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[Council Government Performance & Financial Management Committee on December 12, 2023.]
CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER.THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS APPROVAL OF THE NOVEMBER 14TH MINUTES.
CAN I GET A MOTION? MOVE TO APPROVE. MOTION, MR. MORENO. THANK YOU.
WE HAVE A MOTION A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
AYE. ANY OPPOSED? MOTION PASSES.
ALL RIGHT. WE ARE GOING TO COME BACK TO THE BRIEFING ITEM AND GO AHEAD AND GO INTO THE DISCUSSION ITEMS. WE'LL GO IN THIS ORDER B, C, D, THEN BACK TO A.
AND THEN JUST DOWN AFTER THAT FROM E ALL THE WAY DOWN.
SO B IS THE MONTHLY UPDATE FROM DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, WHICH THEY CLARIFIED IN A MEMO THAT WE RECEIVED DURING THE PACKET REVIEW THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY ARE NOT BRIEFING US, BUT THEY ARE HERE FOR QUESTIONS SINCE THEY DO PROVIDE A MONTHLY BRIEFING IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
I SPOKE THIS MORNING WITH DIRECTOR ESPINOSA AND ASKED THEM IF THEY'D BE WILLING TO TALK ABOUT THEIR, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, QUICK DEVELOPMENT PACKET THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE HOPEFULLY PUBLISHING SOON.
AND DO YOU HAVE A VISUAL YOU CAN SHOW US? GOOD AFTERNOON.
UH, COMMITTEE CHAIR. I DID NOT BRING A VISUAL.
AND SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO TO FEEDBACK FROM THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY.
AND THEN OUR PLAN IS TO CONTINUE TO BUILD OFF THAT SERIES.
DO ONE FOR LAND DEVELOPMENT, PLANNING, RESIDENTIAL AND EVEN THE CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY PROCESS.
OKAY. HOW DO COUNCIL MEMBERS, HOW WILL THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE FEEDBACK BEFORE YOU PUBLISH THE QUICK USER GUIDE? SO THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION COUNCIL MEMBER.
OKAY, YOU'RE GOING TO DO THAT OR WOULD YOU WANT THEM TO REACH OUT TO YOU? AND THEN IF THEY'RE INTERESTED.
YOU'LL GET BACK BUT I'LL BE HAPPY TO DO THAT.
UH, WHEN WE SPOKE THIS MORNING, YOU INDICATED WE I ASKED YOU THE QUESTION.
IS ONE OF YOUR CHALLENGES THAT THE DEPARTMENTS OFTENTIMES WORK IN SILOS, SO YOUR DEPARTMENT GETS JUDGED ON A MONTHLY BASIS ON HOW WELL PERMITS ARE GETTING PUSHED OUT AND YOUR PERFORMANCE, BUT YOU'RE NOT ALWAYS IN CONTROL OF IT.
YOU'VE GOT OTHER DEPARTMENTS, AND I'M NOT PICKING ON ANY PARTICULAR ONE.
LEGAL DEPARTMENT, REAL ESTATE DEPARTMENT.
WHAT IS THE CITY MANAGEMENT DOING TO HELP ALLEVIATE THOSE SILOS? SO THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
AND SO ACQUIRING 7800 NORTH STEMMONS.
AND BY THE WAY, OUR FIRST PHASE IS MOVING IN NEXT WEEK.
SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED AND THANKFUL FOR THAT.
BUT I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS LOGISTICALLY, IF WE CAN BRING SOME OF THOSE DEPARTMENTS TOGETHER AND BUILD MOMENTUM THROUGH THE PERMITTING PROCESS, WHERE A CUSTOMER, A DEVELOPER, SMALL BUSINESS OWNER CAN KIND OF GO FROM GROUP TO GROUP, I THINK THAT WOULD BE A HUGE ASSET TO THE DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY.
AND THEN FINALLY, WE'RE ACTUALLY DEVELOPING A DEVELOPMENT REVIEW SORT OF WORKING GROUP WITH DIRECTORS SO THAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS AND THEN TALK ABOUT SPECIFIC PROJECTS, FOR EXAMPLE, FIRE STATIONS, UM, THE KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON OVERHAUL, ALL OF THOSE PROJECTS.
WE WANT TO COME TOGETHER AS A LEADERSHIP TEAM TO BE ABLE TO FACILITATE PERMITS A LOT FASTER.
DO YOU DO YOU NEED COUNCIL FEEDBACK ON, YOU KNOW, HAVING THIS ONE STOP SHOP TO HAVE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS ON SITE? OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU ALREADY HAVE SUPPORT FROM, FROM COUNCIL AND CITY MANAGEMENT FOR? SO COUNCIL MEMBER, WE'RE ALWAYS WILLING TO TAKE RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS AND WE WANT TO KEEP THAT OPEN DIALOG.
I'M STILL HEARING QUITE A FEW, UM, CONCERNS ABOUT THE DELAYS.
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UH, THIS PAST MONTH, IN NOVEMBER, UH, WE ISSUED 54 NEW SINGLE FAMILY PERMITS THE SAME DAY THROUGH THE RSVP PROGRAM.SO THE COMPLAINTS THAT I'VE HEARD HAVE ALL BEEN COMMERCIAL.
UM, CAN YOU CHARACTERIZE THE TIME FRAME FOR COMMERCIAL PERMITS RIGHT NOW? SO AS I MENTIONED, COUNCIL MEMBER, WE'RE FINALIZING THE DASHBOARD AND OUR GOAL IS TO GO LIVE WITH IT JANUARY.
AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF YOU SAW THE THE MESSAGE WE PUT OUT TO OUR CUSTOMERS, WE WANT TO PROGRESSIVELY MOVE TOWARDS 100% ONLINE SUBMITTALS SO THAT WE CAN GET BETTER, CLEANER DATA AND HOLD OURSELVES ACCOUNTABLE TO THOSE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS THAT WE'VE SET FOR OURSELVES.
AND WHERE ARE YOU AT ON THAT RIGHT NOW WITH PERFORMANCE STANDARDS? SO OUR INITIAL REVIEW TIMES ARE AT 15 DAYS.
AND FOR RESIDENTIAL IT'S AT 10 DAYS.
SO CUSTOMERS SUBMIT SOMETHING.
THEY WILL HAVE THEIR COMMENTS OR APPROVALS WITHIN 15 BUSINESS DAYS.
OKAY, BUT ARE YOU HITTING THOSE TARGETS FOR COMMERCIAL? ONCE WE HAVE OUR YES, WE BELIEVE WE ARE BUT ONCE WE HAVE OUR COMMERCIAL DASHBOARD ROLLED OUT, WE'LL BE ABLE TO TRACK THOSE MORE COMPREHENSIVELY.
I DON'T HAVE MY METRICS IN FRONT OF ME.
AND IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, I THINK WE EVEN ISSUED, I WANT TO SAY, 52 COMMERCIAL PROJECTS THE SAME DAY THROUGH OUR MINOR COMMERCIAL PLAN REVIEW TEAM.
UH, THAT THAT WAS THE SECOND Q TEAM.
WE STOOD UP AND SO I KNOW WE'RE GETTING PROJECTS IN AND OUT THE SAME DAY.
ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE THE MINOR, UM, PROGRAM BROKEN OUT FROM TRADITIONAL COMMERCIAL AS WELL AS REALLY LARGE, COMPLEX PROJECTS? I MEAN, IT SEEMS LIKE THERE WOULD NATURALLY BE DIFFERENT TIME FRAMES FOR THOSE THREE.
COUNCIL MEMBER MENDELSOHN THIS IS VERNON YOUNG, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES BECAUSE OF THE REPORTING, UH, STRUCTURE AND WORKING IN TWO SYSTEMS, WE'RE NOT ABLE TO BREAK IT OUT CURRENTLY OR DESIRES TO DO THAT IN THE FUTURE.
UH, WE WE CONTINUE TO HEAR, UH, LIGHTLY OF COMMERCIAL TIMELINES.
AND, AND I CAN TELL YOU PERSONALLY, WHEN I ASK [IANUDIBLE] IT'S A, IT'S A GENERAL.
THEY'RE TAKING TOO LONG AND I'M LOOKING FOR SPECIFICS, UH, AS WE'VE HAD THE COMMERCIAL HOTLINE OPEN FOR OVER TWO MONTHS NOW, I'VE GOT I'VE RECEIVED ONLY THREE CALLS THAT HAS SPECIFIC ADDRESSES AND LOCATIONS AND DETAILS, AND THOSE WERE WITHIN THE TIMELINES THAT ANDREW HAS STATED.
THE PART WITH COMMERCIAL IS THE MOVING PIECES.
ARE THEY DOING A ZONING CHANGE OR ARE THEY PLANNING.
I'M NOT SAYING THAT YOU GUYS AREN'T, BUT I, I, MY DOOR IS OPEN.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER, CAN I ALSO ADD ONE OF THE NEW ENHANCEMENTS THAT WE'RE PROPOSING? AND WE'LL BE HAPPY TO BRING IT TO YOU AS WELL.
UH, IS A ENGINEERING Q TEAM, UH, BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN HAVING ONGOING CONVERSATIONS WITH THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY TRACK, AND THE REST OF OUR STAKEHOLDERS IS THAT THEY THEY ARE NOTICING THAT SOME OF THE DELAYS ARE ACTUALLY ON THE PLANNING AND ENGINEERING SIDE.
AND SO OUR GOAL IS TO STAND UP A THIRD TEAM THAT SPECIFICALLY ONLY DOES SITE AND ENGINEERING REVIEWS WITH THE INTENT OF BEING ABLE TO ISSUE THE PERMIT THE SAME DAY.
AND WHAT THAT WILL DO IS TEE UP THAT PARTICULAR APPLICANT FOR WHEN THEY SUBMIT THEIR BUILDING PERMIT, AND HOPEFULLY THAT WILL GET US TO THE SAME DAY ISSUANCE FOR THOSE PREMIER CUSTOMERS THAT THAT ARE TRYING TO GET THEIR PROJECTS UP AND RUNNING AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
SO WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT BUILDING THAT PROGRAM OUT.
UH, AND OBVIOUSLY MORE UPDATES WILL BE COMING.
WE HOPE TO HAVE THAT LAUNCHED, UH, IN MARCH OF 2024.
BUT I THINK THAT WE'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK.
WELL, NONE OF THE NONE OF THE PEOPLE I'VE HEARD FROM HAVE A PLATTING ISSUE OR A ZONING ISSUE.
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UM, BUT, I MEAN, I JUST I GUESS I'LL JUST OFFLINE SEND THEM TO YOU.UM. THANK YOU FOR CONTINUING TO TRY TO IMPROVE THIS.
UM, I THINK THAT YOU MAY NOT HEAR FROM EVERYBODY BECAUSE AT THIS POINT THEY'RE JUST EXPECTING IT.
AND THEY KNOW THAT THIS IS WHAT WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN.
SO, UM, I HOPE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO CHANGE THAT REPUTATION AS YOU CONTINUE IMPROVEMENT.
ANY OTHER VIRTUAL COMMENTS? NOT SEEING ANY MY COLLEAGUES TO THE RIGHT.
NO, I WOULD JUST SAY ON THE ONE STOP SHOP JUST TO PROVIDE YOU WITH FEEDBACK.
I PERSONALLY WOULD SUPPORT EVERY DEPARTMENT THAT HAS ANYTHING TO DO WITH OUR PERMITS TO HAVE A LIAISON AT A MINIMUM ON SITE WITH, WITH DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, SO THAT WHEN YOU COME IN, IT TRULY IS A ONE STOP SHOP.
UM, IF YOU HAVE TO, IF EVERYONE ELSE GETS THEIR PART OF YOUR PERMIT APPLICATION COMPLETED AND THEN YOU'VE GOT TO WAIT TWO WEEKS FOR SOMEONE WHO'S, YOU KNOW, IN A DIFFERENT DEPARTMENT, IN A DIFFERENT BUILDING.
SO THANK YOU, COUNCIL MEMBER APPRECIATE IT.
ALL RIGHT. NEXT WE'RE MOVING ON TO ITEM C.
PEREZ PROVIDING US WITH A GREAT SUMMARY OF EVERYTHING THAT'S GOING ON.
SO THIS IS A REALLY JUST A DISCUSSION ITEM.
SO IF COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS THEY CAN CHIME IN.
UM, I HAVE A COUPLE AND I'LL KICK IT OFF ON THIS ONE.
PEREZ IS HRNA UM, ASSISTING ARE THEY HAVE THEY BEEN PROFESSIONALLY CONTRACTED.
WE RETAIN THEM TO ACTUALLY WORK WITH US ON THIS ITEM.
I'M GLAD TO SEE THEY ARE A PARTNER BECAUSE THEY THEY DO A LOT WITH THE CITY.
HONORABLE CHAIR. UH, MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE ROBERT PEREZ, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER.
UM, YES THEY ARE LOOKING AT REAL ESTATE, AS PART OF A LARGER ORGANIZATIONAL REVIEW.
SO, YES, THEY ARE, UH, OFFICIALLY WORKING ON THIS WITH, WITH US.
ARE THEY GOING TO HELP, UM, THE CITY DEVELOP A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR REAL ESTATE? DO WE DO WE ANTICIPATE THAT COMING? SO, UH, I BELIEVE IT'S, UH, ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT TALKS ABOUT THE CITY MASTER PLAN.
THE TEAM AND I ARE TALKING WITH CBRE RIGHT NOW TO SEE WHAT SOMETHING LIKE THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE.
UM, AND POTENTIAL COSTS FOR THAT TYPE OF ENDEAVOR.
GREAT. AND THEN I SEE THAT THE REAL ESTATE DEPARTMENT IS GOING TO BE CONDUCTING THEIR ANNUAL REVIEW.
IT'S ALREADY STARTED AND IT GOES THROUGH JANUARY 16TH.
IS THAT RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT SIR.
OKAY. AND I WOULD JUST ASK THAT IF, YOU KNOW, I THINK IT'S DOABLE.
MAYBE IN THE FEBRUARY TIME FRAME, WE HAVE A JOINT PRESENTATION WITH, REAL ESTATE AND CBRE TO JUST KIND OF UPDATE US ON THE PROGRESS OF, OF, UH, REAL ESTATE'S REVIEW AND THEN ALSO, YOU KNOW, CBRES WORK ON THIS.
SO KEEP IN MIND, UH, CHAIR, THAT WE'RE JUST TALKING WITH CBRE AS FAR AS, UH, POTENTIAL OPTIONS AND TO TRY TO UNDERSTAND FOR SOME OF THE ITEMS THAT WE LISTED HERE, SUCH AS A MASTER PLAN, HOW MUCH SOMETHING LIKE THAT WOULD COST.
SO WE'RE NOT ACTUALLY, UM, WE'RE NOT WE'RE NOT ACTUALLY CONTRACTING WITH CBRE.
UM, BUT COME FEBRUARY TIME FRAME, UH, WE CAN PROBABLY BRIEF YOU ON, ON OUR INITIAL THOUGHTS.
THAT WORKS. WE CAN HONE IT, YOU KNOW.
SOUNDS GOOD. ALL RIGHT, I'LL START AT THE HORSESHOE THIS TIME.
ANY QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS VIRTUAL WORLD? I'M SEEING SHAKING HEADS.
OH, I'M OUTSIDE OF THE COMMITTEE, SO I WASN'T SURE IF I.
YEAH. YOU'RE GOOD, CHAIR WILLIS.
GO AHEAD. OKAY. JUST A QUESTION ON THE MEMO UNDER NEXT STEPS, IT SAYS THE ANNUAL REVIEW OF REAL PROPERTY IMPROVEMENTS WILL ALSO VERIFY NEEDED AND SURPLUS CITY PROPERTY.
UM, HOW WHAT ARE THE CRITERIA FOR FOR VERIFYING WHETHER IT'S NEEDED OR SURPLUS? SO THIS IS PART OF THE ANNUAL REVIEW AMENDMENT IN WHICH WE ARE LOOKING TO ENHANCE THAT.
UM, AND SO WORKING BETWEEN OUR BUILDING SERVICES DEPARTMENT, UH, AND OUR REAL ESTATE GROUP, WE'RE ESSENTIALLY RELYING UPON THE DIRECTORS OF EACH DEPARTMENT, UH, TO IDENTIFY THAT INFORMATION FOR US.
