[00:00:02]
[Park, Trails, and Environment Committee on May 5,2025.]
DO WE NEED TO START WITH OUR FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS, WHICH IS APPROVAL OF MINUTES TO HAVE A MOTION FOR APPROVAL OF APRIL 3RD? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. ALL RIGHT, LET'S MOVE TO OUR FIRST BRIEFING ITEM.LOOKING FOR OUR FOLKS FOR THE COMMISSION FOR ACCREDITATION OF PARK AND RECREATION AGENCIES, ALSO KNOWN AS CAPRA. I BELIEVE WE HAVE RYAN O'CONNOR AND ROBIN SCHNEIDER, SORRY, ROBIN.
I'M GOING TO JUST TRIP OVER THAT FOR THE FIRST FEW TIMES.
GOOD MORNING, MADAM CHAIR, MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE. GOOD MORNING.
SO TWO DISTINCT TOPICS TODAY. CAPRA, WHICH IS OUR FIVE YEAR ACCREDITATION PROCESS.
THE PARK SYSTEM GOES THROUGH IN A SIMILAR WAY THAT COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES GET ACCREDITED.
ROBIN STEINSHNIDER. YES. ROBIN STEINSCHNEIDER, SUPERINTENDENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION.
SO WHAT IS CAPRA? AS RYAN SAID, THE NATIONAL RECREATION AND PARK ASSOCIATION ESTABLISHED IN 1993, THE COMMISSION FOR ACCREDITATION OF PARK AND RECREATION AGENCIES, AND THEY DELIVER QUALITY ASSURANCE TO PARK AND RECREATION, QUALITY ASSURANCE AND IMPROVEMENT TO PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENTS THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES.
IT'S THE ONLY ACCREDITING BODY FOR PARKS AND RECREATION.
IT ALSO HELPS RECOGNIZE THE COMMUNITY AS A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE.
IT ALSO ENSURES THAT ALL STAFF ARE PROVIDING QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE AND FOR OUR DEPARTMENTS AND STAFF, IT PROVES TO DECISION MAKERS AND STAKEHOLDERS AND THE PUBLIC THAT OUR DEPARTMENT IS OPERATING WITH THE BEST PRACTICES OF THE PROFESSION.
IT'S A SOURCE OF PRIDE FOR OUR STAFF. IT ENHANCES TEAMWORK.
AND WHEN WE ENGAGE EVERYONE IN THE PROCESS AND IT CREATES AN ENVIRONMENT OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT WITH REGULAR REVIEW OF OPERATIONS, POLICIES AND PROCEDURES. NOW, THE CAPRA STANDARDS.
THERE ARE 154 STANDARDS. 36 OF THOSE ARE FUNDAMENTAL STANDARDS.
ANY ACCREDITED AGENCY MUST MEET ALL 36 FUNDAMENTAL STANDARDS.
AND WE WERE INITIALLY ACCREDITED IN 2016. AT THAT TIME, WE HAD TO MEET ALL 36 OF THE FUNDAMENTALS AND 106 OF THE NON FUNDAMENTALS. WE WENT THROUGH OUR FIRST REACCREDITATION IN 2021, AND WE ARE NOW PREPARING FOR OUR SECOND REACCREDITATION, WHICH WE WILL SUBMIT IN 2026. IT'S ABOUT A YEAR LONG PROCESS FOR US TO PREPARE AND DO ALL THE WORK THAT'S NEEDED FOR THIS, AND WE WILL HAVE TO MEET 112 OF THE 118 STANDARDS FOR RE-ACCREDITATION.
WE SUCCESSFULLY DID THAT AGAIN IN 2021, AND WE EXPECT TO DO IT AGAIN NEXT YEAR IN 2026.
SO THE SECTION STANDARD SECTIONS, THERE ARE TEN OF THEM.
AND IN PARENTHESES YOU'LL SEE THE NUMBER OF STANDARDS THAT ARE IN EACH SECTION.
SO IT COVERS OUR AGENCY, AUTHORITY, ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY, OUR PLANNING FUNCTIONS, THE ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE DEPARTMENT, OUR HUMAN RESOURCES FUNCTIONS, FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, FACILITY AND LAND USE TOUCHES ON PUBLIC SAFETY.
[00:05:06]
SO NEXT THIS IS A SAMPLE STANDARD. I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO BE ABLE TO READ THIS, BUT I WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT ONE OF THESE 154 STANDARDS LOOKS LIKE. EACH OF THEM STARTS WITH KIND OF A DESCRIPTION OF WHAT THE COMMISSION IS LOOKING FOR.THIS ONE HAPPENS TO BE ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY POLICY AND PROGRAM.
SO THEY GIVE US A DEFINITION OF OF WHAT, WHAT THE GOAL OF THE STANDARD IS.
AND THEN SOME SUGGESTED EVIDENCE OF COMPLIANCE.
AND THEN YOU CAN SEE ON THE RIGHT THE LITTLE SMALL WRITING.
THAT'S OUR RESPONSE. SO THAT IS OUR NARRATIVE THAT WE PROVIDE.
AND THEN ALL OF THOSE LITTLE BLUE HYPERLINKS IN THERE ARE ACTUAL LINKS TO THE EVIDENCE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING, NOT JUST SAYING THAT WE ARE MEETING THE STANDARD, BUT GIVING CONCRETE EXAMPLES OF THE PLANS, PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES THAT WE'RE DOING TO MEET THESE STANDARDS.
SO EVIDENCE OF COMPLIANCE CAN CONSIST OF POLICIES, PLANS, AGREEMENTS, TRAINING RECORDS, AND SOMETIMES JUST PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE OF WHAT WE WERE DOING TO MEET THE STANDARD. AND NEXT WE JUST HAVE A SHORT VIDEO FOR YOU.
AND THERE SHOULD BE SOME SOUND.
WE MAY WANT TO SKIP THE VIDEO IF WE CAN'T GET THE AUDIO.
WE'LL TRY TO WORK ON THAT AUDIO AND MOVE ALONG.
WE CAN JUST GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE. REALLY WHAT THE VIDEO IS TALKING ABOUT IS AROUND THE COUNTRY, THIS IS A VERY PROMINENT PROGRAM, AND THIS IS A LOT OF DIFFERENT CITIES KIND OF SHARING THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH CAPRA, PLUS ELECTED OFFICIALS TALKING ABOUT HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO THEIR ORGANIZATIONS.
YEAH. AND SPEAKING ABOUT WHAT CAPRA MEANS TO THEM.
AND SO WHAT DOES CAPRA MEAN TO US? IT MEANS WE REPRESENT THE BEST OF THE BEST.
WE ARE IN THE TOP 2% OF PARK AND RECREATION AGENCIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT ARE ACCREDITED.
IT DEMONSTRATES CREDIBILITY TO OUR PARTNERS, OUR REGIONAL PEERS AND OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS, AND IT SETS US APART FROM OTHER PARK AND RECREATION DEPARTMENTS WHEN IT COMES TO RECRUITING.
I TAKE IT IT'S A POINT OF PRIDE TO WORK AND AT AN APARTMENT THAT IS ACCREDITED.
ROBYN TOUCHED ON IT, BUT IT'S KIND OF A IT'S A POINT OF PRIDE.
WE LIKE TO TOOT OUR HORN A LITTLE BIT. SO WHEN WE WERE INITIALLY ACCREDITED BACK IN 2016.
WE WERE THE FIRST BIG CITY AGENCY TO MEET ALL 151 STANDARDS ON THE FIRST TIME WE WERE GOING THROUGH ACCREDITATION, SO IT WAS A REALLY NOTEWORTHY ACCOMPLISHMENT FOR US.
AND AS ROBYN MENTIONED, AT OUR LAST ACCREDITATION FIVE YEARS AGO, WE ACHIEVED COMPLIANCE WITH ALL STANDARDS AGAIN, AND WE FULLY EXPECT TO DO IT ONE MORE TIME. THE OTHER THING THAT'S REALLY INTERESTING ABOUT CAPRA FOR OUR DEPARTMENT IS THAT IT SERVES AS A SUCCESSION PLANNING TOOL. SO AS YOU NOTICED IN THE IN THE SLIDE DECK, IT LITERALLY TOUCHES EVERY SINGLE FUNCTION OF OUR OPERATION.
AND THE WAY WE DO IT IN THE DEPARTMENT IS WE GET DOZENS OF EMPLOYEES.
I THINK WE'RE I THINK WE'RE WORKING WITH 40 OR 50 EMPLOYEES THIS TIME THAT ARE TAKING OWNERSHIP OF VARIOUS STANDARDS, AND IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO REALLY LEARN HOW OUR DEPARTMENT WORKS, THE VARIOUS THINGS THAT THEY MAY NOT DO DAY TO DAY.
THEY LEARN OTHER FUNCTIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT.
SO IT'S REALLY A POWERFUL SUCCESSION PLANNING TOOL FOR US.
ROBIN AND I ARE GOING TO BE HERE FOREVER. AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE NEXT.
[00:10:08]
SO WHAT IS A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN? IT'S REALLY A DOCUMENT.AND IT SETS THAT DIRECTION THROUGH A PROCESS.
AND THE PROCESS IS HEAVY ON COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, HEAVY ON INTERACTION WITH STAKEHOLDERS, ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIALS. SO IT'S THE IT'S THE DOCUMENT THAT IDENTIFIES THE BIG MOVES.
WHERE ARE WE TRYING TO GO? WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH? THE OTHER THING THAT'S INTERESTING TO POINT OUT ABOUT COMPREHENSIVE PLANS, AT LEAST IN THE PARK WORLD, IS THAT THERE ARE MANY, MANY GRANTS THAT IT'S A PREREQUISITE THAT YOU HAVE A CURRENT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN IN PLACE.
SO IT'S A REAL IT'S A REAL TANGIBLE THING FOR US WHEN WE HAVE A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN THAT'S IN PLACE AND IT'S BEING FOLLOWED AND IT'S BEING IMPLEMENTED, IT PUTS US IN A POSITION FOR MILLIONS OF DOLLARS.
SO IT'S VERY MEANINGFUL, MEANINGFUL FOR US. MOVING ON TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
THE 2002 SOME OF US MAY REMEMBER THE RENAISSANCE PLAN.
IT WAS THE REAL FIRST COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING EFFORT THAT THE DEPARTMENT UNDERTOOK.
AND THE REAL NOTEWORTHY THING ABOUT THAT PLAN WAS IT REALLY POSITIONED US TO LEAN INTO PARTNERSHIPS.
