[00:00:01]
THEIR PHONES.[CALL TO ORDER]
YOU CHOOSE, PLEASE STAND AND REMAIN STANDING FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS.
ONE NATION UNDERGROUND, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.
MAY WE HAVE A ROLL CALL, PLEASE? MAYOR WEST HERE, MAYOR PRO.
AND COUNCIL MEMBER NEIL PRESENT.
[Opening Remarks - Kenneth R. Williams, City Manager]
MANAGER, WILL YOU OPEN US UP WITH OPENING REMARKS? THANK YOU, MAYOR.AND I'D LIKE TO WELCOME EVERYONE TO OUR, UH, WORKSHOP WORK SESSION TODAY.
IT'S MORE OF A BUDGET WORK SESSION, BUT WE'VE INCLUDED SOME OTHER ITEMS THAT WE'D LIKE TO GET INPUT FROM ON THE CITY COUNSELING IN REGARDS TO PHY PHILOSOPHIES, HOW YOU WANT TO, UH, UH, DO SOME THINGS FOR SURE.
SO WE ARE LOOKING AT SOME IN-DEPTH DISCUSSIONS.
TODAY'S MEETING IS AGAIN, UH, TYPICALLY ABOUT THE BUDGET, AND IT'S THE FIRST MEETING OF OUR BUDGET PROCESS AND KICKING IT OFF WITH CITY COUNCIL.
TODAY, WE'RE GONNA HAVE DISCUSSIONS, BUT ARE GONNA BE LIKE HIGH LEVEL DISCUSSION, 30,000 FOOT LEVEL DISCUSSIONS.
WE WON'T GET SO MUCH INTO, UH, DETAILS.
UH, WE'RE GONNA BE TALKING ABOUT PROJECTS THAT MAYBE WHERE WE'RE EXPANDING SERVICES, SOMETHING WE HAVEN'T HAD BEFORE OR AGAINST THINGS THAT WE'LL NEED SOME INPUT ON.
UH, BASICALLY, BUT ALSO GIVE YOU SOME INFORMATION ON THINGS LIKE INFRASTRUCTURE, INFRASTRUCTURE'S A BIG DEAL.
SO WE'RE HAVING A REPORT ON OUR COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN, AS WE CALL IT.
NOW, FOR THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THIS IS, UH, OPPORTUNITY FOR, UH, US TO GET FEEDBACK FROM CITY COUNCIL.
THIS IS, TODAY'S PROCESS IS A BIT OF A HYBRID PROCESS THAN YOU ACCUSTOMED TO AT SOME NEW THINGS THAT BEING IMPLEMENTED BY MYSELF AND MY ADMINISTRATION AND SOME THINGS THAT YOU'VE BEEN ACCUSTOMED TO.
BUT WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR IS FOR COUNCIL TO BE AN EXTENSIVE PART OF THIS PROCESS WHERE YOU ARE PART OF THE PROCESS FROM THE BEGINNING.
I WANT TO HEAR YOUR PRIORITIES AND GOALS TODAY, AND TAKE THOSE PRIORITIES, GOALS, AND IMPLEMENT 'EM INTO THE BUDGET.
UH, WE'RE ALL, UH, CITIES DON'T HAVE INFINITE DOLLARS.
WE HAVE NINE AMOUNT OF DOLLARS.
SO THERE ARE DECISIONS TO BE MADE ALONG THE WAY WHERE WE HAVE TO PRIORITIZE SOME THINGS.
UH, BUT, UH, WE WANT TO DO, WANT TO HEAR WHAT, WHAT'S IMPORTANT TO YOU.
UH, I WON'T, TERRY LONG UNLESS YOU HAVE SOME QUESTIONS UP FRONT.
UH, I WOULD LIKE TO WORK WELCOME THE MAYOR TO HIS FIRST CITY OF BEAUMONT BUDGET WORKSHOP.
AND, UH, IF THAT'S, UH, IF WE DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, WE CAN GET STARTED.
[1. FYE 2023 Financial Update]
OKAY.WITH THERE BEING NONE, WE WANT TO LAYOFF FOUNDATION FOR YOU.
FIRST, WE WANT TO TALK ABOUT DOLLARS FINANCIAL UPDATE, GIVE YOU A, A SNAPSHOT OF THE CITY'S, UH, FUND BALANCES WHERE WE'RE TODAY.
IF YOU'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT DOLLARS, YOU'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT BUDGETS.
YOU NEED TO KNOW HOW MUCH YOU HAVE OR HOW MUCH YOU HAVE TO SPEND OR, OR, OR IS AVAILABLE.
SO TODD, UM, SEMINAR, OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR'S GONNA GIVE US A, UH, BRIEF OVERVIEW OF OUR FISCAL YEAR 2023 FINANCIAL STATUS.
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU, MR. CITY MANAGER.
SO AGAIN, I'M GONNA TAKE YOU THROUGH A VERY HIGH LEVEL REVIEW OF, UH, SOME OF OUR MAJOR OPERATING FUNDS FOR THE CITY.
WE'LL TALK ABOUT SOME REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES.
AND THEN, UM, THE LITTLE LAST SLIDE, WE'LL KIND OF RECAP EVERYTHING AND SHOW YOU WHERE, WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE WE THINK WE'RE GONNA BE FUND BALANCE WISE.
SO, THE MAIN OPERATING FUND FOR THE CITY'S THE GENERAL FUND.
AND AS YOU CAN SEE ON THE TOP, WE HAVE A CURRENT YEAR BUDGET OF 145.2 MILLION OF REVENUE, AND WE'RE EXPECTED TO RECEIVE 149.6 MILLION OF REVENUE.
THIS IS, UM, BASED ON PROJECTIONS AS OF AS OF MARCH 31ST.
SO IT'S ONLY SIX MONTHS INTO THE FISCAL YEAR.
SO OBVIOUSLY THESE PROJECTIONS CAN CHANGE, BUT AGAIN, GOING FROM 145 MILLION OF BUDGET AT REVENUE TO A PROJECTION OF 1 49, THE INCREASE IS WERE ABOUT 2 MILLION AHEAD OF PACE ON SALES TAX.
AND YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, IN, IN THE VERBIAGE HERE, WE HAVE SOME
[00:05:01]
O OTHER INCREASES THAT, UM, WERE NOT EXPECTED IN THE ORIGINAL BUDGET.TWO OF THE MAIN SOURCES OF REVENUE FOR THE GENERAL FUND, OUR SALES TAX AND PROPERTY TAX, EACH OF THOSE REPRESENT ABOUT 33% OF THE ANNUAL BUDGET.
AS YOU CAN SEE, ONCE AGAIN, SALES TAX HAS A BUDGET ALL ALONE OF 48.5 MILLION.
WERE EXPECTED TO GET 2 MILLION ABOVE THAT AT 50.5 MILLION.
PROPERTY TAXES ARE ALWAYS PRETTY CONSISTENT.
WE BUDGETED 47.7 MILLION AND WE'RE EXPECTED TO RECEIVE 47.7 MILLION.
THE TWO OTHER MAJOR OPERATING FUNDS OF THE CITY ARE BUSINESS TYPE.
THE FIRST ONE IS A WATER AND SEWER FUND.
THE OTHER ONE IS A SOLID WASTE FUND.
SO AS YOU CAN SEE, BUDGETED REVENUES FOR THE WATER AND SEWER FUND ARE A LITTLE OVER 54 MILLION, AND WE'RE PROJECTED TO RECEIVE A LITTLE OVER 54 MILLION.
YOU CAN SEE IN THE YEAR TO DATE CHANGE, IT'S ABOUT 8% AHEAD OF LAST YEAR, WHICH IS RIGHT IN LINE WITH THE 8% RATE INCREASE.
WE IMPLEMENT IT, UM, FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR IN THE SOLID WASTE FUND.
THIS IS BASICALLY TRASH COLLECTION AND LANDFILL ACTIVITY.
WE HAVE A BUDGET OF 14.6 MILLION, AND WE'RE PROJECTED TO, UH, COME IN UNDER BUDGET AT 14.1 MILLION.
IT'S PRETTY HARD TO ESTIMATE WHAT OUR LANDFILL ACTIVITY IS GOING TO BE FROM YEAR TO YEAR.
SO SOME OF THIS DECREASES ATTRIBUTED TO, UH, LESS LANDFILL ACTIVITY THAN WE HAD IN A PRIOR YEAR.
ON THE EXPENSE SIDE, GOING BACK TO THE GENERAL FUND, WE HAVE, UH, EXPENDITURES OF 146.1 MILLION BUDGETED.
WE'RE EXPECTED TO EXCEED BUDGET BY A LITTLE OVER A MILLION.
AS Y'ALL KNOW, WE APPROVED OUR LIABILITY INSURANCE CONTRACT IN MAY.
AND THOSE QUOTES FOR JUST A LIABILITY INSURANCE FOR THE CITY, WERE A MILLION DOLLARS OVER BUDGET.
WE DO HAVE SOME DEPARTMENTS THAT ARE, YOU KNOW, COMING IN A LITTLE UNDER BUDGET.
SO THOSE MINOR, MINOR VARIANCES BETWEEN, YOU KNOW, SAY LIKE POLICE, FIRE, PUBLIC HEALTH, PUBLIC WORKS, THEY ALL BALANCE EACH OTHER OUT.
SO RIGHT NOW, WE ARE EXPECTED TO EXCEED A BUDGET BY A MILLION DOLLARS DUE TO THAT INSURANCE POLICY.
WE HAVE A BUDGET OF RIGHT AT 55 MILLION, AND WE'RE GONNA PROBABLY EXCEED JUST A LITTLE OVER 55 MILLION.
THE MAIN REASON WE'RE GOING OVER BUDGET IN THE WATER FUND IS BECAUSE THE PRICE OF CHEMICALS HAS BASICALLY SKYROCKETED.
AND SO THIS IS REALLY JUST ALL CHEMICALS OUT AT THE WATER PLANT AND THE SOLID WASTE FUND.
WE HAVE BUDGET EXPENDITURES OF 14.9 MILLION, AND WE'RE EXPECTED TO COME IN PRETTY CLOSE TO BUDGET ON THAT.
ALSO, LET ME JUST GO, YOU KNOW, FOR ESPECIALLY THE MAYOR, SINCE HE'S NEW, UM, IN THE GENERAL FUND, 76% OF THOSE EXPENDITURES, SO 76% OF 146 MILLION IS WAGE AND BENEFIT RELATED.
IT'S DOMINANTLY SERVICE ORIENTED.
THE WATER AND SEWER FUND IS DOMINANTLY GOOD ORIENTED.
SO IT'S ONLY, ONLY 23% OF THAT BUDGET IS RELATED TO WAGE AND BENEFITS.
SAME AS IN THE SOLID WASTE, IT'S ANOTHER BUSINESS TYPE ACTIVITY.
SO 36% OF THOSE EXPENDITURES ARE WAGE AND BENEFIT RELATED.
THIS IS A LITTLE RECAP JUST FOR, FOR A VISUAL REFERENCE OF THE THREE FUNDS I ALREADY WENT OVER.
I ALSO THREW IN HERE, UM, THE HOTEL FUND, THE, THE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FUND, AND THE GENERAL LIABILITY FUND.
AS YOU CAN SEE, ESPECIALLY ON THE FAR RIGHT HAND COLUMN, WE'RE EXPECTED TO EXCEED BUDGET EXPENDITURES IN, IN THOSE, UM, WELL, ESPECIALLY IN THE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FUND AND THE GENERAL LIABILITY FUND.
AND THIS WILL BE IMPORTANT WHEN WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, BUT I JUST WANTED Y'ALL TO TAKE A BRIEF LOOK AT THIS.
OKAY, SO THIS IS WHERE WE LOOK AT OUR FUND BALANCE.
SO ON THE GENERAL FUND, IF YOU LOOK AT THE SECOND TO THE SECOND TO THE LAST COLUMN ON THE RIGHT, WE HAVE WHAT WE'RE, WE'RE, UM, CALLING A REQUIRED FUND BALANCE RESERVE.
SO THE COLUMN TO THE LEFT OF IT, YOU CAN SEE WHERE WE'RE PROJECTING OUR ENDING FUND BALANCE PER THE YEAR.
SO FOR THE GENERAL FUND, WE'RE PRO PROJECTING AN ENDING FUND BALANCE AT 51.1 MILLION.
CURRENTLY, WE HAVE A 20% RESERVE REQUIREMENT ON THE GENERAL FUND, BUT WE WOULD LIKE TO MOVE IT UP TO 25%.
SO, SO, UM, WHAT WE NEED IN THE GENERAL FUND WITH THE 25% DEAL IS 36 MILLION.
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WE HAVE 14 MILLION OVER OUR REQUIRED FUND BALANCE AND THE WATER FUND, THE CURRENT POLICY IS TO HAVE A BALANCE OF 15%.SO WE HAVE A PROJECTED FUND BALANCE ENDING OF 10.6 MILLION, AND WE NEED A FUND BALANCE OF 11 MILLION.
SO THE, THE REQUIRED FUND BALANCE IS A PERCENTAGE OF YOUR ANNUAL EXPENDITURES.
SO IF YOU TAKE YOUR ANNUAL EXPENDITURES AND MULTIPLY IT BY THE 25% OF THE 20%, THAT'S HOW I'M COMING UP WITH THE 36 AND THE 11.
SO, SO ON THE WATER FUND, WE'RE $400,000 UNDER OUR REQUIRED FUND BALANCE.
IF WE MOVE IT TO 20% OF ANNUAL EXPENDITURES IN THE SOLID WASTE FUND, WE'RE ABOUT TWO, WE WILL END UP $261,000 UNDER OUR REQUIRED FUND BALANCE AT 15%.
NOW WHY THROUGH THE, THESE LAST THREE FUNDS IN HERE, YOU CAN SEE THAT THE HOTEL FUND IS GOING TO HAVE A NEGATIVE FUND BALANCE AT THE END OF THE YEAR.
SO WE NEED TO ADDRESS THAT AS WE WALK THROUGH THE BUDGET GOING FORWARD.
THE EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FUND, THAT'S THE FUND WHERE WE CAPTURE ALL OF OUR HEALTH CLAIMS, PRESCRIPTION COST, EVERYTHING THAT'S RELATED TO INSURANCE FOR OUR EMPLOYEES.
AS YOU CAN SEE, WE'RE PROJECTED TO HAVE A NEGATIVE FUND BALANCE AT THE END OF THE YEAR, 4.3 MILLION.
THIS FUND HAS TYPICALLY BEEN IN PRETTY GOOD SHAPE THE LAST FOUR OR FIVE YEARS, BUT SINCE COVID HAS ENDED, WE BELIEVE THAT A LOT OF OUR EMPLOYEES ARE, UM, DOING ELECTIVE SURGERIES THAT WERE DELAYED DURING COVID BECAUSE THE HOSPITALS WEREN'T OFFERING THEM.
AND SO WE'RE PROBABLY GOING TO HAVE TO LOOK AT MAYBE SOME TYPE OF, UM, DESIGN CHANGE OR BENEFIT CHANGES IN OUR EMPLOYEE BENEFITS FUND IF THIS TREND CONTINUES.
BECAUSE THAT 4.3 MILLION THAT WE'RE SHORT IS USUALLY FUNDED BY THE GENERAL FUND, THE WATER FUND AND THE SOLID WASTE FUND, WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE WATER FUND AND THE SOLID WASTE FUND ARE ALREADY HAVING DIFFICULTIES MEETING THEIR MINIMUM FUND BALANCE RESERVE.
SO IT'LL PROBABLY LIKELY COME FROM THE GENERAL FUND SURPLUS.
SAME THING'S TRUE WITH GENERAL LIABILITY.
IT'S GOING TO, IT'S PROJECTED THE END OF THE YEAR AT $500,000 NEGATIVE CASH.
SO ITS MONEY COMES FROM TYPICALLY THE GENERAL FUND, WATER FUND AND SOLID WASTE FUND AS WELL.
SO AGAIN, THAT'S PROBABLY GONNA HAVE TO BE FUNDED BY SURPLUS FROM THE GENERAL FUND.
AND WITH THAT, THAT'S MY BRIEF FINANCIAL UPDATE.
BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE, IF I MAY ADD A COUPLE OF OBSERVATIONS.
UH, TODD TALKED ABOUT FUND BALANCES AND, AND GETTING THEM TO, UH, BETTER OF A HIGHER LEVEL RIGHT THERE AT 20%.
NOW FOR JUNE FUND, TODD AND, AND WATER FUND, UH, TYPICALLY THOSE WAS AROUND 25%, WHICH GIVES, UH, THE CITY A LOT OF SAFETY, UH, IN PARTICULAR HERE.
WE, WE, AS YOU HEARD, MOST OF OUR REVENUE COMES FROM SALES TAX.
AND SALES TAX CAN BE SUSCEPTIBLE TO, UH, DOWNTURNS IN THE ECONOMY.
SO IF THE ECONOMY HAS A DOWNTURN OR WE HAVE A BIT OF A RECEPTION, THAT WOULD PROVIDE SOME EXPOSURE FOR US, UH, THERE, IF THAT HAPPENS, UH, FOR SURE.
UH, BUT ONE GOOD THING IS THAT WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE FIRST SLIDE THAT HAD THE REVENUE, JIM FUND REVENUE VERSUS JIM FUND, UH, EXPENDITURES WERE, WE LOOKED LIKE WE'RE ABOUT TWO PROJECTED TO COME ABOUT 2 MILLION OR SO.
UM, 4 MILLION OR SO, WHATEVER WORD.
I LOST MY PLACE, UH, ABOVE WHAT WE PROJECTED AT THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR.
SO WHILE GENERAL FUNDS IN A HEALTHY PLACE, AS YOU HEARD, THE WATER AND, UH, SOLID WASTES FUNDS ARE DEFINITELY NOT.
SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO, DURING THIS PROCESS, WE'RE GONNA HAVE, HAVE SOME DISCUSSIONS ON WHAT WE CAN DO TO MAKE THOSE FUNDS HEALTHIER, UH, UH, ARE GETTING SOME, WE'LL BE GETTING SOME ANALYSIS OF OUR RATES DONE.
WE'LL BE BRINGING THAT REPORT TO YOUR IN-PERSON REPORT TO YOU ABOUT THAT, AND WE'LL HAVE SOME DISCUSSIONS, UH, THERE.
UM, UM, ANOTHER BED OF DISCUSSION IS THE HOTEL TOURISM DOLLARS.
AS TODD TOLD YOU, YOU'RE PROJECTED TO HAVE A NEGATIVE 175,000 1 94, UH, UH, FUND BALANCE AT THE END OF THIS BUDGET YEAR.
AND YOU'VE BEEN DOING A LOT OF THINGS TO OPERATE HOTEL TOURISM USING THE FUND BALANCE FOR DIFFERENT PROJECTS, AND THAT MONEY'S JUST NOT GONNA BE THERE FOR NE THIS NEXT
[00:15:01]
YEAR THERE.SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO MAKE SOME DECISIONS THERE TOO, ON HOW WE OPERATE AND WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH HOTEL TOURISM.
WE HAD AN AGENDA ITEM TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION TODAY, BUT, UH, UH, STAFF DEAN AND THEY WEREN'T ABLE TO BE HERE TODAY, SO WE'LL PUT THAT BACK ON THE AGENDA TO HAVE THAT DISCUSSION WITH CITY COUNCIL, UH, TO SEE WHAT THAT MEANS FOR SURE.
YOU'VE GOT SOME CHALLENGES WITH SOLID WASTE AND WATER, UH, FUNDS FOR SHEAR AND, UH, WE'LL BE GOING FORWARD WORKING ON IT.
HAVE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FROM ANYONE? THANK YOU, MR. MANAGER.
SO RIGHT NOW, THE, UM, THE BEGINNING FUND BALANCE IN 2023 WAS 48 MILLION IN THE FUND BALANCE.
SO IF YOU'RE SAYING WE WANT TO KEEP IT AT 25%, WHICH IS GONNA BE 36 MILLION, IS IT Y'ALL'S INTENTIONS TO SAY THAT WE'RE GONNA USE THIS ADDITIONAL $14 MILLION TO BALANCE NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET? WE DON'T KNOW, AND TODD CAN ANSWER THIS.
I I DON'T THINK WE KNOW THAT QUESTION YET.
COUNCIL MEMBER, IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO USE THAT TO BALANCE THAT BUDGET, WE LIKE TO BE ABLE TO, TO USE SOME OF IT TO SHOW UP THAT FUND BALANCE.
BUT OF COURSE, BALANCE AND THE BUDGET IS THE TOP PRIORITY.
SO WE WILL LOOK AT THAT FIRST AND TO SEE IF WE'RE ABLE TO INCREASE THAT, THAT FUND BALANCE REQUIREMENT.
UM, BUT ISN'T USING THE FUND BALANCE TO BALANCE THE NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET.
THAT'S KIND OF A SLIPPERY SLOPE.
YEAH, YOU DON'T WANT TO LIVE THAT WAY,
AT SOME POINT, YOU'LL, YOU'LL BE IN A SITUATION WHERE THE HOTEL TOURISM LINE ITEM IS YOU, YOU'VE BEING A NEGATIVE.
SO, UM, WE'LL BE EVALUATING THAT AND LOOKING AT IT.
OF COURSE, WE'LL HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO HOLD A LINE THERE FAR AS EXPENDITURES GO.
UM, WE'LL GET MORE PROJECTED REVENUES AS THE BUDGET SEASON GOES BY.
THE FISCAL YEAR GOES BY, I'M SORRY.
AND WE'LL, WHEN WE MEET THE NEXT, PROBABLY IN JULY, WE'LL BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU A BETTER PICTURE ON IT.
H HOW LONG HAVE WE BEEN KEEPING A FUND BALANCE? HIGHER THAN 40 MILLION? DO YOU KNOW THAT SIDE? I CAN'T REMEMBER THE LAST TIME IT'S BEEN BELOW THAT.
UM, WE'VE HAD A HEALTHY FUND BALANCE IN THE, IN THE GENERAL FUND FOR A LONG TIME THERE.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF ASSISTANCE THAT, THAT WE GET FROM THE GOVERNMENT AS WELL, YOU KNOW, FROM CARES ACT, FROM FROM ARPA, THINGS LIKE THAT THAT HELP OUT, YOU KNOW, THOSE WERE ONE TIME FUNDS, SO WE DO GOTTA WATCH THAT GOING FORWARD, BUT IT'S, IT'S BEEN HEALTHY FOR MANY, MANY YEARS.
AND REMEMBER, YOU KNOW, 76% OF THE GENERAL FUND'S BUDGET IS PAYROLL RELATED.
SO THERE'S WAYS TO NOT USE FUND BALANCE TO BALANCE THE BUDGET.
YOU CAN HOLD VACANCIES, YOU KNOW, FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS RATHER THAN FILLING 'EM IMMEDIATELY.
AND THAT HAS A, THAT HAS A BIG IMPACT ON, ON THE BUDGET.
UH, MR. MANAGER, UH, WITH SOME OF THESE THINGS SPIRALING DOWN AND WE DON'T WANT TO KEEP GOING IN THIS DIRECTION, PULLING FROM THE GENERAL FUND, WHAT CONTINGENCIES ARE IN PLACE TO SEE IF WE NEVER GET TO THIS SITUATION AGAIN? CAUSE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THREE CATEGORIES.
DO WE HAVE ANY CONTINGENCIES IN PLACE OR DO WE HAVE A PRESENTATION THAT WE MAY SEE IN THE FUTURE TO SEE IF WE CAN NOT GO IN THIS DIRECTION? OR WHAT CAN WE DO AS A CITY? WELL, AS WE, UH, BEGIN THIS PROJECT, UM, THIS BUDGET PROCESS, WE ARE BEGINNING TO SEE THESE THINGS AND IDENTIFY THEM.
YOU KNOW, THEY HADN'T BEEN IDENTIFIED SO MUCH BEFORE, ALTHOUGH TODD DOES A GREAT JOB OF KEEPING A RUNNING IN TOTAL.
UH, BUT AS WE THEM, THEN WE'LL COME UP WITH PLANS TO RECTIFY 'EM OR, OR PROVIDE RELIEF FOR THEM.
AT THIS POINT, WE JUST, IT'S BEEN A IDENTIFICATION AND WE STILL WILL YET TO IDENTIFY WHAT THOSE, UH, SOME OF THOSE THINGS TO RESOLVE IT ARE.
I DON'T, BUT I WOULDN'T, YOU KNOW, I WOULDN'T BE ABLE CONCERNED ABOUT IT.
THIS HAPPENS
YOU KNOW, PRIORITIES CHANGE, THINGS CHANGE, BALANCE, FUN BALANCES CHANGE, AND YOU JUST ADJUST AND, UH, UH, AND YOU'LL BE ABLE TO, TO RESOLVE THE SITUATION TYPICALLY, UNLESS, AGAIN, UNLESS A RECESSION OR A BIG DOWNTURN HAPPENS.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? NOT MAYOR TODD, YOU MENTIONED, DID YOU SAY 76% WAS, WAS EMPLOYEE PAYROLL BENEFITS?
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DO YOU, DO YOU KNOW OFF THE TOP OF YOUR HEAD WHAT WE'RE, WHAT WE'RE BUDGETED FOR AS FAR AS AND CONCERNING THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES AND HOW MANY EMPLOYEES DO WE HAVE NOW? I BELIEVE THE, UH, BUDGET IS 1,329 EMPLOYEES AND THE VACANCIES, THEY, THEY CHANGE FROM WEEK TO WEEK, BUT IT'S PROBABLY AN AVERAGE OF FOUR TO 5% VACANCY.ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? MR. CITY MANAGER, WOULD YOU LEAD US
[2. FUSUS Camera Technology Demonstration for Public Safety]
INTO ITEM TWO? THANK YOU, MAYOR.UH, NEXT WE HAVE ON THE AGENDA, UH, A PRESENTATION OR DEMONSTRATION ON OUR FU HAMMER TECHNOLOGY SYSTEM.
UH, MANY OF YOU SEEN THIS BEFORE, BUT THIS IS ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT WILL BE NEW, UH, UH, OR EXPANDING SERVICES.
THIS IS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY AND, AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE, THE CITY OF BEAUMONT IS LOOKING AT POSSIBLY DOING THIS PROJECT, BUT ALSO PARTNERING WITH OTHERS IN THE REGION, INCLUDING SCHOOL DISTRICT AND LAMAR AND OTHER POLICE DEPARTMENTS, ET CETERA.
SO TODAY WE'RE GONNA HAVE A PRESENTATION ON IT.
UH, WE HAVE, UH, UH, MR. RICHARD RING YES, SIR.
WITH, WITH FUS TECHNOLOGY HERE TO GIVE US A PRESENTATION.
I'M GONNA STEP BACK FROM THIS ON PUTTING OUTTA SEATS.
UM, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME HERE.
UM, MAYOR, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR VICTORY, UH, AND CHIEF SINGLE TERRY, THANK YOU FOR ARRANGING THIS.
UM, I'D LIKE TO KIND OF START OUT OUR, WE'RE GONNA DO A BRIEF PRESENTATION ABOUT, UH, WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING TO BRING TO BEAUMONT.
AND ONE THING I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, UH, BECAUSE IT'S A RARITY, AND I'VE BEEN WITH THIS COMPANY FOR THREE YEARS, RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT, MYSELF.
UH, THE CHIEF AND HIS TEAM THAT HE'S ASSEMBLED HAS BASICALLY, UH, THEY'RE DOING IT THE RIGHT WAY.
THEY'VE RE REALIZED THAT PARTNERSHIPS ARE VERY IMPORTANT, AND THEY'RE INVOLVING THE, THE, THE COLLEGE, LAMAR COLLEGE, THE BEAUMONT IS D AS WELL AS THE PORT AUTHORITY TO BRING THIS TO THIS, UH, POTENTIAL, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY, UH, INITIATIVE TO BEAUMONT.
SO, UH, KUDOS TO HIM FOR THAT.
I'VE GOT A VERY BRIEF PRESENTATION.
I'M GONNA GO OVER SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS OF WHAT THE PLATFORM WILL BRING TO THE AREA AND HOW IT'S GONNA MAKE BEAUMONT SAFER.
UH, AND THEN WE'LL HAVE SOME TIME FOR QUESTIONS, I GUESS.
AND IF, IF THERE'S, IF THERE'S TIME FOR PERMITTING.
SO I'LL, I'M GONNA START OFF WITH A REAL BRIEF VIDEO.
THIS FACILITY IS A TOOL DESIGNED TO HELP OUR CITY IN RESPONSE TO CRIME, AND IN SOME INSTANCES, TO PREVENT CRIME.
THE NEW SYSTEM IS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FSIS, A SOFTWARE COMPANY THAT ALLOWS BUSINESSES AND THE PUBLIC TO CONNECT THEIR OWN SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS TO THE SYSTEM THAT IS ONLY THROUGH A VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION INTO THE SYSTEM SALE IS MY HONOR TO WELCOME YOU TO THE FUTURE.
AND THE, TO DEDICATE THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER HERE FOR THE CITY OF WINSTON-SALEM.
WITH, UH, TODAY'S, UH, WORLD OF, UH, RISING CRIME RATES, AND PARTICULARLY THE VIOLENT CRIME, AND THE FACT THAT YOU'RE UNDERSTAFFED, UH, THE CHIEF AND OTHERS HAVE MADE DECISIONS AND COME UP WITH WAYS TO PERHAPS, UH, ADDRESS USE TECHNOLOGY TO HELP CLOSE THE GAP.
THERE'S QUITE LITERALLY A NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH OF THE 21ST CENTURY.
THESE STORIES ARE HARD PROOF THAT FIGHTING AND PREVENTING CRIME IN THE 21ST CENTURY RE REQUIRES A 21ST CENTURY APPROACH.
MY MESSAGE TO ALL LISTENING IS THIS, YOUR PARTICIPATION IS TRULY INVALUABLE IN AIDING OUR POLICE, OUR FIREFIGHTERS, AND FIRST RESPONDERS, TO RAPIDLY RESPOND TO CRIMINAL ACTIVITY AND EMERGENCY SITUATIONS, AN INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY THAT HELPS TO KEEP OUR BUSINESSES, APARTMENT BUILDINGS, AND ANY ENTITY IN THE CITY SAFER.
IT'LL CERTAINLY GIVE OUR RESIDENTS AND OUR GUESTS THE ASSURANCES THAT GARY INDIANA IS IN FACT, A SAFE PLACE.
THERE'S SOME TESTIMONIAL FROM, FROM OUR, OUR, UH, PARTNERS.
UH, ONE THING, IT, IT KIND OF IS THE FABRIC OF OUR CON OUR COMPANY, IS THAT WE INVOLVE, WE, AND WE HEAVILY RELY ON COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT.
WE WANNA BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICIALS AND WHAT THE COMMUNITY NEEDS AND HELP THEM ARRIVE AT A SAFER COMMUNITY.
SO, WHO IS FUSS? UM, WE'RE BASICALLY IN A, THE NUMBER CH CHANGED.
IT'S ABOUT 180 AGENCIES NOW, UH, EVERYWHERE FROM MIAMI,
[00:25:01]
UH, POLICE DEPARTMENT TO NEWARK, OUT TO CALIFORNIA, AND EVEN TO HAWAII.UH, AND, AND THAT NUMBER CONTINUES TO GROW.
UM, WE'VE GOT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT OUR PLATFORM DOES.
WE CALL OURSELVES A SWITZERLAND OF REALTIME CRIME CENTERS.
WE BASICALLY INTEGRATE ALL TYPES OF DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGIES INTO A SINGLE PANE OF GLASS OR A SINGLE FEATURE OF GLASS.
SO THAT LAW ENFORCEMENT, WHETHER THEY'RE IN A REAL TIME CRIME CENTER, OR WHETHER THEY'RE IN THEIR PATROL CARS OR ON THEIR PHONE, CAN ACCESS THIS TECHNOLOGY AND BE ABLE TO USE IT TO BENEFIT THEIR ATTEMPTS TO SERVICE THE COMMUNITY.
UM, WE, WE ARE AN END TO END SERVICE PROVIDER.
SO FROM, FROM START TO FINISH, WE'RE GONNA BE WITH YOU.
MAKE SURE THAT, UH, EVERY STEP IS EVERY LITTLE BOX IS CHECKED OFF, AND THAT YOU GET THE PLATFORM THAT YOU ACTUALLY WANT.
UH, WE'RE BUILT BY LAW ENFORCEMENT.
UH, PROBABLY 75% OF THE, THE FOLKS AT FUSS ARE RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OR FORMER LAW ENFORCEMENT OR MILITARY.
UH, WE, WE USE THAT TO OUR BENEFIT BECAUSE WE WANT TO BUILD A PLATFORM THAT IS DESIGNED, WILL HELP LAW ENFORCEMENT.
WE'RE A COMPLETELY OPEN PLATFORM, UH, WHICH MEANS BASICALLY ANYTHING THAT IS OUT IN THE, THE SPHERE, WE CAN BRING INTO OUR, INTO OUR SYSTEM AND U AND USE IT FOR PUBLIC SAFETY.
UH, WE'RE USUALLY UP AND RUNNING IN 90 DAYS.
WE'RE GONNA HELP YOU SOLVE TODAY'S PROBLEMS TODAY.
WE'RE NOT GONNA HAVE YOU WAIT FOR YEARS TO HAVE IT, UH, HAVE IT, UH, INSTALLED.
UH, AND THEN THE, THE, THE BIGGEST THING, I EMPHASIZE THIS ONE MORE TIME.
WE'RE GONNA HELP THE COMMUNITY BRIDGE AND WORK WITH LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TO MAKE THE COMMUNITY SAFER.
UH, WE ARE, UH, THE MOST WIDELY USED AND TRUSTED REAL TIME CRIME CENTER IN THE, IN THE, UH, COUNTRY RIGHT NOW WITH OVER 180 INSTALLATIONS.
THE INDUSTRY'S FIRST CLOUD-BASED, RAPIDLY DEPLOYABLE REAL-TIME CRIME CENTER.
FUSES INTEGRATES ALL MAJOR PUBLIC SAFETY TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENTS INTO A SINGLE PANE OF GLASS, SYNTHESIZING REALTIME INTELLIGENCE TO ENHANCE FIRST RESPONDERS SITUATIONAL AWARENESS AND DECISION MAKING CAPABILITIES.
COMMUNITY OWNED CAMERAS ARE COMBINED WITH VIDEO MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE, DRONES, DEPARTMENTALLY ISSUED CELL PHONES, GUNSHOT DETECTION SYSTEMS, AND LICENSE PLATE READERS.
ALL THIS INFORMATION IS INTEGRATED WITH THE DEPARTMENT'S 9 1 1 DISPATCH SOFTWARE VIA A RULES-BASED ENGINE DESIGNED TO ENSURE THE REAL-TIME CRIME CENTER LIVES IN THE HANDS OF AGENCY CRIME ANALYSTS AND ITS FIELD-BASED USERS.
FUSES BRINGS INTELLIGENCE TO THE FIELD BY OPERATIONALIZING VIDEO OFFICER LOCATIONS IN RELATION TO A CALL FOR SERVICE LIVE VIDEO TWO AND FROM THEIR MOBILE DEVICES, ENCRYPTED CHAT CHANNELS, EMBEDDED FLOOR PLANS AND SUSPECT VIDEO SENT DIRECTLY TO RESPONDING OFFICERS CONTRIBUTE TO THE AGENCY'S CAPACITY FOR CRITICAL INCIDENT MANAGEMENT.
SETTING UP FUSS IS FAST, REQUIRES MINIMAL HARDWARE, AND HAS NO ACTIVATION FEES.
YOU SIMPLY PLUG A FUSS CORE INTO YOUR EXISTING CAMERA OR NETWORK, AND WITHIN SECONDS, THE VIDEO FEED IS ANALYZED, SECURELY, ENCRYPTED, AND TRANSMITTED EITHER BY AN ONGOING LIVE STREAM OR ON DEMAND BASED ON AN ALERT FUSS.
AI AT THE EDGE, TECHNOLOGY EFFICIENTLY ANALYZES VIDEO RIGHT AT THE CAMERA, SAVING PRECIOUS MOMENTS BY DELIVERING AN AUTOMATED MEDIA PAYLOAD BASED ON THE CALL FOR SERVICE.
AND UNLIKE OTHER SYSTEMS, VIDEO AND ALERT SHARING IS COMPLETELY CONTROLLED BY THE DONOR LOCATION.
FOR EXAMPLE, SCHOOLS MAY CHOOSE TO LIMIT VIDEO SHARING TO EMERGENCY SITUATIONS LIKE AN ACTIVE SHOOTER EVENT, AND THE CAMERA ITSELF CAN BE SHARED BASED ON THE PRIORITY OF THE CALL.
AN ASSOCIATED SHARING POLICY IN AN INVESTIGATION, POLICE CAN AUTOMATICALLY REQUEST FOOTAGE FROM ALL NEARBY BUSINESSES AT THE CLICK OF A BUTTON, AND CAMERA OWNERS CAN SECURELY SHARE RECORDED AS WELL AS LIVE VIDEO FEEDS TO AID IN THE INVESTIGATION INCIDENT.
VIDEO AND DATA IS STORED IN A CGIS COMPLIANT VAULT FOR INVESTIGATORS.
AN ADDITIONAL VIDEO EVIDENCE IS EASILY COLLECTED VIA A PRECONFIGURED CAMERA REGISTRY MAP OF ALL THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE CAMERAS IN YOUR REGION, ALONG WITH A MULTIMEDIA TIP LINE FOR THE PUBLIC.
THE FUS REALTIME CRIME CENTER IN THE CLOUD IS A MISSION CRITICAL HUB THAT ENHANCES THE SITUATIONAL AWARENESS AND INVESTIGATIVE CAPABILITIES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES KEEPING OFFICERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS SAFER.
SO OUR, I'M GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE FUNCTIONALITY.
I'M NOT GONNA GET INTO TOO, TOO MUCH OF THE WEEDS, BUT I'D LIKE YOU TO UNDERSTAND WHAT, WHAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S GONNA HAVE AND WHAT THE COLLEGE AND THE SCHOOLS WILL HAVE.
ONE IS BASICALLY AN OPERATING SYSTEM, UH, THAT, THAT ALLOWS FOLKS TO SEE ALL THIS DATA IN ONE LOCATION.
A LOT OF POLICE DEPARTMENTS TODAY HAVE, UH, SYSTEMS THAT ARE SILOED.
THEY HAVE A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS THEY HAVE TO SIGN ON TO
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GET INFORMATION, BUT THE FUSS PLATFORM IN FUSS ONE, WE ENABLED AN OFFICER OR A PERSON WORKING IN THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER OR SOMEBODY AT THE SCHOOL OR SOMEBODY AT THE COLLEGE TO ACTUALLY ACCESS THAT INFORMATION WITHOUT HAVING TO LEAVE AND GO TO ANY OTHER, UH, LOCATION TO GET INFORMATION.THE FUSS REGISTRY IS A FREE, UH, PLATFORM FOR THE COMMUNITY TO ENGAGE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
SOME FOLKS SAY, YOU KNOW, I'VE GOT CAMERAS.
I LIKE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO KNOW THAT I'VE GOT THESE CAMERAS AND I'D LIKE TO, TO, TO HELP IN THEIR EFFORTS.
UH, I'M NOT SURE I WANT TO HAVE, HAVE THEM HAVE COMPLETE ACCESS TO MY CAMERAS, BUT I, I, I'LL TAKE THIS FIRST BABY STEP.
SO WE DO THAT WITH A FUS REGISTRY.
WE COLLECT THEIR INFORMATION ABOUT THEIR CAMERA SYSTEM.
WE COLLECT THEIR NAME AND SOME CONTACT INFORMATION.
AND THEN WHAT WE HAVE IS WE HA WE'VE, WE'VE STARTED THE FIRST PHASE OF A PARTNERSHIP.
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THIS GETS PLOTTED ON A MAP.
SO IF THERE'S A CRIME THAT HAPPENS IN THIS PARTICULAR PART OF TOWN, THE, THE DETECTIVES CAN GO AND CIRCLE SOME CAMERA ICONS AND THEY'LL BE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE DIRECTLY WITH THESE PARTICIPANTS.
THE REGISTRY PARTICIPANTS, THE REGISTER, UH, WILL GET A EMAIL FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT SAYING, HEY, WE'RE WE'RE WORKING A CASE OF ATTEMPTED CHILD ABDUCTION NEAR THE PARK.
UH, CAN YOU SEND THIS VIDEO FROM THIS TIME TO THIS TIME? THE COMMUNITY THEN HAS THE OPTION TO TAKE A LOOK AND SEE WHAT THEY'VE GOT.
IF THEY HAVE SOMETHING THAT THEY THINK IS USEFUL TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THEY CAN DIRECTLY SEND IT TO THE FUSS PLATFORM.
THEY DON'T HAVE TO, THE POLICE DON'T HAVE TO GO OUT AND KNOCK ON DOORS AND ASK FOR VIDEO.
THEY CAN DO THAT WITHOUT HAVING TO DO SO.
SO IT STREAMLINES IT, IT MAKES IT SUPER SIMPLE FOR DETECTIVES ALSO, BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO OUT AND LOOK FOR AN IT PERSON.
THEY, THEY CAN JUST GO CLICK ON THE BUTTON, IT COMES, THE IT PERSON GETS THAT EMAIL, THEN AN IT PERSON SENDS THE, THE, UH, VIDEO DIRECTLY TO THE, TO THE, UH, LAW ENFORCEMENT PLATFORM.
YOU, YOU CAN PUBLICIZE A A, A PHONE NUMBER.
AND IT GIVES THE COMMUNITY A MEANS TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE FUSS ONE PLATFORM.
SO FOLKS CAN, IF THEY WANT TO, THEY SEE SOMETHING SUSPICIOUS OR THEY SEE SOMETHING UNSAFE, THEY CAN SEND TIPS DIRECTLY TO THE REALTIME CRIME CENTER, AND THEN THE, THE POLICE OR WHATEVER AGENCY IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THAT PARTICULAR DEFICIENCY CAN HANDLE IT.
SO THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT, ANOTHER COMMUNITY INITIATIVE BUSES NOTIFY IS A, WITHIN THE PLATFORM.
AND I'M SURE Y'ALL HAVE NEVER HAD HURRICANES HERE, HAVE YOU? I THOUGHT THAT JUST HAPPENED TO US IN FLORIDA.
BUT, UH, IT'S A TOOL FOR THE CHIEF AND FOR, FOR THE CITY TO BE ABLE TO USE AND SEND INFORMATION, UPDATED INFORMATION TO FOLKS THAT OPT IN.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO PARTICIPATE IN IT, BUT YOU CAN OPT IN AND THEN BE NOTIFIED WHEN THERE'S THINGS THAT MIGHT AFFECT YOUR SAFETY.
THE PANIC ALERT, UH, THIS IS GONNA BE REALLY, REALLY, UH, USEFUL TO THE SCHOOLS AND THE COLLEGE.
UH, BUT IT'S ALSO USEFUL TO BUSINESSES.
WHAT IT BASICALLY IS, IT IS AN APP ON, ON YOUR PHONE, AND IT ALLOWS THE USER TO BASICALLY BE CONNECTED TO THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER IN THE, IN THE EVENT THAT THEY'RE IN DISTRESS, THEY HOLD THAT SOS BUTTON.