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TO SEE HOW WE CAN, UH, MEMORIALIZE, UH, THE ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTIVE THAT, UM, THAT DICTATES, UH, THIS REVIEW.UM, SO AGAIN, THIS IS A FIRST STEP, UM, AS FAR AS ACTUALLY TRYING TO ASCERTAIN THE INFORMATION.
UM, I THINK WE'LL HAVE TO, OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS, REFINE HOW THAT ACTUALLY, WORKED.
UH, AND THEN ALSO, UM, COME UP WITH, UH, THE, I GUESS THE LANGUAGE THAT WE WANT TO PUT IN THE, UM, UH, INTO THE ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTIVE, THE OTHER PIECE, UM, AS FAR AS THE MASTER PLANNING, UM, SOME OF THE INITIAL FEEDBACK THAT WE'VE GOTTEN FROM, UM, FROM CBRE IS AND ACTUALLY FROM HNRA AND ACTUALLY FROM MR. STEVENS, UM, LOOKING AT OUR STANDARDS OF SPACE, THAT WE HAVE, UM, FOR, UH, FOR EMPLOYEES, UH, SQUARE FOOTAGE, UM, THAT EACH EMPLOYEE SHOULD ACTUALLY, UM, TAKE UP, UH, AND THEN LOOK AT THE SQUARE FOOTAGE OF OUR FACILITIES AND SEE IF THAT KIND OF IF THAT MESHES.
OKAY. AND I'M JUST TRYING TO RECONCILE THE TIMING THAT YOU'VE GOT HERE BECAUSE IT SAYS YOU EXPECT EDC RECOMMENDATIONS DURING Q1 2024, BUT I THINK THEY MEET IN JANUARY AND THEY MEET QUARTERLY. RIGHT.
SO THAT WOULD MEAN THEY'D MEET AGAIN IN APRIL.
SO I'M JUST NOT UNDERSTANDING WHEN YOU'RE EXPECTING BUILDING SERVICES, REAL ESTATE TO COME FORTH WITH THIS CRITERIA AND AN EVALUATION AND THEN STILL DELIVER THIS IN THIS TIME FRAME.
UM, AS FAR AS I THINK THE PRIMARY PRIMARILY FOCUSING ON OUR VACANT LAND.
SO, UM, SO THE SPACE PLANNING PIECE IS SOMETHING IT'S ANOTHER, UM, IT'S ANOTHER EFFORT, IF YOU WILL.
THAT'S, I THINK, INDEPENDENT OF THE EDC RECOMMENDATIONS.
SO, BUT WE WOULD EXPECT THEM TO TAKE SOME KIND OF ACTION AT THEIR JANUARY MEETING TO VOTE ON SOME SORT OF RECOMMENDATION TO MAKE TO US? I'LL HAVE TO IRON THAT OUT WITH MR. STEVENS HE JUST YEAH, HE JUST TOLD ME TO EXPECT, UH, THEIR FEEDBACK, THEIR INITIAL FEEDBACK IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF CALENDAR YEAR 24.
IT'S JUST SOUNDING LIKE THAT'S FIVE WEEKS AWAY.
AND SO THAT SEEMS LIKE A LOT TO ACCOMPLISH IN THAT TIME FRAME.
THANK YOU. THESE ARE I MEAN, THESE ARE GREAT POINTS.
AND I'LL JUST CLOSE BY SAYING, LIKE, I THINK COUNCIL WOULD RESPOND REALLY WELL TO A VISIONARY REAL ESTATE PROJECT, YOU KNOW, LIKE, WELL, FIRST OF ALL, A VISION ACROSS THE BOARD. BUT ALSO, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT THE OAK CLIFF MUNICIPAL CENTER, THAT IS WE'RE NOT SURE WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH YET.
UM, YOU KNOW, DOING SOMETHING MORE MEANINGFUL WITH THAT.
AND IT WOULD BE, I THINK, REALLY GREAT FOR THE WHOLE CITY TO SEE, UH, A VISION COME OUT FROM STAFF ON WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO WITH THESE PROJECTS. I MEAN, WE WE HAVE ENDLESS AMOUNTS OF EXPENSES, AS WE'VE SEEN THROUGH THE BOND AND THROUGH THE BUDGET, AND WE'VE GOT TO MAKE UP FOR IT IN SOME WAY.
SO THAT'S THAT'S OUR CHARGE TO YOU.
THIS IS THE STATUS UPDATE OF THE PROPOSED PRIVATE GAME.
I'M SORRY, CAN I ASK A QUESTION ABOUT REAL ESTATE? OH, YEAH. ABSOLUTELY.
WE'VE WE'VE GOT TIME. GO AHEAD.
CHAIRWOMAN MENDELSOHN, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
SO I WAS HEARING, UM, A CONCENTRATION ON, UM, FOCUSING ON VACANT LAND, BUT OF COURSE, WE HAVE 807 FACILITIES, NOT INCLUDING WATER AND AIRPORT AND I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF, LIKE, LITTLE SLICES BEING TALKED ABOUT.
AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, YOUR COMMENTS CHAIR ABOUT, UM, THE OAK CLIFF MUNICIPAL DISTRICT AND, AND OTHERS, UM, ARE SPOT ON THAT WE REALLY NEED A LARGER VISION, A LARGER PLAN.
BUT I THINK THAT TAKES DRILLING DOWN AND REALLY QUESTIONING THE DEPARTMENTS ON WHAT THE ACTUAL USE IS INTENDED FOR AND IF THAT IS AN APPROPRIATE USE, AND IF IT'S NOT HAVING THAT VISION OF, WOW, WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO SELL THIS FOR PENSION, WE MIGHT WANT TO USE THIS FOR HOUSING, WE MIGHT WANT TO USE THIS FOR X, Y OR Z.
AND SO I'M WONDERING IF THERE'S BEEN CONSIDERATION FOR ACTUALLY.
HAVING AN OUTSIDE GROUP DO THAT EVALUATION.
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IT. RIGHT? WITH ONLY THE INTEREST OF HOW DOES THE CITY MAXIMIZE, UM, EITHER THE SALE OR THE USE OF ALL OF OUR PROPERTY. SO HAS THE CITY MANAGER STAFF LOOKED AT COMPLETELY HAVING AN OUTSIDE GROUP DO THAT FOR THEM. SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE, ONE OF THE SUB BULLETS IN THE MEMORANDUM, COUNCIL MEMBER, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, EXACTLY WHAT YOU JUST MENTIONED, UH, TO POTENTIALLY, UH, PUT TOGETHER A MASTER PLAN, UM, WHICH WOULD ACTUALLY IDENTIFY EXACTLY WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, UH, AND THEN HELP US TO MAKE DECISIONS ON WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST USE FOR THOSE PROPERTIES.UM, AS WE MENTIONED LAST MONTH'S DISCUSSION, WE KNOW THAT THERE'S SOME PROPERTIES THAT ARE GOING TO BE, UM, COMING UP SOON THAT WE HAVE TO MAKE A DECISION ON TO INCLUDE [INAUDIBLE].
UM, SO AS WE CONTINUE THOSE DISCUSSIONS AND AS WE SAID AT THE ONSET, UM, TO CHAIR WEST, UH, QUESTIONS, UM, PROBABLY AROUND THE FEBRUARY TIME FRAME IS WE COULD PROBABLY HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE ROBUST DISCUSSION AROUND EXACTLY THAT TOPIC.
SO I'M JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THEN.
SO SOMETIME IN FEBRUARY YOU'RE GOING TO TELL US ABOUT ADVANCED CONVERSATIONS, BUT STILL NOT A PROCUREMENT FOR A MASTER PLAN CONSULTANT.
NO, I MEAN, LIKE, HOW MANY YEARS BEFORE WE GET THIS? WELL, THAT DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH IT'S GOING TO COST, MA'AM.
UM, IF YOU IF YOU COULD RECALL FROM THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS, I THINK FOR THE FOR THE FACILITIES ASSESSMENT THAT WE HAD DONE IN 2017, I THINK WE SPENT SOMEWHERE AROUND $2.5 MILLION, UM, FOR HALF OF OUR FACILITIES.
UM, SO AGAIN, I'M TRYING TO GET TO AN IDEA AS TO WHAT IT WOULD COST US IN ORDER TO GET TO EXACTLY, UM, WHAT WE'RE DISCUSSING RIGHT NOW. AND SO THERE'S GOING TO BE SOME BUDGET CONSIDERATIONS, MA'AM, THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO, UM, TO IDENTIFY AND TO ACTUALLY WORK THROUGH.
WELL, LOOK, I'M NOT A LAND USE PERSON.
BUT I'M NOT SURE IF WE NEED A MASTER PLAN AS MUCH AS WE NEED A REAL ESTATE ANALYSIS.
AND IF THE PROCURED ORGANIZATION THAT WAS DOING THE REAL ESTATE ANALYSIS ALSO HAD THE ABILITY TO BE OUR BROKER, TO SELL ANYTHING WE DECIDE TO SELL, THEY'D PROBABLY DO THAT ANALYSIS FOR FREE, AND THEY'D PROBABLY DO IT PRETTY QUICKLY.
SO I'M NOT SURE IF WE NEED A MASTER PLAN.
PERHAPS THAT'S JUST THE GOVERNMENT WAY, BUT THIS SEEMS EXTREMELY BUREAUCRATIC AND, UM, SLOW TO ME FOR SOMETHING THAT SHOULDN'T BE SO COMPLICATED.
SO THAT'S ALL I'M GOING TO SAY ABOUT IT.
IT SOUNDS LIKE THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN AFTER I'M OUT OF OFFICE.
UH, NEXT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE STATUS OF THE PROPOSED PRIVATE GAME ROOM LAND USE.
UM, UNDER ITEM D BY PLANNING URBAN DESIGN IN THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
UM, JUST FOR MY GIVE MY COLLEAGUES SOME CONTEXT HERE WE HAD WHEN WE ADDRESSED THIS ALMOST A YEAR AGO, WE HAD ASKED CITY STAFF TO COME BACK WITH AN ALTERNATIVE LAND USE.
UM, BACK IN FEBRUARY, I THINK.
AND I KNOW THERE'S BEEN A LOT GOING ON, AND, SO WE WANTED TO GET AN UPDATE TODAY ON WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE AND I KNOW BERT WILL KEEP THIS VERY NARROW BECAUSE, WE ARE IN LITIGATION ON THIS ITEM, BUT THIS IS REALLY JUST INTENDED TO SEE IF WE CAN FIND A PATHWAY FORWARD FOR THE LEGITIMATE OPERATORS.
UM, AND ALSO TO TALK ABOUT LAND USE.
SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO MR. VANDENBERG. THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. COMMITTEE.
UH, BERT VANDENBERG, CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
UM, AND RIGHT AFTER THAT, I WILL FILL YOU IN SORT OF WHERE THE STARTING POINT IS FOR US.
ANDREA GILLES, PLANNING AND URBAN DESIGN.
UM, WE HAVE SO WE HAVE HAD A LOT GOING ON THIS YEAR.
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UM, FROM A CODE AMENDMENT PERSPECTIVE.SO WE, AS YOU KNOW, GOT THROUGH THE SHORT TERM RENTAL ORDINANCE THAT TOOK UP QUITE A CHUNK OF TIME.
WE'VE ALSO HAD TO REVIVE THE DISCUSSION ABOUT PARKING AND STUDYING THAT.
UM, I WOULD SAY THAT CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE TO COME UP WITH SOME OPTIONS FOR THIS AMENDMENT, AND I THINK WE COULD HAVE SOMETHING BY THE END OF JANUARY, FIRST PART OF FEBRUARY NEXT YEAR TO BRING TO ZOAC, BECAUSE WE HAVE WE DO HAVE TO START AT ZOAC. OKAY.
WHEN YOU REFER TO SOMETHING LIKE WHAT? WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT HERE? WHAT'S THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE LAND USE TYPE THAT YOU'D BE, UM, PROPOSING? AND BACK TO BERT VANDENBERG.
UM, MR. CHAIR, SO A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND.
AND THAT'S ONLY A PORTION OF WHAT WE'RE DOING.
SO WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE A PRIVATE GAME CLUB, WHICH WILL ENCOMPASS MORE THAN JUST JUST CARDS.
UM, BUT, UH, ULTIMATELY, AND TO PUT IT UP FRONT, IF THAT IS THE, THE GOAL, UM, IT'S GOING TO TAKE A CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGISLATIVE FIX IN AUSTIN TO CHANGE THE RULES AROUND GAMBLING IN TEXAS.
THAT'S THAT'S ULTIMATELY WHAT'S GOING TO HAVE TO HAPPEN.
SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS COME UP WITH SOMETHING THAT CAN BE USED.
UM, AND A YEAR AGO, YOU GUYS DID ASK US TO EXPLORE A LAND USE.
SO WE STARTED TO CRAFT A DRAFT, UH, THAT WE THINK IS PROVIDING A STARTING PLACE FOR BOTH, PLANNING AND URBAN DESIGN AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES WILL HAVE TO CHIME IN ON IT, TOO, BECAUSE THEY DO MAKE A LOT OF THE DECISIONS ON ON WHERE THINGS GO IN THE CODE.
WE HAVE A USE COMMERCIAL AMUSEMENT INSIDE.
SO WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A CONFLICT THERE, WHICH LED US TO HAVE TO COME UP WITH A LAND USE.
UM, THE DEFINITION WE CAME UP WITH, AND THIS ACTUALLY CAME AFTER SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH SOME STAKEHOLDERS, WAS A PRIVATE GAME CLUB MEANS A PRIVATE PLACE THAT IS ONLY OPEN TO ITS MEMBERS, THAT PRIMARILY OFFERS COMPETITIVE GAMING FACILITIES, INCLUDING GAMES OF SKILL SUCH AS AX THROWING, DARTS OR SHUFFLEBOARD, ANY GAMES PLAYED WITH CARDS, DICE, BALLS OR ANY OTHER GAMBLING DEVICE AS DEFINED IN THE TEXAS PENAL CODE CHAPTER 47 ARE ALLOWED ONLY AS A SINGLE ACCESSORY USE, SO THAT'S GOING TO BE THE STARTING POINT FOR A GAME CLUB.
UH, AT ZOAC I COULD FLESH IT OUT MORE FOR YOU.
I DON'T REALLY WANT TO GO INTO THE SUBSTANCE, BUT I'M WILLING TO IF YOU GUYS HAVE MORE QUESTIONS.
AND THAT THAT'S KIND OF THE PATH YOU'RE GOING DOWN AS A RECOMMENDATION TO STAFF TO TAKE TO ZOAC.
THAT IS THAT IS WHERE WE'RE STARTING.
WOULD THIS LAND USE IF IT MAKES IT THROUGH THE CITY PROCESSES AND WE STAND IT UP, WOULD IT IN ANY WAY ELIMINATE THE LITIGATION? IF YOU CAN'T ANSWER THAT, LIKE JUST SAY YOU CAN'T.
WOULD IT? YEAH, I THINK I'M OKAY.
I THINK YOU'VE ANSWERED ALL MY QUESTIONS ANYONE UP HERE.
YEAH. UH, VICE CHAIR BLACKMON.
SO HOW WOULD THIS INTERACT WITH THE FORWARD DALLAS UPGRADE? WOULD IT JUST FOLD RIGHT INTO IT? IT WOULDN'T BE IN OR FORWARD DALLAS WOULDN'T BE IMPACTED BY IT, BECAUSE IT'S MUCH MORE SPECIFIC THAN WHAT FORWARD DALLAS IS LOOKING AT.
BUT WOULD IT BE BECOME PART OF IT? NO, NOT AT ALL.
YES, BUT NOT FOR NOT FORWARD DALLAS.
OKAY. AND ZOAC AND THEN IT GOES TO CPC AND IT COULD BE 3 TO 5 YEARS AGAIN.
IS GAMBLING ILLEGAL ACCORDING TO THE TEXAS CONSTITUTION.
WITH SOME, UH, MRS. CHAIR, WITH SOME EXCEPTIONS, GAMBLING IS ILLEGAL IN TEXAS.
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AND DID WE ALREADY HAVE A RULING FROM JUDGE MOYER ABOUT THE POKER ROOMS BEING ILLEGAL? I REALLY DO NOT WANT TO TALK ABOUT ANY OF THE LITIGATION THAT'S GOING ON.I WILL SAY, THOUGH, THAT JUDGE MOYE DID FIND IT TO BE ILLEGAL.
COULD A DISTRICT ATTORNEY, ESPECIALLY FOR COLLIN OR DENTON COUNTY, STILL PURSUE, UM, CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES? COULD THEY, LIKE, GO RAID A POKER CLUB? I THINK WE ARE GETTING A LITTLE PAST THE NARROW.