THAT WAS A KIND OF GROUNDBREAKING THING BACK THEN.
BUT BECAUSE OF THAT PLAN, WE NOW HAVE OVER 200 COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS AND FRIENDS GROUPS IN PLACE THAT WE HAVE CONTRACTS WITH THAT PROVIDE SERVICES ALL OVER THE PARK SYSTEM. THAT WAS A THAT WAS A REALLY NOVEL THING BACK IN 2000 AND THAT THIS THE FRUIT OF THAT WAS A DIRECT RESULT OF THE OF THE RENAISSANCE PLAN. LOOKING AT THE 2016 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN THAT THAT CONTINUED TO PUSH US FORWARD, THAT REALLY STARTED THINKING ABOUT HOW TO PARKS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT RELATE TOGETHER.
HILLCREST VILLAGE GREEN WOULD BE AN EXAMPLE OF THAT EFFORT.
IT LOOKED AT US STARTING TO DIVERSIFY OUR FUNDING SOURCES.
YOU KNOW, AND THE OTHER BIG THING I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT WITH THE 2016 PLAN WAS PARK ACCESS.
AND BACK THEN, WE WERE 58% OF OUR RESIDENTS THAT LIVED WITHIN A TEN MINUTE WALK OF A PARK BECAUSE THIS PLAN, YOU KNOW, FOCUSED ON THAT ISSUE. WE STARTED WORKING WITH SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND TRUST FOR PUBLIC LAND AND TEXAS TREES.
AND NOW AS OF LAST YEAR, WE WERE AT 75%. SO IT'S IT'S THESE TYPES OF PLANS THAT REALLY SHINE A LIGHT AND PUT FOCUS ON THINGS THAT MOVE DEPARTMENTS FORWARD. AND THOSE ARE JUST A COUPLE OF EXAMPLES THAT ARE DIRECT RESULTS OF THOSE PLANS.
YOU KNOW, THE OTHER THING I WANT TO POINT OUT IS THERE'S A THERE'S A PERCEPTION THAT, YOU KNOW, PLANS ARE THINGS THAT WE DO AROUND HERE AND THEY END UP GETTING PUT ON A SHELF.
I WOULD LIKE TO DISTINGUISH COMPREHENSIVE PLANS FROM MORE TRADITIONAL MASTER PLANS.
MASTER PLANS REALLY FUNCTION AS DEVELOPMENT PLANS, WHICH ARE CONTINGENT UPON FUNDING, AND IN SOME CASES THOSE CAN TAKE TEN, 15, 20 YEARS TO GET PUT IN PLACE. AND SO AGAIN, THERE'S THIS PERCEPTION THAT THEY'RE SO SLOW MOVING THAT THEY'RE JUST SITTING ON A SHELF.
COMPREHENSIVE PLANS ARE NOT DEVELOPMENT PLANS.
THESE ARE THESE ARE THE IDENTIFICATION OF BIG MOVES IN YOUR PARK SYSTEM THAT STAFF WORKS ON THE MOMENT THAT IT'S ADOPTED BY PARK BOARD AND COUNCIL. SO I WANT TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN A TRADITIONAL MASTER PLAN THAT SERVES AS A DEVELOPMENT PLAN AND A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, WHICH IS A FORWARD LOOKING DOCUMENT. YOU KNOW, I LIKE TO SAY THAT IF YOUR ORGANIZATION IS NOT MOVING FORWARD, IS NOT LOOKING TO WHAT COMES NEXT, YOU'RE SLOWLY FAILING AS AN ORGANIZATION AND COMPREHENSIVE PLANS ARE THE WAY THAT WE LOOK FORWARD, THAT WE IDENTIFY THE BIG MOVES THAT WILL OCCUR FOR US IN THE NEXT TEN YEARS.
SO NEXT SLIDE. ON THAT POINT, LOOKING AT POTENTIAL DESIRED OUTCOMES OF THIS COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING EFFORT, WE'RE ALL VERY CLEAR THAT OUR PARK SYSTEM NEEDS TO ACHIEVE GREATER FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY.
[00:15:01]
WE HAVE WE HAVE RELIED UPON THE GENERAL FUND FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS.AND WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT AS THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING ON IN THE CITY THAT WE'RE ALL AWARE OF PENSION ISSUES AND, AND POLICE HIRING AND SO ON AND SO FORTH. WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE DOING WHAT WE CAN IN THE PARK SYSTEM TO TO LOOK AT EFFORTS, TO LOOK AT INITIATIVES SO THAT WE CAN THAT WE CAN GENERATE THE REVENUE, WE CAN GENERATE THE INCOME TO CONTINUE TO GROW OUR DEPARTMENT AND NOT SOLELY RELY UPON THE GENERAL FUND. A COUPLE OTHER THINGS THAT WE'RE VERY INTERESTED IN PURSUING.
THE OTHER THING I TALKED QUITE A BIT ABOUT IS ULTIMATELY, WE ARE IN COMPETITION WITH OUR SUBURBAN COMPETITORS FOR TAXPAYERS, AND WE IN THE PARK SYSTEM HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY THERE.
WE CAN ENSURE THAT THE THINGS THAT WE'RE OFFERING IN OUR REC CENTERS, OUR PARK ASSETS, OUR NEW INITIATIVES, MAYBE REASONS WHY PEOPLE CHOOSE TO LIVE IN DALLAS AS COMPARED TO, YOU KNOW, ALL THE SUBURBAN COMMUNITIES THAT SURROUND US.
AND I'M GONNA HAVE TO CREDIT COUNCILWOMAN ARNOLD FOR THIS, BECAUSE I REMEMBER SHE SAID ONE TIME, AND I. AND I REMEMBERED IT SO CLEARLY. SHE SAID, YOU KNOW, WE JUST GOTTA HAVE THINGS IN DALLAS THAT MAKE US UNIQUE, THAT WANT TO GIVE PEOPLE A REASON TO COME HERE AND DO THINGS THAT ARE FUN AND GIVE PEOPLE A REASON TO LIVE HERE.
NEXT SLIDE. SO KIND OF GETTING INTO THE WEEDS A LITTLE BIT.
SO HERE IS OUR PROPOSED SCOPE OF WORK FOR THE 2026 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
YOU CAN SEE IT'S REALLY GOING TO DIG INTO A LOT OF OUR THINGS IN OUR DEPARTMENT LOOKING AT PROGRAMING ANALYSIS, FINANCIAL ANALYSIS THE IDENTIFICATION OF NEW OPERATING AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT MODELS.
YOU KNOW, ONE THING THAT I EXPECT TO COME OUT OF, THIS IS A NEW MODEL FOR RECREATION CENTERS.
AND AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL, WHAT I HOPE IS DEFINED IS A WAY TO SUBSIDIZE TRADITIONAL RECREATION IN OUR REC CENTERS WITH AN ELEMENT THAT GENERATES A PROFIT.
SO IF YOU'VE GOT A REC CENTER, YOU GOT HALF OF IT.
A FOR PROFIT MODEL THAT'S GENERATING A LEASE AND GENERATING A REVENUE SHARE.
SO YOUR AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS, YOUR SUMMER CAMPS, YOUR OPEN PLAY IN YOUR BASKETBALL COURT.
WE HOPE TO HAVE A CONTRACT FOR THIS COUNCIL AND THE BOARD TO CONSIDER THIS SUMMER.
AND THEN THE ADOPTION OF THE PLAN IS LIKELY TO BE A YEAR AND CHANGE OUT SOMETIME LATE 2026.
AND I BELIEVE THAT CONCLUDES THE PRESENTATION.
THANK YOU. OKAY. WE WILL OPEN IT UP FOR QUESTIONS.
COLLEAGUES. CHAIR. MORENO. THANK YOU. CHAIR. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATION.
AND I WAS AROUND IN 2016 WHEN WE FIRST GOT ACCREDITED.
AND I KNOW HOW HARD EVERYBODY WORKED TO TO GET TO THAT POINT.
IT'S VERY CHALLENGING TO MASTER IT DURING YOUR FIRST GO AT IT.
CONGRATULATIONS. BUT IT'S EVEN MORE DIFFICULT TO MAINTAIN THAT STATUS.
SO THIS IS ALSO A HUGE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHEN WE HAVE GREAT PARKS AND TRAILS, IT MEANS THAT OUR FAMILIES THAT LIVE HERE IN OUR CITY HAVE A SAFE GREEN SPACE TO GO TO.
I REALLY JUST WANT TO FOCUS IN ON AROUND SECURITY FOR A MINUTE.
WE CAN INVEST ALL THE DOLLARS WE WANT INTO THESE PARKS, BUT UNLESS PEOPLE FEEL SAFE VISITING OUR PARKS, VISITING OUR TRAILS, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES WE GOT TO WORRY ABOUT IF THAT'S THE RIGHT INVESTMENT.
AND SO I CONTINUE TO URGE YOU TO INVEST IN PUBLIC SAFETY, WHETHER THAT BE THROUGH LIGHTING, WHETHER THAT BE THROUGH INVESTING IN SECURITY.
[00:20:06]
AND THANK YOU. AND I APPLAUD YOU ALL FOR LOOKING AHEAD, KNOWING THAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME DIFFICULT BUDGETING YEARS.AND BEING CREATIVE THROUGH, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH SERVICE AGREEMENTS TO MAKE SURE MAKING SURE THAT OUR PARKS ARE DELIVERING THE SAME LEVEL OF SERVICE. SO I WOULD APPRECIATE IN THE COMING MONTHS A DEEPER CONVERSATION ON HOW WE CAN GET CREATIVE AND HOW WE CAN LOOK AT ALTERNATIVE MODELS OF FUNDING REVENUE IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE MILLIONS OF DOLLARS THAT WE'VE INVESTED THROUGH OUR BONDS, BECAUSE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE PARKS ARE AT THE SAME LEVEL THAT THEY ARE TODAY IN FIVE, TEN AND 15 YEARS DOWN THE ROAD. AND SO I APPLAUD YOU ALL FOR LOOKING AT NEW CREATIVE WAYS AND LOOK FORWARD TO A DEEPER CONVERSATION ON THAT.
THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU. CHAIR MORENO, CHAIR ARNOLD.
EXCUSE ME. THANK YOU. I WANTED TO JUST CHIME IN ON A COMMENT THAT YOU MADE MR. O'CONNOR, ESPECIALLY AROUND THE THE TERMINOLOGY MASTER PLAN AND THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
BECAUSE WHEN I FIRST I THINK STARTED THE CONVERSATION AROUND A MASTER PLAN IN THIS CITY, IN OUR DISTRICT, WE WOULD PUSH BACK ON LIKE, WELL, MASTER PLAN, THAT'S REALLY NOT THE RIGHT WORD.
