, AND THEY'RE ONGOING.
UH, THERE'S VERY FEW OF 'EM THAT ARE FINITE THAT HAVE A START AND STOP.
UM, AND I UNDERSTAND THAT WAS ONE OF THE QUESTIONS ON IT, SO THAT'S WHY WE PUT THE SLIDES TOGETHER AND DIDN'T BREAK THEM DOWN LIKE WE DID LAST YEAR.
CAUSE LIKE I SAID, EVERYBODY GOT CONFUSED.
I DON'T RECALL THAT CONFUSION, BUT I THINK WHAT'S, MORE SPECIFICALLY WHAT I'M ASKING, WHAT WE WERE ASKING FOR IN THIS PRESENTATION IS WHERE ARE WE ON EACH OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, SO IN PERCENTAGES, SO WE CAN JUST START WITH WITH RECOMMENDATION ONE.
UM, WHAT PERCENTAGE COMPLETE WOULD YOU SAY STEP ONE OF RECOMMENDATION ONE IS? I WOULD SAY THAT WE ARE WORKING ON OR FINISHED WITH, UM, OVER HALF.
AND THAT FIRST STEP SAYS ONE A, ONE B, ONE C.
BECAUSE THE INVENTORY, WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT, THE RFP IS OUT TO SECURE THE INVENTORY THAT'S THAT BUDGET.
PLUS THE ENHANCEMENTS THAT WE DID TO THE BUDGET FOR RESOURCES, CITY STAFF, AND EVERYTHING LAST BUDGET YEAR, THAT WAS ALL PART OF THAT.
UM, AND WE'RE, WE'RE DEFINITELY LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT, BUT I WOULD, I, I THINK IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL IF WE COULD, UM, AND WE'VE ACTUALLY GOT AN AGENDA ITEM TO MAYBE GET YOU GUYS TO PARTNER WITH OUR, UH, COMMITTEE SO THAT WE CAN WORK THROUGH GETTING THAT INFORMATION FOR EACH OF THE VARIOUS 14 STEPS AND THEN BRING THAT BACK TO THE COMMISSION SO THAT WE CAN JUST ADD A GLANCE OVERALL, SEE WHERE WE ARE ON THIS PLAN.
BEFORE WE DO THAT, BECAUSE WE'VE, WE'VE, UM, WHEN WAS THIS, THIS WAS, WE'RE COMING UP ON YEAR TWO, RIGHT? IS THAT RIGHT? FOR THE ADOPTION? YES.
SO JUST BEFORE WE GET TO YEAR TWO AND BEFORE WE JUMP INTO YEAR THREE, I THINK IT WOULD JUST BE GREAT FOR EVERYBODY TO, TO, UM, TO SORT OF HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE ARE ON EACH OF THE VARIOUS, UM, STEPS ON THIS.
UM, SO I, I THINK IF YOU'RE AMENABLE TO THAT, THEN WHAT WE'LL DO IS WE'LL JUST GO INTO Q AND A AND THEN, UH, WE, WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT WITH THE NEXT, UH, UH, ITEM THAT WE HAVE COMING UP ON THE AGENDA.
SO, DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR OUR FORESTRY TEAM? MR. DIRE? GO AHEAD.
YES, I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
SO I LIVE IN CHOPPY, RIGHT? I DIDN'T SAID THAT THREE, FOUR TIMES TONIGHT, BUT, SO AFTER THIS LAST STORM WE JUST HAD IN JPI, RIGHT? JPI HAS A LOT OF TREES.
IF YOU'VE BEEN TO JORY, YOU'VE PROBABLY BEEN DOWN THERE, LOOKED AT A SOME ODD NICE OLD, NICE PRETTY TREES AND EVERYTHING.
SO AFTER THIS LAST STORM, UH, I RODE THROUGH THE COMMUNITY AND A LOT OF TREES WAS IN, IN A LOT OF HOUSES, RIGHT? SO THEY HAD TO CUT THE TREE DOWN TO CLEAR THE DEBRIS FROM THEIR HOUSES.
AND SO WE, AND THIS LAST STORM, WHAT WAS THAT MONDAY? LAST THURSDAY? LAST THURSDAY.
SO FROM LAST THURSDAY TO THIS WEEK, AND MY COMMUNITY, I KNOW WE LOST LIKE EIGHT TREES, RIGHT? SO DO THE CITY HAVE ANYTHING IMPLEMENTED AFTER STORMS? DO Y'ALL, UH, GO SURVEY COMMUNITIES AFTER STORMS AND SEE HOW MANY COMMUNITIES LOST TREES THROUGH THE STORM? BECAUSE CLEARLY IN CHOPPY, WE, EVERY TIME A STORM COME THROUGH, UH, OUR COMMUNITY LOSE TWO TO THREE TREES.
BUT THIS LA LAST THURSDAY, WE LOST A LOT OF THEM.
WHEN WE'RE CONTACTED BY A COMMUNITY, LIKE AFTER THE, UM, THE STORM WHERE WE HAD SEVERAL TORNADOES, DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES WOULD CONTACT US AND WE WOULD GO OUT.
AND THAT'S WHAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT.
WE PARTNER WITH A NONPROFIT AND THEY ACTUALLY PUT THE TREES IN THE AMENDMENT TO THE CODE TO ALLOW THEM TO, FOR US TO GET TREES TO THIS NONPROFIT TO REPLACE STORM DAMAGE.
AND WE NEED EVERYBODY TO REMEMBER, WE ALSO HAVE THE HOMEOWNER TREE GIVEAWAY EVERY FALL, THE FIRST SATURDAY IN NOVEMBER.
AND THAT WAY THEY HAVE A CHOICE OF FIVE OR SIX DIFFERENT TREES THAT THEY CAN PLANT.
RIGHT NOW WE'RE GOING INTO A HOTTER SEASON.
IT'S NOT ALWAYS THE BEST TIME TO PLANT.
THAT'S WHY OUR TREE GIVEAWAY IS IN THE FIRST WEEKEND IN NOVEMBER.
BECAUSE FOR US LIVING HERE IN TEXAS, THEN TO NOW IS THE BEST TIME PLANT BECAUSE THE TREES GET ESTABLISHED FOR THE HEAT.
[01:20:01]
SO DO YOU, SO THIS TYPE OF INFORMATION, DO Y'ALL PUT IT INSIDE THE WATER BILL? BECAUSE, UH, WE CAN, YES.WE CAN DO AN SIR PUT INFL INSERT IN THERE ABOUT, UH, TREE INFORMATION AFTER STORMS, HOW YOU CAN REPLACE YOUR TREE, UH, IF YOU WANNA REPLACE IT ON YOUR PROPERTY, HOW YOU COULD GET IT CLEANED UP.
AND ANYBODY THAT SERVES THE WEB, YOU CAN ALWAYS GO.
AND WE HAVE ALL THE INFORMATION ON THERE AND TREE PLANTINGS AND THE EMAIL THAT WAS ON THE PRESENTATION, YOU CAN ALWAYS EMAIL US AND IT'LL COME TO ALL OF US.
BUT I KNOW ME AND MY COMMUNITY WILL DROP.
A LOT OF PEOPLE PAY ATTENTION TO THE INSERTS AND THE WATER BILL.
WE CAN ACTUALLY MAKE SURE YOU PUT THAT INFORMATION ABOUT, UH, AFTER STORM TREE OKAY.
REPLACEMENT OR SOMETHING IN THE BILL.
