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ALL RIGHT.TIME IS 2:09 PM ON THIS 30TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2022.
WELCOME TO OUR CITY COUNCIL BUDGET WORK SESSION.
UH, MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU START US WITH A ROLE? YES, SIR.
COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE PRESENT.
[ ITEMS ]
HAVE A QUORUM.ALRIGHT, UH, WELCOME EVERYONE.
WE HAVE A COUPLE OF SEC, A COUPLE OF ITEMS TODAY.
WE'RE GONNA TAKE, TAKE THESE SEPARATELY.
UM, SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND START WITH ITEM A.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
UH, THE FIRST PART, UH, BEN GOEL WILL WALK US THROUGH AND FACILITATE, UM, THE FIRST CONVERSATION ON THE C P S CREDIT PROPOSAL.
UM, WE'VE MADE A NUMBER OF ADJUSTMENTS BASED ON THE, UH, LAST CONVERSATION THE COUNCIL HAD.
SO BEN WILL WALK YOU THROUGH THAT.
WE DO HAVE REPRESENTATIVES FROM C P SS HERE TODAY.
UM, AND THEN SECONDLY, UH, THEN WE'LL GO THROUGH QUESTIONS IN THE COUNCIL CONVERSATION AND THEN WE'LL WRAP UP WITH, UH, THE A C S PROPOSED BUDGET PRESENTATION FROM SHANNON AND HIS TEAM.
SO WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO BEN.
AS ERIC SAID, I'M GONNA DO A FOLLOW UP FROM THE WORK SESSION THAT WE HAD ON AUGUST 16TH ON THIS TOPIC.
AND I'M GONNA BEGIN JUST WITH WHAT IS IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET AND THE RECOMMENDATION THAT WAS MADE AS PART OF THE PROPOSED BUDGET.
SO AGAIN, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT $50 MILLION BACK TO C P SS ENERGY CUSTOMERS.
IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET, IT INCLUDED A $5 MILLION CONTRIBUTION TO REAP AND A $45 MILLION CREDIT TO C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS.
THERE WERE A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT WE CONSIDERED AS WE PUT THIS RECOMMENDATION TOGETHER, AND THOSE INCLUDED, AND WE TALKED ABOUT THIS MORE DURING THE LAST WORK SESSION.
TROY WENT OVER A LOT OF THIS INFORMATION, SO I'M NOT GONNA GO BACK THROUGH IT.
BUT REALLY THE UNUSUAL ONE-TIME NATURE OF THE FUNDING THAT WE'RE GETTING HERE, THIS REALLY IS OUTSIDE OF WHAT WE WOULD NORMALLY EXPECT TO SEE, UM, WHILE WE SEE VARIANCES DUE TO WEATHER FUEL PRICES.
THIS ONE IS, IS OUT OF WHAT WE WOULD CONSIDER THE NORMAL EXPECTATION IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN FY 2022.
WE KNOW THAT CONSUMERS, GIVEN THE CURRENT ENVIRONMENT, ARE EXPERIENCING THE IMPACTS OF HIGH INFLATION.
WE KNOW THAT THE HIGH NATURAL GAS PRICES AND THE EXTREME HEAT THAT WE HAVE SEEN OVER THE COURSE OF THE SUMMER HAVE CERTAINLY IMPACTED ALL C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS.
WE CERTAINLY WANTED TO TAKE A LOOK AT HOW WE COULD PROVIDE FURTHER ASSISTANCE TO LOW INCOME CUSTOMERS.
AND THEN AS WE TALKED ABOUT THE CREDIT, WE WANTED TO LOOK AT THE CREDIT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF, UH, HAVING THAT GO BACK TO THE CUSTOMERS BASED ON THE WAY IT WAS RECEIVED.
AND THEN THE LAST ONE HERE IS JUST LOOKING AT OUR OVERALL, UH, FINANCIAL POSITION, UM, THAT REALLY PUT THE CITY IN A POSITION TO BE ABLE TO EVEN CONSIDER, UH, DOING A $50 MILLION, UH, RETURN BACK TO C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS.
I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THIS IS UNIQUE AND I THINK THAT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS RECOMMENDATION, UM, AND, AND TALKING ABOUT GIVING $50 MILLION BACK, IT IS REALLY THESE FACTORS COLLECTIVELY THAT HAVE KIND OF PUT US IN THIS POSITION, ISN'T NECESSARILY THE FACT THAT WE'RE JUST OVER BUDGET OR THAT, UM, IT'S UNUSUAL ONE TIME, UH, REVENUES.
BUT IT'S ALL OF THESE THINGS COLLECTIVELY TO INCLUDE OUR OVERALL FINANCIAL POSITION.
SO IN TERMS OF A REVISED RECOMMENDATION THAT WE WANNA WALK THROUGH WITH YOU TODAY, WE'RE STILL TALKING ABOUT $50 MILLION IN TOTAL BACK TO C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS.
UM, WE'VE INCREASED THE AMOUNT, GOING TO REAP FROM 5 MILLION TO 7.5 MILLION.
UM, AND WE'RE GONNA DIVIDE THAT INTO TWO CATEGORIES AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY IN JUST A SECOND.
SO WE WOULD TAKE $2 MILLION OF THAT AND PUT IT INTO THE REAP CORPUS FUND BALANCE.
THAT WOULD BE REALLY SET ASIDE FOR FUTURE ASSISTANCE.
WE DON'T WANT TO NECESSARILY USE ALL OUR OF OUR RESOURCES RIGHT NOW.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE SOME DOLLARS SET ASIDE THAT AS CUSTOMERS HAVE CHALLENGES IN THE FUTURE, THERE'S GONNA BE RESOURCES AVAILABLE FOR FOR THAT.
UH, THE CURRENT REAP REFUND BALANCE IS ABOUT $7.6 MILLION.
SO ADDING 2 MILLION TO IT WILL BRING THAT UP TO $9.6 MILLION.
THE REMAINING 5.5 MILLION WE WANT TO PUT INTO REAP FOR IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE, AND THAT IS TO HELP OUR CUSTOMERS THAT ARE ON THE AFFORDABILITY DISCOUNT PROGRAM OVER AT T P S ENERGY PUT THEM IN A POSITION TO HELP THEM GET CAUGHT UP ON THEIR PAST DUE BALANCES.
THE REMAINING 42.5 MILLION WOULD BE CREDITED BACK TO C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS, ALL C P S ENERGY
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CUSTOMERS BASED ON HOW IT WAS EARNED BY THE CITY.UH, WE HAVE ADDED A FEATURE IN THAT Y'ALL TALKED ABOUT DURING THE LAST WORK SESSION, AND THAT WAS WE ARE PUTTING IN PLACE A, UH, A PROCEDURE WHERE CUSTOMERS CAN OPT OUT.
SO IF THEY CHOOSE TO NOT TAKE THE CREDIT, THEY CAN DONATE THOSE DOLLARS INTO THE REPROGRAM AND THEN THAT WOULD BE SET ASIDE FOR FUTURE ASSISTANCE AS WELL.
THIS CREDIT WOULD APPEAR ON THE OCTOBER BILL, AND IT IS BASED ON THE JULY, 2022 USAGE.
SO I'M GONNA SPEND A LITTLE BIT OF TIME ON THIS SLIDE.
SO DURING THE LAST WORK SESSION, THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION AROUND CUSTOMERS, LOW INCOME CUSTOMERS THAT ARE ON THE AFFORDABLY DISCOUNT PROGRAM AND, AND THOSE THAT MIGHT BE SUBJECT TO DISCONNECT.
AND ONE OF THE CHALLENGES WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE SUBJECT TO DISCONNECT IS THAT'S OBVIOUSLY A SNAPSHOT AT A POINT IN TIME.
IT DEPENDS WHERE YOU ARE IN THE WHOLE COLLECTION PROCESS.
SO WE WANTED TO STEP BACK AND WE'RE WORKING WITH C P S ENERGY AND LOOK AT WHAT ARE ALL THE PAST DUE BALANCES FOR CUSTOMERS THAT ARE ON THE AFFORDABILITY DISCOUNT PROGRAM.
JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF CONTEXT, THERE ARE AROUND 63,700 C P SS ENERGY CUSTOMERS ENROLLED IN THE A D P PROGRAM.
THERE ARE 27,584 OF THOSE CUSTOMERS THAT HAVE A PAST DUE BALANCE AND IT RANGES.
SOME ARE A LITTLE BIT BEHIND, SOME ARE MUCH FURTHER BEHIND.
BUT THIS $23.7 MILLION THAT YOU SEE LISTED HERE IS THEIR PAST DUE BALANCE AS OF JULY 31ST OF THIS YEAR.
NOW, IN THE FALL OF LAST YEAR, THE COUNCIL DID ADOPT AN ORDINANCE ALLOCATING $20 MILLION IN UTILITY ASSISTANCE, UH, ARPA ASSISTANCE, UH, TO BE USED FOR UTILITY ASSISTANCE BY C P S ENERGY THROUGH JULY 31ST.
UH, C P S HAD APPLIED, UM, $9.8 MILLION OF THOSE FUNDS TO CUSTOMER ACCOUNTS.
AND WHEN THAT GETS APPLIED, IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO GO TO A CUSTOMER ON A D B ACCOUNT.
IT'S SOMEBODY THAT'S BEEN IMPACTED BY COVID.
THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE DOLLARS ARE IMPACTING CUSTOMERS THAT ARE ON THE A D B ACCOUNT.
SO WHAT C P S DID HERE IS THEY TOOK THE REMAINING DOLLARS OF JUST AROUND $10 MILLION AND BASED ON APPLICATIONS THAT THEY HAVE, AS WELL AS LOOKING AT QUALIFIED CENSUS TRACKS, WHICH YOU YOU'LL CALL AS ONE OF THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR ARPA FUNDING, THEY GAVE US AN ESTIMATE OF HOW MUCH OF THAT $10 MILLION WE THINK CAN BE APPLIED OR WILL BE APPLIED TO CUSTOMER BALANCES AS OF JULY 31ST, UH, FOR THOSE CUSTOMERS ON AN A D P ON THE A D P PROGRAM.
SO THAT $7 MILLION GETS APPLIED AND WE'VE GOT A TOTAL ESTIMATED PAST DUE BALANCE, UH, FOR THESE CUSTOMERS AT $16.7 MILLION, UM, TO PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDING, UH, TO HELP THEM GET CAUGHT UP.
UM, WE'RE USING THE 5.5 MILLION THAT I MENTIONED.
THE 5.5 OR THE 7.5 FOR IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE.
WE'RE GONNA USE THAT TO HELP THESE CUSTOMERS GET CAUGHT UP.
IN ADDITION TO THAT C P S, UM, UH, YOU RECALL THEIR FISCAL YEAR'S DIFFERENT THAN OURS.
THEY HAVE NOT PUT IN THEIR MILLION DOLLAR ANNUAL CONTRIBUTION INTO REAP YET.
SO IT'S NOT IN THAT $9.6 MILLION CORPUS BALANCE I TALKED ABOUT ON THE PREVIOUS SLIDE.
UH, THAT MILLION PLUS C P SS HAS AGREED TO PUT IN AN ADDITIONAL 2 MILLION FOR A TOTAL OF THREE.
THAT COMBINED WITH OUR 5.5, GIVES US $8.5 MILLION THAT WE CAN UTILIZE TOWARDS ADDRESSING THESE PAST DUE BALANCES.
SO IN SUMMARY, WE'VE GOT 23.7 MILLION PAST DUE.
WE ESTIMATE THAT $7 MILLION OF ARPA FUNDING WILL BE APPLIED, TAKING IT DOWN TO 16.7, AND THEN WE'RE GONNA MAKE AVAILABLE ANOTHER 8.5 MILLION THAT THAT CAN BE CREDITED TO THESE CUSTOMER ACCOUNTS, UH, BASED ON A CERTAIN, UH, BASED ON, UH, A CERTAIN LEVEL OF CRITERIA.
AND SO HOW ARE WE GONNA DO IT? THAT'S ON THIS SLIDE.
SO C P SS ENERGY IS GONNA AUTO-ENROLL CUSTOMERS WITH PAST DUE BALANCES.
I MENTIONED THE $16.7 MILLION.
AFTER YOU APPLY ARPA, THOSE CUSTOMERS WILL BE AUTO AUTO-ENROLL INTO A MODIFIED BUDGET PAYMENT PLAN.
THE MODIFIED BUDGET PAYMENT PLAN OR A PAYMENT PLAN BASICALLY SPREADS YOUR COSTS OR YOUR BILL OVER A YEAR, AVERAGES IT.
SO IT TAKES YOUR USAGE FOR THE PRIOR YEAR.
YOUR BILL FOR THE PRIOR YEAR AVERAGES IT OUT.
THEY ADJUST FOR ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS, FUEL THAT BECOMES YOUR YOUR BUDGET PLAN.
AND THEN THEY'RE GONNA ALLOW THE CUSTOMERS WITH PAST DUE BALANCES ON A D P TO TAKE THEIR PAST DUE BALANCES AND SPREAD THAT COST OUT OVER 48 MONTHS.
UM, TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO BE ENROLLED IN A D P ON JULY 31ST, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO, UH, RECOMMENDING THAT THEY CAN RECEIVE A CREDIT OF $300 NOT TO EXCEED THEIR PAST DUE BALANCE.
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AND AGAIN, THIS IS BEING FUNDED FROM THE EIGHT AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS THAT'S COMING FROM THE CITY.AND FROM C P SS ENERGY, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS, UH, OF THE 27,500 OR SO THAT I MENTIONED THAT ARE ALREADY ON PAYMENT PLANS.
THEY'VE ALREADY GOTTEN ON THE MODIFIED BUDGET PAYMENT PLAN.
UM, SO THEY'RE ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THIS CHART.
THEY'VE ALREADY MADE THEIR THREE PAYMENTS.
THEY'VE BEEN, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO CATCH UP ON THEIR PAST DUE BALANCES.
THEY DON'T HAVE TO DO ANYTHING ELSE.
C P SS WILL AUTO-ENROLL THEM, UH, INTO RECEIVING THE $300 CREDIT, UM, NOT TO EXCEED THEIR PAST DUE BALANCE.
WE HAVE OTHER CUSTOMERS ON A D P THAT ARE NOT ON A BUDGET PAYMENT PLAN, NOR HAVE THEY MADE A PAYMENT TOWARDS C P S IN A LONG PERIOD OF TIME.
C P S WILL AUTO-ENROLL THEM INTO THIS MODIFIED BUDGET PLAN.
THEY'LL TAKE THE PAST DUE BALANCE, SPREAD IT OUT OVER 48 MONTHS, AND THEN ONCE THAT CUSTOMER MAKES AT LEAST THREE PAYMENTS, THEY WILL ALSO AUTOMATICALLY GET THE $300 CREDIT, UH, APPLIED TO THEIR BALANCE, NOT TO EXCEED THE AMOUNT, UH, THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF THE PAST DUE BALANCE.
SO THE GOAL IS TO, UM, HELP, UH, UH, THE CUSTOMERS THAT ARE ON A D P THAT HAVE PAST DUE BALANCES GET CAUGHT UP.
AGAIN, A NUMBER ARE ALREADY ON PAYMENT PLANS.
WE'RE RECOGNIZING THAT MANY HAVE MADE THE EFFORT, UH, THROUGH COVID AND OVER THE PAST SIX MONTHS TO BE CAUGHT UP.
SO WE'RE GONNA PROVIDE SOME ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE THERE AND RECOGNIZE THAT.
AND THEN FOR THOSE THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ON A PAYMENT PLAN OR HAVE NOT MADE A PAYMENT, C P S WILL AUTO-ENROLL.
ONCE THEY MAKE A TOTAL OF THREE PAYMENTS, THEY WOULD GET THAT $300 CREDIT.
UH, IN TERMS OF THE CREDIT TO C P S ENERGY CUSTOMERS, UM, WE'RE GONNA CREDIT THAT RECOMMEND THAT THAT CREDITED BE CREDITED BACK BASED ON HOW THE MONEY WAS EARNED.
UH, WE HAVEN'T CHANGED THIS PART.
IT'S STILL BASED ON THE JULY, 2022 USAGE.
IT WOULD APPEAR ON THE OCTOBER, 2022 BILL.
UM, I MENTIONED WE'RE CREDITING BACK BASED ON HOW IT WAS EARNED IN A UNIFORM AND EQUAL WAY, KIND OF RECOGNIZING THE REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT THAT WE OPERATE IN, UH, OR THAT C P S ENERGY OPERATES IN.
UH, WE HAVE ADDED THIS FEATURE FROM THE LAST WORK SESSION AGAIN THAT WE CAN, A CUSTOMER CAN OPT OUT OF THE CREDIT, UH, AND DIRECT THAT CREDIT TO THE REAP PROGRAM.
THE CREDIT WILL APPLY, WILL, UH, SHOW UP IN THE OCTOBER BILL.
C P S WILL PUT INFORMATION OUT ABOUT THE CREDIT AND THE ABILITY TO OPT OUT AND REDIRECT THAT TO REAP, UM, THAT WILL BE HAPPENING, UH, THROUGH THE OCTOBER BILL AND, AND, AND, AND PASS THAT, UH, CUSTOMERS WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO GO TO A ONLINE FORM ON THE C P S ENERGY WEBSITE TO OPT OUT AND HAVE THAT CREDIT APPLIED.
THAT FEATURE WILL BE IN PLACE THROUGH THE END OF THE CALENDAR YEAR.
SO IF SOMEBODY SEES THEIR CREDIT IN OCTOBER, THEY DECIDE IN DECEMBER THAT I REALLY WOULD'VE RATHER HAVE THAT GOOD OR REAP.
THEY CAN STILL DO IT IN DECEMBER.
SO THAT THAT FEATURE WILL BE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE END OF THE CALENDAR YEAR.
UM, I'M JUST GONNA GO THROUGH A COUPLE OF SLIDES SIMILAR FORMAT TO WHAT YOU SAW LAST TIME.
SO WITH THE CREDIT AMOUNT, GOING BACK DOWN FROM 45 MILLION TO UH, 42.5 MILLION, YOU SEE A SLIGHT CHANGE HERE IN THE AVERAGE RESIDENTIAL CREDIT.
AND THEN YOU SEE SOME MINIMUM AND MAXIMUMS HERE BASED ON YOUR JULY USAGE.
IF YOU USE LESS THAN A THOUSAND K W H, YOU'D SEE ABOUT $18 CREDIT.
UH, IF YOU'RE IN THE THOUSAND ONE TO 2000 K W H SHOULD BE 18 TO $36.
ALL OF THAT, ABOUT 12.6% TO 12.7%, UH, OF THEIR JULY BILL IS WHAT THE CREDIT WOULD BE.
THIS SLIDE IS ALSO SIMILAR FORMAT TO THE ONE YOU SAW BEFORE, UH, AT THE LAST WORK SESSION.
UM, THESE ARE THE, UH, COMMERCIAL CLASSES.
AND I DO WANT TO NOTE HERE THAT ON THE POWERPOINT, THE DRAFT POWERPOINT WE SENT YOU YESTERDAY, UH, THERE WAS AN ERROR ON THE TITLE THERE.
IT SAYS NUMBER OF BILLS, WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH WHAT YOU SAW DURING THE LAST WORK SESSION.
THE ONE WE SENT YOU YESTERDAY SAID, NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS, THIS IS ACTUALLY THE NUMBER OF BILLS, UM, THAT, THAT ARE IN PLACE.
SO THIS IS CONSISTENT WITH WHAT YOU SAW BEFORE.
AND AGAIN, THESE NUMBERS HAVE CHANGED SLIGHTLY FROM THE LAST WORK SESSION.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE PREVIOUS SLIDE TO THIS SLIDE, CUSTOMERS ARE GONNA EXPERIENCE ANYWHERE FROM ABOUT A 12.5% TO 12.7%, UH, CREDIT AGAINST FROM THEIR JULY BILL, IS WHAT THEY WOULD SEE IN OCTOBER.
SO, UH, NEXT STEPS, UH, IF WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS PROPOSAL OR THIS REVISED RECOMMENDATION IS WE WOULD, UH, SCHEDULE THIS FOR CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION NEXT THURSDAY ON SEPTEMBER 8TH.
UM, THERE'S ALSO A REAP BOARD MEETING THAT HAS BEEN SCHEDULED FOR SEPTEMBER 19TH.
UM, AS I TALKED ABOUT SOME OF THE, THE A D P CUSTOMER REVISIONS AND GUIDELINES, WE WOULD NEED TO AMEND THE REAP GUIDELINES, UM, AND WOULD BE, UH, LOOKING TO CONSIDER THAT ON SEPTEMBER 19TH.
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JUST AS A REMINDER AS WELL, THE REAP BOARD IS COMPRISED OF, UH, THE MAYOR, UH, THE COUNTY JUDGE, AND THE C E O OF C P SS ENERGY.SO THOSE THREE MAKE UP THE REAP BOARD, AND WE WOULD BE ASKING THEM TO CONSIDER THESE.
IF THIS PROPOSAL MOVES FORWARD, WE WOULD BE ASKING THEM TO CONSIDER APPROVING THESE REVISED GUIDELINES ON SEPTEMBER 19TH.
SO, MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS, THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION.
UH, I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
UH, WE DO HAVE A FEW MEMBERS OUT TODAY, BUT I DO WANNA MAKE MENTION THAT COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL CAN'T BE WITH US TODAY, BUT I WANTED TO, AGAIN, EXPRESS MY SUPPORT FOR HER PROPOSAL, UH, FOR A PERMANENT FUND, UH, FOR SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE, WHICH WOULD CHANGE THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS HERE AT THE CITY.
IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT LEVERAGED FUNDING, WE'RE MUCH BETTER OFF PROVING TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OR ANY OTHER FUNDING PARTNER THAT A CONSISTENT CONSTANT AMOUNT WILL BE BUDGETED FOR CERTAIN PROGRAMS EACH YEAR, WHICH IS EXACTLY WHAT COUNCILMAN'S PROPOSAL DOES.
AND YOU'LL BE HEARING MORE ABOUT THAT, UH, FROM THE CITY MANAGER OVER THE NEXT DAY.
AND TO THE RATE PAYERS, UH, I BELIEVE WE DON'T WANT TO SET A PRECEDENT THAT WILL ALWAYS BE LOOKING TO SPEND A FLUCTUATING AMOUNT OF OVERAGES FAR AND ABOVE A SURPLUS THAT WE FORECASTED, UH, COLLECTED AS A RESULT OF WEATHER EMERGENCIES.
UH, I KNOW THIS IS AN, A ROBUST DISCUSSION.
UH, AND WE'LL EXPLORE WAYS THAT WE CAN MORE EFFECTIVELY AND ROUTINELY OFFER RETURNS TO THE RATE PAYERS TO OFFSET THE PAIN FELT IN HIGH HEAT MONTHS.
UH, PLEASE NOTE AGAIN, UH, THE HIGH BILLS, UH, ARE A RESULT OF A NUMBER OF FACTORS.
MOST, UH, SPECIFICALLY THE HIGH GAS PRICES THAT WERE CHARGED AND ARE MORE OF A FUNCTIONAL PASS THROUGH, UH, FOR THE C P S UH, ORGANIZATION.
BEYOND LOOKING AT THE ACTUAL RETURN TO INDIVIDUAL RATE PAYERS, IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT A REBATE OF $50 MILLION WOULD IN EFFECT, DELAY THE ONSET OF THE RECENT RATE INCREASE BY SEVERAL MONTHS, IF NOT A YEAR.
AND REMEMBER THAT THIS REBATE IS ONLY 50 MILLION OF THE $75 MILLION COLLECTED.
SO WE'RE STILL UTILIZING SOME OF THOSE FUNDS FOR ADDITIONAL ONE-TIME INVESTMENTS HERE AT THE CITY.
WE'VE HAD SOME GREAT CONVERSATIONS.
I EXPECT WE'LL HAVE SOME MORE TODAY ABOUT THE NEED TO FURTHER INVEST IN WEATHERIZATION AND EFFICIENCY MEASURES IN HOMES.
AND I'D LIKE TO REMIND MY COLLEAGUES THAT WE JUST APPROVED A $75 MILLION FUNDING PLAN WITH STEP AT C P S ENERGY.
THAT PROGRAM WILL HELP WEATHERIZE THOUSANDS OF HOMES, AND WE HAVE YET TO FULLY REALIZE ITS BENEFITS.
UH, SO AGAIN, I WELCOME THE DISCUSSION TODAY, AND I DO BELIEVE THAT A PERMANENT ONGOING INVESTMENT IN SUSTAINABILITY MEASURES, AGAIN, SOMETHING THAT HAS COME UP AGAIN AND IN OUR DISCUSSIONS AS POSSIBLE WHILE WE'RE RESPECTING THE OWNERS OF OUR ELECTRIC UTILITY.
UH, SO LET'S GET ON WITH THE DISCUSSION NOW.