BUT WE WERE NEVER REALLY GUIDED IN WHAT, WHAT TERMINOLOGY TO USE.
WELL, MY MIND WAS VERY SIMPLE, BUT I GUESS IN STAFF'S MIND IT WAS LIKE 20 YEARS TO GET IT DONE.
AND SO A MASTER PLAN JUST ENABLES US TO IT SHOULD BE ABLE US TO LOOK AT THE AREA OF THE FOCUS AREA THAT WE HAVE AND APPLY OUR KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS AND BEST PRACTICES.
AND I THINK IF WE HAVE A STAFF THAT CAN'T DO THAT, THEN WE NEED TO BEGIN TO LOOK AT HOW WE CAN FINE TUNE THEIR SKILLS SO WE CAN GET WHERE WE NEED TO GET. THE OTHER POINT, I THINK THE PURPOSE OF ME TALKING AND HONING IN ON THIS MASTER PLAN, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. PLANS COME WHEN I COME, I'VE COME HERE TO UNDERSTAND THOSE PLANS.
SIT ON THE SHELVES. IF SOMEONE IS NOT HERE, YOU TURN, THEY TERM OUT, TRANSFER OUT, DIE OUT.
UNLESS SOMEONE HAS THAT MEMORY, IT JUST IS STAGNANT.
HOW CAN WE CONTINUE TO BREATHE LIFE INTO ESPECIALLY SOME OF THESE PARKS? HOW DO WE NOT KILL THE SPIRIT? I MEAN, MY SPIRIT WAS JUST ABOUT TO DROP WHEN I BEGAN TO LOOK AT PLANS AROUND HIAWATHA WILLIAMS RECREATION CENTER AND ROLAND PARISH. AND YOU'RE TRYING TO GET SOMETHING DONE THERE.
OH, WELL, IT WILL TAKE US ONE YEAR TO GO THROUGH THIS COMMITTEE PROCESS.
ANOTHER YEAR BY THE TIME WE GET TO THE COUNCIL, ANOTHER YEAR TO GO TO IT.
IT'S AMAZING HOW FRUSTRATING IT CAN BE. AND WE MAKE THESE ANNOUNCEMENTS TO THE PUBLIC, AND THEY'RE THINKING THAT THEY'RE GOING TO SEE IT WITHIN A COUPLE OF YEARS IN THEIR LIFETIME AND NOT HAVE IT BEING ONE OF THE SITES THAT THE CASKET PASSED BY WITH THE UNDERTAKER, AS THEY CALL HIM, TAKEN BY TO THEIR RESTING PLACE.
SO THOSE ARE I YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE YOUR WORK, BOTH OF YOU.
AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW, THE PARK DEPARTMENT. BUT AS I CLOSE OUT, I THINK THE VERY KEY CONVERSATION IS HOW DO WE PUT LIFE INTO PROJECTS, ESPECIALLY IN OUR AREAS THAT REALLY NEED IT THE MOST? SO THEY DON'T. SO THEY DON'T CONTINUE TO LOSE HOPE.
AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOSING IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
WE YOU ALREADY KNOW, AND I'LL PUT THIS ON THE RECORD AND THE CHAIR.
AND TO EVERYONE ON THIS PARK COMMITTEE WE'RE LOSING HOPE.
PROJECTS LIKE ROLAND PARISH. YOU ALL KNOW I'M GETTING A LITTLE BIT UPTIGHT ABOUT THAT.
HIAWATHA WILLIAMS, KIEST PARK OR SOMETHING ELSE.
WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT LIFE, PUTTING LIFE INTO THOSE PROJECTS AS WE MOVE TO THE BOND.
SO I APPRECIATE YOU MENTIONING THAT, AND ALSO FOR THE FACT THAT COUNCIL MEMBERS HERE, AS THEY SIT HERE TODAY, HAVE MAYBE A 2 OR 4 YEAR TERM LEFT. WE DON'T KNOW.
AND THAT'S OPPORTUNITY WISE. THAT'S NOT IN STONE.
SAME THING WITH STAFF. SO LET'S BE SMART ABOUT WHEN WE CREATE THESE PROJECTS AND THESE AND THE WHEN WE DEPOSIT THEM THAT THEY'RE IN A PLACE WHERE WE CAN MAKE SURE STAFF KNOWS AND NOT NECESSARILY DEPEND ON FOLKS WHO ARE COMING IN AND OUT TO, TO DELIVER FOR THE PEOPLE.
WHEN WE KNOW IN REALITY THEY CAN'T DO IT UNLESS THEY KNOW WHAT'S WHAT'S ON THE SHELF.
[00:25:02]
THANK YOU. OKAY, CHAIR WEST, I BELIEVE YOU DID NOT HAVE A QUESTION.OKAY. I'M JUST GOING TO SAY CONGRATULATIONS. THAT ONLY 2% OF THE PARKS IN OUR COUNTRY GO THROUGH THE PROCESS TO GET ACCREDITED. IT'S A LITTLE BIT SURPRISING, BUT I'M SURE THAT'S BECAUSE THIS PROCESS IS ONEROUS.
IT TAKES A LOT OF TIME. AND SO, ROBIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK ON THAT, AND RYAN AS WELL.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO GET THAT INFORMATION OUT TO THE PUBLIC MORE.
I'LL SEE IF WE CAN FIGURE OUT A WAY TO SORT OF BROADCAST THAT BECAUSE I WE ALL GO TO A PARK AND WE ENJOY IT, BUT I DON'T THINK WE UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON BEHIND WHAT WE SEE AND WHAT I'M, YOU KNOW, LEARNING IN THE LAST, AS I'VE READ THROUGH THIS SLIDE DECK, IS THAT THERE'S QUITE A BIT GOING ON TO GET US TO THAT STANDARD.
SO THANK YOU FOR THAT WORK. AND LET'S MAKE SURE PEOPLE KNOW.
AND CHAIR MORENO HAS ONE MORE COMMENT. ONE MORE COMMENT.
AND THIS IS AGAIN, I DON'T BELIEVE THAT ALL COUNCIL MEMBERS UNDERSTAND THE LEVEL OF TRAINING, THAT IT ALSO GOES ON YOUR STAFF. SO CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE TRAINING AND THE ACCREDITATION THAT STAFF MEMBERS HAVE TO HAVE ONGOING IN ORDER TO KEEP THE ACCREDITATION? YES. SO REALLY, I CAN'T EMPHASIZE STRONGLY ENOUGH HOW RIGOROUS THE PROCESS IS. AND YEAH, JUST THE TRAINING INVOLVED TO MAKE SURE THAT THE STAFF ARE UNDERSTANDING NOT ONLY THE REQUIREMENTS BUT THE INTENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS. WE, ROBIN AND THE TEAM THAT REALLY KIND OF LEADS THE EFFORT, SPEND HOURS AND HOURS AND HOURS WORKING WITH THE TEAM MEMBERS THAT ARE PUTTING ALL THIS INFORMATION TOGETHER AND QUALITY CONTROL, CHECKING IT AND LOOKING AT OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND UNDERSTANDING HOW THEY'RE MEETING THE INTENT OF THE STANDARDS.
SO TO YOUR POINT, IT'S A IT'S A HIGHLY TIME CONSUMING, TRAINING INTENSIVE EFFORT THAT IS HIGHLY RIGOROUS, REALLY, IN EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE TEN CATEGORIES.
AND THE OTHER THING, TOO, IS WHEN YOU HAVE THE NRPA CONFERENCES, TEN, 15 YEARS AGO, OUR STAFF WAS IN THE AUDIENCE. NOW THEY'RE TEACHING THESE CLASSES.
AND SO THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO TELL AS WELL.
REALLY THROUGH NRPA, YOU'RE RIGHT. EVERY YEAR THAT WE SUBMIT SESSIONS IS WHAT THEY'RE REFERRED TO AS OURS ARE ALWAYS SELECTED BECAUSE THE LEADERSHIP OF NRPA NATIONAL KNOWS THAT WE ARE A HIGH PERFORMING ORGANIZATION AND WANTS OUR TEAM MEMBERS TO TEACH THE OTHERS IN THE FIELD ABOUT THE THINGS THAT WE DO REALLY WELL. SO I APPRECIATE YOU BRINGING THAT UP.
AND THAT HAS REALLY BEEN A CHANGE THAT WE'VE SEEN IN THE PARK SYSTEM OVER THE PAST TEN YEARS.
THANK YOU. OKAY. WELL, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
AND LET'S GET THAT GOOD WORD OUT TO THE WORLD, OR AT LEAST TO COUNCIL MEMBERS.
AND AND JUST TO OUR RESIDENTS IN THE CITY. SO THANKS AGAIN.
THANK YOU. OKAY, LET ME GET ORGANIZED HERE. OUR NEXT BRIEFING ITEM I BELIEVE WE HAVE THE PRESENTATION ON THE WEB BASED SOLAR PERMITTING PLATFORM, AND LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE DIRECTOR WHITE HERE AND PERHAPS DIRECTOR LIU. THANK YOU, EMILY. AS FOR BEING HERE AS WELL.
GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE. I DO HAVE A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION.
OKAY. I'M SORRY. YEAH, DIRECTOR WHITE IS GOING TO MAKE AN INTRODUCTION.
GO AHEAD. YES. GOOD MORNING, CHAIR STEWART AND PT COMMITTEE MEMBERS.
I'M PAUL WHITE II, DIRECTOR AT THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY.
AND I'D JUST LIKE TO TAKE A MOMENT JUST TO SET THE STAGE FOR TODAY'S PRESENTATION.
AS PART OF OUR EFFORTS TO REDUCE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS, WE'RE FOCUSED ON CECAP GOAL NUMBER TWO, ENSURING THAT DALLAS GENERATION USES RENEWABLE, RELIABLE AND AFFORDABLE ENERGY.
WHICH MAKES IT ESSENTIAL THAT THE CITY SUPPORT AND STREAMLINE PERMITTING PROCESSES FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY SOLUTIONS, SPECIFICALLY SOLAR POWER. THAT'S WHY TODAY'S PRESENTATION IS IMPORTANT.
[00:30:03]
USING A PROCESS THAT IS BOTH EFFECTIVE AND PRACTICAL.THANK YOU FOR THE INTRODUCTION. AGAIN, MY NAME IS EMILY LIU, DIRECTOR OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT.
