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OUR CLERK WILL READ OFF THE ROLL.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WELCOME TO OUR MEETING, COUNCIL MEMBER VERAN.
[Approval of Minutes ]
GREAT.SO WE, OUR FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM OUR E W D C MEETINGS, UH, THAT OCCURRED ON JUNE 28TH, 2023.
LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE? I MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE.
SECOND, YOU HAVE A MOTION TO SECOND.
[Consent Agenda ]
HAVE IT.OUR SECOND ITEM IS TO APPROVE OUR CONSENT AGENDA.
UM, AND UNLESS ANYBODY WANTS TO PULL AN A, A CONSENT AGENDA ITEM FOR INDIVIDUAL DISCUSSION.
LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE OUR CONSENT AGENDA? MOTION MADE.
[Briefing and Possible Action on the following items ]
OUR FIRST BRIEFING AND POSSIBLE ACTION, UM, IS REGARDING OUR FACADE IMPROVEMENT GRANT PROGRAM.AND THAT WILL BE ANNA BRADSHAW.
GOOD AFTERNOON COUNCIL MEMBERS.
SO I'M ANNA SHAW, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND TODAY I'LL BE PROVIDING AN UPDATE ON OUR FACADE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM.
SO, AS YOU ALL MAY RECALL, THIS, UM, GEOGRAPHIC PLACEMAKING WAS INCLUDED AS ONE OF OUR MANY BUCKETS UNDER THE ARPA SMALL BUSINESS IMPLEMENTATION PLAN, UM, WHICH TOTALS OVER $32 MILLION.
AND SO WITHIN THAT GEOGRAPHIC PLACEMAKING BUCKET, THERE WERE THREE COMPONENTS.
UM, THE FIRST BEING THIS FACADE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, WHICH I'M PROVIDING THE UPDATE ON OUR OUTDOOR SPACES PROGRAM, UM, AND THE CORRIDOR REVITALIZATION PROGRAM.
AND SO, JUST AS A MATTER OF BACKGROUND ON THE FACADE IMPROVEMENT BACKGROUND, IT WAS INTENDED TO BE TARGETED TOWARDS, UH, GEOGRAPHIC PRIORITY AREAS, UM, PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO COMMERCIAL BUSINESS OWNERS, UM, TO, TO ESSENTIALLY PROVIDE A FACELIFT.
SO SOME OF Y'ALL REMEMBER, MAY REMEMBER THE OLD PROGRAM OPERATION FACELIFTS.
SO THIS LEARNED LESSONS FROM THAT PROGRAM AND SOUGHT TO BRING IT BACK UTILIZING THESE ARPA RESOURCES TO PROVIDE SUPPORT.
UM, SO GRANTS WOULD RANGE FROM 5,000 TO 50,000.
IT DID INCLUDE A SET ASIDE FOR, FOR NONPROFITS.
AND AS AN ADDED STEP IN THE PROCESS, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH, UM, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, HISTORIC PRESERVATION TO HELP, UM, UNDERSTAND THE PERMIT PROCESS, BUT ALSO PROVIDE SOME STREAMLINE STREAMLINING FOR IT THROUGH THE APPLICATION PROCESS SO THAT THE SELECTED, UH, GRANTEES WOULD HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT PERMITS WOULD BE REQUIRED.
AND WE'D ALREADY BE ESTABLISHING THOSE RELATIONSHIPS.
SO AS OF LAST WEEK, WE HAD OVER TWO, 200 APPLICATIONS IN PROGRESS WITH 14 FULLY SUBMITTED.
SO TO GO INTO THE ELIGIBLE AREAS, UM, AS A REMINDER, YOU SEE THE AREAS HIGHLIGHTED IN TEAL.
THERE ARE THE AREAS THAT ARE CURRENTLY ELIGIBLE.
AND SO THAT INCLUDES, UM, THE LARGEST AREA BEING THE WORD WORLD HERITAGE BUFFER ZONE, BUT EXCLUDING THE CENTRAL PIT AREA, LOCATED DOWNTOWN.
ALSO PRIORITY CORRIDORS IN ADOPTED OR IN PROGRESS AREA, UM, SUBAR PLANS AND REGIONAL CENTER PLANS.
AND THIS REALLY SOUGHT TO LEVERAGE THAT PLANNING WORK THAT HAS BEEN DONE.
UM, AND, AND IDENTIFYING THESE CORRIDORS WHERE THERE IS OPPORTUNITY AS WELL AS THE NORTHEAST CORRIDOR AREA.
AND THEN, UM, TO PROVIDE SUPPORT TO THOSE BUSINESSES IN IMPACTED CONSTRUCTION CORRIDORS.
THOSE INCLUDED ALONG THOSE CORRIDORS ARE IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT TO, FOR THOSE LONG-TERM CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.
SO, AS FAR AS ELIGIBILITY FOR INDIVIDUAL, UH, BUSINESSES, SO THEY NEEDED TO HAVE BEEN IN THE LOCATION PRIOR TO 2021.
AND YOU'LL SEE HERE A LISTING OF ITEMS THAT ARE ELIGIBLE.
SO ALL OF THOSE THINGS, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT A FACADE WERE, WERE INCLUDED WITHIN THE PROGRAM.
UM, IN ADDITION, THERE WERE A REQUIREMENTS THEY NEEDED TO MAKE AND BEING CURRENT AND NOT HAVING LIENS.
AND AS WELL, YOU'LL SEE A LIST OF, UH, EXCLUDED PRO UH, BUSINESSES FROM THE PROGRAM.
SO ONE OF THE CORE TENANTS OF THE SMALL BUSINESS IMPLEMENTATION PLAN WAS REALLY LOOKING AT IT WITH AN EQUITY LENS.
AND SO THIS PROGRAM SOUGHT TO APPLY THAT AS WELL, UM, WITH HOW WE APPLIED COST SHARE.
SO THERE IS A COST SHARE REQUIREMENT, BUT FOR THOSE IN THE HIGHEST EQUITY SCORES OF SEVEN TO 10, THEY WOULD BE ELIGIBLE FOR UP TO 90% PROVIDED BY THE CITY.
WHEREAS THOSE IN, UH, EQUITY SCORES OF TWO THROUGH SIX WOULD HAVE 75% COVERED BY THE CITY AND 25% FOR THE BUSINESS OWNER.
UM, ALSO IN HOW WE ALLOCATED FUNDING, THE, THE PROGRAM WAS DESIGNED TO HAVE OF THE OVERALL $3 MILLION BUCKET, 25% MADE AVAILABLE TO THOSE IN EQUITY SCORES, TWO TO FOUR, 25% IN FIVE THROUGH SEVEN, AND THEN 50% OF THE FUNDING GOING TO THOSE AREAS IN EQUITY SCORES OF, OF EIGHT THROUGH 10.
AND, UM, LISTENING TO, TO THOSE BUSINESS OWNERS AND UNDERSTANDING THE PRIOR PROGRAM, IT ALSO WOULD PROVIDE SOME FUNDING UPFRONT IN ORDER TO SECURE DEPOSITS,
[00:05:01]
PURCHASE SUPPLIES, UM, AND THEN REWARD THE AWARD, THE, UH, REMAINING AMOUNT, UM, UPON COMPLETION OF MILESTONES.SO THERE WAS AN UPDATED REQUEST TO INCLUDE, UH, ADDITIONAL CORRIDORS IN DISTRICT SEVEN.
UM, THEY ARE CURRENTLY NOT ELIGIBLE AS THEY DO NOT MEET THE CRITERIA PREVIOUSLY LISTED.
SO THOSE INCLUDE, UH, AREAS OF FREDERICKSBURG ROAD, UH, AND DONALDSON AVENUE ALONG WITH COLLIBRA.