WE'LL START WITH COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE.
I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT THE CITY STAFF AND C P S HAS PUT TOGETHER IN THE PROPOSAL THEY'VE BROUGHT FORWARD.
UH, I DON'T SUPPORT THE PROPOSAL AS A MATTER OF FACT.
UH, I SENT OUT A SURVEY TO PEOPLE IN MY DISTRICT AND, UH, I GOT BACK OVER 900 REPLIES.
AND A PLURALITY OF THOSE REPLIES ACTUALLY FAVORED SPENDING MORE OF THIS MONEY ON WEATHERIZATION AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY THAN THEY DID ON ANY OTHER CHOICE, INCLUDING THE ORIGINAL ONE.
I PROPOSE SAYING, GIVE EVERYBODY $75 BACK.
SO I, I BELIEVE THAT THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO DISCUSS OPTIONS AND NOT NECESSARILY JUST DECIDE TO GO WITH, UH, THE PRESENTATION THAT'S BEEN MADE.
I BELIEVE THAT WE DO NEED TO DO MORE ABOUT WEATHERIZING AND MAKING MORE HOMES ENERGY EFFICIENT.
I THINK THAT WOULD HELP INDIVIDUALS, THOUSANDS OF THEM.
AND IT WOULD ALSO HELP, UH, C P SS REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY IT NEEDS TO PROVIDE ENERGY TO EVERYBODY IN THE CITY, WHICH MEANS IT WOULD REDUCE EVERYBODY'S COST 'CAUSE WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO BUY AS MUCH NATURAL GAS.
I'VE, UH, GIVEN ALL OF YOU A COPY OF SOME COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS THAT I, I'D LIKE TO HAVE C P S AND TO A CERTAIN EXTENT, THE CITY ANSWER.
THEY NOT, MAY NOT BE ABLE TO ANSWER ALL OF THOSE AT THIS TIME.
AND I DON'T EXPECT TO GET COMPLETE ANSWERS TO EVERY QUESTION, BUT I HOPE EVERY ONE OF THEM WILL BE EXPLORED, UH, THE FIRST ONE I HAD.
AND IF SOMEBODY FROM C P S WANTS TO KIND OF STEP UP AND MAYBE THEY HAVE AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE, THEY'RE WELCOME TO.
BUT IF YOU JUST WANNA LISTEN, UH, THE FIRST ONE WAS, WHAT WAS THE COST OF MAKING A HOME WEATHERIZED OR ENERGY EFFICIENT OVER THE PAST TWO TO THREE YEARS? I THINK WE LOOK, NEED TO LOOK AT THE HISTORY OF THAT WHEN WE START TALKING ABOUT ARE WE GOING TO PROMOTE WEATHERIZATION, UH, AND WHAT WAS THE AVERAGE COST FOR WEATHERIZATION? AND I THINK AN EXPLANATION OF IS WEATHERIZATION
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REALLY PROVIDING ENERGY EFFICIENCY? UH, SO IN THE WEATHERIZATION THAT'S BEEN DONE BY C P S ENERGY, I KNOW THEY TALK ABOUT MAYBE REPLACING A ROOF OR REPLACING THE, UH, THE INSULATION AROUND IN, AROUND WINDOWS AND DOORS AND LIGHT BULBS THEY REPLACE.AND ALSO, UH, MAYBE PUTTING IN A MORE INSULATION IN THE ATTIC AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT WHAT ELSE BECOMES PART OF WEATHERIZATION? AND IS IT IN FACT, HELPING WITH ENERGY EFFICIENCY? WHICH I BELIEVE IT'S, IT DOES.
SO WHAT IS THE PROJECTION OF SAVINGS PER HOME OR PER MONTH OR PER YEAR, WEATHERIZATION ON AVERAGE? IS THERE A 5% SAVINGS, A 10% SAVINGS FOR ALL OF THOSE? FOR ALL OF THOSE? AND MORE THAN THAT, WHAT WAS THE RETURN OR WHAT IS THE RETURN ON ENERGY EFFICIENCY COST TO C P SS FOR ALL OF THOSE HOMES THAT HAVE BEEN WEATHERIZED OR MAYBE WEATHERIZED GOING FORWARD SO THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE BENEFIT THAT WE GET AND HOW THAT AFFECTS C P S AND THE PROJECTED COST? IT WOULD, IT WOULD TAKE THE PROJECTION, UH, FOR STEP IS THAT THEY'RE GONNA WEATHERIZE 16,000 HOMES OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
WELL, WHAT ABOUT DOUBLING THAT? WHAT ABOUT WEATHERIZING 32,000 HOMES, UH, OVER FIVE YEARS AND USING SOME OF THIS, THIS CSA C P S REVENUE TO PAY FOR THAT? UM, YOU KNOW, THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY HAS ANNOUNCED THAT THEY'RE GONNA HAVE MONEY AVAILABLE FOR WEATHERIZATION.
UH, AND I KNOW C P S IS LOOKING AT TRYING TO CAPTURE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS, EARN SOME OF THOSE FUNDS.
WHAT WILL THOSE DO IF WE ENTER, IF WE MAKE MORE HOMES, ENERGY, ENERGY EFFICIENT AND WEATHERIZE, WHAT WILL THAT DO TO CP S'S ABILITY TO PROVIDE ENERGY AT MAYBE EVEN A LOWER COST THAN IT DOES TODAY? BECAUSE THERE ARE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF HOMES THAT AREN'T WEATHERIZED AND ARE SIMPLY WASTING ENERGY AND RUNNING UP THE BILLS FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS, UH, WHO LIVE IN THOSE KINDS OF HOMES.
BUT A QUESTION THAT GOES WITH THAT IS, THOUGH, DO WE HAVE THE CAPABILITY AND THE CAPACITY OF ENERGY CONTRACTORS IN OUR COMMUNITY TO ACCOMPLISH SUCH A GOAL? SO WE CAN SET A GOAL, BUT CAN WE ATTAIN IT? AND I THINK THAT'S A FAIR QUESTION TO ASK.
UM, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS WE NEED TO CONSIDER IS EVERY HOME THAT WE WEATHERIZE OR MAKE ENERGY EFFICIENT, WE SHOULD REQUIRE DEMAND RESPONSE BE PUT INTO EVERY ONE OF THOSE HOMES.
SO IF WE'RE MAKING THEM ENERGY SMART, IF WE'RE MAKING 'EM WEATHERIZED, WE OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO USE DEMAND RESPONSE TO HELP REGULATE THAT FLOW OF ENERGY.
UH, DEMAND RESPONSE IS AVAILABLE IN 150,000 HOMES IN SAN ANTONIO TODAY.
AND IF WE CAN ADD IT TO MORE HOMES THAT WE WEATHERIZE, AGAIN, THAT SAVES C P SS, UH, A LOT OF MONEY AND WASTED ENERGY.
UH, SO ANOTHER THING ARE SMARTS.
THERE ARE SMART THERMOSTATS OUT IN HOMES TODAY.
AND, UH, THOSE NEED TO BE, ARE THOSE A REQUIREMENT FOR HOMES THAT ARE WEATHERIZED UNDER CASA VERDE? 'CAUSE WE'VE BEEN WEATHERIZING HOMES.
SO I'D LIKE TO KNOW IF WE'RE ALREADY INCLUDING SMART THERMOSTATS OR DEMAND RESPONSE IN ALL OF THOSE HOMES.
WE'VE BEEN WEATHERIZING, IT SEEMS TO ME TO MAKE SENSE.
WE SHOULD INCLUDE THAT IN THERE.
I THINK WE SHOULD MAKE SURE THAT THE CEILING FOR THE POVERTY LEVEL FOR REAP IS 200%.
BUT FOR HOMES THAT WE WEATHERIZE, I DON'T KNOW IF THOSE HOMES ARE ALSO IN THAT 250%, UH, 200% BRACKET OF THE POVERTY LINE.
OR IF IT'S 1 25 OR ONE 50, I THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE CLARIFIED.
'CAUSE THE MORE HOMES THAT FIT INTO OUR GOAL, AND IF WE SET 200 AS A GOAL, THE MORE WE'LL BE ABLE TO HELP PEOPLE WHO NEED THAT HELP.
I THINK WE NEED TO ADD ENERGY EFFICIENCY WEATHERIZATION MEASURES TO EVERY HOME THAT THE CITY STARTS EMBARKING ON FOR MINOR REPAIRS OR MAJOR REHABILITATION TO BE LIVABLE.
THAT SHOULD BE PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH $45 MILLION IN HOUSING BOND MONEY.
WE'RE SAYING WE'RE GONNA IMPROVE HOMES AND MAKE 'EM LIVABLE.
WE OUGHT TO IMPROVE THEM TO BE ENERGY EFFICIENT AND WEATHERIZED AS WELL.
AND THAT'S WHERE WE CAN USE SOME OF THE MONEY THAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE FOR C P S TO DO THAT.
UM, AND I'M NOT SURE, I'D LIKE TO KNOW HOW MANY HOMES WE'RE INTENDING TO REHABILITATE AND WHAT WOULD BE THE COST ESTIMATE FOR ADDING WEATHERIZATION TO ALL OF THOSE HOMES.
I WANNA RECOMMEND WE PROVIDE A $240 BILL REBATE OVER TWO YEARS TO EVERY ADDITIONAL HOUSEHOLD THAT ADDS DEMAND RESPONSE THERMOSTATS.
RIGHT NOW WE'VE GOT 150,000 TO DO THAT.
[00:25:01]
WOULD IT BE LIKE IF WE ADDED 10,000 A YEAR THAT WOULD COST US AT GIVING EVERYBODY A $10 A MONTH CREDIT ON THEIR BILL THAT WOULD COST THE CITY $120 OR C P S? THAT WOULD BE 1.2 MILLION ANNUALLY OUT OF $50 MILLION OR $75 MILLION.WHAT IF WE DO 10,000 OVER TWO YEARS? THAT'S NOT EVEN TWO AND A HALF MILLION.
WHAT IF WE DO 20,000 OR 40,000? WHAT DOES THAT DO TO CP S'S ABILITY TO REDUCE COSTS AND ENERGY CONSUMPTION? SO I THINK WE SHOULD BE GIVING A REBATE TO HOUSES THAT WILL ADD DEMAND RESPONSE THERMOSTATS TO THEIR HOME.
AND WE OUGHT TO LOOK AT INCENTIVIZING BUSINESSES TO DO THAT TOO.
AND WHAT ARE THE INCENTIVES FOR BUSINESSES TO DO THAT? ENERGY SAVINGS TO C P S WITH DEMAND RESPONSE COULD BE AS MANY AS 25 OR 26,000 ADDITIONAL HOMES IN TWO YEARS BASED ON THEIR PLANS OF DOING 16,000 HOMES.
PLUS THE CITY'S GONNA BE, UM, REDOING HOMES.
AND IF WE ADD WEATHERIZATION TO THAT AND, UH, WHAT WILL BE THE IMPACT OF THAT? I THINK WE NEED TO KNOW TO DECIDE IS THERE MONEY IN THIS 50 OR 75 MILLION TO ACCOMPLISH THIS? I THINK WE NEED TO SUPPORT ALL OF THOSE ISSUES I'VE JUST MENTIONED.
UH, BUT ALSO, UH, YOU KNOW, ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND REBATES ON DEMAND RESPONSE, I THINK CAN MAKE THE BO THE MOST DIFFERENCE IN HELPING REDUCE COST TO C P S ENERGY, WHICH WOULD REDUCE COST TO EVERYBODY WHO USES C P SS ENERGY.
FINALLY, I SUPPORT COUNCILWOMAN SANDOVAL'S FOUR PROPOSALS ON REASSIGNING THE 14% OF OUR STEP FUNDING OVER THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
I THINK ALL FOUR OF HER PROPOSALS HAVE MERIT.
I SUPPORT COUNCILMAN BRAVO'S PROPOSAL FOR REASSIGNING AT LEAST PART OF THAT $70 MILLION, ALTHOUGH I MAY NOT AGREE ON THE TOTAL NUMBERS HE'S PROPOSED, UH, FOR REVENUES INCLUDING ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND HEAT ISLAND REMEDIATION AND CREATING MORE EMERGENCY OR FREEZING CENTERS, WHICH WILL NEED TO HAVE THEIR OWN GENERATORS FOR THEIR OWN ENERGY TO REMAIN WORKING IN TIMES OF EMERGENCY SITUATIONS.
BUT I ALSO PROPOSE, UH, SUPPORT THE CITY MANAGER'S SUGGESTION ON ADDING MORE COSA FUNDS TO THE REAP PROGRAMS. I HOPE THESE IDEAS WILL BE SHARED BY SOME OF MY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THAT WE DECIDE NOT RIGHT AWAY TO SHIFT THAT 50 OR $75 MILLION TO GIVING $31 OR $29 OR $50 BACK TO ANY BUSINESSES, UH, OR INDIVIDUALS.
BUT WE LOOK AT LONG-TERM GOALS TO HELP C P S SUSTAIN AFFORDABLE ENERGY FOR US.
SO THOSE ARE MY THOUGHTS AND SUGGESTIONS, AND I SURE HOPE C P SS CAN HELP WITH MANY OF THOSE QUESTIONS I ASKED.
UM, LAID A LOT ON US JUST NOW.
SO COREY, YOU WANNA TAKE ANY OF THAT? YEAH, WELL WE'RE NOT GONNA ANSWER ANY OF THOSE RIGHT AWAY, COUNCILMAN, BUT WE GOT THE LIST RIGHT HERE, SO OUR TEAM WILL GO BACK AND FOLLOW UP WITH YOU.
SO I, I THINK AS WE MOVE INTO THIS DISCUSSION, LEMME JUST LEVEL SET FOR A SECOND.
THERE, THERE IS, WE ARE NOT DEBATING THE MERITS, THE BENEFITS OF THE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED.
I THINK WE ALL BELIEVE IN THE EFFICACY OF WEATHERIZATION OF, UH, THE WORK THAT STEP IS DOING AND WILL DO.
UM, SO I JUST WANNA MAKE THAT VERY CLEAR, BUT YOU DID ASK A QUESTION THAT I WOULD LIKE SOME SENSE OF AN ANSWER TO ERIC, AND THAT IS IT'S VERY CLEAR THERE'S NOT A UNIFIED PLAN ON WHAT TO DO WITH THIS FIF $50 MILLION, WHETHER THAT'S THE REBATE THAT IS IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET THAT I SUPPORT, UH, IN COMBINATION WITH, WITH BENEFITING REAP, AND THEN OF COURSE, COUNCIL MEMBER SANDOVAL'S, UH, PROPOSAL THAT IS SEPARATE FROM THAT.
UM, AND THEN THERE'S BEEN MANY OTHER THINGS SUGGESTED, BUT IN THE EVENT, ERIC, THAT WE DID SOMETHING SIMILAR TO A STEP PROGRAM HERE THAT INCLUDES WEATHERIZATION BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT THAT'S PART OF THE STEP PROGRAM MOVING FORWARD.
UM, WE DON'T HAVE A MUNICIPAL WEATHER WEATHERIZATION PROGRAM OURSELVES.
DO WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO JUST PUSH IN $42 MILLION INTO THAT PROGRAM? HE ASKED ABOUT THE CONTRACT AND CAPACITY OUT THERE.
COULD WE PUT ANOTHER 16,000 HOMES? UM, WOULD WE BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THEM? WHO WOULD QUALIFY AND THEN COULD WE SPEND THAT MONEY? WELL, I MEAN, I THINK YOU'VE, I I THINK WE'D HAVE TO HIT IT FROM A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT ANGLES, MAYOR, THAT, NOT JUST CAPACITY, BUT WHAT WOULD MAKE SENSE FROM A, UM, AN EFFICIENCY STANDPOINT.
UM, UH, C P S HAS A WEATHERIZATION PROGRAM, SO I'M NOT NECESSARILY SURE WHY WE'D, WE'D WANNA RECREATE THE WHEEL AT THE CITY AND MAYBE THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU, WE WOULD HAVE TO WORK WITH C P SS, UH, WHETHER OR NOT THERE'S A CAPACITY TO DO THAT, THAT'S A QUESTION YOU GUYS ASKED C P S IN JUNE WHEN THEY WERE BEFORE YOU.
[00:30:01]
CONSIDERATION OF THE, OF THE, OF THE EXTENSION OF THE STEP PLAN.I, I THINK WE WOULD NEED TIME TO ANSWER ALL THOSE QUESTIONS.
UM, CAPACITY THE DEL THE, THE, THE ABILITY TO DELIVER, UH, WHATEVER THE PROGRAM IS AND ENSURING THAT IT'S IN LINE, UH, WITH C P SS WHERE IT MAKES SENSE RATHER THAN, RATHER THAN, UM, DUPLICATING EFFORTS.
UM, ALL THOSE THINGS WOULD NEED, WE WOULD NEED TIME TO FIGURE THAT OUT.
I'M, I'M NOT SURE I CAN ANSWER THAT QUESTION RIGHT NOW.
ALRIGHT, LET'S MOVE NOW TO COUNCIL MEMBER KEO HDA.
THANK YOU FOR THE, THE PRESENTATION.
BEN, LAST NIGHT I WAS WELCOMED AT THE DISTRICT TWO TOWN HALL AND, UH, ONE OF THE CONSTITUENTS, LIZ FRANKLIN, WHO WE ALL KNOW, UM, ASKED ABOUT INCOME QUALIFICATIONS FOR THE REAP PROGRAM.
UM, HER CONCERN WAS FOR THOSE HOUSEHOLDS WHO ARE JUST ABOVE THE QUALIFICATION LIMITS FOR RECEIVING HELP FROM REAP, DO WE OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE, UM, TO MIDDLE, UH, INCOME FAMILIES? I DON'T KNOW IF C P S WHILE YOU'RE WALKING UP, I WANNA BE CLEAR, I SUPPORT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE ALLOCATION TO REAP.
UM, I THINK THAT'S A GOOD USE OF THOSE FUNDS.
SO WE HAVE OUR ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, 125% OF POVERTY, UM, PRIORITY POPULATIONS, FAMILIES WITH YOUNG CHILDREN, UH, DISABLED INDIVIDUALS AND PEOPLE ON MEDICAL EQUIPMENT.
I CAN IN, UM, UNIQUE SITUATIONS AUTHORIZE A WAIVER, UM, DEPENDING ON THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE INDIVIDUAL.
UH, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, WE DO FOLLOW THAT ELIGIBILITY PRETTY STRICTLY IN ORDER TO SERVE THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF CLIENTS.
AND I, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE HAS TO BE A CUTOFF MM-HMM.
UM, BUT I WONDER IF THERE'S A WAY TO, TO FIGURE OUT OR STUDY, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW MANY PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY AFTER THE LAST TWO YEARS, UH, REALIZE HOW CLOSE TO, UM, RIGHT.
UH, THE POVERTY LEVEL THEY REALLY ARE.
UM, OR ONE, ONE PAYCHECK AWAY MAYBE.
SO, UM, I'D LIKE TO EXPLORE THAT.
THAT WAS JUST KIND OF AN ASIDE.
BUT, UM, UM, ALSO IN DISTRICT SIX, THANK YOU IN DISTRICT SIX, UH, AT THE DISTRICT TWO TOWN HALL LAST NIGHT, AND OTHER AREAS OF TOWN, FOLKS HAVE EXPRESSED TO ME THAT THEY'RE JUST NOT INTERESTED IN A REFUND.
THEY'VE ASKED US TO DO SOMETHING MORE MEANINGFUL WITH IT.
UM, THIS IS A QUESTION OF A ONE-TIME REFUND VERSUS AN INVESTMENT.
I INVITE EVERYONE TO CONSIDER WHICH ONE IS LONG-TERM, WHICH ONE DOES THE MOST GOOD, WHICH ONE, IN MY OPINION, MAKES OUR CITY STRONGER.
UH, IN JUST A MOMENT, I'M GONNA INVITE DR.
NEIL DEBBAGE TO COME UP BRIEFLY TALK ABOUT THE URBAN, UM, ABOUT URBAN HEAT.
I EXPRESSED MY SUPPORT, UH, FOR, UH, THE LONG-TERM INVESTMENT INTO THE STEP PROGRAM.
I THINK THAT COUNCILMAN COURAGE HAS BROUGHT UP A NUMBER OF REALLY GOOD QUESTIONS, UM, TODAY.
I THINK THAT'S, THEY'RE WELL ARTICULATED AND I CAN'T WAIT TO HEAR THE, THE, UH, ANSWERS.
DEBBAGE, CAN YOU, CAN YOU TELL US, UM, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, URBAN HEAT AND HOW IT AFFECTS, UM, OUR CITY? AND THEN I'M GONNA ASK YOU SOME QUESTIONS SPECIFICALLY ABOUT WEATHERIZATION.
SO, UH, THANK YOU MAYOR AND THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBERS, UH, FOR YOUR TIME TODAY.
I'M AN ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AT UT SAN ANTONIO.
UH, MY RESEARCH FOCUSES ON URBAN CLIMATOLOGY WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT.
SO TODAY I'M GONNA PROVIDE A REALLY BRIEF BACKGROUND OF WHAT CAUSES THIS URBAN HEAT ISSUE, UH, WHAT THE MAGNITUDE OF THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT IS IN OUR CITY, AND WHAT WE CAN DO TO TRY TO REDUCE IT.
SO WE HAVE THREE BASIC THINGS THAT CREATE AN URBAN HEAT ISLAND.
WE HAVE LOTS OF DARK ASPHALT THAT ABSORBS HEAT, WHICH THEN HEATS UP THE AIR AND HEATS UP THE SURFACE ITSELF.
UH, SO THAT'S ONE OF THE PRIMARY WAYS WE HAVE WARMER URBAN ENVIRONMENTS.
IF WE THINK ABOUT AN URBAN CANYON, ALL THAT ENERGY IS TRYING TO ESCAPE BUT CAN'T.
IT'S GOING TO HIT BUILDINGS AND THEN RERADIATE BACK DOWN AND WARM THE SURFACE IN THE AIR TEMPERATURE EVEN FURTHER.
WE CAN SEE A TYPICAL DOWNTOWN CORRIDOR THERE, MAYBE ONE TREE.
SO WE HAVE LESS SHADE, WE HAVE LESS COOLING, UH, THAT TREES PROVIDE.
AND THEN FINALLY, WE HAVE ANTHROPOGENIC HEAT SOURCES, WHICH IS A FANCY WAY OF SAYING ALL THE ACTIVITIES THAT ARE CLUSTERED IN URBAN ENVIRONMENTS.
MANY OF THEM EMIT HEAT, SO EXHAUSTS FROM CARS, FACTORIES, UH, EVEN OUR AIR CONDITIONING UNITS.
SO IF WE WANT TO LOOK AT WHAT THIS CAUSES IN TERMS OF ELEVATED TEMPERATURES IN OUR CITY, THERE'S BEEN A FEW PAST STUDIES.
UM, ONE FOUND THAT THE AIR TEMPERATURE
[00:35:01]
AT NIGHTTIME WAS BETWEEN TWO AND FOUR DEGREES FAHRENHEIT WARMER WITHIN SAN ANTONIO COMPARED TO ITS RURAL SURROUNDINGS.AND ANOTHER STUDY LOOKING AT THE ACTUAL TEMPERATURES OF THE SURFACE, UH, FOUND THAT THE INCREASE WAS SIX TO EIGHT DEGREES FAHRENHEIT AND WARMER.
NOW, THOSE ARE BOTH AVERAGES, UH, ACROSS SPACE AND TIME.
SO WE KNOW AT ANY INDIVIDUAL PLACE, AT ANY INDIVIDUAL TIME, IT COULD BE EVEN HIGHER THAN, THAN THOSE TYPES OF AVERAGES.
SO WE CAN MAP OUT WHAT THE SURFACE URBAN HEAT ISLAND OF SAN ANTONIO LOOKS LIKE.
UH, SO REDS ARE HOTTER TEMPERATURES, AND WE CAN SEE, UH, LOCALIZED, LITERAL HOTSPOTS WITHIN OUR CITY.
UH, AND THEN WE CAN BEGIN TO THINK ABOUT HOW WE CAN USE THIS TYPE OF DETAILED SATELLITE INFORMATION TO TARGET, UH, MITIGATIVE APPROACHES TO TRY TO RELIEVE THIS HEAT STRESS, UH, THAT MANY OF OUR RESIDENTS ARE, UH, DEALING WITH.
SO WHAT CAN WE ACTUALLY DO? WHAT ARE THESE TARGETED MEASURES? UH, WE HAVE THREE BASIC APPROACHES, RIGHT? IF WE KNOW WHAT CAUSES IT, WE CAN TRY TO REVERSE THOSE CAUSES.
SO INCREASING THE ALBEDO, UH, IS ONE BIG APPROACH THAT'S BASICALLY SAYING MAKE THINGS MORE REFLECTIVE.
