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WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED.[South Dallas Fair Park Opportunity Fund Regular Board Meeting on April 28, 2025.]
UM, AND THEN WE'LL COUNT MR. HUGHES, UH, ONCE HE COMES BACK IN.SO, UM, I'M NOW CALL THIS MEETING SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND TO ORDER.
IT IS APRIL 28TH, MONDAY, APRIL 28TH.
THE TIME IS 6:03 PM AND WE'LL START OFF WITH A ROLL CALL.
UH, LEANDER T JOHNSON CHAIR PRESENT.
WE HAVE A NEW BOARD, UH, MEMBER MR. JUAN SIGNS PRESENT.
MS. KIMBERLY SIMS. MS. KIMBERLY SIMS. MR. SHANE HALEY.
UH, MS. V BROOKS? UH, CAN'T HEAR YOUR AUDIO, MS. BROOKS? I'M PRESENT.
THANK YOU AND GREAT TO SEE YOU.
MR. BILL DAWKINS PRESENT SHANA WISE? MS. WISE? SHANA WISE, MR. TRENT HUGHES? NO, HE'S, UH, LOGGING HIMSELF BACK IN, SO WE'LL COME BACK TO HIM.
UH, MR. COL ENRIQUEZ PRESENT AND MR. JACK BUNNING.
WE'LL MOVE ON TO AGENDA ITEM NUMBER TWO, WHICH IS THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW BOARD MEMBER.
UM, SO, UH, WE HAVE A BOARD MEMBER FROM DISTRICT ONE.
HIS NAME IS JUAN SIGNS, AND WE WANNA WELCOME HIM, UH, TO THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND BOARD.
AND, UH, JUAN, IF YOU WOULD TAKE 60 SECONDS TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF AND LET US KNOW WHAT YOU DO, UH, WHO APPOINTED YOU, WHAT DISTRICT, AND, UH, ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE.
UH, BORN AND RAISED IN DALLAS.
I'M A FIRST GENERATION CITIZEN.
UM, GREW UP IN KIND OF LIKE THE LOVEFIELD AREA.
WENT TO TOWNVIEW, DID COLLEGE AT UT, AND THEN GRAD SCHOOL AT SMU.
UM, I'M A NON-PRACTICING ATTORNEY, UM, AND I GOT MY MBA.
I FOCUS ON WOMEN AND MINORITY OWNED BUSINESSES AS I KIND OF LEAN THAT WAY, WHAT I LIKE TO SAY.
UM, BUT I'M OUR SMALL BUSINESS, CRE LENDER BANK.
UM, WE'RE A PRETTY SMALL BANK.
AND I HAVE SOME YEARS OF UNDERWRITING EXPERIENCE.
I WAS A PORTFOLIO MANAGER FOR A WHILE, AND NOW I'M OUR SMALL BUSINESS LENDER ON THE SIDE.
UM, I RUN BIKE FRIENDLY OAK CLIFF.
IT'S A NONPROFIT THAT WE BASICALLY FIX UP BIKES AND GIVE 'EM AWAY TO KIDS.
UM, AND I HAVE BEEN A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT ONE FOR ALL OF TWO MONTHS.
THAT'S A WELL, FANTASTIC, UH, GREAT TO HAVE YOU, AND, YOU KNOW, WITH YOUR DEATH OF KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE, UH, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT TO DO.
SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR, YOUR IDEAS AND YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS AND, AND HAVING YOU ON THE BOARD.
SO, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT LATER, BUT FEEL FREE TO, TO JOIN ONE OF OUR SUBCOMMITTEES.
UM, UH, IF YOU FEEL LIKE THAT MAKES SENSE FOR YOU.
SO, UH, THANK YOU AGAIN AND, AND WELCOME.
UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, UH, YOU KNOW, FOR, UH, MR. SIGNS FROM ANYBODY? OKAY.
UH, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FOUR, WHICH IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM MARCH 31ST.
EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED THAT IN YOUR, UH, UH, BOARD PACKET MATERIALS.
AND SO IF THERE ARE NO CHANGES, COMMENTS OR MODIFICATIONS THERE, WE'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO APPROVE.
UH, SO MOVED, UH, CHAIR ENRIQUE.
IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND, SECOND.
UH, NEXT AGENDA ITEM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER FIVE, PUBLIC SPEAKER.
MS. LOKA, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC SPEAKERS SIGNED UP THIS EVENING? THERE ARE NO PUBLIC SPEAKERS SIGNED UP.
AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SIX, STAFF UPDATES FROM THE OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REGARDING THE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT, UH, UH, NOFA APPLICATIONS.
UH, JUST AS A QUICK REMINDER FOR THE, FOR THE NEW FOLKS, WE, UH, HAD A NOFA APPLICATION PROCESS, UH, THAT JUST ENDED, UH, HERE RECENTLY, AND APPLICATIONS ARE IN THE SCORING PAGE RIGHT NOW.
SO I'LL TURN IT OVER TO, UH, NICHOLAS TO GIVE US A QUICK UPDATE ON WHERE THOSE ARE AND, UH, WHERE, WHERE WE GO FROM HERE IN TERMS OF TIMELINE.
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UH, WE HAVE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF A, OF AN UPDATE FOR EVERYONE, AS YOU KNOW, UH, TODAY ISN'T TODAY, WE'LL BE PRESENTING PROJECTS TO YOU, BUT WE DO HAVE AN UPDATE RELATIVE TO, UH, THE TIMELINE FOR THE NOFA.UM, AS YOU ALL KNOW, THE NOFA CLOSED ON MARCH 21ST, UM, AND THE WEEK, UH, RIGHT AFTER THAT, WE DID A PRELIMINARY ELIGIBILITY REVIEW, UH, FOR THAT FIRST WEEK, WHICH WE REPORTED ON AT OUR LAST MEETING.
UM, AND THEN IT TOOK US A LITTLE BIT LONGER TO, UH, DO THE REVIEW OF APPLICATION COMPLETENESS, WHICH IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON, UM, UH, UH, RECENTLY.
AND NOW THAT THAT PHASE ENDED LAST WEEK, WE'RE MOVING FORWARD INTO THE SCORING PHASE.
UM, AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE'RE WORKING WITH THE COMMUNITIES FOUNDATION OF TEXAS, UH, TO HELP US SCORE THE APPLICATIONS.
UH, WE CURRENTLY HAVE 11 APPLICATIONS THAT MADE IT THROUGH, UH, THE SECOND REVIEW, WHICH HAVE NOW MOVED TO THE SCORING PHASE.
UM, WE EXPECT THE SCORING TO BE COMPLETE, UH, BY MAY 2ND, UH, WHICH IS THE END OF THIS WEEK.
UM, AND THEN WE ARE GONNA GET TO WORK PUTTING TOGETHER A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW PACKAGE THAT WE WILL BE SENDING TO YOU ALL BY CLOSE OF BUSINESS ON MAY 9TH.
AND SO THAT GIVES, UH, THE BOARD 10 DAYS WITH TWO WEEKENDS, UH, TO REVIEW THE APPLICATION MATERIALS FOR THE NEXT MEETING, WHERE WE'LL BE PRESENTING THE DIFFERENT PROJECTS THAT MADE THAT SCORED ABOVE 80, UM, IN THE SCORING PHASE.
UM, AND THEN ON MAY 19TH IS WHEN WE'LL BE MAKING DECISIONS, OR THE BOARD WILL BE MAKING DECISIONS ON, UH, WHICH PROJECTS WE'LL RECEIVE AWARDS AND WHICH ONES WILL NOT.
UM, AND SO THAT'S, UH, IT'S NOT A, IT'S NOT A HUGE UPDATE, BUT I WANTED TO PROVIDE THIS UPDATE TO YOU ALL.
THAT KIND OF CONCLUDES MY, MY SECTION.
ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, NICHOLAS.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEE? MS. BROOKS? I SEE YOUR HAND.
UH, MR. CHAIR, THE ONLY QUESTION I HAD, I WANTED TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTOOD THE COMMUNITY'S FOUNDATION.
DO THEY COMPLETE THE INITIAL ELIGIBILITY REVIEW? IS THAT THEIR ROLE IN THIS PROCESS? YES, I, I BELIEVE THAT'S CORRECT.
NICHOLAS, I'LL LET YOU ADDRESS THAT.
BUT I THINK THE QUESTION WAS, UH, DID THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF TEXAS COMPLETE THE INITIAL REVIEW OF THE APPLICATION? IS THAT RIGHT, MS. BROOKS? YES.
YEAH, THEY, THEY DIDN'T DO THE PRELIMINARY REVIEW.
THEY ARE JUST HELPING US WITH THE SCORING PHASE.
AND SO, UH, THE MATRIX THAT'S IN THE NOFA THAT WAS IN THE NOTICE OF FUNDING AVAILABILITY, THEY'RE KIND THE INDEPENDENT SCORES FOR HELPING US WORK THROUGH THOSE, UH, THOSE MATRICES.
UH, MR. HUGHES, WERE YOU ABLE TO REJOIN? CAN YOU GUYS SEE HIM ON JUST REAL QUICK, MR. HUGHES? HUGHES, YOU ABLE TO GET ON? MR. HUGHES, IF YOU'RE ON, CAN YOU HEAR US? JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE GET YOU COUNTED AND, AND MS. WISE IS ALSO HERE.
UH, SO I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, HER ATTENDANCE.
SO, UH, MS. WISE FIELD, ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR ATTENDANCE SHANAE WISE, PRESENT.
UH, UH, UH, MR. HUGHES, UH, WE CAN SEE YOU.
ARE YOU ABLE TO SWITCH YOUR CAMERA BACK ON? UH, LET'S SEE.
IF NOT, YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND, AND KEEP PLAYING WITH IT.
AND WE'LL ACKNOWLEDGE YOU WHEN GET ON.
SO ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK, UH, REGARDING THE NOFA UPDATE, UH, AND, UH, WHEN TO EXPECT, UH, INFORMATION, UH, REGARDING APPLICATIONS, UH, CONTAINED THERE, MS. WISE, YOU KIND OF, I HAD A QUESTION.
UM, AND I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, AND I'M JUST ASKING 'CAUSE THIS BE THE FIRST TIME I HAVE TO, UM, PARTICIPATE, UM, IN TRYING TO CHOOSE PEOPLE WITH THE SCORING ALREADY THERE, WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT? ARE WE LOOKING AT THEIR FULL BUSINESS, THEIR SCOPE, WHAT THEY'RE DOING? WHAT, HOW ARE WE SAYING YES AND NO? SO THAT'S A DISCUSSION THAT WE WILL HAVE, UH, AMONGST OURSELVES WITHIN THE BOARD.