AND THEN WHAT HAPPENS IS THE, THE, THE REALTIME CRIME CENTER PR LIKELY BEFORE A NINE ONE ONE CALL IS MADE, KNOWS THAT THERE'S SOMEBODY IN DISTRESS AT A PARTICULAR LOCATION.
ALONG WITH THAT LOCATION, THERE'S A TAB ON THE PLATFORM THAT THE, THAT THE USER ON THE PLATFORM CAN PUSH AND IT TAKES THEM DIRECTLY TO THAT LOCATION.
IF THERE ARE CAMERAS NEARBY, THAT PERSON IN DISTRESS, THOSE CAMERAS AUTO DOCK.
SO NOW THE PERSON THAT'S IN THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER OR THE PERSON RESPONDING CAN SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING.
UM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE ALSO OPEN UP A CHANNEL OF COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN THE PERSON IN DISTRESS AND THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER.
THEY CAN USE THEIR PHONE TO STREAM WHAT'S HAPPENING.
IF THERE'S A FIGHT BETWEEN THE RUGBY TEAM AND THE FOOTBALL TEAM IN THE CAFETERIA, THEY CAN SEND THAT AND THE POLICE KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT'S HAPPENING.
IT'S MORE OF A, OF A, OF A STUDENT, UH, INVOLVED INCIDENT.
SO YOU CAN HAVE MEASURE RESPONSES.
ALSO, KIND OF THINK OF THIS AS, AS A USE TOOL FOR, UH, YOUR COMMUNITY.
YOU MAY HAVE FOLKS THAT ARE FREQUENT VICTIMS OF CRIME.
YOU, YOU DECIDE THE CHIEF WILL MAKE A DECISION WHETHER TO, TO ALLOW THEM TO HAVE THAT ACCESS.
THEY WOULD HAVE THE, THOSE SAME TOOLS, THE ABILITY TO HAVE, UH, A MEANS TO LET PEOPLE KNOW THAT THEY'RE IN DISTRESS.
SO THIS IS MOSTLY FOCUSED ON CRIME, BUT I'M SEEING HOW AN APPLICATION COULD POSSIBLY BE USED TO HELP WITH OUR EMS SITUATION.
WHEN YOU, WE'VE BEEN TOLD THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE USE EMS, UH, BASICALLY IS THEIR FIRST LINE OF MEDICAL CARE.
UH, MAYBE IT'S NOT REALLY THE TYPE OF AN EMERGENCY THAT WARRANTS, UH, A UNIT GOING OUT THERE.
BUT IF THEY HAVE THIS APP, WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO ALLOW, UH, SOMEONE AT THE NINE ONE ONE CALL CENTER TO MAKE THESE DETERMINATIONS AND EVALUATIONS AS TO WHAT LEVEL OF CARE NEEDS TO BE SENT TO ASSIST THE CITIZEN? IS IT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN USE TO BASICALLY HELP US WITH OUR TRIAGE PROCESS,
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WHICH IS SOMETHING WE'RE TALKING ABOUT DOING WITH, UH, TELEHEALTH IN OUR EMS? UH, FANTASTIC QUESTION, AND I'M REMISS BECAUSE I'VE, I'VE KIND OF SET, I'VE SET THE STAGE THAT THIS IS ONLY LAW ENFORCEMENT.WE HAVE A LOT OF PARTNERS THAT INVOLVE THE FIRE DEPARTMENT AS, AS WELL AS EMS IN THIS, IN THIS EFFORT, UH, GIVING THEM ACCESS TO STREET CAMERAS WHEN THERE'S A CRASH THAT THEY, THEY ARE ABLE TO ACCESS FROM THE FIRE TRUCK, THE STREET CAMERAS, AND SEE WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO.
ANOTHER PART, I'M GONNA DOVETAIL INTO YOUR, YOUR CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT ABILITY TO, TO EVALUATE A PERSON IN DISTRESS OR A PERSON THAT NEEDS, UH, POLICE OR EMS. WE HAVE A, A, A NEW FEATURE THAT WAS JUST DEVELOPED CALLED LIVELINK, WHICH ALLOWS YOU TO DIRECTLY COMMUNICATE WITH THE PERSON, TYPICALLY MOST PEOPLE CALLED VIA THEIR CELL PHONES.
SO WE HAVE A TOOL THAT ALLOWS YOU TO DO THAT.
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THAT QUESTION.
UM, WE TALK A BIG GAME ABOUT COMMUNITY, RIGHT? UH, AS A COMPANY, YOU PROBABLY HEAR, OKAY, THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT THE COMMUNITY.
UH, WHAT, WHAT MAKES THEM DIFFERENT THAN ANYBODY ELSE'S COME IN.
WE ACTUALLY HAVE A TEAM THAT'S DEDICATED TO, TO HELP YOUR, YOUR TEAM, YOUR AGENCY.
UH, THE COAN COMMUNITY ADAPT IS TECHNOLOGY.
AND HOW DO WE DO IT? WE BASICALLY, WE HAVE FOLKS THAT PROVIDE INFORMATION, EDUCATION, AND TECHNOLOGICAL SUPPORT SO THAT, THAT FOLKS THAT ARE INTERESTED IN THE PLATFORM CAN BE EDUCATED.
THEY CAN MAKE A, A SOUND DECISION AS TO WHICH ROUTE THEY WANT TO GO AND THEY CAN PARTICIPATE IN THE PLATFORM.
WE ALSO REALIZE THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S VERY BUSY.
THEY DON'T HAVE THE TIME TO BE GOING TO, TO KNOCK ON DOORS AND ASKING FOLKS IF THEY WANT TO PARTICIPATE BY SHARING THEIR CAMERAS.
WE'RE GONNA HELP BY DOING THAT.
OKAY? WE'RE GONNA TAKE THAT BURDEN OFF THE CHIEF AND HIS TEAM, CUZ THEY'RE ALREADY UNDER STAFFED AS IT IS.
WE, WE KIND OF USE THIS, WE'RE IN ATLANTA, THAT'S OUR HEADQUARTERS.
AND I USE THIS SLIDE TO KIND OF SHOW UP IN THE UPPER RIGHT HAND CORNER.
YOU'LL SEE ATLANTA, WHEN WE STARTED WITH THEM JUST A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO, THEY HAD ABOUT 1200 CAMERAS THAT THEY HAD ACCESS TO.
UH, THEY ARE INDEPENDENTLY THE MOST SURVEILLED CITY IN THE COUNTRY, EVEN EVEN MORE THAN NEW YORK CITY.
UH, WHEN I SAY SURVEIL, THEY HAVE THAT MANY CAMERAS, PRIVATE SECTOR CAMERAS, UH, YOU'LL SEE IN THE UPPER LEFT-HAND CORNER, THOSE ARE REGISTRANTS.
SO THOSE ARE THOSE FOLKS I TALKED TO YOU ABOUT THE REGISTRY.
THOSE FOLKS, UH, HAVE SIGNED UP TO BE PARTNERS WITH THE ATLANTA EFFORT.
UH, OVER TO THE RIGHT, THOSE 15,329 CAMERAS, ATLANTA'S PAYING FOR ABOUT 1500 TO 2000 CAMERAS.
THE REST OF THOSE CAMERAS THAT ARE BEING BROUGHT INTO THAT REAL TIME CRIME CENTER EFFORT ARE PAID FOR BY THE COMMUNITY.
LARGE BUSINESSES, SMALL BUSINESSES, AND THEY USE A HYBRID APPROACH TO TO, TO GROW THAT NUMBER.
BUT THOSE ARE THE TYPES OF THINGS YOU CAN EXPECT HERE IN BEAUMONT.
WITH THAT, SO, UM, I'M JUST, SO I, I THINK THE, THE CHIEF, HIS, HIS INTENT IS TO, IN CHIEF, YOU, YOU'VE GOT YOUR REAL TIME CRIME CENTER.
IT'S JUST ABOUT BUILT AND, AND I, I WANT, I WANNA KIND OF TALK ABOUT THAT.
THIS PLATFORM DOES NOT, IT'S NOT INCUMBENT UPON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO HAVE A BUILDING TO STICK A BUNCH OF TVS.
AND THAT MAKES THE, THE, THE WORKFLOW MUCH MORE EFFICIENT.
BUT I WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND, THE OFFICERS THAT ARE, EXCUSE ME, THAT ARE GONNA GET THIS TECHNOLOGY, ARE GONNA BE ABLE TO USE IT FROM THEIR PHONE AND THEIR MBTS AND THEIR CARS, WHEREVER THEY'RE AT, THEY CAN HAVE A REAL-TIME CRIME CENTER.
OTHER IMPORTANT NOTE, Y'ALL ARE, Y'ALL ARE FANTASTIC, UH, PARTNERS WITH ANOTHER ONE OF OUR PARTNERS, AND THAT'S AXON.
SO THE AXON, UH, BODY-WORN CAMERA SYSTEM THAT, THAT THE CHIEF, UH, JUST, JUST BROUGHT TO THE AGENCY, UH, IS GONNA BE ABLE TO BE FED INTO THE REALTIME CRIME CENTER.
SO OFFICERS ARE GONNA HAVE OVERWATCH WHEN THEY GO LIVE WITH THEIR BODY-WORN CAMERA, THEY'RE GONNA BE, YOU'RE GONNA, YOU'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO SEE WHAT THAT OFFICER SEES IN THE REALTIME CRIME CENTER.
THE CHIEF WILL BE ABLE TO TAKE AND BASICALLY SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING AND, AND, AND THE, HIS TEAM WILL BE ABLE TO SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING, MAKE APPROPRIATE ACTIONS.
UM, DID YOU WANNA COME UP AND TALK ABOUT SOME OF THIS? I THINK I'M TAKING A, OKAY.
UH, MR. WILLIAMS MAYOR COUNSEL, ONE OF Y'ALL'S LARGEST RESPONSIBILITIES, AND IT'S, AND IT IS ONE OF MY BIGGEST RESPONSIBILITIES THAT SHE IS TO PROVIDE THE TOOLS TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOUR DEPARTMENT TO MAKE THE DEPARTMENTS BETTER.
THIS IS A HECK OF A TOOL TO START WITH.
YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO BE A PART OF SOMETHING THAT WE, WE'VE ALREADY OBSERVED.
WE, WE'VE SEEN THIS IN, UH, SEVERAL DIFFERENT AGENCIES, UH, CAL KHOU PARIS.
IT IS AMAZING WHAT THEY'VE DONE.
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HAVE THE PEOPLE, OFFICERS, AND RESOURCES IN PLACE RIGHT NOW TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN.UH, YOU'LL NEVER HEAR, I'LL NEVER USE THE WORD REVOLUTIONIZE, UH, UH, AGAIN, PROBABLY IN MY CAREER, BUT THIS WILL, THIS WILL REVOLUTIONIZE THE WAY WE DO OUR BUSINESS.
IT WILL KEEP THE CITIZENS SAFE.
IT IS AMAZING WHAT THIS, THIS CENTER CAN DO FOR US.
WE ARE, WE ARE, UH, 100% COMMITTED TO IT.
AND THE, THE OFFICER SAFETY ASPECT IS, IS SO IMPORTANT TO ME, AND I KNOW WHAT IT IS FOR YOU GUYS.
UH, UH, OUR OFFICERS ON MANY, MANY TIMES IN A ACTIVE SHOOTER SITUATIONS ARE OFFICERS ARE GOING IN BLIND.
THIS WILL KEEP OUR OFFICERS SAFER.
THEY, UH, THIS, THIS WILL, THIS WILL HELP OUR OFFICERS DO THEIR JOB IN A SAFE, SAFER MANNER.
THE CITIZENS WANT TO KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING, AND THEY DESERVE TO KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING TO FIGHT VIOLENT CRIME.
THIS RIGHT HERE IS WHAT WE'RE DOING.
THIS IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROJECT.
IT'S, IT IS THE BIGGEST PROJECT IN, IN THAT I'VE SEEN OUR DEPARTMENT UNDERTAKE, UH, IN MY WHOLE CAREER.
AND THE ANOTHER GREAT THING ABOUT IT IS THAT WE'RE ALL ABOUT, Y'ALL ARE ABOUT THIS, UH, ABOUT BUILDING RELATIONS AND WORKING WITH OTHER ENTITIES AND, AND, AND HELP GETTING PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS IN BEAUMONT TO HELP US DO OUR JOB.
THIS IS WHAT WE'RE DOING IN THAT RESPECT.
ALSO, UH, THE, THE, AGAIN, THIS PROJECT BASICALLY SELLS ITSELF.
WE ARE SO, UH, AGAIN, EXCITED.
I DON'T GET THAT EXCITED, BUT I'LL HAVE TO USE THAT WORD AGAIN.
I, I, UH, WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT WHAT THIS CAN DO FOR OUR CITIZENS AND WHAT IT CAN, WHAT THIS CAN DO FOR OUR OFFICERS.
CHIEF, ANY ANY QUESTIONS? YES, SIR.
DOES THIS SYSTEM INTERFACE WITH THOSE PROGRAMS LIKE PY AND RING? UH, IS THAT SO, SO WITH RESPECT TO RING SECOND, WITH RESPECT TO RING, RING IS A CLOSED PLATFORM, BUT WE DO HAVE A ONE FEST THAT WE CAN PULL IN FROM RING, AND THAT IS WHEN, WHEN YOU HAVE RING PROTECT THE ABILITY TO TAKE YOUR VIDEO FROM YOUR CAMERAS AND DOWNLOAD IT, YOU CAN BE A REGISTRANT AND SEND THAT INFORMATION.
AND WHAT WAS THE OTHER, UH, IT'S ANOTHER, A PLATFORM LIKE RING.
AND, AND I, I'LL, I'LL TELL YOU FROM MY EXPERIENCE, UM, VERCOTTA CAMERA SYSTEMS WAS A CLOSED OFF PLATFORM TO US, AND WE'VE GAINED SUCH POPULARITY.
THEY ACTUALLY HAVE REACHED OUT TO US AND SAID, HEY, WE WE'RE CLOSED OFF, BUT WE'D LIKE TO PARTNER WITH FUSS.
AND THAT'S, WE, WE'VE MAINTAINED THAT SWITZER, THAT SWITZERLAND APPROACH.
SO WE HAVE FOLKS THAT ARE ACTUALLY COMING TO US.
WE'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, NEARLY A HUNDRED INTEGRATIONS WITH OTHER PROVIDERS, AND SOME OF 'EM ALMOST ARE IN COMPETITIVE SPACE WITH, WITH US, BUT THEY REALIZE THE BENEFIT THAT WE'VE HAD BY HAVING THOSE INTEGRATIONS AND BEING ABLE TO PLAY WELL WITH OTHERS.
SO LIKE AD T, THOSE TYPE? YES, SIR.
AND WHAT OTHER, UH, WHAT ARE SOME OTHER AREAS THAT YOU FIND CAMERAS IN THE COMMUNITIES? I CAN UNDERSTAND IT BEING IN THE COMMERCIAL AREA MM-HMM.
BUT WHAT ABOUT IN, UH, RESIDENTIAL TYPE AREAS? HOW WOULD THOSE CAMERAS BE UNIFIED? SO WE HAVE A, WE HAVE A SMALL DEVICE, UH, IN THE RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES.
AND IT VARIES FROM, FROM, UH, CITY TO CITY.
BUT WE HAVE FOLKS BUY CAMERAS AND THEIR CAR GETS BROKEN INTO ONE TIME.
THEY'RE NOT, THEY'RE GONNA CATCH THE PERSON NEXT TIME.
SO THEY PUT A CAMERA OVER THEIR GARAGE.
WE CAN ACCESS OR HAVE ACCESS TO THAT CAMERA, OF COURSE, IF IT'S, IT'S PERMISSION BASED.
AND BASICALLY WHAT HAPPENS IS WE PUT A SMALL DEVICE, IT'S ABOUT AS BIG AS MOUSE AT THE LOCATION.
WE CONNECT IT TO THE INTERNET AT THAT LOCATION.
AND THEN THE, THE CHIEF WILL HAVE AN ICON AT THAT ADDRESS, AND THEY'LL BE ABLE TO, WITH THE PERMISSION OF THE RESIDENT, OF THE, OF THE HOMEOWNER, BE ABLE TO ACCESS THAT VIDEO LIVE OR TO PULL RECORDINGS OFF THAT VIDEO IF THEY NEEDED TO.
SO THOSE CAN BE INSTALLED IN APARTMENT COMPLEXES AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
THAT, AND THAT'S A GREAT POINT BECAUSE, UH, THAT'S PROBABLY WHERE WE'VE HAD OUR GREATEST SUCCESSES IN WINSTON-SALEM, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, THE WINSTON-SALEM GARDENS APARTMENT COMPLEX HEAVY GANG, UH, VIOLENCE HEAVY, UH, FIRE, UH, THEY, THEY SHOOT AT EACH OTHER LIKE, IT'S LIKE IT'S NOBODY'S BUSINESS.
UH, WE PUT OUR FUSERS PLATFORM IN THERE AND WE'VE REDUCED PRIME AND EFFECTIVE ARRESTS IN SITUATIONS THAT PROBABLY WOULD'VE TAKEN INSTEAD OF IT TAKING, UH, A WEEK OR TWO TO INVESTIGATE THE CASE AND BRING IT TO A CONCLUSION THAT NIGHT ARRESTS WERE MADE.
AND CON, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE PUT IN JAIL.
AND WOULD FUS ALSO BE INVOLVED IN INSTALLING CAMERAS THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY, OR IS THAT SOMETHING, UH, THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE DONE THROUGH ANOTHER MEETING? WE HAVE, UH, PARTNERS RIGHT NOW.
THAT'S ONE OF THE AREAS THAT FUSES TRIES.
WE TRY TO STAY CLEAR OF HARDWARE BECAUSE THERE ARE A NUMBER OF OUR PARTNERS THAT WE INTEGRATE WITH.
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FEEL THREATENED BY US, AND WE DON'T WANT TO GO OUT AND SELL CAMERAS.SO WE, WE HAVE PARTNERSHIPS AND WE CAN ARRANGE AND, AND, UH, POINT YOU IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION SO THAT YOU CAN GET THAT IN INFRASTRUCTURE INSTALLED.
WELL, CHIEF, I I, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY, WE HAVE, UH, CAMERAS IN SOME OF THE PARTS, UH, ACROSS THE CITY.
UH, HAVE, HAVE Y'ALL ALREADY THOUGHT ABOUT, UH, HOW YOU IMPLEMENT THAT ACROSS THE CITY? ABSOLUTELY.
THAT, THAT'S, UH, ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE BIG, UH, UH, GREAT THINGS ABOUT THIS.
WE CAN, WE CAN, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING, ALL THE CITIZENS, LIKE, LIKE WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, THE CITIZENS WANT TO KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING AND, UH, AND TO MAKE THINGS SAFER FOR BEAUMONT.
AND, UH, AND, AND WE, IT'S LIKE A, IT'S LIKE WE HAVE A GIANT TO, FOR CHRISTMAS AND, AND ALL THE THINGS WE CAN DO WITH THIS TO, AND IT, IT SELLS ITSELF.
THE, THE, UH, THE UH, THE, UH, THE BOMBERS IN, IN, UH, MONSTER MARATHON WERE BASICALLY CAUGHT BEHIND THIS SYSTEM.
UH, AND, AND IT'S JUST AMAZING.
I MEAN, WE REALLY ARE EXCITED ABOUT IT AND, UH, UH, BUT YEAH, ALL, IT'S LIKE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT ALL THE THINGS.
WE SIT THERE AND YOU SAY, HEY, WE CAN DO THIS.
WELL, WE CAN, UH, WELL, WE CAN ACTUALLY, UH, TUNE INTO THE OFFICER'S, UH, BODY CAMERAS AND IN CAR CAMERAS.
UH, IT'S, UH, IT'S A HECK OF A TOOL.
THIS, THERE'S NOTHING BEING, WE'VE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THIS, UH, HERE IN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
AND I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE THE WAVE OF THE FUTURE.
AND, UH, I KNOW, I KNOW YOU, UH, Y'ALL WANT TO HELP US AS MUCH AS YOU CAN.
Y'ALL HAVE BEEN VERY SUPPORTIVE TO US AND SOME TOUGH TIMES, AND WE APPRECIATE THAT THIS IS SOMETHING HERE THAT WE THINK IS GONNA, UH, MAKE THINGS BETTER FOR, UH, OUR CITIZENS AND FOR OUR, OUR OFFICERS.
AND, UH, IF I'M, I'M SORRY, UM, THE REALTIME PRIME CENTER, IS THAT A PLACE THAT'S ALREADY IN USE? IS THAT THE 9 1 1 CENTER OR IS THAT A NEW FACILITY? IS IT LOCAL? WE, WE, WE HAVE A FACILITY IN PLACE.
CHIEF JEFF CO CAPTAIN TK AND, UH, CHIEF PLUNKETT HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN, UH, ACTUALLY GETTING IT LOGISTICALLY SET UP FOR, UH, THE REALTIME CRIME CENTER.
WE'VE BUILT OUT, UH, MUCH OF THE THIRD FLOOR OF THE MUNICIPAL COURT BUILDING.
AND MOST OF THAT'S BEEN DONE WITH GRANT FUNDS.
AND WE ARE FINISHING A STAGE RIGHT NOW THAT'S GONNA HOUSE OUR TRAFFIC UNIT ON THE THIRD FLOOR.
AND WE HAVE FINISHED, UH, JUST THIS LAST WEEK, FINALIZED THE FLOOR PLAN WITH AN ARCHITECT AGAIN, IN THE BACK PART OF THE THIRD FLOOR TOWARD WHERE THREE 11 IS RIGHT NOW.
AND THE FUNDING IS ALREADY IN PLACE TO BUILD THAT OUT.
AND OPTIMISTICALLY, MAYBE 10 TO 12 MONTHS, WE SHOULD HAVE THE FACILITY AND THE TECHNOLOGY IN PLACE.
WILL THAT, UH, REQUIRE THE, UH, THE PEOPLE THAT OPERATED, WOULD THAT BE CIVILIANS OR WOULD THAT BE POLICE OFFICERS? BOTH.
NOW ALSO YOU KEEP SAYING, UM, PEOPLE CAN VOLUNTEER TO, UH, HAVE YOU COME IN AND LOOK AT THEIR CAMERAS.
HOW DO THEY, LIKE IF, UH, RESIDENTS OR BUSINESSES WANT TO SIGN UP FOR THIS PROGRAM TO WHERE THEIR CAMERAS CAN BE ACCESSED, HOW DO, HOW WOULD THEY DO THAT? UH, RICH ALLUDED TO THAT A LITTLE BIT EARLIER.
UM, IF WE WERE TO, TO PURCHASE THIS PLATFORM, FUSES COMES IN WITH A TEAM, THEY BUILD US A, A WEBSITE THAT WE CAN DIRECT PEOPLE TO.
UM, BUT AT THAT TIME, UH, ONCE WE ACTUALLY IMPLEMENTED IT, WE WOULD ALSO PROBABLY WANT TO GET EVERYBODY TOGETHER, MAYOR COUNCIL, AND HAVE A PRESS CONFERENCE AND ANNOUNCE.
AND THEN, UH, LIKE ATLANTA, EVERY TIME THEY HAD A, A SUCCESS STORY, A WIN WORD OF MOUTH SPREAD.
AND, YOU KNOW, THEY'VE GROWN TO THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF CAMERAS.
SO, UM, THERE IS A TEAM THAT THE COMPANY HAS THAT WILL HELP US WITH THAT IMPLEMENTATION AS FAR AS, YOU KNOW, IF SOMEBODY HAD A PROBLEM PLUGGING IN THE, THE DEVICE, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
BUT WE, WE'VE ALSO, UH, WE'VE HAD THIS, THE HOUR LONG PRESENTATION COME IN A COUPLE OF TIMES.
AND, UH, WE'VE INVITED, WE'VE GOT VERBAL COMMITMENTS FROM SOME OF THE CONVENIENCE STORE, UH, GAS STATION OWNERS.
WE'VE INVITED THE HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATIONS.
UH, THERE, THERE ARE SOME BIG BUSINESSES IN TOWN, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE HOME DEPOTS, WALMARTS, WE HAVEN'T STARTED TALKING TO THEM YET.
UM, CUZ WE'RE STILL KIND OF TAKING BABY STEPS RIGHT NOW.
BUT WE DO HAVE, WE'VE INVITED THE, UH, THE DIOCESE, THE CATHOLIC SCHOOLS.
WE HAVEN'T REALLY STARTED TALKING TO THE CHARTER SCHOOLS OR THE, UH, MANY OF THE PRIVATE SCHOOLS YET.
BUT, UH, THIS KIND OF THE TECHNOLOGY TO BE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, UH, RICH ALLUDED AGAIN TO HOW SILOED OUR INFORMATION IS.
AS OFFICERS, WE HAVE ACCESS TO A LOT OF DATA,
[00:50:01]
LICENSE PLATE READER DATA, UH, NOT JUST CAMERA FEEDS, OUR DISPATCH DATA, OUR OWN RECORDS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM, AND EVERY ONE OF THOSE, UH, DATABASES, YOU HAVE TO GO TO A SEPARATE SYSTEM AND LOG INTO IT.AND WHAT THIS DOES IS IT PULLS ALL OF IT TOGETHER ON ONE SCREEN.
ONCE YOU LOG INTO IT, IT'S ALL IN FRONT OF YOU AND YOU CLICK ON ICONS, YOU CLICK ON ICONS FOR THE CAMERAS, YOU, UM, OUR, OUR DISPATCH CALLS WHILE THE CALL IS COMING IN TO DISPATCH, WHILE SOMEBODY'S TALKING TO OUR DISPATCHER AND THEY ENTER THE ADDRESS, IT WILL POP UP IN THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER AND IMMEDIATELY SHOW, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE FOUR OR FIVE, SIX CAMERAS IN THAT AREA WHERE THE PERSON MONITORING THE, THE RTCC CAN ACTUALLY CLICK ON THOSE CAMERAS AND WATCH 'EM LIVE.
IF IT'S A ROBBERY AT A GAS STATION, UM, WE HAVE THE CAPABILITY, AS I UNDERSTAND THERE, THERE'S PROBABLY 70 OR SO, IF I'M REMEMBERING RIGHT, INTERSECTIONS WITH TRAFFIC CAMERAS THAT ARE CONNECTED TO FIBER THAT WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO CONNECT TO THIS SYSTEM.
SO THE ABILITY, YOU KNOW, IF, IF A, A CRIME OCCURRED, THE ABILITY TO, TO LOOK AT A TRAFFIC CAMERA OF TWO BLOCKS, FOUR BLOCKS AWAY FROM THERE IMMEDIATELY BEFORE OR IMMEDIATELY AFTER A CALL, THAT'S, UM, I COULDN'T PUT A PRICE ON THAT.
SO YOU MENTIONED, I KNOW A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE SHOTS FIRED.
UH, WOULD THIS BE REAL TIME IN THE EVENT THERE'S A SITUATION WHERE THERE'S SHOTS BEING FIRED? WOULD IT IDENTIFY AND TRIGGER, UH, THOSE CAMERAS, UH, IN THAT AREA? NOT NECESSARILY.
THE, THE SYSTEM HAS THE CAPABILITY TO INTEGRATE WITH SOMETHING LIKE SHOTSPOTTER, WHICH WE DO NOT HAVE.
WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT BEFORE.
WHEN WE LOOKED AT IT, IT APPEARED TO BE COST PROHIBITIVE.
UH, WE DO HAVE A LOT OF SHOTS FIRED CALLS, BUT HAVING SAID THAT, EVEN IF WE DON'T HAVE THE SHOTS FIRED CALLS, UH, THE IN-CAR AXON, OUR MOBILE VIDEO CAMERA, STILL LOOK AT THOSE, WE LOOK AT BODY CAMERAS.
SO IF WE HAVE SOMEBODY CLOSE, OR IF WE HAVE SOMEBODY THAT CALLS IN, WE WILL HAVE THE CAPABILITY FOR THEM TO LIVE STREAM BACK TO US.
UH, AND I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS MENTIONED TODAY, WE WILL ALSO HAVE THE CAPABILITY TO PUSH THAT LIVE STREAM BACK TO THE OFFICERS THAT ARE RESPONDING.
UH, FOR ME, EVERYTHING SOUNDS GREAT.
ONLY THING, AND I WANT TO COMPLIMENT YOU, CHIEF, BECAUSE THIS IS A PROGRESSIVE FORWARD THINKING WAY TO GET WITH CRIME WITH SOME OF THE CRIME WE HAVE IN BEAUMONT.
SO I DO WANNA COMPLIMENT YOU GUYS.
MY QUESTION WAS ONE THING THAT I, I DON'T KNOW IF I DIDN'T CATCH, BUT I DIDN'T HEAR A CALL, SO WE GONNA KIND OF TALK ABOUT THAT AT A LATER DATE, OR IS IT A PACKAGE DEAL? OR LIKE, HOW DOES IT WORK? YOU KNOW, DO YOU START OFF WITH A CERTAIN AMOUNT OR WE HAVE OPTIONS, LIKE HOW DOES THAT WORK? THERE ARE OPTIONS AND WE HAVE, UH, WE HAVE REVIEWED THE OPTIONS AND THE, THE PARTNERSHIP THAT WE'RE SEEKING WITH B I S D POLICE, UH, OF COURSE OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT, LAMAR PD, AND THE PORT, THE LEVEL OF PACKAGE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT THERE, UH, IT GETS KIND OF COMPLICATED WITH HOW MANY VIDEO STREAMS WILL BE SUPPORTED, HOW MANY PIECES OF HARDWARE COME WITH EACH LEVEL OF PACKAGE.
THIS IS PRETTY MUCH THE, THE TOP LEVEL PACKAGE, UH, BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY AGENCIES INVOLVED AND SO MANY POTENTIAL CAMERA STREAMS. UH, THE CITY HAS HUNDREDS OF CAMERAS ALREADY THAT WE CAN INTEGRATE INTO THE SYSTEM.
B I S D ALREADY HAS, I THINK OVER A THOUSAND.
UH, NOT SAYING THAT THEY WOULD GIVE US ACCESS TO THEIR CLASSROOMS OR THAT WE WOULD EVEN NEED 'EM, BUT THEIR EXTERIOR CAMERAS, THAT WOULD BE, UH, A HUGE BENEFIT.
BUT THE LEVEL OF, OF PACKAGE THAT WE'RE SEEKING THAT WE'RE ASKING FOR IS $275,000.
THREE WEEKS AGO, UH, COUNCIL APPROVED, I THINK IT WAS MAY THE SECOND, UH, THE APPLICATION FOR THE CURRENT PORT SECURITY GRANT.
SO YOU APPROVED US TO ASK FOR 75% FUNDING FOR THIS $275,000.
UH, IF THAT IS FUNDED, WE SHOULD KNOW PROBABLY AROUND AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER OF THIS YEAR.
AND THAT IF IT IS FUNDED FULLY, UH, THE MATCH WOULD BE ABOUT $68,000 THAT WE WOULD SPREAD OUT OVER THOSE, UH, THREE OR FOUR AGENCIES.
SO IF IT IS FUNDED, IF THE GRANT FUNDS IT THE WAY WE HOPE THAT IT WILL BEAUMONT'S PORTION WOULD BE SOMEWHERE AROUND $40,000.
WELL, I, ONCE AGAIN, I WANNA COMPLIMENT YOU GUYS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I WOULD BE IN SUPPORT OF IT IF IT'S NOT JUST TO BE HONEST.
BUT MY SECOND QUESTION IS, ARE HIGH CRIME AREAS, YOU KNOW,
[00:55:01]
WE HAVE CERTAIN TARGETED AREAS IN BEAUMONT THAT ARE KNOWN AS HIGH CRIME.UH, WILL WE FOCUS IN ON SOME OF THOSE HIGH CRIME AREAS? I KNOW WE'RE GONNA PROTECT THE WHOLE CITY, BUT I THINK IT'LL BE KIND OF PRETTY SMART TO KIND OF FOCUS IN ON SOME OF OUR HIGHER CRIME AREAS AS WELL.
THE, UH, ONE OF THE, THE BEAUTIES OF THIS IS THAT, UH, OUR ABILITY TO INVOLVE THE COMMUNITY AND PARTNER WITH THE COMMUNITY, UH, IN OTHER AREAS, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF PARTICIPATION BY PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS AND BY BUSINESSES IN THESE AREAS.
SO IF THERE IS A CONVENIENCE STORE OR A BUSINESS ANYWHERE NEAR, WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF A CAMERA OR SOMETHING THAT THEY ALREADY HAVE IN PLACE.
AND, AND THERE'S SOME BENE THERE'S A SMALL COST FOR THEM, BUT THERE'S ALSO, UH, BENEFITS FOR THEM AS WELL BECAUSE THEY CAN MANIPULATE THEIR OWN CAMERA SYSTEMS THROUGH THE APP, UH, ONCE THEY JOIN AND, AND PARTICIPATE.
SO YES, WITHOUT US HAVING TO, TO GO AROUND THE CITY AND INSTALL A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT CAMERAS, UH, WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THOSE THAT ARE ALREADY IN PLACE.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, WHAT KIND OF COST ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT TO THE BUSINESSES THAT WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS? IT DEPENDS.
UH, I'LL LET RICH TALK A LITTLE BIT, UH, ABOUT THE DIFFERENT PRICES OF THE COURSE BECAUSE IT DEPENDS ON HOW MANY CAMERAS THAT YOU WOULD WANT TO SUPPORT.
I THINK THE SMALL ONE IS WHAT, $200? $250, SO $200 ONE TIME COST AND $150 A YEAR.
AND THAT WOULD SUPPORT I THINK FOUR CAMERAS AND THEN IT GOES UP 200.
IS THAT FOR THEM IF THEY ALREADY HAVE A CAMERA SYSTEM YES.
SO THAT $200 DOESN'T INCLUDE GETTING A CAMERA SYSTEM.
IF THEY ALREADY HAVE A CAMERA SYSTEM, BUT THEY WANT TO PARTICIPATE.
AND THEN ON TOP OF THAT, IT'S $150 A YEAR? YES, SIR.
UH, ANOTHER QUESTION I HAD ASSISTANT ASK ME, UH, HOW DOES THIS INTEGRATE OR INTERFACE WITH THREE 11, IF AT ALL? I'M NOT SURE.
I, I DON'T BELIEVE THAT IT WOULD ACCEPT THAT IT WOULD INTERFACE WHETHER, UH, THE POLICE COMPUTER AID DISPATCH SYSTEM.
SO ANY CALLS THAT THREE 11 SENDS TO US, UM, IT THO THOSE WOULD BE INTEGRATED.
I I DON'T KNOW HOW, UM, THE DATA GETS TRANSFERRED BETWEEN THREE 11 AND 9 1 1 OTHER THAN THEM SENDING THE CALLS TO US.
JUST THE PREVIOUS PAGE, YOU SAID, USING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE PUBLIC SAFETY, AND THE NEXT LINE WAS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
IN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN OTHER CITIES, AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH TECHNOLOGY AND MORE AND MORE CAMERAS, WHAT KIND OF PUSHBACK HAVE YOU SEEN FROM THE PUBLIC REGARDING THEIR PRIVACY? AND, UH, WHAT, HOW DO YOU ADVISE US TO, TO HANDLE THAT? OKAY.
AND THAT, THAT, THAT'S THE QUESTION.
THE MOST FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION.
AND USUALLY IT'S ONE OF THE SMARTEST PEOPLE IN THE ROOM.
ASK THAT QUESTION BECAUSE YOU'RE GOING TO, YOU'RE GONNA GET TO ASK THAT QUESTION.
SO I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA KIND OF ANSWER THIS IN, IN A COUPLE PRONGS.
SO EVERYBODY GOT A PHONE IN, ANYBODY HERE NOT HAVE A PHONE ATTACHED TO THE PHONE IS A CAMERA AND YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO CONTROL OF THE CAMERAS THAT ARE SURROUNDING YOU EVERY DAY.
DO WE COMPLAIN ABOUT THAT? THAT THAT'S MY, MY FIRST PRONG? JUST KIND OF CONSIDER THAT.
I JUST NEED TO BE CAREFUL WHAT I SAY IN PUBLIC, BUT OTHER THAN THAT, NO.
WELL, BUT IT, IT'S, IT HAS A CHILLING EFFECT.
IF YOU'RE ON A, OUT ON A CORNER AND SOMEBODY STICKS THEIR CAMERA IN YOUR FACE, YOU CAN'T CONTROL THAT BECAUSE THEY'RE PERMITTED BY THE CONSTITUTION TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.
SO FUSS, WE, WE, ONE, WE, WE REC RECOGNIZE THAT AND WE ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT FOLKS DON'T WANNA LIVE IN A POLICE STATE.
THEY WANT TO BE, THEY WANNA BE SAFE, BUT THEY DON'T WANNA BE AT POLICE CONSTANTLY.
THEY DON'T WANT THE POLICE STARING AT 'EM CONSTANTLY.
SO WHAT WE'VE GOT IS WE'VE GOT A PLATFORM ONE, LET'S TALK ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY.
AN OFFICER USES THE SYSTEM TO VIEW THE MAYOR'S HOUSE.
LET'S SAY, LET'S SAY THE MAYOR HAS CAMERAS THERE.
WHEN HE DOES THAT, OR SHE DOES THAT, IT'S REGISTERED.
SO EVERY TIME THAT A CAMERA IS CLICKED ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THE CHIEF'S GONNA KNOW WHO CLICKED ON IT.
SO THAT, THAT, THAT'S ONE WAY WE'RE KIND OF, WE'RE MAKING IT A, A DETERRENT TO JUST BE CLICKING ON CAMERAS FOR THE SAKE OF CLICKING ON CAMERAS.
UM, WE GO TO, FROM THERE, WE GO TO PERMISSIONS.
ONE OF THE THINGS WE SEE THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY IS AGENCIES WILL START OFF WITH, UH, WE ONLY WANT YOUR PUBLIC FACING CAMERAS WHERE THERE IS NO EXPECTATION TO PRIVACY.
SO IF IT'S A SIDEWALK, WE WANT IT.
IF IT'S, IF IT'S INSIDE A BREAK ROOM INSIDE YOUR BUSINESS, WE REALLY DON'T WANT IT.
THEY EVOLVE THOUGH, BECAUSE THE SYSTEM ALLOWS YOU TO CONTROL PERMISSIONS AND WHEN CAMERAS CAN BE VIEWED AND WHEN THEY CAN'T.
[01:00:01]
WE HAVE, WE HAVE A, WITHIN OUR SYSTEM, SCHOOLS IN PARTICULAR VERY CONCERNED ABOUT CLASSROOM PRIVACY.AND CHIEF, YOU MENTIONED THE POSSIBILITY OF GETTING THE EXTERNAL CAMERAS AT THE SCHOOLS, AND THAT'D BE A GREAT START.
BUT I'D ALSO SUBMIT TO YOU THAT YOU CAN GET THE EXTERNAL CAMERAS AND YOU CAN HAVE THE INTERNAL CAMERAS WHERE THEY'RE NOT TURNED ON UNLESS THERE'S AN ALERT.
SO THEY'RE TRIGGERED BY PANIC.
SO THE POLICE AREN'T GONNA BE ABLE TO LOOK AT LITTLEJOHN, THEIR CHIEF'S NOT GONNA SEE, BE ABLE TO CHECK ON FAMILY MEMBERS AND SEE HOW THEY'RE DOING AT SCHOOL.
HE'S GONNA HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL AN ALERT, UH, KICKS OFF.
THAT'S ANOTHER WAY WE PROTECT PRIVACY.
THE OTHER WAY WE DO IT IS WE, WE HAVE SOME CAMERAS ARE TURNED ON WHEN A CAD CALL FOR SERVICE IS DISPATCHED.
SO IF YOU CALL THE POLICE, YOU'VE GOT CAMERAS AT YOUR HOUSE, THOSE CAMERAS ARE OFF.
THE MINUTE A CAD CALL GOES INTO THE SYSTEM, THOSE CAMERAS ARE THEN TURNED ON FOR THE LENGTH AND DURATION OF THAT CALL.
THEY CAN ONLY BE USED AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME, OTHERWISE THEY'RE UNUSABLE.
SO YOU CAN SEE WE'VE BUILT INTO THE PLATFORM, AND THOSE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE THINGS.
WE HAVE SOFTWARE PROTECTIONS TOO.
THE, THE, THE OTHER THING THAT I'D LIKE TO KIND OF TOUCH ON WITH RESPECT TO THE, THE, THE SYSTEM IS WE'RE ENHANCING YOUR PRIVACY.
BECAUSE THAT VIDEO THAT TYPICALLY FLIES AROUND THE, THE AIR RIGHT NOW FLIES AROUND ON THE INTERNET.
OUR SYSTEM ENCRYPTS THAT DATA.
SO IT BECOMES EVEN MORE, IT BECOMES ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE FOR SOMEBODY TO DE DECRYPT OR UN UN OR DECODE YOUR VIDEO AND SEE WHAT YOU'RE DOING AT YOUR PARTICULAR LOCATION.
THEY MIGHT SEE SOME SQUEAKY THE LINES, BUT THAT, THAT'S ABOUT ALL WE'LL SEE.
SO WE, WE'VE PROTECTED PRIVACY.
I THINK WE'VE DONE A PRETTY GOOD JOB WITH IT.
SO AS WE, AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS AND WE BEGIN TO, UH, PITCH THIS TO THE COMMUNITY AND, AND TRYING TO GET THEIR PARTNERSHIP, WE'VE GOTTA DO, WE, WE'VE GOTTA BE CAREFUL TO COMMUNICATE THIS, THESE SAFETY MEASURES THAT YOU'VE PUT IN PLACE.
CUZ FOR ME, THAT'S HUGE WHAT YOU JUST SAID.
AND WE'RE, WE'RE GOING TO BE THEIR LOCKSTEP WITH YOU.
AND, BUT I'M GONNA TELL YOU RIGHT NOW WHAT HAPPENS, AND I'VE SEEN THIS HAPPENING THROUGHOUT, THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY.
UH, LAW, LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, ESPECIALLY THE YOUNG KIDS THAT DOESN'T INCLUDE US CHIEF, UM, THEY, THEY, THEY ADAPT AND ADOPT THIS TECHNOLOGY VERY QUICKLY AND THEY BECOME SUPER EXCITED CHAMPIONS.
SO THEY'RE GONNA, THEY'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO TRAIN THEM.
AND THEN BASICALLY YOU'RE GONNA HAVE PEOPLE EVANGELIZING YOUR PLATFORM THAT ARE FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA SET THAT FIRE THOUGH.
WE'RE GONNA TEACH 'EM HOW TO TALK.
WE'RE GONNA, THEY'LL HAVE THEIR SPEAKING POINTS.
WE ACTUALLY HAVE LITERATURE THAT WE'LL GIVE 'EM.
SO WE'LL BE THERE WITH YOU TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT MESSAGE IS CONVEYED AND THAT PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE SHARING WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND BECOMING SAFER.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YEAH, I HAVE ONE MORE.