UH, SO WHITE ROOFS, UH, WHITE PAVEMENTS, THOSE ARE ALL STRATEGIES THAT WOULD FALL UNDER THAT CATEGORY.
INCREASING VEGETATION, SO MORE, UH, TREE CANOPIES, PRESERVING EXISTING TREE CANOPIES AND, UH, PARKS AND GREEN SPACES IS ALSO ANOTHER MITIGATIVE MEASURE.
AND THEN FINALLY, REDUCING WASTE HEAT.
SO IF WE KNOW A LOT OF OUR ACTIVITIES ARE EMITTING HEAT INTO THE ENVIRONMENT, UH, WE CAN TRY TO THINK ABOUT WAYS WE CAN REDUCE THAT INPUT TO THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT AS WELL.
SO THAT IS JUST A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE URBAN HEAT THREATS THAT WE'RE FACING AND SOME OF THE APPROACHES THAT WE CAN KIND OF THINK ABOUT TO MAKE SAN ANTONIO CLIMATE RESILIENT MOVING FORWARDS.
UM, HOW CAN PROPER WEATHERIZATION OF HOMES RELATE, OR HOW DOES IT RELATE TO THE URBAN HEAT EFFECT? HOW CAN IT MINIMIZE? YEAH, SO WHEN WE THINK ABOUT MAKING HOMES MORE EFFICIENT, LIKE WE, LIKE WE SAW WASTE HEAT IS ONE OF THE BIG COMPONENTS OF THE URBAN HEAT ON EFFECT.
SO IF WE MAKE HOMES MORE EFFICIENT, WE RUN AC UNITS LESS, WHICH MEANS WE'RE EMITTING LESS HEAT.
UH, AND THERE WAS A RECENT STUDY LOOKING AT PHOENIX, UH, TRYING TO ACTUALLY QUANTIFY THIS AIR CONDITIONING COMPONENT OF THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT.
AND THEY FOUND THAT IT WAS BY ITSELF JUST AIR CONDITIONING RUNNING, UH, WAS TWO DEGREES FAHRENHEIT.
SO THEN WE CAN THINK ABOUT HOW THAT STARTS A, A FEEDBACK CYCLE WHERE IF IT'S HOTTER, WE RUN MORE AIR CONDITIONING, IT MAKES IT HOTTER, SO WE RUN MORE AIR CONDITIONING.
UM, SO WE CAN THINK ABOUT HOUSING EFFICIENCY AND WEATHERIZATION, KIND OF FLIPPING THAT LOOP BACKWARDS WHERE IT'S COOLER, WE DON'T HAVE TO RUN AS MUCH AIR CONDITIONING, WHICH COOLS THE ENVIRONMENT FURTHER AND KIND OF USE THAT FEEDBACK CYCLE TO OUR ADVANTAGE.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
I TOO WOULD LIKE TO PHONE A FRIEND.
UM, WE HAVE A GUEST TODAY, UM, AN EXPERT WITNESS IF YOU WILL, UH, ANDREW ROBINSON.
UM, HE IS A RESEARCH ANALYST WITH THE TEXAS ENERGY POVERTY RESEARCH INSTITUTE.
UM, ANDREW, I'D LIKE TO ASK YOU A, A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
COULD YOU STATE YOUR NAME AGAIN? YES.
I'M A RESEARCH ANALYST AT THE TEXAS ENERGY POVERTY RESEARCH INSTITUTE.
AND, UH, WOULD YOU MIND TELLING US THE MISSION OF YOUR ORGANIZATION AND WHAT IS YOUR EXPERTISE? ABSOLUTELY.
UM, WE'RE A PRETTY SMALL RESEARCH ORGANIZATION BASED OUT OF AUSTIN, AND OUR GOAL IS TO, UH, FORWARD SOLUTIONS THAT PROMOTE SUSTAINABLE, RELIABLE, AND AFFORDABLE ENERGY FOR LOW INCOME TEXANS ACROSS THE STATE.
UM, SO THESE SURPLUS MONIES ARE A RESULT OF UNEXPECTEDLY HIGH ENERGY COSTS, AND OUR HOPE IS TO USE THESE MONIES TO, UM, EASE THE BURDEN CARRIED BY THE RESIDENTS WHO COULD LEAST AFFORD THIS ADDITIONAL EXPENSE.
UM, AT THE DISTRICT TWO BUDGET TOWN HALL LAST NIGHT, WE HAD THE MAJORITY OF ATTENDEES SAY THAT THEY DIDN'T REALLY CARE TOO MUCH FOR THE $31 REBATE, AND THEY'D RATHER SEE IT GO TO RESIDENTS WHO NEED IT MORE.
UM, SO IN YOUR RESEARCH, CAN YOU TELL ME A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT WHICH OF OUR SAN ANTONIO FAMILIES ARE MOST ENERGY BURDENED WHO'S BEING SEVERELY IMPACTED BY THE HIGH ELECTRICITY BILLS? AND IF YOU COULD QUEUE UP THE SLIDES FOR US.
UM, WHILE WE'RE GETTING THERE, UM, I CAN BRIEFLY TOUCH ON, UM, SORT OF THE PARAMETERS THAT WE USE TO ASSESS, UH, WHAT WE CONSIDER TO BE, UH, LARGE ENERGY COSTS ACROSS DIFFERENT INCOME GROUPS.
UM, SO AT PPRI WE CONSIDER ANYTHING ABOVE 6% OF HOUSEHOLD INCOME GOING TOWARDS ENERGY COSTS AS, UH, HAVING A HIGH ENERGY BURDEN AND ANYTHING ABOVE THE 10%, UH, OF HOUSEHOLD INCOME THRESHOLD BEING EXTREME ENERGY BURDEN.
SO LOOKING AT BEXAR COUNTY AT A GLANCE, UH, WE CAN SEE THAT THE AVERAGE LOW TO MODERATE INCOME HOUSEHOLD, WHICH IS BETWEEN ZERO AND 80% OF AREA AND MEDIAN INCOME, SPENDS ABOUT 8% OF THEIR INCOME
[00:40:01]
ON, UH, ENERGY COSTS ACROSS THE BOARD, UH, RESULTING IN ABOUT $1,600 OF ANNUAL ENERGY COSTS.AND JUST AS A QUICK NOTE, THESE, UH, FIGURES ARE, UH, FROM 2021.
SO IT JUST DOESN'T FULLY INCORPORATE THE RISE IN ENERGY COSTS THAT WE'VE SEEN OVER THE LAST YEAR.
UM, BUT STILL IT REALLY DRIVES HOME THE, UM, THE LARGE ENERGY COSTS THAT ARE EXPERIENCED BY THE LOWEST INCOME HOUSEHOLDS IN THE CITY, IN THE COUNTY OF BAYER.
UM, AND THEN IF WE DRIVE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER, UM, THE ENERGY AFFORDABILITY GAP IS A FIGURE THAT, UH, DEMONSTRATES THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY, EXCUSE ME, THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT PEOPLE SPEND BEYOND THE AFFORDABILITY THRESHOLD OF 6%.
UH, SO FOR THE AVERAGE LOAD OF MODERATE INCOME HOUSEHOLD IN THE STATE, UM, THEY SPEND ABOUT $400 MORE THAN IS ABOVE THEIR AFFORDABILITY GAP, UH, UH, EXCUSE ME, AFFORDABILITY THRESHOLD.
AND FOR THE LOWEST INCOME HOUSEHOLDS, UH, BETWEEN ZERO AND 30% OF AREA MEDIAN INCOME, THAT FIGURE IS BETWEEN 440 AND $1,200 OF, UH, MONEY SPENT ABOVE WHAT THEY REALLY SHOULD BE, UH, FOR THEIR INCOME LEVEL.
AND THOSE FIGURES REALLY VARY DEPENDING ON THE QUALITY, UH, OF A HOME.
AND JUST TO GIVE YOU MORE FIGURES OF THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THE COUNTY THAT EXPERIENCE HIGH ENERGY BURDEN, IT'S ROUGHLY 150,000 HOUSEHOLDS THAT ARE ABOVE THAT 6% AFFORDABILITY THRESHOLD.
AND 15% OF HOUSEHOLDS IN THE COUNTY ARE ABOVE THAT 10% THRESHOLD.
AND IF, AND IF WE GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE, WE CAN REALLY DRIVE HOME THAT THIS IS NOT ONLY A QUESTION OF INCOME, BUT ALSO OF RACE AND HISTORICAL, UM, UNDERINVESTMENT IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE CITY, DEPENDING ON, UM, ETHNIC AND RACIAL BACKGROUND.
SO IF WE THINK ABOUT, IF WE LOOK AT THE, THE FIRST PICTURE DEMONSTRATES, UH, THE PERCENTAGE OF ENERGY BURDEN FELT IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF BEXAR COUNTY.
UM, YOU CAN SEE WITHIN THE FOUR 10 LOOP, YOU SEE A MUCH HIGHER CONCENTRATION OF HIGHER ENERGY BURDENS RELATIVE TO INCOME.
AND IF WE JUXTAPOSE THAT WITH, UH, A MORE ZOOMED IN MAP OF, UH, RACIAL DEMOGRAPHICS IN THE CITY, UH, WE CAN SEE CLEAR PATTERNS BETWEEN HIGH ENERGY BURDENS AND, UM, RACIAL MAKEUP OF A GIVEN AREA.
AND, UM, I THINK IT WOULD MAKE ECONOMIC SENSE TO INVEST THIS MONEY IN AN EQUITABLE WAY AND IN A MANNER THAT WOULD ALLEVIATE THE DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN PLACE ON A FAMILIES.
LOOKING AT THE MAPS, I SEE THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU GAVE US NUMBERS THAT WERE THE COUNTY, BUT THIS IS VERY MUCH A BIG CITY PROBLEM.
UM, AND WHEN WE AS A COUNCIL RESOLVE TO TREAT RACISM AS A PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS, THIS IS A WAY THAT WE CAN PUT THAT RESOLUTION INTO ACTION BY INVESTING OUR MONEY TO HELP OVERCOME DECADES OF A LACK OF INVESTMENT IN BLACK, INDIGENOUS AND COMMUNITIES OF COLOR.
UM, MY NEXT QUESTION IS THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, TEMPORARILY EASING THE BURDEN OF THIS MAJOR EXPENSE IS ONE GOOD THING THAT WE COULD DO, BUT INVESTING THESE FUNDS IN LONG-TERM ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND THE WEATHERIZATION OF HOMES WOULD MAKE A LASTING IMPACT.
AND I THINK WE ALL WANT TO HAVE A LASTING IMPACT FOR THE FIRST PART OF MY QUESTION.
UM, WOULD YOU PLEASE TELL US MORE ABOUT WHAT BENEFITS AN ENERGY BURNING FAMILY WOULD GAIN IF WE INVESTED IN MAKING THEIR HOME MORE, UH, ENERGY EFFICIENT? AND SECONDLY, HOW CAN WE HELP THESE FAMILIES BE MORE RESILIENT TO THE EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS OF CLIMATE CHANGE? OF COURSE.
SO ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN AND OF ITSELF IS NOT ONLY, UH, SPECIFICALLY FOCUSED ON ENERGY ITSELF.
UM, WHEN ONE INVESTS IN A HOME'S ENERGY, UH, EXCUSE ME, HOME ENVELOPE BUILDING ENVELOPE TO MAKE IT MORE SEALED, IT HAS KNOCK ON BENEFITS IN BOTH THE ENERGY SPACE AND IN THE, UH, PUBLIC HEALTH SPACE TO SOME DEGREE, UM, WEATHERIZATION BENEFITS, WHETHER IT'S, UH, PUTTING INSULATION IN THE ROOF CEILING, HOLES IN THE ROOF, UM, FIXING WINDOWS OR EVEN SMALL THINGS LIKE LIGHT BULBS.
AND, UH, REPLACING WINDOWS CAN HAVE NOT ONLY, UH, INCREDIBLE BENEFITS FOR, UH, REDUCING ENERGY BILLS, NOT IN A SHORT TERM, BUT REALLY FOR, UH, THE LENGTH OF WHATEVER THAT INVESTMENT IS.
UH, BUT IT ALSO HELPS TO PRESERVE INDOOR TEMPERATURES MUCH MORE.
I THINK WE CAN ALL ATTEST TO THE INCREDIBLY HIGH TEMPERATURES THAT WE SAW.
UH, I THINK SAN ANTONIO BROKE RECORDS EVERY SINGLE MONTH IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF DAYS ABOVE A HUNDRED AND THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURES, UH, THAT WE'VE SEEN THUS FAR.
AND SO WEATHERIZATION MEASURES HELP TO PRESERVE HOME INDOOR TEMPERATURE MUCH LONGER, UM, DURING PERIODS OF, OF EXTREME WEATHER, WHETHER THAT'S EXTREME COLD OR EXTREME HEAT.
AND ADDITIONALLY, UH, BY PRESERVING THE BUILDING ENVELOPE AND WEATHERIZING A HOME, YOU, YOU DECREASE THE CHANCES OF PEOPLE BEING EXPOSED TO THE NEGATIVE SIDE EFFECTS OF HAVING A, A HOME THAT'S IN A POOR CONDITION, SUCH AS, UM, MOLD OR, UM, CONDITIONS THAT WOULD, UH, AFFECT SOMEONE WHO HAS, HAS ASTHMA, FOR INSTANCE.
UM, AND THEN ADDITIONALLY, UM, THE, THIS PROPOSAL FOCUSES ON, UM, PROVIDING ANOTHER AVENUE FOR WEATHERIZATION DOLLARS.
AND I WOULD, UH, LIKE TO JUST POINT OUT THAT, UM, THERE IS ALSO A LARGE AMOUNT OF FEDERAL FUNDING THAT'S GOING TOWARDS WEATHERIZATION FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS RECORDS NUMBERS, IN FACT, AND THE, THE, UH, POSSIBILITY TO USE THESE FUNDS IN CONJUNCTION WITH THOSE, UH, OTHER FUNDS COMING THROUGH THE FEDERAL AND STATE PIPELINE GIVES,
[00:45:01]
UH, THE IMPLEMENTERS, THE ACTUAL PEOPLE WHO GO IN AND DO THE JOB, MUCH MORE FLEXIBILITY WITH DELIVERING, UM, ACTUAL TANGIBLE BENEFITS TO THE CUSTOMERS THEY SERVE.THEN MY LAST QUESTION FOR YOU WOULD BE, UM, WHAT WOULD BE THE BENEFIT TO THE CITY? WHAT WOULD BE OUR RETURN ON AN INVESTMENT IN WEATHER IS WEATHERIZING THESE HOMES? SURE.
SO AGAIN, THIS IS NOT ONLY, UM, AN INVESTMENT IN, UH, AN INDIVIDUAL'S HOME AND, YOU KNOW, MAKING IT A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE AND, UH, POTENTIALLY EVEN INCREASING THE HOME'S VALUE, BUT IT'S AN INVESTMENT IN, UH, THE ENERGY SYSTEM ITSELF.
BY REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY THAT HOMES USE, PARTICULARLY LOW INCOME HOMES THAT ARE ALREADY CASH STRAPPED AND, UH, SPEND MUCH MORE THAN THEIR FAIR SHARE ON ELECTRICITY, UH, WE WILL REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY THAT'S REQUIRED DURING PERIODS OF PEAK DEMAND.
UM, ADDITIONALLY, UH, THIS WILL REALLY HELP TO STABILIZE THE GRID DURING PERIODS OF PEAK DEMAND AND WON'T REQUIRE AS MANY, UM, ISSUANCES FROM ERCOT, FOR INSTANCE, TO REDUCE, UH, TO CALLS FOR, TO REDUCE ENERGY ACROSS THE BOARD.
AND THERE ARE ALREADY MANY MECHANISMS IN PLACE TO DETERMINE WHETHER, UH, AN ENERGY EFFICIENCY INVESTMENT IS WORTHWHILE AND WORTH, UM, PUTTING THE MONEY THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE AND THE RETURN ON THE INVESTMENT TO THE CITY IS HELPING TO HELP THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN MOST AFFECTED BY, UH, THE NEGATIVE SIDE EFFECTS OF EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, AS WELL AS THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN HISTORICALLY UNDER INVESTED IN OVER THE LONG PERIOD.
UM, SO I CONTINUE TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF UTILIZING THESE SURPLUS C P S ENERGY FUNDS FOR SUSTAINABILITY EFFORTS, UM, SUCH AS WEATHERIZATION BECAUSE ONE, IT'LL HELP FAMILIES THAT NEED IT THE MOST.
UM, TWO, IT'LL BE A LONG-TERM INVESTMENT THAT WILL PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT RETURNS FOR OUR COMMUNITY, AND IT WILL ALSO MEAN THAT WE PULL LESS FROM OUR ENERGY GRID, SOMETHING THAT WE ALL KNOW IS INCREDIBLY NEEDED.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS MY SUPPORT FOR COUNCILMAN SANDOVAL'S, UH, PROPOSAL, UH, WITH A SEPARATE POCKET OF MONEY, RIGHT? UM, BUT ALSO FOR COUNCILMAN BRAVO'S PROPOSAL.
AND I KNOW WE'VE ALL HAD, UH, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN SOME, UH, IT'S BEEN EXPRESSED THAT MAYBE WE DON'T ALL AGREE ON THE NUMBERS, AND MAYBE THAT'S THE CONVERSATION THAT WE HAVE IS IF WE CAN AGREE ON THESE PROGRAMS IN EACH PART OF THIS PROPOSAL, CAN WE THEN TALK ABOUT THE NUMBERS? UM, I'D ALSO WONDER, UM, IF WE CAN EXPAND GUIDELINES OF REACH TO REACH MORE PEOPLE, UH, SIMILAR IN LINE WITH COUNCILMAN KEO HAVE QUESTION.
THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO NEED ASSISTANCE THAT DO NOT QUALIFY FOR A NUMBER OF OUR PROGRAMS. AND SO I'M WONDERING IF WE CAN SET ASIDE EXISTING MONEY SOLELY FOR THOSE WHO DO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS AS THEY EXIST, BUT COULD WE ADD ADDITIONAL MONEY SET ASIDE WITH AN EXPANDED THRESHOLD OF NEED? UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I WOULD LIKE US TO EXPLORE.
I DON'T NEED AN ANSWER TO THAT RIGHT NOW, BUT INCLUDE AS PART OF THE MEMO PLEASE.
UM, AND AS IT RELATES TO THE SURPLUS AND EXPECTATIONS FOR FUTURE USE, I CHALLENGE THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL RATE INCREASES IN THE NEAR FUTURE.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
AND, UH, I HAVE A GUEST THAT I'D LIKE TO CALL UP TO THE PODIUM AS WELL.
IT'S TOM CORER WITH THE SAN ANTONIO ARBORETUM.
DID THEY ORGANIZE? GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MAYOR.
UM, I'M AS, AS, UH, THE C E O OF THE RECENTLY FORMED ARBORETUM OF SAN ANTONIO.
AND I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT A PLACE FOR TREES.
THAT IS WHAT AN ARBORETUM MEANS, IS A PLACE FOR TREES TO CULTIVATE SCIENTIFIC, CULTURAL, EDUCATIONAL INTEREST AND VALUE.
WE NEED TO CONSIDER ALL OF SAN ANTONIO AS A PLACE FOR TREES IN THE FACE OF SIGNIFICANT CLIMATE IMPACT.
AS WE HAVE SEEN THE PAST COUPLE YEARS, ESPECIALLY THIS SUMMER, THERE'S A GREAT PURPOSE FOR PLANTING AND MAINTAINING TREES TO MITIGATE THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE WE'RE EXPERIENCING SOME OF THESE MANY BENEFITS INCLUDE SHADE CANOPY TO COOL OUR CITY, AIR QUALITY, STORM WATER MITIGATION, SOIL HEALTH, HEALTH ISSUES IN GENERAL, PROMOTION OF OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES AND BEAUTIFICATION OF OUR CITY.
URBAN TREE CANOPY IS THE LAYER OF LEAVES BETWEEN BRANCHES AND STEMS OF TREES THAT COVER THE GROUND WHEN VIEWED FROM ABOVE AND TYPICALLY MEASURED BY IRE, A BROADLY ACCEPTED TOOL DEVELOPED BY THE US FOREST SERVICE IN DAVEY TREE.
IN 2010, IRE ESTIMATED THE SAN ANTONIO CANOPY TO BE 38%.
IN 2015, IT WAS ESTIMATED TO BE 35.6 BY THE URBAN TREE CANOPY REPORT BY THE TEXAS FOREST SERVICE.
MOST RECENTLY, UH, FOR THE COUNTYWIDE, THERE WAS A, A, A MEASUREMENT OF 29.5, THAT THAT INDICATES A REDUCTION, UH, OF, UH, ANYWHERE BETWEEN 2.4 AND 8.5% UP MOST PROBABLE CAUSE FOR CONCERN, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONDUCT ANOTHER URBAN FORESTRY INVENTORY ANALYSIS TO UNDERSTAND OUR CURRENT BASELINE.
MANY SUGGESTED TARGET FOR URBAN CANOPY TO BE AROUND 40%.
THIS WOULD BE A SIGNIFICANT STRETCH FOR US TO ACHIEVE, BUT
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LONG TERM WITH THE RIGHT INVESTMENT AND PROGRAM, IT IS ACHIEVABLE.IT'S FOUND THAT TEMPERATURES UNDER SHADE OF, UH, SHADE OF THE TREE CANOPY CAN BE 14 DEGREES COOLER THAN DIRECT SUNLIGHT.
AND SOME E P A ESTIMATES SUGGEST A 40 DEGREE GAP.
THIS IMPLIES AREA OF FEW TO NO TREES, THAT THE TEMPERATURE, ESPECIALLY IN SAN ANTONIO, CAN GET DANGEROUSLY HOT FOR HUMANS, ANIMALS, AND PLANT LIFE.
ALLOCATING PORTIONS OF THE C P S SURPLUS CAN HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACT HOW WE MANAGE OR MITIGATE SAN ANTONIO HEAT ISLAND WITH THE EFFECT WITH AN EFFECTIVE RETURN.
THE E P A IS ESTIMATED BASED ON A FIVE YEAR STUDY THAT SITE CITIES ACCRUED BENEFITS RANGING FROM ABOUT A DOLLAR 50 TO $3.
FOR EVERY DOLLAR INVESTED, THAT'S A HEALTHY RETURN.
BUT IN DRY CLIMATES LIKE SAN ANTONIO, WHEN PLANTING NEW TREATS, THERE NEEDS TO BE A EXTENSIVE THREE TO FIVE YEAR WATERING PROGRAM TO KEEP THEM ALIVE.
SAWS WILL BE A CRITICAL PARTNER FOR GRAY WATER.
THE STRATEGY OF PLANTING YOUNG TREES WHEN WE CUT DOWN A MA TREE, TREE, MATURE TREE TO PLANT, MAINTAIN A CANOPY IS A LOSING BATTLE.
A YOUNG TREE OF ONE TO TWO INCHES IN DIAMETER WILL TAKE 10 TO 15 YEARS TO BEGIN TO SHOW THE BENEFICIAL SHADE CANOPY IN THOSE YEARS.
ALTHOUGH THE TREE COUNT MIGHT BE CONSTANT, YOU HAVE LOST THE CANOPY COVERAGE AND THEREFORE THE BENEFITS OUR CITY IS GROWING AND THE DEVELOPMENT MUST MOVE ON.
WE NEED TO ANTICIPATE THIS DEVELOPMENT WITH AN AGGRESSIVE RETENTION AND EXPANSION PROGRAM OF OUR CANOPY.
THIS ALSO HAS IMPORTANT IMPLICATIONS TO MAINTAIN OUR POWER FROM C P S AS A MAJORITY OF POWER LOSS IN STORMS IS DUE TO TREES HITTING POWER LINES, UM, DUE TO IMPROPER PLANTING AND MAINTENANCE.
WE'RE BUILDING AN ARBORETUM, WHICH IS A PLACE FOR TREES, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, WE WANT TO CREATE AND PROMOTE AN IDEA, THE IDEA OF HOW TREES CAN BENEFIT SAN ANTONIO ENGAGEMENT OF ENTIRE, THE ENTIRE CITY RESIDENTS BUSINESSES, VOLUNTEER ORGANIZATIONS LIKE BEAR BRANCHES ALLIANCE, WHO FOCUS ON PLANTING TREES, LEVERAGING A WORLD CLASS TEXAS A AND M, TEXAS FOREST SERVICE ARE EXAMPLES OF PARTNERS.
WE NEED IN AN OVERALL PLAN, A FOCUS ON THE SCIENCE RESEARCH AND PROCESS ABOUT HOW TO CURATE AN EQUITABLE URBAN FOREST THAT ENSURES THE RIGHT TREES ARE PLANTED IN THE RIGHT LOCATION TO MINIMIZE LIFESPAN AND BEN BENEFIT, MAXIMIZE LIFESPAN AND BENEFITS.