YEAH, I WAS JUST WONDERING, WHAT IS THE, UH, PROCESS FOR AMENDING THE CITY CODE THAT YOU REFERENCE ON SLIDE SEVEN? UH, GENERALLY PROCESS OF AMENDING, UM, SAY ARTICLE 10, IT WOULD BE TO, UM, HAVE, UH, AN ORDINANCE WRITTEN UP TO BE SENT THROUGH, UH, TO CITY COUNCIL, UH, THROUGH BRIEFING.
SO ESSENTIALLY WE'D HAVE TO PLAN THAT PROBABLY THROUGH PLANNING URBAN DESIGN, UH, TO PREPARE OR ORDINANCE FOR THAT PURPOSE.
UH, IT, IT COULD TAKE A GENERAL AMOUNT OF TIME, BUT WE HAVE TO OPEN UP THE ORDINANCE TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT INSERTION.
AND THAT'S IN REFERENCE TO THE, THE ONE THAT'S, UH, AMENDMENT NUMBER 32 34.
IT'S JUST THE ONE THAT Y'ALL REFERENCED IN THERE.
I DIDN'T KNOW IF THAT WAS SPECIFIC CUZ THERE'S DIFFERENT SECTIONS AND I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH THESE.
SO I WAS JUST WONDERING WHAT PROCESS DID Y'ALL GO THROUGH TO GET TO THE PLACE WHERE YOU CAN CHANGE THE CITY CODE? WELL, UH, GENERALLY I, I, I ALSO RELY ON OUR PLAN PLANNERS AT P U D TO BE ABLE TO GUIDE US THROUGH THE PROCESS OF MAKING ZONING CHANGES OR AMENDMENT CHANGES TO AN ORDINANCE.
SO ESSENTIALLY I WORKED WITH THE DEPARTMENT TO, UH, LOOK AT WHAT TYPE OF, UH, TREE AMENDMENTS OR, UH, CHANGES TO, SAY FOR INSTANCE, WE RECENTLY DID THE REFORESTATION FUND, UH, AMENDMENTS.
AND THAT WENT THROUGH, UH, PROCESS OF GOING THROUGH THE PLANNERS THROUGH THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE TO MAKE SURE IT CAN GET ON THE AGENDA.
AND HOW LONG DOES THAT TAKE, ROUGHLY? UH, IT COULD TAKE SEVERAL MONTHS AND IF IT'S JUST ONE PORTION OF THE ORDINANCE THAT'S ISOLATED, LIKE TO A REFORESTATION FUND ITSELF, IT MAY BE, YOU KNOW, MAY TAKE A FEW MONTHS BASICALLY TO MAKE SURE WE CAN GET NOTICES, UH, IF, GET IT INTO A COMMITTEE, BE ABLE TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ON IT, IF IT NEEDS TO, UH, GO THROUGH, UH, ZAC AND, AND THEN TAKE IT UP A STEP UP TO THE, TO FINAL COUNCIL.
THAT SEVERAL MONTHS SEEMS PRETTY GOOD.
I MEAN, THAT SEEMS LIKE A PRETTY QUICK PROCESS.
UM, AND THEN IN, IN GENERAL, WHAT, UM, YOU KNOW, I WAS LOOKING AT THE, THE REPORT THAT THE TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION PROVIDED, AND A LOT OF IT TALKED ABOUT THE PUBLIC LAND THAT WAS AVAILABLE.
THERE WAS A PERCENTAGE BREACH OF THE DISTRICTS THAT THEY LIST.
WHEN, WHEN THERE IS PUBLIC LANDS, WHEN DOES THE CITY PLANT NEW TREES? I KNOW THAT THERE ARE FOUR DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE INVOLVED IN FORESTRY.
WHAT IS JUST GENERALLY THE DIFFERENT TIME THAT THEY GO AND PUT IN A NEW PLANTING? IS IT, SO YOU'RE ASKING EACH DEPARTMENT, WHICH IS THE DIFFERENT TIME? OUR GROWING SEASON AND OUR PLANTING SEASON IS FROM MID-OCTOBER TO, WE TRY TO END IN MARCH
SOMETIMES WE BLEED OVER, UM, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE GONNA HAVE GOOD IRRIGATION, UM, IN, IT MAY GO INTO EARLY APRIL, VERY EARLY APRIL.
UM, BUT ALL OF US DO IT AT THE SAME TIME.
AND IF THERE'S PUBLIC PROPERTY THAT'S OPEN, WE LOOK AT IT EVERY YEAR.
OF COURSE, WE CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH IN ONE GROWING SEASON.
AND WE TRY TO SPREAD IT THROUGHOUT THE CITY, BUT IF THERE'S A PARTICULAR PLACE THAT A COMMISSIONER OR A COUNCIL PERSON IS, UM, CONCERNED ABOUT, WE GET THOSE MESSAGES ALL THE TIME.
AND WE CERTAINLY LOOK AT THOSE.
WE START PLANNING OUR PLANTING COME JUNE TO YOU.
BECAUSE WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THE TREES AND THE TREE AVAILABILITY AND THE SITES AND EVERYTHING, BUT THAT'S WHEN WE START PLANTING.
SO BY THE END OF THE SUMMER WE HAVE A SCHEDULE GOING.
SO IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A NEW PROJECT, LIKE NEW CONSTRUCTION FOR LIKE A ROADWAY FOR THERE TO BE A PLANTING? NO, NO, NO.
IT CAN JUST BE, YOU KNOW, AN AVAILABLE RIGHT OF WAY THAT DOESN'T HAVE ANY ENCUMBRANCES THAT YOU COULD COME AND SAY.
IF THAT'S A, YOU KNOW, A UTILITY EASEMENT, THERE'S ALL THOSE LITTLE THINGS IN THERE, BUT OH NO.
WE GO TO PLACES AND PLANT AND THEN TWO YEARS LATER COME
[01:25:01]
BACK AND ADD SOME MORE DEPENDING ON HOW IT FILLED OUT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.I'LL JUST SAY, UM, FOR PARK PROPERTIES, WE, UH, THROUGH THE BRANCHING OUT PROGRAM, WE'RE GONNA DO AT LEAST 12 PLANTINGS, UH, FOR PLANTING CYCLE.
WE'VE GOT SIX MAINTENANCE DISTRICTS.
SO EACH MAINTENANCE DISTRICT IS GOING TO DO, UH, TWO TREE PLANTINGS EACH YEAR.
AND WE GOTTA WORK, WE WORK WITH THE, UH, LOCAL FRIENDS GROUPS AND THE DISTRICT STAFFS TO DETERMINE WHERE THOSE PLANTINGS ARE GONNA BE.
AND, AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION THAT I HAD DOES SPECIFICALLY RELATE TO THE ARTICLE 10.
WHAT'S, IS THERE ANY AMENDMENTS TO THAT CODE IN TERMS OF THE USE OF THOSE FUNDS THAT WOULD BENEFIT THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING? LIKE, BECAUSE I'VE HEARD IN THE PAST THAT THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT IS BEING ACCUMULATED AND THE CITY IS STILL WORKING OUT HOW TO USE IT.
I KNOW THAT IT WAS USED RECENTLY, UM, TO ACQUIRE PROPERTY FOR THE FIRST TIME.
AND SO I'M WONDERING, ARE THERE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS OR OTHER OPPORTUNITIES THAT YOU WOULD SEE TO AMEND THE USE OF THE FUNDS TO, YOU KNOW, CONTINUE THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING? OR IS MONEY NOT THE LIMITING FACTOR? IS THERE ANOTHER THING? UM, GENERALLY THE ORDINANCE IS ALWAYS STIPULATED.