SO WERE THOSE TO BE, UH, UPDATED TO INCLUDE, WE WOULD RECOMMEND THAT WE ADJUST OUR TIMELINE.
SO YOU'LL SEE OUR CURRENT TIMELINE.
UM, WE ARE OUR ROCKET ENROLL AND THE TEAM HAS DONE EXTENSIVE OUTREACH IN THOSE ELIGIBLE CORRIDORS.
WE'VE CONDUCTED, UM, OUTREACH SESSIONS IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH, BOTH VIRTUAL AND IN PERSON.
WE ARE CONDUCTING, UM, APPLICATION ASSISTANCE WORKSHOPS.
OUR PARTNER AGENCIES, UM, HAVE BEEN REALLY WORKING WITH US AS WELL TO GET THE DOOR, UH, THE WORD OUT.
SO RIGHT NOW WE ARE 10 TO, OR WE ARE SCHEDULED TO END THE PROGRAM ON SEPTEMBER THE EIGHTH.
WITHIN THAT REVIEW HAPPENING WITH THE GOAL OF GETTING FUNDS OUT IN LATE OCTOBER.
SO WERE WE TO ADD THE THREE ADDITIONAL CORRIDORS WE WOULD RECOMMEND EXTENDING THAT.
SO BY DESIGN, UM, APPLICANTS HAD SIX WEEKS TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION.
SO WE WOULD RECOMMEND, UM, EXTENDING THAT BY SIX WEEKS FOR THE ENTIRE PROGRAM TO ALLOW THOSE BUSINESSES THE SAME OPPORTUNITY TO GET THEIR QUOTES TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION AND PROVIDE THE, THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTATION TO BE, UM, EVALUATED ALONG WITH THE OTHERS.
BUT WE WOULD SEEK TO REVIEW THE ENTIRE GROUP OF APPLICATIONS, UM, AT THE SAME TIME IN ORDER TO PROVIDE AMPLE OR EQUITY ACROSS THE PROCESS.
SO THAT WOULD PUSH OUT ANNOUNCEMENTS OF AWARDS OUT INTO DECEMBER.
UM, AND THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN, UH, MARINA GATO,
YOU'RE INVITED TO THE PODIUM, MA'AM.
UH, AND THANKS FOR JOINING US AND I KNOW YOU HAD SOME COMMENTS.
OH, IT'S KIND OF NICE TO BE ON THIS SIDE.
THANKS SO MUCH
UM, AS SOON AS SHORTLY AFTER I JOINED COUNCIL, I WAS, UM, DISAPPOINTED TO SEE THAT NO DISTRICT SEVEN BUSINESSES WERE INCLU INCLUDED IN THE FACADE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.
SO WORKED WITH THE CITY'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM, THEY WERE EXTREMELY HELPFUL.
AND WE IDENTIFIED THREE AREAS TO BE, UM, INCLUDED FOR, FOR Y'ALL'S CONSIDERATION.
THE FIRST ONE WOULD BE, UH, JEFFERSON VILLAGE ON THIS STRETCH OF DONALDSON.
THERE'S A LOT OF GREAT RESTAURANTS, REALLY GOOD RESTAURANTS, HISTORIC, IT'S RIGHT NEXT TO JEFFERSON HIGH SCHOOL.
UM, SO IT WOULD BE A GOOD PLACE THAT WOULD BENEFIT GREATLY FROM THIS.
THE SECOND ONE WOULD BE, UM, FREDERICKSBURG, UH, IN THE DECO DISTRICT.
AND THAT ACTUALLY BORDERS DISTRICT ONE AND DISTRICT SEVEN.
AND THEN THE THIRD PLACE WOULD ACTUALLY BORDER DISTRICT FIVE IN DISTRICT SEVEN ON THE ST.
MARY'S AND COLLAB CORRIDOR RIGHT NEXT TO BARRIO BARISTA.
ALL AREAS THAT COULD BENEFIT OFF OF THIS.
AND, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT NECESSARILY SAYING THAT THESE DISTRICT SEVEN BUSINESSES ARE GONNA BE AWARDED IT, WE'RE JUST ASKING FOR TO BE INCLUDED IN THE APPLICATION PROCESS.
SO WE'D REALLY APPRECIATE Y'ALL'S CONSIDERATION IN THAT.
SO, WE'LL, UH, WE'LL GO AROUND THE HORN.
COUNCILMAN BIRAN, WHAT DO YOU THINK? THOUGHTS, COMMENTS? UH, ANA, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
SO THERE ARE NO DISTRICT SEVEN CORRIDORS, UH, ON THIS, I THOUGHT UP NORTH PAST NEAR CHAU PARK.
IF WE LOOK AT NO, NONE OF THE, THE CURRENT AREAS ARE INCLUDED WITHIN DISTRICT SEVEN.
UM, AGAIN, AS WE SOUGHT TO IDENTIFY THOSE AREAS, EITHER IN ADOPTED OR IN PROGRESS SA TOMORROW PLANS.
AND, UH, I, I APPRECIATE THE, THE, THE DESIRE TO GET MORE CORRIDORS IN.
UH, THE, THE PROBLEM I HAVE WITH THAT IS THAT IT'S PUSHING IT BACK.
AND WE ARE, WE ALREADY ARE GETTING A LOT OF, UM, COMPLAINTS FROM SMALL BUSINESS THAT WE'RE TAKING TOO LONG IN DISTRIBUTING THESE FUNDS.
SO WE, WE CANNOT STAY ON OUR TIMELINE.
UH, YOUR RECOMMENDATION IS THAT WE CHANGE IT TO LATE DECEMBER BECAUSE OF THE WORK INVOLVED.
UM, FOR THE, FOR THE APPLICANTS TO SUBMIT EVERYTHING THEY HAVE TO SUBMIT TO QUOTES, UM, FROM CONTRACTORS, UM, THEY HAVE TO PROVIDE DOCUMENTATION RELATED TO THEIR BUSINESSES, TAXES, DIFFERENT THINGS.
WE WANTED TO ALLOT SIX WEEKS FOR THAT.
UM, WE'VE HEARD THROUGH OUR PRIOR APPLICATIONS THAT THE SHORT OF THE TURNAROUND TIME, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE RUNNING THEIR BUSINESS AND SO THEY'RE TRYING TO SQUEAK IN OPPORTUNITY TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION.
SO WE WANTED TO PROVIDE THEM THAT SAME SIX WEEKS OPPORTUNITY TO SUBMIT THEIR APPLICATION.
SO THEY'D HAVE THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME AS INITIALLY WE ALLOCATED FOR, FOR THE ORIGINAL CORRIDORS.
AND HOW MANY APPLICATIONS DO WE HAVE CURRENTLY? WE HAVE OVER 200 IN PROCESS.
[00:10:01]
AGAIN, 'CAUSE OF THE MULTIPLE STEPS TO COMPLETE IT, WE EXPECT TO SEE THOSE, UH, WRAPPING UP SOON.BUT WE HAVE 20 THAT HAVE BEEN FULLY, ABOUT 20 HAVE BEEN FULLY SUBMITTED AT THIS POINT.
AND, UM, AND, AND YOU, THESE, THESE, THESE CORRIDORS HAVEN'T BEEN VETTED OR WHAT, WHAT IS PREVENTING THEM FROM ELIGIBILITY? THEY ARE NOT INCLUDED IN ANY OF THE CRITERIA HERE.
SO THEY'RE NOT WITHIN THE WORLD HERITAGE BUFFER ZONE.
THEY ARE NOT IN AN ADOPTED OR IN PROGRESS SUB AREA OR REGIONAL CENTER PLAN.
UM, OBVIOUSLY NOT IN THE NORTHEAST, UH, CORRIDOR AREA OR IN A CONSTRUCTION ZONE.