SO WHAT HAPPENS IS WE'LL RECEIVE THE PACKET, UH, THAT HAS ALL THE SCORING, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS, UH, FROM, FROM THE CITY.
FROM THERE, WE HAVE TO THEN DECIDE WHO, UH, WHO GETS FUNDED FROM THERE.
'CAUSE EACH PACKET'S GOING TO CONTAIN A REQUESTED FUNDING
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AMOUNT.UH, AND, AND WE, WE'VE ONLY HAD SO MANY FUNDS.
SO AT THAT POINT, UH, THE BOARD WILL HAVE TO HAVE DISCUSSION, UH, WITHIN ITSELF ABOUT WHICH ORGANIZATIONS MAKE THE MORE SENSE AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY WHAT THE FUNDING AMOUNTS ARE GONNA BE IF THEY'RE APPROVED.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? AND THEN FROM THERE, UH, WHOEVER'S APPROVED, UH, AND IN WHAT AMOUNTS WOULD THEN MOVE ON TO, TO THE NEXT STEP OF THE PROCESS.
AND JUST A POINT OF CLARIFICATION ON THAT, UM, STAFF WILL PRESENT EVERYBODY WHO SCORED AN 80 OR HIGHER THROUGH THE SCORING PROCESS.
IT MIGHT BE JUST A SUBSET OF THAT.
AND WE WILL PUT THEM WITH THEIR SCORES SO YOU CAN SEE WHAT THEIR SCORE IS.
AND THEN EVERYTHING THE CHAIR JUST TALKED ABOUT WOULD BE YOUR PROCESS.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS? UH, YOU HAVE A QUICK QUESTION? SO WHAT, WHAT'S OUR PROCESS AFTER WHEN WE GET THE PACKET, SO TO DISCUSS OUR PROCESS? IS THAT IT? SO, SO, SO THE PROCESS, SO WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN FROM TODAY ON MAY 9TH, WE'LL RECEIVE A PACKET WITH ALL THE APPLICATIONS THAT'S SCORED AT LEAST AN 80 THAT WILL COME TO US, AND IT WILL BE A FULL PACKET OF EVERY ORGANIZATION THAT APPLIED, THAT SCORED AN 80.
UH, FROM THERE YOU'LL ON YOUR OWN REVIEW THOSE MAKE COMMENTS, UH, HAVE QUESTIONS, WHATEVER IT IS ABOUT THOSE ORGANIZATIONS, WE'LL COME BACK TO THE MEETING ON THE 19TH.
UH, WE'LL DISCUSS EACH APPLICATION THAT SCORED OVER AN 80 AND WHAT THE FUNDING RECOMMENDATION FOR THOSE ARE.
AND THEN WE'LL MAKE A DETERMINATION ON WHO GETS APPROVED AND THEN FOR WHAT AMOUNTS.
DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? AND I WILL ALSO SAY, AS YOU REVIEW THE INFORMATION THAT YOU RECEIVE ON MAY 9TH, IF YOU CAN SEND INDIVIDUALLY, NOT IN A REPLY TO ALL SETTING, BUT INDIVIDUALLY, IF YOU CAN SEND THOSE QUESTIONS TO NICHOLAS.
THAT WAY WE CAN PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION AT THE BOARD MEETING ON THE 19TH, UM, RATHER THAN HAVING TO PUNT BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE THE ANSWERS TO THE QUESTIONS.
SO IF WE DISAGREE OR AGREE WITH THE SCORING, WE CAN GET OUR POINTS AHEAD OF TIME WITH THE QUESTIONS OR COMMENT OR WHATEVER.
SO ANYTHING THAT YOU WOULD SEE CLARIFICATION ON OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, IF WE CAN GET THAT PRIOR TO THE BOARD MEETING, I MEAN, IF WE COULD GET IT BY FRIDAY THE 16TH, THAT WAY WE CAN GET THE ANSWERS.
OR WE CAN TRY TO GET THE ANSWERS TOO.
UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? NO COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK ABOUT THE PROCESS, MS. WISE? ONE OTHER QUESTION.
UM, SO ARE WE, SO SAY FOR INSTANCE, WE DO HAVE QUESTIONS, BUT THOSE QUESTIONS WE MIGHT NEED TO ASK 'EM DIRECTLY TO THE COMPANY, IS THAT WE DON'T, WE'RE NOT ABLE TO DO THAT CORRECT? BECAUSE IT'S CONSIDERED LIKE AN ACTIVE SOLICITATION.
SO ALL OF THE QUESTIONS NEED TO COME TO US.
AND DO Y'ALL ASK THEM SPECIFICALLY? WE CAN ASK THEM? YES.
THANKS FOR THAT QUESTION, MS. WISE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK ABOUT WHAT THE NEXT STEP, UH, OF THE NOFO PROCESS IS IN TERMS OF REVIEWING APPLICATIONS AND THEN THE SUBSEQUENT DISCUSSION AT OUR MAY 19TH MEETING ABOUT THE SELECTION OF THOSE APPLICANTS? OKAY, I'M HEARING NONE.
UH, SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM SIX B, WHICH IS THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LOAN PIPELINE UPDATE.
UM, SO MS. MS. HEATHER, I'LL, I'LL LET YOU TAKE FROM THERE.
SO, AND WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS KIND OF IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE NEXT SLIDE TOO, ABOUT THE PROCESS.
BUT WE THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE OF INTEREST TO PROVIDE A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT WE'VE, UH, BEEN RECEIVING IN OUR OFFICE OVER THE PAST SIX MONTHS.
UM, AND SO WE HAVE TWO APPLICANTS THAT WE HAVE AN INITIAL CONTACT WITH.
UH, WHAT THAT MEANS IS BASICALLY THEY HAD SOME QUESTIONS.
WE SET UP A MEETING, WE HAD A CHAT WITH THEM, UM, FOR APPLICANT, A, YOU KNOW, THAT ONE DIDN'T GO ANY FURTHER FOR APPLICANT B.
THAT MEETING WAS JUST LAST WEEK.
SO I'M ANTICIPATING ADDITIONAL FOLLOW UP AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM THAT PERSON.
UM, APPLICANT C IS, UM, AN ORGANIZATION THAT WE ARE HOPING TO GET TO FUNDING.
UM, BUT IT TAKES A WHILE AND THEY ARE IN THE PROCESS OF STILL FIGURING OUT THEIR THIRD PARTY FUNDING.
SO WE HAVE AN APPLICATION FOR THEM.
UM, IT'S A COM RELATIVELY COMPLETE APPLICATION BASED.
WE'RE JUST MISSING THAT OUTSIDE FUNDING PIECE, BUT WE KNOW WHAT THE PROJECT IS, IT'S PRETTY WELL DEFINED AND WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO GET THAT TO UNDERWRITING.
THAT'S THE ONE THAT I'VE TALKED ABOUT THAT I KEEP HOPING WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO GET TO UNDERWRITING.
WE STILL ARE HOPING TO GET THAT ONE TO UNDERWRITING.
UM, APPLICANT D IS A PROJECT THAT SUBMITTED A VERY PRELIMINARY APPLICATION.
WE ARE STILL WORKING WITH THEM TO GET A FIRM SENSE OF WHAT THAT PROJECT AND WHAT THAT PROJECT BUDGET LOOKS LIKE.
SO WE'RE STILL PENDING A COMPLETE APPLICATION FROM THAT APPLICANT.
AND THEN APPLICANT E IS A PROJECT THAT HAS NOW WITHDRAWN
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AND IT WASN'T VIABLE.THE BUSINESS IS NO LONGER IN SERVICE.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK ABOUT ANY OF THE CURRENT APPLICATIONS THAT ARE IN THE PIPELINE RIGHT NOW? SO IT SEEMS LIKE, UH, HEATHER, UH, APPLICANT C IS, IS PROBABLY THE ONE THAT'S MOST VIABLE AND, AND LIVE AND ACTIVE.
WOULD THAT BE THE CORRECT? YES.
APPLICANT C IS THE FURTHEST ALONG IN THE PROCESS.
I THINK APPLICANT B IS ALSO GOING TO BE A VIABLE PROJECT.
UM, BUT THEY'RE VERY, VERY PRELIMINARY STAGES AT THIS POINT.
UM, AND THEN, I MEAN, FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, I WAS AT A MEETING THIS MORNING AND I TALKED TO A PERSON WHO APPARENTLY HAD SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION PREVIOUSLY WHEN IT WAS WITH THE SMALL BUSINESS CENTER.
SO WE'RE GONNA REVISIT WITH HIM NEXT WEEK.
UM, SO WE MIGHT HAVE ANOTHER INITIAL CONTACT BY THE END OF NEXT WEEK.
SO IT'S, IT'S A SNAPSHOT IN TIME IS WHAT THIS IS, BUT WE'RE TRYING TO KEEP THINGS MOVING IN.
UM, MR. LE PESCO FOR APPLICANT D UM, IN THE PENDING COMPLETE, UH, APPLICATION.
SO AT, WE'RE JUST WAITING ON THEM TO FINISH THEIR APPLICATION, BUT THEY HAVEN'T GONE INTO THE PROCESS FOR REVIEW, IF I UNDERSTAND.
SO IN THIS CASE, IT'S, IT'S NOT EVEN, WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR THEM TO REALLY DEFINE THE PROJECT.
UM, SO IT'S VERY, I MEAN, WE, WE CAN REALLY ONLY FUND WHEN WE KNOW WHAT THE PROJECT IS.
AND SO IF YOU'RE COMING WITH US AND SAYING, I WANT TO EXPAND MY BUSINESS, OR I WANNA MAKE THESE IMPROVEMENTS, THAT'S GREAT AND THAT'S A GOOD THING, BUT YOU NEED TO TELL US HOW YOU'RE GONNA DO THAT.
AND IF WE DON'T KNOW HOW YOU'RE GONNA DO THIS AND WHAT YOUR BUDGET LOOKS LIKE, IT'S REALLY TOO EARLY FOR US TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE.
SO THAT'S, I GUESS THAT WAS THE PART THAT I WAS MISSING.
ENRIQUEZ, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK, UH, ABOUT THE APPLICATIONS, UH, THAT ARE PENDING? OKAY.
SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM.