BASICALLY IT'S FOR PURCHASING TREES TO BE DELIVERED TO A LOCATION OR IT'S FOR PURCHASE OF LAND.
AND ESSENTIALLY THAT'S WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING.
UH, THERE HAS BEEN DISCUSSION ABOUT POSSIBLY HAVING MONEY SET ASIDE FOR MAINTENANCE PURPOSES, BUT THAT WAS NEVER DETERMINED ONCE WE WENT THROUGH THE 20 20 18 ORDINANCE AMENDMENT TO MAKE THOSE ADJUSTMENTS LIKE THAT.
SO WHAT WE DID LIMIT IT TO, UH, WITHIN THE LAST FEW YEARS WAS LOOKING AT DISASTER SITUATIONS SUCH AS A TORNADO GOING THROUGH AN AREA AND WIPING OUT.
WE WERE ABLE TO ACTUALLY PROVIDE SOME TREES ONTO PRIVATE PROPERTY.
UH, AND ALSO NOW WITH THE MR DASHBOARD, THE, THE REPLACEMENT OF ASHTRAYS.
SO THERE ARE, WE'RE DOING INCREMENTAL ADJUSTMENTS WHERE WE FEEL LIKE IT'S NEEDED.
UH, UH, ANYTHING WE, WE COULD TAKE THE COUNCIL, ANY PROPOSALS WE CAN HAVE A DISCUSSION ON? WE DON'T HAVE, I DON'T THINK I HAVE ANY RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WHAT WOULD ACTUALLY ASSIST THE SITUATION.
I'M NOT ASKING Y'ALL TO, I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT CAN WE HELP? IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU SEE AS A, OH, WELL THIS COULD BE AN ADDITIONAL TOOL THAT WE COULD USE.
UM, SO IT SOUNDS LIKE THE, POTENTIALLY THE AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS IS NOT THE BIGGEST CONCERN FROM Y'ALL.
IT'S MAINLY, YOU KNOW, PROCESS.
WE'RE CON ALWAYS CONTINUING TO ADD FUNDS CUZ THERE'S ALWAYS DEVELOPMENT.
NOT SEEING ANYBODY ELSE WITH THEIR HAND RAISES.
I'M SORRY I DIDN'T RAISE MY, NO, I JUST HAVE A QUICK QUESTION.
THE, I HEAR, UH, PHIL, I'VE TALKED TO YOU BEFORE ABOUT HISTORICAL TREES AND THERE'S NOTHING IN PLACE TO PROTECT HISTORICAL TREES.
IS THERE, WE WE CURRENTLY HAVE AN ORDINANCE WHERE, UH, WE HAVE, YOU CAN DECLARE A TREE HISTORIC, UH, OR SEEK TO DECLARE, AND THEN, THEN YOU TAKE THAT TO COUNCIL AND THERE'S A RESOLUTION TO DO.
CURRENTLY THE CITY OF DALLAS, UH, THE CITY DEPARTMENTS ARE, UH, BRINGING FORWARD SOME TREES TO BE LISTED FOR HISTORIC.
UH, AND THEN WE, WE'LL TAKE THOSE TO COUNCIL AND HOPEFULLY WE'LL HAVE SOME PROCESS AS HISTORIC SOON.
AS FAR AS THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER, UH, THAT CAN BE DONE, WE, BUT WE NEED TO KNOW A HISTORY OF THAT TREE, A RECORD OF THAT TREE.
AND, UH, ESSENTIALLY THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER HAS TO BE, UH, OPEN TO THAT TREE BEING, UH, THE OWNER HAS TO BE AGREEABLE TO IT.
SO, SO THERE'S A, IS THERE A PROCESS WITH THE FORM AND ALL THAT? AND CERTAINLY ACTUALLY ON OUR LANDSCAPE AND TREE MANUAL, WE HAVE HISTORIC TREE, UH, INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROCESS.
AND WE ALSO HAVE A NOMINATION FORM THAT CAN BE FILLED OUT AND SENT TO MY OFFICE.
AND I WOULD TAKE THAT AND WE WOULD START A REVIEW OF IT.
AND JUST SO YOU KNOW, THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, UM, MONDAY ASK US FOR, YOU KNOW, FLYERS AND BROCHURES, NOT JUST ABOUT THE HISTORIC TREE, SO THAT THEY COULD TAKE THOSE TWO, THEIR MEETINGS WITH THEIR CONSTITUENTS.
AND THAT WOULD GIVE THEM, WE'RE WORKING ON THOSE RIGHT NOW.
THANK YOU COMMISSIONER DENKER.
YEAH, THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION AND, AND ALL THE WORK YOU'RE DOING ON, UH, THE NEW PLAN.
UM, THANKS FOR SOME OF YOU I KNOW WHO HAVE BEEN OUT TO DISTRICT 13 TO IDENTIFY AND HELP INFORM HOW SOME TREES AND DEVELOPMENT PROPERTIES CAN BE PRESERVED.
UM, WE'VE HAD SOME RECENT WINS IN THAT AREA, SO THANKS FOR YOUR, YOUR EFFORT IN DOING THAT.
UM, JUST WANTED TO SHARE MORE COMMENT THAT, YOU KNOW, WE ARE HERE TO PARTNER WITH YOU IN IMPLEMENTING
[01:30:01]
THIS PLAN.AND THE TOP OF YOUR PRIORITY LIST IS, I THINK THE TOP OF A LOT OF OUR PRIORITY LISTS TOO, ON GETTING THE TREE INVENTORY DONE.
AND SO, UM, WE'RE GONNA BE WORKING TOGETHER MORE, BUT WANT TO JUST REITERATE AND EMPHASIZE THAT, THAT WE ARE EXCITED TO ADVOCATE FOR HOWEVER WE CAN GET THE INVENTORY DONE AS QUICKLY AND AS BEST, UH, AS POSSIBLE.
UM, AND ARE EXCITED TO WORK WITH YOU MORE CLOSELY ON THAT.
IF I MAY PLAY DEVIL'S ADVOCATE, WHY IS THE HISTORIC TREE DESIGNATION STANDARD SO HIGH? I UNDERSTAND WE WANT A HISTORY ON THE TREES, YOU WANT A COMMITMENT FROM THE HOMEOWNERS, BUT IT ALSO HAS TO HAVE LIKE A RECORD, LIKE A PHOTO THAT'S A HUNDRED YEARS OLD, STUFF LIKE THAT.
CAN YOU LEAD US THROUGH THE PROCESS OF WHAT DESIGNATES AND WHY CAN'T WE OPEN THE FLOODGATES AND ANY TREES? HISTORIC TREE FAIR QUESTION.
UH, HISTORIC, WELL, ESSENTIALLY WE ESTABLISHED AN ORDINANCE TO TRY TO SPECIFY SPECIFIC TYPES OF TREES THAT MIGHT BE LISTED AS HISTORIC.
SAY FOR INSTANCE, TREES THAT MIGHT BE IN PIONEER PARK TREES LIKE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AT BECKLEY COMMERCE, UH, BIG SPRINGS TREE.
THERE ARE CERTAIN TREES THAT STAND OUT THAT, UH, HAVE A, HAVE A SPECIFIC HISTORICAL FUNCTION OR A CULTURAL FUNCTION TO, IT MAY EVEN, IT COULD ACTUALLY EVEN BE A SMALLER TREE THAT WAS PLANTED ON A SCHOOL SITE THAT BASICALLY MEANT SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO A FAMILY.
SO ESSENTIALLY, WELL, YOU JUST NEED TO BE NOMINATED TO THAT POINT.