I JUST, I WANNA MAKE SURE I, UM, I UNDERSTAND.
UM, LIKE YOU SAID, CHIEF, THIS IS REVOLUTIONARY.
UM, IF THERE ARE CLOSED SYSTEMS OUT THERE, SUCH AS THE DOORBELLS AND THE CAMERAS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT MAKE, HELP ME TO UNDERSTAND EXACTLY HOW ARE WE GONNA HAVE CAMERAS, UH, IN OUR COMMUNITIES, UH, NOT JUST THE COMMERCIAL AREAS, BUT HOW IS THIS GONNA BE IMPLEMENTED TO BE A BENEFIT TO, UH, JUST THE COMMON STREETS, UH, IN OUR COMMUNITIES, NOT THE APARTMENTS.
UH, BUT, YOU KNOW, CAUSE AS MANY EYES AS WE CAN GET IS THE BEST.
MOST OF THE CAMERAS ARE UNDER, IT'S ABOUT, UH, SIGNING IN TO THE CAMERAS THAT AUDREY ALREADY ARE, UH, IN PLAY THE, UH, AND THE SCHOOL LIKE B I S D.
THIS IS A NO-BRAINER FOR SCHOOL.
OKAY? ALL, ALL THE, UH, ALL THE UH, UH, THE BAD THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN HAPPENING IN SCHOOLS, THE, UH, THE SCHOOLS ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING TO DO, SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA MAKE IT SAFER AND LET THE CITIZENS KNOW THAT THEY'RE, THEIR KIDS ARE SAFER.
CAUSE WE'VE GOT THIS GOING FOR IT.
BUT THESE GOING BE, UH, I THINK LAKE, UH, CHU PARISH, WHERE WE SAW THIS A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, THEY ONLY HAD 30 CAMERAS OF THEIR OWN.
UH, AND MOST OF THE CAMERAS THEY'RE UTILIZING ARE, ARE, UH, ALREADY IN PLACE BY THE, BY THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY.
DOES THAT ANSWER IT? WELL, YEAH, BUT MY QUESTION IS, THE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY, I UNDERSTAND THE SCHOOL.
HOW ARE WE GOING TO, HOW DO YOU GET MORE EYES IN THE GENERAL COMMUNITY, MORE CAMERAS? HOW, HOW DO YOU GET THOSE? NOT, I, I KNOW CELL PHONES WOULD BE IN THE EVENT OF I NEED HELP, THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT HAVE YOU ALL ALREADY THOUGHT ABOUT WHAT, OR SEEN WHAT OTHER COMMUNITIES ARE DOING TO HAVE MORE EYES, UH, THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY OTHER THAN IN SCHOOL, IN
[01:05:01]
ADDITION TO BEING IN SCHOOLS, IN COMMERCIAL ESTABLISHMENTS? HOW DO YOU GET MORE CAMERAS OUT? WELL, AND, AND THE THING IS, UH, ROY STEINHAGEN A PERFECT EXAMPLE.UH, UH, YOU, UM, SOME OF THEM DON'T KNOW HIM.
HE HAS, UH, UH, PROBABLY 15 OR SO, UH, CONVENIENCE STORES IN, IN A BOW AREA.
AND, UH, HE HAS CAMERAS ALREADY THERE.
AND, UH, WE GET A CALL THAT, THAT, UH, ONE ON LINDBURG THAT'S JUST A, UH, A ROBBERY IN PROGRESS.
THAT CAMERA'S THERE SH SHOWING THAT WE, UH, HOOK INTO IT AND WE SEE, WE SEE IT, AND WE CAN REPORT TO A RESPONDING OFFICERS, UH, WHAT IS GOING ON.
AND OFFICER SAFETY IS THE BIGGEST THING IN THE WORLD TO ME.
AND, UH, UH, TO SEE THESE, TO LET THESE GUYS SEE THAT WHAT'S GOING ON, UH, BEFORE THEY HIT THE SCENE, THAT IS SO, SO IMPORTANT.
AND THESE, THESE CAMERAS ARE ALREADY IN PLACE.
AND ROY, ROY STEIN EXISTS, A GREAT REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY HAS, IS TOTALLY BLOWN AWAY WITH US IN HAVING OBSERVED A COUPLE OF THE PRE PRESENTATIONS THAT THEY MADE.
I THINK TOO, THE COMMUNITY WILL BUY IN.
LIKE I ALREADY HAVE EXTERIOR CAMERAS AT MY HOUSE.
THERE'S NOT A, THERE'S NO NEGATIVE IN TERMS OF GETTING THAT ON THERE IN, IN THE EVENT SOMETHING HAPPENS IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD.
AND I THINK OTHER AREAS WHERE PEOPLE ARE HAVING PROBLEMS AND, YOU KNOW, THEY'VE HAD VANDALISM OR THEY'VE HAD BREAK-INS, THEY'RE GONNA, I THINK, WANT TO JUMP IN IT BECAUSE IT'S GONNA HOPEFULLY PREVENT CRIMES.
AND, UH, BECAUSE PEOPLE WILL BE A LOT MORE AWARE HOW HOW MANY EYES ARE WATCHING THEM IN REAL TIME IN THE EVENT THAT THEY'RE NOTIFIED.
AND ONE, ONE OF THE KEYS, UH, WE, WE GOTTA MAKE SURE THAT THE CITIZENS KNOW, UH, THAT, UH, WE DON'T, WE WANT THE CAMERAS, ONLY THE CAMERAS THAT THEY WANT TO GIVE, UH, ACCESS TO.
UH, WE DON'T, WE DON'T CARE ABOUT.
UH, WE'RE NOT TRYING TO, IN PRIVACY.
OBVIOUSLY WE'RE TRYING TO HELP THE CITIZENS AND WHATEVER THEY FEEL COMFORTABLE ABOUT, UH, AND GIVING US ACC ACCESS TO, MAN, WE'LL TAKE IT.
AND THAT'S NOT, I'M, I'M EXCITED ABOUT THE PROGRAM, BUT WHEN YOU SAY THE EXTERNAL CAMERAS AT RESIDENTIAL AREAS, THAT HAS, THAT'S WHERE I'M A LITTLE QUESTIONABLE.
UH, IF YOU CAN'T USE, LIKE, UH, WE CAN'T GET ONTO THE RING DOORBELLS ON PEOPLE'S, UH, THEY WOULD HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING LIKE A D T, THOSE TYPE OF SYSTEMS IS WHAT YOU'LL BE TYING INTO, NOT NECESSARILY RING IS MY UNDERSTANDING, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, RING IS ONE OF THE ONLY CAMERA SYSTEMS THAT DOESN'T READILY INTEGRATE, UH, IN ONE OF THE PRESENTATIONS.
A FUS CALLS THEMSELVES CAMERA AGNOSTIC.
SO THEY DON'T CAMERA WHAT AGNOSTIC.
THE FUSS SYSTEM DOESN'T REALLY CARE WHAT KIND OF CAMERA SYSTEM THAT YOU HAVE.
IF YOU WENT TO SAM'S AND BOUGHT AN ANALOG SYSTEM EIGHT YEARS AGO, BUT YOU HAVE INTERNET ACCESS THAT CAN BE INTEGRATED.
THE ADT SYSTEM THAT YOU MENTIONED THAT CAN BE INTEGRATED RING, I BELIEVE IS ONE OF THE ONLY FEUD THAT DOESN'T.
UH, SO I THINK MAYBE TO ANSWER YOU MORE DIRECTLY, WE DON'T GO OUT AND HELP PEOPLE BUY CAMERA SYSTEMS. UH, IT MAY, IT MAY NOT SURPRISE YOU, BUT THERE ARE MANY, MANY CAMERA SYSTEMS OUT THERE ON PRIVATE RESIDENCES ALREADY.
PEOPLE THAT ARE IN NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HAVE TROUBLE.
YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT THERE'S OFTEN THINGS GOING ON.
UM, IT'S, IT'S ALMOST SURPRISING TO ME HOW MANY OF 'EM ALREADY HAVE CAMERA SYSTEMS. SO THE BEAUTY HERE IS THAT US BEING ABLE TO POTENTIALLY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHAT THEY ALREADY HAVE, UM, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE CHIEF SAID, RICH SAID, UM, THEY DON'T HAVE TO SHARE 'EM WITH US ALL THE TIME.
THEY DON'T HAVE TO SHARE 'EM WITH US EVER UNTIL SOMETHING ALREADY HAPPENED.
THEY CAN, EVEN IF THEY'RE, IF THEY DON'T HAVE THE CORE, THEY CAN STILL SEND US THEIR VIDEO, YOU KNOW, AFTER THE FACT.
UH, BUT BEING INTEGRATED AND BEING A PARTICIPANT IN THE SYSTEM, IT MAKES THE, THE SHARING EASIER.
UH, WE CAN DO IT ELECTRONICALLY.
WE DON'T HAVE TO SEND SOMEBODY OUT THERE TO PHYSICALLY GET THE VIDEO.
AND YOU GUYS DON'T THAT, THAT, UH, TV IS, UH, WE DO IT ON TV AND, UH, YOU KNOW, A SCENE OF CRIME OR A BURGLARY, UH, OR A ROBBERY OR A THEFT, UH, ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS WE DO IS, UH, CHECK THE NEIGHBORHOOD FOR AMBER AND, UH, DOESN'T MAKE IT A WHOLE LOT EASIER, A WHOLE LOT FASTER.
UH, SO WE, WE TAKE THE WORLD OF IT, WE LOVE IT.
WE THINK WE CAN MAKE IT HAPPY.
WE GOT THE PEOPLE AND, AND PLACE AND THE RESOURCES AND THE SUPPORT.
SO I I, WE APPRECIATE YOU, UH, THE LIST.
MAYOR, UH, TEXTILE WAS AT THAT MEETING TOO, AND THEY'RE LOOKING TO SEE IF THEIR CAMERA SYSTEM WILL
[01:10:01]
INTEGRATE WITH THIS SYSTEM TOO.THEY, IF SO, ALL OF THEIR CAMERAS WILL BE ON THIS SYSTEM TOO.
SO THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THERE ARE A LOT OF POSSIBILITIES TO, TO GET CONNECTED.
UH, AS, UH, CHIEF AND, AND, UH, CHIEF JEFFCO TOLD YOU THE COST IS $275,000 ONE, TO BE CLEAR AND BE TRANSPARENT, THAT THAT'S PER YEAR IS NOT A ONE TIME COST.
UH, THE FIRST YEAR WE'RE APPLYING FOR THE GRANT, WHICH WOULD PAY FOR 75%, AND THEN WE WOULD SPLIT IT BETWEEN THE OTHER ENTITIES AS THAT PARTICIPATE.
THE NEXT YEAR WOULD BE ANOTHER 275,000.
IT COULD DEPEND ON US HAVING THOSE PARTNERSHIPS AND THEM DIVIDING THAT 275,000 OR THE CITY, IF THE CITY GOES ALONG, THE COST IS LESS.
I THINK, I THINK IT'S ABOUT 150,000.
BUT WHEN WE HAVE THE PARTNERSHIPS, IT, IT PICKS UP.
SO JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE COUNCIL WAS CLEAR THAT THAT'S A RECURRING COST.
UM, EVERY YEAR IF WE'RE GONNA DO IT, AND, AND I TODAY, I WOULD KIND OF WANT TO GET A BIT OF A CONSENSUS HEAD SHAPE, WHATEVER IT MAY BE THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN AS FAR AS PURSUE IT FURTHER.
WE'RE JUST SAYING WE'RE INTERESTED.
WE'RE JUST SAYING WE'RE INTERESTED.
WE'RE HAVE ENOUGH INTEREST TO KEEP GOING.
WELL, WELL, CLEARLY IT OUGHT TO CREATE A LOT OF EFFICIENCIES JUST BECAUSE IN TERMS OF MANPOWER TIME, GOING TO DO ADDITIONAL INVESTIGATIONS, HAVING THE CAMERAS READY, ACCESS AND GETTING THE PUBLIC'S INVOLVEMENT.
AND I WOULD, I WOULD THANK THE LOCAL NEWS MEDIA WOULD DO A GOOD JOB OF COVERING THIS, CUZ THIS IS, AS, AS CHIEF SINGLETARY SAID, REVOLUTIONARY.
I MEAN, IT'S SOMETHING YOU GET TO WATCH ON TV AND, AND I, I LOVE THE FACT THAT YOU STILL GET COMMUNITY GET INVOLVED.
WE, WE WE'RE CONSTANTLY BUILDING, TRYING TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS IN THE, UH, IN BEAUMONT TO, UH, LET THE CITIZENS HAVE BUY IN.
AND, UH, AND THIS IS JUST A, A HUGE STEP IN, IN THAT DIRECTION.
AND WE'RE LETTING, WE'RE GETTING THE CITIZENS, UH, UH, TOGETHER, TRYING TO GET THEM TOGETHER AND THE COMMUNITY TOGETHER TO, TO HELP US DO OUR JOB.
AND, UH, WE HAVE A BUNCH OF GREAT CITIZENS OF, I GUARANTEE YOU THE ONES WE TALKED TO ABOUT THIS, JUST A CITIZEN.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT, CITY MANAGER, WOULD
[3. Salary Survey Update]
YOU TAKE US INTO ITEM NUMBER THREE? THANK YOU, MAYOR.UH, SALARY SURVEY UPDATE, UH, SOME TIME AGO, UH, CITY COUNCIL APPROVED A, A STUDY, UH, COMPENSATION STUDY FOR US TO, UH, LOOK AT OUR SALARY AND GIVE US A SALARY COM UPDATE COMPARISON REPORT, I GUESS ACTUAL TERM IS COMPENSATION AND CLASSIFICATION STUDY.
UH, WE HIRED EVERGREEN, UH, COMPANY EVERGREEN'S SOLUTIONS TO GO OUT AND DO IT AS ONE OF THE, UH, PREEMINENT GROUPS IN THE COUNTRY THAT DOES THIS.
WE WENT OFF FOR RFP AND, AND STAFF CHOSE THEM.
TODAY WE HAVE THEM ONLINE TO TALK TO US AND GIVE A REPORT.
WE'RE NOT, THE REPORT'S NOT FINISHED BY ANY MEANS, BUT THEY JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON WHERE WE ARE WITH THAT, UH, WITH THE COMPENSATION STUDY.
AND WE WILL HAVE THE IT COMPLETED, UH, IN A FEW WEEKS, WELL BEFORE THE BUDGET'S DONE, AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT IT MORE.
I DON'T KNOW WHO'S GOING TO QUEUE THAT.
AND CHRIS, IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING YOU'D LIKE TO SAY BEFOREHAND, FEEL FREE.
WELL, GOOD MORNING, MAYOR COUNSEL.
I HAVE WITH ME, KELLY BRACHI WITH EVERGREEN SOLUTIONS.
UM, SHE'LL SOON PROVIDE AN UPDATE WITH THE CLASSIFICATION AND COMPENSATION STUDY.
KELLY, ALONG WITH, UH, FELLOW CONSULTANT PETER BACKHOUSE, HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THE PROJECT DATING BACK TO LATE FEBRUARY.
KELLY AND PETER RECENTLY MADE A TRIP TO BEAUMONT, UH, IN MARCH, AND FOR THREE DAYS, MET WITH AS MANY EMPLOYEES AND SUPERVISORS AS THEY POSSIBLY COULD.
IT WAS A BUSY, BUSY SCHEDULE FOR THAT WEEK.
WE APPRECIATE THEM, UM, HAVING THEM DOWN HERE.
AND, UM, AND GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS WITH US.
UH, THEY WERE ABLE TO VISIT MANY CITY FACILITIES, MEET WITH EMPLOYEES, AND, UH, GOT TO KNOW BEAUMONT BETTER.
THE STUDY IS ABOUT A FOUR MONTH LONG PROCESS, AND THEY WILL BE FINALIZED IN THE DETAILS SOON.
KELLY IS HERE REMOTELY TODAY AND WILL MAKE A PRESENTATION AND, UH, ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.
UH, WE THANK YOU AND PETER FOR
[01:15:01]
ALL YOUR EFFORTS ON THE STUDY.I WILL TURN IT OVER TO YOU NOW.
HOPE EVERYBODY'S HAVING A GREAT DAY.
UM, LIKE CHRIS SAID, I'M KELLY BRACHI AND I'M SO EXCITED TO SHARE OUR PROGRESS WITH YOU GUYS SO FAR.
SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA GO OVER TODAY, CAUSE I KNOW, UM, YOU GUYS HAVE A NEW MAYOR, CONGRATULATIONS ON WINNING YOUR ELECTION IS JUST KIND OF, UM, AN OVERVIEW OF OUR STUDY GOALS, PROJECT PHASES, AND THEN I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF AN INSIGHT OF WHAT WE'VE ALREADY DISCOVERED.
AND THESE ARE PIECES OF THE PUZZLE THAT ARE GONNA GUIDE US WHEN WE'RE CREATING THE SOLUTION TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR BEAUMONT.
SO REALLY THE FIRST THING THAT WE WANTED TO DO IS REVIEW CURRENT COMPENSATION SYSTEM.
I'M GONNA GO OVER THAT WITH YOU AS WELL.
AND WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF, UM, PULLING INFORMATION FROM PEER ORGANIZATIONS.
AND I HAVE A LIST THAT I'LL SHOW YOU OF WHAT THOSE PEER ORGANIZATIONS ARE, AND WE'RE GONNA USE THAT INFORMATION TO PRODUCE THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, AS CHRIS SAID, WE WERE ABLE TO GO OUT FOR THREE DAYS AND MEET SO MANY OF YOUR WONDERFUL EMPLOYEES, AND WE WANTED TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THEIR IMPRESSIONS OR THEIR PERCEPTIONS OF WHAT IT WAS LIKE WORKING FOR THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, BECAUSE THAT REALLY GIVES US AN IDEA OF THE THINGS THAT BEAUMONT AS AN EMPLOYER ARE DOING REALLY WELL, AND THINGS THAT THE EMPLOYEES THINK WOULD MAYBE CHANGE, IS THAT COULD HELP WITH RETENTION OR RECRUITMENT.
IT'S THE ONLY ONE PIECE OF THE PUZZLE.
UM, YOU KNOW, AS IT CAME TO BENEFITS, THEY WERE REALLY HAPPY WITH THE BENEFITS OVERALL.
THERE WAS A FEW CONCERNS ABOUT RISING INSURANCE COSTS.
UM, BUT OVERALL, THE CITY HAS SEEN AS STABLE AND HAVING GREAT EMPLOYEES THAT THEY LOVE WORKING WITH, BUT THEY WERE ALSO A LITTLE CONCERNED ABOUT, UM, INTERNAL COMPRESSION AND THE MARKETABILITY OF PAY.
AND SO AGAIN, THAT'S ONE OF THOSE PIECES THAT WE'RE GONNA GO OVER IN OUR SOLUTION.
AND WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, HOW ARE PEOPLE PAID COMPARED TO THEIR SUPERVISORS? WHAT DOES THE PAY LOOK LIKE ACROSS DEPARTMENTS? BECAUSE WE REALLY WANT PEOPLE TO HAVE THE ABILITY TO GROW AND BE THE BEST EMPLOYEES FOR BEAUMONT AND NOT FEEL CON THAT THEY HAVE TO BE CONFINED IN ONE SPACE BECAUSE IT'S NOT GONNA BE EQUITABLE OR FEASIBLE FOR THEM TO MOVE ON.
SO WHEN WE WERE REVIEWING THE CURRENT FINDINGS, WE DID FIND THAT YOUR RANGE SPREADS ARE EXTREMELY VARIED.
UM, SO THAT MAY BE ONE AREA THAT WE'LL WANNA LOOK AT.
TYPICALLY IN THE MARKET, UM, YOU'RE GONNA SEE RANGE SPREADS RANGE BETWEEN 50 TO 70%.
DOES THAT MEAN IT HAS TO BE? ABSOLUTELY NOT.
UM, BUT THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE WILL LOOK AT.
UM, AND 13% OF YOUR EMPLOYEES ARE THE MAX OF THEIR PAY GRADE.
AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS THOSE EMPLOYEES START TO WONDER, HEY, WHAT HAPPENS? RIGHT? BECAUSE WHEN YOU'RE MAXED OUT, DEPENDING ON THE, THE PERSON OR THE ENTITY, THEY SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW, I MAY HAVE ANOTHER FIVE YEARS OF WORK OR 10 YEARS OF WORK AND I DON'T WANNA BE STUCK AT THIS PAY.
WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? UM, AND IT CAN ALSO BE CONCERNING TO SOME EMPLOYEES WHO ARE COMING UP TO IT.
SO THAT'S ONE THING THAT WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT, IS WHAT SHOULD THOSE MAX PAY RANGES BE AND HOW SHOULD YOU HANDLE, SO TO SPEAK, THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE AT THAT PAY GRADE? AND ALSO, WE NOTICE THAT 60% OF YOUR EMPLOYEES ARE BELOW THE MIDPOINT OF YOUR PAY GRADE.
THAT'S NOT NECESSARILY A BAD THING.
UM, IT COULD MEAN THAT YOU HAVE A LOT OF NEW EMPLOYEES.
IT COULD MEAN THAT THEY'RE NOT PROGRESSING.
UM, BUT THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GONNA TAKE IT TO EFFECT AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'LL CONSIDER WHEN WE'RE COMING UP WITH PROPER RECOMMENDATIONS.
SO THE NEXT STEP THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON IS WE'RE REVIEWING ALL OF YOUR JS.
AND WHAT THAT STANDS FOR IS JOB ASSESSMENT TOOLS.
AND SO ALL OF YOUR EMPLOYEES AND SUPERVISORS HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO BASICALLY FILL OUT THIS QUESTIONNAIRE THAT SAYS, HEY, THIS IS WHAT I ACTUALLY DO.
AND WE USE THAT INFORMATION TO BASICALLY RATE THEM FOR COMPLEXITY LEADERSHIP DECISION MAKING.
WE'RE BASICALLY LOOKING AT THEIR LEVEL OF RESPONSIBILITY AND THE POTENTIAL LIABILITY THAT THEY BRING TO THE CITY.
AND WE GIVE THE SUPERVISORS A CHANCE TO REVIEW THAT JUST TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, DOUBLE CHECKS.
AND WE ALSO COMPARE IT TO THE JOB DESCRIPTIONS TO MAKE SURE THE JOB DESCRIPTIONS, YOU KNOW, MAY NEED TO BE UPDATED, WHICH WILL BE AT THE LAST PART OF OUR PROJECT AFTER THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
THAT HELPS US GROUP PEOPLE WITH LIKE COMPLEXITY, COMPLEXITY, LEADERSHIP, THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND WE USE THAT, UM, ALONG WITH THE MARKET SURVEY WITH THOSE PEER GROUPS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PUTTING PEOPLE ON THE CORRECT PAY GRADES.
UM, I'M NOT GONNA LIE TO YOU GUYS, THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST INTENSIVE PORTION OF WHAT WE DO, AND WE HAVE ABOUT THREE OR FOUR PEOPLE WHO WILL REVIEW EVERYTHING MULTIPLE
[01:20:01]
TIMES.UM, SO IT, IT DOES TAKE A LITTLE BIT, I WOULD IMAGINE.
UM, WE'LL HAVE THAT PIECE WRAPPED UP HERE SOON, AND WE'LL START HAVING OUR MEETINGS WITH CHRIS AND THE REST OF THE TEAM ON WHAT THOSE, UM, WHAT THOSE NUMBERS LOOK LIKE.
AND THEN JUST FOR YOUR INFORMATION, I DID GO AHEAD AND LIST, UM, ALL OF THE PEOPLE THAT WE REACHED OUT FOR, UM, AS YOUR PEERS.
AND YOU MAY BE WONDERING WHY WE CHOSE SOME OF THEM, RIGHT? PORT ARTHUR IS, IS EASY.
YOU GUYS, UM, ARE COMPETING WITH THEM PRETTY DIRECTLY, BUT THEN YOU THINK, WELL, WHY DIDN'T, WELL, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT THINGS.
IT'S NOT JUST THE PEOPLE WHO YOU WERE COMPETING WITH.
SO THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, YOUR EMPLOYEES COULD GO AND WORK FOR THAT OTHER CITY OR THAT OTHER COUNTY AND NOT HAVE TO MOVE THEIR FAMILY, RIGHT? SO IT'S AN EASY JUMP.
SO THOSE ARE YOUR COMPETITORS, BUT THEN WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT PEOPLE THAT YOU COMPARE TO.
MAYBE THEY HAVE SIMILAR BUDGETS, SIMILAR POPULATION, OR MAYBE THEY'RE FIGHTING SIMILAR, UH, BATTLE AS YOU ARE COMPETING WITH A BIG CITY, UM, WHERE IT MIGHT BE SOMEPLACE THAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT TO BRING SOME OF YOUR, UH, RECRUITING YOUR TOP PEOPLE FROM.
UM, AND WE'VE GOT 'EM, WE'VE COMPILED THIS LIST FROM A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
ONE, WE TALKED TO HR, WE SAID, HEY, CHRIS, WHO DO YOU USE AS COMPARATORS? WE TALKED TO YOUR EMPLOYEES AND ASKED THEM, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A JOB OR WHEN PEOPLE HAVE LEFT OR WHEN YOU WERE, UM, YOU KNOW, WHO'S RECRUITING YOU? WHERE ARE THEY GO, WHERE ARE THESE PEOPLE GOING? UM, AND THEN WE JUST, UM, LOOKED AT SOME GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES TO SEE, YOU KNOW, WHAT THOSE COMPETITORS ARE DOING, WHO THOSE COMPETITORS COULD BE.
AND SO WE COMPILED THIS LIST, WE SENT IT BACK TO THE CITY OF BEAUMONT FOR APPROVAL, AND WE'VE GOTTEN SO FAR A PRETTY GOOD RE UM, RESPONSE.
SO THAT IS GREAT NEWS FOR YOU GUYS.
NOW, OF COURSE, WE CAN'T ASK EVERY SINGLE, UM, PEER FOR EVERY SINGLE POSITION.
THEY MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE ALL OF YOUR POSITIONS, AND IF IT'S TOO LARGE, LET'S BE HONEST, THEY'RE NOT GONNA ANSWER OUR SURVEY.
SO WORKING WITH THE CITY, WE CAME UP WITH 103 POSITIONS OR BENCHMARKS IS WHAT WE CALL THEM.
AND WE TOOK BASICALLY A CROSS SECTION OF ALL DEPARTMENTS, ALL PAY TI PAY GRADES, I'M SORRY, AND ALL CLASSIFICATION TYPES.
SO IT IS A GOOD REPRESENTATION OF THE CITY AS A WHOLE.
DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT WHAT WE'VE DONE OR WHERE WE'RE GOING SO FAR? I DON'T SEE ANY HANDS.
CAN I, CAN I ADD ONE THING? UH, KELLY, I THINK WE TALKED ABOUT LOCAL INDUSTRIES AND COMPARISON TO THE LOCAL INDUSTRIES.
TALK, WE ARE ALSO PULLING INFORMATION.
UM, PRIVATE INDUSTRY, AS YOU GUYS KNOW, DO NOT HAVE TO SUPPLY THEIR INFORMATION TO US.
THEY ARE NOT SUBJECT TO PUBLIC RECORD LAWS.
UM, AND SO WE USE THIS, UH, FORM CALLED, I'M SORRY, THIS COMPANY CALLED ECONOMIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE.
AND SO THIS IS A COMPANY THAT ALL INDUSTRY REPORT THEIR INFORMATION TO.
AND SO HOW THAT WORKS IS, LET'S SAY WE'RE LOOKING, YOU KNOW, WHAT DO THEY PAY THE DIRECTOR OF FINANCE.
AND SO WE WILL PUT IN, UM, YOU KNOW, CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, UH, FINANCE DIRECTOR, WHATEVER, UM, OUR TYPICAL TITLES OR CLASSIFICATIONS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR, I'M SORRY, IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR.
AND WE'LL PUT IN THE, UM, YOU KNOW, SO FAR FROM BEAUMONT, WE CAN LOOK AT IT STATEWIDE, WE CAN LOOK AT IT NATIONAL, AND WE'LL PULL ALL OF THAT INFORMATION TO SEE WHAT PRIVATE INDUSTRY IS PAYING ON AVERAGE.
NOW, IT'S NOT GONNA SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, COMPANY A PAYS X NUMBER OF DOLLARS.
UM, AND WE CAN ADJUST THAT AVERAGE, WE CAN PUT IN INFORMATION AND MAKE SURE WE'RE LOOKING AT SIMILAR COST OF LIVING INDEXES, UM, OR ADJUST IT IF WE NEED TO BASED ON COST OF LIVING.
UH, MS. KELLY, I NOTICED YOU SAID, UH, YOU INTERVIEWED, YOU SPENT ROUGHLY THREE DAYS INTERVIEWING EMPLOYEES.
UH, HOW WOULD THOSE EMPLOYEES DETERMINED? WERE THEY ALL HIGHER LEVEL EMPLOYEES OR A MIXTURE OR LOWER LEVEL OR HIGHER LEVEL? HOW DID WE COME TO THAT DETERMINATION OF WHO TO INTERVIEW? I, I THINK I HEARD THE QUESTION, SO I'M GONNA TRY TO ANSWER WHAT I HEARD, AND PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I MISHEARD.
UM, SO WE REALLY, WE STARTED WITH AN ORIENTATION, AND SO THAT WAS OPEN TO EVERYBODY AND WE TOLD THEM, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO, HOW WE'RE GONNA DO IT, AND HOW THEY CAN HELP.
AND THEN IN THE FOCUS GROUPS, WE REALLY RECEIVED A, JUST A CROSS SECTION OF EVERY PLACE.
SO FOR INSTANCE, I KNOW I WENT, UM, OFFSITE SEVERAL TIMES TO DIFFERENT FACILITIES, AND I WAS, UM, TALKED TO A BUNCH OF YOUR,
[01:25:01]
UM, SAY, UH, PUBLIC WORKS EMPLOYEES AS THEY WERE COMING INTO WORK.UM, I WENT UP SOME OF YOUR WASTEWATER FACILITIES AND GOT EVERYBODY WHO WAS THERE.
I DON'T BELIEVE IT WAS REQUIRED FOR EVERYBODY, BUT I CAN TELL YOU WE GOT A HUGE TURNOUT.
AND MY, MY FOLLOW UP LAST QUESTION IS, I GUESS THIS IS FOR DIRECTION, THEY HAVE A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING.
I KNOW WE HAVE 13% AT THE MAX PAY GRADE AND 60% EMPLOYEES PAY BELOW THE MIDPOINT PAY GRADE.
AND I KNOW YOU SAID THAT'S NOTHING TO BE ALARMING ABOUT, BUT, UH, MR. MANAGER, WE GET SPECIFICS OF, YOU KNOW, THAT 13% THAT'S AT THE MAX, WHEN WE GET SPECIFICS ON WHAT THAT 13% CONSISTS OF IN THE POSITIONS, I, I GUESS YOU GO AHEAD, KELLY.
I, I, AGAIN, I'M, I THINK I'M HEARING YOU, BUT PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M NOT ANSWERING THE QUESTION PROPERLY.
WE WILL SUBMIT A FINAL REPORT THAT IS GOING TO SHOW YOU WHO IS IN THE, WHO IS MAXED OUT, WHO'S IN THE, UH, MINIMUM AND WHAT DEPARTMENTS THEY, THEY FALL INTO.
SO YOU WILL RECEIVE A REPORT AT THE END OF THIS.
AND WE ALSO LOOK AT WHY THEY ARE IN THAT, UM, THAT 10 IN THAT BOTTOM PORTION, YOU KNOW, BELOW THE MIDPOINT.
ARE THEY THERE? BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT THEIR TENURE.
HOW LONG HAVE THEY WORKED FOR THE CITY? YOU KNOW, IF YOU'VE ONLY WORKED FOR THE CITY FOR TWO OR THREE YEARS, YOU WOULDN'T EXPECT TO BE AT THAT MYTH POINT, RIGHT? SO WE'RE GONNA BREAK IT DOWN BY THAT AS WELL FOR YOU.
ALSO, I MIGHT ADD THE, UH, CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE IS OVER 20 YEARS OLD, AND EACH YEAR WE'LL LOOK AT ADJUSTING THE MINIMUM PAY OR THE MAXIMUM PAY OF THE RANGES.
SOME YEARS WE DID NOT GET AN INCREASE, THEY WEREN'T ADJUSTED.
BUT OVERALL, THIS IS A SYSTEM THAT'S BEEN IN PLACE FOR A LONG TIME, AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE DOING THE SURVEY STUDY NOW TO ANALYZE, UH, ALL THE SPECIFIC, UH, DETAILS OF THE CLASSIFICATION AND COMPENSATION SYSTEM.
SO, UM, JUST LIKE THIS YEAR, WE WOULD LOOK AT THE, THE MAXIMUM, UM, OF THE RANGE, AND IF THERE IS A ACROSS THE BOARD INCREASE FOR EMPLOYEES, THEN THOSE WOULD BE ADJUSTED.
THAT'S HOW WE, WE MOVE THROUGH THE YEARS WITH THAT DETAIL.
COUNCILMAN DIO HAS A QUESTION.
THE FINAL REPORT, WILL YOU HAVE ACTUAL, ACTUAL SALARY NUMBERS ON THAT FINAL REPORT? YES, SIR.
SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO ON THE FINAL REPORT IS WE'LL SHOW YOU WHEREVER, WHERE YOU STAND CURRENTLY, BUT THEN ON THE FINAL REPORT, UM, WE'RE GONNA GO OVER VARIOUS OPTIONS.
SO WE'LL CREATE NEW PAY GRADES BASED ON THE MARKET, AND THEN WE ASSIGN PEOPLE TO THEIR NEW PAY GRADES BASED ON THEIR JOB ASSESSMENT TOOL.
UM, AND AGAIN, WE'RE BASING THAT RESPONSIBILITY, COMPLEXITY, DECISION MAKING, WORKING CONDITIONS, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT HOW THAT NUMBER SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED AND SOME OF OUR BASIC OPTIONS.
UM, AND I WILL GIVE YOU THE ONE, OH, NOW GO AHEAD AND TELL YOU NOW IT'S MY LEAST FAVORITE.
UM, AND AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, THAT CAUSES A, A BUNCH OF ISSUES POTENTIALLY.
UM, IT DOES NOT DECREASE ANYBODY'S PAY, BUT WHAT IT SAYS IS, IF YOU'RE BELOW THE NEW MARKET OR THE NEW PAY RANGE, WE'RE GONNA PUT YOU IN THE MINIMUM OF THAT NEW PAY RANGE.
AND THEN WE LOOK AT A, UM, TENURE PARODY, RIGHT? SO IF YOU HAVE BEEN WITH THE CITY FOR SAY, 15 YEARS, WE'RE GONNA MOVE YOU TO THE MIDPOINT OF THAT NEW PAY RANGE.
WE HAVE ONE CALLED COMP RATIO.
SO IF YOU'RE AT THE TW IF YOU'RE 25% INTO YOUR CURRENT RANGE, YOU'RE GONNA BE 25% INTO YOUR NEW RANGE.
UM, AND THEN THERE ARE HYBRID VERSIONS OF THOSE THAT WE CAN TWEAK THOSE NUMBERS.
SO WE'LL GIVE YOU, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'LL GO OVER THREE TO FIVE DIFFERENT OPTIONS AND WE CHOOSE THE THREE TO FIVE DIFFERENT OPTIONS THAT WE FEEL ARE BEST BASED ON YOUR EMPLOYEE FEEDBACK BASED ON THE MARKET, AND THEN BASED ON ANY CONCERNS THAT WE SEE IN THE ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT CONDITIONS.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE LOTS OF CONVERSATIONS WITH THE CITY ON THE BEST WAY TO IMPLEMENT THOSE, WHETHER IT'S A ALL IN ONE, ONE YEAR OR IF IT'S A TWO YEAR PLAN.
UM, AND THEN IN OUR RECOMMENDATIONS CHAPTER WILL GO OVER WAYS TO MAINTAIN THAT, TO INCLUDE ANNUAL INCREASES.
HOW WILL, UM, DID YOU, HOW DO YOU TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES AND THEIR CONTRACTS? SO IF THEY ARE CIVIL SERVICE AND THEY HAVE A CONTRACT, UM, CHRIS CAN CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG ON THIS, BUT WE ARE NOT ADJUSTING THEIR PAY AT ALL BECAUSE THEY ARE IN A CONTRACT.
NOW WE CAN PROVIDE INFORMATION AS TO SAY WHERE THE MARKET, THE MARKET SAYS THEY SHOULD BE PAID, BUT IF THEY ARE CIVIL SERVICE, THEY HAVE A CONTRACT, THEN THAT NEEDS TO BE PART OF THE CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS.
[01:30:02]
OKAY.ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT INFORMATION WITH US LOOKING AT OUR OVERALL BUDGET WHERE WE CAN AT LEAST SEE WHAT WE HAD.
I KNOW WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING WITH THE CONTRACT, BUT I THINK IT IS PRUDENT THAT WE ACTUALLY GET ACCESS TO THE INFORMATION TO KIND OF SEE WHAT WE STAND IN COMPARISON TO LIKE SIZE CITIES.
I, UM, ARE, I'M HOPING TO GET THE FINAL MARKET ON FRIDAY, UM, SO WE CAN GET THAT INFORMATION OVER TO CITI AND THEN IT WOULD TAKE US ABOUT A WEEK TO DO OUR FIRST DRAFT OF THE SOLUTION.
UM, AND THEN WE'LL START, UM, HAVING THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE CITY COUNCIL WILL HAVE COMPLETE ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION.
YOU'LL GET COPIES OF INFORMATION AND I FOUND ABSOLUTELY.
WHEN THOSE OPTIONS, AT SOME POINT YOU'LL HAVE TO DECIDE WHICH OPTION YOU WANT TO TRY TO MEET.
IT'S LIKE, DO I, DO WE WANT TO PAY THE MIDPOINT? DO WE WANT TO PAY BELOW THE MIDPOINT? DO WE WANT TO GO ABOVE THE MIDPOINT? SOMETIMES THOSE OPTIONS COME BACK AS, AS THAT, THEN YOU HAVE TO DECIDE AS AN AGENCY YOUR PHILOSOPHY ON PAY ANYWHERE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU, KELLY.
THANK YOU GUYS, HAVE A GREAT DAY.
ALL RIGHT, BEFORE WE MOVE TO ITEM NUMBER THREE, I WAS GONNA TAKE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK, CITY MANAGER
[4. Five-Year Community Investment Plan (CIP)]
TO LEAD US INTO ITEM NUMBER FOUR.UH, WELL, MOVING ALONG WE'RE LOOKING AT THE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN.
C I P IT WAS CALLED THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN, BUT WE'VE CHANGED IT UP A BIT.
THIS IS BASICALLY, UH, A DISCUSSION ON, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS WITH THE CITY AND THE POSSIBILITY OF HAVING THEM POSSIBLE FUNDING, POSSIBLE TIME, TERM LIMIT TIME, UH, IMPLEMENTATION, ET CETERA.
SO I'M GOING TO PASS IT TO OUR FINANCE DIRECTOR, MR. TODD ZINO, TO START THIS DISCUSSION.
AS COUNSEL'S AWARE, THE UM, CAPITAL PLAN IS GOVERNED BY OUR CHARTER.
AND SO I JUST WANTED TO JUST GO OVER SOME OF THE CHARTER REQUIREMENTS.
ONE OF 'EM IS THAT WE NEED TO DELIVER THE PROPOSED PLAN TO YOU BY MAY 15TH, WHICH WE'VE ALREADY MET THAT OBLIGATION.
AND THEN THERE'S CRITERIA COMPONENTS WHICH NEED TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CAPITAL PUN PLAN, WHICH YOU CAN SEE LISTED THERE AS A CITY MANAGER, UH, MADE REFERENCE TO.
WE'VE COMPLETELY CHANGED UP THE WAY THE CAPITAL PLAN IS.
AND SO LET ME GO OVER SOME OF THOSE CHANGES FOR YOU.
THE CAPITAL PLAN HAS ALWAYS BEEN REFERENCED TO, AS SUCH, THE CAPITAL PLAN OR THE PROGRAM, THE OFFICIAL NAME.
UH, GOING FORWARD, WE WOULD LIKE IT TO BE THE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN.
ALSO, THE CATEGORIES OF THE CAPITAL PLAN, THE OLD CAPITAL PLAN, THERE WAS JUST THREE CATEGORIES.
IT WAS GENERAL IMPROVEMENTS, PUBLIC WORKS, WATER AND SEWER.
UNDER THE CURRENT COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN, WE'VE DIVIDED IT INTO FURTHER SECTIONS.
WE HAVE PARKS, RECREATIONS, FACILITIES, STREETS, DRAINAGE, WATER, AND WASTEWATER.
ALSO, THERE'S ALWAYS BEEN AN UNWRITTEN RULE OF WHAT GOES INTO THE CAPITAL PLAN, BUT WE'VE MADE A DEFINITION OF WHAT NEEDS TO BE INCLUDED.
SO TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CAPITAL PLAN, THE ASSET MUST HAVE A COST OF OVER $50,000.
AND WE'D LIKE FOR THE, THE LIFE OF THE CAPITAL ASSET TO BE AT LEAST 20 YEARS.
AND THE REASON IS, IS BECAUSE WE FINANCE THE MAJORITY OF THESE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS THROUGH BONDS, AND THE MINIMUM TERM ON A BOND IS 20 YEARS, MAXIMUM TERM RISK, 30 YEARS.
SO WE DON'T WANT TO PAY INTEREST ON AN ASSET THAT ONLY HAS A LIFE OF 10 YEARS IF WE'RE GONNA BE PAYING INTEREST FOR 20 YEARS.
IT'S ALSO, WE HAVE A, UH, TRUE FIVE YEAR CONCEPT IN THIS PLAN, AS YOU'LL SEE AS WE GO THROUGH IT.
AND THE PRIOR PLAN, WE JUST BASICALLY HAD, UM, A DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION PHASE FOR ALL THE PROJECTS THAT WERE CURRENTLY FUNDED.
AND THEN WE HAD ANOTHER SECTION CALLED PROJECTS FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATION.
SO WE DO HAVE A TRUE FIVE YEAR CONCEPT GOING FORWARD.
THERE'S TWO THINGS I WANT TO NOTE, UM, AS, AS WE WALK YOU THROUGH THIS PLAN.
AS YOU KNOW, COUNCIL APPROVED THE HIRING OF HDR TO DO A WATER AND SEWER SERVICE RATE STUDY FOR THE CITY.
SO THEY'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT THE CAPITAL PLAN THAT WE GO THROUGH TODAY BECAUSE IT WALKS THROUGH FIVE YEARS AND THEY'RE GOING TO BE SUGGESTING ANY TYPE OF RATE STRUCTURE FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
[01:35:01]
BE CONTINGENT ON THE PLAN THAT WE GO THROUGH TODAY.SO KEEP THAT IN MIND, EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT GOING TO BE ADOPTED UNTIL SEPTEMBER, WE NEED TO GET THEM A DRAFT AS SOON AS WE CAN SO THEY CAN START WORKING ON NEW RATES FOR THE NEW FISCAL YEAR.
