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JUST JOINED AS WELL.DO WE HAVE A VISUAL ON THAT? OKAY.
[South Dallas Fair Park Opportunity Fund Advisory Board Meeting on August 26, 2024.]
GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED.I'LL NOW CALL THIS MEETING AT THE SOUTH DALLAS FOR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND BOARD TO ORDER.
IT IS MONDAY, AUGUST 26TH, UH, AND THE TIME IS 6:12 PM MS. LOWE, CAN WE GET STARTED WITH A ROLL CALL, PLEASE? OH, OKAY.
I WILL, UH, MANUALLY TAKE THE ROLE HERE.
PRESENT, UH, MS. KIMBERLY SIMS. PRESENT.
MR. CHRISTIAN MARQUEZ PRESENT.
MS. DESTINY UBA PRESENT? MS. DESTINY? DESTINY, WE COULDN'T HEAR YOU PRESENT.
UH, MR. TRENT HUGHES PRESENT? TRENT IS PRESENT.
AND I FORGOT AARON PEEVY, OF COURSE.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, EVERYBODY.
UH, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS, UH, PUBLIC SPEAKERS.
DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC SPEAKERS SIGNED UP THIS EVENING? OKAY.
MOVING ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER THREE, APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM THE JUNE 15TH, 2024, UH, REGULAR MEETING AND RETREAT.
UH, I KNOW WE WERE STILL WORKING ON PULLING THAT TOGETHER.
UH, SHOULD WE JUST PASS ON? OKAY.
UH, WE'RE WORKING ON PULLING TOGETHER THE, THE MINUTES FROM, UH, THE RETREAT.
SO, UH, THOSE ARE STILL IN PREPARATION AND SO WE'LL DEFER THAT AND, UH, WE'LL APPROVE THOSE, UH, AT THE NEXT MEETING.
AND FELLOW, CAN YOU ADVANCE SLIDE.
AND SO NOW WE'LL MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM, UH, NUMBER FOUR, WHICH IS A RECAP IN THE DISCUSSION OF THE AD HOC COMMITTEES ON MARKETING AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, UH, AS EVERYBODY KNOWS.
UH, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU ALL FOR ATTENDING THE RETREAT, UH, LAST MONTH.
UH, THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.
I THOUGHT A LOT OF GREAT IDEAS, UH, CAME OUT OF THERE AND HELP US ADVANCE SOME OF THOSE IDEAS.
UH, BASED ON FEEDBACK FROM THE BOARD, UH, IT WAS A GOOD IDEA FOR US TO CREATE SUBCOMMITTEES TO TRY TO ADVANCE SOME OF THESE IDEAS.
AND SO WHAT WE DID WAS CREATED THE MARKETING COMMITTEE AND THE SMALL BUSINESS, UH, DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE.
MARKETING COMMITTEE, OF COURSE, IS GONNA BE FOCUSED ON, UH, RETHINKING HOW, UH, WE STRATEGIZE, UH, OUR COMMUNICATION, UH, WITH THE COMMUNITY, UH, WHETHER THAT BE THROUGH, UH, PARTNERSHIPS, CONTENT CREATION, MEDIA COLLATERAL, ALL THOSE DIFFERENT THINGS.
UH, THE MARKETING COMMITTEE WILL BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE CITY OF DALLAS TO, UH, REIMAGINE HOW WE GET THE WORD OUT TO THE COMMUNITY AND HOW WE ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY.
UH, THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE WILL BE TASKED WITH, UH, BRAINSTORMING WAYS TO ATTRACT THE TYPE OF BUSINESSES THAT WE WANNA SEE, UH, APPLY TO OUR FUND.
UH, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE RECRUIT, TRAIN, ATTRACT, GET 'EM IN THROUGH THE SYSTEM, GET 'EM THROUGH THE PIPELINE, UH, AND GET 'EM OUT THE OTHER END, UH, IN THE MOST EFFICIENT WAY POSSIBLE, WHILE ALSO ENGAGING, UH, AND, AND ENGAGING SOME OF THE, UH, RELATIONSHIPS THAT WE AS THE BOARD HAVE OURSELVES, UH, IN CONJUNCTION WITH SOME OF THE THINGS THAT COME IN TO THE CITY OF DALLAS'S ECO DEV DEPARTMENT NOW.
SO HOW DO WE MERGE THOSE TWO AND THEN WORK TOGETHER AND, AND HAVE A ROBUST PIPELINE OF PEOPLE THAT WE CAN GET READY TO GO THROUGH THE PROGRAM, UH, AND, UH, COME OUT ON THE OTHER END WITH LOANS.
SO, UH, TWO CHAIRS WERE APPOINTED FOR EACH OF THESE SUBCOMMITTEES.
THE CHAIR OF, UH, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU ALL FOR THANK YOU ALL WHO SIGNED UP TO PARTICIPATE.
AND IF YOU HAVEN'T SIGNED UP, IT'S NOT TOO LATE TO DO SO.
UH, YOU CAN JOIN WHENEVER YOU SO FEEL MOVED.
UH, WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE YOUR IDEAS AND ALL OF YOUR FEEDBACK AND INPUT.
BUT THE, UH, CHAIR OF THE MARKETING SUBCOMMITTEE IS MR. CARL ENRIQUEZ, UH, AND THE CHAIR OF THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE IS MS. KIMBERLY SIMS. SO, UH, I WANNA TAKE A MOMENT TO THANK BOTH OF THEM, UH, FOR, UH, BEING WILLING TO ASSIST IN AND CHAIR THESE SUBCOMMITTEES AND DRIVE FORWARD SOME OF THE IDEAS, UH, THAT WERE BIRTHED OUT OF THE RETREAT THAT WE HAD, UH, UH, LAST MONTH.
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ABOUT, UH, WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO DO.UM, AND MY HOPE IS THAT EACH MEETING, EACH ONE OF OUR REGULAR BOARD MEETINGS, UH, WE'LL HAVE A CARVE OUT, UH, FOR TIME, FOR SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATES, UH, SO THAT WE CAN GET UPDATES FROM, UH, ANY ACTIVITIES THAT HAVE BEEN, UH, IN, IN, UH, IN PROCESS BETWEEN MEETINGS.
SO, UH, IF ANY OF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS, UH, OR ANYTHING THAT YOU'D LIKE TO RUN BY EITHER ONE OF THE COMMITTEES, UH, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO JUST PUSH IT OVER TO THE CHAIRS OF THOSE RESPECTIVE COMMITTEES, UH, AND, AND GET YOUR IDEAS OUT.
AND, UH, THEY WILL MAKE SURE TO, TO TAKE THOSE INTO ACCOUNT AND, AND, AND GET THOSE, UH, DISCUSSED IN, IN, UH, IN THE PROPER MANNER, UH, WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF, UH, THEIR OWN SEPARATE MEETINGS.
SO, UM, DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR, OR COMMENTS ON THAT? IF NOT, UM, CHAIR, DO YOU HAVE A COMMENT, MA'AM? SIMS, I JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYONE FOR THEIR PATIENCE.
WE WANTED TO WAIT, UM, UNTIL WE HAVE THIS MEETING ABOUT REALIGNMENT AND UNDERSTANDING BETTER WHICH STAFF WOULD SUPPORT US BEFORE WE SET EITHER, UM, SUBCOMMITTEE MEETINGS.
SO, UM, YOU SHOULD BE HEARING FROM BOTH OF US IN THE NEAR FUTURE, UH, I'M SORRY, IN THE NEAR FUTURE, UH, ABOUT, UM, ABOUT UPCOMING DATES.
BUT WE, WE ARE GONNA BE MOVING AHEAD WITH THOSE MEETINGS.
THANK YOU FOR THAT, MS. SIMS AND MR. MARQUEZ, CHAIRMAN MARQUEZ, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO, UH, MR. CHAIRMAN RODRIGUEZ? DO ANYTHING GONNA ADD TO THAT? EXCUSE ME.
UH, I WOULD, I WOULD JUST SECOND WHAT, UH, MS. SIMS MENTIONED, UM, NOW THAT WE'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO READ, ADJOURN OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED, UH, MEETINGS AS A BOARD, UM, AND UNDERSTAND EXACTLY HOW, HOW STAFF IS GONNA SUPPORT US MOVING FORWARD, UM, BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR SOME COMMUNICATION FROM US TO SET A CADENCE FOR OUR SUBCOMMITTEE MEETINGS.
AND WITH THAT, UM, THAT'S A PERFECT SEGUE INTO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE.
UH, WHICH AS YOU KNOW, I, I KNOW A LOT OF, UH, OUR CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS WEREN'T AROUND, BUT THE OPPORTUNITY FUND, UH, USED TO BE WITH ECO DEV BEFORE BEING MOVED OVER TO THE SMALL BUSINESS CENTER.
AND SO NOW IT'S BACK AT ECO DEV AND I'M EXCITED TO WORK WITH ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, UM, HEATHER SKA, WHO I'VE WORKED WITH IN THE PAST, MS. DELLA LOWE, UH, WHO I KNOW, I KNOW A LOT OF YOU HAVE MET.
UH, AND IF YOU HAVEN'T, UH, PLEASE TAKE SOME TIME, UH, TO, TO, TO GET TO MEET, UH, BOTH OF THEM.
BUT I'M EXCITED ABOUT, UH, WHAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO IN ECO DEV AND SOME OF THE RESOURCES THAT WE'LL HAVE AT OUR DISPOSABLE, AT OUR DISPOSAL, UH, TO IMPLEMENT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT, THAT WE'RE GONNA DO.
SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO NOW IS WE'RE GONNA HAVE A STAFF BRIEFINGS ON WHAT THE REALIGNMENT LOOKS LIKE, JUST THE BRIEF RECAP NOW THAT THINGS HAVE, HAVE TAKEN SHAPE A LITTLE BIT MORE, UH, GET SOME INFORMATION ON WHO THE NEW, UH, BOARD LIAISON AND CONTACTS WILL BE.
UH, AND THEN WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES AND CAPABILITIES THAT WE HAVE.
AND SO, UH, HEATHER, WHAT, WHAT I THOUGHT WE'D DO IS TAKE THOSE FIRST TWO BULLET POINTS AND, UH, GO OVER THOSE AND THEN PAUSE FOR QUESTIONS, AND THEN WE'LL, WE'LL ROLL INTO THE NOFA STUFF AFTER THAT, IF THAT THAT'S OKAY.
UH, DELLA, CAN YOU ADVANCE THE SLIDE ONE MORE? UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AS YOU KNOW, SMALL BUSINESS CENTER OFFICIALLY WOUND DOWN ON AUGUST 1ST, 2024.
UM, AND WITH THAT, THE SOUTH ELSE FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY CENTER RETURNED BACK TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
AND WE ARE, I MEAN, WE, WE'VE HAD ECO OR THE OPPORTUNITY, UM, IT USED TO BE THE TRUST FUND, BUT THAT HAS BEEN WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT OFF AND ON FOR QUITE A WHILE.
UM, AND WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE IT BACK.
UM, SO WE RIGHT NOW ARE A LITTLE BIT SHORT STAFFED, SO AS YOU ASK FOR PATIENCE, I'M ASKING FOR A LITTLE PATIENCE AS WELL.
UM, BECAUSE WE DID NOT, WHILE THE SVC HAD SEVEN POSITIONS THAT WERE DEALING WITH THE SMALL BUSINESS FUNCTIONS OVERALL, UH, WE RECEIVED THREE POSITIONS AND WE HAD TO FILL ALL OF THOSE POSITIONS.
SO NONE OF THE STAFF FROM THE SMALL BUSINESS CENTER ENDED UP TRANSFERRING TO OUR DEPARTMENT.
UM, SO WE WENT THROUGH WITH NEW HIRES, UM, AND THEY WILL NOT COME ON BOARD INTO OUR DEPARTMENT UNTIL OCTOBER 1ST.
UM, SO RIGHT NOW IT'S ME AND GABBY CASTILLO WHO IS IN THE BACK.
UM, AND SHE IS WORKING THROUGH THE COMPLIANCE OH, THANK YOU, GABBY, FOR STANDING UP.
UM, AND SHE IS WORKING THROUGH THE COMPLIANCE OF ALL THE EXISTING CONTRACTS.
UM, AS YOU KNOW, THERE'S QUITE A FEW NOFA CONTRACTS.
THERE'S AN ADDITIONAL AMOUNT OF NOFA S TO GET OUT.
UH, THERE'S OPPORTUNITY FUND LOANS.
AND SO WE'RE JUST WORKING THROUGH KIND OF ALL THE, THE PROJECTS, UM, TO GET BROUGHT UP TO SPEED.
UM, AND I FORGOT TO INTRODUCE MYSELF.
I'M AN ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
UM, I OVERSEE THE BUSINESS AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT FUNCTIONS.
UM, AND I HAVE BEEN WITH THE CITY FOR LIKE 19 YEARS.
UM, I PUT MY EMAIL UP THERE SO EVERYBODY CAN HAVE IT.
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NUMBER AND MY CELL PHONE NUMBER, UM, SO YOU CAN REACH ME AT ANY TIME, UH, THAT YOU WOULD NEED TO.UH, SO ON THE NEXT, UH, NEXT SLIDE, DELLA.
UM, AND THEN JUST A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE.
UH, WE DO HAVE DEDICATED ACCOUNTS PAYABLE STAFF, AND I THINK THAT WAS ONE OF THE STRUGGLES WITH THE SBC.
THEY DIDN'T REALLY HAVE A, A BUILT OUT ACCOUNTING STAFF.
UM, WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT, WE HAVE MULTIPLE FUNDING PROGRAMS. RIGHT NOW, THEY'RE CURRENTLY SIZED FOR PROJECTS THAT ARE $2 MILLION OR HIGHER.
WE HAVE TO GO TO CITY COUNCIL TO GET, UM, COUNCIL APPROVAL FOR INCENTIVES FOR SMALL BUSINESSES, UH, SMALL BUSINESS FUNDING, WHICH WE INTEND TO DO PROBABLY IN OCTOBER OF THIS YEAR.
UM, AND ALSO WE RIGHT NOW, UNDER OUR EXISTING PROGRAMS CAN FUND BOTH FOR AND NONPROFIT PROJECTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT.
UM, AND THAT NONPROFIT PROJECTS IS A LITTLE BIT NEW SINCE THE LAST TIME WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY FUND.
UH, PREVIOUSLY WE COULD ONLY FUND NEW MARKETS TAX CREDIT PROJECTS, BUT NOW WE ALSO CAN DO COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS LIKE THE BONTON HEALTH AND WELLNESS CENTER, UM, WHICH WE DID END UP FUNDING UNDER OUR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ARM.
UM, AND THEN ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE HAVE ARE PROBABLY SLIGHTLY ENHANCED RESEARCH CAPABILITIES.
WE HAVE MULTIPLE STAFF WHO CAN WORK ON GIS THINGS.
WE HAVE LABOR MARKET DATA SUBSCRIPTION.
WE HAVE FULL ACCESS TO DEMOGRAPHIC AND OTHER DATA SOURCES.
SO IF YOU HAVE SOME DATA QUERIES OR YOU WANT SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, WE'LL BE ABLE TO PULL THAT TYPE OF INFORMATION FOR YOU.
UH, SO THAT'S A SUPER QUICK OVERVIEW WITH THAT, I WILL PAUSE FOR QUESTIONS.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, FROM THE BOARD? UH, MR. MARQUEZ? I SEE YOUR HAND.
UM, HEATHER, MY QUESTION IS FOR YOU, UM, THANK YOU FOR THIS BRIEF INTRODUCTION AND, AND RESOURCES THAT YOU HAD.
I, I WASN'T ON THE BOARD WHEN IT WAS WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT THE FIRST TIME, AND I'M GLAD TO BE HERE.
UM, I DO HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE GIS DATA.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU GUYS HAVE INTERNALLY IN YOUR DEPARTMENT, OR IS THIS SOMETHING THAT LIKE YOU GUYS SHARE WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS WHEN IT COMES TO GATHERING DATA? YEAH, I MEAN, THE CITY OBVIOUSLY MAINTAINS A WHOLE GIANT GIS DATABASE, BUT WE HAVE TWO STAFF WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT WHO ARE GIS ANALYSTS OR GS COORDINATORS.
SO THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO CREATE GISI MEAN, PRETTY MUCH WHATEVER YOU CAN THINK OF, IF THERE'S A DATA SOURCE FOR IT OR WE CAN CREATE A DATA SOURCE, WE CAN BUILD IT FOR YOU.
UH, I THINK I SAW MS. PEAVY'S HAND.
UM, I WAS JUST GONNA SAY THAT WE'RE EXCITED TO BE WITH YOU ALL.
UM, WONDERFUL TO MEET YOU GUYS, AND REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT DOES FEEL VERY POSITIVE AS FAR AS, UH, EXPANDED OPPORTUNITIES AND LOOKING FORWARD TO, YOU KNOW, LEVERAGING THOSE FOR THE COMMUNITY.
THANK YOU, MS. PEEVY, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, UH, OR COMMENTS FROM THE BOARD? HEARING, HEARING NONE.
UM, HEATHER, JUST, JUST A COUPLE QUICK QUESTIONS.
UH, I KNOW THAT THERE'S GONNA BE A NEW STAFFER COMING ON, OR ANOTHER COUPLE STAFFERS COMING ON BOARD.
UM, HOW, HOW DO YOU ENVISION THOSE TWO STAFFERS, UM, LIAISING AND OR INTERACTING WITH, WITH OUR SUBCOMMITTEES? SHOULD OUR SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS PRIMARILY, UH, LIAISE WITH, WITH THEM DIRECTLY? OR HOW, HOW, UH, WHAT KIND OF SYSTEM DO YOU ENVISION THERE? YEAH, SO I THINK WE'LL HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT AND SEE WHAT WORKS THE BEST.
BUT I'M IN, I'M ANTICIPATING THAT I WILL HAVE ONE STAFF WHO'S PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY IS TO BE THE POINT OF CONTACT, UM, WITH THE BOARD SO THEY CAN WORK WITH YOU AND WITH THE SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS TO GET THINGS POSTED AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.
UM, BUT WE DON'T HAVE THAT PERSON ON BOARD YET.
SO IN THE INTERIM, YOU KNOW, GABBY AND I CAN HELP WITH WHATEVER NEEDS TO GET POSTED.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN ALWAYS REACH OUT TO ME DIRECTLY.
YOU CAN ALWAYS REACH OUT TO GABBY DIRECTLY.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER PERSON WHO REALLY IS A PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND.
I'M ALSO ENVISIONING WE'LL HAVE SOMEBODY WHO, AND GABBY HAS STEPPED INTO THIS ROLE, UM, GRACIOUSLY 'CAUSE THIS IS NOT WHAT SHE WAS DOING TWO WEEKS AGO, UM, TO REALLY HELP US ON COMPLIANCE, TO GET EVERYTHING UP TO SPEED.