AND THEN ESSENTIALLY IT HITS DOWN TO WHERE COUNCILMAN MAKES A DETERMINATION.
YES, WE AGREE WITH THAT, AND THEY MAKE THE RESOLUTION.
AND AT THAT POINT, THE TREES ARE FULLY PROTECTED AND CANNOT BE REMOVED EXCEPT BY COUNSEL ACTION OR, UH, THEY ARE SUBJECT TO DEFENSE PROSECUTION FOR SAFETY PURPOSES.
BUT ESSENTIALLY, UH, UH, COUNSEL WOULD ROLL ON THAT AND THERE'S ALSO A HIGHER MITIGATION REQUIREMENT.
UM, YOU HAD A SLIDE THAT SHOWED THE NUMBER OF TREES THAT WE'VE PLANTED OR WILL PLANT BY APRIL.
HOW DOES THAT COMPARE TO PAST YEAR? ARE WE AHEAD, ARE WE BEHIND? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? UM, WE'VE INCREASED EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
WE, I MEAN, IT MAY BE 500, YOU KNOW, NOT THOUSANDS, BUT IT MAY BE 500, BUT WE'VE INCREASED EVERY YEAR.
UM, CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE TREE KEEP SOFTWARE? IS THAT THE SOFTWARE THAT WE USE TO INVENTORY, OR IS THAT SPECIFIC TO MAINTENANCE, OR IS IT BOTH? WELL, IT'S AN ALL-ENCOMPASSING, WHICH IS THE REASON THAT WE PICKED THIS PROGRAM.
WE WENT THROUGH NINE MONTHS TO A YEAR OF TESTING IT OUT AND TESTING DIFFERENT TYPES OF SOFTWARE PROGRAMS. YOU CAN GO ON THIS ONE, YOU CAN GO ON THE WEBSITE, DALLAS TREES, DALLAS, TX.
I THINK IT'S DALLAS, TX, UM, AT, UH, DOT TREE SOFTWARE.
AND YOU CAN ZOOM IN ON YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND IF WE'VE INVENTORIED INTO THE TREES OR ANY INPUT, THERE'D BE A GREEN DOT AND YOU CLICK ON IT AND IT TELLS YOU WHERE IT'S AT AND WHAT KIND OF TREE IT IS.
BUT WHAT IT DOES IS IT GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE WORK ORDERS.
SO WE CAN TRACK LIKE THE TREATMENTS, THE E A B TREATED TREES, AND SO ON THAT MAP THAT WAS SHOWN WAS ALL THE ASH TREES, YELLOW ONES ARE THE TREATED.
UM, WHO CAN INPUT INFORMATION INTO TREE KEEP? IS THAT JUST CITY STAFF TRAINED FORESTERS? IT'S JUST CITY STAFF BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO HAVE, UM, A PASSWORD OR LOG IN AND A PASSWORD.
BECAUSE THERE'S NOT ANY WAY TO KEEP, IF YOU GIVE SOMEBODY A LOGIN AND A PASSWORD, THERE'S NOT A ANY WAY TO KEEP THEM JUST TO ADD IN.
THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO GET EDIT.
UM, THE NEXT QUESTION IS, WE, UH, REALLY ENJOY COMING OUT TO THE PARKS AND SUPPORTING THOSE PLANTINGS.
AND SO IF YOU'LL SHARE THOSE FLYERS THAT WE TYPICALLY SEE ON SOCIAL MEDIA, IF YOU'LL SHARE THEM WITH ERIN DEAL, SHE WILL SHARE THAT OUT TO THE COMMISSION.
WE WILL THEN SHARE IT OUT TO OUR COMMUNITIES AND THEN, UM, ABSOLUTELY SEND THAT COMMISSION OUT AS WELL.
AND AGAIN, ON OUR FORESTRY PAGE, WE LIST THEM AND IT PROVIDE YOU A, A, UH, BUTTON TO CLICK TO REGISTER TO COME OUT TOO.
UM, AND THEN LAST QUESTION, YOUR COLLEAGUES WITH, UH, TEXAS TREES FOUNDATION MENTIONED THAT JUST NARROWLY OPENING ARTICLE 10, UM, TO PLANT IN THE PRIORITY AREAS.
CAN YOU INCLUDE THAT IN YOUR SPRING BRIEFING ON ARTICLE 10? CAN YOU INCORPORATE WE COULD DO THAT.
NOT SEEING ANY OTHER, UH, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS.
SO GO FOR IT, MR. HICK, ONE MORE QUESTION THAT, SO IN THE, THE CCAP WE HAD, UM, IN OUR REPORT, THERE IS A, UH, QUANTIFICATION
[01:35:01]
OF LAND THAT'S ACQUIRED, AND IT'S, RIGHT NOW IT'S A NUMBER, IT'S LIKE HOW MANY ACRES THE CITY ACQUIRES EVERY YEAR TO PROTECT LANDS.UM, IS THERE ANOTHER, OR NOT YET, BUT IN THE FUTURE, CAN Y'ALL RECOMMEND A DIFFERENT WAY TO MEASURE THAT? BECAUSE A, A NUMBER DOESN'T MAKE SENSE BECAUSE THE CITY OF DALLAS IS FINITE.
ITS GEOGRAPHY IS NOT GROWING, AND THE CITY CAN'T CONTINUE TO ACQUIRE A SET NUMBER EVERY YEAR BECAUSE THEN THE CITY WOULD OWN EVERYTHING.
AND SO I WOULD, I WOULD HOPE THAT WE COULD IN THE FUTURE COME UP WITH A PERCENTAGE THAT WE THINK ACCURATELY QUANTIFIES WHAT IS THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF PROPERTY FOR THE CITY TO BE ACQUIRING POOR CONSERVATION EFFORTS.
UM, AND I THINK THAT THAT WOULD HELP US TO SAY, OH, YEAH, LAST YEAR WE ACQUIRED THIS PERCENTAGE OR THIS METRIC THAT IS MORE MEANINGFUL TO US LOOKING AT A HUNDRED YEARS INTO THE FUTURE.
UM, VERSUS JUST, YEAH, 300 ACRES.
THAT WAS A GOOD NUMBER OR A BAD NUMBER.
SO, UM, THAT'S MY, MY LAST PARTING THOUGHT, SO, OKAY.
YEAH, WE CAN CERTAINLY TAKE IT BACK TO THE TEAM.
AND SEE, BECAUSE I MEAN, Y'ALL ARE THE ONES THAT ARE, CAN FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO THAT.
SO, UM, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO KNOW, YOU KNOW, HELP US ACCOMPLISH THAT GOAL.
THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE WITH US THIS EVENING AND FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
WE ARE MOVING ON TO OUR VOTING, UH, AGENDA.
WE HAVE ONE VOTING ITEM THIS EVENING.
THIS IS A VOTE TO REFER, REVIEW THE URBAN FOREST MASTER PLAN TO THE IMPLEMENTATION SUBCOMMITTEE.
IS THERE A MOTION? A MOTION? IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND.
SO JUST TO POINT OF CLARIFICATION, WE DID DISCUSS, UM, WITHIN THIS PRESENTATION THAT WE JUST RECEIVED, UH, IF YOU'LL LOOK INTO THE APPENDIX THERE, UH, THERE'S A BREAKDOWN OF THE URBAN FOREST MASTER PLANS 14 RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND WITHIN THAT, THERE ARE SEVERAL STEPS.
I THINK IT WOULD BE PRUDENT OF US TO HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE WE ARE NOT.