SO, UH, I, I WANNA MOVE FORWARD WITH OUR CURRENT TIMELINE, UM, BECAUSE I'D LIKE TO SEE THE BUSINESSES THAT WE CREATED THIS ELIGIBILITY FOR MOVE FORWARD.
I DO WANT TO SEE, BECAUSE THE OTHER CONCERN I HAVE IS IF WE CHANGE THE ELIGIBILITY FOR THESE THREE CORRIDORS, NOW I'M THINKING ABOUT MY DISTRICT AND THINKING ABOUT WHAT CORRIDORS IN MY DISTRICT COULD NOW BE ELIGIBLE IF WE CHANGE THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.
'CAUSE I HAVE SOME THAT AREN'T IN THE WORLD HERE.
I'M THINKING W W Y
SO IF WE EXTEND IT SIX WEEKS AND WE CHANGE THE ELIGIBILITY, 'CAUSE WE'D HAVE TO CHANGE THE ELIGIBILITY, UM, THEN CAN WE GET OTHER CORRIDORS IN OTHER AREAS TO DO THAT LEGALLY? I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S A LAWYER.
UH, THE, THE REQUEST WAS SPECIFICALLY FOR THESE CORRIDORS, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR CONSIDERATION BY, BY THE COMMITTEE.
WE'RE NOT NECESSARILY TALKING ABOUT CHANGING THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA, JUST ADDING THESE THREE VERY SPECIFIC CORRIDORS TO WHO WOULD BE ELIGIBLE TO APPLY.
BUT THEY DON'T MEET ANY OF THE ELIGIBILITY, NOT NOT THE CURRENT CRITERIA.
THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE TO DISCUSS IT.
UH, AND LET'S JUST SAY HOW, UH, SO THIS IS ARPA FUNDS.
DO WE HAVE A PLAN TO, TO CREATE THE FACADE IMPROVEMENT IN THE BUDGET THIS YEAR? NO, MA'AM.
THIS IS, THIS IS THE SUPPORT THAT'S GONNA BE PROVIDED.
SO I, I WANNA SEE CONTINUED FACADE IMPROVEMENTS.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF WE CAN SAVE THESE THREE CORRIDORS FOR POSSIBLE BUDGET, OR IF WE GET EXTRA FUNDS TO, TO CONTINUE FACADE IMPROVEMENTS.
I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE, WE STICK WITH THE ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA THAT WE DO HAVE.
BECAUSE AGAIN, MY CONCERN IS I, I MEAN, IF I COULD MAKE A REQUEST AND, AND PUT IN OTHER, I MEAN, I KNOW I HAVE THE WORLD HERITAGE AND I KNOW DISTRICT FIVE HAS SOME IN HERE.
I, I BELIEVE DISTRICT TWO, BUT THERE ARE OTHERS THAT AREN'T ELIGIBLE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE POSSIBLY BE PART OF THIS.
SO THAT, THAT'S WHERE I AM RIGHT HERE ON THIS.
SO, UM, I, I AM SUPPORTING WHAT THE CURRENT TIMELINE THAT WE HAVE HERE TODAY.
THANK YOU ANNA, FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UH, I KNOW I'VE BEEN SENDING YOU ALL A LOT OF CONTACTS OF CONSTITUENTS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN SEEKING, UM, ASSISTANCE FROM THIS PROGRAM.
AND I CONTINUE TO TEXT CONSTITUENTS THE LINK TO THE APPLICATION SO THAT WAY THEY CAN APPLY AND HOPEFULLY THEY QUALIFY.
UM, BUT THERE'S STILL, UM, A, A HUGE DESIRE FROM OUR SMALL BUSINESSES TO SEEK THIS ASSISTANCE.
UH, I I ALSO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT, YOU KNOW, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT THESE WAR PARAMETERS THAT WE, WE DID DISCUSS HERE, BUT I ALSO WANNA TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THAT THE DISTRICT SEVEN TEAM WAS IN A BIT OF A TRANSITION, RIGHT? SO THERE WASN'T, UH, NECESSARILY A STEADY VOICE TO ADVOCATE TO ENSURE THAT D SEVEN BUSINESSES, UM, WERE FAIRLY REPRESENTED IN, IN THE, THE PUBLIC INPUT PROCESS.
RIGHT? UM, SO I, I WANNA TO, UH, ACKNOWLEDGE COUNCILMAN GATO AND HER ADVOCACY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE REVISIT THIS SO THAT WAY D SEVEN RESIDENTS, UH, HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE INCLUDED IN THIS GRANT OPPORTUNITY.
UH, WITH THAT, I WOULD BE SUPPORTIVE OF INCLUDING THOSE THREE CORRIDORS TO ENSURE, UM, THAT THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY.
RIGHT? AND WHAT I'VE SEEN IN MY DISTRICT, MANY OF 'EM, THEY'VE APPLIED, BUT THEY, THEY DON'T MEET SPECIFIC METRICS, RIGHT? SO NOT TO SAY EVERYONE THAT APPLIES IS GOING TO GET IT, UM, BUT PROVIDES THEM WITH THAT OPPORTUNITY TO, TO SEE, UM, WHAT THEY MAY NEED FOR THE NEXT ROUND OR NEXT OPPORTUNITY RATHER.
UM, SO WITH THE CURRENT APPLICATIONS THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED, IT'S ROUGHLY 220 FULLY SUBMITTED.
DO WE KNOW WHICH CORRIDORS THE MAJORITY ARE COMING FROM? UM, AND, AND DO WE KNOW IF OUT OF THE 20, UH, FULLY SUBMITTED MEANS THEY FULLY QUALIFY AND WILL BE RECEIVING GRANT FUNDING? SO WE HAVEN'T BEGUN THE REVIEW PROCESS OF THE, THE FULLY SUBMITTED YET.
WE'RE ACTUALLY WORKING THROUGH MAKING SURE THAT WHAT WE HAVE IN THERE IS COMPLETE AND FOLLOWING UP WITH THOSE WHO HAVE INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS AT
[00:15:01]
THIS POINT.UM, OF THOSE IN PROGRESS, UM, THE MAJORITY, UH, WELL, THE LARGEST NUMBER ARE COMING FROM DISTRICT ONE AT THIS POINT IN TIME.
UM, AND SO WE KEEP, OR THE TEAM KEEPS LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS, OUR BUSINESS OUTREACH TEAM AND GOING OUT AND CONDUCTING OUTREACH.
UM, BUT AT THIS POINT WE ARE, UM, WE HAVE SOME FROM, FOR MOST DISTRICTS, BUT RIGHT NOW, DISTRICT ONE.
AND THEN FOR THE D ONE PROJECTS, FOR EXAMPLE, DO WE KNOW IF THEY'RE CONCENTRATED ON A SPECIFIC CORRIDOR? ARE THEY SPRINKLE IT ALL THROUGHOUT D ONE ON THE APPROVED CORRIDORS? UM, WE DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION, BUT WE CAN CERTAINLY LOOK THROUGH THE SYSTEM AND, AND IDENTIFY THAT.
UM, AND IF YOU CAN PROVIDE, UM, THE, THE APP, CAN YOU, CAN THAT BE SHARED WITH US, THE APPLICANT'S PER CORRIDOR THAT, UH, EVEN IF THEY'VE BEEN DENIED, SO THAT WAY WE'RE AWARE OF WHICH SMALL BUSINESSES ARE IN NEED OF SOME TYPE OF SUPPORT AND MOVING FORWARD, WE CAN CONNECT THEM IF NEEDED.
WE CAN PROVIDE UPDATED NUMBERS.
DOES, I JUST WANNA REITERATE, NONE HAVE BEEN DENIED THUS FAR.
WE ARE STILL IN THE PROCESS OF TAKING APPLICATIONS AND THEN THAT REVIEW WILL HAPPEN, UM, ONCE WE YES.