THE OTHER THING THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT IS AS, AS WE GO THROUGH THE CAPITAL PLAN, YOU'LL SEE THE COST OF EACH PROJECT HAS A COLOR CODE.
SO GIVE THAT SOME ATTENTION AS WE GO THROUGH THE PLAN CUZ IT TELLS YOU IF WE'RE GONNA BE FUNDING PROJECTS THROUGH A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND VERSUS THEIR CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATION VERSUS WATER AND SEWER REVENUE BONDS.
AND WHEN EVERYONE WALKS THROUGH ALL THEIR PROJECTS, I'LL JUMP BACK IN AT THE END OF THE PRESENTATION AND TRY TO EXPLAIN HOW WE'RE GONNA FINANCE ALL THOSE.
SO FOR NOW, I'M GONNA TURN IT OVER TO MR. JUNE ELLIS TO WALK THROUGH A FEW SLIDES.
THANK YOU MR. SIMINO, AND THANK YOU COUNSEL AND MAYOR.
I WILL COVER A FEW SLIDES HERE, UH, AND THEN TURN IT OVER TO STAFF.
AS MR. SIMINO MENTIONED, STAFF WILL BE COVERING THEIR PROJECT AREAS, UH, AND DISCUSSING THEIR C I P ITEMS, UH, WITH YOU TODAY.
BUT, UH, LAST WEEK, UH, COUNCIL WAS DELIVERED THE FIVE YEAR C I P.
IT WAS REQUIRED BY CITY CHARTER TO BE DELIVERED BY THE 15TH.
SO, UH, THAT WAS, THAT WAS DONE ON TIME.
UH, AS, AS YOU CAN ALSO SEE IN THE FIVE YEAR C I P, IT IS A VERY COMPREHENSIVE DOCUMENT.
IT'S OVER A HUNDRED AND AND 30 PAGES.
STAFF PUT A LOT OF TIME, UH, INTO CREATING THIS DOCUMENT.
UM, AND, AND I WILL COVER CERTAIN SECTIONS OF THE FIVE YEAR C I P.
IT, IT'S, IT HAS A TABLE OF CONTENTS THAT'LL SHOW YOU EXACTLY WHAT PROJECT AREA YOU NEED TO, UH, FLIP TO IF YOU WANT TO GET TO A CERTAIN AREA SUCH AS PARKS OR WATER OR WASTEWATER.
IT, IT INCLUDES THAT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY IN THE BEGINNING OF THE, UH, DOCUMENT THAT EXECUTIVE SUMMARY COVERS, UH, WHY THE CITY IS CREATING THE, THE FIVE YEAR C I P, UH, THE ROLE OF CITY COUNCIL IN CREATING THE C I P, THE ROLE OF STAFF IN CREATING THE C I P HOW FUNDING, UM, OF CAPITAL PROJECT ITEMS WILL BE MADE IN, IN THE FIVE YEARS OF THE C I P.
UM, AND IT ALSO INCLUDES A SUMMARY ROLLUP.
THAT ROLLUP INCLUDES COMBINED PROJECT SUMMARY.
THAT'S A SUMMARY OF ALL OF THE MAJOR, UH, PROJECT AREAS SUCH AS PARKS, RECREATION STREETS, DRAINAGE, ET CETERA.
AND IT SHOWS THE TOTAL DOLLAR AMOUNT BY YEAR.
THERE'S ANOTHER ROLL UP, IT'S A PROJECT SUMMARY PROJECT CATEGORY SUMMARY THAT SHOWS ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PROJECT AREAS AND IT SHOWS THE VARIOUS PROJECTS, UH, PROPOSED FOR THOSE DIFFERENT, UH, PROJECT, UH, TYPES.
AND THEN THERE'S A FUNDING SUMMARY.
AND THAT SUMMARY SHOWS THE, UH, HOW EACH OF THOSE PROJECTS ARE PROPOSED TO BE PAID.
UH, WITHIN THE FIVE YEAR C I P.
WE HAVE A COUPLE OF CHARTS ALSO IN THE FIVE YEAR CIP P ONE IS THE TOTAL PROJECT COST BY FUNDING SOURCE.
THAT WAY COUNCIL CAN SEE, UH, WHERE THE FUNDING IS COMING FROM FOR THE PROJECTS IN THE FIVE YEAR C I P.
AND THERE'S ANOTHER CHART, WHICH IS THE TOTAL PROJECT COST BY PROJECT CATEGORIES.
SO IT BREAKS OUT, UH, THE VARIOUS SEVEN CATEGORIES BASED ON, UM, THE FUNDING IN, IN THE, IN THE DOCUMENT.
WE HAVE C I P WORKSHEETS IN THE DOCUMENT, UH, THAT REALLY MAKES UP THE BULK OF THE FIVE YEAR C I P PLAN THAT YOU HAVE.
UH, THE C I P WORKSHEETS ARE WHAT STAFF PUT TOGETHER, UH, AND WORK AND INITIALLY WORK ON TO CREATE THE PLAN.
THAT WORKSHEET AT THE TOP, IT INCLUDES, UH, THE, THE PROJECT NAME.
IT INCLUDES, UH, THE FIVE YEARS AND, AND WHAT YEAR THOSE PROJECTS ARE GONNA BE FUNDED.
IT EVEN HAS A GRAPHIC IN THE MIDDLE PAGE, WHICH SHOWS HOW A PROJECT, UH, UH, HOW WE INTEND A, A PROJECT TO LOOK ONCE IT'S COMPLETED OR IT HAS A MAP, UH, FOR SOME OF THE WATER AND WASTEWATER, UH, IMPROVEMENT AREAS.
AND AT THE BOTTOM OF THAT WORKSHEET, IT HAS, UH, HOW THOSE PROJECTS WILL BE FUNDED AND, UH, HOW THOSE PROJECTS, UH, AND THE COST OF THOSE PROJECTS.
AND EVEN THERE'S, THERE'S A SECTION WHICH INCLUDES OPERATING COSTS FOR EACH PROJECT.
SO, UH, STAFF INITIALLY BEGINS TO WORK THROUGH THESE WORKSHEETS.
AND, AND THESE WORKSHEETS ARE LINKED TO THE SUMMARY ROLLUPS THAT, UM, THAT I JUST MENTIONED NEAR THE BACK OF THE DOCUMENT.
[01:40:01]
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES, UH, THAT LIST THE, THE POLICIES, UH, FOR CREATING, UH, THE C I P AND THE PROCEDURES THAT WE AS STAFF TAKE IN ORDER TO CREATE THE DOCUMENT.UH, SUCH AS, UH, THE DEFINITION OF WHAT A C I P IS, AS MR. SIMINO MENTIONED, UH, MINIMUM COST OF $50,000 WITH THE LIFESPAN OF, OF 20 YEARS.
AND BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF TECHNICAL TERMS, UM, IN THIS DOCUMENT, WE DO HAVE, UH, NEAR AT THE VERY END DEFINITIONS AND ACRONYMS TO HELP THE READER UNDERSTAND, UH, CERTAIN, CERTAIN TERMINOLOGIES USED THROUGHOUT THE DOCUMENT.
SO I DO WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE, UH, THE BENEFITS OF A FIVE YEAR COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN.
AND, AND WE WANT, WE CALL IT A COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN BECAUSE WE WANT CITIZENS, THE, THE PUBLIC BUSINESS OWNERS TO KNOW THAT, TO, TO KNOW HOW WE ARE INVESTING IN, IN BEAUMONT, HOW WE ARE INVESTING IN OUR COMMUNITY.
ONE OF THE BENEFITS IS THE LONG-TERM COMMUNITY VISION AND PLANNING FOR CAPITAL NEEDS IMPROVEMENTS AND, AND MAINTENANCE.
SO WE WANT TO TAKE A LONG TERM LOOK AT HOW WE PLAN TO, TO GROW BEAUMONT TO, TO, TO IMPROVE THIS COMMUNITY.
AND, AND THE C I P PROVIDES THAT, THAT VISION FOR US.
IT PROVIDES THE, THE, THE, THE, THE ONE LOCATION WHERE SOMEONE CAN GO AND, AND LOOK AT OUR COMMUNITY VISION AND, AND WHERE WE WANT TO TAKE THE CITY OF BEAUMONT WITH REGARD TO CAPITAL PROJECTS.
UH, ANOTHER BENEFIT IS THE ABILITY TO INCORPORATE NEEDS FROM OTHER PLANNING DOCUMENTS.
UM, OUR STRATEGIC PLAN IS INCORPORATED INTO THE FIVE YEAR C I P, UH, PAVEMENT CONDITION STUDY THAT'S DONE BY PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
WE WILL BE, UH, REQUESTING IN THE UPCOMING BUDGET, UH, A SIDEWALK MASTER PLAN THAT THAT WILL BE SOMETHING NEW FOR THE CITY OF BEAUMONT THAT'S INCORPORATED AND WILL BE IN THE FUTURE INCORPORATED INTO THE FIVE YEAR C I P.
UH, WE WILL ALSO BE REQUESTING IN THE BUDGET, UH, A PARKS AND TRAILS MASTER PLAN.
UH, SO ALL, ALL PLANS, UH, THAT HAVE A CAPITAL COMPONENT WILL, WILL BE, UH, UH, INCLUDED IN THE FIVE YEAR C I P MOVING FORWARD.
ANOTHER BENEFIT IS RESIDENTS AND, AND FUTURE RESIDENTS, HOW IT WILL INCREASE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE.
SO THIS DOCUMENT PROVIDES THAT ABILITY FOR RESIDENTS TO, TO LOOK TO SEE HOW WE ARE INVESTING IN, IN, IN OUR COMMUNITY, WHETHER IT'S WATER OR WASTEWATER INFRASTRUCTURE OR, UH, PARKS AND AND RECREATION.
SO IT, IT PROVIDES RESIDENTS THAT ABILITY TO, TO SEE WHAT, UM, WHAT THE DOCUMENT PROVIDES WITH REGARD TO THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE.
IT INCREASES TRANSPARENCY, AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE ALL, UH, STRIVE TO, TO DO AT THE CITY.
UH, IT IDENTIFIES THE PROJECTS AND, AND FUNDING.
SO BY INCREASING TRANSPARENCY, UH, YOU KNOW, CITIZENS CAN, YOU KNOW, THE CITY CAN GET BUY-IN FROM, FROM CITIZENS AND AND STAKEHOLDERS BY, BY ALLOWING THEM TO SEE WHAT, WHAT PROJECTS THE CITY IS SIT, WHAT PROJECTS THE CITY, UH, ARE, IS INVESTING IN.
ON THE FINANCE SIDE, IT, IT, UH, ALLOWS FINANCE TO BE ABLE TO, UH, PROVIDE THE RIGHT CASH FLOW.
YOU KNOW, FINANCE CAN DETERMINE WHEN BONDS NEED TO BE, BE SOLD IN ORDER TO FUND PROJECTS.
IT ALSO LOOKS AT THE IMPACT ON THE OPERATING BUDGET BECAUSE SOME OF THESE PROJECTS THAT ARE IN THE FIVE YEAR C I P WILL REQUIRE FUNDING FOR OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE, UH, SUCH AS NEW PERSONNEL OR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S A BENEFIT OF THE C I P, UH, AS WELL.
UH, AS MR. SEMINO MENTIONED, FUTURE WATER AND SEWER RATE INCREASES.
UM, THIS YEAR IS THE FIRST YEAR WE'RE DOING A WATER AND SEWER RATE STUDY.
SO WE NEED A FIVE YEAR C I P IN ORDER TO HAVE, UH, UH, RATES PROJECTED FOR FUTURE YEARS.
AND SO WE WILL HAVE RATES FOR THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, UH, GOING FORWARD, PROJECTED, UH, FOR THE CITY SO THAT RESIDENTS CAN, CAN SEE, UH, WHAT FUTURE WATER AND SEWER RATE INCREASES MAY BE AS AND ALSO TAX RATE PROJECTIONS.
UH, THE C I P ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT WHEN MAJOR PROJECTS WILL BE, UM, PLANNED AND HOW THOSE MAJOR PROJECTS WILL IMPACT, UH, THE PROPERTY TAX RATE.
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ONE THING I DO WANT TO KNOW, THE FIVE YEAR C I P WILL BE ON THE, THE CITY'S WEBSITE.SO RESIDENTS, UH, FUTURE RESIDENTS, UH, BUSINESSES AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS CAN GO DIRECTLY TO THE CITY'S WEBSITE AND THEY CAN SEE WHAT WE ALL HAVE IN FRONT OF US TODAY, ALL OF THE PROJECTS, THE TIMING OF THOSE PROJECTS, UH, AND ADDITIONALLY THE, THE COST FOR THOSE PROJECTS AS WELL.
SO I'M GONNA DISCUSS THE NEXT STEPS WITH REGARD TO THE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN.
TODAY WE'RE HAVING THE PRESENTATION WITH THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL, UH, AND WE ARE, EVEN THOUGH STAFF HAS SPENT, UH, NUMEROUS HOURS, UH, ON PUTTING THIS DOCUMENT TOGETHER, UH, WE'VE ALSO MET WITH CITY MANAGER ON THIS DOCUMENT.
TODAY IS THE OPPORTUNITY FOR CITY COUNCIL TO PROVIDE US SOME FEEDBACK ON, ON THESE PROJECTS.
SO WE'RE OPEN TO, UH, YOUR FEEDBACK AND MOVING PROJECTS FORWARD IF YOU DESIRE OR PUSHING SOME OUT OR ADDING SOME THAT WE, WE MAY NOT HAVE, UH, IN THE, IN THE PLAN.
SO WE, WE DEFINITELY WANT, UH, COUNCIL'S FEEDBACK, UM, TO HELP US HAVE A, A REALLY GOOD DOCUMENT ONCE WE SUBMIT IT TO CITY COUNCIL AND COUNCIL ADOPTS IT.
SO ON JULY 27TH, WE WILL HAVE OUR NEXT BUDGET WORKSHOP ONE VERY SIMILAR TO TODAY, UH, WHERE WE WILL REVIEW THE FIVE YEAR C I P WITH THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
UH, OUR PLAN IS TO SUBMIT THE FIVE YEAR C I P TO COUNCIL ON AUGUST 8TH, AND ON AUGUST 22ND, WE PLAN TO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE BUDGET AND C I P, WHICH IS REQUIRED BY CITY CHARTER.
AND WE ARE ANTICIPATING THAT COUNCIL WILL ADOPT THE FIVE YEAR C I P AT YOUR COUNCIL MEETING ON SEPTEMBER 12TH.
BEFORE WE GET INTO EACH DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR COMING UP TO DISCUSS THEIR, UH, AREA WITHIN THE FIVE YEAR C I P, WE WANTED TO ADD THIS SLIDE HERE TO, TO SHOW COUNSEL, UH, WHAT YOU PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BACK IN FEBRUARY ON THE 21ST.
THESE PARK AND RECREATION PROJECTS, YOU MAY RECALL THE $1.5 MILLION.
SO WE WANT COUNSEL TO KNOW THAT, UM, THAT THESE DOLLARS ARE STILL IN THE CURRENT YEAR BUDGET.
UM, YOU, YOU WON'T NECESSARILY SEE THEM IN THE FIVE YEAR C I P GOING FORWARD, BECAUSE THAT'S FROM FISCAL YEAR 24 TO 28.
BUT THESE DOLLARS ARE, UH, STILL IN THE BUDGET.
THESE PROJECTS ARE, ARE CURRENTLY BEING WORKED ON, UM, UM, TO, TO, TO, UM, TO FINALIZE.
SO IF WE, UM, IF WE, UM, DON'T SPEND ALL THE MONEY THIS YEAR, THESE DOLLARS WILL ROLL FORWARD INTO, INTO THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, UH, JUNE, THANK YOU.
I I JUST WANT TO CONFIRM THAT ONE OF THESE ITEMS, UH, REPLACEMENT OF PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT AT COMBAT PARK, UH, THERE WAS SOME SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS SUGGESTING THAT WE HAD DELETED THAT, BUT WHAT, FROM WHAT I'M HEARING FROM YOU RIGHT NOW IS CONFIRMATION THAT WE ARE STILL ON TRACK TO REPLACE THE PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT AT COMBAT PARK AND IT IS IN THE CAPITAL RESERVE.
IS THAT CORRECT? THAT IS CORRECT.
I DID, UH, GET WORD FROM MR. ETTE, UH, PARKS DIRECTOR THIS MORNING THAT THE DESIGN IS ALMOST COMPLETE OR WILL BE, UH, COMPLETED THIS WEEK ON, ON THIS PROJECT, BUT IT, IT'S, IT IS, UH, CURRENTLY FUNDED AND, AND BEING PLANNED.
UM, SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT HAVEN'T BEEN DONE ARE IN THE PROCESS.
ARE THEY GONNA COME UP WITH PROJECTED TIMELINES IN THE REPORT THAT WE NORMALLY GET FROM STAFF? OR IS THAT SOMETHING WE CAN BE IMPLEMENTING IN THE REPORT? UH, MR. MANAGER, IF YOU MEAN THE MONTHLY REPORT THAT YOU GET? YES, SIR.
YOUR, THESE JUST WERE, THESE WILL BE COMING A PART OF THAT, UH, REPORT FROM EACH DEPARTMENT, UH, THAT'S WORKING ON THEM.
SO YOU WILL GET REGULAR MONTHLY UPDATES ON THE STATUS OF THEM.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, ANOTHER QUESTION I HAVE, I KNOW THAT THIS IS A FIVE YEAR PLAN.
UM, OBVIOUSLY THERE'S SOME PROJECTS THAT ARE IN HERE THAT HAVE BEEN IN HERE FOR MUCH LONGER THAN FIVE YEARS.
IN FACT, I KNOW OF ONE THAT DATES BACK TO WHEN EVELYN LORD WAS MAYOR, WHICH WAS OVER 30 YEARS AGO.
WHEN YOU HAVE PROJECTS IN THIS PLAN THAT JUST CONTINUE TO NOT BE DONE, UH, IS
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IT BARE AT SOME POINT TO THINK ABOUT TAKING THEM OUT OF THE PLAN? OR IS THIS, HOW, HOW REALISTIC IS IT TO TRY TO CONSIDER TO GET ALL OF THESE DONE IN FIVE YEARS? AND IS IT TRUE ALSO THAT IN ORDER TO GET SOME OF THESE DONE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO OUT FOR A VOTE TO THE CITIZENS FOR, FOR A BOND, WHICH IF THEY SAY NO, HOW, HOW DOES THAT IMPACT UPON THESE PROPOSED IDEAS? THAT'S A VERY GOOD QUESTION.UM, THE FIVE YEAR C I P PLAN IS, IS A PLAN THAT WE WILL UPDATE ON AN ANNUAL BASIS.
UM, SO THE FIRST YEAR IS, IS, IS WHAT COUNCIL WILL ADOPT WITH THE BUDGET EVERY YEAR IN SEPTEMBER, THE REMAINING FOUR YEARS.
THOSE ARE, UH, THAT THEY SET THE FRAMEWORK FOR FUTURE PLANNING.
SO EVERY YEAR WE WILL STAFF WILL REVIEW THE FIVE YEAR C I P, DETERMINE WHAT PROJECTS NEED TO BE MOVED UP OR, OR, OR SHIFT IT BACK OR EVEN, OR EVEN, UH, DELETED FROM THE, FROM THE FIVE YEAR C I P PLAN.
UH, AS, AS YOU MENTIONED, THERE ARE PROJECTS IN, IN FUTURE YEARS FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS, UM, COUNCIL OR STAFF, WE CAN, YOU KNOW, THROUGH DISCUSSION, MAKE THE DETERMINATION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT SOME OF THOSE NEED TO BE REMOVED, IF, IF THOSE ARE NOT NECESSARY.
SO, UH, THAT CAN COME FROM THESE DISCUSSIONS THAT WE HAVE WITH THE CITY COUNCIL OR INTERNALLY WITH WITH THE CITY MANAGER.
AND, AND, AND ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS I DO WANT TO ADD AND UM, THAT YOU MENTIONED ABOUT A FUTURE BOND REFERENDUM, AS YOU WILL SEE IN THIS DOCUMENT, THERE ARE SOME PRETTY, UH, LARGE DOLLAR AMOUNTS FOR SOME OF THESE PROJECTS.
SO THE CITY WILL AT SOME POINT HAVE TO GO TO THE VOTERS FOR SOME OF THESE PROJECTS, UH, TO, TO SEEK THEIR INPUT AND APPROVAL FOR, UM, FOR SOME OF THESE BIG ITEMS THAT WE HAVE, UH, WE'RE, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT MAY BE AS SOON AS THE NEXT YEAR OR TWO.
AND, AND THAT BRINGS UP ANOTHER POINT THAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT.
THERE NEEDS TO BE SOME SORT OF DELINEATION BETWEEN WANTS AND NEEDS AND SOME OF THESE THINGS ARE WANTS AND OTHER THINGS ARE THINGS THAT WE REALLY NEED TO DO NOW.
SO I GUESS STAFF IS LOOKING FOR DIRECTION FROM COUNCIL.
CUZ IF THERE'S FOUR COUNCIL MEMBERS THAT SAY THEY WANT TO DO IT, WELL THEN IT
BUT RECOMMENDATIONS FROM, UH, THE STAFF, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS ON HERE AND THERE'S NOT REALLY ANY CRITERIA THAT'S TALKING ABOUT WHETHER THIS IS A WANT OR A NEED THAT I CAN SEE.
AND, AND AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, UH, THIS C I P INCORPORATES AND WILL IN THE FUTURE INCORPORATE OTHER PLANS, OTHER MASTER PLANS, SIDEWALK MASTER PLAN, OR THE PARKS MASTER PLAN THAT WE'RE GONNA START NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
THIS STRATEGIC PLAN, WHICH WE'VE GOTTEN FEEDBACK FROM COUNCIL ON ON YOUR STRATEGIC PLANS FOR, UH, HOW YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE CITY MOVE FORWARD.
SO THOSE THINGS WILL BE INCORPORATED INTO THE DOCUMENT.
SO EVERY YEAR THAT YOU REVIEW THIS DOCUMENT, WE HOPE THAT THE MAJORITY OF THOSE PROJECTS ARE FROM THESE PLANS THAT THAT STAFF UNDERTAKE AND, AND COUNCIL HAS AN INPUT IN.
I JUST WANT TO, UH, FOR SOME OF US HERE AND MYSELF INCLUDED, COULD YOU EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENT BONDS AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EACH ONE? LIKE THE GENERAL OBLIGATION CERTIFICATE, OBLIGATION REVENUE, I LET OUR FINANCE DIRECT OUR CFOS DO THAT.
YEAH, I'D LIKE TO ANSWER THAT.
UM, SO IN THE BEGINNING WHEN I SAID, YOU KNOW, GIVE ATTENTION TO THE COLOR CODES ON THESE BECAUSE WE DO HAVE GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS VERSUS CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION, AND WE DID OUR BEST TO MAKE SURE ALL CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE WOULD BE FINANCED THROUGH A CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATION FOR A COUPLE REASONS.
ONE, UM, WE CAN ISSUE THOSE CERTIFICATES AT ANY TIME AND IT'S, THOSE DON'T GO OUT FOR VOTER APPROVAL.
SO THE TIMING OF THE ISSUANCE OF THOSE BONDS IS SOMETIMES CRITICAL WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT INFRASTRUCTURE ON THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND SIDE, THOSE GO TO THE VOTER.
AND SO WE DID OUR BEST NOT TO INCLUDE ANY CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE ON OUR SUGGESTIONS OF WHAT SHOULD BE FUNDED BY GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.
BECAUSE IF THAT BOND ELECTION FAILS, THE ONLY ALTERNATIVE YOU HAVE IS TO WAIT TILL THE NEXT ELECTION.
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OR YOU CAN SUSPEND ELECTIONS FOR THREE YEARS BEFORE YOU CAN ISSUE A CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATION ON THAT PROJECT.AND THE REVENUE BONDS, REVENUE BONDS ARE KIND OF LIKE CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATION.
THAT'S REALLY JUST FOR WATER AND WASTE WATER PROJECTS DON'T REQUIRE CITIZEN APPROVAL OR VOTE.
AND SO TODD, YOU KIND OF ALLEVIATED ONE OF MY CONCERNS THERE BECAUSE IN TERMS OF WANTS OR NEEDS, STAFF HAS ALREADY GONE THROUGH AND IDENTIFIED, UH, THOSE PROJECTS THAT ARE REALLY NEEDS AND THEY'RE GONNA BE TIED TO CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATION FUNDS OR THEY'RE GONNA BE TIED TO CAPITAL RESERVE ITEMS. UH, AND THEN THE WALT ITEMS LIKE A, A NEW CITY HALL OR A NEW POLICE STATION, UH, THAT'S GONNA REALLY RELY ON, UH, THE, UH, GENERAL OBLIGATION FUNDS AND THAT'S STUFF THAT'LL GO TO THE VOTERS.
AND, AND THE ONE AT THE BOTTOM THERE, THE GRAY COLOR OPERATING FUNDS, THOSE ARE NORMALLY, THAT'S FUNDS CASH ON HAND, UH, UH, SPENDING DOLLARS FROM OUR FUND BALANCE.
UM, SO YOU WILL SEE THAT AS MR. SIMINO MENTIONED THROUGHOUT THE, UH, PRESENTATION TODAY AS DEPARTMENTS COME BEFORE YOU TO DISCUSS THEIR ITEMS. AT THIS TIME, I DON'T HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL, UH, UH, DISCUSSION OR, OR COMMENT, BUT IF THERE ARE ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS FOR TODD OR ME BEFORE WE CALL UP MR. RODETTE, WE'RE OPEN TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UH, FOR ME.
I JUST WANT TO BE CLEAR THAT, UH, A C I P IS A VERY FLUID DOCUMENT.
IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT'S SET IN STONE.
IT, IT'S JUST A REFERENCE POINT TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS OUT THERE AND, AND WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE DONE.
IT'S NOT TO SAY THEY'RE GOING TO BE DONE, IT'S NOT TO SAY THAT THEY'VE BEEN FUNDED OR ANYTHING.
UH, CITY COUNCIL HAS FOUND, SAY, AN APPROVAL OF THE C I P PLAN STAFF, JUST COME FORWARD WITH RECOMMENDED PROJECTS, THINGS THEY'VE SEEN, THINGS THAT'S BEEN TOLD TO THEM, THINGS THAT WORK IN SOME OF THE PLANS, UH, STRATEGIC PLANS, ET CETERA.
SO THIS IS A FLUENT DOCUMENT THAT'S FOR DISCUSSION WITH CITY COUNCIL, HAVING ULTIMATE APPROVAL OF THAT PLAN AND HOW IT'S STRUCTURED AND WHAT'S INCLUDED IN IT.
BUT IT'S JUST A PLANNING DOCUMENT AND HERE FOR DISCUSSION PURPOSES.
ALRIGHT, AND COUNCILMAN TURNER, UH, BEFORE WE GET STARTED, MR. MANAGER, I SEE WE HAVE EXPENDITURES AND DIFFERENT OPTIONS UP HERE.
WOULD IT BE BEST TO TALK ABOUT OTHER MECHANISMS OF GETTING REVENUE TO SPEND ON SOME OF THESE PROJECTS NOW OR WOULD IT BE BEST FOR ME TO WAIT TO AFTER SOME SUGGESTIONS? I HAVE TO AFTER THE PRESENTATION? WELL, I THINK IF IT'S SOMETHING SHORT TERM, IT'D BE GOOD TO HEAR THAT NOW IF YOU HAVE SOME, SOME OTHER ALTERNATIVES FOR FUNDING ET CETERA.
ESPECIALLY WITH WITHIN THE NEXT YEAR.
AND AGAIN, THIS IS A FIVE YEAR PLAN, BUT THINGS WE'RE GOING TO USE AND NEED TO PUT THIS YEAR'S BUDGET TOGETHER.
IF THERE'S SOMETHING IN THERE, I WOULD SAY LET'S HEAR IT TODAY.
WELL, I, SINCE WE, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT FUNDING MECHANISMS AND WE HAVE DISCUSSED SOME OF THESE THINGS, I THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE THAT I KIND OF BRING SOME OF THESE OPTIONS UP NOW SO WE CAN THINK ABOUT THIS THROUGHOUT THESE PRESENTATIONS.
UH, ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS I WAS REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT ARE THESE PITS WITH THE HOTEL TAX.
I THINK WE CAN DO UP TO 1.5 MORE PERCENT AND SOME OF THAT MONEY CAN GO INTO TOURISM AND MARKETING AND GETTING MORE THINGS TO THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
I THINK THAT'S A ENTITY THAT WE NEED TO LOOK AT BECAUSE WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING AT THESE THINGS WE WANT, BUT WE'RE NOT LOOKING AT OTHER OPTIONS TO BRING IN REVENUE.
SO A PI UH, ANOTHER THING I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT WAS THE TERRORS.
I KNOW WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING TERRORS ALREADY AS OF LATELY AND THAT'S WHEN WE LOCK IN THE TAX RATE OVER A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME AND EVERYTHING THAT EXCEEDS IT, EXCEEDS IT.
WE HAVE A BOARD THAT KIND OF OVERSEES IT AND DOES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOR IT.
I THINK WE NEED TO CONSIDER THAT BECAUSE WE TARGET CERTAIN AREAS.
IT'S A NEW PROGRAM CALLED THE CONTINUOUS TERRACE WHERE YOU CAN KIND OF MOVE IT TO OTHER PARTS OF THE AREA AND KEEP THAT FUND GROWING.
I KNOW YOU TALKED ABOUT A PARK ENTERPRISE FUND.
YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT WOULD BE GOOD TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHEN WE DO HAVE SOME OF THESE INDUSTRIAL AGREEMENTS AND SOME OF THESE OTHER LARGER COMPANIES, UH, THAT MAY WANT TO DONATE.
YOU ALSO TALKED ABOUT OPTION ON THE WATER BILL, WHEREAS, YOU KNOW, CITIZENS CAN MAKE A DECISION IF THEY WANNA MAKE AN ADDITIONAL DONATION ON THAT WATER BILL.
THEY CAN GO TOWARDS PARKS AND I THINK YOU TALKED ABOUT, I'M NOT SURE IF IT CAN GO TO ROADS, BUT PARKS OR WHATEVER WE CAN DO, AND OF COURSE WE KNOW BLOW GROW THE POPULATION AND SOME STREET ENTERPRISE FUNDS, BUT I JUST WANT TO KIND OF BRING UP SOME OF THESE OTHER ADDITIONAL OPTIONS THAT
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WE CAN KIND OF START THINKING ABOUT AND GET A LITTLE BIT MORE CREATIVE ON EXPANDING OUR OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING IN REVENUE FOR THE CITY.I JUST WANT TO BRING THESE UP BEFORE WE GOT TO TALKING ABOUT SOME THINGS BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT SOME OF THESE DIFFERENT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TOOLS AND I THINK IT SHOULD BE ON OUR FOREFRONT OF OUR MIND WHILE WE'RE GOING THROUGH SOME OF THESE PRESENTATIONS.
COUNCILMAN GATZ? WELL, WELL I AGREE.
AND OF COURSE AJ, I, I DON'T KNOW IF EVERYBODY COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDS ALL THE ACRONYMS AND HOW THEY APPLIED.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF WE, UH, WANT TO, UH, DISCUSS THAT NOW OR, OR LATER.
BUT, UH, MR. MANAGER, UH, YOU KNOW, I, I BELIEVE THAT COUNCILMAN TURNER OUGHT TO BE COMPLIMENTED ON, UH, YOU KNOW, THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX ON SOME OF THESE THINGS, UH, AND WAYS OF BRINGING IN REVENUE THAT WE HAVEN'T LOOKED AT BEFORE.
BUT, UH, WHAT, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON DISCUSSING THESE ADDITIONAL SOURCES NOW OR, OR LATER? UH, I GUESS LEGALLY, IF IT'S OKAY, WE CAN TALK ABOUT 'EM NOW.
I WILL SAY THE STAFF IS CERTAINLY EXPLORING ANY WAYS TO CREATE NEW REVENUES THAT, THAT WILL BE AGREEABLE BY THE CITY COUNCIL.
UH, SO WE ARE EXPLORING SOME THINGS, BUT IF, IF THE ATTORNEY SAYS WE'RE OKAY TO TALK ABOUT 'EM NOW WE CAN CITY MANAGER.
I JUST WANT TO ASK A QUESTION AND GET CLARITY HERE.
CAUSE WE HAVE SEVERAL ISSUES TO GET THROUGH BY ONE O'CLOCK, WHICH IS GONNA BE KIND OF A HARD TIME BECAUSE WE'VE GOT CITY COUNCIL AT THREE, AND I KNOW WE HAVE PEOPLE FROM THE PUBLIC FOR SOME OF THE ITEMS FOUR AND FIVE.
AND IF, UH, IF WE CAN MAYBE WRITE DOWN SOME OF OUR QUESTIONS AND, AND I, I MEAN, I THINK THESE ARE ALL VALID QUESTIONS, VERY IMPORTANT, BUT THIS IS A CHANCE FOR THE PUBLIC TO HEAR ABOUT THESE ITEMS AS WELL.
SO IF WE CAN, UH, KIND OF STAY ON FOCUS OF, OF THESE ITEMS AND, AND LIMIT OUR QUESTIONS TILL THE END OF IT SO THAT PERHAPS THEY MIGHT BE ANSWERED IN THE PROCESS.
I, I WOULD, UH, THINK MAYBE THAT WAY WE CAN RESPECT THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE COME TO THE MEETING THAT WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THE HOMELESSNESS AND THE UNSAFE STRUCTURES.
DO, DO WE WANT TO CONTINUE WITH, UH, OUR PRESENTATION? UH, MR. RODETTE, IF YOU COULD COME UP AND, UH, GIVE A PRESENTATION.
I, I DO JUST WANNA MAKE SURE, MAYOR, AND I DON'T MIND WAITING, BUT I DO WANT TO GET THESE THINGS ON THE BOOKS BECAUSE I, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T PUT DEADLINES AND TIMELINES ON THINGS THAT KIND OF CAN GO ON DEAF EARS, SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE CLEAR ON THAT.
IF WE CAN SCHEDULE A WORK SESSION FOR THESE FUNDING MECHANISMS ON HOW WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO UTILIZE THEM, UH, HERE IN, IN JUNE, WE CAN GET THAT SCHEDULED, ADAM, EITHER WE CAN PUT IT IN THE, IN THE NEXT BUDGET WORKSHOP.
SO, ATHLETIC COMPLEX REHABILITATION OF PARKING LOTS AND EAGLE BRICK DRIVE.
THE ATHLETIC COMPLEX CONTAINS FOUR PARKING LOTS AND IS ACCESSED BY EAGLE BRICK DRIVE.
THE ASPHALT PAVEMENT OF THE PARKING LOTS AND ROADS HAVE REACHED THE END OF THEIR USEFUL LIFE AND HAVE MANY PAVEMENT FAILURES.
THIS PROJECT WILL MIX AND STABILIZE EIGHT INCHES WORTH OF BASE AND OVERLAY WITH TWO INCHES OF ASPHALT PAVEMENT FOR THE PARKING LOTS.
EAGLE BRICK DRIVE IS A COMPOSITE ROAD SECTION CONSISTING OF CONCRETE PANELS WITH AN ASPHALT OVERLAY.
REHABILITATION OF THE ROAD WILL REPAIR THE AFFECTED CONCRETE PANELS, THEN MILL AND OVERLAY THE CONCRETE WITH TWO INCHES OF ASPHALT PAVEMENT.
SECOND THING IS SPROUT PARK CONSTRUCT.
AN OUTDOOR SHELTER CONSTRUCTED PRE-ENGINEERED METAL OPEN AIR PAVILION, 30 FEET BY 44 FEET AND SPROUT PARK.
THE STRUCTURE WILL BE ON A CONCRETE SLAB.
THE PAVILION WILL HAVE LIGHTING AND ELECTRICAL RECEPTACLES AFTER CONSTRUCTION, A PICNIC TABLE AND TRASH CANS WILL BE INSTALLED AT THE PAVILION.
AND THAT'S ALL WE HAVE FOR PARKS.
IS THERE ANY QUESTIONS? MM-HMM.
UM, I KNOW THIS PROBABLY COMES UNDER ROUTINE MAINTENANCE TYPES OF ITEMS,
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BUT, UH, IT WAS, UH, POINTED OUT THAT AT, UH, COMBAT PARK THERE WERE EIGHT DEAD TREES.AND THAT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT Y'ALL WOULD ROUTINELY ADDRESS THAT DOESN'T NEED TO BE BUDGETED YES.
IS THAT CORRECT? YEAH, WE'LL DO THAT IN-HOUSE.
AND ONE THING I DO WANT TO ADD, MAYOR AND COUNSEL, AS I MENTIONED, WE WILL, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW, MR. ETTE JUST HAS TWO ITEMS HERE.
UH, OTHER AREAS HAVE A LOT MORE, UH, IN THE BUDGET FOR NEXT YEAR, WE WILL BE FUNDING A, UH, PARKS MASTER PLAN.
SO THAT'S GOING TO INVOLVE THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, STAFF ENGAGEMENT.
SO THAT'S GONNA GIVE US A BIGGER PICTURE OF OUR EXISTING PARKS AND FACILITIES, AS WELL AS WHAT THE COMMUNITY NEEDS ARE, UH, MOVING OUT FIVE YEARS AND BEYOND.
SO IN FUTURE FIVE YEAR C THAT WE BRING BEFORE COUNCIL, YOU WILL SEE MORE PARK RELATED PROJECTS.
COUNCILMAN DK, UH, MR. RAGED, UH, I THINK WE'VE SPOKE IN THE PAST ABOUT ALL THE DEAD TREES OUT HERE IN TERRELL PARK.
HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT WITH TERRELL PARK? YOU KNOW, THERE'S QUITE A BIT OF DEAD TREES.
UH, AND ACTUALLY, IF YOU GO INTO MOST ANY PARK THAT WE HAVE, YOU'RE GONNA FIND DEAD TREES.
SO WHAT WE STARTED DOING, UH, IS ADDRESSING THOSE TREES THAT ARE NEAR YOUR SIDEWALKS, BUILDINGS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
WE'RE TAKING DOWN FIRST BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY THAT WE HAVE TO DO.
SO ONGOING, WE WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE INTO THOSE AREAS THAT ARE, I'M GONNA SAY, UH, LESS FUNCTIONS OF THINGS ARE GOING ON, WHICH MEANS THAT THEY CAN STAY A LITTLE LONGER.
IT'S NOT DEEMED AS A HIGH PRIORITY AT THIS POINT, BUT WE WILL GET RID OF THOSE TREES.
ACTUALLY, WITH A NEW SIDEWALK, UH, COMING THROUGH HERE THAT THE CVS CVB IS PUTTING OUT, WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA START UNDER THE SECTION OF THE TREES THAT'S NEAR THAT SIDEWALK, UH, WITHIN THE COMING WEEKS.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, I WAS, UH, OUT AT THE TENNIS CENTER YESTERDAY AND NOTICED, UH, YOUR CREWS, I PRESUME THEY WERE CREWS CUTTING DOWN TREES, UH, THAT WERE, UH, DEAD.
AND, UH, YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE DOING THIS ACTIVELY NOW, YOU'RE CUTTING DOWN TREES, IS THAT RIGHT? YES, SIR.
WE'VE GOT, UH, YOU CAN SEE WE'VE GOT A LONGER, LONGER LIST OF THINGS HERE.
UM, WE'LL JUST GO THROUGH 2024.
YOU'VE GOT PICKLEBALL CONVERSION AT BOTH MUNICIPAL TENNIS CENTER, ROGERS PARK, AND THEN ALSO FITNESS COURT.
UM, WE'LL COVER THOSE HERE BRIEFLY.
WHAT WE'RE HOPING TO DO IS TO CONVERT COURT 17 THROUGH 20 AT THE MUNICIPAL TENNIS TENNIS CENTER.
AND ONE TENNIS COURT CONVERTS INTO TWO PICKLEBALL COURTS.
RIGHT NOW WHAT WE'VE GOT IS WE'VE GOT TEMPORARY, TEMPORARY PICKLEBALL LINES.
UM, THEY'RE NOT, THE LINES AREN'T TEMPORARY, BUT THE NETS ARE, SO NOTHING IS, IS REALLY FULLY THERE.
SO WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS CONVERT THOSE FOUR TENNIS COURTS INTO EIGHT PICKLEBALL COURTS THAT WILL REALLY, REALLY HELP WITH WHAT WE ARE DOING RIGHT NOW.
AS FAR AS THE SPORT ITSELF, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT FOR A FEW YEARS, HOW MUCH IT'S GROWING.
UM, WE ALWAYS JOKE ABOUT IT CUZ IT'S GOT KIND OF A FUNNY NAME, BUT PEOPLE ARE PLAYING IT LIKE CRAZY.
UM, WE'VE PUT LINES AT ROGERS PARK, WE'VE PUT LINES AT CALD WOOD, WE'VE PUT LINES AT CENTRAL, UM, AND WE'VE GOT SOME LINES OUT AT THE TENNIS CENTER.
WHAT THIS WILL DO IS GIVE SOME STANDALONE COURTS THAT ARE PICKLEBALL ONLY.
SO YOU'RE NOT GONNA HAVE TO DEAL WITH TEMPORARY NETS AND MOVING THINGS AROUND IT.
IT'LL, IT'LL GIVE THEM A FULL ON PICKLEBALL ACCESS.
SO I THINK THAT WOULD BE VERY, VERY PLEASING TO THE PICKLEBALL PLAYERS, AND IT WOULD BE REALLY HUGE FOR US TO DO.
UH, WE WANNA DO THE SAME THING AT ROGERS PARK.
ROGERS PARK'S GOT TWO SETS OF TENNIS COURTS.
WE WANT TO CONVERT THE TWO WESTERN SET OF TENNIS COURTS INTO FOUR STANDALONE PICKLEBALL COURTS AS WELL.
WHAT WE'RE ALSO LOOKING FOR IN 24 IS SOMETHING WE ASKED FOR LAST YEAR, AND WE JUST KIND OF, WE DECIDED THAT WE WERE GONNA POSTPONE IT A LITTLE BIT, IS THIS THING CALLED THE NATIONAL FITNESS CAMPAIGN.
IT'S A FITNESS COURT, UM, LOCAL, I GUESS NOT LOCAL, BUT CLOSE TO US.
KATIE JUST ENTERED INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH, WITH THIS SAME GROUP, UH, THE NATIONAL FITNESS CAMPAIGN.
THEY'RE GONNA INSTALL A COURT IN KATIE.
WHAT THE REASON WE'RE KIND OF PUSHING THIS NOW IS THAT BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD OF TEXAS IS PROVIDING A $50,000 GRANT.
OBVIOUSLY YOU HAVE TO BE ACCEPTED FOR THAT GRANT, BUT UP TO $50,000 IS WHAT THEY WILL PROVIDE.
SO THIS COURT LAST YEAR AROUND THIS TIME, THE COURT ITSELF WAS PROBABLY GONNA COST ABOUT A HUNDRED, 1,000 20,000.
NOW IT'S UP TO ABOUT 150,000, UM, IF WE CAN GET THIS INSTALLED.