UM, AND, UH, CHAIR DANKER HAS AGREED TO, UH, TAKE THAT ON WITH HIS COMMITTEE, UM, TO HELP US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT KPIS AND WHAT, UM, PERFORMANCE METRICS WE CAN GET, UH, WITHIN THAT, UH, PLAN THAT EXISTS AND WHERE WE ARE, UH, AS WE GO INTO, UH, THE THIRD YEAR OF ITS IMPLEMENTATION.
ANY OPPOSED? THE MOTION PASSES.
MOVING ON TO OUR DISCUSSION ITEMS, UH, THIS EVENING.
OUR DISCUSSION ITEMS THIS EVENING.
UH, THE FIRST IS ITEM A PROCESSES FOR APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS TO THE TECHNICAL PANEL.
UM, AS SOME OF YOU MAY HAVE, UH, HEARD, ONE OF OUR, UH, TECHNICAL PANEL MEMBERS, UH, FOR ZERO WASTE HAS RESIGNED, UH, TO HANDLE SOME PERSONAL, UH, BUSINESS.
AND SO WE ARE GOING TO BE POSTING THAT POSITION.
UM, AND, UH, WHAT THE ORDINANCE OUTLINES OUT, UM, IS THAT, UM, THE, UH, FOLLOWING THE INITIAL APPOINTMENTS FUTURE, FUTURE TECHNICAL RESOURCE PANEL MEMBERS ARE NOMINATED BY THE CITY MANAGER.
SO, UH, THE COMMISSIONERS ARE NOMINATED BY THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, THESE TECHNICAL PANEL MEMBERS, THAT THERE ARE EIGHT OF ONE IN SUPPORT OF EACH OF OUR, UH, CCAP GOALS.
THOSE ARE APPOINTED, UH, BY THE CITY MANAGER, AS RECOMMENDED BY THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY.
UM, AND SO, UH, O E Q S IS GOING TO CONSULT WITH THE COMMISSION FOR APPROVAL, UM, PRIOR TO TAKING THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE CITY MANAGER, AND THEN THOSE WILL GO TO THE FULL COUNCIL FOR APPOINTMENT.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT? CAN WE REFER PEOPLE, RECOMMEND FOLKS TO O A Q S? OKAY.
IF YOU KNOW OF SOMEBODY WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN THIS POSITION, PLEASE, PLEASE CONTACT THEM, UH, GAUGE THROUGH INTEREST AND LET THEM KNOW ABOUT THE POSITION AND THE WONDERFUL WORK THAT THIS COMMISSION DOES, AND THEN REFER THAT PERSON OVER TO, UH, THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY STAFF.
UM, ANY QUESTIONS? SO, THE JOB, UH, THE QUESTION IS YOUR JOB DESCRIPTION.
THE DESCRIPTION IS WITHIN THE CCAP GOAL.
SO IF YOU'LL GO AND LOOK AT THE CCAP GOAL, UH, WE'LL ALSO, UM, ERIN, WE CAN SEND OUT THE, UM, ORDINANCE.
THERE ARE VERY SPECIFIC RE REQUIREMENTS FOR OUR TECHNICAL PANEL MEMBERS.
UM, THEY NEED TO HAVE AT LEAST FOUR YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
[01:40:01]
IN THE, THE SECTOR OF THE CCAP.UM, AND SO, UM, THERE ARE MORE INFORMATION AND DETAILS ABOUT THEIR TERM, THE REQUIREMENTS, THOSE SORTS OF THINGS WITHIN THE, UH, FOUNDING, THE COMMISSION'S, FOUNDING ORDINANCE, UH, THAT WE CAN SHARE AS WELL.
AND THEY CAN, UH, YOU KNOW, O E Q S WILL BE ABLE TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS AS WELL.
IF THERE ARE NOT ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THAT PARTICULAR ITEM, WE WILL MOVE ON TO, UM, THE NEXT ITEM FOR DISCUSSION AND UPDATE ON THE, UH, APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS OF PUBLIC TO THE SUBCOMMITTEE.
UH, SO WHAT WE'LL DO IS WE'LL POST THOSE, WE'VE HEARD FROM ALMOST EVERY COMMITTEE ON THE QUALIFICATIONS THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE POSTED WITH THIS, UM, UH, OPPORTUNITY THAT'S AVAILABLE.
ONCE WE GET THOSE, WE WILL POST THOSE TO THE COMMISSION'S FORM, HAVE A FORM THAT IS READY TO GO, AND THEN WE'LL OPEN UP THAT FORM.
IT'LL BE OPEN FOR ABOUT THREE WEEKS, AND WE HOPE TO HAVE, UH, A SLATE OF CANDIDATES PRIOR TO OUR NEXT COMMISSION MEETING, UM, ON APRIL 12TH.
ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT? SIMILARLY, IF YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN THAT, ONCE WE GET THE LINK OUT TO YOU AND ERIN WILL WILL SHARE THAT OUT, PLEASE SHARE THAT WITH YOUR NETWORKS, UM, SO THAT WE CAN, UM, HAVE THAT AS, AS, UH, DISTRIBUTED WIDELY.
MOVING ON TO ITEM C, MONTHLY SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATES.
AND WE'RE GONNA START WITH OUR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH COMMITTEE.
UH, WE HAVE RESCHEDULED OUR CANCELED FEBRUARY MEETING.
UH, SO WE WILL BE MEETING NEXT THURSDAY, UM, MARCH 16TH, AND, UM, ADDRESSING, UH, OUR GOALS, UH, FOR THE REMAINDER OF THIS YEAR.
NEXT IS ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE.
WE WILL HOLD A MEETING LATER THIS MONTH, IF NOT REALLY, APRIL.
WE ARE KIND OF IN A HOLDING PATTERN WHILE WE WAIT FOR THE MAYOR'S ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE PRIORITIES TO BE RELEASED.
AND WE WILL TAKE OUR MERCHANT ORDERS FROM THOSE AS WELL.
AND IMPLEMENTATION, NO UPDATE FOR THIS MONTH.
FOR OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT, WE ARE GEARING UP FOR EARTH MONTH AND SEVERAL OUTREACH EVENTS.
UM, MARK YOUR CALENDARS AGAIN.
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE, UM, NORTH TEXAS CLIMATE SYMPOSIUM ON MARCH THE 28TH.
UM, AND THEN WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A BOOTH AT OAK CLIFF EARTH DAY, WHICH WILL BE ON APRIL 16TH.
IT IS AT THE BEAUTIFUL LAKE CLIFF PARK.
UH, AND SO, UH, WE WILL NEED, UH, REPRESENTATION THERE.
SO WE WILL BE SENDING OUT A SIGNUP FORM FOR THAT.
UH, LATER THAT WEEK, WE WILL HAVE EARTHX, WHICH IS THE THREE DAY EVENT.
IT'LL BE FRIDAY, THE 21ST THROUGH SUNDAY, THE 23RD.
WE WILL ALSO HAVE A TABLE, UM, AND PRESENT AT THAT.
AND SO WE'LL BE SEND SENDING OUT, UM, A SIGNUP SHEET, UH, FOR THAT SOON.
WE ARE GOING TO VERY SPECIFICALLY FOCUS ON, UM, YOUTH ENGAGEMENT THIS YEAR.
AND SO WE'RE LOOKING AT SOME YOUTH ACTIVITIES.
UH, WE'RE DISCUSSING A PARTNERSHIP WITH ANOTHER, UH, LOCAL ORGANIZATION TO DESIGN A CHILDREN'S ACTIVITY BOOK.