AND I ANTICIPATE WE'LL HAVE ONE DESIGNATED PERSON TO WORK THROUGH ALL THE COMPLIANCE, UM, ON THESE AGREEMENTS AND ON THE LOANS, AND MAKING SURE EVERYTHING IS UP TO DATE ON PAYMENTS AND ALL THAT TOO.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE GENERAL SMALL BUSINESS STAFF, UM, THAT WILL WORK CLOSELY.
I MEAN, WE'RE GONNA BE A TEAM, RIGHT? BUT IT'LL BE, BE A PROBABLY THREE TO FOUR PERSON TEAM, AND WE'LL WORK CLOSELY TOGETHER.
UH, I JUST WANTED TO ASK YOU THAT JUST, JUST FOR CLARITY, THAT
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TO HELP OUT OUR MM-HMM.UH, AND I SUSPECT WE'LL HEAR MORE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SOME, SOME OF THE TECHNOLOGY AND, AND CAPABILITIES THAT, THAT WE HAVE AND, UM, UH, HEAR MORE ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT ARE ALREADY IN PROGRESS THAT ARE ALREADY EXISTING AS IT RELATES TO, YOU KNOW, COLLATERAL THAT WE HAVE FOR, FOR THE FUND AS IT RELATES TO LOANS AND GRANTS AND ALL THAT, THAT SORT OF THING.
UH, AND THEN MARRY THAT WITH, WITH SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT, THAT COME FROM THE SUBCOMMITTEES AND, AND THAT SORT OF THING.
IS, IS, IS THAT, AM I SPEAKING OUTTA TURN THERE, OR? NO, AND I MEAN, CERTAINLY WE CAN ALSO LEVERAGE THE COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT.
SO IF YOU HAVE SOME IDEAS ON WHAT YOU WANT, BUT YOU WANT IT TO LIKE, BE GRAPHIC DESIGN, YOU KNOW, AND MAKE IT LOOK PRESENTABLE AND CUSTOMER FRIENDLY AND COMMUNITY ORIENTED, WE CAN CERTAINLY SEND IT TO THEM TO DO THAT.
UM, SO LIKE IF YOU GIVE US THE VERBIAGE, WHICH IS WHAT THE CHALLENGE IS, THEY CAN CERTAINLY HELP WITH LAYOUT AND STUFF.
UM, AND THEN WE OBVIOUSLY CAN PUT THINGS THROUGH THE CITY SOCIAL MEDIA, UH, CHANNELS ARE SOCIAL MEDIA CHA CHANNELS, UM, TO MAYBE HELP WITH SOME OUTREACH TOO.
SO WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO, IT SOUNDS LIKE, TO BE AS CREATIVE AS WE CAN BE WITH, WITH THIS AND, AND HAVE THE SUPPORT AND, AND RESOURCES AS FULL, UH, POWER AND BACKING OF THE CITY TO, TO DO SOME OF THIS STUFF.
AND THANK, AND BY THE WAY, THANKS GABBY.
I DON'T THINK WE GOT A CHANCE TO, TO, TO RECOGNIZE, UH, YOU, DID YOU WANT TO TAKE A QUICK MOMENT TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF TO EVERYBODY? SURE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR, UM, ALLOWING US TO GIVE YOU A BIT OF BACKGROUND OF WHO WE ARE AND WHAT THE OFFICE IS RELEVANT WILL DO.
AS HEATHER MENTIONED, I AM HERE TO HELP YOU.
UM, I AM NEW INTO THE, THE CLIENTS FOR, FOR THIS, BUT I, I'M READY TO, TO LEARN AND TO HELP YOU AND, BUT I CAN, SO FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT WITH DURING ANY QUESTION.
ARE ANY, UH, QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK, UH, FROM THE BOARD? MS. SIMS? UM, MS. KSKA, DOES THE DEPARTMENT HAVE A DEDICATED PIO TO SUPPORT THEM? OKAY.
I DON'T THINK, I MEAN, OTHER THAN LIKE POLICE AND FIRE, I'M NOT SURE THAT ANYBODY HAS A DEDICATED PIO NO.
DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION, MS. SIM OR IS OKAY? OKAY.
ANYBODY ELSE? ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK, UH, FROM ANYBODY ELSE ON THAT? UH, MR. MARQUEZ, I SEE YOUR HAND.
I KNOW THAT WE'RE GONNA BE HIRING THREE NEW INDIVIDUALS TO START IN OCTOBER AND KIND OF, IT'S A SMALL TEAM, BUT MIGHTY HAVE WE HAVE, WE CAME UP WITH A PLAN TO DEAL WITH, OR, YOU KNOW, INTERACT WITH THE PEOPLE THAT ARE CURRENTLY APPLYING.
I KNOW IT'S, YOU KNOW, JUST GIVEN TO YOU GUYS THE LAST COUPLE WEEKS, BUT JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE TAKING CARE OF THE CLIENTS THAT ARE IN THE PIPELINE ALREADY AND MAKING SURE WE HAVE A STRATEGIC PLAN TO TAKE CARE OF THEM JUST BECAUSE OF THE, THE, YOU KNOW, THE BAD TASTE IN THE COMMUNITY'S MOUTH ABOUT WHAT WE'VE DONE THE LAST COUPLE YEARS.
SO I'M JUST CURIOUS TO KNOW IF WE HAVE A PLAN FOR THAT.
YEAH, SO FOR THE EXISTING GRANTEES ON THE NOFA SIDE, ALL OF THEM, WE'VE TOUCHED ALL OF THEM MULTIPLE TIMES.
UM, SO I THINK WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE IN FAIRLY GOOD SHAPE.
YOU, YOU KNOW, FAIRLY GOOD SHAPE CONSIDERING THE TRANSITION, UM, FOR THE PROJECTS IN THE PIPELINE, WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH THAT.
BUT IF WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE ACTIVE, WE'VE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH THEM AS WELL.
UM, LOOKING THROUGH AND GETTING SOME COMMUNITY FEEDBACK ON APPLICATIONS AND LOOKING AT SOME OF THE NOFA APPLICATIONS, I THINK WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO DEVELOP AN APPROACH TO, UM, STREAMLINE SOME OF THOSE AND MAKE THEM A LITTLE MORE USER FRIENDLY.
BECAUSE I THINK WE'RE NOT ALWAYS GETTING THE INFORMATION THAT WE REALLY NEED TO MAKE GOOD DECISIONS.
BUT WE HAVEN'T STARTED THAT PROCESS YET.
THAT'S LIKE A, ONCE I HAVE SOME PEOPLE ON BOARD TO ACTUALLY DO SOME OF THAT WORK, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE WILL BE DOING.
UM, SO WE, YEAH, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, AND I HAVE A LIST OF, YOU KNOW, WE'VE WENT THROUGH ALL THE FILES, WE HAVE EVERYTHING KIND OF, WE KNOW WHAT THE CURRENT STATUS IS.
WE KNOW WHO'S BEHIND ON PAYMENTS.
WE KNOW WHO'S, UH, ON BOTH OUR END, ON THEIR END.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THAT TO MAKE SURE IT'S AS SMOOTH OF A TRANSITION AS POSSIBLE.
THERE WILL STILL BE SOME BUMPS, BUT WE, WE REALLY ARE TRYING
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT, UH, MS. LAP LOPEZ, UH, MR. MARQUEZ DID THAT, THAT A, UH, ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, SIR? YES.
UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, UH, OR FEEDBACK, UH, BEFORE WE, UH, ROLL INTO THE, THE UPDATE ON THE NOFA? UH, I'M HEARING NONE.
SO, UH, MS. KASKA, I'LL LET YOU GO AHEAD AND, AND, UH, ROLL INTO THE STATUS AND THE UPDATE ON, UH, THE 2024 NOFA AWARDEES AND THE FOLKS WHO ARE IN THE PIPELINE, UH, FOR THE PROCESS FOR THE SECOND ROUND.
SO FOR THE ONES, THE STATUS OF THE FEBRUARY 24 NOFA, ALL
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THREE OF THOSE ARE UNDER CONTRACT.WE HAVE A METHOD TO GET FILES FROM THEM.
THEY KNOW HOW TO SUBMIT THEIR REPORTS.
UM, WE ARE WORKING THROUGH THE FIRST PAYMENT REQUEST FOR ABIDE HEALTH SERVICES.
UM, AND THEN IN TERMS OF THE NOFA THAT APPLIED IN APRIL OF 2024, MOST RECENTLY, AS YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE I THINK THIS WAS BRIEFED AT YOUR RETREAT, UM, IN JUNE, WAS THAT JUNE? JUNE, OKAY.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE DIDN'T RECEIVE ANY SCORECARDS FROM SBC, SO WE HAD TO RESCORE EVERYTHING.
SO WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH THAT.
UM, WE ANTICIPATE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO RECOMMEND BETWEEN ONE AND THREE AT THE NEXT BOARD MEETING FOR, UM, YOUR REVIEW TO SEE IF YOU WANT TO PROVIDE FUNDING FOR THEM.
UM, AND THEN, YEAH, I MEAN, THAT'S BASICALLY THE, THE CURRENT STATUS OF THE APRIL, 2024, NO, THOSE, YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ON THAT.
IS THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK, UH, ON THAT UPDATE? MS. ENRIQUEZ? UH, MS. SKA, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
UM, JUST TO MAKE SURE I CAUGHT, I CAUGHT THE, THE TIMELINE YOU SAID YOU'RE TARGETING NEXT MEETING TO HAVING THAT INFORMATION OUT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK? I'M SORRY.
I THINK YOU MENTIONED THIS ALREADY, MS. SKA, BUT THERE HAS BEEN COMMUNICATION WITH THOSE WHO HAVE APPLIED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE NEW TIMELINE IS.