SO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BACKGROUND. I STARTED ABOUT A YEAR AGO, AND I SOON AFTER THAT I HEARD SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT SOLAR APP, HOW WE'RE GOING TO LOOK INTO IT. AND SO WE BEING STARTING LAST FALL, WE STARTED LOOKING AT SOME RESEARCH.
AND THE MAIN REASON IS THERE IS SOME CONCERN ABOUT THE SLOWER THAN AVERAGE RESPONSE OR PERMITTING PROCESS IN, IN THE, OUR OFFICE. AND THEN ALSO WE ARE SO WE STARTED TO DO THE RESEARCH.
WHAT IS SOLAR APP? SOLAR APP [INAUDIBLE] AND IT DID SOME BEST PRACTICE.
WE INTERVIEWED SOME OTHER CITIES IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.
WE ALSO STARTED TO LOOKING AT OUR DATA, KIND OF ASSESS OUR PROCESS.
AS YOU KNOW, SINCE THE TWO DEPARTMENTS MERGED, ONE OF THE FOCUS IS STREAMLINE THE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW PROCESS AND SOLAR APPLICATION IS DEFINITELY PART OF THAT. SO WE STARTED LOOKING AT THAT.
AND SO WE ARE WE HAVE SOME FINDINGS. I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU.
NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO THE PURPOSE IS REALLY JUST COMPARE WHAT WE HAVE NOW THE PROCESSES COMPARED TO SOLAR APP AND ALSO TRYING TO MAKE SOME IMPROVEMENT OF OUR PROCESS.
NEXT SLIDE. SO WE HAVE LOOKED INTO THE SOLAR APP ITSELF.
WE HAVE DONE SOME RESEARCH WITH SOME OTHER CITIES.
SO THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT IT'S REALLY A QUICK REVIEW.
SOLAR APP IS BASICALLY AN INSTANT PLAN REVIEW AND APPROVAL.
THEY ALSO HANDLES SOME OF THE TRANSACTION, FINANCIAL TRANSACTION.
BUT IT WHEN THEY DEVELOP THIS ONE, THEY'RE ALSO LOOKING AT THE BUILDING CODE.
THAT'S WHAT WE'RE USING AS WELL. SO THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE FOCUSING ON.
OUR CITY IS DEFINITELY DIFFERENT FROM OTHER CITIES.
SO THOSE ARE THE POSITIVE. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
BUT THEY ALSO SOMETHING THAT SOME CONCERNS THAT WE FIND OUT.
ONE IS THAT IT'S A CHECKLIST. THERE'S NO PLAN REVIEW.
JUST A CHECKLIST. AND AS YOU KNOW, THE STATE OF DALLAS IS VERY, VERY CHALLENGING ZONING.
ZONING HAS BEEN BECOME A BARRIER FOR MANY DIFFERENT THINGS, AND THIS IS NO EXCEPTION.
WE HAVE A LOT OF PDS. WE HAVE HISTORIC PRESERVATION.
WE HAVE CONSERVATION. ALL OF THAT HAS SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS ABOUT THE PLACING OF THE SOLAR OR EVEN THE COVERAGE, LIKE FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION, FOR EXAMPLE, SOME DISTRICT, NOT ALL OF THEM REQUIRE THE SOLAR PANEL TO BE LOCATED IN THE BACK OF THE HOUSE AND CAN ONLY COVER 50% OF THAT SIDE OF THE ROOF.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT RESTRICTIONS. SO AGAIN, OUR CITY, COMPLEX ZONING AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS MAKE IT REALLY, REALLY CHALLENGING. AND ALSO IT'S REALLY DIFFERENT ISSUES.
IN THE PLAN USUALLY CANNOT BE IDENTIFIED AT THE BEGINNING.
THAT IS REALLY NOT ONLY COST MORE MONEY TO RECTIFY THE ERROR, BUT ALSO WOULD TAKE LONGER.
SO THERE ARE SOME ISSUES THERE WHEN WE TALK TO OTHER CITIES.
AND THEN, AS YOU KNOW, TODAY WE'RE MOVING INTO A DIFFERENT SYSTEM.
DALLAS NOW GOES LIVE TODAY. EVERYTHING GOES WELL SO FAR.
AND THIS IS NOT PART OF THAT YET BECAUSE THAT WAS STARTED TWO YEARS AGO IN ORDER TO HAVE THE SOLAR APP INTEGRATED, THAT THAT WILL INCUR ADDITIONAL COST FOR THE CITY.
SO ANYTHING YOU ADD ANOTHER SYSTEM INTEGRATE THAT.
YOU NEED ADDITIONAL WORK. SO THAT'S SOMETHING CAN BE DONE IN THE FUTURE.
SO THE LAST FEW MONTHS, IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO INTEGRATE THIS INTO DALLAS SYSTEM.
[00:35:04]
SO BECAUSE THERE IS NO PLAN REVIEW AT THE BEGINNING SOMETIME IT REQUIRE ADDITIONAL INSPECTIONS ON THE FIELD, LIKE IN THE SOLAR APP, FOR EXAMPLE. THEY NEED TWO INSPECTION, ONE IS ELECTRICAL INSPECTION, THE OTHER ONE IS BUILDING. IF IT WAS NOT INSTALLED CORRECTLY, IT COULD TRIGGER ADDITIONAL INSPECTION.AND THEN WE ALSO TALKED TO TWO CITIES IN THIS STATE OF TEXAS.
ONE IS HOUSTON, THE OTHER ONE IS SAN ANTONIO.
HOUSTON, AS YOU KNOW, HOUSTON IS ONE OF THE ONLY CITY, THE TOP 100 CITY THAT DOES NOT HAVE ZONING.
SO IT'S MUCH EASIER FOR THEM FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE.
AND THAT WAS ADOPTED. THEY USED IT ALSO AT THE REQUEST OF SOME COUNCIL MEMBERS.
THEY ONLY FOCUS ON THE SOLAR PANEL ONLY. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE TALK ABOUT TO OTHER CITY, LIKE WHEN YOU HAVE A BATTERY. AND THAT'S A DIFFERENT THING.
SO THE SOLAR ONLY IS A LITTLE BIT SIMPLER PROCESS.
SO THEY ONLY DEAL WITH SOLAR PANEL AT RIGHT NOW.
ABOUT HALF OF THEIR PERMITS GO THROUGH SOLAR RIGHT NOW.
HOUSTON. THEY ALSO WORKING ON THIS SOMETHING WE CAN FOLLOW UP WITH THEM.
THEY ARE WORKING ON A PILOT PROJECT TO DO BOTH SOLAR AND THEN THE BATTERY STORAGE.
SO THEY ARE DOING A PILOT PROJECT. WE CAN SEE HOW THAT GOES.
THE CITY DOES EXPRESS SOME CONCERNS WITH SOME OF THE CONTRACTORS JUST, YOU KNOW, SOMETIME DON'T DO NOT PUT THE CORRECT INFORMATION AND EVEN KIND OF FAKE THEIR SUBMISSION. SO THERE ARE SOME, SOME ISSUES THERE.
THEY, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THEY DON'T HAVE ANY ZONING.
ANOTHER CITY IS CITY SAN ANTONIO. WE TALKED TO NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
THEY THE REASON THEY ARE USING THIS IS BECAUSE THEY ARE STAFF SHORTAGE.
THEY JUST THEY HAVE A SURGE OF SOLAR APP APPLICATION AND THEIR OFFICE JUST LIKE BE WAY BEHIND.
TAKE A LONG TIME TO REVIEW IT BECAUSE THERE'S A WAIT LIST.
SO THEY DECIDED ON THEIR OWN TO REACH OUT TO SOLAR APP AND USE THIS PROGRAM.
SO THEY ARE DOING THIS VOLUNTARILY, BUT NOW THEY ARE THINKING ABOUT THEY CAN HANDLE IT.
NOW THEY HAVE MORE CAPACITY THEY WANT TO DO IN THE OFFICE.
WHAT THEY FOUND OUT IS THAT IT'S ONLY A CHECKLIST.
SO THE INSPECTORS, THE CHIEF INSPECTOR, THERE WAS A LITTLE CONCERN ABOUT THERE'S NO PLAN SUBMITTED.
ARE YOU PROJECTING OVER THE ROOF LINE? THOSE KIND OF THINGS THEY WANT TO REVIEW.
SO THEY ARE ACTUALLY HAVE TO REVIEW THE PLAN IN ADDITION TO THE SOLAR APP.
THAT'S SOMETHING WE PROBABLY WOULD LIKE TO DO TOO, IF WE GO THIS ROUTE.
IT'S AS I MENTIONED, IT'S EASIER UPFRONT. YOU GOT INSTANT PERMIT, BUT IT DOES ADD MOST OF THE CASES, ADD MORE WORK TO THE INSPECTORS ON THE FIELD.
SO IF IT'S NOT INSTALLED CORRECTLY, YOU HAVE TO MAKE CORRECTIONS.
SO THAT CREATES SOME ISSUES THERE. BUT AS I SAID THERE'S PROS AND CONS.
MAYBE SOME OF THESE. WE CAN ADDRESS THAT LATER.
AND ALSO THEY DO HAVE MORE COMPLEX WHEN THEY DO HAVE ZONINGS.
CITY OF SAN ANTONIO DO HAVE ZONING. THEY DO HAVE ZONING.
BUT NOT AS COMPLEX AS OURS. SO THOSE ARE THE TWO CITIES.
I THINK WE HAVE A VERY GOOD CONVERSATION WITH THEM.
THOSE ARE THE ONLY TWO CITIES IN TEXAS THAT WE ARE AWARE OF.
THERE'S A LOT OF CITY IN CALIFORNIA. SAN JOSE AND OTHER CITY HAVE BEEN USING THIS FOR A LITTLE BIT, SO WE HAVE NOT REACHED OUT TO THEM YET. BUT WE STARTED WITH THE STATE OF TEXAS.
NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO AS I MENTIONED TO YOU THAT WE DID WHEN WE, OUR TEAM DID THE RESEARCH AND THE LOOK AT THE DATA, IT IS TRUE THAT OUR PROCESS WAS TAKEN MUCH LONGER.
SOMETIMES IT TAKES A COUPLE OF WEEKS OR EVEN MORE FOR THIS PROCESS.
[00:40:03]
SO WE ALREADY STREAMLINE THE COMMERCIAL REVIEW.AND THIS IS SOMETHING WE JUST PRIORITIZE THAT.