UH, THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS, CHAIR.
YEAH, SO FIRST I WANT TO SAY THAT I'M, I'M REALLY PLEASED THAT THE NORTHEAST CORRIDOR IS, IS BEING ACKNOWLEDGED IN THIS WHOLE PROCESS.
IT'S AN AREA, UM, THAT I KNOW A LOT OF BUSINESSES COULD, COULD GREATLY BENEFIT, UM, FROM THESE DOLLARS.
AND, AND SO I WOULD FULLY EXPECT THAT, UH, SOME OF THOSE BUSINESSES THAT, THAT APPLY AND HOPE THAT, THAT THEY'LL END UP WITH SOME OF THESE FUNDS.
UM, WITH RESPECT TO THE DISTRICT SEVEN ISSUE, UM, TO ME IT'S A MATTER OF, UM, I I BELIEVE THAT THAT EVERY, EVERY DISTRICT SHOULD BE FAIRLY REPRESENTED IN THESE, UH, IN THESE PROCESSES.
AND I, I KNOW THAT IF DISTRICT 10 WAS GOING THROUGH A SCENARIO WHERE IT WAS IN TRANSITION AND, AND PERHAPS DIDN'T HAVE, UM, A REPRESENTATIVE THERE WHEN SOME OF THESE DISCUSSIONS WERE HELD, THAT I WOULD HOPE THAT, THAT MY COLLEAGUES WOULD, WOULD ACKNOWLEDGE THAT AND, AND ALLOW A DISTRICT 10 VOICE, UH, TO BE HEARD BEFORE, UH, DECISIONS LIKE THIS WERE MADE.
UM, SO WITH THAT SAID, UM, I THINK GIVEN THE SITUATION, UH, THAT DISTRICT SEVEN WAS GOING THROUGH, UM, I THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE THAT, THAT WE PUSH THE, UH, THAT TIMELINE BACK AND, AND ALLOW, UM, THOSE CORRIDORS IN, IN DISTRICT SEVEN, UM, TO APPLY IF THEY WISH.
SO THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS WE HAVE.
UH, JUST SO I UNDERSTAND THIS CORRECTLY, YOU'RE ASKING, YOU'RE, YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A VOTE TODAY, RIGHT? TO BE SENT UP TO A SESSION FOR THE ENTIRE COUNCIL TO VOTE? OR IS THIS JUST UNILATERALLY DONE BY THE COMMITTEE? NO, WE'RE GOING TO, WE'RE WE'RE DOING THESE ITEMS, ALL THE ARPA ITEMS AT THE COMMITTEE LEVEL.
UM, THE GRANTS, THE GRANT SIZE DOESN'T REQUIRE COUNCIL ACTION, RIGHT, ANNA? YEAH.
THE, BECAUSE THEY'RE GONNA BE UNDER 50,000, THE GRANTS, THEY WILL NOT HAVE TO GO TO A SESSION.
WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR ACTION HERE IS TO CHANGE THE ELIGIBILITY OR CHANGE THE ELIGIBLE CORRIDORS SO THAT WE CAN UPDATE THE PROGRAM.
THIS WOULD NOT GO TO A SESSION.
UM, IN ORDER TO ACCOMPLISH THIS THOUGH, WE, WE WOULD NEED A MOTION, UM, FROM SOMEBODY FORWARD, THE STAFFS RECOMMENDATION STAFFS.
SO, UM, OUR RECOMMENDATION IS JUST THAT WE CHANGE THE, THE TIMELINE IF YOU'RE GONNA ADD THE CORRIDORS.
WITH THE, THE PROPOSED THREE CORRIDORS FOR FREDERICKSBURG ROAD, FROM WOODLAWN AVENUE TO CLUB DRIVE, S AVENUE, WILSON WILSON TO ST.
CLOUD AND CBRA ROAD FROM CAMINO TO BRUNO AVENUE CHAIR REALLY QUICKLY.
SO THE MOTION WOULD BE TO RECOMMEND, UM, COUNCIL GRANTED, CITY MANAGER THE AUTHORITY TO MAKE THOSE.
SO THIS COMMITTEE WOULD BE RECOMMENDING THAT TO STAFF TO MAKE THOSE CHANGES.
THAT'S WHAT YOUR MOTION? YES, CORRECT.
WE HAVE A MOTION TO SECOND AND JUST WANNA MAKE SURE, UH, 'CAUSE THIS I THINK IS OUR ONLY ITEM, UH, THAT WE HAVE TODAY, RIGHT? NO, WE HAVE ONE MORE ITEM.
I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY GETS TO SAY THEIR PIECE.
ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS, MA'AM? YEAH, I, I APPRECIATE WHAT THE COMMITTEE DOES.
I MEAN, I APPRECIATE THE COMMITTEE'S WORK, AND I HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, BUT WE DO NEED ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.
I AM VERY, UM, HESITANT ABOUT CHANGING THE ELIGIBILITY CO, UH, CRITERIA FOR THREE.
[00:20:01]
I APPRECIATE THE OTHER, THE COUNCILMAN ASKING, BUT NOW I THINK WHAT IF WE HAD HAD DISTRICT ONE OR DISTRICT NINE NOT GIVING THEM THE OPPORTUNITY TO ADD CORRIDORS TO THIS? SO IS IT POSSIBLE THAT WE CAN ASK THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS TO SUBMIT IF WE'RE WE'RE GOING TO OPEN THIS UP WITH NO ELIGIBILITY, THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO MEET THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS? WE, WE DIDN'T GET REQUESTS FROM ANYBODY ELSE, BUT THEY, THEY DIDN'T KNOW THEY COULD MAKE REQUESTS, DID THEY? WE, WE DIDN'T GET ANY REQUESTS FROM ANYBODY ELSE.SO, UM, I, I WON'T BE SUPPORTING THIS TODAY.
IT JUST SEEMS, UM, NOT INTENDED W WITH WHAT WE HAD FOR OUR ELIGIBILITY, WE WERE LOOKING AT, UH, CORRIDORS IMPACTED BY C O I BUSINESSES IMPACTED BY C AND THE OTHER THING IS I, DISTRICT DISTRICT SEVEN DID HAVE REPRESENTATION AND I THINK COUNCILMAN CASTRO DID A, A GOOD JOB.
SO I, I UNDERSTAND THAT WE HAVE, UH, A NEED AND, AND AN OPPORTUNITY, BUT I JUST, I, I JUST THINK THE NUANCES OF, OF WHAT THIS IS, I KNOW WORLD HERITAGE IS LOOKING FOR BUSINESS IMPROVEMENTS.
I HOPE THESE NEIGHBORHOODS ARE ALSO SO, UM, I WON'T BE SUPPORTING THIS TODAY.
AND I'LL, I, UM, I'M JUST, UH, I REALLY THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT THIS COMMITTEE STICKS WITH THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, EVEN IF IT CHANGES IN MEMBERSHIP WITH WHAT WE PUT FORWARD FOR THE ARPA DOLLARS.
ANYTHING ELSE, UH, THAT MY OTHER COLLEAGUES WANT TO ADD OR? OKAY.
ALRIGHT, WE GOT A MOTION AND A SECOND.
UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR PLEASE SAY AYE.
ALL THOSE OPPOSED NAY AND THE AYES HAVE IT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH EVERYBODY.
WHAT IS OUR NEXT ITEM, ALEX? UH, THE NEXT ITEM IS ACTUALLY A PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, A BRIEFING ON A STUDY THAT WE'RE GONNA BE CONDUCTING FOR CHILD AN AN ASSESSMENT OF CHILDCARE, UH, RESOURCES IN THE COMMUNITY.
SARAH BERE IS ACTUALLY GONNA BE DOING THIS BRIEFING.