[02:10:01]
IT IS, IT'S, IT'S, UH, LET'S SEE, I'VE GOT THE SIZE, ROUGHLY.IT'S ABOUT A THOUSAND SQUARE FEET, AND THERE'S A BUNCH OF AMENITIES ON THIS COURT.
YOU CAN GO ON AND DO SQUATS, YOU CAN DO BOX JUMPS, YOU CAN DO LUNGES, YOU CAN DO, UM, TRAIN, UPPER BODY, LOWER BODY, A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT OPTIONS.
IT'S GOT A WALL SO PEOPLE CAN, AND, AND THERE'S SOME APPARATUS THAT, THAT ARE INSTALLED INTO THAT WALL SO YOU CAN UTILIZE IT.
UM, AND WHAT ENDS UP HAPPENING IS, IS GROUPS GO OUT THERE AND UTILIZE IT.
PEOPLE CAN DO IT INDIVIDUALLY, BUT IT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT REALLY SORT OF, WE DON'T HAVE, WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING LIKE THAT IN THE CITY.
PRESENTLY, PEOPLE WORK OUT AT, AT, AT GYMS, THEY WORK OUT IN STUDIOS.
THEY WORK OUT PRETTY MUCH INDOORS, BUT OUTSIDE, THERE'S NOT REALLY ANYTHING THAT WE HAVE IN THE CITY THAT WOULD FIT THE BILL.
WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT IT A YEAR OR SO AGO, WE, WE CONSIDERED CENTRAL PARK.
UM, ONE THING THE NATURAL NATIONAL FITNESS CAMPAIGN DOES IS THEY WANT FOOT TRAFFIC.
THEY WANT OBVIOUSLY PEOPLE TO DRIVE THROUGH, BUT THEY'RE REALLY KIND OF PUSHING FOOT TRAFFIC AS I'VE EXPLAINED TO THEM.
BEAUMONT IS NOT A CITY THAT HAS A TON OF FOOT TRAFFIC.
UM, THIS IS CONSIDERED MILD TO US.
IF YOU LIVE SOMEWHERE ELSE AND YOU COME HERE TODAY, YOU'RE GONNA WANNA LEAVE.
THIS IS GONNA BE MISERABLE WEATHER TO MOST PEOPLE.
SO THIS IS KIND OF AN OUTDOORS DAY FOR US, BUT A MONTH FROM NOW, WHEN IT'S 99 WITH THE HUMIDITY, PEOPLE ARE NOT GONNA REALLY BE EXCITED ABOUT IT.
UM, SO I THINK THAT PEOPLE WOULD REALLY BUY INTO THIS AND IT WOULD BE REALLY WELL SUPPORTED.
AGAIN, THE REASON IT'S PUSHED FOR 24 IS JUST FOR THAT GRANT.
WE DON'T KNOW IF THAT GRANT IS STILL GONNA CONTINUE TO BE IN EXISTENCE, SO WE'RE TRYING TO GET IT DONE AT THAT POINT.
UM, ONE THING WE'RE PROPOSING IS, IS A COVER FOR THE DRIVING RANGE AT THE GOLF COURSE.
THERE'S NO OTHER, UH, GOLF COURSES IN THE AREA THAT OFFERS THAT.
OBVIOUSLY YOU'VE GOT FIVE UNDER, WHICH IS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT ENTITY, BUT THERE'S NO OTHER GOLF COURSE THAT HAS A, A COVERED DRIVING RANGE, JUST SOME BAYS TO HIT FROM.
THERE ARE TWO AREAS OF OUR GOLF COURSE CURRENTLY THAT YOU CAN TEE OFF FROM IN THE DRIVING RANGE.
ONE WOULD STILL REMAIN OPEN, BUT THE OTHER AREA WE WOULD LIKE TO COVER IT, UM, FAIRLY MINIMALLY, UM, AND, AND WOULD HAVE ASTROTURF AND AHEAD OF IT, YOU COULD STILL HIT BALLS.
YOU WOULD STILL GET UP IN FRONT OF IT IF YOU NEED TO.
THIS IS TIED IN WITH WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE ASKING FOR NEXT YEAR IN JUST NORMAL BUDGETARY PURPOSES, IS WE'RE GONNA ASK FOR A DRIVING RANGE NET TO EXTEND FROM THE LEFT SIDE OF THE DRIVING RANGE ALL ALONG TO THE END OF IT, WHICH IS ON BABES HARRY'S DRIVE.
UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S, THAT'S VERY MUCH NEEDED.
IF YOU'VE EVER HIT RANGE BALLS OVER HERE AT AT HAMBURG, THERE'S CARS DRIVING BY.
UM, IT JUST, THAT NET IS SOMETHING THAT WILL BE VERY WELL USED, VERY NECESSARY.
THE NEXT THING YOU SEE DOWN THERE IS THE GO GOLF COURSE, DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS, 3 MILLION.
SO WE APPROVED, COUNCIL, APPROVED THE PLAN FOR THE DRAINAGE STUDY THAT IS TAKING PLACE THIS SUMMER.
THAT STUDY IS GOING TO PROVIDE US WITH A LAUNDRY LIST OF ITEMS THAT WE NEED TO PERFORM IN ORDER TO GET THE COURSE TO WHERE IT'S GONNA DRAIN BETTER.
UM, THE ESTIMATE FROM THE FIRM WHO'S PERFORMING THE STUDY IS ABOUT 3 MILLION TO DO ALL THE WORK.
WITH THAT BEING SAID, SOME OF THE WORK WE MAY BE ABLE TO DO IN-HOUSE, SOME OF IT ARE JUST OUR INTERNAL STAFFING MAY BE ABLE TO DO.
WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO USE OTHER STAFF FROM OTHER DEPARTMENTS TO KIND OF WORK WITH US AND HELP OUT WITH THAT.
UM, BUT IT'S, IT'S GONNA BE, WE EXPECT A PRETTY LARGE UNDERTAKING.
AND IF YOU LOOK DOWN TO FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS AFTER FISCAL YEAR 28, THAT'S A PRETTY BIG NUMBER.
THAT'S 11 MILLION FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS.
AND WHAT THAT WOULD BE WOULD BE NOT TO NECESSARILY JUST DO THE, THE IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE PROPOSED BY THROUGH THIS DRAINAGE STUDY, BUT REALLY TO REVAMP THE GOLF COURSE.
THIS GOLF COURSE WAS DESIGNED ABOUT 80 YEARS AGO.
IT WAS DESIGNED BY THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS.
THEY'RE NOT GOLF COURSE DESIGNERS.
UM, AND THEREFORE THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT REALLY NEED TO BE DONE TO UPGRADE THIS COURSE.
UM, OUR GREENS WERE INSTALLED AROUND THE YEAR 2000.
TYPICALLY GREENS WITH THAT TYPE OF GRASS HAVE ABOUT A 14 TO 16 YEAR LIFESPAN.
SO WE'VE EXTENDED, YOU KNOW, WE'VE SURPASSED THE, THE EXPECTANCY OF THOSE GREENS.
AND AT ANY MOMENT WHAT CAN HAPPEN IS YOU START TO LOSE 'EM, YOU LOSE THE GRASS AND THEY, THEY GET TO WHERE THEY'RE ALMOST UNREPAIRABLE AND THAT PUTS YOU IN A TOUGH SPOT.
SO IF ANYBODY KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT GOLF, YOUR GREENS ARE KIND OF, YOU'RE SAVING GRACE.
MAYBE YOUR TEE BOXEES NEED WORK.
MAYBE YOUR DESIGN ISN'T GREAT, BUT IF YOU GOT GOOD GREENS, PEOPLE WILL KEEP SHOWING UP.
SO THESE ARE JUST THINGS REALLY IN THE FUTURE THAT WE'RE LEANING TOWARD.
WE'RE SUPER EXCITED THAT WE GOT THE, THE DRAINAGE STUDY APPROVED, AND THAT'S GONNA BE VERY BENEFICIAL TO US THIS SUMMER FOR THEM TO GO IN AND DO THAT WORK AND GIVE US SOME IDEAS OF WHAT IT'S REALLY GONNA TAKE.
AND THE LAST THING ON OUR LIST IS, UH, FISCAL YEAR 2026 IS A COMPLEX FOUR FIELD CONVERSION.
[02:15:01]
BEEN SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT TRYING TO TURF COMPLEX FOUR.COMPLEX FOUR IS OUR NEWEST SOFTBALL COMPLEX.
WE'VE GOT COMPLEX 1, 2, 3, AND FOUR.
THERE'S THREE FIELDS PER COMPLEX, COMPLEX.
THERE'S BEEN PROPOSALS TO JUST TURF THE IN FIELDS, UM, TO TRY AND, YOU KNOW, I GUESS PLAY WHEN IT'S RAINING TO NOT HAVE AS MANY RAINOUTS AND, AND BE ABLE TO GET TOURNAMENTS IN WHEN WE HAVE SOME TOUGH WEATHER, WHICH WE KNOW WE DO GET.
UM, THIS PROPOSAL IS TO CONVERT THOSE THREE FIELDS FULLY TURF THEM, COMPLETELY TURF THE FIELDS BACK THE FENCES UP A LITTLE BIT TO WHERE NOT ONLY COULD WE PLAY SLOW PITCH SOFTBALL, FAST PITCH SOFTBALL, BUT IT WOULD GIVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE KIND OF 13 THROUGH 16 AND EVEN UP TO 18 U BASEBALL.
THEY'RE REALLY DESIGNED FOR 12 AND UNDER.
SO THERE'S REALLY NOT A PLACE, ESPECIALLY IN THE CITY LIMITS THAT HAS A PLACE FOR 13 AND UP BASEBALL.
THESE KIDS ARE ALL PLAYING AND SO THEY NEED SOMEWHERE TO PLAY.
AND IF WE COULD TURF THESE FIELDS, WE WOULD BE, WE'D BE ON PAR WITH WHAT A LOT OF OTHER CITIES HAVE DONE WITHIN THE LAST FEW YEARS.
UM, IT'S A PRETTY BIG EXPENDITURE.
YOU SEE SIX AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS THAT'S GONNA BE FOR, YOU KNOW, GETTING THE, THE BLEACHERS UPGRADED, GETTING ALL THE DRAINAGE DONE, TURFING THE ENTIRE COMPLEX.
YOU'RE GONNA NEED NEW NETTING.
YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO DO A LOT OF ANCILLARY THINGS TO GET IT UP TO SPEED.
BUT ONCE YOU DO SO, THAT MONEY'S GONNA COME BACK.
IT IS GOING TO BE USED CONSTANTLY NONSTOP.
AND OUR CITY LEAGUE WHO USES IT CONSTANTLY AS IT IS, THEY'RE STILL GONNA BE ABLE TO USE IT.
SO, UM, THOSE ARE ALL THE THINGS THAT WE'VE GOT IN, IN OUR C I P FOR RECREATION.
SO ANY QUESTIONS FOR THAT? HERE YOU GO.
UH, UM, MR. NEIL, DID YOU SPEAK WITH ANYBODY FROM, UH, THE SOUTHEAST TEXAS TENNIS ASSOCIATION BEFORE YOU CAME UP WITH YOUR PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE FOUR TENNIS COURTS AT THE MUNICIPAL CENTER? I HAVE NOT SPOKEN DIRECTLY WITH SET, NO, SIR.
I'VE TALKED WITH PLENTY OF PEOPLE IN THE PICKLEBALL SIDE, BUT SOME OF THEM ARE SETA MEMBERS, BUT NO ONE DIRECTLY WITH SETA.
WELL, I HAVE TALKED WITH, UH, SETTA AND THE IMPACT OF REMOVING FOUR TENNIS COURTS WOULD HAVE AN EXTREMELY DETRIMENTAL EFFECT ON RECREATIONAL LEAGUE PLAY IN TOURNAMENTS.
AND I AM ABSOLUTELY 100% OPPOSED.
AND I HAVE LOTS AND LOTS OF TENNIS PLAYERS THAT FEEL THE SAME WAY TO TAKING THOSE TENNIS COURTS OFFLINE BY REMOVING THOSE TENNIS COURTS.
I UNDERSTAND THE NEED, UH, FOR SOME STANDALONE PICKLEBALL COURTS, BUT RIGHT NOW THOSE COURTS ARE STRIPED FOR PICKLEBALL AND YOU HAVE NETS THAT YOU CAN ROLL UP THERE TO USE FOR PICKLEBALL AND YOU CAN CONTINUE TO USE 'EM FOR TENNIS WHEN THE NEED IS THERE FOR RECREATIONAL PLAY.
UH, ON LEAGUE PLAY NIGHTS AND ON TOURNAMENTS.
LAMAR HAS BEEN ABLE TO SECURE THE SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, UH, FOR SEVERAL YEARS NOW.
AND WHEN YOU HAVE A TOURNAMENT THAT BIG COMING IN, UH, BRINGING IN PLAYERS FROM ALL OVER THE SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE, STAYING IN OUR HOTELS, STAYING AND EVENING IN OUR RESTAURANTS, UH, THAT'S A TREMENDOUS ECONOMIC IMPACT TO THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
ALSO TO REMOVE TWO TENNIS COURTS OUT AT ROGERS PARK.
THOSE PARKS ARE, THOSE TENNIS COURTS ARE USED E EVERY DAY IN THE EVENING TIME.
SO WHAT I WOULD SUGGEST, YOU'VE, YOU PUT $200,000 HERE IN THE BUDGET TO, UH, DO THIS PICKLEBALL COURT CONVERSION.
WE HAVE A GREEN AREA OF SPACE IN BETWEEN THE PRO SHOP AND THE, UH, TENNIS COURTS THAT IS COMPLETELY UNUSED, NOT NOT BEING USED FOR ANYTHING, IT'S JUST WASTED SPACE.
INSTEAD OF SPENDING THE $200,000 TO CONVERT THE, UH, TENNIS COURTS INTO PICKLEBALL COURTS, MAYBE CONSIDER BUILDING FOUR MORE TENNIS COURTS THAT CAN ALSO BE STRIPED AS PICKLEBALL COURTS AND DEDICATE THEM FOR PICKLEBALL ONLY.
AND I THINK WHAT YOU WOULD FIND IS THAT THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT THE TENNIS COMMUNITY WOULD APPRECIATE.
AND I HAVE ALSO TALKED TO MANY IN THE PICKLEBALL COMMUNITY.
I'M AWARE THAT THEY WANT MORE PICKLEBALL COURTS THAT WOULD MAKE THEM HAPPY AS WELL.
YOU COULD DEDICATE THEM FOR PICKLEBALL COURTS, BUT IF YOU NEEDED TO, YOU COULD USE 'EM FOR TENNIS COURTS IN A TOURNAMENT.
SO $200,000 WOULD GO A VERY LONG WAY TO BUILDING FOUR MORE TENNIS COURTS.
YOU WOULD PROBABLY ALSO GET SOME FUNDING THROWN IN FROM SETTA.
THEY WOULD PROBABLY SPEND SOME MONEY ON THAT.
AND YOU COULD PROBABLY ALSO GO TO THE US TENNIS ASSOCIATION AND GET SOME GRANT FUNDING TO HELP BUILD THOSE COURTS AS WELL.
[02:20:01]
I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO LOOK AT THAT AS, AS A POSSIBILITY AS OPPOSED TO, UH, TAKING AWAY TENNIS COURTS FROM, UH, TAKING AWAY NETS FROM TENNIS COURTS AND MAKING THEM UNABLE TO BE USED FOR TENNIS.COUNCILMAN DUO? UH, COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
MR. NEAL, THE FITNESS COURT, DID Y'ALL DECIDE WHERE THAT WAS GONNA ACTUALLY BE? WELL, WE TALKED ABOUT, IDEALLY WE WOULD PUT IT AT RIVERFRONT.
THAT CAN'T BE DONE JUST YET IF WE DO THIS IN THE NEXT YEAR.
THE REASON RIVERFRONT WOULD BE SO GREAT IS JUST THE BACKDROP.
UM, IF YOU GO TO THEIR WEBSITE, THIS, THIS STARTED IN SAN FRANCISCO 20 YEARS AGO-ISH.
AND THE FIRST, THE, THE MAIN COURT ON THEIR SITE SHOWS THE BACKDROP LOOKING OUT INTO THE BAY.
I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S, IT'S PHENOMENAL.
I THINK WE TALKED ABOUT, AND, AND EMILY AND I HAVE SPOKEN ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT AS FAR AS WHERE WE COULD DO IT DOWNTOWN.
UM, ONE PROPOSAL WAS ON THAT, THE LAUNCH SPACE THAT'S ADJACENT TO THE CURRENT ROTARY PLAYGROUND, UM, THAT'S PROBABLY A LITTLE BIT TOO UTILIZED WITH, WITH SOME OTHER THINGS.
SO WE TALKED ABOUT KIND OF MOVING, I GUESS TO THE NORTH OF THE ROTARY PLAYGROUND AND POSSIBLY UTILIZING THAT AREA BEYOND THE, UH, THE, THE SIDEWALK.
THAT WOULD BE AN OPTION AS WELL.
ALSO, UM, LIBERIA PARK, IT'S IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE THERE'S A LOT OF SENIORS THAT LIVE THERE.
AND IF THEY HAD A, UH, A WALKING TRACK AROUND THERE THAT HAD DIFFERENT EXERCISE STATIONS FOR THE SENIORS, SOMETHING LIKE, UH, THE LAKESIDE SENIOR CENTER, BUT AN OUTSIDE DEAL OUT IN THAT NEIGHBORHOOD FOR FOLKS THAT CAN'T GET DOWN THERE, YOU KNOW, I'VE, I'VE SEEN THESE PARKS WHERE THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, YOU GO AND THIS IS A LITTLE, IT IS NOT A, NOT, I MEAN IT'S MADE FOR SENIORS JUST TO BE MORE ACTIVE AND THEY HAVE LITTLE STATIONS WHERE THEY CAN STOP AND DO A FEW EXERCISES AND THEN THEY WALK A LITTLE FURTHER AND, AND DO ANOTHER EXERCISE.
SOMETHING COULD LIKE, THAT COULD BE BUILT IN LIBERIA PARK.
CAUSE THE PARK'S ALREADY THERE.
IT'S PUT THE, UH, EQUIPMENT IN AND THE, UH, IF Y'ALL COULD LOOK INTO THAT.
WELL, SOMETHING LIKE WHAT WE HAVE AT SPROUT RIGHT NOW.
SPROUT'S GOT SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, UH, WHAT'S STEIN'S GOT ONE, UM, THERE'S OTHER ONES WITH, WITH PATHS, BUT THERE'S ONLY A FEW THAT HAVE SOME OF THESE EXERCISE STATIONS OUT THERE.
AND ALSO, UM, WITH THE GOLF COURSE DRAINAGE, HOW LONG WOULD THAT, HOW LONG WOULD THE GOLF COURSE BE UNUSABLE? I DON'T KNOW THAT IT WOULD BE UNUSABLE.
I THINK A LOT OF TIMES WHEN, WHEN YOU DO THESE TYPES OF THINGS, YOU TYPICALLY DO 'EM NINE AT A TIME.
SO IF YOU'RE GOING TO, LET'S SAY YOU'RE GONNA DO A, A MAJOR OVERHAUL, YOU'LL PROBABLY CLOSE NINE HOLES, KEEP NINE HOLES OPEN AND JUST MAYBE HAVE TWO T TWO SETS OF TS AND PEOPLE CAN ROTATE THAT WAY.
UM, AND THEN YOU OPEN THE OTHER SIDE UP WHEN YOU'VE COMPLETED THE WORK ON THAT SIDE.
SO I, I WOULDN'T EXPECT THAT WE WOULD JUST CLOSE THE COURSE ENTIRELY.
DO YOU HAVE ANOTHER COUNCILMAN TURNER? UH, FIRST AND FOREMOST, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UH, I THINK WITH THE BASEBALL, THE WAY IT'S EXPLODING AND TOURISM JUST KEEPING UP WITH IT, I THINK IT'S TOP THREE IN BEAUMONT.
SO I DO THINK THAT IS A GOOD OPTION IN THE FUTURE.
UH, JUST STANDARDLY, MR. MAN, YOU'VE PROBABLY DONE THESE THINGS IN THE PAST.
I KNOW IT'S A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND, BUT NORMALLY DO THEY ALL COME, DOES IT, IS IT A ONE TIME EXPENDITURE OR A, DO THEY NORMALLY BREAK IT UP IN, IN YEARS THEY DO EVERYTHING AT ONE TIME FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE? GIVE ME JUST FOR THE PARKS, UH, OH FOR, FOR THE BASEBALL, UH, THAT'S WHAT I'M LOOKING AT.
IF IT'S BUILT IN PHASES, YOU CAN ISSUE A DEBT, YOU KNOW, AND DO PART OF IT AND COME BACK LATER ISSUE A DEBT LATER.
SO IT DEPENDS ON HOW YOU WANT TO FUND IT IN TIMING.
AND MY SECOND THING IS IF IT WOULD BE A PROJECT THAT WOULD GO TO THE VOTERS, I HAD HAD A LOT OF CITIZENS THAT HAVE CONTACTED ME IN REFERENCE TO, YOU KNOW, ADDING MORE TO WHAT'S ALREADY EXISTING.
YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A LOT OF TENNIS FACILITIES ALREADY IN BEAUMONT.
WE HAVE A TENNIS COMPLEX, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE NICE GOLF COURSES IN BEAUMONT.
BUT A CONCERN OF A LOT OF CITIZENS IS, YOU KNOW, YOUTH FOOTBALL AND FLAG FOOTBALL.
UH, IN OTHER CITIES YOU SEE SPORTS COMPLEXES WHERE YOU ACTUALLY HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING EXISTING IN ONE AREA.
BUT IF WE'RE GONNA GIVE THE VOTERS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK AND VOICE ON SOMETHING, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE AN OPTION.
WHEREAS IT COULD BE MAYBE FLAG FOOTBALL, WELL MAYBE FOOTBALL FACILITIES LIKE THE THREE, MAYBE THREE OR FOUR FIELDS AND MAYBE LIKE A BASKETBALL COMPLEX AS WELL WITH 10 WHERE YOU COULD PLAY VOLLEYBALL, BASKETBALL, BOXING, YOU COULD DO ALL THAT WITHIN ONE FACILITY.
I THINK WITH A CRIME RATE AND IT BEING YOUNGER JUVENILES, I THINK WE NEED TO TRY TO GIVE THEM MORE OPTIONS.
AND IF THESE TYPE OF THINGS WILL GO TO THE VOTERS, I THINK THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH LETTING THE VOTERS DECIDE
[02:25:01]
ON IF THAT'S AN ADDITIONAL OPTION THAT WE WANT TO LOOK INTO.AND YEAH, I'M BRINGING IT UP BECAUSE I'VE GOT A LOT OF PHONE CALLS ABOUT IT.
AND JUST TO PIGGYBACK OFF THAT, IN 1974 WE WILL NAMED THE ABC UH, WORLDWIDE FOOTBALL CAPITAL OF THE WORLD.
AND CURRENTLY RIGHT NOW IN BEAUMONT WE HAVE PJ LOCKE WITH THE DENVER BRONCOS.
MIKE JACK QUIT WITH THE SAN DIEGO CHARGERS RYAN GRANT WITH THE WASHINGTON REDSKINS, KEITH CORBIN WITH THE BUFFALO BILLS.
CALVIN TYLER WHO WAS RE RECENTLY DRAFTED TO THE CINCINNATI BENGALS IN HIS GANGS IS WITH THE PACKERS.
AND TONY BROWN IS WITH THE COLTS.
SO THERE'S SEVEN GUYS CURRENTLY IN THE NFL.
AND I THINK IF WE COULD HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO MAYBE THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, PITCH IN AND DO SPONSORSHIP, I THINK A LOT OF THOSE GUYS BE WILLING TO COME TO THE TABLE.
I TALKED WITH SEVERAL OF THEM BECAUSE THEY GREW UP PLAYING FOOTBALL AROUND HERE, BUT THEY REALLY DIDN'T HAVE THE FACILITIES TO TRAIN AND PRACTICE AT.
AND IF YOU LOOK AT OUR SUCCESS RATE IS THE PROOF IN THE PUDDING.
YOU KNOW, WE GOT NAME CAPITAL TO THE WORLD AND WE ACTUALLY HAVE SEVEN ACTIVE GUYS CURRENTLY IN NFL.
AND ONE HAS A FOOTBALL CAMP NEXT MONTH WHERE OVER HUNDREDS OF KIDS AND IT'S COMPLETELY FREE TO THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY.
SO IF WE CAN AT LEAST EXPLORE THAT OPTION, I THINK WOULD BE BENEFICIAL TO THE OVERALL COMMUNITY.
CUZ I SEE A LOT OF PROJECTS, BUT NONE OF THEM ARE KIND OF LOOKING TOWARDS THAT.
SO I THINK AS A COUNCIL, I KNOW JIMMY'S GOING WITH WHAT WE GAVE DIRECTION TO, BUT I JUST SEE IF PEOPLE BE OPEN TO AT LEAST LETTING THE VOTERS HAVE THAT OPTION TOO, IF IT'S GONNA GO TO THE VOTERS ANYWAYS.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, ONE OF THE THINGS I WANTED TO GET A STATUS ON, I DON'T SEE ON THE LIST, IS, UH, EXTENDING THE EQUESTRIAN TRAILS, UH, OUT OF TARRELL PARK OUT OUT HERE.
UH, I KNOW THAT WE HAD STOPPED BECAUSE WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY MORE ASPHALT MILLINGS, BUT NOW THAT WE WE'RE UNDERWAY WITH FOURTH STREET, WHAT'S THE PROGRESS ON THAT AND SHOULD THAT BE ON THIS REPORT AS WELL? I DON'T HAVE ANY IDEA.
WE STARTED BACK ALREADY WITH THE TRAIL FOURTH STREET.
CAN'T READY TO COME TO THE MIC PLEASE.
WE WHERE ARE WITH CAR? SO THE MILLINGS FROM FOURTH STREET HAVE ALREADY BEEN DELIBERATE AND THE PARKS DEPARTMENT IS ALREADY WORKING.
BEGIN STARTED BACK WORKING ON THE TRAIL OR EXTENDING THE TRAIL OUT.
NO, THAT'S, THAT'S ACTUALLY BEING DONE NOW.
ANY IDEA ON, UH, WHEN THE COMPLETION, UH, DATE WOULD BE TO GO AHEAD AND COMPLETE THE LOOP ALL THE WAY AROUND? I CAN LOOK FURTHER INTO THAT FOR YOU SO I CAN GIVE YOU A DATE.
CUZ WHAT WE'RE DOING IS BASICALLY, UH, WE HAVE A GUY THAT'S SIT THERE NOW THAT'S GOING OUT AND DROPPING THE MILLINGS, BUT IT'S A SLOW PROCESS.
SO I'LL CHECK WITH HIM AND GET BACK WITH YOU WITH AN UPDATE.
UH, MR. NEIL, THE, UM, THE, UM, THE ATHLETIC COMPLEX, ADDING THE FOUR FIELDS, THIS WOULD BE THE PROPERTY THAT THE CITY ALREADY OWNS.
THEY WOULDN'T HAVE TO ACQUIRE ANY PROPERTY.
THIS WOULDN'T BE ADDING ANY, THIS WOULD BE CONVERTING EXISTING FIELDS.
WE LOOKED AT TRYING TO, THAT WAS OUR FIRST GOAL IS TO BUILD NEW FIELDS, BUT WHEN WE REALLY, WHAT HAPPENED WAS WHEN WE EXTENDED THE TENNIS CENTER AND ALSO WHEN WE ADDED COMPLEX FOUR, IT SORT OF CHANGED THE FOOTPRINT OF THE PROPERTY THAT WE HAVE ACCESS TO.
UM, SO WE WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO BUILD A THREE OR FOUR FIELD COMPLEX AS ONE.
WE'D HAVE TO KIND OF PIECE MILL IT TOGETHER AND THAT'S REALLY NOT THE IDEAL WAY TO DO IT.
IT'S NOT THE MOST ECONOMICAL WAY.
UM, SO WE'RE LOOKING AT THE OPTION OF JUST CONVERTING WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE, WHICH I THINK WOULD DEFINITELY SAVE SOME MONEY AND, AND COULD BE DONE A LITTLE BIT FASTER.
YOU HAVE A UPDATE ON THE TURF AT SPOT PARK? I DO NOT.
KENNETH MAY HAVE A BETTER IDEA THAN I DO.
I JUST HAD A CONVERSATION WITH TY, UH, WHO'S THE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE ARTIFICIAL TURF COMPANY THAT WE DONATED TO US.
UH, WE SPOKE ON FRIDAY, UH, AND HE'S RESUBMITTED, UH, EVERYTHING THAT WE NEED TO GO THROUGH IN ORDER TO GET STARTED.
I GOT THE DOCUMENTS OVER TO SHERAY, SHE GAVE THEM BACK TO ME.
SO, UH, YESTERDAY HE SENT IT OUT TO ME.
SO I'LL BE GETTING THE, THE DOCUMENT BACK OUT TO SHERAY TO GO OVER LEGAL DOCUMENT AND UH, ONCE THAT'S SIGNED WE CAN GO FORWARD WITH, UH, EVERYTHING.
SO, BUT WE HAVE EVERYTHING IN PLACE, UH, ALL THE TOOLS THAT WE NEED MACHINERY TO GRADE, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IN-HOUSE IS GRADE THE FIELD FIRST AND THEN THE DONATION WILL COME IN AND THEN, UH, WE'LL START LAYING OUT THE FIELD.
SO WE'RE PROBABLY LOOKING AT PROBABLY ANOTHER 30 DAYS BEFORE EVERYTHING IS, IT WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR YOU COMING TO THE FALL? YES, IT'LL
[02:30:01]
BE AVAILABLE IN THE FALL.UH, COUNCILMAN NE THANK YOU MAYOR.
SO ON EACH YEAR, A LOT OF THIS STUFF IS ALL GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND STUFF, BUT SPECIFICALLY TALKING ABOUT FOR 2025, YOU WOULD HAVE TO GO OUT, I'M ASSUMING, AT THE LATEST PROBABLY MAY OF NEXT YEAR FOR A VOTE.
IS THAT CORRECT? UH, YEAH, PROBABLY HAVE TO, IT COULD GO ON EITHER, UH, MAY OR NOVEMBER BALLOT.
SO IT DEPENDS ON WHICH ONE YOU WOULD CHOOSE TO, TO, TO PUT IT ON, TO DO MM-HMM.
AND YOU MIGHT WANNA WAIT UNTIL 2026 TO, I DON'T KNOW, PUT IT ON THE BALLOT.
BUT THERE'S, YOU JUST DON'T HAVE TO DO IT THEN.
BUT YOU WANT TO, YOU WANT TO, IF YOU CHOOSE TO PUT IT ON THE BALLOT, YOU WANT TO PUT IT ON THERE AND BE ABLE TO, UH, ISSUE THE DEBT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, AS CLOSEST TO START OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT.
CAUSE YOU JUST DON'T WANT THAT MONEY SITTING AROUND AND MM-HMM.
THEN THERE'S SOME, SOME OTHER, UH, REQUIREMENTS THAT YOU CAN'T DO THAT AND GAIN INTEREST ON IT SO MUCH.
BUT, SO YEAH, THE TIMING WOULD BE IMPORTANT.
COUNCILMAN GETZ IS THE COUNCILMAN TURN.
I'M LOOKING FOR THE, UH, PLACE THAT IS IN THE COMMUNITY INVESTMENT PLAN THAT TALKS ABOUT CONVERTING TENNIS COURTS AT, UH, STERLING PRUIT TO BASKETBALL OUTSIDE COURTS.
UM, I'VE SEEN THAT SOMEWHERE IN THERE.
WHERE, WHERE IS THAT? WHAT BUDGET? THAT SHOULD BE ON THE PAGE BEFORE.
UH, MR. MANAGER, UH, WOULD THIS BE THE APPROPRIATE TIME TO ACC ABOUT RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES OR DOES THAT NEED TO COME ON ANOTHER CONVERSATION WITH WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW? UH, YOU MEAN LIKE PROGRAMMING? YES, PROGRAMMING, UH, DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES FOR THE YOUTH.
SO ACTIVITIES, NOT SO MUCH THINGS, PROJECTS, IT WOULD PROBABLY BE BETTER AT A DIFFERENT TIME.
IF WE CAN SCHEDULE THAT AGAIN AT, AT THAT NEXT BUDGET WORKSHOP, IT MIGHT BE MORE APPROPRIATE.
I JUST WANTED TO SEE SOME RECREATIONAL PROGRAMS AND PRESENTED TO US.
AND I JUST WANT TO CHIME IN THAT I, I'M IN AGREEMENT WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT RECREATIONAL PROGRAMMING.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ONE THING TO ADD, UM, ON THE RECREATIONAL PROGRAMMING, I THINK WHAT WE WILL NEED TO DO IS HAVE A WORK SESSION BEFORE OUR JULY MEETING, SOME TYPE OF WORK SESSION, BECAUSE AT THE JULY MEETING, WE PLAN TO PRETTY MUCH HAVE THE BUDGET BUTTONED UP BY THEN.
SO, UH, CUZ THAT'S JULY 27TH IS WHEN WE PLAN TO HAVE THE SECOND BUDGET WORKSHOP.
SO BETWEEN NOW AND THEN WE, WE WILL NEED TO MEET, CAN WE ADD THAT TO A PUBLIC WORKSHOP THAT WE MAY DO IN JUNE IN TERMS OF THE, UH, OTHER FINANCING OPTIONS AS WELL AS RECREATION? WE CAN, YES.
OH, ONE MORE QUESTION, MAYOR COUNCILMAN NE.
ALRIGHT, SO GOING BACK TO THE 2025, UH, YOU GOT 3.1 MILLION THAT YOU WANT TO DO AS GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS THAT THAT WOULD'VE TO GO OUT TO THE VOTERS, WHICH I'M A BIG FAN OF DOING THAT.
THE FIRST ONE IS A SMALL BOND JUST TO KIND OF TEST THE WATERS AND SEE WHAT THE COMMUNITY THINKS ON THAT.
BUT I THINK ON THAT ONE, YOU COULD ALSO MAKE THE CASE TO MOVE UP THE ATHLETIC COMPLEX FOUR FIELD CONVERSION AND DO ALL THAT AS ONE BOND.
WELL, WHEN WE LOOK AHEAD, THERE'S OTHER, UH, GEN, UH, GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND SUGGESTIONS FOR 2025 AS WELL.
SO IT MIGHT BE A BIGGER NUMBER THAN JUST WHAT WE'RE SEEING ON THAT ONE PAGE.
RIGHT? UH, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD POINT, COUNCIL MEMBER.
[02:35:01]
DOING THOSE PROJECTS, I GUESS IN THE SCHEME OF THINGS OVERALL FOR A PARKS BOND, 10 MILLION IS NOT A LOT AT WORSE CITY.SO PUTTING THEM TOGETHER WOULD PROBABLY MAKE MORE SENSE.
AGAIN, THEY, AND THEY CAN BE ON THE, THE SAME REFERENDUM, YOU KNOW, LET'S SAY WE HAD A REFERENDUM IN NOVEMBER, UH, BUT, BUT THE TIMING CAN BE, UH, A, A, A YEAR LATER IN TERMS OF CONSTRUCTION.
AND THAT'S WHY THAT'S HOW WE HAVE IT HERE IN, IN 2026.
BUT WE CAN GO TO THE VOTERS FOR, UM, MULTIPLE PROJECTS.
AND WHEN WE, WHEN WE DO GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, CAN WE BREAK 'EM UP SO THAT THE VOTERS HAVE INDEPENDENT CHOICE ON THE DIFFERENT ITEMS? YES.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, YEAH, IT'S REQUIRED NOW BY STATE LAW.
IF THEY CAN'T BE LUMPED TOGETHER, THEY'VE GOTTA BE PARKS, WHATEVER'S GOTTA BE ONE UH, ITEM.
POLICE, WHATEVER BUILDING HAS TO BE AN ITEM.
SO NOW IT'S REQUIRED THAT IT IS CERTAIN WORDING THAT, THAT, THAT THEY RECOMMEND THAT YOU PUT AND YOU SEPARATE 'EM, YOU THEY HAVE TO BE SEPARATED.
THE PROJECTS I'M ABOUT TO GO THROUGH, UH, YOU KNOW, SOME OF 'EM ARE, ARE NEEDS THAT PROBABLY IN THE NEAR FUTURE YOU PROBABLY NEED TO CONSIDER.
SOME OF THE OTHER ONES ARE PROJECTS THAT, UH, PROBABLY NEED TO CONSIDER IN THE FUTURE.
UH, SOME OF THE FACILITIES THAT ARE ON THIS LIST THAT, THAT MAY BE REPLACING OR OUTDATED OR WE'VE OUTGROWN.
SO JUST WANT TO THROW THAT OUT THERE.
THE FIRST PROJECT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS THE, UH, LAKE DISTRICT RESTROOM FACILITY TO BE PROPOSED FOR 24 25 AT A COST OF $685,000.
AND WHAT THAT'S GONNA CONSIST OF IS A NEW MEN'S AND WOMEN'S RESTROOM FACILITY TO BE CONSTRUCTED ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE CENTENNIAL PLAYGROUND LOCATED IN THE LAKE DISTRICT AREA.
THE PROPOSED PROJECT WAS CONSIST OF A SINGLE USE MEN AND WOMEN'S RESTROOM, CONCRETE SIDEWALK, FENCE MODIFICATIONS, PLUMBING AND ELECTRICAL.
AND THE DESIGN, THE FACILITY WILL BE DESIGNED TO FIT KIND OF SIMILAR TO THE EVENT CENTER AND THE LAKESIDE AS FAR AS THE STYLE.
NEXT PROJECT IS, UH, CITY HALL COURTYARD IN PLAZA RENOVATIONS, WHICH WOULD BE CONSISTING OF REVAMPING THE FRONT OF CITY HALL, THE AREA BETWEEN CIVIC CENTER AND CITY HALL AND THE SMALL AREA ON THE, UH, SOUTH SIDE OF CITY HALL.
BUT BASICALLY WHAT THEY INVOLVE INSTALLATION OF NEW PAVING, LIGHTING SIDE AMENITIES AND WATER FOUNTAIN AND THE COURTYARD AREA BETWEEN CITY HALL AND THE CIVIC CENTER, INCLUDING THE FRONT AND SOUTH SIDE OF CITY HALL.
THIS PROJECT WOULD INCLUDE THE REMOVAL OF THE PORTION OF THE CIVIC CENTER WALT CANOPY TO OPEN THAT AREA UP.
THE PROJECT WOULD INCLUDE ADJUSTMENT OF GREAT ELEVATIONS AND DUE LANDSCAPING IN FRONT OF CITY HALL TO REPLACE THE TREES THAT ARE CURRENTLY CAUSING PAVEMENT DAMAGE.
UH, THIS PROJECT WOULD ENHANCE THE AREA SURROUNDING CITY HALL AND PROVIDE A MORE USER-FRIENDLY INVITING SPACE.
AND THAT ESTIMATED COST IS $1,190,000.
NEXT PROJECT ON THE LIST IS A NEW NESTED T HANGAR, A 10 UNIT, UH, IN FY 25 26 AT A COST OF TWO $2,800,000.
THAT'S CONSTRUCT, CONSTRUCT A ONE 10 UNIT AND S THE T HANGAR TO ACCOMMODATE THE STORAGE OF 10 SMALL PRIVATE AIRCRAFT.
THE PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS WOULD BE AN PRE-ENGINEERED METAL BUILDING WITH BIFOLD DOORS, CONCRETE FOUNDATION, FIRE, FIRE PROTECTION, UH, ELECTRICAL CONCRETE TAXI LANES, AND, UH, REQUIRED FIREWALL AND MINIMAL LANDSCAPING.
UH, THIS NEW HANGAR WOULD BE CONSTRUCTED ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE AIRPORT PROPERTY AND THAT'S AT A COST OF, I ALREADY SAID THAT 2,800,000.
NEXT PROJECT IS ANIMAL CARE SERVICES AND ADOPTION CENTER.
AS MOST OF YOU KNOW, THE CURRENT FACILITY IS WASN'T BUILT FOR THE, THE NEEDS THAT THEY HAVE TODAY.
UH, AND THE SITE IS, IS REALLY SMALL AT THIS POINT, UH, BUT PROPOSING A 25 26 TIMELINE AT A BUDGET OF 6,240,000.
[02:40:02]
AND THIS PROJECT CONSISTS OF A NEW ANIMAL CARE AND ADOPTION SERVICES FACILITY AND BE LOCATED, UH, TO A SITE THAT WOULD ALLOW FOR MORE GROUND SPACE AND VISIBILITY.UH, THE PROPOSED PROJECT WOULD CONSIST OF 18,000 SQUARE FOOT OF BUILDING SPACE, UH, SITE PARKING AND INCLUDE A FENCE DOG RUN AREA ADJACENT TO THE FACILITY, WHICH THEY DON'T HAVE IT CURRENTLY.
THE NEXT PROJECT IS THE, UH, LARGE AIRPORT CLEAR SPANN HANGAR, WHICH IS, WOULD BE RENTED OUT TO A PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS, UH, PROPOSED FOR 26 27 AT A BUDGET OF 2,330,000.
AND THAT'D BE CONSTRUCT ONE 11,995 SQUARE FOOT CLEAR SPAN, FREE ENGINEERED LARGE BOX HANGAR TO ACCOMMODATE PRIVATE AIRCRAFT.
THE PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS WOULD INCLUDE THE METAL BUILDING WITH A LARGE HANGAR DOOR CONCRETE FOUNDATION, CONCRETE ACCESS, APRON, ELECTRICAL FIRE DETECTION, MINIMAL LANDSCAPING AND ENGINEERING FEES.
THE NEXT PROJECT IS A NEW RESTROOM FACILITY AT ATHLETIC COMPLEX NUMBER THREE OR PROJECTED IN 27 28 AT A BUDGET OF $406,000.
AND THAT'S CONSTRUCTED A NEW MEN'S AND WOMEN'S RESTROOM FACILITY AT COMPLEX THREE FILL.
A PROPOSED PROJECT CONSISTS OF A MULTI-USE MEN AND WOMEN'S RESTROOM, CONCRETE SIDEWALK ACCESS, HENCE MODIFICATIONS, PLUMBING, ELECTRICAL, AND THE REMOVAL OF THE EXISTING RESTROOM.
THE DESIGN OF NEW FILL FACILITY WOULD BE SIMILAR TO THE EXISTING FACILITY AT COMPLEX TWO, BUT ON A SMALLER SCALE ON THAT.
THE NEXT PROJECT IS A NEW FIRE STATION NUMBER FOUR, WHICH WOULD BE PROJECTED FOR 27 28 AT A PROPOSED BUDGET OF $5,032,000.
AND THAT'S CONSTRUCTING NEW FIRE STATION NUMBER FOUR FACILITY NEAR THE SITE OF THE EXISTING FIRE STATION.
THE PROPOSED PROJECT WILL FEATURE POOL THROUGH STALLS, SEPARATED DORM ROOMS, WORKOUT ROOM, AMPLE PARKING SPACE, AND SECURITY FENCING.