WE ARE LOOKING AT CHILDREN'S ACTIVITIES, UM, TO DO, UM, DURING THE, UM, THE BOOTH.
SO KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THAT SIGNUP SHEET.
WE NEED MORE THAN JUST THE OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEMBERS, UH, TO PARTICIPATE IN THAT.
UM, BOTH OF THOSE EVENTS ARE FABULOUS OPPORTUNITIES TO MEET PEOPLE, TO TALK WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS ABOUT WHAT THEIR CONCERNS ARE, UM, AND JUST TO BE IN FELLOWSHIP WITH OTHER LIKE-MINDED ENVIRONMENTALISTS.
SO I HIGHLY, HIGHLY ENCOURAGE YOU, UM, TO PARTICIPATE IN SOME OF THOSE EVENTS.
ALL RIGHT, NEXT IS STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS IN INNOVATION.
UM, WE'VE HAD A BUSY, UH, MONTH SINCE OUR LAST MEETING ON THE 22ND.
UH, WE HAD A CHAIR CHAT FOR THE S P I SUBCOMMITTEE, UH, TO FINALIZE SOME THINGS ABOUT OUR, OUR PATH FORWARD WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE, UH, PERFORMANCE SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE 2024 BOND PACKAGE.
UH, WE HAD A MEETING OF THE WHOLE, UM, STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP AND INNOVATION SUBCOMMITTEE ON TUESDAY, THE 28TH, UH, WHERE WE PREVIEWED, UH, THE LIST OF PRESENTERS FOR TWO PITCH SESSIONS, UH, ONE LAST FRIDAY FOCUSED ON BUILDINGS, UH, AND ONE THIS FRIDAY FOCUSED ON PARKS AND INFRASTRUCTURE.
AGAIN, WE INVITED, UM, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL, UH, THIRD PARTY CERTIFIERS AND NGO POLICY EXPERTS TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO CITY DEPARTMENT LEADERS ON WHAT WOULD BE
[01:45:01]
EASY TO EXPLAIN, UM, ACHIEVABLE AND ASPIRATIONAL, UH, CRITERIA TO ASSOCIATE WITH THE BOND PACKAGE FUNDING THAT WOULD BE IN SUPPORT OF ADVANCING THE CCAP GOALS AND REALIZING THE PROGRESS, UH, ON THE ACTIONS.SO, UM, LOOKING FORWARD TO A VERY PRODUCTIVE CALL THIS FRIDAY.
UH, LAST FRIDAY WAS AN EXCELLENT CONVERSATION FOCUSED ON BUILDINGS, AND SUE AND I ARE WORKING ON THE NOTES RIGHT NOW.
SO WE'LL SHARE THOSE WITH THIS TEAM ONCE THOSE ARE WRAPPED UP.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT UPDATE.
WE ARE MOVING INTO ITEM D, MONTHLY DISTRICT UPDATES FROM COMMISSIONER DISTRICT ONE.
UPDATES ON, CAN I, CAN I ADD ONE OTHER THING? OH, SURE.
UM, SO ONCE WE GET THESE RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, VERY IMPORTANT IS THE NEXT STEP, WHICH IS THE STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT LOCALLY TO THE CITY OF DALLAS.
AND I KNOW DAVID MARQUIS IS WORKING ON, UH, A PLAN FOR THAT.
WE HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF TIME BEFORE WE HAVE TO SUBMIT THE PERFORMANCE, UH, SPECIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE BOND OFFICE.
UH, SO, UM, THIS WILL BE REALLY IMPORTANT TO ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY, UH, AND INDUSTRY AND BUSINESS, UH, IN UNDERSTANDING WHAT THOSE ARE.
DISTRICT TWO, DID COMMISSIONER WOOTEN MAKE GIVE TO THE CALL? ALL RIGHT.
DISTRICT FOUR AND NO UPDATES AT THIS TIME.
DISTRICT SIX, I PARTICIPATED IN WEST DALLAS'S IHEART HEALTH FAIR, UM, WITH THE TABLE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION ON FEBRUARY 25TH AND THE VERY NEXT DAY.
LOTS OF MY COLLEAGUES, SOME OF YOU, UH, JOINED ME FOR WEST DALLAS COMMUNITY CLEANUP AT PAV AHO WETLANDS.
UH, WE WERE JOINED BY DEPUTY MAYOR PROTE OMAR NEVAS, AND LOTS OF FOLKS FROM HIS OFFICE.
THANK YOU CHAIRWOMAN BAAN FOR YOUR PRESENCE AND YOUR HUGE MUSCLES.
UM, CONTINUING TO STAY UP TO DATE ON G A F MEETINGS AND HAPPENINGS.
SO, UH, IN DISTRICT SEVEN, UH, THIS PAST FRIDAY, WE, UH, UM, INSTALLED A AIR QUALITY MONITOR AT THE MILLS CREEK BATCH PLANT SITE.
UH, SO, UH, WHAT ELSE? IN DISTRICT? SEVEN.
JOCKEY IS GETTING TWO AIR QUALITY MONITORS.
UM, SO ONE IS GONNA BE, UH, LOCATED AT OUR PARK, UH, BETWEEN THE TRINITY, UH, WETLANDS AND OUR PARK FOR, WE CAN GET THE DOWNWIND FROM THE, UH, MCCULLUM LANDFILL.
THE OTHER ONE IS GONNA BE LOCATED ON CARBONDALE.
UH, WE'RE WORKING TO, UH, IMPLEMENT THAT AT THE DROP MAMA FORM.
UH, I HAVE A MEETING FRIDAY AT ONE O'CLOCK TO DO A WALKTHROUGH FOR THAT.
UH, SO I JUST WANNA, UH, FOR EARTH MONTH, UH, CHOPPY ON JO.
MY ORGANIZATION, DROPPY FREEMAN TOWN ASSOCIATION, WOULD BE HOSTING THE EVENT, AND OUR COMMISSION WILL HAVE A TABLE AT IT, AND AARON WILL SEND THE INFORMATION FLYER OUT TO EVERYONE.
AND I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO, YOU KNOW, IF YOU WANNA COME VISIT JY ON THIS DAY, THIS IS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO COME VOLUNTEER AND, UH, BE A PART OF THE CHOPPY EARTH DAY.
WE'RE GONNA KICK EARTH DAY OFF IN APRIL, THE FIRST, FROM NINE TO TWO.
I WILL BE SENDING A FLYER OUT OUTSIDE OF THAT.
UM, I WILL UPDATE EVERYONE ABOUT THE EVENT COMING UP.
UH, THIS PAST, UM, MONDAY, ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE WORKING ON IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UM, IS JUST THE GOOD, GOOD MENTAL HEALTH AND GOOD, UH, STRENGTH OF THE, THE ENVIRONMENT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
SO, COUNCILMAN ATKINS, UH, COCO COMPLIANCE, AND, UH, OUR N P OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF SOUTH CENTRAL PRECINCT DID A WALKTHROUGH OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND IDENTIFIED AREAS WHERE THERE WAS TRASH THAT NEEDED TO BE PICKED UP.
UH, HOMELESS SOLUTIONS WAS WITH US TOO, AND IDENTIFIED PEOPLE THAT, UM, WERE HOMELESS.
SOME WANTED HELP, SOME DIDN'T, BUT THEY AT LEAST
[01:50:01]
IDENTIFIED WHERE, UH, SOME OF THE MEETING PLACES ARE BECAUSE A LOT OF THE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE ON, WE HAVE, WE HAVE A MEETING ACTUALLY, THAT I ASKED THEM IF WE COULD DO ON THE 13TH OF THIS MONTH, WHICH IS MONDAY.AND IT'S FOR THE CHURCHES AND THE MERCHANTS, UH, SO THAT WE CAN GET TOGETHER AND SEE WHAT KIND OF THINGS CAN WE DO AS FAR AS TRASH, AS FAR AS PREVENTION.