I, THE, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.
ON THE APRIL 24 APPLICANTS, I AM NOT SURE WHAT SBC SENT OUT.
I DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE, I ACTUALLY DON'T THINK WE HAVE RETOUCHED THEM, AND SO WE SHOULD DO THAT.
SO WE WILL TAKE CARE OF THAT THIS WEEK.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? UH, MR. MARQUEZ, IS THAT YOUR END OR YOU, OR DID YOU RAISE YOUR HAND? YEAH, SO I JUST WANNA CLARIFY, THE PEOPLE THAT DID THE NOFO FOR APRIL HAVE NOT BEEN CONTACTED SINCE, IS THAT CORRECT? I CAN ONLY SAY THAT WE HAVE NOT CONTACTED THEM SINCE AUGUST 1ST.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THE UPDATE? AND I JUST, I JUST WANNA ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY, UH, THE, I I, I ASK FOR PATIENCE WITH, UH, THIS TRANSITION.
'CAUSE IT'S, IT'S A LOT OF STUFF THAT HAS TO BE TRANSFERRED OVER
UH, YOU KNOW, I, I'VE SEEN IT FIRSTHAND AND, UH, THE, THE ECO DEV DEPARTMENT IS, IS DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO GET CAUGHT UP.
BUT THERE, THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT, THAT NEED TO BE CAUGHT UP ON AND THEY'RE WORKING AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE.
AND I ANTICIPATE, UM, AS MS. LIPSKA SAID EARLIER, FOR, UH, THERE TO BE A SMOOTHIE MECHANISM COME OCTOBER 1ST, UH, ONCE THE NEW STAFF ON BOARDS, UH, 'CAUSE THEY'RE GONNA BE RUNNING AS HARD AS THEY CAN TO GET EVERYTHING CAUGHT UP, UH, IN GET PEOPLE TOUCHED AND, AND, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT WE'LL EVEN BE IN A POSITION TO EVEN REVIEW, UH, FOLKS FOR APPROVAL, UM, ESPECIALLY HAVING A TWO MONTH GAP WHERE NOTHING WAS ESSENTIALLY DONE AND THEY WEREN'T TOUCHED, UH, IS SORT OF A FEAT IN OF ITSELF.
SO, UH, I URGE PATIENTS WITH EVERYBODY, AT LEAST FOR THESE NEXT 60 DAYS, UH, WHILE THEY WORK THROUGH THAT PROCESS AND, AND YOU GET CAUGHT UP ON THIS STUFF.
SO, UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK ON, ON THE UPDATES, IF NOT REALLY QUICKLY? MS. LIPSKA, UH, YOU HAD MADE MENTION OF THE FACT THAT, UH, YOU DON'T THINK THAT WE'RE GETTING A LOT OF THE INFORMATION THAT, THAT WE'RE TRYING TO EXTRACT FROM SOME OF THE APPLICATIONS.
UM, ARE THOSE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AND ARE THOSE THINGS THAT, UH, MAYBE OUR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE COULD HELP WORK THROUGH OR TALK, TALK ABOUT? YEAH, I MEAN, I THINK THAT THERE'S A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO WRITE THE APPLICATION TO LEAD MORE CLOSELY INTO WHAT SHOULD BE IN THE CONTRACTS.
UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A CLEAR SCOPE OF WORK AND NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, I'M RUNNING A PROGRAM, BUT I'M RUNNING A PROGRAM FROM FOUR TO SIX AND WE'RE MEETING TWO DAYS A WEEK TYPE OF THING, AND WE'RE GONNA HOLD 12 INFORMATION SESSIONS RATHER THAN WE'RE HOLDING, YOU KNOW, A COMMUNITY EVENT.
SO, LIKE, YOU KNOW, IT'S MUCH EASIER FOR US TO KNOW THAT PEOPLE MEET THEIR DELIVERABLES WHEN WE KNOW WHAT THOSE ARE.
UM, AND I THAT, AT LEAST IN THE, THE NOFA RESPONSES WE'VE REVIEWED, GETTING THAT LEVEL OF DETAIL HAS BEEN REALLY, REALLY HARD TO SEE.
UM, I THINK THE BUDGET SUBMISSIONS HAVE BEEN FAIRLY GOOD.
YOU KNOW, WE KNOW WHAT THE, WHAT WE'RE PAYING ON, BUT LIKE GUARANTEEING THAT THE PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT IS ALSO GOOD, THAT THERE SEEMS TO BE A DISCONNECT THERE.
[00:25:01]
AND SO I THINK WE CAN WORK THROUGH WRITING A TIGHTER APPLICATION, UM, AND SO THAT THEY'RE ACTUALLY RESPONDING WITH THE INFORMATION WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO MAKE GOOD DECISIONS ON WHAT TO FUND.UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK, UH, FROM ANYBODY ON THE BOARD, UM, ON THIS ITEM? UH, MR. MR. ENRIQUE, MS. LECO, I JUST WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR THAT.
UM, DEFINITELY NEEDS TO BE A, A MORE DETAILED, I THINK THAT'S BEEN A SENTIMENT OF OURS SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR.
UH, I THINK THAT'S GONNA BE A HUGE CONTRIBUTION TO, TO THE OUTREACH EFFORT.
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT.
UH, I WOULD ALSO SAY IT LOOKS LIKE THAT'S PROBABLY AN ISSUE ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT APPLICATIONS AS WELL.
UM, WE NEED TO HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT THE PROJECT IS, AND WE JUST NEED TO BE CLEARER ON WHAT WE ACTUALLY NEED TO BE ABLE TO MOVE THINGS FORWARD.
MAYBE NOT FOR NEXT MEETING, BUT LIKE
AND WITH THAT, I'LL LET YOU, UH, UH, JUST SEGUE THAT INTO THE, UH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, UH, ALONG PIPELINE.
UM, SO WE DO HAVE TWO APPLICATIONS IN THE PIPELINE.
ONE IS ACTUALLY ONE THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING THROUGH ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE THAT ACTUALLY CAME INTO OUR OFFICE PRIOR TO US HAVING THE OPPORTUNITY FUND COME BACK TO US.
UM, BUT I DO THINK IT'S A GOOD PROJECT TO PARTIALLY FUND OR WITH THIS OPPORTUNITY FUND MONEY GIVEN WHERE IT'S LOCATED, UM, AND GIVEN KIND OF WHAT THEIR FINANCING NEEDS ARE BECAUSE THEY'RE A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR A LOAN.
UM, WHICH IS A, A TOOL THAT WE DON'T HAVE SUPER WELL IN OUR TRADITIONAL TOOLBOX FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BECAUSE IT WILL BE REVENUE PRODUCING.
AND SO SINCE IT'S REVENUE PRODUCING, WE SHOULD GET MONEY BACK TO GIVE MONEY TO THEM, BUT GET THAT MONEY BACK REVOLVING LOAN.
LIKE THAT'S THE WHOLE IDEA OF IT.
UM, AND SO THAT ONE, I THINK WE PROBABLY WILL BE READY TO PRESENT NEXT MONTH TO YOU.
IT MIGHT BE OCTOBER, BUT THAT ONE SHOULD COME PRETTY PRETTY SOON.
UM, SHE HAS, YOU KNOW, TRADITIONAL FUNDING IN IT FROM A BANK, UM, BUT THE INTEREST RATES REALLY HIGH.
AND SO THE IDEA OF SOME PUBLIC, UM, MONEY TO HELP LOWER THE INTEREST RATE AND MAKE THE PROJECT MORE VIABLE IS A GOOD THING.
UM, AND THEN THE OTHER PROJECT THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, I JUST GOT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT IT TODAY.
UM, SO WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH THAT.
UM, AND THAT'S MORE OF A COMMUNITY ORIENTED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT WHERE THERE IS A PHYSICAL, YOU KNOW, BUILDING.
SO IT IS A, IT'S AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT, UM, BUT IT IS LED BY A NONPROFIT.
UH, ARE THERE ANY OTHER, ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACKS ON THE LOAN PIPELINE, UH, THAT MS. LIPSKA JUST, UH, REFERENCED? AND I THINK IT'S FANTASTIC THAT YOU'RE AT, YOU'RE AT A POINT WHERE THAT'S CLOSE TO, TO C*M IN AS WELL.
UM, QUICK, QUICK QUESTION ON THAT.
UM, HOW DO WE GET UPDATES ON PROJECTS THAT WE MAY HAVE OVERLOOKED, UH, OR NOT BEEN AWARE OF AS A BOARD, BUT MAYBE ELIGIBLE? UH, AND THE REASON WHY I'M ASKING THAT QUESTION IS BECAUSE, UH, THERE'VE BEEN A FEW PROJECTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED IN THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK AREA, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, SPORTS TEAMS AND SOCCER TEAM.
A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT THINGS THAT, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY WOULD'VE, WE WOULD'VE BEEN ABLE TO, TO ALLOCATE FUNDS, BUT WE MAY HAVE, UH, IS THERE SOMEBODY TRACKING THAT STUFF INTERNALLY OR IS THAT SOMEBODY INTERNALLY THAT WOULD BE TRACKING THAT STUFF THAT CAN KIND OF UNCOVER THESE THINGS THAT WAY? YOU KNOW, UM, I'M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO, HOW TO NOT MISS OPPORTUNITIES THAT, THAT WE HAVE THAT ARE GOOD OPPORTUNITIES, UH, FOR US TO GET INVOLVED.