THIS FACILITY WILL BE DESIGNED TO MEET THE NEEDS OF A MODERN FIRE DEPARTMENT WITH ALL SERVICE AND LIVING SPACE AT GROUND LEVEL.
AND THOSE, THIS ONE COULD BE CONSTRUCTED PROBABLY SIMILAR TO, TO TWO AND 11 THAT WERE RECENTLY BUILT IN THE LAST FEW YEARS.
AND THEN THE NEXT ON THE AGENDA IS PROJECTED TO BE IN 27 28, BUT IT'S A NEW RECREATION CENTER AT A BUDGET COST OF $9,590,000.
AND THAT'S CONSTRUCT A NEW RECREATION SLASH ACTIVITY CENTER AT A LOCATION TO BE DETERMINED WITHIN THE CITY.
THE PROPOSED PROJECT WOULD CONSIST OF AN INDOOR BASKETBALL COURT, INDOOR RACQUETBALL COURT, WEIGHT ROOM, ACTIVITY ROOM, RESTROOM SLASH LOCKER ROOMS, UH, ADMIN AREA AND SITE PARKING.
AND THIS FACILITY WOULD BE FOCUSED ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES, SUMMER PROGRAMS, FITNESS PROGRAMS, AND INTERACTIVE LEARNING ACTIVITIES.
AND THE NEXT IS THE 50 55 MAIN STREET PLAZA.
UH, I KNOW THERE'S A LOT HASN'T BEEN DETERMINED ON THAT SITE AT THIS POINT, BUT THAT WILL BE PROPOSED POSSIBLY IN 24 25.
UH, I'VE GOT A PROJECTED COST OF 9,400,000, UH, SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITH WHAT AMENITIES ARE PUT IN OR WHAT, UH, OBJECTS OR INTERACTIVE THINGS COULD BE CONSTRUCTED.
BUT CONSTRUCT A NEW PLAZA ON THE SITE OF 5 55 MAIN STREET TO PROVIDE A GATEWAY INTEREST INTO RIVERFRONT PARK.
AND THE PROPOSED AMENITIES FOR THE PLAZA SHALL INCLUDE A WATER FOUNTAIN, WATER SPLASH PAD, AMPHITHEATER, RESTROOM FACILITY, DECORATIVE LIGHTING, AND A BUILDING THAT WOULD HOUSE A MINIMUM OF FOUR VENDOR STOREFRONTS.
AND THE NEXT ITEM WOULD BE A NEW CITY HALL COMPLEX, UH, PROJECTED FOR FY 26 27 AT A COST OF 20 MILLION SEMINAR AND $60,000.
AND THAT'S CONSTRUCT A NEW CITY HALL FACILITY AT A DOWNTOWN SITE TO BE DETERMINED, THE NEW FACILITY WILL INCORPORATE A SURROUNDING CLOSET AND ENHANCE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.
THE VISION IS TO CREATE A TOWN SQUARE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA THAT WOULD HELP PROMOTE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.
[02:45:01]
WHICH IS A PROJECT THAT'S CURRENTLY IN UNDER CONSTRUCTION, WHICH IS A RIVERFRONT PARK RESTORATION.UH, AND THAT ESTIMATED COST RIGHT NOW OR BUDGETED COST IS 19,036,876, WHICH THE CITY IS WORK WORKING WITH FEMA AND THE US CORN ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS ON STABILIZING THE SHORELINE AROUND RIVERFRONT PARK, WHICH WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED AS A RESULT OF HURRICANE HARLEY.
THE CURRENT ESTIMATED CALLS FOR THE STABILIZATION, WHICH IS NINE, THE 19 MILLION.
THIS PROJECT WILL BE PRIMARILY PAID FOR WITH FUNDING FROM FEMA.
AND THE DIFFERENCE IS PROJECTED TO BE PAID FROM CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATIONS THAT WERE ISSUED IN 2013.
THE CITY IS ALSO PLANNING TO CONSTRUCT PEDESTRIAN SLASH BIKE PASS LANDSCAPING AND LIGHTING IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PARK IN THE FINAL PROJECT, WHICH IS BE FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATION, WHICH IS A NEW POLICE DEPARTMENT FACILITY AT A PROJECTED COST OF $35,665,000.
AND THAT'S TO CONSTRUCT A NEW POLICE DEPARTMENT FACILITY AT A DOWNTOWN SITE.
TO BE DETERMINED, THE PROPOSED FACILITY WILL BE APPROXIMATELY 106,000 SQUARE FEET IN SIZE AND FEATURE MODERN TECHNOLOGY AND AMPLE SPACE FOR ALL PERSONNEL.
AND THAT WRAPS UP MY PROJECTS.
YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCIL, COUNCILMAN GETZ? KEITH, WE WERE TOLD BY PRIOR CITY MANAGER THAT IN THE, AND IN THE PREVIOUS CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN, THAT IMPROVEMENTS AT 5 55 MAIN STREET WOULD, AND THAT INCLUDED PURCHASE AND TAKING DOWN OF THE BUILDING AND DOING ANY IMPROVEMENTS WOULD BE 5 MILLION.
UM, I WAS OPPOSED TO ANY OF THAT THEN.
AND NOW I SEE THE PRICE TAG HAS GROWN TO A PROPOSAL OF 9.4 MILLION.
WHAT EXPLAINS THAT CHANGE? WELL, THAT, THAT NUMBER I'VE GOT HERE IS WHAT THE AMENITIES I'M PUTTING IN THERE.
SO THESE ARE NEW AMENITIES THAT YOU'RE PROPOSING YEAH.
THAT HAVE GROWN FROM BEFORE, UH, WHEN THIS PREVIOUS CITY MANAGER WAS HERE? YES, SIR.
AND, AND THOSE AMENITIES INCLUDE WHAT AGAIN, IT'S GONNA BE, UH, LIKE BASICALLY THE PLAZA THAT GOES THROUGH THERE, A FOUNTAIN, YOU KNOW, A BUILDING SET UP FOR FOR VENDORS THAT CAN BE LEASED OUT, RESTROOM FACILITY, WATER SPLASH PAD AND AMPHITHEATER.
AND WE'VE ALSO SEEN, AND WE'VE CONTRACTED WITH A, A GROUP TO GIVE US AN OVERALL DOWNTOWN MASTER PLAN THAT HAS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT IDEA YES.
OF WHAT TO BE DONE WITH THAT SPACE.
SO HOW DO THOSE TWO PROPOSALS INTERSECT? WELL, I DON'T THINK THAT THAT OTHER PLAN IS REALLY DEFINED YET.
IT JUST REALLY SHOWED AN AMPHITHEATER THERE.
SO THIS IS GONNA BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
THESE ARE IDEAS THAT I PUT FORTH.
UH, YOU KNOW, ONCE WE HAVE A MASTER PLAN IN PLACE FROM EITHER THE ARCHITECT OR THE ENGINEERING FIRM, THIS, THIS WILL CHANGE.
CUZ THEY'RE GONNA HAVE DIFFERENT IDEAS THAT'LL BE BRINGING FORTH.
YEAH, I'M TRYING REAL HARD TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU GO START GOING FORWARD ON THIS PLAN WITH YOUR PLAZA THAT YOU'VE, THESE, YOUR IDEAS AND FOR SOME REASON THE VOTERS OR THE COUNCIL DECIDED TO GO WITH THIS AMPHITHEATER AND RIVERWALK PLAN THAT WE'VE SEEN, UH, I MEAN OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE NOT THE SAME THING, SO NO, I'M JUST, HOW, HOW DOES ALL THAT WORK? WELL, IT'S JUST UNTIL WE GET IT DEFINE, YOU KNOW, WHICHEVER THE WAY THE COUNCIL'S GONNA GO, IF THEY'RE GONNA GO WITH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE FIRM THAT BROUGHT FORTH THEIR PLAN, THEN THAT'S A DIFFERENT DEAL.
A TIME WHEN I PUT THIS TOGETHER, I WENT WITH THE PLAN THAT I HAD PROPOSED.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I JUST HAVE A QUESTION.
HEY, MR. WILLIAMS. EVEN WITH THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE, I THINK, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE KIND OF SEE WHERE WE ARE WITH THEM AS WELL AND SEE IF IT ALL MATCHES UP.
THAT'S MY CONCERN TOO, WITH THE FIVE FIVE MAIN STREET PLAZA.
YOU KNOW, I'M OPEN, I KNOW WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT COM COMMITTEE, THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT PLAN STAFF, WE JUST ALL ON THE SAME PAGE, MR. STEP.
I JUST FELT LIKE WE NEEDED A PLACEHOLDER FOR THIS.
I MEAN, IT'S SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
EVERYBODY'S GOT THEIR OWN IDEAS, SO THANK YOU.
SO, SO AT WHAT POINT DO YOU NEED FIRM DIRECTION FROM COUNSEL TO PROCEED? I MEAN, WHERE ON THE CALENDAR DO WE FALL BEFORE YOU REALLY SAY, I REALLY NEED TO MAKE A DECISION?
[02:50:01]
I REMEMBER AT A WORKSHOP, UH, I THINK LAST YEAR THAT, OR MAYBE IT WAS BEFORE LAST YEAR, UM, YOU ASKED EVERYBODY WHETHER OR NOT WE WANTED TO GO FORWARD WITH ASBESTOS ABATEMENT WORK.AND YOU POINTED OUT AT THAT TIME, UH, IF WE GO FORWARD WITH ASBESTOS ABATEMENT WORK AT 5 55 MAIN STREET, IT'S GOING TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACT A LOT OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE ITEMS IN THAT BUILDING, UH, DETRIMENTALLY.
UH, AND AT THAT TIME THERE WAS NO APPETITE FROM ANYBODY ON COUNCIL BUT ME TO LEAVE IT ALONE.
AND SO WE WENT FORWARD WITH THAT ASBESTOS ABATEMENT WORK, AND IT DID DETRIMENTALLY IMPACT A LOT OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE ITEMS IN THAT BUILDING.
AND YET EVEN WITH THAT, THERE HAVE STILL BEEN PEOPLE, EVEN AS RECENTLY AS THIS MONTH, WANTING TO COME FORWARD TO LOOK AT WALKING THROUGH THE BUILDING, POSSIBLY PURCHASING THE BUILDING, DOING SOMETHING WITH THE BUILDING.
SO AT WHAT POINT DO WE MAKE A FIRM DECISION? WELL, I THINK, I MEAN, AS IT STANDS RIGHT NOW, COUNCIL HAS MADE THE DECISION TO DEMO IT.
SO UNTIL IT COMES BACK TO COUNCIL TO BE RESCINDED OR GO TO DIFFERENT DIRECTION, EVERYTHING'S STILL UP IN THE AIR AT THIS POINT.
SO, BUT RIGHT NOW THE DEMO IS, WE'RE PROCEEDING FORTH WITH THAT.
UH, WE'RE, WE'RE REVISING THE DRAWINGS AND EVERYTHING TO GO OUT BID AGAIN FOR THE DEMO AND THE SITE WORK.
SO AT THAT POINT, IF YOU WANT TO KILL THE PROJECT AT THAT TIME, IF THE COUNCIL HAS TO VOTE, HONOR IT.
I HAVE NO QUESTION THIS FOR COUNCILMAN TURNER.
UH, AND LASTLY, UH, MR. WILLIAMS, WE, I DO KNOW THAT AT THE STATE LEVEL, A GRANT WAS PUT IN FOR A RECREATIONAL FACILITY UP TO $9 MILLION.
SO THEY WOULD KNOW AROUND SEPTEMBER WHEN THEY'RE APPROVED THAT BUDGET IF IT ACTUALLY GOES THROUGH.
SO IF THAT GRANT WAS PROVIDED AND THE CITY OF BEAUMONT WAS AWARDED IT, WOULD THAT CHANGE THE TIMELINE OF THE RECREATIONAL FACILITY IF WE WERE ABLE TO SECURE THAT GRANT FUNDING WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON, UM, WHAT YEAR DO WE HAVE IT IN 27, 28? UH, YES, MORE THAN LIKELY.
CAUSE TYPICALLY THERE'S A TIMELINE ASSOCIATED WITH GRANTS AND THE EXPENDING OF THEM.
UM, SO I WOULD THINK IF WE HAD THE MONEY, THAT WOULD CERTAINLY MOVE THAT PROJECT UP IF YOU FOUND A GRANT THAT WOULD PAY FOR THAT PROJECT.
UH, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT, CAUSE I KNOW IT'S SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON, COUNCILMAN GATZ, OTHER THAN 5 55 MAIN STREET, IT LOOKS LIKE EVERY ITEM THAT IS BEING, UH, PROPOSED IS, UH, SUBJECT TO BEING PASSED BY THE VOTERS THROUGH GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS.
IS THAT CORRECT? THAT'S CORRECT.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT, WELL, THANK YOU.
WE WILL START WITH, UH, DRAINAGE.
SO PREVIOUSLY, COUNCIL APPROVED A CITYWIDE DITCHING PROGRAM WITH THE GOAL TO DITCH 20% OF, UH, THE DITCHES IN EACH WARD EACH YEAR WITH THE GOAL OF OUR FIVE YEAR PERIOD TO HAVE, UH, DITCHED EVERYTHING.
AND JUST TO REMIND Y'ALL, THAT'LL SET THE DITCHES BACK ON GRADE, CLEAN OUT THE CULVERTS AND REPLACE AND RESET ANY CULVERT MORE THAN THREE INCHES OUT OF GRADE.
WE'VE GOT 316 MILES OF DITCHES WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
ONLY CHANGE TO THIS ITEM WAS DUE TO OUR EXPERIENCES THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF THIS PROGRAM.
WE DID HAVE TO EDGE THE DOLLARS UP A BIT.
SO THE TOTAL PROGRAM COST OVER THE, UH, THROUGH 2028 IS 18.5 MILLION.
AT, AT THE END OF THAT, ALL THE DITCHES WILL BE IN, UM, IN GOOD SHAPE DRAINING PROPERLY.
AS DESIGNED, WE HAVE TWO PROJECTS THAT WE SUBMITTED FOR CDBG GRANT MONEY.
THE FIRST LAURA EDITION HAS BEEN AWARDED, UH, UNDER THAT COMPETITION.
SO THAT WILL, UM, GO THROUGH AND, UH, DITCH ALL THE OPEN DITCHES WITHIN DEL LAURA EDITION.
REPLACE CULVERTS, UM, FIX THE UNDERGROUND CULVERTS WITHIN THAT AREA.
THIS AREA WAS SEVERELY IMPACTED, UM, DURING AMELDA, AND THAT'S WHY WE WERE ABLE TO OBTAIN THE GRANT FUNDING.
UM, SO THAT PROJECT'S AT 1.5 MILLION.
[02:55:02]
UM, THE GRANT WILL COVER A MILLION DOLLARS OF IT.WE ALSO SUBMITTED FOR PHELPS ROAD.
UH, UNFORTUNATELY WE WERE DENIED INITIALLY ON PHELPS ROAD.
WE HAVE SINCE APPEALED THIS PROJECT.
UM, AND WE ARE HOPEFUL THAT WE'LL HEAR BACK, UH, A POSITIVE RESPONSE.
BUT AGAIN, THAT WOULD BE A MILLION DOLLARS IN CDBG MONEY IN THIS CASE, WE'D ONLY HAVE TO FUND A HUNDRED DOLLARS OVER THAT TO IMPROVE THE DRAINAGE ALONG THE LENGTH OF, OF BELT ROAD.
THE LAST ITEM, WHICH IS AGAIN, A CONTINUATION OF WHAT WAS PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BY COUNCIL, IS THE STORM WATER PIPE INSPECTION POINT, REPAIR AND DATA ASSET MANAGEMENT.
WE'VE GOT A LOT OF UNDERGROUND, UH, STORM DRAINS WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, CITY OF BEAUMONT'S, A A FAIRLY OLD CITY.
SO THIS PROGRAM IS TO GET IN THERE, INSPECT, UH, EXISTING PIPES, PRIMARILY STARTING AT OUTFALLS, THE MAJOR, UH, PIPING SYSTEMS THAT ARE UNDER OUR CONTROL.
INSPECT, CLEAN 'EM, INSPECT 'EM, AND THEN PERFORM ANY NECESSARY REPAIRS ON 'EM.
WE DID THIS, UH, ALONG THE LENGTH OF FOURTH STREET, UH, AS PART OF THE REHAB FOR FOURTH STREET.
FOUND THE NUMBER OF UTILITY, UH, CONFLICTS THAT HAD GONE THROUGH OUR STORM DRAIN.
SO, YOU KNOW, AS A RESULT, WE'LL BE ABLE TO IMPROVE THE DRAINAGE ALONG FOURTH, AS WE ADDRESS, UH, WHAT WAS DISCOVERED ON THAT.
THE ONLY CHANGE TO THIS PROGRAM IS WE EDGED UP THE, THE DOLLAR DOLLARS JUST A LITTLE BIT ON IT, UM, BECAUSE OF THE SCOPE THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE OUT THERE.
ANY QUESTIONS ON DRAINAGE? OKAY.
THE FOURTH STREET ROAD REHABS UNDERWAY.
NOW, UH, THAT'S AS Y'ALL ARE ALL WELL AWARE, I'M SURE AT THIS POINT THAT CONSISTS OF MILLING THE ENTIRE SURFACE OF FOURTH, WHICH IS PRETTY MUCH DONE NOW.
UH, REPAIRING THE BASE AND THEN THEY'LL OVERLAY THE, THE ENTIRETY OF THE LENGTH OF FOURTH STREET, UM, THE STREET REHAB PROGRAM, THIS IS A CONTINUATION OF WHAT WE'VE DONE FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS.
UH, THIS IS GOES HAND IN HAND WITH OUR PAVEMENT CONDITION ASSESSMENT WHEN THE VENDOR HAS COME BACK AND RECOMMENDED THAT IN ORDER TO CONTINUALLY IMPROVE THE OVERALL CONDITION OF THE STREETS WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, WE NEED TO SPEND $8 MILLION A YEAR ON VARIOUS, UM, ASPECTS OF ROAD REHABILITATION, WHICH IS WHAT THIS DOES FOR US.
UM, EVERY YEAR TECH STOCK COMES THROUGH AND INSPECTS ALL THE BRIDGES WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
SO THIS, THIS PAST YEAR STAFF WENT THROUGH AND REALIZED THAT THOUGH WE'VE RECEIVED THOSE, UH, ASSESSMENTS OF OUR BRIDGES, WE HAVEN'T REALLY DONE ANYTHING WITH THEM.
AND THIS PARTICULAR CAME TO OUR ATTENTION WITH THE BRIDGE ON LAUGHIN ROAD THAT GOES TO THE LANDFILL AND THE SEWER TREATMENT PLANT.
SO THAT BRIDGE WAS IN NEED OF IMMEDIATE REPAIR, WHICH WE DID.
WE WENT THROUGH AND WE THOROUGHLY ASSESSED ALL OF THE OTHER RECOMMENDED BRIDGE REPAIRS CITYWIDE.
AND AS A RESULT, COMING BACK TO YOU WITH THE NECESSARY, UM, IMPROVEMENTS TO REHABILITATE, UM, THE DEFECTS THAT TECH STOCK FOUND IN THOSE BRIDGES.
SO THE, THE FIRST ITEM IS ADDRESSING 13 BRIDGES CITYWIDE.
SO THESE ARE THE SMALLER ITEMS THAT ARE COMBINED TOGETHER, AND THEN YOU'LL SEE A COUPLE OTHERS THAT ARE, THAT ARE LARGER BRIDGES.
A LITTLE FURTHER ON THE NEXT TWO PROGRAMS WERE SUBMITTED IN THE TEX DOT TRANSPORTATION ALTERNATIVES PROGRAM FOR SIDEWALKS.
THE FIRST ONE IS THE ONE ALONG FINET ROAD, UM, WHICH IS BEAUMONT UNITED.
AND THIS WILL, UH, DO THE SIDEWALKS FROM, UH, I THINK IT'S FROM FOURTH STREET ALL THE WAY IN.
I'M, I'M MISSING THE CROSS STREET, BUT IT'S PAST THE SCHOOL.
I THINK IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN EDMONDS IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN.
BUT IT'LL DO THE, THE SIDEWALKS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ROAD.
IT'LL ALSO IMPROVE SIGNAGE FOR MID-BLOCK CROSSWALKS AND REPLACE DRIVEWAYS, UH, ADDRESS 'EM WHEN NECESSARY.
TOTAL PROJECT COST IS ESTIMATED AT $915,000.
WAS THAT GRANT APPROVED? THAT GRANT'S NOT APPROVED.
IT'S, UH, WE'RE STILL WAITING TO HEAR ON THAT ONE.
BART, WITH THAT GRANT FOR BEAUMONT UNITED AND
[03:00:01]
CHARLESTON POLLED AREA THAT WOULD JUST COVER OMA UNITED AREA.SO THE SECOND ONE, UH, THAT'S IRVING AND BROOKLYN SIDEWALKS TO, TO THE AMOUNT OF 1.8 MILLION.
AND THAT'S RIGHT THERE IN THAT CHARLTON POLLARD AREA.
UH, THIS'LL SERVE THE COMMUNITY AS WELL AS THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND ADDRESS SIDEWALKS ALONG THE LENGTH OF, OF TWO STREETS.
SO THAT ONE'S ALSO BEEN PUT IN THE THIRD PROJECT, WHICH DOESN'T SHOW IN THE C I P, WAS TO REDO THE SCHOOL ZONE SIGNAGE, UH, CITYWIDE IN ALL SCHOOL ZONES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE CITY.
UM, THEN MOVING ON, THE NEXT ITEM IS NEW.
SO THIS IS TO IMPROVE, UM, OR REPAIR SIDEWALK INFRASTRUCTURE THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
IT'S PLACED IN THERE AT A MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR.
EMPHASIS IS TO BE GIVEN TO, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE AROUND SCHOOLS OR SCHOOL RELATED DESTINATIONS.
SO THAT'LL BE OUR, OUR FIRST FOCUS OUT OF THE GATE.
AS MR. ELLIS MENTIONED EARLIER, WE'RE GOING TO PUT IN THE BUDGET FOR A, UH, SIDEWALK MASTER PLAN WITH A FIRST PHASE FOCUS ON SCHOOLS, AREAS SURROUNDING SCHOOLS.
AND WE HOPE TO GET THAT PLAN UNDERWAY AND THEN USE THE, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS OF THAT PLAN TO FEED INTO THIS LINE ITEM FOR THE MILLION DOLLARS IN, IN IMPROVEMENT.
QUESTION, COUNCILMAN? YES, SIR.
DO WE HAVE AN IDEA OF, UH, OR LISTING OF THOSE SIDEWALKS, UH, THAT ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF REPAIR AS WELL AS THOSE THAT ARE, UH, CLOSE TO SCHOOL CAMPUSES WITH THE PAVEMENT CONDITION ASSESSMENT THAT'S GOING ON RIGHT NOW FOR THE ROADS, WE ADDED A SIDEWALK COMPONENT.
SO THEY'RE GOING TO COME BACK WITH AN INVENTORY OF ALL THE SIDEWALKS CITYWIDE AS THEY DRIVE THE ROADS TO ASSESS THEM.
AND THEY'RE GOING TO GIVE US A ROUGH ASSESSMENT OF CONDITION OF THOSE SIDEWALKS ON A ONE TO FIVE SCALE.
SO WHEN WE GET THAT BACK, WE'LL HAVE A, A STARTING POINT ON OUR INVENTORY TOWARDS WHAT YOU'RE, YOU'RE RELATING TO ANY PROJECTED, UH, TIMEFRAME OR, UH, WHEN WE WILL HAVE THAT.
WE SHOULD HAVE THE, THE STUDY BACK HERE IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS ON THE PCI RATING AND THE SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT.
UH, MR. MANAGER, THESE TWO ETTE ROAD AND THE TRACTOR PILOT SIDEWALK, AND WE'RE TRYING TO GET DONE WITH A GRANT, IF FOR SOME REASON, UH, WE DON'T GET THAT GRANT, WE STILL NEED TO FIND A WAY TO, TO FUND THESE SIDEWALKS AND, UH, GET 'EM DONE.
COUNCIL MEMBER WILL
I WOULD LIKE TO SAY WE PLUGGED IN $1 MILLION.
YOU KNOW, WE KIND OF, IT'S KIND OF A PLACEHOLDER.
A COUPLE COUNCIL MEMBERS HAD MENTIONED IT TO ME AND COUNCIL MEMBER NEIL MIGHT HAVE BEEN ONE OF 'EM ABOUT SIDEWALKS.
SO, BUT WE'RE PLUGGING IN SOMETHING.
WE DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S THE, THE NUMBER YET, BUT WE, IT'S A PLACEHOLDER FOR SIDEWALKS AND COUNCILMAN GUESS HAS A QUESTION ABOUT
SO, AND I WAS KIDDING WITH COUNCIL MEMBER DURING, WITH REGARD TO SIDEWALKS PART, UM, IN THE PAST WHEN WE'VE TALKED ABOUT DOING SIDEWALK REPAIRS, I WAS ALWAYS TOLD THAT IT'S THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PROPERTY OWNER THAT THE SIDEWALK GOES ON TO MAINTAIN AND PAY FOR THEIR OWN SIDEWALK.
IN FACT, I THINK THAT MAY BE IN ORDINANCE OR SOMEWHERE IT IS.
UM, ARE WE MOVING AWAY FROM THAT NOW AND WE'RE GOING TO START PICKING AND CHOOSING SIDEWALKS ON PRIVATE PROPERTY TO REPAIR? OR HOW, HOW DOES THIS INTERACT WITH THAT? IF THE CURRENT ORDINANCE DOES STATE THAT AS THE PROPERTY OWNER, YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING THE SIDEWALK THAT'S ON YOUR PROPERTY, AND THIS WOULD BE A CHANGE IN DIRECTION SPECIFICALLY FOCUSED AROUND IMPROVING SIDEWALKS FOR SCHOOL TRAFFIC.
UM, SO WE WOULD POSSIBLY HAVE TO LOOK AT AT THAT ORDINANCE AND HOW IT'S CONSTRUCTED AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
THAT, THAT'S MY QUESTION IS DO WE HAVE TO CONSIDER CHANGING THE ORDINANCE IN ORDER TO BE ABLE TO GO FORWARD WITH THIS TYPE OF PROJECT? SO THERE'S SEVERAL WAYS THAT YOU CAN ATTACK THIS.
YOU COULD, UM, MAKE AN EXCEPTION IN THE ORDINANCE FOR, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY FOR SCHOOL TRAFFIC, SINCE THAT'S THE FOCUS AND IMPROVING LIKE, WALK TO SCHOOL AREAS.
UM, AND SO COUNCIL COULD, YOU KNOW, ESSENTIALLY CHOOSE TO MODIFY THEIR DIRECTION, UM, AND DO THAT IF YOU REMOVE THE SECTION
[03:05:01]
COMPLETELY, THEN WE WOULD HAVE TO TALK ABOUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IN RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS AS WELL.CUZ SEVERAL OF OUR RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS, OR A FEW OF OUR RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS DO HAVE SIDEWALKS.
AND THEN IN TERMS OF SIDEWALKS, UH, FOR SCHOOL TRAFFIC, UH, ALTHOUGH WE HAVE APPLIED FOR GRANT FUNDING FOR THE ONE AROUND BEAUMONT UNITED AND IN THE CHARLTON POLL NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, WE DON'T HAVE ANY FUNDING MECHANISM.
AND IT'S NOT EVEN LISTED ON HERE TO PUT SIDEWALKS FOR THE WESTBROOK TRAFFIC, UH, UP TO, UH, DOON, WHICH, UH, IS EQUALLY IMPORTANT, UH, AS THE, UH, UH, BEAUMONT UNITED, LOTS OF KIDS, UH, WALK TO THE APARTMENT COMPLEXES AND THE TOWNHOUSE COMPLEXES FROM, UH, WESTBROOK UP TO PINCH BACK.
AND SO, YEAH, NOT ASKING FOR EVERYTHING, BUT ASKING FOR E ASKING A, ASKING FOR EQUAL CONSIDERATION,
THAT, THAT'S WHY WE'RE LOOKING AND PLUGGING IN ON THE MOUND EVERY YEAR.
AND WE CAN, UH, DO A PROJECT OR MAJOR PROJECTS EVERY YEAR.
UM, WE GET FEEDBACK THAT WE'RE NOT PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY.
UH, SOMETIMES A GOOD ROBUST SIDEWALK SYSTEM IS A REAL QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUE FOR A CITY, IF THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT TO DO OR DECIDE TO DO.
IT CERTAINLY HAS ITS BENEFITS FOR, FOR MOBILITY AND FOR PEOPLE BEING ABLE TO WALK A BIKE TO GET AROUND.
AND COUNCILMAN, UH, HE'S IN BAR HAS INDICATED THAT THE, THE GRANT IS SPECIFICALLY FOR SIDEWALKS, SO THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE AS WELL.
UM, IF WHERE CITY IS APPLYING FOR GRANT FUNDING THAT MIGHT NOT HAVE ENOUGH, WE'VE DONE THIS IN THE PAST, MEANS THAT THE CITY, UM, HAS APPLIED FOR, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, FUNNELED THAT BACK INTO THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE, THE FREE LUNCH PROGRAM, FOR EXAMPLE, KINDA LIKE A PASS THROUGH.
UM, SO IF THE GRANT IS SPECIFICALLY FOR SIDEWALKS, A MUNICIPALITY CAN APPLY FOR IT.
THAT'S SOMETHING IS TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION.
AND THEN IT WOULDN'T AFFECT OUR ORDINANCE AT ALL ANYWAY, BECAUSE IT'S, THE CITY ISN'T USING ESSENTIALLY THEIR MONEY AND, AND ANOTHER PART OF THE ORDINANCE OF STATE THAT THE CITY, UM, CAN COME IN AND CONSTRUCT SIDEWALKS, REPAIR SIDEWALKS, DESPITE THE FACT THAT THE OTHER PART SAYS THAT THE HOMEOWNER'S RESPONSIBLE.
WE HAVE GONE THROUGH AS PART OF FULL ROAD RECONSTRUCTION ON WASHINGTON AND SEVENTH STREET, AND WE'VE ADDRESSED SIDEWALKS ON EXISTING STREETS, UM, ON PRIVATE WELL WITHIN EASEMENT ON, ON PRIVATE.
THAT, THAT WE'RE ALWAYS A PART OF A FULL STREET RECONSTRUCTION.
WELL, TRYING TO LIMIT OUR AMOUNT OF MONEY.
IT'S, IT'S A LARGE AMOUNT OF, UH, WORK THAT'S, THAT'S NECESSARY OUT THERE FOR SIDEWALKS.
SO WE'VE GOTTA TAKE A BITE AT SOMEWHERE.
WELL, I JUST WANTED TO, UH, I, I'M CURIOUS AS TO WHEN WOULD BE THE PROPER TIME TO ADDRESS POSSIBLY THE, UH, STAT OF THE ORDINANCE THAT, UH, DEALS WITH THE SIDEWALKS? UH, BUT I'M HAPPY TO HEAR THAT WE CAN MAKE EXCEPTIONS BECAUSE IN SOME AREAS, PARTICULARLY SOUTH END OF BEAUMONT, WHERE THERE WERE NOT, WHERE IT WAS, UH, DITCHES, OPEN DITCHES FOR A LONG TIME, BUT NOW, UH, THERE ARE SIDEWALKS THERE, UH, BUT THEY'RE IN DISREPAIR AND THERE ARE FOLKS THAT HAVE HANDICAPPED, PARTICULARLY, I'M THINKING ABOUT RIGHT THERE AT, UH, IRVING AND, UH, UH, MADISON SHIRLEY PURLEY, YES, MS. PURLEY, UH, SHE'S BEEN TALKING ABOUT THAT FOR THE LONGEST.
SHE CAN'T GET A WHEELCHAIR DOWN A SIDEWALK BECAUSE ONE YARD MAY HAVE A SIDEWALK, THE OTHER YARD MAY NOT.
AND WE ARE NOT DOING A NEW STREET CONSTRUCTION.
SO THAT TELLS ME THAT EVEN PROPERTY OWNERS MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FORWARD TO DO THE SIDEWALKS, BUT WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO? ARE WE GONNA LEAVE THEM IN DISREPAIR WHERE THEY HAVE NO SIDEWALKS? SO WE HAVE TO LOOK AT A PROGRAM NOW THAT WILL ADDRESS SIDEWALKS, UH, IN, UH, EXISTING RIGHT OF WAYS, UH, THAT HAVE, HAVE NO SIDEWALKS.
SO, UH, I'M JUST WONDERING, WHEN IS THE TIME TO DEAL WITH THAT? IS IT DURING THIS BUDGET PROCESS, ANOTHER MEETING OR, OR WHAT? SO, AND IF YOU MAY, YOU LET ME, THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE COURT CURRENT ORDINANCE.
THE, THE COURT, THE CURRENT ORDINANCE ALLOWS FOR, UH, COUNSEL TO MAKE EXCEPTIONS AND, AND TO DO THE THEMES THAT YOU'RE PROPOSING.
UM, THE OVERALL CONCEPT IS THAT HAS THE COUNCIL'S PHILOSOPHY
[03:10:01]
CHANGED AS IT RELATES TO SOME OF THESE THEMES? AND, AND IF SO, THEN, THEN THAT DIRECTION SHOULD BE GIVEN AT A SEPARATE MEETING, UH, FOR, UH, STAFF TO CONSIDER.I THINK THAT ANSWERS MY QUESTION BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A QUESTION AS TO WHETHER THIS COUNCIL IS TAKING A DIFFERENT POSITION ON HOW WE MOVE FORWARD WITH ADDRESSING, UH, PRIVATE SIDEWALK, UH, THE PROP, THE SIDEWALKS THAT OWN PRIVATE PROPERTY.
BOTH THE DOLLAR AMOUNT AS WELL AS TO SPEAK TO WHEN IT'S APPROPRIATE TO TALK ABOUT WHERE WE FOCUS THE FUNDING.
THAT'S THE INTENTION OF THAT SIDEWALK MASTER PLAN WITH THE INITIAL GOAL TO FOCUS AROUND SCHOOLS AS A, AS A PRIMARY PHASE ONE, AND THEN CERTAINLY AS FUNDING'S AVAILABLE, WE CAN, WE CAN EXPAND THE FOCUS BEYOND SCHOOLS TO, TO IN OTHER PHASES.
MR. WELL, AND SOME OF THIS WILL BE TAKEN CARE OF IF WE, UH, PROCEED WITH GENERAL OBLIGATIONS BOND BY THE PUBLIC, GETTING TO VOTE ON THESE VARIOUS ITEMS IN TERMS OF WHAT THEY DETERMINED TO BE, UH, ONE MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE OTHER.
NOT SPECIFICALLY WITHIN THIS, BUT WITHIN, I MEAN, WE'RE SEEING GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS QUITE A BIT, SO THERE'LL BE BROKEN DOWN FROM WHETHER IT'S THESE, THESE ARE CO THOUGH, THESE, THESE WOULD NOT REQUIRE A VOTE.
WELL, MY CONCERN IS, UH, EVEN ON WASHINGTON BOULEVARD WHERE YOU SEE IT'S NEWLY CONSTRUCTED, IF YOU NOT CAREFUL, IT'S ALREADY GRASS GROWING UP ON THOSE NEW SIDEWALKS, AND WE JUST FIND A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF, YOU KNOW, INVESTMENT AND WE, DEPENDING ON RESIDENTS TO PROTECT IT.
BUT LIKE COUNCIL MEMBER SAID EARLIER, THE REALITY IS MAYBE THE RESIDENTS DON'T HAVE THE REVENUE TO WEED, AND IF WE NOT CAREFUL, THAT GRASS GONNA OVERTAKE THOSE BRAND NEW SIDEWALKS ON WASHINGTON.
AND IN ADDITION TO THAT, THERE ARE AREAS IN WHICH, UH, THESE, UH, ARE NOT OWNER OWNED, UH, PROPERTIES AIRS.
AND AIR SHIFT, UH, UH, PROPERTIES THAT'S BEEN CAUGHT UP IN, UH, PROBATE, UH, VARIOUS THINGS, BUT WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING TO MAINTAIN THOSE, UH, THOSE SIDEWALKS OR EVEN IMPROVE THOSE SIDEWALKS IN THOSE AREAS.
SO ARE WE GOING TO HAVE A SEPARATE WORKSHOP TO TALK ABOUT SIDEWALKS AND COUNCIL PHILOSOPHY AND, UH, PRESENT THE PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX OF THE SIDEWALKS? UH, WHEN THAT'S DONE, AND I JUST WANNA THROW ONE OTHER AREA OUT THERE SINCE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SPECIFIC AREAS, NOT EVEN WARD TWO, BUT, UH, LAUREL FROM THE FREEWAY ACCESS ROAD DOWN TO 23RD STREET, IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY ENOUGH, THERE IS REMNANTS OF A SIDEWALK THERE.
MAYBE THERE IS A COMPLETE SIDEWALK THERE, BUT YOU'LL NEVER KNOW IT BECAUSE IT'S SO OVERGROWN AND THERE'S SO MUCH PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC FROM THE APARTMENT COMPLEX UP THERE.
UH, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT GETS ON THE LIST FOR CONSIDERATION WHEN, WHENEVER THAT LIST IS DEVELOPED.
WHEN WHEN WE FINISH AND GET THE REPORT BACK FROM THE VENDOR ON THE ROADS AND THE SIDEWALK INVENTORY, WE CAN CERTAINLY PRESENT THAT TO COUNCIL.
WILL IT TAKE CARE OF A LOT OF THESE QUESTIONS THAT WE ARE ASKING RIGHT NOW? IT'LL BE A FIRST STEP TOWARDS THAT.
LIKE OUR, OUR THOUGHT PROCESS IS TO TAKE AN INITIAL PHASE WITH THAT MASTER PLAN SURROUNDING SCHOOLS, AND THAT'S JUST TO TRY TO PUT A SCOPE ON IT.
I MEAN, BECAUSE THE, THE DOLLAR AMOUNTS ARE GONNA GROW QUICKLY.
I THINK EVERY CITY HAS THIS ISSUE THAT'S BEEN IN EXISTENCE FOR A LONG TIME.
AND I BELIEVE THE CITY OF DALLAS LOOKED AT THE WHOLE THING AND THEY ESTIMATED ROUGHLY THAT THEIR SIDEWALK NEED TO FIX ALL THEIR SIDEWALK NEEDS WAS 25 BILLION.
AND THEIR INITIAL PHASES, I THINK WERE ALONG THE LINES OF 37 MILLION.
SO OBVIOUSLY A SMALL PART OF THE OVERALL, YOU CAN SCALE US DOWN QUITE A BIT FROM WHERE DALLAS IS OBVIOUSLY, BUT STILL WE'RE GONNA HAVE A MUCH GREATER OVERALL NEED TO JUST FIX EVERY SIDEWALK THAT'S IN DISREPAIR OR, OR FIX SECTIONS THAT AREN'T CONNECTED TO EACH OTHER.
SO WE'VE GOT TO SOMEHOW FOCUS ON A PORTION OF IT.
AND, AND, UH, FROM EVERYBODY'S COMMENTS, CITIZEN COMMENTS COMING AND COUNCIL COMMENTS, IT SEEMS SCHOOLS IS A GOOD PLACE TO START THAT FOCUS ON W WILL WE MAINTAIN SIDEWALKS SAYING
[03:15:01]
FOR A PROPERTY THAT MAY HAVE BEEN ABANDONED AND, YOU KNOW, UH, WELL, WE WE'RE ACTUALLY HAVE CONTRACTORS GOING OUT CUTTING THE YARD AND THEY HAVE A SIDEWALK IN FRONT OF IT THAT'S OVERGROWN OR DAMAGED.WOULD THAT BE SOMETHING THAT THE CITY MAINTAINS OR CAN FIX? THAT'S SOMETHING THE CITY SHOULD BE ABLE TO HAVE THE CONTRACTOR KEEP IT CLEAR AS PART OF THIS REPAIR, WE CAN LOOK AT WHERE WE FOCUS THOSE REPAIRS.
THIS MIL INITIAL MILLION DOLLAR LINE ITEM WITH, WITH MY THOUGHT BEING FINISH THE, THE MASTER PLAN PHASE ONE AND THEN LOOK AND FOCUS AROUND THE SCHOOLS PRIMARILY FOR THOSE NEEDS WITH THE INITIAL MONEY IN OTHER CITIES.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT'S NORMAL, THAT THE, THE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR REPAIRING SIDEWALKS AND THINGS LIKE THAT? THAT'S DIFFERENT IN DIFFERENT CITIES? IT'S ACCORDING TO WHAT YOU WANT TO ADOPT.
UH, TYPICALLY THE MORE PROGRESSIVE CITIES, CITIES TAKE CARE OF IT BECAUSE THEY WANNA MAKE SURE THAT IT'S DONE AND THEY WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE A, A COMPREHENSIVE SIDEWALK SYSTEM.
AND THEN TOO, SOMETIMES WHAT'S FOR NEW DEVELOPMENT, THE NEW DEVELOPMENT'S RESPONSIBLE FOR COMING IN, PUTTING THAT SIDEWALK IN, IN FRONT OF THEIR PROPERTY.
AND THAT'S KIND OF A EXISTING, WE CITY WOULD DO SOME THINGS, BUT A NEW DEVELOPER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PUTTING IN THOSE SIDEWALKS IN FRONT OF THEIR PROPERTY.
COUNCILMAN GETZ, YOU KNOW, TREES ARE THE BANE OF SIDEWALKS STREETS TOO, FOR THAT MATTER, AND THEY TEAR 'EM UP.
UH, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE US, IF POSSIBLE, CONSIDERED, UH, PARTNERING WITH THE CITIZENS IN THE FOLLOWING WAY.
YOU KNOW, THERE MIGHT BE CITIZENS THAT ARE WILLING TO BUY THE MATERIAL TO REPAIR A SIDEWALK, BUT THEY DON'T HAVE THE EXPERTISE AND THAT THERE'S A LACK OF CONTRACTORS AROUND HERE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE NOT HAD, UH, LOT OF PUBLIC INVESTMENT IN SIDEWALKS.
UH, I, I'M SORRY, PRIVATE INVESTMENT IN SIDEWALKS.
COULD, COULD WE DO SOMETHING WHERE IF A HOMEOWNER HAS A SIDEWALK IN FRONT OF THEIR PROPERTY THAT'S JUST DILAPIDATED, WHERE THEY WOULD AGREE TO PURCHASE THE MATERIAL THAT, UH, THE CITY COULD PROVIDE LABOR, UH, TO PUT THE SIDEWALK BACK IN, UH, PROPER CONDITION ACCORDING TO CITY SPECIFICATIONS.
UH, IS, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT COULD BE THOUGHT ABOUT? WE COULD CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, LOOK, SEE MAYBE IF THERE'S ANOTHER CITY'S DONE, A PROGRAM LIKE THAT AND, AND SEE WHAT IT WOULD ENTAIL.
CAUSE IN SOME CITIES, I'VE, I'VE BEEN IN, YOU KNOW, EVEN WITH THE COVERAGE INDUSTRY, IF THEY BOUGHT THE COVERAGE, THE CITY WOULD PUT IT IN, YOU KNOW, SO THERE ARE DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT YOU CAN DO FOR PARTNERSHIPS BASED UPON WHATEVER YOU YOU WANT TO DO.