IT'S, UM, GREAT TO BE BEFORE YOU.
AND WHILE I AM THE C E O OF PRE-K FORAY, I AM ACTUALLY HERE ON BEHALF OF, UM, A GROUP OF US.
SO READY TO WORK, UM, THE, THE, UM, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT AND DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES WHO ARE LOOKING TO DO A STUDY ON EARLY LEARNING.
SO THE BACKGROUND ON THIS IS THERE, THERE ARE A GROUP OF, UM, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE WORKING WITH, UM, VARIOUS CITY COUNT OR CITY, UM, DEPARTMENTS TO IMPROVE EARLY LEARNING ACROSS BEXAR COUNTY.
AND WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE NEED TO HAVE DATA TO REALLY UNDERSTAND WHERE WE ARE SO THAT WE CAN ENSURE THAT EVERY CHILD, EVERY YOUNG CHILD HAS ACCESS TO HIGH QUALITY, EARLY LEARNING AND CARE AT AN AFFORDABLE PRICE.
WE'RE REALLY LOOKING AT THE ISSUE OF, THANK YOU.
LAST TIME I WAS BEFORE A COMMITTEE, I WAS SEATED AT A TABLE, SO THIS IS ALL LIKE FANCY.
AND SO, UM, WE HAVE BEEN TALKING, AND THIS IS IN PART WITH, UM, COLLEAGUES THROUGH EARLY MATTERS, WHICH, UM, WE'VE JUST FINISHED THROUGH EARLY MATTERS, PUTTING TOGETHER A COUNTYWIDE EARLY LEARNING IMPROVEMENT PLAN.
AND PART OF THAT IS TO GET THE DATA TO SEE AS WE WORK INTO OUR IMPROVEMENT, UM, STRATEGIES, HOW WE'RE DOING.
SO WE ARE PROPOSING TO DO A STUDY, UM, THAT WILL LOOK AT THE AVAILABILITY OF HIGH QUALITY, AFFORDABLE, EARLY LEARNING AND CARE ACROSS BEX COUNTY.
SO PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC, 99% OF LOW INCOME CHILDREN IN BEXAR COUNTY LIVED IN WHAT IS CALLED A CHILDCARE QUALITY CHILDCARE DESERT.
AND THAT'S DEFINED AS ANY ZIP CODE WITH 30 OR MORE CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF FIVE.
AND WHERE THERE ARE THREE TIMES AS MANY CHILDREN AS THERE ARE AVAILABLE QUALITY SEATS.
UM, SO THAT THERE'S A SCARCITY ESSENTIALLY, OF HIGH QUALITY CARE.
THEN WE HAD THE PANDEMIC AND, UM, CHILDCARE DESERT GREW BY 50% ACROSS BEXAR COUNTY.
SO WE KNOW THAT THE PROBLEM HAS GOTTEN EVEN WORSE.
UM, AND THE WAY THAT WE MEASURE CHILDCARE DESERTS ACTUALLY UNDERESTIMATES THE PROBLEM BECAUSE WE LOOK AT CHILDCARE SEATS THROUGH LICENSING, LICENSING CAPACITY.
AND SO A CENTER MIGHT BE LICENSED TO SERVE 50 CHILDREN, BUT THEY ONLY HAVE THE STAFF OR THE CAPACITY TO SERVE 30.
SO IN THE CHILDCARE DESERT MAP, THEY WOULD BE COUNTED AS HAVING 50 SEATS, WHEN IN FACT THEY ONLY HAVE 30.
UM, THEY, THE, UM, WAY THAT WE LOOK AT THAT INFORMATION AS WELL DOES NOT INCLUDE NON-TRADITIONAL HOURS.
SO WE'RE REALLY ONLY LOOKING AT LICENSED CARE THAT IS AVAILABLE DURING, UM, TYPICAL BUSINESS HOURS.
AND IT DOES NOT INCLUDE OUR FAMILIES WHO NEED, UM, EVENING HOURS OR WEEKEND HOURS OR DROP IN HOURS.
SO WE REALLY DON'T HAVE A GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT WE GOT WE HAVE OUT THERE.
AND SO THIS STUDY PROPOSES TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT.
[00:25:01]
I SAY WE, AGAIN, THIS WAS THIS GROUP OF DEPARTMENTS THAT CAME TOGETHER AND SAID, AND, AND ACTUALLY COUNCIL MEMBER LYAS, YOU HAD ASKED ABOUT THIS A COUPLE YEARS AGO AND SAID, WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THIS? AND, AND WE, SO WE REALLY STARTED DIGGING INTO THE AVAILABLE DATA AND BEING ABLE TO UNDERSTAND IT.WE ISSUED AN R F P TO OUR LOCAL RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES SAYING WE WANTED TO HAVE THIS VERY COMPREHENSIVE STUDY.
AND, UM, AS THE LOCAL RESEARCH NERD, I GOT TO HELP PUT THE
AND TEXAS A AND M SAN ANTONIO REPLIED TO THE PROPOSAL.
THEY PUT IN A VERY COMPREHENSIVE, UM, PROPOSAL THAT WE FEEL LIKE IS, UM, GOING TO RESULT IN THE INFORMATION THAT WE NEED.
THE RESEARCHERS WHO ARE HEADING THIS UP, UH, ARE DR.
ZENON, AND I'M NOT SURE I'M PRONOUNCING HER NAME RIGHT.
AND, UM, SO WE ARE PROPOSING THAT, UM, THIS STUDY, WHICH IS, UM, LOOKING AT LICENSED CHILDCARE CENTERS REGISTERED IN LICENSED CHILDCARE HOMES, HEAD START AND EARLY HEAD START, UM, GRANTEES, PRE-K FOR SA AND DISTRICT-BASED EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS. SO THIS IS REALLY THAT MIXED GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE HELPING TO PROVIDE EARLY LEARNING, UM, AND CARE AND EDUCATION TO OUR YOUNG CHILDREN ACROSS, ACROSS THE COUNTY.
WE'RE GOING TO, UM, A AND M PROPOSES TO USE EXISTING DATA.
THERE ARE SOME DATA OUT THERE, BUT THEY'RE NOT IN ONE PLACE AND THEY HAVE TO BE PULLED TOGETHER AS WELL AS HAVE SURVEY INSTRUMENTS OF A STATISTICALLY REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE OF THE PROVIDERS.
SO THAT, AND THEN HAVE INTERVIEWS WITH PROVIDERS THAT, AGAIN, MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE, UM, LOOKING EQUITABLY ACROSS OUR COMMUNITY.
THE, UM, RESULTS WILL BE IN A FULL PROJECT REPORT, BUT ALSO AN EXECUTIVE, BUT ALSO AN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BECAUSE I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE A PRETTY HEFTY REPORT THAT COMES OUT.
AND THEN WE'LL COME BACK AND DO PRESENTATIONS TO VARIOUS GROUPS THAT, UM, WILL WANT TO KNOW THIS INFORMATION.
AND THIS WILL BE THE BASIS THEN FOR OUR WORK GOING FORWARD, UM, AS WE LOOK ACROSS THE COMMUNITY TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO HIGH QUALITY EARLY LEARNING AND CARE.
SO OUR RECOMMENDATION IS THAT STAFF RECOMMENDS MOVING FORWARD FOR FULL COMP CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION, A PROPOSED PROFESSIONAL SERVICES AGREEMENT WITH TEXAS A AND M, SAN UNIVERSITY OF SAN ANTONIO IN THE AMOUNT OF $96,712 FOR A ONE YEAR TERM.
AND IF I'M REMEMBERING CORRECTLY, MELISSA'S PREDICTING THIS'S GONNA TAKE SOMEWHERE BETWEEN SIX AND NINE MONTHS TO COMPLETE.
UH, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE.