THIS WAS WRITTEN VERY NARROWLY TO AVOID THIS KIND OF DISCUSSION.
CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, MR. VANDENBERG. UH, THAT IS THAT IS CORRECT, MR. CHAIR. I WILL SAY, ULTIMATELY, CRIMINAL DECISIONS ARE MADE BY DA'S, THOUGH.
UM. AND THEN FOR THE, UM, LAND USE, YOU'RE DISCUSSING HAVING A PRIVATE GAME CLUB.
UM, IS IT POSSIBLE THAT ZOAC COULD CONSIDER, UH, ONLY ALLOWING THAT IN A CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT AREA? I WOULD DEFER TO MY PLANNING AND URBAN DESIGN FOLKS, BUT I WOULD SAY THAT YES, WHERE IT'S LOCATED IS CERTAINLY PART OF THE DISCUSSION THAT ZOAC WOULD HAVE AGREED.
ANY OTHER ONLINE FOLKS? THAT'S A NO. WE GOOD HERE? ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR. ALL RIGHT.
ALL RIGHT. WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND TAKE ITEM A BRIEFING ITEM CITYWIDE TECHNICAL DEBT OVERVIEW.
GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR WEST, MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.
I DO HAVE A QUICK PROP THAT WE'RE GOING TO TO SET UP HERE.
IT'S RELEVANT TO THE TO THE DISCUSSION, SIR.
DON'T MAKE ME MAKE A JOKE ABOUT THE, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES PATHWAY TO PERMIT.
AS THEY'RE ROLLING THIS OUT, I'LL GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED.
SO GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR WEST AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.
BILL ZIELINSKI, CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK WITH THE COMMITTEE TODAY ABOUT TECHNICAL DEBT AND THE ROLE THAT IT PLAYS IN THE CITY'S IT ENVIRONMENT. BEHIND ME, CITY STAFF IS HOLDING THE CURRENT STATE MAP OF THE CITY'S TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT.
IS IT STILL GOING? YEAH. UH, I THINK IT.
NEEDS MORE PEOPLE? YEAH CORRECT. UM, ON THE MAP, YOU'LL FIND THE CITY AGAIN, THE CITY'S BUSINESS FUNCTIONS ARRANGED BY DEPARTMENT, AND THE TECHNOLOGY SYSTEMS OR SERVICES USED TO CARRY OUT THOSE BUSINESS FUNCTIONS.
I BROUGHT THIS FULL SIZED, READABLE VERSION OF THE CURRENT STATE MAP WITH ME TODAY AS IT ILLUSTRATES HOW TRULY LARGE AND COMPLEX OUR TECHNOLOGY ENVIRONMENT IS AT THE CITY.
UM, THIS READABLE VERSION OF THE CURRENT STATE MAP IS NEARLY 60FT LONG, AND IT'S STACKED.
SO YOU HAVE DEPARTMENTS AND THEIR SYSTEMS ON TOP AND DEPARTMENTS IN THEIR SYSTEMS ON THE BOTTOM.
SO IF IT WAS JUST A SINGLE VERSION, IT'D BE ABOUT 120FT LONG.
AS IT IS, THIS IS ABOUT 60FT LONG.
UM, FOR ALL OF THE IN ORDER TO HAVE A VISUALIZATION THAT'S LARGE ENOUGH TO SHOW ALL OF THE SYSTEMS THAT WE HAVE AND THE BUSINESS FUNCTIONS THAT IT SUPPORTS, IT REPRESENTS HUNDREDS OF DISTINCT BUSINESS FUNCTIONS ACROSS MORE THAN 40 CITY DEPARTMENTS, SUPPORTED BY NEARLY 900 SEPARATE IT SYSTEMS OR SERVICES DELIVERED BY HUNDREDS OF INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTS AND SUPPORTED BY HUNDREDS OF STAFF ACROSS ITS, CONTRACTORS, VENDORS AND DEPARTMENTS.
THESE ARE THE SYSTEMS AND THE ENVIRONMENT THAT PROVIDES THE DEPARTMENTS WITH THE TECHNOLOGY USED TO DELIVER VITAL CITY SERVICES, CARRY OUT THEIR MISSIONS AND SERVES AS THE BACKDROP FOR OUR DISCUSSION TODAY.
TODAY, I WILL PROVIDE A DEFINITION FOR THE COMMITTEE OF TECHNICAL DEBT.
TOUCH ON THE RISKS AND ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH TECHNICAL DEBT.
I'M GOING TO GO AHEAD AND ALLOW THEM TO ROLL THIS BACK UP AGAIN.
I JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU HOW LARGE AND COMPLEX THE CITY'S IT ENVIRONMENT IS.
[00:35:09]
UM, THERE IS AN EXPLANATION THAT I'LL PROVIDE IN HERE, BUT WOULD BE GLAD TO SPEND TIME WITH YOU GOING THROUGH KIND OF THE DETAILED INFORMATION ABOUT THE CITY SYSTEMS. SO, UM, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.SO THIS IS A, UM, BEFORE I BEGIN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT ITS UTILIZES THE SERVICES OF THREE PRIMARY IT SERVICE PROVIDERS FOR TECHNICAL EXPERTISE CONSULTING SERVICES, AND TO ASSIST US IN THIS WORK.
AND FORRESTER RESEARCH ARE BOTH HIGHLY RESPECTED GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH AND CONSULTANCY FIRMS. IT CADRE IS A BUSINESS MANAGEMENT CONSULTANCY THAT SPECIALIZES IN VISUALIZATION ENGINEERING, AND ASSISTS ORGANIZATIONS IN DOCUMENTING THEIR CURRENT AND FUTURE STATES.
I'LL REFERENCE EACH OF THESE, UM, PROVIDERS DURING THE COURSE OF THE PRESENTATION.
SO WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY? WHAT IS TECHNICAL DEBT? IN THIS SLIDE FROM FORRESTER, THEY ATTEMPT TO MAKE IT SIMPLE BY SAYING THAT TECHNOLOGY DEBT IS ANY TECHNOLOGY THAT AN ORGANIZATION USES THAT PROHIBITS ACCESS TO VALUE.
UM, SO GENERALLY TECHNICAL DEBT OCCURS OR DEVELOPS FOR ONE OF SEVERAL REASONS.
THE FIRST IS THAT WHEN A TRADE OFF OR A COMPROMISE IS MADE DURING THE IMPLEMENTATION OR DEVELOPMENT OF A SYSTEM, THERE ARE TIMES WHEN A SYSTEM IS IMPLEMENTED WITH KNOWN BUGS OR PROBLEMS, OR LACKING DESIRED FUNCTIONALITY.
IN A BUSINESS, DECISION IS MADE THAT THEY WILL GO AHEAD AND MOVE FORWARD WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION DESPITE THE PROBLEMS. THE INTENT IS, IS THAT THEY'RE GOING TO COME BACK AND THEY'RE GOING TO ADDRESS THOSE COMPROMISES AT A LATER DATE.
BUT IF THOSE ARE LEFT UNADDRESSED, THOSE COMPROMISES REPRESENT TECHNICAL DEBT.
UM, A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS IS THAT THERE ARE LAW CHANGES THAT OCCUR OFTEN IN GOVERNMENT.
THE LAW CHANGES IT REQUIRES AN ORGANIZATION TO CHANGE HOW THEY GO ABOUT, UM, CARRYING OUT BUSINESS.
AND AS A RESULT OF THAT, THE SOFTWARE THAT IS USED NEEDS TO BE UPDATED IN ORDER TO REMAIN COMPLIANT.
AND THEN THE THIRD IS SIMPLY THE PASSAGE OF TIME.
ONCE PUT IN PLACE, SOFTWARE AND THE MACHINES ON WHICH IT RUNS NEED TO BE REGULARLY UPDATED, UPGRADED AND PATCHED TO ENSURE THAT ITS PERFORMANCE DOES NOT DEGRADE, THAT IT CONTINUES TO BE SECURE, AND THAT IT PROVIDES THE FUNCTIONALITY NEEDED BY THE BUSINESS UNIT TO EFFECTIVELY RUN ITS BUSINESS FUNCTIONS.
SO TECHNICAL DEBT IS A COMMON IS A COMMON ISSUE FOR MANY ORGANIZATIONS, NOT JUST FOR GOVERNMENT.
IF YOU RECALL, DURING LAST YEAR'S HOLIDAY TRAVEL SEASON, SOUTHWEST AIRLINES SUFFERED A SERIES OF DAYS WITH A LARGE NUMBER OF CANCELLATIONS THAT WERE ATTRIBUTED TO THE FAILURE OF LEGACY SYSTEM OR LEGACY SOFTWARE UPDATES, AND THEY HAD NOT PROPERLY UPGRADED OR ENHANCED THOSE SYSTEMS FOR A PERIOD OF TIME, AND THEY LOST A LOT OF MONEY AS A RESULT OF THE FAILURE OF THOSE SYSTEMS AT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES.
SO NOT JUST A UNIQUE TO GOVERNMENT IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU SEE KIND OF ACROSS THE INDUSTRY.
WHAT THIS SLIDE SHOWS IS THAT IN A SURVEY CONDUCTED BY FORRESTER RESEARCH, 78% OF RESPONDENTS SAID THAT THEY WERE CONCERNED OR SOMEWHAT CONCERNED ABOUT THE TECHNOLOGY DEBT PRESENT IN THEIR ENVIRONMENTS.
SO WE'RE NOT ALONE. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
THERE ARE FOUR THAT ARE LISTED ON THE NEXT TWO SLIDES THAT JUST ARE SOME OF THE FOREMOST PROBLEMS. FIRST AND FOREMOST, A POOR CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE RIGHT WHEN YOU WHEN YOU ARE NOT CONTINUING TO UPGRADE AND ENHANCE YOUR SYSTEMS TO REFLECT THE NEEDS OF THOSE USERS, IT DOES RESULT IN A POOR CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
NUMBER TWO ON THIS LIST IS LOSS OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES.
NEXT SLIDE. UNSUSTAINABLE COST STRUCTURES.
WHAT OCCURS WITH TECHNICAL DEBT IS THAT YOU HAVE MANY MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO REPAIR OR TO FIX THOSE PROBLEMS, AND OVER A PERIOD OF TIME, YOU HAD AN OUT OF CONTROL COSTS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE PROBLEMS WITH THE SYSTEM.
AND THEN FINALLY, LESS RESILIENT AND SECURE SYSTEMS AS YOU AS THESE SYSTEMS AGE OR AS YOU MAKE COMPROMISES, IT LEAVES HOLES OR IT LEAVES VULNERABILITIES WITHIN THOSE SYSTEMS THAT CAN BE EXPLOITED BY THOSE WHO MIGHT SEEK TO CAUSE US HARM.
[00:40:06]
ORGANIZATION'S SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGY SERVICES.WHAT YOU SAW THAT WAS ROLLED OUT HERE IS THAT AUTHORITATIVE INVENTORY IN APRIL OF 2023, UTILIZING THE SERVICES OF IT CADRE, WE COMPLETED A COMPREHENSIVE MAPPING OF THE CITY'S IT ENVIRONMENT.
AND THEN FINALLY, ONCE WE HAD COMPLETED OUR REVIEW IN ITS WE ACTUALLY HAD EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THE DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE CITY SPEND TIME IN REVIEWING THAT CURRENT STATE MAP, DETERMINING THAT VALIDATING TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT WE HAD LISTED AS THEIR BUSINESS FUNCTIONS AND THE SYSTEMS THAT THEY USED WERE VALID.
WE HAVE SHARED THE THE WITH EACH OF THE DEPARTMENTS, OR WE HAVE PROVIDED TO THOSE DEPARTMENTS WHO ASKED FOR A COPY OF THAT AUTHORITATIVE MAP SO THEY TOO CAN HAVE THIS CURRENT COPY OF THE MAP.
HERE AGAIN IS THAT DEPICTION OF THAT MAP HERE IT'S JUST UNREADABLE IN ONE SIMPLE LITTLE SLIDE.
BUT IF YOU ROLL IT OUT IT'S AGAIN VERY LARGE, VERY COMPLEX.
NEXT SLIDE. SO ALONG WITH JUST MAPPING THE IT INVENTORY, ALONG WITH GETTING AN AUTHORITATIVE SOURCE OF WHAT ARE ALL OF THE SYSTEMS AND THE SERVICES THAT WE OPERATE IN THE CITY FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE BUSINESS FUNCTIONS.
WE ALSO COLLECTED A LOT OF OTHER INFORMATION IN THE PROCESS ABOUT THOSE APPLICATIONS, WHO THE VENDORS ARE, WHAT THE PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE IS, THE OPERATING SYSTEMS ON ON WHICH THEY RUN, AND ALL OF THAT INFORMATION TO INCLUDE THE TYPES OF SYSTEMS THEY ARE, ARE ALL DOCUMENTED IN, AVAILABLE IN A DATABASE FOR US TO BE ABLE TO RUN ANALYZES AGAINST.
THIS PROVIDES US THE OPPORTUNITY TO KNOW THINGS SUCH AS.
WE HAVE MORE THAN A DOZEN PAYMENT SYSTEMS IN THE CITY ACROSS OUR 40 PLUS DEPARTMENTS, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE MULTIPLE INVENTORY SYSTEMS AND MULTIPLE ASSET MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS. IT PROVIDES US THAT OPPORTUNITY TO SEE WHERE WE HAVE COMMON SERVICES BEING CARRIED OUT.
BUT WE HAVE MULTIPLE OR DUPLICATE SYSTEMS THAT ARE CARRYING THAT OUT.
SO THIS INFORMATION IS VALUABLE FOR US TO UNDERSTAND WHERE WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE OUR PROCESSES MORE EFFICIENT AND TO REDUCE RISK WITHIN OUR PORTFOLIO. NEXT SLIDE.
AND THEN FINALLY, ALONG WITH THAT, WE ALSO UM, UH, PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION WITHIN OUR TAR REPORT AS TO WHICH OF THOSE SERVICES THAT WE HAVE ARE, UM, WHICH OF THE PROGRAMS OR THE, THE, UH, PROJECTS THAT WE ARE RUNNING THAT ARE SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSING TECHNICAL DEBT.
WHAT WE HAVE FOUND IN COMPLETING THIS APPLICATION INVENTORY, GOING THROUGH ALL OF THAT WORK TO INVENTORY EXACTLY WHAT WE HAVE, ASSESSING THE HEALTH OF EACH OF THE APPLICATIONS THAT WE HAVE IS THAT WE HAVE MORE THAN ONE QUARTER OF THE CITY'S SYSTEMS RATE CRITICAL OR HIGH ON A TECHNICAL DEBT RATING SCALE.
SO WE USED A FOUR TIER SCALE THAT AS WE ASSESS THE HEALTH.
AND IT WAS A PRODUCT FROM GARTNER RESEARCH THAT WE USED FOR DOING THE SCORING RUBRIC.
WE ACTUALLY LOOK AT THE HEALTH INDICATORS OF EACH OF THE SYSTEMS, AND WE PRODUCE A SCORE.
AND THAT SCORE FALLS INTO FOUR RANGES WHERE IT IS LOW, MODERATE, WHICH ARE GOOD THINGS OR CRITICAL AND HIGH IN TERMS OF THE TECHNICAL DEBT RATING OR THE HEALTH RATING FOR EACH OF THOSE SYSTEMS. SO OUT OF ALL OF OUR ALMOST 900 SYSTEMS, JUST OVER 20 AT 26%, JUST OVER A QUARTER WERE FOUND THAT THEY WERE AT CRITICAL OR HIGH IN TERMS OF THE TECHNICAL DEBT RATING THAT THEY HELD, WITH 40% RATING AS LOW ON THE SCALE AND A LITTLE BIT MORE THAN ONE THIRD IN THE MODERATE RANGE.
SO OVERALL, FROM AN OVERALL HEALTH OF THE PORTFOLIO PERSPECTIVE, IN THIS LAST READING THAT WE HAD, UM, THAT THAT'S THAT IS NOT OUT OF CHARACTER FOR WHAT YOU SEE IN MANY LARGE GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS.
SO, UM, SO AGAIN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO TRACK EXACTLY WHICH APPLICATIONS ARE AND WHAT THEIR HEALTH IS.