UH, MAKE SURE I DON'T HAVE ANY HANDS UP.
UM, IF YOU WOULD JUST ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR PRESENCE.
TRENT HUGHES, DISTRICT 12 PRESENT.
ALRIGHT, WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, AGENDA ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, WHICH IS THE OUTLINE OF THE REVIEW PROCESS FOR THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR OPPORTUNITY FUND, UH, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT.
SO, UH, JUST SET THE TABLE A LITTLE BIT FOR THIS.
UH, WE THOUGHT IT'D BE HELPFUL BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF, OF NEW BOARD MEMBERS TO, UH, CONTINUE TO GET REPS IN TERMS OF UNDERSTANDING WHAT THAT PROCESS LOOKS LIKE AS IT RELATES TO AN APPLICANT ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE MAKING THAT DISTINCTION AS NOT THE NOFA SIDE OF THE, THE GRANTS, BUT AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LOAN THAT COMES INTO THE PIPELINE, WHAT THE PROCESS IS ON THE BACK END FROM THE TIME THAT THEY APPLY TO THE TIME THAT IT COMES TO THE BOARD, TO THE TIME THAT IT GOES THROUGH THE OTHER END AND IS FUNDED.
SO, UH, THE PRESENTATION THAT MS. HEATHER IS GOING TO GO OVER IS GOING TO OUTLINE, UH, WHAT THAT PROCESS LOOKS LIKE.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, PLEASE BEAR WITH US FOR THE FOLKS THAT THAT, UH, KNOW THIS ALREADY.
UM, BUT AGAIN, UNTIL WE START GETTING, UH, MORE LOANS IN THE PIPELINE AND WE START GETTING MORE REPS, UH, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO CONTINUE TO SEE THE PROCESS AND HOW IT WORKS SO THAT WE CAN BETTER COMMUNICATE THAT TO FOLKS THAT WE'RE TALKING TO, UH, AND THEN UNDERSTAND THE PROCESS BETTER FOR OURSELVES.
SO, UM, MS. LKA, I WILL TURN IT OVER TO YOU TO, UH, REVIEW THE, THE, THE PROCESS.
UM, SO THIS IS A HIGH LEVEL SUMMARY OF KIND OF WHAT THE PROCESS LOOKS LIKE AS WE, UH, WORK THROUGH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS, ESPECIALLY IN THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND AREA.
I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT WE CAN DO TO START IS TO HAVE AN INITIAL MEETING WITH A PROJECT OWNER OR PROPERTY OWNER, UM, BECAUSE IT REALLY HELPS US GET MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROJECT AND REALLY ASSESS THE READINESS.
UM, AND IF THE PROJECT ISN'T READY, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN HELP THEM GET TO READY.
UM, I'VE MADE IN THE PAST THREE WEEKS REFERRALS TO FOUR DIFFERENT BANK ORGANIZATIONS TO HELP FIND FUNDING FUNDING.
UM, AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE JUST GONNA HAVE TO WORK THROUGH.
WE DON'T MAKE ANY PREFERRED LENDERS.
WE'RE OPEN TO ANY AND ALL LENDERS.
AND I'D LOVE TO CHAT MORE ABOUT YOUR SMALL BUSINESS OFFERINGS AND IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, SO BECAUSE WE REALLY WANNA HAVE A, A GOOD SENSE OF WHAT THE COMMUNITY IS PROVIDING, AND WE'RE, BECAUSE AGAIN, WE COME IN AS GAP, WE ARE NOT THE SOLE FUNDING SOURCE.
WE ARE NOT THE FIRST FUNDING SOURCE.
WE ARE GAP FUNDING, AND WE ARE PROVIDING FUNDING AS A LOAN.
AND IF WE ARE PROVIDING FUNDING FOR A CONSTRUCTION PROJECT, WHICH IS WHAT MOST OF THESE ARE, WE CANNOT DO THE CONSTRUCTION DISBURSEMENT.
SO WE REALLY NEED A PARTNER TO HELP US WITH THESE PROJECTS.
UM, SO THAT'S WHY THE INITIAL CONTACT MEETING IS REALLY IMPORTANT.
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AND WE REALLY NEED TO MAKE IT CLEAR UPFRONT THAT WE CANNOT BE YOUR SOLE AND ONLY FUNDING SOURCE OR YOUR FIRST FUNDING SOURCE IN THIS PROJECT.UM, SO AFTER THAT, IF THE PROJECT IS FEASIBLE, THE APPLICANT WILL SUBMIT AN APPLICATION FOR OUR, OUR PROGRAM.
UM, YOU KNOW, ONCE WE GET THE APPLICATION, WE'RE GONNA REVIEW IT NOT ONLY FOR THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND FUNDING, BUT ALSO THE OTHER PROGRAMS THAT IT MIGHT BE MOST APPLICABLE FOR.
SO THAT MIGHT BE THE SMALL BUSINESS, UM, PROGRAM.
IT MIGHT BE THE, AS A RIGHT ABATEMENT PROGRAM, IT MIGHT NEED BE NEGOTIATED INCENTIVES.
AND WE ARE ALSO NOT GOING TO TELL YOU ONCE YOU'VE SUBMITTED AN APPLICATION, UH, YOU'RE MISSING ANY SOMETHING.
WE'RE NOT GONNA CONSIDER IT ANY FURTHER.
WE'RE GONNA WORK WITH THE APPLICANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET THE RIGHT INFORMATION AND THAT WE HAVE A COMPLETE APPLICATION AND WE GET THEM ON PATH FOR THE PROGRAM THAT MAKES THE MOST SENSE.
SO ONCE WE HAVE A COMPLETE APPLICATION, AS I JUST SAID, WE'RE GONNA WORK TO MAKE SURE THE, UH, THE APPLICATION IS COMPLETE.
IF THE PROGRAM THAT IT MAKES THE MOST SENSE FOR IS A SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM, OR THE, AS A RIGHT TAX ABATEMENT PROGRAM, WE CAN APPROVE THAT ADMINISTRATIVELY AND WE DON'T NEED TO SEND THOSE OUT FOR UNDERWRITING.
IF THE PROGRAM THAT IT MAKES THE MOST SENSE FOR IS EITHER NEGOTIATED INCENTIVES OR THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, THAT'S A LOT OF WORK.
BUT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM THAT WE DO SEND OUT TO UNDERWRITING, AND AS A REMINDER, OUR UNDERWRITER IS GROW AMERICA, WHICH IS A NATIONAL CDFI THAT DOES A LOT OF SMALL BUSINESS, UM, LENDING AND A LOT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT LENDING.
UM, SO AFTER WE'VE DONE EITHER OUR STAFF REVIEW OR WE HAVE OUR UNDERWRITING REPORT, THEN WE ISSUE A OFFER LETTER THAT OUTLINES THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR THE PROJECT.
UM, AND THAT OFFER LETTER, THEY CAN EITHER SIGN OR THEY CAN SAY, I LIKE THIS AND I LIKE THIS, BUT I DON'T LIKE THAT.
AND WE CAN NEGOTIATE THAT, UM, WHEN WE'RE IN AGREEMENT ON THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS, AND WE'LL REVISE THE LETTER AS MANY TIMES AS WE NEED TO THE APPLICANT COUNTERSIGN, AND THAT'S WHEN WE CAN MOVE FORWARD WITH GETTING THE APPROVALS ON IT.
UM, AND SO FOR PROJECTS THAT ARE UNDER A MILLION DOLLARS IN A TARGET AREA, THEY CAN BE APPROVED BY ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION, UM, WHICH MEANS THAT THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFER OFFICE IS AUTHORIZING THAT.
UM, WE STILL HAVE A CONTRACT FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, AND THAT'S STILL SIGNED BY THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE AND THE CITY, UM, ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND OUR OFFICE AND THE APPLICANT.
UM, IF IT'S OVER A MILLION DOLLARS, IT WOULD NEED TO GO TO CITY COUNCIL, OR IF IT'S NOT IN A TARGET AREA, THE THRESHOLD FOR THAT CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL IS A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.
SO FOR MOST PROJECTS THAT WE CAN DO, UM, IN SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK, DEPENDING ON THE AREA, I MEAN, WE, WE HAVE A FAIRLY FLEXIBLE ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVAL IS, I GUESS WHAT I WOULD SAY.
WE ALSO HAVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE ANYTHING TO CITY COUNCIL IF WE FEEL LIKE IT MIGHT BE AT ALL CONTROVERSIAL, AND WE WANT JUST MAKING SURE THAT COUNCIL'S AWARE OF IT.
UM, AND THEN EVERYTHING THAT WE TAKE AS AN ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION ITEM, WE THEN BRIEF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE QUARTERLY ON IT SO THAT THEY'RE AWARE OF EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING.
SO I'LL SAY NEXT WEEK WE'RE GONNA TAKE, UM, WE DID A SMALL BUSINESS DEAL IN DISTRICT SEVEN, WHERE THE DALLAS METAL FABRICATORS, THEY'RE DOING A MILLION DOLLAR EXPANSION.
IT ACTUALLY ENDED UP BEING A SMALL BUSINESS PROJECT RATHER THAN A SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND PROJECT, BUT WE'RE PROVIDING ABOUT A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS TO SUPPORT THAT RENOVATION AND EXPANSION, UM, AND THAT WE DID VIA ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.
AND THAT IS VERY QUICK OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS.
UM, DO YOU WANNA PAUSE FOR QUESTIONS THERE OR? YES, WE'LL PAUSE THERE FOR QUESTIONS.
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS? UH, MRS. SORRY FOR THE EARLY QUESTION HERE.
SO ON THE PREVIOUS SLIDE, IT SOUNDED LIKE THESE APPLICA THE APPLICATION PROCESS IS CLOSED.
IS IT A ROLLING APPLICATION PROCESS THAT CAN CONTINUE TO APPLY? CORRECT.
SO, UH, ON THAT PREVIOUS SLIDE, YOU KNOW, OF THE FIVE PEOPLE, I THINK WE RECEIVED THREE APPLICATIONS THAT WE HAVE.
UM, BUT WE TAKE APPLICATIONS ON A ROLLING BASIS, AND THEN WE KIND OF SEND THEM BACK TO THEM IF THEY'RE NOT READY.
AND THEN THE SEC, THANK YOU FOR THAT.