UM, I CAN'T REALLY SPEAK TO THE PAST 'CAUSE I DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW THINGS WE'RE TRACKING.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF CREATING A-C-R-M-A SALESFORCE SYSTEM, UM, THAT WE WILL LAUNCH HOPEFULLY SEPTEMBER OR OCTOBER, THE MIDDLE OF OCTOBER.
UM, AND SO WE'LL HAVE MUCH BETTER ABILITY TO JUST TRACK EVERYTHING THAT COMES INTO OUR OFFICE.
WE WILL HAVE A DEDICATED PERSON TO BE KIND OF AN INTAKE SPECIALIST SO THAT WE'RE MAKING SURE, YOU KNOW, THAT PROJECTS ARE, WE'LL TALK TO THEM WHEN THEY'RE VIABLE AND MOST LIKELY BEFORE THEY'RE VIABLE, RIGHT? BECAUSE LIKE, WE KNOW THAT EVERYTHING THAT COMES IN ISN'T READY TO GO.
UM, AND SO IT'S FOR THOSE PROJECTS THAT AREN'T READY TO GO, IT'S REFERRING THEM TO THE RIGHT COMMUNITY PARTNERS AND IT'S GETTING THEM TO READY.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, I CAN ONLY TALK TO WHAT IT WILL LOOK LIKE GOING FORWARD, BUT WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE A ROBUST OUTREACH PLAN.
WE'LL WORK WITH THE OUTREACH, YOU KNOW, THE MARKETING TEAM AND THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TEAM TO BE HONEST, TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE AN ABILITY TO TRACK STUFF INTERNALLY, PROBABLY BETTER THAN WE'RE EVEN DOING RIGHT NOW.
UM, BECAUSE WE'LL HAVE A SYSTEM THAT EVERYBODY WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT CAN ACCESS.
AND THEN, YOU KNOW, IF WE DO DEVELOP, AND I CREATED A FIELD IN THERE FOR SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND, SO WE CAN LIKE SEARCH AND DO THAT, YOU KNOW, UM, SO, AND THEN WE CAN WORK THROUGH, WE CAN LOOK AT WHAT THAT PIPELINE LOOKS LIKE AND WE CAN FIGURE OUT HOW WE REPORT THAT TO YOU AND GO FROM THERE.
UM, SO WE'RE GONNA LEARN AS WE GO, BUT WE, THERE'S GONNA BE SOME BUMPS, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA TRY TO MAKE IT A LITTLE MORE,
[00:30:01]
UH, STRUCTURED.UM, AND, AND, AND ONE LAST QUESTION ON THAT.
UH, YOU MENTIONED, UM, LIAISING WITH THE CORRECT COMMUNITY PARTNERS.
I KNOW AT ONE OF OUR MEETINGS THERE'S SOME DISCUSSION, BUT WE HAD THE SBA COME IN AND, AND TALK ABOUT SOME OF THEIR EFFORTS AND, UH, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT THEY DO TO TRACK APPLICANTS AND, AND PEOPLE THAT THEY'RE WORKING WITH ON THEIR SIDE.
WILL THERE BE AN ABILITY FOR US TO, TO, UH, YOU KNOW, PARTNER WITH THEM? I KNOW THERE, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE WAS A PARTNERSHIP BEING DISCUSSED WITH THEM OR OTHER PLAYERS, UH, AND IS THAT SOMETHING THAT MAYBE OUR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE CAN, CAN HELP TACKLE AS WELL AS IDENTIFYING WHO THE RIGHT PARTNERS ARE TO WORK WITH AND FIGURE OUT HOW TO SET UP PARTNERSHIP WITH THEM? WHAT, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT? YEAH, AND SO I MEAN, IT, THERE'S A LOT OF STUFF GOING ON ON SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK, RIGHT? LIKE, WE ARE NOT, THERE'S EVEN IN, SINCE WE'VE LEFT HAD THIS, UM, BOARD WITHIN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, THERE'S JUST A MATURITY IN THE, THE AREA AND THE, THE FINANCING PARTNERS ARE BETTER.
THERE'S ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, VISTA BANK CREATED THEIR ENTREPRENEUR CENTER.
UM, WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH BANKS BECAUSE THAT MEANS THAT THERE'S SOME FUNDING, YOU KNOW, THAT'S NOT JUST CITI FUNDING.
SO I WOULD THINK THAT WE WOULD WANT STRONG PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE BANKS.
WE KNOW THAT THERE'S GONNA BE GAP FUNDS.
WE KNOW THE MARKET IS CHALLENGING.
UM, AND SO THAT'S WHERE WE FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S THE CITY'S ROLE.
IT'S TO HELP THOSE PROJECTS THAT AREN'T QUITE THERE, BUT WE'RE GONNA FILL THAT GAP AND MAKE THAT VIABLE.
UM, AND SO WHATEVER THAT PARTNERSHIP LOOKS LIKE FOR REFERRAL PIPELINES, WE'RE OPEN TO ALL OF THAT.
LIKE, WE'RE GONNA DO WAY BETTER TOGETHER THAN IF WE TRY TO DO THIS OURSELVES.
UM, IS THERE ANYONE ELSE WITH ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK? UH, MR. LEVINE, I SEE YOUR HAND.
IT, IT IS, UH, REALLY EXCITING TO SEE THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REIMAGINE SOME THINGS AND CHANGE SOME PROCESSES AROUND.
MY EARS REALLY PERKED WHEN I HEARD, UM, YOU MENTION THE CRM PLATFORM THAT YOU'RE GONNA BRING ON BOARD, THAT, THAT AUTOMATICALLY KIND OF PUTS IN MY MIND SOME AUTOMATION.
SO, UM, ARE YOU ALSO ENVISIONING, I GUESS, TRACKING THESE OUTREACH PARTNERS AND THEN HAVING TRIGGERS IN THE SYSTEM TO SEE WHERE APPLICATIONS ARE IN A PROCESS AND THEN WE CAN KIND OF TRACK OVER TIME, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH SOME OF THESE APPLICANTS? ARE THEY GETTING SERVED, YOU KNOW, IF NOT, WHAT'S THE TIMING AROUND THAT SO THAT WE CAN, UM, YOU KNOW, REALLY HELP, UH, THE APPLICANTS ALONG THE WAY ON THEIR JOURNEY FOR GETTING FUNDING? YEAH, SO I, I THINK I HAVE TWO SORT OF ANSWERS FOR THAT.
ONE IS FOR, YOU KNOW, WITHIN OUR SYSTEM, WE WILL BE ABLE TO KNOW IF THEY'RE PRE-APPLICATION, APPLICATION IN OFFER PENDING.
SO WE'LL BE ABLE TO TRACK THEM WITHIN OUR SYSTEM.
I DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE BUILT OUT WHAT THAT PARTNERSHIP TRACKING LOOKS LIKE.
UM, AND I THINK WE NEED TO, AS PART OF THE SMALL BUSINESS FUNCTION, IS FIGURE OUT HOW WE TRACK PEOPLE ONCE WE REFER THEM TO PARTNERS SO THAT WE DON'T LOSE THEM.
UM, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THAT'S KIND OF WHERE SOMETIMES THE SYSTEM BREAKS DOWN.
UM, AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT INTERNALLY AND YOU KNOW, THAT ONE OF THE PEOPLE WE'RE BRINGING IN AS A SMALL BUSINESS MANAGER HAS MULTIPLE YEARS OF SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE OR, YOU KNOW, WORK.
AND SO I THINK THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO FIGURE OUT THAT PARTNERSHIP.
I'VE TALKED TO DALLAS COLLEGE, I'VE TALKED TO THE DECK IN THE PAST COUPLE WEEKS ABOUT WHAT WE, HOW WE MAKE THIS WORK AND HOW WE DON'T DUPLICATE SERVICES.
UM, AND SO THIS ACTUALLY GOES TO ONE OF THE COMMENTS THE CHAIR MADE.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE ABOUT THE MOU AND THE PARTNERSHIP, I THINK THE SBC WAS IN THE PROCESS OF ENTERING INTO MOU WITH THE SBDC.
UM, I, WE INTEND TO ISSUE A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION OR REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATION SO THAT WE CAN BUILD A WHOLE, LIKE A, A STABLE OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANT PROVIDERS SO THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE GETTING REFERRED TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE.
AND THEN AS WE BUILD OUT THAT MOU, WE WOULD ALSO LIKE THEM TO REPORT BACK ON WHO THEY'RE SERVING.
UM, BUT I, YEAH, I THINK ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES WITH SMALL BUSINESS IS PEOPLE JUST GET LOST, RIGHT? UM, AND SO WE JUST HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE BUILD IN THOSE TOUCHES.
AND THAT'S WHY I ALSO AM CREATING STAFF TO REALLY BE KIND OF ONE OF MY FORMER STAFF CALLED THEM SHERPA, YOU KNOW, TO LIKE, HELP THEM THROUGH THE JOURNEY.
AND I THINK WE NEED TO DO THAT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, FEEDBACK? YES.
ITEM, UH, IS THAT YOU, MS. PV? YEAH.
SORRY, I'VE HAD MY HAND FOR A LITTLE BIT, BUT I THINK, UM, SO I, AND I EMAILED YOU ABOUT THIS, UM, CHAIR, I, BUT I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF FIGURE OUT WHERE THE RIGHT BUCKET OR WHO ON OUR TEAM I SHOULD TALK WITH.
UM, BUT A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND FOR HEATHER AND HER TEAM.