AND WE STARTED TO STREAMLINE THIS PROCESS. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
AND OBVIOUSLY THESE TIMES ARE VERY LONG AND IN MY OPINION IS NOT ACCEPTABLE.
SOME OF THESE COULD BE VERY SIMPLE. AND WE CAN SO STAFF HAD THE MEETING.
WE HAVE THE KEY MEMBERS OF OUR TEAM GET TOGETHER AND REVIEW THESE.
AND WE FEEL THERE'S SOMETHING WE CAN DO TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE THESE REVIEW TIMES.
AND NEXT ONE, PLEASE. SO WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS FOR SOLAR PANEL ONLY, SOLAR PANEL ONLY IN A BASE ZONING DISTRICT. SO MEANING SOLAR PANEL ONLY, NO BATTERY.
THERE'S NO HISTORIC PRESERVATION, CONSERVATION AND PDS.
THOSE ARE THE ONES WE CAN STREAMLINE RIGHT AWAY.
WE ALREADY HAVE A STREAMLINED PROCESS IN PLACE.
WE CAN TURN AROUND AVERAGE ABOUT 24 HOURS. JUST LET YOU KNOW, THE REASON WE CANNOT INCLUDE BATTERY IS A LITTLE MORE COMPLEX. AND ALSO BATTERY NEED FIRE DEPARTMENT REVIEW AT THIS TIME AND THAT TAKE A FEW DAYS.
IF YOU IN CONSERVATION DISTRICT OR HISTORIC DISTRICT, IT DOES REVEAL A LITTLE BIT MORE, IT'S REALLY DICTATE WHERE THE SOLAR PANEL CAN BE LOCATED. HOW MUCH COVERAGE YOU NEED TO HAVE IS THAT IMPACT.
YOU KNOW SAY THE CHIMNEY OR THE DORMER. AND THOSE ARE SOMETHING THEY HAVE TO REVIEW TO MAKE SURE THERE'S NO NEGATIVE IMPACT ON THE HISTORIC BUILDING. SO AS I MENTIONED THAT IF IT'S STREET SOLAR PANEL IN THE BASELINE ZONING DISTRICT, THIS IS SOMETHING WE CAN DO. AND AS A MATTER OF FACT, I THINK LAST FEW WEEKS WE ALREADY WORK ON THIS.
IT'S GREAT AS THE TIMELINE HAS REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY.
THE NEXT ONE, PLEASE. AND THEN SO THIS IS THE 24 HOURS I MENTIONED, AND ALSO IN THE FUTURE.
NEXT ONE PLEASE. AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, NEXT SLIDE.
TODAY IS THE FIRST DAY WE TRANSITION INTO DALLAS NOW.
AND THAT IS A PROGRAM THAT CAN HELP US JUST BY ITSELF, STREAMLINE THE PROCESS A LITTLE BIT MORE.
WE FEEL DALLAS NOW WHEN AFTER THAT'S IMPLEMENTED, AFTER TODAY, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY EVEN TO STREAMLINE THE SOLAR PANEL, PLUS THE BATTERY, THE STORAGE SITUATION. SO THAT'S SOMETHING WE'RE GOING TO WORK WITH THE NEW SYSTEM AND SEE WHAT WE CAN DO TO FURTHER IMPROVE OUR PROCESS.
IF THAT'S A DECISION CITY COUNCIL WANT TO GO.
AND ALSO THERE ARE A LOT OF DISCUSSION AT THE STATE LEVEL AT THIS TIME.
DEPENDS ON THE OUTCOME OF THOSE LEGISLATIONS.
SO SOME OF THOSE COULD IMPACT HOW WE DO BUSINESS HERE.
SO GIVE US A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME TO LOOK AT THAT.
AND I TOLD COUNCILMAN WEST THAT MAYBE SIX MONTHS, ASKED US TO MONITOR HOW THESE WERE 24 HOUR WORK AND THE STATE LEGISLATION. SOME OF THOSE COULD PASS. AND ALSO OUR NEW DALLAS NOW PROGRAM.
ALL OF THAT RIGHT NOW IS CURRENTLY BEING REVIEWED AT THIS TIME.
SO I THINK IN A FEW MONTHS WE'LL HAVE A MORE CLEAR PICTURE WHERE ALL OF THESE ARE GOING TO FALL IN PLACE, AND THEN WE CAN HAVE A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW WE CAN MAKE IT BETTER.
SO THAT'S NEXT ONE, PLEASE. SO OUR RECOMMENDATION IS WE MOVE INTO THIS NEW SYSTEM TODAY AND EVALUATE THAT. AND, AND ALSO SEE IF WE CAN INCLUDE THIS IN THE FUTURE IN THE NEXT PHASE OF OUR DALLAS NOW AND THAT'S BASICALLY MY PRESENTATION, AS I MENTIONED TO YOU, THAT THIS RESEARCH AND THE WORK WE WERE DOING IS A VERY HIGH LEVEL.
I DON'T HAVE ALL THE DETAILS, BUT I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE FIRST PRESENTATION THAT MADE THIS COMMITTEE BE HAPPY TO MONITOR THIS IN A FEW MONTHS, GIVE YOU AN UPDATE. BUT THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
BUT THIS IS SOMETHING I MENTIONED TO YOU. WE'RE OPEN.
WE'RE OPEN TO WHATEVER IS GOOD FOR THE CITY, WHATEVER IS GOOD FOR YOU KNOW, THE ENVIRONMENT,
[00:45:05]
WE'RE ALL SUPPORTIVE OF THAT. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR LIU .I THINK THAT THE CONVERSATIONS AROUND THE SOLAR APP SEEM TO HAVE PROMPTED US TO LOOK AT THIS, AND THAT'S VERY GOOD NEWS. SO LET'S SEE IF WE HAVE QUESTIONS.
CHAIR WEST. THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE YOU, CHAIR, FOR BRINGING THIS TO THE COMMITTEE.
THIS HAS BEEN A PRIORITY FOR ME AND A LOT OF FOLKS FOR A LONG TIME.
IT'S KIND OF ON THE BEEN ON THE BACK BURNER, BUT I'M GLAD TO SEE IT'S FRONT AND CENTER TODAY.
JUST A COUPLE QUESTIONS OTHER THAN JUST SAYING THANK YOU, STAFF.
SLIDE FIVE, IF WE CAN GO THERE. SO THIS IS ON SOME OF THE CHALLENGES.
YOU HAD MENTIONED ON HERE THAT IT'S ONLY A CHECKLIST, BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE SOFTWARE CHECKLIST PORTION CAN BE CUSTOMIZABLE SO THAT WE CAN MAKE IT MORE IMPACTFUL FOR OUR CITY. IS THAT RIGHT? THAT'S WHAT I'M HEARING, AT LEAST FROM ADVOCATES.
SORRY. WE HAVE NOT TALKED TO THE SOLAR APP PER SE YET, BUT THAT COULD BE OUR NEXT STEP TO SEE IF THEY CAN CUSTOMIZE THE CHECKLIST OR EVEN REQUIRE SUBMIT A PLAN ALONG WITH IT, BECAUSE THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR OUR REVIEW TO LOOK AT OR INSPECTOR TO SEE THE PLAN.
YOU KNOW, WHERE IT'S GOING TO BE. AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN DEFINITELY STEP TO, IS TALK TO SOLAR APP TO SEE IF THEY CAN CUSTOMIZE THEIR CHECKLIST AND POSSIBLY ADDING THE REQUIREMENT OF PLAN SUBMISSION.
EXCELLENT. YEAH. NOW I'M HEARING THAT IT THAT IT IS.
SO HOPEFULLY THAT HOPEFULLY THAT'S CORRECT AND THAT THIS WORKS OUT AND ELIMINATES THAT CONCERN.
SECONDLY IS YOU TALKED QUITE A BIT, DIRECTOR LIU, ABOUT OUR COMPLEX ZONING CODE.
WE ALL KNOW IT'S VERY COMPLEX. I'M VERY GLAD WE'RE GOING THROUGH A REVIEW OF THAT.
RIGHT. I KNOW THAT A LOT OF CALIFORNIA CITIES DO HAVE VERY COMPLEX ZONING, JUST LIKE WE DO.
AND THEY'VE FIGURED IT OUT AND MADE THIS WORK IN THEIR SYSTEM.
SO IF STAFF IS CONTINUING TO HAVE PROBLEMS WORKING THROUGH OUR ZONING AND HOW THAT PLAYS IN WITH THE APP, I THINK WE COULD EXPAND YOUR REVIEW TO INCLUDE SOME CALIFORNIA CITIES, PERHAPS.
YES, THAT'S A GOAL. GREAT. AND THEN SLIDE SEVEN IS ON THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, WITH THE CONTRACTORS SUBMITTING FAKE SUBMISSIONS JUST TO HURRY UP AND GET IN THE SYSTEM.
WHAT I'VE UNDERSTOOD TO HAPPEN, AND MAYBE YOU'VE HEARD THIS BY TALKING WITH SAN ANTONIO, IS THAT ONCE STAFF IDENTIFIES THAT A FAKE SUBMISSION HAS BEEN SUBMITTED IT THAT CONTRACTOR IS THEN BANNED FROM THE PROGRAM.
SO I HAVE YOU HEARD THAT OR IS THAT THAT SEEMS LIKE A REASONABLE SOLUTION, RIGHT.
I THINK THAT'S VERY REASONABLE. YOU KNOW, THAT'S VERY REASONABLE.
I DON'T RECALL THAT WE HAVE SPECIFIC ANSWER ON THAT.
IF WE ARE DOING THIS, THAT'S DEFINITELY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO.
YES, I CAN ASK THAT QUESTION AGAIN. YEAH, I THINK AS A DETERRENT FOR PEOPLE TO TRY TO GAME THE SYSTEM, THAT SEEMS LIKE IT WOULD SOLVE THAT PROBLEM PRETTY QUICKLY.
AND THE WORD WOULD SPREAD IMMEDIATELY ONCE SOMEBODY'S BANNED.
SO I'M FULL SUPPORT. I WANT TO SEE THIS MOVE FORWARD AND I'M HERE TO HELP.
LET ME KNOW WHAT I CAN DO TO HELP EXPEDITE. THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
OTHER QUESTIONS. CHAIR MORENO. THANK YOU CHAIR.
THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATION. HOW MANY APPLICATIONS DID WE HAVE FOR SOLAR RETROFIT IN THE LAST IN THE LAST YEAR? I CAN GET THAT NUMBER TO YOU. I'VE SEEN THAT NUMBER I DON'T HAVE ON TOP OF MY HAT.