OF THE 68 PROJECTS THAT ARE LISTED ON THE MAJOR PROJECT LIST IN THIS MONTH'S TAR REPORT, 22 OF THOSE, ROUGHLY A THIRD ARE ANNOTATED AS ADDRESSING TECHNICAL DEBT.
SO AS WE TAKE ON THESE PROJECTS, WE LOOK TO SEE IF THEY ARE ONES THAT ARE, HAVE A HIGH TECHNICAL DEBT RATING SO THAT WE CAN ENSURE THAT WE ARE MONITORING THE HEALTH OF THOSE SYSTEMS AND THAT WE ARE ADDRESSING THE TECHNICAL DEBT.
[00:45:08]
REMOVE 100 OBSOLETE SERVERS FROM OUR ENVIRONMENT, UPGRADE 56 OTHERS TO A MORE RECENT SUPPORTED OPERATING SYSTEM, AND UPGRADE 16 APPLICATIONS, THEREBY REDUCING THE TECHNICAL DEBT RATING SO THAT IT WAS IN THE LOW OR THE MODERATE RANGE.IMPROVING THE HEALTH AS WE DID THE RECOVERY EFFORTS.
THIS IS NOT A ONE AND DONE ACTIVITY.
IF WE WERE TO APPROACH THIS AS A ONE AND DONE WHERE WE SIMPLY TRY TO REMEDIATE THE TECHNICAL DEBT AND THEN CALL IT GOOD AND KIND OF MOVE ON, WE WOULD FIND OURSELVES RIGHT BACK IN THE SAME PLACE BEFORE.
THIS IS WHERE YOU'RE ACTUALLY, ON AN ONGOING BASIS, RATING THE HEALTH OF YOUR APPLICATIONS, OF YOUR PORTFOLIO, UNDERSTANDING WHERE YOU HAVE HEALTH ISSUES AND WHERE YOU HAVE TECHNICAL DEBT, ACCUMULATING AND ENSURING THAT IN YOUR ALL OF YOUR PROCESSES, FROM TAKING ON NEW PROJECTS TO RENEWING CONTRACTS, THAT YOU'RE ALWAYS LOOKING AT THE WAYS THAT YOU CAN ENSURE THAT YOU ARE ADDRESSING THE HEALTH OF YOUR APPLICATIONS AND ENSURING THAT YOU'RE NOT HAVING A LARGE PORTION OF YOUR APPLICATION PORTFOLIO MOVE INTO A POOR, POOR HEALTH STATUS.
AND AS YOU TAKE A LOOK AT PRACTICING TECHNOLOGY, LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT, A LOT OF THOSE SAME THINGS THAT I TALKED ABOUT AS BEING PROBLEMS OR ISSUES ARE ACTUALLY POSITIVES ON THE OTHER SIDE. SO IF YOU ARE PRACTICING GOOD TECHNOLOGY, LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT, YOU REALLY ARE ADDRESSING THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.
YOU'RE REDUCING THOSE COSTS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE MAINTENANCE FORWARD, PLEASE.
NEXT SLIDE. UM, IT REALLY OOPS.
TOO MANY. IT ENABLES INNOVATION.
AND SO THIS IS JUST SIMPLY FROM FROM OUR PRACTICES HERE IN THE CITY.
WE'RE ADOPTING THE TECHNOLOGY LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT MODEL PRODUCED BY FORRESTER, WHICH ALLOWS FOR US AT EVERY STAGE OF OUR PROCESSES TO LOOK INTO AND LOOK AT, UM, UH, THE ENSURING THAT WE ARE MAINTAINING THE HEALTH OF OUR APPLICATIONS AND WE'RE CONTINUOUSLY UPDATING AND THAT WE HAVE THAT AWARENESS IN THE DATA THAT WE NEED TO KEEP OUR APPLICATIONS UP TO DATE.
THERE ARE TWO BASIC APPROACHES THAT YOU CAN TAKE WHEN YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TECHNICAL DEBT ISSUES.
ONE OF THEM IS YOU'RE LOOKING AT IT FROM PURELY A TECHNICAL PERSPECTIVE.
I LIKEN IT TOO THE IDEA THAT IF I HAD A 1974 FORD PINTO, I COULD UPDATE ALL OF THE PARTS ON THAT FORD PINTO ALL THE TIME AND I COULD HAVE A BRAND NEW 1974 FORD PINTO.
BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S STILL A IT'S STILL A FORD PINTO.
AND THE QUESTION HAS TO BE ASKED IS IN MAINTAINING IT IN GOOD HEALTH, IS IT REALLY DOING WHAT WE NEED IT TO DO? SO THE SECOND WAY THAT YOU TAKE A LOOK AT TECHNICAL DEBT IS WHEN YOU REALIZE THAT YOU HAVE A HEALTH CONDITION ON YOUR APPLICATION, NOT ONLY SHOULD YOU BE LOOKING AT IT FROM A TECHNICAL PERSPECTIVE, BUT YOU ALSO SHOULD BE WORKING VERY CLOSELY WITH YOUR BUSINESS PARTNERS TO CONTINUOUSLY ASSESS WHETHER THAT APPLICATION IS ACTUALLY PERFORMING THE TASKS IN A WAY THAT NEED TO BE PERFORMED FOR THAT BUSINESS OPERATION.
RIGHT. SO YOU'RE NOT ONLY LOOKING AT IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF TECHNICALLY UP TO DATE, BUT YOU'RE ALSO ENSURING THAT WE AS A BUSINESS ARE CONTINUING TO RECEIVE THE VALUE FROM THAT SYSTEM OR FROM THAT OPERATION.
AND SO AS WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE TECHNICAL DEBT WITHIN OUR PORTFOLIO, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE INCORPORATING IS ENSURING THAT WE PASS THIS INFORMATION TO THE DEPARTMENTS, AND THAT WE'RE CONSTANTLY WORKING WITH THE DEPARTMENTS ON WHAT THEIR NEEDS ARE, SO THAT AS WE'RE ASSESSING HOW TO ADDRESS THE TECHNICAL DEBT, THAT WE HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY TO INCLUDE THE NEW USER REQUIREMENTS THAT ARE NECESSARY FOR THEM TO HAVE THE FUNCTIONALITY THAT THEY REALLY REQUIRE TO CONDUCT THEIR BUSINESS.
NEXT SLIDE. SO JUST A COUPLE OF OTHER PIECES OF INFORMATION.
UH, AROUND THAT, THE TOTAL COST OF THOSE PROGRAMS, WHEN WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE FULL COST TO IMPLEMENT THOSE EQUAL OUT TO $112,850,000. SO THESE ARE MAJOR SYSTEMS CHANGES WE HAVE IN THE PIPELINE TODAY, A NUMBER OF MAJOR PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS THAT ARE LOOKING TO UPGRADE THE USER SYSTEM.
[00:50:03]
SO YOU'LL RECOGNIZE THESE AS THE UPGRADE TO THE CORE FINANCIAL SYSTEM, THE THE DALLAS ADVANTAGE SYSTEM, FOR PERMITTING PROCESSES. DALLAS NOW PROJECT IS ONE THAT IS ADDRESSING TECHNICAL DEBT.UH, TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE REPLACING THE COURT CASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.
SO IF YOU TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT WE HAVE IN PROCESS RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF VERY LARGE PROGRAMS THAT ARE LOOKING TO ADDRESS TECHNICAL DEBT AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, PROVIDE THE FUNCTIONALITY AND CAPABILITY THAT THOSE DEPARTMENTS NEED TO CARRY OUT THEIR BUSINESS.
AND THEN WE ALSO TAKE A LOOK AT THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND OTHER APPLICATIONS AS WELL.
AND SO WE ARE TRACKING THE COST TO REMEDIATE THOSE.
WHAT I'VE LISTED HERE ARE SOME NEXT STEPS.
WE EXPECT TO HAVE THAT COMPLETED IN JANUARY OF 2024.
UM, WE'RE ALSO INCORPORATING INTO OUR CURRENT IT GOVERNANCE PROCESS, THE TECHNOLOGY LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT FUTURE STATE ROADMAP, SO THAT AS WE ARE LOOKING AT NEW PROJECTS OR PROGRAMS AN ASPECT OF THAT IS LOOKING AT THE TECHNICAL DEBT PRESENT IN THE ENVIRONMENT.
AND THEN FINALLY WE'RE PUTTING TOGETHER A TECHNOLOGY DEBT REMEDIATION SCORECARD.
AND WITH THAT NEXT SLIDE, I AM OPEN TO ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
THANK YOU FOR THAT. I'M GOING TO START IN THE HORSESHOE.
BUT JUST A ONE QUESTION TO KICK THIS OFF IS WHAT ARE YOU ASKING ANYTHING FROM THIS COMMITTEE TODAY OR IS THIS SIMPLY AN UPDATE? THIS IS AN UPDATE IN PROVIDING INFORMATION FOR THE COMMITTEE.
THANK YOU. UH, VICE CHAIR BLACKMON.
IT'S NICE TO SEE THERE'S ANOTHER LONG PROCESS MAP SOMEWHERE.
SO, UM, WHEN YOU COMPLETE THIS AND YOU COME BACK IN 24, WHAT SHOULD THAT MAP LOOK LIKE THAT YOU JUST LAID OUT? I MEAN, ARE WE ARE WE TRYING TO ELIMINATE.
ARE WE TRYING TO STREAMLINE? ARE YOU TRYING TO INTEGRATE LIKE, WHAT IS, I GUESS, SUCCESS? WHAT ARE WE WHAT ARE WE WHAT IS OUR NORTH STAR? SO COUNCIL MEMBER BLACKMON.
THAT'S A I THINK THAT'S A FANTASTIC QUESTION.
SO THERE'S A FEW THINGS THAT IN MY MIND WOULD BE IDEAL IN TERMS OF OUTCOMES FROM THIS ACTIVITY.
I WILL TELL YOU THAT WE HAVE, IN MY OPINION, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE IN JUNE OF 2020, THERE HAVE BEEN WAY TOO MANY INSTANCES WHERE WHERE WE SEE THE FAILURE OF AN APPLICATION THAT RESULTS IN SOME LEVEL OF BUSINESS LOSS, WHERE THERE IS WHERE THERE IS A DISRUPTION TO THE BUSINESS OR THINGS ARE DISRUPTED FROM A BUSINESS CONTINUITY PERSPECTIVE.
MY GOAL WOULD BE, IS THAT WE'RE REDUCING THAT TO THE GREATEST DEGREE POSSIBLE BECAUSE AS WE ARE MAINTAINING THAT TECHNOLOGY AND BEING MINDFUL, THE TYPES OF ISSUES OR PROBLEMS THAT RESULTS FROM THE FAILURE OF THE TECHNOLOGY SHOULD BE MINIMIZED GREATLY.
AND SO THAT MEANS THAT WE HAVE MORE CONTRACTS THAT WE ARE MAINTAINING.
THAT MEANS THAT WE HAVE A GREATER COST FOR MAINTAINING THOSE.
THAT MEANS IT'S MORE DIFFICULT TO MAINTAIN THOSE.
IT MEANS IT'S MORE DIFFICULT TO SECURE THOSE.
SO I THINK FINDING WAYS THAT WE CAN SIMPLIFY OUR OVERALL ENVIRONMENT AND REDUCE THE COMPLEXITY OF THE ENVIRONMENT THAT WE HAVE WOULD BE A AN OUTCOME THAT WE WOULD WANT TO ACHIEVE FROM THIS ACTIVITY.
AND FINALLY, THE THIRD THING IS, IS THAT WE REALLY HAVE A TOOL THAT ALLOWS FOR US THAT AS THERE IS A NEED FOR TECHNOLOGY THAT ARISES SO THAT AS SOMEBODY I DENTIFIES IN NEED FOR TECHNOLOGY, THAT WE HAVE A MUCH, MUCH EASIER TIME IDENTIFYING WHERE WE ALREADY HAVE TOOLS IN OUR TOOLBOX THAT ALLOW FOR US TO MUCH MORE RAPIDLY AND QUICKLY DEPLOY CAPABILITY, AS OPPOSED TO SPINNING SOMETHING NEW UP WHEN WE PROBABLY COULD HAVE USED SOMETHING ELSE.
SO THOSE ARE THOSE ARE THREE MAJOR OUTCOMES THAT I HAVE FOR THIS ACTIVITY.
AND IN THE IN THE IT WAS THE 20 AND 24TH APRIL OF 24.
WAS THAT ON THE LAST SHEET? UM, [INAUDIBLE].
SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE ALL THAT DONE.
CORRECT. SO IS THAT JUST THE PLAN IN WHICH WE WILL START EXECUTING.
[00:55:02]
SO THE SCORECARD SPECIFICALLY WILL PROVIDE PERFORMANCE METRICS TO THE COUNCIL OF THE OVERALL ONGOING HEALTH OF THE APPLICATIONS. AND IT WILL TRACK THE KEY ACTIVITIES THAT WE HAVE UNDERWAY WITHIN THE TECHNICAL DEBT REMEDIATION PLAN FOR REDUCING THOSE IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE THOSE OUTCOMES. SO THEN BACK TO THEN ABOUT COST MOVING FORWARD AFTER WE GET ALL THAT, I GUESS THAT WILL BE DEVELOPED IN THAT PLAN, BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO START INTEGRATING THAT IN OUR BUDGETS, CORRECT.ANY BALLPARK? UM, SO AT THIS POINT, THE THE ESTIMATE.
THE ESTIMATES THAT WE ARE WORKING WITH AT THIS POINT ARE THAT FOR INFRASTRUCTURE COMPONENTS, THE THE INFRASTRUCTURE ON WHICH THESE APPLICATIONS RUN, THAT IS APPROXIMATELY $25 MILLION.
THAT DOES NOT INCLUDE, UM, THE DATA CENTER ITSELF AND WORK THAT WE'RE DOING TOWARDS THE DATA CENTER.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF OTHER APPLICATIONS, APPROXIMATELY $30 MILLION.
OKAY. AND, UM WHEN YOU GET FINISHED.
I'VE ALWAYS HEARD THAT, YOU KNOW, THE MINUTE YOU BUY YOUR PHONE, IT'S OBSOLETE, RIGHT? SO. WELL, THEN YOU START THAT PROCESS OVER AGAIN ONCE YOU AND JUST KEEP IT AS A CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT MODEL.
THAT IS CORRECT. WE WILL BE CONTINUOUSLY ASSESSING THE HEALTH OF THE APPLICATIONS.
AS I MENTIONED IN THE THREE GENERAL TYPES THAT ARE THERE, UM, YOU CAN GENERALLY TRACK TO THE EXPECTED LIFE CYCLE OF PARTICULAR THINGS LIKE EQUIPMENT, OPERATING SYSTEMS, OTHER SORTS OF THINGS.
THERE ARE INSTANCES IN WHICH SOMETHING LIKE A CHANGE IN LAW OR SOMETHING THAT CHANGES IN THE ENVIRONMENT, THE MERGER AND ACQUISITION OF COMPANIES, AND THEY DEPRECATE A SYSTEM, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE, THAT CAUSES SOMETHING TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE SUDDEN IN NATURE.
BUT THE IDEA IS, IS YOU CONTINUOUSLY ASSESS AND YOU ALWAYS HAVE A PICTURE OF THE OVERALL HEALTH.
ANYBODY IN THE VIRTUAL WORLD CHAIR MENDELSOHN? GO AHEAD. THANK YOU.
UM, SO YOU KNOW, I LOVE THIS REPORT SO MUCH.
IT'S JUST TOO HARD TO FOR US TO KNOW UNLESS SOMETHING DOESN'T WORK.
RIGHT. SO IF YOU WAKE UP AND YOU CAN'T GET EMAIL, YOU KNOW THERE'S A PROBLEM.
BUT OTHER THAN THAT, WE CAN'T KNOW THE STATUS OF THE HEALTH.
SO I DO THINK THIS IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT, UM, REPORT.
CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THE FULL ON DOLLAR AMOUNT OF TECHNICAL DEBT THAT WE HAVE IS FOR APPS, FOR HARDWARE, FOR SERVERS, SO THAT IF EVERYTHING WAS UP TO DATE, IF ALL THESE PROJECTS WERE COMPLETE, WHAT'S THE DOLLAR AMOUNT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT? SO, CHAIRMAN, CHAIR MENDELSOHN, RIGHT NOW, IF I PUT A PIN IN TODAY, FOR WHAT I KNOW TODAY, THEN THAT NUMBER IS $167,850,000 IS THE ESTIMATE THAT I'M WORKING FROM.
BUT THAT'S WHAT I WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR.