UH, THE CITY FEELS GOOD ABOUT IT.
I I FIRMLY BELIEVE THAT YOU WOULD HAVE SOME CITIZEN SUPPORT FOR THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WOULD SAY, WELL, YEAH, I'LL BUY THE MATERIAL AND THE SUPPLIES, WHATEVER'S NECESSARY IF, IF Y'ALL COME AND MAKE IT LIKE Y'ALL WANT.
YOU KNOW, CITY'S SPECIFICATIONS REQUIRE, WELL, I, I, COUNCILMAN SAMUEL.
I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE A SESSION, A WORK SESSION ON HOW WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS PROGRAM BECAUSE, UH, I'M, I'M THINKING THAT THERE'S AN IMPORTANCE FOR IN, FOR SIDEWALKS, BUT THERE ARE SOME MAIN AIRFARES WHERE PEOPLE, THERE IS NO SIDEWALKS EXISTING.
PEOPLE ARE WALK, AND SOME NOT EVEN CURB AND GUTTER.
THEY'RE HAVING TO WALK ON THE SIDE OF A DITCH.
SO WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THAT BECAUSE IT BECOMES A PUBLIC SAFETY ISSUE ALSO.
SO I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING WE NEED TO DISCUSS IN A WORKSHOP AND HOW WE'RE GONNA MOVE FORWARD WITH DEALING WITH SIDEWALKS.
MAY, MAY, I, WE CAN BRING HIM BACK AT THE WORK SESSION, IF THAT WILL HELP EXPEDITE THINGS.
UH, THERE'S BEEN A NUMBER OF ROADS THAT HAVE BEEN IN THE C CIP P FOR CONSIDERATION IN THE PAST.
AND WITH THE EXPANSION TO A TRUE FIVE YEAR PROGRAM, WE TOOK A LOOK AT THAT LIST AND MOVED THOSE ROADS, UH, WITHIN THE YEARS WE FELT WERE WERE APPROPRIATE.
SO THE FIRST OF THOSE WOULD BE HIGHLAND AVENUE, SPANNING FY 25 AND 26.
AND THIS WOULD BE, UH, MILLING REPLACE OR FIXING BASE DOING BASE REPAIRS, UH, THAT ARE NECESSARY.
AND, AND DOING AN ASPHALT OVERLAY ENTIRE ON THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF HIGHLAND FROM
[03:20:01]
EQUID TO US.THE NEXT ONE'S AVENUE A, WHICH WOULD BE FY 26 27 FROM WASHINGTON TO COLLEGE.
UH, THE NEXT ONE IS PULLING, UM, OFF OF THAT TEXT DOT BRIDGE ASSESSMENT, BUT ACTUALLY REPLACING THE CALDER AVENUE BRIDGE AND WIDENING IT.
DOESN'T MEET CURRENT CODE, DOESN'T ALLOW FOR PEDESTRIAN ACCESS.
SO THIS WOULD REPLACE, UH, WIDEN AND ADD PEDESTRIAN ACCESS FOR THE CALDER AVENUE BRIDGE.
WH WHERE ON CALDER AVENUE? IT'S OVER THERE BY CALWOOD.
AND THEN THE NEXT ONE IS HIGHLAND AVENUE OVER THE L N V A.
IT WOULD REPLACE, UM, THAT BRIDGE.
IT HAS A NUMBER OF RE, UM, REPAIRS DEFICIENCIES IN IT.
UM, AND SO THIS WOULD REPLACE IT IN ITS ENTIRETY.
THE NEXT ONE IS BROADWAY FROM ML KING.
SO THAT'S MILL AND OVERLAY OF, OF BROADWAY DOWN THAT LENGTH IN 27 28.
UH, PARK STREET WOULD BE NEXT, 27 28 FROM, UH, M L K TO COLLEGE.
UH, NEXT ONE MOVES MORE TO RESIDENTIAL, MORE RESIDENTIAL AREA FOR PECOS FROM JAGUAR TO SEVENTH.
AND THEN, AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE'S A NUMBER OF ROADS STILL THAT WE HAVE FOR FUTURE CONSIDERATION, UM, THAT WE HAVE NOT PULLED UP.
UH, CAROL IN SYCAMORE STREET, DUETTE, UH, THE PLANNED DOWN ROAD EXTENSION EAST LUCAS ROAD REHAB, THAT'S FROM MAGNOLIA TO PINE, UH, GLADYS STREET.
THANK YOU, JIM GILLIGAN NATURES, AND THEN THE, THE FUTURE, UM, POINT PARKWAY NORTH.
ANY QUESTIONS ON THE STREETS? YES, SIR.
UH, BART, WE DISCUSSED AS A COUNCIL THAT THE 8 MILLION IS DIVIDED UP INTO FOUR WARS EQUALLY.
AND I KNOW WE HAVE A FAIRLY NEW COUNCIL WITH OUR NEW MAYOR, BUT ARE WE STILL LOOKING AT MAYBE PROPORTIONING OUT, OUT WHERE THE OLD WAR, WHICH WARS THREE AND WARS FOUR GET A LITTLE BIT MORE FUNDING TO ADDRESS THE NEEDS? BECAUSE I KNOW WE KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THIS LAST BUDGET SEASON.
I DON'T WANT TO MOVE PAST IT WITHOUT GETTING RIGHT CONFIRMATION IN WHICH DIRECTION WE'RE GOING IN.
WELL, THE, THE WARDS, AS Y'ALL KNOW, ARE SPLIT BY POPULATION.
UM, SO THAT'S HOW THE WARD LINES ARE DETERMINED.
BUT THE WARDS ARE NOT EQUALLY SPLIT ON ROAD MILES, UH, OR AGE OF THE ROADS WITHIN THE WARDS.
SO WARDS THREE AND FOUR HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE ROAD MILES, PARTICULARLY ASPHALT AND ROAD WARDS ONE AND TWO.
SO MY PLAN WAS WITH THIS CURRENT PAVEMENT CONDITION ASSESSMENT TO COME BACK TO Y'ALL WITH THE CURRENT CONDITION OF ALL THE ROADS WITHIN THOSE WARDS.
AND I'D LIKE TO PROPORTION THE MONEY BY ROAD MILE, UM, AND CONDITION AND NOT NECESSARILY AN EXACT 25 SPLIT, 25% SPLIT PER WARD.
UM, I THINK THAT'S A MORE RATIONAL WAY TO DO IT, IS TO SPLIT THE MONEY BY ROAD MILES THAT ARE IN NEED OF REPAIR AS OPPOSED TO BY WARD LINES.
AND MY SECOND QUESTION WAS, I KNOW WE PAID FOR A STUDY, I THINK IT WAS ROUGHLY $70,000 FOR OUR SEWER AND DRAINAGE, AND WE WERE GAVE INSTRUCTIONS TO DO A DIRECTIONAL FLUSHING PLAN.
UH, I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHERE ARE WE AT WITH THAT? ARE WE STILL WORKING ON IT? AND, YOU KNOW, I JUST WANT TO, I KNOW WE SPENT THAT MONEY, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE EXECUTING THAT, FOLLOWING THE PLANS OF THE ACTUAL RESULTS.
SO THE STUDY, WELL, THE, THE STUDY RECOMMENDED A NUMBER OF ASPECTS AND, AND REALLY WE SHOULD PROBABLY TALK ABOUT THIS WITH THE CHLORINE DIOXIDE, WHICH IS IN THE WATER.
NOT STREETS, BUT WE COULD BRING THAT UP.
DON'T WE FORGET IT? JUST, YEAH.
IN TERMS OF PROPORTIONING THE STREET REPAIRS AMONGST THE WARDS, AND WE'VE PREVIOUSLY DONE IT ON A 25% BASIS OF EACH WARD,
[03:25:01]
I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE MIGHT BE MORE CUMULATIVE ROAD MODELS IN SOME OF THE OLDER SECTIONS OF THE CITY, BUT AS LONG AS WE HAVE THE $2 MILLION IN ROAD MODELS, UH, INWARDS ONE AND TWO THAT STILL NEED TO BE DONE, YOU'RE NOT SUGGESTING THAT WE SHIFT THAT MONEY IN TOWARDS THREE AND FOUR TO DO PAVEMENT REPAIRS AND, AND NOT TAKE CARE OF THE NEEDS THAT ARE STILL IN ONE AND TWO, ARE YOU, I'M SUGGESTING THAT WE NEED TO SPLIT THE $8 MILLION BASED ON ROAD MILES AND NOT BASED ON WARD LINES, WHICH ARE CUT BY POPULATION.SO IT WOULD SHIFT MONEY FROM WARDS ONE AND TWO TOWARDS WARDS THREE AND FOUR SLIGHTLY BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENCE IN THE ROAD MODELS.
WHEN, WHEN YOU SAY SLIGHTLY, I MEAN, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? BECAUSE I THINK THAT WE CAN ALL AGREE THAT EVERY WARD HAS STREETS THAT NEED TO BE REPAIRED, RIGHT? AND WILL ALWAYS HAVE STREETS THAT NEED TO BE REPAIRED.
AND WHEN WE'RE USING OUR TAXPAYER DOLLARS, UH, A LOT OF WHICH COMES FROM ONE AND TWO, UH, I THINK THAT THOSE RESIDENTS WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THEIR ROADS ARE REPAIRED AS WELL.
SO IF WE ARE TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, ALLOCATING A FUNDS BASED ON ROAD MILES, UM, THERE'S PROBABLY ROAD MILES AND WARDS ONE AND TWO THAT NEED TO BE CONSIDERED AS WELL.
ONE AND TWO ALSO HAS A HIGHER PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX.
AND I EXPECT THAT TO CONTINUE IN THE, THE STUDY THAT'S COMING BACK.
SO WHEN I COME BACK TO YOU, I'LL ALSO BE SHOWING THE CONDITION OF THE ROAD MILES WITHIN THERE, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY IF ROADS ARE IN POOR REPAIR, WE NEED TO ADDRESS 'EM NO MATTER WHERE THEY ARE.
YEAH, BUT AS YOU SAID BEFORE, THE, THE ROADS AND WARD THREE AND FOUR ARE OLDER, THEY'RE ASPHALT.
AND LIKE YOU SAID, AS YOU SAID, I GET OLDER, A ROAD IS THE MORE ROAD MILES IT'S GONNA HAVE.
SO WHAT'S IMPORTANT IS TO TRY TO CATCH UP THE STREETS IN WARD THREE AND FOUR WITH THE STREETS.
AND THE ONLY WAY WE COULD DO THAT IS SHIFTING THE MONEY TO WHERE IT'S MOST NEEDED.
AND I'M PRETTY SURE YOU'RE NOT GONNA JUST STOP DOING REPAIRS IN ROAD ONE AND TWO.
WE'RE TRYING TO CATCH WARD THREE AND FOUR UP TO WHERE ALL OF THE ROADS IN THE CITY ARE EVEN.
AND IT'S GONNA TAKE, SHIFTING SOME MONEY AROUND.
IT'S NOT GONNA COMPLETELY STOP DOING WORK ON WARD ONE AND TWO, BUT IT'S GONNA TRY TO CATCH UP THE STREETS IN WARD THREE AND FOUR, CORRECT? CORRECT.
AND, AND THIS, WHAT I WANT TO, UM, EMPHASIZE THOUGH, IS THAT THERE ARE, AT LEAST I'M SPEAKING FOR WARD TWO NOW, PLENTY OF PLACES IN WARD TWO WHERE WE HAVE ASPHALT ROADS.
UH, I'M THINKING OF, UH, SOME OF THE OLDER SECTIONS OF WARD TWO.
A LOT OF THE NEWER DEVELOPMENTS ARE CONCRETE AND THOSE ROADS ARE IN BETTER CONDITION.
I, I, I AGREE THAT, BUT THERE'S STILL A LOT OF ROAD MODELS IN WARD TWO FOR SURE.
THERE ARE ASPHALT ROADS THAT ARE GONNA CONTINUE TO NEED REPAIR AND REPLACEMENT.
WELL, I DON'T THINK HE'S SUGGESTING HE GONNA STOP REPAIRING.
I MEAN, UH, WARD TWO, WHAT HE'S SAYING IS IT NEED MORE WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE IN WARD THREE AND FOUR.
AND COUNCILMAN SAMUEL, WELL, I'M NOT GONNA BEAT THIS HORSE TODAY.
I THINK WE HAVE TO HAVE A WORKSHOP, BUT IN ORDER FOR THERE TO BE PARODY THROUGHOUT THE CITY, THERE'S GONNA HAVE TO BE EQUITY AND NOT NECESSARILY EQUALLY SPENDING OF FUNDS.
SO THAT'S AN ISSUE THAT WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO DEAL WITH.
SO THE ANNUAL DEAD END FLUSHING.
THIS IS FOR PURCHASE OF ACTUAL HARDWARE MOUTH MANUAL AND AUTOMATED, UH, TO FACILITATE DEAD END FLUSHING REQUIRED BY T C E Q.
THAT'S BEEN IN THE BUDGET PREVIOUS YEARS.
UH, THIS JUST EXTENDS IT OUT THE FIVE YEARS, THE ANNUAL WATER PRODUCTION SYSTEM REPAIRS.
UM, THERE'S A, THERE'S A LARGE AMOUNT OF ITEMS THROUGHOUT, UH, WATER PRODUCTION THAT DON'T HAVE SPECIFIC CAPITAL PROJECTS, BUT THEY'RE CAPITAL IN NATURE THAT COME UP EACH YEAR.
AND THIS IS TO FACILITATE THOSE REPAIRS.
IN THE PAST WE'VE REDONE, UH, CHLORINE RESIDUAL INJECTORS, ET CETERA,
[03:30:01]
UM, THROUGH THEIR REPLACE PUMPS.THE NEXT ITEM IS ANNUAL WATER LINE REPLACEMENT.
THIS HAS TRADITIONALLY BEEN IN THERE TO THE TUNE OF ABOUT 2 MILLION, AND YOU'LL SEE THE JUMP IN FY 2025.
AND WE PUT IT OUT THAT FAR SPECIFICALLY TO NOT HAVE TO GO BACK OUT FOR, UM, A BOND, UM, ANY SOONER.
BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE REPLACING APPROXIMATELY 0.3% OF THE WATER LINES IN THE CITY WITH THAT 2 MILLION.
UM, SO THAT IF WE CONTINUE AT THAT RATE, THAT MEANS WE'RE ASSUMING THAT EACH PIPE WE PUT IN THE GROUND HAS A 344 YEAR LIFE CYCLE.
UM, SO WHAT WE'RE DOING BY BUMPING IT UP TO 8.75, 5,000,025, AND THEN WE CONTINUE INCREASING, UM, WITH EXPECTED RATE OF INFLATION IN SUBSEQUENT YEARS, THAT'S TRYING TO RATCHET US UP TO A 1.25% REPLACEMENT.
UH, THAT GETS US TO AN 80 YEAR LIFE CYCLE.
SO WHEN WE PUT THAT PIPE IN THE GROUND, WE'RE EXPECTING IT TO LAST FOR 80 YEARS RATHER THAN 344 YEARS.
UM, THERE'S, THERE'S, UH, 865 MILES OF WATERLINE WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, APPROXIMATELY.
SO I REALIZE THIS IS A BIG DOLLAR INCREASE.
BUT, UM, WHILE WE'VE ADDRESSED A LOT OF SEWER LINE REPLACEMENT, WE QUITE FRANKLY HAVE NOT ADDRESSED WATERLINE REPLACEMENT WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, AND WE'VE GOT TO DO SO AT A POINT GOING FORWARD.
SO, UM, I'M PROJECTING TO START THAT IN 2025, AND THAT'LL FEED INTO THAT WATER RATE, UH, STUDY THAT'S GOING ON, THE WATER TRANSMISSION LINE REHAB.
UH, THE NEXT LINE ITEM, THESE ARE EXPOSED LINES THAT ARE ABOVE GROUND, AND THIS IS TO GO IN, BLAST THEM, UH, REMOVE ANY RUST AND, AND PAINT THOSE TO KEEP 'EM IN GOOD SHAPE, UH, DOWN THE ROAD.
THE NEXT TWO ITEMS ARE THE COLLIER'S FERRY PUMP STATION AND THE, UH, ACCOMPANYING WATERLINE DOWN PINE TO BRING THE WATER FROM THAT PUMP STATION TO THE PINE STREET PLANT.
AND, UH, THE COLLIER'S FERRY PUMP STATIONS UNDERWAY.
THE WATER LINES, UH, DO TO BE UNDERWAY HERE FAIRLY SOON.
PINE STREET WATER PRODUCTION PLANT CHEMICAL IMPROVEMENTS, THIS IS TO MAINLY INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF, UH, CHEMICAL STORAGE ON SITE PER T C Q REQUIREMENTS.
UM, IT ALSO, UM, REPLACES THE POLYMER SYSTEM AT, AT THE PLANT, UM, WITHIN THAT PROJECT.
THEN THE SOUTH, UH, BASIN SLUDGE, UM, WE HAVE A NUMBER OF BASINS THAT PULL SOLIDS OUT OF THE WATER AT THE PLANT.
THOSE BASINS ARE DESIGNED, UH, TO BE ABLE TO BE DRAINED AND THEN CLEANED.
AND THOSE DRAINS ARE NOT WORKING PROPERLY OUT OF THE BASIN.
SO THIS IS TO ADDRESS THE, THE DEFICIENCIES AND THOSE DRAINS TO ALLOW US TO, TO USE IN-HOUSE PERSONNEL TO CLEAN THEM ON A PERIODIC BASIS.
THE SOUTHWEST ELEVATED STORAGE TANK REHAB, THAT'S, UH, THAT'S UNDERWAY NOW AND WE'LL FINISH UP IN, IN 2024 LOBE MOTOR STARTER AND ELECTRICAL IMPROVEMENTS.
SO WE HAD SOME CONTINUING WORK TO FINISH OUT HARVEY DAMAGE AT LOBE.
UM, THIS ALSO IMPROVES BY LIFTING THE GENERATOR UP ABOVE WHAT THE FLOOD LEVEL WAS DURING HARVEY, AS WELL AS SOME OTHER ELECTRICAL GEAR.
IT ALSO CHANGES THE ELECTRICAL VOLTAGE DOWN FROM IT'S EITHER 24 2700 VOLTS NOW DOWN TO FOUR 80, MAKING IT MORE AFFORDABLE AND EASIER FOR OUR PEOPLE TO, TO REPAIR THAT WITHOUT BRINGING OUTSIDE CONTRACTORS IN AND PUT MOTOR STARTERS ON ALL THE PUMPS.
WHEN LOEB WAS BROUGHT UP IMMEDIATELY AFTER HARVEY TO GET IT OPERATIONAL, THEY PUT TWO MOTOR STARTERS FOR FOUR PUMPS, AND IT REQUIRES YOU TO SWAP 'EM AROUND.
AND SO THIS GETS US BACK TO A MOTOR STARTER PER PUMP AS WELL.
THE ORANGE AVENUE WATER MAIN REHAB, THIS IS A 20 INCH CAST IRON WATER LINE CROSSING NEAR ORANGE AVENUE.
UM, THE REASON WHY THAT COST IS SO HIGH IS THAT GOES UNDER FIVE RAILROAD TRACKS.
UM, SO THAT'S, TO GET THAT, THAT LINE REPLACED UNDER FIVE DIFFERENT TRACKS.
[03:35:01]
TURNER'S, UH, PIECE ON DISCOLORED WATER.SO THE PINE STREET, UM, WATER PRODUCTION PLANT ADDING CHLORINE DIOXIDE TO IT.
IT'S A $2.5 MILLION PROJECT THAT'LL WRAP UP AN FY 25.
THIS WAS THE MAIN STEP THAT THE STUDY RECOMMENDED TO PREVENT DISCOLORED WATER IN THE SYSTEM.
SO DISCOLORED WATER IS CAUSED BY IRON AND MANGANESE, WHICH CURRENTLY IS SUSPENDED IN THE WATER BY MEANS OF A POLYMER THAT'S ADDED AT PINE.
AND AS LONG AS THE WATER DOESN'T AGE TOO MUCH, IT REMAINS SUSPENDED.
BUT IF IT AGES A LITTLE TOO LONG, THOSE, UH, THOSE MINERALS DEPOSIT WITHIN THE WATER LINES AND FORM SEDIMENT.
AND THEN IF YOU HAVE DISRUPTIONS IN THE WATER LINES, WATER LINE BREAK, UM, YOU HAVE A FIRE AND YOU CRANK OPEN A BUNCH OF FIRE HYDRANTS, THEN IT'LL STIR UP THAT SEDIMENT AND IT DISCOLORS THE WATER.
SO THE MAIN RECOMMENDATION BY THE CONSULTANT WAS TO CHANGE FROM SUSPENDING THOSE MINERALS IN THE WATER TO REMOVING THEM AT THE PINE STREET PLANT.
UM, AND THEN QUESTION ON THAT BEFORE WE YES SIR.
DID WE HAVE A CHLORINE DIOXIDE, UH, GENERATOR AT THE PLANT BEFORE THAT WE JUST NEVER USED OR THAT WE TRIED TO USE WHAT? THERE WAS ONE ADDED AROUND 2010, AND I BELIEVE IT WAS PRIMARILY SUPPOSED TO, UH, BE IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE CHLORINE, THE AMMONIA AND CHLORINE THAT'S ADDED TO, TO HAVE ADDITIONAL DISINFECTION.
BUT WHEN THEY TURNED IT ON, UH, IT DID ITS JOB IN TERMS OF REMOVING THE IRON AM MANGANESE.
BUT THE INJECTION POINT WAS RIGHT BEFORE THE FILTERS, AND SO IT JUST CLOGGED THE FILTERS.
MY UNDERSTANDING, IT WAS ONLY USED FOR VERY, VERY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME AND TURNED BACK OFF.
SO IT WAS JUST LOCATED IN THE WRONG LOCATION SO THAT IT MADE IT INEFFECTIVE TO BE ABLE TO BE USED AGAIN.
I THINK THAT IT WAS, THIS WAS PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION.
I WASN'T INVOLVED AT THE TIME.
UH, I BELIEVE THEY WERE PRIMARILY USING IT FOR DISINFECTION PURPOSES, NOT INTENDING TO REMOVE THE IRON AND THE MANGANESE TO THAT LEVEL.
AND SO WHERE IT WAS PUT RESULTED IN REMOVING THE IRON AND MANGANESE AND IT WAS TO THE DETRIMENT OF THE FILTERS.
MAYOR? YES, BART, DID YOU SAY WHEN THIS SHOULD COME ONLINE? IT SHOULD COME ONLINE IN 2025.
SO THE, TO COUNCILMAN TURNER'S POINT, ONE OF THE OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS WAS DIRECTIONAL FLUSH DIRECTIONAL FLUSHING IN THE SYSTEM WILL REMOVE THE SEDIMENT THAT'S BEEN DEPOSITED IN THE WATERLINES THROUGHOUT THE DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM.
AND THE PRIMARY RECOMMENDATION WAS TO DEVELOP THAT PROGRAM ONCE YOU'VE STOPPED ADDING IRON AND MANGANESE INTO THE LINES TO USE THE DIRECTIONAL FLUSHING TO GET THE SEDIMENT THAT'S IN THE LINES ALREADY OUT.
AND SO THAT'S, THAT'S THE IMPORTANT PART TO, TO GET THAT DONE AFTER YOU START REMOVING THE, THE IRON AND THE MANGANESE OUT.
OKAY, THE NEXT ITEM'S, BUNS CANAL RE REHABILITATION.
WE TAKE WATER FROM ABOVE THE SALT WATER BARRIER.
WE BRING IT BACK TO THE RIVER IN AN OPEN WATER CANAL ENDING THEN UNDER THE RIVER THROUGH PIPES.
THIS, THIS IS TO, UM, ADDRESS DETERIORATION OVER THE YEARS OF THAT CANAL AND RESTORE IT BACK TO ITS CARRYING CAPACITY UPON DESIGN.
THE LAWSON'S CANAL MAINTENANCE PROJECT, THIS IS TO FIX THE DAMAGE FROM HARVEY ON LAWSON'S CANAL TO WHERE WE CAN KEEP LAWSON'S CANAL AS A BACKUP TO COLLIER FERRY.
IT'S PREDOMINANTLY FUNDED WITH FEMA MONEY, UM, BECAUSE OF THE DAMAGE FROM HARVEY, THE PINE STREET TREATED WATER RESILIENCY LINE.
THERE'S TWO LINES THAT PUMP FINISH WATER OUT OF THE PINE STREET PLANT.
AND BOTH OF THOSE LINES ARE VERY, VERY OLD.
THIS IS TO ADD ONE MORE LINE FOR TREATED WATER OUT OF THE PINE STREET PLANT, IN ADDITION TO FOUR VALVES TO ALLOW US TO ISOLATE LINES.
AND SO THE INTENTION IS TO PUT THIS LINE IN AND THEN USE THOSE VALVES TO SHUT OFF SOME OF THE OLDER LINES, ASSESS THE CONDITION OF 'EM, AND THEN WE CAN DETERMINE WHETHER THEY NEED TO BE REPLACED AND, AND WITH WHAT SENSE OF URGENCY ON THAT TRANSMISSION LINE.
INSPECTIONS FOR LOBE, THERE'S TWO LINES THAT BRING WATER FROM LOEB TO THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
BOTH OF THOSE DATE BACK TO THE BEGINNING OF LOEB BEING PUT IN IN
[03:40:01]
THE FIFTIES.THIS IS TO INSPECT THOSE LINES, UH, DETERMINE THE CONDITION OF 'EM, FIND OUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE USEFUL LIFESPAN OF 'EM IS GOING FORWARD.
THE NEXT ONE IS TO REPLACE OR REPLACE A LOT OF OBSOLETE COMPONENTS WITHIN THE SCADA SYSTEM OR THE, UH, COMPUTERIZED CONTROL SYSTEM FOR THE PINE STREET, UH, PLANT.
AND THEN UPDATE THE SOFTWARE FOR THAT.
AND THEN YOU'LL SEE A FEW OF THESE GOING THROUGH.
WE'VE DONE TANK REHABS BEFORE, AND THIS IS TO LINE 'EM OUT OVER THE FIVE YEAR PERIOD.
SO THE NEXT TANK REHAB IS THE PRISON GROUND STORAGE IN FY 24, THE LEAD AND COPPER INVESTIGATION.
WE'VE DONE 400 AND SOMETHING POTHOLES OF SERVICE LINES IN THE CITY.
WE HAVE NOT FOUND ANY LEAD YET.
UH, WE FOUND SOME GALVANIZED, BUT THE EPA IS REQUIRING THAT.
WE GO THROUGH AND WE ASSESS THE COMPLETE INVENTORY OF THE WATER LINES THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND THIS IS TO FUND THE INVESTIGATION.
AND THEN POTENTIAL REPLACEMENT.
ANYTHING WE FIND LAWSON'S PUMP STATION REPAIRS.
ONCE CALLIER SPARES UP AND RUNNING, WE SHUT LAWSONS DOWN.
THOSE PUMPS HAVE RUN CONTINUOUSLY SINCE LAWSON WAS PUT IN.
THIS IS JUST TO PULL 'EM OUT AND DO SOME REHAB ON THEM.
THERE'S THREE GENERATORS AT THE PINE STREET PLANT.
THOSE GENERATORS RUN IN TANDEM TO PROVIDE POWER TO THE PLANT.
ONE OF THOSE GENERATORS IS SUBSTANTIALLY OLDER THAN THE OTHER TWO.
THIS IS TO REPLACE THE OLDEST ONE AND UPGRADE IT SLIGHTLY, UH, FOR PLANT REPO IMPROVEMENTS.
AND THEN, LIKE I'D MENTIONED EARLIER, THIS DROPS IN SOME ADDITIONAL TANK REHABILITATION FOR ELEVATED STORAGE TANKS THROUGHOUT TOWN.
SO THE SOUTH ELEVATED AND FY 25 NORTHWEST ELEVATED AND 26 DISHMAN ELEVATED IN 27.
AND THAT WILL ONLY LEAVE THE LOBE CONCRETE GROUND, WHICH IS LEFT IN FUTURE CONSIDERATION.
THE FIRST FOUR ITEMS IN FUTURE CONSIDERATION, THE PINE STREET WATERLINE REPLACEMENT ONE THROUGH FOUR.
THIS, UH, THESE ARE THOSE TWO EXISTING TREATED WATERLINES COMING OUT OF THE PINE STREET PLANT SEPARATED INTO FOUR SEGMENTS.
SO THESE ARE JUST PROJECTING IF WE INSPECT THEM AND WE FIND THAT THEY'RE IN NEED OF REPLACEMENT, IT, THIS IS OUR ROUGH ESTIMATE AT THE PRESENT TIME OF WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO DO SO.
AND THEN THE FINAL ITEM ON HERE IS THE DESLUDGING PROJECT.
CURRENTLY WE REMOVE SOLIDS OUT OF WATER AT THE PINE STREET PLANT AND WE PUT IT IN THE SANITARY SEWER SYSTEM, WHICH IS NOT THE BEST BECAUSE IT TENDS TO, UM, CAUSE BLOCKAGES WITHIN THAT LINE AS IT SOLIDIFIES.
SO THIS IS TO CHANGE FROM DOING THAT TO DRYING OUT THE SLUDGE ON SITE AND THEN TRUCKING IT OFF INSTEAD OF PUTTING IT IN THE SANITARY SUPER.
IF YOU FLIP THE PAGE, THE WESTWATER TREATMENT PLANT HAS BEEN LEFT ON THERE CUZ WE WERE STILL TRYING TO PURSUE GRANT FUNDING.
AND THEN THE TWO TECH DOT PROJECTS ARE FULLY REIMBURSABLE BY TECH DOT THEIR WATER, UM, IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE NECESSARY AS PART OF THE I 10 PROJECT.
AND THE FINAL TWO ITEMS ON HERE ARE THE DOEN AND POINT PARKWAY NORTH POTENTIAL ROAD PROJECTS.
THIS WOULD BE THE WATER LINE PORTION OF THOSE PROJECTS.
AND THAT COMPLETES ALL OF THE WATER IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS.
YES, MARY MAY I, WE'RE, WE'RE RUNNING SHORT ON TIME AND WE CAN COMPLETE THE REST OF THE C I P TO COUNSEL.
I KNOW WE HAVE SOME PEOPLE HERE WHO LOOK LIKE, WANT TO GET A HOMELESS DISCUSSION FOR SURE.
AND I WILL, IF YOU WOULD ENTERTAIN GO INTO THAT AGENDA ITEM AND HAVING THAT DISCUSSION SO WE CAN MAKE IT THROUGH O'CLOCK COUNCIL MEETING AHEAD.
UNLESS THERE'S SOME OBJECTIONS.
ALRIGHT, WELL LET'S TAKE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK.
[6. Homelessness]
YOU WANT TO BRING US INTO THE HOMELESSNESS? YES, MA'AM.UH, WE HAVE A DISCUSSION TODAY OR FIRST WITH THE PRESENTATION BY, UH, ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER CHRIS BOONE ON THE HOMELESSNESS SITUATION.
SO, UH, CHRIS, IF YOU GET US STARTED ON THAT, I'D APPRECIATE IT.
SO THE NEXT, UM, THE NEXT TOPIC IS
[03:45:01]
HOMELESSNESS.UM, AND PARTICULARLY, UH, WE'VE HAD AN INCREASE OF HOMELESS CAMPS, UH, IN CERTAIN AREAS OF THE CITY.
AND SO, UH, THIS IS A DIFFICULT ISSUE.
UH, CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE FACING, UH, HOW TO DEAL WITH THIS ISSUE.
UM, THIS NEXT SLIDE REALLY KIND OF, UH, IDENTIFIES THE REASONS BEHIND HOMELESSNESS.
SO AGAIN, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, MENTAL ILLNESS, UH, CERTAIN LIFE EVENTS.
AND THEN YOU'VE GOT SOME FOLKS WHO JUST DESIRE TO LIVE OFF THE GRID.
AND SO, AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, THERE'S SOME, CERTAINLY SOME OVERLAP IN TERMS OF THESE POPULATIONS.
BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN, UH, ON THE IMPACT OF COMMUNITY IN TERMS OF HOMELESSNESS AND HOMELESS CAMPS IN PARTICULARLY, UH, PARTICULAR.
SO YOU'VE GOT, UH, SANITATION AND PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUES, DRUG ISSUE, DRUG USE, PROSTITUTION, AND THEN DIRECT IMPACTS TO SURROUNDING NEIGHBORHOODS.
SO ENJOYMENT OF PROPERTY SAFETY, DEVALUATION OF PROPERTY, DISCOURAGING INVESTMENT AND REINVESTMENT, UH, AND DISPARATE IMPACT ON OLDER PARTS OF THE CITY.
UH, LESS IMPACT IN NEWER PARTS OF THE CITY.
SO AGAIN, CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE STRUGGLING WITH THIS ISSUE.
AS MENTIONED IN THE PRIOR SLIDE, SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT CAUSE HOMELESSNESS ARE SOME OF THE MOST COMPLEX ISSUES THAT WE FACE.
SUBSTANCE ABUSE, MENTAL ILLNESS, UH, APART FROM ECONOMIC, UH, STRESSES, CITIES THEMSELVES HAVE BEEN LEFT TO STRUGGLE WITH THE ISSUE WITH WHAT APPEARS TO BE MAYBE DECREASING ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL, STATE, AND OFTEN COUNTY ASSISTANCE BECAUSE TRYING TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES ARE SO EXPENSIVE, UM, IN ORDER TO DEAL WITH.
AND SO CITIES, AGAIN, AS THIS ISSUE INCREASES, UH, THEY'RE LEFT TO TRY TO NOT FIX THE ISSUE, BUT TRY TO MANAGE, UM, THE ISSUE WITH AN INCREASINGLY COMPLICATED LEGAL LANDSCAPE.
AND SO I'LL TOUCH ON THIS JUST BRIEFLY.
UM, THE CITY OF BOISE, UM, THE CASE OF MARTIN VERSUS CITY OF BOISE WAS A RATHER RECENT CASE WHICH CHALLENGED THE CITY OF BO'S ENFORCEMENT OF ITS CAMPING AND DISORDERLY CONDUCT ORDINANCES AGAINST PERSONS EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
SO IN 19, IN 2021, THE CITY SETTLED A LAWSUIT BY AGREEING TO SPEND 1.3 MILLION FOR ADDITIONAL SHELTER SPACES, 435,000 FOR THE PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY FEES, AND AGREED TO AMEND ORDINANCES ON PUBLIC SLEEPING AS WELL AS TO TRAIN THEIR POLICE NOT TO ARREST INDIVIDUALS OR ISSUES CITATIONS WHEN THERE'S NO SHELTER SPACE AVAILABLE.
SO THESE ARE THE KIND OF, UH, LEGAL ISSUES THAT CITIES NOW ARE INCREASINGLY FACING IN, IN AS THEY TRY TO ADDRESS THE ISSUE.
MORE RECENTLY, YOU HAVE BROWN VERSUS CITY OF PHOENIX.
AND IN THIS CASE, AGAIN, HERE'S A SITUATION WHERE THE CITY IS STUCK IN THE MIDDLE IN TERMS OF WHAT TO DO.
UM, THIS IS A CASE AGAIN IN PHOENIX WHERE THE PLAINTIFFS ARE, ARE ALLEGING THAT THE CITY REFUSED TO ENFORCE CRIMINAL AND QUALITY OF LIFE LAWS PROHIBITING, LOITERING, DISTURBING THE PEACE DRUNKEN IN DISORDERLY CONDUCT, DRUG USE, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND OBSTRUCTION OF STREETS, SIDEWALKS, AND OTHER PUBLIC GROUNDS INSIDE WHAT THEY REFER TO AS THE ZONE, WHICH IS A HOME HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT AREA.
THIS TRIAL IS NOT SET UNTIL JULY, BUT IN THE INTERIM, THE MARICOPA COUNTY SUPERIOR JUDGE HAS ISSUED A INTERIM ORDER ORDERING THE CITY TO CLEAN UP THESE CAMPS.
SO AGAIN, THE CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE KIND OF STUCK IN BETWEEN, UH, THIS VERY, VERY COMPLICATED ISSUE IN HOW TO TRY TO ADDRESS IT LOOKING MORE LOCALLY.
THESE ARE JUST SOME PHOTOGRAPHS WE'VE CAPTURED FROM AROUND BEAUMONT.
UH, THIS IS A LOCATION DOWNTOWN IN A VACANT BUILDING.
UH, THIS IS A PHOTOGRAPH OF A HOMELESS CAMP THAT, UH, KIND OF CROPPED UP A FEW YEARS BACK AND, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THIS IN A SECOND.
WHEREAS A LOT OF HOMELESS CAMPS USED TO BE IN MORE REMOTE AREAS, THEY ARE NOW CROPPING UP WITHIN RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS.
THIS IS A AERIAL FOOTAGE FROM 2018.
THIS IS, YOU CAN'T REALLY SEE, BUT BASICALLY MLK IS TO THE TOP RIGHT CORNER.
THIS IS A RAILROAD TRACK JUST WEST OF THAT.
IF YOU LOOK TO THE KIND OF BOTTOM LEFT OF THE FRAME, YOU'LL SEE SOME BLUE SPOTS WITHIN THE WOODS.
THOSE ARE CAMPS WITHIN THE WOODS, BUT YOU CAN SEE THEY'RE WELL, WELL AWAY FROM NEIGHBORHOODS.
UM, BASICALLY IN AN INDUSTRIAL AREA OF THE CITY.
FAST FORWARD TO 2019, YOU CAN SEE WHERE THEY SHIFTED A LITTLE BIT TO THE EAST.
[03:50:02]
AND THEN YOU SEE IN 2023, THEY'RE GONE.AND SO A LOT OF TIMES WHAT HAPPENS IS, WHETHER IT'S RAILROAD PROPERTY OR OTHER PROPERTY OWNERS, THEY WILL, UH, ASK THESE FOLKS TO MOVE OUT OF THEIR PROPERTY.
THE QUESTION IS, WHERE DO THEY GO? SO MORE RECENTLY IS THE LAST LEGISLATIVE SESSION.
UH, HB 1925 WAS APPROVED, UH, ENACTED IN 2021, SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR, AND IT BANS ENCAMPMENTS IN ALL PUBLIC AREAS.
UH, SO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS CAN CHOOSE TO DESIGNATE SPACE ON GOVERNMENT OWNED PROPERTIES FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS.
BUT YOU HAVE TO GET THE CAMP ESSENTIALLY APPROVED BY THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY AFFAIRS.
AGAIN, THIS IS FOR PUBLIC PROPERTIES.
AND THE T D H C A GUIDELINES, UH, REQUIRE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND CONSIDERATION OF HEALTHCARE, AVAILABILITY, OF INDIGENT CARE, ACCESS TO PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION, LAW ENFORCEMENT RESOURCES, MENTAL HEALTH COORDINATION.
AND FOR THOSE FOLKS THAT VIOLATE THIS, IT'S A CLASS C MISDEMEANOR UP TO $500 FINE FOR CAMPING IN A PUBLIC SPACE.
UM, SO CITIES MUST COMPLY WITH THE BAN, CANNOT ADOPT ANY POLICY THAT PROHIBITS OR DISCOURAGES THE ENFORCEMENT OF THE BAND BAN.
AND SO THIS IS A KIND OF A ROUGH, A ROUGH MAP OF WHERE SOME CAMPS WERE BACK IN 2019.
YOU PROBABLY RECALL, RECALL IN BEAUMONT WHERE THERE WERE A LOT OF CAMPS ALONG THE INTERSTATE UNDER OVERPASSES.
UH, SO WITH HB 1925 COMING ONLINE, WHAT YOU SEE WAS THOSE ARE CLEARED AND NOW YOU SEE MORE SHIFTING INTO NEIGHBORHOODS IN TERMS OF WHAT DOES OUR HOMELESS POPULATION LOOK LIKE IN BEAUMONT EVERY YEAR, HUD MANDATES THAT WE DO WHAT'S CALLED A POINT IN TIME COUNT OR PIT COUNT.
UH, THIS IS, THESE ARE THE NUMBERS SINCE 2017 FOR JEFFERSON ORANGE AND HARDEN COUNTY.
SO YOU CAN SEE IN 2017 WE HAD ABOUT 400, UH, IN 2023 WE'RE DOWN TO TWO 90 FOR THE THREE COUNTY AREAS.
IF YOU LOOK AT BEAUMONT PROPER, IT'S 2 35.
NOW, THESE, THESE NUMBERS, PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE ACCEPTS THAT THEY'RE PROBABLY LOWER THAN THEY ACTUALLY ARE.
UH, BUT THESE ARE THE BEST NUMBERS THAT WE HAVE.
SO YOU CAN SEE FROM THE LAST SIX OR SO YEARS, UH, THERE HASN'T BEEN A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE COUNT.
SO IN TERMS OF THE AVAILABLE SHELTERING, UH, SALVATION ARMY, UH, DOES HAVE FACILITY, UM, AND YOU CAN SEE THEY HAVE ROUGHLY, THEY'RE ABLE TO HOUSE ABOUT 50 TO 60, UH, INDIVIDUALS AT THEIR FACILITY.
AND JUST GOING BACK TO, AGAIN, OUR MOST RECENT COUNT, BEAUMONT 235.
SO AGAIN, THE PURPOSE OF TODAY'S, UH, DISCUSSION POINT IS FOR STAFF TO TRY TO HAVE SOME, OR DETERMINE SOME GUIDANCE FROM COUNCIL IN TERMS OF HOW TO MOVE FORWARD, UH, WITHIN THE CITY OF BEAUMONT.
UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, WE, WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT, UM, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT SHELTERING OPTIONS.
UM, YOU KNOW, LOOKING ACROSS OTHER CITIES, OTHER STATES, YOU KNOW, WHAT THAT CAN LOOK LIKE CAN RANGE FROM, UH, $50 TO $500,000 PER YEAR PER PERSON, JUST DEPENDING ON HOW MUCH, HOW MANY SERVICES YOU ALLOT TO THE ISSUE.
AND AGAIN, GOING BACK TO THE COMPLEXITY OF THE ISSUE, YOU THINK WE'LL JUST PROVIDE A, AN APARTMENT FOR THEM OR JUST PROVIDE A SHELTER FOR THEM.
BUT IN, IN THE CASE OF MANY, UH, OF THESE FOLKS WHO ARE AFFECTED BY HOMELESSNESS, THEY NEED, THEY NEED CASE MANAGEMENT.
THEY NEED TO BE SURROUNDED, UH, WITH, UM, SERVICES.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE IT STARTS TO GET, GET MUCH, MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE.
UM, THE NEXT POINT I MENTIONED, THE PALLET SHELTERS YOU MAY HAVE SEEN IN OTHER CITIES WHERE THEY HAVE THE TINY HOUSE OR THE TENT CAMPING, THESE PALLET SHELTERS, UM, AND I'LL JUMP AHEAD AND SHOW YOU A PICTURE OF THEM.