THE SECOND QUESTION IS, IN, IN A PERFECT WORLD, THE IDEAL CANDIDATE APPLIES, WHAT'S THEIR FASTEST TIMELINE TO FUNDING? FROM APPLICATION TO OR FROM INITIAL CONTACT OF FUNDING? IF THEY HAVE THIRD PARTY FINANCING, ASSUMING THEY, YEAH, THEY'RE PRE-APPROVED AT ANOTHER BANK, BUT WE, THEY HAVE A LETTER THAT SAYS THAT.
UM, I WOULD SAY IT WOULD PROBABLY BE ABOUT FOUR MONTHS WHERE WE HAVE REALLY STRUGGLED, AND THIS IS NOT THE QUESTION YOU ASKED, BUT I'M GOING TO OFFER THIS ANYWAY, IS GETTING THE THIRD PARTY FINANCING, LIKE HAVING, YEAH, THAT'S, THAT'S BEEN THE NUMBER ONE PROBLEM.
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THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? UH, CHAIR, ENRIQUE.
UH, MS. LIPSKA, JUST GOING BACK TO THE, UH, COMMENTARY ABOUT THE UNDERWRITER.
YOU MENTIONED THAT THE VENDOR THAT'S BEING USED FOR UNDERWRITING IS UNDERWRITING AMERICA IS, UH, GROW AMERICA.
IT, IT'S FORMALLY, UM, NDC, THE NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL, BUT THEY CHANGED THEIR NAME.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, UH, MS. WISE? YES.
UM, I WAS WONDERING WHEN YOU SAID THAT, UM, THERE'S AN THAT, SO YOU HAD TWO DIFFERENT SCENARIOS WHERE THERE IS AN UNDERWRITER AND THERE'S NOT AN UNDERWRITER.
IS THAT DEPENDENT ON THE AMOUNT OF MONEY? NO, IT REALLY DEPENDS ON THE TYPE OF WHAT THE PROJECT IS.
SO UNDER THE SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM AND THE AS OF RIGHT PROGRAM, WE'VE ESTABLISHED THOSE AS PROGRAMS WHERE WE'RE NOT FILLING THE GAP.
IT'S MORE SO IF YOU DO THIS, THIS, THIS, AND THIS, YOU RECEIVE THIS INCENTIVE.
AND THEN FOR THE ONES THAT ARE THE UNDERWRITING, THAT'S REALLY ON A TRADITIONAL TRUE REAL ESTATE PROJECT WHERE THEY HAVE A PROJECT, SAY IT'S A MILLION DOLLAR PROJECT, THEY HAVE $400,000 FROM THE BANK, AND THEN THEY KIND OF ARE STUCK ON THE REST.
WE'LL GO THROUGH AND WE'LL LOOK AT THEIR PROJECTIONS AND WE'LL LOOK AT KIND OF THE, THE STRENGTH OF THEIR BUSINESS MODEL AND ALL OF THAT.
AND THEY WILL, AND THEIR BUDGET ACTUALLY TO ALL THAT.
UM, AND THEN THEY'LL MAKE A, THE UNDERWRITER WILL MAKE A DETERMINATION OF WHAT THAT TRUE GAP IS, AND THAT'S WHAT THE CITY WOULD FUND.
UM, SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE OF A COMPLEX PROCESS.
AND OBVIOUSLY IF YOU CAN FIT IN, IF THE PROJECT WILL MAKE WITH EITHER THE SMALL BUSINESS ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OR THE AS A RIGHT PROGRAM, THAT'S AN EASIER CHOICE.
UM, BUT IT'S NOT AS DEEP OF A SUBSIDY TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, MS. WISE.
THANK, UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK ABOUT THE UNDERWRITING? MR. CHAIRMAN? MR. CHAIRMAN, WHO'S, WHO'S SPEAKING? THIS IS DOUGLAS DUN SAVAGE, I'M SORRY, UH, FROM DISTRICT NINE.
AND I JUST, HANG ON, HANG ON, MR. DUN SAVAGE.
I NEED TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR PRESENCE BECAUSE, UH, YOU, YOU'RE NOT COUNTED AS PRESENT RIGHT NOW.
SO, UH, MR. DOUGLAS DUN SAVAGE, CAN YOU ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR PRESENCE? YES, MR. CHAIRMAN DOUGLAS DUN SAVAGE REPRESENTATIVE, UH, FROM OR ON THE BOARD, UH, REPRESENTING DISTRICT NINE, AND I APOLOGIZE, I WAS IN AS AN APPLICANT WHEN THE START, WHEN THE MEETING STARTED.
TAKE, TAKE IT AWAY WITH YOUR QUESTION.
I, I, SHE ANSWERED THE QUESTION IN TERMS OF UNDERWRITING, BUT IF WE GET TO THE POINT FROM A REVIEW PROCESS, AND WE'RE, I MEAN, IT'S SOMEONE OR, UH, AN ENTITY THAT'S, THAT'S APPLYING FROM SAY, THE DISTRICT THAT, THAT WE'RE REPRESENTING, IS THERE A WAY THAT WE, THAT WE'RE ENGAGING, OR IS THIS COMPLETELY DONE FROM A STAFF PERSPECTIVE, HEATHER, IN AN UNDERWRITING PERSPECTIVE, IN THIS PROCESS? DO WE ENGAGE AT ALL, I GUESS IS THE QUESTION? NO, ONCE THE APPLICATION IS IN, IT'S KIND OF IN LOCKDOWN.
SO THERE WOULD BE NO, NO RULE FOR THE BOARD MEMBERS UNTIL WE PRESENT IT TO YOU FOR CONSIDERATION.
THANK YOU MR. DUN SAVAGE FOR THAT QUESTION.
UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK ABOUT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LOAN PROCESS? I'M HEARING NONE.
SO, SO HEATHER, ON THE BACK OF THAT QUESTION, SAY FOR EXAMPLE, THERE IS A PROJECT THAT'S LOCATED IN SOMEBODY'S DISTRICT, WHEN IT'S TIME TO VOTE ON THAT, DOES THAT PROVE THAT PERSON FROM VOTING IF IT'S IN THEIR, THEIR, UH, DISTRICT OR NO, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION.
I, SO ME, THE, AND BRADY MAY ANSWER THIS BETTER THAN ME, BUT THE ETHICS WOULD, THE ETHICS CODE OF THE CITY WOULD PRECLUDE YOU FROM VOTING FOR A PROJECT THAT YOU HAVE A DIRECT FISCAL BENEFIT FROM, OR THAT IT'S A BLOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH THE DEVELOPER OR WIFE OR A SPOUSE.
UM, AND THERE'S MAYBE A COUPLE OTHER THINGS, BUT THOSE ARE THE BIG ONES.
HI, BRADY, RIGHT? BRADY PLENARY, UM, DALLAS CITY, THE ATTORNEY'S OFFICE.
BUT, UM, IF THERE IS ANY CONFUSION, YOU CAN ALWAYS CAN, UH, HEATHER, I GUESS HEATHER WOULD SUBMIT IT A, UM, LIKE A CONFLICT CHECK WITH OUR ETHICS.
UM, AND THEY CHANGED NAMES, BUT THE, UM, ETHICS GROUP, WHAT DO THEY CALLED NOW? I THINK OFFICE OF, YEAH.
AND THEY CAN PROVIDE AN ADVISORY OPINION ON IF THERE IS A CONFLICT OR NOT.
AND IF, IF THAT WERE TO HAPPEN AND THAT WERE TO COME UP AND SOMEBODY HAD A QUESTION, COULD THEY ROUTE THOSE THROUGH, UM, ECO
[00:30:01]
DEV AND THEN HAVE THOSE FORWARDED ON TO THE OFFICE FOR, FOR, UH, TO BE DECISIONED ESSENTIALLY? YES.UM, YOU CAN EITHER ROUTE IT THROUGH ME OR WE CAN GIVE YOU THE CONTACT INFORMATION AND YOU CAN REACH OUT DIRECTLY IF THAT WOULD BE MORE COMFORTABLE.
UM, ALSO, JUST FOR ANOTHER QUESTION, UH, UNRELATED FOR CLARIFICATION PURPOSES, UH, THROUGHOUT THE LOAN PROCESS AND THE TIMELINE THAT YOU GUYS HAVE LAID OUT, UH, CAN YOU CLARIFY FOR EVERYBODY, AT WHAT POINT, UH, IS THE, THE BOARD REVIEW INSERTED IN THAT PROCESS, JUST SO THAT EVERYBODY KNOWS AT WHAT POINT ALONG THIS CONTINUUM? YEAH, THE, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.
'CAUSE I DIDN'T PUT THAT IN THIS CHART.
UM, SO THE BOARD APPROVALS WOULD BE PRIOR TO US GETTING, IF IT WOULD BE IN BETWEEN OFFER LETTER AND APPROVALS ON THAT STEP.
SO WE WOULDN'T, WE WOULD SEND OUT AN OFFER LETTER, UM, ON BEHALF OF STAFF, BUT WE WOULD NOT GET IT ROUTED FOR CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE OR AN ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION OR COUNCIL APPROVALS WITHOUT THE BOARD MAKING A RECOMMENDATION TO DO THAT.
SO, MR. CHAIRMAN, UH, MR. JONES, GO AHEAD.
UM, SO THAT MAKES SENSE, HEATHER.
UH, SO IN BETWEEN THE OFFER LETTER AND APPROVALS IS WHEN WE, WE KIND OF STEP IN AND NOT STEP IN, BUT GIVE APPROVAL.
BUT, SO YOU'LL HAVE THE OFFER LETTER READY, WE, THE, THE BOARD VOTES ON IT, THEN YOU SEND THE OFFER LETTER.
IS THAT CORRECT? NO, WE WOULD SEND THE OFFER LETTER FIRST.
THAT'S, AND THEN IF THEY AGREE TO THE TERMS, THEN WE WOULD THEN PRESENT IT FOR THE ADDITIONAL APPROVALS.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, THE LETTER SAYS IT'S CONTINGENT ON CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL, CITY MANAGER APPROVAL, SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND BOARD APPROVAL.
SO THEY KNOW IT'S A CONDITIONAL OFFER LETTER.
UM, AND SO ONCE WE, ONCE WE GET IT BACK, EXECUTE, OTHERWISE WE MIGHT BRING YOU A DEAL THAT WON'T EVER MAKE.
AND SO THE IDEA IS THAT THE THINGS THAT GET PRESENTED TO THE BOARD ARE PROJECTS THAT WE KNOW WE HAVE AN AGREEMENT ON TERMS ON.
THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION.