AND I AND I WANT TO HAVE ON THE DASHBOARD AS WELL.
SO AS, UM, THIS REPORT, UM, WAS INITIATED, WE HAVE MADE SOME REFINEMENTS AS WE WENT.
SO LIKE I WAS JUST LOOKING AT THE FIRE STATION ALERTING SYSTEM AND THE COMPLETION DATE IS NOW OCTOBER 24TH, BUT IT STARTED OUT, UH, WITH A COMPLETION DATE OF SEPTEMBER 23.
CORRECT. AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK THIS IS URGENT.
UM, IS WHAT I UNDERSTAND IT TO BE.
AND SO I DON'T I DON'T LOVE THAT THIS GOT PUSHED BACK A WHOLE ANOTHER YEAR.
WHY IS IT TAKING SO LONG? YEAH, I WOULD BE GLAD TO ADD THAT.
[01:00:08]
THE ORIGINAL, THE ORIGINAL, UM, PLANNED COMPLETION DATE SO THAT YOU COULD SEE FROM THE BASELINE TO THE ACTUAL COMPLETION DATE WHAT THAT DELTA IS. YEAH.WELL, SOME OF THEM, YOU'RE DEFINITELY HITTING.
AND, I MEAN, YOU'RE MANAGING SO MANY PROJECTS.
SO I MEAN, THAT'S KIND OF BOTH SIDES OF IT.
AND, YOU KNOW, EVEN PROJECTS THAT MIGHT BE NOT CRITICAL.
THERE ARE THINGS THAT WE'VE ASKED FOR.
AND HONESTLY, THAT'S AN ITEM THAT'S BEEN ON HERE A COUPLE OF YEARS.
SO I JUST I DO THINK ADDING THOSE DATES IN THERE WILL HELP US.
AND I JUST THINK IT DOES PROVIDE ANOTHER LEVEL OF ACCOUNTABILITY.
AND CHAIR, CHAIR MENDELSOHN, IF I, IF I COULD FOR FOR ANY OF THOSE, ANY OF THOSE THAT ARE IDENTIFIED, I WOULD BE GLAD TO GIVE BACKGROUND INFORMATION AS TO EXACTLY WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT MAY HAVE TAKEN THERE, BECAUSE THERE'S LOTS AND LOTS OF VARIOUS REASONS AS TO WHAT CHANGES AND WHY IT CHANGES.
WELL, I'M GOING TO CALL YOU ABOUT THE FIRE STATION ONE.
YOU BET. ANYONE ELSE IN THE VIRTUAL WORLD? ALL RIGHT. I THINK WE'VE WRAPPED IT UP THEN.
WE'LL DO E AND F TOGETHER AT THE END.
LET'S JUST GO DOWN THROUGH THROUGH THE OTHER ITEMS, STARTING WITH ITEM G.
THESE ARE BRIEFING MEMORANDUM.
SO WE'RE ONLY GOING TO GO INTO IT IF COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE QUESTIONS.
ITEM G IS THE TECHNOLOGY ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT AS OF NOVEMBER 30TH, 2023.
ITEM H IS THE OFFICE OF THE CITY AUDITOR.
QUESTIONS FROM THE HORSESHOE? WE'LL COME BACK. YEAH.
QUESTIONS FROM THE VIRTUAL WORLD? ALL RIGHT. WE DO. UH COUNCILWOMAN WILLIS.
I JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE, SINCE WE DO HAVE DPD PRESENCE HERE, IN LOOKING AT THE AUDITS WHERE WE'VE GOT PERCENTAGE OF IMPLEMENTATION, THAT THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF PROGRESS MADE ACTUALLY ON ALL OF THESE AND THAT ON THE ONE ON THE DEPARTMENT'S OFF DUTY EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM.
UM, EVEN THOUGH RIGHT NOW IT'S AT 57% IMPLEMENTED, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE I MEAN, I GUESS, UM, RELEVANT TO THE PRESENTATION THAT WE JUST HAD, YOU'RE WAITING FOR A NEW SYSTEM TO COME ONLINE, IS THAT IT? SO BY THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR, UH, THOSE THREE ITEMS SHOULD BE CAUGHT UP OR CLOSE TO BEING CAUGHT UP.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS. ASSISTANT CHIEF DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER. THAT IS CORRECT.
UM, WE ARE IN THE FINAL STAGES OF NEGOTIATION TALKS WITH THAT VENDOR.
UM, AMENDING SOME CONTRACT LANGUAGE.
ONCE WE REACH THOSE, UH, THOSE MILESTONES ON THAT CONTRACT, WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THOSE OTHER THREE ITEMS THAT ARE OUTSTANDING AND HAVE THAT IN FRONT OF THE COUNCIL, PROBABLY EARLY FEBRUARY 2024.
THANK YOU. YES, THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, CHIEF.
NEXT IS THE ITEM I QUARTERLY INVESTMENT REPORT AS OF THE END OF THIRD QUARTER 23.
NOT SEEING ANY HANDS OR QUESTIONS.
WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AUDIT UPDATE ITEM J.
DO WE HAVE SOMEONE FROM THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE HERE WHO CAN ANSWER QUESTIONS ON THIS ITEM? OH, HELLO.
WELCOME. BECAUSE I JUST HAVE A I MEAN, MY MAIN QUESTION IS WHAT'S OUR TAKEAWAY FROM THIS AND
[01:05:03]
WHAT'S A TIMELINE OF OF THAT? WE WILL SEE SOME REVISIONS TO ANY OF THESE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS.MY NAME IS NIKKI CHRISTMAS, INTERIM DIRECTOR OF MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL OFFICE.
THEY ARE WORKING WITH THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AS WELL.
AND SO WE'RE ANTICIPATING TO START BRINGING THOSE AMENDMENTS IN FEBRUARY OF 2024.
IS THERE ANYTHING THAT CAME OUT OF THE AUDIT AND YOUR FOLLOW UP WORK THAT'S BEEN SURPRISING TO YOU? NOTHING SURPRISING, SIR.
OKAY. ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE VIRTUAL WORLD? HORSESHOE? THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
THANK YOU. UM, NEXT WE'RE GOING TO MOVE ON TO ITEM K, THE 2025 LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES.
THIS MEMO HAS LAID OUT SO FAR WHAT, UM, HAS COME OUT OF THIS COMMITTEE.
UM. I'M JUST GOING TO ASK IF, DO WE HAVE SOMEONE FROM LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS HERE? WE DON'T. HI.
HOW'S IT GOING? [INAUDIBLE] CAN YOU SAY THAT LOUDER? LINDLEY YOUDERIAN, OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS.
THANK YOU. WHEN IS THE DEADLINE FOR COUNCIL MEMBERS TO SUBMIT PRIORITIES IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED IN YOUR FULL PACKAGE? DECEMBER 15TH, SO THIS FRIDAY.
ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S JUST A I KNEW THAT ANSWER, BUT I WANTED TO HEAR IT FROM YOU GUYS AND COUNCIL.
AND DOES THAT GO FOR ALL COMMITTEES OR JUST THIS ONE? YES SIR. ALL COMMITTEES.
ALL RIGHT THEN WHAT'S THE NEXT STEP ONCE YOU RECEIVE YOUR, UM, AFTER DECEMBER 15TH PASSES, WHAT'S OUR TIMELINE? WE'LL START DEVELOPING MEMOS FOR EACH COMMITTEE FOR THE FROM THE CHAIR TO GO TO CHAIR MENDELSOHN.
FOR THEM TO GO TO FULL CONSIDERATION FOR FULL COUNCIL.
IS JANUARY 8TH A BRIEFING DATE? WE'RE GOING TO BE BRIEFED ON IT, OR IS IT JUST GOING TO SHOW UP AT FULL COUNCIL AGENDA? IT'LL BE AT THE JANUARY 8TH, WILL BE BRIEFING FOR THE AD HOC.
AND THEN KIND OF ONCE WE GET FEEDBACK THERE.
THANK YOU. UH, GO AHEAD, VICE CHAIR BLACKMON.
SO TO BE CLEAR, ONCE THIS FRIDAY IS THAT WE'RE NEVER GOING TO BE ABLE TO LIST ANY MORE ITEMS? NOT NECESSARILY.
WE KIND OF JUST WANT TO HAVE THAT DEADLINE FOR AN INITIAL REVIEW.
AND AS WE TALKED ABOUT YESTERDAY, WE KNOW NOW UP UNTIL SESSION THINGS CAN HAPPEN.
UM, BUT KIND OF AS A ROUGH DEADLINE FOR NOW, WE'LL HAVE THAT DECEMBER 15TH.
YES, MA'AM. BECAUSE SO MANY THINGS CAN THE LANDSCAPE CAN CHANGE.
AND UM, AND SO WE MAY NEED TO MODIFY A FEW THINGS.
YES, MA'AM. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
ANYONE IN THE VIRTUAL WORLD? CHAIRWOMAN MENDELSOHN.
UH. THANK YOU. SO I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT THAT THE MAJORITY OF THESE ITEMS THAT ARE MOVING FORWARD FROM THIS COMMITTEE THAT YOU HAVE ON THE MEMO, UM, ARE ACTUALLY, UM, THEY'VE BEEN ON THE LEGISLATIVE AGENDA FOR YEARS.
THESE ARE NOT, UM, NEW, UM, AND I THINK HAVE HAVE SERVED US WELL IN TERMS OF WHERE WE STAND, DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY'RE GOING TO GET PASSED. RIGHT.
SO THERE'S NOT PARTICULARLY A BIG APPETITE, UM, FOR DISCLOSURE OF COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE PRICES.
UH, BUT ALL THAT TO SAY, I THINK THIS IS, UM, GOOD WORK FOR THIS COMMITTEE, LIKE, THESE ARE.
I FIND THEM TO BE APPROPRIATE ITEMS. UM, AND SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE INPUT ON WHAT IT IS THAT THE COMMITTEE SUBMITTING THAT THESE ARE, I THINK, GOOD THINGS.
THANK YOU, CHAIRWOMAN, FOR THE ADDITIONAL CONTEXT AND YOUR LEADERSHIP.
ANYONE ELSE IN THE VIRTUAL WORLD? I THINK WE'RE GOOD.
THE FIRST ONE, BECAUSE IT WAS SUCH A LARGE INCREASE IN PROCUREMENT AMOUNT.
AND I HAD HEARD AT LEAST ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES EXPRESSED CONCERNS ON IT AS WELL.
JUST WANTED TO BE ABLE TO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT IT.
[01:10:05]
SO WE'LL WE'LL GO AHEAD AND ASK OFFICER PROCUREMENT OR I GUESS, JACK, IF YOU'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THIS, TO MAYBE EXPLAIN THIS ITEM A LITTLE BIT AND EXPLAIN WHY IT'S WHY IT'S SUCH A LARGE INCREASE.SO WE'LL BE ABLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS RELATED TO THIS ITEM.
CAN YOU BRIEFLY EXPLAIN THE ITEM AND THE INCREASE? UH, JUST GIVE US THE HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW TO START.
THE INCREASE IN THIS CASE IS $4.952 MILLION.
SO $2.8 MILLION OF THAT $4.9 MILLION IS SPECIFICALLY FOR THE REGULAR RECURRING CHARGES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE SUBSCRIPTION FEES FOR THE ENTIRE WORKDAY PRODUCT.
HOW OFTEN DO WE GO THROUGH PROCUREMENT ON WORKDAY FOR THIS PARTICULAR SERVICE IN ORDER TO ENSURE WE'RE GETTING THE BEST PRICING, AND IT'S THE MOST, I GUESS, COMPETITIVE VENDOR? THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
DANIELLE THOMPSON DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF PROCUREMENT SERVICES.
THERE'S A COUPLE REASONS WHY WE DO THAT.
NUMBER ONE, IT WILL HAVE AN IMPACT IN OPERATIONS, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY WE HAVE A SYSTEM IN PLACE.
REMOVING IT WOULD CAUSE AN IMPACT TO OPERATIONS.
SO AS IT RELATES TO COMPETITION BILL, I'M NOT SURE IF YOU HAVE MORE INFORMATION ON THAT.
BUT AS IT RELATES TO THIS, WE DID NOT RE COMPETE BECAUSE OF THE CURRENT UTILIZATION OF THIS SYSTEM.
SO, CHAIR WEST, I WOULD ADD, UM, TO WHAT DIRECTOR THOMPSON JUST SAID IS THAT OUR INTENT IS THAT FOR WHEN THIS NEXT PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE, WHICH ENDS IN MARCH OF 2025 ENDS, IS THAT WE WILL RE COMPETE.
IN FACT, WE WILL BEGIN THAT RE COMPETE PROCESS IMMEDIATELY ON THE HEELS OF OF THIS ONE THAT WE'RE IN NOW, SO THAT WE HAVE ADEQUATE TIME TO GO BACK OUT TO THE MARKET FOR THAT COMPETITION. ALL RIGHT.
WHAT IS IT THAT THIS, THAT WORKDAY PROVIDES, UM, THAT WE CANNOT DO IN-HOUSE IN TERMS OF PERSONNEL RELATED FUNCTIONS? I WILL ASK, UM, DIRECTOR ARIAS TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION, PLEASE.
UM, NINA ARIAS, DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES.
UM, COUNCIL MEMBER I WOULD SAY THAT WORKDAY, LIKE ANY OTHER HRIS SYSTEM, PROVIDES A PLATFORM IN WHICH THAT WILL ALLOW THE MANAGEMENT OF ALL TALENT RELATED, FUNCTIONS.
SO WHAT IT PROVIDES THAT IS DIFFERENT, THAT SOMETHING THAT WE COULD DO IN-HOUSE FOR US TO BE ABLE TO RECREATE THE FUNCTIONALITY, THE ABILITY TO DO PAYROLL, UH, THE ABILITY TO TRACK TIME, THE ABILITY TO TRACK PERFORMANCE, UH, RECRUITMENT.
IT WILL REQUIRE AN I WOULD, UM, ACTUALLY ASK UH, DIRECTOR ZIELINSKI TO EXPLAIN IN MORE DETAIL WILL BE A LOT MORE COSTLY, IN MY OPINION, THAT, UM, BUYING SOMETHING OFF THE SHELF, IT WILL BE SIMILAR TO TRYING TO RECREATE THE SYSTEM THAT YOU'RE UTILIZING FOR, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES IN-HOUSE OR ANY OTHER SYSTEM THAT YOU UTILIZE TO MANAGE A PROCESS.
UM, THE PROCESS OF TALENT MANAGEMENT IS A DISTRIBUTED PROCESS.
IT MEANS THAT IT IS NOT UTILIZED SOLELY BY THE HR DEPARTMENT.
AND IN MY OPINION, IT WILL BE A LOT MORE COSTLY TO DEVELOP SOMETHING LIKE THAT IN HOUSE KEEPING UP WITH, UM, THE REGULATIONS, KEEPING UP WITH BEST PRACTICES.
[01:15:02]
AND CHAIR WEST, IF I COULD ADD, SIR, UM, THERE ARE EIGHT SEPARATE FUNCTIONAL AREAS IN THE TALENT MANAGEMENT LIFE CYCLE THAT ARE CURRENTLY SUPPORTED BY SYSTEMS WITHIN THE CITY.THOSE INCLUDE PAYROLL, BASIC AND ADVANCED COMPENSATION ANALYTICS AROUND AROUND THE HR, INFORMATION, RECRUITMENT AND ONBOARDING, TALENT AND PERFORMANCE, BENEFITS AND LEARNING MANAGEMENT.
AND SO AS A AS A MANAGER, I NEED TO GO INTO MULTIPLE SYSTEMS IN ORDER TO COMPLETE EACH OF THOSE TRANSACTIONAL ITEMS. UM, WHAT THIS ITEM ALLOWS US TO DO IS TO COMPLETE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THOSE OTHER MODULES WITHIN THE WORKDAY SYSTEM.
SO THERE ARE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT BENEFITS THAT ACCRUE TO US FROM BEING ABLE TO DO SO.
FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, I CAN GET RID OF FIVE BOXES OR FIVE SYSTEMS THAT ARE CURRENTLY ON THAT CHART.
SO ALONG WITH THE SUBSCRIPTION FEES OF THE $2.8 MILLION, IT ALSO INCLUDES UM, UH, PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, TRAINING AND OTHER IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT THAT ALLOWS FOR US TO COMPLETE THE IMPLEMENTATION TO WORKDAY, TURN OFF THOSE OTHER LEGACY SYSTEMS, AND IMPROVE AND MAKE MORE EFFICIENT THE PROCESSES FOR ALL OF THE MANAGERS WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION. HOW WILL THE COMMITTEE OR COUNCIL BE ABLE TO SEE THE COST SAVINGS OR TRACK THE EFFICIENCIES THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE GAINING BY SPENDING THE $2.8 MILLION? I REALLY SEE AN ROI HERE.