APPRECIATE, UM, TEXAS A AND M STEPPING UP TO THIS CHALLENGE.
I'M GONNA, UH, GO AROUND THE HORN AND GET MY, UH, COMMENTS FROM MY COLLEAGUES.
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I DON'T KNOW WHY WE NEED TO DO A STUDY, BUT
WE KNOW THAT WE NEED, UM, MORE IN EARLY CHILD AND EARLY LEARNING, SO I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE MOVING FORWARD.
I HOPE IT'S GONNA BE WHAT'S NEEDED NECESSARY TO GO OUT, OUT IN WHAT I BELIEVE IS GOING TO BE GRANTS AND FEDERAL FUNDS THAT WILL COME OUT THERE AS WE SEE THIS.
I THINK WHAT'S IMPORTANT AND THAT, WHAT I WANNA STRESS IS WE ARE LEARNING NOW THAT WITH MENTAL HEALTH, WE NEED TO START AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE.
I, I FEEL LIKE IT'S GIVEN, BUT I HAVE AN EDUCATION BACKGROUND TOO, SO THAT'S WHY.
BUT I APPRECIATE, UH, ALL YOUR EFFORTS AND I APPRECIATE, UM, UH, TEXAS A AND M, UM, SAN ANTONIO STEPPING UP TO DO THIS.
AND I THINK WE WILL HAVE A GREAT, UM, WE'LL JUST, WE'LL JUST SEE THINGS MOVE FORWARD.
I WANNA SAY IT IS ABSOLUTELY, WE KNOW, BUT WE DON'T KNOW THE EXTENT AND WE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY, WE DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW MANY SEATS WE NEED FOR FAMILIES THAT NEED ALTERNATE HOURS.
AND SO THIS WILL HELP GIVE US A BASELINE OF WHERE TO PUT OUR RESOURCES, BUT ALSO THEN AS WE MOVE FORWARD TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS, WE'LL HAVE SOMETHING TO MEASURE AGAINST BECAUSE WE WANNA MAKE SURE OUR EFFORTS ARE SUCCESSFUL.
SO, THANK YOU COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO, ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS? THANK YOU DR.
I'M REALLY EXCITED TO SEE THIS MOVE FORWARD.
UM, WHAT WHAT COMES TO MIND, RIGHT, IS I OFTEN THINK ABOUT OUR CITY STAFF WHEN WE'RE IN ATTENDANCE AT NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION MEETINGS, AND IT SOMETIMES THEY START AT SIX 30, DON'T END UNTIL NINE, RIGHT? AND THEY'VE ALREADY WORKED FROM NINE TO FIVE AND BEYOND.
AND I'M THINKING ABOUT WHAT DOES ACCESS TO CHILDCARE LOOK LIKE AND THE COST OF THAT CHILDCARE.
UH, AND, AND, UH, I, I WOULD, I'M SURE YOU ALL WILL, WILL FIND THROUGH THIS STUDY, UH, AND, AND I WOULD LIKE TO LEARN ABOUT WHAT, WHAT'S THE CHILDCARE DESERT WITHIN, UM, COSA, RIGHT? UM, AND WHERE D S D AND CITY HALL AND CITY TOWER, WHAT, UH, CHILDCARE RESOURCES IS AVAILABLE TO CITY STAFF.
UM, BUT I THINK THIS IS REALLY EXCITING AND, UM, LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT YOU ALL IDENTIFY.
YEAH, I, I'M UNCLEAR AS WELL ON, ON WHY WE NEED A STUDY AND, UM, AND, AND THEN IS THIS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE CAN DO IN HOUSE
[00:30:01]
HERE? WELL, LET ME SAY THE REASON WE NEED A STUDY IS BECAUSE THE DATA FOR CHILDCARE IS ALL OVER THE PLACE.TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION HAS SOME LICENSING, HAS SOME, THERE'S SOME THROUGH SCHOOL DISTRICTS HAVE SOME OF THE DATA THERE.
AND YOU CAN'T PULL IT TOGETHER IN ONE PLACE TO MAKE IT MAKE SENSE.
AND EVEN THAT IT'S LIMITED IN TERMS OF WHAT THEY ASK FOR.
AN EXAMPLE OF THAT IS LICENSED CAPACITY, RIGHT? SO WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, ALLEGEDLY WE HAVE MORE SPACES FOR CHILDREN THAN WE ACTUALLY DO, BECAUSE WHEN YOU SAY TO A CENTER, 'CAUSE LICENSING, THE WAY THEY GO OUT, THEY GO OUT TO YOUR BUILDING AND THEY SAY, OH, YOU'VE GOT 30 SQUARE FEET PER CHILD.
OKAY, YOU COULD HAVE A HUNDRED KIDS IN HERE, BUT THE PROVIDER IS LIKE, NO, I'M ONLY RUNNING TWO CLASSROOMS, SO I REALLY ONLY HAVE 40.
BUT LICENSING LISTS IT AS HAVING A HUNDRED BECAUSE IN THEORY YOU COULD GO UP TO THAT, BUT IF YOU DON'T HAVE THE TEACHERS, YOU DON'T HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE TO DO IT, YOU REALLY CAN'T.
AND SO THIS IS GONNA HELP US UNDERSTAND WHAT'S THE REAL CAPACITY OUT THERE AND WHERE ARE THE HOLES.
BECAUSE AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, ON THE NORTH SIDE OF SAN ANTONIO, THERE'S A WHOLE LOT MORE, UM, AVAILABILITY OF HIGH QUALITY, WHICH IS, IS, UM, CHILDCARE CENTERS THAT HAVE BEEN GONE THROUGH A RATE QUALITY RATING SYSTEM THAN THERE ARE IN OTHER PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY.
SO THIS HELPS US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT DO WE ACTUALLY NEED TO DO? AND THEN LOOKING AT THE POPULATION, THE NEEDS OUT THERE FOR FAMILIES, WE HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY FAMILIES ACTUALLY NEED AFTER HOURS CARE OR WHETHER THEY, UM, ARE GOING WITH A FAMILY MEMBER OR WHETHER THEY WOULD GO TO A LICENSED CHILDCARE FACILITY IF IT WAS AVAILABLE TO THEM.
AND SO THIS WILL HELP US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR COMMUNITY SO WE CAN MATCH RESOURCES TO THOSE NEEDS.
AND IF I CAN ADD TO THAT ONCE, EVEN IF WE UNDERSTAND THERE'S A NEED, IF WE TAKE THAT AS A GIVEN, WE DON'T HAVE EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES THAT ARE GONNA WORK IN THIS COMMUNITY BROKEN OUT BY DISTRICTS AND SECTORS.
SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF CHILDCARE SLOTS IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, AND THEN YOU LOOK AT THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF SLOTS WHERE THE PROVIDER IS TAKING PART OF CHILDCARE SUBSIDY, OR THEY'RE PART OF THE TEXAS RISING STAR, YOU MOVE FROM 86 PER 100 AVERAGE SLOTS.
THEN WHEN YOU GO INTO CHILDCARE SUBSIDY, WE'RE DROPPING DOWN TO 28 SLOTS PER 100 CHILDREN, AND THEN WE GO DOWN TO NINE.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT QUALITY, WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS HOLDING CHILDCARE PROVIDERS BACK FROM BEING ABLE TO OFFER THEIR FAMILIES CHILDCARE SUBSIDY.
BECAUSE IF WE DON'T, THEN WE'RE JUST CREATING MORE HIGH COST CHILDCARE SLOTS THAT SKEW THE VIEW OF WHAT WE THINK THE CITY HAS.
SO THE PART OF THE RESEARCH, AND THE REASON WE SELECTED A MIXED METHOD STUDY WITH, UM, FOCUS GROUPS IS BECAUSE WE REALLY DO HAVE TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH THOSE CHILDCARE PROVIDERS, AND WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEIR STRENGTHS ARE SO WE CAN USE THOSE TO ADDRESS THE GAPS THAT EXIST.