UM, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THAT, UH, PARTICULAR POINT? NOW? I'VE GOT ONE MORE QUESTION HERE.
UM, HEATHER, JUST, JUST FOR CLARIFICATION, UH, AN APPLICATION COMES TO THE BOARD DURING THIS SAME PROCESS.
UM, WE HAVE THE ABILITY AS A BOARD TO APPROVE THAT PROJECT AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY SEND IT ON TO CITY COUNCIL, UH, FOR FURTHER REVIEW IF FOR WHATEVER REASON WE WANT IT TO, TO BE REVIEWED.
SO, SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT THERE THEORETICALLY COULD BE A SITUATION WHERE WE COULD APPROVE SOMETHING WITH THE BOARD THAT DOESN'T REQUIRE CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL AND CAN BE PROCESSED VIA ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION, BUT FOR WHATEVER REASON, WE WANT TO SEND IT OFF FOR FURTHER REVIEW FOR CITY COUNCIL.
THAT IS A POSSIBILITY TO DO IT.
AND IF WE DO THAT, DOES THAT GO DIRECTLY TO CITY COUNCIL OR DOES IT GO TO ECO DEV? UH, FIRST, UH, THE ECO DEV COMMITTEE FIRST AND THEN ON THE CITY COUNCIL? YEAH.
I MEAN, I THINK IF THIS BOARD WASN'T, WAS CONDITIONALLY APPROVING IT, BUT FELT LIKE IT WAS SOMETHING THAT NEEDED TO BE HERE BY COUNCIL, WE WOULD DEFINITELY RESPECT THAT OPINION.
UM, BEFORE IT COULD GO TO CITY COUNCIL, AS YOU NOTED, IT WOULD NEED TO GO TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE.
UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, GIVEN JUST THE WAY THAT THE TIMELINE WORKS, THIS WOULD, YOU KNOW, YOU MEET THE LAST MONDAY OF THE MONTH, ECO IS THE FIRST MONDAY OF THE MONTH, SO IT WOULD THEN GO THE FOLLOWING MONTH.
IT WOULDN'T, SO IT WOULD ADD ANOTHER MONTH OR SO TO THE PROCESS.
UH, MR. CHAIRMAN, POINT OF CLARIFICATION, IN TERMS OF THAT, CAN ANYBODY MAKE THAT REQUEST FROM THE BOARD IF, UM, THAT, THAT IT GO ON TO, TO BE APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL? I WOULD, I WOULD SEE THAT AS AN ADMINISTRATIVE, UM, OR SORT OF TAKE AWAY THE POWER OF THAT ADMINISTRATIVE RULE.
IF IT'S UNDER A MILLION DOLLARS OR WHATEVER THE, THE AMOUNT IS UN NOT THRESHOLD IS A HUNDRED THOUSAND.
IF IT'S NOT IN THE TARGET AREAS.
SO ANYBODY CAN REQUEST THAT IT GO ON TO ECO DEV IF I, I'LL LET, UH, UH, HEATHER AND BRADY TACKLE THIS.
BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS, UH, AND THIS WOULD BE A GREAT POINT FOR CLARIFICATION, A GREAT QUESTION.
UH, ANYBODY CAN MAKE A MOTION TO HAVE IT MOVED AND REGARD BY CITY COUNCIL.
IT WOULD STILL NEED TO BE APPROVED.
IT THEN STILL HAVE TO, YOU KNOW, GET, GET APPROVAL, UH, AFTER THE MOTION WAS MADE.
AND IF AT THAT POINT A MOTION WAS MADE AND THE MAJORITY OF THE BOARD APPROVED THAT MOTION, UH, THEN AT THAT POINT, MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IT WOULD MOVE ON.
UH, BUT YOU KNOW, FUNDAMENTALLY, YOU'RE, YOU'RE CORRECT.
ANYBODY CAN MAKE A MOTION TO, TO HAVE SOMETHING MOVED ON.
BRADY, COULD, COULD YOU GUYS CLARIFY
[00:35:01]
THAT? AND HOPEFULLY THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN, THAT, YOU KNOW, THE PROJECTS THAT ARE COMING BEFORE US ARE PRETTY MUCH AGREED UPON.WE'RE STILL HAVING A LITTLE BIT OF A SIDEBAR CONVERSATION ON THAT.
I THINK, I MEAN, I AGREE WITH WHAT YOU LAID OUT, THAT IT WOULD BE POSTED ON THE AGENDA AS A VOTING ITEM FOR THIS COMMITTEE, AND A BOARD MEMBER COULD MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO THAT TO RECOMMEND THAT IT BE CONSIDERED BY FULL COUNCIL RATHER THAN CITY MANAGER APPROVAL.
AND THEN THE FULL BOARD WOULD HAVE TO VOTE ON THAT.
AND IF THAT APPROVES, THEN THAT IS WHAT WOULD STICK.
ARE YOU COMFORTABLE WITH THAT? OKAY.
HE'S COMFORTABLE TO CLARIFY IT.
SO NO ONE BOARD MEMBER COULD MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
IT HAS TO BE VOTED ON BY THE BOARD.
AND IT HAS TO BE RELATED TO A POSTED AGENDA ITEM? NO.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER, UH, QUESTIONS ON THAT OR ANY OTHER POINTS OF CLARIFICATION THAT ANYONE NEEDS, UH, ON THAT PROCESS? WE JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, UH, EVERYBODY'S CLEAR ON WHAT THE PROCESS IS, WHERE THE BOARD IS INSERTED, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT OUR ROLE IS IN TERMS OF REVIEWING THESE.
UM, SO ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR, OR FEEDBACK ON, ON THOSE ITEMS? MR. CHAIRMAN? CAN I HAVE ONE MORE, MR. SIGN? GO AHEAD.
UM, SO THE, IF THE OFFER LETTER'S ALREADY COMING SIGNED AND AGREED UPON, ARE WE ONLY APPROVING IT AS STATED, OR CAN WE NEGOTIATE THE AMORTIZATION RATE TERMS, UM, AMOUNT, IS ANY OF THAT UPWARD DEBATE? UM, THE OFFER LETTER IS SIGNED AND SO I, I MEAN, YES, AGAIN, YOU CAN MAKE AN AMENDMENT TO THE POSTED AGENDA ITEM.
SO IF THE, THE BOARD FELT STRONGLY THAT THE TERMS WERE WRONG, NOW WE WOULD JUST NOTE THAT THE BOARD VOTED FOR APPROVAL WITH THESE CONDITIONS.
AND AGAIN, THE WHOLE BOARD WOULD HAVE TO THEN APPROVE THAT AMENDMENT.
THANK YOU, MRS. AND JUST TO ADD ON TO THAT, UH, DURING THE REVIEW PROCESS, WE ALSO HAVE THE ABILITY AS A BOARD TO REQUEST ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE UNCLEAR ON, UH, WE, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE VOTED ON.
IN OTHER WORDS, IDEALLY, YOU KNOW, WE COULD, WE COULD COME TO A RESOLUTION, BUT IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT IS MISSING OR SOMETHING THAT WE NEED CLARIFICATION ON, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE COULD REQUEST ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON, UH, THROUGH CITY STAFF, WHICH WILL THEN, UM, OBTAIN THAT INFORMATION AND THEN COME BACK TO US.
UH, AND THEN IT COULD BE RE-REVIEWED AGAIN, TECHNICALLY, AND I WILL SAY FOR THE DALLAS DEVELOPMENT FUND, WHICH IS OUR NEW MARKETS BOARD, WHICH IS THE OTHER BOARD, I MANAGE THAT BOARD, ALL OF OUR APPROVALS ARE IN A TWO STEP PROCESS.
SO IT COMES FIRST AS A FIRST LOOK, WHICH IS GENERAL HIGH LEVEL.
AND THEN THE SECOND ONE IS MUCH MORE DETAILED ON THE, THE TAX CREDIT STRUCTURE.
IT'S IN PART BECAUSE IT TAKES LONGER, IT'S MORE COMPLICATED, ALL THAT.
SO I MEAN, IF THE, IF WE GET THROUGH A COUPLE OF THESE AND THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS AT THE FIRST MEETING, THEN MAYBE WE COULD JUMP TO A TWO, TWO MEETING APPROACH.
BUT I DON'T WANNA SET THAT UP AS YOUR STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE UNTIL THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS NECESSARY.
UM, DOES ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR, OR FEEDBACK, UH, ON THE PROCESS? OKAY.
SO WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, OUR SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATES.
UH, SORRY, I'M NOT SORRY, MR. CHAIR, THERE'S ONE MORE SLIDE OUT.
OH, THERE'S, THERE'S ONE, THERE'S A BACK HALF.
I MEAN, WE CAN GO STRAIGHT TO SUBCOMMITTEES.
LIKE, THERE'S NO REASON, BUT, OKAY.
UM, SO THIS IS JUST A QUICK REMEMBRANCE OF TALKING ABOUT TIMELINE.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER APPROVALS? UM, SO ONCE WE HAVE AN ACTIVE CON UH, CONTRACT, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING THAT WE DO, AND THIS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S TRICKIEST, UM, FOR GRANT REQUESTS, ESPECIALLY EVERYTHING WE DO IS ON A REIMBURSEMENT BASIS.
SO THEY HAVE TO SPEND THE MONEY AND DEMONSTRATE THEY HAVE SPENT THE MONEY.
SO WHEN THEY SUBMIT A DRAW REQUEST FOR US, WE NEED TO HAVE THE COMPLETE PACKET TO PROVE UP THAT WE, WE CAN REIMBURSE THAT FUNDING.
UM, THEN STAFF REVIEWS FOR COMPLETENESS AND ALIGNMENT WITH THE CONTRACT, THE, UM, INTERNAL O-E-D-O-E-D FINANCIAL APPROVALS TAKE PLACE.
AND THAT THE FIRST THREE STEPS PROBABLY TAKES ABOUT TWO WEEKS.
UM, ASSUMING IT'S A COMPLETE PACKET, BECAUSE THERE'S ALMOST ALWAYS BACK AND FORTH.
I CAN TELL YOU ON THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND NOFA STUFF, UM, THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF BACK AND FORTH AND IT'S A LOT OF TIMES JUST BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE ASKING FOR, LET'S SAY THEY NEED, YOU KNOW, GLOVES AND FOOD OR DIAPERS OR WHATEVER, THERE'S A LOT OF LINE ITEMS AND INVOICES THAT NEED TO BE REVIEWED.