FOR EXAMPLE, TODAY BASED ON DATA FROM TEXAS A AND M FOREST SERVICE, PARSIM AND MEZCAL BEAN MAKE UP 31% OF OUR TREE INVENTORY, BUT ONLY PROVIDE 4.6% OF OUR SHADE.
YET LIVE OAKS ARE 4% OF OUR TREE INVENTORY, AND THEY PROVIDE 17% OF OUR SHADE.
AGAIN, PLANTING THE RIGHT TREES THAT GIVE US THE INTENDED OUTCOME ARE CRITICALLY IMPORTANT.
IN ADDITION, SUPPORTING OUR EFFORTS WITH, WITH THESE SURPLUS C P S DOLLARS, THERE'S SIGNIFICANT FEDERAL OPPORTUNITY FOR ADDRESSING CLIMATE CHANGE.
1.5 BILLION IS INCLUDED IN THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT TO BE MANAGED BY THE US FOREST SERVICE URBAN AND COMMUNITY FORESTRY PROGRAM.
THE I R A IS A PROGRAM OF COMPETITIVE GRANTS FOR TREE PLANTING AND CARE, AND WE NEED TO STEP UP AND COMPETE FOR THIS.
FUNDING AND MATCHING POSTURE IS ALWAYS HELPFUL WITH THESE TYPE OF GRANTS.
ALSO, THERE'S OPPORTUNITIES IN THE NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE BILL, FOR EXAMPLE, FUNDING IN STORMWATER MANAGEMENT USING TREE MITIGATION, WE HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO DOUBLE OR TRIPLE THE FUNDING IN THESE SOURCES.
WE NEED RESOLVE AND A LONG TERM VISION OF WHAT WE CAN CREATE, AND WE NEED TO START NOW.
THIS IS A TRUE INVESTMENT IN OUR CITY FOR THE LONG TERM, ONE THAT WILL BE APPLAUDED BY GENERATIONS TO COME.
GIVEN WE ARE SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTED BY HEAT ISLANDS, AIR QUALITY FLASH FLOODING SAN ANTONIO AS THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE A LEADER IN HOW WE MANAGE AND GROW OUR TREE CANOPY.
PART OF BEING A GREAT CITY IS SHOWING VISION AND PROACTIVE ACTION IN THE FACE OF CHALLENGES.
WE NEED TO SHOW UP AS THAT LEADER AND PUT FORTH A CONCERTED EFFORT TO INVEST IN OUR FUTURE TO MITIGATE CLIMATE CHANGE.
WE CANNOT DEFER, WE CANNOT STUDY.
IN CLOSING, THERE'S A CHINESE PROVERB THAT SAYS, THE BEST TIME TO PLANT A TREE IS 25 YEARS AGO.
THANK YOU, JEFF COYLE, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE.
AND WHILE YOU'RE COMING UP, I JUST WANNA SAY THAT, THAT CLEARLY THERE'S AN ALTERNATIVE BUDGET PROPOSAL THAT'S UP HERE.
UH, COUNCILMAN MCKEE RODRIGUEZ REFERRED TO IT AS THE BRAVO PROPOSAL.
I WOULD SAY AT THIS POINT, I DIDN'T SAY THAT.
I I HAVE HEARD IT SAID THAT, BUT, BUT OKAY.
SO, WELL, I, I KNOW I'M STATING CLEARLY THAT IT'S NOT, I MEAN, I, THIS, THIS PROPOSAL HAS, HAS MADE, SEEN A LOT OF CHANGES AND I THINK IT'S, IT'S A TEAM PROPOSAL AT THIS POINT,
[00:55:01]
UM, BECAUSE A LOT OF MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES HAVE PROVIDED GOOD INPUT INTO IT, AND IT'S BEEN MODIFIED AS WE'VE GONE AND, AND IT MAY BE MODIFIED A LITTLE BIT MORE, BUT, UM, THE ONLY REASON THAT WE HAVE THESE FUNDS, THE, THE, THE, THE PROPOSAL THAT CONTINUES TO MOVE FORWARD, THIS ALTERNATIVE PROPOSAL RECOGNIZE IS THAT THE ONLY REASON THAT WE HAVE THESE ADDITIONAL FUNDS IS BECAUSE WE'VE HAD A SUMMER THAT WAS HOTTER THAN HELL.AND BECAUSE ENERGY BILLS WERE EXTREMELY HIGH, AND THIS ALTERNATIVE PROPOSAL SEEKS TO ADDRESS THAT PROBLEM DIRECTLY, UH, IT, IT RECOGNIZES THAT THIS IS THE NEW NORMAL AND IT RECOGNIZES THAT OUR, OUR STATE ELECTRIC DEMAND RECORD WAS BROKEN 11 TIMES, AND THAT WE NEED RISE TO THE OCCASION AND ACT NOW.
UM, SO TOM, JEFF, UH, TOM HAD ALLUDED TO, UH, 1.5 BILLION, AND I JUST WANNA SEE, I, I IMAGINE AS PART OF YOUR JO JOB HERE AT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IS TO FOLLOW, UH, FEDERAL BILLS AND STATE BILLS, AND THAT YOU'RE FOLLOWING THE INFRASTRUCTURE REDUCTION ACT.
WE ARE, I'M SORRY, THE INFLATION REDUCTION.
WE'VE ENGAGED SEVERAL OTHER DEPARTMENTS IN, IN ANALYZING THAT THE BILL ITSELF HAS COME OUT, THE GUIDANCE AND THE SPECIFIC, UH, PROGRAMS, TIMELINES, FUNDING MATCHES FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES HAS NOT YET.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WAITING FOR.
BUT YES, WE'RE WATCHING THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT.
SO I'VE BEEN READING, UH, WHAT HAS COME OUT SO FAR, AND I WANNA POINT YOU TO SUBTITLE, D SECTION 23 0 0 3, WHERE IT STATES THAT THERE'S $1.5 BILLION TO PROVIDE COMPETITIVE GRANTS TO A LOCAL GOVERNMENT ENTITY FOR TREE PLANTING AND RELATED ACTIVITIES.
THAT MEANS THAT WE HAVE TO COMPETE RIGHT THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO SHOW THAT WE'RE DOING THE WORK.
THAT MEANS THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO PUT SOME SKIN IN THE GAME WITH SOME MATCHING FUNDS.
AND THAT'S WHAT THIS PROPOSAL DOES.
SO WE CAN TAKE SOME OF THESE FUNDS AND REALLY DOUBLE OR TRIPLE THEM AND REALLY RE INCREASE THEIR EFFECTIVENESS.
I'D ALSO LIKE TO POINT YOU OUT, UH, POINT OUT TO YOU, SUBTITLE, E SECTION 6 0 5 0 1 $1,893 MILLION, AGAIN, FOR COMPETITIVE GRANTS FOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND NATURAL FEATURES TO REDUCE OR MITIGATE URBAN HEAT ISLAND HOTSPOTS.
SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE FOLLOWING THOSE, UM, BECAUSE THOSE ARE HUGE OPPORTUNITIES FOR US TO TAKE THIS ADDITIONAL ONE TIME, POSSIBLY ONE TIME OR REVENUE AT THIS TIME THAT WE HAVE, AND REALLY STRETCH THOSE DOLLARS FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO HAVE TO MAXIMIZE OUR IMPACT.
YES, COUNCILMAN, WE ARE FOLLOWING THOSE.
AS THOSE PROGRAMS COME OUT, WE'LL GO THROUGH THE PROCESS SIMILAR TO ALL OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE PURSUING WILL SUGGEST, UH, PROJECTS TO COUNCIL COMMITTEES, AND ULTIMATELY THE FULL COUNCIL, TYPICALLY LOCAL FUNDING MATCHES ARE, ARE IDENTIFIED AT THAT POINT.
AND PROVIDED THE COUNCIL APPROVES APPLICATIONS, WE'LL GO PURSUE FEDERAL FUNDING FOR VARIOUS PROGRAMS. BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET.
BILL JUST, JUST PASSED, UH, TWO WEEKS AGO.
BUT I THINK IT'S GREAT TIMING TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THESE FUNDS AVAILABLE TO SEIZE THAT OPPORTUNITY AND MAXIMIZE THAT.
EARLIER THIS MORNING IN THE TEXAS PUBLIC RADIO BY JOSH PECK, THERE WAS AN ARTICLE TITLED CLIMATE CHANGE MAY MAKE FLOODING WORSE.
HOW CAN SAN ANTONIO'S PAST HELP PREPARE THE CITY? AND THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I FIND ALARMING IN THIS IS ONE, RIGHT? WE ALL KNOW THAT WE ARE EXPERIENCING EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS, AND THIS IS GOING TO IMPACT FLOOD PATTERNS.
AND WHEN WE LOOK AT WHERE THESE, THE FLOODING OCCURS AND THE PONDING, RIGHT? IT'S PRIMARILY IN OUR MOST ECONOMICALLY POOR CENSUS TRACKS ALL THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
AND WHAT'S ALARMING, RIGHT, IS THAT IT POINTS TO THAT, UH, IN SAN ANTONIO, SINCE THE EARLY 19, 19 HUNDREDS, THE CITY HASN'T ALWAYS PROTECTED RESIDENTS EQUALLY.
AND CLIMATE CHANGE NOW HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GENERATE MORE THAN EVER POWERFUL FLOODING CONDITIONS, RIGHT? AND THAT'S EXPERT FROM THE ARTICLE.
AND WHAT'S, UH, ALARMING AND I THINK RELEVANT TO THIS CONVERSATION ON HOW WE SHOULD BEST SPEND THESE DOLLARS, THE CITY DOLLARS THAT WERE GENERATED THROUGH C P SS IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY FOUND THAT IT'S PRIMARILY DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTS FOLKS WITH OLDER HOUSING STOCK, RIGHT? AND WE'RE HAVING CONVERSATIONS ABOUT, UH, WEATHERIZATION AND INVESTING IN OUR COMMUNITY SO THAT WAY OUR FAMILIES ARE MORE RESILIENT AS WE CONTINUE TO EXPERIENCE THIS EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS.
AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT NEXT YEAR WE'RE GONNA FIND OURSELVES IN A SIMILAR POSITION.
'CAUSE IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO GET HOTTER BECAUSE IT'S GONNA CONTINUE TO GET COLDER, AND WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP ALLEVIATE THE BURDEN THAT FALLS ON THE LITTLE GUY, RIGHT? THAT PAYS THE LAR LARGER SHARE OF THIS INEQUITABLE RATE STRUCTURE.
UM, AND WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENSURE THAT WE CAN SCALE UP THE SYSTEM THAT ALREADY EXISTS, THAT HAS BEEN PUT FORWARD, AND POTENTIALLY RUN IT PARALLEL WITH THE READY FOR WORK INITIATIVE.
RIGHT? I KNOW THE SECRETARY FOR LABOR
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WAS HERE.WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY SIMILAR TO THAT THEY'RE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF IN PHILADELPHIA AND IN BOSTON OF CREATING GREEN UNION JOBS BY INVESTING IN WEATHERIZATION, UM, AND RESILIENCY PLANNING.
SO I THINK WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY HERE.
UM, BUT I DO ALSO HAVE, UH, SUZANNE SCOTT HERE.
SHE SERVED AS THE DRAINAGE CO-CHAIR FOR THE 2022 AND 2017 BOND PROGRAM.
AND WE ALL KNOW HOW IMPORTANT DRAINAGE IS FOR DISTRICT FIVE.
UM, AND I WANNA RECOGNIZE HER FOR, UH, HER PREVIOUSLY, HER PREVIOUS WORK WITH THE SAN ANTONIO RIVER AUTHORITY.
SHE'S CURRENTLY THE STATE DIRECTOR FOR THE TEXAS CHAPTER OF THE NATURE CONSERVANCY.
UH, HER AREAS OF EXPERTISE INCLUDE WATER QUALITY, FLOOD PROTECTION, HABITAT PRESERVATION, AND ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION.
AND THANK YOU COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT THE STACKED BENEFITS OF NATURE, INCLUDING THE USE OF NATURAL VEGETATION AND TREES TO MITIGATE FLOODING FROM MAJOR RAIN EVENTS EVERY DAY IN THE NEWS, THERE ARE STORIES OF COMMUNITY SUFFERING THROUGH EXTREME DROUGHTS OR INTENSE FLOODING.
SCIENTISTS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD ARE WARNING THAT THESE EXTREMES AND WEATHER PATTERNS WILL BECOME THE NORM WHEN IT COMES TO REDUCING THE RISK FROM STORMS AND FLOODS.
AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION IS WORTH A POUND OF CURE.
SMART PLANNING BEFORE A DISASTER IS A BETTER INVESTMENT THAN EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND CLEANUP AFTERWARD.
A FEDERAL STUDY FOUND THAT FOR EVERY DOLLAR INVESTED TO REDUCE THE RISK FROM DISASTERS BEFORE THEY OCCUR, WE SAVE $4 IN EMERGENCY RESPONSE.
OFTEN THE SOURCE OF NEIGHBORHOOD FLOODING IS THAT THE STORM WATER FLOWING OVER THE HARDENED IMPERVIOUS SURFACES EXCEEDS THE CAPACITY OF THE EXISTING STORM SEWER SYSTEM, CAUSING WATER TO BACK UP INTO THE STREETS AND SOMETIMES EVEN INTO HOMES.
THIS IS COMMON IN AREAS LIKE MOST OF OUR SAN ANTONIO OLDER NEIGHBORHOODS, MORE ESTABLISHED COMMUNITIES WHERE THE NEW DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE WATERSHED AND THE CHANGING RAINFALL PATTERNS COMBINED TO PRODUCE MORE RAINFALL THAN THE SYSTEMS ARE DESIGNED TO HANDLE.
THIS TYPE OF FLOODING CAN BE MITIGATED THROUGH NATURAL SYSTEMS SUCH AS BIORETENTION, LIKE RAIN GARDENS, BIOSWALES, OPEN SPACE CONSTRUCTED WETLANDS, URBAN TREE CANOPY, WHERE NATIVE VEGETATION SOAKS UP THE WATER, SPREADS IT OUT, SLOWS IT DOWN, RESULTING IN REDUCED AMOUNTS OF STORM WATER FLOWING INTO THE STORM WATER SYSTEMS. IN THE CASE OF URBAN TREE CANOPY, THE INTENTIONAL PLANTING OF TREES ALLOWS FOR TREES TO COLLECT THE RAINDROPS BEFORE THEY HIT THE GROUND, GIVING RAIN MORE TIME TO EVAPORATE INSTEAD OF TURNING INTO RAIN, TO RUNOFF A REPORT FROM THE ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENERGY STUDY INSTITUTE STATES THAT DECI DECIDUOUS TREES, THOSE THAT LOSE THEIR LEAVES, CAN COLLECT, CAN COLLECT UP TO 700 GALLONS OF RAINFALL PER YEAR.
AND EVERGREENS CAN COLLECT UP TO 4,000 GALLONS OF WATER EVERY YEAR.
THESE GREEN AND MORE NATURAL SYSTEMS CAN BE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE MORE TRADITIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE FOR MORE COST-EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF OUR INCREASED RUNOFF, THE NATURE CONSERVANCY AND THE TEXAS A AND M AGRI AGRILIFE CONDUCTED A STUDY ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF GREEN STORMWATER INFRASTRUCTURE IN DALLAS, AND FOUND THAT NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS WERE FOUND TO REDUCE OVERFLOWS FROM ALL STORMS MODELED BY 17 TO 31%, AND THEY DELAYED PEAK FLOWS.
GREEN STORMWATER INFRASTRUCTURE WAS FOUND TO BE 77% LESS COSTLY THAN UPGRADING GRAY INFRASTRUCTURE ALONE.
THE BEAUTY OF NATURE SERVING AS PART OF THE URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE PROVIDES SO MANY OTHER BENEFITS, AND MANY OF THEM ALREADY DISCUSSED TODAY.
BUT I WILL JUST HIGHLIGHT A FEW.
IMPROVING WATER QUALITY, REDUCING AIR POLLUTION, COOLING OUR CITIES, AS WAS MENTIONED, BUILDING RESILIENCY AND ADAPTIVE CITIES.
THERE'S A GROWING BODY OF SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT SUGGESTS THAT CONTACT WITH NATURE PROVIDES A MULTITUDE OF HEALTH BENEFITS AND MAYBE A KEY FACTOR IN DISEASE PREVENTION AND HEALTH PROMOTION FOR PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN URBAN AREAS.
MATTER OF FACT, THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION RECOGNIZED THIS RELATIONSHIP IN 2013 WITH A STATEMENT THAT SAID, GIVEN THE IMPORTANCE OF CONTACT WITH NATURE FOR WELLBEING, THE AMERICAN PUBLIC HEALTH ASSOCIATION SUPPORTS THE PROTECTION AND RESTORATION OF NATURE IN THE ENVIRONMENTS WHERE PEOPLE LIVE, WORK, AND PLAY AT EVERY SCALE, BUILDING SITES TO LARGE REGIONAL PARKS.
SO WE CAN ALSO LOOK AT, UH, THE VALUES OF NATURE RELATED TO ACTIVE LIVING AND PHYSICAL HEALTH, REDUCING STRESS BEAUTIFYING OUR NEIGHBORHOODS, AND PROVIDING BIODIVERSITY AND CREATING A COMPETITIVE ECONOMIC AND, UH, EDGE OR ADVANTAGE IN ATTRACTING BUSINESS WORKERS.
THERE WAS A SURVEY OF 1200 TECHNOLOGY WORKERS THAT FOUND THAT QUALITY OF LIFE IN A COMMUNITY CAN INCREASE THE ATTRACTIVENESS OF A JOB BY
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33%.IN ADDITION BEING NEARBY, NATURE ALSO CONTRIBUTES TO INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY AND JOB SATISFACTION.
SO NATURE HAS A LOT OF BENEFITS, AND OBVIOUSLY WEATHER IS A, IT'S ALSO A WAY TO WEATHERIZE OUR COMMUNITY.
AS WAS SAID, I DID CHAIR, UH, CO-CHAIRED THE CITIZENS BOND COMMITTEE, AND ALL THE CITIZENS ON THAT COMMITTEE SUPPORTED AND ADVOCATED FOR THE VALUE OF NATURE WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MANAGING STORM WATER AND FLOODING IN OUR COMMUNITIES.
SO I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE, AS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT THE STACK BENEFITS OF NATURE, YOU WILL SEE BENEFITS IN YOUR FLOOD AND, AND DRAINAGE AS WELL.
SO AGAIN, UM, IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS, I'LL BE GLAD TO ANSWER.
I, I APPRECIATE YOU SHINING A LIGHT, HOW INVESTING IN, UH, GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE, UH, BENEFITS, UH, HAS POSITIVE BENEFITS FOR EVERYONE, RIGHT? SO THANK YOU.
AND I, I ALSO WANTED TO ONE, EXPRESS MY SUPPORT FOR THE REAP COMPONENT AS WELL AS, UH, THE PROPOSAL.
AND I'M PROUD TO ELATED TO HEAR THE SUPPORT FROM OUR MAYOR TO FUND ANA'S, UH, PLAN.
AND I'M ALSO SUPPORTIVE OF THE BRAVO AND TEAM PLAN
UM, BUT I ALSO WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THE CLIMATE EQUITY FELLOWSHIP ENGAGEMENT REPORT, UM, COMMISSIONED BY THE CITY'S OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY AND URBAN SUSTAINABILITY, UH, DIRECTORS NETWORK, RIGHT? BECAUSE WITHIN THIS REPORT, WE FIND THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SPECIFIC DISTRICTS THAT ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED BY THESE WEATHER CONDITIONS.
CITY COUNCIL'S, DISTRICT, DISTRICT ONE, DISTRICT TWO, DISTRICT THREE, DISTRICT FOUR, AND DISTRICT FIVE ARE THE MOST VULNERABLE AREAS CONSIDERING THESE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS AND REFLECT HIGHER LEVELS OF DISTRESS, LOWER RANGES OF LIFE EXPECTANCY, HIGHER RISK OF FLOODING, HIGHER TEMPERATURES, TEMPERATURES IN THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND, AND GAPS IN THE TREE CANOPY.
AND AGAIN, RIGHT? I I THINK WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO SCALE UP THE INFRASTRUCTURE WE ALREADY HAVE AND MAKE, MAKE A LARGER IMPACT FOR THE RESIDENTS OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
I WANNA BE SURE THAT WE'RE DOING WHAT'S BEST FOR OUR RESIDENTS AND NOT WHAT'S, UH, EASIEST FOR THE CITY.
FIRST, UH, I WANT TO, BEN, DO YOU HAVE SOME BACKUP SLIDES HERE? BECAUSE AT THE LAST MEETING, WE KEEP FOCUSING IN ON THE ORIGINAL RECOMMENDATION OF THIS $50 MILLION, UH, TO, UH, AS A REBATE BACK TO THE CUSTOMERS.
UM, UM, IT'S NOT $50 MILLION, IT'S $75 MILLION.
WHAT ARE, WHAT ELSE ARE WE, WHERE DID THAT OTHER $25 MILLION GO? SO THE OTHER 25 MILLION IS INCLUDING THE PROPOSED BUDGET FUNDING A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT INITIATIVES.
AND WHAT ARE THOSE INITIATIVES, COUNCILMAN? IT WAS AN ADDITIONAL $6 MILLION FOR SIDEWALKS, NEW SIDEWALKS, $9 MILLION TO, UM, UH, RENOVATE OR PURCHASE A BUILDING FOR ALL HAZARD SUPPLIES THAT CAME OUTTA RECOMMENDATION OF THE, UM, COMMITTEE ON EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS.
AND THEN THE LAST $10 MILLION WAS TOWARDS THE EDWARDS AQUIFER PROTECTION PROGRAM.
OKAY? AND I, SOME OF THOSE COSTS SHOULD BE PART OF THE I M P, SOME, THE, THIS BUILDING THING PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE GONE IN THE F Y 22 BOND PROGRAM.
WE HAVE OTHER FUNDING, UM, AVENUES THAN THIS $75 MILLION.
SO NUMBER ONE, I THINK THAT WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT $75 MILLION AND NOT 50.
UM, AND NO MATTER HOW WE DECIDE TO DIVVY THIS UP, AT THE END OF THE DAY, I, I THINK THESE SLIDES NEED TO BE REFLECTING THE FULL 75 MILLION BECAUSE WE'RE NOT SHOWING THE WHOLE PICTURE HERE.
AND, AND JUST BECAUSE WE'VE ALREADY PRE-ALLOCATED INTO THESE OTHER AREAS, I THINK THO THOSE, THOSE PROJECTS OR THE, THE, THAT MONEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN PART OF THESE DISCUSSIONS HERE.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE I'M STARTING OFF.
AND I, I, I WOULD SAY THAT, UM, UH, IN MY CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE ACROSS, THANK YOU, BEN.
UM, MY CONVERSATION WITH PEOPLE ACROSS DISTRICT 10 IS THAT, UM, UH, THEY'RE PRETTY UNHAPPY.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE THINKING, WHY SHOULD THEY NOT BE GETTING A REFUND TOTAL ON THAT 75 MILLION? AND DON'T, DON'T YOU HAVE A SLIDE THAT TALKS ABOUT THE 75 MILLION BID.
WHY SHOULD THEY NOT BE GETTING THAT FULL 75 MILLION AS AS A REBATE, UM, INSTEAD OF THE 50, AND THEY HAVE BEEN PAYING THEIR BILLS ON TIME.
THEY'VE GONE THROUGH SOME REALLY TOUGH TIMES WITH, UH, WINTER STORM YURI, UH, THEY WENT WITHOUT ELECTRICITY FOR SEVERAL DAYS, AND IN THAT LITTLE BITTY REBATE, THAT $8 OR WHAT IT WAS FROM C P S THAT TIME REALLY MADE 'EM MAD ON THOSE DAYS THAT THEY WERE WITHOUT
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ELECTRICITY.SO, UM, THEY'RE EXPECTING A REBATE BACK THE FULL 75 MILLION.
UM, WHERE, WHERE IS THAT SLIDE? I THINK YOU HAD SOME BACKUP SLIDES THAT SHOW THAT, TALK ABOUT THE 75 MILLION HERE.
SO CAN YOU PULL A BACKUP SLIDE NUMBER 11? MM-HMM.
SO THIS IS A RUN WITH THE ASSUMPTION THAT, UH, UH, THE FULL 75 MILLION WOULD BE CREDITED BACK TO CUSTOMER ACCOUNTS, NO DOLLARS FOR REAP ALL OF IT GOING INTO A CREDIT.
THE AVERAGE RESIDENTIAL CREDIT WOULD BE $50.
UH, YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENT RANGES LISTED THERE.