UM, THESE ARE BECOMING POPULAR IN SOME CITIES, UH, BECAUSE IT DOES PROVIDE A, A DEGREE OF SHELTER MORE THAN A TENT, BUT LESS THAN MAYBE A FULL FACILITY.
UH, THESE CAN RANGE DEPENDING ON THE AMENITIES YOU PROVIDE FROM 10 TO 12,000, UH, PER, AND AGAIN, WITH FACILITIES REQUIRED IN LAND, UH, PLUS
[03:55:01]
THE COST, THE ONGOING COST OF HOW OF MAINTAINING, UH, THE PROPERTY, YOU KNOW, IT COULD RANGE DEPENDING ON THE NUMBER YOU HAVE UP TO A MILLION DOLLARS MILLION AND A HALF A YEAR.AGAIN, AS MENTIONED, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING COMMUNITY AFFAIRS NEEDS TO APPROVE THESE.
UM, SO IF YOU LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, THE OBSTACLE, IF WE WERE TO GO DOWN THIS, THIS PATH OF PROVIDING SOME DIRECT SHELTER, UM, ONE OF THE OBSTACLES OF COURSE WE WOULD HAVE WOULD BE FUNDING.
I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE FUNDING.
UM, BEAUMONT ITSELF IS, DOES NOT HAVE THE BENEFIT OF BEING, OF COURSE, A HOUSTON, AUSTIN OR SAN ANTONIO, UM, WHERE YOU HAVE DIRECT FUNDING ALLOCATED TO THE ISSUE.
UM, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT IN A SECOND.
THIS, THIS IS AN INTERESTING STATISTIC.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE, OUR COUNT OF HOMELESS PER 10,000, IT'S 22 PER 10 ROUGHLY IN BEAUMONT, WHEREAS AUSTIN HAS 22 OR 10,000 ROUGHLY.
CAN I BRING THAT UP? BECAUSE AGAIN, AS I MENTIONED, THE THE DIFFERENT COLORS OF COUNTIES IDENTIFIED HERE ARE DIFFERENT AREAS WHERE THEY GET DIRECT FUNDING, UH, FOR HOMELESSNESS.
WHEREAS WE ARE ONE OF THE ORANGE COUNTIES, AND SO WE HAVE TO COMPETE WITH THE OTHER ORANGE COUNTIES FOR FUNDING.
SO MY POINT BEING IS WE JUST DON'T, DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE AS MUCH FUNDING APART FROM, YOU KNOW, PRIVATE SOURCES, NON-PROFITS.
WE DON'T HAVE AS MUCH FUNDING AS WE, WE CERTAINLY NEED.
SO AGAIN, THE QUESTION FOR US TO DISCUSS TODAY AND HOPEFULLY THE STAFF TO GET SOME GUIDANCE IS TO, HOW TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS ISSUE.
DO WE CONTINUE WITH THE STATUS QUO? UM, DO WE INCREASE ENFORCEMENT OF CURRENT CODES? UH, DO WE DEVELOP AN ORDINANCE TO KEEP CAMPS OUT OF NEIGHBORHOODS, UH, AND PERHAPS PLACE THEM IN MORE AND MORE INDUSTRIAL OR COMMERCIAL AREAS? UH, DO OR DO WE AND OR DO WE INCREASE FUNDING FOR LOCAL PROVIDERS? AND SO AGAIN, WE'RE HOPING TO GET SOME GUIDANCE FROM COUNCIL ON HOW TO MOVE FORWARD.
ANY QUESTIONS? COUNCILMAN NEAL? WELL, WE CAN'T KEEP DOING WHAT WE'RE DOING BECAUSE IT'S OBVIOUSLY NOT WORKING.
UM, WHAT ABOUT SOME TYPE OF TINT ORDINANCE OR CAMPING ORDINANCE? SO WE, WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT IN THE PAST.
UM, WE JUST HAD TO BE COGNIZANT THAT, I'M SURE I CAN PROBABLY SPEAK TO THIS A LITTLE BETTER, BUT WHILE WE WERE IN A DIFFERENT FEDERAL DISTRICT, UM, AND, YOU KNOW, H TO MY KNOWLEDGE, HB 1925 HASN'T BEEN CHALLENGED IN ANY WAY.
UM, THE, THE CONCERN IS THAT WE MAY BE, IF WE JUST IN, IF WE JUST ENFORCE A CAMPING BAN, THEN WE MAY, YOU KNOW, YOU RUN THE RISK OF BEING, UM, OF GETTING A CHALLENGE FROM SOME HOMELESS ADVOCATES.
UH, I'LL ALLOW KIND OF THE CITY OF BOISE COUNCIL MCD.
AND YET WE ALSO HAVE A CASE THAT'S PENDING SET FOR TRIAL IN JULY WHERE, UH, CITIZENS HAVE COMPLAINED THAT THEIR COMMUNITY IS NOT ENFORCING, UH, VARIOUS LAWS THAT, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO KEEP A WATCHFUL EYE ON.
BUT TO ADDRESS YOUR LAST CONCERN, IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IN ORDER TO DO A CAMPING ORDINANCE BANNING, UH, 10 CAMPING WITHIN THE CITY, YOU ALMOST HAVE TO HAVE A PLACE TO TELL PEOPLE WHERE THEY CAN GO.
UM, WE DO HAVE THE SALVATION ARMY SHELTER, BUT IT'S FOR LIMITED DURATION AND LIMITED CAPACITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, SOME PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO BE IN A SHELTER.
THEY WANT TO BE IN THEIR TENT.
AND SO, WITH THAT IN MIND, I KNOW SOME CITIZENS HAVE, UH, IDENTIFIED SOME PROPERTY THAT THEY MIGHT BE WILLING TO MAKE AVAILABLE TO THE CITY TO IMPLEMENT SOME SORT OF A CAMPING LOCATION, BUT THAT IS STILL GOING TO HAVE TO HAVE FUNDING TO PROVIDE SOME OF THE OTHER COMPONENTS SUCH AS SANITATION AND OTHER THINGS THAT THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY AFFAIRS IS GOING TO, UH, UH, REQUIRE.
HAVE YOU RUN NUMBERS ON WHAT IT WOULD COST FOR US TO IMPLEMENT SOMETHING LIKE THAT? NO, THE, THE ONLY PRELIMINARY NUMBERS, LIKE I SAID, WAS LOOKING AT THAT PALLET SHELTER.
UM, BUT I THINK COMING SHORT ANSWER IS NO.
UM, BUT I THINK COMING OUT OF THIS WORK SESSION, IF THE, IF
[04:00:01]
THE, IF THERE'S INTEREST IN, IN PERHAPS US PURSUING THAT, WE WOULD THEN HAVE TO PUT PENCIL TO PAPER TO SEE IS THERE, IS THERE AVAILABLE PROPERTY? HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? DO WE OWN IT? AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO PROVIDE WATER SHOWERS, YOU KNOW, SOME DEGREE OF SECURITY AND MONITORING, YOU KNOW, WHETHER THAT THAT'S THE CITY DIRECTLY OR WE CONTRACT WITH A THIRD PARTY.UM, WELL, I, I, I CAN'T OBVIOUSLY SPEAK FOR ALL OF COUNCIL, BUT I DO NOT THINK THAT THE CITY OF BEAUMONT WANTS TO BE IN THE BUSINESS OF RUNNING A SHELTER.
AND, AND SO, UH, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT, UH, CONTRACTING OUT WITH, UH, UH, A THIRD PARTY, UH, UH, 5 0 1
WE ALSO HAVE TO COME BACK TO THE QUESTION OF DO WE WANT TO TAKE FAMILY SERVICES UP ON THEIR PRIOR OFFER, EVEN THOUGH I DON'T KNOW HOW FORMALIZED IT IS, BUT THEY HAVE INDICATED THAT THEY WERE WILLING TO MAKE THEIR CURRENT FACILITY AVAILABLE TO THE CITY AS THEY TRANSITION TOWARDS THEIR NEW FACILITY OUT ON CONCORD.
IN THAT REGARD, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT THEIR CURRENT FACILITY HAS A LOT OF AMENITIES AND A LOT OF THINGS THAT WOULD BE VERY POSITIVE IN TERMS OF, UH, PROVIDING NOT ONLY TRANSITIONAL HOUSING, BUT CONVENTIONAL TENT CAMPING AS WELL.
BUT THE LOCATION OF WHERE IT IS RIGHT NOW IS A LITTLE BIT PROBLEMATIC IN THAT IT IS IN THE MIDDLE OF, UH, PRETTY COMMERCIAL AREAS WHERE, UH, I, I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT THE, UH, ATMOSPHERE WOULD BE LIKE FOR THE, UH, PEOPLE THAT ARE SURROUNDING THAT AREA TO, UH, PUT UP WITH, UH, A HOMELESS FACILITY RIGHT THERE IN THEIR MIDST.
YEAH, I THINK THE WHERE IS GONNA BE, YOU KNOW, TRICK A TRICKY QUESTION.
SO IN MY MIND IS IF CO IF THERE'S A CONSENSUS FROM COUNCIL TO PURSUE DIFFERENT OPTIONS OR THE OPTIONS OF PROVIDING SOME CAMP LOCATIONS, AGAIN THROUGH A THIRD PARTY, YOU KNOW, WE WOULD GO BACK AND COME UP WITH MAYBE SOME DIFFERENT OPTIONS AS TO WHETHER IT'S AT THAT LOCATION, WHETHER IT'S AT THE, YOU KNOW, LOCATION, B OR C, UM, AND THEN WHAT THE COST WOULD LOOK LIKE.
SO I'M WITH COUNCIL MEMBER NEIL, WHAT WE HAVE NOW IS NOT WORKING.
AND UH, FOR ALL THE REASONS THAT YOU LISTED ON THAT, UH, EARLIER SLIDE OF HOW IT IMPACTS DETRIMENTAL NEIGHBORHOODS AND REINVESTMENT AND THE PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY CONCERNS, WE'VE GOT TO DO SOMETHING.
CHRIS, WHY DOES, UH, DALLAS, AUSTIN AND SAN ANTONIO GET DIRECT FUNDING FROM THE STATE? AND BEAUMONT DOES NOT QUALIFY FOR THAT.
I DO NOT KNOW THE HISTORY OF IT.
UM, MY INITIAL THOUGHT WAS JUST BECAUSE THEY'RE LARGER CITIES AND, AND SOMETIMES LARGER CITIES GET DIRECT APP, DIRECT ALLOCATIONS FOR DIFFERENT PROGRAMS. HOWEVER, THERE ARE SOME, I THINK, UH, COLLEGE STATION, UH, SOME OTHER MAYBE SMALLER JURISDICTIONS AND EVEN COUNTIES, UH, GET FUNDING.
SO I DON'T KNOW, BUT WE CAN CERTAINLY, UH, TRY TO FIND THAT OUT FOR YOU.
WELL, I, AND I FIGURED IT WAS THE SIZE OF THE CITY, BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT YOUR NOTES AND IT TALKS ABOUT AUSTIN'S COUNT AND OUR COUNT BASED ON PERCENTAGE WERE THE SAME.
AND SO THERE COMES SOMEONE MAYBE WITH SOME INFORMATION, WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO RESPOND? UM, YEAH, SURE.
SO REAL QUICK, THIS IS A JANE WHITE, SHE'S WITH THE SOUTHEAST TEXAS, UH, HOMELESS COALITION.
I AM, UM, WE'RE A PROGRAM OF THE REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION.
AND THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION ABOUT FUNDING FOR LARGER AREAS IS THEY ARE DESIGNATED AS CONTINUUMS OF CARE THROUGH HUD AND LOCALLY WE ARE PART OF THE BALANCE OF STATE CONTINUUM OF CARE, WHICH ARE ALL OF THOSE ORANGE COUNTIES THAT Y'ALL SAW.
BUT I WANNA BE CLEAR THAT, THAT WE ARE NOT COMPETING WITH OTHER COUNTIES FOR FUNDS.
WE HAVE OVER A MILLION DOLLARS ALLOCATED BY HUD EVERY YEAR FOR THIS REGION.
WE DON'T HAVE ORGANIZATIONS WHO CAN CLAIM IT.
UM, IT'S A REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM AND OUR ORGANIZATIONS WHO ARE DOING THE WORK IN THE COMMUNITY CANNOT PUT UP THAT MONEY UP FRONT AND THEN HOPE TO GET PAID IN SIX TO NINE MONTHS.
UM, AND THAT'S REALLY THE BARRIER FOR ORGANIZATIONS.
WE HAVE PLENTY OF THEM IN THIS ORGAN, IN THIS COMMUNITY WHO WANT TO DO THE WORK AND WANT TO HELP WITH SHELTERS AND WANT TO HELP WITH THE ALL THE OTHER SERVICES, BUT IT'S THAT MONEY UP FRONT THAT THEY CAN'T AFFORD.
WHITE'S POINT THERE IS, YOU KNOW, AS YOU GET TO BIGGER CITIES, THERE'S NOT ONLY OBVIOUSLY MORE
[04:05:01]
MONEY AND MORE POPULATION AND MORE ISSUES, BUT THEY HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WE CERTAINLY DON'T HAVE.SO YOU HAVE A LOT OF FOUNDATIONS, YOU HAVE A LOT OF, A LOT MORE INSTITUTIONS AND INFRASTRUCTURE TO DEAL TO HANDLE IT.
WHITE'S POINT, A LOT OF THIS MONEY'S ON REIMBURSEMENT BASIS.
BUT YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SEEN SOME RECENT, UH, FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES THAT CAME THROUGH THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT THOSE CITIES GET DIRECT ALLOCATION AND I THINK IT WAS 7 MILLION THAT THE BALANCE OF STATE WAS HAVING TO, TO LOOK AT, UH, COMPETING FOR.
SO THANK YOU MAYOR COUNCILMAN TURNER AND COUNCILMAN MILL.
UH, CHRIS, I THINK ONE OF THE STRUGGLES THAT WE NEED TO DISCUSS IS LOCATION, I THINK ALMOST ANYWHERE.
YOU CAN SAY IN OUR AREA, YOU'LL HAVE NEIGHBORS, RESIDENTS, AND BUSINESSES THAT MORE THAN LIKELY WOULD NOT BE IN FAVOR FOR IT BE RIGHT BEING RIGHT NEXT TO THEM, NO MATTER IF IT WAS 1, 2, 3, OR FOUR.
SO I THINK A POSSIBLE SOLUTION THAT, UH, WE CAN LOOK AT EXPLORING IS, UH, THE DREAM CENTER, UH, AT THE COUNTY LEVEL.
I'M NOT SAYING IT IS ONE SIZE FITS ALL, BUT IT'S AN ACTUAL SOLUTION THAT WE CAN LOOK INTO MAYBE A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN, YOU KNOW, SINCE WE'RE SOUTHEAST TEXAS, LIKE THE COUNTY'S SAYING, MAYBE A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE CITY GROVES, PORT ARTHUR, AND OF COURSE BEAUMONT PROBABLY MAY KICK IN A LITTLE BIT MORE SUPPORT BECAUSE WE HAVE THE BIGGEST HUB.
BUT I THINK THAT'S MORE OF A SAFER OPTION WHERE YOU WON'T GET AS MUCH PUSHBACK FROM RESIDENTS BECAUSE CONTRARY TO WHEREVER YOU SAY IT'S GONNA BE IS GONNA BE A HUGE ISSUE WITH EACH WARD COUNCIL MEMBER AS WELL AS US WHO ARE OVER THIS COUNCIL.
SO IF WE CAN LOOK AT A MORE STRATEGIC APPROACH TO LOCATION AND AT LEAST SIT DOWN WITH THE COUNTY TO SEE WHAT OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE THAT'S, YOU KNOW, ISOLATED WITH THESE, YOU KNOW, WHERE EVERYBODY CAN GET KIND OF ACCUSTOMED BACK TO, YOU KNOW, REGULAR LIVING, EVEN WITH THE TINY HOMES TENTS, YOU KNOW, THEY CAN HAVE OPTIONS.
AND I THINK THAT CENTER ALREADY HAS LIKE DORMITORY LIVING, BUT WE CAN KIND OF CONVERT IT TO KIND OF MAKE IT MAKE SOME MORE SENSE.
THE BIGGEST HURDLE IS THE PLACEMENT, RIGHT? AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE NOT REALLY GETTING AT, BUT THE PLACEMENT IS THE BIGGEST THING.
I UNDERSTAND WHAT MIKE IS SAYING WITH THE AREA WITH FAMILY SERVICES, BUT UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S SOUNDS ONE OF OUR BIGGEST RETAILERS RIGHT THERE.
YOU KNOW, YOU GOT HOME FURNITURE AND YOU GOT THE, ALSO THE NEIGHBORHOOD CHRIS DARIO'S WARD.
SO I THINK THOUGH IT WAS A GOOD IDEA, I JUST THINK THE LOCATION, NO MATTER WHAT WE SAY, WILL BE TOUGH IN BEAUMONT.
SO I THINK IF WE LOOK AT OPTIONS LIKE THAT, MAYBE THAT MAY BE A GOOD ROUTE TO GO.
I EVEN HAD A FOUNDATION THAT STEPPED UP AND SAID IF WE WERE ABLE TO WORK OUT SOMETHING AND GET IT AT THE DREAM CENTER, THEY WILL TAKE CARE OF THE FOOD FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
UH, BREAKFAST, LUNCH, AND DINNER.
SO THEY'VE MADE THEIR COMMITMENT.
IF WE CAN FIND A LOCATION SIMILAR TO, I CAN GET IT RIGHT TOO.
ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU COUNCILMAN NE.
YOU KNOW, AND I THINK SOMETHING ELSE THAT NOBODY WANTS TO TALK ABOUT, BUT I'LL GO AHEAD AND SAY IT.
I THINK WE'RE FOOLING OURSELF THAT WE REALLY THINK THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF THESE PEOPLE WILL COME STAY AT HOMELESS CAMP.
THAT'S JUST NOT GONNA SOLVE THE BIG PROBLEM.
IT MIGHT GIVE US A LOOPHOLE AND I GET SUED BY SOMEBODY AND THEN ALLOW US TO PASS A CAMPING ORDINANCE, BUT IT'S NOT GOING TO SOLVE THE BIG PROBLEM.
WELL, I'LL JUST, YOU'RE STATING THAT BECAUSE YOU FEEL LIKE THEY WON'T NO, THEY DON'T WANT TO, THEY DON'T WANT TO ABIDE BY THE RULES.
THEY WANT TO, THEY, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE ONE OF THESE CAMPS AND YOU'RE GONNA BAN DRUGS, YOU'RE GONNA BAN ALCOHOL, YOU'RE GONNA BAN ALL THIS STUFF.
AND THAT'S NOT THE WAY THEY WANT TO LIVE.
AND I'M SORRY IF I OFFEND PEOPLE BY SAYING THAT, BUT IT'S JUST A FACT.
SO MARY, I'LL JUST, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE EARLY SLIDES I HAD WAS WE PROBABLY CAN'T FIX, QUOTE UNQUOTE FIX THE HOMELESS ISSUE, BUT WE CAN, YOU KNOW, TRY TO DO WHAT WE CAN TO MANAGE IT.
BUT IN TERMS OF BEAUMONT AS OUR COMMUNITY, YOU'RE RIGHT, WE'RE NOT GONNA FIX THE ISSUE.
BUT BY, IF WE GO DOWN THAT ROUTE BY PROVIDING SOME ADDITIONAL, UM, OPTIONS FOR THESE FOLKS, UM, I THINK THAT WOULD HELP US, WOULD ALLOW US TO, UH, ENFORCE SOME OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY, UM, YOU KNOW, REQUIREMENTS THAT WE REALLY NEED TO, TO ENFORCE TO, UM, IN ORDER TO, UM, ADDRESS SOME OF THESE ISSUES WITHIN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS TO, AND TO THAT POINT, WE CAN'T, YOU CAN'T DO BOTH.
YOU CAN'T SAY, YOU KNOW, ENFORCE THINGS BUT NOT HAVE A PLAN IN PLACE TO PROTECT THE CITY IN THE EVENT OF FALLOUT.
AND SO IT'S A, IT'S A BALANCING ACT.
WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO ENFORCE OUR ORDINANCES
[04:10:01]
AND OUR, UM, IN, IN THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE.BUT THERE'S A CO CONFLICTING LAW THAT SAYS, IN ORDER FOR YOU TO DO THIS, DO THAT, YOU HAVE TO DO THIS.
AND SO WE HAVE TO BALANCE THE REQUIREMENT TO DO THOSE THINGS IN ORDER TO, ON THE BACK END, ENFORCE OUR ORDINANCE.
AND I THINK THAT THE CRY, THE OUTCRY FROM, UM, THE BUSINESS OWNERS AND THOSE CITIZENS WHO ARE, UM, BEING IMPACTED BY THIS IS THAT WE JUST WANT YOU TO ENFORCE YOUR ORDINANCES.
AND THE CITY CAN'T DO THAT UNLESS WE HAVE A DESIGN.
YOU CAN'T CREATE A CAMPING BAN AND NOT HAVE SOMEWHERE TO GO.
IN ORDER FOR US TO SAY, YOU CAN'T CAMP HERE.
WE HAVE TO SAY, BUT YOU CAN CAMP HERE.
AND THE CAVEAT TO THAT IS, BUT YOU ALSO HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE ACCESS TO SERVICES.
AND SO THERE'S SO MANY THINGS THAT, THAT IS, THAT THE LEGISLATOR HAS COMPILED ON THE CITY THAT MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO ENFORCE OUR ORDINANCES UNLESS WE DO THOSE OTHER THINGS.
AND SO IT'S NOT NECESSARILY TO SOLVE THE HOMELESS PROBLEM, BECAUSE I AGREE WITH YOU, A LOT OF INDIVIDUALS DON'T WANNA FOLLOW THE RULES AND THEY WANNA LIVE OFF THE GRID AND THEY WANNA DO THE THINGS THEY WANNA DO.
THOSE, THOSE INDIVIDUALS AREN'T REALLY OUR FOCUS.
OUR FOCUS IS ON BEING ABLE TO ENFORCE OUR ORDINANCE.
I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND ABOUT THE, UH, LOCATION OF FAMILY SERVICES BEING PROBLEMATIC, COUNCILMAN TURNER.
UH, AND I'M NOT OPPOSED TO LOOKING AT THE DREAM CENTER AS A POSSIBLE, UH, LOCATION FOR, UH, PLACEMENT OF HOMELESS PEOPLE, ALTHOUGH I DO THINK THAT THE COUNTY, UH, THAT OWNS THAT, UH, JEFFERSON COUNTY, UH, HAS CONTRACTED WITH ANOTHER ORGANIZATION AND THEY'VE GOT THEIR OWN PROGRAM THERE.
AND SO I DON'T KNOW WHAT TYPE OF, UH, CONFLICT MIGHT BE CREATED CONTRACTUALLY THERE.
BUT I DO KNOW THAT THERE ARE BUSINESSMEN, UH, SOME OF WHICH ARE HERE TODAY.
DON'T KNOW IF THEY WANT TO ADDRESS OR, OR TALK TO US.
I'LL WELCOME YOU IF YOU DO, UH, THAT HAVE IDENTIFIED SOME RATHER RURAL LOCATIONS, UH, THAT COULD BE MADE AVAILABLE.
AND, UH, I SEE HE, MR. ARD DOES WANT TO ADDRESS THIS, SO PLEASE, THANK YOU.
UM, I'M LISTENING, UH, TO THIS PRESENTATION ABOUT THE HOMELESS OR THE UNSHELTERED IS THE NEW BUZZWORD.
AND I'M HEARING OBSTACLES THAT MIGHT, THAT, THAT ARE BEING PRESENTED THAT WOULD KEEP US FROM PUTTING A CAMPING AREA TOGETHER.
WE HAVE ALL THE ELEMENTS HERE.
I'VE READ THE STATUTE FROM THE STATE.
UH, WE HAVE TO PROVIDE POTABLE WATER.
WE HAVE TO PROVIDE, UH, TOILET FACILITIES THAT CAN BE PORTABLE.
WE HAVE ALL THE SERVICES IN PLACE THAT WE'VE ALREADY HEARD FROM SOME OTHER PLACE THAT HAS CLEANED UP.
UH, I'VE IDENTIFIED TWO OR THREE SITES AROUND THE CITY THAT WE DON'T FEEL LIKE THERE'LL BE AN OBJECTION.
SO THERE'S TWO OR THREE GOOD REASONS WHY WE SHOULD ESTABLISH A PRIMITIVE CAMPING SITE.
NO $15,000 PER INDIVIDUAL, BECAUSE TAYLOR, YOU'RE RIGHT, PEOPLE DON'T WANT TO LIVE BY THE RULES.
SO WE ARE HAVING A TERRIBLE EFFECT ON THE IMAGE OF BEAUMONT AS PEOPLE DRIVE DOWNTOWN.
THE CITY SPENT 60 MILLION PLUS DOLLARS ON A DEVELOPMENT OF COLDER AVENUE, AND THEY HAVE TO DRIVE PAST THIS TO GET TO SOME PLACE THAT HOPEFULLY ONE DAY WILL DEVELOP.
SO THERE ARE A FEW GOOD REASONS WHY WE SHOULD DO THIS.
I'M LISTENING TO ALL THE REASONS WHY WE SHOULDN'T.
WE CAN DO IT, BUT YOU'RE KILLING THE COMMUNITIES.
WE ARE KILLING THE COMMUNITIES FOR ALLOWING THE CERTAIN SEGMENT OF INDIVIDUALS TO EXERCISE THEIR LIBERTIES OVER THE LIBERTIES OF TAXPAYERS.
NO, AND, AND, AND I, I AGREE WITH YOU, UH, MR. ARD AND I FOR ONE, AND, AND, AND AS CHAIR OF THE MAYOR'S HOMELESS COALITION, I'VE, I'VE BEEN AT THIS NOW FOR A LOT LONGER THAN I ANTICIPATED I WOULD.
BUT, UH, YOU, YOU KNOW, I, I FEEL LIKE I HAVE A PRETTY GOOD HANDLE ON, YOU KNOW, THE PROBLEMS THAT THE HOMELESS FACE.
[04:15:01]
LIKE I HAVE A PRETTY GOOD IDEA ON THE OBSTACLES WE FACE AS A CITY.AND I SUPPORT JUST ONE COUNCIL MEMBER.
I, I SUPPORT MOVING FORWARD WITH LOOKING AT DEVELOPING A CAMPING BAN AND PROVIDING AN ALTERNATIVE PLACE FOR CITIZENS TO CAMP THAT CHOOSE TO DO SO THAT IS OUTSIDE OF NEIGHBORHOODS.
OUR CURRENT PROBLEM IS THAT WE HAVE PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS THAT ALLOW PUBLIC CAMPING, UH, OR, OR, OR CAMPING ON THEIR PROPERTY AND WITH PERMISSION.
SO WHEN WE HAVE THAT TYPE OF A SITUATION, IF WE, IF THE OBJECTIVE IS TO TRY TO ELIMINATE THAT CAMPSITE, THEN WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO AFTER THE PROPERTY OWNER AND, YOU KNOW, DO THAT FROM A PUBLIC NUISANCE STANDPOINT.
UH, YOU KNOW, AND IF WE HAVE A CAMPING BAN, UH, AN ORDINANCE STANDPOINT, UH, AND AGAIN, COGNIZANT OF THE LEGAL POTENTIAL, LEGAL CONSEQUENCES, WE NEED TO PROVIDE THEM A PLACE TO GO.
AND IT'S ALSO THE RIGHT THING TO DO.
YOU KNOW, I THINK IF I COULD JUST COMMENT, MARY, I THINK THOSE GO HAND IN HAND IF WE GO DOWN THAT ROUTE.
UM, AND THE OTHER THING TO KEEP IN MIND IS A LOT OF THIS IS NEW AND EMERGING.
SO, LIKE THE LAW I MENTIONED IS 2021.
THESE CASES ARE, ARE STILL EMERGING.
UH, CITIES, AGAIN, ACROSS THE COUNTRY ARE STRUGGLING WITH THIS.
SO WE WANT TO DO THE BEST WE CAN, BUT WE UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, WE, IT MAY NOT BE PERFECT AT FIRST AND WE CAN ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, SHIFT GEARS AS, AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS.
ONE OF THE THINGS I TOOK AWAY AS Y'ALL WERE WANTING TO GET DIRECTION FROM HOW COUNCIL FELT ABOUT PURSUING, UH, THE CAMPING BAN AND LOOKING AT ALTER, YOU KNOW, OPTIONS FOR THESE CAMPS.
AND IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THERE, WE, UH, THAT MUCH OF THE COUNCIL DOES BELIEVE THAT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO EXPLAIN, UH, EXPLORE FURTHER.
SO, UH, THE STAFF PERHAPS CAN GET INTO THAT AND MAYBE, UH, MR. BRUCE HARD COULD PROVIDE LOCATIONS THAT HE HAD SUGGESTED AS WELL AS DREAM CENTER AND OTHER LOCATIONS THAT WE'RE AWARE OF.
AND, UH, Y'ALL EXPLORE THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE.
THAT THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR.
YOU KNOW, WE WERE GETTING, BEING ASKED TO ENFORCE THINGS PRETTY AGGRESSIVELY, AND ME AS A MANAGER KNOW HOW SENSITIVE THAT CAN BE AND, AND HOW THE POLITICAL FALLOUT CAN BE AT SOME POINT ON YOU IF WE GO AND JUST THOUGHT WHOLESALE, RESTING PEOPLE, HOMELESS PEOPLE, AND MOVING 'EM AROUND.
SO I WANTED THIS FEEDBACK FROM THIS COUNCIL AS A GROUP, NOT ONE OR TWO AS A GROUP TO HOW YOU FELT ABOUT THAT AND HOW YOU WANTED TO PROGRESS.
SO WHATEVER YOU CHOOSE TO DO, THAT'S WHAT WE'LL DO IN THE FORCE.
BUT I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT POLITICALLY AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE RESPECT PROPERTY OWNERS AND ERROR RIGHTS TOO.
BUT, UH, I JUST WANTED THAT BEFORE WE WENT OUT THERE AND STARTED BEING REALLY AGGRESSIVE WITH THE PROCESS.
[COMMENTS]
WE STILL HAVE THAT COUNCIL MEETING AT THREE, AND I KNOW THAT THE CITY MANAGER REALLY WANTED TO GET TO, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENTS REGARDING GOALS AND PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT COMING YEAR.UM, IF WE HOPE TO BE TIMELY OUT OF HERE BY TWO 30 TO ALLOW A SAFE DRIVE BACK TO THE CITY COUNCIL, I THINK THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN NOW.
UH, AND IF YOU, IF YOU WANT TO DO 'EM VERBALLY, YOU CAN, OR IF YOU WANT TO SUBMIT IT TO ME IN WRITING, EVERYBODY CAN SUBMIT 'EM TO IN WRITING IF THAT'S AN OPTION.
BUT IF YOU WANT TO DO IT PUBLICLY, WE CAN.
I THINK WRITING IS, I THINK WRITING IS BEAUTIFUL.
WE'LL GO AHEAD WITH COUNCILMAN COMMENTS RIGHT NOW AND THEN, UH OKAY.
AND YOU HAVE MENTIONED THAT THOSE CAN BE SUBMITTED, IS THAT YEP.
SUBMITTING THEM, UH, WOULD BE GREAT CUZ THAT WOULD ALLOW STAFF A CHANCE TO EAT
AS WELL AS SOME OF US AS WELL.
UM, I SAID BACK TO THE, THE C I P MY BIG QUESTION ON ALL OF THIS IS JUST THE FUNDING MECHANISM AND WHAT'S THE, WHAT'S THE COST AND HOW WE'RE GONNA PAY FOR IT.
I THINK THAT WOULD'VE BEEN INCLUDED IN THE PRESENTATION, HOW WE HAD A CHANCE TO GET THROUGH IT.
BUT I THINK THAT WE'LL JUST SCHEDULE THAT FOR THE NEXT WORKSHOP.
UM, I THINK I'LL, UH, I UNDERSTAND, UH, WHERE WE'RE GOING, UH, BUT
[04:20:01]
I'LL REFRAIN FROM GIVEN THE ID UNTIL WE GET SOME OF THESE, UH, ISSUES BACK.UM, UM, SO I'LL, I'LL JUST HOLD MY COMMENTS AT THIS POINT.
UM, I NEED A LITTLE FURTHER GUIDANCE.
ARE YOU ON, ON WHAT COUNCIL MEMBER? I'M SORRY.
WELL, ON THE CO COMMENTS BACK FOR THE AGENDA ITEM ON, ON THE C I P, I'M, I'M PRETTY GOOD, BUT ONE, I WANTED TO GET A BETTER IDEA OF, UH, WHAT PROJECTS WE ARE LOOKING AT DOING AND, UH, THE INDEX THAT WE'RE GETTING FOR THE SIDEWALK, THOSE ARE THINGS I, I, I BELIEVE WE ARE MOVING FORWARD IN A, IN A PROPER MANNER.
I'M GOOD WITH THE FISCAL UPDATE.
UH, UH, I'M GOOD WITH THE, UM, UH, UH, COMPENSATION STUDY.
UH, THE C I P I'M, I'M GOOD WITH THAT, BUT THERE ARE A FEW, UH, I, I GUESS CLARIFICATIONS, UH, I NEED TO GET.
UH, BUT MY MAIN CONCERN TODAY WAS, WELL, I WAS HOPING TO GET TO THE DOWNTOWN, BUT WE'LL DEAL WITH THAT LATER.
BUT I'M, I'M, I THINK WE'RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION BY GETTING AN IDEA OF WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO OR WHAT THIS COUNCIL WANTS TO DO.
AND I THINK I UNDERSTAND THAT IF, ARE YOU ASKING FOR SOMETHING MORE THAN THAT? UH, NO, NO.
BUT IT'S EVIDENT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE A, ANOTHER BUDGET WORKSHOP BEFORE, UH, AS I UNDERSTOOD IT, WHAT WE WERE TRYING TO DO TODAY WAS, ONE, ESTABLISH SOME CRITERIA AS TO WHAT WE ARE INTERESTED IN SEEING DONE.
AND WE ARE MOVING WHAT WE'RE GONNA ADDRESS.
WE ARE DOING THAT, WE'VE DONE THAT WITH THE SIX ITEMS THAT YOU, WE PRESENTED ON THE AGENDA TODAY.
AND IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING, WE ARE GONNA HAVE ANOTHER MEETING OR THERE WILL BE SOME FOLLOW UP JUST AS WE HAVE FROM THIS FIRST STRATEGIC PLAN.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME FOLLOW UP.
BUT JUST FOR THE AGENDA ITEM ON COUNCIL MEMBER COMMENT ABOUT YOUR PRIORITIES AND GOALS, UM, UH, TO BE CLEAR, UM, AGAIN, YOU CAN SUBMIT THOSE TO ME.
I'LL SUBMIT THEM IN WRITING, BUT, AND THEN WE'LL COMPILE 'EM AND SHARE 'EM WITH THE ENTIRE GROUP.
LET'S JUST KNOW WHAT YOU SUBMIT.
THE ENTIRE COUNCIL'S GOING TO SEEK EVERYBODY'S, WELL, MY MAIN CONCERN WAS WE BEING FISCALLY SOUND.
SECONDLY, WE DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE HEART OF OUR CITY, WHICH IS DOWNTOWN, SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO HAVE, UH, SUSTAINABLE, UH, UH, A SUSTAINABLE CITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE.
I THINK THAT'S BEEN ADDRESSED.
SO I'M GOOD SO FAR AND I LOVE, UH, UH, THE MAIN THING.
I'M PLEASED WITH THE, UH, WHAT IS IT? FU UH, UH, I'M READY TO GO WITH THAT.
WELL, IF YOU DON'T WANT TO GIVE 'EM TO ME RIGHT NOW,
I'LL GET MY PRIORITIES TO YOU IN WRITING.
I DO APPRECIATE WHAT COUNCILMAN GETZ SAID, BEING OVER THE HOMELESS COALITION.
I DO KNOW THAT THIS HOMELESS SITUATION IS A CHALLENGE FOR US BECAUSE WE'RE TRYING TO FIND THE BALANCE BETWEEN PROTECTING PROPERTY AND, UH, THEIR RIGHTS AND SO FORTH, BUT YET STILL CARING FOR THE HOMELESS POPULATION.
SO I I I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE US TO MOVE FORWARD WITH, UH, COMMON SENSE AND COMPASSION AS WE ARE COMPASSIONATE TOWARDS THESE PEOPLE, BUT YET WE USE COMMON SENSE IN HOW WE ADDRESS IT.
I THINK IF WE STRIKE THAT BALANCE, I THINK, I THINK THE CITIZENS OF BEAUMONT WILL BE HAPPY.
THANK YOU MAYOR COUNCILMAN TURNER.
UH, I ALREADY PREPARED MY LIST.
AND SECONDLY, I REALLY THINK AS A COUNCIL, IT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT WE SIT DOWN AND GET ON THE SAME PAGE AS FAR AS OUR GOALS AND OUR OBJECTIVES FOR AS THE STAFF MEMBERS WE ACTUALLY SUPERVISE AS FAR AS OUR CITY MANAGER, OUR CITY ATTORNEY, OUR CITY MAGISTRATE, AND, UH, OUR CLERK.
WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO EVALUATION AND MAKING SURE WE'RE HEATING GOES AND WE'RE DOING WHAT WE WANT TO DO, I THINK IT'S A, IT IS IMPORTANT AS A COUNCIL THAT THEY KNOW WHAT OUR EXPECTATIONS ARE.
SO IF IN THE NEAR FUTURE CAN WE GET TOGETHER BEFORE EVALUATIONS COME WHERE THEY CAN AT LEAST KNOW AS A COUNSELOR, WHAT ARE OUR EXPECTATIONS? CUZ IT'S KIND OF HARD TO EVALUATE THEM IF THEY DON'T KNOW AS A COUNCIL, EVEN WITH A NEW MAYOR, WHAT OUR EXPECTATIONS
[04:25:01]
ARE.SO I WILL HOPE IN THE NEAR FUTURE, SOONER THAN LATER, WE CAN GET THAT, GET ON THE SAME PAGE.
I DON'T KNOW IF IT CAN BE DONE IN THE EXECUTIVE SESSION OR IT HAS TO BE DONE IN THE PUBLIC OR THE WORKSHOP, BUT IF WE CAN PLEASE GET 'EM SOME DIRECTION OF OUR EXPECTATIONS, I THINK THAT'LL BE BENEFICIAL.
AND SECONDLY, I'D JUST LIKE TO ASK THE MAYOR IF WE CAN FINISH THIS BEFORE THE SECOND WORKSHOP, JULY 27TH.
LAST THING I WOULD WANT TO DO IS SHOW UP ON THE 27TH AND I THINK WE GOT DOWNTOWN LEFT AND SOME OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE CAN'T TOUCH ON BEFORE WE COME TO THE 27TH.
KIND OF SHING UP THE BUDGET AND WE WILL, UH, I'LL BE VISITING WITH CITY STAFF ON WHEN WE CAN GET THIS FINISHED.
CUZ OBVIOUSLY WE'VE GOT LOTS OF ISSUES WE HADN'T BEEN ABLE TO COVER BEFORE WE PROCEED ON THE BUDGET FOR THIS COMING YEAR.
SO COUNCILMAN GETZ, I WANT TO THANK OUR CITY MANAGER AND YOUR STAFF FOR GOING IN A NEW DIRECTION ON HOW OUR C I P IS PRESENTED.
AND IT, IT'S SUCH A DEPARTURE, A WELCOME DEPARTURE, UH, FROM WHAT WE'VE HAD IN THE PAST.
UH, PLANNING IS OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO YOU, MR. WILLIAMS. IT'S IMPORTANT TO ME.
AND, UM, THE TYPE OF PLANS THAT WE ARE LAYING NOW WILL PROVIDE THE GROUNDWORK FOR WHERE WE ARE GOING TO BE IN THE FUTURE.
UH, WITHOUT A PLAN, IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW WHERE YOU'RE GONNA GO.
AND SO, UH, IT IS, WE WE'RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION BY DOING THIS.
UH, IT'S NOT A QUICK PROCESS, UH, BUT IT IS, IT IS THE RIGHT PROCESS.
OH YEAH, MANAGER, I'LL GET MY NOTES TO YOU, BUT I JUST LIKE COUNCILMAN THAT SAID, UM, THANK YOU AND THE STAFF FOR PUTTING THIS TOGETHER.
ALL THE PRESENTERS, UH, YOU GUYS DID A REAL GOOD JOB.
AND, UM, YOUR C I P THE INFORMATION THAT, THAT YOU GAVE US AND EXPLAIN IT AND EVEN THE LITTLE DIFFERENT COLOR CODES THAT COULD EXPLAIN WHAT WAS WHAT, UH, I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.
AND, UH, IT, IT IS SOMETHING NEW THAT WE, I HADN'T EXPERIENCED SINCE I REALLY BEEN ON COUNCIL.
SO THANK YOU MANAGER AND YOUR STAFF AND GUYS DID A GOOD JOB.
CITY MANAGER, UH, WE'LL BE SCHEDULING, UH, A, A BUDGET MEETING BEFORE THE 27TH FOR SURE.
CAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO WORK THROUGH.
SO I LOOK FORWARD TO GETTING THE FEEDBACK FROM YOU.
AND THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE TODAY.
UH, AF AFTER THIS WE WILL BE MEETING WITH THE DEPARTMENT HEADS TO PUT TOGETHER SOME MORE DEFINITIVE THINGS FOR THEIR DEPARTMENT.
AND THAT'LL BE COMING BACK TO YOU WHERE EACH DEPARTMENT HEAD WILL COME BEFORE YOU AND GIVE A PRESENTATION.
WE'LL, WE'LL TRY TO MAKE IT MORE CONCISE, UH, FOR YOU, BUT YOU'LL GET TO HEAR FROM EACH DEPARTMENT HEAD TOO IN THIS PROCESS.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO GET THERE BEFORE WHAT'S DUE.
AND WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO IS AT THE END OF THIS PROCESS, PRESENT A A, A BALANCED BUDGET TO YOU.
WELL, UH, BEFORE I DIS DISMISS THIS OR ADJOURN US HERE, I JUST WANT TO, UH, THANK THE CITY STAFF.
OH, OH, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO.
I WAS LITERALLY COMPLIMENTING YOU ON BEING ABLE TO READ MY FACE.
CONTINUE THAT, THAT'S WHAT I DID.
BUT NO, I JUST WANT TO, UH, THANK ALL THE CITY STAFF FOR MY FIRST WEEK AND, UH, WE SPENT A LOT OF HOURS TOGETHER AND IT'S, UH, BEEN WELL INFORMED AND WELL WELCOMED AND, UH, I APPRECIATE HOW EVERYBODY IS HELPING, UH, WITH THE TRANSITION.
AND I CERTAINLY LOOK FORWARD TO ALL THESE, UH, ISSUES THAT WE'RE GONNA BE TACKLING THIS SUMMER.
IT SOUNDS LIKE WE'RE GONNA HAVE A BUSY SUMMER, SO WE WILL BE, UH, MAYBE SCHEDULING SOMETHING ON A SATURDAY IF WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT CITY MANAGER AND, UH, AND OTHERWISE MEETING ADJOURNED.