I THINK A FEW HUNDRED IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY.
BUT I HAVE THOSE DATA I CAN SEND IT TO, TO THE COMMITTEE.
IF WE CAN GET FOR RETROFITTING AND FOR NEW INSTALL, THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
I THINK THE FEE IS THE SAME. SOME OF THOSE HAVE BATTERIES.
SOME OF THOSE ARE COMPLEX. I DO BELIEVE WE DON'T DISTINGUISH THEM MOVING FORWARD.
I THINK MAYBE BECAUSE SIMPLER. SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE ONE FEE.
IT'S $577. OKAY. AND RIGHT NOW WE CURRENTLY USE THE INTERNATIONAL BUILDING CODE FOR 2021 IN DALLAS. YES. THE STATE IS LOOKING AT, I BELIEVE, UP TO 2018.
[00:50:03]
AND SO THEY'RE GOING TO BE POTENTIALLY PUTTING IN SOME NEW REGULATION IN THE WAY THEY ALSO MONITOR RENEWABLE RESOURCES.AND SO I KNOW YOU KNOW, YOU MENTIONED THAT THAT'S ONE THING THAT YOU'LL BE LOOKING AT.
I MEAN SHOULD WE BE WAITING OR SHOULD I MEAN SHOULD WE BE CONTINUING TO INVEST MORE STAFF TIME EVEN THOUGH THE STATE MIGHT DO SOMETHING DIFFERENTLY? AT THIS TIME, I WANT TO KNOW THAT STAFF, WE DO HAVE CAPACITY TO REVIEW [INAUDIBLE] WE'RE NOT LIKE SAN ANTONIO, WHERE THEY'RE JUST LIKE THEY'RE BEHIND. WE HAVE THE CAPACITY.
IT'S JUST TO STREAMLINE THE PROCESS ONCE THE PROCESS IS STREAMLINED.
A LOT OF STATES IN THE TEXAS ARE BEHIND THE BUILDING CODE.
WE ARE FAIRLY UP TO DATE. WE ARE 2021. A LOT OF THEM PROBABLY LIKE MUCH, MUCH EARLIER.
SO THEY WANT THEM TO BE OPEN TO 2018. BUT WE ARE ALREADY AHEAD.
WE ARE ACTUALLY WORKING ON THE 2024 BUILDING CODE THAT COMES BACK TO YOU POSSIBLY NEXT YEAR.
AND THE SOLAR APP, THE GOOD THING ABOUT SOLAR APP, THEY DID REVIEW THAT AGAINST THE 2021 BUILDING CODE, WHICH THE SAME CODE WE'RE USING. SOME OTHER CITY I KNOW, SOME OTHER SMALLER CITIES, ESPECIALLY IN TEXAS.
THEY'RE BEHIND. THEY'RE NOT EVEN ADOPTING 2018.
I THINK THAT'S WHY THE STATE ASKED EVERYBODY TO AT LEAST BRING IT UP TO 2018.
BUT WE ARE AHEAD. AND AS SOLAR PANELS DO BECOME MORE POPULAR ACM ONE OF MY BIG PRIORITIES AND CONCERNS IS THE PREDATORY PRACTICES OF THE SENIOR OF THE SOLAR PANEL COMPANIES TARGETING OUR SENIOR POPULATION.
AND SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE BEING CAUTIOUS, ESPECIALLY WITH OUR SENIOR FAMILIES AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE NOT BEING VULNERABLE AND TAKING ADVANTAGE OF AND THAT THEY UNDERSTAND THE, THE CONSEQUENCES AND THE, THE EFFECTS OF YOU KNOW, POTENTIALLY SELLING A HOME IF THEY DECIDE TO RETIRE AND DOWNSIZE.
AND THAT RESPONSIBILITY SHIFTING OVER WITH A NEW, MORTGAGE COMPANY.
AND SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO PROTECT OUR MOST VULNERABLE.
MAY I RESPOND? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE QUESTION AND THE CONCERN.
SO OEQS HAS BEEN WORKING TO DEVELOP A PROGRAM WHERE WE CAN PROVIDE INFORMATION TO OUR RESIDENTS ABOUT REPUTABLE OPPORTUNITIES IN THIS AREA, AND WE WILL SHARE THOSE LINKS WITH THE COMMITTEES THAT YOU HAVE IT EASILY AVAILABLE AS WELL.
THANK YOU. CHAIR ARNOLD, ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY.
I WOULD JUST SAY THAT COULD WE MAYBE HAVE A REPORT IN SIX MONTHS AND JUST LET US KNOW IF YOU WERE ABLE TO INTEGRATE IT INTO DALLAS NOW? YES. AND THEN IF WE COULD JUST GET A REPORT ON JUST OVERALL THE PROCESS AND HOW IS IT, YOU KNOW, YOU'VE MADE A LOT OF CHANGES TO SPEED IT UP.
SO IS THAT MAKING A DIFFERENCE? HAS THAT BEEN SUCCESSFUL? I THINK IT WOULD JUST BE GOOD FOR US BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO I THINK WE WILL CONTINUE TO GET QUESTIONS FROM OUR CONSTITUENTS ABOUT SOLAR PANELS.
AND IF WE HAVE A GOOD PROCESS, I THINK IT WOULD BE GOOD FOR US TO HAVE THAT INFORMATION, BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO IT INTELLIGENTLY AND SAY, YES, IT TYPICALLY TAKES ANYWHERE FROM 1 TO 3 DAYS TO GET APPROVAL.
AND, YOU KNOW, HERE'S WHAT THE FEE IS. AND JUST, YOU KNOW, JUST HAVE SOME OF THE BASIC FACTS.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE GREAT IF WE COULD GET THAT INFORMATION.
ABSOLUTELY. I'D BE HAPPY TO COME BACK IN SIX MONTHS.
OKAY. THAT'S PERFECT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. OKAY.
I BELIEVE THAT'S IT. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. SO LET'S GO TO OUR BRIEFING MEMOS.
I DON'T, I, A SECOND HERE. DO YOU HAVE? OKAY.
ON THE FORESTRY PLAN THOUGH, I'M GOING TO I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS ON FORESTRY.
DO WE HAVE SOMEONE? WE HAVE DIRECTOR SARAH STANDIFER WITH THE WATER DEPARTMENT.
THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE THIS MORNING. SO THIS PROJECT SEEMS TO HAVE CAUGHT THE EYE AND THE INTEREST OF THE PUBLIC. SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT IF YOU COULD WALK US THROUGH WHAT UNDER
[00:55:06]
ASSET MANAGEMENT AND HOW WE'RE SPENDING OUR FUNDS ON INVENTORYING OUR TREES.I ALSO HAVE EDUARDO VALERIO AND BRETT JOHNSON WITH THE PARK DEPARTMENT.
MISS JOHNSON IS OUT TODAY UNFORTUNATELY. SO WE'RE GOING TO COVER LIKE WE NORMALLY DO AS A TEAM.
AND THE ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPONENT THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT OVER TIME AND HAVE BRIEFED NUMEROUS TIMES THROUGHOUT IS REALLY A TOOL IN WHICH THAT WE WE WILL BE ABLE TO UTILIZE ACROSS CITY OWNED PROPERTY, BOTH IN FLOODWAY MANAGEMENT AREAS, PARK PROPERTY AREAS, DENSELY AND MORE MANICURED AREAS.
SO BOTH COMPONENTS WE'RE LOOKING AT TREE CONDITION, SIZE TYPE, MAINTENANCE PROTOCOLS.
AND WE DID A TWO PART. WE RECEIVED A GRANT FROM USDA THAT WAS ABOUT 750,000 AS PART OF THOSE COMMUNITY DIRECTED FUNDS IN FY 23, AND THAT IS KIND OF DIVVIED UP ACROSS PARKLANDS AND FLOODWAY MANAGEMENT AREAS AND PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY.
WE WE THEN WENT FORWARD WITH A CONTRACT THAT SET PRICING, NOT ENCUMBRANCES OR APPROPRIATIONS.
YOU'LL SEE THE LIDAR TRUCKS STARTING THIS MONTH FROM DAVEY RESOURCES GROUP, THE FIRST 750,000 OF THAT CONTRACT PRICE SETTING, NOT ACTUAL ENCUMBRANCES, IS PAID FOR BY THAT US DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE GRANT THROUGH FOREST SERVICES.
THE CONTRACT BEGAN ITS WORK IN DECEMBER. DAVEY, WHO IS THE CONTRACTOR, FELT LIKE THEY COULD DO ABOUT 750,000 WITHIN THAT FIRST YEAR TO TWO YEAR TIME FRAME. WE NEEDED TO LET THEM GET UP AND RUNNING TO SEE HOW MUCH THEY COULD ACCOMPLISH AND HOW MUCH WE CAN QC SO THEIR DATA GOES IN.
WE'RE QCING SEEING IT ON THE BACKSIDE TO MAKE SURE IT'S ACCURATE BEFORE ANY INVOICES ARE PAID.
AND THEN WE SEEK REIMBURSEMENT FOR THOSE FUNDS.
SHOULD WE BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH MORE THAN JUST THE INITIAL KIND OF 750,000, WHICH IS CURRENTLY ESTIMATED TO TAKE THROUGH FY 26. AND IN OUR FUTURE BUDGET YEARS, THERE WILL BE ADDITIONAL CONVERSATIONS FROM PUBLIC WORKS AND OR TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS, PARK AND RECREATION, AND THE WATER DEPARTMENT, PRIMARILY ABOUT HOW THOSE FUNDING ALLOCATIONS WOULD WORK IN THE INTERIM STAFF, AS THEY ARE DOING THEIR WORK, IS ALSO DOING ASSET AND INVENTORYING OF THOSE TREES.
SO TO DATE THROUGH THAT CONTRACT, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO ABOUT 70,000 TREES.
ALL OF THE CONDITION, INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT, IF YOU KIND OF WENT AND LOOKED A SCREENSHOT SNAPSHOT IN TIME FROM LAST FALL WHEN WE HAD ABOUT 9000 DONE TO NOW YOU'LL SEE LOTS OF GREEN DOTS ON THE PUBLIC FACING.
AS WE MOVE FORWARD, WE WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP TALKING ABOUT THIS, BUT THIS REALLY HELPS US WITH HOW WE'RE GOING TO TAKE CARE OF THE, YOU KNOW, GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE COMPONENT ON OUR CITY OWNED PROPERTIES.