[00:35:01]
AN ARCHITECT AT THE LARGEST ARCHITECTURE FIRM IN TEXAS, OR AT MAYBE IN TEXAS, DEFINITELY IN DALLAS.AND, UM, I'VE BEEN LOOKING AT PARTNERSHIPS POTENTIALLY WITH UT ARLINGTON AND CITI LAB IN, IN SOME OF THEIR, WHAT WE CALL STUDIOS, WHICH IS WHERE THEY SORT OF LIKE TAKE ON EITHER A FAKE OR REAL, BUT UNPAID CLIENT, UM, AND HELP THEM TO LIKE, GIVE PHYSICAL PICTURES AND VISION TO, TO THEIR VISION.
UM, BECAUSE THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT IN SOME OF MY CONVERSATIONS WITH POTENTIAL APPLICANTS, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE HAD SORT OF MENTIONED IS THERE'S A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE A VISION, BUT I SORT OF, ARCHITECTURE SERVICES ARE SO EXPENSIVE AND IT'S HARD FOR THEM TO LIKE PUT THAT PEN TO PAPER.
UM, SO ANYWAYS, I WAS JUST THINKING OF HOW WE COULD USE SOME OF THAT TO BOTH INCREASE AWARENESS, UM, AND ALSO HELP, YOU KNOW, MAYBE PROVIDE SOME SERVICES.
AND MAYBE THAT'S A CONVERSATION TO HAVE WITH KIMBERLY AND HER TEAM, OR, UM, MAYBE CARL AND HIS TEAM OR SOMEONE ELSE.
THIS IS KIND OF MY, MY QUESTION.
SO I WOULD, I WOULD SAY, UM, FIRST OF ALL, IT'S NOT TOO, TOO LATE TO JOIN A SUBCOMMITTEE, NUMBER ONE
UM, BUT I WOULD DIRECT, UH, ANY OF YOUR, ANY OF THAT FEEDBACK, UM, AS YOU MENTIONED TO, UM, EITHER CHAIRWOMAN SIMS OR, UH, CHAIRMAN AND ENRIQUEZ ON THEIR COMMITTEES.
BECAUSE, BECAUSE SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT YOU HAVE AND SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT KIND OF FALL INTO BOTH BUCKETS.
AND SO I THINK THOSE ARE DEFINITELY THINGS THAT WE WANNA LOOK AT TO TACKLE.
SO ALL OF THOSE IDEAS THAT WE CAN GET AND START TO WORK THROUGH, UH, WOULD BE HELPFUL.
AND, AND THAT GOES FOR EVERYBODY.
ANYTIME YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS ABOUT ANY OF THIS STUFF, UH, PLEASE PUSH IT OVER TO THEM SO THAT WE CAN GET ALL THIS INFORMATION COLLECTED, DISTILLED, UH, AND THEN, UH, THE IDEA IS TO WORK WITH THE CITY, UH, ON SOME OF THESE THINGS TO FIGURE OUT, UH, HOW TO ACTUALLY PUSH 'EM OUT AND, AND, AND PUSH 'EM FORWARD.
SO, UM, WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE, UH, AN OPPORTUNITY, AS MR. LEVINE MENTIONED TO REIMAGINE A BUNCH OF THINGS.
SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY TO BE AS CREATIVE AS POSSIBLE IN ANYTHING THAT YOU THINK WOULD WORK.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF, IF YOU HAVE SOME FOLKS IN MIND THAT YOU THINK COULD POTENTIALLY BE GOOD PARTNERS FOR US TO WORK WITH, UH, PUSH THAT INFORMATION OVER, UH, TO CHAIRWOMAN SIMS ON THE, ON THE BD, UH, SUBCOMMITTEE, RIGHT? AND THEY'LL VET THAT OUT, TAKE A LOOK AT THAT, SEE WHAT MAKES SENSE, AND THEN, UH, REPORT THAT BACK TO THE BOARD AT OUR BIG BOARD MEETINGS.
AND THEN WE CAN KIND OF GO FROM THERE AND FIGURE OUT, UH, HOW TO IMPLEMENT THAT STUFF IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY.
SO, UH, LIKE I SAID, UM, EVERYBODY PLEASE PUSH ALL OF YOUR IDEAS, UH, AND DON'T HESITATE, PUSH 'EM OUT.
UH, 'CAUSE THIS IS OUR OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY SHAPE THIS THING AND FORM THIS THING INTO, INTO WHAT WE WANT IT TO LOOK LIKE AND ACTUALLY GET SOME RESULTS.
SO, UH, DID THAT, THAT, THAT KIND OF WAS THAT HELPFUL.
UH, ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, UH, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK, UH, ON ANY OF THE UPDATES MR. MRS. SKA GAVE ON EITHER THE NOFA OR THE LOAN PIPELINE? OKAY, I'M HEARING NONE.
SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX, WHICH IS THE DISCUSSION.
I KNOW WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, THE FAIR, THE, UH, THE BOARD, THE FAIR PARK BOARD TOUR, AND THERE WERE SOME DISCUSSIONS.
I KNOW, AARON, YOU HAD A FEW IDEAS.
UM, AND, AND MAYBE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT THE MARKETING DEPARTMENT CAN, CAN TACKLE AND THAT OUT SOME DIFFERENT IDEAS AS WELL, UM, FOR A BOARD TOUR.
AND I DON'T, I'M, I'M WELCOME TO HEAR AN IDEAS TONIGHT.
I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS JUST A TOUR OF FAIR PARK ITSELF OR A TOUR OF THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY THAT, THAT WE SERVE AND AS IT RELATES TO ALL OF THE ZIP CODES IN OUR SERVICE AREA.
BUT, UH, AND THIS COULD INVOLVE SPEAKERS, THIS COULD INVOLVE A BUS TOUR.
UH, AND I KNOW WE WOULD HAVE TO LIAISE WITH THE CITY TO, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT TRAVEL AND LOGISTICS AND GETTING THE BUS AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.
BUT, YOU KNOW, WE COULD TALK ABOUT THAT AT SOME POINT IN TIME.
BUT, UH, I WANTED TO THROW THAT OUT THERE AGAIN, 'CAUSE I DIDN'T WANT THAT TO GET LOST.
I THINK PART OF THE COMPONENT OF THIS TOUR IS GONNA BE, UH, WALKING AROUND.
SO, UH, I THINK THIS IS A MUCH BETTER TIME TO MAKE TO, TO DISCUSS THAT THAN IT WAS IN JUNE, JULY.
UH, SO IF WE CAN GET SOMETHING ON THE CALENDAR, YOU KNOW, MAYBE OCTOBER OR NOVEMBER, UH, WHENEVER THE BOARD THINKS IT'S BEST, UH, I, I THINK AN APPROPRIATE TIME TO, TO DISCUSS THAT.
SO DID ANYBODY HAVE ANY IDEAS ABOUT THAT? WE DON'T HAVE TO MAKE ANY DECISIONS ABOUT ANYTHING TONIGHT, BUT, UH, I WANTED TO THROW THAT BACK OUT THERE SO THAT PEOPLE CAN BE THINKING ABOUT IDEAS OF, UH, WHAT
[00:40:01]
YOU THINK A REALLY GOOD BOARD, UH, TOUR, UH, WOULD LOOK LIKE.SO ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK ON THAT? YEAH, I CAN YOU GUYS HEAR ME? IS THAT YOU MR.
UH, I WAS, UH, I THINK OUR BIGGEST ISSUE WAS DO WE DO A SOUTH DALLAS TOUR OR A FAIR PARK TOUR? AND I THINK WE ALL KIND OF LANDED ON MAYBE JUST DOING FAIR PARK, SO WE DON'T OVERWHELM THE TOUR WITH A BUNCH OF THINGS.
SO I THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE PROBABLY THE FIRST CHOICE WE MAKE IS DO WE WANNA STICK TO SOUTH DALLAS? DO WE WANNA STICK TO FAIR PARK IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO BE, UH, LOOKING AT? DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY FEEDBACK, UH, ON MS. KUUMBA'S COMMENT OR ANY OPINIONS ONE WAY OR THE OTHER ON THAT? OH, THIS IS ERIN.
UM, I
UM, AND SO, YEAH, I REALLY THINK WHATEVER IT IS, IT NEEDS TO BE MANAGEABLE.
AND IF THAT IS STARTING WITH FAIR PARK, I WOULD LOVE TO AT SOME POINT VISIT AT LEAST ONE OR, YOU KNOW, A FEW OF THE, THE PLACES THAT WE'VE HELPED TO FUND.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT, YEAH, TO JUST START SOMEWHERE, UH, MANAGEABLE.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS? UH, MR. RODRIGUEZ? UM, I'M ALIGNED WITH MS. PEEVY.
I THINK IT WOULD BE REALLY IMPACTFUL TO, TO GO SEE SOME OF THE, UH, ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE FUNDED, JUST TO KIND OF UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT KIND OF IMPACT, YOU KNOW, THE FUNDING THAT WE'VE PROVIDED HAS HAD ON THEIR BUSINESS.
UM, I THINK THAT COULD BE A REALLY GOOD BENCHMARK FOR US TO BUILD FROM THERE AND FIGURE OUT HOW WE CAN JUST CONTINUE TO FURTHER DEVELOP OUR OUTREACH.
UM, OBVIOUSLY FOCUSING IN ON THE, UM, WHAT ARE THE ZIP CODES THAT ARE THE, THE MOST PERTINENT TO OUR FUND, I THINK WOULD BE ANOTHER REALLY GREAT STARTING POINT JUST TO KIND OF HAVE EYES ON, YOU KNOW, WHERE, WHAT'S CURRENTLY GOING ON AND, YOU KNOW, WHERE DO WE WANT IT TO GO.