THE CONTRACT WAS SET UP, UM, OR PROCURED BY, UH, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY BY THE IT DEPARTMENT.
AS FOR THE ROI, UM, IT IS RELATED TO, UM, TALENT PROCESSES, THE THE WAY IN WHICH WE DO, UH, RECRUITMENT, FOR INSTANCE, WE WILL BE ABLE TO INCREASE THE SPEED OF RECRUITMENT.
THEREFORE, OUR ABILITY TO RETAIN AND OUR ABILITY TO RECRUIT STAFF IS GOING TO INCREASE.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, DEFINITELY, I'LL BE HAPPY TO PROVIDE MORE DETAILS ON ALL THE OTHER PROCESSES.
AND FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF BENEFITS, WE HAVE, ACTUALLY ALL OF THOSE SYSTEMS THAT WE WERE MENTIONING, UH, THEY COST US ABOUT $500,000 A YEAR.
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT RETURN ON INVESTMENT IN THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO RETAIN AND, YOU KNOW, HAVE A PLATFORM THAT EMPLOYEES ARE ABLE TO UTILIZE NOT ONLY FOR, UH, THEIR DEVELOPMENT BUT JUST MANAGING THEIR DAY TO DAY WORK.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF PAYROLL IN PARTICULAR, UH, THAT IS A SIGNIFICANT RETURN ON INVESTMENT TO HAVE A ROBUST PLATFORM TO BE ABLE TO MANAGE YOUR PAYROLL, UH, NOT HAVING A ROBUST PLATFORM WILL YOU KNOW, THE REPERCUSSIONS ARE ACTUALLY VERY DIRE IN TERMS OF, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR ACCOUNTABILITY TO OUR EMPLOYEES FOR THEIR PAY BEING ACCURATE AND BEING ON TIME.
AS JUST AS A RESPONSE TO THAT.
SO WE WILL SEE SAVINGS IN TERMS OF OUR EFFICIENCIES, IN TERMS OF A QUICKER TURNAROUND TIME IN PROCESSING NEW APPLICATIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT AT THE CITY OF DALLAS.
I KNOW WE HAVE DATA TRACKING, UH, HOW LONG THE PROCESSING TIME IS NOW.
UM, SO WHEN CAN WE EXPECT TO REVIEW DATA AGAIN ON THE PROCESSING TIME IN THE FUTURE AFTER THIS IS IMPLEMENTED? LIKE WHAT'S THE TIME FRAME? WHEN SHOULD WE COME BACK AND SAY, ALL RIGHT, HR UM, WE'VE NOW WE WE WANT TO SEE HOW YOU'VE IMPROVED.
ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.
UM, WE WILL NOT BE GOING BACK WITH WORKDAY.
[01:20:03]
WORKDAY HAS VERY ROBUST DATA ANALYTICS.UM, AND WE WILL BE ABLE TO SHOW THIS IS HOW MUCH WE'VE IMPROVED.
CURRENTLY WE KEEP TRACK OF OUR TIME TO FILL, UM, WITH VERY RUDIMENTARY TOOLS, BUT WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THAT BASELINE AND THEN COMPARE TO THE, UM, IMPROVEMENTS AFTER THEY WERE THE IMPLEMENTATION IS DONE.
THANK YOU. THAT'S THE VERY HEART OF WHAT THIS COMMITTEE'S RESPONSIBILITY IS, GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE.
SO I GUESS I'LL, YOU KNOW, WE CAN WORK WITH MR. SWANN AND STAFF ON, ON UNDERSTANDING LIKE THE BEST WAY TO TO REALLY TRACK OUR ROI IN THIS CASE.
ALL RIGHT. I'VE GONE ON ENOUGH COMMITTEE MEMBERS, ANYTHING, NOT SEEING ANYONE.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
HELLO. OH, WELL, YOUR CAMERAS OFF.
UH, CHAIRWOMAN, I CAN'T SEE YOU.
THANK YOU. UM, CAN YOU TELL US WHAT BASELINE DATA IS AVAILABLE NOW? ABOUT HOW LONG IT TAKES TO HIRE? UH, YES. THE BASELINE DATA THAT EXISTS, UM, IS INFORMATION THAT WE COLLECT FROM NEOGOV.
UM, AND NEOGOV TRACKS THAT INFORMATION BY DEPARTMENT.
SOME OF THAT DATA HAS BEEN SHARED WITH SOME OF THE COMMITTEES, UH, IN TERMS OF, UM, TIME TO FILL AND OR THE TIME TO RECRUIT, WE TRACK THE INFORMATION TO BY ACTIVITY.
IN OTHER WORDS, HOW MANY POSITIONS ARE POSTED.
THAT'S THE VERY FIRST DATA POINT.
AND THEN OF THOSE POSTED, UH, HOW OLD, YOU KNOW, HOW LONG IT TOOK FOR THE PROCESS TO GO FROM ONE STEP TO THE OTHER, LIKE, FOR INSTANCE, HOW LONG IT TOOK FOR US TO GET, UM, A POOL OF CANDIDATES AND THEN THE NEXT STEP, HOW LONG IT TOOK FOR US TO RECRUIT, HOW LONG THE CANDIDATE TOOK TO COME OVER.
SOMETIMES CANDIDATES ACTUALLY REQUIRE SOME TIME.
AND THE VETTING PROCESS, THE ONBOARDING PROCESS, AND THEN THE TIME THAT THE EMPLOYEE COMES SO THAT DATA CURRENTLY EXISTS IS, LIKE I SAID, VERY RUDIMENTARY IN THAT WE HAVE TO PULL INFORMATION FROM BOTH NEOGOV AND WORKDAY AND THE DATA IN THE SYSTEM IS, IS OBVIOUSLY NOT, YOU KNOW, JUST NOT USER FRIENDLY. SO WE'LL BE ABLE TO USE THAT AS OUR BASELINE.
ARE YOU SAYING $1.7 IS A TALENT MANAGEMENT? SO ON ON THE MEMO THAT WAS COUNCIL COUNCIL MEMBER.
IT'S ON I THINK IT'S ON THE THIRD PAGE.
UM, THERE'S SPECIFICALLY A COST THAT'S ASSOCIATED.
IF YOU COULD GO NOT TO I THINK IT'S THE NEXT PAGE.
UM, THERE'S ALSO A LISTED ITEM HERE FOR DEPLOYMENT.
TENANT A TENANT IS A, UM, IS A ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH YOU TEST OR DEPLOY SOFTWARE.
THIS IS A THIS IS LARGELY A ONE TIME COST THAT'S ASSOCIATED WITH PUTTING IN PLACE A DEPLOYMENT TENANT THAT ALLOWS FOR US TO DO THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING NOW TO COMPLETE THE DEPLOYMENT OF THE NEW MODULES WITHIN WORKDAY.
UM, THERE'S ALSO A NEED FOR TRAINING EMPLOYEES.
THERE'S A LOT OF IDENTIFIED NEEDS AS IT RELATES TO NEW EMPLOYEES THAT HAVE BEEN ONBOARDED WITHIN VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS THAT WORK, THAT DO MOST OF THE MAIN WORK WITHIN WORKDAY.
UM, AND THEN THERE'S ALSO A PREMIUM CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT.
THIS IS THIS IS, UM, OPERATIONAL SUPPORT, DAY TO DAY SUPPORT.
THERE'S UM, SOME ASSISTANCE FOR DOING DEPLOYMENTS AND DOING CONFIGURATION.
AND THEN WE DO ANTICIPATE ADDITIONAL COSTS IN THE ARENA OF $1.3 MILLION FOR ADDITIONAL TRAINING, UH, DEPLOYMENT TENANTS AND OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES THAT WE HAVE NOT YET FINALIZED.
THE COST TO BE ABLE TO ALLOCATE SPECIFICALLY ACROSS THOSE.
SO IN ADDITION TO PAYING FOR THE BASE COSTS FOR THE LICENSING AGREEMENT OF THE $2.8, WE'RE ALSO PAYING FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE FOR $613,000? AND THE PREMIUM CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT IS ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR, UM, ASSISTING US SPECIFICALLY WITH INITIATIVES THAT WE HAVE, CHANGE MANAGEMENT AND OTHER PROCESSES. NINA, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU KNOW MORE ABOUT THAT PACKAGE, BUT WE COULD CERTAINLY GET MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT SPECIFICALLY PROVIDED WITH THAT CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT
[01:25:01]
SUPPORT. SO.I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THIS.
IT'S BASICALLY A LICENSE TO FOR US TO BE ABLE TO USE THE SOFTWARE.
UH, THE TRAINING CREDITS, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT'S THAT'S VERY SELF EXPLANATORY.
THE PREMIUM CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT UM, IT IS THOSE ARE SERVICES RELATED TO TECHNOLOGY RELATED TO BEING ABLE TO UTILIZE THE SOFTWARE WITHIN OUR ENVIRONMENT.
SO THOSE ARE NOT SERVICES THAT WE UTILIZE.
LIKE FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF HUMAN RESOURCES OR TALENTED, THOSE ARE MORE TECHNOLOGY BASED COSTS.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THERE MAY BE SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT BILL MAY BE ABLE TO PROVIDE ON WHAT SPECIFIC IS INCLUDED, BUT THE LICENSES IS WHAT WE USE TO BE ABLE TO MANAGE TALENT AND ALL OF THE MODULES ARE INCLUDED IN THAT LICENSING.
SO WE HAVE LICENSING THAT ENCOMPASSES BENEFITS, RECRUITMENT, TALENT MANAGEMENT.
UM, YOU KNOW, HOWEVER, NOT ALL OF IT IS CURRENTLY ACTIVE BECAUSE NOT ALL OF IT HAS BEEN DEPLOYED.
SO, BILL, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PROVIDE MORE EXPLANATION FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW THE OTHER, UM, LINE ITEMS SUPPORT AS BEING ABLE TO DEPLOY THOSE MODULES.
SO, BILL, CAN I JUST SAY THIS BACK TO YOU AND YOU TELL ME WHAT'S CORRECT OR INCORRECT AND WHAT I'M SAYING, ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT IT COSTS NEARLY $5 MILLION TO RUN OUR HR SOFTWARE A YEAR ALL IN? YEAH. NO THERE ARE A NUMBER OF THESE COSTS, INCLUDING THOSE WITHIN THE PREMIUM CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT THAT ARE ONE TIME OR TIME LIMITED.
SO THE ONLY LINE ITEM ON HERE THAT IS TRULY A YEAR OVER YEAR COST IS THE IS THE $2.8 MILLION, AS WAS MENTIONED EARLIER I N THE NEXT CYCLE, WE WILL GO TO BACK TO THE MARKET TO SEE IF WE CAN NEGOTIATE FOR BETTER PRICING THERE.
I WOULD ANTICIPATE I WOULD, SO LET ME JUST PAUSE THERE.
IF YOU WENT BACK TO THE MARKET AND WE SWITCHED SOFTWARE'S.
I MEAN, THIS HAS BEEN FAIRLY DISRUPTIVE TO STAFF TO LEARN WORKDAY.
IT HASN'T BEEN AROUND THAT LONG.
I HOPE THAT IT'LL BE A VERY BIG SCORE THAT WOULD MOVE US OUT OF WORKDAY.
I MEAN, SO SO THE COST OF CHANGING IS SIGNIFICANT, BUT WOULDN'T YOU NEED TRAINING CREDITS ALWAYS? I MEAN, WE'VE GOT PRETTY HIGH TURNOVER AT CITY HALL.
WOULDN'T YOU NEED I MEAN, I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT PREMIUM CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT IS, BUT WOULDN'T YOU CONTINUE TO NEED THAT KIND OF CUSTOMER SERVICE? I MEAN, AREN'T THESE ACTUALLY ALL IN COSTS ANNUALLY? SO AGAIN, CHAIR MENDELSOHN THE TENANTS THEMSELVES, THOSE ARE NOT THOSE ARE NEEDED WHEN YOU HAVE PERIODS WHERE YOU ARE IMPLEMENTING NEW THINGS AND YOU NEED TEST ENVIRONMENTS.
THESE ARE SURGES IN THE TENANTS JUST FOR THIS PERIOD IN WHICH WE'RE DEPLOYING NEW MODULES.
AND SO THERE ARE MULTIPLE, UM, MANNERS BY WHICH YOU CAN YOU CAN GET THOSE LICENSES.
AND I'LL ASK, UM, UH, DIRECTOR THOMPSON IF SHE WANTED TO ADD MORE TO THAT PIECE.
AND THEN THE LAST THING THAT I WILL SAY IS WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT OTHER AVENUES, NOT NECESSARILY DIRECTLY WITH WORKDAY, AS THIS CONTRACT IS FOR PROVIDING ADDITIONAL TRAINING, BECAUSE YOUR POINT ON THAT IS VALID IS THAT WE WILL NEED ONGOING TRAINING.
UM, BUT RECENTLY, UM, NINA DID BRING IN A NEW MANAGER WHO HAS EXPERIENCE WITH WORKDAY, AND WE'RE WORKING THROUGH SOME OTHER AVENUES BY WHICH WE CAN GET TRAINING IN A MORE COST EFFECTIVE MANNER.
SO IN THIS LIST, THE ONE THAT TRULY IS ONGOING IS THE $2.8, UM, THE TRAINING WILL THERE WILL BE A NEED FOR TRAINING, BUT WE ARE LOOKING AT MECHANISMS TO PROVIDE FOR THAT TRAINING THROUGH OTHER MECHANISMS AND MEANS AND DANIELLE.
[01:30:03]
THANK YOU, BILL. AND YOU ARE CORRECT.SO THROUGHOUT THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS THERE ARE DIFFERENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO EXPLORE WORKING WITH OTHER VENDORS WHO NOT ONLY PROVIDE, UM, DIFFERENT SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES, AS WELL AS THE TRAINING THROUGH COOPERATIVES AND OTHER CONTRACT STRUCTURES THAT WILL ALLOW US TO HAVE A GREATER OPPORTUNITY TO LEVERAGE NEGOTIATING OUR FINAL PRICE.
SO THAT WOULD BE ONE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE WOULD EXPLORE WITH PROCURING ADDITIONAL SUPPORT SERVICES, NOT NECESSARILY A BRAND NEW SYSTEM, BUT MORE INFRASTRUCTURE TO HELP US MANAGE WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE PROCURED THROUGH THIS ORIGINAL PROCUREMENT AND SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENTS.
WELL, I'M JUST GOING TO SAY $5 MILLION BASICALLY TO RUN OUR HR SOFTWARE SEEMS REALLY IMPRESSIVE TO ME, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE NUMBER OF HR STAFF MEMBERS WE HAVE. UM, THIS IS THIS.
THIS, IN MY MIND, NEEDS TO BE REEVALUATED AND STREAMLINED BECAUSE THERE'S THERE'S A PROBLEM HERE.
SO THE ACTUAL COST OF THIS IS WAY, WAY MORE THAN WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT.
AND THIS IS THIS IS WHY OUR TAXES ARE SO HIGH.
THIS IS THIS IS PROBABLY EXCESSIVE FOR WHAT WE ACTUALLY NEED AT CITY HALL.
SO ANYHOW, I'M NOT SURE THAT WE NEED A TALENT MANAGEMENT MODULE.
I'M NOT SURE WE NEED ALL THE MODULES THAT WE EVEN HAVE, BUT THIS IS A LOT OF MONEY FOR THIS SOFTWARE, AND IT CONTINUES TO BE A LOT OF MONEY EVERY SINGLE YEAR ALL IN.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIRWOMAN.
NOT SEEING ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, WE WILL MOVE ON TO ITEM N.
THIS IS THE PARK AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT 24 MONTH ANNUAL FUNDING AGREEMENT WITH THE DALLAS ARBORETUM AND BOTANICAL SOCIETY, WHICH IS AN AGENDA ITEM FOR TOMORROW. UM, WHEN WE THIS JUST A LITTLE CONTEXT HERE FOR MY COLLEAGUES AND ANYONE LISTENING, WHEN WE HAD THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR'S BUDGET, WE TALKED ABOUT ALL OF OUR PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERS, INCLUDING THE ARBORETUM.