AGAIN, BASED ON THE SAME KIND OF JULY USAGE, THE THOUSAND K W H SHOULD BE A MAXIMUM OF ABOUT $30, 1,001 TO 2000 K W H SHOULD BE 30 TO 61.
AND THEN YOU SEE THE OTHER LISTED THERE.
THE NEXT SLIDE IS YOUR COMMERCIAL.
YOUR NEXT SLIDE IS YOUR COMMERCIAL BREAKDOWN.
SO AGAIN, I'M GONNA GO BACK JUST AGAIN, YOUR PERCENTAGE OF YOUR JULY BILL IS ABOUT 21%.
UH, WITH THE FULL 75, IT WOULD BE THE SAME ON THE COMMERCIAL SIDE, 21 3 21 0.3% TO 21.4%.
SO AGAIN, THIS IS THE 75 MILLION THAT WE'RE OVER THE ADOPTED BUDGET.
WE TALKED ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHY WE RECOMMENDED THE 50 AND ALL THE FACTORS THAT I WENT OVER THAT LED INTO THAT, BECAUSE AGAIN, BASED ON OUR FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE WAY WE'RE STRUCTURED, MODERATELY CONSERVATIVE REVENUE PROJECTION, I EXPECT TO COME IN OVER.
THAT'S HOW WE MEET OUR TARGETS.
THAT'S HOW WE SUSTAIN WHAT WE DO FROM YEAR TO YEAR.
EVERYTHING FROM STREET MAINTENANCE TO WHATEVER YOU WANNA PICK IN THE BUDGET.
THAT'S HOW WE'RE BUILT THIS ONE.
UH, GIVEN WHAT WE HAVE EXPERIENCED OVER THE SUMMER WITH, YOU KNOW, REALLY TWO FACTORS, UH, THE HIGH NATURAL GAS PRICE COUPLED WITH EXTREME HEAT LED TO SOMETHING THAT WE DON'T NORMALLY SEE AT THIS LEVEL.
AND THAT'S WHY WE SEPARATED THAT AND MADE THE RECOMMENDATION ON THE 50.
AND, AND AGAIN, I, I THINK THIS FULL 75 MILLION SHOULD BE ON THE TABLE AT THIS POINT.
AND IF THIS, IF THIS COUNCIL DECIDES, NOPE, LET'S BUILD THIS, THIS OTHER FACILITY, WHICH I THINK SHOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE BOND OR, UH, COME OUTTA SOME OTHER FUNDS, OR SAME THING WITH AQUIFER PROTECTION, UH, THAT IS, THAT'S WHERE I GOT A PROBLEM BECAUSE PEOPLE, AND I LIKE THE WAY THINGS ARE, ARE COUCHED HERE ON THE, ON THIS COUNCIL, ON WHAT THIS $75 MILLION IS.
IT IS THE CUSTOMERS THAT HAVE PAID THEIR BILLS, UM, AND THE EXTRA USAGE AND THE EXTRA GAS PRICES THAT ARE ALL COMING OUT OF THE CUSTOMER'S POCKETS.
THE CUSTOMER'S POCKETS NOT ANYTHING ELSE.
AND MY CUSTOMERS IN MY DISTRICT WOULD LIKE TO SEE A REBATE BACK OF WHAT THEY OVERPAID.
UM, YOU KNOW, I, I GAVE AN EXAMPLE OF IF YOU OVERPAID SOMETHING AT A STORE, YOU GO BACK AND YOU GET A REBATE.
YOU, YOU GET, YOU GET THAT MONEY BACK.
AND THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE ARE EXPECTING IN MY DISTRICT.
UM, ALL ALL THESE OTHER THINGS ARE GREAT IDEAS, BUT, UM, I, I PERSONALLY, I WOULD LIKE TO DO WHAT I THINK IS THE RIGHT THING AND GIVE THIS MONEY BACK TO THE CUSTOMERS THAT PAID IT IN THE FIRST PLACE.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S THIS MONEY OR REBATE COULD BE, YOU COULD STILL ASK THAT QUESTION, DO YOU WANT TO GET THAT REBATE? OR DO YOU WANT TO, YOU WANT TO SEND IT TO THIS PROGRAM OR THAT PROGRAM? YOU COULD HAVE MULTIPLE PROGRAMS IDENTIFIED, YEAH, WE WANT TO GIVE IT TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL, OR NO, WE WANT TO GIVE IT TO THE REAP PROGRAM OR WHATEVER.
YOU COULD HAVE THAT ON THERE, BUT GIVE 'EM BACK THAT CHOICE ON WHAT THEY WANT TO DO WITH THEIR MONEY, NOT OUR MONEY, IT'S THEIR MONEY.
SO THAT'S MY PROPOSAL ON THIS.
WE COULD EVEN HAVE ON THERE, OH, YEP, LET'S PUT AQUIFER PROTECTION ON THERE.
LET'S PUT THIS BUILDING ON THERE.
WE COULD HAVE MULTIPLE CHOICES ON WHERE THEY WANT TO PUT THEIR, THEIR, THEIR REBATE TO, OR THEY CAN KEEP IT, BUT GIVE THEM THE OPTION TO HOW THEY WANT TO SPEND IT OR KEEP IT.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S MY COMMENTS, SIR.
UM, SO WE'VE, UH, SPENT A COUPLE OF DAYS NOW, UH, DEBATING WHAT AMOUNTS TO ABOUT A ONE AND HALF PERCENT OF THE OVERALL BUDGET.
WE'VE GOT ANOTHER 98.5% TO GO.
SO WE DO HAVE ANOTHER SESSION TODAY.
UM, DID YOU WANNA SAY SOMETHING ELSE? GO AHEAD.
UM, YOU KNOW, UM, WHEN WE HAD THE, THE DISTRICT, THE, THE, UM,
[01:15:01]
TOWN HALL MEETING ON THE BUDGET BUDGET, UM, PRESENTATION AND PUBLIC INPUT SESSION, I THINK IT WAS LAST WEEK, MARIA.UM, WE HAD A PACKED ROOM AT THE SAN ANTONIO COLLEGE VICTORY CENTER.
AND, UM, DEPUTY CITY MANAGER, MARIA VILLAGOMEZ, PRESENTED THE REBATE AS A PROPOSAL, AND THEN SHE HANDED THE MICROPHONE TO ME, AND, AND THERE WAS NO RESPONSE.
AND THEN SHE HANDED THE MICROPHONE TO ME AND I PRESENTED THE ALTERNATIVE BUDGET PROPOSAL THAT WE'VE BEEN DISCUSSING TODAY, AND THERE WAS A HUGE ROUND OF APPLAUSE.
AND SO, IF ONE OF MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES SAYS, MY CONSTITUENTS SAY THEY WANT THE REBATE, MY QUESTION WOULD BE, DID YOU PUT THE ALTERNATIVE PROPOSAL ON THE TABLE? DID YOU OFFER THAT AS AN ALTERNATIVE FOR THEM? BECAUSE COUNCILMAN COURAGE PUT THAT OUT.
AND OVERWHELMINGLY, HE'S SAYING NOW THAT HE, HIS CONSTITUENTS WERE SAYING THEY'D LIKE TO SEE THE ALTERNATIVE PROPOSAL MOVE FORWARD.
UM, SO I ALSO WANT TO, UH, POINT OUT THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY HAS A LOT OF EXPERIENCE IN WEATHERIZATION, AND THEY HAVE A FACT SHEET THAT YOU CAN FIND ONLINE THAT SAYS THAT THE AVERAGE WEATHERIZED HOME SAVES $372 A YEAR.
SO WE COULD GIVE A, UH, ONE-TIME REBATE, WHICH, UH, IN DISTRICT ONE WOULD BE $25, OR WE COULD HELP THEM SAVE A WEATHERIZED HOMEOWNER SAVE $372 A YEAR EVERY YEAR.
UM, SO THE, THE OTHER THING THAT I WANNA POINT OUT IS IF YOU, IF YOU LOOK AT THE CITY BUDGET, UM, THE TREE MITIGATION FUND IS NOT GONNA GET US THERE, RIGHT? IN 2007, THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO SET A GOAL.
THEY, IN 2007, WE SAW THAT THE, UM, TREE CANOPY WAS 38%.
NOW, THAT WAS THE EXTRA JUDICIAL TERRITORY THAT WASN'T JUST THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO PROPER.
SO FOR CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, PROPERTY WOULD PROBABLY, MOST PEOPLE WOULD SAY IT WOULD PROBABLY BE LOWER, BUT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO SET A POLICY GOAL TO HAVE 40% TREE CANOPY.
AND THE LATEST, THE LATEST STUDY SHOWS THAT WE HAVE 29.5% NOW.
AND SO THE TREE MITIGATION FUND IS NOT GONNA GET US TO WHERE WE NEED TO GO.
FURTHERMORE, IF YOU LOOK IN THE BUDGET NEXT YEAR, THE CITY'S PROPOSAL IS THAT THEY EXPECT TO GET 55% LESS REVENUE IN THE TREE MITIGATION FUND THAN WE DI THAN WE GOT THIS YEAR.
AND SO THIS ALTERNATIVE BUDGET PROPOSAL HELPS US MAKE UP FOR THE FACT THAT NOT ONLY WILL THE TREE MITIGATION FUND NOT GET US THERE, BUT WE NEED TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT TO GET TO THE CITY'S OWN STATED GOAL BACK FROM 2007 TO HELP CLOSE THAT GAP AND MOVE US CLOSER TO 40% SO THAT WE DON'T, SO THAT WE'RE, WE'RE HOMES ARE ABLE TO, WE'RE ABLE TO KEEP THE CENTER OF THE CITY COOLER, THE, YOU KNOW, ALL PARTS COOLER.
AND SO THOSE AC UNITS AREN'T RUNNING EXTRA UNNECESSARILY AND PUTTING OUT EVEN MORE HEAT INTO OUR CITY.
YEAH, I JUST WANT TO RESPOND TO A COMMENT MADE, THERE'S MULTIPLE WAYS TO GET FEEDBACK FROM YOUR COUNCIL DISTRICTS, NOT JUST BY SENDING OUT A SURVEY.
AND YES, WE SENT OUT A SURVEY, BUT THERE'S OTHER AVENUES.
I HAVE MULTIPLE MEDIA SOURCES OUT, AND I THINK EVERYBODY DOES.
THAT'S HOW WE GET FEEDBACK FROM OUR CONSTITUENTS PLUS MONTHLY MEETINGS EVERY MONTH IN OUR DISTRICT.
SO, UM, YOU KNOW, NEED TO BE CAREFUL ON HOW YOU PRESENT THOSE KIND OF COMMENTS ON GETTING FEEDBACK.
I KNOW MY DISTRICT AND THEY KNOW ME, AND THEY GAVE ME GOOD FEEDBACK.
I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA CLOSE THE DISCUSSION, UM, WITH JUST A FEW COMMENTS.
UM, IT, IT DID COME UP, UH, ON THE STEP PROGRAM WITH REGARD TO WHO'S ELIGIBLE AND JUST, UM, AND I'LL LOOK OVER TO C P S, UH, YOU CAN VERIFY ALL OF THIS, BUT, UM, IN TERMS OF ELIGIBILITY, WE ARE MOVING THAT NOW, AND THIS IS BASED ON OUR, OUR, UH, APPROVAL AT THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, ELIGIBLE TO CUSTOMERS AT 200%, UH, OF THE FEDERAL POVERTY GUIDELINES, OR WHO DEMONSTRATE A HIGH ENERGY BURDEN THAT INCLUDES ANNUAL ELECTRICAL EXPENSES, GREATER THAN 10% OF ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME, OR WHO DEMONSTRATE THEY HAVE RECEIVED SOME TYPE OF FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL LOW INCOME ASSISTANCE.
SO THAT IS THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA OF THE NEW STEP.
UM, YOU KNOW, APPRECIATE THE FOLKS WHO CAME OUT, UH, AND PROVIDED SOME, SOME INPUT.
I DON'T THINK ANY OF US DISAGREE, UH, WITH THE BENEFITS OF WHAT'S BEEN EXPRESSED.
THE, THE CHALLENGE THAT WE'RE HAVING RIGHT NOW IS, UM, WHERE DOES $50 MILLION GET US ON THOSE CHALLENGES AND, AND OUR, OUR CURRENT EFFORTS STEP.
UM, OTHER INCOME ASSISTANCE, UH, PROGRAMS WITHIN
[01:20:01]
C P SS ENERGY AND AT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO RELATED TO RESILIENCY AND, AND, UM, UH, MEASURES RELATED TO IMPROVING OUR WATERSHED.ARE THOSE ENOUGH? ARE WE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION? THOSE ARE QUESTIONS THAT WILL REMAIN UNANSWERED.
AND SO THE PROPOSAL OF THE REBATE, UH, IN ABSENCE OF A PLAN, UH, GIVES THE OPTION FOR THE CUSTOMER TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION, UH, IF THEY CHOOSE TO OPT OUT AND BENEFIT A PROGRAM THAT ALREADY EXISTS.
I DO HAVE A QUESTION THOUGH, JEFF.
UM, BECAUSE THE OTHER ISSUE THAT COMES UP, UM, AND ANS AND I ASKED THE QUESTION ALREADY, ERIC, ALL OF THESE EFFORTS ARE WORTH THE DIRECTION THAT WE WANT TO GO AND THE VISION WE WANT TO ACHIEVE.
THE QUESTION OF CAPACITY THOUGH CONTINUES TO, TO, UM, BE ON THE TABLE.
DO WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO PUSH THROUGH ANOTHER, UH, X AMOUNT OF DOLLARS TO ADVANCE THESE EFFORTS, TO ACCELERATE THEM? UH, IF NOT, WHAT IS THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF MONEY? UM, AND, YOU KNOW, DOES THE PROPOSAL THAT COUNCIL MEMBER SANDOVAL PUT FORWARD, WHICH WOULD ROUGHLY AMOUNT TO $10 MILLION A YEAR, IS THAT THE APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF MONEY? WE NEED THE ANSWERS TO THOSE QUESTIONS, UH, TO HAVE A, A GOOD ANSWER.
THE QUESTION I HAD FOR YOU, JEFF, IS SOMEWHAT RELATED, BUT THE, THE ISSUE OF LEVERAGING FUNDS RELATED TO THE, TO THE, UH, INFLATION REDUCTION ACT HAS COME UP.
IT'S A GENERATIONAL OPPORTUNITY, AND I THINK WE FULLY INTEND IN EVERY WAY IN THIS CITY TO MAKE USE OF THAT, TO COMPETE FOR THOSE FUNDS, UH, AND TO LEVERAGE THOSE DOLLARS.
UH, WOULD THE STEP PROGRAM, UH, OR OUR EXISTING TREE MITIGATION FUND OR ANY OF THE OTHER EFFORTS THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE, UM, UH, BE ELIGIBLE FOR THOSE KINDS OF FUNDS? DO WE KNOW THAT YET? DO WE ANTICIPATE THAT? WE DON'T KNOW THAT, UH, FOR CERTAIN, UH, MAYOR, I WOULD, THAT WOULD BE OUR FIRST PURSUIT, THOUGH, IS THAT IF WE WERE APPLYING, FOR EXAMPLE, FOR A GRANT FOR TREE PLANNING, WE WOULD LOOK TO OUR, UH, TREE MITIGATION FUND FOR BEING MATCHING DOLLARS.
WE WOULD EXPECT THAT THAT WOULD BE ELIGIBLE, BUT WE REALLY WON'T KNOW UNTIL THE AGENCIES COME OUT WITH THEIR GUIDANCE.
WELL, THAT'S GONNA BE A QUESTION I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ANSWERED AS SOON AS WE CAN.
WHAT IS THE BALANCE IN THE TREE MITIGATION FUND? DO WE HAVE MONEY IN THERE? ARE WE PUSHING THOSE DOLLARS OUT AS FAST AS IT'S COMING IN? UM, MAYOR, I THINK THE ENDING BALANCE IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET FOR THE TREE MITIGATION WAS ABOUT FIVE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS.
THE, WE, WE GOT, UH, ADDITIONAL MONEY IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET IN 22 BECAUSE OF TWO LARGE PROJECTS THAT PUSHED A LOT MORE IN TERMS OF TREE MITIGATION DOLLARS, AND THAT'S WHY THE REVENUE'S EXPECTED TO GO DOWN.
UM, YOU KNOW, ALL TOLD, AND I THINK YOU PROBABLY HEARD SOME OF THIS DURING THE PARKS AND RECREATION BUDGET PRESENTATION, WE WE COULD DO MORE.
I, I MEAN, I, I THINK AS WE LOOKED AT THE ORDINANCE THAT CREATED THAT FUND THERE, THERE PROBABLY NEEDS TO BE A REVIEW OF THAT ORDINANCE AND A REVIEW OF THE ALLOWABLE EXPENSES THAT WE CAN UTILIZE THAT FUND ON.
UM, AND I THINK, UM, AND I THINK YOU HEARD SOME OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS TALK ABOUT THAT IN THEIR QUESTIONS OF HOMER AND THE STAFF, THAT THERE'S NO DOUBT WE COULD DO MORE THERE.
UM, AND, AND, UM, WITH AT LEAST FIVE AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS IN THE FUND BALANCE, THAT GIVES US ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT.
ALRIGHT, WE'RE GONNA GO NOW TO THE SECOND ITEM.
YEAH, I'LL, THE ONLY THING I'LL, I'LL ADD, MARY WITH THE, THE QUESTION YOU ASKED ME AT THE BEGINNING ABOUT CAPACITY.
THE, I THINK THE OTHER PART OF THIS AND, AND WE'LL HAVE TO TALK TO, UM, OUR PARTNERS OVER AT C P SS, IT'S, IT'S NOT JUST CAPACITY, BUT IT'S ALSO, UM, THE, THE TIME OF THAT TYPE OF INVESTMENT, UM, IN, IN HOW WE, UM, IF THERE ARE CAPACITY, CAPACITY ISSUES COULD BE RESOLVED IF YOU DO IT OVER THREE YEARS OR FOUR YEARS OR WHATEVER THE DOLLAR, WHATEVER THE, THE TIME AMOUNT IS, THAT'S ANOTHER ELEMENT THAT, THAT I DON'T THINK WE HAVE A GOOD HANDLE ON AND WE'LL NEED TO SPEND SOME TIME ON TRYING TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
WE WILL, WE WILL TRY TO BE IN A BETTER POSITION TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION NEXT TIME YOU GUYS GATHER ON THIS ISSUE.
SO BEFORE I TURN IT OVER TO SHANNON, THERE WILL NOT BE AN ITEM ON NEXT WEEK'S A SESSION ON THIS ISSUE.
UM, SEPTEMBER 8TH WAS THE DEADLINE THAT WE'D WORKED ON WITH C P S.
WE WILL NOT HAVE SOMETHING ON THE A SESSION AND WE WILL HAVE FURTHER CONVERSATION AS PART OF THE AMENDMENT PROCESS.
THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH FOR, UH, FOR HAVING ME THIS EVENING OR THIS AFTERNOON.
MY NAME IS SHANNON SIMS. UH, A YEAR AGO I PRESENTED TO YOU AS THE INTERIM DIRECTOR OF ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
AND IT IS MY HONOR TO BE HERE TODAY AS YOUR DIRECTOR.
BEFORE BEGINNING MY PRESENTATION, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE MY ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS THAT ARE IN ATTENDANCE, UH, SUSAN, KAREN, KATIE, AND RITA.
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR CONTINUED SERVICE AND SUPPORT FOR ANIMAL CARE.
[01:25:03]
SHANNON, YOU MIGHT WANNA POINT OUT THAT THEY'VE BEEN TO EVERY BUDGET TOWN HALL, REGARDLESS OF SIDE OF TOWN AS WELL.SO THEY, THEY HAVE, THEY, THEY'RE USUALLY THERE BEFORE ME AND THEY'RE LEAVING AFTER ME.
UM, SO THE WORLD OF ANIMAL CARE IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT LANDSCAPE THAN IT WAS TWO YEARS AGO, AND A C S IS NOT IMMUNE TO THESE CHANGES.
WE'RE FEELING THE HEAT TO EVOLVE TO THESE CHANGES.
UH, A C S IS SEEING MORE LARGE SCALE IMPOUNDS.
UH, THESE ARE ANIMALS THAT ARE TYPICALLY UNSOCIALIZED AND MEDICALLY COMPROMISED, WHICH MAKES IT MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO ADOPT.
THE ECONOMIC HARDSHIPS OF RESIDENTS IS FELT BY PET OWNERS AS WELL.
WE'VE SEEN 128% INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF ANIMALS IMPOUNDED DUE TO EVICTIONS.
AN INCREASED NUMBER OF PEOPLE WANTING TO OWNER SURRENDER THEIR PETS DUE TO HARDSHIPS AND FEWER PETS BEING RECLAIMED BY THEIR OWNERS.
OVERALL, THE POPULATION OF PETS IMPOUNDED AT A C S IS ALSO DIFFERENT.
WE'RE SEEING MORE ANIMALS THAT ARE UNSOCIALIZED LARGER BREEDS, THOSE IN NEED OF MEDICAL ATTENTION AND ANIMALS THAT HAVE NEVER LIVED INDOORS.
A C S IS ALSO SEEING FEWER PEOPLE ADOPT PETS.
RESCUE PARTNERS, WHILE PULLING MORE PETS ARE NOT ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE NEEDS OF THE SHELTER.
AS OUR INTAKE RETURNS TO PRE PANDEMIC LEVELS, SHELTERS NATIONWIDE ARE FEELING THE SAME IMPACTS A C S IS FEELING.
THERE'S NATIONAL VETERINARY SHORTAGE, WHICH YOU'RE ALL AWARE OF, AND SHELTERS ARE STRUGGLING TO ADOPT ANIMALS AT THE RATES THAT THEY HAVE HISTORICALLY, WHAT IS A C S DOING? WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF COMPLETING A NEW STRATEGIC PLAN, WHICH YOU'VE PROBABLY HEARD OUR OLD STRATEGIC PLAN SERVE THE COMMUNITY AND A C SS WELL AS IT TOOK US FROM A 32% LIVE RELEASE RATE TO A 90% LIVE RELEASE RATE.
BUT IT'S TIME TO BUILD A NEW AND COMPREHENSIVE VISION OF THE FUTURE FOR A C S.
ONE YEAR AGO, I STOOD UP HERE AND TOLD YOU WE WERE GOING TO CREATE A NEW STRATEGIC PLAN.
DURING THE BUDGET BRIEFING IN JANUARY, A C S INITIATED THE FIRST PHASE WHERE WE GATHERED INFORMATION THROUGH STAFF SURVEYS, IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS WITH A C S LEADERSHIP AND ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS CONDUCTED BEST, UH, EXTENSIVE BEST PRACTICE RESEARCH AND EXECUTED A COMMUNITY SURVEY.
OUR COMMUNITY SURVEY WAS A SUCCESS BECAUSE OF THE GRASSROOTS APPROACH THAT WE TOOK TO ENSURE THAT RESIDENTS THAT DID NOT HAVE DIGITAL ACCESS HAD THEIR VOICES HEARD.
OVER 3,100 SURVEYS WERE COLLECTED IN PERSON AND DIGITALLY.
OUR DISTRICTS WITH THE GREATEST RESPONSE RATES WERE DISTRICTS ONE, TWO, AND SIX.
ALTHOUGH WE SAW A SIGNIFICANT PARTICIPATION THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE CITY, PARTICIPANTS IDENTIFIED THEIR THREE TOP PRIORITIES AS CONTROLLING THE ANIMAL POPULATION, UH, THROUGH SPAY AND NEUTER ENFORCEMENT OF ANIMAL RELATED LAWS AND INCREASING LIVE RELEASE RATE, UH, THROUGH FINDING PLACEMENT FOR ANIMALS IMPOUNDED AT A C SS A FEW WEEK.
A FEW WEEKS AGO, WE HELD AN ADVISORY BOARD RETREAT WITH YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND WE'RE CURRENTLY FINALIZING THAT INFORMATION AS WELL.
NEXT WE TOOK WHAT WE LEARNED AND WE WENT OUT TO THE COMMUNITY WHERE WE HELD FIVE COMMUNITY MEETINGS.
IN THE MONTH OF JULY, WE LISTENED TO OVER 150 RESIDENTS ON A C S PRIORITIES AND DISCUSSED SOLUTIONS TO COMMUNITY PROBLEMS. THIS WASN'T ALWAYS EASY, AS PEOPLE HAD A LOT TO SAY, BUT WE LISTENED AND HEARD WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE COMMUNITIES.
WHAT DID WE LEARN? PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE STRAY ROAMING ANIMALS IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS.
THEY CONSISTENTLY TALKED ABOUT OBTAINING SPAY NEUTER SERVICES AND AFFORDABLE VETERINARY SERVICES.
GOING TO A PRIVATE CLINIC RIGHT NOW COULD COST $600 TO HAVE A SINGLE ANIMAL SPAYED OR NEUTERED.