ENRIQUE, ANY COMMENTS? UM, ON WHAT HE SAID OR, OR I JUST, YEAH, MR. ENRIQUEZ REMINDED ME OF JUST, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT I, I KIND OF FEEL FOR, FOR OTHERS, YOU KNOW, TO, TO REFLECT ON OR NOT, WHICH IS, UM, AS I'VE WATCHED DEVELOPMENT, IT SEEMS LIKE THE STORY OF THIS AREA HAS BEEN ONE WHERE INSIDE THE PARK WALLS MORE OR LESS ARE WHERE EVERYBODY FOCUSES, AND THEN EVERYBODY ELSE IS SORT OF NEGLECTED, UM, OR TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF IN SOME WAY.
AND I WOULD LOVE FOR OUR TOUR TO FOCUS ON THE PEOPLE THAT DON'T USUALLY GET FOCUSED ON, IF THAT'S POSSIBLE.
YEAH, I'M ALSO HOPING THAT WHEN WE TAKE THE TOUR, WE ALSO GET SOME VISUALS AND PROBABLY JUST SOME, UM, MESSAGING FROM SOME OF THE PEOPLE THAT WE HAVE WORKED WITH IN THE PAST.
AND I THINK THAT'S BECAUSE OF SOME OF, I THINK, UM,
SO IT WOULD JUST BE NICE TO, TO SORT OF, UH, CHANGE THAT NARRATIVE, YOU KNOW, IF WE COLLECT SOME, UM, PHOTOS AND SOME, YOU KNOW, SOME NICE WORDS FROM SOME PEOPLE WE HAVE HELPED.
MR. LEVINE? UH, I THINK I SAW MR. S HAND.
MR. LEVINE, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO, TO ADD? CHAIR? I HAD MY HAND.
I HAD A QUICK QUESTION, AND I THINK I ECHO THE SAME SENTIMENT, UH, IN TERMS OF WHAT WOULD BE THE BACKGROUND INFORMATION WE'D RECEIVED BEFORE GOING AND THE FOCUS FOR THE TOUR.
AND IT WOULD HELP BE HELPFUL IF THERE WERE, UM, THOSE THAT HAD BEEN A PART OF THE PROGRAM BEFORE THAT COULD GIVE US SOME FEEDBACK, FEEDBACK AS A GROUP.
AND CERTAINLY, AGAIN, IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS, UH, AS TO WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE OR WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, UH, FEEL FREE TO PUSH THOSE OVER, UH, TO THE MARKETING SUBCOMMITTEE.
UM, WHO'S, UH, I CAN'T SEE WHO'S, IS THAT DESTINY? IS THAT YOUR HAND? YES, SIR.
SO I'M WONDERING, WOULD IT JUST BE BENEFICIAL TO GO AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE LAST THREE YEARS OF AWARDEES? PICK THREE
[00:45:01]
OR MAYBE TWO THAT WAS AWARDED, ONE THAT CAME REALLY CLOSE AND GO VISIT THOSE AND MAYBE JUST LIMIT IT TO THREE, MAYBE FOUR, UH, BUSINESSES, JUST TO KEEP IT CONCISE.ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? IF WE WERE TAKING A VOTE, I WOULD PROBABLY BE VOTING FOR THAT.
'CAUSE I THINK THAT SOUNDS LIKE A, IT SOUNDS LIKE A, UH, FILTERING MECHANISM THAT ALLOWS US TO FOCUS WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO FOCUS OR WHAT I HEAR FROM PEOPLE.
AND EVEN THEN I THINK ABOUT IF WE WERE EVEN JUST TO FOCUS ON BUSINESSES THAT NEIGHBOR SOUTH, UM, FAIR PARK, LIKE I THINK THERE'S A WHOLE OPPORTUNITY THERE, BUT THAT'S PROBABLY FOR ANOTHER DAY.
THEY PROBABLY DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT WE EXIST.
BUT HOW DO WE THEN SUPPORT THEM IN THAT WAY? BUT THAT COULD BE ANOTHER DAY THAT WE TARGET.
AND MS. BROOKS AND MR. LEVINE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UH, OR FEEDBACK? ONE MORE COMMENT, MS. SIMS. UM, JUST TO ECHO EVERYONE'S SENTIMENT AND CONTINUE TO PILE ON, UM, I THINK IT'S GREAT IF WE GO AND VISIT, UM, BUT I THINK ALSO TOO VISIT OUR, OUR CURRENT CLIENTS CURRENT AND, AND PAST CLIENTS.
BUT IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO LOOK AT POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITIES TO, YOU KNOW, OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES THAT, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS, UM, WE CAN WORK WITH THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT TO FOSTER INVESTMENT OR TO ENCOURAGE INVESTMENT INTO, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S BEEN A MARKET ASSESSMENT OF THE AREA TO UNDERSTAND WHAT TYPES OF BUSINESSES, UM, THAT THAT COMMUNITY NEEDS THAT THE SOUTH FAIR PARK COMMUNITY NEEDS.
I KNOW ONE BIG THING ALL THE TIME, IT'S, IT'S BEEN THE GROCERY STORE, IT'S BEEN THE FOOD DESERT.
I KNOW WE'VE HAD THE VINEYARDS.
I THINK IT MAY BE A YES TO NOW.
UM, BUT JUST THINKING ABOUT WHAT DOES THE COMMUNITY NEED AND NOT TO STARBUCKS IT OR ANYTHING, OR MAKE IT VERY, VERY, UH, CORPORATE, BUT LOOK AT THOSE, UM, FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY OR WHO ARE, OR WHO ARE LOOKING TO INVEST INTO THE COMMUNITY IN THOSE BUSINESSES, UM, THAT WE DO NEED BECAUSE WE, YOU KNOW, WE'LL NEED LARGER BUSINESSES AND WE'LL NEED, YOU KNOW, SMALLER SUPPORT KIND OF BUSINESSES, UM, TO DIVERSIFY THE ECONOMY IN THAT AREA SO THAT IT CAN GROW STRONGER.
SO YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT BASICALLY SORT OF VOID, AVOID ANALYSIS, UM, TYPE OF STUDY.
MS. LIPKA, CAN YOU SPEAK TO WHAT, WHETHER, ANY OF THAT, UH, UH, WHETHER WE HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT OR IF THERE'S SOMEBODY THAT CAN MAYBE PULL THAT INFORMATION FOR US? SO THERE IS A AREA PLAN, UM, THAT PUT HAS BEEN WORKING ON, AND I DON'T KNOW THE CURRENT STATUS, BUT I CAN CERTAINLY GET THAT INFORMATION FOR YOU FOR AN AREA PLAN.
WE GENERALLY DON'T DO MARKET STUDIES WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT.
THOSE ARE DONE BY THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
UM, I MEAN, WE'VE SEEN MARKET STUDIES.
I MEAN, I'VE SEEN A MARKET STUDY ON GROCERY STORES AND I KNOW THAT THERE IS A DEMAND FOR THE GROCERY STORE.
UM, SO I MEAN, WE CAN, WE CAN PROBABLY RUN SOME GAP ANALYSIS ON LIKE RETAIL, UM, BUT NOT LIKE A TRADITIONAL MARKET STUDY.
I, WE DON'T HAVE THE EXPERTISE TO DO THAT.
SO, UM, YOU MIGHT HAVE TO FIND MAYBE THAT'S A GOOD PRO BONO PROJECT OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO FIND SOME PARTNERS TO DO SOME OF THAT WORK.
UM, BECAUSE WE, UH, TRADITIONALLY WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT HAVEN'T FOCUSED OVER LEASE SIGNIFICANTLY IN RETAIL.
UM, JUST IN PART BECAUSE PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING IS TRYING TO INCENT, UM, INCENTIVIZE, YOU KNOW, LIVING WAGE JOBS AND THAT'S SOMETIMES HARD WITH RETAIL.
SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE BEST USE OUR TOOLS TO, UH, HELP THIS BECAUSE WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO TWEAK SOME OF OUR TRADITIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS JUST BECAUSE WHEN THERE IS A NEED FOR SERVICES, IT'S A DIFFERENT EQUATION, RIGHT? UM, AND THAT'S PART OF THE REASON WE CREATED A COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM TOO.
SO WE DO HAVE SOME TOOLS, BUT NOTHING OR UNDER 2 MILLION.
SO WE JUST, IT'S AN ITERATIVE PROCESS AND WE'LL GET THERE, BUT WE'RE JUST, WE'RE NOT QUITE STACKED TO DO IT YET.
UM, THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, MS. SIMS? OKAY.
UM, BACK BACK TO THE DISCUSSION ABOUT THE THE TOUR.
DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY MORE COMMENTS, UH, OR RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, THAT YOU'D LIKE TO VOICE A ABOUT THAT MS. PBE? THIS PROBABLY EXCESSIVE AND JUST ADDS COMPLICATION, SO I'LL JUST START WITH THAT.
BUT MS. SIMS GOT ME THINKING, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE EVENTS LIKE, UM, EITHER SOCCER GAMES OR POPUPS OR LIKE FOR INSTANCE, BETTER BLOCK HAD AN AREA FOR A WHILE, UM,
[00:50:02]
THAT THERE WAS, YOU KNOW, ESSENTIALLY FAIRS EVERY WEEKEND, NOT AT THE FAIR, BUT OUT OUTWARD IN THE COMMUNITY AND THINKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HOW WE COULD GO TO A PLACE WHERE LOTS OF PEOPLE ARE NATURALLY COMING ANYWAYS FOR SOMETHING ELSE AND THEN ASK FOR, YOU KNOW, FIVE MINUTES TO TALK OR HAVE A BOOTH OR SOMETHING WHERE LIKE, WE'RE GOING TO WHERE THE PEOPLE ARE, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE COMING THERE AT THAT TIME.UM, I DON'T KNOW HOW EXACTLY WE WOULD FIGURE OUT WHAT THAT IS, BUT JUST THROWING IT OUT THERE.