OKAY. THAT'S VERY HELPFUL. THANK YOU. SO THE GENERAL FUND, WILL WE CONTINUE TO KEEP THOSE FUNDS ALLOCATED? WE SINCE WE'RE NOT USING THOSE FUNDS, WE SEEM TO BE USING GRANT FUNDS.
SO WE'RE PRETTY FRUGAL IN HOW WE DO THOSE. AND SO THERE WAS NO FY 25 FUNDING AS PART OF FY26, WE'RE WORKING WITH THE CONTRACTOR AND ALL THE DEPARTMENTS TO DETERMINE IF THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH MORE, AND HOW MUCH MORE SO THAT IT'S SIZED. RIGHT. OKAY.
AND SO WILL THERE BE AN ALLOCATION IN THE BUDGET GOING FORWARD? IN THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET, THERE WILL BE BUDGET CONVERSATIONS WHERE DEPARTMENTS WILL REQUEST ALLOCATION FUNDING.
[01:00:04]
WE DO HAVE 26 FUNDS THAT WE WILL PRESENT TO YOU AS PART OF THE BUDGET.OKAY. OKAY. I ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YES. YES. EXCUSE ME.
I THINK I DON'T HAVE MY PAPERWORK RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME RIGHT NOW.
NOR AM I LOOKING AT THE LINK. I WANT TO MAKE SURE I REQUEST FROM YOU AND CHAIR.
WE NEED TO GET SOME CLARITY ON THE TREE COUNT CONVERSATION.
YOU WERE MOVING SO QUICKLY. I DON'T KNOW THAT THE PUBLIC COULD UNDERSTAND.
SO COULD YOU GIVE US ME, IF NOBODY ELSE WANT, I DON'T HAVE A HABIT OF ASKING FOR EVERYBODY ELSE BECAUSE THEY ARE GROWN AND THEY REPRESENT THEIR OWN DISTRICTS. I KNOW I'VE GOT A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS TREE COUNT.
SO IF YOU COULD GIVE US AND WE MY STAFF COULD EVEN REQUEST THAT.
BUT THEY NEED TO GET AN UNDERSTANDING OF THAT PROCESS, THE TREE COUNT.
WHERE ARE WE? WHERE IS THE MONEY, THE FUNDING ALLOCATION? AND THEN, AS MR. CHAIRMAN, JUST MENTIONED, ON THE BUDGETS BECAUSE IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT IT DURING THIS BUDGET SEASON, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I'M INFORMING MY CONSTITUENTS ON THAT ASPECT OF IT BECAUSE THEY WANT TO WEIGH IN.
I HAVE A COUPLE OF PEOPLE WHO ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE TREE COUNT AS IT, AS WE PRESENTED IT.
SO AS WE WORK WITH OUR CONSTITUENTS ON THIS BUDGET, I NEED TO SPEAK INTELLIGENTLY AND FACT BASED WITH DATA THAT HOLD, EXCUSE ME CONVERSATION BECAUSE YOU WERE GOING KIND OF QUICKLY AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE SPEAKING IN A LANGUAGE WHICH I CALL LAYMAN'S TERM, SO THEY CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THEIR TAX DOLLARS ARE BEING EXCUSE ME, UTILIZED.
SO DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? JUST THAT COMPONENT. THAT'S ALL WE REALLY WANT TO KNOW.
TREE COUNT WHAT THE MONEY YOU SAID IS HERE THAT WE VOTED ON, WE DIDN'T USE IT, OR WE'RE GOING TO GO FORWARD TO THE NEW BUDGET HEARINGS TO TALK ABOUT IT. THAT'S WHAT I NEED TO BE ABLE TO TALK INTELLIGENTLY.
COUNCILWOMAN. WHAT WE CAN DO IS WE CAN SET UP SOME TIME WITH YOUR OFFICE AND WALK YOU THROUGH.
I JUST NEED TO DROP IT INTO THE NEWSLETTER, SO I'M NOT MISQUOTING.
I KEEP GETTING THIS FROM MY CONSTITUENTS. I'M NOT SPEAKING FOR WHAT THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS GET, BUT MY CONSTITUENTS WANT CLEAR, CLEAN LAYMAN TERMS. THEY DON'T WANT ACRONYMS. THEY DON'T WANT HOMONYMS, SYNONYMS. THEY WANT FACTS. AND THAT'S ALL I'M SAYING. IF YOU ALL CAN GIVE, I DON'T CARE.
IF THEY DON'T WANT IT, THAT'S FINE. I KNOW WE NEED IT.
WE WILL GET YOU SOME INFORMATION. THAT'S ALL WE NEED.
THANK YOU. YES, THAT WOULD BE GREAT TO HAVE THAT FOR OUR NEWSLETTERS.
SO. OKAY. AND MAY I SAY THIS. THANK YOU, CHAIR.
AND THANK YOU, CHAIR. ARNOLD. WE DO HAVE THIS ON OUR FORECAST TO BRING.
AND SO THAT THAT FEEDBACK IS GOOD AND WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT THE PRESENTATION REFLECTS THOSE INSIGHTS.
WELL LET ME JUST SAY THIS. WE NEED IT THIS WEEK.
SOUNDS GOOD. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY. I THINK WE MIGHT BE FINISHED WITH IT.
I'M LOOKING AROUND. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. OKAY.
THE BIKE PLAN. I BELIEVE WE DO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS ON THE BIKE PLAN MEMO.
WE HAVE OUR BIKE PLAN EXPERTS COMING THEIR WAY.
THAT'S FINE. YOU OKAY? WE JUST HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS.
WE'LL START WITH CHAIR MORENO. THANK YOU. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR WORK ON THIS.
MY ONLY QUESTION IS HOW DID WE DETERMINE WHICH PROJECTS GO INTO EACH PHASE? SO EVERY PROJECT WAS YOU MIND INTRODUCING YOURSELF FOR THE PUBLIC? THANK YOU. APOLOGIES. MY NAME IS JESSICA SCOTT.
I'M THE BICYCLE AND MICROMOBILITY MANAGER IN THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS.
YOU CAN FLIP TO THAT PAGE. JESSICA, CAN YOU MOVE IT A LITTLE CLOSER TO YOUR MOUTH? IT'S HARD TO HEAR. SORRY. CAN YOU HEAR ME? WE LOOKED AT DIFFERENT CRITERIA FOR EVERY SINGLE PROJECT BASED ON
[01:05:05]
ESTIMATED COST, BASED ON COMPLEXITY, BASED ON DESTINATIONS THAT THE PROJECT COULD BE REACHING.TO REALLY GAUGE THE IMPACT FEASIBILITY OF EVERY SINGLE PROJECT, AND WE LISTED THOSE PROJECTS OUT FROM HIGHEST TO LOWEST SCORE. AND THE FIRST PHASE OF FUNDING IS UP TO IS THE FIRST FIVE YEARS OF PROJECTS, UP TO $300 MILLION, AND THE SECOND GETTING THAT MIXED UP.
THE SECOND PHASE IS EVERYTHING UP TO $300 MILLION AND PHASE THREE IS EVERYTHING AFTER THAT.
SO IT'S SIMPLY AND BASICALLY AN EXCEL SHEET PROCESS.
I'LL JUST ADD GOOD MORNING. GUS KHANKARLI, THE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, PUBLIC WORKS, I'LL JUST ADD ALSO THAT WE FOCUSED ESPECIALLY ON THE SHORT TERM ON CLOSING THE GAPS IF THERE ARE ANY GAPS IN THE SYSTEM THAT WOULD HELP WITH THE CONNECTIVITY, IN ADDITION TO THE OTHER FACTORS THAT JESSICA WAS MENTIONING.
I WOULD LIKE TO DISCUSS THIS WITH YOU GUYS OFFLINE, MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE.
LOOKING AT THESE THROUGH ALL LENSES. ALSO, JUST CURIOUS IF Y'ALL CAN PROVIDE THE ROUTES THAT HAD THE MOST PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT AND INPUT AND IF THAT WAS TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. YES IT WAS.
THANK YOU. OKAY. AND FINAL THOUGHT IS IF THERE'S DOLLARS FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES WOULD THOSE MOVE THOSE PROJECTS THAT ARE IN PHASE THREE, POSSIBLY INTO OTHER PHASES? YEAH. AND I WILL COMMENT ON THAT IS THAT THERE ARE WE HAVE SOME PROJECTS THAT ARE PART OF THE COMPLETE STREETS AND OR RECONSTRUCTION THAT WE'RE IMPLEMENTING.
SO WE CAN HAVE THAT AND WE HAVE THAT LIST. THANK YOU.
CHAIR WEST. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THE UPDATE.
ARE THEY STILL MEETING REGULARLY? WHEN'S THE LAST TIME THEY MET? WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE COMMITTEE? SO AS THIS PLAN, ONCE THIS PLAN IS ADOPTED, ONE OF THE FIRST ACTION ITEMS IS TO ESTABLISH A BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO CONTINUE. SO I DIDN'T WANT TO DOUBLE OUR EFFORTS AND HAVE TWO BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEES.
SO AS OF RIGHT NOW, THE COMMITTEE IS NOT REALLY DOING ANYTHING.
THEY'RE SORT OF DISENGAGED, BUT THEY WILL BE REACTIVATED ONCE THE PLAN IS ADOPTED.
YEAH. THEY'VE THEY'RE DONE. AS FAR AS THE THE DRAFT PLAN IS FINALIZED.
WE RECEIVED THEIR PUBLIC INPUT THROUGH THIS LAST PHASE OF PUBLIC COMMENT.
SO THROUGH THAT MARCH, PUBLIC COMMENT, TIME PERIOD.
SO THEY'VE PROVIDED THEIR INPUT AND WE'RE JUST LOOKING FOR ADOPTION AS THE NEXT STEP.
OKAY. I PULLED UP OFF YOUR MEMO, THE 20 I'M SORRY, THE JANUARY 21ST, 2025 PRESENTATION.
AND I JUST KIND OF LOOKING THROUGH THIS ARE ALL DISTRICTS THROUGH ALL 14 DISTRICTS SCHEDULED TO RECEIVE SOME NEW BIKE LANE INFRASTRUCTURE IN IN PHASE ONE. OR PHASE? I MEAN, IN ANY PHASE.
AS FAR AS THE PRIORITY IS CONCERNED I DON'T BELIEVE EVERY SINGLE DISTRICT IS GETTING IT.
WE FOCUS ON THE PRIORITY BASED ON WHAT? THE SCORING SCORE CRITERIA.