AND SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE IT ALL LINES UP WITH THE BUDGET AND THE COVER SHEET WITH THE REQUEST.
[00:40:01]
IT'S A SOMEWHAT TEDIOUS PROCESS.UM, WHICH IS ALSO PART OF THE REASON IN THIS CURRENT ROUND, THE NEXT ROUND OF NOFA IS WE'RE DOING QUARTERLY DRAWS INSTEAD OF MONTHLY DRAWS BECAUSE WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THE SAME LEVEL OF INFORMATION.
MAKES SENSE TO DO IT IN A BIGGER BUNCH THAN A SMALL BUNCH.
SO AFTER WE DO THAT TWO OR THREE WEEK INTERNAL REVIEW, THEN WE GET IT TO ACCOUNTS PAYABLE.
THE CITY'S PROCESS TO GETTING A CHECKOUT IS ABOUT 30 DAYS.
SO THE OVERALL REIMBURSEMENT PROCESS IS ABOUT 30 TO 45 DAYS.
AND THEN ONCE THE FUNDS ARE FULLY DIVER DI DISPERSED, THE PROJECT IS IN COMPLIANCE PERIOD.
WE STILL HAVE, WE CHECK IN YEARLY ON THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE MEETING THEIR REQUIREMENTS.
SO THE OUTSIDE OF THE NOFA GRANTS, BECAUSE THAT HAS A ONE YEAR TERM, UM, BUT THE REST OF 'EM, WE WILL BE CHECKING IN ANNUALLY TO MAKE SURE THEY'RE STILL MEETING THEIR GOALS, THEY'RE STILL IN BUSINESS, ALL OF THAT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB WITH THE TAXPAYER MONEY.
UH, ANY QUESTIONS ON, UH, THOSE ITEMS? UH, ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE APPROVAL CHAIR? ENRIQUE? THANK YOU, MR. CHAIR.
UM, MS. SKA, YOU MENTIONED THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SOME UPDATES THAT TAKE PLACE AS THE PROJECT IS, UM, IS CONTINUING, UH, POST-APPROVAL AND FUND DISBURSEMENT.
UM, AT WHAT POINT DO WE AS A BOARD RECEIVE SOME OF THOSE UPDATES? JUST TO KIND OF UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, HOW THOSE THINGS ARE PROGRESSING.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING WE COULD BUILD INTO THE BOARD MEETINGS IF YOU WANT, LIKE QUARTERLY UPDATES ON WHERE EACH PROJECT IS, WE CERTAINLY COULD START PRESENTING ON THAT.
WE HAVEN'T DONE THAT OBVIOUSLY TO DATE, BUT IF THAT'S OF INTEREST, WE'RE HAPPY TO ADD THAT IN.
I THINK THAT WOULD BE REALLY IMPACTFUL.
SPECIFICALLY WHEN I THINK ABOUT THE MALCOLM'S POINT PROJECT, THAT WAS A REALLY BIG FUNDING THAT WE DID, JUST TO KIND OF UNDERSTAND HOW THAT'S PROGRESSING.
AND WHEN WE HAVE THINGS THAT WE CAN UPDATE, WE WILL UPDATE SURE.
AND I'LL ALSO SAY, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S A NEED FOR A CONTRACT AMENDMENT, AS YOU'VE SEEN, WE DO BRING THOSE BACK BECAUSE IF IT'S A MATERIAL CHANGE FOR THE CONTRACT, OBVIOUSLY THAT'S, THE BOARD HAS TO MAKE A CONSIDER A, A RECOMMENDATION ON A HUNDRED PERCENT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK, UH, ON WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE APPROVALS IN THAT PROCESS? ALRIGHT, I'M HEARING NONE.
SO NOW WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE FINAL AGENDA ITEM, WHICH IS AGENDA ITEM NUMBER EIGHT, UH, WHICH IS OUR SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS.
SO I, I DON'T KNOW IF, UH, MS. SIMS, WERE YOU ABLE TO, IS MS. SIMS ON PRESENT? CHAIRWOMAN SIMS? CHAIRWOMAN SIMS? ARE YOU OH, I SEE HER.
CHAIRWOMAN SIMS, UH, COULD YOU FLIP YOUR CAMERA ON, IF YOU CAN HEAR US, PLEASE? IT SAYS SHE HAS LOW BANDWIDTH, SO SHE MIGHT BE LIKE FROZEN ON HER END.
BUT I DID, UM, I DID PREPARE A SUBCOMMITTEE, UH, UPDATE ONE PAGER.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF I CAN SHARE ON HERE, BUT I DID EMAIL TO NICHOLAS AND MS. HEATHER IF YOU GUYS WANNA PULL IT UP.
UH, I THINK, UH, NICHOLAS IS TRYING TO PULL IT UP.
UM, NOW SEE, SEE JUST, UH, BEAR WITH THEM A QUICK MOMENT HERE.
I SENT IT LITERALLY LIKE TWO SECONDS AGO.
SO, UM, SO WHY DON'T WE DO THIS WHILE, WHILE THAT OCCURS, UM, WHY DON'T WE, WHY DON'T WE CIRCLE AROUND, UH, CIRCLE BACK TO YOU GUYS AND, AND GET A QUICK UPDATE FROM THE, UH, UM, MARKETING SUBCOMMITTEE FOR MUCH HERE, ENRIQUE? UH OH.
YOU DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN SIGN IN TO, TO VIEW IT.
UM, YOU MAY HAVE TO JUST GIVE THAT VERBALLY CC, UM, BUT, BUT WE'LL, WE'LL TRY A LITTLE BIT LONGER AND, UH, WE'LL, WE'LL PIVOT TO, UM, CHAIR ENRIQUE AS FREE UPDATE AND THEN WE'LL CIRCLE BACK AROUND.
UM, SO QUICK UPDATE FROM THE, UH, MARKETING SUBCOMMITTEE IN THE MONTH OF APRIL.
UM, WE'RE GONNA BE RECONVENING IN THE MONTH OF MAY, SO WE CURRENTLY DON'T HAVE ANY NEW UPDATES TO IMPART.
UM, SO WE WILL LOOK TO, TO RECONVENE THIS THIS FOLLOWING MONTH.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CHAIRMAN ENRIQUEZ.
UM, AND I DON'T THINK MS. SIMS, UM, LOOKS LIKE SHE DROPPED OFF AND MAYBE TRYING TO RECONNECT.
SO, CECE, DO YOU WANNA, IS IS THAT IT? OKAY, IS YOU'RE ON MUTE.
UM, YEAH, SO SUPER SLIGHT, UM, I, UM, OVER LIKE THE LAST MONTH HAVE
[00:45:01]
KIND OF BEEN MEETING WITH PEOPLE THAT I ALREADY KNOW IN THE COMMUNITY THAT I KNOW, UM, PROVIDE, UM, LIKE EDUCATION FOR BUSINESSES AND ENTREPRENEURS OR, UM, LIKE FINANCIAL ADVISORY STUFF TO HELP PEOPLE CAPACITY BUILD.UM, SO I MET WITH THEM, UM, TO KIND OF PICK THEIR BRAIN ABOUT LIKE, HOW CAN WE BETTER PREPARE APPLICANTS TO COME TO US? UM, SO WE'RE NOT CONSTANTLY LIKE A BROKEN WHEEL TELLING THEM LIKE, OKAY, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO REFER YOU TO SOMEBODY ELSE BEFORE WE CAN WORK WITH YOU.
UM, SO, UM, A LOT OF TIME I HEARD MULTIPLE TIMES THAT ENTREPRENEURS, SMALL BUSINESSES REQUIRE LOTS OF FOLLOW UPS WHEN THEY'RE KIND OF IN A DEVELOPMENT STAGE.
UM, THEY'RE MORE SUCCESSFUL WHEN THEY HAVE ACCOUNTABILITY BUDDIES OR DEDICATED WORKSHOP TIME WITH A COMMUNITY MEMBER TO LIKE WORK ON THEIR BUSINESS, UM, AT CERTAIN TIMES THROUGHOUT THE WEEK OR THE MONTH, WHICH I TOTALLY AGREE BECAUSE WHEN I HAVE SOMETHING SET OUT ON MY CALENDAR WITH SOMETHING LIKE RIGHT NOW, I WAS ABLE TO KIND OF FINISH THIS BECAUSE THIS IS DEDICATED TIME FOR US TO DO WORK ON THIS TYPE OF STUFF.
SO I KINDA UNDERSTOOD WHAT THEY MEANT WITH THAT.
UM, AND THEY DID TALK ABOUT HOW SO MANY LIKE BUSINESSES, UH, I MEAN, SO MANY ORGANIZATIONS OR INSTITUTIONS DO FINANCIAL LITERACY FOR BUSINESSES, BUT NEED HELP GETTING CONNECTED TO THOSE CLIENTS.
UM, SO I STARTED THINKING ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE BECAUSE WE CLEARLY HAVE A CONSTANT STREAM OF BUSINESSES THAT NEED THAT DEVELOPMENT, BUT WE'RE ALSO NEEDING THOSE BUSINESSES TO BE MORE DEVELOPED BEFORE WE CAN WORK WITH THEM.
SO HOW CAN WE, LIKE, AS BOARD MEMBERS LEVERAGE OUR PROFESSIONAL NETWORKS TO DRIVE THAT CONTINUED DEVELOPMENT OF THE APPLICANTS? AND I THINK THAT WE DO THAT BY BUILDING A 365 DAY A YEAR COMMUNITY AROUND THE ACTIVITIES THAT WE'RE DOING WITH THIS FUND.
SO LEVERAGING SOCIAL TOOLS, UH, COMMUNITY SPACES, UM, AND MEDIA TO DO THAT.
SO, UM, HOW CAN WE CREATE WORKING RELATIONSHIPS WITH LOCAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND ENTREPRENEUR CENTERED MEDIA BRANDS TO PROVIDE APPLICANTS A CONSTANT STREAM OF DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES.
SO WE DON'T PROVIDE THOSE DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES AS WE KNOW, BUT THERE'S LOTS OF SPACES WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, UM, LIKE COSIGN MAGAZINE, WHICH IS A REALLY COOL BRAND FOR LIKE YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS, VISTA BANK, THAT'S RIGHT HERE IN THE SERVICE AREA.
UM, COMERICA BANK THAT'S ALSO REALLY CLOSE AND SERVES THIS AREA, HAVE A LOT OF THESE, UH, PROGRAMS AND RESOURCES THAT ARE SUPER UNDERUTILIZED.