IT'S NOT JUST PICKING ON THEM THAT THIS IS ON HERE TODAY.
THEY JUST HAPPEN TO BE AN AGENDA ITEM FOR TOMORROW.
UM, AND WE HAD A PRETTY ROBUST DISCUSSION OVER SEVERAL HOURS AT THE BUDGET ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS OUR LONG TIME GOAL WITH OUR PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERS? IS IT TO, YOU KNOW, IS IT WE ALWAYS GOING TO HAVE A SET FUNDING LEVEL WE'RE GOING TO GIVE THEM? DO WE WANT THEM TO BE AT SOME POINT COMPLETELY SELF-SUFFICIENT? DO WE CARE? I MEAN, IT WAS JUST KIND OF LIKE A IT WAS A GOOD DISCUSSION.
SO IT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF A SURPRISE TO ME, AND I THINK AT LEAST ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES, WHEN WE SAW THIS BEING A TWO YEAR, UM, TWO YEAR PROPOSED ITEM ON CONSENT, KNOWING THAT WE HAD SOME OF THESE CONCERNS ABOUT ALL OF OUR PUBLIC PARTNERS, NOT JUST NOT JUST THE ARBORETUM.
SO I ASKED THIS ITEM TO BE ON HERE TO TALK ABOUT AND, UM, AND JUST KIND OF WALK US THROUGH IT IF I'LL JUST TURN IT OVER TO PARK STAFF. GOOD AFTERNOON.
UH, RYAN O'CONNOR, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, DALLAS PARKS AND RECREATION.
I'M JOINED BY A LOT OF FOLKS UP HERE, UH, MOST PROMINENTLY SABINA CARR, WHO I WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE AS THE NEW ARBORETUM CEO, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO MAY NOT MET HER YET. UH, SO WE HAVE A TWO YEAR FUNDING AGREEMENT.
UH, THIS HAS CHANGED A LITTLE BIT FROM HOW WE'VE DONE IT PREVIOUSLY.
SO, UM, THAT'S REALLY THE EXPLANATION OF WHY IT'S A IT'S A TWO YEAR FUNDING AGREEMENT.
SO IT'LL BE GOOD FOR CALENDAR YEAR 25.
AND SORRY FOR CALENDAR YEAR 24 AND 25.
SO I UNDERSTAND WHY FROM A RESPONSIBILITY STANDPOINT THEY WOULD ASK FOR THAT.
UM, COLLEAGUES, DID YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE BUDGET, UM, ON THIS ITEM, UH, CHAIR WILLIS.
OH, WE'LL START WITH, UH, CHAIR MORENO, SINCE HE, UH, IS ON THE COMMITTEE.
RYAN, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
AND LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE NEW LEADERSHIP OF THE ARBORETUM.
UM, THIS IS ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT WE LOOKED AT WHEN I WAS ON PARK BOARD AND TRYING TO ENSURE THAT OUR PARTNERS OR WERE CARRYING THEIR WEIGHT.
AND I'M JUST INTERESTED ON THE ENERGY AUDIT.
HAS ENERGY CONSUMPTION OR RENEWABLE ENERGY GONE UP OR DOWN?
[01:35:04]
HOW ARE WE DOING ON THAT TRANSITION TO LED LIGHTS AND MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE BEING ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS BUT ALSO TRYING TO REDUCE, UH, ENERGY, WHETHER IT BE WATER OR LIGHT, UM, AT THE ARBORETUM IN PARTICULAR? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT QUESTION.I'M THE NEW PRESIDENT AND CEO.
I'M ON DAY NINE OF THE JOB AND SO I APPRECIATE YOUR QUESTION.
I AM GOING TO DEFER THAT TO OUR CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, SHAWN JACKSON.
SHE'S BEEN THERE FOR NINE YEARS.
I KNOW THAT THE CITY DOES DO AN AUDIT EVERY FIVE YEARS.
THE LAST ONE WAS DONE IN JUNE OF 2019.
GOOD AFTERNOON, BRETT WILKIE, SUPERINTENDENT AND PARKS AND REC.
WE ARE DUE FOR ANOTHER AUDIT THAT, UM, IS YOUR EFFICIENCY LEVELS IN JUNE OF 2024.
UH, THE USAGE HAS GONE UP SLIGHTLY OVER THE YEARS.
UM, IT'S BEEN PRETTY STEADY UP UNTIL THIS LAST YEAR.
THIS PAST FISCAL YEAR, WATER JUMPED UP QUITE A BIT.
THANK YOU. I'LL ADD TO THAT A BIT.
HOW THAT'S IMPACTED THE ARBORETUM IS PROBABLY SIMILAR.
BUT SHAWN, DO YOU WANT TO ADD TO THAT? YEAH, THAT'S VERY TRUE.
WE DID ALSO HAVE A COUPLE OF WATER LEAKS THAT CONTRIBUTED TO THAT EXCESS AND WATER USAGE.
AND DO WE HAVE ANY, UH, WATER RETENTION PONDS OR COLLECTING OF BARRELS? WHAT ARE WE DOING TO UTILIZE, UH, AS MUCH WATER AS POSSIBLE AND REDUCING RUNOFF AS WELL? I'M STILL LEARNING WITH THE DALLAS ARBORETUM IS ABLE TO DO IN THAT AREA.
I KNOW THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR US MOVING FORWARD.
WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING STRATEGIC PLANNING IN FIRST AND SECOND QUARTER OF THIS YEAR WITH OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS, AND BEING A MORE SUSTAINABLE ORGANIZATION IS GOING TO BE AT THE FOREFRONT. BUT THANK YOU AND I DO WANT TO THANK THE ARBORETUM IN PARTICULAR.
UM, I BELIEVE THEY ARE ONE OF OUR BETTER PARTNERS WHEN IT COMES TO BEING SELF, SUSTAINED.
THEY HAVE ONE OF THE LOWER ENDS OF THE STIPENDS COMPARED TO OUR OTHER PARTNERS.
AND I THINK WE WANT TO CONTINUE WORKING ON THAT.
BUT BUT GOOD JOB SO FAR AND I LOOK FORWARD TO Y'ALL'S CONTINUED SUPPORT.
AND UM, THAT'S ALL I HAVE, MR. CHAIR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
CHAIRMAN. UM, ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS BY COMMITTEE MEMBERS BEFORE I MOVE ON TO, UH, CHAIR WILLIS.
ALL RIGHT. VICE CHAIR BLACKMON.
THANK YOU. AND GOOD TO SEE YOU GUYS AGAIN.
UM, SABINA IS COMING FROM SAN ANTONIO AND TAKING OVER AT THE ARBORETUM.
AND SO WE WELCOME YOU TO DALLAS AND TO DALLAS CITY HALL.
AND SO MY QUESTION IS, WE GIVE YOU JUST NORTH OF $400,000 A YEAR.
CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT BUYS US? LIKE WE'RE GIVING YOU THIS MONEY.
WHAT DO WE GET IN RETURN? I CAN START WITH THAT QUESTION.
IT'S A MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL PARTNERSHIP IN GENERAL ON A GLOBAL SCALE.
WE REALLY APPRECIATE ALL THE DOLLARS.
ALL KINDS OF THINGS HAPPEN WITH AGING STRUCTURES.
AND THE AMOUNT OF, UH, EVENTS THAT WE DO THERE EVERY SINGLE YEAR.
AND SO IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE THIS FUNDING OR IT WAS REDUCED, UM, COULD YOU MAKE IT UP IN OTHER WAYS? OR WHAT WOULD HAVE TO BE OFFSET WHAT IN OTHER WORDS, I MEAN, BECAUSE YOU DO HAVE THIS IN YOUR BUDGET.
SO HOW DOES THAT LOOK? AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR 990S, YOU USUALLY CARRY A LITTLE DEBT OVER.
AND IF YOU COULD EXPLAIN THAT AS WELL.
SO FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND OF BEING DONE IN THE TWO, THERE'S $2.5 MILLION IN EXCESS OF OUR FINANCIALS EVERY YEAR BECAUSE OF THE DEBT COVENANT THAT IS PART OF THE PARKING FACILITY THAT WAS BUILT BACK IN 2014, GIVE OR TAKE, WHICH HAS HELPED THE ARBORETUM GROW TO 1 MILLION VISITORS ANNUALLY.
[01:40:04]
AND JUST TO GIVE YOU KIND OF A NATIONAL BENCHMARK ON THAT, THERE ARE REALLY ONLY FIVE BOTANICAL GARDENS IN THE UNITED STATES THAT WELCOME MORE THAN 1 MILLION VISITORS.SO IT'S REALLY GREAT THAT THE CITY OF DALLAS HAS THAT.
IF WE WERE TO, UM, LOSE THOSE FUNDS OVER THE YEARS, UM, WE'D HAVE TO REALLY LOOK ACROSS A BROAD SPECTRUM OF PROGRAMS AND SERVICES THAT WOULD NEED TO BE CUT BACK.
BUT FOR NOW, IT WOULD REALLY IT WOULD HURT.
WE DO MORE THAN 2,000 PROGRAMS A YEAR, WHICH IS ASTRONOMICAL.
A LOT OF THEM BENEFIT SCHOOL CHILDREN.
AND I DO WANT TO SAY THAT YOU ALL HAVE THE LARGEST CHILDREN'S GARDEN IN THE NATION AS WELL.
THOSE KIND OF NUMBERS ARE USUALLY SEEN NATIONWIDE AT MUSEUMS OF NATURAL HISTORIES AND THE ZOO.
SO, SHAWN DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER THOUGHTS ON WHAT WE WOULDN'T DO IF WE HAD THAT $400,000? YEAH, I THINK I ECHO EVERYTHING THAT SABINA SAID.
SO WE SPENT WE SPENT ABOUT $500-$800,000 JUST IN MAINTAINING THEM EVERY YEAR.
AND THAT'S JUST THOSE TWO BUILDINGS.
AND SO I'VE BEEN TWICE I'M GOING TO PUT A PLUG IN FOR THE HOLIDAYS.
I ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY TO ATTEND.
UM, YOU CAN USE THE LITTLE PASSES, I THINK, IN SOME SITUATIONS.
AND THEN WE'LL BE GETTING OUR OTHER ALLOTMENTS TO GET, GET FOLKS THROUGH THE DOOR BECAUSE, UM, OPEN SPACE IS IMPORTANT AND BEING OUTDOORS AND GETTING THAT VITAMIN D, AND IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL.
Y'ALL SHOULD BE PROUD OF YOURSELF.
IT IS A IT IS AN ASSET AND A GEM IN EAST DALLAS.
AND IT'S ON WHITE ROCK LAKE IN THE MIDDLE OF DISTRICT NINE.
AND SO THOSE VISITORS, THEY STAY IN DISTRICT NINE AND THEY SPEND THEIR MONEY.
AND SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET A LITTLE TROLLEY TO GET THERE [LAUGHTER].
SO I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU AND ALL YOUR GROUPS AND TO PARKS FOR FOR GO AHEAD.
THANK YOU FOR MENTIONING THE TICKETS THAT THE ARBORETUM DOES.
UM, UM, GIFT TO THE CITY OF DALLAS, AND I HOPE THAT YOU ALL ENJOY THEM.
THAT VALUE IS $600,000 A YEAR.
SO I HOPE THAT YOU ALL DO ENJOY THOSE.
DID YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING RYAN? IF I COULD JUST ADD ONE PIECE OF CONTEXT.
SO ALTHOUGH THE STIPEND AMOUNT THAT THE CITY DOES CONTRIBUTE IS A SOMEWHAT MODEST AMOUNT IN COMPARISON TO THEIR OVERALL BUDGET, IT IS IMPORTANT TO POINT OUT THAT WE ARE THE LARGEST. THE CITY IS THE LARGEST DONOR, SO TO SPEAK, FROM THE ANNUAL OPERATING PERSPECTIVE.
AND SO ALTHOUGH AGAIN, IT'S A RELATIVELY SMALL PIECE OF THE OVERALL BUDGET, IT IS SIGNIFICANT IN THAT IT THE CITY IS THE LARGEST DONOR TO THE ARBORETUM ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.
AND I ASSUME THAT WE ARE MAINTAINING OUR CONTRACT WITH THEM AND WE'RE IN EVERYBODY'S IN COMPLIANCE.
CORRECT. HIS CONTRACT COMPLIANCE IS IS VERY IMPORTANT.
AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE ARE ENFORCED.
ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN WILLIS.
YEAH, I JUST WANTED TO LOOK AT THIS FROM A BROAD PERSPECTIVE.
AND YOU TOUCHED ON IT EARLIER.
SO WHAT THIS IS BORN OF THAT IS NOT REALLY SPECIFIC TO THE ARBORETUM IS THAT IN THE LAST BUDGET EXERCISE TO GET TO THE 2023-24 BUDGET, UM, IN THAT BUDGET PROCESS, WE WERE ASKING QUESTIONS AROUND DUPLICATION OF SERVICES, UM, EFFICIENCY OF DEPARTMENTS. AND AS WE STARTED EXPLORING THESE THINGS AND ASKING DIRECTORS AND THAT SORT OF THING, WE ULTIMATELY DECIDED THAT THAT ARENA WAS REALLY NOT THE PLACE TO BE WORKING THROUGH IT. AND WE KIND OF COMMITTED OR SEVERAL OF US COMMITTED, THAT WE WOULD TAKE THE COURSE OF THIS NEXT YEAR AND THROUGH THIS COMMITTEE UH, TO EXPLORE CERTAIN THINGS TO JUST, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT IF THERE WERE QUESTIONS AROUND EFFICIENCY, THAT WE WERE GETTING THOSE RESPONSES AND THAT UNDERSTANDING FROM DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS, THAT IF THERE WAS DUPLICATION OF SERVICES IN THE COMMUNITY, UM, THAT WE COULD IDENTIFY THAT AND KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH THE CITY INVESTMENT SHOULD BE.
AND SO THAT IS REALLY WHAT THIS STARTED WITH.
AND ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT CAME UP WAS ON OUR, OUR PARTNERSHIPS AND THEN THE PERCENTAGE OF THE BUDGET, I MEAN, THE PENNIES ARE GETTING SLIM AROUND HERE WITH STATE LEGISLATION, UM, YOU KNOW, PROPERTY TAX CAPS, THAT SORT OF THING.
UM, AND SO WE'VE, I MEAN, AND PLUS IT JUST BEING OUR JOB, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE HERE FOR.
AND SO, UM, THAT IS REALLY WHAT IT IS ABOUT IS THAT EXPLORATION.
[01:45:07]
FOR A TWO YEAR APPROVAL.SO THE 2024 BUDGET YEAH, WE'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THAT.
THAT'S FINE. UM, IT'S JUST LOOKING AT 2025, KNOWING THIS IS SOMETHING WE WANTED TO EXPLORE.
I MEAN, I GET THE BUDGETING PART.
WELCOME. I SHOULD HAVE LED WITH THAT.
SO REALLY, THAT'S WHAT IT'S ABOUT.
SO THAT IS WHY I APPRECIATE CHAIR BRINGING THIS UP TODAY SO WE COULD SHARE THAT THOUGHT.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU COUNCILWOMAN AND I APPRECIATE THE ADDITIONAL CONTEXT.
IS THE GOAL LIKE, IS THIS OUR GOAL TO TO ALWAYS BE A FUNDING SOURCE FOR THEM? AND IF THAT IS, THERE'S NOT A WRONG ANSWER.
I JUST WANT TO KNOW IF THAT'S THE GOAL OR IS THERE A GOAL FOR THEM TO BE SELF-SUFFICIENT AT SOME POINT? SO I WOULD ANSWER THAT QUESTION BY SAYING, WE HAVE A LOT OF PARTNERS THAT WE HAVE ENGAGED WITH OVER A PRETTY LONG PERIOD OF TIME, AND AS WE'VE SEEN THESE CONTRACTS BE PUT IN PLACE, WE HAVE CERTAINLY MADE AN EFFORT TO, UM GET TO A POINT WHERE THEY ARE BECOMING MORE SELF-SUFFICIENT OVER TIME.
A GOOD EXAMPLE WOULD BE THE FAIR PARK FIRST AGREEMENT, WHICH WAS IN 2019.
HOW DO WE DETERMINE HOW MUCH PERCENTAGE OF THEIR BUDGET REQUEST, THEIR TOTAL BUDGET THAT WE CONTRIBUTE TO, TO GIVE TO, LIKE THE ARBORETUM VERSUS THE ZOO VERSUS ANYONE ELSE, IS THERE A I DON'T KNOW, A PLAYBOOK FOR THAT, OR IS IT JUST SORT OF BASED ON EACH INDIVIDUAL REQUEST? IT'S REALLY KIND OF A CASE BY CASE BASIS.