AND THIS JUST ISN'T A FEASIBLE SOLUTION FOR A LOT OF SAN ANTONIANS.
ONE OF THE MOST COMMON ISSUES EXPRESSED WAS THE PUBLIC SAFETY OF NOT ONLY HUMANS, BUT ALSO ANIMALS.
AND MANY ARE ALSO PASSIONATE ABOUT INCREASING SHELTER, PET ADOPTIONS, AND LIFESAVING OPTIONS.
WE WANNA ENSURE WE'RE LISTENING TO THE COMMUNITY PARTNERS AS WELL.
IN THE FALL, WE'LL HOST A COMMUNITY PARTNER FOCUS GROUP TO INCLUDE RESCUE GROUPS, VETERINARIANS AND SPAY NEUTER PROVIDERS.
ONE OF THE LAST BIG STEPS IN ENSURING WE UNDERSTAND WHAT PROBLEMS OUR COMMUNITY FACES IS A COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT.
COLLECTING DATA NOT JUST ABOUT ANIMALS, ENSURES THE STRATEGIC PLAN WILL INCLUDE STRATEGIES TO HELP CLOSE GAPS, AS WELL AS SET A BASELINE FOR MEASURABLE STRATEGIC GOALS IN THE FUTURE.
FOR EXAMPLE, WE HEARD MANY PEOPLE IN THE SURVEY AND COMMUNITY MEETINGS SAY TRANSPORTATION TO VET SERVICES WAS ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES THAT THEY FACED.
WE LOOKED AT THE DATA AND ALMOST 9% OF SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS DO NOT HAVE A CAR OR RELIABLE TRANSPORTATION.
THIS WILL HELP US TO DEVELOP STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS THOSE BARRIERS IN, IN ACCESSING SERVICE MOVING FORWARD.
BY NOW, YOU'RE PROBABLY WONDERING WHEN YOU'RE GONNA SEE THE RESULTS OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
A C S WILL BE CONSOLIDATING EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE LEARNED AND PRESENTING TO YOUR ADVISORY BOARD REPRESENTATIVES IN NOVEMBER.
WE'LL BE PRESENTING AND DISCUSSING WITH YOU AT A B SESSION THIS WINTER.
AND THE FINAL PLAN WILL BE PRESENTED
[01:30:01]
TO YOU FOR ADOPTION IN APRIL OF 2023.WITH ALL THAT SAID, A C S CAN'T WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT BUDGET SESSION TO START MAKING CHANGES.
WE LEARNED THROUGH THE FIRST TWO PHASES OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN THAT WE ARE, OUR COMMUNITY HAS SOME IMMEDIATE NEEDS.
THE FIRST IS THE ADDITION OF NINE POSITIONS TO THE CLINIC.
IT'S BEEN OVER A DECADE SINCE THERE HAVE BEEN ANY STAFFING IMPROVEMENTS TO THIS DIVISION.
WE INVITED THE OFFICE OF INNOVATION TO COME OUT, UH, TAKE A LOOK AT OUR CLINIC AND SEE WHAT CHANGES NEED TO BE MADE.
AT THE TOP OF THAT LIST WAS MORE STAFFING.
THIS INCREASE OF STAFF WILL PROVIDE THE ADEQUATE NUMBER OF STAFF TO TREAT THE INCREASE IN INJURED ANIMALS THAT WE'RE SEEING AND GIVE THESE ANIMALS THE BEST CHANCE TO FIND A HOME.
NEXT, WE'RE ADDRESSING CUSTOMER SERVICE.
ANIMAL CARE SERVICES NEEDS TO ENGAGE WITH RESIDENTS IN A MORE EFFECTIVE WAY, AND THAT STARTS WITH BASIC CUSTOMER SERVICE.
A C S WAS PROPOSING A NEW CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM WITH FIVE NEW POSITIONS WE'RE PROVIDING.
WE'RE BASICALLY PROVIDING A DIRECT LINE OF COMMUNICATION TO GIVE RESIDENTS ACCURATE AND TIMELY INFORMATION ABOUT A C S PROGRAMS AND RESOURCES.
THIS WILL ALSO FREE UP EXISTING STAFF TIME SO THAT THEY CAN FOCUS ON ENFORCEMENT OF THE LAWS AND FINDING POSITIVE PLACEMENT FOR OUR PETS.
FINALLY, THROUGH THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS, WE KEEP HEARING ABOUT THE LACK OF AFFORDABLE VET SERVICES.
WE'RE PARTNERING WITH ANIMAL DEFENSE LEAGUE AND OTHER PARTNERS TO BRING FREE MICROCHIP AND VACCINE CLINICS TO RESIDENTS.
WE'RE BRINGING THOSE CLINICS TO THE RESIDENTS AND NEIGHBORHOODS THAT NEED THEM THE MOST.
THIS YEAR WE PILOTED A PROGRAM THAT HELD NINE EVENTS, AND BECAUSE OF THE SUCCESS OF THOSE EVENTS, WE'LL BE DOUBLING THE CAPACITY AND SERVING UP TO 2,400 PETS THIS YEAR WITH THOSE SERVICES.
LONG TERM, WE HAVE SOME PROJECTS THAT I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT AS WELL.
YOU ALREADY KNOW ABOUT THE HOSPITAL PROJECT THAT WAS APPROVED IN THE 2022 BOND THAT WILL HAVE A HUGE IMPACT ON OUR ABILITY TO, TO SERVE SAN ANTONIO FAMILIES AND THEIR PETS IN THIS BUDGET, WE FUNDS TO RENOVATE AND REPLACE EXISTING PLAY YARDS THAT WERE BUILT WAY BACK IN 2007.
ANY OF YOU THAT HAVE EVER BEEN TO OUR CAMPUS HAD ON THE 1 51, UH, UNDERSTAND THE NEED FOR SHADE THAT WE HAVE ON OUR CAMPUS.
EVERY PLAY YARD WILL NOW HAVE ADEQUATE SHADE, FENCING AND TURF SO THAT RESIDENTS CAN TAKE THE NEW POTENTIAL MEMBER OF THEIR FAMILY OUT AND GET TO KNOW THEM IN THE CAPITAL BUDGET.
WE'VE ALSO PROPOSED THE CONSTRUCTION OF A SUPPORT HOUSING BUILDING.
THIS WILL GIVE US THE BREATHING ROOM TO MOVE ANIMALS THAT HAVE ALREADY FOUND PLACEMENT BY BEING ABLE TO MOVE THEM WHILE THEY'RE WAITING TO BE PICKED UP IN A TRANSPORT SITUATION.
THIS GIVES US THE ROOM TO SAFELY QUARANTINE THOSE ANIMALS AND HOLD THEM UNTIL THEIR TRANSPORT'S READY TO BE EXECUTED.
AND DURING HURRICANES, WE WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO SUPPORT THE ANIMALS OF THESE DISPLACED FAMILIES THAT WE KNOW WILL BE COMING TO SAN ANTONIO.
THIS FACILITY WILL SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE OUR LIFESAVING CAPABILITIES AND KEEP OUR COMMITMENTS TO THE COMMUNITY.
THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS I'VE PUSHED FOR INCORPORATING EQUITY INTO ALL OF OUR PRACTICES.
THE COMMUNITY ANIMAL SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE OR CASA PROGRAM IS OUR CASE MANAGEMENT TEAM THAT WAS DEVELOPED IN LAST YEAR'S BUDGET CASE MANAGERS, OUR ASSISTING INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES IN MAKING KNOWLEDGEABLE AND COMPASSIONATE DECISIONS ABOUT THEIR PRO, ABOUT THEIR PETS BY PROVIDING RESOURCES AND EDUCATION.
I'D LIKE TO GIVE YOU KIND OF A REAL LIFE LIFE EXAMPLE OF THE TYPE OF WORK THAT CASA DOES OUT IN THE FIELD.
WE RECEIVED A CALL ABOUT THREE DOGS CHASING PEOPLE IN A NEIGHBORHOOD.
UH, OFFICERS WERE ABLE TO MAKE LOCATION, THEY MET WITH THE OWNER AND WHILE THE OWNER WANTED TO BE IN COMPLIANCE, DIDN'T WANT THEIR DOGS RUNNING LOOSE, THINGS OF THAT NATURE, THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO REPAIR FENCES AND PROVIDE THE RESOURCES NECESSARY.
WE SENT CASA OVER TO WORK ONE-ON-ONE WITH THE OWNER TO GET THEM INTO COMPLIANCE.
THE OWNER WAS SET UP WITH HUMANE TETHERS, DOG HOUSES, THINGS OF THAT NATURE SO THAT THEY CAN NOW HAVE THEIR DOGS OUTSIDE TETHERED SAFELY IN ALL TYPES OF WEATHER.
THIS IS THE TYPE OF WORK THAT CASA DOES EVERY DAY AND IN THEIR FIRST YEAR.
THIS PROGRAM HAS ALREADY PROVIDED 1400 RESOURCES TO RESIDENTS THROUGHOUT, THROUGH THE MONTH OF AUGUST, AND THEY'VE PREVENTED 67 OWNER SURRENDERS THAT WE KNOW OF FOR SURE.
WE KNOW ONE OF THE MOST PRESSING NEEDS IN SAN ANTONIO IS, AGAIN, A FATAL, AFFORDABLE SPAY NEUTER SURGERY.
WE'VE TAKEN IN ALL OF THE ABOVE APPROACH TO INCREASE OUR CAPACITY FOR THE RESIDENTS DURING THE PANDEMIC.
AND DUE TO NATIONAL VETERINARY SHORTAGES, OUR SPAY NEUTER SURGERIES HAVE DEFINITELY SUFFERED OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS.
WE'RE WORKING, UH, WE'RE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH PRIVATE PRACTICES, NONPROFIT GROUPS, AND WE'RE CONDUCTING A NATIONWIDE OUTREACH TO BRING MORE SPAY NEUTER SERVICES INTO OUR COMMUNITY.
REDUCING AND CONTROLLING THE PET POPULATION WILL BE THE CORNERSTONE OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND WE CAN'T WAIT BEFORE TURNING THE PODIUM OVER.
I NEED TO TAKE JUST A EQUIPMENT QUICK MINUTE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE HARDWORKING STAFF AT A C S.
[01:35:01]
THIS ISN'T AN EASY FIELD TO BE IN.UH, THESE GUYS WORK INCREDIBLY HARD AND THEY DO FANTASTIC WORK EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR.
THANK YOU STAFF FOR YOUR CONTINUED COMMITMENT.
I ALSO WANNA THANK THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE, THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT AND SUBJECT TO ANY QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH, UH, SHANNON.
UM, AND I KNOW YOUR JOB IS VERY DIFFICULT AND, AND I CAN TELL THAT THE HEART THAT YOU PUT INTO IT BY YOUR PRESENTATION, SO THAT'S VERY MUCH APPRECIATED.
UM, COULD YOU GIMME A SENSE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE, THE PANDEMIC HAS TAKEN A TOLL IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS AND, AND ONE OF THOSE WAYS THAT WE DON'T OFTEN THINK ABOUT IS, IS WHAT YOU JUST MENTIONED THERE AT THE LAST, WHICH IS, UH, THE IMPACT ON SPAY NEUTER.
UM, CAN YOU GIVE US A SENSE OF WHAT WE ARE, WHAT WE ARE SEEING RIGHT NOW, AND WHAT WE ARE GOING TO SEE, YOU KNOW, PERHAPS IN THE MONTHS TO FOLLOW BEFORE WE REALLY START TO SEE THE INVESTMENTS TAKE SHAPE? WHAT CAN WE EXPECT AND YES, SIR.
AND HOW DO WE COPE WITH THAT? ABSOLUTELY, SIR.
UH, SO, UH, CLEARLY THE VETERINARY SHORTAGE HAS IMPACTED EVERYONE NATIONWIDE.
UH, WE'RE SEEING, YOU KNOW, GREAT DIFFICULTY, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY AT EVERY LOCATION, UH, EVERY PLACE THAT REQUIRES A VET IS EITHER LOOKING OR JUST FOUND SOMEBODY.
UH, THAT'S A, THAT'S A HUGE COMPONENT OF, OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING.
UH, BUT WE'VE ALSO SEEN A LOT OF FOLKS LEAVE THE WORKFORCE DURING C O V I D, UH, THAT HAVE NOT RETURNED, UH, AS, AS ERIC AND AND THEIR TEAM HAVE KIND OF COMMITTED TOWARDS MAKING SURE THAT THE MARKET RATE IS GOOD FOR EMPLOYEES FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
MANY OF THESE VETERINARY CLINICS HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO RISE TO THAT LEVEL.
AND SO THEY'VE STRUGGLED FROM A PERSPECTIVE OF, UH, UH, GETTING ENOUGH STAFF TO CONTINUE TO DO THIS KIND OF WORK.
UH, MY VISION FOR THE FUTURE, SIR, IS REALLY INSTEAD OF CONTINUING TO SHUFFLE AROUND AND JUST FOCUSING ON ONE LARGE, UH, VENDOR HERE, AND ONE LARGE VENDOR THERE IS BEING ABLE TO REACH OUT TO THESE PRIVATE CLINICS THAT ARE ALREADY EXISTING IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
AND FORTUNATELY, THROUGH THE WORK OF SOME OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS AND SOME OF OUR OUTREACH, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO MAKE GOOD CONTACT TO BE ABLE TO START SOLIDIFYING SOME OF THOSE TO GET FIVE HERE, 10 HERE, 15 THERE.
UH, MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE LARGE SCALE PIECE OF IT, IN MY OPINION, IS, UH, BASICALLY ATTRACTING OUTSIDE VENDORS THAT AREN'T IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
WE'VE GOT TO BRING SOME MORE NEW BLOOD IN HERE, INVITE THEM INTO OUR MARKET.
UH, I WILL SAY THAT A LOT OF THE POLICIES WE HAVE IN PLACE WHEN I'VE TALKED TO THESE FOLKS, THEY'RE VERY INTERESTED IN THE, THE ZIP CODE SURGERIES AND THE EXISTING CITY OWNED CLINICS.
SO I THINK THAT THAT'S THE WAY MOVING FORWARD THAT WE HAVE TO REALLY MOVE THE NEEDLE ON THE SPAY NEUTER.
I, I'M NOT GONNA ASK YOU HOW YOU WOULD SPEND AN ADDITIONAL $42 MILLION, BUT I DO WANT TO ASK YOU ASK ME THAT ONE NEXT YEAR, SIR.
BUT I, I DO WANNA RECOGNIZE COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
'CAUSE I'M LOOKING AT SLIDE 14.
UH, AND IT WAS REALLY AT THESE DISCUSSIONS LAST YEAR THAT THE CONVERSATION ABOUT A NEW VETERINARY HOSPITAL CAME UP AND, AND HE SUCCESSFULLY PUSHED FOR THAT, UH, ALONG WITH OUR COLLEAGUES, UH, ONTO THE BOND.
BUT AS YOU KIND OF LOOK ON THE HORIZON, ARE THERE OTHER KEY INVESTMENTS THAT WE NEED TO BE MAKING NOW TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THESE LONGER TERM ISSUES? I MEAN, IF, IF, IF WE TALK AT IT, DEFINITELY THE SPAY NEUTER HAS TO BE THE FOCUS OF EFFORT, BEING ABLE TO PUT THINGS OUT THERE THAT ARE GONNA, GOING TO ATTRACT THESE LARGE, CREDIBLE VENDORS TO THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THE EMANS A PETS AND SPAY AND NEUTER NETWORKS AND, AND THE DIFFERENT FOLKS FROM OTHER CITIES THAT ARE PROVEN, UH, PROVEN HARD, HARD HITTERS.
UM, I THINK THAT OUR, FROM AN EDUCATIONAL PERSPECTIVE, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF WORK TO DO.
UH, WE CHANGED OUR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH FROM BEING BOOTS ON THE GROUND TO BEING MORE SOCIAL MEDIA ORIENTED DURING THE, UH, THE PANDEMIC AND SHIFTING THOSE GEARS BACK THERE WHILE MAINTAINING THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS GONNA BE, UH, IS GONNA BE HUGE.
UH, BEING ABLE TO PUT OUT A GOOD PRODUCT THAT'S WELL RECEIVED AND, AND GET IT OUT TO AS MANY FOLKS AS POSSIBLE.
AND, UH, AND AND FINALLY, FROM A PERSPECTIVE OF, YOU KNOW, YOUR ENFORCEMENT AND CASA FOLKS, UH, PUSHING MORE OF THOSE RESOURCES OUT THERE IS, IS GOING TO BE THE, UH, THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE EDUCATION OUTREACH AND, AND SPAY NEUTER.
WELL, WHERE, WHERE THIS ALL BEGAN.
WE DON'T NEED TO GO ALL THE WAY BACK TO 2005 WHERE WE WERE AS A CITY, BUT, UH, WHERE, WHERE WE ARE NOW IS DRAMATICALLY DIFFERENT.
BUT I I DO REALIZE THAT OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS OR SO, IT WE'RE REALLY PUSHING UP AGAINST SOME HEADWINDS TO GET US TO A, A BETTER PLACE.
AND WE WANNA SEE THAT LIVE RELEASE GREAT GO UP.
SO, UM, WE'LL BE LOOKING TO YOU FOR SOME, YOU KNOW, ADDITIONAL CREATIVE IDEAS.
UH, IF YOU DO, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVE THEM, I THINK EVERYBODY AROUND THIS DIOCESE IS A PET OWNER, I THINK.
UH, SO WE ALL CARE ABOUT THE ISSUE TOO.
SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH, UH, SHANNON FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK.
LET ME GO TO COUNCIL MEMBER CASTILLO.
[01:40:01]
WHO DOESN'T OWN A PET.UM,
AND, UM, OUR CONSTITUENT SERVICES TEAM WANTS TO GIVE A SPECIAL THANKS TO YOU AND YOUR TEAM, TAYLOR IN PARTICULAR.
SHE'S LIKE, YOU NEED TO LET THEM KNOW THAT THEY'RE AMAZING AND MY FAVORITE DEPARTMENT, SO
SO THANK YOU ALL AND ALSO THANK YOU TO KAREN SPEAR FOR HER WORK ON OUR A C S BOARD.
UM, SHE IS A GREAT RESOURCE THAT I OFTEN LEAN INTO WHENEVER THERE'S A CONSTITUENT SERVICES CASE REGARDING A C S, UH, ESPECIALLY THOSE NUMBERS AND DATA.
I ALWAYS POINT TO KAREN AND HER EXPERTISE.
I'M REALLY EXCITED TO SEE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'VE TOUCHED ON THE PIECES WITH, UH, THE, THE BOND INVESTMENT AND THE $1.2 MILLION FOR FREE COMMUNITY SPAY AND NEUTER, UH, SERVICES.
UM, MY HOPE IS THAT WE CAN CONTINUE TO SHIFT MORE FUNDING INTO THOSE, UH, SPAY NEUTER SERVICES, UM, BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT MEANS LESS STRAY DOGS OUT ON THE STREETS.
UM, MY ASK AND UH, IS, IS THERE A TARGETED CAMPAIGN, UH, SPECIFICALLY FOR PIT BULLS? UM, BECAUSE WE KNOW, RIGHT? I BELIEVE THEY'RE THE HIGHEST, UH, EUTHANIZED PET IN, IN THE, IN THE US RIGHT? I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT, UH, A C S, BUT A, A WAY TO DEMONSTRATE TO FOLKS THAT THEY ARE THE SWEETEST DOGS EVER.
AND EVERY TIME I GO TO A C S, RIGHT, THERE'S, WE HAVE A LOT OF PIT BULLS THERE.
UM, BUT IF THERE'S ANY SPECIFIC TARGETED CAMPAIGN TO LET FOLKS KNOW THAT THEY'RE THE SWEETEST DOGS EVER AND EVERYONE SHOULD ADOPT A PIT BULL.
HAVE Y'ALL EXPLORED THAT
I, I LIKE THE IDEA, I'M AN OWNER OF TWO PIT BULLS AND, AND THEY'RE ABSOLUTELY, UH, YOU KNOW, AWESOME.
THEY, UH, ARE ARE, ARE LARGELY VILIFIED, YOU KNOW, MUCH LIKE THROUGH HISTORY, IT WAS THE, THE MM-HMM.
BUT, UH, THAT ISN'T SOMETHING THAT WE'VE, WE'VE ACTUALLY PURSUED, BUT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN DEFINITELY LOOK INTO, MA'AM.
AND ANOTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO GIVE Y'ALL THANKS FOR IS Y'ALL HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT THE CASE MANAGEMENT MODEL DOES WORK, RIGHT? AND I WOULD HOPE TO SEE THAT APPLY TO DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AS WELL.
AND I REMEMBER WHEN, UH, YOU BRIEFED US ON THAT MODEL, I WAS EXCITED.
I'M LIKE, THIS NEEDS TO BE APPLIED TO EVERY DEPARTMENT.
UM, SO PLEASED TO SEE THAT Y'ALL HAD A STORY THAT Y'ALL CAN, UH, PRESENT TO US TO SHOW THAT IT DOES IN FACT WORK.
UM, MY LAST QUESTION IS, DO WE KNOW IF THE CITY CAN OR HAS EXPLORED PO UH, POTENTIALLY INCENTIVIZING FOR CIVILIAN OR UNIFORMED EMPLOYEES TO ADOPT FROM A C S? WE DO.
WE ACTUALLY HAVE A, A, A A PROGRAM WHERE CITY EMPLOYEES CAN, I THINK MARIA MAY HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF.
YEAH, WE'VE, SO ANYTIME I CAN, I CAN TAG THE BOSS IN
NO, BUT WE'VE, UH, YES, WE'VE HAD A LONG STANDING, UH, PROGRAM SO THAT CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES, UNIFORMED EMPLOYEES, ANY CITY EMPLOYEE CAN COME IN AND YOU GET A DISCOUNT, UH, YOU GET A DISCOUNT FOR YOUR ADOPTIONS.
MY, MY HUSBAND CALLS OUR DOG THE DISCOUNT DOG OR, AND THE OTHER ONE WHO OUR GOOD FINE DOG.
I'M LIKE, HE'S NOT A THRIFT STORE.
APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT YOU DO.
COUNCILS MEMBER CASTILLO COUNCILS OF REVEREND MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
UM, I WILL SAY, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO A C S, UM, AND THE ISSUES OF A C S I AM, AND LOOKING AT THIS BUDGET, I AM BOTH EXCITED, BUT I WAS LOOKING AT PREVIOUS BUDGET AND I'M DISGRUNTLED SIMULTANEOUSLY.
UM, I'M SUPER EXCITED FOR THE NINE ADDITIONAL, UH, CLINIC STAFF AND THEN THE ADDITIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE STAFF, THE ADDITIONAL VACCINE CLINICS, UM, AND OF COURSE THE PLAY YARD UPGRADES.
UM, FOLKS IN THE ANIMAL RESCUE COMMUNITY TYPICALLY UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENT SERVICES THAT EXIST TO HELP WITH, UM, SHOTS OR WITH SPAY OR NEUTER.
AND SO IT'S MORE DIFFICULT FOR RESIDENTS, UH, WHO ARE NEW TO THE PROCESS TO ACCESS THESE SERVICES TO KEEP THEIR PETS HEALTHY, AND SOMETIMES THEY CAN'T GET AN APPOINTMENT FOR MONTHS.
AND ONE IS GONNA BE, ARE THERE NAVIGATION SERVICES AVAILABLE TO HELP FOLKS FIND OUT WHERE TO ACCESS SPAY NEUTER SERVICES? SO THE NAVIGATION SERVICES PART OF THAT IS THAT CUSTOMER SERVICE TEAM THAT WE'RE STANDING UP, IF YOU CALL 2 0 7 4 PET RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS OUR MAIN LINE, YOU ARE MOST DEFINITELY GOING TO GET A, A, A MESSAGE.
UM, THERE'S JUST NOT ENOUGH STAFF TO MAN THAT.
SO THE, THE, UH, INTENT IS TO MAN THAT, SO THAT IT'S KIND OF LIKE, UH, 3 1 1 ON STEROIDS SPECIFIC TO AN, UH, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
FOLKS KNOW THE, UH, KNOW THE SERVICES, THEY KNOW THE PROGRAMS AND THEY CAN PUT PEOPLE IN CONTACT.
ADDITIONALLY, THE CASA TEAM DOES A LOT OF THAT AS WELL.
AND, UM, I WAS GOING TO ASK YOU, ARE WE STEADILY INCREASING THE NUMBER OF SPAY NEUTER SERVICES EACH YEAR? AND WILL THESE FUND SHORTEN THE WAIT TIME FOR RESIDENT WANTING TO GET LOW COST SPAY AND NEUTER SERVICES? BUT I WAS JUST LOOKING AT THE BUDGET FROM, UH, 2011 AND 2012, IN ADDITION TO 21 AND 22, UM, 11 AND 12 I WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL, AND 2011 WE DID 18,000 SPAY NEUTER SURGERIES.