AND SO I THINK THAT'S, FOR ME, THE MOST COMPELLING REASON.
THIS STUDY IS SO CRITICAL BECAUSE EVEN IF WE COULD PULL ALL THE QUANTITATIVE DATA AND RUN THE ANALYSIS, IT'S NOT GONNA GIVE US THE POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS THAT THE CITY NEEDS IN ORDER TO ACTUALLY FIX THE PROBLEM.
SO, SO WHAT ARE THE OTHER STEPS THAT GO INTO THIS BESIDES TALKING TO THE CHILDCARE PROVIDERS? SO ONCE WE TALK WITH CHILDCARE PROVIDERS AND WE BEGIN TO SORT OF ANALYZE THAT DATA AND WE SEE WHAT TRENDS ARE COMING OUT, WE CAN ACTUALLY BREAK IT OUT ACROSS DISTRICTS TO SEE IF WE'RE SEEING TRENDS THAT ARE CONSISTENT ONLY IN CERTAIN AREAS OR ZONES, AND THEN MAKE VERY CUSTOMIZED RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND THAT'S WHAT WILL COME IN THE FINAL REPORT ALONG WITH ALL OF THE GRAPHICS THAT WE CAN PROVIDE YOU AS SORT OF A, YOU KNOW, HERE'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING ON, IF WE LOOK AT THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE CITY, HERE'S WHAT WE SEE IN DISTRICT, YOU KNOW, 10, HERE'S WHAT WE SEE GOING ON.
AND WE CAN KIND OF GIVE YOU THIS VERY NUANCED, UM, UNDERSTANDING OF CHILDCARE ACROSS THE CITY WITH THE SPECIFIC POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS BEING INFORMED BY WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THOSE CHILDCARE PROVIDERS.
SO I'M NOT SURE IF THAT FULLY ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION, BUT, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR PROCESS IS BASICALLY WE'RE GONNA TAKE THAT QUANTITATIVE DATA, UM, WE ARE GOING TO PULL IT FROM ALL OF THE PARTIES INVOLVED, MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT EVERYTHING THAT WE NEED, LOOK AT THAT, MOVE INTO A STRATIFIED RANDOM SAMPLING SO THAT WE'RE HITTING CHILDCARE PROVIDERS ACROSS THE CITY, THAT WE'RE HITTING THE TARGET GROUPS ACROSS THE DEMOGRAPHICS, BECAUSE IT'S ONE THING TO TALK WITH A LICENSED CHILDCARE CENTER, IT'S ANOTHER TO TALK WITH A LICENSED CHILDCARE HOME.
IT'S ANOTHER TO TALK WITH A HEADSTART RECIPIENT.
SO MAKING SURE WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH EACH OF THOSE ENTITIES THAT OPERATE UNDER DIFFERENT POLICY GROUPS, UM, TO REALLY MAKE SURE THAT THE PICTURE WE'RE PROVIDING FOR YOU IS COMPREHENSIVE AND HOW, AND THEN WE'LL PROVIDE THAT REPORT AND, AND HOW LONG DO WE THINK IT'S GONNA TAKE? AT A MINIMUM SIX MONTHS, BUT CONFIDENTLY NINE MONTHS, BECAUSE THERE'S ALREADY
[00:35:01]
A LARGE AMOUNT OF INFRASTRUCTURE ON THE GROUND IN TERMS OF GROUPS IDENTIFYING WHAT DATA IS NEEDED AND WHO HAS THAT DATA.WHAT HASN'T HAPPENED IS A CENTRAL AGENCY COORDINATING THAT DATA, PULLING IT TOGETHER AND RUNNING IT THROUGH ONE COMMON ANALYSIS.
SO THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF TIME SAVINGS GOING ON THERE.
AND MAYBE WE DON'T HAVE TO GO BACK OUT BECAUSE WE'LL KNOW WHERE TO GET THE DATA, WHAT ANALYSIS TO RUN.
BUT RIGHT NOW, COULD I, COULD I DO THIS? YES.
DO I HAVE TIME TO DO THIS?
AND SO I'M THRILLED THAT THEY'RE WILLING TO TAKE THIS ON.
'CAUSE IT'S A HUGE, IT'S A VERY COMPREHENSIVE STUDY, AND WE INTENDED IT THAT WAY 'CAUSE WE'RE LIKE, LET'S GO OUT ONCE, LET'S GET THE INFORMATION SO WE CAN REALLY START TO MOVE FORWARD.
I I, I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT YOU TOOK THE INVITATION TO, TO STUDY THIS VERY SERIOUSLY.
UM, AND I, I UNDERSTAND, RIGHT? AND I THINK EVERYBODY IN HERE INTUITIVELY KNOWS THAT THERE IS, THAT WHATEVER WE'VE GOT IS BROKEN, RIGHT? AND THAT, THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE BEING LEFT BEHIND THAT A LOT OF CHILDREN ARE BEING UNSERVED, RIGHT? WE ALSO KNOW THAT YOU CAN DRAW A STRAIGHT LINE FROM EARLY CHILDCARE AND PRE-K TO, UM, SUCCESS AS ADULTS, UH, AND BETTER, YOU KNOW, UM, BETTER ACHIEVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES PRESENT THEMSELVES, RIGHT? THE SO THAT I, I, I DON'T THINK THAT'S UP FOR DEBATE.
UH, WHAT I'M, WHAT I WANT TO DO, HOWEVER, IS MAKE SURE THAT, UM, WE, WE NOT FORGET, RIGHT? THAT EVEN THOUGH WE INTUITIVELY KNOW THAT A BIG PROBLEM EXISTS, I THINK OUR JOB AS A DATA INFORMED ORGANIZATION IS TO, UM, REALLY WRAP OUR ARMS AROUND THE, THE SCOPE OF THE MAGNITUDE, RIGHT? AND TO REALLY UNDERSTAND IT GRANULARLY.
BUT THEN ALSO ONCE WE HAVE THE, THAT ANALYSIS DONE, THEN IT HELPS US WITH THE, WITH THE ORDER OF OPERATIONS AS FAR AS HOW WE'RE GONNA GO ABOUT SOLVING SOME OF THIS.
AND SO, UM, YOU CLEARLY YOU HAVE MY SUPPORT, BUT MORE THAN ANYTHING, IT'S JUST, YOU COULD HAVE JUST TOLD, SAID, DR.
AND THE ANSWER ANSWER'S ALWAYS YES.
UM, THE, THE, THE OTHER THING TOO IS WHERE DO YOU THINK THIS GOES NEXT? LET'S, LET'S ASSUME, RIGHT, THAT THE STUDY VALIDATES, UM, WHAT WE, WHAT WE ALL INTUITIVELY KNOW RIGHT NOW, WE'VE GOT, WE'RE ARMED WITH GOOD DATA, RIGHT? UM, WHAT, WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WITH THIS DOCTOR? SO ONE OF THE FIRST PLACES THAT WE'LL GO IS TO THE EARLY MATTERS GROUP THAT IS ALREADY BRINGING TOGETHER MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS, WHETHER IT'S PROVIDERS, UM, NONPROFITS WHO ARE IN THE EARLY CHILDHOOD SPACE HEADSTART LICENSING TO SAY, OKAY, WHAT HAVE WE GOT HERE AND WHO HAS RESOURCES, OR WHOSE MISSION IS IT TO FILL THIS PARTICULAR NEED? AND HOW ARE WE GOING TO WORK TOGETHER COLLABORATIVELY TO DO THAT? SPECIFICALLY, WE KNOW WE HAVE, UM, TOO FEW SPACES FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
AND SO WE'RE THINKING THAT ONCE WE IDENTIFY WHAT THE REAL NEED IS, THEN HOW DO WE BUILD UP MORE SPACES? AND PRE-K FOR I SAY, CERTAINLY CAN BE PART OF THAT.