SO, UM, JUST MAKING SURE, HOW CAN WE LEVERAGE THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO, UH, BE IN CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH THESE APPLICANTS.
LIKE, UM, MAYBE WE DO A NEWSLETTER WHERE WE'RE CONSTANTLY JUST SENDING ANYTIME WE AS BOARD MEMBERS SEE, LIKE, OKAY, THERE'S THIS, UH, ENTREPRENEURSHIP SUMMER SCHOOL GOING DOWN WITH COSIGN MAGAZINE, OR FROST BANK HAS A ONE DAY WORKSHOP, LIKE SENDING THOSE OUT IN A NEWSLETTER, UM, OR DOING WARM REFERRALS, UH, WHICH I'M SURE WE ALREADY DO, BUT, UM, KIND OF BEING MORE INTENTIONAL ABOUT THESE WARM REFERRAL PRACTICES THAT WE HAVE WITH THESE DIFFERENT, UM, INSTITUTIONS.
UM, AND ALSO TOO, WHICH I'M A SOCIAL BUTTERFLY, SO CREATE SOCIAL EVENTS, CURATE SOCIAL EVENTS FOR THE CROSS POLLINATION OF FUNDERS AND EDUCATORS AND POTENTIAL AND CURRENT APPLICANTS, WHICH IS SUPER EASY.
LIKE STUFF THAT WE COULD DO A TWO HOUR EVENT AT THE VISTA BANK OR A TWO HOUR EVENT AT THE COMERICA BUSINESS HQ AND INVITE ALL THESE STAKEHOLDERS, UM, TO KIND OF PROVIDE LIKE LOW BARRIER LIKE, UM, NON INTIMIDATING ENVIRONMENTS FOR THESE DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS TO CONNECT AND KIND OF START THE WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE.
UM, AND THEN MAYBE IF PEOPLE HAVE TIME, BOARD MEMBERS COULD VOLUNTEER TO BE ACCOUNTABILITY BUDDIES WITH APPLICANTS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE LIKE REALLY COMMITTED TO, TO, UH, TO THE FUND, NOT JUST FOR THE MONEY, BUT BECAUSE THEY'RE REALLY DEDICATED TO DEVELOPING THE AREA.
SO THAT'S JUST WHAT I'VE BEEN WORKING ON.
UM, AND I WANTED TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU GUYS JUST SO THAT WE CAN KIND OF THINK ABOUT IT.
UM, BUT IN MY TIME HERE, I THINK THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S
[00:50:01]
SUPER EASY THAT WE COULD DO THAT COULD KIND OF HELP WITH HAVING, UM, A BETTER POOL OF APPLICANTS OR A MORE PREPARED POOL OF APPLICANTS.UH, CE DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY, UH, A LOT OF GOOD TAKEAWAYS AND GOOD POINTS.
THANK YOU FOR PULLING THAT TOGETHER.
UH, UH, YOU AND, AND CHAIRWOMAN SIMS ON THAT, UH, GREAT WORK.
UM, ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, UH, UH, FOR CC ON ON DIFFERENT IDEAS THAT YOU MAY HAVE RELATED TO, TO WHAT SHE SHARED IN TERMS OF, UH, OUTREACH? UM, THIS WAS GREAT CE THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THIS TOGETHER.
UM, I THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY FOR, UH, COLLABORATION BETWEEN BOTH SUBCOMMITTEES, UM, AND JUST I THINK THE CONTINUOUS THEME HAS BEEN GETTING THE APPLICANTS A BIT MORE PREPARED, UM, ESPECIALLY WITH THE WORK THAT STAFF IS DOING, UM, WORK THAT YOU GUYS ARE DOING.
I THINK THAT IF WE KIND OF PUT OUR BRAINS TOGETHER, WE CAN REALLY CREATE A REALLY AWESOME EVENT SERIES OF EVENTS OR PARTNERSHIPS WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
LET'S, LET'S DEFINITELY CONNECT WITH THIS.
THANK YOU FOR THOSE COMMENTS, MR.
UM, AND THIS MORE SO FOR STAFF.
IS IT POSSIBLE, I KNOW THIS, UM, UH, THIS RECAP, THIS DOCUMENT WAS PROVIDED TO, TO STAFF JUST MOMENTS AGO, IS IT POSSIBLE TO CIRCULATE THIS TO THE REST OF THE BOARD AT, AT YOUR CONVENIENCE? YES, WE CAN DO THAT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, UH, COMMENTS OR, OR FEEDBACK, UM, REGARDING WHAT WAS SHARED BY, UH, MR. CIO ON THAT? UH, REAL QUICK, I I HAVE A QUICK, UH, THIS IS RELATED TO STAFF IN TERMS OF IMPLEMENTATION ON SOME OF THIS STUFF.
HEATHER, I KNOW WE'RE WORKING WITH, YOU KNOW, FIGURING OUT DIFFERENT PARTNERSHIPS AND WAYS TO WORK WITH PEOPLE TO UNCOVER DIFFERENT OPPORTUNITIES AND FOLKS THAT WE CAN WORK WITH AND PARTNERSHIPS, UM, IN IN WAYS TO PLUG PEOPLE INTO THESE WRAPAROUND SERVICES, IF YOU WILL.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO KIND OF WHAT WE'RE DOING THERE AND, AND HOW WE CAN PERHAPS LOOK TO IMPLEMENT SOME OF THESE UH, IDEAS? YOU KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE IDEAS THAT WE ON HERE WAS LIKE, YOU KNOW, JUST SENDING THE NEWSLETTER OUT, YOU KNOW, LETTING PEOPLE KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON TO FOLKS THAT MAY BE IN OUR DATABASE.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE CAPABILITY OR COMMUNICATIONS HAS CAPABILITY TO DO, UH, OR IF THAT WOULD NEED TO BE DONE THROUGH THAT ORGANIZATION TO, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON, UM, ON THAT IN TERMS OF THE OUTREACH? BECAUSE I BELIEVE THAT'S PROBABLY THE FIRST PIECE OF IT.
UM, YOU CAN'T GET ANYBODY INTO A PROGRAM UNLESS THEY'RE AWARE OF IT AND ACTUALLY SHOW UP.
SO, AND THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION.
I'M GONNA SAY I DON'T HAVE A FULL ANSWER FOR YOU RIGHT NOW.
UM, BUT YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE WORKING ON WITH OUR SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM IS, WHICH, YOU KNOW, WE JUST REALLY, WE HAVE HAD FOR LESS THAN A YEAR, SO WE'RE REALLY BUILDING A SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM FROM THE GROUND UP.
AND WE STARTED WITH AN INCENTIVE PROGRAM, BUT ALL OF THESE ISSUES ON CONNECTIONS AND RESOURCES ARE A VERY OBVIOUS NEED THAT WE CONTINUE TO SEE.
UM, SO WE ARE WORKING THROUGH KIND OF WHAT THAT RELATIONSHIP NETWORK LOOKS LIKE.
UM, WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT WHAT OUR EXISTING ECOSYSTEM LOOKS LIKE, UM, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME PARTNERS THAT DO X AND Y BUT DON'T DO Z.
AND IF WE REFER SOMEBODY TO Z AND IT'S THE WRONG FIT, THAT'S WORSE THAN NOT REFERRING 'EM TO ANYBODY AT ALL.
UM, SO THE ECOSYSTEM MAPPING REALLY JUST TO, IT IS JUST BEEN PAST MONTH OR SO, UM, FIGURING OUT HOW WE THEN WE NEED SOMETHING OTHER THAN THE CITY'S WEBSITE TO BE THE SOURCE OF CONTACT FOR THAT INFORMATION BECAUSE IT REALLY NEEDS TO BE A DEDICATED SMALL BUSINESS PAGE.
WE DON'T DO EVENTS WELL ON OUR WEBSITE, SO WE'RE ALSO IN THE PROCESS OF FIGURING OUT WHAT THAT PORTAL OR WHATEVER THAT ONLINE TOOL WILL LOOK LIKE.
UM, AND I THINK WE COULD DEFINITELY FIGURE OUT HOW WE COULD EITHER HAVE IT GEO MAP SO THAT YOU COULD PULL JUST THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK THINGS, OR WE COULD CREATE A SUB PAGE FOR SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK.
THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN WORK THROUGH.
UM, BUT WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO HAVE KIND OF A ONE-STOP SHOP FOR THE RESOURCES FOR SMALL BUSINESS TO KIND OF ADDRESS SOME OF THIS READINESS.
THAT'S WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW.
I DON'T KNOW IF THAT FULLY ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION, BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHERE WE ARE AT THIS.
NO, THAT, THAT, THAT'S SUPER HELPFUL CONTEXT, UH, JUST TO KNOW THAT IT'S, IT'S ON THE RADAR, IT'S ACKNOWLEDGED GUYS, UH, UNDERSTAND, UH, YOU KNOW, WITH SOME OF THE PAIN POINTS ARE AND ARE, UM, ACTIVELY BUILDING UP, UH, SOMETHING TO ON THE BACK LEAN TO, TO ADDRESS THIS.
SO, UM, THANK, THANK YOU FOR THE, THE CONTEXT THERE.
UH, MS. KUBO, I SEE YOUR HAND.
SLIGHTLY RANDOM QUESTION FOR MS. LAP PESCO, WHERE ARE WE ON WEBSITE UPDATE
[00:55:01]
FOR THIS, FOR OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBSITE? YEAH, I KNOW YOU WERE TALKING AT ONE POINT ABOUT THERE BEING SOMEWHAT OF A A A REFRESH.SO WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE VERY BEGINNING STAGES OF THAT WHERE WE'VE MET WITH THE DESIGNER.
UH, WE'VE WORKED THROUGH SOME OF THE HOME PAGE RE REDO.
UM, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THE INTERIOR PAGE, REDO, BUT IT WILL NOT GO, A REVISED WEBSITE WON'T GO LIVE UNTIL LATER THIS SUMMER, LIKE END OF SUMMER.
IT'S, DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, MR. KUMU BAR? YES, THANK YOU.
UH, MR. DAWKINS, MR. SKA, ASSUMING THAT ALL WENT WELL AND YOU WERE ABLE TO ESTABLISH A REALLY GOOD CONNECTION WITH THE COMMUNITY, DO YOU HAVE EXTRA STAFF IN ORDER TO KEEP UP THAT CONNECTION AND COMMUNICATION WITH? SO WE HAVE TWO SMALL BUSINESS STAFF RIGHT NOW, UM, AND THEN WE ALSO ANTICIPATE PARTNERING WITH DALLAS COLLEGE AND USING, LEVERAGING SOME OF THEIR RESOURCES ALSO.