UH, THE OTHER THING, UH, I'M LOOKING AT, UM, WELL, I ALSO WANNA MAKE SURE THAT I DON'T MISS THE DATE, THE DATE FOR WHEN, UH, WE GET MONITORS PUT IN DISTRICT EIGHT.
THERE ARE, I KNOW, WELL, FARMS IS DESIGNATED TO RECEIVE, UM, AIR QUALITY MONITORS, BUT WE GOT SOME OTHER AREAS THAT HAVE POOR AIR QUALITY.
SO ONE OF THE, UH, THE LEADERSHIP COALITION IN DISTRICT EIGHT, I PUT OUT AN EMAIL TO THEM AND ASKED THEM IF WE COULD NOT, IF THEY COULD HELP BY IDENTIFYING AREAS THEY THINK COULD USE ADDITIONAL MONITORS WHEN THAT SITUATION COMES UP.
UM, AND THEN AS FAR AS EARTH DAY, UM, I'M STILL WORKING ON WHAT ALL I WOULD DO.
IT'S PROBABLY GONNA, IT'S GONNA BE EDUCATION, UH, WITH THE COMMUNITY.
BUT I NEED TO, I WOULD LIKE TO DO SOME CREATIVE THINGS WITH THAT.
AND, AND IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY IDEAS ABOUT WHAT TO DO, I SEE ALL THESE BEAUTIFUL TREES BEING CUT DOWN.
UH, AND SOME PEOPLE, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S MONEY OR WHAT, BUT THEY'LL CUT IT DOWN THE STUMP ABOUT THIS TALL.
AND IT'S THE OTHER THING YOU'RE GOING TO SEE.
THEY TAKE ALL THE LEAVES OFF, THEY CUT THE LIMB DOWN, AND IT'S A STUMP ABOUT MY HEIGHT, JUST A STRAIGHT UP STUMP.
SO I'M TRYING TO THINK OF DECORATIVE THINGS THAT COULD BE DONE WITH THOSE.
IF YOU'RE NOT GONNA UPROOT IT, AT LEAST PAINT IT, PUT A BIRD BACK ON TOP.
SO IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY IDEAS OF WHAT THEY COULD DO, HUH?
CAUSE WE NEED TO BEAUTIFY THOSE.
CAUSE OBVIOUSLY THESE PEOPLE AREN'T GONNA BIG THIS STUMPS UP AND I MEAN, SOME OF 'EM ARE FIVE AND SIX FEET TALL.
UM, I HAD THE PLEASURE OF ATTENDING, UH, AN EVENT, UM, EARLIER THIS MONTH, LAST MONTH, UM, WITH, UH, KATHERINE HAK, WHO DID A FABULOUS, UH, CLIMATE TALK.
UM, VERY MOTIVATIONAL, UM, ALSO PARTICIPATED IN THE DIG SUMMIT, WHICH WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT, UM, FOCUSED ON URBAN AGRICULTURE AND FOOD RESILIENCY FOR BEING THE VERY FIRST EVENT THAT WE'VE HOSTED LIKE THAT.
I WILL SAY THAT I WAS VERY PLEASED.
IT REALLY SPARKED A LOT OF, UM, REALLY GREAT CONVERSATIONS, UH, AND WAS WAS THOUGHT PROVOKING.
I THINK WE ALL WALKED AWAY WITH, WITH SOME THINGS TO, TO THINK ABOUT AND TO WORK ON.
UH, TODAY THE CITY COUNCIL ADOPTED OUR CITY'S FIRST EVER URBAN AGRICULTURE PLAN.
UH, AND SO THAT EFFORT WAS LED BY, UM, OE Q S'S, REBECCA CT, UM, WITH OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR AND DIRECTOR OF O E Q S.
AND, UH, NOW THE REAL WORK BEGINS.
RIGHT? UH, AND SO, UM, LET'S SEE, WHAT ELSE DID WE KNOW? RESPONSE, UH, MR. HARIMOTO AND I MET UP IN AUSTIN, UH, DURING THE, UM, DRCS LEGISLATIVE DAY.
UM, AND DIRECTOR EVANS AND I ARE GOING TO BE SPEAKING AT AN UPCOMING SOCIAL INNOVATION LUNCH ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT.
SO VERY MUCH LOOKING TO FOLLOW TO, UM, THAT EVENT AS WELL.
DO DID I SEE 11 COMMISSIONER MURRAY? THERE SHE IS.
DO YOU HAVE AN UPDATE? COMMISSIONER? ALL RIGHT.
I SEE COMMISSIONER WOOTEN IS ON.
COMMISSIONER WOOTEN, DID YOU HAVE AN UPDATE THIS EVENING? I DON'T.
UM, ANYWAY, UM, YES, I HAVE A NUMBER OF THINGS.
UH, FIRST OF ALL, UM, LAST FRIDAY I ATTENDED A RIBBON CUTTING FOR THE FIRST TWO HOUSES DEVELOPED FOR RESIDENTS BY THE GOLDEN SEEDS FOUNDATION, UH, IN THE BOTTOM.
AND, UH, VERY EXCITING AND, UH, A GREAT DEVELOPMENT GOING ON THERE.
UM, I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH DALLAS AREA INTERFAITH AND ISSUES IN THE BACHMAN LAKE AREA, UH, HAVING TO DO WITH CODE ENFORCEMENT.
[01:55:01]
MEETING WITH CODE ENFORCEMENT ON MARCH THE 20TH AT THE BACHMAN LAKE, UH, COMMUNITY CENTER THAT WE ARE YOU, I'D LIKE TO INVITE AL ATTEND TO HEAR THE RECOMMENDATIONS TO FOLKS FROM THAT GROUP HAVE BEEN WORK, WORKING VERY HARD TO COME UP WITH RECOMMENDATIONS ABOUT HOW TO IMPROVE, UH, CODE ENFORCEMENT.RIGHT NOW, ALL IT TAKES TO CLOSE A CASE IS THREE UNSUCCESSFUL CALLS THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE ISSUES.
IT'S AN EXAMPLE OF HOW, UH, THERE ARE STILL ISSUES.
UM, THE, UM, UM, UH, AND THEN, UM, I HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH, UM, UH, TEMPLE SHALOM ON THEIR COMMUNITY GARDEN.
AND WE ARE LOOKING TO USE THE GARDEN, THE GAR, DOUBLE THE SIZE OF OUR GARDEN AND USE IT AS A, UM, AS A WAY OF PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE BY WORKING WITH OTHER CONGREGATIONS.
WE'VE ALREADY GOT, UH, AGREEMENT FROM, UH, KING OF GLORY LUTHERAN CHURCH.
SO IT'S AN INTERFAITH, AND WE'VE INVITED TWO OTHER CONGREGATIONS IN THE AREA TO JOIN US, UH, IN THIS EFFORT.
UM, I'VE ALSO RECEIVED SOME VERY FAVORABLE FEEDBACK FROM THE TEXAS ASSOCIATION OF HEALTH PLANS ABOUT THE IDEA OF US AS A GROUP PROVIDING A WORKSHOP ON ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH EFFECTS THAT, THAT AFFECT HEALTH COSTS AT THEIR ANNUAL MEETING IN THE FALL.