NOTED MR. KUUMBA, I SAW YOUR HAND.
SO I GUESS, UM, THAT'S A REALLY GOOD IDEA, AARON.
UM, AND THANK YOU MS. SIMS FOR THAT LINE DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB OF PUTTING ON COMMUNITY EVENTS.
UM, I THINK IF WE WERE TO DO EVENTS THAT WERE IN, UH, FAIR PARK, WE'RE TYPICALLY GOING TO BE TALKING TO PEOPLE THAT DON'T LIVE HERE, RIGHT? THE PEOPLE WHO ARE MANAGING PARKING, MAYBE NEIGHBORING BUSINESSES MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA, BUT I DO THINK THAT GOING TO MAYBE AN X LINE PARTNERING WITH MLK, SEEING WHAT EVENTS THAT THEY HAVE COMING UP WOULD BE A REALLY GOOD IDEA.
UM, I BELIEVE THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION PRESIDENTS ARE REALLY TRYING TO GET IT TOGETHER, AKA MYSELF, BUT ALSO, UM, TO MOVE THE AGENDA FORWARD.
UM, I THINK A FRIDAY IN OCTOBER.
SO WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO PLAN, WOULD BE IDEAL TO MAKE, UM, THIS DATE HAPPEN.
SO IF I CAN MAKE A RECOMMENDATION, OH, THAT IS SPARE TIME.
I DUNNO IF THAT'S A THING FOR YOU GUYS, BUT, UM, THE FOURTH OR THE 11TH, I DON'T KNOW HOW EVERYONE'S FEELING, BUT I'M JUST THROWING SOME DATES OUT THERE TO MOVE THE AGENDA.
AND I THINK THAT, UM, I THINK MR. ENRIQUEZ, UM, PLEASE SEND OVER THOSE IDEAS AND THOSE DATES AND ON AND ON THAT PROBABLY ANOTHER THING THAT WE PROBABLY SHOULD THINK ABOUT IS, UH, NOT ONLY THE DATE, WHAT DAY IS BEST FOR EVERYBODY.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S FRIDAY OR SATURDAY, BUT, UM, THE, THE DURATION, YOU KNOW, DO WE WANT THIS TO, TO BE TWO HOURS OR, YOU KNOW, THREE HOURS FROM NINE TO 12 OR WHATEVER THE CASE IS.
SO THAT'S PROBABLY SOMETHING ELSE THAT WE SHOULD, UH, THINK ABOUT AS WELL.
SO THAT, UH, BECAUSE THAT WILL HELP US FRAME WHAT ALL WE CAN FIT WITHIN THAT, THAT PERIOD OF TIME AND, AND HELP US KIND OF REFINE THAT A LITTLE BIT.
SO, UM, I'LL, I'LL LET THE, UH, THE, THE, THE MARKETING TEAM, UH, HANDLE THAT.
BUT AGAIN, UH, PLEASE PUSH ALL OF YOUR IDEAS OVER TO THEM.
AND THEN ON OUR NEXT BOARD MEETING, UH, WE WILL DISCUSS WHAT SOME OF THE OUTPUTS ARE AND SEE IF WE CAN LAND ON SOME DECISIONS ON SOME OF THESE THINGS.
ARE THERE ANY OBJECTIONS TO, TO THAT? ALRIGHT, I'M HEARING NONE.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER, UH, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK, UH, AS IT RELATES TO THE, THE, THE TOUR? ANY SUGGESTIONS? UH, MR. HALEY? UM, AND FOR FOR THE RECORD, YOU, YOU ARE ABSENT.
SO WE WILL, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, THAT YOU ARE PRESENT, MR. HALEY.
UM, BUT, UH, PLEASE, UH, GO AHEAD.
I JUST WANTED TO PIGGYBACK OFF OF AARON.
UM, THERE WAS A COMMUNITY EVENT.
CAN YOU ALL HEAR ME JUST TO MAKE SURE? YES.
THERE WAS A COMMUNITY EVENT CALLED COMMUNITY DAY OF GIVING AT MLK.
UM, IT WAS HOSTED BY KROGER PIZZA HUT, UM, IN THE CITY OF DALLAS AS WELL.
UM, A LOT OF THE COMMUNITY COMES OUT PRETTY MUCH EVERY YEAR.
I'VE BEEN THERE FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS, AND I THINK THAT WOULD BE A GREAT SPACE TO HAVE.
UM, MAYBE JUST ALL OF US OUT THERE ASKING PEOPLE QUESTIONS AND MAYBE A, A QUICK SURVEY THAT THEY COULD DO ON THEIR PHONE, UM, TO EXPLAIN WHAT'S GOING ON IN THEIR, IN THEIR MINDS, AND THEN OF THE MINDS OF THE BUSINESSES THAT ARE AROUND THERE AS WELL.
'CAUSE IT'S, IT'S A, IT'S A PRETTY BIG VENUE EVERY DAY.
IS THAT IN JUNE? YES, IT'S IN JUNE, BUT I THINK THEY'RE GONNA, THEY'RE GONNA HOST ANOTHER ONE, UM, SOMETIME NEAR THE HOLIDAY.
THANK YOU FOR THE FEEDBACK ON THAT.
IS THERE ANYONE ELSE WHO'D LIKE TO TOSS OUT SOME IDEAS OR THOUGHTS ON THE TOUR? UH, MR. HALEY, DO YOU HAVE A, DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER COMMENT? I SEE YOUR HAND STILL RAISED THERE.
DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING ELSE? OKAY.
OKAY, IS THERE ANYONE ELSE THAT HAD ANY COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK OR IDEAS, UH, ON THE TOUR? I, I ACTUALLY DID HAVE A, A THOUGHT, UM, WITHIN THAT AS WELL.
THERE'S A LOT OF DEVELOPMENT GOING ON, UM, WITH THE FOREST FORWARD AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE A GREAT IDEA TO GO AND TALK TO SOME OF THE LEADERS UP THERE.
UM, I KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF SCOTTY SMITH IS ONE OF THOSE GUYS, BUT, UM, SCOTTY SMITH HAS BEEN A PART OF
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THAT WHOLE AREA BEING DEVELOPED.SO GETTING IN WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS AND SEEING WHAT THEIR IDEAS ARE, UM, AMIDST THE, THE FACT THAT WE MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO GET A, UM, DETAILED MARKET ANALYSIS.
I THINK THOSE GUYS OR THOSE, UM, STAKEHOLDERS MIGHT HAVE A LOT MORE INFORMATION FOR US FOR A TOUR.
IS THERE ANYONE ELSE? ANYONE ELSE HAVE MORE COMMENTS ON THE BOARD TOUR? ALL RIGHT, I'M HEARING NONE.
SO, UH, WITH THAT, WE WILL PUT A BOW ON EVERYTHING.
UM, ONCE AGAIN, THANK EVERYBODY.
I WANNA THANK EVERYBODY FOR THEIR COMMENTS AND FEEDBACK.
UH, I WANNA RESTATE AGAIN, PLEASE TAKE ALL OF YOUR FEEDBACK AND ALL OF YOUR IDEAS AND PUSH THOSE TO THE SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS.
UH, THERE WILL BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO REVISIT THIS AT OUR NEXT MEETING, UH, TO GET UPDATES ON SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT TODAY.
UH, AND, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO, UH, MOVING FORWARD.
SO, UH, ANYTIME YOU HAVE ANYTHING THAT COMES UP, PLEASE UH, PUSH THAT, THAT'LL, THOSE IDEAS OVER TO THE SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS SO THAT WE CAN GET THOSE INPUTTED.
IF YOU HAVEN'T JOINED ONE OF THE SUBCOMMITTEES AND YOU'D LIKE TO DO SO, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DO SO AT ANY TIME.
UH, JUST 'CAUSE YOU DIDN'T THE FIRST GO AROUND DOESN'T MEAN THAT YOU CAN'T JOIN UP.
UH, AND I THINK I SPEAK WITH THE SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRS THAT THEY WOULD WELCOME, UH, YOUR FEEDBACK AND, AND, AND YOUR ASSISTANCE.
SO, UH, SO THANKS EVERY, EVERYBODY AGAIN FOR, UH, FEEDBACK.
UH, I WANT TO THANK THE ECO DEV, UH, DEPARTMENT.
UH, IT'S GOOD FOR THE FUN TO BE TO BE BACK OVER AT ECO DEV.
THANK YOU GUYS FOR ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING.
UH, WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEW STAFF COMING ON BOARD.
WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE, THE NEW LIAISONS AND CONTACTS, UH, COMING ON BOARD.
UH, AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO, TO SHAPE THIS THING AND INTO SOMETHING THAT'S REALLY WORKABLE AND SEAMLESS, UH, TO REALLY DRIVE SOME RESULTS THAT THE COMMUNITY'S BEEN HUNGRY FOR, FOR A LONG TIME.
SO, UM, IF THERE ARE NO OTHER COMMENTS, QUESTIONS, OR FEEDBACK, UH, FROM ANYBODY ON THE BOARD, UH, I, I'LL THROW IT OUT.
ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS, OR FEEDBACK FROM THE BOARD OR STAFF FOR THAT MATTER? ALL I'M HEARING NONE.
SO, UM, WE'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
SO BY MS. SIMS, I HEARD SECOND, UH, MS. PEEVY.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH EVERYBODY.
THIS MEANS ADJOURNED IS SEVEN 10 ON THE SCREWS.