WE ARE NOW DOING 28,000 IS THE TARGET WHEN THE TARGET WAS 46,000 THIS YEAR.
UM, WE ALSO ONLY INCREASED THE BUDGET FROM WAY BACK WHEN, FROM 11 MILLION TO 21 MILLION OVER THE COURSE OF 10 YEARS.
SO I DON'T THINK THAT WE ARE INCREASING
[01:45:01]
THE A C S BUDGET AT THE SCALE THAT WE ARE INCREASING A NUMBER OF OTHER DEPARTMENTS OR TO ADDRESS THE NEED THAT EXISTS.AND I WANT TO LOOK DIRECTLY INTO THE CAMERA AT MY DISTRICT TWO CONSTITUENTS, BECAUSE THEY WILL CALL AND THEY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I AM AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM, THAT WHEN THEY WANNA WALK ON THEIR, IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD OR WHEN THEY'RE TRYING TO WALK THEIR DOG, THEY'RE BEING ATTACKED BY PACKS OF STRAY ANIMALS.
AND SO I REALLY STRUGGLE WITH, UM, SEEING SUCH A, A LIMITED IN INCREASE.
AND I APPRECIATE THAT YOU ARE ALWAYS OPTIMISTIC AND THE INFORMATION THAT YOU PRESENT WITH US, AND IT FEELS LIKE YOU'RE VERY GRATEFUL FOR ANY AMOUNT OF AN INCREASE THAT YOU GET.
BUT I'M GOING TO, IN A LITTLE BIT, ASK ABOUT SOME VERY SPECIFIC TARGETS.
UM, MY NEXT QUESTION, THIS ONE'S GOING TO BE, UM, YOU KNOW, ONE, I, I'M HAPPY TO SEE THAT WE'RE INVESTING IN EDUCATION AND PROVIDING SUPPORT TO OUR RESIDENTS.
UM, AND I'VE TALKED TO A NUMBER OF MY CONSTITUENTS ABOUT THE, UH, ABOUT THE STRATEGIC PLAN, UH, SURVEY THAT YOU PUT OUT HAPPY.
I THINK I SAW THAT DISTRICT TWO HAD DONE THE MOST.
I, UH, I AND COUNCILMAN KEO HAVER SUBMITTED A C C R FOR AN A C S MASTER PLAN.
AND I DO WANNA STRESS THAT WE ENVISION THAT TO BE SOMETHING DIFFERENT THAN THE STRATEGIC PLAN THAT, UH, THAT YOU'RE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF GETTING.
AND ONE OF THE KEY REQUESTS OF THESE EFFORTS WAS TO ENSURE THAT THE ANIMAL RESCUE COMMUNITY WHO COME TO SPEAK AT CITY COUNCIL VERY FREQUENTLY, UM, ARE INCLUDED IN THE CONVERSATION.
AND SO I WONDER, DO YOU FEEL YOU'VE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE PRODUCTIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH THESE GROUPS? ABSOLUTELY, SIR.
UH, ACTUALLY SINCE, UH, SINCE APRIL, UH, THEY INVITED US TO ONE OF A, A TOWN HALL THAT THEY WERE THROWING, UH, MYSELF, UH, THE ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, DAVID MCCARRY, CAME OUT WITH US AS WELL AS ALL MY STAFF.
WE KIND OF LISTENED TO EVERYTHING THEY HAD GOING ON.
WE ALSO JUST COMPLETED A, UH, TOWN HALL THAT WE WERE PUTTING ON, HAD GREAT ATTENDANCE.
IT WAS, UH, IT WAS THROUGH WEBEX AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND RIGHT NOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE HEARING IS THAT THEY NEED SOME HELP.
UH, THEY NEED HELP FINANCIALLY TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THE CITY THE WAY THEY DO.
UH, BECAUSE OF THAT, BETHANY COLONIES, THE CHIEF OPERATION OFFICER, HAS WORKED TO DEVELOP AN R F A SO THAT MORE OF THESE FOLKS CAN GET INTO WHAT WE CALL A RESCUE PARTNER INCENTIVE PROGRAM.
UH, ESSENTIALLY WE'VE TOLD 'EM, WE CAN HELP YOU, BUT WE NEED YOU TO COME TO THE TABLE.
YOU HAVE TO BE A CITY VENDOR, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO INVOICE US AND THINGS LIKE THAT, AND WE CAN PROVIDE SOME ASSISTANCE.
SO THROUGH THAT R P I P PROGRAM, WE BELIEVE THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO START HELPING SOME OF THEM WITH THEIR MEDICAL COSTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT FOR PULLING ANIMALS.
UM, ALSO, WE HAD DISCUSSED THE LIMITATIONS OF USING THE LIVE RELEASE RATE AS AN OVERALL INDICATOR.
UM, IT DOES ACCURATELY MEASURE SOME OF THE WORK OF A C SS, YOU KNOW, UM, BUT DOESN'T MEASURE HOW WELL WE'RE ADDRESSING ANIMAL CARE AS A CITY HOLISTICALLY.
FOR INSTANCE, THE LIVE RELEASE RATE ONLY MEASURES THE ANIMALS PICKED UP BY THE CITY, BUT DOESN'T ACCURATELY MEASURE THE STRAYS OR THE PETS THAT HAVE TO BE TURNED AWAY DUE TO CAPACITY LIMITATIONS.
UM, HAVE YOU EXPLORED USING OTHER INDICATORS TO MEASURE SUCCESS? WE HAVE, AND THIS HAS BEEN SOMETHING THAT WE'VE STRUGGLED WITH FOR, UH, A LITTLE WHILE BECAUSE LONGSTANDING, YOU KNOW, HOW YOU KIND OF FALL IN LOVE WITH METRICS PEOPLE.
THAT'S WHAT THEY, THEY, THEY, THEY GRAVITATE TOWARDS, UH, SOME OF THE THINGS THAT ARE NON, WE'RE, WE'RE SEEKING TO GET AWAY FROM OUTPUTS, AS, YOU KNOW, AS, AS A METRIC, SOMETHING LIKE A, FOR INSTANCE, DEAD ANIMAL PICKUP.
DEAD ANIMAL PICKUP IS NOTHING THAT, THAT I HAVE AN OUTPUT ON, BUT IT DOES GIVE US A GOOD INDICATION OF THINGS THAT ARE, OF THE NUMBER OF ANIMALS THAT ARE ON THE STREETS.
AND, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'VE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, CONTINUED TO USE TO, TO SEE IF DEAD ANIMAL PICKUP IS GOING DOWN.
OSTENSIBLY, WE'RE GONNA MAKE THE CORRELATION THAT HOPEFULLY THE NUMBER OF OF ANIMALS WE SEE ON THE STREETS IS GOING DOWN AND IT, AND IT'S FOLLOWED PRETTY WELL.
UH, BUT ANOTHER THING IS RECIDIVISM, UH, AS WE TALKED ABOUT THE CASA PROGRAM.
OH, NO, WE, WE JUST DON'T HAVE A QUORUM, SO WE COULD JUST CALL A TIMEOUT UNTIL WE HAVE A QUORUM.
I THINK COURAGE WENT TO THE RESTROOM.
SO HOW ABOUT THE WEATHER? HMM.
[01:50:28]
YES, SIR.UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID IMPLEMENT WITH THE CASA TEAM WAS ALSO TRACKING RECIDIVISM THAT WE WERE SEEING.
THAT WAS ONE OF THE KEY GOALS OF THAT PROGRAM IS TO, TO SEE A DECREASE IN RECIDIVISM.
AND, UH, UH, I, I WILL SAY THAT WHILE CASA HAS ONLY REALLY TRULY BEEN OUT IN THE FIELD WORKING FOR ABOUT THREE, FOUR MONTHS NOW, UH, AS A WHOLE, AFTER TRAINING AND EVERYTHING, UH, WE ARE ALREADY STARTING TO SEE THAT DECREASE IN RE IN RECIDIVISM.
AND WE'LL ALSO BE CONDUCTING A COMMUNITY NEEDS ASSESSMENT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE EXPLORING SOME MORE OF THOSE METRICS THAT, UH, THAT HOPEFULLY AREN'T OUTPUTS AS MUCH AS ACTUAL TRUE MEASUREMENTS OF SUCCESS.
AS ALWAYS, I WOULD LOVE TO BE INCLUDED IN THESE DISCUSSIONS, SO PLEASE FEEL FREE TO COORDINATE WITH MY OFFICE.
UM, AND WE WOULD LOVE TO HOST AN EVENT.
WE, YOU KNOW, WE DO THAT ALL THE TIME.
UM, YOU KNOW, A FEW DAYS AGO AT ONE OF THE OTHER SESSIONS WE WERE TALK, I HAD MENTIONED THAT, UH, SOMETIMES I'LL ASK DEPARTMENTS, WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD ANOTHER MILLION DOLLARS? WHAT WOULD YOU DO WITH THAT? AND THERE'S A NUMBER OF THINGS I HAVE MORE SPECIFIC, UH, AND, UM, I HAVE MORE SPECIFIC TARGETS THAT, UM, I'D LIKE US TO ADDRESS.
SO IF WE WANTED TO INCREASE OUR LIVE RELEASE RATE TO SAY 99%, WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF INVESTMENTS THAT WE WOULD NEED TO MAKE? AND WHAT DOES THAT, UH, CALL FOR? I, I THINK THE CORNERSTONE, AS I SAID EARLIER OF, OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN MOVING FORWARD, THE ONLY WAY WE'RE NOT GOING TO ADOPT OUR WAY OUT OF OVERPOPULATION OR TRANSPORT OUR WAY OUT, IT HAS TO BE SPAY AND NEUTER.
UM, YOU KNOW, I I, I THINK THAT A, PUSHING THAT CAPACITY OUT THERE, WE'VE GOT TO FIND WAYS OF TO, TO ATTRACT MORE VENDORS HERE.
UH, WE'VE GOT SOME CITIES WHERE, UH, I SEE VENDORS DOING 62, 60 5,000 SURGERIES, UH, A YEAR.
AND, AND THAT'S THE TYPE OF CAPACITY THAT WE'VE GOTTA PULL HERE.
WHAT I HAVE FOUND TO BE EXTREMELY ENTICING, AS I'VE TALKED TO A LOT OF THESE VENDORS, ARE THESE CITY OWNED CLINIC, THE CITY OWNED CLINIC MODEL THAT WE'VE GOT THAT ALLOWS VENDORS TO COME IN MINUS A LOT OF THE TYPICAL EXPENSES ASSOCIATED WITH MOVING INTO A NEW MARKET.
YOU KNOW, YOU GET THE BUILDING, YOU COME IN, YOU STAND IT UP, AND YOU GIVE US 6,000 SURGERIES A YEAR THAT PAYS YOUR RENT.
THAT HAS BEEN EXCEPTIONALLY ENTICING TO A LOT OF THESE FOLKS THAT I'M REACHING OUT TO OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS.
I, I THINK THAT THAT'S, UH, A MODEL THAT, UH, COULD, COULD HAVE A LOT OF SUCCESS IN BRINGING ADDITIONAL CAPACITY HERE.
I GUESS ONE OF MY BIGGEST STRUGGLES IS THAT THE GOAL THIS YEAR WAS 46,000 SPAY NEUTER SURGERY SURGERIES, AND WE'RE ONLY AT 28,000.
AND THAT NOTE, AS YOU JUST MENTIONED, IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST, UH, UH, INDICATORS OF OUR, OR ONE OF THE BIGGEST DETERMINANTS OF OUR LIVE RELEASE RATE.
AND SO IF WE WANTED 99%, IS THAT 46,000, UH, SURGERY TARGET, WOULD THAT HAVE BEEN SUFFICIENT THIS YEAR? NO, SIR.
SO THAT'S, SO WE'RE NOT DOING EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THAT WE NEED.
IS THERE A POINT IN TIME COUNT FOR STRAY ANIMALS.
AND SO IN 2019, WE DID DO, UM, UH, A STRAY DOG SURVEY, IF YOU WILL.
WE WORKED WITH ONE OF THE, UH, PRIOR BOARD MEMBERS WHO'S ALSO A PROFESSOR IN STATISTICS.
HE SET UP A MODEL AND EVERYTHING.
UH, WHAT HE CAME UP WITH, UH, IN HI, IN THAT SURVEY WAS AT ANY GIVEN TIME THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 34,000 STRAY DOGS, STRAY AND LOOSE DOGS.
AND THE WAY I, AND THE REASON I SAY STRAY AND LOOSE DOGS IS BECAUSE BASED ON WHETHER THEY HAD A COLLAR OR THINGS THAT INDICATED THEY WERE OWNED, WE ALSO WERE ABLE TO DETERMINE THAT AS HIGH AS 80.
UH, I THINK IT WAS 84 TO 92% OF THEM HAD INDICATIONS THAT THEY WERE OWNED.
SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, IT'S, IT'S NOT SO MUCH THE STRAY THING.
IT'S WHAT WE CAN EDUCATE AND WHAT WE CAN HANDLE AS FAR AS OWNED ANIMALS AND KEEPING THEM ON PROPERTIES.
AND I, I, ONE OF MY OTHER STRUGGLES THERE IS THAT THAT WAS JUST DOGS ALSO.
UM, AND THAT WAS ALSO IN 2019 BEFORE THE PANDEMIC AND BEFORE, UH, WE SAW THE RAPID, THE POPULATION INCREASE THAT MY CONSTITUENTS ARE EXPERIENCING, UM, AND ARE VERY FRUSTRATED BY.
AND SO I'M WONDERING THAT IF WE WANTED TO CUT THAT IN HALF, WHAT RESOURCES WOULD YOU NEED TO DO THAT? WHAT WOULD YOU NEED TO, UM, CUT THAT, EVEN IF IT WAS 34,000? HOW DO YOU GET 17,000 OF THAT TO NO LONGER BE A PROBLEM? I'D SAY IT, IT, IT AGAIN STARTS AND ENDS WITH GETTING MORE SPAY NEUTER RESOURCES IN HERE, BUT THEN US UTILIZING SOMETHING LIKE THE CASA TEAM, UH, STRENGTHENING THAT, AND, AND AGAIN, WE'VE GOT REAL STRONG ENFORCEMENT, UH, ONCE WE'RE BACK TO,
[01:55:01]
TO HEALTHY LEVELS, WHICH WE'RE WELL ON THE WAY TO RIGHT NOW, I THINK THEN IT GOES INTO CASA THE CASE MANAGERS WHERE THEY'RE OUT THERE FARMING OUT THOSE SURGERIES, PUTTING PEOPLE IN CONTACT WITH THE RIGHT RESOURCES AND, AND IT'S, IT'S GOING TO BE A FIVE, SEVEN, POSSIBLY 10 YEAR ENDEAVOR TO REALLY GET THAT IN HALF.EVEN WITH THOSE ADEQUATE RESOURCES.
WE, WE'VE, WE'VE LOST A LOT OF GROUND OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, UH, WITH COVID AND THE REDUCTION IN SPAY NEUTER.
AND YOU, I'LL CHIME IN AGAIN, BUT I APPRECIATE YOU.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
SHANNON, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, IN THE, IN THE BIG THICK BOOK HERE PAGE WELL, AND, AND ON, ON YOUR PAGE, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES, I DON'T SEE A PAGE NUMBER HERE.
IS THERE A PAGE NUMBER TWO? OKAY.
WHEREVER, UM, I'M, I'M LOOKING AT YOUR CHARTS HERE, AND IT HAS THE F Y 21 ACTUALS TARGET FOR 22, ESTIMATE FOR 22, AND THEN A TARGET FOR 23.
THEN I LOOK DOWN AT THE BOTTOM AND, AND THE BUDGETS BETWEEN, UH, 21 AND 22 AND 23, AND I LOOK DOWN AT THE MANPOWER POSITIONS.
THINGS JUST AREN'T ADDING UP TO ME.
AND I'D LIKE A FURTHER EXPLANATION, YOU CAN DO IT TODAY OR IF THERE'S ENOUGH TIME OR COME IN AND SIT DOWN AND TALK TO ME ABOUT THIS.
BUT I LOOK AT, UH, BETWEEN 21 AND 22, YOU HAD AN ADDITIONAL 10 POSITIONS LAID ON AN ADDITIONAL $3 MILLION BETWEEN ABOUT A 16% INCREASE BETWEEN THOSE TWO YEARS.
AND THEN, UH, I LOOK AT 22, GOING TO 23, YOU'RE LAYING ON ANOTHER 14 POSITIONS.
AND, UM, ABOUT, ABOUT ANOTHER $3 MILLION INCREASE, WHICH IS ABOUT 13%.
YOU'RE GETTING PRETTY HEFTY INCREASES THERE.
BUT THEN I GO BACK AND LOOK AT THE ACTUAL TARGETS UP ABOVE, AND I'M NOT SEEING ANY RELATIVE INCREASES WITH MANPOWER AND FUNDING THAT REFLECTS INCREASE PRODUCT IN THOSE LINE ITEMS UP THERE.
THE ONLY ONE THAT I SEE THAT'S A, A BIG DIFFERENCE THERE IS, UH, RESIDENT INITIATED CALLS, BUT THE REST OF 'EM, YOU KNOW, I, I'M NOT SEEING ANY BIG IMPROVEMENTS, IF ANYTHING, THAT THEY'RE GOING DOWN WITH THE ADDITIONAL MANPOWER AND FUNDING.
SO I, I'D LIKE AN EXPLANATION ON EACH ONE OF THOSE.
AND, AND COME ON INTO THE OFFICE AND SIT DOWN.
BUT I, THIS DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO ME, UH, THAT MUCH OF AN INCREASE OVER TWO YEARS WITH BOTH MANPOWER AND BUDGET, BUT WE'RE NOT SEEING ANYTHING INCREASING IN THE NUMBERS AS FAR AS RETURN ON INVESTMENT.
SO WOULD REALLY LIKE TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT.
AND DIDN'T WE JUST ALSO, UH, UH, TALK ABOUT A CONTRACT THAT WE'RE GONNA BE AWARDING FOR, UH, ADDITIONAL SPAY AND NEUTER? YES, YES.
WE DO HAVE OUR, UH, UH, WE HAVE OUR, OUR IN-HOUSE CONTRACT SPAY NEUTER SERVICES THAT WORKS ON THE A C S PETS.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE WHAT'S TYPICALLY BEEN KNOWN AS THE ZIP CODE CONTACT CONTRACT, WHICH IS THE COMMUNITY, THE LOW COST AND FREE COMMUNITY, UH, SURGERIES WHERE FOLKS SIGN UP, OR NOT FOLKS, BUT VENDORS SIGN UP AND WE ESSENTIALLY PAY THEM FOR THE SURGERY, AND IT'S FREE TO THE RESIDENT AS LONG AS THEY LIVE IN, IN ONE OF THE, UH, UH, ZIP CODES IDENTIFIED.
AND, AND, UH, HOW MUCH IS THAT CONTRACT FOR? UH, IT'S $1.2 MILLION FOR 12,500 SURGERIES.
FOR HOW MANY YEARS? UH, OVER THE COURSE OF, I THINK IT'S FIVE, RIGHT? IT'S THREE, THREE YEARS WITH TWO EXTENSIONS.
AND WHERE IS THAT REFLECTED IN ON THE BUDGET? WHERE IS THAT MONEY COMING FROM OR GO SHOWN AT? AS FAR AS WE, SORRY.
UM, IT'S IN THE CONTRACTUAL SERVICES LINE ITEM.
SO WITHIN THAT, UH, $3.6 MILLION.
THAT'S WHERE THE LIVE, UH, I'M SORRY, THE SPAY NEUTER CONTRACT IS INCLUDED.
AND HAVE, HAVE, AND I'M, I'M LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS THERE.
SO WE'VE HAD THIS CONTRACT FOR SEVERAL YEARS HERE NOW.
THERE'S A SLIGHT INCREASE, BUT WE'VE HAD THAT SPAY NEUTER CONTRACT, UH, IN PLACE.
IT'S EVER SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE, SO AT LEAST NINE YEARS.
NORTH OF, NORTH OF PROBABLY 10, 11, 12 YEARS.
UM, SO A LOT OF EXTRA SPAY AND NEUTER SERVICES OTHER THAN WHAT Y'ALL PROVIDE, CORRECT? YES, SIR.
WELL, AGAIN, I, I, WITH THOSE INCREASES OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, THE, THE ADDITIONAL MANPOWER, I'M NOT SEEING WHAT THE RESULTS ARE IN THAT, THE TABLE UP ABOVE.
SO IF YOU COULD COME ON IN AND ABSOLUTELY, SIR.
I, I WOULD SURE APPRECIATE IT.
[02:00:01]
OTHER THAN THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S IT.I THINK A LOT OF MY, UM, QUESTIONS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED, BUT I, I ENCOURAGE, I'M ENCOURAGED TO HEAR YOU'RE GONNA WORK ON, UM, TO ADDRESS THE TRANSPORTATION ISSUE THAT, UH, FOLKS HAVE IN GETTING TO A C SS.
I'M CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANY PRELIMINARY IDEAS ON HOW TO REMEDY THE ISSUE.
UH, SOME, SO SOME OF THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY, UH, EVEN WORKING WITH SOME OF THE CONTRACTED PARTNERS AS WE'RE GOING OUT AND WE'RE LOOKING, UH, AT CONTRACT PARTNERS COMING IN, UH, WE'RE FINDING THAT BY, BY HAVING THOSE CRITICAL DISCUSSIONS TO THEM, WITH THEM ABOUT THE FACT THAT MANY OF THE PLACES THAT NEED THIS THE MOST ARE VETERINARY DESERTS, UH, KIND OF BRINGING THAT AS PART OF THE MM-HMM.
THERE'S, UM, A SPAN NEUTER SITE IN DISTRICT THREE.
IS THAT, HOW DID THAT GET FUNDED? IS THAT, WAS THAT AS A GRANT ISSUE OR A NO, NO, THAT'S ACTUALLY PART OF OUR BUDGET.
THAT'S, THAT'S ACTUALLY ONE OF THE CITY OWNED CONTRACTED FACILITIES THAT IN BRACKENRIDGE THAT I WAS KIND OF TALKING TO IS KIND OF OKAY.
A MODEL THAT'S BEEN VERY, UH, UH, DESIROUS, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY.
IT WAS A COMMERCIAL STOREFRONT THAT BROOKS WAS DEVELOPING.
I THINK THAT'S AN INTERESTING MODEL.
BUT, UM, I THINK THAT, UH, THIS WAS ADDRESSED, BUT, UM, THE, THE FOSTER AND RESCUE ORGANIZATIONS, I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU, YOU TALKED ABOUT PUTTING TOGETHER STAKEHOLDER GROUPS.
UM, BUT YES, MA'AM, AS YOU MENTIONED, IT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, THEIR FINANCIAL BURDEN.
A LOT OF 'EM ARE, ARE, ARE VERY SMALL ORGANIZATIONS, AND THEY'RE, UH, DOING THEIR BEST TO KEEP UP WITH THE, THE STRAY POPULATION.
YOU MENTIONED A RESCUE INCENTIVE PROGRAM, IS THAT WHAT IT'S CALLED? YES, THAT'S ACTUALLY PART OF THAT R F A THAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT.
WHERE THEY CAN APPLY FOR IT, THESE RESCUE GROUPS APPLY FOR IT.
AND THEN THEY'RE THERE, THEY'RE THEN ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE PAYMENT PER ANIMAL THAT THEY'RE PULLING, UH, SIMILAR TO KIND OF WHAT WE DO WITH, UH, UH, SAN ANTONIO PETS ALIVE, BUT ON A NOT AS GRAND TO SCALE.
SO WHAT, I'M CURIOUS, WHAT, WHAT ARE THE QUALIFICATIONS TO RECEIVE THAT FUNDING? SO THEY WILL, THEY WILL HAVE TO BE A, UH, UH, A REGISTERED 5 0 1 C THREE.
UH, WE REQUIRE, UH, RECOMMENDATIONS FROM VETERINARIANS.
MOST OF THESE GUYS, WE HAVE LONGSTANDING RELATIONSHIPS.
CLEARLY, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE, THE FOLKS THAT WE'VE HAD ISSUE WITH AND THINGS LIKE THAT WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR THIS.
COMMIT TO A CERTAIN, UH, NO, SIR.
IT'S, IT'S BASED ON THE SIZE OF THE ORGANIZATION.
AND, UM, DO WE PARTNER, WHEN WE DO SPAY AND NEUTER EVENTS, DO YOU PARTNER WITH ANY OF THOSE NONPROFITS OR FOR ANY ANIMAL RELATED NONPROFITS? SO WE, WE, WE WORK WITH LIKE S NSSA, PLACES LIKE THAT.
RIGHT NOW, MOST OF THOSE RESCUE GROUPS, THEY ACTUALLY DON'T HAVE THEIR OWN VETERINARY CAPABILITY.