UM, AND THEN WE HAVE SOME VACANT POSITION, SO IF WE HAVE A NEED FOR ADDITIONAL STAFF, WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO BRING SOMEBODY ON MM-HMM
BECAUSE IT, IT, IT SEEMS LIKE IN THE PAST WE'VE DONE A JOB PROBABLY NOT AS GOOD OF A JOB AS YOU ALL ARE DOING CURRENTLY, UH, REACHING OUT TO THE COMMUNITY, BUT IT'S BEEN KIND OF A ONE WAY DEAL WHERE YOU PUT INFORMATION IN FRONT OF THEM HOPING THAT PEOPLE WILL APPLY, CONNECT, ASK QUESTIONS, ET CETERA.
IT SEEMS LIKE IF OUR RESOURCES WERE BETTER IN TERMS OF WHAT THE MATERIAL WAS TO PULL THE COMMUNITY IN, IN SOME FASHION, UH, IN ORDER TO ENCOURAGE THEM TO ENGAGE, WE MIGHT HAVE BETTER LUCK AND COMMUNICATING WITH 'EM.
I'M JUST THINKING THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE LIVE HUMAN BEINGS TO ACTUALLY SEE THE INFORMATION COMING BACK FROM THE COMMUNITY WOULD HELP TO ENCOURAGE THAT COMMUNICATION.
SO, AND I THINK THAT'S A, I THINK THAT WE ARE MORE EFFECTIVE WHEN WE CAN DO THINGS LESS ONE-ON-ONE.
I MEAN, EVENTUALLY WE DO THINGS ONE-ON-ONE, BUT IF WE CAN FIGURE OUT INFO SESSIONS OR MORE BROADLY ATTENDED EVENTS WHERE WE CAN RAISE AWARENESS BECAUSE PEOPLE NEED, I MEAN, OUR PROGRAMS ARE NOT NECESSARILY INTUITIVE, UM, AND I DON'T THINK WE WANT PEOPLE TO THINK THAT THEY HAVE TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THE ANSWER IS TO BE ABLE TO GET ASSISTANCE FROM THE CITY.
SO WHAT WE NEED TO WORK THROUGH, AND ONE OF THE THINGS NICHOLAS AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT IS CAN WE HAVE AN INFO SESSION FOR THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM AND JUST START DOING THAT WHERE WE'RE TALKING TO MULTIPLE PEOPLE, WE'RE USING PARTNERS TO BRING IN THEIR NETWORKS SO THAT WE'RE NOT RECREATING ALL THE NETWORKS.
UM, AND THEN WE, YOU KNOW, TRY TO DO THINGS.
IF WE CAN TALK TO 30 PEOPLE IN ONE MEETING QUARTERLY, THAT'S WAY MORE EFFICIENT USE OF OUR TIME THAN GOING TO 30 DIFFERENT INDIVIDUAL ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS WITH PEOPLE WHO AREN'T READY FOR THE PROGRAM.
SO WE NEED TO LEAVE THE ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS TO THE ONES THAT ARE A LITTLE BIT MORE READY AND WE NEED TO DO OUTREACH TO RAISE AWARENESS IN A LARGER SETTING.
UM, HOPEFULLY THAT'S MAKES SENSE.
UM, AND WE ARE WORKING THROUGH, YOU KNOW, ONCE WE GOT THE NOFA DONE AND WE HAD A REALLY GOOD TURNOUT FOR THE NOFA SESSION, SO LIKE HOW DO WE BUILD ON THAT AND GET, RAISE AWARENESS TO THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE OF IT TOO.
AND THEN RELATEDLY, HOW DO WE RAISE AWARENESS ON THE SMALL BUSINESS SIDE, WHICH IS SOME OVERLAP BUT NOT ENTIRELY OVERLAP.
DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, MR. DAWKINS? ALRIGHT.
UH, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, FEEDBACK? MS. SIMS? I SEE YOUR, YOUR, YOUR, UH, YOUR, YOUR CAMERA'S ON.
UH, I WANNA MAKE SURE I GET YOU COUNTED HERE.
SO WOULD YOU ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR PRESENCE? CHAIRWOMAN SIMS PRESENT.
UH, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK, UM, ON, UH, ANYTHING THAT WAS DISCUSSED IN TERMS OF, UH, IMPLEMENTATION OF SOME OF THESE GREAT IDEAS AND KIND OF WHERE WE ARE IN THE PROCESS AND WHAT WE'RE LOOKING TO DO, UH, MOVING FORWARD? UH, WITH THAT I DO, UM, TWO LAST THINGS REALLY QUICKLY, UM, QUICKLY.
ONE, I THINK THAT IT COULD BE WORTH IT TO EXPLORE THE OPTION OF A STAFF MEMBER THAT DOES LIKE MEDIA.
UM, SOMEBODY THAT CAN KNOW HOW TO RUN AN EMAIL, CRM, UH, KNOW HOW TO DO LIKE GRAPHICS AND SOCIAL MEDIA.
UM, I THINK THAT COULD KIND OF HELP WITH WHAT YOU GUYS MENTIONED ABOUT, UM, MATERIAL THAT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, ATTENTION GRABBING AND, UM, A LITTLE BIT MORE INTERESTING.
UM, AND THEN ALSO, I THINK SOMEBODY ALREADY ASKED THIS, BUT UM, AN EASY FIRST STEP.
[01:00:01]
COULD WE PULL TOGETHER LIKE THE EMAILS OF EVERYONE THAT'S LIKE APPLIED BEFORE OR AS, AS FAR AS JUST EMAILS THAT WE HAVE DOCUMENTED FOR PEOPLE THAT WE'VE, UH, OR POSSIBLE APPLICANTS THAT WE'VE INTERACTED WITH? UM, AND WE CAN KIND OF JUST START LIKE A, AN EMAIL LIST? YES, WE CAN.I MEAN, WE, NICHOLAS IS WORKING OUT A CONTACT LIST TO CAPTURE EVERYBODY WHO WE'VE INTERACTED WITH FOR THE SOUTH DALLAS FAIR PARK OPPORTUNITY FUND.
WE'LL HAVE 'EM CODED SOME WAY IN SALESFORCE.
WE'RE STILL WORKING THROUGH THAT.
UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE THE ABILITY TO USE OUR COMM DEPARTMENT TO HELP WITH GRAPHICS AND THAT KIND OF STUFF.
WE, WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT, DO NOT HAVE STAFF FOR A FULL-TIME MARKETING PERSON.
UM, THAT'S JUST NOT WITHIN OUR BUDGET.
AND WE'RE A SMALL DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY HAS A WHOLE COMM DEPARTMENT, SO WE NEED TO USE THEM TO ASSIST US WITH MARKETING.
UM, BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS, AND WE ALSO HAVEN'T REALLY OUR SOCIAL MEDIA WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT THAT'S ON THE SOMEDAY LIST,
UM, BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY KIND OF LOW HANGING FRUIT IDEAS FOR US TO IMPLEMENT, WE'RE HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT THAT.
THANK YOU, MR. UM, KIMBERLY SIMS. I DID OFFER TO NICHOLAS.
UM, 'CAUSE I DO HAVE ADOBE CREATIVE SUITE IN CANVA AND CAN DO GRAPHICS TO HELP IF WE NEED STUFF THAT TURNS AROUND VERY, THAT NEEDS TO BE TURNED AROUND VERY QUICKLY.
UM, I'M JUST THROWING THAT OUT THERE.
WE DO HAVE THE SAME TOOLS AT THE CITY, UM, FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, WHETHER OR NOT WE ARE CREATIVE ENOUGH TO USE THEM PROPERLY, TBD, BUT WE DO HAVE THOSE SAME TOOLS, SO THANK YOU.
I THINK TRANSLATION IS, IF YOU, IF YOU WANNA FIRE OVER SOME IDEAS, UH, CHAIRWOMAN SIMS, UM, FOR, FOR STAFF TO KICKSTART WITH, UM, I'M SURE THEY WOULDN'T BE OPPOSED TO THAT.
I THINK PART OF THE ISSUE WAS, UM, HAVING THE PIO OFFICE TURN THINGS AROUND AS QUICK AS WE NEEDED.
SO THAT IS WHY I OFFERED, NOT THAT I'M SOME BRILLIANT GRAPHIC DESIGNER, UM, BUT IF WE NEEDED SOMETHING AND WE NEED IT TURN TURNED AROUND QUICKLY, I COULD HELP WITH THAT IF NEEDED.
CHAIRWOMAN SIMS. UH, CHAIRMAN.
ENRIQUE, DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? I'M IN GOOD SHAPE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS OR FEEDBACK, UH, RELATED TO THIS TOPIC? ALL RIGHT, I'M HEARING NONE.
UM, FANTASTIC QUESTIONS, EVERYBODY.
UH, REAL QUICK BEFORE WE WRAP UP, ANYBODY WHO HAS NOT, UM, AND THIS IS FOR THE NEW FOLKS, ANYBODY WHO HAS NOT JOINED A SUBCOMMITTEE, UH, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN JOINING A SUBCOMMITTEE, UH, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO CHAIRWOMAN SIMS. KIMBERLY SIMS, IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN BEING INVOLVED IN THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, WHICH IS THE COMMITTEE THAT, UH, UH, MS. SIMS AND MS. ION, UH, JUST SHARE THEIR UPDATES WITH, UH, REGARDING THIS OR IF YOU FEEL LIKE A, A BETTER FIT, IS THE MARKETING SUBCOMMITTEE THAT'S CHAIRED BY, UH, MR. CARL ENRIQUEZ.
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT, UH, TO HIM AS WELL IF YOU HAVEN'T JOINED THE SUBCOMMITTEE AND WANT TO PARTICIPATE FOR ANY OF OUR NEW FOLKS, UH, THAT HAVE JOINED OVER THE LAST TWO OR THREE MONTHS.
SO I JUST WANNA THROW THAT OUT THERE.
ALRIGHT, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, OR FEEDBACK? ALL RIGHT.
WE'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADJOURN.
UH, BE ON THE LOOKOUT ON MAY 9TH FOR THE APPLICATION FOR THE NOFA.
UH, WE'LL SEE YOU GUYS NEXT MONTH.