AND I WILL OBVIOUSLY NEED THE EXPERTISE OF ALL OF YOU IN ORDER TO MAKE THAT SUCCESSFUL.
AND I FILED ANOTHER ONE FOR THE TEXAS PEDIATRIC SOCIETY AND WAITING TO HEAR WHETHER THEY WILL ACCEPT IT.
THANK YOU FOR THOSE YOU'VE BEEN FOLLOWING WITH LOVE FIELD.
THERE WAS A LONG EFFORT TO ADD A NORTH ENTRANCE TO THE AIRPORT THAT WOULD HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS TO BACHMAN LAKE, AND THAT IS NO LONGER BEING PURSUED, AND THEY'RE IDENTIFYING OTHER WAYS TO SOLVE TRAFFIC PROBLEMS AROUND THE AIRPORT.
SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
UM, LOT OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AROUND THAT ISSUE.
AND, UM, HAPPY TO REPORT THAT'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN.
UH, THERE'S ALSO A LITTLE EIGHT ACRE PROPERTY THAT WAS THE FORMER D I S D VACANT LOT THAT'S COMPLETE GREEN SPACE ALONG A NORTH HAVEN TRAIL THAT D I S D SOLD CONTINGENT ON A ZONING CHANGE TO A DEVELOPER LAST YEAR.
UM, GOT ENGAGED WITH PARKS, BOARD NEIGHBORHOODS, AND C P C TO JUST MOBILIZE AND TO TRY TO PUT FORTH SOME GOOD FAITH NEGOTIATIONS ON WHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE OUT OF THE DEVELOPMENT.
AND HAPPY TO REPORT THAT THEY HAVE POLLED THEIR REQUEST FOR ZONING CHANGE.
UM, SO WE HAVE STARTED THE PROCESS TO TRY TO REENGAGE WITH THE CITY OF DALLAS AND D I S D TO ACQUIRE THAT PROPERTY.
UM, OR IF NOT, IT WILL GO TO THE NEXT DEVELOPER AND WE'LL START THE PROCESS OVER AGAIN.
BUT, UM, THE TREES ON THAT PROPERTY AND THE GREEN SPACE IS, ISN'T GOING ANYWHERE AS OF RIGHT NOW.
SO ANOTHER SMALL VICTORY THERE TO REPORT.
UM, COUPLE UPCOMING EVENTS THAT WANTED TO SHARE.
UM, DISTRICT 11, COMMISSIONER MURRAY AND I ARE HOSTING AN EVENT IN APRIL, UH, IN OUR DISTRICT TO JUST PRESENT ON CCAP AND THEN ALSO PARTNER WITH D W U ON EAB.
UM, IT'S AN IDEA IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR TRYING TO DO A COMMUNITY EVENT, UM, THEY ARE TRYING TO DO PRESENTATIONS ON EAB B IN EVERY CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT.
SO, UM, WE'RE KIND OF PIGGYBACKING ON, ON TOP OF THEIR EFFORT.
AND THEN ALSO DOING THE CLIMATE REALITY PROJECT, UH, TRAINING SERIES IN APRIL, WHICH WOULD RECOMMEND ALL OF YOU, UH, AT LEAST CONSIDER IT'S ONLINE.
UM, AND IT'S ALL ABOUT THE IRA AND THE I I J A ON HOW TO TAKE X INTO ACTION.
UM, IT'S FREE, LIKE ALL THEIR TRAININGS USUALLY ARE.
AND I'M EXCITED TO BE A PART OF THAT TO SEE HOW WE COULD HELP THE CITY BENEFIT.
FIRST, I WANNA THANK, UH, CHAIR BAAN FOR HER, UM, SERVICE.
UH, YOU INVEST SO MUCH OF YOUR PERSONAL TIME IN THIS COMMISSION, BUT ALSO YOUR ABILITY TO BUILD AND EXTEND AUTHENTIC RELATIONSHIPS OF TRUST.
AND I THINK THAT BOTH OF THOSE THINGS ARE SO PIVOTAL TO THE SUCCESS THAT OUR COMMISSION HAS ACHIEVED, UH, RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE.
UM, ON, UM, MARCH THE SECOND, ALAN HOFFMAN AND I WERE INVITED TO,
[02:00:01]
UH, PARTICIPATE IN A PANEL DISCUSSION FOR THE NORTH TEXAS COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS.UH, THE DAYLONG SUMMIT FOCUSED ON WEATHERIZATION ON OUR VERY OWN.
FAR ANDREWS WAS, UH, KEYING AND SHARING THE WHOLE HOME PROGRAM, AND I THINK THERE WAS A LOT OF, UH, INTEREST IN THAT FROM THE OTHER MUNICIPALITIES.
DO ANY OF OUR TECHNICAL PANEL MEMBERS, UH, HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD? MS. BEVIN? GO AHEAD.
WELL, I JUST WANNA, UH, MAKE A NOTE TO EV EVERYONE THAT IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN THE LEGISLATION, DOWN CAPITAL, EMAIL ME.
UM, I CREATE FILL SHEETS AS BIG AS SIX AND EIGHT PAGES.
UM, I HAVE LEGISLATIVE CALLS EVERY WEEK, USUALLY ON TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY.
UM, I DID GO OUT TO THE COMANCHE PEAK HEARING WITH THE NRC.
AND, UM, THERE IS, UH, A SCHEDULING OF LEGAL BRIEFS GOING BACK AND FORTH ON THAT RIGHT NOW, THANKS TO, UH, SOME LOCAL ATTORNEYS THAT HAVE ENTERED INTO THAT, UM, SITUATION.
UM, ALSO, I WANNA MAKE NOTE FOR THOSE OF YOU INTERESTED IN THE LEGISLATURE, THERE IS A LOBBY DAY TUESDAY, APRIL 11TH.
IF YOU'RE INTERESTED, LET ME KNOW.
IT'S, IT'S PUT BY A LOT OF THE STATEWIDE ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS.
THE BIG FOCUS IS TCEQ SUNSET, BUT I HAVE, UM, MADE MENTION TO MY COLLEAGUES THAT THERE ARE TOO MANY BILLS THAT AFFECT LOCAL CONTROL AND CLIMATE, AND WE WILL BE ADDRESSING THAT AS WELL.
UM, SO WITH THAT SAID, I THINK THAT BRINGS US UP TODAY.
DO ANY OF OUR, UM, ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH COMMITTEE MEMBERS HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD? DR.
I DON'T REALLY HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD, BUT I JUST WANTED TO TELL DR.
LOCKMAN, I, I THINK THAT HIS T P S, UM, WELL, HIS T PS TALK WAS ACCEPTED.
THE CLIMATE IMPACT ON PEDIATRIC HEALTH OBJECTIVES, YOU'RE ACCEPT, EXCITED, ACCEPT FOR HIS MICRO HEALTH.
OH, I HAVE DOUBTS ABOUT THAT ONE.
I HAD SUBMITTED SOMETHING ELSE.
SO I HAVE THE LIST OF WHAT'S ACCEPTED.
SO, UH, IF NOBODY HAS ANYTHING ELSE, WE WILL MOVE ON TO, UH, UPCOMING MEETINGS.
THE ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE, UH, WILL MEET ON MONDAY, APRIL 3RD AT 9:00 AM THE NEXT MEETING OF OUR ENVIRONMENTAL COMMISSION WILL BE WEDNESDAY, APRIL 12TH, 5:30 PM AND IF THERE'S NOTHING ELSE, I WILL TAKE A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
IT'S BEEN SECONDED AND MOVED IN THAT ORDER, BUT, UH, ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.