AND LIKE I SAID, WE HAVE TO, IN MY OPINION, HAVE TO CLOSE GAPS AND CONNECT SYSTEMS. AND THAT SHOULD BE, I MEAN, BECAUSE WE CAN'T HAVE SITUATIONS WHERE BIKE TO NOWHERE OR, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL BE ON A BIKE LANE AND THEN YOU GET TO SOME INTERSECTION AND THERE'S NOTHING.
SO WE'RE FOCUSED ON THAT AS PART OF THE PRIORITY, BUT HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP.
IF THERE IS ANY PARTICULAR LOCATION THAT IS OF INTEREST.
WELL, THERE IS, AND I'LL GET RIGHT BACK TO THAT.
BUT I DO WANT TO SAY I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH YOUR PLAN AND THE REASONING BEHIND IT, THAT CLOSING THE GAPS ON OUR CURRENT SYSTEM IS SHOULD BE AT PARAMOUNT WHEREVER THEY'RE LOCATED. BUT IF A IF A ONE OF OUR COLLEAGUES HAS PUBLICLY SAID THAT THEY'RE NOT INTERESTED IN BIKE LANES IN THEIR DISTRICT, I MEAN, ARE WE STILL GOING TO PUT BIKE LANES IN THEIR DISTRICT, OR HAVE WE FOLLOWED UP WITH THAT PARTICULAR COUNCIL MEMBER TO MAKE SURE THAT IS STILL THE
[01:10:02]
WISH OF THAT COUNCIL DISTRICT? BECAUSE I'D RATHER SEE THE MONEY GO TO SOMEWHERE THEY'RE NOT GOING TO FIGHT THE COUNCIL.JUST TO CLARIFY, I THINK IT'S IT'S THE WAY IT WAS.
IT'S THE APPROACH AND THE TIMING RATHER THAN THE INTEREST.
OKAY. SO IT'S MORE OF BECAUSE IN ONE PARTICULAR DISTRICT, IF THAT IS THE REFERENCE TO THAT DISTRICT, IS THE FACT THAT WE'VE GOT MAJOR PROJECTS THERE THAT ARE FINISHING UP AND WILL HAVE MAJOR TRAIL CONNECTIVITY AND THAT HAVE PROJECTS THAT CONNECTS THE BIKE LANES AND THE TRAILS. SO THAT'S THE REASON WHY IT MAY BE LAGGING OFF A LITTLE BIT BEHIND ON THE ON STREET COMPONENT OF IT. BUT THERE IS A LOT OF WORK IN ALL DISTRICTS AND IN DIFFERENT FORMS, WHETHER IT BE IN TRAIL, ON STREET OR A COMBO. WELL, I'LL JUST SAY PUBLICLY.
DISTRICT ONE IS LOW HANGING FRUIT IF THERE'S MONEY THAT IS NOT BEING USED ELSEWHERE.
AND COUNCIL MEMBERS ARE NOT INTERESTED IN IT. WE'LL TAKE IT. SEND IT TO DISTRICT ONE.
THANK YOU. AND WE'VE GOT AN IMPORTANT PROJECT THAT WE'RE WORKING ON.
I'M COMMITTED TO IT. DULY NOTED. DULY NOTED. DISTRICT ONE.
THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, CHAIR? ARNOLD? I DO. AND I APPRECIATE THOSE COMMENTS THAT COUNCIL MEMBER WEST MADE.
THERE IS ALWAYS, I THINK. INTEREST IN DISTRICTS WITH THE BICYCLES AND JUST ALL DIFFERENT TYPES OF OPTIONS BECAUSE YOU HAVE A DIVERSE COMMUNITY. BUT I THINK STRATEGICALLY AS YOU ALLUDED TO, THERE ARE SOME ISSUES THAT HAVE TO BE ADDRESSED AND IT MAY BE A PRIORITY OVER THE BIKE LANES. BUT OF COURSE, IF THAT MONEY IS THERE AND YOU HAVE AVAILABILITY, OF COURSE I'M TRUSTING THAT YOU ALL WILL DO THAT.
BUT I DO KNOW THAT FOR WHAT I'M LOOKING AT I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU ALL UNDERSTAND THAT A ROAD IN THE CONDITION OF THE ROAD AND THE ABILITY TO BE MOBILE SAFELY IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN JUST STICKING A BIKE LANE IN THE MIDDLE OF A, YOU KNOW, ON THE STREET JUST BECAUSE SOMEBODY WANTS A BIKE LANE.
AND THE REASON I'M SAYING THAT IS WE HAD THAT CONVERSATION AROUND KIEST AND FOLKS, KIEST WAS IN A TOUGH, ROUGH CONDITION. AND SO THERE WAS A TALK ABOUT PUTTING BIKE LANES THERE.
LOOK, CAN WE AT LEAST AT LEAST CAN WE WALK THERE? SO YOU COULDN'T WALK. YOU COULDN'T HARDLY DO YOU COULDN'T DRIVE YOUR CARS BECAUSE OF THE CONDITIONS.
SO I DO CONTINUE, DOCTOR GUS KHANKARLI, I WANT TO MAKE SURE I LET FOLKS KNOW I KNOW YOUR NAME, THAT IT SEEMS THAT YOU ARE DOING WHAT YOU'RE DEFINITELY.
YOU JUST SAID YOU'RE MAKING THE ASSESSMENT. YOU'RE DEALING WITH THE PRIORITIES.
YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE CONDITIONS AND YOU'RE JUST NOT JUMPING UP AND JUST PUTTING THINGS IN.
AND YOU ARE TO BE AND YOUR STAFF IS TO BE COMMENDED.
ON KIEST I'M JUST TELLING YOU, YOU ALL ARE WORKING THAT AND IT'S FOR THE SAFETY OF OUR COMMUNITY.
WE HAD POTHOLES. WE HAD ALL TYPES OF LOOK LIKE SINK CRACKS WERE COMING IN POTENTIALLY, BUT.
SO IT DIDN'T MAKE SENSE TO JUST PUT THAT BIKE TRAIL IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT.
SO THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR THE WORK THAT YOU ALL ARE DOING.
BUT CAREFUL, CAREFUL EXECUTION IS WHAT I THINK I SHOULD CONTINUE TO ENCOURAGE.
AND NOT THE PRESSURE OF WE WANT THIS, WE WANT THAT BECAUSE THE WORST THING WE CAN HAVE IS HAVE FOLKS CAVING IN WITH A WITH A WHAT DO YOU CALL THOSE HOLES? WHAT DO YOU CALL THOSE HOLES? YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.
WHERE FOLKS, JUST ALL OF A SUDDEN THE LAND JUST DROPS.
IT CAN'T SINK HOLES. RIGHT. AND I JUST I'M JUST VERY MUCH EXCITED ABOUT WHAT I SEE YOU ALL DOING IN THE AREAS THAT I REPRESENT. IN PARTICULAR, I SEE WORK IN OTHER DISTRICTS, BUT WE HAVE BEEN WITHOUT SO LONG AND SOMETIMES IT JUST TAKES, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE MONEY ROLLS OUT. BUT IT SEEMS TO SOME OF THE CITIZENS THAT IT TOOK SO LONG.
BUT NOW YOU'RE HERE AND WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
AND I DID WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I SUPPORTED WHAT COUNCIL MEMBER WEST IS SAYING.
BUT ALSO THAT WE NEED THE BASICS FIRST, AND THAT'S WHAT WE NEED TO DELIVER.
AND THANK YOU ALL AND YOUR STAFF AND MAKE SURE YOU LET THEM KNOW THAT I CONTINUE TO THANK THEM FOR THE WORK, ESPECIALLY ON THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT YOU ALL ARE DOING NOW.
THANK YOU, MA'AM, AND CREDIT TO YOU AND CREDIT TO OUR COUNCIL MEMBERS AGAIN.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I DISCUSSED WITH THE BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE, TO YOUR POINT IS, AT SOME POINT I WOULD LIKE TO BRING AT LEAST A SMALL CONTRACT WITH A UNIVERSITY FOR US TO STUDY THE WHAT TYPE OF PAVEMENTS THAT WE NEED TO HAVE ON THOSE BIKE LANES, BECAUSE WE CANNOT HAVE CRACKING AND WE CANNOT HAVE BICYCLISTS USING BIKE LANES THAT HAVE CRACKS, ESPECIALLY ON THE LONGITUDINAL CRACKING AND SO ON.
SO INSTEAD OF US SPENDING GOING OUT THERE AND SPENDING MONEY ON PUTTING SOME PAVEMENT OF SOME SORT,
[01:15:02]
I WOULD LIKE FOR IT TO BE STUDIED AND THEN STRATEGICALLY DEPLOYED SO THAT WE CAN HAVE THE APPROPRIATE PAVEMENT IN THOSE BIKE LANES IF WE NEED TO SEPARATE THOSE FROM THE GENERAL VEHICULAR PAVEMENT. SO TO YOUR CREDIT, AGAIN, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH.AND THIS IS THE THE FRUIT, IF YOU WILL, OF THOSE DISCUSSIONS.
OKAY. I THINK THAT'S IT. THANK YOU SO MUCH, JESSICA AND GUS.
WE APPRECIATE YOUR WILLINGNESS TO ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS.
ALL RIGHT, LAST THING IS JUST TO CALL EVERYONE'S ATTENTION TO THE FORECAST.
WE WILL BE TALKING ABOUT THE PARKLAND. I'M SORRY, CHAIR.
WE HAD ONE ITEM THAT WAS ADDED BY BUDGET. I JUST WANTED TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO BEFORE YOU GO TO THE FORECAST? YES. I DON'T KNOW THAT I USUALLY DON'T WE JUST BRING UP IF WE HAVE QUESTIONS? SURE. I DIDN'T KNOW IF YOU HAD QUESTIONS RELATED TO IT.
DO WE HAVE QUESTIONS? I THOUGHT I CHECKED ON THAT.
NO, I DON'T BELIEVE WE HAVE QUESTIONS. THANK YOU.
SORRY I SKIPPED ON AHEAD WITHOUT LETTING YOU KNOW WHERE I WAS HEADED.
I KNOW THE CFO WAS ANXIOUS TO COME AND TALK TO YOU.
SO I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE HE GOT HIS 15 MINUTES.
YEAH. NO, JACK IS SHAKING HIS HEAD. THANK YOU.
OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SO JUST CHECK ON THE FORECAST, THE PARKLAND DEDICATION FEE.
SO IF THERE ARE NO OTHER QUESTIONS, I WILL ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 10:27.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND WE BROUGHT YOU SOME BUNDLES IN A CELEBRATION OF CINCO DE MAYO.
HOPE YOU ENJOY IT.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.