AND SO THE ARBORETUM IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT IN THAT REGARD.
SO IT'S REALLY A CASE BY CASE BASIS.
AND GENERALLY SPEAKING THOSE FUNDING OBLIGATIONS ARE BAKED INTO THE CONTRACTS.
ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU FOR THAT.
AND WELCOME MISS CARR WE APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE.
AND AND REALLY I'M A BIG FAN OF THE ARBORETUM TOO.
THANK YOU GUYS I APPRECIATE YOU.
WE HAVE ONE REMAINING ITEM TODAY AND WE'LL TRY TO WRAP IT UP FAIRLY QUICKLY.
THANK YOU. COUNCILWOMAN WILLIS, OUR LAST ITEM IS IT'S ITEM F AND ITEM F.
WE'RE JUST GOING TO TAKE THEM TOGETHER.
AND IT'S THE MAYOR RECENTLY HAD A STATE OF THE CITY AND IN SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS SPEECH, HE, UM, TASKED THE GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE TO BEGIN PLANNING NOW FOR A 2025 CITY BUDGET THAT HOLDS SPENDING FLAT AND CUTS YOUR TAXES.
AND SO HE HAS CHARGED US WITH THAT.
WE HAVE ALREADY, AS A COMMITTEE, TAKEN UP THE, UM, GOAL OF MAXIMIZING OUR CITY REAL ESTATE.
AND ALSO WE COMMITTED EARLY ON AS PART OF THE BUDGET PROCESS TO, UM, GOING THROUGH VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS AND LOOKING FOR CUTS WHERE WE CAN UM, AND TO REALLY AND MAINLY FOCUS ON THE DEPARTMENTS THAT A LOT OF FOLKS HAD CONCERNS ABOUT DURING THE BUDGET PROCESS FOR THIS YEAR.
SO FROM, FROM MY STANDPOINT, THAT'S WHERE MY FOCUS IS.
UH, THIS IS A FORUM IN WHICH YOU CAN DO THAT NOW, AND I'M HAPPY TO HEAR IT AS WELL.
SO ALL MY BUDDIES AT THE HORSESHOE LEFT ME.
SO I'VE GOT I ONLY GOT MY VIRTUAL COLLEAGUES HERE.
ANYONE HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD? SPEAK NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE.
OKAY. UH, CHAIRWOMAN MENDELSOHN.
AND I HOPE THAT YOU WILL, LEAD THE DISCUSSION IN THAT WAY BECAUSE IT'S, UM.
[01:50:05]
IT'S NOT.IT'S ABOUT DEPARTMENTS THAT HAVE GROWN VERY SIGNIFICANTLY OVER CERTAIN PERIODS OF TIME, WHETHER WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HAVING GROWN 100% IN TEN YEARS OR 50% IN FIVE YEARS.
AND IF THAT'S EVEN THE ROLE OF CITY GOVERNMENT AND, YOU KNOW MAYBE, MAYBE WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE THAT LEVEL OF CONVERSATION, BUT WE CERTAINLY CAN EVALUATE, UM, WHAT THESE ADDITIONAL EXPENSES ARE.
SO THERE'S A WHOLE SERIES OF THINGS THAT, UM, SINCE YOU'RE SAYING SPEAK NOW OR HOLD YOUR PEACE.
WELL, THEN I'M GOING TO JUST SAY THERE'S THE MEMO.
UM, I REMAIN UNCHANGED FROM THAT LOCATION.
I WOULD ALSO WONDER IF, UM, WHILE IT'S THE CITY MANAGER'S PURVIEW AND REQUIREMENTS UNDER OUR CHARTER TO GIVE US A DRAFT BUDGET, WE ALL KNOW THAT WE PROVIDE A CERTAIN LEVEL OF INPUT, BUT THIS CAKE IS MOSTLY BAKED WHEN WE GET IT.
AND YOU CAN'T GO BACK AND TAKE OUT AN EGG, RIGHT? IF THE CAKE HAS THREE EGGS AND WE THINK IT SHOULD ONLY HAVE TWO, YOU CAN'T DO THAT AT THE POINT THAT WE GET THE DRAFT BUDGET.
SO, UM, PERHAPS THERE'S AN EXERCISE TO BE HAD IN WHAT IF WE CREATE OUR OWN BUDGET? WHAT WOULD THAT LOOK LIKE? AND, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A NUMBER OF BRIEFINGS WE'VE HAD WHERE I'M LIKE, THIS SHOULD BE FULLY FUNDED.
WE'RE NOT FULLY FUNDING OUR PENSION.
WE'RE NOT FULLY FUNDING STREETS SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE DEGRADATION.
THERE ARE CERTAIN, UM, STANDARDS THAT I THINK WE SHOULD ALL AGREE ON, THAT THESE ARE THE PRIORITIES WE NEED TO WE NEED TO HOLD OUR INFRASTRUCTURE IN A MANNER THAT ISN'T CONTINUING TO FAIL, AND START WITH THAT AND THEN LOOK AT WHAT ELSE DO WE HAVE.
I MEAN, THERE'S THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE ARE SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY ON.
AND JUST THINK ABOUT THIS, A $5 MILLION HR SOFTWARE.
AND I'M JUST PICKING ON THAT BECAUSE WE JUST TALKED ABOUT IT.
BUT WHEN WE HAVE A BUDGET DISCUSSION, I MEAN, WE'RE GETTING DOWN TO FIGHTS OVER $50,000.
SO ALL OF THAT TO SAY, THE OTHER THING IS REVENUE THAT WE'RE FOREGOING, WHETHER IT'S BECAUSE WE'RE GIVING TAX ABATEMENTS, WHETHER IT'S BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO A TIF, WHETHER IT'S BECAUSE IT'S A TIF THAT'S NOW EXTENDED FOR OTHER MEANS, THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY THAT WOULD HAVE COME TO THE CITY, THAT WOULD HAVE PAID FOR THINGS THAT WE EXPECT TO BE DONE, AND WE'RE GIVING UP THOSE DOLLARS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN.
SO ALL THAT TO SAY, I'M GLAD WE'RE DOING THIS EXERCISE.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIRWOMAN.
LIKE, IT'S IT IS OUR JOB TO QUESTION EVERYTHING.
AND THAT'S THE, THE THE HEART OF THIS, THIS GROUP, JUST LIKE THE ARBORETUM WAS HERE TODAY.
I HAD SEVERAL EMAILS ASKING, YOU KNOW, WHY ARE YOU BRINGING THEM UP HERE? YOU'RE GOING TO YOU'RE GOING TO JUST HURT THE ARBORETUM.
AND IT'S LIKE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT TO ASK THESE QUESTIONS OF OF EVERY DEPARTMENT.
UM, IT'S, IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY AS A COMMITTEE.
AND SO I JUST THINK THAT'S A GOOD POINT, THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD AND WE START DRILLING INTO SOME OF THESE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS, UM, AND THESE DIFFERENT FUNDING ITEMS, LIKE THE ONE YOU JUST MENTIONED, UH, YOU KNOW, IT MIGHT HURT SOME FEELINGS, BUT THAT'S THAT'S OUR JOB.
CHAIR ONE OF THE MY MY LAST COMMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS IS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE JUST HAD THIS BOND BRIEFING WHERE THEY DID NOT INCLUDE IT IN THE PROPOSITION AT ALL.
AND, YOU KNOW, OUR IT DEFICIT, HOWEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT, WE ALL KNOW JUST WALKING AROUND CITY HALL, WE HAVE SOME OLD TECH AND YOU CAN SEE THE LIST OF PROJECTS WHAT I WOULD RECOMMEND EVERYONE DO.
[01:55:02]
OUTSOURCED. AND SO I KNOW YOU HAVE ADVOCATED FOR PERHAPS REAL ESTATE BEING OUTSOURCED.WELL, I DON'T WANT TO PICK ON ANY DEPARTMENT, BUT MAYBE WE SAY, WELL, WHAT IF ALL SORTS OF DEPARTMENTS WERE OUTSOURCED? WHAT IF WE REALLY BECOME MORE OF A CONTRACT MANAGEMENT CITY HALL AS OPPOSED TO A MASSIVE STAFFING? AND SO I WOULD HOPE THAT YOU WILL LOOK AT THAT AS WELL.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR, DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? UH, YES. SO I GUESS THE QUESTION IS, UM, I MEAN, I'VE WORKED ON A BUDGET AT DISD.
IT'S PROBABLY COMPARABLE TO THIS.
UM, AND IT'S IT'S A DAUNTING TASK.
AND IF WE'RE GOING TO START GOING AT IT, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S LINE ITEM BY LINE ITEM OR WHATNOT.
I THINK WHAT WE NEED TO HAVE IS REALLY SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLES THAT HAS, LIKE, WE WANT TO SEE, UH, ANY PROGRAM THAT'S OLDER THAN FIVE YEARS BACK HERE.
UH, JACK, HOW LONG DOES I MEAN, IT'S A IT'S A IT'S A LONG, LENGTHY PROCESS AND WE DON'T DO WE DON'T I MEAN, IT'S SO I GUESS THE QUESTION IS IF YOU RECOMMENDED COMING HERE AND US HAVING A EYES ON THIS BUDGET, HOW WOULD THAT LOOK? JACK IRELAND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER.
SOME OF THE DEPARTMENTS THAT YOU HAD QUESTIONS ABOUT, SPECIFICALLY THROUGH THE BUDGET PROCESS CONVERSATION THAT I HAD WITH CHAIRMAN WEST IS IS TO BE BEGIN TO LOOK AT SOME OF THOSE AND ASK THOSE QUESTIONS OFF OF BUDGET CYCLE.
UM, SO THAT'S ONE WAY WE CAN APPROACH IT.
OR WE CAN TAKE CERTAIN TOPICS THAT YOU WANT TO LOOK AT BECAUSE.
UH, THERE IS A LOT OF SYSTEMS THAT WE MAINTAIN AS AN EXAMPLE IN IT, AND WE COULD OUTSOURCE IT, BUT YOU STILL HAVE TO PAY THE COST OF THE SYSTEMS AND THE PROFIT FOR WHOEVER YOU'RE GOING TO CONTRACT WITH.
SO, UH, THERE'S, THERE'S PROS AND CONS ABOUT, UH, OUTSOURCING ANYTHING.
UH, BUT IF YOU GUYS WANT TO COME TOGETHER WITH A LIST OF TYPES OF THINGS THAT YOU WANT US TO TO START LOOKING AT OFF OF THE CYCLE, UH, THEN WE CAN START WORKING ON THAT. I'LL WORK WITH THE CITY MANAGER AND, AND IDENTIFY A WAY THAT WE CAN BRING THAT TO THE COMMITTEE.
WELL, BUT BECAUSE I HAVE WORKED ON BUDGETS, I KNOW THAT THINGS CAN BE TUCKED AWAY AND HIDDEN.
IT CAN BE THEY CAN BE HIDDEN WITHIN CERTAIN WITHIN THE DEPARTMENTS.
I MEAN, I USED TO DO THAT WITH MONEY.
AND SO I GUESS THE THING IS I AS A COMMITTEE, WE PROBABLY SHOULD PUT TOGETHER SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLES AS HOW WE WANT TO TO DIRECT STAFF INTO BRINGING THIS BACK TO US.
BECAUSE I GUARANTEE YOU, WHEN THEY FLIP FLOP, THE, UH, IT OR PUBLIC WORKS BUDGET IN FRONT OF US, IT IS IT'S GOING TO BE IT'S GOING TO BE DAUNTING, THOSE BIG NUMBERS.
BUT LIKE EVERYTHING'S ON THE TABLE.
UH, WE WANT TO REVIEW EVERY STIPEND TO ARTS AND CULTURE.
WE WANT TO LOOK AT HOW WE'RE SPENDING WIDGET X, Y, AND Z.
I. BUT THAT IS GOING TO BE A I BECAUSE THIS IS A $4 BILLION CORPORATION.
AND TO DO IT DEPARTMENT BY DEPARTMENT.
HOW MANY DEPARTMENTS DO WE HAVE? 40 PLUS. YES.
SO WE WOULD BE HERE ALL NIGHT.
YES. AND SO MR. WEST HAD SPOKE BEFORE ABOUT TRYING TO WORK THROUGH ALL THE DEPARTMENTS OVER THE TWO YEAR TERMS OF THIS COMMITTEE AND NOT TRY TO GET THROUGH EVERYTHING BEFORE, YOU KNOW, AUGUST, WHEN WE DO PRESENT THE BUDGET, BUT START TAKING THE DEPARTMENTS THAT Y'ALL HAD THE MOST CONCERN ABOUT THIS PAST YEAR.
AND THE THING IS, IS I THINK, UM, THERE MAY BE CUTS TO SOME OF OUR SACRED COWS AND IS THAT IS THAT COMMITTEE, THIS COMMITTEE AND THIS COUNCIL WILLING TO DO THAT? I MEAN, IF YOU REALLY WANT TO BRING DOWN THE TAX RATE, THERE'S SOME PET PROJECTS THAT MAY HAVE TO BE GONE.
SO I GUESS THAT'S THE THING IS, I THINK WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND BEFORE WE START GETTING INTO THE NITTY GRITTY OF HOW THIS IS GOING TO WORK AND HOW.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S MAYBE, UH, MAYBE WE SEND YOU OUR FIVE THINGS OR SEND IT TO STAFF AND SAY, THIS IS BECAUSE I HAD MY GUIDING PRINCIPLES GOING THROUGH THE BUDGET. AND ONE OF THEM WAS, THERE'S NO SACRED COW.
UM, AND, AND START WORKING THROUGH THAT AND THEN START BRINGING THINGS THROUGH.
[02:00:03]
AND MAYBE IT IS BATCHED, RIGHT.PUBLIC SAFETY, MAYBE IN, UH, YOU KNOW, ARTS AND CULTURE OR QUALITY OF LIFE STUFF.
SO YOU BATCH IT AND OR HAVE SUBCOMMITTEES.
I DON'T KNOW, BUT IT'S THIS IS GOING TO BE I MEAN, IT'S GOING TO BE FUN.
THERE WILL BE SOME AHA MOMENTS AND I THINK THAT'S OKAY.
BUT I THINK WE NEED TO, UM, IF WE'RE GOING TO GET SERIOUS ABOUT THIS, THEN WE NEED TO GET ORGANIZED AND WE NEED TO GET FOCUSED AND AND IT NEEDS TO BE, I GUESS, FAIR ACROSS EVERY DEPARTMENT, NOT JUST 1 OR 2 DEPARTMENTS.
AND IT IS HARD WORK IN THAT MAYBE TEN YEARS AGO, WE WE DID A PROCESS THAT WE REFERRED TO AND AIR QUOTES HERE AS SUNSET REVIEW, WHERE WE DUG REALLY DEEP IN DEPARTMENTS AND BROUGHT FORTH INFORMATION.
AND COUNCIL MEMBERS DID NOT WANT TO MAKE ANY TYPES OF REDUCTIONS.
UH, THERE WAS ALWAYS A GROUP OF MEMBERS THAT SUPPORTED.
AND SO IT'S HARD TO MAKE THOSE KINDS OF DECISIONS.
UM, THANK YOU BOTH. GREAT COMMENTS.
UM, AND SO, YEAH, THE WAY WE WERE WORKING AND ARE GOING TO CONTINUE TO WORK TILL WE COME UP WITH SOMETHING MAYBE A LITTLE MORE FORMAL, AS JACK MENTIONED, IS WE TOOK THE ITEMS THAT WERE QUESTIONED HEAVILY DURING THE DURING THE BUDGET, ALL THOSE DEPARTMENTS.
AND THERE WERE SOME GUIDING PRINCIPLES THAT YOU WERE USING.
I KNOW IT WAS LIKE HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE WORKING FROM HOME VERSUS IN.
BUT, UM, THE BUDGET, HOW MUCH BUDGET INCREASE WE, WE INCURRED OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS? UM, SO LET'S JUST PULL THAT LIST AND WE COULD MAYBE HASH THAT OUT A LITTLE BIT MORE AND JUST GET SOME COMMENTS ON IT.
OKAY. I'LL WORK WITH YOU, SIR.
ALL RIGHT. UH, IT IS 3:11, AND THIS COMMITTEE MEETING IS ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.