UH, LARGE, LARGE SCALE, BIG FIX TYPE OF THING.
SO WE WORK WITH THEM, WE PARTNER WITH THEM AND CONTRACT WITH THEM.
UM, AND I'M, I'M VERY INTERESTED IN THOSE, YOU KNOW, I DRIVE BY A C S EVERY MORNING ON THE WAY TO CITY HALL.
IT'S RIGHT UP THE ROAD FROM ME.
UH, BUT THERE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, SO, WE'RE SUCH A BIG CITY AND, UH, THE FIRST ISSUE THAT I TALKED ABOUT, THE TRANSPORTATION ISSUE IS I THINK, UH, PRESSING.
UH, BUT I DO LIKE THE IDEA OF HAVING THESE, IF WE WERE TO, TO FIND ANOTHER, UH, I GUESS ORGANIZATION THAT WOULD BUILD US OUT A
I THINK THAT'S REALLY WHERE WE HAVE TO START LOOKING IS, IS SATELLITE OFFICES AS IT WERE.
AND WE'VE, WE'VE EVEN HAD SOME, SOME REAL GOOD SUCCESS DURING TALKS WITH FOLKS THAT MAYBE THEY DON'T WANNA MOVE HERE FULL TIME MM-HMM.
AND SO, SO WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY TRYING TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX AND, AND LOOK AT THINGS THAT WE HAVEN'T TRADITIONALLY DONE AND BASICALLY BRING ANYBODY IN THAT IS INTERESTED.
DIDN'T WE USED TO HAVE A MOBILE SPAY NEUTER? WE DID, MA'AM.
IT WAS A, UH, IT WAS A LITTLE BIT BEFORE MY TIME.
UM, BUT I KNOW THAT ONE OF THE PROBLEMS THAT WE HAD WITH IT WAS THE HIGH, UH, REQUIREMENT FOR STAFF.
BASICALLY, WE WOULD PUSH STAFF OUT FOR THAT, WHERE WE COULD DO 10 SURGERIES IN A DAY, OR WE COULD KEEP THAT EXISTING STAFF IN HOUSE AND DO 50 SURGERIES A DAY.
AND SO IT WASN'T A, WASN'T A REAL STRONG MODEL FOR US.
UH, BUT THERE ARE FOLKS THAT OPERATE THAT WAY FULL TIME OKAY.
[02:05:01]
THANK YOU.UH, I REALLY LIKE THE JOB YOU'VE BEEN DOING, SHANNON, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
AND I ALSO WANNA, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, MY COMMITTEE MEMBER WHO REALLY KEEPS US INFORMED.
SUSAN BELDEN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK ON THAT COMMITTEE.
UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'VE HEARD FROM OUTSIDE GROUPS IS THAT MAYBE THEY'RE NOT, UH, ALLOWED OR APPRECIATED TO PARTICIPATE A LOT WITH THE WORK THAT YOU DO.
COULD YOU GIMME AN OUTLINE OF HOW MANY OTHER PARTNERS YOU HAVE AND ARE THERE SOME PARTNERS THAT YOU WOULD JUST DON'T COOPERATE OR COLLABORATE WITH? SO THERE ARE, SO WE HAVE OUR LARGE PARTNERS THAT ARE THE MOST WELL-KNOWN.
OUR ADLS AND SAPPA AND SAN ANTONIO HUMANE SOCIETY, FOLKS LIKE THAT.
UH, BUT WHEN WE START DRIVING DOWN INTO SOME OF OUR SMALLER RESCUES, YOU KNOW, WE LITERALLY HAVE HUNDREDS OF THEM THAT WE OPERATE WITH.
UH, SOME OF THOSE GUYS PULL 5, 10, 15 A YEAR.
UH, THE VAST MAJORITY ARE IN THE 30 50 RANGE, THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY SOME FOLKS THAT, UH, BETHANY KEEPS A CLOSE KIND OF EAR TO THE, TO THE GROUND LISTENING FOR WHAT'S GOING ON IN, IN THE COMMUNITIES, AND NOT JUST HERE, BUT MORE HOW ARE THOSE ANIMALS BEING OUTCOME WHEN THEY FINALLY GET SOMEWHERE.
THE LAST THING THAT WE WANT IS TO WORK WITH AN ORGANIZATION WHO'S THEN PUTTING ANIMALS INTO A HOARDING SITUATION SOMEWHERE ELSE, OR CREATING A PROBLEM SOMEWHERE ELSE.
SO WE ABSOLUTELY WORK WITH, UH, THE OTHER RESCUES TO KIND OF COORDINATE AND MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW, UH, IF ANYBODY'S DOING ANYTHING UNTOWARD, WE WILL ABSOLUTELY, UH, CUT THEM OFF.
NOW, I KNOW SOME OF THEM WE HAVE A FINANCIAL CONTRACT WITH FOR THEM TO, UH, RESCUE CERTAIN NUMBER OF ANIMALS.
UH, WHAT ABOUT THE ONES WE DON'T HAVE A CONTRACT WITH, BUT WE, WE WORK WITH? UH, WHAT DO WE DO TO, TO SUPPORT THEM BESIDES ALLOWING THEM TO COME IN AND, AND TAKE ANIMALS? THAT'S, THAT'S REALLY WHERE THAT R F A THAT I SPOKE ABOUT EARLIER WITH THE RESCUE PARTNER INCENTIVE PROGRAM IS, IS GOING TO COME TO BEAR A LOT OF THESE FOLKS WHO, YOU KNOW, GREATEST INTENTIONS, GREATEST, YOU KNOW, LOVE FOR THE ANIMALS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, JUST THEY'RE OUT OF RESOURCES.
AND SO THIS IS GOING TO ALLOW THEM TO COME TO THE TABLE, ACTUALLY ALLOW US TO PROVIDE THEM SOME RESOURCES TO MAKE SURE THEY GET THE MEDICAL CARE, BOARDING, TRANSPORTATION, THINGS LIKE THAT.
WHILE IT WON'T COVER ALL OF THEIR COSTS, IT'S DEFINITELY GIVING BACK TO THEM ENOUGH THAT, THAT THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO BE MORE SUCCESSFUL AND SUSTAINABLE.
COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE COUNCILS MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
UM, I'M WONDERING, UH, HOW MANY KENNEL SPACES ARE THERE? WHAT DO WE HAVE? ABOUT TWO 50.
I'M GOING TO CALL BETHANY UP HERE.
MY NAME IS BE BETHANY COLONY, THE CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER.
UH, WE HAVE TWO MAIN DOG KENNELS, BUILDING THREE AND BUILDING FOUR.
THEY EACH HAVE 55 RUNS IN THEM.
UM, THEY CAN HOLD ONE TO THREE OR FOUR DOGS DEPENDING ON THEIR SIZE.
AND THEN WE DO HAVE THE CAT ROOM, WHICH HAS 75 KENNELS.
AND THEN WE DO HAVE, UH, BUILDING TWO, WHICH HAS 58 KENNELS.
THIS IS FOR, UM, BITING DOGS, CRUELTY HOARDING CASES.
AND THEN WE DO HAVE ADDITIONAL KENNEL SPACE IN THE CLINIC AS WELL TOO.
THEN BY OFFICE, WHICH ALWAYS HAS A PET IN IT.
AND THIS ONE IS, UM, NOT A FUN QUESTION, BUT HOW MANY, UM, ANIMALS ARE EUTHANIZED DUE TO CAPACITY? WE HAVE ROUGHLY OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS, WE ARE BETWEEN 1200 TO 1300 FOR CAPACITY, STRAIGHT CAPACITY.
THEN YOU HAVE YOUR MEDICAL AND BEHAVIORAL EUTHANASIA.
I KNOW WE'VE, AND I KNOW WE'VE HAD THIS CONVERSATION, UH, PRIVATELY SHANNON, BUT I THINK IT'S WORTH A LARGER, UH, CONVERSATION, IS THAT, UM, IF WE HAVE A, IF WE HAVE AN ADDITIONAL KENNEL SPACE RIGHT, OR AN ADDITIONAL A C S FACILITY, UM, YOU KNOW, IT'S CLEAR THEY WILL FILL UP, BUT IT'S STILL MORE SPACE THAN WE CURRENTLY HAVE AND COULD POSSIBLY BE LESS EUTHANIZATION BE BECAUSE SO, SO ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE KEY ASPECTS OF THIS SUPPORT HOUSING KENNEL THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO BUILD IS, UH, AND, AND I I, AND I'VE BEEN VERY, VERY CLEAR TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS THIS IS NOT BUILDING 1, 2, 3 MM-HMM.
THERE'RE NOT GOING TO BE ANIMALS KENNEL THERE FULL TIME.
WE WANT TO USE THIS FOR OVERFLOW SPACE WHERE, UH, IF YOU, SIR, WERE TO COME IN AND ADOPT AN ANIMAL ON A MONDAY, AND HE CAN'T BE, UH, SPAYED OR NEUTERED UNTIL THURSDAY, SO WE CAN'T OUT COME HIM DURING THOSE THREE DAYS.
THAT ALLOWS ME TO GRAB THAT ANIMAL, PUT HIM IN THAT OVERFLOW KENNEL, AND MAKES THAT KENNEL AVAILABLE FOR THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR DAYS FOR ANOTHER ANIMAL THAT WOULD BE COMING IN.
SO JUST THROUGH DOING THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT KIND OF ANIMAL TETRIS THAT WE SEE,
[02:10:01]
UH, WE'RE ESTIMATING BETWEEN 800 AND A THOUSAND ADDITIONAL KENNEL DAYS, UH, THROUGH THIS SUPPORT HOUSING KENNEL WITHOUT THE THREAT OF FILLING IT BACK UP AND BEING RIGHT BACK IN THE SAME SITUATION THAT WE'RE ALWAYS IN.AND I THINK WE, UM, WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT CREATIVE SOLUTIONS LIKE THAT.
UM, I'M ALSO, UH, CONCERNED ABOUT RESPONSE TIME.
RIGHT? 'CAUSE ONE OF THE STRUGGLES THAT I THINK YOU HAVE THAT'S UNIQUE TO A C S IS THAT SOMEONE CAN CALL ABOUT A DOG OR A PACK OF DOGS, AND BY THE TIME YOU GET THERE, THEY'RE IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT LOCATION.
AND SO THAT MAKES IT A LOT HARDER TO RESOLVE THE ISSUES.
AND THE CASES THAT YOU DO HAVE, AND SOMETHING I'VE IDENTIFIED IS, YOU KNOW, I I REPRESENT THE EAST SIDE.
A C S AS A FACILITY IS ALL THE WAY ON THE WEST SIDE.
THE FOLK WHO ARE THE A C SS OFFICERS WHO ARE GOING TO BE ON THE EAST SIDE, ARE GOING TO WORK OR COLLECTING THEIR VEHICLE OR DOING WHATEVER THEY GOTTA DO ON THE WEST SIDE.
AND SO I'M WONDERING, MIGHT THERE BE NEED FOR AN INNER CITY FACILITY OF SOME SORT? I KNOW THAT IN, IN THE PAST BEFORE, UH, I WAS THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OR THE DIRECTOR, YOU KNOW, FOR THAT MATTER, UH, THERE HAD BEEN A, LOOKS INTO THE COST ASSOCIATED WITH THAT.
UM, I DON'T REALLY THINK THAT IT WOULD ACTUALLY HELP OUR RESPONSE TIME, BECAUSE ONCE THOSE OFFICERS DEPART THE FACILITY, THEY'RE, THEY'RE IN THE FIELD.
UM, WHAT I WILL TELL YOU THAT, THAT WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY HURTING RIGHT NOW IN RESPONSE TIME IS, UH, THE ECONOMY AND COVID DID A NUMBER ON US FROM MANPOWER, UH, FROM AN OFFICER STANDPOINT.
UH, TODAY WE'RE AT 57% OFFICER, UH, MANPOWER.
UH, NOW THE GOOD NEWS ON THAT IS THAT THROUGH THE COMMITMENT FROM, UH, THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE AND WORKING WITH HR AND EVERYTHING, THEY'VE RIGHT SIZED AND GOT MY OFFICERS RIGHT BACK INTO THE RIGHT MARKET VALUE.
UH, AS WELL AS WE'VE DEVELOPED A GROWTH PLAN AND AN APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM, AND WE WENT FROM SEEING FIVE APPLICANTS ON A POSTING TO A HUNDRED APPLICANTS THAT ACTUALLY SHOWED UP TO A C SS TO, TO INTERVIEW.
UH, SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE LITERALLY, UH, TWO ACADEMIES RUNNING CONCURRENTLY WITH A THIRD ONE SCHEDULED TO KICK OFF IN SEPTEMBER.
AND I LOOK FOR US TO BE BACK TO FULL STRENGTH, UH, BY EARLY JANUARY.
AND, AND THAT'S GOING TO REALLY ADDRESS THOSE RESPONSE TIMES.
AND I'LL CLOSE BY SAYING THAT I, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT GONNA MAKE ANY RECOMMENDATION THAT WE MOVE SOME OF THE CPS SURPLUS HERE, EVEN THOUGH IT'S IN NEED THAT I FEEL, UH, YOU, I, THERE'S MONEY, UM, NEXT BUDGET.
I DO EXPECT A WAY LARGER INVESTMENT IN A C S.
SO I WOULD LIKE FOR, UM, THE POWERS THAT BE TO BEGIN THINKING ABOUT THAT AND PREPARING FOR NEXT YEAR.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ, COUNCIL MEMBER BRAVO.
AND SHANNON, THANKS FOR THAT PRESENTATION.
UM, IN THE, ON THE PREVIOUS AGENDA ITEM, WE HEARD SUZANNE SCOTT TALK ABOUT AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION, UM, IS, IS, UH, BETTER THAN A POUND OF CURE.
AND SO I THINK OF THAT WHEN I THINK ABOUT US NOT HAVING, UH, ENOUGH VETERINARIANS TO DO SPAY AND NEUTER.
AND I KNOW WE'VE HAD THIS CONVERSATION BEFORE ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO HIRE, UH, TO THAT WE NEED TO BE PAYING MORE, TO BE ABLE TO MAKE SURE WE CAN HIRE AN ADDITIONAL VET SO WE CAN DO, DO ADDITIONAL THE, THE NUMBER OF SPAY SPAY NS THAT WE NEED TO DO IN OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, HOWEVER, WHEN I RECENTLY S SAT DOWN AND LISTENED TO SOME ANIMAL WEL WELFARE ADVOCATES, WHAT I HEARD WAS THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF PRIVATE VETERINARY CLINICS THAT ARE OFFERING UP TO A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS AS A HIRING BONUS.
AND SO HOW ARE WE GONNA COMPETE WITH THAT? WHAT DO YOU HAVE, HAVE YOU TAKEN THAT INTO CONSIDERATION IN THIS BUDGET TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN COMPETE AND WE CAN GET THE VETERINARIAN THAT YOU NEED, OR THE NUMBER OF VETERINARIANS YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN DO ADEQUATE SPAY AND NEUTER IN-HOUSE? YES, SIR.
SO ACTUALLY, I'M GLAD YOU YOU BROUGHT THAT UP.
RIGHT BEFORE WE CAME DOWN THIS AFTERNOON, I WAS ON JUST CHECKING TO SEE WHAT THAT VETERINARY MARKET'S LOOKING LIKE RIGHT NOW.
AND WE'VE DONE A LOT OF RESEARCH, WORKED WITH, UH, HR, UH, WE HAVE EVOLVED THAT, THAT PAY RANGE FROM BEING 70,000 TO 105,000 UP TO 105.
UH, NOW WE ARE SITTING AT, UH, 106,000 ON THE VERY, VERY LOWEST END UP TO 159,000.
UH, AS I COMPARE THAT TO THE VETERINARY POSTINGS THAT I SEE IN THE SAN ANTONIO AREA, WE'RE KIND OF IN THAT SWEET SPOT FINALLY.
UM, REGARDING BONUSES, I KIND OF CHECK THROUGH AND, AND THERE ARE ONESIES AND TWOSIES WHERE YOU SEE THE A HUNDRED THOUSAND, TYPICALLY IT'S A HUNDRED THOUSAND OR $200,000 A YEAR.
IT, IT'S KIND OF A, YOU KNOW, BAIT AND SWITCH.
EITHER YOU CAN GET A LITTLE HIGHER PAY OR YOU CAN GET THE A HUNDRED, A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS BONUS.
THE MAJORITY OF THEM THAT I SEE RIGHT NOW ARE ANYWHERE FROM 15 TO 50,000.
[02:15:01]
THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, I, ON SEPTEMBER 7TH, THERE'S A HUGE VETERINARY CONFERENCE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, IVEX, UH, WE'VE ACTUALLY PURCHASED A BOOTH AT IVEX.AND I WILL HAVE, UH, JOEL JENKS, WHO'S ONE OF THE, THE GREATEST RECRUITERS FOR HR AND ALSO SUBSEQUENTLY HAS A BACKGROUND.
AND ANIMAL CARE IS OUR HOSPITAL MANAGER.
HE WILL BE OUT THERE, MY CLINIC MANAGER WILL BE OUT THERE.
AND WE'RE GOING TO BE ACTIVELY RECRUITING FROM THE THOUSAND PLUS VETS THAT ARE GOING TO BE HERE AS A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE.
UH, I, I THINK WE'RE JUST ABOUT WHERE WE NEED TO BE FROM A FUNDING STANDPOINT.
AND ERIC, DOES THE CITY EVER USE, UH, HIRING BONUSES AS A RECRUITMENT TOOL? UH, WE DO COUNCILMAN AND I THINK WE HAVE, DO WE HAVE A, WE HAVE A HIRING BONUS SET ASIDE FOR THIS ONE 30, 30,000 OKAY.
AND YOU KNOW, IT'S, UM, PROBABLY IN THE LAST, UH, SIX MONTHS, WE'VE ADJUSTED THAT SALARY TWICE, THAT RANGE TWICE.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, UM, YOUR QUESTION ABOUT DO WE HAVE FUNDING, THERE'S PLENTY OF FUNDING 'CAUSE WE'LL, WE'LL MAKE THE ADJUSTMENT ON THE SALARY DEPENDING ON THE RECRUITMENT.
UM, AND NOT JUST MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE RECRUITING SOMEONE TO FILL THOSE POSITIONS, BUT ALSO MAKING THE ADJUSTMENT FOR THE VETS WE DO HAVE.
SO WE KEEP THEM, WE'VE DONE THAT AS WELL.
UM, SO THEN IF, IF WE INCREASE CAPACITY TO BE ABLE TO HOLD MORE ANIMALS, HOW DOES THAT AFFECT OUR LIVE RELEASE RATE? RIGHT.
IF SO, IF WE'RE ABLE TO HOLD MORE ANIMALS, BUT WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF ANIMALS THAT MAYBE ARE CONSIDERED DANGEROUS BREEDS, UH, THAT ARE NOT AS FREQUENTLY ADOPTED OUT, HOW DOES THAT FACTOR IN? SO WHEN, WHEN WE KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THAT NEW HOUSING, UH, PROVIDING US 800 TO A THOUSAND KENNEL DAYS, YOU KNOW, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FROM A LIVE RELEASE PERSPECTIVE OR, OR A ENFORCEMENT PERSPECTIVE? THAT'S KIND OF A DELICATE BALANCE.
'CAUSE WE KNOW FOR A FACT THAT WHEN WE DO THAT, ALL OF THAT CAPACITY IS NOT GOING TO GO SPECIFICALLY TO LIVE RELEASE, UH, FIELD OFFICERS THERE, WE KNOW THERE ARE ANIMALS OUT ON THE STREETS RIGHT NOW THAT NEED TO BE IMPOUNDED.
SO PART OF THAT IS GOING TO, YOU KNOW, I DEFINITELY THINK THAT WE'LL GET A COUPLE OF POINTS BUMP OUT OF IT FROM A LIVE RELEASE PERSPECTIVE.
UH, PROBABLY TWO TO 3% PERCENTAGE POINTS.
UH, BUT IT WILL ALSO SIMULTANEOUSLY BE ALLOWING, UH, THE OFFICERS MORE CAPACITY TO, TO BE REALLY HITTING THOSE SWEEPS AND TRY KIND OF ADDRESSING THOSE PROBLEMS THAT WE'VE SEEN REALLY FLARE UP OVER THE LAST YEAR, YEAR AND A HALF.
UM, I ALSO WANT TO ASK ABOUT DANGEROUS ANIMALS.
AND IS, IS THERE ANYTHING ADDITIONAL IN YOUR BUDGET THAT HELPS YOU, YOU KNOW, IF SOMEBODY CALLS IN AND THAT HELPS YOU AND THEY, IF, IF THERE'S ANY INDICATION THAT IT COULD BE A DANGEROUS ANIMAL, IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE IN YOUR FUNDING SO THAT YOU CAN PRIORITIZE AND MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN GET THERE QUICKLY TO GET THAT ANIMAL? SO FROM A DANGEROUS DOG PERSPECTIVE, WE DO HAVE, UH, TWO DANGEROUS DOGS, TWO DEDICATED DANGEROUS DOG OFFICERS.
UH, THAT THAT'S ALL THEY DO ARE DANGEROUS DOG INVESTIGATIONS.
UM, AT SOME POINT IN THE NEAR FUTURE, WE DON'T HAVE ANYTHING IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET.
AT SOME POINT, PROBABLY IN THE NEAR, NEAR FUTURE, WE MAY HAVE TO LOOK AT, AT KIND OF, YOU KNOW, MOVING A FIRST RESPONSE OFFICER, AN ADDITIONAL ONE IN THERE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE KEEPING UP WITH CAPACITY.
UH, HOWEVER, UH, RIGHT NOW THEY ARE ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE VOLUME THAT THEY HAVE.
SO HOW DO YOU MAKE THE DECISION THAT WE NEED TO ADD A THIRD? UH, IT'S, IT'S SOLELY GONNA BE UPON CAPACITY.
UH, WHAT'S THE CASE LOAD OF THOSE OFFICERS LOOKING LIKE DAY TO DAY? UH, WHAT'S THE LAG TIME BETWEEN A FIRST RESPONDER GETTING THERE AND THAT DANGEROUS DOG INVESTIGATOR BEING ABLE TO ACTUALLY, UH, INITIATE AND, AND FINALIZE THAT DANGEROUS DEEMING? WELL, I MEAN, JUST AS A BLANKET STATEMENT, WE NEED TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, WE'RE ADDRESSING, UM, EVERY DANGEROUS ANIMAL THAT WE, YOU KNOW, AS, AS WE FIND OUT ABOUT THEM.
BUT THEN FROM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, FROM A FINANCIAL STATE, UH, STANDPOINT, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT, UM, FAILING TO BUDGET FOR THE, THE RIGHT NUMBER IF WE, IF WE NEED ONE MORE AND THEN CREATING SOME KIND OF A FINANCIAL LIABILITY ON THE CITY THAT SOMEBODY MAY CALLS IN A DANGEROUS ANIMAL AND WE'RE NOT ABLE TO GET THERE IN TIME AND THEN SOMETHING HAPPENS AND THEN WE COULD BE HELD LIABLE.
I THINK WE SHOULD BE THINKING ABOUT THAT FROM A FINANCIAL STANDPOINT AS WELL.
AND I, I THINK FROM, FROM, FROM MY POINT RIGHT NOW, MY COMFORT ZONE TRYING TO GET, UH, US FULLY STAFFED AND HEALTHY IN THE FIELD WILL GIVE US A LOT BETTER IDEA OF KIND OF, DO WE NEED TO SHIFT ONE OF THOSE OFFICERS AND POSSIBLY ADD A DA AN ADDITIONAL DANGEROUS OFFICER? UH, I, I THINK IT WOULD BE SHORTSIGHTED OF ME TO, TO TRY TO DO IT NOW WITHOUT US BEING BACK, BACK TO FULL HEALTH AND SEEING WHAT WE HAVE THE CAPACITY FOR.
I THINK WE'LL HAVE A GOOD IDEA IN JANUARY, SIR.
BRAVO, ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION ON THIS? UM, BEFORE WE WRAP, LET ME JUST RECOGNIZE, UH, ALL OF OUR
[02:20:01]
A C SS BOARD MEMBERS WHO ARE PRESENT, UM, IF Y'ALL COULD PLEASE STAND SO WE CAN RECOGNIZE YOU.THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE, EVERYBODY.
AND SIR, I WAS REMISS WHEN I ANNOUNCED ALL THE BOARD MEMBERS, I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THE, THE CITY'S REPRESENTATIVE, AMIN TAMAZ HAD ACTUALLY SNUCK IN.
ALRIGHT, WELL THIS HAS BEEN A, A, A GOOD DAY, UH, OF DISCUSSION.
IT'S 4:29 PM WE DO NOT HAVE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION, SO, UH, WE ARE ADJOURNED.