D H SS IS PART OF THAT WORKFORCE.
OUR, OUR, UM, WORKFORCE, SAN ANTONIO WORKFORCE COMMISSION ALSO DOES THOSE, THOSE PIECES.
AND THEN ALSO IN TERMS OF HOW DO WE PUT FOR OUR MILITARY FAMILIES, WE ALSO HAVE, UM, A HUGE WAITING LIST FOR MILITARY CHILDCARE.
SO AGAIN, HOW DO WE MATCH THE NEED TO THE RESOURCES IN THE COMMUNITY AND PUT AN ACTION PLAN INTO PLACE THAT WE CAN MEASURE PROGRESS OVER TIME.
THE ONLY OTHER THING THAT I WANNA ADD THAT I'M, I'M SURE EVERYBODY'S KIND OF THINKING ABOUT IT ALREADY TOO, TOO, IS JUST THE WORKFORCE COM, THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COMPONENT OF IT.
UM, AND, AND WE TEND TO THINK OF, UH, LIKE I'M THINKING OF FAMILIES THAT NEED PARTICULAR SHIFTS.
UM, WE, WE TEND TO THINK OF TOYOTA SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE OF THE WAY THEY, THE WAY THEY OPERATE.
BUT IF WE'RE TRYING TO GET, UM, SPECIFICALLY MORE WOMEN IN NON-TRADITIONAL FIELDS, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ALSO HAVE THOSE, THOSE CHILDCARE RESOURCES AVAILABLE.
AND THAT'S WHY IT'S VERY INTENTIONAL THAT YOU HAVE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, PRE-K, UM, HUMAN SERVICES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ALL WORKING TOGETHER ON, ON THIS INITIATIVE, WHICH IS WHY IT MAKES SENSE TO HAVE IT IN THIS COMMITTEE.
UM, THE OTHER THING I WANTED TO ADD IS, UM, I I, I, I, I WANNA CELEBRATE THE FACT THAT WE'RE, UM, BRINGING TEXAS A AND M ON TO DO AN IMPORTANT RESEARCH PROJECT FOR US.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE COMPLAINTS, UM, THAT, THAT I'VE ARTICULATED OVER THE PAST SIX YEARS IS THAT ALL TOO OFTEN WE RELY ON ONE UNIVERSITY WHO I LOVE, BY THE WAY, U U T S A DOES EXCELLENT WORK AND, UM, THEY'RE A TIER ONE RESEARCH FACILITY, BUT BECAUSE THEY'VE HAD PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO DO THIS KIND OF RESEARCH, RIGHT? AND THE MORE AND MORE RESEARCH YOU DO, THE MORE LIKELY YOU ARE TO, TO GROW AND GET FEDERAL FUNDING, AND YOU CAN USE THIS TO LEVERAGE, UM, ACCESS TO OTHER OPPORTUNITIES.
UH, THE, THE IMPACT OF HAVING A TIER ONE RESEARCH FACILITY IN SAN ANTONIO IS INCALCULABLE, RIGHT? AND THE BENEFITS ARE TOO, TOO MANY TO LIST.
BUT I, I DO THINK THAT TEXT A AND
[00:40:01]
M WILL GET THERE, UH, BUT ONLY IF WE LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES.AND, UH, QUITE HONESTLY, THE FACT THAT YOU STEPPED UP AND ALL THE OTHER LOCAL UNIVERSITIES DIDN'T, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK SPEAKS VOLUMES ABOUT, UH, HOW SCRAPPY AND HUNGRY YOU GUYS ARE TO, TO GET THIS DONE.
SO, CONGRATULATIONS,
I, I, I WAS REMINDED, UH, OF ONE THING BY LISTENING TO THE CONVERSATION.
WE'VE HAD THIS ONE GRANDPARENT, SHE'S COME TO PUBLIC COMMENT A A COUPLE TIMES, AND, UH, SHE'S MENTIONED THE NEED FOR, UH, CHILDCARE FOR CHILDREN WITH, UH, DISABILITIES.
AND IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU ALL WOULD BE TRACKING TO SEE WHICH CHILDCARE FACILITIES, UM, OFFER ACCOMMODATIONS? YES, EXACTLY.
WE'LL BE LOOKING AT WHICH CHILDCARE PROVIDERS ARE ADMITTING CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES, THE SCOPE OF THOSE DISABILITIES, AND THEN IN THE FOCUS GROUPS TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHY IF THEY DON'T, WHAT'S HOLDING THEM BACK.
CHILDCARE PROVIDERS SIMPLY DON'T KNOW THAT EXISTS.
THAT MAY BE ONE OF THE HINDRANCES THAT COMES OUT IN THOSE CONVERSATIONS.
THEN THE SOLUTION IS WE JUST NEED TO PROVIDE PROFESSIONAL TRAINING ON HOW TO ACCESS THOSE FUNDS.
IT'S COMPLETELY DIFFERENT IF THEIR STAFF DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE MM-HMM.
RESPONDING TO SOME OF THE MORE CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS THAT SOMETIMES CAN ARISE WHEN CHILDREN DON'T HAVE EMOTIONAL REGULATION.
SO THAT'S, IT'S ABSOLUTELY PART OF WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE LOOKING AT HERE.
UM, AND ONE OF THE REASONS THAT I'M, SO, I MEAN, THIS IS MY PASSION.
AND SO, UM, THIS IS JUST SUCH A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE COMMUNITY THROUGH THIS, BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MANY GROUPS WITH NEEDS, WHETHER IT IS MILITARY, WHETHER IT IS FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN, WITH SPECIAL NEEDS, THAT'S PART OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO TEASE OUT IN THIS VERY NUANCED WAY.
SO, COLLEAGUES, UM, BEFORE WE ENTERTAIN A MOTION AND TAKE A VOTE, I, I DO WANT TO CALL YOUR ATTENTION TO, TO THE FACT THAT THIS IS COUNCILMAN WHITE'S VERY FIRST E W D C MEETING.
I HOPE THAT YOU GOT A FLAVOR FOR HOW IT GOES EVERY TIME, BUT BECAUSE IT'S YOUR FIRST, I'M GONNA GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY AND THE HONOR OF MAKING A MOTION, UH, TO, UM, ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION.
WELL, I MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION OF, UM, WHAT IS IT? ITEM FIVE.
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE.
I THINK THAT TAKES CARE OF OUR AGENDA.
I DON'T SEE AN ITEM SIX ON HERE.
DO WE HAVE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION? NO, SIR.
IT, IT IS SOMEBODY ELSE'S FIRST E W T C MEETING AS WELL, THOUGH.
I DON'T THINK SHAY, UM, SHAY HOPKINS, UM, SOME OF Y'ALL MAY NOT HAVE MET HER YET.
SHE IS OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, NEW ASSISTANT DIRECTOR IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT.
UM, SHE COMES TO US FROM TENNESSEE.
UM, WELL, FORT WORTH VIA TENNESSEE, LET'S SAY THAT WAY.
UM, BUT WE'RE, WE'RE REALLY GLAD TO HAVE HER.
SHE'S GONNA BE WORKING WITH THE INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT TEAM, WHICH IS MORE OF OUR, UM, RECRUITMENT, OUR BUSINESS RETENTION AND EXPANSION PROJECTS AND OUR INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS. UM, SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED TO HAVE HER.
AND I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE TO INTRODUCE HER, SHAY, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A, LIKE A PRETTY BIG BURDEN YOU'RE GONNA BE CARRYING.
ALRIGHT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE'RE ADJOURNED.